A Biographical history of Darke County, Ohio : compendium of national biography, Part 79

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

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Thomas C. Miller, whose name forms the caption of this sketch, was the only child born to his parents. He spent his boyhood days in the vicinity of his native town and pursued his education in the common schools, and afterward assisted his father in the work of the farm and the operation of the mill ; but, not content to devote his ener- gies to industrial pursuits, he determined to enter professional life and to this end began reading law under the direction of Hon. E. P. Kellogg, of West Milton, now a promi- nent lawyer of Columbus, Ohio. Mr. Mil- ler was admitted to the bar at Troy, this state, and began practice in Bedford, Ohio, where he remained for twelve years. On the expiration of that period he removed to Greenville, where he has since devoted his attention assiduously to the practice of his profession and the duties it involves. He is recognized as one of the leading lawyers of the Greenville bar, and his devotion to his clients' interests is proverbial.

Mr. Miller has been twice married, and by the first union had three children : Perry E., William E. and Lemuel E. His present

wife bore the maiden name of Miss Anna Gundell. She was born in Darke county, was a daughter of Benjamin Gundell, an old resident of this county, and at the time of their marriage was the widow of Henry Beard.

During the civil war Mr. Miller mani- fested his loyalty to his country by enlisting in the One Hundred and Tenth Ohio Vol- unteer Infantry, under the command of Captain Jason Young and Colonel J. War- ren Keifer. The regiment was ordered to Virginia, and in the south he faithfully served until 1865. He participated in a number of engagements and skirmishes, and also spent some time in the hospital, and when the war was ended received an honor- able discharge, in July, 1865. He is a mem- ber of the Frizelle Post, No. 227, G. A. R., and is as true and faithful to the duties of citizenship in times of peace as when he fol- lowed the starry banner upon the battle- fields of the south. His life has marked a steady advance in his profession, and by his careful preparation of cases, combined with a keen power of analysis, he has won many notable forensic combats.

JOHN HOSCHOUER.

A representative of one of the pioneer families of Brown township, Mr. Hoschouer has been a resident of Darke county since his birth, which occurred on the 18th of May, 1846. His father, Isaac Hoschoner, was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylva- nia, May 13, 1809. and died December 13. 1884. He spent the early years of his life in the state of his nativity, was descended from one of the old Pennsylvania Dutch families and could speak the German tongue. He received a common school education,

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which, however, was quite meager, and was reared to habits of industry and economy.

Removing to Ohio, he took up his abode in: Montgomery county, where he located when Mansfield was a mere hamlet. The trip was made across the country with teams, and about 1833 he came to Darke county, where he entered forty acres of land from the government. This was a dense forest tract, upon which not an improvement had been made. Soon, however, he built a little log cabin and as the years passed he added to his property, extending the boundaries of his farm until at the time of his death lie was the owner of three hundred and seventy acres of land in Brown township. His politi- cal support was given the Democracy, and he was a strong advocate of Jacksonian prin- ciples. In his early manhood he wedded Catherine Hutchinson, who was born in Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, on the 7th of June, 1807, and passed to her final rest on the 13th of September, 1885. A fond and indulgent mother, her influence for good was marked among her children and by all who knew her. She had four sons and five daughters, and of the family five are yet living, namely : Mary, the widow of Henry Moore, of Fredonia, Kansas; Jackson, a farmer who is married and lives in Friend, Nebraska; Martha, wife of John Gilbert, a resident farmer of Friend, Ne- braska; John of this review; and Phebe, the wife of John Routsong, who resides on the old family homestead. Mr. Hoschouer is now the only living male representative of the family in Brown township.

No event of special importance occurred to vary the monotony of life upon the farm in his boyhood days. He began his educa- tion in a little log school-house, 18x20 feet, the seats being formed of saplings which 37

