USA > Ohio > Seneca County > A centennial biographical history of Seneca County, Ohio > Part 43
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Mr. Ecker was born in the kingdom of Bavaria, Germany, and in the fatherland he was reared to the age of sixteen years, having secured his educational training in the excellent schools of Bavaria. As a lad of sixteen he emigrated to America, making the trip in a sailing vessel and being on the water for seventy-six days. Shortly after his arrival he came to Seneca county, making Fostoria his destination, and for the ensuing six years he was employed on various farms in this locality. At the expiration of this period he rented land and engaged in farming on his own responsibility, continuing operation under these conditions for twelve years, within which time he accumulated sufficient money to justify him in the purchase of his present farm, which comprises ninety acres. When he located here the improvements made were of primitive order, a log house and a log barn having been erected on the place, which now has a fine residence and other buildings of the best type, while the land has been brought under a high state of cultivation. In addition to the homestead Mr. Ecker also cultivates the farm of one hundred and sixteen acres owned by his wife, the same being also lo- cated in this township. In political matters Mr. Ecker gives a stalwart support to the Democratic party, and his religious faith is that of the Reformed church, while his wife holds membership in the Lutheran church. He takes a lively interest in all that concerns the well-being of the community and he served for fifteen years as school director of his district.
On October 21, 1863, Mr. Ecker was united in marriage to Miss Lucetta Stahl, who was born in Seneca county, the daughter of Henry
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and Elizabeth ( Rinebold) Stahl, and of this union three children have been born, namely: Amelia, the wife of John Heughberger, of Leipsic, Ohio; Ephraim, who is associated with his father in his farming op- erations ; and Annie, the wife of Elmer Ash, of Gratiot county. Michi- gan.
Mrs. Ecker's parents have both died since the above sketch was written,-the mother on the 6th of March and the father on the 3d of May, 1902.
JEREMIAH PANKHURST.
This gentleman was one of the honored pioneers who aided in lay- ing the foundation on which to erect the superstructure of Seneca county's present prosperity and progress. Through the period of early development he was an important factor in the improvement and ad- vancement of this section of the state, and was also concerned with the broader interests which had to do with the welfare of the common- wealth.
Jeremiah Pankhurst was born in Kent county, England, on the 9th of January, 1809, and when twenty years of age he left the land of his birth for Canada, where he remained but a short time and then went to New York. He subsequently made his way to the Buckeye state, where for a number of years he was engaged in work on the canal. The year 1834 witnessed his arrival in Seneca county, where he entered forty acres of land in Loudon township, to which he afterward added until he became the owner of one hundred and twenty acres, but in 1847 he dis- posed of that property and purchased the one hundred and twenty acres where Mrs. Pankhurst now resides. He was very successful in his chosen line of occupation, and at one time he owned as high as seven hundred acres of land, but he afterward divided his property among his children, assisting each in turn as it came time for them to start on the journey of life on their own account, till his estate became reduced to three hundred acres at his death.
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Mr. Pankhurst was married in 1836, when Miss Mary Williams became his wife, and one child, Moses, came to bless their home, but he was called upon to lay down his life on the altar of his country at the battle of Stone River, at the age of twenty-two. The loving wife and mother was also called to the home beyond, and in 1841 Mr. Pankhurst wedded Miss Lucy A. McDougle, a native of Culpeper county, Vir- ginia, and a daughter of Benjamin and Nancy (Updyke) McDougle, who came to Seneca county as early as 1834. By his second marriage Mr. Pankhurst became the father of thirteen children, but only seven of the number are now living, namely : Daniel, John. Peter, Wesley, Amanda A., the wife of Robert Bingham, of Jackson township; Celinda, the wife of Joseph E. Chilcote, also of Jackson township, and Lucinda A., at home.
Mr. Pankhurst gave his political support to the Republican party, and he was honored with many of the public offices of his township. He was called from this earth on the 17th of October, 1884, passing away in the faith of the Methodist Episcopal church, of which he was long a faithful and consistent member. His was a long, active and hon- orable life, and his name is indelibly inscribed on the pages of Seneca county's history.
ANSON A. ANDERSON.
