USA > Ohio > Hancock County > A centennial biographical history of Hancock County, Ohio > Part 14
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FRANKLIN WISE.
The Wise family has been identified with Hancock county affairs for sixty years, and during that time its members have figured creditably and conspicuously in various walks of life. The founders of the Ohio branch of this surname were Benjamin and Lydia (Opp) Wise, who came to Hancock county in 1842 and located in Marion township, on a farm of one hundred and sixty acres. This land was cultivated by such effective methods as to bring its owner a comfortable competence and eventually he rose to a position of influence in his community. This was manifested by his election at various times to township offices, including that of assessor, which he held for several terms. The eight of his eleven children
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now living are: Fannie, Vine, Benjamin J., Mary, Sarah, Lydia, Franklin and Dickson, those deceased being Isabelle, Israel and Jane. The mother of this family died in March, 1885, and the father in 1890.
Franklin Wise, next to the youngest of his father's surviving children, was born on the family homestead in Hancock county, Ohio, in 1851, and was reared and educated in Marion township. In 1872, as soon as he had reached his majority, he bought forty acres of land in Big Lick township, but soon disposed of this and purchased another farm in the same locality. In 1885 he bought a tract of fifty-six acres in Amanda township, which was disposed of in 1892 and the proceeds invested in the farm of one hundred and two acres which constitutes his present homestead. It is good land and Mr. Wise, by devoting it to general farming and cultivating as well as managing with care, has met with that success which usually awaits the patient husband- man.
In 1875 he was united in marriage with Miss Harriet, a daughter of James and Mary (Morehart) Van Horn, whose birth occurred in Amanda township in 1852. This union, which has proved in every way congenial and happy, has resulted in the birth of six children, whose names thus appear in the family register: Ella, Maud, Carrie, Charles, Walter, deceased, and Fern. Benjamin J., an elder brother of Mr. Wise, is a well known man in Hancock county, having for thirty-five years been a minister of the gospel in the United Brethren church.
GEORGE W. ROLLER.
The gentleman whose name we here present is a farmer residing in Big Lick township on a farm of one hundred and twenty acres. This farm land he devotes to general farming. He was born in Big Lick township, August 26, 1858, the son of Michael and Elizabeth (Swindler) Roller. His life has been passed in the township, it being the uneventful one of those who live in the country engaged in agricultural pursuits. His whole life and attention have been given to that vocation, in which he has been pre-eminently successful. Since 1883 he has been residing on his present farm, on which are in opera- tion eight producing oil wells. Mr. Roller has always been interested in the public life and utilities of the township and has been honored a number of times by election as township trustee, an office which he has filled with great satisfaction to his constituency. February 17, 1881, Mr. Roller married Miss Jennie, the daughter of George and Melissa (Jally) Vickers, and the chil- dren by this union are an interesting group, consisting of Harley, born Jan-
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uary 15, 1882 ; Lodema, March 27, 1884; Otas, March 21, 1887; Clark, Feb- uary 10, 1893, and now deceased ; and Willis, July 5, 1896. The mother of this family is also a native of the county, born in Cass township, December 22, 1861. His father, Michael Roller, was a native of the Buckeye state, born in Columbiana county, March 3, 1822. His mother, Elizabeth, was born in Jefferson county, Ohio. Michael Roller was a practical farmer, whose life in the community was above reproach, and whose friends were numerous. He was honored with office many times, filling acceptably vari- ous positions in the township. His family numbered eight children : Sara, William, Mary, Filena, George W., Ida, Henry and Lorena. He died August 13, 1886, aged sixty-four years, and his wife departed this life May 8, 1902, at the age of seventy-seven. The paternal grandparents of our subject were William and Charlotte Roller, of Quaker faith, of Democratic affinities and of Pennsylvania Dutch descent. They with their eight children came to this county in 1834 and located in Big Lick township, where William entered a quarter section of land from the government. Their children took up the burden of life as they came of age, and have been useful members of society in Hancock county and have done their share in making it what it is to-day, one of the finest sections of the great state of Ohio. The Vickers family, into which Mr. Roller married, was of English extraction and prominent people in this county from a very early day. They were Methodists in faith and the history of Methodism in Hancock county cannot be written without mention of their services. A more extended history of this family will be found elsewhere in this volume.
