Monroe Township (part 4 of 5)

The earliest cabinet-maker was Joseph Bennett, who, for many years, had his shop and residence on the northeast corner of Main and Green streets. Bennett was a good workman, an excellent citizen and a man of some enterprise ; he gradually enlarged his business with the growth of the village, and was at length a considerable manufacturer. Specimens of his handiwork are still found in several of the houses belonging to the old inhabitants. The first chair-maker was James Hughes, who manufactured the old-fashioned solid wood-bottomed chair, and the splint-bottom, formed from splints of the white ash. Hughes also manufactured spinning-wheels, at that time an important article in every family. The small wheel was used in spinning tow and fiax, was turned by a treadle or foot-piece attached to the crank passing through the center of the wheel, by a strong string, sometimes of cord but more frequently of leather or raw-hide ; the flax was wound on a distaff inserted into what was called the arm of the wheel. The female operator sat in a chair while spinning. But the large wheel, the glory of the young and active girls, was used by the operator standing, who put the wheel in active motion by means of a short stick or roller, the rapid motion of the wheel turned the spindle still more rapidly, and to this the maiden attached the end of the long woolen roll, brought from the carding-mill, or formed more slowly at home with the hand cards, and, having secured the hold of the roll to the spindle, she walked rapidly backward twenty or thirty paces, drawing out a lengthened thread of the woolen yarn, which, when sufficiently twisted, she allowed to be more slowly rolled on to the spindle. This was continued by successive whirls of the wheel, until the spool was filled, when it was taken from the wheel head and replaced by a new one.

In the early settlement of the country, it was not at all uncommon for the young girls of eighteen or twenty summers to take their wheels on their shoulders, and, carrying in their hands a sufficient supply of wool or flax, to assemble at a neighbor's house, and in a long porch with ground or puncheon floor, or even, in pleasant weather, in the open dooryard, the wheels were set down and the spinning began, each striving to excel the other in dexterity, in rapidity, and excellence of the thread produced, and thus the day was passed in work and friendly gossip, and when the evening came, the lads gathering in from the neighboring fields, the dance began to the music of the violin, which, with some sufficiently artistic performer, was sure to be found in every settlement.

Covering for the head was necessary as well as for the feet, and hence the hatter-shop was an important part of the manufacturing business of every new town in the West. The earliest hatters were John Brown and Lewis Webb. Hats were made of wool or fur of the raccoon or opossum, musk-rat or, more rarely, of the beaver. Men and boys went to the shop and left their measure for a hat of whatever description wanted, the proper block was selected, and in due time the proper article appeared. A hat that would not last at least five years was a bad production, and by care, and keeping an old one to wear in bad weather, the Sunday hat was often made to do duty for double that period of time.

Few towns in the State of the size of Piqua can now boast of better and more flourishing manufacturing establishments. The first improvement on the canal was made by using the power from the lock at the south end of Main street in 1839, where a flouring-mill was erected by Mr. Beall, of the city of Baltimore. The mill was small but was sufficient for the demands of business for a short time, but in a few years a much larger establishment was demanded, which was built by Messrs. Young & Yager. These buildings were of frame, but in 1872 a fine brick mill was erected by O'Ferrall & Daniels ; this burned in 1879, and the present very large and excellent mill was erected by Conrad Amendt, which is in every respect a model establishment, and does work not inferior to any mill in the county.

On the same water-power is located the extensive woolen-mill of F. Gray & Co., one of the finest factories in Western Ohio. Original^ started as a woolenmill for the manufacture of cloths, blankets, fine flannels, etc. ; the enterprising proprietors about four years ago turned their attention to the manufacture of paper maker's endless felts, which are produced by not more than five establishments in the United States, most of the paper-mills both East and West former^ importing their felts from England. By skill and perseverance, however, Messrs. GrajT & Co. have developed an immense trade in this line, their felts are now recognized as not in any respect inferior to the best English productions, and are in use throughout the United States from Maine to Georgia, and from New York to California ; they are sent even to South America, to Germany and to Japan. Connected with this mill are also extensive knitting works for the production of yarn socks.

The machine-shops of John O'Ferrall & Co. are situated on the west end of Water street, near the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati & St. Louis railway.* They manufacture thrashers and separators, sugar-mills, corn-drills, hay-rakes, tile machines, etc. An iron foundry is connected with the establishment, which is doing a large and flourishing business. Their machines are extensively sold through the West, and their threshers are considered among the best in the market In the corporation, are also two of the largest linseed oil mills in the State. That of Wood, Farrington & Co., stands near the west end of Water street, on the hydraulic canal, just beyond the point where the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati & St. Louis Railway crosses what was formerly the old Covington road. The capacity of this mill has been doubled in the last two years. They now crush 500 bushels of flax-seed daily, and manufacture from four to five thousand barrels of linseed oil per year. The mill is run principally by the water-power furnished b}T the hydraulic, but can also be run by steam if there is a deficiency in the supply of water. A side-track connects the mill with the railroad, and cars are loaded and unloaded directty from the doors of the mill. All the modern improvements in crushing and the best hydraulic presses for pressing out the oil are in use at this establishment. The mill of Orr, Leonard & Daniels is also a very extensive and elegant work, situated at the south end of Main street, directly on the railroad, built with all the modern improvements and employing the best machinery, operated entirety by steam. This mill was erected in 1879, but is already doing a very heavy business. It will, probably, be enlarged during the present year, rendering it the largest oilmill in the State. The older members of this firm have also a very fine oil-mill two and a half miles below town, on the Miami River, where they*' have carried on an extensive business for many years. In the mill in town, this firm crushes from 450 to 500 bushels of seed per day, making from 700 to 800 gallons of oil; and in the mill below town, about 400 bushels of seed are crushed, yielding about 600 gallons of oil. If to this we add the product of the Wood & Farrington mill, using, as above stated, not less than about 400 bushels of seed per day, and yielding 600 gallons of oil, we have from these three large mills a consumption daily of 1,200 bushels of seed, and a yield of from 1,800 to 2,000 gallons of oil. It is safe to say that no city outside of Chicago in the Western country is so largety engaged in the manufacture of oil as Piqua, all brought about byT the activity and business energ}^ of a few men.

This important industry is contributing very largety to the business of the city. Each of these mills, that of Wood, Farrington & Co., and also of Orr, Leonard & Daniels, purchase seed at various points through Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, to the amount of more than $100,000 per annum, which is manufactured at their establishments, and the oil and oil-cake are shipped to various parts of the United States and Europe.

The extensive furniture factory7 of Messrs. L. C. & W. L. Cron, is one of the most important industries of the city. This establishment, which has been in successful operation for about ten years, now employs nearly one hundred hands ; their factory is situated across the bridge, at the lower end of Main street, on that part of the street leading to the Dayton & Michigan Railroad depot, where they already^ have very extensive buildings, but are this year erecting another very large brick factory, in order to accommodate their continually increasing business. Here is also their finishing-room, which, in extent and completeness, will compare favorably with any like establishment in the State. Their extensive show-room is on Main street, nearly opposite the City Hotel, where may at all times be found very large quantities of finely finished furniture. This firm sends also large quantities of furniture, in the rough or unfinished state, to the Eastern cities.

The furniture factory of Aug. Fritsch & Son is also deserving of notice. The house has a reputation for the manufacture of excellent and beautiful furniture, and they have a well-filled show-room on Main street, between Ash and Green.

The handle factory of Gray & Murray, at the north end of Wayne street, is a new establishment, recently commencing business, but already employing a large number of hands, and using up every day eight to twelve cords of ash wood, in making spade, hoe and fork handles, which are immediately shipped to various points in the East $nd West. During the present year, these gentlemen expect to add to their works machinery for the manufacture of ax-helves, and short handles for hammers, etc., which will also consume a large amount of hickory timber.

At the north end of Downing street, and in the immediate vicinity of the lastnamed works, is found the foundry and machine shops of Messrs. Bowdle Bros, These enterprising gentlemen, who have been long established in the same locality, manufacture steam engines of various patterns, as well as make castings for many kinds of machinery, and are noted throughout this section of the country for their excellent work.

Three extensive carriage and buggy factories are also located here. The largest is that of R. P. Spiker, on Wayne, near High street, which employs about forty hands, and turns out a large amount of very fine work. Mr. Spiker is now merging his factory in a large stock company, known as the Spiker Wagon Works. This company is incorporated by the State, with a capital of $40,000, and has purchased extensive grounds on the west end of High street, extending north two squares to Green street, and embracing seven acres, on which they are erecting buildings for their works, and to which the Wayne Street Works will be ultimately removed. This bids fair, from the well-known character of the gentlemen engaged in it, to become one of the most important industries of the city.

The carriage factory of Curtis & Reed, on Water street, near Wayne, is also a flourishing establishment, and is rapidly growing in favor with the community.

The factory of W. R. Crosier & Son, the oldest in the city, is located on Downing street, between North and G-reen, and has, for man}^ years, done a large and lucrative business. f These three establishments all manufacture the finest car riages and buggies, which have repeatedly taken prizes at the fairs in our own and many of the adjoining counties. The Spiker Company will continue the manufacture of carriages and buggies, but will add to this the making of road wagons of a superior quality, somewhat after the style of the celebrated Studebaker wagon, so largely manufactured at South Bend, in Indiana. There are already in the city several establishments manufacturing large wagons on a limited scale, but doing a very good business, among which may be named the works of John Reedy, William Keese and Joseph Clouse.

