HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1325 dren. Nearly all of the early ancestors of Mr. Rineheart were democrats in politics. Stephen Rineheart was one of nine children, six sons and three. daughters, and after he grew to manhood and was married he started life as a farmer near Waynesburg in Greene County. In that community all their children were born, and two of his daughters, Eliza beth and Hannah, died there after their marriage, leaving children. Stephen. Rineheart was a thrifty farmer and stock drover, and he and his wife lived to be past eighty .years of age. They were noble types of the old time citizens. The mother was a member of the Christian Church and the father was a democrat in politics. George Rineheart was fourteen years old when his father died at the age of forty-five. He grew up in his native county and acquired an ordinary education in the local schools. When still a boy he came to Ohio and, located in Guernsey County, where he started working as a farm hand. Later he moved to Noble County, Ohio, and there married Anna Bishop. She was born and reared in Noble County, and her father, Samuel ,Bishop, was an early settler in that county. Both her parents were natives of England, where they married, but spent 'most of their active careers on a farm in Noble County. In 1862 with his wife and three children, Mr. Rineheart moved into Vinton County, Ohio, where he bought a 160 acres of land in Jackson Township. With the co-operation 'of his wife, who was devoted to her home ,and thrifty and industrious, he improved his land and gradually got ahead in the world. Later, in 1895, he bought a 160 acres in another tract, this being well improved when he bought it. On the first farm he owned in Vinton County Mrs. Rineheart passed away. March 9, 1904, when a little past sixty-seven years of age. She had endeared herself to a large circle of friends and acquaintances by her noble character, and she herself was the mother of five children. The oldest .of these, Samuel, died in young manhood. Edison, who was born in Noble. County in 1858, was reared and educated in Vinton County, and now owns and operates a 160' acres of land in Jackson .Township. He is an excellent 'farmer and a man who exerts a strong influence in his community.- On January 25, 1880, he married in Swan Township of Vinton County Antha E. Witherspoon. She was born in Swan Township forty-six years ago and was well educated. Her parents were Capt. John S. and Delia (Albin) Witherspoon, both of whom are now deceased, having lived for many years on a farm 'in Swan Township. Captain Witherspoon was also a teacher for a number of years and later was a local preacher in ,a Methodist Episcopal Church. He served through the Civil war, first as a lieutenant and later as a -captain of Company *I of the Ninetieth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He was once wounded, by a bullet 1326 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION in the thigh. He had two brothers, David and William, who were also soldiers in the war. Mrs. Edison Rineheart is the mother of four children : Winnie, who is married ; Nellie, who is married and lives at. Woburn; Irvin and Roy, both at home. Antha, the oldest daughter of Mr. Rineheart, is the wife of William Edward and they live in St. Louis, Missouri. The son, George, died when twenty-nine years of age, after his marriage, and he left a son, Verne, who is a pharmacist and lives with his mother, whose maiden name was Mary Gibbs, in California. Lolla, the youngest of Mr. Rineheart's children, died after her marriage to Frank Binkley, and they lived in Hamilton, Ohio. During the past year Mr. George Rineheart has lived with the family of his son, Edison. While his work primarily has been as a farmer, he has for many years been accounted a most proficient family physician of the homespun order in Vinton County. It is reported on reliable authority that he has cured more people in the county than any regular physician. He was reared a democrat, but after the war he became a republican. He was also reared in the faith of the Lutheran Church, but in late years had worshiped as a Methodist. CHARLES HOOP. From his fourteenth year, Charles Hoop has been engaged in business as a machinist, and through a career of industry and perseverance has succeeded in establishing himself in an independent position. He was born at Latrobe Furnace, Jackson County, Ohio, February 2, 1863, and is a son of Peter and Ellen (Patterson) Hoop. His grandfather, also named Peter Hoop, was born February 12, 1800, in Germany, and was three years old when brought to the United States, where in after years he became prominent as a promoter of furnaces, principally in Ohio., He was married in 1823 to Miss Lantz, and they passed the remaining years of their lives in Jackson County. On the maternal side, Charles Hoop's grandmother was Ellen Patterson, who was born in Clarion County, Pennsylvania, September 15, 1815, and lived to the advanced age of ninety-one years. Peter Hoop, the father of Charles Hoop, was born in Jackson County. Ohio, grew up in the Hanging Rock Iron Region, received a public school education, and when still a youth became connected with his father in the promotion of furnaces, a business with' which he continued to be identified throughout his life. He married Miss Ellen Patterson, also a native of Jackson County, and they became the parents of ten children, namely : Mattie, James, Francis, Charles, Alice, Peter, Emma, Nellie, Willie and Thomas. Charles Hoop received his education in the public schools of his native locality, and when but fourteen years of age was put to work learning HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1327 the trade of machinist. In this vocation he made such rapid progress and showed such proficiency that at the age of eighteen years he was placed in charge of all the machinery at Latrobe Furnace. Since that time he has been interested in various ways in the furnace business, and at this time has his headquarters at Wellston, where he is well and favorably known in commercial and industrial circles. Mr. Hoop has always been a great lover of horses, and for a number of years was prominently engaged in raising, selling and racing fast horses, but of recent years has not engaged in this line of activity. In 1895 Mr. Hoop was married to Miss Susie McGarvey, daughter of John MeGarvey, and to this union there have been born two children : Robin and Gould. FENTON ELSWORTH WAXLER. For nearly half a century members of the Waxier family have had their home in Vinton County. It is an old and well known name in Elk Township, where Fenton Elsworth Waxier has for fully thirty years prospered as a progressive farmer and stock raiser, and has in that time developed one of the pleasantest country homes to be found in all the country around McArthur. He is descended from both Ohio and Virginia stock. His grandfather, George Waxier, was born in Virginia, grew up on a farm there, but when still young came to Ohio and located in Muskingum County. There he married a native of Muskingum County, Susan Ashton. They then settled on the Muskingum River, where for a number of years George Waxier conducted a salt works. Later he became a farmer, having moved down the river, from Zanesville, and on his farm spent the rest of his days. Both he and his wife were quite old when they died. Both were church people, he a member of the United Brethren and she in the Methodist Church. They were the parents of twelve children. The two now living are : Mrs. Duanna Etta. Neff of Zanesville, Ohio ; and Mrs. Nancy, widow of Alva Waxier, of Taylorsville, Ohio. George Waxier, Jr., one of these twelve children and the third in order of birth, was born in Muskingum County, Ohio, in January, 1832. He grew up there, and in 1854 married Miss Henrietta Swartz. She was born in Virginia October 22, 1832, and when thirteen years of age came with her family to Muskingum County, Ohio. She was also one of twelve children, most of whom grew up and married and besides Mrs. Waxier those now living are Wilson, John and Tillie, all of whom are married and have families. Their parents were Daniel and Mary (Mowery) Swartz. The former was born in Virginia and the latter in Germany, having come with her parents when six years of age to the United States. After George Waxier Jr., married he continued to live 1328 - HANGING. ROCK IRON REGION in Muskingum County until the spring of 1867. In the meantime four children, Alice, Fremont, Louis H. and Fenton Elsworth were born into their household. Alice died in March, 1900, and Fremont and Lewis H. died young. Fenton Elsworth and Alice were the only ones who accompanied their parents on the removal in 1867 to Vinton County. They located in Elk Township not far from what is now Vinton Station on the Baltimore & Ohio Railway, three miles east of McArthur. They acquired a part of the old Jones estate, comprising 257 acres. The improvement was a substantial nine-room brick house. George Waxier Jr., continued to live there and operate the farm until he was accidentally killed on the Baltimore & Ohio Railway near his home November 20, 1886. He was not only a very energetic and prosperous farmer, but a man whose character commanded respect wherever he went. As a republican he held several local offices, and was also a Union soldier in the Civil war from 1862 until the close. He enlisted from Muskingum County in the 122d Ohio Volunteer Infantry as a private and went through without wounds or capture. Much of his service was in the quartermaster's department. He was an active member of the United Brethren Church. His widow is still living,, making her home with her son Fenton Elsworth, and in spite of her eighty-three years still hale and hearty, able to look after part of the household duties and is a much .beloved personage in her community. She has been a lifelong member of the United Brethren Church. After the family came to Vinton County two other sons were born:. George V., who lives in Jackson County and by his marriage to Eva Timms has six sons and daughters ; and William H., who is agent and operator for the Hocking Valley Railroad at Wellston, Ohio, and by his marriage to Zaidee O'Neal has two sons. Fenton Elsworth Waxier was born while the family was still living in Muskingum County on May 10, 1861. He was about six years of age when they came to Vinton County and recalls some of the incidents of the removal. He was reared in Elk Township, gained an education in the local schools, and since 1882, has been an active and progressive farmer, having in that year bought his first place of 114 acres close to Vinton Station and not far from the old homestead of his parents. He has his land under improvement and cultivation, and has it well stocked with horses,. cattle and sheep. Mr. Waxier considers sheep to be the best kind of stock for farms in this part of Ohio, and raises those animals both for wool and for mutton. Mr. Waxier was married in Elk Township to Miss Barbara Rohl. She was born in Elk Township of Vinton County March 