950 - HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO on the ocean, and after landing on the Atlantic Coast they proceeded westward until they arrived in Fairfield County, Ohio. They lived there ten years, and some of their children were born there, including the father of Edward H. Weaver. The latter was born January 7, 1840, and when he was still a small child the family left Fairfield County and established a permanent home in Henry County. Grandfather John Weaver bought eighty acres of wild and swampy land in Section 23 of Damascus Township. For a number of years they lived in a log cabin home, ate venison and bear meat and the flesh of wild turkeys, got their grist ground in neighboring mills and only by the most strenuous exertions did they surround themselves with the comforts more nearly approximate to conditions of modern times. The grandparents saw the fruition of their labors and spent their last years contented and prosperous. John died there at the age of seventy, and his wife lived to be nearly eighty. They were active members of the Christian Union Church. After coming to America, John Weaver took out. citizenship papers, and as a student of political policies he aligned himself with the democratic party. Their children, who grew up in the midst of the wild surroundings of Henry County, were Mrs. Uriah Higgins, Mrs. Washington Guyer, Mrs. Elphena Weaver, Mrs. Eli Schafer and Samuel H. Weaver. As a boy Samuel H. Weaver became acquainted with all the arts of the woodsman, was a skillful hunter, and it is said that he killed the largest deer slain in Henry County. After he reached manhood he bought forty acres of the old homestead and lived there continuously until March, 1911, when -he retired to Grand Rapids, in Wood County, and died there January 18, 1912. His honesty was proverbial, likewise his industry, and in every relationship he acquitted himself with credit .to himself and his descendants. He made an honorable record as a soldier during the Civil war. His service was with the Eighty-fifth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and he was out nearly three years. After his honorable discharge he returned home, and in Henry County he married Miss Margaret Guyer. She is still living and now makes her home with Mrs. Shull in Grand Rapids, Ohio. On February 2, 1916, she celebrated her seventy-fifth birthday. She is an active member of the Christian Union Church. She became the mother of two sons and four daughters, all of whom are living, married and have children of their own. Edward H. Weaver has found abundant occupation for his energies as a farmer on the old homestead. He owns eighty acres of well-improved land in Section 23 of Damascus Township, and forty acres of that place he has cleared up by his personal labors and supervision. After getting the woods cleared off he tilled the land, and had fenced it and otherwise brought its improvements up to the best standard of agricultural conditions in Henry County. He has one of the best barns in that section of the county. It stands on a foundation 40 by 64 feet, has a basement, has 20-foot posts, is hiproofed and the height to the ridge pole is 41 feet. He and his family enjoy the comforts of a good seven-room house. He has been very successful and progressive in farming, and raises all the stable crops of this section of Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Weaver have been married sixteen years. Her maiden name was Anna Fry, and she was born in Hancock County, Ohio, November 14, 1878, a daughter of John and Sarah (Rudisille) Fry, both natives of Ohio. Her parents were both of German ancestry, and the Frys and Rudisilles were early settlers in Ohio. As a family they were related with the United Brethren Church, and all of them were good, hard-working people. After John and Sarah Fry married they lived in different places, but finally located in Hancock County, where Mrs. Weaver was born. Mr. and Mrs. Weaver have three children: Neva and Gail, both still in school, and Leona. The family are Methodists, and in the choice of his political affiliations Mr. Weaver has departed from the example set by his father and is an active republican, being now a member of the local central committee. BENJAMIN J. ZWAYER. One of the most conspicuous places of business in the Village of Malinta is the Zwayer Block. Mr. Benjamin J. Zwayer built that some six or seven years ago. It is a two-story brick building, 60 by 70 feet in dimensions and is occupied by three of the town's leading firms. The Farmers and Merchants Bank has its quarters in the building, the hardware house of W. H. Westrick is another tenant, while the third section of the building is occupied by Mr. Benjamin J. Zwayer with his stock of pianos and other musical merchandise. Mr. Zwayer has been a successful piano dealer at Malinta for a number of years. He HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO - 951 handles the standard Baldwin pianos and has the selling agency for these splendid makes over several adjacent counties. Mr. Zwayer has made a specialty and has given thorough study to this line of business, and with six-teen years of experience is one of the most competent men in that field in Northwest Ohio. When Mr. Zwayer first came to Malinta eighteen years ago he was in the soda and confectionery business for a time until he turned to the more congenial work which he now follows. Benjamin J. Zwayer was born in Pickaway County, Ohio, August 14, 1860. He grew to manhood there, attended the public schools, and was fitted by early training for the vocation of agriculture. He has lived in the vicinity of Malinta about thirty years. His paternal grandparents were Joseph and Mary Zwayer, both natives of Pennsylvania. They came to Ohio and settled in Pickaway County during the early '50s, and as, farmers they cleared up and developed a good home, and there Joseph Zwayer died at the age of seventy-four, while his wife Mary passed away at the age of eighty-four. They were Reformed Church people. The parents of the Malinta merchant were Benjamin and Loretta (Glick) Zwayer, also natives of Pennsylvania. Benjamin Zwayer, Sr., grew up on his father's farm in Ohio, and lived with his parents until they died. When the old homestead was sold he brought his family to Monroe Township of Henry County and lived on a farm there until his death. He passed away ten years ago at the age of seventy-four. Mrs. Benjamin Zwayer died in the spring of 1916 at the age of seventy-eight. He was a democrat in politics. Benjamin J. Zwayer is the fourth in a. family of eight children. There were three sons and five daughters; all of them grew to maturity, all married-but two and all are now living except three daughters. In Malinta Mr. Zwayer married Miss Mary Sprow, who represents one of the stanch old families of Henry County, and before her marriage she had received careful training in the public schools, and for nine years had been a successful teacher. She was born near the village of Malinta, September 8, 1868, and has spent practically all her life in this locality, which is endeared to her by many family and personal associations. Her parents were Fred and Mary (Gunter) Sprow. Her father was born in Pennsylvania of German parents, and her mother was a native of New England and of Yankee ancestry. The maternal grandfather, Mr. Gunter, came. west to Ohio, and when in the prime of life was drowned in the Auglaize River in Putnam County. His widow, whose maiden name was Lydia Holden Jones, married Michael Rill, and they located in Monroe Township of Henry County. Michael Hill died at the age of eighty-two and his wife at seventy-eight. He was a Christian minister, and while he lived on a farm he gave most of his time to his church work. Mrs,. Zwayer's parents, after their marriage, started out as farmers in Monroe Township and spent their lives there. Her father died in 1891 at the age of fifty-seven and her mother in the following year at the age of fifty-four. Both were active in the Christian Church, and her father was a democrat. Mr. and Mrs. Zwayer have three children, and have taken great pains in their home training and education. The oldest, M. Flo, born February 11, 1891, was educated in the public schools and is now successfully engaged as a teacher of music. Maud, born March 3, 1893, also had a public school training and a course in the Detroit Business College, and is DOW employed as a stenographer with a large manufacturing concern in Detroit. Charles D., born August 26, 1898, is a member of the high school class of 1918 at Malinta. Mr. and Mrs. Zwayer are members of the United Brethren Church, and he is one of the charter members of Malinta Lodge No. 399, Knights of Pythias. LOUIS HUENKE. To build up a large and extensive business from beginnings with meager capital and inexperience is one of those notable achievements which, though not uncommon in America, are widely admired and furnish the best index to the character and responsibility of the individual whose success can be measured by such practical standards. This has been the achievement of Mr. Louis Huenke of New Bremen, Ohio. Born in Auglaize County, December 3, 1854, with only a district school education, he spent the first twenty-seven years of his life on his father's. farm. He then bought a farm of his own and, selling that, acquired another place of 120 acres on the' edge of the City of New Bremen. He was a hard worker, believed in himself, and had unlimited courage, though very limited capital, and had to go in debt for the greater part of the purchase price. That farm has since been his home, and the fine and 952 - HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO commodious dwelling now occupied by himself and family is an old house that was first erected in 1848 and has been extensively remodeled under his ownership. While he laid the foundation of his career as a farmer, Mr. Huenke's real success has been in the creamery business. In 1884 he established the White Mountain Creamery. It was a small plant, operated with small capital. From that he has developed one of the largest businesses of this kind in Northwest Ohio. He now has two main creamery plants at Lima and New Bremen, besides the one at St. Marys, manufacturing and distributing the dairy products of 6,700 farmers in the form of butter, ice cream and retail milk. That is a remarkable achievement when it is considered that Mr. Huenke started the business with a capital of only $1,500 and a few cows. The business is now a stock company, with Mr. Huenke as president and owner of fully 80 per cent of the stock. .He is also interested in the Creamery Patron, which is published at St. Marys, and is issued for the benefit largely of the patrons of their creamery. Mr. Huenke also has some business connections with various enterprises at New Bremen. He is a son of Henry and Louise (Strafer) Huenke, both of whom were born in Germany. His father was born September 14, 1812, and died in 1892, and his mother was born March 19, 1825, and died October 26, 1910. They were married in Auglaize County. Henry Huenke came to the United States as a young man and had nothing to commend him except his good character and his ability to work. For a time he was employed on the old canal, then, went into a hotel at New Bremen, and afterwards bought a farm in St. Marys Township. At the time of his death he possesscd an estate of over 300 acres. His parents spent all their lives in Germany, but his wife's parents came to Auglaize County, where they were pioneers, and lived in a log house while clearing up their land. Henry Huenke and his wife were active members of St. Paul's Lutheran Church. He was a republican and a man of wide information and of sound judgment. He and his wife were the parents of ten children, and the six now living are : Albert, who lives on a farm in St. Marys Township and has also been successful as an oil man ; William, a retired farmer at New Bremen ; Louis; August, who lives on and owns the old homestead; Louise, of New Bremen, widow of Charles Heil; and Alice, wife of Dr. Henry Schmidt, a veterinarian at New Bremen. On November 2, 1881, Mr. Louis Huenke married Miss Emma Wuleck. She was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, October 27, 1857, a daughter of Adolph Victor and Louise (Moerken) Wuleck, both natives of Germany. Her mother came to this country as a child and her father was reared in Cincinnati, where he became a furniture dealer. He was a democrat, served on the board of supervisors, and was also a street commissioner in Cincinnati. All the Wuleck family were members of the Lutheran Church. Mr. and Mrs. Wuleck also had ten children, and the four now living are: William, who is in the furniture business at Cincinnati; Mrs. Huenke; Laura, wife of Henry Schwaberow, a grocer at New Bremen; and Louise, wife of James E. Joyce, who is clerk of the board of elections in Cincinnati. Mr. and Mrs. Huenke have three children: Clifford ; Gertrude, the wife of Harry Komminsk, and Howard, all connected with their father in the creamery business. Mr. Huenke and family belong to the German Lutheran Church, and fraternally he is affiliated with the Knights of Pythias and the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. He is now serving his third consecutive term as a member of the town council of New Bremen. Politically he is a republican. WILLIAM M. DECKO, now living retired at Malinta, in Henry County, has found his success as a farmer and merchant. He retired a few years ago with ample prosperity and is one of the men of highest standing in that section of Henry County. He is of old French stock.. His parents were Francis and Mary (Meyers) Decko. Francis Decko was born in France in 1816. His father spent sixteen years as a