USA > Ohio > Richland County > A centennial biographical history of Richland county, Ohio > Part 24
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The Doctor has been twice married. He first wedded Miss Sadie Ervin. the marriage taking place on the 20th of March, 1881. She died May 25, 1883. and on the 9th of October, 1884, he married Miss Mary O. Burger. They now have four children, Carl E., May O., Stella F. and Crete M., and the family circle yet remains unbroken. His fellow townsmen, recognizing his worth and
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ability, have several times called the Doctor to positions of public trust. He was for three years township clerk and for four years township treasurer. His political support is given the Democracy, and socially he is connected with Mansfield Lodge, No. 35, F. & A. M., Mansfield Chapter, No. 28, R. A. M., Commandery No. 21, K. T. and Monroe Lodge, I. O. O. F. He has filled all of the chairs and is now past master of the last named. Dr. Rummel is a progressive business man, energetic and capable, and his courteous and oblig- ing manner render his store one of the popular mercantile establishments of Lucas.
ADAM H. WEISER.
Adam H. Weiser, who is a farmer and stock-raiser, was born in Cass township, Richland county, June II, 1852, and now carries on business on section 35 of that township. He represents one of the pioneer families of that locality. His father, Adam Weiser, Sr., was born in Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, and was there reared to manhood, acquiring his education in the common schools. With his parents he came to Ohio and soon afterward he accepted a position as a farm hand for John Bender, who later became his father-in-law. He worked for Mr. Bender for several years and during that time he wooed and won the daughter Susan.
Shortly after their marriage Mr. Weiser purchased a tract of timber land of eighty acres in Cass township, one-half mile southwest of London. He then began clearing his land and erected a log cabin, which became the pioneer home of the young couple. The cracks between the logs in the upper part of the building had not been filled up and squirrels frequently made their way through and engaged in a morning gainbol before Mr. and Mrs. Weiser had arisen. With marked energy the father of our subject con- tinued the work of clearing and improving his land, making his home thereon until 1860, when he sold that farm and purchased the present home of our subject, becoming the owner of the one hundred and sixty acres on which he located, continuing to make it his place of residence until 1877, when he bought a home in Shelby. There he resided until the death of his wife, after which he made his home with his children until his demise in 1893. He was an ardent Democrat, but never accepted an office, although township positions were frequently tendered him. Of the Lutheran church he was an active and consistent member, and for a number of years served as a deacon and elder therein. His life was at all times honorable and worthy of emulation.
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His wife was born in Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, and in her girlhood accompanied her parents on their removal to Madison township, Richland county, Ohio. Her father, John Bender, purchased and improved a farm of one hundred and sixty acres four miles northwest of Mansfield. Later in life he removed to Shelby, where he lived for about six or seven years, when he and his wife broke up housekeeping, making their home among their children. Mr. and Mrs. Weiser became the parents of twelve children, of whom six are now living: Jacob, a farmer of Williams county, Ohio; Barbara, the wife of David Dick, a farmer of Hancock county, Ohio; Adam H .; William, who owns and cultivates land in Hancock county ; Alice, the wife of William Sherman, a farmer of Hancock county; and Mary, the wife of George K. Suter, the president of the Suter Furniture Company, of Shelby, Ohio. The parents were honored pioneer people who experienced the various hardships and trials of life on the frontier, and also enjoyed the pleasures incident to a residence on the borders of civilization. They wit- nessed the remarkable growth and development of this section of the state, and aided in laying broad and deep the foundation of the present prosperity and progress of Richland county.
The old homestead was the scene of the boyhood labors and pleasures in which Adam H. Weiser indulged, and he became familiar with the cur- riculum in the public schools, where he pursued his studies during the winter months, aiding in the labors of the farm through the summer season. In 1874 he was united in marriage to Miss Barbara Lybarger, a daughter of Louise Lybarger. With his bride he took up his abode at his parental home, and he and his brother Jacob cultivated the home farm on shares for two years. On the expiration of that period Jacob Weiser removed to Williams county, Ohio, and Adam continued to manage the farm alone. After he had conducted it as a renter for eighteen years, he purchased the old home place and is now its owner. He engaged in the operation of a threshing machine from 1893 till 1899, running two threshers much of that time. He believes in progress and advancement and has upon his place the latest improved machinery to facilitate the farm work. His buildings are kept in good repair, and in his business he is methodical and systematic.
