USA > Ohio > Ross County > A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio > Part 45
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Though his life has been spent in Ross County since infancy, George McCalla was born at Black Hill, England, May 20, 1877. His parents were John and Jane (McClure) McCalla. They were both natives of County Armagh, Ireland, where they were reared. John McCalla went to England when a young man, but subsequently returned to marry Jane McClure, and following their marriage they lived in England for seventeen years. John McCalla was a moulder by trade, and followed that occupation as long as he lived in England. On July 5, 1879, this family arrived in Ross County, locating in Paint Township, where John McCalla bought the farm on which he died in 1896. His widow is still living there. They had seven children, and the three that reached maturity were: Jane, wife of Samuel McCalla of Paint Township, Ross County; Samuel, who died at the age of twenty-four; and George, the youngest of the family.
George McCalla grew up on the home farm in Paint Township and received a district school training in the Mount Olive School. The first twenty years of his life he spent at home and in that time gained a practical acquaintance with the business which he has followed so suc- cessfully in later years. For a number of years, Mr. McCalla was em- ployed by William Baird, a prominent cattle buyer, and for him he frequently drove herds of cattle or otherwise conducted them to market. Mr. McCalla . finally became associated with William Baird and Fay Baldwin in the purchase of a large farm in Twin and Huntington town- ships, where Mr. McCalla has since centered his activities. They bought this land in .1906 and since July of that year, Mr. McCalla has had active charge. In this ten years' time the firm has been variously improved with modern facilities and conveniences, and it is undoubtedly one of the largest and best kept stock farms in Southern Ohio.
On May 13, 1897, Mr. McCalla married Mary Shinkle, a daughter of Phillip and Mary Shinkle of Paint Township. Mrs. McCalla was a child when her father died. Her parents were of Pennsylvania Dutch stock. Mr. and Mrs. McCalla had five children : Ralph, Dwight, Alice, Clarke and Ruth, all still at home. The mother of these children died, March 18, 1908. She was a devoted mother and home maker and her memory will always be cherished by her children.
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On April 6, 1910, Mr. McCalla married Mary J. Dalzall, who was born in Ireland, a daughter of James and Margaret Dalzall. She grew to womanhood in Ireland and in 1903 came to America to live with a sister in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. It was while living in that city that she became acquainted with Mr. George McCalla. They were mar- ried there. Mr. McCalla is affiliated with Chillicothe Lodge No. 52, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, is a republican in politics and a member of the Presbyterian Church at Bourneville. For one term he served as township trustee of Twin Township, and was for one term on the township school board of Paint Township.
JAMES C. GRAGG. For about thirty-five years the mercantile inter- ests of Ross County have been represented at Bourneville by James C. Gragg, who, in addition to having been a general merchant during this time and the proprietor of a business that has been looked upon as a necessary commercial adjunct, has at various times been the incumbent of positions of official importance, in which he has rendered excellent service to his fellow-citizens.
Mr. Gragg was born in Twin Township, Ross County, Ohio, May 21, 1859, and is a son of George W. and Ruth Ann (Gilfillan) Gragg. The family is an old and honored one of this locality, and Mr. Gragg's father was born in Twin Township, September 14, 1832, being a son of James and Catherine (DeVoss) Gragg. James Gragg was born in Virginia. the son of an Irish immigrant, and there grew to young manhood, com- ing to Ross County, Ohio, as a pioneer, some time between the years 1810 and 1815. Here he was employed as a day laborer for a number of years, and one of the pieces of work in which he was engaged was the building of the Cincinnati Pike, which was constructed in 1839. Mr. Gragg married Catherine DeVoss, who was born in Buckskin Township. Ross County, a daughter of Isaac DeVoss, who was a boy when he came to this county with his father, Joseph De Voss. He settled in the same neighborhood that had Mr. Gragg. After their marriage, James and Catherine (DeVoss) Gragg took up housekeeping on a farm in Twin Township, where they passed the remaining years of their lives in the quiet pursuits of the tiller of the soil. They were the parents of the following children : Samuel, Michael, Andrew, James, George W., and William.
