OF PUTNAM COUNTY - 551 dates her birth from the year 1849, and was reared and educated in her native township, where she has passed her entire life. She is the daughter of John P. and Savillia (Genshmier) Simon, whose sketch appears at length in this volume. HON. AMOS Z. THOMAS, who is the present judge of the probate court of Putnam county, has been an honored resident of Ottawa since the month of June, 1866. Judge Thomas is a native of Trumbull county, Ohio, and was born November 29, 1829, a son of David M. and Elizabeth (Fry) Thomas, who were born in Montgomery and Perry counties, Pa.: respectively. On his father's side the judge is of Welsh descent, his great-grandfather having come to America in a very early day, and settled in Virginia. John Thomas, the judge's grandfather, was born and reared in the Old Dominion, and in an early day moved to Montgomery county, Pa., where he engaged in farming. He had a family of seven children, all of whom, with the exception of the father of the subject, lived and died in the latter state. One of the sons of John Thomas, whose name was also John, served with distinction in the war of 1812. David M. Thomas, the judge's father, moved to Trumbull county, Ohio, in early manhood, and became the head of a family of six children, whose names are as follows: Julia A., deceased wife of Frederick Cratsley; Elizabeth, widow of Elam Bentley; Amos Z. ; Hanna, deceased; Mary J., wife of Amos Bentley, and David L., who died at the age of thirty years. The mother of these children was a daughter of Joseph Fry, who was born in Chester county, Pa. Mr. Fry afterward located near Millerstown, in his native state, where he married and where for some years he carried on the tailor's trade. He reared a family of nine children, seven sons and two daughters, whose names, in the order of birth, were as follows: Henry, Daniel, Joseph, Abraham, Frederick, Mary, John, Elizabeth and David. Of these sons Daniel, Joseph, Abraham and Frederick served in the war of 1812, and earned the reputation of brave and gallant soldiers. Joseph was killed while in the service; Abraham moved to Lafayette, Ind., where he became a prominent factor in political circles, having served as treasurer of Tippecanoe county, that state, besides holding other positions of public trust. Judge Amos Z. Thomas's early experience was upon the home farm in his native county, where he remained until his eighteenth year, at which time he began a course of study preparatory to entering college. In 1854 he became a student of Meadville college, Pa., from which he was graduated in June, 1859, in a class of seventeen, and for two years thereafter taught in the academy at Carrollton, Ohio. In the meantime, having selected law as his profession, Mr. Thomas began studying the same at Warren, Ohio, with Messrs. Bur-chard & Moses, and he was admitted to the bar in that city in 1865. Several years after finishing his professional studies, Mr. Thomas was engaged in teaching, and he continued educational work for some time in Putnam county, to which part of the state he removed in 1866. In 187o he effected a co-partner-ship in the law, at Ottawa, with Stansberry Sutton, under the firm name of Sutton & Thomas, and after the death of his partner, in 1879, the judge practiced alone until becoming associated with W. W. Sutton. The firm of Thomas & Sutton continued until 1891, in which year Mr. Thomas withdrew, in order to enter upon his official duties as judge of the probate court, to which position he was elected in the fall of 189o. The ability with which Judge Thomas discharged his official 552 - BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY functions was duly appreciated by the citizens of the county, who, in 1893, honored him by re-election to the same position, which he now holds. He has served as a member of the board of school examiners, was for some time active in promoting the municipal legislation of Ottawa as a member of the city council, and has represented his county in various political conventions. He is a representative democrat, a leader of his party in Putnam county, and was chosen alternate delegate to the democratic national convention at Saint Louis in 1888. From the time he adopted law as a life-work Mr. Thomas has been devoted to it, and his chief aim has been to adorn the profession. He has always been a close and careful student of law, going into wide research for authorities. As a judge, he is popular alike with lawyers and litigants and few, indeed, have been his decisions which have met with reversal by the higher courts. Judge Thomas is a Mason of high degree, belonging to the Blue lodge and chapter of Ottawa, and council and commandery of Lima. He was married in Greene county. Ohio, March 19, 1876, to Miss Anna R. Hagenbaugh, daughter of John and Eliza Hagenbaugh, of Fairfield, Greene county, Ohio. The judge has been successful in a financial sense, having accumulated a comfortable competence, including valuable real estate in Ottawa, and farm property in the country. He is a self-made man in the true sense of that term, full of energy and determination, and a list of Putnam county's representative men would be incomplete without a mention of his name. [It here becomes the melancholy duty of the publishers of this volume to state that since the above sketch of Hon. A. Z. Thomas was prepared for publication, the lamented subject was called to his final rest, February 11, 1896—dying peacefully at home on the date mentioned. (I) MRS. CLARA A. VAN VLERAH is the occupant of a fertile farm in Monroe township, Putnam county, Ohio, and a lady highly respected by all who know her. She is the widow of Enos Van Vlerah, whose father, Samuel Van Vlerah, was a reputable and well-to-do farmer of Tuscarawas county, Ohio, but who, in 1852. moved to Defiance, where he bought a farm three miles from the city of the same name, and there soon afterward died. He had married Sarah Schoonover, to which union were born the following children: Abraham (deceased), Elizabeth (also deceased), James (who died an infant), Anna (deceased), Amanda (wife of Jacob Spansler), Enos and Lucinda, also deceased. The father of this family died in 1853, and the widow afterward married Jacob Spansler, Sr., and died June 11, 1870. Enos Van Vlerah was born in Tuscarawas county, Ohio, May 19, 1847, and was reared to farming. On account of the early death of his father, his education was not exceptionally good, but he acquired sufficient book-learning to carry him successfully through life. His marriage took place July II, 1872, and his union with our subject resulted in the birth of one daughter, Lucinda, who was born August 19, 1873, and on August 20, 1889, was married to B. Franklin Getz, who settled on the homestead now occupied by our subject, and died October I 5, 1891. When Mr. Van Vlerah first made this farm his home, there were no improvements whatever on the place, not even a cabin; but he went manfully to work and made the place what it is to-day—one of the most fertile sixty-acre farms in the township and well improved in every essential way. Mr. Van Vlerah was in politics a democrat, and was a public-spirited citizen, always ready to aid church and school with his means, and to assist in every enterprise intended for the common good. He died June 25, 1892. His OF PUTNAM COUNTY - 553 widow, our subject, has never been behind in forwarding of the progress of the township and county, as far as her opportunities offered themselves, and she now lives in a retired sphere of life that is encircled by a host of admiring friends, who respect her most sincerely for her many womanly virtues. MRS. ELLEN (LAMB) VAUGHN, of Jackson township, Putnam county, Ohio, is the widow of Michael Vaughn, and was born in Kings county, Ireland, between Christmas and New Year's day, 1835, a daughter of John and Ellen (Carty) Lamb. The father, a farmer, was born, lived and died in the said county of Kings, and there Mrs. Vaughn received a limited education and was reared in the faith of the Catholic church. In her seventeenth year, accompanied by an elder sister, Mrs. Catherine Bracken, she came to America and for five years worked at gaiter binding in the city of New York, and in 1847, in company with another sister, Ann, and a cousin, went to York Ridge, Dearborn county, Ind., where she was married in July, 1847, to the late Michael Vaughn, which union was blessed with six children, viz: John, who died in infancy; Mary, who died at the age of four and one-half years; Joseph, of Sugar Creek township, Putnam county, Ohio; Thomas, deceased; Stephen, of Jennings township, and Michael, deceased. Michael Vaughn, the deceased husband of our sketch, was born in county Limerick, Ireland, on Michaelmas day, 1814, a son of Anthony and Margaret (Lorilla) Vaughn. He was educated in his native county, and in youth shipped before the mast, and for several years visited most of the seaports of the world. About 1842 he landed at New Orleans, La., where he worked on the levees for some time, and also on various sugar plantations in that state, and thence made his way northward, working as