USA > Ohio > Hancock County > A centennial biographical history of Hancock County, Ohio > Part 59
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62
SORELY LARKINS.
Sorely Larkins, a resident farmer of Allen township, owning and op- erating a farm of eighty acres of valuable land, was born in Findlay in 1861. He is the son of John and Elizabeth (Meyers) Larkins, the former a na- tive of Tuscarawas county, Ohio, and the latter of Switzerland. John Larkins came to this county in 1843, located in Findlay and pursued his trade
556
CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY
as a stone cutter in partnership with his brother Samuel, under the firm name of Larkins Brothers. John was a veteran of the Civil war and proved himself equal to the emergency as a member of Company I, One Hundred and Ninety-second Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, being honorably discharged at the close of hostilities. He served as trustee of Findlay town- ship and was a member of the Knights of Honor. In 1894 he purchased forty acres of the farm upon which Sorely, his son, now lives, and to which the latter added forty more acres. His family numbered five children, of whom Sorely is the only survivor. John Larkins died October 26, 1900, and his wife's death occurred October 18, 1886.
Our subject was reared and educated in Findlay, and in early life be- gan the career of a farmer, which vocation he has followed with success up to the present time. August 21, 1884, he was united in marriage to Miss Ella, daughter of Ganett and Mary Harkness, who was born in Allen town- ship, Hancock county, Ohio, October 13, 1860. No children have been born to this union. In 1894 Mr. and Mrs. Larkins removed to their present home, where he enjoys the full confidence of his fellow citizens. He is a young man full of promise, and his future looks remarkably bright.
JACOB BOWERS.
A prominent family which has had connection with Hancock county for seven decades is represented by the above named gentleman, who resides in Big Lick township on a farm of seventy-seven acres. His parents removed to Ohio from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, of which they were both natives. His father's name was Samuel Bowers, his mother's maiden name being Mary Rangler. Their respective families had removed to Ohio and located in Stark county, where they were married and in 1836 settled in Hancock county on one hundred and twenty acres of land which Jacob Bowers, the father, had previously entered. This original farm was improved, and in 1860 the farm which is now the property of his son Jacob was purchased. Samuel Bowers was one of those easy-going men of large heart, whose word could be relied upon at all times. He and his wife were consistent ment- bers of the Dunkard church to the time of their deaths, that of the father occurring in 1895 and of the mother two years later. They reared a family of eleven children, eight of whom are now living.
Jacob Bowers, the immediate subject of this sketch, was born in Big Lick township, Hancock county, Ohio, in 1841. He passed through the uneventful experience of a country boy, while laying the foundation of a.
557
CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY
character which has been revered among his associates for its many excellen- cies during his lifetime. He chose agriculture as his occupation, and has been engaged in it during the whole of his adult life, owning his present farm since 1876. Mr. Bowers has been twice married. His first marriage was to Miss Sara Shubert and occurred in 1866. She was born in Seneca county, Ohio, and died in 1884, after becoming the mother of three children : Augusta M .; J. W., deceased; and Alma S. The following year Mr. Bowers married Miss Lydia Stecker, a union which was followed by no issue. Mr. and Mrs. Bowers are consistent members of the United Brethren church. John W. Bowers, the second child by the first marriage, was a young man of great promise, having been educated for the life of a teacher, and at the time of his death was regarded as a very successful member of that profession in Hancock county. He was exceedingly active in the work of the church, of which he was a most worthy member, and his death cast a gloom over a large circle of friends and acquaintances in Hancock county. Mr. Bowers has a large circle of friends, having many qualities which commend him to the good will and high regard of those with whom he is associated. For more than seventy years his family has been identified with Hancock county, and its members have ever been active in supporting measures which prom- ised to contribute to the substantial upbuilding and material development of the county or state.
E. W. HALE.
The descendants of pioneers in Ohio are among the leading citizens of to-day in every walk of life, and this is especially true of the sons of farm- ers, themselves pioneers in all but actual proprietorship of the land, who helped to clear primitive farms and put them under cultivation, and who, coming to the state in boyhood, or even younger, have witnessed the whole process of development from the day of small but significant things to the fruition of efforts which characterizes the state as one of the foremost in the Union at this time. Such a citizen is Mr. E. W. Hale, some account of whose interesting antecedents and worthy achievements will now be at- tempted.
