AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS - 675 ence. On December 4, 1851, he married Anna Bashore, a daughter of Jacob and Sarah Bashore, and they had six daughters and one son born to them. He is survived by his widow, four daughters and one son, and twenty-eight grandchildren, and ten great-grandchildren, and a large circle of friends who long had lived under the kindly influence of his beneficent life. He was spared pain and suffering and seemed simply to pass away in the fullness of years. In the spring of 1854, he and wife were baptized in the Church of the Brethren and the Christian profession he then made he faithfully lived up to. He will be sadlv missed from his accustomed place in the church. After marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Wise went to housekeeping on a farm of eighty acres, situated just across the road from Wise homestead, in Darke County, living there for four and one-half years and then moved to a farm in Newberry Township, residing there for five and one-half years, on March 8, 1894, settling on the present place. Mr. Wise here carries on a general farming line and devotes four acres to tobacco and a part of his acreage to pasturage for his stock. In addition to cultivating his own land, he operates 131 1/2, acres, which he rents from John Mummert. On June 2, 1897, Mr. Wise met with the misfortune of having his house burn down, but he immediately replaced it by the present large frame residence which has the appearance of comfort and stability. He also has improved his place by the erection of a substantial barn with dimensions of 36x76 feet and a tobacco shed, 24x50 feet in dimension. Mr. Wise is a man with very practical ideas and carries on his work systematically and successfully. Mr. and Mrs. Wise have seven children, namely : Cora, Jesse, Joseph, Charles, Homer, Ella and Israel. Mr. Wise is a member of the Church of the Brethren. He takes no active part in politics, but he and family have always belonged to that class of citizens who uphold the law and through their quiet, exemplary lives, exert a strong influence for good in their community. FRANK L. WHITMAN is a prosperous farmer of Newton Township, Miami County, Ohio, and is the owner of a good farm of eighty acres in Section 22, range 5. He was born in Washington Township, Montgomery County, Ohio, October 31, 1859, and is a son of Edward and Mary (Waltz) Whitman. Edward Whitman, father of the subject of this sketch, was born in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and was a small boy when he accompanied his parents to Washington Township, Montgomery County, Ohio. There he attended the district schools and was reared to maturity, living on the home farm with his father for a period of twenty-eight years. Farming has always been his principal occupation and he still lives in Washington Township at an advanced age. His wife died in 1887 and was buried near Miamisburg, Ohio. Her maiden name was Mary Waltz and she was a daughter of Jacob and Mary J. Waltz. The following children were born to them : G. A., Missouri, Frank L., Florence, Anna (deceased), Idella, George, Jacob, Lulu, Edna, Warren (deceased), Alvin, and Irwin. Religiously, Edward Whitman is a member of the Lutheran Church. He is a Democrat in politics. 676 - HISTORY OF MIAMI COUNTY Frank L. Whitman attended the district schools in his native township, but his schooling was very limited, he sometimes being able to attend but two weeks in a year. He was brought up to hard work and has always been industrious and enterprising. He lived in Washington Township until about a year after his marriage, then moved to Miami County, Ohio, where for a period of four years he engaged in farming and tobacco raising for Samuel Smith. He then began farming his present place of eighty acres in Newton Township, which he purchased in July, 1899. He cleared eight acres of this tract, there being some timber still standing, has laid considerable tile for drainage and has made other important improvements, including the erection of a fine tobacco shed. He has successfully engaged in general farming and tobacco raising, devoting about seven acres to the growing of that product each year. December 20, 1883, Mr. Whitman was united in marriage with Miss Cora L. Smith, a daughter of Samuel and Katherine (Sherritt) Smith, and they became parents of the following children : Della, who married Jesse Shuman; Nora, who died at the age of two years; Homer and Minnie, twins, both now deceased ; Raymond; John ; and Carl. Religiously, they are members of the Lutheran Church. He is a Democrat in politics, but has no political aspirations. JOSEPHUS THOMPSON, owner of one of the most valuable and best improved farms in Newberry Township, consisting of 280 acres of adjoining land, lying just south of Covington, on the Covington and Dayton turnpike road, was born on this place on January 10, 1840, on the site of the modern brick residence which he erected in 1888. His parents were Samuel and Hannah (Rench) Thompson. Samuel Thompson was born in North Carolina and was a son of Sylvester Thompson, who settled near Pleasant Hill, in Miami County, when he came to Ohio, about 1804. Later he entered the land from the Government which his descendants own in Newberry Township and on Greenville Creek. He engaged in the cultivation of his land during his active years and in old age died in a comfortable home which he had built where he had found a dense forest. Samuel Thompson was two years old when his father came to Miami County and his whole mature life was spent in agricultural pursuits. He married Hannah Rench. who was born in Pennsylvania and was brought to Newton Township, Miami County, when a child of two years, by her father, Peter Rench. Samuel Thompson and wife had eleven children, six of whom survive. Josephus Thompson has spent his whole life on the homestead farm and is surrounded with all the comforts that years of residence in one place make possible. For a long period he was the active cultivator of his broad acres, but it is no longer necessary for him to bear heavy burdens, his capable sons having relieved him of responsibility. They carry on general farming along modern lines, making use of the best farming machinery and securing most satisfactory results. Mr. Thompson was married January 31, 1861, to Miss Amanda Rench, a daughter of Otho and Margaret (Elliott) Rench. She was born at Piqua, Ohio, and her mother also was born in Ohio, but her AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS - 677 father came from Pennsylvania prior to his marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Thompson have had nine children, namely : Maggie, who married Isaac Bazill, a farmer of Newberry Township, has two children—Roscoe and Charles ; Clement, who married :Mina Ingle, has four children—Harry, Erla, James and Ruth, and they live on a part of the home farm ; George, who resides with his parents, married Cora Brown, and they have had two childrenJosephus, living, and Nellie, deceased ; Dottie M., who married Levi Warner, of Covington, has two children—Clarence and Reva ; William, who married Daisy Hill, resides on the home farm and they have two children—Judson and Leonard ; Emma, who is the wife of E. A. Brant, of Covington, has three children—Hubert, Glenn and Helen ; and Edwin, Minnie and an infant, all deceased. Mr. Thompson and family are leading members of the Christian Church. He is a good and willing citizen but has never cared for public office and has accepted none but that of school director. CHARLES D. RHOADES, residing on his valuable farm of ninety acres, which is the old Rhoades homestead, situated about six miles northwest of Covington, on the Piqua-Versailles turnpike, in Newberry Township, is one of the representative citizens of this section and a member of one of its finest old families. He was born on this farm, August 24. 