Ottawa Township (part 8 of 23)

In the biography presented elsewhere in this volume, under the name -of Joseph H. Edwards, the well-known banker of Kalida, the genealogy of the Edwards family is set out at some length, and repetition here may not be regarded by the reader as necessary. It will be sufficient to say, therefore, that William W. Edwards was born in Licking county, Ohio, December 19, 1847, the son of Thomas W. and Isabel (Huston) Edwards, the former of whom was born in Muskingum county, Ohio, in 1823, the son of Walter Edwards, a native of Wales, who came to America with his parents when he was twelve years of age and located in Muskingum county, Ohio, where he -grew to useful manhood and where he reared his family, among his children being Thomas W., who married Isabel Huston, a member of one of the pioneer families of Licking county, Ohio, and who brought his family to Putnam county in the year 1864, he and his wife spending the rest of their lives in Union township, her death occurring in 1892 and his in 1905, he dying in the town of Leipsic, to which he had retired upon giving over the active life of the farm, some years before his death. The memory of Thomas W. Edwards and his good wife is still held precious in the community in which they so long lived, as they were, indeed, active in good works all their lives. That they possessed extraordinary strength of character is demonstrated by the force of character which they imparted to their children, their three sons, William W., John and Joseph H., who so long and so successfully were associated together in business in this county and its environs, having ungrudgingly attributed much of their success in life to the training they received under the careful charge of their parents. Of these sons, only Joseph H. now survives, the death of John having occurred in 1901. Two

Wilham W. Edwards was fifteen years of age when he came to Putnam county with his parents, and he spent the rest of his hfe in this county, growing to be one of the most useful and influential, as well as one of the wealthiest, men in the county. He died May 21, 1913, and was widely mourned, for he was a man who had inspired many warm and enduring friendships.

Though the schools in this county, in the days of his youth, were not what they are now, Mr. Edwards was an apt student and readily absorbed such learning as was afforded in the course at that time prescribed in the country schools, to which was supplemented the instructions received at home from his attentive parents. At the age of seventeen he began teaching school and continued this form of public service for several winters, his summers being occupied in assisting his father on the farm. Evincing, early in life, the peculiar aptitude for business which characterized his later and larger dealings, Mr. Edwards, as a young man, engaged somewhat extensively in the live stock business, in which he made a gratifying measure of success. At the age of twenty-three he formed a partnership with his brother John and I. N. Bushong, in the manufacture of staves, his brother, Joseph H. Edwards, later coming into the firm, at which time, in 1893, it was incorporated under the name of the Buckeye Stave Company, which not only owned mills at several points in this county, but at several points in the neighboring counties in Ohio and at various points in Michigan. The company also engaged in the banking business at Kalida and Continental, and eventually became interested in several other banks in Ohio and enterprises of one variety and another, all of which have proved highly successful. A more detailed account of the enterprises in which the Buckeye Stave Company is interested will be found in the historical section of this volume and in the biographical sketch relating to Joseph H. Edwards.

The Edwardses were largely interested in the Buckeye National Bank at Findlay, Ohio, and William W. Edwards was president of this institution at the time of his death. He also was very active in the affairs of the Nationaf Bank of Commerce at Toledo, Ohio, in which he was a heavy stockholder, his financial ability and high character giving him a position of virtual leadership in the affairs of that institution, he being the first vice-president of the bank. Upon his death, the board of directors passed a series of resolutions, whichwere beautifully hand-illuminated, bound and conveyed to the family of the deceased. In part, these resolutions said :

"Perhaps the most prominent trait of Mr. Edwards' character was theplain, old-fashioned virtue of honesty. And what more or what better could"

"Shrewd as Mr. Edwards was in all his business deals, and clearly as he saw what was to his own advantage in making them, and accurate as was his judgment of the men with whom he was dealing and the motives by which they were actuated, he never lost sight of the fundamental principle of honesty. He played the game fairly. His word was good.

"His other characteristics were akin to this fundamental trait. He was sincere. He had no patience with shams or false pretenses. One always knew that he meant what he said and said what he meant. He was not a man of many words or high-sounding phrases. His speech was simple and straightforward. One always feh that Mr. Edwards would not say one thing to one's face and another thing behind one's back. So, too, he had a high sense of honor in all trust relations. In these days of complex intercorporate relations, many young men engaged in large business affairs in which they occupy positions of trust, as officers or directors, are sometimes so blinded by their own self-interest as to sacrifice the interests of one set of beneficiaries to those of another set. Not so of Mr. Edwards. He never lost sight of the duty a director of a corporation owes to its stockholders. How wholesome and far-reaching the effect of such an attitude on his part was, no one can tell, for it was a source of strength to his associates who survive him.

"We need hardly speak of his aptitude for business. His success speaks for itself. He was, indeed, in many ways, an ideal of a man of affairs. He was industrious, indefatigable, painstaking, patient of details, losing sight of nothing of importance, and yet with a good sense of proportion. He was a keen judge of men and motives, a prime requisite to success in any business. And the faculty, his by nature, was developed by a long business experience, until his judgment in any business proposition was almost unerring. How we all grew to rely upon it !

"Last, but not least, we must refer to the kindliness which he showed m all his personal relations with his business associates. He was never censorious, even when things seemed to go the wrong way. And he was always quick to appreciate and ready to reward faithful service."

The following extract from the public press comments upon the death of Mr. Edwards also throws an additional ray of illumination upon the high character of the deceased: "Among the sons of men we sometimes find a kmg uncrowned. This man was such. Giant in the business and commercial world, he was yet, withal, a manly man. Son of the soil, inured to toil, fearing no task, neglecting no detail, he acquired the habit of accomplishing that which he undertook. He started at the bottom of obscurity. When his race was run, his life and influence had touched almost every field of endeavor. He made money helping others on their way. His business interests reached half the states in the Union. In many boards and groups of men, when fortunes were at stake, he spoke the final word. In affairs of the farm or city, his was the master hand. Men followed him without asking the reason why. Schools, churches, colleges and universities shared the contents of his purse and felt the magic power of his morally righteous life. Thousands will testify that William W. Edwards was their friend."

William W. Edwards was united in marriage, on May lo, 1888, to Carrie Donaldson, who was born at Grand Rapids, Ohio, where she resided until her marriage, except during the time she was engaged in teaching school during her young womanhood. She had prepared herself for teaching by a course of instruction in the college at Lebanon, Ohio, and was an excellent teacher. Mrs. Edwards continues to make her home at Leipsic, this county. By an eariier marriage three children, all of whom survive, were born to William Edwards, as follow : Lillian, who married Dr. B. J. Emory, of Defiance, Ohio; E. C, who is now vice-president of the Buckeye National Bank, of Findlay, Ohio, and vice-president of the National Bank of Commerce, at Toledo, Ohio, in which sound financial institutions this worthy son of his distinguished father is, in a measure, taking the latter's place; Maude, who married Fred Spencer, of Ottawa, this county.

To William and Carrie (Donaldson) Edwards were bom three children, all of whom survive, as follow: Ruth, the widow of Lawrence S. Lisle, who died on March 15, 1914, leaving a little son, Lawrence WilHam; Catherine, who is now attending Mt. Holyoke College, in Massachusetts, and William Donaldson, aged seventeen, a sophomore at Western Reserve College.

Christian Zimmerly

There is no earthly station higher than the ministry of the Gospel, and no life can be more uplifting or grand than that which is devoted to thi amelioration of the spiritual ills of the human race, a life of sacrifice for the betterment of the brotherhood of man, one that is willing to cast aside all worthy crowns and laurels of fame to follow in the footsteps of the lowly Nazarene. It is not possible to measure adequately the height, depth and breadth of such a life, for its influence continues to permeate the lives of

Others through succeeding generations, so the power it has cannot be known until the "last great day when the trumpet shall sound and the dead shall be raised incorruptible." Add to such a life, which is being lived entirely without the consideration of any pecuniary compensation, that other high calling of tilling the soil, and, still further, the spirit and energy which typified the early pioneers, and the result must inevitably be a man whose citizenship is a source of pride to his community and a vast benefit to his county.

Christian Zimmerly was born in Riley township, Putnam county, Ohio, October 6, 1841, a son of John and Anna (Berner) Zimmerly. John Zimmerly was born in Lemoges, France, June 14, 1781, and died in Riley township, Ohio, July 21, 1855, at the age of seventy-four. His parents were both natives of France, and died when he was very young, at which time the children were taken by other families in the neighborhood and by them were brought up.

John Zimmerly came to America in 1832 or 1833, at the age of fiftyone years. He landed in New York, and from there came to Ohio, over the Erie canal and Lake Erie. He settled first in Wayne county, Ohio, where he stayed about a year, and then moved to Putnam county, Ohio, where he made his home for a time with John Diller, whose wife, Elizabeth, was Mr. Zimmerly's sister.

About a year later, Anna Berner came to America. Later she became Mr. Zimmerly's wife. She was the daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth (Gridley) Berner, both of whom were natives of France and lived near Dotariet, France. Anna Bemer was born in upper Alsace, France, April 4, 1801, and died in Wayne county, Ohio, March 23, 1895. She was three months making the voyage to New York, and spent two weeks on Lake Erie while finishing her journey to Ohio. While on the lake a storm was encountered which very nearly caused the entire party to lose their lives. After having .reached Ohio, she remained for a time in Wayne county before she finally came to Putnam county, where she lived in the family of Michael Neunschwander, one of Putnam county's first settlers, for whom she worked. She was married to John Zimmerly shortly afterward.

