400 - CENTENNIAL. BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY. A word or two concerning the venerable parents of Mrs. Garber will prove of interest. Samuel Leonard was born in Pennsylvania, but his wife, Isabelle Curry, was a native of Ohio, where the former became a successful Farmer. Both are living, and celebrated their eighty-seventh birthdays in 1902, his occurring in March and hers in November of that year. John Curry, father of Isabelle Leonard, was born in Ireland and came to the United States when fifteen years old. He was a weaver by trade, and also farmed, was a life-long member of the Presbyterian church, and died at a good old age, respected by all who knew him. Robert Leonard, father of Samuel, was born in Pennsylvania, f old Holland Dutch stock, but removed, to Hancock county about 1838, where he followed farming. He was a ruler in the Presbyterian church for half a century, and died at the age of seventy-six years. SAMUEL SWAB. Among the prominent and substantial citizens f Cass township, Hancock county, Ohio, must be mentioned Samuel Swab, whose great estate of three hundred and fifty-eight acres is not only well situated for farming and stock-raising purposes, but it is also valuable on account of containing twenty-four oil producing wells. The birthplace and home of our subject until he was nine years of age, was in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, where he was born on August 5, 1845, and is a son of George and Mary. (Rodabaugh) Swab. His education was acquired in the schools of Cass township and his subsequent life has been devoted to agricultural pursuits. George Swab, the father of our subject, was born in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, in 1813, where his wife was born in 1826. She died in the winter of 1848, their family consisting of four children, namely: Mary, deceased; Barbara E., deceased; David and Samuel. In his young manhood George Swab worked at various occupations, principally teaming, but later learned the distilling business which he followed for sixteen years. He thus accumulated means with which to move to Hancock county, Ohio, and purchase a farm of eighty acres, twenty of which had been cleared. He was born of most worthy parents, George and Barbara (Coder) Swab, and as they were in limited circumstances, he assisted in their care. His residence now is on his fine farm in Cass township, still in the enjoyment of health despite his advanced years, and he has always been respected in his community. CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 401 Such were the honorable ancestors of our subject. In 1872 he received a gift of forty acres of land from his father and his own energies enabled him to to this until it is the large and productive estate mentioned above. Here he erected commodious and suitable buildings, on modern lines, and is surrounded with all of the comforts of life. Hhas taken an active part in politics, being like his father, an ardent Republican, and he has been called upon to serve his township in a fmber of offices, as trustee and supervisor, and as a member of the school board. He was also township treasurer, being a man of such reliability that his fellow citizens have. been glad to so honor him. In 1872 Mr. Swab was married to Miss Barbara Kagy, born in Fairfield county, Ohio, in 1847, and a daughter of Samuel and Hannah Kagy. To this union there were born : Blanch, who marrfd John Nusser ; Debora, who married Charles Harry; Samuel K., who married Bessie Ullery; and Pearl A. Mr. Swab is generally regarded as a thorough business man, known to be of strict integrity and is truly a representative citizen. His residence, one of the best in Cass township, is situated upon ground sufficiently elevated to lend a commanding view of the surrounding country. The house and barn, which were built about forty years ago, were remodwhicheight years ago by Mr. Swab.. CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 401 Such were the honorable ancestors f our subject. In 1872 he received a gift f forty acres of land from his father and his own energies enabled him to add until it is the large and productive estate mentioned above. Here he erected commodious and suitable buildings, on modern lines, and is surrounded with all. of the comforts f life. He. has taken an active part in politics, being like, his father, an ardent Republican, and he has been called upon to serve his township in a number f offices, as trustee and supervisor, and as a member of the school board. He was also township treasurer, being a man of such reliability that his fellow citizens have been glad to so honor him. In 1872 Mr. Swab was married to Miss Barbara Kagy, born in Fairfield county, Ohio, in 1847, and a daughter of Samuel and Hannah Kagy. To this union there were born : Blanch, who married John Nusser ; Debora, who married Charles Harry; Samuel K., who married Bessie Ullery; and Pearl A. Mr. Swab is generally regarded as a thorough. business man, known to be of strict integrity and is truly a representative citizen. His residence, one of the best in Cass township, is situated upon ground sufficiently elevated to .lend a commanding view of the surrounding country. The house and barn, which were built about forty years ago, were remodeled eight years ago by Mr. Swab. JAMES W. KELLEY. The descendants of the Irish race have long been noted for their adaptability and quickness in grasping opportunities. Where another man would fail, the man with Irish blood in his veins will see the chance of a lifetime, and proceed to make the most of it in the shortest time. Of such stock has James W. Kelley descended. His father, William Kelley, was born in Ireland in 1812, and came to America in 1839 to seek new fortunes. He died in 1875, leaving a widow, who died in 1895, and eight children, five sons and three daughters. Mr. Kelley was born in Allegany, New York, in 1866, where he lived until he was twenty-three years f age. He obtained his education in the public schools and at St. Bonaventure's College, and from 1888 to 1891 taught in the public schools of that place. With the view of enlarging his horizon and engaging in some business enterprise, he followed his brother, T. C. Kelley, to Findlay, Ohio, who had preceded him about two years and was already established in the oil business. Mr. Kelley decided to hazard his fortunes in the same manner and at once went into the oil producing business, in which he is now actively occupied. 402 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY Mr. Kelley is a prominent member of the Roman Catholic church, and has its interests thoroughly at heart, as is evidenced by the fact that he is also a member of the Knights of Columbus. He 'thoroughly believes in the principles f democracy, and carries his belief into his political and business. life. In the spring election of 1902 he was elected a member of the city council by an overwhelming majority, receiving a greater majority than his Republican opponent did vote's. NORMAN SALTSMAN. Prominent among the representative citizens of Hancock county, who have by honest toil and industry succeeded in acquiring a handsome competence and are not able to spend the sunset of life in quiet and retirement, is the gentleman whose name appears above, his home being in Washington township; a short distance west of the city of Fostoria. He was born in Montgomery county, New York, in the town of Mohawk, July 20, 1834, and is the son of Frederick I. and Mary (Kiltz) Saltsman, both of whom were natives of New York state. The parents of Mr. Saltsman died quite early in life in their native state. Their family numbered nine children, only two of whom. are now living. The maternal grandfather, Peter Kiltz, was an honored. soldier in the Revolutionary War. Norman Saltsman was reared and educated in his native township and grew up under the sturdy and invigorating discipline of the farm amid pioneer scenes: At the age of nineteen he learned the carpenter trade, which he followed up to 1862. In 1859 he moved to Fostoria, Seneca county, near which village, in 1862, he purchased eighty-five acres of land in Hancock county, on a portion of which he now. resides, having at various times parted with the remainder. In 1809 he became interested in the Fostoria Oil and Gas Company, of which organization he has been president for a period of twelve years. He is well thought of in his immediate community, and was trustee of the township in 1882. He erected the beautiful home in which he now resides in 1875. Mr. Saltsman was one of the "boys in blue" at the time when the dogs of war were let loose, from 1861 to 1865. He enlisted as a private soldier in Company G, One Hundred add Eighty-ninth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, which became a part of the at-my of the Cumberland. He served in this organization for a period and was promoted for efficient service to the office of corporal. He was honorably discharged September 28, 1865, and on his return to civil life again took up his former. pursuits. As has been stated before, Mr. Saltsman has been very successful in a material way in life. He CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 403 is engaged in the real-estate business, in which he is regarded as being one of . the best authorities and safest counselors in Hancock county. He is at present director of the Commercial Bank and Savings Company, of Fostoria, Ohio. He chose for a life companion Mrs. Jerusha Brundage, the marriage occurring. January 14, 1858, at Buffalo, New York. No children have been born to the marriage. Mrs. Saltsman was born in Waterloo, Seneca county, New York, April 3, 1825, the daughter of John and Elizabeth Davis, who were born in Queens county, New York, the father of English and Scotch and the mother of Scotch descent. There were ten children in the family, but Mrs. Saltsman is the only survivor. In political belief Mr. Saltsman is a simon pure Republican, taking an active part. in advancing the interests and policies of that party. He and his wife are both members of the M. E. Church, aiid are citizens whose position in the community assures them. a welcome mention in this volume. M. A. ADAMS. The family of this name is well known in Hancock county for its general intelligence and good. qualities of citizenship. They are of Irish extraction and descended from William and Sara Adams. Of the latter's family was Paul Adams, 'St., born in 1758, who was twice married, first to Sara Bogart, born January 6, 1744, and secondly to Abigail Parkhurst, born May 14, 1774. The latter died on the sixth of November, 1843, and her husband in 1834. Of the family of Paul Adams, Sr., and his second wife, Abigail Parkhurst, was Paul Adams, Jr., a native of Pennsylvania, born April 28, 1811. He was educated. for the ministry of the Presbyterian church, but by some disturbing factor his attention was turned to the teaching profession. His superior educational advantages so equipped him for his chosen profession that he made an excellent teacher. He was also somewhat of a linguist, having command of four languages. He taught twenty years in Pennsylvania in the earlier part of his life, and also after he came to Ohio. He married Miss Margaret Diehl, who was born in Columbia county, Pennsylvania, June 6, 1808. The Union was blessed with nine children, five of whom are now living. In 1835 the family removed from Pennsylvania to Richland county, Ohio, where Mr. Adams taught school; and latter entered eighty acres of land in Hancock county, to which he had removed in 1841 with his. family. He went at once to clearing the land of its timber, and constructed for his family a log house which stood until the spring of 1902 as evidence of his handiwork. He continued this labor until the date f his death, Jan- 404 - CENTENNIAL. BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY uary 28, 1850. Paul Adams, Jr., was a man of greater mental than physical strength and his constitution gave way early under the severe pressure of pioneer life. After his premature decease his wife and son, the subject of this sketch, worked heroically to keep the family at home. She with her wheel and loom spun and wove cloth for garments for her children, while the different members of the family headed by our subject did the necessary work on the farm. They were thus able to keep the members f the family together until they were able to do for themselves. After this the mother in 1860 married David Dorsey, a member of an old pioneer family, whose son, Allen, by a former wife, was the first white male child born in .Cass township.. Paul Adams, Jr., was a man of influence in his adopted county. He was township treasurer for seven years, and was nominated by the Democrats for .auditor of the county, but did not receive enough votes to elect. His wife, Margaret D. Adams, ceased from her earthly toils December 14, 1891. Mr. M. A. Adams, who forms the immediate subject of this review, was born in Montour county, Pennsylvania, July 7, 1833. Coming to this county at an early age, he was educated in the common schools and showed such proficiency that he aspired to a college. course. This, however, became impossible, because of the early death of his father and the necessity for his services on the farm. He, however, received enough education to follow teaching for several years during the winter months. His first purchase of land was in 1858, and consisted of a modest tract of twelve acres. To this small holding' he added at various times until he is now in possession of a farm of one hundred and sixty acres, upon which there is a flowing gas well. As Mr. Adams looks out over his broad acres he has the satisfaction f knowing that his own labor has brought the farm to its high state of cultivation, it being now one f the best in the county. Underlying this farm there are some seventeen miles of tile, which give him an almost unbroken area for crop purposes. Mr. Adams practices the most up-to-date methods on his farm, and hence is looked upon as a very progressive agriculturist. For example he has produced for the past several decades twenty-five bushels of wheat to the acre, a record which cannot be surpassed in Hancock county. During his adult life he has ever given his time freely to the matters that would benefit the community at large, has served as a member of the board of education for fifteen years and as justice of the peace of his township for three years. He celebrated his marriage with Miss Cordelia Dorsey, October 15, 1863:. This lady was the daughter of David and Rose Dorsey, and is also a native of Hancock county, where she was born January 13, 1842. Their family consisted of the following children : Margaret R., Clara A., de- CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 405 ceased, Sara E., Viola, deceased, Nathan S., Nellie and Ada. Mr. and Mrs. Adams are esteemed members of the Methodist Episcopal church, the former having been for a long period a class leader and trustee in that organization. It is something to live; it is more so to live that society shall be the better or our having had existence. Mr. and Mrs. Adams and their family are held in the highest repute by all who know them, and are most worthy members of their community. WILLIAM A. LEAR. Among the many industries of Findlay that of William A. Lear, who deals in wall- paper, picture frames and house decorating materials, is well known and patronized. Mr. Lear is of Pennsylvania stock, having been born in Minersville, Pennsylvania, in 1846. When he was four years old his parents sought new fortunes in Ohio, making their home in Delaware. Mr. Lear lived in Delaware, with the exception of his war service, and two years on the plains,. until 1880, so that he looks on Delaware almost as his native town, for it was there he received his education and laid the foundation of his subsequent business career. At an early age he began to learn the trade f paper hanging and house painting, but in April, 1861, when the war broke out, he enlisted in- Company I, Fourth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, but being under fifteen years of age, his father came to his camp within a week after he had enlisted, and got him out. But the boy's desire to go to war would not be conquered, and he again enlisted in the fall of 1861, at Delaware, in Company C, Twentieth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry. His father, however, was obdurate, and much against the son's will again got him out of the army. He determined, however, as soon as he was old enough that nothing should keep him from it, and in Tune, 1862, enlisted for the third time, in Company F, Ninety-sixth Regiment; Ohio Volunteer Infantry, serving as a private until the end of the war. He was in a number f important battles, among which were Haynes Bluff, Mississippi; Arkansas