598 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY JOHN G. WELLS, a prominent liveryman of Wauseon and Archbold, was born in Ripley township, Holmes county,, Ohio. He is the son of James and Nancy (Lee) Wells, both natives of Ohio. His grandfather, William Wells, was a native of Maryland, and a pioneer settler of Ripley township, Holmes county. The father of William Wells served in the Revolutionary war. James WellS waS born in Ripley township, Holmes county, in 1819. In 1858 he removed to Fulton county and bought a farm in Clinton township, where he lived until 1886, the year of hiS death. His wife was the daughter of James Lee, a native of the same township, where he was one of the earliest settlers. The sketch of the Lee family is found in another part of this work. Only one child, the subject of this sketch, was born to James Wells and wife. John G. Wells was only six years old when he came with his parents to Clinton township, Fulton county. He was reared on the home farm and educated in the public schools of Fulton county. So well was he pleased with farm life that he chose farming as his avocation. In 1886 he removed to Kansas, where for twelve years he resided in Coffee and Osage counties, following his chosen calling. On his return to Wauseon, in 1898, he embarked in the livery business, which he has ever since so successfully conducted. His experience on the farm and his thorough knowledge of horses are of great assistance to him in the management of his business. His popularity is largely due to his readiness at all times to accommodate his many patrons, making only the most reasonable charges. He keeps nothing but good horses and the traveling public shOWs its appreciation of that fact by patronizing him liberally. John G. Wells is actively identified with the Modern Woodmen and the Ancient Order of United Workmen. He married Miss Sophronia D. Murphy, of Seneca county, Ohio. Her mother was a native of Canada and she was the daughter of Robert and Arellia (Becox) Murphy, who came to Ohio from Canada, settling first in Seneca and afterwards in Fulton county. John G. Wells and wife have five children. They are: Curtis C., deceased; Clare B., a liveryman of Lima, Ohio ; Ray M., a liveryman of Archbold; Robert G., of Wauseon; Howard, of the same city, and John L., deceased. ADDISON BROOKS THOMPSON, a well-known business man of Delta, is a native of Fulton county and a representative of one of the earliest pioneer families, of that county, his birth occurring on the parental farm, October 1, 1860. Here and in Delta his life has been spent in various lines of successful business endeavor. His. father, Abraham B. Thompson, a native of Lincolnshire, Fngland, was born March 5, 1831, and when an infant three months old was bereft of a mother's tender care, and a little over a year old when his father came to the United States, leaving behind three helpless children, who were entirely dependent upon the charities of relatives. In 1848 his father returned to. England, and when he again BIOGRAPHICAL - 599 left for America he took Abraham, then a lad of seventeen, with him and established a home in Royalton township, Fulton county, where the son lived until he attained to his majority. His chief consideration when about to start out in life for himself was the acquirement of at least a fair business education. This he accomplished by working out by the month to earn the means to enable him to attend a school at Maumee City, only suspending his studies when his means were exhausted. At this time, when he realized so strongly the need of means to prosecute his studies at school, the California "gold fever" was rampant all over the country and young Thompson decided to seek his fortune in the far West. In 1854 he made the journey by way of the Nicaraguan route, but was prevented from landing for some time because of small-pox on ship-board. Upon landing he found himself entirely out of money, but this fact did not long discourage him. Borrowing thirty dollars from a friend he made his way into the mining districts with renewed hope. After enduring all the hardships and privations incident to pioneer life and practicing the closest economy for four years he accumulated, about two thousand dollars. In the fall of 1858 he returned to Ohio and invested his money in a farm of one hundred and sixty acres in Amboy township, which he at once began to improve and cultivate. Abraham Thompson was one of the most prominent and progressive farmers of Amboy township, was honored with all of the township offices and for nine years served as county commissioner. In 1869 he erected suitable buildings on his farm and commenced the manufacture of cheese, in which industry he continued during the balance of his life-time, and which is now operated by his son, the subject of this sketch, who in fact has been interested in the plant since 1880, and since 1888 has been the business head of the industry. By the establishment of this industry the farmers of the community have been greatly benefitted, the annual distribution of cash among them averaging for many years fifty thousand dollars. While a rival industry at Delta has diminished this amount, the volume of business transacted is still an important item of dairying interests. In 1875 he removed to York township, one half-mile north of Delta, and two years later erected an elegant residence on the place in which he lived until a short time before the death of his wife, when he built a handsome residence in Delta. He built an extensive cheese factory on this farm and operated it in connection with the one in Amboy township until 1883, when the latter was sold. While successful both as a farmer and manufacturer, he was notably so in the cheese industry, accumulating a comfortable fortune. The product of these factories, all of the very best quality, was marketed mostly in Toledo, 0., and Adrian, Mich., although a fair proportion was used to supply the home demand. The home farm is owned and occupied by his daughter, Mrs. J. W. Miller, and the village home is the property of the other daughter, Mrs. Grandy. Abraham Thompson was an active and zealous member of the Masonic fraternity and attained to a high rank in the counsels of that time-honored organization. Whatever he found to do. he did with all his might, and from 1863 until the day of his death he was a faithful adherent to the teachings of 600 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY Free Masonry. In his intercourse with men he was ever fair and honorable, and the passing of this venerable pioneer was the occasion of universal mourning. On November 27, 1859, he was married to Miss Susan Ann Powlesland, a native of Devonshire,' England, who had accompanied her parents to this country in 1849. To this marriage five children were born. They are: Addison B.; Cara Dora, born May 18, 1862, now Mrs. J. W. Miller; Evaline Fancetta, the wife of Fred Grandy, and Ira J., who is married and lives at Swanton. His first wife having died in Delta, he chose as his second wife Mrs. Mary J. Huntington of Delta, who died in 1901. Addison Brooks Thompson is prominently associated with the business affairs of Delta and the surrounding country. He settled up the business of his father's large estate and distributed the property among the heirs on the most equitable conditions. His own personal interests being quite extensive, he is one of the busiest men in the county. Realizing the need of another bank in Delta, he succeeded by dint of constant agitation of the question in interesting other capitalists in the project, and in 1900 the Farmers National Bank of Delta was organized and incorporated with a capital of twenty-five thousand dollars. Since its organization it has paid regularly a semi-annual dividend of two per cent. and has a surplus capital of five thousand dollars beside, the stock being worth one hundred and thirty, and every dollar sold since the organization has realized more than par value. In addition to his banking business, Mr. Thompson is busy superintending his large farming and dairy. interests. For about five years he was actively engaged in the mer cantile business in Delta. Desiring a central location, where he might always be found by those wishing to do business with him, he accepted the agency of the Toledo and Indiana electric railway company at Delta when the road was first built, and he still holds that position. When twenty-one years old he became a member of Fulton Lodge, No. 248, Free and Accepted Masons. In 1890 he received the degrees in Octavius Waters Chapter, Royal Arch Masons, and three years later became a member of the Toledo Commandery, Knights Templar. He and family are attendants at the services of the Presbyterian church, of which organization his wife is a member. In politics he is a Republican, as was his distinguished father before him, believing it to be the party of progress and sound government. Being a public-spirited and progressive citizen his efforts/ favor of the advancement of public interests have always been felt in the community. On May 9, 1883, he was married to Miss Harriet R., the daughter of W. K. and Harriet D. Gilbert, of Delta, her ancestors being of English stock. W. K. Gilbert, a very prosperous business man in his life-time, is now deceased and his widow lives with her daughter, where she finds a hearty welcome, her presence adding cheer to the happy family. They are the parents of four children, three of whom are still living. They are: Arthur B., born in April, 1884, is a graduate of Delta high-school and at present a very successful teacher in the public schools; Winnie A. who was born in May, 1886, and died in November, 1894; Fred G. born in November, 1894, and Floyd E., born in October, 1896. BIOGRAPHICAL - 601 ELI THOMPSON, who maintains his home in the village of Fayette, is a veteran of the Civil war, and is a well-known and popular citizen, having been for nearly a quarter of a century employed as section-foreman on what is now the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railroad. He was born in Sunbury, Northumberland county, Pa., December 17, 1833, and is a son of William and Mary (Campbell) Thompson, both of whom were likewise born in that same county of the old Keystone State, the original ancestors of the Thompson family in America having come from Scotland and settled in Berks county, Pa., prior to the War of the Revolution. The Campbell family also is of pure Scottish strain, and the original American representatives settled in into Jersey, near the Pennsylvania line, later removing over into the latter State, prior to the Revolution. William Thompson was the youngest in a family of nine children, and all are now deceased. In 1835 he came with his family to Ohio and settled in Knox county, where he worked at his trade, that of carpenter and joiner, for the following eleven years. In 1846 he returned to Northumberland county, Pa., where he remained until 1850, when he came again to Ohio, and located in Morrow county, whence, in 1853, he came to Fulton county, settling on a farm two and one-half miles south of Fayette, in Gorham township, and there remaining until his death, which occurred October 20, 1887, at which time he was nearly seventy-five years of age. His wife passed away in 1872, at the age of sixty-three years. Of their eight children. Eli is the eldest; Alba died in 1855, aged twenty years; Elizabeth remains on the old homestead farm, never having married; Sarah is the wife of Charles Gorsuch, of Waldron, Hillsdale county, Mich.; Mary died in infancy; Phynanda became the wife of Frank Spencer, and she died in Fayette, Ohio, in 1901, her husband having previously died on a farm near Cleveland, O. William operates the old homestead farm; and Bartlett is a resident of Bryan, Williams county. William Thompson was a leader in the local ranks of the Democratic party for many years, and both he and his wife were worthy members of the Methodist Episcopal church. Eli Thompson secured his early educational training in the common schools of Pennsylvania and Ohio and also attended a select school for a time. As a young man he commenced work at the trade of carpenter and joiner, in Morrow county, Ohio, learning the trade under the direction of his father, with whom he was associated in this field of labor until the removal to Fulton county. Here Eli continued to work at his trade independently, and he also taught- in the district schools of the county for three winter terms. In 1861 he was employed as clerk in a general store in Fayette, after which he returned to Pennsylvania for a visit. On the 1st of November, 1862, he there enlisted as a private in Company H, One Hundred and Seventy-third Pennsylvania 'volunteer infantry, in which he was forthwith made quartermaster-sergeant, in which office he continued until the close of his term of enlistment. He was with his regiment at Norfolk, Va., and after the battle of Gettysburg the command was attached to the Second Division of the Eleventh Corps of the 602 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY Army of the Potomac. He received his honorable discharge, August 10, 1863, and he then located in Pottsville, Pa., where he was employed three years as outside foreman of a colliery. In 1872 he came to Fayette, Fulton county, and in that year purchased his present attractive little homestead of fifteen acres, lying within the corporate limits of the town on the south side. The first three years he worked at his trade and he then entered the employ of the Canada and Chicago railroad, continuing with the line after the road became a part of the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railroad, with which he has been section-foreman for thirty years, having served under five different track-masters and being one of the trusted employes of the system. He is an uncompromising Republican, takes a lively interest in public affairs, and he served four years as a member of the village council of Fayette. He was a member of the Independent Order of Odd FellOWs for more than twenty years. October 25, 1863, Mr. Thompson was married to Miss Mary A. Aregood, of Pottsville, Pa., in which State she was born and reared, and they have eight children, namely: William I., a resident of Elkhart, Ind.; Eli B., at the parental home; Joseph F., of Detroit, Mich.; Olive M., at the parental home; Osman A., likewise a member of the home circle; John H., of Delta, this county; Alva A., of Morenci, Mich.; and Sadie S., of Detroit, Mich. IRA J. THOMPSON, a prominent manufacturer of Swanton, is a native of Royalton township, Fulton county, born May 10, 1868. He is a son of Abraham B. and Susan (Powlesland) Thompson, and a brother of Addison Brooks Thompson, of Delta, a full sketch of whose life and family history appears elsewhere in this work. Ira 'J. Thompson when seven years old accompanied his parents to the farm near Delta, where his early manhood years were spent. He received his ,education by attending the Delta public schools and Fayette Normal, University. After attaining his majority he farmed the old homestead for six years and then purchased a farm of his own, located one half-mile north of it. Here he resided until 1900, when he leased the farm and removed to Swanton. For the next four years he was engaged in the transfer business. In the spring of 1905 he embarked in the business of manufacturing cement blocks for building purposes, a business that he has since conducted with marked success. Mr. Thompson is the inventor of a machine for mixing the sand and cement, by means of which the mixing process is more quickly as well as more thoroughly done than by hand. This machine is operated by the same gas-engine that pumps the water to wet the blocks and to make the mortar. The stock on hand and ready for use consists of about twenty-five hundred blocks, the daily capacity of the plant being three hundred blocks. In addition to his plant he also operates a steam wood-sawing outfit, and contemplates erecting a mill for grinding feed. Mr. Thompson is a Republican in politics and a member of Swanton Lodge, No. 555, Free and Accepted Masons. On December 25, 1890, he was wedded to Miss Ada E. Haynes, of Ai, the daughter of Jacob and Nancy BIOGRAPHICAL - 603 Haynes, early settlers of that locality. Mrs. Thompson was born in Fulton township December 14, 1864, where she was reared and educated. To these parents there have been born two interesting children. They are: Florence and Fern, both in school. By dint of close application to business and untiring energy Mr. Thompson has won success in life, notwithstanding the fact that he is still a comparatively young man. ALEXANDER THOMSON, who is now living essentially retired in the village of Payette, has been one of the prominent and successful farmers of Fulton county, and is known as a citizen of sterling character, possessing those dominating traits which ever distinguish the true Scotsman, though he has been a resident of the nited States from his boyhood and is loyally appreciative of the institutions and privileges of our great republic. He was born in Cabrach Braes, Forbes parish, Tullynessel, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, on the 1st of October, 1842, being a son of Alexander and Ann (Dow) Thomson, who were born and reared in that same parish, where the respective families had been established for many generations. In 1854, when Alexander, Jr., subject of this sketch, was twelve years of age, the parents immigrated to America, making Ashland county, Ohio, their destination. They arrived in New London, Huron county, on the 23d of October of that year, and there the father died the next day, as the result of an attack of cholera, which he contracted in Quebec, Canada, while en .route, and he was sixty-three years of age at the time of his death. His devoted wife survived him by many years, passing to the "land o' the leal" in 1871, aged sixty- eight years. They became the parents of three sons, of whom Alexander alone survives. James, who was a soldier in Company A, Sixty-fourth Ohio volunteer infantry, in the Civil war, died at Pittsburg Landing, while in service, and is buried at Cairo, Ill.; William died in 1862, and his remains were laid to rest in Savannah, Ashland county, Ohio, beside those of his loved mother. Alexander Thomson, to whom this review is dedicated, passed his youth in Ashland and Richland counties, and such were the exigencies of time and conditions that his educational advantages were somewhat limited, though he had received excellent preliminary training in his native land. He has made good the handicap of his youth, however, and through well-directed reading and studious application, as well as through association with men and affairs, he has become a man of broad information, possessing an alert mentality and having all the canny originality of the stanch race from which he is sprung. He traveled for years in various Western States and territories, and in 1872 he located near Boydton, Mecklenburg county, Va., where he secured seven hundred and seventeen acres of land and engaged in farming. He thus continued until 1877, when he traded his Southern plantation for one hundred and sixty acres in Chesterfield township, Fulton county, Ohio, paying an additional consideration of two thousand dollars. He took up his residence on his new farm, which he greatly improved, making it one of the model places of the county 604 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY and being successful in his agricultural and stock-growing operations. He continued his residence on the homestead, which he still owns, until 1902, when he located in Fayette, where he has since lived retired. March 26, 1872, Mr. Thomson was united in marriage to Miss Mary McCombie Johnston, daughter of John and Elizabeth (Tytler) Johnston, who were born in the city of Aberdeen, Scotland, and who came to America on the same ship as did the Thomson family. They also located in Richland county, Ohio, near Savannah, and there Mr. Johnston died May 9, 1881, aged seventy years, and his wife died May 22, 1901, at the venerable age of ninety years. Of their four children all are living. Following is a brief record concerning the children of Mr. and Mrs. Thomson : They are the parents of three children: Anna is the wife of David Carey, of Decatur, Mich.; Margaret died at the age of two years; Lulu is the wife of Arthur Miller, of Fayette. Mr. Thomson is independent in his political views, supporting the measures and candidates meeting the approval of his judgment and taking an intelligent interest in the issues of the hour. Though never ambitious for office he has rendered effective service as trustee and assessor in Chesterfield township. LYMAN A. TOMPKINS, M. D., after laboring long and faithfully in his chosen profession, in which he gained precedence as one of the leading physicians and surgeons of Fulton county, is now living practically retired in the village of Metamora. The Doctor was born in Reed township, Seneca county, Ohio, on the 5th of February, 1841, a son of John and Julia (Jordan) Tompkins, both natives of Steuben county N. Y., where their marriage was solemnized and whence they removed to Seneca county, Ohio, about 1835, the father becoming one of the pioneer farmers. of Reed township, where he reclaimed 120 acres of wild land, becoming one of the substantial and Influential citizens of the county, where both he and his wife died. His father, William Tompkins. also a native of Steuben county, N. Y., removed to Seneca county. Ohio, about the same time, likewise reclaiming a farm, upon which he passed the residue of his life. Thus four generations of the family have been represented in the Buckeye State. Michael Jordan, maternal grandfather of the Doctor, was a farmer by vocation and passed his life in Steuben county, N. Y. The children of John and Julia (Jordan) Tompkins were as follows: Michael, Sally, Emeline, Betsey, Delos, Lois, William, Myron, Lyman A., Alfred, Margaret, and Ardella. Dr. Tompkins was reared to manhood in Seneca county, where he was accorded excellent educational advantages, having entered the Seneca County Academy, at Republic, after leaving the common schools, and. having later continued his higher literary studies in Heidelberg College, at Tiffin, that county. While a student in this institution he also took up the study of medicine, under the direction of General Franklin, M.D., of Tiffin, an able representative of the Eclectic school of practice, and after leaving Heidelberg College Dr. Tampkins took a course of lectures in Miami Medical College, in Cincinnati, this being in the year 1866. In 1867 and 1869 he was a stu- BIOGRAPHICAL - 605 dent in the Physio-Medical College, in the same city, this institution representing a new and beneficent system of practice. In the last mentioned year he was exposed to small-pox and compelled to leave the city, but the college gave him an unlimited certificate to practice medicine, this being in every respect equal to a diploma. In 1871 he began the practice of his profession in Ai, Fulton county, where he was located for' sixteen years, building up an extensive practice, ramifying through Fulton, Lucas, Wood, Seneca, Williams and Henry counties, Ohio, and extending into Lenawee county, Mich. At one time he was compelled to keep ten horses in order to meet the exigencies of his widely-extended practice, his stable thus having as large a complement of horses as did the average livery of Fulton county at that period. He gained the distinction of having the largest practice of all country physicians in the State, and his efforts were signally self-abnegating and faithful, no matter what personal discomfort and hardship he was called upon to endure when ministering to those in affliction and distress. In 1887 Dr. Tompkins located in Metamora, where he continued in active practice until 1892, when he felt justified in retiring, his labors having been protracted and arduous, and he has since given his attention principally to the supervision of his farming interests, owning one hundred and forty-seven acres of land, in Amboy township, Fulton county, and Richfield township, Lucas county. During the years, of his active professional work the Doctor was a valued factor in the county, State and national conventions of the school of medicine of which he was so prominent and able an exponent, and he has done a large amount of work as examining physician for pensions and insurance. In politics he is an uncompromising Republican, but he has never manifested aught of ambition for public office. In 1869 he married Miss Rhoda A. Abbott, native of Vermont, who died in 1873, leaving one son, Abbott D. In 1874, the Doctor wedded Miss Lucy J. Merrill, whose death Occurred in 1893. Arthur Lyman, the only child of this union, was graduated in the Fayette Normal University when but fifteen years of age, prior to which time he had accumulated $560 through his personal efforts. The faculty of Fayette University pronounced him the brightest student who had ever attended the institution, and his name is still mentioned there with' the same mark of approbation. After leaving school he was cashier of a bank in Fayette for two years, when death cut short his promising life, his age at the time being seventeen years. In 1884 Dr. Tompkins married his present wife, whose maiden name was Mrs. Elizabeth B. Baker, daughter of Azariah and Harriett (Kennedy) Baker, and who was at the time a resident of Seneca county, Ohio. Mrs. Baker is a member of the Methodist church at Metamora, Ohio. EDWARD VAUGHAN is one of the prosperous farmers and stock-growers of Fulton township and a member of one of the honored pioneer families of Fulton county, where nearly his entire life has been passed. The family history is entered in adequate detail in the sketch dedicated to his brother, James C. Vaughan, appearing 606 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY immediately following this review, and as ready reference may be made to the same a reincorporation of the data is not required at this juncture. Edward