Williams County, Ohio - The whole text, 1920 (part 7 of 12)

Brought up in St. Joseph Township, Frank Burkhart obtained his early education in the district schools, and as a boy and youth acquired valuable experience in the agricultural arts. Continuing a member of the parental household until thirty-one years old, he had the entire management of the home farm the last seven years that he lived upon it. A man of undoubted business and financial ability, Mr. Burkhart has judiciously invested a part of his wealth in land, owning a fine farm of 200 acres near Edgerton, and in addition to carrying on general farming with good results makes a specialty of feeding and shipping cattle and live stock, a branch of industry that under his management is exceedingly profitable. He was one of the organizers of the Farmers Commercial Bank of Edgerton, which has the following named officers : George Weber, president ; Frank Burkhart, vice president; James J. Jennings, cashier; and the directors are George Weber, Frank Burkhart, James J. Jennings, Jessie Houlton, Lewis Groff, E. A. Geauque and D. G. Koehner.

Mr. Burkhart has been twice married. He married first, January 31, 1895, Catherine Groff, who was born in Sterling, Illinois, January 8, 1870, a daughter of Henry Groff. She died in early womanhood, leaving one son, Harry W. Burkhart, who was born September 10, 1900, and was accidentally killed January 27, 1917.

On November 29, 1916, Mr. Burkhart married Mrs. Mary (Hughes) Walker, a daughter of Ephraim and Elizabeth (Alvert) Hughes, the former of whom was born in Seneca County, Ohio, and the latter in Pennsylvania. Her father, a school teacher in his younger days, came, after his marriage in Seneca County, Ohio, to Williams County, settling on a farm in Superior Township, where he was successfully engaged in tilling the soil during his remaining years. He was a republican in politics and ever interested in local matters.

Mr. Burkhart invariably supports the principles of the democratic party. Fraternally he belongs to Edgerton Lodge, Knights of Pythias, and Mrs. Burkhart is a member of the Pythian Sisters. She is an active member of the Christian Church. Mr. Burkhart's first wife attended the Evangelical Church, of which he was an attendant, and a liberal supporter.

Fred O. Mills. - In nearly every community are individuals who by innate ability and sheer force of character rise above their fellows and win for themselves conspicuous places in public esteem. Such a one is the well-known gentleman whose name appears above, who is a native of the adjoining State of Indiana, but whose identification with Williams County is such that he is universally recognized as a man of undoubted ability, courage and loyalty. Fred O. Mills, the efficient and popular manager of the Liberty Cooperage and Lumber Company, at Montpelier, was born in Jay County, Indiana, on May 4, 1891, and is the son of C. H. and Elizabeth (Stout) Mills. These parents were also natives of Jay County, where they were reared, educated and married. After their marriage they first settled on a farm in Jay County. In 1905 Mr. Mills engaged in the lumber mill business in Warren, Ohio, in which he was occupied until the fall of 1917, when he sold that business and came to Montpelier. Mr. Mills remained here until September, 1919, when he moved to Fort Wayne, Indiana, where he now resides. He is the owner of a mill at Areola, Indiana. He is a republican in his political sympathies, is a member of the United Commercial Travelers, and his religious membership is with the Presbyterian Church. To him and his wife were born nine children, of which number eight are now living.

Fred O. Mills was about two years of age when his parents moved from Indiana to Van Wert County, Ohio, and he secured his educational training in the public and high schools of Warren. He was then a student in Oberlin College for one year, at the end of which time he became associated with his father in the Warren Cooperage Factory for three years. He then became connected with the Peerless Electric Company, at Warren, remaining with that concern for two years. He then became a student in the Ohio Northern University, at Ada, where he was when the United States entered the World War. He promptly volunteered and entered the officers training camp at

Fort Benjamin Harrison, at Indianapolis, Indiana, where he received a commission as second lieutenant in August, 1917. He was then assigned to the Fifty-Ninth Regiment of Infantry and sent to the camp at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. On October 2, 1917, Lieutenant Mills was transferred to the Fourth Machine Gun Battalion of the Second Division, and on December 23, 1917, sailed from Portland, Maine, arriving at Liverpool on January 7th following. From there he went to France and was in training camps until March 19, 1918, when he was sent into the lines at Verdun. On June 1, 1918, he took part in the historic engagement at Chateau Thierry, after which he was relieved on July 4. For bravery in the Bois de Belleau he was awarded the Croix de Guerre. On July 16, 1918, he took part in the attack on Soissons, where he was gassed, in consequence of which he was confined to a hospital for three weeks. In this engagement also he was cited for the Croix de Guerre for bravery in action. He remained inactive until September 12th, when he again went into action in the Saint Mihiel drive, during which he was again gassed and sent to hospital. On October 11th he rejoined his division and they were in maneuvers and rest in preparation for the Meuse-Argonne drive. On August 28, 1918, the subject had received a first lieutenant's commission. They were located along the Meuse River, ready for action, when the armistice was signed, and on November 17th they started on the march for Germany, crossed the Rhine and located in Neuwied on Friday, December 13, 1918. On January 1, 1919, Lieutenant Mills was taken down with an attack of the "flu" and after his recovery he was granted a seventeen-day sick leave. He returned to France, with the intention of visiting a brother, and while there was again prostrated with the "flu" and sent to the hospital. He was then put in Class D, to be returned to the United States, and on April 8, 1919, he sailed from Brest on the Kaiserine Augusta Victoria, arriving in New York on April 17th. He was sent to the Polyclinic Hospital, in New York City, whence he was transferred to the Base Hospital at Camp Sherman, Chillicothe, Ohio, from which he was discharged as fit for duty on May 21st. He was transferred to Camp Custer and assigned to the Tenth Infantry Regiment, but sent in his resignation, which was accepted on July 31, 1919. Lieutenant Mills at once returned to Montpelier and immediately turned his attention to civic pursuits. As stated at the beginning of this review, he is now acting as manager of the Liberty Cooperage and Lumber Company. He is well qualified for his position, possessing good business ability, sound judgment and industrious habits and is handling the duties of his position in a manner entirely satisfactory to all concerned.

On November 24, 1919, Lieutenant Mills was married to Elsie L. Timmons, of Kirkersville, Ohio. Politically, the subject gives his support to the republican party, while his religious membership is with the Presbyterian Church. Fraternally, he is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, in which he has attained the degrees of the Chapter, and to the United Commercial Travelers. He is also a member of Post No. 109, American Legion, of which he is the present commander. In every relation of life, Mr. Mills has proven true to his trust and today no one in his community enjoys to a greater degree the respect and confidence of the people generally than does he.

Fred Held.- - While he was born in Sandusky County, April 2, 1864, Fred Held of Florence Township has been in Williams County since 1873, and he owns a farm of eighty acres. His parents, Frederick and Catharine (Algire) Held, were born in Baden, Germany, and while they were not acquainted until they met on the sailing vessel, they came together to the United States. Frederick Held was thirty years old when he emigrated to America. He came to Huron County, where he worked by the month for two years before he married Catharine Algire whom he had known as a passenger across the Atlantic. For a year they lived in Huron County and then they moved to Bellevue.

While in Bellevue, he worked four years in a distillery as a night watch, then he returned to Huron County where he bought a team and became a farmer, renting farm land there six years, when he came to Williams County. In 1873 Frederick Held bought the farm owned today by his son, Fred Held, and it was his home for many years. He voted the democratic ticket and was a member of the Catholic Church at Blakeslee. Nine children were born in the Held family, although only five survive as Fred relates the history. They are John, Emma, Fred, Catharine and Mary.

Fred Held was nine years old when his parents came to Williams County. He had common school education and on May 28, 1895, he married Josephine Trausch who was born in Florence Township. They have always lived at the Held family homestead. Their children are: Robert, Martha, Michael, Oscar and Bernard. They are all members of the Catholic Church at Blakeslee.

Mr. Held is the democratic county central committeeman from the south precinct in Florence Township, and for three years he served as constable in the community. For seven years he served as township trustee, and he has always been active in politics of Williams

County. He is a member of the Farmers' Co-operative Company at Blakeslee and is always interested in anything that advances the cause of agriculture.

Jacob Walz. - Since he was a boy eleven years, Jacob Walz of Low Land Farm in Florence has been a resident of Williams County. He was born February 20. 1872. in Wiirtemberg, Germany. He is a son of Christopher and Barbara (Hainz) Walz who were children together in Germany and emigrated to the United States several years after their marriage in that country. They came direct to Williams County in 1883, and they bought a farm in Florence Township and settled there. Their children are : Christopher, of Kansas ; Catharine, wife of Henry Durr, of Steuben County, Indiana ; Adam, of Florence Township; Mary, wife of George Kaiser, of Florence Township; Jacob, who enrolls the family in the "History of Williams County," and Fred Walz of Center Township.

The Walz family are Lutherans in their church relation and they vote with the democratic party. While the children were born in Germany they were educated in America. Jacob Walz being only eleven and coming to the United States young enough to learn American methods in everything. There was a German school in Edon and they had common school education. Until he was twenty, Jacob Walz worked for his father and then he went among others working by the month. He was the young man to save his money.

On January 21, 1897, Jacob Walz married Susan J. Lerch. She was born in Allen and reared in DeKalb County, Indiana. They settled on the farm where they live today and have always lived there. Their children are : Clara, Lavina, William, Edna and Dora. All are being given a common school education, the older ones having graduated from the public schools. They are all members of the Lutheran Church at Edon. Mr. Walz is a member of the Farmers' Co-operative Association, and is interested in the welfare of the man in the country. There are 168 acres in Low Land Farm and it is under an excellent state of cultivation.

