400 - THE COUNTY OF HIGHLAND. boy seven years old, with his parents, who made their first home in Pennsylvania. This, however, was but temporary, as after a few years they removed to Baltimore and from there went first to Illinois, then to Iowa, where they died. Their son Thomas remained at home until he was about nineteen years of age, when he engaged in school teaching and followed that occupation ten or twelve years. He then entered the ministry of the United Presbyterian church, his first charge being in Indiana and the second at Jackson, Ohio. In the latter place the married Rebecca J., daughter of Archibald Hunter, and of Pennsylvanian nativity. The first housekeeping done by the newly wedded couple was in Clinton county, Ind., but later they returned to Jackson, Ohio, and spent four years in that city. The next move was to Decatur, in Brown county, Ohio, where ten years were passed, after which Mr. Mercer took up his residence in Adams county, where he still lives in retirement. Of his six children three, Margaret E., Mary J. and Emma B. are dead, the latter being drowned at five years of age while crossing a stream in Indiana with her parents. The three living are John A., William H., a physician at Raymond, Ill., and Thomas H., a resident of Adams county. John A. Mercer, eldest of the living children, was born in Clinton county, Ind., April 25, 1866, and remained at home until he began the study of medicine with Dr. A. Ellison, of Duncansville, Ohio. He attended lectures both in Cincinnati and Louisville, Ky., being given a diploma by the Medical college in the latter city with the class of 1888. After graduating, Dr. Mercer first located at Wakefield, in Pike county, Ohio, but before the year was out came to Rainsboro where he has since practiced his profession. Dr. Mercer is quite prominent in the fraternal orders, having filled every chair in Odd Fellowship, all the offices of the Knights of Pythias besides being representative to the grand lodge two years, and has occupied several chairs in the Masonic lodge. lib holds membership in the following orders : Rainsboro lodge, No. 453, Knights of Pythias; New Petersburg lodge, No. 211, Independent Order of Odd Fellows ; Greenfield Blue lodge, No. 318, Greenfield chapter, No. 133, Hillsboro council, No. 16, and Highland commandery, No. 31, in Free Masonry ; and Greenfield lodge, No. 717, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. Dr. Mercer married Edith B., daughter of Dr. D. N. McBride of Rainsboro, and they have two children, Harry Mc. and Mary 0. The family are communicants of the Methodist Episcopal church and quite popular in the social circle's of Highland county. Samuel P. Michael, who commenced life as a blacksmith but has put in most of his time as a farmer, is one of the substantial and respected citizens of Liberty township. He comes of pioneer stock as his father, Daniel Michael, moved in as early as 1826 and became a resident of Penn township. Of his large family of twelve chil- BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES - 401 dren the only survivor is Jackson, who resides at Russell Station: Another of the sons named Samuel, who was born July 8, 1816, married Acenith, daughter of Elias and Margaret (Hussey) Carey, and by her had the following named children : William, who died in 1861, at the age of twenty-two years ; Carey Allen, now a resident of Lynchburg, who served over two years in the civil war ; Joseph, also a Union veteran, who died at Cincinnati on his way home from the army ; Mary, wife of DeWitt C. Arment of Xenia ; Margaret, wife of Dr. Achor of Oklahoma ; Sarah E., wife of M. W. Rankins of Union township; Martha, died in infancy; Samuel P., further sketched below; Silas E., a farmer in Union township ; and Annabel, widow of James Wright. Samuel P. Michael, eighth of the children above enumerated, was born in Highland county, Ohio, July 4, 1854, and in early youth put in a good deal of time learning the blacksmith's trade. This useful calling, however, he abandoned in time to take' up farming which has constituted the principal occupation of his life. At the present time he resides on one of the Evans farms four miles northwest of Hillsboro, which he cultivates industriously and successfully, enjoying the reputation of being not only a good workman but a good citizen in all the name implies.. June 7, 1877, Mr. Michael was married to Martha M., daughter of John and Elizabeth (Runk) Rankins, natives of Scotland who located in Clinton county. The children resulting from this union are: Minnie, who died in childhood ; Dora M., wife of Lee Duncan of Hillsboro ; Anna B., wife of Peter Runion of Liberty township ; Clarence L., at home ; Alva, died in infancy ; Jessie, Clara Acenith, Albert Otto and Francis, at home; Elmer Hobart, who died in infancy, and his twin brother, Ellis, at home. Mrs. Mary A. Middleton, of Greenfield, widow of the late Rev. John Henry Middleton, is the only surviving child of John T. Wright, who came from Adams county to Highland county about 1850. Although he was a tanner by trade, he taught several terms of school in Adams county prior to leaving it, and after coming to Highland county was engaged in teaching, and for many years was a member of the board of school examiners. At the time of his death he had charge of the public schools at Lynchburg and enjoyed the reputation of being one of the most successful teachers in the county. In 1841 he married Sarah T. Roush, .of Adams county, by whom he had two children, Maria Louisa (deceased), born January 1st, 1848, and Mary A. Wright. The latter born in Bentonville, Adams county, Ohio, on August 11, 1842, was brought in infancy to Highland county where she was reared and educated. In 1865 she became the wife of Rev. John Henry Middleton, a native of New York who came to Ross county, Ohio, in boyhood. He received his H- 26 402 - THE COUNTY OF HIGHLAND. education at Greenfield, after which he taught school for many years, and in 1856 was ordained a minister of the Methodist Episcopal church, and assigned to the Williamsburg circuit. He engaged enthusiastically in his ministerial work and pressed it with energy until the outbreak of the civil war caused him to exchange the pastoral robes for a musket and other paraphernalia of conflict. In 1861 two companies were recruited in Highland county for the Eighty-first regiment Ohio volunteer infantry, and Mr. Middleton enrolled his name with one of these, which afterward became Company C. The command was sent South in the fall following its organization and for some time was kept almost constantly on scouting duty. During its campaigning after Forrest, Mr. Middleton was badly crippled so that from that time until the end of his days he was compelled to use a crutch. At the expiration of his term of enlistment he was discharged from the military service and resumed his ministerial work, which he continued until 1895, when he retired from the ministry and took up his residence at Greenfield, where his death occurred suddenly in 1900. His widow, Mrs. May A. Middleton, still resides at Greenfield, where she is highly esteemed by a wide circle of acquaintances for her many excellent traits of character. Lycurgus B. Milburn, in business at Greenfield, has long been known in Highland county in connection with dairying, sheep-breeding and general farming. The family has been identified with Highland county since 1832, which was the year that David Milburn, father of Lycurgus, came from Pennsylvania and settled in Jackson township. He was only twenty years old when he arrived but went to work immediately and in time became one of the popular men of the township, in which he served as justice of the peace for many years. His wife was Sarah A., daughter of Joseph Hurst, who was one of the advance guard in felling the timber and cutting the roads for the then infant settlement of Jackson township. David and Sarah Milburn became the parents of four children, of whom Therza May is dead, and. Hannah E., who married A. J. Fittro, and Deli- lah A., wife of William M. Gall, are both residents of Highland county. Lycurgus B. Milburn, third of the children, was born in Jackson township, Highland county, Ohio, grew up on the farm, and at an early age determined to follow the occupation of teaching. In order to qualify himself for the higher work in this profession, he sought the first opportunity to become a pupil of the National Normal university at Lebanon, Ohio. He remained two terms at this institution for teaching teachers how to teach and when he was through lost no time in testing his efficiency as a practical educator. For twelve consecutive years after leaving Lebanon, Mr. Milburn was engaged in imparting knowledge to the rising generation in Highland and Fayette counties. His long continuance in the busi- BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES - 403 ness would indicate both his success and popularity as a manager of schools, and as a matter of fact he gained the reputation of being one of the most progressive and skillful of the teachers in his territory. Eventually, he laid aside this work and embarked in the dairy business at Hillsboro, which he prosecuted with varying