A history of Scioto County, Ohio, together with a pioneer record, Part 117

Author: Evans, Nelson W. (Nelson Wiley), 1842-1913
Publication date: 1903
Publisher: Portsmouth, O. N. W. Evans
Number of Pages: 1612

USA > Ohio > Scioto County > A history of Scioto County, Ohio, together with a pioneer record > Part 117

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the son of James J. Bennett and Margaret Bowler, was born November 16. 1856, in Madison township. His grandfather Thomas J. Bennett came from Virginia, in 1809 and settled on the farm on which our subject now resides. His childhood was spent on the farm, receiving only such education as the common schools afforded. Politically he is a republican, though not active in politics. He has religious views peculiarly his own and claims to have been born in the family of God by regeneration, February, 1883, and takes the New Testament as his standard of belief. He was married May 9, 1880, to Jessie F. Moore. They have eight children living and one dead. The surviving chil- dren are as follows: Agnes, Gertrude, Clarence, Icy and Ivy (twins), Lillie. Nona and Emma.

Mr. Bennett is a man of excellent qualities-a good neighbor, a patriotic citizen and a thoroughly conscientious Christian. He is always ready to per- form a neighborly or Christian duty. He is honest and upright in all his dealings and can be counted among Madison township's model citizens.

William Jefferson Bennett

was born January 12, 1854, in Jo Daviess county, Illinois. His father was Jehiel Bennett and his mother was Mary Crain Bennett, daughter of Martin Crain. His grandfather was Benjamin Bentley of New York. His father was born in Scioto county, Ohio, and emigrated to Illinois. He lived in Illinois until 1867 and was engaged in farming. There were ten children in the family, two of whom died in infancy. There were seven sons and three daughters. When his father left Illinois, he went to Clark county, Missouri,

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and remained four years and from there went to Batesville, Arkansas, where our subject resided until 1875, when he came to Portsmouth, where he now re- sides. He was married September 14, 1876 to Lucy Woodruff, daughter of Isaac Woodruff. They have twelve children, three of whom are dead. Edwin J., blacksmith in Plattsburg, Wisconsin; Ernest Theodore, and William Jeffer- son, Jr., both shoe cutters in Portsmouth; Clinton W., presser for Haas, Schwartz & Company; Clair, deceased at two years; Walter and Wallace (twins) died at two years; Charles Crain, employed in the shipping room of Drew, Selby & Company; Lucy M., Benjamin Bentley, Mary Erna and Wesley Oliver at home. From 1877 to 1880, he was with the Portsmouth Transfer Company. From 1880 until 1887, he worked for Mark Wells. He was Street Commissioner of Portsmouth from 1887 until 1891. Mr. Bennett has always been a republican and is a member of the Baptist church of Portsmouth.

William Pool Bennett

was born in Madison township, Scioto county, January 15, 1880. He is the son of Rolla E. and Sarah Pool Bennett. She was the daughter of William Pool. The great-great-grandfather of our subject, M. Bennett came from Morgantown, Virginia, in 1806. He died in June, 1815, at the age of eighty- three. His son Thomas Bennett married Nancy Jenkins and to them was born Caleb Bennett, the grandfather of our subject, who married Eliza Stock- ham and to them was born Rolla E. Bennett. His family consists of Warren, in lowa; Erma, wife of Wm. N. Kent of Pike county, Ohio; Susan, wife of Wm. Brown; Harvey William, our subject, and Chloe. William's boyhood was spent on the farm and at the district school. He obtained a fair education. He con- ducts the home farm. His father Rolla E. Bennett was in Company G, 91st. O. V. I. He is a democrat. He married Florence Deemer daughter of Louis and Jane Thomas Deemer. December 16, 1900.

