USA > Ohio > Seneca County > A centennial biographical history of Seneca County, Ohio > Part 18
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In politics Mr. Kistler gives his support to the principles of the Democratic party, and he has served in various offices of local character. His religious faith is that of the German Reformed church, and for many years he has been one of the influential members of Salem church. having served for several years as one of its elders. Mr. and Mrs. Kistler became the parents of three daughters,-Sarah E., who remains at the parental home, though she is in constant demand as an expert dressmaker; Rachel Angeline, the wife of Emery Butz, a farmer of Adams township; and Jane A., who died in infancy. Our subject and his estimable wife have also reared, with utmost care and kindliness, four other children, one being a grandniece, Lana Overmiller, who came into their home at the age of two years and who was reared with the same advantages as their own children. She is now the wife of John
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Flicker, of Thompson township. The other three were from the Protest- ant Orphans' Home, at Cleveland. Maggie Axe, who entered their home at the age of twelve years, is now the wife of Herbert Kistler; James Gordon Bennett came to them at nine years of age and remained until he was eighteen, and he now resides near Clyde. Pearl Airhart, who is now thirteen years of age (June, 1902), has been a member of their family circle from the age of nine.
DEROY C. DUNN.
One of the most valuable and most highly improved farm properties in Seneca county is that owned by the gentleman whose name initiates this paragraph and who is recognized as one of the representative citizens of the county, where he has passed practically his entire life, the family having been one of prominence in the community from the early pioneer epcch to the present time.
Mr. Dunn was born on the farm which is now his home, the date . of his nativity having been October 16, 1851. His parents, William N. and Sophia W. (Clark) Dunn, were natives of Sullivan county, New York, and they were numbered among the first settlers in Hopewell township, Seneca county, Ohio, where the father took up a tract of gov- ernment land, the same having been heavily timbered. They became the parents of six children, of whom five are living at the present time, namely : Arlington, of whom individual mention is made on another page of this work; Devolson, who is a resident of Tiffin; Deroy C., the subject of this sketch; Norman, who likewise is a representative farmer of Hopewell township; and John, of Tiffin.
Deroy C. Dunn was reared on the old homestead farm and received such educational privileges as were afforded in the public schools of the neighborhood. At the age of eighteen years he went to Lyons, New York, and was there employed on a farm for a period of three months. . after which he returned to his native county and again became identified
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with the work of the old homestead. After his marriage, in 1876, Mr. Dunn continued to work the homestead for his father for a period of five years, at the expiration of which, in 1881, he purchased one hun- dred acres of the place, including the residence and other farm build- ings, and in 1898 he purchased from his mother an additional tract of ninety-two acres, and thus he has one of the best farms.in the county, the land being exceptionally prolific, while the improvements are such as to greatly enhance the value of the property. Mr. Dunn is a pro- gressive and public-spirited citizen, and no man in this section is held in higher confidence and esteem. In political affairs he gives his support to the Democratic party so far as national issues are involved, but in local affairs he maintains an independent attitude, not being directed by strict partisan lines. He and his wife are both active and consistent members of the Protestant Methodist church. The attractive residence of our subject is one of the finest rural homes in the county, and it is a center of refined hospitality.
On the 16th of January, 1876, Mr. Dunn was united in marriage to Miss Savilla S. Crum, who was born in this county, of which her father, the late Frederick Crum, was a pioneer settler. Mr. and Mrs. Dunn have two children, Nelson F. and Mary O., both of whom remain at the parental home.
GEORGE W. MEYERS.
He whose life now comes under review must be distinctively regarded as one of the representative citizens of Seneca county,-one whose prominence in the annals noting the progress of agriculture in this favored section of the Buckeye commonwealth is similar to the position occupied, in the earlier stages of development and reclamation. by his honored father, who was one of the intelligent and enterprising pioneers of the county, where he lent his assistance in causing the tower- ing forests to give place to the grain fields whose soil has for years been furrowed and refurrowed by the plowshare.
