Chester & Elfa Powell WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 717 they stopped at the home of uncle McKee (who had preceded them), until they could build themselves a log house, after the fashion of the country in those early days (they were not so long in building a house as they are now-a-days). Mrs. Pugh's stepfather, John Rice, having died in the first year of their coming here, as related above, there was much responsibility left on the widowed mother with her five children; but being a woman of tact and foresight, she always provided years ahead for the family. So they suffered but little from the privations of early pioneer life among the Indians, who were numerous on Beaver creek at that time, and all became the owners of good homes in Wood county, except Annabella, who had died at the age of nineteen years. Grandmother Junkins-Rice's home was called -the poor house," because if there was an orphan child in the country she would bring it to her home and care for it until another home could be found for it. At one time she had no less than five infants on her hands to be cared for, and some remained with her until her death. Mrs. James Raymer, of Toledo, was one of grandmother Junkins-Rice's loves. After being left a widow with five children to raise in a new country, God gave her health and strength to help the helpless. Such was the kindheartedness and unselfishness of that noble pioneer grandmother and mother. Mrs. Chester L. Powell was educated in part at the schools of Weston, and in part at those of Fostoria. After her marriage she resided almost constantly with her parents, and cared for them with a tender hand, her aged mother, now living with her, being an object of deep solicitude. Her one great comfort is her flowers, of which she is a great lover, and which she gathers around her and enjoys. From earliest childhood Mrs. Powell has been the companion of her parents, and through them and their acquaintances learned of the habits of many of the pioneers, and has always felt a deep interest in them, although at a time when life was sweetest and separation hardest to bear, she has borne the death of her husband with a philosophic and Christian-like spirit. She has continued her husband's store, showing excellent capability, and, through the service of efficient employes under her personal supervision, it continues to be one of the flourishing business houses of Weston. Prior to his death Mr. Powell had established a fruit farm within the corporation of Weston, and his widow also conducts this with marked success. It comprises some twenty-five acres, given to Mrs. Powell by her mother, Mrs. John Pugh, whereon are abundantly grown plums, peaches, strawberries, grapes, and all other small fruits. There are also a house and lot in Weston, and two other farms-one in Wood county, and one in Hancock county-which Mrs. Powell rents. She also owns the store building, 3.5 x 50 feet in dimensions, and which is recognized as the pioneer building of Weston. Notwithstanding her many business engagements, and the care of a home, Mrs. Powell yet finds time for the study of literature, and for years past she been one of the teachers in the Presbyterian Church Sabbath-school, having an interesting class of girls of which she is justly proud. MALON K. MANLEY, a veteran of the Mexican war, and a retired merchant of Haskins, is a native of the Keystone State. He was born in Columbia county, Penn., March 28, 1825, a son of John Manley, who was born in 1799. The grandfather, John Manley, Sr., was a native of Switzerland, and took part in the revolution of 1776 to 1780. The father was educated in Pennsylvania, and followed the carpenter's and builder's trade. He married Sybilla Case, and their children were: Eli R., a carpenter, who resided in David City, Neb., and died November 30, 1896; Malon K.; William W., a merchant of Pennsylvania; Anna, deceased wife of Joseph Buck; Mary J., deceased wife of Samuel Culp. The father of this family died in New York, by drowning, and the mother afterward married Francis Burdanier, by whom she had seven children, the only survivor being George, of Pennsylvania. Her death occurred in the Keystone State, January 27, 1888, when she was aged eighty-eight years, and six months. Our subject acquired his education in the common schools near his home, but his privileges in that direction were limited, for at an early age he was thrown upon his own resources. He learned the shoemaker's trade, which he followed for forty years. During the Mexican war, in 1846, he enlisted at Danville, Penn., in Company C, 2d Penn. V. I., and proceeded to Vera Cruz. He participated in the capture of that city, and in other service in that locality, and in July, 1848, returned to his home. He suffered intensely from the oppressive heat in the South. Again, during the Civil war, he manifested his loyalty to the government, enlisting on May 14, 1861. He formed a company at Danville, Penn., which was attached to the Sixth Regiment of Pennsylvania Reserves, and went to Camp Curtin, thence to Richmond, and participated in the WOOD COUNTY,. OHIO. - 718 battles of Bull Run, the Wilderness, Fredericksburg and others, serving in all for two years. In 1868, Mr. Manley came to Wood county, and purchased a farm of seventy acres near Haskins, which he operated for five years, when he removed to the town and established a grocery and shoe store, which he conducted for eleven years. He was afterward engaged in business in Toledo for a time as a dealer in shoes, but is now living retired in Haskins, enjoying a rest which he has truly earned and richly deserves. He has aided greatly in the up building of this community, and has been an important factor in its progress and development. On October 12, 1848, Mr. Manley wedded Mary A. Mellon, who was born in Danville, Penn., June 21, 1828, a daughter of Gideon and Sarah Mellon, the father a boot and shoe dealer, of Danville. Five children were born to them John, born July 29, 1849; Sarah M., September 26, 1853, now the wife of Philmore Gustin, a blacksmith; Clarence, born April 23, 1865, died April 20, 1889; Mary B., who died at the age of five years; and Anna B., who became the wife of A. L. Herritt, an oil operator, and died July 22, 1895. Mary B. and Anna B. were twins, born July 23, 1869. Mr. Manley and wife have been faithful members of the Baptist Church for fifty-three years, and he has served as trustee, deacon, treasurer and secretary of the Church. In politics he is a Democrat, and for one term was school director, while in 188o he acted as census enumerator, being appointed by the general government, has served as assessor and tax-collector several years. Socially he is connected with the Odd Fellows society, the Masonic fraternity, and Encampment of Patriarchs. His honorable, upright life, his kindly manner, and his affable and social disposition have won him a host of warm friends. J. F. LONG, a leading merchant and citizen of Bowling Green, and senior partner in the dry goods firm of Long & Rutherford, was born in Seneca county, Ohio, February 8, 1837, and is a son of the Rev. John and Lydia (Fry) Long. Daniel Long, the paternal grandfather of our subject, was born in Pennsylvania, in 1779, of Dutch descent. He was there married to Margaret Brill, who was born in the same State in 1783, and in 1834 removed with his family to Seneca county, Ohio, where, on May 22, of that year, he entered the northwest quarter of Section 1, in Jackson township. For forty years he worked at his trade as a blacksmith, and he was a soldier in the war of 1812. His death took place in 1871 at the good old age of ninety-two, his wife having passed away in 1853. This estimable couple were the parents of twelve children, as follows: Daniel is living in Stark county, and is now nearly one hundred years of age; Samuel, who was a minister in the United Brethren Church for many years, died in Seneca county, Ohio; Charles migrated to California during the gold excitement, and died in Seneca county; John was the father of our subject; Peggy married Jacob Sprout, of Seneca county, and is still living; Nancy became the wife of Samuel Sprout, of the same county, and died there; Michael became a minister in the United Brethren Church at Upper Sandusky, in 1835, and died recently at Fremont, Ohio (he was born May 3, 1814, was almost a giant in stature, with a voice which could be heard a mile away, and was a famous camp-meeting preacher); George died in Seneca county; David spent a part of his life in California, and died in Seneca county; Benjamin, who was born September 12, 1823, spent his life on the old homestead in Seneca county, and died there June 14, 1890; Wesley, who went west after serving in the army, was never heard from again; and Henry, who died when quite small. John Long, the father of our subject, was born in 1808. When a young man he entered the ministry of the United Brethren Church, and about the year 1847 removed to Gibsonburg, Sandusky Co., Ohio, where he made his home for many years, traveling and preaching constantly throughout a large circuit in northern Ohio. About eighteen years ago he came to Wood county, where he continued his life work until broken down by years of toil and the feebleness of old age. For some years preceding his death he made his home in Bowling Green. He passed peacefully to his well-earned rest February 9, 1895, at the home of his daughter, in Gibsonburg; his wife died at her home, in Center township, Wood county, April 19, 1878, aged sixty-three years, eleven months, eleven days, a faithful member of the U. B. Church. After many years of faithful duty to her family, her Church and her God, she passed away in the triumph of her faith, thus leaving to her family the best gift a mother could leave. To this honored couple were born ten children, as follows: Louisa, wife of Jacob Sampsel, of Gibsonburg; Samuel, a farmer at St. Louis, Mich.; J. F., our subject; Daniel S., residing in Bowling Green; Rebecca, married to A. B. Garn, of Gibsonburg; William, a farmer of Wood county, Ohio; Wesley, a farmer of Center township, Wood county; Arcanus C. and Michael, residing near Gibson- WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 719 burg; and Samantha, the wife of Charles Pike, of Bowling Green. The parents of this interesting family became the grandparents of fifty grandchildren, and the great-grandparents of thirty-one great-grandchildren. On the maternal side, our subject's grandparents were Jacob and Elizabeth Fry, who had ten children, namely: Jacob, Lydia (the mother of our subject), Moses, Mary, Anna, Adam, Josia, Elizabeth, Solomon, and Samuel. All these are living in the West, except Jacob and Samuel, who died in Ohio. J. F. Long, the subject proper of this sketch, spent his boyhood days in Gibsonburg, where he attended the common schools and secured his education. He was a natural mathematician, and became especially interested in the study of mechanics; in 1865 he removed to Wood county,,, where he bought a tract of land and put up a sawmill. For several years he carried on the manufacture of lumber, making a handsome fortune, and later, in 1871, removed to Bowling Green, where for some time he was not engaged in any active business except contracting and building. In November, 1892, he- opened up his present store, in which he is carrying on an extensive business. It is the largest establishment of its kind in Bowling Green, the firm carrying from $20,000 to $30,000 worth of stock, and employing ten clerks. Mr. Long also owns 180 acres of land and town property, and is recognized as one of the substantial and representative citizens of the county. He was formerly a Republican, but of later years has identified himself with the Prohibitionists, in the ranks of which party he is an earnest worker. In religious faith he is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Long was married December 31, 1861, , to Mary Klotz, a native of Pennsylvania, born February 9, 1845, and three children have blessed their union, namely: (1) Frank M., who learned the business of a dry-goods merchant in Toledo, and is now chief buyer for his father's firm; he married Bertha Littelle, of Toledo, and they have one child, May. ( 2) Elsie. D. is the wife of S. E. Vail, editor of the Sentinel, and they have one child, Merl DeWitt; and (3) Netta is the wife of R. P. Hankey, a son of Senator J. K. Hankey. The mother of this highly respected family died February 28, 1893, a faithful and consistent member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. From the year 1872 until her death, a period of over twenty years, she was known as an active worker in the Sabbath-school, much of her time in the capacity of assistant superintendent thereof, having charge of a class of young men, many of whom can give evidence of her faithful work. She spent many hours in looking after the poor and needy of the town, and searching out the lonely homes of strangers, and of the desolate and disconsolate. She was also an active worker in the cause of home missions. Any one visiting the Elizabeth Gamble Deaconess Home and Christ's Hospital will find therein a beautiful room, "No. 57," fitted and furnished in memory of her good life, and for the good of that noble work. GIDEON UNDERWOOD, deceased. The pioneers of a country, the founders of a business, the' originators of any undertaking that will promote the material welfare, or advance the educational and moral influence of a community, deserve the gratitude of humanity. Our subject was for many years an honored citizen of Wood county, and one of the prominent pioneers of Center township. Mr. Underwood was born in Lawrence county, Penn., August 22, 182o, and was a son of William and Mary (Wright) Underwood, both natives of the Buckeye State. He attended the common school in his native county, and besides assisting in the labors of the home farm while young, he also worked on the canals. He then went West to California, remaining in the Golden State for three years, and later came to Wood county, Ohio, and purchased eighty acres of land in Center township, turning his attention to agricultural pursuits, which occupation he continued to follow up to the time of his death. He cleared and improved his land, building thereon a substantial dwelling, barns and other outbuildings, set out a fine orchard, and supplied the place with all the conveniences found upon a model farm of the nineteenth century. To his original purchase he later added l00 acres, and the entire tract comprised one of the best farms of the county. In Lowell, Penn., on December 29, 1852, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Underwood and Margaret (McMahan), who was born in Mahoning county, Ohio, January 21, 1821, and was then the widow of Henry Humston. Two children graced this union-John W., and Laura C., who was born November 22, 1860, and is now the wife of John Walker, a farmer of Center township, by whom she has three children. By her first marriage Mrs. Underwood had one daughter, Amerilas, who married Simon Crum, a farmer of Center township. Mr. Underwood always bore the reputation of an honest, upright man, affable and genial in disposition, and no man took a deeper interest in 720 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. the prosperity of his adopted county, while it is safe to say that few contributed in a larger degree to bring about this result. His death, which occurred April 7, 1895, was deeply regretted by his loving wife and children, and also a large number of friends who loved and respected him in life and mourned for him in death. He was a Republican in politics, and was school director many terms. For many years he was an elder in the Presbyterian Church, but later he joined the M. E. Church. Mrs. Underwood still resides upon the old homestead where so many happy years of her life were passed. During the Civil war Mr. Underwood served as a soldier in the one-hundred-day service, being a member of Company C, 144th O. V. I. SILAS H. POWELL. In manner hospitable and kind, disposition genial and social, this gentleman is one of the most highly esteemed residents of Liberty township. He was born March 10, 1852, in Green Castle, Ohio, a son of George and Sarah (Beatty) Powell. In 1872 the father removed with his family to Wood county, locating on a farm of 46o acres in Liberty township, where he made his home until his death, January 26, 1893. The mother died April 27, 1892. Their children were Wesley; Martha, wife of Louis Smaltz; Silas H.; Alonzo V.; Chester L. (deceased); and Laura, wife of James Stafford, of Liberty. Our subject acquired his education in Green Castle, was reared on a farm, and at the age of twenty years came with his parents to Wood county. In 1873, however, he returned to Fairfield county, and was married in Winchester to Miss Margaret Elizabeth Fellers, who was born November 27, 1853, in that county. Her parents, Joshua and Barbara (Runkle) Fellers, were born February 14, 1821, and June 8, 1822, respectively; they are still living in Fairfield county. In the family were the following children: Eliza, wife of David Smith, of Pickaway county, Ohio; Minerva, wife of Thomas Courtwright, of Green Castle, Ohio; Martha, wife of Joseph Green, of Fairfield county; Clara, wife of George Courtwright, of Fairfield county; Mrs. Powell; Eleanora, wife of Samuel Brown, of Warren county, Ohio; Florence, wife of Henry Hempleman; John, a farmer of Fairfield county; Alice, wife of James Cheney; and Docia, wife of Edward Hickle, of Wood county. Upon their marriage Mr. Powell and his wife took up their residence on the family homestead which he now owns, his farm comprising 191 acres. He is progressive in his methods, and his close attention to business has secured him a comfortable property. In politics he is a Republican, and a strong advocate of temperance. In the family is one son, Chauncey, born April 4, 1874. Mr. and Mrs. Powell are members of the United Brethren Church, the one known as the " Powell Church." OSMAN A. DIVER, a prominent oil operator of this section of the State, and one of the most extensive land owners in Montgomery township, is perhaps more widely known as an able and popular worker in the political field. A Democrat in a Republican stronghold-he has heavy odds against him, yet he has been called upon to fill nearly every office on the township ticket, sometimes carrying the day by 160 plurality against a Republican plurality of 140, and throughout the county he has hosts of friends who would gladly see him serving the public in a wider sphere. At times when the prospect of certain defeat has made it almost impossible to fill the county ticket, he has allowed his name to be used, and this has always meant a hard fight for his opponent, the large vote given him being a high testimonial from the independent voters of the county, to his ability and worth. He is a native of Montgomery township, born March 16, 1845, in Section 30, a son of the late Osman Diver, a pioneer farmer of that locality, and his wife, Esther F. Robinson, a woman of rare mental ability and noble character, who was a teacher in this county in the early " forties." As the only son of this worthy couple, our subject was given better advantages in his youth than fell to the lot of some of the boys of that time his district school course being followed by an attendance at more advanced schools in Fostoria and Osceola, with one year at Oberlin College. He was an active boy, and his energies were given full scope in farm work on the large tracts of land owned by his father. On February 20, 1869, he was married, in Amherst township, Lorain Co., Ohio, to Miss Sarah Curtis, daughter of Zebulum and Lucy (Belden) Curtis, well-known citizens of that locality. After his marriage Mr. Diver began farming on his own account, in his native township, giving considerable attention to raising and dealing in stock. In 1885 he removed to Prairie Depot, and engaged in mercantile business with A. Fike. Later he became sole proprietor, continuing until 1894, when, after a successful career, he sold his store. He has large individual oil holdings, and owns 45o acres of land in his township. Silas & Margaret Powell WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 721 His home at Prairie Depot is an elegant one, and Mrs. Diver's fine intellectual gifts and literary tastes give it an additional charm and influence as a social center. She is a member of the Disciples Church, active in various lines of local and foreign missionary work, and is also prominent in the Daughters of Rebekah order, also the Good Templars, at the present time being State deputy and district superintendent in the latter society. She has held different elective offices in the State work in that order, being State superintendent of the juvenile Department, and organized in Ohio sixty-six juvenile temples, re-organized many, also several subordinate lodges, and held meetings in the interest of the order and cause. Mr. and Mrs. Diver have had three children: Flora L., who was fatally burned at the age of four years, her clothing catching fire from a stove, and death resulting from her injuries forty-eight hours later; Frank E., a law student at Toledo; and Curtis B., a young man of more than ordinary talent, and an accomplished musician. Mr. Diver is a skilled reinsman, and has always been an admirer of good horses; his stables contain some of the best specimens to be found in the county. Public spirited and progressive, he is active in the cause of better education, and has served it ably as a member of the school board. He belongs to the I. O. O. F., and was a charter member of Petroleum Lodge No. 499, K. of P., at Prairie Depot, and its first chancellor commander. For two years he represented his lodge at the State meeting. Osman Diver, our subject's father, was born in Deerfield, Portage (then Trumbull) Co., Ohio, August 23, 1807. He was the oldest son of John Diver, a native of Massachusetts, who came to Deerfield in October, 1803, and of Laura Ely Diver, a descendant of the Elys, of England. When twelve years of age he went with a party to Cleveland for supplies, when that city was but a hamlet of log houses, he driving one of the teams there and back. On November 13, 1832, he married Margaret Kinnaman, and settled in his native town, where two years later a son was born, who lived but a few hours. On March 29, 1836, a second son, Franklin, was born, and in the fall of that same year he, with his wife and child, moved to Montgomery township, Wood county, and settled on a farm in Section 30. The country was then a wilderness, the roads being little more than Indian trails along the banks of streams. In the course of a few months he bought property in Fostoria (then Rome and Risdon), and engaged in hotel business in that city. There a daughter, Laura H. (now Mrs. Cline), was born, September i9, 1838. The following year he sold his town property, and returned to his farm, taking up the arduous task of converting it into fertile fields. On January 18, 1841, his home was made desolate by the death of his wife. Placing his two little children in the care of their grandparents, he lived on alone, toiling unremittingly to leave to his loved ones a home. On February 24, 1842, he married Esther F. Robinson, and to them three children were born: Margaret E. (Mrs. Miles), Osman A. (our subject), and Harriet N. (Mrs. C. W. Lenhart). By this time he had made quite an opening in the dense forest, and in addition to the house of unhewed logs that had served him for a dwelling, he built a hewed log front, one and one-half stories high, with a good cellar quite a pretentious mansion for those days. He usually went to Fremont (twenty-two miles distant) for flour and groceries, always taking an axe along to chop the fallen trees and remove them from the road. On one trip he stayed two nights at the same place; leaving his wagon in the mire, he proceeded with his team the first night, and returning the second night for shelter. The constant toil and good management of Mr. Diver and his wife were rewarded; in the course of a few years, they found themselves in possession of 1,700 acres of good farming land. In 1848 he built a sawmill on the east branch of the Portage river, and manufactured the lumber with which he built a new house, one mile east of his first home, on the Perrysburg and McCutchenville pike. This was the second frame house built in this section of the country. In June, 1849, he moved his family into this house, and occupied it until his death, September 30, 1888, when he was aged eighty-one years, one month and seven days. In politics he was a Democrat, but believed it right to support the most worthy candidate, especially in municipal affairs. In religion, he was a faithful member of the Church of Christ, and was a liberal supporter of every good cause within his reach. In disposition he was quiet and unassuming, a lover of books and his own fireside, and was the friend of the poor and oppressed. Only the pioneers who toiled with him know how much this generation owes to those who changed the despised Black Swamp into the garden of Ohio. Esther F. (Robinson), our subject's mother, was born April 2, 1818, near New Portage, Portage (now Summit Co., Ohio. At nine years of age, death deprived her of her father, and at eleven years of age she began teaching, a voca- 722 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. tion she followed until the time of her marriage. Her labors were confined principally to the Western Reserve, with the exception of two years which were spent largely in Wood county, at West Millgrove, and four miles north of that village, at what was known as the Morgan school house. Her mother having moved to a farm near Latimerville, Crawford Co., Ohio, she made the journey from these points to her mother's home and return, several times on horseback, during her stay in Wood county. On February 24, 1842, she was married to Osman Diver at her mother's home, in Crawford county, returning with him on horseback. At the age of fifteen she espoused the cause of Christ, and has been throughout her life a faithful, consistent Christian. To her husband she was a helpmeet and counselor, and to the five children entrusted to her care, she was a most lovable mother, a competent teacher and guide. She still survives her husband, living at the home her hand so industriously helped to carve out of the wilderness. WILSON W. BROWN, one of the heroes of the Civil war, the engineer of the train captured from the Confederacy by the famous Mitchell raiders, is now living quietly on his farm near Dowling, wearing his well-earned honors with the modesty which becomes so brave and distinguished a soldier. He was born in Fountain county, Ind., December 25, 1839, the son of Harlan S. Brown. Possessing rare mechanical genius, our subject early acquired a thorough knowledge of machinery, and before the war served some years as engineer on the Mobile & Ohio railroad. Just before hostilities began he returned home, and in September, 1861, he enlisted in Company F, 21st O. V. I., which was assigned to the army of the Cumberland. He took part in the battles of Ivy Mountain, Shelbyville, Ky., and many other engagements that occurred in the early part of the war. When the 21st was encamped at Shelbyville, Ky., he was detailed by Gen. O. M.' Mitchell to go as engineer on the famous Mitchell raid-the story of whose gallant exploits forms one of the most thrilling chapters in the history of that time. He was more fortunate than many of his companions, eight of whom were hanged at Atlanta, Ga., while Mr. Brown, with fourteen of his comrades, escaped to the North, but not until they had endured three months of suffering and hardship, did they reach the Union lines. Our subject reported to his regiment, and went into active service again, was appointed corporal by the colonel of the regiment, and soon after was made sergeant of Company F, 21st O. V. I., for gallant and distinguished service. He participated in the battle of Stone River, and, for his bravery here, was granted a thirty-days' furlough