Canton Township (part 17 of 62)

ISRAEL G. TOLERTON is a native of Columbiana county, Ohio, born October 4, 1838, in the city of Salem, being the son of Robert and Zilpha Tolerton. The father, a native of County Antrim, Ireland, was brought to the United States by his parents when a small boy and grew to maturity in the town of Salem, marrying there when a young man Miss Zilpha Rozell Gaskill. who bore him three children, two of whom survive, the subject of this review^ and Frances A., wife of A. H. Phillips, of Columbiana county. Shortly after his marriage Robert Tolerton settled on a farm in the alxive county and from a small beginning gradually pushed to the front as an energetic agriculturist, becoming in a few years one of the largest land owners and successful real estate dealers in that section of the state. He possessed unusual business capacity and in addition to his agricultural and landed interests turned his attention to various other enter]5rises, becoming one of the heaviest stockholders in the Farmers National Bank of Salem, an institution to which he sustained the relation of director tor a number of years and to the success of which he contributed by his influence and able advice as well as by means of his financial investments. Mr. Tolerton was not only a successful financier and shrewd, farseeing man of affairs, but he was also a power in the politics in his part of the country, having been one of the leading Republicans of Columbiana county although the only one of his father's family to ally himself with that party. He manifested a lively interest in public matters, was instrumental in formulating and directing the policy of his party in local affairs and as a leader of opinion his influence was perhaps as great, if not greater, than that of any of his compeers. Born in the society of Friends, he remained a faithful and consistent member of the same to the end of his days, his life at all times corresponding with the plain, simple teachings in which he was reared. This able, resourceful business man and excellent citizen lived a long and useful life and had passed the age of four score when called from the scenes of his earthly labors in the year 1886. He left as the most enduring monument to perpetuate his memory a good name and an honorable reputation, both of which are still cherished not only by his immediate descendants but by the people among whom he so long associated and who profited so much by his helpful influence and material assistance.

The early life of Israel G. Tolerton was spent under the excellent infiuences of his parents' training and after completing the common branches he pursued the more advanced branches of learning for some years in the Salem Seminary, an educational institution of high repute, conducted by the Society of Friends. On attaining his majority he began his career as a teacher and after filling that line of work for three years abandoned the profession for the more satisfactory and remunerative vocation of agriculture. In i86_^ he chose a companion and helpmate in the person of Miss Esther Koll, daughter of the late Daniel Koll. of Salem, for many years a prominent business man and influential citizen of that city.

and immediately thereafter settled on a farm of one hundred and five acres in Columbiana county belonging to his father, which he cultivated until acquiring sufficient means to purchase the place.

Mr. Tolerton spent twenty-four busy and successful years on this farm, during which time he not only prosecuted agriculture with encouraging results but also devoted his attention largely to other means of acquiring wealth, among which were a grist-mill, a threshing machine, a cane-mill, and in addition to operating these he also dealt quite extensively in real estate and all kinds of live stock, realizing from all of his undertakings liberal financial gains. Mr. Tolerton inherited his father's resourceful nature and capacity for business and everything to which he addressed himself seems to have prospered. In order to find a larger field for the exercise of his talents he left the farm in 1887 and moved to Alliance where he engaged in the real estate business, investing his available capital in farm lands and city property, which, increasing in value with each recurring year, soon grew into a fortune of considerable magnitude. In 1888 he purchased a half interest with C. G. Burns in an enterprise for the manufacture of building blocks, drain and sewer pipe, drain tile, etc., which business, under the firm name of Burns & Tolerton. soon took its place ann)ng the most important of the city's industries. Subsequently he turned his interest in the concern over to his son, the late Edgar R. Tolerton, and buying out his partner, Mr. Burns, conducted the business for some time under the style of Tolerton & Son. Disposing of the machinery, the firm made a specialty in handling coal and timber and it was while dealing in these lines that the junior member. Edgar R., died in 18Q4, his younger brother, Howard D., succeeding to his interest that year. Six years after the latter date a complete planing-mill was added to the establishment, since which time the firm of Tolerton

& Son have done a large and flourishing business in that line, in addition to which they also deal extensi\eh' in all kinds of plain and finished hnnher and building material, wood and coal. etc.

]\Ir. Tolerton, in 1892, took an active part in establishing the City Savings Bank of Alliance and upon the organization of the institution he was made a member of the discount board. Subsequently, 1897, he succeeded C. C. Davidson as vice-president of the bank and this position he has since held, discharging the duties of the same in an able, business-like manner which implies a practical knowledge of banking and a familiarity witli financial questions in' their relation to the commercial and industrial interests of the country. While essentially a busmess man, and as such easily the peer of any of his c^jntemporaries, Mr. Tolerton has always exhibited a commendal^le pul)- lic spirit and a pardonable pride in everything relating to the material prosperity, social improvement and moral and intellectual advancement of the city of his residence.

Mr. and Mrs. Tolerton are the parents of six children, only three of whom are living, namely: Rose, wife of J- C. Northend, of Canton; Howard D., his father's business partner, and Martha J., who is the wife of S. A. Kinsey, of the firm of Walse & Kinsey, shoe dealers. Mr. Tolerton is a birth-right member of the Society of Friends, but of recent years he has attended the Disciple church of Alliance. With him religion is largely a matter of conscience and to li\e according to one's best light and do as he would be done by, is his best and most comprehensive creed.

HORACE G. McDowell was born on the farm where he now resides. September 7, 1853. His father was James McDowell, born September 9. 1809. in Cinnberland county.

Pennsylvania, and his mother's maiden name was Elizabeth Hildenbrand, born in what is now Jackson township, then Plain township, Stark county, Ohio, in 1812. They were married in April. 1836, in Stark county, and immediately settled upon the farm where the subject now resides. She died in Noveml)er,i868, and he in February, 1900, on tlie same farm whereon they settled at the time of their niarriag^e, he being at the time of his death in his eighty-first year. They were the parents of eight children, viz.: Henry, deceased; Margaret, wife of Hiram \V. Firestone, both now deceased; James K., a farmer of Jackson township; Adam C. cashier of the Farmers' Bank at Canton; Thomas C. was the leading spirit in the organization of the Farmers' Bank of Canton in 1874, but is now deceased ; Elizabeth, deceased; Horace G., the subject of this sketch, and Sarah, deceased.

Upon the farm whereon he was born and where he now resides Horace G. McDowell was reared. His life was devoid of other interest than that which fills up the measure of boyhood life g^enerally on the farm. He attended the common schools and the knowledge and information which he secured through them speak well for his intelligence, industry and assiduity. In 1874 he began teaching school in his native township, but followed that calling only two winters. Even as a boy he was deeply interested in the work of the farm and the raising of stock and having aljandoned the calling of an instructor, applied himself more closely to agricultural pursuits. Li 1885 he became acting cashier of the Farmers' Bank of Canton and served in that capacity for two years and on the death of his brother, Thomas C he was elected cashier and a member of the Iward of directors. For five years he performed the duties of that position, when, becoming weary of the confinement, responsibility and nervous strain which financial positions always entail, he sold his interest and resigned his position

On April 14, 1887, Horace G. McDowell was united in marriage to Miss Huber, a native of Plain township, bom April 22, 1868. She was a lady of intelligence, refinement, good education and many accomplishments, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ulrich Huber, who were among the oldest settlers of the county. To Mr. and Mrs. McDowell four children ha\e been lx)rn, viz. : James H., Thomas C, Beulah M. and Horace G.. Jr-

During his lifetime, James McDowell, father of the subject, was an extensive breeder and feeder of stock of all kinds, but for many years made a specialty of sheep. A flock of the famous Dickinson Spanish Merino sheep was raised by him which was of such excellent quality that a national register was established for it in 1894, it being mainly through the efforts of the subject that the register was secured. His farm consists of six hundred and forty acres, improved to the highest degree and supplied with every necessary appliance which modern invention has produced. The buildings are all that could be desired for a farm so large, well stocked and amply equipped. Few residences in the smaller cities of the state are as handsome, well finished and richly furnished as is the splendid home upon the McDowell farm. The barn for such a farm must necessarily be large, but it is in tlie arrangement, ventilation, provisions made to promote cleanliness and the convenience of every detail that this substantial structure which adorns this farm excells. After viewing the premises one cannot but commend the judgment of Mr. Mc- Dowell in escaping from behind the bank counter and taking up the life of the agriculturist. He always keeps a flock of from five hundred to one thousand head of sheep of the breed referred to above, and also breeds on an extensive scaie polled Jersey and Shorthorn

In politics, up to 1888, Mr. McDowell affiliated with the Democratic party and took a very active part in pulilic affairs. That year determined him to become a Republican and each successive year since then has still more firmly welded him to that party. He identifies himself with no religious denomination, but commends the good in every religious creed and devotes a snug sum each year out of his income to charitable and religious purposes. For many years he has been a member of the Grange, but has never joined any other fraternal order. He is secretary of th« Dickinson Merino Sheep Record Company, vice-president of the Farmers' Bank of Canton and has been a member of the board of directors of the bank for several years. As his career indicates, he is a student not only of letters and of men, but of life in every form, particularly in the animal kingdom. Personally he is genial and kind, approachable and hospitable, one of those successful men in whom inordinate vanity has not been engendered because of the splendid application they have made of the gifts which nature bestowed upon them. In his case the opportunity to succeed may not have sought the man, but most certainly the man sought and took advantage of the opportunity. He has been on the board of education of Plain township for eight years, and it at present president of the board.

