Wakeman Township (part 17 of 21)

Clarence E. Stotts

One of the native sons of KipIey township, successful in his agricultural pursuits and prominent in local business circles is Clarence E. Stotts, who lives upon the old homestead and enjoys the home which for so many years was the residence of his father. He was born November 3, 1863, and is a son of Abram and Mariette (Boughton) Stotts. The father, born December 5, 1822, in Belmont countv, Ohio, was the son of John and Eva (Winter) Stotts, the latter a native of Virginia, and was the eldest of nine children: Abram, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, Martin K., Catherine, George, Daniel and Elizabeth. He was the first born and he was the last to die. The eighty-six years of his life, his death occurring July 21, 1909, were crowded with activities of the highest order and of profit to others. A man whose advantages in his youth had been limited, the success of his life in farming and in the business world was due entirely to his own efforts. The Huron County Insurance Company was organized in his house, that in which Clarence E. Stotts lives today, and he was elected its first president. He was also a director of the First National Bank at Greenwich for a period of two years. The people of Ripley township frequently called upon him to fill the various offices which were at their disposal and twice, in 1875 and in 1878, he was elected on the republican ticket to fill the post of commissioner for Huron county. In the Baptist church at North Fairfield he was also prominent, and he administered the duties of trustee and deacon with wisdom and decorum. In short he was a man who made a place for himself in the fore ranks despite the fact that he was handicapped in the struggle for life by limited early training. His wife, who before her marriage was Miss Mariette Boughton, was born in Allegany county, New York, June 12, 1831, and was the daughter of John and Susan (Benedict) Boughton, who came to Ohio in 1835 and took up the work of the early pioneers. She was one of ten children, the others being Solon, Orlando, Cordier, Lucius, Elon, Theodore, Oscar, Sanford and Silicia. Mr. and Mrs. Abram Stotts were the parents of four children. Flora A. married John W. Hopkins, and they have one son, Fred A. Eunice Adell married T. A. Hilton, and they have two children, Flora E. and Alfred W. Clarence E., the third of the family, is the subject of this sketch. Elmer A. married Miss Mildred Kaylor and they have one daughter, Blanche. Mrs. Stotts preceded her husband to the grave by some nine years, her death having occurred May 31, 19or.

Clarence E. Stotts has followed farming as his vocation through nearly all of his life and is accounted a successful agriculturist. He has found wide play for the exercise of his large business ability as well, for he has been one of the direc- tors of the First National Bank at Greenwich ever since its organization and has assisted in maintaining that institution upon its sound financial basis. In politics he has ever espoused the cause of the republican party, though he has never been active in its ranks nor a seeker of official recognition. He has, nevertheless, served the people of this township very efficiently as a justice of the peace and for seven years as a member of the school board and was ever found to administer his duties in accordance with what he believed to be right.

On the 19th of September, 1889, Mr. Stotts was married to Miss Mabel Loveland, who was born June 4, 1870, in New Haven township, this county, and is the only daughter of Rockwell and Roxana (Knight) Loveland. The father, who was born in New Haven township, June 9, 1838, was the son of John Loveland, who was one of the pioneers of Huron county, having come here in 1822, when he was twenty-four years of age, settling in New Haven township. His wife was Miss Calista Curtiss before her marriage. Rockwell Loveland, besides participating in the work of the pioneers, which was not completed when he became old enough to assist, fought valiantly for three vears for the preservation of the Union during the Civil war. He was in the navy on the Mississippi flagship Black Hawk and was in the Red River expedition, serving under General Farragut. Mrs. Stotts' mother, who was Miss Roxana Knight before her marriage, was the daughter of William and Jane (Johnson) Knight, the former a native of Boston, Massachusetts, the latter of Connecticut. To Mr. and Mrs. Stotts three children have been born: Harold, born August 18, 1891; Alta B., born April 19, 1894; and Hazel Mae, born October 25, 1908. The children are all at home, and in the Baptist faith, which the father and mother have professed, they have been reared. A man who has been fortunate in his own affairs and has been found trustworthy in his relations to others, Mr. Stotts enjoys the respect of all who know him and the strong friendship of his Masonic brothers in

Sanford H. King

Sanford H. King is a retired farmer who, having passed the seventy-second milestone on life's journey, is now living retired in the enjoyment of rest which he has truly earned and richly deserves. He is living in North Fairfield and has spent almost his entire life in Huron county. He is a native of New York, his birth having occurred in the Empire state on the 13th of May, 1837. His parents were Elias and Catherine (Mott) King, whose family numbered but three chiidren, the others being Barzilla and Mary. It was in the year 1838 that the parents left the east and came with their family to Ohio, establishing their home in Huron county.

Sanford H. King was only about a year old at the time and, therefore, for even.more than the Psalmist's allotted span of three score years and ten he has lived in this part of the state, witnessing its growth and development as the years have gone by. He has lived to see notable changes for the native forests have been cut away, the land cultivated and now the pioneer district is a region of val- uable farms in the midst of which found flourishing towns and cities with their industrial and commercial interests. In his youthful days Mr. King assisted in the labors of the home farm and experience taught him the value of industry and perseverance. His educational training was received in the public schools which he attended through the winter seasons. he attained his majority he resolved to follow as a life work the occupation to which he had been reared and took up the task of farming on his own account. Year by year he carefully and diligently cultivated the crops best adapted to the soil and climate and as time passed won success in his labors. He is still the owner of one hundred and sixty acres of land in Fairfield township, from which he derives a substantial income, although he is now living retired, leaving the work of the farm to others.

On the Ist of March, 1860, Mr. King was united marriage to Miss Julia Mc- Kelvey, who was born in Ohio May 4, 1835, and is a daughter of Robert and Mary (Prosser) McKelvey. They have a large family of children: Julia, Catherine, Betsy, Almira, Harriet, Lyman, Perry, George, Angeline, Roena, Mack and Lily.

The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. King was blessed with four children; Eugene, born in 1860; Jennie, born in 1865; Fred, born in 1869; and Ernest, who was born in 1876 and was killed by the cars in December, 1897. Fred married Della Barre and they have one child, Lloyd. The parents are members of the Baptist church, to the support of which they make liberal contribution. Mr. King is a republican in politics and is thoroughly conversant with the leading questions and issues of the day. He has served as a trustee but has not been active as a political worker or an office seeker. His fraternal relations are with the Masons and in his life he exemplifies the benevolent spirit of the craft which is based upon mutual helpfulness and brotherly kindness. His long residence in the county has made him well known here and his memory forms a connecting link between the primitive past and progressive present. Upon his memory are impressed many scenes and events of the early day which marked the progress of the community and indicated what was the condition that existed through the days of his boyhood in this part of the state.

One of the persons, who despite her many years, still retains a deep interest in the affairs of Greenfield township, is Mrs. Martha A. Lovell, who owns two hundred and seventeen acres of land, on which she lives, part of it being the farm on which her husband was born. Her birth occurred in Paris, now Plymouth, Ohio, on the 31st of March, 1831, her parents being Matthew and Nancy (Adams) McKelvey. The former came to Huron county with his father and an older brother and settled in Greenfield township on the farm where Robert Arthur now lives. The land was then heavily timbered, which three men had to clear before they could put up the log house which was their home while they lived there. After some years, they removed to Plymouth, where the elder McKelvey died, closing a career that had experienced many hardships and privations, for he had been a soldier of the Revolutionary war and had lost one of his limbs in battle.

Matthew McKelvey was born in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, January 30, 1794, and was but little more than twenty years of age when on the 27th of March, 1818, he was united in wedlock to Miss Nancy Adams. She was two and a half years his junior and was born in Marlboro, Vermont. Mr. McKelvey passed the greater part of his life in this county and was one of the pioneer drygood merchants of Plymouth. Later he removed to Harding county, Ohio, where his wife and three of his daughters died, and then returned to Plymouth. There he passed away on the 18th of March, 1853, ten years and three months after his helpmate had gone to her final resting-place. Mr. and Mrs. McKelvey were the parents of ten children: Elizabeth, who was born February 12, 1819, and died 1834; Marion and Mary, twins, born January 9, 1821, the former dying June 25, 1823, the latter July 23, 1842; Sarah, who was born May 5, 1823, and died July 23, 1841; Nancy, who was born November 8, 1824, and died July 1841 ; George, who was born June 28, 1826, and died September 18, 1827; Jane, who was born June 9, and died July 21, 1841; Martha M., now Mrs. Lovell; Matho, born February 25, 1832, now a resident of Tiffin, Ohio; and John, born February 8, 1835, who lives at Sandusky, Ohio, and is a member of the Firelands Historical Society.