and went home. While at home he received orders to report at Washington to depose in regard to the execution of his comrades, and while there had personal interviews with President Lincoln, Judge Holt, Gen. Hitchcock, and Secretary Stanton, and, before leaving, was presented with a gold medal from the hand of Mr. Stanton. By a special act of Congress he was promoted to 2nd lieutenant. After leaving Washington, he returned to Ohio, and was ordered to report to Gov. Tod, at Columbus, who presented him with his commission. He then returned to his regiment and reported for duty as acting lieutenant until a vacancy occurred, after engaging in many battles, skirmishes and forced marches. He was twice wounded at the battle of Chickamauga, having two fingers shot from the left hand, and a severe wound in the knee joint, for which wounds and his gallant service on the Mitchell raid, he was given a pension of twenty-four dollars per month by a special act of Congress. He was mustered out May 15, 1864. In 1863 Mr. Brown was married to Miss Clarissa Loman, who was born in Fostoria, Ohio, March 1, 1845. Ten children were born of this union: Emma H., married Samuel G. Cordery, and died at the age of twenty-four, leaving one son-George W.; Alice M. died in childhood; Ada Lodisca married Charles E. Ward, of Toledo, and has two children-Rayman Oliver, and Ruby Marie; Harlan S. is a carpenter in Webster township, and married Miss Anna Beard, by whom he has one daughter-Gladys; James W. lives in Toledo (he married Cora Glenn and has one child, Ethel G.); Mary M. resides in Toledo; Mahlon T. is at home; Marquis A. lives in Toledo; and Edith G. and Cecil Ulena are at home. After the close of the war, Mr. Brown engaged in agricultural pursuits, and spent some years in Logan and Hancock counties. In 1870 he established the home in Perrysburg township, where he now resides. He is a member of the G. A. R., and in politics is a Republican. ISAAC VAN HORN, a well-known agriculturist of Grand Rapids township, was born in Harrison county, Ohio, December 7, 1830. He is a son of one of the earliest settlers of his locality, the late Samuel Van Horn, a native of Jefferson county, Ohio, born July 4, 1801, which honored pioneer was married in October, 1824, to Miss Sophia Miner, a native of Pennsylvania, born WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 723 December 15, 1804. They were the parents of twelve children, seven of whom are still living. In 1831 they came to Wood county, traveling in a wagon, which contained all their household goods. They settled upon a tract of eighty acres of wild land, building a house, 16 x 18 feet, immediately upon their arrival, and went through all the experiences incident to frontier life. They lived upon potatoes, corn, turkey, squirrel and deer, game being so plentiful that the family have known their dog to chase a deer out of the woods and up the lane leading to the house, where the boys would knock the animal down with clubs. Turkeys they would shoot enough of in the morning for that day's supply; and as for squirrels, they were so numerous that Mr. Van Horn says he has gone out in the wheat field by the woods, and shot from ten to twenty of them before picking any up. In spite of the far advanced spring, Mr. Van Horn succeeded in clearing more than an acre of ground in time to raise a crop of potatoes that year, and the second year he raised an excellent crop of wheat without plowing the soil, his pair of oxen having been sacrificed to secure ready money. Mr. Van Horn and his wife had united with the M. E. Church before coming to Wood county, and were among the members of the first M. E. class, which was organized, in 1833, in Weston township, Rev. Bum Day being the leader. Samuel Van Horn died on the morning of February 4, 1886, aged eighty-four years and seven months to the day. The funeral services were held at home the next day, the Rev. George Matthews officiating, and his remains were then laid to rest in Beaver Creek cemetery. His wife, Sophia Van Horn, died June 4, 1890, and the funeral was held at Beaver Creek church, Rev. James Long officiating. Isaac Van Horn, our subject, worked upon his father's farm until he was twenty-five years old, when he bought twenty acres of land, and began farming on his own account. In the spring of 1864, he enlisted in Company I, 144th O. V. I., under Col. Lew Wallace, and Capt. J. McKee. He participated in several engagements, and was taken prisoner at Perryville, Va., August 31, 1864. He was taken to Lynchburg, and from there to Libby prison, thence to Belle Isle, and then to Salisbury, from there back to Libby again, serving about eight months of prison life. He was the only one of seven, taken from his county, to survive prison life. From Libby he was sent to Annapolis, Md., and from there was sent home to Columbus, Ohio, where he received his discharge, March 23, 1865. He then returned to his little farm, which he sold a few years later to buy fifty-five acres near Grand Rapids, upon which he has since resided. The improvements he has made thereon are of a high class, and he conducts the property in a model manner, having constructed ditches, planted orchards, and built substantial structures as needed. On November 22, 1855, Mr. Van Horn was married to Miss Eliza J. Kerr, a sister of William B. Kerr, a prominent citizen of Grand Rapids township, and they had four children: Ella J., born June 11, 1858, married George Wolcott, of Deshler, Ohio; Etta May, born May 30, 1864, died in girlhood; Frank W., born August 26, 1866, now conducting the homestead; and one other died in infancy. The mother of this family died May 1g, 1884, and September 11, 1889, Mr. Van Horn, for his second wife, married Miss Lizzie Dean, of Weston, who was born April 7, 1843. Mr. Van Horn cast his first vote for the Whig party. The issues of the war made him a " Black Republican," and he has adhered to that party since. He takes no active part in political work, and has never held an office, or been a juror, or been engaged in any legal controversy. By his friends and neighbors he is held in high esteem, and he is a leading member of the United Presbyterian Church. B. B. BUCK, the cashier of the Exchange Banking Company, of Weston, and one of the leaders among the younger business, men of the county, was born in Milton Center, December 13, 1862. William Buck, his father, was born July 31, 1832, in Stark county, Ohio. He married Miss Ann Hartz, and a few years later moved to Wood county, locating at Milton Center, where they still reside. Mr. Buck (our subject) attended the district schools near his home during his earlier years, and then entered the Normal School at Valparaiso, Ind., and was graduated from the commercial department in 1887. On his return home he was made bookkeeper of the Exchange Banking Company, in which he is a stockholder, and later-he became its cashier. In the discharge of the duties of his responsible position he has shown himself fully worthy of the trust confided to him. He was married October 17, 1889, to an adopted daughter of Dr. Schooley, of Weston -Miss Jessie Robinson-who was born November 9, 1867. They have one daughter, Agnes. In politics Mr. Buck is a Republican, and he takes an influential part in all progressive movements in his locality. He is a member of the I. O. O. F., No. 59, Milton Center, the F. & 724 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. A. M., 530, Weston, and of the order of Maccabees. HON. JOHN J. GEGHAN. No man is more widely or favorably known in North Baltimore and vicinity than the one whose name introduces this sketch, and it is to him more than to any other single individual that the city owes its manufactures, railroads, and other improvements which have developed its resources, and brought wealth and prosperity to its inhabitants. The career of Mr. Geghan has been .a rather remarkable one. In his years of restless activity he has seen the ups and downs of life in no small degree, yet his persistence, and unbounded faith in his ability to overcome all obstacles, have always brought him out of his difficulties with flying colors, and with a determination to accomplish still greater results. Mr. Geghan is a native of the "Emerald Isle," where he was born May 9, 1845 in County Meath, son of James and Elizabeth (McSweeny) Geghan. His father was a farmer, and spent his entire life in Ireland. After the death' of her husband, the mother, in 1854, came with her little family to New Orleans, from there moving to Cincinnati, Ohio, where our subject attended the public schools, and afterward took a course in Nelson's Commercial College.. After leaving school Mr. Geghan was employed in the tobacco business, and organized the Tobacconists Association, of Cincinnati, of which he was made president. In 1865 the tobacco manufacturing company of Geghan, Porter & McHugh was established, and in the latter part of the year Mr. Geghan bought out the interests of his partners and formed the firm of Geghan & Brashears. He disposed of his share in this connection in 1866, and his next step was to organize a company which took part in the Fenian raids in Canada, being engaged in the fights at Ridgeway and Fort Erie. Having sunk all his means in this venture, Mr. Geghan returned to Cincinnati, and became foreman in a leading tobacco house, which position he filled until 1870, when, in company with James W. Murphy, he established the Red Cloud Tobacco Works, at No. 18 Hammond street, in that city, which he conducted until 1876. During this time and for a number of years previous Mr. Geghan took an active part in politics, his first affiliation being with the Republican party. During the campaign of 1868 he, in connection with Hon. J. W. Fitzgerald, organized the Irish "Grant & Colfax" Club of Cincinnati. He was also at the head of the liberal movement in that city which helped to carry Hamilton county against Grant at a later date, and was president of the Greeley & Brown Club. Mr. Geghan has always been an intense Irish Nationalist, firmly believing that Ireland should be an independent nation, and, like the majority of Irish Nationalists, believing in the policy of the Republican party. He took an active part in the Presidential campaign of 1884, and at a meeting of Irish-American Republicans held at Long Branch, N. Y., immediately after the nomination of James G. Blaine, he was unanimously chosen secretary of the Irish National Republican League, which accomplished such effective work in that memorable campaign. In 1873 Mr. Geghan was nominated by the Democratic party for member of the State Legislature from Hamilton county, and was elected, serving two years. He took a prominent share in legislative matters, and was instrumental in passing several important measures. Among the bills introduced by him were the amendment to the Adair Liquor Law, compelling parties wishing to bring suit or otherwise, to serve notice on the saloon keeper to desist from selling liquor, or file the same with the county clerk; the Padrone bill, the Militia law, and the celebrated Religious Liberty bill, known as the Geghan bill. After his term in the legislature had expired, Mr. Geghan went to Washington, D. C., where he engaged as traveling salesman until he secured a position in the Adjutant-General's department. This he held for a few months, and then resigned to accept the office of first assistant to the Dairy and Food Commissioner of the State of Ohio, which occupied his attention from 1886 to 1890. While in the commissioner's service he visited, among other places in his district, the thriving city of North Baltimore, and, at once perceiving its advantages as a manufacturing point, he concluded to locate there. Accordingly, in June, 1887, he took an option on 156 acres of land belonging to Joseph Dirk, at $15o per acre, and associating with himself A. L. Pfau and Col. I. Richardson, incorporated the North Baltimore Glass Co., of which he was made vice-president and directorthe factory buildings being erected in the fall of the same year. In 1892, Mr. Geghan sold out his interest in these works, and engaged in general contracting, forming a company which built the North Baltimore water works, and in which he held the offices of secretary, treasurer and general manager. A year later he disposed of his stock in this company, and paved Broadway street, and also macadamized Water street, two substantial and much needed improvements. He also bought eighty acres of ground, and deeded John J. Geghan WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 725 six acres of the same to the Zihlman Glass Company, on which to erect their plant. He assisted in organizing a company known as the Missouri Railway & Navigation Company, and spent some time in southeast Missouri looking after its interests and a tract of land he still owns there. In 1891 Mr. Geghan, in company with G. G. Grimes, began the publication of the North Baltimore Times, which he later disposed of. He has now settled in North Baltimore as a contractor and oil producer, being interested in seven oil wells in the vicinity, and expects hereafter to devote his entire time and attention to these pursuits. He also put on foot the building of a railroad between Welker and North Baltimore, which will add another to the many enterprises he has conducted for the benefit of this section of Wood county. 'He is a man of irrepressible energy, always busy, a genial companion, and popular with all classes of society. In 1888, Mr. Geghan married Miss Sadie Tarr, daughter of the late Levi A. Tarr, one of the first settlers of Henry township. They have one child, Nellie. Mr. Geghan is a prominent Mason, belonging to Blue Lodge, Royal Arch Masons and Royal Council. He is also a Knight of the Red Cross and a Knight Templar. PETER P. SWINEHART, an industrious and thorough farmer of Bloom township, in connection with his agricultural pursuits, is also engaged in operating a feed mill, near Bloom Center. He is a native of the Buckeye State, born in Hopewell township, Perry county, July 23, 1848, and there his father, Andrew Swinehart, was also born, October 29, 1824. The paternal grandfather, John Swinehart, was a native of Northumberland county, Penn., in which State his father, Andrew Swinehart, lived and died. John learned the carpenter's and cabinet maker's trades, which he followed in the Keystone State, and there married Christina Cruber, a native of the same township, a mountain separating their homes. On locating in Perry county, Ohio, in 1802, they had one daughter--Sarah-who became the wife of George Onsbaugh, and there died. Their family later numbered fourteen children, those living to adult age being as follows: Peter, who died in Perry county; Jacob, who died in Wyandot county, Ohio; Elizabeth, who married Jacob Coaperiole, and died in Perry county; Catherine, who wedded Jerome Stalter, and died in Wyandot county; Jonathan, who died in Portage township, Wood county; Samuel, who died in Perry county; Daniel, who died in Fulton county, Ind.; Juda, now Mrs. Jacob Lawrence, of Wyandot county; George, a farmer of Sandusky county; and Andrew, the father of our subject. When the last named was only fourteen years old his father died; his mother survived her husband many years, and they were both buried in St. Paul's church cemetery, in Hopewell township, Perry county. Andrew Swinehart, the father of our subject, was able to attend school only a short time, as the family was large and the parents poor, and while young he learned the trade of a plasterer. He was married in Hopewell township, Perry county, September 30, 1847, to Miss Lydia A. Stimmel, who was born there July 13, 1824, and is the daughter of Peter and Margaret (Lutz) Stimmel, who were married in Maryland, and Mrs. Swinehart was the oldest in their family of twelve children, six sons and six daughters. Mr. Stimmel, who was a farmer by occupation, died in 1864, while his wife was burned to death when past the age of ninety years, and they were both buried in Thorn township, Perry county. For ten years Mr. Swinehart made his home on his father-in-law's farm, during which time he worked at his trade, or at day's labor, and for the following six years rented a house and garden of James Parks, in Hopewell township, much of the time being employed by that gentleman. On coming to Bloom township, Wood county, in December, 1864, the family located on a farm belonging to the father's brother, though he had previously purchased land in Section 35, that township, where he built a log house into which the family moved March 28, 1865, it being the first home they ever owned. The farm then comprised forty acres of swamp land, the water being so deep in some places that a horse would be compelled to swim across, but the land has been transformed into fertile fields. In politics the father is a Democrat, but voted for Abraham Lincoln and supports the man whom he thinks best qualified for office, regardless of party affiliations. He and his wife are members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. Peter P. Swinehart is the oldest in the family and he was followed by nine others born in Perry county, namely: Margaret A., born January 10, 1850, died on the 1st of March following; Christina E., born January 16, 1851, first wedded William Slater, and is now Mrs. Patrick Campbell, of Gloucester City, N. J.; Lydia A., born January 22, 1853, died on the 18th of April following; Catherine E., born May 29, 1854, is now the wife of David Wiker, of Bloom township; Andrew J., born May 30, 1856, died September 15, of the same year; John A., born October 25, 726 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. 1857, died April 17, 1859; Susanna H., born September 4, 1859, is now Mrs. Nathan Denhoff, of Bloom township; Sarah Jane, born September 17, 1861, is the wife of George Parson, of North Baltimore; and Jacob H., born September 12, 1863, is also a resident of North Baltimore. Two sons were added to the family after coming to Wood county-George F., born October 19, 1865, lives in North Baltimore; and Noah A., born March 4, 1869, is at home. In the primitive schools of his native county, Peter P. Swinehart obtained most of his education, which was completed in Wood county by attending a school taught by W. S. Richard, but failing health compelled him to lay aside his studies. He remained at home until the age of twenty-seven years as his help was needed in the development of the farm. At Findlay, Ohio, in December, 1875, was celebrated the marriage of our subject and Mrs. Staley, widow of John Staley. She is of German parentage, and bore the maiden name of Eva Helfrish. They have become the parents of three children-Oliver A., Charles H., and Matthias B. At the time of his marriage, Mr. Swinehart owned eighty acres of land in Section 23, Bloom township, two head of horses, a mule, a plow and a drag. He had agreed to pay $2,000 for his land, and on that amount had to pay fifteen per cent,, interest, but he went resolutely to work and soon had the indebtedness removed. On locating there only ten acres had been cleared, but now sixty acres have been placed under the plow, and a comfortable dwelling has replaced the log house which was then standing, while everything about the place denotes the thrift and enterprise of the owner. He had previously owned a sawmill in Henry township, and in the spring of 1894 established a feedmill near Bloom Center, which he is now successfully conducting. He was reared a Democrat, but voted with either of the larger parties until becoming disgusted with their practices, when he joined the Greenback party, but is not strictly partisan, voting as his judgment dictates. Mrs. Swinehart is a member of the Lutheran Church. WILLIAM H. LEVERS was born December 17, 1825, in Franklin county, Penn., and is a son of William S. and Elizabeth (Light) Levers. The father was born on the ocean, while his parents were crossing the Atlantic, from Switzerland to America, on May 8, 1772. The grandfather, Abraham Levers, was a banker in Switzerland in comfortable circumstances. He with his wife and daughter came to the New World, and made Philadelphia the place of their residence. William S. Levers, when a child of nine years, was bound out to a man in Lancaster, Penn., where he remained until twenty-two years of age. In early life he learned the weaver's trade, and afterward became a successful veterinary surgeon. He married Elizabeth Light, who was born in Dauphin county, Penn., and in 1845 brought his family to Ohio, his death occurring in Seneca county, May 27, 1851. His wife died near Brookfield, Stark Co., Ohio. Their children were David, who died in Brookfield, Ohio; Isaac, who died near Upper Sandusky, Ohio; Sarah, who was married and died in Illinois, leaving ten children; Solomon, who died in Wooster, Wayne Co., Ohio; Elizabeth, who became the wife of John McDowel, and died in Wooster; Joel, of Chippewa township, Wayne county; Daniel, who is living near Fulton, Ohio; Susan, wife of Ephraim Baker, of Michigan; Mrs. Liddy Hirschy; and William H., our subject. Mr. Levers, of this sketch, was educated in the public schools of Franklin county, Penn. When a young man he learned the trade of a stone mason and plasterer, which pursuit he has followed more or less since that time. He was married May 9, 185o, in Fulton, Ohio, by Rev. Hartley, to Miss Liddy Vernon, who was born February 20, 1826, in Philadelphia, and is a daughter of Thomas H. and Mary (Ekoff) Vernon, also natives of Philadelphia. The parents both died on a farm near Bowling Green. Mr. and Mrs. Levers took up their residence in Brookfield, Ohio, but a year later removed to a farm in that locality, on which they lived for two years. They afterward spent two years on a farm in Wayne county, and subsequently lived for one year on a farm near Tiffin, Ohio, and afterward near Hedgetown, Ohio. Going to Sandusky county, Mr. Levers there worked at his trade for two years, and in 186o he came to Wood county, settling at Bowling Green. During the years passed there he made the first improvements upon a twenty-acre tract of land, which he had purchased. He cleared and drained this, built thereon a rude log ca. bin, and continued the work of improvement and cultivation until he now owns a valuable farm. To Mr. and Mrs. Levers have been born the following children-William T., born February 20, 1851; Isaac Newton, born October 28, 1852, now an oil man of Liberty township; Mary Matilda, who was born June 17, 1855, and is the deceased wife of Joel Reeves; Emily Anna, born May 11, 1857; Liddy Ann, born October 10, 1858, now the wife of Richard Ducat, of Wood WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 727 county; Daniel Webster, born May 11, 1861, a farmer of Liberty township; Viola Belle, born August 30, 1863, now the wife of William Errett; Izora, born May 10, 1865, now the wife of Wilbur Hansen; and Precida Louisa, born February 17, 1869, now the wife of George Hansen. Our subject has always been a stanch Republican in politics, and served for four years as trustee, while for many years he was township clerk of the school board. He belongs to the Methodist Church, and is a charitable and benevolent man, who is ever ready to extend a helping hand to the poor and needy, and to aid others less fortunate than himself. He owes his own success entirely to his energy and good management, and may truly be called a self-made man. EDWARDS. BRYANT, of Bloomdale, the wellknown lieutenant-colonel of the 2d Regiment, O. N. G., of which one company is the famous Bloomdale Rifles, and a prominent business man of this county, was born July 12, 1853, in Pittsfield, Lorain Co., Ohio. His father, John W. Bryant, was a student at Oberlin College, where he met Miss Elvira Harmon, a descendant of one of the pioneer families of Lorain county, to whom he was married about 1847. Three children were born of this union: Warren C., Edward S., and Charles H., all of whom reside in Bloomdale. Our subject's father was a man of great natural ability and wide culture. He practiced law successfully for some years, and then having purchased the Banner, of Albion, Ind., he assumed editorial charge and soon made it a power in political circles. He died at Albion in 1857, and was buried there amid the sincere mourning of a wide circle of friends. Mrs. Bryant was married again, this time to Mr. Barnes, of Wellington, Ohio, but after his death she moved to Bloomdale, where she died in 1888, her remains resting in VanBuren cemetery. Left fatherless at the age of four years, the subject of this sketch found a home with a man named Chet Smith, of LaGrange Center, Lorain county, and later with Bishop Bradley, of Pittsfield, doing such work at each place as his years permitted, and attending the district schools. At twelve he became an errand boy in the confectionery establishment of Henry Weisgerber, at Cleveland, and was soon advanced to a more responsible position. After three years he returned to Pittsfield, where his mother then lived, and began to study telegraphy at Oberlin, walking three and a half miles to and fro each morning and evening. Four months later he entered the office of the L. S. & M. S. R. R., at Oberlin, as an apprentice, and not long after was made night operator there. Later he held the position of operator at Wauseon, Ohio, and Ligonier, Elkhart, Goshen and Kendallville, Ind., and then resigned from the service of the L. S. & M. S., receiving a letter of recommendation which made it easy for him to secure similar work elsewhere. For some years he was in the employ of the Pennsylvania R. R. Co., first at Crestline, Ohio, and then in Columbia City, Ind., and South Chicago, Ill., and when the B. & O. R. R. was completed to Chicago, he became their first operator there, remaining nine months. By this time he had become weary of the routine of office work, and prepared himself to add the duties of station agent, his first assignment to the double duty being at Cromwell, Ind. On December 13, 1875, he opened the first telegraph office at Bloomdale, holding also the position of agent in the newly established depot. November 25, 1877, he was married to Miss Effie Wineland, a native of Hancock county, and a daughter of Daniel Wineland, a prominent business man of Bloomdale, and the senior member of the firm of Wineland Bros., operators of a sawmill there. Col. Bryant took an interest in this business, and, by the introduction of improved machinery, gave it new life, the trade increasing until he found it necessary to give up his position with the railroad. For some time he carried on the sawmill alone, until Joseph Linhart, and later S A. Linhart, joined him, the firm name from 1881 to 1883 being Bryant & Linhart Bros. Since the retirement of Joseph Linhart the firm has been Bryant & Linhart, a name distinguished throughout trade circles for enterprise, progressive methods, and fair dealing. Col. Bryant is interested in many lines of business, and is a charter member of the Bloomdale Building and Loan Association, and an incorporator of the Diamond Oil Co., chartered in July, 1895i the first to be organized in Bloomdale. Col. and Mrs. Bryant have always taken a prominent place place in the social life of Bloomdale. They have had three children: Detie, born September 23, 1879; Alma, born March 28, 1881, died at the age of two; and Clyde, born May 7, 1885. Politically Mr. Bryant is a Republican, and has served as chairman of the Wood county central committee. He is one of the chief counsellors of his party in this vicinity, and, although he seeks no favors for himself, the success of more than one candidate has been due to his efforts. Col. Bryant's connection with the renowned Bloomdale Rifles of the O. N. G., which he was Thomas & Mary Goodenough 728 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. active in organizing, has given him a wide acquaintance in military circles. He served five years as captain, and had been re-elected for another term, but in April, 1893, he was elected to his present rank. He belongs to the F. &A. M., Fostoria Lodge, to the I. O. O. F., and is a charter member of the K. Of P., 278, Bloomdale