Mr. Meyers was born on the parental homestead in Bloom town-
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ship, Seneca county, Ohio, on the 27th of May, 1835, being the son of Jacob and Maria ( Warren) Meyers, of whose nine children the four surviving are as follows: Mary F., the wife of Henry Meyers, of Attica; George W., of this review; William T., who is engaged in the insurance business in the city of Toledo; and Frederick, a resident of Denver, Colorado. The father of our subject was born in Switzer- land in the year 1797, and there he was reared and educated, learning the trade of shoemaker. About the year 1821 he emigrated to America and made his way to Philadelphia, where he worked at his trade until he had accumulated sufficient money to enable him to return to his native land for his parents, thus showing how deep was his filial devo- tion and how sterling his character. On his return to the United States he was accompanied not only by his venerable parents, but also by his two brothers. Henry and David. From Philadelphia they started for Ohio, but while en route the parents became ill, compelling them to stop in Meadville, Pennsylvania, where both died about two years later. Jacob Meyers and his brother David then came to Seneca county, locat- ing in Bloom township, where Jacob purchased a small tract of land, to which he added by entering claim to adjoining tracts, and finally became the owner of one hundred and eighty acres, while his brother David accumulated two hundred. They also filed entry on an eighty-acre tract for their brother Henry, who had remained in Philadelphia, where he was employed as an instructor in the blind institute, there remaining about eighteen years, and having been the first to teach to the blind the art of making brooms and brushes. His health finally became impaired and he then came to Seneca county and settled on his farm, so that the thrce brothers were numbered among the pioneers of this section. The father of our subject died in 1861, and his wife, whom he married in Philadelphia, passed away four years later. He was a Democrat in his earlier years of residence here, but was an ardent supporter of the Union cause as the Civil war drew on, and cast his vote in support of Abraham Lincoln for the presidency. He and his wife were devoted members of the Reformed church, and their lives were ever in harmony with the sincere faith which they professed.
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George W. Meyers was reared on the old homestead farm, in Bloom township, receiving the basis of a good practical education in the schools of the neighborhood, the supplementation having come by reading, per- sonal application and association with the practical affairs of life. Upon attaining maturity his father gave him employment by the month, and he thus continued to be concerned in the management and improvement of the homestead until the death of his father, and thereafter until the farm was sold by the heirs and the estate settled up, in 1870. Upon thus dividing the estate our subject invested his funds in his present farm, in Venice township, the same comprising one hundred and sixteen acres, and here he has since maintained his home, having been signally pros- pered in his efforts and having made the best of improvements on the place. In 1900 he purchased an adjoining farm of sixty acres, but he anticipates removing to the town of Attica in the near future and prac- tically retiring from the active duties and labors of the industry through which he has attained success. This will prove the consistent reward of his many years of toil and endeavor. In politics he is a stalwart Republican, and in religion his faith is that of the Universalist church.
February 28, 1867, Mr. Meyers was united in marriage to Miss Mary Meyers, who was born in this county, the daughter of Rudolph and Magdalena Meyers, who also were born in Switzerland, the two families, however, being not of the same lineal descent. Mr. and Mrs. Meyers have no children.
HARRISON DETTERMAN.
The Detterman family has been conspicuously identified with the development and the industrial activities of Seneca county from an early epoch in its history, and the subject of this sketch is a worthy representa- tive of this sterling pioneer family, the name which he bears standing for absolute integrity of character and for that productive industry which has conserved the development and substantial upbuilding of this fa-
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vored section of the Buckeye state. He is a native of Seneca county, where he has passed his entire life and where he commands the highest esteem of those among whom he has lived and labored to such goodly ends.
