WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 803 L. P. TRIBBLE, the genial host of the " Tribble House " at Haskins, was born April 14, 1846, in Clermont county, Ohio, where his paternal grandfather, Cornelius Tribble, a native of South Carolina, was among the earliest settlers. Amos Tribble, our subject's father, was born in the same county April 10, 182o. He was married in Bethel, Clermont county, to Miss Margaret Higby, a native of New Jersey, born in 1819. Her family is of old New England stock, but her parents were born in New Jersey, and moved to Ohio during her girlhood. Amos Tribble and his wife lived in Clermont county until 1853, when they. came to Wood county and settled on a farm in Middleton township, afterward removing to Portage for a few years. They were members of the Congregational Church, and honored for their consistent example. Our subject's mother died November 1, 1892, but his father is still living, and resides on his farm, near Haskins. He is a Republican in politics, and when inclined to active work was influential in local affairs. Mr. Tribble is second in a family of six children, the others being: Julia A., the widow of H. N. Rush, of Portage; Lizzie married Eli Chapman, of Bowling Green; Charles, a farmer in Middleton township; and Helen and Annie, who both died in childhood. After acquiring a good education in the schools of District No. 6, and the town of Haskins, Mr. Tribble taught for ten years in different parts of the county, and then took charge of the C. H. & D. R. R. office at Haskins. This position he held for fifteen years, in the meantime establishing and conducting successfully his hotel business. He was married October 13, 1872, to Miss Jessie Pope, a native of Sandusky county, born September 12, 1855. Two children were born to this union: Julia, the wife of J. I. McCaslin, and Dwight, who lives with his parents. Mrs. Tribble is a lady of unusual mental endowments and force of character, and is a leader in various organizations. In all progressive movements both our subject and his wife are active supporters, and Mr. Tribble takes a prominent part in political affairs also, having been elected lately for the fifth time on the Republican ticket to the office of township treasurer. He is a member of the F. & A. M. and the I. O. O. F. J. L. RUMLER is one of the highly-respected farmers of Montgomery his native township where he first opened his eyes to the light, February 19, 1860, in Section 21. He belongs to one of the prominent pioneer families of the county, his grandfather, John Rumler, having arrived hree in 1833. He entered at that time 160acres of wild land in Section 21, receiving a deed for the same signed by Andrew Jackson. John Rumler was born in Lancaster, Penn., of German parentage, and on reaching manhood married Catherine Augustine, a native of Mahoning county, Ohio, where their wedding was celebrated. In Wood county he located upon the farm where our subject now resides, but at that time not a tree had been felled or an improvement of any kind made upon the place. There both he and his wife died at the age of eighty-eight years, his death occurring in 1862, and her's in May, 1864, and both were buried near Bradner, Ohio. In their family were five children: Eva, now Mrs. David Henline, of Sandusky, Ohio; Busias L., the father of our subject; Amelina, who became the wife of Benjamin Plants, and died in Sandusky county; John, a farmer of Montgomery township; and Elias, of the same township. In early life the grandfather learned the trade of a weaver, and he also followed teaming over the Alleghany Mountains from Lancaster, Penn., to Pittsburg; but his later life was devoted exclusively to agricultural pursuits. Religiously, he was a Lutheran. Busias L. Rumler was born in Columbiana county, Ohio, July 12, 1816, and during his boyhood received a fair education in German, which language was used principally by his father and their immediate neighbors. At the age of seventeen years he accompanied his parents to Wood county, where he became a successful hunter, being very fond of the sport. He was very hardy and robust, and used to walk miles and miles in search of game, often staying out all night; but the exposure told upon his constitution in later years. He was a hard worker, and assisted many of the pioneers in clearing their land. On August 24, 1856, in Montgomery township, he was united in marriage with Miss Eliza J. Mogle, who was born in that township, May 6, 1840, daughter of David and Sarah (Stahl) Mogle, the former a native of Richland county, and the latter of Wayne county, Ohio. Mrs. Rumler was the second in order of birth in a family of eight children, the others being Mary, now Mrs. C. T. Hardaker, of Fulton county, Ohio; Susan, who died in infancy; John W., of Lime City, Ohio; Daniel J., who died at that place; Levina, wife of Isaac Whitson, of Lime City; Oliver, of Fulton county, Ind.; Annie, who became the wife of John Galbreath, and died at Prairie Depot, Wood county. The parents of these children were married in Wood county, where they arrived in 1833. The father arrived here in 804 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. came in the spring with his father, Michael Mogle, who made a location in Montgomery township, and the mother accompanied her married sister, Mary, the wife of Daniel Edmunds, to the county in the fall of the same year. After his marriage Mr. Rumler built a hewedlog house, upon the farm where our subject now resides, and upon the site now occupied by the latter's residence. Later he located on the old homestead, where he lived for two years, and then returned to the log house, which was destroyed by fire in October, 1877; the following year the present substantial brick residence was erected. Upon that farm his death occurred February I, 1895. For about nine years previous he had been in failing health, but was never confined to his bed until the day before he died. His remains were interred in the Prairie Depot cemetery. He had been very active in his younger years, and, his feats of strength were almost marvelous. He used his right of franchise in support of the Democratic party, and religiously was an earnert member of the Lutheran Church. Since the death of his father,. J. L. Rumler, whose name introduces this review, and his mother have lived on the home farm, which he operates. He obtained a common-school education, and early became familiar with the duties that fall to the lot of an agriculturist. He has picked up carpentering, and is also quite familiar with other mechanical trades; but he devotes most of his time to the care and cultivation of the farm, which under his able management ranks among the best of the township. In manner he is quiet and unassuming; but is one of the most industrious and enterprising agriculturists of the locality, where he has always made his home and has many warm friends. Though not strictly partisan, he usually supports the men and measures of the Democratic party. Living with Mr. Rumler and his mother are the two sons of her youngest sister, Sarah Annie, who married John M. Galbreath, and these little boys, aged respectively six and four years, there find a pleasant home. A. E. SMITH, carriage manufacturer and dealer, is a native of New York State, born March 25, 1850, at Newburg. He resided in that town until twenty-six years old, learning and working at the trade of wagon-maker, which he followed in Newburg some four or five years. He then went to Hornellsville, N. Y., and various other places throughout the State, and, coming west, worked at Cleveland, whence he came to Tontogany in July, 1875. Mr. Smith remained at Tontogany until the following March, and then he went to Van Wert, Ohio, staying there about two years. On March I, 1878, he came to Weston, and engaged in business for himself, succeeding in building up a very substantial trade, and he has an extensive stock of carriages, wagons and harness. Our subject was married in Grand Rapids, Ohio, April 19, 1877, to Miss Emma Yost, a daughter of Peter Yost. They have no children. Mr. Smith has two brothers: William P., an engineer in Weston, and Charles A., a salesman in our subject's factory. All the three brothers are Democrats in politics. Eli Smith, the father, was a farmer, who came from New York State in I 880, and settled in Ohio. Politically he was a Democrat. He was married on January 18, 1848, to Miss Hannah E. Fergueson, of Newburg, Orange Co., New York. H. N. VAN VOORHIS, a successful farmer of Montgomery township, was born September 25, 1825, in the township of Whetstone, Crawford Co., Ohio, and is the son of William and Hannah (Jones) Van Voorhis. The great-grandfather of our subject was born in Holland, and H. N. is of the fourth generation in the United States. William Van Voorhis, the father of our subject, was a farmer in Crawford county, where he and his family were early pioneers. Mr. Van Voorhis is the oldest male representative of his family in Ohio. He did not receive over six months' schooling altogether. In 1836, when he was ten years old, his parents moved to Michigan, passing en route through Wood county, and along the "Old Stone Road." They were three days going, from Fremont, Ohio, to Perrysburg, as the road was very bad and swampy, and they spent four years in St. Joseph and Cass counties, Mich. Mr. Van Voorhis lived with his parents until he was between twenty-three and twenty-four years old, with the exception of one year, during which he was learning the harness-making trade at' Bucyrus. He taught school for four or five terms in Knox and Crawford counties, receiving for the first term $8 per month, and " boarding round "; his highest salary was $14 per month, without board. Mr. Van Voorhis was married in Crawford county, March 15, 1849, to Miss Sarah Beck, who was born near New Lisbon, Columbiana county, February 26, 1831, a daughter of Henry and Rachel (Roselle) Beck, both of whom were from New Jersey. When our subject was married he did not have a dollar; but he rented a small log house in Olen WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 805 tangy, Crawford county, for which he paid $12 per year, and his wife's parents gave them furniture with which to go to housekeeping. Later Mr. Van Voorhis bought two lots in the village, whereon he built a hewed-log house, and for seven years lived there, occupied in making shingles from rough timber, and teaching school. In the spring of 1858 he rented a farm in Morrow county, living there until the fall of the same year, when he returned to Whetstone township, bought ten acres of timbered land, and, moving an old hose onto it, lived there until he came to Wood county, April 10, 1866. He located in Section 20, Montgomery township, buying forty acres, for which he went into debt $1,100. After remaining there one year, he sold the farm at cost, and moved to Scott township, Sandusky county, bought thirty-seven acres, and after one year's residence there, removed to Section 7, Montgomery township, where he bought ninety-eight acres, for which he contracted a debt of $1,200. An old log house and a barn were the only buildings on the place, and this was his home until 1880, when he built the excellent brick house which now stands on the farm. On November 14, 1895, Mr. Van Voorhis moved to Prairie Depot, where he now resides in his house on North Center street. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Van Voorhis were as follows: Augustus, born February 12, 1850, is a farmer of Portage township; George H., born August 27, 1851, died in Portage township; Augusta J., born August 22, 1853, is now Mrs. Joseph J. Harris, of Perry county, Ill.; David C., born August 14, 1856, is a resident of Bowling Green; Owen, born March 21, 1859, died in infancy; Isaac, born November 8, 1861, is a farmer in Portage township; Frank, born September 13, 1868, follows farming in Montgomery township; Seretta, born February 23, 1871, is now Mrs. George Histe, of Portage village; Orrin, born September 9, 1877, died in infancy. Mr. Van Voorhis is a Democrat, served as township clerk in Crawford county, and was trustee for several terms in Montgomery township. He and his wife are members of the Deciples Church. He is a self-made man, and by industry and economy has acquired a comfortable amount of this world's goods. SPENCER W. DEWITT. The subject of this sketch is a well-known farmer residing in Weston township, one and one-half miles northeast of Weston village. His birth occurred February 3, 1859, in Weston township, on the farm where he now lives. Isaac Dewitt, father of our subject, was born in Pennsylvania, August 20, 1801. He was married three times, his third wife being Miss Theodosia Haughawout, . the mother of Spencer W. They were married at. her home in Erie county, Ohio, but in 1855, they removed to Weston township, Wood county, where they remained about six years, or until the death of Mr. Dewitt, July 7, 1861. Three children were born of this marriage, one of whom died in infancy; the others being Harriet, who married John Gingery, Jr., and died January 17, 1875; and Spencer W., our subject. Spencer W. Dewitt, the subject proper of this sketch, was but two years of age when his father died, and was then taken by his mother to her former home in Erie county, where he found a home with an uncle. Here he attended the district schools; but when he was eleven years old, accompanied his mother on her return to the old homestead in Wood county. In 1873, Mrs. Dewitt was married to Abram Leonard, and our subject made his home with them, and worked upon the farm. Mr. Leonard died March 25, 1884. On September 29, 1884, Spencer W. Dewitt was married to Miss Amanda J. McCrory, who was born in Wood county, September 7, 1865. They made their home with Mrs. Leonard on the old farm until the following spring (1885), when Mr. Dewitt built the house, in which he now resides, on the east half of the old homestead, making all improvements necessary to establish a comfortable home for his family. ' The marriage of our subject and his wife has been blessed with the following children. Charles Jesse, born September 18, 1885; George Spencer, born October 6, 1887; Harriet Elizabeth, born July 24, 1890; Alta Rosetta, born February 23, 1893; Vernie Wilson, born February 18, 1895, and died April 19, 1896. Mr. Dewitt has never taken much interest in politics, but has always sought to vote, regardless of party, for the best man for the office to be filled. He is a member of the Disciples Church. Since his mother's death, October 8, 1890, the homestead farm has been divided between Mr. Dewitt and his neice, Mrs. Addie Heckerman, who was the only daughter of his sister, Harriet Gingery- Mr. Dewitt retaining the east half, on which he had built his house. Mr. Dewitt is much respected by all his friends and neighbors for his integrity, and good, honest citizenship. JOHN R. ARCHER, M. D., one of the younger members of the medical profession, and an enterprising and progressive citizen of North Balti- 806 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. more, was born in Wood county, October 14, 1861. He spent his early childhood there, later attending school at Fostoria, and having become sufficiently qualified he began teaching school, which occupation he followed some five years. At the end of that time he took up the study of medicine, paying his way from the money earned while teaching, and was graduated from Starling Medical College, Columbus, Ohio, in 1887. Locating first at Holgate, Henry county, with his brother, who is also a physician, he remained there for one year, and then came to Wood county, settling in North Baltimore, where, by industry, ability, and strict attention to business, he has acquired a large and extensive practice.. He is a member of the Northwestern Ohio Medical Association, the State Medical Association, and the Wood County Medical Association. Dr. Archer is looked upon as a rising man in his community, and possesses the confidence of all who come in contact with him. Joseph Archer, father of our subject, was born in Richland county, Ohio, September 3, 1827, and was married December 20, 1853, in Huron county, to Miss Nancy Jane Howard, a native of Hancock county, born April 22, 1836. They became the parents of the following children James Dallas, born October 30, 1858; Sarah M., born March 15, 186o; John R., born September 14, 1861; Tebertha A., born January 2, 1865, died August 24, 1872; Millie B., born November 4, 1871, died March i6, 1874; Amanda E., born April 12, 1875, died March 30, 188o; Susie, born March 12, 1878. Mr. Archer settled in Bloom township from the time of his- marriage until 1887, when he returned to North Baltimore, where he now lives, one of the respected pioneers of the place. He still owns eighty acres of land in Bloom township. He is a Democrat, and a member of the United Brethren Church. Grandfather James Archer was born in Guernsey county, Ohio, of German ancestors. He lived in Richland county, where he followed the occupations of a blacksmith and farmer until 1834, when he moved to Wood county, and died in Bloom township at the age of forty years. He married a Miss Nancy Copas, who was born in Guernsey county, and who was over seventy years old at the time of her death. They were the parents of twelve children. ALEXANDER SCHWARTZ, a prominent baker, confectioner, and ice cream manufacturer of Bowling Green, was born in Lorraine, a German province, August 20, 1863. He is the son of John and Mary (Riff) Schwartz, the former of whom was born in Lorraine, June 2, 1817, and the latter in the same place, in 1828. She died in the old country, where her husband followed the occupation of a farmer. Mr. Schwartz, Sr., came to America in 1882, and joined his son Alexander in Waverly, Ohio, later removing to Bowling Green, where he died July 27, 1895. He and his wife became the parents of seven children, as follows; George died at Batavia, Ohio, aged thirty-six years: Mary died in Germany; Victoria died in the old country; Paulina married John Bras, and lives in France; Alexander is our subject; Louisa lives in Nancy, France; Edward died in infancy. The paternal grandfather, John Schwartz, was a weaver by trade, and died in Lorraine. He was in the French army under Napoleon I, and carried two bullets in his body, which were received at the battle of Waterloo. He lived to the good old age of ninety-five. Our subject's father was also a soldier, and fought in the Franco-Russian war. Mr. Schwartz spent his boyhood days in Lorraine attending the public schools, where he learned the German language. For a while he worked in a mill, in order to learn the miller's trade, but left his position to come to America. Upon arriving in this country he first located in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he learned the baker's and confectioner's trade. He worked at this in various cities, among which were Jackson (Ohio), Batavia, Waverly, Nelsonville, Fostoria and Findlay. For the first year and a half he went in business for himself at Batavia; then sold out and came to Bowling Green in February, 1892, and immediately opened a place of business which he has been operating ever since. He met with success from the start, and to-day leads all others in his line. The building in which Mr. Schwartz carries on his work is fitted out with all the latest improvements, required in the manufacture of ice cream and confectionery, and a visit through his establishment would prove interesting as well as instructive. The immense ovens in which the baking is done, the engine and machinery used in the manufacture of ice cream, and all the equipments of his business are of the best. When he put in his machine for freezing his ice cream, he was laughed at, but the first year he sold 1,400 gallons, the second 2,200 gallons, and the third, over 4,200 gallons, and this year he sold over 7,000 gallons. Besides his ice cream and confectionery plant, Mr. Schwartz owns forty acres of land east of Bowling Green. Our subject was married in Findlay, Ohio, WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 807 January 21, 1890, to Miss Anna M. Urschalitz, who was born in Plymouth, Ohio, June 5, 1871. Mr. Schwartz politics are Democratic. Socially, he belongs to the C. K. of St. John. He justly deserves the large and growing patronage which he at present enjoys, as he is progressive and industrious, and although he came to America empty handed, possessing nothing but a desire to earn an honest living, he not only acquired knowledge of a trade, but stuck to it, until to-day he is one of the most prosperous and successful business men in the county. JOHN D. ROSEN, a popular citizen and successful farmer, and oil operator, of Henry township, was born in Franklin, Warren Co., Ohio, February 12, 1848, and is a son of John and Eliza (Dial) Rosen. The father was a native of Pennsylvania, and followed the various pursuits of farming, carpentering and milling. In his native State he married Eliza Dial, who was also born in Pennsylvania, and subsequently removed with his wife to Warren county, Ohio, where he followed the trades previously mentioned. Later he carried on agricultural pursuits in Miami county, Ohio, and then returned to Pennsylvania, where he made his home for five years. On the expiration of that period Mr. Rosen purchased a 12o-acre farm in Henry township, Wood county, and in an old log cabin made his home while he improved his farm. As time passed greater prosperity came to him. His last days were spent in the home of his daughter, Mrs. Sarah Jeffers, in North Baltimore, Wood county. In politics he was a Democrat, and, in religious belief, a Methodist. His wife passed away five years before him. Their family contained the following children : Mrs. Sarah Jeffers; Sargent J. and Joanna (twins), the former of whom died at the age of twenty-eight years, the latter when a child; John E.; Joseph, of Ashland county, Ohio; and Elizabeth, who became the wife of B. A. Lawrence. The educational privileges of our subject were limited. When his father went to Pennsylvania he secured work as a farm hand in Miami county, Ohio; but after a year joined the family, and continued to reside in the Keystone State for three years, during which time he worked in a gristmill. He then came with his elder brother to Ohio, securing work on a farm near Cincinnati, where he remained for three years, receiving from $10 to $15 per month. He was afterward employed on another farm for six months. On the 26th of February, 1874, in Butler county, Ohio, was celebrated-the marriage of Mr. Rosen and Miss Mary. S. McCoy, who was born in that county in 185o. They now have one child-Albert, of North Baltimore, Ohio, who was born January 23, 1875. After their marriage they came to Wood county, locating on forty acres of land given Mr. Rosen by his father. In 1889, he discovered oil upon his place, and has since developed five wells which have proved a profitable source of income. He is an energetic and enterprising business man, and has won success in his undertakings. In politics he was formerly a Democrat, but his views on the temperance question have led him to give his support to the Prohibition party. JOSEPH DREPS, SR. (deceased), was among the pioneers of Middleton township, his residence dating from 1856. He was long numbered among the leading and esteemed agriculturists of this locality, and the success he acquired also gave him rank among the substantial citizens. A son of Antony and Alener (Crotzburgh) Dreps, natives of Germany, he was born in that country, March 4, 1824, and was one of a family of five children, the surviving members being Elizabeth, wife of Joseph Roldorf, of Germany; and Augusta, residing in that country. Joseph Dreps attended school in his native land, and was employed on his father's farm until nineteen years of age, when he began working as a farm hand for others in order to carry out his cherished wish of coming to America. When he had acquired sufficient money, in 1852, he took passage on a sailing vessel, and after a voyage of thirty-five days landed in New York. He at once went to Detroit, Mich., thence to Toledo, Ohio, where he worked for four years. In 1856 he came to Wood county, and entered forty acres of land in Middleton township-a timber tract, also covered by water. He cut and sold the wood, then drained and tiled the land, set out an orchard and planted crops. In 1886 he purchased an additional forty acres, and later bought another forty, so that he had at the time of his death, November 2, 1895, 12o acres, all under a high state of cultivation, with good buildings and modern improvements. He led an energetic, industrious life, and in clearing his land experienced those hardships known only to pioneer settlers. He came to this country with only three dollars, but steadily worked his way upward from humble surroundings to a position of affluence. In September, 1854, in Toledo, Mr. Dreps wedded Mary Malter, of that city, who died January 26, 18 56. In the month of May following he was again married, his second union being with 808 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. Barbara Auth, a native of Hessen, Germany. They had ten children: Joseph, born May 14, 1857; Barbara, December 14, 1858, wife of John Shiple, a farmer of Middleton township; Henry A., July 11, 1862; Andrew, May 30, 1863; John, February 11, 1865; George, October 26, 1866; Sylvester, who was born February 14, 1870, and died October 20, 1889; Mary, Lena and Elizabeth, triplets, born June 23, 1873. The last named is the wife of Charles Redouty, of Michigan, but the other two are single. His fellow townsmen appreciating his worth and ability frequently called Mr. Dreps to office, and for seven years he efficiently served as road supervisor, while for six years he was school director. In politics he was a Democrat, and his religious connection was with the Catholic Church. His life was well spent, and his energy, resolute purpose and honorable dealing, brought to him success in business. His name is above reproach, his reputation spotless, and he possesses a genial disposition that won him many warm friends who held him in the highest regard. HENRY A. DREPS, a worthy representative of this family, now living in Lansing, Mich., is one of the native sons of Middleton township, where he was born, reared and attended school, acquiring his education in the common schools near his home. He worked upon his father's farm until 1881, when he entered commercial life as a traveling representative of the Toledo Molding Company, and remained in the employ of that firm until 1885. With the capital he had then acquired through his own exertions, he embarked in business for himself at Lansing, Mich., where he has since continued as a wholesale and retail dealer in molding and frames, meeting with good success. He is a wide-awake and progressive business man whose standing is high in commercial circles, and his own efforts have brought him a prosperous trade. In politics, Mr. Dreps is a supporter of the Democracy, and, like his father's family, he is a member of the Catholic Church. He was married April 21, 1890, to Marietta Bunline, who was born in Michigan, May 19, 1866. JOHN FLOYD McKEE, whose reputation as a stockman, particularly in the line of fine-bred horses, has become almost world-wide, as well as national, is a native of Wood county, having been born December 23, 1856, in Grand Rapids township. Capt. John McKee, father of our subject, was born in Washington county, Penn., June 30, 1823, a son of John McKee, who first saw the light in Ireland in 1777, emigrated to this country, and was married in Pennsylvania, whence he removed to Wood county, Ohio, in 1833, dying here the same year. He left a widow and four children, namely: John, father of John Floyd; Elizabeth, who married a Mr. Buckland, and died in 1886; Jane, who died young; and Nancy (Mrs. Smith), now deceased. The father of this family was a Freemason, having joined the order in Ireland. Capt. John McKee was ten years old when he came with his parents to Weston township, Wood county, where he passed the rest of his days. He there married Caroline Brown, who was born in .Grand Rapids township, March 10, 1823, daughter of Alexander Brown, one of the early settlers of Wood county, coming from Pennsylvania. To this union were born five children, three of whom are deceased-two daughters having died in infancy, and one son, Edward, born January 13, 1854, died October 18, 1854; the two living are John F. (our subject), and Alice, born December 22, 1848, married March 19, 1875. to William Meggison, of Grand Rapids, Ohio. The mother of these was called from earth December 26, 1856. In the fall of 1863 Capt. McKee enlisted in Company I, 144th O. V. I., of which, later, he was elected captain, G. Weddell being first lieutenant, and G. Kimberlin, second lieutenant. The company did not leave for the seat of war until May, 1864. At the battle of Monocacy Capt. McKee's command was badly scattered, and he received a severe wound in the thigh of the right leg, from which he suffered more or less until his death. His service in the war lasted four months. He died December 22, 1885, mourned by a large circle of friends. He was a successful farmer, a good citizen, straightforward and honest, and firm in the upholding of his principles of integrity. He was not a member of any church, although his family have always been Presbyterians, to which faith he strongly inclined, and of which denomination he had for years been a substantial supporter. John Floyd McKee received his education at the district schools of his native township, and assisted his father in the work of the farm until he was twenty-one years old, when he assumed entire control of the homestead. To-day he is the possessor of over 500 acres of excellent land, whereon stands his magnificent residence, the admiration of all, and the finest barn in northwestern Ohio, one especially constructed with a view to the comfort and health of his numerous stock. For several years Mr. McKee has enjoyed a wide and enviable reputation as a breeder of John F. McKee WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 809 and dealer in fine-bred horses, in all varieties, his business in this line-matching and selling having extended to the farthest limits of both the Eastern and Western States. Not long since he sold a car-load of matched horses (bought in Chicago), in Bowling Green, and his market is not confined to the United States, for he has from time to time bought and sold many valuable animals for European purchases. To-day the King of Belgium is driving a fine team of horses which Mr. McKee bought in the Chicago market, and is said to have been the best team ever bought or sold in that market up to that time. Mr. McKee paid $670 for the team; within ten days sold them for $1,800 to John Miller, who in turn sold them to the King of Belgium for $4,400. Mr. McKee also feeds a large number of cattle, and at the present time has on his farm some twenty-three head of as fine cattle as can be found anywhere. As a thoroughly reliable, practical and expert stockman, and a master of the business, he has as we have already said, almost a national reputation, and that he has every facility for caring for and handling the finest of stock goes without saying. On December 20,. 