Lodge, where he has served in all the chairs; is colonel of the U. R. K. of P., 6th Regiment, headquarters Bowling Green, and is U. S. Deputy Marshal, Toledo District. W. H. BENN, deceased, was one of the honored pioneers of Washington township, where he was widely and favorably known. He was a native of New York, born on January 12, 1832, and was one of the seven children of John and Elizabeth (Moore) Benn, the others being George, a veterinary surgeon, of Toledo, Ohio; Elizabeth, widow of James Bogers, of Toledo; Hannah, wife of S. Sharpiot, of Toledo; John, deceased; Elias; Emily, wife of Allen Drues. The parents removed with their family from the Empire State to Huron county, Ohio, but afterward carne to Wood county, where they located on a farm of eighty acres in Plain township. There they spent the remainder of their lives. In the schools of Huron county, Ohio, W. H. Benn pursued his literary studies, and remained under the parental roof until he had attained his majority, assisting his father in the operation of the farm. When old enough he also worked as a farm hand for others. In 1845 he left Huron county, coming with his father to Plain township, Wood county, where he worked in a sawmill. In 1865 he bought a farm of forty acres in Washington township, which he improved and operated, and as his financial resources increased, added to it thirty acres more, all of which he placed under a high state of cultivation, making it one of the best farms in the locality. Neat and substantial buildings were erected thereon, and the whole place indicated the progressive spirit of the owner. Feeling that his country needed his services, he enlisted in 1861 in Company A, 144th O. V. I., under Capt. Black, and participated in all the engagements in which his regiment took part, being always found at his post of duty. In Plain township, in July, 1856, was celebrated the marriage of W. H. Benn and Rhodie Hogue. To them were born two sons, James and John, who now make their homes in Cleveland. The mother died of consumption on August 18, 1863, after which Mr. Benn was again married in 1865 at Tontogany, his second union being with Martha Brown, a daughter of J. B. Brown, a cooper, of Sugar Ridge. They became the parents of seven children, but two died in infancy. They are as follows: Charles W.; Jennie, wife of William Lennard, of Washington township; Addie, wife of Thomas Custer, an oil operator; Cora; William H., who resides on the homestead farm; and Emma and May, twins, who have passed away. Mr. Benn took an active interest in school matters, serving four years as school director, and also held other offices in the township, including that of supervisor. A Democrat in politics, he gave his earnest support to the principles of the party, and his religious connections were with the Presbyterian Church. An honest, industrious man and highly respected citizen, his death was deeply regretted by all who knew him. He passed away in Washington township. THOMAS GOODENOUGH, a wealthy farmer of Weston township, was born in Wiltshire, England, December 10, 1845, his parents coming to this country, in 1849, when he was four years old. They settled at Greenfield, Huron Co., and there he received his education in the common schools. When old enough our subject learned the trade of a blacksmith, which he followed for three years, and then learned the boiler maker's trade at Brownell's boiler works, in Dayton, Ohio. He was employed there until 1873, when he came to Plain township, this county, and bought ninety acres of land. This he improved, but subsequently sold, and removed to Weston township, purchasing the Ward farm of 100 acres. This property Mr. Goodenough has placed under a high state of cultivation, draining, tiling it, and otherwise making it a model farm. He has erected a comfortable residence, .and has one of the best barns in the county, which cost $1, 500, also a grain barn which was built at a cost of $500, and a fine windmill. He has a small orchard of choice assorted fruit trees set out, and, taking all in all, the place is one of the best arranged and most complete in the township. Mr. Goodenough was the first boiler maker in Wood county, and followed his trade, at the same time managing his farm, for seventeen years, being known, also, as the most extensive hog raiser in the county. He experienced many of the hardships of pioneer life in his early days, and, among other experiences, tells of the time when, for a year, he was a sailor on the great lakes, sailing most of the time between Grand Haven and Manistee, Mich. He is a man who WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 729 has worked hard, has been energetic and saving, and well deserves the prosperity which has crowned his efforts, and enabled him to spend the remainder of his life in ease and comfort. Mr. Goodenough was married, April 14, 1877, to Miss Mary E. Dotts, of Bowling Green, Ohio, and three children have blessed their union: Hattie, born August 14, 1878, wife of George Gloor, a farmer in Milton township ; Robert, born March 3, 1881 ; and Thomas S., born March 24, 1889. Mrs. Goodenough's parents were Jacob and Ann (Battin) Dotts, the former born about 1816, in Pennsylvania, the latter in 1817, in Columbiana county, Ohio. They were married in Ohio, and had seven children: John Y., a farmer; Eli B., who enlisted in the Civil war, in Company K, 111th O. V. I., and died in hospital; Osborn S., a farmer in Defiance county, Ohio (he was also a soldier in the Civil war, serving with the 130th O. V. I.); Jefferson S., who is a farmer in Weston township; Sarah P., deceased; Mary E., born November 29, 1855, at Bowling Green, wife of our subject; and Cynthia M., wife of S. Johnson, a farmer near Weston. In politics our subject is a Republican, and was for five years supervisor of Plain township. He served as clerk of the school board for nine years, and was also a member of the township school board in Sub-District No. 9. He is a Master Mason, belonging to Lodge No. 560, F. & A. M., at Weston. The family are all respectable citizens. Mr. Goodenough is a self-made man, and he is highly respected and esteemed in the community, where he is regarded as a most worthy citizen. WILLS. BAIRD. The subject of this personal sketch is one of the successful and progressive farmers within the borders of Bloom township, and one of the representative men of this section. He has made his special field of industry a success, and highly esteemed and respected by those who know him best. He is the second child in the family of Shelman and Keziah (Locy) Baird, and was born in Perry township, Wood county, December 17, 1852. Mr. Baird was educated in District No. 4, of his native township, and remained under the parental roof until eighteen years of age, when he hired out as a farm hand; previous to this time, however, he had begun to learn the carpenter's trade, but not liking the business he gave it up. Later he resumed carpentering, working one season for C. J. Updegraff. On April 18, 1878, he wedded Miss Addie Pelton, who was born in LaGrange, Lorain Co., Ohio, August 14, 1861, and is a daughter of James and Lydia (Beaumont) Pelton. On coming to Wood county, her parents first located in Bloom township, later moved to Perry township, and died at North Baltimore, Ohio. On Section 18, Perry township, Mr. Baird began housekeeping, having scarcely any furniture or cooking utensils, and those he had, being second-handed. He later purchased a cow, span of horses, and a buggy. At the end of a year he removed to his father's farm, which he cultivated on the shares for nearly two years, when he went to Bloomdale, there being employed as a laborer by Bryant & Linhart for the same length of time. During that time he was able to save enough money to purchase two lots, and he built a house in Bloomdale, which he sold in 1883, removing to Section 16, Perry township, where he rented a house and a small piece of ground, while he worked in the sawmill of his father-in-law. In the spring of 1884, Mr. Baird purchased eighty acres of land in Section 13, Bloom township, from Andrew Emerine, for which he went in debt $1, 800, and the first season, which was very wet, his crops failed; but he did not allow himself to become discouraged, hoping for better days. Fortunately he had purchased his place of a gentleman who was very lenient with him, and instead of forcing the payment of $200 annually, he allowed the debt to go for three years without any payments. Our subject secured outside work which enabled him to earn considerable, and as his land was further developed it became more productive. It is now entirely free from debt, and in 1895 a substantial home was erected thereon. With the exception of twenty acres, the land has all been cleared, thoroughly tiled and drained, and now bountiful harvests yield a ready return for the care and labor expended-upon the place. Mr. Baird and wife may be properly classed among the self-made citizens of Wood county, who, by the exercise of their own industry and perseverance, have not only gained for themselves a home, but have materially assisted in the progress and development of the country around them. They have always enjoyed life, taking many pleasures that others in their circumstances would have probably denied themselves. His first vote was cast with the Democratic party, later he became a Prohibitionist, and is now a Republican, though not bound by party ties, voting for the best man regardless of politics. He is a charter member of West Millgrove K. of P. Lodge, No. 445, while himself and wife are active members of the Disciples Church. 730 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. F. E. WHITKER, a well-known grocery merchant of Bowling Green, a member of the firm of Bankey & Whitker, is a strictly first-class business man, reliable and energetic. He was born at Weston, Wood county, November 2, 1867, and is the offspring of excellent stock of stanch German ancestry, his paternal grandfather having come from the Fatherland. He located near Pemberville, Wood county, where John Whitker, the father of our subject, was reared. At Toledo, Ohio, was celebrated the marriage of the latter and Miss Elizabeth Matzinger, a native of Switzerland, who had come with her people to the New World and located in that city. After their marriage the parents made their home at Weston, where the father engaged in the lumber business for ten years, and then removed to his present farm, two and a half miles northwest of that village. Our subject is the oldest child, the others being Lillie, John, Maggie, Abbie, Alice, May and Mertie. In the place of his nativity, Mr. F. E. Whitker grew to manhood, and attended the public schools there until January 1, 1884. On laying aside his text books he became a clerk in the store of H. C. Uhlman. In 1893 he came to Bowling Green, where he entered business as a co-partner in the firm of Bankey & Whitker, and they have become the leading dealers in groceries, crockery and queensware in the place. On June 15, 1892, Mr. Whitker was married to Miss Maude Royce, who was born November 29, 1871. Socially, he holds membership with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Royal Arcanum. In business, he is energetic and trustworthy, and has gained the confidence of the people by his honesty and integrity. ABRAHAM COEN, a well-known retired agriculturist of Bowling Green, was born in Knox county, Ohio, July 27, 1817. His father, William Coen, was a native of Pennsylvania, but came early in life to Knox county, where he was engaged in farming many years. He was married near Wheeling, W. Va., to Miss Sarah Brokaw, who was born in New York State, in 1800. In religious belief, they were Presbyterians, and they exemplified their faith in faithful, practical, right-doing. Their later years were spent in Hancock county, where our subject's mother died in 1840. His father died in 1853, at the age of sixty-six. They had nine children, five of whom are yet living: (1) Cecelia, deceased, formerly Mrs. Robert Black, of Tontogany; (2) Ann, Mrs. I. S. Wilson, of Coles county, Ill.; (3) Abraham, our subject; (4) John, a prominent resident of Bowling Green; (5) Margaret, deceased, formerly the wife of John Gray, of Cloud county, Kans. ; (6) James, deceased, a resident of Indiana; (7) William, a wellknown citizen of Bowling Green; (8) Ebenezer, of Wood county, Ohio, fell in the battle of Monocacy, in the Union army; (9) George Coen, of Indiana. Mr. Coen lived with his parents in Knox county until the age of fourteen, when they moved to Hancock county. His early education was obtained in a log school house near his home, and his time was mainly devoted to farm work and getting out logs for the market. On August 28, 1838, he married Miss Sarah Hall, who was born December 30, 1818, in Harrison county, Ohio. The first years of their married life were passed in Hancock county, but in 1849, they came to Plain township, Wood county, and bought a farm, which they cultivated until the development of the oil industry in that locality resulted in the opening of four wells upon their estate. A few years ago they moved to Bowling Green to enjoy the fruits of their labor, and here Mrs. Coen sank into the unbroken repose of death, December 20, 1894, after over fifty-six years of married life. Eleven children were born to them, six of whom grew to adult age: (1) Harriet married Andrew Rush, of Bowling Green, and both died, leaving a family of five children-Flora, Erva, Benham, Boyd and Newell. (2) Mary married Henry Goodenough, a leading citizen of Plain township, whose biography appears elsewhere in this volume; five children were born to them-May, Ruth, Sarah, Harry A., and Walter. (3) Aaron died as the result of exposure and hardship in the army. He was a member of Company C, 21st O. V. I., and had re-enlisted at the end of his first term, when his health gave way and he was sent home. (4) Nancy married Thomas E. Adams, of Findlay, Ohio. (5) Delilah is the wife of A. Chapman, of Bowling Green. They have four children-Fred, Anna, Arthur and Ralph. (6) Rachel married William Hopper, of Plain township, and has three children-George, Perry and Virnil. Mr. Coen is a prominent member of the Presbyterian Church, and politically is a Republican. His first vote was cast for William H. Harrison. He is a man of remarkably fine physique, and has usually weighed 220 pounds, his " working weight." His declining years are free from care, but the passing away of early associates brings of necessity the chill of loneliness, and a longing for reunion. Notwithstanding the esteem of later friends, and the affection of his children he " is Samuel Case WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 731 like a giant oak, which, having outlived the storms which laid his companions low, no stands alone. " PETER KRAMP, a retired agriculturist, now residing at Bowling Green, was born in Nassau, Prussia, January 17, 1835. His parents both died when he was quite young, and no record of them has been kept. He was one of six children, the others being Adam, a miner, who die in Germany, at an advanced age; David, who also lived to an old age, and died in Germany Elizabeth married Philip Schid, and died in Germany; Jennie married Henry Menor, and died in the old country; Catherine is the twin sister of our subject, married Ernest Gross, and lives in Germany. When Mr. Kramp first came to America, in 1854, he took passage in a sailing vessel, an was thirty-two days in making the voyage. In 1894, when he visited his sister in Germany, h made the trip in eleven days, and the return trip in ten days. After the death of his parents, our subject an his sister were reared by their eldest brothel Mr. Kramp attended the public schools, and at an early age worked at and learned the tailor trade. When he came to America, he landed in New York, and thence went direct to Sandusky City, Ohio. At the end of the journey he we indebted four dollars to a friend who had assisted him to reach his destination. He worked on a farm at first, for six dollars per month, and after wards for $16o per year, until he got married After his marriage he rented a small farm in Erie county, Ohio, the owner of the farm furnishing a team to do the plowing and heavy work, Mr Kramp being able only to furnish a horse to do the light work. His wife was a great help to him, and through her assistance and economy, a the end of a year they were able to buy a team, and then rented a larger farm, upon which the lived until they came to Wood county, in 1869. At this time they had saved $1,000, which the paid on an eighty-acre tract in Plain township which they had purchased for $4,000. After living on this land for eight years, Mr. Kramp exchanged it for 160 acres in the same township which he yet owns. There are about fifteen producing oil wells on this farm, which yield a comfortable income to the owner. He removed from his farm to Bowling Green about three years since, and has built a comfortable residence in the west part of the village, where he now lives in contentment and quiet enjoyment. He was married, February 22, 1861, to Miss Christiana Seel, who was born in Germany, November 13, 1840. Twelve children were born to them, as follows: (1) Henry, now living on his father's farm, born November 13, 1861, married Miss Ida Plowright, and has six children, viz.: Ralph, Mabel, Lena, Clarence, Wallace and Esther. (2) William, born May 18, 1864, married Miss Lydia Wright, and has three children, viz.: Floyd, Leah and Lucy. (3) Philip Peter, born June 7, 1866, married Miss Ada Hartman, and has two children, Edna and Merle. (4) Frederick, born May 22, 1868, died December 9, 1891. (5) Peter, born July 17, 1870, married Miss Vallie Pulse, and has one child, May. (6) George, born August 13, 1872, married Miss Ettie Wright, a sister of his brother William's wife, and has one child, Burl. (7) Louise, born December 9, 1874, died February 9, 1875. (8) Charley, born January 15, 1876, was married in 1895 to Miss Mattie Borland, who died in 1896; one child was born to them, but is now dead. (9) Christiana, born April 11, 1878, lives with her parents. (10) Edward, born April 10, 1880, and (11) John A., born May 28, 1882, reside with their parents. (12) Reuben, the youngest, was born September 2, 1885. Mr. Kramp belongs to the Evangelical Association, and in politics is a Prohibitionist. He is one of the representative citizens of Wood county, and is enjoying the reward of a well-spent, industrious life. WILLIAM NELSON is a representative farmer of Center township, where he owns a fine farm of 25o acres. His operations have been marked with uniform success, and in addition to being a thorough and skillful agriculturist, he is a business man of more than ordinary capacity, wise and judicious in his investments, and taking advantage of the facilities afforded at this day and age by improved machinery, and all the other appliances, required by the modern tiller of the soil. Mahoning county, Ohio, was the earliest home of our subject, where he was born June 30, 1820. His parents, James and Sarah (Evenings) Nelson, were natives of Buffalo Valley, Union Co., Penn., where the father engaged in farming until coming to Wood county to make his home with his son. Here his death occurred in 1873, and his wife, who had preceded him to the world beyond, died in 1865. In their family were ten children, named as follows: Jane, Liddie, Jonathan, Katherine, William, James, Mary, John D., Sarah and Jesta. William Nelson received his education in the district schools, while his farm training was re- 732 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. ceived on the old homestead. At the age of fourteen years he began selling goods on the road, which occupation he continued to follow for sixteen years, during which time he managed by strict economy to save enough money to purchase 160 acres of land in Hancock county, Ohio. A portion of the farm had been placed under cultivation, and to its improvement he devoted his time and attention until 1865, when he disposed of that property and removed to Missouri, remaining there a short time. Coming back to Ohio, he located in Center township, where he bought 10o acres, half of which had been improved. He cleared the balance, and as his financial resources increased, added 150 acres to his farm. Starting out in life with very little capital-in fact, nothing but his strong hands and resolute will-the present condition of Mr. Nelson, socially and financially, reflects great credit upon him, both as an agriculturist and a business man. In August, 1852, Mr. Nelson was married in Hancock county, the lady of his choice being Miss Rebecca Bowman, who was born March 20, 1830, and is a daughter of Henry Bowman, a prominent farmer of that county. Eight children were born of this union, all of whom survive, and in order of birth-are as follows: James L., born July 23, 1853, is a farmer, and, by his marriage with Ellen Shinew, has eight children; William H., born July 26, 1855, carries on agricultural pursuits in Gratiot county, Mich. ; Sarah E., born January 4, 1858, is the wife of Thomas Shinew, a farmer of Portage township; Liddie E., born August 31, 1860, is the wife of James Davis, a contractor and builder, of Plain township, Wood county; John A., born May 24, 1864, is a farmer living on the homestead; Louisa J., born October 10, 1866, is the wife of George Crom, a farmer of Michigan; Elmert, born August 7, 1868, married Della Stacy; and Emma R., born November 28, 1872, is the wife of Arthur Vermillia, a farmer of Henry county, Ohio. Mr. Nelson still resides upon his farm, which is now conducted by his son John, but has laid aside business cares, resting in the enjoyment of the fruits of his former toil. He has liberally aided his children in securing good homes, and to all objects for the good of the community, he has been a cheerful and liberal contributor. His early education was quite limited, but his natural intelligence and habits of observation have served to keep him well informed upon matters of general interest. He is politically at true-blue Republican, and there are few people held in higher esteem than William Nelson and his excellent wife, who has been his faithful and sympathizing companion for upwards of forty-four years. SAMUEL CASE, one of the most highly respected and influential citizens of Bowling Green, was born in Wayne county, Ohio, March 25, 1832. His great-grandfather, Joshua Case, was born either on Long Island or in Connecticut, and was a farmer by occupation. He reared a family of six children, of whom Augustus, our subject's grandfather, was born . July 17, 1759, on Long Island, was there married and removed to New Jersey in 1792. Augustus Case raised six children, two of whom were born in New Jersey, after which the family removed to Greene county, Penn. The father was a soldier in the Revolutionary war, and received a pension until the time of his death, which took place in Wayne county, Ohio, in 1852, he having reached the advanced age of ninety-three years. The record of his children is as follows: Anna married John Culberson, and they removed to Lawrence county, Ill., where she died; Samuel Y. comes next; John B. died in Indiana; Elizabeth married William Kean, of Wayne county, Ohio; Onesimus died in Wayne' county; and Joshua died in Wayne county when thirty-two years old. All of those deceased left families. Dr. Augustus Case, of Miami county, Ind., is a son of Onesimus, and Harvey B. Case, of Loudonville, Ohio, is a son of Joshua. Samuel Y., the father of our subject, was 'born September 22, 1796, in Sussex county, N. J., and, as will be seen, was two years of age when, in 1798, the family removed to Pennsylvania. In 1814 he came with his father to Wayne county, Ohio, where he was married, August 20, 1817, to Jane Eakright. The young couple at once settled on a farm in Plain township, Wayne county, which had been given to Mr. Case by his father, and which was their home for forty-five years, and until the death of the husband, which took place in 1870. Mrs. Case was born in Monongahela county, Penn., in 1795, and after the death of her husband made her home with our subject until 1876, when she, too, passed away. This worthy couple were both lifelong members of the Methodist Church, with which body they had worshiped over sixty years. A church was built upon their farm, which was named for them, and in the burying-ground adjacent many members of their family are laid to rest. Nine children were born to Samuel Y. Case and his wife, of whom the following mention is made: Milton B. died at Grand Junction, Colo., WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 733 March 29, 1896; he reared a family of sixteen children. Augustus B. died in Cass county, Neb., in 1865. Youngs C. died in Bowling Green March 22, 1894. Reason B. lives on a part of the old farm in Wayne county. Aaron B. was a farmer in Schuyler county, Mo., where he died in 1886. John B. is a farmer in Sheridan county, Neb. Samuel, our subject, comes next. Elizabeth J. is the wife of M. A. Faws, of Bowling Green. W. H. H. died near Lyons, Colo., December to, 1885. The subject of this sketch spent his early days on his father's farm in Wayne county, and when eighteen years old began teaching school, which, in connection with farming, he carried on until he was twenty-eight years old, in the meantime, however, also attending school for two terms in Loudonville, also the O. W. U. at Delaware. After his marriage in 186o he engaged in the mercantile business for one year at Big Prairie, Wayne county, afterward proceeding to Crestline, Crawford county, where he conducted a dry-goods store for six years. He then removed to Portage, Wood county, keeping a store there for one year, when, in 1868, he took up his residence in Bowling Green, and, in connection with Addison Fay, opened a store which they conducted some four years. Our subject then sold out his interest, and spent some time in traveling, after which he bought land on Liberty Prairie, in this county. In 1874 Mr. Case was elected auditor of Wood county, on the Republican ticket, and served seven consecutive years, after which he engaged in the real-estate business, to which he has devoted the most of his attention up to the present time. For two years he was the secretary of the Bowling Green Natural Gas Co., in which he had an interest, and has been largely interested in the production of oil and the development of the oil field in his county. He received ninety-seven votes in the Republican State Convention, held in Columbus in 1881, for member of the Board of Public Works, and was only defeated because of his location. Mr. Case was married September 6, 1860, to Miss Mary E. McMahon, who was born May 23, 1840, in Jeromesville, Ashland Co., Ohio. Of this union four children have been born, namely: Laura May, who married Rev. Lemuel Lee Warner; he died December 19, 1888, at Genoa, leaving two children-Marie L. and Donald C. Myron L. married Agnes Boyd; he is cashier of the National Bank at Dunkirk, Ind.; this couple have one daughter-Marjorie. Rosella C. is the wife of Rev. Elmer E. McCammon, pastor of the Methodist Episcopal Church at Marysville, Ohio; they have two children-John W. and Myron B. Samuel R. married Kate, only child of Dr. Whitehead; he is a merchant tailor in Bowling Green. Mr. Case has been an important factor in the growth and development of the city and county, where he has made his home for so many years, and has always used his influence to promote their best interests. He took an active part in raising the subscription for the building of the T. & O. C. railway through Bowling Green, and has materially assisted in various other public enterprises. He was a member of the school board some eleven years, and a justice of the peace for one term in Plain township. He has been a consistent member of the Methodist Church since sixteen years of age, and his upright, honorable life is an example which any young man would do well to follow. He possesses the love and esteem of all who know him, and wields a powerful influence for good throughout