USA > Ohio > Ross County > A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio > Part 33
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To the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Albin have been born two children : Vol. II-17
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Edna and Carl. Edna married Rudolph Barclay, and their son Donald, the grandson of Mr. and Mrs. Albin, is the fifth successive generation that has lived on the old Senff homestead. The son Carl married Grace Hinton, and he met his death by accident one week after his marriage, at the age of twenty-three. Mrs. Albin is an active member of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
ELIAS N. HINTON. Born in the township of his present residence and near the farm which he now occupies and cultivates, and which his great-grandfather took up in a totally wild and unbroken condition from the Government, Elias N. Hinton bears an unusual relation to the soil in this locality and presents in his history elements of unusual interest. He represents the fourth successive generation of the family in occupancy and tillage of the same tract of land, and the different condition now from what it was when the place came into the possession of the family represents not only the achievement of its successive occu- pants in cultivating and improving it, but also the general progress of this region since civilization was planted here more than a century ago.
His birth occurred in Colerain Township of Ross County, June 1, 1852. His father was John C. Hinton, who was born June 10, 1824, in Colerain Township and in the log cabin which his grandfather had erected on first coming to Ross County. The grandfather of Elias N. Hinton was also named Elias, and he was born probably in Kentucky.
The great-grandfather, the founder of the family in Ross County, was Thomas Hinton, who was probably a native of Maryland, from which state he went to Kentucky and thence to Ohio. In 1807 he entered one lot of land in the east half of section 10, township 10, range 20, now known as Colerain Township. The original patent to this land, issued by the United States Government and signed by Thomas Jefferson, then President of the United States, is now owned by Elias N. Hinton. At that time Ohio was still a young state, and Ross County was largely a wilderness, and the Indians still coveted the unbroken forests as their hunting grounds. Thomas Hinton, after building a log cabin, devoted many years to clearing the land, and resided there until his death.
When the family came to Ross County, Grandfather Elias Hinton was only two years of age. He was reared amid pioneer scenes, and later succeeded to the ownership of the old homestead, and added to its improvements and fertility by a life of industrious labor. He lived there until his death at the age of eighty-three. Elias Hinton married Susanna Cox, whose parents had located in Ohio in the very early days. Grandfather Hinton filled the offices of justice of the peace and township trustee, and was a man of splendid character and valuable influence in the life and times of his community.
John C. Hinton grew up on this old homestead farm, the ownership of which subsequently passed to one of his brothers. He attended some of the early schools conducted on subscription plan, and after reaching manhood bought a tract of land about two miles south of the old home, and lived there engaged in successful farming, and by the addition of
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John W. Rittenour
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other lands as his means increased, until he was possessor of a property aggregating 275 acres. On that farm he lived until his death at the age of seventy-eight. He had served ten years as a member of the town- ship board of trustees. John C. Hinton married Hannah Leasure, who was born in Colerain Township, a daughter of Jesse and Mollie Leasure. When she died in March, 1879, ten children survived her, namely : Andrew, Mary, Elias N., Jesse, Lewis, Magdaline, Cyrus, Edward, Wil- lard and George.
The first twenty-one years of his life Elias N. Hinton spent on the home farm of his father, in the meantime assisting in its cultivation and management and also gaining an education in the rural schools. His individual career began as a worker for monthly wages. By strict economy he saved enough of his earnings so as to buy a team and some tools, and then started out as an independent farmer on rented land. For upwards of a quarter of a century he operated largely on land that he rented, but in the meantime he had bought from his uncle the old homestead which his great-grandfather acquired from the Government and where his grandfather had spent his lifetime. When he came into possession of this old home it had among its improvements two very substantial barns, but since then he has erected a modern frame house as a residence, also a tenant house, and has put up a number of other. buildings, so as to place this farm among the best in improvements in the township.
At the age of twenty-six Mr. Hinton married Hester Ann DeLong, who was born in Colerain Township, a daughter of Jacob and Susan DeLong, early settlers there. Mr. and Mrs. Hinton have reared five children, Effie, Nevin, Estella, Grace and Pearl. Effie, by her marriage to Chauncey Creachbaum, has four children, named Ray, Mabel, Grace and Thelma. Nevin married Grace Leasure. Estella married Charles Dresbach, and their two children are Charlotte and Wayne. Grace, who died in 1914, was first married to Carl Albin, who met his death by accident a week after marriage, and her second marriage was to George Bower. Pearl married Nellie McCabe.
