HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY - 725 years there. He was a man of remarkable physical vigor, and his death occurred in his one hundred eleventh year. He had given active service to his country as a soldier in the Mexican war. In his family were five sons and two daughters named Henry, Thomas, William, David, Tilghman, Carrie and Ann. Tilghman Rittenhouse, father of Cephus C., was born near the present site of Musselman's Station in Ross County in September, 1828. As a young man he learned the carpenter's trade, and followed that at various places in Ross and Union counties. Later he became an undertaker. With the exception of four years his entire life was spent in Ross County. His death occurred at the age of eighty-four. Tilghman Rittenhouse married Rebecca Laird. She was born in County Donegal, Ireland, a daughter of Samuel and Catherine (Douglas) Laird, the former a native of County Donegal and the latter of Scotland. Samuel Laird's father was a Scotch baron and an extensive land holder. During an uprising in Scotland he was unfortunately on the losing side and his estate was confiscated by the crown. Samuel Laird reared six sons and daughters named Moses, Jane, Rebecca, James, Thomas and Catherine. Of these the son Moses emigrated to America when a young man, locating near New Holland in Ohio, and became a successful farmer. A few years later he induced his father, his mother in the meantime having died, to bring the younger children to America. They made the voyage on a sailing vessel, battling with the winds and waves for thirteen weeks. After landing at Philadelphia they came on to Pickaway County, where Samuel Laird made his home with his son Moses. Mrs. Tilghman Rittenhouse died at the age of eighty-seven years. Her six children were named Cephus C., John, William, Thomas, George and Jennie. Cephus C. Rittenhouse was born at Frankfort, Ross County, November 7, 1853. As a boy he attended public schools both in Ross and in Union County. For two years he worked at the carpenter's trade, and then took up farming as his regular vocation in life. For a time he worked at monthly wages until he had saved sufficient to buy a team, and with that equipment he rented some land. From one step to another he has made constant progress, and for the past thirty-two years has occupied one of the good farms in Concord Township and has made a success as a general farmer and stock raiser. During his twenty-second year Mr. Rittenhouse married Nancy Wornstaff. She was born near the Village of Roxabell in Ross County, a daughter of Richard and Elsie (Carmean) Wornstaff, both natives of Ross County. Her father was a merchant in Ross County when the war broke out and soon afterward left his store to enlist in an Ohio regiment. He died while in service at Acworth, Georgia, and was buried in the South. Mr. and Mrs. Rittenhouse have reared six children: Myrtle, Arthur, Emma, Faye, Maude and Bly. Myrtle is the wife of Otto Roll. Arthur married Anna Swires, and their two children are Virgil and Curtis. Emma married N. E. Bablet and their three children are Lloyd, Mervin Vol. II-16 726 - HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY and Marie. Faye is the wife of Charles Milligan, with three children named Pauline, Gladys and Charlotte. In church affiliation Mr. and Mrs. Rittenhouse are Methodists. He has always been an active democrat. He is now serving his fourth con. secutive term as township trustee. He is a charter member of Frankfort Camp No. 4065 of the Modern Woodmen of America, and has been its secretary since it was organized in 1896. He is also a member of Frankfort Lodge No. 309, Free and Accepted Masons. CAPT. JOHN W. JENKINS of Frankfort is one of the surviving veterans of the Civil war. He earned his rank and title by gallant and meritorious service with an Ohio regiment, and rose from a place in the ranks to the leadership of a company. Aside from his military experience his years have been spent largely in farming, though he has given generously of his time and means to the promotion of every worthy local enterprise. He was born near Shiloh Church in Concord Township, March 20, 1836. His father, John Jenkins, was born in Pennsylvania and as a young man came to Ohio. He made the entire journey on foot. Ross County was then fairly well settled but still a pioneer community, since there were neither railroads nor canals. In Concord Township he bought a tract of timbered land, and there put up the rude log house in which Captain Jenkins first saw the light of day. John Jenkins cleared his land and remained a practical farmer of the county until his death. He married Eliza Pursell, who was a native of Ross County. Their six children were named John, Thomas, Margaret, Roland, Mary and Polk. When Captain Jenkins was a boy sixty or seventy years ago, there were few good schools anywhere in Ohio. Most of the country schools at least were taught in log buildings. There were rude benches of slabs for the scholars to sit on, and the teacher followed the time honored custom of boarding around among the patrons of the school. However, Captain Jenkins made the best possible use of such advantages, and after leaving the common schools he attended for a time the old South Salem Academy. When he was eighteen years of age he began teaching. His first term was taught in the Kline district of Concord Township. After teaching two terms he took up farming, and was thus engaged until the outbreak of the Civil war. In 1861, a few months after hostilities were declared, he enlisted in Company K of the Sixty-third Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Two years later in 1863 he veteranized and was with the army in many hard fought battles and campaigns until after the close of the war. Much of his service was in the Mississippi Valley, following the armies of Grant and Sherman, through the East Tennessee campaign, during the hundred days of continuous fighting between Chickamauga and the siege and capture of Atlanta, and after the fall of that city he followed Sherman to the sea, and from Savannah marched up through the Carolinas. After the surrender of the Confederate forces under Johnston he and his comrades went on to Rich- HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY - 727 mond and thence to Washington, and there participated in the glorious spectacle of the Grand Review. From private he went steadily upward through the grades until he reached a captaincy. Receiving his honorable discharge in 1865, he returned home, but the following March went out to Missouri and bought land in Jackson County near Kansas City. He was a farmer there for ten years, at the end of which time he sold and returned to Ross County. Captain Jenkins then settled on the farm which he still owns in Concord Township. He farmed that place until 1916 and in July of that year moved to Frankfort, where he now enjoys a well earned retirement. On February 22, 1866, Captain Jenkins married Mary Evans. She was born in Clarksburg of Ross County, a daughter of Dr. John Baxter and Lucinda (Wilson) Evans, and a granddaughter of Isaac. and Jane (Morton) Evans. Her father was a very successful physician, at first in Clarksburg and afterward in Frankfort, and practiced over that part of the county until his death. Captain and Mrs. Jenkins have two sons, Marcus and Pursell. Marcus married Nora Stoockey and their three daughters are Ruby, Edith and Clara. Pursell married Lucy Jones, and they have two daughters, Mary and Louise. Captain Jenkins and wife are active members of the Presbyterian Church. He was a charter member of McNeil Post of the Grand Army of the Republic. Politically he has always been a stanch supporter of the principles of the republican party. Many times his fellow citizens have called him to places of responsibility and trust, and for ten years he filled the place of township trustee and for two terms was a county commissioner. BENJAMIN A. STAGGS. As a farmer, building contractor, real estate dealer, and public official Benjamin A. Staggs has played a varied and important part. in the life of Ross County during the last forty years. His home is in Frankfort though his business dealings extend to various parts of Ross County and to other states. Mr. Staggs is a widely traveled man and has a very accurate knowledge of conditions in various other states. Though not a native of Ross County, he represents one of the very old family names here, since his grandfather was one of the pioneers of northwest territory. His great-grandparents probably came from Ireland and were of Scotch ancestry. They came to this country before the Revolutionary war, locating in the colony of Virginia. Mr. Staggs' grandfather, William Staggs, was born in Virginia in 1778. He learned the trade of carpenter and went from Virginia to Kentucky, becoming one of the early settlers in Clark County. His home in Kentucky was on the road between Winchester and Mount Sterling, about equi distant from those two points. From there he came across the Ohio River into northwest territory, and acquired land in Concord Township. When the Village of Frankfort was incorporated in 1827, William Staggs was honored by election as its first mayor. He lived there industriously and serviceably until his death on September 13, 1864. William Staggs 728 - HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY married Elizabeth Clausen, who died in April, 1855, when about seventy years of age. Alfred Staggs, the only son of William and Elizabeth Staggs, was born in Concord Township of Ross County, February 18, 1802, just about the time Ohio was admitted to the Union. He learned the trades of brickmaker and bricklayer, and in that capacity proved a very valuable factor in Ross County and elsewhere. He became a contractor and builder of Chillicothe, was in business there several years, and