the community, NATHAN HOWARD MILLS, one of the leading and honored citizens of Wood county, prominent in business, political and social circles, was born in Perry county, Ohio, June I, 1862, and is a son of Greenbury Mills. His father was born in Maryland, August 19, 1823, and when a boy left his native State, removing with his parents to Perry county, Ohio, the family locating on a farm near New Lexington. Before the war the father of our subject removed to Hancock county, where he was employed as a farm hand for a few years. There he was married in 1843, and soon after returned to Perry county, where he resided until 1862, when he went with his family to Hancock county, taking up his residence near Findlay. In 1871 he carne to Wood county, and purchased forty acres of wild land in Jackson township. Part of the town of Hoytville now stands upon this place, and the first grocery store there was built upon the father's land. Mr. Mills at once began to clear and improve his farm, and some years later erected thereon a comfortable dwelling, which he made his place of abode until his death, which occurred April 12, 1895. Mrs. Mills died August 17, 1891. She was a kind and faithful wife and mother, and dearly beloved by all who knew her. She was an active worker in the Christian Church, and the father also held membership with that Church. In politics he was a stanch Democrat, and was an honored and esteemed citizen. Mr. and Mrs. Mills had a family of eleven children, namely: Mary, wife of T. J. Down- 734 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. ham, of Jackson township; John T., a farmer of Jackson township; Delilah Jane, wife of W. M. Clarke, of Arkansas; Catherine, wife of John Eaken, of Hoytville; James E., a carpenter of Hoytville; William H., of Swanton, Ohio; Liddy M., wife of A. P. Kiger, of Hoytville; Nathan H.; Lucinda H., wife of John Embrey, of Athens county, Ohio; Henry C., of Hoytville; and Sarah, who died at the age of sixteen years. Our subject was only a year old when the family removed to Hancock county, Ohio, and a child of eight when they came to Wood county. He acquired his education in the district schools of these two counties; but at the age of fourteen left the school room to learn the harder duties of of practical business life. He then entered the employ of the Dewey Stave Company, with which he has since been connected, working his way steadily upward, until since April, 1892, he has served as superintendent. Fidelity to duty is numbered among his chief characteristics, and was the secret of his advancement. In Hoytville, on October 27, 1882, Mr. Mills married Miss Amy C. Wall, who was born February 4, 1862, in Hancock county, Ohio, daughter of Henry B. and Mary Jane (Green) Wall. They now have three children-William W., Mabel G., and Arnold E. They began their domestic life in Hoytville, Mr. Mills erecting a home close to his place of business, and there resided until June, 1895, when he sold his dwelling and removed to the old homestead. His business career has been one of success, and he now has considerable capital out at interest. In his political affiliations he is a stalwart Republican, and in 1895 was elected mayor of Hoytville, but his pressing business duties forced him to resign. He has served as councilman for two years, and in all possible ways has promoted his county's welfare. He belongs to the Knights of Pythias fraternity, has filled all of the chairs, and represented the local lodge in the Grand Lodge. He also holds a life insurance policy in the Endowment Rank, K. P., and is secretary of Section 1,498. He has been dependent entirely upon his own resources since the age of fourteen years, and is the architect of his own fortune. Upon the solid foundation of diligence, enterprise, and sound judgment, he has erected the superstructure of success, and to-day is a substantial citizen of the community. DAVID H. WIRICK, who has lived retired in Jerry City since the spring of 1891, is one of the successful self-made farmers of Wood county. He is a native of Ohio, born May 15, 1835, in Monroe township, Richland county, son of Henry and Catherine (Spade) Wirick, who had a family of ten children-seven sons and three daughters. Henry Wirick was born in Pennsylvania, and learned the trade of cabinet maker in Baltimore when a young man. He was married in Pennsylvania, where he lived for a time, moving from that State to Ohio in pioneer days, and locating in Richland county, where his wife died. He subsequently removed to Wyandot county, this State, where he passed his remaining days, dying at the home of his daughter Sarah; he and his wife rest side by side in the cemetery in Monroe township, Richland county. Mr. Wirick was a soldier in the war of 1812. He was a Democrat in politics, and in religious faith was an adherent of the Swedenborgian Church. Our subject was the sixth child and fifth son of his father's large family. During his boyhood he attended the subscription schools then in vogue in the home neighborhood, and received a thorough training to agriculture under his father, working at home until he reached his majority. On commencing life for himself he worked for from three shillings to fifty cents a day and board. On November 18, 1859, he was married, in Richland county, to Mary A. Smith, a native of that county, who was born November 15, 1834, daughter of John H. Smith, and the following spring the young couple came to Wood county, where they commenced housekeeping. They made the trip by team, and on their arrival located on an eighty-acre tract which he had purchased, situated in Section 8, Bloom township, and which cost $800. Mr. Wirick paid down $200 of this amount, and settled the remainder in installments of $50, so it will be seen that he did not have an over-abundance of capital with which to begin. The land was timber covered, and the five acres which had been partly cleared, were, if anything, in a worse condition than the remainder. A log cabin was the only dwelling on the place, and they commenced in true pioneer style, Mr. Wirick working steadily until he had transformed the place from a wilderness to a fertile, productive farm. In 1888 he had an attack of ''la grippe," which undermined his health so much as to unfit him for active labor, and he has since lived retired, having removed to his pleasant home in Jerry City, in the spring of 1891. He acquired a comfortable competence, and was able to give to each of his two sons an eighty-acre farm. To David H. and Mary A. Wirick were born three children, viz.: Francis M., who is a farmer of Bloom township; Laura C., who died WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 735 in infancy; and Charles, who is also a farmer in Bloom township. The mother of these passed from earth April 9, 1870, and was buried in Bloom Chapel cemetery, and Mr. Wirick wedded, for his second wife, Mrs. Lavina Edgar, widow of Hector Edgar, and daughter of John Davis, of Henry township, Wood county. She died June 3, 1880, without issue, and was laid to rest in North Baltimore cemetery. December 28, 1882, Mr. Wirick was again married, this time, in Bloom township, to Mrs. Sarah (Boyd) Swope, a native of Jackson township, Seneca county; no children have come to this union. Mr. Wirick is a most highly esteemed citizen, and he is as well liked for his kindness of heart as for his integrity and industry. Possessed of good common sense and judgment, he was an influential man in his community, and served as trustee and constable in Bloom township. He is a Democrat in political faith, but usually votes for the best man, regardless of politics. WILLIAM H. MINTON, one of the pioneers of Wood county, now an honored resident of Plain Center, Plain township, was born March 7, 1828, in Morris county, N. J., where his ancestors had settled at an early period. His grandfather, Nathan Minton, was a soldier in the war of 1812, and his great-grandfather, Isaac Johnston, was a soldier in the Revolutionary war. His father, Jacob Minton, was born February 26, 1796, and was in early life a wagon maker. He married Miss Philetta Willison, also a native of New Jersey, born September 27, 1798, and, in 1834, they moved to Ohio, traveling part of the way by water. They stopped for a short time at Fort Miami, and then after a few months at the old missionary station on the banks of the Maumee river, twenty miles above Toledo, they settled upon land in Plain township, Wood county, where they established their home in the clearing. They were both members of the Presbyterian Church, of Morristown, N. J. (Rev. Albert Barnes, pastor), but after coming west they united with the Plain Congregational Church, of which they remained throughout life, faithful and active members. Before the war issues arose, Mr. Minton, Sr., was a Whig, and then became a Republican, and later joined the Prohibition party. He died April 6, 1884, followed two years and a half later by his wife, who breathed her last on the eve of her eighty-eighth birthday. They had eight children: Hannah M. (deceased) married Martin Warner, of Tontogany, now an elder in the Presbyterian Church; Robert B. died in Carlinville, Ill., and was a professor in Blackburn University at the time of his death; Nathan W. lives in Washington county, Ky.; William H.; Sarah (deceased); Martha B. is the wife of Luke Carr, of Bowling Green; Jacob was a soldier in the Civil war in Company H, 67th O. V. I., and was killed at Fort Wagner; Phileta died when four months old. Our subject, who is the fourth child of this family, spent his boyhood upon his father's farm, and attended the neighboring schools. Later he studied for one year in the academy at Castalian Springs, Tenn. On October 23, 1850, he married Miss Sallie S. Woodbury, who was born in Falmouth, Mass., December 15, 1832. Their seven children are all living. Benjamin H. is a photographer at Bellevue, Huron county; he married Miss Eliza Clark. Alice J. married Fred Smedley, of Berea, Ohio, who is a graduate of Oberlin College and a photographer, and has four children-Grace, Ruth, Clifford, and Bessie. Lillie C. married Henry A. Ross, of Caldwell, Kans., and has four sons-Minton, Harry, Marshall, and Elbert. Charlotte M. is the wife of Thaddeus W. Heermans, a machinist of Evanston, Ill.; they have two childrenThomas and Miriam. Henry M. is a captain in the Salvation Army in the Hawaiian Islands. Jacob D. lives in Enid, O. T.; he married Miriam Lee, of Kansas City, and has one son-Harvey L. Mabel married Edwin Munn, of Portage, Ohio, and has one child-Lelia F. Mr. Minton served his country during the Civil war by enlisting in Company B, 144th O. V. I. Both he and his wife are members of the Plain Congregational Church, with which Mr. Minton united at the age of fourteen. He is a prominent Prohibitionist, and has been a delegate to several State conventions, and his integrity and devotion to his principles win the respect of even political opponents. IRA B. BANKS, deceased. The subject of this sketch, formerly a leading business man of Wood county, was born in New York State December 4, 1826. He came west early in life, locating first in Woodville, Sandusky county, and, later, on a farm near by, at what is now known as Banks' Corners. In 1864 he came to Wood county, and started a mercantile business at Pemberville, which in 1865, he moved to Weston, where a few years afterward Mr. H. C. Uhlman became his junior partner. The business was confined to general merchandise, and finally limited to dry goods. Mr. Banks was an active agent in the development of trade in his vicinity, and his 736 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. sterling qualities of mind and heart made him friends wherever he was known. His death, which occurred October 21, 1891, was widely mourned by a wide circle of acquaintances. His mother (who resides at Elmore, Ohio), his wife and five children survive him. He was a member of the Presbyterian Church, and had for many years given generous support to its work. In politics he was a Republican, and he belonged to Phoenix Lodge, F. & A. M., at Perrysburg. Mr. Banks was married, in Fremont, Ohio, to Miss Jemima Smith, who was born in Essex county, N. J., August 10, 1834. She was the daughter of John and Catherine Smith, who came from New Jersey to Ohio in 1851 and settled near Woodville, where their last days were spent. Mrs. Banks still resides in Weston, and with her sons conducts the old business under the firm name of I. B. Banks Co. Her eldest son is Fred J. (2) Bradley D., born March 26, 1858, was educated in the Weston schools, and for some time clerked for his father-in 188o taking a one-half interest in the hardware business. In 1884 he assumed charge of the branch hardware store at McClure, Henry county; but four years later sold out and returned to Weston. He is non-partisan in politics, and, fraternally, is a member of the F. & A. M. (3) George R., born October 20, 1862, was educated in the Weston schools. He has been connected with the store from boyhood, clerking there prior to his father's death. At that time, having been appointed executor of the estate, by his father's will, he took full charge of the business, which he has ever since conducted with eminent success, -and in a manner highly creditable to himself. He is a stockholder in the Exchange Bank, and, though yet a young man, is regarded as a leader in business circles. Politically he is a Republican, and is at present serving his second term as village treasurer. Socially, he is a member of the K. O. T. M., at Weston. (4) John B. is in the furniture and undertaking business at Perry, O. T. (5) Julia is the wife of L. E. Long, of Deshler, Ohio. The Banks family have always been noted for sound business judgment and a spirit of enterprise, and the present generation. are worthy representatives of the old stock. LEWIS DIENST, one of Wood county's prominent farmers, and residing in Portage township, was born on a farm in Upper Canada, December 10, 1834. His father was born in Germany, and when a young man crossed the Atlantic to Canada, where he met and married Miss Barbara Unsicker, also a native of Germany, who came with her parents to America during her early girlhood. He died when our subject was a young lad, leaving but two children: Lewis, and Daniel, who is now engaged in farming near Lincoln, in Platte county, Neb. The mother afterward became the wife of Nicholas Dienst, and our subject has always borne the name of his step-father. Six children were born by the second union, namely: Eliza, wife of Rufus Sumner, of Trumbull county, Ohio; Nicholas, a mechanic and farmer living in Portage township, Wood county; Mrs. Barbara Jones, of Akron, Ohio; John, a farmer of Kansas; Henry, an agriculturist of Michigan; and one that died in infancy. Our subject was only about two years old when he accompanied his mother and step-father to the United States. They made their way to Cleveland, Ohio, thence to Sandusky, county, and subsequently removed to Lucas county. The year 1847 witnessed their arrival in Wood county, and they located in the town of Portage, where Mr. Dienst, Sr., purchased a house and lot. He was a tailor by trade, and followed that business throughout the greater part of his life. He passed away in Portage many years ago; his wife died in 1854. The educational privileges which Lewis Dienst received were very limited. He was fourteen years of age before he began to learn the alphabet; then walked a quarter of a mile to the home of Henry Hoskins, to receive instruction, and subsequently attended the schools of Portage. Through experience and observation 'he has become a well-informed man, but is self-educated as well as self-made. He began to earn his living by working as a farm hand for Collister Haskins, at $6 per month and board. His wages were afterward increased from time to time until, on attaining his majority, he was receiving $14 per month and board. He remained in the employ of Mr. Haskins fifteen consecutive years. Trustworthy and reliable, he had the unqualified confidence of that gentleman, as is well indicated by his long service. He then operated the farm on shares for a few years, after which he purchased forty acres of prairie land in Liberty township, continuing its cultivation some four years. The labors of Mr. Dienst were then interrupted by his service in the Union army. On August 6, 1862, he enlisted at Portage, in Company K, 111th O. V. I. During his service he was once slightly wounded, but remained until the close of the war, and took part in every engagement in which his regiment participated. He received a wound in his left shoulder at the battle of Franklin, Tenn., and several times his Lewis & Elizabeth Dienst WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. -737 clothes were pierced with bullets. He served as sergeant, and was promoted from first sergeant to second lieutenant, April 12, 1864, and was first lieutenant at close of the war, or when his regiment was discharged. The war having ended, he was mustered out at Cleveland, Ohio, July 27, 1865, and at once returned to his home. In the fall of 1861, in Trumbull county, Ohio, Mr. Dienst was united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth Shaffer, and to them have been born four children: Albert, who became a conductor on the Baltimore & Ohio railroad, lost his health through exposure in that service, and died (a Christian man) at the age of twenty-four; Altha A. is the wife of Curtis Munn, of Portage, Ohio; Jennie E. is the wife of John Friend, of Rudolph, Ohio; one child died in infancy. Before going to the war Mr. Dienst sold his first farm, and in the fall after his return he purchased 128 acres in Portage township, a wild and unimproved tract, but with characteristic energy he began its development. His first home was a log cabin, 16 x 20 feet, which he helped to build during his boyhood. He now has a large and comfortable frame residence, and a well-improved farm of fifty-two acres, having sold the remainder of the property. He also owns 392 acres of land in Sheridan county, Kans., situated within two miles of the county seat, Hoxie (in this vicinity Albert L. Dienst pre-empted seventy-two acres, and it was there he died). Success has attended his enterprising efforts, and his prosperity is the just reward of his labors. In politics he is a stalwart Republican. He has been offered various offices, but declined to serve, though he acted as assessor some four years, has been school director of the corporation for nine years, and was councilman for several years. The cause of education, and all interests calculated to improve the community, receive his support, and he is a valued and esteemed citizen of Wood county. He holds membership with the United Brethren Church, with which his wife and children are also connected. MRS. MARY J. BECK, wife of A. D. Beck, was born in Beaver, (now Lawrence) county, Penn., on April 30, 1837, and is a daughter of Robert and Mary (McCarter) Mackey. Her father was a farmer of the Keystone State, and in 1850 drove across the country to Wood county, Ohio, locating on a new farm of 16o acres in Section 18, Bloom township. He continued to clear and cultivate his land until his death, which occurred November 16, 1871, and on the same farm his wife died November 28, 1874, being interred in Whitacre cemetery. In their family were the following children: (1) Daniel, born February 20, 1822, died in Lawrence county, Penn. (2) William, born July 13, 1825, died in Pennsylvania at the age of four years. (3) Alexander, born March 4, 1827, makes his home in North Baltimore, Ohio. (4) James, born July 5, 1829, died in Bloom township, Wood county, in 1861. (5) Robert, who makes his home in Perry township, was born April 17, 1831, and for twenty-seven winter terms and one summer term engaged in teaching, while for fifteen years he conducted a sawmill. (6) Joseph, of Fannin county, Texas, was born December 22, 1832, and served throughout the Civil war as a member of the 9th Ill. Cav. (7) Mary J. is the next in order of birth. (8) John, born February 28, 1840, resides in Putnam county, Ohio. The political affiliations of the father were with the Democratic party. On July 12, 1864, was celebrated the marriage of A. C. Russell and Miss Mary J. Mackey. The former was born in the Empire State, in 1838, and was a son of Norman Russell, an early settler of Perry township. He engaged in farming in Perry township until 1881, when he removed to Van Zandt county, Texas, where, in November of the following year, he died, and his remains were brought back and interred at West Millgrove, Ohio. On December 18, 1887, in Texas, Mrs. Russell became the wife of A. D. Beck, who was born in Washington county, Ind., June 19, 1831, son of Andrew and Susan (Diven) Beck. The father was born in 1800, in North Carolina, and when only eight years old was taken by his father to Washington county, Ind., where the latter was one of the honored pioneers. In 1852 Mr. Beck went to Texas, but the following year returned to Lawrence county, Ind., where he wedded Catherine Horsey, by whom he had four children-Susan, now Mrs. Kemp Morley, of Greenville, Texas; Emma, wife of John Roberts, of Van Zandt county, Texas; Clara, who died in childhood, and John, of Van Zandt county. The mother passed away December 1, 1866, in Martin county, Ind. In October, 1864, Mr. Beck enlisted from Indiana, in Company B, 31st Ind. V. I., . and served nearly a year. He had again married in his native State, and in 188o removed with his wife to Texas, where she died. He was again married, in the Lone Star State, but this wife died there about ten months after their marriage. In 1888 Mr. and Mrs. Beck returned North, locating in Perry township, Wood Co., Ohio, and here have a good farm of 100 acres, which he is successfully operating. A large willow tree, which 738. - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. stands on this farm, has grown from a little riding whip, brought from Perrysburg, nearly sixty years ago. Mr. and Mrs. Beck have a large circle of friends, who hold them in the highest esteem and confidence. Mrs. Beck has no children of her own, but is rearing a little niece, Mary Mackey, the daughter of Joseph Mackey. In politics Mr. Beck is an ardent Democrat, and he is a member of the Disciples Church. LEWIS C. . CAROTHERS, a well-known and highly esteemed hotel-keeper, of Rudolph, was born in Portage township, Wood county, May 23, 1844, and is the son of Francis and Elizabeth (Garthwaite) Carothers. Francis Carothers was born in Pennsylvania, and was there married, October 17, 1815, to Miss Margaret Fitzsimmons, who was born February 20, 1788. She died in November, 1839, and was buried in Sargent cemetery. His second wife (the mother of our subject) was the widow of Pascal Besanson. She and Mr. Carothers were married August 5, 1841, in Wood county. Mr. Carothers died five years later in Portage township, and was buried in Sargent cemetery. Mrs. Carothers died in 1881, and was buried in Portage township. She always lived on the home farm, in Portage township; in religious faith she was a Presbyterian. Mr. Carothers took a prominent part in all matters pertaining to the county, and was associate judge and assessor of Wood county. In fulfilling the duties of the latter office he was obliged to go over the entire county. The children by his first wife were: James H., born November 18, 1816, died in California in 1878; William R., born January 1, 1818, died in Portage township in 1883; Samuel, born November 16, 1820, died in California in 1873; Nancy J., born February 18, 1823, died in April, 1852, unmarried; Eleanor, born February 14, 1825, died September 10, 1849; David N., born August 7, 1827, followed the sea all his life, traveled all ,over the world, and ' ° came home to die " ; Mary Margaret, born April 1, 1830, married William Brokaw, and died October 9, 1882, in Galion, Ohio. By the second wife two children were born: Francis, September 22, 1842, died May 28, 1845; and Lewis C., our subject. Lewis C. Carothers was reared on the farm near the village of Portage. In 1862, he enlisted in Company D, 111th O. V. I., under Capt. J. E. McGowen. The regiment's first engagement was at Huff's Ferry, Tenn. Mr. Carothers participated in all the battles of his regiment, being with it continuously, with the exception of two weeks, until his discharge in June, 1865. The war now over, he returned to his home on the farm. When oil was discovered in Pennsylvania. he left home to work in the oil-field there. For a year he worked at the business until he had done all kinds of work that was to be done in the field, except the dressing of tools (at that time the driller was below the tool-dresser in rank). Returning to the farm, he remained until October, 1872, when he went to California, and embarked in the sheep business. Pleased with the prospects before him, he returned home at the lapse of a year and married a lady well known to the teachers of Wood county, she having taught for five years in the county. Miss Rose Call now becomes the happy Mrs. Carothers. On the loth day of November, 1873, they are married, and on the same day started for the Pacific Coast to become partners in the sheep business, as well as all affairs pertaining to their future life. During the drouth of 1874-75 (nineteen months without a drop of rain), the sheep business became a general failure, and Mr. Carothers lost so heavily that he was forced to give up the business. In farming, however, and other work, he gathered a little means; but getting badly hurt by being thrown from a horse, which accident unfitted him for business for the time, he decided to return to the home farm once more, and care for his aged mother and brother, now very anxious for his return. In 1878 he again finds himself on the old homestead. Two years later his mother died, and three years later his brother William followed, leaving Mr. Carothers the only representative of his father's family. On his farm he remained until the spring of 1892, when he took up the management of the Ruth-Miller farm, in Portage township, near Mermill. He farmed this place for three seasons, then embarked in the hotel business at Rudolph. To Mr. and Mrs. Carothers have come the following children: Herbert L., born in Tulare county, Cal., September 7, 1874, died in same place, February 3, 1876; Frank L., born in Pacheco, Cal., March 20, 1878, died at Portage (on farm), February 23, 1891; William G., born June 12, 1881, and Leonard V., born February 26, 1886, both at home; and Jessie M., born October 24, 189o, died July 23, 1894. Politically, Mr. Carothers had always been a Democrat until 1884, when his great interest in the temperance reform led him out of the old party, and he declared himself, out-and-out, for Prohibition. His wife is an ardent lover of the W. C. T. U., and has been for years a faithful worker in the cause of temperance. They are members of the WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 739 Christian Church. Mr. Carothers is of a genial nature, and his kind-hearted wife is a woman of noble character. They carry on their business in a very commendable and successful manner, and are highly spoken of by all who have the pleasure of their acquaintance. PROF. W. G. ELLIOTT, a prominent educator of Wood county, and one of the leading citizens of Bloomdale, was born in Loudon township, Seneca Co., Ohio, November 7, 1860. His family is of English origin, his great-grandfather, Samuel Elliott, having come alone from England when a boy. He married, and reared a family of six children: George, Samuel, Joseph, Susan, Winnie and Lydia. Joseph Elliott, our subject's grandfather, was born near Fredericksburg, Md. He married Eleanor McKenny, who was born in the United States of Irish parentage, and had nine children: David, Frederick, Augustus, William, James, Ann, Susan, Eliza, and Melvina, all of whom lived to adult age. He was a successful farmer in Maryland until 185o, and then moved to a fine farm near Little Washington, Rappahannock Co., Va., where he and his wife lived to a ripe old age. David Elliott, our subject's father, was born near