The first half of the nineteenth century was characterized by the immigration of that pioneer element which made the great state of Ohio what it is. These immigrants were sturdy, heroic, upright, sincere people, such as constitute the intrinsic strength of a commonwealth. It scarcely appears probable that in the future history of the world another such period can occur, or indeed any period when such a solid phalanx of strong-minded men and heroic, self-sacrificing women will take pos- session of a new country. Too careful or too frequent reference cannot be made in the pages of history concerning those who have figured as the founders and builders of a great commonwealth, and in connection
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with this brief review of the personal history of Mr. Anderson it is our privilege to touch incidentally and specifically upon interesting data. in regard to the sterling pioneer family of which he is a member and which has been identified with the annals of the Buckeye state since an early period in the last century. Our subject is known as one of the influential and worthy citizens and successful agriculturists of Seneca county, where he has passed practically his entire life, since his parents here located in the year of his birth.
Anson A. Anderson is a native son of the Buckeye state, having been born in Franklin county, Ohio, on the 18th of March, 1833, the son of John and Candacy (Chaney) Anderson, who became the parents of seven children, of whom only our subject and his sister Nancy sur- vive, she being the wife of Joseph Hoover, a prominent farmer of Hope- well township. John Anderson was born in Pennsylvania, about the year 1804, and from that state his parents emigrated to Ohio while he was a boy, locating in Franklin county, where his father took up a tract of wild land and where he was residing at the outbreak of the war of 1812, for which he enlisted, his death occurring at Fort Findlay while he was still in the service. His widow subsequently became the wife of a Mr. Jacob Eisenhart, and of their three children two survive,-Jacob, a resident of Michigan; and Harriet, of Williams county, Ohio. The father of our subject was reared on the pioneer homestead in Franklin county, receiving his educational discipline in the primitive schools of the place and period and early beginning to share in the arduous work of the farm. In that county occurred his marriage to Miss Chaney, and then he came to Seneca county in 1833, where he passed the remainder of his life, his death occurring in 1876, while to him was accorded un- equivocal esteem in this section of the state, where he was a pioneer set- tler. Upon coming to the county he entered claim to seventy acres of government land, in Hopewell township, the same being heavily tim- bered and practically untouched by the hand of man. He made a clear- ing and erected a little log house, and then set himself vigorously to the task of reclaiming the farm, eventually making good improvements and bringing it into effective cultivation. This farm is now owned by his
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son-in-law, Joseph Hoover, previously mentioned. Mr. Anderson con- tinued to reside on this homestead until his death, prior to which he had added to his landed estate in the county until he was the owner of more than two hundred acres. His wife had died two years previously.
Anson A. Anderson, the immediate subject of this review, was in- debted to the pioneer schools of Seneca county for the educational ad- vantages which were his in his youth, and he continued to assist in the improvement and cultivation of the old homestead until he had attained the age of twenty-three years, when he inaugurated his independent career by securing employment at farm work. Two years later his mar- riage occurred, and shortly afterward he rented a farm in Liberty town- ship, where he continued in agricultural pursuits until 1872, when he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of his present farm, in the same township, subsequently adding to the same by the purchase of con- tiguous tracts until the home farm now has an area of two hundred and forty acres. That he has been successful in his farming, which has been diversified from the start, is shown in the acquisitions he has thus made and in the fine improvements which are to be noted on the place, while he has further augmented his landed estate, being the owner of forty acres in Jackson township, sixty acres in Loudon township and eighty in Hopewell township, this entire property being well improved and under effective cultivation, the aggregate area of the estate being four hundred and twenty acres, so that our subject is to be designated as one of the extensive landholders of the county, as he is also known as a progressive and public-spirited citizen and as a man of irreproachable character. He has exerted a timely and valuable influence in public affairs of a local nature, maintaining an independent attitude in poli- tics, and the popular confidence in which he is held has been signalized by his election to offices of trust and responsibility, since he served six years as justice of the peace and two terms as trustee of Liberty town- ship. He is a communicant of St. Andrew's Catholic church, of which he is a trustee. His family also hold membership in the same church and are prominent in the social life of the community.