success for three years, when he branched out into general farming and stock raising. In the latter department he gave preference to sheep, „making a specialty of the Shropshiredowns, and in course of time had a fine flock of this popular strain. In November, 1882, he was married to Louesa B., daughter of Daniel Koch, a Highland county citizen of German birth. Their four children are Carrie May, Julius Neil, Eloise and Stella. B. In 1897 Mr. Milburn decided to remove 'to Greenfield, in order to obtain better educational facilities for his children, and after locating there held the position of agent for the Standard Oil company four years, but at present is looking after his farming interests. He has been candidate for the city council on the Democratic ticket and is a member of the Woodmen of the World. A. L. Miller, an enterprising citizen of Washington township, is a representative of the fourth generation of a family that has long been identified with Highland county, and have contributed materially to the present condition of the region. Their work has not been confined to industry, but they have taken an active part in efforts for the general good. Miller,s chapel, in Concord township, and the church that meets there, is largely a monument of their public spirit and religious devotion. Thomas Miller, grandfather of A. L., a young man of German and Scotch—Irish descent, came to Highland county from his native state, about 1830, with his parents, who had bought a thousand acres of land on Brush creek in Concord township. He had been married in Pennsylvania to Mary Stewart, and they reared a large family of children : Daniel and Henry, deceased ; Jonathan, living in Missouri ; James E., deceased Noah B., of Washington township ; William, deceased ; Nancy, of Concord township; and Sally, Mary, Alvira and Rebecca, deceased. Thomas Miller was a blacksmith by trade, was engaged in that work all his life in addition to farming, and died at an advanced age from an accident which occurred in the course of his labors at the forge. He is remembered as a devoutly religious man and one of the main supports of the early Methodist church. Noah B. Miller, father of the subject of this sketch, was born in Concord township in 1835, and in early manhood married Mary Jane Fisher, a native of Virginia. They began housekeeping near Fairfax, after two years moved to Washington township, and lived there sixteen years, and later, after two years, residence in Concord township, made their home in Washington. Three children were born to them : Armanus, 404 - THE COUNTY OF HIGHLAND. A. L., and Sarah A. Noah B. Miller is widely known as a threshr, ̊ a business he has been engaged in for fifty years ; is a valued member of the Methodist church, and in politics` a Democrat, according to his family faith. A. L. Miller was born August 1, 1859, on the farm now owned by Charles Rolf, in Jackson township, was educated in the district school, and married Rosa Beatty, a native of Marshall township, and daughter of John and Mary Beatty. They began housekeeping on the farm in Washington township now owned by Andrew Matthews, but three years later moved to his present home, where he owns a hundred acres of land. Mr. Miller is also the owner of a saw mill in Concord township, operates a threshing machine, and altogether is an industrious, and active man. He is a member of Threshers,ers' association, and is generally found taking "a worthy part in public .affairs. George W. Miller, of Marshall township, formerly a member of the board of county commissioners of Highland county, comes of a well known and numerous family of pioneers. His father, Jesse Miller, was born in Culpeper county, Va., in 1799, and was twice married ; to the first union was born Thomas, John P. and Catharine; his second wife was Amanda Davis, and to this union were born six children : William H. ; Sarah A., wife of George Bumgardner ; Joseph, George W., the subject of this sketch ; Jesse, deceased, and Martha J., wife of Samuel Roads. Jesse Miller, the father, died September 15, 1875, and his wife, Amanda, in January, 1890. They arrived overland in. wagons from Loudoun county, Va., about 1830 and located in Marshall township, where they continued to reside until their respective deaths. George W. Miller was born in Marshall township, Highland county, Ohio, October 15, 1850, was reared on the farm with a common school education, and on reaching manhood continued in the -occupation of farming, in which he has demonstrated an intelligent and progressive spirit. He has been active in public affairs for many years, as a Republican, and in 1885 he was elected a member of the board of county commissioners, an office he held for seven years. In this capacity he faithfully served the people and the best interests of the county. He has also filled various minor offices in Marshall township. In early manhood he was married to Cora E., daughter of A. W. Spargur, and they had six children: Leslie, Vernon, Ida (wife of Burch Watts), Burch, Stanley and Nina. His second marriage was to Cindora, daughter of William and Margaret (Roads) Elliott, and they have one child, Clarence, born in April, 1890. Joseph Miller, the present recorder of Highland county, was for many years a popular business man of Hillsboro. His father, Joseph Miller, was born in Alsace, Germany, about 1826, learned the BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES - 405 trade of an iron-moulder, emigrated to Cincinnati in 1840 and some ten years later was married to Catharine, daughter of Jacob Neib. The latter was born in Germany in 1800, and about forty years later came with his family to Ohio and located in Monroe county. Joseph Miller died in 1874 and Jacob Neib passed away in 1884. Joseph and Catharine (Neib) Miller had seven children, four of whom died in infancy, the others being the subject of this sketch ; Elizabeth, wife of Frank Noble, a resident of California, and Andrew, who died July 2, 1900, at the age of thirty-six. Joseph Miller, oldest of the living children, was born at Cincinnati, Ohio, June 15, 1860, and was educated in the fine schools of his native city. Several years before reaching his majority he started out to make his living in the world and selected as a favorable point the enterprising capital of Highland county. Mr. Miller arrived in Hillsboro in 1878, secured employment in a barber shop and has followed that business continuously over twenty years. Meantime he became widely acquainted with people all over the county, and by gentlemanly manners and accommodating spirit secured the friendship of all those with whom he came in contact. He took a hand in politics, also, and as a worker for his party acquired influence and local leadership. This culminated in 1900 in his securing the nomination of his party as candidate for recorder of Highland county, to which position he was chosen for a three years, term at the ensuing election. December 4, 1897, Mr. Miller was married to Melissa, daughter of Nelson and Albertine (Washburne) Barrere, who comes from a noted pioneer family of the county, of whom mention is made in other parts of this volume. Nelson is the son of Morgan and Melinda (Colvin) Barrere and his wife was a daughter of Dr. Joseph Washburne, who settled in New Market about the middle of the last century. Thomas H. Miller, of Concord township, one of the most prominent farmers of the county, is in the fourth generation of one of the notable early families of Highland county. The founder of his family in the United States was Philip Miller, a native of Bavaria, Germany, who came to Maryland just before the war of the Revolution, through which he served as a patriot, battling for the rights of his adopted country. At the close of the struggle he was rewarded with a patent for one hundred and sixty acres of land, which he located in Pennsylvania near Hagerstown, Maryland, the site in later years of one of the first oil wells opened in Pennsylvania.. With his wife and seven daughters and three sons he came to Ohio in 1814 and settled in Liberty township, where he was engaged in farming to a very advanced age, dying in 1825. His son, John, born near Hagerstown, Md., married Nellie Chaney in Pennsylvania in 1802, and accompanied his aged parents to Ohio, taking the leading part in the work of subduing the wilderness and making a new home. He 406 - THE COUNTY OF HIGHLAND. lived in Liberty township to the age of eighty-five years, was quite successful in the building up of his property and prominent in social and business and religious life. He reared a family of twelve children, all now deceased : Adam, James, Jacob, John C., Wilson, Christine, Mary, Jane, Ellen, Amy, Betsey and Catharine. John C., the father of the subject of this sketch, was born near Rocky Fork, in Liberty township, April 9, 1818, and in early manhood married Elizabeth, daughter of George Frederick and Mary Brous, natives of Virginia, who came to Highland county about 1814. They began their married life in the loft of a milk house on the old Miller farm, and several years later came to Concord township and bought a farm of one hundred acres. In his youth and early manhood John C. Miller was engaged