Mrs. Lovell attended the public schools of Plymouth until she was 17 and for one year continued her studies at Fairfield. She then entered upon the career of a teacher, which she followed until she was married, on the 3oth of December, 1854, to Ethan C. Lovell a son of David and Mary (Chilcoot) Lovell His father came here in the early days of the county and took up fifty acres of land which is included in the farm Mrs. Lovell now owns. At the time of his arrival the land was covered with heavy timber which he had to clear away before be could build the little log house, which was the first home of his family. Later he was able to build a fine brick residence, for he prospered in his affairs. Ethan C. Lovell was born June 17, 1819, grew up at home on the farm, and in turn, became a prominent farmer and stock raiser. He was noted for his honesty and carefulness, and it is recorded of him that he kept a regular set of books, in which were entered the transactions of each day. In 1858, he built the lárge frame house in which his widow still lives and which he was permitted to enjoy for forty years. A hard worker and thrifty, he made a secure position for himself in the hearts of the people of the township, who mourned his loss deeply when death called him on the 27th of April, 1898.

Not blessed with any children of her own, Mrs. Lovell has given the privileges of a home and maternal care to two girls, one of whom remained with her from the time she was six years of age until she married George Mannard, when she went to live in Virginia. Lena Clark, the other girl, was twelve years of age when she came to live with Mrs. Lovell, with whom she made her home until she married Albert Baker, of this township.

Mrs. Lovell is a very well preserved woman, who is old only in years and not in spirit, looks or actions. Her life has always been one of activity and when her husband was living she would cook all the meals for the farm hands. She also tells with a touch of pardonable pride that she did some of the painting on the frame house which she now lives. From her mother, who was the first teacher in Peru township, she inherits her love of books and reading, and in the years that have passed since she presided over a roomful of pupils, she has not forgotten her interest in education or in the affairs of the world generally.

Philander J. Riddle

Philander J. Riddle, one of the representative farmers of Richmond township and a man who has made his influence felt in both political and church circles, is the owner of one hundred and ten acres of fertile farm land in this township. He was born in Richland county, Ohio, January 1, 1854, his parents being John and Amanda (Thornton) Riddle. The father was engaged all his life in agricultural pursuits and at the same time during earlier years he taught school, for eighteen years in the district schools and two years in the graded school at Bellville, Ohio, gaining an enviable reputation as a local educator. During the summer, when released from his school duties, he carried on farming, thus combining the two occupations very profitably. In 1865 the family came to Huron county, and this continued to be the home of the parents for the remainder of their lives, the father passing away in 1890, and his widow in 1893. They were the parents of the following children: Lydia, who married John Miller, of Chicago Junction; Archibald, who is deceased; Sybal, who married W. F. Miller; Philander J., who is mentioned below ; John Jr. ; Lunetta, who married George Hatch; and William, the youngest.

Philander J. Riddle spent his boyhood as do so many sons of farmers, except that he had the advantage of belonging to a family where educational matters were considered of great importance, and he therefore secured an excellent school training, first in the district schools of Knox county until he was twelve years old, and after that in Huron county, thus continuing until he attained his majority, and at the same time he assisted his father on the farm in the summer. The first land owned by Mr. Riddle was located in Richland county and consisted of a hundredacre farm he and his brother John bought and operated in partnership for five years. Following this venture, Mr. Riddle rented his present farm from his father-in-law and when the latter died he bought it. The Richland county farm was traded for Chicago, Ohio, property. During the time he has been the owner of his Richmond township farm, Mr. Riddle has devoted himself to improving it, and has brought it into a state that makes good crops almost a certainty, so that he can depend upon an excellent income from his investment of money, time and labor.

On September 1, 1881, Mr. Riddle married Elmyra Snyder, a daughter of Hiram and Amelia Snyder, who came from the eastern part of Ohio to Huron county, being early settlers of this locality. They were the parents of the following children: Simon; who married William Cheseman ; Jennie; Douglas; Elmyra, who became Mrs. Riddle; Ira; and Amanda, who married John Bager. Mr. and Mrs. Riddle have had but one child of their own, Walter, but they have adopted Ray White from an orphan asylum and propose to give him the same ado = Un < = N vantages enjoyed by their son. "This one act sheds a light upon the truly Christian characters of these two and demonstrates that they believe in living out in their lives the teachings of their church. Walter Riddle married Cora Harmon, and their children are: May, Vernice, Harold, Lois and Dalton.

Both Mr. Riddle and his wife are consistent members of the United Brethren church and are highly esteemed by their fellow members. When the present church was built he served on the building committee, while he is now church treasurer and a member of the board of parsonage trustees. For a number of years Mr. Riddle has been prominent in the republican party in this locality and is now serving as township treasurer with that same fidelity to obligations placed upon him that has resulted in his material advancement, and his winning and retaining the friendship of his neighbors and church associates.

Emmons W. Ross

Emmons W. Ross is descended from men who braved the terrors, dangers and hardships of the unknown forests and hewed out not only a home for themselves but cleared land and prepared fields from which those generations that came after them would reap the gain. He is a farmer in the vicinity of Boughtonville, Ripley township, and owns the one hundred and forty-twe acres on which helives. He was born in Auburn, Auburn township, Crawford county, Ohio, September 13, 1861, and is the son of Royal K. and Mary (Aumend) Ross. The father, who was the son of Abel and Amelia (Emmons) Ross, was born in 1832 in New York, while the mother, who was a daughter of Adam Aumend, was born in Crawford county in 1840, for her parents were among the pioneers there. Through their marriage Royal R. Ross and his wife became the parents of five children: Fred, William, one who died in infancy, Howard and Emmons.

Emmons W. Ross has always been a farmer since his childhood's days, for as soon as he was able he did his share in the work that was carried on at home, and as he became older participated in the heavier labor of the fields. He experienced the same difficulty in obtaining an education that confronts the farmer's boys even today, but which were as nothing in comparison with the hardships of the preceding generations, just as his life with its comforts affords a striking contrast to that of his uncle Resolved White, who it is said built the first frame house in Norwalk, as he was the first settler who was an adept in the carpenter's trade. But whatever the conditions under which he labored, they bred in him the desire and the determination to win success. This has come to him with the passage of the years and is due to his own exertions alone.

On the 31st of March, 1893, Mr. Ross was united in marriage to Miss Daisy C. Daugherty, a daughter of D. W. and Alzina (Snyder) Daugherty. She was born in 1877 in Hardin county end was the elder of the two daughters born to her parents, Julia being the other. Mr. and Mrs. Ross have eight children: Victor, born February 5, 1894; Russell R., July 6, 1896 ; Virgil, November 15, 1897; Ruth, May 12, 1899; Amy, January 30, 1901; Cecil, April 5, 1903; Milo, August 3, 1906; and Glenn, May 5, 1908.

The family attend the Episcopal church at Plymouth, Ohio, and are conscientious in their practice of its teachings. When called to exercise his franchise, Mr. Ross casts his ballot for the candidate and measures of the republican party, but aside from always being present at the polls at election, which he believes to be the duty of every citizen, he takes little active part in public affairs. He isa man highly regarded, nevertheless, for the strong qualities that mark his character.

Among the many men who have witnessed the vast changes that have transpired since the opening of the early decades of the last century is J. C. Boardman, a farmer of Boughtonville, Ripley township. More than a witness, in fact, for he felled trees where are now teeming fields and built rough roads of logs where now stretch miles of macadam or gravel. The blood of men and women who had been pioneers flowed in his veins and the quickening impulse of the new life was in the very air he breathed from birth, for his father, Benaja Boardman, was said to have been the first white child born between Seneca and Cayuga lake. His birth occurred in 1794, and as he grew to manhood the desire possessed him to become a minister of the gospel and bring the word of light to those hardy people beyond the mountains. He was ordained in the Methodist church and came west to Ohio almost immediately, where by word and deed he urged the men and women not to forget the needs of the soul and organized the congregation that they might worship in common. The field of his labors lay in this part of the state, but the influence oi his life and the message he brought were not confined by any boundaries. His wife, Miss Loura Ann Hurd in her maidenhood, was a sympathetic and encouraging helpmeet. She was born in 1799 in Connecticut and like her husband came from a family that had its genesis in England. She urged him to come to this Ohio wilderness in 1827, although she well knew that it meant the rearing of her children amid hardship and poverty. There were seven born to inherit this courage from mother and father: Caleb, Joshua, Samuel, Mary, Martha, William and Benaja.

J. C. Boardman was born in Richland county, this state, March 5, 1828. In the difficult life in which the parents struggled it was early necessary that he do his share of hard, strength-requiring work, such as is not known today, for he tells with pardonable pride that at the age of fourteen he cleared an acre of timber that he might buy a pair of boots. He continued to fell trees for years, that the land might be converted into fruitful fields, Large numbers of the hewn logs were used in the construction of the historic plank roads, called corduroy roads in those days, and Mr. Boardman, still a young man, drove the ox-teams that dragged the massive tree trunks across the swamps to the place they were to be laid. With the advance in the times he has progressed; a substantial income and comforts have replaced hardships and privations; and in the growing community of Ripley township he filled a larger and larger place, a man highly respected and honored for his courage and the strength of his character. He now owns two hundred acres in Ripley township, is a stockholder in the Farmers' Bank at Green-

More than half a century ago Mr. Boardman was united in marriage to Miss Helen Ames. She was born in ithaca, New York, in 1831, and was a daughter of Benjamin and Lydia (Ellis) Ames, who were of English extraction and came to Ohio in comparatively early days. On the 15th of September, 1903, the couple celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of their wedding and for five more years they were permitted to traverse life's highway together, until, on the 3oth of June, 1908, Mrs. Boardman was released from the cares of this world. She was a noble wife and a good mother to the four children born of her. These are Eva, Carrie, Benjamin and Frank.

