Seneca Township (part 51 of 60)

Ledru R. Parker was reared to the sturdy discipline of the home farm and is iiidebted to the district schools for his early educational training. At the age of eighteen years he found employment in connection with the lumbering industry in Trumbull county, Ohio, where he secured a job cutting saw logs and where he applied himself with such energy as to secure sufficient funds to enable him to purchase a half interest in a saw mill at Kinsman, Trumbull county, this state. He continued to be successfully identified with the operation of this mill until 1873, but in the financial panic which began in that year he not only lost every dollar he had made from his earnest efforts, but also found himself in debt to the amount of thirty-five hundred dollars. He did not lose courage under these deplorable circumstances and soon secured employment as inspector for a lumber company^ whose headquarters were at Conneaut, Ohio. A year later he secured an interest in the business and he was concerned with the lumbering operations of the company in Henry county, this state, where they erected a saw mill and conducted a large and prosperous business. While a resident of that county Mr. Parker affected the incorporation of Hamler and he had the distinction of serving as president of its first board of trustees. There he also served for several years in the office of the justice of the peace and as mayor. In the autumn of 1891 Mr. Parker took up his residence in the city of Fostoria, and at the time of his removal to this place he was the owner of several farms and had somewhat extensive interests in oil wells in this section of the state. He has continued to be prominently identified with lumbering interests and has built up a large export trade, making many shipments of lumber to Australia. He is one 9f the progressive and substantial business men and honored citizens of Fostoria, is trustee of the Fostoria Board of Trade and has served as a member and as president of the city council. In politics he is a stanch advocate of the principles of the Republican party. He and his wife are zealous members of the Presbyterian church and he is a member of the board of trustees of the church of this denomination in Fostoria. He is identified with Fostoria Lodge, No. 305, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of which he is past noble grand, besides which he has served as district deputy of the Grand Lodge of the state.

On the 14th of April, 1874, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Parker to Miss Jane L. McGranahan, of Greenville, Pennsylvania, in which state she was born and reared, being of Irish lineage. She is a daughter of Colonel L. N. McGranahan. He was a man of influence and honor, strong in political affairs, a member of the Pennsylvania state legislature, colonel of state militia and justice of the peace up to the time of his demise in January, 1874. He was bom in Greenville, Pennsylvania, and there lived his life. Mr. and Mrs. Parker have one child, Luella, who was born on the 14th of October, 1875. She was graduated in the Fostoria High School and is now the wife of David Houser, residing on a finely improved farm owned by Mr. Parker in Kinsman township, Trumbull county, this state.

Ernest J. Miller was bom in Adams township, March 15, 1892, one of the five sons of Daniel L. and Mary C. (Butz) Miller, all of whom are living in the township. The names of the others are Orrin A., Alton R., Roseoe D. and Wade C. Miller. The parents were also natives of Adams township, the father bom May

1, 1858, the mother February 2, 1862. Ernest J. was a member of his parents' household until his marriage. He married Miss Lillie M. Norris February 23, 1907, and she has borne him two children, Delsie M., born May 18, 1908, and Florine E., March 2, 1910. Mrs. Miller is a daughter of Ephraim and Sarah Norris, natives of Adams township. Her mother was born in the state of New York January 9, 1835, a daughter of Anthony and Catharine (Ritter) Long, her father a Pennsylvanian, her mother a New Yorker by birth. Mr. and Mrs. Long came to Ohio in 1835, journeying a part of the way by boat on Lake Erie, and located in Crawford county. Thence they came later to Republic, Seneca county, where Mr. Long, a carpenter, worked at his trade. After nine years residence there they lived for a time on their farm, but eventually moved to Illinois, where Mr. Long .died about twenty years later. Their daughter became a member of the family of her uncle, Nathaniel Norris, when she was about ten years old, and so remained till December 21, 1865, when, aged about thirty-one, she became the wife of Ephraim Norris. Her husband was the son of Lot and Laurana (Todd) Norris, Mary landers, who made a journey to Ohio in the memorable year of the election of General Jackson to the presidency of the United States. Their birthplace was the historic old town of Frederick. Ephraim Norris was born on his parents' old homestead December 16, 1833. He was educated in district schools, and when he was twenty-one years old went to Michigan. After one year there he removed .to Illinois, whence, after five years, he returned to Ohio, where he was soon afterward married. After his marriage he located on a farm of one hundred and eighty acres, a portion of his estate of two hundred and forty acres in Adams township, and gave his attention to farming and stock raising with a success that was very satisfactory. In politics he was Republican. He and his wife were members of the United Brethren church. Of their five children three survive. Eleanora, is the wife of Edward Grover, a farmer in Adams township ; Olive, is a member of her parents' household; Lillie M., is Mrs. Ernest J. Miller. With her husband she lives on a farm owned by her mother. Ephraim Norris died April 25, 1907, at Greenspring, where his widow, with her daughter Olive, lives, Mrs. Norris being now about seventy-five years old. He was a man of prominence in the community, respected by a wide circle of acquaintances.

Ernest J. Miller was educated in the public schools in Adams township. As a Democrat he has been elected to membership of the township school board, on which he has served with much ability. He is a member of St. Jacob's church. Socially he is a member of the Mutual Benefit Association of Greenspring. His native public spirit and his natural love for the township of his birth tend to make him helpful as a citizen to all measures which in his opinion promise to benefit any considerable number of his fellow citizens, and no meritorious public movement fails to have his advocacy and practical assistance. He is popularly regarded as one of the leaders among the younger men of the township and a bright and useful future is predicted for him.

The New York Public Library

Russell 6. Shannon is one of Seneca county's honorable and progressive citizens, one whose hand is given to the support of every measure looking toward the advancement and benefit of the whole community. An agriculturist of the highest type, he is also the promoter of public enterprises, being, for instance, president of the Old Fort Telephone Company and one of those instrumental in bringing this great convenience to reality. He is the stalwart friend 6f good education, and he is also well known in lodge circles, having membership in some of the most important organizations. In addition Mr. Shannon has an ancestry of which he is ** proud without presumption," on the maternal side being in direct line from the Clan Gregor, famous in song and story, and he is able to claim descent from some of the most famous of Colonial patriots and public men, as well as from noted Englishmen.

Russell G. Shannon was born March 20, 1870, the son of John and Mary (Clagett) Shannon, his birthplace being Seneca county. The date of his father's birth was June 28, 1847, and that of Mary, his wife. May 10, 1851. These worthy people, native Ohioans, were united in marriage October 29, 1868. One son, the subject, was the fruit of their union. John Shannon, a much esteemed man, who had engaged in farming in Pleasant township, was gathered to his fathers on October 10, 1884. He was the son of George and Mary (Lotsenheiser) Shannon, the father a native of Ireland and the mother, of Stark county, Ohio. To them were born the following eight children: John, William, Mary, Frank, Melissa, Louis, Nelson and Samuel.

Mr. Shannon's mother, whose maiden name was Mary Clagett is the daughter of John and Juliet (Littler) Clagett, West Virginians, who came to the Buckeye state in the year 1832. They were married December 20, 1827, in their native state, and the following is an enumeration of the children born to them: Isaac Henry, born June 14, 1829, in West Virginia, died in November, 1900, in Nebraska; Josiah, born August 23, 1831, in West Virginia, died in February, 1870, in Fort Seneca; Hezekiah, bom July 1, 1833, in Seneca county, died November 27, 1864, in Pleasant township; Margaret, born March 20, 1835, in Seneca county, died in her youth, September 19, 1852 ; Eliza A., born February 15, 1837, in Seneca county, died June 19, 1861, in Shelby county, Missouri; Caroline, born September 17, 1839, in Seneca county, died in Virginia; John William, born June 21, 1842, in Seneca county, died August 3, 1842; James Littler, born August 14, 1844, in Seneca county, died September 17, 1874, in Hardy county, West Virginia; and Mary P., born May 10, 1851, the mother of Mr. Shannon, is the youngest born of this large family and the only one living at the present day. All but Isaac Henry and Josiah were bom on the farm where the subject of this review now resides.

Her father, John Clagett, was the son of Josiah and Elizabeth (Norton) Clagett, and Josiah was the son of Henry and Ann (Magruder) Clagett, whose marriage occurred in 1756. The father was bom in Prince George county, Maryland, in 1730, and died in 1778, while in service in the Revolutionary war. Henry was the son of Thomas and Ann (Belt) Clagett, who were married in 1724. He, Thomas Clagett, was a prominent man in his day and held several public offices. He was justice from 1730 to 1737 and in the year 1735 acted as vestryman of St. Paul's parish, Prince George county. He was one of the Colonial judges of land commission and was superintendent of the laying out of Upper Marlborough and Nottingham. Thomas Clagett was the son of Captain Thomas and Mary Clagett, who were married in 1700, the former, born in 1678 and dying in 1733, having been captain of the Provincial militia ; justice of Prince George county in 1707 ; member of the Maryland House of Burgesses in 1712 ; and judge of the Orphans' Court in 1730. Captain Thomas Clagett was the son of Captain Thomas (I) and Mary, widow of Richard Hooper, who were married in 1674. He was the first Clagett in America, having emigrated to Calvert county, Maryland, in the year 1671. He was commissioned to lay out towns and ports in that county in 1681 and he served until 1683. In 1692 he held the honorable office of vestryman in Christ Church parish, Calvert county. He was the son of Colonel Edward and Margaret (Adams) Clagett, born in 1605 or 1607. He was an officer in the British navy and his father, George Clagett, was born somewhere about the year 1570. He was mayor of Canterbury, England, in the years 1609, 1622 and 1632. George Clagett was the son of Richard Clagett, born either in the year 1525 or 1530. He married Margaret, a daughter of Sir Robert Youder. His father, Robert Clagett, was a native of Mailing, Kent county, England, and was bom near the beginning of the sixteenth century, probably in the year 1490.