To Mr. and Mrs. Weiser have been born three children: Archie, who runs the Wesley Fickes farm in Cass township; Otto Herman, at home; and Louis Curtis. The last named was killed by lightning July 3, 1900, his death proving a very great blow to the family and to many friends, for he was popular in the neighborhood. As every true American citizen should do, Adam H. Weiser keeps well informed on the issues of the day. He votes with
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the Democratic party, but has always refused to accept office. Of the Reformed church he is an active member and for eight years has served as a deacon. He co-operates in all movements for the public good and at the same time neglects not his business affairs, successfully farming and raising stock. He is widely known as a representative agriculturist, and in Richland county has a large acquaintance, for his entire life has here been passed. The circle of his friends is extensive and the regard in which he is held is uniform.
HENRY WENTZ.
Henry Wentz, one of the prominent citizens of Shelby, Ohio, was born two miles from that city, in December, 1839. He is a son of Henry and Elizabeth (Sheibley) Wentz, who were the parents of thirteen children, two of whom died in infancy. The eldest daughter of the family, Mary, was born May 23, 1825, and married John Feiroved, a farmer. Hannah, born December 25. 1826, married Adam Stine and lives at Crestline, Crawford county, Ohio; she is now a widow. John was born November II. 1828, is a carpenter by trade, and is living in the city of Shelby. David, born June 6, 1830, is a farmer and lives near Shiloh, Richland county, Ohio. Lydia A., born January 13, 1832, married George Bloom and died also in Richland- county, October 12, 1889. George, born July 3, 1834, died in 1886. The next was a daughter that died in infancy. Elizabeth, born October 11, 1837. Henry, the subject of this sketch, born December 9, 1839. The next was a son that died in infancy. Sarah Anna, born September 9, 1843, married Samuel Miller, of Shelby, and died January 1, 1890. Levi S., born September 8, 1845, lives on the old homestead in Cass township. Priscilla Catherine, born November 13, 1847, married David S. Stroup, a farmer, and lives in Cass township.
The parents of these children removed from Perry county, Pennsylvania, to Cass township, Richland county, Ohio, in April, 1834, the former having been a native of Little York, Pennsylvania. The Wentz family in the United States sprang from brothers that came from Switzerland in the early settle- ment of this country and located in Binghamton, New York. Mr. Wentz was married June 8, 1865, to Miss Sarah A. Bushey, of Shelby, and by her has had three children, namely : Harry R., born. March 21, 1867, and died in November, 1877: Estella Blanche, born October 4, 1869; and George. Ralph, born March 1, 1879, and died in August, 1886. Estella Blanche was mar- ried to Dr. D. V. Summers, of Shelby, June 7, 1894.
Henry Wentz remained at home until he was eighteen years of age and
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then learned the carpenter's trade. When he was twenty-one years of age, the war breaking out, he enlisted in Company E, Eleventh Indiana Volunteer Infantry, under Colonel Lew Wallace, and immediately entered upon active service. From the ranks he was promoted through different grades up to that of first lieutenant. Having served three years and a half he resigned, in December, 1864. He participated in the battles of Forts Donelson and Henry ; the battle of Shiloh; was with his company in Arkansas and Tennessee and was present also at the siege of Vicksburg; was in the battles of Port Gibson, May 1, 1863, and of Champion Hills, May 16, 1863; and of the forty-three men of his company that entered the last named battle only fifteen returned. the others, twenty-eight in number, being killed or wounded. He himself was shot with a ball which went through his cap, and the heel shot from his boot. After the Vicksburg campaign came to a victorious termination for the Union forces, he participated in the Sherman expedition to Jackson, Missis- sippi; he was transferred to the Gulf department and took part in the Teche campaign, and in 1864 went to the Shenandoah valley and fought in the bat- tles of Hall Town, Winchester, Fisher's Hill and Cedar creek, resigning in the fall and returning to his home.