Vaughan was born at Ai, Fulton township, on the 4th of January, 1838, and is the son of Alexander and Rebecca (Jones) Vaughan, whose names are recalled with unqualified honor by all who knew them, for they were numbered among the sterling pioneers of this part of the county. Edward Vaughan was reared and educated in Fulton county, his scholastic advantages having been those of the pioneer schools, and he has been to a large extent actively identified with agricultural pursuits from his youth to the present, and has resided constantly in his native county except for a period of about six years, during which he resided in Tuscarawas county, being a boy at the time. November 5, 1861, Mr. Vaughan was united in marriage to Miss Jane Nobbs, a sister of John H. Nobbs, in whose personal sketch, on other pages of this volume, is given a family record. After his marriage Mr. Vaughan lived one year on a rented farm, after which he engaged in the general merchandise business in the village of Ai, continuing this enterprise for eight years and meeting with fair success. He then disposed of the store and business and purchased a farm, which now consists of one hundred acres, in the central part of Fulton township, giving his attention to the operation of the same for about thirty years, and he still owns the homestead, which is one of the finely-improved farms of the county. Since the death of his wife, which occurred in 1872, Mr. Vaughan has made his home during the greater portion of the intervening years with his son Ellis. a portion of the time residing on the homestead and for the past few years on his son's own farm, one mile west. The following is a brief record concerning the four children of Mr. and Mrs. Vaughan: Harvey, who married Miss Jennie Canfield, is a farmer in Fulton township: Clara is the wife of Howard E. Wilson, son of Matthew Wilson, of this township; Ellis H., who married Basha Anna Shufelt, and has a nice family of six children, is the owner of a good farm in Fulton township and is one of the progressive agriculturists and stock-growers of the county, and as before stated, his father now resides in his home; Edna is the widow of Ralph Herrick and now resides in Delta, this county, where she is educating her son and daughter: she owns a nice home in that village and also a good farm in Fulton township. In politics Mr. Vaughan has always been an active and uncompromising Republican, and he has been called upon to serve in various offices of public trust, including those of treasurer, trustee and assessor of Fulton township. He was made a Mason in early manhood, but has not been in active affiliation for many years past. He has never been identified with any religious body, though havmg a deep reverence for spiritual and ethical verities and ever striving to order his life according to the Golden Rule. JAMFS C. VAUGHAN. a retired farmer nOW residing at Swanton, was born in what is now Fulton township on August 30, 1835. He enjoys the distinction of being the first white child born in the BIOGRAPHICAL - 607 "disputed strip," then under the jurisdiction of the State of Michigan. The dispute over this strip of land, about ten miles wide, was peaceably settled and the territory became a part of Ohio in 1836. In history the threatened trouble is known as the "Ohio and Michigan War: The parents of James C. Vaughan were Alexander, and Rebecca (Jones) Vaughan, the former a native of Pennsylvania and the latter of Ohio. James Vaughan, the father of Alexander Vaughan, was a native of Ireland and emigrated to Pennsylvania in an early day. Alexander Vaughan was born in Westmoreland county, of his native State, in 1800, and came to Ohio in 1818, first locating in Tuscarawas county, where he was married in 1827. In April, 1835, with his wife and two children, he removed to Fulton county and there entered government land, which he at once proceeded to clear and cultivate. At that time the territory now comprising Fulton county was a veritable wilderness, the only trading town being Maumee. He died at the age of forty-seven, and was survived by his widow, born in Stark county in 1812, who died at the age of sixty years. They were the parents of ten children, four of whom are now living. Those living are: Mary, now Mrs. Springer of Wauseon: James C.; Edward, a farmer of Fulton township, and Isabel, the wife of E. Bailey, a resident of Bronson, Mich. Two of the sons, James C. and Caleb J., deceased, were soldiers in the Union army. James C. Vaughan grew to manhood on the home farm and was educated in the common schools of the county and at Maumee, where he was a student for two years. He opened up a farm four miles north of Swanton. In 1864 he enlisted for a term of one hundred days in the One Hundred and Thirtieth Ohio volunteer infantry and served in West Virginia one hundred and forty days before he was mustered out. Upon his election as a member of the board of county commissioners, in 1884, he sold his farm and retired from active farming. A part of the homestead is now the property of his eldest son. In politics he has always taken an active part, being recognized as a local leader of the Republican party. In addition to serving six years as commissioner, he has filled various offices in Swanton and Fulton township. He has been a Mason for forty years and has passed the principal chairs of Swanton Lodge, No. 555. While he has been a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows for a number of years, he is not at present affiliated with that order. For twenty-two years he has been actively identified with the Regular Baptist church. In March, 1860, he was united in the bonds of matrimony to Miss Harriet A. Taylor, who died in 1878, leaving six children five of whom are yet living. They are: Jason W.. a live stock dealer of Buffalo, N. Y.; Burton, who was killed by the cars in March, 1904; Cora, the wife of W. A. Scott. of Thomasville, Ala.; Carey, a meat-dealer of Swanton; Brent, and Harry. In 188o he married his present wife, who was Miss Julia Tumey, a native of Ohio. To this union there have been born the following children: Bessie, the wife of John Lenehan, assistant cashier in the Bank of Swanton; Florence and Neva, both still at home. 608 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY JAMES H. WADDELL, M. D., is one of the representative physicians and surgeons of Fulton county, is established in the practice of his profession in Wauseon, and his ability and personal popularity are best attested by the success and prestige which he enjoys in one of the most exacting and responsible vocations to which a person may turn his attention. He has been the artificer of his own fortunes, gaining his education through individual effort and thus being the more deeply appreciative of the advantages which he gained. His early education was secured in the public schools, and was supplemented by careful, systematic study and general reading during the years of his minority, and finally he bent all his energies and efforts to the work of preparing himself for the medical profession. In 1869 he was graduated in the Charity Hospital Medical College, Cleveland, Ohio, after a thorough course, marked by the closest application, and from this institution he received his degree of Doctor of Medicine. He engaged in practice at Lickton, Wabash county, Ind., immediately after his graduation, remaining there established in successful professional work until 1875, and in 1877 he decided to investigate more thoroughly the Homoeopathic system of medicine, with whose beneficent results he had become deeply impressed. He thus took a course in the Huron Hospital Homoeopathic Medical School, at Cleveland, Ohio, and since that time has been an able and successful exponent of this school of practice. In 1875 Dr. Waddell was united in marriage to Miss Florence A. Van Dorn, who was born in Belleville, Richland county. Ohio, and early in her married life she became deeply interested in her husband's professional work, and rendered most efficient aid in the capacity of nurse and general assistant. Finally she entered the Woman's Medical College, in St. Louis, Mo., in which well-ordered institution she was graduated on the 28th of March, 1880, since which time she has been actively associated with her husband in practice, being one of the leading woman practitioners of her native State. They took up their residence in Wauseon in 1878, and here their professional clientage is widely extended and of representative order. In 1885-6 Drs. James H. and Florence A. Waddell were matriculated in Hahnemann Medical College, in the city of Chicago, from which celebrated institution each received the ad eundum degree. James H. Waddell was born in Jelloway, Knox county, Ohio, Oct. 14, 1842, and is a son of Robert F. and Elizabeth (Critchfield) Waddell, the former of whom died at the age of forty-six years, at which time Dr. Waddell was a child of four years. The family early settled in Marietta, Ohio, coming from Pennsylvania and being numbered among the first pioneers of Washington county, Ohio. Dr. Charles F. Waddell, an uncle of the subject of this sketch, had the distinction of being the first white child born in the State of Ohio. He became one of the most eminent clergymen of the Methodist Episcopal church, being widely known throughout this and adjoining States, and also being an able physician, so that his labors among the pioneers were doubly valuable, since he ministered alike to their spiritual and physical necessities. The Critchfield family has been for several generations prom- BIOGRAPHICAL - 609 inent in the annals of the Buckeye State, representatives having been specially notable in the learned professions and in military affairs. The greater number of the present generation are residents of Knox county. The Van Dorn family, of which Dr. Florence A. Waddell is a representative, was early founded in Pennsylvania, whence the Ohio progenitors came to Richland county and became early settlers of Belleville. Her parents were Nathan and Mary Van Dorn. Dr. James H. Waddell is a stalwart and uncompromising Republican, and his father was a strong abolitionist during the climacteric era culminating in the Civil war, and the family home was a prominent station on the historic "underground railway." October 14, 1861, Dr. Waddell enlisted in Company E, Twentieth Ohio volunteer infantry, in which he served three years, taking part in the battles of Fort Donelson, Pittsburg Landing; Iuka, Holly Springs, and Raymond, Miss., in which last named he was wounded, May 12, 1863, and on the 24th of the same month he was taken prisoner, remaining captive under the Confederate authorities until July 8, 1864, when he was paroled and sent to the North, remaining in parole camp, at Camp Chase, Columbus, Ohio, until his exchange was effected, in November, 1864. By reason of his wounds he was transferred to the Veteran Reserve Corps, in which he served until the expiration of his term of enlistment, at Indianapolis, Ind., receiving his discharge October 17, 1864. Dr. Waddell has been a member of the board of pension examiners of Fulton county since March, 1897, and has continuously served as secretary of the board. He is prominently identified with the Masonic fraternity. Drs. James H. and Florence A. Waddell have no children. They are not only prominent in the professional circles of the county and State but also in the social life of the community, and their friends are in number equal to their acquaintances. SYLVANUS WALTER, a retired farmer of Archbold, was born in Marion, Marion county, Ohio, March 23, 1843. He is the son of John and Tama (Stevens) Walter, the former a native of Catawissa, Pa., and the latter of Schenectady, N. Y. John Walter, the grandfather of Sylvanus Walter, spent his life in Marion. John Walter, in 1848, removed with his family to Huron county, 0., and, locating on a farm eight miles south of Norwalk, followed general farming. In 1858 he removed to Clinton township, Fulton county, where he died in 1885, aged eighty-three years. His widow, now eighty-five years old, resides in Michigan. To John Walter and wife seven children were born, as follows: 'Abigail (deceased), the wife of Benjamin F. Milly, who died in Indiana in 1884; Sylvanus, the subject of this sketch; Alexander, of Midland county, Mich.; George, who died in 1899; Mary, the wife of L. A. Baker, of Alma, Mich.; Elva, who died in 1866, and Adaline, who died in infancy in Huron county. Sylvanus Walter received his education in the public schools of his youth and remained with his father until eighteen years old, when he enlisted at Wauseon, in Company H of the One Hundredth Ohio volunteer infantry. His regiment was assigned to the Army of the 610 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY Tennessee, under the command of General Burnside, taking an active part in the battle and siege of Knoxville. After having been surrounded for twenty-one days by General Longstreet, his regiment was engaged in the battle of Kenesaw Mountain, where on June 17, 1864, he received a gunshot wound in the side and was sent to the hospitals of Chattanooga and Nashville. Returning to his command on November 30, he was present at the battles of Franklin and Nashville. Then the regiment joined the army of General Sherman at Wilmington, N. C., and took part in the battle of Greensboro, where Johnston surrendered. On June 22, 1865, Mr. Walter was mustered out of the service at Greensboro and arrived at his home on July 4th. He followed farming in Clinton township until 1874, when he bought a farm of one hundred and ten acres one-half mile south of Archbold and remained there until April 29, 1904, when he retired from active work. In politics he has always been an active Democrat, having held the offices of justice of the peace and assessor of German township, each for two terms, that of census enumerator in 1880 and at present that of assessor of Archbold. He is a member of the Wauseon Post, Grand Army of the Republic, and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. On February 12, 1875, he was unitel in marriage to Miss Emma Yager, a native of Fulton county and the daughter of Henry and Elizabeth (Mountz) Yager, both natives of Pennsylvania, who came to Ohio and settled first in Columbiana county and, in 1860, in Napoleon, where the former died, October 1, 1871 aged seventy-one years, and the latter, May 5, 1891, aged fifty-nine years. To Sylvanus Walter and his wife there have been born four children. They are: Alice, the wife of Nevin Hoffman, of Stryker, O.; Henry, a resident of Norwalk, O.; Owen, of Kokomo, Ind.; and Russell, who is still at home attending the public schools.. ORLANDO O. WALTERS, one of the leading farmers and stock- growers of Fulton township and one of the influential and honored citizens of the county, is specially deserving of consideration in a publication of the province assigned to the one at hand. He was born in Pike township, this county, on the 17th of June, 1849, and is the sixth child and son of Joseph and Susan (Dull) Walters. Joseph Walters was born in Harrison county, Ohio, where his parents located on their removal from Pennsylvania, and he was there reared and educated. About 1837 he came to Fulton county, first locating in Pike township, where he secured land and engaged in farming. He finally sold this property and removed to York township, where he remained until 1864, when he removed to Dover township. Here both he and his wife passed the remainder of their lives. She died when about sixty-five years of age and he was eighty-two years old when he was called to his eternal rest. They were folk of sterling attributes and never lacked the esteem and confidence of those with whom they came in contact, and their names merit a place of honor on the roll of the worthy pioneers of Fulton county. They became the parents of nine children, only four of whom are living. Melinda, BIOGRAPHICAL - 611 the eldest, is the wife of Milo Eldridge, of Spring Hill, this county; Orlando is the immediate subject of this sketch; Henry D. is a farmer of Chesterfield township; George W. is a dealer in hardware and agricultural implements at Spring Hill; Samuel and Jacob died while serving their country as Union soldiers in the Civil war, the latter dying as a result of wounds received in the battle of Nashville. Orlando Walters secured his educational discipline in the common schools of York township, and he initiated his independent career as a farmer in Dover township, whither his parents had removed. He remained at home until he was twenty-four years of age, when, in 1873, he was united in marriage to Miss Ellen Huffmire, who was born in Dover township: being a daughter of Abraham and Sarah E. Huff- mire, who were numbered among the honored pioneers of this section of Ohio. Of the four children of Mr. and Mrs. Walters the eldest, a son, died in infancy. Lulu Viola is the wife of Albert Griesinger, son of George Griesinger, of whom personal mention is made on another page. William Harley, who is a progressive young farmer of Fulton township, married Miss Herma Merrill, daughter of Frank C. Merrill, mentioned elsewhere in this work. Etta Melinda remains at the parental home, being one of the popular young ladies of the township and having considerable musical talent. After his marriage Mr. Walters located on a small farm near Spring Hill; where he remained seven years, after which he passed two years on the old homestead farm of his parents. In 1882 he purchased one hundred and six acres in Section 7, Fulton township, and this tract comprises his present finely improved homestead, which is one of the best farms in the township, and which represents the tangible results of his own well directed efforts, since he has been the artificer of his own fortunes. He cleared thirty-five acres of timber land and afterward provided a thorough system of ditch and tile drainage on his entire farm, whose fertility is now of the highest order. In 1895 Mr. Walters erected his handsome brick residence, at a cost of three thousand dollars, and in 1903, the farm was still farther enhanced in value through the building of a large double barn, thirty- six by sixty-two feet in dimensions in the main, with a wing thirty- six by forty-eight feet, and the roof is self-supporting. The barn represents an expenditure of about twenty-five hundred dollars and is one of the best in this section. Mr. Walters raises horses, cattle and hogs, devoting special attention to the last mentioned stock, and in addition to the diversified crops customarily raised in this locality he raises large crops of potatoes each year, having machinery for both planting and digging. He is a man of broad views and progressive ideas, and has made his farming industry transcend the functions of old grooves, so that he realized from each department the maximum returns, and he is ever ready to adopt new devices or methods for facilitating the work. He and his wife are valued members of Berry Grange, No. 111, and in politics he is a stalwart Republican, has served two terms as township trustee, and has held other local offices. In 1902 he was elected infirmary director of Fulton county, having also charge of the poor in Swan Creek, Amboy and Royalton 612 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY townships, and he was re-elected to this office in 1905, his services in the connection having been earnest and effective. He is an influential factor in the ranks of his party contingent in the county, is one of the stanch advocates of Republican principles and policies, and he has the esteem and good-will of all who know him. CHESTER R. P. WALTZ, postmaster and general manager of the Atlas Printing Company, of Delta, was born in .Knox county, Ohio, March 6, 1867. He is the son of E. L. and Lucinda (Pinkley) Waltz, both natives of Ohio. E. L. Waltz is a native of Tuscarawas county, and spent his early life in the mercantile business in Jelloway, Knox county, and Weston, O. At the former place he served as secretary of the Farmers' Home Insurance Company for about ten years, and as postmaster under the administration of President Lincoln. In 1876 he removed to Delta, where he started the first newspaper in the town, called the Delta Avalanche, the first issue making its appearance February 22, 1876. Since that date he has spent five years in Jelloway, attending to the insurance business, with which he was there connected. Returning to Delta in June, 1885, he purchased the Avalanche, which he had previously sold, and established the Delta Atlas, one of the oldest and decidedly the strongest paper published in Fulton county. The policy of the paper has always been conservative. It has the unique record of never having solicited a subscription or of having offered a premium, preferring that the financial standing of the paper should depend wholly on its merits. E. L. Waltz is the editor, and his son, Chester, is the general manager. Chester R. P. Waltz grew to manhood in Delta, receiving a liberal education in its public schools. For four years he was connected with a dry-goods establishment in Jelloway. When the Delta Atlas was founded he took an interest in that company, and now holds the responsible position of general manager, for which he is eminently fitted, being a skilled mechanic and a thorough job-printer. In 1897 he was appointed postmaster by President McKinley and reappointed by President Roosevelt, and is still serving in that capacity. Mr. Waltz is at present the principal officer of serving Lodge, No. 248, Free and Accepted Masons, and holds membership in Octavius Waters Chapter, No. 154, Royal Arch Masons, in the Toledo Commandery, No. 7, Knights Templar, and in Delta Lodge, No. 199, Knights of Pythias. In religious affairs he and his wife are actively identified with the Presbyterian church, of which organization he is a trustee and Sunday School superintendent. In politics he takes a deep interest, being a stanch Republican. In 1891 he was wedded to Miss Grace Richardson, a daughter of Robert Richardson, of Wauseon. They are the parents of two interesting children, Kathryn Florence and Richard Rinard, aged respectively eleven and three years. GEORGE W. WATKINS is another of those worthy citizen's who were born and reared in Fulton county and have here upborne the high reputation of a name honored in the county from the early pio- BIOGRAPHICAL - 613 neer days, and his also has been the wisdom to hold tenaciously and effectively to the great basic industry of agriculture, through connection with which he has met with a measure of success which stands to his credit and which can not be other than a source of gratification to him. He is one of the representative farmers of Fulton township and not far-distant from his present fine homestead, in the same township, was the parental home in which he made his debut in the drama of life, on the 25th of November, 1846. He is a son of Wesley and Catherine (Fesler) Watkins, the former of whom was born in Wayne county, Ohio, February 23, 186, and the latter was born in Pennsylvania, January 3, 1825. Their marriage was, solemnized in Fulton county, in January, 1846, and they became the parents of six children, of whom George W. was the first born. Julius Alonzo, born February 13, 1848, died September 20, 1878; Thomas, born August 8, 1851, is a successful farmer of Pike township; Lewis C., born May 21, 1856, is identified with railroading operations in the South; William W., born January 24, 1861, is, a resident of Nebraska and is a railroad man; Libbie Jane, born September 19, 1863, is the wife of Thomas H. Fraker, a farmer near Delta, Fulton county. The honored father died on the farm now owned by his eldest son, on the 24th of September, 1869, and his wife died September 6, 1889. They were well-known pioneers of the county, where they lived lives of signal honor and usefulness and where they held the unqualified esteem of all who knew them. George W. Watkins was educated in the district schools of his native township, where he has maintained his home from the time of his birth, and he has been continuously associated with the work of the old homestead farm, of which he became the owner in 188o, having purchased the interests of the other heirs. In politics Mr. Watkins was originally a Democrat, but in 1884 he transferred his allegiance to the Prohibition party, whose cause he supported for a number of years by ballot and influence, and in the election of 1904 he exercised his franchise in support of the Republican candidates, National and- State. As touching the genealogy of Mr. Watkins it may be said that his grandfather, Christopher Watkins, was one of four brothers, and his brother Robert came to Fulton county in the early '30s, securing, m association with his son, Christopher, one thousand acres of land in Fulton and Pike townships. March 20, 188o, was solemnized the marriage of George W. Watkins and Miss Mary E. Biddle, who was born in Wayne county, Ohio, May 23, 1854, being the youngest of the children of George and Nancy (Lawrence) Biddle, the former of whom was born in Wayne couy, and the latter in Pennsylvania, the respective dates of nativity having been March 11, 1808, and January 25, 1813. Mr. and Mrs. Biddle were married in Wayne county whence they came to Fulton county in 1860, locating on a farm near Delta, and they passed the closing years of their lives in York township, the father passing away in August, 1878, and the mother was summoned to the life eternal, August 21, 1902. Concerning the children the following brief data are entered: Henry, born January 4, 1833, died December 5, 1888; Nancy, born September 9, 1835, is the wife of 614 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY Adam Geitgey, a farmer of Wayne county; Rachel, born December 18, 1837, is the wife of Simon Snyder, of Delta: Benjamin, born April 28, 184o, is a resident of Toledo; Jacob, born February 5, 1843, died in Delta, February 7, 1885; John L., born March 21, 1846, resides in Delta; Samuel, born November I 1, 1848, died in infancy; George W., born November 23, 1851, is