USA > Ohio > Champaign County > A centennial biographical history of Champaign county, Ohio > Part 44
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On the 15th of December. 1870, Mr. Zirkle was united in marriage to Effie Groves, who was born in Fairfield county, Ohio, and was there reared and educated. Her parents were also natives of that county. This union has been brightened and blessed with two children .- Alfred C., who was born on the 9th of March, 1872, and is now the junior partner in the mercantile business: and Carry F., at home. In politics Mr. Zirkle is a Democrat, and at all times is true to his duties of citizen- ship. Socially he is a member of the Independent Order of Red Men at Millerstown.
A. H. MIDDLETON.
Numbered among the younger members of the medical profession in Champaign county is Dr. A. H. Middleton, a representative of promi- . hent old pioneer families. His paternal grandfather was a native of the Old Dominion and was of English descent. In a very early day he left his southern home for the Buckeye state, locating first in Brown county and later came to Champaign county, where he was numbered among the carly pioneers. He was a civil engineer by profession, and in connection therewith he also followed the tilling of the soil in this county.
John Middleton, the father of him whose name introduces this re- view, was born in Brown county, Ohio, and when ten years of age he accompanied his parents on their removal to Champaign county, and here his death occurred in 1880. He, too, followed the tilling of the soil. and in his political views was a staneh member of the Republican party, in which he was a prominent and active worker, and for many years served as a justice of the peace. He was also a prominent and worthy member of the Disciple church. and assisted in the erection of the church
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of that denomination at Cable, while in his social relations he held membership with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. His wife bore the maiden name of Mary McCumber. She traced her nativity to the Empire state, but when young she was taken to Pennsylvania, and thence came to Ohio. Her death here occurred in 1897, when she had reached the age of sixty-seven years. Her father, who was of Scotch ciescent, was also one of the early pioneers of Champaign county. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Middleton were born twelve children, nine sons and three daughters, all of whom grew to years of maturity and reared families of their own.
A. 11. Middleton, the eleventh child and eighth son in the above family, was born in Wayne township, Champaign county, Ohio, January 24, 1863, and in the district school of the neighborhood he received his primary education. At the early age of sixteen years he entered the school room as an instructor, and for five years he followed the teacher's profession, and during that time, when nineteen years of age, he also began the study of medicine, under the preceptorship of Dr. H. C. Hous- ton. of Urbana. At the age of twenty-one years he entered the homeo- pathic college of that city, in which institution he was graduated in 1887, and for the following three years he was engaged in the practice of his profession in Cable. In 1890 he removed to Springfield, Ohio, where he was engaged as a medical practitioner until 1896, while for the fol- lowing four years he was stationed at Terre Haute. Champaign county, and since that time he has made his home at Cable and has here built up an extensive and lucrative patronage.
The marriage of Dr. Middleton was celebrated in 1888, when Miss Alice Baker became his wife. She was born in Mad River township. Champaign county, and is a daughter of A. R. and Rebecca ( Weaver ) Baker, prominent early settlers of that township. Mrs. Middleton at- tended the normal school at Urbana for a time, and afterward became
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one of the successful teachers of the county. Unto this union have been born two sons,-Rollin and Harry. The Doctor is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Cable Lodge, No. 395. and of the Junior Order of American Mechanics at Terre Haute, while in polit- ical matters he gives a stanch and unwavering support to Republican principles.
WILLIAM WARD.
In almost all American communities there may be found quiet, re- tiring men, who never ask public office or appear prominent in public affairs, yet, nevertheless, they exert a widely felt influence in the com- munities in which they live and help to construct the proper founda- tion upon which the social and political world is built. Such a man is William Ward, who for many years has been an honored and respected citizen of Champaign county. Back to the Old Dominion must we turn in tracing his lineage. His father, James Ward, was born in that com- monwealth, in Shenandoah county, and he was there reared to years of maturity When a young man he came to Champaign county, Ohio, and after his marriage he located on a farm in Johnson township. where he spent the remainder of his life, dying at the age of seventy-five years. He was a life-long farmer and was identified with the Democratic party. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Mary Clem, was also a native of Virginia, but came with her parents to Champaign county, and here her death occurred at the age of eighty-two years.