Mr. George W. Roller is a worthy and honored resident of this county, where he is held in high esteem for his many good qualities and excellencies of heart and mind.
BENJAMIN KISTLER, SR.
This well known and most industrious citizen is a resident of Marion township, where he conducts most successfully one of the best farms in Han- cock county. He is a native of Fairfield county, Ohio, where, on January 30, 1817, he first opened his eyes to the light. His education was of very limited nature because of his environment, and the age in which he was born, things entirely beyond his control, but endowed by nature with a strong constitution and a will which brought things to pass in his favor, he became permanently successful as a farmer. His parents were Benjamin and Elizabeth Kistler, one of the oldest and most respected families in Fairfield county,
MR. AND MRS. BENJAMIN KISTLER PIONEERS OF HANCOCK COUNTY.
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where the former owned and operated a flouring mill and a saw mill. He removed to the Buckeye state seven years previous to the date of our sub- ject's birth, where he died in 1822.
The gentleman whose name heads this paragraph is a self-made man in the truest sense of the word. It is well to remark that the history of a state as well as that of a nation is chiefly the chronicle of the life and deeds of those who have conferred honor and dignity on society. The world judges the character and deeds of a community by its representative citizens, and yields its tributes of admiration and respect for the genius, learning and vir- tues of those whose works and actions constitute the record of a state's pros- perity and pride; and it is by their character as exemplified in benevolence and kindly virtues in the affairs of life, that we are afforded worthy examples for emulation and valuable lessons of incentive. To a student of biography, there is nothing more interesting than to examine the life history of a self- made man, and to detect the elements of character which have enabled him to pass on the highway of life many of the companions of his youth, who at the outset of their career were more advantageously equipped or endowed. The subject of this review has through his own exertions attained an honora- ble position among the citizens of Hancock county, and it may be said truth- fully that he is the architect of his own fortunes, and one whose success amply justifies the application of the somewhat hackeyed, but most express- ive title, a self-made man.
Returning from this digression to the consideration of the biography of Mr. Kistler, he removed from Pickaway county in February of 1841, and succeeded in accumulating two hundred and forty acres of valuable land. on some of which he now resides in his old age. His farming has been of a general character, and owing to the scientific manner in which he has con- ducted it, has been profitable in the extreme. Mr. Kistler is now living a retired life, having done what many thoughtful man may well ponder upon, by dividing his land among his sons before his death in order to save law- yers' fees. December 3, 1840, he was married to Sarah Searfuss, by whom he had seven children : David, Henry, Benjamin, Jr., Clarinda J., John and William, besides a deceased child. The mother of this family was born in Pickaway county, Ohio, in 1819, and is still a woman of robust health and excellent spirits. During his lifetime, Mr. Kistler has performed his full share of the duties devolving on township officers, but he is by no means a politician. They are both members and active workers in the Lutheran church, and have the respect and friendship in their old age of a large circle of acquaintances in Hancock and adjoining counties. Our subject's grand-
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father, Henry, with two brothers, emigrated from Germany in the seven- teenth century and settled in a valley in Pennsylvania, which was called Kistler valley, and is known as such to this day. Henry's wife also came to this country at the age of sixteen, was married in Kistler valley to Henry, and their descendants have all been honest and prosperous and mostly men- bers of the Lutheran church.
DAVID W. SAUSSER.