George W. Gragg grew to manhood in Twin Township, Ross County, in the valley of Paint Creek, and in 1857 was married to Ruth Ann Gilfillan. They settled in Twin Township and rented for several years, until Mr. Gragg's energy and industry were rewarded by the accumula- tion of sufficient capital with which to purchase a property. There Mrs. Gragg died in 1893, while Mr. Gragg survived until August 22, 1910. Both were held in the highest esteem in their community, and were known as people possessing many excellent qualities of mind and heart. They became the parents of five children, as follows: Alexander, who died in infancy ; James C .; Ida, who is the wife of H. L. Corcoran, of Twin Township; Elizabeth, deceased, who was the wife of Clinton
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Cockerell; and Adam, who died when twenty-one years of age. G. W. Gragg was an uncompromising democrat in politics, and his belief in and loyalty to his party was so strong that he really made it his life hobby, without seeking personal reward.
The Gilfillan family, of which Mrs. Gragg was a member, originally owned and inhabited the Island of Mull, just off the west coast of Scot- land. At an early date they became embroiled in a feud with the MacDougall clan of Lorne, and the Gilfillans were entirely exterminated, with the exception of two of the wives of younger chieftains, who swam to the mainland and found refuge there. Not long thereafter each gave birth to twin sons, from whom sprang all the Gilfillans now living. The foregoing is an extract from the "Doomsday Book," London. The Gil- fillans were entitled to a coat of arms on which was inscribed : "Armis Et Animis," meaning "By Force of Arms and Strength of Mind." At the time of a religious persecution in Scotland, some of the Gilfillan clan sought refuge in Ireland, and there, in County Derry, in 1761, was born Thomas Gilfillan. He married Agnes High, a native of County Down, born in 1760, and as a young married couple they emigrated to the United States and settled in Kentucky. There a large family of children were born, and eventually the family moved to Ross County, where the original founders of the family in this country died. and where their children's children still live to perpetuate the name. When Thomas Gilfillan came to the United States, he brought with him a brother, Adam Gilfillan, who became one of the scouts in the surveying expedition of Nathaniel Massie and was wounded in 1796 at what was afterward called Reeves Crossing.
The second son of Thomas and Agnes Gilfillan was Alexander Gil- fillan, who was born in Kentucky, in 1788. He married Elizabeth Mon- roe, daughter of Alexander and Sarah (McCoy) Monroe, in 1813. Both Alexander Gilfillan and Alexander Monroe fought as soldiers in the War of 1812, in which struggle the former was a captain of militia. Ruth Ann Gilfillan was the daughter of Alexander and Elizabeth (Mon- roe) Gilfillan, and was born in 1828, in Twin Township, Ross County, Ohio. She became the wife of George W. Gragg.
James C. Gragg was given his education in the district schools and was reared on the home farm, where he assisted his father until he was twenty years of age. At that time he came to Bourneville, where he secured a position as clerk in the general store of Joseph Burgess, with whom he learned the mercantile business. Mr. Gragg remained in Mr. Burgess' employ for some eight or ten years, during which time he became well known to the people of this community as a young man of solidity, resource and ability. He carefully husbanded his earnings, learned all he could of business methods and customs, and in 1885, when appointed postmaster of Bourneville, opened a business establishment of his own. At the end of four years his term of office expired with a change in the administration, but he continued in business, and has done so ever since. In 1893 he was again appointed as postmaster,
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holding that office for five years, and in 1913 his son, J. Rodney Gragg, was given the postmastership.
In June, 1888, Mr. Gragg was married to Miss Margaret Shoults, who was born in 1866, in Twin Township, a daughter of Alexander and Sarah E. (Shotts) Shoults. Alexander Shoults was born in Twin Town- ship, October 13, 1833, a son of John and Mary (Flood) Shoults. John Shoults came to Ross County, Ohio, from Rockingham County, Virginia, about the year 1800, with his parents, Charles and Drucilla (Howard) Shoults. Sarah E. Shotts, who became the wife of Alexander Shoults, was born in Heller's Bottom, Twin Township, August 25, 1845, a daughter of David and Catherine (Long) Shotts, the family having come from Augusta County, Virginia, in 1809. David Shotts was a scout under "Mad Anthony" Wayne, was the first settler of the family in Ross County, and met his death during a thunder storm, in 1825, while seek- ing shelter under a tree. His wife was Mary Wagner, who, as a small girl, gave Gen. George Washington a drink of water on one of his surveying tours in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. David Shotts was the father of a large family of children, among whom the seventh in order of birth was Jacob, who married Sarah Toops, December 31, 1817. They became the parents of David Shotts, the father of Sarah E. Shotts, who married Alexander Shoults. Sarah Toops was descended from Paul Streve (or Streevey), who was born in Germany in 1755 and came to Northampton County, Pennsylvania. He enlisted in 1776 as a private in the Continental army during the Revolutionary war and fought through that struggle. Catherine Long was a daughter of John and Elizabeth (Thomas) Long, and it was the father of Elizabeth, Michael Thomas, who, with Duncan McArthur, were given the first two lots at Chillicothe as a grant.