After spending one year working at his trade, of carpenter, he engaged in the hardware, tin and stove business at Crestline, remaining there until 1875, when he sold out and removed to Shelby in 1876. Here he became engaged in the insurance business and was chosen the secretary of the Mutual Fire Insurance Association. In 1885 this association reinsured their fire insurance business, and, reorganizing, changed the name to the Mutual Plate Glass Insurance Association, of Shelby, Ohio, of which organization he is the secretary. Mr. Wentz is also actively engaged in the real-estate business in company with Mr. Francis Brucker, in an addition to the town of Shelby, known as the Boulevard addition, which is destined to be the principal resi- dence portion of the city. It was laid out in 1896. Mr. Wentz is a director in the Citizens' Bank, in the Sutter Furniture Company, in the Shelby Elec- tric Company, and also a stockholder in the Shelby Tube Works, in the Ball Bearing Umbrella Company, in the New Shelby Stove Company, and Sheets Printing and Manufacturing Company. He is now a member of the city council and has been commander of Harker Post, No. 146, G. A. R., for many years. He is a member of the order of Ben Hur, Royal Arcanum, Knights of Pythias, Uniform Rank (in which order he is lieutenant-colonel of the Ninth Regiment of Ohio Brigade), and of the Lutheran church. He is the president of the church council and is treasurer of the church. Few men fill so many positions and in such an acceptable manner as does Mr. Wentz, all of which tends to show the character and ability of the man. 15
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JAMES L. CHAMBERLAIN.
The history of mankind is replete with illustrations of the fact that it is only under the pressure of adversity and the stimulus of opposition that the best and strongest in men are brought out and developed. Perhaps the history of no people so forcibly impresses one with this truth as the annals of our own republic. If anything can inspire the youth of our country to persistent, honest and laudable endeavor it should be the life record of such men as he of whom we write. The example of the illustrious few of our countrymen who have risen from obscurity to the highest positions in the gift of the nation serves often to awe our young men rather than inspire them to emulation, because they reason that only a few can ever attain such eminence ; but the history of such men as James Logan Chamberlain proves conclusively that with a reason- able amount of mental and physical power success is bound eventually to crown the endeavor of those who have the ambition to put forth their best efforts and the will and manliness to persevere therein.
Mr. Chamberlain is to-day one of the most successful men of Richland county and certainly deserves great credit for what he has accomplished. He was born in Butler township, this county, on the 24th of September, 1860, a son of Josiah and Rachel A. (Stratton) Chamberlain, who are much interested in his work. His boyhood days were spent on the home farm and as soon as he was old enough to handle the plow he assisted in the cultivation of the fields. The common schools afforded him his educational privileges, conning his les- sons therein through the winter months when the labors of the farm were over.
On the 21st of August, 1879, Mr. Chamberlain chose as a companion and helpmeet on life's journey Miss Catherine E. Ford, a native of Butler town- ship and a daughter of George Ford, who also was born in the same township, his parents having come to Richland county from Jefferson county, Ohio. After his marriage Mr. Chamberlain worked with his father for two years, and, with the capital he had acquired by his industry and economy, he then purchased eighty acres of his father's land on section 19, Butler township, paying twenty-one hundred dollars for the tract. He then began farming on his own account and continued the cultivation of that place for four years, when he sold out and with his family removed to Missouri, taking up his abode in Cedar county. There he purchased a farm of two hundred and eighty acres, upon which he resided for seven years, when he disposed of that property, receiving twice as much for it as he had paid. He then returned to Richland
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county and purchased the Hunter farm of eighty acres, making it his place of abode for two years, when, in 1894, he removed to the farm which is now his home. It was then known as the William Mckibben farm and comprised one hundred and ninety-nine acres of rich land in Butler township. In 1896 he became the owner of the old Stratton farm of eighty acres, which had been entered from the government by G. M. Stratton, who was one of the first settlers of Richland county. This was the farm upon which Mr. Chamberlain was born and the place was also dear to him as the scene of his boyhood days. In 1900 he purchased the Ruth Ford farm of eighty acres, so that his landed possessions now aggregate four hundred and thirty-nine acres, a very valuable and productive property. He has engaged very extensively in feed- ing cattle, sheep and hogs.
