A Biographical history of Darke County, Ohio : compendium of national biography, Part 29

Author:
Publication date: 1900
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 806

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Union army as second lieutenant ; was pro- moted to captain of Company I, Fortieth Ohio Volunteer Infantry; resigned his com- inission on account of injuries received from being thrown from a horse, and on regain- ing his health he was re-commissioned by Governor Tod, and by Colonel Cranor was assigned to the command of his old company. After six months' service in the above posi- tion, by loss of his voice and previous in- juries, he was again compelled to leave the active service of the army and acted in the capacity of recruiting officer until the close 'of the war, after which he resumed the prac- tice of law. On December 3, 1876, he as- sumed the editorial control of the Sunday Courier, a leading organ of the Republican party of Darke county. He was three times elected mayor of Greenville, and in 1868 the Republicans of Darke county presented his name in the fourth congressional district of Ohio for congress, his competitor, Mr. McClung, being nominated by a small ma- jority over him. He always had a liberal share of the law practice in this county and enjoyed more than a local reputation as a criminal lawyer; at the forum his abilities were best known; he had an original faculty of developing a subject by a single glance of the mind, detecting as quickly the point upon which every controversy depended. There was a deep self-conviction and em- phatic earnestness in his manner, and a close logical connection in his thoughts. He wove no garlands of flowers to hang in fes- toons around a favorite argument, yet for impromptu appeals and eloquence he stood among the first of his profession, and, by his great knowledge of human nature he was acknowledged to be one of the best judges of a jury at the bar.

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WILLIAM J. BIRELEY

was born in Frederick county, Maryland, in 1812, and died suddenly in Adams town- ship. Darke county, Ohio, several years ago. He was the son of John and Barbara Bire- ley. John was born in the first county above named and Barbara was born in Hagerstown, Maryland. Her maiden name was Brindle. The grandfather, Jolin Bire- ley, was born in Saxony and emigrated to this country before the Revolutionary war. The grandmother was from Wurtemberg. Germany, and also came to this country prior to the Revolutionary war. Mr. Bire- ley's father came to Lancaster, Ohio, in the spring of 1822 and in the fall following. went to Montgomery county, where he lived until his death, which occurred in 1827. Mr. Bireley, the subject of this sketch, came to Darke county, October 15, 1830, and lo- cated in Greenville. He carried on the boot and shoe business for William Martin. Sr., and continued with him about five months, when he returned to his mother, in Montgomery county, where he remained until 1833, when, on January 24th, of the same year, he was united in marriage with Elizabeth Martin, daughter of Christopher and Elizabeth Martin, Sr. They were born at Sewickley, Pennsylvania, came to Ohio in 1814, and located in Butler county in 1815, settling about five miles east of Green- ville. After raising a large family of chil- dren they moved to Greenville, where they lived and died. Mr. Bireley, in May, 1833, came back to Greenville and entered upon the manufacture of earthenware, which occupa- tion he followed for twenty-eight years, do- ing an extensive business. He then bought a farm of one hundred and fifty acres, one mile out of the corporation of Greenville,

and in 1851 he moved his family to this farm. In 1858 he sold this farm and bought another, five miles east of Greenville, upon which several quarries of limestone were lo- cated. He engaged in the manufacture of lime and continued at this business until January, 1880, when he rented the place to Martin Smith and Emanuel Hershey for five years, receiving four hundred dollars yearly, or two thousand dollars for the five years. In 1870 Mr. Bireley moved from the farm into Greenville, where he resided for a number of years, or until the expiration of the above lease, when he moved back on the farm, where he resided at the time of his death, and where his widow now resides with her daughter, Mary R. Mr. Bireley was the father of ten children, seven of whom are now living : Henry P., Elizabeth E., William W., Barbara C., Harry H., Wade G., all married and settled in life, and Mary R., the youngest, who remains at home with her mother. Mr. Bireley united with the Methodist Episcopal church in 1835, lived a consistent Christian life and the record he has left here upon the pages of time is surely a worthy example for all future generations to follow.

JOHN WHARRY.