12, 1862, and was reared and received her education in her native locality. Her parents were Jacob and Catherine (Weaver) Hohl, both natives of Ger- HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1329 many where they were married before coming to the United States. They sailed on one of the old fashioned sailing vessels, spent several weeks on the ocean, and after living for a. few years in the East came in the late '40s to Eagle Furnace in Clinton Township of Vinton County, where Jacob Hohl was employed as a teamster at the furnace for a number of years. The family located on a farm in Elk Township and died there in 1867, when in middle life. His widow died there in 1904, being at that time seventy-two years of age, having been born. in 1832. She was a member of the United Brethren Church in this country, but both had been reared as Lutherans. Mr. Hohl was a democrat. To Mr. and Mrs. Waxier have been born five children : Carrie A. is the wife of Guy Teeters, and they now live in the State of Maryland and have three children : Vernon, Virgil and Gladys. Ruby 0. received her education in the public schools and is still living at home. Ora Emma is at home and is a graduate of the McArthur High School and for two years was a student in the Ohio University at Athens and is now a popular teacher in Vinton County. Zaidee P. is in the second year of the McArthur High School. Fenton R. died at the age of four months. Mr. and Mrs. Waxier and their family are members of the United Brethren Church, and attend worship close to their own home. In. politics Mr. Waxier is a republican. CHARLES HERBERT PIEPER. A worthy representative of that class of workers whose practical education, quick perceptions and great capacity for painstaking labor have advanced them to positions of business prominence formerly only occupied by men many years their seniors, Charles Herbert Pieper, while representing the vigorous and resourceful present of Ohio, gives promise of participating in its more enlightened future, more especially of Otway, Scioto County, in the Hanging Rock Region, where he is engaged in business as proprietor of the Otway Milling Company. To a very considerable extent it is the younger element in a community, especially outside of the large cities, which infuses spirit and zest into the spirit of the place. It is this element whose entrance upon the arena of active life dates not farther back than a decade of years, which furnishes most of the vim, zeal and stirring energy which keeps the nerves of the commercial world ramifying through all the lesser towns of the country. And of this class, as stated, Mr. Pieper is a very pronounced type. Charles Herbert Pieper was born at Otway, Scioto County, Ohio, March 10, 1893, and is a son of Lewis and Anna (Mossembarger) Pieper. The grandparents, Frederick and Henrietta (Small) Pieper, were natives of Germany, and were married on shipboard on the Atlantic Ocean, 1330 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION while coming to the United States. Settling in Jackson County, Ohio, they engaged in agricultural pursuits and here passed the remaining years of their lives. Lewis Pieper was born, reared and educated in Jackson County, Ohio, but after his marriage came to Scioto County, where he engaged in sawmilling, and after some years erected the present flour mill at Otway, of which he was the proprietor during the active years of his life. He was known as an honorable, capable and energetic man of business and as a citizen always took an active part in advancing the community's interests. The only child born to his parents, Charles Herbert Pieper was given good educational advantages in his youth, attending the public schools of Otway and supplementing this training with a business course in a commercial college at Portsmouth. When he graduated from the latter, in 1912, he returned to Otway and entered the business that had been founded by his father, with which he has continued to be identified to the present time and of which he is now proprietor. Mr. Pieper is a young man of excellent business qualifications, has made many friends in commercial circles here, and is in the enjoyment of a large and lucrative trade. On October 15, 1913, Mr. Pieper was married to Miss Mary E. Brown, who was born in Adams County, Ohio, October 26, 1890, and there reared and educated. Mrs. Pieper is a member of the Presbyterian faith, while her husband belongs to the Methodist Episcopal Church and is recording secretary thereof and superintendent of the Sunday School. He is fraternally connected with Smith Lodge No. 387, of the Knights of Pythias. In politics he is a democrat, but his business interests have kept him busy and he has found little time to devote to public affairs. REV. JOHN J. SCHNEIDER. Among the members of the Catholic clergy are found men of comprehensive education, religious zeal and progressive views, whose example and teachings exercise and influence for probity that must be numbered as one of the great factors in advancing any community. The Catholic priest must not alone be a spiritual guide and advisor to his people but he must also be possessed of a large measure of the practicality which will assist him to advise and teach in the ordinary walks of life and to protect the interests of his parish while promoting its temporal affairs. Much, in fact, is demanded of those who choose the unselfish life of the Catholic priest. As in other affairs of life, not all are fitted by Nature for the same sum of responsibility, and perhaps few, under the same conditions, would have so rapidly advanced to the important position now occupied by Father John J. Schneider, pastor of St. Joseph's Catholic Church, of Ironton. HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1331 Father Schneider was born at Columbus, Ohio, May 28, 1870, and is a son of John and Barbara (Baumann) Schneider. John Schneider was born in Germany, in 1834, and at the age of fourteen years came to the United States, locating first at Buffalo, where he remained three or four years and followed his vocation of jeweler. Subsequently he removed to Lancaster, Ohio, where he remained for a period of seven years, and then went to Franklin Furnace, Ohio, and about 1869 moved to Columbus, where he still resides, at No. 102 East Main Street, in the first ;three-story. brick building erected in that city, which was built by Mr. Baumann, the maternal grandfather of Father Schneider. Mrs. Schneider was born at Columbus, Ohio, in 1843, and has been the mother of twelve children : Mary, Annie, George, John J., Rosie, Lucy, Amelia, Cornelius, Antoinette and three who died in infancy. Father Schneider attended the parochial schools of Columbus until reaching the age of thirteen years, and at that time went to Dubuque, Iowa, where for two years he was a student at. St. Joseph College. Following this he attended St. Francis Seminary, near Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and then took a theological course at St. Mary's Seminary, on Price Hill, Cincinnati, where he remained three years. On June 9, 1893, he was ordained a priest in the Cathedral at Columbus, by Bishop Watterson, and in the presence of the Duke of Veranga. Father Schneider was then made assistant at the Cathedral, having charge of the Good Shepherd Convent, St. Francis Hospital and the County Infirmary for three years, and was then appointed priest in charge at the Catholic Church at Pomeroy, Ohio, where he continued for six and one-half years. In 1902 Father Schneider came .to Ironton, where he has since been in charge of St. Joseph's Church, and where his achievements have demonstrated not alone his intense religious zeal and fervor, but the possession of the highest business ability. Here he has purchased property valued at $5,500, has paid off debts of $22,000, has remodeled and repaired the church and its property, its schools and parish house, and the church is nearly out of debt at this time, its liabilities being less than $4,000. At this time Father Schneider has six societies and sodalities, viz : the Holy Name Society, St. George's Association, the Christian Mothers' Association, the Young Ladies' Sodality, the Children of Mary Sodality and St: Aloysius Young Men's Sodality, all of which are in a flourishing condition. Father Schneider considers he has gained his greatest success in his school work, where he teaches not only up to the eighth grade, but also the first and second grades of high school. He is also an advocate and promoter of daily communion. Beloved by his people, Father Schneider makes their every interest his own. When he finds leisure from his manifold duties and responsi- Vol. II-44 1332 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION bilities he devotes himself to his books, being an omnivorous reader ; but he is also fond of out-of-door sports, particularly baseball, and is the only priest to ever attend a national convention of organized baseball' as a delegate—that held at Columbus in 1913. GILBERT D. WAITE. The native born citizens and substantial business men of Scioto County have no more worthy representative than Gilbert D. Waite, of Portsmouth, a son of the late John Heaton Waite, and grandson of Benjamin Waite r., an early pioneer of this part of the state. He was born October 15, 1851, in Portsmouth, of honored English ancestry, being a lineal descendant in the eight generation from the immigrant ancestor, Richard Waite, his lineage being thus traced : Richard, Thomas, Joseph, John, Benjamin, Benjamin, John Heaton, and Gilbert D. Richard Waite was born in England in 1608. Coming to America in early life, he settled in Watertown, Massachusetts, where he is recorded as a landholder in 1637. John Waite, a life-long resident; it is supposed, of Massachusetts, was for many years proprietor of the Waite Tavern, which was located on the old stage road leading from Boston to Worcester. Benjamin Waite, Mr. Waite's great-grandfather, was born in Sudbury, Massachusetts, February 13, 1736. A young man of fine' physique, tall and well proportioned, famed as an athlete and a hunter, he enlisted, in 1755, as a private in a provincial regiment for service against the Trench and the Indians. Subsequently transferred to Roger's Corps of Rangers, he was always one of those selected for the most hazardous undertaking's of that famous body of soldiers. In 1756 he was captured by the enemy, taken. to Quebec, and from there was taken with other prisoners to France. Before landing, however, the vessel was captured by the English, and he was returned to America. With his brother, Joseph Waite, he again enlisted. under command of General Rogers, and distinguished himself in many desperate encounters with the savages. He was again captured in 1757, and taken to St. Francis, Canada, where, with other prisoners, he was forced to run the gauntlet, that is to make his way through two rows of Indians, armed with whips, clubs, etc., facing each other, each redskin to give him a whack as he passed through the line. Many prisoners were killed in going down the