D. E. ROGERS. - The spirit of a pure, noble and earnest life burned in the mortal tenement of the late D. E. Rogers, than whom no more able young attorney was ever engaged in practice at the bar of Stark county, and when he was called from the scene of life's labors in the very flower of his manhood all who had known him or of him felt that the ways of Providence was indeed inscrutable, while in his home city of Alliance there was manifest an almost uniform sense of personal bereavement. In this publication no better tribute can perhaps be paid than that which appeared, at the time of his death, in the columns of the Alliance Daily Review of January Id, 1903, his death having occurred on the preceding day.

" 'Death loves a shining mark,' and Thursday evening, at fifteen minutes past seven o'clock, came the inexorable summons to D. E. Rogers, one of tlie most brilliant attorneys who e\er practiced in Alliance. On Saturday, December 27, Mr. Rogers was suddenly bereft of reason while attending the hearing of an equity case in Youngstovvn. He was. brought to his home in Alliance and given every possible care. His trouble could not be accurately diagnosed, but all of his friends were of the opinion that he was suffering from overwork. He was kept here a few days and then sent to a private sanitarium at Cuyahoga Falls for treatment. Here the specialists decided that he was suffering from anemia of the brain, the nerve cells of the brain not receiving adequate nourishment from the blood and thus causing" the collapse. Tiie specialist gave slight hope of his ultimate recovery, and on Thursday afternoon he began to sink, and a few hours later he died, with his faithful and heartbroken wife by his side. His death was not unexpected, but its announcement was met with universal regret. As a man J\Ir. Rogers stood high in the estimation of his fellows. Bold and fearless in the advocacy of his convictions, he stood out from the common run of men as one who acted on principle from principle. He was a public speaker of ability and a politician of power. As an orator few men of his age could surpass him. and as a logical thinker he took rank among the highest. His early education was of the common school order, but from the time of his graduation he was an indefatigable student, interested in scientific and theoretic subjects to an unusual degree, and it is possii)le that his early demise is due m some measure to his proclivity for reading heavy literature. Poring over such authors as Darwin and Huxley and works on psychological subject robbed him of many a night's rest, until at last nature cried out in distress, snapi)ing the golden cord of life. He is survived by his wife and one son, Floyd, aged eleven years.'"

In its editorial columns of the same issue the Review spoke in part as follows : "In the death of D. E. Rogers Alliance loses a man of the highest moral worth - one whose daily life was an ispiration to all who are trying to lead Chrisrian lives. Of the firmest belief in the teachings of the lowly Nazarene, he ever labored to bring others to repentance, that they also might receive the promised reward of a life well and truly spent. Of unquestioned ability, integrity and worth, he received at the hands of his fellowmen just recogition in business and social affairs. He was a leader among men. 'His life was gentle, and the elements so mixed in him that nature might stand up and say to all the world. "This was a man !" ' "

D. E. Rogers was born in Randolph. Portage county, Ohio, on the i6th of May, 1 868, being the son of Volney and ^lary E. (Perkins) Rogers, both of whom were natives of Ohio. He was strong in his convictions and permitted no compromise Avith conscience in thought, word or deed, but lie understood the wellsprings of human sentiment and action and was thus ever tolerant in his judgment of others. After availing himself of such educational advantages as were afforded in the public schools of his nati\e town Mr. Rogers entered the commercial department of the Normal University at .\da, Hardin county, where he was graduated as a member of the class of 1886. He had previously been associated with his father in the stock business, in which connection he gained valuable experience, while he early manifested

After leaving school he began reading law in the office of John H. Dussel, of Ravenna, and in October, 1890, upon examination, he was duly admitted to the bar of the state. He began the practice of his profession in company with his former preceptor, and later, in 1893, entered into partnership with Sheldon F. Hanselman, of Ravenna. Upon the formation of this partnership he went to Alliance, where he opened an office, under the firm name of Hanselman & Rogers, his partner still remaining in Ravenna, and this alliance continued about three years, at the expiration of which time the partnership was dissolved, Mr. Rogers thereafter continuing the office in his own name.

In March, 1898, William L. Hart was admitted to partnership, and thereafter the firm was known as Rogers & Hart until the death of its senior member. Mr. Rogers was elected to the office of city solicitor of Alliance in 1898 and served consecutively until the spring of igo2. In this exacting position he distinguished himself by his remarkable knowledge of municipal law. Of his labors in this connection the Alliance Review gives the following appreciative estimate : "He performed the duties of the office as he saw them, and that without fear or favor, and he was especially zealous in his efforts to prevent the illegal or ill-advised expenditure of the city's funds. In doing this he was frequently brought into controversy with the entire council. He never flinched, however, and maintained his position against all odds. When he was elected solicitor the city was engaged in litigation in nearly all courts, and when he retired there was not a case on any docket. His wise and conservative rulings not only secured the settlement of suits but also averted many which might have been started."

In politics Mr. Rogers was a stalwart supporter of the Republican party, and he did much efl:'ective work in behalf of the party cause, in which line his services as a public speaker on the issues of the day were in frequent requisition. Fraternally he was identified with Conrad Lodge No. 271, Free and Accepted Masons; Lone Rock Lodge No. 23, Knights of Pythias; the Junior Order of United American Mechanics; and the Alliance Camp No. 4688, Modern Woodmen of America. In these social organizations his genial personality made him most popular, as did it in all the relations and walks of life, while he invariably commanded the respect of all with whom he came in contact, no matter how conflicting their views on various subjects. His was a fine and well balanced mentality and his erudition was broad and comprehensive, as the result of constant study and research.

The tribute from which we have previously quoted continues as follows : "He was in constant demand as a public speaker, owing to hfs great ability as an orator and his high standing as a scholar. Rarely a week passed that he did not have a call from some source to deliver a lecture on biblical subjects. He also delivered many lectures in the interest of the Anti-Saloon League, which represented a movement with which his well known principles naturally allied him. In his church work he was constant and earnest, following the tithing plan in his support of the church, that is, diverting one-tenth of his income to religious work." He was for nearly five years superintendent of the Sunday school of the First Methodist Episcopal church, with which he identified himself upon coming to Alliance, and he retired from this office to accept a position as teacher of the largest class of young ladies in the school, continuing as their instructor until the time of his final illness.

On the 2 1 St of December, 1890, Mr. Rogers was united in marriage to Miss Florence M. York, who was lx)rn and reared in Randolph, Portage county, being, a daughter of John B.

SAMUEL SELL was born in the midst of the primitive forest of Osnaburg township, this county, on the 14th of January, 182 1, the home in which he was born having been a rude cabin of round logs, with clapboard doors fitted with wooden hinges and the customary latch string of the pioneer tlays. His father, David Sell, was a millwright by trade, and as there were two others of exactly the same name he was customarily referred to as David Sell the millwright. He was bom in Adams county, Pennsylvania, in 1789. and was there reared to manhood, learning the trades of millwright and cabinetmaker. He first came to Ohio in the year 1809, and for a time lived in the home c^f Da\iil Bachtel, in Canton township, this county. He then returned to Peimsylvania. where he remamed until 181 1, when, in company witli his three brothers, he again came to Stark county, all settling on wild land east of Canton, which was then a straggling village in the midst of the virgin forest. In 18 14 there came to the county, from a point near Reading, Berks county, Pennsylvania, Lewis Moon and his family, and at a neighborhood flax-pulling it was the privilege of the father of our subject to form the acquaintance of Miss Elizabeth Moon, a daughter of the pioneer mentioned, and the outcome was that this acquaintance ripened into mutual affection and regard, and soon the community witnessetl the marriage of the two young folks, who began their married life in the woods of Osnaburg township, where Mr. Sell had secured a small tract of land, upon which no impro\-ements had been made. He erected the first mill in that section of the coimty, and there passed the remainder of his life, his death occurring in 1835. while thereafter his widow and sons remained on the farm, which they developed and improved. Both he and his wife were devoted members of the German Reformed church, and in politics he was a stanch advocate of the principles of the Democratic party. He was a man of fine mental gifts, having lieen well educated in both English and German, and he was honored by all who knew him, while his influence was ever exerted in behalf of the advancement of the community along all mora! and legitimate lines. His wife was summoned into eternal rest at the age of seventy-seven years, her death having occurred on the old homestead. Of their eight children we enter the following data : Christina married Samuel Shultz and is now deceased; Samuel, subject of this sketch, was the next in order of birth ; John, who is now eightyone years of age, still resides in Osnaburg township; Catherine is the wife of John Sheffer, of Louisville, this cnunty ; David died in the prime of manhaotl ; Lewis died in April, 1903; Daniel died in his seventy-fourth year; Elizabeth died in childhood; and Jacob is a resident of Wayne c<iunty, Ohio.

