Lorain City (part 60 of 77)

CHArpMAN Famity. One of the primary objects of such a publication as the Standard Ilistory of Lorain County is to give permanent record to the activities and personalities of the leading old families, There are few that can claim establishment at an earlier date in this section of Northern Ohio than the Chapman family. While nearly a century has passed since the first of that name came into the then wilderness of Eaton Township, for nearly two centuries prior to that time the suecessive generations have been identified with the old colony and State of Connecticut and it will be appropriate to begin this record with the establishment of the Chapman family on the American shores early in the seventeenth century. The Chapmans are not only among the oldest of New England stock but as the following paragraphs will show inany of them have been prominent as leaders in church, legislators. magistrates. in business and the professions. as patriots and soldiers, and with careers of dignified and useful service in whatever station of the world they have held.

The vecord begins with Robert Chapman, who aceording to family tradition came from Hull, England, to Boston in 1635. So far as authentic records go he completely dissevered himself from his home and family in England when he crossed the ocean. and nothing definite can he stated concerning the English ancestry. After arriving at Boston he sailed in company with Lyon Gardiner for Saybrook, Connecticut, being one of the company of twenty men sent over from England by Sir Richard Saltonstall for the express purpose of taking possession of a large tract of land and making settlement near the mouth of the Connecticut River under a patent of Lord Say and Seal. The traditional date of his hirth is placed in 1616, so that at this time Robert Chapman was about eighteen years old. After the Indian tribes along the Connecticut River had been sufficiently subdued the company undertook the next task, clearing the forest and establishing a permanent cemmunity. For about ten vears after leaving England Robert Chapman kept a journal. and many items from this have heen preserved. It is on the authority of the colony records that the remarkable length of the service given not only by him but by each of his three sons as legislators is established. Ie was elected forty-three times to represent his community in the law making body of Connecticut. while his eldest son served twenty-two sessions. the second son eighteen sessions, and the third son twenty-four sessions. As his name appears as a sentinel in the Pequot Indian war of 1637. Robert Chapman also did military service at that time and perhaps on other occasions as required. The records of Savhrook prove him one of the very large land holders in that town and in the Town of East Haddam. At the time of his death he left to each of his three sons 1,500 acres. This vast estate had come to him as one of the legatees of Uncas, an Indian chief. Robert's homestead, on a tract of land in the Oyster River quarter, about two miles west of Saybrook Fort, has descended in the line of the youngest son of each successive generation, never having been bought or sold outside the family, until in 1854 it was occupied by George H. Chapman, Esq., youngest in the fifth generation from Robert. A son of Puritan parents, Robert Chapman received from them their religious zeal, and all his life was a man of exemplary piety. Only a short time before his death he wrote an address to his children, all of who were members of the church, in which he exhorted them to a devoted life and to abide by the covenant into which they had entered with God and his church. In the office of the Connecticut secretary of state are on file several letters written to Robert Chapman.

Robert Chapman died October 13, 1687, at the age of seventy-one. He was married April 29, 1642, to Ann Bliss. That union produced seven children: John, Robert Jr., Anna, Hannah, Nathaniel, Mary and Sarah.

Robert Chapman, Jr., second son of the first settler, was born in September, 1646, at Saybrook, and was an extensive agriculturist, owning at the time of his death not less than 2,000 acres. The town records show him to have been a man of large influence in civie affairs. For many years he was clerk of Oyster River Quarter, as well as commissioner and surveyor for the Town of Saybrook. From 1692 to 1711 he was a member of the Legislature, as already recorded. An even more interesting fact is that he was a member of the assembly that drafted the Saybrook platform in 1708, a work that has preserved the purity of the Congregational churches of Connecticut for more than two centuries. Robert Jr.'s first marriage was to Sarah Griswold of Norwich, Connecticut, on July 27, 1671. She became the mother of nine children, and died April 7, 1692. On October 29, 1694, he married Mrs. Mary Sheather, and by that union had four children. Those of the first marriage were named Samuel, Robert, Sarah, Francis, Dorcas, Steven, the next, a son, dying in infancy, then a second named Sarah and the last being also a son who died in infaney.. By the second marriage the children were Benjamin, Steven, Mehitabel and Abigail. Robert Chapman, Jr., died suddenly while in the Hartford courtroom in November, 1711. He was laid away in the old burial ground at Hartford, in the rear of the Center Church, and on his tombstone, which can now be found about a rod north of the monument on which are inscribed the names of the first settlers of Hartford, is this inscription: ''Here lyeth the body of Robert Chapman who departed this life November ye 10th, 1711, aged 65 years.''

Casts Samuel Chapman, eldest son of Robert Jr., was born September 12, 1672. On December 6, 1693, he married Margaret Griswold, a daughter of Capt. Samuel Griswold of Norwich. By her he had ten children. Mrs. Chapman died December 21, 1750. Captain Samuel was prominent both in civic and military affairs. His home was in what is now the Town of Westbrook, and he was one of the original fourteen persons who were banded into a church organization at that place June 29, 1726. The date of his death is not known. His children were: Sarah. Margaret, Samuel, Martha, Temperance, Jedediah, Mehitabel, Caleb, Luey and Aaron.

Jedediah, second son of Captain Samuel, was born at Westbrook, October 9, 1703. He married Miss Hester Kirkland June 5, 1723, and there were eight children. Jedediah was weli known in Westbrook as a soldier, citizen and churchman, served as a major in the infantry, was by profession a lawyer, and held the possession of deacon in the Vol. II - 5 ehurch from 1732 until his death which occurred at Westbrook, February 10, 1764, in his sixty-first year.. The names of his children were Hester, Temperance, Jedediah, Ann, Reuben, Charity, Chloe and Tabitha. Jedediah (second) eldest son of Major Jedediah, was born at Westbrook, December 15, 1726, and was married to Miss Mary Grinnell in 1755. From 1771 until his death on February 29, 1816, a period of forty-four years, he also served the church of Westbrook as deacon. He was for twenty years a justice of the peace. The Chapmaus lived to great age, and this Jedediah was ninety at the time of his death. His children were Dan, Jedediah, Constant, Hester, Lucilla, Mary, Ann and Aaron. Constant, son of Deacon Jedediah Chapman, was born at Westbrook, Connecticut, December 27, 1760, and on January 27, 1735, married Miss Jemima Kelsey of Killingworth, Connecticut. They had nine children. The Chapman descendants get their eligibility to membership in the Sons and: Daughters of the American Revolution through Constant Chapman, who at the early age of sixteen entered the Revolutionary army and for six years was under the immediate command of Washington. For a time he was one of that general's body guard. He was in the battle on Long Island, at Germantown, Princeton and Trenton, experienced all the rigors of the winter at Valley Forge, and participated in that great triumph of American arms in the final surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown. Further interest attaches to his career for the fact that he was the first in this branch to follow the sea as a calling. He was a sailor for many years, and rose to the position of commander of a merchant vessel trading on the coast of South America, also across the ocean to Lisbon and other foreign ports. In 1793, during the friction between the youthful Republic of America and the French government, which almost precipitated a war between the two countries, the vessel of which he was captain was captured by the French off Porto Rico, was scuttled and sunk, while he and his crew were carried prisoners to the French Island of Guadaloupe. After four months he was liberated. On retiring from the sea he chose a residence in the interior, and his last days were spent at Brimfield in Portage County, Ohio, where he died in 1850 at the age of ninety. His children were Lydia k., Thurot F., John K., Anna M., Chloe P., Mary C., Joseph G., Jemima T. and Henry C. It is noticeable that the children of Constant all had middle names, a practice which was not followed in the earlier generations. _ The history of the Chapman family in Northern Ohio begins with Thurot F. Chapman, eldest son of the Revolutionary soldier Constant. Thurot was born at Old Killingworth, Connecticut, December 7, 1789. He was twice married. November 17, 1810, he married Lydia Andress, who became the mother of one child. October 16, 1832, lhe married Elizabeth Furray, and there were three children of that union. The military record of the family is continued through Thurot F. Chapman, who in the War of 1812 enlisted in Colonel Van Reusselaer.'s Regiment of New York Militia, crossed the Niagara River into Canada. and participated in the battle of Queenstown Heights, where he was taken prisoner and afterwards paroled. Like his father, he also followed the sea for a time, being engaged in the coasting trade, and for a number of years operated vessels engaged in codfishing off the Banks of Newfoundland and the Straits of Belle Isle. A character sketch of Thurot F. Chapman shows him to be a man of sterling integrity, of most generous impulses, so that the poor and oppressed were never turned from his door without practical help, and during the early half otf the last century, while living in Northern Ohio, his home proved a refuge to many a poor slave who was following the underground railroad route to freedom in Canada. He kept these fugitives, fed and sheltered them, and carried them over his section of the underground railroad to the next station. For several years Thurot F. Chapman lived at Smithville, Chenango County, New York, but in 1817 emigrated to the wilderness of the Ohio Western Reserve, and the greater part of his life thereafter was spent in Lorain County. As a pioneer few individuals did a more important work in clearing away the primeval wilderness which was the _primary obstacle to cultivation and the real establishment of civilization in this country. For a number of years he carried on this work both by his own labor and by superintendence of others, and is said to have cleared up and fenced nearly 300 acres of land. Thurot F. Chapman died in Lorain County, December 16, 1860, at the age of seventy-one. He made his Christianity a practical force in everyday life, was one of the early members of the Congregational school in Lorain County and was one of the strongest forces working for morality and clean living in the early days. The children of Thurot F. Chapman weré: Alonzo A., whose name is taken up in the following paragraphs: Emily A.,. wife of Lucius R. Fields of Oberlin; Degrass 8., who enlisted during the Civil war in Company K of the Twenty-third Ohio Volunteer Infantry, was wounded at the battle of Antietam and died six days later in the field hospital at the age of twenty-four; and Harlan P., of whom a separate sketch appears. The mother of the last three children was born in New Durham, Greene County, New York, March 9, 1804, and lost her life as the result of an accident at Oberlin, June 12, 1876.