To the Methodist faith in which he was reared, Mr. Boardman has always given his adherence and in the little church of his township has taken a vital interest, having served the congregation as steward, trustee and class leader. In politics he has always given his support to the republican party, but he inclines more and more to some of the principles advocated by the prohibitionists. One of the oldest men of Ripley township, he is also one of its finest citizens, his life constantly being an example of industry, frugality and the guidance of sound principles.

Jonathan Trumbull Mead

Jonathan Trumbull Mead, well known as a representative of agricultural life in Huron county, was born in Fitchville township, April 25, 1835. His birth occurred on the farm where he now resides, his father, Peter Mead, having taken up this tract of one hundred and sixty-three acres as a claim from the government in 1814. Peter Mead removed from Greenwich, Connecticut, to Fairfield, New York, in 1812. His father, Peter Mead, Sr., had been a soldier of the Revolutionary war, serving for seven years in defense of colonial interests and holding the rank of sergeant. When the country again became engaged in war with England his son, Peter Mead, Jr., responded to the call to arms, taking part in the war of 1812. He was afterward a pensioner of the government, receiving eight dollars per month in recognition of the aid which he had rendered on the field of battle.

Coming to Ohio at an early day Peter Mead, Jr., was one of the pioneers of Huron county and the first to establish a home in Fitchville township, taking up his abode here when much of the land was still in possession of the government. A greater part of it was covered with the native growth of timber and it required much arduous labor to transform it into productive fields. Peter Mead, however, secured his claim and took up the difficult work of preparing the land for the plow. In due course of time he made his place a productive tract, its fields yielding generous harvests. For several terms he filled the office of justice of the peace and J. T. Mead now has in his possession the law book which his father used and which was printed in 1841. He also has a dress-coat which was worn by his grandfather over eighty years ago. Peter Mead kept the first real-estate records of Huron county and was closely connected with many other labors and events which marked the train of progress. As the work of improvement was carried on in his section of the state Peter Mead, Jr., took an active part in the transformation which was being wrought. On one occasion he gave to Amos Reynolds fifty acres of land and while assisting him in the woods, chopping down trees, both of them being barefooted at the time, Mr. Mead noticed some scars upon his companion's feet and asked how he came by them. Mr. Reynolds replied that when he was a boy fishing he, day, fell into the water and cut his feet on some oyster shells and that he would have been drowned had it not been for the help of another boy who rescued him. Further questioning and response led to the conclusion that it was Peter Mead, who had performed the rescue, although each had lost knowledge of the other's whereabouts during the years which had elapsed after the incident had occurred.

Reared upon the frontier, Jonathan Trumbull Mead was educated in one of the old time log schoolhouses in which the district schools of that day convened. He always remained upon the home farm, for his father died the son was but nineteen years of age and he afterward lived with his widowed mother who survived for many yeats, passing away July 3, 1884. In his farm work Mr. Mead was progressive and in the course of years erected new buildings upon the place and added many modern improvements which make the farm one of comfort and convenience. He is also auctioneer, well known in connection with that work which he has followed continuously since 1855. He has conducted sales in a great many states in the Union, handling both merchandise and farm property and he still follows the same business. As the years have passed he has prospered in his undertakings, and has had extended landed possessions. Although he has recently sold one hundred acres he is still the owner of three hundred and eighty acres of choice Ohio land.

On the 26th of June. 1860, Mr. Mead was united in marriage to Miss Pamelia Jane Daniels, who was born in Ruggles township, Ashland county, Ohio, August 20, 1839. Her father was William Daniels, who settled in Ashland county in pioneer times and died in 1870 at the age of sixty-two years. The mother passed away in 1906 when eighty-seven years of age. Mr. and Mrs. Mead have become the parents of four children: Rowena Jane, born July 7, 1861, and Charles Newberry, born June 19, 1873, who are still living, while Arilie Amorit and Kitty Belle have passed away.

Mr. Mead is entitled to wear the Grand Army button from the fact that he enlisted in September, 1864, in the Twelfth Ohio Independent Battery under Captain Frank Jackson. He was a representative in the third generation in the family which has done splendid military service, his grandfather having been a soldier of the Revolution, his father of the war of 1812, while his son Charles enlisted for service in the Spanish-American war with Troop A, of the First Ohio Cavalry. He supplemented his early education by study in Oberlin College.

Mr. and Mrs. Mead have spent the last six winters in Florida, thus avoiding the rigors of the northern climate. His political allegiance has always been given to the republican party. Mrs. Mead attends the Congregational church, with which she has long held membership. Mr. Mead is among the oldest of the native sons of Huron county, having for seventy-four years resided within its borders so that his memory compasses the period of almost its entire growth, forming a connecting link between the primitive past and the progressive present. He has seen the forests cuts down and the fields cultivated until the district has been made to bloom and blossom as the rose and in the work of general improvement he has been deeply interested, bearing his full share as a public-spirited citizen.

Charles A. Cooley is a substantial and representative agriculturist of Wakeman township, Huron ccunty, and comes from a family well known and prominent in the early history of this state. He was born in Brownhelm, Lorain county, on the 26th of February, 1866, a son of Charles E. and Anna A. (Bacon) Cooley, both natives of Lorain county. George Bacon, the maternal grandfather of our subject, in company with two brothers, came with his family to Ohio from Massachuseits in 1818, the family being the second to locate in Brownhelm. The district was still covered with virgin forest and the three brothers had to clear a space large enough to build their cabins. They entered large tracts of land and concentrated their efforts upon the improvement and cultivation of the same. George Bacon became very prosperous in his agricultural undertaking and was also recognized as a prominent figure in public affairs. He was a civil engineer and in this capacity assisted in a large degree in the early work of laying out and developing the community. He served as ccunty commissioner for a number of years and was also called to other offices, being recognized as a capable and worthy citizen. Moses B. Cooley, the paternal grandfather, brought his family to Ohio from Connecticut soon after the arrival of the Bacons and likewise cast in his lct with the early settlers in this section of the country, aiding in the work of reclaiming the wild district for purposes of civilization. He, too, met with marked success in his farming pursuits and became a great worker in church circles of the community. Both grandfathers lived to a ripe old age and were well known and influential men in their different spheres.

Charles E. Cooley, the son of Moses B. Cooley, followed the occupation to which he was reared and became a prosperous farmer and one of the most extensive landowners in Brownhelm. He was also active in public affairs and served for several years as the superintendent of the Lorain county infirmary. He married Miss Anna A. Bacon and in their family were two children, George E. and Charles A. The father's death occurred in Roodhouse, Illinois, August 28, 1898, while his first wife passed away in March, 1866. In 1872 he married Miss Addie Appleby, by whom he had one daughter, Addie, now the wife of Robert Crehore. His second wife died at Bay City, Michigan, December 20, 1907.

Spending tke years of his boyhood and youth upon his father's farm, Charles A. Cooley acquired his preliminary education in the schools of Brownhelm and later supplemented this training by a commercial course at Oberlin College. He remained at home; assisting his father in the cultivation of the fields until twentyone years of age, when he went to South Dakota and engaged in agricultural pursuits on his own account. He was thus connected for eighteen months and then returned to Oberlin, Ohio, where he was identified with hotel interests in connec- tion with his uncle, D. W. Lock, for a similar period. At the expiration of that time he went to Janesville, Wisconsin, and was there engaged in the dairy business for one year.

Returning to Ohio in 1891, Mr. Cooley was united in marriage on the 16th of March of that year to Miss Jennie E. Morse, a daughter of George and Eliza (Ball) Mcrse, the former a prominent farmer of West Brownhelm and an ex- tensive landowner, who was also interested in all movements for the public good. He passed away August 24, 1886, his wife still making her home in West Brownhelm. Mr. and Mrs. Cooley began their domestic life on a farm in Wakeman township, Huron county, but the latter was permitted to enjoy her home for only two years, her death occurring the 19th of March, 1893. On the 4th of September, 1895, Mr. Cooley was again married, his second union being with Miss Ollie M. Whitney, a daughter of Theodore and Elizabeth (Parker) Whitney, of Elba, Nebraska, the father a former agriculturist of Huron county. Since his marriage Mr. Cooley has resided in Wakeman township and has devoted his time and attention to general farming and sheep raising, being a large wool and mutton dealer. He has concentrated all his energies upon his agricultural pursuits and has met with eminent success therein, being classed among the substantial farmers of his district. As he has prospered he has acquired considerable valuable property, his holdings now ranking him among the extensive landowners in his township.

