Wood County, Ohio - Biographical sketches, 1897 (part 6 of 17)

William Pratt was born and raised in Boston, Mass. , and was the son of Amos Pratt, a native of Wales, and a ship-builder by trade. William Pratt learned the ship carpenter's trade, and worked with his father in Boston. At the beginning of the war of 1812 he had a ship-yard in Canada, and employed a number of men. To avoid being impressed into the British army and compelled to fight against his native land, he fled from Canada to the United States, leaving a vessel on the stocks and all his property (which was afterward confiscated by the British Government). On arriving at his former home in the United States, he recruited a company of cavalry and entered the service of the United States as a captain of cavalry, and remained in the service until the close of the war.

Mr. Pratt then built a small sailing vessel on Rundecroix creek, near Rochester, N. Y. When completed, he loaded into this vessel his household goods, a supply of provisions, his family and a crew, sailed down the creek into the Genesee river, then into Lake Ontario, up the Niagara as far as they could go and then took the vessel out of the Niagara river and transported it around the Falls with oxen. Launching the boat in the river again, above Niagara Falls, they came through Lake Erie to Orleans (now Perrysburg), Wood Co., Ohio, arriving there in June, 1818. This boat was afterward used in the trade between Orleans and Buffalo for a good many years.

Jonas Pratt owned a farm near Perrysburg, and for a time he served as sheriff of the county. In 1836 he sold his farm and moved on a quarter section of land he had bought in Henry county, two miles up the river from Grand Rapids, on which Mrs. Kerr was born June 13, 1846. Here Jonas Pratt died in 1852. Susan (Reed-Griffith) Pratt was born near Utica, N. Y. (later moving to Rochester, N. Y.), and was a daughter of Amos and Mary (Smith) Reed, natives of Connecticut, the former of whom, who was a welleducated man, and a graduate of Yale college, died in Rochester, N. Y. , in 1810, leaving a widow and several small children to fight life's battles alone. The widow and children (except the eldest son, Amos, Jr.) came to the Maumee river in 1815. Susan Reed was first married to William Griffith, of the firm of Gibbs & Griffith, who carried on a general store on the Perrysburg side of the river. Mr. Griffith died in 1828, and in 1831 the widow was married to Jonas Pratt. A short time after the death of Mr. Pratt his widow and the children moved to Gilead (now Grand Rapids), where the widow resided the rest of her life, dying at the residence of her daughter, Mrs. Kerr, September 19, 1893, aged ninety years, eight months and one day.

In September, 1866, our subject succeeded Messrs. Laskey & Bro. in a general merchandise and grain business at Gilead. Their predecessors were Laskey & Co., who in 1851 were the successors to Frank Hinsdale, who in 1838 succeeded Nicholas Gee, who established the business in what is now Grand Rapids in opening the first store in the village in 1833. Mr. Kerr is therefore in direct line of succession from the first business opened up at that point. He will soon have rounded up a thirty-years' career of business here - almost a third of a century - a period covering nearly that of all his predecessors combined, quite a span of years of devotion to active business; but the reward has come, for although he has not made any rapid stride on the road to wealth, he has by close application to business, careful management, and by industrious and economical habits, accumulated quite an estate. He has built one of the finest residences in this section of the country, a building modern and complete that would be a credit to any city. Crowning a beautiful hill, it commands a grand view overlooking the river and charming Maumee Valley. He possesses several fine farms in the vicinity. Verily he is the architect of his own fortune.

Williams, of Delphos, and has a son, Clifton F. , born January 9, 1896; Clifton C.. a student at Oberlin; and Jessie May, Frank E. and Glen B. , all three yet at home. Both Mr. and Mrs. Kerr are identified with the Presbyterian Church, and every progressive and helpful movement in the community finds in them generous support. Mr. Kerr is a member of the G. A. R. , was one of the charter members of Bond Post No. 24, of Grand Rapids, and in all respects is a thoroughly representative American.

Colonel A. B. Probert, of Bloomdale, one of Wood county's most prominent citizens, has been for many years a leader in military circles in the State.

He is of English descent, and his grandfather Probert was a gentleman of wealth and culture, but reverses came, and our subject's father, James Probert, who was born in England November 16, 1802, was obliged to make his own way from the early age of eight years. He was married in his native land in 1829 to Miss Sarah Davies, and in 1831 came to America with his wife's brother, David Davies, and his own family, which then included two children. They had but little money when they .landed in New York, and the wife and little ones were left there while the two men made their way by river, canal and lake to Cleveland, Ohio, having twenty-five cents left on their arrival. They found work and soon sent for Mrs. Probert and the children. In January, 1835, they moved to Pittsfield, Lorain county, then a pioneer section, a roadless wilderness, where a home was made on wild land after great labor with unsatisfactory tools. The mother on one occasion walked, carrying the son George, from their home in the wilderness to Cleveland, a distance of thirty-eight miles, to obtain urgent necessities for the family. Land advanced in price and a competence was gained and retained. His farm of 200 acres was in one square tract, a beautiful property. In 1852-53 he visited England, and was loud in the praises of his adopted country, " the land of the free. " The questions as to the thousands of slaves here, always cut him deeply, and he replied with a sense of shame. He was a Democrat at that time but the attitude of his party on this question caused him to vote for Fremont, and he was from that time a Republican. When taunting remarks were made by his former associates, his answer was, " I have not left the old party; they have left me. I stand yet on the one time Democratic platform." Although a regular voter and earnest student of public affairs he was not an aspirant for office. He was a man of fine mental ability and was well-informed although he had had practically no schooling. His later years were passed in Oberlin, where he died May 5, 1876, at the age of seventy-four years. While he was of light build he was active and wiry, and bid fair to live twenty years longer, but an acute attack of pneumonia brought his life to a sudden close. His wife survived until December 17, 1892, when she died at the age of ninety-one years and six months, and the remains of both are at rest in Pittsfield cemetery. (Our subject's grandfather on the mother's side, and grandmother on the father's side, each lived to be upward of a hundred years.) Of their seven children our subject is the youngest. Eliza married Calvin C. Freeman, of Russia township, Lorain county; John was a farmer and later a merchant in Oberlin, where he died about 1891 ; George now owns and conducts the old home farm; James died at home in 1865; David G. resides in Oberlin; and Sarah V. married John Watkins, of Pittsfield.

A. B. Probert was born at the old homestead, October 15, 1844, and was reared as a farmer boy, attending the neighboring district schools. In 1861 he did his first independent work, hiring out to a farmer in the vicinity. The following year he entered the preparatory school at Oberlin, but the urgent calls for recruits for the army appealed to his patriotism, and his studies were given up. October 6, 1863, he enlisted in Company F, 1 2th Regiment O. Cav., but on account of a disturbance on Johnson's Island, near Sandusky, where 3, 500 rebels were imprisoned, his regiment was divided and he with others cheerfully accepted the assignment to infantry duties there. While there he had an attack of measles, from the effects of which he has never fully recovered. They remained until February, 1864, and then rejoined the cavalry troops, leaving Camp Dennison in May, 1864, and taking up the work of fighting bushwhackers on the border between Kentucky and Ohio. Gen. Sherman, having seen this regiment, telegraphed Secretary Stanton asking that it be assigned to him, which was impossible under the circumstances, and the refusal caused deep regret on the part of the regiment. Their first actual battle was at Mt. Sterling, although they were continuously engaged in light skirmishes. Three months after Mr. Pro- | bert's enlistment he was promoted over eight cor- | porals to the rank of sergeant, having displayed rare military ability and skill in the saddle, although but a boy in years. He was not wounded, though he was always on duty up to the time of ; his discharge on June 8, 1865, save a time when | on leave of absence on account of illness. He I resumed farm work on his return home, and in the fall of 1866 entered Oberlin College, but failing health compelled him to again relinquish his studies; however, he has always been a great reader, and is thoroughly posted on the topics of the day.

Mr. Probert was marjied, December 24, 1869, to Miss Chastina M. Worcester, a native ef Pittsfield, daughter of Joseph W. Worcester, who was born in Vermont in 1812 and was for years a citizen of Oberlin; he is now deceased. Three children were born of this union: Merton A., an expert stenographer, who is serving temporarily in the superintendent's office of the Adams Express Co. at Columbus, and is taking a medical course in Starling Medical College, of that city ; Jessie, who died aged two years, and Oliver M., now at home.

After his marriage and two years of farming, our subject engaged in teaming in Oberlin for several years. Later he worked fourteen months as baggage agent at Oberlin for the L. S. & M.

S. railroad, and was also for some time a brakeman. He then went into the grocery business with his brother John, under the firm name of Probert Bros. , and carried it on profitably for five years. Selling out in 1881, he came to Bloomdale, where he has since resided. He bought eighty acres of timberland in Perry township which he cleared and now owns, and later he bought an interest in a drug store, disposing of that to buy a hardware and grocery business which he conducted for seven years under the firm name of A. B. Probert & Co. ; in 1889 he retired from mercantile business. He is an active and influential Republican, and was the first mayor of Bloomdale, an honor conferred for his efforts as agent of the citizens in securing the corporation charter, and he has served in other positions of trust. In 1 894 he was elected to his present office of justice of the peace.