Samuel Sell was reared to the strenuous discipline <)f the pioneer farm upon which he was l>orn. and was but fourteen years of age at the time of his father's death, and upon him and his elder brother fell the greater portion of the responsibility of carrying on the farm work from th.it time. His scholastic training was limited to an attendance in the primitive log school-house of the locality, where he pursued his studies during the three-months winter terms for eight years, but thereafter his ambition and appreciation led him to individually continue his application at home, where he often studied after the day's work until one or two o'clock in the morning. When but ten years of age he began to assist in the work of clearing and otherwise improving the home-

On the 25th of January, 1849, Air. Sell was united in marriage to Miss Catherine Reed, daughter of Jacob Reed, commonly known as Captain Reed, who came to Stark county from Berks county, Pennsylvania, in 1840. He was a fine marksman with the rifle, as was also the subject, and they participated in many contests to determine their respective skill. Mr. Sell was known as an enthusiastic and successful hunter in his day, and brought down much game, which was then plentiful. It is a matter of record that he killed twenty-one 'squirrels in twenty-two shots, and in the various contests in the county, where hogs, turkeys and other such trophies were offered as prizes for the best markmanship, he won many such rewards.

After his marriage Mr. Sell located on onehalf of the old homestead farm, which included one hundred and sixty acres, and he cleared and improved his portion, becoming one of the successful farmers of the locality and there continued to reside for the long period of thirty-three years, having disposed of the property m 1882, while he had taken up his residence in his present home in Canton the preceding year, and here he has since lived retired. In politics he is a stalwart Republican, and while living on the farm he served for many years as township trustee, being held in the highest regard in the community and having the confidence of all who knew him. He is a member of the German Reformed church, as was also his cherished and devoted wife, who remained his companion and helpmate for nearly a half century, being summoned into eternal rest on the loth of March, 1893, her gentle and noble womanhood having endeared her to a wide circle of friends. Of her six children four survive: Mary A., who is the wife of Daniel Tice, of Osnaburg township; Sarah A., whoremains with her father; Ellen, who is the wife of John Byler, of Nimishillen township, this county; and Wallace, who resides with his father. Oliver died at the age of thirty-eight years and Emeline at the age of twenty.

JOHN A. SCHELLHASE. - Among the worth}^ and honored citizens of Canton who have fought their way to success through individual effort is Mr. Schellhase, who conducts a large and prosperous business as a maiuifacturer of and dealer in wagons, buggies, carriages and spring wagons, while he also makes a specialty of wagon and carriage smithing, horseshoeing and general repairing in wood and iron, his well-equipped shop being located at 114-116 Commerce street. When Mr. Schellhase came to Canton, in 1874, his capitalistic resources were represented in the sum of about seven and one-half dollars, and within the quarter of a century which has elapsed he has gained precedence as one of the progressive and influential business men of the county and is in control of an enterprise which gives him a place in the representative industrial circles of the city of Canton. Upon locating in Canton, Mr. Schellhase rented a small room and started a modest shop in the handling of all kinds of repairs upon vehicles. This shop was located on East Fourth street, was sixteen by twenty feet in dimensions and had previously been known as the Joshua (jibbs plow shop. There he continued operations until 1877, and within the intervening time he had saved enough money to enable him to make the purchase of a city lot, a partial payment lieing- made on the same. In 1876 he erected a residence on this lot, at 1 014 Washington avenue, this lieing at that time considered a practical suburban section of the city, but few houses having been erected on the street, and our subject recalls the fact that at the time he took up his abode in his new domicile the view from the same through to North street was entirelv unob- stracted by bniklmu-s. In 1877 he closed his wagon sliup and accepted a position in the wood-working department of the shops of the C. Aultman Company, mannfactnrers of agricultural machinery, and thereafter he continued in the employ of this concern for a period of eleven years. In 1888 he entered the employ of the Banner Manufacturing Company, but shortly afterward he was prevailed upon to again establish himself in an independent business and to lease, frx3m Henry Bierwirth, Jr., a portion of the ground on which his present shop is located. His cash capital aggregated only one hundred and twenty-hve dollars at the time, but he was reinforced by a thorough knowledge of his trade, being a skilled workman, antl l)v an indomitable energy and that self-reliance of which success is the natural concomitant. On his leased land he erected a small frame building, having in \'iew' the plan that if his \enture did not succeed according to his expectations, he could remove the building to anothen location and convert the s'ame into a dwelling. His first year's business proved most gratifying, and instead of transforming his shop into a residence he found it practically imperative to make an addition to the same in order to properly accommodate his increasing Inisiness. At this time he effected the purciiase of one-half of the ground now owned and utilized, and erected a two-story building, thirty-eight 1)_\' thirty-two feet in dimensions, \\hile he here established a painting and trimming de])artment to his enterprise, which had formerly consisted only of iron and wood work. Later he purcliased his present blacksmith shop, which was originally a onestory liuilding, the second story having been added by him to meet the demands placed upon the business, and his ])resent plant has an aggregate frontage of eighty feet, on Commerce street, with a depth of forty feet, while the buildings are all two stories in height and of substantial order. In the blacksmith shop Mr.

Schellhase employs one jnan who devotes his entire attention to wagon and carriage smithing, and another whose time is given to horseshc^ieing. while during the major portion of the \ear the corps of employes numbers about se\en skilled operatives. Mr. Schellhase still resides in the home on Washington avenue, in what is now one of the thickly settled sections of the city, marked by attractive and valuable homes, and upon his own original dwelling he has made many improvements, so that it is one of the pleasant residence properties in this division of the city. He is also the owner of two other city lots and another dwelling, which he rents, and he is known as a loyal and progressive citizen, taking a deep interest in all that concerns the welfare of the place in w hich he has so long made his home and in which he has attained so noteworthy success through well directed endeavor, while he commands the unqualified esteem of all who know him.

John A. Schellhase comes of stanch German lineage and is a native of the old Keystone state of the Union, ha\'ing been born in Chambersburg, Franklin county, Pennsxhania. on the 2 1st of July, 1852. There he attended the public schools until he had attained the age of fourteen years, when he entered upon an apprenticeship at the trade of wagon and carriage making, receiving his instruction tinder the direction of his uncle, John A. Schellhase, at Staufiferstown, a small village in his nati\e county. In 1872 he started forth as a journeyman, proceeding to Indiana in search of employment, and there remaining until the tVillowing year. In the autumn of 1873 he returned home and there remained until the following spring, when he again set forth to seek a position, and finding nothing promising came to Canton and started his little independent business enter])rise, as has been already noted in this cc^ntext, as have also the successive stages in his business career from that time forward. In politics Mr. Schellhase is a stanch advocate of the specific principles achanced by the Prohibition party, wliile he has also given his support at times to the Labor party, being- independent of strict partisan dictates. He is a prominent and \alued member of Trinity Reformed clnnxdi, in which he is incumbent of the office of deacon, his wife likewise being a devoted member. Fraternally he is identified with the Knights and Ladies of Security, of the local organization of which he has been treasurer for the past fifteen years.

Adam Schellhase, the father of the subject, was born in Hesse-Cassel, Germany, in the year 1832, and when seventeen years of age he came to the United States, settling near Chambersburg, state of Pennsylvania, where he still maintains his home. He is a wagonmaker iiy trade and was actively engaged in the work of the same for fully thirty years. His wife, whose maiden name was Elizabeth Berger, was likewise born in Germany, in the year 1836, and both are worthy members of the Reformed church. They became the parents of twelve children, of whom eleven are still living.

In the city of Canton, on the i8th of May, 1876. was solemnized the marriage of John A. Schellhase to Miss Emma E. Riegler, who was born in Canton, being' a daughter of George and Elizalieth Riegler, and of this union ha\e been born two children, Flora, wdio remains at the parental home, and Hattie, who is the wife of C^harles Barker, of Canton.

CHARLES W. KEPLINGER. - The Keplinger family in America appeaiis to have had its origin in Pennsyh-ania. in various parts o[ which state the name has been familiar from a very early day. Daniel Keplinger, the subject's grandfather, a native of Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, migrated to Stark county. Ohio, prior to the year 1833 and settled on a farm in Osnaburg township, where he lived for some time as an industrious tiller of the soil.

subsequently remo\-ing to the county of Crawford. There he became a man of considerable local note, having been elected to the oftice of sheriff, in which position he was serving his second term, when accidentally killed by beingthrown from his buggy while in the discharge of his oihcial duties. He married and had eight children, four sons and four daughters, the eldest of whom was Jacob, the father of the subject of this review. Jacob Keplinger w-as born and reared in Stark county, Ohio, grew to maturity on his father's farm and received such educational training as the common schools could impart. When a young man he engaged in railroad work and has been identified with that business ever since, having spent over forty-six years in the employ of the Penns}-l\ania Company, din-ing the greater part of which time his residence has been at Ft. Wayne, Lidiana, where he now lives. He is one of the oldest and most experienced as well as one of the most trusted employes of that large and influential system, standing high in the confidence of his superiors and dis(iharging worthily every trust reposed in him by those in authority. Jacob Keplinger married Elizabeth Carper and is the father of nine children, the subject of this sketch being the oldest of the number.