1871, and is a son of John and Elizabeth (Sneck) Rhoades. The Rhoades family belonged in Pennsylvania prior to being established in Miami County, Ohio. John Rhoades was born in that State but spent the greater part of his life in Ohio. He died in 1887. His farm contained 180 acres and it was divided between Charles D. and his brother, George C. Rhoades, the former taking the old home place and the latter the ninety acres to the east. John Rhoades was married twice, (first) to Barbara Apple, and the children of this marriage were : Elizabeth, who died in infancy ; Uriah V., deceased ; Noah, who was killed by lightning; John, Matilda and Suvilla, all of whom died from typhoid fever ; Jacob, who was accidentally killed on the home farm, by a threshing machine ; Henry, who died during the Civil War, a victim of the cruel treatment received while he was a prisoner in Libby Prison ; and Mrs. Amanda Hittle, the only survivor, who is a resident of Anderson, Indiana. John Rhoades was married (second) to Elizabeth Schneck, who was born in Pennsylvania and died in Miami County, September 22, 1906. There were five children born to this marriage, as follows : Emma ; W. Frank, who lives in Shelby County, Ohio ; George C., who is a prominent farmer and citizen of Newberry Township ; Allen Jefferson, who died when aged eight years ; and Charles D., the youngest of his father's fourteen children. Charles D. Rhoades was reared on the home farm and attended the country schools. His business through life has been farming and this he has carried on in a systematic manner that has produced very practical results. He has made many improvements on his place. The barn, which was built by his father, in 1865, is yet .a very substantial structure, and the brick house, when first built, was one of the most imposing in this section. In 1901, however, Mr. Rhoades renovated it entirely, making changes in its appearance 678 - HISTORY OF MIAMI COUNTY and adding to its comforts and conveniences. On Thanksgiving Day, 1893, Mr. Rhoades was married to Miss Amanda Apple, a daughter of Solomon and a sister of Uriah S. Apple; prominent people in Newberry Township. They have three children : Finnan Zeno, Viola and Irma. Mr. and Mrs. Rhoades are members of the Lutheran Church at Bloomer, in which he is a deacon. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN SMITH is the owner of 237 acres of land in Lost Creek Township, Miami County, Ohio, his home farm consisting of 157 acres located about seven miles northeast of Troy at the intersection of a mud road and the Lost Creek Extension Pike. He was born on his father's farm in Montgomery County, Ohio, April 5, 1853, and is a son of Alexander and Isabella (Waymeyer) Smith. Alexander Smith was born in Rock Bridge County, Virginia, in 1820, and was one of a large family of children. Although the father of this family was poor, he reared his children in the proper way and they all grew to be useful men and women in the various communities in which they lived. Alexander was the youngest member of the family. but because of his great size was generally referred to as the "big brother." He became a skilled workman as a blacksmith, learning the trade in Virginia in his youth. When a young man he left his native state because of his antislavery views, and later wanted the other members of the family to leave in order to afford their children better educational advantages. He came to Ohio on horseback and while passing through the swamps of Indiana was mired, which necessitated his walking the remainder of the way. He was about twenty years old when he arrived at Dayton, Ohio, and he soon erected a shop at Frederick, about twelve miles distant from that city. He later purchased a farm in Butler Township, Montgomery County, on which he erected a shop, and in addition to general farming he did many odd jobs of blacksmithing for his neighbors. He continued there until 1862, when he sold his farm and purchased the present home farm of the subject of this sketch, in Lost Creek Township, Miami County. Here he continued to live until his death in March, 1889. He married Isabella Waymeyer, in Montgomery County, she being a native of that county. Her death occurred about the year 1887. The following children were born to them : Sarah, wife of Joseph Ray; Jennie, wife of John Tobias ; Benjamin Franklin ; James ; Wesley ; Harrison ; and William, who died at the age of one year. Benjamin Franklin Smith, familiarly known as Frank, was about nine years of age when his parents moved to Miami County, and located upon his present farm. His education was limited and when quite young he began work on the home farm, on which he has since continued. Upon the death of his father he bought out the other heirs in this property, on which he has made many important improvements. The brick house in which he lives was erected in 1840. He has always been a hard and industrious worker, and all that he possesses has come through his individual efforts. He and his brother, James, purchased another tract of 160 acres in Lost Creek Township. Mr. Smith has traveled extensively through the South and West, and been pretty generally over AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS - 681 the country, but he considers the Miami Valley the "garden spot of the universe." In addition to the property mentioned, he also is the owner of five good residence properties in Casstown, and a small farm on the Miami River in Staunton Township. June 6, 1889, Mr. Smith was married to Miss Anna Tobias, a daughter of Daniel and Elizabeth (Whip) Tobias, from near Dayton, both of her parents now being deceased. She was one of the following children born to them : Jonathan ; Mary Elizabeth, wife of J. Jackson; Sarah, wife of John Barnett ; Laura ; Anna; Walter ; and Daniel, who died young. Politically, Mr. Smith is a Republican. CHARLES F. ANDERSON, who has been a life-long resident of Miami County, Ohio, is the owner of a good farm of eighty acres, located just west of the corporation line of the city of Piqua, in Washington Township, on the Clayton pike. He was born in Spring Creek Township, two miles east of Piqua. November 16, 1856, and is a son of Robert and Elizabeth (Graham) Anderson. Robert Anderson was born in Kentucky and was a son of Robert Anderson, who came from Kentucky to Miami County, Ohio. The latter settled on a farm in Spring Creek Township, about three miles east of Piqua, but later sold out and bought a farm on the St. Mary's pike, three miles north of Piqua. He lived there several years, then retired from business and spent the final years of his life in Piqua. Robert Anderson, Jr., was about twenty years of age when his parents moved to this county from Kentucky. He became a farmer of considerable importance and lived on a good farm in Spring Creek Township, on which he resided until his death in 1904. His widow makes her home in Piqua. She was born in that city and is a daughter of John Graham, who owned a grist mill south of Piqua. The marriage of Robert Anderson and Elizabeth Graham resulted in the birth of four children, namely: John F., superintendent of the paper mills at Piqua ; Margaret, wife of Louis Koester ; Charles F.; and Harriet, who lives with her mother. Charles F. Anderson was reared on the farm in Spring Creek Township, and received a good common school education. He has always engaged in agricultural pursuits, and for thirteen years rented the farm across the road from the property he now owns in Washington Township. He purchased his farm in 1906 and has converted it into one of the best improved places in the vicinity. He erected a fine frame house, which he has equipped with a furnace and other modern improvements which tend to add comfort to rural life. Mr. Anderson was united in marriage with Miss Ella Blood, who was born and reared in Piqua and is a daughter of Jeremiah Blood. They have three children, namely : Carrie May, a graduate of Piqua High School and a teacher in the public schools of that city ; Walter F.; and Frances L. Religiously, they are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. UZAL E. HILL, owner of a well improved farm of 160 acres located about six miles northeast of Piqua, in Spring Creek Township, Miami County, Ohio, has lived in that community nearly all his life and is widely known among its citizens. He was born on his present farm, December 16, 682 - HISTORY OF MIAMI COUNTY 1844, and is a son of Samuel and Eliza (Edwards) Hill. Samuel Hill was born in Hamilton County, Ohio, where he was educated in the common schools and took up the occupation of a farmer. In 1839, some time after his marriage, he moved to Miami County, Ohio, and settled in Spring Creek Township, on the farm now owned by his son, Uzal E. He cleared all but ten acres of his farm and erected the residence which now stands on the property. He was married to Miss Eliza Edwards of Butler County, Ohio, where her father was a farmer, and they became parents of the following children : One who died in infancy; Mary J., who lives in Miami County; Uzal E.; W. S., who