Mr. and Mrs. Gragg are the parents of three children: J. Rodney, of Bourneville, postmaster, and associated with his father in business; Elizabeth, who is the wife of C. U. Ebenback, of Chillicothe; and Foss Hunter, at home. J. Rodney Gragg is a member of the Masons and Odd Fellows. He was married October 18, 1915, to Miss Hazel Free, daughter of the late Joseph Free, of Paxton Township, Ross County.
James C. Gragg is prominent in Masonry, being a member of Bain- bridge Lodge, No. 193, Free and Accepted Masons; Chillicothe Chapter, No. 4, Royal Arch Masons: Chillicothe Council, No. 8; and Chillicothe Commandery, No. 4, Knights Templar. He also holds membership in Paint Valley Lodge, No. 437, Knights of Pythias, at Bainbridge; Bourne- ville Lodge, No. 808, Independent Order of Odd Fellows; and Chilli- cothe Lodge, No. 52, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. His political support is given to the democratic party. As a live, progressive member of his community he has assisted in the enterprises that have made for civic improvement, and his standing as a citizen and as an honorable man of business is of the very highest.
ADAM SCHILLER. A great many people in Ross County know Adam Schiller through his services as a teacher. He was one of the popular
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educators of the county for a number of years, but is now a substantial farmer living on rural route No. 2 out of Lyndon, in Twin Township.
His family has been identified with Ross County for several genera- tions. He was born in Huntington Township of this county September 15, 1873, a son of Richard and Sophia (Hamm) Schiller. Both his parents were also natives of Huntington Township. The grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. August Schiller, were natives of Germany, where they were reared and married, and on coming to the United States they settled in Huntington Township of Ross County, where they spent the rest of their days. They were the parents of the following children : Richard, Herman, Otto and Edmund. Of these, the sons Herman and Edmund were both soldiers in the Civil war.
Richard Schiller and wife had three children: Adam, August and Helena. The daughter is now deceased, and August is a farmer living in Twin Township.
Adam Schiller spent the first twelve years of his life in his parents' home in Huntington Township, and then went to Twin Township to live with his uncle, Adam Hamm. While taking his place as a working member in the Hamm household he also attended school, and was finally graduated from the Twin Township High School. After that he qualified as a teacher and followed that vocation for ten winters. In the mean- time he was steadily pursuing farming, and that is now his permanent vocation.
In April, 1904, Mr. Schiller married Mary Absten. She was born in West Virginia. After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Schiller lived on Lower Twin, in Twin Township, and they finally located on their present farm. They are the parents of four children: Viola, Bernard, Edwin and Mildred. Mrs. Schiller is an active member of the Methodist Epis- copal Church. He is a past noble grand of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and is a republican in politics. He is a quiet, unassuming citizen, does his part as a resident of his community, and is hard working and for several years has been on the high road to success.
L. D. MILLER. Left an orphan at an early age, L. D. Miller, now a well-known and substantial farmer of Twin Township, had to start life on his own account and also bear the burdens of others. He has made a good use of his years, and has not only accomplished much, but has linked honor and probity with his name.
He was born in Pike County, Ohio, December 14, 1866, a son of John and Julia (Kaplinger) Miller. Both parents were natives of Ohio, and his mother was born in Ross County. John Miller was given a public school education, was married in Ross County, and then located on a farm in Pike County. For a number of years he lived there, and later. sold out and moved to Ross County, where he spent the rest of his days. He died at the age of forty-three, leaving his widow to care for the family of young children. His wife died a few years later. She was an active member of the Christian Union Church. The six children were: Andrew, now retired; L. D. Miller; John B., deceased; Jennie,
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wife of Ed Hern, of Scioto Township; Nora A., deceased; and William T., a merchant and carpenter.
L. D. Miller grew up in Twin Township and had a limited education in the common schools. When about fifteen years of age he determined that he would earn his own way and help support the family. Since then his life has been one of consecutive endeavor, and after becoming independent he was married on February 16, 1889, to Miss Mary Kap- linger. She was born and reared in the same township.
After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Miller began a life of simple living and extreme economy. Mr. Miller worked by the month for six or seven years, and finally got the start which enabled him to acquire a homestead and home of his own. He now owns a first-class farm of 105 acres on rural route No. 1 out of Bourneville. All that he has was made by his own efforts.
