HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1025 liam Bennett and known far and wide as the Fairview Dairy Farm. Its chief industry is the raising of staple crops and dairying, a fine herd of mulch cows being kept, which are the principal revenue producer. The farm comprises 130 acres, and with its improvements represents a value many times as great as when the original settler first. acquired it from the Government. William Bennett was born on this farm, and it has been in the possession of the Bennett family for three generations. It was his grandfather, Robert Bennett who came from old Virginia. and entered 320 acres from the Government, a portion of which is now the farm of William Bennett. Robert Bennett on first coining to Southern Ohio located on the Scioto River, but on account of the ague and other conditions left that locality and moved to Madison Township. Here he lived and died, after performing a large amount of improvement work on his land. William Bennett was born on the old homestead August 2, 1865, a son of William and Mary (Rarick) Bennett. His father was born in Madison Township on the 320 acres acquired by his father, and spent his career there as a prosperous farmer. There were two sons, and Oscar Bennett is now a resident of Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Mr. William Bennett grew. up in the country district where he now lives and where all his early boyhood and manhood associations are centered. His school attendance- was 'Confined to the winter months, and during the open seasons of the year he worked steadily on the farm. On December 23, 1885, Mr. Bennett married Eunice. H. Allen, who was born in Madison Township. They have one daughter, Mabel, now attending the common schools. The family are members of the Baptist Church. Mr. Bennett is master of his Grange, and is affiliated with the Knights of Pythias Lodge at Harrisonville. While Mr. Bennett has been an extremely busy man, and has made a. success of his individual enterprises, he has not neglected the community welfare, and has taken an important part in the work of his home township and the county. In politics he is a democrat. Mr. Bennett served seven years as trustee of Madison Township; and was also for a term superintendent of the township roads. His administration in that office is especially well remembered, since by his energy and influence he caused the roads to be thoroughly cared for, and all citizens were made to contribute their appropriate share either in labor or money to the improvement of the highways. In 1910 Mr. Bennett was honored by the office of county commissioner, and .is now serving his second term in that important office and his party has seen fit to reward his efficiency by nomination for a. third term. Mr. Bennett is also one of the directors of the Scioto County Fair Association. 1026 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION REV. A. K. MURPHY. Thirty-three years of faithful and devoted service in the ministry of the Baptist Church is the record of Rev. A. K. Murphy, one of the widely known and best beloved ministers of Scioto County. Now in his sixty-seventh year, with faculties unimpaired, he continues' to take an active interest and occasional participation in religious labors, although he lives in partial retirement on his handsome and well-cultivated property, a tract of 585 acres, situated in Rush Township, three miles southwest of Lucasville, which is appropriately known as Maple Grove Farm. Reverend Murphy was born at Sandy Springs, Adams County, Ohio, October 2, 1849, and is a son of R. S. and Rachel (Kelly) Murphy, natives of Ohio who are now both deceased. There were eight children in the family, of whom five are living at the present time : Mary, who is the widow of William Burwell, of Troy, Ohio; Emma, who is the wife of John McCall, of Waverly, Kansas ; John R., of Paola, Kansas; Lucy, who is the wife of W. A. Gibbins, of Buena Vista, Ohio ; and Rev. A. K., of this notice. Rev. A. K. Murphy was reared on the home farm, and obtained his education in the public schools, and Denison University at Granville, Ohio. He was a studious youth, preferring his books and studies to other forms of recreation, and finally decided to enter the ministry, for which he was prepared at Denison University, Granville, Ohio. When he was ordained as a minister he began preaching in Ohio, and for thirty-five years thereafter preached in various parts of Ohio. Reverend Murphy may well be counted among those who fortunately have chosen the life vocation for which they are best fitted. The natural and temperamental endowments which in him contribute to a strongly marked character easily lend themselves to the facile and successful accomplishment of the many-sided duties inevitable to the life of an active minister of the Baptist Church. His life has ever been so active as to worthily win for him a conspicuous place in the ranks of the church, and large is the number of those in Ohio who affectionately appreciate his ministrations, assistance and advice. Reverend Murphy was married March 27, 1883, to Miss Fannie Kirkendall, who was born at Ashley, Illinois, December 28, 1862, and educated in the district schools of Rush Township. Of the four children born to this union, three are now living: Sadie, who is the wife of Prof. Bruce Drummond, of Indio, California ; Charles, who is single and is assisting his father in the work of the homestead farm ; and Louise, who is the wife of Clyde Virgin, of Rush Township, a farmer. Hered, the fourth child, died at the age of eight years. Reverend Murphy belongs to the Masonic Lodge at Lucasville, Ohio, and is connected with HANGING ROCK IRON. REGION - 1027 the Knights Templar of that fraternity at Portsmouth. He is a supporter of republican principles and candidates, but has taken no very active part in political affairs. GEORGE H. HILL. A member of the Scioto County Board of Commissioners, George H. Hill has had considerable experience in official affairs in his home township of Rush, and is a man whose activities and influence are such as to entitle him to the highest respect. He has been a successful farmer, and has one of the excellent country places in his townships George H. Hill was born in Valley Township of Scioto County, September 8, 1861, and the family has long been resident in this section of Ohio.. His grandfather Nathaniel Hill is thought to have been a native of Pennsylvania, and was an early settler in Pike County, and lived to advanced age. Abraham J. Hill, father of the county commissioner, was born November 12, 1830, grew up on a farm and when quite young, took up his residence in Valley Township, where his career passed quietly for some years in farming. In March, 1865, he enlisted or service in the -Union army, in Company A of the Hundred Ninety-fourth Ohio Infantry, and his service continued until his honorable discharge after the end of the war. Valley Township then continued the scene of his agricultural activities until 1875, at which time he removed to Rush Township and for several years rented 'the Tremper farm and continued to live in the township until his death on August 12, 1910. Abraham J. Hill married Mary Ellen Longworth, who was born in Valley Township March 15, 1841, the daughter of a farmer in that section. Her mother's name was Susan Cockrell. Mrs. Hill died September 13, 1909. The ten children were named Susan J., George H., John M., Charles W., James E., who died at the age of sixteen, Sarah L., Lydia, Elmer, Albert and Edwin. George H. Hill, whose early education was acquired by attending the rural schools of Valley and Rush townships, had his apprenticeship training on his father's farm, and began his independent career with little more than grilling hands and a firm determination to succeed. A After his marriage he bought the farm he now owns and occupies on Pond Creek in Rush Township, and his prosperity has come through general farming and stock raising. In 1884 Mr. Hill married Pauline Delhotal, who was born in Rush Township, while her father, Alexander Delhotal, was a native of France and after coming to America bought a farm in Rush Township on which he lived out the rest of his life. Mrs. Hill. died December 29, 1908. Vol. II-25 1028 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION In 1912 Mr. Hill married Miss Frances Schleinhege. She was born at Ironton in Lawrence County. Her father, Frank Schleinhege, was a native of the Kingdom of Hanover, Germany, and his parents lived their lives there. Two of his sisters named Annie and Alphena also came to America. Mrs. Hill's father was a bookkeeper in Germany, a man of excellent education and business training, and when twenty. seven years old he came to this country and after a residence of some time