1882, John Floyd McKee was married, in Grand Rapids township, to Miss Flora Heymann, daughter of Philip W. Heymann, and three children have blessed this union, their names and dates of birth being as follows: John, June 22, 1884; Grace, September 21, 1887; and Maud, August 17, 1892. Mr. and Mrs. McKee are members of the Presbyterian Church; in politics he is a Republican, but is no office seeker, though he has served as supervisor three terms, and on the board of education three years. He has inherited many of his father's characteristics, and is greatly respected for his uprightness, genial nature and philanthropy. R. W. KELLY. One of the best known and most prominent agriculturists of Perry township, is the gentleman whose name opens this sketch, and whose birth took place May 1, 1826, in what was then Richland county, Ohio, but is now Ashland county. The parents of our subject were John A. and Rachel (Shawhan) Kelly, the former of whom was born in Pennsylvania, in 1796, and the latter in Virginia July 13, 18o6. Their marriage took place in eastern Ohio on August 22, 1822, and on June 19, 1832, they came with their family to Montgomery township and settled in Section 32. The father had come to Wood county the previous month, and preempted 160 acres of land, on which not a stick of timber had been cut. The family made the journey from their former home by ox-team, with one horse as a leader. On the first night of their arrival they slept in the wagon, there being no building of any kind on the place or in the vicinity. A large maple tree, four feet in diameter, was cut down, and the body hollowed out and covered with puncheons, with blankets for the front and ends, this rude habitation affording them shelter until a round-log house was built. Drinking water was scarce, and their first effort was to dig a well, which they succeeded in doing after much difficulty. The first crop raised was potatoes and corn, and wild animals, such as wolves, deer, and bear, were plentiful. In reaching this isolated spot the father had to precede his family with an axe, cutting his way through the woods for four miles before reaching their future home, and in the eight miles from Risdon, now Fostoria, to their destination, they passed the homes of only two settlers, who were Isaac Keely and William Shawhan. Tiffin, Fremont, and Green Springs, were their milling points, which were reached with ox-teams, and about six days were consumed in making the trip. To this brave pioneer couple eight children were born, of whom the following record is given: Josiah S., born September 21, 1824, died of cholera at Ellsworth, Kans., where he kept a boarding house during the construction of the Union Pacific railway through that section; Eleanor W., born November 24, 1828, is the widow of Josiah Kiger, and lives in Millgrove; Lorenzo D., born October 15, 1830, died at Maple Rapids, Mich.; Frederick S., born May 15, 1832, lives in Gratiot county, Mich.; Mary, born July 14, 1834, married Samuel Fayler, and died in Kansas; William H. H., born May 12, 1836, lives in Coffee county, Kans.; Elizabeth, born April 15, 1838, married Amos K. Rainey. He was a soldier in Company B, 111th O. V. I., and was captured by the Rebels on his return from a visit to his sick wife, and died in Andersonville prison June 18, 1864. His wife died October 19, 1863, in Perry township. The mother of these children died January 23, 1840, and is buried at Millgrove. Mr. Kelly was married, a second time, in Seneca county, in 1841, to Miss Nancy Patterson, who bore him one child, Rachel, who was born December 20, 1842, and became the wife of Lewis Heller and died in Toledo. The father died August 8, 1859, and his second wife in 1866. Mr. Kelly was a strong, robust man, and very active in his early days. He served as land assessor of Wood county, and spent many days and nights also showing land to persons wishing to 810 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. pre-empt it, for which purpose he kept a rude chart of lands not already entered. For this work he received one dollar a day. He was originally a Whig, and afterward became a Republican, being a leading man in his party in his locality. He held at various times the offices of county commissioner and probate judge, and was justice of the peace in Montgomery township. At the time of his death he owned 280 acres of good land, and was one of the most prominent citizens of the township. Our subject was but six years old when his parents removed to Wood county, and his first schooling was in a log cabin, 14 x 16 feet, his teacher being a lady by the name of Emeline Palmer. He did not learn his "A, B, Cs," until he was thirteen years old, and then had but few advantages for pursuing his studies, as there was always plenty for him to do, 'and he only went to school when it was too wet to work. He afterward attended school for two winters in Tiffin, Ohio, living with Abel Rawson, an attorney of that place, and working for his board. One of his reminiscences of this time is his attendance in June, 1840, of a meeting at Perrysburg during the celebrated " hard cider campaign " at which he saw William H. Harrison, who was afterward elected President. When nineteen years old, Mr. Kelly entered the store of his uncle, R. W. Shawhan, at Tiffin, Ohio, as a clerk. This gentleman was a general merchant who owned two stores, one in Tiffin and one in Fort Ball, the latter now being a part of the former city. He remained in this position until February 1, 1849, when he became one of a company of four sent out by his uncle to California to dig gold on shares. Mr. Shawhan gave this party $2, 800 under the following conditions : they were to refund this money out of their first profits, and in case the project was a failure Mr. Shawhan was to lose the whole amount; if a success, he was to receive one-half of the proceeds of their work. They set sail from New York to Chagres, on the eastern coast of the Isthmus, well provided with six months' provisions, camp outfit, and other necessaries. At the Isthmus they hired natives to take their outfit to Panama for $100. Eight dimes went to the dollar, and they had supplied themselves with $100 in dimes. They had shipped one year's extra provisions around Cape Horn, and when these reached San Francisco they did not even take them from the steamship offices. Each man also had a trunkfull of clothing, which was more than needed and which was never taken from the storage room. On their arrival at Panama, no vessels yet being running in the San Francisco trade, they waited ten days, and then with over a hundred other passengers boarded a British mail vessel, plying between Panama and Valparaiso. They all agreed to stay on this boat until they could put in at a port and charter a vessel for San Francisco. At Callao, Peru, they found a whaler four months out from Nantucket, which they chartered, and after ten days' delay, which was necessary to transform this vessel into a rudely equipped passenger boat, in which they finally set sail, acid fifty-two days later arrived at their destination. Soon after they went to Sacramento, and found they had but $280 left out of their $2, Boo. This was the first party that left Seneca county, Ohio, for California, and consisted of the following men: R. E. Brewster, William Holt, John Schmitt, and R. W. Kelly. It took them from February 1 to June 8, to make the journey from Tiffin, Ohio, to San Francisco, California. Soon after their arrival this party began mining in what is now Eldorado county, Cal., on the middle fork of the American river, and wintered four miles from Sutter's mill, the place where gold was first discovered. The party remained together for two months, when our subject and William Holt formed a partnership, and worked together during the remainder of their stay there. On October 1, 1850, Mr. Kelly and his partner, Mr. Holt, left San Francisco on a steamer, and returned to New York by Panama, reaching Tiffin on the first of the following December. These men were strictly honorable, and carried out their agreement, dividing their profits with Mr. Shawhan, each having a snug sum of money left, and which, in the case of our subject, was the foundation of his success in business. His first enterprise was the purchase of 159 acres of land in Section 14, in Perry township, for which he paid $2,000 cash, leaving a balance of $900 on time. He was married June 5, 1851, in Portage township, to Miss Eliza J. Dresser, who was born in Richland county, Ohio, May 23, 1830. Aaron Dresser, her father, was a son of Samuel Dresser, and was born in New Hampshire. When he was eighteen years old his time was given him by his father, and he came to Richland county, Ohio, about 1820. He had a good common-school education, and taught school for a number of years. He married Esther Davis, and in the summer of 1834 came with his family to Portage township, Wood county, the journey being -made with ox-teams, and they crossing many deep streams, some of which the cattle had to swim. Their land was in an uncleared forest, WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 811 where they built a small house, and much hard labor was expended in preparing the land for cultivation. The children of this family were as follows: Sarah A., who died when fourteen years old; Eliza J., wife of our subject; Susan L., who married Andrew J. Hall, and died at twenty-two years of age; Daniel, who died when twenty-four years old; John, who died at sixteen; Margaretta (now Mrs. Henry Adams), who lives in Portage township; Mary A., who became the wife of Reuben Hillard, and died in Portage township. Aaron Dresser lived to be over ninety-two years old, his wife passing away at the age of fortyseven years. Both are buried in Millgrove cemetery. Mrs. Kelly taught school for four years .before her marriage, the salary being $1.5o per week, which was considered excellent wages in those days. When Mr. Kelly located on his farm, in Perry township, it was in poor shape, its only improvements being a small frame house and a roundlog stable. He spent considerable time and labor on it, and in March, 1852, traded farms with Justus Stearns, of Montgomery township, receiving 200 acres in exchange for his 159 acres. Later he sold this farm for $3,000, and in 1854 opened up a general merchandise store in West Millgrove, buying his goods in New York City. He was very successful in this business, which he carried on for five years; but failing health compelled him to retire from business, and he traded his store and other property for 40o acres of land in Montgomery township, and, renting his father's old-home farm in that township, removed to it in the spring of 1860, where he lived until March, 1882. He then removed to his present location, in Section 4, Perry township, where he has ever since resided. He has practically been a farmer continuously since 1859, and now owns over 700 acres of valuable farming land. In 1881 he built one of the best farm residences in Wood county, which is situated near West Millgrove, and where he and his family are enjoying all the comforts and conveniences of life. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Kelly were as follows: Josiah D., born April 5, 1852, lives in Damascus township, Henry Co., Ohio; Rachel E., July 31, 1853, resides with her parents; Charles W., October 31, 1855, died August 11, 1857; Eleanor E., October 20, 186o, married George A. Adams, and died in Montgomery township, June 25, 1886; John A., January 19, 1861, lives in Montgomery township; Rezin W., Jr., December 12, 1864, resides with his parents. Mr. Kelly has always been a public-spirited citizen, and has contributed liberally toward get ting the railroads through his portion of the county. He was originally a Whig, becoming a Republican on the formation of that party. In 1854 he served as assessor in Perry township, and in 1856 was elected justice of the peace, which office he resigned after one year. In 1870 he was elected land assessor of Montgomery township, and later served for one year as trustee. In 1871 he was elected county commissioner, and, after serving four and a half years, was re-elected; but resigned the office. In 1880 he served as real-estate assessor in Montgomery township. In all these responsible positions he showed much business ability and good judgment. He has for thirty-one years been a member of the Order of Odd Fellows, belonging to the various lodges at Perrysburg, Tiffin, and Fostoria. In 1886 Mr. Kelly took a trip to the Pacific coast, visiting places where he had been in 1849, and noting with pleasure the wonderful growth and development in that portion of the country. Mr. Kelly is a man exceedingly well preserved for his years, and possesses a wonderful memory, which makes him a very entertaining companion. He is a man of good judgment and much common sense in business matters, and is consulted by his neighbors on many subjects. He is one of the best citizens of Perry township and, with his wife, has a host of friends throughout the county. Mrs. Kelly has for many years been a member of the Congregational Church, and is a most estimable woman. GEORGE ELLSWORTH, fruit grower, etc., was born June 3, 1828, in Allegany county, N. Y., whence, when six years old, he came with his mother to Scott township, Sandusky county, Ohio, where he received his education in a log school house. Mr. Ellsworth learned the trade of carpenter and joiner, and followed the occupation of contractor and builder in Scott township, until 1865, when he came to Wood county, and located in Milton township, on a tract of land which he improved, working at farming in connection with his trade. He remained in Milton township until 1878, going from thereto Center township, where he bought fifteen acres of land, now situated in the corporation of Bowling Green, and began the cultivation of fruit, making a specialty of grapes, from which he produces some excellent wine. Mr. Ellsworth was married July 4, 1852, to Miss Elizabeth Clinger, who was born March 12, 1838, a daughter of John and Sarah Clinger. They are the parents of the following children: Reuben M., born December 11, 1854, is a police 812 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. officer in Bowling Green (he married Belle Ferciot, and they have two children); Francis H., born March 30, 1856, is in the insurance business in Kansas (he married Nellie Finnucan, and they have three children); George W., born November 16, 1864, is a music teacher and piano tuner in Bowling Green (his wife was Hattie Shutt); Willis G.,, born November 1g, 1867; Eugene E., born April 22, 1880; and one child died in infancy. Mr. Ellsworth was justice of the peace for four years in Scott township, Sandusky county, and no appeal was taken from his court while he was on the bench; he also held the office of assessor in the township. He is a man of broad mind and liberal views, and his sense of justice so clear that even his political opponents acknowledge his worthiness, and were satisfied with the manner in which he conducted the office. In politics he is liberal, voting for the man rather than the party. In all matters pertaining to the moral advancement of the community, he has always acted a zealous part. Mrs. Ellsworth is a devout member of the Adventist Church, accepting its primitive doctrines as orthodox. She is an extensive reader, a student in all Church matters, and her friends consult her as an authority on all religious topics. James Ellsworth, the father of our subject, was born in New York State in 1768, and was by occupation a building and contractor. He died when our subject was four years old. He married Miss Margaret Smith, who was born in Pennsylvania, and in 1832, after the death of her husband, she came to Ohio, locating in Scott township, where she bought ten acres of land, which her sons helped to clear. Those who see the present prosperous condition of the county can not fully realize the struggles and hardships endured by this noble pioneer woman in her efforts to make a home in the wilderness for her four small children. They were fifteen miles from mill, and hence they pounded their corn for the customary " Johnny cake" and '' mush; " it was of frequent occurrence, when the mother had prepared a meal for her children, that some Indian squaw would come in and demand her share-a share sufficiently large to make it inconvenient for the hungry children. Wild animals carried off the poultry and stock, and the necessity of guarding their possessions early developed the instincts of the hunter in the son George. In spite of all the difficulties that beset the widowed mother, she succeeded in accomplishing her purpose, and, in the consciousness of a duty performed, passed to her final rest in the eighty-fourth year of her age. DANIEL FRALICK. Prominent among the men who have carved out their own fortunes by honest toil and careful management, is the subject of this biography, a highly respected agriculturist of Montgomery. He was born in Dauphin county, Penn., December 28, 1828, the son of Jacob and Elizabeth (Shupp) Fralick, and was brought to Ohio, during his childhood, by his parents. His father secured a tract of woodland near Bucyrus, where a brother resided, with whom he made a temporary home while constructing a log cabin upon his own property. He was a hard worker, but remained comparatively poor, owning at his death only a small farm. He lived to the age of eighty-eight years, but his wife died a number of years before him. They had eleven children, of whom five were boys. Mr. Fralick, who was the third child and second son, from an early age was made useful upon the home farm, and did some work for others. The schools were distant, the roads bad, and at best the instruction was poor, and his chances for an education were limited. At twenty years he began working, on his own account, as a farm hand at fifty cents a day, and in a few years saved several hundred dollars. At twentysix he was married in Crawford county to Miss Ann Newcomer, who was born in Delaware county, Ohio, about 1835, the daughter of Samuel and Polly (Houseworth) Newcomer, who both died during her childhood, leaving her to be reared by strangers. Mr. Fralick rented a small log house which he furnished very simply, and here the young couple began housekeeping, and for some years he lived upon rented farms in different parts of Crawford county. In 1858 he came to Wood county and bought forty acres in Section 3, Montgomery township, near Bradner, upon which a few trees had been cut here and there, the cleared portion not being more than five acres in all. A log cabin stood upon the place, which, though small, had the unique charm of being the first home that he could call his own, and, when he could look over five acres of growing corn and two of wheat, he began to feel truly independent. His labor was rewarded with increasing prosperity, and he added small tracts of land until his farm now contains 12o acres-less the amount taken by the T. & O. C. R. R. for a right of way. His buildings and other improvements are excellent; but we regret to say that his success was not won without the impairment of Mr. Fralick's health by overwork. He is a steadfast believer in Democratic principles. Of five children, Edwin, Daniel & Ann Fralick WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 813 the youngest, is the only survivor; Calvin died at thirty years of age, Nelson at twenty-eight, and two daughters - Minerva and Mary - were called from earth in childhood. DANIEL PHILO, a prominent agriculturist and stock raiser of Webster township, was born in 1827 in Luzerne county, Penn., where his father, Hurlbert Philo, was for many years engaged in agricultural pursuits. On reaching his majority Mr. Philo left home and worked as a laborer for three years. He then rented a farm of 20o acres in Erie county, Ohio, where he remained until April, 1858, ,when he came to Wood county and settled on a farm near Tontogany. He was married in Erie county, January 19, 1854, to Miss Caroline Marks, a native of England, born April 27, 1835, who came to America with her parents when she was seven years old. Of this union seven children were born: James Dell is a farmer; Mary is the wife of Isaac Emmett; William Albert, George, and Ward are prosperous farmers; William L. died September 22, 1859, aged one year and ten months; Sarah Jane, the second in the family, who became the wife of job Walker, died September 12, 1888, aged twenty-seven years and one day. In 1866 Mr. Philo removed with his family to Webster township, where he bought twenty acres of land, to which he has added by subsequent purchases until he now owns 20o acres, and ranks as one of the largest land owners in the township. His thrifty and energetic management have been well rewarded, and his farm is considered a model one. In 1895 he built a residence costing $2,700. For the last twenty years, he has borne a heavy affliction, the gradual loss of his sight from cataract. He is interested in several business enterprises, and holds stock in the Dunbridge Elevator Company and the Lime City Mutual Fire Association. Politically he is a Democrat, and the esteem in which he is held among his neighbors has given him much influence in local affairs. He has been school director for twelve years, and has also served as supervisor of his township. He and his family are leading members of the M. E. Church. JOHN ERVEN, deceased. Among the enterprising agriculturists of Grand Rapids township, there were none who commanded in a greater measure the esteem and confidence of the community than did the late John Erven. His parents, Henry and Sarah (Ward) Erven, were prominent residents of Noble county, Ohio, where he first saw the light, November 27, 1850. Henry Erven, the father, was killed in a railroad accident in 1862, leaving his wife with five children to support, of whom our subject, then a lad of twelve years was the eldest. John Erven received a good education there, and for some years was engaged in teaching, and later in farming and stockraising. In 1875 he came to Wood county and purchased fifty-six acres of land, which he cleared and improved, digging ditches, planting an orchard, and erecting neat and substantial buildings. To this home he brought his bride, formerly Miss Lucretia McLain, to whom he was married in Jefferson county, November 6, 1878. She was born February 20, 1852, and was one of the eleven children of William McLain, a prominent agriculturist of Jefferson county, Ohio, and his wife Elizabeth (Clarke) McLain. Mr. McLain died April 12, 1878, and his wife survived him until August 3, 1887. After his marriage Mr. Erven added sixty-eight acres to his original purchase, making in all a fine farm, which is now under the judicious management of his widow, a lady of unusual executive ability. Four children were born to their union: Orrin, December 4, 1879; Lottie, May 1, 1881; Lewis, December 18, 1884; and Bessie, November 11, 1886, all of whom are living. To his little family the death of the father on January 17, 1893, was an irreparable loss, and outside the home circle the cutting off of so strong and vital an influence for good, was felt wherever he was known. To use his mother's words, "John always was a good boy. " In the Methodist Church, which he and his wife had joined in early years, he was an active worker, holding the office of steward, and doing faithful work in the Sunday-school, both as teacher and superintendent. In politics he was a Republican, and his generous assistance was given to every local movement, especially those which promised educational advancement, and he served as school director a number of years. ANDREW P. JAMESON, a prominent agriculturist and teacher of Webster township, was born in Pickaway county, Ohio, July 2, 1831, of Irish parentage. Rev. Ira Jameson, the father of our subject, an ordained minister of the Methodist Episcopal Church, sometime in the early '30s settled on a large tract of land in Hancock county, and engaged in agriculture, at the same time continuing his ministerial labors among