USA > Ohio > Richland County > A centennial biographical history of Richland county, Ohio > Part 14
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JOHN WHARTON.
For many years this gentleman was prominently identified with the business interests of Richland county, and he was numbered among the foremost citizens of Olivesburg, where he died on the 9th of January, 1899, at the close of an honorable and well-spent life. He was born in Pennsylvania in 1826, and was about three years old when brought to Ohio by his parents, John and Nancy Wharton, who took up their residence upon a farm in what is now Clear Creek township, Ashland county. There the mother died about a year later, and the father subsequently married Miss Ann McMillen, who survived him many years.
On the home farm our subject grew to manhood, acquiring his educa- tion in the common schools of the neighborhood. On reaching his twen- tieth year he began buying and selling stock, and in his career as a stock- man crossed the Alleghany mountains eighty-four times, driving stock to Buffalo, Jersey City and New York, his business taking him over a large territory. In 1865 he was employed by C. W. Cantwell & Company to go to Texas and buy cattle. After purchasing about five hundred head he entered upon the arduous task of driving the herd overland. He pro- ceeded as far as Baxter Springs, Indian Territory, and the people on the border of Kansas contested his right to cross the state with Texas cattle, claiming that the herd were infected with a certain disease, and their fear that this might spread being the cause of their opposition to him. After being detained for several months, however, he was allowed to pass on. At various points in Missouri he encountered bands of men claiming author- ity to collect damages for passing through the state, but his genius mas- tered the situation at all times. He drove his cattle as far as Sedalia, Mis- souri, and then shipped them by train to Galion, Ohio. The trip was
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fraught with many dangers, but his pluck and determination enabled him to overcome all difficulties, and in the spring of 1866 he delivered the cattle to the company for whom they were purchased. He was a man of many resources, and having prospered in his undertakings was able to live retired for eight years prior to his death and to leave his widow in affluent cir- cumstances.
In 1853 Mr. Wharton was united in marriage to Miss Louisa Wright, a daughter of Jason and Tryphena (Washburn) Wright, natives of New York, who came to this state about 1835 and settled in Lafayette, Rich- land county, where the father spent the remainder of his life in retirement from active labor. He had previously followed the occupation of farming. In religious belief he was a Methodist, while his wife held membership in the Presbyterian church. He died in 1856, in his seventy-eighth year, and she passed away in 1868, at about the age of seventy-five. To this worthy couple were born five children, three of whom are still living: Eunice, a resident of Shiloh, Ohio; Amelia, the widow of John Parcher and a resident of Bryan, Ohio; and Mrs. Wharton. Three children were born to our sub- ject and his wife: Amelia, the wife of H. A. Thomas, of Ashland, Ohio; Emma and Cora. All are now deceased. In 1881 Mr. Wharton erected the most modern and attractive residence of Olivesburg, and there he delighted in surrounding his family with all of the comforts and luxuries of life which he could procure.
Politically Mr. Wharton was an ardent Democrat, and religiously was a devout and faithful member of the Methodist Episcopal church. It was largely due to his influence that the house of worship belonging to that denomination was built at Olivesburg, and he ever took an active and prom- inent part in all church work. He was always courteous, kindly and affable, and it is safe to say that no man in his community was held in higher regard than John Wharton. His estimable wife still survives him, and is beloved and respected by all who know her.
COLONEL W. L. SEWELL.
William L. Sewell, United States consul at Toronto, Canada, is a Rich- land county boy and one of the leading lawyers at the Mansfield bar. He is the son of a minister, and the boyhood of his life was spent in part in Washington and later upon a farm in Springfield township. He married a Miss Carter, and they have one child,-a son,-who is vice consul. From a local paper we take the following extracts :
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The best story-tellers of the Mansfield bar are the Hon. C. E. McBride, the Hon. Jolin C. Burns and Colonel W. L. Sewell. It is a diversion both restful and refreshing for lawyers to throw off sometimes the cares and per- plexities of their practice and take a good laugh. Colonel Sewell is a man of both brain ard brawn, with sufficient versatility to adapt himself to suit all conditions and to master situations with a spontaneity that never failed him. Whether at the bar or upon the hustings, he is forceful and enter- taining. As a political speaker he has been in demand, not only in Ohio but also in other states. As a lawyer he has had a large practice, and at the bar he feared no adversary.