On the Ist of January, 1858, Mr. Anderson was united in mar-
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riage to Miss Catherine Corrigan, who was born in Pennsylvania, the daughter of Peter and Catherine (Nolan) Corrigan, who were among the honored pioneer farmers of Seneca county, Ohio, where he died at sixty-four years of age. Of the ten children born to Mr. and Mrs. An- derson all are living except Addie, who died at the age of seven years. The others are here named in the order of their birth: John, Jessie, Nettie, William V., James, Frank, Lawrence, Charles and Louis.
HENRY BYERS.
As one reviews the history of the county and looks into the past to see who were prominent in its early development he will find that through a long period the name of Byers has been closely connected with the progress and advancement of this section of the state. For many years Henry Byers, of this review, has been a resident of Seneca county. Wild was the region into which he came when a boy of fourteen years, and from that early period he has been prominently identified with the history of the community.
A native son of the Buckeye state, his birth occurred in Stark county, February 20, 1838, a son of Jacob and Nancy (McLoughlin ) Byers. The father was born in Frederick county, Maryland, but when a boy he came with his father, John Byers, to Stark county, Ohio, where the latter entered land from the government. Wild was the region at that early day. Its forests stood in their primeval strength, the prairie land was still unbroken, and the Indians roamed through the dense woods, seeking the game which could be had in abundance. There the son Jacob grew to years of maturity, and after his marriage he settled down to the quiet and peaceful life of a farmer. About 1852 he re- moved to Seneca county, purchasing eighty acres of land, which now forms a part of our subject's present farm, and there he spent his re- maining days on earth, passing away at the age of eighty-three years. In early life he gave his political support to the Democracy, but later he
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became identified with the Republican party, and his religious preference was indicated by his membership in the Presbyterian church. Of his eight children only three now survive,-Jeremiah S., a prominent farmer of Jackson township, Seneca county; Eliza, the wife of Isaac Cook, of Grattan, Michigan; and Henry, the subject of this review.
The latter grew to years of maturity on his father's farms in Stark and Seneca counties, and to their public schools he is indebted for the educational advantages which he received in his youth. When the trouble between the north and the south threw the country into civil war he nobly put aside all personal considerations, and in 1862 became a member of Company K, One Hundred and First Ohio Volunteer In- fantry, which was assigned to the Army of the Cumberland. With his regiment he took part in the battles of Perryville and Murfreesboro, but at the latter engagement he was wounded and taken prisoner. After a confinement of three weeks in Libby prison he was paroled and sent to the hospital at Annapolis, thence to the parole camp and later to Camp Chase, where he was ordered, after being exchanged, to join his regi- ment at Bridgeport, Alabama. Mr. Byers participated in all the battles in which his regiment took part excepting that of Chickamauga, and at the close of hostilities he was mustered out of service, receiving an honorable discharge in June, 1865, after which he returned to his home and again assumed the management of the homestead farm, which had been his task since his sixteenth year. Two years after returning from the war he was married, bringing his bride to the old family homestead, and after his father's death, in the early 'Sos, he purchased the place. Prior to this time he had also become the owner of a forty-acre tract adjoining, and thus his landed possessions were increased to one hundred and twenty acres, where he is now extensively engaged in gen- eral farming. He is a business man of much more than ordinary abil- ity, and his unremitting toil and close attention to business throughout his active career have been the means of winning for him the handsome competence which is to-day his.
The marriage of Mr. Byers was celebrated in 1867, when Miss Susanna Stainbrook became his wife. She, too, claimed Ohio as the
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state of her nativity, her birth having occurred in Muskingum county. They became the parents of four children, but two of the number, Fannie J. and Margaret E., have passed away in death, at eighteen and thirteen respectively, and the two surviving ones are Sarah E. and Arthur E., both at home. The loving wife and mother has joined her children in the spirit world, having closed her eyes in death in 1888. Mr. Byers gives his political support to the Republican party, but, although he is a public-spirited and progressive citizen to a marked degree, has never been a seeker after political preferment. For many years he was a memt- ber of the Methodist Episcopal church, but that congregation afterward disbanded, and he has never since allied his interests with any denomi- nation, although he is a constant attendant at divine worship. His social relations connect him with Ash Post, G. A. R., at Kansas, this county, in which he holds pleasant relations with his old army comrades of the "blue.".
