Ottawa Township (part 2 of 23)

Doctor Werner was not satisfied to discontinue his medical studies, in 1901, and since that time has taken many post-graduate courses in various schools throughout the country. He has taken a post-graduate course in the Philadelphia Polyclinic and College for Graduates in Medicine, during which time he pursued a general course for graduate physicians, and later, a special course in diseases of the eye, ear, nose and throat. He also took a special course in abdominal surgery and gynecology. He graduated from the National College of Electro-Therapeutics, in the subjects of electro-physics and electro-therapeutics. He took a general post-graduate course at Johns Hopkins University, in 1906, a school which ranks as the best post-graduate college in America, and it is evident, from Doctor Werner's post-graduate work, that he is eminently fitted for his chosen profession.

Doctor Werner permanently located at Leipsic, Putnam county, Ohio, on May 5, 1908, where he has since continued his practice. It is needless to add that he has been successful from the beginning, and he finds his work constantly increasing. Since locating in Leipsic, he has taken an active part in the afifairs of the community, and at the present time is a member of the school board. He is unusually well-equipped in his office for all kinds of medical work. He has a stock of drugs and does all of his prescription compounding. He has an oxyolene machine, which cost him nearly a thousand dollars; high frequency and X-ray machine, an electric vibrator, a fine equipment for optical examinations, a large and varied assortment of surgical instruments, and, in fact, everything which the twentieth-century physician and surgeon needs in general practice.

It is interesting to note that Doctor Werner was married before he was twenty-five years of age, and he attributes no small share of his wonderful success to the inspiration of his wife. He was married on September 25, 1893, to Lucretia E. Chisholm, who was born in Garrett county, Maryland, m 1876, and is a daughter of Alexander and Emily Chisholm, of Scottish parentage. To this union have been born two children, Myrtle Lucile and William Lewis, Jr. Lucile married Fred C. Smith, of Jersey City, New Jersey.

Doctor Werner and his family are members of the Lutheran church and he holds his membership in the Knights of Pythias, and the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. He has always taken a great interest in the state and national medical associations and makes it a point to keep in close touch with the latest developments in his profession. He has been particularly interested in the study of typhoid fever, its causes and treatment. While living in West Virginia, he was appointed, by the governor of the state, asdelegate to the American Anti-Tuberculosis League, in 1907. Doctor Werner is still a young man and the success which has attended his efforts, thus. far, indicates that he has a long and prosperous career before him.

Aldine J. Welty

It is one of the outstanding features of our government that it acknowledges no hereditary rank or title, no patent of nobility, save that of nature, leaving every man to fix his own rank and to become the artificer of his own fortune. Places of honor, rank and preferment are thus happily placed before every individual, high or low, rich or poor, to be striven for by all,, but earned alone by perseverance and sterling worth, and are almost always sure to be filled by deserving men, or at least by those possessing the energy and talent essential to success in contest for public position. Aldine J. Welty is a conspicuous example of the successful, self-made American citizen, who is not only eminently deserving of the confidence reposed in him by his fellow citizens, but who also possesses the necessary energy and talent which fit him to discharge worthily the duties of the responsible place with which he has been charged. He is a man of vigorous mentality and strong mental fiber, and has found these qualities the chief factors in carving out a career above suspicion and reproach. He is an honor to the county,, which he is so splendidly serving.

27, 1883, in Riley township, Putnam county, Ohio. He is the son of John U. and Catherine (Thut) Wehy, the former of whom is a native of Berne, Switzerland, born February 5, 1840, the son of John and Mary Ann (Gerber) Welty.

Aldine J. Welty grew up on the home farm and attended the old Mulberry district school until the age of seventeen, and then entered the Pandora high school from which he was graduated at the age of twenty-one, withthe class of 1904. He worked for a short time at the carpenter's trade and, subsequently, took a trip west, visiting the World's Fair, in St. Louis, in 1904, Denver, and thence to eastern Washington and other points. He remained in this portion of the west for about nine months and during a part of this time, taught school. Upon his return home, he engaged in teaching for five years and, during vacations, employed his time as a clerk in thestore of David Lichty at Pandora.

Mr. Welty was married on June 25, 1907, at the age of twenty-five, to- Mary B. Amstutz, the daughter of Abraham M. and Catherine (Hilty) Amstutz, and to this union three children have been born, Clyde Lawrence^ Arthur Laurel, who died at the age of three months, and Leland J.

After his marriage, Mr. Welty continued to teach for one year, when he became affiliated with the Pandora Overall Company, first as a salesman and, later, as secretary and joint manager. He has been very successful in his business relations thus far, and is the largest employer of labor in Putnam county. Mr. Welty also has control of two other factories, one at Celina,. and the other at Zanesville, Ohio, being engaged in business similar to that at Pandora.

Aldine J. Welty's grandfather was born at Berne, Switzerland, in 1804.- He was a farmer in Switzerland and was considered well-to-do, for his time. In addition to being a farmer, he was a mechanical genius and an able carpenter. He came to America in 1845, landing at New York City after fortyfive days on the water. He came direct to Ohio and settled shortly afterwards in Riley township, Putnam county, where he entered land from the government. This farm comprised one hundred and sixty acres, which Mr. Welty proceeded to clear and drain. He built a log cabin and other buildings, and it was here that he reared his family. There were twelve children, four of whom were born in Switzerland, Fred, who resides in Oklahoma; John U., the father of Aldine J.; David; Annie, the wife of Rev. Zimmerly; John, who lives in Oregon; Christian; Abraham, who also lives in Oregon; Fannie, the deceased wife of Abraham Reusser, of Kansas; Amos; Peter[ who also resides in Oregon; Samuel, and Anna, the wife of Peter R. Graberl of Kansas. In addition to rearing this splendid family of children, all of whom grew to maturity, and all of whom, except one, married, John Welty, .Sr., reared four orphan children. One of them married his youngest son, Samuel. John Welty was a close friend and associate of the well-known Rev. John Moser. It is related that so close was their fellowship, they had but one pocketbook. It is further stated that John Welty never took a man's Tiote for money loaned, depending entirely upon the man's sense of honor. He was a man who was strictly religious, and was one of the founders of ihe Mennonite church. He was universally respected and well known as a ^ood man and an upright citizen. He had, according to a recent counting, one hundred and one grandchildren living. From time to time he added to his holdings until he accumulated eight hundred and forty acres of land.

The original Welty homestead was located in the southeastern corner, of Putnam county. It was here that John U. Welty was brought by his parents, when five years old. Here he attended the typical log cabin school, and it was here that he grew to manhood. This country, at that time, was heavily timbered, and almost totally under water. He remained with his people until he was twenty-seven years old, and at times worked for neighboring farmers. It is related that the greatest compensation he received at any time for his labors, was one hundred and five dollars, and a suit of clothes. At the age of twenty-seven, he was married to Catherine Thut, who was born in Wayne county, Ohio, September 18, 1842, the daughter of Peter I. and Elizabeth (Burkholder) Thut, also pioneers of Allen county. The Thut family had come from Switzerland, and comprised a number of deeply religious people. The Burkholder family was known for its thrift and economy.

After John U. Welty was married, he moved to a farm of his father's, -two and one-half miles east of Pandora, which he later purchased of his father. Eight acres of this land was cleared and had a log cabin and barn upon it, and it was here that he reared his family of six children, all of whom are living, and where he is living at the present time. His children follow : Amos, who married Margaret Suter, has seven children and lives in Marinette, Wisconsin. Menno, who resides in Reedley, California, married Anna Schragg, and has three sons. Elias, who lives in Pandora, married Elizabeth Amstutz, and has six children. Elizabeth, who is the wife of Albert B. Hilty, of Riley township, has four children. William, who resides on the home place, married Ella Bracy, and has three children. Aldine J. is the of this sketch.

considerable money and property aside from his farm holdings. He suffered a great misfortune, on May 19, 1900, when his wife passed away. For years she had been in delicate health. She was a kind and affectionate woman, and throughout her life had been a great sufferer, but bore it all uncomplainingly, and was the light and sunshine of her home.

Aldine J. Welty has been prominent in Democratic politics in Putnam county for many years. He is at present a central committeeman and was a prominent candidate for delegate to the national Democratic convention, at Baltimore, in 1912. In December, of that year, he was appointed on a committee of ten, from Ohio, to confer at Washington, D. C, with August Belmont and other Democratic leaders. He performed efficient service for his party on this committee. Mr. Welty is also one of the organizers of the town and township Democratic Club. In recognition of Mr. Welty's services to the Democratic party, President Wilson sent him his autographed photograph. During Bryan's campaign, in the fall of 1912, Mr. Welty was a member of the entertainment committee in his congressional district. For the past seven years Mr. Welty has been secretary of the Grace Mennonite church, of which the entire family are members. For two years he has been superintendent of the Sunday school. He is secretary of the lecture board of his own town and also vice-president of the school board.

Aldine J. Welty is a young man who has traveled extensively, from ocean to ocean, and has added to his already good education by both study and travel. He is always to be foiind behind any movement pertaining to the progress or betterment of the community. He is a man of the cleanest character and the very highest ideals. Possessed of splendid executive ability, -as he is, and with his natural capacity for leadership, he is expected to become one of the leading factors of the Democratic party in the state of Ohio. He is eminently equipped for work of this character.