lives one-half mile west of the old home, in Spring Creek Township ; and Charles C., who resides in Dayton. Uzal E. Hill was educated in the public schools of his home district and has always engaged in agricultural pursuits. He has lived all his life on the home place, except for a period of eleven years, five years of that time being located on an adjoining farm and six years on a farm in Shelby County. He follows general farming and has one of the best improved places in his vicinity. The farm is located on the Snodgrass Pike. Mr. Hill was united in marriage with Miss Sarah J. Sanders, who died March 13, 1909, a daughter of Abraham and Elizabeth Sanders of Spring Creek Township, where her father followed carpentering and farming. Six children were born of their union, namely : George W., who died at the age of four years ; C. Frank, who operates the home farm; Farran B., who died at the age of seventeen years ; Walter R., who lives on forty acres of the home farm in Spring Creek Township Letha G., who died at the age of twenty years; and James B., who lives near Piqua. The last named married Oda Slack and they have a son, Harrold. C. Frank Bill married Clarinda A. Valentine. a daughter of Samuel and Nancy Valentine of Shelby County, Ohio, and they have a son, Lester. Walter R. Hill married Alma Duncan of Piqua. and they have three children—Uzal, Leona and Arthur. Politically. Uzal E. Hill is a Democrat and has taken a deep interest in the success of the principles of that party. Religiously he is a member of the Baptist Church. He was township trustee for three years and was also road supervisor for several terms. ELI FLORY. a representative citizen of Newton Township, who resides on his valuable farm of 110 acres, situated in section 31. range 5, was born September 4, 1860, in Newton Township, Miami County, Ohio, and is a son of Joseph and Elizabeth (Brumbaugh) Flory. The parents of Mr. Flory came to Miami County from Montgomery County, Ohio, and lived in Newton Township until they retired to West Milton, where the father died July 7, 1904. His burial was in the Pleasant Hill Cemetery. The family consisted of seven children—Emanuel, Eli, Davis and Emma (twins), Frank, Wesley and Charles. The mother survives and resides at Pleasant Hill: Eli Flory obtained his education in the Pike and Ashland schools in Newton Township. From youth he has taken an interest in agricultural pursuits and before purchasing his present farm, he rented farms for some years, in Newton AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS - 683 Township, and is very familiar with the condition and natural fertility of different properties; this knowledge he utilized when the time came for him to buy a farm of his own. He found about ten acres yet remaining to be cleared and this he soon had in a proper state for cultivation. The old buildings were torn down and new ones, of a substantial character, took their places and he has now a finely improved property, the result of hard work and good management. On March 9, 1880, Mr. Flory was married to Miss Margaret Stichter, a daughter of Jacob and Louisa Stichter, and they have four children, namely : Frank. who married Lulu Harshbarger, and has one child. Elizabeth ; and Joseph, Truda, and Louisa, all residing at home. Mr. Flory and family attend the Dunkard Church. In politics he is a Republican and has served most acceptably in several township offices, particularly as road supervisor and as turnpike superintendent. CHARLES S. MCMACKEN, one of Covington's representative citizens, residing on North High Street, a member of the Town Council and engaged in a dairy business, was born March 21, 1871, on a farm in Newberry Township, Miami County, Ohio. His parents were John and Martha (Ullery) McMacken. The grandfather, also John McMacken, removed from Pennsylvania to Butler County, Ohio, residing there for a number of years. He came to Miami County, Ohio, when his son John, who was born in Butler County, Ohio, was fifteen years old, settling on a farm three miles northeast of Covington. There the latter grew to manhood. His first marriage was to Margaret Rike and to which were born three children, namely : Jennie, who is the widow of William Hackendorn and resides in Piqua; James H., who lives in Logansport, Indiana ; and John Lewis, also a resident of Logansport. John Jr.'s second marriage was to Martha Ullery, who was born in Newberry Township, a daughter of John Ullery, and three children were born to this union : Forrest Lee. residing at Piqua ; Charles S.; and Emma, wife of D. R. Longanecker. John McMacken, Jr., died April 6, 1905, his wife having passed away July 3, 1898. Charles S. McMacken was born and reared on the farm. He attended the public schools in his home neighborhood and later graduated at the Covington High School in 1890, following which he graduated at C. E. Beck's Business College, at Piqua, Ohio. For a year he was a rural mail carrier and for six months was engaged as a railway mail clerk, between Pittsburg and Indianapolis, but failing health caused him to resign the latter position, and in February, 1903, he came to Covington, where he has since carried on a dairy business, as already mentioned. Mr. McMacken married Miss Minnie Boggs, who was born at Nevada City, Missouri. and brought to Newberry Township, Miami County, in infancy, by her parents, Alden and Margaret (Atchison) Boggs. Mr. and Mrs. McMacken have six children, namely : Chalmer Lynn, Tracy B., Martha Margaret. Lucile Irene, John Alden and Hubert Lamar. Mr. McMacken is a member of the Presbyterian Church, where he is an usher, while his wife belongs to the Christian Church. Fraternally, he is associated with the Odd Fellows and Knights of Pythias, and is also a member of the 684 - HISTORY OF MIAMI COUNTY Dramatic Order of Knights of Khorasan. He has been an active citizen and served as a school director in Newberry Township for two years and for the past two years has been a member of the Covington Council. WILL H. HOLFINGER, who has been in the railway mail service for the past five years and now is connected with the Panhandle Railroad branch between Indianapolis and Pittsburg, was born on a farm near Covington, Ohio, July 15, 1877, and is a soil of George and Christina (Flammer) Holfinger. George Holfinger was born in Germany and came to America with his father, Barnhart, when five years old. He married Christina Flammer, who was also born in Germany, and they became farming people in Miami County. Will H. Holfinger grew up on the home farm and attended the country schools, graduating from the Bradford High School in 1896. The following four years were spent teaching in the country schools of Newberry and Newton Townships. In 1901 he completed the scientific course in the Ohio Northern University at Ada, Ohio. He then became principal of the Bradford High School, a position he filled for two years prior to successfully taking the civil service examinations. The railway mail service entails many hardships and the position of a mail clerk is an exacting one and can only be efficiently filled by a man of trained faculties and comprehensive education. In 1905 Mr. Holfinger was married to Miss Alma Catherine Roeth, a daughter of Carl and Catherine (Wagner) Roeth, and they have two children, Carroll De Witt and Kathryn Christina. Mr. Holfinger and wife are members of the Lutheran Church. The family home is a fine brick residence which Mr. Holfinger erected at Covington in 1907. J. D. WEAVER, general foreman of the Pennsylvania Railroad shops at Bradford, Ohio, has occupied this responsible position for the past twelve years, and has been identified with this great corporation since March 25, 1880. He was born November 22, 1855, in Jay County, Indiana, and is a son of J. W. and Sarah Ann Weaver. Mr. Weaver comes of farming people and he lived on a farm until he went into railroad work. From 188() until 1897 he was in the employ of the Pennsylvania Railroad at Indianapolis, Indiana, and was then transferred to Bradford, where he has become a valued and respected citizen. He is no politician and wants no office, but he is always ready to help along any public movement that promises to benefit the town in which he has his pleasant home and many friends. In Indiana Mr. Weaver was married to Miss Mary J. Williams, and they have had six children, namely : Sarah Ann, who is the wife of Thomas Williams ; Isabella, who is the wife of Ralph Reed and has one child, Ralph ; John