the settlers and Indians. Of the three sons of Ira, our subject is Milan Jameson 814 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. the eldest; C. S., the second son, is an agriculturist still residing on the old homestead; and Ira M., the youngest in the family, is an ordained minister in the M. E. Church. On September 25, 1861, Andrew P. Jameson enlisted in the Federal army, becoming a member of Company H, 57th O. V. I. He was appointed sergeant; but was disabled at the battle of Shiloh, and on October 28, 1862, at Corinth, Miss., he was discharged on surgeon's certificate of disability. In 1863, our subject was married to Miss Mary A. Boltz, daughter of Jacob and Mary C. Boltz, of German descent, born in Lebanon county, Penn., January 9, 1836. Four sons graced the union of our subject and his wife: (1) Elmer was engaged in the agricultural-implement business for some years, but is now a farmer in Jackson township. In October, 1889, he was married to Fannie L. Egbert, of Vanlue, Ohio, and to them three children have been bornMary, Ralph S. and Ira Deloy. (2) Milan, the second son, completed a course at the N. A. N. S., and then taught school for some years. Under Gov. Campbell's administration, he was appointed guard in the Ohio penitentiary; but since the change in the administration he has had charge of the old homestead near Dowling, where his mother resides with him. In 1895 he was elected assessor of his township. On December 29, 1892, he was married to Miss Althea Hanney, a daughter of John and Maretta Hanney, of Dowling. One child has been born to them, Jewell J., born January 30, 1895. (3) Curtis, more familiarly known as '' Curt," is a practical machinist, having engaged in that work almost from boyhood. At present he is running a line of farm machinery on Jackson Prairie. He is still unmarried. (4) Deloy H., the youngest of this family of boys, was ordained a minister in the M. E. Church, and is now stationed at Kingston, Tenn. When only seventeen he began teaching in the public schools, and was elected superintendent of the schools at Gibsonburg, Ohio, before he was twenty-one, and he held this position until he entered the O. W. U., at Delaware, Ohio, to prepare himself for the work of the ministry. His health failing, he went to Tennessee, where he entered the U. S. Grant University; but while in his Sophomore year, his health failed him again, and he entered at once on the active work of the ministry. In 1894, he was married to Miss Kate Wetzel, who at that time was principal of the Grammar Department of the Perrysburg, Ohio, schools. They have one son, Raymond Deloy, born August 15, 1895. Rev. D. H. Jameson is a member of the F. & A. M., I. O. O. F., and K. P. fraternities. In 1870, Andrew P. Jameson, the subject of this sketch, moved, with his family, to Wood county, purchasing 128 acres of the northwestern corner of Webster township, principally forest land, which he cleared and improved. For a number of years he taught school in the county, but consumption having fastened upon him, he went to Santa Barbara, Cal., for his health; after which he returned to Wood county, but died January 18, 1876, shortly after his return. Socially, he was a member of the F. &A. M., and politically, he was a member of the Democrat party, as are all of his sons, but one. MILTON ASHLEY, a well-known carpenter and manufacturer residing at Bradner, is one of the prosperous business men of that town, and his success in business is due no less to his skill as a mechanic than to the confidence which his integrity in his dealings has won in the community. Since he started in his chosen calling he has always found plenty dodo wherever he might be, and there is no one who has employed him for whom he could not work again. He is of "Down East Yankee " stock on both sides, and was born March 30, 1830, in what is now Bennington township, Morrow Co., Ohio, then a part of Knox county. William H. Ashley, his grandfather, came from New England with his family in 1818, descending the Ohio river to Portsmouth, and from there going up the Scioto to Morrow county. Our subject's father, William T. Ashley, was among the oldest children, and was the first son. He was married a few years after their arrival, to Miss Nancy Davis, a daughter of Samuel Davis, a New Englander by birth. Of the four children of this marriage our subject was the second, and is now probably the only survivor. Leroy, the first child, died at the age of four years; Harlas died in Cardington, Ohio, and Seaman, an expert jeweler, went to Washington State, and all trace of him has been lost. The father owned a small farm, and also followed the mason's trade. He died in 1845, and about five years later his widow married William Maley. She was a woman of fine executive ability and artistic tastes, and was engaged in the millinery business for many years. Her death occurred March 10, 1895, while she was in Bradner visiting her son. Mr. Ashley's educational advantages were of the primitive order, the log school house of his district, with puncheon seats and floor, giving him his only opportunities. These were well-im- WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 815 proved, however, and there is no one more desirous of better facilities for the youth of to-day than our subject. At twenty he began to learn the carpenter's trade, serving two and one-half years at three dollars per month. In April, 1851, he was married in Sparta, Ohio, to his first wife, Ruth Rees, a daughter of Theophilus Rees, of Chester township, Morrow county. They began housekeeping at Sparta, where three children were born to them: Mary, now Mrs. John Sanderson, of Mt. Vernon, Ohio; William, who engaged in stove manufacturing and the tinware business at Newark, Ohio, but died at the age of twenty-eight; and Wallace, now a leading plumber and gasfitter at Newark. For a number of years Mr. Ashley followed his trade at Sparta, but after the death of his wife, which occurred December 31, 1867, he worked at different places, and was employed to some extent in the manufacture of carriage bodies. On December 24, 1872, he contracted a second marriage, with Ellen Brown, who was born January 5, 1845, a daughter of Thomas and Rachel (Mills) Brown, and widow of John Stahl, of Company I, 72nd O. V. I. They have had two children: Allen B., a remarkably talented boy, possessing great mechanical skill, died at the age of ten years; and Dot, an accomplished musician, is now attending school at Valparaiso, Indiana. In 1873 Mr. Ashley moved to Freeport, Ohio, and after about three years, established himself in Bradner, where he has since remained with the exception of three years in Mt. Vernon in a sash, door and planing mill. He is a man of excellent business ability, and aside from his trade he has carried on the manufacture of sucker rods, tanks and other contrivances in demand for various purposes. He owns fifty-five acres of valuable land adjoining Bradner, and his home is a most pleasant one from every point of view. He and his wife are prominent members of the Baptist Church, and take an interest in the various lines of work. Mr. Ashley has always been a Democrat, in principle, although not a strict partisan, and he belongs to the Masonic order, and the I.O.O.F. JOHN RUSSELL, a prominent carriage dealer of Bloomdale, is a native of Bloom township, and a representative of one of our oldest and most highly esteemed pioneer families: John Russell, his father, for many years known as Squire Russell, was born in Austintown, Mahoning county, August 23, 1814. He was married at Middlesex, Mercer Co., Penn., by Rev. William Nesby, to Miss Lois May, a native of New Troy, Kingston township, Luzerne Co., Penn., born August 6, 1820. They lived in Mahoning county for about six years, Mr. Russell following the occupation of millwright. Two of their eleven children were born there: Caroline, who was born in Boardman township, June 11, 1840, and died January 23, 1850, at their later home in Wood county; and Benton, born on Mill creek, January 11, 1843, who enlisted in Company F, 49th O. V. I., and died of typhoid fever at Nashville before seeing any active service. His remains were brought home and buried in Bloom township. In October, 1843, our subject's parents came to Wood county by wagon, the father having previously bargained for eighty acres of land in Bloom township. His brother Jonathan had come two weeks before to prepare a shelter, and on their arrival they found a 20x20 cabin, minus floors, doors and windows; blankets supplied the places of the latter, and with true pioneer spirit they made the best of everything. The father had only $20 left at the journey's end; but he began to work as he could at carpentering, and the mother made some money by tailoring. They went to mill at Fostoria, Tiffin or Perrysburg, their ox-team taking two days to make the trip. The timber on their land was heavy, and they had to hire help to assist in clearing, paying for it in farm produce. Nine children were born at their new home: Mary, October 20, 1844, who now resides in Bloomdale; John, February 17, 1847; oursubject; Homer, September 24, 1849, a farmer of Cass township, Hancock county; Pierce, November 20, 1851, who met his death by accident, June 4, 187o, while shearing sheep; Frank, September 1, 1853, a resident of Jackson township, Hancock county; James, March 21, 1855, who died November 26, 1872; Lois, July 19, 1857, who died August 30, 1878; Adaline, March 17, 186o, now a resident of Youngstown; and Lorinda J., March 18, 1863, who died April 9, 1866. In spite of some misfortunes, including the entire loss of home by fire in 1868, Squire Russell managed to acquire a fine property, and owned at the time of his death 200 acres in good condition. He was a Democrat until the Dred Scott decision, when he became an ardent advocate of Republican principles. He was a man of sterling integrity, possessing the courage of his convictions, and was highly respected throughout the community. He was a justice of the peace for twenty-three years, and held that office during the stirring time attending the removal of the county seat. He died December 24, 1884, and his wife, who was a devout and 816 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. consistent member of the Disciples Church, greatly loved for her many good qualities, survived him but a few years, dying January 17, 1890. She had lived on the farm forty-five years. The subject of this sketch found plenty of work to do in his early days upon the farm, but he availed himself of the advantages afforded by the schools of his day. At twenty-one he began working for wages on neighboring farms, and in 1870 he went to Kansas and followed the same occupation in Jefferson and Douglas counties. Later he pre-empted 16o acres, not then surveyed, in Howard county, now Chautauqua county. He remained two years, keeping "bachelor's hall" in a plank house, and in the fall of 1872 returned to Bloom township, with health permanently impaired by chills and fever. He remained at home until after his mother's death, working at the carpenter's trade, and in November, 189o, he and his sister Mary went to Bowling Green to reside. In September, 1892, they moved to Bloomdale. For some time Mr. Russell has been engaged in selling carriages, and in 1894 he built a repository to accommodate his rapidly extending trade. He is a stockholder in the Bloomdale Building & Loan Association, and by the success of his various enterprises he has won a high rank in business circles. In politics he is a Republican, and has taken an active share in local work,` serving as township trustee and supervisor. He is a member of Lodge No. 406, I. O. O. F., at Bloomdale, and Green Encampment No. 210, at Bowling Green. D. K. BROUGHER, one of Wood county's intelligent and progressive farmers, belongs to that class of representative citizens on whom the welfare of every nation depends. History usually deals with the lives of those who are prominent in political, military or literary circles; but it is the men who remain quietly at home, faithfully and honorably performing each day's duties to whom the stability of the country is due. Such a man is our subject. Mr. Brougher was born October 18, 1828, in the village of Liberty, Randolph Co., N. C. His great-grandfather was the founder of the family in America. The grandfather, Adam Brougher, was a native of Pennsylvania, whence he emigrated to North Carolina. His son Frederick was born and reared in the latter State, and when a young man learned the trade of shoemaking, but on account of his health was obliged to abandon this, and turned his attention to the tanning business, which later he carried on in connection with farming. In Randolph county he married Miss Nellie Staley, a native of that county. Her father's mother was a cousin of the royal family of Germany. Frederick Brougher, after some years, removed with his family to Florida; but as his wife did not like that country, he returned northward, and for a short time lived in Ohio. He then removed to Fort Wayne, Ind., where he left his family, and on horseback journeyed over that part of the country in search of a suitable location. Not finding what he wanted, he spent a, short time at Ft. Wayne, Ind., and returned to southern Ohio, where he remained two years, then removed to Allen county, Ohio, thence to Putnam county, where he entered ninety-three acres of land in Greensburg township, being the third settler there. From Allen county he brought with him a hand-mill in which he used to grind corn, otherwise he would have been compelled to go forty miles to a watermill. This old mill of his has been on exhibition at the Pioneer meetings of Putnam county, as a relic of pioneer days. His farm he increased from time to time until it comprised 493 acres, and to its cultivation he devoted his energies until his death, which occurred there June 13, 1875. His wife passed away in 1889. This worthy couple were the parents of the following children: Brockmon. who died on the old homestead in Putnam county, in 1894; Jackson, who entered the army in 1861, and died in a hospital at Vicksburg; Hoadley, a farmer of Monroe township, Putnam county; Hogan, also of Putnam county; Staley, who enlisted in the army at the beginning of the war, served throughout the struggle, and is now following farming in Oklahoma; Bersheba, who became the wife of William R. Crow, and died in Putnam county; Mrs. Tennie Goris, of Montana, and Ann, widow of William Ault, of Putnam county. Our subject was quite young when, with his parents, he left his native State. He accompanied them on their various removals until their final settlement in Putnam county, Ohio, where he was reared to manhood and acquired his education in the district schools. When about eighteen years of age he inherited eighty acres of land from his father, and to this he added eighty acres, for some time clearing and cultivating sixty acres. He then sold, and purchased 520 acres in Palmer township, Putnam county, of which he remained owner for a year. He then disposed of the property, and returned to the old homestead, buying out the interest of the other heirs. This he afterward sold, and in the spring of 1882 came to Wood county, where he purchased his present farm of 320 acres. He has D. K. Brougher WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 817 tiled and fenced the place, erected thereon good barns, and has made other excellent improvements, until he now has one of the valuable and desirable places of the community. He is a man of energy and determination, one who carries forward to successful completion whatever he undertakes, and his industrious efforts have brought to him a handsome property. In politics he is independent, voting for the best man regardless of party. In religion he is a Freethinker, regarding man's duty to man to be the only requisite. WASHINGTON LINK, deceased, was born in Ingharn county, Mich., on February 22, 1840. His parents, William and Sarah Link, were natives of New York, but their marriage was celebrated in Ingham county, Mich., where the father carried on blacksmithing in connection with the improvement and development of his farm. There he died in March, 1889, but his wife still makes her home in that county. On attaining man's estate Washington Link was married in his native county, the lady of his choice being Elizabeth Guisfert, who was born in Seneca county, Ohio, and they became the parents of three children, namely: Mrs. Myrtle Mitchell, of Plain township, Wood county; Wellington, and William. In Ingham county, Mich., Mr. Link engaged in agricultural pursuits until his death, which occurred in 1888, and his wife, who still survives him, now makes her home in Plain township, Wood Co., Ohio, where she has gained many warm friends. She is a lady of kind and generous impulses, was ever a devoted wife, and is a loving mother. The early home of WILLIAM LINK was in Ingham county, Mich., where he first opened his eyes to the light of day in 1876. He was reared under the parental roof, and early became familiar with the duties of farm life. His education was obtained in the schools of his native county, and on coming to Wood county, in 1889, he located in Liberty township, but in 1895 removed to Plain. For two years after coming to the county he was engaged in the oil business, working on a salary, and is also employed now in the oil fields. He is one of the rising young business men of the county, and will, no doubt, make a success in life. FREDERICK STROBLE, one of the thrifty and prosperous agriculturists of Perrysburg township, residing near Stony Ridge, was horn March 7, 1831, in Wellenberg, Germany. He grew to manhood there, acquiring a fair education in the public schools, and for a short time worked in a mill, but later determined to make farming his occupation. In 1859 he came to America in search of better opportunities than his native land afforded, and after thirty days on the ocean, in a sailing vessel, he landed in New York. On coming to Ohio Mr. Stroble located first at Liverpool, Medina county, but soon moved to Columbia township, Lorain county, where he worked for five years. He was married there April 10, 1862, to Miss Anna Eckler, a native of that township, born January 8, 1844. Her parents, Henry and Ann Eckler, were both natives of Germany, where they were married, coming shortly afterward to this country and settling upon a farm in Erie county for some years, but finally making their home in Lorain county, where they died, the father at the age of eightysix, the mother at the age of fifty-seven. They had seven children: Catherine, the wife of H. Hempy, of Cleveland; John, who died at the old home in 1893; Margaret, who married Louis Ganss, and died at Toledo; Anna, Mrs. Stroble; May, the wife of Julius Kinesy, a miller of Lorain county; Elizabeth, the wife of Edward Bickle, a farmer of the same county, and Emanuel, a teamster in Elyria. A few years after his marriage Mr. Stroble moved with his family to Wood county, settling upon the farm of seventy-two acres upon which. they have since resided. Politically he is a Democrat, but he is not an active worker in party affairs, giving his influence in quiet ways to the support of the men and measures he deems worthy. He and his wife are leading members of St. John's Church (Lutheran) at Stony Ridge, the ancestors of both for generations having been adherents of the Lutheran faith. They have two children--Frank L., born December 17, 1862, and Mary E., born October 21, 1878. FRANK L. STROBLE is one of the sturdy, enterprising young men who promise to make the future of our county a worthy advance upon the achievements of the past. He was educated in the schools of his district, and of late has assumed much of the labor and responsibility of the farm. In politics he is a supporter of the Republican party, and he is a member of the Knights of Honor at Stony Ridge. JAMES TELLER, a successful farmer, business man, and financier of Portage township, was born in Westchester county, N. Y., one mile below the Croton Dam, April 14, 1831, and is the son of Samuel and Bashaba (Underhill) Teller. Solomon Teller, the paternal grandfather, was 818 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. born of German parents, who came to America at about the time of the Colonial settlement at New York. He and two of his sons were in the war of 1812. He was a-hatter by trade, and accumulated considerable property. He was twice married, his first wife dying when Samuel, father of our subject, was eight years old. When he married again his second sons were bound out to various trades, Samuel going to work in a woolen factory, which was situated just above the old Quaker bridge, near the mouth of the Croton river. He was born October 25, 1797, and had no opportunity for schooling. He served his apprenticeship from the time he was nine years old until he reached his majority, when he rented the factory, operated it for a number of years, making cloth from the raw material. Samuel Teller was married January 4, 1825, to Miss Underhill, who was born October 11, 1806, in Westchester county, N. Y. She was the daughter of Benjamin Underhill, a farmer and a descendant of an old Colonial family. The following children comprised the family of Mr, and Mrs. Teller : Phoebe, born November 21, 1825, married and died in Huron county, Ohio; Charity, born April 22, 1829, was accidentally burned to death when twelve years old; James is our subject; George, born July 22, 1834, died in Greenwich township, Huron county; Benjamin, born February 22, 1836, died in Portage township; Robert, born November 24, 1840, died when young; Mary, born January 8, 1843, died at the age of nineteen years; Martha, born April 4, 1846, died young; Emily, born April 4, 185o, married Henry Cline, and died in Greenwich township. About the year 1836 the family came to Ohio, via the Hudson river and Erie canal to Buffalo, and our subject remembers the details of the trip. They came by boat from Buffalo to Sandusky, thence by wagon to Greenwich township. The father had means; but rented some land instead of buying it, as it was a new business to him. Besides operating the farm, he worked two or three years in a woolen factory at Monroeville, Ohio. His first wife died in Greenwich township, Huron county, in 1860, and was buried in Ruggles township, Ashland county. Mr. Teller afterward married a Miss Foster, by whom he had no children. He died suddenly in Greenwich township, in 1876, and was buried by the side of his first wife. Both were Christians and strict observers of religious customs. In politics he was a Democrat, and a regular voter, but never sought office. He was robust and active up to the time of his death. James Teller attended the district schools dear his Ohio home, and worked upon his father's farm until he was twenty-one years old, occasionally doing some odd jobs for an outsider. In the fall of 1861 he left by wagon for Wood county, where, after looking around for a favorable locality,' he bought 129 acres of land in Section 8, Portage township, which he paid for out of his own earnings. It was in its primitive condition of wilderness, and, while he was clearing a part of it, he boarded with some neighbors, until his marriage, July 22, 1862, in Perrysburg, with Miss Frances Casswell. She is a native of Jackson county, Mich., born October 29, 1840, a daughter of Asa Casswell, a blacksmith, and Lucinda (Lewis) Casswell, both of whom were born in New York. They had five children: Frances, our subject's wife; Jane and George, twins; Harriet, wife of Frank Stratten, of Portage village, and Isa. George was a member of Company C, 21st O. V. I., and died in Andersonville prison. Mr. Teller's first house was built of round logs, hewed on the inside of the house, and was 18 x 26 feet in dimensions. It stood north of and adjoining the present home. Subsequently he bought forty acres in Section 4, also eighty acres in Section 5, and in 1880 built his present substantial residence. To our subject and his wife have been born children as follows: Emily, born December 14, 1863, now the widow of George Lembrick, of Portage; Nettie M., born December 1o, 1865, married J. F. Wollam, of Jerry City, Ohio; Charles J., born July 20, 1868, lives on a farm in Portage; Harriet L., born September 29, 1870, became Mrs. E. W. Fisher, of Portage village; Charity, born January 5, 1873, is at home; Anna, born September 16, 1875: Andrew, born September 8, 1878, is at home. Mr. Teller is a Democrat, has served twelve consecutive terms as township trustee; has also served as director in District No. 3; and has refused other offices. In the spring of 1895, he had 320 acres of land, eighty of which he gave his son Charles. His farm is drained by 75,000 tiles, which, together with all the improvements of the place, has either been done by him personally or under his direction. He is a self-made man, possesses good common sense and excellent judgment, and is one of the successful farmers of the township. He has been a member of the Masonic Lodge No. 112, at Bowling Green, for over twenty years. A. C. WALKER. The well-appointed farm of this gentleman is located in Section 11, Portage township, and to it he has given his close atten- WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 819 tion with results which can hardly fail to be satisfactory to himself and where his labors have met with success. He is a native of Scotland, born in the vicinity of Aberdeen, January 16, 1854, and in the following fall was brought to America by his parents, James and Anna (Mitchell) Walker. The father took his family to Ruggles township, Ashland Co., Ohio, where with his limited capital he purchased thirty acres of partially improved land. On that farm he passed his remaining days, dying in 1878, at the age of eightyfour years. His wife survived him until February 15, 1896. To them were born eight children, namely: George, of Bay City, Mich.; Anna, now Mrs. C. A. Neuman, of Ruggles township, Ashland county; William, of Fitchville township, Huron county; Robert and John, both of Ruggles township, Ashland county; Jennie, now Mrs. David Crowell, of Savannah, Ohio; A. C., of this review; Jeannette; and Isabel, wife of Oliver Carpning, of Ruggles township, Ashland county. The father was a well-educated man, six feet tall and weighed about 185 pounds. He regularly supported the Republican party by his ballot, and was a faithful member of the Presbyterian Church, which he joined in Scotland. Until reaching his majority, our subject remained a member of his father's household, aiding in the labors of the farm and attending the district schools of Ashland county; but at that time started out in life for himself, being employed at farm labor. On February 19, 1879, he was joined in wedlock with Miss Anna Emslie, who was born October 17, 1858, in Rochester township, Lorain Co., Ohio, whence her parents removed to Ruggles township, Ashland county, when she was but an infant. There she as educated in the district schools and later married. Three children grace this union: Clyde M., born May 26, 1882; Alice W., born November 3, 1885; and Lillian Lucile, born August 22, 1896. On a rented farm in Ruggles township, our subject began housekeeping, and there resided until August, 1884, when he removed to his present farm of forty acres in Section 11, Portage township.. He has made many substantial improvements upon the place, and thirty-four acres are now under a high state of cultivation. In the spring of 1891 he returned to Ashland county, but at the end of a year came again to his farm in Portage township, which he is now successfully conducting. He is public-spirited and progressive, giving his