Fredericksburg, January 31, 1824. He had but limited education, as the subscription schools of the locality only furnished instruction in reading and writing, and, while his parents were comfortably situated, they could not afford the cash needed for schooling elsewhere. He lived at home until after the removal of the family to Virginia, and in 1851 started for California in search of wealth, but impelled chiefly by a dislike for slavery. The only employment open to him was the guarding of negro slaves, and these he often allowed to escape. He stopped in Missouri, where he spent about a year, but the total severance of old ties of friendship proved too painful. A former neighbor, Mrs. Sarah Updyke, and her family, had settled in Seneca county, Ohio, in April, 1853, on an eighty-acre tract, and this fact led to a visit, in September, 1853, to that locality. He was married there, on October 4, 1853, to Miss Lydia A. Updyke, who was born in Rappahannock county, Va., October 20, 1826. She was one of a family of seven children: Rufus, who died in Fairfield county; Susan, who married Christopher Santemyer, and died in Bloom township, Wood county; Elizabeth, the widow of George Worley, of Bloom township; Lydia A. (Mr. Elliott's first wife); Jane, who died in Virginia at eighteen years of age; Mahala, now the widow of Caleb Worley, of Montgomery township; and Mary E. (Mrs. Elliott). Mr. Updyke died in 1840, and his widow kept a home for the family until her children were all settled in life, when she sold the farm and lived with her children. Her death occurred in Bloom township in 1894 at the age of ninety years. After his marriage David Elliott located upon forty acres of land near his wife's family, where he remained until 1866. His first wife died February 13, 1855, leaving one child-Marshall H., born January 15, 1855, now a farmer in Bloom township. Mr. Elliott was married April 17, 1856, to Miss Mary E. Updyke, a sister of the former wife, born in Virginia, January 18, 1833. Four children were born of this union : Mary A., June 26, 1857, who is at home; William G., our subject; Sarah E., January 29, 1862, now Mrs. George W. Markwood, of Perry township, and David F., April 2, 1864, a resident of Ionia county, Mich. In April, 1866, David Elliott sold his farm and came to Wood county, purchasing forty acres in Bloom township, to which he added until he owned 160 acres, which he sold in 1887 for $15,000. In September, 1887, he moved to Perry township, and bought 100 acres, where he made his home. He was a tall, robust man, and until five years before his death, which occurred September 5, 1891, he had enjoyed the best of health. He was a Republican in politics, but sympathized strongly with the Prohibition party. He never allowed his name to be presented as a candidate for office. He and his wife were prominent members of the U. B. Church to which he gave liberally both of money and time, holding many different offices. His widow still lives at the homestead, passing her declining years free from care and highly respected by all who know her. W. G. Elliott was a boy of five years when he first came to this county, and the district schools of Bloom township gave him his first draught at the well of knowledge. Their facilities were very limited, however, and when he had finished the common branches, they could do no more for him, and his later extensive knowledge of the higher branches was obtained by private study.. He attended Fostoria Academy (Prof. Jackson, principal) for four months. His first teaching was in 1880, in the Kimberlin school, in Weston township, and he has since become one of the best known instructors in the county, holding the position of superintendent of schools at Bairdstown, Bloomdale and Millbury. His information is accurate, and covers a wide range of modern thought, and it has been, won by his almost unaided efforts. He is WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 740 peculiarly fitted to understand and smooth away the perplexities of other students. In the fall of 1893 he was elected superintendent of schools for Perry township, which position he held for three successive years, and is the only official of that rank in Wood county who succeeded in holding that position for more than one year. He is a shrewd business man also, and, as executor of his father's will, he displayed excellent management. From 1890 to 1893, he was engaged in the grocery and queensware business in Bloomdale, and erected a fine business block with two store rooms, and this building he still owns. In 1893, Mr. Elliott began the study of law, under the tutorship of Hon. Benjamin F. James, of Bowling Green, Ohio; in April, 1896, he entered the law school at Ada, Ohio, where he was admitted to the Senior class, from which institution he graduated with honors, and was admitted to the bar to practice in the Ohio courts, June 25, 1896. He is at the present time completing the postgraduate course in law from the same institution. He is a stockholder in the Bloomdale Building and Loan Association. He was married October 12, 1887, in Genoa, Ohio, to Flora A. Shaner, a native of Perrysburg, and a daughter of Wesley Shaner, of Genoa, Ohio. She is a lady of rare ability and culture, a member of the M. E. Church, and was a teacher before her marriage. With the exception of a few years in Millbury, their home has been in Bloom township. They have had three children: Ruth L., born January 4, 1890, died June 1, 1892; Howard W., born October 13, 1892; and Marion E., born February 24, 1895. In politics Prof. Elliott is a, stanch Republican, and his first vote was cast for James G. Blaine. He has always been an active worker in the ranks of his party. He is a member of the K. of P. Lodge No. 278, Bloomdale. ABRAM HYTER, a prosperous agriculturist and sawmill operator of Montgomery township, is one of the most respected citizens of his locality, and he and his estimable wife have been identified with many progressive movements-social, religious and charitable. He is a native of Carroll county, Md., where he began his earthly pilgrimage June 4, 1829. His parents were Jacob and Margaret (Koontz) Hyter. They came to Ohio when our subject was very young. and his early years were passed in Seneca county as a pioneer farmer's boy with only the district schools, often times two miles distant, to supply his thirst for knowledge. His time was mainly spent at home until his marriage, April 26, 1855, in Tiffin, Ohio, to Miss Mary Stewart, who was born in Lycoming county, Penn., November 8, 1830, the eldest child of Thomas D. and Fannie (Riddle) Stewart. In 1838 they came to Seneca county, Ohio, where Mrs. Stewart died in 1843; and in 1854, Mr. Stewart located in Perry township, Wood county, where he passed his remaining years. Mrs. Hyter, for three years before her marriage, taught in the district schools, her salary being sometimes as low as $10.00 a month, and of course, "boarded round." Mr. Hyter bought forty acres of land in Perry township, upon which little clearing had been done, and here they began housekeeping. The land was very wet and sadly in need of ditching. A year later they returned to Seneca county, and Mr. Hyter there rented land of his father-in-law, for a time; but in 1859 he purchased ninety-five acres in Section 11, Montgomery township, and removed thither, occupying a log cabin which, with a small log stable, was the only building on the place. There were but a few acres of cleared Land, and the ensuing years were full of toil; but he prospered, and now has 135 acres of land, with fine buildings and improvements. In the spring of 1871 he went to Genoa, Ohio, and remained until the spring of 1881, during his stay there conducting a wooden-bowl factory. For several years past he has engaged in the sawmill business, and his success in acquiring a competence demonstrates his business ability. Mr. and Mrs. Hyter have had six children Anna F., who married E. R. Kirk, of Ottawa county, Ohio, and has one son; Jennie A., who died in childhood; Nellie C., who married A. A. Stump, of Bradner, and has three sons; Charles E., a resident of Bradner, married Jennie Clark, and has two sons and one daughter; Schuyler C. married Gail Hamilton, and has one daughter (they live in Bradner), and Inez G. is at home. The parents are leading members of the M. P. Church, of Bradner, in which he now holds the office of trustee. Mrs. Hyter is a woman of noble character and fine mentality, whose helpfulness in varied lines of work has done much for the locality. She is a valued member of the Woman's Relief Corps, and of the Rebekah Lodge. Mr. Hyter belongs to the I. O. O. F. at Genoa. He has been a Republican from the formation of the party, and has taken an active share in the local work, serving as township trustee for six terms, and for some time as member of the Bradner District school board. He holds an interest in fourteen oil wells, nine of which are on his own land. Abram Hyter WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 741 JONAS FRY. The early pioneers of the great State of Ohio are becoming few in number. The years which have seen the wonderful development and growth of the country where they built their log cabins in the dense forests, or on the wide stretch of uncultivated prairie, have also seen their hair become silvered and their stalwart form bend beneath the infirmities of old age. But they have the satisfaction of knowing that, by their industry and toil, patient endurance of privations, and hardships, and unbounded faith in the future of the magnificent country about them, they have made the State what it is-one of the greatest in the Union. Among the early settlers of Wood county is to be found the citizen whose name introduces this sketch, and who is entitled to share in the . gratitude of the present generation for the part he has taken in developing the resources of this section: After a busy life full of useful activity Mr. Fry is now enjoying a wellearned rest in a beautiful house in North Baltimore, having moved there, in 1891, from the farm whereon his youngest son is now living. Our subject was born in Lehigh county, Penn., July 10, 1825, the youngest of the five children of Adam and Catharine (Sourwine) Fry, both natives of Pennsylvania, of German extraction. The father of our subject came, in 1828, to Trumbull county, Ohio, where he purchased a farm in Jackson township. Here he lived until the death of his wife, who was eighty-two years of age at the time, after which event he made his home with his children until his death, which occurred when he was eighty-four years old. Jonas was reared to manhood in Ohio, attended the district schools, and assisted his father upon the farm until his marriage, May 24, 1849, with Miss Elizabeth Greenawalt, who was born December 11, 1829, in Schuylkill county, Penn. Her father, Peter Greenawalt, and mother, Elizabeth (Kistler), were both born in Pennsylvania, and died when she was an infant. She is the youngest of six children, and the only one now living. To Mr. and Mrs. Fry came seven children, as follows: (1) Sylvester A., born March 4, 1850, married Miss Sarah Fackler (who is now deceased), and had eight children-Emma V., Allen T., Effie A. (deceased), Elizabeth E., Cora May (deceased), Altie A. (deceased), Vemba L. and Sarah Hallie. (2) Elizabeth, born May 26, 1852, is the wife of J. W. Cole, and has had ten children-Cora A., Charles J., William E. (deceased), Oscar H. (deceased), Jonas Lloyd, Mary E., Maggie May, Nancy P., Florence M. and John W. (3) J. W., born January 16, 1855, married Miss Charlotte E. Graham (now de- . 742 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. last and his faculties unimpaired. His wife lived to ninety years of age, and they were interred side by side in Scott township, Sandusky county. He left a fortune of $50,000, at his death, which had been acquired through his own industry and judicious investments. There was always a blacksmith shop on his farm, and for many years he did his own work; but later he bought and sold paper and managed his real-estate interests. He took great interest in the success of the Democratic party, in which he was a prominent worker, being often called upon to act as chairman of meetings. Our subject was one of eight children: Sabra, the widow of Elias Jewel, of Du Page county, Ill.; Stephen, a resident of Risingsun; Luther C., our subject; Phoebe, Mrs. Henry Phillips, of Scott township, Sandusky county; Cynthia, who married John Rinehart and died in Indiana; Lucy, who married Walter Butler, and died in Sandusky county, Ohio; Harriet, Mrs. Sylvester Phillips, of Scott township, Sandusky county; and David, a resident of the same township. Luther C. Winchell was born August 9, 1836, at the old home in Lake county, and was reared as a farmer boy. His health was poor, and his attendance at the district schools was somewhat interfered with, his brothers and sisters having much better advantages than he in that respect, some of them fitting themselves for teaching. The family has a reputation for mental ability, and Mr. Winchell's own efforts in later years have made good his early lack of training. In August, 1862, he was married in Montgomery township by John Norris, J. P., to Miss Jane Baker, who was born January 20, 1847, in Findlay, Ohio, the daughter of Henry and Mary (Spangler) Baker, both of whom were natives of Pennsylvania, and of German descent. They died at the home of our subject, the father at the age of eighty-five and the mother at eightyseven, and were interred in Scott township, Sandusky county. Mrs. Winchell was the youngest of a family of nine boys and two girls, and never attended school after she was twelve years old. After his marriage Mr. Winchell rented a farm in Jackson township, Sandusky county, from his father, and, although he bought a tract of fifty-six acres, he remained at his first home until April, 1869, when he. came to a farm in Montgomery township. In 1871 he moved to his present residence in Risingsun. He carried on a mercantile business there for some years, buying and selling stock, grain, produce, fruit, and other commodities, and dealt also in notes to a considerable extent. Since 1891 he has been largely interested in the oil business, and aside from his valuable realty in Risingsun, which includes a residence and business property, he owns 32o acres of land elsewhere. An active man physically and mentally, his enterprises receive his personal attention, and to this fact may be due his success in rising from limited circumstances to the possession of about $50,000. He is a liberal contributor to Church and charitable purposes, and his family has always been prominent in the social life of the village. Of three children, only one is now living. Phoebe married George H. Baker, and died in Toledo; Rose is the wife of Rev. William Wagner, a Baptist minister at VanWert, Ohio; William Franklin died October 4, 1892, in his twenty-fourth year. Mr. and Mrs. Winchell are members of the Church of God, and he helped to build their edifice, and has served as elder, trustee, and superintendent of the Sunday-school. In principle Mr. Winchell now sympathizes with the Democratic party in State and National questions, but his first vote was cast for Abraham Lincoln. In local polities he votes for the best man, regardless of party. He has been a member of the village council, has served as street commissioner, and, since the new school house was built, has been director and treasurer of the board of education. JACOB J. SNYDER, to whom success has come as the reward of well-directed efforts, is one of the leading farmers of Wood county. His father, Daniel Snyder, was born in Germany, November 11, 1818, and when a young man came to the United States with his parents. He was married in Liverpool, Medina Co., Ohio, to Miss Eppley, by whom he had one child, Christina, now the wife of August Ehnes, of Toledo, Ohio. In Medina county, Daniel Snyder married, for his second wife, Eva B. Swartz, who was born in Wurtemberg, Germany, in June, 1820, a daughter of Frederick Swartz, who came to the United States in 183o, and settled in Liverpool township, Medina county, where he died of typhoid fever three years later. About 1850, Daniel Snyder removed to Troy township, Wood county, where he now owns a desirable farm of 100 acres, which he has developed almost entirely from the wilderness. He has made his own way in life entirely unaided, and is an industrious, energetic man, of sterling worth. Politically he is a Democrat, and religiously a devout Lutheran. His wife died April 24, 1892, and lies buried at Luckey, Ohio. Their children are: Catherine, wife of Jacob Metzger, of Perrysburg township; Frederick, of Perrysburg township; WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 743 Daniel, of Lake township; John, of Cleveland; Elizabeth, wife of James Briggs, of Troy township; Jacob J., of Montgomery township; and Lucian, of Troy township. Two children, Julia and Mary, died in infancy in Medina county. Jacob J. Snyder was born in Troy township, April 8, 1858, and acquired a fair English education in the district schools. He was reared on his father's farm, and early became familiar with all the labors connected with its development. On April 23, 1885, in Stony Ridge, Ohio, he was joined in wedlock with Mary Magdalena Burkin, who was born in Baden, Germany, January 18, 1862, a daughter of Jacob and Catherine (Joseph) Burkin, who came to the United States in 1866, making the voyage in four weeks on the sailing vessel "Kimball." They located first in Erie county, Ohio, and removed to Webster township, Wood county, when Mrs. Snyder was twelve years of age. The mother died in Sandusky, Ohio, August 3, 1895, and the father is still living in Webster township. They had thirteen children, of whom three sons and six daughters reached adult age. Mr. and Mrs. Snyder have two children-Amelia, born March 9, 1886, and Samuel H., born July 18, 1888. In October, 1884, Mr. Snyder purchased forty-two acres of land in Section 6, Montgomery township, and has since made that farm his home. It was in poor condition, but with characteristic energy he began its development and improvement, and his earnest labors, perseverance and capable management have converted it into a good property, and have brought to him a comfortable competence. He votes with the Democratic party, but has never sought or desired office. Both he and his wife are members of the Lutheran Church at New Rochester, and are people whose many excellencies of character have gained for them the high regard of all with whom they have been brought in contact. FRANK P. KING is the sole proprietor of an extensive livery establishment in Prairie Depot, and one of the leading men in his line in Wood county. Thorough and systematic in the management of his interests, he has made his way to success, and he early won recognition of his ability in business. Samuel King, his grandfather, was born early in this century in New York State, of Yankee parentage, and, when a young man, became a pioneer farmer of Sandusky county, Ohio. He was married there, in 1828, to Miss Mahala Imes, by whom he had seven children : William, our subject's father; Sarah, who married Addison Lansdale, and died in Prairie Depot, in December, 1895; Jasper, a resident of Chicago, Ill.; Hugh, who died in infancy; Mary, Mrs. Samuel Whitmore, of Constantine, Mich. ; Harriet, Mrs. Daniel Garn, of Three Rivers, Mich. ; and Jackson (deceased), formerly a resident of Jackson township, Sandusky county. The mother of this family died in 1845, and Samuel King was married, the second time, in Woodville township, Sandusky county, to Mrs. Mary Bixler, nee Moore, the widow of Adam Bixler. She had two children by her first marriage: Minerva, now Mrs. Howard Carmon, of Prairie Depot, and Cary, of Three Rivers, Mich. Eight children were born to the second union: John S., who lives in San Jose, Cal. ; James P., in Gratiot county, Mich. ; Laura P., who died in infancy; Charles C., who is prominent in Isabella and Midland counties, Mich., has been sheriff of his county, and is an active worker in the Republican party; Edward H., an artist, in Grand Rapids, Mich.; Ella R., who married Charles Saunders, a minister of the Adventist Church, at Battle Creek, Mich. (she teaches in the college of that denomination); and Franklin and Emma, who died in infancy. Samuel King was a fine specimen of physical manhood, over six feet in height, and weighing at one time 240 pounds. He was a capable business man, industrious and systematic, and was a leader among the early settlers in his vicinity. Previous to the war he was a Democrat, but he loved the Union, and became a strong Republican. Starting in the woods as a poor boy, he was obliged to make the best of the inconveniences of primitive life for himself, and he often used strips of hickory bark for traces on his harness, burying them while he went to dinner in order to keep them moist. He succeeded in life, and was worth $20, 000 at the time of his death, which occurred in April, 1865, at the age of sixty, after a lingering illness of two years which puzzled the medical fraternity and baffled their skill. ' He was laid to rest in the cemetery at Clyde, Ohio. After living at the old home three years, his widow removed to Clyde, but in 1895 she went to Battle Creek to reside with her daughter. William King was born in Jackson township, Sandusky county, in 1829, and was reared as a farmer boy. He attended the schools of the neighborhood at times, but, being the eldest son, he was put in the harness at an early age, his father finding a plentiful supply of work for him, and he developed into a stout, robust young man, of practical ideas. He adhered to the principles of the Old-line Democratic party. In 1851 he WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 744 was married, in Sandusky county, to Miss Susan Lesher, a native of the same locality, who was born February 27, 1830, the daughter of Daniel and Fanny (Cain) Lesher. They settled upon an estate near the old home, the " Brindel Farm," which Mr. King agreed to purchase from the heirs, but an attack of typhoid fever caused his death in December, 1854, after a brief illness, cutting short a career which had promised to be unusually successful. His remains were interred at Clyde, and his widow returned to her own relatives, who had removed in the meantime to Prairie Depot. There she lived until her marriage to John M. Adams, of Montgomery township. Of the two sons born to her first marriage, our subject is the eldest, and the other, William, born in October, 1854, is now a liveryman in Pemberville, Ohio. Frank P. King was born January 27, 1853. He lived with his grandfather, Daniel Lesher, until the age of seventeen, when he began to work on his own account at such labor as his youth would permit. He showed great aptitude in the management of horses, and finally secured employment in the livery barn of an uncle, James Lesher, at Toledo, receiving a good salary. On October 10, 1874, he married Miss Lucy Sage, daughter of Edward R. Sage, a well-known resident of Montgomery township, and four children were born of this union: Eddie, who died at the age of four years; Bert H., Charles and Carrie S. For one year after his marriage, Mr. King remained at the home of his father-in-law, and then bought a home in Prairie Depot, to which he removed. For five years he followed teaming, at the end of that time renting a farm near Prairie Depot belonging to E. R. Sage. After a short residence there he purchased a one-half interest in a livery stock with J. O. Hess, and embarked in the enterprise which he now conducts with such gratifying results. Mr. Hess- sold his interest three years later to A. Lesher, who, in 189o, sold out to Mr. King, leaving him the sole owner. The business has shown constant increase from the time Mr. King became interested in it, and in 1895 he bought the property, which is near the business center of the village, and measures 8x 16 rods. His barn is large and well arranged, and he keeps an average of fourteen head of horses. Mr. King is regarded as one of the substantial citizens of his locality, and while he is no officeseeker, he has served as constable of Montgomery township, supervisor in the corporation of Prairie Depot, and for two years as 'a member of the village council. On State and National questions he is an unwavering Republican, but in local politics he at times supports a good man of another party. Socially he belongs to the I. O. O. F,, and he is a charter member of Petroleum Lodge No. 499, at Prairie Depot. W. C. HARRIS, a successful fruit raiser of Ross township, is among the stalwart and substantial citizens of Wood county who are of alien birth, but who have by their unaided exertions raised themselves to their present prosperous condition. He was born in Bedfordshire, England, October 31, 1834, and is a son of John and Elizabeth (Hilson) Harris, both of whom died at Stryker, Ohio. The father was born in England, June 15, 1799, and in his native land accumulated a fortune, which, later, he lost. In 185o he brought his wife to America, locating in Williams county, Ohio, where he purchased 16o acres of land at $3.50 per acre, and there continued to reside up to his death, which occurred April 24, 1891. In his . family were fourteen children, only six of whom are now living, namely: Eliza is the widow of John Weston (a farmer), resides near Bangor, Van Buren Co., Mich., and has five children-Joseph, Orilla, John, Jacob C. and Minnie; James, a fisherman and boatman residing in Ross township, married Elizabeth Harrison, and has eight children-Josephine Lewis, Marion Wedder, John, Joseph, James, Lydia, Lucinda and Oscar; Richard, a resident farmer of Stryker, Ohio, married Margery Bailey, by whom he has seven children-Joseph H., John H., Phoebe, Ellen, Edward, Enos, Rufus and Perry; W. C.. of this review; Joseph, of Lenawee, Mich; and David. Our subject is almost entirely self-educated, learning his letters at the Sabbath-school in England, and attending school only two winters after coming to the United States, but he now is a well-informed man. In 1846 he crossed the Atlantic, coming over on the ''American Eagle," at that time the largest vessel afloat, and on that trip carrying 1, 20P passengers. He took passage at London, and after a long voyage of forty days landed safely at New, York City on the 11th of July. He accompanied a friend of his father, being the one chosen out of three boys, and his father paid his brother's passage, while our subject worked for his after coming to America. His older brother also came to the United States at the same time, and they remained together until the following spring, going with the friend of their father to northwestern Ohio, near the Indiana line. In the spring, however, our sub- William C. Harris WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 745 ject went to Hillsdale county, Mich., where, for some years, he worked on a farm by the month. In August, 1856, in Branch county, Mich., Mr. Harris was married to Miss Ann E. Simmons, whose father had formerly lived at Palmyra, N. Y., and by this union four children were born: (1) Charles W., a fruit grower of Perrysburg township, Wood county, married Ann Wisman, by whom he has three children-Frank C., Stanley, and Bessie (deceased). (2) George is deceased. (3) Mary A. is the wife of Elmer Gray, foreman of the Consolidated Rolling Car Stock Co., at Detroit, Mich., and to them were born five children-Bessie E. (deceased), Harold R., Ellis E., Iva and Sarah. (4) Alfred A., a fruit grower living on the farm of his father, in Ross township, married Bertha Merving, and had three children-Arthur B., Eva E. (deceased), and Carl E. The wife and mother died at Toledo, Ohio, March 19, 1867. On July 4, 1868, Mr. Harris was again married, his second union being with Elizabeth Sangston, daughter of James M. and Elizabeth (Debolt) Sangston, who were natives of Pennsylvania, and the parents of nine children-Sarah, George D., Isaac M., Harriet, Elizabeth, Malinda, Electa, Adelma, and Naomi (deceased). The father