in the commerce of his day, hauling goods from Cincinnati to Chillicothe, Ripley and Hillsboro. After his marriage he prospered as a farmer, came to own 560 acres of land, and for many years was honored with the office of township trustee. He died at the age of sixty-three years. Thomas H. Miller was the old, est of their three children, the others being Amy D. and Mary E. Thomas H. was born November 5, 1848, while his parents lived on the old homestead on Rocky fork, and was educated in the district schools. On reaching manhood he married Minerva, daughter of Harvey and Eva (Surber) Badgley, and .they began housekeeping on the place they now occupy. But since then they have made great improvements. The land owned by Mr. Miller now amounts to 1,150 acres, his residence is up to date and very commodious, and his farm buildings are the equal of any in the county in their adaptation to his industry and the modern style of agriculture. His land is nearly all under profitable cultivation, and he ranks among the substantial men of the county. Of his three children, Alberta is the wife of Henry Sauner, of White Oak township ; Stella is the wife of Harry Sauner of the same township, and Otis, who has married Ora Seip, lives on the homestead. Mrs. Miller is the granddaughter of Captain Andrew Badgley, a revolutionary soldier, who was famous in. the pioneer history of White Oak township. Charles M. Mills, of Mowrystown, a member of the Royal Milling company, established at that town in 1901, is deserving of mention as one of the worthy business men of the county. He is a grandson of Abner C. Mills, born in Kentucky in 1807, who married a Miss Hall in that state, and moved with his young wife to a farm in Clinton county, Ohio, about 1830. This pioneer ancestor was an industrious and enterprising man, who ran a saw mill for several years in addition to farming; was much interested in church work, and was generally known as "Squire" Mills. He owned as much as 450 acres of land. Of his nine children, the two eldest, Richard and Burrell, and Priscilla, the youngest daughter, are dead. Eliza BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES - 407 lives in Missouri, Angeline in' Kansas, Daniel H. in Brown county, Ohio, Warden at Sabina, Ohio, Jane and Frank at Wilmington, Ohio. Daniel H., the father of the subject of this sketch, was born at Sabina, April 18, 1835, and in early manhood married Jemima Roberts, a native of Clinton county and daughter of Elias Roberts. From 1859, when they began housekeeping, they lived on a farm near Sabina, until 1900, when they removed to Russellville. Four children. were born to them : Emma, deceased ; Charles M. ; Edwin, of Russellville; and Frank, deceased. Charles M. was born October 1, 1866, received his education in the Sabina schools, and after teaching school' for a while in his youth, found employment in the flouring mill of W. K. Greeley at Sabina, where he thoroughly learned the trade, and prepared himself for his life work. He was married to Hattie Greeley, and they had one child, Walter, who is dead, and after the death of his first wife in 1895, he wedded Lucy, Greeley, her cousin, who died in 1897. In the same year he moved to Greenfield, and entered the employment of Boden, Patterson & Co., and in 1898 he came to Mowrystown and obtained the position of miller for the White Oak Milling company. Here he was married to Frostie Hallam, a native of Greenfield, daughter of Thomas and Jane (Walker) Hallam, both natives of Ohio, the former of whom died about 1889 and the latter resides in Greenfield, Ohio. He resided a year at Sabina, where he was in the employment of G. H. Lloyd until he returned to Mowrystown and took part in the organization of the milling company already mentioned. In the spring of 1902 he was elected to the office of township clerk, an honor that testifies to the high regard in which he is held by his Highland county friends. He is a member of the United Brethren church and the Odd Fellows, and is a Republican in politics. Wesley Milner, of Mowrystown, prominent in the industrial affairs of the county, is a descendant of one of the pioneer Quaker families of Highland county. His grandfather, Beverly Milner, a native of Halifax county, Virginia, was married in that state to Anna Hendricks, and coming to the Ohio wilderness with his wife, and children, some of them grown and married, in 1807, contributed to the growth of the settlement of the Friends on Hardin's Creek, in Fairfield township, at what was known as Quaker bottoms. He was an industrious and successful farmer and became the owner of a considerable tract of land, which descended to his children. There were ten of these : Dudley, Beverly, Moses, Amos, Joseph, John, Luke, Oliver, Ruth (Burgess), and Sallie (Anderson). John, who married Susan Kinzer, was a well-known miller for many years. Moses was married in Virginia, and left several sons who were prominent citizens. Joseph Milner, who was born in Virginia, married Elizabeth Reams, a native of North Carolina, who came to High- 408 - THE COUNTY OF HIGHLAND. land county with her parents early in the settlement, and they began married life on a farm of 107 acres in Fairfield township, to which 130 acres were subsequently added. Eleven children were born to them : Madison and Cary, deceased ; John, living in Iowa ; Wes ley, the subject of this sketch ; Peter, of Fairfield township ; Paul,. of Dodson township; Mary Ann, of Fairfield ; Sarah and Mahala, deceased, and Emily, who lives in Iowa. Wesley Milner was born in Fairfield township December 25, 1837, and lived at home in his years of early manhood, giving his attention to mechanical pursuits, operating a threshing machine and an engine in a saw mill, until the outbreak of the war of the rebellion. In 1861 he enlisted in Company H of the Twenty-seventh regiment Ohio voluntinfantry,try, and was mustered in at Camp Chase, August 13th. His first service was in Missouri, where he had some adventurous experiences. They were sent first to St. Louis, and drilled, and then to Lexington, Mo., and Kansas City. Being taken sick, he was in hospital about three months, and when he attempted to rejoin his, regiment he was captured by the enemy, but permitted to go on parole. Eventually reaching St. Louis, and rejoining his regiment at Sedalia, he was mustered out and sent home. In January, 1862, he joined the band of the Sixty-first regiment, and after spending the winter with them at Lancaster, was mustered out at Columbus. After reaching home he was ordered out under his first enlistment, but the' mistake was soon rectified, and he returned home. In 1863 he again went to the front as a member of Ewing's brigade band, and in that capacity was at the siege of Vicksburg, Miss. This was the close of his service, and being again mustered out, he came home and' remained. In 1871 he was married to Columbia Hunter, and they began their married life at Jasper, Fayette county, Ohio. Mr. Milner continued to be busied in machine and milling work, and after three years at Jasper returned to the old home place, and a few years later went to Lexington and built and operated a grist mill there. He was in the same business at New Vienna a year, and twenty years at Winkle, Hamer township, where he managed a grist mill, saw and planing mill. He is now doing a successful business ystown,,own as a member of the firm of Milner & Sauner, in the manufacture of tile and brick. He is the owner of a handsome home and considerable town property, and is a valuable citizen. He is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic post at Mowrystown, affiliated with the Society of Friends, and in politics is a Republican. Rezin Moberly, a native of Pennsylvania, was one of the pioneers of Liberty township, and progenitor, ofamilymily which has had an honorable part in the development of Highland county. While yet a resident of the Keystone state, he married a Miss Fenner, and with his wife and children, early in the last century, he came to Ohio, and BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES - 409 settled in the forests of Liberty township, assisting in laying out the town of Hillsboro, as the county seat, in 1806 or 1807, and serving as one of the first township trustees. He followed the occupation of farming, and was a man of enterprise in his field. It is worthy of note that the first threshing machine, brought into Highland county was set up on his farm. After many years of peaceful and happy life, this worthy pioneer and his wife passed away, and were laid to rest where they began their labors as clearers of the forest. Their children, John, Stephen, James, William and Amos, and Delilah, are also all deceased. John Moberly, the eldest, was a boy of some years when the family came to Ohio, and he aided in building the first house raised at Hillsboro. For many years he was actively identified with the promotion of the interests of the city with which he was thus early associated. Marrying Elizabeth Fenner, a native of Pennsylvania, in early manhood, he made his home on a farm on the Wilmington road near Hillsboro, where he lived until the death of his wife, passing the remainder of his days with his son, Rezin