at Ironton moved to a farm at Lucasville, where he now resides. His wife's maiden name was Elizabeth Classing, who was born in Cincinnati, of German parents. Mrs. Hill was one of six children, Annie, Charles, Frances, Frank, Emma and Glen. Mr. and Mrs. Hill have a son, Gilbert. Politically his activities have all been with the republican party, his first vote having been given to James G. Blaine. He has served as a director of his home school, also on the township board of education, and for several years was a member of the township board of trustees. Fraternally his affiliations are with Aurora Lodge No. 48, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, with Portsmouth Court No. 109, Tribe of Ben Hur, and with the Order of Owls. WILLIAM TATMAN. It is one of the old and prominent families of Scioto Coun.ty that William Tatman is a representative. Mr. Tatman has spent his active career as a farmer, has an attractive and valuable homestead in Union Township, and his name stands for the best things in the community life of that locality. Born at Friendship in Nile Township of Scioto County, February 16, 1864, William Tatman is a son of Peter Tatman who was born at Moscow in Clermont County, 'Ohio, October 12, 1836. The paternal grandparents were Joseph and Elizabeth (Fisher) Tatman. Elizabeth Fisher was a cousin of Hon. David Fisher, who early in the nineteenth century represented the old Sixth Ohio District in Congress and was a member of the House of Representatives when former President John Quincy Adams was stricken and .assisted in removing this great statesman from the main chamber of the House. Peter Tatman, father of William, was reared and educated in Clermont County, grew up on a farm, but early in life took up boating on the Ohio River. For a number of years his principal business was transporting tanbark to the southern markets. This was his chief occupation for eighteen years, and after retiring from the river he bought a farm on Brush Creek in Union Township of Scioto County, and was identified with agriculture and with lumbering for a number of years, and died in that locality January 17, 1901. He married Ruhama Holt, who was born on Upper HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1029 Turkey Creek in Nile Township, a daughter of John and Sallie (Lewis) Holt. Mrs. Tatman was the youngest in a family of fifteen children, nine of whom grew to manhood and womanhood. Her brother Andrew J. is remembered as having been the strongest and most athletic man in the community. Mrs. Tatman now lives with her daughter, Mrs. Saddler. The children of Peter Tatman and wife who reached maturity were Joseph; John ; Rosetta, who married Henry C. Payne ; William; Lucius; Dora, who married Alexander Saddler ; Sarah, who married William Bear; Clara, who married E. B. Oakes; Maud,' who married Oscar Foster; and Ruhama. As a boy William Tatman attended the rural schools in the neighborhood of his father's farm, and at the same time developed a vigorous constitution by regular work at home. His career has always been identified with agriculture and since succeeding to the ownership of the old homestead he has made an unusual success in general farming and stock raising. His farm is perhaps the equal of any rural place in Union Township, has excellent buildings and other improvements and its operations are carried on with an efficiency which betokens the highest standards of agricultural enterprise. At the age, of twenty-five Mr. Tatman married Blanche Wamsley. She was born in Brush Creek Township of Scioto County, daughter of Reverend Foster and Amanda (Liston) Foster. Her death occurred in 1891: Mr. Tatman married for .his present wife Jennie Mershon, a daughter of David and Jennie (Potts) Mershon. Mr. and Mrs. Tatman have two children, Peter and May. While the parents are members of the Christian Church, the two children belong to McDermot Methodist Episcopal Church. FRANK MINFORD. The home of this Scioto County citizen is at Harrisonville, where for half a century or more the name has been associated with that very useful and honorable vocation of blacksmithing. The business has been conducted by father and son, and Frank Minford has continued with modern improvements a shop which in early years was the common resort of hundreds of farmers for all kinds of iron wbrk and machine repairing. Frank Minford was born at Harrisonville, May 9, 1866. His father, the late William J. Minford, was born in County Antrim, Ireland, of Scotch ancestry, in January, 1829, a son of John and Mary (Awl) Milford. The members of the family to come to America were himself, his brother Robert and sister Agnes. William was at that time seventeen years old, and the sailing vessel after a long voyage landed them at New York, whence they came on at once to Ohio. At Portsmouth he 1030 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION served an apprenticeship under J. L. Ward, one of the pioneer blacksmiths of. that city. In 1853, about a year after his marriage, he went out to the new State of Iowa, but after three years returned. to Ohio and established his shop in Harrisonville. The only important interruption to his industrious career after that was his service as a soldier. In 1863 he enlisted in Company F of the First Ohio Heavy Artillery, which was in the Army of the Cumberland under the command of General Thomas. From the time of his enlistment until his honorable discharge, he continued with the regiment in all its campaigns and battles, and proved as efficient a soldier as at his trade. 'For many years he performed a useful service to his community in and about Harrisonville, and lived retired for several years before his death in April, 1908, when in his eightieth year. In 1852 he married Mary Ann Maps, who was a daughter of Thomas and Mary Maps, and a great-grandaughter of Generl Schuyler, of revolutionary fame. The children of their marriage were : Mary J., who married Daniel Carroll; Agnes, es, who married Robert Dodge ; Ella, wife of George Milam ; Sarah, who married William Bennett; Frank ; and Carrie, the wife of William Osmeyer. Though reared a Presbyterian, the father joined with his wife in worship at the. Methodist Church of Harrisonville. With his youth spent in Harrisonville, where he attended the public schools, Frank Minford learned his trade under the eye of his father, and for a number of years has been owner of the business and has made it a source of substantial prosperity. Mr. Minford is affiliated with Ives Lodge No. 472, Knights of Pythias, and he and wife are members of the Baptist Church. On October 20, 1887, Mr. Minford married for 'his first wife Lizzie Munn. She was born in Jefferson Township, a daughter of Ira Munn, and died in 1890, leaving a .son named William. His second marriage was celebrated August 4, 1895, when Miss Lizzie Gaston became his wife. She was born in Madison Township. Joseph Gaston, her father, was a native of Ohio and a son of Joseph and Abigail (Dewey) Gaston, and after being engaged in merchandising at Harrisonville several years moved to Portsmouth and was connected with the Gilbert grocery house until his death. Mr. and Mrs. Minford became the parents of five children, named Homer, Gertrude, Gladys, Ada and Kathleen, but the last named died February 11, 1915. DANIEL H. FEURT, a representative agriculturist and honored pioneer citizen of Scioto County, who passed away April 1, 1915, was a scion in the third generation of one of the staunch old families of the Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio, with which the name which he bore HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1031 has been identified for virtually an entire century, so that he was a member of one of the oldest of the sterling pioneer families yet concerned with the . civic and business interests of this section of the state. Venerable in years, he was able to offer many interesting reminiscences concerning the early days in Southern Ohio, as well as incidents of importance touching the development and progress of the iron industry, which has played an important part in the upbuilding of this region and with which he was formerly identified in an active way, besides which he was a prominent figure in the local field of merchandising and in the exploiting of the fine agricultural resources of Scioto County. Mr. Feurt was born in Lawrence County, Ohio, on the 22d of January, 1836, and is a son of Daniel and Frances (Henry) Feurt, the former of whom was born in what is known as the French Grant, in what is now Green Township, Scioto County, and the latter of whom was a daughter of James Henry, a Virginian, who likewise became a pioneer settler in this part of the Buckeye State ; on the maternal side she was a granddaughter of Rev. John Lee, a