Alonzo A. Chapman, eldest son of Thurot F., was born August 25, 1811, at Smithfield, New York, and was only a child when his parents brought him to Lorain County, Ohio, in 1817. He was married September 30, 1832, to Miss Margaret Taylor, and had seven children by that union. He grew up in Eaton Township, and for many years was a farmer there, and was also called upon to fill various positions of trust in civic and religious bodies. For more than half a century he was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and belonged to the first elass organized at LaPorte. In 1866 he moved his family to Ridgeville, in Henry County, Ohio, and for many years was in the lumber business. His death occurred at Ridgeville Corners, August 5, 1890, at the age of seventy-nine. His children were: William T., Mary L., Henry L. (first), Emory N., Pamela A., Facelia and Henry L. (second).

William T. Chapman, eldest son of Alonzo A., was born in Eaton Township of Lorain County on Butternut Ridge, July 10, 1833. He was married March 21, 1854, to Miss Fidelia 8. Bannister, and became the father of three children. Perhaps no man in Lorain County made a more notable record as an educator than William T. Chapman. He entered the profession in the fall of 1852 and followed it practically continuously save for his service in the army until the spring of 1890, a period of thirty-eight years. His record aggregates fifty-seven terms. Eighteen of these terms were taught in Lorain County, one term in Cuyahoga County, two terms in Defiance County, two terms in Lucas County, twenty-three terms in Henry County, and eleven terms in Fulton County, all in Ohio. In 1867 he removed with his family to Henry County, settling in Ridgeville, and lived there for a number of vears. His children were: Minnie E., Myra O., and Myrta J.

The sons of Alonzo Chapman made a notable record as soldiers in the Civil war. William T. enlisted as a private August 4, 1862, and upon the organization of his company was made a sergeant. In December, 1862, he was made orderly sergeant, and in June following received his commission as second lieutenant of Company H, One Hundred and Third Ohio Volunteer Infantry. In March, 1864, he was discharged for physical disability by order of Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton.

Henry L., fourth son of Alonzo, enlisted December 24, 1863, in Company F of the One Hundred and Twenty-fourth Ohio Infantry, and being taken with the smallpox was left in a tobacco shed at Concord Station in East Tennessee, and while there both feet were frozen so the toes came off. For these injuries he received an honorable discharge May 31, 1865.

Harnan P, CHapMan. <A gallant soldier during the war, a successful farmer, and long identified with public affairs in Lorain County, Harlan P. Chapman has well upheld the traditions of the Chapmans for loyal and upright citizenship, and is one of the most honored members of that worthy family, the lineage of which down to recent generations has been traced on preceding pages.

The youngest child of Thurot F. and Elizabeth (Furray) Chapman, Harlan P. Chapman was born on Butternut Ridge in Eaton Township, Lorain County, September 6, 1844. In his boyhood and early yonth he attended the common schools of that locality, and had the benefit of two terms at Oberlin College. The wholesome environment of a farm provided bone and sinew for his intellectual training, and he had not yet reached years of manhood when the Civil war came upon the country and he responded to the call to help preserve the Union. August 4, 1862, he enlisted in Company H of the One Hundred and Third Regiment of Ohio Infantry, and was first sent to Camp Cleveland and then to Cincinnati, whence his command marched into Kentucky and spent the following winter at Frankfort. In April, 1863, the regiment moved across the state to the Cumberland River, where it was engaged in several skirmishes with the Confederates. In the following August they were placed under the command of Burnside, then crossed the Cumberland Mountains and participated in the historic campaign in East Tennessee. Mr. Chapman participated in the Battle of Blue Springs. Knoxville and Armstrong's Hill, and at the latter battle, which took place on Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1863, received a serious wound, from which he never fully recovered and carries to this day a musket ball imbedded in the hip joint. For nine months he was confined to a hospital, and then went home on a furlough. Before being ordered back to the hospital he was married on March 31, 1864, and a pair of crutches were under his arms as he took his part in the ceremony which made him and Miss Mary C. Pitkin man and wife. Miss Pitkin's home was at Brunswick, Medina County. Mr. Chapman was not called upon for further active service with the army and received his honorable discharge June 27, 1864. Having in the meantime become head of a family he then settled upon his present farm in Carlisle Township near the Village of LaPorte.

While fully half a century has been given to his duties as an agriculturist, this has been frequently interrupted by periods of public service. A stanch republican, Mr. Chapman has enjoyed the position of a leader in his party in this county. For three years he served as postmaster at LaPorte and at the same time conducted a general store there. In November, 1892, he was elected treasurer of Lorain County for a term of two years and re-elected, so that he served altogether four years as county treasurer. Since then he has been mainly retired from public duties and from the active work of the farm. and now lives quietly at his attractive home in LaPorte, three miles south of Elyria. His valuable farm of fifty-three acres is nicely situated on the electric interurban line.

commander. At the recent general census he was sent as enumerator for Carlisle Township. In January, 1911, the Sons of Veterans organized the H. P. Chapman Camp at Elyria, and the naming of this camp was a fit recognition of the services of one of Lorain County's gallant soldiers.

Mr.' Chapman and wife are the parents of three children. The oldest, Erie D., is individually mentioned on other pages. The son Otto B. is married and is now managing the old farm at LaPorte. Oleo E. is now the wife of A. E. Giles, also living at LaPorte. The two younger children were born at LaPorte, and the oldest was born at Brunswick in Medina County. Otto and his sister Mrs. Giles were educated at LaPorte and in the public schools of Elyria, and Mrs. Giles is a graduate of the high school of the latter city. Possessing exceptional musical talent, she was trained in that art in the Conservatory of Music at Oberlin and is now a well known teacher of piano. Her husband is also a graduate of the Elyria High School, and has been prominent in musical circles, being a member of the Elyria City Band and of the local orchestra. Mr. Giles is now pursuing a business course in the Oberlin Business College.

Erie D. Cuapman. The actual administration of the Elyria postoffice has been in the hands of Erie D. Chapman now for more than seventeen years. As assistant postmaster he has every detail of that office at his fingers' ends, and has proved himself vigilant, diligent, proficient and well worthy of the responsibilities reposed in him. He is one of the best known citizens of Lorain County and possesses the substantial character and solid ability for which the Chapman family have always been noted. He is a son of Harlan P. and Mary C. (Pitkin) Chapman, and a member of the noted Chapman family whose line has been traced on preceding pages since it was first established in America upwards of 300 years ago.

Born at Brunswick, Medina County, Ohio, March 21, 1868, Erie D. Chapman as a boy attended the public schools both of Elyria and Oberlin, and is a graduate of the Oberlin Business College. His practical career began as clerk in a dry goods store in Oberlin, and from there he came to Elyria and during the four years his father was county treasurer, during the '90s, was chief assistant in that office. O. F. Carter of Oberlin succeeded Harlan P. Chapman as couuty treasurer, and the latter's son remained on duty under County Treasurer Carter for a little over six months, from September to March.

It was in March, 1898, that Mr. Chapman became identified with the Elyria postoffice as assistant postmaster. At that time I. H. Griswold was postmaster. In a short time he had made himself master of the varied details of the local office, and made his services so invaluable that he was retained in the same position by J. H. Bath, who sueceeded Mr. Griswold, and when in 1913, following a change from republican to democratic administration, D. W. Seward was appointed under the new regime, Mr. Chapman was retained as assistant, and his work has been such that he ought to be held in that office as long as he desires it. In March, 1915, he completed seventeen years of continuous service, and during that time had helped reorganize the local management to provide for the successive improvements made in postal affairs, first looking after the arrangements of rural delivery routes and in more recent years having a part in the introduction of the postal savings and parcel post features to the local service.

In politics Mr. Chapman is a stanch republican, and has served on a number of committees of the party. Fraternally he is affiliated with King Solomon Lodge No. 56, F. & A. M., at Elyria, with the Royal Arch Chapters. the Council, with the Knight Templar Commandery and with Al Koran Temple of the Mystic Shrine at Cleveland. He is a charter member of Lodge No. 465 of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, a member of the Fraternal Order of Eagles, belongs-to the H. P. Chapman Camp, Sons of Veterans, which was organized and named in honor of his father in January, 1911. He is also a charter member of the Elyria Chamber of Commerce. Though his duties confine him closely he takes his recreations out of doors in fishing and hunting trips whenever possible.