W. Of his ten children, Frederick, William, John, Rezin W., Caleb, Sarah, Rachel, Maria, Delilah and Mary A., all are dead but Rezin W. and Mary A., the last named being the widow of George Brown, of Mount Oreb. Rezin W. Moberly was born at the Liberty township home December 27, 1821, was educated in the district schools, and after spending some of the early years of manhood at home, in 1847 bought a place of 105 acres in Clay township, for about $2.60. an acre, of William Scott. He was busied in clearing and working this farm, living in a small log house, for two years, and then he bought the farm of 130 acres where he now lives. Following this purchase he married Elizabeth J. Roberts, daughter of Abraham and Elizabeth Roberts, an estimable lady who was also a native of Highland county, who died in 1898 and is buried in Buford. Eight children have been born to them: John A., a resident of Brown county ; George, at the old home; William, of Clay township; Clinton and Mary J., deceased ; Rachel, wife of George Mink ; Ellen B., wife of Lee Barley, of Clay township, and Lulu, wife of George Weaver, of Buford. Rezin W. Moberly has long been considered one of the leading citizens of Clay township, enterprising, intelligent and trustworthy. He has held many of the official positions of the township, some of them a. great many years ; for a considerable number of years he actively conducted a general store near his home, and he has been active in the work of the grange, holding the office of treasurer for a long time. He has been an extensive land owner, and at one time had seven hundred.acres, part of which he has divided among his children. In farming and stock raising he has been successful, giving considerable attention to Shorthorn cattle and Poland China hogs. 410 - THE COUNTY OF HIGHLAND. Christopher C. Moberly, of Clay township, a well-known farmer and veteran of the civil war, is a great-grandson of Rezin Moberly, a worthy pioneer of Highland county whose life is described in the foregoing sketch. His father was Frederick, eldest son of John Moberly (of whom mention has also been made), and he was the eldest son of Rezin Moberly. Frederick Moberly was born in Liberty township in 1812, was educated in the subscription schools of his day, and in 1834 was married to Lydia Husey, also a native of Liberty township, and daughter of Christopher Husey. Following this event he built a hewed log house on 120 acres of forest land in Clay township, and there he and his wife began their toilsome work of redeeming the land from the wildness of nature, and rearing for lives of usefulness the eight children that were given them in the course of their early married life. The father lived to the age of sixty-three years, the mother to fifty-seven. Three of their children, Mary, Jane and Emma, the youngest, are dead, but besides the subject of this sketch, John F. resides in the state of Washington; James in Clay township Charles A. in Buford, and Cyrus F. on the old homestead. Christopher C. Moberly was born on the homestead, November 17, 1836, and received his education in the common schools. When the war with the South broke out he promptly offered his services in behalf of his country, and was mustered in at Hillsboro, in October, 1861, as a private soldier in Company B of the Sixtieth regiment Ohio infantry. After sometime in camp at Camp Mitchell and on guard duty at Gallipolis, Mr. Moberly and his comrades moved into West Virginia, and engaged in the campaign in the Kanawha and Shenandoah valleys, participating in the active campaign of the spring of 1862 against the famous Stonewall Jackson. Among the engagements in which he took part were those at Cotton Town, Mt. Jackson and Cross Keys. Later in the year, during the Maryland campaign, he and his regiment were stationedHarper,ser's Ferry, and were there surrendered to General Jackson, September 15th. Being at once paroled they went to Annapolis, Md., and from there sent to Chicago, where they were finally mustered out. This closed his experience in war, and he returned to his home and resumed farming. On January 12, 1864, he was married to Louisa. J. Wood, a native of Danville, Highland county, and they began housekeeping in Brown county. Two years later they bought the fifty acres in Clay township where Mr. Moberly now lives, to which he has since added enough to make 105 acres. In 1892 they moved to Hillsboro, and two years later to Buford, where Mrs. Moberly died November 3, 1893. Since then he has occupied his farm home, continuing to give his attention to general agriculture and the raising of Shorthorn cattle and other fancy stock. He has been honored with several township offices, is a member of the Buford camp of the Grand Army of the Republic, and of the Meth- BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES - 411 odist church, and in politics is a Republican. Three children are living : Oliver N., of Cincinnati Herbert L., at home, and Clyde, residing at New Orleans, La. John D. Moberly, a well known farmer and stock man of Clay township, is a great-grandson of Rezin Moberly, a native of Virginia who was conspicuous among the pioneer settlers of Highland county. The facts of the career of this ancestor and of his son, John Moberly, through whom J. D. Moberly is descended, is given in a sketch foregoing. They were pioneers worthy of remembrance, and their descendants are among the best people of this region. The second son of John Moberly, as has been noted, was William, born October 24, 1815, at the farm home in Liberty township. William Moberly removed to Clay township in early manhood, and married Nancy Tygart, also a native of Highland county, of an old family. Making his home in a log cabin on 121 acres of wild land that he bought, he began the work of clearing away the forest, as a forerunner of the present magnificent agricultural development of the county. His first wife died after giving birth to one child, Louisa J., who is now the wife of H. G. Fite, of Brown county, and subsequently Mr. Moberly was married to Harriet Foreman, daughter of John and Nellie Foreman. She was also a native of the county. William Moberly continued his work as a farmer, living upon the same place, but enlarged his holdings until he was the owner of over four hundred acres, and as time passed replaced his early home with modern buildings. He was a very prosperous man, was active in politics as a Democrat, contributed generously to religious enterprises, and was known all over the county as a main deserving of esteem and confidence. He passed away at eighty-one years of age, but his widow is yet living at Mount Orab. They had four children, J. D., W. H., Sarah E., wife of N. Irons, of Brown county, and Luella, wife of T. J. Sprinkle, of Brown county. J.. D. Moberly was born on the farm adjoining his present home in Clay. township, January 9, 1845, was reared at home and educated in the district school until eighteen years of age, and then, it being the period of the civil war, he went to Cincinnati and obtained employment in the government service as a teamster. He was regularly enlisted, and after two months at Cincinnati, went to the front with the company of Captain Douglas, and took part in the battle of Lavergne, Tenn. Then, his time of enlistment having expired, he was honorably discharged and came home, but soon afterward re-enlisted in Company G of the Hundred and Ninety-second Ohio volunteer infantry, which was mustered in at Columbus. With this regiment he went to Virginia, and was on duty during the closing months of the war, finally being mustered out with his comrades at Winchester, Va., September 1, 1865. He returned at once to his farm home upon the conclusion of this honor- 412 - THE COUNTY OF HIGHLAND.   able service for the country, and resumed his former occupation, and presently was happily married to Rachel E. Brown, a native of Clinton county, Ohio. Ever since they have made their home at the present residence, prospering in their undertakings and adding improvements and comforts as the years rolled by. Their home has been blessed with three children, two of whom—Elva and Frank—have died. Anna, the third, is the wife of T. S. Evans, of Dayton, Ohio. They have also reared their granddaughter, Goldie M. Puckett. Mr. Moberly has given much attention to the breeding of Oxforddown sheep, and Duroc and Jersey swine, in addition to farming, and has been an extensive dealer in live stock He is a member of the camp of the Grand Army of the Republic at Buford, and of the Christian church, and is a Republican in politics. William S. Moore, proprietor of the Hotel Kramer, at Hillsboro, is one of the popular landlords of Highland county and during an experience of some years has shown that he is master of the problem of public entertainment. He is a native of the good old county of Pike, and a son of Sailesbury and Mary S. (Eager) Moore, well known citizens of that part of Ohio. In 1894, Mr. Moore engaged in the business of drilling water-wells and followed that occupation about six years. Having an inclination for catering to the "inner wants" of man, he determined to turn this talent to good account by entering into the hotel business