The home of Mr: and Mrs. Cooley has been blessed with four children: Lock C., George W., Anna E. and Leota M. The parents are members of the Congregational church and are interested to a great extent in the church and Sunday school work, Mrs. Cooley acting as superintendent of the primary department of the Sunday school. She is a woman of domestic tastes, greatly devoted to her home and family, and she is highly esteemed by all who know her for her many sterling traits of character. Coolev gives loyal support to the republican party and is most active in its interests, but he has never sought nor desired public office as a reward for party fealty. He and his wife occupy an enviable place in the social circles of the community, while their residence is a favorite resort with a host of warm friends. It is well supplied with the best standard and current literature and their home is at all times dominated by a spirit of culture and refinement.

Captain William S. Foster

Among the many sons of Huron county, Ohio, who responded readily to their country's call for men to fight in her defense is notably Captain William S. Foster, who is a resident of Steuben, Greenfield township, and now lives in retirement upon a small tract of land which he owns, engaging in farming to a limited extent as a recreation rather than a means of livelihood, for the days of business are passed for him. Besides the property here Mr. Foster has some landholdings in Canada. One of Ohio's native sons, he was born in Norwalk on the 6th of November, 1838, his parents being John H. and Nancy N. (Boardman) Foster. The former was born in Buffalo, New York, in 1812, and in 1830 came with his parents, Stephen and Mary Foster, to Ohio. The family settled in Norwalk, where the old people died, the son identifying himself with the life and interests here. He first taught school for a number of years and then was employed as clerk in the auditor's office. On going into business for himself he opened a wholesale and retail grocery, which was successfully conducted, and some years later he built the warehouse at Norwalk, which he gave into the charge of his son William S. Foster. But he did more than this for the city. After his arrival there he had acquired considerable property which he opened up for residential purposes, building several nice houses for others. One of the streets of this section has since been named Foster avenue after him. As the choice of the whig voters of the city he served as mayor before the war, although it was not the first office he had held at the request of the citizens. A good and noble man he was a consistent member of the Presbyterian church and died in that faith in 1878. His wife was born in New York state and was about fifteen years of age when her parents, Mr. and Mrs. William Boardman, came to Norwalk, which was their home until their death. She likewise died there, in 1880, at the age of sixty-one, having reared a family of four children, namely: Frank, deceased; William S.; John W., deceased; and Louisa, who married Ralph King, of Toledo, Ohio. William S. Foster attended the public schools of Norwalk and then continued his education in a ccllege in the Catskill mountains from which he was graduated in 1853, having taken a general course. His school days over, he returned to Norwalk, where he had charge of the warehouse his father had built until the outbreak of the Civil war. Mr. Foster enjoys the distinction of having been the first man to enlist from Huron county. When the call for troops was sent through the country he was in Cleveland, but on hearing that Captain Sawyer was in Norwalk trying to muster a cornpany, he took the first train for home and there found no one of the Norwalk Light Swords, to which he belonged and which Captain Sawyer was trying to get to enlist, had had the initiative to be the first to enroll. They needed a leader, but within an hour after Captain Foster had put down his name there were one hundred and thirty voung men ready and willing to fight for the Union. They were mustered in as Company D, Eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, at Norwalk, Ohio, April 5, 1861, and proceeded to Cincinnati, where they joined the regiment and where their term of service was lengthened to three years. They then went to Camp Dennison later to West Virginia, where their active participation in the war began. Captain Foster took part in the battles of Winchester and Stone River, being wounded in the neck in the latter. this account he was sent to the hospital at Nashville but after six weeks was transferred to the hospital at Cincinnati and while there was recommended for promotion, On leaving the hospital he was given the rank of captain and was commissioned quartermaster of all the western territory, with headquarters at Fort Laramie. At the close of the war he still remained in the service in the western states for three years, helping to fight the Indians and rendering the country safe for travelers, and as he was the first from Huron county to enlist, so he was the last to leave, when on the 6th of September, 1868, he was mustered out of the service, having been in seven years and four months. When his country no longer needed his aid he came back to Norwaik and after a short time engaged in building trestles for railroads. This business took him over the greater part of the United States and

Canada, being in Charleston, South Carolina, at the time of the earthquake there. In fact he was a guest at one of the city hotels that was completely destroyed, and remained in the city for some time afterward to assist in repairing the destruction. In all he worked about thirty years at trestle building but is now living retired on his little farm, raising chickens and succulent green things.

Captain Foster has never married. He finds abundant society and companionship, however, with his fellow members of the Grand Army post at Akron, Ohio. There the reminiscences of the days of fighting are retold and the past is contrasted with the peacefulness of the present.

Charles Cg Owen

Charles C. Owen, a progressive agriculturist of Greenfield township, is the owner and proprietor of a fine farm of one hundred and forty-five acres. It was this farm the 4th of February, 1858, that he was born and here he has followed agricultural pursuits for almost half a century, the neat appearance of his property and excellent condition of everything about the place being indicative of the prosperity which he has achieved. His parents were Lafayette S. and Mary J. (Clark) Owen, the former having been born in Herkimer county, New York, the son of John Owen, who came to this county about 1836 and settled in Ripley township, where he bought the farm on which he spent the remainder of his life, passing away when he was about seventy years of age.

Lafayette S. Owen was a lad of eleven years when he came with his parents to Huron county and throughout his boyhood he pursued his studies in an old log school house, where he mastered the elementary branches of learning therein taught, during the winter months when his assistance was not needed in the fields. After reaching man's estate he was enabled to purchase the present farm of our subject from the heirs of his mother-in-law. After a life of usefulness, honesty of purpose and unfaltering industry, he here passed away in 1904. He had married Mary J. Clark, who was born April 7, 1828, and died May 30, 1602. She was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Clark, who came from Ireland, settling in this district about the year 1820, when the entire region was covered with timber and underbrush. He bought land to a considerable extent in this locality, which he cleared and cultivated. Like most of the early settlers he built for his home a small log house and lived in this county for about thirty years, his death having occurred about 1850. Mr. and Mrs. Lafayette S. Owen became the parents of four children: Alice J., who married William Ruggles, of Peru township; Charles C., of this review ; Carrie E., who makes her home with her brother on the home farm: and Fannie E., who married Charles Snyder, of Peru township. | |

Charles C. Owen attended the district schools during the winter months, and in the summer, assisting his father with the farm labor, learned through the school of experience valuable lessons in agriculture that served him well when, upon the death of his father, he was given full charge of the farm.

His sister, Carrie E., who yet remains at home, is his able assistant, managing the affairs of the household, while he carries on general farming. Devoting his entire time and attention to the further development of the fields, he takes no active part in politics and does not belong to any fraternal organizations. He is a man of social, genial nature, who readily wins friends, and in his business affairs his straightforward and reliabie methods have him classification with the representative agriculturists of the community.

Joseph H. Gleascn is one of the successful farmers of Ripley township, but he is also one of that valiznt number of Ohio's sons who forscok their homes and their comtorts :or the sufferings of the battlefield when their country needed the support cf their arms. He owns one hundred and sixteen acres of land in the vicinity cf the village of Boughtonville, the farm on which he was born March 15, 1843. The Gleascn family is of Scotch-Irish descent and the name Joseph has been borne by one of the sons for many generations, a great-zreat-grandíather of Joseph H. Gleason having been known by that coznomen and having transmitted it to his son Joseph, who in turn bestowed it upon his son who became the father of Caleb Gleason, the father of the subject of this sketch. coming to this country the Gleason family settled in New York state, and there in Cayuga county was Caleb Gleason born. Shortly after his marriage, however, he removed to Ohio and settled on the farm which became the birthplace and has since been the home of his son Joseph H. Gleason. The woman who became his wife and the mother of his children was in her maidenhood Miss Melinda Hackett, a native of though her parents, Joseph and Sarah (Cross) Hackett, belonged to the state of New York. They were of Irish descent. Seven children were born to Caleb Gleason and his wife: Worthington, Loeta, Emily, Sarah, Charlotte, Martha and Joseph.

Joseph H. Cleason was reared at home on the farm and received what educaticn he could from the district schools. He was not of age when the Civil war was inaugurated, but the fact of his minority did not deter him from enlisting among the first of those ready to incur the hazards of the deadly struggle. On the gth of October, 1861, he was mustered into Company C, Sixty-fifth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and after more than four years of service was honorably discharged December 28, 1865, at Columbus, Ohio. In recognition of his bravery he was made a non-commissioned officer, serving as corporal and sergeant, for in the many engagements in which he participated several acts distinguished him from the rank and file of those about him. He fought at Shiloh, Stone River, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, in the Atlanta campaign, at Franklin and at Nashville, and then, after the close of the war, was sent to Texas, where he re-' mained until brought to Columbus to be discharged. In one of the skirmishes at Buzzards Roost he was severely wounded and carries the bullet today. When his country no longer required his services Mr. Gleason returned to his Ohio home and took up the life of the farmer to which he had been reared. The years have smiled upon his efforts, his toil has been richly remunerated, and his farm is one of the best cultivated as well as cne of the most fertile of Ripley township.