Coming through the park one day, John C. Burns met a stranger who inquired, "Is there a riot over there?" pointing toward the court-house. John replied that there was no riot in any part of the city and that such disturbances do not occur in Mansfield. "Then it must be a ghost dance," suggested the stranger. But the councilman from the tenth ward replied that such amusements are prohibited by city ordinances. "Then what is that noise?" asked the man from abroad. "That noise! Oh, that's Colonel Sewell's voice, and he is at the court-house taking a judgment by default," answered Burns.
Sewell's stories cannot be effectively reproduced in cold type. His inimitable way of telling them, with his peculiar diaconate drawl, must be seen and heard to be appreciated to the full.
DAVID BELL.
David Bell, an octogenarian who is now living retired in Springfield township, Richland county, on section 24, was for long years connected with the farming interests of that community. His life forms a connect- ing link between the primitive past and the progressive present. He was born in Washington county, Maryland, April 14, 1815, a son of Jacob Bell, who was born in the same locality March 26, 1773. The grandfather was one of the early settlers of Maryland. He bore the name of Anthony Bell and came to this country from Amsterdam, Holland. A well-to-do farmer, he was the owner of two hundred acres of land in Maryland, where he reared his family and made his home throughout his residence in the new world. Jacob Bell was united in marriage to Barbara Emerick, who was born in Maryland December 10, 1780. They were married in 1805 and spent the most of their lives on the old homestead in the state of their nativity, but in 1841 came to Ohio.
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The year previous their son, David Bell, had sought a home in the Buckeye state, upon which he has resided for sixty years. He was mar- ried, September 16, 1841, to Miss Catherine Balliete, of Northampton county, Pennsylvania. She was born December 16, 1823, a daughter of Stephen Balliete. The children born of this marriage were four sons and four daugh- ters, but two of the sons died in infancy, while Marietta died at the age of about three years. Those now living are: Fanny, the wife of Alexander Scott, by whom she has two children; Samuel, a farmer of Wyandotte county, Ohio, and has six children; Mrs. Catherine Ritchey, of Mansfield, who is a widow and has seven children; John Franklin, a farmer of Madi- son township, who has seven children; and Emma Ella, the wife of John B. Downs, by whom she has five children.
The mother of the foregoing died December 31, 1891, and her death was widely mourned by her family and friends. In ante-bellum days David Bell was a supporter of the Democracy. He has never been an office-seeker, preferring to devote his energies to his business affairs. The stately ever- green trees in his front yard were planted by him and stand as monuments to his enterprise. At his farm work he achieved success and acquired a comfortable competence, which now enables him to live retired. He has passed the eighty-fifth milestone of life's journey, and to him is accredited the veneration and respect which should ever be given to one of advanced years, whose career has been upright and whose life has been characterized by fidelity and duty. Living throughout the greater part of the nineteenth century, he has been a witness of the wonderful progress and improve- ment of this land, and his mind travels back over the annals of the past in review of the events which form the nation's history.
WILLIAM S. CAPPELLER.
Hon. William S. Cappeller is a native of Pennsylvania, and through the years of an active manhood he has been a prominent factor in journalistic interests and in the political circles of the Buckeye state. His birth occurred in Somerset county, of the Keystone state, in 1839, and his primary educa- tion, acquired in the public schools, was supplemented by a course in the Farmers' College near Cincinnati. Determining to devote his life to journal- istic work, he came to Mansfield, and in March, 1885, established the Daily News, the first daily paper published in this city. This was a venture whose outcome was doubtful, yet to one who is acquainted with the personal char- acter of the man it would not have been difficult to predict a successful career
Capeller
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for the new enterprise. Mr. Cappeller is a man of strong determination who carries forward to successful completion whatever he undertakes, if it can be accomplished through diligence and honorable effort. The home of the Daily News was a modest one. His supplies were limited, but the excellent character of the paper soon secured a good patronage and the facilities were accordingly increased. Its circulation steadily grew and to-day the News plant is a four-story building, especially erected for its use and equipped with type-setting machines, fast Webb presses and other accessories necessary to the conduct of a successful newspaper and of a large job printing trade. The News is one of the leading Republican papers of the central portion of Ohio, and is widely copied in other journals throughout the state. On account of its large circulation it is an excellent advertising medium and at the same time it is a most readable journal owing to the publishing of all matters of local and general interest. To one at all acquainted with Mr. Cappeller's history it is not necessary to say that it is Republican in character and that. it has been an active factor in promoting the work of the party in Ohio.