One paper-mill is already in operation on the hydraulic, at the west end of North street. This establishment, belonging to the heirs of Loomis, does a good business in the manufacture of coarse wrapping paper, and consumes a large amount of straw for this purpose. Another mill, on the south end of the hydraulic, near the Rocky Branch, is now, being erected by a joint-stock company, the leading men being Messrs. Jarvis, Orr, Leonard, Ziegenfelder and Clark. These enterprising gentlemen will invest a large amount of capital in this work, which, it is understood, will be devoted to the manufacture, principally, if not entirely, of what is known as straw board. A large number of hands will be employed here.

Three large breweries are carried on in the city. That of J. L. Schneyer, at the south end of Spring street, is a model of completeness and excellence in the way of manufacturing beer. The malting-room, cooling-room, ice house, and every department connected with the business are most completely furnished, and the product of the establishment is said to be of superior quality. The building is about 60x80 feet, three stories in height, and is pronounced by judges to combine all the requisites for the manufacture, while extensive cellars are provided, where the beer is laid down until it attains the peculiar qualities which entitle it to the name of lager.

The Messrs. Schmidlapp have also a very good establishment immediately across the street from Schneyer, and on the south side of Water street, immediately east of Gray's Woolen Mill. A third brewery is operated by Messrs. Butcher <& Freyer, and is situated near the north end of Spring street. This is the oldest establishment for brewing in the city, manufactures largely and has extensive cellars on the eastern bank of the Miami River near the east end of the middle bridge, for the production of lager beer. There is now in course of construction at the corner of Downing and Sycamore streets, an extensive building for manufacturing malt. Messrs. Schmidlapp & Bro., of Cincinnati, and Leopold Keifer, of Piqua, are the proprietors. In addition to all these active manufacturers are to be noticed the flouring-mill of Kinsell & Co., on the river bank, nearly opposite the south end of Harrison street ; the large liquor house of J. D. Holtzermann & Son, on the corner of Main and Water streets, where are also manufactured the celebrated Holtzermann Bitters, which are very extensively sold through Western Ohio, Indiana and Illinois ; the gas machine factory of John Stafford, on the west side of the public square, and the truss hoop factory of Messrs. Butterfield, at the north end of Wa}Tne street, on the Miami & Erie Canal.

Coopering is not so extensively carried on here as was done several }rears since, when we were nearer to large supplies of timber, but the shops of Yogel and of Stein and several others still produce large numbers of barrels every year. Messrs. Hardesty & Speelman have a large steam planing-mill and factor}' for building material at the west end of Water street, and are doing a good business as manufacturers and builders. The planing-mill and factory of Isaac Whitlock is at the corner of Broadway and Broome streets. The proprietor is actively engaged as a manufacturer and contractor.

The extensive and elegant marble works of J. F. Hummel are on the corner of Spring and Ash streets, east of the canal. No fairer monuments are produced in the State than those gotten up by Mr. Hummel, and his work is found in the cemeteries of Columbus, Springfield, Detroit and Cincinnati. The best of Italian and American marbles are used, and large quantities of Scotch granite are also imported for these works. The marble works of McKee & Son are on the corner of Ash and Wayne streets, where much good work is found.

Trade is the natural heritage of the Yankee nation, and that part located at the early site of Piqua was not found wanting in the common characteristic of the race. The Ewings were among the early traders with Indians and with whites, and the first goods sold in the village were trafficked by members of this family. In the old Ewing tavern, located on Main street, on that portion now south of the railroad, and about where Benkert's saddler's shop is now standing, was the first trading-point in the bounds of the village. This was early in 1809 ; but, in 1812, Nicholas Greenham, an Irishman by birth and a trader by profession, arrived in town, and, renting a room from Ewing, opened a regular country store. Furs and all kinds of country produce were bought, and goods exchanged for them, and the whisky bottle and pitcher of water, with a glass tumbler or tin cup at their side, invited every customer to partake of the liberality of the storekeeper and sharpen his intellect for the barter which was to come off. This was the universal custom ; every one drank, and almost every one kept sober ; drunkenness was a rare fault, and was regarded with peculiar dislike. About five years later, John McCorkle commenced the business of selling goods and buying whatever was to be sold from the surrounding country. He and Greenham were both successful traders, accumulated money and property, and were soon known as the leading business men of the county. McCorkle represented the county in the Lower House of the General Assembly, and was known as an ardent advocate of the canal then located, since 1824, from Cincinnati to Dayton, and which he was very desirous of seeing extended further toward the North. He unfortunately died in 1829, without seeing his hopes realized. William Scott was the next of the early merchants or traders of the rising town. Then John M. Cheevers. Jacob and Abel Furrow, Byram Dayton, James Defrecs, Young & Sons, David J. Jordan (afterward Jordan & Kitchen), William Keyt, L. R. Brownell (afterward of the firm of Brownell & Camcross), Demas Adams, William and Lewis Kirk, gradually came in, about in the order of their names here given, and kept up the trade of the village to 1833. Shortly after this time, the various branches of trade began to divide themselves.

The earliest liquor store was opened by John M. Cheevers, at the north end of Main street ; the first iron store, by S. H. Brown, on the southwest corner of the public square ; the second, by John Morrow, at the place now occupied by Janies Scott in the same line of business. The earliest distinct grocery house was that of Sawyer & Davis, on Main street, just north of the corner now occupied by the Citizens' National Bank. The first drug store was kept by M. G. Mitchell, on Main street, a little south of the present Spencer's store; the second, by Daniel Ashton, afterward merged into the firm of Ashton & Ewing.

The establishments in the early days were small, increasing, however, in capacity, with the demands of trade and the filling up of the country, and we see a few of the older men who still survive, so as at least to look on at the increasing business of the town, and to compare the present with the former days of commercial affairs. J. M. Cheevers and William Scott* still walk the streets, as they have done for more than half a century, and, though not actively engaged in trade, still feel a lively interest in everything connected with the financial or commercial pursuits and changes of the day.

William Scott* is the oldest of the dry-goods merchants in the city, indeed, no business man in the place has been so long and steadily engaged in trade. For for fifty-seven years Mr. Scott continued closely and personally to attend to his business as a merchant. The house is now carried on in the name of John M. Scott & Co., but the original head of the house is always seen about when not engaged in the bank, and looks actively after the interests of the establishment. For more than half a century Mr. Scott has done business on the same square on Main street, where he is now found. Other prominent dry -goods houses are C. S. Parker & Co.; F. W. Beiter; D. Spencer & Co.; C. Gross; Stein & Co. and A. Berting.

The large clothing houses are Henry Flesh, A. Friedlich, J. F. Hemsteger, P. I. Gates & Co., M. Friedlich, M. Newhoff, D. Urbansky and C. W Bachelor.

The prominent grocery houses are John Zollinger & Son; Sawyer & Co.; G. N. Ziegenfelder ; P. A. Williamson; John Harbaugh & Co.; D. Louis; Charles Lebolt ; M. Ziegenfelder and M. Belier, etc.

The daguerrean gallery of I. Thorne will very well repay a visit to any lover of art. Mr. Thorne keeps a handsome collection of pictures at his rooms, on Main street, and his photographs, both plain and colored, are finished in the best style. The rooms of Mr. F. Gale are in the third story, over the large grocery- house of D. Louis, on Main street. Mr. Gale is said to be very successful in his pictures of young children, and he has, himself, made some improvements in the art of photography, which are considered valuable.

The heavy grain dealers are Messrs. Farrington & Slauson, on the public square and at their storehouse below the railroad, on Main street, and Messrs. Orr & Leonard, also on the east side of the public square and on the canal. Both these houses are large buyers, and employ an amount of capital in the grain trade not exceeded by any dealers in the county.

There are two large hotels, the City, kept by A. J. Roe and Harry Morse, on the corner of Main and Ash streets, and the Leland, b}7 Mr. C. May, at the south end of the opera house block. Both are excellent houses. A large number of smaller houses of entertainment are found in various parts of the city.

The need of legal learning and advice is not felt early, as a general rule, in a Western community, and our pioneer fathers were no exception to the rule. The ordinary magistrate was the depository of the law, and what legal lore he failed to possess was not considered worth having. Increase of population and trade, however, with the complications of business necessarily following in the train, soon made gentlemen of the legal profession welcome members of the community. William McLean, brother of Judge John McLean, of the United States Supreme Court, and also Postmaster General of the United States, was the first regular professional lawyer who settled in the village. He came to Piqua about the year 1820, and represented the Miami District, which comprehended nearly all Western Ohio north of Warren County, in the Congress of the United States, from 1823 to 1829 inclusive. He was a man of decided ability, honest and upright, and possessed great influence in the community in which lie lived. He was a prominent member of the Methodist Church, as was also his excellent wife, and their house was for many years the well-known resting-place for ministers and itinerants of this denomination. Shortly after his last term in Congress, Mr. McLean removed from Piqua to Cincinnati, and was for several years extensively engaged in mercantile pursuits, but, his health failing, he retired from business, spent several months in the Island of Cuba hoping to derive benefit for his pulmonary disease from the change of climate, but failing in this he returned to Cincinnati, spent some time in revisiting several points in his old Congressional district, Piqua among others, returning, finally, to his Cincinnati home, where he ended his long and useful life in 1839.