Thomas R. Bostater, of Florence Township, three miles from Edon, was born December 1, 1880, in Defiance County. He is a son of Andrew J. and Mary A. (Hodson) Bostater. While the father was born at Wooster, Ohio, the mother is a native of Bridgewater Township. She is a sister of Martin Hodson of Pioneer. The Bostaters are Presbyterians and the family vote is cast with the republicans.

Andrew J. Bostater was a medical doctor, a graduate of the medical college at Ann Arbor, Michigan. For a time he practiced medicine at Pioneer. Later he practiced medicine in Toledo, and he owned a drug store there. Doctor Bostater had seven children. The daughter Florence, who is the widow of Solomon Johnson, is a daughter by the first marriage with Alice Sweden. There were six children from the second marriage. Grace is the wife of S. L. Kelley of Toledo; Frank M. is with the Electric Stove Company of Toledo; Elizabeth is a graduated nurse from the Presbyterian Hospital in Chicago ; Lucile is a graduate of the Fayette Normal and is the wife of F. C. Koos of South Bend, Indiana ; Thomas R. Bostater relates the family history, and Gertrude, a graduate of the Montpelier High School and lives in Montpelier, but is doing Young Women's Christian Association work now in Chicago.

Thomas R. Bostater was educated in common school and at the Fayette Normal. He has the B. S. degree from Fayette. He was a teacher in public school and he married Daisy M. Moore who was also a teacher. She was a graduate of the Waldron High School in Michigan. Their children are: Mary E., who is in the Edon High School, and Arthur J. and Margaret E. who are in common school. The family are members of the Christian Church in Edon. Mr. Bostater is an elder in the church.

T. R. Bostater is president of the Edon Farmers Co-operative Association and a member of Spring Lake Grange. He is interested in all farmer movements of the community. He lives on a farm in Florence Township, Williams County.

Samuel D. Kaiser. - The development of Williams County has been chiefly due to the sustained efforts of individuals and families carried on year after year, resulting in the planting of homes, the clearing away of the woods, bringing the land under cultivation, and through the co-operative enterprises of road building, erection of schools and churches, and the facilities and resources that come from collective effort.

With this development for more than six decades the Kaiser family has had a more than ordinary share and participation. Of this family perhaps the best known in the present generation is Samuel D. Kaiser, whose estate, the Maple Forest Farm, near Edon, is familiar to thousands of stock growers outside of Williams County and has a well justified fame as the home of Kaiser's Registered Shropshire sheep.

Mr. Kaiser was born March 23, 1875, on the farm home two and a fourth miles north of Edon, where he and his family reside today. He is a son and the youngest child living of William F. Kaiser, Sr., and Eva Catherine (Klink) Kaiser, both now deceased.

The late William F. Kaiser was born in Kusterdingen, Wuertemberg, Germany, March 8, 1830, and in 1832 was brought to America by his parents John George and Eva Barbara Kaiser, who for four years made their home in Columbiana County, Ohio, and then moved to Richland County the same state, locating two miles east of Shelby. William F. Kaiser grew up in that locality, acquired a common school education, and for six years worked as a carpenter. In those days he was regarded as a skilled worker, and some of the buildings he constructed from the mammoth oak timber more than sixty years ago may be seen just as they were erected, while others have been remodeled and modern equipments installed.

September 7, 1858, he married Eva Catherine Klink, who was born April 20, 1839, in Chatfield Township, Crawford County, Ohio, where she grew to womanhood. Soon after their marriage in 1858, with their meager household outfit in horse drawn vehicles, over desperately muddy roads, they moved to Williams County, locating on the farm where Samuel D. was born and where they lived out the remainder of their lives. This farm at that time contained 180 acres and was in its natural state, a dense forest. The obstructive timber, great oaks, walnut, poplar and other varieties that would be of great value now, was cleared away and burned, and acre by acre was made arable until all but thirty acres, reserved for forestry, was under cultivation. Ten children were born to William F. Kaiser and wife. Seven grew to maturity and are still living, named : Lena Krill, George F., Mary Weber, Rebecca Koerner, Anna Krill, Sarah Plogsterd and Samuel D. Kaiser. As these children one by one left the parental home to establish homes of their own, the parents provided each with a good start in life. The parents were widely known and highly respected for the charitable dispositions, and helpfulness in time of need, were always loyal members of the Methodist Episcopal Church and active in every good cause. William F. Kaiser died April 2, 1904, and some time before his death had sold eighty acres of his land. The mother controlled the balance of the homestead farm consisting of 100 acres until the time of her death September 3, 1909.

Samuel D. Kaiser acquired his education in the common schools and also took a practical business course by correspondence in the Michigan Business Institute of Kalamazoo. From the age of eighteen he managed the homestead farm for his parents, and on March 21, 1910, bought the place from the heirs of the estate. He then named it the Maple Forest Farm, the characteristic feature and source of the name being ten acres of timber mostly hard maple on the northeast corner of the farm. Mr. Kaiser firmly believes in scientific principles of farming and the maintenance of the fertility of the soil. Practice amounts to more than theory in his case, demonstrated by the quality and quantity, per acre, his soil yields in return for his labor. He has no use for scrubby stock, and is also delighted to show his line of breeding. Especially he takes pride in his flock of registered Shropshire sheep. Having studied and managed this one breed exclusively for twenty-five years, gives him a knowledge of its excellent points and the correct type of the real Shropshire. By honest, fair and square dealing with customers, there has developed a demand for his stock known as Kaiser's Shropshires, which he is never able to supply.

It is only natural that so much progressiveness in the management of his individual affairs should extend to public improvements, such as better roads, better schools, better churches. He has exhibited a community spirit of unselfishness, and at the same time is conservative in handling the public funds. For eight years he has been a member of the Florence Township Board of Education and was re-elected to that post in November, 1919. He is serving his second term as a member of the Williams County Board of Education. He is connected with various movements which he believes will bring about better marketing facilities for farm products, and is one of the men who sustain and make effective such organizations as the Williams County Farm Bureau, the Edon Farmers' Co-operative Company, the Williams County Wool Growers' Association, and the Farmers' Institute.

December 18, 1894, Mr. Kaiser married Ida E. Kiess. She was born in Whetstone Township, near Bucyrus, Crawford County, Ohio, May 28, 1876, being the youngest child of Jonathan H. and Elizabeth (Cook) Kiess. The older children consisted of a son and two daughters, the son and one daughter dying in youth. The two surviving daughters are Rebecca Crall and Ida E. Kaiser. The mother of these children died in July of the same year of Mrs. Kaiser's birth, and she was then taken by relatives to Richland Township, Steuben County, Indiana, where she was educated and grew to womanhood. Her foster parents were William F. and Mary (Cook) Kiess. Her father, Jonathan H. Kiess, remained a widower for some time and then mar- ried Rachel Cook, a cousin to his first wife. To this union were born four children, named Wesley, Olen, Charles and Bertha, the latter now Mrs. Vernon Schieber. Jonathan Kiess was born December 9, 1840, near Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and in 1851 came with his father, his mother having died three days after his birth, to Crawford County, Ohio, locating at Bucyrus, where he had his residence for more than sixty years. He was a popular farmer, owned a farm place of 160 acres, and gave to it his personal management until his death on April 26, 1912. He was public spirited, and his influence could always be counted upon for every project for the public welfare. He and his family were members of the Evangelical Church..

Mr. and Mrs. Kaiser have two daughters, Mildred Evadne, born October 6, 1899, and Pauline Gladys, born November 11, 1902. They were given every advantage in attending the country schools, each completing the eighth grade work at the age of twelve, and they graduated from the first grade high school at the age of sixteen. Mildred graduated from the Edon High School in the spring of 1916 and was a post graduate of the same school the following year. She then entered the Tri-State College at Angola for a four-year course of music under Professor A. G. Harshman, and received her diploma as a Bachelor of Music in the spring of 1920. While in college she was called upon temporarily to teach in the public schools, and on different occasions filled vacancies for a period of several months. During her last year in the musical conservatory of the Tri-State College she also took a course in teacher's training to qualify as musical supervisor in public schools. Pauline graduated from the Edon High School in the spring of 1919, and having also distinctive musical gifts had spent summer months as a student under Professor A. G. Harshman. In the winter of 1919 she also entered the Tri-State College to finish the musical course taking at the same time the teachers' training course. All the family are sincere and consistent members of the Edon Methodist Episcopal Church.

Benjamin T. Lingle, living near Edon in Florence Township, was born February 1, 1849, in Springfield Township, and he has always lived in Williams County. He is a son of John and Catharine (Belford) Lingle, the father coming from Pennsylvania to Southern Ohio where they were married and they settled in Springfield Township, Williams County. John Lingle was a blacksmith and combined farming with working at the forge. He was a democrat. They were members of the Lutheran Church, and of their ten children six are living, A. D. 1920, when B. T. Lingle relates the family story. They are: Sarah, Jane, Benjamin T., William, Cyrus and George. B. T. Lingle remained on the home farm in Springfield Township until after the death of his father, when he began farming in Florence Township.