The grandfather of our subject was Randal Hale, one of the pioneers of Hancock county. He was a native of Baltimore, Maryland, and there he married Ann Taylor, also a native of that city, and a full cousin to Presi- dent Zachary Taylor. The Taylors were wealthy planters of Maryland and owned a number of slaves, some of which were inherited by our sub-
558
CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY
ject's grandmother, who, when she reached her majority, gave them their freedom, an event which in that day created very great interest and brought down upon her the criticism of the slave-holding element. Randal Hale and his wife were married in Baltimore, and removed to Jefferson county, Ohio, about 1796, where they reared a family of eight children, all of whom grew to inaturity. In that county Randal Hale owned one hundred and sixty acres of land, but, foreseeing the need of provision for his large family while there was plenty of new land in the state, he in 1832 removed to Seneca county, locating for a short time in what is now Fostoria. He remained there, however, but a short period, when he removed to Hancock county, where he entered eight quarter sections of land, one for each of his children, and of these four were in Washington township and two across the line in Wood county. Randal Hale was a blacksmith by trade, and an excellent mechanic in his day. He was a man of temperate habits, and opposed to the use of intoxicating drink. He was a kind husband, a loyal citizen and loving father. During his life he was a member with his wife of the Meth- odist Episcopal church, and they were instrumental in that early day in graft- ing Methodism well into the institutions and society of the county. In politi- cal affiliations he was a supporter of the Whig party. His death occurred in 1849, that of the wife five years later. The sons succeeded the father and became useful citizens of Hancock county. One of these sons was Isaac T., father of the gentleman whose name heads this paragraph, who was born in Jefferson county, Ohio, in 1820. He followed agricultural pursuits and was counted a man well versed in the farming industry. He was a man of truth and uprightness, and left his impress on the social life of the com- munity for good. He was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. He married Miss Alpha, daughter of Elijah McRill, in 1841, and to them were born a family of eight children, four of whom still survive: E. W., R. B., M. E. and Eliza. The mother of the family died May 27, 1884, and Isaac T. departed this life June 10, 1901.
E. W. Hale was born in Washington township, on the farm which he now operates, the date being April 8, 1853. He was reared and educated in his native township, receiving an excellent elementary education. After he left school he turned his attention to agricultural pursuits, and with the exception of seven years spent in the manufacture of tile he has confined himself to farming. He is now operating the old homestead of one hundred and fifty-five acres of choice land. Upon this farm his father caused to be built a large and commodious brick house in 1875. The other buildings were erected by him also, all of them constituting very handsome improvements.
559
CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY
The marriage of Mr. E. W. Hale occurred in 1882, the lady being Miss Laura Boyles, a native of West Virginia. Two children were born, Allie and J. Hale. Mr. and Mrs. Hale are active members of the Methodist Episcopal church, and are held in the highest esteem by the citizens of the county among whom they reside.
Russell B. Hale, a deceased son of Isaac T. Hale, had a notable war rec- ord. On the breaking out of the Civil war he enlisted in Company H, Forty-ninth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Army of the Potomac. He was chosen color bearer on account of his great height, six feet six inches. In this position he gallantly bore Old Glory until his health broke down in 1862, and he was sent to the hospital for treatment. Here he was very im- properly cared for, and was in danger of losing his life, when he was finally discharged and returned home, where he was nursed back to health by his family. He re-enlisted in the Eighty-sixth Ohio Volunteer Infantry in 1863, in which command he served eleven months, when he was honorably discharged. Again taking up the cause of the old flag, he re-enlisted, this time in his old regiment, in which organization he served until the close of the war, again being honorably discharged. His decease occurred in 1868.