Col. Probert has a natural talent for military work and organization, and was captain of the first known mounted torchlight company, so strong at Oberlin in the Garfield campaign. During the Blaine campaign he organized a torchlight company at Bloomdale, which created much enthusiasm and led to the formation in 1885 of Campany H, 2d O. N. G., with Col. Probert as captain, he having been the leader in the organization. This was a fine body of soldiers, ranking among the foremost in the State and embracing men of wealth, influence and position, and its appearance overcame Asst.-Adgt.- Gen. Dill's objections to its acceptance as a part I of the State militia. In 1886 Capt. Probert was promoted to the position of lieutenant-colonel of i the 2d Regiment, which he held five years. He is a leader in G. A. R. circles, and at the National Encampment in Columbus in 1889, when fourteen G. A. R. posts of Wood county appeared in the parade as a regiment, he was chosen colonel of the organization, and was reelected the next year. During the great parade the Wood county batallion was one of the few to remain intact from the start to the disbandment. Later our subject was elected brigade commander of the Fourth District, G. A. R., of Ohio. He was also chosen to represent one district of five counties of Northwestern Ohio, at the National G. A. R. Encampment in Boston. He is now serving his fourth term as commander of Urie Post No. 1 10, of Bloomdale. He was admitted to practice as a pension attorney in 1892, and has met with great success. In the Masonic Fraternity, which he joined in 1867 at Oberlin, he has held several official positions.

H. L. Byington, M. D., the oldest practicing physician of Risingsun, and one of the most successful men of his profession in the county, is a notable example of a self-made man. He is of English descent.

His grandfather, Nathaniel Byington, was a farmer in Vermont, during the greater part of his life, and was a hard-working man, often earning his slender income by shoe-making; but never accumulated a competence. The old homestead was near Weybridge, where his son, Edmund H. Byington, the Doctor's father, was born, the youngest of a family of four sons and one daughter. He married Miss Helen M. Langdon, a native of New Haven, Vt. , and the daughter of Ward Langdon, who was at one time a member of the Vermont legislature. This family was also of English origin. The young man had but limited means, yet he and his bride started for the new lands in the West, as the frontier lines in Franklin county, N. Y., was then called, and locating upon a small tract of land in the woods they toiled on through all difficulties until prosperity dawned upon them. Their success was not won by self denial, but by industry and good management; they now own two farms containing more than 250 acres of valuable land. They have fortunately both been spared to enjoy the fruits of their labors, and are among the most highly respected citizens of their vicinity. Mr. Byington is one of the stanch supporters of the Democratic party, has always been prominent in public affairs, and has served creditably in numerous township offices. The last years of his father, who lived to be over eighty years old,

Jason J. Carpenter), of North Yakima, Wash.; Harlan L., our subject; Emerson, a farmer in Franklin county, N. Y. ; and Jennie (Mrs. Theodore Fitch), of the same county.

Dr. Byington was born on a farm in East Constable township, Franklin Co., N. Y., April 22, 1851, and passed through the usual experiences of a farmer's son, attending the district schools and helping at home with the " chores " and on the farm. Later he studied at Franklin Academy, and at eighteen began to teach, following the profession successfully some four winters. He then pursued more advanced studies at Malone, N. Y. , and, as he always had a desire to follow the medical profession, took especial interest in anatomy afid hygiene while there. He was too proud to ask his father for money to continue his studies in this direction, and, shortly after attaining his majority, he started for Omaha, Neb. He had only ten dollars in his pocket when he left home, as his father was a believer that a little hardship would be good for him, and this sum was soon exhausted. He Aoppftd, while at route, in Erie county, Ohio, where an uncle lived, and found employment as a locomotive firemen on the Sandusky division of the B. & O. R. R. , and later fired on the construction train on the main line of the same road, which was then being laid west from Chicago Junction, the completed portion at that time reaching Attica, Ohio. He then began teaching in Perkins township, Erie county, and determining to study medicine he took a preliminary course with Dr. Knestrick, of Bloomingville. During the summer he studied in the mornings, and worked on a farm in the afternoons in order to pay his expenses. In the fall of 1874 he entered the Physio-Medical College at Cincinnati, and was graduated in February, 1876, standing third in the class. His professional career was begun in Fostoria in the fall of 1876, against a formidable array of old practitioners. As a total stranger he experienced the usual trials of a young physician, but he succeeded in establishing a good practice. In the fall of 1880 he removed to Risingsun where speedy recognition of his abilities brought him a large and lucrative practice. The Doctor successfully removed eight pieces of skull-bone from the left temple of George Jonas which had been thrust into his head two inches by the kick of a horse, and covered the opening with a silver plate, which he prepared from a coin he took from his purse, it being nearly as large as a silver dollar. He also performed several successful delicate and difficult perineal operations, and others of a general nature, by which he gained an enviable reputation as a surgeon.

On September 6, 1882, Dr. Byington was married in Fostoria to Miss Emma E. Shaw, a native of Hancock county, Ohio, and a daughter of Thomas and Eliza Shaw. She is a lady of fine mentality, was well educated in the schools of Findlay, Ohio, and taught successfully in Fostoria. The Doctor has a pleasant home and office, built by himself. Of their three sons the second died in infancy; the others are Warren S., born June 17, 1885; and Ralph, born September 26, 1895.

The Doctor contributes liberally toward the Churches of his locality, although not a member of any, and he is always ready to encourage and assist movements for the benefit of the thriving little city where he has made his home. As a citizen, not as a politician, he served six years as a member of the Risingsun council, but he has frequently declined nominations to political positions. In August, 1893, he was appointed a member of the Board of Pension Examiners, and still holds that office. In principle he is a Democrat, but occasionally supports men of other parties. A man of practical ideas in business as well as in professional life, he has acquired a fine competence, and is regarded as one of the substantial men of the place, owning extensive interests in oil holdings, and engaging largely in loaning money, and buying and selling notes. Despite his varied lines of work, he is fond of travel, recreation and hunting; has been in sixteen different States, Canada and old Mexico, and several seasons have found him in the game haunts of the West and South. Socially he was a charter member and first chancellor commander of Lodge 329, K. of P., at Risingsun.

William Eckert, one of the intelligent, progressive agriculturists of Portage township, was born April 20, 1847, at Buffalo, N. Y. , son of Martin Eckert, a native of the "Fatherland," who was born February 2, 1808.

Martin Eckert came to the United States when a young man, lived for a time in Eastern Pennsylvania, and made his first permanent location in Buffalo, N. Y. Here he married Margaret Zimmerman, who was born in Alsace, Germany, and came to the United States, where her parents also passed their remaining days. Mr. Eckert had learned shoemaking in Germany, and he followed his trade in Buffalo, also engaging in market gardening, in which he continued for a number of years. They lived near Cold

Springs, a suburb of Buffalo, and their produce was taken to Washington Street Market. In the panic of 1857, however, Mr. Eckert lost much of his property, and in the fall of 1861 he came west to Ohio, living in Scott township, Sandusky county, where he rented land. He was a large active man in his younger days, and after coming to Ohio he engaged in farming, but from 1 867 until their deaths he and his wife made their home with our subject. He died at the latter's home in Portage township in February, 1891, his wife preceding him to the grave in April, 1882, and both are buried in Bradner cemetery. They reared a large family, all of whom were born in Buffalo, as follows: Jacob, who is a farmer of Portage township; Ellen (Mrs. John V. Hall), of Buffalo, N. Y. ; George, a carpenter, who died in Boston, Mass. ; Martin, Jr., of Montgomery township, Wood county; Sarah (Mrs. William Wilson), who lives in Buffalo; Charles, who died of cholera in Buffalo; Louise (Mrs. Jacob Bowers), of Scott township, Sandusky Co., Ohio; and William. Mr. Eckert was originally a Whig in politics, but on the formation of the party he became a Republican, and was an ardent supporter of its principles.

William Eckert received all his education in the schools of his boyhood home, and was thoroughly trained to farming, remaining at home, with one month's exception, until his enlistment in the Union army, on March 26, 1864, at Rollersville, Ohio. He became a member of Company I, 72nd O. V. I., the regiment at that time being home on veteran furlough, and returned with them to the field, seeing his first active service at Paducah, Ky. He participated in the battles of Brice's Cross Roads (or Guntown), Tishomingo, Tupelo, Oldtown Creek, Abbeville, Little Harpeth, Nashville, Spanish Fort, and Mobile, the command marching from that city to Montgomery. En route they learned of Lee's surrender, and soon after of Lincoln's assassination. They remained in the service, doing guard duty and repairing railroads, until September 1 1, 1865, when they were mustered out at Vicksburg, and received the final discharge at Columbus, Ohio. Mr. Eckert is now a member of Randall Post No. 53, G. A. R., at Freeport. During his service our subject was never absent from duty on account of injuries or sickness, but he was separated from his regiment a short time after the battle of Brice's Cross Roads, in which they were defeated; he and many others worked their way through the woods to Memphis, and during the journey it was, naturally, difficult for them to keep together.

In the spring of 1866, Mr. Eckert began to do farm work for others, and after six months rented a farm in Montgomery township, Wood county, from Conrad Shefler, which he worked for two years, and after that rented more land, until he bought his present farm in Portage township. At the time of his marriage he had $200, besides a limited supply of farming implements, and he lived on different places in Wood and Sandusky counties until April 20, 1878, at which time he settled on his place of eighty acres in Section 15, Portage township, which he had bought four 'years previously, and which he had improved to some extent after it came into his possession, it being new land when he bought it. He now owns 160 acres, ninety of which are under cultivation, and which he has taken from its primitive condition. He has improved the land with buildings, and has placed over 1,200 rods of drain tile in the land, which has increased its fertility considerably. He is known as a most thorough, systematic farmer, and has the respect of all who know him for his industry and integrity. He is a thoroughly self-made man, having commenced life with no capital but his own energy and ambition, and he is now in prosperous circumstances, and able to support his family in comfort. In 1892 he built a fine barn, 40 x 72 feet in dimensions, and all the other improvements on the place are in keeping.