On April 20, 1898, Mr. Chapman married Miss Minnie Elizabeth Thaver of Elyria. Her father, James Thayer, is now hving with Mr. and Mrs. Chapman, and her mother died here several vears ago. They were Ohio people, lived near Zanesville for a number of vears, but Mrs. Chapman was born in Medina County. She was educated in the Elyria public schools, and as a musician has a reputation of more than local note. She attended the Oberlin Conservatory of Musie and the Cleveland School of Music, and also took instruction under private teachers at Cleveland both in piano and violin. An honor that recently came to her was her appointment as director of the Elyria Extension Department of the Sherwood Musie School of Chicago. The Sherwood Music School, which was founded by the late William H. Sherwood, whose reputation as America's greatest pianist is hardly disputed. is the only conservatory of established reputation to adopt the plan of extension work, though several of the noted European schools of music have long applied that system. Mrs. Chapman for the past ten years, since 1905, has heen leader of the theater orchestra of Elyria, and has conducted a large class of students in the study of violin and piano. It was her standing in local musical circles which led to her selection by the Sherwood School to take charge of the local branch of its extension department. This extension department affords the prestige and experience of one of the best known conservatories to Elyria, so that local students, without the expense involved in months of residence away from home, may secure the advantages of metropolitan conservatory training and earn credits and diplomas that entitled them to recognition for proficiency in their chosen art. Mr. and Mrs. Chapman are the parents of three sons: Harlan Thayer. who is in the U. S. Navy. Erie Degrass and Max Joslyn. They were all born in Elyria and are the two youngest students in the graded schools of that city.

Erwin WorcCESTER. For a great many vears the Worcester family have been identified with that part of Lorain County adjacent to Oberlin. and Erwin Worcester, whose enterprise as a dairyman is the largest business of its kind in Oberlin. is a brother of P. G. Worcester. in connection with whose name are published many facts of family history and interest.

Born near Oberlin. January 31, 1871, Erwin Worcester has had a very active career. He grew up in the country, attended the public schools and high sehool. and his first regular occupation was as a earpenter. which he followed ten vears. He then went to the Far West and from San Francisco sailed out on various vessels along the Pacific Coast and in the Pacifie trade as a salt water mariner for four vears. With that experience he came hack to Lorain County. graduated from the business college in 1895. and then continued his studies in the Oberlin Academy for one vear. For five vears Mr. Worcester was connected with a mail order house in Toledo, and after that for nine vears was at Cleveland. engaged in contracting and in the railway mail service.

has lived in Wood County, where he has been connected with various lines of business and at one time was postmaster at Weston. Mrs. Worcester was born at Weston, Ohio. To their union have been born four children: Marion Emeline, now attending high school; Madge in the sixth grade of the public schools; Irene in the fourth grade; and Kenneth Edwin, who is four years of age. The family are members of 'the Second Congregational Church at Oberlin, and in politics Mr. Worcester is independent. His success in life is due to the fact that he has devoted himself absolutely to the business in hand and he is now giving his time and attention to the dairy business.

Heman Ety. By its name Elyria will always be a memorial to the enterprising activities of the Ely family. While there were a few earlier settlers than Judge Heman Ely, he is properly considered the founder ef the town, gave it its name, and breathed into the community that spirit of vitality and progress which in more modern years has made Elyria "'the hundred per cent city.'? While the history of the city found on other pages is a retlection of the life of Judge Heman Ely, it is proper to combine in a special sketch the main facts of his interesting career.

He was born at West Springfield, Massachusetts, April 24, 1775, and died in Elyria February 2, 1852. His father, Justin Ely, of West Springfield, was a very extensive dealer in real estate, and was one of the original proprietors of what was then known as ''the Connecticut Western Reserve'' in Ohio, under the Connecticut Land Company. Judge Ely, who was the fourth in the family of his father, subsequently succeeded to his father's properties in what is now Lorain County. As a young man, early in the nineteenth century, he became interested in buying extensive tracts of land in Central and Western New York, and under his direction much of this land was surveyed and sold to settlers. Nearly coincident with these enterprises he was engaged in partnership with his brother Theodore in New York City, and for ten years they managed an extensive exporting business, dealing with European countries and the East Indies. As a matter of business Heman Ely was one of the few Americans of that time who frequently ''went abroad.'' He visited England, Holland, France and Spain, and remained in France long enough to acquire the language, for that purpose separating himself from pleasant friends and living entirely with French families. His residence in Paris, from July, 1809, to April, 1810, made him a witness of events of world-wide significance. It was the high tide of Emperor Napoleon's reign. In August, 1809, Judge Ely witnessed the grand fete when Napoleon appeared with Empress Josephine, and in the evening he attended a ball at the Hotel de Ville, where a cotillion was danced by a set composed exclusively of kings and queens. A few months later Empress Josephine was divorced, and Judge Ely was a spectator of the formal entrance into Paris of Emperor Napoleon with Empress Maria Louise of Austria, followed by the religious ceremony of their marriage at the Chapel of the Tuilleries. As all students of European history are aware, practically every nation was then engaged in warfare, with Napoleon and France combating practically the entire civilized world except America. Consequently, and partly in view of the einbargo placed by the French emperor upon all commerce between England and the continental countries, it was no easy matter for any foreigner to pass from country to country. Judge Ely apparently possessed that typical American quality of being able to make his way anywhere and under any circumstances, and was always quick to act in any emergency or adventure. He frequently ran the blockade, was shot at by privateers, and whenever means of transportation failed he would seize a small fishing boat to make his way from one country to another. In entering France he was accompanied by one friend, Mr. Charles R. Codman of Boston. They took passage from England to Holland in a Dutch fishing boat. Gendarmes patrolled the coast of Holland, and fired upon the little vessel as it attempted to land. Waiting until the eover of darkness, they quickly landed on the shores of an unknown country, where neither of the Americans had knowledge of a word of the Dutch language. For eight miles they carried their baggage, avoiding towns and fine mansions, and finally found a peasant who was willing to give them food and look after their baggage, which he later buried in the sand in order that it might not be discovered in ease soldiers should search his cottage. The travelers then walked to Rotterdam, and soon found means to send a servant into the country to get their baggage. The travelers were closely questioned at Antwerp and other places, but finally reached Paris on July 9, 1809. While in Paris one morning they were ordered from their beds to the police courts on suspicion of speaking ill of Napoleon, but after some delay and annoyance were released. All France was then under an elaborate system of espionage, and caution and courage were absolutely necessary to safety.'

In 1810 Judge Ely returned to America and the following vear he paid his first visit to Ohio, going as far west as Cleveland. In some of his correspondence he made a special note of his trip by steamboat up the Hudson River. That was only several years after Robert Fulton's Clermont had made its pioneer voyage propelled by steam. From the Hudson River he had made most of his journey on horseback. The Ely possessions in Northern Ohio aggregated about 12,000 acres lying around the falls of the Black River. On going back to New England Mr. Ely passed by Niagara Falls, and thence went up the St. Lawrence River and through Montreal. The war with England. which broke out in 1812, made it unadvisable to open or settle new territory in Ohio, and it was not until 1816 that he again visited the lands best known as '' No. 6, Range 17, Connecticut Western Reserve.'' At that time he made arrangements for future settlement, contracting for the construction of a grist and sawmill and a log cabin to be completed early in the following year. .

In February, 1817, accompanied by his step-brother, Ebenezer Lane, who subsequently became chief justice of Ohio, and attended by a considerable company of skilled workmen and laborers, he left West Springfield for the Western Reserve of Ohio. He and Mr. Lane rode in a stout covered wagon, while the others walked or rode on ox cart conveyances which also carried provisions and implements. March 17, 1817, the company forded the stream known as Black River and took possession of the log cabin already creeted. The site chosen was high land between the two branches of the Black River. Each branch had a fall of forty feet within a comparatively short stretch, and thus afforded some splendid water power, unusual in a country so prevailingly level as Northern Ohio. To the settlement Judge Ely supplied the name ''Elyria,'' improvised from his own name, and from that time forward gave the best energies of his life to the development of the little community of which he was the founder.

In 1818 several houses were built, the largest being the home of Judge Ely, a cut of which appears on other pages of this werk, and another was the Beebe Tavern on the opposite side of Broad Street. which is also illustrated. Judge Ely's residence, the first frame house erected in Elyria, has been described as follows: ''In dimensions 45x40 feet, two stories, with cellar under the main part; kitchen in the rear; fire- place in every room, and brick oven in the kitchen. No stoves were known at that time. The siding of the house was made from a single whitewood tree cut on the place near a bend in the road. A large barn was built at the time. Invitations were sent to Ridgeville, which was settled before Elyria, and both frames were raised on the same day."' _ Up to this time Mr. Ely had lived a bachelor, but in the fall of 1818 he returned to his old home in West Springfield as a passenger on Walk-on-the-Water, the first steamboat that ever plied Lake Erie to Buffalo. On October 9th he married Miss Celia Belden, who soon afterwards returned with him to the new village. As the house above described was not yet completed, they lived for a time in a log house. Mrs. Ely was a woman of lovable disposition and it was to the deep grief of her many friends that she did not long enjoy the home which she helped to make. She died January 7, 1827.