W. M. George

More and more, every year, the public is realizing the importance of maintaining a complete and accurate record of the proceedings of the county courts. Upon the accuracy and thoroughness of these local records much depends, as the vital interests of future generations may seriously hinge, some time, upon the preservation today of items of record that may, in themselves, seem trivial. The importance, therefore, of having some one in the office of the clerk of the county courts who, by training and inclination, is. given to thoroughness and studious attention to even the most minor details, of his office, cannot be over estimated. That Putnam county, in recent years, has been fortunate in securing the valuable services of such a public servant in the office of the clerk of courts, is a matter of general congratulation in the county, it being felt that the records of these important courts, are safe in the hands of the present incumbent. That the people of the county were satisfied with the selection they had made of such a public servant, was made plainly evident by the flattering re-election of W. M. George, at the last election to the office which, for one term, he had filled with such eminent satisfaction to the general public, particularly to those whose greater interest it is to know that the records of the county courts are being properly preserved, and it is a pleasure for the biographer here to present a brief and modest review of the life's history of the gentleman whose name forms the caption for this interesting biographical sketch.

W. M. George, clerk of the court of Putnam county, Ohio, and perhaps one of the best-known and most popular county officials that ever held office in the court house, was born on October i6, 1867, '" Van Buren township, Putnam county, the son of John H. and Mary M. (French) George, the former of whom was a native of Germany, born on March 13, 1834, and who died on August 22, 1812, and the latter of whom was born, in Fairfield, county, Ohio, January 22, 1834, and is still living at her home, in Belmore, this county.

John H. George, who, in his day, was one of the best-known farmers and business men, in Putnam county, was born in Kreis-Dill, Germany, the son of John and Mary (Kemper) George, parents of four children, and, in 1852, when eighteen years of age, came to America. He landed in New York and soon made his way to Ohio. He had learned wagon-making in his native land and for two years worked at this trade in Crawford county, Ohio. He went to Hancock county in the spring of 1854, where he worked at his trade, until 1862. In the meanwhile, in 1855, he was united in marriage to Miss Mary M. French, daughter of Grover French, a farmer of Irish descent, whodied in Hancock county, Ohio, in 1857, his widow sui-viving until March, 1884, when she died at the home of Mr. and Mrs. George at the age of ninety years. Grover French and wife were the parents of seven children, John, a United Brethren minister; Elizabeth; Mrs. Lucinda Wiekham, of Belmore ;- George, a United Brethren minister, at Bentonville, Ohio ; Reuben ; Mary M. (Mrs. George) and Sarah. Of these only the mother of the subject of this, sketch now survives.

To John H. and Mary M. (French) George were born seven children, Genevre, who married Peter Zeller, a carpenter; Sarah A., who married L. Swaninger, and was the mother of two children : Reuben, a well-known hardware merchant, of Belmore, this county; Elizabeth, who married William Cook, a Putnam county farmer; Grover, who died at the age of seventeen; WilHam M., the immediate subject of this biographical sketch, now clerk of the courts of Putnam county, and Ida, who died at the ag-e of seventeen. After his marriage, John H. George continued to work at his trade in Hancock county, as above stated, until the spring of 1862, when he came to Putnam county and bought a tract of eighty acres of land in the woods, on which he built a cabin. He had cleared about twenty acres and had placed the same under cultivation when he entered the Fifty-fifth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, in 1864, as a substitute, and was assigned to the Anny of the Tennessee. He was with General Sherman in his famous march to the sea, was in a number of severe skirmishes, and fought in the last two battles in which his regiment took part as the war was drawing to a close. He was mustered out, at Louisville, Kentucky, and, at Cleveland, Ohio, received his honorable discharge.

At the close of the war, Mr. George resumed the pursuits of peace, re-entering, with unimpaired energy and ambition, upon the interrupted task of clearing his little farm, in Putnam county. This same energy marked his course all through his life and he added to his farm holdings from time to time until he, presently, was the possessor of more than four hundred acres of well-improved land. In addition to managing his large agricultural interests in this county, Mr. George found time to engage in various other business enterprises, though occasionally he met with some reverses, especially in the way of paying off securities, his well-known generosity several times having caused him losses in this direction. Running a brewery in Ottawa, also, was an enterprise in which he met with a disastrous loss, by fire. In partnership with Captain Matthias in 1891, he opened a hardware store in Belmore, in which place he owned considerable residence property.

The elder George always was a Democrat and was active in the local campaigns of his party, his counsels ever having weight with the party managers in the county. He served two terms as justice of the peace, six years as county commissionr and, in 1880, was land appraiser. In addition to these public honors, he had filled several minor positions of public trust. He was a member of the United Presbyterian church, while his wife was a member of the Evangelical church. John H. George was a man of large influence in his neighborhood and his memory is cherished by many in the community in which he so long and so usefully labored. In these labors he ever found a faithful helpmate in his devoted wife, and his widow, who still survives, is the object of the sincere affection of the entire Belmore neighborhood, all the people of which hold her in the very highest esteem.

With two such parents it could hardly have been otherwise with W. M. George than that he should grow up bulwarked by habits of study and industry. Reared upon the farm, under the careful training of his father, he received full instruction in the rudiments of profitable agriculture and, at the same time acquired studious habit, so that the course in the public schools served as a stimulant to further scholastic ambitions. Finishing the course in the local schools, he attended college, at Ada, Ohio, and, in 1888, began teaching school. For two years he did work in this line in the district schools of Van Buren township, his services in this capacity proving so satisfactory to the school authorities, that he was ele\'ated to the position of superintendent of the schools at Belmore. Here he served with much satisfaction to the patrons of the school for a period of three years, making an excellent reputation for himself in school circles in the county. He also, about this time, was interested, with his father, in the management of a store at Belmore. During President Cleveland's second administration, he was postmaster at Belmore, being at the same time engaged in the grocery business there. Shortly after the close of this term of service, Mr. George decided to take up farming as a definite life's work and, following out this design, engaged in active farm work in the Belmore neighborhood, in which he met with marked success. At the same time, his acquaintance over the county was growing and his earnest and useful activities, in local Democratic campaigns, began to gain the recognition of the party managers, who presently found in him one of the most aggressive political forces in the county. It was fitting, therefore, that in the campaign of 1909, Mr. George should receive the nomination of his party for the office of clerk of the court. His well-recognized qualifications for the proper discharge of the duties of this office, made his election a foregone conclusion, and he took office in 191 1. The capable manner in which he handled the affairs of this important office insured his re-nomination, to succeed himself, and he was re-elected, in 1912, his term of office being due to expire, in August, 1915.

In September, 1890, Mr. George was united marriage with Miss Lida Fisher, who was born near Monroeville, Indiana, June 13, 1870, the daughter of Andrew J. and Nancy (Baker) Fisher. The Fishers had moved from Indiana to Ohio, in the year 1874, and for many years, thereafter, lived in Belmore, later moving to Paulding county, where Mrs. Fisher died. Mr

Fisher remarried and now lives in Van Wert. Lida Fisher grew up at Belmore and, after finishing her school course, became a teacher in the public schools of her home town, being also a teacher of music, both vocal and instrumental. In the work of the public schools, she and Mr. George, whc^ was superintendent of the Belmore schools, for some time, were closely associated, and this association developed into a romance which led to the happy marriage.

To William M. and Lida (Fisher) George seven children have been born, John H., who married Laura Feutermacher, and lives on a farm in Van Buren township, Putnam county; Nanna C. married Julian C. Brown and lives near Hamler, in Marion township, Henry county, Ohio; Bernice,. Bernard J., Delia, Noel and Dale are still at home and make merry the fireside of their devoted parents, the George home, in Belmore, being the center of many social gaities.

Mr. and Mrs. George are members of the Evangelical church and takea warm interest in the various beneficences of that religious organization, as well as being active participants in such local movements as have for their object the advancement of the best interests of the community at large, and are very properly regarded as among the leaders in all good works inthis county. Mr. George is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, in the affairs of which he takes considerable interest.

Charles Francis Holtzhauer

A rapid rise in the educational world has marked the career of Charles^ Francis Holtzhauer, who, although a young man in years, is now the superintendent of the Ottawa public schools. Graduating from one of the many excellent colleges of Ohio in 1907, he has been teaching in high schools of the state since that time, and is now serving his second year as superintendent of the schools of Ottawa.

Charles Francis Holzhauer, the son of Henry and Clarissa (Wunderly) Holzhauer, was born near Huron, Erie county, Ohio, November 26, 1881. His father was born near Amherst, Lorain county, Ohio, a son of John- Flolzhauer, who came from Hesse-Cassel, Germany. Clarissa Wunderly, the mother of Mr. Holzhauer, was born in Erie county, Ohio, and her mother was a native of Hesse-Cassel, Germany. Henry Holzhauer is now living on the farm in Erie county, Ohio, where his son, Charles F., was. born, and has made his home on this farm for many years.

Charles F. Holzhauer was reared on his father's farm in Erie county, Ohio, and received his elementary education in the country schools. After graduating from the common schools he entered the Huron high school and graduated in the class of. 1903. He at once entered Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware, Ohio, graduating with the degree of Bachelor of Science, in the spring of 1907. In the fall of that year he began teaching, as assistant principal of the high school at Cadiz, Ohio, and remained in that school for four years. He came to Ottawa in 191 1 as principal of the high school and after holding this position for three years, was elected in the summer of 1914 to the superintendency of the Ottawa schools. This is sufficient indication that his work in the schools of Ottawa has been satisfactory m every way. It is not only a tribute to his efficiency as an instructor, but also to his high character and sterling worth as a citizen.