pioneer clergyman of the Baptist Church in Southern Ohio, where lie established his home in the early '20s and where he long labored with consecrated zeal and devotion. Daniel Feurt was a son of Francis and Mary Feurt, who were numbered among the very early settlers of the French Grant, in Scioto County, and lie was reared to maturity in Green Township, this county, his marriage having been solemnized in Lawrence County, where in his earlier career he followed the trade of wheelwright. He later became a successful exemplar of the agricultural industry, under the primitive conditions that obtained in the pioneer days, and he died September 29, 1858. His wife died August 18; 1860, both having been most zealous and consistent members of the Baptist Church. Of the twelve children only two are now living,—Dr. William H. Feurt, a venerable physician residing at Proctor-\Tulle, Lawrence County, and Ida, who is the wife of. Dr. Clinton G. Gray, residing at 169 South Third Street in the City of Ironton, Lawrence County. Daniel H. Feurt passed his youth on the old homestead farm in Scioto County and was afforded the advantages of the common schools of the locality and period, though his broader education has been gained under the direction of that wisest of all head-masters, experience. In the earlier period of his independent career Mr. Feurt wa.s associated with the operation of iron furnaces in the Hanging Rock Region, having been first employed by James Forsythe of the Empire Furnace Company, as storekeeper at the furnace operated by the firm and having held this position from 1865 to 1870. He next entered the service of Charcoal Iron Company, holding the position of bookkeeper for two years, and that of 1032 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION manager for the ensuing five years, besides which he became a stock-. holder in the company. Thereafter lie passed two years in conducting a farm and then assumed the position. of bookkeeper and assistant manager for the firm of Means, Kyle & Company, likewise operating -mines and furnaces. At the expiration Of five years he again turned his attention to farming, with which industry he has continued to be identified during the long intervening years and in connection with which he was specially successful, as one of the enterprising and progressive farmers of Scioto County. He was also an interested principal in a general store at Wheelersburg; but after years of earnest endeavor he laid aside the more arduous cares of business and lived virtually retired, for sev- eral years. He was the owner of Rosewall Farm, which comprises 130 acres and is one of the-model places of Scioto County, with improvements of the best order and with every evidence of thrift and prosperity. He resided on this attractive rural homestead,. which is situated three miles south of the. Village of Wheelersburg and sixteen miles north of Ironton, the metropolis and judicial center of Lawrence County. In politics he was unswerving in his allegiance to the republican, party, to the cause of which he has always given his support, though he was never imbued with desire for public office., He was an earnest member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, as is also his wife, and in the gracious evening of their lives it was their good fortune to be compassed by peace and prosperity and to have their home in a community in which their, circle of friends was limited only by that of their acquaintances. On the 24th of September, 1.857, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Feurt to Miss Caroline W. McNeal, who was born in Greenup, Kentucky, on the 2d of December, 1829, and who came with her 'parents to Ohio when she was a child. Here she was reared to womanhood, receiving the advantages of the common schools, and her marriage to Mr. Feurt was celebrated in Scioto County. Of the five children four are living: Ella, who received excellent educational. advantages and became a successful teacher when a young woman, is now the wife of George W. Fry of Richmondale, Ross County, Ohio. Frank Lee Feurt, who is assistant manager of the W. A. Murdock Company, wholesale grocery, at Ironton, wedded Miss Grace A. McIntosh, and they have two children, Lois Lee, who is a graduate of the high school in the City of Seattle, Washington, and who is now the wife of Oscar J. Holmes of Chicago, and Donald M., who was likewise graduated in the Seattle High School and who is now a commercial traveling ..salesman located at Los Angeles, California. Clare C., the third daughter of Mr. and -Airs. Daniel H. Feurt, is the wife of William H. McCurdy of Wheelersburg, to whom an individual sketch is devoted on other pages of this work. Bessie is the wife of HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1033 Anthony Gerlach, who is a successful teacher in the public schools of Scioto County, as was also his wife prior to their marriage. ALSINES GASKILL. Few families have been longer identified with the various -sections of the State of Ohio than that of which Alsines Gaskill is a representative. Mr. Gaskill is one of the venerable residents of Elk Township in Vinton County and has already passed the age' of fourscore years. The ,record of the family is well worthy of incorporation in this publication.' The Gaskills were of Dutch ancestry. Soon after the close of the War of 1812 they. came as pioneers to Ohio and then wilderness of Medina County. The head of the family at that time was Charles Gaskill, and his wife Matilda. One of the children was Samuel Gaskill, father of Alsines, Samuel had been born in New Jersey in 1804. In Medina County the family located on a large tract of Government land. All around them was a. comparative wilderness. By his labors Charles Gaskill cleared up a full half section of land in that locality, and for many years he supplied the greater part of the meat consumed on the table from the deer and turkey which roamed at will through the woods. Charles Gaskill .and. his wife Matilda spent the rest of their days in Medina County and died when old people. They were God fearing and highly respectable according to all the standards of usefulness and character. 'In politics Charles was a whig. There were nine sons and daughters in- the family, all of whom grew up and married and had families 'of their own. After reaching his majority in. Medina County Samuel Gaskill married Maria A. Sears. 'She was born in Pennsylvania in 1802, and was still a girl, when her parents, who were of the old Pennsylvania Dutch stock, moved into Medina County, Ohio, and likewise underwent the hardships and privations of pioneer life. Her parents finally moved out to Missouri, where they died. Samuel Gaskill and wife lived in Medina County for several years after their marriage. While there two sons were born. One of these was Alsines, who was born May 18, 1834. His brother George was borne two years later: Then in 1837 the family started for a new home in Muskingum County, locating at Frazeysburg. Samuel Gaskill was a. blacksmith by trade, having learned that art in Medina County, and at Frazeysburg he set up a shop and was 'one of the early mechanics in that community, doing horse shoeing and general repair pork for a large community. He lived at Frazeysburg until 1840 and in the meantime the household circle had been expanded by the addition of 'another son, Jacob. The family then Moved to another part of the same county, in the Honell neighborhood, where Samuel' Gaskill 1034 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION set up a country blacksmith shop and continued to work at his trade. While living there other children were born : Harriet, Ellen and twins William and Ann Eliza, who were born in 1844 and were eighteen months of age when in 1846, while the war with Mexico was still in progress; the family undertook another removal, this time locating in Athens Township of Athens County. There Samuel Gaskill bought 130 acres of land and again set up a blacksmith shop. He cleared the farm largely with the help of his own boys. The youngest child was born in Athens County, named Olive. In 1863, Samuel Gaskill and wife moved to Southern Kansas, where they were very early settlers. Three months later in the same year Samuel was stricken with a fever and died, and still in the prime of his years, having never been sick up to that time. His widow survived him for a great many years and was ninety-one when she died. She spent her declining years in the home of her son William, who became well known in that section of Kansas as a horse dealer. In the various localities mentioned in Ohio, Alsines Gaskill spent his early youth. He received a common school education, and while in Athens County learned the trade of stone cutter. He subsequently became a