then moved to Clark County, Kentucky, and located in the same community where his father had lived in pioneer times. In 1854 he returned to Ross County, locating in Frankfort, where he continued his business as contractor and builder throughout the remainder of his active years. He died May 5, 1883, an honored and useful citizen. In July, 1828, Alfred Staggs married Eliza Simpson. She was born in Buckskin Township of Ross County, November 10, 1810, and her father, Matthew Simpson, a native of Ireland of Scotch-Irish ancestry, had been one of the pioneers of Buckskin Township, where he improved a farm and lived until his death. Mrs. Alfred Staggs died August 24, 1883, in the same year as her husband. Her four children were : Margaret E., Sarah C., John C., and Benjamin A. The daughter, Sarah, married Henry C. Painter, and lived in Frankfort. Margaret married Richard Elliott, and her daughter was the wife of William Haynes, they have a son named Frank Leslie. John C. Staggs, the other member of the family, enlisted at the age of sixteen in the First Regiment of Ohio Artillery, was in active service a little more than two years, and since his honorable discharge has been prominently identified with Ross County, having served as county clerk, as court bailiff, as secretary of the Soldiers Relief Commission, and as clerk of the Grand Army Post at Chillicothe. Benjamin A. Staggs was born in Clark County, Kentucky, January 28, 1849, while his father occupied the old home of the grandfather in that state. He was brought back to Ross County when about five years of age, grew up and received his education in the public schools of Frankfort and also attended the National Normal School at Lebanon. Since his early years he has played an active and useful part. At the age of eighteen he began teaching, his first term being in Deerfield Township. Later he taught in Concord and Union townships. In 1879 Mr. Staggs engaged in the mercantile business at Roxabell. While there he was station agent and postmaster for two years. He then returned to Frankfort and conducted a hardware and grocery store for about five years. In the meantime he had become successfully identified with the real estate business. In that capacity he has done much to improve his home town and has also proved a medium for the settlement and development of new districts in western states. He built a number of houses at Frankfort, and for some years owned and operated a farm in Concord Township. In 1881 he spent some months in Kansas, where he invested in real estate, and during 1889-90 was in the real estate business in the new State of Washington. At the present time he is HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY - 729 interested in real estate in Polk County, Wisconsin, where he has some very large holdings and spends a part of each year there. In 1873 Mr. Staggs married Alice N. Haynes, who was born in Deer Creek Township of Pickaway County, a daughter of Daniel and Annie Haynes. Mr. and Mrs. Staggs are active members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Fraternally he is affiliated with Frankfort Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, Greenfield Chapter, Royal Arch Masons, and Chillicothe Council, Royal and Select Masters. Since casting his first presidential vote for General Grant, Mr. Staggs has been faithfully aligned with the republican party. He served ten years as a member of the village council at Frankfort, twelve years as a member of the school board, was township assessor eight years, mayor one year, and Governor Willis appointed him district tax assessor, an office he filled until the post was abolished. FRED PUTNAM, prominent farmer in Concord Township, continues the activities and influence of a very notable family in Ross County. The Putnams have been identified with this part of Ohio since pioneer times, and the lives and characters of its members have made an indelible impress upon the farms, good citizenship and the varied institutions of the county. Mr. Putnam was born in Concord Township, November 17, 1885. His father, Marcellus Putnam, was born in the same Township. The Grandfather Alfred Putnam was born also in Concord Township. Peter Putnam, the great-grandfather, was a native of Virginia, as was also his father, Philip Putnam. PhVirginia to emigrated from Virginia'to Ohio and was one of the first to develop the lands of Concord Township in Ross County. Peter Putnam bought land in Concord Township, became a very successful farmer and lived to the advanced age of ninety-two years. He married Keziah Roddy. That introduces another pioneer family of Ross County. Her father, Richard Hoddy, was born in Virginia, served with distinction in the Revolutionary war, and afterward settled among the pioneers of Ross County. Peter Putnam and wife reared a family of twelve children. Alfred Putnam grew up on a farm in Ross County, and was widely known over this section of Ohio not only as a farmer but as a stock raiser and dealer. He acquired considerable wealth through his varied enterprises, but lived on his farm until about five years before his death. He married Rebecca Day. Marcellus Putnam grew up on a farm, and made that his vocation until his death. He married Mary Belle James, who was born in Concord Township, a daughter of Strawder James and a granddaughter of Reuben James, one of Concord Township's early settlers. Strawder James was a farmer and spent all his life in Ross County. He married Rebecca Bush. She was born on the present site of Austin in Concord Township, a daughter of Jacob Bush, who was a native of the same locality and a son of John Bush, one of the very first settlers of the township. Jacob Bush owned and operated a farm near the present site 730 - HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY of Austin, and lived there until his death in 1868. His wife was Eve Mallow, of another pioneer family. She was born about three miles north of Austin, and spent her entire life in Concord Township. Mrs. Rebecca (Bush) James died in 1907, having reared six children named Milton, Mary Belle, Vina E., Clara, Charles and Nannie. Fred Putnam was one of five children, the others being named Lee S., Earl, Madge and Russ. Mr. Fred Putnam spent his early life on his father's farm and after leaving the common schools entered the Clarksburg High School, where he was graduated in 1902. He then took up farming on his grandfather's old homestead, and has remained there successfully identified with agricultural affairs to the present time. He has his farm completely stocked and equipped with all the implements necessary for thorough field and animal husbandry. On October 29, 1908, he married Etta Jamison. She was born in Deerfield Township of Ross County, a daughter of David and Etta (Peck) Jamison. Mr. and Mrs. Putnam have a son named Frederick Wendell, born May 1, 1911. The family are active members of the Methodist Episcopal Church of Austin, and Mr. Putnam is affiliated with Frankfort Lodge No. 309, Free and Accepted Masons. WILLIAM C. NEWELL. The records of some of the solid old families of Ross County are exceedingly interesting. Too often much data has been lost, as families in early days changed their abode without preserving valuable papers and dates, and thus their descendants cannot always prove statements that they nevertheless know to be true, but in large measure this has not been the case in the Newell family. Early settlers in Belmont County and pioneers in Highland County, Ohio, the data goes back to the grandparents on one side and to old Virginia on the other. One of the representative members of this well known family is found in William C. Newell, ex-postmaster of Bainbridge, Ohio, ex-sheriff of Highland County, Ohio, a Civil war veteran and a prominent and public spirited citizen of Ross County. William C. Newell was born August 9, 1841, in Highland County, Ohio, and is a son of Samuel E. and Hannah R. (Glever) Newell. His father was born in Belmont County, Ohio, in 1810, and his mother at Winchester, Virginia, in 1820. Both came early to Highland County and married there and through many years following remained people of solid worth and examples of domestic happiness and of neighborly kindness. They had two children : Nannie E., who is deceased, was the wife of John W. Hill; and William C. They were members of the Presbyterian Church in which Samuel E. Newell was an elder. In early days he was a whig and later became active in local republican circles. He followed the trade of millwright, a very important and rather lucrative one at that time. William C. Newell was reared in Highland County and obtained his education in the district 'schools. He then went into the milling business with his father and continued until his enlistment for service in the Civil HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY - 731 war, in August, 1862, when he became a member of Company F, Sixtieth Ohio Infantry. During this term of enlistment he suffered capture by the enemy at Harper's Ferry but was exchanged and mustered out but re-enlisted in the Twenty-fourth Battery Ohio Volunteer Light Artillery and served until the close of the war when he .was mustered out as quartermaster sergeant. Mr. Newell returned then to Highland County and resumed business with his father. In the meanwhile he became so well and widely known as a man of courage and integrity that in 1876 he was elected sheriff of Highland County and during the two terms that he consented to serve, made a record for official efficiency. Finally disposing of his milling business in his native county, he moved to Bainbridge in Ross County, where he again was in the milling business until 1897, when he was appointed postmaster of Bainbridge and served continuously in that office until August 15, 1913. During his many years in public life Mr. Newell