a day laborer. After his marriage he located in Guilford, Ind., where for twelve years he was employed as a watchman by the Big Four Railroad company. During this period he saved some money, with which, in 1867, he purchased from his brother, Anthony Vaughn, eighty acres of woodland in Sugar Creek township, Putnam county, Ohio. Here he built a house of logs, cleared up his land, and from time to time until his death was identified with the agricultural interests of the township, bringing his place into a state of good cultivation and improving it with good, substantial farm buildings. He was industrious and enterprising, and won the respect of all who knew him. A devout Catholic in religion and in politics a loyal democrat, he lived an active and useful life, and died at his home in Kalida, December 29, 1894. His widow has passed her three score and ten years, and is much esteemed by her neighbors as a pious and kind-hearted matron. Her brothers, Michael, of Cincinnati, and John and James, of Ireland,• are still living, as are her sisters, Margaret and Ann, the former in Ireland and the latter in Lima, Ohio. Of the family of Mr. Vaughn, one brother, Anthony, is also a resident of Lima. Joseph Vaughn, son of Michael and Ellen (Lamb) Vaughn, was born in Dearborn county, Ind., January 24, 1858, and when about seven years of age was brought to Putnam county by his parents, and was here reared on the home farm and educated in the common schools. In April, 1886, he married Stella Gander, who was born in Sugar Creek township, June 25, 1863, a daughter of George W. and Harriet (Clevenger) Gander, and to this union have been born four children, namely: Stanley G., William Allen, Michael C. and Joseph A. After his marriage, Joseph Vaughn 554 - BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY settled on a farm given to Mrs. Vaughn by her father, where Mr. Vaughn lived until September, 1890, when he traded this farm for the old Vaughn homestead, on which he and family still live. In religion he is a Catholic and in politics a democrat. He is a successful farmer and horse breeder, is open hearted and generous, is public spirited, and freely aids all projects designed to promote the general welfare. MARTIN L. VEACH, a prominent farmer and retired merchant of Jackson township, Putnam county, Ohio, is a son of William and Nancy E. (Freeman) Veach, and was born in Franklin county, Ohio, September 3, 1849. The father, William Veach, was a native of Virginia, born January 16, 1816, and was a son of a native of Scotland, also named William, who was born about 1784, was reared a farmer, and when a youth came to America with his parents, who located in the Old Dominion, and there William, grandfather of our subject, followed the profession of school-teaching the greater part of his life. He was a gentleman of superior attainments and was famous as a pedagogue in his day. To his marriage with Miss Elizabeth Hawn, of Pennsylvania, were born eight children, as follows: Mrs. Mary Morris, of Van Wert county, Ohio; William, father of our subject; Mrs. Mathilde Williams, Mrs. Lavina Stevens, and Thomas, of Kansas, all three deceased; Benonia, a farmer of Douglas county, Ill. ; Harrison and Mrs. Susan Ogborne, both deceased. In 1851, William Veach, Sr., brought his family to Ohio and settled in Putnam county, where he passed the remainder of his life, dying in 1834, an honored citizen. In politics he was a whig and held the office of justice of the peace a number of years, as well as several minor offices. William Veach, Jr., was educated in Virginia and Ohio, was reared on a farm, and November 3, 1847, was united in matrimony with Miss Nancy Freeman, daughter of Jonathan and Susan (Kemper) Freeman. John Freeman, father of Jonathan, was a gallant soldier in the war of 1812, and was a highly respected gentleman of Scotch descent. Jonathan was a native of Virginia, 'and his wife, Susan Kemper, was of German extraction; Mrs. Nancy Veach was born in Fairfax county, Va., May 6, 5.825, and became the mother of one child—Martin L. Veach, the subject of this sketch. After marriage William Veach, Jr., located in Pickaway county, Ohio, where he resided two years, and then moved to Franklin county, Ohio, where he passed two years in the mercantile business. In February, 1863,, he came to Putnam county and bought 16o acres of uncleared land near Kalida, on which he carried on agriculture for eight years, then sold out and purchased the farm on the banks of the Auglaize river where his son, our subject, now lives and where he passed the remainder of his life—dying August 18, 1874, in the faith of the Methodist Episcopal church, of which he was a very prominent and active member, having heen a class leader all his life after uniting with that body; he was a church trustee, also, and for many years a superintendent of the Sunday-school. In politics he was first a whig and later a republican— serving as township trustee and filling, at different periods, several of the minor local offices. He was emphatically a self-made made man in all that the phrase implies, and was a gentleman of great influence in his church, in his party and in general affairs of the communities in which his lot was at different times cast. His widow is also a OF PUTNAM COUNTY - 555 highly respected member of the Methodist church and is now residing with her son, our subject, on the old homestead. Martin L. Veach, the subject proper of this biographical memoir, was reared on his father's farm and educated in Putnam county. In 1870 he went to Kansas, and October 4th of that year there married Miss May Hall, who was born in Putnam county, Ohio, January I , 185o, a daughter of Benjamin and Mary (Seitz) Hall. To this union of Mr. and Mrs. Veach have been born three children, named as follows; Dula, a prominent teacher of Putnam county; William C., a farmer, and Charles, also a farmer— all three at home. Benjamin Hall, the father of Mr. Veach, was born in Fairfield county, Ohio, and was of English descent. After marriage Mr. and Mrs. Veach lived on the home farm until their removal to Kalida in 1880, where Mr. Veach engaged in merchandising until 1892, doing a very successful trade ; he then sold out his store and retired to his farm, which he still occupies in the summer, and in winter makes his home residence at his town house in Kalida. Mr. Veach has, as a rule, been very successful in his undertakings, meeting with but few reverses. He is possessed of excellent business talents, has made a competence, and is now living a retired life, honored and respected by all who know him. FERDINAND VINCKE, the genial merchant of Ottoville, Putnam county, Ohio, was born in the kingdom of Hanover, May 22, 1851. His father, John Henry, was born in 1812, on an estate comprising 200 acres of land that had been in the family since the time that the " memory of man runneth not to the contrary." He married Mary Welter, who was born in 1827, a daughter of John Welker, and this union resulted in the birth of six children, named Fritz, Henry, Anne, Ferdinand, William and Frank. Mr. Vincke passed all his life on the homestead, and died May 12, 1884, a devout believer in the doctrines of the Catholic church. Ferdinand Vincke, subject of this sketch, received an excellent education in his native country, and acquired a good knowledge of agriculture on the home farm. He served two years in the German army, and at the age of twenty-four years, August 9, 1875, sailed from Bremerhaven for America, and landed in Baltimore, Md., August 27. After a short stay in Baltimore, Cincinnati and Delphos, Mr. Vincke arrived in Ottoville September 2, 1875. He was first employed at farm work by Gerhard Otte, for nearly three years, and was then employed as clerk in the store for about two years; he then bought a half-interest in the business, in February, 1879, in company with Max Winkelman, forming a partnership which was dissolved August 15, 1895, Mr. Vincke purchasing Max Winkelman's interest and becoming sole proprietor of one of the best known stores in the county, which carries an extremely large and well assorted stock of general merchandise. The marriage of Mr. Vincke took place November 5, 1878, in Ottoville, with Miss Mary Schlagbaum, who was born October 4, 1857, one-quarter mile east of Ottoville, on the farm of her parents, George and Dora (Hille) Schlagbaum. The father, George Schlagbaum, was a native of Hanover, Germany, and an old settler of Monterey township, Putnam county, Ohio. He came here in 1852, bought a tract of eighty acres, made a good farm and reared a family of five children—Bernard, Luisia, Mary, William and Anna. His death took place in 1886, at the age of about sixty-six years. He was a Catholic in religion, and in politics a democrat. After marriage Mr, and Mrs. Vincke made 556 - BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY their residence in Ottoville, and here they still live. Their seven children are named Joseph, Frank, William, Anna, Dora, George and Ferdinand. The family are all members of the Catholic church, and the parents were liberal contributors to the fund raised to