On November 30, 1871, Mr. Eckert was married, in Scott township, Sandusky county, to Miss Lenora Sheseley, a native of that township, who was born March 30, 1850, daughter of John Sheseley, who came hither from Pennsylvania. Children have been born to this union as follows: Clarence R., September 9, 1872, who is a teacher; Adda, January, 26, 1874; Mabel, November 20, 1875 (died in August, 1879); Laura, April 28, 1877; Wilmer, August 18, 1878; Rolland W., July 23, 1883; Ralph E. , January 26, 1885; Florence M., January 20, 1889; Floyd H., August 12, 1890; and Benjamin F. , February 9, 1893. Mr. and Mrs. Eckert are members of the Methodist Protestant Church, in which he holds the office of trustee. He is a Republican in politics, and never fails to cast his ballot; but aside from that takes no active part in politics or public affairs, although he has served as school director in District No. 9. Socially he is a member of I. O. O. F., Prairie Depot Lodge, No. 646.

Exea Ducat, one of the most prominent of the retired agriculturists who have made their home in the pleasant city of Bowling Green, was born of French-Canadian parentage, on the

His parents, Joseph and Victoria (Jacob) Ducat, were born in Detroit, Mich. , the former in April, 1805. Eleven children were born to them, our subject being the second. Joseph, the eldest, is now living in East Toledo, at the age of sixtyeight. The third, Alexander, born in 1830, died June 27, 1874. Julius, born March 10, 1834, died September 12, 1895. John is a resident of Rudolph, Wood county; Gilbert, of Bowling Green; Theodore, of Toledo; Marshall, of Bowling Green; Frank, of Ducat, Wood county; and the two youngest, Frederick and Victoria, died in childhood. Mr. Ducat's parents moved to Liberty township, Wood county, in 1851, and settled upon a large tract of land which is now very valuable. His mother died in Ottawa county in 1864, his father at the homestead in Liberty township, in May, 1871.

Our subject enjoyed the usual experiences of a healthy country boy during his youth, and became in time one of the most successful farmers in the locality, cultivating a tract of 200 acres of land which he still owns, although of late years he has left the active work to other hands. He was married May 6, 1851, to Miss Elizabeth Momee, of Toledo, who was born February 8, 1836. They have had nine children, as follows: Elizabeth, born June 1, 1852, died August 27, 1858; the second, born June 1, 1853, died the same day; Mary V. born April 15, 1854, was married December 4, 1873, to Paul McCrory, and died November 8, 1874; Peter Exea, born June 8, 1856, married Josephine Mantal, and has one son - Clarence; Thomas Jefferson, bom March 1-2, 1859, married Emma Gano, and has four children living; Charles Henry, born October 14, 1863, died aged fifteen; Matilda Jane, born November 26, 1864, married Quincy Mercer, of Wood county; Lucy Ann, born June 7, 1871, died a year later; Fulton Daniel, born May 4, 1874, married Alta V. Bordner, and has one daughter. Mr. Ducat is a highly esteemed citizen, and uses his influence in quiet but effective ways to forward every measure which has for its object the good of the community. He is a leading member of the Christian Church, and in his political preferences of late years has been an ardent Prohibitionist.

Nathaniel L. Hanson. New Hampshire was first visited by Europeans in 1614, the first settlements being made at Cochecho (Dover) and Portsmouth, in 1623. Thomas Hanson, senior, was among the early settlers and lived at Cochecho (Dover), was taxed 1654-55, received from the Crown, or Protector, a grant of one hundred acres of land near Salmon Falls, N. H., dated November 11, 1658, was admitted a freeman, April 5, 1661, died 1666, and his will was approved June 27, 1666. His widow was taxed 1666-1672, and killed by Indians, June 28, 1689. These people were English. Their children were Tobias, Thomas (2), Isaac, Timothy and two daughters. Of the last four no record is left. Tobias was killed by the Indians May 10, 1693, his wife having been made captive June, 1689, at the time his mother was killed.

Thomas Hanson (2), second son of Thomas, Sr., was born 1643, first taxed 1664 to 1677, at Cochecho (Dover), and his will bears date February 10, 1710. His children, of whom any record is left, were Thomas (3) and John (1). Thomas (3) was born in 1680, built a house at " Knox Marsh " near Dover in 1700 (still occupied - 1883 - by William Twombly). His children were (by Margaret Maul) Thomas (4), Robbert, Timothy (2) (see "Timothy hay," Standard dictionary), Maul, Jonathan and Samuel; (by Hannah Newell) Solomon, Ebenezer and Abigail. He died 1728, his will bearing date September 18, 1728, and it shows the ownership of slaves in New Hampshire at that date.

John (1), brother of Thomas (3), married Elizabeth Meador, May 23, 1703, and lived at " Knox Marsh." His children were Hannah, Sarah, Elizabeth, John (2), Isaac (2), Daniel, Ebenezer (2), Caleb, Mercy and Abigail. On June 27, 1724, their home was attacked by Indians; John (2), Isaac and the father being in the field, and Hannah, being at church - all escaped harm. Ebenezer and Caleb (youngest of the boys) were dashed against a stone and killed. Sarah, Elizabeth, Daniel, Mercy (fourteen days old), the mother and the nurse were all taken captive, and, by forced marches for hundreds of miles through the then unbroken wilderness and swamps of the wildest section of our land, were taken into Canada. Pursuit proved fruitless. Without doubt the boys were killed because too young to make the march, .and too large to carry, while the mother was spared for the larger ransom expected. Though still feeble, she was compelled to carry her fourteen -day-old babe, but was treated with some barbaric tenderness, sharing the chief's food, and by night his tent, and allowed to prepare nourishment for her babe when no longer able to nourish it herself. The following year the husband and father proceeded to Canada, and ransomed his wife and three of the children. He returned to Canada again in 1727 to redeem the remaining child, Sarah, and perished at Crown Point, N. Y., on his return. Mercy Hanson, the fourteen-day-old captive, born to John (i) June 13, 1724, was among these ransomed children, and lived to marry one Nathaniel Hanson (1), and became the mother of seven children, viz. : Paul, John (3), Nathaniel (2), Ebenezer (2), Caleb (2), and two daughters. Of these children, Ebenezer Hanson (2) was born April 12, 1759, married Abigail Caverno September, 1789, lived in Strafford, N. H., and died May 26, 1826. The children of Ebenezer (2) and Abigail Hanson were Caverno, Paul, John (4), Ebenezer (3;, Hannah, Judith, Nathaniel (3), Caleb (3), Abigail, Sarah and Jeremiah. All these lived to an advanced age.

Nathaniel Hanson (3), father of our subject, was born in Strafford, N. H., May 11, 1807, married Marjorie Evans, of . the same place, dwelt at Barnstead and died October 5, 1891, his wife having preceded him on March 9, of the same year - both having lived more than fourscore years. The old home stands in shadow; the sunshine falls less sweetly among the many reminders - the reverently folded garments, the hat, the cane, and the old family Bible that lay on the stand. The immediate family of Nathaniel (3) and Marjorie E. Hanson, consisted of eight sons and one daughtor, viz. : John (5), Caleb W., Levi H., Nathan jel L. , Ebenezer, Lewis F. , Joseph B., George and Jennie B.

Nathaniel L. Hanson, fourth of the above named brothers, submits this genealogy by request, interesting chiefly in the fact that it covers a period of nearly three hundred years, embracing eight generations inclusive of his own family, and in that it shows something of the trials of the earliest settlers of our land. The names of those constituting tne collateral branches of the family in the different generations, as gathered by him from court and other records, are here omitted.

The names of his own children are George Murray, Myra Hamilton, Elizabeth Murray, Fred Green (died in 1876), Raymond Evans, Luther N. and Ralph Trowbridge.

Our subject, Nathaniel L. Hanson, was reared in New Hampshire, quit the farm at fifteen years of age, and the shop at eighteen, was privileged to attend the public schools but twenty-five months in all this time, and one or two terms at the " select " school. In 1857 he entered the academy at New Hampton, N. H., taking the Latin and Greek course, having made a good start in the former in the shop, without an instructor. He graduated from this academy in June, i860, second in a class of thirteen gentlemen, all but two of whom entered college. In the fall of the same year, w'ith just funds enough in hand to meet the expenses of the first term, and obliged to rely absolutely upon his own resources, he entered upon a four-years' course at Dartmouth College, Hanover, N. H., having been admitted on examination prior to graduation at the academy, taking the 25th position in a class of eighty-one members; which by later accessions enrolled an even hundred. Divers causes, chiefly the Civil war which broke out the following spring, left but fifty of this class to answer roll-call on graduation day, four years later, Mr. Hanson being among them. He had already been elected principal of the Grammar schools at Troy, Ohio, and came west soon after graduating in 1864. The following summer he was elected superintendent of schools at Sidney, Ohio, which position he filled for three years. In 1 868 he was elected principal of the State street schools, Columbus, Ohio, succeeding T. C. Mendenhall, now president of Worcester (Mass.) Polytechnic Institute, and formerly at the head of the U. S. geodetic coast survey. At the holidays qf this year Mr. Hanson received what he regards as two flattering propositions, viz. : An addition of $500 in salary ($1,700 per annum), to take the principalship of the Ludlow street schools, Dayton, Ohio; and the hand of Miss Lida McC. Murray, of Sidney, Ohio, in marriage; both of which he accepted, retaining the latter to this day (1896), and the former until the fall of 1 87 1, three years, when a coveted opportunity to go into business presented itself, and he came to Perrysburg, Ohio, to accept a subordinate position in the Exchange Bank, then just starting under the auspices of Dr. E. D. Peck, as president, and F. R. Miller as cashier. He continued with this firm until the spring of 1879, when. Dr. Peck having deceased, the firm retired from banking, and Mr. Hanson established the Citizens Bank, continuing the business under that title until the spring of 1892, when it was reorganized as a State Bank and incorporated as the Citizens Banking Company, with a subscribed capital stock of $50,000.00; he became the cashier and responsible manager, and continues such to the present time.