stone contractor, and did a great deal of foundation construction on both private and public buildings. One building for which he laid the foundation was the state asylum. He also constructed the jail in Vinton County and a number of private buildings in McArthur. He first came to Vinton County in 1854. He was one of the earliest members of the republican party in this county, and as there were very few of his fellow partisans he was refused the privilege of casting his ballot as a 'republican during the first presidential election in which that party figured. In order not to lose his right as a voter he walked the entire distance of twelve miles to Albany, Ohio, where his vote was accepted. Mr. Gaskill has lived on his present farm in Elk Township in section 34, since 1882. At that time he bought fifty-six acres, the chief improvement being a one-room hewed log house. He afterwards added five rooms to this and has made it a very comfortable home. Other improvements have followed from time to time, and he now has excellent farm buildings and makes his land produce good crops and he raises considerable stock and poultry. In politics he has been a republican since casting his first ballot in the manner already indicated and has been a very active member of the Methodist Church. His wife was a member of the Presbyterian denomination. At Wilkesville in Vinton County Mr.. Gaskill married Mary E. DeVault. She was born in that community January 29, 1844, and was HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1035 reared and educated in the Village of Wilkesville. They had a long and happy married companionship, and it was interrupted when she died at a hospital in Columbus while undergoing an operation October V, 1903. Her parents were Louis and Margaret (Strausbaugh) DeVault, both of whom were born in Harrison County, Ohio, and were of German parentage. They came in early life to Vinton County, and spent the rest of their days in this county. For many years they lived on a farm near Zaleski, where her father died in his eighty-ninth year. His first wife Margaret died in the prime of life and by a second marriage he had a son and two daughters. While his career in its material manifestations has been one of very satisfactory results, Mr. Gaskill has found his chief solace in his later years in his own children. A brief record of these is given as follows: Flora is the wife of William Power, a coal operator in Coshocton County, Ohio, and they have a family of four sons and three daughters. Dora is the wife of Gale Brown, a farmer in Elk Township, and they have five daughters and six sons. William became a resident of Minot, North Dakota, and was killed near there in a railroad wreck, leaving a widow and five children, his widow having subsequently married again. Catherine is the wife of Ellsworth Brown, a fanner and coal dealer at McArthur, and they have four sons and two daughters. Margaret is the wife of Charles Downhour, who is employed in the state hospital at Gallipolis, Ohio, and they have one daughter. Minnie is the wife of William Morrison, of McArthur, and of their five children three are still living. Pearley has gained distinction as an educator, having been active in that work for the past twenty-two years, and in 1913 he completed a course in the Ohio University at Athens ; he has served as superintendent of the Washington County district schools and is now principal of the largest grade school in Huntington, West Virginia, with 750 students under his charge; he holds a life certificate in Ohio as a teacher both in grade and high schools ; he was married in Wellston to Mertie M. Brohard of Colton, Jackson County, who for fourteen years was a teacher before her marriage and is a graduate of the normal department of the Ohio University, and since her marriage has become the mother of two children, Dwight D. and Abel R. The son Peter is doing well as a furniture dealer and undertaker at McArthur, and by his marriage to Essie Chatfield has three children, Rhea, Lucille and Charles. Mettie is unmarried and since the death of her mother has devoted herself to the care and welfare of her father and the management of the home. Harry, who is a fireman with the K. & M. Railroad' and resides at Middleport, Ohio, is married and has a daughter Oneita E., and a son Elmer E., and they are both in school and live 1036 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION with his grandfather Mr. Gaskill, while another daughter, Mary O. died at the age of eight months. Lillian is the wife of Frederick Lemley of Athens, and they have a daughter Laura B. DANIEL WILL. Nearly a half a century has passed since the founding of the institution which now bears the name of the Vinton County National Bank, at McArthur, and during this entire period its fortunes have been directed by Daniel Wilt Mr. Will's start in life was not auspicious, for his early schooling was confined to a mastery of the "Three R's," but he possessed inherent talent for business and finance, had an ingrained honesty of principle that made it impossible for him to carry on transactions in other than a strictly honorable manner, and was the possessor of an ambition and determination that never allowed obstacles to stand in his way. While accumulating a material fortune, Mr. Will has also contributed signally to the welfare of the town with whose interests he has been so intimately associated, and to few men is McArthur indebted in greater degree for services rendered. The Will family in America is an old and honored one, and its members have been identified largely with pioneer life. The founder of the family in this country was George Will, who emigrated in a sailing vessel from Baden, Germany, and located in Berks County, Pennsylvania, sonie years before the outbreak of the Revolutionary war. Enlisting in the patriot army, he was promoted from private to sergeant, and then to lieutenant, which rank he bore when mustered out and honorably discharged. He married a Pennsylvania girl, and their family' included George Will, Jr., the grandfather of Daniel Will, who was born in Berks County, Pennsylvania, July 3, 1774. He grew up in his native community, and there learned the trade of shoemaker under his father, although he later gave up that trade to become a merchant. He married a German young lady, a Miss Greschner, and some time between the years 1790 and 1800 came with his family, his father and the latter's family to Adelphi, Ross County, Ohio, and settled in Colerain Township. There the elder George Will died not many years later, possibly .early in the nineteenth century. He was either a Methodist or a Lutheran in his religious faith. George Will, Jr., soon after settling in Ohio, became a merchant at Adelphi, at which place there was a whisky distillery. This product he bought at 12 1/2 cents per gallon and disposed of it for 50 cents per gallon. His old accounts, kept in shillings, pounds and pence, show that the greater part of the liquor was bought by the gallon. He had served in the early Indian wars of the state and was corporal of his company, and when the War of 1812 came on, raised a company, was HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1037 elected captain, and joined the army of General Harrison, making a gallant record as a soldier. After his return to the life of the civilian he resumed his mercantile operations, and also secured 160 acres of land in Elk Township, Vinton County, all underlaid with coal, which is now the Property of his grandson, Daniel This sturdy old pioneer rode from his Ohio home all the way to St. Louis, Missouri, on horseback, securing 160 acres of land from the United States Government on the present site of St. Louis. Later he was compelled to sell this land to pay a debt he had secured for a neighbor. The entire 160 acres are now built over with residence and business property, and had he held on to this property a few years longer he would have accumulated a vast fortune from its sale. In May, 1845, Mr. Will rode a horse from Adelphi to Jackson, Ohio, and then to McArthur, all through a cold rain. This experience brought on an attack of pneumonia, from which he died a. few' days later at this City. His widow outlived him for some years, and died while on a visit to Albany, Athens County, Ohio, aged seventy-six .years. Both were active members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. His father had been a member of one.. of the first sessions of the Ohio Legislature, and the junior George Will inherited his taste for politics, being an active and prominent Whig, and at one. time mayor of Adelphi.