USA > Ohio > Franklin County > Columbus > A Centennial biographical history of the city of Columbus and Franklin County, Ohio > Part 49
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The marriage was celebrated November 2, 1844. and soon afterward Mr. Clapham settled on the old Thomas Engle farm, just north of Wester-
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ville, where he engaged in the operation of rented land for three years. Subsequently he devoted his time and attention to the cultivation of the Will- jam Sharp farm for a year and then removed east of Worthington, where he carried on agricultural pursuits on the A. H. Pinney farm for three years. On the expiration of that period he took up his residence on the G. W. Hart farm in Blendon township, where he carried on the tilling of the soil for four years, and in 1856 he removed to his present farm in Delaware township. At that time the place comprised one hundred and fifty-three acres, which was the property of Mr. Clapham's father. Later it was willed to our sub- ject and his brother Thomas, and the former has since resided on the place.
The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Clapham was blessed with six children, four of whom are yet living, namely : William, a gardener residing at Marys- ville, Union county, Ohio; John, of Baldwin City, Kansas; Chauncey, a farmer of Davison county, South Dakota; and Jennie, the wife of Martin Rodgers, of Harlem township, Delaware county. One son, George, now deceased, was a twin brother of John. Exercising his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the Republican party, Mr. Clapham has always been a stalwart advocate of its principles, and for one term served as trustee of his township. He is a member of the Baptist church and through several years filled the office of deacon. In 1880 he was called upon to mourn the loss of his wife, who died on the Ist of July of that year, and since that time he has never married, but has remained true to her memory. His residence in Ohio covers the greater part of the nineteenth century, and during the long period he has taken just pride in the development and progress of the state and has assisted in many material ways in upbuilding and improving the county with which he is associated.
GUSTAVUS H. OCHS.
Germany has contributed much in thrift, industry and progressiveness to the good citizenship of America. Ohio has shared in this contribution and Franklin county has been peculiarly favored in it. The name of Ochs has long been known in old Montgomery township and in Marion township, and is worthily represented in Marion township to-day by Gustavus H. Ochs, a prominent farmer and citizen whose homestead is on section 22.
Herman C. Ochs, father of Gustavus H. Ochs, was born in Germany in 1798 and came to America and lived for a time in Indiana. From Indi- ana he came to Franklin county, Ohio, and took up a half-section of land in Montgomery (now Marion) township, where he died at the age of seventy- five years. Settling in the woods he chopped down trees with which to build a cabin, which he erected on the site of the present residence of Gustavus H. Ochs and which is a portion of that residence. Matilda Hinsey, who mar- ried Herman C. Ochs, was also a native of Germany and was reared in the "fatherland." She bore her husband a son and a daughter. Gustavus H. Ochs, who is the only one of his father's family living, was only two years
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old when he was brought to the locality which has since been his home and was only eight years old when his good mother died. He was reared after the manner of farmer boys of his day and generation and was educated in the public schools of his township and at German and other schools in Columbus. After the death of his first wife Herman C. Ochs married her sister, who bore him no children, but who, having charge of Gustavus from the time he was eight years old, gave to him all the love of a mother and was held in affection by him as such. She lived to be eighty-nine years old and died regretted by all who had known her.
Gustavus H. Ochs was married, at the age of twenty-seven to Sophia Goebelein, who died a year and a half after their marriage, leaving no chil- dren. He is a member of the Lutheran church and in political affiliation is a Democrat, but does not adhere strictly to party lines in local elections. Born and reared in the county, his life has been like an open book to his fellow citizens and he is held in highest esteem by those who know him best. His farm consists of one hundred and fifteen acres, twenty acres of which lies within the limits of the city of Columbus, the remainder just outside of the corporation line. He gives his attention to general farming and is an extensive grower of corn, oats and wheat. For about thirty-five years he has made a specialty of dairying, but since the year 1887 he has devoted his time to farming only.
RICHARD J. GARDINER.
