Canton Township (part 43 of 62)

CHARLES D. OBERLIN, farmer and coal driller, third son of William E. and Susan (Dague) Oberlin, and younger brother of Otto E. Oberlin, of whom specific notice will be found elsewhere, is a native of Stark county, Ohio, born November 20, 1859, in the township of Tuscarawas. He grew up to- the full stature of well de\'eloped manhood amid the quiet scenes of rural life, and inheriting from his parents strong mental powers, early turned them to good account by laboring for the acquisition of useful knowledge. His nature l)eing studious he made the most of the opportunities as the public schools supplied and after completing the branches constituting the common course, devoted considerable attention to the more advanced grades of study. At a very early age he manifested a decided taste for music, and his abilities in this direction were fostered and encouraged by his parents,- who provided him with e^'cry means within their power for the cultivation of his talents. He pursued the musical studies with the interest of an enthusiast, and in due time became not only an accomplished vocalist, but ere long was sufficiently qualified to instruct others. To him music appeals with rare power and force, his whole being responding with peculiar suceptibility to harmony. He has never ceased being a student and availing himself of every opportunity to add his theoretical knowledge of the divine art, he has been equally persistent in reducing it to practice. It may easily be inferred from his knowledge and skill in music that JMr. Oberlin is a gentleman of much more than ordinary taste and mental acquirements. His study of music has been the direct means of developing other qualities and having always been of a studious and inquiring turn of mind, much given to reading and intelligent observation it is not at all strange that in the course of time he should have become a well infonned and thoroughly accomplished gentleman. In the main he has pursued music more for his own gratification than as the source of income, consequently he derives his liveHhood from other and entirely dissimilar vocations. As already stated he was reared a farmer and ever since beginning life for himself his chief occupation has been that of tilling the soil. He is now the fortunate possesser of a small but exceedingly fertile and well cultivated place of fifty-five acres in Tuscarawas township, on which may be seen some of the best improvements in this part of the county, having been free in expending his surplus earnings for the beautifying and making attractive the home which he has provided for himself and family. In addition to husbandry, Mr. Oberlin of recent years has added very materially to his income as a coal driller, his labors in the direction having been quite successful from a pecuniary point of view. He has developed quite a number of rich producing mineral properties in various parts of Stark county and elsewhere, being an adept at the business and thoroughly reliable in all he undertakes. His services are in frequent demand by coal operators, and when not looking after his farm, he experiences no difficulty in securing all the remunerative employment to which he can possibly devote his attention. Like all intelligent men and enterprising citizens. Mr. Oberlin is a politician - not in the narrow partisan sense which the term usually conveys to the casual, unthinking mind, but in the broader sense which includes the individual's relation to the community, the state and nation as a personal factor in the body politic. Though born and reared a Democrat, he is not a supporter of that party by reason of birthright, but rather from convictions, believing its principles when properly understood to be for the best interests of the people. The only position he ever held was as a member of the local school board, in which capacity he lalxjred very diligently for some years to advance the

Mr. Oberlin w^as married on the 28th day of December, 1882, to Miss Lucy E. Harold, who was born in Sugar Creek township. Stark county, Ohio, in the year 1862. She is the daughter of Wesley and Margaret (Mottinger) Harrold, natives of Pennsylvania, who came to this county in an early day and settled in the above township, where their respective deaths subsequently occurred. To Mr. and Mrs. Oberlin six children have been born, namely: Verdie B., Elma G., Lura M., Mary S., Nina J. and Harrold B.

JOHN HEMPERLY was born near the central part of the Keystone state, in the old historic county of Lebanon, July 31, 1831, the son of David and Mary Hemperly, the latter prior to marriage a Houck. Both parents sprang from old and supposedly German families, the names evidently indicating Teutonic origin. By occupation David Hemperly was a farmer. He followed his chosen, calling in his native county, and it was there that his seven children were born, his death, in 1845, following not many years the birth of the youngest member of the family. Two years after her husband's demise Mrs. Hemperly, with her seven children, came to Stark county, Ohio, settling near the present site of what is known as school house No. 16. Here she spent the remainder of a long and useful life, during which she looked carefully after the welfare of her children, all of whonn grew to be honorable men and women, five of the number living at the present time. Mrs. Hemperly lived to a ripe old ago, departing- this life in the year 1889.

life since 18^7 has been spent within the present hmits of Tuscarawas township. His mother provided as best she could for his intellectual training, sending him a few months of each year to sucn schools as the rural districts afforded, the rest of his time being required to assist in providing for the comfort and support of the family. In his youth he took up the cooper's trade and after becoming an efficient workmen found remunerati\-e emplo}'- ment at various places, spending three years in East Greenville, this state, where he really began life upon his own responsibility. When a mere boy he and his brother Daniel walked from their old Pennsylvania home to Stark county, and during the long journey met with many interesting experiences and lively adventures which he still recalls with pleasure.

After following his trade for some years with fair profits, Mr. Hemperly turned his attention to agriculture, which he pursued until about 1885, spending forty-three years as an industrious and successful tiller of the soil. He owns a farm of about seventy-four acres, lying in one of the most fertile sections of the county, and by systematic and scientific tillage the land has been fully developed and its productiveness greatly enhanced. Mr. Hemperly is a Republican in politics, but has never been a very aggressive worker in the party, having no taste for the wrangling and contentions of partisan strife. In religion he advocates the beautiful and sublime teachings of Christian Science, being one of the leading members of that faith in his part of the county. As a neighbor and citizen his standing has always been above reproach and wherever known his reputation is that of an intelligent, honorable man of sound veracity and unimpeachable integrity.

On the 26th day of February, 1855, Hemperly was married to Miss Barbara Kittinger. whose birth occurred in Pennsylvania, August 30, 1836. Mrs. Hemperly is the daughter of Jacob and Mary (Shelingbercer) Kittinger, the father a native of Pennsylvania, the mother of Germany. These parents came to Stark county in 1843 '^-"'^ settled on the farm which the subject now owns and occupies, it being the older Kittinger homestead. Mr. Kittinger died some years ago, but his widow still survives, having reached the remarkable age of ninety-four. Of her ten children seven are living, the majority residents of Stark county. Mr. and Mrs. Hemperly have had two children, both dying when quite young.

SAMUEL H. WELCH was born on the parental homestead, in Bethlehem township. Stark county, Ohio, on the 13th of October, 1830, being the eldest son and third in order of birth in a family of eight children, of whom six are living at the present time, four of the sons and two of the daughters. His father> \\''illiam Welch, now venerable in years and revered as one of the patriarch pioneers of the county, is residing in Indiana, while his loved and devoted wife, whose maiden name was Mary Jane Smith, died in Pike township, at the age of sixty years. William Welcli was born in Rose township, Carroll county, Oliio, where his parents settled in the early pioneer epoch and where he was reared and educated. His wife was a daughter of the late Milton Smith, who was one of the early settlers in Sandy township, Tuscarawas county, this state, where he held the office of justice of the peace for many years, being a man of influence in the community. When the subject was about one year of age his parents removed to Pike township, and here he has passed practically his entire life, which has lieen prolific in good works in various fields of endeavor. As a youth he contributed his quota to the work of the home farm, while his early educational discipline was received in the district schools. Endowed by nature with a peculiarly alert and receptive mentality, he soon became interested in his studies and his ambition was quickened to the point of action, and he could not remain satisfied with such advantages as were offered in the common schools. Accordingly, at the age of twenty-two, we find him duly matriculated in the Northwestern Ohio Normal University, at Ada, where in due course of time he completed the scientific course, being graduated at a member of the class of 1884. Long before this, however, he had become eligible for pedagogic honors, having initiated his work in this line as a teacher in the district schools of Pike township when he was but seventeen years of age, while from that time forward he continued in the active work of the pedagogic profession in his native county until 1901, with the exception of two years. His success was of pronounced type and his popularity in the educational field of the most unmistakable order. He now resides on a fine farm in Pike township, having here given his attention to agricultural pursuits since the year 1895, though other demands placed upon his time suffer no neglect. In 1899, as candidate on the Republican ticket, Mr. Welch was elected to the office of justice of the peace, for a term of three years, and in the spring of 1902 he was chosen as his own successor in this ofihCe, in which his services had proved so acceptable as to win him the commendation of all classes. For two terms I\lr. W^elch was incumbent of the office of township clerk, and since 1901 he has been a valued member of the board of education, his zeal in the cause never having wavered. He is a man of broad and comprehensive reading" and intellectuality, having the courage of his convictions and demanding the approval of conscience of every action of his life, so that he stands a distinct individual and one worthy of the objective confidence and esteem so uniformly accorded him. He has been a stanch advocate of the principles and policies of the Republican party from the time of attaining his legal majority, and his first presidential vote was cast for the lamented General Garfield. From the foregoing context it will be seen that the subject has made his influence potently felt along avenues of definite and helpful utility, but his labors have not ended here, for he has been particularly active in church work, in which his zeal and devotion have been unflagging. In the winter of 1878-9 he became a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, but in i8q8 he withdrew from fellowship in this communion and identified himself with the United Brethren church, in whose temporal and spiritual work he has ever since taken an active part. At the age of twenty years he became superintendent of the Sunday school, and as such he has ever since continued to serve, while he has also been called to various ofificial positions in this very important department of church work. For the past four years he has been superintendent of the Sunday school of the church at Otterbein. Since February, 1899, he has been a member of the county executive committee on Sunday school work in Stark county, and he served for four years as president of the Pike Township Sunday School Association, an inter-denominational organization whose functions have been exercised in a most beneficent v/ay. Fraternally he is identified with Thomas Jefferson Council No. 100, Junior Order of United American Mechanics, at North Industry.