Post, Arkansas; the Siege of Vicksburg; the Grand Coteau, Louisiana, where he was captured November 3, 1863, and sent to Alexandria, Louisiana, and there held for fifty-one days. Mr. Lear tells of the terrible life of the soldiers in this place; they were fed on nothing but sugar cane, which was thrown to them like corn to cattle. He was paroled from this prison December 25, 1863, and declared exchanged by congress in May, 1864. The next battle in which he took part was at Fort Gaines, Alabama, after which followed those 406 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY of Fort Morgan, Alabama, the Spanish Fort, and the surrender of Mobile. He was slightly wounded in the left leg by a piece of shell at Arkansas Post, though. he was never sick or reported unfit for duty. He was mustered out in Mobile, Alabama, July 7, 1865, and received his discharge papers at Columbus, Ohio, August 1, 1865. At the close of the war he returned to Delaware, where he took up the trade he had laid down while serving his country. He contracted for paper hanging and painting in Delaware until 1867, when he went west and spent the next two years on the plains. He again returned to Delaware, and remained there until 1880, working at his trade. In 1880 he took advantage of an opening in Cleveland and ran, a restaurant there for six years; in 1886 he came to Findlay, and returned to his profession, opening up a wall paper store and adding other lines as his business increased. Mr. Lear has been twice married, his first wife having been Mary F. Parks, who died December 27, 1880, leaving four children : Harry C., born September 20; 1869; Virginia V:, wife of Willis Stover of Findlay; Etta M., born February 29, 1876, died September 18, 1894; Charles W., born August 26, 1878. Mr. Lear's second wife was Eliza W. Mechling, to whom he was married in Cleveland in 1883. They have no children. There is no man in Findlay better versed in Masonry than Mr. Lear, for he holds the thirty-second degree; he is also past grand master of F. & A. ,M. Lodge No. 227 at Findlay; past high priest of Chapter No. 58; past thrice illustrious master. of Findlay Council No. 50; past eminent commander of Findlay Commandery No. 49, Knights Templar; past chancellor of Findlay Lodge No. 85, Knights of Pythias. Mr. Lear is a strong Republican and gives his earnest support to the policies of his party. He is a member of the Howard Methodist Episcopal church, and was cemetery trustee of Findlay for four years. JOHN BEARD. It takes a strong soul, a courageous nature to leave the comforts of a civilized home for the privations and hardships f the frontier. When Joel Beard came to Hancock county, in 1827, he brought with him a family of three generations. The region was still a vast wilderness, and, though the Indians were still numerous but friendly, these early pioneers suffered many and severe hardships. Game was fortunately plentiful, for they were often compelled to go without the foods of civilization. Once they had neither bread nor salt for a period of six months. Deer and turkey roamed CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 407 through the forest, and the skill of the Kentucky marksman many a time saved these brave frontiersmen frorn starvation. Clothing, too, was scarce; the skins of the roebuck replaced.the cottons and woolens, of ordinary usage. John, the younger, wore a buckskin suit for seven years. But industry and perseverance can make even the wilderness habitable. The father planted flax and the mother spun the fibre and wove it into cloth; the coat of skin was laid aside. When further development permitted attention to animal husbandry a flock. of sheep cropped the herbage in the clearing and John was clad in woolens. Upon corning to. Hancock county the two elder members of the Beard family, John and Joel, each entered eighty acres of land in Marion township from the. government, cleared it and built a log hut in which Joel lived until his death. Joel later added forty acres to his holding and brought the whole under cultivation. Both were natives of Kentucky. They were men of sterling qualities, able to cope with the difficulties that beset the path of the frontiersman. Both have passed away, but both will go down in the history of this community as thoroughly good men. John had fought in the war of 1812 against Great Britain, and many were the nights that he held his neighbors spellbound, listening to the tales of wild adventure as they sat about the open fire. He was a member of the United Brethren church. Neither his wife Rebecca nor any f their ten children are now living; Joel was born in 1799. He married Mrs. Catherine Potter, a widow, by whom he had six children. Five of these are living, namely: John, Mary', Emma E., Clarissa and Alexander. His wife Catherine died in 1852. .The following year he married Solona Hartman, who bore him five children, of whom four survive. None of them reside in this county. Joel lived until 1885, and Solona, his second wife, died in 1897. John Beard, the grandson, was born in Fairfield county in 1825. He worked on his father's farm until the time of his marriage at the age of twenty-four. In 1852 he made his first purchase of land. It comprised eighty acres in Hancock county. After working it a. few years, however, he disposed of. this and bought his present farm of eighty acres, which is without doubt one of the finest farms on Blanchard road. Besides being a practical and progressive farmer, Mr. Beard is well up in current events. He has a keen insight into political affairs, and sides with the Republican party. He holds the confidence of the community whom he has served as supervisor on the county board. Mr. Beard did not see active military service- during the Civil war. He was enrolled as member of Company 408 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY H of the Fifty-seventh Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment, but supplied a substitute. In marrying Hannah A. George on February 17, 1853, Mr. Beard allied himself with one of the oldest families of Hancock county. She was born March 11, 1832, as the daughter f Peter and Mary Ann George. The father, long and widely known as the "Land Hunter," was a native of Pennsylvania, born there on October 13, 1799. He had moved to Pickaway county, this state,. and as early as'1823 visited this county, 'though it was not until 1826 that he settled here permanently. He entered land in Liberty and Amanda townships, and at the time of his death owned three hundred and seven acres in the heart of Amanda township. He acted as guide to those who had come west for new lands, and helped them decide on locations and settlements. He was known to be strictly honorable and upright in his dealings. with all, and has been well termed one of nature's noble men. He raised a family of nine Children; two of these lost their lives in the cause of national union and all but a few have passed away. The Beard and George families are probably the oldest and best known in Hancock county. ABRAHAM W. SCOTHORN. Abraham W. Scothorn is .extensively engaged in agricultural pursuits. Success in any calling is an indication of close application, industry and faithfulness, qualities which are numbered among the leading characteristics of our subject, and the greatest reward of the successful man is his consciousness of having acted well his part. This Mr. Scothofn has done, and to-day he stands among the highly respected citizens f his community. He was born in Reid township, Seneca county, Ohio, October 4, 1834. His father, Samuel Scothorn, was a native of the old Dominion state, but at the early age of twelve years he came with his parents to Ohio, locating in Franklin county, on the present site of Columbus, and his father in an early day planted corn on a part of the land on which that city now stands. At the age of eighteen years the son Samuel left the old home farm and learned the tanner's trade, following the same in Seneca county until reaching his twenty-first year. Removing thence to a farm in the woods, he there established a tannery and conducted the same for many years, during which time he did much work for the Indians. While residing on that place Mr. Scothorn kept a record of the game killed in the vicinity, and within a period of five years it amounted to two hundred and fifty deer and five hundred wild CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 409 turkeys. The mother of our subject, who bore the maiden name of Mary Smith, was a native of Franklin county, Ohio, and her death occurred when her son Abraham was but four years of age. She became the mother of six children. After her death the father was twice married, becoming the father of two children by this second marriage, while his :third union was blessed with three children. Abraham W. Scothorn, the sixth child in order of birth of his father's first marriage; was reared and educated in the county f his nativity, and after reaching, his twenty-first year he left the old home place and came to Hancock county, his first work here being in the Bishop sawmill, south of Findlay, where he was for about four years. During the succeeding six years he conducted a farm belonging to Mr. Bishop, .and in 1870 came to his present farm in Orange township, on which he has erected commodious and substantial buildings, built fences and placed his fields under an excellent state of cultivation, thus making his place one of the valuable homesteads of the township. On his farm of eighty acres are located eight oil wells, and he has also given a farm to each of his sons. In his political affiliations Mr. Scothorn is a stalwart supporter of Democratic principles, and for five years was the efficient clerk of Orange township, while for three years was its trustee and was elected to the position of treasurer, but did not qualify. In 1890 he was elected to the office of land appraiser, and in all his public duties he has been true to the trusts reposed in him. The marriage of Mr. Scothorn was celebrated on the 14th of October, 1860, when Eliza A. Walters became his wife. She is a native daughter of Hancock county, her birth having occurred in Eagle township, and by her marriage she has become the mother f three children, namely : Florence R., wife of George Rote, of Van Wert county, Ohio ; Walter W., who married Flora Porchort and resides in Michigan.; and Herman H., who married Ella Henry, and they make. their home in Eagle township, Hancock county. Mr. and Mrs. Scothorn also have five grandchildren—Floyd Rote, Burr, Lower, William. Scothorn and one not named. This worthy couple enjoy the friendship of many With whom they have come in contact, for their many sterling characteristics have ever commanded the respect and regard of those with whom they have been associated. They have labored together earnestly, the work of the one supplementing and rounding out the work of the other, and their attractive home is a fitting monument to their labors. Mrs. Scothorn's father, Lower M. Walters, was born in. Virginia and came to Eagle township, Hancock county, about 1834. His wife, Ruth Sharp, was born in Franklin county, Ohio. The father lived to be about seventy-nine years old and the 26 410 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY mother eighty-two. They were the parents of five children, three daughters and two sons, of whom the only two now living are Dr. Walters, of Ada, and Mrs. Scothorn, who was the youngest f the family. SOLOMON SNIDER. Prominently known as one of the representatives of a pioneer family of Hancock county, is Solomon Snider, who also deserves mention in this volume by reason of his own excellent qualities as a loyal citizen. He is a farmer of prominence and influence in Big Lick township, where he resides on an excellent farm of one hundred and eighty-three acres, and upon which there is in active operation eight producing oil wells. A number of others are in course of drilling. Mr. Solomon Snider first opened his eyes to the light in the village of Findlay, March 8, 1839. His father was Samuel Snider, the maiden name of his mother having been Katherine Spangler. He grew to manhood in Findlay township, where he was given the advantage of a good common- school education. Like his ancestors before him he chose for his vocation in life the free and independent existence of a farmer, in which pursuit he has been very generally successful. March 27, 1858, dates an epoch in the life of Mr. Snider, he having on that day been joined in marriage to Miss Ruth, daughter of Daniel and Jane Davis. For a period of three years they resided in Findlay township, and in 1861 removed to their present location in Big Lick township. Here he was engaged on his farm at the inception of the Civil war, and although with a growing family dependent upon him, he put aside .all considerations of a personal character, for he felt that his duty was to his country. He enlisted in Company G, One Hundred and Eighteenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, as a private soldier, and went to the front. The strange climate into which Mr. Snider was required to march under an August sun, proved too much for his rather precarious constitution and he succumbed to a sunstroke which incapacitated him for further usefulness. After four months of distressing sickness he was discharged on account of disability, the whole episode being one which Mr. Snider regrets to the present day. He, however, has always taken a great interest in the military life of the country, and is at present an honored and worthy member f Stoker Post of the G. A. R. The children that were born to Mr. and Mrs. Snider were Louis A., October 24, 1860; Eva L., April 20, 1864; Samuel E., September 20, 1865 ; Edgar M., June 4, 1872 Olive E., June 28, 1878. CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 411 Mrs. Snider is a member of one of the pioneer families of Hancock county, where she was born August 5, 1838. Her father, Daniel Davis, was a native of the state of Maryland, born in 1811. He was a mechanic by education, training and nature, being a man of very fine inventive faculty. He removed to this county in 1834, where he married in September of 1836. The family that he reared consisted of ten. children, six of whom are now living : Ruth, Rachel, Henry, Mary, Jane and John. Mr. Davis died in the year 1849, at a comparatively early age, while his wife continued to survive him until 1884, she dying at the advanced age of seventy-two. Returning again to the history of the Snider family we note that Samuel Snider, the father of our subject, was born in 1812 in Perry county, Ohio. His wife, Katherine Spangler, was a native of Fairfield county, Ohio, born in 1813. They married in Fairfield county, and subsequently removed to Hailed& where they located in Findlay township. Here Samuel entered one hundred and sixty acres of government land, all of which was in its native condition, and which he cleared. He endured the same hardships and surmounted the multiplied difficulties of which that. early time was fraught. Ile was a good practical farmer in his day. In religious temperament he was extremely pious, being a member of the Lutheran church. He voted with the Republican party. He. was a man of genial personality, made many friends, and by his, consistent and upright dealings with them, was enabled to keep their friendship. He was sociable and hospitable in the extreme. He continued to reside on the original farm to the time of his death, which occurred in 1884, his wife surviving him three years. The family consisted of nine children ; . Isabelle, deceased; Louise, deceased; Solomon; Mary, deceased; William, George, Immanuel, Rebecca and Emma. Mr. Snider is a public spirited and progressive citizen of Hancock county, and as such is honored and highly respected by a host of friends.. While the family belong to the. Methodist Episcopal church, out subject does not belong but believes in a future and his actions in this life are of a charitable and honest kind, he giving in charity to all who apply. He has always been a strong Republican. WILLIAM P. BLACK. It is but a natural step from the oil fields of Pennsylvania to those of her sister state, Ohio,. and among the great number of oil producers of Findlay who have originally engaged in the. same occupation in their native state Mr. William P. Black is one of the foremost. 