- Of the children of George Will, Jr., Jacob G. was born in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, July 11, 1806. He was reared in Ross County, Ohio, where his brother Joseph K. Will was born, the latter becoming a pioneer merchant at McArthur, where he died, leaving three sons. and. one daughter. Jacob G. Will had three sisters : Elizabeth, who married J. K. Johnson, a pioneer farmer of Vinton County,.. and left .issue at her death ; Lucinda, who married Rev. Abram McCartlich, a pioneer preacher and old-time circuit rider of the Methodist Episcopal Church ; and Clarissa, who married James Fowler, who located -and became a well known merchant at Lafayette, Indiana, leaving at his death descendants who have since been prominent in business affairs. After his marriage, Jacob G. Will embarked in farming but later sold out and became a merchant at Hallsville, Ross County. In 1841 he dame to McArthur, Where he became a merchant; but in 1858 returned to farming. Subsequently he sold goods at Zaleski, Vinton County, where his death occurred in 1882. Mrs. Will, whose maiden name was Sarah Swinehart, lived to be eighty-nine years of age, and died in the faith- of the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which 'her husband was also a member. He was a republican, and not an office seeker served as justice of the peace and .associate judge of Vinton County. There were nine Children in the family :- Joseph B., deceased; Aaron ; George 1038 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION L., deceased; Daniel; 'Susan; Jacob S. and Mary, who are deceased; Henry G.,. and Clara. Daniel Will grew up with but few advantages to secure an education, but he soon found out that he, could educate himself by reading and observation, and thus became a proficient scholar. In 1851 he began his business career as a clerk for his uncle, Joseph K. Will, and three years later secured an interest in the store. This he sold in 1860, and in 1.861 became the proprietor of a strictly cash store at McArthur, and while he had no book accounts he was soon selling more goods than the other three stores in town put together. In 1866 he associated with him his brothers, Jacob S. and Aaron Will, and continued as their partner until October 1, 1867, when he started the Vinton County. Bank, a state institution with a capital of $75,000, his. associates being Thomas G. Davis,. Jacob G. Will, Jacob S. Will, Aaron Will, Andrew Wolfe, Edward G. Doge, Charles Brown and H. S. Bundy. J. W. Delay was cashier and Daniel Will president. On October 1, 1872; Mr. Will secured a charter and started the Vinton County National Bank, with a capital if $100,000, and this institution has continued' as one of- the most safe and substantial banking houses in the county. Some years ago, for convenience, the capital was reduced to $50,000. Aside from 'the bank Mr. Will has many other interests, being the owner of the Will Hotel and of 1,600 acres of valuable land in the county, as well as city and town. realty. He has held but few offices, but has been an active factor in securing advantages for his community .and no movement for the general welfare is considered complete until his name has been added to its list. of backers. Worthy charitable enterprises never appeal to him in vain, and for many years he was a supporter of religious movements. He is a republican in his political views, but not a' politician. Mr. Will is unmarried. LEWIS JAMES GEORGE who recently completed, a term as county commissioner of Vinton County is a citizen of Swan 'Township whose prosperity can be spelled with capital letters. Inheriting the characteristics of industry and proficiency in business affairs, he has made the best of his opportunities and in addition to providing for the welfare of himself and those dependent upon him he has accepted many opportunities to serve his community. His fine estate of 360 acres is located in, sections 29 and .30, Swan Township. This land he utilizes for general farming and stock raising .purposes, but its special feature is the oil and gas development which has been Carried 'on largely under Mr. George's supervision. He now has in operation three gas wells producing many thousand cubic feet of HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1039 gas per day, and two other wells at this writing are being brought in which will probably produce equally as much as the other two. He also has two oil wells producing from seventy to eighty barrels per day. Naturally the presence of these wells has vastly increased the value of his estate, and he has had some flattering offers to sell, running up into five figures, but lie is not disposed to part with his holdings and in that he stows his excellent judgment. Mr. George has lived on this farm in Swan Township for fifteen years, and has owned it in his own right for the past two years. He was born in Swan Township August 2, 1872, was reared and educated there and it has been his home since childhood and he knows practically every resident of the township if not the county and is equally well known and esteemed. His parents were William and Prudence (Heri) George. His father was born in Muskingum County and his mother in Vinton County, and after their marriage they lived in Swan Township until the death of Mrs. George in 1874. She was at that time in the prime of life and her only surviving child is Lewis James George. The latter's father subsequently returned to Muskingum County and married Lillian Williams, who spent her years in that county and died there. The father died at the Athens State Hospital when past fifty-five. He was a soldier who saw active service throughout the entire four years of the Civil war. Most of his service was as a musician in his regiment, and in one battle he was wounded in the knee. After the death of his mother Lewis James George was taken into the home of his maternal grandparents William James and Elizabeth (Sowers) Herl, with whom he lived while growing up to manhood, being tenderly cared for and capably trained by his grandfather and grandmother, and in turn he gave them the best of his devotion and care while they Were in their declining years. His grandfather Herl died about twenty-five gears ago, and his grandmother some ten years later. In 1897 Mr. George was married in Swan Township to Estella F. Dunkle. Mrs. George was born in Swan Township April 25, 1875, and has spent practically all her life in this one locality. She is a member of a prominent and well known family in Vinton County, and an account of the Dunkles will be found on other pages. To the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. George were born six children. William B., born September 20, 1897, was graduated from the McArthur High School with the class of 1915 and is still at home. Walter R. Was born August 25, 1898, and is now in the eighth grade of the public schools. Leverett was born- December 5, 1900, and died January 15, 1901. Dora F. was born July 14, 1902, and is in the eighth grade of the 1040 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION public schools. Arthur James born September 8, 1912, and Harry F. was born May 10, 1915. While Mr. George has been an exceedingly busy man looking after his interests as a farmer and in the development of his oil and gas interests; he has played an active part in local politics as a democrat. For four years he served- as assessor, and was then elected county commissioner, an office in which he gave a very creditable administration for four years, his' term closing in. September, 1915. SAMUEL A. ROSS of Elk Township in Vinton County has filled his seventy-four odd years of life with useful and honorable activities. During the last forty or fifty years a great Many houses and other buildings have taken form and fashion under his hand as a skilled mechanic and carpenter. At the same time he has looked after a farm. and has one of the well cultivated estates in Elk Township. Not least to be remembered of the record of his life was his service of three years as a soldier in the Civil war. He went out When a young man as a member of Company A in the Thirty-first Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He was with Sherman on his famous march to the sea after the fall of Atlanta. In fact he participated practically in every engagement in which his regiment was present. In the Battle of Resaca, Georgia, as' the result of the explosion of a shell he received a disability wound. He always fought in the ranks as a private and now for a number of years he has enjoyed the associations of his old comrades in the Sergeant Reed Post, Grand Army of the Republic, at McArthur. Samuel A. Robb was born six miles east of Zanesville in Muskingum County,- Ohio, May 22; 1842. His parents were James T. and Nancy (Leach) Robb; His father was born in Pennsylvania August 7, 1809. His mother was born in the North of Ireland in 1817, and was eleven years of age when her parents Mathew and Nancy (Thompson) Leach, came from their native district of Ulster and in 1828 located in Guernsey County, Ohio. 