a resident of Clinton township; and Mary E., the youngest, is the wife of Mr. Watkins. Floyd B., the only child of Mr. and Mrs. Watkins, was born September 3o, 1881, and is associated with his father in the work and management of the home farm. October 4, 1904, he married Miss Pearl McQuillin, who was born and reared in this county, and the daughter of John B. and Clara (Simson) McQuillin. MICHAEL F. WEBER, a prosperous farmer and highly-respected citizen of Swan Creek township, is a native of Switzerland, born in Merishausen, Canton of Schaffhansen, March 24, 1833. In 1846 he emigrated to the United States with his parents, George and Elizabeth (Meyer) Weber, and two sisters, landing at New York City. The voyage, begun at Havre, France, was made in a sailing vessel and consumed fifty days, the passengers suffering greatly because of the scarcity of food occasioned by the protracted trip. After a stay of twelve days in the metropolis the family proceeded by boat to Buffalo by way of Albany, from Buffalo by way of Lake Erie to Toledo, O., and from there by canal to Maumee. The parental home was finally established in German township, Fulton (then Lucas) county. Here Mr. Weber's parents ended their days, the father dying at the age of sixty-eight and the mother at eighty-two. To these parents there were born four children, one son and three daughters, as follows: Anna, who died in Switzerland; Mary, who married Jacob Zeigler, of Maumee, and died at the age of twenty-eight years; Elizabeth, who died at the age of fifteen years; and the subject of this sketch. Michael F. Weber spent his young manhood days helping to clear and improve the parental farm, working each day from four o'clock in the morning until dark. The land was mostly covered with heavy timber, of little or no value at that time. He received his education in Switzerland. His attendance at school in this country was limited to three weeks at one time when a felon on one of his hands disabled him from cutting timber. Mr. Weber has always given all of his time and attention to agricultural pursuits and has met with unusual success. In 1890 he purchased a farm in Spencer township, Lucas county, and there resided until May 17, 1904, when his residence and contents were destroyed by fire. With the exception of these four years he has spent all of his life since coming to America in Fulton county. After the loss of his home he bought a handsome residence and a small farm near Swanton, where he now resides. Prior to the Civil war he was a Democrat, but since that time he has given his support to the Republican party. Although he did not enlist in the army, he contributed liberally by his means to the suppression of the Rebellion. In religious belief Mr. Weber, together with his family, is affiliated with the Get-- BIOGRAPHICAL - 615 man Baptist church. Generous and liberal-hearted, he has always shown a readiness to come promptly to the rescue of those in distress. At the age of twenty-one years he was joined in wedlock with Miss Mary Zeigler, a sister of his brother-in-law. To this union six children were born, all living. They are: Mary, George, John, Lydia, Arnold and Sarah. His first wife dying in 1883, he later married Miss Maggie Shudel, a native of Switzerland, who came to Amerca with her parents in childhood. She is the daughter of Ulrich and Anna (Weber) Shudel, the parents of eight children, seven of whom are yet living. Their names follow: Barbara; George, who died in 1871, aged twenty years; Anna, William, Mary, Maggie, Jacob and John. Of the eight children born to the second marriage of Mr. Weber six are now living. The names of the children are: Anna, Dina, Rhoda, Emil, Freda, Paul, Gideon and Benjamin, the last two deceased. VIRGIL W. WEEKS is not only one of the leading farmers of Pike township, but he is one of the brave "boys in blue" who represented Fulton county in the Union ranks during the greatest civil war known in the annals of history. Mr. Weeks was born in Seneca county, Ohio, on the 2d of December, 1841, and is a son of David and Rebecca (McCarty) Weeks, the former of whom was born in New Jersey and the latter in Ohio. The father was a cooper by trade, and followed the same as a vocation for many years, having also become the owner of a good farm in Fulton county, whither he came from Seneca county in 1848. He passed the closing years of his life in Wauseon, as did also his wife, and both are interred in the cemetery at that place, a llarge portion of the tract having been cleared by him in the early days, and he selected the lot in which rest the mortal remains of both himself and his loved wife. David Weeks was a strong abolitionist in the crucial days leading up to the Civil war, and he was a conductor on the famous "underground railway," through whose beneficent operation many poor slaves were assisted to freedom. The subject of this sketch aided his father in this work, having transported a number of fugitive slaves from the station in Pike township to the one in the River Raisin or Quaker settlement. Two of his brothers also served in the Union ranks, as members of Ohio regiments, Rhinaldo L., who is now a resident of New Orleans, Louisiana; and Bruno L., who died in Andersonville prison. Virgil W. Weeks was reared to manhood in Fulton county, and duly availed himself of the advantages of the graded schools of Wauseon, where were numbered among his classmates many who later attained prominence in this and other States of the Union. Mr. Weeks responded to President Lincoln's first call for volunteers to aid in suppressing the Rebellion. On the 17th of April, 1861, he enlisted as a private in Company H, Fourteenth Ohio volunteer infantry, with which he proceeded to West Virginia, where his first experience in active warfare was in the engagement at Philippi, on the 3d of June, 1861. He later took part in the conflicts at Laurel Hill and Cheat River, remaining at the front until the expiration of his three months' terns. 616 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY of enlistment. He then re-enlisted, becoming a member of Company K, Thirty-eighth Ohio volunteer infantry, in which he served three years, having been made corporal of his company. He received his honorable discharge, by reason of the expiration of term of service, on the 31st of January, 1863, but forthwith veteranized, becoming a member of the same company and regiment, with which he continued in service until the close of the war, receiving his final discharge as second duty sergeant, on the 12th of July, 1865, after having made a record as a faithful and gallant soldier, and having been an active participant in many of the important battles of the great conflict. While he was never confined to the hospital during his term of service, he was wounded at Hoover's Gap, a cannon ball passing under him so close to his right hip that it has ever since been partially paralyzed. He never recovered from the effects of this injury, in recognition of which he receives a liberal government pension. After victory had crowned the Union arms Mr. Weeks returned home, and soon afterward, on the 31st of October, 1865, he was united in marriage to Miss Ruth A. Fewlass, who was born in Fulton county, on the list of February, 184o, being a daughter of William and Caroline (Trowbridge) Fewlass, who were numbered among the sterling pioneers of the county. Mr. Fewlass was a native of England and came to America when a young man, and he first came to Fulton county in 1836, taking up his permanent residence here two years later. He became one of the extensive farmers and wealthy and influential citizens of the county, where he owned two hundred and seven acres of land, much of which he reclaimed from the virgin forest. He passed the closing years of his life in the village of Delta, where he died on the 1st of September, 1884; the mother of Mrs. Weeks died in 1851. Mr. and Mrs. Weeks have six children, namely: David, George, Ada, William, Emma and Caddie C. Emma is the wife of Justin Bartlett, a successful farmer of this county. Caddie C., who is the wife of Charles Prentiss, is one of the successful and popular teachers of Fulton county, having taught twenty-six terms in the public schools and having been a student in the normal school at Fayette, this county. Mr. Weeks is a stalwart Republican and he has served as constable: was for twelve years incumbent of the office of jutice of the peace, and for two terms was township assessor. He is one of the appreciative and valued members of McQuillin Post, No. 171, Grand Army of the Republic, at Delta, of which he is the present senior vice-commander. Mr. Weeks at the present time is entering upon his second term as justice of the peace, having been elected on November 7, 1905, by a large majority. CAPTAIN JOHN A. WEIR, local manager of the Northwestern Ohio Telephone Exchange, of Swanton, was born at Waterloo, De- Kalb county, Ind., February 3, 1868. He is the son of William and Elizabeth A. (Detrich) Weir, the former a native of Blantyre, Scotland, and the latter of Pennsylvania. His grandparents were Alexander and Mary (Orr) Weir, both born in Blantyre. William Weir emigrated to the United States in 1854, when a young man, and lo- BIOGRAPHICAL - 617 cated in Waterloo, Ind., where he was married. Since the year 1855, with the exception of three and one-half years spent in the army, he has operated a cooperage establishment in Wauseon, where he and his wife are now living. Of a family of ten children that have been born to them nine are alive. Those living are: Capt. John A.; Jennie, married; Mary Alice, married; Catherine, single; Bessie, married; Libbie Pet, married; Frank R., Charles and Howard, single. Capt. John A. Weir was educated in the Wauseon schools. He learned the cooperage business and followed this occupation until September, 1897. In 1893 he became prominently connected with the Ohio State militia, assisting in organizing Company G, of the Sixteenth Ohio State Militia. Until 1896 he held the position of first lieutenant and then was promoted to the captaincy. On April 25, 1898, the regiment was mustered into the United States service as the Sixth Ohio volunteer infantry and Captain Weir still remained at the head of his company. After serving for thirteen months in the Spanish-American war, at Chickamauga Park and in Cuba, he was mustered out on August 28, 1899, the company disbanding. Since then he has not given any further attention to military affairs. Returning to Wauseon he engaged in telephone construction work, spending two years in West Virginia. In 1901 he came to Swanton in the capacity of local manager of the Northwestern Ohio Telephone Exchange at that place. He is prominently identified with the Knights of Pythias and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, including the military rank of the former organization and the Encampment of the latter. In politics he is a Republican. Capt. John A. Weir was married in Wauseon on May 25, 1888, to Miss Mary A. Fankhauser, of Fulton county. To this union two children have been born. They are: William and Clyde. Mrs. Weir is descended from German ancestors, her father and mother being natives of Germany. ELIZER B. WELCH.—On the fine homestead farm on which he now resides, in Chesterfield township, Mr. Welch was born, on the 18th of February, 1845, but at that time the appearance of the place was far different than at present, since this section was then scarcely more than a sylvan wilderness, and the dwelling in which he made his debut in the drama of life was a primitive log-cabin of the kind common to the pioneer days. He is a son of James and Amy (Clark) Welch, and his father came from one of the Eastern States to Ohio in an early day, being one of the first settlers in what is now Chesterfield township, Fulton county, where he secured a tract of government land, heavily timbered, and the Indians of the vicinity assisted him in erecting his log-cabin. The father reclaimed much of his land to cultivation, being the owner of two hundred and forty acres of the best land in Chesterfield township at the time of his death, in 1855. Amy (Clark) Welch was born in the State of New York, and accompanied her parents on their immigration to the wilds of Fulton county, Ohio, where she was married. Her father, George P. Clark, was one of the pioneer farmers of Chesterfield township, where his 618 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY wife died, and he passed the closing years of his life in Morenci, Mich. James and Amy (Clark) Welch became the parents of four children: Mary J. is the widow of Joel Briggs, who died about 1885, and she resides on her homestead farm, in Chesterfield township; Elizabeth, the wife of Sidney S. Beatty, of Morenci, Mich., died in Ann Arbor, that State, May 3, 1905; Elizer B. is the subject of this sketch; and Chester is a resident of Morenci, Mich. The present residence of the mother is Morenci, Mich. Elizer B. Welch was reared on the old pioneer homestead, and had such educational privileges as were afforded in the common schools of the locality and period, and he has made farming his life vocation, and has made a distinctive success in his chosen field of endeavor. He now owns and operates eighty acres of the old homestead on which he was born, and is also the owner of another excellent farm, of one hundred and twenty acres, in section 10, Chesterfield township, about one and one-fourth miles northwest of his residence place. He improved the second farm with good buildings and has reclaimed a considerable portion of it from a wild state. The political support of Mr. Welch is accorded, without reservation, to the Democratic party; he is essentially progressive and public-spirited, and he has served in minor offices of local order. In a fraternal way he is identified with the Grange. December 3o, 1868, Mr. Welch was married to Miss Harriet M. Rogers, the nuptial ceremony being performed in Morenci, Mich., by Rev. John T. Hankinson. Mrs. Welch was born in Fulton county, December I, 1847, and is a daughter of Leonard and Harriet Gillmore Rogers, both of whom were born in the State of New York, and their marriage was solemnized in Fulton county. Mrs. Rogers died, near. Grand Rapids, Mich., in 1853, and her husband long survived her, dying in the State of Washington, March 3o, 1902, at a venerable age. He was a blacksmith by trade, but devoted the greater part of his active career to farming. Mr. and Mrs. Rogers became the parents of six children: Otis C. resides in the State of Washington; William P. is a resident of Missouri; George W. resides in Adrian, Mich.; Harriet M. is the wife of the subject of this review; Mary J. resides in Hillsdale county, Mich.; and Mary is deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Welch have four children: James L., who was born February 27, 1870, was married, March 25, 1891, to Miss Minnie E. Baxter, and he is now engaged in the banking business in Lawrene, Mich., Van Buren county; Lillie A. was born January 29, 1872, and is now the wife of Charles VanVorce. of Seneca township, Lenawee county, Mich.; Charles C., born October 30, 1883, is in Canada as a railroad employe; and Jennie E., born May 4, 1887, remains at the parental home. WILLIAM W. WHFTSTONE, who is engaged in the general merchandise business at Zone, Franklin township, has built up an excellent trade and is one of the .popular citizens of this section of Fulton county. He was born in Pioneer, Williams county, on the 9th of May, 1864, and is a son of William and Louisa (Heynes) Whetstone, the former of whom was born in Mercer county, Ohio, and the latter BIOGRAPHICAL - 619 in Akron, Summit county. The parents of William Whetstone were numbered among the pioneers of Mercer county, having come to Ohio from the State of Pennsylvania. William Whetstone was engaged in farming in Mercer county until about 1862, when he removed to Williams county, where he was engaged in farming for a number of years, later removing to Defiance county. He and his wife are now residents of Beaverton, Galdwin county, Mich. Of their six children William W. is the eldest; Ida is the wife of James Hutchinson, of Gladwin, Mich.; Daniel is, a resident of Defiance couy, Ohio; Charles is deceased; George resides in Defiance county; Ernest resides in Montana; and Mary remains at the parental home. William W. Whetstone was four years of age at the time of his parents' removal to Defiance county, in whose public schools he secured excellent educational advantages. He initiated his independent career by identifying himself with the construction work on the line of the Baltimore and Ohio railroad, remaining thus employed for a period of five years. He then came to Fulton county, being employed on a farm near Wauseon for one year, and for the following three years he was employed by the month as a farm hand in Franklin township. In 1893 he purchased a farm in this tOWnship, and in 1902 he bought another, in the same tOWnship. He has sold a portion of his land but still retains one hundred acres. He has also done considerable contracting and building in this county. In the spring of 1905 he purchased the general store of William Gunsaullus, at Zone, and he carries a good stock of dry goods, groceries, boots and shoes, clothing, etc., so that he is enabled to meet the demands of his large and constantly increasing patronage. On the 28th of February, 1890, Mr. Whetstone was united in marriage to Miss Alice Ely, who was born and reared in Franklin township, being a daughter of the late Campbell Ely, who was an honored pioneer of Fulton county. Mr. and Mrs. Whetstone have one child, Guy. M'r. Whetstone is held in high esteem in his home community, and this fact is evidenced by his being in tenure of the office of trustee of Franklin township. He is a Democrat in his political adherency and is identified with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. ENOS WELLS, one of the honored citizens and venerable pioneers of Clinton township, where he is the owner of a valuable farm, was born in Holmes couy, Ohio, on the 11th of November, 1829. He is a son of Moses Wells, who was born in the State of Maryland, in 1788, and who came to Ohio in 1809, first locating in Wayne county and later removing to Holmes county, where he engaged in agricultural pursuits. In that county was solemnized his marriage to Miss Kernhappoch Gorsuch, and in 185o he came with his family to Fulton county, where he purchased a quarter-section of land, in Clinton township, securing the tract from the government, and he eventually added to the area of his landed estate until he had three hundred and twenty acres, the major portion of which he reclaimed from the virgin forest, developing one of the best farms in the locality. He and his wife continued residents of Fulton county until death, and their names 620 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY merit a place on the roll of the sterling pioneers of this favored section of the old Buckeye state. Of their family of fourteen children only four are now living, the subject of this sketch being the eldest of the number. Leonard W. is a resident of the State of Colorado; Charles N. maintains his home in Kansas City, Missouri ; and Lucy Ann is the wife of James Hodgsboon, of Wauseon, Fulton county, Ohio. Enos Wells was reared and educated in Holmes county, where he grew up to the sturdy discipline of the pioneer farm, and his educational advantages were those afforded in the somewhat primitive schools of the locality and period. He was about twenty-one years of age at the time of the family removal to Fulton county, and here he rendered yeoman service in connection with the reclaiming of the homestead farm and in the erection of the necessary buildings, and he also aided in the construction of the early roads throughout this section of the county, said highways being mostly of the primitive cdrduroy type. His present homestead, which is well-improved and under effective cultivation, comprises eighty-five acres, and its practical operation is carried on by his eldest son. Mr. Wells is a stanch adherent of the Republican party, with which he has been identified from practically the time of its organization, and he has ever shown a loyal interest in the welfare of the township and county to whose development and progress he has contributed in no small degree. He and his wife are members of the Christian church, in which he has held the office of elder for more than a score of years. On the 6th of April, 1856, Mr. Wells was united in marriage to Miss Jane Tedrow, daughter of Isaac Tedrow, one of the sterling pioneers of Fulton county. Concerning the children of Mr. and Mrs. Wells the following brief record is entered: David N., who was born on the 4th of July, 1857, has charge of his father's farm and is also the owner of a well- improved farm of eighty acres in Putnam county. He married Miss Della A. Miley, daughter of Matthias Miley, member of one of the old and honored families of Fulton county. David N. Wells is a Republican in his political proclivities and in a fraternal way is identified with the lodge of the Knights of Pythias in Wauseon. Delilah Elzina, who was born April 22, 1860, is the wife of Jerome Loveland, at one time a prominent business man of Toledo, Ohio, but now a contractor and builder at Tedrow, Ohio. Mary E., born in 1863, is the wife of George Carl, of Shreve, Wayne county. Lucy Annetta, born September 11, 1866, is deceased. Lily Alice, born in 1869, is the wife of Edward Bayes, a successful farmer of Fulton county. Verna C., born July 7, 1872, is deceased. William W., born March 12, 1875, married Miss Cora Conway, and they reside in Kibbie, Michigan, where he is a representative merchant. GEORGE R. WHITEHORNE, who was a prominent dealer in clothing and gents' furnishmgs at Delta, was born at Archbold, Fulton county, July 5, 1865. He is the son of Myron and Mary (Williams) Whitehdrne, both natives of New York State, whose ancestors lived in England, Scotland and Ireland. His maternal grandfather, Henry F. Williams, was one of the first settlers of the territory now embraced BIOGRAPHICAL - 621 in Northwestern Ohio. He was the builder of the first passenger boat operated on the Maumee river. In hunting and trapping he was not excelled by any other party in that country, and his wife was equally expert in marksmanship. He was quite noted in his day as a man of education and ability and assisted in surveying the lines between Ohio and Michigan and between Ohio and Indiana. Myron Whitehorne served for three and one-half years in the Union army during the Civil war and was a prisoner at Andersonville for more than a year. While General Sherman's campaign against Atlanta was in progress the Confederate authorities thought it best to remove some of the prisoners from Andersonville to Macon for safe-keeping, and while in transit Mr. Whitehorne with one companion escaped from the boxcar in which they were confined and for fourteen days subsisted on such things as they could find in the fields and woods before they reached the Union lines. Of twenty-one soldiers captured at the time he was taken he saw nineteen carried out of camp dead. After the war he engaged in the hardware business, which business is now operated by his sons. He and wife were the parents of four sons and one daughter. They are: Olney J., the owner of a feed and livery establishment at Toledo, O.; George R., subject of this sketch; Frank, living at home ; Bertha, still at home, and Wellington B., who lost his life in the Spanish-American war. Myron Whitehorne died at Archbold in September, 1g01, having outlived his wife two years. George R. Whitehorne grew to manhood at Archbold, where he graduated from the high school. After taking a course in the commercial department of the Fayette, O., Normal he taught school two years. At the age of nineteen he was chosen bookkeeper in the store of which his father was a partner. August 5, 1893, he came to Delta and formed a partnership with J. M. Longnecker in the clothing business. He is a Past Master of Fulton Lodge, No. 248, Free and Accepted Masons, a member of Octavius Waters Chapter, No. 154, Royal Arch Masons, of the Toledo, O., Commandery, and of No. 320 Scottish. Rite Consistory at Cleveland. In politics he is a stanch Republican, but in no sense an aspirant to political office. His service on the Archbold board of education proves that he is interested in school affairs. While working in his father's store he was married to Miss Ida P. Zimmerman, a daughter of Simon Zimmerman of Delta, one of the oldest and most highly respected families of Fulton county. One child has blessed this union, Hugh Carr, a lad eight years old. Close application to business, sound business sense and untiring energy have enabled Mr. Whitehorne to win success in business. JULIUS C. WHITEHORNE, who stands at the head of the well- known hardware firm of Whitehorne Brothers, of Archbold, has long been identified with the business life of Fulton county and was associated intimately with his older brother, Myron, until the latter's death, and the original firm name is still retained. In the memoir of his brother, appearing immediately following this one, due data in regard to the family genealogy are given, and also details regarding the busi- 622 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY ness career of the two brothers, so that reference may well be made to the article mentioned, as supplementing this brief review of the career of Julius C. He was born in Pittsfield township, Hillsdale county, Michigan, September 12, 1842, and is a son of Robinson and Mary M. (Treadwell) Whitehorne, who were numbered among the very early settlers of that locality, where they continued to reside until summoned to the life eternal. Mr. Whitehorne passed his boyhood days on the home farm, and after duly attending the district schools availed himself of the advantages of the high school at Hudson, Mich. In 1863 he came to Ohio and began teaching in the public schools of Archbold, and when his brother Myron returned from his service as a