412 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY Mr. Black is of Irish descent, his grandfather having been born On the Emerald Isle, but came. to America early in the eighteenth century to better his fortunes. He died in America, and has bequeathed to it something more than a name—his own sturdy independence and industry. His son, Patrick Black, the father f him whose name introduces our review, was born in Pennsylvania, in which state he died in 1892, at the age of eighty-three years. He was a blacksmith, and quite successfully combined his trade with farming. William P. Black was born in Freeport, Pennsylvania, in 1861, and soon afterward his parents moved to a farm in Armstrong county, where he lived until he was eighteen. As was the case with so many young men before him, the oil fields were a very strong attraction, and he began his work in that line in Bradford, his first work being that of dressing tools for drillers. He very early began to drill wells on his own account, and after five years went to Marietta, Ohio, and followed his work in the fields around that city for two years. The Findlay oil fields having shown great promise, he decided to try his luck in them, and the fact that he has since remained indicates that he made a wise choice. He thoroughly understands the business of drilling, and is constantly engaged in drilling for others and in producing on his own account. Mr. Black was united in marriage, in Findlay, to Ora Williams, daughter of Levi and Amanda (Dempster) Williams. Mrs. Black's parents were both born in Ohio, her father's occupation being that of hotel-keeping and farming. He died in 1896, and she in 1900, their entire lives having been passed in this state. rs. Black's maternal grandmother was Violet Dempster. Mr. Black is an adherent of the Democratic party, though not actively engaged in politics. JACOB FRUTH. We name here one of the young and vigorous representatives of the. agricultural class f Hancock county, who is making for himself a reputation as a scientific farmer. He resides in Washington township, where he operates a farm of seventy-five acres. His birth occurred in Seneca county, Ohio, May 29, 1874, the name of his father being John F. Fruth, and his mother's maiden name, Marie Peter. The former was born in Germany, May 21, 1853, while the latter is a native of Seneca county, Ohio. In 1854, John F. Fruth came to this country with his parents, who located in the city of Cleveland, Ohio, and remained there about three years. In 1858 he located with his parents in Seneca county, Ohio, where he was reared and educated, and. CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 413 where he continues to reside. He and his son purchased one hundred acres in Washington township, Hancock county, which they now own. John F. Fruth, the father is a worthy and practical farmer, a member f the United Brethren church, and a citizen of whom the county may well be proud. His family include three children, namely : Jacob ; Willie C.; and Kate A. Jacob Fruth, who is the immediate subject of this paragraph, was reared for the most part in Seneca county, in the schools of which he received his elementary education, it being of a character to fit him for the duties of life. March 29, 1900, occurred his marriage, the lady being the accomplished daughter of Gottlieb and Lydia Mertz, her name being the same as that of her mother. The union has been blessed with a bright little boy, Ross R., who was born March 23, 1901. Mrs. Furth was born at Fostoria, Ohio, September 12, 1880. Her people are of German descent. Both husband and wife are acceptable members of the Methodist Episcopal church, in which they are, active workers. They combine many fine social qualities and are highly esteemed by all. DR. PERRY O. GUISE. Dr. Perry O. Guise is the son of one of the old settlers of Hancock county, his father, Jessy Guise, having settled in Findlay in. the year 1834, coming overland in a one-horse. wagon with his sister from Adams county, Pennsylvania, where he was born in the year 1818. He was a contractor, and in the building of a city in what was then an undeveloped country, he found plenty of occupation, and passed a useful and industrious life, gaining financial success, and the honor and esteem f the entire community. He died at Findlay in 1885. Jessy Guise's father was born in Pennsylvania in the eighteenth century, and died there in the nineteenth century. Dr. Perry O. Guise was born in Findlay, Ohio, in 1851, and after finishing his education in the schools of that place entered the College of Physicians and Surgeons in Baltimore, Maryland, where he graduated in 1882, and immediately thereafter returned to Findlay, where he entered in the practice of his profession, and still continues. Dr. Guise was married September 5, 1883, to Caroline H. Hay, daughter of Dr. Carmel Hay, who was a successful practitioner in Charlestown, Indiana, and lived about three-fourths of a century, respected and honored by all who knew him. His wife was a native of Virginia. Dr. and Mrs. Guise have two children, as follows : Helen L., born July 22, 1884 ; Cedric H., born July 25, 1890. He has an ideal home, and a large circle of friends, and is a leader. in professional, po- 414 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY litical and church circles. He belongs to the Northwestern Medical Society,. is a member of the Presbyterian church, and an active and zealous Republican, working for the best interests of his party. The people of Findlay have shown, their confidence in him by electing him to various offices. He has been township clerk and township treasurer of Findlay township, holding each office for two terms, and filling them acceptably and successfully. He is loyal to his city and county, and is recognized as one of the prominent and influential citizens of Findlay, devoted to his work, helping suffering humanity, and eminent in his prfession. MRS. SARAH A. STROTHER. Only those lives are worthy of record that have been potential factors in the public progress in promoting the general welfare or advancing the educational or moral interests of the community. Among the honored citizens of Hancock county none are more deserving of mention in this volume than the lady whose name introduces this sketch, for much of her life has been devoted to the uplifting of her fellow men. Mrs. Strother was born at Gerrardstown, Berkeley county, in what is now West Virginia, May 26, 1819, and is a daughter of Joshua and Eleanor (Chenoweth) Baldwin, who were also natives of that county. Her paternal grandparents, William and Jane (Hedges) Baldwin, were both natives of England and were the parents of the following children, namely : Jonah, Joseph, Joshua, Jane, Rebecca and Mary. William Baldwin was twice married, his first wife being Mary Woods, of England, by whom be had five children : John, William, Benjamin, Mary and Rebecca. Mrs. Strother's maternal grandfather, Absalom Chenoweth, was born in Wales of Welsh parentage. In the county of his nativity Joshua Baldwin was reared and in early life learned the tanner's trade. When a young man of about twenty-eight years he came to Ohio and entered a section of land on Buck creek, in Champaign county. He then returned to. West Virginia and married Eleanor Chenoweth, whom he brought as a bride to Ohio. To the improvement and cultivation of his land he devoted his earnings. He was for a short time in the war of 1812, at the time of Hull's surrender, afterward returning to West Virginia, having exchanged his place in Ohio for one that his brother Joseph owned in the former state, where he continued to make his home until 1828, when he again came to Ohio and this time located at Zanesville, Muskingum county, for the purpose of educating his children. In CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 415 October, 1836, he removed by teams to Hancock county and took up his residence in Findlay, when the city contained but a few inhabitants, among them being Wilson Vance, a brother f Governor Vance. Here Mr. Baldwin engaged in the drug business with his son, Dr. W. H. Baldwin, for a short time and then lived retired until called to his rest at the age of seventy-six years. He was a local preacher f the Methodist Episcopal church and much of his life was devoted to the work of the ministry. Upright and honorable in all the relations of life, he commanded the respect and confidence f those with whom he came in contact and left behind him an honorable record, well worthy of perpetuation. In his family were the following children : William H.; Amy Jane, wife of Charles W. O'Neal, a prominent attorney; Absalom C.; Sarah. A ; Eleanor, wife f A. H. Hyatt, a leading merchant of Findlay; Malinda, who first married Joseph Vance, a nephew of Governor Joseph Vance, and for her second husband married Henry Porch, who was one of the first to utilize natural gas in the county ; and Henry and Eliza, who both died in childhood. All f the family are now deceased with the exception of Mrs. Strother. She was educated in the schools of Zanesville and was about seventeen years of age when she accompanied her parents on their removal to Findlay. Here she was first married in 1837 to Arnold F. Merriam, a cousin of Stephen A. Douglas.. He was educated at Brandon, Vermont, and became one of the prominent attorneys of Findlay in early days. By this union there were born three children : Sarah Jane, wife of John Schell ; Emily C., widow f John C. Kemble; and William D., who died at the age of nine years. About seven years after the death of her first husband Mrs. Strother married Judge R. L. Strother, who was born in Hardy county, West Virginia, and came to Hancock county about 1828, being one of the prominent early settlers of this locality. At one time he owned some of the land on which the city of Findlay now stands and he bore a very active and influential part in public affairs, serving as district. judge for some years. He died in 1874 and in his death the community realized that it had lost one of its most valued citizens. By her second marriage Mrs. Strother has three daughters, Mrs. Sidney Shuck, Mrs. Eva A. Strickler and Eleanor Cheneweth, who died at three years of age. In 1831 Mrs. Strother joined the First Methodist Episcopal church f Zanesville, and has since taken a very active part in the work of that denomination, serving as president of the Home Missionary Society. Temperance work, however, has also claimed much of her attention and she became a charter member of the first Good Templar organization founded in 416 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY Findlay, and also a charter member of the Daughters of Temperance. She took the pledge when only eighteen years f age and has never broken it. To-day she is president f the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, No. I. She led out a band of crusaders in Findlay and assisted in the organization f the State Union at Springfield and organized the societies in Hancock county under the name of the Temperance Alliance. She has attended most f the state conventions of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union during the existence of that great organization, and in 1902. was the oldest member to make a report at the convention in Toledo. She has filled all the offices in the society and is called the mother of the movement in Findlay. The state organization sent her as a delegate to the World's Union in London, England. She is well known all over the country. as one f its most active and earnest temperance workers and a woman whose life has been devoted to those enterprises calculated to promote the moral and social welfare of the community. During the entire Civil war, with the exception f three months, she was president of the Soldiers' Aid Society and she is now a member of the Woman's Relief Corps at Findlay, of which she was the first chaplain. Her life has been a most exemplary one and she has ever supported those movements calculated to uplift and benefit humanity, while her own high moral worth is deserving f the highest commendation. ISAAC THOMPSON.. Many years have passed since this gentleman came to Hancock county, and he is therefore numbered among her honored pioneers as well as leading citizens. He has been actively and prominently identified with. the upbuilding and progress of Orange township, and his name is inseparably connected with many events and enterprises which have contributed to the development of his community. A native son f the Buckeye state, his birth occurred in Marlborough township, Stark county, Ohio, on the 25th f February, 1828. His father, David Thompson, was a native of Loudoun county, Virginia, and when about ten years of age he accompanied his parents on their removal to Columbiana county, Ohio, the family locating near Fairfield, where he was taught the work of the farm in all its departments. The latter's father. Isaac Thompson, was also a native of the Old Dominion state, but in an early day he located in Columbiana conuty, and he lived to the extreme old age of one hundred and six years. He was of Quaker origin. The mother of our subject bore the maiden name of Eliza McCoy, and her birth occurred near New Lisbon, Columbiana county, Ohio, where she was CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 417 reared to mature years. In the county of her nativity she gave her hand in marriage to David Thompson, and this young couple immediately removed to Stark county, this state, taking up their abode on a farm in the dense woods. The. husband immediately entered eighty acres of land, which in time he cleared and improved, but nine years later he sold that place and came to Hancock county, where he located in section 20, Orange township, being the second person to secure land in this locality. Again he was obliged to undertake the arduous task of clearing and developing land, but as the years went by he succeeded in placing his fields in an excellent state of cultivation, and on this valuable homestead he spent the remainder of his life, entering into eternal rest in 1854, at the age of fifty-six years. Both he and his wife were members of the Disciples church, and the latter was called to her final rest when she had reached the fifty-sixth milestone on the journey f life, in 1861. Unto this worthy pioneer couple were born ten children, three daughters and seven sons, and all grew to years of maturity, but only two f the number are now living, the brother being S. P. Thompson, who is serving as circuit judge of Jasper and Newton counties, Indiana. Isaac Thompson. the other surviving member of this once large family, was the second child and eldest son in order of birth. He was but five years of age when he was brought by his parents to Hancock county. The school which he attended was a primitive log structure, and he had reached his fifteenth year ere he was privileged to enjoy the advantages to be secured even in this rude structure, while his school life covered a period of only fifteen months. However, he has greatly added to this meager training by keeping himself in constant touch with the movements of the outside world and by reading and observation, and is now a well informed man. Early in life he assisted his father in clearing and improving the homestead farm, and in addition to this work and improving a farm for himself, later he also taught school during the winter months for about six years. After his marriage he located on the farm which still continues to be his home, and all the accessories and improvements on this now valuable estate stand as monuments to his thrift and business ability. At one time he was the owner of two hundred and eighty acres, but as his children have started in life for themselves he has given to them portions of his land until he has now only one hundred and twenty acres. Eight oil wells have been drilled on his farm, seven of which have been good producers and they now yield about forty-eight barrels a month. For a period of six years Mr. Thompson served as a justice of the peace, for thirteen years was township clerk, was township treasurer for about fourteen years, for a similar period served as supervisor, was also a ditch super- 418 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY visor, and for the past eighteen years has been a notary public. He has also settled about fifty estates, and has acted as guardian for five persons. His life has been a busy and useful one, and in. the discharge of both his public and private duties he has won the respect and esteem of all with whom he has come in contact. The marriage of Mr. Thompson was celebrated on the 24th of October, 1849, when Miss Louisa McKinley became his wife. She is a relative of our martyred president, William McKinley, and is of Irish descent, her grandparents having emigrated from the Green Isle of Erin to the United States. Her death occurred on the 31st of December, 1888, after becoming the. mother of six children; concerning whom the following. domestic record is furnished: Leticia E. married Bateman Zoll and is now deceased; Mary J. is the wife of Jesse Crawford, and they have one son, Ray D.; David F. married Clara E.