Edward, who is deceased ; William H., who is employed in the Pennsylvania Railroad shops at Bradford ; and Jessie Lovina and Edna. Mr. Weaver is a member of the Knights of Pythias and of the Modern Woodmen of America. ISREAL ROUTSON, one of the highly esteemed citizens of Newberry Township, who is now living practically retired at his AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS - 685 home two miles southwest of Bloomer, is the owner of two fine farms of seventy-five and twenty acres, respectively. He was born October 8, 1835, on the old Routson homestead, two miles southeast of Bloomer, Miami County, Ohio, and is a son of George and Nancy (Able) Routson, natives of the State of Maryland. Mr. Routson was reared on the home farm, and when eighteen years of age started to learn the trade of mason, being for five years engaged in plastering and brick-laying at Piqua, after which he engaged in agricultural pursuits, and for thirty-five years continued therein on his farm in Newberry Township, erecting all the buildings on the property and making other improvements. In latter years he has lived practically retired, and his property is being operated by tenants. Mr. Routson was married to Eliza Swank, who was born and reared near the Lutheran Church in Newberry Township. Both are members of the German Baptist Church. CHARLES W. BAUSMAN, M. D., physician and surgeon, at Bradford, Ohio, where he has shown a good citizen's interest during his five years of residence, was born on a farm in Washington Township, Miami County, Ohio, and is a son of Emanuel and Anna (Ingle) Bausman, now both deceased. Dr. Bausman was reared on the home farm and obtained his early education in the country schools. After completing a course at the Lebanon Normal School he was prepared to teach, but from boyhood he had cherished the ambition of becoming a physician, and in 1900 he entered the medical department of the University of Cincinnati. He was graduated there May 25, 1905, and in the following July he established himself at Bradford, where his medical knowledge and surgical skill soon brought him a satisfactory practice, while his personal qualities made him friends. Dr. Bausman married Miss Armina Schilling, a daughter of Richard Schilling. He keeps in close touch with all matters pertaining to his profession, being a member of the Miami County, the State and the American Medical Associations. He belongs also to the Masons and the Maccabees. ARTHUR C. RHOADES, one of Bloomer's representative business men, junior member of the firm of Peterseim & Rhoades, operating a grain elevator at this point, and proprietor of a bicycle repair shop, is also secretary of the Bloomer Home Telephone Company. He has been a resident of Bloomer since 1893 and was born on a farm in Newberry Township, Miami County, Ohio, one mile east of Bloomer, December 3, 1871. He is a son of John and Mary (Shaeffer) Rhoades. John Rhoades was also born in Newberry Township and bore his father's name. He carried on farming all his mature life, in Newberry Township, where he died about 1875. His widow survives, being now the wife of George Shearer. Arthur C. Rhoades is the only child of his parents living. He was reared in New4 berry Township and there obtained his education and engaged in farming until he came to Bloomer. He still owns a farm of sixty-nine and one-half acres, which he rents out. He entered into partnership with his father-in-law, in the grain elevator business, when he came to Bloomer, and several years later started his repair shop. 686 - HISTORY OF MIAMI COUNTY Mr. Rhoades married Miss Edith Peterseirn, a daughter of Martin A. and Mary Peterseim, and they have one son, Leslie. Mr. Rhoades built the fine frame residence in which he resides. He is a leading member of the Lutheran Church. EBERHART W. MAIER, probate judge of Miami County, to which office he was first elected in 1905, was born in Covington, Miami County, Ohio, January 14, 1861, son of Michael and Mary (Neth) Maier. He is of German parentage, his father, Michael Maier, having been born in Wurtemberg, Germany, in 1835, his mother being also a native of the same place, and a daughter of George Neth. Michael Maier was a wagon-maker by trade, and after coming to the United States in 1853, found employment at this industry at Hartford, Connecticut, where he remained for four years. He came to Covington, Ohio, in 1857, and for some years conducted business in a small shop on the Troy turnpike. Afterwards, during the Civil War, he purchased the shop of C. M. Gross and carried on his trade for many years, retiring on account of an injury, in April, 1905. His shop was a well known landmark for many years. Mr. and Mrs. Michael Maier had six children—George E., Eberhart W., John, Michael, Charles A., Anna, and Catherine. George E. died in 1903, aged forty-eight years. He was twice married; first to Miss Mina Pearson, of which union there was one child, Harley, who is now a resident of Troy. John Maier left home at the age of sixteen years and subsequently took up a land claim in Nebraska. He married at the age of thirty-one and had six children. Michael F. Maier, who is a commercial traveler, has his residence at Covington. He married .Mollie Goehering and they have two children. Charles A., who resides in Piqua, married Mary Reed, and they also have two children. Anna Maier married Clark Reed of Piqua. Catherine became the wife of Barney Smith, who came from Wurtemberg, Germany. Eberhart W. Maier, the direct subject of this sketch, began his education in the public schools of Covington, and on completing the usual course, entered the High School. Here, however, he remained but until the end of his freshman year on account of an accident to his father being compelled to leave school. He accordingly worked for a year and a half at carriage blacksmitlnng, but not liking it he gave it up at the end of that time to enter a paint shop, where he remained for three years. He then went to Cincinnati and learned ornamental and fresco painting. Finding, however, that painting did not agree with his health, he found himself obliged to give it up in turn, and under Cleveland's first administration he entered the railway mail service, running between Indianapolis and Pittsburg, and also for a time, between Indianapolis and St. Louis. He followed this occupation for about three years and at the end of that time entered the employ of the Troy Buggy Works as a traveling salesman, also working for them as draughtsman for ten years. During his last six years on the road he studied law, carrying his books with him, and studying late at night, early in the morning, and on Sundays. As the result of his arduous application, he was admitted to the bar in December, 1900, and in the same month of the following year began the practice of his profession AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS - 687 in Troy. He was first elected to the office of probate judge in 1905, taking the oath of office February 9, 1906. Although a Democrat and the county being usually Republican by about 1,500, Mr. Maier was elected judge by 545 majority on this occasion. In the fall of 1908 lre was re-elected by a majority of 1,644—evidence conclusive that his administration of the office had been pre-eminently satisfactory. Judge Maier was married in 1887, October 9th, to Anna M. Henne, a daughter of J01111 and Margaret A. Henne. They have one son, William Henne Maier, who was graduated from the Troy High School in 1909. Judge Maier is the only Democrat on the Troy Board of Education, on which he has served four years, being now president of the Board. He is also judge of the Juvenile Court of Miami County, and was one of the five members of the commission which met at Columbus and at Springfield and drafted the new Juvenile Court law of Ohio, which was passed April 23, 1908. He has been an Odd Fellow twenty-frve years, is also an Elk, a member of the Junior Order of American Mechanics, and a member of the Ancient and Honored Order of Gobblers, of Covington, Ohio. ALEXANDER HOWE DU BOIS, a representative citizen of Washington Township and for the past five years a member of its School Board, resides on the farm of eighty acres which still belongs to his mother, and which has been his home since he was seven years old. He was born in Spring Creek Township, Miami County, Ohio, April 12, 1870, and is a son of William T. and Laura Ann (Howe) Du Bois. The late William T. Du Bois was born at Franklin, Ohio, and