Charles W. Keplinger was born September 12, 1859. in Ft. Wayne, Lidiana, and spent his childliood and }-outh in that city, acquiring a fair educational discipline in the graded schools. When a lad of fifteen he entered the eniploy of George Dewald, a prominent merchant of Ft. Wayne, and was soon made bookkeeper of the establishment, which posititin he held with credit to himself and satisfaction to all concerned for a period of five years, when he resigned and came to Canton. Here he became bookkeeper in Isaac Harter & Sons' bank and after continuing in that capacity during the twelve 3-ears ensuing, was promoted cashier, which responsible position he is holding at the present time. Diu'ing the }ears of his connec- tion with the bank tlie affairs of the institution have lieen most creiUtably managed and not a htlle of its popularity and success are due to the able and satisfactory manner in which he has discharged his official functions. Mr. Keplinger is an accomplished business man. famdiar with e\'ery dctad oi Ijanking. and as a financier ranks with the ablest of his compeers.

In additiiMi to his connection with tlie banking business. .Mr. Keplinger is identified with several other industries, being a director in the Metropolitan r'a\ing Brick Company, a director of the Canton Artificial Ice Company, in which he also hijlds the two-fold ofiice of secretarv and treasurer, besides ha\ing large interests in the Canton I'ole and Shaft Company and the Canton Hard Rubber Coni[)any. His life has been a very busy one and that it has also been crowned with a large measure of success is attest e<l by his present important ])ositions in financial ami manufacturing circles. Mr. Ke])- lin,ger is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and of the Masonic fraternity. In matters religious he subscribes to the Lutheran creed. Iiimselt and wife belonging to Trinity church. Canton, of which he is a member of the board of trustees. In his political \iews he is a Democrat.

The marriage of Mr. Keplinger and Miss Fannie Barr, daughter of Dr. P. H. Barr. of Canton, was celebrated in the year 1885. the union resulting in the birth of two sons. Roliert and lohn M.

WILLIAM H. HOOVER was born in Plain township, August 18. 1849. His parents were Daniel and Mary (Kryder) Hoover, residents of Plain township, to which place they moved in 1827 from their native state of Pennsylvania. Like many another man who has accomplished a noble work in life, William LI. Hoover spent his youth upon the farm, performing each day's duties with a promptness and energy- that gave assurance of some of the characteristics which have made his life successful. His education was procured in the common schools and at Mt. Union College. When he began working for himself he devoted the first year to farming. He then went into, the tannery at Hoover's Cross Roads, where he remained some three years, becoming famiiiar with every detail of the business. About this time the tannery of John Lind, at New Berlin, was offered for sale and after some negotiations he succeeded in making the purchase. For the next fifteen years he devoted himself most assiduously to the operation of this tannery, steadily increasing the capacity of the plant. In the meantime he branched out in another line, one perfectly compatible with the tanning business. He manufactures, on quite an extensive scale, horse collars and patent leather saddlery goods, giving steady employment to about two hundred men. This business was incorporated January i, 1903, and is now operating as the W. H. Hoover Company. In addition to all of the other work he had on hand he became largely interested and. as is admitted by those who know, instrumental in the building of the electric line of railroad, known as the Canton & Akron Railroad, and running between Canton and Akron. He was elected president of the company, in which capacity he has served up to the present time.

Mr. Hoover was united in marriage. November 21, 1871, to Miss Susan Troxel, a native of Plain township, a lady of many accomplishments and excellent judgment. Her ])arents were Peter and Catharine Troxel. both of whom are now deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Hoover are the parents of six children, viz. : Mary, Carrie, Herbert, Frank. Daniel and Alice. Mary is the wife of Harley Price; Alice died when six years old and Carrie is married to George C. Berkey. .Ml ha\e received a good

In all local affairs and matters calculated to advance the interests of the community, Mr. Hoover is deeply interested. To secure his aid and influence to any enterprise it is only necessary to convince him of its benefit to the community. In the education of the young he is especially interested, and that he might be in a position to better know the wants and supply the needs of the schools, he consented to be made a member of the New Berlin school board and has served in that capacity many years. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity, and of the Maccabees, and of the Knights of Pythias. His is indeed a busy life and with all of his vast and varied interests demanding his personal attention and supervision it is surprising how he finds time for necessary repose. A small part of the work which he accomplishes each month would afilict an ordinary individual with nervous prostration. The secret of his getting through it without difficulty, even with ease, is found in the systematic, methodical methods of the man. It is by the energy, influence and ability of such men that communities are built up.

HOWARD DANIEL TOLERTON, a member of the firm of I. G. Tolerton & Son, dealers in coal, lumber, building material, also proprietors of a large planing mill, is one of the leading business men of Alliance and as such enjoys worthy prestige among the most enterprising and successful of his compeers. He is the second son of Israel G. and Esther K. Tollerton, whose family history will be found elsewhere in these pages, and was born in Knox township, Columbiana county, Ohio, on April 19, 1872. The time prior to his fourteenth year he spent on the family homestead in Knox township and as soon as old enough was assigned his duties in the field, spending his winters the meanwhile in the public schools of the neighborhood. In 1887, when his parents left the farm and moved to Alliance, young Howard entered the city schools with the object in view of fitting himself for a college course and he had all arrangements perfected to this end when the deatli of his elder brother materially interfered with his plans for acquiring a higher education. Meantime, 1892, he entered his father's office as the latter's assistant and when not attending school continued in a clerical capacity until July, 1890, when, by reason of his elder brother's death, he was made full partner in the firm of I. G. Tolerton & Son, succeeding the deceased brother in that relation.

Mr. Tolerton's early experience in business affairs under the able tutelage of his father, proved a valuable preparation for the responsiWe duties which he subsequently assumed as a partner, and since becoming a member of the firm his career has been a series of continual successes, more than meeting his own expectations and fully justifying the confidence which his father and others had formerly reposed in him. The business with which he is identified and the management of which rests very largely upon his shoulders is the largest of the kind in Alliance and under his personal supervision it is constantly growing in magnitude and importance, not only in the city but throughout a large area of surrounding country as well. Mr. Tolerton is an accomplished business man, and is recognized by all who know him as one of the most influential citizens of the community in which he lives. For several years he was engaged quite extensively in the real estate business, but recently he has devoted his attention mainly to the interests of the hrm of which he is a member, with the result that it has steadily grown in public favor and won the high reputation it now sustains in the commercial and industrial circles of this part of the state. Mr. Tolerton is a stanch

On December 24, 1896, Mr. Tolerton was happily married to Miss Minnie E. Aiken, daughter of William Aiken, a retired contractor of Alliance, and his home is now brightened by the presence of two children, Robert I., born April 24, 1900, and Mary E., whose birth occurred on the 25th of November, 190 1. In his religious belief Mr. Tolerton is a Methodist, being a member and a trustee of the church in Alliance, his wife also belonging to the same congregation. His interest in the social life of the city has been marked and few have exercised a more helpful influence in bringing its moral status up to the high standard for which it is now distinguished. He is a leading spirit in the Duodecemverate Club, an exclusive social organization into which none but men of good character, correct deportment and exceptionable standing are admitted, and in addition to this agency he gives an unwavering support to all movements for the betterment of social conditions generally. Mr. Tolerton has worthily upheld an honored ancestral name and in every relation of life has been faithful to duty, loyal in his friendship and devoted to principal.

THOMAS B. ALBERT. - Jacob Albert, grandfather of the subject of this sketch, was born in the city of Baltimore, Maryland, in whicli locality the family was founded in the colonial days. Jacob Albert was reared to manhood in his native state anfl there learned the trade ot- locksmith and gunsmith, while as a young man he removed to Hagerstown, Marvland, where he continued to reside until about 1B23, when he came \\ith his family to Oliio and took up a tract of land in Pike township. Stark county, where he reclaimed a farm in the midst of the svlvan wilds and where he continued to reside for a number of years, e\entually removing to Medina county, this state, \\here he continued to devote his attention to agricultural pursuits, attaining notal)le longevity and there passing to his reward about 1S49, ''^ tli^ ^§'s ^^ ninety years, his wife having died while residing in Pike township. Their son, Elias D., father of the subject, was born in Hagerstown, Maryland, in the ^-ear 1809, and was thus about fourteen years of age at the time of his parents" removal to Stark county, in 1823. and he grew to matttrity under the stiu'dy discipline of the pioneer farm, while lie attended the primitive schools of the neighborhood during the winter terms, when his services were not in requisition at home. .\s a young man he came to the village of Canton, where he served an apprenticeship at the trade of hatmaking, and after completing this apprenticeship he went to Roscoe, Coshocton ciMinty, where he remained for a few years, within which time he married. He then returned to Cantnii and here erected a two-story brick building, on the site of the present George D. Harter Bank, having sold the property to Mr. Harter aboiu the year 1863. in this building he established himself in the btisiness as a manufacturer of hats, utili?ing' the ground floor for this piu"- pose, while the second floor was fitted up as his official headquarters in his capacity of justice of the peace, to which office he was elected soon after his rettirn to Canton, while he remained incumbent of the same for the li>ng period of twenty-one years, practically in a consecutive service. Upon selling his business building he retired from active labors and alnmt two years before his decease moved tp a farm on the then outskirts of Canton, on what is now Jackson street, in the southwestern part of the city, where he resided until liis death, in 1883. at the age of seventy-four years, lie was n mm of fine mentality and sterling integritv and was honored by all who knew him. In ])olitics he was a stanch advocate of the principles of the Democratic party and his rehgious faith was that of the Universahst church, of whicli his wife also was a devoted member. While at Roscoe, Coshocton county, was solemnized his marriage to Miss Mai'garet Speaks, who was born at Harper's Ferry, Virginia. After the decease of her parents, she came to Roscoe, Coshocton county, Ohio. She died in Canton in the year 1869. Of the children of this union we enter the following brief record : Caroline died in childhood ; Elizabeth, who became the wife of George Gibbs, died in Santa Rosa, Califormia ; Thomas B., the immediate subject of this review, was the next in order of birth; Emma died in childhood, and Manford, who married Miss Josephine Muller, died in the state of Mississippi, in 1S9.3, his home having been at Bradford, Pennsylvania.