died in Holland, Ohio, and the mother in Perrysburg township, this county. Mrs. Harris was born in Wauseon, Fulton Co., Ohio, February 3, 1848, and by her marriage with our subject has become the mother of three children-Frank A., born August 8, 1869, married. Dorothea Burleigh, by whom he has two children, Mabel L., and Thomas M., and is engaged in farming at Oak Harbor, Ohio; Lottie M., born November 16, 1871, is a stenographer and typewriter, employed at the, Jefferson House" in Toledo, Ohio; Fred I., born October 6, 1873, married Mary Jacobs, and is a fruit grower of Ross township. After being variously employed, Mr. Harris engaged in the wood business for fourteen years, was in the wholesale meat business for four years, and since that time has engaged in fruit culture, having upon his place 1,000 plum trees; 225 pear; 100 cherry; 2,300 peach; 12 apricot; and 10 quince; also three acres planted in grapes; six in raspberries; four in strawberries; three-quarters of an acre in gooseberries; and six acres in asparagus; also some Japanese prune and walnut. On starting this business twenty-six years ago, he had but three acres, but at the present time he has forty-two acres under cultivation, and from the products of his farm derives a comfortable competence. For five years Mr. Harris served in the State militia, belonging to Capt. Daniel Collins' company, and to the 130th O. V. I., under Col. Phillips. Although for a time he was in the United States service, he never took part in any active engagement, and was discharged at Toledo, Ohio. He is now a member of Ford Post No. 14, G. A. R., and also belongs to Wapakoneta Lodge No. 38, I. O. O. F., the former of East Toledo and the latter of Toledo. He is a Republican in politics, and for a number of years served as school director of his district, JOHN A. KELLY is classed among the influential and prominent farmers of Montgomery township. His birth occurred January 19, 1861, in Section 32 of that township, and he is the third son and fifth child in the family of R. W. and Eliza (Dresser) Kelly. His education was begun in District No. 9, and he later attended the West Millgrove schools for three terms. Being reared to agricultural pursuits, he has always made that vocation his life work. In Perry township, Wood county, Mr. Kelly was married September 27, 1882, the lady of his choice being Miss Jennie Rosendale, who was born in that township November 22, 1864, the daughter of George W. and Elizabeth (Locey) Rosendale. When nine years of age she was taken to Elk county, Kans., where she remained seven years, returning then to West Millgrove, Ohio, and living with C. R. Rosendale until her marriage. Two children have come to our subject and his wife -Ralph L., born February 26, 1886; and Eliza J., born August 31, 1890. Mr. Kelly took his bride to his father's farm in Section 32, Montgomery township, where they made their home until their removal to his present farm in Section 31, which he has placed under a high state of cultivation, making many substantial improvements thereon. Though not an office-seeker, he takes considerable interest in political affairs as a' loyal and faithful Republican. His wife holds membership with the Congregational Church at West Millgrove. They are genial, cultured people, and occupy a high social position in the community. REV. JOSEPH M. CRIM, a well-known retired minister of the U. B. Church, now residing in Bowling Green, was born May 31, 1834, in Lancaster county, Penn., where his ancestors, "Pennsylvania Dutch" on both sides, with the exception of his grandmother Crim, who came from England, had lived for several generations. His grandfather, Jacob Crim, and his father, 746 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. Jacob Crim (2), were both born there, the latter September 30, 1810, and there, too, our subject's mother, Christina Young, was born in 1811. His father was a farmer, and a preacher in the United Brethren Church. He came to Richland county, Ohio, in 1838, and died there in January, 1892, his wife having departed this life six years before. They had four children, of whom our subject is the eldest; Elizabeth lives in Richland county ; Henry died at the age of twenty-seven, and Samuel resides in Crawford county, Ohio. Our subject attended the district schools of Richland county during boyhood, and at the age of nineteen he was converted, and determined to devote his life to the highest uses. At twentyone he entered Berea College, and on leaving he at once began teaching, continuing successfully for nine years in Richland, Crawford and Logan counties. In 1861 he made a trip to California, and remained four years. In 1867 he married Miss Rachel E. Biddle, daughter of Rev. Alexander Biddle, of Galion, Ohio, and a native of Ohio, born December 8, 1844. They have had five children: Albert Biddle, who died at two years of age; Mary Louise Gertrude, a teacher in the A Grammar Grade in the Bowling Green schools; Cora, formerly a teacher in Bowling Green, now a student at Otterbein University, Westerville, Ohio; and Reuben and Ruth, who are at home. Our subject received his first appointment in 1872, was ordained in 1875, and joined the Sandusky Conference. For sixteen years he carried on his chosen calling in various places, leaving behind him evidences of his faithful work, in Churches built or restored, new societies formed, and old congregations enlarged and awakened to greater spiritual life. His last charge was in Bowling Green, and when the time came to leave, after a ten-years' service, the educational needs of his growing family induced him to remain, and in 1889 he retired from the ministry and opened a grocery store, which he has conducted ever since. Politically he is a Republican. He still assists in the local work of the Church, especially during revivals; every Sabbath morning finds him in his hone church, teaching a Bible class of men. Faithful to that duty which lies nearest, his exhortations to right living are more effective than any mere glittering eloquence could be, the quiet but powerful force of example adding weight to precept. HERMAN W. DEAN was born in Milton township, March 27, 1867, and is a son of James T. Dean, a native of Sandusky county, Ohio, and a farmer by occupation. He married Maria Cran, and sometime afterward came to Wood county, settling on a farm which he purchased in Milton township. Later he purchased a i 00-acre farm in Jackson township, which he at once began to clear and place under a high state of cultivation. In the fall of 1893 he sold that property and went to Indian Territory, where he leased a farm, and also purchased a tract of land. He continued in the West for about a year, and then returned to Wood county, since which time he has lived in Milton Center. The children of the family are James T., who is now farming in Kansas; Herman W.; John, a farmer of Jackson township; Charles, who died at the age of four years; and Alta, at home. Our subject began his education in the Powles school of Milton Center. His childhood days were passed in a manner similar to most farmer boys, and he remained at home until he had attained his majority, when he began work by the day as a farm hand. Two years later, with the money he had saved, he purchased forty acres of unimproved land in Jackson township, and at once began to clear and develop the place, erecting thereon a substantial residence. In the spring of 1875 he rented his farm and leased 200 acres of land in Jackson township. In Deshler, Henry Co., Ohio, on May 14, 1887, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Dean and Miss Lizzie Laney, who was born in Adair county, Mo., May 10, 1870, a daughter of Charles and Margaret (White) Laney, natives of Fairfield county, Ohio. They were married, however, in Missouri, and since 1874 have resided in Wood county. They had nine children, namely: Mrs. Alice Nutter, who died at the age of thirty years; Edwin, of Henry county, Ohio; Sarah, wife of George Whitney, of Weston; Rebecca, of Bowling Green; Mrs. Dean; Jennie, wife of Lincoln Hill, of New York; Peter, of Henry county; William, who died at the age of fourteen; and Thomas, at home. Two children grace the union of our subject and his wife: Earl, born April 5, 1890; and Floyd, born December 25, 1893. Their home is noted for its hospitality, and their circle of friends is extensive. In his political affiliations, Mr. Dean is a stanch Republican. JAMES ROGERS, a prominent citizen of Scotch Ridge, Wood county, now holding the offices of postmaster, justice of the peace, and clerk of Webster township, is a native of this county, born in Freedom township, January 27 1860 He is a son of one of our honored pioneers, Amos Rogers. WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 747 Our subject had the training in farm work which usually falls to the lot of a country boy, but his education was not neglected, and he supplemented his district-school studies by a course in the high school at Genoa. At an. early age he started in business as a decorator of interiors, having learned the trade of painter and paperhanger at Bowling Green. In 1879 Mr. Rogers married Miss Susan South, who was born in Cleveland, Ohio, August 23, 1861, the daughter of Robert South, a well-known resident of Webster township. They have one child, Gertie, now attending school. In March, 1892, Mrs. Rogers died at her home in Scotch Ridge, and November 22, 1894, Mr. Rogers was married to Frankie Gerding, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. A. Orr, of Pemberville, Ohio. A stanch Democrat in politics, and a man of great public spirit, Mr. Rogers has been a favorite. candidate of his party, and has held a number of official positions. He was appointed postmaster under Cleveland's first administration, and is now serving a second time with satisfaction to all concerned, and as township clerk and justice of the peace his efficient services meet with hearty appreciation. He has a comfortable home, and he and his wife take a prominent. part in the social life of the village. He is past grand of the I. O. O. F., Freedom Lodge No. 723, of Pemberville, and also, with Mrs. Rogers, belongs to the Daughters of Rebekah, No. 239. C. D. YONKER is the proprietor of the only drug store of a metropolitan nature in Wood county, dealing exclusively in drugs, and articles of a similar character, and having an extensive trade both in Bowling Green and the surrounding country. He was born in Portage township, Wood county, August 10, 1855, and, is a son of H. H. and Mary (Gunsaulus) Yonker. Charles Yonker, his grandfather, was born, in 1795, in Germany, and in 1830 came to Ohio, and to Wood county in 185o. In 1866 he drilled a well with a horse drill on the Johnson farm, near East Prairie Depot, and at the depth of fifty feet struck oil. He died in 1878. The father of our subject was born in New York State, September 20, 1830, and in 1854, after his marriage, which took place at Wadsworth, Medina Co., Ohio, he came to Wood county. He first located in Portage township, where he purchased a farm, which he afterward sold, and in 1867 removed to Bowling Green, where he entered the company of Kitchen & Lindsay, and they operated the first planing-mill, and sash, door and blind factory in that place, having also a lumber-yard in connection with these establishments. Later, disposing of his interests in these enterprises, he and his brother, in partnership, engaged in the undertaking business, in which he remained until his health failed, and he was compelled to retire from active life. He still resides in Bowling Green, and is one of the most esteemed citizens of the place. In politics he is a Republican, and in religious faith he is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. He was the father of seven children, namely: C. D. Yonker, our subject; John L., killed by accidentally falling down an elevator shaft in a hotel at Van Wert, Ohio ; Sarah M., who married Edgar Sears, and lives in Bowling Green; M. E., deceased in infancy; L. L., a dentist in Bowling Green; Frank C., in business in the same city; and Arthur A., clerking in our subject's store. The paternal grandfather of Mr. Yonker, whose name was Charles, was born in Germany, and 'died in Prairie Depot, Ohio. He was a contractor on the Maumee and Western Reserve pike, and discovered oil in Wood county many years ago. The subject of this sketch spent his boyhood days at Bowling Green, where he attended the public schools, and when fourteen years old became an apprentice in a drug store which stood on the same corner he now occupies. Three years later he went to Weston, where he took charge of a store for one year; then returned to Bowling Green, and worked for another year in the same store in which he was first employed. Subsequently he read medicine for a time with Dr. Lincoln. His father then bought a drug store, and the son took the management of it from 1875 to 1878, when it was sold to Bolles & Manville. Mr. Yonker then went into the restaurant business, which he carried on some six years, at the end of that time investing in a patent-right, from which he made enough money to start in business for himself. In 1889 he established his present store, with the object of carrying on a business in drugs exclusively, which was in direct opposition to the advice of his friends, who thought it an unfavorable field for a high-grade drug store. He has, however, proved the fallacy of their judgment, as he now owns the finest establishment of the kind in northern Ohio, outside the large cities. His is the only drug store kept open on Sunday in the city, and is the first to open and the last to close every day in the week. Mr. Yonker was married October 4, 1876, to Miss R. L. Leonard, who was born in Seneca county, Ohio, December 17, 1853. Two chil- 748 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. dren have blessed this union: Pearl N. and Earl E. Mr. Yonker and family are owners of a beautiful residence, which is one of the finest in the city, and is the scene of many delightful social events. Mr. Yonker is one of the most prominent workers among the Knights of Pythias in Bowling Green, of which society he is a charter member, and was the first master-at-arms. He. has been representative to the Grand Lodge, was district deputy grand chancellor, and is now master of finance; is also captain of the Uniform Rank, K. of P. He is a member of the board of directors of the Bowling Green Improvement Co., also one of the executive committee. HENRY O. NEARING, a progressive farmer of Washington township, was born December 14, 1827, at Waterville, Wood (now Lucas) county, Ohio, and is a son of Guy and Betsy (Fletcher) Nearing. (The family name was originally spelled Van Nearing). The father of our subject was born in Germany, whence he came to the United States when young, locating in Onondaga county, N. Y., where he married and had three children: Horatio, deceased; Neptune, father of G. C. Nearing, of Wood county; and Zepimah, who died in New York. For his second wife Mr. Nearing wedded Betsy (Read) Fletcher, and to them five children were born: (1) Emulus, who died in Williams county, Ohio, where he resided with his family. (2) Minerva, wife of Judge Ewing, of Miltonville, by whom she had three children: Theodore, deceased; Mary, widow of William L. Decker, who now makes her home in Haskins; and Lucien B., who died in that place. (3) Eunice and (4) Freeman, both deceased in infancy. (5) Henry 0., our subject. The father first came to Ohio in 1817, a year later returning to New York, and bringing his family to this State. He located at Waterville, where he was engaged in contracting, and in 1833 built a sawmill at Otsego, which he operated for a year or more. He also, in 1835, erected a sawmill for Fowler and C. W. Beard, on what is known as the John Creps farm in Middleton township. Prior to building the Otsego mill he purchased and lived on a farm of over 200 acres opposite Waterville. He there made his home some twelve years, during which time he greatly improved his land, and then removed to Miltonville, where he built a large hotel, which he conducted up to his death in 1840. His wife died at the home of our subject in January, 1857. He was an Old-line Whig in politics, and he and his wife were members of the Baptist Church. While engaged in contracting the father built the first jail in Perrysburg. For a number of years he served as justice of the peace, during which time he married many of the pioneer couples, and the decisions he rendered in the cases he tried were usually sustained. The early educational privileges of Henry O. Nearing were somewhat meagre, being limited to three months attendance at the district schools during the winter months, the remainder of the year being passed at farm labor. When nineteen years of age, however, he worked for one month at steamboating on Lake Erie. On January 1, 1852, he wedded Matilda Whitney, daughter of David and Margaret (Carr) Whitney, the former a native of Vermont, of English descent, the latter of Scotch-Irish lineage; they were married in Allegany county, N. Y., and to them were born eight children, as follows: Lucy, who married John Bamber, and had three children, Archibald, Mary and Thaddeus. Samuel, Nancy and Maria all three deceased. Matilda, the wife of our subject, born April 7, 1832, in Allegany county, N. Y. Charles, an expert machinist, who conducts a patent office in Chicago, making his home in Winnetka, not far from that city. Caroline (widow of Oscar Snyder), residing in the northern part of the State of Washington. John, who was a member of a Minnesota regiment during the Civil war, and was held prisoner for ten months at Helena, Ark., during that struggle; he has since died at St. Louis, Missouri. After his marriage, Mr. Nearing worked a short time at the cooper trade, but in April, 1852, he started for California, a trip of 2,100 miles, which was made-with an ox-team, and occupied seven months. There he remained two years, during which time he was employed as a hostler and miner, meeting with good success. In connection with David Bamber, John Buttles and Milton Beard, he also owned a toll road, known as the Bamber & Nearing toll road, near Deer Creek, Cal. On his return to Ohio, he came by way of the Nicaragua route to New York City. For three years he then had charge of his father-in-law's place, at the end of which time, on June 17, 1858, he removed to Minnesota, returning to Wood county in the following March. For four years he made his home in Miltonville, and in 1881 he purchased a farm in Fulton county, where he resided five years. In December, 1887, he purchased his present farm, to the cultivation of which he has since devoted his time and attention. He and his worthy wife have no children of their own, but have reared Henry O. & Matilda Nearing WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 749 five whom they have adopted. As a souvenir of his California mining experiences, Mr. Nearing has a scarf pin made of a nugget of gold dug by him during his last days in the "diggings," and which is set in its natural state, and is valued at twenty dollars. During the Civil war, Mr. Nearing enlisted at Tontogany in Company B, 144th O. V. I., under Capt. Black and Col. Miller, and was mustered in at Columbus. After faithful service he received an honorable discharge at Columbus, September 1, 1864. Politically, he supports the Republican party, and has been supervisor of Middleton township, and school director of District No. 1, Washington township. He takes an active interest in the I. O. O. F., belonging to Rouche-de-Boeuf Lodge No. 530, and also to the Encampment, No. 267, both of Haskins, and he and his wife are members of Rebekah Lodge No. 365; in the I. O. O. F. he has been past and noble grand and also vice-grand. He also holds membership with Walter A. Wood Post, G. A. R., of Tontogany. In all the relations of life, he has been true and faithful, and no man is more deserving the high regard in which he is held than Henry O. Nearing. HENRY ROLFES. This gentleman worthily illustrates the commonly accepted view of the character of the enterprising citizen, who made his way into northwestern Ohio at a time when strong hands and stout hearts were needed, and putting his shoulder to the wheel gave a decided impetus to the car of progress, and assisted in the development of Wood county. As early as 1836 he came with his parents to Troy township, where his father purchased land in Section 25. In the kingdom of Hanover, Mr. Rolfes was born, May 28, 1828, and is a son of Frederick and Julia (Hunefelt) Rolfes, natives of the same province. At Bremen the family embarked on a sailing vessel, which, after a voyage of seven weeks, dropped anchor in the harbor of New York, and from there they proceeded by water to Toledo, Ohio, They arrived in this country in the fall of 1836, where the father purchased a tract of wild land in Troy township, on which no improvements had been made, and no road led to the place. He became a prominent member of the community, and served as -trustee of his township. He died of cholera, September 1, 1852, which disease terminated the life of the mother on the 7th of the same month. Our subject was the eldest in their family of children, others being as follows: William, who died of cholera on the 5th of September, 1852; Herman, who died while young; Mary, also deceased; Mrs. Eliza Meyers, of Woodville, Ohio; and Lewis, who resides in Troy township. Our subject was about eight years of age when he came to this county, and in the primitive schools of Troy township he received his education, but most of his time was employed in work upon the home farm. After leaving the parental roof he worked on a farm near Perrysburg, Ohio, and for three seasons sailed on the lakes. On August 11, 1853, in Troy township, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Rolfes and Miss Julia Hilker, a native of Germany, and a daughter of Gerhard and Engel (Simpson) Hilker, also born in the Fatherland. About 1840 her parents located in Troy township, where the father's death occurred in 1851, and his wife died at the home of our subject in 1871. To Mr. and Mrs. Rolfes have been born the following children: Marie, who died in childhood, and Sophia, also deceased; Eliza, now Mrs. William Meyers, of Luckey, Ohio; Lewis H., who makes his home in the same place; Louisa, deceased; Julia A., who resides in Toledo, Ohio; Minnie, of Luckey. After his marriage, Mr. Rolfes located upon the old homestead, in Section 25, Troy township, where he owns 12o acres of fertile and productive land. Upon his place are nine oil wells, which also add materially to his income. In 1879 he was called upon to mourn the loss of his wife, a most estimable lady. At the time he came to Wood county, few settlements had been made, the work of cultivation had scarcely begun, and he has watched with interest the great changes that have taken place, in the work of development and progress, always taking his share. Their nearest market at that time was Perrysburg, whence he would carry his purchases home on his back; but he bravely and cheerfully endured the trials and hardships incident to a life in the forests far from the haunts of men. FLOYD D. HUFFMAN, the popular young editor and proprietor of the Grand Rapids Triumph, was born in Grand Rapids, Wood Co., Ohio, July 8, 1873, and is a son of John and Emma (Mins) Huffman, both natives of Pennsylvania, but now residing near Grand Rapids. Here our subject passed his boyhood and youth, attending the common schools, and at the early age of fourteen years began learning the printer's trade, at which he has since worked, with the exception of one winter, when he attended school. He experienced all the vicissitudes incident to the life of a printer's "devil," and soon became an expert type-setter, as well WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 750 as becoming versed in the all-round duties of a newspaper office. Being possessed of an energetic spirit, good executive ability, and an excellent judgment, he determined to establish himself permanently in some literary work, and accordingly in December, 189o, purchased his present paper, of which he is sole proprietor. The Grand Rapids Triumph is a five-column quarto sheet, independent in politics, and does a large amount of advertising, while, as a literary production, it is numbered among the foremost papers of the county. HENRY MANDELL, a prominent pioneer agriculturist of Wood county, now residing in Perrysburg, was born in Hardwick, Worcester Co., Mass., January 12, 1814. His family has filled an honorable place in the history of this country. Paul Mandell, the great-grandfather, came from England and settled in Massachusetts. He had a son, Moses, our subject's grandfather, who served in the Revolutionary army with the rank of major. Martin Mandell, father of our subject, was a farmer in Massachusetts, a man of great intelligence and independence of thought, and one of the earliest supporters of the Unitarian faith. He married Miss Fannie Marsh, and reared a family of four children, of whom our subject was second in order of birth. He died at the age of sixty-seven years, and his wife in 1878, at the age of ninety-one. Henry Mandell remained at the old homestead until he was twenty years old, when he came west to seek his fortune. In 1838 he located in Perrysburg, where for three years he traded with the Indiana and settlers in groceries, boots and shoes, and other commodities. He was married there to Miss Frederica Kreps, a native of Pennsylvania, who was about one month older than himself. Shortly after their marriage Mr. Mandell moved to Otsego, where for two years he held the position of postmaster under appointment from President Tyler. He then moved to a tract of land in Perrysburg township belonging to his wife, and cleared it, in time transforming it into a fine property. He still owns 100 acres there, which has risen in value from nothing to $60 or $70 an acre. Mrs. Mandell died in 1874, after thirty-two years of happy, helpful companionship. Seven children were born of this union: (1) Henry E., who lives at the old farm, is married and has seven children-Fred,. Mary, Alice, Dwight, Kittie, Ernest and Ruth. (2) Phila E. lives with her father. (3) Catherine married Charles Drayton, of Perrysburg township, and has six children-Frederica, Jennie, William, Frank, Grace and Ralph. (4) William Arthur, a sketch of whom follows. (5) Dwight died at the age of fourteen. (6) Ada married Leroy Weliver, of East Toledo, and has three children -Delia, Clarence and Ada. (7) Frederick died aged ten years. About two years ago Mr. Mandell came to Perrysburg, with his daughter, Phila E., to spend his declining years, free from business cares. He has always taken an active interest in politics, and his first vote was cast for Van Buren; he is now a Republican, and his last vote at the age of eighty-two was for McKinley. GEORGE KLOPFENSTEIN, a prominent citizen of Center township, and one of the leading fruit growers of northwestern Ohio, was born in Wood county, March 20, 1847, and is a son of Peter and Henrietta (Moore) Klopfenstein. He has taken a commendable interest in the moral, educational, and material welfare of the community, and has made an untarnished record and unspotted reputation as a business man. In all places, and under all circumstances, he is loyal to truth, honor and right, justly valuing his own self-respect as infinitely more preferable than wealth, fame and position. Mr. Klopfenstein has been twice married, his first union, which was celebrated August 5, 1874, being with Miss Prudence D. Craw, who was born October 4, 1855. One child came to them -Walter, born April 26, 1875, who is a graduate of the Bowling Green High School; he is now in his second year of a four-years' course in the Chicago Homeopathic College, and is studying medicine with Dr. Thomas, of Bowling Green. On August 15, 1883, Mr. Klopfenstein was united in marriage with Miss Eliza Jane, Drake, who was born July 5, 1852, and the following children blessed their union: The first, born July 