In politics he is a Republican, and in religious belief is a member of the Presbyterian Church. He is a member of the Greek letter fraternity. Delta Kappa Epsilon, is a member of the board of education, is serving his second term as a member of the city council, and is, and has been for ten years, a member and the secretary of the board of managers of the Way Public Library. Mr. Hanson is a citizen of high standing, and a leading man a his community, and although rather reserved in disposition, is found on nearer acquaintance to be a most genial and companionable man. He is very domestic in his tastes, and although giving much time and attention to the details of his business* and to matters concerning the public welfare, he finds his greatest happiness when surrounded by his books and family in his pleasant home.

George W. Wilkinson, one of the self-made men of Ohio, a prominent editor of Wood county, and a worthy representative citizen of North Baltimore, is a native of the State, having been born March 15, 1859, in Logan county.

At an early age he was left an orphan, his father having died when he was an infant, succumbing to exposure experienced at the battle of Pittsburg Landing, in 1862; after which, until he was eighteen years old, young George made his home with his grandfather, John G. Wilkinson, during which period he acquired a common-school education. Fully realizing he was not yet properly equipped in an educational point of view, for suitable life work, our subject, on leaving the home of his grandfather, went to Sidney, Ohio, where for three years he attended the public schools, at the end of which time he took up the profession of teaching, which he followed several years. For one year he had charge of the grammar department of public-school work at Deshler, and for two years he served as superintendent of schools of that place. During the year 1885-86 he leased and conducted the Deshler Flag, and then purchased the Beacoti, of North Baltimore, which, under his able management, has become one of the leading journals of Wood county.

Politically, Mr. Wilkinson is a Republican, and a representative in his party. For several years be has been a member of the County Central Committee, of which he has been chairman and secretary. He has also been several times a member of the executive committee, serving now in that capacity; is also serving as member of the County Election Board, by appointment from the Secretary of State, and is chairman of that board. Mr. Wilkinson has served four terms as trustee of the North Baltimore Gas Co. , during which time he was its secretary. At this writing he is president of the board of examiners of teachers, for the city of North Baltimore. He is also serving his second term as secretary of the Buckeye Press Association, of Ohio, an organization of printers and editors, consisting of about two hundred members, he being one of the originators of the association. He is a practical, artistic printer, and has one of the finest and best equipped offices in the State.

In 1885, Mr. Wilkinson was united in marriage with Miss Ella M. Thomas, daughter of Rev. A. C. Thomas, of North Baltimore, born April 21, 1868, and educated in the common schools of Ohio. Mrs. Wilkinson is a valuable assistant to her husband, being in perfect sympathy with his work, and taking editorial charge during his temporary absence. To their union have come two children, namely: Gerald T. , born in 1889, and Claire W., born in 1892. Mrs. Wilkinson is a member of the M. E. Church, at North Baltimore, and she and her husband enjoy the highest regard of the best citizens of the community in which they live.

Gilbert Ducat, a wealthy retired agriculturist of Bowling Green, and a descendant of a wellknown French-Canadian family, was born in Michigan, near the Ohio line, July 10, 1839.

His father, Joseph Ducat, was born in Detroit. Mich., in 1805, and on arriving at manhood he married a native of the same city, Miss Victoria Jacob. He was a farmer by occupation, and some years after his marriage came with his family to Ohio, locating first in Wood county, later removing to Ottawa county, where Mrs. Ducat died in 1864. The family soon after returned to Wood county settling in Liberty township, and here, in 1871, the father died. Both parents were devout adherents of the Roman Catholic Church. Eleven children were born to them: Joseph, a resident of East Toledo; Exea, of Bowling Green; Alexander, deceased; Julius, deceased; John, of Rudolph! Wood county; Gilbert, our subject; Theodore, residing in Toledo, Ohio; Marshall, in Bowling Green; Frank, in Ducat, Wood county (named in honor of this family); and Frederick and Victoria, who both died in infancy.

Gilbert Ducat, our subject, spent his early life chiefly in Wood county. The conditions of pioneer life were not favorable to education, and he received no schooling; but good natural abilities enabled him to overcome in a measure this lack of opportunity for learning. On November 25, 1865, he was married to Miss Amelia Ganger, a lady of French-Canadian descent, who was born March 31, 1844, in Michigan, the daughter of Lewis and Olive (Roe) Ganger. At the age of thirteen she came with her parents to Rudolph, age of seventy-seven. Her mother, who was born in 1 8 1 8, died in 1890. Mrs. Ducat was the second of their eleven children. The eldest, Victoria, now deceased, was the wife of Julius Ducat. The third, Harriet, is the wife of Paul Groneau; Mary married Victor Puye; Matilda married Fred Crostalker, of Bowling Green; Ellen is the wife of Lewis Sanglier; George lives in North Baltimore, Wood county; Daniel, in Liberty township; Cyril, near Rudolph; and Napoleon ; the youngest child died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Ducat settled upon a farm in Liberty township after their marriage, where four children were born to them, none of whom lived to maturity except the third, Napoleon, who was born August 21, 1868, and is now at home. The names of the others with the dates of birth and death are as follows: Henry, born January 30,

1867, died February 9, 1868; Louis Franklin, born November 6, 1873, died in May, 1875; Abraham, born in 1869, died in 1882. Fortunately for our subject his farm lies within the "oil belt," and some years ago four wells were sunk upon it from which he has since derived a good income. In 1889 he retired from active business and removed to Bowling Green. He and his wife are faithful members of the Roman Catholic Church, as all their ancestors have been, and their wealth enables them to take an active part in many worthy enterprises. In politics Mr. Ducat is a Democrat.

Abner Cummings (deceased) was a prominent and representative citizen of Wood county, highly esteemed by all who knew him. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio, April 23, 1829, and acquired his education in the public schools of that city. He afterward removed to Tontogany, Ohio, where he learned the carpenter's trade, and later entered eighty acres of land from the government in Washington township, and bought an additional eighty acres. This he operated and improved for a time, and then sold eighty acres and purchased the Crum farm of eighty acres. On selling this property, he removed to Haskins, where he purchased a farm of similar size, which is now the abode of his widow.

In 1855 Mr. Cummings was united in marriage with Christina Cameron, who was born in Caledonia, N. Y. , a daughter of James and Maria (Davis) Cameron, of Scotch and English descent. Our subject and his wife became the parents of six children: Helen, born June 29, 1858, nowthe wife of G. A. Repass; Lillie, born December 19, 1861, now the wife of Edward Conture, a railroad man, Toledo, Ohio; Lucy, born April 9, 1864;

Annette, born August 28, 1866; Fred, born March 12, 1870, and in 1892 married Jennie Jenson, by whom he has two children, the eldest, Lenore, born April 30, 1893, and Delos Abner, born August 28, 1896; and Mary, who was born December, 1867, and died in 1869.

During the Civil war, Mr. Cummings enlisted in Company B, 144th O. V. I., under Capt. Black, and participated in a number of engagements. In politics he was a Republican, served as trustee and supervisor of Weston township, and for a number of years was school director at Tontogany. He was a prominent member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, was superintendent of the Sunday-school, and his many excellent qualities gained him high regard. He died in 1878, respected by all who knew him. His widow still resides on the old homestead, and the family is one of prominence in the community. Mrs. Cummings is a member of the Methodist Church at Tontogany; her daughters are members of the Baptist Church, and their circle of friends is limited only by the circle of their acquaintances.

Amos Dewese, a well-known resident of Weston township, 'was born August 18, 1823, in Paris township, Stark county, Ohio. The first ancestor of the family of whom a record is given was Carl, the great-grandfather of our subject, jvho lived in Berks county, Penn., and was a soldier in the Revolutionary war. He had seven children - John, William, Elizabeth, Samuel, Powell, Thomas and David. His son Samuel became a captain in the Revolutionary army, and also served in the war of 1812, a biography of his life being published previous to his death.

Thomas Dewese, who was the grandfather of our subject, was born in Berks county, Penn., May 4, 1770. He was a school teacher in early life, and later became a farmer. He was married to Miss Catherine Bessey, who was born May 18, 1767, and they emigrated to Stark county, Ohio, in 1808, where they both died at advanced ages. Their children were as follows: (1) Lutice, was married July 7, 1808, to Jasper Daniels, who was a preacher in the Disciples Church. They emigrated to the West, and he died in Illinois; (2) Samuel, the father of our subject; (3) Elizabeth was married July 18, 1815, to John Wickerd (he died in Hancock county, Ohio, and she in Michigan); (4) Catherine became the wife of Thomas Ebe September 7, 1817, and both died in Wayne county, Ohio; (5) Sarah was married March 19, 1820, to Andrew Livingstone, and both died in Wayne county; (6) Martha W. married Christian Shiveley October 30, 1821, and both died in

1827, and she was accidentally burned to death (her husband removed to the West); (9) Thomas was married October 6, 1830, to Sarah Watkins. Thomas Dewese and two other families were the first pioneers who settled in Paris township, Stark county, Ohio.

