BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
Harry S. Adams, auditor of Ross county, is a native of Franklin county, Pa., born March 11, 1801. His parents were John H. and Ann E. (Stover) Adams, both natives of Pennsylvania and still living at Waynesboro in that state. The father has spent his life principally in hotel-keeping at Greencastle, Pa., also dealing considerably in live stock, making a specialty of horses. e has living a family of four sons and five daughters : Maude, the wife of Harvey Ziegler, Adams express agent at Hagerstown, Md. ; Harry S., the subject of this sketch; Ida, widow of Oscar Thompson, at Waynesboro, Pa. ; William G., engaged in the stove and tin business at Waynesboro ; Charles, employed by the Frick company in building ice machinery and living in Waynesboro; Myrtle, now Mrs. Frank Koontz, of Washington, D. C. ; Clara, wife of Lee Deihl, jeweler at. Shippensburg, Pa.; Anna, unmarried; Stover D., engaged with the Frick company. Harry S. Adams, the second born of the children, was educated at the Greencastle (Pa.) high school. March 10, 1870, he came west and located at Tiffin, Ohio, where he remained for three years in the clothing business. Subsequently he took a course in the Cincinnati medical college, and later studied law. He did not, however, enter professional life, and went to Hamilton, where he was in business for several years. The next move was to Chillicothe, where he arrived in April, 1885, and embarked in merchant. tailoring as a cutter. In March, 1895, less than ten years after his arrival, he was elected county auditor and took possession of the office on November 19, 1890. He was re-elected in 1898. November 1, 1901, Mr. Adams purchased the business of the Chillicothe Lumber company from S. and C. E. Bice, a foreign corporation. He carries a full line of building materials. and operates a planing mill in connection therewith, June 27, 1889, Mr. Adams was married to Mattie B., daughter of Elmer H Clark, a native of Maysville, Ky., but a. resident. of Chillicothe from childhood. They have one child, Arline C., of eleven years. Mr. Adams, like all the family of that name, is a stanch Republican, has been quite active in politics, and is popular both as. an official and private citizen. He is equally prominent and active in fraternity circles. In Masonry he has attained the Knight
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Templar degrees and is past principal officer in the various lodges of the order. He is a past-grand in Odd Fellowship, and past exalted ruler of the order of Elks. With his wife and daughter he is a member of the Walnut street Methodist Episcopal church in Chillicothe.
Robert D. Alexander, city clerk of Chillicothe, was born in that city, February 3, 1579. His father, Robert W. S. Alexander, a native of Danville, Ill., born in 1851, was employed in early manhood for seventeen years as a conductor on various railroads in Ohio, Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin. About 1870, he located in Chillicothe and followed railroading for some ten years, after which he engaged in the produce business, to which he has since added groceries. He was married in Chicago to Anna brown, who was born near Milwaukee, Wis., and there grew up to womanhood. They had a family of six children : Ella M., Robert D., Charles Z., Mabel Elizabeth (now dead), Earl Scott and Warner Franklin. All are at home except Charles, who is employed in a wholesale mercantile home at Kansas City. Robert D. Alexander was educated in the public schools of Chillicothe and was graduated from the high school. in the class of 1890. In November of the same year, in company with friends, he made a trip through the west, spending one month in Colorado, thence into New Mexico and Lower California for several months' sojourn, returning by way of San Francisco, British Columbia, and Canada, reaching home iii June, 1897. In October of the following year he began the study of law under the tutorship of Silas F. Garrett, of Chillicothe, which he continued for about two years. In April, 1901, Mr. Alexander was appointed as a Democrat to the office of city clerk of Chillicothe, for a two years' term. He is a member of the Knights of the Ancient Essenic Order, and attends the First Presbyterian church, being a worker in the Sunday-school of the latter: is a young man of excellent habits and popular address, and gives promise of a career of usefulness.
William Andree, pastor of the German Methodist Episcopal church of Chillicothe, is the last of a long line of hard working and zealous ministers that have had charge of this well known house of worship. The church was established in 1840 with a membership of eleven, the first pastor being Rev. J. A. Geiger. For ten years it was a mission, but in 1850, under the ministerial management of Rev. Christian Helwig, the present building was erected at 89 South Mulberry street, since which time the church has been in continuous existence, and at present has a membership of seventy-seven. Mr. Andree was born in Germany. June 10. 1844. He was educated in his native country, and when nineteen years old came with his parents to America. His mother died in the trip over: the father
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located in Canada, and there William Andree prepared himself for the ministry and preached five years. In 1872, he removed to Goshen, Ind., where he remained two years and then entered upon one of those periods of frequent changes and short sojourns which are characteristic of the itinerant system of the Methodist Episcopal church. From Goshen he went to Lansing, Mich., for three years; to Defiance, O., for a similar term; then to ('anal Dover for another three years, succeeded by an equal period at Vermillion. The next appointment in Ohio lasted four years, which was followed by three at Marietta, the same at Akron and Pomeroy and one year at Lawrenceburg, Ind. From the place last mentioned Mr. Andree came in September. 1900, to Chillicothe, where he has since remained. July 4, 1871, he was married in Canada to Miss Elizabeth Mahler, a native of that country, who died April 11, 1891, leaving eight children, seven of whom are living. October 12, 1898, Mr. Andree took a second wife in the person of Mrs. Malinda E. (Unnewehr) Davis, of Batesville, Ind. Herman J. Andree, son by the first marriage, was for six years a student at Buchtel college in Akron, O. In June, 1901, he joined the Baldwin--Zeigler polar expedition, which set out a few days later from one of the Scottish ports in hope of being the first to reach the long sought northern extremity of the earth.
Henry W. Arledge, a well-to-do-farmer and extensive dealer in stock, is one of the self-made men of Ross county, as his success has been due to his own hard work and perseverance. His parents were Isaac and Polly (Morrison) Arledge, both natives of North Carolina, who came to Vinton county, Ohio, in youth. Having acquired a very fair education for those days, Isaac put it to good use by earning a living as teacher for some years. Eventually he settled down to farming and made that the occupation of his life. e died about 1858, his wife's death having occurred in 1844. They reared a family of twelve children, of whom only three are now living. Henry W. Arledge, ninth of the children, was born in Vinton county, December 12, 1832. In early manhood he went to Missouri, but soon returned to Ohio and settled permanently in Ross county in 1853. having no capital he was compelled to support himself by work on the farm at daily or monthly wages. This life of toil continued seven years, but being frugal and temperate he managed to lay by something from his wages and in future years had the satisfaction of owning part of the farm on which he had labored by the day. He accumulated gradually until in course of time he found himself the independent owner of 352 acres of excellent Ross county land. Mr. Arledge has devoted his time largely to the raising of stock, which he feeds and deals in on an extensive scale. Being a shrewd buyer and well posted in all the branches of this business he
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has prosecuted it with profit and is well known in connection with the live stock industry of his county. In 1859, while still struggling to get a start, Mr. Arledge was married to Elizabeth Hoffman, who proved a loving companion and helpmeet during all the days of her life. She became the mother of his twelve children, of whom ten are still living, and died November 30, 1891. In November, 1892, Mr. Arledge married Mrs. Mary P. Scott, a sister of his first wife. The family are attendants of the Methodist Episcopal church, of which Mr. Arledge has been a member for many years.
Jacob Bahr, a civil war veteran and for over a quarter of a century janitor of the Eastern school building in Chillicothe, is a native of Germany but was brought to this country in infancy. His father, John Bahr, came over with his family in 1848, and proceeding immediately to Chillicothe adopted that city as a permanent place of abode. He was a shoemaker by trade and prosecuted his calling continuously until his death, which occurred July 12, 1883. His children, four in number, consisted of three daughters and one son, the latter being Jacob Bahr, the subject of this sketch, who was born in Germany in 1843. After the usual attendance on the city schools he learned the cooper's trade which, however, proved so injurious to his health that he was compelled to seek other means of livelihood. For some years he was engaged in farming and at other times turned his attention to various kinds of occupation as they proved convenient. August. 14, 1862, Mr. Bahr enlisted in Company F, One Hundred and Sixth regiment, Ohio volunteer infantry, with which he served until the close of the war. This was one of the last of the German regiments raised in Ohio. September 4, 1862, it was ordered to Covington, Ky., to aid in repelling the forces of Kirby Smith. After considerable marching and countermarching the regiment was engaged in the unfortunate affair at Hartsville, Tenn., where as the result of bad management. it was compelled to surrender, though no fault was found with the men themselves who fought well. They were detained for several weeks as prisoners of war at Murfreesboro, and then exchanged. Subsequently they did a good deal of work in guarding railroads and chasing guerrillas, which service was attended with considerable danger. Altogether the regiment took part in ten or twelve engagements, and was mustered out of service June 29, 1865, at Nashville. In July, 1876, Mr. Bahr was elected by the city school hoard janitor of the eastern school building, and it is quite a testimonial of his fidelity and efficiency in that position that every year since then he has been reelected. October 2, 1865, he was married to Elizabeth Cook, of Pike county, Ohio, and they have had nine children, six of whom are living. These are, Catherine; Elizabeth, widow of Frederick Winters, who was sergeant major of the Sixth regiment. United States (regular) cavalry; John, a resident of
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Cincinnati: Lena, wife of George Bierle, of Chillicothe; Mary and William. Mr. Bahr is a member of the German church.
Curtis Baker, of Frankfort, Ohio, was born in Clark county, Ky., November 18, 1847. He is the son of A. W. Baker, born in Virginia October 9, 1811, whose father was Jacob Baker, a native of Germany. The latter emigrated to the United States in the early part of the nineteenth century and settled on a farm near Charleston, Va. He married a young German woman, then resident of that locality, and they had five children. A. W. Baker remained at home until the death of his father, when he removed to Kentucky and settled in Clark county. In Irvine, county seat of Estill county, Ky., he learned the tailor's trade, which afterward was his principal occupation for a number of years. He married Lucretia Adams, a native Virginian of German descent, by whom he had ten children. Of these, Ann E., William, Mary, Martha, Susan and Millie are dead. The living are John S., James H, Jackson A. and Curtis. In time, the father bought a farm in Estill county to which he removed and there remained until the civil war. He enlisted in Company C, Fourteenth Kentucky, of which he was elected first lieutenant and later captain. e served two years, took part in several prominent engagements, was captured and held prisoner for a short time, but otherwise escaped without injury. Being discharged at Camp Chase in September, 1865, he returned to Kentucky and took up his residence on the farm. Later, he sold this property and engaged in the mercantile business in Ruckerville, Ky., for several years, after which he removed to Elwood, Ind., where he lives a retired life. His first wife dying in 1867, he was married again in 1868 to Margaret Crow. Curtis Baker remained at home until he reached the age of twenty, when he came to Ohio and worked on a farm by the month for some years. Later he returned to Kentucky, where he learned the blacksmith trade and followed it for three years in that state, subsequently pursuing it for nine years at Bookwalter, Ohio. Afterwards he carried on the mercantile business in that town for fourteen years. Having bought hotel property at Sulphur Lick, he lived there for three years, and then took charge of the Concord hotel at Frankfort, in connection with which he also conducts a bakery and confectionery store. Mr. Baker served one term as postmaster of Ruckerville, Ky., under Grant, and one term under Garfield at Bookwalter, Ohio, and was reappointed by President, McKinley, but resigned after one year. He was elected trustee of Paint township, Fayette county, and filled that office for one term. In 1967, he was married to Samantha Minchall, a native of Ohio, by whom he had five children, of whom William, the second born, is dead. The others are Lucretia Ann, wife of Thomas Griffith, of Madison county; Nora, married to George Haas, Madison county; James A., living in
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Indiana, and Retina, at home. Mr. Baker is a member of the Odd Fellows, Knights of Pythias and the Christian church.