In the city of Canton, on the 23d of March, 1884, Mr. Welch was united in marriage to Miss Harriet Hines, a daughter of the late Washington Hines, who died in Pike township, in 1883, at the age of seventy- two years, one of the honored pioneer citizens of the county. Flis widow, whose maiden name was Christina J. Hockensmith, died in the same township in 1894, in her eightieth year. Mrs. Welch was born in this township, on the 8th of January, 1857, and is a woman of gracious and gentle refinement, being, like her husband, an active

OTTO E. ©BERLIN was born in the above township September 25, 1853, as was also his father. \\''illiam E. Oberlin, who first saw the light of day on the paternal homestead Alarch 9, 1S22. For a number of years William C. Oberlin was one of the most successful and popular teachers of Stark county and as an intelligent, broad-minded, progressi\e man. he made his influence felt in the community, having filled various official capacities and on account of his mature judgment and superior business qualifications was frequently employed to settle estates and adjust affairs requiring much more than a superficial knowledge of the law. He served his township thirty years as justice of the peace and much important litigation was brought to his court, his rulings and decisions being noted for their fairness and impartiality. He had a sound legal mind, lent dignity to the position and it is a matter of record that few appeals were taken from him to higher courts. He was also assessor a number of terms, filled the office of township clerk twelve years in succession, was long a notary public and is said to have written more deeds and drawn up more legal papers than any man in the county outside the cities of Canton and Massillon. He was one of the useful men of his day and generation, a member of the Reformed church and a Democrat in politics. In his death, which occurred on the i8th of April, 1895, the people of the township felt a personal and grievous loss. Susan Dague. who became the wife of William C. Oberlin and the mother of his children, was borji in 1832, in Pennsylvania, and when about five years old was brought by her parents. Jacob and Margaret (Oberly) Olierlin. to Wayne countv, Ohio, where she grew to maturity. She pro\'ed a devoted companion and fit helpmeet, nobly fulfilled the duties of wifehood and motherhood and preceded her husband to the tomb, dying in Februar}'. 1891. The following are the names of the children constituting the family of this estimable couple: Otto E., whose name furnishes the caption of this sketch; Albert B. ; Charles D. ; Sanford J. and Jennie ]\I., all but Sanford J. living.

Otto E. Oberlin was early accustomed to labor and worked with his father on the farm until a young man in his teens, attending the common schools during the winter months, subsequently taking a course in the Smithville Normal for the purpose of preparing himself for teaching. He received his first teacher's license in 1876, and during the seven years following was engaged in educational work in Stark count}', winning while thus employed an honorable record as an instructor. His brother Albert is also an educator and for twenty-six years has taught in the Stark county schools, being at this time principal of one of the leading schools of iNIassillon. In 1881 these two brothers became associated in the stove and hardware business at Bellevue, this state, and the firm thus constituted lasted about six years, at the expiration of which time the subject disposed of his interest in the house and turned his attention to the pursuit of agriculture. After remaining on his farm two years, he established himself in the g'eneral mercantile business at Stanwood and when a postofiice was established at the village in 1895 he took charge of the same, his commission as postmaster dating from May 1 2th of that year. He now commands a large share of patronage in the lines of goods with which his establishment is plentifullystocked and in addition to his business interests and official duties also looks after his farm, a fine and admirably situated place not far from, the town limits.

He has served as assessor and while a resident of Bellevue was a member of the school board for several years, besides taking an active part in promoting- the business and general growth of that place in other than official capacities. Since old enough to wield the elective franchise he has been an ardent supporter of the Democratic party and at the present time is one of its leaders in his township

Mr. Oberlin married Miss Mary F. Welty on the 23d day of December, 1880, who died May 4, 1895, after bearing the following children : May, Edward W., Jessie F. and Helen, all living. On the 25th day of November, 1895, the subject married his present companion, Jane F. Poyser, of Canton, a union without issue. Mr. and Mrs. Oberlin are highly respected members of the Reformed church of Stanwood and their home is well known to the best society people of the town and surrounding country. Both maintain an abiding interest in all movements for the good of the community taking an active part in ministering to comfort of the poor and unfortunate and contributing with generous hands to further all charitable and benevolent work.

SAMUEL R. MILLER was born November 29, 1825, in Stark county, Ohio, the son of Jonathan and Sarah Miller, mentioned elsewhere in these pages. Of his early life and youthful experiences little need be said save he remained with his parents on a farm in Stark county until passing his minority, the meanwhile, like all country boys, being reared to habits of industry" and instructed in the lessons of integrity and rectitude that make for sterling manhood and honorable citizenship. For some years he attended the common schools in the neighborhood in which he was raised and also received instruction in a private institution of learning, later supplementing this discipline by the wide reading and intelligent observations which ha\e made him one of the well informed men of his community. Mr. Miller elected to become a farmer and he has never had any reason to regret the choice of the above vocation to which his life and energies have been devoted. Mr. Miller continued to prosecute his labors until, by reason of infirmities incident to advancing age, he retired from active life, having by industry and the successful management of his business afifairs acquired a sufficiency of temporal wealth to make him independent for the remainder of his days. From his youth he has been characterized by industry and energy, ever maintaining an abiding interest in the material prosperity of his township and taking a leading part in all matters relating to the advancement of agriculture. For many years he was a supporter of the Republican party, but of late has been a stanch Prohibitionist, the principles of which he upholds with a tenacity of purpose which convinces all with whom he comes in contact of the strength and deep sincerity of his convictions. His views of religious truth are likewise clear and decided, believing with his whole heart and soul the doctrines and tenets of the Methodist Episcopal church as laid down in the standards of that body.

Mr. Miller was married May 10, 1853, to Sarah Ann Slusser, who was born in Tuscarawas township in the )'ear 1827, the daughter of ]Michael and Catherine Slusser, who were among the early pioneers of Stark county. Two children have been born to this union, the older of whom, Charles S., resides in Brookfield, this state, where he is engaged in the coal business. His wife, who was formerly Miss Lena Houriet, has presented him with the following children : Harry L., Nina, Grace and Russell. The subject's second child is a daughter by the name of Bell, now the widow of Absalom Miller, who died September 16, 1901. She is the mother of nine children, of whom the following are living, Nora, William, Ida, Edith,

Hester A., Rhoda and Hazel. Nora married John Bremer, of this county, and has one daughter, Gladys. Ida is the wife of David Edwards and the mother of one child by the name of Venice. Edith entered the marriage relation with Joseph Davis, a union blessed with a daughter who goes by .the name of Grace.

Sarah Newsletter, who married Jonathan Miller and became the mother of the subject of this sketch, was the daughter of Conradt and Mary Newsletter, the father a native of Switzerland, When a youth he was sold by his guardians to Napoleon Bonaparte and compelled to become a soldier in the army commanded by the great emperor. Not relishing such enforced service, he waited for a favorable opportunity to desert, after which he succeeded in making his escape to the United States, and spent the rest of his life in Tuscarawas township, Stark county, Ohio. In closing this brief review, it is proper to state that ]\Ir. Miller has always been an active participant in the public affairs of the township, having served the public very satisfactorily as trustee, besides filling other minor official positions. Like the majority of mankind, he has been compelled to pass through the deep waters of bereavement, his loving and faithful companion having been taken from him on the 5th day of June, 1900.