The second member of the legal profession in Piqua was Gen. Robert Young, a student of McLean's, and who soon succeeded to his business during his absence in Congress, and after his removal from the county. Gen. Young was for many years the leading lawyer of the northern part of the county, terminating a long life of labor and usefulness at Piqua in the year 1855. Among other early lawyers of the town may be mentioned the names of Samuel E. Browne, Gorden N. Mott, afterward for many years a Judge of the Courts in California, Samuel R. Mott, Samuel Stover, Hon. R. L. P. Baber, now of Columbus ; Joseph Ewing, now residing in La Fayette, Ind. ; N. F. Wilbur and Judson Miller, now deceased. Among those still remaining in the town, the earliest members of the bar were S. S. Mc- Kinne}', M. H. Jones and Stephen Johnston ; while the later members of the profession are Hon. J. F. McKinney, William C. Johnston, Walter B. Jones, Theodore Brooks, N. Wagner, A. C. Buchanan, J. R. Hatch and J. McDonald.

As in the profession of law, so too in that of the healing art, the actual wants of the early settlers were easily satisfied. The diseases of the pioneers were few and simple, a knowledge of the powers of " roots and herbs " acquired from the aboriginal inhabitants, or from whites who had sojourned among them, was usually adequate to the relief of ordinary maladies, and in more serious cases the aid of a distant physician was sometimes invoked. In ordinary surgical cases, as of fractures or dislocation of limbs, some intelligent man was usually found whose skill was sufficient for the emergency. Col. John Johnston, the well-known Indian agent, of Upper Piqua, a man of general information, abundant resources, and cool, deliberate judgment, was well known for miles around the country as a skillful manipulator of broken bones, and used frequently to say that he rarel}T failed to make a good cure even in the worst fractures, with splints of green hickory bark,' in which he carefully inclosed the injured limbs, and which soon hardened sufficiently to retain the parts in proper position and so held them until the bones were firmly united, and in connection therewith, he used what was commonly called by the people a " Shocking Machine," being the old-fashioned electrifying machine ; it was one of the great wonders of science, introduced at that early day into our sparsely settled country, and used by him as a remedial agent in nervous complaints.

About the close of the war of 1812, Henry Chapeze, of Kentucky, a welleducated physician, located at Piqua, His office and residence were on the southwest corner of Wayne and Water streets, on the lot now occupied by the house of Hiram Brooks, Esq. A brick office erected on this lot was the first building of that material within the village limits, and is well remembered to-day by many of the older inhabitants. Dr. John O'Ferrall settled in Piqua about 1820, and these two gentlemen have the honor of being the pioneer physicians of the town and of the northern part of the county. Both continued in the practice of their profession for many }-ears, riding over large extents of forest country, sometimes without roads, at other times over ways almost impassable, where the worst mudholes and deepest marshes were bridged over by rows of round logs, making no very secure causeway for either horse or man. The rude cabins and rough fare of the early .settlers were their resting-place and their refreshment; a scanty remuneration, and very frequently none at all, was the reward rendered for services; but these faithful men toiled on, waited and hoped for better days, and lived to see at least their dawn if not their full development. Dr. Chapeze died about 1828; but O'Ferrall, a younger and more vigorous man, survived until 1850, living to see the country which he entered as a wilderness blooming with improvements and filled with the elements of wealth and progress.

Among the other early physicians, are found the names of Dr. Jackson, afterward a prominent Democratic politician of Indiana; Dr. I. T. Teller, Dr. David Jordan (eclectic), Dr. Isaac Henclershot, Dr. Worrall, all of whom are now passed away.

Dr. Dorsey, who read medicine for a portion of his time in the office of Dr. O'Ferrall, commenced practice as a partner of O'Ferrall in the year 1836, and the firm continued until Januaty 1, 1842, wffien it was dissolved ; but Dr. Dorsey has continued the practice from that time until the present, with the exception of four years, from 1862 to 1865 inclusive, when he acted as State Treasurer, residing in Columbus. In 1842, Dr. John O'Ferrall, Jr., commenced practice with his father, and has continued in business, with some interruptions, to the present time.

Stone Quarries

No account of Washington Township can be complete without a notice of the extensive quarries of limestone which add so much to its wealth, and, by the facility they afford for building, contribute, also, very largely to the prosperity and progress of the township and the town. These quarries are all found on the west side of the Miami, and commence immediately south of the Bocky Branch, lying on the south border of the city, and coming out on the west side of the turnpike leading from Piqua to Troy, on the west side of the river. Stone also abounds on the east bank of the river, though the quarries on that side have never been extensively opened or worked. The first quarry below the branch is that of Mr Harvey Clark, who carries it on actively. The second is that of Henry Kitchen, now operated by Mr. J. Mitchell. The third is the well-known Hamilton Quarry, now owned by Dr. Dorsey, and carried on by James Hamilton, as agent. The fourth, is the very large and extensive quarry of Mr. David Statler, two miles south of the city, which has been for years worked by that gentleman with great success.

Until the last twenty years, the great value of these quarries was scarcely thought of ; but, as the country has progressed in improvement, the demand for building material has caused them to be carefully explored and operated, and a source of wealth has been developed, which, in the early settlement of the country, was never taken into account. A well-managed stone quarry has come to be regarded as a treasure little inferior to the mines of the precious metals in the Far West.

Primitive Commerce

After the development of the country about Piqua, when exportation became a necessity in order to get the sight of a little money, flatboats were constructed, and loaded with flour, bacon, corn in the ear, cherry lumber, furniture, and other products.

The boats were built here, on the bank of the Miami River, with two parallel gunwales, from sixty to seventy-five feet in length, and the boat about twelve feet wide. They were built bottom side up. the plank in the bottom running crosswise and spiked to the gunwales, with the ends imbedded in a rabbet cut into the gunwales deeper than the thickness of the boards, so as to secure the bottom from catching while floating over shoal places.

When the hull or bottom was calked and completed, it was then turned over by raising up one side and letting it fall over upon brush piled up in sufficient quantity to save the hull from injury b}' the fall ; it was then launched into the river, and the siding and deck completed, forming complete protection to the cargo and the boatmen. Some of the men engaged in this commerce were Joseph Bennettr bedsteads in large quantities, and coast along the Mississippi River, retailing out to the people along the river whatever was in demand. The risk in navigating the Miami River required great skill and presence of mind, especially in passing over mill-dams and following the channel of the river through the " Ninety-nine Islands," as they were called, located a few miles below Troy. The pilot of notoriety was Robert Logan, a very large man, and when in command of one of these boats about to start on its journey, and standing upon the deck disciplining his boatmen to the use of the oars, was looked upon with as much consideration as the greatest admiral who ever commanded a fleet. To see one of these boats pass through the channel of the river at these islands, was indeed a most thrilling sight, and required the most consummate skill and quickness of action to wind this unwieldy craft through its tortuous route to a safe passage. After passing into the Ohio River, the pilot and other men not wanted to coast were discharged, but some of the dangers of boating were still incident to the voyage.

Along the banks of the Mississippi are frequently found eddies, or whirlpools, into which the boat is liable to be drawn, and when* once fairly in the circuit, it was difficult to cross the circuit and reach the straight current. An anecdote i& told of one of these eddies in the Mississippi. The crew are each required at night to take his turn on the watch, and in case of an approaching steamboat, to swing a torch or light to prevent collision. On one occasion, a green hand was called on watch in the darkness of the night, and, shortly after taking his position on deck, the boat, without his observation, was drawn into one of these eddies, opposite to which, on the bank of the river, stood a brick church, and the boat continued making a circuit during the whole time of his watch. When his turn was up, he awoke the man to take his place on deck, and, upon being asked how he got along, replied, " First rate," but added that " it was the darnedest place for brick churches he had ever seen in his life."

In connection with this history of flatboating, it was common for boatmen returning from New Orleans to walk all the way home again, passing through a wilderness north of New Orleans and through what was then called the Indian Nations, Choctaws and Chickasaws. Jacob Lands, Esq., and David Hunter, both of whom deceased at Piqua after a long residence, made this journey on foot, and have frequently related incidents connected with the journey through the Indian country.

Another fact in connection with this primitive commerce was the building of a large keel-boat by John Chatham on the public square in Piqua. directly west of Orr & Leonard's warehouse. This boat was built (the hull) and hauled to St. Mary's, the bow resting on the wheels of a wagon, and the stern on sled-runners, with eight horses, two teams belonging to James Johnston and John Campbell. It was then launched into the St. Mary's River, and was used on that stream to freight to Fort Wajrne and on the Maumee River. It was about eight feet wide by fifty-five or sixty feet in length.

Commercial Facilities

The Columbus, Piqua & Indiana Railroad, now called the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati & St. Louis Railwa}' Company, was chartered by the Legislature February 23, 1849.

The charter was drawn by Stephen Johnston, Esq., while working at a saddler's bench, with his sleeves rolled up. He had had some legislative experience, and was called upon to prepare the charter. The original or rough draft is now among the papers belonging to the estate of M. G. Mitchell, deceased, who was elected President of the company, and for many years during the building of the road was the principal manager of the enterprise. The road was completed from Columbus to Piqua in 1 856, and gave to the northern part of Miami County facilities for an Eastern market. This road is now the great central railway, through fare from the East to the West, with branches and connecting lines reaching from the Atlantic to the Pacific.