The Ball Family, of Chillicothe: George T. Ball, who for thirty years past has filled a responsible position with the Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern railway company, and its predecessors, during which period he has been an honored resident of Chillicothe, is a son of the late Thomas B. and Lydia Ball, of Blanchester. The name, of Ball has been a familiar one in Virginia from an early period of its colonial history and yields to no other in patriotic performances. It will be remembered that it was a Mary Ball who became the mother of George Washington, the founder as well as the first president of the nation, and the most illustrious man of the eighteenth century if not of all time. From the same branch of the genealogical tree that produced the father of his country descended Thomas Ball, who was born and married in Pennsylvania but subsequently migrated to Warren county, Ohio. After residing in Warren county for some years, he removed to Blanchester, Clinton county, where he spent the remainder of his days and died about the year 1867. His wife survived him twenty-eight years, her death occurring at Wilmington, Ohio, in 1893. Of their six children, three are living, among the number being George T. Ball, who was born at Morrowtown, Warren county, Ohio, October 10, 1848. April 14, 1974, George T. Ball married Miss Fannie Gustin, daughter of James M. and Esther Gustin, of Blanchester, one of its oldest and foremost citizens, and for many years its leading merchant. Official records and State archives of the colonial period bear witness to the military service of Mrs. Ball's paternal ancestors ; being a lineal descendant, in the seventh generation, of John Gustin, of Reading, Mass., who received in 1678 a grant of land at Falmouth (now Portland, Maine, for his military service in the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, during King Philip's war. 1675-6. Her great-grandfather, Benajah Gustin, served from 1779 to 1782, with New Jersey troops, in the Revolutionary war. Her grandfather, John B. Gustin, and her father, each bore arms for the preservation of the Union in the civil war. Her brother, Capt. Joseph H. Gustin, now on the retired list, United States army, graduated at West Point in 1875, saw nineteen years of active service on the western frontier, and participated in military operations against the Sioux, Bannock, and Ute Indians. Her great-great-grandfather, Jeremiah Gustin, was one of Ohio's pioneer settlers from New Jersey, having located in 1797 on eight hundred acres of public land in Hamilton county, now Clearcreek township, Warren county, which tract he subsequently purchased and received a patent therefor from President Madison. A part of this tract still remains in the possession of a descendant hearing the family name. er maternal ancestors, the Wilson family, have contributed a number of
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able clergymen to the presbytery of Ohio, and many have attained more than local eminence as educators in the higher branches of learning. One of these, the Rev. Dr. Robert G. Wilson, was the pastor of the First Presbyterian church at Chillicothe from 1804 until 1825. He was also the founder of the Ohio university at Athens, Ohio, and was its first president. Mr. and Mrs. Ball have two children: Bessie, born February 18, 1879, who is now the wife of Frank Lovell Nelson, of Chicago, and Lieut. William Gustin Ball, Third United States infantry, born April 19, 1875, who, after acquiring his preliminary education in the Chillicothe high school, pursued such special courses of study and training in eastern colleges as would best qualify him for his contemplated profession. On May 12, 1808, he was commissioned by President McKinley as captain and assistant guartermaster, United States volunteers, with which rank he was assigned to duty as a brigade quartermaster, Seventh United States army corps, wherein he served throughout the Spanish-American war and until his honorable discharge December 31, 1898. On October 15, 1900, he was commissioned a second lieutenant of infantry in the regular army of the United States by President McKinley, since which date he has served continuously in the Philippines, both as company commander and as battalion quartermaster, and where, already, his zeal and efficiency have won the commendation of his seniors in rank.
Carl Ballard, one of Ross county's substantial farmers, was born and reared in the county of Franklin, Ohio. His father, Cyrus Ballard, was a native of the same county and there spent the greater part of his life. At the beginning of the civil war he enlisted in Company B of the Fifty-fourth Ohio volunteer infantry, but died in 1812 as the result of disease contracted in the service. After Carl Ballard had obtained such education in Franklin county as was afforded by the common schools, he removed to Greenfield and engaged in business. He remained in this enterprising town of Highland county from 1887 until 1895, at which time he purchased and removed to the farm in Ross county on which he has since, resided. Mr. Ballard retained and conducted his business at Greenfield until November, 1901, when he disposed of the same with a probability of renewing his investments there in another form. He has in contemplation the erection of a modern brick plant and the establishment of an up-to-date packing-house, either of which would make a valuable addition to the business institutions of Greenfield. In 1880, Mr. Ballard was married to Pauline, daughter of Charles Riebel, of Franklin county. The latter came from Germany to the United States in 1850 and located at Columbus, Ohio, where he secured his first work in connection with the building of the state house. Mr. and Mrs. Ballard have the following children: Lewis, Herman, Carl, Fred, Willie,
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Francis, Albert, Bertha and Emeline. Mr. Ballard is a member of the order of Odd Fellows and of the Union Veterans' Union.
Frank Bapst was born in Pike county, Ohio, May 11, 1865. His father, Lewis Bapst, a native of Germany, came to this country when quite young with his parents, who settled on a farm in Pike county, and he remained at home until his marriage to Lizzie Brust, when he bought a place of his own. Here he lived, carrying on general farming, until the time of his death. He left a family of seven children, thus distributed in the order of their births : Mary and William live in Illinois, Lena in Chillicothe, Maggie iii Bainbridge, Frank in Union township, Lucy in Pike and Adam in Ross county. Frank Bapst received the ordinary education in early life and remained at home until his twenty-fifth year. On January 23, 1890, he was married to Mary New, rented a farm and settled down to hard work. The first location was retained for seven years, when Mr. Bapst bought a small place iii Pike county. This he soon after disposed of, returned to Ross county for a two years' residence on a rented farm and from there removed to Chillicothe. After a brief interval, he purchased the place of thirty-one acres where he now resides in Union township. Mr. Enlist has an interesting young family of three children, whose names are Floyd, Edith and Ernest. Politically his affiliations are Republican and his religious connections are with the United Brethren church.
Robert S. Barbee, of Chillicothe, deserves the credit of having made a success in life in the face of circumstances exceedingly adverse. In addition to the poverty which compelled him to do hard manual labor for a living, he met with a severe accident at the very threshold of his career which so disabled him as to make him a cripple for life. Despite this misfortune, however, Mr. Barbee has managed to overcome all obstacles and after efforts in different lines finally reached a substantial position in the financial world. He was born at Byer, Jackson county, Ohio, in 1851, and spent his boyhood there, hut had only limited educational advantages, as he was compelled to go to work at a very early age. When only fourteen years old he began as a section hand and later became a brakeman on the old Marietta & Cincinnati railroad. In August, 1872, while engaged in the always hazardous work of "braking," he met with the accident previously mentioned, which not only put an end to his career as a railroader but threatened for awhile to terminate his usefulness for any purpose. He rallied, however, with the courage and determination of youth, and as the most available means of support at his disposal sent himself to learn telegraphy. After mastering this useful accomplishment he worked as an operator for a year, and then abandoned the "ticker" to enter the general mercantile business in his
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native town. Mr. Barbee continued as a merchant at Byer four years and became interested iii the development of coal and clay lands in Jackson and Vinton counties. After spending several years in this venture, he went to Nebraska and reentered the mercantile field in that state. During the two years of his residence there he formed what is cal led the Nebraska & Ohio Coal company. In the spring of 1892, he returned to Ohio and located at Chillicothe, where he has since been actively engaged in the real estate and loan business, in which he has attained a flattering measure of success. During his career Mr. Barbee has been too busy to pay mulch attention to politics and has never been an aspirant for office, but while residing in Jackson county was elected to and filled the position of assessor for one term. e is now a student in the Ohio college of Osteopathy, at Chillicothe, and expects to make the practice of that profession his future life work. In October, 1879, he was married to Colista A. Curry, a native of Wood county, W. Va., at that time resident in Jackson county. They have an only son, Judson F. The family are communicants of the Christian church and Mr. Barbee is a member of the order of Odd Fellows.
Frederick G. Barmann, of Chillicothe, was born in Scioto township, Ross county, February 22, 1870. His parents were George F. and Elizabeth (Smith) Barmann, the former a native of Ross county, born in and the mother of Dunville, Canada, born in 1844. They live at present in ('lark county, Ohio, where the father is a well-to-do farmer. During the civil war he was a soldier in the Fourteenth Ohio volunteer infantry, and served about two years, contracting a disease for which he is now pensioned. The father of George F. Barmann was a native of Germany, who came to Ross county in his youth, was a farmer and one of the first butchers in Chillicothe, and married Elizabeth Gertheisen. Both lived to old age in Ross county, the former dying in his eighty-eighth year, his wife having preceded him several years. The Smith family, to which Elizabeth Barmann belonged, were British subjects and spent their lives in Canada. Her father met his death in a railway wreck. She was the mother of nine children, five sons and four daughters, all of whom are still living. Harry Barmann is married and employed in mercantile business in South Charleston, Ohio; Walter is at Chilcothe, in business with his brother Frederick ; Floyd is a student at Springfield, O.; Nellie is now Mrs. Edward J. Brown, of Chillicothe ; Stella married Harry Sheets, of South Charleston ; Lida is Mrs. Foster Harrison, of South Omaha, Neb.; Elizabeth and Edna, both single, are at home. Frederick G. Barmann was educated in the public schools of Ross county and in the Chillicothe business college. For about ten years he held the position of bookkeeper for the Marfield milling company, of Chillicothe. In 1899, he embarked
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in the floor, feed and grain business at. No. 386 East Main street. December 7, 1892, he was married to Nellie S., daughter of James and Sarah (Kemper) Henderson, the former a native of Maryland and the. latter of Foster, Ky., where her father was a hotel keeper for forty years. Mrs. Barmann was born at, Foster but reared at Newport, Ky., and St. Bernard, Ohio. She received her education in the schools of .Newport and at St. Bernard's college, near Cincinnati. Mr. and Mrs. Barmann have one daughter, Ruth, born January 14, 1899. Mr. Barmann is a member of the Catholic Order of Foresters and St. Ignatius society. e has been active as a local Democratic politician and served as clerk in his ward.
Howard G. Barton, M. D., of Adelphi, Ohio, may be said to come from a family of teachers, as his father and sisters gained prominence in that. noble profession and he himself contributed six years of his early manhood to the same cause. e is the son of William Barton, a native of Perry county, Ohio, who afterward removed to hocking county and became prominent in educational circles as well as a prosperous agriculturist. Having received a good education at the Ohio university, at. Athens, William Barton devoted twenty-five consecutive years to school teaching and exercised much influence for good by reason of his unwearied efforts in the cause. Meantime he owned and. cultivated a farm with. success and because one of the independent farmers of Washington township. He has been a lifelong Republican in politics and an active figure in Oddfellowship, with which popular fraternity he has long been connected. e married Ruth Ann, daughter of Henry and Rebecca (Brown) none. early settlers of Hocking county, where they spent their lives and ended their days. William and Ruth Barton have a family of four children, of whom Dr. Barton is the eldest. His sister, Anna R. spent seven years at the Ohio university, afterward taught with success in Logan, Ohio, and later became principal of the high school in Spokane. Wash., where she married Robert Porterfield, a prominent attorney of that city. Elizabeth R., the third of the family, graduated at the high school in Athens, taught for many years at Glouster, married David Lloyd and now resides in Columbus, Ohio. Laura, the youngest. of the family, was educated in commercial schools and is now at home. Dr. H. G. Barton was born at the parental home in Hocking county, March 11, 1864. He attended commercial school, took the preparatory course the Ohio university and spent six years as a teacher in the district schools. He then took up the study of medicine under Dr. H. G. Campbell in Logan, Ohio, subsequently entering the Ohio Medical university of Columbus, where he was graduated with the class of 1893. His first venture as a practitioner was at Nelsonville, Ohio, where he remained but one year and then came to Ross county. He selected Adelphi as his location and soon succeeded in establish-
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ing himself there, both as a skillful physician and congenial citizen of the community.. Dr. Barton is quite prominent in fraternal circles and has long been connected influentially with a number of popular societies. e is a charter member and past chancellor of Adelphi lodge, No. 657, Knights of Pythias, and past sachem of Cornplanter tribe, No. 173, Improved Order of Red Men. He is a master of Adelphi lodge, No. 527, F. & A. and also holds membership in Adelphi lodge, No. 114, I. O. O. F. He has always taken much interest in educational matters wherever located and is a member of the school board in his adopted town. In 1885, Dr. Barton was married to Elizabeth, daughter of John and Margaret (Burgoon) Jadwin, of Hocking county, and they have five living children: Williams A., Clinton C., Margaret, Robert and Clara. The family attend the Methodist Episcopal church, of which Dr. Barton is a member.
John A. Bazler, implement dealer at Kingston, though of Ohio parentage, is of German origin one generation removed. His grandfather and name sake was born in Germany, July 24, 1795, and in 1818 settled in Chillicothe, where he pursued his trade as a brickmaker, spending his last years with his son and dying in 1891. His wife was Elizabeth Legg, whom he married after coming to Chillicothe, and their children were John, George, Andrew, Augustus, Thomas, Louisa, Margaret, and Elizabeth. Thomas Bazler was born in Ross county, February 24, 1823, and in early manhood went to Pickaway county, where he engaged in farming and has since followed that occupation. He married Eliza Blaine, who was born in Pickaway county, August 6, 1831, and descended from one of the first settlers of Chillicothe. Her father was Henry Blaine, born in 1808, son of a carpenter who worked on the first public buildings erected in Ross county. Thomas Bazler has held the office of trustee of Darby township in Pickaway county for fourteen years and is a member of Derby lodge, I. O. O. F. He and wife reared a family of ten children, all of whom are living but William. The others in order of birth are : Wilson, John A., Alice, Ellsworth, Augustus, Joseph, Albert, Thomas, and Frank. John A. Bazler was born in Pickaway county, June 23, 1860, grew up and was educated in the place of his nativity. In early manhood he came to Chillicothe, where he remained two rears engaged in the railroad business. From that point he went to Madison county, located at West Jefferson and embarked in the agricultural implement trade to which he gave his attention for six years. His next move was to Dayton, where he secured employment with the Ohio Steel Fence company, which lasted three years. In 1899, Mr. Bazler established headquarters at Kingston, where he has since carried on a growing business in agricultural implements, buggies and wagons. He is a progressive citi-
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zen and always takes an interest in affairs of the community in which he lives, especially matters pertaining to education. While resident in West Jefferson he was a member of the city council and school board, and the latter position he also holds in Kingston. He is a member of the Odd Fellows lodge, No. 412, at West Jefferson, and of the Knights of Pythias lodge at Kingston. December 27, 1882, he was married to Emma, daughter of G. W. and Ellen (Griffin) Smith, all natives of Pickaway county. Mr. and Mrs. Bazler have two sons: Earl, attending the Kingston high school, and Edgar.