support to all worthy enterprises for the advancement of the community, and socially is a member of Excelsior Lodge No. 223, K. O. T. M., at Prairie Depot. In religious belief both he and his wife are Methodists, and he is at present trustee of Bethel Church of Portage township. His political affiliations are with the Republican party. GEORGE AND CLAYTON ROGERS, who, under the firm name of Rogers Brothers, conduct an extensive trade in drugs and kindred articles at Bowling Green, are natives of Wood county, educated in her schools, and trained here to business life. Thus identified from birth with the interests of this locality, they have early taken a prominent place among the young business men of the county seat. The elder brother George, was born in Portage, May 10, 1864, the younger, Clayton, in Bowling Green, June 18, 1868. Their father, the late Charles Rogers, was for many years a leading druggist in Bowling Green. After attending the excellent public schools there, during boyhood, they worked in the store, to which they succeeded on the death of their father, on March 10, 1891. Under their energetic management the prestige of the firm is not likely to suffer. George Rogers was married April 24, 1888, to Miss Addie Clayton, of Weston, and on June 14, 1893, Clayton Rogers was united in marriage with Miss Kittie Theal, who was born in Tiffin, Ohio, in 1868. Both brothers are Republicans in politics, and while the elder is a member of the K. of P., the other belongs to the fraternal order of Odd Fellows. CHARLES R. GERDING, the efficient postmaster at Pemberville, and one of the most prominent citizens of that locality, was appointed July 1, 1893, by the Honorable Byron F. Ritchie, of Toledo, Ohio, under Grover Cleveland's administration. His father, Yost Henry Gerding, was born in Vardendorf, Amt Witlaga, Hanover, near Osnabruck, Germany, in 182o. He married Anna Maria Harr, who was born in 1820, in Essen Amt Village, near Osnabruck, a sister of John, Fred, Lewis, Charles, and Eliza Harr, all of whom are married, the last named being now Mrs. . John Avers, of Gibsonburg, Sandusky county. To the union of Mr. and Mrs. Gerding were born the following named children: Charles R., our subject; Harmon, Henry, Mary, and Fred. In 1846, soon after their marriage, the young couple came to New York City. After acquiring a knowledge of the English language, during a period of six months, Mr. Gerding opened a grocery at the 820 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. corner of Division and Forsyth streets, in New York City, where he carried on a successful business for nine years. During the cholera epidemic in 1854 he was attacked by the disease, which left his lower limbs partially paralyzed, and after trying many remedies without avail he was advised to take an ocean voyage. He accordingly started for his native land with his wife and the four older children, and before he had been on the water three days, he began to regain the use of his limbs, and by the time the trip was over he had entirely recovered. He stayed at his birthplace for nine months, and as he was the legal heir to the family estate he almost decided to remain there. The home was, at the time, occupied by his stepfather, who was expecting to marry Mrs. Graver, of Hurbenfelt, Amt Witlaga, near Essen, Germany, and who strongly urged him to remain, or to rent the estate to Fred Harr, who is now a resident of Troy township. Mr. Gerding had left his business and household goods in charge of Mr. Swacker, residing on Forty-first and Ninth avenue, New York City, and thought it best to come back and dispose of everything before finally retiring to his ancestral property. But three days before his arrival in New York a fire swept away his possessions there, upon which he received no insurance. Mr. Clousing P. Betts, of Forty-fourth street, between Eighth and Ninth avenues, an old and valued friend, saved a few effects and stored them away for him, but otherwise the loss was complete. In 1856 Mr. Gerding opened another grocery in Brooklyn, in Green Point, corner of F and Franklin streets, still intending, however, to rent his estate, or return to it himself. But on July 3 he was taken suddenly ill, and died the next day at 4 P. M., at the age of thirty-seven years, three months and eighteen days. He was buried on July 7, in the Lutheran cemetery, near Williamsburg, Middle Village, Brooklyn. Mr. Gerding was a prominent man in his day, and for seven years was second lieutenant in the 5th Regiment, W. H. Jefferson Guards, and was honorably discharged in 1856, by Mayor Fernando Wood, of New York. His widow and children are still living. Charles R. Gerding was born January 31, 1846, on Fifth avenue, between Twenty-fourth and Twenty-fifth streets, New York City. He left home six months after his father's death, and has made his own way in the world since that time. He clerked for C. H. Bulthauft, corner of Amity and Sullivan streets, New York City, until the war broke out, when his employer sold cut his business and went to the front with the regiment of militia to which he belonged, having enlisted for three months at the first call to arms.. Mr. Gerding then entered the employ of Capt.. Henry Barlach, at the corner of Forty-seventh street and Seventh avenue, remaining there until the fall of 1861, when he came to Ohio, locating first in Washington township, Wood county, where an uncle, Charles Harr, resided. For four years he worked for Lewis Avers, as a carpenter and joiner, and then for Hiram Helgernick and A. W. Luckey, of Elmore, Ottawa county, for short periods, and, in 1868, he came to Pemberville, and worked for John Hathaway, Sr., until the spring of 1879. Here he met and married Miss Mary Herman, a native of the place, born May 1, 1847, one of the eight children of John Henry and Mary Herman, who were among the early settlers in Freedom township. They came to this country in 1844, locating on a farm northeast of Pemberville, where, by industry and thrift, they acquired a fine property. In his later years Mr. Herman invested his savings in a sawmill and flourmill, and failed. He died in 1872 at the age of sixty-five, and his wife followed him seven years later, aged seventy years. Mrs. Gerding has lived at Pemberville all her life. Her brother, John, now the only other surviving member of the family, is a prominent farmer there, owning 12o acres two miles southeast of the town. The first year after his marriage, February 28, 1879, Mr. Gerding rented a farm on the Portage river, five miles below Elmore; but the summer of 1879 was an extremely wet season, and, of fourteen acres planted in corn, seven were completely drowned out, and four acres of oats, out of twenty, were also lost. He secured 350 bushels of corn from the other seven acres, and had some oats to sell, for which he received thirty-one cents per bushel. Discouraged with these results, he sold out to his brother, Harmon, and went back to Pemberville, where he joined his wife's brother, W. Herman, in a combined sawmill and shingle factory, which they con-ducted successfully for one year. He also clerked for eight years for William Keil & Co., hardware dealers. In 1871 he built his present home on Water street, where five of his six children were born, the eldest, Anna, having been born at Elmore. The others are-John F., Alice, Amelia G., Carrie, and Carl, all of whom are at home. Mr. Gerding holds a prominent place in the community, and was one of the members of the first council of Pemberville, corporation mayor for one term, member of the school board for nine years, and township clerk for eight years. He WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 821 is a member of the Lutheran Church, having been confirmed in 1861 at Hessville, by Pastor Crowell, of Woodville. He belongs to the Masonic order, Blue Lodge No. 516, and Crystal Chapter, of Bowling Green. A. E. BENTON. The New England branch of the Benton family has, at various times in our history, furnished men of brains and courage, both moral and physical, to meet the public questions and emergencies of their day. Such a memory is indeed a goodly heritage, and those of the name whose lives are spent in quieter and less known paths of duty, may find there opportunities for the exercise of the same qualities, in a measure, which in other circumstances have made their ancestors distinguished. Our subject was born in Berkshire county, Mass., October 30, 1823, the son of Allen and Deidamia (Allen) Benton-the former born November 18, 1801., died March 18, 1864; the latter born May 16, 1805, died February 26, 1857. When he was ten years old his father, a farmer by occupation, came to Ohio, locating in Litchfield township, Medina county, then a new section, and there both parents died. Of their five sons and three daughters, our subject was the second in order of birth. His schooling was so limited that he was eighteen or nineteen years old before he could write. The improved educational methods and appliances of to-day meet with his hearty approval in behalf of the rising generation. He was reared as a farmer boy in old pioneer style, and well knows what hard work is. Before he was ten he had received cuts and scars, which have handicapped him seriously all his life. In early manhood he worked at making axe handles, and still follows sledge-handle manufacturing to a considerable extent. At twentyone he went to Cleveland and found employment on a lake vessel. At this time his strength was enormous, and on one occasion; while the ship, lay at Mackinac Island, he lifted seven hundred pounds of iron-dead weight-he and a halfbreed Indian being the only ones out of five hundred men who could lift it. He is now exceedingly well-preserved, considering his mishaps and laborious life. Mr. Benton was married at the age of twentyseven in Medina county, Ohio, to Miss Sarah Gunsaulis, a native of Pennsylvania, and daughter of Benjamin Gunsaulis. He took his bride to a farm of forty acres, which he owned in Litchfield township, in the same county, where they made their first home. Later he bought eighty acres in Scott township, Sandusky county, slightly improved-a little log house sheltering them for some time, until he could build a finer residence.. He lost one excellent barn by fire, but replaced it. The farm was in good shape when he moved in the spring of 1886, to Bradner, and he still owns it. Mrs. Benton died at the old home, and her remains were laid to rest in the cemetery at Bradner. Four children survived her: Mary, who married Cornelius Houtz, and died in Sandusky county; Reuben F., a plasterer by trade, who owns an extensive farm in Kent county, Mich., where he resides; Charles W., a noted educator, now a professor in Valparaiso, Ind., and Gilbert H., a resident of Cleveland, Ohio. In December, 1885, Mr. Benton married, for his second wife, Mrs. Emma Stover, a native of Northampton county, Penn., and the widow of Cyrus Stover, an extensive flour merchant, of Stockton, N. J. Three children were born to their union: Warren P., who died in infancy; and Mary E. and Irvin S., both at home. His children have enjoyed fine educational advantages, and he has given them, as they left home, sufficient capital to begin life in a creditable way. He and Mrs. Benton belong to the M. E. Church, in which he is treasurer and a member of the board of trustees. Politically he is a strong Republican, but he has not been an office seeker. R. E. MILBOURN, D. D. S. North Baltimore has a number of ambitious young men whose desire to succeed in the world, and make a name for themselves, is most creditable. Among these may be mentioned the subject of this sketch, Dr. R. E.. Milbourn, whose birth took place in Bloom township, December 8, 1864. He is the son of Mandeville and Rebecca (Whitacre) Milbourn. Both the Milbourn and Whitacre families are pioneers of Wood county, Reason Whitacre, our subject's grandfather, being one of the oldest residents in point of time. Dr. Milbourn was married, September 12, 1895, to Miss Sylvia Wight, who was born January 19, 1863, in Lake township, Wood Co., Ohio. In politics he is a Republican. In religious connection he is a member, of the Christian Church. LEVI SMITH WARNER, who has been postmaster at Lime City for the past ten years, is an agriculturist of Perrysburg township, born in Sandusky county, Ohio, January 23, 1844. He is the son of Levi S. and Mary F. (Francisco) Warner. The father of our subject was born in 822 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. New York State, and came with his parents to Lake county, Ohio, when he was two years old. When he was a young man he had the contract for furnishing wooden rails for the Ohio R. R., one of the first in the State. At Fremont, then called Lower Sandusky, he married Mary F. Francisco, the daughter of Jacob Francisco, a native of New York State and a soldier in the war of 1812 (he was taken prisoner at the battle of Queenstown Heights, but was exchanged soon after; he died in Fremont, Ohio). Shortly after his marriage with Miss Francisco he removed to Lake county, and in the fall of 1849 came to Wood county, settling in Walbridge, Lake township, where his death occurred in 1854, from cholera. He was a Jacksonian Democrat. Seven children were born to this worthy couple, and grew to maturity: Zophar, Levi S., Byron J., Emerett, Harriet, Blanch, and Henry. Zophar served four years in the 14th, and Byron three years in the 67th, O. V. I., during the Rebellion. Emerett is deputy postmaster. Harriet was the wife of Samuel Perry, and died in 1887. Blanch is the wife of F. J. Shovar, who is a member of the city council of Toledo. Two years after her husband's death, Mrs. Warner married his brother Samuel, and two children were born of this union: Lillian, the wife of L. Philes, and Wilber, now deceased. Mrs. Warner was of French and Spanish descent, the name being originally Franseco. She was left a widow the second time, her husband dying in 1869, from a disease contracted in the army; she still survives, at the age of seventy-eight years. L. S. Warner, our subject, grew to manhood in this State, acquiring his education in the district schools. On October 8, 1861, he enlisted in Company A, 14th O. V. I., at Toledo. His regiment was assigned to the army of the Cumberland, and they remained in Kentucky until about the time of the capture of Fort Donelson; from whence they were sent under Gen. Buell to Pittsburg Landing. At Nashville Mr. Warner was seized with typhoid fever, and when convalescent, was sent home, but as soon as he was able he rejoined his regiment. He was in the battle of Chickamauga, where he was wounded, and after the memorable battle of Missionary Ridge, veteranized December 8, 1863. He was with Sherman on the famous' "March to the Sea," and was honorably discharged July 11, 1865, after serving throughout the entire war. After his return home he worked as a carpenter and joiner, which trade he picked up, being naturally inclined to architecture. He lived for some time in Lake township, where he bought a half interest in a sawmill, which he afterward exchanged for vessel property; he then engaged as mate on the vessel "Maumee Valley," on which he sailed three years. After leaving the lakes he again took up the carpenter trade, and eleven years ago located in Lime City, where for a few years he conducted a country store, and 'attended to his farm of seventy-four acres. On February 8, 1887, Mr. Warner was married to Miss Mellie E. Brownsberger, and to them have been born two children: Albert Levi, deceased at the age of one year, three months and fourteen days, and Milo Joseph. They now reside in a modern residence built by Mr. Warner in 1888. Socially Mr. Warner is a member of the Masonic order, and politically is a stanch Democrat. R. PRESCOTT MORRISON, the well-known photographer of Bowling Green, is descended on both paternal and maternal lines from early settlers in this country. Since the establishment of our national government there has never been a time when the United States Army has not enrolled Some member of the family. Mr. Morrison himself was named after Col, Prescott, a relative of his mother, and served during the Civil war, in Company H, 133d O. V. I., and was for four months in front of Petersburg, Va. His only brother, J. V. Morrison, died in 1867 of disease contracted in the army. Charles A. Varnum, a son of Gen. John Varnum, who was a brother of Mr. Morrison's mother, was a survivor of the ill-fated Custer expedition. He had charge of a detachment of Indian scouts, and was in advance of the troops at the time of the massacre. The Indians deserted him, but he escaped unharmed, and is now in command of the 7th Cavalry, U. S. Regulars. Mr. Morrison's paternal grandfather, was of Scotch-Irish descent, and a native of Lowell, Mass., where he was a machinist by occupation. He had three children -William, Henry, and Robert. The latter, our subject's father, was born in Keene, N. H., and became overseer of a factory in Lowell. He married Miss Charlotte Varnum, a native of that town, and a few years later went to California, where he met his death, in 1851. Our subject was born in Granville, Ohio, March 16, 1848, and received his early education in the public schools there, and in the Business College at Columbus. His mother was married, in 1855, to Col. D. M. Baker, of Granville, and had one daughter, Jessie M., now Mrs. Wallace M. Smith, of Bowling Green. Mrs. Morrison WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 829 died in Granville, at the age of sixty-seven, an early age for one of her hardy and long-lived race. Her mother, who died at ninety-five, had nineteen children, and her five sisters all lived beyond the age of ninety. Mr. Morrison learned photography in Columbus, and for two years was engaged in that business in Fostoria; but in 1879 he established his present well-equipped gallery in Bowling Green, where he has since resided. In 1871 Mr. Morrison married Miss Linnie Ball, who was born in Millersport, Fairfield Co., Ohio, February 21, 1849. She is descended from one of the wealthiest and most honored families of that locality. Mr. Morrison is a man of fine physique, and is noted for his artistic tastes and accomplishments. In his professional work he ranks among the leaders, while he also finds time to take a prominent part in local affairs. In politics he is a Democrat, and he is a member of the G. A. R., the F. & A. M., the K. of P., and of the order of Maccabees. CHARLES W. BENSCHOTER, a leading agriculturist of Grand Rapids, was born in Erie county, Ohio, April 7, 1846, a son of Samuel Wetherlow and Nancy A. (Bassett) Benschoter. His father, Samuel W. Benschoter, was born March 27, 1811, a son of Jeremiah Benschoter, who moved from New York State, about 1800, and settled in Erie county, Ohio. He was married in 1838 to Nancy A. Bassett, who was born March 4, 1821, the daughter of A. Biron Bassett, who also came from the Empire State to Erie county about 1800. To this honored couple were born the following children: W. A.; J. S.; C. W. (our subject); J. W.; C. E.; L. M.; and Mrs. E. E. Black, all of whom are proving worthy representatives of the family name in this generation. Charles W. Benschoter finished his education at the excellent high school in Grand Rapids, in 1871, and in early manhood began to clear up and improve a farm of forty acres, a gift from his father. After improving this he bought forty acres more, the whole being conducted in a model manner. He has a fine barn and a handsome brick dwelling house. For twelve years he was engaged in dealing in horses and other live stock, but his attention is now given to general farming. He was married in 1874 to Miss Frances Jones, daughter of William Jones, a well-known resident of Center township. Four children were born of this union: Ada, who finished her education at Grand Rapids; Howard, also at Grand Rapids; Joseph Guy, and Lewis J., all of whom reside with their parents. Our subject and his wife are actively interested in temperance and other reforms, Mr. Benschoter voting the Prohibition ticket. He be longs to the F. & A. M., Grand Rapids Lodge No. 289, and ranks as a Master Mason. L. RHOAD, one of the most successful and enterprising agriculturists of Bloom township, was born July 29, 1857, in Crawford county, Ohio, to John and Catherine (Strong) Rhoad. The father's birth occurred in Cumberland county, Penn., February 5, 1816, and at Republic, Seneca Co., Ohio, he wedded Miss Strong, who was born August 2, 1833. He was a son of Frederick and Elizabeth Rhoad. For many years he made his home in Seneca county, but in the spring of 1861 he brought his family to Bloom township, locating on eighty acres of land known as the Slater farm, for which he went in debt. The improvements upon the place were not extensive, but included a small story-and-a-half house, and in the orchard was one row of trees. There the mother of our subject died July 21, 1865, and she was buried in Van Buren cemetery, Hancock county. To them had been born the following children: Sylvester, born August 6, 1852, who died January 4, 1853; William, born October 27, 1853, who is now a farmer of Hoytville, Ohio; our subject; Lucinda, July 4, 186o, who died of spotted fever March 27, 1866; and John W., born March 24, 1864, died of the same dread disease March 23, 1866. The father was absent in Michigan at the time his children took the spotted fever, and arrived home just in time to see them alive. He was later attacked by the same disease; but his strong constitution saved him, though after any illness large spots would appear on his body. Five years after the death of his first wife Mr. Rhoad married Catherine Shireman, who was born May 4, 1837, and they had one daughter, Margaret A., born June 14, 1874, who is now the wife of William Brandeberry, of Bloom township. Mr. Rhoad passed away February 23, 1894, and Mrs. Rhoad died October 30, 1884. They were also interred in the cemetery at Van Buren. In connection with his farming operations, Mr. Rhoad also ran a threshing machine for twenty seasons. He was exceedingly neat both in his agricultural pursuits and dress, was fond of good horses, always keeping a spirited team, and was a model farmer in every respect. He was a member of the United Brethren Church, and his political support was given to the Democratic party. Mr. Rhoad, of this review, was only four years old when brought to Wood county, where he ob- 824 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. tained his education, and as his own mother died when he was quite young, he found a loving substitute in his father's second wife, a kind-hearted, agreeable lady, to whom he became much attached. He was married at Eagleville, October 23, 1879, the lady of his choice being Miss Emma O. Crozier, who was born in Cass township, Hancock county, September 1, 1862, the second daughter of Thomas and Mary (Campbell) Crozier, prominent farming people. To them have been born seven children-Charles W., Ellis C., John L., Howard, Lewis, Ethel and Leila, all at home with the exception of Howard, who died at the age of four years. After his marriage Mr. Rhoad rented the old home farm for a couple of years, his entire possessions at the time comprising a light team, buggy and harness, and the first plow he owned was given him by his father. In the spring of 1882 he purchased thirty-eight and a half acres in Section 33, Bloom township, for which he went in debt. $700, and there made his home for four years. In July, 1885, he sold the land, and the following month bought eighty acres in Section 32, of the same township, going in debt $2,700; but he went earnestly to work, and each year the amount became less. In May, 1893, he added another eighty acres, so that he now has an excellent farm of 16o acres. In October, 1889, he suffered quite a loss, as his house and its contents were burned; but he erected a more comfortable dwelling, which he has surrounded by good and substantial outbuildings, and the neat appearance of the place indicates the thrift and enterprise of the owner. He deserves much credit for the success he has attained, and deserves to be classed among the most active and energetic farmers and business men of the locality. His political affiliations are with the Republican party, in the success of which he takes a lively interest. JONAS HANLINE, a gentleman of genuine worth, a valued and enterprising citizen of Liberty township, claims Pennsylvania as the State of his nativity, his birth having occurred in Morrison's Cove, Huntingdon county, December 10, 1825. His parents were Michael and Hannah (Owerant) Hanline. During his early boyhood the father came from Germany, with his parents, to the United States, and ',settled on a farm in Huntingdon county, Penn., where his father's death occurred about 1825. Michael Hanline was married in , that county, and after living for many years on a farm there, removed to Stark county, Ohio, where he operated a tract of rented land until coming to Wood county, in September, 1836. He located at Freeport, and for five years carried on a hotel there. Subsequently he removed to Genoa, where he died soon afterward, his wife surviving him many years. They were the parents of nine children: John, of Wauseon; Samuel of Napoleon, Ohio; David, who died in Findlay, Ohio, many years ago; Eliza, wife of Charles; Beyers, of Toledo, Ohio; Jonas, of this sketch; Catherine, wife of John Shoffstall; Mrs. Louise Chamberlin, who died in Bradner, Wood county; Harriet, deceased wife of William Gregg, of Sandusky county, Ohio; and Joshua, who resides in Bradner, Wood county. Our subject acquired the greater part of his education in Freeport, Ohio, and attended school until eighteen years of age, when he worked at anything that he could find to do in order to earn an honest living. When a young man he learned the trade of carpenter and joiner. In Liberty township, in 1849, he was married to Fidelia Norton, who was born in Sherburne, Chenango Co., N. Y., December 13, 1827. They located in Liberty township, and Mr. Hanline worked as a farm hand, until purchasing an acre and a half of land in Section 4. There he built a log cabin which later was destroyed by fire, and was then replaced by a comfortable home. He afterward added five acres of land to his original purchase, and has now upon his place two good oil wells, which yield on an average 64o barrels per month, thus furnishing him with a good income. His life has been one of industry and earnest labor. In his business career, he has met with reverses; but steady application and diligence have now brought to him a comfortable competence. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Hanline are: Julia, born December 8, 1854, became the wife of Nelson Emmons, of Kansas, where she died April 18, 1882; Mary Eliza, born July 1, 1857, is the wife of Charles Ferris, of Liberty; and Jessie, born July 8, 1862, was burned to death in the fire which destroyed their home. In her sad death 'the loss to the family has been an irreparable one. Mr. Hanline takes quite an active interest in politics, and by his ballot supports the Republican party. W. H. RIDGELY. The life of this gentleman, a resident of Bloom township, is a striking example of perseverance and industry. He is a native of Maryland, born in Anne Arundel county, November 3, 1827, and is a son of Elijah and Mary (Higgins) Ridgely, who came to Ohio in November, 1829, locating in Seneca county, on Honey creek. The father there secured eighty Jonas & Fidelia Hanline WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 825 acres of land from the government, and at the time of his settlement wild game of all kinds was plentiful, and his nearest neighbor on the east was six miles distant. The first home was a log house 18 x 22 feet, and upon that farm the parents both died, the father at the age of fiftyseven years, and the mother when sixty-six. They were buried at the old stone church on Honey creek. Our subject is the third in order of birth in the family of six children, three sons and three daughters, and in the district school, three-quarters of a mile from his home, he received his education. As a partner on life's journey he secured Miss Mary A. Mohr, a native of Lehigh county, Penn., born July 28, 1837, and a daughter of Charles Mohr, their wedding being celebrated at Tiffin, Ohio, October 5, 1859. They became the parents of the following children: Arthur C., who died at the age of twenty-six years; Mary I., now Mrs. F. J. Pelton, of La Grange county, Ind.; George M., a farmer of Bloom township; J. W., of New York State; Ellen, wife of John Monasmith, of Bloom township; and Emma, wife of Rev. John Stove, of Canada, a minister of the Disciples Church. The mother, who was a consistent member of the German Reformed Church, died November 7, 1872, and was laid to rest in Bloom Chapel cemetery. After the death of his father our subject and his eldest brother, Charles A., took charge of the home farm comprising 175 acres, which they operated in partnership for nine years, during which time they purchased 12o acres in Bloom township, Seneca county. In April, 1861, Mr. Ridgely removed to that place, where a hewedlog house had been constructed, and a part of the land cleared, but in January, 1867, he removed to Eagleville, where, in connection with Henry Mohr, he carried on wagon making, which trade he had picked up at different times. For two years he followed that business, during which time he sold his farm, and in 1872 he erected the first gristmill in Eagleville, which he operated for eleven years. Being unfortunate in his financial affairs, in February, 1882, he bought eighty acres of wild land in Section 13, Bloom township, and at the age of fifty-five began life anew. He continued to reside in Eagleville, however, until November, 1888, as at the time of his purchase the land was covered with a heavy growth of timber, and not a building stood upon it. It is now well improved and equipped with an excellent class of farm buildings. From the time of casting his first vote up to 1880, Mr. Ridgely supported the Democratic party; but he now affiliates with the Peoples party, in whose principles he firmly believes. He occupies an honorable position in society, enjoying to the fullest extent the confidence and respect of all with whom he is associated, and is widely and favorably known in business circles as an upright, incorruptible man, whose word is as good as his bond. WILLIAM H. STROCK is spoken of by his neighbors as an excellent farmer and a good citizen, and such a tribute from those who know him best is certainly an enviable one. His life record is as follows: Born October 12, 1837, in Mahoning county, Ohio, he is the son of Abraham Strock, who was born in eastern Pennsylvania, April 7, 1813. The grandfather, Henry Strock, was one of the earliest settlers of Mahoning county, Ohio, and there spent his remaining days. With the exception of one daughter, his five sons and five' daughters all reached adult age. Abraham Strock was married in Mahoning county to Sophia Whetzel, who was born in eastern Pennsylvania. They became the parents of the following named children: Sarah A., wife of Daniel Blatt, of Mahoning county; William H.; Eliza, wife of Henry Shaffer, now deceased; Benjamin' F., who died in infancy; Caroline, wife of Andrew Shefenstine, of Mahoning county; Lucy, wife of J. P. Hill; of Canton, Ohio; and George. W., of Niles, Ohio. The father of this family followed carpentering, and was quite successful. In politics he was a Whig and Republican, and with his wife held membership with the Lutheran Church. He died at the age of seventy-seven years, his wife at the age of seventy-one, and their remains were interred in Smith cemetery, in Mahoning county. Mr. Strock, the subject proper of this sketch, is indebted to the district schools for his education, which, however, was limited to a few months attendance during the winter season until he was twenty years of age, when he spent a term and a half in Hiram College, Ohio, of which James A. Garfield was then principal. He then began learning carpentering with his father, which he followed for about eight years. On September 21, 1865, Mr. Strock was married in Jackson township, Mahoning county, to Drusilla Duer, who was born in that township, July 23, 1844, a daughter of Joseph and Mary (Eckenrode) Duer, the former a native of Ohio, and the latter of Pennsylvania. They had nine children, of whom Mrs. Strock was the fifth. Previous to his marriage Mr. Strock had purchased 160 acres of land in Bloom township, and in July, 1866, he removed 826 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. with his wife to that farm. The purchase price of the property was $ 1,900, and he paid for it as he could, until it was cleared from all indebtedness. It was heavily timbered, and he transformed it into a highly cultivated tract, also erecting all of the buildings upon the place. During the first few years of his residence here he worked at the carpenter's trade, for his farm in its unimproved condition did not yield him a livelihood. As the result of his labors, however, it is-now a very productive place, and he derives therefrom a good income. Mr. and Mrs. Strock have two daughtersLeona, wife of J. M. Baird; and Mary S., wife of Charles Brubaker. Mr. Strock has given his daughters eighty acres of his land, retaining eighty acres for himself and wife. This estimable couple are members of the Church of God, of Bloom Center, 'of which he is serving as trustee. In politics he is a Republican, and for fourteen years has served as treasurer of Bloom township. His life has been well and worthily passed, and he has the sincere regard of many friends. JAMES P. KRAMER, the senior member of the firm of Kramer & Chaney, leading hardware merchants in Bowling Green, was born April 14, 1846, in Franklin county, Ohio. David Kramer, his father, who was born in Pennsylvania, in 1805, of an old and highlyrespected Dutch family, settled in early manhood upon a farm in Franklin county, Ohio. He was married there to Miss Elizabeth Moore, who was born of New England parents in 18o9. They were consistent members of the U. B. Church in Canal Winchester, Ohio, for many years, the father dying in February, 1859, the mother in June, 1890. Of their twelve children, seven lived to maturity: Eliza, who married the late J. B. King, of Dayton, Ohio, and now lives in Columbus; Mary, deceased, formerly the wife of John Gehm; Ellen, the wife of George Powell, of Canal Winchester; Levi, a hardware merchant at the same town; Benton, a resident of Young county, Texas; J. P., our subject; and David, now in Colorado. Mr. Kramer attended the common schools of Franklin county during boyhood, and, after working for a year on a railroad, he continued his studies in Dayton and Westerville, Ohio. He prepared himself for teaching, and in 1868 went to Iowa hoping to find an opening in that profession, but that locality was not then sufficiently developed to provide profitable employment in that line, so he learned the carpenter's trade, which he followed in Marshall county, Iowa, for three years. Returning to his old home, he continued the same business for thirteen years, and then opened a hardware store in Canal Winchester. He sold this in 1887, and removed to Bowling Green, where he and his partner, Mr. Chaney, bought out the stock of Lynch Bros., to which they have added until they now have one of the best hardware stores in Wood county. Mr. Kramer married Miss Marilla Waters, of Columbus, Ohio, and has one child, Mildred, the wife of Elmer Spafford, the well-known civil engineer, of Bowling Green. In politics our subject adheres to the faith of his father, and is a member of the Democratic party. JOHN C. WEBB, one of the oldest settlers of Wood county, where he arrived in 1822, when Bowling Green was unknown, has seen the complete growth and development of that region. The land was then covered with a dense forest, and much of it was under water for a portion of the year; the wild game of all kinds, which was very plentiful, furnished many a meal for the early pioneers. His boyhood and youth were passed amidst such surroundings, so that he early became inured to the arduous task of clearing and cultivating wild land. On the 26th of November, 1822, he was brought to Wood county, and it was in 1857 that he located in Troy township, where he owns a good farm on Road Tract No. 62. Mr. Webb was born September 2, 1822, in Canton, Stark Co., Ohio, and is a son of John and Elizabeth (Charles) Webb. The father's birth occurred in New York, August 27, 1795, and on attaining manhood went to Mifflinburg, Union Co., Penn., where he married Miss Charles, who was born in that State in 1794. Immediately afterward they came on horseback over the mountains to Stark county, Ohio, arriving there in March, 1820. By trade Mr. Webb was a hatter, and carried on a shop in Canton until coming to Wood county, in November, 1822. At Perrysburg he continued the manufacture of hats for about two years, when he was appointed county clerk, which office he capably filled for thirty years. He was also sheriff for three terms, and at one time held the position of internal revenue collector. The mother of our subject died at Perrysburg, December 17, 1833. In her family were seven children, namely: Susanna, deceased; John C.; Rebecca, Catherine and Sarah, all three deceased; Thomas, who enlisted in 1861, becoming a member of the Commissary Department, and now makes his home in Dayton, Ohio; and Henry, who died at the age of fifteen years. In Perrys- WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 827 burg, the father again married in July, 1834, his second union being with Mary Dean, who died February 14, 1849, leaving four children, three of whom are still living-Mrs. Mary Elizabeth Marshall, of Canada; Mrs. Sarah Ann Smith, of Columbiaville, Mich. ; Corwin, of Perrysburg; and Clayton, deceased. Corwin enlisted in an Indiana regiment during the Civil war, and lost an arm at the battle of Pea Ridge, Ark. For his third wife Mr. Webb married Mary A. Jones, of Perrysburg, February 23, 1851, and she still makes her home in that city. By this union three children were born-Ellen Dustin, of Perrysburg; Mrs. Eliza H. Taylor, of Conway, Ky., and Lewis, of Maumee, Ohio. The father was widely known throughout northwestern Ohio, and took an active part in political matters in Wood county, being a leader of the Whig party in this community at an early day. He continued to make his home in. Perrysburg until his death on the 27th of August, 1885. Our subject was educated in the schools of Perrysburg, and there learned the trade of a tanner and currier, after which he traveled about, working at that occupation until he located upon his present farm. On January 16, 1861, in Perrysburg township, he led to the marriage altar Miss Eliza Polly Jones, a native of New York, and a daughter of Daniel S. and Polly Jones, who were also born in that State, where the father died in 1832. His widow, in 1856, removed to Wood county, where she passed away in 1870. To our subject and his wife have been born three children John Charles, who is married and resides in Troy township; Florence Savanna, a graduate of the Michigan State Normal, and a teacher for several years in Michigan; and Lyra Claribel. In Troy township, February 11, 1864, Mr. Webb enlisted in Company C, 21st O. V. I., for three years' service or until the close of the war, and was mustered into the United States service at Columbus, Ohio, being assigned to the army of the Tennessee. He participated in the engagements at Goldsboro and Resaca, and was in all the battles under General Sherman during his March to the Sea. He took part in the Carolina campaign, and was in the Grand Review at Washington, D. C. At Louisville, Ky., he was honorably discharged July 25, 1865, and returned to his home in Troy township with an untarnished war record, having always been found at the post of duty. Since the organization of the Republican party, he has supported its banner, being previously was a Whig, and though never an office seeker, has served as a member of the school board. He belongs to the Grand Army of the Republic, being a member of Benedict Post, No. 26, at Pemberville, Wood county. ALFRED SIMON is a prominent representative of the family of that name in Wood county, and is one of Bloom township's progressive farmer citizens. He was born in Jackson township, Mahoning Co., Ohio, January 8, 1837, and is a son of Reinhart and Maria (Brougher) Simon. His paternal grandfather, Adam Simon, was one of the six sons born to the first marriage of Michael Simon, the founder of the family in the Buckey State. The father of our subject was born in Boardman township, Mahoning county, January 13, 1811, and on November 13, 1834, he wedded Miss Brougher, also a native of Mahoning county, born May 28, 1817, daughter of Daniel Brougher. Five children blessed this union - Lorinda, born October 8, 1835, is the widow of James Hamilton, of Bloomdale; Alfred is next in order of birth; Daniel, born December 18, 1838, enlisted August 15, 1861, in Company H, 49th O. V. I., and died at Nashville, September 5, 1862; Rebecca, born in September, 1840, is the wife of Rev. J. Whistler, a Methodist Episcopal minister of Denver, Colo. ; and Lucy Ann, born June 13, 1843, died September 19, 1855. In September, 1854, Reinhart Simon brought his family and household goods in two covered wagons to Wood county, driving the entire distance. He bought 16o acres of land in Section 15, Bloom township, and made his temporary home with his brother Cornelius. He was at first forced to buy supplies, as there was not land enough cleared to raise crops sufficient for the family's use; but he soon converted the place into an arable tract, and his first crop of corn from fifteen acres amounted to 1, 50o bushels in the ear. From that time prosperity attended his efforts, the greatest trouble experienced by the family being sickness from fever and ague. Mr. Simon reached the ripe old age of seventy-three years, while his wife passed away at the age of sixtyfour, and they were laid to rest in Bloom Chapel cemetery. They were active workers in the Lutheran church, and in politics he was formerly a Whig, and on its organization joined the Republican party; for six years he served as treasurer of Bloom township. During his boyhood Alfred Simon attended the subscription schools, but the greater part of his education has been obtained since leaving school, being acquired through reading and observation. He was seventeen years of age at the 828 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. time the family came to Wood county, and remained upon the home farm until his marriage, with the exception of one summer, when he worked by the month. About 1858, he bought an eighty-acre tract of school land in Section 16, securing the same from his father, to whom he paid interest until the land became productive, when he paid off the principle. His land lay just across the road from the old homestead, where he often worked during the day, while he cleared and improved his own place in the evening. He believes in using the latest methods and machinery in his agricultural pursuits, and now has seventyeighty and three-quarters acres of the best developed land in Bloom township. At Portage, Wood county, Mr. Simon was united in marriage, October 20, 1859, with Silvina Milliron, who was born in Westmoreland county, Penn., in 1841, a daughter of Jacob Milliron. Five children were born of this union -Olive, wife of Robert Wiers, of Liberty township, Wood county; Emma I, wife of J. Repass, of Bowling Green, Ohio; Laura E., wife of George Vick, a machinist of Detroit, Mich William G., of Toledo, Ohio; and Carrie M., wife of Sanford Lea, of Liberty township. the; mother, who was a faithful member of the: United Brethern Church, died December 13, 1872, and was buried in Bloom Chapel Cemetery': . On July 18, 1876, in Perry township, Mr. Simon ,was again married, his second union being with Harriet M. Baily, who was born June 6, 1844, and is a daughter of Jacob and Elizabeth (Simon) Bailey. They have become the parents of one son-Myron O. , born August 20, 1881. During the Civil war Mr. Simon became a member of the Ohio National Guards, and enlisted in the United States service in May, 1864, as a member of Company E, 144th O. V. I. He did guard duty at Wilmington, Del,, and at the end of his one-hundred-days' service was honorably discharged and returned home. His support has always been given to the Republican party, and he served for two years as trustee of his township, but has never been an office seeker, having steadily refused political honors. He and his estimable wife enjoy the friendship and society of the best people of the community,. and are consistent members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, belonging to the Bloom Chapel congregation. GEORGE KLINE, a public-spirited and progressive citizen of Wood county, was born November 12, 1830, in Dauphin county, Penn., and is a son of Jacob Kline, who was born in Germany, in 1779, and during his boyhood came to America with his parents, the family locating in Dauphin county, Penn. He there learned and followed the gunsmith's trade, in connection with the grandfather, for a number of years. When a young man he went to Pittsburg, Penn., where he married Miss Elizabeth Rheinhardt, subsequently returning to Dauphin county. Several years later he removed to Cumberland county, Penn., whence he and his wife afterward came on a visit to our subject, in Wood county, where they spent two years. Their last days were passed at the home of their daughter, Mrs. Maria Hess, of Harrisburg, Penn. The members of the family were: Maria, deceased wife of William Hess, of Harrisburg; Mrs. Elizabeth Shirk, of Pennsylvania; Mrs. Catherine Heck, of Pittsburg, Penn., now deceased; Annie, widow of William King, of Pittsburg; Margaret, who died in childhood; John, who died in Andersonville prison; Albert, who died during the war, at Knoxville, Tenn. ; Henry, who died in Andersonville prison; George, subject of this sketch; Jacob, a gunsmith, of McComb, Ohio; and two who died in infancy. The educational privileges which our subject received were very meager. When he was a child of six years his father bound him out to a tailor to serve a six-years' apprenticeship. He then followed the business for fifteen consecutive years, in Pottsville, Chambersburg, and Newburg, Penn., and afterward worked at his trade in Crawford county, Ohio, and also in Leesville, this State. While in Crawford county he, in 1852, married Miss Elizabeth Campbell. Soon after he abandoned his trade, and began the cultivation of an eighty-acre farm in Jackson township, which was given him by his father-in-law. He located thereon in 1858, erected a rude log cabin, and in course of time the wild land was converted into rich fields of waving grain. His farm labors, however, were interrupted by his service in the army, for in 1865 he enlisted, at Leipsic, Ohio, in Company D, 192nd O. V. I., in which he served until the close of the war. After his return home he gave his entire attention to farming for some years. In 1884, however, he sold that property and purchased twenty acres of land in Hoytville, erecting thereon a comfortable dwelling, in which he is now living retired, enjoying the comfortable competence which his own energy brought him. On December 17, 1891, Mr. Kline was called upon to mourn the death of his first wife. On September 7, 1892, he married Annie Deremer, who was born July 2, 1858, in Lonaconing, Allegany Co., Md.; she was educated in Sunbury, George Line WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 829 Delaware Co., Ohio, from the high school of which place she was graduated in 1874. She has also made a study of music, and plays the organ to the entertainment of her many friends. In politics Mr. Kline was formerly a Democrat, but he is now a stalwart Republican. For one year he served as marshal, but he has never been a politician in the sense of office-seeking. He holds membership with the Christian Church, and his life is one well worthy of emulation in many respects. Mrs. Kline is a Roman Catholic in Church connection, having been baptized in that faith April 9, 1877. JAMES M. BRONSON, son of Stephen Bronson, of Vermont, and one of the pioneers of Bloom township, was born in Onondaga county, N. Y., in 1809. Like contemporary boys, his opportunities for obtaining an education were nothing more than presented by the winter term of his district, but he used them to the limit, and was rewarded for his diligence. His marriage with Hannah Almira, daughter of James and Catherine Helmer (natives of Germany and Holland respectively), took place April 4, 1826, Squire Samuel Edwards, of Manlius, N. Y., performing the marriage rite. She was born in Montgomery county, N. Y., April 12, 18o6. A woman small in stature, but great in woman's courage, she was a faithful wife in the wilderness of Wood, from 1840 to 1864, in which latter year her husband died. In November of the former year, she accompanied her husband and children to the site of Eagleville, where early in the spring of that year, he had purchased 16o acres of land. A tract of about one and, onehalf acres in area was cleared, some corn planted, and a log cabin constructed. Then Mr. Bronson returned to New York for his wife and five children. In coming hither the family traveled on a canal boat from Rochester to Buffalo, on steamer to Sandusky, and thence on wagon to their new home, which they reached November 17, 1840. He had then only $3.50 and a tract of 16o acres of wild land; but with it he possessed natural ability, physical strength and a desire to succeed. Soon after coming he opened a school in Ora Baird's cabin, in Section 35, then the only dwelling in the township that could boast of two rooms. His success as a teacher was such that his services were in ready demand, and for a number of winters he taught school in Bloom, giving his time, during the spring, summer and fall to chopping, clearing on the homestead, and cultivating it. His command of Scripture texts was phenomenal, however at variance with the majority were his interpretations. He believed in the salvation of the human race, and for this reason refused the kind offer of his maternal grandfather to send him to a Baptist school, if he would consent to become a Baptist preacher. As related, in the history of Bloom township, he built a house of worship at Eagleville, after he had the village surveyed, which was free to the use of all, organized a society known as the Universalists, and urged the formation of other religious bodies. He opened a store, as described in the chapter on Bloom, and was postmaster, teacher and preacher. During the war for the Union he was a loyal, patriotic advocate in support of the old flag. In all respects Mr. Bronson was an exemplary citizen, beloved and esteemed by all who knew him. Of the eleven children born to his marriage with Miss Helmer, three died in infancy; of the eight that grew to manhood and womanhood, three are deceased, namely: Mary A., who married James Baird, of Charlotte, Mich., James D., and Charles O. The five survivors of this old Wood county family are Ellen E. Bartow, of Milan, Ohio; Charlotte F. Bonnell, of Campe Verde, Texas; Sarah C. Evers, of Bowling Green, Ohio; Angelia A. McClellan, of Adrian, Mich.; -and Horace W. Bronson, of Hudson, Mich. The mother of this family became a widow in 1864, but ten years later married Joel Hale, of Fostoria. After his death, in 1877, she passed her years visiting her children, and died October 30, 1893. In 1842, her husband had a herd of six milch cows, and with this beginning she established a dairy, selling butter at six cents a pound; she also established a little cheese factory, the product of which, for one season, was 300 pounds. The press used in this primitive factory was a rail, one end of which was fixed in the fence while the other was attached to a brass kettle filled with rock. In addition to the butter and cheese industries, was a hennery, where numerous eggs were found daily, which sold readily for three cents a dozen. Then there was the ginseng root, dug up, washed, and dried by the children, worth eighteen cents a pound, and the ordinary farm products to help out the income of the house; but with all these means at the disposal of the bread, winners of the house, there were privations and disappointments with which American pioneers could alone cope. In 1843, the six cows starved to death. In 1844, the husband and two children were stricken with typhus fever, and, for six weeks, the noble self-sacrificing wife and mother attended the sick without thought of self. When the clothing, brought hither from her old home 830 -WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. in New York State, was worn to shreds, and there was no money to purchase new goods at Fostoria or Perrysburg, she dyed the blankets, and made them into comfortable and well-fitting clothes for her children, and when the baking soda was exhausted she reduced corn-cobs to ashes, placed the ashes in a bowl of water, waited until precipitation took place, and then poured off the clear liquid to be used in place of soda in the manufacture of corn bread. Her courage, patience and endurance with her happy expedients made her a woman with few equals in the settlement; one to be honored by the pioneers and to be adored by her family. JACOB C. DAUER, a representative pioneer of the county, was born in Nassau, Germany, December 10, 1831, and is a son of George and Dora Dauer, the former a farmer by occupation. In their family were six children: Catherine, deceased; Christine, widow of Joe Hofner; Wilhelmina, wife of Christ Asmas; Theodore, a farmer, of Middleton township; William, deceased; and Jacob C. The mother died in her native land; but the father came to the New World in 1864, and spent his remaining days in Huron county, Ohio. In 1853 Jacob C. Dauer left the shores of Germany on a vessel which was nine weeks in reaching America, and on landing he remained some four months in New York. For the nine years following he made his home in Erie county, Ohio, where he rented a farm of seventy acres. He then bought an unimproved tract of land in Wood county, which he has since ditched and tiled, and has one of the best farms in the vicinity. He erected a fine residence and barns, and has upon his place nine productive oil wells, one operated by Alexander McDonald, and the others by the Standard Oil Company, and John Watts. In 1859, in Erie county, Ohio, Mr. Dauer married Miss Anna Brand, a sister of F. J. Brand, of Middleton township, this county, and eleven children were born to them, four of whom have now passed away: John, born June 2, 1861, died in 188o; Julius, born July 22, 1862, died in 1874; William, born September 30, 1873, died in 1880; and August, born April 11, 1874, died in 1875. Those living are: Chris, born January 18, 1864, who wedded Mary Opperman, a daughter of Anton Opperman, a farmer of Washington township, Wood county (they have four children); Mary, born May 15, 1865, married to Henry Weihl (they have two children); Charley,. born September 14, 1866, married to Louisa Moore (they have three children); Frederick, born October 17, 1869, married to Lizzie Beil, a daughter of Adam Beil (they have one child); Emma, born