Mr. Holzhauer was married in 1908 to Bessie Simmons, who was born at Oceola, Crawford county, Ohio, and is a daughter of Ira H. and Amanda J. (Doty) Simmons. Mr. Holzhauer met his wife while they were both students at Delaware. To this union have been born two children, John Henry, who is now six years of age, and Mary Elizabeth, who is one year old.

Mr. Holzhauer and his wife are active members of the Methodist Episcopal church at Ottawa. He is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, and is now serving as senior deacon of the Ottawa lodge.

For more than twenty years, Henry Clifton Ruhl, M. D., has been practicing his profession in Leipsic, Ohio. Born and reared in Morrow county, Ohio, he went to Michigan with his father, in 1880, and completed his elementary education in that state. Later, he became a student at the Northern Normal University, at Ada, Ohio, and then entered the teaching profession. He finally decided to become a physician, and, with this intention, took a medical course of three years, and has been in the active practice of medicine since 1894. He located in Leipsic immediately after his graduation from the medical college, and has met with excellent success in the pursuit

-of his life work. He has been active in the civic life of Leipsic and is a public-spirited citizen, who can always be depended upon to support all

'(Jacobs) Ruhl, was born in Morrow county, Ohio, December 4, 1864. His father was born in 1828, in Berlin, Germany, and came, when a lad, with his parents to Pennsylvania. Adam Henry Ruhl was a son of Jacob Henry and Emma Ruhl, and, when about seventeen years of age, came with his parents from Pennsylvania to Morrow county, Ohio, where Jacob H. Ruhl and wife lived the remainder of their lives, dying at the ages of eighty-three and eighty-seven years, respectively. The Jacobs family also came from Berlin, Germany, and located in Pennsylvania, living at New Freedom, in York -county. Louisa Jacobs' father died in that county, lacking ten days of being one hundred years old. His widow was past ninety-four years of age at the time of her death.

Adam Henry Ruhl was twice married. His first wife, Louisa Jacobs, -died in 1870, and, in 1873, he married again. He removed with his family to Gratiot county, Michigan, in 1880, and there spent the remainder of his life. He was a millwright by trade, and followed that occupation until his second marriage, after which time he engaged in farming.

Henry C. Ruhl, M. D., was sixteen years of age when his father went from Morrow county, Ohio, to Michigan, and lived in the latter state three years. He became a student in the Northern Ohio Normal University in 1883, and later, taught in the public schools for three years. In the fall of 1891, he entered Pulte Homeopathic Medical College, of Cincinnati, and graduated from that institution in the spring of 1894. On May 4, of that year, he began the practice of his profession, at Leipsic, Putnam county, Ohio, where he has since made his home. He has built up a large practice, and at the same time has been prominent in the civic affairs of the city.

Doctor Ruhl was married in July, 1894, to Anna Moore, who was born near Columbus Grove, Putnam county, and is a daughter of Samuel and Maria (Kiefer) Moore. Her parents were both natives of Pennsylvania, and were married in Richland county, Ohio. From that county the Moores came to Putnam county, and located on a farm near Columbus Grove, where Mr. Moore died at the age of seventy-six; His widow is now living at the home of Doctor Ruhl, and is past eighty years of age. Doctor Ruhl and his wife have one daughter, Neva J., who is now a college student at Delaware Ohio. '

Doctor Ruhl is active in the Democratic party in his county, and has -always taken unusual interest in its public affairs. He was elected mayor of Leipsic m 1898. He was elected to the same office in the fall of 191 1 Doctor Ruhl was a member of the school board, of Leipsic, for nine years and it was during his incumbency the present high school building was erected. The doctor owns an excellent farm, near Leipsic, over which he has general supervision. The family are stanch members of the Methodist Episcopal church. Fraternally, he is a member of the order of Free and Accepted Masons and has attained to all the degrees up to and including the Knights Templar. He has been a member of the Knights of Pythias since 1888. Doctor Ruhl is a genial and whole-souled man, and has a large circle of friends and acquaintances throughout the county.

William W. Dibble

Prominently identified with the educational interests of the community in which he lived, William W. Dibble has been engaged in public school work in Putnam county, Ohio, for several years. Starting in before reaching his majority, as a teacher, he taught in order to secure money to pay his way through college, and for the past quarter of a century has been spending each winter in the school room. He has taught for several years in his home county, both in the common and the high schools, and since 19 14 has been district superintendent of Liberty, Van Buren and Blanchard townships.

William W. Dibble, the son of William E. and Martha Jane (Taylor) Dibble, was born on May 17, 1866, at Waterville, Lucas county, Ohio. His father's history appears elsewhere in this volume, and the reader is referred to it for information concerning the Dibble family.

William W. Dibble was reared at Waterville, Ohio, until he was sixteen years of age, at which time his parents moved to the southern part of Henry county, Ohio, where his father bought a tract of timbered land, and young William took his fvill share in the arduous task of clearing the land and preparing it for cultivation. - At that time there were many wild turkeys in the woods and small game was abundant.

William W Dibble attended the high schools at Elmore, Ottawa county, Ohio, and Lindsay, Sandusky county, Ohio, when he began to teach. After teaching one term he entered the Northwestern Ohio University at Ada, and for the next three years interspersed his college education with teaching in the public schools. He also took a business course in shorthand and bookkeeping at the Tri-State Business College at Toledo, Ohio, and worked in an office for one year, when he returned to teaching. He taught school for several years in Henry and Putnam counties, before beginning teaching in the high school at Leipsic in 1909. He continued there until the spring of 1913, when he became superintendent of the schools of Liberty and Van Buren townships, and, in 1914, Blanchard township was added to his territory, and the title was changed to that of district superintendent of schools, with complete jurisdiction over Liberty, Van Buren and Blanchard townships. He is a practical school man, who understands every phase of public school teaching and is regarded as one of the best men of the profession in Putnam county.

Mr. Dibble was married in 1892 to Mary Alice Wise, who was born in Hancock county, Ohio, and is a daughter of John F. and Martha J. (Schwab) Wise. Both of her parents were born and reared in Hancock county, and now live in Leipsic, Putnam county, Ohio.

Mr. Dibble and his wife are loyal workers in the Methodist Episcopal church, where Mr. Dibble has been the superintendent of the Sunday school for the past five years. He is a member of the Knights of Pythias.

Peter A. Missler

A man of marked administrative ability is Peter A. Missler, the present mayor of Glandorf, Putnam county, Ohio. He has held this responsible position since 1908, and in 1914 was re-elected for two more years, a fact which speaks well for his worth as a citizen, and his ability as an eiecutor. He has been a life-long farmer and has lived at Glandorf since 1897.

Peter A. Missler, the son of Joseph and Susannah (Willman) Missler, was born in Huron county, Ohio, in 1876. His father was a native of Germany, born in 1830, and, when a boy of sixteen, came to America alone and located in Huron county, Ohio, where he worked as a cooper He made barrels for wine and other liquids and built up a business which necessitated the employment of eight or ten men. While living in Huron county he married Susannah Willman, who was a native of Stark county, Ohio and died m Huron county in 1885. In the meantime Joseph Missler had' sent to Germany for his parents, Andrew and Elizabeth Missler, they coming to this country and living the remainder of their lives in Huron county

After the death of his wife, Joseph Missler moved to Mercer county Ohio, and lived there with his son, Joseph, Jr., until his death on August 8, 1914, at the age of eighty-four years. He and his wife were the parents of eight children, three of whom are deceased, Clara dying in infancy, Katherine dying in 1883, after reaching maturity, and Margaret, who died at the age of nineteen. The five living children are as follow: Joseph, of Mercer county, Ohio; Peter A., of Glandorf ; John A., of Glandorf; Mary, a teacher in Auglaize county, Ohio, and Elizabeth, a teacher at Sedalia, Missouri.

Peter A. Missler was eight years of age when his mother died, and he then went with his father to Mercer county, and attended the college at Rensselaer, for two years. Peter A. Missler came to Glandorf in 1897 to engage in farming and has made this his life work. He has a good farm near Glandorf, where he engaged in diversified farming with a result which speaks well for his efforts.

Mr. Missler is a stanch Democrat, and is now a member of the Democratic central committee, of Putnam county. Pie was elected mayor of Glandorf in 1908, and has been re-elected every two years since that time. He is a stockholder and director in the Glandorf German Building & Loan Association.

Peter Missler was married in 1902 to Emma Catherine EUerbrock, who was born in Glandorf, and is a daughter of John William and Jennie (Utendorf) EUerbrock, a sketch of whose parents may be found elsewhere in this volume. Mr. and Mrs. Missler are the parents of five children living and one deceased, Mary, Joseph, Edward, Otmar, Angeline and Paul, who died on August 9, 19,13, at the age of two years. Mr. Missler and his family are loyal members of the Catholic church, and are deeply interested in its welfare.

There is no class to whom greater gratitude is due, from the world at large, than the self-sacrificing, sympathetic, noble-minded men whose life work is the alleviation of suffering and administering comfort to the afflicted - those men who, in many cases, are responsible for lengthening the span of human existence. There is no standard by which their beneficent influence can be measured. Their helpfulness is limited only by the extent of their knowledge and skill, while their power goes hand in hand with the wonderful laws of nature that spring from the very source of life itself. Some one has aptly said "He serves God best, who serves humanity most." Among the physicians and surgeons of Putnam county, who have risen to well-deserved eminence in their chosen field of endeavor, and who are serv- ing humanity with their talents and their training, is Harry Allen Neiswander, M. D., of Pandora, Putnam county, Ohio. Doctor Neiswander is a man who has proved' himself to be broad-minded and conscientious in the sphere to which his life and energies have been devoted. He is possessed of a- profound knowledge of the science of his profession, which has won for him a leading place among the distinguished medical men of his day and generation in Putnam county.