'That section of Southern Ohio was then almost a complete wilderness; and Cambridge, the county seat, was a very small village. The Leachs improved a, farm near New Concord, and the grandparents lived and died on that place, which they had acquired direct from the Government. They were members Of the Presbyterian Church and Grandfather Leach was a whig in politics. After his marriage James Robb started out as a farmer in Guernsey County and lived there for a number of years. He next went. to Muskingum County and after making some improvements on a farm there sold out and moved to Salt Lick Township in Perry County, Ohio. It was in 1849 that he established his home in that county, and again HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1041 he found himself in an environment little removed from pioneer times. His industry enabled him to clear up and improve a good farm, and he lived on it for twenty-eight years. Having sold that property, he finally moved to Vinton County and on November 18, 1873, bought a home in section 5 of Elk Township. James Robb owned 240 acres of good land in that locality and that was his home until his death in April, 1895. His wife passed away November 1, 1891. They were members of the United Brethren Church and in politics he was a democrat until the war, after which he steadily supported the republican candidate. For two terms he filled the office of township trustee. Samuel A. Robb was one of a family of eight children. Harriet, the oldest, died in girlhood. Matthew became .a soldier, in an Ohio regiment during the Civil war and died of illness in 1862. Samuel A. is the third in the family. Nancy J., the widow of Alexander Kontner, lives in Elk Township. Margaret R. has never married. Sarah E. married Christopher Richmond, and both are now deceased, having left no children. William .H. lives on the old homestead in Elk Township and his wife is now deceased- James F. is now deceased and his widow and five children are still living in Elk Township. The early life of Samuel A. Robb was spent largely in Perry County, where he attended the public schools and was about twenty years of age when he entered the army. He `was married at Whipstown in Perry County to. Miss Lydia Davis who was born in Salt Lick Township of that county, a daughter of George R. and Rebecca (Whipps) Davis, who were also natives and spent all their lives in Perry County. Mr. Davis .was a carpenter, and died at the age of sixty-six, while his widow lived to be ninety-three. They were members of the Methodist Church, and in politics he was a republicans After his marriage Samuel A. Robb and wife located on .a farm, and he followed his trade of carpenter while looking after the cultivation of his acres. As a carpenter he did some pioneer constructive work in Perry County, and he helped to construct the first building, a hotel, put up_ at the Town of Shawnee. In 1873 he brought his family to Elk Township of Vinton County and for more than forty years has lived in that locality and plied his dual vocation as carpenter and farmer. As a farmer he is the owner of sixty-eight acres in section 35, and has it all under the plow except three acres. 'He and his family reside in a comfortable six-room house with basement, surrounded with a good set of faith buildings. He raises corn, wheat and has some pasture land for his stock. In the making of his successful career Mr. Robb pays a tribute to the helpfulness and devotion of his good, wife, who died at the home in 1042 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION Elk Township November 5, 1907. She was a member of the Methodist Church. Ten children were born into their household.: William P., who now' lives at Elk Fork, has two children named Jacob and Frances. Eva O. by a first marriage had two children named Harley and Clarence, and she is now the wife of Frank Spencer of Canton, Ohio, and has two daughters, Dorothy and Dora. Jane is the wife of William Vollmuth, a produce merchant at Columbus, Ohio. George L. lives on a farm in Elk Township, and by his marriage to Eva Simms has three children, Mabel G., Frances H. and Grace S. Sarah E. is the wife of Charles Pickens of Columbus, and their children are Verne G. and Pauline V. Edward is a stockman and farmer at Eddyville, Wapello. County, Iowa, and by his marriage to Mabel May, has two children, Ruth and Louise. Ida M. since the death of her mother has lived at home and has been the devoted companion and housekeeper for her father. Anna M. is the wife of William Zimmerman of Columbus, Ohio, and, their children are named Gladys M., Herbert L., Bertha I., Everett G., William R., Robert and. Mary L., the last now deceased. Dora E. is the wife or Samuel Brown of Orland, Ohio, and they have a son named Earl. Addy B., wife of Elmer Ward of Elk Township, and their children are Arthur E., Opal B., Leo R. and Glendon. While Mr. Robb is not a member he is an active supporter of the United Brethren Church at Vinton -Station and is one of the splendid and progressive citizens who have always been willing to do an earnest part in community endeavors. JACOB CLEMENTS. On both the paternal and maternal sides is Mr. Clements a representative of sterling pioneer families Of Vinton County, Ohio, and he is now one of the most venerable and honored of the native sons still residing within the borders of this county, where he has lived from the time of his birth and where he has kept pace with and assisted in the march of civic and industrial development and progress. In the spring of 1915 he celebrated his eightieth birthday anniversary, and this fact in itself bears evidence of his being a scion of a pioneer family of this favored section of the Buckeye State. On the old homestead farm of his father, in what is now Elk Township, Vinton County, Jacob Clements was born on the 12th of April, 1835, and he is a son of Thomas and Margaret (Waltz) Clements, the former a native of England and the latter of what is now Vinton County, Ohio, each having been born in the early part of the nineteenth century. Thomas Clements acquired his early education in his native land, where his parents passed their entire lives, and he was little more than a boy when he ran away from home, thus asserting his spirit of independence and his desire for adventure, and in later years he never HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1043 regretted the action which he took at that time, save for the lack of filial consideration which he had thoughtlessly manifested. The intrepid youth embarked on a sailing vessel of the type common to the period and after a long and weary voyage across the Atlantic he finally landed ill the port of New York City, whence, for no definite reason now known, he forthwith made his way to Ohio, in which state he became a youthful pioneer in the southern part of the state, by establishing his residence in that part of Vinton County which was then in Athens County. He became a resident of the present Elk Township within the second decade of the nineteenth century, and here.he formed the acquaintance of the young woman who was destined to become the sharer of his joys and sorrow and to walk by his side, a devoted wife and helpmeet, during many long years. Here he finally wedded Miss Margaret Waltz, who, as previously noted was a native of -Vinton County, where her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Waltz, settled upon their immigration from their old home State of Pennsylvania, they having been among the very early pioneers of Vinton County, where the father entered claim to a tract of heavily timbered Government land and set himself vigorously to the reclaiming of a farm from the sylvan wilderness, which at the time was filled with all manner of wild game, besides being still the travois of numerous Indians. Jacob Waltz and his noble wife became well known and greatly valued members of the pioneer community, where they represented the best element of loyal and upright citizenship, endured with equanimity the trials, hardships and arduous labors that fell to them in connection with establishing the arts of civilization in a new country, and made their humble log house an abode of peace and comfort and a place of generous and unassuming hospitality,—one to which the old-time expression that the "latchstring was always out," applied in a literal. sense. Mrs. Waltz died while in the prime of life and her husband thereafter married Isabinda Drake. They finally removed from their farm to McArthur, the county seat, and in later years they went to California, where they passed the closing period of their lives in gracious