-Buckley and they have two children. living, Bertha and Jesse; Jay Allen married Mary Ellen Hall, and they have two children living, Lulu May and Cecil D.; Willie H. is single; Chester E. married Mary Maude George and they have one. son, Otho G. Mr. Thompson's religious affiliations are with the Christian church, of which he has long been a valued member. Uniformly respected and venerated amid a large circle of friends, he is now spending the evening of life quietly at his pleasant home in Orange township. W. M. METZLER, M. D. One of the eminent followers of Æsculapius, the ancient, and an ornament to that time-honored and most beneficent profession which can occupy the field of human endeavor, is Dr. W. M. Metzler, a young but very successful practitioner of Vanlue, Hancock county, Ohio. His father, Henry H., was born in Columbiana county, Ohio, and he married Caroline A. Reed, who was born in Hancock county, and belonged to a family long identified with the history of the county. The Metzlers came into this county in 1850 and located in Liberty township. Henry H. was clerk of the township and also its treasurer. For several years he was in the grocery business at Findlay and was a clerk for Lemuel McMannis for three years; he was in business for himself for eleven years and bore an excellent reputation in all the lines f his endeavor. At the outbreak of the Civil war he enlisted, in 1861, becoming a member of Company F, Twenty-first Ohio Volunteer Infantry; he was taken prisoner at the battle of Chickamauga and was exchanged in 1864. He died April 30, 1892, and his wife passed away August 13, 1899. They CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 419 were the parents of seven children, all of whom are living and filling honorable places in the various walks of life. The subject of this biography had his birth in Liberty township, Hancock County, September 21, 1866, and he was reared and educated there, graduating in the Findlay high school. He was then employed for some time in the railway mail service, but having determined to take up the profession of medicine he entered the Starling Medical College and received his degree of Doctor of Medicine in 1895. The following year he began the practice of his calling in Vanlue and has since gained a very profitable patronage; his methods of practice being based upon the "Regular" school of medicine. In the line of his profession he is a member of the Hancock county Medical Society, and fraternally belongs to the Knights of Pythias. In the month of February, 1902, Dr. Metzler was married to Miss. Lola Cross; who was born in Amanda township in 1877, the daughter .of Henry and Octavia Cross. Henry Cross, now deceased, was one of the well known and respected men of Amanda township, whose well tilled farm of sixty acres is situated a short distance west of Vanlue. There his birth occurred on the 4th of February; 1841; his parents were Charles and Esther (Smaltz) Cross, the former a native of Maryland and the latter born in Fairfield county, Ohio ; the family came to this county in 1839 and settled on the property which now belongs to Mrs. Octavia Cross. Henry Cross was a faithful member of the United Brethren church and in its belief he died, April 23, 1888. His marriage to Octavia, the daughter of William and Octavia Brown, occurred May 11, 1865; she was a native of Big Lick township, her natal day being February 19, 1842. Of this marriage there were eight children and five of them are yet living : Effie R:, Lola A., Bertha I., Forest G., and Morris E. CHARLES J. KRAUSS. This prominent representative of the agricultural interests of Hancock county resides just outside the city limits of the city f Findlay, on the Blanchard road, in Marion township, on a farm containing one hundred and ninety-five acres of valuable land, and upon which is situated one flowing gas well, which he sunk himself, and which furnishes gas for his own consumption. Mr. Krauss was born in Baden, Germany, on the 5th of May, 1827. His parents were George A. and Mary E. (Keller) Krauss, the former a manufacturer of soap and candles at Baden, and still living. The subject of this sketch upon attaining his majority emigrated to this country and located in Buffalo, New York, the year being 1848, where he remained but a few 420 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY months, and during which time he was employed in a tannery. The same year he removed to Putnam county, Ohio, where he gave his attention to learning the wagon-maker's trade. In 1852, however, he resolved to join the ranks f the farming class, and purchasing a farm of fifty-four acres, he began its cultivation. In 1858 he removed to his present location, where he purchased one hundred and eighteen acres of land, and afterwards added seventy-seven more. Besides this extensive farm he invested in another parcel f land, for which he paid $2,600, and in five years it had increased in value so as to bring, the sum of $14,400. The success of Mr. Krauss is largely due to the fact that he is a man of good judgment and shrewd foresight. In 1851 he married Nancy Krebs, and to this lady were born, two children, Mary E. and William T. Both the children and their mother are now deceased, the mother dying in 1854. In 1856, for his second wife, Mr. Krauss chose Mrs. Glauner, a widow whose name before her first marriage. was Annie Snyder. This marriage resulted in four children, the mother of whom died in 1881. She was a woman of most estimable disposition and many noble traits of character. William J., one of the sons, married Miss Libbie Aultman, of Marion township, and now resides in the county, engaged in farming. Mr. Krauss takes great pride in his surroundings. In 1889 he built upon his farm the present beautiful and commodious house, furnishing it with all the modern conveniences. He has been honored with the Various township offices in the gift of his people. Fraternally he is a worthy member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, in which organization he is a charter member of Golden Rule Encampment. Mr. Krauss has retired from the cares and worries of an active business life, and is enjoying the comforts which should come as the cap sheaf of a life of worthy industry. JOHN M. BARR. As a citizen and substantial business man of Findlay no one stands higher in the community than Mr. Barr, president of the Citizens' Gas Light & Coke Company. He has been closely identified with the business interests of the city and has been an important factor in the advancement of its material and industrial progress, giving liberally of his time, means and thought to insure the prosperity of the place, and being also a worthy representative of one of the pioneer families of Hancock county, of which he is a native son. Mr. Barr vas born in Findlay, on the 27th of June, 1849, the son of James H. and Mary(Shaw) Barr, the former of whom was born in Fairfield CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 421 county, Ohio, becoming one f the early settlers of Hancock county, where he was honored for his sterling character and his marked ability. He located in Findlay and had the distinction •f being the first judge of probate elected in the county, serving three terms in this office and also having been incumbent of the position of county auditor in the early days. He was a man of profound judgment and inflexible integrity, was a prominent and influential citizen and impressed himself strongly on the community where he passed so many years f his life, being summoned into eternal rest on the 1st of September, 1862, at the age of .fifty years. His wife, who was likewise born in Fairfield county; passed away July 20, 1882, at the age of fifty-seven years. Judge Barr was a son f John Barr, who was born in Pennsylvania, whence he removed to Fairfield county, Ohio, in the early pioneer epoch, and there passed the residue of his life: John M. Barr, the immediate subject f this sketch, was reared and educated in his native city, and when seventeen years of age, in 1866, he went to New York city and took a .position as a house salesman in a wholesale hat establishment, being thus employed for a decade. In 1876 he returned to Findlay, where he was engaged in various business enterprises until 1881, when he became associated with his father-in-law, Hiram J. Starr, in the grain and live stock business, in Wyandot county, thus continuing operations for about five years and maintaining his home in Carey. In 1887 he returned to Findlay and became associated with others, under the firm name of Waltz, Barr & Company, in the leasing of the Lake Erie & Western elevators. The partnership was dissolved at the exiration of three years and Mr. Barr thereafter retained the elevators and carried on an individual grain business until the plant was destroyed by fire. He then accepted the position of manager of the Findlay Electric, Light Company, retaining this incumbency for two years and resigning the same to enter upon his able administration as postmaster of Findlay, during Cleveland's second term. He did much to improve the service and facilities of the local postoffice business and his regime continued for four and one-half years. He then associated himself with W. V. Coons, now of Cleveland, in purchasing .from. the city the local gas plant, and he was made president of the company. He has since been incumbent of this executive office and his wise business policy has done much to further the success of the enterprise. He has ever shown a lively interest in all that concerns the general welfare and the legitimate advancement of the community, and his aid and influence have been invariably given to worthy enterprises for the public good. Mr. Barr is a stalwart Democrat in his political 422 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY proclivities, and he has served as a member of the city council and also of the library board. On the 30th of August, 1877, at Carey, Ohio, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Barr to Miss Laura P. Starr, the daughter of Hiram J. Starr. The family is prominent in the social life of the city, and the attractive home, at 200 West Front street, is a center of refined hospitality. WILLIAM M. NEWHOUSE. Well known in Hancock county, William M. Newhouse is a worthy representative of the farming interests and a man whose connection with the progress and development of Hancock county has been disinterested and honorable in the extreme. At this period of writing he is prosperous farmer, residing in Washington township, owning and operating a valuable farm of one hundred and thirty-seven acres. The birth of Mr. Newhouse occurred in Carroll county, Ohio, April 14, 1849. His father was James Newhouse; his mother was Susana S. May. He grew to manhood in his native county, engaged in the occupations and pleasures that come to the average country boy, receiving an indifferent education in the common schools of that time. Upon arriving at maturity he adopted farming as his life work, which he has continued to follow to the present time. With the exception of five years he has always worked on the same farm, that which his father owned before him. He is reputed to be one of the very best farmers in Washington township, taking the greatest pride in adopting new methods in the culture of his lands, and keeping the improvements on his farm in the best of order. Mr. Newhouse was the prime mover in the organization of what is known as the Farmers Mutual Insurance Company of Hancock county, of which organization he was president for a period of six years. December 19, 1876, he was united in marriage to Mary, daughter of Henry and Katherine Brown, and born in Washington township, January 7, 1851. She is the mother of an interesting family, as follows : Jennie M., born August 30, 1877; Ada D., born March 8, 1880; Clara M., born March 30, 1884; and Riley E., December 5, 1885. Mrs. Newhouse is a member of one of the pioneer families of the county, and one which has been very prominently connected with its development. William M. Newhouse's father is a native of Carroll county, Ohio, born October 31, 1822. His wife, Susana May, claims nativity in the Keystone state, where she was born July 18, 1823. They came to Hancock county in the fall of 1850, and located in Washington township, where they bought eighty acres which had been somewhat improved. To this tract they CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 423 soon added another f forty acres, the whole of which James continued to farm during, his lifetime. He was a man thoroughly versed in the science of farming in his day, a fact which accounts for the proficiency of his son in the same line. In 1872 James Newhouse caused to be built a commodious brick house On the farm, which is one of the most beautiful and practical modern residences in the county. Politically he voted with the Republican party. He reared a family of five children, two of whom are now living ; the other member of the family beside our subject being a brother, Thomas Newhouse, elsewhere mentioned in this volume.. Mr. Newhouse has by untiring industry and sound judgment won a merited success in all his undertakings, and is in all respects worthy the high regard in which he is held by his fellow men. He has made many improvements on his place in the last four or five years, and now has one of the model farms of the county. REV. A. C. SIDDALL. One of the most highly regarded citizens of Van Buren, Ohio, is Rev. A. C. Siddall who not only has gained the confidence of his own religious body, but has won a position of esteem in this community, where his scholarly attainments are only equalled by his usefulness as a Christian Minister. The birth of Mr. Siddall was on July 3, 1868, in Amanda township, Hancock county, Ohio, and he is a son of John C. and Phidema (Litzenberger) Siddall, the former of whom was born on November 3, 1844, in Columbiana county, Ohio, and the latter in 1846, in Hancock county, Ohio. John C. Siddall is a successful and practical farmer, who owns an estate of one hundred and sixty-seven acres of vauable land in Amanda township. His parents were Joshua and Mary A. Siddall, who, in 1848, moved from Columbiana county to Hancock county. The family has long been prominent in the United Brethren church. Rev. Mr. Siddall was reared and educated in the common schools of his native township, and after finishing the common school course, spent four years in teaching in Hancock county and then entered Heidelberg University, graduating with honor in 1897. In 1890 he entered the Sandusky conference and ministry of the United Brethren church, and was assigned to the charge at Nevada, Ohio, where he remained for one year, serving for the same length of time the church at Kansas, Ohio, and this was followed by a service of three years at Bloomville, Ohio. From Bloomville he went to Bascom, Ohio, and three years later was transferred to Van Buren, where he is most 424 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY acceptably serving his third year. This church was organized in 1866, and was built in 1868. Under his charge it has been strengthened until its membership reaches almost two hundred, with a flourishing Sunday-school of two hundred and sixty-four members. This is one of the encouraging charges in the conference and the church property here is valued at six thousand dollars. Rev. Mr. Siddall occupies the position of statistical secretary of the Sandusky conference. In 1890 Rev. Mr. Siddall was united in marriage with Miss Rose L. Shuck, who is a daughter of Benjamin and Sarah Shuck and who. was born on March 10, 1870, in, Amanda township. To this union there were four children : Judson C., born May 18, 1892; Ruth M., born August 21, 1893; Esther C., born June 16,1895; and Alcenas born June 1897. As a pulpit orator, Rev. Mr. Siddall is a speaker of great power, and an expounder of clearness. His church in him has a preacher of great value, one who does not confine his. Christian labors to his own denomination, but extends his influence through the community: His pleasant personality wins many to his. cause, while his exemplary life sets an example which works for the good of others. ABNER L. DAVIS. Abner L. Davis was born on a farm four miles east of Findlay, August 20, 1849. His remote ancestors emigrated from Wales to Virginia in the year 1640. His immediate ancestor, William Davis, moved from Cumberland, Maryland, to Hancock county, Ohio, in the spring of 1834. C. W. BROOKS. This well known farmer and honored citizen of Pleasant township has for Many years been prominently identified with the agricultural interests of Hancock county, and his many years of earnest toil have been rewarded by a desirable competence. He is a native son of the Buckeye state, his birth having occurred in Jefferson county, on the 3d of March, 1838, and he is a son of Elisha and Margaret (Woods). Brooks, the former a native of Virginia and the latter of Ohio. The father, Who was of English descent, followed