June 29, 1871; Adam, born December 16, 1875, at present taking a classical course in a school at Tiffin, Ohio; and Anna E., born September 7, 1877. Mrs. Dauer was born November 26, 1835, in Hessen, Germany, a daughter of Adam, a shoemaker, and Catherine (Hof) Brand, who, in 1867, came to America and to Wood county, where they both died. They had ten children, four of whom died in Germany, the others being: Julius J., John, Fred, Mary (Mrs. Meyer, now deceased), Catherine, and Eckert, the last named living in Lucas county. Mrs. Dauer came to this country when twenty-three, years old, in company with three other young people. Mr. Dauer is a Democrat, has served as school director, and for one term was a member of the city council at Haskins. In religious faith he is identified with the German Reformed Church, in which for four years he has served as trustee, and is now a deacon. The entire life of Mr. Dauer has been one of unusual activity and industry, and he is a self-made man in the fullest sense of the word. On his arrival in the country all his worldly possessions were tied up in his handkerchief, and his capital, of nothing save willing hands and a strong determination to succeed. G. C. HOUSKEEPER, a leading horticulturist and farmer of Center township, was born in Lancaster, Fairfield county, December 24, 1854. He is a son of Aaron Houskeeper, a native of Pennsylvania, who now resides with him. The subject of this sketch was educated in the schools of his native town, and early gave evidence of the energy and enterprise which have distinguished 'his later career, by becoming an efficient helper to his father in the business of harness making before he was twelve years old. On arriving at that age he hired out as a farm laborer at four dollars a month, and continued in the same line of work until he reached his majority. In 1876 he came to Wood county and bought forty acres of land in Center township, part of which was improved. He was married January 3, 1876, at Bowling Green, to Miss Amelia Klopfenstein, a daughter of Peter Klopfenstein, a well-known resident of Center township, and not contented with the work of his farm he also engaged for the next three years in the manufacture of lime, in partnership with his father-in-law. In 1878 he sold his first farm, and rented one belonging to George Klopfenstein, WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 831 which he conducted for five years, when he bought forty acres near Bowling Green, and has since improved it. The orchard, his especial pride, covers fifteen acres, and is one of the finest in the county. He is now renting sixty acres of land in addition to his own farm, keeping the entire tract under cultivation. Mr. Houskeeper and his wife are prominent members of the U. B. Church. They have four children : Edith, born in 1879; Willard, 1881; Ernest, 1883; and Dora, 1885. Mr. Houskeeper is a Prohibitionist in politics, and is an active worker in local matters, his popularity resting upon his admirable personal qualities. He is now the official weather reporter for the U. S. Meteorological Bureau, and the crop reporter for the State Department of Agriculture. Progressive and original in ideas, he is one of the foremost of his profession in this county, was master of the Grange for three years, and one of the chief promoters and supporters of the Wood County Farmers Institute. WILLIAM OLMSTEAD KEELER, deceased, was a leading and influential citizen of Milton township, and one of the honored pioneers of Wood county. He was born in Weston, July 28, 1833, and was a son of Ralph Olmstead Keeler, a native of New York. The grandfather was Major C. I. Keeler, who won his title in the war of 1812, and settled in Toledo, Ohio, at a very early day. The father of our subject married Orlantha Brown, of Wood county, and purchased 400 acres of land on which the town of Weston now stands. He died in Weston, and his wife died in Maumee, Ohio. In the family were four children: Amelia became the wife of Martin V. Seeley, and removed to Illinois, where her death occurred; Ralph went to Cuba on the 14th of December, 1874, as a correspondent for the New York Tribune, engaged in writing up the insurrection. He was on a Spanish vessel going from Cuba to Havanna, and disappeared in the night, although the ship had stopped at no port. It is believed he was killed by the Spaniards, and then thrown overboard. He had won considerable prominence as an author, having written the following: "Gloverson," "His Silent Partner," and ''Vagabond Adventures," the last mentioned being a true history of his own boyhood. At the time of his death he was writing an article called "Owen Brown's Escape from Harper's Ferry," which afterward appeared in a number of magazines. He was an excellent linguist, speaking and writing eight different languages, and one of his literary works was the translation of George Sand's novel ''Marquis De Viliner. " The youngest member of the Keeler family is Mrs. Grace Machin, whose husband is a noted lawyer of New York. The father, at his death, left considerable property, which was placed in the hands of an administrator, and through some mismanagement was lost. Our subject was at that time fifteen years of age. He was educated in the common schools of Weston and Grand Rapids, Ohio, and received a good business training while clerking for his uncle, Charles Keeler, of Toledo. About 1850 he crossed the plains to California, where he prospected and located what has since proven a very rich claim; but after a short time he disposed of it. At the beginning of the war, he enlisted in the Union service at Denver, as a member of the 1st Colorado Cavalry, and afterward veteranized, continuing at the front until the preservation of the Union was an assured fact. He partially lost his eyesight during that time. Returning to Weston at the close of the war, Mr. Keeler embarked in general merchandising, but afterward sold out and established a grocery store at Custar. He was married, in Tontogany, to Miss Sarah Crom, who was born at Beaver Creek, January 22, 1840, a daughter of John and Elizabeth (Dull) Crom. The wedding of her parents was the first celebrated in Weston township, and the. neighbors attended for twenty miles around. The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Keeler was celebrated May 26, 1868. She was a maiden of seven summers when the family went to Tontogany, and was educated in the district schools, in Bowling Green and Waterville, obtaining a teacher's certificate when only fifteen years of age. She followed teaching for twenty-one terms, and was very successful in that work. Upon their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Keeler located in Custar, and in 1875 the former erected a large store building with a hall above, which at that time was the finest business block in the county. A year later it was destroyed by fire, causing a loss of $10,000. Mr. Keeler was at the time postmaster of Custar, and did not resume mercantile business for three years, but engaged to some extent in buying stock. He then came to Milton Center, where he opened a general store, to which he subsequently made a large addition. For nine years the family resided over the store, and then removed into a beautiful brick residence which Mr. Keeler had erected, and which was his place of adode until his death. In 1891 he erected a large new grain elevator at Milton Center, to take the place of one destroyed by fire, and while examining a car-load of corn, he fell from the car and broke his leg. He had 832 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. met with reverses in his business career, but his determination, energy and upright dealing nevertheless secured him success, and he became the possessor of a comfortable property. Mr. Keeler was a man of generous and benevolent nature, and the poor and needy found in him a friend. He was a member of Neibling Post, G. A. R., of Weston, the Knights of Pythias fraternity, and the Uniformed Rank, and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of Bowling Green. Mr. Keeler passed away October 31, 1892, leaving the widow and one Son to mourn. the loss of a loving husband and father. In his death the community at large lost a valued citizen and faithful friend. The son, Ralph Olmstead, was born May 21, 1869, and is a graduate of Fostoria College. Mrs. Keeler has since her husband's death successfully carried on the business; She is a lady of superior ability, and has a host of warm friends in the community who hold her in the highest regard. TOBIAS HANLINE is numbered among the honored pioneers of Wood county, belonging to one of the first families that settled in Montgomery township. Those who come to the county today can in no way realize the hardships and difficulties which were met by the pioneer settlers who blazed the way through the forests, and transformed the wild land into comfortable homes and farms. Our subject was born in Section 1, Montgomery township, August 7, 1836, the eldest child of David and Eve (Rumler) Hanline. His father was born in Somerset county, Penn., December 8, 1810, and his parents were David and Catherine (Wahrier) Hanline. David Hanline, Sr., was born in 1777, and became a pioneer of Richland county, Ohio, where he entered government land. In the spring of 1833 he came to western Ohio, in search of a location, and entered i60 acres in Section 11, Montgomery township, Wood county, laying claim to the same in the office at Bucyrus, Ohio, after which he returned to Richland county. In the fall of 1833 he moved his family to Wood county by team, and spent the first night in Montgomery township, at the cabin of John A. Kelly, the first settler in the township. On reaching their land, the father and sons at once began building a home of their own, a log cabin with a clapboard roof. In the spring of 1834 they were joined by the mother and other members of the family. The children were Betsey and Rebecca, both of whom married and remained in eastern Ohio; Catherine, who married John Stevens, and died in Bradner, Ohio; David J.; Samuel, who died in Montgomery township; Tobias,, who died in Wells county, Ind. Michael, of Indiana; Sophia, who is married and lives, near Fort Wayne, Ind.; Ann, who married Amos. Arnold, and died in, Sandusky county, Ohio, and Eve, who became the second wife of Amos Arnold, and died in Indiana In the, early "forties the grandfather of our subject removed to Wells' county, 'Ind., again settling in a frontier region, his farm. being now a portion of the city of Bluffton. There his death occurred in 1854, and his wife died in 1855. David Hanline Jr., spent the first twelve years of his life in Pennsylvania, then went with his parents to Ohio,, but afterward returned to his native State. Later he resided in Stark county and Richland county, Ohio, and in 1833 came to Wood county. He was married in Montgomery township, June 11, 1835, to Eve, daughter of John and Catherine (Augustine) Rumler. She was born in November, 1814, in Columbiana 'county, Ohio, and came to Wood county with her parents in 1833. The father of our subject entered eighty acres of land in Section1, Montgomery township, erected a log cabin with a stick chimney, and there lived in true pioneer. style. In 1849 he removed to Madison township, Sandusky county, where he secured 160 acres of partially improved land, there making his home until his death, July 30, 189o. He was buried in Eisenhaur cemetery, in Freedom township. In politics he was a Democrat, and for many years served as township trustee of Madison township. In religious belief he was a Lutheran, and was a most highly respected man; his widow is still living on the old home farm in Sandusky county. Their children were: Tobias; David and John, both of Freedom township; Eve, wife of John Kimball, of Freedom township; Mollie, wife of Christ Foster, of Freedom township; Catherine, wife of Reuben Kiser, of Madison township, Sandusky county; Cornelius, of Livingston county, Ill.; Elias, Loy and Isaac, all of Freedom township. Tobias Hanline attended the " Old Prospect School " that stood on the site of Bradner. The German language was spoken in his parents' home, and when he entered school he could not speak a word of English. His educational facilities were limited, for, being the eldest son in the family his services were needed on the farm. He remained under the parental roof until his marriage, which occurred September 18, 1860, in Monroe county, Mich., the lady of his choice being Miss Helen Gibbs, who was born in Tioga WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 833 county, Penn., October 25, 1844, a daughter of Cyrus and Emily (Hunter) Gibbs. Eleven children have blessed this union : David H., of Cowlitz county, Wash. ; Eva A., wife of Edward Donald of Bradner, Ohio; John, of Pemberville; Estella, wife of Winter Kille, of Freedom township; William, a farmer of Freedom township; Grace, of Toledo, Ohio; Clarence, of Bradner; Winifred, who died in infancy; and Donna, Aenid, and Hugh, at home. Before his marriage, Mr. Hanline purchased forty acres of land in Madison township, Sandusky county, for which he paid $250.00, the greater part of which he had earned by hunting. He lived in a hewed log house on that farm until 1867, when he traded it for eighty acres in Section 25, Freedom township, and received $100.00 additional. A log house stood on this place, but only five acres were cleared. He energetically began the work of developing the farm, and within, eleven years had cleared almost the entire amount, placing it under a high state of cultivation. He erected all of the buildings thereon, and made it a valuable property, continuing to reside there until March 24, 1896, when he came to Pemberville, where he now owns a pleasant residence. In politics he is a stalwart Republican. He was formerly a member of the Grange, and the I. O. O. F., and is a thirty-second degree Mason. His life has been one of industry an application, and as a result he is now living retired in the enjoyment of a comfortable competence. JOHN LAMER, a progressive and enterprising agriculturist of Grand Rapids township, was born February 29, 1852, on the present site of Pottertown, Weston township. Jacob Bamer (or Boehmer), the father of our subject, was born in Schoenborn, Germany, August 25, 1815. In 1838 he came to America-crossing the ocean before `the advent of steamships, and for six weeks he did not see land. He first located in Tuscarawas county, Ohio, remaining there but a short time, thence coming to Gilead, now Grand Rapids, Wood county, where he remained from 1839 to 1846, in the employ of Elijah Dodd and James Steedman, who had the contract from the State to build the dam across the Maumee river at that place. In 1846 he bought eighty acres of land in Weston township, from Elijah Dodd, where he continued to reside until 1888, when he removed to the town of Weston, and there resided until his death, which occurred August to, 1889. He was twice married; his first marriage was on September 5, 1847, when Mrs. Sarah (Purkey) Cling, widow of Joseph Cling, became his wife. To this union were born three children: Jacob, Jr., born August 22, 1848, married Nancy E. Strope, December 31, 1875 (she was born March 28, 1856); Elizabeth, born March 23, 1850, married Jacob Reaker, September 26, 1877 (he was born May 20, 1843); and John, the subject of our sketch. The mother had two daughters by her former, marriage: Flora, who was born March 29, 1846, and married George Heller May 9, 1868; and Samantha, who died while young. Mrs. Bamer died in 1855, and in 1861 the father again married, his choice being Ellen Huffman, of Pennsylvania. To them were born two children: (1) Lewis H., born May 15, 1862, married Miss Idora B. Wood, March 27, 1887 (she was born April 16, 1861, and died May 13, 1890), and one son, Ray Harrison, born August 9, 1889, blessed this union. (2) Bentley H., born October 24, 1865. The mother died December 1, 1888, and the father survived her but eight months. He was engaged in the mercantile business for a number of years at Pottertown. He was honest and honorable in his dealings with his fellow men, moderate in all things, and quiet and peaceable. He was a faithful member of the German Reformed Church. John Bamer, the subject of our sketch, was married on January 2, 1873, to Sarah M. Rowland, who was born December 21, 1853, the daughter of John and Catherine Rowland, highly respected residents of Grand Rapids township; the former died June 11, 1887, while the latter had passed away ten years before, dying June 22, 1877. To the union of our subject and his wife were born four children, as follow: Merton L., September 15, 1873, was made a Master Mason June 9, 1896, and is superintendent of the Latcha schools for the year 1896-97; Cora E., June 8, 1876;, Fred H., November 6, 1879; and Edna A., born April 28, 1889, died October 22, 1893. The subject of our sketch bought the N. of the S. E. : Section 19, Grand Rapids township (eighty acres of land), on June 27,1887, which he at once began to improve and transform into a comfortable home. In one year on this farm he put in six and one half miles of tile drain, planted a great variety of fruit, and erected a barn that is equal to any in the country for convenience. Socially Mr. Bamer is a member of the Masonic fraternity, having joined the order April 17, 1879, in Grand Rapids Lodge No. 289; he is a charter member of Kenilworth Lodge No. 340, K. of P. 834 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. SAMUEL HERRINGSHAW, who is the owner of one of the valuable farms of Jackson township, which he conducts in the most improved and progressive manner, is a native of Sandusky county, Ohio. He was born January 15, 1853, and is a son of John and Mary Ann (Lyon) Herringshaw. He began his education in the district school near the family home, and when seven years of age accompanied his parents to Liberty township, Wood county, and completed his school course in Liberty and Jackson townships. When the day's session was over, he would return to the work of the home farm, and was busily engaged in the fields during the vacation months. All his earlier years were devoted to agricultural pursuits. As a companion and helpmeet on life's journey, Mr. Herringshaw chose Miss Anna Eliza Watson, and the wedding was celebrated in Findlay, Ohio, November 15, 1882. The lady was born in England, August 29, 1857, and at the age of twenty-five years came to America with her three sisters. Mr. Herringshaw and his bride took up their abode on the old homstead, and he operated forty acres of land, which he had purchased in Jackson township just prior to his marriage. He continued to reside at the old home place until December, 1888, when he erected his present store building in Hoytville, and there embarked with his brother, John Y., in the hardware business. By his well-directed efforts and honorable dealing he has secured a liberal patronage, and his trade has increased so that he has added to his original store in order to have more commodious quarters. Mr. Herringshaw also erected a fine residence in Hoytville, and the members of the household are now himself, wife and three - daughters, Edith, Florence and Gracie. In politics he is a stalwart Democrat, unswerving in his support of the party principles, but has never sought or desired the honors or emoluments of public office. He belongs to the United Brethren Church, and socially is connected with the Knights of Pythias Lodge at Hoytville. His life is worthy of emulation in its progressive, enterprising characteristics, and the success which he now enjoys is justly merited. Mr. Herringshaw is a son of John and Mary Ann (Lyon) Herringshaw, both of whom were natives of England, and Samuel was the first of the family born in America. The others were: Ann Rebecca, who is the widow of Thomas Harrison; Joseph, of Hoytville; Rebecca, at present on the old homestead in Liberty township; John, deceased; John Y., of Jackson Prairie (all of the above were born in England); Fred, of Liberty township, and William, of Hoytville (both born in this State). The father of this family died September 14, 1861; the mother is still living atthe advanced age of eighty years. H. E. SMITH. The joys of youth have been so often dwelt upon in prose and verse, that the later years of life are looked upon by the average person as necessarily less happy than those of childhood; yet those who realize the ripe spiritual development and peaceful outlook of one who has learned life's lessons, and is waiting for the promotion which is sure to follow, would not exchange the latter state for the first. And when wealth has added its possibilities for wide usefulness in various fields, there are but few indeed who would hesitate to pronounce the maturer life as likely to furnish fuller, more constant, and more rational enjoyment, than the happiest childhood knows. The subject of our sketch, a well-known retired agriculturist of Risingsun, was born in Orange county, N. Y., March 7, 1824. His father, Timothy Smith, was also a native of that county, and for some years was a farmer there. He married Miss Catherine Tier, who was born in New York City, and moved to Orange county, with her parents when she was eleven years old. In 1831 Timothy Smith came to Ohio with his family by canal and lake, and entered 20o acres of land in Big Spring township, Seneca county, at the site of the present village of Alvada. The land office was at that time located at Bucyrus. He made many improvements, and at the time of his death, when he was aged seventy years, he had a fine farm. His wife lived to be over eighty-six years old. They had thirteen children, of whom eleven lived to adult age: Eliza, who married William Boucher, and died at Powell's Creek, Ohio; William, a resident of Alvada, Ohio; John, who lives in Defiance county, and has been twice married; Almira Russell; H. E., our subject; Elizabeth, Mrs. Samuel Fry, of Fostoria; Catherine, who married William Bates, and lives near Tiffin; George, of Arcadia, Ohio; Clarissa, who married Michael Fry, and died in Fostoria; Franklin, a resident of South Bend, Ind.; Francis, who lives in Fostoria; and a' daughter who lives in Defiance county. Mr. Smith was only seven years old when his parents came to this State, and his youth was spent in the hard toil of a pioneer farmer's life. As the older boys left home his father needed his help, and he sacrified his education rather than see his parents suffer. He never at- WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 835 tended school, not even to learn his "A B Cs," but as he fully realized the value of the opportunities of which he was deprived, he studied alone, often sitting up at night in front of the big fireplace with his books. As the years passed on, and he might perhaps have gone to school occasionally, the humiliation of beginning in a class with small children prevented him from making the trial, so that his knowledge is entirely self-acquired. At twenty-two he left home to make his own way, his worldly possessions being limited to a suit of clothes worth about $10; but he had, however, a capital of ambition, energy and common-sense which served him well. When twenty-three years of age he married his first wife, Miss Lydia Fry, and their only son, Hiram, grew to manhood, entered the army during the Civil war, and was captured by the enemy, and so nearly starved, that when he was released, and food given him, his enfeebled system failed to rally, and he expired. His mother died in Seneca county, and two years later, Mr. Smith married Miss Anor Bates, who was born in Stark county, Ohio, July 24, 1830, the daughter of Andrew and Anor (Homan) Bates. Five children were born to this union: Oliver, a farmer in Montgomery township; Cinderella, the wife of Rev. Tobias Koogle, of Findlay, Ohio; twins, Emma E. (now Mrs. Lee Garns, of Sandusky county), and Sarah A. (Mrs. Peter Ushel, of Risingsun); and William, who lives in Scott township, Sandusky county. Mrs. Smith has been a great help to her husband in the battle of life, as he is the first to acknowledge. The first land that Mr. Smith ever owned was forty acres in Big Spring township, Seneca county, and later he bought eighty acres in Scott township, Sandusky county, which he sold, to buy 112 acres in the same township, where he lived until his removal to Risingsun, in the fall of 1881. He has retired from active business, but takes an active and generous interest in every worthy public movement, and he and, his wife belong to the Radical U. B. Church, in which he has held many offices. As a contributor he has been very liberal, giving over $1,100 to one Church. It would be difficult to find a more devout Christian and concientious man, and he is held in high esteem by all who know him. He has never been a politician or office seeker, and, although formerly a Democrat, now votes for the Christian Party." M. D. MCEWEN, an honorable and well-to-do farmer of Wood county, is a native of Perry township, where he still resides. He made his appearance on the stage of life January 11, 1846. His father, William McEwen, was born in Northampton county, Penn., nine miles from Easton, April 29, 1810, and was a son of William and Sarah (Johnson) McEwen, who were the parents of twenty-one children. The grandfather, who was a blacksmith by trade, came to Ohio, in 1823, bringing sixteen of his children, the journey being made by means of wagons, and requiring four weeks. He located four miles east of Tiffin, where he purchased a farm of 160 acres, on-which stood a small log cabin, where the family of eighteen persons lived for some time. There his death occurred at the age of sixty-five, and his wife passed away at the age of sixty-three. Of the children who came with him to Ohio, five are still living-Henry, of Allen county, Ind.; William, father of our subject; Sarah, widow of Moses Friese, of North Baltimore, Ohio; Rachel, now Mrs. George Deuzler, of Republic, Ohio; and Martha, widow of James Craum, of North Baltimore. The education of William McEwen, Jr, was very limited, and his first teacher was an old Revolutionary soldier, who had lost one arm. He remained at home until his marriage, January 20, 1835, to Miss Margaret Clark, who was born in Lancaster county, Penn., March 11, 181.3, and is a daughter of Thomas and Hannah (Bennett) Clark, who were early settlers of Seneca county, Ohio. The family born to this worthy couple consists of the following children-Hannah, born November 6, 1836, married Jacob Sidel, and died in Seneca county; George, born May 24, 1838, was a member of Company H, 49th O. V. I., during the Civil war, was killed at Pickett's Mills, Ga., in 1864, and was buried by the enemy; Sarah, born December 22, 1839, married Nathan Henry, and lives at Fostoria; Thomas, born November 7, 1841, died near Jerry City, Portage township, Wood county; William, born November 21, 1843, died in Minnesota; M. D. is next in order of birth; Matthew, born April 30, 1848, is a farmer in Seneca county; Henry, born November 20, 185o, died in Perry township; and Margaret J., born July 19, 1854, married Robert Wilson, and died at Arcadia, Ohio. In 1833 the father entered eighty acres of government land in Section 13, Perry township, where he removed three years later, and previous to that time lived near Tiffin, on land which is now comprised within the city limits, where Main street crosses the Sandusky river. Until 1874, he made his home in Perry township, but in that year removed to Fostoria, Ohio, where he has a comfortable brick residence. After a happy married 836 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. life of over fifty-seven years, his wife died on July II, 