erect the present splendid Catholic house of worship in Ottoville. In politics Mr. Vincke is a democrat. Socially he is esteemed by the community for his integrity and straightforwardness and his pleasant disposition. HENRY VON LEHMDEN, a substantial farmer of Jennings township, Putnam county, Ohio, is a native of the township, and was born July 12, 1842. His father, Bernard Von Lehmden, was born at Steinfeldt, Oldenburg, Germany, in October, the year being probably 1812, a son of Bernard and Agnes Von Lehmden, the former of whom was a sea-faring man, voyaging to Holland. Bernard and Agnes were the parents of six children, viz: Agnes, Frank, Anton, Bernard (all of whom came to America), Lucette, and Joseph—the father being still a resident of Oldenburg. Bernard Von Lehmden, father of our subject, learned the trade of shoemaking in Germany, and was still a single man when he came to America, and bearing him company were Bernadina Hunkump and her sister Caroline, and his own sister, Agnes King, with her husband and family. In 1839 or 1840, at Fort Jennings, Bernard Von Lehmden was married to Bernadina Hunkamp, who had passed about a year in Cincinnati. After his marriage Bernard and his wife lived for four years on the farm of his brother Anton, who had preceded him to the country by four years, and also with his brother Frank, who had settled one-quarter of a mile southwest of Fort Jennings. In 1843 he purchased fifty-three acres of the farm now occupied by our subject, but which was then in the woods, though by the expenditure of the usual time and hard labor he subsequently converted it into a comfortable home. To the marriage here alluded to were born nine children, viz: Henry (our subject), Annie, Frank, Mary, Bernardina and Bernard, still living, and three dead. The humble log cabin of these pioneer parents was on the bank of the Auglaize river, and to this rude habitation wolves would come at night, put their forefeet on the low window-sill, look into the room and howl in hideous discord. On one occasion Mrs. Von Lehmden, while on her way at nightfall to Andy (Anton) Von Lehmden's cabin, a mile away, was followed by a huge wolf, intent on a supper, and escaped only by crossing the stream in her canoe. Mr.. and Mrs. Von Lehmden were devout members of the Catholic church, which they always liberally supported with their means, and Mr. Von Lehmden also assisted in erecting the old log church building in Fort Jennings. He acquired a farm of ninety-three acres, of which he cleared and improved seventy-six acres, and here died October 24, 1884. Henry Von Lehmden, the subject of this biography, was born and reared on the home farm in the wilderness mentioned above, and as the years advanced assisted in clearing away the forest from many of the acres that still existed in their primitive condition, during his later youth and earlier manhood—receiving his education by attending school for a month or two each winter at Fort Jennings and a short time at Delphos, about which time he was attacked with the typhoid fever and came very near dying. November 4, 1879, he married. at Fort Jennings, Mrs. Helena Shoemiller, widow, and a daughter of Lawrence and Helena Cramer. Lawrence Cramer was one of the pioneers of Glandorf, and the father of eight children, named as follows: Peter, Matthew, OF PUTNAM COUNTY - 557 Frank, Helena, Annie, Elizabeth, Margret and Mary. The union of Mr. and Mrs. Von Lehmden has been blessed by the birth of three children, Mary, Joseph and John, and the parents and children constitute one happy family on the old farm. The family are all devout Catholics. The farm of Mr. Cramer comprised 110 acres, and on this farm he ended his days. After his marriage Mr. Von Lehmden bought the old homestead, then consisting of ninety-three acres, and here he still lives, as stated. In politics he is a democrat. His wife, by her first marriage to Henry Shoemiller, became the mother of one child—Amelia—who is now living with our subject. Mr. Shoemiller was a prosperous farmer and the owner of a tract of 104 acres in Jackson township, where he died one year after his marriage. Mr. Von Lehmden is a gentleman of marked characteristicts, was extremely kind and filial to his parents, and for their sake remained single until thirty-seven years of age. He has been very industrious, and they are such as he who clear up our forests, build our villages and found our schools and churches and produce our wealth in general. CHARLES WANNEMACHER, one of the most prominent merchants and hardwaremen of Ottoville, Putnam county, Ohio, is of German birth and comes from one of the earliest settled families of Monterey township. The father of our subject, John Wannemacher, was born in Prussia, December 26, 1878, and died October 11, 1876. He was a locksmith by trade, and married, in his native village, Theresa Dierringer, a daughter of Anton Dierringer, and to this union were born eight chiildren, as follows; Paulina, who died at the age of eight years; Joseph, Peter, Ferdinand deceased at six years; Timothy, Charles, Ferdinand, second, and Benedict. The Wannemacher family sailed from Antwerp, Belgium, March 10, 1852, in the ship Edwina, and after a voyage of forty days landed in New York, April 23, of the same year. Joseph, the oldest son, had preceded the family to Putnam county five years, in the spring of 1847, to look over the country, and the family followed, arrived also, as stated, in New York, coming to Ottoville, in 1852, via Albany and Buffalo, N. Y., by railroad, and thence by lake to Toledo, Ohio, reaching Ottoville on May the 6th. Ottoville then contained two buildings only—one of logs and the other a frame. Joseph Wannemacher settled on eighty acres, one and a half miles from the village, lived for three years or more on the land, and then bought a small farm for himself in the neighborhood. Here he passed the remainder of his days, and, being a devout Catholic, lent ready assistance to the building of Saint Mary's church at Ottoville, and under the extreme unction of that faith died in his seventy-ninth year. Charles Wannemacher, the immediate subject of this biographical sketch, was born January 7, 1837, and was about fouiteen years of age when brought to America in 1852. He had received a good common-school education in his native village, and after reaching Ohio took a peculiar but natural method of learning English by spelling out the signs on stores, and the advertisements displayed on fences, etc., till he had slowly interpreted their meaning, and thus gained a key to the language. At Delphos, Ohio, he learned the trade of shoemaking, serving a year and a half. After becoming, in this short time, comparatively competent as a workman, he passed a few years in Cincinnati as a journeyman, and then returned to Ottoville and engaged in business for himself and for sixteen years kept a general shoe store, and made money through keeping first-class goods and also through his polite- 558 - BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY ness and upright treatment of his patrons. The marriage of Mr. Wannemacher took place July 9, 186o, at Ottoville, with Miss Fannie Fournier, who was born July 15, 1840, in the province of Lorraine, France, the only child of Joseph C. and Mary C. (Oberhauser) Fournier. Joseph C. Fournier, with his wife and child, had come to America in 1848, lived for a while in Seneca county, Ohio, then came to Monterey township, Putnam county, where, in 1851, Mr. Fournier bought eighty acres of land that he worked out from a wilderness into a blooming garden of grain and fruit. He here also followed the profession of a veterinary surgeon, and at one time was coroner of Putnam county, holding the office for several terms. He died at the age of about sixty-six years, and to the last day of his life was a sound democrat. To the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Chas. Wannemacher were born eleven children, of whom seven are still living: Joseph C., John, Jacob, Stephen, Alexander, Fannie and Charles. Mr. Wannemacher was elected to fill the office of county commissioner in 1873 and served until 1879—two terms. At about the conclusion of his public services he engaged in the hardware business in Ottoville, and has advanced it until he now owns and occupies a two-story and basement store, supplied with every essential article, big or little, to be found in the trade—including shelf, heavy and builders' hardware and agricultural implements, the firm being composed of himself and his son, Joseph C., and style being Charles Wannemacher & Son. In addition to the many public-spirited acts that Mr. Wannemacher has performed for the benefit of his fellow-citizens, it may be mentioned that he laid out the southwestern addition to the city, thus affording to rich and poor pleasant sites for home building, and giving conveniences to the town it would otherwise have lacked. His property comprises seventy acres one mile south of town, and forty-six acres four miles north, as well as eighty acres in Washington township, and some real estate in Paulding county, beside several city residences in Ottoville