the trade of shoemaking in early life, but after coming to Hancock county in 1845, he purchased three hundred and twenty acres of land, on which he farmed during the remainder of his life, passing to his final rest in 1855. The mother was of Irish ancestry. In their family were eleven children, nine of whom grew to years of maturity. CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 425 C. W: Brooks, the youngest in order of birth of the eleven children, was reared to mature years' on the parental farm, and in the common schools of the neighborhood he received his early educational training. Choosing as a life work the occupation to which he had been reared, he early engaged in agricultural pursuits and is now the owner of one hundred and sixty acres. of fertile and well improved land. In 1862 Mr. Brooks answered the call for soldiers to aid in crushing out the rebellion in the south, becoming a member of Company G, Twenty-first Ohio Volunteer Infantry, of which he was elected captain, but by a general order the regiment was disbanded and the men assigned to other regiments. He served his full term of three years, and at the battle of Stone river he received a bullet wound directly over the heart, his life being saved only by a bag of salt which he was carrying in a side. pocket, which so reduced the force of the ball that it shattered only one rib. After his return from hostilities Mr. Brooks. again took up the quiet pursuits of the farm, and has since given his attention to the tilling of the soil, his efforts in that direction being attended with a high and well merited degree of success. In the year 1861 Mr: Brooks was united in marriage to Sarah A., daughter of Cyrus and Betsey Hart, and a descendant of English and Irish ancestry. Unto this union were born the following children : Ellsworth, who married Rena Mackey; Norton, who married Ida Robinson; Mack W., who married Elizabeth. Helfrich; Matilda, deceased; Eli, who married Clara Conine; Jennie, the wife of F. Helfer and Lizzie, the wife of John Sheeter. The wife and motherwas called into eternal rest in 1880, and on the 27th of June, 1888,: Mr. Brooks married Elizabeth J. King, who was born in Portage township, Hancock county, in 1844, a daughter of William and Elizabeth King. The father was a man of great business ability, and was a large stock dealer and land owner, owning and operating two hundred acres f fine land. He became a resident of Hancock county as early as 1842, and was long one of its valued and influential citizens. He was many times the choice of his fellow townsmen for positions of honor and trust, and among the many public offices which he was called upon to fill was that of justice of the peace. His death occurred on the 6th of July, 1898, but his widow is still living. By his second marriage Mr. Brooks has become the father of one son, Wilbur K., who was born May 24, 1889. In political matters our subject gives supports to the Republican party, and he, too, has been called upon to serve in various public capacities, having for four years been the efficient: trustee of Pleasant township, held the office of treasurer for a similar period. On account of two townships being thrown out he was de- 27 426 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY feated for county commissioner in 1880 but was elected to that office in 1888 by a large majority, having been nominated in the convention on the first ballot. In 1900 Mr. Brooks was appointed superintendent of the Hancock County Infirmary and has made the most able superintendent the poor farm has ever had. Mrs. Brooks, the matron of the infirmary, is a woman thoroughly fitted in every way for the position she occupies. She was a leading and popular teacher in this county for twenty-five years prior to her marriage. The cause of education has also found in Mr. Brooks a warm friend, and for eight years he served as a member of the school board. In 1883 he was elected vice president of the Hancock County Agricultural Association, thus serving until 1885, when he was elected general manager. In his fraternal relations he is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows; was the first chancellor commander of McComb. Lodge, No. 179, K. of P., of which he was also deputy grand chancellor; and was formerly a member of John Howard Post, No. 154, G. A. R., in which he served as quartermaster and. commander, but is now member of Stoker Post, of Findlay. Mr. Brooks is an honored and highly esteemed member of his community, and in the county which has so long been his home he has a wide circle of friends and acquaintances. WILLIAM STEPHENSON. William Stephenson, deceased, was for many years an honored and highly esteemed citizen of Hancock county, his time and energies being principally devoted to agricultural, pursuits. A native of Ohio, he was born in Knox county, August 7, 1823, his parents being John and Anna (Lee) Stephenson. The father was born in Washington county, Pennsylvania, but as early as 1814 came to Ohio and settled in Knox county, where he was numbered among the pioneers and prominent farmers. His wife was a native of Ireland but was only three years of age when brought by her parents to, the new world. She died at the age of sixty-three years and he was seventy-four years of age at the time of his death. In their family were ten children, of whom nine reached, maturity. In this family William Stephenson was eighth in order of birth. He was reared and educated in the county of his nativity, attending the common schools near his boyhood home, and aiding in the labors. of, the farm when not in. school. He remained with his parents until his marriage, which important event of his life was. celebrated October 18, 1849, Miss. Mary Anderson becoming his, wife. Six children blessed this union, namely: Viola, now the CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 427 wife of Frank Bigelow ; Laura, wife of S. B. Sneath, of Tiffin, Ohio ; Marian; Anderson L., a resident of Findlay; Adda May, who died at the age of fifteen years; and William E., a resident of Findlay. Mrs. Stephenson was born in Washington county, Pennsylvania, October 14, 1824, and comes of good old Revolutionary stock. Her ancestors were of Scotch-Irish origin and were prominent early settlers of the Keystone state. The first of the family to come to America was James Anderson, who was born in Ireland. His son, Patrick Anderson, whose birth occurred in Chester county, Pennsylvania, July 24, 1719, served with distinction as a colonel in Washington's army during the war for independence, and was later one of the organizers f the Order f Cincinnati. His son, James Anderson, also fought for the freedom of the colonies in the Revolutionary war. The latter was born in Chester county, Pennsylvania, and afterward became a resident of Washington county, that state. This worthy old soldier was the grandfather of Mrs. Stephenson. Her father, William Anderson, was born in Washington county, Pennsylvania, April 3, 1797, and was there reared and married, the lady of his choice being Elizabeth McKibben, a native of the same. county and a daughter of Richard and Sarah (Robinson) McKibben. Her parents were also Pennsylvanians by birth. On coming to Ohio in 1828, William Anderson located on a farm in Licking county, where he made his home until called to his final rest on the 5th of October, 1839, when forty-two years of age. Although he followed farming throughout the greater part of his life, he was also a civil engineer and held the office of county surveyor for some years. He took a very active and prominent Part in public affairs and was held in high esteem by all who knew him. Nine of his ten children reached years of maturity, Mrs. Stephenson being the third child and second daughter. For three years after his marriage Mr. Stephenson continued to reside in Knox county, but in 1853 came to Hancock county and for five years made his home in Blanchard township, at the end of which time he removed to the place where, his widow is now living, at 2610 North Main street, Findlay. Throughout his active business life he successfully engaged in farming and stock dealing and became the owner of two fine farms, one of one hundred and sixty acres and the other of eighty acres, both in the oil belt. In 1888 he erected the commodious and pleasant residence now occupied by Mrs. Stephenson, and there he spent his last days surrounded by all the comforts which make life worth the living. He died September 18, 1897, honored and respected by all who knew him on account of his sterling worth and many excellencies of character. He was an 428 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY active and consistent member of the Presbyterian church, and in politics identified with the Democracy. His course in life was ever such as to commend him to the confidence and high regard f all with whom he came in contact and he left many friends to mourn his loss besides his. immediate family. JASPER T. RICKETTS. This is one of those quiet, unassuming men who make no loud pretentions but who if their past lives be inquired into will be found to have done their duty at every conjuncture to themselves, their neighbors and their country. Such an inquiry would disclose that during the dark days of the Civil war Mr. Ricketts was well to the front and fighting among the bravest of the brave for the preservation of the Union. Further inquiry would prove that after his return from the army he was just as faithful in peace as he had been in war, making a good church member, a good public official, a good neighbor and a good farmer. It is men of this type, pursuing "The even tenor of their way" without ostentation, but always on hand at the right time and counting one in every emergency, that make every community and furnish that indispensable element known as- the "honest yeomanry of the land." Mr. Ricketts comes of pioneer ancestry, and his family has been identified with Hancock county. history for more than seventy years. Rezin Ricketts, who was born in Fairfield county, Ohio, in the early part of the nineteenth century, was married in Hancock county, to Mercy Hess, of Huntingdon county, Pennsylvania., and located in 1832 on eighty acres of wild land in what is now known as Marion township. As these were rough times the new arrivals shared with others all the privations incident to the period. There was much hard work, but also little play, a general deprivation of what are called the "comforts of civilization," but for these the pioneers managed to find substitutes and altogether their lot was not wholly one of hardship. Rezin Ricketts did his full share toward developing the new country and became prominent in local affairs, serving as township treasurer several terms and as justice of the peace for twenty-one years. He. also acquired a reasonable measure of material prosperity and owned one hundred and sixty acres of land at the time of his death, in 1886. By his wife, Mercy (Hess) Ricketts, who died in 1872, he had three children : Jasper T., Mary and Martha. As will be observed Jasper T. Ricketts is the eldest of the family, and his birth occurred in Marion township, Hancock county, Ohio, May 1, 1839. CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 429 He followed the usual routine of farmer boys by attending school in winter and working on the farm "between times," and was so engaged at the time the sullen mutterings on the political horizon foreboded the coming of the war storm. When it broke in all its fury Jasper T. Ricketts was not one of those to shrink back, but took his full share of responsibility by enlisting in Company H, Fifty-seventh Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and served bravely until the close of hostilities.. Mr. .Ricketts's regiment was assigned to the army of the Tennessee, and he took part with it in all of its battles and skirmishes while present for duty. He was wounded at the battle. of Corinth and. in the fight at Kennesaw Mountain was struck in the right hip, but in the whole was fortunate in his escapes, considering the many and great dangers he had to face. When honorably discharged, August 14, 1865, he held the rank of orderly sergeant of his company, and was considered one of the dutiful and reliable soldiers of the command. It was during a leave of absence from the front, on March 3, 1864, that Mr. Ricketts was married to Barbara A., daughter f Jacob and Judy Bly, and born in Marion .township in 1842. The children of this union were eight in number, of whom six are living and two are dead, to-wit : William T., deceased; Harvey J. ; Lewis R.; John B.; Logan; Alta M., deceased; Sarah M. ; and Bertha. Mr. Ricketts is a member f the United Brethren church, has served his township as treasurer and trustee and belongs to Stoker Post, Grand Army of the Republic. He has owned and lived upon his present farm of one hundred and thirty-seven acres in Amanda township since 1873, has made a number of needed improvements and is generally regarded as a practical, painstaking and progressive farmer. ADAM WOLF. The Teutonic race has been an important element in framing our national commonwealth; its qualities and characteristics have been infused with those of other races in the development of a strictly American type and the United States willingly acknowledges its indebtedness to the German people for certain admirable qualities which are found among the representatives of the fatherland and their descendants. The above worthy representative of the Teutonic race is a wealthy and practical farmer of Washington township, where he resides on a beautiful tw0 hundred acre tract, which is well tilled and well kept. As stated he is a native of Germany, where he was born April 17, 1836. When he arrived at maturity he left .Dome, and in 1858 arrived in America, coming immediately 430 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY to Seneca county, Ohio. Here he remained until 1865, when he removed to Wood county,. where he was one of the leading agriculturists for a period of three years, cultivating an eighty acre tract. In 1868 he sold this farm and coming to Hancock county located on his present place. It is noted that this property was once owned by Abraham Deel, whose large log house remains to-day as a trophy of the early pioneer life in Hancock county. Mr. Wolf has since coming into possession f the property added many modern improvements, having built his present large and commodious residence in 1872. In the year 1865 he was joined in marriage to Mary Dippelhoper, a lady also of German descent and lineage, she having been born in Germany in 1844. To this marriage there have been born a family f eight children, five of whom are living : John, born in 1867; Jessie, 1871; Lottie, 1873; Emma, 1878; Andrew, 1881. Information concerning the family history of the Wolfs is rather scant. It is known that they were prominent members of society in the German empire for a long period of years. Adam Wolf's father was Peter Wolf, his mother's maiden name having been Maria Gilbrick. Both of his parents lived out their lives in Germany, where the father died in 1884 and the mother in 1863. In the respect that is accorded the men who have fought their way to success through unfavorable environments, we find an unconscious recognition of the intrinsic worth of a character which cannot only endure so rough a test, but can also gain new strength through the discipline. It can be said of Adam Wolf that he is a self-made man in all which that hackneyed phrase means. He has always been an exceedingly hard worker, and the effort which he has put forth, coupled with a good head for business, has made him one of the leading men f his section. S. N. E. PRIDDY. Though a resident of Findlay only twelve years the above named gentleman is a native of Ohio, and has spent all his life within the confines of this state. He is a busy man and a useful one, as the various enterprises which have occupied his attention were such as benefit the community while bringing' profit to the proprietor. Furnishing railroad supplies, milling and mining have been Mr. Priddy's pursuits, and in these during an active career he has met with the success that usually rewards constant labor and persistent perseverance. He comes of an old family long settled in Greenbrier county, Virginia, whence have gone forth so many pioneers for the new territories of CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 431 the. west as they were opened up for settlement. John Priddy was an important man that part of the Old Dominion during the last half of the eighteenth century. He was born in Greenbrier county in 1754, and in early manhood displayed his patriotism by enlisting in the Revolutionary army, in which he rose to the rank of quartermaster. After the establishment of independence he joined the tide of western