Mr. and Mrs. Hinton are active members of the United Brethren Church. He is a citizen of great public spirit, and has served as a member of the township board of trustees, the school board, and as road supervisor. He is affiliated with Adelphi Lodge of the Knights of Pythias.
JOHN WESLEY RITTENOUR. It was in the closing years of the eighteenth century that the various members of the Rittenour family and their connections located in Ross County. The early generations had their full share of pioneer experiences and hardships. They were among the true builders of the commonwealth of Ohio. They were thrifty and industrious people, morally upright, kind neighbors, and built their lives into the character of the community. A worthy descend- ant of such stock, John Wesley Rittenour has spent his entire lifetime in
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Ross County and is one of the very prosperous farmer citizens of Green Township, living near the historic old Town of Kingston.
The founder of the family in this county was his great-grandfather Anthony Rittenour, who was born and reared in Rockingham County, Virginia. He also lived for some years in Frederick County of that state and for one year in Washington County in Southwestern Pennsyl- vania. In 1798 he migrated into Northwest Territory. A team drew the wagon out of Pennsylvania and across the hills into the wilderness of Ross County. He was accompanied by his family and on arriving at his destination he entered a tract of Government land in what is now Jefferson Township of Ross County. There he was one of the first to clear the forest and put a plow into the soil. His family occupied a log cabin until he replaced it with a substantial stone house. There he spent his last years and passed away in 1835. Anthony Rittenour married Elizabeth Flusher, who was of German ancestry. They reared six sons and two daughters.
Jacob Rittenour, representing the next generation, was born in Fred- erick County, Virginia, in 1787 and was eleven years of age when he came to Ross County. Thus a part of his youth as well as his manhood were passed within the borders of this county. With a limited educa- tion, he had the practical training best fitted to cope with the situation involved in life in a new country. He spent his best years farming in Jefferson Township, where he died. The maiden name of his wife was Anna Claypool. Her name introduces another pioneer family of Ross County. She was born in Randolph County, Virginia. Her father Abraham Claypool was born in Hardy County, Virginia, now West Virginia, on April 2, 1762. Abraham's father James Claypool was born in Virginia December 1, 1730. The latter's father James, Sr., was born in Virginia, February 14, 1701. On October 9, 1753, James Claypool, Jr., married Margaret Dunbar, who was born November 20, 1736, and died March 26, 1813. She reared a family of nine daughters and three sons. Abraham Claypool was reared and educated in his native state and from there came to Northwest Territory in 1799, locating in what is now Liberty Township of Ross County. He bought timbered land and built for a family residence a substantial hewed log house. Abraham Claypool was a man of considerable distinction in the early days. He was a member of the First Constitutional Convention of Ohio and also of the first State Senate. The maiden name of his wife was Elizabeth Wilson. Both spent their last days on the home farm. Jacob Rittenour and wife reared four children named James, Isaac N., George C. and Margaret.
Isaac Newton Rittenour, father of John Wesley, was born in Jefferson Township of Ross County. Growing up on a farm, he made the best of his limited opportunities to obtain an education in the pioneer schools. As a youth he made several trips over the mountains to the eastern markets as a livestock drover. His independent career began as a worker on shares of a part of his father's farm. Subsequently he became owner of the land, and resided there until his death in 1851. Isaac N. Rittenour
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married Sarah Orr. She was born in Springfield Township, a daughter of Thomas Orr, who was born in Hardy County, Virginia, and a grand- daughter of James Orr, who was born in Belfast, Ireland. James Orr came from Ireland about 1770, locating first in South Carolina, but a few years later on account of ill health moved to Virginia and lived near Moorefield in what is now Hardy County, West Virginia, until 1797. He then came to the Northwest Territory and established a home in what is now Liberty Township of Ross County. He thus became the third successive stock from which John Wesley Rittenour is descended of the early pioneers of Ross County. His first home in this county was on High Bank prairie, and later he moved to Dry Run, six miles above the High Bank. James Orr was very liberally educated, was a surveyor by profession and one of the first school teachers in Ross County. His death occurred in 1802. Thomas Orr, the maternal grand- father of John W. Rittenour, accompanied his parents to Ross County and it is said that he and his brother Zebulon did the first plowing in Liberty Township, and he also carried a chain for General Massie when the road from Chillicothe to Gallipolis was surveyed. He owned and operated a farm in Springfield Township, and there his life came to a close in 1854. The maiden name of his second wife was Mary Jones, who was born in New Jersey. After the death of Isaac N. Rittenour his widow married W. W. Crabb of Union Township, and she died at the home of her son John W. Rittenour in her ninety-first year.