REV. MERIT McCLELLAN RADER traces his genealogy to Germany, from which country certain of his paternal ancestors came to America in an early day and were among the pioneer settlers of Ohio. His grandfather, Christian Rader, was a native of Fairfield county, this .state, and for a number of years worked at the carpenter's trade in the town of Baltimore. He married a Mrs. Spitler, who was also born in the county of Fairfield, and reared sons and daughters, among the former being John Rader, whose birth occurred in the village of Baltimore about the year 1829. He also learned carpentry, but later turned his attention to cabinet-making, in which he became a very efficient workman. In his young manhood he married Miss Mary Magdaline Miller, daughter of Peter Miller, whose wife belonged to one of the earliest pioneer families of Fairfield county. Peter Miller was born in the above county, where his father, a native of Pennsylvania, settled when the country was little less than a wilderness. The Millers were prominent members of the United Brethren church and it was in their little log cabin that the earliest religious services of that denomination in the county of Fairfield were held. The wife of Peter Miller, a noble woman, whose name is still held in veneration among the people of the community in which she formerly resided, lived to a green old age, dying in her ninety-first year; her husband preceded her to the other world, departing this life when about forty-five years old. Mrs. Mary M. Rader was born about 1837 in Fairfield county, grew to mature years there and is a lady of many sterling qualities of head and heart, well fitted to adorn the station of life to which she has been called. After his marriage John Rader moved to a small farm adjoining the village of Baltimore, but not finding agriculture to his taste he .abandoned the pursuit after a few years of unsuccessful trial and resumed the trade of cabinet-making and carpentry in the above town. Subsequently he changed his abode to the little village of Carroll, in the county of Fairfield, where he now resides. Mr. Rader was reared according to the doctrines and rather strict usages of the Presbyterian faith, but later became a member of the Reformed church, of which body he is still an earnest and faithful communicant. Politically he has been a life-long Democrat, supporting his opinions with the same zeal as he maintains the soundness of his moral and religious principles. The following are the names of the children born to John and Mary Magdaline Rader : Wilbur died in infancy; Anna C. is now the wife of W. J. Miller, of Steubenville, Ohio; Julius L. is a resident of Chicago, Illinois ; Esther E. is the widow of the late Enoch Langel, of Fairfield county ; Merit McClellan, whose name introduces this article; Milo, also a resident of the county of Fairfield, where he married Annie Morrow, and Earl, who died when quite young. Rev. Merit Rader was born May 6, 1862, in the little village of Basil, Fairfield county, Ohio, and grew to maturity in the neighborhood where he first saw the light of day. Blessed with excellent parentage, there were early implanted in his mind and heart those principles of moral rectitude and correct conduct which had a decided influence in shaping his future course of life, and hand in hand with his instruction went the best educational discipline the district schools afforded. When old enough, he found plenty to do on the farm and between labor of this kind in the summer time and attending school of winter seasons, he spent the iirst eighteen years of his Hfe. His parents being in comparatively Hmited circumstances, he began when a mere youth to depend upon his own exertions for a livelihood, securing, as already stated, employment as a farm laborer and devoting his attention to that line of occupation until there came to him the idea that greater opportunities for advancement were to be found in some other vocation. Accordingly he learned telegraphy and after becoming an efficient operator he secured a position with the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Com.pany, being placed in charge of an office in Chicago, Illinois, where he remained for a period of two years. After discharging the duties of his position about fourteen months he returned to his native county where, on the 27th of September, 1887, he was united in the bonds of wedlock to Miss Mary C. Swartz, whose birth occurred in the same county February 18, 1858. Resuming his post at Chicago station, he continued there about ten months, at the expiration of which time he resigiied with the object in view of engaging in the mercantile business in his home town.

After a short visit with his parents Mr. Rader effected a copartnership with J. J. Hansberger, and during the six years following the farm thus constituted conducted a general store in Baltimore, meeting with encouraging success in the enterprise. It was while thus en-- gaged that Mr. Rader's plans were radically changed by a circumstance which directed his future into a channel entirely different from that of commerce or any other kind of secular pursuit. This was the meeting at Baltimore of the conference of the United Evangelical church, in the deliberation of which the subject took an active part. Having embraced religion a number of years before and demonstrated not only piety but a remarkable ability in the art of public discourse, he was persuaded by the bishop and many of his friends to accept a preachers license and devote the remainder of his life to the ministry of the word. Feeling the weight of these importunities and realizing that his duty lay in the direction of public service for the Master, he finally consented to accept the license, with the promise that he be permitted time in which to prepare himself by taking a theological course. This being granted, he closed out his business and entered the Biblical Seminary at Dayton, where he at once addressed himself assiduously to his studies, completing the prescribed English course and graduating in May, 1S96. Actuated by a laudable desire to prosecute his researches still further in order that he might be more proficient in his holy office, Mr. Rader subsequently became a student of the Moody Institute at Chicago, but hardly had he begun his labors in that institution when he was requested by one of the bishops to take the important charge at Greensburg, Summit county, Ohio, one of the largest and most influential United Evangelical churches in the eastern part of the state. Rev. Rader's appointment to this church was a recognition of his ability as well as a compliment to his high personal standing and genuine worth. He entered upon the discharge of his duties no wtithout some trepidation, but from the first his labors were highly satisfactory and successful, as is attested by the substantial growth of the church materially and spiritually during the four years of his pastorate. Severing his connection with the church at Greensburg at the expiration of that time, he assumed pastoral control of the Trinity United Evangelical church at Canton, with which he has since labored with great acceptance, his efforts resulting in many accessions to the congregation and a more devoted consecration on the part of the entire membership.

Rev. Rader is a man of strong mentality and he brought to his work a mind well fortified with intellectual culture and tlieological training. A natural orator, he is fluent in the use of language, arranges lais discourses with much study and care, presents the precepts to divine truth with logic and force and seldom fails to interest and deeply impress the most careless and indifferent and satisfy the critical auditor. A profound student of the Sacred Scriptures, a knowledge of which is the successful minister's greatest tower of strength, also a close reader of the best current religious literature, but first of all a devoted disciple of the Nazarene, he avails himself of every opportunity to increase his effectiveness in his sacred office.

Mr. and Mrs. Rader have a pleasant and happy home, but, like the majority of human kind, they have been made to feel the hand of bereavement laid heavily upon them. Two of their three children, Edith and Milo Richard, budded on earth to bloom in Paradise, both dying in infancy. The first born, RajTnond by

JOHN D. FOLK is of the third generation of the family in Stark county, his grandfather, Peter Folk, having come hither from Pennsylvania about 1820 and entered claim to an entire section of land, the deed to which was signed by James Madison, who was then President of the United States. The brothers made an equal division of the property, and Peter became the owner eventually of three hundred and twenty acres, in Nimishillen township, the present homestead of our subject being an integral portion of the ancestral estate. The land was entirely unreclaimed when the grandfather here took up his abode in the little log cabin which he had erected in the midst of the forest wilds, making a small clearing for this purpose. Here there fell to his lot the usual experiences of the pioneer, and his name merits a place of honor as one of the founders of the county and as a man of industry, integrity and sterling worth. On this old homestead farm, which is now his home, John D. Folk was born, the date of his nativity having been May 2, 1847, ^vhile he was the fourth in order of birth of a family of six children, of whom four survive, namely : Elizabeth, who has never married and who has passed her entire life in Nimishillen township; Rebecca, who is the wife of Samuel Snyder, of this township ; Henry, concerning whom individual mention is made elsewhere in this volume ; and John D., subject of this sketch. The parents of these children were John and Elizabeth (Dice) Folk, the former of whom was born in York county, Pennsylvania, about 1S13. while the latter was bom in Pennsylvania in 181 1. John Folk was about eight years of age at the time when his parents removed from Pennsylvania to Stark countv, and here he was reared on the pioneer farm, his educational advantages being meager, owing to the exigencies of the time and place, the schools being few and of the most primitive character. After his marriage he settled on a portion of the home farm, which had been divided among the three sons, his portion comprising one hundred and sixty acres. Here he continued to reside until his death, having made excellent improvements on his homestead and having brought the same under effective cultivation, a large portion of the land having been cleared by him. He died on the 3d of October, 1879, at the age of sixtysix years, his wife surviving him by about a decade, being summoned into eternal rest on the 30th of March, 1886, at the age of seventyfive years. In politics the father of the subject originally gave his support to the Whig party, but after the Republican party was organized he transferred his allegiance to the same, and ever afterward was a stalwart advocate of its principles. He and his wife are both devoted members of the Lutheran church, exemplifying their faith in their daily walk and conversation.

John D. Folk was reared to maturity on the old homestead farm, and he early became inured to the arduous labors involved in improving and cultivating the ancestral acres, his services being in such constant requisition that his educational advantages as a boy were very limited, while the facilities afforded in the line were only such as were to be had in the little country school house, some distance from his home, but in the latter years of earnest toil and endeavor, through personal application and association with his fellow men, he has been able to effectively round out his store of knowledge and is a man of broad information and strong mentality. Upon attaining his legal majority he was associated with his elder brother in conducting the farm on shares, and after the death of their father, in 1879. they purchased the property and still own the same in partnership, though our subject now has practically the entire charge, since in 1894 his brother removed to another farm in the township. Mr. Folk is thoroughly progressive in his methods, and is ever ready to take advantage of improvements in systems or in mechanical devices which will facilitate the work of the farm. He was reared in the faith of the Republican party, and has never vacillated in his political allegiance, though he has never been an aspirant for office. He is not a member of any religious organization, but has ever stood ready to aid in church work and in the furthering of collateral benevolences.