Harry Allen Neiswander, M. D., was born on September 26, 1881, in Van Buren township, Hancock county, Ohio. He is the son. of Joshua N. and Susan (Blosser) Neiswander. Joshua N. Neiswander, the son of Michael and Fanny (Geiger) Neiswander, was born on January 4, 1857, in Richland township, Allen county, Ohio. Richland township was formerly a part of Putnam county. Michael Neiswander, the son of Michael Neiswander, Sr., was born on the Atlantic ocean en route to New York. Michael Neiswander, Sr., whose wife was Anna Ernst, was born in Berne, Switzerland, and came to America, as one of the early settlers of Allen county, Ohio, at the age of twenty-two, the year in which Michael Neiswander, Jr., was born. Michael Neiswander, Sr., settled first in Tuscarawas county, Ohio. Subsequently, he followed the Riley creek, looking for a suitable location and homestead, which he found upon arriving at a spring in what is now Richland township, Allen county, Ohio. Michael Neiswander, Sr., entered land from the government and passed through all of the pioneer experiences common to his day and generation. He was accus- - tomed to drive to Sandusky, more than sixty miles away, to mill and to buy provisions. A barrel of flour cost fifteen dollars in those days. On one occasion his son Daniel was driving home through the timber in a slei<^h when a pack of wolves got on his trail. Hearing their vicious snarls and howls, he understood they were coming after him. Lashing his horses into a run, he drove for home at top speed. Arriving at the barn, he hastily unhitched his horses, put them into the stable, locked the door and ran for the house with the wolves almost at his heels. Once in the house he was safe from, harm. When he awoke the next morning, the wolves had disappeared but he fotmd the marks of their claws on the door. On one occasion when Michael Neiswander, Sr., had been to mill in Sandusky, he happened to cross a bridge over a stream which hacf nearly overflown. As the horses stepped on the bridge, Michael observed that the planks were floating and whipping up his horses, hurried them across. So nearly afloat was the brid<.e that just as the wheels of his wagon passed over^each plank, it floated away Michael Neiswander, Sr., was the father of three sons, Daniel, Michael jr., and John.^ Daniel located in Putnam county and became a prosperous farmer. He was the father of four daughters and one son. John moved to Missouri in an early day, where he reared a large family and prospered. Michael, Jr., grew to manhood on the old homestead and reared a family of four sons and three daughters, all of whom are now living except one. At one time he was very well-to-do, owning two hundred and forty acres of land besides other property. Joshua Neiswander, the father of Dr. Harry A., was the fourth child born to Michael Neiswander, Jr. He was born on the homestead in Richland township. So far as is known, Michael, Jr., had no educational advantages, except what he received from his parents. His father, however, was a well-informed man for his time, judging by the records and diaries he left, and must have been able to give his son some valuable instructions. Joshua Neiswander attended school in the old log school house, and grew to manhood under conditions much better than those which his father confronted, but still very largely of a primitive nature. Log cabins at that time were still the rule, although they had begun to be replaced by more commodious farm dwellings in the older settled communities.

Joshua Neiswander remained with his parents until of age, after which, for about three years, he worked on a farm and spent a few months in Canada. After his return from Canada, he was married, at the age of twenty-four, to Susan Blosser, the daughter of Christian and Catherine (Thut) Blosser. The Blosser family history is to be found in the sketch of Mrs. Isaac Hilty. After his marriage, Joshua Neiswander located on a farm in Van Buren township, Hancock county, which he cleared and on which he built his home. He has always done general farming and has been very successful. Lately he has specialized in raising and feeding hogs, cattle and horses for the market. Of late years, he has specialized in thoroughbred Duroc hogs. He is of a mechanical turn of mind and learned the carpenter's trade, which he follows at odd times. He is a Democrat and for a great many years was township trustee. He is an ardent supporter of the Reformed Mennonite church. LL's wife is a member of the American Mennonite church. Doctor Neiswander's mother, Susan Blosser, is the daughter of Christian Blosser. He was a school teacher and met his death in a peculiar way. On his way home from school one day, he chanced to meet a young woman and stopped to converse with her. It later developed that she had smallpox. Christian Blosser caught the disease and died, as did also his father. Christian Blosser was the father of five children, of whom Doctor Neiswander's mother was next to the youngest.

three of whom died in infancy, Harry A., the subject of this sketch; Irvin, -who died in infancy; Lois, the wife of Meville Bushong, of Newstark, Ohio, who has two children, Elton and Merl; William, who died in infancy; Leo, a student in the Homeopathical Medical College at Columbus, Ohio, who jmarried Lettie Fried and has one daughter, Alice; Estella, who is a school teacher; Claud, who is principal of the high school at Arlington, Ohio; Edgar, Byron, Ralph and Una, all of whom are at home.

Harry A. Neiswander, M. D., received his early education in the common schools of Van Buren township. He attended the summer normal schools and also the normal school at Angola for one summer. After this, he completed his Bachelor of Science work at Ohio Northern University, graduating in 1907. Subsequently he took a position as assistant principal of the New Holland (Ohio) high school and in a few months became principal of that institution.

Doctor Neiswander entered the Cleveland Homeopathical Medical College in 1908, which institution later became affiliated with the Ohio State University. He graduated with the class of 1912. In his senior year, Doctor Neiswander was president of the Hahnemann Medical Society, a student organization. Before graduation, he saw active work with one of Cleveland's prominent practitioners. In this way, he was specially fitted for his chosen profession. He located at Pandora in the fall of 1912, where he has since built a large and growing practice.

Doctor Neiswander was married on December 25, 1907, to Rosella Spacht, of Van Buren township. She was formerly a student at Adrian College, Adrian, Michigan, and also the Ohio Northern University at Ada. She is the daughter of Jesse B. and Mary (Stonehill) Spacht, both of whom belong to pioneer families of Hancock county. Mrs. Neiswander is the eldest of four children, the others are William, who died at the age of twenty-nine; Verla and Irena, who are at home.

Doctor Neiswander is a Democrat. He is health officer of Riley township and Pandora. He is a member of the leading medical societies, including the Ohio State Medical Society, the Ohio State Homeopatthic Medical Society and the Putnam County Medical Society. Dr. Neiswander and wife are active members of the Methodist Protestant church. They have been the parents of two sons, Allen and Harold.

Doctor Neiswander is a progressive young physician, who has had all of the advantages of the latest information in medicine. He has built up a large practice in the community and a practice which he so very much deserves because of his splendid equipment and his natural inclination toward his life profession.

George Henry Mersman

A substantial business man of Glandorf, Putnam County, Ohio, is- George Henry Mersman, who was born on the farm where his elevator is now located. His parents, both of whom were natives of Germany, were early settlers in this county, and the Mersman family have been active in everything pertaining to the welfare of the community, for many years. Mr. Mersman started to work in the woolen-mill in Glandorf, when a young man, and for more than a quarter of a century was interested in this business, while at the same time he carried on general farming. He has been interested in the elevator business in Glandorf since 1892, though he is still devoting some of his attention to farming.

George Henry Mersman, the son of Henry and Mary E. (Recker) Mersman, was born on February 18, 1851, at Glandorf, Putnam county,. Ohio. His father was born in Glandorf, Germany, and came to this county when a young man, where he worked on the Ohio canal, which was bemg. built through this section of the state. Later, he was a partner with Mr. Myers, in the saw-mill business, and still later was engaged in the same business with Mr. Drerup. Tn addition to operating the saw-mill, he had a grist-mill which was run by steam power, the grinding being done with an old-fashioned burr stone. Mr. Mersman continued the saw and grist-mill business, in Glandorf, as long as he lived. In addition to his. mills he operated a general store, packed and shipped pork and was a business man, interested in many ventures. He and his brother, Barney, were in partnership in the pork-packing business. Mary E. Recker, the wife of Henry Mersman, was born in Hanover, Germany, and was a daughter of Nicholas Henry Recker and wife. The mother died in the old country, and her father married again. When Mary E. Recker was a girl of five years, her father and family came to America and located at Eort Wayne, Indiana, but lived there only a short time, when they moved to Glandorf, Putnam county, Ohio,. where her father farmed during the remainder of his life.

George Henry Mersman lived at home until he was grown. As a young man, he worked in the woolen mills at Glandorf, and continued there for twenty-eight years. He began his mill work by operating a carding machine, and later became a spinner. At the same time that he was working in thewoolen mills, he was engaged in farming. Mr. Mersman built an elevator at Glandorf, in 1892, just after the railroad was built through the village, and leased it out for one year. Since that time he has had active charge of the

Mr. Mersman was married on April 21, 1875, to Anna M. Halker, whO' was born in Glandorf, Putnam county, Ohio, and is the daughter of William and Louise (Vogeding) Halker. Her parents were both natives of Germany, came to Glandorf, Ohio, early in its history, and located in the midst of a dense forest. Her father was a life-long farmer. Mr. aiyl Mrs. Mersman were the parents of three children, two of whom, Louise and John, died in infancy. Anna E. is the wife of Anthony Kohls. Mr. Kohls was born at Glandorf and reared at New Cleveland, this county. He is a son of Tony and Theresa (Klinkhammer) Kohls. Mr. and Mrs. Kohls have four children, Anna, Linus, Clarence and Louisa. Mr. Kohls and Mr. Mersman areoperating this business together.