Samuel Dewese, father of our subject, was born in Bucks county, Penn., March 5, 1793, and emigrated with his father's family in 1808 to Stark county, Ohio. On May 13, 1814, at the age of twenty, Mr. Dewese enlisted at the village of Canton, under Capt. James Drennan, for the war of 1812, and served under Gen. Harrison until the expiration of his term of service. He was discharged at Detroit, Mich., May 14, 1814. When first enlisted he went to Cleveland, Ohio, and from there to Fort Stephenson, now Fremont, arriving there the day after the battle, when the fort was so gallantly and successfully defended by Major Croghan. From this place his regiment was sent to Fort Ball, and from there to the mouth of the Portage river; there the command took flat boats and crossed ovef the lake to Detroit. While at Detroit in the winter of 1814, Mr. Dewese was sent by order of Gen. Harrison as a scout to the Thames river. The mission was a difficult and dangerous one, but the young man accomplished his object. After his discharge Mr. Dewese returned home and labored on a farm. On May 16, 1815, he married Miss Sarah Boyer, who was born in Stark county February 19, 1798, and died August 6, 1824. They had six children, as follows: Margaret, born February 20, 1817, married Asa Hutchinson, and was the mother of thirteen children, and died in Wood county; Thomas, July 26, 1818, died in Canton, Ohio, July 20, 1892; Caroline, May 10, 1820, was postmistress in Fork Top, Mecosta county, Mich., and was the oldest incumbent of that office in the State, when she lost the position in 1894; Amy, December 26, 1821, married James Hutchinson, and died in Bowling Green March 14, 1891; Amos, the subject of this sketch; the sixth child died in infancy. Mr. Dewese was married, a second time, November 16,

1828, taking for his wife Miss Annie Switzer, of Stark county, who died after the birth of twelve children, and was buried at Weston, Ohio. The children of the second marriage are as follows: Jesse died in Wood county, and left a family; Dennis died when a boy; Franklin died in childhood; Mary Ann married John Wade, and died in Wood county; Noah died in childhood; Samuel was a soldier in the Civil war, and resides in Michigan; Uriah, a farmer of Weston township, was also a soldier in the Civil war; Parmilla married W. Wade, and lives in Iowa; Gurselda is the wife of Charles Bassett, and lives in Weston; Chauncey died while a prisoner at Danville, Va., November 6, 1864, during the Civil war. The other two children died in infancy.

Amos Dewese, the subject of this sketch, received but meager school advantages before coming to Wood county, and of his first experiences in this wilderness let the following article, written by him, for the Weston Herald, and published in 1883, speak for itself: anniversary in Wood county, I will, with your permission, give your many readers a brief sketch of my first year of pioneer life in the county. I came here February 17, 1843. The snow was eighteen inches deep when I started from Hancock county without one cent of money, but a few clothes, and a dry chunk of bread constituting my pack; my shoes out at the toes; and carrying a few books. In the evening I crossed the line and saw a hunter riding an old horse, to the tail of which was tied a large deer. I followed a trail and came to a Mr. Robbins', of Bloom township, where I stayed all night. Early next morning I started for Mr. Frankfanter's, at Bloom Centre, found my old friend Joseph Shelia, and made my home with him, and went to chopping to get me a pair of boots. Mr. S. and I rode through the woods to Risden and Rome (now Fostoria), for an axe. We found a few, but as they wouldn't trust either of us, we had to return without it. Then I went back to Hancock county, got my axe, and was rich. I took a job of a Mr. Buisey to chop seven acres, for which he gave me a rifle and some second-hand clothing. I finished the job on March 24, when the mercury was twenty degrees below zero, that winter being still known as the ' hard winter.'

' ' I began work for Mr. Solether April 1 ; snow and ice on the ground, and sleighing. He gave me a watch. While working there a Mr. Jonathan Stull came into the clearing. He had a bag on his shoulder with a peck of ears of corn that he had got from a Mr. Daniel Milbourn. Mr. Stull was much depressed and discouraged on account of the terrible hard winter. We talked of Adventism, as the Millerites said the end of the world was at hand. Mr. Stull said he prayed for it every day, as he had seen all the trouble he had wanted to see. He said he had eight head of horses, and all had died; twentyeight head of cattle and two hundred and sixty head of hogs, and all were dead. I had to pass Mr. Stull's cabin often. He told me that he had been married twelve years, and they had ten children, all of whom were almost nude. Not one had a full suit of clothes. They hadn't a bed nor a window in the house. He was the owner of a three-quarter section of good land. 'There,' said Mr. Stull, 'I have one peck of ears of corn in this sack, and when I take it home and grind it in the hand-mill, and mix it with water, bake and eat it with my wife and ten children, God knows where the next will come from. They must starve. ' He wept like a child. [Mr. Stull was the founder of Jerry City.]

' ' During my stay with Mr. Buissey I had to go to and from Mr. Shelia's. I had to pass a number of cabins, forsaken and uninhabited. They looked gloomy enough, surrounded by ice and water and the dismal swamp. A number of wild hogs had taken possession of a new one which had belonged to a Mr. John Ford. They had piled in on top of each other, and there perished from cold and hunger. When out hunting for coons and minks, whenever we found hogs they were invariably dead. I next worked for Mr. Whitaker two weeks, and received $3.25 in June. Then I went to Milton Center, and cleared five acres for James Hutchinson for a pair of twoyear-old steers. In July I went to James Bloom's, worked for Bloom and Henderson Carothers, helped cut forty-five acres of wheat, and cut and haul a hundred tons of tame prairie hay, for which I received one pair of boots and fifty cents in money - a sum total in money for the year, $3.75. In the beginning of the winter of the year 1843 I went to Ralph Keeler's to work for my board and go to school in the old log schoolhouse in Weston. Mr. Keeler took sick, and as I had to take care of him and his stock, I lost the benefit of the school. I worked for him three months for twenty-five dollars, to take my pay out of the store.

"I will attempt to describe the old Taylor school house. It was located in the back part of the lot now owned by Mr. Henry, on Main street. It was true pioneer in style, with puncheon floor, benches and desks made of the same. Round logs cut off, with ribs and weigh-poles to hold down the clapboards; windows, one row of glass, each eight by ten; writing desk, puncheon laid on pins driven in the wall. The teacher, Mr. Jesse Osborne, of New York State, received twenty-five cents a day, or five dollars a month. The scholars were Miss Mary Taylor, George,

Lewis, Thomas and William Taylor; Samuel McAtee, who lived with Andrew Moorhouse; Olmsted, Amelia and Melicent Keeler. The teacher was paid by the parents, there being no school fund at that time. Mr. Taylor lost about forty-five head of cattle; Mr. Keeler seventyfive head, while the Sargents, Elsworth, Saulsbury and Green lost about the same proportion during that terrible winter, never to be forgotten by the old settlers. Many had to move out of the Black Swamp before spring. So ended my first year as a Pioneer. "

The vicissitudes of Mr. Dewese's early life were relieved by the sports of the hour, and he often engaged in the hunt and the chase when heavy game was abundant in the Black Swamp. He was not content, however, and yearned to cast his fate with the possibilities of the "Far West." He had all the preparations made to take a Western trip, when his father came to Wood county, entered land, and prevailed upon our subject to do the same and remain with him. True to a strong impulse of family unity that has been handed down to the latest generation of the Dewese family, he allowed the parents' advice to prevail, and on March 1, 1851, he entered the land which forms a portion of his present magnificent estate. On this he built a log house and commenced to make general improvements, and for two years kept ' ' bachelor's hall." On November 3, 1853, Mr. Dewese was united in marriage to Miss Sarah Green, who was born August 17, 1829, in Liverpool, England, and came to this country with her parents in- 1834.

Of this marriage three sons were born, of whom the following record is given: (1) William, born March 21, 1856, was married January 25, 1887, to Miss Caroline Elizabeth Sautter, who was born in Huron county, August 17, 1866. They have two children, Donald R. , born September 17, 1891; and Floyd M., born May 4, 1893. (2) George J., born April 30, 1858, was married November 29, 1881, to Miss Lucy Lee, whose birth took place January 7, 1864. They have one child, Sarah E. , born January 20, 1887. When twenty-three years of age George J. entered the mercantile business in Weston under the firm name of Oswald & Dewese, they being the successors of A. J. Munn. Two years later he sold out his interest and went to farming, which he carried on until June, 1885, when he was appointed postal clerk, his run being between Toledo and Cincinnati. He held this position for about fifteen months when he returned to agricultural pursuits, in which he finds his most congenial occupation, and now resides in a pleasant home on a portion of the Dewese estate, close to the suburbs of Weston. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church at the latter place. (3) Amos R., the youngest son of our subject, was born August 24, 1865. He is unmarried, and assists his father in the management of his estate.