John Wesley Rittenour was born in Jefferson Township November 7, 1848. As a boy he attended district schools in Springfield and Union townships and prepared for college in the Lebanon Normal School. En- tering the Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware, he remained a student there until the illness of his stepfather called him home to superintend the farm. At the time of his marriage he settled on the Brown home- stead belonging to his wife in Green Township, lived there eight years, and then bought the farm where he now resides. Mr. Rittenour and family have one of the very attractive and pleasantly situated homes of Ross County. His dwelling is a handsome and commodious brick house, surrounded by a beautiful lawn. The house is one of the old landmarks, having been built in 1842 and on the farm is a much older relic of early days, a barn that was constructed in 1808, and whose solid timbers after more than a century show the quality of pioneer con- struction. Mr. Rittenour owns 540 acres while his wife has 216 acres.
In 1871 he married Mary Alice Brown. Mrs. Rittenour was born in Green Township February 17, 1849. Her father, Isaac Brown, was a native of Virginia and of colonial ancestry. Her grandfather, Timothy Brown, came to Ohio and was one of the early settlers in Green Town- ship. He married Catherine Furguson. The family started in the fall and when only part of the distance had been covered to the destination they stopped for the winter. In the spring they arrived in Ross County, where grandfather secured timbered land in Green Township, and erected the log buildings and other improvements which were the begin- ning of a farm. The grandfather died there at the age of eighty-five, his
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children having been named William, David, Timothy, James, Maria, Amos, J. Wesley, Isaac, Rachel and Amelia. Isaac Brown, father of Mrs. Rittenour, was reared and educated in Green Township, and even- tually secured a part of the old homestead. There he erected a brick house and frame barn, and engaged in farming until his death in 1853. The maiden name of his wife was Elizabeth Clingman, who was also a native of Green Township, and who died in 1851, leaving two children, Clara, wife of Joseph Rogers, and Mrs. Rittenour. Mrs. Rittenour after her mother's death was cared for by her uncle, Amos Brown, who had succeeded to the ownership of the old homestead. Amos Brown was a man who rendered some very useful service to the people of Ross County in early days. He was a teacher and a man of fine integrity of character. He never married, but cared for his mother in her last years, and willed his estate to his nieces, Mrs. Rittenour and Mrs. Rogers. This estate is still owned by them.
Mr. and Mrs. Rittenour have four children, Floyd Isaac, Ora Jeannette, Charles Warren and Lillian Jane. Floyd I. married Marietta Gould, lives at Calexico, California, and has two children named Ruth Jeannette and Robert Gould. The son Charles married Louise Irwin, and lives at Kingston, Ohio, and has a son Charles Warner. Mr. and Mrs. Rittenour and children are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, Mrs. Rittenour and her daughters being members of the Foreign Missionary Society and the Ladies' Aid Society. All the children re- ceived part of their education in the Ohio Wesleyan University at Dela- ware. Charles, Ora and Lillian are members of Scioto Grange. Polit- ically Mr. Rittenour is a republican. Mr. Rittenour's farm is known as "Maple Bend."
JOHN PYLE. It was eighty years ago when John Pyle was born in Ross County. For his own career and that of his father and grand- father, his name is one that has been identified with the changing scenes and developments of this section of Ohio since pioneer times. Mr. Pyle has himself borne a worthy part during the many years of his lifetime, is a veteran of the Civil war, and by hard work and correct habits of living has long enjoyed the prosperity he deserves. He and his worthy wife are among the oldest couples in Ross County, and now live in comfort in their home in Green Township.