soldier in the Civil war they here engaged in the milling business. After two years Julius C. rented his interest in the mill to his brother and for the ensuing three years gave his attention to teaching. Thereafter he was again identified with the milling enterprise until 1882, when he and his brother engaged in the hardware business, which has since been successfully contmued, the concern being one of the most important of the sort in this part of the county and controlling a large and representative patronage. Julius C. Whitehorne is an enterprising business man and a liberal and loyal citizen, taking a deep interest in local affairs of a public nature, and doing all in his power to further the general welfare of the community. April 12, 1864, Mr. Whitehorne was united in marriage to Miss Sarah Maria Terpening, a daughter of Peter and Lavina Terpening, who were well known citizens of Hudson, Mich. MYRON WHITEHORNE, who died at his home in Archbold, on the 20th of September, 1901, at the age of sixty-seven years and twelve days, was one of the most honored citizens and prominent business men of this place, was a veteran of the Civil war and was a member of the well-known firm of Whitehorne Brothers, general hardware merchants, the business still being conducted under the title mentioned. He was born at Adrian, Lenawee county, Mich., on the 8th of September, 1834 and was a son of Robinson H. and Mary Martha (Treadwell) Whitehorne, the former of whom was born in Herkimer county, N. Y., July 12, 1806, and he came to Michigan about 1834, some three years prior to the admission of the State to the Union, becoming one of the honored pioneers of the southern part of that commonwealth, where his principal vocation was farming. In earlier years he was engaged in teaching at intervals and he also studied medicine, though he never engaged in active practice. Both he and his wife died in Michigan, the latter also having been born in the State of New York. Both attained venerable age and left the heritage of worthy lives and worthy deeds. Robinson H. Whitehorne early settled in Hillsdale county, Mich., and was the first justice of the peace in Pittsfield township, having taken up one hundred and twenty acres of government land, which he reclaimed from the wilderness, and he remained resident of Hillsdale county until his death, which occurred March 15, 1889, his devoted wife having passed away July 25, 187o. Of their son, Julius C., so long associated with his brother Myron in BIOGRAPHICAL - 623 business, an individual sketch appears immediately preceding this one. At the time of the outbreak of the Civil war Myron Whitehorne was a resident of Fulton county, having come here from Michigan and identified himself with business enterprises. At Wauseon, on the 18th of July, 1861, he enlisted in Company D, Forty-fourth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, with which he proceeded to the front and did well his part as a valiant and loyal soldier. September 27, 1863, at Mud Run, near Chickamauga, he was captured by the enemy, and thereafter he languished in the prisons at Rome and Atlanta, Ga., and later in Libby, Pemberton, Danville and Andersonville prisons, finally making his escape by jumping from a moving train, between Macon and Andersonville. He rejoined his regiment, September 27, 1864. and received his honorable discharge, at Nashville. Tenn., on the 13th of the following September. After the close of his military career he returned to Fulton county, where he engaged in the milling business, in company with his brother Julius C, at Archbold He was identified with this enterprise until 1882, and the brothers also operated stave and heading mills at Archbold and at Portland, Ind. In 1882 they engaged in the general hardware and implement business, closing out their other interests, and they built up the fine business which has ever since been conducted under the firm name of Whitehorne Brothers, the hardware establishment being well-equipped and conducted according to the highest business principles Myron Whitehorne was a man of the most unbending integrity and stood as a type of loyal and public spirited citizenship, commanding the high regard of all who knew him. In a fraternal way he was identified with the Grand Army of the Republic. January 1, 1859, Mr. Whitehorne was united in marriage to Miss Mary M. Williams, who was born in Lockport, N. Y., May 1, 1841, a daughter of Henry F. and Mary (Robinson) Williams, who were likewise natives of that State, whence they came to Fulton county, Ohio, in 1848, Mr. Williams becoming one of the prosperous farmers of German township. He passed the closing years of his life in Archbold, where he died, March 25, 1884. his wife surviving him by a few years. They became the parents of four children, namely: Mary M., wife of the subject of this memoir; George W., who met his death in the Civil war ; Jemima, the wife of Daniel Monteith, of Toledo; and Elizabeth J., who married Allen McWayne and died in California. Mrs. Whitehorne preceded her husband into eternal rest, her death occurring April 4, 1899. Six children were born of their union. Olney J., born December 13. 1860, is engaged in the livery business in Toledo. George R., born July 5, 1865, is engaged in mercantile business at Delta, Fulton county : he married Miss Ida 0. Zimmerman, and they have one son, Hugh C. Byron J., born October 5, 1866, died April 29, 1871. Frank H.. born April 26, 1869, is practically his father's successor in the firm of Whitehorne Brothers, in Archbold. Bertha A., born January 21, 1874, remains at the old home in this village. Wellington B., born June 9, 1880, died in the division hospital at Knoxville, Tenn., September 7, 1898. At Delta, Fulton county, January 2o, 1897, he enlisted in Company G, Sixteenth Regiment, Ohio National Guards, and May 12, 1898, 624 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY with his regiment, he was mustered into the volunteer ranks for service in the Spanish-American war. He had the attributes of the ideal soldier, but he was attacked by fever which brought to him the end of the mortal life, in the very flush and power of his noble young manhood. All his comrades mourned his loss, and those to whom he was linked by family ties felt the most poignant grief, though realizing that he had died at the post of duty and patriotism, as truly as though he had fallen in battle. ISAAC WILEY is the owner of one of the fine farmsteads of Fulton township, and when it is stated that he has resided on the place from the time he was about four years of age until the present— representing more than half a century—and that within these years has never been absent from the farm more than three consecutive weeks at any one time, it will be understood that the homestead is doubly endeared to him through the memories and associations of the past. Mr. Wiley was born in Westmoreland county, Pa., on the 24th of October, 1850, and is a son of Robert and Maria (Walters) Wiley, both of whom were natives of that same county where they maintained their home until 1851, when, with their three children, they came to Fulton county, and in 1854 they located upon the farm now owned and occupied by their son Isaac, who was about a year old at the time of the removal from the old Keystone State. The original purchase was a tract of eighty acres of wild land, and this the honored father reclaimed and improved, and on the homestead both he and his wife passed the remainder of their lives. He was born March 4, 1809. His death occurred January 6, 1887, and his devoted wife passed away November 24, 1881, at the age of sixty-two years. Three children were born to them after the removal to Fulton county, and of the total of six only two are now living: Rebecca, the eldet, died at the age of sixteen years ; Henry was two years old at time of death, and died on the homestead now owned by Mr. Wiley ; Isaac was the next in order of birth; John died at the age of fourteen years ; two died m infancy; Susan, wife of Harrison Hamp, died near Swanton, this county, January 7, 1904, leaving no children; and Sarah was the wife of Fli Winchell, who died on October 30, 1905, at North Adams, Hillsdale county, Mich. Isaac Wiley, as already intimated, was reared on the home farm, in whose operations he began to assist when a boy, and in the early days he attended the pioneer log school-house, making the best use of the advantages afforded him. January 7, 1871, Mr. Wiley was married to Miss Ivey Hamp, a sister of Harrison Hamp, previously mentioned in this article. She was born within a mile of her present home, on the 27th of April, 1852, and is a daughter of John and Rebecca (Norris) Hamp. John Hamp was born in Ohio, whither his parents came from Germany, where two of their children were born. They located in Fulton township, Fulton county, in the early '30's, being numbered among the sterling pioneers of this locality, where they passed the remainder of their lives. Ivey Hamp, mother of John, attained the extremely venerable age of one hundred and seven years. John and BIOGRAPHICAL - 625 Rebecca Hamp became the parents of three sons and six daughters: Catherine is the wife of George Sheffer, and they reside near Ai, Fulton township; Ivey, wife of Mr. Wiley, was the second child; John, born July 15, 1853, died October 6, 1865; Mary Jane is the wife of Wanton Eddy, of Harvey, Ill.; Harrison is a prosperous farmer of Fulton township; William is a resident of Swanton; Elizabeth is the wife of Thomas Lace, of Hudson, Mich.; Emeline died in infancy, in. 1862; and Margaret Ellen, born in 1864, died December 6, 1879. John Hamp, father of these children, was born May 26, 1827, and is now residing on a farm in Williams county. His wife, who was born June 4, 1831, died April 23, 1887. Jacob Hamp, father of John, served with fidelity as a Continental soldier during the War of the Revolution, having been a member of a New York regiment. Reverting also to the Wiley genealogy, it may be stated that Robert Wiley, father of the subject of this review, was twice married, his first wife dying a number of years prior to his removal to Ohio. Of the children of the first marriage two sons and one daughter attained maturity. William died in Los Angeles, Cal. Lemuel, the other son, served five years in the regular army of the United States, having been identified with the frontier warfare against the Indians and having still been in the army at the time of the outbreak of the Civil war. After his discharge from the regular army he enlisted as a volunteer, and thus included in his service the entire period of the Rebellion, having been twice wounded and once taken prisoner. He is now living in the. State of Oregon. Mrs. Jemima Russell, daughter of Robert Wiley by his first marriage, died in Lucas county, Ohio. Isaac and Ivey. (Hamp) Wiley have two children. The elder, Lyman Eugene, a successful farmer of Fulton township, married Miss Mabel Fraker, and to their only son has been given the name of Fraker. Minnie, the younger child of Mr. Wiley, is the wife of George Percival, son of William Percival, elsewhere mentioned in this publication. They have one son, Homer. Mr. and Mrs. Wiley's marriage was solemnized in their present residence, and he has always lived on the old homestead farm, having come into possession of the same partly through inheritance and partly through purchase. The well improved plate comprises eighty acres purchased by his father in 1854; it is under a high state of cultivation, and he also gives considerable attention to the raising of an excellent grade of live stock, being recognized as a man of discriminating business judgment, reliability and marked enterprise.. Mr. Wiley has been a supporter of the Republican party from the time of attaining his majority, and in earlier years was somewhat active in the local party work, though never seeking office. He still takes a definite interest in the cause of the party, and is public-spirited in his attitude. He served eleven years as school director, and within this period did much to further local educational interests. In July, 1874, Mr. Wiley became a member of Swanton Lodge, No. 528, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and in the same he has passed the principal official stations. Both he and his wife are also identified with the allied organization, Fern Lodge, Daughters of Rebekah, and she is also affiliated with the Rathbone Sisters, an adjunct of the Knights 626 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY of Pythias, of which her son is a member, and she is also a member of the Woman’s Relief Corps of Swanton. She is also a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. EDWARD EVERETT WILLIAMS, of Wauseon, probate judge of Fulton county, a descendant of one of the pioneers of that county, was born in Clinton township in 1864. He is the son of Jeremiah M. and Matilda (Biddle) Williams, both natives of Ohio. Jeremiah M. Williams was born near Tiffin, Seneca county, O., in 1822, and when twelve years old came with his father, Elisha Williams, and his two brothers, John H. and Burt, and his sister, Mrs. Thomas Lingle, to. Clinton township in 1834. Here he grew to manhood and took an active part in local affairs, serving as township trustee for some years. His wife, Matilda Williams. was the daughter of Samuel Biddle who came to York township, Fulton county, from Wayne county. He was deeply interested in township affairs and served as justice of the peace for a number of years. Edward Everett Williams, the subject of this sketch, was reared on a farm and educated in the public schools of Fulton county, being a graduate of the Wauseon high school. He remained on the farm until he embarked in the grocery business at Archbold. Fulton county, which business he conducted successfully for two and one-half years, when he sold it. For seven years he served as deputy probate judge of Fulton county. So well did he perform the duties of his office that in 1899 the people elected him to the office of probate judge, a just recognition of the ability that he displayed while serving as deputy. Three years later he was re-elected and he is now serving in that capacity. In him the people realize that they have an impartial judge and a man who has the moral courage to do what is right, regardless of the cost. To fill this important office successfully executive ability of no mean order and a ripened judgment are required, both of which qualities Judge Williams possesses. He is Worshipful Master of Wauseon Lodge. No. 349, Free and Accepted Masons, and a Knight Templar. He married Miss Alice B. Meeks. the daughter of William J. Meeks, Jr., and Mary J. (Cornell) Meeks. William J. Meeks, Jr.. was born in Wayne county, April 4, 1832. and married Mary Jane Cornell. They had the following children: Flora B.: Albert M.; James, deceased ; Franklin and Alice B.. who is the wife of the subject of this sketch. Mr. Meeks was one of the leaders of the Demccratic party of Fulton county. President Cleveland recognizing his worth, appointed him postmaster of Wauseon, in which he was serving at the time of his death, in 1885. His father, William J. Meeks, Sr., was born in Fairfield county, O., in 1800, and died in Fulton county in 1875. Mary Jane (Cornell) Meeks was the daughter of James Cornell, Jr., and Margaret (Baggs) Cornell. James Cornell, Jr., was born in Trenton, N. J., January 26, 1805, and come to Fulton county in 1837, being one of the pioneer settlers of Clinton township. His prominence in public affairs is shown by the fact that he served as county commissioner for three terms. He died at his home aged seventy-nine years. His father, James Cornell, Sr., together with four brothers settled in Man- BIOGRAPHICAL - 627 hattan Island, N. Y. Ezra Cornell, the founder of Cornell university, was the son of one of these brothers and a first cousin of James Cornell, Jr., of Fulton county. Margaret (Baggs) Cornell was the daughter of John and Nancy Jane (Wright) Baggs, of Somerset county, Pa., who located in Holmes county, 0., where John Baggs died in 1846. Thomas Baggs, the brother of John, settled in Clinton township in 1836. They were the sons of Jewell A. and Nancy (McWilliams) Baggs. Jewell A. Baggs, a civil engineer and a Methodist minister, came with his brother, Hugh, from Scotland and settled in Somerset county, Pa., in 1755. JOHN WILLIAMS (deceased), one of the pioneer settlers of Fulton county, was born July 20, 1814, and died at the homestead on January 23, 1890, aged seventy-five and one-half years. When twenty years old he came with his parents to what is now Fulton county and spent his early life in the avocations of a pioneer, for which he was well fitted, being strong and robust. The first farm that he opened was located two and one-half miles northeast of Delta, where he lived for many years. In 1849 he made the overland trip to California, and, after meeting with marked success in his search for gold, returned to Ohio and opened up another farm three miles east of Delta, where he spent the remainder of his life. John Williams was very prominent in the organization of Fulton county and was a useful citizen throughout his long residence there. His life was spent in agricultural pursuits, m which he was unusually successful. He could truthfully boast of having cleared more land than any other man in the county. On September 14, 1840, he was married to Miss Elizabeth A. Norton, daughter of Hiram and Sarah (Gamble) Norton, and their union was blessed with ten children. They are: Emily, now Mrs. Fashbaugh, a resident of Colorado; David, a farmer of Delta ; Elsie (deceased), who was the wife of John Westbrook; Phoebe, now Mrs. George Westbrook, residing on the homestead ; Sarah, the wife of John N. Petersen of Delta; John, a farmer of Swan Creek township ; George, a farmer near Delta; Anson, a railroad man, a resident of Toledo, Ohio; Ida, who died at the age of seven years, and Lovina, who died in her second year. His widow is still living and makes her home with Mrs. Petersen, her daughter. John N. Petersen, the son-in-law of the subject of this sketch, was born in New York City July 3o, 1852. He is the son of John Jacob and Sophia (Winkleseth) Petersen, both natives of Germany, the former having been born in Houston, near Denmark, and the latter in Bremen. They were married in New York City, whence they removed to Ohio during the early part of the Civil war, locating on a farm east of Delta. Afterwards they removed to a farm in Fulton township, where the father died, October 22, 1892, aged seventy- eight years. His widow is still living on the homestead at the age of eighty-two years. They were the parents of five children, three sons and two daughters, all living and married. They are: John N. the eldest; Anna, now Mrs. Wallace Smith, a resident of Paulding county, O.; Theresa, now Mrs. Eugene Wales of Swanton; Henry H., 628 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY section foreman on the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern railway at Wauseon; and William B., living with his mother on the homestead. John N. Petersen grew to manhood on a farm, receiving a fair common school education. In public affairs he has always taken a deep interest. So well does he stand in his community that he was elected township assessor on the Democratic ticket, notwithstanding the township is strongly Republican. He is a member of Fulton Lodge, No. 248, Free and Accepted Masons, of Lodge No. 199, Knights of Pythias, and has also been an Odd Fellow ; having passed the official chairs of Swanton Lodge in that organization, as well as that of the Knights of Pythias. Mr. and Mrs. Petersen are both members of the adjunct order of the Knights of Pythias, known as the Rathbone Sisters, the name of the lodge being Thirza Temple No. 189, Delta, Ohio. Mr. Petersen is also a member of the Uniformed Rank, Knights of Pythias, No. 122, at Delta. In 1880 he was wedded to Miss Sarah R. Williams, daughter of John and Elizabeth A. (Norton) Williams, and their union was blessed with two children: Ocie E., the wife of Jacob F. Perkins, a farmer and contractor, of this county, and they have one daughter, Grace Elizabeth ; Opal L., the younger daughter, is now attending the Delta schools. ANSON WILLSON is another of the enterprising and progressive citizens who are exemplifying the attractive possibilities offered in connection with the agricultural industry in Fulton county, being the owner of a well-improved landed estate in Amboy township, and he is a scion of one of the well-known pioneer families of Fulton township. He was born on the 3d of February, 1845, and is a son of Martin and Jane (Fullerton) Willson, the former born in Clark county, Ohio, and the latter in York county, Pa. The paternal grandfather, Nathan Willson, was a native of New York State, and became one of the earliest settlers of Pike township, Fulton county, Ohio, where he took up his residence in 1834. He secured a tract of government !and and reclaimed a goodly portion of the same from the native wilds, becoming one of the influential pioneers of that section and there continuing to reside until his death, his wife also dying on the old homestead. They became the parents of three children—Martin, Emira and Catharine. The maternal grandfather of the subject of this sketch was Robert Fullerton, who came from Pennsylvania and settled in Swanton township, Lucas county, Ohio, about 1840, being there engaged in farming until his death. Martin Willson, who is eighty-eight years of age (1905), has been a resident of Fulton county since 1834, and he has continuously resided on the old homestead. in Fulton township, which he secured from the government more than an half-century ago, having cleared and improved the farm and being one of the most venerable and honored pioneer citizens of that section. His devoted wife is dead, having passed away in 1901. They became the parents of seven children, namely : Anson. Eliza, Frank, Mary, Lucius, Howard and Nettie. Eliza became the wife of Wallace Ford and is now deceased; Frank also is deceased ; Mary. became the wife of Dr. Elmer Tompkins and is deceased ; and Nettie is the deceased wife of BIOGRAPHICAL - 629 Oliver Manley. Anson Willson was reared on the old home farm, in Fulton township, and contributing his quota to its work, he was accorded good educational advantages, having first attended the local schools and having thereafter continued his studies in Adrian College, in Adrian, Mich. He was successfully engaged in teaching in the public schools for twelve winter terms, and he continued his residence in Fulton township until 1882, when he removed to Amboy township and took up his residence on eighty acres of unimproved land, having purchased the property in 1876. He has here developed one of the valuable farms of the township, having erected good buildings and having brought the greater portion of the place under effective cultivation. He exercises his franchise in support of the principles of the Republican party, has served two terms as trustee of Amboy township and is now serving his second term as jutice of the peace, and he is also a member of the school-board of what is known as the Amboy-Fulton special district. Prior to his removal to Amboy township he was incumbent of the office of clerk of Fulton township for two terms. May 12, 187o, Mr. Willson wedded Miss Susannah Stout, daughter of Samuel and Amanda (Johnson) Stout, of Fulton township, and the two children of this union are Burton, who is engaged in teaching school and farming on the homestead; and Gertrude, who is the wife of Samuel Shug, of Amboy township. VALENTINE WINSLOW is a type of those progressive and energetic farmers who have brought about the magnificent development of the agricultural resources of Fulton county, and he is numbered among the representative farmers and stock-growers of Pike township, where his entire life has been passed. He was born on the farm which is now his home, the date of his nativity having been March 20, 1843, and he is a son of Valentine and Lydia Ann (Welch) Winslow. His father was born in Lewis county, New York, in 1804, and at the age of fifteen years, in company with his brother Martin, who was thirteen years of age at the time, he came to Ohio, making the trip in a one-horse wagon and in due time arriving at their destination, the home of Willard Gunn, at Waterville, Lucas county. This journey was accomplished in the year 1818, so that the youthful brothers became pioneers of the Buckeye State. In the winter of 1832; Mr. Winslow took up his residence on the farm now owned by his son and namesake, the subject of this sketch. The place was in the midst of the virgin forest and no improvements had been made on the same, the nearest house having been at Swanton, nine miles distant. He developed his farm and became one of the honored citizens of the county, where he passed the remainder of his life, his death occurring on the homestead, in 1857, and his wife passed away in 186o. Valentine Winslow, Sr., endured the hardships and deprivations incident to the pioneer epoch in this section, which is now marked by opulent prosperity, and he labored faithfully in making a home in the wilderness. At the time of the great meteoric shower, in 1832, he and Garry Miller were sleeping at night under their wagon, in Pike township, and he awoke to witness the beautiful phenomenon, forthwith rousing his 630 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY companion and assuring him that the stars were "playing tag." In 1834 he utilized his ox-team and wagon in bearing the corpse of an Indian to the grave, having maintained friendly relations with the red men who still remained in this locality. The subject of this sketch was afforded the advantages of the somewhat primitive schools of his native township, and was reared on the homestead farm. assisting in its reclamation and improvement, and his vocation throughout life has been that of farming, in connection with which he has met With a due measure of success. In 1861 he purchased the interests of the