A. H. CLYMER, SR.
A. H. Clymer, Sr., is a representative of honored pioneers of this great commonwealth, and he has won for himself a prominent place among thie leading horticulturists of Hancock county. He is a native son of Union township, this county, where his birth occurred on the Ist of January, 1866. His paternal grandparents, Francis and Susan Clymer, removed from Fair- field county, Ohio, to Union township in 1834, where the father entered from the government one hundred and sixty acres of timber land, and this he cleared and improved and subsequently added to until his landed possess- ions were quite extensive. He afterward, however, divided his property among his children. C. F. Clymer, a son of this worthy old pioneer couple, and the father of our subject, was born in Fairfield county, Ohio, and he, too, followed the tilling of the soil as a life occupation. By his marriage to Mary M. Sigefuss, a native of Franklin county, Ohio, he became the father of five children, three of whom are now living, but our subject is the only representative of the family in Hancock county. C. F. Clymer was called to his final rest in 1878, but he is still survived by his widow.
A. H. Clymer, Sr., of this review, was reared in the township of his nativity, and in its public schools received his early mental training, there
560
CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY
fitting himself for his future life of usefulness. He remained on the old parental homestead until he was married, and in the following year, 1886, purchased of the remaining heirs the home farm, where he is now extensively engaged in horticultural pursuits. His farm consists of fifty acres, on which he has planted one thousand six hundred peach trees, which have been se- lected with great care from the best stock and consist of different varieties. He also cultivates one hundred plum trees, the fruit being of rare beauty and flavor, he has one hundred cherry trees, while his fifty pear trees, of the finest and choicest varieties, are in bearing from the early summer until late in the autumn. All his fruit finds a ready sale and commands the high- est market price. In addition to the larger fruits Mr. Clymer also raises all kinds of berries, with the exception of strawberries, the soil of this locality not being adapted to the production of that commodity.
In 1885 Mr. Clymer was united in marriage to Miss Mary A. Reese, who was born in Liberty township, Hancock county, Ohio, on the 5th of April, 1867, and she is a daughter of Jacob and Rebecca Reese. Three children have come to brighten and bless this home: Mamie, who was born January 9, 1888; Bernice, born March 30, 1890; and Lester, born April 25, 1895. Both Mr. and Mrs. Clymer are members of the Evangeli- cal church of Benton Ridge, and they are also connected with the Daughters of America. Mr. Clymer affiliates with the Junior Order of United Amer- ican Mechanics. Honor and integrity are synonymous with his name, and he enjoys the respect, confidence and high regard of the community.
JOHN H. CROSS.
John H. Cross is one of the prominent retired farmers of Hancock coun- ty, and after a life of active industry he has earned a competence which en- ables him to rest and enjoy the comforts of the world unalloyed by the dis- turbing cares of business. His parents were George and Mary M. (Smaltz) Cross, the former born in Maryland and the latter a native of Fairfield county, Ohio. They canic to Hancock county in 1839 and located on Lime- stone Ridge, where they entered eighty acres of government land and bought two other eighties at second hand. George Cross was a practical farmer and a man of influence and ability ; he served as trustee of the township for several years. His death occurred in October, 1865, but his wife survived until August. 1898. They had a family of seven children, of whom four are now living.
John H. was born in Fairfield county on the 17th of December, 1832,
561
CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY
and was, therefore, but seven years of age when he was brought by his par- ents to this county. He received his education in the common schools and remained at home until his majority, learning all that goes to make up the pursuit of a farmer. He confined himself to this calling until his retirement a few years ago, and he now resides in Vanluc, in which town he has served in the responsible position of mayor for two years. He has also been coun- cilman and was constable of the township for twelve years. He is a mem- ber of the United Brethren church, and has been one of its trustees for twenty-one years. He has always given the strength of his influence to the side of right and progress and is to-day one of the worthy citizens of his community.
In 1853 Mr. Cross became the husband of Miss Catherine Shoop, and four children were born to them, two of whom are living, Thomas M. and Clement L. Cross. Catherine Cross died in 1894. In November, 1899, Mr. Cross was again married, to Miss Lucinda M. Piper, who was born in Canada June 19, 1859, the daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth J. Piper. Thomas Piper was a man of large business abilities and was a resident of Hamilton, Canada, for fifty years; he was the owner of several vessels which plied between the port of Ontario and ports of the United States. He was also a large property owner in the States and in Canada, and owned and lived on a large fruit plantation in Knoxville, Virginia, for a few years. The Pipers are one of the first families of Canada and Rev. F. C. Piper, the brother of Mrs. Cross, is the Episcopal minister at Hamilton.