William Ward, of this review, was the third in order of birth of his parents' children, and he was born in Johnson township, Champaign county, March 30, 1840. He was reared in the place of his nativity. and received his education in the district schools of Johnson and Adams
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townships. He now owns a valuable farm of three hundred acres, located in those townships, and by industry and good management has brought his land under a high state of cultivation. In all his business trans- actions he has manifested keen discrimination, great energy and strict integrity, and these qualities have insured him prosperity. In the year 1853 occurred the marriage of Mr. Ward and Miss Rebecca Icher, a native of Adams township. Champaign county, and a member of an old and prominent pioneer family of this locality. This marriage has been blessed with nine living children, namely: Rosa, the wife of Valentine Body; Eliza, the wife of Elmer Smith; Ella, the wife of John Frank : Ollie E., the wife of Thomas Prince; Nettie, who married William Barnum ; Lockey, the wife of Clyde Blackford : Caroline, at home: Abra- ham, who married Bertha Cooper ; and William M., also at home. Mr. Ward gives his political support to the Democratic party, and his religious connections are with the United Brethren church, of which he is a worthy and valued member. Mr. and Mrs. Ward are sincerely admired and loved by those who have known them nearly a life time, and in peace and content they are passing the evening of life, surrounded by the comforts and hixuries which are the fruits of their former years of industry and good management.
FRANK A. ZIMMER.
Frank A. Zimmer, who is filling the position of prosecuting attorney in Champaign county, is a young man, but his ability does not seem limited by his years, as he has already won a reputation which many an older practitioner might well envy. He was born in St. Paris, this county. August 1, 1872, and is a son of George and Katherine ( Sutter) Zimmer, both of whom were natives of Baden, Germany. When they
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came to America they first lived in Cincinnati, but afterward removed to this county, taking up their abode in St. Paris, and there the father went into the bakery business, which he followed for many years, con- ducting both a bakery and confectionery business. He then lived in re- tirement to the time of his death. He was a good business man, enter- prising and progressive, and though he began life in limited financial cir- cumstances he steadily worked his way upward until he accumulated a comfortable competence. Mrs. Zimmer had engaged in teaching in the German fatherland and is a well educated lady, who still resides in St. Paris. in their family were six children, namely : Ernest G., a physi- cian of Upland, Indiana ; Mary, the wife of Charles Mitchell, of Spring- field, Ohio; Emanuel R., a dentist in Upland : and Emma and Frederick, who reside in St. Paris with their mother.
The other member of the family is Frank A. Zimmer, who was the fifth in the order of birth. He was reared in St. Paris and in the schools of that town acquired his literary education. Subsequently he was em- ployed for one year in the Phillips Hlouse at Dayton and jater accepted a clerkship in a dry goods establishment at Sidney, Ohio. He after- ward pursued a business course in the commercial college at Springfield, following which he engaged in teaching in the Oak Grove school for one year. Continuing his educational work, he was for five years a teacher in the high school at Urbana, and during that time engaged in the study of law, which he continued in the Ohio State University, completing the course in 1899.
In October of that year Mr. Zimmer was admitted to the bar and formed a partnership with Charles E. Buroker, of St. Paris. They opened a law office in Urbana as well as in St. Paris and Mr. Zimmer still continues in the former. In April, 1890, he was nominated on the Republican ticket for the office of county prosecuting attorney, and
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in the following November was elected for a term of three years, enter- ing upon the duties of the office January 7, 1901.
On the 17th of October, 1901, Mr. Zimmer was joined in wedlock to Miss Nellie W. Grove, a daughter of S. B. Grove. the present auditor of Champaign county. Socially he is connected with the Masonic order, Knights of Pythias fraternity and with the Junior Order of United American Mechanics. He is also secretary of the Ohio State Prosecut- ing AAttorneys Association and in the line of his profession has won dis- tinction and will undobtedly win greater success in the future.