In 1818 a postoffice was established at Elyria. Six years later a new county was formed, and to it Judge Ely gave the name Lorain, with Elyria as the county seat. While abroad he had spent some delightful months in the Province of Lorraine, France, and it was in honor of that country of such diversified national experience that Lorain County was named. At the same time the First Church of Christ was organized at Elyria, with Rev. Daniel W. Lathrop as pastor. Religious services, however, had been conducted in previous years. Judge Ely collected members of the little colony and read them a sermon, and called upon professing Christians to offer prayer. While not a member of any church himself, he valued Christian institutions, and contributed liberally to their maintenance. However, in 1841, the reading of a ''Child's Book on Repentance,'' written by Rev. Thomas H. Gallaudet, wrought a vital change in his personal experience.

Nowhere is Judge Ely's influence more permanently impressed upon the present city than in the plan of the town. He arranged for broad intersecting streets, ample public grounds, and on opposite sides of the square assigned lots for a church and schoolhouse. He subsequently was the prime factor in erecting a building for a high school or academy, in a more retired locality, and built a commodious house for the residence of the principal in order: that boarding pupils from the surrounding country might be accommodated. Thus more perhaps than any other individual he influenced the early institutional hfe of Elyria.

Among the early settlers Judge Ely naturally possessed a leadership consequent upon his broad activities and his world travels and experlence. The range of his interests was remarkable. He was especially fond of horticulture, and spent much of the time in the summer seasons in his garden, where he collected the choicest varieties of vegetables, trees and vines, and this avocation likewise had its beneficial influence upon the community, since he freely distributed samples of his trees and shrubs to all who desired them. Thus in one way or another he was almost constantly engaged in some form of vital public service. During 1831-32 he served as a member of the state board of equalization, and from 1835 to 1845 was one of the associate judges under the old state constitution.

Miss Celia Belden, who married Judge Ely at West Springfield, Massachusetts, October 9, 1818, was born in Wethersfield, Connecticut, October 5, 1796, a daughter of Col. Ezekiel Porter and Mary (Parsons) Belden. She died at Elyria January 7, 1827. There were three children of the union: Heman, Jr., Albert and Mary Belden, all now deceased. At Mansfield, Connecticut, August 20, 1828, Judge Ely married Harriet M. Salter, daughter of Gen. John Salter. She was born at Mansfield, Connecticut, March 20, 1792, and died at Elyria August 6, 1846. The one son of this union, Charles A., died in 1864. On December 7, 1846, he married for his third wife Mrs. Cynthia Sergeant, widow of John Sergeant of Stockbridge, Massachusetts, and daughter of Dr. Jeremiah and Amelia (Ely) West of Tolland, Connecticut. She was born at Tolland July 21,1791, and died at Hartford, Connecticut, August 5, 1871.

Hemawn E xy, Jr. Son of Judge Heman Ely, the founder of Elyria, whose life and services have been sketched on other pages, Heman Ely, Jr., likewise made himself a conspicuous factor in the business and public life of Elyria. Born at Elyria October 30, 1820, he died in that city July 8, 1894, at the age of seventy-four. As a boy he attended the old Elyria High School, and also attended a school at Farmington, Connecticut. In his father's office he acquired a thorough training and insight into the real estate business, which he followed for many years. Like his father, though at a later period in the development of the county, he identified himself with many of its leading institutions. He was connected with the old Lorain Bank, established in 1847, with its successor, the First National Bank, organized in 1864, and with the successor of the First National, the National Bank of Elyria, organized in 1883. He was president of the National Bank of Elyria at the time of his death, and had been in each successive institution a director, and for a number of years had been vice president. In 1852, with a number of other men, he secured the building of that section of the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railway, then known as the ''Junction Road,'' from Cleveland to Toledo. From 1870 to 1873 he was a member of the State Legislature, and assisted in molding the first insurance laws for the State of Ohio.

On September 1, 1841, Mr. Ely married Miss Mary Harris Montieth, a daughter of Rey. John and Abigail (Harris) Montieth. To this union were born three children: Celia Belden; George H. Ely, who is a well known citizen of Elyria, and former state senator; and Mary Montieth. The mother of these children died at Elyria March 1, 1849. On May 27, 1850, Mr. Ely married for his second wife Miss Mary F. Day, daughter of Hon. Thomas and Sarah (Coit) Day, of the prominent family of that name originating in Hartford, Connecticut. To the second marriage were born four children: Edith Day, Charles Theodore, Albert Heman and Harriette Putnam. Mrs. Ely died at Elyria in 1895, about a vear after her husband.

The late Mr. Ely was very prominent in social affairs and was really a gentleman of the old school. Distinguished honors were paid him in the Masonic fraternity. He took his first degrees in that order in 1852. From 1858 to 1871 he was worshipful master of King Solomon Lodge No. 56, at Elyria. In 1857 he received the Order of Knighthood in Oriental Commandery of Knights Templar No. 12, at Cleveland, and served as eminent commander there from December, 1861, to December, 1865, and from 1864 to 1871 was grand commander of the grand commandery of Knights Templar of Ohio. He was also identitied with the supreme council of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite for the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction of the United States, and was its treasurer from May, 1567. to September, 1891. He received the much coveted honor of a thirty-third degree. The Congregational Church of Elyria has much for which to be grateful to members of the Ely family, and to Heman Ely, Jr.. in particular. He was a member of that congregation from 1838. and for many years one of its officers and for ten years superintendent of the Sunday school. In politics he was a republican. Personally, while the range of his interests was widely extended, he was averse to undue notice, and preferred the unassuming, charitable and dignified position of the private citizen.

JOHN J. NICHOLS. It was given to the late John J. Nichols to become one of the representative agriculturists and stock-growers of Lorain County, and he was a child at the time when the family home was established in Ohio. He was born at Elzing, Norfolkshire, England, and was a son of John and Elizabeth (Dent) Nichols, the former of whom was born and reared at Elzing and the latter of whom was born at Castle Acre, England, a daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth (Titeringim) Dent. John Nichols was born in the year 1800 and bore the full patronymie of his father, John Nichols, Sr. John and Elizabeth (Dent) Nichols came to America in the year 1835, and their voyage across the Atlantic was made on a sailing vessel of the type common to that period, six weeks and one day elapsed ere they disembarked in the port of New York City, whence they soon afterward continued their westward journey and established their home on a pioneer farm near Sandusky, Ohio, the remainder of their lives having been passed in Erie County. - Of their eleven children five were born in England, and the other six claimed the United States as their place of nativity.

John J. Nichols was a child at the time of the family immigration to the United States and he was reared to adult age on the pioneer farm of his father in Erie County, Ohio, where his early education was obtained in the common schools of the period. He continued his active association with agricultural enterprise in Erie County until about the year 1855, when he came to Lorain County and instituted the development of a farm in Black River Township, where he engaged also in the manufacture of brick. He became one of the representative men of the township and here both he and his wife passed the residue of their lives, as prominent and honored citizens of Lorain County. They were pioneer members of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Lorain County and were zealous members of the First Methodist Church of Lorain for many years.

The marriage of Mr. Nichols to Miss Martha Elwood was solemnized in Erie County, and they became the parents of three children. After the death of his first wife Mr. Nichols wedded Miss Deborah W. Lowe, daughter of Stephen and Rebecea Lowe, and she survived him by a number of years.

Concerning the children of Mr. and Mrs. Nichols the following brief data are given: Ezra C. married Miss Ella Thomas; Violet E. became the wife of William E. Lowe; Elmina died in infancy; Byron G. is individually mentioned on other pages of this publication; Charles A. is likewise the subject of a specific sketch in this work; J. Bert married Miss Jennie Ramsdell; Erwin H. first married Miss Ida M. Hicks and after her death wedded Miss Eva Bryant; and Miss Grace E. is a popular teacher in the public schools of Lorain County.

Of the eleven children of John-and Elizabeth (Dent) Nichols the five who were born prior to the family immigration to the United States were Thomas, Mary. Susan, John J. and Ann, and the names of those who were born in Erie County, Ohio, were as here noted: George, William, Samuel, Elizabeth, Delia and Benjamin.

CHARLES A. NICHOLS. He whose name introduces this paragraph is a native son of Lorain County and is a scion of staunch English stock, his paternal grandparents having come from England to establish a home in America somewhat more than eighty years ago. He has been a resident of Lorain County from the time of his nativity and is now engaged in the real estate and insurance business as one of the representative exponents of these lines of enterprise in the City of Lorain.

Deborah. (Chase) Nichols, concerning whom more specific meution is made on other pages of this work. In the public schools of Lorain County Mr. Nichols acquired his early educational training, and in the meanwhile he gained effective discipline in connection with the operations of his father's farm. As a youth he became a clerk in a grocery store in the City of Lorain, and after he had gained a thorough knowledge of the details of this line of enterprise he engaged in the retail grocery business in an independent way, as a member of the firm of Nichols & Gawn, in which his coadjutor was Harry B. Gawn. This alliance continued eight years, and since that time Mr. Nichols has been engaged in the real estate and insurance business in Lorain, where he has built up a substantial and representative enterprise in these important lines and where he gives special attention to the handling of city property.

Mr. Nichols is a progressive business man and alert and_ publicspirited citizen of his native county, where he takes lively interest in all things that tend to advance civic and material prosperity. His political allegiance is given to the republican party, and he is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and with the Tribe of Ben Hur.