H. D. SWANK.
It is well that not all the old settlers have been called to their final re- ward, if for no other reason than that we may understand the true caliber of those hardy veterans of toil who made the middle west the center of the commercial empire of the world. They are a truly remarkable class of men, inured to hardship and experienced in a mode of life which will never have its like in this country again, for while the twentieth century will be brilliant with all the glory of modern invention and wonderful scientific achievement and progress, the nineteenth was the real age of development of the material resources of the country, and prepared for that which was to come. For over seventy years H. D. Swank has been a living witness of this advance, and he is certainly worthy of some recognition in the his- torical annals of the men of Hancock county, Ohio.
Grandfather Swank, who founded the family in America, was born in
562
CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY
Germany, so that on one side of the house there is good German blood. His son was Christian Swank, and was born in Bedford county, Pennsylvania, where he was reared and learned the trade of blacksmith. When he was in young manhood he came to Richland county, Ohio, and was the village blacksmith of the community for some years, but he later came to Knox county and entered some land in Pike township; he cleared and improved this land and at the same time attended to the needs of his neighbors by set- ting up a shop on his land, in which he shod horses and did all the black- smithing for the country. He lived on this place until his death, the span of his life having covered the long period from 1791 to 1869; during this time he had been a firm adherent of the Democratic party. His wife, who was of Irish descent, was Susanna Downing, who was born in 1800 and died in 1856. They had three daughters and two sons: Eliza is deceased; George and Henry D. are the sons: Mary is deccased; while the remaining daughter is Susanna.
Henry was born on his father's place in Pike township, Knox county, on April 9, 1827, and remained in this county until he had reached years of manhood. He has a vivid recollection of the old log schoolhouse in which his early education was obtained, the days of schooling being frequently punctured by the hard labor of the farm. On becoming of age he found for himself a wife and on January 13, 1849, he took up his residence in Orange township, Hancock county. The place was in the midst of the woods, and the first house which he built for the shelter of his family was made of round, unhewn logs, not a place for the physical comfort he would have desired, but it was the scene of some of the happiest hours of his life. He lived in this for some years and devoted himself to clearing the farm and raising general farm products. He still owns the farm of one hundred and eight acres, and has so improved it that one would hardly recog- nize it as the former place. As one of the old settlers Mr. Swank has borne his part in the affairs of the township, having served as one of the trustees. He has always voted for the candidates of the Republican party, and he and his wife have been members of the Disciples church, in which he was deacon.
Mr. Swank and Miss Nancy Dilts were married May II, 1848. She was born in Bedford county, Pennsylvania, December II, 1823, and her father, William, was a native of the same state; he was a farmer and in 1826 came to Knox county, Ohio, but he later removed to Iowa, where he died in his eighty-second year. Her mother, Margaret Killerman, was a native of Pennsylvania and died in Richiland county, Ohio, in 1844. Nancy was the second of twelve children, ten of whom grew to maturity, and she was
563
CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY
reared in Richland county. £ The seven children born to Mr. and Mrs. Swank all came to the light of day in the log house in Orange township and most of them have some recollection of that first scene of life. Only four of these children are now living : William, a farmer of Knox county ; Christian R., of Hancock county; Casper E., living in Kansas; and Hamil- ton R., who lives at home. Of the deceased, Susan was married and left two sons, William and Charlie. Three children survived the daughter Nancy Jane,-Bert, Vim and Floyd. Albert is the name of the deceased son.
PHILIP FLAMION.
This gentleman is one of the popular farmers of Marion township, who by thrift and industry has established himself in a comfortable home and now ranks among the enterprising citizens of his community. His parents, John and Martha Flamion, were natives of Belgium, where they spent their entire lives in the enjoyment of general respect among their neighbors.