Mr. Lingle married Lydia F. Eagle of Pulaski Township and when they located in Florence they bought eighty acres of land, and they placed all of the improvements on it. Their daughter, Minnie M. Lingle, died in childhood, and on February 12, 1880, twin sons, William C. and Charles C. Lingle, were born to them. W. C. Lingle is a coal dealer in Edon and Charles C. is a hardware merchant in Hamilton, Indiana. The family are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Edon. Mr. Lingle raises grade live stock of all kinds and is a member of the Montpelier Farmers' Co-operative Association.

Mrs. Lingle is a daughter of Jacob and Sarah (Weaver) Eagle. She was born January 26, 1855, in Pulaski Township. Her parents came from Montgomery County, Ohio, to Williams County. They settled in Pulaski Township, six miles southeast of Bryan. Mr. and Mrs. Lingle were married February 19, 1874, and they have always lived in Williams County.

George Jerger is a prosperous farmer of St. Joseph Township, his prosperity having been due to his persistent effort carried on through a long period of years, and he belongs to one of the old and prominent families of Williams County.

Mr. Jerger, whose farm is a mile southwest of Edgerton, was born in St. Joseph Township May 25, 1872, son of J. B. and Elizabeth (Magrum) Jerger. His father was born in Baden, Germany, November 30, 1834, while the mother was a native of Buffalo, New York. J. B. Jerger came to the United States at the age of nineteen, was married at Buffalo where he lived for several years, and then came as a pioneer to Williams County, locating north of Edgerton. At the time of his death he had lived on one farm in that locality for fiftyfour years. He was thrifty, industrious, and prosecuted his affairs so that at one time his estate was valued at $50,000. He was twice married and had thirteen children by his first wife and seven by the second. The first group of children were Mary, Josephine, John, Frank. Joseph, Lena. Anthony, George, Elizabeth, Frances, Emma, Dora and Charles. The children of the second marriage were Anna and Daniel, twins, Louise, Clara, William, Frederick and Ida. The father was a democrat in his political affiliations.

George Jerger grew up on his father's farm, attended district schools and remained at home until the age of thirty. After he was twenty one he worked for wages, and at twenty-five he married Miss Gertrude Hoch, a native of St. Joseph Township, Williams County

Mr. Jerger is still an active farmer, and the scene of his efforts >s 100 acres of fertile and well cultivated land. He is a democrat in politics and with his family is a member of the Catholic Church.

cit,VJe0HNAv-nAN-~rThe hiSt°ry °f thC l0"VaI S°nS a"d representative citizens of Williams County would not be complete should the name that heads this review be omitted. When the fierce fire of rebellion was raging through the Southland, threatening to destroy the Union he responded with patriotic fervor to the call for volunteers and in some of the blood.est battles and severest campaigns for which that great war was noted proved his loyalty to the government he loved so well Duong a useful life in the locality where he lives he has lablr d' diligent y to promote the interests of the people, has been devoted to the public welfare and today none stands higher in the esteem of the people among whom he lives.

Tnint" A1,maVh0Se fine farl» of "< acres is located in Superior Township was born m Stark County, Ohio, on December 27 1840 and he is the son of James and Margaret (Anspaugh) Allman. These parents were natives of Pennsylvania and both were brought to Ohio a'm lveimT8P,0Ct,VTHParenTtS' ^ """* * '^ C°U^ the A,Imfamily in 18 0. There James Allman and Margaret Anspaugh were married and lived until 1842, when they came to Williams County se ling in sect.on 5, Superior Township. There they spent the e t of the,r hves the father dying in 1846 and being survived many "a by his widow, who death occurred in 1890. They were the parents of the following children: Catherine, who became the wife of Wil- - Ingram; Barney P. deceased; Hayman C, who was a sollr he wiS ofTh T k,IIed fn ^ ba"Ie °f J°nesb0r°= M^a>en, and secured his education m the district schools. He remained at home until August 29, 1861. when he enlisted in Company H, T rty Eighth Regiment, Oh.o Volunteer Infantry, which became a part of the Army of the Cumberland. On November 10, 1862, he was detailed and assigned to the Pioneer Corps of that army, being assigned to Company C, and took part in the sanguinary battle of Stone's River. In the spring of 1863 he was again detailed on the Pontoon Battalion, serving in that service until December, 1863, when he was promoted to forage master of the pontoon train. Later he was made wagon master, having charge of the train from Bridgeport to Chattanooga, and thence to Mission .Ridge. There he had charge of the wagon or pontoon train. On December 10, 1863, Mr. Allman came home on a furlough and he veteranized, re-enlisting in Company H of the Thirty-Eighth Regiment, and returned to his home on a thirty-day furlough. He then rejoined his command and was with Sherman on his campaign from Chattanooga to Atlanta. On August 12, 1864, he was transferred to Company D of the First United States Engineers, with which he served until September 26, 1865, when he was given an honorable discharge. Though Mr. Allman took part in much of the most strenuous service of the war, exposed to attack by the enemy and to the most taxing labor, he was never wounded nor confined to hospital. He rendered faithful service in every service to which he was assigned and was discharged with an honorable record and the rank of artificer.

On his return home Mr. Allman resumed his farm work and has never relinquished his active interest in agricultural affairs. His splendid farm of 114 acres is located one mile north and three miles west of Montpelier, being numbered among the best improved, most highly cultivated and most productive farms of the locality. Mr. Allman carries on general farming operations, in connection with which he also gives some attention to the raising of live stock, and in both departments he has met with well deserved success.

On November 19, 1865, Mr. Allman was married to Lucinda Simpson, who was born in Holmes County, Ohio, on April 28, 1842, and whose death occurred on June 22, 1899. She came with her parents to Williams County, the family settling on a farm in Superior Township, where she was reared, receiving her educational training in the district schools of that neighborhood. To Mr. and Mrs. Allman were born five children, namely: Frank, a farmer in Superior Township; Charles S., who remains at home; Elva, who was a teacher in the public schools, became the wife of Elmer Lytle, of Quincy, Michigan; Eva, a twin sister of Elva, is unmarried and remains at home ; Clara J., the wife of Charles Bowen, of Bridgewater Township.

hcan party and has thrown his support to every worthy movement for the advancement of the community's best interests. He is a member of Hiram Louden Post, No. 155, Grand Army of the Republic, of which he is the present commander. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church and has been active in support of its every interest. A man of genial personality, he has easily made friends and because of this fact and his other sterling qualities he enjoys the sincere esteem of the entire community.

William Moss, ex-county commissioner and ex-justice of the peace for Mill Creek Township, is one of the leading men of Williams County, and one of the prosperous farmers of his section. Mr. Moss was born in Richland County, Ohio, on December 13, 1852, a son of Samuel and Priscilla (Turbeth) Moss, natives of West Virginia and Pennsylvania, respectively. The paternal grandfather, Thomas W. Moss, came to Richland County, Ohio, from Pennsylvania, at an early day, and there he died. Samuel Moss was reared in Richland County, Ohio, and there married, but in 1853 he came to Williams County and located on a farm of 160 acres of land in Mill Creek Township. He and his wife were Presbyterians in their religious faith, while in politics, he was a democrat. They had five children born to them, namely: Thomas, who is deceased; Ellen, who married Thomas' Crawford; Joseph, who is deceased; Sarah, who is the widow of Samuel Holenbaugh ; and William, who is the youngest.

William Moss was reared on the farm he now owns, and attended the public schools of his neighborhood. For four terms he taught school, but then decided to devote all of his attention to farming, and has made a success of it. Mr. Moss has prospered and now in addition to his fine farm and its equipment, owns stock in the Bryan Democrat.

On April 29, 1875, William Moss was united in marriage with Malinda Clay, who was born in Mill Creek Township, and educated in its schools. Following their marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Moss moved on the farm, first renting it and then buying it and now they have 100 acres of land. They became the parents of four children, namely: George S., who was graduated from the schools of Fayette and later from the law school of Ada, Ohio, is now a practicing attorney of Toledo, Ohio; T. E., who was graduated from the Fayette Schools and the Metropolitan Business College, was a stenographer for the Michigan Central Railroad, but is now on the farm; Mary L., who attended the public schools, married Frank Raymond, and they live on the Moss Farm; W. D., who was graduated from the Metropolitan Business College of Toledo, Ohio, is now living at Cincinnati, Ohio. Mr. Moss and his wife belong to the Presbyterian Church of West Unity, of which he is an elder. He belongs to Superior Lodge No. 179, Free and Accepted Masons, and he and Mrs. Moss are members of West Unity Chapter, Order of Eastern Star.

Mr. Moss has been very prominent as a democrat, and served for two terms and was appointed for another term, in all six years, as county commissioner of Williams County, and for twenty-one years was a justice of the peace of Mill Creek Township. A man of sound judgment his decisions were seldom reversed by the higher courts, and he was recognized as one of the most just men in that office, as he has always been in everyday transactions.

Joseph Greek. - Numbered among the dependable citizens and prosperous farmers of Mill Creek Township is Joseph Greek, whose farm is located on section 6, one and one-half miles east of Kunkle. He was born in Richland County, Ohio, on January 12, 1844, a son of Frederick and Margaret Greek. Frederick Greek was born in Pennsylvania on September 18, 1811, and his wife was born on July 29, 1814. They came to Richland County, Ohio, in 1840, and after a period of several years moved to Hancock County, Ohio, and then, in 1854, located in Williams County, where his death occurred in 1895, his wife passing away in 1894. They were Dunkards in religious belief. Of their fourteen children, eight survive, namely: John, who is a resident of Tiffin, Ohio; Joseph, who is the second child; George, who is a resident of Idaho ; Wesley B., who is a resident of Alabama ; Elias, who is a resident of Mill Creek Township ; Jane, who is the wife of Frank Throne; William F., who is a resident of Kunkle, Ohio; and Margaret, who is the wife of John Oxinger of Reading, Michigan.