13, 1884, died in infancy; Ira Lee, born August 16, 1885, died August 3, 1887; Mabel Henrietta, born May 14, 1888; Floyd, born January 25, 1890; George M., born December 23, 1892; and the youngest, born January 17, 1895, died in infancy. On the paternal side our subject is descended from Peter Klopfenstein, who was born in France in 1742, and was there married in 1768. In his family of nine children Christian Klopfenstein was the eighth in order of birth, being born June 17, 1788. In October, 1810, the latter married Catherine Stooky, who was born in France May 15, 1788, and they became the parents of ten children, namely: Peter, born November 3, 1811, was the father of our subject. Barbara, born in November, 1812, married A. R. Mead, by whom WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 751 she had nine children; her death occurred in Summit county. Catherine, born in 1814, died in 1851. Mary, born January 1, 1817, was married January 6, 1842, to Jacob Grauber, and became the mother of ten children. Ann, born February 16, 1819, was married in 1839 to Christian Roth, by whom she had eleven children; she died in 1863. Christian, born in 1821, died in 1823. Joseph, born January 13, 1823, was married May 4, 1848, to Mary Ann Hevehill, and became the father of thirteen children. All of the above named children were natives of France. Benjamin, born in 1827, in Wayne county, Ohio, married Catherine Stooky, in 1850, and they had fourteen children. Fanny, born September 19, 1829, in Wayne county, married Jacob Roth, and became the mother of thirteen children; she died February 28, 1874. Eliza, born in 1830, in Utica, N. Y., died there the same year. The father of this family departed this life in Fulton county, Ohio, in March, 1871, and the mother in 1836. Peter Klopfenstein, the father of our subject, was married in Wood county, Ohio, September 19, 1837, to Miss Henrietta Moore, who was born January 5, 1819, in Mogadore, Summit Co., Ohio, and came to this county in 1833, at the age of fourteen years. To them were born the following children: Lee M., born September 30, 1838, who was married May 13, 1860, to Julia Ann Elliott, and has had five children; Joseph, born February 23, 1842, who married Sarah Hill, and has five children (he was a soldier in Company A, 100th O. V. I., in which regiment he served three years; he is now a farmer, living in Rollersville, Sandusky county); George, subject of this review; Amelia E., born October 30, 1849, wife of George W. Houskeeper, of Center township; James E., born February 14, 1852, who is a dentist in Longmont, Boulder Co., Colo. ; Mary Ann, born. August 26, 1858, who died September 15, 1872, at the age of fourteen; and Chloe M., born March 26, 1861, died September 18, 1872. The mother's death occurred September 16, 18 70. On the maternal side our subject is descended from Samuel Moore, who was a native of Connecticut, where his father, who was from the British Isles, had located at an early day. Nathan Moore, the son of Samuel, was united in marriage with Julia Ann Lee, a daughter of John Lee, who, at an early day in the history of New England. sought refuge there from the rulers of his native land-Ireland. Mrs. Moore was also a native of Connecticut, and with her husband removed t0 Summit county, Ohio, where they both died at the age of fifty-five years. In their family were the following children: Chloe, born in Vermont, in 1788, became the wife of a Mr. Cook; Laura, born in the same State, in 1792, married Thomas Hall; Lee, born in Vermont, March 13, 1793, was the maternal grandfather of our subject; Lucy, born in 1795, married a Mr. Van Gorder; Betsy, born in 1797, married a Mr. Briggs; Julia, born in 1800, married . a Mr. Ripson; and Nathan, born in 1807, died at the age of five years. Lee Moore was married November 27, 1817, the lady of his choice being Miss Phoebe M. Bradley, who was born March 13, 1798, and was the third child of Ariel and Chloe (Lane) Bradley, both natives of Connecticut, the former born at Salisbury, December 30, 1768, and the latter at Killingworth, October 22, 1770. Her grandfather, James Bradley, died in Summit county, Ohio, at the age of ninety years. The family of Mr. and Mrs. Moore included eleven children, namely: Henrietta, born January 5, 1819, was the mother of our subject; Phoebe M. was born February 10, 1821; Nathan, born January 13, 1823, is now a resident of Toledo, Ohio; Ariel B., born June 6, 1826, died May 19, 1827; Albert, born April 24, 1828, died June 30, 1885; Julia Ann was born July 15, 1830; Olive was born October 23, 1832; Milton, born February 25. 1835, was drowned in a well in March, 1838; Chloe was born July 25, 1837; James was born December 9, 1839; and Charles was born in 1843. The mother of these children departed this life February 23, 1872, and the father's death occurred in 1874. DANIEL ZIMMERMAN, a worthy representative of one of the honored pioneer families of Center township, then a part of Webster township, Wood county, was born there on May 12, 1835. His father, William Zimmerman, was a native of Virginia, born in 1798, and came to this county in 1835, locating on the farm where our subject's birth occurred. He took up 160 acres of wild land, which he at once began to improve and cultivate. His wife bore the maiden name of Isabella Householder, and to them were born fourteen children, named as follows:. John and Monroe, who are both deceased; Eliza, deceased wife' of Joseph Burdo; Lewis, who has also passed away; Daniel, of this sketch; Mary, deceased wife of George W. Garner; George, who died from the effects of his service in the Civil war; Milton, infirmary director of Wood county; Isaac, a farmer of Portage township; William and Isabella, twins, the latter the wife 0f William Wed- 752 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. dell, deceased; James, an agriculturist of Center township; Lewis E., deceased; and Harvey, a farmer of Michigan. The father's death occurred in 1884, and the mother passed away in 1889. The entire life of our subject has been passed in his native township, being reared to manhood on his father's farm, and receiving his education in the district schools of the neighborhood. On the outbreak of the Rebellion, he resolved to aid in the preservation of the Union, and in 1861, enlisted at Pemberville, Wood county, in Company K, 21st O. V. I. On December 31, 1863, he veteranized, and was given a furlough. For two weeks, in 1861, he was confined in the hospital at Nashville, Tenn., but during the remainder of his service was always found at his post of duty, and participated in the battles of Chattanooga, East Kentucky, Ivy Mountain, La Vergne, Stone River, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, the siege of Atlanta, and the capture of Jonesboro. He was with Sherman on the celebrated march to the sea, and on the close of his enlistment received an honorable discharge, August 2 5, 1865. At the termination of his army experience, Mr. Zimmerman returned to Center township, where he purchased sixty acres of land, which, after cultivating some seven years, he sold and bought 110 acres, which comprises his present fine farm. It was then, however, in its primitive condition, mostly under water, not a tree having been cut, or a ditch made, and no roads yet been laid out to the place. After much hard labor he succeeded in clearing the land, which he drained, and on which he planted an orchard, and erected a fine dwelling house, barns and other outbuildings. It is now one of the model farms of the county, supplied with all modern improvements, and the well-cultivated fields indicate to the passerby the thrift and enterprise of the owner. On May 24, 1866, Mr. Zimmerman was united in marriage with Miss Emma Fox, a pioneer teacher, who taught twenty-one terms in Wood county, and who was born in Livonia, N. Y., March 14, 1837, and is a daughter of John Fox, a farmer of that locality. Six children grace this union: William A., a carpenter, who was born August 12, 1867; Lucy M., a schoolteacher, born May 27, 1869; Jessie M., wife of Charles Barr (a farmer, but now a real-estate agent), born July 13, 1871; Aner, a carpenter of North Dakota, born March 8, 1873; Cever, a farmer residing at home, born January 5, 1875; and John W., born July 6, 1878. Mr. Zimmerman has watched with lively interest the growth and development of the county, and has contributed largely to its reputation as one of the most highly cultivated districts in this great commonwealth. He and his estimable wife endured all the hardships and privation incident to a life in a new settlement, and well deserve the reward which is now beginning to crown their labors. Politically he identifies himself with the Republican party, whose principles he stanchly advocates, and has served as school director for six years. He belongs to J. Wiley Post No. 46, G. A. R., and he and his family adhere to the faith of the United Brethren Church. H. E. NOBLE, M. D., a prominent physician and surgeon, was born in Broome county, N. Y., August 27, 1855, and is a son of Derwin and Betsey M. (McClure) Noble, also natives of Broome county. In 186o the parents removed to Huron county, Ohio, where the father engaged in farming for six years, after which he removed to Lucas county, this State, but now makes his home in Stony Ridge, where his wife died in 1893. To them were born five children: Emma Jane, wife of Darius Carpenter, of Stony Ridge; H. E., our subject; Clarence, a traveling salesman, of Toledo, Ohio; Frank, a sawyer, of Perrysburg, Ohio; and Clark D., also of that place. They also reared an adopted daughter, Nellie Hubbell, now Mrs. Henry Reifert, of Stony Ridge. At the age of five years H. E. Noble was taken to Huron county, and was eleven years old when the family removed to Lucas county, in both of which counties he received a portion of his literary education, which he completed at Delta High School, at the age of eighteen years, after which he began the study of medicine. In 1877 he entered the Detroit Medical College, completing his course in 1879; he then located at Swanton, Fulton county, where he practiced until 1883, when he again took up his studies, this time in Toledo Medical College, from which he graduated in the class of 1884. He then established himself at Stony Ridge, Wood county, where he built up a large and lucrative practice, making a specialty of surgery and the diseases of women, having attended extra lectures on these subjects in New York City, where he was graduated from the New York Institute in 1891. In 1896 he removed to Toledo, where he has taken up the practice of his profession, devoting his attention to surgery and the diseases of women. The Doctor holds membership in the Northwestern Ohio Medical Association and the Ohio State Medical Society, has served as health officer in Troy township, Wood county, two years, H. E. Noble WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 753 and has been physician for the poor in Lake township for ten years past. He is medical examiner for the Manhattan Life Insurance Co., of. New York, and also the Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co., of Milwaukee, Wis. Socially he is connected with Perrysburg Lodge No. 527, K. of P., and with the K. of H., in which latter he has twice' served as dictator. He is a contributor to the "American Medical Compend," of Toledo; also of the " Columbus Medical journal," and "International Journal of Surgery." He has read papers on gynecology before the Medical Association. Politically he affiliates with the Republican party, of which he is one of its strongest supporters in his vicinity, and takes an active interest in everything for the good of the community. He is an extremely busy and successful practitioner, but finds time to aid in all worthy enterprises which will advance the welfare of his fellow man. At Swanton, Ohio, Dr. Noble was united in marriage with Miss Rebecca Hunlock, who died in Stony Ridge in 1884. Five years later he there wedded Miss Celina Bonda, who was born December 20, 1873, in Michigan. Her education was acquired in the public schools of Lenawee county, Mich. To the Doctor and his wife were born three children: Elizabeth A., born May 25, 189o, and died at the age of five months; Mabel, born July 30, 1894; and Jessie, born September 16, 1895 N. A. McALLISTER is a leading and successful business man of Walbridge, Ohio, where he conducts a first-class general store, and carries a well-selected stock in order to meet the demands of his customers. He was born in Buffalo, N.Y., April 13, 1850, and is a son of Neil and Catherine McAllister, natives of Scotland, where their marriage was celebrated. The father was born in Greenock in 1809, and, in 1849, brought his wife to the United States, locating first in Buffalo, N. Y. From there he removed to Erie county, Ohio, and later became a resident of Wood county, where he engaged in farming. He also sailed on the lakes for some time, fitting out vessels at Milan, Ohio, and he was engaged in furnishing vessels after quitting the life of a sailor. He died at Walbridge on the 15th of March, 1889, and his wife, who was born in 1812, had died in 1883. Their family consisted of four children who grew to adult age, namely : Daniel H. and Angus, who are both now deceased; Mary W., wife of Eugene Winchester, of East Toledo, Ohio; and N. A., the subject of this sketch. The last named was reared in Milan, Erie county, until eleven years of age, when he accompanied his parents to Wood county, and later engaged in sailing on the lakes, being mate on the vessel "Hattie Wells" for two years. On giving up that life, he began his present mercantile business at Walbridge, where he has now carried on operations with good success for twelve years, and does a large and lucrative business. On December 28, 1882, Mr. McAllister was united in marriage with Miss Amanda E. Clark, who was born in Oberlin, Ohio, July 2, 1853, and two children bless their union-Ralph D., and Thorwell G. Besides his store our subject owns a good farm of eighty acres in Lake township, and he is widely known in business circles throughout the county, being regarded by all as a man of rare energy, superior business tact, and undoubted integrity of character. Socially, he belongs to the Odd Fellows Lodge at East Toledo, also to the Knights and Ladies of Security, and politically is identified with the Republican party. JOHN W. BOWLES is a successful and energetic agriculturist, and one of the esteemed and valued citizens of Milton township. His well-spent life well entitles him to representation in this volume, and it is with pleasure that we present to our readers the record of his career. A native of Cambridgeshire, England, he was born on May 24, 1834, and is a son of John and Jane (Dickerson) Bowles. The public schools of his native land afforded him his educational privileges, and when quite young he started out to make his own living. When a young man, Mr. Bowles determined to come to America, believing that he might better his financial condition by taking advantage of the opportunities afforded in the New World. He crossed the Atlantic in 1851, and located in Albany, N. Y., where he was employed for a time as gardener. He later went to Rhode Island, where he secured a situation with S. W. Foster, a wholesale merchant. In 1853 he came to Ohio, locating in Monroeville, Huron county, where he worked as a farm hand until 1856, when he took up his residence in Wood county. During the Civil war he enlisted at Perrysburg, in Capt. Cook's company-Company C, 21st O. V. I.-and was honorably discharged at Columbus, Ohio, in August, 1861. He then returned home and purchased forty acres of land, which he improved. He possesses good business ability, is a careful manager, is energetic and progressive in his methods, and that he has won a place among 754 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. the substantial citizens of Milton township is due to his own efforts. In politics he is a Republican. In Milton township Mr. Bowles was united in marriage with Miss Jane Watson, who was born in Delaware, Ohio, December 3, 1838. They became the parents of four childrenBenjamin and Mary L., both deceased; William, who married Emma Reid, and aids in the operation of his father's farm; and Maxwell, who is also at home. PROF. J. C. SOLETHER, principal of the Jerry City schools, has been engaged in teaching for over twenty years, and has an enviable reputation as an educator throughout Wood county and vicinity. Our subject was born December 28, 1854, in Bloom township, eldest child of Charles and Sarah (Miller) Solether. He first attended at District School No. 5, in Portage township, and Alfred Smith was his first teacher. As he was the eldest, however, he was needed at home to help his father, being thoroughly trained to agricultural pursuits, and by the time he reached the age of eighteen he had only an ordinary literary training. He then attended six months at the Bowling Green schools, and by the time he was nineteen had fitted himself for teaching, a profession to which he has ever since given his principal attention, and it is a fact worthy of note that though he has held many different positions, his work has all been in Wood county and vicinity. After beginning to teach he educated himself from his own earnings, and he at first taught during the winter and engaged in farm work during the summer. He spent one term at the Normal at Fostoria, and studied at Oberlin College part of three years, but after he was twenty-four years old he advanced himself by reading and private study, acquiring no small amount of knowledge in this way. His first school was in Liberty township, and he received $1.50 a day for his services, and he has also taught in Bloom and Portage townships, having been principal of the Portage schools for four years. He is now serving his sixth year as principal of the schools in Jerry City, where he is most favorably known as a competent instructor and a good disciplinarian, and one who has the respect and good will of his pupils. Though he has been unusually successful, he deserves the rank he now occupies in his profession, for he has placed himself in his present position by hard study and untiring devotion to his work. In May, 1889, Prof. Solether was appointed, by judge Young, one of the county examiners, and has held that position continuously since, serving with his customary efficiency and ability. In 1895 he and his wife went to Denver to attend the Convention of the National Association of Teachers, and on his trip visited Salt Lake City and many other points of interest and importance. On November 10, 1880, Prof. Solether was married, in Henry township, Wood county, to Miss Lydia Peters, a native of that township, daughter of Squire B. L. Peters. Children as follows have blessed this union: Hallie, Lauren, Pliny, McClellan, and Harry, all of whom are living. At the time of his marriage our subject located on his present farm in Portage township, which comprises ninety-one acres of good land in Section 32, and forty acres in Section 29, and it is still more, valuable on account of its situation in the midst of a good oil territory. All the farm buildings and the very pleasant and comfortable residence have been erected by him, and he has displayed as much ability in this line as he has in his profession, having acquired a very fair share of this world's goods. He has a wellstocked library and a most comfortable home. Prof. Solether has been a lifelong Republican in political sentiment, and in Bloom township served as trustee and for two. years as clerk. But he is no politician, being thoroughly devoted to his profession and to his home. T. J. VOSBURG, a well-known resident of Jerry City, was born November 27, 1820, in the town of Salisbury, Litchfield Co„ Conn., son of John and Elizabeth (Miner) Vosburg, and grandson of Abraham Vosburg. John Vosburg was an ore digger in Connecticut. He was married in that State, and lived there several years afterward, coming to Ohio when our subject, who was the eldest child, was about eight years old. They located on a new farm in Berlin township, Trumbull (now Mahoning) county, which was then a pioneer section, and remained there until 1836, when they came to Wood county, arriving June i. They were fourteen days en route from Trumbull county; it rained every day, and they were obliged to cut their road out the greater part of the way after entering Wood county. It required four yoke of cattle to haul one of the covered wagons of the party from Millgrove to where they located. The Vosburgs settled in Montgomery township, which was then all in the woods and very swampy except on the ridges. Mr. Vosburg had come here the previous March, and entered eighty acres of land, also buying 16o acres that another had settled upon. The family made a temporary WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 755 home with John A. Kelly, an earlier pioneer, who had a small double log house, until a cabin could be built, and they began pioneer life in earnest. Game was plentiful in that region at that early day, and wolves gave them considerable trouble on account of the stock. Mr. Vosburg lived and worked on this land the remainder of his life, gradually improving it and acquiring more property, until he found himself in comfortable circumstances. He died on the farm at the age of about sixty years, and his widow afterward moved to Millgrove, at which place she served as postmistress' a few years. She passed her remaining days at Fostoria, dying at the home of her son Harmon, and she and Mr. Vosburg are both resting in the cemetery at Millgrove. They were the. parents of ten children, all of whom grew to maturity, and six of whom are now living, viz.: T. J., whose name introduces this sketch; Jeanette, Mrs. John Hoiles, of Huron county, Ohio; Freeman, a farmer of Portage township, Wood county; Phoebe, who first married David Adams, and after his death wedded his brother, Alex. Adams, who is also deceased; Harmon, of Fostoria; and Hiram, of Huron county. When the family settled in Wood county T. J. Vosburg was about sixteen years old, and, being the eldest, was his father's principal help. He had attended school in Connecticut, and also in Trumbull county, where the school house was two and a half miles from his home, and everything was of the most primitive character. His agricultural training, however, was not neglected, and he not only helped his father, but also worked away from home, the greater part of his earnings going to help his parents. After marriage he settled on twenty acres of land in Montgomery township, which Ire bought from his father, and lived there for some time, improving the place greatly. On selling this tract he came to Portage township, locating on the home farm of his father-in-law, John Davis, where he lived several years, finally selling out and buying a forty-acre tract, also in Portage township, and subsequently bought and removed to another farm of eighty acres in that township. In 1879 he removed to Jerry City, where he has ever since had his home. At the time of his removal here he bought forty acres of land in Section 4, Bloom township, which he held until 1895; but he never lived there. On December 7, 1843, Mr. Vosburg was married, in Wood county, to Miss Eunice Davis, a native of Richland county, Ohio, whose father, John Davis, settled in Portage township in the fall of 1836. Children as follows were born to this union: Margaret E., widow of John Richards, who resides in Huron county, Ohio; Mary, Mrs. Benjamin Simons, of Millgrove, Wood county; Emma, Mrs. John Bunnell, of Fostoria; and Rachel, who died young. The mother of these passed from earth March 14, 1854, and was laid to rest in Millgrove cemetery. For his second wife our subject wedded, in Perry township, Miss Anna Snyder, who was born August 9, 1837, in Mahoning county, Ohio, the daughter of George and Barbara (Martin) Snyder. Mrs. Snyder died when Anna was only a child, and when she was twelve years old her father removed to Seneca county, later settling in Bloom township, Wood county, where he died. Seven children have come to this marriage, as follows: Phoebe A. (Mrs. John Boltz), of North Baltimore; Susan E. (Mrs. William Stuck), of St. Joseph county, Mich.; Martha M. (Mrs. Edward Adams), of Jerry City; Ella, widow of James McMann, of Jerry City; Clara A. (Mrs. O. T. Wilsey), of Jerry City; Ida (Mrs. William Davis), of St. Louis, Mo.; and Charles H., who lives at home. Mr. Vosburg was originally a Whig in politics, becoming a Republican on the formation of that party, which he has always supported, except on one occasion, when he voted the Democratic ticket to please a neighbor. In anti-bellum days he was an Abolitionist. He served for ten years as trustee of Portage township, and held the office of constable there for eighteen years-the longest term of service in that position of any one man. He has been active in Church work, being a member of the Liberal contingent of the U. B. Church, and has held numerous offices, having been class-leader, trustee, Sabbath-school superintendent, etc., and the duties of every office in which he has been placed have been discharged with his usual fidelity and ability. R. R. HILLARD, a rising young farmer of Portage township, is a native of the same, born April 7, 1873, son of Reuben P. and Mary (Dresser) Hillard. Reuben P. Hillard was born in Crawford county, Ohio, son of Daniel Hillard. In 1862 he came to Portage township, Wood county, and married there. He was a life-long farmer, prospering in his chosen vocation, and he was an active man in the community, where he was highly respected. For several years he served as trustee of the township, and was offered other offices, but declined to serve, preferring to give all his attention to his own business interests. There were six children in his family-R. R., whose name opens this sketch; Nellie M., Mrs. B. F. 756 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. Musser, of Portage township; Charles R., a farmer, of Portage township; Frank D., Laura A. F. and Daisy E., all of whom live in Portage township. Mr. Hillard died December 26, 1891, and Mrs. Hillard passed from earth September 9, 1894, and their remains now rest in Mt. Zion Church cemetery. They were both members of the Methodist Protestant Church, and in political affiliation Mr. Hillard was a Republican. He was a man of naturally broad intellect, and a close observer, keeping himself well informed on current events. Our subject received his education in the schools of District No. 7, Portage township, and, being fond of books, he learned. rapidly, acquiring a good common-school education. He subsequently studied bookkeeping at home, and he is a constant reader, keeping himself well abreast of the times, and posted on the issues of the day. He lived under the parental roof until his marriage, March 27, 1892, at Bradner, Wood county, to Miss Rillie A. Sprout, who was born in Seneca county, daughter of William F. and Angeline (Dicken) Sprout, the former of whom was a farmer. One child has been born to this union: Ronald M., January 22, 1894. In the fall of 1892, Mr. Hillard located on the fifty-acre farm, in Section 35, Portage township, where he has since carried on general farming. He has two oil wells on this farm, and also holds a sixth interest in eleven other wells, nine of which are on the old Dresser farm, and two on the " Hillard Homestead." By his energy and industry, Mr. Hillard has won the good will of all who know him. On September 25, 1894, he was appointed notary public, and has since served in that office with ability and success. In political affiliation, he is a stanch Republican, as was his father before him; and socially he is a member of Rescue Lodge No. 345, K. of P., Jerry City. F. WENZ, a well-known civil engineer of Perrysburg, was born October 4, 185o, near the historic city of Worms, Germany, where his ancestors had been for several generations Inspectors of the King's Forest. His grandfather, Nicolaus Wenz, and his father, Herman Wenz, were both born and passed their