A close and earnest student of the political questions of the day, it would be difficult to find one, who does not devote his entire time to politics, that is better informed than Mr. Cappeller. With a just appreciation of the duties and obligations of citizenship he gives careful thought and consideration to the interests affecting the weal or woe of the nation. He has labored untir- ingly in behalf of his party, and the organization recognizes the effectiveness of his work. In 1871 he was appointed by the common-pleas court of Cin- cinnati to investigate the accounts of the county officials of Hamilton county and on the completion of the work submitted a report which elicited the hearty commendation of the public. In 1877 and again in 1880 he was elected county auditor of Cincinnati, leading the ticket by over two thousand votes at each election, a fact which indicates his personal popularity as well as the confidence and trust reposed in him by the public. While holding that office he became the author of the Tax Payers' Manual, a work on taxation of individuals, banks and corporations which was highly endorsed by all the leading judges and lawyers of the state. It requires a generalship of no less high order to manage a political campaign than is required for a military commander on the field of battle. In fact a political leader has the additional duty of harmonizing his forces; he cannot command and expect explicit obedience, but must treat his committees and workers for concerted action through tact, courtesy and an unfaltering devotion to the cause. It was these qualities that made Mr. Cappeller so successful a leader during the years 1880, 1886, 1887 and 1888, in which he served as the chairman of the 9
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Republican state committee. He was the commissioner of railroads and tele- graphs of Ohio from 1887 to 1889 inclusive, and while in office he amicably adjusted matters of difference between railroads and employes, alleged freight discriminations and many other complicated questions referred to his depart- ment for arbitration. He is a forceful writer, strong and logical in argu- ment and his editorials have had marked influence on public opinion both on questions political and otherwise.
For many years Mr. Cappeller has been prominent in fraternal circles and in 1878 was honored with the office of grand master of Ohio in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. For many years a distinguished mem- ber of the journalistic profession, for several years the president of the Ohio Editorial Association and in 1892 the president of the National Editorial Association, honored and respected in every class of society, Mr. Cappeller has long been a leader of thought and movement in the public affairs of the state. He inspires personal friendships of unusual strength, and all who know him have the highest admiration for his good qualities and excellencies of heart and mind.
FREDERICK M. FITTING.
For many years Mr. Fitting was an active representative of the business interests of Richland county. He became engaged in merchandising and speculating, and not in a desultory fashion did he prosecute his business inter- ests, but with energy and strong determination he carried forward the work which he planned, and as a result of his well-directed labors won a hand- some competence. He was born October 3, 1810, just across the line in Knox county, Ohio, his parents being Casper and Fannie (Markley) Fitting. the former a native of Pennsylvania and the latter of Ohio. The father was a farmer who met with very creditable success in his undertakings. Of the Presbyterian church he was an active member and an earnest Christian life was closed when he died, at the age of eighty-three years. He was buried in Ankenytown, Knox county, and his wife passed away at the age of seventy years.
Frederick M. Fitting was a boy of about seven or eight years when his parents removed to Richland county, locating on a farm near Bellville, where he was reared to manhood. He walked about two miles to a country school- in order to acquire his education, and after putting aside his text-books he began driving stage between Bellville, Sandusky and Wooster. For sev- eral years he was thus engaged, after which he conducted a general mer-
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cantile store in Bellville for a number of years. He also built a flouring mill near the town and successfully operated it for ten or twelve years, after which he sold that property and purchased his father-in-law's farm, that is now occupied by his daughter, Mrs. Schuler. At one time he owned about two hundred and fifty acres, a part of which has since been divided into residence lots in Bellville. He laid out a street there and greatly improved his addition to the city. In his later years he engaged in superintending his farms and in speculating in stocks and grain, and his business inter- ests, guided by keen discrimination, resulted in success financially.