John Wharry, surveyor, lawyer and judge, Greenville, Ohio, was born in what is now Juniata county, Pennsylvania, No- vember 27, 1809. His parents were James and Margaret ( Crone ) Wharry, the former born in Juniata county, Pennsylvania, July 30, 1780. the latter in Frederick county, Maryland, February 7, 1780. They came to Ohio in 1810, and after spending two years in Butler county, settled in Columbus, in December, 1812, at which time there were only three log cabins on

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the present site of that city. In the still- mmer of 1812 he was a member of General Findley's regiment that was sent to Detroit to assist General Hull, but he was taken sick on the march and was compelled to return home. His occupation was that of a car- penter, and he made the desks for the first state house in the city of Columbus. Ile died in that city March 19, 1820. His widow died in Richmond, Indiana, in May, 1848. In 1824 our subject, then a lad of fifteen years of age, came to Greenville, Ohio, and for several years was engaged as a store clerk. He obtained a very fair math- ematical education, with some knowledge of Latin. By assisting at the work of survey- ing and by personal application he obtained sufficient knowledge to become a practical surveyor, and engaged in this business from 1831 to 1851, for most of which time he filled the position of county surveyor. In the fall of 1851 he was elected probate judge of Darke county and served three years. In the spring of 1855 he was admitted to the practice of law, having previously read un- cier the late Judge John Beers, of Greenville, Ohio. April 21, 1838, he married Miss Eliza Duncan, of Warren county, Ohio, who bore him ten children. Mrs. Wharry died De- cember 6, 1868. Until the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska bill, in 1854, Judge Whar- ry was a Jacksonian Democrat, but from that time until his death he was a Republican. He was endowed with a remarkable memory and at the time of his death had, doubtless, the best recollection of early events of any man in Darke county. He was a member of the County Pioneer Association. For thirty years he had been connected with the Presbyterian denomination. He was one of the best draftsmen in the county, and an ex- cellent penman, his records in the depart-

ment of the interior, in Washington city, being pronounced unexcelled. He was a fine surveyor, a good legal counselor, a su- perior business man, and a much respected citizen. Two of his sons served through the late war-James Wharry as captain and Kennethi as assistant surgeon.

D. H. R. JOBES.

D. H. R. Jobes, lawyer, judge of pro- bate and teacher, was born in Montgomery county, Ohio, September 14, 1829, and died in Greenville, Ohio, January 13, 1877. He was a man of noble traits of character. His parents being poor he was early thrown upon his own resources, but by a faithful improvement of limited privileges obtained a good English education, and for a num- ber of years followed the occupation of a teacher. In October, 1857, he was elected probate judge of Darke county and served nine years, during which time he devoted his spare time to reading law under the di- rection of D. L. Meeker, of Greenville, Ohio, and was admitted to practice in January, 1867. He formed a partnership with his preceptor and so continued until 1872. On January 1, 1875, he formed a law partner- ship with C. M. Anderson, of Greenville. which was dissolved by the death of Mr. Jobes. He was cut down in the meridian of life, and in the height of the practice of his profession. His death was the occasion of an unusually cordial action on the part of the members of the Greenville bar, in resolutions and speeches expressive of deep regret at his demise, tender sympathy for his bereaved family, and exalted apprecia- tion of his moral worth. On this occasion, among other remarks, J. R. Knox, Esquire, said: "During the nine years of service as probate judge, I had frequent occasion to ap-

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pear before him and observe his conduct in that capacity, and I take pleasure in this solemn hour, as I have always done, to say that as by law recognized next friend of the widow and guardian of the orphan-the highest and most sacred trust which the law imposes upon that officer-and in the vari- ous duties of his position, he was a careful, impartial and vigilant accountant, and de- serving the honored name of a just and up- right judge. As a practitioner at the bar, none stood fairer than he. We had not among us a more diligent office lawyer, nor any safer or more thoughtful counselor or adviser than Judge Jobes; and when he ad- dressed himself to the court and jury the weight of his character for integrity and fairness made his appeals forcible and in- fluential, carrying conviction." C. M. An- derson, Esquire, a law partner of the de- ceased, as well as formerly his pupil, said : "His was a mind that did not require the light of precedents. He was a chancellor by nature, and only needed the advantages of an early education in the law to have marked him as one of the foremost and most powerful jurists of his time." Judge Will- iam Allen reverted to the fact that the in- tegrity, the honor, the moral worth and no- bility of heart which made him pre-eminent as a public officer and private citizen during his maturer years were the graces that adorned his life in his earlier years. Dur- ing the three consecutive terms he held the office of probate judge of this county 110 lawyer nor litigant ever called in question his integrity as an officer or doubted the honesty of his motives. David Beers, Es- quire, said : "In boyhood and manhood, he ever pursued a moral, upright, honorable course which gave him a deserved and en- viable position in society." C. G. Matchett

said : "His many virtues and great worth are best expressed by the couplet,

'None knew him but to love him,

None named him but to praise.' "

He left a wife and two sons. Mrs. Jobes is a lady of talent, a leader in the Christian church of Greenville, and an active worker in moral and religious enterprises. She is a daughter of Isaac and Sarah Reed, of Darke county, Ohio, and was married to Mr. Jobes May 6, 1858. Her father died Jan- uary 18, 1871, aged sixty-two. He was one of the pioneers of Darke county, kind and obliging in disposition, a good neighbor and a Christian gentleman. He was re- spected by all who knew him.