On the 27th of December, 1878, Mr. Folk was united in marriage to Miss Emma Miller, who was born in Louisville, this county, being a daughter of the late Peter Miller, who was there engaged in the undertaking business for many years, being one of the honored pioneers of the county. Mr. Miller came to Stark county in 1834, and his death occurred August 17,

OLIVJiR BRUMBAUGH was born on a farm in Lake township, this county, on the 7th of September, 1862, being the only child of Daniel and Anna (Yoder) Brumbaugh. Daniel Brumbaugh was likewise a native of Stark county, having been born in Marlboro township m 1837, a son of George and Elizabeth (Hoover) Brumbaugh, who were numbered among the honored pioneers of the county, where both died when well advanced in years. The father of the subject was reared on the old homestead farm, having such educational advantages as were afforded by the district schools of the locality and period, and after his marriage he located in Lake township.

where he purchased a farm of eighty acres, upon which he continued to reside for nine years, at the expiration of which he disposed of the property and purchased the home farm of his father-in-law, Christian Yoder, in Nimishillen township, where he died two years later, at the early age of thirty-three years, being thus cut off in the very prime of his young manhood, though he had fully demonstrated his powers as an able and faithful man of business and shown himself to be dominated and guided by a spirit of the most absolute integrity and honor. He was a Democrat in his political proclivities, and his religious views were in harmony with the tenets of the Dunkard church. His wife, who was bom in Nimishillen township, ever remained faithful to the memory of the husband of her youth and died at her home in the village of Louisville, October 14, 1902.

Oliver Brumbaugh was but eight years of age at the time of his father's death, but his mother remained on the homestead farm, and there he was reared to maturity, while he received his early educational discipline in the public schools. Realizing the exigencies of the case and the weight of the burden resting on the shoulders of his devoted mother, he put his shoulder against the wheel when but thirteen years of age and practically assumed the management of the home farm, sparing himself no effort that would insure the best results in the way of returns from the products of field and meadow, while the experience which he gained thus early has proved of inestimable value to him in the later years of his active and successful business career.

On the 15th of March, 1889, Mr. Brumbaugh was united in marriage to Miss Tamzon Houston, who was born in Washington township, this county, being a daughter of John and Catherine (Smith) Houston, her father being numbered among the representative pioneer farmers of that township. After his marriage the subject continued to devote his attention to the operation of the home farm, while his mother took up her residence in the village which is now her home. In 1894 Mr. Brumbaugh purchased an interest in the Louisville Brick and Tile Company, and two years later be was made superintendent of the works, the plant being one of the most extensive of the sort in the county and controlling a large business. The homestead farm is now rented and he devotes practically his entire time to his official duties in the connection noted, having proved himself a business man of rare executive ability and holding the confidence of all with whom he comes in contact. He manifests a commendable concern in all that touches the welfare of his home community and his native county, his political support being given to the Republican party. Since assuming the superintendency of the brick and tile works he has maintained his residence in Louisville, where he has a pleasant home and one in which the refined amenities of life are ever in evidence. He and his wife have two children, Mary and John.

REV. WILLIAM E. TURNER, the popular and efficient pastor of the Church of God in Canton and a man widely and favorably known in the ecclesiastical circles of that denomination throughout Ohio, is descended paternally from English ancestry and there also flows in his veins the blood of a long line of Danish antecedents who many years ago were closely related to the royal family of their native country. The subject's grandfather was James Turner, whose birth occurred in Yarmouth, England, about the year 1799. He was reared in that country and followed hedging for a livelihood, his work including the planting and caring for hedges, a vocation at one time very profitable in various parts of England and other European countries. He married in his nati\e land Miss Mary Clark, from whose ancestors the subject inherits the Danish strain referred to above. A number of years ag^o James Turner and family left tlieir English home and came to America, remaining two years in the city of New York and at the expiration of that time migrating to Williams county, Ohio, when that part of the state was little more than a primitive wilderness. Mr. Turner was one of the early pioneers of the county, living for some time in a diminutive log cabin and experiencing all the hardships and vicissitudes incident to life in a new and heavily wooded country. He bore his full share in clearing away the dense forests, and lived to witness the many remarkable changes which transformed his county into one of the most enterprising and progressive sections of western Ohio. His wife, who was born in the year iSoo. died in 1879, his death taking place in 1883. James and Mary Turner were the parents of a very large family, sixteen children, of whom William, the subject's father, was the youngest. Some of these sons and daughters emigrated to Australia, but the majority came to America, settling in several states and becoming well situated in life. One of the sons, John TiuMier, served for twenty-three years in the English army, rose to the rank of captain and distinguished himself by brave and gallant conduct in llie East Indian or Sepoy rebellion. Severing his connection with the army, lie emigrated to Canada, where he now resides, .\nother son. James, and a married daughter, Mrs. Reader, came to the United States in 1842 and located in AVilliams county, this state, where they soon became well known among the pioneer settlers. William Turner, father of the subject, was born in Yarmouth, England. February 5, 1844. and was a youth of fourteen when his parents came to Ohio. Owing to the scarcity of schools and the inferior grade of such as were accessible, his educational discipline was exceeding- ly limited, but having a natural craving for knowledge, he subsequently made up in a large degree for this deficiency by much reading. He acquired a wide and varied knowledge and wheii a youth sought the society of older and wiser people than his playmates and companions for the purpose of profiting by their conversation. Growing to manhood amid the stirring scenes and hard work of the pioneer times, he early developed fine physicial powers. In his young manhood Mr. Turner was married in Hillsdale, Michigan, to Miss Sarah Elliott, a native of Stark county, Ohio, born in the town of Marlborough, November 16, 1848. \'''hen Mrs. Turner was two years old her parents, William and Maria (Hagerman) Elliott, natives of Ohio and Pennsylvania, respectively,. to Hillsdale county, Michigan, lieing among the earliest pioneers of that part of the state. Mr. Elliott took an active part in the growth and development of the country in which he settled and is still living in the county of Hillsdale, having reached the ripe old age of seventy-seven years. His wife, after sharing with him many hardships and difficulties, the necessary accompaniments of life in a frontier country, was called to her eternal rest, dvinsr some years ago in the county of Hillsdale.

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Turner settled in Crawford county, Ohio, but three years later purchased a farm in the southern part of Hillsdale county, Michigan, where they still reside. He has followed agricultural pursuits with a fair measure of success and stands high as a neighbor and citizen. He was reared in the Episcopal faith, his wife coming from an old Quaker family long noted for piety, religious zeal and good works, both in and out of the church. Their children, five in number, are named as follows: William E., of this review; Maria, now Mrs. Loa Sheldon, is also a resident of that county; Mary, wife of Calvin [.ambright. of Williams county, Ohio; Lizzie, who married Roscoe Brown, of Ohio,

Rev. WilHam E. Turner was born August 20, 1869, in the town of New Washington, Crawford county, Ohio, where his parents spent the first three years of their married life. Thence he was taken to Hihsdale county, Michigan, where he spent his childhood and youthful days, growing to vigorous young manhood on the farm, with the rugged duties of which he early became acquainted. In the public schools he received an educational training and by close and diligent application he made substantial progress in the more advanced branches of learning. On leaving school young Turner entered the employ of the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railroad as a brakeman, and continued in that capacity for three years, when he resigned his position, entering the employ of the Holland Detective Agency at Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He was in the employ of this agency for one year and developed marked ability as a detective, but in 1892 severed his connection with his employers and came back to his boyhood home, where in the spring election he was elected constable and afterwards was appointed township school inspector, in which office he faithfully served the public three years.

Mr. Turner experienced conversion in 1895, and possessing strong mental abilities, together with the qualities essential to success in the public ministry, he felt it his duty to enter upon that work and labor for the advancement of Christ's kingdom among men. He united with the Church of God immediately after his conversion and in the fall of 1895 was licensed to preach by the Ohio eldership. The better to prepare himself for effective service in his sacred office he took a theological course under the direction of Findlay College, Findlay, Ohio, and while prosecuting his studies was placed in charge of the Ottawa Lake circuit, which he served four vears. makino- his home the meantime at Ottawa Lake, southern Michigan. Mr. Turner completed the course of study in 1898 and the year following was transferred to the charge at Canton, where he has labored zealously and with much acceptance ever since, greatly building up the church along all lines of activity and strengthening its influence as a potent factor for substantial good in the community. Under his administration and the power and force of his ministry the membership has largely increased. A higher degree of spirituality has also been awakened, a conclusive evidence of the reverence and trust his people repose in him personally and in his effectiveness as a teacher of divine truth. Mr. Turner is a pleasing and forceful speaker and his strong and stirring appeals for people to abandon their sins and seek salvation not infrequently rise to the heights of true eloquence. His life has been fraught with good works and his kind words of admonition not only in the sacred desk but in personal contact with his fellow men in their homes and elsewhere have been instrumental in changing the course of many lives but that for his influence would have continued the downward way. He has served on several important committees in the church, and in 1902 was elected clerk of the eldership.