Going back a number of generations it will be observed that Henry Clagett married Ann Magruder in 1756 and here the Scotch element enters and the blood of the doughty Clan Gregor. Ann Magruder was the daughter of Samuel and Margaret (Jackson) Magruder, the former a member of the Commission of Safety at the time of the Revolution. Samuel was the son of Ninian and Elizabeth (Brewer) Magruder, the former born in Prince George county, Maryland, in 1686. Ninian was the son of Samuel and Sarah (Beall) Magruder and Samuel was the son of Alexander and Margaret (Braithwaite) Magruder, who came from Scotland to Calvert county, Maryland, about the year 1652. He had been an officer in the army of Charles II of England. He was the son of Alexander Magruder, born in Scotland in 1569, who won as his wife Lady Margaret Drummond, daughter of the Lord Avemdriel (Clan Campbell) and the widow of Lord Bellyclose. Alexander I. was a member of the Clan Gregor, which was an outlaw clan in Scotland from the time of Robert Bruce to the reign of George III. This condition of affairs was in the first place due to the fact that they were involved in the opposition movement against Bruce in the fourteenth century. For this reason and partly because of jealousy roused in the breast of Scotland's first king on account of the claims of the Gre^ors to royal lineage, they were persecuted with great persistence. This persecution reached its height when David II, one of the successors of Robert Bruce, gave the Gregor property to the Campbell Clan.

The Qregors, or MacGregors, as they came to be called, went into the mountains and waged continual warfare, usually with disastrous results to themselves. They came into their own again when George III of England in 1774 repealed the acts under which this persecution had been carried on. History knows nothing to equal the trials of the Magruders previous to the patronage of the English king. Among the things which they were prohibited to do was to go in parties of more -than four, or to carry any other weapon save a blunt knife, or even to defend themselves when attacked. The severest of their sufferings were at the hands of the Stuarts, but the MacGregors asked no quarter.

A part of their troubles came about in this wise. A government forester, named Drummond, was killed by three MacGregors, who mistook him for a trespasser. They met and over the dead body swore to make a clan cause of the affair, every MacGregor assuming respoijsibility for the deed. Again at the battle of Glen Fruin two hundred MacGregors met to fight the allied forces of the Buchannons and Calhouns, numbering eight hundred. Before the battle a body of students came upon the scene as spectators, and fearing lest they join the allied forces the MacGregor chief ordered them to be bound and taken to a nearby church until after the fight, when he intended to release them. But the man left to guard them became weary and drawing his dagger deliberately murdered them. This act was by no means sanctioned by the clan, in fact the chief, Alexander, declared that the MacGregors would live to rue the day it happened. In the Glen Fruin fight the MacGregors utterly routed their adversaries, of whom they killed two hundred, losing only two of their own men. In spite of their hardships, the MacGregors flourished, for they were of tough fibre, as indeed thev had to be to withstand the persecution of five hundred years. Their descendants in America are many, and wherever they are found they are recognized as the stanchest and finest of citizen stock. They hold enthusiastic national meetings, one held in Washington D. C, in October, 1909, having been a most interesting occasion and attended by Magruders, Magruthers, Gregors, Gregories and those bearing other forms of the name.

It is of such stock as this that Russell G. Shannon comes. Some one has declared **In every nook and comer of the wide world the traveler finds the Scotchman. Everywhere, plodding, patient, determined, steadfast, re!iable, prosperous." In the present case none of these adjectives are misplaced, at least not the best of them. Mr; Shannon, whose father died when he was a lad, became useful when young and resided with his mother until his marriage. That event occurred October 26, 1898, the lady to become his wife and the mistress of his household being Verna B. Voorhies. She was born June 21, 1872, and is the daughter of Oliver D. and Sophia fStahl) Voorhies, natives of Ohio. More of this excellent family will be found in the article under the caption, '* Milton Voorhies,'' contained on other pages of this work.

Mr. Shannon is well educated, having received his preliminary mental dicipline in the schools of Seneca county and later attending the state university at Columbus and the Valparaiso Normal School. In politics he is a loyal Democrat. He finds pleasure in his fraternal relations, which extend to the Masons and to the Knighted Order of Tented Maccabees. In his calling as an agriculturist and his identification with public spirited movements he enjoys the respect and consideration of the community in which he makes his home. Mrs. Shannon is a member of the United Brethren church.

Georoe E. Bare. - The descendant of an earlv and honored pioneer family of Seneca county, George E. Bare, of Tiffin, now serving as deputy sheriff of the county, holds high rank among the more intelligent and enterprising residents of this city, and is held in high esteem by all that know him. A son of Michael and Virginia (Saul) Bare, he was born, November 18, 1860, in Eden township, and was there reared to agricultural pursuits.

He received very good educational advantages, attending the district schools until about nineteen years of age, in the meantime obtaining a practical knowledge of the various branches under the wise instructions of his father. Completing his studies at Heidelberg College, Mr. Bare taught school for awhile in Iowa. Returning to Seneca county, he took up his residence at Melmore. He has been active in public affairs, and in addition to having served as clerk of Eden township, was for six years assessor of that township. Since his election as deputy sheriff, Mr. Bare has devoted his energies to the duties of his position. Fraternally he belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.

Mr. Bare married in 1884, Margaret E, Hyatt, and to them three children have been born, namely : Howard, in the employ of Frantz, Sloane Company, of Toledo, Ohio; Charles, who was graduated from the Tiffin High School with the class of 1910; and Marie, a pupil in the Tiffin High School.

Joseph W. Reipp has been an able representative of the agricultural industry in Seneca county and he is now living retired in the attractive village of Bloomville. Mr. Reiff reverts with a due measure of satisfaction to the fact that he is a native son of the Buckeye state and a scion of one of its early pioneer families. He was born in Richland county, Ohio, on June 25, 1837.

Samuel and Elizabeth (Gueable) ReiflF, parents of Joseph W. Reiflf were both bom in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, from which state they removed to Ohio, first settling in Richland county and later in Wyandot county and in 1843 they established their home in Seneca county. Samuel Reiff was a farmer by vocation. He and his wife died in Bloom township, Seneca county. They became the parents of the following children : Abram, Joseph W., of this sketch ; Rev. Samuel E., who is a clergyman ; Susan, wife of Elijah Kagy; Aaron, deceased; William; Franklin, deceased; and Henry M.

with the practical affairs of life thorough his identification with the work of the home farm. His early educational dicipline was secured in the common schools of Wyandot and Seneca counties and as a youth he served a practical apprenticeship at the carpenter's trade to which he devoted his attention for a number of years. When the Civil war was precipitated upon a divided nation, he manifested his loyalty and patriotism by enlisting as a private in Company K, One Hundred and Forty-fourth Ohio Volunteer infantry, with which he identified himself in the year 1864 and with which he served as a carpenter. He became physically disabled and finally was sent to a hospital, in which he became a nurse, a position which he retained until the close of the war, when he received his honorable discharge. Mr. Beiff became a resident of Seneca county in 1868 and continued to be actively identified with agricultural pursuits in this county until 1901, when he established his home in Bloomville, where he has since lived retired. In politics he gives an nnqualified allegiance to the Republican party and he has shown a deep interest in all that touches the welfare of his home county. He has served as school director and also as supervisor of Bloom township and he is known as a broad minded and public spirited citizen. He is affiliated with the Grand Army of the Republic and both he and his wife were zealous members of the Evangelical church at Melmore, Ohio, until 1902 when they united with the Methodist Episcopal church at Bloomville, Ohio, and during his membership in both these organizations Mr. Reiff was for many years a Sunday school teacher and class leader.

In 1867 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Reiff to Miss Lavina A. Bever, and no children have been bom to this union. Mrs. Reiff is a daughter of George and Sabina (Bretz) Bever and was born in Bloom township, Seneca county. May 12, 1842. Her mother was born in Pennsylvania and her father was born in Virginia. When two years of age Mrs. Bever removed with her parents to Fairfield county, Ohio, and in 1823 the parents with their family came to Seneca county and located near Melmore, where Mr. Bretz, the father, secured for his home one hundred and sixty acres of land, and for each of his children he also obtained one hundred and sixty acres within five miles of his home. Mr. Bever came from Virginia to Fairfield county a few years before the Bretz family removed to Seneca county and with them he came on to Seneca county, where on April 7, 1825, he married Sabina Bretz.