Born in Harrison Township October 23, 1836, John Pyle is a son of Harrison Pyle, who was born in Springfield Township of this county and is a grandson of William Pyle, who was a native of Pennsylvania and when young accompanied his parents into Virginia, where he grew up and married. In the early years of the last century, long before there were railroads or canals in Ohio, and when the pioneers had to break trails through the woods and when both forest and stream abounded in game and fish that were relied upon to supply the tables with meat, William Pyle started from Virginia for this new western country. He made part of the journey by river and the rest by team. Arriving in Harrison Township of Ross County, he secured a tract of Government
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land, and there built a cabin in the midst of the woods. Years of toil enabled him to clear up a good farm, and he and his family experienced all the hardships as well as the pleasant features of life in this raw new country. He remained on his farm until his death. His wife was Mary Janes, a native of Virginia.
Harrison Pyle, whose earliest recollections were of the primitive con- ditions that existed in Ross County a century ago, after his marriage moved to Green Township, buying a tract of land just across the line from Harrison Township and in the southeast quarter of Green. There the labor of his hands brought about the erection of a substantial hewed log house. His years were successfully devoted to general farming, and he died on his farm at the age of seventy-three. His first wife was Mary Henry, and she died when young, leaving John and Samuel, the latter dying at the age of fourteen. Mary Henry was the daughter of James and Jane Henry, both natives of Ireland, and early settlers in Harrison Township. James Henry improved a farm on Walnut Creek, and both he and his wife lie side by side in Bethel Churchyard. For his second wife Harrison Pyle married Maria Ortman, and by that union there were four sons and one daughter.
Mr. John Pyle spent his early boyhood in Ross County at a time when there were few and limited school advantages. He attended school when opportunity offered, but gained the best discipline for real life by assisting in the work of clearing and cultivating his father's place. When ready to start out for himself he began as a renter, and followed farming in that way for some years. In May, 1864, he left home to enlist in Company D of the One Hundred and Forty-ninth Ohio Volun- teer Infantry. He served during the closing months of the war, in Virginia, and was with his regiment in faithful performance of his duties as a soldier until the expiration of his time, when he received an hon- orable discharge and returned home.
His first land was in the west half of section 21 of Green Township. That he occupied as a farm until 1901. In 1898 he had bought other land in the east half of the same section, and since 1901 he and his good wife have occupied that as their home. In the meantime a set of substantial frame buildings have been erected, they have planted fruit and shade trees, and they now have a place for enjoyment as well as profit. Mr. and Mrs. Pyle, as their years have advanced, have relieved themselves of the active burdens and responsibilities of farming and now have an abundance for all their needs.
On April 15, 1860, Mr. Pyle married Catherine Bower. She was born in Harrison Township of Ross County, October 8, 1835. Her father, Johan Bower, was born in Wuertemberg, Germany, son of George Bower, who spent all his life in the old country. Johan Bower, after his mar- riage and after having served in the German army five years, came to America in 1832 with his wife and three children, spending seven weeks on the ocean, making the trip in an old-fashioned sailing vessel. The first winter in Ohio was spent in the Village of Chillicothe, and Mr. Bower then went into Harrison Township and bought a tract of
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partly improved land. He was a sturdy and successful farmer, devel- oped his home and lived there until his death in 1840. John Bower married Margaret Ann Schott, who was born in Wuertemberg and who survived her husband, attaining the age of eighty-four. After her hus- band's death she proved her worth outside as well as inside the home, kept her children together, and managed the farm until she saw each of her sons and daughters grown and comfortably established in homes of their own. Her six children were named Jacob, Margaret, Frederick, John, Catherine and Joseph.
Mrs. Pyle is one of the interesting pioneer women of Ross County. As a girl she attended district school, and by assisting her mother, learned many of the housewifely accomplishments and arts of the olden times. When she was a girl all cooking was done at the open fireplace, and under her mother's direction she learned the crafts of spinning both flax and wool, and was an expert in spinning wool, and her skill was known far and wide. She did spinning not only for her own family but for many of the neighbors.
Mr. and Mrs. Pyle reared five children, Louis, Mary, Elmer, Florence and Fred. Louis married Emma.Dent and has a son, William D. Mary is the wife of Thomas Overly, and her four children are, Mabel, Blanche, Clifford and Helen. Elmer, by his marriage to Ida Brown, has three children, Bertha, Lawrence and Charles. Fred married Nellie Hamm. The daughter Florence is living at home and taking care of her parents.