emigration and established himself in Fayette county, Ohio, as early as 1808. His son, William Priddy, was born in Greenbrier county, Virginia, in 1798, and also became a pioneer in Ohio, first of Fayette .and later of Van Wert county, where he died in 1852. Among his children was Thomas D. Priddy, whose birth occurred in Fayette county, Ohio, August 15, 1820, and who came to Van. Wert county with his father in 1835. He farmed there many years and lived to an advanced age, his death occurring in 1897. S. N. E.. Priddy, son f the last mentioned, was born in Van Wert county, Ohio, February 21, 1844, and remained at home until he had reached the twenty-seventh year of his age. As he grew up he assisted his father in work on the farm and meantime obtained the usual school education. This was interrupted by the outbreak of the Civil war, in which Mr. Priddy went as a boy and made an excellent record as a loyal and patriotic soldier. He enlisted at Mansfield, September 1, 1861, as a private in Company H, Fifteenth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and remained with his command until February; 1862, When he was discharged for disability. In November, 1863, he re-enlisted in the same company and regiment and remained until the command was mustered out in the fall of 1865. Mr. Priddy saw Much hard service in the shape of marching, skirmishing and fighting, through, all f which he acquitted himself so well as to obtain the entire approval of his commanding officers. He took part in the severe and protracted campaigns from Dalton to Atlanta in the spring .and summer. of 1864 and fought with his command in many of the engagements that occurred during that memorable march. After Atlanta surrendered Mr. Priddy was with the forces detached to look after the hot-headed Hood on his wild expedition into Tennessee, and fought with his regiment in the bloody battles at Franklin, Jonesboro and Nashville, which last battle practically destroyed Hood's army. In 1871 Mr. Priddy left his father's farm and embarked in business for himself as a purchaser of ties for the Pittsburg, Ft. Wayne & Chicago Railroad Company. After spending two years in this employment he bought a saw mill in Van Wert county and the management of this. in connection with a grist mill and planing mill, furnished him occupation for the next thirteen years. In 1882 he disposed of the saw mill but operated the 432 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY others four years longer and then sold them also with a view to engaging in different employment. In 1887 he embarked in the oil producing business in Allen county, Ohio, and has continued in this enterprise with headquarters at Findlay since his removal there in 1890. He is also interested in zinc and lead mining at Joplin, Missouri, and has met with a fair measure of success in his various enterprises. During his residence in Middlepoint, Ohio, Mr. Priddy served five years as mayor of that city and was also a member of the city council and school board. During the erection of the normal school building at that place, Mr. Priddy was president of the board of trustees, having that work in charge. In December, 1872, he was married, at Middlepoint, to Elizabeth, daughter of John and Rachel (Coslett) Price, and has three sons and one daughter: John E., attorney at law; Edgar, an oil producer; Edith J., at home; and Vernon, at Amherst College. The family are members of the Methodist church and in politics Mr. Priddy's affiliations are with the Republican party. CHARLES H. THOMAS. Since an early epoch in the development of the northern part of Ohio, the family of Charles H. Thomas (now deceased) has been numbered among its citizens. To know the early life of this family, we have but to picture the conditions common in. Hancock county six or seven decades ago. Much of the land was wild, awaiting the awakening energy of civilization to transform it into richly cultivated fields. Schools were primitive and the curriculum limited. The now thriving towns and cities were merely hamlets, or had not been founded, and the settlers were deprived of many of the comforts of the older east. But they were people of resolute spirit and with determined purpose, well fitted to the work of making homes in the wilderness. In this work the Thomas family bore its part. This family was one of the first to settler in Marion township, in this county, where they located on a tract of land received from the government. Charles Thomas was the first of the name of whom we have any knowledge. He cleared his farm, which he had received from the government, and at his decease passed it down to his son George. The latter, who married Katherine Paden, was a thrifty and practical farmer, who placed many a solid improvement on the old place. At his death he left the farm to his son Charles H. Thomas, the subject of this review, who was born on the 26th of August, 1853. He, like his ancestors, followed agricultural pursuits and was much esteemed by his fellow citizens. After he became of age he was elected trustee, treasurer and school director CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 433 in Marion township, all of which offices he administered with Credit to himself and to the satisfaction of his constituents. He was a faithful. and loyal member. of the Methodist Episcopal church, in which for many years he was superintendent of the Sunday-school and a leader of the musical department. In November, 1874, he was joined in marriage to Harriet A., the daughter of David and Amanda Walter. The union was blessed with six childrenMooreorge W., who married Gladys P. Mobre, and to whom were born three. boys, Charles K., Delbert L., and Glen; the. second child, Tishie M., married Calvin L. Moore, an electrician, and she was the mother of one daughter,. Lora ;. the third child, David L., married Edith Nusser. The three younger sons were Benj. H., Charles G. and Edward R. After a rather short but eminently useful life Charles H. Thomas died March 29, 1892. His widow, Mrs. Harriet A. Thomas, was born in, Hancock county in 1852. She is a lady of. much refinement of character and many noble qualities, and is. the center of a large circle of friends in her community. The farm upon which she resides contains ninety-six acres; is well tilled and everything about the premises shows the guiding hand of an experienced representative of the farming class. The fifth generation of the Thomas family are now residents on this farm, first settled by Charles Thomas, early in the century. J. E. HUDSON. As a man travels on in the journey of life and passes the prime of manhood his strength and energy are somewhat lessened' by age, which is an indication .that it is intended that his last years shall be at least to some extent a period of rest: Not all past the meridian of life are permitted to put aside business cares, for through the lack of business ability or mismanagement they have not acquired capital sufficient to supply their needs in their declining years. Mr. J. E. Hudson is enjoying a well earned rest. Long connected with the agricultural. interests of Hancock county, his careful management and a husbanding of his resources have brought his a very desirable competence which now supplies him with all the necessities and many of the luxuries that go to make life worth the living. Mr. Hudson is now living in the city of Findlay, having retired from his farm in Cass township, where he was born, August 8, .1841. His father was Moses Hudson, a native of old Virginia. His mother's maiden name was Elizabeth Winkler, she being a native of the Buckeye state, Wayne county. Moses Hudson came to maturity in Virginia, and from thence re-, moved to Wayne county, Ohio, where he remained but a. short time, coming 434 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY on to Hancock county, where he settled in Cass township. Here he purchased eighty acres of timber land, the date being 1837. The carving out of a home in this wild and primitive section of the county at that time occupied him the rest of his life. He was a hard-working, honest, industrious man. who was always proud to remark that he was never in need of the law, having never sued or been sued before the court. He always settled his differences with is neighbors by the principle which has gained such a hold on the economic world of to-day, that of arbitration. If the difficulty could not be settled in this manner he would rather seem to be imposed upon and accept the result rather than carry it into the courts. He was a highly respected member of society and a devout adherent of the Methodist Episcopal church. Of his eight children three of the five survivors are residents of Hancock county, Fannie, J. E. and William; while Lawrence and Lucinda reside outside its boundaries. The father of this family, after a long and useful life, passed to his rest February 13, 1887. He had lived a widower for two decades, his wife Lydia having died at a rather early age in 1847. J. E. Hudson passed his youth and boyhood on the old homestead, which was the scene of his boyhood labors and pleasures, and during which time he acquired his elementary education in the common schools. The fact that he has passed his entire existence in Cass township makes him a figure of respect among his fellow citizens. His character is beyond. reproach, and in the space of thirty-eight years he has succeeded, by honest dealing and industrious thrift, in accumulating a very nice competence. He owns at the present time one of the finest estates in Cass township. It contains one hundred and sixty acres, and besides being unsurpassed as farming land, is situated in the oil belt of Hancok county. The farm has on it several producing gas and oil wells. Mr. Hudson retired from his farm in January, 1902. and removed to Findlay, where he expects to pass the remainder of his days. Mr. Hudson ,is proud to recognize the term self-made man. He secured his property by hard knocks. He literally dug out the one hundred and sixty acres which he now owns. In 1864 occurred the marriage of Mr. Hudson, the ceremony uniting him to Miss Mary, daughter of William and Jane Taylor, and to whom one son was born, William T. . Mrs. Hudson was born in Washington township in 1843. When William T. arrived at maturity he married an accomplished young lady, Miss Minnie Rex. Mr. and Mrs. Hudson are consistent members and earnest workers in the Methodist Episcopal church, in which organization Mr. Hudson has been frequently honored with offices of trust. William T. also is an earnest worker in the CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 435 church, being at the present time a class leader. Politically the Hudsons have always been Democrats of the Jacksonian stripe. Mentioning briefly the main points in the history of Mrs. Hudson's family : William Taylor was born in Washington county, Pennsylvania, as' was also his wife, Jane Bell. They removed to Hancock county about 1836, though Mr. Taylor had come to the county in 1832, and located in Washington township on a farm of eighty acres in its original state. Mr. Taylor was a hard-working, conscientious man, farming his holdings in a progressive and up-to-date manner. His land he received from the government by the payment of the usual $1.25 per acre. During his lifetime he added by purchase to this original quarter section, and at the time of his death his estate consisted of two hundred acres. He was prominently connected with the public life of the county and was honored by his fellow citizens by being elected to the office of county commissioner. In this office he served for a period of six years with great satisfaction to his constituents. He was also connected with the minor offices in the township at various periods. The family which he reared consisted of eight children, seven of whom are now living, and six being residents of the county. He was a stanch Democrat in politics, and delighted to further the interests of that party in every way. He was one of those choice spirits who carried his religion about with him, and to whom the Methodist church in Hancock county owes a very great deal for its early engrafting upon the residents of the county. Mr. Taylor died March 2, 1886, his wife outliving him by eight years. They were both lamented by a host of friends by whom they were highly esteemed. SAMUEL HADDOX. Mordecai Haddox was one of the many aspiring young men who left the Old Dominion in the early part of the nineteenth century to seek their fortunes in the "boundless west." He was horn of poor parents August ro, 1805, left his native Virginia when scarcely past boyhood, and bravely faced the problem of carving out a home for himself among strangers in a strange land. Shortly after his arrival he became acquainted with Margaret Lanters, a native of Franklin county, Ohio, and to this lady he was married January 1, 1829. Two years later the newly wedded couple found their way to Blanchard township, Hancock county, where, in the technical language of the day, they "entered one hundred and sixty acres of uncultivated land." The prospects for settlers in 1831 were not so pleas- 436 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY ing as they have since become as the result of growth and cultivation, but the raw material was there and only awaited the necessary labor for development. Mordecai Haddox and his wife were courageous and hopeful, not of raid of work .and equal to the hard tasks they had set before themselves. By dint of ceaseless toil, good management, saving habits, and the natural increase in values due to the state's rapid growth, the family in course of time succeeded in adding two hundred. and forty more acres to their original investment. Mordecai became .successful as an agriculturist, being especially efficient as a stockraiser, and eventually obtained a standing as one of the reliable and trustworthy .men of .his community. Though a Whig in conviction, he was not much addicted to politics and never sought office, but occasionally, at the. solicitation of his. friends;. he consented. to hold some of the minor township positions. He lost his Wife by death January 20, 1855, and after surviving her twenty-three years closed his own earthly career on the 30th of January, 1878. The family register contains the following record of the names and dates of birth of his children : John, born January 28, 1830; Hannah, born December 26, 1831; Jacob, now deceased, born July 30, 1834; Samuel, subject of this sketch, more fully noticed below; Margaret, now dead, was born April 9, 1840; and an unnamed infant who died in 1846. Samuel Haddox, fourth of the above enumerated children, was born on his father's farm in Hancock county, Ohio, May 30, 1837, and has spent his whole life in the neighborhood of his nativity. His time and attention have been devoted to agriculture, with which pursuit he became familiar in boyhood and has prosecuted with success in maturer years. The one hundred and sixty acres originally entered by his father is now divided between John and Samuel, the only two of the children at present living in Hancock county. The eighty acres falling to the share of our subject have been cultivated with skill and much improved in every respect, constituting one of the best. tracts of the size in Blanchard township. His political affiliations are with the Republican party, though he usually confines himself to voting and avoids office-seeking, the only official positions. held by him being those of supervisor and school director. He is regarded as a man of excellent judgment, who attends strictly to his own business and discharges conscientiously all the duties of good citizenship. February 6, 1861, Mr.. Haddox was united in marriage with Elizabeth Hoskinsons, Who was born in Licking county, Ohio, February 13, 1841. The names of the children resulting from this union are thus recorded : William D., now deceased, born December 27, 1861; Laura M., born Septem- CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 437 ber 8, 1864; Nina F., born December 23, 1866; Ostrilla G., born April 29, 1869; Levi M., born December 8, 1871; Charles K., now dead, born March 30, 1874; Hannah M., born November 5, 1876; Arthey A., born February 23, 1879; Leneus L., born December 17, 1882; and Emma L., born March 24, 1884. Mr. Haddox is a trustee of the United Brethren church, of which he and his wife have long been consistent members, and active in connection with the various educational and philanthropic work of the denomination. J. B. KELLEY. The above named is a practical farmer of Blanchard township, who owns and operates a farm of eighty acres of valuable and productive land, which he cultivates by modern and up-to-date methods. He is a member of a family long resident in Ohio, whose representatives have been identified with the agricultural