The families of Sausser and Hemry, which subsequently intermarried, were among the earliest of the Hancock county pioneers. The first arrivals came when most of the land was wild, but little progress made toward im- provement of any kind and government itself in a chaotic state. The story of how all this was changed in a few decades to the present garden spot need not be repeated here, but it is proper to say that the descendants of the fam- ilies mentioned above bore their full share of the work in bringing the county to the front. Isaac Sausser, who may properly be called the immigrant founder came from Pennsylvania during the first quarter of the nineteenth century and entered eighty acres of land in Jackson township. Shortly after his arrival he was married to Elizabeth Hemry, whose parents had moved in some years before from Harrison county, Ohio, where she was born. On the homestead thus established this couple went to housekeeping and there shared together the joys and sorrows of more than half a century. They were members of the Church of Christ and of quiet, unassuming lives, devoted to their children and thoughtful in the discharge of all social duties. Isaac was a hatter by trade and did considerable work in this line in connec- tion with his regular business of farming. Altogether he prospered fairly well, and at the end had something to show as the result of his long and indus- trious life. He closed his earthly career in 1892, and his faithful companion, after surviving him seven years, passed away in 1899. Of their six children four are still living and named as follows: John D., Jesse, Sarah and David W.
David W. Sausser, youngest of the surviving children, was born on the old homestead in Jackson township, Hancock county, June 25, 1838. As he grew up he was trained to farm work, and this was in line with the business he has always followed since reaching maturity. His first venture as a land owner was made when he bought a tract of forty acres in his native town- ship, but after working this three years he disposed of it in 1874 and pur- chased his present holding of seventy-three acres. At the time he took pos-
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session this was virgin soil, wholly unimproved, but Mr. Sausser has brought it out greatly. By the necessary fencing and outbuilding, clearing, grubbing and road making, but above all by scientific cultivation, such as soil renovation and crop rotation, he has made his farm one of the finest of its size in the county.
In 1865 Mr. Sausser was married to Sarah, daughter of John and Eliza Snider, well known citizens of Amanda township, and of their ten children the following named nine are living: Zella, Etta, Viola, Abbie, Louie, J. F., W. E., B. L. and Dail. The family are members of the United Brethren church, and Mr. Sausser's connection with public affairs has been confined to holding the office of constable for three years, justice of the peace the same length of time and assessor one term. He is also a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, which honor he earned by service in Company A, Forty-seventh Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, during the Civil war. He went through the great Georgia campaign in 1864, assisted in the capture of Fort McAlister and received an honorable discharge at the close of hos- tilities.
HERMON T. SHULL.
The Shull family have been connected with Hancock county affairs since 1846, and have done their full share toward helping along the general de- velopment. Almost without exception the men have been farmers for gen- erations back and they have ranked with the industrious and progressive ele- ment of the agricultural class. They have figured also in the educational and other public interests of their township and in these as well as other matters have always been regarded as substantial and reliable citizens. Benjamin Shull, a native of Fairfield county, was the founder of the Hancock county branch of his family name. He married Christena Kitsmiller, of Franklin county, and removed in 1846 to Hancock county, where they established a homestead in what is now Amanda township. Eighty acres of virgin soil were purchased, the usual log cabin erected and the hard work of clearing begun without further delay. In due time this became a fertile farm and the hospitable home where all the rising generation of Shulls were reared and eventually sent out into the world to make their own living. They had the advantage of excellent parents, their father being an estimable man, who took much interest in educational matters and rose to a position of influence in his township. He retired from active business in 1887, lost his wife by death in 1892 and ended his own earthly career September 15, 1902, on his eighty- seventh birthday. This excellent couple were of religious inclinations and for many years zealous members of the United Brethren church, in which
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the father served as class leader and trustee. They reared a family of six children, whose names are thus recorded in the family register: John H., Mary A., William C., Harmon T., Sylvanus and Isaac L.
Harmon T. Shull, who comes third in this list, was born on his father's farm, in Amanda township, Hancock county, Ohio, August 6, 1849, and grew to maturity on the family homestead. He had the benefit of a good education, received in the schools of the district and those of Mount Blanch- ard and Findlay. His first business venture was in the school room, and he taught for several years both before and after his marriage. This, however, was only intended as a kind of preparatory discipline, as it was always his intention to follow the hereditary vocation of farming, and this he entered upon in earnest when about twenty-five years old. His first purchase of real estate was made in 1874, and consisted of fifty-five acres, which he culti- vated six years and then purchased another tract of seventy-eight acres. This also was disposed of, in 1882, when Mr. Shull bought his present homestead in Amanda township, consisting of one hundred and seventy-two acres. Since settling here he has greatly improved the place by building, repairing and sci- entific methods of cultivation. He does not attempt anything "fancy," but contents himself with general farming and the breeding of standard stock for the market, by which plan he has steadily forged ahead and become both a progressive and prosperous farmer.