Unto Mr. and Mrs. Chamberlain have been born five children, namely : Mary R., Maggie M., Verdie B., Charles L. and Carrie Ruth. The family circle remains unbroken by the hand of death and the children are still with their parents. In his political views Mr. Chamberlain is a stanch Republican and for one term he served as township treasurer, proving a capable and trust- worthy officer, yet the honors and emoluments of public office have had little attraction for him as he prefers to give his attention to his business affairs. Of the Methodist Episcopal church he is a faithful member, and is serving as a steward and class-leader and also as superintendent of the Sunday-school. He is a man of marked influence, owing to his sterling worth and reliability. His circle of friends is extensive, and all who know him entertain for him a high regard. In business he sustains an unassailable reputation, and integrity is synonymous with his name. His business transactions have been attended with a high degree of success, which may be ascribed to his close application and untiring industry.
WILLIAM H. GORHAM.
William Harvey Gorham, the foreman of the wood department of the great manufacturing establishment of the Aultman-Taylor Machinery Com- pany, at Mansfield, Ohio, is an energetic, up-to-date man in his line and one whose services are appreciated by the company with which he is connected. Mr. Gorham has been in the employ of this establishment for eighteen years,- since 1882, and in 1899, in recognition of his valued services, he was promoted to the position he now occupies,-that of foreman.
A native of the Buckeye State, Mr. Gorham was born in Ashland county,
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in 1859, a son of John G. and Susan (Adams) Gorham, the former a native of Long Island and the latter of Knox county, Ohio. John G. Gorham, when a boy, came with his parents to Perrysville, Ashland county, where he was reared and married and where he remained until 1881, when he came with his family to Mansfield. During the Civil war he served as a member of Com- pany G, Sixty-fifth Regiment, in Sherman's brigade, the date of his enlistment being 1861. Like most veterans of that war, he is identified with the G. A. R. Also he is a member of the Masonic order. He is now and has been for some time with the Aultman-Taylor Machinery Company, in the same department with his son.
William H. Gorham was reared and educated in his native county and there learned the trade of carpenter, under his father's instructions, his father having been employed for a number of years as a builder in Ashland. Com- ing to Mansfield in 1881, about the time he reached his majority, he soon afterward entered the employ of the Aultman-Taylor Machinery Company, and, as already stated, he has worked his way up to the head of one of its important departments, and now has under his immediate supervision one hun- dred and twenty-five men, who do all the wood-work of the establishment.
Mr. Gorham was married in Mansfield in 1884, to Miss Carrie Drake, a daughter of Phineas and Angeline Drake, deceased. They have an attractive home, which he built in 1885, and their happy union has been blessed in the birth of three children,-Ruth Charity, Helen L., and Don. G.
Politically Mr. Gorham is a Republican, and fraternally he is identified with the Foresters.
HIRAM S. ROSE.
A historical work devoted to the pioneer days in Ohio would be most in- teresting, and a carefully compiled history of pioneering in Richland county would be specially valuable. Ohio's part in American wars has been an im- portant one and the patriotism of the citizens of Richland county has been proved on many a field of carnage. This biographical sketch will deal not only with the sacrifices and achievements of pioneers but with those of soldiers. It has been often remarked that the same qualities which characterize the bold. self-denying pioneer characterize the brave and devoted soldier.
Hiram S. Rose, a prominent citizen of Shiloh, Cass township, Richland county, Ohio, was born in the township mentioned April 23, 1841, a son of Andrew M. and Mary M. (Green) Rose, and is one of five of their six children
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who survive. These are Hiram S. ; Bentley, of Butler, Indiana ; Elmore Y., a farmer of Cass township; Osborne B., of Piqua, Ohio; and Sophronia, the wife of Thomas Swanger, of Angola, Indiana. Andrew M. Rose was born in Belmont county, Ohio, in 1817, a son of Aaron Rose, a native of New Jersey, who came with his family from Belmont county to Richland county in 1829 and entered the farm of one hundred and sixty acres now owned by Wesley Mclaughlin, where he lived and died. Andrew grew up on the home farm and about the time of his marriage bought eighty acres of land a mile and a quarter east of Shiloh, where he began housekeeping and farming in a typical log cabin. His farm was heavily timbered, but he soon made a clearing which he gradually enlarged and brought under cultivation. He sold this farm late in the '40s and purchased another in Mercer county, to which, however, he never removed, but which he sold soon afterward in order to purchase a farm in Lorain county. Upon the last mentioned he lived three years, until he removed to Richland county and bought a portion of the Green farm from his father- ¿in-law, which he sold a year later, when he bought fifty acres of the Rose homestead and fifty acres of the McConnell farm adjoining. There he lived from 1851 to 1872, when he died. He worked hard during the earlier years of his life, doing his full share of the labor of reclaiming the country from the forest. It is believed by his family that this hard struggle with nature grad- ually undermined his health and brought him to death years before his time.