One of the prominent business men of Columbus, Ohio, is Richard J. Gardiner, who is the efficient secretary of the Builders and Traders Exchange, of Columbus, and the subject of this review. He was born in Chillicothe, Ohio, June 6, 1862, and is the son of Richard J. Gardiner, who was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1818. For a number of years he was an expert accountant in his native city. Coming to Ohio, he married Mar- garet Ryan, of Chillicothe, a daughter of one of the early settlers of that city, James Ryan, and remained here until his death, in 1890, his wife having passed away in 1872.
Our subject was educated in the public schools of Chillicothe, passing through the high school, later entering into business life in a mercantile house in that city. Following his first experience Mr. Gardiner became a commercial traveler for the firm of R. H. Patterson & Company.
In 1895 our subject came to Columbus and engaged in various lines, finally accepting the position of secretary for the Columbus Builders and Traders' Exchange, holding this responsible post at the present time and effi- ciently performing the duties. The position is no sinecure, it requiring a comprehensive knowledge of details of the business not only in Columbus but all other large cities in other states. Mr. Gardiner has mastered these details and his place could not be easily supplied.
In 1882 our subject was married to Miss Susan E. Roberts, of Chilli-
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cothe, a daughter of William E. and Susan (Dresbach) Roberts, and four children have been born of this union,-Margaret A., Lyle J., Katherine M. and Fred R. The family possesses the esteem of a large circle of friends.
JESSE WALTON.
A prominent farmer and an old settler of Franklin township, Franklin county, Ohio, is Jesse Walton, who was born in Moreland township, Mont- gomery county, Pennsylvania, November 6, 1812, a son of Gilbert Walton, who was a soldier in the war of 1812. The grandfather was Daniel Wal- ton, an early settler in the colonies, and his father, George Walton, was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. The death of Gilbert Walton took place in Pennsylvania when he was fifty-six years of age, his wife, Mary A. (Rapsher) Walton, surviving him until the age of seventy- six. A family of nine children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Walton, but our subject is the only member still living.
Jesse Walton was taken to Bucks county, Pennsylvania, by his parents when he was about twelve years of age, and his early education was acquired in that county, where the family remained for four years, later returning to Montgomery county. At the age of seventeen Mr. Walton began as an apprentice to learn the trade of carpenter and joiner, following it for four years. He worked as a journeyman four years after finishing his apprentice- ship, and then engaged in contracting, which he successfully followed for a period of twelve years. In 1849 he came to Franklin county, buying the place where he now resides, although at that time he had to build his cabin of logs in the woods. He immediately began clearing it up, fencing and cultivat- ing the land until now the tract is one of the finest in Franklin county.
On the 29th of December, 1836, Mr. Walton married Miss Mary A. Puff, a native of Bucks county, Pennsylvania, born November 7, 1815, who nobly assisted her husband in their pioneer life in Franklin county, and still survives, at the age of eighty-five years, a beloved and honored member of a most estimable family.
The sons and daughters who have arisen around the hearth of Mr. and Mrs. Walton numbered twelve, and now they and their children make happy the declining years of their parents. Their names are: John, who married Florence Edwards, has four children,-Zaida, Charle's, Ancil and Gertrude ; Hannah, William and Wesley, deceased; Louisa; Gilbert, who married first Flora Julian and had one son named Mark E., and for his second wife married Lillian E. Dougherty; Edwin, who married Mary Weatherman and has four children,-Wilber, Otto, Dora and Bell; Elizabeth, who married William Keyser and lives at home; Mary A., who married Warren Julian and has two children,-Walter and Bertha; Morris, who married Carrie Sheperd and has one daughter, Ruth; and Amanda and Emma, deceased.
The celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Jesse Walton at their home near Columbus, Ohio, December 29, 1886,
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was a very pleasant occasion. A large number of relatives were present, and after the letters from absent ones were read and a few remarks were made by their pastor, an elegant dinner was served. Mr. and Mrs. Walton are held in the highest regard by all who know them and they received loving testi- monials from those present. Of their immediate relatives there were with them on this occasion a brother and two sisters of Mr. Walton's,-seven children and twelve grandchildren. The many friends of Mr. and Mrs. Wal- ton will be glad to hear of their continued health and happiness.