soldier in the French army fighting under the great Napoleon and was at the battle of Waterloo. For a considerable time he was assigned to special guard duty for the Emperor. In 1832, when Francis Decko was sixteen years of age, the family set out from France on a sailing vessel and journeyed from Havre to New York. In the party making the voyage were a brother Anthony and sister Celia. Celia later married a Mr. Cain. In these early days the family came out to Ohio and located in Perry County about four miles from Somerset. Located there in the wilds, they cleared up a farm, and both the parents of Francis Decko HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO - 953 died there when quite old people. In religion the Deckos were all Catholics. The settlement of this family in Perry County still leaves its impress upon that community. The old home where the grandparents located is still owned by members of the Decko family, and one of the highways through that county is known as the Decko road. Francis Decko for many years had his home on the Decko road in Perry County. He died there in 1866.. His death was accidental. While he was cutting a tree down in the nighttime the tree fell and struck him in such a way as to kill him. His body lay there for some hours, and a wayfarer who passed along took from his pocket sixty-four dollars. Evidently he became conscious stricken later and returned the money, leaving it on the walk between the house and roadway, and it proved a valuable resource to the widow and her eight children. Francis Decko was a man of great energy and very skilled as a mechanic. He had a little home in the wilds and in the hills of Perry County, and though he died when comparatively young left it out of debt and for the most part cleared and available for cultivation. The old home was a hewed log house, and it is still standing. The widow of Francis Decko, Mary Meyers, was born February 23, 1830, .and after the death of her husband she moved to Napoleon, in Henry County, where she passed away July 15, 1910, in her eighty-first year. She had come to the United States in 1833 with her father, mother and two sisters. It was a long voyage by sailing vessel. In the course of it her mother and sister died and were buried at sea That left herself, her father and her sister Tresa, who came on to Perry County, Ohio. Her sister Tresa afterwards married a Mr. Fisher. In Perry County Miss Meyers was married .June 15, 1847, to Francis Decko. She was a member of the Christian Union Church. William M. Decko was one of a family of three sons and five daughters. Two sons and four daughters are still living and all married. William Decko was born at the old homestead in Perry County, August 30, 1861, about five years before his father lost his life there. When he was fourteen he came with his widowed mother and other children to Seneea County and after one year to Harrison Township of Henry County. In that locality Mr. Decko grew to manhood, and after his marriage took up life as a tenant farmer for fourteen years. He steadily prospered, and eventually bought eighty acres of land which he improved as a first-class farm, and on selling that bought two other tracts, one of fifty and the other of forty acres. In the management and cultivation of his land he was occupied until 1912, when he removed from the country to Malinta and established a hardware store. Mr. Decko was a successful merchant of the village until July 7, 1916, when he sold out and retired to his comfortable 10-room house, where he now has all the comforts and can take life at leisure. In Harrison Township he married Miss Emma Mowrey. She was born in that township October 12, 1867, and was reared and educated there. Her parents were John and Emaline (Binkley) Mowrey, natives of Perry County, where their respective parents were married, though they came from Pennsylvania. John Mowrey and wife were married in Allen County, Ohio, and in 1865 moved to Harrison Township of Henry County, where he cleared up a good farm. He and his wife were very thrifty people and were a fine addition to the citizenship of Henry County. Mr. Mowrey died at his fine home in Harrison Township, April 30, 1908, at the age of sixty-eight. Politically he was a democrat. His widow still lives in the old homestead and is well preserved for her years. The Mowrey .family were members of the Reformed Church. Mr. and Mrs. Decko have three living children : Ola, wife of Martin Dietrich of Holgate, Ohio ; Mary E., who is a graduate of the high school and the Boxwell School and lives at home ; and Beatrice V., who is still attending school. The family are divided in membership between the Reformed and Lutheran churches. Mr. Decko aligns himself with the republican party in politics. CHARLES WAHL. A native of Henry County, Charles Wahl is identified with that county by many ties of family, work and civic loyalty. He and his wife are leaders in their community in Pleasant Township, and are people of great refinement and of marked intelligence, and their material prosperity in life has been fully equalled by the interest and co-operation they have given to every worthy undertaking in their locality. The home of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Wahl is in Section 4 of Pleasant Township. Mr. Wahl has developed during his active career two fine farms. The home place consists of eighty acres, and he also has eighty acres in Section 9. Of the 160 acres, 140 are under 954 - HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO the plow, and his farms have been noted for the quantity and quality of their products for many years. A conspicuous feature of the home farm is a large barn 40 by 60 feet, with 20-foot posts. He also has a corn crib with a capacity of 1,800 bushels, and is the owner of an automobile which he uses both for business and pleasure ; he has a garage. His residence. is a substantial 8-room house, with most attractive surroundings of trees, shrubs, lawn and in the summer time many flowers. The house is attractively painted a golden yellow. On his other farm Mr. Wahl has a barn 40 by 64 feet, and also a good house. The buildings on that farm are painted a fawn color. Mr. Wahl was born in Flat Rock Township of Henry County, November 24, 1869. Ile grew up and received a good education in his native township, and since starting life for himself his prosperity has been measured by the acquisition and the improvement of the two farms just described. Mr. Wahl is a son of Frederick and Christina (Franz) Wahl. His father was born in Wuertemberg and his mother in Hesse Nassau, Germany. Both are still living and are now past the age of three score and ten. His father was seventy-one on the 13th of February, 1917, and his mother seventy on October 6, 1916. Frederick Wahl was six years of age and Christina Franz was five years old when their respective families came to America. They came after the fashion of the time in slow-going sailing vessels and were many days on the ocean. The Wahl family located in Medina County., while the Franz household found a home in Crawford County. Later both families moved to Henry County. The Franz family established a home in Flat Rock Township, while the Wahls lived in Pleasant Township. The paternal grandparents were George and Eva Wahl. The former died at the age of seventy-four and the latter at eighty-five. They were German Reformed Church people, and George Wahl as an American citizen cast his vote as a democrat. The maternal grandparents were John and Christina Franz, bath of whom died at their old homestead in Flat Rock Township, the former at seventy-three and the latter at sixty-four. They were also members of the Reformed Church, and he a democrat. After their marriage Frederick Wahl and wife lived on the old farm until they retired to Holgate, where they have resided for several years. They belong to the Reformed Church, and he has always cast his vote in the interests of the democratic party. Six children were born to their union. One, John, died when three years of age. Besides Charles there are four other children still living. Julia is the wife of Nicholas Trietch, and they have children. Albert is one of the leading dentists at Omaha, Nebraska, and has a family of two daughters and one son. ,Minnie is the wife of Fred Lesh, who handles the mail on rural route No. 2 out of New Bavaria and lives in Pleasant Township. William lives at Holgate and is in the draying and transfer business and is the father of a son and daughter. Charles Wahl was married in Pleasant Township in 1893 to Miss Margaret E. Rothenburger. Mrs. Wahl was born at the old homestead of her parents in Pleasant Township, March 22, .1872, a daughter of William and Catherine (Leonhart) Rothenburger. Her father was born in Wuertemberg, Germany, and her mother in the City of Stuttgart. Both were quite young when they came with their respective parents to the United States, the Rothenburgers locating in Medina County and the Leonharts in Crawford County, Ohio, but subsequently both came to Flat Rock Township, in Henry County. The grandparents on both sides died in this county when in advanced years. William Rothenburger and wife after their marriage in 1871 moved into the wildest section of the newly erected Township of Pleasant. There they made their beginning under circumstances closely approximating those to which the earliest pioneers were accustomed. They had a log cabin home, situated in the midst of the heavy timber, and endured many inconveniences and hardships before they had established their fine country home. Prosperity came to them in unstinted measure, and finally they were able to retire and spend their last years in comfort at Holgate. Mr. Rothenburger died at Holgate in April, 1907, at the age of fifty-nine. He was a democrat and was honored by various local places of trust and responsibility, including the office of township trustee. His widow is still living at Holgate at the age of sixty-five and still preserves much of the vigor of her earlier years. She is a member of the Reformed Church, as was her husband. Mrs. Wahl is one of two children. Her brother is Rev. William Frederick Rothenburger, a very prominent minister of the Disciples of Christ Church. He now is pastor of the church at Franklin Circle, in HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO - 955, Cleveland, Ohio. He was graduated in the classical course from the Ohio Northern Uni-versity at Ada and later prepared for the ministry at Hiram College. He preached at Ashtabula, later at Chicago, and is now one of the leading Christian ministers of Ohio. By his marriage to Lela Avery of Buffalo, New York, he has two daughters, Ruth and Ada Jane. Mr. and Mrs. Wahl are the parents of three children. The oldest, Vera, is a graduate of the Holgate public schools and of Defiance College, and is now the wife of Raymond Trietch. They have a daughter, Lois Marie. Russell, the only son, is in the eighth grade of the public schools at Holgate and will graduate in 1917. Margaret J., the youngest, was born August 25, 1911. Mr. and Mrs. Wahl are very active members and workers in the Presbyterian Church at Holgate. For the past nine years Mr. Wahl has served as an elder. He is also one of the well-known Republicans of this section of Henry County, is chairman of the district republican committee and is now serving as township trustee. Fraternally he is affiliated with the Modern Woodmen of America. SAMUEL J. FRONCE. A part which Mr. Fronce plays as a citizen of 'Henry County is that of a successful, capable and progressive farm manager. He has proved unusually en-terprising and resourceful in handling a farm and its equipment of stock, and through good seasons and bad he has contrived to add a little more each year to his accumulations. His home is in section 19 of Damascus Town-ship, where he has 130 acres under cultiva-tion. This is the old Michael Longnecker farm, owned by Mrs. Fronce's father. Mr. Fronce has occupied the place since the spring of 1903. He has placed his chief dependence upon the crops of corn, wheat and oats, and he keeps some first class stock. He and his family reside in a comfortable two-story modern brick house of eight rooms, and it is surrounded by large barns and other facili-ties necded by a high class farm. Mr. Fronce was born in Monroe Township of Henry County, April 7, 1879, and has spent practically all his life in this one county. He grew pp and was educated in Harrison Town-ship, and lived at home until his marriage. His parents were Jacob and Catherine (Arney) Fronce. His father was born in that border province between Germany and France, Alsace, and the grandfather was a Frenchman and the grandmother was a German woman. Both these grandparents spent their lives in Alsace, where they died, the grandfather at the age of eighty-seven and the grandmother at eighty-four. When eighteen years of age Jacob Fronce came to the United States, located in Seneca County, Ohio, and in a short time he volun-teered his services in defense of his adopted land. In 1862 he enlisted in Company F of the Fifty-fifth Ohio Volunteer Infantry as a private and served three years, seven months and ten days. He fought in some of the greatest battles of the war, including Stone River, the Wilderness, Gettysburg, Kenesaw Mountain and other engagements. Toward the close of the war he was captured and was confined in the foul prison of Libby until the war was over. Returning home to Seneca County, he was married there, his wife being, a native of Ohio and of eastern parentage. Her parents were Samuel and Hulda (McNutt) Arney, who subsequently moved to Henry County and died there, Samuel Arney at the age of seventy-two and his wife at eighty-three. She was a member of the United Brethren Church and