Philip Flamion was born on the homestead in Belgium, August 2, 1848, and was trained in the economical farm methods of that country, remaining there until about twenty-five years of age. In 1873 he emigrated to Amer- ica, made his way to Ohio and located in Clinton county. After spending two years in Clinton and Henry counties he changed his locality to Han- cock county in 1875. After his arrival he followed various callings for five or six years, turning his hand to whatever he found to do and not fearing hard work if it gave promise of future advancement. By saving his earn- ings and avoiding all extravagant expenditures, Mr. Flamion was able by 1881 to purchase the sixty-eight acres of land which has since constituted his home. When the discovery of oil was made in Hancock county Mr. Flamion was fortunate enough to be found in the belt, and in time six pro- ducing oil wells were developed on his farm. These add materially to his rev- enue, and with what he obtains by judicious husbanding make him a very comfortable income and place him among the happy class of independent farmers. During his occupancy his farm has been greatly improved as the result of much hard work, and considerable money expended upon it by its enterprising owner. Notable among the improvements are some fine build- ings erected by Mr. Flamion, which are of modern style, commodious and altogether a credit not only to the owner but to the neighborhood.
In 1873, shortly before his departure for the new world, Mr. Flamion was married in Paris, France, to Miss Mary Perry, a native and worthy daughter of the famous French capital. This union, which has proved con-
564
CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY
genial in all respects and brought much happiness to both participants, has been fruitful as well as blissful; Mr. and Mrs. Flamion have had eleven children, two of whom were taken away by death, those living being named as follows: Nicholas, August, Louisa, Charles, Oliver, Emily, Joseph, William and Martha. All of the family are devoted members of the Roman Catholic church, and the Flamion family comes near to being an ideal one, so great is the mutual affection for each other displayed by every member of the household.
WILLIAM SHARNINGHAUSE.
Those persons who are always complaining of lack of opportunity, talk- ing of "hard times." insisting that they have had "no chance" and declaring their inability to "get along" on the ordinary wages paid to ordinary men, may learn a valuable lesson by reading the following brief biographical sketch. About the middle of the last century there lived in Hanover, Ger- many, a worthy couple named Henry and Mary Sharninghause. They were extremely poor, but being industrious and honest they were respected by those who knew them best. After lives of weary struggle against the hard conditions then prevailing in the old world, these honest people ended their days in their native Alsace with little more of this world's goods than they possessed in the beginning.
Unto this couple was born on December 12, 1849, a child whom they christened William. As they had nothing to give him but their blessing, and as circumstances at home were very straitened, this little boy was com- pelled to earn his living at the tender age of seven. He was set to herd- ing cows by a gentleman in the neighborhood, who was kind enough to give him employment; the latter was glad enough to obtain the pittance which this work brought to himself and his poor old parents. Little William con- tracted, or "bound himself," for five years, the remuneration beginning with nine dollars for the first twelve months, twelve for the second, fifteen for the third, forty for the fourth and fifty for the fifth and last. Added up, William found his pay amounted to one hundred and twenty-six dollars, which, though it may seem small to many, looked like a princely fortune to this friendless German boy. Right here is where the lesson we spoke of comes in most forcibly. Every dollar of this money was put to the best possible use by William, in purchasing passage to America. He landed in 1869, when about twenty years old, but before he could secure work his little store had dwindled to six dollars. In the same year, however, he man-
565
CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY
aged to reach Hancock county, Ohio, took up his abode in Allen township and went to work at whatever he could get to do. This he continued four and a half years, and one year before the expiration of that time he had saved five hundred dollars. That means much in the hands of a thrifty and economical German, and William Sharninghause knew what to do with his hard-earned gains. During the seven years which followed his period of "working out" he rented farms, worked hard, saved in every possible way and in 188I was able to purchase seventy acres of land for himself. By 1896 he succeeded in adding enough more to make his present holdings of one hundred and fifty acres. Those who now visit Mr. Sharninghause's hospitable home will find that he has erected a fine and substantial barn, be- sides remodeling the house and putting on other finishing touches, which make his place decidedly cosy and attractive and one of the most comfortable residences in Portage township.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.