The Dayton & Michigan Railroad was chartered by the Legislature, March 5, 1851, and was completed to Piqua in 1856, so that Piqua was given a southern outlet by rail, and, with its present history, embraces the commercial facilities commencing about 1820, and being completed within the lapse of thirty-six years. This time, compared with the development of the West now, would seem to be at a snail's gait, but to the retrospect of the pioneer of Miami County, to him is indeed marvelous.

Water-Works And Hydraulic Canal

The subject of creating an hydraulic power, to be displayed at Piqua, was an enterprise discussed by the citizens of Piqua for nearly forty years, and, on the 7th day of April, 1856, the General Assembly passed a bill, authorizing M. C. Ryan, James G. Haley, T. L. P. Defrees & Co., to enlarge the Lewistown reservoir, and in consideration to receive all surplus water on the line of canal created by them, for the use of hydraulic power, and these parties became an incorporated company under the name of the " Miami Hydraulic and Manufacturing Company," and were for some time actively engaged in trying to induce the citizens of Piqua to co-operate with them, but the enterprise failed, and they surrendered their contract to the State, and abandoned the enterprise.

After the organization of the company, further legislature was deemed necessary, and, on the 6th day of April, 1866, a bill was passed by the Legislature of Ohio, authorizing the use of the surplus water of the canal for hydraulic purposes.

Under the provisions of this act this company was enabled to contract with the State for the surplus water. Dr. G. V. Dorsey was elected President, and continued as such until January, 1868, when he resigned, and Stephen Johnston, Esq., was elected President of the Board of Directors, and immediately entered upon the discharge of his duty, which was a general supervision of the work in obtaining the rights of way and raising money to carry on the work after the work was put under contract.

The enterprise at the time - in view of the stringent money market and magnitude of the work, was regarded by the citizens, with scarcely a single exception, as an impossible undertaking, but Mr. Johnston conceived the plan of the water works in connection with the hydraulic enterprise, and by that means secured $50,000 in bonds from the city.

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He also conceived the plan of obtaining an appropriation from the city, the sum of $15,000, to pay for drainage, which would result by a proper construction of the canal.

This fund, together with other assets of stock subscribed, etc., induced the letting of the work, on the 16th day of March, 1869, to Messrs. Boyle & Roach, who, after completion of a large portion of the work, assigned their contract to Messrs. Burns & Gallager, who proved to be most efficient contractors. A. G-. Conover, Esq., was the Engineer-in-charge of the work, and Jacob D. Holtzemin, Esq., Treasurer.

During the progress of the work two serious accidents occurred, by the breaking away, during high water, of the embankment at Swift Run, which occasioned a loss of $40,000.

The canal is over six miles in length, and contains within its prism and reservoirs therewith connected, at least 150 acres of water-line, at an elevation of thirty-eight feet over the city, and three falls aggregating fifty-two feet six inches, for hydraulic power. The water-works, in point of efficiency in every particular, are not exceeded by any other water- works of the kind in the United States, and have already saved one-half their cost by the extinguishment of fires having most alarming outbreaks at the start.

The plan of the work as completed was written out and foreshadowed by Stephen Johnston, and published in the preface of the City Directory in 1870.

Fortifications In Piqua

On the bank of the Miami River, near where the extensive woolen mills of F. Gray now stands, was a block-house and stockade therewith connected. The stockade remained as one of the relics of Indian warfare, and is still in the memory of some of the pioneers now living. Its north line, running east and west, was not far from the north line of Water street, extending west to the present site the Leland Livery Stable.

The First Use Of Dynamite In Piqua

The Piqua Straw Board and Paper Company located its mills, which are now under roof, at the intersection of Main street and the Rocky Branch.

The foundation required the blasting of shelly rock, which does not yield to powder, in consequence of the seams through the rock. Knowing this, the company determined to try dynamite, a very dangerous material to handle. They found a man recently become a citizen, H. F. Ernest, who was well skilled in its use, and our people were amazed at the explosions and results of this powerful agency in blasting. Some of the blasts included as high as twenty different drilled holes, and each connected with a wire was ignited by the use of a battery, all exploding at the same moment, and at a single blast would heave up more than one hundred tons of rock.

The work was a complete success, and is another step in the progress of science just introduced in April, 1880. Nobody was injured during work of about one month.

D. F. ANGLEBARGER, blacksmith, Tippecanoe City ; one of the well-established business men of Tippecanoe City ; was born in Frederick Co., Md., June 17, 1840 ; he is of Irish-German descent ; his father, D. S. Anglebarger, and mother, Elizabeth Ramesburg, were both natives of Maryland, and passed their entire lives there ; D. S. followed the pursuits of undertaking and farming ; he had a family of four sons and two daughters by his first marriage ; our subject was the youngest son ; at the age of 13, he immigrated to Ohio, and located in Clark Co., where he engaged as a laborer at various pursuits till he went to New Carlisle and began the smithing business ; here he remained seven years ; then enlisted in Co. C, 110th O. Y. I., and was emplo3Ted as a blacksmith ; he was in the fight of Winchester, under Gen. Milhxty, and was subsequently discharged on account of physical disability ; returning, he located at Troy, Ohio, and, in 1864, came to Tippecanoe City, where he worked for three years at "jour " work, and then set up shop for himself ; he is now located on Second, between Main and Dow streets ; his long experience as a smith, and careful attention to business, have won for him the reputation of a first-class workman. He is a Republican in politics, and an ardent supporter of the party ; he is also a member of the A., F. & A. M. He was married Sept. 15, 1859, to Nancy Ross, a native of Clark Co., Ohio ; of the six children born to this union, two have deceased.

WILLIAM ASHWORTH, nurseryman, Tippecanoe City ; born in Middleton, Lancashire, Eng., in 1836 ; is a son of George and Betsy (Wult) Ashworth ; he followed the occupation of baker in his native country, and immigrated to America, with his family, in 1839, landing in Philadelphia, Penn., from where he came direct to the present site of Tippecanoe ; here he learned the shoemaker trade, which he followed till his death, July 23, 1849 : his wife died April 3, 1876 ; he had three sons, all yet living - two in Tippecanoe, and one in Leadville, Colo. ; our subject is the oldest son, and was only 3 years old when he came with his parents to his present place ; he was educated in the common school, and, at the age of 11, entered an apprenticeship at the shoemaker trade, serving two years and a half ; at the age of 16, went to Dayton, Ohio, and served about three years at the harness trade ; he then turned his attention tof gardening and the nurses business, which he has since continued at Tippecanoe ; with his brother, he cultivates one of the most extensive nurseries in this count3T ; he raises all kinds of fruittrees, ornamental shrubbery, vines and plants of all kinds (see card in directory) ; his long experience in, and careful attention to, the business, makes their firm one of the most reliable in the country, and they have gained the reputation of firstclass nurserymen. In 1862, he left the nursery for the " tented field," enlisting in Co. D, 94th 0. Y. I., and served till the close of the war (over three years), participating in the following battles : Perry ville, Ky., Stone River, Mission Ridge*and numerous skirmishes ; joined his regiment, on Sherman's march, at the sea-coast, having been detained on account of sickness ; returned home and resumed his former occupation. He is a Republican in politics, his father being an " Old Line Whig," and is a member of the " Miami Valley Nurserymen's Association." He married Sarah Wilson, of this county, in 1857 ; two children, both now dead, have been the issue of this union.

ALBERT C. BESOM, merchant and dealer in agricultural implements, Ginghamsburg ; is a person of note in the village of Ginghamsburg ; his pleasant address and correct business habits have made his name familiar to all as a person of known honesty. The firm of Besom & Evans are the only ones doing business at Ginghamsburg. He was born in Concord Township, June 30, 1850 ; his parents, Christian and Rebecca Besom, were parents of five children - Montgomery, John C., Albert C., Amanda and Catharine ; Christian commenced business at Ginghamsburg in 1855, continued it for two }rears, when Albert took charge of it, and has conducted it successfully since. His marriage to Miss Harriet Cotterman occurred in 1869. They have three children - Warren H., Clarence H. and Norah B. Mrs. Besom's parents, Henry and Sarah Cotterman, emigrated from Pennsylvania in 1831, and were the parents of twelve children, eight of whom are living - Margaret, Elizabeth, Mary A., Harriet, Sadie, John, Adam and Franklin. Mr. Besom is a Republican, and a prominent member of Vandalia, No. 657, 1. 0. O. F. ; he is also a member of the Christian Church, and, as he was never known to utter an oath or take a dram in a saloon, we feel a just pride in placing such facts upon record ; he is also Postmaster of the village, and fills that position with credit.

J. W. BOWMAN, merchant ; Tippecanoe City ; born in Frederickstown, Union Township, in 1845 ; is the son of James and Mary Bowman ; he passed his boyhood and youth in his native place, doing work on the farm and in the store, and attending common school ; he took a business course in the Toledo Commercial College, graduating in 1864 ; came to Tippecanoe in 1863 and managed a grocery under J. Bowman & Son, and in 1866, went into the dry goods business, under the firm style of Bowman, Wells and Co.; after several changes made in the firm, Mr. Bowman purchased the store in 1873, since when he has been operating it on iris own responsibility ; his large and increasing trade, with full stock of well-assorted goods, attests his skill and success in this business ; he is located in the " Morrison Block," where, in a large and spacious room, he displajs the fullest stock of goods in the place, which he sells at lowest prices. He married, Nov. 27, 1866, Maggie M. Penny, of Monroe Township. Two sons, Frank P. and Howard E., have been the issue of this union.