not only kept his old friends who had had faith in him but yearly added others because of his fair treatment of everyone and his known uprightness in every situation. He still continues an active factor in the ranks of the republican party in this section. On October 12, 1882, Mr. Newell was united in marriage with Margaret R. Foraker, who was born at Rainsboro, Ohio, January 10, 1853, and is a daughter of H. S. and Margaret (Reece) Foraker. Mrs. Newell was educated in the public schools and was graduated from the Hillsboro Female College, after which she taught the pupils in the Hillsboro public schools for six years. With her husband she belongs to the Methodist Episcopal Church and takes a very earnest interest in all its agencies for good. Mr. and Mrs: Newell have two sons: Frank F. and Joseph B. The latter is a graduate of the Bainbridge schools and the Cincinnati Law School and is court reporter for the Third Judicial District of New Mexico. He was married to Miss Josephine Campfield and they have one child. Mr. Newell has long been identified with the Masonic fraternity and belongs to the Chapter at Bainbridge and his wife is a member of Bainbridge Chapter No. 183, Order of the Eastern Star, of which Mrs. Newell is the present worthy matron and as such she has attended the grand chapter of this order. DAVID M. BOWER. It is the man of character who can accomplish prosperity in the face of adversity. When David M. Bower, now one of the substantial and well-to-do farmers of Green Township, made his first start in life, it was in a western state, where various conditions and causes combined to reduce him financially about as low as possible. Returning to his native County of Ross, where the family name is an old and honored one, he was not so much a sadder as wiser man. He began all over again. Gradually, step by step, his course has been upward, and the circumstances that now surround him are the visible evidence of his integrity, his industry and his continued. good judgment. Some facts of his family history should be reviewed. His grand- 732 - HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY father was Johan Bower, a native of Wuertemberg, Germany. There he was reared and there he married a native of the same kingdom, Margaret Ann Schott. That was a time when the star of Napoleon was still in the ascendant, and for five years Johan Bower fought in the armies of the 'great emperor. A number of years later, in 1832, with his wife and their three children, he set out for America. The old fashioned sailing vessel was forty-seven days in crossing the ocean to New York. It will be remembered that no railroad then led westward-across the mountains, and the only means of reaching Ohio was by highway or water routes. This family traveled by water most of the way. Up the Hudson River by boat to Albany, thence through the Erie Canal, opened in 1825, to Buffalo, and thence by combined water and overland ways to Chillicothe, where they spent the first winter. In the spring John bought a tract of land in the western part of Harrison Township. A log house standing there constituted the first home of the Bower family in Ross County, and they managed to get along very well with its inconveniences for several years. On that old homestead John died in 1840, but his widow survived until her eighty-fifth year. Three more children were born to them in America, and the names of the six were John Jacob, Margaret, John Frederick, John Gottlieb, Catherine and Joseph. John Frederick Bower, father of David M., was born in the old country, and was only 31/2 years old when brought to America. His early life was one of comparatively pioneer surroundings with limited advantages. He grew up strong and sturdy, and found opportunity for abundance of hard work, which gave him the leverage required for the support and rearing of a family. He worked on farms for wages, then rented a time, and finally bought the farm in Green Township, which he conducted until his death at the age of sixty-eight. By his marriage to Martha Ring he reared eight children, named Joseph, Mary, John, Martha Jane, David M., Emarilla, Ella and Love. Such was the family history of David M. Bower, who was born on a farm in Green Township August 23, 1862. His childhood years were divided between the district schools and the duties of the home farm. Altogether it was a wholesome experience and a training worth while. As soon as possible he was earning his own way, and for a time he rented some land in Green Township. Thus he accumulated a small stock of animals and tools. Seeking a newer and large 'country, he sold what he had in Ross County and moving out to Missouri he began as a renter in Johnson County. Not only were the crops poor for several successive seasons, but he suffered bad health, and it is not strange that he lost practically all his modest capital. He was barely even with the world when he returned to Ross County and faced the world anew. He was not discouraged, and pride did not prevent him from starting at the bottom. Employment on a farm at monthly wages enabled him to support his family, and he also saved enough money to buy some stock and tools. Then for twelve years he was the successful operator of rented farms. After that he bought the HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY - 733 farm in Green Township which he still owns and occupies. Its 194 acres are unusually well improved, with substantial buildings, good live stock, modern machinery. Early in life Mr. Bower chose wisely a helpmate, who has been a large factor in his success. At the age of twenty-two he married Miss Alice Garrett, who represents a very old American family. She was born in Green Township, a daughter of Richard and Mary (Pixler) Garrett. Richard was the son of Reuben Garrett, who was born in Essex County, Virginia, May 5, 1784, and he in turn was the son of William Garrett, a native of Virginia and believed to have been a direct descendant of the Garrett, blacksmith, who came to the Jamestown colony with Capt. John Smith. William Garrett was a soldier of the American Revolution, being in the Third Company of the Second Virginia Regiment under Col. Alexander Spottswood. After the war his life was spent as a farmer and fruit grower in Essex County, where he died in 1825. His first wife, the great-grandmother of Mrs. Bower, was Elizabeth Taylor, who spent all her life in the Old Dominion. Reuben Garrett, when a young man, served as apprentice to the tailor's trade. He was already past middle age when, in 1832, he emigrated west to Ross County. His household goods were placed in a wagon, and accompanied by wife and seven children, the journey was slowly made over rough roads until they arrived in Green Township. Here his useful life came to a close on July 28, 1857. He married Sarah Tombs, who was born in Virginia and died in 1878. Richard Garrett, father of Mrs. Bower, was born in Essex County, Virginia, and was young when he came to Ross County. Farming was his regular vocation, and his death occurred at the age of sixty-nine. His wife Mary Pixler's parents came to Ross County in the early days from Pennsylvania, and she is still living, making her home with her children of whom there were eleven in number, as follows : Franklin P., Reuben, John, Alice, Thomas, Charles, Lettie, Harley, Sally, Laura and Daniel. Into the home of Mr. and Mrs. Bower have come ten children, and they have been reared a credit to their parents. Their names are Jesse, Ida, Fred, Edward, David, Jr., Earl, Alfred, Goldie, Ethel, and Mary. Jesse married Rena Knab and their four children are Robert, Luther, Grace and Janet. Ida is the wife of Henry Dunkle and has three sons, Stanley, David and Donald. Fred married Cleo DeLong and has two children, Curtis and Paul. Edward, who married Ada Veter, is also the father of two, Carrie and Merle. David, Jr., married Ella Deihl, and their children are Mae and Lorin. Mrs. Bower is an active member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. ZACHARIAH ERDMANN. A venerable and highly esteemed citizen of Chillicothe, was the late Zachariah Erdmann, who for many years was engaged in business as a merchant tailor, and his financial prosperity was entirely due to his good business methods. He was born October 11, 1829, in Oberdala, Prussia, a son of John M. Erdmann, a farmer, who spent his entire life in his native land. 734 - HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY Leaving school at the age of fourteen years, Zachariah Erdmann served an apprenticeship of three years at the tailor's trade, and then, as was customary in that country, he traveled from city to city, working a brief time at his trade in each, and receiving from each of his employers a certificate testifying to his exemplary character, and to his excellent workmanship. At the age of twenty-two years, he was enrolled as a soldier in the Prussian army, but it being a time of peace he was not called into active service at all. He continued at his trade until twenty-five years old, becoming an expert tailor. In 1854 Mr. Erdmann, fired with enthusiasm by the glowing accounts of conditions in America, emigrated to this country, being fifty-four days crossing the Atlantic in a sailing vessel. Landing in New York, he remained in that city nearly five years, having found employment as cutter in a tailoring establishment. Going from there to Cincinnati, Mr. Erdmann was similarly employed in that place until 1865, when he located in Chillicothe. Embarking then in business as a merchant tailor, he built up a large and highly remunerative patronage, his reputation for skilful workmanship, and his willing efforts to oblige his patrons, winning him a long list of customers. He was thus successfully employed until about the age of eighty, when he retired from business, being succeeded by his son. Mr. Erdmann