Thomas B. Albert was born on East Tuscarawas street. Canton, on the 14th of August, 1837, the residence having been on the site of the present Bauhoff bakery. At the proper age he beg^an his studies in the public schools and eventually completed the course in the high school, being studious and appreciative and thus fully availing himself of the advantages thus afforded him. As a boy he began to assist in his father's hat factory, and became familiar with all details of the business, having perfected himself in the practical work of the trade by his services at irregular intervals. About 1857, when twenty years of age, he initiated his independent business career by opening a hat store in a building on the west side of the Public Square, \vhere he conducted a successful enterprise for two years, at the expiration of which he disposed of the business and went to the city of (New York, where he became manager of the fur department in the wholesale establishment of Justice, Coller & Company. This firm became iiisdKcnt about six months later and Mr. Albert then engaged with the house of Nichols,

Burtnett & Company, manufactures of ladies' furs, at 51 Maiden Lane, continuing in the employ of this concern until the autumn of 1865, when he became associated with others in the establishing a hat factory and store, under the firm name of Wheaton, Albert & Company, the factory being located in the city of Newark, New Jersey, which has e\er been a center for this line of industry, while the New York store of the concern was located at the corner of Broome and Mercer streets. In 1869, owing to his impaired health, Mr. Albert disposed of his interests in this business, and in 1870 he came again to Ohio and opened three retail stores for the handling of hats and general lines of men's furnishings, while merchant tailoring was also made a department of each, the establishments being located respectively in Canton, Akron and Youngstown. Mr. Albert returned to the national metropolis, where he remained as purchasing agent for the three stores. In 1879 he disposed of the establishments and in the following year returned to Canton, and here, in 1886, he engaged in the real-estate business, opening an ofifice over the Sollman drug store. Later he became associatel with Charles W. Strohn in the purchase of the Rex property at the corner of Rex and East Tuscarav.'as street, and to that location he removed his ofifice in 1890, and in April of the year 1901, having disposed of the Rex street property, he established himself in his present quarters, in the Folwell buildii^, ha\'ing built up a large and representative business, many desirable investments being at all times recorded in his lists, while he is known as an excellent judge of realty values and as a man upon whose judgment, fidelity and inviolable integrity absolute dependence may be placed, so that success has come to him with popular appreciation and approval. Though never an aspirant for political preferment he has ever accorded a stanch allegiance to the in the city of (.."anton, on the 9th of I'ebruary, 1876, Air. Albert was united in marriage to Miss Mary G. Renick, who died October 25th of the .same }ear. On the 12th of October, 1889. he wedded Miss Edith M. Spicer, who was born in New York City, and who is a representative of fine old Knickerbocker stock in the state of New York, while many of her ancestors and collateral relatives have attained distinction in public and civic life. Her paternal grandfather, General Peter W. Spicer, was a midshipman in the navy during the war of 1S12, and he died in Springfield, Illinois, whither he had been sent on a private commissiim by President -Jack-son, and during his last illness he was nursed b_\' Mrs. Herndon, mother of Richard Herndon. well known as the law partner of President Lincoln in the early days of his professional career in Illinois. The wife of General Spicer was a daughter of General John Meade, who won distinction as an officer in the war of the Revolution, while he was also one of the eminent public men of the state of Connecticut. The original ancestors of the Spicer family in America were two brothers who emigrated hither, from Holland in the early colonial epoch. Commodore William F. Spicer, of the United States navy, was an uncle of Mrs. Albert. She is a daughter of John W. and Ellen (Mansfield) Spicer, both of whom were born in New York city, where Mr. Spicer was engaged in mercantile pursuits during the greater portion of his active and distinctively successful business career. He served with gallantry as first lieutenant in the Seventh New York Volunteer Infantry during the war of the Rebellion. Mrs. Albert is a woman of gracious presence and distinctive refinement and the family home is a center of marked hospitality. Mr. and Mrs. Albert have four children, namely: Margaret Mansfield, Edith Spicer, Rudi Benton and Nellie Randolph, all of whom remain at the parental home.

REV. JACOB D. WYANDT comes of stanch German extraction in the agnatic line, the family having been founded in the state of Pennsylvania in the colonial epoch of our national history. He was born on a farm in Sugar Creek township, Stark county, Ohio, on the 1 8th of October, 1859, being a son of David and Mary (Fribley) Wyandt. His father was born on the farm on which is located the present thriving village of Wilmot, in Sugar Creek township, in the year 1820, being a son of Henry Wyandt, who emigrated from Pennsylvania to this county in the early pioneer days, as did also his brother Christian W., and on the land which they here secured was later established the village mentioned, while both passed the remainder of their lives in this township, being numbered among the influential men in the pioneer settlement. Henry Wyandt married Miss Elizabeth W'arner, who was a first cousin of William Henry Harrison, and she likewise died in the village of W'ilmot. having been a true type of the noble women who played so important a part in the early settlement of this section of the state. The maternal grandparents of the subject were Abraham and Hester Fribley. both of whom were Ijuni in Pennsylvania, whence they came to Stark county and became numbered among the very first settlers in old Bethlehem township, and Mr. Fribley had the distinction of being the first blacksmith in Stark county. In 1824 he settled on a farm of eighty acres, and about the first coal mined in the county was taken out by him. on this farm, where his death occurred about 1850, while his wife survived him bv about six vears.

David Wyandt, the father of the subject, was reared to the sturdy discipHne of the pioneer farmstead, while he made the most of the advantages afforded in the primitive school of the locahty and period. He was one of a family of thirteen children, and of the number only two are living at the present time. He became one of the pioneers of Henry county, where he engaged in farming and assisted in clearing the timber from the sites of the present flounshmg towns of Napoleon and Florida, and while he was first established in his primitive log'-cabin home his nearest neighbor was three miles distant. Wild game was plentiful, and he had a high local reputation as a hunter, being an excellent shot and by means of his trusty rifle he furnished much of the provender for the family table. He remained in Henry count)- until 1854, when he returned to Sugar Creek township, Stark county, passing his declining days on the farm now owned by the subject. He passed away in 1861, at the age of forty-two years, and his wife survived him by more than a quarter of a century, being summoned into eternal rest on the 12th of July, 1894, at which time she had attained the venerable age of seventy-five years.' She was a consistent and devoted member of the United Brethren church, and in this faith carefully reared her six children, concerning whom brief mention is as follows : Daniel F. enlisted as a member of Company K, One Hundred and Sixth-third Regiment of Ohio Volunteer Infantry, at the outbreak of the Civil war, and met his death while in the service of his country: Hester died in 1873. ^t the age of twentynine years; Elizabeth resides in Sugar Creek township; Rebecca A., who became the wife of Abram Kanaga, died in 1897; Annetta is the wife of Henry P. Fisher, of Sugar Creek township; and Jacob D. is the immediate subject of this review.

home, and while he attended the district school in his boyhood, it may be consistently said that he is self-educated, having applied himself with marked zeal and devotion to study of a wide range of subjects. His theological studies were conducted most carefully and conscientiously and he was able to pass the required examinations before the church authorities and was duly ordained to the ministry of the United Brethren church, of which he has been a devoted member from his fourteenth year, the intrinsic spirituality of his nature having led him to early become most appreciative of the verities of the Christian religion and to make it his dominant aim in life to follow as closely as possible, and with due humility and utmost reverence, in the footsteps of the lowly Xazafene. Mr. Wyandt has been presiding elder of the Canton district of East Ohio conference of the church a number of years and his ministerial labors have been earnest and devoted and have been fruitful in goodly results. He resides on his finely improved farm in Sugar Creek township, and divides his attention between supervising the same and attending to his official duties in the church, while he exercises his pastoral function in such a way as to be helpful to all who come within the sphere of his influence. He has always been a Prohibitionist in his political proclivities, having been the first person to become identified with this party in Sugar Creek township, while it is largely through his efi:orts that the local contingent has been so notably augmented in membership. He has never sought the honors or emoluments of public office, but has taken a deep interest in all that concerns the general welfare, while he has been active in promoting the best possible educational facilities in his home community, having served for many years as a member of the school board and being now incumbent of this office.

Ruegsegger. who was born in Holmes county, Ohio, a daughter of Fredrick Ruegsegger, an honored pioneer citizen of that section of the state, and the four children of this union are still living, namely: Efiie R., Daniel D., Mary Pleasant and Muriel Isabel.