Mr. Detterman was born in Bloom township, on the 30th of No- vember, 1837, being the son of John H. and Catherine ( Stigameyer ) Detterman, both of whom were born in Prussia, the respective families having been neighbors there. John H. Detterman, in company with his brother Harmon and another young man, named Buckholt, emigrated to America when about twenty years of age, the three running away from home in order to escape service in the Prussian army. They first located in the city of Sandusky, Ohio, and thence the three came to Scipio township, Seneca county, whence, somewhat later, the two brothers proceeded to Fort Wayne, Indiana, where they were employed in connection with the construction of a canal during one summer. They then came again to Seneca county, and here John H. was united in marriage to Miss Catherine Stigameyer, who had crossed the ocean in the same vessel. He then effected the lease of eighty acres of raw land in Bloom township, clearing the same of its heavy growth of tim- ber and developing a good farm. There he continued to reside for a period of ten years, at the expiration of which, in 1844, he located on the farm where our subject now resides. Here his original purchase comprised one hundred and twenty acres of wild land, and upon the - same he built a log cabin of two rooms, making this primitive domicile his habitation for several years. He cleared and improved 'the place and there remained until 1869, when he purchased another tract, of two hundred acres, in Bloom township, where he continued to make his home until his death, on the 27th of April, 1900, at a patriarchal age. lacking but twenty-six days of ninety years. His wife died on the Ist of August, 1866, and he subsequently was united in marriage to Mrs. Anna Somers, who died at the age of seventy-seven years. Of the first marriage six children were born, of whom three-William, Mary and an infant-died young, the others being Harrison, the subject of this sketch ; Amos, a representative farmer of Adams township; and Samuel,
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who is engaged in agricultural pursuits in Bloom township. Of the second marriage there were no children. John H. Detterman had only five dollars when he arrived in America and here faced the problems of life, and his industry and good judgment were so effectively brought to bear that he became the owner of more than four hundred acres of land in Seneca county. He was a Democrat in politics, and his religious faith was that of the Evangelical Association, of which he was a devoted and influential member, having been class leader in the Detterman church for more than sixty years consecutively and having been honored by all who knew him. His wife, the mother of our sub- ject, was a devoted Christian woman, being a member of the same church and a lady of gentle and noble character.
Harrison Detterman was a child of seven years at the time when his parents removed to the farm which he now owns, and in the primi- tive district schools he secured his early educational training. He con- tinued to assist in the cultivation of the homestead until his marriage, after which he located on a farm of one hundred and nine acres, in Adams township. He disposed of this property at the expiration of nine years and returned to his father's homestead, of which he as- sumed charge, and here he has ever since continued operations in the line of general farming and stock-growing. He added to his holdings from time to time until he became the owner of four hundred acres of fine land, but he has since divided much of the property among his children, retaining in his homestead one hundred and twenty acres, and having one of the well improved and valuable farms of this section of the state. His political support is given to the Democratic party, and he served for several years as trustee of his township, proving a capable and dis- criminating executive and doing all in his power to forward the best interests of the community. He is a zealous member of the Evangelical Association and has been an active worker in the church for many years, having held the office of steward for nearly forty years, while for thirty years he has been incumbent of the office of superintendent of the Sun- day-school of Trinity church, which is located opposite his own resi- dence.
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On the 17th of November, 1859, Mr. Detterman was united in marriage to Miss Sophia Einsel, who was born in Pleasant township, on the 12th of October, 1837, the daughter of Henry and Sarah ( Keller ) Einsel, who removed to Seneca county from Fairfield county in the early pioneer days and. here passed the remainder of their lives, the father passing away on the Ist of September, 1886; and his wife on the 3d of November of the succeeding year, aged, respectively, eighty-one and seventy-four years. Both were lifelong members of the Evangelical As- sociation and were numbered among the honored pioneers of the county. To Mr. and Mrs. Detterman five children have been born, of whom one died in infancy, while those surviving are: John H. and William A., who are representative farmers of Adams township; Martha E., who remains at the parental home; and George E., who is likewise a successful farmer of Adams township.
HENRY D. KEPPEL.
Among the prominent and successful farmers and influential citizens of Seneca county is numbered Mr. Keppel, whose fine estate is located in Hopewell township. He is a native son of the county and a repre- sentative of one of its honored pioneer families, while it has been his to maintain the high reputation borne by his father, who was one of the leading men of this section of the county, being honored and esteemed by all who knew him.