other heirs in the old homestead, to whose operation he has since given his undivided attention. He has a finely improved and very productive farm of one hundred and forty acres and is one of the substantial farmers and popular citizens of the township whose development he has witnessed and aided. He is a Republican in his political proclivities. In 1864 Mr. Winslow was united in marriage to Miss Mary A. Koder, who was born in Ashland county, Ohio, on May 27th, 1838, and who came with her parents, George and Mary ( Stout) Koder, to Fulton county in 1846, her father dying in 1885 and her mother in 189o. Mr. and Mrs. Winslow have three children—Lizzy, who is the wife of Daniel Casey ; Minnie, who is the wife of Willard Winslow; and George, who lis associated with his father in the operation of the home farm. OSCAR J. WISMAN, D.D.S.. a prominent and highly-successful dentist of Delta, is a descendant of a family that on his fathersis side has long been established on the American continent and whose maternal ancestors originally came to Pennsylvania from Germany. He is the son of Eli and Mary (Lesnet) Wisman, both natives of Ohio. Eli T. Wisman was born in Knox county. O., in 1844, and for a number of years was actively engaged in farming. He served through the Civil war as a member of Company K of the One hundred and fifteenth Ohio volunteer infantry. At present he is engaged in the United States mail service in the capacity of carrier. He and wife, who was born in Williams county, in 1846 are the parents of five children. They are : Eva ; Jennie, the wife of Jay Wilkins of Montpelier. O.; Myra, now Mrs. Lawrence Bollinger_ of Montpelier ; Lula, still at home, and Oscar J. Dr. Oscar J. Wisman was born in Kiddville, Sullivan county, Mo., January 19, 1871. He received his elementary education in the country schools of Williams county and of Montpelier, and he is a graduate of the teacherssi course at the Commercial college of Fayette, O., Normal University. After graduating he taught for one year and then was engaged for four years in the hardware business. In 1898 he entered the Northwestern Dental college of Chicago. from which he graduated in 1901. He began the practice of his profession at Delta on May 7, of the same year. Until quite recently he was the only dentist in Delta. The result of his push and enterprise is a large and lucrative practice which extends to all parts of the county. Dr. Wisman is a member of Fulton Lodge, No. 248. Free and Accepted Masons and of the Modern Woodmen of America, and with his wife a member of the Presbyterian church. In politics the Doctor is a BIOGRAPHICAL - 631 stanch Republican, in which matter he follows his ancestral line. While Dr. Wisman commands- a very extensive practice he and his most estimable wife enjoy high social relations in the beautiful little city that they have chosen as their home. EMIRA WILLSON. a venerable resident of the village of Swanton, where he is now living retired, was long engaged in agricultural pursuits in Fulton township, and is a man to whom has been ever accorded the uniform confidence and respect of his fellow men. He was born in Springfield, Clark county, Ohio, on the nth of June, 1819, and is a son of Nathan and Margaret (Potter) Willson, both of whom were born and reared in the State of New York, their marriage having been solemnized in Genesee county, whence they came to Ohio about the year 185, having two children at the time. They settled first in Clark county and later removed to Geauga county, where they remained about ten years, at the expiration of which, in 1833, they came to Fulton county, where they passed the remainder of their lives, the father having been a skilled mechanic but having devoted the greater portion of his active career to farming. He died in 1840, and his wife passed away in 1844. Of their seven children only three attained years of maturity, namely: Katherine, who died of consumption, in 1835, hers having been the first grave made on Etna Ridge, where her parents had settled two years previously; Martin, who is about eighty-eight years of age at the present time, 1905, resides on the farm where he settled when first coming to Fulton county, two miles west of the village of Ai; and Emira, subject of this sketch, is about two years younger, both brothers being hale and hearty. Emira Willson received a common-school education, and was about fourteen years of age at the time of the family removal to Fulton county, where he has ever since maintained his home. He has cleared and otherwise improved three good farms in Fulton township, and there he still owns one hundred and thirty acres, near the old family homestead. In 1892 Mr. Willson removed to Swanton, where he had previously purchased a nice little place of about seventeen acres, improved with a good residence and other buildings, and here he has since lived essentially retired, enjoying the just rewards of his many former years of toil and earnest application. Mr. Willson has been a member of the Masonic fraternity for forty years, having been initiated as an entered apprentice in the lodge at Delta, this county, and having been a charter member of the lodge at Swanton, to which he was admitted. He is also a member of the Masonic Relief association of Ohio. He cast his first presidential vote in 1840. his ballot was given in support of William Henry Harrison, and later it was his privilege to vote for the grandson, General Benjamin Harrison, for the same office. He has followed the fortunes of the Republican party from the time of its organization to the present, having previously been an adherent of the Whig party. He has never sought office, but has been called upon by his fellow-citizens to serve it; various local preferments, having been elected without solicitation or effort on his own part. The Willson family was here during the 632 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY so-called Ohio and Michigan war, resulting from the dispute as to the boundary line, and Mr. Willson heard the only firing that was indulged in by the contending parties during that trouble. Indians were in evidence in this section for several years after he came to the county, and they were peaceable and hospitable as a rule. When the Willson family located in what is now Fulton county, in 1833, there were only three other families here resident, those of Valentine Winslow, Euretus Knight and David Hobart, but to-day the township is one of the most populous and- opulent in the county. January 13, 1842, Mr. Willson was united in marriage to Miss Almira Browning, who was born in Herkimer county, N. Y., in 1821, and whose death occurred on the 8th of December, 1902. Three children were born of this union. William, the eldest, enlisted in Company I, One Hundred and Thirtieth Ohio volunteer infantry, at the time of the Civil war, and died while in the service, as a result of disease, having been twenty years of age. George, the second son, resides on the homestead farm of his father, in Fulton township. He married Miss Lucetta Munger, of Delta, and they have two children—Byron. who is married and is associated in the operation of the home farm, and Minnie, who is the wife of Eugene Penney. a successful farmer of the same township. Emma Jane, the youngest of the three children, became the wife of Ambrose Sidney Eldred, who was born in Kalamazoo county, Mich., and who was a soldier in the One Hundred and Twenty- eighth Ohio Volunteer infantry during the War of the Rebellion. He died in 1892, no children surviving him. Mr. Eldred was a farmer of Fulton county during his residence here. In 1882 he sold his farm, in Pike township, after which he resided in Ashland county for three years. In 1885 he went to Western Kansas, where he was engaged in the general merchandise trade for five years. at the expiration of which he returned to Fulton county, passing the closing days of his life on the Willson homestead, west of the village of Ai. Since the death of her husband Mrs. Eldred has remained at the paternal home, and is the loving and devoted companion of her venerable father. JONATHAN R. WISE has improved and owns one of the valuable farm properties of Gorham township. and is one of the most progressive agriculturists and stock-growers of this section. He was born near Shelby, Richland county. Ohio. on the 28th of April, 1845, and is a son of Jacob and Lydia (Hibbard) Wise, both of whom were representatives of stanch old Pennsylvania stock, and the former was born in Schuylkill county and the latter in Crawford county of the old Keystone State. The paternal grandfather of the subject of this review was Leonard Wise, a pioneer farmer of Pennsylvania and one who was an active participant in several of the early conflicts with the Indians. In 184o Jacob Wise removed with his family to Richland county, Ohio, where he was engaged in farming until 1847. when he came to Fulton county, and purchased one hundred and sixty acres of heavily-timbered land in Gorham township. about three and one-half miles northwest of the present attractive little city of Fayette. He reclaimed a good farm from the virgin wilds, and there remained until BIOGRAPHICAL - 633 he was summoned to that "undiscovered country from whose bourne no traveler returns," his death occurring in July, 1873, at which time he was seventy-three years of age. He was twice married. By the first marriage there were six children, and by the second there were four. His widow of the second marriage survived him by more than a decade, passing away October 17, 1885, and the remains of both rest in the cemetery at Fayette. Of the ten children of the two marriages six are now living. Jonathan R. Wise was about two years of age at the time of his parents' removal to the pioneer farmstead in Gorham township, where he was reared to manhood, early beginning to assist in the reclaiming and cultivation of the place, and his educational advantages were confined to the somewhat primitive common schools of the locality and period. In 1871 he began farming on his own responsibility, finally removing to Michigan, where he remained five years. In 1880 he purchased his present homestead farm, which comprises the northeast quarter of Section 34, Gorham township, and he also owns eighty acres in Section 4, same township, having cleared much of his land from the wild state and having developed one of the best places to be found in this section of the county, and he has erected substantial buildings, including an attractive residence, and made other admirable improvements of a permanent nature. For a period of about six years he rented his farm here, having removed to Clay county, South Dakota, in 1887, and having there been engaged in farming, in Norway township, until 1893, when he sold his property there and returned to his farm in Fulton county, where he has since resided. His political allegiance is given to the Democratic party and he shows a loyal interest in all that contributes to the civic and material advancement of his home township and county. July 3, 1870, Mr. Wise was married to Miss Rachel Cottner, who was born in Richland county, Ohio, June 28, 1850, a daughter of John and Mary (Sheriff) Cottner, the former of whom was born in Germany and the latter in Cumberland county, Pa., her parents having come to Ohio about 1826, settling in Richland county, and Mr. Cottner took up his residence in that county about 1840. having been a soldier in the Mexican war. He died in 1883, at the age of seventy-six years, and his widow, who was born May 16, 1816. died May 8, 1899. She was twice married, her first husband having been Thomas Piper. to whom she bore a son and daughter, and of the second marriage there were also born two children. The children of the two marriages were Elizabeth, who is the wife of Joseph Richie, of Michigan; Boyd. who is engaged in farming in Fulton county Rachel, who is the wife of the subject of this sketch ' and Allen, who is a farmer of Gorham town- ship. Mr. and Mrs. Wise have but one child, Harrie, who is associated with his father in the management of the homestead farm. He married Miss Etta Good, of Carroll county. Ill., and they have four children: Raymond J., Kennard B., Emanuel L. and Allen B. MRS. CLARISSA A. WITT, widow of the late Horatio Witt, one of the honored citizens and prominent farmers of Fulton township, till resides on the homestead farm, which is most eligibly located, 634 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY two and one-half miles north of the village of Swanton. She was born in Monclova township, Lucas county, Ohio, February 23, 1834, and is a daughter of William C. and Clarissa M. (Gunn) Griffin. William C. Griffin was born in Genesee county, N. Y., October 30, 1803, and at the age of twelve years he accompanied his parents on their removal to the site of the present city of Toledo, Ohio. Four or five years later he went out with a fur-trading expedition, and later he was with the Smith & Macy exploring and surveying expedition in the West. After an adventurous career of about a decade he returned to Toledo, in the vicinity of which place he maintained his home for a number of years. In Waterville, Lucas county, in 1829, he was united in marriage to Miss Clarissa M. Gunn. and in 1835 they came to what is now Fulton county, locating on a tract of wild land in Pike township, where Mr. Griffin reclaimed a good farm, also continuing to follow mechanical pursuits, to which he had been thoroughly trained, being an expert mechamc. He attained the patriarchal age of ninety- four years, five months and ten days, having passed the closing years of his life in the village of Delta, this county, and his wife died at the age of seventy-three years, both having been held in unqualified esteem as true and worthy pioneers of Fulton county, where their lives counted for good in all relations. The Griffin family is of English and German lineage, and the Gunn family of English descent, both having been founded in America in the Colonial days. The mother of Mrs. Witt was born in Vermont and was a collateral descendant of Captain Carver, whose name was prominent in the Colonial annals of New England. William C. and Clarissa M. Griffin Became the parents of twelve children, of whom four died young, all the others attaining maturity, being married and leaving families. Five are living at the present time. The names of the eight who reached maturity are: Hortensia, Clarissa A., William O., Henry G.. Elizabeth P.. Louisa M., Augustus M., and Carver S. Aside from Mrs. Witt the four living are Elizabeth P., who is the wife of David Myers, of Delta Louisa M..who is the wife of Hector Miles. of Delta : Augustus M.. who owns and operates the old homestead farm : and Carver S.. who is engaged in farming near Delta. The last named was a soldier in the Thirtieth Ohio Volunteer Infantry during the Civil war. and William O.. who was a member of the Sixty-seventh Ohio Volunteer Infantry, was in active service during practically the eutire war, being killed in the last battle in the vicinity of Petersburg. Va. Mrs. Witt was reared on the home» stead farm and was afforded excellent educational advantages for the day, having attended the schools in Maumee and Perrysburg, - and having been a successful and popular teacher for eleven years prior to her marriage. She is a woman of gracious presence and much business acumen, and has the affectionate regard of all who have come within the sphere of her influence. On February 11. 1858. was solemnized her marriage to Horatio Witt, a representative of one of the old and prominent families of Fulton county. He was born at Wooster, Ohio, on November 6. 1822. In 1851 he went to California, where he remained until 1854. mining, in which he was successful. He then returned to Ohio. and in 1859 they located upon the home- BIOGRAPHICAL - 635 stead where Mrs. Witt has ever since resided. The present residence was erected prior to their removal here, and at the time was looked upon as a veritable mansion. It was substantially built and stands practically intact, after a half-century, comparing favorably with the houses of modern type and being one of the stately old homes of the county. The original farm comprised forty acres, and Mr. Witt increased the same to one hundred and forty, and the homestead as at present constituted comprises one hundred acres. Mr. Witt, who was one of the most honored and influential men of the locality, was summoned to the life eternal on the 21st of January, 1905, and his widow has since given her attention to the management of her property and business affairs, employing a man by the year to operate the farm and directing its work and improvement to a large extent in a personal way. The property is a valuable one and is one of the model farms of Fulton township. Mrs. Witt is a valued member of the county horticultural society, in which she has been an officer at various times. Mr. and Mrs. Witt became the parents of one child, Mabel A., who was born June 18, 1859. She became the wife of Samuel Winpenny, of Philadelphia, a sailor by vocation, and she died at the parental home, in 1893, leaving one child, Miss Dessie, who has since remained with her grandmother, Mrs. Witt, being one of the popular young ladies of the community and the cherished and devoted companion of her grandmother. FAYETTE S. WOLCOTT, one of the prosperous farmers and stock-growers of York township. is a native of the Buckeye State, having been born in Oxford township, Erie county, Ohio, on the 25th of November. 1844, and being a son of Newell and Elizabeth Wolcott, the former of whom was born in Connecticut and the latter- near Harrisburg, Pa., and Both were resident of Hillsdale county, Mich., at the time of death, the father passing away at the age of eighty-one years and the mother at the age of eighty-four. They became the parents of two children, of whom the subject of this sketch is the younger. His sister, Susan E., is the wife of Charles P. McEnally. of Richmond, Va. Fayette S. Wolcott secured his early education in the public schools and has effectually rounded this out through individual application m later years and through active association with men and affairs. When the integrity of the Republic was placed in jeopardy through armed rebellion he was among the first to tender his aid in defense of the Union. April 12, 1861, he enlisted in an Ohio regiment, but was rejected at muster, by reason of his youth. His second enlistment was more successful, but was accomplished through a somewhat equivocal statement regarding his age, his patriotism and ardor seeming to justify his action. On the 4th of June, 1861, he became a member of Company E, Eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, forthwith proceeding with his command to Camp Dennison, for drill and equipment. The regiment was assigned to duty in General Kelley's command, in West Virginia, and took part in the battle of Romney, one of the first battles of the war. The regiment remained in that locality -until March, 1862, then going to Martinsburg and soon afterward 636 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY assisting in the capture of Winchester, under General Shields. The regiment then passed on through the Shenandoah valley, and in the last days of June, 1862, embarked at Alexandria, Va., and set forth to reinforce McClellan’s forces at Harrison's Landing, after the General had been driven from the peninsula. At that point the Eighth Ohio participated in a spirited engagement on the 4th of July, then returning to the defenses of the national capital and taking part in the manouvres leading up to the battle of Manassas. or Second Bull Run, though not actively engaged in said battle. The command then returned to Georgetown and proceeded up the east side of the Potomac and took part in the battles of South Mountain and Antietam. in the last named of which Mr. Wolcott was wounded. His injury led to his receiving his honorable discharge, on the 5th of March, 1863, but on the 29th of the following February, he re-enlisted, becoming a member of Company G, One Hundred and First Ohio Volunteer Infantry, with which he served until the close of the war, in Sherman's army, taking part in the Atlanta campaign. After the capitulation of Atlanta his command fell back to Pulaski. Tenn., and took part in the battles of Franklin and Nashville. Thereafter Mr. Wolcott did not take part in further battles, though he remained in service until October 3, 1865, receiving his honorable discharge at Victoria, Tex. He then returned to his home in Erie county, Ohio, where, on January 25, 187o, he was united in marriage to Miss Amanda M. Roberts, who was born and reared in that county, being a daughter of Peter and Adeltha Roberts. In 1874 he came to Fulton county and purchased eighty acres of his present farm, in York township, the tract having but few improvements at the time and being largely unreclaimed. He has brought the farm to a high state of cultivation, has erected good modern buildings, fenced the property and installed an effective system of tile drainage, and he has added fifty acres to its area. In addition to diversified agriculture he gives special attention to sheep-raising and dairying, having high-grade Shropshire sheep and being exceptionally successful m breeding the same. Mr. Wolcott was reared in the faith of the Republican party, whose principles he supported until 1896, when he espoused the cause of free-silver and gave his support to William J. Bryan for the presidency. The policies since represented by the Democratic party have maintained his loyal support. He served one term as township trustee, and for ten years he was a member of the directorate of the Fulton County Agricultural Society, in whose affairs he has taken a most lively interest. He is affiliated with the lodge and chapter of the Masonic fraternity, at Delta. and also with the Grand Army of the Republic, the Knights of Pythias and the Patrons of Husbandry. He and his wife are identified with the Raker Union church association, which has in view the erection and maintenance of a Union church in York township. Mr. and Mrs. Wolcott have seven children, all of whom have reached maturity : Arthur J., who married Rose Phillipps, owns and operates a small farm near the old homestead; Jessie has been a successful teacher in the public schools of Delta ; Cora E. is the wife of William C. Sieble, of Mango, Ind.; Minnie T. is the wife of Charles A. Snyder, of York BIOGRAPHICAL - 637 township; Ida Belle is the wife of John Gee, of South Delta; William W., who married Miss Mayme Outerhout, resides on the home farm and is associated in its work and management; and Fay N. is likewise a member of the home circle. FRANK YARNELL, marshal and street-commissioner of the city of Wauseon, was born in Wayne county, September 24th, 1855. He is the son of Eli and Susan (Weirick) Yarnell, the former a native of Ohio and the latter of Pennsylvania. In 1860 Eli Yarnell came to York township, Fulton county, from near Wooster, Wayne county, O., where he was born November. 3, 1825. He was a famous blacksmith in his day and parties came as far as twenty miles to have work done by him, believing him to be superior to all others in that business. No other resident of his community stood higher than he, both as a public man and as a worker in church affairs. On the farm which he purchased in York township he spent the remainder of his happy and prosperous life. He died at the old homestead in 1883, at the age of fifty-eight years. His wife, Sarah Yarnell, born January 17, 1832, was the daughter of Philip Weirick, a native of Pennsylvania. She died November 3, 1904. The children of Eli Yarnell and wife here follow : Ittreman, a resident of Toledo, O.; Sarah, the wife of Henry C. Oldfield, the father of Barney Oldfield, the famous motor-car racer; Frank, the subject of this sketch; Ella, deceased; Lucy, the wife of George Jewell of Coldwater, Mich.; Laura, now Mrs. Edward Driscoll of Coldwater; William, deceased, who died in Toledo at the age of thirty-seven years ; Grant, a resident of Wauseon, and Alice, now Mrs. Arthur Hill of Wauseon. Frank Yarnell, the subject of this sketch, was reared on a farm and educated in the public schools of his home county. His first work done away from home was on the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern railway, in whose employ he remained six years. From railroading he went to farming in York township. ' He then removed to Wauseon, where he now resides. Here he has served the city in the double capacity of marshal and street-commissioner, having been elected to the former office in 1901, and twice to the latter. He has given very general satisfaction because he has been fearless and impartial in the discharge of the duties of both offices. He knows well how, to keep order and to care for the highways. He married Miss Lydia Tedrow, daughter of Isaiah Tedrow, a sketch of whose life appears elsewhere in this work. Mr. and Mrs. Frank Yarnell have had one child, Harry H. Yarnell. FRANK W. WOOD, the able and popular incumbent of the office of clerk of Fulton county, was born in Hancock county, Illinois, on the 24th of September, 1856, and is a son of Wyman C. and Marilla (Scott) Wood. The father, who now resides in the home of his son, Frank W., subject of this sketch, was born in Jefferson county, New York, whence he came to Ohio and located in Fulton county in 1868. He is a son of Timothy Wood, who was a pioneer of Jefferson county, New York. The latter married Phoebe Scott, who was born in Ellis- burg, Jefferson county, New York, being a daughter of Oliver S. Scott. 