1892, and was buried at Fostoria. Since a young man he has been a faithful member of the Methodist Church, and in politics was first a Democrat, but now supports the Prohibition party. He is numbered among the honored pioneers of this section, and well deserves mention in this volume. M. D. McEwen was educated in the district schools, and remained upon the home farm until his twenty-fourth year. On March 10, 1870, in Hancock county, Ohio, was solemnized the marriage ceremony which united our subject and Miss Sarah Miller, a native of Seneca county, and a daughter of Isaac Miller, an early pioneer of that locality. One child blessed this union-Alfred D., born April 22, 1873, and on May 7, 1896, was married to Myrtle Gossard, of Sandusky county. The mother died May 11, 1879, a few months after her husband's return from. Texas. Later Mr. McEwen wedded Miss Mary Gossard, who was born in Scott township, Sandusky county, Ohio, April 25, 1849, and is a daughter of Alvin P. and Mary (Cooley) Gossard, the former born in Ross county, Ohio, in 1808, and the latter in Canada in 1809. In the family of eight children, Mrs. McEwen is the next to the youngest, and at the age of eighteen she began teaching school, which profession she followed for many terms. Before his first marriage, Mr. McEwen had bought eighty acres of land in Jackson township, Seneca county, all wild and uncultivated, and eight years of his married life were there passed. In 1878 he removed to Austin, Texas, and later to Williamson county, that State, but the following year returned north, locating upon his present farm in Perry township, Wood county, where he owns 10o acres of good land, supplied with excellent farm buildings. He and his wife are sincere Christians, members of the Methodist Church, in which he is serving as steward. In political opinion he is now a Prohibitionist, though he was at one time a Democrat. He is widely and favorably known throughout the community, and his circle of friends is only limited by his circle of his acquaintances. AVERY O. CHAPMAN, an intelligent and prosperous farmer of Liberty township, is a native of Wood county, born in Weston township, on the 25th of June, 1855, and is a son of William H. and Sylva Ann (Avery) Chapman. The father's birth occurred in Connecticut, August 11, 1820, and while still, single removed to Huron county, Ohio, where he wedded Miss Avery, who, was born in New London, Conn., in 1830. It was in 1850 that he came to Wood county, locating first in Weston township, where he began the improvement of a farm, which he sold five later, and, on selling that tract, purchased another in the same township, where his widow still sides. He was well and favorably known through out the county, and his death, which occurred in Connecticut, July 19, 1890, was deeply mourned'. In politics he was a stanch Republican. In the family were ten children, nine of whom are still living, namely: Oliver, and Mrs. Lucy Lewis, both of whom reside in Milton township, Wood county; Avery 0., of this review; Isandra, wife of Clarence Palmer, of Weston township; Fannie, wife of Dr. Lathrop, of Deshler, Ohio; Charley, of Weston township; Eulalia, wife of James Hutchinson, of Liberty township, Wood county; Fred, who resides on the old homestead; and Amasa, who is married, and lives in Liberty township. Zackeus died in Weston township, September 5, 1855, at the age of four years. Our subject was educated in the common schools of Weston township, and in early life received a practical training in the labors of the farm. In 1883 he purchased his present farm of eighty acres of rich and productive land, which he immediately began to improve and cultivate, erecting thereon good and substantial farm buildings, and has converted his place into one of the most highly developed farms of the community. In Weston township, in 1880, Mr. Chapman led to the marriage altar Clara C. Allyn, a native of Hopkinton, Delaware Co., Iowa, a daughter. of Phineas and Celia C. (Butler) Allyn, who were born and reared in Connecticut. The father had removed to Delaware county, in 1854, but he later returned east, locating near Wellington, Lorain Co., Ohio, but now makes his home in Michigan. His wife died in Traverse City, that State, on the 27th of December, 1870. To our subject and his wife have been born five children: Sherman, Edward, Ula, Mabel and George. In her younger days, Mrs. Chapman successfully engaged in teaching, being for four years employed in the schools of Weston, half of the time having charge of the primary department, and, the other half, of the intermediate grade. For four months she also taught at Pottertown, having one year taught through the entire twelve months without interruption. Mr. Chapman has identified himself with the interests of the township, especially in educational affairs, realizing that the future prosperity of the county will be in the hands of the rising generation, and it must be fitted for the respon- WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 837 sible position it is soon to occupy. He has served as a member of the school board, and has also been supervisor of his township. In politics he is a Republican, and works for the interests of that party, firmly believing in its principles. CHARLIE E. BAKER, a worthy representative of one of the honored pioneer families of Montgomery township, was born on the farm which is still his home, in Section 35, on November 1, 1867, and is a son of Adam and Lydia (Zimmerman) Baker. The birth of his father occurred in April, 1840, upon the same farm, where the grandfather, Jacob Baker, had located on coming to Ohio from Maryland at a very early day, when the land was in almost its primitive condition. He. was the second owner, and our subject now has in his possession the deed for eighty acres that is dated 1837, and signed by Andrew Jackson. The father was one of the youngest in a family of ten children. His marriage was celebrated in Sandusky county, where his wife was born in 1849, the daughter of Adam Zimmerman. He then located upon the old homestead in Section 35, Montgomery township, where the grandfather had passed his remaining days. By trade he was a carpenter, which occupation he followed during his younger years; but, after his marriage, he bought out the interests of the other heirs in the home farm, and later devoted his entire attention to agricultural pursuits. There his death occurred on April 7, 1881, and he was laid to rest in the Prairie Depot cemetery. He was a good citizen, a stanch Republican in politics, and served as school director in his district. He was a large man, being six feet in height. In the family were four children- Charlie E.; Emma, now Mrs. Clark Graber, of Montgomery township; Alta, of the same township; and Jessie. After the death of the father, the mother became the wife of George Gebhart, by whom she had one son, Clifford, who now lives in Sandusky county, Ohio. She departed this life in May, 1888, and was also interred in the Prairie Depot cemetery. During his boyhood and youth Charlie E. Baker attended the district schools of his township, his first teacher being Rose Griffin, who conducted the school in District No. 7, and his life was passed in the uneventful manner of most farmer lads. He worked for some time as a farm hand on several different places, but in 1893 began buying the interests of the other heirs in the old home farm, which he now owns with the exception of a quarter interest. It consists of seventy-one acres of excellent land. He is a steady-going, prosperous young farmer, and with continued good health can place himself in the front rank among the substantial farmers and citizens of Montgomery township. Politically, he is identified with the Republican party. H. W. KELSEY, one of Portage township's prosperous young farmers, is a native of New York State, born September 15, 1860, in LaSalle, Niagara county. His parents, Henry and Caroline (Michael) Kelsey, had four children: John, who is now a resident of Buffalo, N. Y.; Ida, Mrs. J. W. Lindower, of Portage township; Henry, who died young, and H. W., our subject. The father was a sailor, sailing on the great lakes, and, as he was a man of somewhat limited means, 'the children commenced to work early in life. When H. W. Kelsey was about eight years old the family came to Ohio, and he received the greater part of his education in the schools of Fremont. When only ten years of age he commenced to work and support himself, doing such labor as his strength permitted until he reached manhood, after which he was engaged in various lines of employment. He sailed on the lakes, worked in the pine woods of Michigan, was engaged on the railroad, building in Dakota and Minnesota, and for some time was employed in a freight house at Buffalo, N. Y., during these years seeing much of the country, and living in several different States. In 1884 he came to Wood county, Ohio, where his sister Ida was living, and took up his home in Portage township, where, on December 25, 1885, he was united in marriage with Miss Winnie B. Northrup, who was born in Plain township, Wood county, daughter of William Northrup, a farmer. Up to this time Mr. Kelsey had saved but $125, and he invested that amount in forty acres of land in Section 23, Portage township, his present farm, removing thereon in the following year, after he had moved a house there from Six Points. Farming was new work to him, as he had only spent one season at it, and that, in a vineyard on Catawba Island. However, he set to work to do the best he could, and the result of his labors would do credit to many an older man, for he has placed his land under fine cultivation, and conducts a profitable, general-farming business. He is much esteemed and liked in his neighborhood, and his thorough honesty and untiring industry have won him the respect of all. To Mr. and Mrs. Kelsey have come three children: Melvin R., born in March, 1888, killed 838 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. in a runaway August 3, 1896; William H., born in July, 1891, died August 21, 1896; and John W., born in 1893. Politically Mr. Kelsey is a lifelong Democrat, and an ardent believer in the principles of his party; he has served as supervisor of his township. Socially he is a Mason, being a member of the lodge at Pemberville. CHARLES S. WOODFORD, the able and popular postmaster at Haskins, and a leading merchant of that town, was born September 7, 1855, in Riley township, Sandusky Co., Ohio. His paternal grandparents, Sylvester and Sarah Woodford, were " down-east Yankees" who made their home in Riley township at an early day, and died there at a good old age. Zera Woodford, our subject's father, was a native of Connecticut, born April 6, 1812, and came to Ohio with his parents when a boy. His first money was made by hiring out by the month to "shoot deer," then plentiful near his home. He afterward taught school for eight years, and is said to have been the first teacher in Sandusky county. The greater part of his life was spent, however, in agricultural pursuits, and he died at the old farm June 26, 1872. He was married December 25, 1839, to Miss Sarah Karshner, a native of Circleville, Ohio, born August 1, 1820. She survives him, and resides with our subject, who is the youngest of their six children. Of the others the names with dates of birth and death are as follows: Lucy, October 15, 1840, died August 31, 1876, was the wife of H. H. House; Louisa, April 3, 1842, died November 6, 1867, married H. H. Arlin; Sarah, November 16, 1843, died April 12, 1870, married Daniel Mackey; Rachel, February 28, 1845, died August 11, 1870; and Henry, March 25, 1849, died August 11, 1870. Our subject spent his boyhood days at the old homestead, where he worked on the farm, and attended the district school. Later he studied in the Union schools at Fremont, and attended the Northwestern Normal at Republic and at Fostoria. He taught school for eight years, and received the highest salary which had been paid up to that time in his native township, as he was considered the best disciplinarian and the most competent teacher obtainable in that locality. He was clerk of Riley township for four years, and then came to Wood county, and engaged in mercantile business at Grand Rapids, where he remained five years. Selling out his store, he traveled for three and a half years as salesman for Leland Smith & Co., of Toledo, and then came to Haskins and established his present store, of which he has made a decided success. Since August 16, 1892, he has been postmaster, and fills the position with characteristic ability tact. On September 13, 1877, Mr. Woodford married Miss Jennie Matthews, of Millbury, who was born June 13, 1857, in Center township, Wood county. They have five children whose names with dates of birth are here given: Stewart L., July 7, 1878; Estella E., August 10, 1880; Wilbur W., October 7, 1881; Gordon R., April 6, 1884; and Ettie, October 3, 1885. Politically Mr. Woodford is a Democrat, and holds an influential place in the local management of the party. He is a member of the I. O. O. F. Encampment at Bowling Green. SAMUEL J. DERN, a well-known citizen and a wide-awake, energetic business man of Prairie Depot, is a native of Seneca county, Ohio, born in Jackson township, July 11, 1848, son of Hezekiah and Susanna (Hyter) Dern. The father's birth occurred in Frederick county, Md., in 1808, and he was one of a family of six children who grew to adult age, the others being Susan, Amy, Mary, Isaac and William. The paternal grandfather, William Dern, followed the occupation of an agriculturist in Maryland, where his death occurred. On reaching manhood, Hezekiah Dern wedded Miss Susanna Hyter, who was also born in Frederick county, Md., August 7, 1814, the daughter of Jacob and Margaret (Kuntz) Hyter. By trade the father of our subject was a carpenter, but he was for the most part engaged as a huckster in Baltimore until 1839, when he brought his family in a covered wagon to Ohio, passing through Pittsburg, Penn., where the eldest daughter, Theodocia, strayed away, but was found after @,short search. His first location was upon an acre of ground six miles north of Tiffin, in Seneca county, where the family made their temporary home in a log school house, while their hewed-log dwelling was being built, and they afterward used the former as a barn. There the father followed carpentering, but he later removed to a tract of forty acres in Jackson township, in the same county. His death occurred January 14, 1854, upon another forty-acre farm there, and he was laid to rest in Dysinger cemetery. The mother passed away at Fostoria, Ohio, in August, 1882, and was interred by the side of her husband. They were devout members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and in politics the father was an Old-line Whig. The family circle included the following children: WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 839 Theodocia R., now Mrs. I. W. Nestlerode, of Fostoria, Ohio; Theodore D., who was a member of the 72nd O. V. I., during the Civil war (he died at Memphis, Tenn., August 9, 1879); Margaret E., wife of C. H. Fundom, of Loudon township, Seneca county; William C., a farmer of Montgomery township, Wood county; Wesley W., of Keokuk county, Iowa; Samuel J., who is the subject of this sketch; Frances A., now Mrs. Christopher Deal, of Jackson, Mich.; and Mary I., wife of Almon Baker, of Montgomery township. S. J. Dern was educated in the district schools of his time, which were much inferior to those of the present day, and the improved educational institutions now find in him a stanch friend and supporter. Reared as a farmer boy, he aided in the labors upon the old homestead, and after reaching his majority began to accumulate some property for himself. He bought the shares of the other heirs in the home farm from time to time, until he owned three-quarters of the place, and continued to reside there until his removal to Prairie Depot, November 1, 1876. On August 17, 1875, Mr. Dern had been married in that village to Miss Flora A. Bryant, a daughter of William R. and Melissa (Sherman) Bryant, and by her he had one son, Charles W., born July 19, 1877. From Prairie Depot our subject removed to a rented farm in Plain township, Wood county, where his wife died July 24, 188o, and she was buried in the cemetery at Prairie Depot. There he was again married, September 12, 1883, his second union being with Miss Jessie B. Gould, a daughter of John Gould, a veteran of the Rebellion, who during his younger days was a sailor, and is now a highly respected citizen of Prairie Depot. Mrs. Dern was born August 13, 1860, and has become the mother of two children-Hazel, born January 3, 1886; and Edgar G., born June 9, 1889. For nine years after his return to Prairie Depot, Mr. Dern was engaged in the hardware business, being a member of the firm of Johnston & Dern the first three years, at the end of which time he purchased his partner's interest, and was sole proprietor for the following three years. Lewis Newcomer then became a member of the firm, which assumed the name of Dern & Co., and they carried on business very successfully until July 8, 1890, when they sold out to the Buckeye Supply Company. For a year and a half Mr. Dern was then traveling agent for the Woodmen of the World Insurance Company, and has since been engaged in the oil business. He has also been more or less engaged in leasing land, taking options, buying and selling real estate, etc., and has become one of the well-to do citizens of the place. His commodious and pleasant residence in Prairie Depot was erected in 1883. Mr. Dern is a stanch and influential Republican, always attending the conventions of his party in the county, and, while not an office seeker, served for four years as treasurer of Montgomery township, during which time his books were spoken of by the trustees, as the neatest, best-kept and most systematic of any ever kept in the township. He has also been a member of the city council of Prairie Depot. He is a charter member of Petroleum Lodge No. 499, K. of P., of that place, and he and his estimable wife are connected with the Disciples Church, in which he is now serving as deacon. E. H. MYERS, senior member of the firm of Myers Brothers, his partner being J. A. Myers, established business in Luckey in 1883. Their first store was located 'on their present site, and was a building 22 x 35 feet, where they carried a stock of general merchandise; but a year later they added to it a room 22 x 6o feet, in which they placed a stock of hardware and farming implements. That building, however, was destroyed by fire in July, 1893, but the following fall they erected their present two-story brick block, which has a 44-foot frontage and is 60 feet deep. There they have a full and complete line of hardware and general merchandise, and the upper story is used for a store room. Their stock is well selected, and their courteous, kindly treatment of customers has gained them a liberal patronage. In 1852 the birth of our subject occurred in Sandusky county, Ohio, and he is a son of C. H. and Dora (Deidmyer) Myers, natives of Germany, where they were reared and married. On coming to the New World they first located in Buffalo, N. Y., but in 1852 removed to Sandusky county, where the father followed agricultural pursuits until his death, which occurred in 1857. His wife later married Frank Rolfes, with whom she came to Troy township, Wood county, where she passed away in 1893. By her first marriage she became the mother of six children: C. H., who resides on a farm near Elmore, Ohio; Mrs. Schroder, of Pemberville, Ohio; Mrs. L. Rolfes, of Troy township; E. H., of this sketch; J. A., who is in partnership with our subject; and W. F., who also makes his home in Luckey. The district schools afforded our subject his educational advantages, and at an early age he 840 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. entered a grocery store at Elmore, Ohio, where he was employed for a time. For two years he also worked at the carpenter's trade in that place, and in 1861 came to Wood county. At Pemberville, he was first employed in the store of a Mr. Rosinger, later with A. Froney & Schroder, and then worked for Mr. Froney until coming to Luckey. In Troy township, Mr. Myers led to the marriage altar Miss Anna Rolf, a daughter of John Rolf, now deceased, and their wedding was celebrated in 1873. They have no children of their own, but have an adopted daughter-Bertha. They are members of the Lutheran Church, and hold an honorable place in the estimation of their fellow citizens. The political support of Mr. Myers is given to the Democratic party, and for seven years he efficiently served as township clerk. Both in business circles and in private life he is honored and esteemed for his upright character. JOHN W. SMALLEY, a substantial self-made citizen and prominent agriculturist of Bloom township, resides near Jerry City, his farm being one of the best of its size in that vicinity. He is a native of Lincolnshire, England, born September 2, 1832. His father, William Smalley, a day laborer, married Sarah Freeman, and die&' in June, 1839, leaving seven children-four sans and three daughters-whom Mrs. Smalley, a woman of unusual energy and good judgment., supported for some years by working on neighboring farms. As the boys grew older, they contributed a little to the family expenses, our subject and his brother James going to service; in aristocratic families, while another brother, Robert, worked on a farm. Their wages were small, never more than $15 per year. In the spring of 1848, Mrs. Smalley's father, Richard Freeman, sold his property, consisting of three acres of land and two tenement houses, and used the proceeds to bring a party of his relatives to America. Besides himself and his wife Sarah, there were Mrs. Smalley and her seven children (one of her family having died), and another daughter, Ann, and her husband, William Winter. They sailed from Liverpool in April, 1848, in the '' Colonist, " and reached their destination in Akron, Ohio, where some relatives lived, on July 3. Mr. Freeman died from a sunstroke, shortly after reaching New York, and the others joined another party of emigrants going to Akron. Mrs. Freeman survived her husband but a short time, dying in August of the same year. John W. Smalley has had only a few weeks schooling in his life, as he was kept too busily at work in boyhood to take advantage of the good schools of his native place. His first work in this country was binding wheat at 37 1/2 cents a day. Later he worked as driver on the Ohio canal, going as far south as Chillicothe, and on the Sandy, Beaver and Ohio canal through Waynesburg, Minerva, and Hanover. After working some two years at from $10.00 to $17.00 per month, he determined to secure a home in which his mother could pass her declining years. In February, 1853, he walked from Spencer, Medina county (where she then lived), to Wood county, and bought eighty acres in Section 33, Portage township, for $4.50.00, paying $60.00 down. He returned on foot, and in April of that year brought his mother, two brothers, Robert and Joseph, and two sisters, Elizabeth and Eliza, traveling by wagon. They built a log cabin 10x 24, which had neither doors nor windows until the frosts of autumn made them an absolute necessity. Mr. Smalley returned to his work on the canal for three seasons, in order to raise money on his payments, and during the winters he cleared his farm. On July 4, 1861, he married Miss Rebecca Snyder, a native of Mahoning county, and a daughter of Samuel Snyder, a prominent farmer of Bloom township. He mowed clover all the morning of his wedding day, and his. wife helped him to make hay the next day. With this beginning it would be safe to predict financial success for the young couple; but Mrs. Smalley did not live long to enjoy their growing prosperity, dying July 20, 1 Five children were born of this marriage: Andrew J., a farmer in Bloom township; Lucy, now Mrs. Jacob Spackey, of Six Points; Jerusha (deceased), who married Elliot Simons, of North Baltimore; William H., who farms the homestead; and Eliza J., who died in infancy. Mr. Smalley's second wife was formerly Mrs. Susan (Riggle) Heckman, a native of Pennsylvania, the widow of Martin Heckman, and daughter of George Riggle, who came to Wyandot county, when she was an infant. He was a man of prominence in his vicinity, and for twenty years was a justice of the peace. One child was born of this union: Lorinda A., the wife of John Riggle, now the county surveyor of Hancock county. In 1865 Mr. Smalley sold his first farm and bought 120 acres in Bloom township. But little clearing had been done, and the land was swampy, causing him to lose several crops before his drainage was perfected. He sold forty acres, and by diligent effort has brought the remainder into John W. Smalley WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. -841 good order, paying for it all, and securing a competence for the future. He is a typical Englishman, asking only for what he thinks belongs to him by right, and is ready to fight for that. His vitality is remarkable. He has had a shoulder and a leg broken at different times, and has recovered without any doctor attending him. In his business dealings Mr. Smalley is noted for his strict sense of honor, and once, when he had agreed to lease a certain oil land for a bonus of $500, he refused an offer of $1,500 for the same right, although the agreement was a mere verbal one, which could not have been enforced, and no money had been paid him. Six oil wells are now in operation on his farm, producing a tankful of oil per month. He is the only one of his family in Wood county, but the others have done well in life, those who had educational advantages following professional occupations. His wife is a member of the Church of Christ, and he himself sympathizes with all movements for the improvement of the community. In politics he has been a Democrat since the days of Stephen A. Douglas, and has been township supervisor and director of schools. JACOB STAHL, one of Wood county's well known citizens, is among the prosperous men in Montgomery township, and enjoys the distinction of being one of the four farmers who have successfully operated their own properties in search of oil, a notable feat, and one which sufficiently demonstrates the possession of sound business ability and unflinching determination. He was born June 28, 1837, near the present site of the village of Bradner, of a line of ancestry in which he may well take pride, some member of it having yielded up his life in each war in which our country has been engaged. His great-grandfather, Jacob Stahl, was a lieutenant-colonel in the Revolutionary army, and met his death in the service. Jacob Stahl (2), the grandfather, was killed near Fort Meigs during the war of 1812, while the father, Godfrey Stahl, lost his life in the Civil war, and an uncle, John Stahl, was killed in the Mexican war. Godfrey Stahl was born in Somerset county, Penn., October 15, 1808, and was reared upon his father's farm. He was the youngest of four children: Mary, the eldest, married Daniel Edmonds, and died at Bradner at the age of ninety-one. Sarah married David Mogle, and is now living in Indiana at over eightyfive years of age; and John, as has been stated, completed the remarkable record of this family, and gave his life in the service of his country in the war with Mexico. Our subject's father was married at his early home to Rosannah Weigle, also a native of Somerset county, born of German parents. In 1835 he came to Fremont, Ohio, in the spring of 1837 settling in Section 12, Montgomery township, Wood