was a son of William D. Du Bois, who came to Washington Township when William T. was young. The latter grew up here and subsequently married Laura Ann Howe, who is a daughter of Alexander Howe, who once owned a farm here and also a canal boat. She was born at Piqua, Ohio, where she now resides. After marriage, William T. Du Bois and wife moved to Spring Creek Township and later to Washington Township, where they owned three farms. Prior to the death of Mr. Du Bois they settled at Piqua and there he died February 23, 1902. Alexander H. Du Bois was reared and educated in Washington Township and has been manager of the present farm since attaining his majority. He carries on a general line of agricultural work, raises excellent crops and some fine stock. Mr. Du Bois married Miss Lena Wetzel, who was born and reared in Washington Township, a daughter of John and Caroline (Thoma) Wetzel. Mr. and Mrs. Du Bois have two children, Grace L. and Gwendolyn O. Mr. Du Bois is a member of the Christian Church. He takes the interest of a good citizen in politics and is ever mindful of the public needs of his neighborhood. He has shown his interest in educational matters by consenting to serve so long on the School Board. FRED DURR, who conducts an undertaking and upholstering business at Bradford, Ohio, is one of the town's active and enterprising business men. Mr. Durr was born on a farm in Adams Township, Darke County, Ohio, August 30, 1882, and is a son of John and Christina (Hatter) Durr. The Durr family has been known in Darke 688 - HISTORY OF MIAMI COUNTY County for many years. The mother of Mr. Purr died there in February, 1900. The father engaged in farming through all his active years and now lives retired in Richland Township, Parke County. Fred Purr was reared on the home farm and obtained his education in the country schools and the high school at Gettysburg, Ohio. When nineteen years old he began to learn the undertaking business with I. B. Miller, of Gettysburg. with whom he remained for three years. after which he went to Harrison, Ohio. and there embarked in business. Two years later he came to Bradford and opened his present establishment on November 7, 1907. He does considerable business in the upholstering line and has every necessary equipment for the decent and proper direction of funerals. Mr. Purr married Miss Etta Rohr, a daughter of Matthew Rohr. They are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Fraternally be is identified with the Masons and the Odd Fellows. DAVID WARNER owns a fine farm of 105 acres in Newberry Township, about two and one-half miles north of Covington. but has been a resident of that village for some eighteen years. He was born at Union, Montgomery County, Ohio, February 23, 1828, and is a son of Jacob and Susan (Brumbaugh) Warner, both natives of Pennsylvania. Jacob Warner died in Montgomery County, Ohio, about the year 1835. Hip wife was married four times, her first union being with a Mr. Seas. She afterward married Andrew Warner, then Jacob Warner (brother of Andrew and father of our subject), and fourthly Isaac Hoover whom she survived many years. David Warner was about seven years old at -his father's death, and was about fourteen, when after his mother's marriage to Mr. Hoover, they moved to Newberry Township, Miami County, Ohio, first locating near Harris Creek. There he grew to maturity with the usual experiences of the farm youth of that period, early turning his attention to the farm work. After his marriage he and his wife set up housekeeping on the farm he now owns and they lived there for almost forty years. He cleared the land and made all the improvements. including the erection of a substantial residence and a good set of farm buildings. He moved with his wife to Covington in 1891. and is one of the best known residents of the place. After fifty-six years of happy married life, he was deprived of his wife's companionship by death. the date of which was August 18. 1908. she was Hetty Miller in maiden life and was born in Parke County, Ohio. Mardi 31. 1833. being a daughter of Jacob Miller. The following children were born to them : Jacob, deceased: Susan. deceased; John, who lives in Greeneville. Ohio; Martin. of Covington; Mary (Mohler) : Cassie (Kindell), deceased; Levi ; David. deceased; Hetty (Murray), deceased: and James Franklin, deceased. Levi Warner was joined in marriage with Miss Dottie Thompson and they have two children : Clarence Edward and Reva Marie. They reside at Covington with their grandfather, Mr. Warner. David Warner is a devout member of the Church of the Brethren, in which he has been a deacon for more than forty years. The following is a list of Mr. Warner's grandchildren and great-grandchildren : Grandchildren—Mamie I. Warner, For- AND REPRESENTATIVE 'CITIZENS - 689 est A. Warner, Levi F. Warner, Maurice S. Warner, Frank J. Warner, Clifford Warner, Luther R. Warner, Lucy M. Warner, Millard F. Warner, Carl G. Warner, Clarence Mohler, Alice Mohler, Lueffie Mohler, Edna Kindell, Mary Kindell, Walter Kindell, Hettie Kindell, Elsie Kindell, Grace Kindell, Lucretia Warner, Roxie Warner, David O. Warner, Clarence E. Warner and Reva M. Warner. Great-grandchildren-Chester A. Rocker, Mary A. Warner, Herschel D. Warner, Maud Mohler, Joseph Mohler, Grace Mohler, Helen Mohler, Evelyn Filburn, Glenna May Filbrun, Roy Dale Morris, Minor Clarance Morris, John Lee Morris, Helen L. Ratchford, Arthur E. Ratchford, Thanette Myers, Ralph Myers, Russell Eberwine, Scipio Eberwine, Luther Robbins, Mary Alexander and Alma Alexander. ALEXANDER ROBISON. deceased, for many years was one of the representative men and substantial farmers of Spring Creek Township. He was born in Hamilton County, Ohio, near Cincinnati, August 7, 1827, and died on his farm of 200 acres, in Spring Creek Township, Miami County. November 27, 1884. His parents were John and Margaret (Rogers) Robison. John Robison, father of the late Alexander, was also a native of Hamilton County, born there August 10, 1876, and came to Miami County in 1839, where he died March 27, 1840. John Robison was a son of Alexander and Nancy (Patterson) Robison, natives of Ohio. who had the following children : Mary. Sarah, William, James, Alexander. Nancy, John, Jennie, Thomas, Mattie and Betsy, and at that time the family name was spelled Robeison. This family has always been an agricul tural one and at different times has owned large estates in Ohio.. John Robison mar ried Margaret Rogers, who was born July 29, 1803, and died December 18, 1887. Their children were the following: Mary, born November 16, 1825, died September 5, 1829; Alexander, born August 7, 1827, died November 27, 1884; John, born April 26, 1831, died June 9, 1866; Jane, born December 3, 1833; Martha, born October 13, 1835, died June 31, 1854; Margaret, born September 20, 1837; and Andrew, born August 21. 1839. Andrew Robison is a veteran officer of the Civil War. Alexander Robison was twelve years old when his father came into Miami County and settled with his family in Spring Creek Township, on the farm on which both father and son lived and died. Mr. Robison was a man of excellent business capacity, was a man of sterling traits of character and was one who, in life, was respected by all who knew him and whose death caused his fellow citizens to feel that the community had experienced a distinct loss.. On October 19, 1852, Alexander Robison was married to Miss Maria Lyon, who was born September 7. 