Of the many pioneer couples, whose names link the present advanced state of affairs in Wood county with its most primitive conditions, none have taken a more active part in the progress made than Mr. and Mrs. Dewese, and but few have been spared to such a ripe atnd healthful old age as this worthy pair, who still retain all their faculties and evince that eager interest in passing events which they manifested in the vigor of life. The following account of their silver wedding is taken from a Toledo paper:

"At an early hour last evening, November 7, 1878, the many friends of Mr. and Mrs. Amos Dewese began to gather at their elegant residence, about two miles north of Weston, until about from seventy to ninety guests had assembled to participate in the festivities of the occasion, and to congratulate the happy couple upon the joyful return of the twenty-fifth anniversary of their wedding day. We must say that a more pleasant company it was never our good fortune to witness. Every one seemed to catch and imbibe some of the happiness of the bride and groom. As we wandered through the elegant home of our hosts, and noticed the gentlemanly deportment and manly bearing of their sons, and the marks of comfort and luxury on every hand, and thought that twenty-five years ago the then young bride and groom, in what was then almost a wilderness, with no other fortune than brave, honest and willing hands, with no other wealth but industry, integrity and economy, had grappled as pioneers with poverty and nature's unbroken soil, we could not refrain from admiring the work of a quarter of a century, and almost envied the wedded pair their joy as they looked back over the twenty-five years of their happy union. After an hour and a half spent in social greetings, friendly congratulations and kindly expressed wishes of future happiness for the bride and groom, the company assembled in the parlors, and the Rev. M. L. Donahey invoked upon the happy couple the blessing of God, and in a neat and appropriate speech, in behalf of the donors, presented to them the many beautiful gifts of their friends, to which Mr. Dewese, with his wife leaning upon his arm (with as much of happiness and less of doubt than twenty-five years before), responded with a grateful acknowledgement. After some good music and singing, the company gathered around the bountifully spread tables and partook of a repast, which they all seemed to enjoy. Then, after a little more chatting, a little more visiting, a little more singing, and (alas in some instances, we are informed) a little more flirting, the guests scattered to their respective homes, each one saying, 'What a pleasant time we have had;' 'How nicely everything passed off.' "

Honorable citizenship with financial independence has been the ambition of Mr. Dewese, and that this has been more than satisfied is easily learned in Wood county. There is no name in the county better known than his, nor is there a home more abundantly filled with the choicest products of the earth. The hospitality of the Dewese family is known far and near, and as agriculturists they are accepted authorities for miles around. Two of the sons live with their parents on the old homestead, which is a palatial residence erected in 1 877. The harmony that exists in the family is remarkable; the interest of one is the interest of all, and although each of the sons has an individual property of his own, the main estate is held in common. The sons of Mr. Dewese received only a common-school education, as did their father, but the breadth and scope of their reading, and their original manner of thinking, make them among the best informed people of Wood county. As samples of physical manhood, these men have certainly no equal in any one family in the county, the father having the frame of a giant, and the smallest of the three sons weighing one hundred and ninety pounds.

Mr. Dewese was formerly a Republican, but he says he watched the evils of protection as they gradually gained a hold upon the country to the detriment of the agricultural masses, he asserted his right to think for himself, disavowed allegiance to the Republican party, and became a Democrat. Party organizations have tried to whip him back into the Republican ranks, but in vain, as he is firm in his belief that he is on the right side of the question.

B. L. Peters, a prominent pioneer of North Baltimore, and an active business man and property owner, was born in Guernsey county, Ohio, July 13, 1830, and was the son of Abraham and Edith (Runyan) Peters.

Abraham Peters, the great-grandfather, came with his wife from Germany in Colonial days, and located in Rockingham county, Va. , where he took up 900 acres of land under what was known in the English law as "Tomahawk Right." The land followed up the narrow strip along one stream a great distance, and down another. The old people died there, and the estate passed into the hands of our subject's great uncle. The grandfather, also named Abraham, was raised in Rockingham county, Va. , where he married a Miss Catherine Zircle, and, after remaining in Virginia for a while, they came to Guernsey county, Ohio. They had the following children: Abraham, Isaac, Solomon, Reuben

Abraham Peters, father of our subject, grew to manhood in Guernsey county, and after his marriage remained there until 1834, when he moved to Richland county, bought a farm, and lived there until the fall of 1847, at which time he came to Henry township, Wood county. He bought land one mile and a half north of what is now North Baltimore, made his home and reared his family there. He died in February, 1879. His wife was born in Berks county, Penn., September 8, 1808, and died in Henry township February 1, 1895. They were the parents of nine children, as follows: B. L.; our subject;

William; Sarah, who married D. Hough, and died in Michigan; Mary E., deceased; John C., who lives in Henry township; Angeline, married to Jacob Ackerman; Franklin living in Henry township; Edith A. and Emily J., twins (Edith married Joseph Grove, and they live in Michigan; Emily is unmarried).

John Brown, the maternal grandfather, was born in New Jersey, of English parents, and was a soldier in the Revolutionary war. All of our subject's ancestors were longlived. His grandmother was 1 1 2 years old at the time of her death, and his paternal grandfather was 103.

B. L. Peters was about eighteen years old when he came to Wood county. He attended school until sufficiently qualified to obtain a teacher's certificate, which he secured, and then began teaching. Most of his learning was obtained at home by diligent study, which he carried on at night with the aid of a blazing log and hickory bark, in an old-fashioned fireplace; but he was ambitious to learn, and succeeded, even under all the existing difficulties. He had a special talent for mathematics. For about seven years he alternated between teaching and working on a farm, in the meantime being married March 24, 1853, to Miss Fanny Ackerman. Their children were as follows: William L. , deceased when two and one half years old; David

E. , whose sketch appears elsewhere; Sarah C. , who married Joel Rogers, by whom she had two children - Arthur and Louis (after her husband's death she married J. B. Todd, of Bowling Green, and two children were born to them - Lee and Fanny); Bassett H., a merchant in North Baltimore, who married Florence Mc- Laren, daughter of Dr. McLaren; Fannie J., who died when eight years old; Lydia, now the wife of J. C. Solether, one of the county school examiners, and superintendent of Jerry City High School; Hallie; Loren; Pliny; Harry; and McClellan, who is employed in a store in North Baltimore (he married Miss Ollie Genter, and they have two children - Don and Lenora).

Mr. Peters settled on a farm in Henry township until the fall of 1873, when he assisted in laying out the town of North Baltimore. He started the first store, and owned and edited the first newspaper in the place, the North Baltimore Enterprise , which he subsequently moved to Bowling Green, where it is known as the Bowling Green Democrat. After disposing of the paper, Mr. Peters devoted his time to the development of North Baltimore. His work in that direction was most important, and it is largely due to his efforts that the town is in its present flourishing and prosperous condition. He owned a great part of the land on which the town is now situated, helped to organize the First National Bank, was interested in the first sawmill, owned the first store, was the first agent on the Baltimore & Ohio railroad, and was a heavy dealer in grain; he is now engaged in the realestate and insurance business. He upholds the principles of the Democratic party; is a member of the United Brethren Church, and is strictly temperate in his habits, although he never took the pledge. For thirty years he has been a notary public and justice of the peace. Mr. Peters' importance to North Baltimore cannot be estimated, and he is justly considered the pioneer father of the town. He has served as mayor of the city four years, and has held one or another of the township offices of trust ever since he was twenty-three years old.

Mrs. Fanny (Ackerman) Peters was born October 7, 1832, in Lancaster county, Penn., near Harrisburg, the eldest daughter of David and Catherine Ackerman, who moved to Wood county, Ohio, in May, 1838, settling on wildland. Here Mr. Ackerman cleared up a new farm, and became one of the most prominent men in the community. He served as township trustee for many years, and held other offices of trust. His wife was one of the most industrious and perse- vering of women, ever ready to give a helping hand in time of need or sickness, and her daughter Fanny seems to have inherited her mother's good qualities. While quite young she was beloved and respected by all who made her acquaintance. In 1859, she and her husband identified themselves with the United Brethren Church, and she has been a prominent member of that society ever since. Having purchased a portion of the old homestead, on which oil was afterward discovered, she has become worth several thousand dollars in her own right. She is one of the pioneer women of Wood county, and has done much to make North Baltimore the prosperous town it is. Always cheerful and contented, not easily discouraged, ever ready to assist the poor and needy, Mrs. Fanny Peters is held in great respect by those who know her best.

D. E. Peters, assistant cashier and director of the First National Bank of North Baltimore, was born in Henry township, Wood county, October 16, 1855.

Our subject's early years were spent on a farm, and in attending the public schools. He then worked in his father's store, and, when the newspaper then known as the North Baltimore Enterprise (now the Wood County Democrat at Bowling Green) was organized, without previous experience or preparation, demonstrated his natural abilities in that line by taking charge of it. The paper, which was a thoroughly popular Democratic weekly, was moved to Bowling Green, our subject retaining the management of it, and remaining with it until it was sold, when he returned to North Baltimore. He soon afterward formed a partnership with Jeff. Richcreek as retail carriage dealers, and after continuing in this business two years closed out and clerked for one year in a dry-goods store in North Baltimore. In 1885 Mr. Peters moved to Charlotte, Mich., and engaged in the wholesale and retail grocery business. Two years later he returned to North Baltimore, and entered the insurance business with his father, continuing in that until the opening of the First National Bank, of which he became one of the stockholders and accepted the position of assistant cashier. He is still identified with his father in the insurance business, and is also secretary of the Home Savings & Loan Association. He is a stanch believer In the principles of the Democratic party. Socially he is a member of the Knights of Pythias.

Mr. Peters was married, November 13, 1876, to Miss Tillie Crosser, who was born in Henry township, March 6, 1857, and received her education in the public schools of Denver, Wood county. Two children have been born to this union, Pearl and Deloy. Mrs. Peters is a daughter of Daniel and Nancy (Archer) Crosser, both of whom were born in Richland county, Ohio, the former in 1806, the latter in 1816; the father died in 1871 in Wood county, the mother in 1890. They are buried in the " Ten-Mile cemetery." They became the parents of eleven children, nine of whom are living. They were pioneers of Henry township, Wood county, and entered their land from the government. Mr. Crosser was a great hunter.

C. G. McCauley, proprietor of the marble works at Bowling Green, and a prosperous business man of that city, was born in Stark county, Ohio, May 24, 1854. He is a son of Joseph and Ruth (Reed) McCauley. Joseph McCauley was born of Irish parents, in Chester county, Penn., August 8, 1820. He was married, in 1844, in Salem, Columbiana Co., Ohio, removing to Lima, Ohio, where he died. His wife, Ruth Reed, was born in Salem, in 1 824, and is now residing in Lima.