W. F. CALDWELL, Editor Herald , Tippecanoe City ; born in Tippecanoe Jan. 8, 1857 ; is the son of C. L. and Mary (Stewart) Caldwell, the latter a native of this county, and the former of Delaware Co., Ohio. C. L. was a marble cutter by occupation, and came to this county when a young man. He was married in Troy, Ohio, and had seven children ; from Troy he moved to Tippecanoe, and subsequently to Kansas, where his death occurred in 1873. Our subject, the oldest of the family, was reared and schooled in his native place, obtaining a good education ; at the age of 18 he left school, and entered the drug business at Deshler, Ohio, which he soon abandoned and learned the printing business, under Col. Horton, of Tippecanoe, which he has since followed ; he became one of the proprietors of the Tippecanoe City Herald , March 1880. He is a member of the Lutheran Church, the " Faithful Temperance League," and is a Republican in politics. Mr. Caldwell is an enterprising and promising young man of Tippecanoe.

R. R. CARPENTER, physician, Tippecanoe City ; was born in Chenango Co., N. Y., in 1818 ; his father, Noah C., a native of Massachusetts, was an early settler in Chenango Co., and was a fuller by occupation ; his death occurred in 1869, at the age of 89. He was married to Judith Waite, of Connecticut, who was a descendant of the first settlers of Chenango Co., dying in 1850, and her mother in 1847, at the advanced age of 98. Noah Carpenter had nine children, eight of whom still survive. It. It. is the fifth child, and passed his early life in his native place, attending school till the age of 12, when he was placed in a drug store ; remained at this till the age of 20, thus acquiring a good knowledge of materia medica , which has served him well in his professional life; in the meantime he devoted all his leisure time to reading medicine, and when he left the drug store he entered the Bellevue Medical College of New York, and graduated in 1843 ; one year after, he began his career as a physician in Danville, Penn. ; in 1849, he left Danville and went to New York City, where he continued his practice till 1856, when he came to Tippecanoe, where he has since been in the practice ; he gives special attention to chronic diseases, and is a well-established and reliable physician ; personally, he is pleasant, affable and sociable in his intercourse with his fellow-men. He has been married twice ; first, in 1854 to Fidelia Warford, of Pennsylvania, who died in 1866. His second marriage was in the fall of 1866, to Julia King, of this county, who died in April, 1877. One daughter, by the first union, constitutes his family. The Doctor is a member of the A., F. & A. M. of Tippecanoe.

CHARLES B. CHAFFEE, Tippecanoe City. He was born in Colesville, Monroe Township, this county April 26, 1852, and is the son of S. L. and Barbara (Cecil) Chaffee ; S. L. is one of the foremost business men of Tippecanoe, born in Ontario Co., N. Y., in 1818, and was brought up to the manufacturing business ; he emigrated to Ohio in 1833, and in 1838 to Miami Co. Our subject came to Tippecanoe City with his parents when about 5 years old ; he received his primary education in the common school of this place, and, at the age of 14, entered Antioch College, at yellow Springs, where he remained one year, and then spent the two subsequent years in Oberlin College ; but failing health required him to abandon the schoolroom ; in the fall of 1870, he went to Buffalo, N. Y., and engaged in the general liquor trade till January, 1872, when he returned to Tippecanoe, and embarked in the distillery business till 1874, and then went to Toledo, where he remained in the same occupation till 1878 ; since then, he has chiefly given his attention to farming interests, operating a farm of 2,500 acres in White Co., Ind., 1,200 acres of which are under cultivation ; he is a member of the Knights of Pythias and Congregational Church of Toledo. He married Alma A. Freet, of Wyandot Co., Ohio, near Tymochtee, in November, 1873 ; a son and daughter have been the issue of this union.

LEVI CLARK, farmer ; P. O. Tippecanoe City. He is one of the few remaining early native-born citizens of Monroe Township ; he is the son of John Clark, prominently mentioned in the township history ; he was born Nov. 22, 1818, about one and a half miles northwest of Tippecanoe ; he is the oldest of a family of ten, four of whom are dead ; the scenes of his boyhood and youth were in this vicinity, where his whole life has been passed ; his education was obtained under the difficulties of pioneer times ; reared on a farm, he has always made farming his principal occupation ; he served an apprenticeship at the tanner's trade, but never followed the business ; he located on the present site of the township, with his parents, in December, 1839, and consequently has had a residence here coeval with the town ; under the gold excitement, Mr. Clark made a trip to California in 1852, covering the distance from the Missouri River in the remarkably short time of sixtytwo traveling days ; he located in G-eorgetown, Eldorado Co., and engaged in mining with fair success, returning by the Panama route and New Orleans, consuming fourteen months on the entire trip ; he has a particular fondness for hunting, and makes his annual trips to the hunting grounds of Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Nebraska, etc., being regarded an expert and successful hunter. Formerly an " old-line Whig," casting his first vote for G-en. Harrison in 1840, his political views naturally fell in with the Republican party, with which he has always been identified. He was married, Feb. 13, 1840, to Clarinda Ramsey, of this county, who was born in Elizabeth Township in 1821, and is the daughter of Allen and Hannah Ramsey, early pioneers ; of their family of six sons and five daughters, three sons and three daughters are dead, some dying in infancy.

COFFMAN & SPENCER, grocers, Tippecanoe City ; one of the leading firms of Tippecanoe. Edward Coffman, member of above firm, was born in Montgomery Co., Ohio, Sept. 10, 1844, and is the son of Jesse and Eliza (McCord) Coffman, both natives of Pennsylvania ; Jesse was a cooper by trade, and emigrated to Ohio in 1833, locating first in Little York, Montgomery Co., and subsequently in West Milton, for a short time, and finally in Dayton, where his death occurred in 1859 ; he had four sons and five daughters, two of whom have died, one son in the late civil war. Our subject is the sixth child of the family, and was reared and schooled in the city of Dayton ; at the latter place he was engaged as a clerk in a hotel, and one year ago came to Tippecanoe City and has since been doing a large trade in the grocery business ; he is located in Room 2, Chaffee's Block, where he keeps the largest stock of groceries in the city, and, judging from the appearance of the goods in his large and spacious room, he fully understands his business. Their motto is, excellence in quality, integrity in transactions, low prices and quick sales. Mr. C. is connected with another grocery in Dayton, Ohio, under the same firm style. He married Miss Louisa Spencer, of Dayton, Ohio, in 1871, and has one child, a daughter, 7 years old. Mr. C. finds expression for his political views in the Republican party.

B. F. CUSHWA, confectioner and baker. Tippecanoe City; was born in this county, in 1851, and is the son of 0. W. Cushwa, a native of Maryland, and a miller by trade ; he emigrated to Ohio in 1840, and located in this county. He was married to Sarah J. Nicholls, and had five children, of whom our subject is the oldest ; he was reared principally in the mill, and educated in the common school, and so well did he improve his educational opportunities, that he was early prepared to enter the profession of teaching ; this he continued about four years, and was telegraph operator two years, and then embarked in the bakery and confectionery business, which he has since continued with success ; he is located on the south side of Main street, between 1st and 2d, where he keeps on hand a full stock of confectioneries, fresh bread, cigars and tobacco. He has, also, a neatly arranged ice-cream parlor, where he serves fresh ice-cream at all times during the season (see card). He is one of the enterprising young business men of Tippecanoe, and reliable ; his motto is, excellence in quality and integrity in all his transactions.

JOHN DUNCAN, retired farmer ; P. 0. .Tippecanoe City. John Duncan is a son of Amos Duncan, who came to this township in 1807 ; he was a native of North Carolina, and, on his way to the West, stopped in Greene Co., and there married Miss Elizabeth Beal, probably in 1806 ; they had three children - Isaac, Elizabeth and Amos ; his wife died a few years after coming to this county, and he married his second wife, Miss Rachel Coate, in 1812 or 1813 ; they are the parents of five children - John, Samuel, Nelson, Moses and Sarah - all living, except the two last named ; Mrs. Duncan died in 1855, and her husband in 1873. John Duncan, the subject of this sketch, married Miss Nancy A. Jones Dec. 6, 1835 ; eleven children was the result of this marriage, of whom Jonathan, Estley, Aaron, Lucinda A., Nathan and Catharine are living ; all are married ; Mr. Duncan lives at his ease, and a tenant looks after his farm. Both himself and wife are members of the Christian Church, and Mr. Duncan is also a member of Tippecanoe Lodge, No. 174, A., F. & A. M. His farm contains 117 acres, well improved, which was in his boyhood covered with a dense forest. For fifteen years he has been a Director in the public schools, and is a man of influence in his neighborhood.