died July 21, 1916, being then in his eighty-seventh year. Mr. Erdmann married, in New York City, Maria Lippert, who was born in the City of Darmstadt, Hesse Darmstadt, Germany, and came to America at the age of eighteen years. She died August 17, 1887, leaving nine children, namely : Bertha, wife of Adam Falter ; Katherena, who presides over her father's household ; Charles J. ; John F.; Frederick ; Frank ; Gustav A.; Edward; and William, deceased. WILBUR S. METCALFE. Three generations of. the Metcalfe family have lived in Ohio, and Wilbur S. Metcalfe is one of the active and progressive farmer citizens of Ross County, with home in Green Township. He was born at Bourneville in Ross County, November 26, 1874. The founder of the family in Ohio was his grandfather, Rev. Stephen Metcalfe, who was born in Virginia, where he was reared and educated, and on coming to Ohio located in Washington County. He had been ordained a preacher of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Virginia, and on coming to Ohio he joined the conference of this state and took up the arduous duties of a circuit rider, visiting isolated homes and churches on horseback. His last years were spent in Athens County. William S. Metcalfe, father of Wilbur S., was born near Athens, Athens County, Ohio, and in spite of handicaps and disadvantages secured a good education. Soon after the war broke out he enlisted in the Forty-fifth Ohio Infantry, and made a most creditable record as a soldier of the Union. He was promoted through the different grades until he became captain of his company, and was in almost constant service in the various campaigns and battles in which his regiment was HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY - 735 engaged until the close of the war, when he received his honorable discharge. After the war he became a teacher, and was also licensed as a local preacher of the Methodist denomination, and supplied a number of pulpits in Ross County and elsewhere. He also served one term as representative of Ross County in State Legislature. His death occurred near Bourneville, May 6, 1898, when sixty-nine years of age. William S. Metcalfe married Patience Igo, who was born near Bourneville, daughter of William and Julia Ann (Mackenzie) Igo. Mrs. Metcalfe is still living, a resident of Chillicothe. She reared six children named, Maud, Lewis, Fred, Wilbur, Alice and Mack. In his native community of Bourneville Wilbur S. Metcalfe spent his early youth, and graduated from the high school there. Early in his career he adopted farming as his regular vocation, and for a year he rented a place at Frankfort. In 1899 he located on a part of the Christopher Patrick homestead in section 1 of Green Township, and that has been the scene of his successful endeavors as a general farmer and stock raiser for the past seventeen years. In 1899 Mr. Metcalfe married Mary Patrick; who was born in Salt Creek Township of Pickaway County, a daughter of Christopher and Rachel (Lutz) Patrick. Her maternal grandfather, Samuel Lutz, was a very prominent citizen of Pickaway County, and as a civil engineer surveyed much of that section of the country. He was also active in politics and several times represented Pickaway County in the State Legislature. Another distinction that is associated with his name is that he lived to he one hundred and one years of age. He was strong mentally and physically to the end. Mrs. Metcalfe's father, Christopher Patrick, was a prominent farmer, stock raiser and landowner in Green Township, Ross County, and Pickaway County. His grandfather, William Patrick, emigrated from Maryland and settled near Hallsville. The three sons of Mr. and Mrs. Metcalfe are Myron Charles, Edwin William and Harry Donald. Mr. and Mrs. Metcalfe are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and he is affiliated with Kingston Lodge of the Masonic order. He is also performing his share of civic duties as a member of the Kingston School Board. PHILEMON S. KARSHNER. The Karshners, formerly spelled Kershner, came to America from Amsterdam, Holland, through the influence of the wife of William Penn, she having been a native of that city. Three brothers arrived in America with a large party of immigrants in the winter of 1722-23. Conrad, the youngest of the three brothers. settled in Berks County, Pennsylvania, and at one time owned the present site of Wernersville. He married and had ten children, the fifth of whom was Conrad. Conrad married a lady who lived to be one hundred years old. To this union were born eight children, the eldest being Daniel and the second Jacob, the grandfather of the subject of this sketch. Jacob Karshner was born in Berks County, Pennsylvania, April 27, 736 - HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY 1775, and came to Ohio with his brother Daniel in 1807, arriving about the 6th of June. That was five years before the War of 1812, in which he saw active service. He brought with him his wife, whose maiden name was Mary Dunklebarger, born January 12, 1778, and those of their children who had been born in Pennsylvania. They accomplished the entire journey from Pennsylvania with wagons and teams. At that time Ross County was almost on the extreme northern and western line of settlement in all the old Northwest Territory. Jacob Karshner, on arriving, entered the northwest quarter of section 1 of what is now Colerain Township. The patent to this land was signed by Thomas Jefferson, then President of the United States. The settlers and the forces of the United States Government were even then battling for possession of the lands in the Northwest Territory, and the Indians by no means gracefully retired from the possession of these former hunting grounds. In the year that the Karshner family established itself in Ross County, Robert Fulton made his first successful experiment with the steamboat on the Hudson River. The first railroad in America was not built for nearly twenty years later, and with these points in mind it is somewhat easier to reconstruct the Ross County of that day. There were no markets for the surplus products. Corn and other grains were too bulky to be transported, and the only source of profit was to convert them into meat and drive the stock overland. Jacob Karshner had four uncles who served in the Revolution. His brother Daniel was a member of the General Assembly of Ohio for the years 1841-1842. The children of Jacob Karshner were Enoch, Jacob, Catherine, Elizabeth, Margaret, Samuel, John, Susan and Margaret, twins. All of them except Catherine lived to a good old age. John Karshner, who was born in Adelphi, Ross County, February 23, 1815, grew up in that locality. Such education as he had was from the subscription schools maintained in the early days of Adelphi. When still little more than a boy he assumed charge of the affairs at home, his father giving him fifty acres, and with that as a nucleus, he accumulated real estate until at one time he held title to 1,600 acres of fine land. John Karshner was a man of striking individuality, distinguished appearance and of tireless enterprise. He was very successful in business, and public-spirited almost to a fault. When scarcely of age he was elected clerk of the township, an office he filled for eight or ten years, and was then chosen treasurer and then trustee and land appraiser. In 1871 he was elected county commissioner, filling the office for three years. While he was county commissioner the infirmary was built. He had an ambition to place his home town of Adelphi in touch with the surrounding world by a railroad. He supplied most of the means and the energy toward building a railroad from Kingston to Adelphi. Principally due to his advanced age at the time this enterprise was undertaken, it proved to be unfortunate, and his fine estate was swept away. The railroad was operated for about fourteen years and was then abandoned, and since then Adelphi has been isolated so HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY - 737 far as railroads are concerned. John Karshner died May 3, 1909, at the age of ninety-four. In 1872 John Karshner married Phoebe Swinehart, a native of Adelphi and of an old family there. Her great-grandfather, John Swinehart, served in the Revolution as a member of the Fifth Battery, Berks County, Pennsylvania, militia. Another great-grandfather, Peter Wheeland, was killed at Forty Fort, Wyoming Valley, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, while assisting in the defense of the settlement against the British and Indians on July 3, 1778. The wife of Peter Wheeland, and his children, among whom was the grandmother of Phoebe Swinehart, then three years old, escaped across the Susquehanna River in a rowboat and subsequently made their way to Virginia, where in after years this girl, Susan Wheeland, became the wife of Peter Madden. Peter Madden's mother was Esther O'Neil, a member of the noble family of O'Neil in Ireland. Phoebe Swinehart had two brothers who served in the Civil war, one, Demming, dying while in the service. Phoebe Swinehart was born May 11, 1850, and died October 23, 1913. Philemon S. Karshner, son of John and Phoebe (Swinehart) Karshner, was born at Adelphi, in Ross County, May 9, 1875, and has for many years been a lawyer, while those familiar with his work declare that his ability is of the best. For a number of years he was in practice at Columbus, but owing to ill health, he returned to the old homestead at Adelphi, and while he does not maintain an office, his services are in constant demand by important clients. Mr. Karshner acquired his early education in the Adelphi public schools, also attended the Columbus Latin School, and subsequently graduated LL. B. from the law department of the University of Michigan. In 1896 he was admitted to the bar. Throughout his professional career he