were hewed smooth on one side and placed horizontally upon wooden pins, and across pins inserted into the wall was laid a long board which served as a writing desk for the older scholars. The building was heated by an immense fireplace, and the smoke made its escape from a mud-and-stick chimney, The schoolmaster was often more successful in maintaining discipline by the aid of a birch rod than in instructing the scholars in the branches of English learning taught in the common schools. The old-time "blue- back elementary spelling book" and Ray's arithmetic where used, and the school term continued for about three months. Through- out the remainder of the year Mr. Hosch- ouer was engaged in the operation of the home farm, in tilling the soil and harvesting the crops. He remained with his parents until they were called to the home beyond. On the 2d of January, 1876, he wedded Miss Jennie Young, one of Darke county's native daughters. Her birtli occurred February 3, 1855, her parents being Ebenezer Reed and Sarah (Colby) Young. They had ten children, five sons and five daughters, and all are living with one exception. Of the nine who survive eight are residents of Ohio, one sister, Lydia, being the wife of Jackson Hoschouer, of Friend, Nebraska. The fa- ther of these children was born in Ohio, May 9, 1820, and died about 1891. He possessed natural mechanical ability and was a carpenter and joiner by trade. His educa- tion was obtained in the common schools. For many years he was a resident of Allen township, Darke county, and was known as a reliable citizen. In politics he was a stanch Democrat, and in religious belief a Universalist. His wife, who was born in Ohio, April II, 1828, and died in April, 1890, was also of the Universalist faith.

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At the time of his marriage Mr. Hos- chouer rented the old family homestead, and in 1880 purchased fifty-five acres of land, going in debt for a part of it. His indus- try and economy, however, have enabled him to make all payments upon his prop- erty, and to add to the farm until he is now the owner of two hundred and seventy acres, constituting one of the valuable farms of Brown township. It extends into York

township also. He raises the crops best adapted to this climate, and the well-tilled fields are an indication of his careful super- vision and. yield to him a golden tribute in return for the care and labor he bestowed upon them. The home of Mr. and Mrs. Hoschouer was blessed with the presence of eight children, six sons and two daughters, and the living are: Myrtle, the wife of Charles Harless, a tobacco-grower of York township; William I., who has passed the Boxwell examination, admitting him to any high school in the county, but is now assist- ing his father in the cultivation of the home farm; Lewis F., who also aids his father; and Jackson, Edward, John R. and Leland C., who are all with their parents and are making good progress in their school work.

Mr. and Mrs. Hoschouer have traveled life's journey together for a quarter of a century, sharing its joys and sorrows. They are active in support of all measures which contribute toward the intellectual and moral development of the community. Both are representatives of honored pioneer families, and through this community are widely and favorably known. Mr. Hoschouer is an ad- vocate of Democracy, and has cast his bal- lot for its presidential candidates since vot- ing for Hon. Horatio Seymour in 1868. His entire life has been devoted to the work of · the farm, and his practical and progressive

methods have resulted in bringing to him creditable success, of which he is in every way worthy.

THE DENISE FAMILY.

The Denise family is one of the most prominent of the sturdy pioneer families of Darke county. They came from Butler county, Ohio, in the autumn of 1832 and set- tled on a tract of one hundred acres of land west of Greenville, a mile from the city hall and on the Union City pike. At that time the family consisted of the father, John S. Denise, who was born in New Jersey, in 1803; his wife, who bore the maiden name of Margaret M. Clark, was of Irish descent, and was born in Warren county, Ohio, in August, 1804; and their three children : William, born May 13, 1824; Aaron, Jan- uary 16, 1825, and Eleanor, July 16, 1830.

At that early period there were only about a dozen houses in Greenville, and the Union City pike was only an Indian trail extending as far as Hillgrove. There were two or three houses and a tanyard at the latter place, but Union City had not been founded. While the determined couple were laboring to build for themselves a home in the wilderness, where Indians, bears, wolves and wild-cats abounded and now and then the screams of the panther were heard, five more children were added to the family circle, and seven of the eight children grew to mature years. William married Miss Catherine Garber, and after her death wedded Louisa Mc- Clain. By their union there were six children, four of whom are living and reside with their parents in Dayton, Ohio. Elea- nor became the wife of R. B. Farra, by whom she had four children, two yet living. Mr. Farra served for two years in the Mexican

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war, and for nine months in the civil war. Charlotte is the wife of John S. Vantilburg, and of their ten children four yet survive. Margaret is the wife of Elijah MeConnell and the mother of two children. She and her family reside at the corner of Fifth and Devor streets in Greenville, Ohio. Jennie, Obadiah and Aaron always made their home with their parents.