JASON KIZER.
Among the pioneer families of Champaign county was the one of which our subject is a representative. His grandfather, Joseph Kizer,. was born in the Shenandoah valley, Virginia, but as early as 1812 he came to Ohio, locating on the farm on which our subject now resides, and there he spent the remainder of his life and was buried in the old family burying ground on the farm. Hle cleared and partly improved one hundred and sixty acres of land. In the place of his nativity he was united in marriage to Katherine Comer, also a native of the Old Dominion, and they became the parents of eight children, seven sons and a daughter, of whom Charles Kizer, the father of our subject, was the fifth son in order of birth.
The latter was born on the old homestead in Champaign county on the 28th of January, 1818, and there spent his entire life. After his father's death he purchased the interests of the remaining heirs, and as the : ears passed by he succeeded in completing in a large measure the work which his father had begun. In 1839 he married Hannah Ham- back, and she, too, was a native of Champaign county, where she was
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also reared and educated. Her father, Louis Hamback, was born in Berks county, Virginia, and was there married to a Miss Norman, by whom he had five children. This family were also among the early pio- neers of Champaign county. The union of Mr. and Mrs. Kizer was blessed with nine children, as follows: Barbara Kenton; Elizabeth B., deceased : Ellen Blair: Jason ; Mary Ammons ; Lydia, deceased : Harriet Foster: John, deceased ; and George, also deceased. All were born on the old homestead in this county. Mr. Kizer gave his political support to the Democrat party, and religionsly was a member of the Reformed church at Millerstown, he having assisted in the erection of its house of worship there.
Jason Kizer, whose name introduces this review, was also born on the old Kizer homestead in Champaign county, his natal day being April 2. 1845. After his father's death he became the owner of this valuable old farm, on which he has placed many substantial improvements. In 1885 he left the home of his birth and removed to Miami county, this state, where he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of improved land, on which he made his home for twelve years. He then returned to the old farm in Champaign county. On the 22d of April. 1869, he was united in marriage to Ellen MeMorran, a native of Johnson township, this county, and a daughter of Christian and Sarah ( Loudenbach ) Mc- Morran, prominent early settlers of Champaign county. Four children have blessed this marriage,-Asa C., Charles C., Wilber C. and David I., but the first born is now deceased. The Democratic party receives Mr. Kizer's active support and co-operation, and while residing in Miami county he served as a school director for six years. In his social rela- tions he is a member of the Grange. The family hold membership in the Keformed church. They enjoy the hospitality of many of the best homes of Champaign county, and their circle of friends is almost co-extensive with their circle of acquaintances.
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R. H. PICKERING.
The deserved reward of a well spent life is an honored retirement from business, in which to enjoy the fruits of former toil. To-day, after a useful and beneficial career, Mr. Pickering is quietly living at his pleas- ant home in Rosewood, surrounded by the comfort that earnest labor has brought him. He is a prominent citizen of the community and has borne his part in the upbuilding and development of Adams township. .Mr. Pickering was born in Rockingham county, Virginia, December 7, 1824. His paternal grandfather. William Pickering, was born in the land of the shamrock, but when a young man he crossed the Atlantic to America and took up his abode in Rockingham county. Virginia. He was there married to a Miss Woodley, and in the Old Dominion he spent the remainder of his life. William Pickering, the father of our subject, was born and reared in that commonwealth, and in 1839 he came 10 Adams township, Champaign county, Ohio. For a companion on the journey of life he chose Martha Cowen, also a native of Rockingham county, Virginia, and a daughter of Henry Cowen, who was supposed to be of German birth. Mr. and Mrs. Pickering became the parents of six children, all of whom grew to years of maturity and were married.