GABRIEL MIESSE.

Gabriel Miesse, physician and surgeon, Greenville, Ohio, was born in Berks coun- ty, Pennsylvania, March 26, 1807, and died in Greenville some time ago. His parents, Jacob and Catherine (Dundor) Miesse, were both natives of the same county. Indica- tions of superior mental energy and prac- tical talents were developed in the person of our subject at an extremely early age. His education was begun when he was a mere child and was conducted chiefly under the direct superintendence of a private teacher, Dr. Charles Quinedon, a finely cultured physician from Prussia. This instruction was supplemented by an attendance upon lectures at the medical college in Philadel- phia. His beginning in life was very hum- ble. He left Philadelphia on foot, with a few surgical instruments, a small stock of medicines and a few dollars in money, to seek a location. On a pleasant mid-summer day he found himself about one hundred miles west of the city, and weary and dis- heartened he sat down to examine the con-

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tents of his purse, when to his surprise and mortification he found it contained but sev- enty-five cents. Being an entire stranger, "in a strange land," and without any pros- pect of location, he was on the verge of de- spair, but having been religiously educated he resolved to appeal to the source of in- fiinite wisdom for direction, and falling upon his knees offered a fervent prayer for guidance. To his great astonishment, on rising from his position a voice responded, "All right, sir!" His eyes rested on the per- son of an old gentleman but a few steps dis- tant, who had providentially been passing by and whose attention had been arrested by the actions and prayer of the young stranger, and through the assistance of this "friend in need," he was introduced into the community and rapidly obtained an ex- tensive practice. In the spring of 1831 he located near Lancaster, Fairfield county, Ohio, and on August 24, 1832, married Mary Wiest, whose father, Jacob Wiest, had moved there from Pennsylvania. In 1848 Dr. Miesse settled in Greenville, Darke county, Ohio, and by application and per- severance in the years previous to his death he acquired an enviable reputation as a good citizen, an eminent practitioner of medicine and a distinguished surgeon. Notices of his remarkable cures and delicate experi- ments in surgery frequently appeared in the public prints and in medical journals of the west. The Doctor had always been a tem- perate man, "after the strictest sect," and never used ardent spirits or tobacco. He claimed a number of important discoveries in medical science. One, in search of which he had been more or less engaged for many years, was the cause of that fatal malady known as sick stomach, or milk-sickness, and which annually resulted in the loss of

thousands of valuable animals and in great sacrifice of human life. The cause of and remedy for this disease he believed he had discovered, and said that a few days atten- tion to it, if known by farmers, would be sufficient to eradicate this poison from any ordinary-sized farm. He did not live long enough to bring this matter before the public, to have his discovery of the origin of the disease and the remedy thoroughly tested. Dr. Miesse possessed a highly cultivated, esthetie taste, and his cabinet of relics, curiosities, ete., would in its size and choice selection have done credit to a university. Among the finely executed works of art that at one time adorned the walls of his parlors were some that were the handiwork of his accomplished wife, and one in particular, an oil painting, would compare favorably with the finest specimens of professional artists.

His family comprised eight children. His oldest son, Dr. Gabriel Miesse, Jr., of Lan- caster, Ohio, is distinguished as a physician and surgeon, and possesses rare musical qualifications. His third son, Dr. Americus Miesse, is a prominent physician of Lima, Ohio. His youngest son, Dr. Leon Miesse, is a noted physician and surgeon of Chicago, Illinois. Three of his daughters are now widows, Priscilla, widow of John Harper, a gifted photographer; Sophia, widow of A. F. Koop, a successful hardware mer- chant, and at the time of his death cashier of the Second National Bank, of Greenville, Ohio; and Mary, widow of the late Dr. Jacob L. Sorber, who at one time represented the Ross county district in the Ohio senate. Dr. Sorber was a thorough physician, a dis- tinguished surgeon, and was by Governor Tod commissioned to serve professionally in the late war of the Rebellion. He designed and constructed a planetarium for illustrat-

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ing the movements of the various planets of the solar system, and including the peri- odical visits of certain comets. Lanassa is the wife of J. K. Turner, a dealer in real estate, and Hirondo has for a number of years been truant officer of Greenville.