Mr. Mersman has given his hearty support to the Democratic party, and has been a member of the Glandorf council ever since the village was incorporated, with the exception of two years. He and his wife are loyal members of St. John's Catholic church, at Glandorf. He has a farm of one hundred and twenty acres, twenty-five acres of which is good timber land,, and is now doing a general farming business. Since purchasing this tract of farm land, Mr. Mersman has installed many changes and made numerous improvements.

It is not always easy to discover and define the hidden forces that have moved a life of ceaseless activity and large professional success. Little more can be done than to note their manifestations in the career of the person under consideration. The life of the physician and public-spirited man of affairs, whose name appears above, affords a striking example of well-defined purpose - his ability to make that purpose subserve, not only his own ends, but the good of his fellow men, as well. Peter D. Bixel, M. D., has lonpheld prestige in the calling that requires for its basis strong mentality and intellectual attainments of a high order, supplemented by rigid professional training and a thorough masteiy of technical knowledge with the skill to apply the same, without which one cannot hope to arise above mediocrity. In his chosen field of endeavor Doctor Bixel has achieved a notable success, which has been duly recognized and appreciated throughout the section of the state in which he lives. In addition to his long and creditable career.

in one of the most useful and exacting professions, he has proved an honorable member of the body politic, and in every relation of life has never fallen below the dignity of true manhood or in any way resorted to the methods which might invite censure.

Peter D. Bixel, M. D., was born on April 21, 1865, in Allen county, Ohio. He is the son of Abraham and Magdalene (Schumacher) Bixel, Abraham Bixel was born on May 14, 1843, in Holmes county, Ohio, and was the son of Peter and Fannie (Diller) Bixel. Peter Bixel and wife were both natives of Berne, Switzerland. Peter Bixel was born on January I, 1795, and came to America, April 29, 1824, arriving July 21, 1824. He came, first, to Wayne county, and on August 2, 1824, went to Holmes county, where he married Fannie Diller. They had sixteen children, of whom Fannie was the second eldest and the eldest living child. The family -came from Holmes to Allen county, near Bluffton, when the eldest child was eighteen or nineteen years of age.

In Holmes county, Peter Bixel entered land from the government, and here he remained for about fifteen years, selling out, in 1846, and coming to Allen county, settling one mile north of Bluffton. He was a very progressive farmer and a hard worker. He owned, at one time, nearly one thousand acres of land. He was a fine type of the American citizen and very liberal. He had a fine Christian character and was one of the first members of the Mennonite church, in his community. He lived all his life on the old homestead, in Allen county. Fannie Diller, his wife, was a native of Switzerland and married Peter Bixel, in Wayne county, Ohio.

'Abraham Bixel moved, with his parents, to Allen county when but three years of age. It was there that he received his early education in the typical log-cabin school house. Although his educational advantages were limited, he became a self-made man, and being a careful reader, greatly advanced himself by home study. When he was twenty-one years of age, May 5, 1864, he was man-ied to Magdalene Schumacher, the daughter of Peter and Elizabeth (Suter) Schumacher. After his marriage, he remained on the old homestead, until 1878, when he sold out and moved to the old Peter Schumacher farm, in Richland township, Allen county. This he sold, in 1903, and then retired, moving to Pandora, where he now lives. Abraham Bixel was one of sixteen children. His wife, Magdalene, was also one of sixteen children, a remarkable coincidence. Abraham Bixel was a very successful farmer and owned more than two hundred acres. He and his wife were the parents of twelve children. Dr. Peter D. ; David C. ; Sarah -who died at the age of three; Noah, Elizabeth, John, who is dean of the

Doctor Bixel spent his boyhood days on the old home place, in Allen county. Here he received his early education, completing his course in the common school at the ag-e of twenty-one. He then went to work in a store, at Bluffton, and remained here for six years. When twenty-seven years of age he and Benjamin Schumacher bought the firm of C. S. Day & Company, dealers in groceries, queensware, where they also became the proprietors of a bakery. They stayed in this business for two years, when the firm became Bixel & Welty. This firm continued for two years longer and then the store was sold.

Peter D. Bixel then took a preparatory course in medicine at the University of Cincinnati. The next year he entered the Eclectic Medical College, at Cincinnati, graduating in 1901, where he stood next to the head of his class in surgery. After graduating, he located at Bluffton, Ohio, and went into partnership with Doctor Sutter.

This partnership continued for nine months, when Doctor Bixel moved to Pandora, where he now resides and where he has established a large and growing practice. In addition to his university preparatory course, he has pursued his studies and kept up to the demands of the profession by attending lectures at Chicago and Cincinnati. Doctor Bixel is a member of the National Eclectic Medical Association and the Ohio State Eclectic Medical Association, the Northwestern Eclectic Medical Association and the American Medical Association, the Ohio State Alopathic Medical Association and the Northwestern Ohio Alopathic Medical Association, as well as the Putnam County Medical Association.

He is ex-president of the Northwestern Ohio Eclectic Medical Association and twice secretary of that association. Likewise he is ex-secretary of the Putnam County Medical Association.

Peter D. Bixel, M. D., was married on December 19, 1889, to Elizabeth Steiner, daughter of Christian and Magdalene Lugibihl Steiner, the family history of whom is to be found in the sketch of Peter Steiner, contained elsewhere in this volume. Mrs. Bixel's parents were pioneers in Putnam county. Mrs. Bixel was born on November i, 1867, and reared one mile east of Pandora. She received her education in the common schools of Riley township.

To Doctor and Mrs. Bixel have been born three children, Stella has been a student at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, and graduated in the class of 1915. She is a graduate of the Pandora high school. Munson Rus-

Peter D. Bixel, M. D., has been a life-long Republican. For six years he was health officer of Riley township. He was also a member of the board of education for eight years, and president of the board for four years. Doctor Bixel and family are members of the Great Mennonite church, of which he is an ardent supporter.

The subject of this sketch is one of Putnam county's most progressive professional men and stands high in the community in a professional and personal way. He is a most careful and conscientious physician and likewise a public-spirited citizen, taking an active part in e\'erything that might result in the betterment of the community. Altogether. Doctor Bixel is a very valuable citizen to the county where he has spent practically all his life.

Peter P. Steiner

Specific mention is made in the following paragraphs of one of the worthy citizens of Putnam county, Ohio, and one who has figured in the growth and development of the financial and commercial interests of this favored section, whose interests have been identified with its progress, contributing, in a definite measure, in his particular spheres of action to the well-being of the community in which he resides and to the advancement of its normal and legitimate growth. Earnest purpose of tireless energy, combined with mature judgment and e\ery-day common sense, have been among his most prominent characteristics. He has merited the respect and esteem which are accorded him by all with whom he has had social or business relations.

Peter P. Steiner was born on December 28, 1845, in Richland township, Allen county, Ohio, the son of Peter and Barbara (Schumacher) Steiner, the former born in Switzerland, on a farm, October 7, 181 1, died in Richland township, .\Ilen county, three miles west of Bluffton, August 22, 1870, at the age of fifty-nine years. Peter Steiner, Sr., was the son of Christian Steiner and wife, the latter's maiden name being Luginbihl. Christian Steiner was born in 1770, in Switzerland, and died on his farm in Richland township, Allen county, in January, 1846. In addition to being a farmer in Switzerland, he was a preacher, and followed this calling after setding in America in 1836. He and his wife had six children when they came to America, as follow: Christian, John, Ulrich, Peter, Barbara and Elizabeth. Christian, the eldest son, had preceded the rest of the family by two years. He settled in Wayne county and, like his father, was a minister. Another brother, Ulrich, also took up the ministry, and all were faithful members of the Mennonite church. Christian Steiner, Sr., died ten years after coming to America.

Peter Steiner was the fourth child of his parents. He was married at the age of twenty-five, just before coming to America, to Barbara Schuhmacher, who was the daughter of Christian and Barbara Schuhmacher. Both she and her father were natives of Basel, Switzerland. Her parents and four children came to America at the same time the Steiner family came. The children of this family were Peter, who was a minister; John, Christian and Barbara, the mother of Peter P., the subject of this sketch. Peter Steiner, and the remainder of the family, settled in what is now Richland township, Allen county, which was then a part of Putnam county. They entered land from the government, for which they paid one dollar an acre. The Steiners had been considered well-to-do in Switzerland, were prosperous farmers and had lived on the same farm, "The Buchwald," for seven successive generations. This was a large farm, probably consisting of two or three hundred acres.

Christian Schuhmacher, the father of Peter P. Steiner's mother, was a miller in Switzerland and also a wine merchant. After entering his land from the government, built a log cabin and proceeded to clear his land It is related that he used to haul grain to mill at Sandusky, Tiffin and Maumee, forty or fifty miles away, with an ox team. He could only haul about fifteen or twenty bushels at. a time, on account of the bad condition of the roads, and it usually took a week. At all times he would have to carry an ax, with which to cut his way through fallen trees. It was on the farm that he established, by dint of energy and push, that his eleven children were reared, all of whom grew to man and womanhopd. The children were as follow: Catherine, deceased, wife of Christian Gratz; Christian; Barbara, deceased, wife of Peter D. Diller; Mary Ann, deceased, wife of Chris Hilty; Elizabeth; David, who died at the age of twenty-one; Peter P. ; Mattie, who died at the age of twenty; Benjamin died at the age of fifty-five, in 1895: Fannie, who died single, and Susan, deceased, wife of Benjamin Hilty. They are no«- all deceased with the exception of Christian, Elizabeth and Peter P. The mother of these children died about 1885. His father, at the time of his death, owned four hundred and twenty-six acres of land and was known as a good farmer. He was a Democrat and a very earnest supporter of the Mennonite church.