has specialized in corporation law. He is now general counsel for the Citizens Wholesale Supply Company, of Columbus, and the George H. Rundle Company, of Piqua. These are corporations of $500,000 capital each. While located in Columbus he was counsel for many years for the Marzetti estate, one of the largest estates in that city. He has also assisted the general counsel for the Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company, one of the largest corporations of America, in a case in the Supreme Court of Ohio. He has had many cases in the Supreme Courts of several of the states and in the United States Circuit Courts and Circuit Courts of Appeal. Against the advice of one of the ablest lawyers in Pennsylvania and also one of the best lawyers in Ohio, he took a case for a client from the Court of Quaker Sessions in Pennsylvania to the Superior Court of Pennsylvania, then to the Supreme Court of that state, and finally to the Supreme Court of the United States. He was defeated in all the Pennsylvania courts, but the United States Supreme Court, by a unanimous vote, reversed them all and sustained Mr. Karshner's contention. The case was a very important one and involved the commerce clause of the Constitution of the United States. On the opposite side 738 - HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY of the case were Harry S. Knight and Simon P. Wolverton, of Sunbury, Pennsylvania, the latter being one of the best lawyers in Pennsylvania. Mr. Karshner won the first ease under the National Food and Drug Law to reach any of the higher courts. In that case he defeated the State of Iowa in the Supreme Court of that state. The state was represented by its attorney general and by distinguished counsel specially employed for the case. In a number of instances Mr. Karshner's briefs have been complimented from the bench, and counsel associated with him in cases have said that they have never seen better briefs than he has prepared. Fraternally he is a member of the Kappa Sigma Fraternity of the University of Michigan. Reared on a farm, he has never lost interest in the pursuit of agriculture, and has enjoyed the life and activities of the country. He and his sister now own the homestead which their grandfather secured direct from the Government more than a century ago. The fields are operated through renters, and he occupies the fine house which his father built almost half a century ago. The late Prof. Frank T. Cole, head master of the Columbus Latin School, declared Mr. Karshner the best Latin scholar that was ever in his school. In 1914 Mr. Karshner was solicited to become the nominee of the democratic party for the office of prosecuting attorney of Ross County, but owing to other matters, was obliged to decline. At the present time he is president of the Colerain Building and Loan Association. Mr. Karshner has one sister, Marie, who is married to J. W. Blue. They live in Columbus, and have two children, Phoebe Annanette and Dorothy Louise. Edward C. Turner, present attorney general of Ohio, is a cousin of Mr. Karshner. NEWTON A. VAUGHAN. Representing one of the very old families of Southern Ohio, and now an active business man at Adelphi, Colerain Township of Ross County, Newton A. Vaughan has had a very busy career. He was liberally educated, followed farming and stock raising for a number of years, but finally removed to Ross County and has conducted the leading furniture and undertaking establishment at Adelphi for the past fourteen years. His birth occurred on a farm in Bloomfield Township of Jackson County, Ohio, September 23, 1863. He is a grandson of Thomas Vaughan, who was born in Pennsylvania, of early Welsh ancestry. From Pennsylvania he went in the early days to Ohio, moving with wagons and teams and becoming an early settler in Bloomfield Township of Jackson County. At that time nearly all that section was a wilderness, land could be secured direct from the Government by paying a small fee, and his neighbors secured their meat largely from the wild game in the woods. He bought a tract of timbered land in Bloomfield Township, improved it with a log house, and after getting established in a financial way became prominent in public affairs. He served seventeen years as circuit judge. He lived on his farm in Jackson County until HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY - 739 his death in 1870. Judge Vaughan married Rebecca Dunham, who died in middle life, after rearing the following children : Jacob, Annie, Phoebe, Margaret, Mordecai, Samuel, James W., Stephen N., William and Thomas H. All the sons became farmers and all lived to a good age except Samuel, who passed away in middle life. William for some years was connected with the furnace business at Jackson. Mordecai, in addition to farming, was active in the ministry of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Stephen N. Vaughan, father of Newton A., was born in Bloomfield Township of Jackson County, and for his education attended one of the old-fashioned schools held in a log cabin and conducted on the subscription plan. Nevertheless, he obtained a very substantial education. Reared on a farm, he adopted agriculture as his regular pursuit, and made a brilliant success of it. After leaving the home he bought a tract of land near the old farm of his father and started out as a general crop raiser and stockman. For some years he raised thoroughbred shorthorn cattle, but later specialized in the Polled Durham cattle and the 0. I. C. swine. He made his stock raising business known far and wide by extensive advertisement, and every advertisement which he inserted in local papers or published otherwise contained the following characteristic sentence : "Dinner always ready here, lodging and meals free." He kept his farm equipped with the latest improved machinery and is said to have introduced the first mowing machine and had the first scales in Bloomfield Township. He was a very progressive man and his success in private affairs was matched by the service he rendered the community in raising the standards of stock production. His death occurred July 19, 1901, at the age of seventy-three. Stephen N. Vaughan was married May 25, 1858, to Lucinda D. Perrell, who was born in Pike County, Ohio, where her father, John Perrell, was a pioneer. She died June 14, 1893. Her five children were : Mary R., Margaret C., Newton A., Phoebe Ann and Emma. Newton A. Vaughan, the only son of his parents, grew up on his father's stock farm. After finishing the course in the rural schools he attended a select school in Bloomfield Township, also Professor Morgan's school at Oak Hill and Jackson, and finally took the scientific course in the Ohio Northern University at Ada. While thus liberally educated, he did not adopt a profession, but for a number of years applied all his energies to farming and stock raising on 240 acres of his father's original homestead. In 1902 Mr. Vaughan left the farm and moved to Adelphi in Ross County, where he entered the furniture and undertaking business which he has conducted with growing prosperity to the present time. In 1904 he graduated from the Myers School of Embalming and is equipped both by professional training and with all material facilities for carrying on his business. On September 19, 1898, Mr. Vaughan married Jennie B. Miller. She was born in Vinton County, Ohio. Her grandfather, Thomas Miller, who was born in Pennsylvania January 14, 1809, was three years of 740 - HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY age when his father died, and he then lived with an uncle until he was twelve, and after that with another uncle, Jacob Guy, who owned a flouring mill. Here he came into a new and varied experience, and drove a four-horse team transporting flour to Pittsburg and Allegheny City. In 1845 he came to Ohio, locating in Weatherville Township of Vinton County, where he purchased and occupied a tract of land until 1849, and then bought another tract of 147 acres in the same township. Here he made a specialty of raising a red navy bean, which found a ready market at Gallipolis, and through raising and selling these beans he paid for his extensive land holdings. In 1866 he sold out and moved to Salem Township, in Meigs County, where he owned and occupied eighty acres until his death, on December 25, 1881. Thomas Miller married Elizabeth Smith, who was born in Pennsylvania August 5, 1813, a daughter of Philip Smith, who was a very remarkable character. He fought with the American army in the struggle for independence during the Revolution, but he continued to live on for many years and reached the remarkable age of one hundred and thirteen. He was an expert shingle maker, and his wonderful vitality is indicated by the fact that when he was one hundred and nine years of age he took a contract to rive the shingles for a large barn. In that he set as his stint the riving and stacking of 500 shingles per day, a performance which, considering his age, was probably never equaled. Mrs. Thomas Miller died August 17, 1896. Her nine children who grew up were John, Jacob G., Philip, Elizabeth, Isaac W., Thomas S., Cyrus C., Henderson S. and Catherine. Isaac W. Miller, father of Mrs. Vaughan, was born in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, and for many years followed farming. When quite a young man he took up the profession of auctioneer, and he followed that for years, crying sales in Vinton and adjoining counties. He is now living retired at Wilkesville in Vinton County, where he serves as justice of the peace. He married Sarah A. Booth, a daughter of Hiram and Minerva (Mannering) Booth. Mr. and Mrs. Vaughan are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church at Adelphi. The five children growing up in their home are Ernest S., Miller D., Marcella S., Loren A. and Stanley N. ALBERT B. ALBIN, whose