Mrs. John Zimmerly's father was Samuel Berner, an officer in Napoleon's army at the time of the famous and disastrous campaign and march into Russia. At that time, when about half of Napoleon's army had perished, as the results of cold and hunger, Samuel Berner and eleven of his comrades escaped and made their way back home, where Samuel Berner died a year latter, from the hardships which he had endured. During those times, Mrs.

After his marriage, John Zimmerly entered one hundred and sixty acres of government land, the deed for which was signed by President Marn" r""" -^u '""' """*"' ^^^ ''^^^ °^ ^^''^ '^' '^^7, at the city of Washington, U. L. Ihis farm, which lies about three and one-half miles southeast of Pandora, Ohio, has been in the family ever since that time It was on this old homestead that Christian Zimmerly, the subject of this sketch, was born A large portion of the farm, during its earlier days, lay under water, a fact which greatly added to the difficulties of its early improvement.

John Zimmerly and his wife endured all the hardest and bitterest experiences of the pioneers. Mr. Zimmerly was handicapped by a deformity one of his legs being shorter than the other, which made it difficult for him to work. His wife assisted him in the woods when the farm was being cleared and, working together, they were able to clear and prepare for cultivation enough of the land to gain a living. Mr. Zimmerly was a weaver by trade and was also able to earn a little money by doing work of that sort for his neighbors. In that manner they struggled on year by year, clearing a little more land each season.

To add to their difficulties during the early days, they were obliged to go to Perrysburg, Ohio, a distance of sixty miles, to have their grain ground in a mill. Later, they were able to reach a mill at Tiffin, Ohio, which was thirty miles away, and later still their milling was done at Findlay Ohio a distance of sixteen miles from their home. Finally, a mill was started'in Giiboa, Ohio, only six miles distant and later on mills were located still closer Three children were born to Mr. and Mrs. John Zimmerly, they were Peter, John and Christian, the latter being the subject of this sketch.

Christian Zimmerly was bom on the homestead on October 6 1841 and played his part in the settling of that section and the development of the farm. From his early days he assisted his parents and brothers in the work of clearing the farm and of conducting the farm work. He tells an interesting story of one of his early experiences, which is illustrative of the occurrences m this section at that time. When he was a very small boy, he and his brothers went one day to bring in the cows. When they were found there was with them a magnificent buck deer. At the sight of the strange animal the little boys became frightened and lost no time in climbing a tree The faithful family dog, which had accompanied them, attacked the deer and seized the animal by the throat, after which followed a battle roval between the dog and the frightened stag. The commotion, together with the cries of the boys, attracted Isaac Cook, a neighbor, who came running to the scene and ended the battle by cutting the stag's jugular vein. Mr. Zimmerly has always retained a most vivid recollection of that experience, which made a deep impression on his boyish mind.

When Christian Zimmerly was fourteen years of age his father died, and the care of the homestead and of their mother was left to the threie brothers. They worked hard and improved the farm year by year, managing to keep abreast of their neighbors in the development work.

When Christian Zimmerly was twenty-eight years of age on May 28, 1870, he married Mary Welty, who was born in Riley township, December 20, 1849, a daughter of John and Mary Ann (Gerber) Welty, both of whom were natives of Berne, Switzerland, and who came to America early in life, having setled in Riley township, Putnam county. Previous to his marriage, Mr. Ziminerly had taught school for six years, a profession in which he continued for one year following his marriage.

After their marriage. Christian Zimmerly and wife made their home on the old Zimmerly homestead, and Mr. Zimmerly and his brother, John, bought from their brother, Peter, his share in the farm. These brothers then operated the farm in partnership for a period of eight years, when Christian Zimmerly bought his brother John's share and has since operated the farm independently. He has continued to clear and improve the land until he now has one hundred and sixty acres cleared and suitable for cultivation, including forty acres of native timber.

Christian Zimmerly, in 1874, was ordained a preacher ("cast by lot") in the Mennonite church and, in 1880, he was made a bishop. For fortytwo years he has preached to the members of that denomination, giving his services freely and without financial compensation of any sort. He has followed his ministerial calling in addition to his work as a farmer and has met with marked success in both.

He met with misfortune from fire in 1872, and lost the house which had been erected at the cost of such great effort. Later, in 1899, he met with a similar misfortune, at which time his large barn was burned.

Eleven children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Christian Zimmerly, as follow: Sarah, now the wife of Levi Oberly; Caroline, the wife of Amos Augsburger; Mary Ann, the wife of Henry Habbigger; John, who is unmarried; David, who married Martha Lehman; Anna, the wife of Joshua Amstutz; Levina, the wife of William Habbegger; Paulina, the wife of Albert Lehman; Ardon, who married Amanda Lehman; Leonard who married Ida Mann, and Homer, who is unmarried and lives at home.

S20 Putnam County, Ohio

Mr. Zimmerly is a supporter of the principles of the Democratic party and has always taken an intelligent interest in the political affairs of hiscommunity, although he has never aspired to public office. He and Mrs. Zimmerly are both members of the Swiss Mennonite church, of which he is pastor.

Christian Zimmerly is one of the earliest settlers now living in the southwest part of Putnam county and is one of the county's best known and highly respected citizens. He is a type of the clean, high-minded citizen that, in many other sections, is all too fast disappearing. As a Christian minister, he is highly esteemed, and as a citizen and a man, there is no resident of the county who is more highly respected or better known.

Carleton P. Palmer

It is the progressive, wide-awake man of affairs that makes the real history of a community. His influence, as a potential factor in the body politic, is difficult to estimate. The example such men furnish, of patient purpose and steadfast integrity, strongly illustrates what is in the power of each to accomplish. There is always a full measure of satisfaction in adverting, even in a casual way, to their achievements, in advancing the interests of their fellow men, in giving strength and solidity to the institutions which make so much for the prosperity of the community. Such a man is Carleton P. Palmer, the cashier of the Continental Bank, of Continental, Putnam county, Ohio, and, therefore, it is eminently proper that a review of his life be given among those of the representative citizens of this county.

Carleton P. Palmer was born on July 22, 1877, at Toledo, Ohio. He is a son of Paul B. and Stella (Donaldson) Palmer, the former of whom was born m 1847 at Toledo, Ohio, and who is a son of Nicholas Palmer and wife Nicholas Palmer was a native of Plymouth, England, and came to America m the early thirties, being a pioneer settler at Toledo, Ohio. His wife also came from Plymouth, England, with her parents, who built the first house on what IS now Summit street in the city of Toledo. It was a pioneer logcabin, built when Toledo was scarcely a promising village.

Paul B. Palmer was a teacher in the first business college in Toledo but followed agricultural pursuits most of his life. He is now livino- retired in the city of Toledo. During the active years of his life he was an influential citizen of his community and a man who enjoyed the respect and esteem of all with whom he came in contact.

Carleton P. Palmer spent his boyhood days on his father's farm, in the vicinity of Toledo. He was graduated from the Toledo high school with the class of 1896. After his graduation he engaged in the profession of teaching and became township superintendent of the schools in Richfield township, Lucas county, Ohio. He continued in this capacity until 1900, when. he came to Continental and took a place in the Bank of Continental. He began here as a bookkeeper, but a year or so later became cashier and has held this position since that time. Mr. Palmer has proved himself an able business man. He quickly grasped the details of the' banking business, and is naturally courteous and accommodating to the patrons of the bank. Nevertheless, he is firm, as one should be who handles money for others.

Mr. Palmer was married to Mae Edwards on November 19, 1908. Sheis the daughter of Joseph Edwards and wife of Leipsic, and to this union-. one son, Carleton Paul, Jr., has been born.

Mr. Palmer is a prominent Mason, having attained to the thirty-second' degree in that order, and is also a member of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. Although a comparatively young man, he is one whose counsels are widely sought in financial and commercial transactions, and a man whohas easily taken foremost rank in the commercial life of Continental arid Monroe township. Mrs. Palmer is popular in Monroe township and active in many enterprises which call for the talent of women. She is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and contributes liberally to its moral uplift in the community.

Isaac S. Rickard

There are many excellent farmers in Van Buren township, Putnam county, Ohio, and among these may be mentioned Isaac S. Rickard, who hasbeen engaged in agricultural pursuits in this township since 1894. ' As a lad he was compelled to help support the family on account of his four elder brothers serving in the Union army, and the experience he gained in his youthhas been of invaluable benefit to him. Thrown early on his own resources he has developed a self-reliant spirit and a resourcefulness which has made him the prosperous farmer he is today. He is a man of high ideals and sterhng mtegrity and a great worker in the church.

Isaac S. Rickard, the son of Andrew Jackson and Hannah (Rockwell) Rickard, was born in Chautauqua county, New York, July 12, 1852 His father was born in New England and moved from New York to Medina Ohio, m 1854, but remained in that city only a short time. He then removed: with his family to a farm east of East Milan, in Erie county, Ohio, where he farmed for a time; His next move was to a farm west of East Milan, on which he lived until 1861. In that year he moved to Wood county, Ohio, located on a farm near Bowling Green, and lived here during the Civil War. Later, he settled on a farm east of Bowling Green and lived on this farm until the death of his first wife. A few years later he married Mrs. Porter, but there were no children born to his second marriage. To his first marriage there were born eleven children, eight sons and three daughters, Ellen T., the wife of Henry Gross, 'and has eight children; Zina, who married Martha Sopher, and has eight children; Jacob, who is married and has one child; George W., who married Phlena Sopher, and has four children; Orange J.,' who married Jeanette McDonald, and has nine children; Elizabeth, the wife -of WiUiam Sheets, and has five children, one of whom is deceased; Isaac S., of Putnam county; Phillip W., who married Julia Rathburn; John F., who married Emma Rathburn, and has one child, deceased; Lydia, who died at the age of nine, and Nathan B., who married Flora Taft, and has two children.