In conclusion it seems fitting to enter a few statements of a somewhat recapitulatory nature. Mr. Wyandt was but two years of age at the time of his father's death, and the problem which faced the family was a serious one, when its head factor was thus removed, for his mother was left with an indebtedness of two thousand five hundred dollars, besides the responsibility of providing for her children. The subject, though a mere boy, took upon himself the burden thus imposed and assumed the management of the home farm, and by the time he was twenty-four years of age had succeeded in wiping out the indebtedness and clearing the property of all encumbrances. In the same year he entered the active work of the ministry, his first pastoral charge having been in the village of IMagnolia, this county, where he remained four years, doing most efYective service, and he was then assigned to a pastorate at New Rumley, Harrison county, and three years later he assumed charge of the church at Canal Fulton, Stark county, while later he was established at Beach City for two years, for a similar period at North Lawrence, and in the Navarre circuit for three years, at the expiration of which he was elected to his present ofifice of presiding elder, in which he is now entering \ipon his fourth year of service. The name which he bears has been indissolubly linked with the history of the nation from the early colonial days, and it may be said that his greatgrandfather, Cornelius Wyandt. went forth from Maryland as an officer in the naval arm of the Continental service during the war of the Revolution, and met his death at sea while thus laboring valiantly for the cause of independence.

WILLIAM H. MORGAN. - On other pages of this work appears a memoir of Thomas R. Morgan. .Sr.. the father of the subject of this sketcli and the honored founder of the ]\lorgan Engineering Company, of Alliance, one of the greatest industrial concerns in the L'nifm. In the article mentioned is given an outline of the history of the company as well as of the family genealog}-, and therefore we sliall not recapitulate in the present connectinn, since ready reference may be made to the resume already entered. Colonel W. H. Morgan is serving as aid-de-camp on the personal staff of Governor Nash, of Ohio, being appointed to that office in 1901, has been the president of the Morgan Engineering Company from the time of his father's death, in 1897, and as one of the representative citizens of Alliance and one who has well upborne the prestige of an hon(5red name it is fitting that he Ije accorded personal recogtiition in this publication.

'\Vi!liam H. Morgan was born at Pittston, Luzerne county, Pennsylvania, on the ist of June, 1865, and he was but six years of age at the time when his parents took up their residence in .Mliance, Ohio, with whose grow'th and magnificent industrial development the family name was destined to be so conspicuously and honorably linked. In this city he has I)assed the major portion of his life, and here he has made a record that redounds to his credit and to his precedence as a far-sighted and energetic business man, while, as may be inferred, he has had to do with aftairs of wide scope and importance in the industrial world. After completing the curriculum of the pul)lic schools he entered Mount Union College, where he secured the greater portion of his subsequent literary education. Another writer has outlined his further career in the following language: "But it is not the delving into classics which has distinguished Colonel Morgan, for early in life he showed a tendency to interest himself in those things which had formed the most important factors in the life of his father, whose whole mind was devoted to mechanics. As a young man Colonel Morgan took a place in his father's shop, and there he began the development of his excellent talents as an electrician. Up through the different steps of advancement did the young mechanic climb until he became the head of the immense factory's drafting department, having complete charge of the designing for the great plant which had alread}^ gained an envied position among the manufacturing institutions of the country. Branching out into the field ot electricity, he developed, by study and experimentation, several most important inxentions, which gave him a place among well known authorities and inventors. Over one hundred patents have been taken out on inventions perfected by Colonel Morgan, among them an electric controller, which instantly pro\'ed its value and which is now in general use in all parts of the world where electricity is generated for mechanical purposes. Several inventions bear his name, among them the Morgan controller, the Morgan-Gordon disappearing gun-carriage, mortar carriage and electric crane.

"Not only did Colonel Morgan de\elop wonderful mechanical ability but he also s'nowed as he advanced that he possessed executive talents of high order. He w'as on this account, in 1894, made vice-president of his father's corporation, known as the Morgan Engineering Company. Three years later the entire management of the company was placed in his hands. Scarcely six months after his assuming control his father suddenly passed away, and despite this loss of the head counselor in the great establishment, through his son, the plans he had laid have been carried on without interruption. At the time of his fatiier's death Colonel Morgan was made president of the company, and under his direction it has advanced until it is now the largest of all corporations in its line. The interests of the company are closely identified with those of the government, as its plant is constantly employed in furnishing the government with some of its most important supplies. Of such great importance was the safety of the property of the Morgan Engineering Company to the government that during the war with Spain the works at Alliance, then busily engaged in filling government contracts, received a special guaid for the protection of the plant, a company of soldiers being detailed for this purpose. Colonel Morgan can be safely mentioned as one of Ohio's brilliant citizens who has brought into the state the threads of an extensive commercial relation, while in the perfection of his company's product the city has gained fame abroad.

"By such men as these the honors which a commonwealth has to bestow are richl}' deserved, and in Colonel Morgan's case his commission as a colonel in the Ohio National Guard is luidoubtedly only a predecessor of other honors yet to come. He is a director of the First National Bank and the City Savings Bank, a trustee of Mount Union College, and has served six years as a member of the city council, during five of which he was president of that body. He has always taken a great interest in the progress and welfate of the fire department and in all else that tends for municipal development and progress."

THOMAS R. MORGAN, SR. - None can doubt that the late Thomas R. Morgan, inventor, engineer and founder of the Morgan Engineering Company, of Alliance, Ohio, was a man who accomplished a great work, while his life was one of exalted integrity and honor. The men of deeds are the men whom the world delights to honor, and among those who ha\'e stood as distinguished types of the world's

\\orkers and as veritable captains of industry, introducing" new eras of thougiit by inventions of great utility, no une is more worthy of mention than is the subject of this memoir. An outline of his career is succinctly given in the following excerpt from a recent local publication :

Thomas R. JNIorgaii, Sr., was born March 31, 1S34, at Pen.vdarren, Merthyr Tydvil, Glamorganshire, Wales. He was the youngest of a family of six children, and at the age of eight years he commenced work in a coal mine, first as door boy and later as teamster with his father, who was a coal mining contractor. At the age of eleven years he met with a serious accident in the mine, the result being the loss of his left leg below the knee. After his recovery from the accident he was sent to school for three years, his teacher being Taliesen Williams, of Merthyr Tydvil, the father of Edward Williams and the former president of the Iron and Steel Institute in Great Britain. At the age of fourteen Mr. ?ilorgan left school and thereafter served an apprenticeship of five years in the machine shop of the Penydarren Iron Works. He next accepted a position at the Dowlais Iron Works, then the most extensive concern of the sort in the world, where he continued to be employed for several years. He also worked in Cardiff, and for five years was in charge of the leading machine shop in Llanelly, Carmarthenshire, Wales, and he made for himself an enviable reputation as a skilled mechanic.

Deeply imbued with a love of liberty and possessing a strong desire to become a citizen of the United States, he left a good position, contrary to the advice of his friends, and came to this country in 1865, arriving in April of that year, in company with his family. He located at Pittston, Pennsylvania, and secured employment in the Lackawanna & Bloomsburg railroad shops, where he remained for a short time. Next ho accepted a position with the Cambria Iron Company at Johnstown, Pennsylvania, where he received the highest pay of all machinists in the shops. He was thereafter employed in various shops until 1868, having been superintendent of the Allegheny Valley railroad shops, the Atlas Iron Works and Smith & Porter's machine shops, all of Pittsburg. In 1868 Mr. Morgan laid the foundation for the present magnificent enterprise in Alliance by engaging in business for himself in the manufacture of steam hammers and other special machinery in Pittsbiirg. In August, 1871, he removed his business to Alliance, Ohio, under the firm name of Marchand & Morgan. This firm continued until 1877, when Mr. Marchand retired and was succeeded by Silas J. Williams, the firm name becoming Morgan, Williams

& Co. In 188.4 this firm was dissolved and the Morgan Engineering Company was organized and incorporated, Mr. Morgan being the principal owner. The products of this great manufactory are mostly of Mr. Morgan's own design and construction and are largely covered by patents. This immense plant is known in nearly all parts of the civilized world and is a lasting monument to its founder. The articles manufactured by the concern are mainly specialties, many of them being new productions, to meet the demands of an ever-varying trade. Some ot the machines are steam hammers, punching and shearing machines, steam, hydraulic, electric, pneumatic and power machinery for government, railway, iron, steel and engineering work; gun and mortar carriages; electric traveling cranes; locomotive, gantry, jib and derrick cranes; hydraulic presses for forging and other purposes ; bending, flanging and riveting machines; charging machines; ingot extractors; feed tables ; electric controllers for series-wound motors; hydraulic valves, and special machinery for the quick handling of material for Bessemer and openhearth furnaces, etc.