line, but young Waite understood Indian tactics, and when given the order to start seized a weapon and wrenched: it from the hand of the Indian nearest him, and swung it right and left as he went on, much to the amazement of his torturers, and of the older braves who witnessed the scene, passing unscathed to the very end of the line. There a French woman beckoned to him, took him under her protection, and he was well cared for. HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1333 Making his escape at the end of three months, he joined General Amherst's forces at Louisburg. In 1760 Benjamin Waite was among the soldiers sent to Detroit to bring in the French garrison of the Illinois forts. In 1775 he joined Ethan Allen and Seth Warner in their expedition against the forts at Ticonderoga and Crown Point. On October 10, 1776, he was commissioned captain of a company of rangers attached to Major Haisington's Brigade, which was raised to protect the northern frontier, and to guard the road to Crown Point. After the death of Major Haisington, Captain Waite succeeded him as commander of the battalion: After the close of the Revolutionary war he became prominent in public affairs. He opposed New York State in its claim for jurisdiction, and was an active member of the conventions at Westminster and Windsor that gave to the New Hampshire grants the name of Vermont, and framed the state constitution. Benjamin Waite surely led a strenuous life. Ere he had completed twenty-four years of life, he had participated in more than forty battles. At the breaking out of the Revolutionary war he turned his property into cash, and loaned the Government $4,000 in gold. He received in payment Continental scrip which was so near worthless that he gave a peddler $1,200 for a half pound of.tea and a quarter of a pound of indigo. The Revolutionary records in Washington, D. C., mention him first as major, and later speaks of him as Lieutenant Colonel Waite, Vermont Battalion. After the war he was commissioned brigadier general of Vermont Militia. General Waite served as high sheriff of Windsor County, Vermont, and the Towns of Waitsfield, Vermont, was chartered by him. Gen. Benjamin Waite married Lois Gilbert, a daughter of Thomas Gilbert, of Brookfield, Massachusetts, who was also a soldier in the Revolutionary war. Benjamin Waite, was born at Windsor, Vermont, September 11, 1773, and there grew to a sturdy manhood. In 1814, accompanied by his family, he followed the march of civilization westward to the wilds of Ohio, making an overland trip with teams to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he embarked, teams and all, on a boat, and came down the Ohio River to Portsmouth, Ohio. It had been his intention to settle in the rich bottom lands of the Scioto Valley, but on account of the prevalence of malaria in the lowlands he bought a forest-covered tract of land in Porter Township, and began the pioneer labor of redeeming a farm from the wilderness. Improving a water power on Weed's run, he erected a sawmill, one of the first in the vicinity. For many years he, or his sons, used to take all of the surplus products of the farm to New Orleans on flatboats, and after selling their cargo would dispose of their boats, and 1334 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION make their way back home as best they could, probably on .a steamer. On the farm which he improved he spent the remainder of his days, (lying January 8, 1858. His wife, whose maiden name was Lavina Heaton, died October 7, 1872, aged ninety-six years. They were the parents of twelve children. John Heaton Waite was born at West Chazy, New York, Mardi 22, 1811. Being brought by hihis parentso Portsmouth when but three years of age, he grew to manhood amid pioneer scenes, receiving his education in .the rural schools. Leaving home in early life, he went to Pittsburgh, where he served an apprenticeship of two years at the cabinet maker's trade, which he afterwards followed for a year in Cincinnati. Returning then to Porter Township, he started in business for himself on a modest scale, manufacturing furniture to order, making the most of it at first by hand. Being a skilled workman, and a clever designer, he was kept very busy. In 1838 he located in Portsmouth, and met with such assured success from the start that he added horse power to the equipments of his shop, and ere long installed steam power, being one of the first to use steam in a furniture factory. It was from that small beginning that the immense business of the Waite Furniture Company of the present day was developed. Soon after the close of the Civil war Gilbert D. Waite, son of the founder of the business, was admitted to the firm, becoming junior member of the firm of J. H. Waite & Son. The senior member of the firm continued active in business until 1884, when he retired, and subsequently lived free from business cares, until his death, October 10, 1897. John Heaton Waite married Malvina Sikes, who was born in Scioto County, Ohio, a daughter of Levi Sikes. Her grandfather, John Jones Sikes, the maternal great-grandfather of Gilbert D. Waite, served as a soldier in the Revolutionary war, having been a private in Capt. Gideon Burt's Company of Guards, Massachusetts Militia of Hampshire and Worcester counties, the pay rolls of the company bearing date of September 1, 1777, and January 1, 1778. He also served in Capt. Abel Holden's Company of Light Infantry, Sixth Massachusetts Regiment, commanded by Col. Thomas Nipon. On July 3, 1780, he enlisted for six months, and served until September, 1780. In 1804 he came to Ohio, and a short time later removed to Marion County, Kentucky, where his death occurred in 1807. His widow, whose maiden name was Sarah Sowles, survived him many long years, and in 1850 applied for a pension. Levi Sikes was born in Wilbraham, Massachusetts, October 29, 1794, and was in his seventh year when his parents settled in New York State, in the Genesee Valley. In 1804 he came with them to Scioto County, and subsequently learned the brick maker's trade. which he followed in Ports- HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1335 mouth from 1815 until 1822. Going then to Porter Township, he was there engaged in farming until 1836, when he took up his residence in Harrison Township, where he spent his remaining days, dying March 30, 1870. Levi Sikes married, in February, 1819, Mary Keyes, who was born, July 17, 1799, in Rockbridge County, Virginia, a daughter of Selma Keyes, a native of Massachusetts, and a soldier in the Revolutionary war. Mrs. John Heaton Waite survived her husband but a few months, passing away March 5, 1898. She reared six children, as follows : Isabella, who married Rev. Walter Wyeth ; Gilbert D., the special subject of this sketch ; Fanny married S. P. Leiter ; Emma became the wife of W. H. W. Avery ; Sarah, who married George W: Holman ; and John Wesley. Acquiring his early education in the Portsmouth schools, Gilbert D. Waite began as a boy to clerk for his father, continuing until after the outbreak of the Civil war. Filled with the same patriotic ardor that inspired his ancestors, he enlisted, August 14, 1861, at the age of nineteen years, in Company A, Thirtieth. Ohio Volunteer. Infantry, and was mustered in as fifth sergeant of his company. He was later promoted to first sergeant, and was with his command in many marches and engagements, among the more important battles in which he participated having been those of South Mountain, Antietam, Vicksburg, Jackson, and Mission Ridge. Accompanying Sherman on his march to Atlanta, Mr. Waite took part in the many engagements on the way, and assisted in the capture of the city. In August, 1864, at the expiration of his term of enlistment, he was honorably discharged from the service at Jonesboro, Georgia, and immediately returned home. About two years later Mr. Waite became associated in business with his father under the firm- name of J. H. Waite & Son, and for several years after the retirement of his father conducted the affairs of the concern, and is now a director of the Waite Furniture Company, its successor. Mr. Waite married, November 10, 1868, Catherine Wetherbee, who was born in Tioga County, Pennsylvania, a daughter of Francis and Fanny (Graves) Wetherbee. She died in 1878, leaving one child, Bertha Waite. Mr. Waite married for his second wife, Sarah J. Dillon, daughter of Rev. John W. and Mary Dillon, of whom further account may be found on another page of this work. Mr. and Mrs. Waite have three children, namely : Helen, who married Dr. Walter Sheldon, and has one child, Katherine Sheldon ; Katherine, wife of Charles D. Scudder ; and Gilbert D. Jr. Mr. and Mrs. Waite are members of the Bigelow Methodist Episcopal Church, and Mr. Waite is a member of Bailey Post, Grand Army of the Republic. HENRY J. WESCOAT. Much that is worthy and estimable in human life has been the lot of Henry J. Wescoat of Vinton County, whose home 1336 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION is on rural route No.. 1 out of McArthur postoffice. Mr. Wescoat is now past seventy years Of age. During his career he has accomplished those things which are considered most. worth while by ambitious men—years of honorable activity with satisfying material reward, the esteem of his fellow men, and a public spirited share in the social and civic life of his community. His career really began. about fifty years ago with his marriage in Elk Township to Miss Nancy Dillon. After their marriage they started out with high hopes and brave hearts, but with a poverty of material resources that only served to emphasize their subsequent good fortune. Their first home was a little log shack located in the hills and with the utmost scantiness 'of furniture. Some friends had given them a couple of cheap beds ; they had a small table, a very few chairs and with such meagerness in other equipment that it was very difficult for them to entertain company during the first years of their wedded life. The first essential in their success was hard work. Supplementing that was a close economy so that each year they time a little from the meager income of their farm. From time to time they invested their surplus in a little more land. Mr. Wescoat in his early years as a farmer gained most of his revenues from raising sheep and other live stock. As is usually the case, their success grew from year to year, but iii the meantime Mr. Wescoat had accumulated over 500 acres of improved land, well stocked and equipped with two sets of substantial farm buildings. His later years have been passed surrounded with every comfort and convenience, and altogether he is one of the most substantial and prosperous citizens of Vinton County. Mr. Wescoat was born January 11, 1844, in Elk Township of Vinton County not far from where he now lives. His birthplace, however, was nearer the village of McArthur. In this locality he has spent his entire lifetime, and the present homestead where he resides comprises 400 acres situated in Jackson Township, his property holdings being divided between