and elsewhere. Mr. Wannemacher has served as township assessor, township clerk, and justice of the peace, and even while yet a youth he held the office of constable, being in politics a democrat. In religion he is a devout Catholic, and is a member of the council, and of the building commitee of the church at Ottoville, to the erection of which he has contributed munificently of his means. Mrs. Wannemacher, who was also a devout Catholic, died in this faith August 29, 1890, at the age of fifty years —a lady of many virtues. Charles Wannemacher is a gentleman of fine natural abilities, and in a business sense is entirely self made, having worked himself upward from a poor boy, with no knowledge of the English language, to be one of the wealthiest citizens of Putnam county and one who commands the respect o everybody who has his acquaintance. Joseph Wannemacher, pioneer of Ottoville, Monterey township, Putnam county, Ohio, is one of the best known and most honored citizens of the town and county. He was born March 19, 1827, in Prussia, Germany, a son of John and Theresa (Dierrenger) Wannemacher, of whom further mention is made in in the biography of Charles Wannemacher. Joseph attended the common schools of his native country until eight years of age, receiving a very good education. He learned the trade of locksmith, and May 1, 1847, sailed from Antwerp in the Omaha, a sailing vessel, reaching New York, after a passage of thirty-six days. July 1, he departed for the west, reached Tuscarawas county, Ohio, worked in the iron works there for a year, then went to Newcastle, Pa., and for a year worked in a nail factory; in 1851 he came to Ottoville, OF PUTNAM COUNTY - 561 Putnam county, June 1, via the canal packet line from Cleveland, and bought a tract of eighty acres of land in the woods, in section 26, one mile and a half west of Ottoville; of this he cleared fifty acres, on which he resided until 1868, when he came to Ottoville and erected his present dwelling and business house and engaged in general merchandising for twenty-two years, when he rented his business place for a drug store and retired to private life. Being in politics a democrat, Mr. Wan-- nemacher served as township clerk from 1855 to 1866, and was the first mayor elected in Ottoville. He made a trip of five months to his old home in Europe in 1887, and on his return was elected a justice of the peace, a position he still holds, thus showing the high esteem in which he is held by his fellow-citizens. He was the first notary public in Monterey township. As a squire, he has probably married more couples than any other justice in his part of the country, having always been a most popular citizen as well as official. He has also served for six years as a member of the school board. In religion he is a true Catholic and assisted liberally in building the first Catholic church in Ottoville and in the erection of the present stately pile. Mr. Wannemacher was first united in matrimony, April 17, 1854, in Delphos, Ohio, with Miss Martha Stern, who was born March 18, 1837, a daughter of Godfrey and Catherine Stern. Godfrey Stern came from Germany in 1830, bringing with him his wife and children, seven in number, named as follows: John, Henry, Martha, Jacob, Martin, Mary and Erheart. He settled at Fort Jennings, a pioneer in the days of Raabe and Discher, where he lived until 1848, when he moved to a farm one mile west of Ottoville, which farm comprised eighty acres, and which he cleared up from the woods; here his death took place at the age of eighty years, a member of the Lutheran church and an ex-soldier of the wars of Napoleon. Mr. and Mrs. Wannemacher, immediately after marriage, settled in Ottoville, where they lived happy together until the death of the latter, in 1878, at the age of forty-one years, she having been a Catholic in religion. To this marriage were born six children, viz: John, Henry, Mary, Godfried, Adam and Catherine. The second marriage of Mr. Wannemacher took place January 26, 1887, at Bucyrus, Ohio, to Mrs. Barbara Sufert, née Houseman, who was born August 18, 1840, in Bremen, Germany; to this union no children have been born, but Mrs. Wannemacher, by her first husband, had one daughter—Mary. Mr. Wannemacher has been a very successful man, in a business point of view, and has given to his son, John, eighty acres; to Adam, forty acres; to Henry, eighty, acres, and to Godfried, forty acres, still retaining 139 acres for his own homestead. His property is the result of his own good management and industry, and he is recognized by all as being a man of sterling worth and unspotted integrity, and his life has been such as to be an example well worthy of imitation by the rising generation and the emulation of his less fortunate fellow-citizens, whose respect he so fully enjoys, and which he so fully deserves. JOHN H. UPHAUS, justice of the peace and ex-judge of the probate court of Putnam county, Ohio, was born in Oldenburg, Germany, September 26, 1832, a son of John G. and Catherine (Poeppelman) Uphaus, who came to America in 1835, bringing their only child, our subject. This small family located on section No. 3o, Ottowa township, Putnam county, Ohio, on a farm of 104 acres, containing a round-log cabin. A few acres of this farm were cleared, but its im- 562 - BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY provement and cultivation were continued with assiduous care by the father until his death, in January, 1884, at the age of eighty-two years, his wife having died May 19, 1881, at seventy-eight years. Mr. Uphaus was a stanch democrat in his politics, held a number of local offices, and was treasurer of Ottawa township for nine years. He was one of the organizers and incorportors of the Mutuincorporatorsance company of Putnam county, and for twenty-five years was its president. By trade a carpenter, he was, beside, a skillful farmer, and in every respect a useful citizen. In religion Mr. Uphaus was a Catholic, and a prominent member of the church at Glandorf. His children were six in number, as follows: John H., our subject; John B., of Pleasant township; Elizabeth, wife of Charles W. Lemkuhle, of Glandorf; Bernadina, wife of William Birkemeier, of Ottowa township; Rev. Joseph, pastor of a Catholic church at Nashville, Tenn., and George H., farmer of Jackson township. Rev. Joseph Uphaus was ordained priest in 1872, being a graduate at Carthagena, Mercer county, Ohio. He has had charges in California, five years, Mercer county, Ohio, and Jay county, Ind., ten years, and is now the only German speaking Catholic pastor in Nashville, Tenn. John H. Uphaus was reared and educated in Glandorf, Putnam county, and also passed through a special course of study at Louisville, Ky. With the exception of one year spent at Louisville, attending school and working at his trade of carpenter, which he had learned from his father, Mr. Uphaus remained at home until his marriage, in 1858, following his trade, at which he worked about fifteen years in all. In 1865 he, with others, founded the Glandorf woolen mills—the first in the county—of which he had the supervision for about twenty years. The mill is at present owned by the firm of Ellerbrock, Uphaus & Co., and is under the superintendency of George H. Uphaus, son of our subject. In politics Mr. Uphaus is a democrat. In 1864 and 1865 he was assessor of Ottawa township; he was a member of the school board for several years, and also township clerk. In 1872 he was elected a justice of the peace, an office he filled for twelve years, and was then elected judge of the probate court of Putnam county, which office he filled until 1891. He then became a notary public, still holding his commission, and in 1894 was again elected justice of the peace. He was one of the organizers of the Glandorf Building & Loan association, and for seven years has been its president; he is also one of the directors of the Clover creamery, of Ottawa. As an architect and carpenter he erected the Glandorf elevator, and has put up many other buildings in the county. He owns a good farm of seventy-five acres, divided into tracts for special purposes and yielding him a handsome revenue. The marriage of Mr. Uphaus took place October 26, 1858, to Miss Clementine E. Drerup, who is a daughter of John B. and Annie L. (Werning) Drerup, and was born in Putnam county, Ohio, February 14, 1837. To this felicitous union have been born twelve children, in the following order: Frank H., born May 9, 1860—died June 4, 1860; Bernard H., born June 11, 1861—died May 23, 1862, Mary E. born October 28, 1862, wife of John H. Moening, farmer of Ottawa township; George H., born February 5, 1865, managing the woolen mill in Glandorf; Charles W., born October 24, 1866, at home; Mary A., born December 7, 1868—died June 2, 1871; Bernard J., born December 24, 1870, at home; Caroline C., born October 18, 1872, wife of William Heckman, of Glandorf; John F., born December 8, 1874, at home; Anthony F.,born January 8, 1877—died January 15, 1877; Charles A., born December 9, 1878, at home; OF PUTNAM COUNTY - 563 Anna M., born June 19, 1881, also at home. Mr. Uphaus