On the 26th of December, 1892, was solemnized the marriage of My. Nichols to Miss Hattie Burtis, a native of New York State. and they have six children, namely: Lucille, John Raymond. James Burtis. Nina May, Charles Arthur, Jr., and Virginia.

Miss ALMA Rose Mortarty. In a list of the prominent citizens of any community today, mention is made of women as well as men. for whether they are actively in the business world or not, the high position of woman as a factor in civilization is being recognized as it has never been before. Any person, regardless of sex, who has accomplished as much real service in a community as Miss Rose Moriarty has performed in Elyria, is entitled to all the commendation and respect which true ability should command anywhere.

For nearly fifteen years Miss Moriarty has heen identified with the municipal government of Elyria. She has served through six successive administrations as deputy city auditor, and is not only a master of the routine detail of office but has always been equal to any of the emergencies and it is said that she possesses a broader. more exact and pertinent knowledge of municipal law than any member of the local bar. Few individuals are better qualified for civie leadership than this splendid young Ohio woman, Rose Moriarty.

She was born at Elyria, December 19, 1882, a daughter of Thomas and Ellen (Enright) Moriarty, both of whom are now deceased. iss Moriarty acquired her early education in the Elyria public schools, graduating from high school in June, 1900, and immediately entering the Elyria Business College, in which she completed her course by January, 1901. With the exception of a few months of employment in the office of Topliff & Ely, she has always worked for the city. Her appointment as deputy city clerk came on October 3, 1901. from W. H. Park, and when the office of city auditor was created in 1903, she was appointed the deputy. She became clerk of the department of public safety May 3, 1903, and at the same date was appointed clerk of the sinking fund department, and has been clerk of the civil service department since January 1, 1910. By her industry, earnestness. broad comprehension, Miss Moriarty has gained the esteem and admiration of all the friends and leaders in the good government movement at Elyria. One of the strongest testimonials to her ability is found in the public statement recently made by C. M. Braman, in his announcement of his candidacy for the office of city auditor. Mr. Braman said: ''I declare it my intention, if nominated in the primaries and honored by an election in November, to retain the services of Miss Rose Moriarty as deputy, who has served in an admirable capacity through three administrations. She is too well known to the voters of Elyria to require any extensive introduction'in this article. Not only has she served with high credit in the auditing department of the city, but has rendered invaluable service in every department of the city government by reason of her broad and correct knowledge of municipal affairs. I would regard it a duty to retain her in office so long as her services are of such high order, and cooperate with her to the extent of my ability. A victory for myself I shall construe quite as much a tribute to Miss Moriarty, who has honored her city here at home and brought much credit to it over the State.''

Miss Moriarty out of her experience and study is a woman who has something to say, and has the ability to state her position and her arguments with an earnest forcefulness which has frequently brought admiring comments. She has quite frequently delivered addresses before various gatherings and one of her addresses which attracted wide attention was that on Civic Righteousness, which she delivered several times in Lorain County. Miss Moriarty is a republican in politics, and is one of the local leaders in the equal suffrage movement, and a member of the Ohio Woman Suffrage Association. She is also affiliated with the Ladies of the Maccabees, and the Woman's Christian Temperance Union of Ohio. Miss Moriarty is numbered among the stockholders of the Lorain County Bank.

SUMNER G. Crooks. <A native of the old Buckeye State, Sumner George Crooks has gained prestige as one of the representative business men of the younger generation in the thriving City of Lorain, where he is the efficient and popular manager of the substantial business here conducted by the Sumner Creamery Company, which is a branch of an extensive business which has its headquarters in the City of Akron, the enterprise in Lorain having been established on the 1st of March, 1909, and the progressive, careful and energetic administration -of the present manager having been the force through which the business has here been developed to its large volume, making it a valuable contribution to the industrial prestige of the City and County of Lorain.

Mr. Crooks was born in Medina County, Ohio, on the 16th of March, 1886, and is a son of Earl E. and Elta (Sumner) Crooks, likewise natives of this state and representatives of sterling old families of Medina County. He whose name introduces this article acquired his early education in the public schools of his native county, and when but twelve years of age he gained his initial experience in the creamery business, with which he has been continuously associated from his boyhood, and in the details of which. both technical and commercial, he is specially well informed. so that his judgment is authoritative in this important field of enterprise. He manifests loyal interest in all that concerns the civie and material welfare and progress of his home city and is essentially a wide-awake and reliable young business man who has secure place in popular confidence and esteem.

In the Citv of Akron, on the 3d of July, 1908, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Crooks to Miss Flora Felver, and their three children are: Audrey Burdell, Ruth Gene and June Agnes.

Lev1 Morse. In this venerable and honored citizen who died at his home in Elyria July 28, 1899, aged eighty-seven vears twenty-seven days, the city possessed not only one of its oldest residents but also a man who represented in his long career the prominent social and civic element which composed the citizenship of this community throughout its growth from frontier settlement to a modern municipality. The late Levi Morse was a very remarkable man. Of his eighty-seven vears of life, he had spent sixty-four at Elyria. He was both a witness and actor in the changing development of this long time. <A substantial degree of material prosperity rewarded his industrious efforts, but the honor paid to his memory is more specially due to his fine independence of. character, his active influence in the civic, social, religious and business community. He was a pioneer settler, a successful business man. and « broad minded, vigorous, charitable citizen.

He brought with him to Elyria the stock of ideas, traditions, and character of a sturdy New England community. His ancestors were English, and he was descended from one of three brothers who came from England in the very early days. Many members of the Morse family are still living in and about New Haven, Connecticut. and in the county of. that name at the Village of Prospect Levi Morse was born July 1, 1812, in the same year that the second war broke out with. Great Britain. His parents were Lent and Lydia (Doolittle) Morse. His father was born in Cheshire, New Haven County, Connecticut. was a farmer by occupation and died at the age of sixty-seven. Mrs. Lydia Morse died at the age of fifty. and of her six children, Levi was the fourth in age.

He was reared and educated at his native village and in 1835, at the age of twenty-three, came West in company with 8. W. Baldwin and David B. Andrews. With these enterprising associates he boarded a sailing vessel at New Haven for New York, went by boat up the river to Albany, by canal packet to Buffalo, sailed up the lake as far as Cleveland and from there came by stage coach to Elvria, where he arrived May 13, 1885. He found here a hamlet, with only three stores. a log house used for a jail and no church building, the population of the little community being about 400 inhabitants. He was associated with the enterprise of S. W. Baldwin. who established a store in the town, and his first years were spent as a trader among the settlers of Northern Ohio, exchanging articles of merchandise for furs and other frontier products. For a number of vears he was in the employ of Mr. Baldwin, and then in 1848 embarked in the dry goods business with another one of his companions who came West in 1835, David B. Andrews, under the firm name of D. B. Andrews & Company. About two vears later Mr. Andrews died and Mr. Morse carried on the business alone for a time.

One of the interesting facts which identifies him with the early history of Elyria was his appointment as the first ticket agent for the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railway, and he assisted in running the first train to Berea and return on July 4, 1853. He filled that ottice for three vears, after which for a time he was in the produce trade, buying and selling grain. For many years he was associated with the firm of Baldwin, Laundon & Nelson.

In 1863 Mr. Morse was elected township trustee. and with the exception of one term filled that office continuously up to the time of his death. He was also superintendent of the county infirmary for over two years and at one time was township treasurer. In politics he was a republican, but had east his first vote for the whig candidate in 1833, and beginning with 1836 voted for every successive whig or republican candidate until the end of his life. In church relations he was a Methodist, joining the church when he first came to Elyria, when the society itself was only six or seven years old and was one of its oldest members when he died. He had been foremost in encouraging and sup- - porting every interest of the church, had continuously held a position on the official board, and again and again had sacrificed time and money for the benefit of the organization. He was of the type of Christian who takes his religion into his daily life and affairs and expressed through his life many of the highest ideals cf Christian manhood. He took a 'prominent part in building the first church home of the Methodists, now used by the Disciples Church on East Second Street, the church edifice having been dedicated there in 1851. Since 1843 he had held an official position in the church, and at the time of his death was one among less than a dozen of the original membership of the First Methodist Episcopal Church at Elyria. He was also the oldest living member of Elyria Lodge No. 103, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and always exemplified its highest mottos and symbolisms in his daily life.

On December 15, 1840, Levi Morse married Miss Betsy Minerva Mann. She was born in New York State December 7, 1818, and died at the home of her daughter, Mrs. J. F. Brant in Boston, Massachusetts, June 29, 1909, having succumbed to the infirmities of an age that made her ninety-one years old when she died. Following the death of her husband she had removed to Boston to live with her daughter in that city, but her remains were brought back to Elyria and laid beside those of her husband. To their marriage were born six children: Milo Wesley, who was born April 21, 1842, and in the full tide of his youth in 1862 enlisted in Company E of the Forty-second Regiment of Ohio Volunteer Infantry and was killed while on duty as a sharpshooter at the siege of Vicksburg, May 25, 1863; Clara Adelia, who was born January 15, 1846, and died February 18, 1849; Alfred D., born January 20, 1851, and now a resident of Elyria; Edward F., born November 11, 1853, also a resident of Elyria; Lydia May, who is the wife of Rev. J. F. Brant, now prominent in the anti-saloon movement and living at Boston ; and Charles L., the youngest of the family, a resident of Elyria and mentioned on other pages.