In 1836 Mr. Fitting was united in marriage to Miss Ruth Markey, daughter of John and Mary (Walsh) Markey, both of whom were natives of Baltimore, Maryland, where they were married. In 1826 they came to Richland county, locating on a farm near Johnsonville, where they remained for several years, after which they removed to Bellville, where Mr. Markey engaged in merchandising. After selling his farm to his son-in-law he pur- chased another farm in Worthington township. He died at the age of fifty-eight years. He was an active member of the Methodist church and his wife also held membership in that church and passed away in Bellville, at the age of sixty-one. Their daughter, Mrs. Fitting, was only seven years of age when brought to Richland county, where she spent her remain- ing days, passing away on the 28th of April, 1896, at the age of seventy- seven years. She attended the Presbyterian church and was a lady of many excellent qualities. She had but two children and one died at the age of nine years.
The surviving daughter, Jennie E., was born in Bellville, was educated in Mansfield and married Ferdinand Schuler. She now owns the old home- stead of fifty-six acres within the city limits and sixty acres near the town. She has five daughters: Florence, the wife of Edward Kelly, of Bellville; Ida J., who is the widow of W. P. Jackson and resides with her mother; Mary, the wife of W. B. Elston, of Peoria, Illinois; Katherine, the wife of Dr. N. R. Eastman ; and Nora, the wife of W. A. Goss, of Peoria. Mrs. Schuler is a lady of culture and refinement, whose friends throughout the community are many.
In his political views Mr. Fitting was a zealous Democrat who did all in his power to promote the growth and insure the success of his party. He was recognized as one of its leaders in the state, yet he never sought or desired office, although several prominent positions were tendered him. In business he enjoyed a high reputation as a reliable man of marked energy and sound judgment, and the success which he achieved was the merited
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reward of his own labors. He died August 18, 1884, at the age of seventy- four years, and in his death the community lost one of its valued citizens,- a man whom to know was to respect and honor.
HERMAN L. WILES, D. D.
A man of ripe scholarship and marked executive ability, whose life has been consecrated to the cause of the Master and to the uplifting of men, there is particular propriety in here directing attention to the life history of the pastor of the Lutheran church of Mansfield. He has devoted himself without ceasing to the interests of humanity and to the furtherance of all good works. His reputation is not restricted and his power and influence in his holy office have been exerted in a spirit of deepest human sympathy and tender solicitude. There has not been denied him the full harvest nor the aftermath whose garnering shall bring the sure reward in the words of commendation, "Well done, good and faithful servant." His wide acquaint- ance in the state and his prominence as an eminent divine of the Lutheran ministry will make his history one of especial interest to the readers of this volume.
Dr. Herman Lewis Wiles is a native of Frederick county, Maryland, born July 15, 1840, his parents being John and Catherine (Long) Wiles. The paternal grandfather, Thomas Wiles, was a native of Virginia, and prior to the year 1780 located in Middletown Valley, Frederick county, Maryland. He had eight children, namely: John, Thomas, George, William, Samuel, James, Mrs. House and Mrs. Blessing. Of this family John Wiles, the father of our subject, was married, in 1817, to Catherine Long, whose father was a captain in the state militia, and was called into service in the war of 1812; but when the troops had proceeded as far as Hagerstown on the way to the scene of hostilities it was learned that the war had ended. They had ten children, five sons and five daughters: John Thomas, the eldest, was married, about 1840, to Elizabeth Smith. They had one daugh- ter, Ellen, who married William DeGrange and resides near Jefferson, Maryland. Mr. and Mrs. DeGrange have three sons and one daughter.
Tilghman B., the second member of the family of John and Catherine Wiles, died in September, 1899. He was a very active member of the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows. He was married, about 1848, to Susan Baker, a native of Maryland, and until the death of his wife they resided near Middletown, Maryland. Their children were as follows: Edward C., who resides in Mansfield. Alice became the wife of Cornelius Dye, of Chicago,
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Ohio. He was married the second time, on the Ist of January, 1863, to Emily Crone. Their living children are: Olive; Herman, who married Mary Charles, now deceased, by whom he had a son, Roy : he afterward wedded Mary A. Logan; Charles O., of Lucas, Ohio, who married Miss Zoda Myers, and has two children: William Otto, who married Miss Doll Baker, by whom he has one child and resides near Lucas; Effie, the wife of Frank H. Fike, who resides near Butler, Ohio, and has two children; and Walter, who is living at the old home near Lucas.