is one of the most public-spirited men of the township and county, and an active politician, having been time and again elected to the various conventions of the democratic party—state, district and county, and for a long time has been a member of the democratic state central committe. His son, George H., is also very active in the politics of the county. BENEDICT WANNEMACHER, of the firm of Schulien & Wannemacher, millers of Ottoville, Putnam county, Ohio, was born in Prussia, March 19, 1843, a son of John and Theresa Wannemacher, and came to America with his parents in 1852. After attending school the proper length of time, he was employed on the Miami & Erie canal for four years; he then engaged in the saw-mill business with his present partner at Ottoville, and for ten years carried on a very profitable trade. In 1878, the firm bought the flouring-mill belonging to H. W. Beckman, and put it in thorough repair, put in new machinery, and increased its productive capacity from twenty-five to seventy-five barrels per day. About 1885 the roller process was introduced, and a first-class grade of flour manufactured, that was shipped throughout Ohio, and some of the middle states and Baltimore and the eastern states. The capital invested in the mill and its working amounts to $15,000 or $20,000, and it keeps seven men in constant employment. Mr. Wannemacher was united in matrimony, February 2, 1868, at Ottoville, with Miss Regina Sellet, who was born in Lorraine, France, in October, 1848, and is a daughter of Morent and Catherine (Wolfe) Sellet. On coming to America, Morent Sellet, the father, first settled on a farm in Seneca county, Ohio, whence, in 1860, he came to Putnam county and settled on forty acres that he bought, about a half-mile west of Ottoville, where he had a neat as well as profitable farm. He was the father of four children, viz: Mary, Regina, Josephine and Oliver, and died in the seventieth year of his age. To the union of Mr. and Mrs. Benedict Wannemacher have been born six children, named, Edward, Matthias, Mary, Rose, Louis and Agnes (deceased). The entire family are consistent members of the Catholic church, and Mr. Wannemacher has been a consistent member of the church council for at least twelve years; he aids liberally with his means to the support of the holy institution, and contributed in no small way to the erection of the present Saint Mary's Catholic church edifice, which is one of the most stately in northwestern Ohio. Mr. Wannemacher has been treasurer of this church ever since its erection. In politics he is a democrat, and has filled the office of township clerk for many years. He is entirely a self-made man, and a gentleman of ability and undoubted integrity, commanding the respect of all who know him. WILLIAM W. WATKINS, a prominent citizen of Sugar Creek township, Putnam county, Ohio, and the honored head of a highly respectable family, is of sterling Welsh ancestry. His grandfather, Evan Watkin, was born in Montgomeryshire, Wales, in 1766. He was a carpenter by trade, and in his native county he was married to Margaret Davis, who was born April 1o, 1775, in the same county. To them there were born nine children, viz: William, April 28, 1795, and died in Delaware county, Ohio, May 22, 1871; Evan, May 17, 1798, and died in Delaware county, Ohio, July 31, 1831; John, February 1, 1801, and died in Allen 364 - BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY county, Ohio, April 26, 1883; Margaret, born May 14, 1803, and died at Columbus, Ohio, October 20, 1865; Thomas, born December 30, 1805, and died in Delaware county, Ohio, December 30, 1829; Watkin, January 28, 1809, and died in Delaware county, Ohio, February 22, 1844; David, March 17, 1812, and died in Tennessee, March 21, 1822; Edward, March 12, 1815, and is yet living in Delaware county, Ohio; Israel, born in May, 1817, and died in Wales in 1818. Evan Watkins, the father of this large family, was a remarkable man in many ways. He and his wife were members of the Church of England, and as he had a good voice for singing he was choir leader. He died when fifty-five years of age. He had two brothers and one sister: Thomas, Watkin and Mary. Thomas, the elder brother, was born in 1768, in Wales, and married Ann Thomas in that country. They came to the United States in 1822, settled in Delaware county, Ohio, and Thomas died there in 1824. He was the father of the following children, viz: Thomas, Watkin, Ann, Mary, Elizabeth, Jane, Ellen, Margaret, Harriet, Susanna and Susan. All are now dead, but left large families, the members of which are scattered throughout the western states. Watkin Watkins, the other brother, came to the United States in 1807, and settled first in Philadelphia. Previous to his emigration he had married Elizabeth Evans, and they were the parents of nine children. Their two eldest children died while on the ocean, and the remaining seven were born in this country. Their names were Evan, Robert, Mary, Margaret, Robert, Thomas and John. All married, reared large families, and are now dead. Their descendants are scattered far and wide. The sister, Mary, died in Wales. John Watkins, son of Evan, and the father of William W. Watkins, was born in Montgomeryshire, Wales, February 1, 1801. Ed ucated in his native country, and learning the trade of carpenter, he came to the United States in June, 1822. He sailed from Liverpool, England, and landed in Baltimore, Md., after a voyage of six weeks. From Baltimore he went to Philadelphia, whence he traveled on a stage coach to Wheeling, Va., crossing the Alleghany mountains, armed guards being on the coach to protect the passengers from robbers, which then infested those mountains. From Wheeling Mr. Watkins came on to Delaware county, Ohio, his mother and all his brothers and sisters that were living being with him, except Evan, who came across the sea the next year. For two years after his arrival in Delaware county Mr. Watkins worked at the carpenter trade, and at the end of this time walked to Butler county, and for a time worked at his trade at Paddy's Run, and here he was married to Miss Jane Griffith, in August, 1826. To this marriage of Mr. Watkins and Miss Jane Griffith there were born twelve children. In December, 1834, Mr. Watkins moved to Sugar Creek township, Putnam county, now Allen county, and (settled on 160 acres of land which he entered and which was covered over with heavy timber. By working hard and with the aid of his sons, he cleared up this farm. For many years he lived in a log cabin which he himself erected. Then the woods were full of game and wild beasts, and many a wild turkey and deer found their way to Mr. Watkins's table, and furnished excellent living for his family; and many a night were the family lulled to sleep by the hooting of the owls and the howling of the wolves that filled the woods around their log cabin. By industry and thrift Mr. Watkins increased his landed possessions until he owned a farm of 360 acres of fine land, and became one of the prominent farmers of his township. Both he and his wife were members of the Welsh Congrega- OF PUTNAM COUNTY - 565 tional church, and he was a trustee for many years. He assisted to found the church of that denomination at Gomer, and to erect its edifice, which was constructed of hewn logs. But this building was in later years superseded by a brick church, which again in its turn gave way to the present tasteful edifice. Mrs. Watkins was a most devoted christian woman and was deeply interested in all church matters. She was of excellent character in every way, and was so recognized by all. She died in 1850, at the age of forty-two. Joseph Griffith, the father of Mrs. Watkins, was born in Wales, and was a substantial tarmer in that country. In 1824 he brought his family to the United States, settling in Butler county, Ohio, where he remained until 1836, when he removed to Allen county, locating at Gomer. Here he became a prosperous farmer and an extensive owner of land. His children were as follows: Daniel, Jane, Joseph, Elizabeth, Abraham, Thomas, Ellen, Mary, Evan, Edward, Samuel and Benjamin. He was a well-known and highly esteemed citizen, and lived in Allen county until his death, when he was seventy-six years old. John Watkins, after the death of his wife, mentioned above, married Miss Ellen Evans, by whom he had three children, viz: Margaret, John and David. He was one of the sturdy, hard-working pioneers of Allen county, honest, and upright, highly respected by all. Perhaps his greatest misfortune, during his entire life, was the affliction of blindness for the last seventeen years that he lived. After his second marriage he spent the remainder of his life upon his farm, and died at the age of eighty-two years, two months and twenty-six days. William W. Watkins, the subject of this sketch, was born March 25, 1835, in Sugar Creek township, Putnam county, Ohio, on the old John Watkins homestead, and was the first Welsh child born in northwestern Ohio. The school-house in which he received his education he well remembers. It was of logs and had greased paper for windows to let in