he. was a democrat. In 1871 Jacob Fronce and wife and their daughter Catherine moved to Monroe Town-ship of Henry County, and have lived in this county ever since. Their home is now in Liberty Center, and they are enjoying retired life. Jacob Fronce celebrated his seventy-eighth birthday on February 13, 1917, and his wife was born August 8, 1853. She is an active member of the United Brethren Church. Politically he takes an independent stand. Samuel J. Fronce was the third in a family of five children. The oldest, Annetta,, is the wife of Clem L. Creager, a farmer in Damascus Township, and they have a son and a daughter. Hulda May is the wife of William Huffman, of Findlay, Ohio. Mary A. married O. E. Dielman, of Damascus Township, and has a son and daughter. C. Henry, who lives in the City of Napoleon, is in the draying and transfer business, and has one son by his marriage to Edna Miller. In 1901, in Damascus Township, Samuel J. Fronce married Iota Longnecker, who was born in the house which she now occupies March 4, 1881, and was reared and educated in this township. Reference to her father; Michael Longnecker, is given in succeeding paragraphs. Mr. and 'kn. Fronce have three 956 - HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO   children : Jessie Sharp, Vivaline F. and Icie Ondo. In politics Mr. Fronce is a republican. Michael Longnecker, father of Mrs, Fronce, is one of the old and honored citizens of Henry County. His father, Michael, Sr., was born in Germany, of Hanover ancestry. The family for generations have followed farming in that kingdom. Michael, Sr., when a young man came to the United States by sailing vessel and spent a number of weeks on the ocean. Before leaving the old country he married Catherine Fischer, also of Hanover, Two children were born to them in the old country, Elizabeth and Catherine. After coming to America they spent a short time in Pennsylvania and then moved to Seneca County, Ohio. Seneca County was a comparatively wild and unimproved district when they arrived, and Michael, Sr., cleared up a good farm there. Other children were born in Seneca County, including Susan, Michael, Jr., Jacob and Mary. These children grew up and received their education in Seneca County, and the father died there in 1849. His widow subsequently married Phillip Lower, of Pennsylvania. Michael Longnecker's sister Rebecca married Michael Kimmel and lives in Indiana. His sister Susan is a widow and lives with her children. Michael Longnecker, Jr., was born in Seneca County, Ohio, April 22, 1842, grew up as a farmer boy, and was only seven years of age when his father died. He lived with his mother until thirteen and since that age has been earning his own way in the world. In his native county he married Miss Sylvia Warner, who was born in that county in 1844, a daughter of Pennsylvania parents. In 1869 Michael Longnecker and wife arrived in Henry County and settled in the woods of Damascus Township on section 19. There by hard work, thrift and self denial they laid the foundation for a good home, and during successive years cleared up the land, fenced and drained it, and he personally established all the substantial improvements which now give the farm its high character. He built two barns, one 36 by 56 feet and the other 36 by 44 feet, and also the large brick house. Fifteen years ago Mr. Longnecker retired from the active business of farming and- moved to McClure, where he and his wife enjoy the comforts of a good six-room house on North Street. Mr. and Mrs. Longnecker have one child, Iota, who is now Mrs. Samuel J. Fronce. Mr. Longnecker and his family are all active in the United Brethren Church, and for years he has been an official member of the church. In politics he is a republican. CLAYTON L. MURPHY. It is twenty-four years since Clayton L. Murphy began practice as a lawyer in Toledo, and since then he has been first and last a lawyer, has made it a profession rather than a business, and has seldom sought distinctions outside that one field. Born near Belleville, Richland County, Ohio, December 2, 1870, he is a son of James F. and Eliza (Binns) Murphy. His ancestors were of mingled Danish, English and Irish stock, and some of them were in this country as early as the seventeenth century. James F. Murphy and wife lived in Knox County, Ohio, while the former conducted an extensive business as a general farmer and stock raiser for many years. The mother died in Knox County when Clayton was two years of age. The father never married again and lived until July 4, 1913. He took a very prominent part in Knox County politics, particularly as a supporter of the campaigns of James G. Blaine and Col. W. C. Cooper. He was a republican by principle, and during the Civil war had served for a brief period as a private. His three children are still living : Eliel Murphy, a prosperous farmer near Fredericktown, Knox County ; Clayton L. ; and Edwin, a farmer and stock raiser near Des Moines, Iowa. Clayton L. Murphy spent his boyhood years uneventfully in Fulton and Knox counties. The Binns, his mother's people, were Quakers, and after the death of his mother he was reared in the home of his grandfather, Rev. S. Binns, and also by his uncle, Otis Ford. He attended the public schools and when quite young resolved that his career should be in the legal profession. Acting upon this decision he found his first opportunity for study in the office of M. M. Boothman at Bryan, Ohio, and later continued studying under the preceptorship of Hon. W. C. Cooper, a prominent attorney at Mount Vernon, Knox County. He then entered the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, where he was graduated from the law department LL. B. with the class of 1892, and in the same year was admitted to the bar before the Supreme Court at Columbus. In January, 1893, Mr. Murphy moved to Toledo and has ever since identified himself with the general practice of law. Much of his business has been as an attorney repre- HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO - 957 renting local business organizations, and he is now counsel for the Hardware Dealers, Grocers and Butchers, Plumbers and Sheet Metal Contractors Association, and is one of the principal owners of the Credit Rating Bureau of Toledo. His offices are in the Chamber of Commerce Building at the corner of Summit and Madison Avenue. He is unmarried and resides at the Hotel Madison. Mr. Murphy is a member of the Sons of Veterans at Toledo, is a Mason and is also affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias, belongs to the Brotherhood Club of Trinity Episcopal Church and to the Toledo Commerce Club. As a republican he has been quite an active figure in politics for a number of years. NELSON H. YOUNG, M. D. Discouraging as it may be, nevertheless it is a fact that serious disturbances of mental functions in individuals are on the increase, chargeable perhaps to the demands of modern life, to the disorganizing forces of industrial stress and to the hardship and shock of cruel, unexpected war. The world turns to men of medical science for help, and, notwithstanding their faithful efforts, the list of unfortunates has grown. In some modern institutions in the United States, however, enlightened views have prevailed and systems have been adopted that are promising well. Perhaps Toledo, Ohio, in its State Hospital for the Insane, with its staff of trained scientists, presents one of the most encouraging examples of possible curative institutional care. Connected with this institution is Dr. Nelson H. Young, as assistant superintendent. Nelson H. Young was born at Toledo, Ohio, August 3, 1874, and is a son of Gen. Charles Luther and Cora (Day) Young, the latter of whom is a resident of Brooklyn, N. Y. The father of Doctor Young was a very prominent man in Ohio for many years and died at Toledo, September 17, 1913. After being graduated from the Toledo High School, in the class of 1892, the family removed then to Xenia, Ohio, where General Young took charge of the Soldiers' and Sailors' Home. Having determined to study medicine, the young man had some early training in the Children's Hospital, and a year later entered the Cincinnati Medical College, now the medical department of the Cincinnati University. At the time Doctor Young matriculated, that was the oldest medi cal college west of the Allegheny Mountains. From that institution Doctor Young was graduated with his degree in the class of 1896. Upon his return to Xenia, Dr. Young reentered the children's department of the Soldiers' and Sailors' Orphans' Home, of which his father was still superintendent, after which he came to Toledo, and during 1898-99 was on the regular staff of the physicians and surgeons at St. Vincent Hospital. He was also a member of the staff of the Humane Society and was appointed one of the city physicians. During the Spanish-American war he was a member of the body of medical men connected with the Bushnell relief train which only proceeded as far as Knoxville and Chattanooga, Tennessee, the close of the war making further progress southward unnecessary. For three years afterward Doctor Young was a surgeon in the Naval Reserves, of which the Bushnell medical body had been a part. On the occasion of the funeral of the late President McKinley, when such a vast concourse of people who had loved and honored him strove to pay tribute by their presence, many accidents and some fatalities occurred, and to succor those in need the surgeon-general of the state called six other surgeons to his aid, Doctor Young being one of these. On March 17, 1900, Doctor Young was appointed by Superintendent H. A. Tobey, assistant superintendent of the State Hospital for. the Insane at Toledo, on Which board Governor Charles Foster was serving as president. The Ohio Board of Administration is made up of four prominent citizens of the state : C. C. Philbrick, president; T. E. Davey, D. S. Creamer and Dr. E. H. Rorick. E. F. Brown is the fiscal supervisor and secretary. The medical staff is made up of men of wide scientific reputation : Dr. George R. Love, superintendent ; Dr. Nelson H. Young, assistant superintendent ; and Drs. Clyde C. Kirk, Frank L. Farman, Sidney Niles and George Nutt, assistant physicians. On March 20, 1907, Doctor Young was united in marriage with Miss Beryl E. Jones, a daughter of Thomas Jones of Ashland, Ohio. They reside at the state hospital, where attractive quarters are provided. Since 1898 Doctor Young has been a member of the Toledo Academy of Medicine. He belongs also to the Ohio State Medical Society and has served as president of the Association of Assistant Physicians of the State of Ohio upon two different occasions. Doctor Young 958 - HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO and wife are members of the First Congregational Church of Toledo. ALONZO CHESBROUGH. Probably no industry brought out the elemental strength and virtues of hardy manhood to greater advantage than lumbering as carried on in the palmy days of that industry, before it was made a matter of machinery and technical organization. The old time lumbermen have been described as presenting to the world a picture of complete adequacy, such as it would be difficult to match in any other walk of life. It was with lumbering as a trade requiring all the virile qualities of manhood that the late Alonzo Chesbrough began his career, and for a great many years he was actively identified with the lumber business particu-larly in Northwest Ohio and in Michigan. By his enterprise he helped to make Toledo a great transportation and business center. He was born in Dorset, Vermont, in 1817, and was about seventy years of age when he passed away at his home in Toledo January 30, 1887. When about twenty years of age he left his Vermont home among the Green Mountains and started out into the world to seek his fortune. His only capital was an unusually sturdy physique and an ability to work hard and a determination to succeed. On arriving at Lockport, New York, he sought employment with Cameron & Moody, manufacturers of and dealers in lumber. The firm needed no help just at that time, but young Chesbrough was not satisfied with this curt explanation. He asked permission to work for nothing until he could demonstrate what he could do. Such a request could not reasonably be refused. Accordingly the young man was sent out with a gang of chop-pers, and in a, few hours his work had won such admiration that on the following day he was put on the payroll at the highest rate of wages paid to men of his- occupation. From. that time for upwards of twenty years until 1855, Mr. Chesbrough remained with the firm of Cameron & Moody and beginning as a chopper he went through all the grades of service and responsibility until he managed the great and extensive lumber interests of the firm. He had by this time accumulated sufficient capital to justify him in starting a business of his own, and his study of conditions and his unusually keen foresight brought him to Toledo, where he was ever afterwards a citi-zen. He came to that city a thoroughly experienced lumberman in all the details of the industry, and he soon had a large and flourishing business. Few local business men were more widely and favorably known over Northwestern Ohio than the late Alonzo Chesbrough. He became acquainted with farmers and laborers as well as business men on his own plane, and everywhere was known for the high probity and strict integrity of his character. He was of the type of man now almost old fashioned whose verbal promise was just as good as a written note. To such character he united untiring energy, and therefore his success came as a matter of course. With the extension of his local business he acquired a large tract in the timber regions of Michigan, as