development of their respective localities in such a manner as to take rank among the model farmers. The first of the name in this state were Ezekiel and Rachel Kelley, who came from their native state of Pennsylvania and located in the neighborhood of Fostoria, on a large tract of land purchased. from the government. This couple had six children, five of whom are still living, and among this number is C. S. Kelley, who, at the time of his parents' arrival, was still. a youth, his birth having occurred in .Wayne county, Ohio, in 1825. After reaching manhood he purchased a farm of eighty acres four miles west of Fostoria, to which he subsequently added one hundred and thirty-five more, besides. one hundred and sixty acres owned by him in Michigan at one time. This statement would indicate of itself that he 'has been quite successful in business, but in other ways also he impressed himself upon his community. He has served as justice of the peace for twenty-six years, was county commissioner two terms and held numerous other offices of minor importance. He first married Mary Jane Hagerman, by whom he had one child, and by a second marriage, with Mary. Bryan, his family was increased by the births of eight children, of whom the 'six now living are: Cornelia, J. B., M. D., C. C., W. M. and. Mamie. Mr. Kelley died September 6, 1902, at Fostoria. J. B. Kelley, the second of his living children, was born in Washington. township, Hancock county, Ohio, On the 15th of February, 1854. He grew up in his native place, attended the district schools and in early life became an agent of the Standard Oil Company, in whose employment he served seven. years, and during that time traveled extensively in almost every state of the Union. After resigning this position he was employed two years as 438 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY collector for P. F. Collier, and in 1887 returned to his native county, of which he: has since remained a continuous resident. His first investment in real estate was the purchase of seventy acres of farming land near Arcadia, and on this place he resided for twelve years. At the end of that period he disposed of his, holdings, and in 1900 bought the farm in Blanchard township which constitutes his present homestead. April I r, 1888, he was united in marriage with Miss Jennie, daughter of Jacob. C. and Magdaline Smith, of Crawford county, Ohio, and from this union there are two children: Blanch, born March r 1, 1889; and Karl, born November 28, 1891. Like his father before him, Mr. Kelley is a member of the Democratic party and very earnest in the advocacy of its principles. He is a member of the school board and uses his influence to advance the cause of education, as well as every other measure which his judgment tells him will be for the best inter ests of the people. JOSEPH T. BARTOON. Having been a resident of Hancock county for more than half a century and during that time prominent both in business and as a, holder of county offices, the gentleman above named is perhaps known more generally than any other citizen. And no one who once sees him is apt to forget him, as he has a. remarkable physical development, being six feet six inches in height and large in proportion. A sheriff of these dimensions, armed with the legal power to arrest, is calculated, to strike terror in the average criminal, and when Mr. Bartoon was in office he allowed "no foolishness" around his place of business. He preserved law and order, and finished his two terms with the reputation of being one of the best officials the county. ever had. The family is of German origin and was founded in this country by John Bartoon: who was born about 1755, emigrated to the. United States in early life and (lied in 1860 at. Lancaster, Ohio. His son, Jonathan Bartoon, was born in Hagerstown, Maryland, in 1885 came to Ohio in youth and died in 1893 at Benton Ridge, when eighty-seven years old. Joseph T. Bartoon, son of the last mentioned, was born on his father's farm near Lancaster, Ohio, April 1, 1846, and was brought by his parents to Hancock county in September of the following year. He grew up on his father's farm in Union township and remained on the home place for forty-three years, engaged in agricultural purusits. In 1890 he was elected sheriff of Hancock county and served with so much satisfaction that his constituents gave him a re-election in 1892, and in all he filled the office. four years. In CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 439 1895 he was appointed infirmary director of the county and has since discharged the duties of that position so satisfactorily as to be retained continuously in the office. In 1873 Mr. Bartoon was married at Gilboa, Ohio, to Sarah McDowell, but has no children. He is a member of the. Elks and Eagle Post, No. 109, at Benton Ridge, of the Grand Army of the Republic. His right to the membership is based upon his service as a Union soldier of the One Hundred and Ninety-second Ohio: Regiment, in which he enlisted at Findlay in January, 1865, as a member of: Company H, and was discharged the following September. In 1894 he engaged in the livery business at Findlay, which he continued until June, 1902. REV. ARTHUR M. GROWDEN, PH. B. At the southwest corner of Main and Filmore streets is located the Church of Christ, one of the attractive ecclesiastical edifices of the city of Findlay, and one whose work is being zealously and successfully carried forward under the effective care and supervision of its able and devoted pastor, whose name initiates this article. Mr: Growden is a man of fine intellectuality, is devoted to the duties of his high calling and has consecrated his life and powers to the cause of the Divine Master and to the uplifting of his fellow men. Through his earnest efforts the church in Findlay has made notable progress in both spiritual and temporal strength, and his ministration has endeared him to the members of his flock, while his gracious personality has gained to him the esteem of all with whom he comes in contact. He is a forcible and convincing speaker, definite and inflexible in his faith and unremitting in his attention to the pastoral duties lying outside of the regular services of the church. It is but fitting that he be accorded recognition in this publication, so that a permanent tribute to his work and his effective labors may remain through the years to come, when he is called: to "rest from his labors." Arthur M. Growden is a native of New. Zealand, having been born in the beautiful city of Dunedin, the capital of the province of Otago, and the metropolis of the island, in 1861; being the son of Henry Growden, who was born in Cornwall, England, in 1825, his wife being also a native of the same county. He was an architect by profession, and in 1859 emigrated to Australia, where he did an important work in the line. of his vocation, having been the architect of many fine public buildings in the city of Melbourne, and also in New Zealand, and having been one of the most distinguished representatives of his profession in that section of the world. He was promi- 440 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY nently identified with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, having been influential in the fraternity in both Australia and New Zealand. He died in Dunedin in 1895, in the fullness of years and bailors: Our subject was reared to the age of twenty years in his native city, and there received his preliminary educational discipline. At the age noted he :came to the. United States and entered the College of the Bible, at Lexington, Kentucky, where he completed the full biblical course in 184 and was then ordained to the ministry of the Church of Christ. In 1809 he received the degree Of Bachelor of Philosophy from Fenton College, at Fenton, Michigan. Mr. Growden assumed pastoral charge of the church in Findlay, and here his labors have been attended with unqualified success. He is well known and highly honored in connection with his church work and in the best social life of the community. An earnest worker in the cause of temperance, he naturally gives his political support to the Prohibition party, and fraternally be is a popular member of the Knights of Pythias. At McMinnville, Tennessee, in the year 1886, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Growden to Miss Ella E. Walling, daughter of Jesse Walling, formerly mayor of that city. HILTON A. VICKERS; M. D. A man who has worked his way to an enviable position in his profession and has won the confidence and respect of a large part of the population of Findlay is Dr. Hilton A. Vickers. His father was also a physician, and it was from him the son inherited the ambition which he afterward found the means to gratify. The father, W. H. Vickers, was a physician in Coshocton county, Ohio, for about forty years, and his death occurred in 1870, in Old Plainfield, Ohio, at the age of fifty-nine years. Two brothers of our subject, Victor and Lorenzo, served their country faithfully through the Civil war. Dr. Hilton A. Vickers was born. in Old Plainfield, Ohio, June 18, 1857, at which place he lived until he was eighteen years old. A desire to go west led him to venture alone to Henry county, Indiana, where he worked on a farm for about seven months, and then attended school, at Dover Hill, Indiana, at the same time working for. a farmer in order to defray his expenses. He then taught for two terms, and next, after four years, having resolved to enter his father's profession, returned to his native state and studied medicine in the office of Dr. A. E Walker, completing his course at the Columbus Medical College, at which seat of learning he was graduated in 1884. He first located in Evansburg, Ohio, where he built up a practice and lived for CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 441 eight years. He then practiced his profession in Deshler, this state, for two years, and in 1893 removed to Findlay, where he has ever since continued in the active .practice of medicine. Dr. Vickers was married at Old Plainfield, Ohio, his birthplace, in 1881, to Miss Sallie A. Smith, and they have had eight children; seven of whom are living, as follows : Archie V., Raymond F., Goldie, Ella, 'Bertha, Earl and Grace. The Doctor is a chapter Mason, of which fraternal organization he is a very popular member. Politically he affiliates with the Republican party, in the principles and doctrines of which he is entirely sympathetic. He keeps up his professional interests outside of this city as a. member of the Northwestern Ohio Medical Association, and is also an active member of the Hancock Medical. Society: In Findlay Dr. Vickers has a very success, ful practice, which is becoming more extensive and more satisfactory each year. HENRY SHEETS. Mathias. Sheets, who founded the family of that name in America, was a blacksmith by trade in his native country of Germany, and was brought to this country in 1776 with the German allies of the British army. Just after the battle at Monmouth, New Jersey, Mathias and a companion deserted and started off in search of the American army. On their way they saw a squad of British cavalry in pursuit and to escape them hid in some hay that was contained in an old building near by. When the troopers, who had not seen the runaways, came near the place of their concealment, they thrust their sabers into the hay through the cracks between the logs, but fortunately did not reach far enough to touch the trembling fugitives. When the latter heard the squad ride away they lost no time in leaving their place of refuge, and eventually arrived within the lines of the Revolutionary forces. After the war Mathias Sheets settled in southeastern Pennsylvania, where he reared a family in which was included a son named Jacob. The latter married Christina, daughter of Nicholas Boher, who served as a private on the American side in the war for independence. Jacob and Christina (Boher) Sheets became the parents of nine children, three sons and six daughters, two of the former and four of the latter still living. The second son, Joseph, was a member of Company I, Twenty-fourth Regiment, Iowa Volunteer Infantry, with which he served creditably throughout the Civil war. He was with General Banks during his expedition up the Red river, and was on. board a steamboat with his regi- 28 442 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY ment when the part of the army to which he belonged passed the fortifications at Vicksburg under the cover of a. dark night. History relates how. the forts opened a furious cannonade on the daring fleet as it passed, and one cannonball passed through the boat containing the regiment to which Joseph Sheets belonged: Later this regiment was sent around by water to Washington and from there to Shenandoah Valley, where. in the battle with Early's army, October i9, 1864., Joseph. was captured and sent with others to the prison at Richmond. After being exchanged in January, i865, he was sent to Maryland and later to Benton Barracks, St. Louis, where he died and was buried. Henry Sheets, the eldest of the children of Jacob and Christina, and the subject of this sketch, was born in Lebanon county, Pennsylvania; July 26, 1824, and when only nine months. old was taken by his parents to Center county, in the same state. They lived on a rented farm and there Henry spent most of his boyhood, attending district school during the three months' term in winter and helping on the farm at other times. In 1842, at the age of seventeen, Henry gained permission of his parents to go to Hancock county; Ohio, where he worked by the month on a farm owned by his uncle near the location of the present village of Arcadia, and in the winter taught the district school of that neighborhood. After spending eighteen months in Ohio Henry Sheets returned to Pennsylvania, where he remained until 1847, and then came back to Hancock county, which has ever since been the place of his residence. For about nineteen years his two-fold occupation Was carpentering in the building season and teaching school during the inclement weather of winter. In 1859 he engaged in farming and the next year was elected to the office of auditor of Hancock county, in which position he served two terms of two years each. In. March, 1861, Mr. Sheets located with his family at Findlay, where he spent five years. and returned to the ,farm near Arcadia, which has been his home from that time to this. After serving two years as examiner of county schools Mr. Sheets was appointed, in 1870, to fill out, the unexpired term of the county treasurer, who had left the county. In 1876 he was elected to the lower house of the Ohio Legislature to fill the unexpired term of Hon. A. H. Phillips, who died after serving half his term, and. in 1877 lie was re-elected to -a full term of two years. December 18, 1851, Was solemnized the marriage of Henry Sheets and Miss Martha, daughter of James Campbell, a prominent farmer of Hancock county, residing in Cass township. Of the eight children born of this union two died within less than three weeks. after birth and Mathew, one CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 443 of the sons, died of typhoid fever at the age of twenty-eight years. The five survivors consist of three sons and two daughters, of whom Rufus, the eldest son, is living in Marshall county, Iowa, where he owns a flouring mill on the Iowa river. James H., the second son, is a carpenter by trade and 'follows that occupation for a living. Homer, the youngest son, attends to the farming on .the old homestead and, like his brother, James, is unmarried. Ellen, the eldest daughter, is unmarried and remains at the family homestead. Elizabeth, the youngest daughter, married Albert Kopf, with whom she resides at Fort Wayne, Indiana, where .her husband holds the position of blacksmith for the New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad Company, doing all needed repairing in his line for the road from Stony Island, near Chicago, to. Bellevue, Ohio. Considering the fact that he had only four dollars when he arrived in Hancock county, the subject of our sketch may truly be said to have achieved a creditable success in life, but he is, a modest man, and does not brag either of what he has or what he has done-. At the present time his farm consists of One hundred and fifty acres, after Mr. Sheets gave the right of way to two railroads and to the electric road from Fostoria to Findlay. Since 1849 Mr. Sheets and his wife have been members of the Evangelical Lutheran church in Arcadia, to which three-other members of the family also belong. In politics Mr. Sheets is now and always has been a member of the Democratic party, but he has never belonged to any of the secret societies. He has aimed always to do his duty as best, he could, both in public and