Joseph Greek has practically spent his life in Williams County, and is thoroughly identified with its best interests, and is a product of its public schools. During the war between the two sections of the country, he sided with the Union, and enlisted in Company F, Thirty-Eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and when his first period of service was completed, he re-enlisted, in 1863, in Company G. Sixty-Eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and participated in the campaign in the Shenandoah Valley and the one in Georgia with General Sherman, including the famous "March to the Sea." Following the close of the war he took part in the Grand Review at Washington, and then returned home.

Following his return from the army, Mr. Greek worked at the carpenter trade, but later bought a farm in Mill Creek Township, and now owns 157 acres of land, which is finely improved. He has alternated farming with work at his trade, and has been eminently successful at both.

On October 15, 1867, Mr. Greek was married first to Melissa West, who died on January 19, 1886, having borne her husband five children, namely: Ada B., who is the wife of J. E. Walcott ; Jane, who is the wife of George W. Werdner; Emerson, who is unmarried, is a railroad man of Lima, Ohio; Arthur J., who married Jennie Manville, lives in Mill Creek Township, and Carrie L., who is deceased. After the death of his first wife, Mr. Greek was married to Sarah J. Drum, on September 23, 1888. She was born in Pennsylvania on January 30, 1858, and was brought to Brady Township, Williams County by her parents in 1860. By his second marriage Mr. Greek had three children, namely: Carl E., who was born on February 3, 1890, was graduated from the Fayette High School, married Myrtle Sayers, and they have two children - Ruth B. and Clifford O. ; Glenn D., who was born September 23, 1894, was graduated from the West Unity High School, married Florence Utter, and lives at Columbus, Ohio. During the World war Glenn D. was in the service, was sent overseas, and was wounded. Mildred, the third child, who was born on February 25, 1900, was graduated from the West Unity High School, and is now at home. The family belong to the Evangelical Church. In politics Mr. Greek is a republican and he served as township trustee and was county commissioner for one term. Both in war and peace he has proven his worth as a man and a citizen, and he is held in the highest regard by the many who have the pleasure of his acquaintance.

Emery Bunce, who is vice president of the Farmers Banking Company of Columbia, laid the foundation of his business career as a farmer, and still gives most of his time to his well improved place of 138 acres in Northwest Township, seven miles north and a mile west of Edon.

The Bunce family were among the pioneers of Williams County, and their collective efforts have contributed not a little to its development and prosperity for a period of seven decades.

Emery Bunce was born in Florence Township, Williams County, April 27, 1863. His grandparents were Jacob and Laura (Wilcox) Bunce. The grandfather was born in New York State in 1788. His first wife, Laura Wilcox, died in Perrysburg, Ohio. Later he removed to Crawford County, Ohio, and married Miss Nancy Kelley. His death occurred in Crawford County in 1842. The seven children of his first marriage were Freeman, Lydia, Rhoda, James, Calista, Russell and Daniel.

James Bunce, father of Emery, was born in New York April 7, 1820. He married Elizabeth Gloar, who was born in the same state March 2, 1822. However, they were reared from childhood in Ohio, and about 1848 as young people moved into the wilderness of WiL Hams County, Ohio, and located in Florence Township where they did their part as pioneers. Later they moved to Northwest Township where they spent their last years. James Bunce died in January, 1892, and his wife in November, 1891. They were married May 6, 1845, and their children were: Martha J. and John, deceased; Jacob, a farmer near Litchfield, Michigan ; James A., of Northwest Township; Laura F., wife of Sidney Malcomb ; Samuel, of Whitley County, Indiana ; Charles F., of Tonesville, Michigan ; Emmit and Emery, twins, the former of whom died in 1908.

Emery Bunce was reared and spent his entire active life in Williams County and after leaving school applied his efforts to farming, and has kept steadily to that vocation though he has lent his capital and influence to business and other public movements.

April 5, 1888, he married Dora Brunk. She died December 26, 1895, the mother of four children : Ella, born February 7, 1889, a graduate of the common schools and still at home ; James R., who was born December 29, 1892, and died September 3, 1893; J. Wesley, born February 18, 1894, now a farmer in Steuben County, Indiana; and George, born December 25, 1895, and died January 5, 1896.

March 13, 1897, Mr. Bunce married Ella Skinner, who was born in Northwest Township January 24, 1867. She is a graduate of the common schools, attended the Montpelier High School, and was a successful teacher for two terms. Mr. and Mrs. Bunce have three children: Martha J., born July 12, 1898, wife of Dale Crawford of Northwest Township; James E., born November 7, 1903, a graduate of the common schools; and Emery E., born April 27, 1905. The family are members of the United Brethren Church and Mr. Bunce is a republican. He is an ex-trustee of Northwest Township.

Franklin Blair. - The career of Franklin Blair has been characterized by such industry and good management as to make him one of the prosperous citizens of St. Joseph Township. He is a member of one of the oldest of the families of Williams County and the associations of his own hfe have been centered at a farm that has been in the possession of the Blair family since 1836

.rJdf^1"/ Mo Bbir WaS emered fr0m the Government by his grandfather, James Bla,r. in 1836. It is two and a half miles south! west of Edgerton in St. Joseph Township

^n Frankhn he enlisted for service in the Civil war, but was rejected He was a man of quiet and unassuming character and lived a long He was twice married. Of the four children of h,s first marriage the only one now living is Curtis Blair of Brvan Ohio. H,s second wife, Laura Ball, who died at the old homestead December 4, 1914, was the mother of Franklin, Mary, wife of Henry hoo. The'h y' r^'.,? 187°' and WaS eduCated in the ^strict schools They have two children : James A., a graduate of the common schools and the Edgerton High School, and Gladvs P now a student in the Edgerton High School. The family are active members' of the Christian Church. Mr. Blair being one of the elders He is a stanch republican and has filled with credit several township offices

William H. Steele, M. D.-Some one has aptly said. "He serves the Master best who serves humanity most." There is no cla s t0 whom we owe more gratitude than the self-sacrificing, noble-minded men whose hfe work is the alleviation of suffering and the min iter mg o comfort to the afflicted. Among the physicians and "g os of Wilhams County who are proficient in their chosen calling and are conscientious workers in the sphere to which their life energies are being devoted ,s Dr. William H. Steele, of Montpelier, who ha been more than ordinarily successful in the treatment of disease and who

William H. Steele was born in Macomb County, Michigan, on August 23, 1873, and is a son of August and Louisa (Gerlach) Steele. August Steele was born in Germany, where he was reared and educated. At the age of twenty-six years he came to the United States, locating first at Detroit, Michigan. He was an artisan and subsequently he went to Macomb County, where he spent the remainder of his days, his death occurring in 1897. He is survived by his widow, who is a native of this country and who is now living in Detroit. Mr. Steele was a democrat in his political views and he and his wife were members of the Episcopal Church. They were the parents of five children, three of whom are now living, namely: William H., the subject of this sketch ; Carl, a carpenter in Detroit, Michigan, and Edward, of Mount Clemens, Michigan.

William H. Steele was born on a farm, but when only three years old the family moved to Mount Clemens, and there he was reared and given the advantage of attendance at school, completing his studies in the high school. Then, having decided to devote his life to the practice of the healing art, he matriculated in the medical department of the University of Michigan, at Ann Arbor, where he was graduated in 1903, with the degree of Doctor of Medicine. He first located for the practice of his profession at Manistee, Michigan, where he remained until December 31, 1912, when he came to Montpelier, where he has since remained and where he has built up a large and representative patronage, covering a wide range of the surrounding country. Doctor Steele has been very successful in the practice of medicine, being regarded as reliable, painstaking and duly conservative, three properties which always commend a physician. Doctor Steele is a member of the Williams County Medical Society, the Ohio State Medical Society and the American Medical Association. During the World war, Doctor Steele enlisted in the Medical Corps of the United States Army, receiving a commission as first lieutenant, and on July 13, 1918, was sent to the Base Hospital at Camp Sherman, Chillicothe, Ohio, where he remained a year, receiving an honorable discharge from the service on July 13, 1919.

On February 9, 1902, Doctor Steele was married to Bertha A. Mead, who was educated in the public schools of Tecumseh, Michigan, and they are the parents of one son, William W., born on May 18, 1904, and who is in attendance at the Montpelier High School. The family attend the Presbyterian Church. The doctor is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, at Montague, Michigan, and Mrs.

Steele belongs to Lillian Chapter, No. 41, Order of the Eastern Star, of which she is the present conductress. The doctor has taken a deep interest in the welfare of the community in which he lives, especially in matters pertaining to education, and is at the present time vice president of the school board. By a life consistent in motive and because of his many fine qualities of head and heart he has earned the sincere regard of a vast acquaintance, and his success in his chosen field of endeavor bespeaks for him the possession of superior attributes.

Ralph L. Bordner of Florence Township, four miles northeast of Edon, was born on a nearby farm in that community February 3, 1886. and he has always lived in Williams County. He is a son of John E. and Catharine (Friend) Bordner. The father was born in Henry County while the mother is a native of Williams County. When they were married they settled in Florence Township and aside from six years in Superior Township they always lived there. Their children are: Cloyd Bordner, of Superior Township; Howard, of Florence ; Ralph L., who enrolls the family in this history, and Ethel, wife of Sherman Willoughby.