It was on the old homestead farm in Richland township, Allen county^ that Peter P. Steiner spent his boyhood days. Here he attended the district, schools and, of course, helped his father on the farm, until twenty-two ^ years of age.

Peter P. .Steiner was married on March 7, 1867, and remained on the home place until the following fall, when he moved to Riley township, Putnam county, on a place owned by his father. This farm of one hundred and twenty acres, he later purchased from his father. It was in a virgin state and Mr. Steiner, like his father, cleared the land and built his cabin. He felled the first tree on the site of his new home on October 28,. 1867. He cleared two acres and on December 13, with his bride, moved to his new home. He had previously dug a well. His wife was Elizabeth Luginbihll, the daughter of Christian Luginbihll and wife. Mrs. Steiner was a native of Riley township, Putnam county, and her parents were natives of Switzerland. She died on September 20, 1905. She was a splendid Christian woman, a devoted wife and loving mother. She was the mother of four children, Helen, the wife of P. D. Amstutz, the postmaster of Pandora, who have three children, R. Mendelssohn, Melvina and Hilda W.; Martha,, the twin sister of Helen, who died in infancy; Noah, who married Elizabeth Luginbihll, and has five children, Melvin, Eulalia, William, Waldo and Earl D., and Mary, who died at the age of twenty-seven. She attended Findlay College and was a teacher of music. She was a fine Christian, young woman, very popular and highly esteemed in the community.

After clearing up his farm, Peter P. Steiner continued to farm until 1898, when he moved to Pandora. The following spring he entered the milling business, the firm name being Steiner, Hilty & Schuhmacher. The firm name now is Steiner, Hilty & Kempf, Mr. Kempf being the bookkeeper. Mr. Steiner has continued in the milling business up to the present time. He was elected president of the firm and has since continued to hold this office. In addition to his other holdings, Mr. Steiner has accumulated considerable town property. He is a stockholder in the Farmers' Banking Company.

Mr. Steiner is a Democrat. He is one of the main supports of the Mennonite church and has been a deacon in that church for the past forty years. He is one of the most substantial citizens of Riley township and Pandora. He is influential and highly respected and is a fine type of the present-day Christian gentleman. Mr. Steiner deserves great credit for his many accomplishments. He has toiled early and late, but he has the satisfaction of knowing now that he has always toiled to good purpose.

Fred H. Ellerbrock

The Ellerbrock family have been residents of Glandorf, Putnam county, Ohio, since 1836. In that year the grandfather of Fred H. Ellerbrock came from Germany and located in this county, when practically the entire county was covered with a dense forest. In fact, it was only a few years after the county was organized that the Ellerbrock family became permanent residents. They have taken an active part in the life of this community, from earliest pioneer times, and the various members of this family are highly respected in the community where they live.

Fred H. Ellerbrock, the son of Fred and Lizette (Wischmeyer) Ellerbrock, was born September 25, 1882, at Glandorf, Putnam county, Ohio His father was born, in Ottawa township, in this county, near Glandorf,. and was a son of Herman Ellerbrock, who was born in Hanover, Germany,. and came to America, about 1836, where at once located on the farm near Glandorf, in Putnam county. There he spent the remainder of his life.

Fred Ellerbrock, Sr., was reared on his father's farm, at Glandorf, and, upon reaching his maturity, married Lizette Wischmeyer. She was born at Hunteberg, Oznabruck, Germany, and was a daughter of Henry Wischmeyer and wife. She came here in her girlhood days with her sister, while her father later came from the Fatherland and spent his declining years^ in Glandorf. Fred Ellerbrock, Sr., was a life-long farmer, first locatingin Pleasant township and later, near Glandorf. He was twice married, his first wife being Mary Borgelt, who died, leaving two children, William and Mary. To his second marriage were born six children, three sons and three daughters, Henry; Lucy, the wife of Henry Karkhoff; Fred, of Glandorf; Bernard; Lena Frances, living, and Louis, who died in early childhood^ The father of these children died in July, 1913. His widow is now living near Glandorf.

Fred H. Ellerbrock was reared on his father's farm near Glandorf, and educated in the public schools of his home neighborhood. He, in partnership with Charles B. Ellerbrook, in 1910, bought the saloon at Glandorf, which they have since operated in partnership, conducting the business in a clean and orderly manner.

Mr. Ellerbrock was married in May, 1908, to Dora Kaufman, who was born, at New Cleveland, Ohio, and is the daughter of William and Catherine (Schmenk) Kaufman. Her father was a life-long farmer, at New Cle^'eland. Mr. Ellerbrock and his wife are the parents of three children: Marie, Norbert and Alma.

Mr. Ellerbrock and his family are members of the Catholic church, at Glandorf, and he belongs to the St. John's and Ss. Peter and Paul's Aid

The late Warren F. Reed, M. D., was a resident of Putnam county, Ohio, from the spring of 1867 until the spring of 1913. For many years iie was one of the leading practitioners of the county, and was also inter- in the political life of the county as well. During the twenty years jjreceding his death, he was president of the Bank of Ottawa, although he continued to practice his profession until the time of his decease. When a young man he enlisted for service in the Civil War, and made a notable record in that terrible conflict. Doctor Reed was a well-known man, of -broad character, and most kindly disposition. He was unassuming in manner, devoted to his profession and faithful in the discharge of every duty which came before him.

The late Warren F Reed was born near Lima, Ohio, November 22, 1839, and died at his home, in Ottawa, March 28, 1913. He was a son of Manuel and Elizabeth (O'Harr) Reed. His father was a native of Trumbull county, Ohio, and became a resident of Allen county, Ohio, as early as 1834, purchasing a tract of one hundred and sixty acres of government land in that year, near Lima. He married Elizabeth O'Harr, a daughter of Arthur O'Harr, one of the pioneers of Franklin county, Ohio. Manuel Reed was a farmer and carpenter, was a man of quiet and unostentatious manner and exerted a beneficial influence in the community where he resided. His ancestors were pioneers of Pennsylvania. The O'Harrs were descended from an old Scottish family, a number of representatives of which settled in Pennsylvania early in the history of that state.

Doctor Reed was educated in the district schools of Allen county and later graduated from the Lima high school. When a young man, he began the study of medicine, under Doctor Harper, of Lima, and after returning from the war, he completed his medical education in the University of Michigan, from which institution he graduated in 1866. He then entered the College of Physicians and Surgeons, of New York City, and, in the spring 1867, began the practice of his profession in the town of Kalida, Putnam county, Ohio, where he lived until 1890. In that year he moved to Ottawa, having been elected to the oflice of county auditor on the Republican ticket.

His election was a striking tribute to his worth, as a citizen, in view of the fact that the county was very strongly Democratic. Doctor Reed was appointed assignee of the Ottawa Exchange Bank in 1894, and in July of that year, in partnership with I. H. Kahle, of Glandorf, and W. H. Harper, Jr., of Lima, he reorganized the Bank of Ottawa, and was president of that financial institution until his death, in the spring of 19 13.

In addition to his business and official duties. Doctor Reed continued the practice of medicine during all these years. He was a member of the Northwestern Medical Society, the Putnam County Medical Society and State Medical Society. He was a member of the Free and Accepted Masons and had attained to the chapter, council and commandery degrees.

Doctor Reed was married in 1873, to Clyde Gordon, the daughter of Judge John H. and Mrs. Jane C. (Perry) Gordon. To this union four children were born, Mary, Nellie, Gordon, who died at the age of seventeen, and one child, who died in infancy.

John H. Gordon, the father of Mrs. Reed, was a native of Pennsylvania, and was reared to manhood in that state. He was largely a selfeducated man, and came to Ohio early in his manhood and settled in Butler county, where he married Mrs. Jane C. Perry. To this union five daughters were born, Ruth, deceased, who was the wife of Edward Dunn, of Indianapolis, Indiana; Rebecca J., the wife of W. C. G. Krauss, of Ottawa, Ohio; Zella, the wife of George D. Kinder, of Ottawa; Clyde, the wife, of Doctor Reed, and Mrs. Minerva Hornaday, now the matron of the Soldiers' Home, at Xenia, Ohio. Mrs. Gordon, by a previous marriage, had one daughter, Mary P., who became the wife of James Johnson, of Indianapolis, Indiana.

Mr. Gordon taught school, in Ohio, for several years, after coming to this state, and made an excellent record as an instructor. He was especially proficient in mathematics and made this branch of study a specialty. He served three terms as recorder of Butler county, Ohio, and also engaged in farming and in the livery business at Hamilton, Ohio. In 1856 Mr. Gordon moved his family to Putnam county, and for some years thereafter was engaged in the manufacture of lumber, but later, turned his attention to contracting, building and the making of stone roads. He was elected to the office of probate judge for two terms, served two terms as mayor of Ottawa, and was a justice of the peace for several years. In this latter office, Mr. always used a reasonable effort to effect an amicable adjustment of difficulties without bringing the cause in dispute to trial. He had a deep dislike for litigation, on account of the bad feelings which were usually aroused by a trial. A man of strictest morality and integrity, he enjoyed the confidence of the community to the fullest extent, and would often suffer a wrong rather than commit one. While serving as probate judge, he frequently refused to collect fees, feeling that the people were too poor to be taxed for his services. Liberal to a fault, his charities were widely dispensed,, and in consequence he never succeeded in accumulating great wealth. Mr- Gordon was a stanch Democrat, but during the Civil War, he was an ardent Union man and did much to induce the young men of his county to volunteer. By reason of an accident, in which he lost an arm when a young man,, he was rendered ineligible for military duty. His life was one of high aims and in his death Putnam county lost one of its most prominent and valued citizens.