home is in Green Township of Ross County, represents a family that has been identified with Southern Ohio for more than a century. His own career has been successfully spent in farming pursuits, and he is now proprietor of one of the well-cultivated and highly improved farms of Green Township. His birth occurred in Vinton County, Ohio, January 1, 1858. His grandfather, William Albin, was a native of Virginia and of Scotch ancestry. From Virginia he set out with wagons and teams for the Ohio country, and after a few years of residence in Guernsey County, moved to Vinton County, where he bought a tract of wild timbered land and improved a farm, which was his home until his death at the advanced age of ninety-three. William Albin married a Miss Clark, and they reared six sons and six daughters, named James, William, HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY - 741 John, Joseph, Samuel, Benjamin, Delilah, Sarah, Nancy, Barbara, Rachel and Polly. Of this family, John Albin, who was born in Guernsey County, Ohio, was the father of Albert B. Albin. He was reared on a farm and spent most of his early life in Vinton County, but in 1863 moved to Hocking County, where, with his brother William, he bought a carding mill situated on a large tract of land. There they laid out the Town of Laurelville. John Albin continued to operate the carding mill and was a resident there until 1875, when he bought a farm in Green Township of Ross County. Thereafter he followed farming and stock raising for a number of years, but finally returned to Vinton County, where his death occurred at the age of seventy-seven. John Albin married Martha Gaffney, who was born in Muskingum County, Ohio, a daughter of Daniel Gaffney, her mother's maiden name being Reddick. Mrs. John Albin died at the age of eighty years. Her eight children were Samantha, Nancy, Albert, George, Grant, Edward, Linna and Elmer. Albert B. Albin was reared at Laurelville, in Hocking County, where he attended the country schools and where he had practical experience assisting his father in the carding mill and also as a farmer. He worked out by the month as a farm hand, and after his marriage was for seven years a renter. He then located on the farm which he now owns and occupies. This is the Senff homestead, where Mrs. Albin was born. There for a quarter of a century Mr. Albin has carried on diversified agriculture, has reared his family, and has gained a gratifying share of material prosperity and at the same time has made himself a useful member of the community. In 1884 Mr. Albin married Mattie Senff. Her father, Andrew Senff, was born in 1820 on the farm now occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Albin. Her grandfather, Michael Senff, was a native of Pennsylvania and was the grandson of Casper Senff, a native of Germany, who came to America in 1773 and served as a spy in the colonial army during the Revolutionary war. Michael Senff, grandfather of Mrs. Albin, emigrated to Ohio in 1808, and after living for a time in Pickaway County, set up a blacksmith shop at Chillicothe, but eventually bought a farm in Green Township and was occupied with its management until his death in 1845. Michael Senff married Christine Helmer. Both are laid to rest in Whitechurch Cemetery. Mrs. Albin's father succeeded to the ownership of the old homestead in Green Township, and in time erected a commodious frame dwelling house and other necessary farm buildings, and was rated as one of the most successful farmers and stock raisers in Ross County. He invested his surplus capital in other tracts of land until he became owner of upwards of 1,000 acres. He resided in the township until his death, at the age of seventy-three. Mrs. Albin's mother, who died at the age of fifty-three, was Eliza May, who was born in Green Township, a daughter of John and Mary (Ulery) May. Mrs. Albin was one of nine children: Mary, Minerva, Samira, Addison, Loretta, Flora, Monroe, William and Mattie. To the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Albin have been born two children: Vol. II-17 742 - HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY Edna and Carl. Edna married Rudolph Barclay, and their son Donald, the grandson of Mr. and Mrs. Albin, is the fifth successive generation that has lived on the old Scuff homestead. The son Carl married Grace Hinton, and he met his death by accident one week after his marriage, at the age of twenty-three. Mrs. Albin is an active member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. ELIAS N. HINTON. Born in the township of his present residence and near the farm which he now occupies and cultivates, and which his great-grandfather took up in a totally wild and unbroken condition from the Government, Elias N. Hinton bears an unusual relation to the soil in this locality and presents in his history elements of unusual interest. He represents the fourth successive generation of the family in occupancy and tillage of the same tract of land, and the different condition now from what it was when the place came into the possession of the family represents not only the achievement of its successive occupants in cultivating and improving it, but also the general progress of this region since civilization was planted here more than a century ago. His birth occurred in Colerain Township of Ross County, June 1, 1852. His father was John C. Hinton, who was born June 10, 1824, in. Colerain Township and in the log cabin which his grandfather had erected on first coming to Ross County. The grandfather of Elias N. Hinton was also named Elias, and he was born probably in Kentucky. The great-grandfather, the founder of the family in Ross County, was Thomas Hinton, who was probably a native of Maryland, from which state he went to Kentucky and thence to Ohio. In 1807 he entered one lot of land in the east half of section 10, township 10, range 20, now known as Colerain Township. The original patent to this land, issued by the United States Government and signed by Thomas Jefferson, then President of the United States, is now owned by Elias N. Hinton. At that time Ohio was still a young state, and Ross County was largely a wilderness, and the Indians still coveted the unbroken forests as their hunting grounds. Thomas Hinton, after building a log cabin, devoted many years to clearing the land, and resided there until his death. When the family came to Ross County, Grandfather Elias Hinton was only two years of age. He was reared amid pioneer scenes, and later succeeded to the ownership of the old homestead, and added to its improvements and fertility by a life of industrious labor. He lived there until his death at the age of eighty-three. Elias Hinton married Susanna Cox, whose parents had located in Ohio in the very early days. Grandfather Hinton filled the offices of justice of the peace and township trustee, and was a man of splendid character and valuable influence in the life and times of his community. John C. Hinton grew up on this old homestead farm, the ownership of which subsequently passed to one of his brothers. He attended some of the early schools conducted on subscription plan, and after reaching manhood bought a tract of land about two miles south of the old home, and lived there engaged in successful farming, and by the addition of HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY - 743 other lands as his means increased, until he was possessor of a property aggregating 275 acres. On that farm he lived until his death at the age of seventy-eight. He had served ten years as a member of the township board of trustees. John C. Hinton married Hannah Leasure, who was born in Colerain Township, a daughter of Jesse and Mollie Leasure. When she died in March, 1879, ten children survived her, namely : Andrew, Mary, Elias N., Jesse, Lewis, Magdaline, Cyrus, Edward, Willard and George. The first twenty-one years of his life Elias N. Hinton spent on the home farm of his father, in the meantime assisting in its cultivation, and management and also gaining an education in the rural schools. His individual career began as a worker for monthly wages. By strict economy he saved enough of his earnings so as to buy a team and some tools, and then started out as an independent farmer on rented land. For upwards of a quarter of a century he operated largely on land that he rented, but in the meantime he had bought from his uncle the old homestead which his great-grandfather acquired from the Government and where his grandfather had spent his lifetime. When he came into possession of this old home it had among its improvements two very substantial barns, but since then he has erected a modern frame house as a residence, also a tenant house, and has put up a number of other buildings, so as to place this farm among the best in improvements in the township. At the age of twenty-six Mr. Hinton married Hester Ann DeLong, who was born in Colerain Township, a daughter of Jacob and Susan DeLong, early settlers there. Mr. and Mrs. Hinton have reared five children, Effie, Nevin, Estella, Grace and Pearl. Effie, by her marriage to Chauncey Creachbaum, has four children, named Ray, Mabel, Grace and Thelma. Nevin married Grace Leasure. Estella married Charles Dresbach, and their two children are Charlotte and Wayne. Grace, who died in 1914, was first married to Carl Albin, who met his death by accident a week after marriage, and her second marriage was to George Bower. Pearl married Nellie McCabe. Mr. and Mrs. Hinton are active members of the United Brethren Church. He is a citizen of great public spirit, and has served as a member of the township board of trustees, the school board, and as road supervisor. He is affiliated with Adelphi Lodge of the Knights of Pythias. JOHN WESLEY RITTENOUR. It was in the closing years of the eighteenth century that the various members of the Rittenour