Mr. and Mrs. Miller had two children, but both of them died in infancy. Mrs. Miller is an active member of the Christian Union Church. Fraternally he is affiliated with Lodge No. 52 of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks at Chillicothe, and politically he is a democrat, . though in no sense a politician or seeker for public honors.
SAMUEL A. STEELE. As farmer and cattle breeder, Samuel A. Steele, tenant on the Diggs farm in Twin Township, Ross County, Ohio, has shown much enterprise and has met with considerable success in his undertakings. He is not unknown politically in the township and has membership in one of the county's exclusive social organizations.
Samuel A. Steele was born in Twin Township, Ross County, March 7, 1889. His parents were James G. and Alice (Igo) Steele. His father was born in 1840 on Paint Creek, in Paxton Township, Ross County, and died in April, 1910. He was well known and highly respected, an elder in the Presbyterian Church and was a republican in politics. The mother of Samuel A. Steele was born in Twin Township, May 2, 1852, and now resides in Chillicothe. Of the ten children in the family, Samuel A. was the ninth in order of birth.
Mr. Steele's childhood and youth were passed on the home farm. He was given educational advantages, attending the common schools and the high school in Twin Township, and afterward took a course in the Bliss Business College at Columbus. He is a heavy breeder of polled Durham cattle and of other high-grade stock, and owns an interest in a famous prize-winning Belgian horse.
Almost from boyhood Mr. Steele has been interested in politics, and party confidence has been placed in him at all times by the citizens of Twin Township, and it was shown when he was made a member of the republican county central committee, in which office he served for four years, and when he was elected a township trustee, although but twenty- two years old. He is one of the township's popular young men and is a member of the Chillicothe Country Club.
J. S. WILTSHIRE, M. D. Among the men of Ross County who are devoting their energies and talents to 'the practice of medicine and
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surgery, few bring to bear upon their vocation larger gifts of scholar- ship and resource than Dr. J. S. Wiltshire, of Gillespieville. Doctor Wiltshire did not select his life work in the untried enthusiasm of ex- treme youth, but made his choice at a time when his mind had become matured and trained to thoughtfulness by years of practical experience as an educator and to full realization of the possibilities and responsi- bilities of his profession.
Doctor Wiltshire was born at Mooresville, Harrison Township, Ross County, Ohio, February 1, 1860, and is a son of Dr. J. M. and Mary (Sutherland) Wiltshire, natives of Ohio. There were four children in the family: William H., who is engaged in farming near Gillespie- ville; Dr. James S .; Mary F., who is the wife of F. A. Counts and lives at Richmond Dale; and J. E., whose home is at Vigo. The father, who was born in 1834, is still engaged in the practice of medicine at Rich- mond Dale. James S. Wiltshire was about one year old when the family moved to Massieville, Ohio, and about one year later was taken to Londonderry, where he attended the public school. Later he went to school at Chillicothe, and supplemented this by attendance at the National Normal School, at Lebanon, Ohio, where he took a teacher's course. For a period of sixteen years, from 1877 until 1893, he fol- lowed the vocation of educator and during this time was for two years principal at Londonderry and for a like period at the Sharonville High School. In 1893 he entered the Starling Medical College, at Columbus, Ohio, and in 1897 was graduated therefrom with the degree of Doctor of Medicine, and took first honorable mention in his class. In the summer of 1895 he completed a course at the Ohio Maternity Hospital, under the tutelage of Doctors Zinke and Tate, and at once commenced practice in association with his father at Gillespieville. Here he has continued to the present time. His skill in diagnosis and his successful treatment of long standng and complicated cases have created a gratify- ing demand for his services and have combined to formulate a career of exceptional breadth and usefulness. To a thorough professional equipment he adds a kindly and sympathetic manner, a genuine attach- ment to his calling and a ready adaptation to its multitudinous and exacting demands. He holds membership in the Ohio State Medical Society and the Ross County Medical Society, and keeps fully abreast of the various advancements constantly being made in the profession. Politically a republican, he has been elected on that party's ticket to the office of township clerk, the duties of which he performed most satisfactorily. Doctor Wiltshire has been successful in a material way, and is the owner of 310 acres of land in Ross County.
In 1903 Doctor Wiltshire was united in marriage with Miss Anna Thomas, the youngest daughter of Joseph Thomas, and they are the parents of one son : John M., Jr., born in 1906.
GIDEON S. COOVER, who has had a long and useful relationship with Ross County, as soldier, farmer, public official and public-spirited citizen. represents a family that came to this section of Ohio at the beginning of the last century.