PIIILIP ALBRIGHT.

Philip Albright was born in North Caro- lina, in the year 1797, and emigrated to the state of Ohio in 1818, settling on Twin creek, in Harrison township, Preble county. He remained here until the year 1822. when lie removed to east Tennessee, settled in An- derson county, and cleared a farm. He remained there, following the occupation of a farmer, until the year 1835, when he re- turned to Ohio, and settled in Twin town- ship in Darke county, in what is now known as the fertile "Painter Creek" valley, not far from the town of AArcanum. He was one of the early settlers in this locality, and having a large family of eight boys and four girls, soon had a fine farm in a good state of cultivation. Mr. „Albright was a good mechanic and led all others as a builder of houses and barns, both frame and stone. He was one of the leading stone masons of Darke and Preble counties, and lived to witness the wonderful change of the dense forests to the fertile fields, and the mud roads to the finely graveled and macadamized pikes, and he saw the building of the rail- road, and the thriving village of Arcanum, Gordon and Pittsburg spring up in his lo- cality as if by magic. He was universally respected, and died in his eighty-fourth year. He was an extraordinary man, physi- cally large and strong, and strictly temperate in his habits, liberal to the needy, foremost in all public gatherings where physical strength and endurance were in requisition,

and by his influence and example he induced many to live sober and exemplary lives. Notwithstanding the fact that schools were poor and continued in session only a few months of the year, he had in his family among his sons three regularly ordained ministers of the gospel, and seven of his children followed, successfully, the occu- pation of teaching. One of his sons, men- tioned elsewhere, was killed in the late Civil war. Mr. Albright was not only an advo- cate of temperance, but he lived a consistent Christian life, and died in the full hope of a blessed immortality. .

MILITARY.

We think it appropriate to introduce in this connection a few thoughts relative to Darke county's soldiers of the war of the Rebellion. On April 24, 1861, three volunteer companies, enlisted for three months, had left the county for the seat of war. Two of these were from Greenville, led by Captains J. W. Frizell and J. M. Newkirk, and one from Union City, led by Captain Jonathan Cranor. These were followed in quick suc- cession by many others, and all in any way familiar with Darke county know that she did her duty nobly. The enlistments in the fall of 1861 were for three years. On Oc- tober 28, 1861, the ladies of Greenville mnet at the court house and organized as "The La- dies' Association of Greenville for the Relief of the Darke County Volunteers." Public meetings were held at various points, and on November 6 it was reported that the coun- ty had turned out two hundred volunteers within twenty days. Letters came from men in the field, some containing the sad tidings of the death of a soldier, who fell nobly fighting for his country. Among these noble men we may mention Colonel J. W.

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Frizell, who led one of the first companies into the field as its captain. He was soon made lieutenant-colonel of the Eleventli Ohio, and when the colonel of this regiment, having incautiously exposed himself, was captured, the command devolved upon Lieu- tenant-Colonel Frizell. Resigning this po- sition, he was afterward appointed colonel of the Ninety-fourth Ohio, and while gal- lantly leading his regiment in the battle of Stone river he was severely wounded and compelled to resign his position on account of his injuries. He died at his home in Green- ville, Ohio, a few years ago.

Jonathan Cranor, who entered the ser- vice as captain of a company in the three- monthis service, afterward became colonel of the Fortieth Ohio, served in that capac- ity with distinction and died a few years ago. We note that R. A. Knox was cap- tain of a company of the Eleventh Ohio and Charles Calkins, first lieutenant in the same company, afterward captain in the Eighty- seventh Ohio, both of whom are now de- ceased. James B. Creviston served with honorable distinction as adjutant of the Fortieth Ohio. He followed the profession of teaching after the war and died a few years ago. William H. Matchett served as assistant surgeon of the Fortieth Ohio, and died at his home in Greenville, Ohio, in August, 1898. C. G. Matchett entered the service as sergeant in the three-months ser- vice ; was afterward captain of Company G, Fortietli Ohio, for awhile commanded the regiment, was honorably mustered out of service, followed the profession of law, .and died a few years ago. A. R. Calderwood entered the service as captain of Company I, Fortieth Ohio; resigned on account of injuries received; practiced law in Green-

ville ; was a noted criminal lawyer and died at his home a few years ago.