On the conclusion of his career as a soldier, in 1865, Mr. Gleason was married to Miss Emeline Croxton, who was born March 23, 1843, and is a daughter of William and Susan (Gibson) Croxton, in whose family were eight children: Angeline, Emeline, Louisa, Antoinette, Samuel, Caroline, Florence and Milton. Of Mr. and Mrs. Gleason's union there have been born four children: Sherwood, Prank, Wilbur and Meda.

Politically Mr. Gleason's sympathies are with the republican party which supported the nation in her hours of trial. He is not active in its ranks, however, nor a seeker for public prefermert, though he has served the township as trustee and as assessor for a number of terms. In the meetings of the Grand Army post of Ripley he revives the memories of those days when a canteen or blanket shared made men closer than brothers.

Waleace W Ketchum

Wallace W. Ketchum, who owns and operates a fine farm of three hundred acres, is recognized as one of the prominent and progressive agriculturists of New London township and in his efforts is meeting with most gratifying success. A native of New London township, Ohio, he was born October 6, 1849, and is a son of Ambrose S. and Katharine (Gates) Ketchum, both natives of Schenectady county, New York, the former's birth occurring on the 14th of March, 1817, while the latter was born on the 20th of September, 1820.

The father came to New London in 1839 and the first few years he spent in the employ of John Miller, receiving twelve dollars per month in return for his services. Upon his arrival in Ohio he had but twenty-five cents and a jack knife in his possessior, but with characteristic energy and determination he set about earning a livelihood, with the ultimate ambition of sometime owning a farm of his own. He continued in the employ of Mr. Miller for two years and during that time, by industry and careful economy, he had accumulated sufficient means with which to purchase fifty acres adjoining the corporation limits of the village of Rochester, in Lorain county. Within a year, however, he traded that property for fifty acres located in New London township on the Butler road, and there he continued to reside during the remainder of his life. His entire time was devoted to the work of the farm and he became signally successful along that line, during his lifetime accumulating a property consisting of one thousand acres of rich Ohio land, almost all of which lay in one body. This property was divided among his four children at the time of his death, which occurred August 3, 1896. "Together with general farming he had engaged in raising large quantities of stock and this branch of his business was a source of gratifying additional profit. He was a man of fine judgment and keen mind, and possessed certain qualities which, had he enjoyed proper educational advantages, would have made him an excellent jurist. His advice and counsel were frequently sought by his fellowmen and be- cause of the reputation which he had gained for his wisdom and veracity, his word was always taken as authority, its correctness never being doubted.

In 1842 he had wedded Miss Katharine Gates, with whom he happily traveled life's journey until his death. He was a stalwart supporter of the republican party and passed away in the faith of the Free Will church. The mother was a woman of excellent characteristics, of a motherly, domestic nature, whose every thought was for her family while she was untiring in her efforts to make the home attractive for those she loved. She survived her husband for more than a decade, passing away in December, 1008. In their family were four children, namely: Emma H., who was born in 1845; Wallace W., of this review; Alonzo S., born on the 14th of March, 1852; and Earl M., born in the year 1863. Prior to the father's death the three sons all remained upon the homestead, assisting in the operation of the farm and conducting the work in unison, up to the time of the father's demise, when the property was divided.

Wallace W. Ketchum, whose name introduces this review, together with the other members of his family, enjoyed the advantages of good common school educaticn, and as stated the early period of his life was passed under the parental roof. He was united in marriage on the 26th day of December, 1871, to Miss Helen M. Thomas, and they began their domestic life upon the farm which is now his place of residence. His farm consists of three hundred acres of fine farming property, to the further development and cultivation of which he has since directed his time and attention. He has put about two thousand five hundred dollars worth of improvements upon the farm since it came into his possession, has equipped it with ail of the modern conveniences and accessories, and it stands today a model farm in all of its appointments. He has devoted his time and attention to general farming, and in the conduct of his business affairs has used upto-date and progressive methods, and he ranks among the substantial, enterprising and successful agriculturists of New London township.

With the passing of the years the home of Mr. and Mrs. Ketchum has been blessed with three children. The eldest son, Clarence W. Ketchum, was born on the 6th of September, 1872, and on the 2d of Tune, 1903, he met his death in a collision on a street car line a few miles east of Norwalk, Huron county. Lee H. Ketchum, the second in order of birth, was born June 15, 1874, and is now residing upon the home farm with his parents. He was married, on Christmas day, 1895, to Miss May McAfee, and unto this union have been born four children, namely: Wilber W., born August 23, 1898; Lester H., October 25, 1899; Morris G., December 18, 1902; and Lawrence G., June 9, 1908. The voungest son, Verne V. Ketchum, who was born on the 17th of May, 1879, was married on the 25th of December, 1906, to Miss Ethel Weston. Well known and highly respected throughout the community, he is a young man of unusual ability along financial lines. He is now the cashier of the Farmers & Citizens Banking Company at Monroeville, Ohio, which position he has held for the past four years. It was through his ability and enterprise that the Monroeville Organ Company was saved from ruin and placed upon a firm, paying basis, while other enterprises have been organized and carried to a successful point through his good judgment and industry. He is a worthy son of an honored father, and one of whom any parents might well be proud.

In his political allegiance Mr. Ketchum is a stalwart republican, giving loyal support to the party at the polls, but the honors and emoluments of office have no attraction for him, desiring, as he does, to devote his entire time and energies to the conduct of his private business affairs. He holds membership with the Free Will Baptist church, and his life is at all times in harmony with its professions. Throughout his entire career he has been guided by the most honorable principles and his self-reliance and unfaltering industry, combined with his integrity, constitute the salient features in his success.

William H. Lutz, whose industry and enterprise are meeting with creditable success, owns and operates a farm of seventy acres located in Ripley township, where he is well known as a progressive and prosperous agriculturist. He was born January 29, 1854, in Ashland county, a son of Samuel and Susan (Kimmel) Lutz. The former, who was born on the roth of September, 1825, in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, was the eldest child born unto John and Sarah (Beamer) Lutz, the others being John, Manuel, Elias, Catherine and Sarah. The mother was born in Stark county, Ohio, April 25, 1828, a daughter of David and Susan (Welker) Kimmel, and a sister of Joseph, Michael, Henry, Lydia and Nancy Kimmel. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Lutz were born the following children: Aaron, Samuel, Frank, Charles, Sadie and William H.

Reared under the parental roof, William H. Lutz acquired his education in the district schools of his native county, where he gained a good knowledge of the various branches of English learning. After laying aside his text-books he taught school for six years, proving himself an efficient instructor, clearly and readily imparting to others the knowledge which he had himself acquired. Later, however, thinking that the occupation to which he had been reared would prove more profitable, he took up agricultural pursuits and in that line of activity has since been actively engaged. He now owns a farm of seventy acres in Ripley township, upon which he has resided for seventeen years, and during that time he has brought his fields under a high state of cultivation. He practices rotation of crops, gives close study to the cereals best adapted to soil and climate and the proper care of same, and in the conduct of his business is progressive and up-todate, his close application and good management of his affairs gaining him a high rank among the representative agriculturists of the township.

William H. Lutz was united in marriage on the 25th of. September, 1879, to Miss Mary A. McQuate, whose birth occurred in Lebanon county, Pennsylvania, March 30, 1856. She was the daughter of Henry and Mary A. (Garman) Mc- Quate, whose family consisted of the following children, John, Henry, Amanda, Susanna, Emma, Caroline and Mary. the years passed the home of Mr. and Mrs. Lutz was blessed with two children, namely, Ray and Melvin. The latter was married in 1904 to Miss Emma Watman, by whom he has one child, Vera. Mr. Lutz and his wife are members of the German Baptist church, otherwise known as the Church of the Brethren, the teachings thereof constituting the guiding influence of their lives. In politics Mr. Lutz is a republican, giving stalwart support to that party at the polls, although the honors and emoluments of public office have held no attraction for him. He served as a member of the board of education for a number of years, and the cause of education found in him a warm champion. "Throughout the long years of his residence in Ripley township he has gained an extensive circle of friends who hold him in high regard, and his salient characteristics are such as constitute him a desirable and valuable citizen in any community in which he resides.