the light. This education was well supplemented by attendance in the preparatory department of Oberlin college for two terms, he going there after he was twenty-two years of age. The carpenter trade he learned of his father, who had learned it of his father, and so on back through several generations, and thus perhaps it may be said he inherited the trade from his father, as well as learning it from him. At the age of twenty-four he was married to Winifred Hughes, who was born October 2, 1840, at Parisville, Portage county, Ohio, and is a daughter of Richard and .Mary (Williams) Hughes. The marriage occurred March 18, 1859. Richard Hughes was born in Cardiganshire, south Wales, April 15, 1813, and was a son of Richard and Winifred (Lloyd) Hughes, who were the parents of the following children: Daniel, Phillip, Thomas, John, Martha and Richard, the latter the father of Mrs. Watkins. Of these six children, John and Richard came to the United States; the rest remained in Wales. There Richard and Winifred, the grandparents of Mrs. Watkins, died at an advanced age. Richard Hughes, the father of Mrs. Watkins, was well educated in his native country, being intended for the ministry of the Church of England, but he ran away at the age of twenty-two to marry Mary Williams. She was born March 29, 1817, and their marriage occurred in October, 1834. She was the daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth (Morgan) Williams. To Mr. and Mrs. Richard Hughes were born eleven children, viz: Elizabeth, David, Winifred, Jane, Gomer, John, James, Thomas, Mary J., Daniel and Martha. The eldest two were born in Wales, the others in the United States. To this country Mr. 566 - BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY Hughes came in 1838, embarking in Liverpool on a sailing vessel, and landing in New York, on July 4, that year. He came direct to Ravenna, Portage county, Ohio, and there for some time worked on the canal, going thence to Youngstown, and there worked in the coal mines for Governor Tod. There he remained until 1855, in April of that year removing to Putnam county, and in Sugar Creek township buying Ho acres of land. This land was partially cleared; the remainder he cleared himself, and by hard work and industry so prospered that he finally owned 600 acres of land, being thus able to give to each of his children a farm. He was a man of great natural ability and great force of character, and by his own energy and foresight became one of the wealthy men of Putnam county. But his good fortune did not end here. In his old age, in 1887, after he had purchased all of the above-mentioned 600 acres of land, he inherited, by the death of his brother Thomas, a London merchant, nearly $10,000. In his younger days he was a strong abolitionist, but in his later life, there being no further necessity for an abolition party, he naturally became a republican. He had three sons in the Civil war—Gomer, David and John. David was in the Twenty-first Ohio volunteer infantry, and served three months in Virginia, and Gomer was in company D, One Hundred and Eighteenth Ohio volunteer infantry, having enlisted for three years. He was in one battle, and died of disease in the hospital at Knoxville, Tenn. John was only seventeen years of age when he enlisted in the Eighty-eighth Ohio volunteer infantry for three years, and served at Camp Chase,, Ohio. Richard Hughes was an honored citizen, and held the office of township trustee. He lived to the great age of eighty-two years, dying July 26, 1894, thus showing that he had a most remarkable constitution. His wife died in Putnam county, at the age of fifty-six, truly mourned by her relatives and friends. After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Watkins settled in Gomer, where he had previously erected a house. There they lived four years, and then removed to his parents' home in Vaughnsville. To them there were born six children, viz: John H., William, Mary J., Rossie B., Cora E., and Winnie M. The last mentioned died at the age of four months; the others still live to bless the declining years of their parents. John H. Watkins, the eldest son, married Mary Williams, by whom he has two children. They live at Lima, Ohio, where he is engaged as an oil tester. He is a young man of integrity, well reared and of good education. Mary J. married John W. Keinper and with her hus band, who is a contractor, lives at Lima. Rossie B. married Robert Melloy, a mechanic, and they live at Vauhgnsville. They have two children. Cora E. is a young lady and lives at home. William married a Miss Snyder. He is a resident of Columbus Grove, Putnam county, and stands high for his general good character and genial manners. He worked for his father on the farm until he was twenty-two years of age, then started out for himself, and by faithful attention to business and by strict integrity he has met with deserved success—a reward that ever accompanies industry. William W. Watkins, since 1853, has been engaged in the carpenter and contractor's business, and has met with most gratifying success. He now owns 231 acres of land, beside real estate in Lima. He is a well known and highly respected citizen of Putnam county; of many sterling, qualities of character, and is entirely a self-made man: He possesses a kindly heart and an intelligent mind. All through life he has been known to be inter. ested in the development of his county, and u a most unusually public-spirited man. OF PUTNAM COUNTY - 567 JOHN WATTERSON, a prominent farmer of Jackson township, Putnam county, Ohio, was born in Chester county, Pa., November 11, 1819, a son of Samuel and Lydia (Weeks) Watterson. The father, a native of Ireland, came to America at the age of sixteen years, grew to manhood in Chester county, Pa., and about 1798 married Miss Weeks, a native of Wales, the union resulting in the birth of James, Mrs. Margaret Broomer, Eliza, Samuel, all deceased, and John, our subject. Samuel Watterson carried on his farm in Chester county, Pa., until 1832, when he retired to Philadelphia to pass the remainder of his days with his daughter. John Watterson, our subject, was reared a carpenter in Chester county, Pa., and in 1847 went to Columbia, Lancaster county, Pa., where he worked five years in machine shops. The same year, 1847, April 3o, he married Margaret Harper, who was born in Chester county, Pa., February 16, 1823, a daughter of Alexander and Margaret (Rigg) Harper. Alexander Harper was a native of Ireland and a hatter by trade, and Margaret Rigg was born in Pennsylvania. During the war of 1812 both Samuel Watterson and Alexander Harper, refusing to forswear their allegiance to the king of England and to become naturalized citizens of the United States, were sent "back " to the interior of the state by the military authorities. To the marriage of our subject were born eight children, viz: Rachael Ann, deceased; James Alexander, born October 3o, 185o; Samuel, October 2, 1853; ''William Harper, April 9, 1855, deceased; Sarah J., December 3o, 1856, wife of Wallace Vail, of Kalida, Ohio; George Owens, March 30, 1859, on the home place; John Davis, physician of Kalida, Ohio, and Charles Sherman, born May 6, 1865, deceased. He has also reared and educated his grandson, E. B. Watterson, a teacher at Leipsic, Putnam county, Ohio. In 1852 John Watterson came to Ohio, and for eighteen months worked in machine shops in Columbus. During his stay there he made a trip to Putnam county and entered 160 acres of government land in the wilds of Jackson township, and had a part of it cleared. About 1854 he located here and built his log cabin, and farmed and worked at his trade for eight years, when he sold out and bought another farm in Jackson township, on which he lived two years, and then moved to Union township, renting his farm for four years, and making a trip through Kansas, where he had intended to settle, but was prevented from so doing through the ill-health of his wife. He then returned to his present home, and continued at his trade and at farming until 1880, after which he devoted his attention solely to the farm until the death of his wife, which sad event occurred November 27, 1894, she being a devout member of the Presbyterian church. In politics Mr. Watterson is a democrat, and has held the office of justice of the peace six years. He was township treasurer for several terms, but resigned on account of his wife's health. He was also township trustee for several years, and a member of the I. 0. 0. F. lodge, No. 8o, at Columbus, Ohio, and while intrusted with public office performed his duty faithfully and honestly. George O. Watterson, son of above, was married June 5, 1892, to Miss Emma L. Collert, who was born May 4, 1872 (see sketch of George Collert). February 14, 1894, the union of George and Emma Watterson was made more happy by the birth of a child named Claude P., and since then an infant not yet named has been born to them. Mr. Watterson now has charge of the home farm, and is one of the prominent citizens of the township, being now a trustee. 