Mr. Bretz had nine children and for each of them, as above mentioned, he secured one hundred and sixty acres of government land in Seneca county. It is interesting to record that three of these farms are still in the possession of his descendants. (Jeorge and Sabina (Bretz) Bever became the parents of eleven children, eight of whom attained to years of maturity. Samuel Bever died at Nevada, Ohio, October 17, 1910. Mr. and Mrs. Bever were zealous members of the United Brethren church and they were held in high esteem in the community in which they established their home in pioneer days.

Arthur W. Saunders. - In his native city of Fostoria the subject of this review holds the position of ticket agent in the oflSces of the Nickel Plate Railroad and he is also a valued member of the city council, showing that in his case there can be no application of the Biblical aphorism that **A prophet is not without honor save in his own country.'*

Mr. Saunders was bom at Fostoria, on the 11th of August, 1879, and is a son of George M. and Qeletta 0. (Dicken) Saunders, both of whom still reside in this city, where the father has given his attention to the grocery business for many years, being one of the representative citizens of the county. The subject of this review is indebted to the public schools of Fostoria for his early educational training and after leaving school he was here employed for some lime in a drug store. At the age of eighteen years he became a messenger boy for the local offices of the Nickel Plate Railroad and through his able and careful services he won rapid promotion, as is shown by the fact that during his connection with this railroad corporation he has had charge of every official desk in Fostoria with the exception of that of agent. He has held his present responsible position since 1906. In politics Mr. Saunders is aligned as an uncompromising advocate of the principles of the Republican party and he has taken an active part in its lojal work. In 1909 he was elected councilman at large and in January, 1910, he assumed his seat in the city council. He has proved a loyal and progressive member of this municipal body and has put forth every effort to conserve the interests of the city and its people. He is affiliated with Fostoria Lodge, No. 288, Free and Accepted Masons, and with Garfield Chapter, Royal Arch Masons. He is owner of an attractive modem residence at No. 127 North Vine street.

On the 11th of February, 1902, Mr. Saunders was united in marriage to Mips Mary V. Kridler, of Fostoria, and they have one son, Charles D., who was born on the 31st of March, 1903.

George Alton Nye. - One of the substantial and representative men of Reed township is George Alton Nye who is bound by every tie to Seneca county, among them being the primary tie of birth, his nativity having occurred in Seneca county on the 7th of October, 1860. Since reaching mature years he has been identifield in a praise worthy manner with the many sided life of the community, where naturally he is well known. In addition to his activities in the line of general agriculture he likewise enjoys prestige as a breeder of fine horses and stock.

The former seat of the Nye family in this country was the state of New York, and it was in Geneseo county, that state, that the subject's father, George Nye, was bom, April 19, 1826. He removed to Seneca county with his parents when about six years of age and the family homestead is now the site of the town of Siam. George Nye and his father were thus early enough to be among the pioneers, and the privations and joys peculiar to the early settlers in the Buckeve state were theirs in fullest measure. George Nye was one of the famous ** Forty-niners," in 1849 making an over- land trip to California in company with a friend, an ox team being the conveyance and the time consumed in the journey, five months and sixteen days. About twenty-three years of age at the time of his migration, he remained in California about seven years and returned with seven thousand dollars in gold dust. Soon afterward he purchased the valuable farm where Mr. Nye now resides. The maiden name of his wife, the subject's mother, was Phoebe Taber. She was bom in Cayuga county, New York, in 1842 and was one year old when her parents removed from New York to Ohio. George and Phoebe (Taber) Nye gave a number of good citizens to the state. George Alton is the eldest; G. G. (he had no other name than these initials), married Minna Garchies and resides in Beed township; two children died in infancy; Philip married Alice Pinlay and resides in Alabama; Morton, who lives in Alabama, married Lucia Moes; Myrtle became the wife of John Baker, and lives in Shelby; Carrie married Henry Bassett, of Alabama; and Jessie is deceased. The elder Mr. Nye was summoned to his eternal rest February 5, 1901, and the mother survives and makes her residence in Reed township.

Mr. Nye received his education in the district schools and attended them until his twentieth year. In the meantime, however, he had become thoroughly grounded in the vocation which he had chosen and had the advantage of a thorough training in the various departments of agriculture under the instruction of his father. About 1880 he began to assume much of the actual responsibility of farming and in the past thirty years has achieved much success, being enrolled among the representative farmers of the county. He has also won a name for himself as a breeder of Percheron horses and he owns some very fine stock.

On January 21, 1892, Mr. Nye laid the foundation of a happy domestic life by his marriage to Miss Effie Martin, dauehter of A. and C. L. Martin. She was born in Erie county and she had been a school teacher for six years prior to her marriage. She came to Seneca county with her husband. Their union has been cemented by the birth of the following children : Roscoe, born December 29, 1892; Marshall, September 7, 1894; Harold, deceased; Ethel, September 12, 1897; Edith, January 8, 1900; Russell, June 1, 1902; and .Phoebe, March 15. 1906. In his political Views Mr. Nye is Republican and is interested in current afl^airs and the ultimate advancement of the community. Mr. and Mrs. Nye are members of the Baptist church and they take an active part in its work. They reside on a farm of two hundred and eighty acres.

took up their home in Adams township, later removin<2r to Pleasant township, where the father had made himself the owner of some four hundred acres of land.

Charles H. Berlekamp spent his early days upon his father's farm and received a practical training in the many departments of his calling under the guidance of his father. He received his mental discipline in the schools of Old Fort and the district schools of Pleasant township. On the 2l8t day of March, 1907, he laid the foundations of a household of his own by his union with Miss Grace V. Bishop, daughter of Rev. W. D. and Millie (Elsea) Bishop, natives of Hancock county, Ohio, now residing in Rising Sun. The Rev. Mr. Bishop, who is a clergyman in the United Brethren church, has been in the ministry about fourteen years. He was bom in June, 1866, and received his education in the schools of Findlay, Hancock county, and at Otterbein University at Westerville. His wife was born September 22, 1870, in Findlay, her parents being Newton and Jane (Lyons) Elsea, Ohioans. The grandparents on the paternal side of Mrs. Berlekamp were John and Eliza (Scathorn) Bishop, who were bom near Columbus and both are now deceased. Mrs. Berlekamp who was bom March 7, 1889, is one of three sisters and one brother, the names of the others being Maud, Joy, and Thelma. She was educated in the schools of Old Fort and was graduated with the class of 1906.

Shortly after his marriage Mr. Berlekamp bought a farm of ninety-four acres, located near his father's homestead, and he and his wife now make their home there. He is one of those progressive agriculturists who keep in touch with the latest discoveries in their honorable profession and welcome, rather than scoff at, any new idea. He is an independent voter, for he believes that the best man and the best measures upon any occasion should outweigh mere partizanship. Both he and his wife are members of the United Brethren church at Old Fort and take an active part in its affairs, giving their hand to all its good causes.

Charles D. Holtz. - We have now to consider the career of one of the most successful and popular men in Seneca county, one who, though a strong Republican, has been since 1872 elected and re-elected to important public offices at almost every election in a community overwhelmingly Democratic whenever a straight vote is cast. Mr. Holtz was born January 31, 1846, a son of Jacob and Susanna (Huss) Holtz, natives of Fredericktown, Maryland. His mother came to Seneca county in 1827, his father, in 1834. They were brought by their parents by wagon over the old Cumberland road. Jacob Holtz and David Huss, Mr. Holtz 's grandfathers, bought land here and were among the early pioneers in Seneca county. The Holtz genealog\'^ is a most interesting one: Jacob Holtz, great-grandfather of Charles D., was born November 30, 1753, his wife, January 8, 1756. They had children, bora at the dates here given: Jacob, June 19, 1786; John. March 11, 1788; Catharine, June 22, 1790; Anna Mary, October 29, 1793; Elizabeth April 30, 1796. Jacob Holtz, born June 19, 1786, married Susanna Feaga October 20, 1812. Her father, a Hessian, came to the colonies in Revoluntionary days as a hired soldier of King George and deserted to fight for liberty side by side with his former foemen. As a means to preventing possible future trouble he changed his name from Fieye to Feaga. Jacob and Susanna (Feaga) Holtz had children as follows: William Holtz, bom January 24, 1814; Jacob P., bom June 14, 1815; Mary E., born Febmary 9, 1817; George, bom February 20, 1819; Lewis E., bom June 4, 1821 ; Charlotte, born May 24, 1823 ; Susanna, bom April 29, 1825 ; Dennis, born March 21, 1827. Jacob P. and Susanna Huss married about 1840 and had three children : Jacob S., bom August 8, 1842; Charles D., born January 31, 1846; John, bom February

14, 1850. Charles D. married, October 9, 1872, Mary L. Smith, born June 20, 1854, a daughter of Samuel H. and Charlotte (Van Syckel) Smith. She bore him three children : Grace, born March

15, 1874; Nellie, September 11, 1877; Jessie, August 24, 1883. Grace is the wife of H. W. Robinson, of Greenspring. Jessie married F. H. Cronniger of Seneca county, but now resides at Blufton, Indiana, and is principal of a school there. Nellie is a member of her parents' household.