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His ancestry goes back to Gideon Coover, who was born in 1738 and spent his life in Pennsylvania. He was one of those earnest patriots who offered their lives for the sake of independence during the Revo- lutionary war. He served as a private in Capt. James MacCurdy's company, Third Battalion, Cumberland County Militia, in 1783. His colonel was Samuel Erwin. This revolutionary soldier married Frances Stahle, and they became the parents of nine children.
Their son Gideon, who was born in Pennsylvania in 1775, emigrated from that state in 1800 and subsequently bought the farm now owned by the Rodes heirs, seven miles west of Chillicothe, on the Cincinnati Pike. About 1820 Gideon Coover, with a party of others, went to New Orleans, taking a flatboat laden with flour, pork, hops and other provi- sions. After arriving at New Orleans he disposed of his cargo, and while in that city was infected with the germs of yellow fever. The yellow fever scourge then and for years afterward came periodically to all gulf ports. Ile was on his way home before the nature of his illness was recognized. The captain at first refused to carry him any further and talked of throwing him overboard. He was finally prevailed upon to take the stricken man as far as Baton Rogue, where he was put ashore, and he died at the home of a minister whom he had pre- viously known. His remains were laid to rest in that southern city. Gideon Coover married Jane Downs, and at his death he left a widow and nine children. The names of the children were: John, Adam, James, William, Samuel, Nancy, Frances, Jane and Mary. John mar- ried Adah Mckenzie; Adam married Hannah Hyatt; James married Mary A. Breedalove; William married Cynthia Edmiston; Nancy mar- ried Henry Haines; Frances married Kirtus Cryder; Mary married John Teter; Samuel and Jane died after they were grown, unmarried.
Adam Coover, father of Gideon S., was born near Chillicothe, Ohio, January 5, 1812. His wife, Hannah Hyatt, was born in Pennsylvania, October 30, 1813, and as a girl came to Ohio with her grandparents, who located near Chillicothe. After their marriage, Adam and Hannah Coover started out to establish a home with very little capital. For several years he worked on a farm at small wages, while his wife looked after the cooking and other duties of the household. Subsequently they rented a farm and finally bought a place. Adam Coover prospered through his industry and honorable dealings, and eventually owned more than 400 acres. He and his wife were active members of the Meth- odist Episcopal Church, and they helped organize Core's Chapel, now the Beach Grove Methodist Episcopal Church. Politically he voted with the democrats until the Civil war, and afterwards was a republican. Adam Coover died December 23, 1889, while his wife, Hannah, passed away December 27th of the same year. They had lived happily together for fifty-six years, having been married August 8, 1833. Their children were: Mary Jane, born July 1, 1834, and died January 27, 1835; William Hyatt, born December 2, 1835, married Catherine Bristol, and died May 23, 1910; Maria Elizabeth, born March 19, 1838, married A. T. Foster, and died April 22, 1886; Gideon Samuel, who was born
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June 1, 1843, and is the immediate subject of this article; Franklin Eddy, born August 21, 1885, married Maria Grimes, and now living in Delaware, Ohio.
Gideon S. Coover, who was born in Twin Township of Ross County seventy-three years ago, has spent practically all his life in Ross County. He received his early education while living on the home farm in Twin Township, but has profited a great deal from practical experience with men and affairs. Before he was twenty-one years of age he enlisted, on May 2, 1864, in Company I of the One Hundred and Forty-ninth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. This was one of the hundred-days regiments and was in the battle at Monocacy, that saved Washington City. This One Hundred and Forty-ninth Regiment was placed on the B. & O. National Pike and was the means of saving the city, as General Grant said in his report, "They saved Washington." He was in the service four months and was mustered out and given his honorable discharge August 30, 1864. While he was in the army he passed his twenty-first birthday, and in the following fall he gave his first vote to the republican candi- date for President, Abraham Lincoln. Since then he has steadfastly supported the republican party in all its campaigns. On November 20, 1866, Mr. Coover married Mary J. Mckenzie. Mrs. Coover was born in Bourneville, Ross County, September 17, 1846. She died April 14, 1898. She was also of a very old and prominent American family, and her children are entitled to membership in the Sons and Daughters of the American Revolution through either their paternal or maternal ancestry. Mrs. Coover's grandfather, Joshua Mckenzie, was a drum- mer in Lieut .- Col. Ludwig Waltner's Maryland-German Regiment in the Revolution. Her father, Eli Mckenzie, was a soldier in the War of 1812 and was also a drummer.
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