ISAAC KAGY, M. D.
Dr. Isaac Kagy, who was born on the farm on which he now resides, February 2, 1828, is a 'representative of one of the old and prominent families of Seneca county. His father, John Kagy, was a native of the Old Dominion, having been born in Shenandoah county, Virginia, on the 17th of January, 1797, a son of Rudolph and Hannah (Siple) Kagy, who became the parents of the following named children: John, Jacob, Christian, Abraham, Catherine, Barbara, Hannah, Elizabeth, Mary, Rudolph, Henry and Martin. In the year 1819 this family left their home in the Old Dominion state and came to Ohio taking up their abode on a pioneer farm near Rushville, Fairfield county, where the grandfather of our subject died at the age of fifty-five years, his widow long surviving him and passing away at the venerable age of ninety-one years. Both were prominent and devoted members of the Baptist church and were known as persons of sterling character.
Deacon John Kagy, the father of the Doctor, was twenty-two
MRS. ISAAC KAGY.
ISAAC KAGY.
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years of age when he accompanied the family on their removal to Fair- field county, and after his arrival there he engaged in farming and teach- ing school. In 1822, at a public land sale, he purchased the farm on which our subject now resides, in Eden township, but this did not be- come his permanent place of residence until 1827. His first home here was a log cabin of one room, the domicile being twenty feet square and being constructed of round logs. This continued to be the family home for ten years, at the expiration of which period the present substantial brick residence was erected on the same site, in 1837. It is finished in walnut and butternut timber taken from the farm, and the brick utilized was also manufactured on the homestead, this having been one of the first brick houses to be erected in the county. Mr. Kagy secured his original homestead, of one hundred and sixty acres, from the govern- ment, and at that time it was covered with a dense growth of native tim- ber, principally walnut, but as the years passed he succeeded in effect- ively reclaiming the land and soon the fields were under an excellent state of cultivation. Here he continued to make his home until the 4th of April, 1865, when he removed to an adjoining farm, and from that time until his death he lived in quiet retirement, enjoying the fruits of his former toil and endeavor. He was a worthy member and active worker in the Baptist church, in which he long held the office of deacon, and in all the relations of life he was signally true, faithful and hon- orable, commanding the high regard of all who knew him. .
In Fairfield county, on the 3d of December, 1820, Deacon John Kagy was united in marriage to Miss Catherine Hite, who was born in Rockingham county, Virginia, on the 25th of July, 1801, and they be- came the parents of ten children, concerning whom we here incorporate a brief record. Andrew, who was a graduate of the Cincinnati Medical College, was long engaged in the practice of his profession at Union Mills, Iowa, where his death occurred in the year 1871 ; Hannah became the wife of Henry Boroff, and her death occurred in 1853: Rudolph, who was born May 13, 1826, became a successful farmer in Marion county, Illinois, where he located in the year 1861 and where his death occurred on the 29th of June, 1901 ; Isaac, the next in order of birth, is
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the immediate subject of this review; John B., who is a prominent at- torney-at-law of Salem, Illinois, and ex-judge of the county court, was for many years a professional partner of Judge Silas L. Bryan, the father of William Jennings Bryan; David, who was born May 23, 1832, died in Illinois, on the 8th of February, 1887, having been there engaged in farming, while he was also a successful teacher for a number of years ; Rachel, who was born May 3, 1834, is the wife of Benjamin Huddle, of Marion county, Illinois ; Catherine, who was born on the 25th of Jan- uary, 1837, became the wife of Hirani J. Cummings, and she died at their home, in Pierce City, Missouri, on the 19th of March, 1885; Levi, who was born October 29, 1838, is a resident of Fostoria and was for- merly incumbent of the office of auditor of Seneca county; and Amos H., who was born January 16, 1841, is a prominent attorney of Kansas City, Missouri. The father of these children lived to attain the vener- able age of eighty-eight years, his death occurring at the home of his daughter Rachel, in Illinois, whence his remains were brought to the old home in Seneca county and interred in the Kagy cemetery. His. cherished and devoted wife passed away at the age of eighty-five years.