Ralph L. Bordner had common school advantages and remained at home with has parents until he was twenty-one, when he worked by the month and by the year for others. On November 6. 1909. he married Fern Hake, who was born December 12, 1889, in Florence Township. She is a daughter of John and Emma (Thompson) Hake, who had always lived in Williams County. The children born to Mr! and Mrs. Bordner are: Cecil J., September 20, 1919: Lester June 13, 1913, and Leeta L., December 10, 1915. Mrs. Bordner is a member of the Christian Church in the community.

Mr. Borner is a general farmer with live stock and he owns a farm of eighty-seven acres in Florence. He votes with the democratic party, and is a member of the Edon Farmers' Co-operative Association. He is among the progressive young farmers of Williams County.

Wilson Blair. - The annals of pioneer settlement of Williams County give a prominent place to the Blair family, who came to this section of the northwestern Ohio wilderness nearly eighty-five years ago. The founder of the family was James Blair, who took up a tract of land from the Government in St. Joseph Township in 1836.

of his active life here. In 1852 he drove across the plains to California, and remained in the mining districts of the Far West for some time.

Wilson Blair is a son of Seth and Laura (Ball) Blair. His father owned sixty-five acres of the old Blair homestead, and has spent all his life in that locality. Wilson Blair was born on the homestead, was reared and educated in the district schools, and in July, 1895, married Grace Dunlap. She was born in Pulaski Township April 16, 1873, and when ten years of age her parents moved to St. Joseph Township, where she completed her education in the district schools.

After his marriage Wilson Blair remained for two years on the home farm and then rented and in 1902 bought the place where he now lives. This is known as the Spring Hill Farm, consisting of sixty-five acres and located two miles southwest of Edgerton. He has built the residence and has made many other improvements to give substantial value to the property. He is actively identified with the Farm Bureau and other co-operative organizations of farmers.

Mr. and Mrs. Blair have three children : Eunice, wife of Paul Groff; Doris, aged eighteen; and Pauline a school girl. The family are members of the Christian Church and Mr. Blair is a republican. He served one term as township supervisor.

Orrin H. Nihart, M. D. - The old families of Williams County that have stood strong and steady here for more than a half century include that of Nihart, and land on which its early representatives located as pioneers, is still in the family, a substantial part of it belonging to Dr. Orrin H. Nihart, a prominent citizen and able physician of Edon, Ohio.

Doctor Nihart was born October 17, 1871, on his father's farm in Center Township, Williams County, Ohio. His parents were Daniel P. and Alice (Gabriel) Nihart. the former of whom was born in Center Township, January 7, 1841, and the latter in Wayne County, Ohio, May 18, 1851. She accompanied her parents to Williams County in 1866 and was reared in Center Township and practically spent her entire life there afterward. Following their marriage Daniel P. Nihart and his wife located on a farm in the above township and for a number of years he was in the live stock business, buying and shipping extensively. They had two sons born to them, Orrin H. and Charles. The father was somewhat active in republican politics but not as an office holder.

Orrin H. Xihart and his brother had excellent educational advantages. He taught school for two years before entering Valparaiso University, from which he was graduated in 1893 with the Bachelor of Science degree, and in 1894 received his Bachelor of Arts degree. Following this he spent two years in the medical department of the Western Reserve University, and in 1898 was graduated from Starling Medical College, Columbus, Ohio, with his medical degree, in the spring of the same year establishing himself at Edon where he has continued and where his professional reputation reflects credit and entitles him to the public confidence and esteem which are his.

In 1898 Doctor Nihart was united in marriage to Miss Lulu I. Ewan, a lady of many accomplishments. She was graduated from the high school at Bryan, later Angola College, Indiana, still later from the Wesleyan University at Delaware, Ohio. For some time previous to her marriage she was engaged in teaching. Doctor and Mrs. Xihart have one daughter, Alitza. who was born August 21, 1903, and is a student in the high school at Edon, Ohio.

Aside from his profession Doctor Xihart has important interests, political and otherwise, and some of these identify him with notable enterprises, included in which may be mentioned his estate of fifty acres in Texas, on which he raises cotton and corn, and his stock farm of 290 acres, situated in Center Township, Williams County. Here he breeds pure Holstein cattle and has the noted Pontiac Corndyke at the head of his herd. Doctor Xihart also owns much valuable realty at Edon, included in which is improved property in the business heart of the city.

From early manhood Doctor Xihart has taken a vital interest in public affairs, deeming such a course the duty of every intelligent citizen. He served two years as county coroner, and in 1900 was elected to the state legislature, and served with distinction through the Seventyfifth and Seventy-sixth sessions of the General Assembly, standing firmly on every question of public right. He is a man of liberal mind and of genial personality, but in faithfully caring for the many pressing duties of so busy a life, he finds little time for mere social relaxation, but he maintains his deep interest in the fraternities with which he has long been identified. He is a member of Edon Lodge, No. 474, Free and Accepted Masons ; Cooney Lodge, Odd Fellows, at Cooney, Ohio, of which he is past noble grand and a member of the grand lodge. He is also a member of Edon Lodge, No. 644, Knights of Pythias, of which he is past chancellor and belongs to the grand lodge of this order.

George Joice. - Shadyside, the farmstead owned by George Joice of Florence Township, is four miles northeast from Edon. Mr. Joice's specialties as a breeder are registered Jersey cattle and Shropshire sheep. His telephone serves its purpose in advancing his business interests. He uses printed stationery, and the letterheads are an advertisement wherever his letters are sent in answer to inquiries or in search of patronage. The farmer who uses printed stationery simply follows business methods.

George Joice was born April 15, 1891, in Northwest Township and he is a son of William and Emma (Gloar) Joice. They were both born in Crawford County. The Joice ancestry came to Williams County in 1860, locating in Northwest Township and they have always lived there. In 1864 Emma Gloar came with her parents to the same community in Williams County. William and Emma (Gloar) Joice were married December 31, 1868, and they settled in Northwest Township where they had lived for several years. Mr. Joice was a Civil War soldier, serving in Company H of the Forty-seventh Ohio Regiment. He remained from the time of his enlistment till the end of the war which was about fifteen months in the service. He was a member of Hiram Louden Post, Grand Army of the Republic, and republican in politics. He died April 6, 1908. His wife died April 6, 1919.

The children in the Joice family numbered ten with eight of them living, A. D. 1920, as follows : Minnie, wife of John G. Boyer of Bridgewater Township ; May, wife of Charles E. Kine of Northwest Township ; Walter, a traveling salesman of Defiance ; Harvey of Bridgewater; Roy of Angola, Indiana; Orrin of Bridgewater Township ; Orville lives in Northwest Township ; George. Mr. Joice had common school education and remained at home until he was twentyone years old. He then turned his attention to agriculture.

On December 26, 1914, Mr. Joice married Velma Thompson. She was born and educated in Florence Township and graduated from the Edon High School. She was a teacher for three years. They have one child, Ramona L., born December 8, 1915. Mr. Joice is a member of the Edon Farmers' Co-operative Association, and along with registered live stock, he is an apiarist, producing honey and always having a market for it. Mr. Joice votes with the republican party.

Thomas S. Van Fossen. - It has been the privilege of Thomas S. Van Fossen of Florence Township to always live on the farm where he was born, July 5, 1844, more than threescore and ten years, the allotted life of man, in one community. He is a son of William and

Mary A. (Sloss) Van Fossen, the father a native of Perry County, Pennsylvania, and the mother born in Ireland. She was fourteen years old when she came with her parents to the United States, and they settled in Detroit. She grew to womanhood in Detroit.

Mr. and Mrs. William Van Fossen were married in Newark, Ohio, where he was working as a carpenter. They came to Williams County and entered the farm of eighty acres where their son, T. S. Van Fossen lives today. It was all in timber and they cleared a place for their cabin and made a farm of it. When they came, there were many Indians in the country, and the wild animals were thick in the woods of Northwestern Ohio. Mrs. Van Fossen was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church in the community.

William Van Fossen served as justice of the peace in Williams County for thirty years. He was well posted on law and able to render accurate decisions in cases tried before him. For thirty-three years Mr. Van Fossen was local postmaster when the United States mail was carried by star route from Maumee, Ohio, to LaGrange, Indiana. Before the Civil war Mr. Van Fossen voted the democratic ticket, but since then he was a republican. His children are : Elizabeth, deceased; John and William were both Civil war soldiers; Rachel, deceased; Thomas L. ; Maggie, wife of Hugh Goshorn, and Jane, wife of Jacob Coldsnow.

Thomas S. Van Fossen was educated in the common schools and in Professor Mycrantz's school in Bryan. He was a teacher for twenty-two winter terms in Williams County. On February 4, 1865, when he was not yet twenty-one years old, Mr. Van Fossen enlisted in Company D of the One Hundred and Ninety-Fifth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, receiving his discharge December 18, after eleven months in the service. He is a member of Hiram Louden Post, GrancfATmy of the Republic, of Montpelier.

Mr. Van Fossen married Anna Clark March 22, 1885. She was born in Crawford County, August 14, 1846, and she came to Williams County in 1865. She was educated in the common school and in Bryan, and for twenty-seven years she was a school teacher in Williams County. Mr. Van Fossen is past noble grand in Edon Lodge, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and he casts his ballot with the republicans. He now owns the farm of eighty acres which his father entered when he came to Williams County under President Van Buren's administration.