When Mr. Walton first exercised his political franchise he voted the Democratic ticket, later changing to the Republican party, and his conscien- tious scruples against the liquor trade has convinced him that the safety of the country rests only in the Prohibition party. Both he and his estimable wife are valued and consistent members of the Methodist church, of which lie has been a member for the long space of sixty-five years, having held all of the lay offices and had been ever ready with purse or influence to further the cause of Christianity. In his declining years he can look back upon a life of honest toil and enjoy the universal respect of those with whom he has lived so long.
LAWRENCE H. COTT.
That honorable ambition to excel which is everywhere recognized as a creditable American characteristic has brought many a man from an humble beginning to a place of prominence in private and public affairs. Such ad- vancement in life is due to the survival of that which is best in business honor and business methods and to the recognition of faithfulness in small things by the advancement of men tried and true to have jurisdiction over larger ones. These thoughts have been suggested by the successful career of Law- rence H. Cott, director of public accounts for the city of Columbus, Ohio.
Mr. Cott is a son of Christopher and Mary E. (Brown) Cott. His father, a native of England, came to the United States and became a miller in Pennsylvania. At the outbreak of our Civil war, though of foreign birth, he offered his life in defense of the Union. Lawrence H. Cott was born in Huntingdon county, Pennsylvania, August 14, 1858, and his mother died soon after giving him birth. By the untimely death of his father he was fully orphaned, but he was given a home with relatives in Huntingdon county, who afforded him opportunities for a good common-school educa- tion and with whom he remained until 1872, when he came to Columbus, where he formed a connection with a view to acquiring a practical knowledge of the printing trade. It was not long, however, before the condition of his health demanded a change of occupation, and he entered the employ of the Hocking Valley Railroad Company at Columbus and was soon pro- moted to be chief clerk in the office of its auditor, which position he held for twelve years. In 1899 he was appointed, by Mayor Swartz, the director of accounts for the city of Columbus for a term of two years. For this position his long experience in auditing railway accounts peculiarly fitted
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him and his administration of the office has marked him as distinctively "the right man in the right place."
Mr. Cott is an active and influential Republican, who fully indorses the policy of the present administration and is a firm believer in the enlarged glory and usefulness of American civilization, for he firmly believes that progressive men can find an adequate field for action only in a thoroughly progressive country, and he sees nothing but promise of better things to the down trodden and unfortunate in the planting of the stars and stripes in any part of the world. He is a member of the Knights of Pythias and of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.
In 1888 Mr. Cott married Miss Elizabeth Sinclair, daughter of Richard Sinclair, a prominent and highly respected old resident of Columbus, and to Mr. and Mrs. Cott have been born four children,-Margaret, Lucile, Richard and Elizabeth.
HON. CHARLES MERION.
Among the most prominent and influential citizens of Franklin county is Charles Merion, who resides on South High street, Marion township, only one mile south of Columbus. At the present time he is ably representing his district in the state legislature, and is one of the public-spirited citizens to whose energy and foresight Franklin county is indebted for many improve- ments. While Mr. Merion, as a prosperous business man, has given close attention to his private affairs, he has never forgotten or ignored the bond of common interest which should unite the people of every community and has always been ready to promote progress in every line.
Mr. Merion was born in Columbus, February 24, 1857, and traces his ancestry back to Nathaniel Merion, who was born in Massachusetts, and married Thankful Withington, in 1749. Their son Nathaniel was married in the same state, December 19, 1776, to Lydia Gay. Nathaniel Merion (3d) was born in Columbus, Ohio, February 16, 1814, and married Nathline Wat- kins, in November, 1846. The fourth of the family to bear the name of Nathaniel is the son of our subject. William Merion, the grandfather of our subject, was born on High street, Columbus, September 10, 1811, and was reared upon a farm where the city now stands.
Charles S. Merion, our subject's father, was also born in Columbus, on Christmas day, 1835, and almost his entire life has been passed in this county. He pursued his studies in the schools of Montgomery township, now the city of Columbus, and throughout his active business life has fol- lowed farming and gardening. Since 1857 he has made his home upon his present farm in what is now Marion township. The year previous he had wedded Miss Mary L. Fisher, who was born in a little log cabin near the canal in Marion township, and was reared and educated in the city of Colum- bus. By this union there were two children: Charles, our subject; and Sarah, now deceased. After the death of his first wife the father married
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Miss Mattie Walton, of Pleasant Corners. He is a Republican in politics and a man highly respected and esteemed by all who know him.