Jeremiah Beall, who departed this life many years ago, was at one time quite a familiar figure in the city of Chillicothe. He was born at Hagerstown, Md., January 25, 1796, and when a child had the misfortune to lose both his parents by death. e and two brothers, Joshua and Alexander, were kindly taken care of by Edward Fitzgerald, an uncle on the mother's side, who brought them to Ohio and did what he could to assist them on their way in life. Jeremiah was bright and industrious, and before he reached manhood had mastered the plasterer's trade, which furnished him steady occupation and a comfortable competence. This trade he followed for many years in Chillicothe, where he acquired the reputation of being a reliable workman and was much esteemed as a moral and upright citizen. He was a consistent member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and in all the relations of life as husband, father or friend he was conscientious in the performance of every duty, and when he died, April 17, 1857, he w as followed to the grave by many sincere mourners. January 11, 1831, Jeremiah Beall was married to Emeline Cook. daughter of parents who came to Ohio but a few years after the founding of Chillicothe. Her father was a Jerseyman who settled in Highland county in 1806, there married Hannah Troth and in 1808 located at Chillicothe where he became prominent as a carpenter and contractor. They had six children and Mrs. Beall was one of their two daughters who lived to womanhood. She was a superior woman as wife and mother, affectionate and amiable in disposition, and retained the regard of a host of friends until the day of her death, April 13, 1890. Jeremiah and Emeline Beall had a family of nine children, seven sons and two daughters. Most of these have been called to their last account, including James H., William T., Albert Alexander, Joshua and Henry. The three surviving children are Edward, a resident of Wabash county, Ill. ; Mary, wife of Joseph J. Woods, of Chillicothe, and Laura A. Beall, a teacher in the Chillicothe city schools.
Samuel H. Beath, of Buckskin township, is one of the best known of the younger generation of Ross county farmers, having gained recognition as a skillful stock-raiser and feeder. The founder of the
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Beath family in Ross county came to Ohio in the latter part of the eighteenth century. He left a son named James, who was born in 1810 in Paint township and became a successful farmer. Among his children was a son named Joseph, born in 1832, who settled in Twin township and married Minta, daughter of Robert Watson, an old settler of that part of Ross county. Joseph and Minta Beath had three children: Nettie, wife of Michael Hennigan ; Anna, wife of Albert Warner; and Samuel IL The latter, though a native of Twin, was reared and educated in Buckskin township. As soon as he reached manhood, Mr. Beath entered actively into agricultural pursuits, making a specialty of raising and feeding stock. He fattens cattle and hogs for the market and is regarded by the best judges as an expert in that particular line of business. By the exercise of good judgment and close attention Mr. Beath has been enabled to achieve a creditable measure of success. e pays some attention to polities and is not. without interest in the public affairs of his township, though most of his attention is given to his private business. In 1890, Mr. Beath was married to Nancy, daughter of Aaron Cox, who died in 1890, leaving two children, Jessie and Margaret.
William S. Beath was born in Paint township, Ross county, O., November 28, 1847. He is a grandson of Joseph and Barbara M. Beath, natives of Virginia, who came to Ross county at a very early period of its settlement. They located in Paint township where the father shortly afterward was killed by a tree falling on him, and his wife went to live with her son James. They had five children who grew up to manhood, their names being John, Joseph, James, Catherine and Aaron. Aaron Beath, born in Ross county, went to live with an uncle after his father's death, and remained there until he was fully grown, when he married Elizabeth Snyder, a native of Ross county, and went to farming in Paint township on a place belonging to the parents of his wife. Subsequently he went to live on what is known as the Hester farm, where he remained for several years, and after other changes to different places, removed in 1870 to the state of Kansas, where he died about two years ago. Of his eight children, John, Christina, Julia A., and David are now dead. The living are William S., the subject of this sketch ; Catherine, now the wife of Charles Hayes, of Bloomingburg, O.; Nettie B., who married A. Fortman, of Kansas, and Edgar, of Washington. William S. Beath remained at home until lie was about seventeen years old, meantime obtaining an education at the district school. He then engaged work by the month, continuing this line of labor until his marriage to Catherine Moomaw, which took place on March 1, 1871. Her parents were Virginians who settled in Paint township at an early day and died there. After their marriage the young
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couple went to housekeeping on a rented farm where they lived for twelve years. Mr. Beath then bought fifty-one acres of land, which is his present place of residence, and to this he subsequently added another purchase of ten acres. He has carried on general farming, has prospered as the result of hard work and good management, adding a great many improvements to his place from time to time. Himself and wife are members of the German Baptist church. They have six children, whose names are Maggie A. (wife of Edward L. Summers), Edgar H, Clarence, Maud (wife of Harry Trego), Homer, and Robbins.
Israel Beideman, the well known contractor and representative business man, has been identified with the industrial development of Chillicothe for more than half a century. Nor is it too much to say that by his mechanical labors and the unfailing performance of all the duties of good citizenship he has contributed his full share to the city's growth and prosperity. Ile is of Pennsylvania origin. His grandfather, George Beideman, a farmer of the Keystone state and a participant in the war of 1812, left a son and namesake, a weaver by trade, who married Mary, daughter of Henry Hemsing, who came from Germany and settled as a farmer in Montgomery county, Pa. George and Mary A. Beideman became the parents of four sons and one daughter. The eldest was Israel Beideman, whose birth occurred on his father's farm in Montgomery county, Pa., August S, 1830. When fourteen years of age his parents removed to Philadelphia, where he was educated as he grew to manhood. A circumstance occurring the year after his arrival in the City of Brotherly Love made upon his young mind such a deep and indelible impression that Mr. Beideman has always distinctly remembered it. A bitter religious controversy had grown up over the question of using the Bible in the public schools and the Catholics were accused of hostility to the program favored by the Protestant element. The contest grew so heated that it bred a riot, and Mr. Beideman says that though only fourteen years old he was right in the midst of the row as a representative of the American view of the public school question. During his early manhood Mr. Beideman learned the cabinet-making trade and became very proficient as a. workman, especially in the features calling for greatest skill, such as hand-carving, and finishing rosewood and fine parlor furniture. He worked at his trade in Philadelphia and Boston for several years, and in 1855 came to Chillicothe where he remained two years. In the spring of 1857, he went to Chicago, worked awhile in a mill and then learned the carpenter's trade, in which he became' very efficient. He went to Louisiana in October, 1857, and from there to Louisville and Cincinnati, working as a carpenter most of the time, and finally, in the summer of 1858, getting back to his starting at Chillicothe, where he was destined to
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remain permanently. Since then, be has been one of the industrial features of Chillicothe as cabinet-maker, carpenter and contractor and has had no superior in his special line of work. In January, 1860, Mr. Beideman was married to Julia A. McAdow, a lady whose family history deserves more than a passing notice. Her grandparents, John and Nancy (Johnston) Kirkpatrick, located at the infant village of Chillicothe as early as 1795 and their daughter Polly was the first female white child born in the corporate limits. The second was Margaret A. Kirkpatrick, whose birth occurred August 31, 1801, and by her marriage with Dr. Samuel McAdow she became the mother of Mrs. Julia A. Beideman. For many years Mr. Beideman has been a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and a supporter of all causes that "make for righteousness." He is connected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, including the subordinate lodge and encampment, and is a charter member of Sereno lodge, No. 28, Knights of Pythias, at Chillicothe.
Edgar R. Bell, well known as a teacher and preacher in Scioto township, is one of the esteemed citizens of Ross county, of which he has been long a resident. For generations the Bell family have been living in Virginia, and the majority of them cultivators of the soil, Robert Bell, founder of the Ross county branch of the name, was born in Virginia, January 8, 1812. In early manhood he married Frances Seal and afterward had charge as overseer of a large Virginia plantation. About fifteen years after his marriage he came to Ross county and settled in Liberty township in 1848. Remaining there only a short time, he moved with his family to Scioto township and located near Massieville. At this place his wife died after having become the mother of the following named children : Edgar R., Robert, and Sample ( deceased) ; Mordecai, of Missouri ; John Waller, Amelia, and Elizabeth (deceased). The father was a carpenter and worked regularly at this trade in connection with his farming operations. Several years after the death of his first wife he married Elizabeth Camlin, a native of Ross county, and continued business at the same place. He died February 22, 1888, at the village of Massieville, to which he had removed a few months previously, and his second wife survived him but a few years. Edgar R. Bell, eldest of his parents' children, was born in Caroline county, Va., August. 4, 1834, and came with his father to Ohio when fourteen years old. In youth and early manhood he gained his livelihood by daily labor on farms. May 29, 1859, he was married to Samantha R Ruley, a native of Belmont county, O.. then resident in Ross county. Mr. Bell located in Massieville and for several years after his marriage was engaged in teaching during the winter and working on farms in the summer. About 1870, he became a minister of the gospel, and for fifteen years afterward was actively engaged in this
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calling, but was compelled to abandon the work on account of ill health. After he gave up preaching, Mr. Bell embarked in the mercantile business at Massieville, which he has since continued. Mr. Bell's civil war experience was confined to service with the troops called out for a hundred days during the fourth year of the terrible struggle. May 2, 1864, he enlisted in Company F, One Hundred and Forty-ninth regiment, Ohio volunteer infantry, and was sent with this command to guard a fort at Baltimore, Md. He was assigned to hospital duty for awhile in that city, afterward was sent to Washington and thence on a long march through Virginia. They met with no adventures worth recording and after the return to Washington were sent to Harper's Ferry, passing en route over the then recent battlefield of Monocacy Junction. Mr. Bell was left at Harper's Ferry among the sick and at the termination of his hundred days' enlistment was forwarded to the convalescent camp at Washington, from which place he shortly after was sent back to Camp Dennison, Ohio, and there discharged. As soon as he obtained his release, .Mr. Bell returned home and resumed his occupation as a teacher. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and occasionally preaches to local congregations. Mr. and Mrs. Bell have three children, Brice T., Robert M.. and Sarah I. The first mentioned is a teacher in the public schools at Jeffersonville, Ohio, and Robert is a druggist by profession.
Henry Benner, a well-to-do farmer of the Fruitdale neighborhood in Ross county, comes of a family long identified with the mechanical and agricultural industries of that part of the Scioto valley. He is a son of Joshua and grandson of Christian Benner, both natives of Chester county, Pa. The latter came to Ross county in 1806, when it was still a wilderness, and settled in Paxton township. He was a man of mechanical skill in various lines and proved to be an acquisition of the kind most needed in the new settlement. He established a blacksmith shop, besides saw, grist and woolen mills, these being the first industries of their kind in that portion of Ross county, and located on Paint creek, where his abilities as a mechanic, backed by enterprise and industry, made him a notable and valuable citizen of the infant community. His death occurred in 1841 after a life of great activity and usefulness. After the death of his father, Joshua Benner remained in charge of the family mills which he managed with good judgment. e married Mary Magdalene, daughter of Christian Shockley, and soon after this event removed to Paint township, where he lived until his death, which occurred January 9, 1871. Henry Benner, his third son, was born in 1844 on the old homestead in Paint township. e received his education in the district schools and when a young man of about twenty had the exciting experience of being with the State militia in pursuit of John Mor-
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gan during his raid in Ohio. In 1867, Mr. Benner was married to Sarah, daughter of Griffith Ward, member of an old and well established family of Twin township. Layton W. Benner, the eldest of their three children, and the only son, is a young man of popularity and promise. November 29, 1889, he was married to Florence, daughter of John Milton Dyer, one of the early settlers of Ross county. For three years he held township office and in every way is an exemplary young man, holding membership in the Methodist Episcopal church. Of the two daughters of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Benner, Lizzie May is at home and Marv Maud is the wife of John W. Beath, a resident of Dills Station. Mr. Benner is a member of the Masonic order. The farm on which he lives, besides its agricultural value, is pronounced by competent judges to be rich in mineral deposits. There are evidences of coal and granite in abundance, as well as strong indications of the presence of oil. A recent analysis of the oil, sent to Indianapolis, showed it to be of the finest and purest quality and it is in paying quantities.