JOHN EIDEM1LLER, farmer; P. O. Tippecanoe City ; is known from the center to circumference of this county ; his parents emigrated from Darmstadt, German}", in 1832; John was born in 1825; they reared seven children - John, George, Martin, Henry, Mary, Elizabeth and Maria J.; all are married, and live in this neighborhood ; the old folks, Peter and Annie E. Eidemiller, made a visit to Germany in 1857, but, during their long absence, their old friends had died or moved away ; their stay was brief ; they felt like strangers in a strange land ; America was dear to their hearts, and they were glad to return ; thev were almost shipwrecked, a violent storm coming up, that lasted two days and nights ; Mr, Eidemiller was a large contractor and builder of pikes, and in his business made much money ; he died in 1877 at the age of 76, and his wife in 1879, aged 78 years. John was married to Miss Seraphine Lavy in 1851 ; they were the parents of Martin E., Sarah J., John L., William H. and Peter F. (who died in infancy) ; Mrs. Eidemiller died in December, 1861 ; in July, 1862, Mr. Eidemiller led to the marriage altar Miss Augusta Miller, of V andalia, Ohio ; they have seven children - George P., Warren, Laura E., Dorsey G., Wade, Lilly and Webster ; Martin E., John L. and Sarah J. are married and live in this county. Mr. Eidemiller is one of our most prosperous farmers, owning 240 acres of fine land. He and his wife are members of the Lutheran Church, and also of Kentucky Home Grange ; he is a conservative Republican, and believes in the greatest good for the greatest number. The amount of stock reared is large, and the income derived from the farm a handsome one ; he built five miles of the Piqua and Troy pike, six and one-half of the Troy and Stillwater, two and one-half of the Dayton and Hyattsville pike, and now superintends them for a distance of eight miles from his home.

ROBERT M. EVANS, merchant and dealer in agricultural implements, Ginghamsburg. The grandparents of Esquire Evans, on both sides, were among the first settlers in this count}7, and his wife's parents also came at an early day. Joseph, Evans, Esquire Evans' grandfather, came here in 1801, and his mother's father in 1804. The inhabitants of the county were mostly Indians and wild beasts. Robert Evans was married to Miss Mary Jenkins in 1824, and they were the parents of Aaron, Louisa, Jesse, Kahren, Robert M. and Elizabeth; the four latter are still living, and are all married. Esquire Robert Evans was wedded to Miss Minerva J. Keller, in 1867 ; they have five children living, one dying in infancy ; their names are, respectively, Lilly, Arietta, Korah, Zenitia and Laura. Mrs. Evans' parents had eight children - Minerva, Sarah, Margaret A., Ellen, Alice, William E.. Alvin E. and Joseph W.; Mrs. Keller died in 1876. Esquire Evans was one of the brave men that enlisted in 1864, under the banner of his country, in Co. G. 147th 0. V. I.; for four years and three months he was a member of a military company, the Home Guards. In 1876, he was elected Justice of the Peace, and was re-elected in 1880. He is a partner in the firm of Besom & Evans, dealers in dry goods, groceries, agricultural implements etc., etc., doing business at Ginghamsburg. He was for two terms Master of Fidelity Grange, is a conservative Republican, and an honest man. Both himself and wife are members of the United Brethren Church, and are good and useful members of society.

G. L. FAVORITE, merchant, Tippecanoe City ; one of the well-established business men of Tippecanoe ; was born in Monroe Township, in 1841, and has lived here since, with the exception of three years, when he was in Toledo. His. parents were Abraham Favorite and Eva Long, the former born in Virginia, from whence he emigrated to this county just previous to the war of 1812, in which struggle he served as a teamster, teaming from Greenville to Ft. Wayne. He was a farmer by occupation, and passed the remainder of his life in this township, dying in 1848. He was married twice, and had five children by first marriage, two of whom still survive. His second marriage was in the spring of 1828, with Eve, daughter of George and Margaret (Green) Long, by whom he had six children, five still living. Eve was born in Augusta Co., Va., Feb. 28, 1798, and died two years ago, over 80 years old ; she was brought up under the benign influences of Christian parents, and, at the age of 15, became a professor of religious faith, and continued strong in the faith until her death. In 18 - , she emigrated with her parents to Greene Co., Ohio, and, a few years subsequently, moved to Miami Co. Our subject, the tenth child of the family, lived on a farm till 18 years of age, and attended a common school, receiving the usual farmer boy's education. At the age of 18 he was apprenticed to the carpenter's trade, and followed this fourteen years ; then farmed three years, when he embarked in the hardware and farm implement trade,, in Tippecanoe. He is located on North Main street, between First and Second,, where he keeps on hand a full line of stock and furnishes all kinds of agricultural implements, making self-binders a specialty. He is a careful and reliable business man, and interested in all matters pertaining to the welfare of the community. He is a Republican in politics, a member of the Town Council, and is Assistant Chief of the Fire Department, with which he has been connected since its organization. He married, in 1869, 'Maria O'Connell, of this county, and. in 1875, Millie Gates, of this place. He had one daughter by the first, and one son by the second marriage.

DAVID FETTERS, carpenter, Tippecanoe City ; born in 1848, in Union Township, this count}7 ; is the son of David and Elizabeth (Hill) Fetters, the former of Pennsylvania, born in 1804, and the latter of Virginian descent. David, Sr., a wagon-maker by occupation, immigrated to Ohio when about 21 years old, and located in Darke Co.; from there he came to this county, and then returned to Darke Co., where he now resides. He had six sons and three daughters, two sons and one daughter of whom are dead ; one son, Josiah, was killed in the late war at the Atlanta campaign. Our subject is the fifth child of the family ; his early life was that of a farmer boy, and, at the age of 18, he learned the carpenter trade, which he has since followed. He has resided in Tippecanoe City since March, 1868. He enjoys the reputation of a first-class workman, and many of the fine residences of Tippecanoe and vicinity stand as monuments of his workmanship. He exercises his right of franchise with the Republican party, but is no politician. He is a member of I. 0. O. F. of Tippecanoe. He married Mary E., daughter of Peter Fair, originally of Maryland. They have a family .of five children.

A. J. FULLER, hardware merchant, Tippecanoe City ; born in Clark Co., Ohio, in 1844 ; comes of English ancestry. His father, James, was born in Montgomery Co., Va., and emigrated to Clark Co. in 1813 or 1814, where he purchased a farm and passed the remainder of his life, his death occurring in 1872, at the advanced age of 82. He was married twice, first to Didama Thompson, by whom he had five children, and secondly, in 1844, to Sarah Sheets, of Bedford Co., Penn. She was born in 1801, and is the daughter of Andrew Sheets, a gunsmith b}' trade. His grandfather was a soldier in the war of 1776, and he, Andrew, was old enough to perform guard duty in the same war. He moved with his family in 1806, to Wilson Co., Tenn., where he remained six }rears a neighbor to Andrew Jackson. In September, 1812, he pioneered his way to Miami Valley, and located in Elizabeth Township, this county, where he passed the remainder of his active life, dying in 1843, in Clark Co. Our subject was the only child by the second marriage ; he made farming and stock-raising his occupation till about five years ago, when he located in New Carlisle, and engaged in general merchandising for two years ; he then located in Tippecanoe, and embarked in the hardware business ; he is located on South Main, between First and Second streets, where he keeps on hand a full stock of hardware, pumps, paints, etc., which he sells at lowest prices. He casts his vote with the Democratic party, but is no politician. He is a member of the 1. 0. O. F. and Encampment. He married Mary E. Stafford, of Clark Co., in 1868. Five children have been the issue of this union.

S. & H. A. GALLOWAY, druggists. Tippecanoe JCity ; one of the wellestablished firms of Tippecanoe. All the advantages of a thorough acquaintance with drugs and medicines are possessed by these gentlemen. Samuel Galloway, the senior member of the firm, was born in Greene Co., Oct. 18, 1833, and is the son of Andrew and Mary (Collins) Galloway ; Andrew was born in Bourbon Co., Ky., Nov. 7, 1796, and was the son of James G., a noted pioneer of Kentucky and Ohio. The ancestral line extends back to Scotland, whence seven brothers came, previous to the war of 1776. and located in Pennsylvania ; here James was born, and from there moved to Bourbon Co., Ky., in an early time, and in March, 1798, pioneered his way to Greene Co., Ohio, locating on the west bank of the Little Miami, five miles above the present site of Xenia ; he was in the struggle for American Independence, and participated in many of the frontier wars with the Indians ; he was wounded several times, carrying bullets in his body to his grave ; he was an intimate friend of Kenten and Boone, and Tecumseh was a frequent visitor at his house in Greene Co. ; he became the first Treasurer of Greene Co., and his son, James, was the first Surveyor. A brother of our subject has held the surveyorship of the county for twent}r-four years. The family has been extensively identified with the public offices and interests of Greene Co. since its organization ; Andrew was a farmer by occupation, and one of the prominent citizens of Greene ; his death occurred March 26, 1864 ; his wife, Mary, was born in Lancaster Co., Penn., July 3, 1798, and settled in Greene Co. in the spring of 1816 ; her death occurred Feb. 25, 1872. Our subject continued on the farm till 22 years old, receiving his primary education in the common school, and a more advanced course in the National Normal, of Lebanon, Ohio ; at the age of 22, he entered the profession of teaching, and continued it till Oct. 9, 1861, when he enlisted in the United States service, in which he remained over five years. We give below a recommendation by William B. Gaw, Col. 16th U. S. C. I., which gives his military career : April 15, 1866. - *£ The bearer here, Capt. Samuel Galloway, 16th U. S. C. I., I take great pleasure in commending to the favorable notice of his friends. Capt. Galloway entered service the 9th of October, 1861, as a private in the 74th 0. V. I., and was promoted successively to Corporal, Sergeant, and on the 14th of March, 1864, was examined for a position in the colored troops and passed a first-class Captain, when he was immediately assigned to the command of a company in 16th U. S. C. I. This officer has conducted himself, during his military career, in such a manner as to win the esteem and confidence, as well as the approbation, of his brother officers ; he has exhibited rare qualifications for commanding troops, and his integrity, valor, sobriety, urbane manner and ability in all the ordinary forms of business, have never been questioned ; he was examined for position of Major a short time before muster-out of regiment, and came fully up to the standard required. - William B. Gaw, Col. 16th U. S. C. I." Mr. G. engaged in the battles of Stone Biver, Chickamauga, Lookout Mountain, Mission Bidge, etc., besides numerous skirmishes ; was taken prisoner at the battle of Stone Biver, and during the thirty days in which he was held prisoner passed one week in Libby ; his regiment of colored troops were mustered out April, 1866, and he was detained on court-martial duty till his " muster-out," which occurred Nov. 6, 1866 ; he then went to Chicago, and engaged in the drug business, on W. Lake street, under the firm of Sherwood & Co., till June, 1867, when he purchased an interest in his present store, then conducted under the firm style of S. & W. C. Galloway ; Feb. 1, 1876, the present firm name was adopted. Mr. G. was in the the Government employ from 1869 to 1874, as United States Storekeeper of the Distilleries of Tippecanoe City. He is a Bepublican in politics, and has held his share of town and township offices ; he now hoJds the office of Township and City Clerk, and is a member of the Boyal Arcanum of Tippecanoe. He married, May 24, 1866, Mary A. Morris, of Shabbona Grove, HI. ; of the six children born of this union, two have died. H. A. Galloway, junior member of the firm, was born in 1842, in Greene Co., and is a brother of S. Galloway. In August, 1862, he enlisted in Co. D, 74th 0. Y. I., and in the following January was discharged, on account of physical disability ; has since been engaged in farming and in the drug business. The above firm is reliable, and thoroughly educated in the knowledge of drugs, and their careful attention to their business has won for them the esteem and confidence of the community.