prosperity and amid pleasing surroundings, each having attained venerable age. Mr. Waltz was a man of parts,—strong, vigorous and loyal in his personality, and the earnest and effective service which he gave in connection with the development and upbuilding of Vinton County entitles his name to enduring honor and to a high place on the roster of the sterling pioneers of this section of the Buckeye State. After his marriage Thomas Clements settled on a tract of wild land in Elk Township, the same haying previously been obtained by him directly from the Government. He and his devoted young wife began their married life in a primitive log house of the type common to the Vol. II-26 1044 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION pioneer era, and in this modest dwelling were born all of their children, —five sons and five daughters. Three sons and three daughters attained to maturity, married and reared children, and of the number only two are now living,--Jacob, who is the subject of this review, and Richard, who maintains his home in McArthur. Richard has been twice married and his only surviving child is a daughter who was born of the second marriage. Richard Clements celebrated his eighty-third birthday in 1915, is still vigorous of mind and in physical powers and is about three years the senior of his brother Jacob, who was third in order of birth of the ten children. The .father was a staunch and intelligent advocate of the principles of the democratic party and the mother was a life-long and devoted member of the Christian Church. Both continued their residence on their old homestead farm until their death and both commanded the high regard of all who knew them. The father died when about forty-eight years of age and the mother passed away when about seventy-three years of age. Jacob Clements found the period of his childhood and early youth compassed by the benignant and invigorating conditions and influences of the home farm and while contributing his quota to its work he did not neglect the advantages afforded him in the pioneer schools of the locality and period. He remained at the parental home until he had attained to-the age of nineteen years, when he initiated his independent career by entering the employ of one of his paternal uncles, in the capacity of a farm worker. He remained with his uncle four years and thereafter was employed for a similar period and in a similar way by Pinkney Brown, another of the representative pioneer farmers of the county. He then went to Illinois, where he remained about one year, .after which he resumed his association with agricultural activities in his native county, his marriage having occurred a few years after his return to Vinton County. In May, 1875, forty years ago, Mr. Clements removed with his family to McArthur, the county seat, where he has since maintained his residence, his home being a commodious and substantial brick house that is eligibly and pleasantly situated on North Market Street. For a number of years after establishing his residence at McArthur Mr. Clements conducted a prosperous business in handling all of the freight and express transportation between this place and the Village of Dundas, which latter was then the nearest railroad point to McArthur, to which latter point the Hocking Valley Railroad had not yet completed the line which now affords to the county seat excellent transportation facilities of a direct order. With the money which he accumulated through his activities in this connection Mr. Clements was enabled to purchase a HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1045 farm of 160 acres, lying. adjacent to McArthur, and of this specially valuable property he still retains possession of 144 acres, seventy-two acres of which lie within the corporate limits of the thriving little city of McArthur. He still gives an active general supervision to his farm, which is well improved and under effective cultivation, besides being utilized also in the raising of excellent grades of live stock. The -farm formerly belonged to the mother of. his wife and the marriage of Mr. and Mrs.. Clements was solemnized on this old homestead place, in a little log house, this having been the domicile in which Mrs. Clements was born and the date of her nativity having been January 24, 1842, and she having been the youngest of the ten children of John and Sarah (Atha) Arnold, who gave to her the personal name of Hannah Elizabeth. Her parents were born and reared in Virginia and after their marriage they came to Vinton County, Ohio, and became early settlers on, the partially improved farm, near McArthur, that continued the abiding place of Mr. Arnold until his death, at the age of forty-seven years, in 1843, his birth having occurred in 1796. His widow survived him by many years and continued her residence on the old home farm until the same was purchased by her son-in-law, Mr. Clements of this review, in whose home she passed the closing period of her life and was cared for with deep. filial solicitude by both Mr. and Mrs. Clements. This loved pioneer woman attained to the venerable age of eighty-four years, and was a devoted member of the United Brethren Church. He was a democrat in politics. Mr. and Mrs. Clements became the parents of six children, concerning whom the following brief data are available : Sarah L. died at the age of twenty years, in the very flower of young and gracious womanhood ; Jennie is the wife of Gilbert Warner, who is associated with a mercantile firm at Charleston, W. Va., and they have one son, Clement; Anna was the .wife of John Douglas, and she died in the City of Lafayette, Indiana, December 24, 1915, and her only child, Farrell, is living with her aunt in Charleston ; Pearl remains at the paternal home and is actively identified with the work and management of his father's farm ; Lydia died when about two years of age ; and Miss Bertha remains with her parents and has virtual charge of the domestic economics of the attractive home. Mr. and Mrs. Clements and their children are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church and though he has never had aught of ambition for the honors or emoluments of public office he has ever given an unswerving support to the cause of the republican party and has stood exponent of loyal, liberal and progressive citizens, with secure place in the confidence and good will of his fellowmen. 1046 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION THOMAS C. FOX. By judicious efforts as a farmer and general merchant, Thomas C. Fox has created a liberal prosperity for himself in the Locust Grove community of Jackson Township, Vinton County. This is one of the most select rural neighborhoods in Vinton County and his store is surrounded by a large group of well kept farms inhabited by thrifty, industrious people who have always been known as supporters of church, schools and other beneficent activities. Mr. Fox has been in business at the Locust Grove community for the past nineteen years. He has a fine store in a building 24x42 feet, well stocked with general merchandise of every kind required by a country community.. Near his store Mr. Fox erected some years ago a fine modern home of ten rooms, with complete equipment for comfort and convenience, including hot and cold running water, bath room and heated and lighted by natural gas. Surrounding his store and home are a plot of eight acres of ground which he uses partly in his business and partly for the growing of garden and orchard crops. The buildings occupy a fine site with a beautiful outlook over the surrounding country. Mr. Fox's real farm is 250 acres in the same township, and from its cultivation and management he derives large revenues. Thomas C. Fox was born in Hocking County, Ohio, August 18, 1869, and was reared and educated there, which remained his home until his removal to Locust Grove. He is a son of Thomas J. and Elizabeth (Grimes) Fox, who were natives of Ohio and were reared in Belmont County. His father graduated from high school and learned the carpenter's trade and became a. skilled mechanic. He was married in Belmont County, and after two children were born to them they removed to Hocking County, where he bought a small farm in Perry Township. He died there in July, 1875, when only thirty-two years of age. His widow afterwards married Henry Spencer, a farmer in Hocking County, where he died after the birth of six children at the age of fifty-five. His widow, Mrs. Spencer, now lives at Lancaster, and is still in good health at ,the age of seventy-two. She became the mother of nine sons by- her two marriages, and five of them are still living, and all have children except one. Next to the youngest in his father's family, Thomas C. Fox has made his success largely