FRANCIS N. R. REDFERN. One of the oldest and most prominent families of Southern Ohio is the Redfern, which has been represented in Ross County by Francis N. R. Redfern, for many years one of the leading lawyers of the county, engaged in practice at Adelphi.
His ancestral line goes back to Solomon Redfern, who was born in Scotland and came to America in colonial times, settling in North Caro- lina. He married a Miss Harding, who was also a native of Scotland.
Their son, Solomon Redfern, who was born in North Carolina, became a minister of the Methodist Church. Being opposed to the institution of slavery, he left North Carolina and in 1804 moved to the region dedi- cated to freedom, north of the Ohio River, and was an early settler in Vinton County, Ohio. Here he joined the Ohio Conference and was one of the early circuit riders, having charges in different places. He made his rounds on horseback, and spent his last years near Allenville, in Middle Fork Valley of Vinton County.
A son of this pioneer clergyman was Neriah Redfern, grandfather of the Adelphi lawyer. Neriah Redfern also took up the ministry of the Methodist Church. In the years before the war he was detailed by the Ohio Conference to make a tour of investigation relative to the condition of slaves in the South. In order to make his investigation more effective he went in the guise of a clock repairer, and visited many plantations and slave markets. The items of his experience he formu- lated in a report which was a very cogent document against slavery.
For many years he was active in the ministry as a member of the
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Ohio Conference, and spent his last days at Logan, Ohio. Rev. Neriah Redfern married for his first wife Jane Murphy, who was born in Vinton County and died at an early age. For his second wife he married Priscilla Bright, of Logan, Ohio.
Emery F. Redfern, a son of Rev. Neriah and wife, was born in Vinton County, Ohio, and when he was three years of age he lost his mother and when eight his father died. He then went to live with Mr. and Mrs. Isaac Dunkle in Vinton County, and while at their home attended school as opportunity offered, and remained in the Dunkel household until he was twenty years of age. In the meantime the Civil war broke upon the country, and he enlisted in Company B of the Ninetieth Ohio Infantry, going to the front and for several years fighting for the flag in some of the most momentous campaigns of the South. He was present at Shiloh, at Murfreesboro, at Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, Lookout Mountain, then participated in the 100 days of continu- ous fighting between Chickamauga and Atlanta, and after the siege and capture of that city, returned west with the army commanded by Gen- eral Thomas and fought at the battles of Franklin and Nashville. He was with his regiment until after the close of the war, and with an honorable record as a soldier returned home and took up farming. Dur- ing the four years of his work in the fields he studied medicine under Doctor Rannels, and then entered the Eclectic Medical College at Cin- cinnati, where he was graduated M. D. in 1879. Being thus prepared for his professional career, he spent one year in practice in Pike County, then removed to Jackson County, and from there located permanently at South Perry, in Hocking County, where he enjoyed a successful practice until his death in September, 1906. Doctor Redfern married Martha A. Nickell. She was born in Lawrence County, Ohio, a daughter of John and Mary (Larkins) Nickell. Her grandfather, Robert Nickell, was a native of the Shenandoah Valley, Virginia, and moved from there to Ohio, becoming a pioneer in Vinton County, and improving a farm on Logan Road, 21/2 miles north of McArthur. He filled the office of justice of the peace several years. John Nickell, father of Mrs. Redfern, acquired a liberal education, and was a teacher and also a farmer. He spent his last years on his farm three miles west of McArthur. He married Mary Larkin, who was born in Carroll County, Ohio, daughter of Washington Larkin. Washington Larkin was the son of a French- man named DeLarkin, who had come to America with La Fayette and had served in the Revolutionary war. After the Northwest Territory was opened up, this veteran of the Revolution located at Steubenville, and from there penetrated the wilderness to the Scioto Valley. There he found it very unhealthy, and finally moved to Carroll County, where he spent his last years. Washington Larkin, an only son of his parents, was a farmer in Carroll County. Mrs. Emery F. Redfern died October 8, 1911, having reared four children, named Francis N. R., Isaac W., Mary A. and Lillian M.
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