Elk and Jackson townships. He has his home farm well improved and for years has grown large numbers of sheep as well as cattle, horses and hogs. His staple crops have been wheat, corn, oats and hay. His parents were Philander and Margaret (Brewer) Wescoat. His father was born in Pennsylvania January 29, 1804, and his mother in Nashville, Tennessee, on January 26, 1805. The Wescoats were among the very earliest of the pioneers in this section of Ohio. His paternal grandparents, Isaac and Tryphena (Lane) Wescoat, set out from Pennsylvania in 1810 by wagon and team journeyed through the wilderness of Central Ohio until they arrived in Ross County. They lived there for a time on rented land, but later came into the wilderness of Vinton HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1337 County and established their home at the site of the present Village of Zaleski. There the grandfather cut out a home in the woods, and gradually developed a large clearing for farming purposes. They lived in a log cabin, and that was subsequently replaced by a substantial frame residence. Isaac Wescoat and wife spent the rest of their hard working lives on that farm, and died there when about seventy years of age. They were active members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Isaac Wescoat was a whig in politics. In their family were seven children, most of whom grew to maturity and were married. Philander Wescoat was a child of about six years when the family came to Ross County, Ohio. He was still little more than a boy when he ventured into the wilderness of Vinton County, being the first of the family to come to this county. Here his sturdy efforts with the axe cleared out a space and started the farm at what is now Zaleski, and in the log cabin which he constructed he and his two sisters lived for some months before they were joined by other members of the family from Ross County. Subsequently Philander set out on his own account and acquired a small farm in Elk Township two miles north of McArthur. That was the home to which he took his bride when he married, and he likewise went through all the experiences of the pioneer. He secured a tract of two hundred acres, improved most of it by his own labors, and for many years was one of the prosperous citizens. He died in Elk Township in 1876 and his wife passed away some years later at the age of eighty. They were a splendid type of the old time citizens, were members of the Methodist faith, but their home was open and afforded hospitable quarters to the ministers of any faith and denomination traveling through that region. Philander Wescoat was first a whig and afterwards a republican. Into his home were born seven sons and five daughters, and five of the sons and all the daughters married. Henry J. Wescoat was one of the younger of the children, and was reared and educated at the old farm in Elk Township. Along with material prosperity he has acquired the wisdom which comes from intelligent thinking and action, and careful and scrupulous dealings with his fellow men. Again and again his fellow citizens have given him the responsibilities of public position. He served as trustee of Jackson Township twelve years, and served as county commissioner for three years a number of years ago. Mr. Wescoat has had to bear two great griefs, in the death of his beloved wife and companion and one of his daughters. Mrs. Wescoat was born in Elk Township July 5, 1840, and died at her home August 8, 1907. Reverend Doctor Taylor was the kindly minister who preached the service for both Mrs. Wescoat and her daughter. Mrs. Wescoat spent 1338 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION all her life in Vinton County, and was a devoted wife and mother. Her parents were John and Ellen (Huston) Dillon, both of whom were born in Ohio and were of Virginia ancestry. They were reared and married in Carroll County, Ohio, and were early settlers in Elk Township of Vinton County, where they lived to be quite old. They were members of the Presbyterian Church as was Mrs. Wescoat. To Mr. and Mrs. Wes-coat were born two children : Mary Alice, who was born May 21, 1866, and was reared and educated in Vinton County, died December 17, 1911. She married A. Benton Gray, who was born in Ohio and reared in Vinton County, but is now living in the home of Mr. Wescoat. Mr. and Mrs. Gray had a son, Charles J. The other daughter, Helena B., born July 2, 1869, is the wife of Elmer O. Pettit. Mr. Pettit is a lawyer at Logan, Ohio, and they have a son, Claude Pettit, who graduated in the art department of the Ohio State University in Columbus, later taught for two years in Logan, and is now a senior in Western Reserve Law School, Cleveland, Ohio. FRANK S. ALLEY. As superintendent of the Valley Township schools at Lucasville, Mr. Alley has performed a service during the last five years which creates in his administration a new epoch in the history of education in this vicinity. Mr. Alley has had a long experience in the educational field, covering more than thirty years, and is an exponent of progressive and practical ideals that have been signally exemplified in the schools of Lucasville. Having been a teacher all his active life, Mr. Alley has likewise been a student, and by his experience has worked out plans and methods which in other places as well as at Lucasville have been applied in making the schools vital institutions for the welfare of the rising generations. Frank S. Alley was born in Franklin County, Indiana, on a farm, gained his early schooling there, and began teaching in the country at the age of seventeen. His work as a teacher alternated with that of student in higher schools for many years. He was subsequently graduated at the Brookville High School, following which he taught both in the country and in the Brookville High School, and in 1890 was awarded his master's degree at Moorshill College, where he had previously completed the scientific course. Mr. Alley in 1881 became principal of the Fairhaven school in Preble County, Ohio, remained there three years, then became superintendent at New Paris in Preble County, and during that seven years of service was also for a time a member of the county board of school examiners. In 1890 Mr. Alley was granted a life certificate by the state board of education after an examination. In 1891 he became superintendent of HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1339 schools at Ripley, Ohio, remained there six years, was for four years superintendent of the city schools at Dayton, Kentucky, and for three years at Bellevue, and then returned to Ohio and for three years was superintendent of the schools at Greenfield. Mr. Alley took charge of the Lucasville schools in 1909. Since that time the fine new high school building has been erected, for which he drew the plans, and which in its equipment and arrangement is regarded as one of the best rural high school buildings in Ohio. At the same time he has raised the class Of the Valley Township schools from third to first, and the State University 'recognizes the high school as one of the best in any rural community in the state. The school not only prepares pupils for entrance to the State University in any of the courses, but also has a strong department in agriculture, manual training and domestic science. Mr. Alley first married Lydia M. Riker. There are four sons: Orris, who is a graduate of the high school and of the Campbell Business College at Cincinnati and is now connected with the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad ; Charles, who graduated from the Inland Printer Technical School at Chicago, is now with the Elbert & Richardson firm of printers at Cincinnati ; Bruce and John are both graduates of the high school and are connected with the Yale Motorcycle Company of Toledo. Mr. Alley's present wife was Emma J. Baker. The family are members of the Methodist Church. Mr. Alley is affiliated with the Masonic Order, having taken the Knights Templar degrees, and in politics is a republican. JOHN E. BINGAMAN. This representative business man and popular citizen of Ironton, the judicial center of Lawrence County, has been a resident of this city for the past twenty-five years and has by ability and well directed endeavor gained precedence and success as a business man, the. while his sterling character, and genial personality have been the prime factors in insuring him secure vantage ground in popular confidence and good will. Mr. Bingaman is engaged in the undertaking. business, as senior member of the firm of Bingaman & Jones, and the finely appointed headquarters of the enterprise are in the building owned by the firm, on Center Street, near the corner of Fourth Street. Consideration and scrupulous service have brought this firm of funeral directors merited success in business, and its members are known as loyal and progressive citizens. Mr. Bingaman is a scion of the third generation of old and honored families of Brown county, Ohio, where both his paternal and maternal grandparents settled in the pioneer days. He was born in the Village of New Hope, that county, on the 14th of April, 1869, and is a son of 1340 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION Andrew J. and Elizabeth (Ellsbury) Bingaman, both likewise. natives of Brown County; where the former was born in the year 1829 and the latter in 1839, both having .continued their residence in Brown County until their death. The father, who was a prosperous farmer, as well as a buyer and shipper of tobacco, died on the 15th of November, 1912, at the venerable age of eighty-three years, his cherished and devoted wife having been summoned to eternal rest on the 19th of April, 1903." Of the seven children all are living except William, who died in infancy, and, in respective order of birth, are here given the names of the surviving children : Benjamin F., Theodore E., Maude S., Edward L., John E., and Dr. Robert C. John E. Bingaman attended the public schools of his native county until he had .attained. to the age of eighteen years, and for the ensuing three years he was employed in the tobacco warehouse conducted by his father. He then, in 1889, came to Ironton, Lawrence County, where for the ensuing six years he was a salesman in the store of his brother, who here built up a prosperous enterprise in the handling of men's hats and furnishing goods. At. the expiration of the period noted the brother sold his stock and business to a Mr. Robinson, and for the latter Mr. Bingaman continued as clerk for five years. He then, in 1900, entered the employ of Charles L. Pixley, who was here engaged in the undertaking business and who was one of the pioneer settlers on the old French land grant in Lawrence County. Mr. Bingaman familiarized himself with all details of the business and became an expert embalmer. After the death of his honored employer,. Mr. Pixley, who was one of the influential citizens of Ironton, purchased the business, and on the 1st of. March, 1907, he admitted to partnership in the same his present able and valued coadjutor, Charles