The subject of this sketch obtained his education in the public schools, and when thirteen years old began learning the trade of a marble cutter, in which he served an apprenticeship of five years. He worked for a time at his trade at Lima, and at Fort Wayne, Ind., where for two years he was also employed as fireman of an engine on the C. H. & D. railway. He then became a commercial traveler for J. D. Halter, of Lima, Ohio, selling monuments, etc., which occupation he followed for two years. In 1877 he located permanently in Bowling Green, and on April 1 5 of that year established his present business, in which he has been successfully engaged ever since.

Mr. McCauley possesses the advantage of a thorough acquaintance in all the details of his business, being not only a stonecutter and marble finisher of the highest order, but also a firstclass salesman, and it is due to his ability in this direction, as much as anything else, that his trade has grown so rapidly and has spread over such a large extent of country, his goods being placed on the market not only in Ohio but in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Indiana as well. He is a man of untiring energy and industry, and has an enviable reputation among the business men for square dealing and honest methods.

Arthur (died October io, 1885), Florence, Reid, and Floyd. Our subject is a Republican, and while not a politician in the ordinary sense of the word, takes an interest, as every good citizen should do, in affairs relating to his own county and State. Socially he belongs to Centennial Lodge, No. 626, I. O. O. F. ; Canton Alpine, No. 26, I. O. O. F., at Bowling Green, Ohio., and Lodge No. S3, of the Elks, at Toledo. He holds a high place in the regard of his fellow men, and is one of the worthy citizens of Wood county.

S. S. Hopkins. Among the substantial and prosperous citizens of Bowling Green, must be classed the man whose name opens this sketch, and who commands the respect of the community as a man of enterprise, and also as a brave soldier of the Civil war. He was born in Huron county, Ohio, February 23, 1839, and is the son of George and Hannah (Smith) Hopkins. The Hopkins family is of Irish and Welsh ancestry. Moses Hopkins, father of George Hopkins, and grandfather of our subject, died in Erie county, Ohio.

The father of our subject was born in Genesee county, N. Y. , in 1802, and came to Erie county, Ohio, in 1823, walking all the way. At that time there was only one house where the city of Cleveland now stands, and everything was in the most primitive condition. Mr. Hopkins was a wagon maker by trade, and he was offered every inducement to remain there, but he was bound for the then "Emporium of the West," Milan, Erie county, and would not be persuaded to stop short of his destination. He remained at Milan until 1844, when he went to DeKalb county, Ind., and seven years later returned to Ohio. In 1824 he crossed Lake Erie on the first and only steamer plying on that lake, and was in Detroit, Mich., when its population numbered only two hundred souls. He died in 1864. His wife died at Napoleon, Henry county, when ninety years of age. -

Of the nine children born to George Hopkins and his wife, eight grew to maturity, as follows: Mary Ann, wife of L. Weaver, of Napoleon, Henry county; Smith, who died in Henry county, Ohio; Charles B. lives in Illinois. He is an architect and was superintendent of the construction of the State building in Tokeka, Kans. (during the war he served in a mechanics' regiment, building bridges, pontoons, etc.); Harriet became the wife of L. Smith, and died in 1874 in Iowa;

Carolina married Milton Stout, of Henry county; Homer P. lives in South Bend, Ind. (he served in the army of the Potomac from its organization until Grant captured Richmond); George resides in Cincinnati, Ohio (he enlisted when but fifteen years old, and served through the entire war, going with Sherman to the sea) ; S. S. is subject of this sketch.

S. S. Hopkins spent his younger days in Henry county, where he attended school and learned the trade of a blacksmith. He was married August 20, 1863, in Henry county, to Miss Mary E. Reynolds, who also was born in Baltimore, January 18, 1845, and four children have blessed their union: John G. , born September

15, 1864, married Miss Flora Van Tassel; Laura is the wife of A. Peters, of Bowling Green; Edward, born November 25, 1868, married Nettie Phenix, and they have one child, Fern; Mina May, born August 4, 1 870, is the wife of Oliver Shearer, of Plain township.

Mr. Hopkins began his married life in Henry county, and followed his trade in the town of Florida, until 1865, when he removed to Napoleon, where he remained for ten years, and in 1875 returned to F'lorida. From the latter date until 1884, he lived successively in Defiance, Napoleon, and Toledo, coming to Bowling Green in the latter year. Since making his home in Bowling Green Mr. Hopkins and his sons have carried on a large business, doing not only horseshoeing but carriage work and painting. He is an energetic, active man, remarkable for his youthful appearance, and is to-day seemingly not over forty years of age. He is a consistent member of the Presbyterian Church, and is prominent in the I. O. O. F., in which he is a past grand, and at present is past chief patriarch in the order at Bowling Green. When the Civil war broke out, Mr. Hopkins was the first man to enlist from Erie county, Ohio, going out with Company D, 8th O. V. I., for three months. At the expiration of his term of enlistment, he returned home to care for his aged parents, who had been left alone by the enlistments of the other three boys.

Perry G. Emmett, one of the oldest and most respected of Wood county's agriculturists, now residing near Fenton, Webster township, is a native of Lincolnshire, England, born April 26, 1 820. It 'is supposed that the family are descended from the famous Irish patriot, Robert Emmett.

seven children, of whom the subject of this sketch is the eldest. The others are - Thomas; Charles; Martha, the wife of Thos. Yarwood, of England; Elizabeth, wife of Charles Roper, of Fenton, Ohio; Ann, the wife of G. Graves, of Paulding county; and George, a resident of Buffalo, N. Y. Four other children died in early infancy. The later years of Mr. Emmett's parents were passed upon a farm in England, his father leaving the sea for agricultural pursuits some years before his marriage.

Mr. Emmett received a limited education in his native country, and was sent out to work at an early age, tending sheep for his board and clothes. At twelve he began working on a farm at one shilling a week, and continued farm labor until the age of twenty-one, when he secured employment on public works. As soon as he had saved enough money, he came to America, landing at Quebec, in 1844. After remaining in America about six months, he returned to England, and remained there five years, returning to this country in July, 1849, landing at New York, thence going to Chicago, where he engaged in brick making. In 1850 he bought eighty acres of land in Huron county, which he cultivated for a short time, and then sold, moving to Erie county, remaining until 1858 when he came to Wood county. His first purchase was a tract of forty acres; but his thrift and enterprise have enabled him to add to it until he now has one hundred acres under cultivation. His attention is given chiefly to stock and grain raising, and he was the first to introduce Lincolnshire sheep into this county.

On October 26, 1851, Mr. Emmett, married Miss Emily Hunt, a native of Franklin county, N. Y., born April 28, 1830, the daughter of John and Nancy (Lloyd) Hunt. Six children were born of this marriage: Martha, the wife of Isaac Dent; Perry, .born June 19, 1854; Isaac, born April 26, 1856; Mary E., the wife of Henry Williamson; George W., who manages the old homestead, and Elizabeth, who died in infancy. Mr. Emmett has always taken an active interest in public movements, and in politics he is an independent voter.

George W. Emmett, our subject's youngest son, was born in Webster township, Wood county, September 10, 1871. He was educated in the schools near his home, and has always been his father's assistant, in later years relieving him entirely of the work of the farm. Industrious, sober, and clever, he is a worthy descendant of this honored family, and his genial manners make him popular wherever he is known.

On July 26, 1894, he married Miss Ruby Coger, who was born in Elmore, Ohio, February 4, 1877, the daughter of Orlando and Katie (Bolander) Coger, prominent residents of Troy township.

Solomon Kuder, deceased. The subject of this sketch, one of the honored pioneers of Wood county, and for many years a farmer near Tontogany, was born near Lancaster, Penn., September 4, 1790. In early manhood he entered the service of his country as a soldier of the war of 1812, and served one year.

He was married December 22, 1816, at Circleville, Ohio, to Miss Catherine Row, who was born near Philadelphia, Penn., April 7, 1800. Her parents came to Ohio across the mountains in a wagon. In 1821 Mr. Kuder moved to Tiffin, where he engaged in milling, and in 1836 he came to Wood county and entered a tract of i, 100 acres of land at the government price, with a view to stock-raising; but his cattle being afflicted with murrain, he abandoned that enterprise and engaged in agriculture. He was prominent among the early settlers, having resided near Tontogany about thirty-seven years, and previous to the Civil war was a member of the Whig party, later becoming a Republican. His wife died June 15, 1870, and on Friday, August 1 5 , 1873, at 2 p. m. , Mr. Kuder passed to his long rest, aged eighty-two years, eleven months and eleven days, after many months of suffering.

Fifteen children were born to this union, of whom only three are now living. The names, with dates of birth, and of death of those deceased, are as follows: John, October 3, 1817, died September 3, 1818; Elizabeth, March 25, 1819, died September 25, 1819; Malinda, October 13, 1820, died August 2, 1888 (she was formerly the wife of Alexander Alcorn); Nelson, August 21, 1822, died April 30, 1888 (he was a farmer); Catherine, August 8, 1824, was the wife of Judge Tuller, of Tontogany, and died in 1870; Margaret Ann, July 17, 1826, is the widow of John McColley, of Tontogany; Josiah Hedges, July 16, 1826, died July 6, 1882 (he was a farmer here); Mary Jane, April 30, 1830, died September 13, 1850; Eliza, December 25, 1831, married Barnard Phillip, of Washington township; Wellington, November 18, 1833, died April 7, 1841, having met his death by accident; Sarah M., February 2, 1836, died March 9, 1890 (she had been a teacher in early life); Martha Hortensia, October 13, 1837, never married, but with her sister Sarah remained at home and was the mainstay of her parents, caring for them tenderly in their declining years; Victoria Virginia, June 12, 1839, died Junuary 14, 1882 (she married E. B. Beverstock); Harrison, November 14, 1840, died November 13, 1854; and Caroline, born September 16, 1842, married E. Ketcham, and died December 10, 1869.