John Henry Briscoe Bennett, at. this date one of the oldest business men in Chillicothe, was born in Shepherdstown, Va., October 10th. 1821, his parents being Thomas Swearingen Bennett. and Lurena Evans, daughter of Thomas Beal Evans, of Harper's Ferry. On his. father's side Mr. Bennett traces his ancestry back to Gerrit Van Sweringen, who came to this country from Holland shortly before the middle of the seventeenth century, and became sheriff of New Amstel. After the taking of New Amsterdam by the English he removed to Maryland, being a friend of Lord Calvert. From Maryland many of his descendants removed into Virginia. The father of Mr. Bennett died shortly before the latter was born, and the mother married a second time. In September, 1831, the family left Shepherdstown for the west, traveling in their carriage over the Cumberland, afterward the National road, through Uniontown, Washington and Brownsville to Wheeling, thence via Zanesville and Lancaster to Chillicothe. After a week's visit there they went on through Maysville, Lexington, Louisville and St. Louis, then a town of only 16,000 people, to St. Charles, Mo. The cholera, which had been prevalent along the line of the Chesapeake & Ohio canal when they left Shepherdstown, reached St. Charles in 1832 ; and in 1834 both Mr. Bennett', mother and stepfather died. In that year he went to Meramee Iron Works, as storeboy, Thomas James, a family friend, being interested in the works there. In January, 1836, Mr. Bennett went to Chillicothe, by boat from St. Louis to Maysville, Ky., thence to James's iron works on Rapid Forge, where he remained some time with his brother, Thomas Bennett.. He came to Chillicothe on May 10, 1836, and, the nexts day, entered the drygoods store of William Y. Strong. There his chief occupa-
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tion, instead of being a clerk, as had been expected, was to saw and split wood. In those days a store boy was expected to be up at five, to clean the store, to see that the candlesticks held fresh tallow dips, and to continue at work until the store closed at ten o'clock at night, when he made up a bed for himself, on the counter, with a thin, rag mattress, and went to sleep. Mr. James took Mr. Bennett from the store and sent him to school, to W. B. Franklin, until in 1837, when he went to Buckskin Furnace, in Lawrence county, Ohio, as storekeeper. In 1838 he returned to Chillicothe and entered the store of James P. Campbell, with whom he remained until the age of twenty, when he went to New Orleans, with Thomas W. King, as general clerk in a commission business. The business not proving successful, he returned to Chillicothe, and, in 1845, entered into partnership with Charles B. Crouse, at Circleville, but, owing to various causes, returned to Chillicothe the same year and entered into partnership with his brother Thomas, and with Judge O. T. Reeves, in the dry-goods business. In 1850 he bought out J. & H. McLandburg and went into business by himself, prospering greatly. In the great fire of 1852 his place of business was burned, but he managed to save his entire stock, and within ten days was again established in business. Since then, until 1886, he continued steadily in the dry-good business, long being one of the foremost merchants in the city. At one time he was in partnership with his brother, Thomas S. Bennett, and, again, with Dr. W. A. Clough, under the firm name of Clough & Bennett. For a time, after 1886, he was connected with the Zaleski Iron & Coal Co. e is not now, and for some time has not been, actively engaged in any business. e married, in Chillicothe, Eliza Jane, daughter of Judge James McClintick and Charity Trimble, his wife. Of this marriage four children survive. These are Miss Alice Bennett, now president of the Century club and prominent in musical circles in Chillicothe; Henry Holcomb Bennett, journalist, illustrator, and writer of short stories; John, author of the well-known stories for children, "Master Skylark" and "The Story of Barnaby Lee," and an illustrator, who married Susan, daughter of Augustin T. Smythe, Esq., of Charleston, S. C., in 1902, and Martha Trimble, who, at this time, is head of the English department of Dana Hall, Wellesley, Mass. Mr. Bennett's memory of the early days of the city and county is very clear, and he has rendered valuable assistance to the editor of this history.
Henry W. Biggs, D. D., now living in retirement and enjoying a needed rest after a strenuous life, was the popular pastor of the First Presbyterian church in Chillicothe for twenty-eight years. During his active days he did much valuable work in the cause of religion and conscientiously discharged every duty devolved upon him. From his earliest youth he was trained as a servant of the
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Lord and had the benefit of parental example, as his father was distinguished both as a teacher and preacher of theology. Dr. Biggs was born in Frankfort, Pa., now a suburb of Philadelphia, in 1828, and when four years old was taken by his parents to Cincinnati, which city had been chosen as their place. of residence. The father, Thomas J. Biggs, D. D., was appointed professor in Lane Theological seminary, later elected president of the old Cincinnati college, and after the destruction of the latter by fire became president of the Woodward college, now known as the Woodward high school, in Cincinnati. Henry W. Biggs attended the Cincinnati college during the presidency of his father and was graduated at that institution in the class of 1844. Subsequently he attended the theological seminary at Princeton, N. J., where he obtained his diploma in 1851, and immediately entered upon ministerial work. His first assignment was as home missionary in Boone county, Ind., where he was busily engaged for eighteen months. In 1853 he was called to his first pastorate at Princeton, Ind., where he remained two years and then accepted a call to Morgantown, W. Va., which was his scene of operations until 1864. In that year he came to Chillicothe to accept the pastorate of the First Presbyterian church, which he held until 1892, when failing health compelled him to relinquish active work in the ministry. The fact that Dr. Biggs served the same church continuously for twenty-eight years is sufficient attestation of his efficiency and acceptability to his long line of parishioners, but this is also proved in many other ways. Since coming to Chillicothe in 1864, he has officiated at the marriage of over 1,100 couples, and for over twenty years he was a member of the boards for the examination of teachers both for Ross county and Chillicothe. In recognition of his services and abilities, the Wooster university in 1877 conferred on him the degree of doctor of divinity, and, aside from this official tribute, it is the consensus of opinion among the thousands who have come in contact with him that the late pastor of the First Presbyterian church is one of the worthiest of men. In 1853, Dr. Biggs was married at Cincinnati to Cornelia Poinier, who, through a married life of nearly half a century, has shared with her husband the esteem and good will of thousands.
Jacob G. Bishop, of Huntington township, is a member of a family widely disseminated throughout Kentucky and Ohio, and especially well known in Ross and Pickaway counties. The branches in the states mentioned all sprang from Henry and Catherine (Strawyer) Bishop, pioneer settlers of Ross county in 1805. They brought with them from Berkeley county, W. Va., a numerous family of sons and daughters, who scattered through Kentucky and Ohio and became the progenitors of numerous offspring. In this way the Bishops and blood relations under others names became extensively
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distributed and constituted a strong element among the original settlers of the Ohio valley. Among the children of the couple above mentioned was David Bishop, born in Berkeley county, W. Va., in 1785, and twenty years old when his parents settled in Ross county. In course of time he married Mary M. Long, daughter of a Maryland immigrant by the name of John Long, who had come to Ross county about the time of the advent of the Bishops. David and his spouse went to housekeeping in a one-room log cabin, now owned by G. Reub, but later built a hewed log house which was regarded as extra fine in those days. They reared their family of six children, consisting of Elizabeth, Henry, Nancy, Catherine, Frederick and Jacob G. The latter, who is the only one now living, was born in the aforementioned log cabin in Huntington township, Ross county, September 28, 1828. He remained at the old home until his marriage to Rebecca Wendell, of Noble county, Ohio, which occurred March 22, 1848. He located on the place which he at present occupies, but later became an occupant of the house of his parents in order that he might the better take care of them in their old age. After their deaths, Mr. Bishop purchased a place near Denver, in Huntington township, where he lived for ten years. May 1, 1864, he enlisted in Company F, One Hundred and Forty-ninth regiment Ohio infantry, for the hundred days' service and went with the command to Baltimore, Md., where they did guard duty during the whole term of their enlistment. In 1865, Mr. Bishop returned to the place where he had first embarked in business for himself and this has since been his home. In 1875, he was ordained as a minister of the Methodist Episcopal church at Portsmouth, Ohio, and for a number of years thereafter (lid local preaching. He has been a member of the church for fifty-one years. Mr. and Mrs. Bishop have no children.
Robert Bishop, of Huntington township, is the only surviving member of a large family of brothers and sisters who were the off-shoots of pioneer stock which had ramified extensively throughout Kentucky and the Scioto valley. The parent stem in America was of German origin and resulted from an emigration which took place during the early part of the eighteenth century. One of the descendant, born in Pennsylvania, was Henry Bishop, who married Catherine Strawyer and soon afterward settled in Berkeley county, W. Va. In 1805, they joined the tide then setting in strongly for the west and eventually found an abiding place in Huntington township, Ross county, where they secured land and spent the remainder of their days. The epitaphs on the moss-covered stones in Bishop Hill cemetery record the fact that Catherine lived to the age of ninety-nine and that her husband was ninety-seven years old when he died. Their children, eleven in number, were thus named in order of
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birth: Henry, John, George, Frederick, Jacob, David, Robert, Mary, Nancy, Elizabeth, and Margaret. When the parents came west, several of the children, including George, Margaret and Elizabeth, diverged to the south of the Ohio and sought settlements in Kentucky, where they became the founders of large families. Henry and John went to Pickaway county, but the other children remained with their parents in Ross county. Robert, who was number seven in the household, had reached his seventeenth year when brought to Ohio, his birth having been in Berkeley county, W. Va. March 5, 1788 . He assisted in clearing and cultivating the farm until the period of manhood, when he married Sarah Hill, a native of Maryland, who had been brought to Ross county in childhood by her parents. He located in Huntington township and followed the occupation of farming, occasionally filling minor offices, such as justice of the peace, trustee and member of the school board. He was fairly prosperous in hi business, became the owner of about 275 acres of land and had reached the eighty-seventh year of his age at the time of death. His children, eleven in number, are recorded in order of birth as follows. Catherine, Phoebe, Elizabeth, Dorcas, Mary, Sarah, Martha. John, Henry, Robert, and Jacob. As previously stated, Robert Bishop is the only survivor of this large family. e was born in Huntington township, Ross county, April 29, 1828, and spent both his youth and early manhood at the parental home. In 1865, he was married to Susan C. Bishop, a second cousin, and native of Ross county, with whom he settled on the old home place and there remained during the ten subsequent years. At the expiration of that time, Mr. Bishop purchased the place of 122 acres where he has since resided. The only child is Edward C. Bishop, who married Mollie Ward, of Huntington township, and makes his home with his parents. He holds the position of township clerk and is an extensive breeder of sheep. The family are all members of the Methodist Episcopal church.
Judge George B. Bitzer, a distinguished citizen of Chillicothe and ex-probate judge of Ross county, is one of the most popular officials in the State. e was born at Adelphi, this county, April 15, 1852, being a son of Anthony G. Bitzer, a native of Colerain township, Ross county. Conrad Bitzer, his grandfather, was born at Buffalo Valley, Pa., and was descended from German ancestors. He was one of the sturdy pioneers of Colerain township, and developed a farm in the heart of the forest ; he died at the age of ninety-two years, retaining almost until the very last the remarkable vigor of his youth. Anthony G. Bitzer was the proprietor of the hotel at Adelphi, and also superintended the cultivation of his farm near that. village. He married Catherine Strawser, also a native of Ross county, and a daughter of Henry Strawser, a Pennsylvanian by
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birth, of German descent, who was one of the first settlers of Colerain township, and endured many privations and hardships of the frontier, but lived to the age of eighty-nine years. Anthony G. Bitzer died at the age of seventy-six years. He had eight children, six of whom grew to maturity. The maternal grandmother of George B. Bitzer was of English descent, and one of the most remarkable instances of longevity is found in the history of the family. Of the parents and grandparents of the subject of this sketch their ages at their death, including six persons in all, ranged from seventy-six to ninety-two years.. George B. Bitzer, in common with the other children of the early settlers, did not enjoy the educational facilities now offered the American youth in the excellent public system of today; but he improved the opportunities that came to him, and at the age of fifteen received a certificate as teacher, and taught. For eleven years he was engaged in teaching, attending the Wesleyan university at Delaware during his vacations. In his youth he had cherished a fond hope of entering the legal profession, but by some chance of fortune he began to read medicine, and for eighteen months devoted his efforts to a preparation for entering Jefferson Medical college, Philadelphia. During all this time a strong regret filled his heart, and finally he took his destiny in his own hands and abandoned medicine forever. He entered the office of Van Meter d Throckmorton, Chillicothe, Ohio, and there began a course of study for the law; this effort ended in his admission to the bar in 1879. He at once engaged in the practice of his profession, and in the autumn of 1880 he was elected prosecuting attorney of Ross county on the Republican ticket. This was an early recognition of his ability, and he made a model officer. In 1887, at the age of thirty-five, he was elected probate judge of Ross county, after one of the most hotly contested campaigns in the history of the county. He was elected his own successor in 1890, a testimonial to his merit and just administration heartily appreciated. Judge Bitzer has during his term of office made many admirable reforms and reduced much of the business to a system, all of which has been warmly commended by the bar regardless of party lines. e is still engaged in the practice of the law at Chillicothe Politically, he adheres to the principles of the Republican party, a straight departure from his ancestral example. As a public speaker he has more than a local reputation, and his services as an orator are always in demand upon occasions of national and other celebrations. The judge was married December 15, 1880, to Louisa J. Grimes, a native of Ross county. Of their five children, four are living: Altha M., Edwin S., and George E., the latter of whom died at the age of seven years; Florence C. and Clarkson B. Judge Bitzer and wife have been members of the Methodist Episcopal church from childhood, and are prominently identified with the church in Chillicothe. Of
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marked domestic traits, our worthy subject is devoted to his family, spending all his leisure in their society. He is a lover of standard literature and a wide reader upon many subjects, gathering the best ideas of the advanced thought of the times.