R. H. Pickering, the only living representative of this once large family, was about twelve years of age when he accompanied his parents on their removal to Adams township, Champaign county, and in its primitive schools of that day he received the educational advantages which he was permitted to enjoy in his youth. At the age of twenty-one years he began working for wages, and for the following seven years he was engaged in the work of constructing pike roads and in clearing land. On the expiration of that period he had saved sufficient means to purchase a quarter section of land in Adams township, which he cleared and improved, and as the years have passed by he has added to his orig-
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inal purchase until he is now the owner of two hundred and eighty acres of rich and productive land. His life is indeed a success, but all his achievements are the result of patient effort, unflagging industry and perseverance. In 1899 he retired from the farm and in now spending his time in ease and quiet at his pleasant home in Rosewood, surrounded by the comforts and many of the luxuries of life.
In the year 1862 Mr. Pickering was united in marriage to Miss Sarah Jane Archer, a native of Logan county, Ohio, of which locality her paternal grandfather was one of the first settlers. She is a daughter of John and Elizabeth ( Scraway) Archer, the latter a native of Indiana. They became the parents of twelve children, Mrs. Pickering being the eighth in order of birth. The marriage of our subject and wife has been blessed with one son, Byron, who now carries on the work of the old Pickering homestead. The character and position of our subject illustrate most clearly the fact that if a young man be possessed of the proper attributes of mind and heart he can unaided attain to a position of precedence and gain for himself a place among the men of ability and worth in his community.
HON. CLARENCE B. HEISERMAN.
No compendium such as the province of this work defines in its essential limitations will serve to offer fit memorial to the life and accom- plishments of the honored subject of this sketch, -- a man remarkable in the breadth of bis wisdom, in his indomitable perseverance, his strong individuality, and yet one whose entire life has not one esoteric phase. being an open scroll. inviting the closest scrutiny. True, his have been "massive deeds and great" in one sense, and yet his entire life accom- plishment but represents the result of the fit utilization of the innate talent
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which is his, and the directing of his efforts in these lines where mature judgment and rare discrimination lead the way. There is in Judge Heiserman a weight of character, a native sagacity, a far-seeing judg- ment and a fidelity of purpose that commands the respect of all. . 1 man of indefatigable enterprise and fertility of resource, he has carved his name deeply on the record of the political, commercial and profes- sional history of the state, which owes much of its advancement to his efforts.
llon. Clarence Benjamin Heiserman is a native of Urbana, Ohio, born September 18, 1862, his parents being . Aaron and Maria L. ( Stuart ) Heiserman, the former of German and the latter of Scotch descent. The father was born in Mahoning county, Ohio, a son of Goetlebb Heiser- man, who came from Germany to America accompanied by his wife and several children. He took up his abode in Mahoning county near New Lisbon, in 1825, and five years later removed to Crawford county, Ohio, where he purchased a farm, residing thereon until 1865. In that year he removed to lowa, where he remained until his death.
Aaron Heiserman was the youngest of his parents' children and the only one of them born in America. He lived with his parents on the home farm until he reached his majority and in the meantime learned the carriage making trade. When he started out in life on his own ac- count he began working at that trade, and in 1858 secured a position in that line in Urbana. A few years later he became proprietor of a car- riage manufactory and built up a large business. He was rapidly ac- cumulating wealth when about 1879 a disastrous fire occurred and de- stroyed his factory and stock, which being uninsured largely crippled him financially. However, he possessed much energy and determination and his activity was not slackened. After the fire, however, his time and attention were devoted to another pursuit, that of contracting and build- ing, in which he met with a fair degree of success. carrying on opera-
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tions along that line of business until 1893. He was esteemed for his many excellent traits of character and honored for his genuine worth. In politics he was a Republican and he lived a consistent Christian life, as a member of the Methodist church. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Maria L. Stuart, was born in Urbana in 1838, a daughter of Isaac and Catherine ( Dickey ) Stuart, the former a native of New York and the latter of Pennsylvania. ller father was an early settler of Champaign county, where he took up his abode in 1838 and here in Ur- bana he operated a woolen mill for several years. In 1866 he removed to Indiana, where he spent his remaining days. His ancestors had come to America during the colonial epoch in our country's history and settled in Massachusetts, while later they removed to Saratoga Springs, New York. The grandfather of Mrs. Heiserman served in the war of 1812. Mrs. Heiserman still survives her husband and is yet residing in the city of her birth. By her marriage she became the mother of five chil- dren, one of whom died at the age of six years. The living are: Clar- ence B .. of this review: Edgar Stuart, a merchant of Springfield, Ohio; Mary Bertha, a teacher in the public schools of Urbana ; and Ralph L., a student. The mother is a member of the First Methodist Episcopal church of Urbana and her many sterling qualities of heart and mind have endeared her to a large circle of friends.