The parents of Mrs. Charles D. Holtz came from New Jersey. The father, Samuel H. Smith, was born at Asbury, New Jersey, February 3, 1825, and in November, 1846, was married to Charlotte Van Syckel at Bethlehem, New Jersey. Shortly after their marriage they moved to Greenspring, Ohio, and the journey is described as follows: They traveled by stage to Philadelphia, going from that city to Baltimore by railroad and crossing the Alleghany Mountains by stage. They traveled in the same manner to Greenspring. Mr. Smith was a very enterprising citizen and was engaged in the grain business for years. He assisted materially in building the first Methodist Episcopal church in Greenspring also the original sanitariums at Oak Ridge and the public school buildings. He was one of those who secured for Greenspring the old academy, and with ex-President Hayes served on its board of trustees. He was instrumental more than any other man in securing the Nickel Plate Railroad.

Mr. Holtz has held several township offices in the gift of the voters of his township and has been a member of the county commissioners. He is prominent as a Mason, having taken sixteen degrees. He was a leader in the Grange movement till 1874, and he is influentially identified with the Juniors. After his marriage he located, in 1872, on a farm of one hundred and seventy-five acres in Adams township. He early acquired a practical knowledge of surveying and has from time to time been employed in important work in that line in his vicinity. For nine years he has been a stockholder in the Farmers' Mutual Insurance Company of this county. For six years he was its president and he has filled the office of treasurer during two terms. Jacob S. Holtz, Mr. Holtz 's brother, was in the Civil war, a member of the One Hundred and Sixty-fourth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, in the company commanded by Captain Huntsberger of Akron, and died in Fort Stronsr Hospital July 1. 1864. Charles Holtz, together with his brother, returned to the old home place, where they continued to work and reside.

Mr. Holtz never worked as a hand, all his time and labor being spent in developing the interests of the home. At the age of thirty-five he removed to Adams township where he resided for eighteen years. He then constructed one of the finest homes in Pleasant township where he has eighty acres and an ideal home. Situated in a very beautiful grove surrounded by a continually flowing creek, the place is known as ** Sugar Creek.''

JuDD D. AsiRE. - At this point is directed attention to one of the native sons of the city of Fostoria, who has here gained a secure place as one of its representative business men and who is held in high esteem in the community that has ever been his home, his father having here taken up his abode more than half a century ago. Mr. Asire was bom in Fostoria on the 30th of August, 1881, and is a son of David and Emma (Laver) Asire. The father came and established his home in Fostoria in 1858. Here he engaged in the undertaking business, with which he has been identified during the long intervening years and he is one of the oldest representatives of this line of enterprise in the entire state, besides which he is one of the honored and influential citizens of Fostoria, to whose development and upbuilding he has contributed his attitude and influence as a loyal and public spirited citizen. He is a Re-, publican in politics and both he and his wife hold membership in the Methodist Episcopal church.

Judd D. Asire is indebted to the public schools of his native town for his early educational discipline, which included a murse in the high school, in which he was graduated in the class of 1901, after which he continued his studies in the Ohio State TTni\'ersity in 1902-3. In 1904 he was graduated in the Biltimore Forest School, at Biltimore, North Carolina, from which excellent institution he received the degrees of B. P. and P. E. In 1902 hi* went to the Philippine Islands, where he was engaged in the' United States army transport service. In the spring of 1905 Mr. Asire returned to Fostoria, where he has since been engaged in the undertakins business, in connection with which he has a fine establishment with equipment and facilities of the best modern type. The same is located at No. 120 West TiflRn street. He is also a stockholder in the Union National Bank, the Lincoln Life Insurance Company, and The Great Northern Life Insurance Company.

In politics Mr. Asire is a stanch adherent of the Republican party and he is at the present time a member of the board of eduation of his native city and he takes a zealous interest in all that touches the welfare of the community. He holds membership in the Methodist Episcopal church, has attained to the thirty-second degree in the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite of the Masonic fraternity, besides which he is identified with the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows the Knights of the Maccabees, and the Phi Kappa Psi college fraternity, besides which he is an associate member of the Grand Army of the Republic, to which he is eligible by reason of his father's service in the Civil war.

On the 3rd of October, 1906 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Asire to Miss Glenn Crouse, of Westerville, Franklin county, this state. She was summoned to the life eternal on the 20th of February, 1910, and is survived by two children, Ruth Josephine, who was born August 20, 1907, and Margaret, who was bom June, 22, 1909.

Daniel D. Kaup. - He whose name initiates this review was a native son of Seneca county and is now incumbent of the responsible office of chief inspector of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad for the Fostoria district, with residence and official headquarters in the city of Fostoria. He has been identified with railroad interests during the greater portion of his active career and the past evidence of the effiency and fidelity of his service is that afforded by his incumbency of his present office.

Daniel D. Kaup was bom at Tiffin, Seneca county, Ohio, on the 19th of July, 1859, and is a son of Benjamin F. and Lydia (Godshawl) Kaup, both of whom were bom in Pennsylvania, whence they came to Seneca county, Ohio, about the year 1849, establishing their home in Tiffin, where they passed the residue of their lives and where the father devoted the major portion of his time and attention to his trade, that of a millwright. The subject was reared to maturity in Tiffin and after availing himself of the advantages of the public schools he there continued his studies in Heidelberg College. After leaving school he learned the trade of millwright under the direction of his honored father, and he followed the same from 1876 to 1881, in which latter year he became yard master for the Burlington & Ohio Railroad Company at Tiffin, where he remained until 1886, when he was promoted to the office of chief clerk and cashier in the offices of the company at Tiffin. In 1887 he became ticket agent for the company in the city of Sandusky and a year later he resigned this office and took up his residence in Fostoria, where, on Christmas day of the year 1888, he assumed the position of night ticket agent for the same company. This incumbency he retained until the 20th of August of the following year^ when he was promoted to the position of chief inspector for the joint rate and inspection bureau of the Fostoria district. He gave most effective service in this position and retained the same until March 16, 1908, when he assumed his present office of chief clerk of the inspection bureau for the Fostoria district.

In politics Mr. Kaup is found arrayed as a stanch supporter of the Republican party and for two years he represented the Fourth ward of Fostoria in the city council. At the present time he is director of the board of public safety of his home city. He owns an attractive residence at No. 129 West Crocker street. Both he and his wife are zealous members of the Methodist Episcopal church, and he is a member of the official board of the church of this denomination in Fostoria. He is identified with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, president of the local railroad clerks' union and is a member of the Fostoria Trade Council.

On the 26th of May, 1881, waa solemnized the marriage of Mr. Kaup to Miss Jennie Stone, of Tifl&n, and they have one daughter, Eugenia, who is the wife of C. P. Barteh, who is chief rate inspector for the Joint Rate Inspection Bureau for the Postoria district.

Henry Drypuse. - Contracting and building is one of the essentially representative business enterprises whose scope of endeavor contributes materially to the development and beautifying of a place, and the concern conducted by Henry Dryfuse, in Bloomville, this county, is one of prominent order. Under the firm name of Dryfuse & Martin this business was established in 1903, and besides contracting and building the firm are also dealers in lumber and builders' supplies. Prom a modest nucleus the company has extended its operations throughout a wide territory and is rapidly gaining prestige as one of the important business enterprises of the county.

Henry Dryfuse was born in Bloom township, Seneca county, Ohio, on the 25th of July, 1866, and he is a son of Joseph and Mary (Stinel) Dryfuse, both of whom were natives of Germany, whence they emigrated to the United States about the year 1848. They first located in Pennsylvania and in 1866 they moved to the fine old Buckeye state, where they purchased a small farm in Seneca county. Joseph Dryfuse was often called on to preach in the absence of a regular, ordained minister, and he followed this calling for a number of years, being a stanch devotee of the United Brethren church. His preliminary educational advantages were those afforded in the common schools of his fatherland. However, he effectively supplemented his early discipline by extensive reading and association with the practical affairs of life. He never severed his connection with his church calling but continued to devote a portion of his time to this work even after locating on his farm in Bloom township. He was summoned to the life eternal in the year 1887, and his cherished and devoted wife long survived him, her death having occurred in 1903. They became the parents of seven children, of which number the subject of this sketch is the youngest. The names of the other children are here entered in order of birth: Joseph, Sarah, Susan, Solomon, Abraham and Samuel, all of whom are living except Solomon, whose death occurred in the year 1893.

The subject of this review was reared to maturity on the old homestead farm and he availed himself of the advantages afforded in the common schools of the county. When thirty years of age he learned the painter's trade, following the same with success for a number of years and in 1903, as already noted, he founded his present flourishing business, to whose interests he has since devoted the major portion of his time and attention. Associated with him in this line of enterprise is Mr. W. H. Kilcauley, who succeeded Mr. G. M. Martin in 1909, and the alliance has proved mutually agreeable and profitable to all concerned.

and in a fraternal way he is afSliated with the Knights of Pythias and the Junior Order of the United American Mechanics. He has served his town as land appraiser for one term and in this connection his services have been of the most satisfactory order. Both he and his wife are earnest members of the United Brethren church in their home city and they are popular factors in the social activities of the community.

On the 11th of November, 1888, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Dryfuse to Miss Essie L. Enders, who was reared and educated in Bloomville, this county, and who is a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Philip Enders. Mr. Enders was an influential and public spirited citizen of Seneca county and he was summoned to eternal rest in 1907, his wife having passed away in 1892. Mr. and Mrs. Dryfuse have one daughter, Ruth L., who is now attending school in Bloomville.