William Bitzer, residing near Hallsville, has been connected with the agricultural development of Ross county during a period embracing all of the great modern inventions relating to' farm work. When he, as a barefooted boy, first commenced to plant corn, there were no sulky plows or machines for drilling, and when later he was putting in his own crops there were no reapers, harvesters, binders and other labor-savers now so common. He has seen all the "ups and downs" of the business and in his quiet, unassuming way has done his share to keep Ross county at the front as one of the great farming regions of the west. Mr. Bitzer comes of honorable lineage on both sides, one of his ancestors having been a Revolutionary veteran and another in the war of 1812. His parents were Jacob and Rosati Barbara (Metzger) Bitzer, both natives of Pennsylvania, who came to Ross county in 1812 and here ended their days, the mother dying at seventy-nine and the father when eighty-six years old. Of their four sons and three daughters, only William is now living. William Bitzer was born iii Green township, Ross county, November 30, 1823, and there he has spent all the supervening years. He obtained but a scant amount of "book learning" from the rather inferior country schools of those days, but he learned to do all sorts of farm work and acquired the habits of industry which remained with him throughout his future life. Since the beginning of his adult years he has always owned a farm and is at present in possession of eighty two and one-half acres in Colerain township. February 14, 1860, he was married to Mary A. Creachbaum, who was born in Harrison township, Ross county, March 5, 1835. She was the daughter of John and Catherine ( Rowe) Creachbaum, who came from Pennsylvania and married after their arrival, having seven children, of whom five are yet living. William Bitzer and his wife have four children, who are thus briefly recorded in order of birth : Leah married Peter Dumm and has two children, Harrison L. and Cleo M.; Flora, wife of Jacob Heffner, has one child dead (Pearl) and one living, Mabel D. ; Mary C. is the wife of C. J. Noble; William R. married Jessie Dumm and has three children, Russell E., Nolan D., and Marie. Mr. Bitzer's grandfather on the mother's side served as a soldier under Washington during the war for American independence and his father bore arms for the government. in 1812.
Charles R. Black is a native of Buckskin township, Ross county, where he was reared and educated. He is a son of John W. Black
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and grandson of Charles Black, the latter an Englishman who settled in Buckskin township as far back as 1812. He became a soldier of the war then prevailing, taking sides with the United States against his former country, and was wounded during one of the battles. After receiving his education in the district schools and at Salem academy, Charles R. Black engaged in farming and the live stock business. He formed a partnership with W. L. Stinson, under the firm name of Stinson & Black, and for years they did an extensive business. In fact, this firm became the heaviest dealers in live stock in the State and finally entered the export. business, shipping directly to Europe. Their operations as buyers extended over a large area and they were the only exporters in their section of the. State. In September, 1901, Mr. Black retired from the firm after fifteen years of active service. Mr. Black never allowed polities to distract his attention from business and has neither sought nor held office. He was too young for military service during the war, but has a distinct recollection of the Morgan raid, being used as a messenger on different occasions during the organization of the militia. In 1S69, Mr. Black was married to Mary A., daughter of Isaac Hyer, an old settler of Ross county.
Daniel W. Black, a famous cattle-breeder and feeder, of Ross county, was born in Buckskin township near Lyndon, being a son of John W. Black, whose family history is elsewhere sketched. He was educated in the district schools and early in life began farming on the old homestead place. His tastes led him toward the live stock business, especially the fancy breeds, and he was destined to achieve a marked success in this line. About six years ago Mr. Black made up his mind that the Herefords were the best all-round cattle on the market, and he determined to devote his attention to their breeding. Since then he has made a specialty of Herefords and the Duroc Jersey swine, bringing both to a perfection that. gives him front. rank among the breeders. Starting in a small way, he now has a herd of about thirty-five purebred Hereford cattle. A sample of their quality as well as value may be gauged from the fact that in 1000, at the Kansas City thoroughbred stock sale, he received $600 for a nine-months old calf. Included in his home herd is the thoroughbred cow, "Armel," a superb animal bought for $700 from the late K. B. Armour, for which Mr. Black has since refused $1,000. At. the great international fat stock show in Chicago in 1901, Mr. Black exhibited a carload of fifteen head of Herefords, fattened by himself, which won the grand championship prize of the world and were pronounced by competent judges and buyers as the best steers ever sold in the Chicago market. Mr. Black has been equally successful as a breeder and feeder of swine. His hogs, like his cattle, are the best, and show the evidences of skillful breeding
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and feeding. In this Mr. Black has no superior anywhere, being an expert in all that relates to his branch of business. In 1889 Mr. Black was married to Laura L., daughter of James Q. Tharp. The family are connected with the Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Black is a member of the American Hereford Breeders' association and also of the Duroc Jersey Breeders' association.
John O. Black, well known in mercantile circles at Kingston, was born in Pickaway county, Ohio, September 8, 1869, son of Joseph and Margaret (Hoffman) Black. His grandfather, Joseph Black, settled in Fairfield county, Ohio, at an early period of the State's history, embarked in the cattle business and became noted as one of the pioneer drovers. Mr. Black's father was a teacher in early life, but afterwards engaged in fanning in Pickaway county, where he located when a young man. The closing days of his life were spent in Kingston and there his death occurred October 12, 1897. His widow resides in Kingston, with her son, J. O. Black. The latter was brought up on the farm, receiving his education at Mount Pleasant academy and the Kingston high school. His first venture in business was as a painter and paper hanger, which occupation he followed ten years. In 1895 he embarked in the mercantile business, which he pursued alone for two years and then formed a partnership with Shannon R. Sibrell. The firm thus constituted continued until 1901, when Arthur Hickle, a farmer of Green township, became the junior member in place of Mr. Sibrell. The firm of Black & Hickle carries the largest stock of general merchandise in Kingston and does a thriving business. Mr. Black has figured conspicuously in local politics on the Republican side and has held various positions of honor and trust. When twenty-four years old he was elected mayor of Kingston and served two terms in that capacity. For three years he held the office of justice of the peace, was a member of the school board, president of the board of health and at present is a city councilman. Mr. Black is quite prominent in Freemasonry, having membership in Scioto lodge, No. 6; Chillicothe chapter, No. 4, Royal Arch ; Council No. 6, of Chillicothe, and Chillicothe commandery, No. 8, Knights Templars. He is also a member of Kingston lodge, No. 419, Knights of Pythias, and Chillicothe lodge, No. 42, of the Order of Elks. October 23, 1900, Mr. Black was married to Nellie S. Crouse, a native of Kingston, and daughter of David and Elizabeth (Leist) Crouse. They have one daughter, Helen C.
James H. Blain, a prosperous farmer of Scioto township and civil war veteran with an excellent record, traces his lineage to one of the earliest settlers of Ross county. This was William Blain, who came from Rockingham county, Va., and settled in Scioto township, when
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there were only one or two log houses in Chillicothe. He assisted in cutting the first road leading from the present county seat to the village of Massieville. Shortly after his arrival in Ross county, William Blain married a daughter of Daniel Chesnut and settled down to the grubbing, chopping, burning and clearing which pre-ceded the rude farming of those days. At the beginning of the war of 1812 he enlisted as a soldier, went off to join his regiment and was never again heard of by friend or family. What became of him and conjectures as to his mode of death were long subjects of conversation around the lonely firesides of his neighbors, but no clue whatever could be obtained and the fate of the old pioneer ever remained one of the unsolved mysteries of the wilderness. After the death of her husband, the widow returned to her father's cabin and there remained until the marriage of John, her only son, to Elizabeth Truitt. The newly married couple took possession of the place settled and cleared by the missing father, and there spent the balance of their long lives. They had six children, of whom William, Eliza, and Samuel are dead, the living being James H, Amelia (wife of John A. Landrum), and Joseph, of Franklin township. James H. Blain, second of the children, was born at Massieville, Ross county, about the year 1841. Though still a youth at the opening of the civil war, he enlisted October 14, 1861., in Company I, Seventy-third regiment, Ohio volunteer infantry. This command was first sent to New Creek, W. Va., and later took part in the following named battles: Bull Pasture Mountain, Cross Keys, Cedar Mountain, Second Bull Run, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg, to say nothing of many intervening minor engagements. Mr. Blain's regiment being sent to General Rosecrans in Tennessee he took part with it in the battles at Raccoon Mountain and Missionary Ridge. The next service was at Knoxville for the relief of General Burnside, after which they returned to Chattanooga. There the regiment re enlisted for the balance of the war, and Mr. Blain obtained a short rest at home on furlough. On his return, the regiment joined Sherman at Chattanooga and began the Atlanta campaign, during which they participated in the battles of Resaca, Dallas, Kenesaw Mountain, Peachtree Creek and the siege of Atlanta. Subsequently Mr. Blain was one of the great army on the "march to the sea," with its continual skirmishing and innumerable incidents of an exciting nature. Then came the arrival at Savannah, the grateful rest in camp, the crossing of the river into South Carolina, the fights at Bentonville and Goldsboro, and lastly the grand review at Washington which closed the mighty struggle. After reaching Ohio by way of Louisville and receiving his discharge, Mr. Blain returned home and resumed work. In October, 1867, he was married to Nancy Burns, a native of North Carolina, and settled on the old homestead cleared by his grandfather, owned by his father, and the place of
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his own birth. There he resided about five years, since which time he has rented and at present. is engaged in the peaceful pursuits of agriculture, cultivating and grazing three hundred twenty-five acres of land. The names of his six children, all of whom are at home or living in Scioto township, are as follows : Charles, William, Harry, James, Mary, and Carrie.
Charles A. Blain, a popular young farmer of Scioto township, is a representative of the fourth generation of his family since its origin in Ross county. The first one arrived in the same year that witnessed Daniel Chesnut's advent into the county and this was at a period when the now populous and prosperous city of Chillicothe could only show two or three log cabins as a guarantee of what it was destined to become. The whole Scioto valley was at that time little better than a howling wilderness, giving little promise of the high order of civilization now prevailing throughout that modern "land of Goshen." The citizen of today who lives in that lovely land, fruitful of every blessing to mankind, filled with cultivated fields, gardens and orchards which recall the "vale of Cashmere," is naturally proud to know that he had an ancestor among those whose early sacrifices made all this possible. The story of the old pioneer, William Blain, and his mysterious fate, also of his son John and his grandson, James H. Blain, are detailed in the sketch of the latter which appears in this volume. By way of repetition it is sufficient to say that John Blain married Eliza Truitt, settled on the old Chestnut farm in Scioto township, reared a family of six children and was gathered to his fathers at a ripe old age. His son, James H., joined the Union army when a boy, marched and fought four years, took part in some of the greatest battles of the civil war, and altogether made a soldier record of unusual credit and brilliance. A year or two after his return from the war, he married Nancy E. Burns, a lady of Southern birth, then resident in Ross county, and by her had six children : Charles, William; Harry, James, Mary, and Carrie. Charles A. Blain, eldest of this family, was born in Scioto township, Ross county, August 23, 1S68. e remained at home until his twenty-fourth year, during which time he obtained his education in the district schools and familiarized himself with all kinds of work on the farm. November 24, 1892, he was married to Blanche Edwards, of Ross county, after which he located on a farm in Scioto township and has since been engaged in the business connected therewith. Mr. and Mrs. Blain have five children : Ira, Ruth, Edith, Euphemia, and Howard. The parents are members of the Methodist Episcopal church.
Valentine Blankenship, chief engineer of the Chillicothe city water works, is a native of Scioto county, born on May 10, 1850. He
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is the only son of John and Sarah (White) Blankenship, the former a native of Virginia and the latter of Maryland. His father was an iron worker during most of the productive years of his life. He enlisted early in the civil war as a Union soldier in the Thirteenth Missouri regiment and was killed in the battle of Shiloh on April 6, 1862, at the age of about forty years. e was buried on the ground of that sanguinary battle, where his dust remains, with that of many others on either side, to swell the list of unknown and unrecorded dead. His widow survives, at the age of seventy-six years, and is a cherished member of the family of her son Valentine. The latter, deprived of a father's assistance at so tender an age, was compelled to face the world and its hardships when still a mere child. After picking up a slender education in the schools of Scioto county, he became an apprentice. under competent instructors to the trade of an engineer at the iron works at Bloom furnace. At the close of the civil war, when only sixteen years old, he went south and took charge, of the Brownsport & Cumberland iron works, where he remained for over two years. In 1869, he came to Chillicothe and was employed for fourteen years as a locomotive engineer on the Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern railway. After the building of the Chillicothe water works, Mr. Blankenship was selected in 1882 as the chief engineer, and he has continued in that position without intermission up to the present time. In 1877, he was married to Mary H., daughter of R. J. and Margaret (Ryan) Gardiner, of Chillicothe, where she was born, bred and educated. The same family physician who attended her mother when she was born, has been the attendant upon Mrs. Blankenship at the birth of all her own children. The latter are five in number, to-wit: Ada G., Clara May, Olive Jean. Walter D., and Marie, all still at home, the first two mentioned being graduates of the Chillicothe high school. Mr. Blankenship is a member of the Masonic fraternity, of the Odd Feb lows, Knights of the Essenic Order, Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, and the National Association of Steam Engineers. His political affiliations are Republican. He has been a member of the city council and of the election board.