Thaddeus W. Hackett is well known in Huron county, where he still owns an excellent farm. However, he is now engaged in business in Mount Dora, Florida, where he is conducting an undertaking establishment, while in that state he also owns and controls an orange grove. One of Huron county's native sons, he was born in Ripley township the 9th of December, 1843, and is a son of Wheeler and Lydia (Bowlby) Hackett. His paternal grandparents were Joseph and Sally (Frost) Hackett and they reared a family of eight children, namely: Wheeler, Alinda, Lovena, Charlotte, Elon, Curtis, Eron and Lewis. This number included the father of cur subject who, having arrived at years of maturity, wedded Lydia Bowlby, a daughter of Samue! and Martha Bowlby. Their children were: Sarah, Matilda, Lydia, George, Nelson, William, Alfred, Eliza, Manuel, Edward, Elizabeth and Samuel. The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler Hackett was blessed with but three children: Thaddeus, Samuel and Edward.

The first named spent his boyhood days in the usual manner of farm lads, his time being divided between the work of the fields, the duties of the schoolroom and the pleasures of the playground. When he had reached man's estate he was married, Miss Lora Malvina Thomas becoming his wife on the 3d of September. 1865. She was born on the 9th of June, 1847, and was a daughter of Levi and Laura (Hoag) Thomas, whose family numbered but three children, her sister and brother being Alice and Floyd Thomas. Mr. and Mrs. Hackett have no children of their own, but have reared an adopted daughter, Blanch L., who was born in 1881 and became a member of their household when twenty-two months old. She is now the wife of Frank Daniel and has four children: Harold, Ray, Edith and Frank.

Mr. Hackett was well known in the business circles of Huron county for a considerable period. For twelve years he conducted an undertaking establishment in North Fairfield and then removed south to Mount Dora, Florida, where for seven years he has continued in the same business. During the dark days of the Civil war he offered his services to the government, enlisting when only eighteen years of age, on the oth of August, 1862, as a member of Company D, One Hundred and First Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He was made bugler of his regiment and saw considerable active service, taking part in many of the most important battles of the war. He received honorable discharge on the 25th of March, 1864, in Tennessee, and now holds membership in the Grand Army of the

Republic. Fraternally he is also connected with the Masonic lodge at Fairfield, with the Eastern Star, to which his wife also belongs, and is a member of the Odd Fellows lodge at Norwalk. Politically he is a republican, while his religious faith is indicated in his membership in the Universalist church. "Throughout Huron county he has many friends who have known him from boyhood, and the high regard in which he is uniformly held shows that his has been a well spent and upright life.

Charles L. Miller, although one of the more recent additions to the bar of Greenwich, has already gained recognition as a member of the legal fraternity worthy of a liberal public clientage, his years seeming no bar to his advancement in his chosen field of labor. One of Ohio's native sons, he was born in Greenfield township, Huron county, on the 24th of August, 1883, his parents being Charles and Sophronia (Noble) Miller, both of whom were natives of this county. The paternal grandfather, John Miller, came from England and settled in Huron county, Ohio, where he devoted his life to agricultural pursuits, the maternal grandfather also being engaged in that occupation. The father, Charles Miller, died in Michigan, where he was then residing, in July, 1883, a month before the birth of his son and only child.

After the death of the father the mother returned to Huron county, Ohio, and in the schools of Greenfield township Charles L. Miller acquired his early education. This training was later supplemented by study at the Fairfield high school, the Wharton high school and the Shiloh high school, the latter in Richland county, from which he was graduated with the class of 1903. The following two years were devoted to teaching, after which he took up the study of law under the direction of S. L. Americus, an attorney of Greenwich. He continued thus for two years, becoming thoroughly versed in the fundamental principles of the profession, and then pursued a one year's course in the Detroit College of Law, after which he was matriculated in the law department of the Ohio Northern University. He was awarded his Bachelor of Law degree by that institution in June, 1908, and a short time afterward opened up an office in Greenwich, becoming the successor of his former preceptor, S. L. Americus. Although it is well known that success at the bar is proverbially slow, nevertheless Mr. Miller has been most successful from the start and has already been accorded a gratifying and growing clientage. He is an intelligent young man, with the laudable ambition to succeed in his profession, and the fact that he has brought to the starting point of his legal career those qualities indispensable to the lawyer - a keen, rapid, logical mind, plus the business sense- - and more than all a ready capacity for hard work, combined with a thorough grasp of the law and the ability accurately to apply its principles, argues well for future prominence and success in his chosen calling.

In politics Mr. Miller is independent, preferring to give his support to the men and measures in his mind best adapted to subserve general welfare. He is not, however, remiss in matters of citizenship but on the contrary is public spirited to a marked degree, taking an active pait in various affairs of public moment. He is a strong advocate of public improvements and drew up the first petition for paved streets in Greenwich. He persevered in the agitation of the matter until he succeeded in having at least one mile of paved streets laid in the city. Fraternally he is a member of Greenwich Lodge, No. 543, E. & A. M. and attends the services of the Methodist Episcopal church, although not holding membership therein. A great student, he possesses a fine miscellaneous and law library, and he is well equipped by training and natural endowment to make a most successful practitioner at the bar.

Don J. Young, who has the honor of being the youngest prosecuting attorney ever elected in the state of Ohio, was born in Norwalk, on the 8th of May, 1884. He is a son of S. M. and Isabelle (Wagner) Young, the former an attorney of Norwalk, of whom extensive mention is made in another part of this volume.

Don J. Young received his early education in the common schools and later pursued a course in law at Western Reserve College, in Cleveland, Ohio. He engaged in the practice of law for a short time but is now serving his first year as prosecuting attorney of Norwalk county, having been elected to this office in 1908. Something of his personal popularity in the community is indicated in the fact that he was elected to his present office on the democratic ticket in a strong republican county, being the youngest prosecuting attorney ever elected in Ohio, as he was but twenty-four years of age at the time of his election. He has already given promise of a bright future, for along with those qualities indispensable to the lawyer - a keen, rapid, logical mind plus the business sense and a ready capacity for hard work - he has also brought to this, the starting point of his legal career, eloquence of language and a strong personality.

On the 29th of July, 1908, Mr. Young was united in marriage to Miss Elaine M. Dennis, who was born August 7, 1883, and is a daughter of Lloyde B. and Eliza Celestina (Yale) Dennis. Mrs. Young on the maternal side comes of Welsh lineage, her great-grandfather, Benjamin Yale, tracing his ancestry back to the little rock-ribbed country, while he is a direct descendant of David Yale. The Yale family early settled in America, representatives of the name having come from Wales to this country in 1637, settlement being made in New Haven. Moses Yale, the son of Benjamin Yale, was born October 5, 1808, in Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, New York. Early in life he came alcne to Norwalk, Ohio, and here began work in the Reflector printing office as a typesetter, remaining in that position until after he was married, when he became identified with the grocery business, in which connection he remained until he retired from active business life, after he had passed the sixtieth milestone on life's journey. During his residence here he purchased the old jail building and moved it across the corner where the Taber store now stands, after which he sold it, realizing what was considered in those days a handsome profit. On September 22, 1832, he had married Miss Ann Rowland, a native of Putnam county, New York, who was born on the rst of August, 1812. The marriage occurred in Huron county, Ohio, and of the children born unto that union three are vet living, Mrs. H. S. Mitchell, Mrs. L. B. Dennis and Charles Yale. Mr. Yale passed away at the ripe old age of eighty-two years, after a long and severe illness.

Lloyde B. Dennis, who married Miss Eliza Celestina Yale, a daughter of Moses Yale, was born August 12, 1837, in Oswego county, New York, while the date of his wife's birth was February 22, 1843. He took his first step in the business world as a telegraph operator, but on the 19th of April, 1861, he laid aside all personal matters and enlisted as a member of Company H, Fifteenth New York Volunteer Engineers, under Captain Ketchum, in Colonel Murphy's division. In December of that year he was transferred to the Telegraph Corps and was sent to Virginia and Kentucky, where he served for a long time with General Fremont as his private telegrapher. He was thus engaged until August 13, 1863, when he was discharged at Catlettsburg, Kentucky. Later he was attached to the commissary department and remained in the service until the close of the war. After his return home he directed his attention to the lumber business, handling the lumber from the time that, as a log, it was cut from the stump until it was made into furniture. He was identified with other interests also, at one time acting in the capacity of engineer with the Standard Oil Company. He has now, however, retired from active business and is enjoying a well earned rest after many years of hard labor. The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Dennis was blessed with four children, namely: Washington Yale, born January ro, 1868; Edith, who died in infancy ; Paul, born December 12, 1879, who passed away March 25, 1908; and Elaine M., the wife of Don J. Young, the subject of this review. The children were all educated at Norwalk high school and the son is a very prominent real-estate dealer in Minneapolis.

The home of Mr. and Mrs. Don J. Young has been blessed with one little daughter, Celestina Elaine, who is the light and life of the household. The young couple are very popular in the social circles of Norwalk, where they have a wide circle of warm friends, and Mr. Young, not only by reason of the gratifying position he has attained in professional circles of this city but also because of his upright manhood and his many sterling traits of character, has won the respect. confidence and good will of his fellow citizens, the concensus of public opinion according him high rank among the prominent, representative and influential citizens of the community.