Amos M. Beck, who was bom February 7, 1858, at Lancaster, Ohio, is the son of John M. and Maria B. (Kraft) Beck. Both of his parents were natives of Germany, the father bom in Goettingen, February 3, 1808, and the mother in Anstoben, June 3, 1821. John M. Beck came to the United States with his parents when a lad six years of age, arriving on American shores, September 9, 1814. They were six months on the voyage, having been lost owing to storms and contrary winds. They came near to the starvation point, being so weak from hunger when the ship finally arrived in port that they had to be carried to land. The mother arrived June 6, 1845, after a three month's voyage. The paternal grandparents were John G. and Sabina B. (Bender) Beck, and soon after coming to the land of the stars and strips, they located in Lancaster, Fairfield county, Ohio. The maternal grandparents, Jacob and Anna (Blaser) Kraft, of Anstoben and Overberbach, Germany, remained in their native land throughout their whole lives.

The mother of him whose name initiates this sketch was born in Anstoben, Germany, June 3, 1821, and is now in her ninetieth year. She was reared in her native land obtained a good education there and had begun upon employment as a wage earner. When she decided to emigrate it was necessary under local laws for her to secure from the mayor of the town where she had been living a document called a ** permit of recommendation,*' to be deposited with whomever she might find employment. This record, inscribed in a Ittle book, set forth her age, height, weight, complexion, color of hair and eyes, and further personal description, as a means of identification. She has retained it through all the years since, and it is not the least interesting of the mementoes of another land in another time. She was a spinner by vocation.

The father, John M. Beck, lived with his parents, working on a farm and attending school until he married, that happy event occurring September 21, 1838. Then he and his bride went to housekeeping in Lancaster, Ohio. The father was a rope maker by trade and was employed there as such. Mrs. Beck bore her husband seven children, all of whom were living when this work

' Amos M. Beck remained as a member of his father's household until he was nineteen years old. He took to shoemaking, but soon went to Pindlay, Ohio, where his cousin, George W. Myers, was agent for the Lake Erie & Louisville Railroad Company and owner of a large elevator, and the subject himself entered the service of his cousin. He remained there four years, then went to Delphos, Ohio, and worked four months on the Toledo, Delphoa and Burlington Railroad. Prom Delphos he went to Holgate, Ohio, where he was taken down with fever. When he recovered he was sent to Warren, Indiana, where he was a station agent and telegrapher for a year. Then he was offered and accepted a better position with the Lake Erie & Western road at Postoria, Ohio. After residing at Postoria about four months, he went to Lima, Ohio, in the employ of the Pittsburg, Port Wayne & Chicago Railroad company. Returning to Postoria he resumed his old position, which he retained until the year 1883. In the year last mentioned he entered the employ of the Nickel* Plate line in the same town.

On May 21, 1885, Mr. Beck married Miss Delia Plavin. bom at Upper Sandusky, Ohio, December 11, 1867, a daughter of Dr. William and Martha (Conaghan) Plavin. Her father was born in 1842 and died September 16, 1896. The scene of the mother's birth was Upper Sandusky, Ohio, and the date September 16, 1846. Dr. Plavin, a native of Nova Scotia, was in medical practice and in the drug trade at Bettsville, Ohio, and about 1885 removed to Paulding, Ohio, where he was active in the same lines. Some time previous to that date. Dr. and Mrs. Plavin separated, admittedly because of religious differences, he being Protestant, she Catholic. The mother retained their only child, then about seven years old, and never married again, dying of typhoid fever. September 16, 1887, at Greenspring, Ohio, Dr. Plavin married Miss Bowers, of Tyro, Ohio, south of TiflSn, and they have a son. Charles Plavin, who is employed in the electric works at Columbus, Ohio. The second Mrs. Flavin died, and Dr. Plavin married her cousin, Emma Bowers, and three children have been bom to them, namely : Edward B. ; Grace, who is Mrs. Harvey Him, of Ottawa, Ohio ; and Mrs. Maud Miller of Texas. Mr. Him is a hotel keeper and Mr. Miller is in the machine business.

Mr. and Mrs. Beck have two sons. Charles A., bom Pebmary 27, 1887, was educated in the railroad business by his father while at Greenspring Junction ; Earl M., bom March 8, 1889, was educated at Greenspring and at Heidelberg College at Tiflfin, and is his father's assistant in the latter 's railroad station work at Greenspring Junction. Mr. Beck is a Lutheran and the other members of his family are Methodists, but they have had no differences because of their slight variance as to church government. They were all interested in Sunday school work at times. Mr. Beck is independent in politics. He is a Mason and a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias. He has passed all the chairs in all three of these orders. He is faithful in attending lodge, never missing a meeting. His sons are Masons and Knights of Pythias also, Charles A. being chancellor commander of the Knights of Pythias. He resides in Chicago now, being assistant ticket agent of the Nickel Plate railroad. This young man married Miss Ida L. Wolfe^ July 21, 1910, she having been born October 1, 1890, the daughter of E. B. Wolfe, who is represented in this work by a biographical sketch.

All of the married life of the subject has been spent at Greenspring. His wife, whose male relatives and ancestors have most of them been farmers and stock raisers, comes of a family which has a place in the pioneer history of this part of Ohio. It was represented in the state when the Indians were still here »nd at Upper Sandusky, where she passed her childhood, she often saw Indians who had a liking for the place because they had planted many trees there. She remembers that Indians often came to the house of her grandparents. Mr. and Mrs. Beck and their son Earl have traveled considerably. On one occasion they went by way of Chicago to Denver, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego, returning via El Paso, San Antonio, New Orleans and Cincinnati. They visited many other interesting places including old Mexico, where they witnessed the Spanish national sport, a bull fight. Mr. and Mrs. Beck were absent from home about two months and the letters and post cards they sent back were gladly received by their numerous friends. They also visited many of the old missions in California, Texas and Mexico, including those of the Alamo, Espada, and San Jose. It will be remembered that at the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, Colonel Travis, Lieutenant Colonel Bowie, Davey Crockett and others, lost their lives in battle with Mexicans, Indians and Spaniards. Some of the missions visited by Mr. and Mrs. Beck were over four hundred years old.

Nathan R. Prance. - Earnest toil and concentrated endeavor find their just reward in an unvarnished success, which is the more worthy of the name in that it is due not to accident but is the direct result of individual effort. He whose name introduces this paragraph has been the architect of his own fortunes and he is a man of keen business ability and unquestioned honesty and integrity. Nathan R. France is well known in his native state of Ohio and none has been more zealous in an unobtrusive way in furthering the material and civic welfare of his home community and of the state at large. He was bom in Richland county, Ohio, on the 16th of April, 1862, and is a son of Enoch and Rachel (Ross) France, the former of whom was a native of England and the latter of whom was born in Richland county, this state. The father devoted the major portion of his life to the stone business, and he was summoned to eternal rest in 1906. His wife still lives at Mansfield, Ohio.

Nathan R. Prance received his preliminary educational training in the >common schools of his native county and later supplemented the same by a course of study in Perrysville Academy, which he attended for a period of years and finished his education with a business course at Pittsburg. In 1885, when twenty-three years of age, he moved to Bloomville, Seneca county, and here he has continuously maintained his home during the long intervening years. He is the youngest of the five children of Enoch and Rachel Prance. Concerning the other children, the two daughters, Mary and Myra, are deceased; Ira, who was long associated with his brothers in the stone business, died in 1910, at the age of fifty-three years; and William J., is actively identified with his brother, Nathan R., in the operation of their vast quarries located in Ohio, Michigan and Indiana. This enterprise was begun on a modest scale in 1885, and during the past twenty-five years has grown to most remarkable proportions. The Prance Company own a tract of six hundred acres of fine quarry land in Bloom township, on which one of their quarries is located, and in various sections of Ohio, Michigan and Indiana they are the owners and operators of twenty-four other quarries, besides which they run a number of slag plants. The crushed stone manufactured by this enterprising concern is used for turnpiking and also for ballast in the construction of railroads, in which connection the company control a large business. The offices of the Prance Company were originally located in Bloomville, but with increased scope of business the headquarters were removed to Toledo, Ohio, where finely equipped offices are maintained and where a large number of employes are constantly engaged. The sterling integrity and highly reliable character of the brothers constitute one of the most valuable assets of the company, which is constantly extending its trade territory and which is rapidly becoming known throughout the union. Nathan R. Prance still maintains his home in Bloomville.

In politics Mr. Prance is an uncompromising supporter of the Republican party and he has been most liberal in his contributions to the development and progress of his home county. In a fraternal way he is affiliated with Eden Lodge, No. 310, Pree and Accepted Masons, and with De Molay Commandery, Knights Templars, at Tiffin. Both he and his wife are members of the Order of the Eastern Star. They also hold membership in the Reformed church.

In June, 1888, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Prance to Miss Luella Blackwell, who is a native of Ohio and who is a daughter of George and Julia (Heilman) Blackwell, both of whom are now of Tiffin. Mr. and Mrs. Prance have two children, G^eorge A., who was born on the 24th of November, 1890 ; and Luella, whose birth occurred on the 5th of November, 1897.