In 1870 Mr. Shull was united in marriage with Miss Mary E., daugh- ter of John and Eliza Snider, of Amanda township, and of their four chil- dren the only ones living are: Lorin V. and Ray G. The family are mem- bers of the United Brethren church and the political predilections of Mr. Shull are with the Republican party. He has held the office of school director, and is at present serving as trustee of the township.
JOHN W. SWAB.
John W. Swab, of Marion township, is a gentleman worthy of mention in a work which purports. as does this one, to record the principal points in the biographical records of the prominent citizens of Hancock county. He is the proprietor of what is known as the East Findlay Dairy Farm, which is situated on Blanchard's river, three miles east of Findlay as the crow flies. This farm contains one hundred and forty-three acres of possibly the most productive land in Hancock county, being excellently watered by the Blanch- ard river, and having been personally conducted by a gentleman of the agri- cultural taste and ability of Mr. Swab, its value has been greatly increased.
Emma E Swab
I w Swal
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Mr. Swab is an extensive dairyman and a breeder of fancy stock, his herd. at the present time consisting of sixty-eight head. About half of these are the Dutch Belted breed, which is prolific as well as rich in quality. His barns are commodious and of the most modern construction, and he has in his buildings every machine and device of modern construction that is known to the dairy business. The breed of cattle known as the Belted Breed are superior animals and always brings top market prices. They combine beauty of form and utility of product in the highest degree. In constitution they are exceedingly strong and hearty, their beef is tender and easy to accumulate, and their disposition mild. Their milk is superior in flow and quality, all things considered, to any other breed of cattle. These superior qualities awarded them the highest prize at the Columbian Exposition in 1893. Mr. Swab handles daily on an average from thirty-nine cows about six hundred pounds of milk. He is not only a practical dairyman, but a most scientific farmer. Everything about his premises evidences the touch of this master hand. His home is heated and lighted free from the natural gas flowing from his own farm, on which there are three gas wells.
Mr. Swab was born in Washington county, Pennsylvania, in 1853, and when a lad of but ten years removed with his parents to Ohio, where he has spent the subsequent part of his life. His education was of the variety and extent that could be secured in the country school, but being of an inquiring and docile disposition he has all along during life supplemented this by a practical education, without which the best school education is at fault. He began his married life in 1879, when he chose Emma E. Walter to preside over his home. To this happy union there have been three children born: Nettie, Frank and Julia. The parents of Mr. Swab were Solomon and Catherine (Galloway) Swab, both of whom were natives of the Keystone state, and who removed from Washington county in that state to Ohio in 1863. Solonion Swab has been a man of very great activity and is still well preserved at the age of eighty-seven years. In religious faith, Mr. Swab is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and enters into all the public life of his immediate part of the county with willingness and zest. Our subject's grandfather crossed the Rhine in the eighteenth century from Hol- land and located in Pennsylvania.
Emma E. Walter was the daughter of David and Amanda Walter, both born in Pennsylvania. The former, who has been a successful farmer, now resides with his children at the age of eighty-one. The mother, Amanda, died in 1900 at the age of sixty-eight. Her parents, Henry and Mary Bear, were of old Virginia stock.
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SOLOMON N. ROBERTS.