I. KIBK GILBEBT, physician, Tippecanoe City, was born in Newberry District, in the town of Newberry, S. C., in 1819 ; he is the son of Dempsey and Milla (Lestar) Gilbert ; his early ancestors were found in the colonists of Virginia ; they found their way to South Carolina previous to the war of 1776, and many of them participated in that struggle. Dempsey G. immigrated to this State with his family in 1834 ; he was engaged in the cotton culture in his native State, and being overtaken by pecuniary reverses, he was induced to emigrate ; he located permanently in this, Monroe Township, where his death occurred in 1859. Of a family of three sons, our subject is the oldest; his boyhood was passed on a plantation in South Carolina ; he was 14 years old when he came to this State. His early education was limited, as being the oldest of the family the management of the farm early devolved upon him ; he began reading medicine early in life, and in 1843, placed himself under the tutorship of Dr. Keifer, of Tro}T ; he attended lectures in the Ohio Medical College during the sessions of 1846-47. 1850-51, 1851 -52, graduating in the latter year. Since 1847, he has practiced in this locality, except three years, which he spent in Germantowm, Dayton, etc. ; in 1872, he took Cincinnati Hospital Clinics. Dr. G. is a thoroughly read and careful physician. He was married in the spring of 1852 to Mary McPherson, of New York State, a sister of Dr. McPherson, one of the first physicians of this locality.

S. D. HARTMAN, physician, Tippecanoe City ; born in Tippecanoe, Aug. 14, 1846 ; is the son of Dr. A. B. Hartman, of Lancaster Co., Penn., who was married twice and had two children by the first, and six by the second marriage, which was with Delilah Campbell, of this county. Our subject is the oldest child of the second marriage ; he was reared and schooled in his native place, and at the age of 16, learned milling, subsequently becoming a telegraph operator, being an assistant in this place, where he acquired the art, and then operated in the Troy office for twenty months ; he left the office in September, 1869, entered the medical college of Ann Arbor, Mich., and took a course of lectures ; in the spring he returned to his native place, read and practiced with his father till September, 1871, w^hen he returned to Ann Arbor, and graduated in the following spring. He has since been practicing in Tippecanoe City, wrhere his energy and careful attention to his profession have , won him the confidence and esteem of the public, building up a large and lucrative practice. He was in the United States service in the late civil war, from March to September, 1865, as a member of 196th 0. Y. I. In politics he is a Repubican. He is a member of the following societies : Miami County Medical Association, Western Ohio Medical Association, Ohio Medical Association, A., F. & A. M., I. O. O. F. and Royal Arcanum, and also a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. He was married in June, 1875, to Miss Laura Byrkett, of this county, and they have two daughters.

H. E. HAWVER, grocer, Tippecanoe City ; one of the well-established grocers of Tippecanoe ; was born in Frederick Co., Md., in 1838 ; his parents were of American birth and German descent ; his father, Jacob, being a farmer by occupation ; he had six sons and two daughters, all of whom still survive ; Jacob died in 1863, the first and only member of the family who has died, his wife still surviving at the advanced age of 80 }Tears. Our subject is the youngest of the famity ; he lived at home until he reached majority, assisting in the duties of the farm, and attending school, his scholarship ending at 15 ; in the fall of 1860 he came to Tippecanoe, where he has since resided ; he was first occupied as a laborer at various pursuits, till 1869, when he engaged in the machine shop and at coopering with his brother till 1871, when he embarked in the grocery business ; he is located on Main, between First and Second streets, where he keeps on hand a full line of groceries of the best qualities ; he is a careful and reliable business man, and commands the esteem, and confidence of the public. His political views are expressed in the Republican party, of which he has always been an ardent supporter. He married Mary 0. Young, of Miami Co., Bethel Township, in the fall of 1861 ; two sons and one daughter have been the issue of this union. *

GEORGE W. HAWVER, cooper, Tippecanoe City; was born in Frederick Co., Md., in 1821 ; is the son of Jacob and Elizabeth Hawvcr (see II. E. Hawver s sketch) ; he is the oldest of the family ; was brought up on the farm and early inured to farm labor ; his earl}' education was obtained under the imperfect subscription system ; he remained with his father till 1849, when he emigrated to Ohio, locating in Bethel Township, this county ; was engaged as a laborer at various pursuits till 1854, when he engaged in the stock business for the subsequent six 3'ears, under the firm style of John Broan & Co. ; he then engaged in the coopering business, which he has since followed. He has the confidence of the public, and is one of the enterprising citizens of Tippecanoe. A self-made man. beginning with nothing but a will and mind determined to succeed, he has established a permanent home, and acquired a competency ; he is one of the stock holders in the

Biographical Sketches

" wheel works " of Tippecanoe. He is a Republican in politics, and finds his religious creed in the M. E. Church. He was married in 1859, to Angeline Mann, of Miami Co., and a descendent of early pioneers.

JOHN K. HERR, miller and grain-dealer, Tippecanoe City ; was born in Washington Co., Md., in 1824, and is the son of Rudolph and Mollie Herr ; Rudolph was a farmer by occupation ; his death occurred in 1860. He had a family of twelve children, of whom our subject is the eleventh ; he was raised and schooled in his native State, and emigrated to Ohio in 1841, making the trip here in a two-horse wagon ; worked one year near Xenia, and then went to Warren Co., where he remained about five years ; subsequently milled in Dayton, Ohio, and Knightstown, Ind., and in 1852 came to Tippecanoe and engaged in the milling business with his brother, first renting and afterward purchasing his present mill property, which he has since operated with eminent success ; he also deals largely in grain ; is a careful and reliable business man, and a much-respected citizen, taking an active part in matters pertaining to the welfare of the community.

ELI W. HONE YM AN, farmer ; P. 0. Troy ; is a prominent farmer ; his parents, John and Mary Honeyman, of Virginia, were pioneers, who emigrated to Miami County early in its settlement. John was a soldier in the war of 1812 ; we regret that so little can be learned of them. Eli was born in Miami Co., May 14, 1834 ; Sept. 29, 1859, he was united in marriage to Miss Annie, daughter of John and Mary Miller. The}^ were also pioneers, and should have a place in this history ; their children were ten in number, four only survive - Albert, whose sketch appears in connection with other noted men of Monroe Township, Thomas J., Rhoda Z. and Annie, the wife of Eli Honeyman. They have been the parents of seven children, of whom Oliver M., Willis R., Mattie and Ory, survive ; Oliver was born March 7, 1863 ; Willis, Dec. 11, 1865 ; Mattie, May 27, 1872 ; Ory, Jan. 4, 1874. They are all attending school and learning rapidly. Mr. Honeyman has always been prosperous in business, and owns a nice farm of 119 acres ; he has been connected with the public schools in capacity of Director. He is a conservative Republican and a good neighbor.