The early education which our subject acquired in the district schools near his boyhood home has been greatly supplemented by more advanced study. For one year he attended the Ohio Central Normal School at Worth- ington, and later was a student at Baldwin University and the State Univer- sity. For five years he successfully engaged in teaching school in Marion township, and was then connected with the wholesale dry-goods house of Green, Joyce & Company for two years. While engaged in that business his health failed and he returned to the home farm in 1884. Since then he has followed dairy and general farming, and his labors have been crowned with success.
At Columbus, on the 20th of May, 1886, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Merion and Miss Emma Kienzle, a native of that city and a daughter of John and Mary Kienzle, old settlers of this county. The father is a re- tired shoe dealer of Columbus. Mrs. Merion was graduated at the high school of that city in 1880, and by her marriage has become the mother of four children: Grace, Harry, Nathaniel and Mary.
In his social relations Mr. Merion is a member of Junia Lodge, No. 474, I. O. O. F., and the Encampment, and also of Custer Council, J. O. U. A. M. For about twelve years he was a member of the Ohio National Guards. After serving two years as private he was elected first lieutenant, in 1880, of Company F, Fourteenth Regiment, and five years later was made captain of his company, in which capacity he served until his retirement in 1890. Politically he is a stanch Republican, and was the candidate of his party for state representative in 1891, but was defeated. Two years later, however, he was elected to that office, and in 1899 was re-elected, being the present incumbent. As a citizen he meets every requirement and manifests a commendable interest in everything calculated to promote the welfare of his native county.
LINUS B. KAUFFMAN.
The value of the German element in our American citizenship has been many times demonstrated in every city in the Union and not less strikingly in every village, hamlet and township. Its exemplification comes to the surface again when we come to consider the antecedents and successful career of Linus B. Kauffman, director of public improvements at Columbus, Ohio. Mr. Kauffman was born at Lancaster, Ohio, June II, 1858, a son of George and Henrietta (Beecher) Kauffman. His father, a native of Ger- many, came to Ohio in 1818 and settled at Lancaster, where he became a prominent and successful business man and was identified with many leading interests. He was a druggist by profession and for a number of years conducted one of the leading drug stores at Lancaster, where he died in 1866. His widow is now a resident of Columbus.
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Linus B. Kauffman acquired his primary education in the public schools of Lancaster and was prepared for college in that town. He was graduated from the Wesleyan University at Delaware, Ohio, in 1877, and in a special course at Amherst, in 1878. He read law with the Hon. William Davidson, of Lancaster, Ohio, and then for the benefit of his health sought the climate of the mountains of Montana, where he remained for two years. Returning to Ohio, he engaged in the wholesale drug trade at Columbus and is a mem- ber of the well-known drug firm of The Kauffman-Lattimer Company, whose substantial brick store at the northwest corner of Front and Chestnut streets, has come to be a landmark of the city. The company is financially one of the stanch firms of Columbus and the purity of its goods and its honest, accommodating business methods have made it popular with the trade.
Mr. Kauffman is an active and unswerving Republican whose influence is respected and whose counsel is sought by the leaders in his party. In 1899 he was appointed director of public improvements for the city of Colum- bus, and in the performance of the duties of that position controls and directs all public works within the city limits. In the administration of his office, so important to the taxpayers of the city, the best judgment and highest degree of honor are demanded, and he has brought to bear upon the discharge of his duties admirable ability, tact and discretion, which have given him an enviable place in the esteem of his fellow citizens. He is a Mason of wide acquaintance and influence, having been raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason, exalted to the august degree of Royal Arch Mason, con- stituted, dubbed and created a Knight Templar and created a member of the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He is also a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. In 1884. he married Miss Clara Norton, of Springfield, Ohio, a daughter of Thomas and Clara (Foos) Norton.
Mr. Kauffman's standing in the business and commercial circles of Columbus is deservedly high, his judgment in all public affairs is respected and his honesty in official life is as unquestionable as it is in private life. Genial, whole-souled and companionable, he makes friends of all with whom he comes in contact, and in every relation of life he has proved himself reliable and helpful, patriotic and progressive to an admirable degree.