Politically he was a Whig and later a rock-ribbed Republican, and he was a recognized leader in the work of the Methodist church in his neighborhood. His widow, now in her eighty-second year, was born in Cass township, on the old Green homestead, entered by her father, Robert Green, and one of the first farms settled in this part of the county. Her grandfather Green came to Richland county from Licking county, entered one hundred and sixty acres of land, built a log cabin on it and then returned to Licking county, where he married Miss Susannah Messmore, whose parents were natives of Switzerland. He then came back to Richland county and located on his farm, where he spent the remainder of his days. He was a soldier of the war of 1812. The Mess- more family of Switzerland was a wealthy and influential one, and were there during a revolution. Mr. Rose's ancestors were compelled to leave their lands, and, with such money and portable valuables as they could bring with them, they came to America, whose hospitable shores offered them a refuge and a hope for the future. In later years they made some effort to have their lands restored to them, but their deeds had been lost and for that reason they were unable to establish their right to the property.
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Hiram S. Rose received a common-school education and was brought up to farm work. August 15, 1862, when he was some months past his twenty- first birthday, he enlisted in the first independent Ohio artillery and served in that organization until the close of the Civil war and was mustered out of the service June 26, 1865. He participated in fifteen regular engagements. He was in Washington on the day of the assassination of President Lincoln and saw the martyr president only a few hours before that tragic event. After his discharge he returned home and was married, November 1, 1866, to Miss Mary Hunter, a native of Blooming Grove township, Richland county, and a daughter of Benjamin Hunter, who came to the county from Columbiana county with his parents when he was a child. For several years after his marriage he was engaged in farming. He then took up blacksmithing, without any practical knowledge of the trade. In 1873 he bought the blacksmith shop of John Ward at Shiloh and employed expert blacksmiths, in working with whom he learned the trade, and he has continued the enterprise with much success to the present time. To Hiram S. and Mary (Hunter) Rose have been born children as follows : Adelbert, who is an employe of the dry goods house of Hunter & Hardy, at Dayton, Ohio; and Cassius E., Flossie M. and Bessie P., who are members of their father's household. Mr. Rose is a stanch Repub- lican and wields an appreciable influence in local political affairs. He has been a member of the town. council two years, town clerk ten years and town- ship clerk four years. He is a comrade of Speigel Post, No. 208, Grand Army of the Republic, and has been its quartermaster during the entire period of his affiliation with it. He and all the members of his family are members of the Methodist Episcopal church, of Shiloh, and he is one of its trustees. A man of much public spirit, he has a real live interest in every movement affecting the welfare of his fellow townsmen and advocates and assists to the extent of his ability every measure, which in his judgment tends to the advancement of the interests of his township and county.
JOHN R. WOLFE.
John Rice Wolfe, one of the prominent and best known citizens of Rich- land county, and at present the postmaster at Shelby, was born at Ganges, this county, October 22, 1837. He is a son of Augustus and Sarah (Rice) Wolfe, the former of whom was a native of Knox county, Ohio, and the latter of Juniata county, Pennsylvania. He was born November 22, 1809, and was a son of Peter and Sarah (Ayers) Wolfe, who were married at Ganges, Ohio,
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June 6, 1832. To them were born four sons and one daughter, as follows : Porter Ayers Wolfe, born April 10, 1833; James A., born in 1835; John Rice, the subject of this sketch ; Charles T., born in 1840; and Amy A., who married Dr. W. S. McBride, of Lucas, Richland county, Ohio, and died in 1864. James A. Wolfe went to California in 1860 and died there in 1886. Porter A. lives in Nebraska, and Charles T. and the subject live in Shelby. The father of these children died in 1846 and the mother in 1888, both being well known people and highly esteemed by all.
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