Samuel T. Boggess, D. D. S., long and favorably known as a practitioner of dentistry at Greenfield, Ohio, is a native of Virginia. In 1858 he came from that state to Ohio, where he spent fourteen years in a dental office as preliminary to more elaborate preparations for the profession of dental surgery. In 1872, he matriculated at the Philadelphia Dental college, from which he obtained the degree of D. D. S. in the spring of 1873. Immediately thereafter he located at Jackson, Ohio, where he spent fourteen years in the practice of his profession. In 1887, he removed to Greenfield where he continued his professional work and thereby achieved both
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prominence and prosperity. Dr. Boggess is popular personally as well as in the line of duty and is thoroughly informed in the niceties and intricacies of his useful calling. In 1869, he was married at Athens, Ohio, to Eliza, daughter of Rev. H. J. Carr, deceased. They have a bright and interesting family of four children. Minnie, the eldest, is the wife of Dr. E. J. Martin. Dr. John S. Boggess, at present assistant surgeon in the Marine hospital at Philadelphia, is an accomplished and highly educated gentleman. e holds a diploma with the degree of A. M. from the Ohio State university and was graduated as M. D. at the Miami Medical college. Charles Boggess, D. D. S., received his literary education at Portsmouth, Ohio, and in 1897, was graduated as D. D. S. at the Ohio College of Dental Surgery. Since his graduation he has been associated with his father in the practice at Greenfield. Miss Martha Boggess, the youngest of the children, is at home with her parents.
Charles E. Bowdle was born in Union township, Ross county, October 31, 1859, son of William F. and grandson of Edward Bowdle, both natives of Ross county, the former born in 1830, and the latter in 1804. The great-grandfather was Wesley Bowdle, a Virginian who came to Ross county in the latter part of the eighteenth century, when the first pioneer settlements were being made. William F. Bowdle has been a farmer in Union township all his life. After he had received his schooling and grown up to man's estate, he married Jane Elliott, by whom he had seven children. The oldest. of these is Charles E., the subject. of this sketch; the second was Ida, who became Mrs. Charles Bay ; Nancy, the third child, married George Garrison, but is now dead ; fourth in order of birth was Carrie, who has passed to her rest; next comes Effie, now Mrs. Noble Garrison, and after her, Flora, the wife of M. Garrison; Grace, the youngest, is still at home. Charles E. Bowdle remained at home attending school and helping his father on the farm until he was about twenty-five years old. He then made up his mind to marry and selected as a wife Miss Clara Beard, one of the neighboring girls, to whom he was united on November 18, 1891. After his marriage, Mr. Bowdle lived for a year on a rented place in Union township. At the expiration of that time, he purchased and moved to the farm where he now resides. In addition to carrying on regular farming, Mr. Bowdle runs a threshing machine, a saw mill and a grist mill, among all of which he is a very busy man. Mr. and Mrs. Bowdle are members of the Methodist Episcopal church. They have three children, Forest, Orrin, and Bernice, the first two at school and the third still of tender years.
The Bowers Family, of Ross county, dates back to a period almost as early as the first settlement of that section. The founder was
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Adam Bowers, a native of Pennsylvania, who emigrated to the western wilderness near the beginning of the nineteenth century. A fine sample he was of the class of men who were then hewing a path to civilization through the trackless solitudes of the Ohio valley. Strong of build, resolute of character, and equal to the most exacting labor, Adam Bowers soon proved his right to rank with the sturdiest of the pioneers. e selected the then struggling village of Chillicothe as the location for his cabin and commenced the struggle for existence with the hopeful courage characteristic of the time. Mechanics were scarce in the new settlements and a skilled work-man was at a premium. Being a millwright and carpenter, Adam Bowers was a welcome addition to the infant colony and managed to make himself useful in many ways. He assisted in building the first grist mill in Chillicothe and also the old block-house which was erected for protection against the Indians. The tradition in the family is that Adam Bowers came to the county a single man and married after his arrival there. However this may be it is known that his death took place in 1840 and that of his wife in 1846. They were the parents of five children, Frederick, Margaret, Adam, James, and a daughter whose name has not been preserved in the family records. It is known, however, that she married George Rush ; that he afterward settled in central Indiana and that. the city of Rushville is supposed to have been named after him. Others, however, contend that Rushville and Rush county, Ind., were both named in honor of Dr. Benjamin Rush, the famous physician and scientist. of Philadelphia. James Bowers, who is next to be considered, was born in Franklin township, Ross county, on August 8, 1825. After reaching man's estate he adopted farming as an occupation and followed it. throughout his life, which was spent entirely within the bounds of his native township. There also he found his wife in the person of Elizabeth Pry, by whom he had the following named children : Frederick B., George, William H., Margaret, and Viola. The two daughters died in childhood, the mother survived until February 5, 1892, and the father passed away on September 30, 1895. Frederick B., the eldest of the sons, was born January 17, 1851, in the township of Franklin. He was educated in the district schools and has spent his life mainly as a farmer and fruit-grower. He has never been a seeker after office but has filled several township positions at the request of the voters. February 9, 1896, he was married to Julia A., daughter of David H. and Mary (Smith) Sheets. Her grandparents (Sheets) migrated from Pennsylvania at an early day and became part of the vanguard who were engaged in settling Ross county. Mr. and Mrs. Bowers have one child, Ruth E., who was born May 11, 1897. George Bowers, second of his parents' children and brother of Frederick B., was born September 25, 1853. He attended the district schools and
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after reaching age adopted the occupation of farming, like the rest of his family. He has never been married. William H. Bowers, another brother, was born June 17, 1856, on the old homestead place. Since reaching manhood he has followed farming as his vocation and has never married.
The Briggs Family :--Those who bear this name may take pride in the fact that they had representatives in the very vanguard which introduced the Scioto valley to modern civilization. As early as 1798, the year in which Ross county was officially organized as a body politic, Samuel and Joseph Briggs located in its confines and became the founders of families which produced some of the most substantial of the county's later citizenship. Joseph Briggs, the younger of these. brothers, reared a family of two boys and several daughters. One of the boys, who was named Charles, was born near Austin, Concord township, in 1806. He went through the vicissitudes connected with the life of a farmer's boy in those days, including irregular attendance at the "old log school house," doing chores in winter and working on the farm in summer, and thus grew to manhood. Naturally drifting into the occupation of his father, he became a farmer and followed that noble but exacting calling all the days of his adult life. Charles Briggs married Catherine Mallow, one of the neighboring Ross county girls, and by her had twelve children, the second born of whom was given the name of Allison. Allison Briggs' early experiences were much like those of his father, as he grew up on the old home place near Austin, and in due time he also followed in the paternal footsteps in the matter of choosing an occupation for life. He became a farmer and adhered closely to that pursuit as long as his life lasted. When he began to think of matrimony his choice of a helpmeet fell upon Jane Snyder, daughter of William and Malinda Snyder, of Fayette county, and to this lady in time he was duly united. She died in 1860, after bearing him three boys, two of whom, William and Dudley F., are living, and honored citizens of their native county. For his second wife, Allison Briggs selected nary, daughter of Anderson DeWitt, of Fayette county, by whom he left three children at the time of his death in 1890. Dudley F. Briggs, youngest of the children by the first marriage, was born March 31, 1860, while his parents were living for a short time in Fayette county. He was taken to his grandparents in Ross county, by whom he was reared, educated, and tenderly eared for until grown to manhood. In due time he adopted the ancestral occupation, became a tiller of the soil and has devoted the principal part of his life to agricultural pursuits. Of late years Mr. Brings has added stock-shipping to the regular routine of farm work and has done considerable business in that line. October 26, 1881, he was married to Eva, daughter of Abraham Rowe, an old
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settler of Ross county. They have four children : Donnie, wife of Lee Putman ; Emma, Jesse and Farrell.
Valentine Brockmeyer, the efficient chief of the Chillicothe fire department, was born in Chillicothe, Ohio, March 15, 1858. His parents were Theodore and Antonia Brookmeyer, both of whom were natives of Germany and emigrated to America in 1642, and located in Chillicothe, where they spent the remainder of their lives, the former dying in 1882 and the latter in 1889. Val. Brookmeyer spent his early youth in assisting his father and attending the city schools. After arriving at maturity he was engaged in various pursuits until the 22d of June, 1881, when he entered the city fire department, and with the exception of two years' experience as a coal dealer he has continuously served in the various capacities of the fire department from a driver to chief. On October 13, 1881, he was united in marriage with Miss Julia. Pickens, the estimable daughter of Samuel and Susan Pickens, old and respected residents of Chillicothe, where she was born December 22, 1866, and reared and educated. Chief Brockmeyer is a member of the order of Red Men, and in politics is a Democrat and usually takes an active interest in his party's welfare. As chief of the Chillicothe fire department he has proven to be an exceptional officer. Under his careful supervision the department is in excellent shape and the pride of the city. Its plans and up-to-date methods are being patterned after by other cities. The department is equipped with the latest improved apparatus, and Chief Brookmeyer has demonstrated by his long and faithful service that he can properly handle it. As a means for keeping in touch with the best thought of the day on fire fighting, as well as to secure the personal views of his co-laborers in other cities, he is an active member of the International Association of Fire Engineers, and attends its annual meetings. He is one of the representative, self-made men of the city, and has by strict attention to his duties gained the confidence and respect of a host of friends.
Charles W. Brodess was born in Huntington township, Ross county, April 24, 1826. He is the son of John Brodess, a native of Maryland, who came to Ross county about the year 1805. He had learned the shoemaker's trade before coming west, and after locating in Ohio he made this the business of his life. His wife was Mary Williams, also of Maryland, and they had the unusually large family of twelve children. Of these, Nancy and Charles W. are the only ones living, while the list of the dead includes Josiah, Wesley, Garrison, William, Linda, John, Nelson, Henry, Margaret and Thomas. The father removed from his first location to Huntington township and subsequently to Twin township. where he died in 1847, his wife
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surviving him for many years. Their son, Charles W., was educated in the district schools and remained at home until after the death of both of his parents. In the meantime, his occupation was working by the month on a farm. In 1861, he was married to Liza Jane Pierce and settled down to farming on a rented place. A child named John, who afterward died, was the only fruit of the union and the mother's death occurred in 1863. Mr. Brodess made a second matrimonial union, with Hester Kellough, to whom he was married in 1865. Shortly after this event, removal was made to the farm where Mr. Brodess now resides, consisting of nearly five hundred acres of land. His second wife died in 1900, without issue, leaving him this fine property, and in March, 1901, he took his third wife in the person of Eva Depoy. The business of Mr. Brodess throughout life has been that of farming and stock-raising, in which he has achieved an enviable success. His political affiliations are Republican and he held the office of township trustee for three or four terms.
Brown Brothers, dealers in groceries, hardware and agricultural implements at Gillespieville, Ohio, is a firm composed of Perry D. and Thomas W. Brown. They are the sons of William and Charity (Graves) Brown, Loth natives of Vinton county, Ohio. William Brown's parents were George and Achsah (Dixon) Brown, the former of New York and the latter of Jackson county, O. On the mother's side the Browns are descended from the Darbys, who were connected with the Revolutionary war. William Brown was born in Vinton county and educated in the common schools. For fifteen years he followed the profession of teaching, afterward became a farmer and merchant at Eagle Mills, but now resides in Ross county. William Brown and wife had a family of five sons. Of these, Thurman G. is a clerk for Brown Bros. at Gillespieville. December 25, 1888, he was married to Alta May Arganbright, daughter of Phillip and Sarah Arganbright, of Vinton county, Ohio. Perry D., senior member of this firm, was married in June, 1900, to Ella Reed, of Kingston, Ohio. Thomas W., junior member of the firm, was born June 11, 1864, taught school for nine years, and engaged in his present business in April, 1890. In the same year he was married to Clara Robbins of Jackson county, O. Of the other sons of William Brown, Seldon died when four years old, and Stephen D. is a clerk in the establishment, of Brown Bros. Thomas W. Brown is the present postmaster of Gillespieville. The family stand well in the business world and the success they have achieved has been due entirely to their own efforts.
Charles M. C. Brown, civil war veteran, farmer and meat merchant at Clarksburg, was one of the respected citizens of Deerfield
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township during his lifetime. His father, William Brown, was a Virginian who, on account of parental objection, eloped with the lady of his choice and after marriage settled in another part of the State. The family records are somewhat confused as to the "party of the second part" in this romantic adventure, her name being given both as Eliza Mortimer and Chairberry. However this may be, the couple soon after marriage came to Ohio and settled near Goodhope in Fayette county, where the wife died in a few years. Shortly after this bereavement, the husband went to Frankfort and engaged the merchant tailoring business. At this place he married a Miss Klein, of Ross county, and in 1S55 removed to the west, where he died about a year after reaching his destination. His widow returned to Frankfort, where she still makes her home. By his first marriage, William Brown had three sons, Francis, Marion and Charles M. C. The latter, who was the oldest of the children, was born in Virginia, September 27, 1S33, remained at home until about sixteen years old and then began work by the month on neighboring farms. He also learned the tailoring trade in his father's shop and worked at this during the winter months when there was nothing doing on the farms. September 20, 1S55, he was married to Margaret J. Houser and located on a farm between Clarksburg and Frankfort, but during the next six years several changes of residence were made to different parts of the township, until finally they settled down in Frankfort. About this time the civil war had opened and Mr. Brown enlisted in Company A, Eighteenth regiment, Ohio infantry, as a private. and served two years, but owing to sickness was compelled to spend most of the time in hospitals. Feeble health at last necessitated his discharge from the army and he returned to Clarksburg, where his wife was living. His time for several years afterward was spent in farming, in connection with which he later opened a meat market at Clarksburg. This he conducted for a few years at that point, but finally went to Frankfort, where he had a contract to furnish meat for the construction gang engaged in building the Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton railroad. He died in March, 1877, while carrying out this contract, and since that time his wife, Mrs. Margaret J. Brown, has made her home in Clarksburg. Mr. Brown held membership in the Masonic and Odd Fellows lodges at Frankfort and belonged to the Methodist Episcopal church.