family and their connections located in Ross County. The early generations had their full share of pioneer experiences and hardships. They were among the true builders of the commonwealth of Ohio. They were thrifty and industrious people, morally upright, kind neighbors, and built their lives into the character of the community. A worthy descendant of such stock, John Wesley Rittenour has spent his entire lifetime in 744 - HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY Ross County and is one of the very prosperous farmer citizens of Green Township, living near the historic old Town of Kingston. The founder of the family in this county was his great-grandfather Anthony Rittenour, who was born and reared in Rockingham County, Virginia. He also lived for some years in Frederick County of that state and for one year in Washington County in Southwestern Pennsylvania. In 1798 he migrated into Northwest Territory. A team drew the wagon out of Pennsylvania and across the hills into the wilderness of Ross County. He was accompanied by his family and on arriving at his destination he entered a tract of Government land in what is now Jefferson Township of Ross County. There he was one of the first to clear the forest and put a plow into the soil. His family occupied a log cabin until he replaced it with a substantial stone house. There he spent his last years and passed away in 1835. Anthony Rittenour married Elizabeth Flusher, who was of German ancestry. They reared six sons and two daughters. Jacob Rittenour, representing the next generation, was born in Frederick County, Virginia, in 1787 and was eleven years of age when he came to Ross County. Thus a part of his youth as well as his manhood were passed within the borders of this county. With a limited education, he had the practical training best fitted to cope with the situation involved in life in a new country. He spent his best years farming in Jefferson Township, where he died. The maiden name of his wife was Anna Claypool. Her name introduces another pioneer family of Ross County. She was born in Randolph County, Virginia. Her father Abraham Claypool was born in Hardy County, Virginia, now West Virginia, on April 2, 1762. Abraham's father James Claypool was born in Virginia December 1, 1730. The latter's father James, Sr., was born in Virginia, February 14, 1701. On October 9, 1753, James Claypool, Jr., married Margaret Dunbar, who was born November 20, 1736, and died March 26, 1813. She reared a family of nine daughters and three sons. Abraham Claypool was reared and educated in his native state and from there came to Northwest Territory in 1799, locating in what is now Liberty Township of Ross County. He bought timbered land and built for a family residence a substantial hewed log house. Abraham Claypool was a man of considerable distinction in the early days. He was a member of the First Constitutional Convention of Ohio and also of the first State Senate. The maiden name of his wife was Elizabeth Wilson. Both spent their last days on the home farm. Jacob Rittenour and wife reared four children named James, Isaac N., George C. and Margaret. Isaac Newton Rittenour, father of John Wesley, was born in Jefferson Township of Ross County. Growing up on a farm, he made the best of his limited opportunities to obtain an education in the pioneer schools. As a youth he made several trips over the mountains to the eastern markets as a livestock drover. His independent career began as a worker on shares of a part of his father's farm. Subsequently he became owner of the land, and resided there until his death in 1851. Isaac N. Rittenour HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY - 745 married Sarah Orr. She was born in Springfield Township, a daughter of Thomas Orr, who was born in Hardy County, Virginia, and a granddaughter of James Orr, who was born in Belfast, Ireland. James Orr came from Ireland about 1770, locating first in South Carolina, but a few years later on account of ill health moved to Virginia and lived near Moorefield in what is now Hardy County, West Virginia, until 1797. He then came to the Northwest Territory and established a home in what is now Liberty Township of Ross County. He thus became the third successive stock from which John Wesley Rittenour is descended of the early pioneers of Ross County. His first home in this county was on High Bank prairie, and later he moved to Dry Run, six miles above the High Bank. James Orr was very liberally educated, was a surveyor by profession and one of the first school teachers in Ross County. His death occurred in 1802. Thomas Orr, the maternal grandfather of John W. Rittenour, accompanied his parents to Ross County and it is said that he and his brother Zebulon did the first plowing in Liberty Township, and he also carried a chain for General Massie when the road from Chillicothe to Gallipolis was surveyed. He owned and operated a farm in Springfield Township, and there his life came to a close in 1854. The maiden name of his second wife was Mary Jones, who was born in New Jersey. After the death of Isaac N. Rittenour his widow married W. W. Crabb of Union Township, and she died at the home of her son John W. Rittenour in her ninety-first year. John Wesley Rittenour was born in Jefferson Township November 7, 1848. As a boy he attended district schools in Springfield and Union townships and prepared for college in the Lebanon Normal School. Entering the Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware, he remained a student there until the illness of his stepfather called him home to superintend the farm. At the time of his marriage he settled on the Brown homestead belonging to his wife in Green Township, lived there eight years, and then bought the farm where he now resides. Mr. Rittenour and family have one of the very attractive and pleasantly situated homes of Ross County. His dwelling is a handsome and commodious brick house, surrounded by a beautiful lawn. The house is one of the old landmarks, having been built in 1842 and on the farm is a much older relic of early days, a barn that was constructed in 1808, and whose solid timbers after more than a century show the quality of pioneer construction. Mr. Rittenour owns 540 acres while his wife has 216 acres. In 1871 he married Mary Alice Brown. Mrs. Rittenour was born in Green Township February 17, 1849. Her father, Isaac Brown, was a native of Virginia and of colonial ancestry. Her grandfather, Timothy Brown, came to Ohio and was one of the early settlers in Green Township. He married Catherine Furguson. The family started in the fall and when only part of the distance had been covered to the destination they stopped for the winter. In the spring they arrived in Ross County, where grandfather secured timbered land in Green Township, and erected the log buildings and other improvements which were the beginning of a farm. The grandfather died there at the age of eighty-five, his 746 - HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY children having been named William, David, Timothy, James, Maria, Amos, J. Wesley, Isaac, Rachel and Amelia. Isaac Brown, father of Mrs. Rittenour, was reared and educated in Green Township, and eventually secured a part of the old homestead. There he erected a brick house and frame barn, and engaged in farming until his death in 1853. The maiden name of his wife was Elizabeth Clingman, who was also a native of Green Township, and who died in 1851, leaving two children, ,Clara, wife of Joseph Rogers, and Mrs. Rittenour. Mrs. Rittenour after her mother's death was cared for by her uncle, Amos Brown, who had succeeded to the ownership of the old homestead. Amos Brown was a man who rendered some very useful service to the people of Ross County in early days. He was a teacher and a man of fine integrity of character. He never married, but cared for his mother in her last years, and willed his estate to his nieces, Mrs. Rittenour and Mrs. Rogers. This estate is still owned by them. Mr. and Mrs. Rittenour have four children, Floyd Isaac, Ora Jeannette, Charles Warren and Lillian Jane. Floyd I. married Marietta Gould, lives at Calexico, California, and has two children named Ruth Jeannette and Robert Gould. The son Charles married Louise Irwin, and lives at Kingston, Ohio, and has a son Charles Warner. Mr. and Mrs. Rittenour and children are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, Mrs. Rittenour and her daughters being members of the Foreign Missionary Society and the Ladies' Aid Society. All the children received part of their education in the Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware. Charles, Ora and Lillian are members of Scioto Grange. Politically Mr. Rittenour is a republican. Mr. Rittenour's farm is known as "Maple Bend." JOHN PYLE. It was eighty years ago when John Pyle was born in Ross County. For his own career and that of his father and grandfather, his name is one that has been identified with the changing scenes and developments of this section of Ohio since pioneer times. Mr. Pyle has himself borne a worthy part during the many years of his lifetime, is a veteran of the Civil war, and by hard work and correct habits of living has long enjoyed the prosperity he deserves. He and his worthy wife are among the oldest couples in Ross County, and now live in comfort in their home in Green Township. Born in Harrison Township October 23, 1836, John Pyle is a son of Harrison Pyle, who was born in Springfield Township of this county a and is a grandson of William Pyle, who was a native of Pennsylvania and when young accompanied his parents into Virginia, where he grew up and married. In the early years of the last century, long before there were railroads or canals in Ohio, and when the pioneers had to break trails through the woods and when both forest and stream abounded in game and