At the death of Levi Morse an entire community paid the sincere tribute of their respect and admiration for his good and purposeful life. Addresses and resolutions of respect came from the church which he had so long served from the lodge of which he was the oldest initiate, and from men and women in all the walks of life. While these cannot be included in this brief sketch, it is only a matter of justice to quote somewhat at length from the remarks of his old friend and associate, William A. Braman, who spoke from intimate knowledge of the life and works of the good man who had gone to his reward. Mr. Braman spoke of Mr. Morse's coming to Elyria when the present city was but a hamlet and when poverty was a common inheritance and when the ties of common brotherhood were strong and enduring. He knew Mr. Morse as a boy and one of the first faces he remembered outside of his home circle was that of the citizen who had just died. That face he spoke of as kind and sympathetic, ''such a one as boys do not run away from. There was nothing forbidding about it, there was nothing imperious in his bearing. Our friend had early learned an important secret, namely, that in order to have friends it is necessary to be friendly.

'"As a merchant Mr. Morse was popular. I recall remarks which were made by my father and mother, showing their estimate of his worth. In our family living six miles away, Mr. Morse was known as Levi. He was sought out as the favorite of the men doing business in Elyria at that time as being the one to trade with. They felt safe in his hands. Their faith in his honesty and integrity was unbounded.

trustees of the township, I was impressed with his fidelity to his: constituents and his scrupulous regard for every detail pertaining to his office. His early education in his New England home had fitted him for the duties which he was called upon to perform. He early learned the value of money and in all my acquaintance I have never known a public officer in the distribution of the people's money to be more painstaking and conscientious. For nearly forty years his office brought him in contact with the poor and unfortunate, and his hand, though not lavish, never closed against worthy objects.

''He died in the harness at eighty-seven, having been chosen but a few months previous by his fellow citizens as their representative for the following three years. What a record! In full possession of all his faculties at eighty-seven. What a commentary! It speaks of his good habits and his correct life. Mr. Morse was one of the pillars of society, one of that class of sturdy men of character without which society would be a failure. His citizenship was always of a high order. In the agitation of every moral and social question he was always to be found on the right side. It was never necessary to see him to find out where he stood. He was in favor of temperance, social order and the enforcement of laws. Not in a sensational sense, but his firmness was like the rock of ages.'

In conclusion Mr. Braman quoted as typical of the conditions under which Levi Morse had quitted the earthly tabernacle the following beautiful lines:

CHARLES L. Morse, The youngest son of the late Levi and Betsy Minerva (Mann) Morse, whose long and worthy lives spent in Lorain County has been previously described, Charles L. Morse has given his career primarily to business pursuits and for a number of years has been in the insurance and real estate business and the handling of surety bonds. His office is in the Ely Block.

Born at Elvria October 3, 1861, he received his early education in the public schools of that city, and after reaching manhood spent nine years as a local merchant. At 390 Broad Street he established himself in the cigar. tobacco and restaurant business, and that street number has been the location of the restaurant ever since. being now the home of the J. R. Jones restaurant. For the past sixteen years Mr. Morse has been in the fire insurance business, having engaged in that line in 1898. He now represents twelve of the strong and reliable companies doing husiness at Elyria. His offices were in the old Elyria Block until it burned in 1910. since which time he has had his business headquarters in the Elv Block.

Mr. Morse is a man of quiet. retiring nature, a great lover of home and outside of business has seldom identified himself with public life. He is a member, however, of the Elvria Chamber of Commerce. Oc- tober 18. 1882, he married Miss Clara M. Bassett of Eaton Township, Lorain County, and a daughter of Henry and Betsey E. (Slauter) Bassett. Further particulars concerning the late Henry Bassett will be found in succeeding paragraphs. Mrs. Morse was born in Eaton Township, hut was educated in the Elyria public schools, graduating from high school in the class of 1881, about a vear before her marriage. Mr. Nee when opportunity offers takes his recreation in hunting and ishing.

Henry Basserr. In his lifetime Henry Bassett was one of the best knewn and most highly respected farmers and citizens of Lorain County, having heen a resident of Eaton Township continuously for nearly sixty years. Te performed his share in the pioneer labors which transformed the wilderness into a country of homes, farms and institutions, and was a witness to almost every important change which occurred in Lorain County from the time of early settlement until well toward the close of the last century.

His birth occurred at Chili, Seneca County, New York, July 23, 1814. and when he died at his home in Eaton Township of Lorain County, January 21, 1891. he had lived usefully and well for seventysix vears six months. His parents were Daniel and Phebe (Covert) Bassett. who were natives of the same county in New York State. were married there. and in 1834 started west with their family of children, finally arriving in Lorain County and making settlement in Eaton Township. Daniel Bassett died at LaPorte in this county in 1846 and his wife passed away in Eaton Township at the age of eighty-two.

Twenty vears of age when the family emigrated to Lorain County, Henrv Bassett had in the meantime profited by attendance at the - schools of his native town. Arriving in Eaton Township, he applied himself to the heavy task of clearing away the woods and cultivating the land under the primitive conditions that then prevailed. Farming was his life oecunation and from it he secured an ample competence for nimself and family. .

On November 5, 1835. a few months after his twenty-first birthday, he was married in Carlisle Township to Miss Betsey E. Slauter. She was born in 1818 in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. a daughter of Jared and Sarah (Curtis) Slauter. Her parents were born in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. were married there, and soon afterward moved to Luzerne County. Pennsylvania, and in 1826 allied themselves with the new country of Lorain County, making settlement in Carlisle Township. They came west by wagons and teams, and at that time Mrs. Bassett was eight vears of age, and walked the greater part of the distance from Pennsylvania alongside or following the wagon. Mr. and Mrs. Slauter spent the rest of their days in Lorain County, and he passed away about eight years after the death of his wife. There were ten children in the Slauter family: Ephraim, who went to Wisconsin, where he died; Lydia, now deceased, was the wife of Everett Stoddard, one of the early settlers of Eaton Township; Mary Ann, deceased: Sarah, who became the wife of Henry Warner and moved to Whitehall, Wisconsin; Betsey E., who married Henry Bassett; Henry, who died in Wisconsin; Jared, who died in Carlisle Township; Jane, wife of D. L. Gibbs of Carlisle Township; Olive, wife of R. Gibbs, of Carlisle Township; and Hiram, who spent his active career at LaPorte.

In the home of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Bassett there were born thirteen children, all of whom grew to maturity, and most of them married and established homes of their own, and there were seventeen great-grandchildren when Mrs. Henry Bassett died. These children in order of age Vol. T1 - 6 are mentioned as follows: Charlotte, now Mrs. Anson Lines of Grafton Township, Lorain County; Caroline, wife of John Hart of Elyria; Sarah, wife of Sylvester Tompkins; Charles, who died in 1879; Daniel, who lives at Defiance, Ohio; Ollie, who died in Lorain County as Mrs. Lemuel Barlow; Frankie, Mrs. Nathaniel Benedict of Michigan: Julia, wife of Marion Sutliff, of Elyria; Edwin, of Eaton Township; George, of Eaton; Serepta, wife of Edwin Welton of Elyria: Clara M.. wife of Charles L. Morse, of Elyria; Alice, wife of Frank Jackson, of. Eaton Township.

At the beginning of his career Henry Bassett found hinself aligned in political opinion with the whig party, and afterwards became an energetic and ardent republican. He enjoyed the confidence of his fellow citizens and filled a number of offices of trust in his home township. It should be recalled that Mrs. Bassett taught the second school held in Eaton Township. She was a woman of culture, and presided with dignity and charm not only over her own household but stood high socially all over the township. It is difficult for the younger generation to realize the toil, privations and hardships which such old settlers as Henry Bassett and wife endured while establishing their homes in Lorain County. When he erected his first home in Eaton Township the country was almost a dense forest, and it required not only persevering toil day after day, month after month and year after year, but also a high degree of courage, enthusiasm and sturdy ambition in order to convert the forest surroundings into a well cultivated farm. He succeeded in this and in his later years lived in a substantial house and had around him all the comforts and conveniences he required. About fifteen years before his death he gave up active farming and bought a house and lot on Butternut Ridge. There he by no means spent his time in leisure, but employed it in superintending the cemetery and was almost constant in his care of this attractive city of the dead. Asa result of his administration the cemetery in that locality surpassed in neatness and general upkeep any burying ground in the county. Thus these years of his retirement were devoted to a.useful service for which he received the eratitude of a great many people. His entire life was upright and honorable and whether as a friend or neighbor or in his business transactions he gained the lasting respect of all who knew him.

JAMES T. Horstey. Born and reared in England, Mr. Horsley has maintained his home in the United States since 1886, in which year he established his residence at Lorain, Ohio, where he is now living virtually retired, after an active career marked by consecutive industry and worthy achievement.