John A. Brown is the most conspicuous living representative of a family which for many years and in various ways were influentially connected with affairs in Ross county. George Brown, the original founder, came from Pennsylvania and settled in Paint township as far back as 1797. He was a soldier in the war of 1812 and as a reward for his services received from the government a title to the
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100 acres of land which he occupied. This document, faded with age, is now in the possession of his grandson, John A. Brown, and it is needless to say that it is highly prized. On this farm William, son of George Brown, was born in 1802, and there he grew up to manhood amid the rustic surroundings of a pioneer home. In 1825 he built the first saw-mill seen in that wild region, and although it would not be much valued now it was then a very important improvement. It was one of the old fashioned affairs common in those days farther east, and popularly known as "up and down saws." Notwithstanding its crudeness, William Brown did excellent and much needed work with his old time sawmill. Besides the great amount of lumber turned off by his slow but sure perpendicular blade, a grist mill adjoining was a godsend to the neighbors far and near as a producer of corn meal and the indispensable hominy. As late as 1871, this industrious and hard-working citizen still retained charge of his mills and served all comers, and some years before that date he had introduced the modern circular saw. During the civil war William Brown was noted for his arduous and patriotic efforts in behalf of the Union cause. e gave all he had, and borrowed some, for the purpose of supplying soldiers' families with provisions and other necessities. He served on the board of township trustees for many years and was a consistent member of the Presbyterian church. When William Brown went to his final rest on March 9, 1885, his death was generally and sincerely mourned, as all knew the community had lost a useful and upright citizen. In his youth he married Martha Writenhouse, by whom he had seven children, three daughters and four sons, three of whom were soldiers of the Union. His second marriage was to Mary Edmiston, whose parents were early settlers of Ross county, her mother being born on the present site of Chillicothe. John A. Brown is a son of the sturdy old pioneer and patriot sketched above, and he was born in 1850 on the site of his present home, at the very spot where his father had first seen the light of day some forty-eight years before. Thus the homestead originally gained by the grandfather for services to the Union, transmitted to his son William and inherited from the latter by his grandson, John A., has been in the family for three distinct generations. In 1871 John A. Brown was married to Cordelia Ann, daughter of Robert Watson, a native of Pennsylvania. They have eight children, the oldest of whom, Mary Alma, is the wife of H. H. Davis of Canton, Ohio. The others in order of birth are Jennie Belle, Jessie Florence, Roy Alexander, Willie Hays, John Benjamin, Olive May and Margerie Lucile. In 1872, Mr. Brown purchased a steam power mill with all the modern improvements. With the exception of a few years spent in Kansas, Mr. Brown has been continuously engaged in the lumber business for nearly thirty years. e has also operated steam threshers
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for twenty-three years and in busy seasons sometimes has three of these machines running at the same time. Mr. Brown is in no sense a politician, but has served on the board of trustees of Paint township for over twenty years. He is connected with the order of Odd Fellows and since 1804 has been a member of the Presbyterian church.
William J. Brown is a native of Flemingsburg, Ky., born March 5, 11847. e was the son of Thompson Brown, a native of Ireland, who came to the United States when twenty-two years old and settled in Kentucky ; was a merchant tailor by occupation and also conducted a general store, this business constituting his life work. In 1844, Thompson Brown married Elizabeth Crain, a native of Kentucky, with whom he lived happily until his death in 1854. They had four children : Thompson, who lives at Owingsville, Ky. ; Mary F., married to Jacob Trumbo, of Mt. Sterling, Ky. ; James, whose residence is not known, and William J., the subject of this sketch. The latter was seven years old when his father died, after which time he made his home chiefly with his grandfather. He went to school in his native state and was thirty-seven years old when he came to Ross county, where he rented a farm and went to work. April 2, 1884, he was married to Rilla Pancake, after which he lived on the rented farm for several years, and seven years ago came to the place where he now resides. They have had seven children: Samuel T., Forest D., Marie (dead), Willard H., Zoa, John, and Jane. The only break in Mr. Brown's occupation of farming were the few months in each year during which he drove mules across the mountains from Kentucky to North Carolina. In 1890, he was elected trustee of Twin township and has held that office ever since to the entire satisfaction of his constituents. The township is naturally Republican in polities, but r. Brown succeeded in carving it, though a staunch Democrat. This was a well deserved tribute to his popularity, as he is a very popular man and an excellent citizen in all respects. Mrs. Brown, who is a descend-ant of one of the old families of Ross county, is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and interested in all good work. Mr. Brown holds membership in the Masonic lodge, No. 106, at Bainbridge, and the Paint Valley lodge, No. 808, I. O. O. F., at Bourneville.
The Bush Family.--The first of this name who located in Ross county was John Bush, a native of Virginia, who married Mary Wise and with her migrated to Ohio. e purchased land from the government in Concord township near Austin, on which he constructed a one-room log cabin and therein set up housekeeping in true pioneer style. Amid these homely surroundings were born
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nine children, all of whom have long since passed away, but whose names are thus preserved in the family records : Solomon, Elizabeth, Mary, Jacob, Jesse, William, John, Lavina and Julia. Shortly after his arrival John Bush erected at Austin the first grist: mill ever seen in the confines of Concord township. To the operation of this pioneer establishment he devoted all his time for several years, but later embarked in farming and continued that occupation during the remainder of his life. After the death of his first wife he married a Miss Schofield, by whom he had two children, Martha and Ada J., both now dead. The mother dying shortly after the death of the last child, John Bush made his third matrimonial union with Mrs. Elizabeth Ross. He never moved from the place where he first settled and died there at the age of ninety-five years, his last wife surviving him for some time. His daughter Martha married Dr. Galbraith, and Jacob, his son, was married to Eve Mallow July 1, 1830. The last mentioned couple had ten children : Amanda, deceased ; Rebecca, wife of Strawder James; Martha wife of Nelson Young; Sarah A., deceased; Allen, of Nebraska ; Mary, wife of T. N. Peterson; Lavina, married Jonas Peterson ; John, deceased ; Irena, married to John Foster; Jacob, deceased. The father was a farmer, member of the United Brethren church and died in 1871, his wife surviving until 1882.
John D. Butler was born in Union township, Ross county, on April 20, 1845. His parents were John and Ruth (Dillingham) Butler, the former of whom was born in Essex county, N. Y., on October 30, 1810. John Butler received a common school education in his native county, remained at home until his marriage and then removed to Ross county, where he bought 82 1/2 acres of land in Union township. He had nine children, of whom George H., Mary F., Benjamin F., Sarah A. and Debby, who married Joseph Brown, of Kingston, are dead. Eliza is the wife of John Evans, of Chillicothe ; Belle C. is the wife of John C. Templin, of Concord township ; and William lives in Union township. The father carried on the business of general farming and stock-raising. He was a Republican in politics, a Methodist in religion and a good citizen in all respects. He and his devoted wife have long since passed away. John D. Butler, who was the fourth child, remained at home until the beginning of the civil war, when, on May 1, 1864, he enlisted in Company E, One hundred Forty-ninth Ohio regiment. This command was first sent to Camp Chase, from there to Baltimore and thence to Chesapeake bay, where they did guard duty. Returning to Baltimore, the regiment was subsequently sent to Frederick City and from that point on through Virginia. Soon afterward they were mustered out at Camp Chase, Ohio, when Mr. Butler returned home and worked by the month for some time.
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December 26, 1871, he was married to Heressa Worley, a native of Fulton county, Ill. After his marriage Mr. Butler rented a farm on which he lived for nine years, when he became heir to 105 acres of land through an uncle. He has followed general farming and stock-raising ever since he settled down, making numerous improvements on his place. e is a Republican in politics, belongs to the Methodist Episcopal church and is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic post. at Frankfort. Mr. and Mrs. Butler had seven children, of whom six are living: Harry, Charles, Arthur, Mary, Chauncey and Laura. Ellena is dead, and all the other children are at home except Charles and Arthur.
William E. Butler was born in Union township, Ross county, May 9, 1855. His father, John Butler, was born in Vermont October 30, 1810, and remained at home until twenty years of age, when, in order to be allowed to leave home before arriving at full age, he paid his father for a year's time and departed for the state of New York, where be worked on a farm at six dollars per month. This he kept up for eight years and on December 16, 1838, he was married to Ruth Dilligham, a native of New York state. About the same time he bought a farm which, however, he soon sold and removed to Ross county, Ohio, where he settled in Union township. There he purchased 82 1/2, acres of land, which was without improvements except the log-house in which he made his residence. By degrees he considerably improved his home place. He was a Republican in politics and a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. e lost his wife by death in 1890 and his own demise followed in 1892. Their family consisted of nine children, of whom Debby, George, Mary F., Benjamin F. and Sarah A. are deceased. The others are Eliza J., who is married to John Evans, of Chillicothe ; John D., of Union township ; Belle C., wife of John C. Templin, of Concord township, and William E. The latter, who is the subject of this sketch, received the usual common school education and remained under the parental roof until he reached twenty-one. After that he worked out for about seven years, and on March 5, 1882, he was married to Emma Bowdle. Shortly after that event, he removed to Nebraska, but only remained there a short time and returned to Ross county where he was engaged in farm work for a while. Changing location to Paulding, he remained there for a year, when he again sought Ross county and resumed farm work by the month. At length he bought a place of his own, consisting of 82 1/2 acres, upon which he moved and since has made his permanent place of residence. e farms in a general way and raises stock, being regarded as an industrious man and good citizen. He is a Republican in politics and though not an office seeker, served for five years as constable. He belongs to the Red Men's lodge at
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Frankfort, and both himself and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church. The family consists of seven children, all of whom are at home : George B., Amos E., Addie B., Clarence, Elmer P., Forest E., and Mabel E.
James L. Cadwallader, superintendent of the Greenfield (Ohio) public schools, has long been prominently connected with educational affairs. In fact he may be said to have been bred in an atmosphere of pedagogics, as his father. Alfred Cadwallader, was for many year, a teacher in Highland county, of which he was a native and honored citizen. The founder of the family in that part of Ohio was Jesse Cadwallader, who came from Virginia and settled there near the close of the eighteenth century. Mr. Cadwallader obtained his elementary education in the public schools of his native county of Highland. He then became a teacher and spent four years in what Thomson describes as the "delightful task to rear the tender thought, to teach the young idea how to shoot." After this educational novitiate, Mr. Cadwallader accepted the position of principal of the public schools of Vienna, O., which he held for three years. At the expiration of his last term, he became a student at the National Normal university of Lebanon, O., with a view to qualifying himself thoroughly as an instructor. That famous school for the training of teachers honored him with the degree of B. S. at his graduation in 1891 and a year later he received the still higher degree of M. S. After completing his studies at Lebanon, Mr. Cadwallader resumed his old charge at Vienna and remained there two years and a half. his next responsibility was as principal of the Blanchester (Ohio) schools for three years, when he was appointed professor of history and Latin in the Normal university at Lebanon. He was holding this responsible position when called to fill the superintendency at Greenfield, the duties of which have since absorbed his attention. In this thriving Ohio city, Mr. Cadwallader has fully demonstrated his ability both as an educator and administrative officer. He has charge of twenty-one teachers in schools showing a total enrollment of 850 pupils, and the excellence of the superintendent's management is shown by the superior drill and efficiency exhibited in all the grades. In 1892 Mr. Cadwallader was married to Bertha Miller. an accomplished lady of Clarksville, O. He is a communicant of the Christian church and member of the Royal Arch masons.
James A. Cahill, the popular city solicitor of Chillicothe, traces his ancestry to the green sod of old Ireland, from which he has inherited some of the island's warmest and richest blood. His grand-father. Patrick Cahill, was a man of consequence in his native land, being an extensive dealer in leather, iron and lumber. He came
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over to America in 1818 and remained a few years, but later returned to the old country after acquiring much valuable knowledge concerning business methods in the United States. During the terrible famine of 1845-46 he was a prominent factor in distributing the supplies sent from America, as many consignments were made to him by merchants with whom he had become acquainted during his residence here. Having met with business reverses and severe losses, Patrick Cahill again crossed the ocean in 1849, and settling in Cincinnati endeavored to recover his fortune by embarking in the queensware trade. There he passed away at the age of fifty-four years. In early manhood he had married an Irish lady by the name of Jane Hacket, by whom he had ten children, but only seven of these reached maturity. Matthew Cahill, the fourth of this family of children, was born in Tipperary, Ireland, April 18, 1829, and was twenty years old when he came to the United States with his parents. He had obtained an unusually thorough education in his native country and soon after his arrival in Ohio developed remarkable talent for commercial and financial affairs. e remained in Cincinnati with his father until the latter's death and after a short experience in the commission business located at Covington, Kentucky, as a shoe merchant. During the civil war he purchased a shoe store in Chillicothe and since then has devoted his attention to that department of commerce. During his long residence in the Ross county capital, Mr. Cahill not only became very prominent and prosperous in his chosen line, but he was conspicuously and influentially identified with the general growth and development of the city. Having acquired a large amount of residence and business property, he platted and sold several additions to the first incorporation, and never wearied in advertising the advantages of the city as a commercial center. He was at one time president of the Electric Street Railway company, and his services as member of the appraising committee of the Fidelity Building and Loan association obtained him high rank as a financier. In 1854, Matthew Cahill married Mary Fleshnor, of Maryland, and this union resulted in the birth of nine children, of whom six are living: Thomas, Frank, Mary, Gertrude, Will, and James A.; the three dead are Ignatius, Joseph and Emily. James A. Cahill was born in Chillicothe, Ohio, July :i1, 1873, and was educated at St. Mary's college, Kansas, where he spent five and one-half years. After leaving this school he entered the office of Hon. Lawrence T. Neal for the purpose of laying the groundwork for a study of the law. Having devoted a year to reading and clerical work, Mr. Cahill entered the Cincinnati Law school, where he took the regular course and in due time was graduated. Shortly thereafter he entered upon the practice of his profession at Chillicothe in the office of Henry Woodrow, with whom he remained about two years, and then
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formed a partnership with W. Allen Scott which still continues. Aside from his regular duties Ile has been called on to serve two terms as secretary of the county board of elections. In April, 1)01, Mr. Cahill was elected solicitor for the city of Chillicothe for a term of two years, receiving a majority of 260 votes, and is at present discharging the duties of that office.