Isaac S. Rickard spent his boyhood days in Wood county, where he r^eived a limited education in the rude district schools. When the Civil War broke out, though he was only nine years of age, he began to take an active part in the support of the family, his four elder brothers having gone to the front when it became necessary for him to take part of the burden of the family support on his own shoulders. He remained at home until he was married, at the age of twenty, and then began working on a farm near Toledo, Ohio. During the twenty years which elapsed from the time of his marriage until he permanently located in Putnam county, he lived in several places. After working a short time near Toledo, he moved to Miami, Ohio, thence to Milan, in Erie county, and worked in the latter place for about nine years. His next change took him to Wood county, where he located four miles northwest of Milton Center, and where his wife died. After her death he moved to Milton Center, in which place he remained until his second marriage m the fall of 1893. In the following year he moved to Putnam county and located in Van Buren township, where he has since resided.

Mr. Rickard was first married on November 24, 1873, to Madora Jane Sheets, the daughter of Albert Sheets. She was born in Wood county, Ohio March 12, 1855, and spent her girlhood days in the same county. To this first union of Isaac S. Rickard were born four children, Melville, who married Julia Cuisno, died January 9, 1915, they have one daughter, Sadie- Fanny M., the wife of Hiram Cain, has two children, Emma, and Madora' deceased; Albert, who died at the age of nine, and one who died in infancy. The first wife of Mr. Rickard died in May, 1887, and on August 20, 1893, he was married to Mrs. Sarah C. (Simonds) Eastom, a daughter of Justice and Lourana (Morehead) Simonds. She was born near Gilboa, Putnam county, Ohio. There were no children to this second marriage.

Justice Simonds, the father of Mrs. Rickard, was born in New Hampshire, February 10, 1809, the son of Jonathan and Sophia (Sanborn) Simonds, who were of New England stock and natives of New Hampshire. When Justice Simonds was a small boy, his parents moved to Medina, Orleans county. New York, and here he was bound out to learn the trade of a millwright. In Orleans county. New York, the mother of Justice Simonds died, and, after growing to maturity. Justice Simonds moved from New York state to Putnam county, Ohio, where he continued to follow his trade as a millwright. Among other pioneer buildings, he helped to construct the Charles Harmon mill on the Blanchard river. Ju.stice Simonds was married in 1840 to Lourana Morehead, a daughter of Alexander Morehead. She was born on May 8, 1822, and died in July, 1895. Justice Simonds and wife were the parents of nine children, Sanborn, who died in infancy; George, who married Mollie Foltz, and died June 25, 1908; Sarah, the wife of Mr! Rickard; Jeanette, the wife of David Redding, who died in January, 1911; Elmira, the wife of Andrew Fike; Mary Ann, deceased, who was married, respectively, to Martin Wert, James Boyer and William Tuller ; Eliza, the wife of William Bryan; Louminda, the wife of Charles Farquharson; John, who died at the age of twenty-one.

After his marriage. Justice Simonds lived for several years on a farm near Gilboa, but, in 1860, removed to another farm three miles north of Leipsic, where he lived until his death, April 25, 1885. Sarah Simonds, the wife of Mr. Rickard, was first married to Frank Eastom, March 21, 1863, and to her first marriage one son, George, was born. He married Bertha Steffer, of Hamilton, Ohio, September 20, 1895, and now makes his home in Denver, Colorado. George Eastom and wife are the parents of four children, Frank, Helen and George are living, and Bertha is deceased. George Eastom is in the real estate and machinery business in Denver.

Mr. Rickard and his wife are loyal members of the Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Rickard was ordained in the ministry of the Church of Christ, about twenty-five years ago, but has since transferred his membership to the Methodlist church. He has preached for four or five years, but has devoted the greater part of his life to farming, although he has always been very active in all church work. He is a man highly respected and honored in his community, where he has lived a life of usefulness.

Christian Davis

The specific history of the great Middle West was made by the pioneers, and it is not necessary to trace it back farther than a generation in order toreach the pioneers who were instrumental in founding this great territory. In fact, there are many men yet living who played important parts in the foundation and development of Ohio and neighboring states. Those pioneers who built their rude homes in the forests, which then covered this country, and turned the wilderness into broad stretches of fertile and cultivated fields, were hardy and industrious men of the finest type. To have established, or to have aided in the work which established, a home amid such surroundings, and to cope with the many privations and hardships which were the inevitable concomitants, demanded an invincible courage and fortitude, strong hearts and willing hands. All those were characteristics of the pioneers, whose names and deeds should be held in perpetual reverence by those who enjoy the fruits of their toil, and among that number is the gentleman whose name appears at the head of this sketch, and who for many years has been numbered among the most prominent citizens of Putnam county.

Christian Davis was born in Monroe county, Ohio, April 8, 1843, ^ son of Michael and Catherine (Stauffer) Davis. Michael Davis, his father, was born in Pennsylvania in 1875. Little is known of his early life in Pennsylvania, except that he left there in the early days and came to Wayne county, Ohio. There he met the subject's mother, Mrs. Catherine (Staufifer) Lugibihl, to whom he was married.

Mrs. Davis was born in Basel, Switzerland, where she spent her youth and where she was married to Mr. Lugibihl. To that union w* born one daughter, Catherine. Shortly after her birth, Mr. Lugibihl died, and his wife and child came to America, where she entered the employment of Mr. Pixel, of Wayne county, Ohio, in which position she worked until her marriage with Mr. Davis.

After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Davis moved to Monroe county, where Michael Davis had purchased a small farm. There they lived for about ten years, when Mr. Davis died, at the age of forty-seven. Four children had born to Mr. and Mrs. Davis, Fannie, deceased, who was the wife of Anthony Sawin, and to whom three children were born; Rebecca, deceased, who was the wife of Andy Foy, to whom three children were born; John, who married Magdalena Moser, and to whom one son was born, and Christian, the subject of this sketch.

After her husband's death, Mrs. Davis moved to Putnam county and settled on forty acres of farm land one and one-half miles southwest of Pandora, in Riley township. This land she had purchased previous to moving to Putnam county, with money which she had earned and saved prior to her marriage to Mr. Davis. About five years later, when the subject of this sketch was nine years of age, Mrs. Davis was married a third time, her third husband having been Jacob Hipscher. Mr. and Mrs. Hipscher lived together until 1883, when Mrs. Hipscher came to live with her son. Christian, with whom she remained until her death in 1891, thus ending a useful and life.

At the age of nine years, Christian Davis left home and went to live with his uncle, Christian Basinger, where he remained for nearly two years. He then lived with Abraham Detwiler, with whom, also, he remained for two years. After having left Mr. Detwiler's home, the subject shifted for himself, working on the various farms and at various other occupations until he was twenty-six years of age. When he was about twenty years old, in 1863, he went with a friend, Henry Griswire, to Ontario, Canada, where they remained three years. From there the subject of this sketch went to Michigan, where he worked in the pineries for about a year.

When Mr. Davis was twenty-six years of age he married Elizabeth Schmitz, who was born in Baden, Germany, August 17, 1844, a daughter of Abraham and Christina Schmitz. After his marriage, Mr. Davis and Nick Shively erected a saw-mill in Riley township, which they operated for four years. At the end of that time Mr. Davis sold his share in the mill and bought forty acres of farm land, two miles west of Pandora, Riley township.

There was a small frame house and a barn on the farm when he settled there, in which he made his home. Later he purchased another farm of forty acres, which adjoined his original holdings on the north. He built a larger house on his new land, and still occupies it. Sometime after this he bought out the heirs of his mother's farm of forty acres, which he eventually sold. He still retains his farm of eighty acres.

To Mr. and Mrs. Christian Davis eight children were born, as follow : -Gideon B., who was born on August 28, 1869, and died in 1908; Katharina, who was born on March 19, 1871, and died 1893. She was the wife of Amos Gratz and the mother of one child, Clyde, who died when two years of age; Christina was born on May 28, 1872, and is the wife of Seth Basinger, to them three children, Ula, Clyde and Clitus, have been born ; Itha, born on -June 3, 1874, is the wife of Lawn Scheets and has four children,

Edna, Leila, Mahala and Evangeline; Emma, born on December 15, 1876, is unmarried and lives at home; Karolina, born on December 30, 1878, died on January 18, 1880; Elizabeth, born on June 30, 1880, is the wife of Rayton Core and has two children, Arlena and Raymond; Mina was bom yn September 20, 1883, and is the wife of Hiram Basinger.

Mr. Davis has always done general farming and has been very successful. A few j^ears ago he devoted considerable attention to the buying and feeding of cattle for market, a business in which he met with great success.

Mr. Davis is a supporter of the Democratic party. For several years he has served his community as a school director, and has also been for a number of years a supervisor, conducting the affairs of both offices to the complete satisfaction of the citizens.

Mr. Davis is one of Riley township's best-known citizens and is highly respected by all his neighbors. He is a man of many sterling qualities and of unquestioned integrity.

Guy R. Coit

It is not an easy task to describe adequately the career of a man who has led an eminently active and busy life and who has obtained a position of relative distinction in the community with which his interests are allied. Biography, however, finds a most perfect justification in tracing and recording the main point in such a life history. With a full appreciation of all that is demanded, and with a satisfaction that is keenly felt, the biographer undertakes to point out a few facts in the career of Guy R. Coit, a well-known real estate and insurance dealer, at Kalida, Ohio, and at present the mayor of Kalida.