E. Jones, with whom he has since continued to be associated under the .firm title of Bingaman & Jones., Mr. Bingaman owns a half interest in the substantial building in which the undertaking business is conducted, and has also an attractive residence property, upon which he has made many improvements.. He is a republican in his political allegiance and both he and his wife are zealous members of the First Methodist Episcopal Church of Ironton, on the official board of which he has served most efficiently. for the past fifteen years. In his home city he is. affiliated with the Masonic fraternity, the Knights of , Pythias, the Knights of the Golden Eagle, and the Modern Woodmen of America. On the 4th of November, 1897, was solemnized . the marriage of Mr. Bingaman to Miss Nellie C. Pixley, daughter of his former employer, the late Charles L. Pixley, and no children have been born of this union. HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1341 Mrs. Bingaman is. a leader in the social activities of her native city, and here her circle of friends is coincident with that of her acquaintances. WILLIAM H. MARTING. A retired merchant and honored citizen of Ironton, Lawrence County, and a scion of a sterling pioneer family of the Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio, Mr. Marting was born at Jackson Furnace, Scioto County, on the 7th of September, 1854. He is a son of Henry W. and Katherine (Ketter) Marting, both natives of the Kingdom of Hanover, Germany, where the former was born in 1831 and the latter. in 1833. Henry W. Marting became a resident of Scioto County when a young man and there achieved independence and prosperity through his 'activities as a farmer and in the conducting of a general store at Gebhart's Station, where he held the office of postmaster for many years. At the time of the Civil war he showed his loyalty to the land of his adoption by serving ninety days as a soldier of the Union, in an Ohio regiment of volunteers. He passed the closing years of his life in Scioto County, where he died in 1904, his widow being summoned to the life eternal in 1906. Following is a list of the names of their surviving children, given in respective order of birth : William H., Mary, Charles, Caroline, Louis E., Lizzie. Three children are deceased. William H. Marting attended school in the Lick Ridge district of Scioto County until he was sixteen years of age and in the meanwhile had gained practical experience in connection with his father's farming operations. He soon engaged in agricultural operations on his own responsibility and he continued to be engaged in farming in his native county until 1880, when, at the age of twenty-six years, he removed to Ironton and opened a grocery store at the corner of Third and Walnut streets. There he built up a prosperous enterprise and incidentally entrenched himself most fully in popular confidence and esteem. He continued his business successfully until 1902, in the same location, and since that time has lived virtually retired, having turned his well established grocery business over to his sons, William F., Frank A., and Charles G.; William F. being now a representative physician and surgeon in Ironton and Frank A. being here engaged in the automobile business, so that to the youngest of the three sons is left the management of the business established by the father more than thirty years ago, the enterprise being still conducted under the firm name of Marting Brothers. Though Mr. Marting has relieved himself of the cares and exactions of active business he is still a stockholder in the Foster Store Company, the Marting Dry Goods Company, and the Scioto Flour Mill Company. He is a staunch advocate of the principles and policies of the democratic 1342 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION party, served six years as a loyal and progressive member of the city council of Ironton, and was for one year a trustee of the Lawrence County Children's Home. He is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Junior Order of United American Mechanics, and both he and his wife hold membership in Emanuel Methodist Episcopal Church. On the 9th of November, 1874, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Marting to Miss Caroline Frouein, daughter of the late Frederick Frouein, of Scioto County, and of the eight children of this union three are deceased—Emma, Nora and one son who died in infancy. Those surviving are Dr. William F., Frank A., Charles G., Louis, and Emerson. Dr. William F. Marting was graduated in the Ironton High School in 1893, and in preparation for the work of his chosen profession he attended the Ohio Medical College, in the. City of Cincinnati, in which he was graduated as a member of the class of 1897, with the degree of Doctor of Medicine. He established himself in practice at Lyra, Scioto County, but he soon turned to answer the call of patriotism, at the inception of the Spanish-American war, in which he served as a member of the reserve ambulance corps of the Second Army Corps, in 1898-9. He wedded Miss Emma Drayer of Ironton and is now established in the successful practice of his profession in this city, his children being Anna D., Marion R. and Esther C. Frank A. Marting, who is engaged in the automobile business in Ironton, as previously noted, wedded Miss May Gates. Charles G. Marting, who conducts the grocery business established by the father, married Miss Alma Hasenauer. Louis Marting, who is principal of the high school in the City of Akron, Ohio, married Miss Bertha Barr. Emerson Marting, the youngest, of the sons, married Miss Esther Beasley and is now engaged in the automobile business at Ashland, Kentucky. William H. Marting, to whom this sketch is dedicated, is the owner of valuable realty in Ironton, including his own residence property, five acres of land and an attractive dwelling, at 369 South Seventh Street; a house and lot on South Second Street ; the business block in which is conducted the Marting grocery store, at Third and Walnut streets; and a garage on South Seventh Street. JOHN A. McDOWELL. The. standing of a city or community rests almost entirely upon the character and reputation of its. business men, their reliability, enterprise, initiative and integrity being, in the greater number of instances, a standard by which may be measured the prosperity and importance of the place. Ironton has been especially fortunate in possessing business men of fine abilities and strict fidelity, and HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1343 among them none is held in higher esteem than John A. McDowell, president of the Ironton Transfer and Storage Company and general manager of the Home Telephone Company. Mr. McDowell was born at Tarlton, Pickaway County, Ohio, April 6, 1877, and is a son of James W. and Susannah (McClenand) McDowell. James W. McDowell was born in 1841, at Tarlton, Ohio, there grew to manhood, and during the Civil war enlisted in the Fifty-ninth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, as a private, seeing active service in a number of important engagements and suffering two wounds, one in the shoulder and one in the hip. On his return to his home he engaged in poultry raising, and also became prominent in public affairs, serving two terms as commissioner of Pickaway County. He now makes his home at Columbus, Ohio, as does also Mrs. McDowell, who was born at Tarlton in 1842. Mr. and Mrs. McDowell were the parents of five children : Minnie, who is unmarried ; Loretta L., who married George W: Volkwein, a roofer and stave manufacturer of Columbus ; May F., who married W. C. Bates, a practicing attorney of Columbus ; John A., of this review ; and Josephine M., who married F. B. Lewis, a railroad cashier of Columbus. John A. McDowell completed the curriculum of the graded schools of Columbus, following which he went through the first year of high school, and at the age of fifteen years became a messenger boy in the service of the' Western Union Telegraph Company. An earnest, industrious and faithful youth, his ability and conscientious performance of duty won him steady promotion, so that at the end of six years he had reached the position of superintendent of construction. In this capacity Mr. McDowell remained until 1899, and in that year transferred his services to the United States Long Distance Telephone Company, with which he was engaged in various capacities for something under three years. In 1901 Mr. McDowell became the founder of the Ironton Transfer and Storage Company, which in 1904 was incorporated as a stock company, o.f which he became manager. He held this position until his election to the presidency, and at this time is a half owner of the business. In 1906 Mr. McDowell became one of the organizers of the Home Tele phone Company, and in the following year was made its general manager, a position which he still retains, being also a stockholder and 'director in this concern. His able management, keen discrimination and executive ability have contributed largely to the success of the enterprises with which he has been connected and' have gained him a high reputation among business men of this community. On July 18, 1900, Mr. McDowell was married at Columbus, Ohio, to Miss Clara J. Dorn, daughter of Conrad and Mary W. (Mihm) Dorn, 1344 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION natives of Germany who came to the United States as children. Three children have been born to this union, namely : Allen E., Dan C. and Helen C. Mr. McDowell is well known in fraternal circles, being a Chapter Mason and a member of the Knights of Pythias and the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. With his family he belongs to the Methodist Church. He is fond of all out-of-door sports, particularly automobiling, although he is also a great lover of fine horses. Mr. McDowell's military record consists of three years spent as a member of the signal corps of the Ohio National Guard. He has proved his good citizenship on a number of occasions, and may be . justly numbered among the influential men who are contributing to Ironton's' prestige. MORRIS LEE STERNBERGER. Death who is always sitting closely by the highways of human existence and removing one by one those upon whom its grim lot falls, selected a particularly conspicuous victim in the late Morris L. Sternberger, who passed away at his home in Jackson, Ohio, June 2, 1912. For a number of years Mr. Sternberger had been regarded as Jackson's wealthiest citizen. His career was characterized by a broad usefulness, constructive enterprise, and benevolence, as well as by its material accumulations. For thirty years he had been one of the leaders in the development of the natural resources of the Hanging Rock Iron Region; and as a banker, financier, railroad president, and in many ways identified with the larger affairs of Southern Ohio: Though a member of one Of the old and substantial families of Jackson County, Mr. Sternberger acquired his wealth almost entirely through his splendid native ability.