James Allen was promoted to captain while in the service, and is no longer among the living here. Clement Snodgrass served as captain in the Fortieth, and was killed in battle July 21, 1864. B. F. Snodgrass, also a captain in the Fortieth, was killed in battle September 20, 1864. Cyrenius Van Mater, first lieutenant of Company G, Fortieth Regiment, was killed at Chickamauga. J. W. Smith, captain of Company I, For- tieth Ohio, served with honor through the campaigns of this regiment ; was honorably mustered out of service at the close of the war ; carried on a livery business in Green- ville after his discharge, and died at his home a few years ago. Of the officers of the Sixty-ninth Ohio, we mention Eli Hick- ox, who went into the service with the regiment as captain. For bravery on the field of battle and meritorious conduct he was promoted to major of the regiment ; was mustered out at the close of the war, and died a few years ago, universally re- spected. Color-Sergeant Jolin A. Compton, Lieutenants Jacob S. Pierson and Martin V. Bailey, Corporal Daniel T. Albright, and privates Stopher and four others fell in the battle of Stone River. Color-Sergeant Allen L. Jobes, after whom Jobes Post, G. A. R., Greenville, Ohio, is named, and five men were killed at the battle of Jonesboro. Of the Ninty-fourth Regiment Captain T. H. Work- man and H. A. Tomlinson, second lieuten- ant of Company F. have died since the war, and Sergeant Leonard Ullery, of the Eighth Ohio Battery, was killed in the service. In addition to those already mentioned, we wish to refer to Jacob W. Shivley, second lieuten- ant of Company D, Sixty-ninth Regiment,

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who served his company gallantly as a sol- dier, was honorably discharged and died at his home in this county not long ago. Jonathan Bowman, sergeant of Company D, same regiment, was honorably discharged and died in Greenville, Ohio, some years ago. Isaac N. Arnold, sergeant of Company E, same regiment, was honorably discharged : was candidate for probate judge on the Re- publican ticket, and died at his father's home near Jaysville, Ohio. Alexander McAlpin, captain of Company G, Eighth Ohio Cavalry. served in the army with distinction, was honorably discharged and died shortly after returning home. Of the One Hundred and Fifty-second Regiment Ohio Volunteer In- fantry, we note in addition to those men- tioned elsewhere: Edwin B. Putnam, adju- tant, practiced law after his discharge from the army and died many years ago. Elias Harter, captain, and C. B. Northrop. first lieutenant of Company B, were honorably discharged and are now deceased. A. H. Hyde, first lieutenant, and Harrod Mills, sec- ond lieutenant of Company H, were honor- ably discharged and are now dead. Walter Stevenson, second lieutenant, Alfred Town- send, first sergeant, and William Pearson, sergeant of Company L, were all honorably discharged and are now dead. Many others of our noble dead deserve honorable men- tion here, but our knowledge of their per- sonal history is too limited and uncertain to enable us to do justice to their memory.

We will close this chapter by inserting a paper read at the late banquet of the Green- ville bar on the subject of Our Deceased Members.

"It has been said that every person de- parting this life leaves behind a record that exerts an influence upon the lives of the liv- ing to a greater or less extent, and as the

subject presented to us in this 'toast' is Our Deceased Members outside of the influence of personal recollections, which you all may have, their records, if any, will be found in the epitaph or biography they have left, and to which we can refer and profit by the les- sons they teach.

"A visit to our cemetery and the last resting place of many of our members dis- closed a dearth of information on this sub- ject that is remarkable. Examining twenty- six graves of our deceased members, while we found quite a number who had entered the military service of their country and had given the best days of their lives to its pro- tection and perpetuation, the company and regiment to which a few of these only be- longed are the only records engraved upon their tombstones. But is not that simple inscription as grand and enduring as any that was ever made? It tells that the mem- bers lying beneath that monument saw the tide of victory roll backward and forward, at times seeming to engulf all hopes for the preservation of the Union, yet finally sweep- ing onward in one grand, irresistible swell to victory and peace. They saw the Union preserved, the contending armies quietly re- turning to their homes and a new reign of peace and good will inaugurated. They were personal actors in that drama which was the most sublime and thrilling that human pen can relate, and which points to but one moral, that the institutions which they knew were worth fighting for so nobly are worth preserving. that the Union which has cost us so much blood and treasure, which has brought us freedom and prosperity must be cherished as the most precious possession we can transmit to future generations.

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A Biographical history of Darke County, Ohio : compendium of national biography, Part 29

Author: Publication date: 1900 Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 806

Author:
Publication date: 1900
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 806