Rev. Turner was married in Wiliams county, Ohio, to Miss Maud Summer, the ceremony being solemnized on the 8th of August, 1897. Mrs. Turner was born in Williams county, October 28, 1873, and is the daughter of Alonzo and Jennie (Preston) Summer, both parents natives of Ohio. Alonzo Summer's parents were William and Elizabeth (Pool) Summer, the former the son of Uriah Summer, a native of New York and one of the first permanent settlers of Williams county, Ohio. Tracing the genealogy further back, it is learned that the Summers were among the old substantial families of Massachusetts and some of the name figured prominently in several localities of that commonwealth. Rev. and Mrs. Turner's marriage has been blessed with two offspring, both sons, namely: Ralph Sumner and Ross Dale.

JOSIAH HARTZELL is a native of the state of Ohio, having been born in the town of Deerfield, Portage county, on the 7th of September, 1833, and being a son of Frederick and Mary (Ickes) Hartzell, both of Avhom were born and reared in I'ennsylvania, being representatives of the stanch German stock which has played so important a part in the history of the Keystone commonwealth. Frederick Hartzell removed to Ohio in 1810, and he was identified with the great fundamental art of agriculture until his death, which occurred in Mahoning county, on the 13th of November, 1868, his wife passing away on the 20th of August, 1888. They became the parents of ten children, of whom six are living at the present time. In both the agnatic and maternal lines the descent of the subject of this sketch is traced from German families who, in consequence of religious persecution in their native land, accepted cerr tain landed and homestead propositions made them by William Penn and came to America as the pioneer settlers of Pennsylvania. The original American progenitor of the Hartzell family was Heinrich Hartzell, who came to Pennsylvania in the year 1687.

Josiah Hartzell passed his youthful days in Portage county, Ohio, and received his. preliminai^y education in the common schools. In 1850 he was matriculated in Amherst College, in Massachusetts, where he completed the college course and was graduated as a member of the class of 1854, receiving the degree of Bachelor of Arts, while later his alma mater conferred upon him in turn the degrees of Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy. After his collegiate course Mr. Hartzell took up the studv of law in Toledo, Ohio, and was admitted to the bar of the state in 1856. He located in Davenport, Iowa, where he practiced law two years and then came to Canton in 1858. His predilections led him to view with favor the overtures made him to devote his attention to editorial work and he assumed the editorial chair of the office of the Canton Republican in 1858 and subsequently became editor of the Canton Repository, the oldest paper in Stark county, the same having been established in the year 181 5, under the title of the Ohio Repository, while it has been consecutively published during the long intervening years. He continued as editor in chief of the Repository for nearly a score of years, retiring about 1876, though he has since continued to make occasional and timely contribution to this and other representative papers, being known as a forceful and trenchant writer and ever utilizing the chaste diction indicative of high scholarship and appreciative literary taste. Since his retirement from newspaper work Mq. Hartzell has devoted the major portion of his attention to the various and important manufacturing interests with which he is identified. He has twice made tours of the European continent, and Avas representative of important manufacturing interests during the term of the Paris exposition of 1878, as well as that held in that city in 1900, and also at the Vv''orld's Columbian Exposition, held in the city of C'hicago in 1893.

It was but natural that a man of so alert mentality and one so intimately identified with the discussion of matters of public import through the columns of the press, should become a factor in the directing of opinion and in the conduct of local affairs. Mr. Hartzell has ever gi\en his allegiance to the Republican party and has been an efifective advocate of its cause, and while he has never been animated by specific political ambition, he has been called upon tcv serve in various positions of local trust. He was postmaster of Canton for four years, during the administnation of Presidents Lincoln and

Johnson, while he also served as a member of the board of park commissioners of Canton and as sewer commissioner, his policy in local affairs being at all times a progressive and broadminded one. In 1803 he was made a member of the Ohio state board of health, in which capacity his term will not expire until 1907, and he has filled the various offices in this body, manifesting an unflagging interest in its work. He is also a member of the American Public Health Association, and at its convention, in the city of Philadelphia, in 1898 he was appointed a inember of a committee which received instrucl ions to memorialize the Presidait and congress of the United States to take certain measures for the suppression of yellow fever in Cuba, from which source have eminated the recurred epidemics of the scourge in the southern states of the Union. In the following year he was reappointed on another committee whose object was the same, the two committees holding their sessions in the city of Washington. Through this means was initiated' the work which led to the establishing by our government, in the city of Havana, of that commission ot bacteriological experts whose experimental studies and careful researches have made possible the suppression of yellow fever in American cities for all time to come. Mr. Hartzell has been a member of the board of trustees of the Ohio Historical and Archaeological Society, and in each of the connections noted his zeal has been insistent and has vitalized the work undertaken and carried forward. On the 2 1 St of February, 1856, Mr. Hartzell was united in marriage to Miss Mary K. Johnson, who was born in Stark county, Ohio, being a daughter of Simon Johnson, an honored pioneer of Stark county. Of this union were born eight children, one of whom, Mary K., died in infancy, while of the others we incorporate the following brief data : Wilbur J., who was born November 22, 1856, is now a resident of Minneapolis, Minnesota, and is engaged in the wheat commission business ; Dora v., who was born on the 8th of January, 1859,. resides in St. Paul, that state, being tlie wife of Captain H. L. Kuhns, who is engaged in the hotel business; Frederic S., who was borii on the 22d of August, i860, resides in Canton and is acting secretary of the McKinley Monument Association; Charles, born on the 15th of July, 1862, is a resident of the city of San Juan, . Porto Rico, and is secretary of the island; Josiah, Jr.. born on the 6th of May, 1868, is a dentist and makes his home in Minneapolis; Grace, born JNIay 28, 1871, resides in her native city of Canton ; and Ralph W., who was born on the 2 1 St of October, 1874, is a lawyer and resides in Den\-er. Colorado. Mr. and Mrs. Hartzell ha\e ten grandchildren, and the family relationships and associations throughout have been of ideal character.

Jacob Frederick Marchand

JACOB FREDERICK MARCHAND,. M. D., is a native of Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, born in the town of Jacksonville on the 17th day of February, 1858. In the public schools of his nati\e pkice. which he attended until the age of fifteen, he acquired a good elementary education and during' the ensuing' four years taught in the county of Westmoreland, earning the reputation of an able and popular instructor. The training in the public schools and his ex])erience as a teacher were afterwards supplemented by a full covu'se in Washington and Jefferson College, which institution he entered at the age of nineteen and from which he was graduated with a creditable record in the year 1882. Soon after completion of his college course Mr. Marchand w-as elected principal of the high school of Canton, Ohio, in which capacity he continued two years, resigning at the expiration of that time, although reelected for another term. He was led to abandon educational work in order to take up the study of medicine, for which profession he had long manifested a decided preference as tlie calling best suited for a life work. In September, 1884, he entered the medical department of the University of Pennsylvania at Philadelphia and after prosecuting his studies the greater part of three years was graduated with the class of 1887. On receiving his degree he opened an -office in Canton, where his thorough professional training soon won him a lucrative practice which has continued to increase from that time to the present. As a physician and surgeon he is easily the peer of the leading medical men of the city and county of his residence and it may also be stated that in the treatment of many diseases requiring a high degree of efficiency and skill he has a reputation much more than local.

The Doctor has left untried no reasonable efforts to rise in his profession, not from ambitious motives but from an intense and laudable desire to become a true healer so as to confer the great boon of health upon suffering humanity. He is identified with a number of medical societies, in the deliberations of which he always manifests an active interest and not infrequently has he read before these various bodies carefully prepared papers evincing profound erudition and critical research, which have elicited from medical circles both local and throughout the state, profuse praise and high encomiums. He is a member of the Mississippi Valley and Northeastern Ohio Medical Societies, the Stark County Medical Society, Canton Medical Club, the American Medical Association and is also a fellow of the Aiuerican Academy of Medicine, maintaining intimate relations with all of these organizations. He has been city physician nf Canton and at this time he holds the position of local health officer, being also surgeon to the Aultman Hospital and a member of the staff.

Fraternally Dr. ]\larchand belongs to the "Masonic order and the Benevolent and Protec- "tive Order of Elks. He has been a life-long Democrat and, while earnest in maintaining the correctness of his principles and untiring in keeping himself well informed upon the great public questions and issues of the day, he has no political ambitions, the pressing claims of his profession preventing him from taking a very active interest in party affairs. As a citizen he has been acti\e in encouraging every utility for the city's material welfare.

On the 30th day of April, 1891, was solemnized, in Canton, the ceremony which united in the bonds of marriage Dr. Marchand and Miss Laura A. Martin, daughter of Hon. Henry S. Martin, the father formerly superintendent of the public schools of the city and for a period of fourteen years connected with the L^nited States treasury department in Washington, D. C. Dr. and Mrs. Marchand have one son, Charles Martin, a bright lad in whom are centered many fond hopes for the future.