- He possessed the faculty of growing in understanding in proportion to the tremendous growth of modern business, and consequently his capabilities were always equal to the broadening responsibilities of his life. Morris Lee Sternberger was born in Jackson County February 9, 1856, a son of 'Moses and Elizabeth (Stephenson) Sternberger. Moses Sternberger, who was born in Bavaria, Germany, August 29, 1826, a son of Samuel and Caroline Sternberger, came to America in 1839, and located at Jackson in 1845. In 1850 he married Miss Elizabeth Stephenson, a member of perhaps the most numerous and one of the most prominent families in the county, whose founders came from North Carolina in the early days of the Scioto Salt Works. Moses Sternberger and wife were important factors in the Village of Jackson during its early growth, and were among the leaders in social and church affairs, having helped to build -up the Presbyterian Church from one of the smallest societies in the county. Elizabeth Sternberger died in 1873, while her husband lived to .a, ripe old age, became one of the wealthy men of the county, and saw 'his sons established successfully in various lines of business. HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1345 Of the sons and daughters who survived the late Morris L. Sternberger, mention is made as follows : Ira A., of Jackson ; II. C., of Toledo ; Edward L. and Frank J., of Cincinnati ; and Mrs. Ada Michael, the only sister, of Campbell, Missouri. Morris L. Sternberger was educated in the schools of Jackson, and at the age of sixteen left his books for the practical business of life. The following six. years were spent in gaining experience as a clerk, but in 1882 he began in a small way to develop the coal and iron industry of Jackson County. At that time the mineral resources offered the most promising field for development, and Mr. Sternberger engaged in the mining and selling of coal, and during the next twenty-five years placed the foundation and built up a large fortune. Mr. Sternberger was at the head of the Superior Coal Company, operating mines in Jackson County, until 1908-09, when he sold out his interests to an eastern corporation. From that time until his death he devoted most of his time to the iron and steel business, to railroads, and to his banks. He had for a number of years been identified with banking in both Jackson and Cincinnati, was president and manager of the Commercial Bank of Jackson, and at Cincinnati was vice president of the old Equitable Bank and a director in the American National Bank, an institution that subsequently became merged with the Fifth-Third Bank. He was also financially interested in the Cincinnati Realty Company, owning the Sinton Hotel, the Cincinnati Exhibition Company, which built League Park ; the Providence Savings Bank, the First National Bank and the Savoy Hotel Company. Mr. Sternberger was more or less identified with different lines of railroads in the state, and at the time of his death was president of the Dayton, Lebanon & Cincinnati Railroad Company. Much of his attention was given to the -Wellston Iron & Steel Company and to the Superior. Portland Cement Company of Ironton. On April 24, 1883, at Jackson Mr. Sternberger married Miss May Dungan, of an old and prominent family in the Hanging Rock Iron Region. Her parents were David and Mary Ann (Hale) Dungan. David Dungan was born at Frankfort Springs, Ohio, and his wife in Jackson County. On the maternal side Mrs. Sternberger's ancestors settled in Jackson County about the beginning of the last century. The three children left by Mr. Sternberger were : Elizabeth M., born February 3, 1.884; Samuel E., born December 2, 1885 ; and Morris Lee Jr., born Noveniber 12, 1887. Elizabeth was married in October, 1914, to Arnold Asbury Dickinson, a business man of Fitchburg, Massachusetts. Samuel, who is general manager of the Dayton, Lebanon & Cincinnati Railway at Dayton, married. Rosaline Longley of Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Mrs. Sternberger, who since her husband's death has continued 1346 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION to reside in Jackson and in many ways has assisted in carrying of the various benevolent plans of her late husband, was born in Jackson' Colinty June 11, 1863, the oldest of four children. Her three brothers are : Ralph H., who lives at Minneapolis, Minnesota, and by his marriage to Nellie Schellinger, has two children, Hugh and Donovan ; Ernest L., who lives at Dayton, Ohio, married Catherine Davis and has three children, David, Ernest and Anna May ; and Clyde D., who is freight agent with the Dayton, Lebanon & Cincinnati Railway, married Bessie. Cameron, and has two children, Talma and Floyd. It would be impossible in any sketch to indicate the many activities and the works of kindness and of love performed by the late Morris L. Sternberger. In that connection, and with reference to his more personal attributes, it will be appropriate to quote a few sentences from a tribute paid to this leader in business and affairs by lion. J. W. Bannon. "Mr. Sternberger was possessed with sterling traits of character that attracted attention. He was animated by great energy, untiring industry, remarkable sagacity and foresight, and the judgment he displayed in his business transactions was almost unerring. He was strictly honest, and his word was as good as his bond. Mr. Sternberger loved his native town and the people of his county among whom he had been raised and with whom he had so long been identified. He had a helping hand for every worthy person, and that his aid did at times fall to those who Were not so worthy does not at all detract from the character of the man. Churches without reference to belief or creeds were the recipients of his bounty and the worthy poor were never turned away empty handed. " Such men as Mr. Sternberger, possessed of such strong traits of character accompanied by aggressive, forceful action, develop and draw to them strong friends, and naturally, at times, make enemies. It is a characteristic of such men to have strong friends, and they become such because of an intimate knowledge of his Character for fair dealing. No one of his associates ever discovered in him a disposition to take an undue advantage. What he gained, all others associated with him shared equally in accordance with his interest. Such a man will be missed in the channels of trade and business—in banking and commercial circles.. His place among men of affairs will not soon be filled, and he will also be missed by many who never called upon him for help in vain." JOSEPH J. CLORAN. Engaged in the wholesale and retail grocery business in the metropolis and judicial center of Lawrence County, Mr. Cloran is one of the most progressive and loyal citizens of his native city, to the civic and commercial prestige he has made valuable contribution, not alone through his prosperous and 'substantial commercial enterprise but HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1347 also through his effective operations in the handling of real estate. He is the owner not only of improved realty in every ward in the City of Ironton but also owns valuable farming properties in Lawrence County, a specialty being made of rentals in connection with his general real estate business. Mr. Cloran is vigorous and alert as a man of affairs and takes a lively interest in all that touches the social and material wellbeing of his home city and county, the family name having been identified with the history of this county for fully sixty years. Joseph J. Cloran was born in Ironton on the 13th of September, 1869, and is a son of Owen and Catherine (Carey) Cloran, both natives of Ireland, where the former was born in the year 1823 and the latter in 1832. Owen Cloran became a resident of Lawrence. County, Ohio, about the. year 1850, and as an iron worker he was long identified with the great industrial activities of the Hanging Rock Iron Region. He attained to venerable age and was one of the sterling and honored pioneer citizens of Ironton at the time of his death, in 1906, his loved wife and helpmeet having passed to the life eternal in 1901 and both having been devout communicants of, the Catholic Church. In the respective order of birth the names of the ten children are here entered : Mary A., Bridget, Catherine, Malcolm, Thomas, Martin, Owen P., Martha, Joseph J. and Luke W. All of the children are living except Bridget, Catherine and Malcolm. In the excellent parochial school of St. Lawrence Parish, Ironton, Joseph J. Cloran acquired his early education, and, at the age of fifteen years he obtained employment in the furniture store of C. C. Clark, where he soon proved himself an effective salesman. .After holding his position one year he went to the City of St. Louis, Missouri, where he served one year as collector for a clothing establishment. Returning to Ironton, Mr. Cloran entered upon an apprenticeship to the plumbing trade, and his technical training comprised three years of service in the establishment of Ezra Manning, on Railroad Street. After the completion of his apprenticeship Mr; Cloran was employed one year as stock clerk in the establishment of the Dunker Truck Company, in the' City of Cincinnati, and he then returned to Ironton and assumed a clerkship in the grocery store of Cloran Brothers, and three months later he became associated with his brother, Martin, in opening a grocery store at the corner of Third and Lawrence streets, whence removal was made one year later to more eligible quarters, on Railroad Street, between Third and Fourth streets. The firm of M. & J. J. Cloran built up a large and substantial business and the partnership continued until 1900, when Martin retired from the firm. Since that time the representative wholesale and retail grocery business has been continued by Joseph J. Vol. II-45 1348 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION Cloran, in the original quarters, and he has secure vantage ground as one of the reliable, enterprising and representative business men of his native city, his sterling character and genial personality having gained to him a host of friends, in both business and social circles. With increasing prosperity, Mr. Cloran began to make judicious investments in city and country realty, and he has become the owner of much valuable property; as intimated in the opening paragraph of this sketch, his operations in this field of enterprise having brought to him good returns and having had direct influence on the social. and material progress and prosperity of Lawrence County and its thriving county seat.. In an unostentatious but effective way Mr. Cloran wields much influence in public affairs of a local order and he is recognized as a liberal and progressive citizen. Though he accords unwavering allegiance to the republican party and has been zealous in the support of wise municipal government in Ironton, he has never sought. official preferment, though he served a number of years as judge of elections in the Second ward. Mr. Cloran is a valued member of