J. H. HORTON, editor ; P. 0. Tippecanoe City ; was born in Westchester Co., N. Y., Sept. 5, 1834, and comes of English ancestors ; he came to this county with his father, Joseph C., in 1839, and located in Piqua ; his father was a smith by trade, and still lives in Piqua, retired from active work. Col. Joshua H. is the oldest of a family of five children ; he was reared and schooled in Piqua, and early learned the printer's art, which he has followed principal^ through life ; after serving an apprenticeship he worked at journey-work till 1860, when he started the Piqua Democrat , which he conducted till the outbreak of the war, when he responded to the first call for troops and enlisted in the 11th 0. V. I. as 2d Lieutenant of Co. F. At the expiration of three-months term of service, he re-enlisted as private, and was soon promoted to the same rank which he held before. In this regiment he served two years, and was promoted from 2d to 1st Lieutenant, and to Adjutant of the regiment, which office he filled one year ; he then went into the 84th 0. V. I., which he assisted in organizing, and was appointed Adjutant, and was discharged at the end of one year on account of physical disability ; while with the 11th O. V. I. he was in West Virginia, and engaged in numerous severe skirmishes, the most important of which were Tyler Shoals, Mill Creek (2 days), Hawk's Nest (2 days), Sewell Mt., Gauley Mt., Cotton Hill (6 days), and over twenty road and brush fights with rebel forces from 200 to 4,000 ; with the 84th 0. V. I., he engaged in fight at Tate's Ford, retreated with the army to Louisville, Ky., and after fight at Perry ville was taken prisoner by Morgan's forces, but was soon paroled ; after his discharge he returned home and remained an invalid for the following year ; went to Dayton, Ohio, and superintended the U. B. printing establishment for four years, when he came to Tippecanoe in 1869 and founded the Tippecanoe City Herald , which he continued to operate successfully till quite recently, when poor health required him to abandon the office ; has the appointment for census taker for Monroe Township, and is Lieutenant Col. of 3d O. N. G. During the railroad riots of July, 1873, his regiment was called into service to suppress the mob in various places in Ohio. Col. H. was highly complimented for services during this time. He finds expression for his political views in the Republican party ; is a member of the A., F. & A. M., I. O. 0. F. and Encampment, and is a representative, from this district, of the Grand Lodge Encampment. He was married in December, 1855, to Miss Rebecca M. Hannan, of Piqua. Six children have been the issue of this union.

FRED HUBER, butcher, Tippecanoe City ; one of the oldest business men in Tippecanoe ; was born in Switzerland in 1830, and is the son of John and Anna (Suter) Huber, the former a miller by trade, which he learned from his father ; he died when our subject was quite young. The subject of this memoir is the only child of the family, and emigrated to America in 1 853, landing, after a voyage of sixty-eight days, at Quebec, Canada, thence to Cleveland, and thence to Dayton, Ohio, where he worked two years ; he finally came to Tippecanoe, where he has since been engaged in the butchering business ; his shop is the oldest established in the place, and wholly reliable ; his long experience in and careful attention to his business commands the patronage of the public (see his card in directory). He married Elizabeth Rupp, of Switzerland, in 1857 ; they have two daughters.

DAVIS T. JESTER, farmer ; P. 0. Ginghamsburg ; is one of the sons of William S. and Ann Jester, who take front rank among the pioneers, William being born in 1801 ; his wife, Ann Pearson, was Benjamin Pearson's daughter, and was born in 1800 ; they came from South Carolina, and their family history may be traced to the coming of William Penn ; their marriage was in 1824, as nearly as can be ascertained, and they were the parents of ten children - Davis, Mary, Harry, Magdalena, Lavina A. and Lucinda are living, and all married except Mary ; Davis was married to Miss Keren H. Evans in 1868 ; she was the daughter of Robert and May Evans, who were married in 1835, and had six children - Mar}' L., Aaron, Jesse J., Keren H., Robert M. and Elizabeth ; all are living except the two eldest. Davis and his wife are the parents of two children - Davis L. and Ira ; Mr. Jester was previously married to Miss Jane Coate, in 1862 ; the}' had two children - Della S. and Charles W.; their mother died in 1864; they live on a nice farm of 85 acres ; his father lives with Henry ITarshman, the husband of Lucinda. William Jester is next to the oldest man now living in this township.

MRS. SALLY KERR is the mother of numerous sons and daughters, whose biographies appear in this work, and we venture the assertion that no sketch of any person will be of more interest than even this condensed report of only a few incidents in her life ; she was born in Pennsylvania in 1800 ; is a daughter of Jonathan and Olive Thompson. Her parents had ten children, and, as they grew rapidly, Mr. Thompson wishing to purchase land enough for them when he had the means, sold his farm in Pennsylvania, himself and eldest son went to Canada and purchased 1,000 acres. They removed thither in 1810, and were getting comfortably settled when the Indian war of 1812 broke out in all its fury. Mr. Thompson refused to take the oath of allegiance to the Britisli Crown, and was therefore forced to flee for his life. He came to Cleveland, and from there sent a letter to his wife bidding her come at once and bring with her such things as she could carry. The Indians were by this time very troublesome, and numerous outrages had been committed, and the news that they were to leave the settlement was hailed with joy. They started in midwinter when the snow lay deep upon the ground. Their route was through an almost trackless forest, but they started, nevertheless, with one ox and one two-horse team, hitched to sleds loaded with all they could conveniently carry. Sally was then 1 1 years old, and went in front, driving the team of horses while her mother drove the oxen. Owing to the stumpy character of the road, the oxen broke the tongue out of the sled to which they were hitched, the first night, and they were forced to stop in the dense woods and stay during the night, with no light, no lire, and the wolves howling on every side. During the long hours of the night, the mother and little Sally had to pace back and forth through the snow to hold the wolves at bay and keep themselves from freezing. The other children were as well protected from the cold as was possible with blankets, etc., but Mrs. Thompson's feet were so badly frozen that she was unable to walk for weeks afterward. At daybreak, they left "the oxen and the disabled sled and started with the other team. After traveling four or five miles they came to a cabin, where they hired a man to go back, repair damages, and bring the team to his house. The next day's journey brought them to the home of a brother of Mr. Thompson, where they had to stop, as the suffering endured by Mrs. Thompson with her frozen feet, forbade them continuing the journey. They stayed there three weeks, perhaps, when three men with whom her husband was acquainted stopped at the house, and told Mrs. Thompson if she would put herself and little ones under their protection they would see her safely to Cleveland. Mr. Thompson, Sally's uncle prevailed upon her to stay a short time with him, as he also intended leaving the country. She consented, and the mother and children took an affectionate leave of Sally, expecting soon to meet her again. But that parting was destined to be forever, and the daughter, who is now an aged woman, has seen nothing of either parents, brothers or sisters, from that time to this day, neither has any tidings been heard from any of them, and if any of the family are to-day living, they mourn Aunt Sally, the subject of this sketch, as dead. The parting was one never to be forgotten, and, though parents and children may never meet again on earth, we trust that in Heaven above, where no sorrow nor parting is known, their union may* be complete. Sally's uncle was also obliged to make his escape, as he was drafted into the British Army, and she was again left with her aunt as an only friend. Shortly after, she was placed in charge of a man and his wife who said they were also going to Cleveland, and again she started to join her parents. The people with whom she found herself afterward proved to be ballet dancers, and, after wandering about the country awhile, came to Ft. Meigs. Disregarding their promise, they left her here among a lot of French and Indians, while she was the only American in the place. Their food was hominy and fish without salt, and she frequently praj^ed for death instead of this semi -captivity and disgusting food. But as there is always a silver lining to the darkest cloud, so were Hod's mercies to be extended to our little Sally. Some time during August, a band of 400 savage warriors, painted for battle, and commanded by Col. Cromer, stopped at the fort. The Colonel, noticing her, asked her why she was there, and after hearing the story, told her if she could ride a horse to Fort Piqua, he would carry her that far. She joyfully consented, as the hope of again seeing her friends was still paramount in her bosom. Accordingly, she was mounted on a man's saddle, and the journey of 200 miles commenced. Their route was through an unbroken wilderness, with only a bridle path marking the way, and they rode single file, she being next her protector, the Colonel. She recognized many articles that the Indians had with them as trophies, as belonging to people whom she had known in Canada ; but she was not molested in the least by them, the Colonel always having a tent stretched for her accommodation, and placing guards about it. Upon their arrival at Wapakoneta, Ohio, the savages were halted, as they were here allowed their ration of rum. Sally was placed in charge of an Indian squaw, who could talk some English. She, fearing that danger might happen (as the Indians when drunk were always dangerous), told her, as she had a pony of her own, she would take her to Fort Laramie, distant twenty miles. They started to a neighboring cabin to borrow a sidesaddle, when they met two drunken Indians. One of them spoke to Sally (remarking about her beauty), when the squaw told her to run and hide ; this she did and reached the hut she had just quitted, the Indian giving chase ; she climbed into the loft and covered herself with a lot of skins that had been placed there. The Indian climbed up, but seeing no one, departed with a malicious grunt of dissatisfaction. The squaw soon returned, leading her pony, bridled and saddled, and assisted her to mount. By this time it was dark ; they started and arrived at Fort Laramie before daylight, the squaw walking all the way. After taking leave of Sally in an affectionate way, she at once started back to her cabin, not waiting for daylight. Upon her arrival at

Wapakoneta, she informed Col. Cromer, who, upon his arrival at Laramie, again took charge of her, and delivered her in safety to John Johnston, Indian Agent at Fort Piqua, remarking to him that he wanted him to be a father to the girl. He then resumed his march, as he was taking the Indians to some point in Kentucky. She lived with Mr. Johnston's family a year, perhaps, and as she was an adept in spinning, manufactured 130 pounds of wool into stocking-yarn, during three months of her stay. She then went to Mrs. Ewing's to live, and finall}' made her permanent home with Mr. Jesse Miller, with whom she lived until her marriage to James Kerr, in 1818; she first came to Fort Piqua in August, 1812. During their married life they had eleven children - Hanford, Hamilton, George, Margaret, Jonathan, Rebecca, William, James, John. Peny and Sally A. ; seven of these children are now living, and are all persons of prominence in the communit}' in which the}r live. Her husband, James Kerr, was ver}' prosperous and accumulated quite an extensive tract of land. He died July 11, 1863, his widow (the Aunt Sail}' of our sketch), lives now on the old homestead.