568 - BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY JOHN D. WATTERSON, M. D., of Kalida, Ohio, one of the most prominent physicians of northwestern Ohio, was born in Putnam county December 3, 1862, a son of John and Margaret (Harper) Watterson. The father was born in Chester county, Pa., November I I, 1819, of Irish descent, and was reared in Philadelphia, where he learned the carpenter's trade and worked in the car shops, and where he married Miss Margaret Harper, a native of Chester county, Pa., born in 1823. To their union were born the following children: Rachael A., died aged thirty-three years; James A.; Samuel; William H., died at twenty-one; Sarah Jane; George O.; John D., our subject, and Charles Sherman, died at twelve years of age. The mother of this family died in Putnam county, Ohio, November 27, 1894, a member of the Presbyterian church. About the year 1852 John Watterson brought his wife and surviving Pennsylvania-born children to Ohio, and worked at his trade in Columbus for several years, then came to Putnam county, in 1854, bought a farm in the forest, which he cleared, still working at carpentering, and made a good home. About 1861 he sold this place and bought another in the same county, and still later another, which is located in the forks of the Auglaize river and Hog creek, and on which he still resides. Politically he is a stanch democrat, was justice of the peace for six years, and has served both as township trustee and township treasurer. He is not allied to an church organization, but is a man of strictly moral habits and of unimpeachable integrity, and an Odd Fellow. Dr. John D. Watterson, our subject, was reared on the home farm and received his preliminary education in the common schools of Putnam county. He fully qualified himself, however, for teaching, and in 1881 began the profession and followed it for nine years, teaching his first school in Monterey township and his last in Jackson township, and holding the latter for six consecutive years. In 1885 Dr. Watterson was united in marriage with Miss Delia Rinkel, who was born in Putnam county, Ohio, December 11, 1867, a daughter of Michael and Barbara (Simons) Rinkle, the former a native of Germany, a shoemaker by trade, and a republican in politics, and the latter a native of Ohio. To the marriage of the doctor have been born three bright children, viz: Ray, December 7, 1887; Lou, March 15, 1889, and Ima, February 22, 1893. In 1889 the doctor went to Ann Arbor, Mich., and entered the medical department of the university of Michigan, from which he graduated in 1892, and then came to Kalida, Ohio, and here he has since enjoyed a full share of patronage, being recognized as one of the most competent physicians and surgeons in northwestern Ohio. Politicality he is a democrat, but has no special ambition for public office, his large professional practice inhibiting any infringement on his time; he is not a member of any religious organization, but is a moral, high-toned gentleman, highly respected, not only for his professional ability, but for his endowment with the power of thinking for himself. PETER P. WELTY, of Riley township, was born in Pleasant township, Putnam county, Ohio, August 2, 1863, and is a son of Peter and Fanny (Bixel) Welty. Peter Welty was among the early settlers of Riley township, being the first of his family to come here, and was followed, a year or two after his arrival, by his father and the rest of his family. Peter here bought land and cleared up a farm, enduring the many hardships of pioneer life, so often described in OF PUTNAM COUNTY - 571 these pages. He died June 23, 1888, but his widow still survives at the age of sixty-eight years. To this venerable couple were born fourteen children, of whom six died young, the survivors being named as follows: Daniel, Peter P., John J., Mary (Mrs. Godfrey Burry), Solomon, Christian, Elizabeth (Mrs. C. Baumgardner, deceased mother of six children), and Anna, who died unmarried. Peter P. Welty, subject of this sketch, was reared on the home farm, received a good German and English education, and lived with his father until he reached his majority. In 1885 he married Miss Annie Zuercher, daughter of Isaac Zuercher, of Adams county, Ind., and settled down on a farm of eighty acres, that came to him from his father; he also ran a saw-mill, to which he afterward attached a planing-mill; in 1892 he disposed of the sawmill, and from that time on has given all his attention to the planing-mill, renting out his farm in order that he may devote his whole time to his business. He' buys all kinds of lumber, makes frames, blinds, and, indeed, everything that pertains to a building, and also manufactures a fanning-mill, an automatic grain and seed separator, and also contracts for the erection of buildings. He recently built the addition to the Putnam county infirmary, and has built for himself a commodious residence at Pandora, where he also owns some residence property. Mr. Welty is the maker of his own fortune, having received but $3,000 in land from his father's estate. His plant is of brick and frame—one building being 43x42 feet, and two stories high, and the other 16x30 feet, and one story high, all covered with iron, with fuel room in the basement. He carries a large stock of lumber, shingles, laths, posts, etc. He has two large lumber sheds—one 16x48 feet, and the other 18x60; he is provided with cisterns and water tanks, but carries a policy in the Home Mutual Insurance company. Mr. Welty has a full line of the latest improved machinery in his plant and turns out nothing but first-class work. Isaac Zuercher, father of Mrs. Anna Welty, is a native of Germany, where his daughter was also born, May 24, 1864. He came to America in 1872, and first located in Wayne county, Ohio, but afterward removed to Indiana, where he still resides. He is a farmer and carpenter and he and family are members of the Mennonite church. His first wife, mother of Mrs. Welty, died in Germany, and he is now living with his second helpmate. The children born to the congenial union of Mr. and Mrs. Peter P. Welty are named Philipp, who was born March 3, 1887, and Josiah, born August 27, 1888. Mr. and Mrs. Welty are members of the Mennonite church, and in their social relations mingle with the most substantial and most respectable citizens of Riley and Pleasant townships. Mr. Welty is recognized as a practical business man, filled with enterprise, and whose transactions are always strictly honest and whose word may be fully relied upon on all occasions. SAMUEL P. WEAVER, one of the old and well known citizens of Putnam county, is a son of Jacob and Mary (Strouder) Weaver. The subject's maternal grandfather, Joseph Strouder, was one of the early pioneers of Fairfield county, Ohio, and Jacob Weaver, the paternal grandfather, a native of Holland, came to the new world a number of years prior to the war of independence, and settled in Pennsylvania. By his first wife, whom he married in the old country, Jacob Weaver, Sr., reared a family of children whose names, as far as now known, were Leonard, John, William, Jacob, and Mary (Mrs. Carty). The father first removed from Pennsylvania to Frederick 572 - BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY county, Va., where he remained for some years engaged in farming, and in 1806 removed to Ohio, settling in the county of Fairfield, where he spent the remainder of his days Jacob Weaver, Jr., father of the subject of this sketch, was born about the year 1767 in Pennsylvania. He accompanied his parents to Virginia, where he grew to manhood, and after the close of the war of the Revolution served, under Gen. 'Washington, in the suppression of the whisky insurrection, in western Pennsylvania. In 1806 he immigrated to Fairfield county. ,Ohio, where he purchased a tract of 320 acres, which he improved, and upon which his death occurred in 1852. In addition to farming he was also engaged in the distillery business. In his religious convictions, Mr. Weaver was a Lutheran, and assisted in the organization of the Zeigler (now St. Peter's) church, one of the oldest religious societies in the county of Fairfield. Jacob Weaver was twise married; first to a Miss Smith, by whom! he had ten children, viz: Mary, John, Catherine, Jacob, Elizabeth, Leonard, Peter, Annie, Sarah and Margaret. By his second marriage (with Mary Strouder), he had a family of nine children, whose names are as follows: Frances, married to George Pope; Samuel P. ; Christina, wife of Sylvester Shepperd; Adam, Daniel, Solomon, Maria, wife of Henry Myers; David and Emma. Of this family only the subject of this sketch, and his brother Daniel, survive; both Jacob Weaver, Jr., and his wife, who died about 185n, were laid to rest in the old Zeigler Grove cemetery, Pleasant township, Fairfield county. Samuel P. Weaver, whose name introduces this biographical sketch, was born January 20, 1820, in Fairfield county, Ohio. His element mentary education was obtained in the primitive log- school-house, and he entered, at the age of twenty-one years. the academy at Greenfield. The year following he taught in the schools of his township. and in the winter of 1845-6 