The older children were sixteen and eighteen years of age before any school- houses were built in that sction of the coun- try, so the education obtained from text- books was very limited. Nature, however, taught them the most essential lessons at that period, the preservation of life. When the farmers wanted to take their meager wheat erop to mill it was necessary to drive to Franklin, Warren county, or to Piqua, to have it ground. Their corn was taken to Coletown, where Samuel Cole, the father of Joseph Cole, who lives near Nashville, operated an old burr mill, now known as the Weimer mill, run by Mathias Dean. The customer was obliged to wait a whole day for his grist, and while the miller attended to the grinding the farmer had to watch be- low so that the hounds, which were numer- ous in every household, would not eat the meal as fast as it was ground. Many times when the father was too busy to ride to mill the mother went to the field, gathered some ears of corn and grated them to make musli or bread for her family. They tell of a voice erying around their lonely cabin one dark night and what an effort it required to keep Aaron from going out to the relief of the helpless woman, as lie supposed it was. The man says with a perceptible nervous- ness even at this late day, "It would have been all up with me if I had, because the cry was that of a hungry panther."

The greater part of the Denise farm was at that time swamp land. The cabin of one room was built of logs and had no floor or chimney, while coverlets of the mother's own spinning served for doors and win- dows. Corn at that time was worth eight cents a bushel and wheat forty cents a bushel. Everything was primitive. Mrs. Margaret MeConnell now tells of a fright that she and her sister Jennie experienced when they were quite young. Having stolen a watermelon they quietly made their way into the corn- field to eat it unobserved, when they sud- denly came upon a big black bear.

Loyal to the country which the family had helped to transform from the wilderness into homes of comparative peace and plenty, the two sons, Obadiah and Aaron, answered the call for volunteers at the beginning of the civil war. Aaron enlisted in the For- tieth Ohio Infantry in August, 1861, and served with the company for three years, after which he was transferred to the Fifty- first Ohio Infantry, where he remained until the close of the war, his services therefore covering more than three years. He beais as a memento of his army experience a shat- tered thumb. On one occasion he had his arm raised to shoot when a rebel ball fired from the side of Lookout mountain broke the gun to pieces in his hand and injured his thumb. He was never arrested or in the guard house, and was in the hospital only for one week. On one occasion during his four years' ser- vice he visited home, receiving a twenty- seven days' furlough. Obadiah enlisted on the 2d of August, 1862, in the Ninety-fourth Ohio Infantry, where he served for nine months, when he was transferred to the One Hundred and Fifty-second Ohio Regiment, and from the latter was honorably dis- charged on the 2d of September, 1864, owing.

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to physical disability. He was in the hos- pital for only a few days, preferring expos- ure to the close hospital air.

The father of these children died April 25, 1852, and on the 24th of January, 1884, thirty-two years later, the mother also passed to the home beyond. In that year Obadiah and Aaron rented the farm, comprising one hundred acres of as good land as can be found in Darke county, and with their sister Jennie retired from active business life. On the 4th of August, 1897, the sister died upon the farm where she was born and had always lived. On the 7th of October of the same year the brothers and their sister, Mrs. Elea- nor Farra, who had been a widow for some years, and had returned to the old home, removed to No. 618 East Third street, in Greenville, where they are now living in the enjoyment of a well-earned rest.

ELIHU WEAVER.

Numbered among the highly respected citizens and representative farmers of Van Buren township, Darke county, Ohio, is the subject of this review. The family to which he belongs was founded here by his grand- father, Peter Weaver, a native of Virginia, and a farmer by occupation, who on first coming to Ohio located in Highland county, but at an early day removed to Miami coun- ty, where he cleared and improved a farm in Newberry township. From there he moved to Adams township. Darke county, and set- tled on Greenville creek. His last days were spent at the home of the father of our subject, Henry F. Weaver, where he died, May 15. 1848, aged eighty-two years. His wife had died several years previously.

Henry F. Weaver was born in Rock-

bridge county, Virginia, and there married Susanna G. Winters, also a native of the Old Dominion. They came with his parents to this state, and accompanied the family on their removal from Highland county to Miami county, and later to Darke county, locating in Adams township, where the fa- ther purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land, mostly wild and unimproved. He died upon that place November 10, 1865, at the age of seventy-two years, and his wife passed away December 18, 1866, aged seventy-eight years, eight months and eight days. Their children were: John, who died in Bradford, Ohio; Andrew, a physi- cian of Covington; Elijah, who died near Rose Hill; Nancy, wife of Eli Reck, of Mis- souri; Betsey, wife of Samuel Hill, of Cov- ington, Ohio; Eli, who died in boyhood; Henry, who died at the age of twenty-eight years ; and Elihu, our subject.