county, and, being unable to buy, he rented a home, taking leases and clearing up land. He and his wife were devout members of the M. P. Church. In politics he was a Democrat previous to the Civil war, but he voted for Abraham Lincoln, and in the fall of 1861 enlisted in Company I, 72nd O. V. I. He took part in the battle of Shiloh, was taken sick, and died in April, 1862, his remains being interred in the vicinity of Pittsburg Landing. His widow passed away at the age of sixty-four years at the old home, and was laid to rest in the cemetery at Bradner. They had seven children: Catherine, wife of A. A. Jellison, of Wilson, Kans. ; John, who died in 1866 in Montgomery township; Jacob, our subject; Elizabeth J., the widow of Henry Pope, of Risingsun; Rebecca, the widow of Morris Hill, of Bradner; Roena, who married William Brown, and died in Montgomery township; and Daniel, a resident of Bradner. Mr. Stahl attended the common schools of his day, and remained at home until his enlistment, September 10, 1861, in Company D, 3rd Ohio Cavalry. He was wounded in his first regular battle, at Stone River, and after three months in hospital was discharged on account of disability, on April 2, 1863. He came home; but in February, 1864, when his regiment veteranized and reorganized, at Nashville, he rejoined his old company, and served until the close of the war. During the interval spent at home he bought his first piece of land, eighty acres in Richfield township, Henry Co., Ohio, but be never lived there. On March 6, 1864, he married Miss S. Caroline Lamb, a native of Franklin county, Vt., born February 10, 1841, the daughter of George W. and Sarah K. (Durkee) Lamb, who came to Wood county about 1852, and are now living in Montgomery township. Mrs. Stahl taught school in Wood and Sandusky counties previous to her marriage. One child was born of this union-Pearl A. M., who is at home. In the fall of 1865 Mr. Stahl purchased forty acres of partially cleared land, with log buildings, in Section 24, Montgomery township, incurring a debt of $500. Since that time he has bought and sold extensively, and at present he owns 200 acres in this county, and some in Minnesota. His oil interests are very valuable, and he is the founder of the Pearl Oil Co. His influence is felt in various lines of effort, and his 842 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. advice and opinion are often sought upon important questions. He has served two terms as township trustee, and in 1887 was elected to the office of county commissioner, which he held for six years. He belongs to Randall Post, G. A. R., at Prairie Depot, of which he was a charter member, and he is a leading member of the Christian Church, having been an elder therein for twentyseven years. Mr. Stahl's competence was not acquired by self-denial; he lives well, and his Pennsylvania-German descent is shown in his unbounded hospitality, for no man ever turned away from his home hungry. Kind-hearted and generous, he has many friends, and his help is given readily to any worthy public movement. His home is a most pleasant one. His reading shows an intellectual activity far beyond that of the average man, and he keeps well abreast of the advancing tide of thought. He has a good memory, and, considering his years and his abundant labors, both in war and in peace, he is remarkably well preserved. LOUIS MYERS, a prominent agriculturist of Center township, was born May 14, 1845, in Baden, Germany. His father, Fredline Myers, was a native of the same province, born December 20, 1799. He married Mary Gross, and had five children: Rosa, deceased; Caroline, the wife of John Nagel: Clara, deceased, formerly the wife of Leonard Smith; Lewis, our subject, and Wilhelmina, deceased. The subject of this sketch was educated in Germany, and was trained in early life to his chosen occupation upon his father's farm. He served in the German army two years, taking part in the war between Prussia and Austria in 1866, and in the Franco-Prussian war of 1870-71. He was married in 1868 to Theresia Schauble, who was born July 14, 1847. They had thirteen children, of whom the three eldest were born in Germany, and are now farmers in Center township. The names with dates of birth are as follows: Joseph, July 9, 1869; Frederick, March 10, 1871; Louis, December 14, 1872; Martin, November 11, 1875; Mary, March 18, 1877; Rosa, January 24, 1879; Julius, April 11, 1881; William F., February 12, 1883; George L., January 5, 1885; Clara, November 16, 1888; August M., September 26, 1891, and two who died in infancy. In 1873 Mr. Myers came to this country and located at Tiffin, Ohio. His mother had died in 1847, and his father accompanied him to his new home, and died there in 1879. In 1882 Mr. Myers moved to Hancock county, where he remained until 1885, when he came to Wood county and rented a farm of 16o acres in Center township, which he still operates. He has also bought eighty acres near by, the greater part being improved. With the help of his sons., he has brought the entire tract under cultivation, making one of the finest farms in the township. He is enterprising and progressive, and stands high in the regard of the community. He has at times taken an active part in local affairs, and has been school director and township supervisor. In politics he is a Democrat, and he and his family are leading members of the Roman Catholic Church at Bowling Green. EBENEZER DONALDSON, one of the most prominent residents of Grand Rapids, and known throughout the community as " Squire Donaldson," is a descendant of a family which became distinguished for valor and ability in Colonial times, and has always held an honored place in the history of this country. The first of the family in this country was Jacob Donaldson, who was born in Scotland, and came to America in 1730. He settled in eastern Pennsylvania, but was killed, in 1756, by the Indians, in the French-Indian war, while he was striving, as a settler on the frontier of his day, to extend the limits of civilization. He had three daughters and two sons, Isaac, and Ebenezer, the former of whom married Martha Reynolds, and a few years later removed with his growing family to Indiana county, Penn., taking up a tract of government land, and entering vigorously upon its improvement. While living there, in 1780, Isaac, in company with a Mr. Barnhill, was returning from a visit to a neighbor, when they were pursued by Indians, and Mr. Barnhill was captured. Mr. Donaldson outran the Indians, but was shot by one of the savages lying under the fence not far from the house, and scalped and tomahawked. Ebenezer R. Donaldson, son of Isaac Donaldson, grandfather of our subject, moved from Pennsylvania, where he was born, to Harrison county, Ohio, in 1810, and later to Perry county where he spent the remainder of his life. He married Rebecca Hillis, and had children as follows : Matthew, James, Elizabeth, Rebecca, John, Sarah, and Mary. James Donaldson, our subject's father, was born in Washington county, Penn., May 5, 1803, and was married in Perry county, in 1824, to Miss Anna Pugh, a native of Wood county, Va., born June I', 1804. He settled first in Perry county, but later entered eighty acres of land in Weston township, Wood WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 843 county, where he became a leading farmer. In politics he was in early life a Democrat, but afterward adopted the faith of the Whigs, and, on the struggle over the slavery question, he became a Republican. He and his wife were prominent Methodists of their locality. She departed this life February 18, 881, her husband following her to the grave March 27, 1886. They had four children : Alexander P., born September 17, 1825, was a private in the famous 49th O. V. I., and was killed May 27, 1864, in the battle of Pickett's Mills; Ebenezer, our subject; David, born in 1829, is a civil engineer and surveyor, well-known in Wood county, and now resides in San Antonio, Texas; Colin, the youngest child, died in infancy. Ebenezer Donaldson, the subject proper of these lines, first saw the light in Perry county, September 8, 1826, but his parents came to Wood county during his boyhood, and his education was obtained here, his first school being in an old log cabin on Beaver creek owned by Alexander Pugh. Reared upon a farm, he followed agriculture in early manhood. He was married in 849 to his first wife, Miss Anna C. Dubbs, a native of Wayne county, born November 1, 1824, and settled upon a farm in Weston township, removing in 1854 to Washington township, where he remained until 873 when he came to Grand Rapids. Six children were born of his first marriage. (r) Mary E., born in 1852, married W. A. Watson, and has had nine children-Alexander, Lowell, Myrtle, Donald, Richard, Stanley, Florence, Arthur and Margaret. (2) Stella, born in 1854, married Paul V. Palmer, of Adams township, Lucas county, and has three children -Carleton, Florence and Raymond. (3) Florence, twin sister of Stella, born in 1854, married V. H. Richards, of Wood county. (4) Olive, born June 5, 1860, is a teacher in the Sisters' Select School at Toledo. (5) Carrie, born October 20, 1863, married W. W. Edwards, a banker, of Leipsic, Ohio, and has two children-Ruth and Katharine. (6) Alexander, born December 30, 1865, now a resident of Henry county, married, and has two children-Annie and Ebenezer John. The mother of this family died February 24, 1887, and our subject in 1888 married the widow of. Col. S. H. Steedman. For a few years after coming to Grand Rapids Squire Donaldson " was engaged in farming exclusively; but, in 1881, he was appointed postmaster at the place, in which incumbency he served some four years. He is a man whose sterling qualities command the confidence and esteem of his acquaintances; he has been a justice of the peace at intervals for many years, his first election to the office being in 1876. Since 1892 he has held the office without interruption. He is one of the honored ex-soldiers of the Union, having enlisted in 1861, and serving three years in Company H, 21st O. V. I., as a sergeant attached to the army of the West. His chief battles were the engagements at Jonesboro, and on the Chattahoochee River. He is a member of Bond Post No. 24, G. A. R. Politically he is a Republican, but in early years he was a Whig, and his first vote was cast for Zachary Taylor. For nearly half a century he has been a member of the M. E. Church, and he has often shown his sympathy with the best interests of the community by his advocacy of progressive measures. HENRY R. LONGACRE, a prosperous agriculturist of Portage township, is a native of the Keystone State, born December 12, 1836, in Skipback township, Montgomery county, son of John and Catherine (Reed) Longacre. John Longacre was born February 2, 1815, and was married in Pennsylvania to Catherine Reed, who was born May 23, 1811. When a boy he learned the miller's trade, which he followed, for the most part, during his earlier years, and, in about 1837, he came to Columbiana county, Ohio, where he operated a mill for some years. Later he moved with his family to Alliance, Stark county, where he ran a mill for John Miller, and, when our subject was about twelve years old, the family came to Wood county, settling on a farm in Bloom township. The father purchased forty acres of land here, of which six acres were cleared, and a log stable and log dwelling house were the only improvements. Mr. Longacre's capital was limited, and by the time he had paid for his land, and bought a yoke of oxen, his funds were exhausted. He lived on this place the remainder of his active life, becoming a prosperous man, and during his later years, lived retired in West Millgrove, where he died March 26, 1894, at the age of seventy-nine years; his wife preceded him to the grave, dying in Bloom township, August 26, 1880, aged sixtynine years. They were the parents of the following named children: Henry R.; Mary A., who died young; William, who became a member of the 57th O. V. I., and died in hospital at Pittsburg Landing; Sarah J., of West Millgrove; Abraham, of Fostoria, Ohio; and John, who died December 30, 1850, in infancy. While living in eastern Ohio, our subject had the advantages of pretty fair schools; but he attended little after the family removed to Wood 844 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. county. He had a thorough training to agriculture on the pioneer farm; but he also worked at the carpenter's trade to some extent, having picked up a knowledge of that business himself, for he was a natural mechanic. At the time of his marriage he rented a farm in Montgomery township, and being the possessor of a team and a few farming implements, he farmed here for two years, at the end of that time purchasing and removing to a farm in Section 36, Portage township, which then comprised twenty-five acres. He was obliged to go in debt for this, and they began life here in an old log house. Only a few acres of this land were cleared, and he had a difficult task before him; yet he not only succeeded in clearing this tract, but also added to it, until he is now the owner of sixty acres of good land. He has a good residence, barn and outbuildings, and has done most of the carpenter work about the place himself, saving many a dollar in this way. By industry and good management, he has acquired a comfortable property, of which he may well be proud. On March 18, 1866, Mr. Longacre was married, in Portage township, to Miss Fannie Ziegler, who was born May 29, 1836, in Venango county, Penn., daughter of George and Catherine (Murray) Ziegler. The father was a farmer, and when Mrs. Longacre was eight years old the family came to Ohio, settling in Ashland county, where he rented a farm, having met with reverses in Pennsylvania which placed him in limited circumstances. On the breaking out of the Civil war they came to Wood county, and they both died in Portage township, the mother surviving the father eleven years, and passing her last years with her daughter, Mrs. Longacre. To our subject and wife have come children as follows: Eliza, Mrs. Calvin Myers, of Perry township; Mary, Mrs. F. B. Adams, of Portage township; Perry H., at home; John, who died at the age of two years; Ella, at home, and George I., at home. Mrs. Longacre is a member of the Methodist Church. In politics Mr. Longacre is, like his father, a Democrat, and has served as school director and supervisor of his township; but he gives little time to public matters, attending strictly to his agricultural affairs. FREDERICK BOWER. Like, many of Wood county's best citizens, the subject of this biography is of German birth, and his successful careers has given proof that he possesses in abundant measure the intelligence, public-spirit and admirable business qualifications which distinguish his race. A leading resident of Risingsun, Montgomery township, he is widely and favorably known, and his influence is a helpful factor in every advance movement in his locality. The family home for many generations has been Hessen-Darmstadt, Germany, and John P. Bower, the father, was a native of that Duchy, born October 14, 1790; was a man of limited means, supporting his family by his daily wages at the stone-mason trade. Three years of his early manhood were spent in military service. He accompanied the army of Napoloen in Russia, as a cavalryman, going as far as Moscow, and suffering untold hardships from the intense cold, one side of his face being frozen badly. Later he served in the German army when it was a foe instead of an ally of Napoleon. He often told to his son stories of the retreat from-Russia, and the agonies endured by the heroes of that disastrous campaign. After the expiration of his term of service, he married Miss Regina Stondinger, who was born September 25, 1796, and afterward, in 1847, they emigrated to America, bringing with them such goods and chattels as might be needed in this country. They sailed from Antwerp on the " Globe Richmond, " and after fifty-two days arrived in New York, having only a five-franc piece left when they landed; but kind friends helped them to reach their destination in York county, Penn., where they made their home for more than ten years. The father followed his trade most of .the time, and as he was very industrious, scrupulously honest and a thoroughly skilled mechanic, he succeeded in gaining a foothold, and soon bought twenty acres of timber land. Frederick Bower, son of the above, was born October 13, 1833, and as he was about fourteen years old when he came to America, he had already received good educational advantages in his native land. He continued his studies in the schools of eastern Pennsylvania, making such rapid progress that at an early age he was competent to teach. This profession he followed for several years, $2o a month, without board, being considered good wages at that day. He used to walk three miles each day to reach his school. His mental abilities would have' won him a high place in any profession had he gone on with his education, but circumstances were not favorable, and the comfort of his parents was his chief care. He worked at the carpenter's trade for some years, although he had never served an apprenticeship, his natural mechanical ability enabling him to adapt himself to it readily. Of the twelve children of his parents, he was the only one to live to adult age, and he became their mainstay. Fredrick Bower WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. - 845 On April 18, 1856, Mr. Bower was married in York county, Penn., to Miss Mary Stump, who was born May 27, 837, in Baltimore county, Md., a daughter of Daniel Stump, who later removed to Wood county, and died in Montgomery township. After his marriage our subject continued to reside with his parents, and in the spring of 1858 the entire family came to this county, the journey to Fremont, Ohio, being made by rail. From that point they made their way over rough wagon roads to Montgomery township, where they bought eighty acres of land in Section 27; it was in a primitive condition, and their cabin of hewed logs was of the true pioneer sort. The father did not live long to enjoy the comforts which they began to gain by their united efforts. He was a man of medium height and build, and was active until a short time before his death. He possessed more than average mental ability, and was so upright in his dealings that no one ever suspected him of doing a wrong. His wife was a small woman, but a very industrious one, and her efforts were a great help to him. Both were devout members of the Lutheran Church, and held the esteem of every one who knew them. On November 10, 1860, the father breathed his last, and his faithful helpmeet followed him September 14, 1865, the mortal remains of both being consigned to the grave in the cemetery near Bradner. The task of beginning life in the wild woods, as Mr. Bower did, is one of which his posterity will never have a practical idea. The finances of the family were low at the time, and in order to secure food they made haste to plant crops, but the first year brought poor returns for their labor. The second year promised better, and in June they had a fine field of wheat just beginning to ripen, when the great hail-storm, which marked that month, laid the entire crop low, together with all their vegetables. This storm wrought destruction throughout the county, but it did not represent to many the suffering which it caused the Bower family under the circumstances. Any human being would have been discouraged, and they certainly were; but they bravely went to work to make the best of it. Our subject followed farming exclusively until 1872, when he engaged in the sawmill business, with which he has been connected ever since, sometimes in partnership, and again on his own account. For several years past he has been the sole proprietor of his business, and in 1895 he erected his present substantial sawmill, which employs from ten to fifteen men. In his career as a lumber dealer he has dispensed thousands and thousands of dollars for labor and timber, and he is familiar with every detail of the milling and planing business, whether it is buying large tracts of standing timber or the actual toil of the mills. As a business man he is noted for shrewdness and foresight-in fact, some less discerning persons have predicted failure for his ventures at times, but they always turn out satisfactorily. He also has valuable oil interests, and operates portions of his own land. His home is a pleasant one, the farm of sixty acres being a part of the land which he helped to redeem from the wilderness, and every improvement represents the labor or oversight of some member of the family. Of fourteen children, all are living except one, and a brief record of them is as follows: (1) John P., a sawmill owner, of Portage township, is married, and has one child; (2) Elizabeth, now Mrs. John Harmon, of Prairie Depot, has one son; (3) William lives in Lorain, Ohio, and has been for several years employed as a lineman by the N. Y. C. & St. L. Ry. Co.; (4) Adam F., a sawmill owner, of Portage township, is married, and has two sons and two daughters; (5) Eliza (Mrs. Harry Blackman, of Perry township), has two sons and one daughter; (6) Lavina is at home; (7) Martin L. died in infancy; (8) Albert J., and (9) Daniel W. are partners in the sawmill business, in Perry township; and the others--(10) Charles H., (11) May, (12) Frank, (13) George, and (14) Angie, are all at home. This forms a family of which any parent might well feel proud. The sons have made good use of the assistance given by their father toward their start in life, and are steady-going and prosperous, while the daughters are accomplished and womanly, the older ones being established in good homes. Mr. Bower is intelligent and fond of reading, and is well-informed upon subjects which an ordinary mind would take no interest in. His memory is excellent, and the observations of his long life make his conversation both entertaining and instructive. In his locality his influence is widely recognized, and he has the respect of all who know him at all, and the friendship of those who know him well. He is strictly temperate in his habits, having never used liquor or tobacco in any form. A Democrat on national issues, he is willing to support a good and competent candidate in local politics without regard to party lines, and no one stands higher in the confidence of the independent voting public than he. While living in a Republican stronghold, he has been elected justice of the peace by a plurality of one hundred on the other side, and defeating one of 846 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO. the best men in the township. He has also served creditably as township trustee, and was school director in District No. 5 for years. Of the Lutheran Church he is a leading adherent, and was a charter member of Onward Lodge No. 329, K. of P. at Risingsun, in which he has held various offices, and has also been chosen as representative of the Grand Lodge. Six of his sons, now of age, are members of the same Order. W. SWARTZ. As a representative of the intelligent and hardy pioneers who opened up Perry township for settlement, and have since taken a conspicuous part in developing that region, we are pleased to place in this volume a brief sketch of the life of the gentleman whose name stands at the beginning of this notice. 'The place of his nativity is Rockingham county, Va., and the date of his birth is January 29, 1826. When but a child, he removed to Hampshire county, W. Va., with his parents, Christopher and Mary (Burger) Swartz. There the father bought land, but, unfortunately the title was defective, and he lost everything. By trade he was a carpenter, and, in 1853, he removed to Seneca county, Ohio, where he rented land until coming to Milton township, Wood county. In that township he and his wife made their home with their sons -Levi, Isaac and Jacob-until they were called from this life, the father at the age of seventysix, and the mother when seventy-five years old. In the family were the following children: Elizabeth, who first wedded Wilson Messick, but is now the widow of Jacob Oates, of Hampshire county, W. Va.; Mary A., who was the wife of Samuel Park, and died in Crawford county, Ohio; Jesse, the first son of the family to come to this State, who died in Highland county several years ago; John, of Hampshire county, W. Va.; Esther, who wedded John Rodeffer, and died in Hampshire county; our subject, who is next in order of birth; Samuel, of Hampshire county; Sarah, now Mrs. Josiah Hall, of Perry township, Wood county; Frances, wife-of Hiram Hunter, of Plain township, Wood county; Barbara, wife 0f Hunter Robinson, of Henry county, Ohio; Isaac W., of Milton township; Jacob, a farmer of the same township; and Caroline, who married Hiram Hunter, and died in Milton township. The early life of Mr. Swartz was passed amidst the surroundings of slavery. As his parents were in limited circumstances, he was able to attend school only about six months altogether, and as soon as he was old enough he was hired out by his father, and his work was often very arduous. In 1851 he concluded to come to Ohio, making the journey by conveyance, in company with his brother-in-law and sister Sarah, who had been on a visit to their old home in West Virginia, which was about forty miles from Cumberland, Md. By stage they proceeded to West Newton, Penn., thence down the river to Pittsburg, where they boarded a train for Mansfield, Ohio, thence going by rail to Shelby, from which place they were driven to their destination. On his arrival our subject had about $i0, and with that amount began life in Crawford county, where he found work during the winter in the lumber woods, making his home with Mr. Parks. He then worked at whatever he could find to do, often making shingles by hand, for which he received twenty-two cents per hundred. On September 28, 1854, in Lykens township, Crawford county, Mr. Swartz was united in marriage with Miss Rebecca Hall, who was born in Walnut township, Fairfield Co., Ohio, March 14, 1827, daughter 0f Joseph and Mary (Mills) Hall, both natives of Virginia, who had come with their parents to Ohio, when small, being reared in Fairfield county, where they were married. Their last days were passed in Lykens township, Crawford county. To our subject and his wife have been born five children, namely: Silas, a farmer 0f Milton township, Wood county; Rosella, who died at the age of twenty years; Isaac W., of Bloom township; Samuel, who operates the home farm in Perry township; and Mary, who died at the age of twenty-two. It was in March, 1855, that Mr. Swartz removed to Perry township, Wood county, and there he rented land until 1859, when he bought eighty acres, which he later sold, buying another tract. This he afterward traded for his original farm in Section 19, where he had located on coming to this county in 1855, at which time the land was almost entirely covered with water, and once while chopping a tree trunk into the desired lengths after he had felled it, the portions would float away. The season of 1865 was exceedingly wet, and, becoming discouraged, he would have left the county had he been able to get away. His farm is now a fertile, productive tract, made so by draining and tiling, and the rich fields yield bountiful harvests. Since the 20th of November, 1894, he has made his home in Bloomdale, enjoying a well-earned rest. Besides his excellent farm of 130 acres, he has two lots and a comfortable residence in that place. Although starting out empty-handed, he has secured a comfortable competence, the re- RETURN TO THE TITLE PAGE