August A. Ruffing

August A. Ruffing, the president and superintendent of the Gallup-Ruffing Handle Company of Norwalk, is numbered among the worthy native sons of Huron county, his birth having here occurred on the 23d of February, 1871. He obtained a good practical education in the common schools of this county and assisted his father in the cultivation cf the home farm until he had attained the age of twenty-one years. He then secured employment in the factory of C. W. Smith, where he remained for three years and subsequently removed to Chicago, working in a factory there for abcut eight months. At the end of that time, he returned to Norwalk, where he remained for a short time and then went back to the home farm. Later he made his way to Miami county, Ohio, where he accepted a position with a firm that was extensively engaged in the manufacture of wooden handles, remaining in that employ for five years. On the expiration of that period, he once more returned to Norwalk and in August, 1902, organized the Gallup-Ruffing Handle Company, of which he was made president and has continued as the chief executive officer of the company to the present time. The concern was organized for twenty thousand dollars under the laws of the state of Delaware and has since been incorporated under the laws of the state of Ohio. In the first year, the business of the company amounted to about twentyfive thousand dollars and during the seven years of its existence, has increased to sixty thousand dollars - a fact that would seem to. augur well for its continued success and prosperity. The shipments of the house extend throughout the United States, Canada and many foreign countries and the volume of their trade is constantly increasing. The plant is equipped with all of the latest machinery, some of which is the original design of the proprietors and fifty-five workmen are employed in the conduct of the business. H. A. Gallup is the secretary, treasurer and financial manager of the concern, while Mr. Ruffing acts in the capacity of president and superintendent and the success which has attended the enterprise is attributable in large measure to his excellent management, sound judgment and keen discrimination. He is now widely recognized as a prominent representative of the industrial interests of his native county and his life record stands as a splendid example of what can be accomplished through force of character and unfaltering diligence.

On the Ist of August, 1899, Mr. Ruffing was united in marriage to Miss Anna M. Marsh, who was born in Huron county, March 6, 1874, her father being Thaddeus Marsh, an agriculturist of this county. They now have three children: Clare A., Clement H. and Veronica. In his political views, Mr. Ruffing is a stalwart republican, while his religious faith is indicated by his membership in the German Catholic church. His good qualities, and they are many, have strongly endeared him to those with whom he has been associated and wherever he is known he is popular with a large circle of friends.

George H. Dawson

George H. Dawson, who is one of the progressive farmers of Richmond township, Huron county, Ohio, has had a long and valuable experience as an agriculturist and shows the result of it in his work on his fine farm of one hundred and thirty-four acres. In addition to this property, he also owns one hundred and forty-nine and three-quarter acres in Richland county. Mr. Dawson was born in Richmond township, Huron county, May 26, 1864, his parents being James B. and Mary (Dickison) Dawson. When he was twenty-one years old, his father left England, his native land, hoping to find a broader field of operation in the new world. By occupation he was a farmer and was so successful that he was able to live retired during the last quarter of a century of his life. His death occurred

November 11, 1908, and he was called upon to mourn the loss of his first wife in 1870. She had borne him the following children: J. W.; A. H.; Eliza J., who married W. G. Channey; George H.; and J. E. Later he married Julia Sweetland and their children were as follows: H. S., D. F., C. A., K. A. and Mary, who married D. W. Hillis.

Until he was nineteen, George H. Dawson attended the district school and made the most of his opportunities, although a year before he completed his course he was called upon to assume the management of his father's farm, and for the icilowing twenty-five years he cultivated the property. In the meanwhile he invested in his two farms, and in 1909 he moved upon the Richmond township one and has since devoted his attention to improving and developing it.

In February, 1883, Mr. Dawson married Minerva Post, a daughter of William B. and Rebecca Post, who were early settlers in Huron county, where both are still residing. Mrs. Dawson belongs to a family that is as follows: Rosetta, who married J. H. Hord; Luella, who married S. N. Duffy ; Minerva, who is Mrs. Dawson ; Ida, who married M. L. Williams; W. C. Emmery; Anna, who married J. W. Stevens ; and Ethel, who married Bert Steel. Mr. and Mrs. Dawson are (he parents of the following children: I. L., Edna, Addie, Bertha, Adelbert, Altie and Laura. In politics he is a republican. The family belong to the United Brethren church and give that body their hearty support both in contributions and work. They are well liked in the neighborhood, and Mr. Dawson is recognized as a good farmer and excellent business man.

D. H. Clark, a resident farmer of Peru township, numbered among the men of unfaltering enterprise and progressive spirit, is successfully cultivating one hundred and seventeen acres of highly improved land. Although now seventy-six years of age, he yet gives personal supervision to the further development of his farm and his life record of unfaltering and intelligently directed activity should put to shame many a man of much younger years but of less resolute spirit who would relegate to others the burdens he himself should bear.

Mr. Clark is a native of New England, his birth having occurred in Vermont, July 21, 1833. His parents were Daniel and Diana (Warner) Clark. The father, who was born May 3, 1806, died in 1862, while his wife, whose birth occurred Aug. 9, 1806, passed away on the 3oth of October, 1881. They came to Huron county, Ohio, in 1834, when it was still a frontier district, the work of improvement and development seeming scarcely begun. Many changes have occurred during that time and D. H. Clark has been a witness of the entire transformation. On reaching Huron county, the family settled in Peru township, and the father, who was a carpenter and joiner by trade, assisted in building a number of the log houses and barns in the locality in that early day. He also erected a log cabin for himself, and he and his family occupied that little home for a long time. He worked diligently upon his farm but never allowed his business affairs to exclude his interest in religious matters. He was a prominent man in the church and assisted in building the house of worship for the Universalists at Peru in 1840. He belonged to that church throughout his entire life, held a number of offices therein and was very active in the church work. In his family were eight children. Mariette, who was born September 22, 1831, married Lyman Johnson and both are now deceased. D. H. is the second in the family. Dean, who was born December 6, 1834, died August 10, 1863. Henry, born July 10, 1836, died April 20, 1888. Warner, born May 24, 1838, died February 2, 1849. Cornelia, who was born February r, 1842, died January 28, 1849. Francis M., born October 8, 1844, died March 5, 1849. Mary L, born January 22, 1848, died February 5, 1849. Thus four of the children died within a few days of each other in the year 1849.

D. H. Clark of this review has spent nearly his entire life in this part of Ohio, save for a few years which he passed in Kansas when a young man. He learned the carpenter's trade in his youthful days and followed that pursuit until about forty-hve years of age, during which time he built a large number of houses and barns in his vicinity. In 1883 he erected the commodious residence which he now occupies and which stands as a monument to his thrift, skill and industry. His life has been a busy and useful one, and his success is the merited reward of earnest and persistent labor. Since his retirement from industrial lines he has given his attention to agricultural pursuits and is now cultivating an excellent tract of land of one hundred and seventeen acres, constituting one of the finely improved farms of the county.

Mr. Clark has always been interested in everything relating to the public welfare and has cooperated in many movements for the general good. He has served as school director for a number of years and the cause of education finds in him a stalwart champion. He has always belonged to the Universalist church and at the present time is the treasurer and one of the trustees of the church at Peru. His political allegiance is given to the republican party and he keeps well informed on the questions and issues of the day, although he has never been a politician in the sense of office seeking.

Pleasantly situated in his home life, Mr. Clark was married March r, 1865, to Miss Melvina Barker, a daughter of Robert and Lucy (Standish) Barker, who were early settlers of Peru township. Mrs. Clark was born upon the farm which is now her home in a little log cabin, in which her parents were living. They had come to Ohio from the state of New York when still single and were married in this county in 1837. father was born August 10, 1809, and her mother's birth occurred in March of the same year. Both are now deceased, Mr. Baker having passed away July 6, 1877, while his wife died on the 25th of October, following. They were, therefore, separated in death for but a brief period. "They became the parents of three children: Liddie, who married Austin Patterson and is now a widow living in California; Mrs. Clark; and John, deceased. Mrs. Clark is one of the direct descendants of Miles Standish. By her marriage she became the mother of one son, Dean B., who was born October 18, 1878, and married Altah Baker, a daughter of Wilson E. and Mary Pauline (Barnum) Baker, of Licking county, Ohio. They were married March r, 1900, and have two children: Walter B. and Mary Louise. They reside upon the old homestead with his father and Dean B. Clark now operates the farm.

Few citizens of the county can boast a longer residence here than D. H. Clark, who for seventy-five years has lived in Huron county and has been an interested witness of its growth and development. He has lived to see the forests cut away, the land reclaimed and converted into rich fields. He can remember the time when the harvesting was done with the scythe and the cradle, for it was not until he had become a factor in agricultural life that the modern reaper, mower and steam thresher were introduced nor was the riding plow known in the period of his boyhood. The labor of the farm was much more arduous than at the present time. The homes of the settlers, too, were in many cases log cabins, and they were heated by fireplaces and lighted by candles and later by kerosene lamps. Mr. Clark has lived to see remarkable changes, carrying the county forward to its present state of progress when the agriculturist enjoys the advantages of the telephone and the rural mail delivery as well as the benefits of all the modern farm machinery which has so completely revolutionized the work of the fields.