638 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY Marilla (Scott) Wood, mother of the subject of this review, died in 1899. She was a daughter of Pandora and Eunice (Whitmore) Scott, General Winfield Scott having been a member of the same family. Frank W. Wood was about twelve years of age at the time when his parents took up their residence in Fulton county, and he secured his early educational training in the public schools, including a period of attendance in the Wauseon high-school. After leaving school he was elected clerk of the village council of Fayette, remaining in tenure of this office four years, and he served eight and one-half years as a member of the school-board of the same village. In 1887 he was elected clerk of Gorham township, remaining incumbent of this position several terms, and for six years he was actively engaged in the insurance business. In 1899 Mr. Wood was elected county clerk of Fulton county, as candidate on the ticket of the Republican party, of whose principles and policies he is a stalwart advocate, and the most significant testimonial as to the popular estimate placed upon his faithful and able service was that given in his re-election to the office in 1902, by an increased majority. Mr. Wood is affiliated with the lodge, chapter and council of the Masonic order, taking an active interest in each of these bodies of the time-honored fraternity. In 1877 Mr. Wood was united in marriage to Miss Mary E. Keith, daughter of Solon Keith, who came to Fulton county about 1840. from Erie county, Ohio, becoming one of the pioneer farmers of Gorham township. His father, Caleb Keith, was a native of Scotland, whence he immigrated to America when a young man. The maiden name of Mrs. Wood’s mother was Lucy Ray. and she was born in Connecticut. Judge Caleb Keith, an uncle of Mrs. Wood, served twelve years on the probate bench of Fulton county. Mr. and Mrs. Wood have three children. namely : Leslie Arthur, who is a graduate of the Fayette Normal University and the Perry. Davis commercial collegiate institute, and who is now serving as deputy county clerk of Fulton county ; Albert Edward, who is a graduate of the Case School of Applied Science, of Cleveland, Ohio, being a successful civil engineer : and Frank Wilbur, who is attending school in his home city of Wauseon. CHARLES WRIGHT, one of the substantial farmers and popular citizens of Pike township, where he also conducts a successful dairying business, was born in Summit county, Ohio, on the 29th of September, 1841, and is a son of George and Ann Wright. His father was born in Derbyshire, England, on the 1st of November, 1802, and his mother was born in Yorkshire, England, July 12, 1811. They were reared in their native land, where the mother continued to reside until the immigration of the families to America, about the year 1826. She was reared to maturity in the State of New York, and in Perry, Wyoming county, that State, her marriage was solemnized, on the 7th of July, 1833, her husband having come to the United States in 183o. In 1838 they set forth for Ohio, which was then considered on the frontier of civilization, and they located in Summit county, where they remained until 1853, when they removed to Fulton county, purchasing what is now the William Jones farm, four and one-half miles west Of BIOGRAPHICAL - 639 Delta. Here the father gave himself to the reclaiming and cultivation of his farm, developing one of the valuable places of this section of the county and continuing to reside on the homestead until his death, which occurred on the 14th of March, 1885, and his loved and devoted wife passed away on the 15th of the following September. They became the parents of eight children, of whom five are now living, and two of the sons, George and Thomas W., were valiant soldiers in the Union lines during the Civil war. Charles Wright secured his early education in the common schools of Summit county, and was about twelve years of age at the time of the family removal to Fulton county, where he continued to attend school at irregular intervals, in the meanwhile assisting in the improvement and cultivation of the home farm. He was here identified with agricultural pursuits until 1872, when he removed to Williams county, having purchased a farm southwest of the village of Pioneer. One year later he returned to Fulton county and. located on his present farm, which is well-improved and under effective cultivation, comprising eighty acres of fine land. In politics Mr. Wright is a stanch Republican, taking a loyal interest in local affairs ; he has served one term as township trustee, and he has also been road supervisor and a member of the school-board. At Fairfield, Hillsdale county, Michigan, on the 29th of September, 1870. Mr. Wright was united in marriage to Miss Clarissa A. Tappan, who was born in Fulton county, Ohio, January 1, 1846, being a daughter of Wesley W. and Amanda M. Tappan. She died on the 3d of June, 1897, and is survived by three children, namely : Amanda A., who is the wife of Ernest F. Watkins, of Lyons. Ohio; George W., who married Mary Boynton and who is a successful farmer of Pike township; and Edna E., who is the wife of Walter A. Tappan, of Pike township. On the 18th of February, 1904, Mr. Wright was married to his present wife, whose maiden name was Cora B. McMannis, and who was born in Fulton county, on the 19th of February, 1865. being a daughter of William R. and Rebecca (Bayes) McMannis, well known residents of the county. CHARLES E. YOST is a prominent and popular member of the newspaper fraternity in Fulton county, being editor and publisher of the Fayette Review, in the thriving little city of Fayette. He was born in Hebron. Licking county, Ohio, September Jo, 1862, and is a son of John and Delilah (Markley) Yost, both of whom were born and reared in Ohio, being representatives of pioneer families of the old Buckeye State. The parents removed to Hancock county in 1872, and three years later took up their residence in Van Wert county, where the mother died on the 9th of August, 1902, at the age of sixty- seven years. John Yost was reared on the farm and devoted the major portion of his active career to agricultural pursuits, in which he met with a due measure of success, and in his young manhood he was engaged in teaching in the common schools for some time. He now resides in the city of Van Wert, having retired from active business and being seventy-two years of age at the time of this writing, in 1905. Of the eight children in the family the following is an epito- 640 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY mized record: Lillie is deceased; Charles E. is the immediate subject of this sketch; William N. is a resident-of Meridian, Idaho; Catherine is the wife of David W. Poling, of Jackson, Mich.; Maud is a teacher in the public schools of Van Wert, Ohio ; Leota remains with her father ; Odessa is the wife of Burr M. Wilkinson, of Jackson, Mich.; and Augustine is deceased. Charles E. Yost accompanied his parents on their removal from Licking to Hancock county, and later to Van Wert county, being reared to the discipline of the farm and securing his educational training in the public schools and in the Fayette Normal University, at Fayette, Fulton county. He began teaching in the public schools when seventeen years of age, and continued to follow the pedagogic profession, with marked success, until 1895, his labors in this line having been principally in Van Wert and Fulton counties. He was thereafter engaged in farming for a time, in Gorham township, this county, after which he devoted himself to the acquiring of the "art preservative of all arts," learning the printer's trade, so that he was amply fortified for effective newspaper work when, on the 1st of September, 1901, he founded the Fayette Review, the initial issue being sent forth on that date, and he has made the paper an excellent exponent of local interests and a model in its letterpress and general make-up and editorial consistency, the paper being non-partisan in politics and being published on Saturday of each week. It has gained an excellent circulation, which is contantly increasing, and the plant is well equipped, including a good job-department. Mr. Yost is a public-spirited citizen and is -popular in both business and social circles. He is a Democrat in his political allegiance and is identified with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of the Maccabees. August 4, 1896, Mr. Yost was united in marriage to Miss Ada Purcell, daughter of Loft A. Purcell, a well-known citizen of. Fayette. One son, Gaylord P. Yost, has blessed this union. JOHN S. YOUNG was one of the pioneer newspaper men of Fulton county and was a citizen of much prominence and influence during the course of a signally useful and active career, having been intimately identified with the civic and material progress and upbuilding of the city of Fayette as well as the county in general, and having left an unassailable reputation as a man of highest integrity in all the relations of life. It is thus most consonant that a tribute to his memory be entered and perpetuated in this publication. Mr. Young was born in St. Lawrence county, New York, April 3, 1838, and his death occurred at his home in Fayette, Ohio, on the 27th of January, 1905. His father, Jeremiah Young, was a native of the State of Vermont, was of Scotch ancestry and a member of a family founded in America in the Colonial days. He was a valiant soldier in the War of 1812, having been a member of the forces maneuvering in the Maumee valley of Ohio and Indiana during the campaign of 1813. After the close of the war he returned to Vermont, where his marriage was solemnized, and he thence removed to the State of New York, settlmg on what is locally known as Scotch Ridge. near the present town of Madrid, St. Law- BIOGRAPHICAL - 641 rence county. In 1845, imbued with the "Western fever," which was then animating many residents of that section, he set forth with his family for the scenes of his earlier experiences coming by boat to Cleveland, which city was so far removed from Maumee valley, his intended objective point, that he settled near Medina, where he engaged in farming, being a pioneer of that section. There, John S., who was then a boy of seven years, secured his early educational discipline in the common schools, and he was early apprenticed to learn the printer's trade, his mother having died in the same year in which the family came to Ohio. Before the end of his apprenticeship, in 1853, he came to Fulton county, to work in the first printing office established in the county, the little office having been opened only a short time previously at Ottokee, which was then the county-seat, and the original proprietor was a man named Parker. Although in later years Mr. Young was temporarily diverted from the newspaper business into other lines of enterprise, and in other locations, it may be said that the greater portion of his life was passed as an employe or publisher of Fulton county's various newspapers. He was connected with the Wauseon Republican for more than thirty years, under several different managements, and a detailed record concerning his career in Fulton county would be practically an epitome of the earlier journalistic history of said county. In 1891 Mr. Young became the publisher of the official organ of the Patrons of Husbandry of the State of Ohio, continuing editor and publisher of the same until it was abolished by the grand lodge of the order, after an existence of two years' duration. In 1894 he purchased an interest in the Fayette Record, removing to Fayette in December of that year, and soon afterward he secured the entire ownership of the paper and business, conducting the enterprise until the day of his death, having admitted his only son. Frank C., to partnership, in September, 1904. From his long and intimate connection with the county's newspapers, entailing, as it did, a knowledge of the people and their political and social relations, few men were better known within the confines of the county than was Mr. Young. He was a .man of distinct individuality, well fortified in his opinions and ever ready to defend the same, but his kindly nature and broad and tolerant spirit gained to him warm and lasting friendships, and he stood high in the confidence and regard of the people of Fulton county, no shadow of wrong or suspicion of evil darkening any portion of his long and honorable career. The ambition for political preferment never appealed to him, and though frequently urged to become a candiate for one office or another, only once did he yield to such overtures, becoming a candidate for the office of county clerk, on a third-party ticket, when he realized there was no chance of his election. February 20, 1859, Mr. Young was united in marriage to Miss Hannah Lozier, who was an infant at the time of her parents' locating in Clinton township, as pioneers of the year 1836, and the firt family to locate in the township. She is still living and in good health. The two surviving children of John S. and Hannah Young are Frank C., who continues the publication of the Fayette Record, and Nora A., who is the wife of Willis E. Patterson, of Cheterfield township. 642 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY HENRY G. ZELLER, a farmer and contractor of Swan Creek township, is a native of Ohio, having been born in Huron county on July 2, 1864. He is the eldest of three sons living, born to Christian and Christina (Miller) Zeller, the former born in Huron county in 1837 and the latter in Germany in 1842. His grandparents, George and Barbara Zeller, natives of Germany, emigrated to the United States in 1832, the ocean-voyage consuming one hundred and sixty days, and located on a farm in Huron county, where both ended their days. Of the ten children born to them seven are still living, residing in different sections of the country. Christian Zeller was wedded to Christina Miller in Erie county, O., and resided in that and Huron county until 1879, when he removed to Fulton county and located on a farm of sixty-four acres, to which he later added eighty acres. The farm is in a high state of cultivation and is well-equipped with substantial buildings, including a large barn. A portion of this farm has been sold to his sons. Starting with comparatively nothing, Christian Zeller has been unusually successful in his life-work. During the period of the Civil war he furnished two substitutes at a cost of twelve hundred and fifty dollars. In politics he takes no active part. He and wife are earnet members of the German Reformed church. To these parents there . have been born five children; of whom three are still living. Those living are : Henry G., William, of Iowa, and Jacob, a Dakota farmer. Henry G. Zeller was educated principally in Erie county, whither his parents had moved when he was a child. At the age of fourteen years he accompanied the family to Fulton county, working on his father's farm until he began life on his own account. In his young manhood, in order that he might become acquainted with the better ways of the world, he visited the West and worked in thirteen different States before his return home. The knowledge gained by his trip has been of great service to him in his life work. Immediately after his marriage he located on a tract of forty-one acres of unimproved land. By close attention to business and by hard, earnet toil he has brought this land to the highest state of cultivation, erecting upon it all the necessary buildings belonging to a first-class farm. Fortune smiled on his efforts, and he now owns an additional seventy acres one mile east of his home farm. In addition to these two farms he is the owner of other valuable real estate. Tor some years he was engaged in wholesale butchering and general gardening, meeting with marked success. About five years ago he began taking contracts in ditching and rodmaking. Since he began this work he has controlled some large contracts. He now has on hand the contract for digging a mile of ditching in Lucas county, for which he is to receive the sum of thirteen thousand dollars upon the completion of the work. In the building of roads he has been equally successful. A master of his own profession, he sees to it that the work is well and thoroughly done. In political views he is affiliated with the Democratic party. While he has served as school-director and township supervisor he has at no time had political aspirations. He is a member of the Uniform Rank, Knights of Pythias. at Swanton. Mr. Zeller is not identified with any religious denomination. but he is a liberal contributor to the support of all of them. On September 6, BIOGRAPHICAL - 643 1887, he was married, the lady of his choice being Miss Joanna Bratton, born on a farm in Swan Creek township, near his parental home. She is the daughter of Robert and Elizabeth (Dull) Bratton, natives of Ireland and Pennsylvania, respectively. To this union there have been born two sons. They are Ray Edward, aged seventeen, and Floyd Marion, aged fifteen. Both are till in school. FRANK W. ZERMAN, recorder of Fulton county, was born in Wauseon of that county in 1871. He is the son of Casper and Mary Ann (Yarger) Zerman, the former born in France, as the records show, and the latter in Pennsylvania. He attended the public schools of Wauseon two years, when he removed with his parents to Delta and there remained in school until he was twelve years old. His father being a cripple and sick nearly all of the time, he was forced to quit school when a mere boy, and to make his own living. He learned the printing business with the Atlas Printing Company of Delta, and filled every position from that of "devil" to manager of the office. Of the nineteen years that he was in the employ of this company, he served as foreman for eight years. Beginning life's work under the most discouraging circumstances, it is all the more remarkable that the subject of this sketch has' won an honorable place among his fellow-men. By dint of hard, earnest toil and a determination to win in whatever he undertook to do, he has become a successful man, respected and trusted by those with whom he comes in contact. His life is a fine lesson for all struggling young men and boys to study and profit by. In this great country there is no other aritocracy than that of merit, and all may belong to it by working with all their might to be worthy of it. Mr. Zerman is a member of Fulton Lodge, No. 248, Free and Accepted Masons ; Octavius Chapter, No. 154, Royal Arch Masons, both of Delta ; Defiance Commandery, Knights Templars ; and Delta Lodge, No. 199, Knights of Pythias. He married Miss Clara Coe of Delta, a daughter of Henry Coe, deceased, who came to Delta from Fremont, 0. Mr. and Mrs. Zerman have had two children, named Donald C. and Hubert. So successfully has the subject of this sketch conducted everything that he has undertaken that there is no doubt of future promotion. SIMON ZIMMERMAN, a well-known and highly esteemed pioneer of Fulton county, maintains his residence in the attractive village of Delta, and his is the distinction of having here maintained his home consecutively for a longer period than any other citizen now living in the town, with one exception. For two generations his has been a familiar figure on the streets of Delta. He was a resident of the village for nearly twey years before its incorporation, which occurred on the 3d of August, 1863, and he was a valued member of the first village council. For fifty-seven years Mr. Zimmerman was an active workman at the trade of carriage and wagon-making. and in the early days his mechanical skill, energy and industry made him a valuable and important factor in the industrial affairs of the community, and be reaped a due reward from his well-directed efforts. Though a skilled mechanic and an aggressive and successful business man, he never failed in ap- 644 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY preciation of the interests of his adopted town and county, being ever known as a progressive and public-spirited citizen. He was one of the organizers of Fulton county and cheerfully contributed of his means to its development, to the erection of public buildings at .the seat of its government and to the establishing of judicial and municipal affairs. When, in the judgment of the people, it became necessary to change the location of the county-seat he again cheerfully bore his part in establishing the new judicial center. In 1845, when Mr. Zimmerman took up his residence in Delta, Fulton county, as now organized, was unknown, and the idea of a separation from the then existing political organizations was a remote consideration. The Delta portion of this territory was then under the jurisdiction of Lucas county, and but shortly before had been decided the question as to whether this section belonged to Ohio or Michigan. After a prolonged controversy, during which much ill-feeling had been engendered and armed resistance inaugurated on both sides, the disputed boundary line was finally established. Then came the initial efforts looking toward the erection of a new county. At this time little had been accomplished in the, way of internal improvement. Much of the land was still covered with the native timber, and a very considerable portion of the territory now comprised in Fulton county was covered with water, the condition being practically that of impenetrable swamp. Roads were practically unknown except for the most frequented thoroughfares. and churches and schools were few and of primitive order. The youth of to-day, or even persons in middle-life, can have but little absolute appreciation of the hardships, toils and privations endured by the early pioneers. A log- cabin with a single room, provided with the crudest of home-made furniture ; an earthen floor or, at best, one of rough puncheons ; windows of greased paper in lieu of glass ; a wide fire-place. used for heating and also for cooking---this was the average domicile which stood on the primitive farms where now are to be found finely-equipped modern residences, with all the advantages of an opulent civilization. All honor is due these sturdy pioneers who laid the foundations broad and deep for the later superstructure of advanced civilization, and one of the worthy representatives of this loyal class is Mr. Zimmerman. Local organization had much to do with the development of the surrounding country, but personal energy had more. The forests were felled by individual efforts, and largely through private labor were constructed the first drainage ditches. Then the township organizations came to the rescue in ditching and road making, through a wise system of public taxation. The township trustees were endowed with almost unlimited power as to the details of transacting township business. It was necessary, therefore, that these public officials should be possessed of mature judgment, honesty of purpose and large experience along the lines of their assigned labors. To say that Simon Zimmerman served eleven consecutive years as trustee of York township is sufficient evidence that he possessed all the requisites demanded for the successful and satisfactory discharge of the duties of the office in which he was so long retained. He has served the people in various official capacities, always with honor to himself and with acceptability to his constitu- BIOGRAPHICAL - 645 ents. After a life of signal activity and well directed industry, he begins to feel the weight of years, and has thus modified his labors to correspond with failing strength. He suffered the loss of a grocery stock in the Delta fire of 1892, and thereafter he did not again engage in business. He erected a small shop in the rear of his residence, and here he does light mechanical work for his friends and neighbors, but he devotes his attention principally to looking after his property interests in the village and, in season, to the cultivation of his large garden, in which he takes much pride. As a business man he was exceptionally successful, though he never invested a dollar in speculative enterprises. Simon Zimmerman was born in Wayne county, Ohio, September 1, 1824, and is a son of Peter and Elizabeth (Monasmith) Zimmerman. both of whom were born in Cumberland county, Pa. They came to Fulton county in November, 1845, and located in Delta, where both died, well advanced in years. Of their nine children only Simon and Joseph are living, there having been seven sons and two daughters. September 14, 1847, Simon Zimmerman married Miss Sarah Kerr, who was born in Pennsylvania, and whose death occurred in the year 1898. Of their eight children only three are living, David, Almeda, and Ida. David is a resident of Pemberville, Ohio, and is a skilled painter and decorator. Almeda is the wife of Jacob M. Longnecker, of Delta, and. Ida is the wife of George R. Whitehorn, of this place, both being personally represented in this publication. Mr. Zimmerman has been for many years a devoted member of the Presbyterian church, as was also his cherished wife. In politics he was originally a Whig, thereafter supported the Republican party until 1868, when he transferred his allegiance to the Prohibition party, in whose support he exercised his franchise until 1896, since which time he has again been found in the ranks of the Republican party. He cast his first vote in York township and has never voted elsewhere, and he has never failed to vote at any election. He has ever shown a deep interest in educational matters, has filled various school offices, and he gave to his children the best possible educational advantages, which .he was denied in his youth. WILLIAM BORTON is the owner of a well-improved farm of one hundred and sixty acres, in Franklin township, and is one of the representative citizens of this section of the county. He was born in Brady township, Williams county, Ohio, on the 27th of August, 1842, and is a son of John and Elizabeth A. (Taylor) Borton, the former of whom was born in Burlington county, N. J., on the 4th of September, 1820, and the latter was born December 7, 1816. The death of the father occurred on the 12th of July, 1899, his wife having passed away July 5, 1887. John Barton came to what is now Futon county. Ohio, in 1835, and took up eighty acres of heavily timbered land, in section 36, in the eastern part of Franklin township, purchasing the land from the government, for a consideration of one dollar and twenty-five cents an acre. He was one of a company