Oscar H. Berlekamp was born June 26, 1883, a son of H. B. and Caroline (Cook) Berlekamp. A biographical sketch of his father is given in these pages and should be referred to in connection with this. The parents of our subject were natives of Prussia. He lived with them till 1904, when he was about twentyone years old. On November 16th that year he married Miss Sallie Light Mayer, at Premont, Ohio. She was bom June 2.

Astor, Ltnox And

1885, a daughter of Israel H. and Sallie (Light) Mayer, natives of Thompson township. Her grandfather Mayer was born in Pennsylvania of an old and honored family there, and her grandmother, Catharine (Shadley) Mayer, was a native of Prance. They were among the early settlers of Thompson township, taking up land and improving it into a fine farm. The churches and schools of their vicinity had in them friends firm, helpful and steadfast, who did all possible for their development and advancement. They were communicants of the Reformed church. Sallie Light Mayer was born Pebruary 3, 1869. Israel Mayer was born in 1860.

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Mayer lived with grandfather Loose. They were members of the Reformed church and he was a Democrat. In the affairs of his township and of the county he was influential, as all good citizens should be. She died June 4, 1885, and he married Jennie Berkey and went to Elkhart, Indiana, to be a railroad engineer, leaving his daughter, Mrs. Berlekamp, with her grandparents, J. B. and Anna Light, who sent her to the Old Port High School where she received her graduating diploma in 1899, and cared for her till she married. Before her marriage, however, she entered upon a successful career as a teacher, which continued five years, two years after she became Mrs. Berlekamp. It should be noted that she recdved a second diploma, of which she is justly proud. She will long be remembered as one of Pleasant township 's most eflBcient educators. She has two brothers. Earl W. and Chester E. Mayer, and two sisters, Bessie I. and Edith B. Mayer, all of whom live at Elkhart, Indiana, with their father.

After his marriage, Mr. Berlekamp took up a residence on a farm owned by himself and two brothers, later selling his interest and buying his present farm, one of the best of its class in Pleasant township, on which he has lived since 1905 and which he has improved by ditching and tiling, by rebuilding barns and fences, by remodeling his house and in other ways known to thrifty farmers. Mr. and Mrs. Berlekamp are active and helpful members of the Reformed church. He is a Republican of local standing and influence. His wife has borne him two children: Joseph B., born June 21, 1906, died in infancy ; Windle K., was bom May 26, 1909.

Helen M. Heath. - Americans are beginning to realize the moral as well as the historical significance of genealogical foundations. A nation which relies upon the record of its homes for its national character cannot afford to ignore the value of genealogical investigation as one of the truest sources of patriotism. The love of home inspires the love of country. There is a wholesome influence in genealogical research which cannot be over estimated. Moreover, there is a deep human interest in it.

Helen M. (Shaw) Heath is the daughter and the widow of American citizens who contributed in generous measure to the civic and material development of the communities which represented their homes during their long and useful lives. She was born in Seneca county, Ohio, on the 31st of August, 1846, and is a daughter of Captain Joseph and Rachel Ogden (Price) Shaw, both of whom are now deceased. Captain Shaw was a native of the old Empire state of the Union, his birth having occurred in Scipio township, Cayuga county, New York, on the 20th of March, 1811. He was a son of Robert Shaw, bom in New York in 1785, a farmer by occupation. After attaining to his legal majority, Robert Shaw wedded Miss Sarah Keller and in 1836 they came to Seneca county, Ohio, locating in Scipio township, on several hundred acres of land eligibly situated on Morrison creek. They became the parents of ten children, namely: Mary, Eliza, Joseph, Matilda, Sallie, Silas, George, Roxa, Jerome and Alfred, all of whom are deceased. Robert Shaw was summoned to the life eternal August 14, 1864, and his cherished and devoted wife passed away in 1868. Captain Shaw was reared and educated in his native county and as a young man he became captain of an Erie canal boat, continuing to be identified with that line of enterprise for a period of seven years. In 1841 he removed to Scipio township, Seneca county, and engaged in agricultural pursuits, owning a fine farm two and a half miles west of Republic. Just prior to his advent in Ohio he married Rachel Ogden Price, of Genoa, New York. To this union were born three children, namely : Jane E., who became the wife of Captain George Tubbs; Helen M., the immediate subject of this review; and Annie E., who is the wife of G. R. Hemingway, traveling salesman for the Hess & Clark Company, with headquarters at Ashland, Ohio.

In 1850 Captain Shaw, with his family, returned to New York and for twenty years thereafter he was actively engaged as hotel proprietor at various points in New York. He returned to his farm near Republic in 1870, but the closing years of his life were passed at Republic, where he died August 20, 1877. His widow long survived him, her death occurring on March 30, 1900, at Ashland. Captan Shaw was a man of fine mentality and broad human sympathv and he is held in reverent memory bv all who knew him.

Jane E. Shaw, the eldest daughter, was bom November 27, 1843, in Scipio township, Seneca county, Ohio, and on the 26th of May, 1868, at Candor, New York, she was united in marriage to Captain George Tubbs, a native of Elmira, New York, where his birth occurred on the 19th of May, 1833. At the time of the inception of the Civil war he gave most effective aid in organizing the One Hundred and Forty-first Regiment of New York Infantry, in which he served as second lieutenant of Company I. Later he was promoted to the rank of first lieutenant and at the battle of Resaea he was wounded by a minie ball, which struck him in the right foot. After his recovery he was given charge of an invalid corps for a short time but later was detailed as topographical engineer on the staff of General Knipe, commanding a brigade of the First Division of the Twentieth Army Corps. Subsequently, on the march from Savannah through the Carolinas, he was appointed topographical engineer on the staff of General Jefferson C. Davis, of Indiana, who commanded the Fourteenth Army Corps. He was with Sherman on his march to the sea and on his staff in the Grand Review in the city of Washington, at the close of the war.

Captain Tubbs returned to his home in the Empire state, when peace had again been established, and there he was married and at Candor, Tioga county, that state, conducted an iron foundry for four years. In 1872 he emigrated to Ohio and established his home at Republic. He ever retained a deep interest in his old comrades in arms and signified the same by membership in Robinson Post, Grand Army of the Republic, at Republic. He served as commander of Robinson Post and in his civic life he was mayor of Republic and was serving his second term as justice of the peace at the time of his death, on the 2nd of March, 1899. His wife survives him and she has long been an active factor in Relief Corps work, having filled the position of president of Robinson Women's Relief Corps for no less than five terms. She is also a member of the Reading Circle and the Daughters of Rebekah. Captain and Mrs. Tubbs became the parents of three children, Joseph K, who was bom at Candor, New York, on the 27th of September, 1870, married ITattie L. Crapsey, of Bradner, Ohio, May 5, 1898, and they maintain their home at Velasco, Texas; Robert M., who was bom at Republic, Ohio, on the 22nd of June, 1873, is a resident of Ashland, Ohio, where was solemnized his marriage to Mary E. Brinton, of that city, the date of the ceremony being June 23, 1906 and they have two children: Florence E., born June 13, 1907; Robert Edward, born January 22, 1909; and Charles E., born March 30, 1875, died August 1, 1907.

Helen M. (Shaw) Heath was a child of but four years at the time of her parents' removal to New York, in which state she was reared and educated. On the 1st of December, 1869, at Candor, New York, was celebrated her marriage to Edward E. Heath, who died June 18, 1905. Mr. Heath was bom in Tompkins county, New York, February 12, 1843, and was a son of James Heath, who removed with his famijy to Hartford. New York, in 1849, to the public schools of which place Mr. Heath was indebted for his educational training. When seventeen years of age he entered upon an apprenticeship at the tinner's trade, at Homer, New York, and he was thus engaged until the 21st of August, 1862, when he manifested his intrinsic loyalty to the cause of the Union by enlisting as a private in Company H, One Hundred and Fiftyseventh New York Infantry, at Hamilton, where he was mustered into service. His term of enlistment was for three years. He participated in many engagements marking the progress of the war, in the first of which, at Chancellorsville, he was severely wounded by a minnie ball, which passed through his left thigh and lodged against the bone of his right leg. He was in the field hospital for three days, after which he was sent to a hospital in Washington, where he remained for seventeen days, during which time the ball was extracted. After his recovery he was sent to David's Island and on the 1st of September, 1863, he was transferred to Fort Schuyler. Later he was at Bedloe's Island and at Alexandria, Virginia, where he was put on detached service, being thus engaged until his discharge, at the close of his term of three years. He had been a most faithful soldier and was mustered out

At the close of the war Mr. Heath took up his abode at Homer, New York, where he followed his trade for two years. He then removed to Candor, Tioga county, where he was engaged in the hardware business until 1874, which year marked his advent in Republic, Ohio. This change was made on account of Mrs. Heath's impaired health. Being much benefited by the change, permanent location was made in Seneca county and Mr. Heath turned his attention to the buying and selling of walnut timber. Subsequently he engaged in the tinware and hardware business at Republic and prior to his death he was connected with the oil industry at RoUersville, Ohio, for a number of years. In politics, Mr. Heath was ever aligned as a stalwart supporter of the principles and policies of the Republican party and he held membership in Robinson Post, Grand Army of the Republic, in which he gave most efficient service as commander. Mr. Heath was an influential factor in public affairs, showing a deep and intelligent interest in all enterprises tending to advance the general welfare. He was long a member of the town council of Republic and served on the fire and water committee. For more than a score of years he was correspondent for the Tiffin Tribune and he had various financial and real estate interests of broad scope and importance. He was a valued and appreciative member of Republic Lodge. No. 40, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and at the time of his death, June 18, 1905, his funeral was in charge of this order. Many celebrated members from New York and various points in Ohio attended the services and his remains were interred in Pairwell Retreat Cemetery, at Republc. He was a man of quick perception and extraordinary executive ability, was modest and unassuming, a home lover who sought and found his chief pleasure by his own fireside in the companionship of his family and devoted friends.