well as in Ohio. For the last twenty-five years of his life his business headquarters were with the old firm of Bell, Emerson & Company, wholesale grocers, at the corner of Madison and Summit streets, this company being subsequently known as Emerson & Company. For more than thirty years prior to his death Mr. Chesbrough had his home in East Toledo. Besides his vast timber interests he was connected with other financial enterprises, and had served as vice president both of the Second National Bank of Bay City, Michigan, and of the Exchange Bank of Lockport, New York. Mr. Chesbrough proved invaluable to both these institutions. Like many of the old time lumbermen Mr. Chesbrough had an almost infallible knowl-edge of human nature, and it is said that he was rarely deceived in men. In the flourishing days of the old lumber industry it was necessary for a man, in order to succeed, to assemble about him a small army of daring, hardy and efficient employees, and the judicious selection of such a staff of workmen was really of greater importance than capital and no doubt it was the faculty of judgment so thoroughly trained and so accurate in Mr. Chesbrough that enabled him to conquer success in spite of any natural adversities or difficulties. In 1855 at Niagara Falls, New York, Alonzo Chesbrough married Miss Sarah J. Tufford. She was born at Niagara October 13, 1825, her father a native of New Jersey and her mother of Vermont. In 1874 Mrs. Chesbrough joined her husband in Toledo and here she became well known in social circles and a woman of many fine characteristics. After the death of her husband she lived with her son Aaron until she passed away May 17, 1893, at the age of sixty-eight. HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO - 959 The four surviving sons of the late Alonzo Chesbrough are : Fremont B. of Boston, Massachusetts ; Frank P. of Detroit, Michigan ; Abram K, of Toledo ; and Aaron, of Toledo. ROBERT BRUCE WILSON. In the course of a long active life time Robert Bruce Wilson has performed useful service in a number of different fields, and has been a soldier, a successful Ohio lawyer for upwards of half a century, and in a more exclusive circle is now known for his interest in art and letters. Since coming to Toledo about twenty years ago Mr. Wilson has applied himself largely to patents, patent cases, trade-marks and copyrights, and is a recognized authority in that branch of law. As he has now passed the three-quarter century mark in life, he does not consider himself on the role of active lawyers and is only endeavoring to wind up unfinished business, after which he will retire altogether. A native of Ohio he was born in Warren County, December 16, 1839, a son of Robert and Martha (Smith) Wilson, parents who gave him the name of the noted Scotch patriot. His father was a native of Virginia and his mother of Ohio, and were very early settlers in Warren County, where Robert Wilson, though a farmer, took a very prominent part in local affairs, serving as county treasurer of Warren County altogether for fifteen years. He was also for several terms a member of the Ohio Legislature, and long enjoyed an enviable position among the citizens of that part of Ohio. He and his wife were the parents of seven sons and one daughter, and only three of them are now living. The family was distinguished by the fact that six of the sons served in the Civil war. One of them, Judge William W. Wilson, was major in the Seventy-ninth Ohio Infantry, while James was a member of the Third Ohio Infantry, with the rank of captain and later breveted major. Three of these sons attained success as lawyers. The oldest, Judge Jeremiah M. Wilson, was a leading member of the bar of Indiana, and for two terms represented the Fourth Indiana District in Congress, and subsequently transferred his practice as a lawyer to the national capital and made a national reputation for himself. The second son, Judge William W. Wilson, of Warren County, Ohio, was as able in the law and in the substantial virtues of citizenship as he was a gallant soldier. The army career of Robert Bruce Wilson began when he was in his twenty-first year. His literary education was completed in. the old Lebanon Academy, now known as the National Normal University in Warren County, and he was already pursuing the study of law when the cloud of Civil war settled upon the country. The day following the firing upon Fort Sumter, in April, 1861, he left his law books and enlisted in Company F of. the Twelfth Ohio Infantry. Upon the organization of the regiment he was made fourth sergeant, and by faithful performance of duty was promoted to first sergeant, to second lieutenant, later became adjutant of the One Hundred and Ninety-fourth Ohio Infantry, and finally served in the field as assistant acting adjutant general in General McCook's brigade. Few men in the Union army served for a longer period. He was in the army more than four years, from the very beginning of the rebellion until mustered out, and given an honorable discharge November 1, 1865. He belonged to the distinguished Kanawha Division of the Union army, and in the course of his army service came to know two fellow officers in the same division who afterwards reached the distinguished eminence of the presidency, they being President Hayes and President McKinley. Any man, whether a private or officer, might feel a just pride in having been a member of this division, which furnished to the country a number of major generals, two cabinet officers, a justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, three governors of Ohio and two presidents of the United States. It was the Kanawha Division which crushed Lee's right wing at South Mountain and opened up a way to his rear. The "Damascus Blade of the Army of the Potomac," was the descriptive phrase applied to this division in an article published immediately after the battle of South Mountain in the old New York Herald. Having acquitted himself so worthily in behalf of his country's integrity, Mr. Wilson returned home, resumed the study of law, and in 1867, after passing the examination, was admitted to the bar. He did not begin practice immediately, but instead accepted and held for three years the position of deputy assessor of internal revenue. His first work as a lawyer was done at Dayton, Ohio, but a year later he removed to a larger field at Cincinnati, where he practiced from 1871 to 1895. It was on account of ill health that he gave up general practice in that year and   962 - HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO Mr. Zabel married Miss Mary S. Swick, daughter of John and Elizabeth (Travis) Swick of Lodi, Seneca County, New York. Her parents in 1865 moved to Petersburg, Michigan, where they spent the rest of their years. John Swick had two sons who served as soldiers in the Civil war. Mrs. Zabel was born in Lodi, New York, and obtained her education there and in the public schools of Petersburg. She is a graduate of the Petersburg High School and for a number of years before her marriage was a teacher in the local schools. Mr. and Mrs. Zabel had two children. J. Golden Zabel, who was named in honor of Mr. Zabel's law partner, the late Judge Golden, was born in Petersburg, Michigan, is a graduate of the Cleary College at Ypsilanti, was for several years a commercial teacher in the Mount Clemens High School, and after his marriage served as court stenographer at Monroe until elected to the office of county clerk, which he still fills. He married Miss Nellie Cady of Mount Clemens, Michigan, in 1906 and their two young daughters are Mary Elizabeth and Helen, both of whom were born at Monroe. The second son of Mr. and Mrs. Zabel was Allen G. Thurman Zabel, named in honor of the noted democratic statesman. This son was entering upon a bright and promising career when stricken by death in February, 1907, at the age of twenty-two. He had graduated from the Petersburg High School and wag in his junior year of the law department of the University of Michigan. He had shown brilliant qualities as a student and it was overwork in the university that brought about his death. He was an exceedingly popular young fellow in his home community at Petersburg and also in university circles and Mr. and Mrs. Zabel still keenly feel their heavy loss in the death of this young son. Some time before his death Mr. Zabel had established his home in Toledo, but when the son returned ill from the university it was his desire to return to the old place at Petersburg, where he died. The kindly associations Mr. and Mrs. Zabel have always had with their home community at Petersburg, in addition, to this sad event, were the reasons which caused them to give up their Toledo residence and establish their home permanently in Petersburg. There Mr. Zabel built a beautiful rural residence in 1910, and his home is surrounded by spacious grounds of twelve acres, a part of it within the corporation limits of the village. On this place is a woodland of six acres of native timber, and Mr. Zabel now finds his principal recreation in looking after his trees, shrubs and flowers which furnish so attracticve a setting for his Petersburg home. REUBEN B. MITCHELL. Widely known in Northwest Ohio as a banker, manufacturer, business man and citizen, Reuben B. Mitchell was one of the conspicuous men of Lucas County for upwards of forty years. He was born at Winfield, Maine, February 25, 1830, and died in Maumee May 10, 1897. His parents were Edward and Mary (Chandler) Mitchell, both representing old New England stock. His early boyhood was spent in one district, where he attended the public schools. At the age of thirteen he came with his parents to Ohio in 1843. His father, Edward Mitchell, located at Maumee, and became, a manufacturer. At the age of seventeen Reuben B. Mitchell entered business with his father and from that time forward until the close of his life was actively and successfully engaged in the many enterprises which he himself established and which sought his judgment and direction. As a banker he established and was proprietor of the Union Deposit Bank of Maumee, of which his son Ammi F. Mitchell is now president. For over a quarter of a century Mr. Mitchell was head of this well known Lucas County institution. A special distinction that attaches to his name is that he was responsible for the establishment of the first foundry in Northwest Ohio. He was also associated with the late T. S. Merrell in the agricultural implement business, and was also well known in grain circles in Toledo. For many years he was a member of the Produce Exchange of Toledo, served one term as its president and also belonged to the Toledo Board of Trade. Every day for over twenty years Reuben Mitchell was in Toledo as a factor in its business and was as greatly interested in that city as in his home town of Maumee. The honor and integrity of his character should be remembered as well as his successful performance of business duties. He was faithful to every engagement, was a most genial gentleman, and earned the respect and admiration of his many associates, including the most prominent men of Toledo during the last half of the last century. In 1861 Reuben B. Mitchell married Miss Ellen A. Frost of Maumee. Her father, HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO - 963 Elijah B. Frost, was one of the pioneer mer-chants of Maumee, selling goods there when Maumee was more of a metropolis than To-ledo was. The present home of the Union Deposit Bank marks the spot formerly occu-pied by the old Frost store. Mr. Frost was also one of the early sheriffs of Lucas County. Mrs. Mitchell, who died at her home at the Belvidere in Toledo January 14, 1898, at the age of sixty-seven, had spent her life in Lucas County and during the last ten years before her death had lived the greater part of the time in Toledo in order to be near her children. Of her father's family she was the last survivor but one, Mrs. Fanny F. Holmes of Toledo. Mrs. Mitchell endeared herself to her family and a host of friends by her simple affectionate character, her kindly nature and generous heart, and made her life a benefac-tion to all who came within the circle of her influence. Both she and her husband now rest in the Riverside Cemetery at Maumee. She was the mother of seven children, and the four now surviving are : Ammi F., vice president of the Northern National Bank of Toledo and president of the Union Deposit Bank of Maumee, and mentioned on other pages; Truman H. and Edward M., both of Toledo; and Mrs. H. S. Woodbury of Toledo. AMMI FROST MITCHELL of Toledo has long been prominent in banking circles in North-west Ohio. He is a son of the late Reuben B. Mitchell, whose career has been noted on other pages, and is now president of the bank founded by his father at Maumee, the Union Deposit Bank. At Toledo Mr: Mitchell is one of the vice presidents of the Northern National Bank an institution that was founded about the close of the Civil war and has had more than half a century of prosperous service to its credit. It is one of the largest banks of Northwest Ohio, having capital and surplus of more than $1,500,000 and total resources of over $9,000,000. Born in the family home at Maumee March 13, 1869, Ammi Frost Mitchell attended the public schools of Maumee and Toledo, and spent one year in the St. Johnsbury Academy at St. Johnsbury, Vermont. His business experience began before he left school. As clerk in a book store he, worked before and after school hours and on Saturdays in vacations, and in that way contributed some of the money to meet his expenses for several years. His apprenticeship in his chosen profession was served in his father's bank at Maumee. In 1887 he left the Maumee bank to take his place in the Merchants