private life,—to be. just toward his fellow man and to fulfill all the requirements of good citizenship. ISAAC W. COOPER. Isaac W. Cooper, retired farmer, and one of the solid and prosperous men of the community, is not only a native of the state of Ohio, but also of Hancock county, where he was born in Portage township in the year 1842, and he is a typical American farmer of the broad-minded, liberal and successful class. Mr. Cooper is of English descent. His grandfather (also Isaac W. Cooper) was born in England, but came to this country and settled in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, where his son, Amos Cooper, was born in 1808. Later, in the year 1812, the grandfather, Isaac W. Cooper, moved with his family out into the great new state of Ohio, which a few 'years before had been a part of the Western Reserve country, and located in Perry county. When the war of 1812 broke out he sided with the country of: his adoption, and was a soldier in that war, fighting against the English 444 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY and for the United States. Amos Cooper, father of. Isaac W. Cooper, came with his parents in 1812, from Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, to Perry county, Ohio. Later, in the year 1832, he moved to Hancock county, Ohio, where he afterwards resided and where he died in 1879. He was a farmer all his life; and was an honored and esteemed citizen. .Isaac W. Cooper was reared on the farm Hancock county where, his father lived for years, but in 1879 he moved to Allen township, where he resided until 1900. when he moved to Findlay to take life a little. easier and enjoy some of the comforts of life for which he had worked and planned for so many years. In the year 1864, when more volunteers were called for, he. entered the Union army and served four months in Company G, One Hundred and Thirty-third Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, as a private. He was in the fighting between Richmond and Petersburg during the Virginia campaign, and under fire for almost a month. After being mustered out at Columbus he returned home to Portage township, Hancock county, Ohio. Mr. Cooper belongs to Stoker Post No. 54, G. .A. R. Mr. Cooper has been township assessor, having held that office for. two terms in Allen township, and two terms in Portage township, and was trustee of Allen township for one term. Mr. Cooper is a Democrat. He is a. member of the Presbyterian church and belongs to the Knights of Pythias. Mr. Cooper was married January 29, 1865, in Allen township, Hancock county, Ohio, to Amanda, daughter of Ephraim Trout, and they have two daughters living, as follows : Sarah E. and Phoebe C., wife of the Reverend Earl Kempher. Their eldest child and son, William Grant Cooper, died in April, 1900, in the very prime of his life, loved and honored by all who knew him. William Grant Cooper was born May 19, 1866, and was the pride and hope of his father's heart. He was reared on. his father's farm in Allen township, attending the country schools, and at the age of sixteen commenced teaching school and taught for seven terms, and then, in 1886, he entered Findlay College and graduated in 1891. William Grant Cooper Was not content to be a farmer; he felt that he was fitted for a professional life, and his great desire was to be a doctor—one of the noblest callings, and where he could do good to his fellow men and ease the sufferings of humanity. After graduating from Findlay College he was made superintendent of the schools of Van Buren, Hancock county, and held that position for one year. Then he entered. the Baltimore Medical College, at Baltimore, Maryland, and graduated with honor in 1894. He located first at Bowling Green, Ohio, but about three months later was appointed by the late President Mc- CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 445 Kinley, then governor of Ohio, who recognized his Sterling worth and character; on the medical staff of the State Hospital at Toledo, Ohio, which position he held until March, 1900, when he resigned, intending to go to Findlay, Ohio, here his parents were to locate. One month later, in April, 1900, he died of typhoid .fever. His was a short life, not quite half of the three score years and ten allotted to mankind, but in that time he had risen in his profession and was honored and beloved by his fellow citizens. He belonged to the United Brethren church, and had been superintendent of the United Brethren Sunday-school at Van Buren, Ohio: William Grant Cooper received from Findlay College the degrees of Doctor of Philosophy, and Bachelor of Philosophy. He was a Knight of Pythias, and they had charge of his obsequies and passed resolutions on his death. ANDREW SAGER. Among the prominent dairymen and farmers of Liberty township, Hancock county, Ohio, whose fine, well cultivated farm of two hundred and thirty-six acres is one of the most valuable in this locality, is Andrew Sager, who was born in Fairfield county, Ohio, on February 4, 1830. He is a son of Shem and Mary B. Sager. the former born in .Virginia and the latter in Germany. They removed to Fairfield county in the days of its early settlement, and were :prominent and worthy people. Andrew Sager was reared and educated in his native county. In 1854 he moved to Hancock county, locating upon his present farm, purchasing one hundred and sixty acres in section 35, in what was then Findlay township, later purchasing the additional acres to complete the present two hundred. In 1862, when his country asked her sons to come to her defense, our subject was one who. loyally responded, enlisting on August 23, in Company G, One Hundred. and Eighteenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and gallantly serving until the close of the Civil war, being honorably discharged on July 5, 1865. He was connected with the Fourth brigade and second division, and participated in the battles of Mossy Creek, Columbia, Franklin, Nashville, and belonged to the part of the army that pursued General Hood in the Georgia campaign. Upon his return from his honorable service in the army Mr. Sager resumed his agricultural pursuits and gradually enlarged his business, adding buildings and conveniences until he was able to engage extensively in a dairy business. This he has managed with success, keeping a fine strain of cows and selling his products with very satisfactory results. He is a systematic 446 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY farmer, and much of his prosperity is due to his close and careful attention to every part of his large domain. November 15, 1855, Mr. Sager was married to Miss Susannah Powell, who was born in Liberty township November 2,. 1834, a daughter of Samuel and Sarah Powell, and Mr. and Mrs. Sager have four children : Raymond S., Laura A., Ilvie I. and Mellie M. Mr. Sager is a public spirited citizen, who lives up to the demands of the day, and takes an interest in all enterprises which he thinks will be of advantage to the farmer. He is a leading member of the United Evangelical church of Findlay. He is highly esteemed in Liberty township as a man of integrity and 'excellent business ability. In politics he is. a Republican. MARTIN P. McGEE. The above named is forty-two years old, and nearly two-thirds of that time has been spent around oil and gas wells, in which business he has become an expert. Mr. McGee is entitled to the distinction of having worked upon the first producing gas well in the Findlay field, which started the great boom of 1884 and attracted so much attention all over the country. He is one of the seven living children of Michael McGee, who was born in county Wicklow, Ireland; in 1837, came to the United States when sixteen years old and located in Allegany county, New York, where he remained a number of years, but is now a resident of Indiana. Martin P. McGee was born in Allegany county, New York, March 22, 1860, and when six years old was taken by his parents to Warren county, Pennsylvania. Martin grew up and received his early education in that locality, and in the sixteenth year of his age went with the family to McKean county, Pennsylvania, where he obtained *work around the oil wells, which kept him employed until 1882, when he returned to Allegany county, New York, where oil had been discovered during his absence. He secured work in this business and remained there until the spring of 1884, when he went to Erie, Pennsylvania. Remaining here but a short time, however, he came to Findlay in October of the same year, and until 1890 worked by the day. The day after his arrival in Findlay he started out, to work on a gas well a mile east of town, on the farm of Dr. Austin, and two weeks later struck gas. This proved to be a "gusher," and was the first producing well drilled in the Findlay field of northwestern Ohio. It was an event in the history not only of Findlay but the state of Ohio, as the subsequent discoveries of this precious fuel led to a growth and development of unprecedented rapid- CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 447 ity. In 1890 Mr. McGee became a producer on his own account, and has since been one of the busy men of this locality, his interests being located in Wood, Sandusky and Hancock counties. In 1886 Mr. McGee was married at Findlay to Jennie, daughter of James McCall, and they have an only son named Frank. Mr. McGee is a Knight Templar Mason and has served in the city council, being elected a member of that body in the spring of 1901 as a representative of the Democratic party, of which he is one of the leaders in Hancock county. J. B. KARST. J. B. Karst, a leading manufacturer of tile, used in the draining of land, has been an important 'factor in the development of Hancock county, .his business being one closely associated with agricultural success. The modern farmer no longer struggles with undrained land and poor soil, and it is due to able and energetic men like Mr. Karst that no such conditions are longer necessary. It was in Germany that our subject was born, in 1829, and from there he emigrated in 1848, locating for a short time in New York. From there it was but a short journey to Philadelphia, but it was in Hancock county, Ohio, that Mr. Karst finally decided to found his home. His parents, Peter and Elizabeth Karst, emigrated also in 1848, and it was in conjunction with his father that he made his first land purchase of forty acres, in Eagle township. In the course of time they sold .this land and bought one hundred and sixty acres in Orange township, and so great was their industry that in three years' time they had seventy-five acres. fenced. This farm was the property of our subject's father, who at his death gave the son eighty acres of it. This land our subject retained for seven years, selling it to remove to Allen township. Mr. Karst has always been a busy man and is one able to fill a number of different positions in life. From 1854 to 1860 he was an efficient grocery clerk in Findlay, and then he learned the carpenter trade, following the same until 1870. He then located upon his present valuable farm of sixty acres in Liberty township. Upon this farm he discovered the clay in great abundance which he use in the making of tile, and this business he carries on extensively, in connection with farming. In April, 1860, Mr. Karst was married to Miss Josephine Deitz, and to this union there were born thirteen children, eight of whom still survive, namely : Sylvester, Christina, Amelia, Clara, Frederick, Anna, Agnes and 448 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY John A. The mother of this family was born in Jersey City, New Jersey, in 1841, and still survives to be her husband's companion and helpmate. The family are all members of the Roman Catholic church. Mr. Karst is justly held in high esteem in this community. He is a man of great-kindness of heart and of generous impulses, and is ever ready to assist his neighbors with a helping hand. His financial position is very secure, as in addition to the valuable clay deposits on his farm he has some producing oil wells, LORENZO FIRMIN, M. D. On the 12th of October, 1901, there passed away at his home in Findlay, Dr. Lorenzo eirmin; a well beloved physician, whose many years of faithful thouseholds profession made his name a household word in the community. Nor were his influence and efforts confined to his profession atone, for in all the varied activities of .common life, he took a helpful pabilitiesloyal citizen, devoting his abilities to the cause of progress. His loss is deeply mourned by all classes and the following brief. account of one so esteemed will be read with unusual interest. The Doctor was born in Wilbraham, Massachusetts, March 31, 1808, and was the fifth child in a family of ten, his parents being John and Lovina (Green) Firmin, who belonged to good old New England families and were married in Wilbraham in 1800. The father was a shoemaker and under his .direction the Doctor learned that trade during his youth, following it in the village of his birth until he reached the age of twenty-two. Coming to Ohio in 1834, he first located in Richfield, Summit county, where he engaged in the tanning business in connection with Dr. Secretary Rawson, who afterward Richfield in father-in-law. It was at Richfield in 1838 that he married Clara Harriet Rawson, a daughter of his partner, and from that place they drove to Findlay on their wedding trip. After locating in this city Dr. Firmin continued following the shoemaker's trade for a time and then took up the study of medicine with his wife's uncle, Dr. Bass Rawson, with whose name Findlay is very familiar. After completing his course of study and preparing himself for his chosen profession he opened an office in Findlay, but in 1847 removed to Benton Ridge, where he spent one year. As some of Findlay's physicians had entered the army during the Mexican war, leaving a professional opening for him here, he returned to this city in 1848 and continued in active practice until 1877, when he retired. During three years of this time, the present CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHIC4L HISTORY - 449 well known physician of this city, Dr. F. W. Firmin, was associated with him as partner. After his retirement from medical practice our subject gave his attention to his private business matters, which were many and important. His first wife having died in 1891, Dr. Firmin was again married in 1894, his second union being with Miss Mary B. Humphrey, a native of Findlay and a daughter of Jarvis Humphrey. Her father was born in Simsbury, Connecticut, in 1809, and was a son of Dudley Humphrey, also a native. of that place and of English descent. In 1851 Jarvis Humphrey became a resident of Hancock county, Ohio, and after spending about six months in Findlay he located on a farm and throughout his active business life was engaged in agricultural pursuits, but his, last days were spent in retirement in the city, where he died at the ripe old age of eighty-four years. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Julia Barber and was: also born in Simsbury, Connecticut, died at the age of seventy-seven years. In the family of this worthy couple were six children, namely : Chauncey a, a fruit farmer of Hancock county; Marian, wife of George E. Cook, of Torrington, Connecticut ; Ellen A., wife of B. O. Robinson., of Putnam county, Ohio; Justine, wife of John H. King, of Findlay; Jarvis S., a resident of Indianapolis, Indiana; and Mary B., now Mrs. Firmin. All of the children were born in Connecticut with exception of the last named. The father was an active and consistent member of the Congregational church and was a stanch Republican in politics. Mrs. Firmin received a good education in the schools of Findlay and for ten years successfully engaged in teaching, three years of this time being employed in the village school of Arcadia, and the remainder in other schools of Hancock county. As an earnest Christian, Dr. Firmin took quite a prominent part in religious work, was one of the organizers of the First Congregational church of Findlay and contributed liberally to its support, although he did not become a member of the same until 1871, from which time he was one of its most active and faithful adherents. He was exceedingly generous and benevolent and was one of the first three men to each donate one hundred dollars to assist in organizing the Young Men's Christian Association here. Later when. it was in need of funds to keep up current expenses, he made a donation of five hundred dollars, payable in sums of one hundred dollars a year. He also made a large donation of property to Oberlin College and his private beneficences were many. As a man Dr. Firmin was wideby known and highly respected and from a local paper printed at the time of his death we quote the following as a