James Thomas Horsley was born in Worcestershire, England, on the 11th of November, 1851, and is a son of George and Emma Horsley, who passed their entire lives in England, where the father was a prosperous farmer in Worcestershire. He whose name initiates this article is indebted to the excellent schools of his native land for his early eduecational discipline, and his boyhood days were compassed hy the invigorating influences of the home farm. He continued his activities in various occupations in England until 1886, when he came to America and in the same year established his permanent home at Lorain, where he conducted a meat market for some time. after which he had supervision of a corps of stevedores in the service of the C. L. & W. Railroad for a period of six years. Thereafter he was superintendent of the building employed by the Sheffield Land & Improvement Company during the time when this corporation was laying out and developing South Lorain, his service in this capacity continuing about nine vears.

Upon becoming a naturalized citizen of the United States Mr. Horsley espoused the cause of the republican party, and as a candidate on its ticket he was elected justice of the peace in 1903. In this office he gave an administration marked by mature judgment and much circumspection, and he continued its incumbent for nine years, after which he served for a time in the office of constable at Lorain. His upright character and genial personality have gained to him in Lorain County a circle of friends that is limited only by that of his acquaintances, and he is a citizen who is well entitled to recognition in this publication. He is affiliated with the local organizations of the Knights of the Maccabees and the Fraternal Order of Eagles.

In his native land, on the 8th of October, 1874, was solennized the marriage of Mr. Horsley to Miss Mary Collins Griffin, and thus his family accompanied him on his immigration to the United States, somewhat more than a decade later. Mr. and Mrs. Horsley have four children: Edith is the wife of Luceme Hinckley and they reside in the City of Cleveland. They have two children, James L. and Beatrice. George Henry is identified with business activities in the City of Lorain. He married Mrs. Cornelia Steiner, and they have one child, Eleanor. Laura is the wife of Samuel Vokes. of Cleveland. She has one child by a former marriage, named Edward. Miss Beatrice remains at the parental home.

Hon. Grorce H. CHAMBERLAIN. As a lawyer of undoubted ability and a public leader whose influence has helped toward the success of the republican party in a number of campaigns and has himself eujoyed the distinctions of legislative office, George Henry Chamberlain has been an active member of the Elyria bar for more than twenty-five years. He is a native of Lorain County and has earned his advancement by definite purpose, high aims, and the possession of exceptional talent.

The Chamberlain family has been identified with Lorain County since 1848, when his grandfather, John Chamberlain, settled in Grafton Township. John Chamberlain was born in New York State and married Amy Perkins, whose grandfather, John Perkins, was a soldier of the American Revolution. John Chamberlain died in Grafton Township m1 1850 at the age of fifty-four and his wife passed away at seventy-five in 1873.

During the middle period of the last century Lorain County numbered among its industrial and capable farmers and business men George B. Chamberlain, the father of Senator Chamberlain. George B. Chamberlain was born at Brookfield, Cortland County, New York, in 1834, was brought to Lorain County when a boy of fourteen, was trained to farming and made that his vocation during most of his life. In 1880 he retired and for a short time was engaged in the hardware business at LaGrange. He died in 1884. George B. Chamberlain married Elizabeth Cragin, who now lives with her son George H. and was seventy-seven years of age December 27, 1914. She was born in LaGrange Township, Lorain County, a daughter of Benjamin and Mahala (Boynton) Cragin, who were among the early settlers of Lorain County. Her father was born in Weston, Windsor County, Vermont, was married in that state, and his children were named Lorena, Benjamin, Charles C., Adna A., Esther, Horace, Harrison and Elizabeth, the last being the only one born in Ohio. In September, 1835, the Cragin family left Vermont, drove a wagon as far as Buffalo, and thence came up the lake to Cleveland and across country to Lorain County. Settling in Grafton Township, Benjamin Cragin paid $4.00 an acre for a tract of woodland consisting of 105 acres. He built himself a log cabin, cleared up, planted and cultivated a large part of his farm, and lived there until his death on July

31, 1865. His wife had passed away about ten vears before. They were members of the Methodist Church, and Mr. Cragin was prominent in the local church during the early days, serving it as trustee, class leader and steward. The four children of George B. Chamberlain and wife were: William P., who is now a rural mail carrier from Grafton; George H.: Charles C., who died at the age of twelve; and Emma Jane, who died in infancy.

On the old homestead in Grafton Township George Henry Chamberlain was born June 21, 1862. Some of his happiest memories concern themselves with his boyhood in the country, and Mr. Chamberlain then linbibed a love of farming and country life which has never left him and which recently led him to move from his city home to his attractive farm of 142 acres just outside the city limits of Elyria in Ridgeville Township. One of his farm boundaries joins the city limits. The first seventeen vears-of his life were spent in Grafton Township, and along with other experiences he received instruction in the district schools and also attended Oberlin College. Among the records of his earlier experience are found several terms spent as a school teacher. Soon after reaching his majority he began the study of law in the office of E. G. Johnson. one of the ablest members of the Lorain County bar for many vears, kept up this course of study for three years, and was admitted to the har by examination on June 9, 1887. Te tried his first cases and earned his first fees in Elyria. where he practiced two vears, and then moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to become general agent for the Home Life Insurance Company. Though a resident of Milwaukee six vears. he was in the insurance business only two years, and the rest of the time was spent as one of the interested principals in a manufacturing concern. Returning to Elyria in the spring of 1895, Mr. Chamberlain has since conducted a large general practice as a lawyer. and the character of the patronage entrusted to his care. his frequent appearance in cases of mnportance, sufficiently testify to his high standing as a local lawyer. On April 1. 1913. Mr. Chamberlain removed from Elyria to his farm just outside the city, and has since been taking life soimewhat easily, though visiting his city office daily. He has a fine farm, a splendid orchard which he keeps in condition by spraying and is able to pursue his farming as a recreation as well as profit.

Ilis first important participation in politics came in 1896, when he stumped Lorain County for the election of Wiliam McKinley, and was also a speaker in various other parts of the state. Tle has since participated in every campaign in that section of Ohio. In 1900 he presented the name of E,. G. Johnson to the congressional couvention, and in 1961 his own name was placed on the republican ticket for the State senate. TIe was elected and served in the Seventy-fifth and Seventysixth assembhes. In the latter session he was chosen president pre tem by acclamation. and had the united support of both parties. In the Seventy-fifth Assembly he was chairman of the Committee on Federal Relations, and a member of the committees on Labor. Taxation, Benevolent Institutions. Judiciary, Insurance. Universities and Colleges, and Municipal Corporations. In the Seventy-sixth session he was a member of the committees on Public Works. Judiciary, Common Schools. County Affairs. Taxation, and Soldiers and Sailors Orphans Homes. A. unique feature of lus record while in the Senate was that every bill introduced or actively supported by him was passed. Since lis service in the Senate Mr. Chamberlain has been looked upon as one of the ablest and most influential public men in Lorain County and this was well demonstrated in the congressional convention of 1906, when he retained throughout the long deadlock the united support of Lorain County as nominee from the Fourteenth District and came within four votes of the necessary number for nomination. He finally withdrew, and gave his support to the nominee who was subsequently elected. In May, 1910, he was nominated by the republicans for Congress, but in that year the tide of political favors was flowing in another direction, and his party was defeated.

Of his service in his own precincts there should be noted his membership on the Board of Education of Elyria for twelve years up to January 1, 1912. He was president of the board five years until 1910. He has also served as president of the Board of Elections, and is one of the lve members of the Elyria Chamber of Commerce. In the Methodist Episcopal Church he is a member and trustee, and for twelve years served as superintendent of the Sunday school.

While he may well be satisfied with his individual accomplishments, Mr. Chamberlain takes his greatest pride in his fine family. In June, 1883, he married Miss Etta K. Mynderse, who was born in LaGrange, Ohio, daughter of Andrew C. and Louise (Hart) Mynderse, both now deceased. To their union were born nine children: Charles B., the oldest, is now assistant manager of the service station at Detroit, Michigan, for the Wheeler & Schebler Carburetor Company; Geneva E., the oldest daughter, was graduated from the Elyria High School, pursued her higher education at Rochester, New York, and for the past eight years has been instructor of domestic science in the Elyria public schools; the daughter Vera died at the age of fourteen; George H., Jr., who after graduating from the high school was employed for a time by the National Tube Company at Lorain, is now the man in charge of the Safety Sanitation and Welfare Department Exhibit at the Panama Exhibition in San Francisco (1915) of the United States Steel Corporation; Gertrude A., now living home, at the time of her graduation from high school in 1909 was accorded the honor of having made the highest general average throughout her course in the records of the school. The daughter Ruth since graduating from high school has spent one year of training at the Elyria Memorial Hospital and is now continuing her work of preparation for trained nurse at St. Luke's Hospital in Cleveland. The sons William and Robert are now in their last year in the local high school, while the youngest, John, is attending the grammar schools.

GeoRGE B. KELLY. One of the most active business men of Oberlin is George B. Kelly, who starting his career in early youth and without money or influence has gradually accumulated about him much that represents solid accomplishment and also much of the esteem paid an honorable and hard-working citizen.

A native of Lorain County, he was born May 2, 1864, a son of Nathan and Jane (Davis) Kelly. His father was born in Rutland, Vermont, in 1830, and died in September, 1914, while the mother was born in Michigan in 1835, and died several years ago. The parents were married in Lorain County, and the father followed farming all his active career. He was a democrat and a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. The maternal grandfather, Joseph Davis, was a native of Michigan and spent his life there as a farmer. George B. Kelly is the second in a family of four living children, out of six born to his parents. His brother, James, is a farmer at Oberlin. His sister, Louisa, married Seth Bailey, of South Amherst, while Belle is the wife of Clarence Kellmer, a machinist at Amherst.