and Clerks Savings Bank in Toledo. After working there about six months he went to the Northern National Bank as corresponding clerk. From time to time he was promoted to heavier responsibili-ties, and successively held the positions of paying teller, receiving teller, assistant cashier, cashier, and is now one of the vice presidents. of that institution as well as president of the Union Deposit Bank of Maumee and a director in both banks. Native ability and close application to his work have been the keynotes of his success. While known as a conservative banker, he is also a man of most affable and courteous manner and has a host of friends in Northwest Ohio. Besides the two banks mentioned he is interested in several small country banks. Fraternally Mr. Mitchell is a member of the Northern Light Lodge of Masons at Maumee. This is one of the oldest Masonic lodges in the state, and his grandfather was also a member in the same fraternity. He has also attained thirty-two degrees in the Scottish Rite and is a member of the Mystic Shrine. His church is the First Unitarian at Toledo. In November, 1896, Mr. Mitchell married Florence Au of Mansfield, Ohio, a daughter of John Au. Mrs. Mitchell was. born at Mans-field, Ohio, 'September 10, 1872, lived there until she was eighteen, and came to Toledo as the bride of Mr. Mitchell. She died at the family home in Toledo June 26, 1913. She was a member of the First Unitarian Church and was buried in the Woodlawn Cemetery in Toledo. Surviving her are four children : Frost Alysworth Mitchell, Ellen Mitchell, Eunice Mitchell and Marian Mitchell. . WILLIAM BAKER. Not too often and not through the agency of too many vehicles of publication can be recorded the life history of one who lived so honorable and useful a life as did the late William Baker, who was one of the pioneer members of the bar of the City of Toledo, where he was engaged in the practice of his profession for half a century and where he exerted a large and benignant influence in connection with civic affairs and community interests in general. He was a man and a lawyer of signal purity and exalta-tion of purpose, recondite in the learning of his profession and imbued with the fullest appreciation of its dignity and responsibility ; well disciplined in mind ; eminently judicial in his natural attitude as touching men and 964 - HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO measures ; guided and governed by inviolable principles of integrity and honor ; simple and unostentatious in his self-respecting and tolerant individuality—such a man could not prove other than a dynamic power for good in whatsoever relation of life he might have been placed. He honored his native state both _by his character and achievement and he was -honored as one of the staunch, loyal and influential citizens of Toledo, where he continued to maintain his home until his death, at the age of seventy-two years. In paying tribute to his memory recourse is had in certain degree to an appreciative estimate prepared by one definitely familiar with the different stages of his long and useful career. William Baker was born at Norwalk, the judicial center of Huron County, Ohio, and the date of his nativity was February 5, 1822. He was a scion of one of those sturdy New England families whose industry, good judgment and distinct virtues gave them an influential part in the development and up-building of the historic Western Reserve of Ohio. His alert 'and vigorous mind enabled him to profit fully from the educational advantages that were afforded him in his youth, and scholastic standards were high in the Western Reserve even at that early pioneer period. At the age of nineteen years Mr. Baker was graduated in Granville College, and in consonance with his well formulated plans and high ambition he then entered the law school of Harvard College, as the historic university was then known, in which he was graduated as a member of the class of 1844 and from which he received the degree of Bachelor of Arts. He returned to Ohio and was forthwith admitted to the bar of his native state, where, in November of the same year, he established his permanent residence at Toledo, which was then little more than a village, and here engaged in the practice of his profession, to which he here continued to pay active and unfaltering allegiance until the time of his death, which occurred on the 17th of November, 1894. He was not only one of the distinguished members of the bar of Lucas County during the course of many years, but was also a prominent and influential figure in all activities and movements pertaining to the intellectual, civic, moral and material progress and well being of Toledo, his loyalty' to his adopted city having been most appreciative and absolutely unfaltering. In 1847 Mr. Baker formed a law partnership with the late Judge Myron H. Tilden, and this alliance continued until 1850. Thereafter he conducted an individual practice until 1857, from which year forward to 1870 he had as his professional coadjutor the late Judge William A. Collins. From 1881 until his death he was senior member of the representative law firm in which his associates were his youngest son, Rufus H. Baker, and Barton Smith. Mr. Baker had a comprehensive and accurate knowledge of the science of jurisprudence and was never lacking in facility in applying this knowledge to his effective work both as a resourceful trial lawyer and as a counselor of mature judgment and much conservatism, the while he was tireless in his efforts to protect and forward the interests of his clients, though invariably refusing to identify himself with causes whose justice he knew to be of negative quality. In short he was at all times and under all conditions a man of the strictest integrity and one who never sacrificed the dictates of conscience for any matter of personal expediency. Thus it was but natural that he should achieve success in his profession, with the concomitant respect and confidence of his fellow men. Early in his career at the bar he won secure vantage ground, and from that time forward until his death his prestige and success were marked by cumulative tendencies. That a man with so broad a mental ken, so sure a judgment and so marked practical circumspection should become influential in connection with the march of civic and material advancement was virtually a matter of logical sequence. With such men as Morrison R. Waite, Samuel M. Young, Peter F. Berdan, Joseph K. Secor, Horace S. Walbridge, Abner L. Backus and others, he was a prominent factor in building up the institutions upon which now rest Toledo's prosperity and precedence. He was especially active and influential in securing the construction of the Toledo, Norwalk & Cleveland Railroad, the line of which now constitutes the Norwalk division of the New York Central Lines; and also in effecting a similar service in connection with the Wabash Railroad. His active influence was given also in the promotion of the building of the Boody House, which was long the best known and leading hotel of Toledo, and his activities along business lines were potent also in the establishing of the Wabash grain elevators, the Milburn Wagon Company and a number of other important concerns HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO - 965 that have contributed greatly to the growth and commercial prestige of the city. When the First Baptist Church of Toledo was organized Mr. Baker and his wife became members of the same, and from that time until the close of his life he continued one of its zealous adherents and staunchest supporters. For many years he was superintendent of its Sunday school, besides being active and liberal in the furtherance of the work of other departments of the church and their service. His religion was not confined to the matter of creed or individual belief, but he conscientiously endeavored to make his abiding faith evident through good works and kindly deeds. Thus he was earnest in the support of charitable and benevolent objects, and many men who afterward became prosperous and influential in connection with the business life of Toledo owe their initial steps toward success to his timely advice and assistance. It not infrequently falls to the lot of those who thus strive to aid others to become victims of misplaced confidence, and Mr. Baker was not permitted to offer his claims to being an exception. He at times suffered heavy financial losses through the unworthiness of those to whom he extended a helping hand, but these losses never rendered him uncharitable or served to destroy his confidence in humanity. Of him it has been said that no man "in whose integrity and ability he believed, ever asked his help in vain." During the Civil war Mr. Baker was a member of the sanitary commission, in connection with the important work of which he rendered efficient service, as did he also as president of the Toledo branch of the United States Christian Commission. At the timc of the death of Mr. Baker one of the leading newspapers of Toledo paid to him in its editorial columns the following tribute: "It is a distinct loss to a city when such a man as William Baker passes away. Broadminded and thoughtful, with a sincere belief in his fellow men and an earnest desire to do what lay in his power for their prosperity and progress, Mr. Baker was one of the human factors, and a large one, in the arduous work of laying the foundations upon which the superstructure of Toledo's growth and prosperity has been erected. Quiet and unassuming in his manner, he was not one to pose constantly before the public, but there was no project for the advancement of the real prosperity of Toledo as a commercial and Vol. II-20 manufacturing center which did not find in him an earnest advocate and sagacious supporter. Though not a demonstrative man, the energy and thoroughness characteristic of his New England ancestry made his support count for much. Nor was he less a factor of usefulness and progress in the upbuilding of the social fabric of the city. His fifty years' residence in Toledo was one of continuous helpfulness to the development of her moral, religious and educational progress. A consistent and active Christian, he was a tower of strength to the church of which he was a member, and his influence extended far beyond the limits of his immediate field. He has gone to his rest, full of years fruitful in good works and leaving to his fellow citizens an example that all may emulate with honor to themselves and credit to Toledo." The domestic chapter in the life history of Mr. Baker was one of ideal type, and in the sanctuary of the home his noble and gentle nature shown in fullest refulgence and graciousness. On the 28th of August, 1849, was solemnized his marriage to Miss Frances C. Latimer, who died February 23, 1911. Three sons and one daughter survive them. Herbert, the eldest of the children, is president of the Home Savings Bank of Toledo ; Arthur E. is identified with business interests in Toledo; Rufus H. is here upholding the professional prestige of the name which he bears and was a law partner of his father at the time of the latter's death ; Katharine is the widow of John J. Manning. LANGDON W. KUMLER is a young Toledo business man whose associations and connections are very well known in that city. After retiring from the office of county recorder he was a member of the firm of Major & Kumler until June, 1916, when he opened an office at Room. 1150 Nicholas Building. He is handling investments. Mr. Kumler is a son of the late Judge John F. Kumler, who was one of the leading lawyers of Northwest Ohio and was connected with many transactions which have entered intimately into the history of Toledo. Langdon W. Kumler was born in Toledo August 26, 1883, a son of John F. and Charlotte Langdon (Williams) Kumler. His mother was the daughter of Joseph R. Williams, who at one time was owner and editor of the Toledo Blade. Mr. Kumler had a liberal education as the foundation of his business career. He at- 966 - HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO tended Howe Military School at Howe, Indiana, the Cleveland University School at Cleveland, and was a student in the law department of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. His first regular work was as clerk in the office of the Toledo Board of Review, where he was employed for nine years. He has been one of the influential younger men in the political life of Lucas County. In 1912 he was nominated for recorder on the republican ticket and was also nominated for the same office by the progressive party, and he withdrew from the republican ticket and was elected as a progressive. He held the office of county recorder from January, 1913, until September, 1915, and gave a highly creditable administration of the office. In 1914 he was again nominated for recorder on the progressive ticket, but was defeated by the democratic candidate in that year. In February, 1916, Mr. Kumler entered the partnership which existed until June, 1916, as before stated. Mr. Kumler is a member of the Phi Chapter of the Psi Upsilon Fraternity of the University of Michigan, and is also affiliated with the National Union, the Sons of Veterans, and belongs to the Toledo Club. He is a member of the First Unitarian Church at Toledo. On April 25, 1907, at Toledo he married Irene Coghlin, a daughter of John T. and Lilla L. Coghlin, and a granddaughter of the late Dennis Coghlin. Mrs. Kumler died December 19, 1914, leaving one son, John Coghlin Kumler, who was born November 25, 1912. COL. JOHN E. PARSONS. Death selected a particularly conspicuous victim in the late Colonel John E. Parsons, who at the age of seventy-six, but still pursuing his business affairs with Wonted vigor, was caught in