Doctor Reed was a member of the One Hundred and Fifty-first Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and although he had many narrow escapes,, he returned home after the close of the war without injury or without impairment of his health. He was a keen business man and an executive of marked ability. He was president of the building commission, who had charge of the erection of the present Putnam county court house, and rendered valuable and efficient service while the seat of justice was being erected. It may be assumed that Doctor Reed was a man of unusual attainments, by reason of the fact that he took such an active part in the life of his community. His career, extending over nearly half a century, was fraught with great good to his county, and at his death he was sincerely mourned by a large circle of friends and acquaintances.

Thomas Harvey Rower

The Rower family came to Putnam county, Ohio, in 1849, at which, time Frederick Rower, the great-grandfather of Thomas Harvey Rower, came to this country from Saxony and located in Franklin county, at which place he died. For more than sixty years this family has been identified with the history of the county, and has seen it emerge from its primitivestate to the prosperous county which it is today. Thomas H. Rower was. a school teacher in his younger days, then was cashier of the First National. Bank of Leipsic for a time, but since 1907 has been a partner of W. F. Stevenson in general insurance, bonds, loans and real estate.

Rower, was born January 9, 1878, in Jackson township, three and one-half miles west^ of KaHda, along the Big Auglaize river. His father, who was the son of John and Nancy Rower, was born in 1851, on the same farm. John Rower was the son of Frederick Rower, who was born in Dresden, Saxony, in 1 779, and came to America in 1 799, and located in Pennsylvania, later crossing the mountains and locating on a farm in Franklin county, Ohio, in 1812, where he died in 1826. His wife, Elizabeth (Long) Rower, died in 1846. He was one of the first pioneer settlers to make his homecoming in 1849 and literally carved and drained a home out of the swampy forests. The pioneer experiences of this sterling German-American citizen would make interesting reading.

Lewis A. Rower was only a child when his father died at the age of thirty-two. His mother later married John Rager, and moved to Franklin county, and there Lewis A. grew to manhood and married Mary E. Begg, February 11, 1875. She was born in Franklin county, a daughter of John and Mary Begg, who came from Cumbernauld, Scotland, in 1844, and located in Frankli-n county. The Begg family lived in Franklin county most of their lives, but about the time of the war lived for two years in Putnam county, after which they returned to Franklin county, and later to Allen and Putnam counties, where they spent the remainder of their days. After Lewis A. Rower was married he moved back to the old Rower home in Putnam county, west of Kalida, and farmed there until his death in 1886. He died at the age of thirty-five, the same age as his father at the time of the latter's death. Lewis A. Rower left his widow with five children, John, who died in infancy; Thomas H., of Leipsic; Mary Janet, of Kalida, Ohio; Lewis Edson, of Kalida, Ohio; Philip A., of Kalida, Ohio; Mabel A., the wife of Rudolph Raabe, of Ft. Jennings, Ohio. The widow remained on the farm until 1913, when she moved into Kalida, where she now makes her home.

Thomas H. Rower was reared on the farm and remained there until he was twenty years of age. He became a student in the Western Ohio Normal School at Middle Point, Ohio, in the fall of 1898, and remained there until he graduated in the spring of 1900. The following year he taught in the public schools of Leipsic and for the next four years was the superintendent of the schools at Hamler, Ohio. After the close of his last year in Hamler, in the spring of 1905, he returned to Leipsic and became the cashier of the First National Bank. He remained with this bank until its voluntary liquidation two years later, and then formed a partnership with Walter S. Stevenson in the insurance, stocks, bonds, loans and real

Mr. Rower was married on June 15, 1904, to Annetta Wynn, who was born in Germantown, Pennsylvania, and is a daughter of Isaac and Margaret (Wrightly) Wynn. Both Mrs. Rower's parents were members of old and highly-respected Philadelphia families, her father being a cousin of ex-Postmaster-General Robert Wynn. Members of family of Mr. and Mrs. Wynn were, Ernest, deceased; Ervin, a resident of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Annetta, wife of the subject of this sketch.

Mr. Wynn died when Mrs. Rower was an infant and her mother later married Rev. W. H. Hyatt, a Presbyterian minister, and has since lived in a number of places, as his work took him from one city to another. Mrs. Rower is a fine musician and has taught instrumental music. Mr. and Mrs. Rower are the parents of four children, Margaret Eloise, Mary Annette, Helen Lucile and Alfred Wynn.

Mr. Rower is independent in politics, and takes an intelligent interest in the current issues of the day. He has been president of the Leipsic board of education since the beginning of 1914. He is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, and he and his wife are active workers in the Presbyterian church, in which he has been an elder for several years.

Homer R. Day

One of the most illustrious, as well as one of the oldest, families in America, is the Day family, of which the gentleman whose name is noted above, a popular merchant, at Columbus Grove, Putnam county, Ohio, is an honorable representative of the present generation. To go into all the various ramfications of the Day family in America, or to set out in detail the most salient points in the lives of the numerous representatives of this family, who have rendered distinguished service to their country, would require a book larger, perhaps, than this volume and the biographer, keeping within the proper limitations prescribed in the compilation of a work of this character, must content himself with a mere side light on the beginnings of the family which will serve as an introduction to the present generation, and then conne himself to a brief biography of the gentleman whose name appears as the caption of this interesting sketch, the ninth in direct line of descent from Robert Day, the first of his name to settle in America.

Those who are interested in the ampler history of the Day family are referred to the Day Book, one of the most monumental and painstaking works of genealogical research ever printed in this country and which tontains the lineage of the Days far back beyond the time the first of the name in this country reached America, early in the seventeenth century.

The Day Book traces the present family of Days, in Putnam county, of which Homer R. Day, merchant, at Columbus Grove, is perhaps the best-known local representative, back to the year 1680, in which year Robert Day arrived in Boston, from England, one of a party of earnest colonists, numbering one hundred or more, who came to this country, under the leadership of the Reverend Hooker, to find new homes. This party penetrated the wilderness and founded the town of Hartford, Connecticut, Robert Day taking no small part in the strenuous labors of these colonists. The majority of the Days, in the earlier history, were ministers of the Gospel or farmers, and in whatever relation they served their fellow men, they did their duty as they saw it. The Rev. Jeremiah Day, sixth in line from Robert Day, was president of Yale College, from 181 7 to 1846, and George Day, who wrote the Day Book, so well known to all genealogists, was also president of Yale for many years. The late Alfred H. Day, whose name for so many years was literally a household word in the neighborhood of Columbus Grove, by reason of his long connection with the mercantile interests of that city, was the eighth in line from the Robert Day above mentioned ; his father, the venerated Reverend Alvin Day, second, having been a son of the Reverend Jeremiah Day, referred to above as president of Yale for so long a period. There are many biographies of the Reverend Alvin Day extant, to any one of which the reader, curious for further information, is referred. Sufficient here to say that he was born in Wilberham, Massachusetts, married Anna Maria Stebbins and died December 3, i860, his widow surviving, until September 7, 1867.

To the Reverend Alvin and Anna Maria (Stebbins) Day thirteen children were born, of whom the late Alfred H. Day, father of Homer R., was the seventh in order of birth, the others being Harrison C, Nelson, Gilford, Lovina, Sandford, George, Olive Maria, Mary Azubah, Alvira, Jane Eliza, Walter S. and Alvin C.

Alfred H. Day, who for many years was a merchant, at Columbus Grove, and whose death on March 24, 191 1, was so sincerely mourned thougrhout this whole section, was born at Wilberham, Massachusetts, January 25, 1840, the son of the Reverend Alvin and Anna Maria (Stebbins) Day, the former of whom was one of the most distinguished Baptist ministers of his day.

Alfred attended school at Wilberham until he was sixteen years of age, when he decided to come west. Starting out alone, he proceeded to Rockport, Illinois, where he hved for a period of two years, attending school during the winter and making his time further serviceable by clerking in a local store where he no doubt laid the foundation for his later mercantile success. He then moved to Lima, Ohio, where he was for some time engaged in a clerical capacity in a grain warehouse and, in 1861, came to Putnam county, locating in Columbus Grove, where for two years he engaged in the grain business with such success that, in 1863, he was able to purchase the general merchandise store of J. P. Jones, consisting mostly of groceries, which was located in a frame building on the west side of the street. This was his first start in the dry-goods business, in which he later became so successful. About the year 1872, Mr. Day moved this frame structure and erected in its stead a fine brick building, in which he conducted his store with so much success that his business outgrew its quarters and it became necessary to enlarge the store capacity. To this end, in 1883, he enlarged the old store and erected the fine building which still stands a monument to his energy, the store which he so long conducted now being under the management of his son. There was a reason for the success which attended the efforts of the elder Day. He was a good business man, level-headed and cool, possessing excellent judgment and had a rare sense of values. In addition to this, he was always on duty, being at the store early and late, and was a master of detail. Mr. Day erected, in 1873 in Columbus Grove, one of the finest residences in the town, which is still standing, a home of unusual beauty and good taste. In the same year he built the Grove House, now known as the Witt Hotel, in Columbus Grove, and also for some time held an interest in the grain elevator in his home town. He watched his business grow with pride and, in 1893, he took into the store, as a partner, his son, Homer R. Day, who has since been continuously active in the direction of the business, and who, since his father's retirement, in 1906, has been the sole owner. About five years after his retirement, at the age of seventy-two, Mr. Day passed on to his reward and many there were in this county who mourned his demise.