of thirteen colonists who came at that time to establish homes in this section. He was a son of Bauthuel and Rebecca (Clifton) Borton both of whom were born 646 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY in New Jersey, where the respective families were early founded, and there the former was engaged in farming, devoting special attention to the raising of peppermint, continuing resident of that section until his death. His wife later came to Ohio, passing the closing days of her life in Fulton county. She became the mother of six sons and four daughters, all of the sons having come to Ohio and all being deceased, as are also the daughters. The remains of the six sans rest in the burying ground of the Society of Friends in Franklin township. After John Borton had selected his land and prepared a dwelling of the primitive pioneer type he returned to New Jersey, where soon afterward was solemnized his marriage to Miss Elizabeth A. Taylor, of Burlington county, that state, with whom he made the long overland trip to the new home in the wilds of Fulton county, the journey being made with team and wagon. His first trip was made on foot, and twice afterward he journeyed through by walking. Upon locating on his eighty acres he initiated the work of reclaiming the place to cultivation, developing a valuable farm and becoming one of the leading breeders of cattle, sheep and hogs of fine grade in this section, having been the first to introduce the Chester-White swine in this locality, while later he became an extensive breeder of the Poland-China type. It may be noted in an incidental way that his farm was in Williams county until the organization of Fulton county, in 185o, when Franklin township was included in the new county. He was a man of much initiative and of very progressive ideas, and as a stock-grower attained a considerable reputation, often paying high prices for fancy stock which attracted his admiration. He finally sold his farm and moved to Brady township, Williams county, in 1841, there continuing engaged in agricultural pursuits until his death. He and his faithful and devoted wife became the parents of ten children, concerning whom the following brief record is entered: Susanna is the wife of Elwood Tule, of West Unity, Williams couy ; William, of this sketch, was the next in order of birth; John T. is a resident of Ithaca, Gratiot county, Mich.; Martha Ann is the wife of Nathaniel Lyons, of West Unity; Reuben is decased; Sarah C. is the wife of David Crozer, of West Unity; Job is deceased ; Elizabeth is the wife of George Pancost, of West Unity; Rebecca is the wife of a Mr. Hutchinson, of West Unity; and Mary Lydia is the wife of John Mason, of that place. William Barton passed his boyhood days on the homestead place, in Brady township, Williams county, where his early educational advantages were those afforded in the pioneer schools. He assisted his father in his farming and lumbering operations until January I, 1863, when he initiated his independent career, a few months before attaining his legal majority. He rented a farm for a time and in 1867 he purchased his present homestead, upon which he has made the best of improvements, as the passing years have crowned his efforts with increasing prosperity, and he has made the place one of the model farms of Franklin township. He devotes his attention to diversified agriculture and to the propagating BIOGRAPHICAL - 647 of peppermint, from which he derives a good return, the crop being one which has been cultivated by at least four generations of the family, as his grandfather made a specialty of selling this product in the markets of Philadelphia; raising the mint on his farm, in the neighboring state of New Jersey. Mr. Borton has never been a seeker of public office. He is affiliated with the Masonic order. On New Year's day of the year 1863 was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Borton to Miss Regina Oliver. who was born in Morrow county, Ohio, being a daughter of Nathan and Sarah (Carmichael) Oliver, who came to Futon county in 1846, when she was five years of age. The father died in Northwest township, Williams county, where he developed a good farm, and his wife, surviving him by a number of years, died in Hillsdale county, Mich. She was born in Ohio and her husband was a native of Greenbrier county, Va. They became the parents of five children, of whom three are living. Mr. and Mrs. Barton have five children: Ada is the wife of Sherman N. Ely, of Toledo; Charles L., a resident of Clear Lake, Ind., married Miss Bertha Baker, of Ransom, Hillsdale county, Mich., and they have three children.—Ruth, Allen and Dorothy ; y Sarah Elizabeth the wife of Verne Humphrey, of Fayette, Fulton county; John Nathan, who is associated with his father in the operation of the home farm, married Miss Cora Hibbard, of Gorham township, and they have three children,—Vernon, Vera and Irene; Arthur William, the youngest of the children, is a member of the United States navy and is now serving on the new battleship, "Maine." FRANK VENIER, former postmaster of Fayette and long numbered among the most prominent and influential business men of the village, is a citizen who commands unequivocal confidence and regard, and after many years of successful mercantile life he is now living practically retired, having a pleasant home in Fayette and being surrounded by stanch and true friends. He has been dependent upon his own resources from his boyhood days, having come to America as a stranger in a strange land and having won success and independence through earnest and legitimate efforts. Such lives offer both lesson and incentive. Mr. Venier is of pure French lineage and was born in France, on the 29th of July, 1836. He was but nine years of age at the time of his father's death, and six years later his mother also passed away. His educational advantages had been good up to this time, but he was left without financial resources, save of the most limited order. In 1852, the year after the death of his beloved mother, he came to America, alone and 'dependent upon his -own resources. He first located in Utica, N. Y., where he served a four years' apprenticeship at the trade of wagon-making, becoming a skilled worker. He then removed to Seneca Falls, N. Y., in 1856. and there was independently engaged in the work of his trade until 1860, in which year he came to Ohio, locating in Wauseon, Fulton county, and there operating a wagon shop until 1868, when he cast his lot with that of the village of Fayette, where he has since made his home. Here he was engaged in 648 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY wagon-making about two years, during the next two years he was employed as salesman in a general store, and within this time he also established a livery business, being the first to engage in this line of enterprise in the town. The Canada Southern Railroad was then in process of construction through this section, and this fact had much to do with vitalizing local business in all lines, said railroad now being a portion of the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern system. About 1873 he purchased the mercantile establishment and business of his employer, Charles L. Allen, his store having been located directly opposite from the present Opera House block. He continued actively engaged in the prosecution of this enterprise until he was appointed postmaster of Fayette, serving six years and then establishing himself again in the general merchandise trade, in which he continued successfully, as one of the leading -merchants of this section of the county, until impaired health necessitated his retirement. his enfeebled condition resulting primarily from a severe fall which he had received. He disposed of his mercantile business in December, 1903, since which time he has been retired, save for the maintaining of a general supervision of his various capitalistic and real-estate interests. In politics Mr. Venier has always been a stanch adherent of the Democratic party, and during his residence in Fulton county he has been actively and prominently aligned in the local ranks of that organization. He has served as a member of the village council of Fayette, was township treasurer of Gorham township for four terms, and was incumbent of the office of postmaster six years, being appointed by President Cleveland. He is affiliated with Fayette Lodge. No. 431, Independent Order of Odd Fellows. At Seneca Falls, N. Y.. in the year 1860, Mr. Venier was united in marriage to Miss Mary A. Stout, who was born in Berks county, Pa., being a daughter of Samuel and Julia (Bawlily) Stout, who came to Fulton county, Ohio, in 1860, here passing the remainder of their lives. The father was a mason by trade and also became the owner of a good farm, in Chesterfield township. He died at an advanced age, and his wife passed away in December, 1902, at the venerable age of eighty-four years. Mr. and Mrs. Venier have two children. Fannie, born on the 7th of April, 1861, is the wife of Frederick Lewis, of Montpelier, Williams county. William L., born August 5, 1863, now has the active management of his father's business affairs, having been associated with the same from his youth and having been an able coadjutor of his father. He was educated in the Fayette Normal University and is one of the prominent and popular citizens of Fayette, which has been his home from the time of his birth. May 9, 1894. he was united in marriage to Miss Alice Heist, who was born in Bethlehem, Pa., being a daughter of Frank H. Heist, now a resident of West Unity, Williams county, Ohio. Of this union have been born two children, Francis Bruce. and William L., Jr. BENJAMIN F. CRONINGER.—Five miles north of the city of Wauseon, in Dover township, is located the pleasant homestead farm of Mr. Croninger, who is one of the well-known and popular citizens of this section. He was born January 6, 1868, and is a Son of David: BIOGRAPHICAL - 649 and Lydia (Esterline) Croninger, the former of whom was born in Stark county, Ohio, and the latter in Pennsylvania. They came to Fulton county, Ohio, and here the mother died in 1882, and her widowed husband now maintains his home in Stryker, Williams county. They became the parents of nine children, all of whom are residents of Ohio,. their names, in order of birth, being as follows: Amos, Margaret, Elzina, Francis, Mary E., Malinda, Elizabeth, Julia, Benjamin F., and James. Benjamin F. Croninger secured his early education in the, public schools of Fulton county, and he has been identified with agricultural pursuits from his youth to the present. In 1902 he purchased his present farm, which comprises forty acres and which he is making one of the fine places of Dover township, being animated with a spirit of progress and having indomitable energy. He has won success through his own efforts, and his advancement is therefore the more pleasing to contemplate. He is a Republican in politics, and he has been 'incumbent of the office of road supervisor since 1902, while he- served one year as a member of the school board. He and his wife are members of the Christian church. In 1888, Mr. Croninger was married to Miss Eliza First, who was born and reared in Fulton county,. being a daughter of Shuman and Ellen First, who were born in Wayne county, and whose marriage was solemnized in Fulton county, in i866. They now reside on their home farm, near Ottokee, this county. Mr. and Mrs. Croninger have these children, all of whom are at home: Alonzo, Hazel, Ada, Mildred and Wilma. LEVI B. CAMP, who is serving as village marshal of Lyons and who is one of the successful stock-buyers and shippers of this section of the county, is also incumbent of the office of deputy-sheriff and is an and discriminating official. He was born in Fairfield township, Lenawee couy, Michigan, on the loth of September, 1868. being a son of Jerome and Adelia (Russell) Camp, both of whom were born in Lenawee county, Michigan, being representatives of pioneer families. Ambrose Camp, father of Jerome, was among the early settlers of Dover township, that county, where he reclaimed a farm of one hundred and sixty acres, there passing the remainder of his life, as did also his wife, whose maiden name was Phoebe, Jane Reeves. Levi and Jane (Hall) Russell, the maternal grandparents of the subject of this review, were likewise early settlers of Lenawee county, whither they removed from Seneca county, New York. Mr. Russell became the owner of two hundred and ninety acres of land, in Fairfield township, developing a valuable farm from the virgin forest and there continuing to make his home until his death. Jerome Camp was reared in Lenawee county, and upon attaining his majority he engaged in farming and stock-dealing, in Fairfield township. He finally began to devote his attention more particularly to the stock business and finally took up his residence in the city of Toledo, where he was engaged in the wholesale meat business for a period of twenty-two years. He died November 14, 1904, at the age of fifty-nine years, and his widow still survives. Of their two children, Levi B. is the elder. His brother, Homer A., is a prosperous farmer of Fairfield township, Lenawee county, Michigan. Levi B. Camp was reared in his native county, in 650 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY whose public schools he secured his early educational training, which he supplemented by study in the Fayette Normal School, at Fayette, Ohio, and Evans Business College, Adrian, Michigan. He early began to assist his father in the stock-buying business, becoming familiar with all details and gaining a thorough knowledge of grades and values. While he has been identified with various other lines of enterprise, his principal vocation has been that of buying and shipping stock, and to this he has given his exclusive attention since 1899, shipping to the Toledo and Eatern markets. He has been a resident of Lyons, Fulton county, since 1902. In the spring of 1905 he was appointed village marshal, at the same time accepted the office of deputy-sheriff, and is making an excellent record in the two offices. He is a Repubhcan in politics, and in a fraternal way is identified with Royalton Union Lodge, No: 434, Free and Accepted Masons, of Lyons, and with Lyons Chapter, No. 75, Royal Arch Masons. October 3o, 1891, Mr. Camp was united in marriage to Miss Rachel Strong, daughter of David and Irene (Hughes) Strong, of Lyons, and they have one son, Jerome. JOHN C. SCHAFER, a well-known and highly prosperous business man of Swanton, Fulton county, 0., is a native of Lenawee county, Mich. where he was born on February 10, 1879. His parents, George and Dora (Rynmiller) Schafer, are both natives of Germany. After their marriage in the Vaterland they emigrated to the United States thirty-five years ago and located near Metamora, 0., on a farm half a mile north of the State line, where they have since resided and prospered in agricultural pursuits. To their marriage the following children have been born, the first two natives of Germany; Libbie, now Mrs. Jacobs ; Gust, a farmer of Ogden Center, Mich.; George, a retail liquor-dealer of Blissfield, Mich.: Jacob: John C.; Fred, a meat-cutter of Swanton. 0., and Ellis, a farmer living on the homestead. All are married and have families. John C. Schafer grew to manhood on the home farm and received a limited education in the district schools. After quitting school he learned the butchers' trade and served for seven consecutive years in one shop at Metamora. In 1900 he came to Swanton and for three years engaged in the same line of work. In 1903 he purchased a business house on Broadway and a residence on Garfield avenue in Swanton and embarked in the retail liquor business. He keeps a quiet, orderly place and is doing a very profitable business. Mr. Schafer is independent in politics, and has served on the election board of Swanton. In religious matters he was brought up in the faith of the German Lutheran church. On June 2, 1904, he was wedded to Miss Nellie Pfeiffer, a native of Swanton and the daughter of Henry Pfeiffer, deceased, who was a prosperous farmer of this county. To this marriage there was born, in February. 1905, a daughter, Dorothy by name. FRANK A. WHEELER, one of the well-known and successful farmers and stock-dealers of Amboy township, was born near the city of Three Rivers, St. Joseph, Mich., on the 1st of January, 1857, BIOGRAPHICAL - 651 and is a son of John B. and Minerva (Clendenin) Wheeler. The former was born in Michigan, having been a son of James Wheeler, a native of Germany and one of the very early settlers in Calhoun county, Mich., and later of Cairo, Ill., where he passed the closing years of his life. The mother of the subject of this review was born in the State of New York, a daughter of John Clendenin, who was born in Livingston county, that state, and who came to Fulton county, Ohio, in an early day, reclaiming a farm in Section 12, Amboy township, where he died, having been the owner of eighty acres of excellent land. The maiden name of his wife was Ann Hackett, and she likewise was born in Livingston county, N. Y., and died on the homestead in Amboy township. John B. Wheeler rendered valiant service in defense of the Union during the Civil war, and was mustered out of the service as captain of Company M, Second Illinois Battery of Light Artillery. His four children are: Frank A., Charles H., John C., and Leverett B. Frank A. Wheeler was -eared in Amboy township from the age of five years, while his educational advantages were somewhat limited, his attendance in the public schools having been somewhat irregular. When he was but nine years of age he was compelled to make his own livelihood. For two years he worked for his board and clothing and later was employed by the month, principally at farm work, thus continuing until he had attained the age of twenty-two years, when he invested his savings in a farm in Section 1, Amboy township, selling the property two years later. In 1882 he purchased Sixty-five acres in Section 2, same township, a portion of the farm lying across the line. in Lenawee county, Mich. He has made good improvements on this place, which constitutes his present home, and is known as one of the energetic and successful farmers of the county. He also raises and deals in live stock to a considerable extent. Mr. Wheeler is a stanch Republican and takes a loyal interest in local affairs of a public nature. He held the office of assessor of Amboy township five terms and was deputy-sheriff of the county six years, under three administrations. He is affiliated with Royalton Lodge, F. & A. M.; Royalton Chapter, R. A. M.; Wauseon Council, R. & S. M. ; Swanton Lodge, Knights of Pythias, and with the. Second regiment of the uniform rank of the same organization and with Metamora Lodge, I. 0. 0. F. February 6, 1882, Mr. Wheeler was united in marriage to Miss Annie Blanchard, daughter of Reuben and Lucinda (Shattuck) Blanchard, of Sylvania township, Lucas county. Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler have no children. CALVIN V. PFAFMAN, B. Ph., was born near Kendallville, Ind., May 13, 1877. He is the son of Valentine and Mary (Striker) Pfafman, both natives of Rhinish, Bavaria, where they were reared, educated and married. They emigrated to the United States and with their two children located on the farm on which Calvin V. was born. Here both still reside. To them have been born eight children, of whom seven are still living: Lewis. who has charge of the mail- wagons of the Philadelphia, Pa., post-office ; David, an employee in the office of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railway company at Chi- 652 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY cago; Henry, who works on the home farm ; Calvin V.; Pauline, the wife of Mr. Blenner, of Oklahoma Territory ; Amelia and Mary. Frederick died at the age of twelve years. Calvin V. Pfafman graduated with the class of 1902 from the Tri-State Normal University at Angola, Ind., prior to which he taught for several years in the Indiana public schools. In 1903 he was elected principal of the high school department of the Swanton schools and in 1904 he was re-elected. His work is to teach the different classes of this department. In November, 1904, the Swanton school building was destroyed by fire and since that time the east and west transepts of the Methodist church have been used for school purposes. The course of study embraces geometry, algebra, botany, German, Latin, English, and collateral studies. Professor Pfafman is a good teacher and quite popular with his students, patrons and the school officials. He is a Republican in politics and a member of the Christian church, although he was brought up in the Lutheran faith. HON. JOHN C. RORICK, of Wauseon, was born near Elmira. N. Y., February 13, 1834. His parents moved to Lenawee county, Michigan, in 1836, and commenced to help change the wilderness of that time to the splendid farming section of the present. His early education was mostly obtained by studying at home, but by a term and a half at the Medina Seminary, he was able to pass the required examination and commenced teaching at the age of eighteen. After graduating at the Gregory Commercial College at Detroit, in 1834, he went to the Lake Superior copper mines and took a position as ''boss of the kills" for the Ridge mine at Ontonogan, but not liking the position, in company with two other young men, he returned to the States, traveling 250 miles through an unbroken wilderness, on snow-shoes, guided by chart and compass, and he took tip the occupation of teaching writing, drawing and book-keeping at Madison and other towns in Wisconsin. He chartered the first commercial college at Milwaukee, in 1855, but on account of failing health he sold out and located in Aurora, Ill., accumulating a fair margin, which was swept away by the financial disasters of 1860, after which he returned to Michigan. In 1864 he bought the Shuman house at Wauseon, then, in 1866, the Morenci Hotel; and in 1867 a spoke factory at Canandaigua, moving back to Wauseon in 1872. He was the patentee of the Rorick System of Re-working Butter," which went into general use among the shippers in 1878, the Ohio Rug Machine, the Quadrant Bevel Square, an improved Air Pad Truss and several other devices. He was a member of the State Board of Equalization in 1881 from the Thirty-third Senatorial district and was nominated for State Senator in 1883, but was defeated, the district going largely democratic. He has held the office of justice of the peace, mayor, councilman, trustee and other minor offices, but never sought or desired a nomination until 1891, when he and Hon. T. H. McConick of , Findlay were nominated for State Senators at the Toledo convention. They were both elected and renominated and again elected in 1893 by large majorities. In 1900 Mr. Rorick was nominated at the State Board of Equalization convention at Napoleon, Ohio, BIOGRAPHICAL - 653 for the Thirty-third Senatorial district. comprising the counties Lucas, Wood. Hancock, Putnam, Henry and Fulton, and was elected with Hon. H. C. A. Ehlert, the district being entitled to two members. The session which followed was made notorious by the organization of the "Cincinnati Combination," which, having the majority of votes on the board, proceeded to deduct from the duplicates of its members, and add to the duplicates of others in a high handed manner, 30 per cent. being added to Fulton county farm lands. Dr. E. FL Rorick came to Columbus from Athens and a plan was formulated by the two and carried out by a conference at the Governor's office by which the combination was broken and a substitute report adopted and thereby the tax-payers of the northern part of the state were protected. Mr: Rorick is largely engaged in independent telephone construction in Texas and other states. HON. ESTELL H. RORICK, Superintendent of the State Institution for the Feeble Minded at Columbus, Ohio, was born in Lenawee county, Michigan, September 1, 1842. His father moving, front Horseheads, N. Y., in 1836, was one of the early pioneers of that part of Michigan and was a large land owner when the subject of this sketch, was a. boy. Educational facilities were not good, but young Rorick, by close attention to his studies at the district school and at homy to enter the Medina Academy at the age of sinters,. He afterward attended college at Kalamazoo, Michigan. but lacking means to finish his course, he taught two terms of district school, intending later on to return to college. At the Medina school, he formal the acquaint ance of Dr. Weeds, a physician of note, and thereby, conceived the idea of studying medicine and turned his studies, in that direstition Dr. Weeds, who became a surgeon in the United States service was located at Nashville. Tenn., where Mr. Rorick joined him in 1864 served as hospital assistant until the close of the war. He then returned to Michigan and in due time entered the University, of. Michigan at Ann Arbor and graduated, from the medical department in 1869. and located for practice at Tedrow. Ohio, and was rewarded with eminent, success from the beginning. Three years later he sold out his practice to Dr. G. P. Campbell and bought out Dr. J. 0. Allen of Fayette. He did much toward building up Fayette and making it one of the most prosperous educational and business towns of its size in Ohio, He contributed largely toward the expense of establishing the Palette Normal University and at his own expense furnished a room in the institution, fitting it up with manikins, models, charts and all other useful apparatus and delivered regular courses of lectures, on the subjects of anatomy, physiology and hygiene free of charge. He took a postgraduate course at the Detroit Medical College and graduated March 2, 1875. In 1877 he went to Scotland and took a partial medical course in the University of Edinburgh and after visiting and studying the principal hospitals of London and Paris returned to his practicein 1878. He again took a post