Guy R. Coit was born in Vaughnsville, Ohio, in Sugar Creek township, November 20, 1880. Mr. Coit left Vaughnsville, Ohio, at the age of four years and grew up in Kalida, where he received his education. He worked at different occupations until 1903, when he started in the real estate business at that place. He is still actively engaged in this business. He is also engaged in the loan, and insurance business and has had a lucrative patronage from the time he started. Mr. Coit was cashier of the Peoples Banking Company at Kalida for about twenty months, and city clerk of Kalida during 1907 and 1908. He has been councilman for some years and is now mayor of Kalida, having been elected to this position in the fall of. 191 1.

of Jackson township, Putnam county, Ohio, and a daughter of John L. and Lydia (Sybert) Downing. John L. Downing, at present a stave jointer at Piggott, Arkansas, was born near West Cairo, AUen county, Ohio, February 21, 1859, and was married in 1877 at VaughnsviUe, Ohio, to Lydia Ana Sybert, who was born in 1857, near Bluff ton, Allen county, Ohio. ' John L. Downing was the son of John Downing, who was born near West Cairo,, Ohio, in 1820 and who died in 1861. John Downing married Rebecca Foster, who was born in 1823, in Allen county, Ohio, and died in 1864. They had the following children: John L., of Piggott, Arkansas; Mary C, of Winfield, Kansas, and Harrison, who died in infancy. John Downing was the son of Adam Downing, who was of Irish descent and a pioneer in this section of the country and who is believed to have fought the Indians. Adam Downing married Sarah Allen, who was of Welsh descent and a native of eastern Ohio.

Mrs. Lydia Ann (Sybert) Downing was the daughter of Barney and Effie (Long) Sybert, the former of whom died in 1861, and the latter in 1890. They were the parents of the following children: William, Ann, Chnt, George, Hobert, Henry, Benjamin, Louisa, Alice, Sarah, Lydia, Daniel and Hiram.

John L. and Lydia Ann Downing were the parents of the followingchildren: George, born in 1877, who lives at Piggott, Arkansas; Joe, borrb in 1880, who married Blanche Sellers, lives in Boynton, Arkansas, and has five children; Armena, Georgia, Lavern, Zelma and Mary; Mrs. Louisa Mack, born in 1882, who lives at Nimmons, Arkansas. She was married at Defiance, Ohio, in 1900, and has four children, Georgia, Russell, Jessie and Clarence; Mrs. Pearl Little, born in 1883, is married and has nine children, Jemima, Gladys, Hazel, Beulah, Vellam, Genevieve, Clayton, Edna and John - Grover, born in 1885, married Grace Palmondon in 1905, and has two children, his wife died in 1908; Mildred, who lives at Boynton, Arkansas, married Girty Strats and has one child, Viola; William Wallace, born in 1886, who lives at Maiden, Missouri, married Mary Jaunt in 1907, and has three children, Franklin, Leonard and Sherman; Effie, born in 1887, married Mr. Coit.

To Mr. and Mrs. Coit five children have been born, Guy, Dorland, Doyle, Fremont and Helen. He is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons at Kalida. He is also a member of the chapter and council. He is one of the leaders in the councils of the Republican -party in this section of

Ohio, and to him perhaps more than to any other man, the state leaders of the party look for a substantial vote from Putnam county. Mr. and Mrs. Coit are members of the Methodist Episcopal church at Kalida, where he is a trustee of the church and has taught a Sunday school class for the past seven years. Mr. Coit's family are also members of this church. Guy R. Coit is a "mixer" and a man who attends strictly to his own business. He has a host of friends and is widely known throughout Putnam county. He is -known as a booster for all city improvements and, although he is progressive m spirit, he is a quiet man and a deep thinker. He is a man who has succeeded largely because of his capacity for devoting himself to details.

Peter A. Amstutz

The two most strongly marked characteristics of both the east and the -west are combined in the residents of Ohio. The enthusiastic enterprise which overleaps all obstacles and makes possible almost any undertaking in the comparatively new and vigorous western states is here tempered by the stable and more careful policies that we have borrowed from our eastern neighbors. The combination is one of unusual force and power. It has been the means of placing this section of the country on a par with the older east, and at the same time producing a reliability and certainty in business affairs which are frequently lacking in the west. This happy combination is also possessed, in a notable degree, by Peter A. Amstutz, for several years now the efficient cashier of the Farmers Banking Company of Pandora. He is too well known to the readers of this volume to need any formal introduction here, for his name is deeply fixed in the financial, commercial, professional and industrial history of this section of the state. Mr. Amstutz, himself,^ is filling a large place in the public affairs of his community. He is recognized as a man of strong and alert mentality, deeply interested in eveiything that pertains to the welfare of the community. He is a progressive and enterprising business man and a representative citizen of Riley township and Putnam county.

Peter A. Amstutz was born on February q, 1868, in Riley township, Putnam county, Ohio, the son of Abraham M. and Catherine (Hilty) Amstutz the former of whom was born on September 20, 1844, in Richland township,' Allen county, Ohio, and the latter was born on April 19, 1848, in Richland -^township, Allen county, Ohio.

stutz. John Amstutz was born in Switzerland and came to America in 1840 with his wife and three children. They settled in Richland township, Allen county, Ohio, near Bluffton. John Amstutz was a farmer in Switzerland and the Amstutz family was an old one in the community from which he came. It is related that the name Amstutz originated from a family by the name of Stutz who lived on a hill, the German prefix "am" meaning "on the," being prefixed' to the name Stutz and resulting in the final Amstutz, which means "on the hill." Another explanation of the name Amstutz is gi\'en, which says that Stutz means a "steep hill," or rather "a bluff" or "precipice." Perhaps a John Stutz lived at or near to this bluff or precipice, and, to distinguish him from other Johns, it was said that he was John Amstutz, meaning the John who lived by the precipice.

John Amstutz and his little family were fifty-two days on a sailing vessel in coming to America. They came directly to Allen county, where John Amstutz settled on a farm just north of Bluffton. After two years he removed to a farm one-half mile south of Columbia, later called Pendleton, and, still later. Pandora. Here he made his future home, clearing the land and draining it. He built an adobe house of mud and straw about 1855, a part of which is standing today. The mud and straw were mixed by oxen trained for the feat. In addition to being a faimer, John Amstutz was a minister in the Mennonite church and was an active minister until the time of his death. He was also a mechanic of considerable ability, and in the -early days he made spinning wheels for spinning both wool and cotton. After spending a most useful life, he died at a ripe old age, in 1858, on the old homestead south of Pandora.

John and Barbara Amstutz were the parents of five children, three of the eldest having been born in Switzerland, and the two youngest in Allen and Putnam counties. All lived to maturity. They were : Fannie, the wife of Jonas Amstutz, both deceased ; Marian, the wife of Abraham Bixter, both Christian, who married Barbara Schuhmacher, both deceased; Abraham, who married Catherine Hilty, the parents of Peter A. ; Peter M.,' deceased, who had three wives, Anna Light, deceased. Belle Sitlemeyer, deceased, and Mrs. Downing.

Abraham M. Amstutz spent his boyhood on the old homestead and here grew to manhood. He attended the common schools and at the age of twenty-two was married to Catherine Hilty, the daughter of Peter and Elizabeth (Neuensch wander) Hilty, both natives of Switzerland, who came to America in the early days. They settled in Richland township, Allen county, Ohio, four miles west of Blufifton. They were the parents of eleven children: Isaac, John, Barbara, Benjamin, Catherine, Noah, Mary (deceased), Sarah (deceased), Peter, Samuel and Elizabeth (deceased). The parents of these children spent the remainder of their lives on the old homestead in Allen county, and it was here that Mrs. Amstutz grew to womanhood, received her early education and remained until she was married. She was married in January, 1866, at the age of eighteen.

After their marriage they settled on a portion of the old John Amstutz homestead, south of Pandora. Here Abraham Amstutz pursued farming until he retired and moved to Pandora, in 1908. He has been a successful farmer and stock raiser. He is an ardent Democrat and was president of the township school board for a number of years. He is a man possessed of strong civic pride, of sterling integrity and is held in high esteem by his fellow citizens. He is also an active and consistent member of the Grace Mennonite church and was trustee in the old Swiss church. Abraham M. and Catherine Amstutz have had eleven children: Peter, the subject of this sketch; Barbara, the wife of Jacob Suter; John, who married Susan Basinger; Elizabeth, the wife of Elias Welty; Levina, the deceased wife of John Gerber ; Amos, who died in infancy ;_ Llewellyn, who first married Nona Lora and later Delia Suter; Albert, who married Malinda Gratz; Edwin, who died at the age of five years; Mary, the wife of A. J. Welty, and Selma, the wife of William Lugibihl.

Peter A. Amstutz was born on the old home place, south of Pandora, and lived there until 1891, when he was twenty-three years of age. Here he received his early education and here he lived while he was a student in the high school at Pandora and Crawfis College. During his boyhood he helped his father on the farm, and later taught school. When he was twenty-three years old he took a clerkship in a general store in Columbus Grove and held this position for six years.