through his own efforts, since he was early thrown upon his own resources. He was married in Hocking County to Miss Stella Hunter. She was born in Perry Township of Morgan County, Ohio, May 21, 1873, and was reared and educated there. Her parents were Curtis and Susanna (Poling) Hunter, who were married in Hocking County and spent their lives on a farm there. Her father died in 1908 at the age of sixty-four and her mother in 1911 aged sixty- HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1047 eight. They were very strong Methodists, and did much to support church and moral institutions in their community. Her father was a republican. To the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Fox were born six children, one of whom died in infancy. Pearl D., born in August, 1896, received the education supplied by the local schools and is still at home. Bessie May, born March 26, 1898, is still at home. Earl Stanley, born May 18, 1899, and his education is also a product of the local schools. Leona Fern was born in 1904 and is still in school. Adelbert Odell was born in February, 1913. The family are all members of the Locust, Grove Methodist Church. In politics Mr. Fox is a republican, and is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows Lodge at McArthur. ALBERT S. PETTIT. Some of the best managed farms in the Hanging Rock Iron Region are found in Jackson Township of Vinton County. One of these is the home of Albert S. Pettit on rural route No. 1 out of Creola. Mr. Pettit has been a factor in that community for some thirty or thirty-five years. While most of his career has been spent in Vinton County, to which he came with his parents in the spring of 1866, he was born in Morgan County, Ohio, near the Village of Triadelphia in Deerfield Township July 11, 1861. He was reared at the old family homestead in the northeast corner of Jackson Township of Vinton County in section 1, and has never strayed far from the scenes of his youth. His present home is near the Hocking County line, and he owns eighty acres of well cultivated land in section 2 of Jackson Township. He has one of the very substantial rural residences of the county, a nine-room house, and with a large barn 40x40 feet. lie also owns 120 acres in section 1 of the same township, a part of the old homestead, and that land also is well improved and cultivated to general crops and devoted to stock raising. in his farming operations Mr. Pettit has long been considered one of the most progressive men of the township. His ancestry is partly French. His grandfather, Samuel Pettit, was born in New Jersey, from which state he removed to Pennsylvania, and there married a Miss Sniff. After their marriage they undertook the pioneer adventure of moving into Ohio and establishing a home in Morgan County, which was then almost a wilderness. They located in Deerfield Township, and entered a tract of new land from the Government. Samuel Pettit was still in the prime of his years and vigor when lie volunteered his services for one of the community enterprises that made a noteworthy feature in pioneer community life, a house raising. While thus engaged a log 'fell upon him and his death resulted from the 1048 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION injuries. His widow survived him a great many years and died at the home of her daughter at the age of ninety-two. She was a very vigorous woman, somewhat stern in disposition, and exercised a somewhat dominating influence over her family and in her community. She was the mother of five sons and one. daughter : Manuel, who died at the age of eighty-five ; Mahlon, who died at the age of eighty ; John, mentioned below, who lived to be seventy-three ; Samuel J., who died at the age of sixty-eight ; Elizabeth, who married Lewis Rempson, who died while a soldier in the Civil war, and she lived to a very great age. John Pettit, father of Albert S., was born in Morgan County, Ohio, April 26, 1815, a date which of itself indicates the very early settlement of the family there. He died at the old homestead in section 1 of Jackson Township in Vinton County, July, 1878. He was only seven years of age when his father died, and he was reared in the home of an uncle, Jonathan Sniff in Muskingum County. On reaching manhood he returned to Morgan County, and was married in Deerfield Township to Amanda Brewster. She was born in Morgan County July 7, 1822, a daughter of Harvey and Ann (Roberts) Brewster, who were both born in one of the eastern states and came in the early days to Morgan County securing a tract of wild land which they improved as a home. They died when past eighty years of age. The members of the Sniff and Brewster families were Presbyterians in religion, while the Pettits were Methodists. After marriage John Pettit and wife lived in. Morgan County until all their children were born. Albert was their youngest son and was eight years younger than the next oldest in the family. From Morgan County they moved to Jackson Township of Vinton County, where the parents spent the rest of their days. The mother died May 11, 1899. They were active members of the Locust Grove Methodist Episcopal Church and the father was a republican in politics. Their children were : James, who lives near Lewiston in Logan County, Ohio, where he has a nice home, and by his marriage to Elizabeth Johnson has a family of sons and daughters ; Nathan R.., whose home is at Logan, Ohio, married Harriet Campsey, who died some years ago, leaving eight or nine children ; Elmer O. died when five years of age ; Roxanna is the wife of Jacob Milhon. Albert S. Pettit was married in Jackson Township to a native girl, Miss Jennie Schooley. She was born in Hocking County February 27, 1861, and was reared and educated there. Her parents were Joseph and Jemima (Bermillion) Schooley. Her father was born in Louden County, Virginia, June 24, 1798, while her mother was born in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, May 27, 1822. Joseph Schooley went with his parents to Ohio when a boy, and they all settled in Tuscarawas County, HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1049 where his parents died. His mother was a Miss Hibb, an English woman. After his marriage in Tuscarawas County Joseph Schooley moved to Washington Township in Hocking County, where all his children were born. He finally came to Jackson Township in Vinton County, and died there at the age of seventy-nine, while his widow passed away several years' ago at the home of a daughter near Grand Junction, Colorado, at the age of eighty-seven. Joseph Schooley was a Quaker by early training, but usually supported the Methodist Church to which his wife belonged. The children in the Schooley family were : Naomi, who died as the wife of William Krishbaum, who now lives at Ashville, Ohio, and she left ten children, five daughters and five sons. The next in order is Mrs. Pettit. Alice married Morgan Grant. Jasper N.., a resident of Jackson Township, married Leah Lowrey, and has three daughters. Mr. and Mrs. Pettit have taken great pains in the rearing and training of their own children, and those still living are already well established in homes of their own. Their oldest, Percival P., born July 16, 1884, was educated in the Ohio University at Athens and is now employed in the oil fields, and married Lulu McHenry of West Virginia. Clyde E., born April 21, 1885, received good advantages in the way of schooling and assists his father in the management of the home farm. Raymond died at the age of sixteen `at the entrance to a promising young manhood. Lenore M., born July 7, 1893, completed her education in the Ohio University at Athens, and is now the wife of D. W. West of Hocking Comity, and they have a daughter, Grace L., who was born October 4, 1915. Mr. and Mrs. Pettit are active members of the Locust Grove Methodist Episcopal Church, in which he is a steward. In politics he is a republican. DAVID SIMIONS. One of the most earnest and successful promoters of farming and stockraising in Jackson County is David Simmons, who, aside from any prestige he may have received from connection with a fine old pioneer family of Ohio, has mapped out his own fortunes with a certainty of intent and purpose which could have no other result than the attainment of substantial success. Mr. Simmons was. born in Carroll County, Ohio, in December, 1841, a son of John Simmons, a native of Pennsylvania, and a grandson of Jacob Simmons, who was born in Germany. On coming to the United States, Jacob Simmons settled in Pennsylvania, but after a few years moved to Carroll County, Ohio, as a pioneer, building a log cabin in the wilderness. He split boards for the roof and puncheons for the floor, carried on operations in much the same manner as other pioneers,