REV. JOHN ANDREW PI ALL, D. D. - The Hall family of which the Doctor is a member originated in Switzerland, fnom which country his grandfather came to America a number of years ago and settled near Reading, Pennsylvania. John Hall, the Doctor's father, was born in that state about the year 1816 and when A^oung was thrown upon his own resources for a livelihood. In his youth he learned the tinner's trade and worked at the same until young manhood when he decided to devote the remainder of his life to the ministry. He was appointed to the Wooster circuit, Ohio, and for se\'eral years ministered to the churches in that part of the state, visiting his several appointments on horseback and experiencing many hardships and vicissitudes in the discharge of his duties. He was married at Wooster to Miss Sarah Reiner, whose father, George Reiner, was one of the earliest pioneers of W^ayne county. The union of ^Ir. and Mrs. Hall resulted in the following children : Rev. Henry H., D. D., an eminent Lutheran clergy- man, formerly chaplain of the Western Pennsylvania penitentiary hut at the present time pastor of the church at Litchfield, Illinois; Mrs. Elizabeth Faust, of Woodberry, Ohio; Mrs. Mary Sowers, who lives at the same place, and John A., whose name initiates this article. After serving many years as an intinerant. Rev. John Hall was given a charge at Sandusky, after which he served as pastor at different cities, his last regular work being with the church in Dayton. Owing to failing health he was obliged to give up the active lalxirs of the ministry and retire to his estate in Morrow county, where he spent the remainder of his life, dying at a good old age in the year 1900. His widow stil survives, having reached her seventy-eighth year.

Rev. John A. Hall was born on tlie i/tli dav of August, 1852, in Morrow county, Ohio, and spent the years of his childhood and youth on his father's farm. There he learned the true dignity of honest toil and grew up impressed with the idea that God had prepared no place in the world for drones or idlers. At the age of six he entered the district schools and between attending these in the winter time and working on the farm during the summer seasons he spent the eight years following. During the next year he pursued his studies in the schools of Woodberry, after which he spent about two and a half years in a private institution at Lexington, Ohio, where he prepared himself for college.

At the age of eighteen Dr. Hall entered Wittenberg College, from which he was graduated in 1875 and immediately thereafter began his theological studies in the seminary at Wittenberg, completing the prescribed course three yeari-s later. Well qualified by intellectual culture and theological training for the noble work of the ministry, Mr. Hall accepted for his first charge the Mt. Zion church in Richland county, where he labored with zeal and great acceptance for a period of seven years. During that time he developed fine powers as a preacher, and superior executive ability in managing the material interests of his congregation. All lines of work prospered and the young pastor won the highest regard, not only of his own parishioners, but of the entire citizenship. Severing his connection with Mt. Zion, Dr. Hall accepted the pastorate of the Plymouth Lutheran church, where he labored for the spiritual interest of the people four years, meeting with most encouraging results the meantime. His next charge was the church at Walnut Hill^ Cincinnati, a wealthy and influential congregation in one of the most beautiful parts of the city. There his labors were also greatly appreciated and during a pastorate of nine years the congregation constantly increased in numerical strength and influence, while a deeper spirit of devotion and consecration was aroused among the membership. "Dr. Hall did much personal work in Cincinnati, became widely known throughout the city and stood high in the esteem of his brother ministers of other denominations.

In October,, 1S96, Dr. Hall entered upon his labors as pastor of Trinity Lutheran church. Canton, and since that time has been earnest and untiring in behalf of the Master's interests in this city. The continual enlargement of the congregation's sphere of influence and its steady but sure advancement along material and spiritual lines is the best evidence of the pastor's ability as a preacher and of his leadership in ]ilanning and carrying to successful issue great things for the upbuilding of the Master's kingdom. Dr. Hall's sermons are clear, concise, practical and logical and his eloquence of that fervid kind that not only pleases but carries conviction to his hearers. In politics he is pronounced in his allegiance to the Republican party and hesitates not to labor for its success during campaigns, believing as he does that every good citizen should be in the best sense of the term a politician. Da Hall is a married man and the father of two children, namely : Ralph, a student of Wittenberg College, and Arthur, who is still a member of the home circle. Mrs. Hall was formerly Miss Minerva Huntsman, of Belleville, Ohio, in which place her name was changed to the one she now bears.

JONATHAN D. MILLER. - The Miller and Newsletter families, of which the subject of this review is a representative, have been identified with the growth and development of Stark county since a very early period of the history if this part of the state. His parental grandparents, Daniel and Maria C. Miller, were natives of Center county, Pennsylvania, and among their children was a son by the name of Jonathan, whose birth occurred on the 20th day of April, 1797. When a young man, this Jonathan married Miss Sarah Newsletter, whose father, Conradt Newsletter, came to America as a deserter from the army of the great Napoleon, having in his youth been forced to a life of militar}'- service from which he only escaped by resorting to what was known as "French leave." Mr. Newsletter settled in Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, where he married and it was there that his daughter, Mrs. Miller, was born. As early as 1816 he migrated to Stark county, Ohio, purchasing land in what is now Tuscarawas township, where he cleared a farm, reared his family and spent the latter part of his life. The Millers came to Stark county about the year 181 6, and also settled within the present limits of the township of Tuscarawas. In early manhood Jonathan Miller learned the carpenter trade, but after locating in Stark county he devoted his attention principally to agriculture, clearing with his own hands an eighty-acre farm in Tuscarav.-as township. During the old Whig regime, he was an ardent supporter of that party, but after it had fulfilled its mission and ceased to e.xist he became a Republican and so continued to the end of his life. Jonathan and Sarah Miller reared a family of six children, whose names are as follows: Joseph A., member of Company C, One Hundred and Thirty-fifth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, in the late Civil war, died -in Andersonville prison in the year 1864; Samuel R. ; Margaret, wife of John Walter; Jonathan D., of this review; David F., deceased, and Martin L. The father died in 1S58. the mother about the year 1876. Mrs. Miller's father departed this life March 6. 1858, at the age of sixty, the mother dying on the 5th day of January, 1876, when seventyone years old. Jonathan D. Miller) was born on the paternal homestead in Tuscarawas township. Stark county, Ohio, September 19, 1833, and from that date to the present day he has spent his life within a short distance of the place of his birth. His early training on the farm fostered habits of industry and self-reliance and he grew to vigorous yoimg manhood with a proper conception of life and its responsibilities. In his younger days he attended during the winter months the country schools, and after spending his minority with his parents, he learned carpentry, which trade he followed for a munber of years in connection with agricultural pursuits. Mr. Miller continued to devote his attention to carpentry and farming until the year 1893, when he moved to the town of Brookfield. He owns one of the finest residences in the above town and is one of the leading citizens of the community, being active in promoting his own affairs and pulilic spirited in all the term implies. Politically Mr. Miller is a Republican and an influential party worker. He cast a ballot for the first Republican nominee for President, John C. Fremont, and voted for every one of the party's distinguished candidates for that high office to the present administration, having missed no national election since 1858. He held the office of township clerk for two years, and in 1900 was elected

Susan R. Ralston, who hecame the wife of Jonathan D. Miller in the year of i860, is the daughter of William and Anna ( Rough) Ralston, and was horn September 18. 1836. in Stark county. William Ralston was born March 26, ]788. in Pennsylvania, and his wife in the same state on the nth of December. 1 791. These parents were married July 17. 1817, and had children as follows: Joseph, Harriet. Maria, George. Henry. William. Jane. Susan. Rebecca and James. William Ralston and wife came to Stark county in 1834. settHng in Tuscarawas township, where they lived the remainder of their li\es. the former dving in August. 1S58. and the latter. May 30. 1868. By occupation Mr. Ralston was a plasterer, in addition to which he also followed farming. In politics he was a Democrat and in religion he was a Presbyterian, to which church his wife and several of his children likewise belonged. Mrs. Miller's paternal grandparents were David and Many Ralston, natives of England and early settlers of Pennsylvania, in which state their deaths occurred many years ago. Her mother. Jane Rough, was the daughter of John and Elizabeth ( Farney) Rough, both born and reared in Lebanon county. Pennsylvania, the former dying there at the age of eighty-four, the latter departing this life in Stark county in 1837. while on a visit to her relatives, being sixty-three at the time of her demise. The Ralstons have long been noted for their patriotism and love of country, several of Mrs. Miller's brothers having distinguished themselves in the late Rebellion as soldiers. Henry went from Michigan and served until the close of the struggle, taking part in some of the bloodiest battles of the war. George served in an Ohio regiment and made an honorable record for bravery in a number of campaigns. Of William it is proper to speak at more length, as his experience on the march and on the field of conflict has seldom been equalled. Enlisting August 7. 1862. in Company E. One Plundred and Fourth Ohio Infantry, he at once proceeded to the front and during an active service of three years duration took part in many battles, of which the following are perhaps the most noted: Covington, Danville, Knoxville, Resaca. Cedarville. Dallas. Kenesaw Mountain, I'ine Run. Atlanta. Pumpkinvine Creek, Columbia, Tennessee. Franklin, Nashville, Ft. Anderson, Xorth Car/)lina, Farm Creek and others of equal .importance whose names cannot be recalled. Reverting to the domestic history of the subject and his wife, it is learned that their marriage resulted in the birth of four children : Paris, a machinist, working at his trade in Massillon' Curtis C a jeweler and optician of A'lassillon ; Burton J., a physician and surgeon of the same city, and Daisy, deceased.