regularly. With this end in view he secured control of the Central House at Leesburg and in 1900 took charge as proprietor of that hostelry. About two years later, desiring a larger field, Mr. Moore came to Hillsboro and in February, 1902, opened the Hotel Kramer. Under his good management this house came to the front at once as a place where good entertainment could be obtained at reasonable rates, and has steadily gained in its hold on the traveling public. Owing to its favorable location on West Main street, near the business center of Hillsboro, the Hotel Kramer seems destined to become one of most popular of the city's resorts. The Morrow Family :—John Morrow was an old revolutionary soldier, who took part in the battle of Trenton, a few years later sought a home in the wilderness of Kentucky and afterward moved to the White Water valley of Indiana, where he died in 1826. His son Alexander, who was born May 2, 1783, subsequently made his way to Ohio and in 1812 found a location near Greenfield in the county of Highland. The war fever was strong at that time in central" Ohio and soon after his arrival Alexander Morrow went to the front to do his part toward fighting the British. In December, 1815, after his return from armyrfny, he was married to Polly Coffey, a typical pioneer woman and daughter of one of the notable characters BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES - 413 of that day. Her father, John Coffey, who came from Pennsylvania in 1800, was the keeper of the first tavern opened at Greenfield, then a very small settlemnt of crude log cabins. This primitive but genuine "Coffey House" was built of hewed logs, was two stories in height, and twenty-two by thirty feet on the ground. Though not as showy as the modern French "coffee-house" of our large capitals, the tavern at Greenfield was a veritable oasis in the desert at the time of its inception and furnished appetizing means for many a hungry traveler before advancing civilization brought better accommodations. Besides filling the important role of "mine host," John Coffey was also the first justice of the peace elected in Madison township, and between feeding the public and enforcing the law was a man of weight in the infant community. Polly Coffey, his daughter, was born February 1, 1796, lived over sixty-one years after her wedding, and passed away from the scenes of earth April 3, 1877. By her marriage with Alexander Morrow there were five children who reached maturity: Ruth E., wife of Hugh Beatty; Margaret, wife of Robert McCalpin ; John and James P., the latter still residing in Greenfield, and William Alexander. The latter was born May 13, 1826, and after residing four years in Chillicothe, came to Hillsboro in 1860, embarked in the business of photography and followed that occupation for many years. January 8, 1852, he was married to Harriet L., daughter of Abner Taylor, member of one of the well known pioneer families. William Alexander and Harriet (Taylor) Morrow became the parents of the following named children : Otway C., of Hillsboro ; John Franklin, who died in Texas at the age of thirty; Minnie R., wife of D. T. Larrimore, a druggist of New York city ; William A., queensware merchant of Hillsboro; Jennie T., wife of William S. Conrad, with the McKeehan & Hiestand company; Lizzie B., a dressmaker in Covington, Ky. ; George D., doing contract work for a New York firm; Bertie, died in infancy; Lucie, a milliner in Cincinnati ; and Sadie, wife of Fred McClure, billing clerk for C. S. Bell & Co. Otway C. Morrow, eldest born of the above, after finishing his education in the city schools, was engaged for several years as a clerk in the mercantile business at Hillsboro. In 1880 he became manager for a queensware house in Cincinnati, but returned to Hillsboro in 1887 to accept a partnership with the McKeehan & Hiestand company, of which he is at present secretary and treasurer. June 19, 1884, he was united in wedlock with Anna J. Leyden, a lady of the best social connections in Cincinnati. Her parents were members of prominent families in Ireland and emigrated to America in the early part of the nineteenth century. Mr. and Mrs. Morrow,s only child, Curry Leyden, was born November 21, 1897. 414 - THE COUNTY OF HIGHLAND. Thomas Mullenix, notable among the settlers soon after the war of 1812 in the vicinity of Hillsboro; was born in Jefferson county, Va., in 1791, one of six children of William Mullenix, a native of England, who married there and came to America with his wife soon after. the war of the Revolution. The six children were Nathan, Thomas, Harry, Jack, and two daughters.. The mother died in. Virginia, and the father in later years joined his son Thomas in Highland county and died here. Thomas was married in Virginia to Ellen Pulse, a native of the same state, and they began their married. life in Virginia, but in came west and established a pioneer home on one hundred acres of wild land that he bought in Liberty township, about two miles from Hillsboro, There, 'Thomas Mullenix reared a family of eleven children, and lived to the age of seventyflve years, his wife surviving to past ninety. Their children were David, deceased ; Mary, widow of D. Dunn,. of Taylorsville; Lewis,. deceased ; William H., of Washington township ; Thomas, of Belfast, Ohio ; John, of Iowa; Rebecca, wife of Hugh Shepard, of Hillsboro.; Henry, of Liberty township; Martha, widow of George Spicard, of Illinois ; Sarah E. and. Jacob, deceased. William. H.,. for many years a worthy citizen of Highland county, was born in Liberty township, April 24, 1818, and in early manhood married Ellen Higgins, daughter of Charles and Elizabeth Higgins. They made their home on the original Mullenix farm for twenty years, then spent a year in Iowa, and after that in Liberty township until 1846, when the wife died, after which he made his home in Washington township.. For sixty-four years he. has. been a member of the Methodist church. The children born to these parents were Margaret and Samantha,. deceased; H. E.; of Washington township ; Clara, living in Kansas; Paulina, deceased ; Jacob, of Clinton. county ; and Mary E. and. Thomas, deceased. H. E. Mullenix. was born in Liberty township, November 13, 1847, received his education in the district school and married Sina Carlisle, a native of Washington township, daughter of John and Mima Carlisle. They began their married life in Clinton county, Ohio, afterward lived for twelve years in Missouri, and then returned to Washington township, where he bought a farm and. now owns 122 acres. He. is a man of influence in the community, has served as a member of the school board, and is the present trustee of the township; is a Republican in. politics, and a member of the Methodist church. His children living are, Harley, Harry, Alpha, and Jesse One; Marie, is deceased. Wilson H. Mullenix, an enterprising and popular citizen .of Washington township, was born January 1, 1861, son of Thomas A. Mullenix. W. H. Mullenix was reared at home and educated in the district school and Hillsboro, high school, and when eighteen years of ago he engaged in teaching in the public schools. Later he was mar- BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES - 415 ried. to Sarah E. Woods, a native of Washington township, and daughter of John and Mary E. Woods, and they began. housekeeping in Washington township, on the farm now owned by Dennis Collins. Five years later they removed to Folsom, where Mr. Mullenix embarked in business as a general merchant. He still conducts this store, which is one of the most popular in the region, is postmaster, and continues to teach school, an occupation which he has followed with much success for seventeen years. He is also the owner of a farm of thirty acres, and devotes considerable attention to the raising of live stock of all kinds. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and of the Knights, of Pythias lodge at Belfast.. His family includes three children: Sigel W., Everett P., and James H. Charles C. Muhlbach, the popular market gardener of New Market and one of the most energetic and enterprising of its citizens, though a native of another. state, has long been identified with the interests of Highland county. His father, Christian Muhlbach, a native of Wertemberg,. Germany, came to America in company with four brothers, and shortly after his arrival married Caroline Hautica, a lady of French descent then living in Brown county, Ohio, and went with his bride to Iowa. He was a harness-maker and followed that trade until the civil war broke out, when he enlisted as a soldier in. the Union army. After the war he died at the Soldiers, Home in Dayton, Ohio. His only son, Charles C. Muhlbach, was born in Louisa county, Iowa, June 8,,1858, and by the death of his mother in 1859 was left an orphan when only eight months old. He was adopted by a family named Shearing, living near Cincinnati, and while with them lost all the toes on both feet as the result of freezing. Subsequently he was taken care of by a family of Shakers at Whitewater, where he remained six or eight years and later worked some time for A. B. Hay at Mount Airy. March 11, 1880, Mr. Muhlbach came to Highland county and bought fifteen acres of land near New Market, where he has since resided. He is a gardener and grower of small fruits, his .business in that line being the most extensive in the.county ; has prospered and become one of the most useful and enterprising citizens of his locality. His activities extend to connection with the political, business, social and religious life of the community, being always at the front in movements to advance growth and development. He early saw the benefits to be derived from rural .mail delivery and was a prime mover in getting the. first route established in Highland county. He has held the following positions: township trustee, chairman of the executive committee of the Highland county Sunday school association, local director of schools, secretary Farmers, institute for two terms, charter member of Hillsboro Mutual fire insurance company, and director and member of the executive board of the same, and jury 416 - THE COUNTY OF HIGHLAND. commissioner of the county. On the religious side, Mr. Muhlbach, is a deacon in the Presbyterian church, has been Sunday school teacher for twenty-one years and two years president of the local Christian Endeavor society, and is now president of the county Christian Endeavor Union. He is. a member of all branches of the, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and has served five years as district deputy grandmaster ; holds membership in the Sons of Veterans, Ancient Order United Workmen at Hillsboro, and Golden Ridge grange at New Market. His first wife was Sarah E. Murry, by whom he had two children : Carrie, wife of E'. Austin, and Mat-tie, at school in Westerville, Ohio. Their mother died in 1886, and Mr. Muhlbach was married later to Rebecca, daughter of James and Catherine Diven, of Highland county. The four children of this union are Bessie, Elsie, George and Lucile. The Murphy family, so long and favorably known in Highland county by the prominent connection of its members with public and business affairs, is of Irish origin and honorable, lineage. Hugh Murphy was born in County Down, Ireland, March 5, 1756, and when about twenty-six years old, at the port of Newry went on board a vessel called "The Three Brothers," bound for America. After the usual long and tedious voyage of sailing ships in those days, ho landed at Philadelphia in January, 1783, and a few days later had the privilege of witnessing a great historic event—General Washington reviewing his troops fresh from the achievement of American independence. The young Irishman made his way to Virginia, where in 1790 he married Mary Beatty. Ten years later he removed to Fayette county, Penn. From that region he migrated in the late fall of 1816 to Ohio, where he went into business, reared his children and passed away June 5, 1842. Hugh Murphy had a son named John, who was born in Loudoun county, Va., November 17, 1793, and was consequently about twenty-three years old when his parents-came to the western country. About 1820, John Murphy settled a short distance east of Russell Station in Highland county, on the farm subsequently owned by the Rev. Mr. Armstead. He married Nancy, daughter of John White, who was born in 1806 at the residence of her parents near New Petersburg, and lived until the completion of her eighty-seventh year, long surviving her husband, who passed away January 10, 1845. The list of their children, taken from the family records, is here given : Susannah, born December 14, 1828, married George W. Pitzer in May, 1847, and died in 1862 ; Hugh, born March 7, 1830, died April 15, 1901; Andrew Beatty, born October 14, 1831, died April 2, 1.900 ; Daniel, born January 1, 1833 ; Martha J., born June 22, 1834, was married in 1856 to George C. Pitzer, dean of the St. Louis Medical college, and died in 1891; Francis Marion, born February 24, 1836; Samuel BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES - 417 Lewis, born March 22, 1840, died in infancy ; Mary J., born October 5, 1841, was married June 11, 1868, to John G. Bayless, present postmaster of Lynchburg; John W., born July 7, 1844, is a practicing physician at Cuba, Clinton county, Ohio. Daniel Murphy is one of the most prominent and popular of the citizens of Lynchburg. He began surveying in early manhood and has followed that useful calling for more than forty years. He was elected auditor of Highland county in 1868 and filled that office two terms of two years each, ending in 1873. He has enjoyed practically all the honors that his town had to confer, being elected to the offices of clerk, councilman and mayor, and also clerk of the township. All his elections too, were obtained in a town and township where the natural political majority was averse to the party to which Mr. Murphy belonged. He served as a soldier during the civil war with the Eighty-eighth Ohio regiment, and later was given a commission as lieutenant in the Twenty-seventh U. S. C. T. regiment. He has long been conspicuous in Masonic circles, having passed through the various degrees of that ancient and popular order up to that of Knight Templar. December 29, 1859, he was married to Mary Isabelle, daughter of Daniel and granddaughter of John Cashatt, an early settler of Union township from North Carolina. Hugh, second child of John and Nancy (White) Murphy, was married December 23, 1858, to Mary Glenn Gibson. Her father was John, son of Joshua and Lydia Gibson, and born in 1777, near Connellsville, Pennsylvania,. whence he migrated to Cincinnati in 1809, and died there in 1849. John Gibson,s first wife was Elizabeth Sayre, who bore him six sons and two daughters, and after her death he married Catherine Sutton, of Pennsylvania, the eldest of whose two daughters is the widow of Hugh Murphy. The children of Hugh and Mary (Gibson) Murphy are Horace G., born January 4, 1861; Harry, born February 28, 1868 ; Daniel Elias, born November 29, 1869 ; Raymond Pierce, born January 13, 1871; and Jessie May, born April 13, 1873, and now the wife of Albert Feike, who is a partner in the mill with the Murphy Brothers. Horace G. Murphy, eldest of the above enumerated children, was married February 15, 1890, to Maggie M. Dumenil, who died August 25, 1891, and on March 10, 1895, he married Mary M. Roser. Raymond Pierce Murphy was married to Nellie Britton December 24, 1896. Hugh Murphy, during his life, was a very enterprising and industrious citizen and his activities found vent in various kinds of occupations. He taught school several years, assisted his brother, Daniel, in the auditor's office during the latter,s two terms, and in 1892 purchased the mill now conducted by his three sons. He was the leading spirit in organizing the Farmers' Exchange bank, and at the time of his death was president of that institution, as well as deputy collector of internal revenue. H-27 418 - THE COUNTY OF HIGHLAND. In short, he was one of the progressive men of Lynchburg and left to his family the heritage of an honored name. James M. Murray, of Greenfield, is carrying on a business which was established by his father more than fifty years ago. James M. Murray, Sr., though a native of Ross county, left there in early manhood and spent the remainder of his life in Highland county. He became one of the leading citizens of Greenfield, where he was a member of the city council for many years and actively identified with the industrial life of the city. He opened an undertaking establishment of which he had charge for fifty-two years, and which is at present the oldest supply house of the kind in the three counties of Ross, Highland and Fayette. He died at his home in Greenfield in ,March, 1901. His wife, Economy Himiler, was a native of Ross county, her family being residents of the Bainbridge neighborhood. The two living children of this union consist of a son and a daughter, the latter being the wife of A. S. Boden, proprietor of the Boden mills. James M. Murray, the only son, was born and reared in Greenfield, and trained from early childhood to work in his father's establishment. When only eleven years old he was taken into the shop and as he grew older was inducted into all the. details of the business, with a view to' qualifying him for its management.. After his father,s death he succeeded to the business and has since carried it on along the lines followed by the former during his more than a half century,s control. Being the oldest supply house of the kind in that part of the State, Mr. Murray,s business is not confined to Greenfield but extends into the three adjoining counties. In 1893 he was married to Gussie, daughter of W. W. Ballard, of Highland, county. His fraternal connections are with the Odd Fellows, Knights of Pythias and the Masonic order. Thomas H. Nelson, one of the progressive and up-to-date farmers of Liberty township, has an ancestry in which he may well take pride. His grandfather, John Matthews Nelson, possessed two enduring claims to fame and the gratitude of posterity. One of these was his membership of that immortal band known as the first Abolitionists; the other, less sentimental but of great material value, was his agency as an introducer into Ohio of the incomparable Shorthorn cattle. Born in Virginia