Mrs. Heath is a woman of most gracious personality and broad mental ken. She has traveled extensively throughout the United States, visiting its many large cities and celebrated health resorts. She has considerable literary talent and devotes much of her time to writing, being a correspondent for and a contributor to several prominent periodicals. Though she is now past sixty years of age she scarcely looks forty, her clear vision and splendid vigor being wonderfully preserved. Her sister. Mrs. Tubbs, resides with her. as already stated, and she accompanies Mrs. Heath on her extensive travels. She is an ardent worker in the Women 's Relief Corps, in which she has served as treasurer, and is past noble grand in the Daughters of Rebekah. She is also a member of the Eastern Star and secretary of the Daughters of America. She has taken a prominent part in the work of this latter organization and has been delegate to the state meetings of the order on various occasions. Her religious faith is in harmony with the tenets of the Presbyterian church, to whose charities and benevolences she has ever been a liberal contributor.

She was united in marriage to George Rt Hemingway, at Candor, New York, on the 30th of December, 1868. In 1870 Mr. and Mrs. Hemingway removed to Republic, Ohio, and to them were born three children: Rachel Blanche, Ella Maud and Amy Winona. Rachel Blanche was born at Republic, Ohio, July 26, 1871, and she is now the wife of Frank L. Heath, of Candor, New York, the date of her marriage being June 14, 1899. Ella Maud was likewise a native of Republic, the date of her birth being May 7, 1873. She was summoned to eternal rest on the 11th of September, 1873, at which time she was an infant of but four months of age. Amy Winona, born at Republic, on the 14th of June, 1877, married Emory E. Brown, of Ashland, on the 12th of September, 1900. They reside at Ashland and have one son, Joseph H. whose birth occurred April 23, 1908.

Roland H. Crum, of Pleasant township, post office Tiflfin, one of the leaders in his community, was born December 20, 1880, a son of William T. and Mary E. (Keller) Crum. The father was born in Dauphin county, Pennsylvania, May 30, 1853, and the mother's nativity was in the Buckeye state, her natal day being December 18, 1854. The mother is a native of this township and has the unusual experience of residing upon the very farm which was the scene of her birth. William T. Crum came to Ohio when a little lad of four years with his parents, John Frederick and Susan S. (Reeme) Crum, the farewell to the old home near Harrisburg, in the Keystone state, being made in the year 1857. They located on a good farm in Hopewell township, Seneca county, which comprised one hundred and sixty acres of excellent land, and engaged in general farming. The grandfather was a quiet, upright, dependable man, with a quick hand for a friend or for those in trouble, helpful in the community, a good all-round citizen, such as exerts an influence for progress and development. He was a German by descent, his parents, David and Mrs. (Stine) Crum, having been born in the fatherland and later crossed to America, where thev located in Pennsvlvania. John Frederick Cnim survived until January 5, 1899, his wife having preceded him to the great beyond on July 24, 1887. The name of the latter 's father was Daniel Reeme, and he was a prominent man in his day and generation.

Mr. Crum's mother's family, the Kellers, were Maryland people, who located in Pleasant township about the year 1852. The father's principal business was farming, but later he built two grist mills and managed them until he died. He was widely known as ** Joel Keller, the miller,'' and his wife's maiden name had been Martha Kemp. Her grandfather, Peter Kemp, was the founder of the family in America, he having selected the state of Maryland as an abiding place.

Roland H. Crum, whose name initiates this sketch, was educated in the public schools, finishing at the Tiffin High School and his early years were employed in assisting his father, he remaining under the home roof until 1904. He was married on May 15 of that year to Elvira T. Abbott, bom May 16, 1880, a daughter of A. L.

and Galena (Titus) Abbott. Mr. and Mrs. Crum have one child, named Roland Abbott Crum, who first saw the light of day August 11, 1905. After his marriage Mr. Crum settled on the old A. L. Abbott farm jof two hundred and twenty-one acres and took up general farming, in which he has been successful. He is a Republican and influential in the township and county counsels of his party. He is a member of the Methodist Protestant church of Tiffin and Mrs. Crum is a communicant of the Presbyterian church of that city. He supplemented his schooling by a commercial course at Heidelberg. The wife, too, was educated in the Old Fort High School and at Heidelberg. She is justly proud of the fact that some of her relatives saw a soldier's service in the Civil war, notably Lieutenant (afterwards captain) Moses Abbott and Captain Lyman Abbott, and she is also eligible to membership in the Daughters of the American Revolution.

Herbert A. Gooding was born in Adams township, Seneca county, Ohio, January 30, 1873, a son of Joeiah and Mary A. (Petticord) Gooding. He was reared on his father's farm, instructed in all that makes for successful cultivation of the soil, and educated in public schools near his home. Until he married, he made his home with his parents, helping his father in his farming operations. But he was at times otherwise employed. He early fitted himself for a teacher's work. In 1893 he visited the Columbian Exposition, Chicago's great world's fair, where he made a critical study of many interesting things, broadening his view by observation and comparison of many objects of educational quality from all parts of the earth. December 2, that year, he married Miss Hetty A. Fisher. After successfully taking a five year examination he devoted himself to teaching, and was for fourteen years in charge of leading schools in the country round about, making a record as an educator of which any man might be proud. Had he continued teaching he might have risen to still more prominence, but in the meantime, seven years ago. he had bought the old Petticord farm of ninety acres and it demanded his attention. He moved into the old Petticord house, one of the landmarks of the ^township, built as long ago as 1840. He has partially rebuilt it, and it affords him comfortable domicile and adorns one of the finest farms in his neighborhood. Mrs. (Jooding was bom May 16, 1874, and lived with her grandfather, J. Rule, until her marriage. Educated in district schools and having a thirst to gain and impart knowledge, she was so thoroughly animated with the educational spirit of the day that for ten years she gave herself to school teaching, a vocation in which she won the praise of many older educators. It is worthy of note as indicating the current of th«» lives of Mr. and Mrs. Gooding at the time of their courtship and m the time leading to it that he was her last teacher before she left school to enter upon her labors in the world. She has borne her husband four children : Ruby bom October 20, 1895 ; Rachel M., October 17, 1900; Ward E., September 12, 1906; and Norman D., August 5, 1910. They are all members of their parents' household. Mrs. Gooding is a daughter of Lewis P. and Rprah { Rule)

Fisher. They were born in Adams township, her father November 18, 1850, and her mother September 8, 1845. Her father is living there now, devoting himself to his trade, that of a carpenter. His father was Joseph Fisher, a native of Maryland, who married Barbara Smith, also born in that state, but of German extraction.

Josiah Gooding, father of Herbert A. Gooding, was a son of Joseph and Amelia (Cooper) Gooding. Joseph Gooding was born at Playford near Ipswich, England, in 1803. His wife was born in the state of New York. They came to Seneca couuty in 1830. Their son Josiah was bom in Adams township in 1835, was educated in public schools and at the academy at Republic, taught school from 1850 to 1870, and was married April 21, 1859. He enlisted but before actual service the war was over. He is now living in Adams township. His wife bore him six children. The first in order of birth was Evira ; the others were Harry M. ; Willie, deceased; Emma J., George E. and Herbert A. The latter is a Republican in his political alliances and as such was repeatedly elected justice of the peace, serving continuously in the office eleven years. He has in his possession several relics of past generations which he justly prizes very highly. Among them is a set of andirons, a shovel and a pair of tongs brought from England by his grandfather Cooper and long used by him. Another is a teapot probably about a hundred years old once used by his grandmother, tea from which he often drank with her when he was young. Another is a beautiful handpainted plate, on which is delicately engraved the word * * Guanasay. ' ' Still another is a pitcher of ancient pattern which was long in possession of the Petticord family.

Jaenice p. Harrington. - Mrs. Harrington occupies a position of prominence in connection with educational affairs in Seneca county by reason of the fact that she is proprietor and manager of the Fostoria Business College, whose facilities and methods of instruction are of the best modem standard so that the institution affords splendid advantages to its numerous students. Mrs. Harrington is a native of Seneca county and is a daughter of Dr. James M. Parker, who was one of the honored and successful surgeons of this county for many years. Both he and his wife, whose maiden name was Hettie Gilmer, continued to reside in Ohio until his death. Mrs. Harrington was afforded the advantages of the public schools of the city of Findlay, Ohio, where she was graduated in the high school as a member of the class of 1902. Thereafter she completed a three years' course in the University of Ohio and in the spring of 1908 she came to Fostoria and assumed the position of manager of the Fostoria Business College, of which she became proprietor on April 4, 1909. The excellent institution, which is conducted under the able administration of Mrs. Harrington, offers complete courses in stenography, typewriting, bookkeeping and business forms and is well equipped for fitting its students for all kinds of office positions. In connection with the college is maintained a business exchange, through which employers are provided with capable office assistants. The college is located in the Rosendale Building, at the corner of Main and North streets, and is constantly expanding in its usefulness and scope of operations.