Dr. Isaac Kagy, the immediate subject of this sketch, was reared on the farm where he now maintains his home, and his preliminary educa- tional discipline was received in a subscription school one mile distant from the homestead residence. At the age of eighteen years he was matriculated in the Physio-Medical College in Cincinnati, in which he was graduated as a member of the class of 1849, and immediately after leaving that institution he located in Bloom township, in his native county, where he was engaged in the practice of his profession for eight months. During the winter of 1849-50 the Doctor was engaged in teaching in one of the district schools of the county, and thereafter he resumed the active practice of his profession, locating at Green Spring, where he remained for five years. At the expiration of that period he was compelled to abandon the work of his profession, his health having become much impaired, and from that time until 1861 he served as post- master at Green Spring and was also the local station agent for the M. R. & L. E. Railroad. In the year mentioned he resigned these po-
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sitions and became auditor of Seneca county, retaining this incumbency for a period of four years, having been elected to this office in 1860. In 1863, having prosecuted a careful course of technical reading, the Doc- tor was admitted to the bar of the state, though he has never given much attention to work in the line of this profession. He has long been an active factor in political and governmental affairs in the county and has gained distinctive recognition as one of the leaders of the Demo- cratic party in this section of the state, ever laboring earnestly and effect- ively to advance the party cause. In 1865 the Doctor was elected to rep- resent his district in the Ohio legislature, in which he served for a term of two years, proving an able and valuable working member of the legislative body. For three years he was incumbent of the office of justice of the peace, and while serving as county auditor he was simul- taneously a member of the city council and the board of education of Tiffin. In 1872 Dr. Kagy was appointed by the county commissioners to fill a vacancy in the office of county auditor, and in 1885, when oc- curred the death of the county treasurer, John Heabler, the Doctor was chosen to fill the vacancy and served in that capacity for sixteen months. Dr. Kagy's name is a familiar one in political circles in this section of the state, and, by reason of his marked intellectuality and superior abil- ity, he is well fitted to aid in molding the policies of the state, to control general interests and direct public opinion, and he has been a potent factor in the councils of his party, serving as delegate to its various con- ventions in the county and state and doing specially effective work in advocating its cause during the different campaigns and through timely and able contributions to the public press. From 1890 until 1900 Dr. Kagy served consecutively as a member of the state board of equaliza- tion, the number of whose members is the same as that of the state sen- ate, and whose duties are in the equalization of the real-estate assess- ments in the state. From 1873 to 1875 he was one of the proprietors and editors of the Toledo Democrat, devoting the major portion of his time to editorial work in this connection, while from early years he had been a frequent and valued contributor to the local papers. When Ma- jor Armstrong was elected to the office of secretary of state he insisted
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upon the Doctor's taking up a line of editorial work on the Seneca Ad- vertiser, and he did very efficient service in this capacity. He is a felici- tous public speaker and his services have long been in requisition in this capacity, both in connection with political work and on various other oc- casions. The Doctor was one of the organizers of the Seneca County Agricultural Society, with which he continued to be identified until the organization became defunct. In 1857 he became a member of Green Spring Lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, being later dimitted to Tiffin Lodge, of which he has been a prominent member for a score of years.
While Dr. Kagy has a deep respect for spiritual verities, he has ad- vanced and pronounced views and is in thorough sympathy with the doctrines advanced by the late Colonel Robert G. Ingersoll. He was reared under the rigid discipline of the Baptist church, and such is the constituency of his vigorous mentality that he early began to be some- what skeptical as to the consistency of orthodox religious tenets, and his reading and investigation eventually led him to become an avowed agnostic. His mind is intrinsically logical and he demands reasons, not dogmatic statements, and thus he secured little satisfaction in attempt- ing to reconcile religious doctrines with scientific truths. He has been an extensive and careful reader, has marked powers of assimilation, and his analytical and logical mind has brought to him definite convictions, which he is ever able to effectively defend.
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