about 1790 of slaveholding parents, he conceived a deadly aversion to the "peculiar institution" at a very early age and to escape its blighting influence determined to migrate to Ohio, which had a constitution that made all men free. He reached Ohio in early manhood and in after years became a leader among that isolated but heroic band who* fought the slave power uncompromisingly at a time when such conduct insured political persecution, as well as social ostracism and even danger to life BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES - 419 itself. Even yet there stands on the old Nelson homestead near Hillsboro the house which in the dark days before the war was one of the stations on the famous "underground railroad," of which John Matthews Nelson was a conductor. But his activities were not Con- fined to politics. During the earlier years of his residence in Ohio there were no thoroughbred cattle to brouse on her leafy knolls or to pluck the .luxuriant grass from her fertile valleys. Only the native cattle, now called "scrubs," were to be seen in the incomparable bottoms of the Miamis, the Scioto and other great streams where now the Jerseys, the Polled Angus, the Herefords, Shorthorns and other choice breeds are found in countless numbers on the proverbial "thousand hills.." John Matthews Nelson was one of the organizers of the first Company in Highland county, if not ,in the entire State of Ohio, for the importation of Shorthorn. cattle from England. In those primitive days this involved immense. expense and trouble, due to lack of transportation. facilities over the immense stretches of land and water between the two points of shipment and reception. The cattle were landed from vessels at Philadelphia and from there were driven on the hoof to the distant meadows of the West. From these early shipments: some of the finest herds in Ohio descended and samples of this "bovine aristocracy" may yet be . found on the farm. of the original importer,s grandson. In 1813 John Matthews Nelson married Mary Lewis Trimble, daughter of the celebrated Captain James Trimble of revolutionary and Indian-fighting fame. Several of her brothers rose to distinction in. military and political life, among them Governor Allen Trimble, and Senator William A. Trimple, distinguished statesmen of their day. The. children of John M. and Mary (Trimble) Nelson, who lived beyond infancy, were James A., William Allen, Marshall T., Lockhart, and Jane Ann, the latter born. in 1833 and still living at Paris, Illinois. The mother died about 1835 and John M. Nelson next married a Miss Cook, of. Chillicothe, by whom he had two sons : John F., at present a resident of Hillsboro, and Isaac C., of Chicago. After the death of his second wife, John M. married Julia, Watson, the only child by this. union being Mrs. Julia W.' Dickey, who lives at Wichita, Kansas, William Allen Nelson, the second son by the, first marriage, was born. in Highland county, Ohio, April 16, ,1816, and first married Katharine Kibler, by whom' his children were Carey L, Joseph K., Jane E.., George M. and. Katharine. .He was afterward married to Margaret Kelley and their children were William Cyrus, Charles Q., Anna V., Thomas H., Helena L., Walter M., and Eliza A. the two latter dying in infancy. Thomas H. Nelson, the fourth child by his father,s second marriage, was born at the old homestea.d in Highland county, Ohio, March 21, 1859, and has spent his entire life in farming. He owns 360 acres of highly cultivated land on Clear Creek, a portion of which belonged to the original farm settled and so long 420 - THE COUNTY OF HIGHLAND. occupied by his worthy grandfather. The latter's old house, which, as previously stated, was on the line of the old "Underground railroad," over which the indomitable Abolitionists conducted many a poor slave to liberty, is still standing about a mile south, of Nelson,son's residence. Like his ancestor, too, Mr. Nelson is fond of blooded stock and his fine farm is kept well filled with the choicest strains of Shorthorns and other animals, all of the best grades. In 1890 he erected a stock barn which has no superior in the county in size, convenience and general equipment. Mr. Nelson is a member of the Hillsboro Grange and takes much interest in all that relates to the science of agriculture, of which he himself is a most worthy exponent. It is worthy of remark that the descendants of the veteran Abolitionists proved worthy of their origin when the final death struggle occurred between freedom and slavery. Three of the older sons of John Matthews Nelson—Marshall T., John F. and Isaac, and his older grandsons, Carey L. and Joseph K., the latter half-brothers of Thomas H., served in the Union army during the war of the rebellion. Abraham Newkirk, a prominent citizen of Jackson township, is the descendant of a family of Ohio pioneers, members of which have taken a creditable part in the work of building up the present civilization and culture. His grandfather, Abraham Newkirk, a native of Pennsylvania, was married in that state to a Miss Knox, and came to Adams county with his family about 1810. There he bought a large tract of land, in later years was married a second time to Mrs. Storer, and lived to a ripe old age. His children by the first marriage were Henry, Shipman, John, William, Cyrus, Orpha, Keziah, Anna, and Emily. William, father of the subject of this sketch, was born August 1, 1806, in Washington county, Penn. was brought with his parents to Ohio, and in early manhood he married Rebecca Storer, a native of Pennsylvania, who came with her parents to Ohio about 1810. They began housekeeping in Adams county where for a few years he ran a distillery. In 1832 he removed to Jackson township,. Highland county, buying a farm of two hundred acres, and for a few years he was engaged in the manufacture of flax seed oil and the operation of a carding machine, in the days when those industries were not uncommon throughout the country. Afterward he exchanged his property for the farm where his son Abraham now lives. He was a member of the Baptist church and a good and popular citizen. His death occurred at the age of eighty years, and his wife died June 9, 1902, at the remarkable age of ninety-five years, six months and eight days. Their two children were Abraham Newkirk, and Macie S. widow of John Williamson, of Oklahoma. Abraham Newkirk, born November 7, 1827, at the old home on Soldier’s run, near West Union, Adams county, was married to Martha BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES - 421 A. Lovett, a native of Virginia, and they had five children : James W., of Brush Creek township ; John L., of Jackson township ; Rebecca A., deceased ; Sarah E., wife of William L. Smart ; Isadore M., deceased. Their mother died in 1864, and, the second marriage of Abraham Newkirk was to Eliza A. Grimes, a native of Brown county, by whom he had three children : Samuel E., Frank M., and William H. Mr. Newkirk has been successful in his enterprises, acquiring considerable land, of which he owned at one time 430 acres, more or less, and in addition to agriculture he has given much attention to the breeding of Shorthorn cattle and other livestock. He is a member of the Baptist church, and in politics a. Democrat. Throughout the township he is esteemed as. a man of high character, and his many friends have honored him with the offices of justice of the peace two terms; trustee one term, and member of the school board for a number of years. Frank M. Newkirk, son of the foregoing, is one of the promising young men of the township. Since 1887 he has been giving his time to the profession of teaching in addition to farming, being qualified for educational work by study in the institutions of Hillsboro and Lexington, Ky. Upton S. Newman, after a life of travel and adventure, settled down to the peaceful pursuits of agriculture and now resides upon one of, the most highly cultivated and valuable farms of its size in Penn township. H comes of excellent stock, his ancestors being Virginians who took part in the development of Ohio long before the first steamboat was seen on the river. It was in 1804 that Andrew Newman came from Virginia with his newly wedded bride, Sallie Burg, and floated into Cincinnati when that place was merely a hamlet. They took up their residence in that embryonic metropolis and as the years passed by gathered around them a family. of seven children, of whom there is now but one survivor. James H. Newman, who was born July 20, 1811, after a long and industrious life is spending his declining years under the hospitable roof of his son, and until July 16, 1902, these was by his side the woman to whom he was married nearly sixty-five years ago. Her maiden name was Rosanna Ewing, and her parents, William and Katie (Moody) Ewing, were early settlers of Mansfield, Ohio, from the state of Maryland. She was born September 14th, 1814, and with her venerable husband occupied part of their son,s stone house which is supposed to have been built over ninety years ago, until her death which occurred July 16, 1902. The children of James H. and Rosanna Newman were William L., who died at the age of thirty-four ; Dilman, who