became a student of Granville college, Licking county, Ohio. For fifteen years thereafter, Mr. Weaver was engaged in educational work in the county of Fairfield, but spent a part of of two years of that time in delivering books in Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. In October, 1849, Mr. Weaver settled in Putnam county, upon 16o acres of land in Blanchard township, which forms a parts of his present home place. To his original purchase Mr. Weaver subsequently added 120 acres, the greater part of which, like his first tract, was at the time covered with a dense forest growth. He became one of the leading farmers of the county, but recently divided the greater part of his possessions among his children, all of whom now have comfortable homes. Politically, Mr. Weaver has been a prominent factor in the councils of the democratic party; for ten years was upon the county board of school examiners, and in 1860 was appointed land appraiser of his township. In 1864, Mr. Weaver was elected county auditor, and discharged the duties of that position most efficiently until 1869. In 1872, he was elected a member of the constitutional convention of Ohio, which held its first session, in 1873, at Columbus from June till August, and later convened at Cincinnati from December 7, 1873, to June of the following year. In 1853 Mr, Weaver began agitating the matter of public drainage in northwestern Ohio, and called meetings in Putnam and other counties for the purpose of discussing the feasibility of the same. As early as 1843, he had succeeded in obtaining- from the courts authority for the appointment of a board of drainage commissioners, of which he was appointed a member. This hoard was authorized, under the law, to institute a system of drainage, and it operated under said law for two years, when the legislature passed an net placing the matter in the OF PUTNAM COUNTY - 573 hands of the township trustees. Mr. Weaver was elected trustee of his township, and continued, under the new law, the work so well begun, and to him is largely due the credit of reclaiming large tracts of land. While a member of the constitutional convention, he brought the matter of drainage before that body and succeeded In securing several amendments to the constitution, which would have proved greatly beneficial to the drainage system, had that constitution been adopted by the people. In his religious convictions Mr. Weaver was originally a Lutheran, uniting with that church at the age of sixteen, and continuing a member of the same until in recent years. He served as elder of the Lutheran congregation at Leipsic, and represented his church in the synod. Withdrawing from the Lutheran denomination, Mr. Weaver became identified with the Methodist Protestant church, and in 1890 was the prime mover in securing the organization of the Pleasant Grove Methodist Protestant church, in which he now holds the office of trustee. He also represented his circuit in the general conference at Westminster, Md., in 1892. Mr. Weaver married, the first time, Louisa Wickham, who died two weeks after the celebration of the ceremony. His second marriage was solemnized with Savilla, daughter of David Pence, to which union have been born the following-named children: David M., Almina D., widow of R. P. Tulloss, James N., and Anna, deceased wife of J. B. Rozenberger. Mr. Weaver is recognized throughout Putnam county as one of its enterprising citizens. JAMES M. WEAVER, second son of Samuel P. Weaver, whose biography appears above, was born April 17,1859, on the home farm in Blanchard township. His early years were passed on the farm, and he received his education in the district schools and schools of Ottawa, and began life for himself as an agriculturist in 1882, settling upon his present place, consisting of seventy-eight acres of finely improved land. He subsequently made additions to this place, and his home farm at this time embraces an area of 18 acres, upon which are some of the best improvements in the township, including a beautiful residence, supplied with many modern conveniences. Mr. Weaver believes in the dignity of the farmer's calling, in which he has made a most encouraging success, and in addition to tilling the soil he pays considerable attention to the rearing of fine stock, especially Shropshire sheep and Poland China hogs. These he raises and sells principally for breeding purposes, and he has a widespread reputation as one of the most successful stockmen in Putnam county. He is a member of the American Shropshire association, of Lafayette, Ind., and has done much toward introducing superior breeds of live stock among the farmers or his township. Mr Weaver inherits in a marked degree many of the noble characteristics of his ancestors, and is justly considered one of the intelligent and progressive citizens of the township of Blanchard. In politics he is a supporter of the democratic party, but is not an aspirant for political honors, preferring to give his entire attention to his business interests. He subscribes to the creed of the Protestant Methodist church, belonging to the Pleasant Grove congregation, in which he is an active worker. Mr. Weaver was married, in 1882, to Nola, daughter of John and Nancy Miler, of Blanchard township. To them have been born four children; Eva P., Carrie E., Charles C. and Annie. David M. Weaver, brother of the preceding, and elder son of Samuel P. Weaver, was born in January, 1851. He is one of the leading agriculturists of Blanchard township, re 574 - BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY siding upon a part of the old homestead, and is a man widely and favorably known in the community where he lives. From 1867 to 1870 he was deputy county auditor under his father, in addition to which he was also engaged in other business, previous to locating upon his present farm. Politically he believes in the people's party which he supports with his ballot, and the Protestant Methodist church represents his religious creed. His wife, whose maiden name was Gennetta, daughter of James Monroe, has borne him two children, viz: Samuel J. and George, the latter deceased. H. F. WENDELL, editor of the Leipsic (Ohio) Tribune, was born in Batesville, Noble county, Ohio, December 2, 1867, a son of Daniel F. and Hannah L. (Schaub) Wendell. The paternal grandfather, Harrison Wendell, was born in the Shenandoah valley, Va., in 1816, and is a descendant of one of the pioneer families of that state. In 1823 he was brought to Ohio by his parents, who settled in Noble county, where he grew to manhood, purchased a farm and married Melissa Hopkins, of West Virginia, the union resulting in the birth of the following children: Daniel F. (deceased), William (deceased), Joseph, John, Charles, Frank, Lucy (deceased), Hattie, and Mollie (deceased). The mother of this family died in 1893; the father, at the ripe old age of eighty years, still resides on his original purchase, and is recognized as one of the most prominent citizens of Batesville, adjoining which town his farm is located, and is considered one of the most practical and successful of the farmers of his township. Daniel F. Wendell, the father of the gentleman whose name opens this biographical notice, was born May 23, 1844 in Noble county, Ohio, passed his early years on the home farm, and in February, 1861, enlisted in company D, Seventieth Ohio volunteer infantry. At the battle of Pittsburg Landing, when he had been in the service a little over one year, he was wounded in the foot, an injury from which he never recovered, but which eventually terminated his life in August, 187o. He married, in 1866, Miss Hannah L. Schaub, of Noble county, which union was blessed by the birth of two children—H. F. and Jessie M. Mrs. Hannah L. Wendell was married at Findlay, Ohio, in 1894, to Dr. Anson Hurd, a prominent Findlay physician. H. F. Wendell was educated in the common schools of Batesville, Ohio, and at Cambridge. In 1883 he witnessed typesetting for the first time, and at once fell in love with the printing business. In 1884 he entered the office of the Daily Guernsey Times at Cambridge, where he learned the printing business, and learned it thoroughly, after which he held the position of foreman in several towns throughout the state. In March, 1894, he purchased an interest in the Leipsic Tribune, and that journal was for four months conducted under the firm name of Horn & Wendell. In July, 1894, Mr. Wendell purchased his partner's interest, since which time he has carried on the business on his sole account. The paper is independent as concerns politics, although Mr. Wendell is a republican. He wields a facile yet trenchant pen, is gifted with a keen perception and retentive memory, and his literary tastes are far above the average. The columns of the paper are newsy and spicy, and as a local journal it has no superior in northwestern Ohio. The marriage of Mr. Wendell took place August 15, 1892, at Newark, Licking county, Ohio, with Miss Laura Gallogly, daughter of Jacob Gallogly, and both Mr. Wendell and wife are consistent members of the Presbyterian church of Leipsic.