an elevator on the fifth floor of the Nasby Building in Toledo, and so badly injured that he died the same day, July 18, 1914. He was known as a banker, had earlier been identified with the local insurance field, made a gallant record as a soldier and officer during the Civil war, and during the many years spent at Toledo, he did much to build up that city and give it the high standing it has in the business world. While foremost in business enterprises, he was also a true friend, a kind neighbor, and a man of many admirable qualities of heart and mind. His earlier career identified him with his native State of Pennsylvania. He was born on Duncan's Island in the Susquehanna River near Harrisburg December 23, 1837. He was well educated, became a civil engineer, and was identified with the building of the West Central and other railroads of Pennsylvania. His military career began in 1862 and continued until the close of the Civil war. Enlisting in the 149th Pennsylvania Regiment, he became adjutant, and subsequently was detailed as acting adjutant-general under General Stone, who commanded the celebrated Bucktail Brigade in the Army of the Potomac. This commander complimented him in high terms as .a soldier of sagacity and self-possession and a good disciplinarian. Among other important battles in which Colonel Parsons participated were those at Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Wilderness, Spottsylvania Courthouse, Talapotomy and Bethesda Church. In his commander's report particular mention was made of Adjutant Parson's conduct the day of the Battle of the Wilderness. It will be recalled that for a time the wildest confusion prevailed in the Union ranks after the surprise of the skirmishers. By his keen discernment and promptness Colonel Parsons saved the guns of his battery and the brigade from what was apparently inevitable capture. His earlier services brought him still further promotion. On June 30, 1864, President Lincoln appointed him assistant adjutant-general of the volunter staff of the army with the rank of captain. In that capacity he was attached to the Fifth Army Corps. At Peebles Farm, when his brigade was formed for a charge upon the enemy's fortifications, one of the regimental commanders misunderstood the orders and led his regiment into a piece of wood in the rear and there remained, leaving the left of the position unprotected, while the right was exposed to the enemy's skirmishes. Seeing the situation, Captain Parsons at once reformed the line and directing the charge in person routed the enemy. The result was a complete victory for the Union forces. In recognition of this and other services in the field he was appointed January 25, 1865, lieutenant-colonel of the 187th Pennsylvania Volunteers, and was afterwards made colonel of the same regiment and was its commander until the end of the war. For nearly half a century after the war closed Colonel Parsons in private business affairs and in his relations to the public exhibited the same qualities of prompt effi- HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO - 967 ciency, courage, and aevotion to the interests entrusted to his charge. For a time he was engaged in the banking business at Harris-burg, Pennsylvania, and he was also for some years a member of the Pennsylvania Legislature. It was in 1875 that Colonel Parsons came to Toledo, his removal being consequent upon his appointment as district manager for the Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York. After several years in that position he retired to associate himself with the People's Savings Association, and he was its vice president and treasurer at the time of his death. Colonel Parsons also conducted a large real estate business. Though he had long passed the age of three score and ten, his wholesome, regular and plain practices of living had brought him to old age with little impairment of his keen faculties and his physical vigor and it was from a virile old age that he was so suddenly summoned by death. On October 9, 1873, he married Miss Georgiana Parke. She is a daughter of the late Benjamin Parke, LL. D. of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Mrs. Parsons is still living, with three of her children. Her two daughters are Mrs. William E. Taylor of Yonkers, New York, and Miss Hannah Parsons of Toledo. The only son is John E. Parsons, Jr., a prominent young lawyer of Toledo. For thirty-nine years Colonel Parsons was a resident of Toledo. His was a life of varied achievements and accomplishments, and always on a basis of square and honorable deal-ing. He was thoroughly patriotic, and while very enterprising in business affairs he was also noted for his modest, sincere and honest demeanor, which endeared him to a host of friends and business associates. In his attitude toward public affairs he himself exemplified and stood for those principles of basic honesty and purity which are the foundation of democratic government. He himself was never a seeker for political honors, though his services were in almost constant demand in public affairs and as an adviser in matters requiring good judgment. He moved on terms of easy relationship with the foremost busi-ness men and citizens of his home city and state, though he was not as widely. known as some men of lesser ability and business prominence. He applied himself closely to his business, but outside of business hours could usually be found in his own home, and he took his keenest delight in his family and intimate friends. SAMUEL M. YOUNG. Few if any had broader and more influential relations with the life and larger affairs of Lucas County during the first fifty years of its organized existence than the late Samuel M. Young, whose only living son, Morrison Waite Young, is now president of the Second National Bank in Toledo. When Samuel M. Young died at the age of ninety-one on New Year's day of 1897, there came to a close an exceptionally eventful career. It would be impossible to estimate the history of Lucas County without frequent mention of this strong individual factor. A New Englander, he was born at Lebanon, Grafton County, New Hampshire, in 1806. He grew up there, had the environment of the average New England boy during the early decades of the last century, but came to manhood with only a common school education. It was his ambition to become a lawyer. He carried out this resolution by reading law in the office of John M. Pomeroy at Burlington, Vermont, and eventually was qualified and admitted to the bar. His active relations with this part of Northwest Ohio began in 1835, when he located at Maumee in Lucas County. There he opened an office and started to practice law in what was still a pioneer community. He was identified with Lucas County during the memorable controversy so familiar to students of Ohio history as the Toledo war. However, he was an active participant in any of its phases, since Maumee was outside the disputed territory. When Lucas County was organized he was honored by election as its first auditor, and he served in that capacity two years. For several years he was associated in prac-tice with a lawyer who subsequently honored the State of Ohio by his distinguished attain-ments. In 1838 Morrison R. Waite, a graduate of Yale University, located at Maumee, and for a year read law in the office of Mr. Young. He was then admitted to the Ohio bar, and the preceptor and pupil became associated in practice under the name Young & Waite. The firm was soon recognized as second to none in the possession of legal talents and ability to render unexcelled legal service in any case to which their attention was called. It need hardly be stated that the junior member of the firm subsequently was regarded as one of Ohio's most eminent attorneys and closed his 968 - HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO career as chief justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. In 1855 the firm established an office at Toledo, and Mr. Waite took charge, while Mr. Young remained in the office at Maumee. Maumee was his home until 1860, after which year he lived in Toledo. It was not so much in the domain of law as a man of affairs that the late Samuel M. Young was distinguished. In, 1852 he became a stockholder and director in the Cleveland & Toledo Railway Company, which road was then in process of construction. He was connected with the original company until it merged with the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern. Subsequently he acquired stock in the Columbus & Toledo Railway Company, in which he became a director, and continued as such until the road was consolidated with the Columbus & Hocking Valley Railway, which was part of a still larger organization known as the Columbus, Hocking Valley & Toledo Railroad Company. On account of his growing financial interests Mr. Young retired from active practice in 1856. The preceding year, with other associates, he bought the old Bank of Toledo. To its management he gave much of his time until 1865, when it was reorganized under the new national banking law as the Toledo National Bank, and the directors chose Mr. Young as the first president. Hundreds of people, not acquainted with his various other business relations, recall the name of the late Mr. Young particularly in its association with the Toledo National Bank, of which he remained. president until January, 1895. In 1862 he was associated with Abner L. Backus, under the firm name of Young & Backus in the erection of the giant elevators on Water Street near Adams Street, designed especially to furnish facilities for the canal grain trade, then one of the most important factors in Toledo's commerce. For eighteen years Mr. Young was actively identified with the grain and elevator business in Toledo, and after his withdrawal the firm was succeeded for many years as the A. L. Backus & Sons Co. Some of the older citizens can recall the old toll bridge across the Maumee River at Maumee, which in 1877 was purchased jointly by Lucas and Wood counties. While it was still a private enterprise Mr. Young owned the bridge for several years. In 1866 he acquired a substantial interest in the Toledo Gas Light & Coke Company, assisted in reorganizing the business and during his presi dency of the company the facilities of the company were widely extended. One of the first-class hotels of Toledo today is the Boody House. Back in 1870 Mr. Young organized the Toledo Hotel Company, which two years later erected the Boody House, and he remained president of the company for several years. He sold his interests in the hotel company a few years before his death. While he rendered his greatest service to Northwest Ohio as a business man and financier, he took considerable interest in and exercised not a little influence in politics. From boyhood he had been a great admirer of Daniel Webster, and later of Henry Clay, the two dominating political figures in national councils during the existence of the old whig party. In his part of Ohio Mr. Young did much to keep up the strength of this party, and after it was dissolved following the national campaign of 1852 he did not delay long in espousing the principles of the newer and more vigorous republican organization, and thereafter until his death he was one of its stanch advocates. For many years he was active as a member of the Trinity Episcopal Church of Toledo, and gave liberally of his means to church and other religious and charitable organizations. The late Mr. Young was not only distinguished by the possession of singular faculties as an executive and business genius, but had qualities of leadership among men, a devotion to duty, a fidelity to high ideals, and conscientious performance of every obligation imposed upon him. By sixty-one years of residence he was easily one of Lucas County's most distinguished citizens. However, his name and the recognition paid to his abilities were not confined to his home county. He was well known in financial and political circles all over Ohio and even in the larger centers of the nation. Along with the dignity that goes with large practical achievements he possessed that dignity that comes from character and true gentlehood. On June 29, 1841, Samuel M. Young married Miss Angeline L. Upton. She was a stepdaughter of Dr. Horatio Conant of Maumee. Their home life was ideal, and for nearly three score years they lived together and shared in common their joys and sorrows and various responsibilities. Mrs. Young survived her husband but five months, passing away June 8, 1897. To their marriage were born six children. Four of these, Horatio S.. Frank I., Elizabeth and Timothy died before HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO - 969 their parents. The Only living son has already been mentioned, and the only daughter is Mrs. F. B. Swayne of New York City. JOSEPH O. EPPSTEIN, a young Toledo lawyer, whose affiliations have been with the best interests and the prominent men of the city, was admitted to practice in 1912 and has since confined himself to the handling of a general law practice. For the first two years he practiced with the firm of Marshall & Fraser, and he is now associated in practice with Harry Levison and Thomas R. Manton. He has also become prominent in democratic politics and in the fall of 1915 was elected a member f the State Legislature from his home county, for the term ending in 1917. He is a member of the Lucas County Bar Association and of the Ohio State Bar Association. In November, 1915, he received an honorable discharge after having served two years with Troop D of the Ohio National Guard Cavalry. Joseph O. Eppstein was born at Toledo May 31, 1889, a son of Julius and Lotta J. Eppstein, both of whom have long lived in Toledo, his father being now