1828, and is a daughter of Samuel and Margaret (Pendry) Lyon. Mrs. Robison's father was a native of New Jersey, and her mother, of Maryland. To Mr. and Mrs. Robison were born seven children, namely : David, born August 25, 1853, died June 25, 1889; William, born June 7, 1857, died March 24, 1860; Jennie, who married William Meeker, of Shelby County, has four sons, Clarence Earl, Howard Robison, Harry Alexander and John Edwin ; Charles A., who married Laura Denman, resides in Texas ; Lydia, who lives with her mother; Frank, who married Ida Williams, resides at Lyle, Washington, 690 - HISTORY OF MIAMI COUNTY and has had four children, Willard Andrew, Margaret Marie, Mary Helen, and Frances Irene, the second and third being deceased; and Edwin A., who married Laura Jones, lives at Portland, Oregon. Mrs. Robison is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. GEORGE W. PECKHAM, a representative business citizen of Troy, vice-president of the Peckham Coal and Ice Company, and doing business both at Troy and at Piqua, was born in Huron County, Ohio, March 20, 1835, where he attended school until he was fifteen years old. From Huron County, Mr. Peckham went to Darke County ; he later lived at Sidney, Piqua, Springfield, going from the latter place to Illinois. When he returned to Ohio he came to Troy, in June, 1863. In the spring of 1864 he enlisted in Company H., Ohio Volunteer Infantry, but received his discharge the same year and this county has since remained his chosen home. For a few months he was with the sash and door factory and then, in partnership with his brother, W. C. Peckham, he engaged in the marble business for about four years, after which he resumed work as a carpenter, a trade he had learned in early manhood. Some four years later he bought a farm west of Troy, on which he resided for twenty-two years and then returned to the city, where he conducted the old Peckham Hotel for one year. Later he bought out the coal and ice business of Evan Makepeace, which he conducted for several years before organizing the Peckham Coal and Ice Company and developing the present very large enterprise. The company has built a modern ice plant, of twenty-tons capacity, at Troy and a sixty- ton plant is almost completed at Piqua, in order to handle the business at that point. The company is made up of Mr. Peckham and his four sons, F. J. Peckham being president, and Charles Peckham secretary. In 1866 Mr. Peckham was married to Miss Lovina J. Shilling, and they have six children: David H., who is cashier of the Peckham Coal and Ice Company; George, who is engaged in the automobile business at Dayton; F. J.; Charles; Daisy, and Jennie. Mr. Peckham and family are members of the Baptist Church at Troy. SAMUEL A. MOUL, manager of the Daniel Moil Lumber Company, at Pleasant Hill, Ohio, which has a branch yard at Gettysburg, Darke County. was born in the latter place, September 6, 1886, and is a son of Daniel and Martha (Arn) Moul. Daniel Moul, father of Samuel A. is president and manager of The Daniel Moul Lumber Company. dealers in lumber. builders' hardware, glass and paint, and he is manager of the branch yard at Gettysburg, while his son manages the business at the main yards at Pleasant Hill. The officers of the company are : Daniel Moul, president and manager ; Samuel Berger, vice president; John M. Moul, secretary and treasurer ; and Samuel A. Moul. manager as above stated. Daniel Afoul was born at York, Penna., September 13, 1854. He married Martha .Arn. daughter of Ernest and Martha Am, and to them were born the following children : Charles, now deceased; John, who married Carrie Moore, a daughter of John and Alfaretta Moore, has one son, Charles; Daniel, who married Meda Clark, a daughter of Milton and Amanda. Clark, has one son, Daniel Clark; Stella and Samuel A., twins, the former of AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS - 693 whom married Clarence Miller, of Gettysburg, Ohio, has three children, Homer, Imogene and Ethylen ; and Elizabeth A., who is bookkeeper and stenographer at Pleasant Hill, for the Daniel Moul Lumber Company. Daniel Moul and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. In politics he is a Democrat and in former years took quite an active interest in public matters. He is a thirty-second degree Mason and belongs to the Blue Lodge at Gettysburg. Samuel A. Moul was liberally educated and after completing the High School course at Gettysburg, took a commercial course at Poughkeepsie. New York, after which he filled the position of bookkeeper for the Ohio Lumber Company at Ironton, Ohio. for one year and then came to Pleasant Hill as manager of this plant. The business is a large one and employment is given a number of men. Mr. Moul married Miss Emma Ashman, a daughter of John and Etta Ashman. Politically he is a Democrat, but takes little interest beyond casting his vote for his party's candidates, his business occupying the largest part of his attention. -Fie is identified with the Elks at Ironton and the Odd Fellows at Pleasant Hill. He is recognized as one of the enterprising young men of this place, one who is able to make practical use of his sensible education. A. J. HOFFERT, who is foreman of the car department of the Pennsylvania Railroad at Bradford, Ohio, has been in the railroad service since 1888 and has had much experience. He was born at Bremen, Fairfield County, Ohio, May 22, 1868, and is a son of Philoman and Catherine Hoffert. A. J. Hoffert resided at Bremen through his school days and was eighteen years of age when he went to Indianapolis and from there to Brightwood, where he learned car building. He worked there for two years for the old Bee line, was then at Denver, Colorado, for a year with the -Union Pacific and for eight months for the same road worked at Salt Lake City, after that he pushed on to Portland, Oregon, and during the three months he remained there, he worked as a house carpenter. He then went to San Francisco and for three years was in the employ of the Southern Pacific. The great World's Fair at Chicago led him eastward again, and after enjoying it he returned to Indianapolis, where lre worked as a house carpenter for a year and then resumed railroad work with the Panhandle line. On April 1, 1902, he came to Bradford to accept his present position, one which he has most efficiently filled ever since. Mr. Hoffert married Miss Maria C. Scholl, and they have two children, Ruth and Helen. He is a member of Capital City Lodge, No. 97, Knights of Pythias of Indianapolis; and of Yukon Tribe, No. 312, Improved Order of Red Men, also of Indianapolis. ANDERSON SNYDER, whose well improved farm of seventy acres is situated in Newberry Township, at the northeast corner of the Range Line turnpike and the Piqua-Versailles road, about five miles northwest of Covington, was born in Montgomery County, Ohio, February 5, 1857, and is a son of Emanuel Nelson and Huldah (Wysong) Snyder. When Anderson Snyder was one year old his parents moved to a farm situated in Miami County, one-half mile north of 694 - HISTORY OF MIAMI COUNTY his present farm, and they still reside there. On that farm Anderson Snyder was reared. He went to school during boyhood, in Newberry Township, after which he helped his father and later engaged in farming for himself. His life has been entirely given up to agricultural pursuits and he continued to cultivate his land himself until 1908, when he retired from active work and rented out his farm. For four years after his first marriage, he lived in Shelby County but in 1886 he came to Miami County and settled on this place. Two comfortable dwellings, one of brick and the other of frame construction, were standing when he bought the place. Mr. Snyder was married (first) to Miss Harriet Rhoades, a daughter of John Rhoades. Mrs. Snyder died September 11. 1890, the mother of three children, namely : Clarence Cleveland, who resides on a farm in Shelby County, one and one-quarter miles north of his father's farm, married Izora Fesler and they have one child. Mabel Marie; Marion Monroe, who died when aged fifteen years; and Dora Dell. who is the wife of Franklin Gish. Mr. Snyder was married (second) February 25, 1893, to Mrs. Mina (Stiver) Gangwer, widow of Samuel Gangwer and daughter of Jonathan and Eliza Ann (Method) Stiver. Mrs. Snyder was born in Elkhart County, Indiana, and her father died on the old farm there in 1899. Her mother still survives. Mrs. Snyder has two sons born to her first marriage: James Edward, who married Orpha Cooper. and Harvey C. To Mr. and Mrs. Snyder one son has been born. Forest Franklin. Mr. Snyder takes no very active part in politics, but votes with the Democratic party. Mr. and Mrs. Snyder are well known peo ple in this section and they always have a hospitable welcome for their friends. LOUIS LANDMAN, proprietor of the Loramie Mills, in. Washington Township, which are situated three miles northeast of Piqua, is a native of Germany, where he was born November 30, 1841. His parents were Henry and Christina Landman. Louis Landman learned the milling business with his father, in Germany, and he was twenty-four years of age when he came to America. He located first at Greenville. Ohio, then went to Mercer County, where he worked for three years in a mill, after which he worked for a short time at his trade in a mill situated between Piqua and Troy. He next went to Missouri and for one year was employed in a mill at Hamlin and then came to Miami County and worked for a year in