Jacob S. Caldwell, of Jefferson township, belongs to a family which has long ranked among the largest landowners in Ross county. This accumulation of real estate began with Smiley Caldwell, the pioneer founder of the family. Born near Wheeling, W. Va., he came to Ohio in youth, first locating in Jackson county, but afterward settling permanently in Ross. He was full of energy and enterprise, showed great shrewdness in land deals and carried on all branches of fanning with unusual success. Beginning without other capital than his head and hands, he was estimated at his death as the wealthiest man in Jefferson township and among the richest in the county, his estate invoicing fully a quarter of a million dollars. He married Eva Rittenour, of Virginia birth, but then resident in Ross county, by whom he had four children. Jacob, the eldest of these, was a man of great strength and nobility of character. Though wealthy and living in the greatest comfort with a young and growing family, he raised a company of infantry on short notice in 1862, was commissioned as its captain and hurried with it to the front. As part of the Ninety-first Ohio regiment this company served gallantly through the campaigns in Virginia. and Maryland until 1864, when Captain Caldwell succumbed, was taken to the hospital at. Frederick City, Md., and died there August 9, 1864.
Edwin, second son of Smiley Caldwell, was born May 26, 1834, and proved a worthy custodian of the valuable patrimony inherited from his father, which greatly increased under his skillful management. It. is questionable if another man in the Scioto valley owns so much land as he, his holdings in Jefferson township amounting to 2,000 acres and as much more in the state of Missouri. He has devoted his whole life to agricultural pursuits and is a progressive farmer in every respect, using modern methods and improvements in his extensive business. He married Martha. J., daughter of John H. and Elizabeth (Strong) Davis, both deceased. Her father was an extensive fanner, once represented the county in the legislature and died in Kansas in 1887. Edwin Caldwell had five children. Charles D. and John are residents of Nodaway county, Mo., where their father owns large tracts of land, and they themselves are farming there on an extensive scale. Eva is the wife of S. H. Beery, of Richmond Dale; Jacob S. is the subject of this sketch; Letitia died in 1893 while visiting in North Carolina.
Jacob S. Caldwell was born on his father's farm in Jefferson town-
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ship, December 23, 1865. He attended the Richmond Dale high school and the Wesleyan university at Delaware, O., but the most valuable education he obtained was that received from his experienced father concerning farm matters and those agricultural pursuits which were to constitute the labor of his life. He fell easily into these duties, which were his by inheritance as well as natural tastes, and soon proved himself the worthy son of a worthy sire. His inclinations leaning towards fine cattle, he invested in that line and has been a successful breeder of the Shorthorns and Polled Durhams. He has accumulated a valuable herd of these "bovine aristocracy," consisting of fifty head equally divided between the two strains and all highly pedigreed and kept in the finest of fettle. He owns a fine farm of 440 acres south of the railroad and 340 acres of pasture land, and not many of the Jefferson township farmers do business on a larger scale. Mr. Caldwell, like his father, is Republican in politics though not an office seeker, the only official position held by him being membership of the board of township trustees. December 23, 1891, he was married to Bertha Lee, daughter of Presley Orr of Springfield township, and they have two children : Herbert Orr and Presley Edwin Caldwell.
Rev. George Carpenter, D. D., was born in Delaware county, Ohio, May 9, 1826. His father was Nathan Carpenter, junior. His grandfather, Capt. Nathan Carpenter, senior, was a descendant of William Carpenter, who came from England in the ship Bevis in 1638, and settled in the colony of Massachusetts Bay. The family is easily traced back to the thirteenth century, and included some notable men of the city of London. Captain Carpenter's mother was Charity Allen, sister of Gen. Ethan Allen, the hero of Ticonderoga. He himself was a soldier in the Revolutionary war and participated in the battle of Bunker Hill, in the pursuit and capture of General Burgoyne at Saratoga, and in many other sanguinary engagements until a peace was conquered at Yorktown. After the war Captain Carpenter settled in Chenango county, N. Y. In the spring of 1801 he removed his family to the territory northwest of the River Ohio, and became the pioneer and original settler of Delaware county, Ohio. His home was situated on the east side of the Olentangy river, a tributary of the Scioto, five miles south of the present town of Delaware. His son, Nathan, was then eleven years of age. When grown, Nathan married and cleared a farm for himself, five miles south of the first settlement. There, in a log cabin, the subject of this sketch was born, and when he was four years old, his father purchased a mill property and tavern and moved to the west side of the river into a large three story house. Nathan Carpenter was then farmer, miller, tavern-keeper, postmaster and magistrate. e soon tired of the bar and liquors, east them out and kept the first temper-
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ance tavern in all that region, for drinking was then universal. In 1837 he moved to a farm near Worthington, Franklin county. Here he finished a useful and honorable life, not the least of which was the rearing of a family of eleven children, and passed to his rest in 1867. His son, George, received his preparatory education with an Episcopal minister, Rev. R. K. Nash, in Worthington. He was graduated from the Ohio Wesleyan university in 1851 and from a Theological seminary in Cincinnati in 1853. He was licensed to preach by the Presbytery of Columbus the same year. He was ordained and settled over the Presbyterian church of Kingston, Ross county, in 1855. Here he continued as pastor twelve years, and brought about the building of a nice, new church, and the purchase of a parsonage with ample grounds. He was then called to the pastorate of the church of Washington C. H, Fayette county. In this pastorate he spent seventeen and one-half years, during which ha had the church enlarged and a convenient parsonage built. Then with headquarters at Chillicothe he acted as home missionary in some county churches. e resuscitated and reorganized the Mona church and secured the completion of a beautiful church building. He organized the Presbyterian church of Wellston and secured a good church building free from debt. He is now laid aside from active work. In 1852 he was married to Matilda Gilruth, daughter of Rev. James Gilruth, a pioneer Methodist minister, and patriot soldier of the war of 1812. Seven children were born to them. The youngest, a girl, died in infancy. Three other daughters, who promised great usefulness, were taken away in early womanhood. Three sons remain : Dr. W. B. Carpenter, of Columbus, O.; George H., in business in New York city ; and Charles K., a lawyer in the same city.
John Irwin Carson, assistant city engineer of Chillicothe, O., was born in that, city on August 20, 1854. He is a representative of one of the earliest of the families who settled in Ross county. His father, Rev. Irwin Carson, was born in Virginia and was for many years pastor of the Presbyterian church in Chillicothe during its early period. e married Elizabeth Carlisle, who was born in Ross county in 1829. She was a daughter of John Carlisle, who located in the county in 1791 ; was thus a resident before the organization of the county, which occurred in 1798, and eleven years before the state was admitted into the Union ; he spent his life here and at one time owned most of the land upon which Chillicothe is now located, besides being the possessor of large tracts in other localities of the county. Rev. Irwin Carson had but two sons, of whom the subject of this sketch is the eldest. His brother, A. C. Carson, is managing editor of the Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch. John Irwin Carson was educated in the city schools of Chillicothe and under the private tutorship of his father, who was liberally educated and taught aspir-
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ing young men as a means of helping them. He was a clerk in the dry goods business with his uncles, A. and H. N. Carlisle, until he was about twenty-two years old. He then took up civil engineering as a profession, which occupation he has ever since followed. e has worked in different states and was for seven years in the employ of the Cincinnati Southern railway company. For about eight years he has held the position of assistant city engineer of Chillicothe. e has the reputation of being a very competent and accurate surveyor and mechanical draughtsman. Mr. Carson has never married. His political affiliations, as well as those of the whole family, are Republican, and he was reared in the faith of the Presbyterian church.
Joseph F. Chapman is a native of Clermont. county, O., born April 28, 1843. Jacob Chapman, his father, was born in Maryland in 1796 and came to Ohio with his parents, who settled in Clermont county. He grew up and was educated there, following the occupation of farming after he reached manhood. He married Nancy Boring, the union resulting in the birth of ten children, of whom Abram, Patience, Elizabeth, Nancy, and Mary Ann are dead. Those living are John, William, Isaac, Rebecca and Joseph F. The father of these children died in 1877 and the mother passed away in 1879. Their son Joseph F., subject of this sketch, received the ordinary common school education of those days and remained at home until he was twenty-four years old. On January 1, 1867, he was married to Mary A. Smith and they settled on a farm in Clermont county where they lived about four years. After that they removed to the state of Illinois, but their residence there only lasted two years, when a return was made to Ohio. The succeeding seven years were spent in Clermont, but later a removal was made to the county of Clinton, which was their place of residence for six years. After brief sojourns of a year or two in the counties of Brown and Hamilton, Mr. Chapman finally leased 165 acres of land in Concord township, Ross county, and has made his home there ever since. Besides his general farming, he raises fruit on an extensive scale. Mr. and Mrs. Chapman have had ten children, all living except Walter, who died in infancy. The others, in order of birth, are Nettie, Willmer, Everett, Ira, Bertha, Ruby, Gertie, Stella and Lester. The parents are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and all the children belong to some one or other of the various religious denominations. Mrs. Chapman is of German and Irish descent. Her grandfather, Peter Smith, was a soldier in the war of the Revolution and was brought home wounded. Mr. Chapman can also boast descent from Revolutionary ancestry. His grandfather, Reuben Chapman, served throng the war for American independence as a private soldier, but escaped without serious injury of any kind.
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Austin Chesnut, pharmacist and druggist, of Chillicothe, is a native of Huntington township, Ross county, born April 25, 1860. His parents were William and Elizabeth (Cockerell) Chesnut. The former, a native of Ross county and a successful farmer, died May 2, 1873 ; his widow still survives and resides in Chillicothe. The Chesnut family figured conspicuously in the pioneer history of Ross county, being resident there several years before Ohio was admitted into the Union as a state. The founder of the family was Daniel Chesnut, the paternal great-grandfather of the subject of this sketch. He was a native of Rockingham county, Va., and was one of the first justices of the peace in Ross county. Austin Chesnut has some of his old papers, showing the crude methods in vogue at that early day. All legal papers were then written out in full, there being no such things known as printed blank forms. Daniel Chesnut's son William was born iii Virginia, but came to Ross county, Ohio, with his parents in 1797, when only five years old. There were three other sons, whose names were Benjamin, Lemuel and James B. All these brothers became more or less identified with the early history of the county, living to pass the meridian of life and some to reach old age. The William above mentioned was the father of William Chesnut who married Elizabeth Cockerell. The latter had a family of nine children, eight of whom are still living: Josiah, a farmer in Hardin county, O. ; Sarah C., wife of Charles Hough, a resident, of Washington state ; Hannah, married Allen Wade, a farmer of Ross county ; Effie, wife of Seth Aldridge, of Jackson county, Ohio; Austin, the subject of this sketch; Hester, now Mrs. Conrad Gerish, of Chillicothe ; Charles, a farmer in Clinton county; Rhoda, wife of John Lightle, a farmer of Ross county. Austin Chesnut was educated in the common schools of Ross county and at a private academy in Chillicothe. When still quite young he became a clerk and student in the druggist business, continuing as an employee in this capacity for about. twelve years. At the expiration of that period he formed a partnership with his cousin, P. S. Chesnut, in the purchase of the property which he himself now owns. This firm existed for four years. Austin Chesnut bought his partner's interest in the business, which he has since conducted alone. e is a registered pharmacist and has been educated in the school of practical experience, besides the theoretical training obtained by a course of study in the Chicago Institute of Pharmacy. Mr. Chesnut has a finely appointed drug store at No. 390 East Main st., in Chillicothe, it being well stock and up-to-date in every respect. He carries a complete line of drugs, proprietary medicines, toilet articles, and all the sundries found in first-class drug stores. July 5, 1888, Mr. Chesnut was married to Martha, daughter of L. F. and Rebecca Pigg of Huntington, W. V a. Mrs. Chesnut's parents are
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both living, the father being employed at Maysville, Ky. Mr. Chesnut is a member of the orders of Odd Fellows, United Workmen and Modern Woodmen, and, with his wife, of the Trinity Methodist Episcopal church, in Chillicothe. Mrs. Chesnut is active and zealous in church and Sunday school work.