retired. Mr. Eppstein Acquired his education in Toledo and at Ann Arbor, Michigan. He graduated from the Central High School with the class of 1909, and then after a three years' course was graduated in 1912 LL. B. from the law department of the University of Michigan. R. A. BARTLEY. One of the most satisfying rewards of a successful business career is to make an individual name stand for something and mean something in the world of affairs. That has been the achievement of all the great merchants of America. Safe and reliable merchandising, high class products, purity of goods, and a complete efficiency of organization that pervades every depart-ment and benefits every customer and even the ultimate consumer are some f the quali-ties associated with that old and standard wholesale grocery house f Toledo, which has been built up by forty-two years f success-ful work by R. A. Bartley. While it is recog-nized that Mr. Bartley has been the main-spring of this notable institution, he would be the last to claim that he was the sole source and author of its resources and energy. With a great faculty of constructive enterprise, Mr. Bartley is really only the general, directing the movements f a small army of disciplined and efficient workers. He has built up an organization which might now exist self-sufficient and effective without his directing services, just as Marshall Field, John Wanamaker and other great merchants have done. But it is an enviable distinction in which only a few can share that this lofty building housing R. A. Bartley's wholesale grocery house in Toledo and its widespread activities have their chief significance because his name stands at the beginning. It is said that fully three-fourths f Mr. Bartley's men have been in his employ from ten to thirty-five years, many of them beginning in the stock room and promoted regularly on the basis of merit to responsible positions in the sales depart-ment or in the executive offices. And while referring to the personnel f the organization, another partner and sharer in his success should' also be mentioned, Mrs. Bartley, who worked side by side with him when the busi-ness was starting and who both as a worker and adviser has deserved credit for the mag-nificent achievement now associated with the name R. A. Bartley. Two years ago a handsome booklet of thirty-two pages illustrating and describing this great Toledo wholesale house, was issued under the title, "Forty-two Years of Success." By photographic reproduction this booklet showed in graphic manner the equipment and organization of the great wholesale house, and a part f its pages was devoted to the personal career f the man behind the business. The chief facts in such a personal record must not be omitted from this history of Northwest Ohio. R. A. Bartley was born in Wittenberg, Germany, in 1851, a son of Gebhardt Bartley, who was a baker by trade, and finally acquired by frugal saving enough to bring his family to America in 1853. They settled in the Village of Perrysburg, in the Maumee Valley of Ohio, and later moved to a farm not far from the village. There the mother died, and three children were left to the father's care. In such a home the virtues of thrift, economy and hard work were necessarily inculcated in all the members. R. A. Bartley grew up there and had only the advantages of the district schools. In 1868 at the age of sixteen he came to Toledo and since then for almost half a century he has been associated with the grocery trade. For thirty-four of those years he has been at the head f his own business, and for nearly thirty years has conducted an exclusively wholesale 970 - HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO grocery, which it is believed is the largest individually owned wholesale grocery in the United States. On coming to Toledo he found employment in a grocery and general store conducted by H. & F. Barnes located at St. Clair and Adams streets. As his time was then subject to his father, he made an arrangement by which he should send home $15 a month in lieu of his services on the farm. His wages were only $8 a month, so he had to go in debt for the remaining $7. In a short time his willingness and proficiency brought an increase to $15 a month, but it all went to pay his father, and further increases enabled him to wipe out his debt. At the end of about a year he was working at $25.00 a month in the general store of J. A. Spyer at the corner of Summit and Orange streets. Later his wages were made $35.00 a month, and from this he saved $200.00 by the time he was twenty-one. With those cash assets he borrowed $100.00 from B. F. Richardson and then formed a partnership with Enos Cousino, and the firm of Cousino & Bartley opened a retail grocery at 307 Summit Street. This was in 1872. In the booklet already referred to is a photographic representation of the various homes of the Bartley grocery house. It was a squat two-story building that was occupied by the firm in 1872 and it was almost lost sight of by higher buildings on either side. The two proprietors did all the work for several years, bought the stock, sold it, and slept in the store at night. One of them used a hand cart in delivering the goods, it being a mutual agreement that each partner should deliver the goods he sold. The house acquired friends and the business grew, but all the profits went back into enlarging the scope of the enterprise. In 1882, at the age of thirty, R. A. Bartley bought his partner's interest and in the same year bought the retail grocery of J. C. Wuerfel, moving his main stock into the double brick building next door originally occupied by Wuerfel, and keeping the old building for a storeroom. Since that date Mr. Bartley has individually owned the business during all its successive stages of growth. In the meantime the wholesale department was gradually growing, and in 1887 the business became exclusively wholesale, and at that time the store was moved to the Messinger Tobacco Building, at the corner of Summit and Lynn streets. This was the third successive home of R. A. Bartley and it was for the time a large store, being a four-story business block. The next addition came in 1897 when a two-story warehouse was constructed at one side of the larger building, and a year later a five-story building was erected at the other end. This group of buildings occupied the entire block from Lynn to Cherry street on Summit. In 1908 this building was destroyed by fire, and the business for some time occupied temporary quarters. While planning the present building Mr. Bartley took every possible thing into consideration. He selected the highest point of land in the business district, at the corner of Washington and Ontario streets, and a site especially adapted to the wholesale trade, with railroad tracks at the door. Here was constructed the new Bartley Building, a fire-proof structure, seven stories high and basement, with ground dimensions 140 by 120 feet, and with a total floor space of more than 5 ½ acres. This building has every facility for the expert handling of the vast volume of business drawn from the three states of Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan, and while business is first the welfare of the army of employees who use the building is also a primary consideration and an expert would hardly find a single detail omitted in the matter of lighting, sanitary comforts, and the general well being of all who pass their working hours in that structure. While it would be a sufficient distinction to have built up such a great business in the course of a lifetime, Mr. Bartley has not neglected those calls made upon a good citizen's time and energies for social and civic service. For two terms he served as president of the Toledo Business Men's Chamber of Commerce, is actively identified with the Toledo Commerce Club, served five years, two years as president, on the Toledo Board of Education, and for years has been a director of the Toledo Humane Society and for a number of years was president of the Adams Street 'Mission. He is a director in the National Bank of Commerce. While still a struggling young business man Mr. Bartley was married at Adrian, Michigan, to Mrs. Hattie Josephine (Barnes) Dutton, a widow with one child, whom he took in as his own, and gave the name of Bartley. Her parents were Dr. L. B. and Olive Leaf (Evans) Barnes. Her father was a well known practicing physician and surgeon in Southern Michigan and Northern Indiana HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO - 971 and Ohio. For many years they lived on a farm in Calhoun County, Michigan, near Union City, and both died in. Michigan. Mrs. Bartley was born in Steuben County, New York, was graduated from the high school at Coldwater, Michigan, and also attended Professor Taylor's College at Lansing, Michigan. Before her marriage to Mr. Bartley she taught school in different sections of Calhoun County and after her marriage when she took charge of Mr. Bartley's home she also showed a large capacity for business and her work was a large factor in laying the foundation of the present R. A. Bartley Wholesale Grocery house. In fact she was associated as a partner with Mr. Bartley for more than ten years, looking after the financial end and keeping the books, and the results of her management were no less creditable than her husband's. When Mrs. Bartley first became a partner in the enterprise the business was conducted in a story and a half building with a 20-foot front. From that time on she was one of the prime factors in building up what is today the largest individually owned wholesale business in the world. With the splendid success that has crowned their united efforts, Mrs. Bartley has turned her time and energies to many departments of social and civic service. She has been suc-cessful as a business woman, home maker, a leader in church and Sunday school work, and is one of the most highly cultured women of Toledo. The Bartley residence at 1855 Collingwood Avenue is truly one of the man-sions of the city. Mrs. Bartley is a member of the First Baptist Church and active in all its departments and Sunday school and twelve years ago she organized a ladies' class of the church that now has a membership of forty-five. She is a member of the Shakespeare Club, the Woman's Educational Club, The Woman's Building Association and is identified with the Woman's Suffrage movement. Mrs. Bartley is a student, has read and associated her mind with the best products of literature and has indulged a discriminating taste in building up a private library which is undoubtedly one of the finest collection to be found in any home in Northwest Ohio. Throughout her life it has been a cardinal principle with her to do all the good she could and no one knows the real extent of her benefactions and her generous influence. Mr. and Mrs. Bartley reared three girls from the respective ages of eight, ten and twelve years, and also three boys and gave them the advantages of their splendid home and the best educational training, and all of these children except one boy are now married and have homes of their own. IRA C. TABER. As a counselor and legal adviser in business affairs Toledo has no law-yer of better attainments and higher standing than Ira C. Taber. These qualifications are well illustrated in the fact that he is and has been retained by a number of the leading corporations of that city. In the broader and more general fields of law he has also practiced with marked success in the various courts for over thirty years. A native of Northwest Ohio he was born near New Rochester in Wood County, October 4, 1860, a son of Nelson D. and Samantha (Skeels) Taber. His parents came to Ohio from New York State. The Skeels family settled in Seneca County, Ohio, as early as 1832, and the Tabers a few years later located in Fulton County. Mr. and Mrs. Nelson Taber were married in Seneca County and of their three children the Toledo lawyer is the only survivor. His sister Mary was a teacher in the public schools at Bowling Green, Ohio, and died there in 1886 at the age of twenty-four. The other daughter, Nellie, was born in 1864 and died in 1865. Nelson Taber was a substantial farmer, a man whose industry and integrity enabled him to prosper, and he acquired considerable property. After 1882 he made his home in Bowl-ing Green, where his wife died May 27, 1902, and after that he lived a few years in Toledo, where he died June 15, 1905. Ira C. Taber's early youth was spent in a home of average comfort ; he had the opportunities to gain a good common school education, and in later years he realized by his own efforts the means necessary for his professional advancement. In 1882 he was one 'of the first graduates of the Bowling Green High School, and a little later he entered the Cincinnati Law School, where he was graduated and was admitted to the Ohio bar in May, 1885. As a full fledged lawyer he returned to Bowling Green and engaged in practice in that city until 1896. For the first ten years he was alone, except for a period of ten months when he was associated with the firm of James, Taber & Beverstock. During 1895 he practiced in partnership with C. R. Painter. 