Gilbert M. Wood

Gilbert M. Wood, one of the hard-working and quiet farmers of Fitchville township, Huron county, was born in New London township, February 1, 1862, a son of Willis and Hilda (Springstead) Wood. The mother was a native of this county, but the father was born in Putnam county, New York, and was only six years of age when his parents came to Ohio, settling in New London township, Huron county. He followed the life of a farmer, was a man of fine character and intelligence, but of a retiring disposition, so that he was not well known beyond his immediate circle of friends and acquaintances. He was quite a sportsman, however, and enjoyed nothing more than a seat on a fine horse, behind a leash of hounds, in pursuit of a fox. A good shot and a successful trapper, he vet derived more pleasure from the spirit of the chase than from the value of the pelts he secured. He died in October, 1886, leaving a widow and two sons, William J. and Gilbert M., who still survive.

Gilbert M. Wood was reared at home on his father's farm, and received his education in the district schools of New London and Fitchville townships. his life he has been a farmer, even in the period of his childhood and youth assisting with the work on the home place and assuming responsibility as his age and strength increased. In 1886 he began life on his own account, engaging in farming in the neighborhood in which he had been reared. In 1802 he removed to Fulton county, Ohio, where for three years he devoted himself to agriculture, returning to his farm in Fitchville in 1805. On this he has since made his home, practicing a general line of farming, for which his land is excellently adapted.

In October, 1886, Mr. Wood was married to the woman of his choice, Miss Minnie Post, an orphan girl of German descent. To this union have been born two children: a son, Willis W., a bookkeeper employed by the Honing Electric Company, of Cleveland, Ohio; and a daughter, Lillian, who remains at home.

Mr. Wood is deeply interested at all times in the matters that concern the public and the welfare of the citizens of this land, but he has never actively en- gaged in politics has he sought or filled any office within the gift of the people. He believes, strongly, however, that every man should exercise his right of franchise, and so is unfailingly at the polls on election day, when his vote is cast for the democratic candidate and for democratic measures. But for all his reluctance to enter the public arena, he is a public-spirited man, an advocate of good government and progress, who gives his influence to the promotion of better conditions. He is particularly interested in the advancement of education in the township and in the improvement of the roads.

Jesse E. Wheeler

The enterprising village of Chicago Junction has various citizens who continually conserve its interests by their activity in business lines as well as through their relation to public affairs. In this class Jesse E. Wheeler was numbered, having for twenty years been engaged in the dry-goods business here. As a merchant he was very successful and was looked upon by everyone as one of the most agreeable and accommodating business men of the city. He passed away October 2, 1909, and the fact that one thousand people gathered to pay their last tribute of respect to him was indicative of his high standing in the community. One of the native sons of the county, his birth occurred in Greenfield township, January 22, 1854. His father, Calvin Wheeler, was born in the state of New York and when a boy came to Huron county with his father, John Wheeler, who settled in Greenfield township, casting in his lot with the pioneer residents who were actively engaged in the arduous task of reclaiming wild land for the purposes of civilization. He cleared away the timber, turned the first furrows and in course of time gathered good harvests as a reward for his labors. Upon the farm which he developed and tilled he reared his family and lived to a ripe old age, honored and respected by all who knew him. He was a man of strong character and religious nature and for many years was a local preacher in the Baptist church, so that he was uniformly styled Elder Wheeler throughout the entire community. He reached the venerable age of ninety-two years.

Calvin Wheeler, reared amid the wild scenes and environments of pioneer life, engaged in merchandising in Greenfield after attaining his majority. Meeting with success in business he continued as an active representative of commercial interests there for many years and by reason of his straightforward dealing enjoyed the respect and confidence of all with whom he came in contact. He died in Chicago Junction, May 22, 1896, having for forty years survived his wife, who passed away on the sth of March, 1866. She bore the maiden name of Mary Richards and was a native of New York. In her girlhood days she came with her parents to Huron county, the family settling on the present site of Chicago Junction. In the farnily of Mr. and Mrs. Calvin Wheeler were twelve children, seven sons and five daughters, namely: Janette, who is deceased; Agnes; David, who has departed this life; Ben; Judson, also deceased; Chauncey; J. E. and J. A., twins; Alice and Alfred, twins; Lillis, and Linda.

J. E. Wheeler was indebted to the country schools for the educational opportunities which he enjoyed. He pursued his studies through the winter months and in the summer seasons worked on his father's farm, toiling in the fields from the time of early spring planting until corps were harvested in the late autumn. In 1875, when twenty-one years of age, he went to California, where he remained for ten years, giving his time to various pursuits. In 1885 he returned to Ohio and joined his brother, J. A. Wheeler, in the mercantile business in Steuben, Ohio, until 1889, when he came to Chicago Junction and opened a dry-goods store in an old frame building. Upon the completion of the opera house block the business was removed to its present location and there he conducted a well appointed store, supplied with al! modern conveniences to facilitate the conduct of the trade. In the years which came and went prior to his death he built up a very extensive business. His sister Alice, now Mrs. Barber, was his partner in the enterprise from the time that he opened the store in Chicago. He was a man of progressive methods and the business was well managed, the stock thoroughly up-to-date in every particular and the trade of the house constantly grew. He made a study of the wishes of the people and his reasonable prices and honorable dealings constituted salient features in his success. His methods were always of a constructive character and never was he known to take advantage of the necessities of another in business transactions.

In 1890 Mr. Wheeler was united in marriage to Miss Mary Keesy, a native of Huron county and a representative of an old pioneer family. father, the Rev. W. A. Keesy, was a minister in the United Brethren church and his life was an influencing factor in the moral development of the community. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler was born son, Raymond. The parents held membership in the United Brethren church and Mr. Wheeler was also identified with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. In his life work he was actuated by laudable ambition and his record at all times was characterized by intelligent and well directed effort and by unswerving integrity and progressive methods.

For some months prior to his demise he complained of not feeling well and friends urged him to rest from business for a time, but he felt that he must continue his attention to the store and did so until stricken with typhoid fever. He never recovered and on the 2d of October, 1909, passed away, his death coming as a distinct loss to the entire community. He always sought to do unto others as he would have them do unto him and was, therefore, a close follower of the golden rule. A lover of justice, his treatment of others was fair and his word was as good as a written promise. He never neglected his obligations nor his duties, was recognized as a man of determined character and one who maintained an unequivocal position upon any vital question. He was a friend and wise counsellor in time of trouble and he gave liberally to charity. He was one of the first men to become a member of the Railroad Young Men's Christian Association and had continuously served as its treasurer since its organization. His funeral was one never to be forgotten by those who were in attendance. The services were of a most impressing character and all business houses of the city were closed from one thirty until four o'clock, and it is said that every firm was represented at the funeral.

Steadfastness of purpose, an unselfish life and purity of heart were manifest in the career of Jesse E. Wheeler and will long be remembered by those who knew him, and constituted an example well worthy of emulation. He stood for all that is highest and best in manhood and in citizenship and was at all times loyal to the public welfare and faithful in his friendships, but his best traits of character were reserved for his own home and fireside, where he was known as a most devoted and worthy husband and father, neglecting no opportunity to promote the happiness and welfare of his wife and son, whose interests he ever counted above his own. He left the impress of a noble soul upon the community with which he was identified through two decades.

Jacob Kotz

One of the older generation of farmers of Ripley township, whose persistent efforts in the cultivation of crops have been rewarded with pronounced success is Jacob Kotz. Although not a native of this state, for the past twenty-eight years he has been one of its citizens and has taken a deep interest in the welfare of his township, welcoming and advancing any movements that make for its improvement. He was born in Northampton county, Pennsylvania April 3, 1838. His parents, Henry and Elizabeth (Schuman) Kotz, were also natives of the Keystone state and reared a family of twelve children: John, Sarah, Edward, Isaac, Mary, Charity, Jacob, Rebecca, Christina, Catherine, Daniel and Charles. The paternal grandparents of Jacob Kotz were Henry and Charity (Snyder) Kotz.

Jacob Kotz was reared to agricultural pursuits. The educational facilities of his native state, though better than those in the territory farther west at the same period, were none too good as affording a preparation to meet the problems of life. Such as they were Jacob Kotz partook of them, working on the farm with his father in the spring, summer and early fall months, preparing his lessons and attending school when the inclemency of the season made outdoor labor impossible. The training was effective, though perhaps hard, for Mr. Kotz has been successful in his operations when he embarked on farming as his own vocation, by means of which he made a home for himself and family. In 1881 he came to Ripley township and settled upon the land on which he lives today. Since his arrival here he has entered into "he spirit of this locality, raised his voice, as one of the school board, for the betterment of the schools, and when the Boughtonville Telephone Company was organized, bought stock in the concern, became one of its promoters and is still interested in its financial stability.