Stephen A. Powers, one of the organizers and cashier of the Farmers Banking Company of Columbia, has spent all his active career in Northwest Township of Williams County, and was a successful general farmer before he took up banking.

The Farmers Banking Company was organized and began business in April, 1917. The active officers are C. W. Johnson, president; Emery Bunce, vice president; Stephen A. Powers, cashier; and besides these the members of the board of directors are W. W. Chamberlain, A. E. Kaufman, H. S. Parrett, Charles A. Roode, A. R. Walker, C. L. Rigelman, Homer Peck, H. M. Lecker.

Mr. Powers who is also a stockholder and director in the Farmers and Merchants State & Savings Bank in Montpelier, Williams County, was born on a farm near Columbia in Northwest Township, September 13, 1878. His parents were Volney and Martha (Kimmell) Powers, the former born in York Township, Steuben County, Indiana, March 17, 1838, and the latter in Richland County, Ohio, July 27, 1848. Volney Powers enlisted as a Union soldier with a Michigan regiment, and at the expiration of his first term re-enlisted and was in the service at the close of the war. He was discharged with the rank of second lieutenant. He afterwards became a member of Hiram Lowden Post of the Grand Army. For many years he was a successful farmer in Williams County and was one of the founders of the Eagle Creek Presbyterian Church and one of its ruling elders. Politically he was a republican. There were eight children in the family : Ella, wife of Emery Bunce; Viola P., widow of Lee E. Amidon; Oliver of El Paso, Texas ; Jennie P., wife of Henry Sines ; Stephen A. ; Vada P., wife of John A. Redfield ; Clyde V., who is in the Philippine Islands ; and Mary E., wife of Charles Brandon.

Stephen Powers grew up on his father's farm, attending the common schools, and after the age of twenty-one began farming. He owns a valuable place of 120 acres, and still gives it his active supervision in connection with his duties at the bank.

July 27, 1902, he married Ada J. Bunce. They have three children : Winn in the Edon High School ; Weir in the first year of the high school at Edon; and Doris, a student in the common schools. The family are members of the West Eagle Creek Presbyterian Church and Mr. Powers is an elder, having taken the place of responsibility so long held by his father in that organization. He is also affiliated with Montpelier Lodge, No. 547, of the Masons and with Metz Lodge, No. 411, of the Knights of Pythias.

William D. Bratten, who is one of the active and public spirited citizens of southwestern Williams County and whose country home is a mile and a quarter west of Edgerton, is a native of St. Joseph Township and the family name he bears has been prominent in that locality since earliest pioneer times.

He is a grandson of John and Catharine (Upp) Bratten, natives of Pennsylvania. They were married at Sandusky, Ohio, and in 1836 John Bratten investigated the northwestern Ohio country and entered a tract of land in St. Joseph Township of Williams County Of that original entry William D. Bratten now owns sixty-four' acres. In 1837 John Bratten brought his family to Williams County with wagon and ox-team, and established his home in the midst of the heavy woods, clearing away a spot on which he erected his first log cabin He spent the rest of his life in this locality, was an honored and influential pioneer settler, and a member of the United Brethren Church All of his five children are now deceased.

The parents of William D. Bratten ' were John V. and Isabel Shambaugh) Bratten. His father was born in St. Joseph Township July 7, 1842, and his boyhood was spent on the farm and in a locality where almost inevitably his educational opportunities were meager He lived the life of a hard working farmer and died here. His widow Vu hGr seventy-seve"th year and is an active member of the Methodist Church at Edgerton. She has three children - William D., Jessie, wife of R. J. Smith of Edgerton; and George E a dentist at Cincinnati, Ohio.

William D. Bratten was born in St. Joseph Township January 19, 1868, and acquired a district school education. After the aee of twenty-one he rented his father's farm for about twenty years He has been a good farm manager, also a keen business man, and has bought developed and sold a number of farm properties in this section In 189 he married Bertie Geiger, daughter of Tacob and Medora Oeiger She was educated in the public schools of Williams County They have two children: Roscoe, a graduate of the high schools of Edgerton and Bryan and now a dentist at Galion, Ohio; and Florence who graduated from the Bryan High School and is now a student in the Tn-State College at Angola, Indiana. The son Roscoe has a military record, having enlisted with the Eleventh Railway Engineers and spent twenty-two months in France, sharing in the glorious achievements of the Railway Engineers. He rose from first lieutenant to the rank of captain. Mr. W. D. Bratten has always been an active factor in the republican party in his community.

Frank J. Keller. - The ownership of the Pleasant View Farm in St. Joseph Township constitutes a competence which would satisfy the man of ordinary ambition. In the case of Frank J. Keller his proprietorship of this farm is the product of his own energies and labors carried on through a period of over thirty years, since he left home to take up the battles of life on his own account.

Mr. Keller was born in Stark County, Ohio, March 26, 1860, son of Daniel and Caroline (Piffer) Keller. When he was nine days old his mother died, and he was her only child. He then lived with his grandmother until his father married again and after that lived with his father and stepmother. Mr. Keller was at home until the age of twenty-three, and in the intervals of schooling worked out at monthly wages.

December 2, 1888, he married Ida Garber, who was born in Troy Township, Dekalb County, Indiana, August 16, 1868, a daughter of William and Lydia (Eberly) Garber. Her parents were born and married in Pennsylvania and were early settlers in Dekalb County, Indiana, where they spent the rest of their lives. Mr. and Mrs. Keller began their married life in Wilmington Township, Dekalb County, but in the spring of 1902 moved to Williams County and located on their present farm in St. Joseph Township. Mr. Keller also owns eighty acres of another farm, so that his land ownership includes 157 acres. He handles his land to general crops and considerable live stock.

Mr. and Mrs. Keller have two children : Dessie, a graduate of the Edgerton High School, was a successful teacher in Williams County for six terms and is now the wife of Williams Weber of St. Joseph Township ; and Glenn L. who married Wanda Groff and is the father of a son, Leroy G. Keller, born April 1, 1918. Mr. Keller is affiliated with Edgerton Lodge, No. 465, of the Knights of Pythias, and politically is a republican.

Charles W. Thompson. - Since he was eight years old, the home of Charles W. Thompson has been in Florence Township where he lives today. He lives three miles northeast of Edon. He was born July 4, 1864, in Northwest Township. He is a son of George and Catharine (Smell) Thompson, the father a native of Trumbull County and the mother from Germany. When she was a child three years old, her parents came to the United States and settled in Williams County. They located in Northwest Township and ended their days there.

When the Thompson family came to Williams County they lived some years near Pulaski and then they moved to Northwest Township where George Thompson was married and after a few years he removed to Florence Township. They bought the farm in 1872 that is now owned by C. W. Thompson. They were members of the Christian Union Church, and George Thompson cast his vote with the democrats His children are : Charles W. Thompson who repeats the family history; Emma, the wife of John Hake of Florence Township; Lilly, the wife of Charles Kent ; Claude of Jonesville, Michigan: Curtis of Edon; Cora, wife of Harl Oberlander and John C of rlorence Township.

On October 24, 1885, C. W. Thompson married Sarah Hake who was born March 1, 1866, in Fulton County. She is a daughter of John H. and Lucy (Betz) Hake, who had come from eastern Ohio o Fulton County and later to Florence Township in Williams County When Mr. and Mrs. Thompson were married they lived for two years on a farm at Jackson, Michigan, when they returned to the Thompson family homestead in Florence, renting the land until 1905 when they bought it. Their daughter, Velma, graduated from the' Edon High School and was a teacher for three years. She is now the w.fe of George Joice of Shadyside Farm. Willis Thompson is also a graduate of the Edon High School. The family are members of the Christian Union Church in the community.

Mr. Thompson is a member of the Farmers' Co-operative Association and is interested in all welfare organizations among the farmers of Williams County. He owns a farm of eighty acres and makes it prontable. He is a democrat and active in the affairs of the party.

Thomas B^Matthews, who lives on a farm five miles northeast from Edon ,n Florence Township, has always lived in one community He is a son of C. W. and Lucinda (Cain) Matthews, and was bom there November 23. 1865; the father, a Canadian, born in Toronto while the mother is a native of Williams County. When C W Matthews was only one year old the family came from Toronto to Horence Township and he knew nothing about any other country. Mr and Mrs^ Matthews married and lived many years on this farm m Florence Township before they went to Montpelier to end their days He died February 4, 1916. and she still lives in Montpelier

-Although Canadian born C. W. Matthews served eighteen months as a so dier in the Civil war, and he was wounded in the battle of Spottsylvania Courthouse. For many years he had been an active member of Gen. Hiram Louden Grand Army of the Republic Post in Montpelier. He always voted with the democrats. There were three children in his family. They are : Thomas B. Matthews, who enrolls the family in the annals of Williams County ; Wesley C, of Florence Township, and DeLora, the wife of E. C. McCamis. They all had the educational advantages of the time in Williams County.