Mr. Amstutz was married, at the age of twenty-four, on January 5, 1893, to Persis Basinger, the daughter of Jacob C. and Mary (Basinger) Basinger. She was born on November 19, 1870, in Riley township, Putnam county, Ohio. Her people were pioneers of Putnam county. To this happy union six children have been born : Orpha E., who is a student at Ohio State University; William B., who is a student at Bliss College, at Columbus; Harley C, who is a student in the high school; Wendell H. and Margaret J.,' who are both at home and attending the graded school, and Roland, who died at the age of seven months.

year and then took a partner, the new firm becoming P. A. Amstutz & Company. This business was conducted with marked success until 1903, when Mr. Amstutz bought a farm in Richland township, Allen county, which he operated for one year. He then made a short stay in Petoskey, Michigan, after which he purchased an interest in the Pandora Hardware Company, in the fall of 1905. Mr. Amstutz controlled a half interest in this concern and withdrew from the active management of it in the fall of 1909. At this time Mr. Amstutz was elected cashier of the Farmers Banking Company, of Pandora, which position he still holds. Previously he had been a director of the bank, which position he still retains.

Peter A. Amstutz is a Democrat, and has served as township clerk for three terms. He was also clerk of the school board. He is a prominent member and one of the founders of the Grace Mennonite church. He has been secretary and treasurer of this congregation since its organization. Mr. Amstutz has been a successful business man and banker in this community for several years. He stands high in the vicinity in which he lives, and no better evidence of this fact is required than reference to the many positions of trust and responsibility which he has held and which he now occupies He IS an upright citizen, a good neighbor and a fine father. His character and mtegrity are above question, and it is to him that the best people of the community come for counsel and advice, which Mr. Amstutz is eminently qualified to give. He is present mayor of Pandora, his term to expire in 1916. He was president of the city council of Pandora for four years

Charles Fremont Alkire

Men who take an active interest in public questions are ever honored by their community. They are known as leaders, and by their helpfulness and counsel contribute materially to the public welfare. A man of this

Mn Alkire who is one of the most successful farmers of Putnam county IS descended from a hne of illustrious ancestors, men who fought in dfe early wars of th.s country and who did their part in their day and gene in Madison county, Ohio, December 25, 1826, and he was the son of William M. and Hannah (Osborn) Alkire. William M. Allaire was born on November 10, 1799, in Kentucky, and he was the son of Wilham and (More) Alkire. Wilham Alkire was born in 1751, in Germany, and married in 1778. He came to America prior to the American Revolution, settlmg in Kentucky. Here William M., his son, was born on November 10, 1799. William M. was a millwright by trade and served in the War of 1812. He came to Madison county when a young man and was married here on December 4, 1822, to Hannah Osborn, who was born in Virginia on August 11, 1804. She died on April 15, 1843, in that portion of Putnam county which later became a part of Allen county. William M. died at the home of his son, George W., north of Pandora, on January 25, 1886. He had come to Putnam county in 1834, when George W was eight years old, and later settled in the north part of Richland township, Allen county, entering land from the government, and passing through all the pioneer experiences common to his day and generation. After his wife's death, he traded his homestead for a store at Pandora, traded the store for eighty acres in Defiance county. Subsequently, he made his home with his son, George W., who was then living at Pandora.

George W. Alkire was reared as a farm boy and was one of six children, Edwards P. served in the Civil War and lived in Manistee county, Michigan,' Richard was a farmer m Putnam county; Madison an orange grower in Cahtornia; and John in Picqua county, Ohio, and Adam, of Riverside, California. George W. Alkire was married in 1851, to Miss Catherine Hart, daughter of John and Mary (Meng) Hart, both natives of Pennsylvania. John Hart came to Putnam county in 1842, entered land in the fall. He was three times married. He first married Mary Meng, three of whose children died in infancy, the others being, Mrs. Alkire, Elizabeth, Mrs. Dora Brown, Absalom, Samuel, John F and Margaret. Mary Menc^ Hart died in i866, after which Mr. Hart removed to Allen county, where he died m 1887. He and his wife were members of the Presbvterian church. George W. Alkire and wife were the parents of six children, 'four of whom were reared to maturity,. John A., of Valparaiso, Indiana; Charles Fremont of Putnam county; William H.. also of Putnam county, and Mary E the wife of James Preston. Mr. and Mrs. George Alkire were members of the Presbyterian church.

diaries Fremont Alkire remained in Pandora with his parents until he was seven years old, when they moved one and one-half miles north of Pandora. Here Charles Fremont spent his boyhood days on the old home place, alternating the summer and winter months between the district school and his father's farm, until, at the age of nineteen, when, with his brothers John and William, farmed the home place for one year. For the ensuing three years he and his younger brother, William, farmed it together, and for the next two Charles farmed the place alone.

About this time, on January 19, 1882, Mr. Alkire was married to Minerva Kellen, the daughter of John and Catherine (Joseph) Kellen. Mrs. Alkire was born on December 7, 1857. She died on December 19, 1882. One child, Mary C, was born to this union. She now resides with Mr. Alkire. After suffering the great misfortune of Mrs. AJkire's death, Mr. Alkire was joined again by his younger brother William and together they farmed the home place for two years. In the fall of 1885, Mr. Alkire was married to Maiy Mallahan, who was born in Hancock county, August 3, 1857, and who is the daughter of Charles F and Jane (Downing) Mallahan. Charles F. Mallahan died on December 30, 1877, just before he was to have taken the office of county commissioner, to which he had previously been elected. Charles F Mallahan's grandfather and John Downing were under the command of General Hull when he surrendered Detroit. They saw General Cass break his sword rather than to surrender it to the British. Charles F. Mallahan was born on September 26, 1818, in Fairfield county, Ohio. He was the son of Thompson and Sarah (Clymer) Mallahan, the former a native of Kentucky and the latter a native of Maryland. Thompson Mallahan died in Fairfield county in 1833, when Charles F. was fifteen years of age. Jane (Downing) Mallahan was born on January 25, 1817, in' Pike county, Ohio and was the daughter of John and Mary (Boiler) Downing, the former a native of Virginia.

After his second marriage, Mr. Alkire continued farming on the old home place for two years. In the spring of 1888, he moved to a farm of seventy-five acres, which was a part of the old Mallahan place in the northwest part of Riley township. Mr. and Mrs. Alkire moved into an old house on the place, where he immediately erected a new building. The place had an old log barn which served two years, which was supplanted by a smaller frame buildmg. He built a large and commodious barn in 1897, and since that time has added other improvements in keeping with the surroundings

By this -second marriage three children have been born, Charles G was born on October 19, 1887, and died on August 27, 1888; Clifford M was born on February 17, 1891 ; Ralph M. was born on August 29, 1898 Clifford M. and Ralph M. are both unmarried and live at home.

Mr. Alkire is a Republican. Mrs. Alkire is a member of the Christian church. Charles Fremont Alkire is a clean-cut, progressive farmer, coming from an old pioneer family. He enjoys the respect of his fellow citizens and his integrity has always been above question.

John Habegger

Putnam county, Ohio, enjoys a remarkable reputation on account of the high order of its citizenship, none of whom occupies a more enviable position in the esteem of his fellows than John Habegger, a successful farmer of Riley township, who has lived here practically all his life. A residence in Putnam county of sixty years has given his neighbors and the men with whom he has been associated a full opportunity to observe him in the various spheres of endeavor and activity in which he has been engaged. His present high standing is due solely to his honorable and upright career. As a leading citizen of Riley township and Putnam county, Mr. Harbegger is eminently entitled to representation in a work of this character.

John Habegger was born on March 17, 1856, in Riley township, Putnam county, Ohio. He is a son of John and Elizabeth (Steiner) Habegger. John Habegger, Sr.., was born in 181 1 in the canton of Berne, Switzerland, and came to America with his parents at the age of twenty-two or about 1833. They came direct to Putnam county, where they settled in' Riley township, on what is now known as the Fred Welty farm, about three miles east of Pandora. John Habegger, Sr., was married shortly after his arrival in this country to Elizabeth Steiner. She was a native of Switzerland and likewise came to America with her parents, making the voyage in about two months. Her parents settled in Putnam county, where she was married

John Habegger, Sr., lived for about two years on the place east of Pandora, and was employed during this time by some of the early settlers of this part of the county. In the meantime, he purchased forty acres of land two and one-half miles north of Pandora and moved to this farm This land was m the virgin forest and was covered with water during a part of the year. He first built a log cabin in the woods and cleared a little patch of ground. During the larger part of his younger married life he was compelled to continue his labors for other settlers on account of high waters

-on his farm. It was a good many years before this part of the country was ditched. It is related by Mr. Habegger's son that in those early days the pioneers were compelled to carry supplies to their farms on their backs. Some years later, Mr. Habegger bought a block of four hundred and eighty acres of land from the Hilty estate, adjoining his land on the south. This land he purchased with the understanding that his neighbors would help him out by taking a part of the same ofif his hands. They, however, did not fulfill their part of the agreement as he expected, and though he finally disposed of the greater part of this tract, it was at a greatly reduced price and he barely got out of it what he had paid for it. He managed to retain one hundred and twenty acres for his eldest son and twenty acres for himself. Subsequently, he managed to get his farm all cleared up and drained. He -built a substantial frame house and barn.

Mr. and Mrs. John Habegger, Sr., were the parents of nine children: Barbara, the wife of Nicholas Kaufifman; Christina, the wife of Christian JSFeuenschwander ; Isaac, who married Rebecca Shank; Anna, the wife of Samuel Kohl; Mary, who first married John Neuenschwander, and, after his death, Frank Pelzel; Catherine, the wife of Peter Nusbaum; Elizabeth, the wife of Henry Smutz; Mary Ann became the wife of Joel Basinger, and John, the immediate subject of this sketch.

John Habegger, Sr., died about 1885, at the ripe old age of seventyfour years. One year later, his wife, who was born in 1812, died at the same age. They were both members of the Mennonite church and lived consistent Christian lives.