Mr. Keppel was born on the farm where he now maintains his home, the date of his nativity being April 30, 1849. He is one of the five children born to George and Mary E. ( Rosenberger) Keppel, and four of the number still survive, namely: Anna C., the wife of Daniel L. Crum, of whom specific mention is made on another page of this work; Jane E., the wife of J. B. Lautzenheiser, of Hopewell township; Hattie L., the wife of Nelson A. Miller, likewise of this township; and Henry D., the subject of this review. George Keppel, father of our subject,
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HOME OF HENRY D. KEPPEL.
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was born in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, on the 4th of March, 1810, being the son of Henry and Anna C. (Steimetz) Keppel, natives respectively of Northampton and Westmoreland counties and representa- tives of old and prominent families of the Keystone state. They removed to Knox county, Ohio, in the year 1822 and resided there until 1839, when they came to Seneca county, where they passed the residue of their lives, the former passing away in 1842, at the age of seventy-four years. His wife survived him by many years, her death occurring in 1860. Henry Keppel served a year in the Indian wars in Pennsylvania. George Keppel, who was the eldest son and the third child in a family of six children, was reared on the homestead farm, and the management of the place largely devolved upon him after he had attained years of maturity, his educational advantages having been such as were afforded in the public schools of the day. In the fall of 1838 he purchased the homestead now owned by our subject, the same having comprised one hundred and sixty acres of heavily timbered land, and in the following year he established his home here, clearing the greater portion of the tract and making the best of improvements, including a thorough system of tile drainage. In the year 1872 he erected a fine brick residence, at a cost of about three thousand dollars, and he attained a high degree of success through his well directed efforts, being one of the influential citizens of the community. He also acquired another farm, of one hundred acres, located two and one-half miles west of the homestead, and was progressive and energetic in his methods, while his attitude was ever that of a public-spirited citizen. On the Ioth of November, 1842, he was united in marriage to Miss Mary E. Rosenberger, who was born in Jefferson county, West Virginia, the daughter of Henry and Jane Rosenberger, who were numbered among the pioneers of Seneca county, Ohio. George Keppel was a man of fine mentality and inflexible integ- rity, and he did much to advance the interests of this section of the county. In politics he gave his support to the Democratic party, but he was never an aspirant for public office. He was a devoted member of the First English Lutheran church in the city of Tiffin, and his gen- crous support of the same was indicated by the contribution of five
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hundred dollars to aid in the erection of the church edifice. No man commanded a higher degree of confidence and esteem in the community and his memory is revered by all who know him, his death occurring on the Ioth of September, 1897, at the venerable age of eighty-seven years, six months and six days. His widow still survives him, in her eighty- first year, and makes her home with her children, who accord her the utmost filial solicitude.
Henry D. Keppel, the immediate subject of this review, was reared on the old homestead and received his early educational training in the public schools, effectively supplementing the same by a course of study in Heidelberg College, in Tiffin. Upon attaining his majority he assumed the management of the farm, and thus continued until the death of his honored father, when he became the owner of the home- stead, where he has passed his entire life. Mr. Keppel has been suc- cessful in his farming operations and has made further improvements on the fine old homestead, having erected, in 1899, one of the best barns in the county, while in every respect his estate shows that he is a progressive and energetic member of the agricultural community. In politics, while never seeking the honors or emoluments of public office, he has given a stanch allegiance to the Democratic party and has been very influential in public affairs of a local nature. His wife is a member of the United Brethren church, to whose support they contribute in a liberal way.
On the 18th of December, 1877, Mr. Keppel was united in mar- riage to Miss Mary M. Miller, a daughter of Adam Miller, of whom individual mention is made in appending paragraphs, and of this union three children have been born, namely: Hattie Z., the wife of A. D. Biehler, of Pleasant township; Jesse E. and Nettie C., the two latter remainng at home.