972 - HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO Since January 1, 1896, Mr. Taber has been one of the best known members of the Toledo bar. After some months alone he became a member of the firm of Taber & Clapp, which existed until February 15, 1908. On December 1, 1908, Mr. Taber was senior member of the firm of Taber, Longbrake & O'Leary. Until it was dissolved in 1914 this partnership deservedly ranked as one of the strongest and most successful in the city and handled a great volume of important legal business. In December, 1914, Mr. Taber formed a partnership with John E. Daniells, under the style of Taber & Daniells, with offices in the Nicholas Building. Though he has handled a large amount of general practice during the last thirty years, Mr. Taber has been especially proficient in the management of property interests and as legal adviser to corporations. He is attorney for the National Supply Company, the American Wheel & Auto Company and a number of banks in the city and county. By his faithful attendance to the interests of his clients, by his well known integrity, he has long enjoyed the esteem of his fellow members at the bar and business men in general. In politics a republican he has been too devoted to the work of his profession to enter any campaign for his individual advancement in the political field. However, during his rcsidence at Bowling Green he served four years as city clerk, two years as city solicitor, six years as school examiner and six years as a member of the board of education. He is an active leader of the Toledo Commerce Club and the local bar association. On January 18, 1888, at Haskins, Ohio, Mr. Taber married Miss Adelia J. Thomas, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Jerome B. Thomas, who were pioneer settlers in Wood County. Mrs. Taber was born in Haskins, attended school there and at Ada, and grew up on her father's old homestead farm. Her widowed mother now lives in Toledo. To Mr. and Mrs. Taber have been born four children.: Merl N. and Marie E., both natives of Bowling Green, were graduated from the Toledo High School in 1909 ; Melvin, who was also born in Bowling Green, is a graduate of the Toledo High School ; Esther V., the youngest, was born in Toledo, and is a graduate of the Scott High School (Toledo), class of 1916. The family are members of St. Paul's Methodist Episcopal Church, in which Mr. Taber takes much active part. WILLIAM H. HARRIS. Few men pass their seventieth year with a better record of accomplishment in the profession of law than William H. Harris of Toledo. For nearly four decades Mr. Harris has been a member of the Toledo bar. Throughout that time his vigorous public spirited citizenship has been as much in evidence as his technical skill and integrity as a lawyer. For many years Mr. Harris has been a recognized authority on the legal phases of municipal bonds and other municipal securities. He has written one of the standard works on that subject, and the bulk of his practice is now concerned with that branch of law. A native of Ohio, Mr. Harris was born in Muskingum County January 1, 1845, and belongs to an old Ohio family. His grandparents on both sides camc ,to the state in the early days of its history. The paternal grandparents were English people, while the maternal grandparents were of the so-called Pennsylvania Dutch stock, natives of Pennsylvania. David and Sarah (Clapper) Harris, both natives of Muskingum County, were the parents of ten children, seven sons and three daughters, among whom William H. was the second in order of birth. Educated in the common schools of his native county, William H. Harris grew up in an environment common to most Ohio farmer boys of sixty years ago. He lived and worked on the home farm until he was twenty-one. In the meantime he had taught several terms of district school and on leaving home took up commercial pursuits at Zanesville and later in Mansfield. Mr. Harris came to Toledo in 1876. In August, 1878, he was qualified and was admitted to the bar of Ohio. Since his admission to the state bar he has been continuously in practice at Toledo. In earlier years he had several partnerships, which, with Johnson Thurston, continued for ten years under the name of Harris & Thurston. Mr. Thurston, whose career is sketched on other pages, came into his office as a young lawyer, and their association was one of mutual agreeability and profit. For the last twenty years Mr. Harris has practiced alone. He continued in the general practice until about 1900, but since then has specialized in municipal law, municipal bonds and public securities in general. In 1903 the W. H. Anderson Company of Cincinnati, a law book publishing house, issued a book prepared by Mr. Harris entitled, "Harris on HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO - 973 Municipal Bonds," a work which is regarded everywhere as an authority on the subject so important to investors. Politically Mr. Harris has generally affiliated with the republican party, but he is very independent and decidedly progressive. Four years ago he allied himself strongly with the Roosevelt movement. He is an active member of the Lucas County,. the Toledo and Ohio State Bar Associations, also the American Bar Association. On October 11, 1871, at Mansfield, her home, Mr. Harris married Miss Mildred L. King, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Hugh King. Mrs. Harris was born in Mansfield and her family were early settlers in that locality. Mr. and Mrs. Harris have two sons. Harry W., the older, was born at Mansfield, received his education at Toledo, and is a graduate of the Toledo High School. He read law with his father, and has been admitted to practice both in the states of Ohio and Oklahoma. For the past eight years he has been engaged in the practice of law in Oklahoma. Hugh K., the younger son, was born and educated in Toledo, and is now engaged in the advertising business in Toledo. RT. REV. MGR. AUGUST J. SCHWERTNER for the past three years chancellor of the Toledo Diocese, is regarded as one of the ablest priests in that diocese of the Catholic Church, and to his office as chancellor brought not only long experience gained by nearly twenty years in the priesthood, but also unusual talents of personal character. His work was specially recognized when in April, 1916, the papal brief arrived from Rome creating him a member of the papal household with the title of monsignor. This title is a special honor or an ecclesiastic dignity bestowed by the pope on an individual who has distinguished himself in a special manner in his diocese. It entitles the bearer to social and domestic rank at thc papal court. Chancellor Schwertner, whose work has identified him with Northwest Ohio for the past ten years, is member of a very old and prominent family of Canton, Ohio, where he was horn December 23, 1870. His father was the late Anton Schwertner, one of the leading business men of Canton, whose death occurred August 26, 1912. Soon after coming to Canton on May 14, 1867, he married Christina Richard, who was born in Ohio in 1844. She died October 15, 1907. They were very active members of St. Peter's Catholic parish in Canton, and besides supporting the church liberally gave two of their sons to the priesthood. Their eight children were : Frank A., now deceased ; Rt. Rev. Mgr. August J. of Toledo ; Urban C., who is successor to his father in business at Canton; Mrs. Ed. C. Elnen of Canton ; Walter R. of Canton ; Mary, deceased ; Miss Ida, of Canton ; and Rev. Thomas M., O. P., of New York City. August J. Schwertner grew up in Canton in a home of substantial comforts and high ideals. He received his early education in St. Peter's Parochial School, attended the Canton High School, and in preparation for his chosen career continued his higher education in Canisius College at Buffalo and at St. Mary's Theological Seminary in Cleveland. He was ordained by Rt. Rev. Ign. F. Horstmann, D. D. at St. John's Cathedral in Cleveland, June 12, 1897. A brief record of his service is as follows : Appointed curate St. Columba's Church, Youngstown, June 21, 1897 ; September 16, 1897, to October 11, 1903, pastor of St. Anthony's Church, Milan, Ohio ; October 11, 1903, to June 22, 1907, pastor of St. Mary's Church, Rockport, Ohio; June 22, 1907, to October 13, 1913, pastor of St. John's Church, Lima ; October 15, 1913, became chancellor of Diocese of Toledo by appointment from Rt. Rev. Joseph Schrembs, D. D., first bishop of Toledo Diocese. Father Schwertner brought to the chancellor's office the signal ability that marked his work as a pastor of souls. Kind, courteous, disposed to overwork himself rather than that any seeker for information at the chancellor's office should be disappointed in his quest, Father Schwertner has made innumerable friends since he was appointed chancellor of the Diocese of Toledo. Chancellor Schwertner received his appointment as domestic prelate from His Holiness Popc Benedict XV on March 22, 1916. He is also diocesan consultor and member of the building commission of the Diocese of Toledo. He is a member of the Knights of Columbus and the Catholic Mutual Benefit Association. Some of the distinguishing facts in his work as a priest and as chancellor are brought out in a sketch found in "A History of Catholicity in Northern Ohio and in the Diocese of Cleveland," written by the Rt. Rev. Mgr. George F. Houck. The following is a quotation from that work : "In all his pastoral work he has displayed unusual zeal and prudence, winning thereby not only the love and 974 - HISTORY OF NORTHWEST OHIO esteem of his own people, but also the respect and good will of those outside the fold. Recognizing the great need and importance of a good Catholic education he has always manifested a deep personal interest in the parochial school and in the training of the young. Being, moreover, a firm believer in the old adage, In union there is strength, he has not been slow to organize and encourage Catholic societies, which have greatly contributed not only to the advancement of the interests of the church but also to the progress and pro-tection of its individual members. " THOMAS P. SHIELDS, M. D. Not so much by the wealth that he accumulated, but by his service to and genial fellowship with his fellow men was the late Dr. Thomas P. Shields distinguished. He had achieved success because he had gained the respect of intelligent men, had filled his niche and accomplished his task, had left the world better than he found it, and had always looked for the best in others and gave the best he had. His life was a real inspiration, and his memory is a benediction. He was a native of Virginia, was a true son of the old South, and though for upwards of half a century he had carried on his work as a physician and as a farmer and stock raiser in Ohio, he never last those graces of character and gentility which have distinguished the gentlemen of the old Southern school. His birth occurred in Cumberland County, Virginia, March 2, 1826, and he passed away at his home in Mill Creek Township, Union County, Ohio, April 4, 1912, soon after his eighty-sixth birthday. He himself fought in the Confederate ranks during the war between the states, and his ancestors were loyal to their country and their time and generation, and his grandfather, John Shields, was a captain in the Revolutionary war and married Mary Carrington, whose brother, Gen. Edward Carrington, distinguished himself by his service in the Revolution, being one of Washington's leaders through the. war, a mem-ber of his staff, and was also an intimate friend of Lafayette. The Carringtons were English people who settled in Virginia at a very early time. Doctor Shields' grandfather on his mother's side was Joseph Watkins, of Welsh descent, and of a Quaker family living in Goochland County, Virginia. Other ancestors of Doctor Shields were Irish and Scotch, and some of them came to this country in very early colonial times, settling first in the State of Delaware and afterwards moving to Virginia. David Shields, father of Doctor Shields, was reared in Rockbridge County, Virginia, and was a soldier in the War of 1812. In his native locality in Cumberland County Doctor Shields acquired his education in primary schools. He afterwards took a course in Washington College, now Washington and Lee University, at Lexington, Virginia, and as preparation for his chosen career he at-tended lectures in the University of Virginia at Charlotteville and in the University of Pennsylvania at Philadelphia. Having finished his course and taken the degree M. D. in 1846, he returned to the farm on which his widowed mother lived, and there began his career as a physician and surgeon. For many years prior to the Civil war he was connected with a volunteer company as captain.. This company was ordered out early in the struggle, being attached to the Eighteenth Virginia Regiment, and Doctor Shields went with it into the Confederate army, and during the first year saw much service in the army of Northern Virginia. In the winter of 1862 his health became impaired so that he was obliged to leave his regiment, but soon after-ward received appointment as surgeon and was connected with several hospitals until the close of the. war. His was a meritorious record, and as he believed that the South was fighting for a. righteous cause he distinguished himself by a devotion to more than the regular routine of duty. In 1867 Doctor Shields moved his family from Cartersville, Virginia, to Union County, Ohio, and there resumed the practice of his profession which he had begun twenty-one years before, and which he carried on in connection with other extensive interests until his last years. His ability as a physician brought him all the practice he could attend to, while his qualities of character gained him high public esteem, and many times he was called upon to fill places of public trust. He owned a large stock farm in Union County, and for many years was extensively interested in the raising of fine breeds of cattle and sheep. In 1884 he was appointed a member of the Ohio Live Stock Commission and was president of that organization when it was merged with the state agricultural board. For a number of years he also served in the Union County Agricultural Society and was again and again elected to public office in his township.