On July 15, 1889, T. B. Matthews married Emma Knapp, who was born in Northwest Township, and always lived in Williams County. They have five children, and three sons have inherited the military spirit of their grandfather and enlisted in overseas service in the World war. All are musicians and all served in musical organizations "somewhere in France." John was a member of the band with the Sixteenth Infantry and First Brigade, and did service both in France and Germany. Ben F. Matthews was the first volunteer soldier from Florence Township, and after being discharged he re-enlisted and his second enlistment of one year ended March 4, 1920. He was sergeant in the One Hundred and Forty-Sixth Infantry and DeLeon M. Matthews was in the Three Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Infantry band, and all were overseas several months. Nelson B. Matthews is a musician in Jackson, Michigan, and Charles is at home with the parents.

In his younger days T. B. Matthews taught piano and violin music, and the sons all had musical advantages as well as ability to master music. For many years Mr. Matthews was leader of the Berlin Band in Florence Township, having mastered music himself by study and application to it. The Matthews family have furnished music on programs frequently. Mr. Matthews votes the democratic ticket. He owns a farm of eighty acres and is a member of Sodom Grange. He is interested in all organizations designed to advance the welfare of the farming community.

Samuel J. Kissinger, proprietor of the Maple Lawn Farm three miles north of Edgerton, has a record as a farmer, business man and public official that is in keeping with the high standing of the Kissinger family which became identified with Williams County in pioneer times and has furnished several worthy citizens to the community.

Mr. Kissinger was born in Stark County, Ohio, near Canton, January 25, 1846. a son of John and Mary (Cassler) Kissinger. His parents were natives of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and a few years after their marriage moved to Stark County, Ohio, and in 1852 invaded the wilderness of Williams County. They acquired the land, then covered with dense woods, where their son Samuel still lives, and that farm has been under the continuous management and ownership of the Kissinger family for nearly seventy years. John Kissinger was well equipped for pioneering, exercised a good influence in the development of the county, was an elder in the Lutheran Church and a democrat in politics.

Samuel J. Kissinger is the only survivor of six children, namely: Annie, Maria, Rosana, Barbara, Henry and Samuel, the youngest of the family. He was six years of age when brought to Williams County and his personal recollection goes back to many pioneer scenes and personalities. He grew up on the home estate, attended such schools as were in existence at that time, and on September 22, 1869, married Caroline Richard. She was born in Stark County, Ohio, December 2, 1848, daughter of John and Wilhelmina (Ehret) Richard; the former a native of Alsace and the latter of Germany. They were married in Ohio and were also early settlers of Williams County, locating in St. Joseph Township in 1851.

Mr. and Mrs. Kissinger after their marriage located on the old Kissinger farm and later he became its owner. For many years he has cultivated this place, comprising eighty-eight acres and the farm shows the results of continuous ownership and operation by one family through so many years.

Mr. Kissinger has been identified with various movements for the welfare of farmers and the community in general. He is a member of the Farm Bureau, and has served as president of the Williams County Agricultural Society three years, and as a director of that organization for seventeen years. He has been township trustee, and for two terms was land appraiser. Politically he is a democrat.

Mr. and Mrs. Kissinger have two children: Estella, born October 10, 1871, wife of Charles Goeltzenleuchter, and Clarence E., born February 23, 1875, who married Pearl Suffel and lives on the home farm with his father.

Charles A. Dietsch has been identified with the farming community of St. Joseph Township for over forty years, has been an active factor therein the greater part of that time, and his interests have extended beyond the management of his own acres and his home to various community and commercial enterprises.

Mr. Dietsch, whose rural home is three miles north and one mile east of Edgerton near the Denmark bridge, was born in Milford Township, Defiance County, Ohio, January 17, 1864. His parents, Frank A. and Mary (Trofrer) Dietsch, were natives of Alsace, France, where his father was born in 1824. They came to this country when young, were married in Ohio, and after living on a farm for a number of years in Milford Township of Defiance County, they moved to Williams County in 1879. The farm in St. Joseph Township where they spent the rest of their lives is the present home of their son. Charles A. The parents were members of the Catholic Church at Edgerton and the father was a democrat. There were seven children in the family : Josephine, widow of John Hams; Henry, of Edgerton; Louise, wife of Eck Long ; Caroline, wife of Peter Goble ; Anna, deceased ; Charles A. ; and Dora, wife of Lawrence Cape, of St. Joseph Township.

Charles A. Dietsch was sixteen years of age when he came to Williams County, and completed his education began in Defiance County in the schools of St. Joseph Township.

February 12, 1895, Mr. Deitsch married Clara C. Crisman. She was born in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, April 5, 1861, daughter of Benjamin and Elizabeth (Yanney) Crisman, both natives of Tuscarawas County. Her parents were members of the Methodist Church. Mrs. Dietsch was educated in the common schools and was brought to Williams County by her parents at the age of twelve years. Mr. and Mrs. Dietsch have three children: Eva L., Leo H. and B. Franklin. The two older are at home, while Franklin is a student of agriculture at the Michigan Agricultural College at Lansing. The family are members of the Catholic Church and the sons belong to the Knights of Columbus at Edgerton.

Mr. Dietsch is an influential democrat, a member of the county executive committee representing St. Joseph Township. His home farm, where he has lived for over forty years, consists of 160 acres and he also has another place of 130 acres. He is a stockholder and director in the Edgerton State Banking Company.

Daniel W. McGill. - One of the best known citizens of Montpelier is the gentleman whose name forms the caption to this paragraph, a man who has succeeded in his life work because he has been persistent and energetic in his efforts and honorable in his dealings with the public, and he has therefore enjoyed the confidence and good will of all. Mr. McGill is a native son of the Buckeye State, having been born at Orville, Ohio, on October 20, 1868, and he is a son of Henry and Julia (Haverstock) McGill, the former of whom was a native of New York state, while the latter was born at Mount Eaton, Ohio, and is now living in Montpelier. They became the parents of three children. The subject's mother came to Williams County in about 1.880 and located in Montpelier in 1890. Daniel W. McGill accompanied his mother on her removal to this county in 1880 and thereafter made his home with W. S. Boone. He secured a good practical education in the public schools, and then obtained employment in the Boone sawmill, where he remained about three years. At the end of that time he went to Montana, but three years later he returned to Williams County, remaining here for a short time. He then became manager of a sawmill at Seneca, Michigan, and two years later moved the mill to Ashley, Steuben County, Indiana, where he became a partner in its ownership, under the name of D. W. McGill & Company. He remained there until the fall of 1899, when he sold his interests and, returning to Williams County, bought a farm located northwest of Montpelier. After operating this farm for six years, he sold the place and went to Oregon, where he homesteaded a farm and remained about five years. Again he returned to Ohio and located at Leipsic, where for about eighteen months he operated a lumber yard, but sold out there and, coming back to Williams County, was employed at farm work by W. S. Boone.

On June 2, 1896, Mr. McGill was married to Mary E. Henry, who was born and reared in Williams County, and they are the parents of a son, William H., who is now connected with the Goodrich Tire and Rubber Company at Akron, Ohio. Politically, Mr. McGill is a stanch supporter of the republican party and has taken a very active part in local public affairs. He served four years as a member of the village council and then became mayor of Montpelier, serving three months in 1917 and again in 1919 up to January 1, 1920. Fraternally, he is a member of Montpelier Lodge No. 547, Free and Accepted Masons, in addition to which he also belongs to the Chapter of Royal Arch Masons and the Council of Royal and Select Masters, and he and his wife are members of the Order of the Eastern Star. Their religious membership is with the Methodist Episcopal Church. Whatever of success Mr. McGill has attained has been entirely owing to his individual efforts, his energy and natural ability, and he has so lived that all who have come into contact with him appreciate the excellent qualities of his character.

Hiram McKelvey. - In proportion to its population, Williams County has as great a number of substantial and intelligent agriculturists as any county of its size in Ohio, and among this number is Hiram McKelvey, the owner of a farm of excellently cultivated land lying five miles west of Bryan, in Center Township. Mr. McKelvey has operated this property with such judgment as to have made him, financially, a substantial and successful man, while the position which he occupies high in the esteem of the community has been gained through years of strict adherence to principles of integrity and probity.

Mr. McKelvey was born in Portage County, Ohio, on February 7, 1850, a son of S. B. and Jeanette (Byers) McKelvey. His grandfather, William McKelvey, was born in Ireland, whence he came to the United States with his parents as a lad of five years, the family settling in Portage County, Ohio, where the lad grew to manhood and the man engaged in farming throughout the active years of his life. S. B. McKelvey was born in Portage County, and there met and married Jeanette Byers, who had been born in Mahoning County, this state. Following their union they resided for a time in Portage County, but in 1851 came to Williams County and settled on a farm located in section 9, Center Township, the 160 acres being located in the woods. Here the parents spent the remainder of their lives, clearing their land, establishing a home, adding improvements and comforts and finally developing a paying and attractive property with many conveniences. S. B. McKelvey was an interested member of the Grange, in the work of which he took an active part and served as a delegate to the State Grange. For many years he acted as justice of the peace in his community, where he was a man of marked influence and standing and where he was greatly esteemed by those who recognized and appreciated his many sterling traits of character. In his family there were nine children, of whom but two are now living, Hiram and Lowell, of Montpelier, Ohio.