John Habegger, Jr., was born on the old homestead, and here spent .his childhood and youth, attending the district schools, and assisting his father with the work on the farm.

Mr. Habegger was married on December 28, 1876, at the age of twenty, to Angeline Reed, who was born in Blanchard township, in this county, about two miles west of Gilboa, on July 9, 1857. She is a daughter of George and Elizabeth (Parks) Reed, the former a son of John and Mary Reed, was a native of Pennsylvania. He came to Muskingum county, Ohio, in an early day, where he met and married his wife, Elizabeth Parks, the daughter of Doctor Parks and wife. After his marriage in Muskingum county, he moved to Hancock county, Ohio, and after living here for about ten or twelve years, moved to Blanchard township, Putnam county, Ohio, where his daughter, Angeline, the wife of Mr. Habegger, was born. George and Elizabeth Reed were the parents of ten children, one of whom died at birth. The others were as follows: Margaret, the wife of Jacob Nicewander;

John, who marned Ada Crawfis; Mary, who became the wife of Nicholas Miller; Anna, who died in infancy; George, who first married Eliza Emmons and later Cynthia Henderson; Angeline, the wife of Mr Habegger- Sarah, the wife of Henry Kitchener; Isadore, the wife of John DeVore'' Herman, whose first wife was Ella Snyder.

After his marriage Mr. Habegger worked on the neighboring farms ior about a year, and then rented the home place, where he has lived ever' since. About two years after his father's death, Mr. Habegger bought the old home place from the other heirs, and it has remained in his possession since that date. John Habegger, Jr., has been a hard-working and industrious farmer, and by dint of energy has greatly improved the home place until today he has one of the nicest farms of its size in Riley township

Mr. and Mrs. Habegger have had two children, Clara Elizabeth bora on xMovember 14, 1877, is the wife of Curtis Franchauser, of Pandorl and they have two children, Amy Grace and John Laurel; Herman Otto', the younger child of Mr. and Mrs. Habegger, was born on August x., 880! and died on August 3, 1882.

Mn Habegger is a Democrat, but has never been active in the councils of his party, although he takes a worthy interest in public affairs He attends the Methodist Episcopal church, of which his wife's a membe:: Mr Habegger is a member of the Knights of Pythias Lodge No. 509, at Pandora'^ He IS one of the most favorably known men m Riley township, a progressive farmer and a genial, good-natured, honorable citizen.

William W. Smith

. yhen a good man passes away, then do people mourn; his family, his friends, his fe low citizens, with whom he has labored for the common good bo.w their heads m grief. He is no more, yet his works go on and on. Ther;

The late William W. Smith, former editor and publisher of the Leipsic Free Press, was a son of John and Mary Jane (Boylan) Smith. John SnS was a son of Nimrod and Mary (Sauer) Smith, the ormer of whonrw a native of Pennsylvania, who settled in Stark county, Ohio, in an early day. Subsequently, he removed to Hancock county, where he died as the consequence of an accident. Nimrod Smith was one of the pioneers of his da)', fond of hunting and fishing. John Smith was born on November 19, 1826,. in Stark county, and was reared as a fanner. He was twice married, first on June 14, 1849, to Jane Boylan, who died on August 28, 185 1. To this union were born two children, namely: Maroa J., the wife of Irvin Blair, of Hubbard, Iowa, and William W., the immediate subject of this sketch. The second wife of John Smith was Susan Farver, to whom he was married on May 25, 1854. To this marriage seven children were born : Mary E., born on March 15, 1855, married David Hoskins, and died on September 5, 1880; Eugene F., born on February 28, 1857, and died on April 6, 1877;: Clarissa A., born on December 5, 1858, died on February 26, 1873; Benjamin M., born on March 27, 1862, died on September 25, 1863; Norris A., born on March 18, 1864, died on March 31, T877; Cora M., born on January- u, 1867, is the wife of Otto Hannan; Burton S., born on January 6, 1870, died on -March 29, 1877. Of this large family, only two children are living, Mrs. Cora Harmon, of Los Angeles, Cahfornia, and Mrs. Maroa Blair, of Hubbard, Iowa. The venerable John Smith, the father of these children, is still hale and hearty at the advanced age of eighty-eight.

William W. Smith was born on a farm in Blanchard township, Hancock county, Ohio, April 5, 1850. He moved to Putnam county with his parents in 1855, locating on a farm east of Gilboa.

Mr. Smith attended the country schools, and was such an earnest student that at the age of fifteen he was able to obtain a teachers certificate, and began teaching in 1865. With the exception of a few years spent in the Findlay high school, and at Heidelberg College, at Tiffin, Ohio, Mr. Smith, followed the occupation of a teacher until 1878. He came to Leipsic in i8'"o and was married on August 27, 1874, to Viola Baughman, the youngest daughter of Abraham Baughman and wife. Mr. Smith founded the Leipsic Free Press in 1878. His first paper was issued on September i ^, 1878. His whole life was devoted to this paper and its interests. Space was always given in aid to all good causes, and, with it as an instrument, Mr. Smith probably did more good than any other man in Leipsic. Pie was always on the right side of all local c|uestions, and the columns of the Free Press were ever open to discussion of topics for the good of the communitv. He \\as broad and sympathetic, quick to distinguish the right, and not slow to take a decided stand for it. His editorials were little sermons in themselves, and went forth to cheer many a weary soul upon his way to better Hving. His whole aim was to bring his paper and his print shop to the highest standard, and to this end he devoted every moment possible, and until just before his death, February i6, 19 12, he was in his editorial chair, guiding and directing his paper.

Mr. and Mrs. WilHam W. Smith were the parents of two sons, Clyde L. and George F. Clyde is now a practicing physician at Fremont, Ohio, and George F. succeeded his father as editor of the Leipsic Free Press.

Mr. Smith was an ardent Democrat, and took an active interest in the councils of his party. He was postmaster of Leipsic, at one time, filling this position to the entire satisfaction of the patrons. Mr. Smith was a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, from the blue lodge to the thirtysecond degree, and next to his family and his work, he loved this fraternal order. He was affiliated with the Leipsic lodge, the encampment of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and also a member of the Leipsic lodge of Knights of Pythias. Mr. Smith was a devoted and earnest member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and the Sabbath always found him in his church pew, an attentive listener to the pastor.

It seems fitting to close this sketch with a tribute made to the late Mr. Smith at the time of his death : "Loving and generous even to a fault, there was nothing father could do that was not done. He was a dutiful husband, always considerate of every wish of his devoted wife and their two children. He is gone, but the loving deeds of husband and father will ever remain a sweet memory of one who has made the world better by living in it."

Christian A. Hart

Among the families of Putnam county, Ohio, whose members have worthily discharged their duties to their fellows and to their communities, no family takes higher rank than that of the Hart family. For many years the members of this family have stood for all that is best in business, educational, moral and social life, and have wielded an influence that is potential in the development and welfare of this county. Christian A. Hart is numbered among the enterprising and progressive citizens of Putnam county. Because of the prominence which the family has enjoyed and the close relation they have attained to the welfare and prosperity of the locality, hon-

Christian A. Hart was born on December 30, 1862, in Pleasant township, Putnam county, Ohio, the son of Samuel L. and Anna (Amstutz) Hart. Samuel L. Hart was born on January 13, 1840, the son of John S. Hart. John S. Hart was a native of Pennsylvania and came to Ohio in an day, settling in the southeast part of Pleasant township. Here Samuel L,. Hart was reared and, here also. Christian A. Hart was born. When Christian A. Hart was three years old, his mother died and he was taken care of by a paternal uncle, John, and his sister, Margaret. He continued in their care for about two years, or until Samuel L. Hart had been married a second time to Sarah Kaufman, when he was again taken care of by his father and foster mother. Christian A. Hart had a younger brother, John S., and an elder sister, Mary, who were children by the first marriage. After Samuel L. Hart was married the second time, he and his family moved one and one-fourth miles north of Pandora and here Christian A. Hart spent his childhood and youth. Here he attended the district schools and helped his father on the farm. He also helped to clear away the timber.

After finishing the district schools, he attended Otterbein College, where he took a normal course- of three terms. After that he again returned home and continued to help his father until he was married at the age of twenty-two.

Christian A. Hart was married on December 17, 1885, to Abbie Amanda Reeves, who was born just east of Pandora, October 4, i860, and who is the daughter of Finley and Elizabeth (Herron) Reeves. Finley Reeves was born in Tuscarawas county, June 6, 1820. His parents were both natives of Pennsylvania. Finley Reeves and family moved to Putnam county in 1859 and settled in Riley township on a farm of one hundred and twenty acres just east of Pandora. Here he lived until his death in June, 1891. His wife died on February 13, 1879. It was here that Mrs. Hart was born and reared and attended the public schools of Pandora. After leaving the common schools, she attended the Columbus Grove high school, and following this, took a special normal course at the Northern Ohio Normal University, at Ada. Upon finishing this course, she taught school for five years, or until her marriage in 1885.