entire lives there, the latter engaging in agriculture in addition to his official duties. He married Miss Elizabeth Eberts, and their son, the subject of this sketch, enjoyed exceptionally good educational advantages in his youth; was graduated from the Polytechnic School at Darmstadt, his course having been interrupted by one year of military service in the Franco-Prussian war. In 1874 he came to America. He, spent one year at Buffalo, N. Y., serving in the U. S. Coast Survey, and then came to Wood county, where he has since resided, except for trips to the Fatherland in 1878 and 1889. Mr. Wenz married one of Perrysburg's charming daughters, Miss Celia Lucas, who was born February 28, 1859, a daughter of the late D. Lucas. They have two sons, Roscoe and Edward. Mr. Wenz has just completed a beautiful residence, one of the finest in the county, located at a picturesque spot on the Maumee river, outside of the corporation limits of Perrysburg, and here the family now reside. A young man of rare mental gifts and training, he holds a high place in the community. He is a recognized authority on civil engineering, and has served two terms as county surveyor. In politics he is a Republican. JOHN H. WATSON, a well-known resident of Bowling Green, was born in Danube, Herkimer Co., N. Y., April 17, 1834. His grandfather, Jude Watson, a native of New York, had a family of seven children, among whom were James, who lived in Canada; William, a Lutheran, minister of Cobleskill, N. Y.; and Nathan, our subject's father, who was a tanner and shoemaker in Kerkimer county, where he died in 1889, at the age of eighty-seven. He was a member of the Methodist Church, and in politics was first a Whig and later a Republican. He was married three times, the first time to Miss Anna Owens, a lady of Welsh descent, whose ancestors had been early settlers in New York State. Her mother was a Van Wagonen, a member of another old family in that State. Five children were born of this first marriage, of whom our subject was the youngest. The others were Catherine, who married Dr. Asa Christy, and second, George Ward; Mary, who died at the age of eighteen; William, who died at the age of forty-five; and Sarah, who married Henry Andrews, and died at the age of thirty-five. For, his second wife he married Miss Sally Deyo, and four children were born to this union: Joseph, who served in an artillery corps during the war; Hannah; Elbert, who enlisted in the 77th (Bemis Heights) N. Y. V. I., and died at Fortress Monroe, after the battle of the Chickahominy; and Stephen, who died at home aged about twenty. His third wice was a widow, Mrs. Elizabeth Smith, and of this union was born one son, Davis S., a prominent inventor living at Canastota, New York, John Herkimer Watson, our subject (whose WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 757 mother died when he was an infant), was adopted by his maternal uncle, Abram Owens, and lived with him until the age of seventeen, attending school at -Indian Castle." He learned the carpenter's trade at Cherry Valley, N. Y., and later went to Bath, S. C., and engaged in business as a millwright. Two years later the war broke out, but not being in sympathy with the South he returned north to Norwich, Connecticut. In 1859 he was married to Miss Kate VanDyke, who was born in Cherry Valley, N. Y., May 22, 1840. They lived for a short time in Norwich, then moved to Fort Plain, N. Y., and later to Onondaga county, N. Y., where they remained until 1876, when they came to Bowling Green, where the uncle of Mr. Watson, Abram Owens (before mentioned), then resided. Since that time they have identified themselves with all the interests of this progressive community. Mr. Watson has been employed in building some of the best structures of the town, and has also followed the occupation of millwright. Previous to the war he was a Whig, but since that time he has been a Republican, although he is a nonpartisan in local affairs, and believes in voting for the best man. He has been a member of the Masonic fraternity for twenty-nine years, and now belongs to Wood county Lodge No. 112, F. & A. M., Crystal Chapter No. 157, R. A. M., Toledo Council No. 33, R. & S. M., and Toledo Commandery No. 7, Knights Templar. JOHN WEIHL, one of the industrious and progressive agriculturists of Middleton township, was born in Berne, Germany, July 6, 1836. His father, Clarius Weihl, was a native of the same place, and was extensively engaged in fruit raising and wine-making there. He married Fraulein Mary Linder, and had thirteen children, of whom seven lived to adult age, namely: John, Jacob, Henry, Clavius, Mary, Elizabeth and Maggie. The others died in early infancy. Mr. Weihl was the only member of the family who came to America. He was educated in the schools of his native place, and worked for his father until he was eighteen years old, when he came to this country, spending forty-six days in crossing the Atlantic. Landing in New York City in 1854, he came to Cleveland, and, after a short stay there, went to St. Louis, Mo., where he worked five months at the blacksmith's trade. He then went to Huron county, Ohio, and worked on a farm near Norwalk until 1866, when he came to Wood county and located in Middleton township, purchasing a tract of land, which he afterward sold to Adam Beil, buying, instead, his present farm of eighty acres near Haskins. With true German industry, he has worked to improve his property, where he now has a handsome dwelling house and other buildings, and a fine orchard, among other improvements. He was married in Erie county, in 1860, to Miss Eliza Beil, a native of Germany, born in Hassen in 1842, and a sister of Adam Beil, whose biography is given on another page. Fourteen children were born of this union, seven of whom are still living, viz.: Henry, a farmer; Rena, the wife of George Mohr; William and Charles, both now engaged in agriculture; and Louisa, Frederick and Lydia, who are still at home. The others were Adam, Minnie, Mary, Albert, Arthur, Anna, and one that died in infancy. Mr. Weihl is an influential worker in local affairs, and has been supervisor of his township for three years, and school director for seven years. In politics he is a Democrat, and he is a prominent member of the German Reformed Church at Haskins. JOHN LANDWEHR, one of the pioneer agriculturists of Webster township, was born April 11, 1828, in Hanover, Germany. His parents, Caspar and Catherine Landwehr, were natives of the same province. They had four children-Fred, Annie, Katie, and John, our subject, who is now the only survivor. His mother died when he was a year old, and at the age of fourteen he was bound out for wages by his father. He received a fair education, however, by making good use of his opportunities. In 1854 he came to America in a sailing vessel, and landed in Baltimore with but two shillings in his pocket. He made his way to Portsmouth, Ohio, and secured employment in a foundry, where he worked six years. In 1861 he came to Wood county, and bought eighty acres of wild land, which was one unbroken stretch of woods and water. There were no roads, and it took two days to make a trip from his home to Woodville and return, a distance of eight miles. His first dwelling was, of course, a log cabin, but the well-earned prosperity of his later years has enabled him to build a comfortable residence and farm buildings of modern pattern. He has also added sixty acres more to his estate, making one of the finest farms in his vicinity. He was married November 19, 1858, to Miss Julia Alert, of Portsmouth, Scioto county, a native of Hanover, Germany, born November 9, 1839. She was one in a family of nine children, born to Christopher and Mary Alert. Mr. and Mrs. Landwehr have had five chil- 758 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. dren: John; George; Louisa, the wife of Edward Howard; George, who died in infancy; and Annie, born January 28, 1871, the wife of Henry Myers, now the manager of his father-in-law's farm. They were married October 25, 1888, and have four children -George, born August 13, 1889; Delia, April 17, 1891 ; Lawrence, August 17, 1893; and Verna, August 26, 1895. Mr. Landwehr is one of the public-spirited men of his township, and has served as school director for twelve years, and trustee for three years, discharging every duty with faithfulness and discretion. In politics he is a Republican, and he is a leading member of the German Lutheran Church at Luckey. CHARLES A. MERCER is a native of Liberty township, and a son of Abraham and Harriet (Rice) Mercer. His father learned the shoemaker's trade in early life, and followed it to some extent, but his attention was mainly given to agricultural pursuits. He was born in Columbia county, Penn., and since his marriage has resided in Liberty township, now living a retired life in Rudolph. His first wife died about 1883, and he has since wedded Mary A. McCrory. Of the first union were born the following named: Charity, James, Charles A., Porterfield, William Marion, Clinton and Isadore. Mr. Mercer acquired his education in the common schools, and remained in his father's home until his marriage, with the exception of one year spent in the army. He enlisted in 1864, in Company C, 11th O. V. I., and immediately went to the front, where he participated in the Atlanta campaign, and the battles of Goldsboro and Fayetteville. When the war was over he was honorably discharged in Washington in June, 1865, and returned to his home. . In the fall of 1868, in Liberty township, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Mercer and Miss Ann Stevens. They located on the farm which is now their home, Mr. Mercer having previously purchased forty acres of land and erected thereon a good residence. He has upon this place five oil-producing wells, and, in addition to this property, he owns as fine a farm of 10o acres as there is in Jackson township. To Mr. and Mrs. Mercer have been born five children, namely: Abraham A., Carl, Bessie, Leon and Lloyd. Mr. Mercer started in life a poor boy, but has resolutely worked his way upward until he is now numbered among the substantial farmers of the community. He is serving as school director, and has filled that position for several terms, the cause of education finding in him a warm friend. ANDREW PEEBLES. No nation has contributed more valuable citizens to our great commonwealth than the "land of the mountain and the flood," and the prominent traits of character for which the Scotch are famousthrift, persistence and loyalty-thrive in our republican soil, and take kindly to our fostering institutions. Among the best known and most highly respected citizens of Perry township will be found the subject of this sketch, who was born on the Eden, in Fifeshire, Scotland, March 25, 1815, the youngest child in the family of seven sons and three daughters born to Alexander and Jane (Mackay) Peebles. The father was a farmer who worked for other men, owning no property himself. Andrew received a good education in the Presbyterian schools of his native land, and when fourteen years old commenced a fouryears' apprenticeship at the carpenter's trade, leaving for America two years after its completion, as will presently be related, so he worked at carpentering in Scotland six years in all. Wages were very small; it seemed impossible ever to be able to make enough to have a home of his own, and the young man, who had considerable ambition and enterprise, became dissatisfied with his lot. About this time, while doing some work for a rich gentleman, Mr. Peebles had access to his library, and there found a history of the United States. This he read with great interest, and it awakened a desire to try his fortune in the new country. His employer encouraged his idea of emigration, and recommended him to a brother-in-law of his, by the name of Smith, who lived in New York City. Mr. Smith offered to find employment for him, and a number of others if they would come to New York. Mr. Peebles undertook to get up a company of emigrants, and secured seven who had decided to leave their country in search of more work and better pay. Mr. Peebles accordingly went to Edinburgh and engaged passage on a sailing vessel for seven men, and on March 1, 1835, bade farewell to his widowed mother and other members of the family, and started on his long journey. On reaching Edinburgh he was disappointed to find that none of the other men were on hand, and he was obliged to set sail without them. The vessel, the " Margaret Bogle," Capt. Smith, was a poor one, and had only thirty-.six passengers. They encountered severe storms, and, altogether had a rough voyage, making very slow time, and being eight weeks and four days on her passage to New York City, arriving at the latter place May 28, following. WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 759 Mr. Peebles landed in New York with $15, and at once hunted up Mr. Smith, for whom he worked during that summer. For the succeeding five years he followed his trade in the city and vicinity, and in 1840 started for the West. He came by way of canal from Albany to Buffalo, thence by the lake to Cleveland, and from there by canal to Chillicothe, where he had a brotherin-law living. He worked at his trade in that city and vicinity, and when he could find nothing else to do went into the fields as a harvest hand. Times were hard and money scarce, and the country was flooded with "shinplasters"; a man might have a pocket-full of bills when he went to bed, and wake up to find the banks broken and himself with nothing. ' Our subject lived in Chillicothe four years, during that time purchasing a small property there. His next home was in Circleville, Ohio, where he also owned his home, and where he remained three years. He then rented land near Bainbridge, in Paxton township, Ross Co., Ohio, and engaged in farming, also in the manufacture of fanning mills. Later he lived in Fayette and Clinton counties, farming in both. In March, 1864, Mr. Peebles removed to Montgomery township, Wood county, on one hundred acres of partly improved land, one farm, which he conducted until 1882, and in 1865 he bought 160 acres, also in Montgomery township. In 1883, owing to the poor health of his wife, he broke up housekeeping, and the latter spent some time with her children. In the meantime Mr. Peebles rented a small farm, and, later, removed to Perry township and lived with his son. Mr. Peebles was married in New York City, in April, 1839, to Miss Ellen McDowell, a native of Scotland, who came to this country in 1835; her death took place March 2, 1888, and she lies in the cemetery at Freeport. The children born to this worthy couple were as follows: Jane, the wife of John L. Pursinger, of Washington Court House, Ohio; Andrew J., who died in infancy; James, a farmer in Perry township; Ellen, who married Daniel Wise, and died at Freeport, in 1895; Ann, who became the wife of Alonzo Hemminger, and died in Montgomery township in 1892. Mr. Peebles now lives by himself on a small piece of land in Perry township, and is passing the evening of his life in quiet and restful enjoyment. Besides his home place, he owns a tract of eighty acres in Bloom township. At one time he was a Democrat in political belief; but, seeing and deprecating the terrible evils which intemperance brings upon us as a nation, he has become a Prohibitionist from principle, and casts all his influence in behalf of that party which he thinks would remedy the evil if allowed the power. He has never held office, although repeatedly urged to do so, and although he was well-fitted to occupy any place in the gift of his locality. He is an honest, upright citizen, a typical Scotchman, and although his love for his native land is still strong within him, he is loyal to the country of his adoption. He has been a stanch Presbyterian ever since his youth, but is broadminded, and gives liberally to Churches of all denominations. Although he has arrived at a good old age, he retains his faculties, and is active and energetic, a congenial companion, and a man highly esteemed in the community. EPHRAIM SHANABARGER, one of the success ful representative farmers of Wood county, was born April i6, 1828, in Richland county, Ohio. His parents, Henry and Sarah (Royer) Shanabarger, were natives of Virginia and Pennsylvania, respectively. They were married in Richland county, Ohio, and there they both died in 1844. They had a family of eleven children: Robert, of Lucas, Ohio; Ephraim; Isaac, a shoemaker, who died in Missouri; Albert, a farmer of Whitley county, Ind.; Thomas Jefferson, a soldier of the 49th O. V. I.; Wilson Shannon, who died on the banks of the Mississippi river with camp diarrhea, and was buried there; Lavina, wife of Solomon Peterson, of Richland county, Ohio; Eleanor, who died at the home of her brother Ephraim. and was the widow of Thomas Reed, who was killed in a gristmill at Dayton, Ohio; Lucinda, wife of Ephraim Klink, of Mt. Zion, Ohio; Brageta, who died in 1844; and Leah, wife of James Marks, of Lucas, Ohio. Common-school privileges were those afforded our subject, and his childhood and youth were passed on the old homestead in Richland county. He was seventeen years of age at the time of his parents' deaths. Not long after the farm was sold, and the administrator of the estate bound the children out to farmers. Our subject remained in the service of Patrick Yates until he had attained his majority, when he worked as a farm hand in the neighborhood, receiving $1 per day. In 1853 he went with his brother Robert to Miami county, Ind., and purchased eighty. acres of wild land, which he at once began to improve. After a year, however, he returned to Wood county. In Bloom township, on Christmas Day, 1855, Mr. Shanabarger married Sarah J. Yeaman, who was born in Richland county, April 22, 1835, a daughter of Joshua M. and Catherine (Keefer) Yeaman, also natives of Richland county. Mrs. Shanabarger was seventeen 760 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. years of age when she came to Wood county with her parents, who located on a 400-acre farm in Bloom township, there spending their remaining days. The father died October 2, 1871, at the age of sixty-three years, and his wife died December 12, 1876, aged seventy-eight years. Their children were Martha (widow of Henry Zoda) and Sarah J. (Mrs. Shanabarger). Mr. and Mrs. Shanabarger lived four years on her father's farm, the former working in a gristmill owned by Mr. Yeaman. The latter gave to his daughter and our subject 100 acres of land in Henry township, and they removed to the place, erected thereon a frame residence, and began to clear and improve the property. After the death of Mr. Yeaman, Mr. Shanabarger and his brotherin-law, Mr. Zoda, operated the gristmill for two years, and then concluded to divide the property of the Yeaman estate, the latter retaining the ownership of the mill, while the former took the land. He has since disposed of a portion-of this, but still retains the ownership of 216 acres. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Shanabarger. are as follows: Francis C., born in Bloom township, September 30, 1856, is now a minister of the House of Israel; Martha Ellen, born February 20, 1858, is the widow of John Bowman, of Findlay, Ohio; Celestia Ann, born March 21, 1865, died November 17, 1884; Henry Albertus, born October 6, 1868, married Margaret Zink, and lives in Henry township; Minnie C., born February 10, 1872, is the wife of Alpheus Witmore, of Jerry City. Ohio. Mr. Shanabarger was formerly a Democrat in politics; but he is now independent, voting for the best men. He and his wife are members of the religious order known as the New House of Israel, the Living Temple. This religious organization was established on the 6th of April, 1891, in the city of Port Huron, Mich., and, when the ark of God's new covenant was brought forth according to divine order the Shanabarger family were among the witnesses. The ark here spoken of (Rev. 11, 19) was brought forth July 1, A. D., 1894, and dedicated in the New House of Israel, the Living Temple, at Pt. Huron, Mich., U. S. A. The New House of Israel is now located in Polk county, Texas, four miles northeast of Livingston. The presence of the divine ark will constitute the life of the Philadelphian Church (Rev. 3, 7), and wherever that is there must the ark of necessity be. The living testimony is now being handed to the people from the ark of the Lord this year A. D., 1896, through the columns of the Pinery by the true Philadelphian Church, the New House of Israel-Isaac was born B. C., 1896; this proclamation is made A. D., 1896. The fulness of the Gentiles has come in, and Israel must be grafted into their own natural olive again (Rom. xi), and the covenant made with Israel (26th and 27th verses). The proclamation of this testimony of the Kingdom will be as by the sounds of a trumpet to alarm all nations of the earth, and especially all the professions of Christianity because attended with the power of acting all wonders. The birth of this virgin Church was visionally typified to St. John by the great wonder in heaven, bringing forth her first born that was caught up to the throne of God (see Rev. 12).Geo. R. Sutton, H. P., Judge in Israel; residence, four miles northeast of Livingston, Texas. JOSHUA O. AVERY, a well-known citizen of Weston township, is a native of Connecticut, born November 23, 1828, in New London county. The first of the Averys in this country came over in the " Mayflower, " and in after years many of the name were massacred at Fort Ledyard. Dudley Avery, father of our subject, was also of Connecticut nativity, born December 16, 1791, of English ancestry, and died near Monroeville, Huron Co., Ohio, September 30, 1854. He followed the occupation of a farmer, was a Universalist in religion, a Republican in politics. In Connecticut, October 16, 1814, he married Miss Prudence Avery, a native of that State, born August 26, 1788, of English parentage. Their children were: Dudley Austin, born September 21, 1815, died November 29, 1890; Hiram, b. February 7, 1817, d. March 30, 1855; Luther, b. April 30, 1819, d. February 28, 1895; Sydney S., b. April 16, 1822, d. February 24, 1830; Sarah Elizabeth, b. August 14, 1823, d. April 30, 1890 (she married Thomas B. Smith, in Huron county, and was residing at Dundee, Mich., at the time of her death; they had one child, Joseph B. Smith); John Q. A., b. June 12, 1825, d. June 2, 1826; Lucy Ann, b. December 30, 1826, d. February 9, 1830; Joshua 0., our subject, comes next; Sylvia Ann, b. August 31, 1830, married William H. Chapman (he is deceased, and she now resides one mile east of Weston); and Prudence Olive, b. July 9, 1832, married to Edwin Mauley, of Sherman township, Huron county. For a time our subject attended school in his native county, and then moved with his parents to Cleveland, Ohio, whence after a year's sojourn the family removed to Huron county, settling near Monroeville, in 1838. There Mr. Avery again attended school until he was twenty years Joshua O. & Harriet Avery WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 761 of age, at which time he came to Wood county and located two and one-half miles east of Weston. In 1864 he enlisted at Tontogany, in Company K, 185th O. V. I., under Gen. Cummings, and was honorably discharged in May, 1865. He suffered many hardships connected with a soldier's life, and so shattered in health was he when he returned home that he has been an invalid ever since from paralysis and spinal trouble, so as to be unfit for performing manual labor. He was a corporal in Capt. Black's company. Returning home he had his residence in Tontogany two years, then remained at his former home near Weston till 1889, in which year he came to his present beautiful home, situated one mile north of that village. It contains twenty-four and one-half acres of highly improved land, in addition to which Mr. Avery owns a farm of 120 acres in Plain township. In early life he followed agricultural pursuits, but for ten years he traveled for a plating firm, and for the past decade he has assisted in collecting the taxes of the county. In his political preferences he is a stanch Republican, and for several years he served as trustee of Plain township. As a member of the G. A. R., he has always taken great interest in the National Encampments, having attended nearly all that have been so far held. The county fairs have no better champion than Mr. Avery, and for the past twenty years he has been the able and active secretary of the Wood County Agricultural Society. Mr. Avery has been thrice married; first time in Lyme township, Huron Co., Ohio, on June 8, 1851, to Miss Harriet Manley, of Sherman, Ohio, born March 6, 1834, in Deerfield, Oneida Co., N. Y., a daughter of John and Thankful (Nicholson) Manley, who were of English descent. To this union children as follows were born: Thankful J., born August 21, 1853, died in infancy; Dudley Hiram, b. April 11, 1857, married Ellie M. Wiley, of Bowling Green, Ohio; Harriet Jane A., b. March 6, 1859, married B. P. Stratton, of Bowling Green, and they have two children Pearl and Harold; John Orlando, b. July 9, 1861, lives in Bowling Green, married Miss Cora Hemminger, of North Baltimore, Ohio, and they had two children-Lea M. (deceased), and Bernard; Florence Susanna, b. March 17, 1864, and married G. W. Cheeney, also lives in Bowling Green; Flora Adelia, b. September 23, 1865, died in infancy; and Cora Coen, b. July 30, 1868, single. The mother of these died August 4, 1868, and July 20, 1870, at Tontogany, Mr. Avery married his second wife. For his third he wedded January 6, 1883, Miss Letitia Elenor Fillmore, who was born October 23, 1864, a daughter of Timothy and Patience (Allen) Fillmore, the former of whom was born in New Brunswick, Canada, July 28, 1836, the latter in Nova Scotia, April 12, same year. Timothy Fillmore was a son of William Fillmore and wife, also natives of New Brunswick, and whose parents were English. In 1839, when Timothy was a small boy, the family moved by way of the St. Lawrence to Upper Canada (now province of Ontario), and on board the same vessel was his future wife, little two-year-old Patience Allen, who was accompanying her parents westward. She and Timothy were married August 3, 1856, in Canada, and in 1868 they moved into Michigan, settling in Midland county, where they are still living on their farm. They were the parents of eleven children, one of whom died in infancy; the others were: Julia D. (Mrs. John Marsh); William H., of Midland; James W., of Weston; Celia (Mrs. B. Canfield), now deceased; Letitia Elenor (Mrs. Avery); and Carrie, Sarah, Millard, Mahlon, and Corra, all five at home. The parents of these are both Methodists, and Mr. Fillmore is a Republican. Mrs. Avery is affiliated with the Woman's Relief Corps, also with the L. O. T. M., and is a member of the Methodist Church. CHARLES W. BRADSHAW, a well-known farmer and contractor, of Weston township, was born in Northampton, England, February 12, 1851. John W. Bradshaw, the father of our subject, also a native of England, was there married May 4, 1846, to Charlotte Wortley, who was born in Northampton. In 1851, he set out with his wife and two little children-Emily and Charles W.-for America, embarking at Liverpool on a sailing vessel, the voyage occupying four weeks and four days. His first location was in Monroeville, Huron Co., Ohio, and his sole possessions on arriving- there was $15 in money, and a few bedclothes. For a time he worked on a farm there, and in October, 1860, came by team to Portage, Wood county, where he bought ninety acres of land, on which he made his home until his death in 1883, his wife surviving him until 1893. In civic affairs, he held the offices of trustee, supervisor, and director of the school board; in religious faith he was originally a Methodist, later in life becoming a member of the Church of Christ. Five children were born to this worthy couple, as follows: Emily is the wife of Joseph Horn, of Bowling Green; Charles W. is our subject; Elizabeth H. married Henry RETURN TO THE TITLE PAGE