MOSES CLAY. - The subject of this review is one of Stark county's oldest native sons and he is also numbered among its leading farmers and representative men of affairs. His father was Isaac Clay, a native of Pennsylvania, and his mother, who bore the maiden name of Mary Pennock, was born in the state of Connecticut. The subject's paternal ancestors were among the early settlers of Pennsyh'ania. while his mother's genealogy is traceable to an early period in the history of New England. David Clay, the grandfather, was born and reared in the Keystone state, but many years ago migrated to Columbiana county, Ohio, where he purchased land, improved a farm and s])ent the remainder of his life. William Peimock. the subject's maternal grandfather, was one of Stark county's earliest pioneers, locating in Plain township as long ago as the year 1810. Subsequently he changed his alxide to what is now the township of Marlborough, where he became a successful tiller of the soil, which vocation he followed as long as lie lived, dying there at a good old age. His wife also lived to be very old, being ninety-six years of age at the time of her death. Isaac C'ay, father of Moses, was reared a farmer and came to Ohio with his parents when a young man. As early as 1812 he became a resident of Stark county, purchasing that year the place in Plain township which the subject now owns and making it his home until his death in 1832. He was one of the sturdy pioneers of this part of the state and a man of sterling worth, whom to know was to respect and honor. He was a stanch AAHiig in politics, took an active interest in the affairs of his community, and is remembered as a kind neighbor ami a most excellent His wife, who also died in 1832, bore him seven children, all of whom lived to be over seventy years of age, the subject being the sole survivor of the family.

Returning to the life of Moses Clay, it is learned that he has been a resident of Jackson township all his life, having been born on the farm where he now lives, November 27, 1823. A continuous residence of eighty years in one locality, such as his has been, is perhaps without parallel in the history of Stark county. He "has seen the country developed from a thinly settled community to one of the finest agricultural regions in the state, nor has he been a mere passi\e spectator of the many remarkable changes affected since his boyhood, but with strong arm and determined purpose he has contributed largely to the advancement of his township in all that constitutes a high order of civilization. Mr. Clay's early life on the farm taught him the true dignity of honest toil and laudable endeavor, and while still a mere yi;>uth he was ready to assume all the duties and the responsibilities of manhood. He was reared to liabits of industry, and, on attaining his majority, began farming for himself, a vocation which he followed with a large measure of success until advancing years obliged him to forego further manual labor, and spent the evening of his life in retirement. Meanwhile, by diligence and thrift, he acquired a comfortable fortune, owning at one time three hundred and fifty-six acres of fine land, on which he hiade man}- substantial improvements, besides accumulating a large amount of personal property. For many years Mr. Clay was an extensive breeder of fine Jersey cattle, from the sale of which he has derived a large income. As a farmer, he always occupied a place in the front rank and earned an honorable reputation as a scientific agriculturist, having prosecuted his labors with the greatest care and with the object in view of obtaining the largest possible results. Some years ago he disposed of one hundred acres of real estate, but the amount he still owns is much more than sufficient to supply his wants, his home place being among one of the largest as well as one of the best farms in the township of Jackson.

Mr. Clay has been an ardent Republican ever since the organization of the party, but has ne\er taken a very active part in public affairs further than to vote his ticket and defend the soundness of his opinions. His duties as a citizen have always been honorably discharged, but at no time has he had political aspirations, preferring the quiet life of a farmer to any office within the power of the people to bestow. He has li\"ed well, provided liberally for his family, and grown old gracefully, and now, from the topmost round in the ladder of success, can look back o\'er a life well spent with little cause for regret.

Catherine Madison, who became the wife of Moses Clay in 1850, was born in Baltimore, Maryland, in the year 1832, the daughter of Otis Madison, a native of Maryland and an early settler of Detroit, Michigan, in which city he is said to have worked at the tailor trade, many years ago. It is stated that he made the first pattern for cutting men's clothing, a device that was subsequently adopted by the leading tailoring establishments throughout the United States. He died a number of years since. To Mr. and Mrs. Clay have been born eight cliildren, namely : Elvira, Harvey, Otis, Frank, Edward, Mary and Emma.

JOSEPH B. SUMMER was born near East Rochester, Columbiana county, Ohio, on the 24th of March, 1861, being the son of Noah and Susan (Aspey) Summer, the respective families having been residents of the United States for ten generations. Noah Summer was born near Poland, Mahoning county, Ohio, in the year 181 8, and his death occurred in 1898, while his wife, who was born in North Georgetown, Columbiana county, Ohio, in 1823, died in 1903. The father of the subject became one of the successful farmers of Columbiana county, and there occurred the death of both himself and his wife. The original progenitors of both the Summer and Aspey families in .America immigrated hither from Switzerland about three hundred years ago, settling in Maryland and Virginia, whence representatives later removed to Pennsylvania, while finally members of the respective families came into Ohio in the pioneer epoch and descendants are now to be found in the most diverse sections of the Union.

I'he subject of this sketch attended the common schools of his native county until he had attained the age of sixteen years, when he was matriculated in Mount Union College, in Alliance, Stark county, where he continued his studies for a period of three years. He began teaching in the public schools at the age of seventeen and continued to follow this vocation about ten years, in Columbiana, Carroll and Stark counties, and being successful in his pedagogic work. In 1889 he entered the employ of a wholesale house in Canton, in the capacity of traveling salesman, and he followed this line of work until the spring of 1896, in the meantime having taken up his residence in North Industry, this county, in 1883. He there continued to make his home until 1897, when he removed to Canton and assumed the duties of the office of which he is now incumbent. In the autumn of 1896 Mr. Summer was elected county commissioner, for a term of three years, and so acceptable was his administration of the affairs of the office that he was chosen as his own successor in the election of of 1899, his second term expiring on the 2ist of September, 1903, while it is certain that the best interests of the county will be conserved if he is continued in the service by re-election at the close of his present term. In politics he gives an unqualified allegiance to the Republican party, taking a lively interest in the cause and doing all in his power to promote the same. He is a man of alert and vigorous mentality, a capable business man and a citizen who commands unqualified esteem.

On the 29th of March, 1883, in Canton, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Summer to Miss Agnes Serva, whose father was of French lineage and mother of German. Her paternal grandfather, Paul Serva, was a member of the cavalry of Napoleon Bonaparte for twelve years. To this union were born three children, Fay. Roscoe and Harold. Mrs. Summers died March 13, 1898, and on January 17, 1903, Mr. Summer was married to Ada Hill, who was born within a few hundred feet of where the subject of this sketch first saw the light of day, and is the daug^hter of Hiram and Emma Hill.

JOHN METZGER is a native son' of Stark county, having been bom on the parental homestead in Nimishillcn township, on the 24th of May. 1839. He was the fifth in order of birth of the nine children of John and Catherine (Goodman) Metzger, and of the number seven are living at the present time, namely : Mary, who is the widow of Frank Guilnrd and who resides in Louisville, this county; Julia, who is the wife of Peter Dubail, of South Bend, Indiana; Catherine, who is the widow of Samuel Lane, resides in Mishawaka, Indiana; John, who is the immediate subject of this sketch ; JVTaria, who is the wife of Nicholas Murley, of Canton ; Susan, who is the wife of Frank Pierson, of Louisville, this county; and Adam, who is engaged in the hardware business in Louisville. The father of the subject was born in the province of Alsace, France, now a portion of the German empire, being of pure German extraction in the agnatic line. The year of his nativity was 181 1 and he was a son of John and Susan (Kena) Metzger, who came with their family to America in the year 1S28. making their way, by the primitive methods of transportation then in vogue, across the continent to the state of Ohio, which was then held to be on the very frontier of civilization. They came to Stark county and were numbered among the first settlers in Nimishillen township, where the grandfather purchased three hundred and twenty acres of government land, in the midst of the virgin forest, and here he erected his little log house in the midst of the forest, and set himself valiantly to the task of subduing the wilderness and placing his land under cultivation, the work, as a matter of course, progressing by slow degrees. With the aid of his sons he continued his labors along this line until he was called upon to answer the inexorable summons of death, at the age of eighty-six years, his wife also dying on the old homestead. It will be noted that the full patronymic of John Metzger has been borne by the three generations of the family in the county, the subject being of the third generation. His father, John Metzger (2d), grew to manhood in this county, and after his marriage located on a tract of eight}' acres of heavily timbered land which had been deeded to him by his honored father, who made similar provision for each of his other two sons, Sebastian and Andrew. Fie continued his experience as a pioneer farmer and succeeded in reclaiming the major portion of his land, becoming one of the prosperous and highly honored farmers of the township. He continued to reside on his homestead until the year 1870, when he retired from active business and took up his abode in the village of Louisville, where he passed the residue of his days, passing away in 1880, at the age of sixty-nine yeariS. He was a stanch Democrat in his political proclivities, and his religious faith was that of the Catholic church, in which he was reared. His wife was likewise a native of the province of Alsace, France, and she was born in 181 1, the same year in which he was ushered into the world. She came with her parents to Ohio in the same year as did the Metzgers, being a daughter of Joseph and Maria (Dietrich) Goodman. They settled in Canton township, near the site of the present county infirmary, later moving to Washington township and later to Nimishillen, where they died. Mrs. Metzger was summoned into eternal rest in 1885, when eighty- four years of age, she likewise having been a faithful member and communicant of the Catholic church.