After his marriage, Christian A. Hart purchased a farm one-half mile north of Pandora. This farm contained seventy-nine acres and here he and his wife lived for nine years. Mr. Hart then sold out and moved to Pandora, where he continued in the live stock business in which he had been engaged some time previously. He continued in this business seven or eight years and then devoted h.s attention to the farm and also to his scales at 'he stock yards, which he had been operating for about twenty-two years of w\ ?''' ^^^P"^^'-^^"- He attends the Methodist Episcopal church of which his wife IS a member. Christian A. Hart is one of the prominent well-known men of Pandora and Riley township, a progressive citizen and IZT. ht ref ^^"^^ ^" -^-'-'-^ -' ^'^ -^y "^'-^ - ^^e comlnt Reverting to Mr. Hart's father, Samuel L. Hart, it may be said that his father, John Hart, was born in 1809, in eastern Pennsylvania, the son o George and Mary Hart, also natives of Pennsylvania. Georg Hart came

850, at the age of seventy years. He owned a farm near Jeromesville, Ashfour daughters, John was the oldest child and spent his youth in Ashland

-re born, three of whom died in infancy, three sons and three daughters Samuel L., John S., and Margaret N. The last two children were born in

he was discharged. He was a very active man and it is related that during a contest among the soldiers who were trying to jump over a mule at the siege of Vicksburg, John Hart was the only man in the brigade able to accomplish the feat. He jumped over the mule to the great delight of his comrades.

After his discharge, he returned home, in 1863, and resumed farming, but three years later his wife died. John Hart was married again, in 1869, to Mrs. Jane (Bogart) Ward. To this union, one child, Jacob Hart, was born. About ten years later, his wife died and he was married a third time to a widow by the name of Minson, but there were no children by this union. After his last marriage, he moved to Columbus Grove, where he lived for a year or two and then moved to a farm two miles south of Columbus Grove. Two years later, he died at the age of seventy-seven years.

After Samuel Hart married, he farmed his father's place for five years. He married Anna Amstutz, February 19, 1861. She was the daughter of Christian and Anna (Burkholder) Amstutz, both pioneer settlers of Putnam The three children born to this marriage are : Mary Ann, Christian A. and John S. A little less than five years after his marriage, Mrs. Hart died, February i, 1866. Just prior to his wife's death, Mr. Hart moved to a farm one and one-half miles north of Pandora. Two or three days later, they were on a visit to the old home place when Samuel Hart's mother died, January 25, 1866, and six days later his wife died. Samuel Hart continued to farm the place north of Pandora, the children having been placed with relatives, and here he farmed for thirty years.

About fourteen months after his first wife's death, he was married to Sarah Kauffman, of Ashland county, Ohio, the daughter of Andrew Kauffman and wife. No children were born to this marriage. His second wife died in 1884 and three years later, on February 6, 1887, he was married, a third time, to Margaret V. Poe, who was born in Putnam county, July 27, 1858, and who was the "daughter of James and Nancy (Simpson) Poe. The former was a native of Hancock county and the latter of Putnam county. To this last marriage, one child, Alvin, was born. Fie resides on- the home place and a part of the tirrie at Ottawa.

As has been said heretofore, the Hart family has always been prominent in the community where they live. For several generations, they have been people of industrious habits, frugal, prudent and broadminded. They represent the best blood and sinew of Putnam county and are, therefore, worthy the esteem in which they are held.

David C. Steiner

Among the citizens of Putnam county, Ohio, who built up comfortable homes and provided themselves with valuable property, few have attained a greater degree of success than David C. Steiner, of Rilev township one of the most public-spirited citizens of the county. With many discouragements to overcome, he has achieved an exceptional success in life, and hasthe gratification of knowing that his community has been greatly benefited by his presence and his counsel. He is regarded as a good business man and a man who is possessed of sound judgment and foresight, who believes m pressing forward and in keeping the wheels of the car of civilization ever moving onward. He enjoys the respect and esteem of all who know him and as a consequence of his business ability and his interest in public affairs' he IS regarded by all as one of the substantial and worthy citizens of Putnam county.

David C. Steiner was born in Riley township, September 16, 1860 the son of Christian and Magdalene (Lugibihl) Steiner. Christian Steiner'was born m Richland township, Allen county, Ohio, January 25, 1838 the son of Peter and Barbara (Schuhmacher) Steiner. Peter Steiner was born in Alsace, m 1810, and was the son of a farmer. He married Barbara Schuhmacher, a native of Basel, Switzerland, in 1835. She was born in 1811 Soon after their marriage they came to America, and were forty days in making the voyage across the ocean. They settled two and one-half miles west of Blufifton, in Richland township, Allen county. At that time the country was in a virgin state, being covered with timber. They passed through all of the pioneer experiences. He died at the age of sixty in 1870 and nineteen years later his wife died at the age of seventy-eight. The were the parents of four sons and seven daughters, three of whom still survive. The present living children are: Christian, Elizabeth and Peter P Christian Steiner, the father of David C. Steiner, spent his boyhood on the old homestead in Richland township, Allen county. Here he attended the typical log cabin school house as a boy and young man. He helped his father clear the land and also helped to make the brick with which to build their residence, which stands today. At the age of twenty-one, he was marr °" °Z ^^' ^^^^' '° Magdalene Lugibihl, who was born on December 23, 1840, in Riley township, Putnam county. She is the daughter of Christian and Barbara (Hilty) Lugibihl. Christian Lugibihl was born in Alsace, November 21, 1809, and as a child came with his parents to America and settled in Ohio. He was married, in 1838, to Barbara Hilty, who was born in Berne, Switzerland, April, 1814. After their marriage they removed to Riley township in Putnam county, settling two and one-half miles east of Pandora. Barbara (Hilty) Lugibihl died at the age of thirtyseven, in 1853. She was the mother of ten children. Her husband died two and one-half years later, in 1855. After his marriage. Christian Steiner located on a farm of one hundred and twenty acres one mile east of Pendleton on the Ridge road. Only a few acres of this farm were cleared and it had a one-roomed log cabin in which David C. Steiner was born. His father proceeded to clear the land and also engaged in the saw-mill business for several years, in conjunction with three neighbors. A part of this work was keeping the books for this enterprise. Christian Steiner has always been a very successful farmer and has always been an extensive feeder of cattle and hogs and, during recent years, has specialized in Polled Durham cattle. He is a Democrat, and served as district clerk and was a member of the school board for several years. He has acted as an administrator and executor of many estates. He is a member of the Grace Mennonite church, of which he has been a liberal supporter. When the St. John's was built, he was a member of the building committee. Mr. Steiner is a public-spirited citizen, of clean character and sterling integrity. He and his wife have been the parents of eleven children, six sons and five daughters,, David C, Samuel C, Susan, deceased; Gideon C, Elizabeth, Peter C, Elias, Barbara, Christian, Sarah, who died at the age of two years, and Mary.

David C. Steiner was born on the old homestead and there grew tomanhood. He attended the district schools and the Northwestern Ohia University, at Ada, for five terms, after which he taught school for five years. He was considered one the successful teachers in this township.

When Mr. Steiner was twenty-six years old, he was married on March 10, 1887, to Barbara Welty, who was born, on January 15, 1866, in Richland township, Allen county, Ohio. She is the daughter of Frederick and Catherine (Steiner) Welty, the former a native of Berne, Switzerland, and the son of John and Christina (Gerber) Welty. Frederick WeUy came to America in 1856, at the age of twenty-five, with his parents, and settled in Richland township, Allen county. He was born on February 6, 1831. He was married on September 4, 1856, to Catherine Steiner, the daughter of John F. and Barbara (Habegger) Steiner, both of whom were natives of Switzerland. They came to America in an early day, when Catherine was. only two years old, and settled in Riley township, Putnam county, Ohio.

After his marriage, David C. Steiner settled on the Markley farm of eighty acres, three miles east of Pandora, where he has lived ever since. He was always engaged in general farming and has been successful in this vocation.

Mr. and Mrs. David C. Steiner have eleven children, three of whom are deceased, Elma DeUa, the wife of Doctor Nicewander, of Bluffton, Ohio, who has one daughter, Eleanor; Lennis Gilbert, who married Hulda Schuhmacher and lives in Pandora; Hulda Viola, who died at the age of two years ; Homer Arthur, who died at the age of one year ; Frances Ellen, who died at the age of one month; Elvina Ruth, who is a student in high school; Sjisie Amelia, who is also a student in high school ; Edith Gertrude, Lillian Grace, Wilma Catherine and Marguerite Madeline, all of whom are students in the graded school.

Mr. Steiner is a Democrat. He is a member of the Grace Mennonite while his wife is affiliated with the Missionary church. David C. .Steiner is a clean-cut, progressive farmer and citizen. He owns a beautiful farm, on which he has erected a modern house. He is a man who is well respected and is possessed of high ideals, a worthy example to young men who are hesitating at the beginning of their careers as to what course they will follow.

Archie A. Slaybaugh

The whole career of Archie A. Slaybaugh, covering a little more than two score years, has been spent in Putnam county, Ohio. When only sixteen years of age, he began to teach school, and after two years' service as a teacher, he beg'an the study of law, and since his admission to the bar, in the fall of 1896, he has been actively engaged in the practice of his profession. He has held various official positions and is now prosecuting attorney of Putnam county, a position to which he was elected in the fall of 1912.