fish that were relied upon to supply the tables with meat, William Pyle started from Virginia for this new western country. He made part of the journey by river and the rest by team. Arriving in Harrison Township of Ross County, he secured a tract of Government HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY - 747 land, and there built a cabin in the midst of the woods. Years of toil enabled him to clear up a good farm, and he and his family experienced all the hardships as well as the pleasant features of life in this raw new country. He remained on his farm until his death. His wife was Mary Janes, a native of Virginia. Harrison Pyle, whose earliest recollections were of the primitive conditions that existed in Ross County a century ago, after his marriage moved to Green Township, buying a tract of land just across the line from Harrison Township and in the southeast quarter of Green. There the labor of his hands brought about the erection of a substantial hewed log house. His years were successfully devoted to general farming, and he died on his farm at the age of seventy-three. His first wife was Mary Henry, and she died when young, leaving John and Samuel, the latter dying at the age of fourteen. Mary Henry was the daughter of James and Jane Henry, both natives of Ireland, and early settlers in Harrison Township. James Henry improved a farm on Walnut Creek, and both he and his wife lie side by side in Bethel Churchyard. For his second wife Harrison Pyle married Maria Ortman, and by that union there were four sons and one daughter. Mr. John Pyle spent his early boyhood in Ross County at a time when there were few and limited school advantages. He attended school when opportunity offered, but gained the best discipline for real life by assisting in the work of clearing and cultivating his father's place. When ready to start out for himself he began as a renter, and followed farming in that way for some years. In May, 1864, he left home to enlist in Company D of the One Hundred and Forty-ninth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He served during the closing months of the war, in Virginia, and was with his regiment in faithful performance of his duties as a soldier until the expiration of his time, when he received an honorable discharge and returned home. His first land was in the west half of section 21 of Green Township. That he occupied as a farm until 1901. In 1898 he had bought other land in the east half of the same section, and since 1901 he and his good wife have occupied that as their home. In the meantime a set of substantial frame buildings have been erected, they have planted fruit and shade trees, and they now have a place for enjoyment as well as profit. Mr. and Mrs. Pyle, as their years have advanced, have relieved themselves of the active burdens and responsibilities of farming and now have an abundance for all their needs. On April 15, 1860, Mr. Pyle married Catherine Bower. She was born in Harrison Township of Ross County, October 8, 1835. Her father, Johan Bower, was born in Wuertemberg, Germany, son of George Bower, who spent all his life in the old country. Johan Bower, after his marriage and after having served in the German army five years, came to America in 1832 with his wife and three children, spending seven weeks on the ocean, making the trip in an old-fashioned sailing vessel. The first winter in Ohio was spent in the Village of Chillicothe, and Mr. Bower then went into Harrison Township and bought a tract of 748 - HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY partly improved land. He was a sturdy and successful farmer, developed his home and lived there until his death in 1840. John Bower married Margaret Ann Schott, who was born in Wuertemberg and who survived her husband, attaining the age of eighty-four. After her husband's death she proved her worth outside as well as inside the home, kept her children together, and managed the farm until she saw each of her sons and daughters grown and comfortably established in homes of their own. Her six children were named Jacob, Margaret, Frederick, John, Catherine and Joseph. Mrs. Pyle is one of the interesting pioneer women of Ross County. As a girl she attended district school, and by assisting her mother, learned many of the housewifely accomplishments and arts of the olden times. When she was a girl all cooking was done at the open fireplace, and under her mother's direction she learned the crafts of spinning both flax and wool, and was an expert in spinning wool, and her skill was known far and wide. She did spinning not only for her own family but for many of the neighbors. Mr. and Mrs. Pyle reared five children, Louis, Mary, Elmer, Florence and Fred. Louis married Emma Dent and has a son, William D. Mary is the wife of Thomas Overly, and her four children are, Mabel, Blanche, Clifford and Helen. Elmer, by his marriage to Ida Brown, has three children, Bertha, Lawrence and Charles. Fred married Nellie Hamm. The daughter Florence is living at home and taking care of her parents. FRANCIS N. R. REDFERN. One of the oldest and most prominent families of Southern Ohio is the Redfern, which has been represented in Ross County by Francis N. R. Redfern, for many years one of the leading lawyers of the county, engaged in practice at Adelphi. His ancestral line goes back to Solomon Redfern, who was born in Scotland and came to America in colonial times, settling in North Carolina. He married a Miss Harding, who was also a native of Scotland. Their son, Solomon Redfern, who was born in North Carolina, became a minister of the Methodist Church. Being opposed to the institution of slavery, he left North Carolina and in 1804 moved to the region dedicated to freedom, north of the Ohio River, and was an early settler in Vinton County, Ohio. Here he joined the Ohio Conference and was one of the early circuit riders, having charges in different places. He made his rounds on horseback, and spent his last years near Allenville, in Middle Fork Valley of Vinton County. A son of this pioneer clergyman was Neriah Redfern, grandfather of the Adelphi lawyer. Neriah Redfern also took up the ministry of the Methodist Church. In the years before the war he was detailed by the Ohio Conference to make a tour of investigation relative to the condition of slaves in the South. In order to make his investigation more effective he went in the guise of a clock repairer, and visited many plantations and slave markets. The items of his experience he formulated in a report which was a very cogent document against slavery. For many years he was active in the ministry as a member of the HISTORY OF ROSS COUNTY - 749 Ohio Conference, and spent his last days at Logan, Ohio. Rev. Neriah Redfern married for his first wife Jane Murphy, who was born in Vinton County and died at an early age. For his second wife he married Priscilla Bright, of Logan, Ohio. Emery F. Redfern, a son of Rev. Neriah and wife, was born in Vinton County, Ohio, and when he was three years of age he lost his mother and when eight his father died. He then went to live with Mr. and Mrs. Isaac Dunkle in Vinton County, and while at their home attended school as opportunity offered, and remained in the Dunkel household until he was twenty years of age. In the meantime the Civil war broke upon the country, and he enlisted in Company B of the Ninetieth Ohio Infantry, going to the front and for several years fighting for the flag in some of the most momentous campaigns of the South. He was present at Shiloh, at Murfreesboro, at Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, Lookout Mountain, then participated in the 100 days of continuous fighting between Chickamauga and Atlanta, and after the siege and capture of that city, returned west with the army commanded by General Thomas and fought at the battles of Franklin and Nashville. He was with his regiment until after the close of the war, and with an honorable record as a soldier returned home and took up farming. During the four years of his work in the fields he studied medicine under Doctor Rannels, and then entered the Eclectic Medical College at Cincinnati, where he was graduated M. D. in 1879. Being thus prepared for his professional career, he spent one year in practice in Pike County, then removed to Jackson County, and from there located permanently at South Perry, in Hocking County, where he enjoyed a successful practice until his death in September, 1906. Doctor Redfern married Martha A. Nickell. She was born in Lawrence County, Ohio, a daughter of John and Mary (Larkins) Nickell. Her grandfather, Robert Nickell, was a native of the Shenandoah Valley, Virginia, and moved from there to Ohio, becoming a pioneer in Vinton County, and improving a farm on Logan Road, 2 1/2 miles north of McArthur. He filled the office of justice of the peace several years. John Nickell, father of Mrs. Redfern, acquired a liberal education, and was a teacher and also a farmer. He spent his last years on his farm three miles west of McArthur. He married Mary Larkin, who was born in Carroll County, Ohio, daughter of Washington Larkin. Washington Larkin was the son of a Frenchman named DeLarkin, who had come to America with La Fayette and had served in the Revolutionary war. After the Northwest Territory was opened up, this veteran of the Revolution located at Steubenville, and from there penetrated the wilderness to the Scioto Valley. There he found it very unhealthy, and finally moved to Carroll County, where he spent his last years. Washington Larkin, an only son of his parents, was a farmer in Carroll County. Mrs. Emery F. Redfern died October 8, 1911, having reared four children, named Francis N. R., Isaac W., Mary A. and Lillian M. Francis N. R. Redfern was born on the Logan Road on a farm four miles north of McArthur, in Vinton County. As a boy he attended