passed away at thirty-two; Upton S., further sketched below; Barton, a tobacconist at Franklin ; Elmira, wife of Daniel W. Porter, of Perryville; Henry, died when thirty-three years old ; James C., employe of a Paper mill at Franklin ; Rachel Ann, wife of 422 - THE COUNTY OF. HIGHLAND. Nelson Shane, a farmer residing near Perryville ; Dora, wife of George Lucas, of Franklin; Hiram, Either and Katie, who died in childhood. Upton S. Newman, third of the sons, was born June 20, 1845, at Ashland, Ohio, where his father was in the milling and manufacturing business for more than thirty years. Early in 1861 he enlisted in the Sixteenth regiment Ohio volunteer infantry for the thmonths,ths' service. His reenlistment was with the Eighty-seventh regiment. Ohio infantry, from Which he was transferred after sixty days to the Second Ohio heavy artillery, and with that command he remained two years and eight months. He participated in the battles of Winchester and Bull Run, was, taken prisonerHarper's Ferry and later served in, eastern Tennessee, being discharged September 3, 1865. His brothers, William L. and Dilman, were also in the service, and both died shortly after the war as the result of disabilities contracted in the army. Subsequent to the war, Mr. Newbecameaine a great traveler and during his wanderings visited many distant countries, besides various places in the- United States. After residing .three years at Dayton, he crossed the continent and spent twelve years in California, going from there to Chili, South America, to which country he devoted twelve months investigaition. Returning north he put in six months at Custillo, Mexico, a year in Grayson. county, Tex., and six months in each of the cities of St. Louis and Fort Scott, Kansas. Wearying at length of this roving life, Mr. Newman eventually turned his face homeward and arrived in Hillsboro during the- year 1871.. Shortly afterward he was married to Anna Lee, daughter of Michael and Kate (Kiley) McMahan, who came to 'Highlcounty fromfrom Ireland about the middle of the century. William L, the only child of this union, was born December 21, 1883, attended the high schools of Carlisle and Franklin and is at present residing at Mansfield. Though Newman,san's home • place only contains fifty-five acres it is in high state of cultivation, and can boast one of the best orchards in the township; being altogether not only a chome but.but a Valuable piece of farm property. Albert A. Noble, a prominent farmer of Marshall township, i a . son of John A. and Martha (Burnett) Noble, for many years respected citizens of the county. His mother died September 7, 1870, and his father February 28; 1872. Martha Burnett was a member of an honored family, which is mentioned under the title of J. W. Burnett, her brother, on previous. pages of this work. William e,ble, a brother. of Albert A., married Catherine, daughter of Addison and Sarah Gall, and is a farmer in Brush Creek township. Albert A. Noble was. born in 'Brush Creek township February 22, 1870, and in early manhood married Sallie B., youngest child of John L. Hughes his hiS wife Elizabeth (Carlisle) Hughes, who was a daughter of Rynard and Ellen (Simmons) Carlisle, of a family that BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES - 423 is mentioned in the sketch of J. B. Carlisle. The family of her father, which was prominent, is elsewhere mentioned in this work, and the family of her mother has had no less worthy place among the people of the county from an early day. Mrs. Noble,s father, for many years, was a justice of the peace in Marshall township, formerly resided where J. W. Burnett now lives, but later purchased the farm of 240 acres and the handsome brick house formerly owned by Noah Amen, adjoining Marshall, which is now dccupied by Mr. and Mrs. Albert A. Noble. It is one of the finest farms and residences of the county, and the genial couple who occupy it are leaders in social life and warmly esteemed by many' friends. Mr. Noble is a valued member of the Belfast lodge, No. 572, of the order of Odd Fellows, and of the Marshall lodge, Knights of Pythias. Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Noble—Tracy, born May 26, 1894, died January 28, 1897, and Hursey Hughes, born January 19, 1899. Isaac Oates, as he looks over his well improved farm of 355 acres in Paint township, may enjoy the satisfaction of reflecting that it represents the expenditure of much hard labor and is the just reward of industry and good management. He was but a poor boy, only fifteen years old, when with his parents, Peter and Rachel (Lupton) Oates, he arrived in Highland county after a weary journey from Hampshire county, West Virginia. The children, consisting of eight sons and a daughter, every one of whom grew to maturity, were taken to Liberty township where a temporary home was found, from which in after years they branched off in different directions. The father was a blacksmith by trade, and pursued this strenuous calling until his death, which occurred when he was forty-eight years old. His wife survived him ten years, and it is an unusual circumstance for a married couple that their births occurred on the same day of the same year. Isaac Oaths was born in Hampshire county; W. Va., June 7, 1840, and picked up a little schooling before leaving his mountain home, having but scant opportunity to increase his education after he arrived in his adopted state. He decided to marry as soon as he became of age, and October 24, 1861, was united in wedlock to Catherine M., daughter of Henry and Rebecca (Parker) Rhodes, after which important event in his life Mr. Oates immediately went to housekeeping. He spent three years in Liberty township, but seeing a better opening elsewhere, he removed first to Washington and later to Paint township, where he rented and worked land until 1886. In that year he bought and removed to a farm of 123 acres in Buckskin township, Ross county, where he remained until 1891, and then purchased the place in Paint township which has since been his home. This farm consists of 355 acres, all in one body, lying on the Petersburg pike eight miles from Hillsboro, in one of the most desirable localities in the county. It was a good piece of 424 - THE COUNTY OF HIGHLAND.   property when he bought it, but has been greatly improved by Mr. Oates and made to yield fine results in the way of agricultural products and stock. As previously remarked, it has all been earned by his own "hard licks," as he started life as poorJob,sob's famous turkey and had nothing to rely on but himself. He is a Democrat in politics and has served a term as treasurer of fail,, township, but loses no time seeking office and cannot be classed with the "practical politicians." Mr. and Mrs. Oates have had five children, of. whom William, and Annie, who married Anderson McKenney, have passed away. Those living are Laura, wife of Marion Williams ; Gerte, . now Mrs. William Tompkins; and Philip, a resident of Paint township. The family are communicants of the Methodist Episcopal church, of which Mr. Oaths has been a member for some years. James S. Oldaker, a prominent stock-breeder in the vicinity of Lynchburg, bears a name which recalls early days in Highland county, as his family have been connected with its history and development almost from the beginning. Isaac Oldaker and his wife, Lucy Pugh, accompanied by two sons named Henry and Isaac, started from Virginia for Ohio in 1817. In the autumn of that year they reached Milford, on the Little Miami, tarried there a few months and next year made their way to Union township in Highland county, where they settled permanently. In 1819 John W. Oldaker, a third son, followed his father and brothers and bought land near to that previously purchased by themselves. He was born in Winchester, Virginia, in 1780, served in the war of 1812, and married Elizabeth Miner, by whom he had eleven children. One of these, Roxaline, who was born June 19, 1809, resides at present on the old homestead that her father settled upon in 1819 or eighty-three years ago. She is ninety-three years old and expects to end her days at the old home and in the same house where she spent her girlhood days. The other two surviving children are Mary A. Fenner, of Illinois, and Isaac W. Oldaker. The latter was born on the Big Kanawha river, in West Virginia, July 2, 1811, and was consequently about eight years old when his parents settled in Highland county. After he grew up 'he cleared 132 acres of land and from that time until the present day he has been closely identified with the agricultural, religious, fraternal and social interests of Union township. He has held various offices, such as justice of the peace, township trustee and member of the school board, and is the oldest member of the order of Odd Fellows in Highland county, having been initiated at Russell, in 1858, and he now belongs to the Lynchburg lodge. He joined the Methodist Episcopal church in 1834 at Russell, was licensed to exhort in 1840 and for many years has been a local preacher of the Gospel. In short, throughout his, long and blameless life he has been a man of most exemplary character and has exercised a great influence for