Mr. Morgan was a member of the American Institute of Mechanical Engineers, the American Institute of Mining Engineers, the Iron and Steel Institute and the Society of Mechanical Engineers of Great Britain. He was one of the city's most energetic and enterprising citizens and did all in his power for its advancement. He was a member of the city council, president of the City Savings Bank, president of the board of trade, vice-president of the Mutual Electric Light and Power Company, trustee of the Alliance Building Company and a member of the board of trustees of Mount Union College, here located. Mr. Morgan was instrumental in organizing the Solid Steel Casting conipapv, which subsequently became the parent concern in the combination known as the American Steel Casting Company. He was president of the Solid Steel Casting Company until 1S89, when he disposed of his interest in this concern to J. K. Bole, of Cleveland.

Thomas R. Morgan, Sr.'s indomitable energy was undoubtedly the most potent agent not only in the upbuilding of the great works which perpetuate his name, but also in the betterment, advancement, prosperity and welfare of the city of Alliance. Andrew Carnegie said of him upon hearing of his demise : "Our country loses one of her foremost men of affairs." Mr. Morgan died September 6, iSg7, in Alliance, beloved, respected and uniformly lamented.

The Morgan Engineering Company's shops have been the nucleus for a number of like establishments. Boys who received their training in this institution have now become men and hold responsible positions in some of the leading works in the country, which speaks well for this company. The Morgan concern is the leading institution of its kind in the country, and its products

White he was employed in tlie Do\vlai.s Ifoii \\'orks. Wales, Mr. Morgan borecl the cylinder and did most of the machine work for the mechanism utilized in operating the converter used by Sir Henry Bessemer in his tirst experiments on Bessemer steel, at Dowlais. He took a deep interest in the welfare of his employes. Having been a practical workman himself, he was well able to sympathize with the aims, ambitions and feelings of those in his emplov. had not his temperamental endowment been of itself sufficient to cause this. He took special pride in their being able to command good wages and to have neat and comfortable homes, while to the accomplishment of these results he contributed more than was generally known, for in his manifold acts of kindness and in his benefactions and charities he was unassuming, having great repugnance to notoriety of any description. He was a public-spirited citizen, and everything for the advancement and development of his city had his early and hearty support as a contributor, investor and worker. He was particularly active in securing the establishment of the water-works system, the sanitary sewer system, the gas and electric plants, proper street paving and other municipal improvements, while he was a supporter of financial institutions as projected to meet the demands of the growing community and was a warm friend of the public schools and the cause of higher education. He became thoroughly American in his ideas and methods, and greater loyalty to our national institutions no man could have shown. He once said to a friend that he was a good republican before he came to America, and that he advocated republicanism before he had experienced its beneficent influences. In this connection it is interesting to revert to the fact that Mr. Morgan arrived in the L'uited States on April 15, 1865, the morning following the assassination of President Lincoln. He often related to his intimate friends how deeply he was moved when his boat lay at anchor and he discovered the flags at half-mast and sable draperies in evidence on every side, while the news of the assassination soon reached the ship. As he heard of the dastardly crime which ended the life of a strong and noble man he burst into tears, and standing at the rail of the ship was not ashamed of the emotion which thus agitated him, so deeply was he affected by the news he had received.

Although not active i:i politics when he first came to this country, Mr. Morgan was for years identified with the Republican party, being a close student of the issues and questions of the day, and bringing to bear his mature judgment and vigorous intellectual powers in forming his opinions, which were invariably well fortified. He eventually became one of the ardent workers in the ranks of his party, while he long since became a warm personal friend and stanch admirer of the late lamented President McKinley, taking a great interest in all of the latter's campaigns for congress, for governor and later for the higher honors which crowned his life. That the feeling of respect and high esteem was reciporcated can not lietter be shown than by quoting the words uttered by President McKinley in a speech delivered from his special train which passed through Alliance on the 1st of November, 1897, only a short time after the death of Mr. Morgan. He said : "Fellow Citizens, Ladies and Gentlemen : I thank you sincerely for this demonstration. 1 will never be able to look into the faces of an Alliance audience again without thinking of that tried and true friend of mine, your friend and fellow citizen of Alliance, Thomas R. Morgan, Sr. A man so noble, with so much integrity and charity, let us all try to emulate the example set before us by him. I mourned with vou in your loss, my loss, the city's, county's, state's and country's loss, and had not public business pressed me to return to Washington I would have been in Alliance to pay tribute to his memory. I shall ah\a}s remember him as one of the stanchest and best friends I had. Such friends can not be replaced. If ever a man deser\ed an immortal crown Thomas R. Morgan, Sr., deserved one.'' These are strong words, and when we realize how perfect a judge of men was the lamented President and how impossible were equivocation and dissimulation to him. we need say nothing more as indicating the character of the subject of this memoir. The above tribute from the President is placed on the merworial tablet and bronze relief unveiled at the works of the ^lorgan Engineering Company October 28, 1899, while on the other end of said tablet, after giving the dates of birth and death of -Mr. ]\Iorgan, appear these words : '"He was an indefatigable worker and one who had the courage of his convictions. He was an example of what in this great country may be attained by honesty, skill, energy and perseverance. He died in the midst of his family, beloved, respected and universally lamented. Tn two weeks after his demise his beloved wife was laid beside him. After a companionship on this earth of over forty years, God, in his great wisdom and mercy, deemed it best to reunite them in the great beyond." The remains of both rest in a beautiful mausoleum in the .\lliance cemetery, and the entabliture bears this inscription : "Erected to the memory of Father and Mother, who on the rough frontier of human progress toiled and suffered and died that their children and cominunitv might inherit the benefit."

Mr. Morgan had no desire for official preferment of any order, and though often importuned to serve his city in an official capacity he consented to serve but a single term as a member of the council, after which he requested his party and friends Id relieve him from farther duties of the sort. Tn 1892 he was nominated bv the Republicans of the "eighteenth district for representative in congress, and he made the campaign against Dr. Ikert, of East Liverpool, but in the universal landslide which that year resulted in the election of Grover Cleveland to tlie presidency. ^Ir. Morgan was carried to defeat with the remainder of the party ticket. He accepted the situation most gracefully, his devotion to the party cause remaining unshaken. On 'Sir. Morgan's removal to Alliance he gave emitloyment to about twenty mechanics, and from the infant intlustry of which this statement stands significant has been Iniilt up the magnificent industrial concern of the present day, the same affording employment to about one thousand men. The great hammer, of eighty-ton capacity, used in the Midvale Steel Works, at Nicetown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was manufactured in his shops and the same weighs nine hundred tons. There is hardly a large steel-rolling mill or a factory in the Union in which heavy machinery is used that products of the Morgan shops are not found. Mr. Morgan was a pioneer in the manufacture of hydraulic machinery in the United States, and his concern has supplied all the ship and navy yards in this country with work of this description. He was the first to construct electric traveling cranes, and of these the Morgan shops have built more than a thousand for the work shops of the United States. In the different plants of the Carnegie Steel Ccimpany alone there are sixty-eight great traNcling cranes designed and built by Mr. Morg^an. Two traveling cranes of one hundred and fifty tons capacity were designed and erected for the government and placed in the navy yard at Washington and in Watervliet arsenal. Among other heavv machines built by him are more than fifty steam plate-shears, with knives from sixtv to one hundred and forty-four inches long. These are utilized to cut steel plates into required tlimensions and will thus cut plates up to two inches in thickness when the same are cold. These machines weigh from seventy-five to two hundred tons each. One hydraulic shear with a capacity of thirty-five hundred tons, the largest ever constructed, was built in tlie ^Morgan works, and the same has slieared steel blooms forty-two inches wide and twenty-three inches thick, and that with ease. The first automatic gun-carriage for firing around a complete circle was ijuilt in the Morgan works, and is known as the Gordon-Morgan disappearing gun-carriage, the same weighing about three hundred tons. Within the last three years of his life Mr. Morgan built three of these gun-carriages for the government. It was genius not talent that invented the steam hammer, the mammoth shears and the traveling crane, and how much of Mr. Morgan's soul was put into these titanic mechanical de\ices'we can not conjecture, but certainly enough to etch his name on the deathless roster of the greatest mechanical engineers of the nineteenth century.

Mr. Morgan had the capacity of winning and retaining friends, and his own loyalty never wavered. He counted among his personal friends such men as William McKinley, John Sherman, William R. Day, now a member of the supreme court of the United States ; Asa Bushnell, governor of Ohio; Senator Marcus A. Hanna: Andrew Carnegie; and B. F. Jones, ex-chairman of the national Republican committee, besides hosts of others prominent in public and civic life. At the time of his death the family recei\'ed cablegrams, telegrams and letters of condolence from statesmen and men of aftairs from almost every part of the civilized world. His was a noble and prolific life, and it signalized the truth of the words, "The bravest are the tenderest ; the loving are the daring."

Mr. Morgan was united in marriage at Merthyr Tydvil. Wales, July 4. 1856, to Miss Elizabeth Nicholas, of Glan y Cym, near Llandovery, Wales, and to this iniion were born ten children: John R., Thomas R., Margaret, H.. Edwin, Arthur and four that died in infancy. Mr. Morgan and wife

Rev. Charles Newton Church

REV. CHARLES NEWTON CHURCH. - The subject of this sketch is a representative of an old New England family that settled in Connecticut many years prior to the war for independence and the name Church has long been a familiar one in that and other eastern states. Tracing his genealogy, it is learned that his great-grandfather, Ebenezer Church, was born and reared in Connecticut and that he spent all of his life in that commonwealth as a tiller of the soil. Among the children of the above Ebenezer was a son by the name of Nathaniel, who was also a native of Connecticut and a physician by profession. He married a Miss Wheeler, of his state, and appears to have been a man of wide intelligence and high social standing and to a considerable extent a moulder of opinion in his community. For some years he ^vas attached to the American army in the capacity of physician and surgeon and later followed agricultural pursuits in connection with the practice of his profession.