the Ironton Chamber of Commerce and he is a zealous communicant of the St. Lawrence Catholic Church, as was also his wife, he having been a member of the committee that had charge of the installation of the fine chime of bells in the church edifice. He is affiliated with the Knights of Columbus, the Tribe of Ben Hur, the Modern Woodmen of America and the Modern Brotherhood of America. In the year 1899 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Cloran to Miss Catherine Barron, daughter of Thomas Barron, of Ironton, and she passed to the life eternal on the 21st of September, 1903, the one surviving child ,being Elizabeth C. JAMES J. SPENCER. There is no dearth of interesting incident and event in the personal and ancestral history of this well known and honored citizen of Portsmouth, Scioto County, where he is now living virtually retired, after many years of well ordered endeavor. In both the paternal and maternal lines he is a scion of sterling old Virginia families that were founded in America in the colonial days. He is a native of Ohio, where his parents were representatives of pioneer elements of citizenship, even as the earlier generation of the Spencer family was identified with the pioneer annals of Kentucky. He whose name. initiates this paragraph became, as a mere youth, a valiant soldier of the Union in the Civil war and served during practically the entire period of the great conflict between the states of the North and the South. After the war he lived up to the family traditions and records by independently gaining pioneer experience in the West, and after his return to his HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1349 native state he was actively identified with agricultural pursuits until his removal to Portsmouth, where he has since Maintained his home, and where he has held various public offices of local trust—preferments indicative of his high standing as a man of sterling character and as a citizen of loyalty and progressiveness. James J. Spencer was born in Jackson County, Ohio, on the 19th of September, 1844, and is the only child of his parents who attained to years of maturity. His father, Thomas .Spencer, was born at Lexington, Kentucky, and was a son of one of the pioneers who came to that commonwealth from Virginia, his father having passed the remainder of his life at Lexington, where he settled in an early day. In the school's of the old Bluegrass State Thomas Spencer acquired his early education and there also he learned the trade of blacksmith. From Kentucky he finally went to Missouri, but within a short period thereafter he established his home in Jackson County, Ohio, where he died in 1847, when his son James J., of this review, was about three years of age. In that county was solemnized his marriage to Miss Nancy Stevenson, whose father, William Stevenson, was a native of Virginia and who immigrated from Greenbriar County, that state, to Ohio and became one of the sterling pioneers of Jackson County. He made the long overland trip with teams and wagons, by means of which he transported his family and household effects, and in Jackson County he reclaimed a farm from the forest wilderness, his old homestead continuing to be the abiding place of himself and his wife until the close of their lives: The mother of the subject of this sketch eventually contracted a second marriage, having become the wife of Eli McLain, who was a prosperous farmer and stock-grower of Jackson County and who she survived by a number of years, her death having occurred at Wheelersburg, Scioto County, after she had attained to venerable age. The seven children of her second marriage were : Katie, Fannie, Myrtle, Mamie, Nancy, Clayton and Jackson. Reared to the sturdy discipline of the farm and afforded the advantages of the rural schools of the locality and period, James J. Spencer, At the age of seventeen years, subordinated all other interests to tender his aid in defense of the Union, his enlistment having occurred a few months after the inception of the Civil war. From his home county he crossed the Ohio River into Kentucky, where he enlisted as a private in Company G, Twenty-seventh Kentucky Volunteer Infantry, with which he Continued in service until shortly before the close of the war, his honorable discharge having been received in January, 1865. Mr. Spencer lived up to the full tensions of hardships and perils incidental to the progress of the great conflict and was with his command in the 1350 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION various campaigns, marches, battles and minor engagements in which it was involved. While it is impossible in this brief article to enter 'into full details concerning his military career it is but consistent to state that he participated in the battles of Pittsburg Landing and Corinth, Mississippi, and that of Perrysville, Kentucky ; that he took part in the siege of Chattanooga, whence he accompanied Sherman's forces on the Atlanta campaign, taking part in the various engagements enroute and also in. the siege and capture of Atlanta, after the fall of which city he was with his regiment in the command of General Thomas at the time when the latter went forward in pursuit of the army of General Hood ; in this connection Mr. Spencer took part in the battles of Franklin and Nashville, and he finally returned to Louisville, Kentucky, where he was accorded his honorable discharge, after having made a record of faithful and valiant service that shall ever reflect honor on his name and memory. After the close of his military career Mr. Spencer returned to Jackson County, Ohio, but in the same year he went forth to gain a varied and hazardous experience on the Western frontier. He traversed the wilds of Western Kansas and Colorado, gained -a somewhat intimate knowledge of the menace constantly in evidence from hostile Indians, grew to know much of the more peaceable aborigines and of the venturesome hunters and trappers and of the wild game and other animals of the plains and mountains. Along the historic old Santa Fe Trail he saw great herds of American bison or buffalo, now known to memory alone save for a few isolated and meager herd under Government or private protection, and incidental to his experience in the West Mr. Spencer assisted in the organization of Rice County, Kansas, of which he had the distinction of being chosen the first sheriff. Mr. Spencer continued' his residence in the Sunflower State until 1872, when he returned to Ohio and established his home on a farm in Bloom Township, Scioto. County, where he continued to be actively identified with agricultural pursuits and 'stock raising until 1893, since which years he and his wife have maintained their home in the City of Portsmouth, where their circle, of friends is limited only by that of their acquaintances and where they are passing the gracious twilight of their lives in generous peace and contentment, both being earnest members of the Bigelow Methodist Episcopal Church in this city. The principles of the republican party have ever .received the staunch support of Mr. Spencer and he has taken an active interest in public affairs, especially those of local order. In Bloom Township, Moto County, he served as assessor and land appraiser ; in 1893 he was elected county recorder and this necessitated his removal to Portsmouth, the county seat. He was twice re-elected to this' office, of which he thus HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1351 continued the efficient incumbent for a period of six consecutive years. In 1910 he was elected county commissioner, and the election of 1912 brought to him a continuance in this office for a second term, his record as a public official being marked by utmost fidelity and loyalty, as well as by ability and progressiveness. Mr. Spencer vitalized the more gracious memories of his career as a youthful soldier of the Union by retaining active affiliation with Bailey Post, No. 164, Grand Army of the Republic. He is affiliated also with the following Masonic bodies in his home city : Aurora Lodge, No. 48, Free & Accepted Masons ; Mount Vernon Chapter, No. 23, Royal Arch Masons; Solomon Council, No. 79, Royal & Select 'Masters; and Calvary Commandery, No. 13, Knights Templar. On the 6th of February, 1872, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Spencer to Miss Martha J. Thompson, who was born in Scioto County, in 1849, and who is a daughter of Lewis and Catherine (Shelton) Thompson, the former a native of Scioto County and the latter of Gallia' County. Mrs. Spencer's grandfather, Joseph Thompson, was one of the early settlers and pioneer iron master of the Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio, a section to which this history is devoted. Mr. and Mrs. Spencer are the parents of nine children : Lewis T., Charles L., Nannie, Myrtle, Addie, Frank A., 'Chester A:, Martha; and Mary. Lewis T. wedded Miss Hattie Gates and they have three children—Virginia, Josephine and William. Charles L. married Miss Anna Loper and they have two children, Martha Jane and Anna Grace. Frank A. married Miss Louise Morrison, and Chester, the youngest son, wedded Miss Gay Miller, their one child being Robert B. RODNEY W. GODDARD. Members of the Goddard family have been prominently identified with business affairs in the Hanging Rock .Iron Region and in other sections 'of- Ohio for more than a century. Rodney W. Goddard is proprietor of one of the largest stores at Wellston,- and his brother Douglas A. Goddard is an undertaker at Wellston, and one of the leading, business men of the Hanging Rock Region. Rodney W. Goddard was born in Washington County, Dunham Township, July 27, 1853. He attended the public schools of Washing' ton County, Mount Union ,College in Stark County, and from seventeen to twenty-ane was a successful and popular school teacher. Coming to Jackson County in 1874, he entered into the mercantile business which has engaged his time and energies, since except for a number of years when he- was. in the foundry and 'machine business in Wellston. Rodney W. Goddard married Caroline B. Forster, who was born in Jackson County March 26, 1854. Their children are Lulu, B., Caroline 1352 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION F., Rodney W., Jr. Lulu is the wife. of Dr. F. S. Scott of Wellston and their two children are named Franklin G. and Rodney W. Caroline married Earl W. Rardin of Portsmouth, Ohio, and they have a child named Marcella. Roger W., Jr., married Margaret Williams, and they have one child, David W. The grandfather of this well known Wellston business man was Hap-good H. Goddard, who married Rebecca Wood. They were New Englanders by birth and ancestry and very early in the nineteenth century they set out from the East to find a new home in Ohio. To their wagon they drove a pair of horses, one of which was blind and the other more than twenty years old. After a long and tedious journey they arrived in Washington County and located at Belpre, where they joined some relatives William P. Putnam and wife. The children of Hapgood