Elihu Weaver was born on the old home- stead on Stillwater river, Adams township, Darke county, July 1, 1833, and during his boyhood this region was wild and the schools poor and quite a distance from his home. His educational advantages were necessarily limited, but for a time he pursued his studies in: an old log school-house, one of his first teachers being a Mr. Knowlton. When old enough to be of any assistance he com- menced to aid his father in clearing and im- proving the farm, and remained with his parents until their death. He was married soon afterward and located upon his pres- ent farm of seventy-one acres, then mostly wild land, on which was a hewed-log house. To the further improvement and cultivation of his place he has since devoted his ener- gies, until to-day it is nearly all cleared and under excellent cultivation. He is a stanch advocate of free silver and Democratic prin-

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ciples, and is an earnest and consistent men- ber of the Methodist Episcopal church.

On the 14th of March, 1867, Mr. Weaver married Miss Sarah Weaver, who, though of the same name, was no relative. She was born in Franklin township, Darke coun- ty, January 15, 1845, and died April 14, 1879, aged thirty-three years, two months and nineteen days. Her father, Adam Weaver, emigrated to Ohio from Virginia at an early day. To our subiect and his wife were born two children: James Ed- ward, born December 30, 1867, who mar- ried Lizzie Strowbridge; and Harvey, born January 15, 1874, who married Elizabeth Ludy, and lives in Ohio City, Ohio.

JOHN T. HIMES.

All honor is due to those loyal sons of the republic who are willing to go forth in her defence when her integrity is menaced, and there is no call which demands greater fortitude and sacrifice than that of volun- teers to serve their nation on the field of battle. One of the honored citizens of Darke county, and one whose is the distinc- tion of being a veteran of the great war of the Rebellion, is the gentleman whose name forms the caption of this article, and it is clearly incumbent that we accord to him due recognition in this work.

Mr. Himes is a native of Montgomery county, Ohio, having been born near the city of Dayton, May 14, 1839, being the eldest of the eight children-three sons and five daughters-born to Thomas J. and Elizabethi (Ewry) Himes. Six of the children are yet living : John T., subject of this sketch; Mary M., wife of Nelson D. Hall, of Day- ton, Ohio; Martha E., of Dayton; Nancy J., wife of Thomas J. Minton, of Eaton, Ohio;

Rose Ann, wife of Richard Edwards, of In- dianapolis, Indiana ; and Laura C., wife of Wilson Minton, of Covington, Ohio. The father was born in Ohio in 1807, and he died December 7, 1872. He was a weaver by trade, and passed his entire life in Ohio, where he was duly accredited a position as a pioneer. He was an expert weaver, and in the family are still extant some fine speci- mens of his work. Politically he was first a Whig and later a Republican, while relig- iously he was originally a member of the New Light denomination, though at the time of his death he held to the faith of the United Brethren. He was interred in Montgomery county. The mother of our subject was born in Montgomery county, and she died at about the age of forty-six.

John T. Himes passed the first thirty years of his life in his native county, his early educational advantages having been very limited in extent. He began to earn wages at the early age of twelve years, re- ceiving twenty-five cents for a full day's work. He started at the bottom of the lad- der, and has toiled early and late to earn for himself the success which has come as a just reward for his efforts. The first dol- lar which he earned seemed an enormous sum to him. At the age of sixteen he was paid six dollars a month, and his first work was as a plowinan, though he was not a farmer's son. He continued as a wage earner until he reached the age of twenty- six, and thirteen dollars per month was the maximum pay received.

At the outbreak of the war of the Rebel- lion Mr. Himes enlisted in Company H, One Hundred and Thirty-first Ohio Volun- teer Infantry, at Dayton, an organization previously known as the National Guards, and the date of his enlistment in the United

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States service was May 2, 1864. The regi- ment was sent to Baltimore, Maryland, and assigned to guard duty at the forts, the old soldiers being placed in the ranks. He was one who was willing to sacrifice his life in defense of his country if need be. He served his allotted term, receiving his honorable discharge Angust 25, 1864.