Archie A. Slaybaugh, the son of Thomas C. and Emma J. (Miller) Slaybaugh, was born on, September 2, 1874, at West Leipsic, Putnam county, Ohio. Both of his parents were born in Pennsylvania, his father being a son of John Slaybaugh and wife, who came from Pennsylvania, to Shelby county, Ohio, early in its history. Emma J. Miller, the mother of Mr. Slaybaugh, came to Gilboa, in Putnam county, with her parents when she -was five years of age. Her father, David Miller, was a tanner for many

Thomas C. Slaybaugh was a soldier in Company B, Benton Cadets, a Missouri regiment, and was at the front for nearly three years. After the -expiration of his first term of enlistment, he re-enlisted in another company and served until the close of the war. He was twice married, his first wife dying in Shelby county a short time before he located in Putnam county, in 1872. There was one daughter, Mrs. Lizzie Henderson, , born to this first marriage, and she is now living in Rossford, Ohio, where her husband is the chief engineer of the Ford plate glass works. By his second marriage, with Emma J. Miller, there were born three children, A. A., of Leipsic; Mrs. Lola Rehfeldt, of Toledo, Ohio, and Wiley A., of Toledo. Thomas C. Slaybaugh was a carpenter by trade. Later he became a finished of D handles, and, in 1880, went to Edgerton, Ohio, where he worked for four years. He moved back to West Leipsic in 1884, and lived there until August, 1913. His wife died on September 30, 1909, and he is now living at Toledo with his daughter, Mrs. Rehfeldt.

Archie A. Slaybaugh was reared at West Leipsic and attended the normal school at that place when it was under the charge of L L. Harmon. When only sixteen years of age he secured a teacher's license and taught for two years in this county, teaching his first term at Miller City, in 1891. He began reading law with T. W. Prentiss, of Leipsic, in June, 1893, and in October, 1896, was admitted to the Putnam county bar. He has since been in the active practice of his profession at Leipsic. He is active in the councils of the Democratic party, and from 1900 to 1902, was mayor of Leipsic. He was solicitor of the village from 1902 to 1912, and on January I, 191 4, again took charge of the same office. He was a member of the board of education from January i, 1910, to January i, 1913, when he resigned to take his present office as prosecuting attorney of Putnam county, to which he had been elected in November of the preceding year. He is now discharging the duties of prosecuting attorney in a manner that shows he has a firm grasp of the law, as well as those qualities of good judgment and impartiality which should characterize the successful prosecutor.

after its close, where he spent the rest of his days. Mr. and Mrs. Slaybaugh have two children, Gordon Maxwell and Helen Louise. The family are members of the Church of Christ at Leipsic, while fraternally, Mr. Slaybaugh is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias.

Thomas Jefferson Baker

A prosperous -farmer of Van Buren township, Putnam county, Ohio, is Thomas Jefferson Baker, where he has been a resident for many years. Mr. Baker has met with many discouragements in his life, yet despite the many obstacles which he has met along life's pathway, he has maintained a cheerful spirit. He has made several trips to California, where he has always succeeded in recouping his losses in Putnam county, in various ways. He and his wife have reared a family of children and have given them all excellent educations.

Thomas J. Baker, the son of George Adam and Margaret (Weeks) Baker, was born near Van Buren, Hancock county, Ohio, August 27, 1847. His father was born in 1822, in Fairfield county, Ohio, a son of Charles. Baker and wife. Charles Baker was a native of Ohio and moved from Fairfield to Hancock county in its early history and entered government land, on which he lived until his death. Charles Baker owned three hundred and sixty acres of land, at the time of his death, and each of his five children received sixty acres from their father's estate. Charles Baker and wife reared five children, Hannah, the wife of Samuel Koggy; George Adam, the father of Thomas J. Baker; Solomon, Betsy, the wife of Stevert Warner, and one daughter who died in infancy.

Charles Baker lost his first wife when the children were very young and he later married, but only lived nine months after his second marriage, leaving his children orphans. At that time, George Adam Baker was onljr nine years of age and he, and the rest of the children, were bound out until they should become of age. George went to live with a German family in Fairfield county, and in this way learned to speak German. Hewas taught the plasterer's trade and when a young man of nineteen, married Margaret Weeks, of Fairfield county. She was the daughter of Nathan and Barbara (Corfman) Wrecks, and was born in 1822, and died on September 5, 1913, at the age of ninety-one.

Hannah, who first married Cephus Gribble, and had five children, and after her first husband's death, married Willis Decker, and had one child by her second marriage; Solomon, who married Amanda Lehr, and had six children; Nathan, who married Fromy Miller; Thomas J., with whom this narrative deals; Almeda, the wife of Steward Skinner, and the mother of four children; Benjamin, who married Seena Busong, and has two children, one deceased; George, who married Mary Warner, and has five children; Mahssa, who married John OverhoU, and had two children, one dying in infancy; Elmira, deceased, who was the wife of Louis Roberts, deceased, and the mother of two children; Ella, the wife of Ernest Newman, and the mother of one child, who died in infancy; Clemmie, who married Kate Kisel, and has nine children ; William, deceased.

George Adam Baker moved back to Hancock county, after his marriage, and located on the old home place near Van Buren. He had sixty acres which he inherited from his father's estate, after which he bought the share of property belonging to his brother, Solomon, which gave him a farm of one hundred and twenty acres. On this he lived the remainder of his life, dying at the age of forty-seven, in 1869. He was a man highly esteemed in his community and was always concerned in every movement which promised to better the locality in which he lived.

and build a new home. He made the trip the third time and was again successful and returned with enough money to start in life anew under favorable circumstances, and he has since made his home on the farm, and, in addition to general farming, he has been very successful in raising fruit and poultry. He is an extensive poultry raiser and derives no small part of his income from the sale of this product.

A very interesting story is apropos at this point. It seems that when George Adam Baker, father of Thomas J., came to Ohio, that they had no chickens, so they bought a hen and chickens from a neighbor. When these chickens became large enough to crow, it seemed that they did not know how. An Irish friend explained that the reason why they did not crow, was because they did not know how. There were no other roosters in the neighborhood and the young cockerels had never heard one of their kind crow. The Irishman volunteered to teach them this art, and each morning he went out early, clapped his hands, hopped on top of a chicken coop and crowed. Strange as it may seem, the Irishman taught the young roosters how to crow, and thus the chicken industry started in the Baker family.

Mr. Baker married Jennie Walker, a daughter of Abraham and Mary Walker. She was born in Wood county, Ohio, July 25, 1851, and died April 1, 1908. Her parents were natives of New Jersey. To this union five children have been born, Nathan, who is a resident of Phoenix, Arizona; Alva A., who married Loua Eastman, and lives at Carmangay, Alberta, Canada; William B., who married Lulu Pendleton, farming the home farm; Ira E., who married Nona Pendleton, and makes his home in Cleveland, Ohio; Charles E., married Miss Alta Cinder.

Mr. Baker is a Democrat in politics, but has never been active in the councils of his party. He has taken a great interest in the education of his children, and has seen them all receive excellent training in the public and normal schools, as well as the universities of Ohio and Indiana. After graduating from the Leipsic high school, Alva later attended the Tri-State College at Angola, Indiana. Nathan was a student in the Ohio State University at Columbus. Ira graduated from the Ottawa Business College, while Charles E. is a graduate in music. Mrs. Baker was a member of the Evangelical church, while Mr. Baker is affiliated with the United Brethren denomination. Mr. Baker is a man of genial impulses, kindly disposition and highly esteemed in the neighborhood where he has made his home so many years.

Clement C. Rimer

Clement C. Rimer, for many years, has been closely identified with the history of Putnam county, Ohio. He is one of the brilliant young attorneys of Columbus Grove, and, throughout his life, has been active in behalf of all worthy public enterprises. He has already achieved a splendid measure of professional success, his years of conscientious work as a lawyer having brought him increasing practice and reputation. By a straightforward, honorable course, Mr. Rimer has built up a large and lucrative legal business. His life is a splendid example of what an American youth, endowed with common sense, energy and determination, can accomplish. He has achieved a splendid record at the bar at an age when most men are merely starting on their life work. He has been intensely methodical and unswervingly persistent in search of legal essentials. Success could not help crowning his efforts and attracting to him public recognition and appreciation.

Clement C. Rimer was born on December 12, 1874, about one mile southwest of Columbus Grove, Pleasant township. He is a son of James and Lucinda (Nichols) Rimer. James Rimer was born on April 13, 1845, about three-quarters of a mile northwest of Kalida, in Union township. He, in turn, is the son of Jeremiah R. and Lucinda (Sarber) Rimer.

It is an interesting fact that the first court held in Putnam county was held at the home of Abram Sarber, a great uncle of Clement C. Rimer. Here the organization was perfected for erecting the first Putnam county court house, at Kalida. Abram Sarber was also the first township clerk in Putnam county. A brother, Adam Sarber, was one of the three first township trustees in this county.

Jeremiah Rimer, the grandfather of Clement C. Rimer, was a native of Fairfield county, Ohio, born on January 23, 1820. He was the son of Daniel and Catherine (Vandemarke) Rimer, the former of whom was born on September 11, 1789, in Pennsylvania, and the latter of whom was a native of Pennsylvania, born there on September 13, 1785. Jeremiah Rimer came to Putnam county, Ohio, in 1832, with his parents, who settled on a farm in Union township. He was a life-long farmer. Jeremiah was twice married, first to Lucinda Sarber, September 19, 1841. She was a native of Franklin county, Ohio, born there on November 25, 1819, and a daughter of Adam and Catherine (Ensden) Sarber. Her parents settled in Putnam county in 1834. Two children were born by this marriage, Catherine and James. His wife died on April 26, 1845, when her son James was only thirteen days old. Jeremiah Rimer was again married on November 5, 1846, to Ehza Jane, the daughter of James and MilHson (Watson) Cunningham. Seven children were born by this marriage, Albert was born on May 10, 1848, and served five months in the Civil War, in the One Hundred and Ninety-seventh Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry; William was born on December 2, 1850; John M. was born on October 9, 1852; Minor D. was born on August 6, 1855; Lucinda J. was born on August 31, 1857; Thomas C. was born on May 8, i860, and Mary M. was born in January, 1867.