Clarence B. Heiserman was born and reared in the city which he yet makes his home, and in the public schools here acquired his early educa- tion, being graduated in the high school in 1879 when seventeen years of age. In the fall of 1880 he entered the Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware and was graduated from that institution in 1884. after com- pleting the full college course. He won the degree of Bachelor of Arts. and spent the two succeeding years as a teacher in the high school of Urbana, during which time he devoted his leisure hours to the reading of law under the direction of the Hon. George M. Eichelberger, one of
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the ablest lawyers of the Chio bar. He resigned his position as a teacher in order to enter the law office of Mr. Eichelberger and for one year gave his entire time to the mastery of the principles of jurisprudence. Passing a successful examination before the supreme court at Columbus, he was admitted to the bar in December, 1887, and at once began practice alone- in his native city, although for a year his office was in connection with that of his former preceptor. Later he entered into partnership with the Hon. E. E. Cheney. In 1889 Mr. Ileiserman was elected as the Repub- lican candidate to the office of prosecuting attorney of Champaign county and discharged his duties so successfully that he was re-elected in 1892. His excellent service in the office was appreciated by the people and enlarged the boundaries of his usefulness, so that in 1894 he was called by popular suffrage of the people to preside in the court of common pleas for the second subdivision of the second judicial district, to which posi- tion he was elected in November of that year. He then resigned the office of prosecuting attorney to accept the new position, his incumbency continuing for five years. He was one of the youngest men ever chosen to the office of common pleas judge in Ohio, but being a careful student of the law and well grounded in its fundamental principles he discharged his duties with notable capability, and to the satisfaction of the public. as was manifest in his re-election in 1899 for a second term. . After two years had passed he resigned on the 5th of September, 1901, having three more years to serve. Ile left the office, however, to accept the position of solicitor for the Pennsylvania railroad lines west of Pittsburg of the sixth division, -- a position made vacant by the death of the Hon. Frank Chance. In connection with his duties in this regard Judge Heiserman resumed the general practice of law. During the years of his professional career he has gained a most excellent reputation. both at the bar and on the bench, and in every position which he has been called upon to fill he has served with marked credit and ability. He is a man
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of judicial cast. His decisions indicated strong mentality, careful analy- sis, a thorough knowledge of law and an unbiased judgment. The judge on the bench fails more frequently, perhaps, from a deficiency in that broad-mindedness which not only comprehends the details of a situation quickly, but that insures a complete self-control under even the most exasperating conditions, than from any other cause: and the judge who makes a success in the discharge of his multitudinous delicate duties is a man of well-rounded character. finely-balanced mind and of splendid intellectual attainments. That Judge Heiserman was regarded as such a jurist is a uniformly accepted fact.
In October, 1890, Judge Heiserman was married to Miss Lillian M. Brown, of South Charleston, Ohio, and their home is brightened by the presence of a little son, Robert Brown. now four years of age. The parents hold membership in the First Methodist Episcopal church, and the Judge is serving as a member of the official board and has been superin- tendent of the Sunday-school for the past six years, taking a very active part in all branches of the church work. Fraternally he is connected with Champaign Lodge, No. 525. F. & A. M., and Urbana Chapter. No. 34. R. A. M. Politically he has ever maintained an unflagging interest in the welfare of the Republican party and socially he is one of the most companionable of men ; is unassuming and courteous in manner : is a good conversationalist, and equally as good a listener.
MARTIN B. SANBE.
Among those who have honored Champaign county by efficient service in important public office is the subject of this sketch, who was formerly incumbent of the office of sheriff and who is a member of
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