the very mail! he now owns. He then went into the lumber business in Indiana and remained there for twelve years but returned to Miami County in 1886 and purchased his present mill property. He put the machinery in the best possible condition, made many improvements and his patronage is large. He produces flour of both wheat and rye, corn meal and buckwheat and also feed. His specialty, Gilt Edge flour, has a wide sale through the county. Mr. Landman married Rachel Nusbaum, who was born and reared in Wayne County, Ohio, and they have had fourteen children, the seven survivors being: Jenette; Reuben, married, who works for his father in the mill ; Henry, who is a miller at Springfield, Ohio ; George; Carrie; William. who is a miller at Dunkirk, Indiana ; and Gladys, who is a student in the Piqua AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS - 695 High School. Five children died in infancy ; Emma died when aged fifteen years, and Frederick when aged eleven years. Mr. Landman and family are members of the German Methodist Episcopal Church of Piqua, of which he is one of the trustees. He is one of the reliable and respected citizens of Washington Township. ALBERT WARNER, who owns 100 acres of the old Araon Warner homestead of 160 acres, lying on the Sears Turnpike Road, two miles northeast of Bradford, Ohio, was born on the farm which adjoins on the north, June 26, 1868, and is a son of Aaron and Charlotte (Bosserman) Warner. The Warner family may be numbered with the pioneer ones of Newberry Township, the grandfather of Albert, Henry Warner, coming at an early day and settling on the farm on which his grandson now lives. His son Aaron was a boy at the time, having been born in Montgomery County. For many years Henry Warner made this farm his home, and then moved to a farm south of Bradford, where he died in advanced age. Aaron Warner married Charlotte Bosserman, who was born in Darke County, Ohio, a daughter of Solomon Bosserman, an old and respected man there. To this marriage were born five children, namely : Lovina, who is the wife of Frank Martin, residing in Parke County ; David, who lives near Pleasant Hill ; Almira, who is the wife of Isaac Young, of Darke County ; Alice. who is the wife of John Brumbaugh, residing in Darke County ; and Albert, who is a twin brother of Alice. Aaron Warner died in the fall of 1907, surviving his wife for one year. Albert Warner was three years old when his parents came to his present farm, and this has continued to be his home ever since. Only those who have grown up in one place and watched its development and had the secure home feeling that possession gives can appreciate how much Mr. Warner, for many reasons, values this place, the home of his childhood, boyhood, youth and maturity. His residence is a comfortable brick house that was built by one of the early settlers, a Mr. Hoover. He carries on a general line of farming, raising wheat, oats, corn, hay and stock, also tobacco. Mr. Warner married Miss Ida Crowel, a daughter of Daniel and Matilda (Harmon) Crowel, an old Newberry Township family, and they have four children : Emery C., Mildred, Louis and Charles. Mr. Warner and family are members of the Church of the Brethren. ELBERT M. BELL, attorney-at-law and city solicitor of Piqua, a practitioner in the State and Federal Courts, was born in 1870, in Logan County, Ohio, and from the local schools entered Findlay College at Findlay, Ohio, where he completed his literary education. After leaving college, Mr. Bell entered upon the study of law with Marion G. Bell, at Bellefontaine, Ohio, and received his degree of law at the Ohio Northern University- in 1897. In the spring of 1898 Mr. Bell enlisted for service in the Spanish-American War, entering Company F. Second Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and remained with his regiment in camp at Chickamagua, Macon and Knoxville until December, 1898, when he was assigned to detached duty as clerk to General Bates, who was then the military gov- 696 - HISTORY OF MIAMI COUNTY ernor of Santa Clara Province, Cuba, and Ile remained in that capacity in Cuba until February, 1899. After lre returned to the United States he was mustered out at Macon, Georgia, and shortly afterward located at Piqua. For four years he was associated in law practice with L. R. Drake, and in December, 1906, he was appointed city solicitor, in the fall of the following year being elected to the same office. His service has been very satisfactory and the office has never been better administered. In October, 1899, Mr. Bell was married to Miss. Martha E. Rosebrook, of Big Springs, Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Bell are members of the Green Street Methodist Episcopal Church, Piqua. He takes a hearty interest in politics, especially in the public affairs of city and county, and has proved himself an effective party worker. Mr. Bell is identified with the Piqua Business Men's Club, is treasurer of the Young Men's Christian Association and belongs to the Spanish-American War Veterans, the Home Guards of America, the Golden Eagles and the Knights of Pythias. C. ROY COPPOCK is a well known citizen of Pleasant Hill, Miami County, Ohio, and has charge of the correspondence of the Jesse Beery Company, of that place. He was born in Bradford, Newberry Township, Miami. County, Ohio, September 4, 1874, and is a son of Elwood and Sarah (Younce) Coppock, and a grandson of Benjamin Coppock. Benjamin Coppock, the grandfather, was one of the early settlers of Miami County, and was located on a farm east of Ludlow Falls, in Union Township. He lived there until his death in 1890, and was buried at Union Cemetery, as was his wife, who survived him some years. Her maiden name was Ester Mills and they had three children, two of whom are living, David M. and Elwood. Religiously they were members of the Society of Friends. He was a Whig in politics. Elwood Coppock was born at Ludlow Falls, Miami County, where he lived until after his marriage, when he moved to Bradford and conducted a shoe store. He remained there four years and then carried on the same business in the state of Arkansas. Returning north, he became a traveling salesman, at which he has since continued, being frrst located at Goshen, Indiana, and then at Logansport, Indiana, where he now lives. He is a Republican in politics. He was married to Sarah Younce, a daughter of David Younce, and they became parents of six children, as follows : Minnie, Lulu, C. Roy, Frank (deceased), Cado (deceased), and Ester (deceased). C. Roy Coppock first attended school in Arkansas, then at Goshen, Indiana; Webster, Indiana; Fountain City, Indiana ; Pleasant Hill, Ohio ; Richmond, Indiana. In the meanwhile he learned sign painting, and the trade of a baker, which he followed for a time, and he also followed the insurance business. He engaged in selling sewing machines prior to accepting his present position with the Jesse Beery Company. of Pleasant Hill. He served four years as city clerk at Pleasant Hill and proved a most efficient officer. He is a Republican in politics. October 29, 1903, Mr. Coppock was united in marriage with Miss Effie Whitmer, a daughter of John W. and Frances Bell Whitmer, and they have a pleasant home in Pleasant Hill. Fraternally he is a member of the Ma- AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS - 697 sonic Lodge, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and the Junior Order United American Mechanics. WILLIAM J. RAKE is a prominent farmer of Washington Township, Miami County, Ohio, residing just west of the corporation line of Piqua, on the Clayton pike. He was born almost directly across the road from his present farm, September 10, 1862, and is a son of Amos and Sarah (Keyt) Rake. Amos Rake was born in Clinton, New Jersey, and was a son of William Rake, whose occupation was that of a farmer but who was sheriff and jailer in Clinton, New Jersey, for a period of thirty years. Amos was reared in his native community, and was there married to Miss Elizabeth Smith. Six children were the offspring of this union, of whom two are now living: Mary, wife of Jacob Gertner, of Piqua; and Nancy, wife of A. J. Brotherton, of Delphos, Ohio. With his family, Amos Rake moved to Miami County, Ohio, some time between 1850 and 1855, settling on a farm on the Washington pike in Washington Township. His first wife died within a few years after their coming, and on March 7, 1870, he formed a second union with Miss Sarah Keyt, mother