Lloyd and one other son of the family died in infancy.
Of the daughters, Elizabeth M. became the wife of George Culler, and resided near Lucas. She is survived by two of her children : Charles T., who is living near Lucas, and married Mary Darling and has two living children, one being Orton Culler; and Mary A., who is married and resides in Chicago, Illinois.
Mary J. became the wife of Joshua Rhoads and resided at Frederick, Maryland. Her children are: Fannie, who is married and lives at Union Bridge, Maryland, and has two children; Charles, of Frederick, Mary- land, who wedded Mary A. Haller and has four children; Shaffer, who is married and has one child; Della, the wife of Mr. Strausner, who lives in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and has five children; Molly, the wife of Mr. Hanon, of Cuyahoga, Ohio.
Anna E. is the wife of J. P. Heiteshu, and they lived and died at Clyde, Ohio. In their family were four daughters and two sons.
Amanda C. married Samuel Anderson and resides in Monroe township, Richland county. They have five children : Carey married Daisy B. Parry. and with their family they reside at Shelby, Richland county. Their chil- dren are: Minnie, Alta and Vina. Alta, the next child of Mr. and Mrs. Anderson, is now the wife of Frank L. Inks. Lloyd, the youngest, resides at home.
Lydia A. Wiles became the wife of James Valentine and resides in Mansfield, Ohio. Their children are: William, a railroad engineer, who wedded Mary Stout, and has three children; Kate, the wife of George Parry, of Fort Wayne, Indiana, by whom she has one child; Olive, the wife of Sherman Harter, of Mansfield, by whom she has one child, Sherman, who married Cennie Pollock; and Myrtle, who is at home.
Herman L. Wiles, the youngest member of the family and the immediate subject of this review, was reared upon a farm, and as soon as old enough to handle a plow began to work in the fields. He was only four years of age at the time of his father's death and he lived with a brother until he
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was eighteen years of age, providing for his own support from his tenth year. He attended the common schools during the winter season and sup- plemented his knowledge by study at home. At the age of eighteen he had thus become qualified for teaching. He entered upon his profession with the intention of using the money thereby gained to fit himself for the prac- tice of law. About that time, however, he was converted to the Lutheran faith and united with the church, and feeling called to enter the ministry he gave up his school and began preparation for the higher calling to which he has devoted his life. He became a student in the Academy at Middletown, Maryland, where he remained two years, and in the fall of 1859 he entered the freshman class of Wittenberg College, in Ohio, in which institution he was graduated four years later, with the degree of Bachelor of Arts, win- ning the second honors in his class. He immediately afterward began the study of theology in the same institution, and on the completion of that course was graduated in 1864. The degree of Master of Arts was con- ferred upon him by the same college in 1866, and ten years later the hon- orary degree of Doctor of Divinity was given him by his alma mater. Dr. Wiles had the honor of taking one of the highest grades ever taken in that institution.
After completing his theological course Dr. Wiles accepted the pastorate of the Lutheran churches at Lucas, Mount Zion, St. John's and Mifflin, officiating at all four churches from 1864 until the fall of 1871. His labors were attended with splendid results, for during that period he added to the membership of the four congregations a total of seven hundred and twenty- eight. The work of the church was earnestly carried on in. all of its departments and new houses of worship were erected for the congregations at Mount Zion, St. John's and Mifflin. During that period, in 1864, the Doctor was united in marriage to Miss Effie Routzahn, daughter of Dr. Routzahn, of Springfield, Ohio. In 1871 he was called to the church at Wooster. The congregation was in a disorganized condition, its member- ship being divided and decreasing numerically. Under his able guidance the working forces of the church were soon in harmonious and concentrated action. A revival service was held soon after entering upon his labors and seventy-five new members were taken into the church, and from that time forth the growth of the church was steady and continuous, so that the house of worship soon became too small for the increasing congregation, making necessary the erection of a more commodious church edifice. With untiring zeal and devotion to the cause, Dr. Wiles, in 1877, began the erection of the beautiful church building that belongs to the English Lutheran society in
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