Alfred H. Day was a loveable man, of excellent habits, unassuming and plain-spoken, of sterling character, dependable in all his relations in life and a power in his community, his death being a distinct loss to the town. Not only was he unusually active in the mercantile life of Columbus Grove, but he paid close attention to the community's civic interests and was always interested in any movement which had, as its object, the advancement of the public welfare. He was a Republican and took a good citizen's part in political affairs, his wise counsel and sound judgment being of much force in the deliberations of the local party managers. For sixteen years he was treasurer of Pleasant township, and for years was also corporation treasurer of Columbus Grove, besides being a member of the town council and the school board, in all these duties giving the same studious attention to the public's business as he gave to his own personal affairs. He was a devoted member of the Presbyterian church, as are all the members of his family, being prompt in his attendance upon the services of the church and a liberal contributor to the various beneficences of the same.

Alfred H. Day was united in marriage, in 1865, to Ada L. Pease, who was born in Monson, Massachusetts, and who is now living with her children. To this union three children were born, Rose E., who married Dr. Frank H. Pugh and lives at Bryan, Ohio; Clyde, who died in infancy, and Homer R., the immediate subject of this interesting biographical sketch.

Homer R. Day, who was born at Columbus Grove, April 9, 1873, son of Alfred H. and Ada L. (Pease) Day, received his youthful education in the schools of his native town and, upon completing the course there, took a supplemental course in the business college, at Poughkeepsie, New York, where he received his business training and from which institution he was graduated with the class of 1893, after which he returned home and entered business with his father, who took him as a partner that year. This mutually pleasant and profitable arrangement continued until the year 1906, when the elder Day retired, turning all interests over to his son, since which time the latter has been sole owner and has -continued the wise policies of his father with such careful direction that the business is continuing to grow in the most satisfactory fashion. In addition to his commercial interests, Mr. Day finds time to give his share of attention to public affairs, in which he naturally takes a deep interest. He has been a member of the board of public affairs for the past seven years, served for two terms as treasurer of the township and also for two terms as a member of the school board. He is also a director of the Exchange Bank of Columbus Grove. As was his father, he is a Republican, and his counsels carry weight with the party managers in Putnam county; by reason of his sound judgment and excellent executive ability. He has made himself a most valuable power for good in the community and commands the highest respect of all throughout the entire section of the county where his name and that of his father, before him, are so well known and so highly regarded. A man of unquestionable honesty, he believes in the application of sound principles to the conduct of both public and private business and is an earnest advocate of all measures which look to the betterment of the social, moral or civic conditions of the cpmmunity in which he lives.

Homer R. Day was united in marriage on April 25, 1897, to Miss- Winifred Rice, who was born at Ada, Ohio, the daughter of John F. and Jennie (Hemphill) Rice, members of old families of that section of the state, and to this union four children have been born, Aline, born on March 27, 1898; Jeannette, born on January 7, 1900; Mildred, born on March 15, 1902, and Fred R., born on June 3, 1905, and who died on December 15, 1907. The three youngsters, in the pleasant Day home, keep things lively there and are the delight of the lives of their devoted parents. Mr. and Mrs. Day are members of the Presbyterian church and take an active part in the beneficences of that organization, as well as being devoted in their attention to all movements that seek to better mankind.

A well-known woman, of Putnam county, Ohio, who was born and reared in Allen county, is Mrs. Addie Lillian (Hall) Zahrend. Her husband was a prominent business man of this county for many years, and was engaged in the lumber business, at Leipsic, at the time of his death, in the spring of 1905. He was a man of high character, a thorough Christian gentleman, a leader in all reform movements. Since his death, Mrs. Zahrend has been devoting her time and attention to the rearing of the children who were left in her care. She is a woman of refinement and culture, deeply devoted to her domestic life.

Mrs. Addie Lillian (Hall) Zahrend was born at Gilboa, Putnam county Ohio, December 22, 1861. She is a daughter of John F. and Nancv lane (Hoagland) Hall. "

Mrs. Zahrend spent her early childhood at Gilboa and, when fi^-e vears of age, moved with her parents to Bluffton, Allen county, Ohio where she was educated and lived until her marriage. She was married June ^c 1885, to John Carl Zahrend, and to this union six children were born Alartha Mane, Robert Franklin, Eugene Hall, John Carroll, Howard Lewis and Charlotte Lucile. Martha Marie was married, February 15, 1910 to Charles M. Harris, of Leipsic, Ohio, and now lives in Gore county, Kansas Mr and Mrs. Harris have three sons, Harold, Eugene and Charles Robert

Franklin married Margaret Cotter, of Philadelphia, October 16, 1909, and now lives in Wayne, Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia. Eugene Hall was married, December 17, 19 13, to Elizabeth Doyle, of Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, where he now resides. Eugene and his wife have one daughter, Dorothy Elizabeth. The three younger children, John, Howard and Charlotte, are still living with their mother and attending the public schools of Leipsic.

John Carl Zahrend was born in Mecklenburg Schwerin, Germany, June 22, 1858, and was the son of Herman and Minnie (Henning) Zahrend. Herman Zahrend was engaged in farming in Germany and in 1870, came to- America and located at Liberty Center, Henry county. Upon coming to this country, Herman Zahrend engaged in railroad work and later resumed farming near Napoleon, Henry County, Ohio. A few years later he removed to a farm east of Napoleon and there lived the remainder of his life. He was a member of the Dutch Reformed church and a stanch Republican in politics. Herman Zahrend and wife were the parents of seven children, John, who became the husband of Addie Lillian Hall ; Henry, who died at the age of twenty; a daughter, who died in her childhood; Frederick of Napoleon, Ohio, who married Ella Fahringer, and has two sons, Earl 'and Frederick; Harmon, a farmer living near Liberty Center, Ohio, who married Clara Hudson, and has two children, Goldie and Ralph; Louise, who^ died February 26, 1905, the wife of James Fahringer, who left her husband with three sons, Harry, Ora and Arthur; Charles, of Lima, Ohio, who married Minnie Freeman, and has three daughters. Vera, Mildred and a baby.

John C. Zahrend attended the common schools, of Liberty Center, Ohio, and later took a course in a Detroit business college. He was first employed as a clerk in a general store at Bluffton, Ohio, and later engaged in thegrocery business at that place, with Charles Day. He sold out his interestsin the grocery store, a short time after his marriage, and moved to Lima, Ohio, in 1886, where he took a position in a shoe store. A few years later he moved to Leipsic, Ohio, and became a partner of the O. E. Townsend Company, a company operating a large lumber and planing mill in Leipsic The firm consisted of John Zahrend, his brother-in-law, O E Townsend and the latter's father, L M. Townsend. Mr. Zahrend continued in this business until it was sold to the Robert Hixon Lumber Comany, after which he was retained by the latter company as the manager of the plant. He was also interested in the Peters Lumber Company, of Irwin, Kentucky.

Mr. Zahrend was in active business in Leipsic until his death, March 7 1905. He was held in high esteem by his business associates, and throughout the community where he had lived so many years. He was a man of strict business integrity, and had a fine Christian character. He was a loyal member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and was interested in everything which pertained to its welfare. He was a class leader, and a member of the official board- of the Methodist church at Leipsic. He was especially interested in temperance work.

Since the death of her husband, Mrs. Zahrend makes her home in Leipsic, with her three unmarried children. One of Mrs. Zahrend's uncles, her mother's side, James Hoagland, died in his early twenties, while living at Fort Wayne, Indiana. Before his death, he was elected to the state Senate -of Indiana, but died before the Legislature convened. He was said to be the youngest man who had been elected to the Indiana Senate up to that time.

Frank Gmeiner

There are citizens of Putnam county, Ohio, who have come here from many states in the Union, as well as many foreign countries. The Austrian empire has contributed some of the best citizens who are now making their homes in this country and among them, Frank Gmeiner, of Ottawa, occupies .a prominent place. Coming to this country with his parents when a small -boy, he has been a resident of Putnam county, since the spring of 1864, and for the past half century has been actively interested in everything pertaining to the welfare of the county. His parents dying shortly after he reached his majority, left him with five younger children, to whom he acted as father and mother.

Frank Gmeiner, the son of George and Mary (Flatz) Gmeiner, was born on December 3, 1852, in Vorardelberg, Tyrol, Austria. He was six years of age when his parents came to America and located in Sandusky Ohio, nine miles northwest of Fremont. In that county his father bought forty acres of timbered land, on which was a log school house, that, had just been abandoned. He lived in the school house until such time as lie was able to provide a better house. George Gmeiner cleared his land and had it partly improved when the Civil War broke out. He enlisted in the Seventy-second Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry and after his enlistment had expired, in the spring of 1864, he sold his farm in Sandusky -county and moved to Putnam county, where he bought eighty acres of timbered land, in Monterey township, four and one-half miles northwest of

Ottoville. Here again the family lived in a school house for a short time, Mr. Gmeiner renting it for about two or three months until he could build a log cabin for the family. On this farm George Gmeiner and his wife lived, until their death, both dying in October, 1875, the mother dying on the second day of the month aiid the father on the sixteenth. It is a singular coincidence that both of them died at half past three, on a Friday morning.