of the subject of this sketch. The Keyt family is an old and prominent one in Washington Township, and in Piqua. James Keyt, father of the wife of Amos Rake, and his brother, John Keyt, were masons here in the pioneer days, and built many of the early brick houses. James Keyt was born in Elizabethtown, Essex County, New Jersey, and was a son of James Keyt, who was a carpenter and contractor in New Jersey. and met his death by falling from a scaffold. The father of the latter was also named James, and was of English birth; he too met a violent death, being thrown from a horse and killed. James Keyt, father of Mrs. Rake, was married to Elizabeth Widney, January 23, 1820, and his brother John was married to her sister. Nine children were born to them, of whom two are now living: Mrs. Margaret Jane Lines, of Piqua ; and Mary Widney Keyt, who owns fifty-three acres of the old home place and lives with her nephew, William J. Rake. Mrs. Keyt died in September, 1848, and James Keyt died in January, 1849. Mrs. Sarah (Keyt) Rake, mother of the subject of this record, died in 1892, and was survived many years by her husband, who passed away in 1905. William J. Rake was reared in his native township, and has always followed farming. He is unmarried and resides with his aunt, Mary Widney Keyt, whose place he also farms. He has in his possession a Bible bought by-his grandfather. James Keyt, which is said to have been the first Bible bought in Miami County. He is a man of business ability and integrity, and is most highly esteemed by his many friends in the community. DAVID J. ROUTSON, a member of the Newberry Township School Board and a representative of a prominent old family of that township, is the owner of a fine farm of eighty-one acres, located where the C., H. & D. Railroad crosses the Piqua and Versailles pike. He was born on a farm across the road from his present home, February 13, 1867, and is a son of Reuben and Catherine (Rhoadeheffer) Routson. 698 - HISTORY OF MIAMI COUNTY Reuben Routson, who has never lived for a day off the farm across the road from that of the subject of this sketch, was born August 5, 1833, and is a son of George and Nancy (Able) Routson, both natives of Maryland. George Routson was married in Maryland in the spring of 1831, and immediately thereafter moved with his wife to Newberry Township, Miami County, Ohio, where they settled on what has since been known as the Routson home place, located on the Piqua and Versailles pike, about six miles northwest of Covington. Reuben Routson was the second of eight children born to his parents, of whom but four are now living. His father died at the age of fifty-two years, and his mother at eighty-eight. He was reared on the farm and learned the trade of a carpenter, which he followed steadily for twelve years. He has since followed farming on the home place, on which he built all the buildings now standing. He has seventy-four acres in this place, and is also the owner of a farm of 110 acres about three miles southeast of his home. He is a Democrat in politics, and served his township as trustee and assessor. February 28, 1861, Reuben Routson was married to Kate Rhoadeheffer, who was born and reared in Montgomery County, Ohio, and when eighteen years of age accompanied her parents, David and Margaret ( Apple) Rhoadeheffer, to Newberry Township. Ten children were born to them, namely : George W., who is county school examiner and lives at Troy ; Margaret, wife of John Christian, a farmer of Darke County ; Elizabeth, who died at the age of two years ; David J. ; Angeline Belle, wife of Henry Ballinger, a farmer of Darke County ; Mary Jane, wife of Amos Fessler ; Sarah Ann, wife of Charles H. Miller, of Piqua ; Ida May, wife of I. M. Apple, a saw-mill operator, of Newberry Township ; Wesley S., who farms his father's farm north of Covington; and Suvilla Josephine, wife of Uriah Apple, a farmer of Newberry Township. David J. Routson was reared on the farm on which his father still lives, and received a good public school education. He has always followed farming, and when he was married, set up housekeeping on the farm of 110 acres owned by his father and located three miles north of Covington. He lived there ten years, then came to his present farm of eighty-one acres. He has a large brick house, which was erected by a Mr. Shafer as early as 1864. He is a Democrat in politics and is now serving his second year as a member of the School Board. He has always followed general farming and has been uniformly successful. He is vice-president and treasurer of the Bloomer Telephone Company, and is a stockholder of the Still. water Valley Banking Company, and also a stockholder in the Piqua furniture factory. Mr. Routson was united in marriage with Miss Sarah A. Apple, a daughter of Solomon Apple, who was a prominent farmer of the township and who died in 1900. Four children were born to this union : Meda, Inez M., Norma I., and Vesta E. Religiously they are members of the Lutheran Church, of which he has been secretary for twelve years. JOSHUA GRUBB, who resides on his well improved farm of 120 acres, which lies in Section 31, Newberry Township, one and one-half miles southwest of Covington, is AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS - 699 one of the leading citizens of this part of Miami County. He was born October 23, 1844, on a farm in Newberry Township, one mile west of Covington, and is a son of John and Catherine (Walmer) Grubb, both of whom were born in Pennsylvania, but were married in Miami County. Joshua Grubb went to school and grew to manhood in Newberry Township. He was nineteen years old when he enlisted for service in the Civil War, entering Company F, 147th Regt., 0. Vol. Inf., on May 1, 1864, and was stationed in West Virginia and at Washington, D. C., until his term of enlistment was over, September 15th of the same year. He saw a large amount of the suffering caused by war, but escaped any personal injury, and after he returned home he resumed farming, which has been his main occupation. For seven years he was also interested in contracting, and built many pikes and house foundations in the county, living then at Bradford. In 1880 he bought his farm, on which he has resided ever since. It is excellent land, and is well improved and carefully cultivated. Mr. Grubb married Miss Frances E. Cable, and they had two children, Bertha, who is the widow of Harry Bowers ; and Audrey, who lives at home. Mr. Grubb was bereaved of his wife on July 24, 1908. She was a most estimable woman in every relation of life. In politics Mr. Grubb is a Republican, and he has acceptably served as township trustee. He is identified with the Grand Army of the Republic and the Masons. DAVID ARNOLD, senior member of the well known business firm of D. Arnold & Son, dealers in lumber, cement, coal and builders' supplies, at Bradford, Ohio, and also vice-president of the Bradford Bank, is a prominent citizen of this section, and is identified with its best interests of every kind. He was born on a farm located along Greenville Creek, in Newberry Township, Miami County, Ohio, May 8, 1840, and is a son of John and Mary (Thompson) Arnold. John Arnold was also born in Miami County, and was a son of David Arnold, who came to this section from South Carolina and obtained a deed to the Arnold homestead farm in Newberry Township, which bears the date of 1820. His grandson and namesake possesses the deed, and also owns ninety-six acres of the farm. On this same farm the second David Arnold grew to manhood, leaving it for the first time when he enlisted in the service of his country on August 12, 1861. He was a member of Company B, Forty-fourth O. Vol. Inf., during the whole of the war until January 5, 1865, when he re-enlisted at Strawberry Plains, Tennessee. The infantry regiment was disbanded on account of having served its time out, and when it was reorganized it was as the Eighth Ohio Cavalry. He served in it until the close of all hostilities, and was mustered out with the rank of quartermaster sergeant, at Clarksburg, West Virginia, in August, 1865. During this long period Mr. Arnold performed every duty required like a good soldier, and his military record is one of which he may be proud. When his military life was over, Mr. Arnold returned to the home farm and continued agricultural pursuits until 1872, when he came to Bradford and entered into the lumber business. In succeeding years he enlarged the scope of his original inter-