From the foregoing statements it will be seen that the subject of this review is a representative of sterling pioneer families of Stark county, being of the third generation in both the paternal and maternal lines. He was reared on the homestead farm on which he was born, early beginning to contribute to the work of the same, and even as a boy finding his services in requisition in the arduous work of clearing off the timber and making the land ready for cultivation. Scholastic facilities were of measrer sort at best in the locality, and he attended the little district school during the winten months up to the time of attaining the age of twelve years, while his subsequent discipline has been that afiforded in the practical and valuable school of experience. 1 he work of the farm largely devolved upon him from the time of his fourteenth year, his father's health being impaired, so that he was not longer aljle to take the initiative. The subject continued to devote his attention to the management of the paternal homestead until three years after his marriage, his father having in the meanwhile removed to the village of Louisville, and then he purchased a tract of twenty-two acres just to the south of that town and there made his horiie for the ensuing three years, while for the succeeding peiod of three years he rented a neighboring farm -of one hundred and seventy-three acres. He then passed a year on his little farm, and then turned the property over in partial payment on an adjoining farm of eighty-nine acres, realizing that he needed a wider field for his agricultural operations. On that place he continued his work with energy and discrimination for the next decade, when he rented the place and took up his residence in Louisville, where he has since made his home. ha\inga comfortable and attractive residence and enjoying the fruits of his former years of earnest toil and endeavor. His farm is under a high state of cultivation, is equipped with good buildings and is one of the attractive places of the township, while from the same he receives an income whicli insures him all the comforts and many of tlie luxuries of life. In politics he is stanchly arrayed in support of the principles and policies of the Democratic party, l)ut has never been ambitious for official preferment, though he was called by the local contingent of his party to become a candidate for township trustee in 1879, consented to accept the nomination and was elected by a gratifying majority, while the best evidence of the popular appreciation of his services is that afforded in tlie fact that he was continued as incumbent of this office for the long period -of nine years. He and his wife are both communicants of the Catholic church.

On the 22d of February, 1867. Mr. Metzger was united in marriage to Miss Frances Pierson, who was born in Nimishillen township, this county, lieing a daughter of Louis and Frances Pierson, who were pioneers of this section. Four children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Metzger, namely : John F. and Catherine, who remain at the parental home: Dr. Edward L., who is engaged in the practice of his profession as a veterinary surgeon, in Louisville; and Louis A,, who died in infancv.

JONAS M. KELVI, son of Moses and Lydia Keini, was born in Holmes county, Ohio, on the 2 1 St of April, 1843. It was his privilege to be reared on a farm, the source from which have sprung the majority of the nation's greatest men, and he early became acquainted with the manifold duties which such a mode of life implies. At the proper age he entered the public schools and attended the same until about eighteen years old, meanwhile assisting his father of summer seasons with the work of the farm. On the 15th day of August, 1862, he enlisted in Company B, One Hundred and Fifteenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, with which he served three years, during which time he took part in many noted campaigns and bloody battles, including the various engagements in which General Thomas' command participated. The day on which the regiment was mustered out he was sent to a hospital where he remained about one month and at the expiration of that time he received his discharge and returned home.

On leaving the army ]Mr. Keim resumed the pursuit of agriculture on the home farm and in the fall of 1865 was united in marriage to Miss Catherine Trump, daughter of George Trump, of Nimishillen township. Stark county. He continued tilling the soil in his native county until 1869, at which time he changed his residence to the county of Stark, locating at Louisville grain business, in connection with which he also handled provisions and dealt quite extensively in wool. Subsequently he disposed of this business and purchased an interest in the hardware house founded by his fatlier and during the next twenty-five years was a member of the firm of Keim & Sons, which became one of the largest and most successful establishments of the kind in the county. His connection for so long a time with this line of trade resulted in the accumulation of a fortune which enabled him, in 1897, to lay aside business cares, since which time he has been living a life of honorable retirement in the thriving little town of Louisville.

Mr. Keim possesses marked business ability and superior judgment. He looked after the management of the house with commendable fidelity, built up a large and lucrative trade and by fair and honorable dealing won the confidence of all with whom he had relations of any kind whatever. Aside from his connection with the commercial interests of Louisville, Mr. Keim has long been a factor of considerable consequence in the general affairs of the town, every enterprise calculated to advance the community materially, socially, or morally, receiving his support and hearty co-operation. As a citizen he is deservedly popular, charity and benevolence being among his chief characteristics, and to the poor and needy he is ever ready to extend a helping hand. His political support is given to the Republican party, but the wiles and chicanery of modern partisanship have always received his strongest disapproval. Religiously he is an influential member of the Progressive Branch of the German Baptist church, belonging with his wife to the Louisville congregation, of which he is one of the pillars and chief supporters. He has high ideals of Christian character and endeavors to realize the same in his daily life and conduct. Mr. Keim's first marriage was blessed with the birth of one son, Charles B. Keim, who is now engaged in the boot and shoe business in Louisville. Mrs. Keim dying in 1873, the subject afterwards wedded Miss Mary Keim, of Nimishillcn township, daughter of Adam Keim, a union terminated by the death of the wife in 1887. ^I^"- Keim's present companion,, to whom he was united in the bonds of wedlock in tlie year 1896, was Mrs. Ella Werner,, formerlv Miss Slote.

FRANK W. G.-WIN. M. D., is of Scotch descent, the advent of his family into America dating from 1850. Li that year his grandfatlier, Robert Ga\ in, with a wife and nine children, came to the United States and settled' in Cleveland, Ohio, being at the time well advanced in life. In his native land Robert Gavin had been a manufacturer of woolen goods, but he did not follow the business very long after coming to this country, retiring in a few years to Fort Wayne, Indiana, where he died in 1874, at the age of seventy-eiglit. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Isabella Craig, preceded him to the grave, departing this life in the year 1851.

James A. Gavin, son of Robert and Isabella Gavin and father of tlie subject of this sketch, was born September 10, 1848, in Scotland and was about t\\'0 years old when the family came to America. He spait his early life in the cities of Cleveland and Fort Wayne, received a common school education, but by dilligent course of private study he made such progress that in due time he fitted himself for the profession of teaching. His advancement in that field of endeavor was rapid and it was not long until he became one of the most accomplished teachers in Fort Wayne, with the public schools of which city he was identified for a period of over twenty-one years. By a series of continued advancements he rose from the position of grade teacher to a principalship, thence to superintendency, in which capacity he became widely known among the leading educators of northern Indiana. Professor Gavin was married in Fort Wayne, April 30, 1871, to Miss Sedonia R. Davis, whose birth occurred in Newark, Ohio, on the 29th of April, 1850. He continued in educational work until 1899, when he resigned his position and his death took place on December 24th of the year following, his wife dying in 1879. Prof. Gavin was reared in the Presbyterian faith, but later in life united with the Baptist church, being at the time of his death an ordained deacon of the congregation worshiping in Fort Wayne. Politically he was a stanch supporter of the Republican party and took an active interest in politics and public affairs, always keeping himself well informed relative to the leading questions and issues of the day. For a number of years he was an enthusiastic member of the Masonic fraternity, in which he rose to prominent positions, including that of Sir Knight and the thirty-second or Scottish rite degree.

Dr. Frank W. Gavin is the only child of Prof, and Isabella Gavin. He was born April 9, 1872, in B'ort Wayne, Indiana, and received his literary education in the public schools of that city, graduating from the higli school of that city as valedictorian of his class at the early age of seventeen. While still a mere youth he formulated his plans for the future and selecting the medical profession as best fitted to his tastes and inclinations, began a preliminary course of study as soon as he quit school, under the direction of Dr. George Greenawalt, one of Fort Wayne's leading physicians. Subsequently he entered Bellevue Hospital Medical College, New York city, where he prosecuted his studies and researches under .some of the most eminent medical minds of the age, receiving his degree from that noted institution in 1893, when but a little past his twenty-first year.

term in Bellevue hospital, where he acquired valuable practical knowledge and later was similarly engaged in Mercy hospital in the city of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. His experience in the above institutions was of especial value in fitting him for the active duties of his profession and while there he availed himself of every opportunity at hand to enlarge the area of his knowledge so as to become not only well grounded in the great truths of medical science but to reduce his knowledge to practice in the treatment of diseases.