George B. Kelly as a boy attended the common schools at Amherst, and was still in his teens when he took his first regular occupation as driver of a milk wagon. For fourteen years he earned a living and gained business experience by that line of work at Amherst. He also spent five years as a worker in a quarry. The foundation of his present prosperity was largely laid as a farmer in Russia Township, and Mr. Kelly now owns two farms in Lorain County. In 1901 he moved to Oberlin and has since been engaged in the livery business, under the firm of Kelly & Jones, his partner being H. H. Jones, as the largest establishment of its kind in the town. Mr. Kelly in association with G. H. Bailey also conducts a delivery business, and has the contract for delivering goods for all the merchants.

In 1890 he married Elizabeth Bailey, who was born in England and came to America with her parents when five years of age. Her father, John Bailey, located in Lorain County forty-five years ago. To their marriage have been born two children: Blanche, now in high school; and Lois, also a student of the public schools. Mr. Kelly and family attend the First Congregational Church and in politics he is a republican.

F. E. Braptey. Of the third generation of the Bradley family in Lorain County, F. E. Bradley represents a name that has been closely identified with this county since pioneer times. The work by which he has commended himself to the esteem of the community has been chiefly as a farmer, though he has also performed with credit a share of public duty. He owns a fine farm in Wellington Township, and his prosperity has been well earned.

He was born in Wellington Township of Lorain County, February 28, 1865, a son of William and Hannah A. (Pritchard) Bradley. His paternal grandfather, William Bradley, came to Wellington Township as a pioneer, and he and his family for a time occupied an old log house. He spent most of his time on the farm, but died in the Village of Wellington. His maternal grandfather was Joseph Pritchard, who made settlement in Medina County, where he spent his years. William Bradley, who was born in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, in 1819, and died September 21, 1892, had an early experience as a ''bound boy'' in Massachusetts. He came to Lorain County in 1836, when a vigorous youth of seventeen, went into the woods, and in the course of a few vears had cleared up 100 acres of land for his father. Later he bought that farm, and made it the scene of his prosperous activities. He was very active in the Methodist Church and a devout Christian, and exercised a wholesome influence in the community. At the time of his death he left an estate of 150 acres. His wife was horn in Connecticut in 1823 and died in 1899. They were married in Lorain County. Of their nine children the six now living are: Albert Oscar, who is a grape grower in California; Burton P., who has an orange grove at Arlington Place, California; Sarah. wife of W. F. Starr, of Penfield Township; Joseph Henry. who lives in California; Mary A., in California; and F. E.

Mr. Bradley grew up on the home farm in Wellington Township, attended the district schools, and has never sought any better or more attractive occupation than that of farming. In his earlier years he worked very hard to get a start, and in 1908 was able to buy out the interests of the other heirs in the old homestead. Besides the general crops. he raises some thoroughbred cattle and hogs, and does some dairying.

On December 24, 1891, Mr. Bradley married Kate Bachtell, who was born in Brooke County, Virginia, and moved from there to Medina County, where she met her future husband. They have four children: Merle. now twenty-one vears of age and at home; Katherine, Neal and Scott. all still at home. The family are all members of the Methodist Church at Wellington, and Mr. Bradley is a republican. In the way of public service he was for seven years a trustee of Wellington Township, and proved as able and conscientious in the performance of public duties as he has in the management of his private affairs. :

Ju-pcE Amos R. Wepser. It was forty years ago that Judge Webber began the practice of law at Elyria. On the public life of his home city and county he has since made in indelible impression. Probably no citizen of the county is more respected, and enjoys more completely the confidence of the people. Judge Webber is a man of unimpeachable character. has high attainments as a lawyer, and in the management of nis private practice as also in the administration of different offices, from common pleas judge to congressman, has brought the highest qualifications and has shown a ready grasp of every problem presented for his solution. Since retiring from his seat in Congress ten years ago Judge Webber has been quietly engaged in his large law practice and has offices in the Elyria Block.

Amos Richard Webber was born January 21, 1852, in Hinckley, Medina County, Ohio. His great-grandfather, Joseph Webber, was an Englishman who on coming to the United States located in New England. In the next generation is Rev. Richard Webber, who became a pioneer minister in Medina County, Ohio. He has been described as a preacher of much eloquence and force, and a man who was through-. cout his career devoted to the arduous vocation which he chose early in life. He was frequently sought as an adviser not only in spiritual matters but in the common relationships and duties of temporal existence.

George E. Webber, father of Judge Webber, was born in Massachusetts and was fourteen years of age when the family moved to Ohio. He became a man of substantial character and a factor in business affairs in Medina. As a young man he returned to his native state and learned the trade of moulder, and then returning to Ohio established a foundry at Hinckley in Medina County. After giving this business all the energies he possessed for twenty years, impaired health led him to take up work as a farmer, at which he spent several seasons. With renewed vigor and health he then established a foundry for the manufacture of hollow ironware at Medina, and developed the industry to one of important. proportions and made it one of the chief factories at Medina. George E. Webber married Jane Woodruff. During her young womanhood she had taught school at Hinckley. Her father, Amos Woodruff, was a Hinckley shoemaker, and was distinguished in that community as the first avowed abolitionist and took Wm. Lloyd Garrison's Liberator for a great many vears. His home became a station of the underground railway, and he lived to see the peculiar institution abolished to which he was so strongly opposed.

Judge Webher grew up in Medina County, was educated in the public schools, and is a graduate of old Baldwin University at Berea near Cleveland. He studied law largely by himself and under the preceptorship of local lawyers. and on being admitted to the Ohio bar in 1876 opened his office in the same year at Elyria. While it would not be practicable to review in detail his work as an attorney, it is only an expression of a general judgment among his associates that he has during the past forty vears been rated as one of the best advocates and counselors in the Lorain County Bar. His career has also been punctuated by important public service. His first noteworthy promotion in publie affairs was his election in 1887 as prosecuting attorney for Lorain County. He was re-elected and continued in the office until 1894. After an interval came his election to the Court of Common Pleas and he presided over this branch of the Ohio bench with admirable dignity and efficiency for nearly three years. He resigned from the bench to accept the republican nomination for Congress to fill the unexpired term caused by the death of the representative from the Fourteenth District. He was then elected a member of the Fifty-eighth Congress in 1904, and his service in that body ran from 1903 to 1906. He was defeated for renomination because of his activities against the liquor interests, a power which he has consistently fought all his life. Another factor in his failure to secure the nomination was due to his having repudiated the then governor of Ohio, Myron T. Herrick, because of that gentleman's attitude on the liquor question. Judge Webber has been an active and determined opponent of the liquor traffic for the past thirty vears. He carried his convictions and his activity into Congress, where he introduced a bill for the abolition of saloons in the District of Columbia. He aroused much interest in the campaign at Washington, and on the day his bill was brought before the committee a procession of several thousand people marched through the streets to the capitol as a demonstration of popular support to the measure. In spite of Judge Webber's strenuous efforts in behalf of the bill, it was never reported from the committee, but the sentiment thus aroused caused similar hills to be introduced in every Congress since, which have been supported by a large number of congressmen. He was one of the prime movers in the organization of the Anti-Saloon League, and was for a number of years a member of the judiciary committee of that organization, and spoke over the State of Ohio in the interests of the work. Mr. Webber has lectured for a number of years before churches, Young Men's Christian associations, and other public organizations, in the interest of the voung men of this country.

Judge Webber was married May 17, 1875, to Miss Ida E. Finch. Mrs. Webber died in Washington while Judge Webber was a member of Congress. Their two sons were: Gilbert W. and Lawrence N. Judge Webber's first wife was Miss Nettie Finch of Anna, Illinois.

LAWRENCE Harrison WEBBER. <A son of A. R. Webber, whose career as a Lorain County lawyer has been previously sketched, is Lawrence Harrison Webber, who has already earned his first distinctions in the law and in public affairs. In the city primaries in August, 1915, Mr. Webber attracted much notice by his gallant fight for the republican nomination to the office of city solicitor, and in spite of his vouth his recognized ability and fitness for the nomination and his vigorous and persistent campaigning methods brought him success over four rivals. He received more than a fourth of the entire vote cast, and led his nearest opponent by more than sixty.

Born at Elyria Mareh 25, 1891, Lawrence Harrison Webber is a graduate of the Elyria High School with the class of 1910, and the following two years were spent as a student in the Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware. He is a graduate of the Cleveland Law School with the class of June, 1914, and completed the regular three vears* course in the two years from 1912 to 1914. He was admitted to the practice of law in Ohio December 18, 1913, and is now junior member of the law firm of Webber & Webber in the Elyria Block at Elyria, being associated with his father, A. R. Webber.

Outside of his profession Mr. Webber is a young man of general personality and has identified himself with the best interests of his home city. He is an active member of the Young Men's Christian Association, is a member of the Church of Christ, and belongs to the National

June 18, 1913, at Elyria he married Jean E. Bath. Her father, John W. Bath, was for eight years postmaster at Elyria. They are the parents of one daughter, Shirley Webber, who was born May 25, 1915.