Mrs. Harrington is known as a careful business woman and capable executive and occupies a somewhat unique position as administrative head of her college. She holds membership in the Presbyterian church.

Isaac P. Rule. - This prominent Republican and citizen of Adams township was born October 31, 1865, a son of Byron and Matilda (Dodge) Rule. His grandfather^ Daniel Rule, who was bom October 28, 1801 came to Scipio township the year following the removal of his father to this section and he settled on eighty acres of land. He had formerly resided in Trumbull county And later he settled on one hundred and seventy-three acres in Seneca county.

Isaac P. Rule was educated at Greenspring and at Oberlin, he gained a practical knowledge of farming and was a member of his parents' home circle until he married and set up an independent rooftree. He married Miss Jennie Litler, and she bore him a son whom they named Byron L. He died in April, 1900 and the wife and mother died the year following. Mr. Rule's present wife, before her marriage, was Miss Elizabeth Lull. She was educated in New Hampshire and came to Seneca county about the year 1900. Mrs. Rule's parents died when she was but three years old and she was adopted by a great-uncle, Robert B. Lull, who resided in Clermont, New Hampshire. She there attended the district schools until her marriage, which occurred January 4, 1905, At Detroit, Michigan. She came then to the farm in Seneca county. Isaac P. Rule's grandfather, Daniel Rule, established the present Rule homestead on land obtained during Andrew Jackson 's administration.

Mr. Rule is a member of the Masonic Commandery at Fremont and also belongs to the Order of the Eastern Star and Mrs. Rule is worthy matron of the organization at Greenspring of the last named order. She is a member of the Universalist church. Mr. Rule has traveled quite extensivelv throughout the United States. He is a man of fine abilities and has varied the monotony of farming with ventures in the way of speculation. His influence in public affairs of his township and county is recognized and his public spirit, no less than his good judgment have brought him into the counsels of those who plan and promote innovations for the general good.

J. ScHiTYLBR HossLER. - A man of prominence and influence in public affairs in the thriving village of Bloomville, Seneca county, is J. Schuyler Hossler. a member of the firm of Hossler & Kimmel, editors and proprietors of the BloomvUle Gazette, At this iuncture it is interesting to note the evolution of the Gazette. The first paper edited in Bloomville appeared in 1875 and was called the Enterprise. It was owned by Rev. Robert Lockhart, J. N. Lee and D. W. Fisher, the latter of whom changed the name to the

BloomvUle Banner, Adam Brothers purchased the paper in 1877 and they were succeeded by William Kaga, who sold it to Mr. Fisher, one of the first founders. Mr. Fisher eventually disposed of it to Mr. Hamaker, and during his ownership it was discontinued for a period of eight months. O. M. Holcomb next took it in charge and he changed the title to that of the Independent cfe Seneca County Record, For a time it was in the hands of M. Richardson and in 1894 he disposed of it to I. C. Gray, who edited it successfully until 1905. In 1900 Mr. Hossler established the Gazette and five years later the Independent was consolidated with the Gazette under the name of the latter. In 1909 I. C. Gray withdrew from the firm and was succeeded by E. D. Kimmel, who is now associated with J. Schuyler Hossler under the firm name of Hosier & Kimmel, as already noted. In 1910 this firm founded another paper, the Republic Reporter. Both papers are now well established on a sound, paying basis and they have a circulation of about fifteen hundred. In connection with the work on the papers is conducted a flourishing jobbing department.

J. Schuyler Hossler was born in Bloom township, Seneca, county, Ohio, on the 13th of May, 1873, and he is a son of Samuel B. and Sarah J. (Lomiller) Hossler, the former of whom was bom in Bloom township on the 12th of April, 1842, and the latter of whom was bom on February 16, 1847. Samuel B. Hossler was reared and educated in his native township and he supplemented his earlier educational training by an effective course of study in the Seneca County Academy. That he put his scholastic attainments to good use is shown by the fact that he was successfully engaged in teaching for seven terms. Subsequently he turned his attention to agricultural pursuits in conjunction with work of a clerical nature. He has served as executor of various estates and it is stated on good authority that he has settled more estates than any other man in the township. He was at one time nominated on the Republican ticket for county recorder and infirmary director, but owing to political exigencies he was defeated by a small majority. He has filled with efficiency the offices of land appraiser and township trustee and was for many years a member of the school board. On the 2nd of May, 1864, he showed his patriotism and loyalty to the cause of the union by enlisting as a member of Company G, One Hundred and Sixty-fourth Ohio National Guard, his command being assigned to the Army of the Cumberland. He served out his term and was mustered out of service in September, 1864. His brother, Henry F., was likewise a gallant soldier in the Union army. He served as a private in Company B, One Hundred and Ninety-fifth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and was a first lieutenant, Ohio National Guard. He was summoned to eternal rest on the 5th of November, 1872. Samuel B. Hossler has important interests in several farms in and adjacent to Bloom township and for the past nineteen years he has maintained his home in Bloomville. where he has extensive real estate holdings. It is interesting to note here tliat Mr. Hossler has in his possession a twenty-five cent piece which was found in the pocket of President McKinley at the time of his assassination in Buffalo, New York. This memento was given him by his cousin, H. W. Hossler, who was one of the fellow directors with President McKinley in the Central Savings Bank of Canton, Ohio, and who was one of the appraisers of the McKinley estate.

Samuel Hossler is a son of Jacob and Anna (Funk) Hossler, the former of whom was born in Adams county, Pennsylvania, on the 31st *of January, 1806, and the latter of whom was a native of Stark county, Ohio, where her birth occurred on the 19th of June, 1814. The old Hossler homestead in Pennsylvania is part of the site on which was fought the memorable battle of Gettysburg. Jacob came with his parents to Ohio in 1821 and the family located in Stark county. In 1834 he came to Seneca county and established his home in Bloom township, where he developed a productive farm. His marriage to Miss Anna Funk was solemnized on the 23rd of September, 1830, and of their sixteen children eleven attained to years of maturity. In 1866 Mr. Hossler removed to Bloomville, where he continued to reside until his death and he was long one of the prominent and influential citizens of Seneca county. For nearly a quarter of a century he served as justice of the peace and he was the first incumbent of the office of mayor of Bloomville. He served four years as postmaster, under the administration of President Grant, and he was called upon to serve in other offices of public trust. He was summoned to the life eternal on the 5th of March, 1896, his cherished and devoted wife having passed away on the 16th of February, 1891. - Both lived to a ripe old age, celebrating their golden wedding in 1880 and the sixtieth anniversary of their marriage in 1890. At the time of his demise Jacob Hossler was the owner of three hundred and twenty acres of valuable farm land and he contributed materially to the development of the agricultural industry of Seneca county. Both he and his wife were held in high regard by their fellow citizens and the circle of their friends was coincident with that of their acquaintances. Jacob Hossler was a son of Frederick Hossler, who was born in Pennsylvania on the 8th of September, 1783, and who was a son of John G. Hossler, a representative of one of the pioneer families of the old Keystone state, where he was born in 1758. John G. Hossler was a son of Michael J. Hossler, who was bom in Alsace, France, now a German province, and who emigrated to America and established his home in Philadelphia county, Pennsylvania, in 1754. John G. Hossler married Elizabeth Ramer, who was born in York county, Pennsylvania, on the 1st of December, 1762. Frederick Hossler, grandfather of him whose name initiates this article, was bom in York county, Pennsylvania, on the 8th of December, 1783, as already noted, and he married Magdelene Koltriter, who was bom October 31, 1782. His death occurred on the 30th of December, 1843, and his wife, who long survived him, passed away on the 3rd of August, 1867.

J. Schuyler Hossler, the immediate subject of this review, received his early educational discipline in his native township and when nineteen years of age was matriculated in Heidelburg College, at Tiffin, in the literary department of which he was graduated as a member of the class of 1897, with the degree of Bachelor of

Science. From 1897 to 1900 he was engaged as editor of the Toledo Herald and in the latter year he severed his connection with this, paper and became editor and proprietor of the Bloomvillt Gazette. Concerning his identification with this enterprising paper a brief history has already been given. In politics Mr. Hossler accords an unwavering allegiance to the Republican party and the high place which he holds in popular confidence and esteem is readily indicated by his election as mayor of Bloomville in 1910. He is giving a most admirable administration of the municipal affairs of his home town and is doing much to further the development and progress of the same. In the time honored Masonic fraternity he holds membership in Eden Lodge, No. 310, Free and Accepted Masons, and he is also affiliated with the Modern Woodmen of America. Both he and his wife are earnest members of the Methodist Episcopal church and they are prominent factors in the social activities of the community.

On the 29th of May, 1898, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Hossler to Miss DoUie Kimmel, who was born in Attica, Ohio, and who is a daughter of Henry H. and Martha A. (Swartz) Eimmel, representative citizens of Bloomville. Mr. and Mrs. Hossler have three children, namely : Alice L., Grace H. and Glenna E.