Mr. Kuder divided his choice lands among his children as they reached maturity, and he and his wife had the satisfaction of seeing them settled near them, and of receiving in old age their affectionate care. He was a pensioner of the war of 1812, and received also a land warrant for his services at that trying period. Miss Martha Kuder has in her possession, among other valuable relics, her father's pension papers, and a deed made to him which was signed by the hand of Andrew Jackson.

A. L. Muir, president of the Wood County Tribune Company, and editor of both the daily and weekly editions of the Tribune , was born in Webster township, Wood Co., Ohio, January 5, 1857. Thoroughly identified with the best interests of his native county, he takes a conspicous part in public affairs, and it is to his competent editorial management, that the growing popularity of the Tribune , with the reading public, is due.

John Muir, grandfather of our subject, was born in Scotland, and came to America in 1832, locating at Perrysburg, Wood county, and moved to Webster township, where he built the first Presbyterian church out of logs. Notwithstanding the hard work and privations of pioneer life, he lived to the ripe old age of ninety-six. His wife, in her maidenhood was Mary Prentiss. John Muir, Jr., our subject's father, was born on a farm near Aberdeen, Scotland, in 1824, and was eight years old when his parents established their home in this county. He received no regular schooling in his boyhood, and was engaged in agricultural pursuits from early years. During the Civil war he served for three years and three months in Company L, 3rd O. V. C. , under Gen. Kilpatrick, army of the Tennessee, holding rank as corporal and sergeant. He is one of four living children out of a family of seven, all of whom lived to the age of forty and over. He is an ardent Republican, and has taken an active part in local affairs, serving for some time as director of the County infirmary. He married Miss Catharine C. Pember, a member of the old pioneer family for whom Pemberville was named. Her father, Carlisle Pember, was a native of Pennsylvania, and came in 1832 to Wood county, where he located on the " Dutch Fields" at the forks of the Portage river, now Pemberville, and erected sawmills and gristmills. He married Elizabeth Radabaugh, and reared a family of four children. Our subject's parents have been for many years leading members of the U. B. Church at Pemberville, where they still reside. Seven children were born to them: Elizabeth, the wife of James H. Muir, of Pemberville; John, a guard in the penitentiary at Columbus; Robert, a collector at Toledo; Mary, the wife of Frank Cook, of Chicago, 111.; A. L. , our subject; Charles, a farmer in Webster township, and James P. , the assistant superintendent of schools of Pemberville.

Our subject acquired a good education in early life in the Maumee Seminary, and the academy at Fostoria, which he has supplemented by continuous reading and observation. He followed teaching as a profession for thirteen years, and in 1887 was elected clerk of the county courts, being at the time the youngest official ever elected in Wood county. He filled this position for six years and six months, to the complete satisfaction of the public, and on his retirement in 1894 he bought an interest in the Tribune , where his abilities and knowledge find a constantly widening field of usefulness. He was married, in 1889, to Miss Addie Thurstin, who was born near Bowling Green, April 12, 1869. They have had two children: Ruth and Wallace. Politically Mr. Muir is a Republican, and he is prominent in the various fraternal societies, the K. of P. , I. O. O. F., and is a Master Mason in Wood County Lodge.

N. R. Harrington, a prominent attorney, of Bowling Green, was born August 27, i860, in Pickaway county, Ohio, of English descent. His grandfather, William Harrington, was one of the early settlers of Trumbull county, coming from Vermont, and locating there in 1819. He died at the age of ninety-one.

W. A. Harrington, out subject's father, was born in Trumbull county, in 1829, and died there June 5, 1893. From 1858 to 1880 he followed farming in Pickaway and Madison counties, but he returned to his native place to spend the remainder of his days. He was a justice of the peace in Trumbull county for many years, and took an influential part in the local work of the Republican party. He married Miss Helen M. Ross, who was born in New Hampshire in 1835, and died in 1883. They were both active members of the Presbyterian Church, and leading spirits in the various progressive movements in their society. They had four children, our subject be-

Our subject received excellent instruction during his boyhood in the public schools of Warren, Ohio, and started in business life as the bookkeeper for the Lima Paper Mills, of Lima, Ohio, and later was made secretary and superintendent of the works. He resigned in 1 884 to study law, in the office of his uncle, C. A. Harrington, of Warren, a partner of William T. Spear, now justice of the supreme court of this State. While reading law he served as deputy clerk of court, for some time. He was admitted to the bar in March, 1887, at Columbus, and in the following May began the practice of his profession in Bowling Green. In 1888 he formed a partnership with Robert Dunn, in law and abstracting, which continued until 1890, when he went into business with his present partner, Frank Baldwin. In 1888 he was elected city solicitor on the Republican ticket, and made a fine record; but since the expiry of his term he has devoted himself to private practice, in which his marked abilities have already won him a high reputation. Mr. Harrington was married January 1, 1887, to Miss Laura Belle Case, of Trumbull county, and has three children: Edward A. , Helen M. and Frank A.

Rev. Andrew Hays, one of the most widely and favorably known citizens of Wood county, has for over half a century been engaged in the work of the ministry. He was born in Hanover township, Beaver Co., Penn., May 6, 1818, and is a son of Henry and Hettie (Marshall) Hays, the former a native of Maryland, and the latter of Hancock county, W. Va. They were the parents of seven children - Louisa, who became the wife of John Wade, died in Richland county, Ohio, and was buried at Plymouth; Marshall, a tailor, of Fostoria, Ohio, died in 1890; James, who also died in Fostoria, was for forty-nine years a successful school teacher; Andrew is the next i n order of birth ; David is a wealthy citizen of Fostoria; Thomas, who died in that city, was the proprietor of the " Hays House;" and Sarah A. died while young. The mother of this family died in Pennsylvania, and in Beaver county, that State, the father wedded Jane McCormick, by whom he had a son - John, who passed away in Charlotte, Mich., after reaching manhood.

Henry Hays owned a good farm in Beaver county, Penn., where he was regarded as one of the substantial farmers of that section; but in the spring of 1834, resolved to come to Wood county, where with his family he arrived on May

1, making the journey in a covered wagon, where the boys slept at night. While cn route the family stopped in Richland county, Ohio, with a married daughter, Mrs. John Wade, and the father came on to enter his land. He secured 240 acres in Sections 20 and 29, Perry township, and then returned for his family. Nature was still undisturbed in this locality, and they had to cut their way through the dense timber to their home, where Mr. Hays died April 10, 1837, and was buried near Olive Branch church, in Hancock county. The funeral sermon, which was delivered by Wesley J. Brock, was among the first preached in the neighborhood. After it was over the minister offered to conduct services every two weeks if a place could be secured, and Mrs. John Chilcote offered her cabin home for the purpose. From that humble beginning sprang the beautiful edifice of Union Church, in Perry township. The father had served in the war of 1812, was a member of the convention held in Perry Center that organized Perry township in 1835, and was a Democrat in politics. He belonged to the Presbyterian Church, as did also Andrew's mother.

Andrew Hays was sixteen when he came to Wood county, and his primary education was secured in the disfrict schools of his native county. When he left Pennsylvania he was but an ordinary scholar, but, as work was quite plentiful in those pioneer days, he did not continue his literary studies for three or four years. After his conversion at the age of nineteen years, he began reading some, and his first instruction here was in the South Ridge school. Later he attended a more advanced school taught by Lemuel L. Gorsuch, and for one year was a student in the seminary at Norwalk, Ohio, which was among the first Methodist schools in the State. While there he was licensed as an exhorter, and in the winter of 1844-45 was licensed to preach, since which time he has been a local minister, the year 1895 ending his fifty-third year as an expounder of the Gospel.

At Fostoria, Ohio, October 24, 1844, Mr. Hays was united in marriage with Miss Caroline Thomas, who was born in Chartiers township, Washington Co., Penn., August 23, 1823, and was a daughter of Joseph Thomas, a pioneer of Hancock county. Four children blessed this union: Edwin R. and Lorin N. were both attorneys of Knoxville, Marion Co. , Iowa, where Edwin died February 26, 1896; Celestia died at the age of twenty-three years; and Emma B. is the wife of Edward Myers, of Tennessee. The mother of these children departed this life Sep- tember 28, 1872, and was buried in Fostoria. In that city, on October 17, 1873, Mr. Hays wedded Mrs. Jane Thomas, widow of Cyrus Thomas, who was killed during the Civil war. She was born January 8, 1843, and bore the maiden name of Jane York, daughter of Cyrus York, who was a native of Hardin county, Ky. By his second marriage Mr. Hays has a son, Norman M., born May 28, 1877.

Our subject went to housekeeping in a small log cabin on his farm, but it was a happy home, where good cheer always abounded, as it does in the more comfortable home of his later years. For many terms he taught school, receiving fifteen dollars per moth, and as low as twelve dollars, barely enough to supply the common necessities of life. However, he now has a good farm of 1 17 acres. During the war he supplied pulpits for miles around, has probably married more couples than any other minister in Wood county, and has officiated at over 1,000 funerals. He is well preserved for one of his years, both mentally and physically, has a very wide acquaintance throughout this territory, and is held in the highest regard by all who know him. His first Presidential vote was cast for William Henry Harrison, the Whig candidate. Being an Abolitionist from principle, he joined the Republican party on its organization, and now on account of his views on the temperance question he is a stanch Prohibitionist, believing it his Christian duty to do all in his power against the liquor traffic. He made the first Prohibition speech in Pefry township, and probably in Wood county, and for three or four years cast the only Prohibition vote in Perry township.