H. Goddard were : Amanda, Edward, Eliza, William P., Abraham, Julia, Sarah, Charles H., George, and Lucy. Charles H. Goddard, father of Rodney W. and Douglas A. Goddard of Wellston, was born in Washington County, Ohio, and married Ema line Chamberlain, a daughter of John D. Chamberlain. To this marriage were born the following children: Rowena; Rodney W.; Harley C.; Douglas A.; Ason A. ; Frank E.; Bertha; Webster B. The son Harley was married and occupied the old homestead in Washington County, and died there on December 3, 1915. Douglas, as already stated, has the leading undertaking business at Wellston.. Ason A. is a farmer in Washington County,. and Frank is also in the same county and occupies a part of the old homestead. Bertha, married C. C. King, of Washington County, and they now live on a farm near Oklahoma City in the State of Oklahoma. Webster lives in Haywarden, Iowa. One of the largest hardware stores in Jackson County is conducted by Rodney W. Goddard, and he and his brother Douglas are regarded as the most substantial business men in the Town of Wellston. WILLIAM S. RANNELLS. Some of the best examples of farm enterprise found anywhere in Ohio are in evidence in the hanging Rock Iron Region. To mention one individual case there is William S. Rannells of Swan Township, whose home is located in the New Plymouth neighborhood. Mr. Rannells is an expert farmer and stockman, and his father before him was known in several states as a stock drover, so that the profession comes naturally to him. The handsome place of William S. Rannells is located in section 25 of Swan Township, where he owns 430 acres. This land, under his capable supervision, is made to grow extensive crops of corn, wheat and other staples of Southern Ohio, and nearly everything HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1353 produced in his fields is fed to his livestock. He is one of the largest feeders in this section. While Mr. Rannells has an eye to profit and is a very capable business man, he has also succeeded in developing ,a naturally attractive bit of landscape into a delightful home site. His land is well drained by the Raccoon Creek, and his home occupies especially well situated ground. He and his family reside in a modern frame house of eight rooms, and he has barns and other buildings especially equipped for stock feeding. His large barn stands on a foundation' 48 by 50 feet. William S. Rannells was born in Swan Township February 20, 1863. As a boy he grew up on a farm and attended common schools, and quite early became interested in the cattle and sheep business with a brother. They were very successful but about five years ago they divided their interests and are now operating individually. Mr. Rannells is the youngest in a family of six sons and three daughters, nearly all of whom grew up and married. A brief record of those living is given here. James has a. large stock farm near Manhattan, Kansas, and is married and has one daughter. Thomas was for some years a stock raiser at Eureka, Kansas, but died at his home in. Vinton County in 1892 at the age of forty-four, being a bachelor. Sarah is the wife of Eugene J. Cable of Nelsonville, and she is the mother of two daughters. Leah is the wife of V. C. Stiers, a farmer of Licking County,. and they have a son Thomas and a daughter Eva. Hilas B. was a cattle man at Manhattan, Kansas, and died there leaving a son and three daughters. Joseph died in 1899 at Manhattan, Kansas, where he was-extensively engaged in stock raising. Mary E. was the wife of William Vance and both died in Kansas, leaving three children, Lena, Elizabeth. and Gertrude. The parents of these children were Thomas. and Mahala (McCleary) Rannells. Thomas Rannells was born in Cumberland County in 1813, and his wife in 1821. He came with his father, Joseph Rannells, to Vinton County, and the latter acquired a large tract of. land on Raccoon Creek in Swan Township. This in the early days was covered by heavy timber, chiefly yellow poplar. Joseph Rannells died there in. 1838. He had married Elizabeth Bay and she. died in Guernsey County when about sixty years of age. Her husband lived to be an old man. Both were active Presbyterians and of Scotch-Irish ancestry. Joseph Rannells was first a whig and afterwards a republican and was a-man of considerable oratorical powers and exercised much influence in any community where he lived. Thomas Rannells, father of William S., was for-years well known throughout Southern Ohio. He operated as a stock raiser and during the war he did an extensive business as a stock drover, riding horseback over several states and driving cattle from Illinois, In- 1354 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION diana and Ohio as far east as .Pittsburg. In fact, his operations ranged over practically all the country north of the Ohio River from the Mississippi east to the Allegheny. He prospered, and was the type of citizen whose career may well be remembered in this section of Ohio. He died at his' home- in Swan Township June 6, 1888. His wife passed away February 16, 1892. Both were members of the Presbyterian Church and he was a republican. On October 18, 1910, William Rannells married Miss Lora E. Conard. She was born in Licking County, Ohio, and after a common school education there she attended the normal school at Ada and spent nearly ten years as a successful and popular educator before her marriage. Her parents were David and Rhoda (Wells) Conard, both natives of Ohio. They were married in Licking County, and started out as farmers. near Johnson, Ohio, where her father died April 4, 1911. Mrs. Conard is still living at the age of seventy-seven, hale, and hearty, her home being at Alexandria, Ohio. Both were, communicants since childhood of the Methodist Church, and Mr. Conard was a republican. Mrs. Rannells was one of a family of seven sons and daughters, all of whom grew up, and five are still living. Mr.. and Mrs. Rannells, who have no children, are very prominent, people in Swan Township, not only as farmers but through their influence in social and religious affairs. They attend church at New Plymouth, and both are members of the local Grange No. 1856, Patrons of Husbandry-. In politics Mr: Rannells is a republican.. SAMUEL W. BOOTHE. During the more than a quarter of a century in which Samuel W. Boothe has been identified with the business life of Ironton, he has experienced many of the vicissitudes which often mark the careers of active and energetic business men. As a young man he established himself in business and seemed in a fair way to achieve success, only to see his holding swept away during a period of commercial and financial has Nothing daunted, he started again at the bot- tom, and has since worked his way to, a leading position among the substantial men of this flourishing city of the Hanging Rock Iron Region. Mr. Boothe was born in Union Township, Lawrence County, Ohio, October 25, 1862, and is a son of Isaac and. Martha B. (Whitehead) Boothe. His father, born in the same township, devoted his active years' to agricultural pursuits, in which he met with a goodly share of success because of his industry and perseverance, and was also a prominent man in the public life of his community, serving in the capacity of justice of the peace for thirty years. He died in 1911, when he had reached the advanced age of eighty-three years. Mrs.. Boothe was also born in Union HANGING ROCK IRON REGION - 1355 Township, and still survives, being a resident of Chesapeake, Lawrence County, Ohio, and seventy-nine years of age. There were eleven children in the family, as follows : Eva A., Nannie O., Sadie K., Samuel W., Oliver R., Isaac H., J. Edwin, William M., Emma R., Georgie A. and Robert C. Samuel W. Boothe attended the district schools of Union and Fayette townships until reaching the age of twenty-one years, and in the meantime assisted his father in the work of the home farm. Reared an agriculturist, when the bill for the opening of the Oklahoma lands to homesteaders was first placed before Congress, he went to that state in order to be on the, ground, but the bill failed of passage at that time and he subsequently went to Kansas, where he spent one year in farming and getting in touch with western ideas. Returning to Lawrence County, Mr. Boothe worked on the farm for his father for one year, and then became a clerk in the store of J. R. Frampton, at Chesapeake, where he 'remained until the spring of 1887. He then came to Ironton and embarked in the manufacture of wire and picket fence, continuing for two years under the style of Isaac & Boothe and for five years under the name of S. W. Boothe. In 1895 he sold out to the Yellow Poplar Lumber Company and invested his capital in the Ironton Shoe Factory, of which he was foreman, but the business failed and Mr. Boothe found himself dispossessed of all his earnings and once more at the bottom of the ladder. With commendable spirit and perseverance, he accepted a position as clerk in the general store of John Isaacs, and at the end of two years bought his employer's interests, leasing the property for three years and then buying it and erecting his present business establishment, which he. still owns, at Third and Kemp Streets. He now has a thoroughly up-to-date meat market and grocery, with a complete line, the business being valued at $4,000. In 1913 he took as partner, Albert Goldcamp, and the firm is now known as S. W. Boothe & Company, and attracts a large and representative trade from all over the city. Mr. Boothe has interested himself in various other enterprises, being a stockholder in the Home Telephone Company and vice president of the Star Building. and Loan Company of Ironton, of which he has a branch office at his store. Here also he maintains sub-postal station No. 1. He has displayed his faith in the future of Ironton by investing his capital in real estate, and in addition to his business house and lot, owns his residence at No. 155 South Fifth Street, and three other houses and lots. He is a working member of the Chamber of Commerce, and treasurer of the committee of the Apple Show and Home Coming Week. A republican in politics, he was councilman of Ironton when the old wards and form of government were in existence, and his hobby is the Vol. II-46 1356 - HANGING ROCK IRON REGION supporting of clean government in public offices. For twenty-five years he has been a member 'of the Knights of the Golden Eagle, and he also belongs to the Knights of Pythias, being treasurer of the Uniform Rank. An enthusiastic automobilist, he is treasurer of the Ironton Automobile Club, and finds his chief recreation in touring the country with Mrs. Boothe in his modern high powered car. Mr. and Mrs. Boothe are consistent members of the First Methodist Bpiscopal Church. On February 9, 1887, Mr. Boothe was married at the home of the bride at Ironton, to Miss Annah B. Wymer, daughter of W. and Rachael Wymer, formerly of near Rappsburg, Lawrence County. Four children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Boothe, but all are now deceased.