This name has long been a familiar one in Hancock county, and its representatives, commencing in pioneer days, have at every period since their settlement been influential in connection with the general development. David and Fannie Roberts, whose births occurred in Fairfield county, Ohio, about the closing of the first decade of the nineteenth century, came shortly after their marriage to Hancock county, where they located on forty acres of land in Big Lick township. The warrant for this land was signed by no less a person than General Andrew Jackson, better known as "Old Hickory," who was then serving his second term as President. As times prospered with the newcomers they saved money and eventually added to their original little farm one hundred and twenty acres more. David Roberts, besides being a good fariner, was a pious Christian and a man of most exemplary life. He was a leading elder and trustee of the Christian Union church and donated the land on which the local building of that denomination was constructed. His influence for good in his community was great and his active benevolence, constantly exerted where it would do the most good, made David Roberts a useful and indeed a model citizen. A good neighbor, a progressive farmer and a friend of every worthy cause, he enjoyed and well deserved an esteem and consideration which is seldom bestowed upon a private citizen. The long and blameless life of this worthy man terminated in 1887, when he was sev- enty-seven years old, he being born in 1810. By two marriages Mr. Roberts had twelve children, nine by the first and three by the second, of whom eleven grew to maturity, seven are still living, and four of these are residents of Hancock county. David Roberts's second wife was Mary (Plummer) Rick- ets, a widow, and only one of her children survives. David J. died in Febru- ary, 1890. Our subject's mother died when he was four years old, and six of her children survive her.
Solomon N. Roberts, the subject of this sketch, was the son of David and Fannie Roberts, and his birth occurred in Hancock county, Ohio, April 14, 1852. He was brought up on the paternal homestead in Big Lick town- ship and went through the usual experiences of farmers' boys, attending school in winter and working on the farm in summer. He inherited some land from the estate of his father after the latter's death and to this he added one hun- dred acres, which constitute his present holdings in Big Lick township. His whole life has been devoted to agricultural pursuits and his farm, consisting now of one hundred and thirty acres, has been well cultivated. As a general all-around farmer he ranks among the first in his community, his ideas being
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progressive and his methods up-to-date. Personally he is quite popular with his fellow citizens, who elected him township assessor, and like his father his life has been moral and upright. April 10, 1873, Mr. Robert was united in marriage with Miss Susan D. Swihart, member of one of the old and strongly established families of the county. Her parents, Aaron and Chris- tina D. Swihart, came to Hancock when it was still little more than a primi- tive wilderness, and they bore their full share of the burdens incident to pioneer life. Aaron Swihart, who died in August, 1893, aged seventy-seven years, was a man of greath worth and most excellent character, whose vigor- ous mind and enterprising disposition overcame all difficulties and enabled him to accumulate a fine body of land, ornamented with a handsome brick residence, in which his widow still resides. The latter was born in Wurtem- berg, Germany, and was one year old when brought to this country. The union of Solomon N. and Susan (Swihart) Roberts proved congenial and fruitful, and eleven of their thirteen children are still living, named as fol- lows in order of birth: Rosetta M., born September 22, 1876; Elma L., born August 26, 1878; Lucy A., born January 19, 1880; David J., born May 2, 1882; Alton D., born April 1, 1884; Bertha L., born March 13, 1886; Cora D., born June 28, 1887; Edna L., born January 12, 1890; Aaron J., born May IO, 1892; Nellie S., born May 13, 1896; and Lola D., born September 16, 1898. The oldest child, Christina L., was born May 21, 1875, and died Sep- tember 19, 1875. Charles C., the eleventh child, was born June 25, 1894, and died April 22, 1897. Mrs. Roberts, who was born on her father's farm in Big Lick township, March 20, 1856, has proved a most affectionate companion as well as wise adviser of her husband and is fairly idolized by her children. They are strict members of the Christian Union church, in which Mr. Rob- erts has held the position of first elder and is trustee at the present time. George Swihart, the grandfather of Mrs. Roberts, who was a farmer and blacksmith, died at an advanced age.
ANDREW HARTMAN.
Among the contributions from Pennsylvania to the citizenship of east- ern Ohio was the family of Hartmans, who have done their full share since arriving in Hancock county as members of the business community. Philip Hartman was born in Pennsylvania in the first half of the nineteenth cen- tury and came to Hancock county, Ohio, about the year 1842. He located on a farm in Jackson township and spent the remainder of his life in the peaceful pursuits of agriculture and gaining the esteem of all his neighbors
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