Hiram McKelvey has passed almost his entire life in Center Township. After attending the district schools he started assisting his father in the work of the home acres and remained under the parental roof until his marriage, February 14, 1871, to Miss Catherine Baker, who was born in Wayne County, Ohio, September 19, 1850, and came to Williams County in 1863, the family settling in Center Township, where she secured a public school education, later attending Williams Central Academy. Following their marriage Mr. and Mrs. McKelvey settled on the farm which they now occupy, in Center Township, a tract of eighty acres on which Mr. McKelvey is engaged in farming and raising stock. He has made an unqualified success of his operations, and is justly numbered among those whose personal efforts have won them independence and position. Mr. McKelvey is a democrat in politics and has served three years as a member of the board of trustees of Center Township. He and Mrs. McKelvey are members

Ten children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. McKelvey, of whom six are living: Delia, the widow of John Hesrick, of Bryan; Clara, the wife of Ed Yackee, residing on a farm on section 16, Center Township; Lydia. the wife of Isaac Kerr, of Bryan; Jeannette, the wife of Loren Young, of Bryan ; Clee, a resident of Bryan ; and Mark, residing at home, who spent about seven months at Camp Sherman during the recent war period.

John H. Nihart. - There is a large elevator business done at Melbern, Ohio, and prominent in this line of business is the firm of Nihart & Fix. John H. Nihart of the above firm belongs to a well known old family of 'Williams County, and was born in Center Township, April 23, 1877. His parents were John and Martha (Carnes) Nihart, whose other surviving children are as follows : William A., a farmer in Center Township; Jessie, wife of Houston Childers, 'of Oklahoma ; Mary, wife of William Holden, of Indiana ; Theodore, a farmer in Missouri ; George, a farmer in St. Joseph Township, Williams County; Anna, wife of Ernest Wines, of Waterloo, Indiana; Emma, a resident of Waterloo; and Walter K, a physician and surgeon of Edgerton, Ohio.

John Nihart. father of John H., was born in Holmes County, Ohio, a son of Jacob and Anna M. Nihart, who moved to Williams' County in his youth, settling in Center Township, and spent the rest of their lives there as farming people. After his marriage to Martha Carnes, who at that time lived with her parents in St. Joseph Township, he settled at Edgerton, the Carnes family later moving to Kansas, where the parents died. John Nihart was first engaged in a sawmill business, then was a clerk in a store and afterward was a farmer in Center Township and died on the farm now owned by his son William A. Nihart. John Nihart was a republican in his political sentiments, and both he and his wife were members of the Methodist Episcopal Church.

John N. Nihart obtained his education in the public schools and assisted his father on the home farm, remaining at home until his father's death. He owns forty-six acres of valuable land in Center Township. After coming to Melbern he went into the elevator business, at which he worked ten years before he and his partner, Mr. Fix, put up their elevators in January, 1918, this large outlay being justified on account of their constantly expanding business. Mr. Nihart is widely known as a careful, reliable business man.

On December 26, 1908, Mr. Nihart was married to Miss Ethel Dean, who was born in Defiance County, Ohio, and they have one son, John D., who was born January 26, 1916. Mr. Nihart has always been sound in his republicanism but has never consented to hold a public office. He belongs to Fountain City Lodge No. 314, Odd Fellows, and also to the order of American Yeomen.

William A. Nihart, who is a substantial farmer of Williams County, resides on section 18, Center Township, where he owns eighty acres of the old homestead farm. He was born at Edgerton, Ohio, August 11, 1862, the eldest of ten children born to John and Martha (Carnes) Nihart, and a brother of John H. Nihart, of the firm of Nihart & Fix, in the elevator business at Melbern, Ohio.

William A. Nihart attended the public schools, remained at home assisting his father, and has always followed farm pursuits and with very satisfactory results. He is one of the progressive men of Center Township and carries on his agricultural industries according to modern methods.

On December 22, 1887, Mr. Nihart was married to Miss Hannah Sufne, who was born in St. Joseph Township, Williams County, Ohio, April 23, 1868. Her parents were Peter and Sarah (Geoltzenleuchter) Suffle, who were born in Bavaria, Germany. They came to the United States in 1837, settling first in Stark County, Ohio, and moving to Williams County in 1844, where they died. Of their eleven children the following are living: Julia, Solomon, William, Sarah, Emanuel, Hannah, Hattie, Benjamin and Peter. Three children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Nihart, namely: Emma and John W., both of whom died in infancy, and Mildred, who was born March 8, 1909. She is attending school and is bright and studious. Mr. Nihart and his family belong to the Methodist Episcopal Church at Melbern. He is past noble grand of Edgerton Lodge of Odd Fellows and both he and his wife are members of the Order of Rebekah, of which Mrs. Nihart is past noble grand, while he belongs also to the Order of American Yeomen. The Nihart family has always been hearty in its support of the republican party but have never been office-seekers, although Mr. Nihart, because of his interest in educational matters, has served as school director and has also been trustee of Center Township.

M. C. McGuire. - An eminently useful and highly esteemed citizen of Edgerton, prominent and influential in public affairs, M. C. McGuire is one of the best known men in this section of Williams County, his position as agent for the New York Central Railroad Company having brought him in contact with people of all classes, and his unfailing courtesy, prompt attention and willingness to accommodate his patrons have made him a favorite with the general public. He was born January 1, 1852, in Dover, New Hampshire, where the days of his early childhood were passed.

Martin McGuire, his father, was born, bred and married in Ireland. Immigrating with his bride to the United States in 1851, he first located in New England, living for a few years in New Hampshire. Coming from there to Ohio, he spent a short time in Wooster, where he obtained work as a section hand on the railroad. Moving to Williams County in 1856, both he and his wife resided here during their remaining years. He was a democrat in politics, and both he and his wife belonged to the Catholic Church. Of their four children. M. C, the subject of this brief sketch, is the only survivor.

A child when he came with his parents to Williams County, M. C. McGuire attended the public schools until thirteen years old, when he entered the employ of the railroad company. Subsequently learning telegraphy, Mr. McGuire continued as a railroad man and has been in the service fifty-four consecutive years, fifty years of the time having been spent in Edgerton. his long tenure of office bearing visible evidence of his efficiency, integrity and trustworthiness. Mr. McGuire owns a farm of 118 acres, and on it makes his home.

Mr. McGuire married Clarissa Thornburg, and of their union three children have been bom, namely : Sylvia, a graduate of the Edgerton High School, is ticket agent at Bryan ; Mertie, deceased ; and Agnes, living at home. An unswerving democrat in politics, Mr. McGuire is active and influential in public affairs, having served as mayor of the city three terms of two years each; as a school director for twenty years, and as a member of the city council. Fraternally he is a member of Edgerton Lodge No. 357, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons. Mr. McGuire conducted a school of telegraphy at Edgerton from 1870 to 1912, during which period he taught more than nine hundred the profession.

David T. Kiess. - An enumeration of those men of the present generation who have won honor and success for themselves, and at the same time by their lives have honored the locality to which they belong, would be incomplete were there failure to make mention of' the one whose name forms the caption to this sketch. He has sustained a very enviable reputation in business circles and today is numbered among the progressive and enterprising citizens of Montpelier. David T. Kiess was born at Edon, Williams County, on August 3, 1867, and is a son of Samuel and Sarah (Burkhart) Kiess, both of whom were born and reared near Williamsport, Pennsylvania. They came to Williams County, Ohio, with their respective parents and here met and were married. After their marriage they located in Edon, where Mr. Kiess engaged in the boot and shoe business, having been a shoemaker by trade. Some time later he sold this business and for a time was engaged in farming. Later in life they went West, locating in Nebraska, where their deaths occurred. They were the parents of five children, three of whom are now living, namely: D. W., a contractor in Los Angeles, California; David T., the subject of this sketch; and Lizzie, the wife of Ora Eyster, a farmer in Williams County.

David T. Kiess received his education in the district schools of Williams County and in Nebraska. He then entered the Chicago Horological School and the Chicago Opthalmic School, where he was graduated in 1893. He then was employed as jeweler and optician at various places for fifteen years, but then located at Edon, where he engaged in the jewelry business, in which he met with good success. In 1914 Mr. Kiess came to Montpelier and opened a jewelry and optical goods store, to which he has given his personal attention, though he also still operates the store at Edon. Thoroughly qualified by training and experience both as a jeweler and optician, Mr. Kiess has met with a well-deserved prosperity and is considered a thoroughly reliable and trustworthy man in every respect, and that is as much as can be said of the best of men.

Mr. Kiess was married to Bertha L. Twichell, of Orland, Indiana, but who was born in Steuben County, Indiana. She received a good education, being a high school graduate, and prior to her marriage she was engaged as a school teacher. To this union have been born five children, namely : Reginald, who is a graduate of the Montpelier High School ; Kenneth, Elinore, Esther and Robert, who are in school.

Mr. Kiess and family are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church and, politically, he gives his support to the republican party, having served seven years as treasurer of Edon Village. Fraternally he is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, in which he has taken the degrees of the Blue Lodge, Chapter and Council. He and his wife are members of the Order of the Eastern Star. Among those who know him best, Mr. Kiess bears a reputation of a man of sound judgment, good business ability and an expert in his special lines of effort. He has pronounced views, keeping himself well informed on all matters pertaining to the public welfare, and because of his genial

William C. Heller. - This biographical memoir has to do with a character of unusual force and eminence, for William C. Heller, whose life chapter has been closed by the fate that awaits all mankind, was for a number of years one of the prominent and influential citizens of Montpelier, although he was summoned to close his earthly accounts while still in the zenith of his power. While he carried on a special line of business in such a manner as to gain a comfortable competence for himself, he also belonged to that class of representative men of affairs who promote the public welfare while advancing individual success. There were in him sterling traits which commanded uniform confidence and regard, and his memory is today honored by all and is enshrined in the hearts of his many friends.