JOSEPH DAUBEN.
Among the well known architects residing in the city of Columbus, Ohio, is Joseph Dauben, the subject of this sketch, whose ability has been shown in some of the most beautiful and imposing structures ever erected in this city, noted for its fine buildings.
Mr. Dauben was born in the city of Cologne, Germany, August 28, 1848, and was the son of Joseph and Catherine Dauben, both natives of the same country. His father held government positions in Germany for many years, dying while in the service.
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Our subject received a very liberal education, first in attendance upon the schools of his neighborhood, later entering the gymnasium, and still later the great academy building in Berlin, Germany, at which he graduated in 1869. The bent of Mr. Dauben's mind seemed toward architecture, hence he was apprenticed to the profession and studied under the supervision of a noted architect at Cologne.
In 1871 Mr. Dauben came to America, reaching Chicago just after the great devastating fire, and here he found ample opportunity for the exercise of his ability, as the work of rebuilding was already under way. He was called upon to do much in the line of draughting plans, the result of his labors now being displayed in many of the immense structures which adorn the city of Chicago. He made that city the scene of his labors for six years, com- ing to Columbus in 1877, where he entered the office of George H. Maetzel, with whom he remained for three years, after which he formed a partnership with Mr. Maetzel, this continuing until the time of the latter's death, in 1892. In 1893 Mr. Dauben moved his business to the Eberly block, and here is well prepared for his special line of work, the quarters being spacious and well lighted. During the twenty-three years that Mr. Dauben has been a res- ident of this city he has drawn plans for many of the notable buildings which please and attract the stranger, while they gratify the pride of the citizens. Among those where he has had opportunity to display his talent are: the Franklin county court-house; the Franklin county jail; the Franklin county infirmary; St. Anthony hospital; the Wirthwain block; the John Schmidt block; the residence of L. P. Hoster and brewery of L. Hoster & Company; also the Madison county court-house, at London, Ohio; the Shelby county court-house, at Sidney, Ohio; the Allen county court-house, at Lima, Ohio, and numerous business houses, blocks and dwellings. Following the election of Mayor Allen, Mr. Dauben was appointed building inspector of this city, an appointment peculiarly suitable and to the satisfaction of the residents of Columbus. Also he held the same position under Mayor Black.
In 1877 Mr. Dauben married Miss Augusta Meyer, of Chicago, Illinois, and three children have been born,-Walter H., Hypollite and John W.
JOHN MURPHY PUGH.
No biographical work professing to include any considerable number of names of men of prominence and influence at Columbus, Ohio, could omit the name of John Murphy Pugh, who was born in Truro township, Franklin county, Ohio, November 7, 1823, a son of David and Jane (Murphy) Pugh. His father was a native of Radnorshire, Wales, and his mother was born in Franklin county, Pennsylvania. David Pugh came from Wales to Balti- more, Maryland, and after living there went to Ohio and founded the Welsh settlement of Radnor in Delaware county, in the midst of a wilderness, and the first white child born there was his nephew, who died recently at the age of eighty-seven. In 1814 the family moved to Truro township, where
JOHN M. PUGH.
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Jane (Murphy) Pugh died, in March, 1857, and David Pugh in October following.
John M. Pugh received his early education in a typical log schoolhouse and was for a time a student at Central College. When he was about twenty years old he began teaching school on the Black Lick, east of Columbus, for eight dollars a month and his board, which latter had to be taken around at the homes of his pupils. He located in Columbus September 4, 1848, and on that date began reading law under the direction of Major Samuel Brush, who was a leading lawyer in his day, and was admitted to the bar in 1851, when the oath was administered to him in the old United States courthouse by Hon. Peter Hitchcock, judge of the supreme court. He was for two years a clerk in the county auditor's office and for the succeeding two years a clerk in the office of the county treasurer. This four years' service covered a period before and after his admission to the bar. His first political office was that of township clerk, to which he was elected by a majority of one hundred and fifty-nine, as a Democrat, in a Whig township whose usual party majority was six hundred. In 1853 he was chosen to the office of county auditor, which he filled for four years.
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