Adam Miller, father of Mrs. Keppel, was born in Maryland, in the year 1818, and when he was a lad of eight years he came with his father, Daniel Miller, to Seneca county, the family locating on one of the pioneer farins of Hopewell township, where his parents passed the residue of their lives. He assisted in the reclamation and cultivation
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of the home farm until he attained years of maturity, and after his marriage to Miss Margaret Creeger, he rented the farm now owned by the widow of Michael Flynn and there continued in agricultural pursuits for a period of five years, at the expiration of which he purchased eighty acres of the present homestead, in section 20, Hopewell township, adding to the same from time to time until he accumulated a fine estate of two hundred and eighty acres. Here he continued to make his home until his death, which occurred on the 27th of October, 1901. He gave a stanch support to the Republican party and was prominent in public affairs in the community, having held the office of township clerk for a number of years and having been one of the influential men of this section of the county. His religious faith was that of the United Brethren church, of which he was a zealous and consistent member of the church of this name at Bascom. His six living children are as follows: Henrietta, the wife of William Glick, of Tiffin; Nelson A., of Hopewell; Mary, the wife of the subject of this sketch; Bertha, the wife of John Adams; James A., a resident of Bascom; and Hattie, the wife of Elmer Lott, of Boston, Massachusetts.
HENRY L. WENNER, M. D.
Tiffin is fortunate in that she has many very able representatives of the medical fraternity among her citizens,-men whose compre- hensive study and ready adaptation of scientific knowledge to the needs of suffering humanity has resulted beneficially in the alleviation of hu- mon suffering and the restoration of health. Occupying an enviable position among the prominent representatives of the profession is Dr. Wenner, one of Tiffin's native sons, his birth having occurred here on the 19th of September, 1861. Here he spent his boyhood days until he was seven years of age, and then went to Bucyrus, where he remained for ten years, attending the public schools until he had attained the age of seventeen. He then returned to Tiffin and was graduated in the
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high school here at the age of eighteen. He began reading medicine with Dr. A. B. Hovey, with whom he remained for a year, and after- ward studied under the direction of Dr. X. C. Scott, of Cleveland, Ohio, and in the medical department of the Western Reserve University, in which institution he was graduated in March, 1882. before he had reached his majority.
Dr. Wenner began practice in Mccutchenville, Seneca county, where he remained for six months, and was then in Arcadia for two years, after which he located in Tiffin, where he has since remained. Here he has since been in continuous practice and the success which has attended ยท his efforts has been based upon a thorough and comprehensive knowl- edge of the principles of the sciences of medicine and surgery, and cor- rect application to the needs of suffering humanity. While he has en- gaged in general practice he makes a specialty of surgery. His suc- cess in this direction is due to his minute and accurate acquaintance with anatomy, combined with power of diagnosis, a cool head, steady muscles and mechanical genius.
April 22, 1883, Dr. Wenner was united in marriage to Miss Jennie R. Smith, who died April 26, 1885. On the 26th of October, 1886, the Doctor was united in marriage to Miss Emma Huss, of Tiffin, and they now have two children: Henry L. and Marjorie E. In his political views the Doctor is a Republican, firm in his faith in, and sup- port of, the principles of the party. He was presidential elector from his district when William McKinley was first chosen to the presidency. For two years he was a member and one year president of the school board of Tiffin and was a candidate for congress in 1898, making a strong run in a district which has an acknowledged Democratic major- ity of great strength. He has served on the county executive committee for ten years, a part of the time as its chairman, and he takes an active and helpful interest in the work of the party, his labors having been at- tended with gratifying results. He has been state councilor of the Junior Order of United American Mechanics, and is now its state treas- urer and is also the Ohio trustee of the Orphans' Home of that order !! which institution is located in Tiffin. The Doctor is also connected
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with the Independent Order of Odd Fellow's and the Knights of Pythias. In the line of his profession he is identified with the Seneca County, Cleveland and the Northwestern Ohio Medical Associations, and there- by keeps in touch with the advanced thought and improved methods which are brought before those bodies and discussed for the good of all, thus rendering more proficient the labors of the physicians practic- ing in these districts. In his religious faith and membership he is a Baptist, while his wife belongs to the Methodist church. His life has been consistent with his church relations, and no physician in Tiffin has higher regard for the ethics of his profession. His skill has led to gratifying success and at the same time his hopeful spirit and genial temperament have been important factors in sustaining the courage of those to whom he has ministered thus aiding nature in her attempts to restore the normal condition of the patient.
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