A number of years ago Nathaniel Church moyed his famih' to Ashtabula county, Ohio, where he purchased a farm, a part of which is now included in the corporate limits of Geneva, the place being still known as the old Church Llill farm. He spent the rest of his life on this place and died at a good old age; his wife also lived to be quite old and entered into rest about the year 1863. Nathaniel Church reared a family of three sons and three daughters, among the former being Nathan Ebenezer Church, who was born on Bedloe Island, New York, September 16. 1829.

At the time of his son's birth Dr. Church was stationed with his regiment on Bedloe's Island, his family residing temporarily at that and other places, when his duty took him. Nathan

E. Church receixed liis prehminary education in his native state and after the family moved to Ohio he attended for several years the graded schools of Geneva. He was reared to agricultural pursuits and, when a young man, married Miss Susan Pierce, whose birth occurred in Oberlin, Ohio, on the i6th of March, 1829. Mrs. (Hiurch was educated in the public schools of lier native town and Oberlin College, taught for a number of years in Geneva and it was while thus engaged that she met the gentleman who afterwards became her husband. She was also an accomplished musician and taught the art in connection with her work in the public schools. After his marriage Nathan ¥.. Church mo\ed to the old homestead in the vicinity of Geneva and there followed farming until 1869, when he sold his place and went to Tennessee, settling near the town of McMinnville. He purchased a fine estate not far from that place, erected a beautiful residence with the intention of spending the remainder of his life in the south, but not being satisfied he disposed of his farm in 1871 and returned to Ohio, locating- at Akron where one of his brothers, a prominent and infiuential man of that part of the state, was then living. He entered the employ of Aultman & Miller, one of the largest manufacturing firms of the above city, and continued with the companv for a number of vears. finallv retiring from acti\e life. Mr. Church is a man of much intellectual force, and his integrity is as unbending as his religious faith, though he is ever charitable in his judgment of others and ready to extend symijathy and aid to his fellow man. In > early life he united with the Methodist Episcopal church and- has ever remained a zealous and, ; devout' disciplnrie of" the Nazarene, making his dailyhfe andnoonver.sation correspond with .his religious' :fftith. Of Mrs. Church much in the way of praise may be said. She was a superior woman intellectnaHy and her beautiful Christian clraractei'impressfe^l all with whom she came in contact. She neglected not the higher duty of rearing her chil- * dren in the nurture and admonition of the Lord | and in after years enjoyed the satisfaction of seeing the seed of truth and virtue which she I implanted in their young minds and hearts bear rich fruitage in strongly developed Christian characters. She was a fluent writer and frequently gave expression to her feelings in poetry which elicited high praise for elegance of diction and beauty of thought. She also wrote much for the papers and many of her articles were widely copied and favorably commented upon by competent literary critics. Nathan E. and Susan Church were the parents of four cb.ildren, namely: Adella T., wife of F. O. Payne, of Glencoe, New York ; Frank E. , of Akron, this state; Charles Newton, of this review ; and Willner Elroy, of Brooklyn, New York, who is a salesman for a large wholesale house of New York City.

Charles Newton Church was born on the old Church Hill farm, near Geneva, Ashtabula county, Ohio, November 15, 1862, and was signally favored in his early surroundings. Having the care and attention of intelligent, loving Christian parents, it was natural that his life should be directed into a proper channel and that the influence of such a home as his should have a tendency to mould his character for good. At the age of six he entered the schools of his native town and after attending there one year, his studies were continued at McMinnville, Tennessee, to which place his parents remo\'ed when he was about se\-en years of age. His first teacher in the latter place was his own mother, who for some time had charg:c of a private school, and later he attended the first public school organized in the city of Mc- Minnville. Owing to his northern birth he was obliged to contend against much prejudice, and to .say the least his educational experience under the new regime in the south was anything but satisfactory. The teachers were illy qualified for the positions they held and the majority of the pupils, being restive under restraint, were so skillful in playing tricks and practical jokes and withall so neglectful of their studies that it is a question whether the schools resulted in good or the opposite. When Mr. Church's parents moved to Akron he entered the schools of that city and made rapid progress in his work, graduating from the high school in 1881 at the age of eighteen. The training thus received was afterwards supplemented by a full course at Buchtel College, in which he pursued his studies four years and from which he was graduated with an honorable record in 1885.

Mr. Church's nature was essentially studious and somewhat contemplative and he early decided that there was laid open before him the field of greatest usefulness in the ministry of the church. Looking to the "mark of his high calling," he joined, in September, 1885, the East Ohio conference and began his labors as a preacher of the gospel by taking charge of the church at Adamsville, Muskingum county, where he exercised the duties of his holy office for one year and from there he was sent to Hampden, Geauga county, for one year. Actuated by a laudable desire for more thorough intellectual and professional tr,aining, he entered, in the fall of 1887, Drew Theological Seminary, Madison, New Jersey, where he took the regular three-years course, graduating with the class of 1890. During his senior year, he served as president of the "Seminary Club." The following year he took a post-graduate course in church history and while there served as pastor of the Stanley Congregational church of Chatham, New Jersey. In the fall of 1891 he was appointed to the charge at Bedford, Ohio, where he labored with acceptance and success for a period of four years. During the succeeding four years he served the Scoville Avenue church in the city of Cleveland and at the expiration of that time was appointed pastor

To say that Rev. Church's pastoral labors in this city were successful but feebly expresses the character of his work and its results in the community, its widely reaching influences being incalculable. Within the little over three years of his pastorate the membership had largely increased and the work has taken a much more healthful tone .than formerly, while the average congregation is much greater numerically than at any other period in the history of the organization. In September, 1902, Bishop Warren appointed him as pastor of the First Methodist Episcopal church of Alliance, which charge he at present holds and which church is considered one of the best in the East Ohio conference. As a speaker Rev. Church is forcible and eloquent and his every utterance rings with the sincerity of his honest conviction. His carefvilly disciplined mind, ripe scholarship, profound theological training, keen perception and lively sympathy, together with his mastery of the art of public discourse, make him a power in his chosen field of labor. Wherever he has gone his work has been greatly blessed and with God's grace sustaining him he hopefully looks forward to still larger results in the field to which he has been called.

On the 14th of August, 1900, while prosecuting his theological studies, Rev. Church was united in marriage to Miss Nellie May Houseum, of Clinton, Ohio, daughter of Henry A. Houseum, and immediately thereafter took up his residence in Chatham. New Jersey, where lie preached the remainder of that year. Rev. and !Mrs. Church ha\e four children, whose names and dates of birth are as follows; Margaret D., July 14, 1891 : Burnette, November 17, 1S92; Murill Francis, February 18, 1895, and Doris, who was born on the 13th of December, 1898.

ALBERl' B. RIKER, A. M., D. D., president of Mt. Union College, is descended from an old Pennsylvania family whose representatives were among the earliest pioneers of southern Ohio, his grandfather, Samuel Riker, having migrated to what is now Hamilton county shortly after that part of the state was opened for settlement. On his way to his new home in the west Samuel Riker passed through Cincinnati, at that time a mere backwoods hamlet, and while in tlie village he was offered one hundred acres of land, now in the very heart of the city, for five hundred dollars, but he did not for a minute consider the proposition favorably. He entered land in Hamilton county, cleared and improved two good farms near the town of Montgomery and died many years ago where he originally settled. Among his children was a son by the name of Samuel C, whose birth occurred in the above county in - the vear 1819. He was reared to agricultural pursuits, acquired a good education for the times and when a young man served an apprenticeship at saddlery and harnessmaking. Finishing his trade, he opened a shop in Montgomery, but after a business career of eight years duration he closed his establishment for the purpose of entering the ministry of the Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Riker began the active work of the ministry when thirty years old and devoted his time exclusively to the preaching of the word until his sixty-seventh year when he moved to a farm near the city of Columbus, where he spent the evening of his life in comfortable and honorable retirement, dying December 14. 1893, at the age of seventy-four. He was married to Amanda S. Cochran. Four children were born to them, of whom the subject of this sketch is the only living representative. The mother died on August 3, 1899.

Dr. A. B. Riker was born October 19, 1852, in I'rnnklin county. Ohio, and spent his childhood and youth in the town of New Albany, where his parents were then living. Trained to habits of industry, he early learned by practical experience the meaning of honest toil and 1 with this as a stimulus he grew up with well defined plans as to his future course of action. After finishing the common school course he entered, at the age of seventeen, the Ohio Wes- ' ieyan University and while attending that institution his financial condition was such that he was obliged to spend his vacations in teaching and working on the farm to earn means with which to pay his tuition and other expenses. He made a creditable record as a student, was graduated with the class of 1879 and in the fall of the same year united with the Ohio conference of the. Methodist Episcopal church.