Mr. Himes has been twice married, his union with Miss Mary R. Emick having been solemnized December 7, 1865. Of the two sons and three daughters born of this union three survive : Anna B., wife of David Reigel, of Dawn, Ohio; Lydia E., wife of William John, of Dayton, Ohio. Our sub- ject was called to mourn the death of his devoted wife on the 13th of February, 1877, and for his second wife he chose Mrs. Mary F. (Risch) Reed, their marriage being cele- brated March 5, 1878. Mrs. Himes is a na- tive of Boston, Indiana, where she was born May 10, 1835, a daughter of John and Catharine ( Hapner) Patterson. She became a resident of Preble county, Ohio, when a child of six years, and there she passed the greater portion of her life. She had been twice married prior to her union with our subject. Her first husband was Christian Risch, and of their union two sons and two daughters were born, of whom only one is now living-Inez F., who has received a good education in the public schools, and who is at the home of her mother. She is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church at Dawn, Ohio. Mrs. Himes' second li11s- band was William Reed, to whom she was married in 1873. It is a noteworthy fact that each of her husbands was a soldier in the war of the Rebellion, as were also her brothers and brothers-in-law. Her brother, W. H. Patterson, was shot through and through at the battle of Cold Harbor, butt

almost miraculously survived his wounds, and is still living. His company went into the engagement with practically a full com- plement and came out with only three men. Henry Hapner, grandfather of Mrs. Himes, emigrated from Pennsylvania to Ohio in a very early day, the trip being made with a four-horse team and covered wagon. The family came through to Cincinnati, thence to Franklin and finally to Preble county, where they secured one hundred and sixty acres of good land. This continued to be the home of the grandparents until their death. Mrs. Himes has in her possession the original deed for this old homestead, the same having been executed June 13, 1812, and signed by President James Madison. These old deeds are of infrequent occurrence now, and are of great historical value. The one mentioned is treasured as an heirloom and is one of the oldest the writer has encountered in Darke county, the deed antedating the formation of Preble county by a number of years, the lo- cality being then known as the Miami val- ley region. Upon the old homestead the first domicile erected was a diminutive log cabin of one room, and before the windows and doors had been placed in the dwelling Grandfather Hapner was drafted for service in the war of 1812, and was compelled to leave his wife and two little children alone in the forest home. The fortitude demand- ed of the devoted mother was of the severest order, for she was menaced by dangers by night and by day. In the night Indian camp fires could be seen gleaming through the forest in many directions. Of stern stuff were these early pioneers constituted, and the stories of their trials and deprivations read like romances in these later days. Mrs. Himes herself well recalls many incidents of the pioneer epoch, and she is thus the more

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appreciative of the privileges and facilities enjoyed by the present generations.

Of Mrs. Mary R. (Emick) Himes, the first wife of our subject, it should be re- corded that she was born in Ohio, July 17, 1838, the daughter of David and Jane ( Mor- gan) Emick, who were among the early pioneers of the state, settling among the In- dians, who many times teased "Little Mol- lie," by saying they would take her away. They were kindly treated, however, and in the main did not abuse the courtesy shown them. David Emick was a cooper by trade, and he came to Dayton, Ohio, in 1815. Mrs. Himes was a true helpmeet to her husband, assisting him by counsel and aiding him in his early efforts to lay the foundations of success. In religion she was a devoted member of the German Reformed church, in which faith she died.

It was in the year 1875 that Mr. Himes purchased his present fine farm of fifty acres, in Richland township, the place having been partially improved, having a one-story brick house and an old log barn. He had but lit- tle means at the time of purchase, and as- sumed an indebtedness of two-thirds of the valuation of the property, but he labored en- ergetically and gave so effective manage- ment to his interests that he was enabled to gradually reduce the indebtedness and finally to clear the homestead of all incumbrance. His devoted wife, who had nobly shared in his labors and anxieties, was summoned to the better land just at the time when pros- perity began to smile most brightly upon them, but her memory is cherished and her efforts are held in lasting appreciation. Our subject's present companion has been to him a· devoted coadjutor and is a woman of re- finement and gracious dignity, presiding over the pleasant home and showing that

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A Biographical history of Darke County, Ohio : compendium of national biography, Part 79

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