graduate course at the Alabama Medical Collage at Mobile and graduated March 15, 1883. He was elected` to the state legislature in 1887 and again in 1889; serving four years, His service as representative was satisfactory to: his constituents and useful to the 654 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY state. As a member of the Finance committee of the House he was required to visit frequently the State institutions, this giving him an opportunity to carefully study their conditions and to note their requirements. His education and professional experience as well as his interest in and familiarity with the state institutions became so well . known that he was recognized throughout the state by those in authority as a man well adapted to assume the difficult management of a state hospital, for which his name was prominently mentioned in connection with the superintendency of several institutions, but at the close of his second term in the legislature he returned to his practice in Fayette, after taking a course of studies at the Polyclinic in New York, and graduating in 1892. Under the first administration of Gov. Asa S. Bushnell, he was elected by the board of directors to the superintendency of the State Hospital at Athens, Ohio, which institution he took charge of in June, 1896. His administration was a successful one and his business management a great saving to the state. The grounds and buildings were vastly improved, and at the same time the per capita cost of maintenance was reduced to the lowest figure in the history of the state for a similar institution. A vacancy occurring by the death of Mr. Doren, Dr. Rorick was requested to take charge of the Institution. for Feeble Minded at Columbus by Goy. Myron T. Herrick, which he did in May, 1905. The same business methods used at Athens were employed at Columbus, resulting in a saving to the state of $13,222.58. for the months ending October 15, as compared with the same months for the year 1904. Dr. Rorick's father, who was of German descent, was born in New Jersey, March 30, 1805, and died at Morenci, Mich., January 15, 1898. His mother, Phoebe Ann Breese, was of English parentage, born at Horseheads, N. Y., October .27, 1811, and died in Seneca, Michigan, September 1, 1858. He was united in marriage to Mary P. Acker, August 20, 1868. They have but one child living— Mabel, who is attending the university at Columbus. The eldest child, Clark, died at the age of eight and Georgie at the age of twenty. Dr. Rorick has been financially successful, being a large real estate owner as well as having controlling interest in the First National Bank at Morenci. J. S. RYCHENER, a member of the firm of Rychener & Gigax, general hardware, of Elmira, Fulton county, Ohio, was born in German township of that county on October 24, 1859. He is the son of Christian and Magdalena (Grieser) Rychener, the former born in Bern. Switzerland. on September 1, 1813. and the latter a native of Alsace Loraine, Germany. Christian Rychener, in 1833, emigrated to America, and coming to the state of Ohio located in Wayne county and then followed blacksmithing, a trade he had learned in his native land. In about 1836 he removed to Fulton county, and on August 21, 1837, he purchased a farm an at once began clearing the same. He was married in 1841, the first marriage ceremony pronounced in what is now known as German township, and he died on December 24, 1899, his wife having died on August 22, 1898. To them eleven children were born, as fol- BIOGRAPHICAL - 655 lows : Christian, a resident of Swan Creek township; Saloma, deceased, the wife of David Nofzinger of German t0wnship ; Mary, the widow of Jacob Nofzinger, of German township; Joseph of German township ; Daniel of Swan Creek township; Magdalena the wife of Jefferson Schumaker 0f German township ; Godeon of German township ; Barbara now Mrs. Joseph D. Nofzinger; Henry, of Clinton township ; Fanny, of German township ; and the subject of this sketch. J. S. Rychener grew to manhood on the home farm and was educated in the public schools 0f Fulton county and the Fayette, O., Normal. At the age of twenty-one years he began teaching in his native county and continued in that calling for nine years. In 1890 he removed to Enterprise, Dickinson county, Kas., where for the next seven years he clerked in a hardware store. Returning to Ohio, he entered in partnership with Frank B. Reynolds in the same line in Wauseon for five years. In 'ow he came to German township and with Mr. Gigax as a partner embarked in the hardware business in the new town of Elmira, their st0re building being the first in that town. Here this firm carries a full line of hardware, wagons, buggies and farm implements. In the same year he organized the Elmira Elevator company, with Eli Short and Joel Myse as partners, and began buying and ship. ping grain. Mr. Rychener also owns a third interest in the Pettisville, O., Grain company. On September 25, 1890, he was joined in wedlock to Miss Elizabeth Seiler of Enterprise, Kas., a native 0f Franklin township, Fulton county, and the daughter of Michael and Margaret Seiler, the former at present a resident of Wauseon. One child, Frieda, has been born to J. S. Rychener and wife. CHARLES L. GINGERY, of Swan Creek township, as one of those progressive farmers and stock-growers who are upholding the high prestige of the industry of agriculture in Fulton county. and he is known as a citizen of sterling worth and utmost loyalty. He was horn in Wood county, Ohio, on the 5th of December, 1868, and is a son of Emanuel and Margaret Ann (DeWitt) Gingery, the former of whom was born in Seneca county and the latter in Huron county, this state. In 1879 they came from Wood county to the present homestead of their son, Charles L., the place at that time being entirely unimproved, and a large portion of the tract was covered with water, being of a swampy character. The family lived on this place only one year, and the father then purchased one hundred and twenty acres of more elevated laud, one-half mile east, where he maintained his home for nearly twenty years and where his first wife died, in middle life. He later consummated a second marriage and finally returned to Wood county, where his death occurred on the 28th of April, 1905. Of the six children of the first marriage five are living. Clinton DeWitt resides on a farm adjoining that of Charles L.; Louisa died at the age of twelve years; John A. resides with Clinton, both being bachelors; Hattie L. is the wife of Patrick Foley, a farmer 0f Swan Creek township; Charles L. was the next in order of birth; and Arthur W. is also a prosperous farmer of the same township. Charles L. 656 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY Gingery secured his early educational training in the public schools of Wood and Fulton counties, and his entire life has been identified with agricultural pursuits and stock-raising. In 1891 he purchased his present homestead of eighty acres, the place being now well improved, nearly the entire tract having been reclaimed and made available for cultivation, thus presenting a radically different appearance than it did when his father first took up his residence on the property. He has been associated with his father and brothers in the reclaiming and improving of more than three hundred acres of land in this county, principally swamp and brush land. They also have done many miles of ditching on their own lands and for others, and have assisted in the construction of most of the roads in this part of the county, to whose development and civic advancement they have materially contributed. About a score of years ago the three brothers became associated in the raising of high-grade live-stock, including horses, cattle and swine, operating in conjunction for seventeen years, since which time Charles L. has continued in the same line of enterprise in an independent way. He owns thoroughbred Belgian horses, polled shorthorn cattle and Poland-China hogs, and the fine stock of the Gingery brothers has taken many premiums at the county fair within the last several years. Charles L. is an active, energetic and able business man, his success in his chosen field of endeavor has been excellent, and he commands the high regard of the people of the community in which he has lived from his childhood days. He has been an active worker in the local ranks of the Republican party ever since attaining his legal majority and is a member of the county central committee of the same at the present time. He has served as ditch supervisor and constable of Swan Creek township and is now a valued member of the school board. It may be noted that his father also was a stalwart supporter of the Republican party and its principles, having espoused its cause at the time of organization, when it stood as the exponent of the principle that the Union must be preserved, and he was one of the Ohio men who served with utmost loyalty as a soldier in the Civil war, it being altogether probable that his death was hastened by wounds which he received in service. In 1891 Charles L. Gingery was united in marriage to Miss Jennie Soles, whose death occurred only three months later. In March, 1893, he wedded Miss Addie Sanders, who was born and reared in Swan Creek township, being a daughter of the late John Sanders, an honored pioneer of the county. Mr. and Mrs. Gingery have three children: Don, Dora J. and Herman A. STEPHEN E. HINKLE, one of the representative farmers and honored citizens of Royalton township, was born in this township, April t0, 1853, a son of Ephraim and Mary Susan (Haughton) Hinkle, the former of whom was born in Cuyahoga county, N. Y., January 25, 1823, and the latter in Stephentown, Rensselaer county, N. Y., January 6, 1829. The paternal grandfather, John Hinkle, settled in Royalton township in 1833, having been among the early pioneers of Fulton county, and he became the owner of 240 acres of land, much of which he reclaimed, continuing his residence here until his death, in July, BIOGRAPHICAL - 657 1853. The maiden name of his first wife was Mercy Reed, and they had five children—Ephraim, Elmer, Sally (Mrs. Chauncey Gannon), and Harriet (Mrs. Alpheus Fenner). For his second wife John Hinkle chose Alvira Hartshorn, and they had four children—Jane (Mrs. Milo Warner), Richard, Martin, and Louisa (Mrs. Salem Hartshorn). Ephraim Hinkle was reared in Royalton township, under the influences of the pioneer epoch, and in early manhood, in company with his brother, Elmer, took up three hundred and twenty acres of land. Upon the death of his brother mentioned he purchased eighty acres of the latter's land, but later sold this and also another portion of the original tract, so that the homestead at the present time comprises 157 acres. He cleared this property from the primitive wilds, developing one of the valuable farms of the county, and in 1853 he erected on the, place what was admitted to be at that time the finest residence in the county, the house being still in use and in a fine state of preservation, and few of the modern homes excel it in its air of gracious hospitality and general attractiveness. Ephraim Hinkle was twice married, his first wife having been Ruth, daughter of George and Polly (Richardson) Welsh, of Royalton township, and they became the parents of two children, Melvin and Mary, the latter being the wife of Charles Mann. His second wife, mother of the subject of this review, was Mary Susan, a daughter of Stephen and Huldah (Smith) Haughton, who came from Rensselaer county, N. Y., and settled in Lucas county, Ohio, in 1833, in what is now Amboy township, Fulton county. They passed the closing years of their lives in Wauseon, where the father died at the age of eighty-six and the mother at the age of seventy-three. Mr. Haughton served as commissioner of Lucas county, and when Fuiton county was organized, in 1850, he was one of its first commissioners. Of the children of Ephraim and Mary Susan Hinkle two attained maturity, Stephen E., of this sketch, and Manley. Stephen E. Hinkle was reared on the old home farm, where, with the exception of seven years passed in Lucas county, he has made his home from the time of his birth. He secured his early education in the schools of Royalton township, and later attended the public schools of Toledo and Maumee. His vocation throughout life has been farming, and he has well upheld the prestige gained in this line by his father and grandfather. He is a Republican in his political proclivities, and has served three years as a member of the village council of Lyons, his farm lying contiguous to the town. He and his wife are members of the Universalist church, and he is affiliated with Lyons Lodge, No. 622, I. O. O. F. April 10, 1872, on his nineteenth birthday, Mr. Hinkle was united in marriage to Miss Hattie Cass, daughter of Joseph and Mary (Wilson) Cass, 0f Lucas county, and they became the parents of five children: Ephraim C. is deceased; Lena is the wife of Horton Ferguson; Herbert H., Stephen E. and Homer. M. C. PALMER, an extensive stock-dealer of Archbold, was born in Knox county, Ohio, March 18, 1842. The first representative of the Palmer family to emigrate from England to the United States was John Palmer, who settled in Chester county, Pa., in 1714. M. C 658 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY Palmer is the son of Morris and Mary Ann (Lukens) Palmer, the former a native of Baltimore, Md., and the latter of Winchester, Va. Morris Palmer in an early day removed to Knox county, 0., where he resided until 1858, when he removed to Fulton county, settling on a farm in Franklin township. After retiring from farming he resided in the village of Fayette, 0., and there died in 1g01, aged seventy-one, his wife having died the year before, aged sixty-six years. Of the six children born to them M. C. in the eldest. The other five are: Sarah, the wife of Austin Jones; Athelrenda, now Mrs. John Russell, of West Unity; Abraham (deceased): Mary Olive, the wife of Frank Crookson; and William, of Saginaw, Mich. M. C. Palmer grew to manhood on a farm and received such an education as the common schools of that day afforded. On August 18, 1862, when still at home, he enlisted in Company A of the Sixty-seventh Ohio volunteer infantry regiment and served until July 1, 1865, when he was mustered out at Columbus, 0. His military service was a very strenuous one. He joined his regiment, a part of the army of the Potomac, at Suffolk, Va., where he was first under fire. After the battle of Black Water the regiment was sent to the Carolinas. During the month that the command was engaged in the siege of Petersburg, Va., his company was one of nine to make a desperate charge which resulted in the killing and wounding of fully one-half of the men. He was also in the battle of Mare's Island and at Gen. R. E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox Court-house. After the war he returned to the home of his parents in Franklin township and engaged m farming. About thirty years ago he came to German township, where he owns a fine farm of one hundred and sixty acres, three-fourths of a mile west of Elmira. He followed general farming until 5900, when he engaged in buying and selling live stock. Mr. Palmer has never been too busy to neglect public affairs, and for ten years served as township trustee. He is a Democrat in politics a member of the Defiance Commandery of Knights Templars, the Wauseon Chapter and Council, the Blue Lodge of West Unity, the Odd Fellow Lodge at Archbold, the Grand Army of the Republic Post at Wauseon, the Relief Association of Toledo, and the Horse Owners' Association. On August 16, 1866, he was wedded to Phidelia Dye of German township, who died in August, 1904. Seven children were born to these parents, as follows: Charles, of Williams county; Annie, the wife of Frank Reeves, of Elmer; Etta, now Mrs. Harvey Smart, of Franklin township; Nellie, the wife of Charles Johnston; William, of Elmira; Lizzie. who married Fred Laurence of Elmira; and Myrtle, the wife of Charles Roop, of Montpelier, 0. AMOS JOHNSON is the owner of a valuable farm in Franklin township, his place being located one-half mile north of the village of Elmira, which is in the adjoining township of German, in which latter township he was born, on the 22d of August. 1851, being a son of William and Margaret (Krantz) Johnson. His father was born in England, where he was reared and educated. He came to America as a young man, in company with his brothers, George and Daniel, and their sister Mary, who was the wife of Benjamin Lee, who likewise BIOGRAPHICAL - 659 came with the. family. Daniel died shortly after they had established a home in the United States, and George did not long survive. William came to Fulton county and took up a large tract of land in German township, where he also erected and equipped a grist-mill, on the banks of Bean Creek, near the line between German and Franklin, townships. The locality became known as "Johnson's Mills," and this .was one of the early mills in this section, proving a boon to the settlers. William Johnson operated the mill a number of years, and he also built :a waterpower saw-mill and later operated a steam-power mill in the, same locality, and he developed much of this land and was a successful farmer, continuing resident of German township until his death. His wife was born in Pennsylvania and came to Fulton county with her parents when a child. After the death of her firt husband she married Jackson Clingman, and her death occurred two years later, no children having been born of her second marriage, but of the first, six were barn: Eliza died in childhood; Maria is the wife of Isaac Smith and they reside near West Unity, Williams county; Amos was the next in order of nativity; William, Jr., died in infancy; George is a prosperous farmer of German township; and William (2d) resides in the city of Toledo. Amos Johnson passed his boyhood days on the home farm which was the place of his birth, and he was given the best educational advantages to be had in the schools of this section of the state, having been a stodent in the public schools at Waterville, Lucas county, and Stryker, Williams county. He has made farming his life vocation, having instituted his independent operations in the line when twenty-two years of age, when he located on his present farm, in section 4. Franklin township, where he has ninety-three acres of excellent land. under effective cultivation and improved with good buildings and other accessories. He gives his attention to diversified farming„ also raises excellent grades of live-stock, and he is known as a reliable and. loyal citizen. He was but eleven years of age when he became doubly orphaned, and he has depended on his own resources ever since, having lived in Williams and Lucas counties during his minor years; having worked early and late, and he did not fail to insist on a due quota of time for study in the schools of the respective localities. In view of what he has accomplished through personal effort his success is the more pleasing to note. He has served as school director several terms. He and his family are members of the Methodist Episcopal church at Elmira, of which, he is a trustee. March 13, 1873, Mr. Johnson was united in marriage to Miss Mary E. Sheets, who was born and reared in Jefferson township, Williams county, daughter of the late Isaac Sheets, and of this union ten children have been born: Eva is the wife of Parker Greeley, of Franklin township; Charles resides in the city of Toledo; Bertha remains at the parental home; Rollin and Rose are twins, the former being now a resident of California, and the latter is the wife of Joel Zoar, of Fayette; Alva is a farmer of German. township; George is associated in the work of the home farm; Augusta.. is the wife of Arthur Gigax, of Elmira; and Harvey and Early are at the parental' home, 660 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY DANIEL J. PRICKETT is one of those who went forth to honor Fulton county as a soldier in the Civil war, and he is now one of the representative members of the agricultural community of Franklin township. He is a representative of the pioneer stock in the old Buckeye state, and was born in Lumberton, Clmton county, Ohio, on the 15th of August, 1840, being a son. of J. L. and Phoebe S. (Barden) Prickett. His father was born in Burlington county, N. J., about eighteen miles distant from the city of Camden, and in 1838 he came from his native commonwealth to Clinton county, Ohio. As a young man he worked at the trade of cabinet-making, following this for some time in Clinton county, where he continued to reside until 1845, when he removed with his family to Lucas county, which then included a portion of the present county of Fulton, which was organized in 1850. He secured one hundred and sixty acres of unreclaimed land, one and one-half miles south of the present village of Fayette, Fulton county, .and there he followed farming until 1850, when he located in West Unity, Williams county, where he engaged in the drug business and also operated a saw-mill. In 1866 he again engaged in farming, securing a place in Brady township, Williams county, where he remained until 1885, when he returned to West Unity, where he died on the loth of April, 1893, at the age of seventy-seven years and eight months. He was originally a Whig and later a Republican, and served in various township offices. He was a son of Isaac and Dorothy (Joyce) Prickett, who made New Jersey their home throughout life, though Isaac Prickett was for a time engaged in the butchering business in the city of Cincinnati, Ohio, having been an expert in this line of enterprise. His wife was a daughter of Daniel Joyce, in whose honor the subject of this review was named. Phoebe (Barden) Prickett was a daughter of Josiah and Margaret (Sharp) Barden, both of English descent, who became residents of Ohio in 1809. continuing to make their home near Lumberton, Clinton county, until death. Mrs. Prickett died on the 26th of January, 1901, aged eighty-five years and six months. J. L. and Phoebe S. Prickett became the parents of nine children, of whom the first born was Daniel J., subject of this sketch; Sarah J. is deceased; James H. is a resident of Pomona, California; Anna M. is deceased; John B, resides in Forest Grove, Oregon; Mary E. is the. wife of Frank McWilliams, of Sunnyside, Wash.: Abigail E. is the wife of Isaac N. Drake, of Loretta, South Dak.: Josiah died in. infancy; and J. C. F. resides in Sunnyside, Wash. Daniel J. Prickett was about five years of age at the time of his parents' removal to what is now Fulton county, and he was reared in this and Williams county. completing the curriculum of the district schools of the day and then attending the Reading Valley Seminary, where he was a schoolmate of Rev. John Henry Barrows, long a prominent clergyman of Chicago, and later president of Oberlin College. Prior to the outbreak of the Civil war, Mr. Prickett's attention was given principally to teaching school and to assisting in the operation of his saw-mill. He operated the first portable saw-mill in Northwestern Ohio and was successful in this field of enterprise. August 2, 1861, in company with his brother James, Mr. Prickett tendered his services in defense of the Union. Both BIOGRAPHICAL - 661 enlisted in Company H, Third Ohio Volunteer Cavalry, being provided with accoutrements and receiving preliminary discipline in the city of Columbus, and being sent to Camp Dennison and finally to Nashville, Tenn., being constantly engaged in scouting, and much of the time on duty as guard in the rear of General Buell's army. At Bardstown, Ky., Mr. Prickett was captured, but was soon afterward paroled, He took part in a large number of important engagements, including the battles of Corinth, Chickamauga, Knoxville, Shelbyville, McMinnville and Munfordville, was in service throughout the memorable Atlanta campaign, and, by re-enlistment, he remained as a soldier of the Union until the close of the war, having been with his command at Macon, Ga., when the welcome tidings of Lee's surrender came. He was mustered out, August 15, 1865, receiving his honorable discharge. He returned to Fulton county, and here he has ever since been actively identified with the agricultural industry, though he taught two terms of school after the close of his military career. His farm is well-improved and has been in his possession since 1865. He is one of the well known and exceptionally popular citizens of Franklin township and has served as justice of the peace, township trustee and clerk, and on one occasion he was a candidate for county clerk, on the Prohibition ticket. He was a member of the county central committee of the Prohibition party for a period, and he now maintains an independent attitude in politics. Both he an his wife are members of the Church of Christ. In a fraternal way he is affiliated with Rings Post, No. 637, Grand Army of the Republic, at West Unity, and be has been identified with the Masonic fraternity for more than two score years and with the Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry for thirty years. During the Civil war he held membership in the Union League. October 4, 1865, Mr. Prickett was united in marriage to Miss Lydia G. Borton, who was born in Burlington county, N. J., being a daughter of Benjamin and Abigail W. (Barden) Borton, who came to Fulton county in 1839, when Mrs. Prickett was six months of ages The mother died in 1861, aged forty-five years; and the father in 1888, aged seventy-seven years. Their three children are still living. To Mr. and Mrs. Prickett were born eight children:Anna, the wife of William B. Persing, died in Wisconsin, in 1903; Jennie E. is the wife of Warner M. Steward, of Archbold, Fulton county; Benjamin is deceased; the next child died in infancy: Lydia Gertrude is the wife of Alonzo Mangus, of Franklin township; James D. is a resident of Phoenix, Arizona; Jessie Ellen is the wife of Daniel Myers, of Williams county; and Mary Eva remains at the parental home.