Aholiab Bentley

was born in Sharon, Pennsylvania, May 22, 1807, the youngest of eleven chil- dren of Benjamin Bentley and Mary Baldwin, his wife, a native of Penn- sylvania. For particulars as to his ancestry, see the Pioneer Record in this book. His father was a millwright and followed that trade for a number of years. He removed to Trumbull county when our subject was but one year old. There he attended the common schools and had to walk three miles. He worked on the farm in summer. Between the ages of fifteen and seven- teen, he attended school at Warren, Ohio, and after the age of seventeen years, he engaged in teaching in Richland county, then in the old court house in Georgetown, Brown county, and then after that, taught four miles north of Ripley. One of his pupils there was Doctor Dunlap. In 1828, he embarked it the mercantile business in Georgetown, Brown county, Ohio, and was engaged in this business and farming for ten years. He afterwards engaged in the same business at Higginsport. In 1830, Mr. Bentley married Mrs. Mary Ann McCauley. They had two sons, Morrison and Martin. She died in 1836. In 1840 he married Jane Linn. They had five children: Franklin, died in in- fancy; Mrs. Laura J. B. Lloyd, widow of Charles P. Lloyd; Mary E., widow of Richard M. Lloyd; Linn, of Columbus, engaged in the iron business and Ben- jamin, residing at Jackson, engaged in the grocery business.

In the spring of 1840, he became clerk at Hanging Rock landing for Camp- bell, Ellison & Company, who were running Mt. Vernon furnace. In the spring of 1840, he went to Manchester, Ohio, and engaged in milling for two years. In 1846, he and some others built Gallia furnace and remained engaged in that for eleven years. In 1853, he removed to Portsmouth, Ohio. In 1854, he became connected with Madison furnace in Jackson county, Ohio, and his fam- ily are interested in that at the present time. In 1873, he became a stockholder in the Globe Iron Company in Jackson county, Ohio. On November 7, 1866, he was elected a councilman in Portsmouth, from the Fifth ward. On October 7, 1870, he was appointed a member of the Board of Equalization for the city of Portsmouth. In politics, Mr. Bentley was a repubilcan. He never had any fail- ures in any of his enterprises. The rule of his financing was that he never invested in any enterprise more than he could afford to lose and the result of that was that he passed through every panic in our country with unimpaired

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credit. He was a member of the Sixth Street Methodist church of Portsmouth, Ohio. He was an excellent businesss man and always a christian gentleman. He died on December 26, 1891.

Linn Bentley

was born December 10, 1851, at Gallipolis, Ohio, a son of Aholiab Bentley, who has a sketch herein. His ancestry will be found in the Pioneer Record of this book. He resided with his father in Portsmouth during his youth. He at- tended the public schools at Portsmouth and the High School when it was first opened in the Salter building. He was a student at the Ohio Wesleyan Uni- versity in 1868 and 1869. He was a clerk in the Ohio Valley Bank with his father in 1870. From 1871 to 1874, he resided at Madison Furnace in Jackson county. He has been a member of the Methodist church since 1878. He has always been a republican in his political views.

He was married February 7, 1876, to Miss Rachel Alice Clare, of Ports- mouth, the youngest daughter of the late James D. Clare. They have two daughters, Sarah and Jennie L., and three sons, Linn Clare, deceased, Robert A., and James P. All of the children are with their parents in Columbus, re- siding at 585 Oak street.

Since 1871, Mr. Bentley has been engaged in the pig iron business and has been uniformly successful. He is now a member of the pig iron company of Feisner, Wagner and Bentley, operating blast furnaces in the Hocking Valley. Mr. Bentley is a gentleman of more than usual ability, and is highly esteemed by all who know him. He has never made a false or mistaken move in business and his career illustrates the idea of learning one business and following it to the exclusion of all others.

Mrs. Lora Elmira Bierley,

nee Salladay, was born in the French Grant, near Hayport, February 18, 1844. Her father was John Miller Salladay, and her mother's maiden name was Martha Hayward daughter of Moses Hayward. When she was a child, her parents moved to the Scioto valley, north of Portsmouth, where she was reared. She received a common school education. She was married September 19, 1877, to Samuel Bierley, and has had two children, Sarah Martha, wife of George D. Gims, who conducts a flour and feed store in Portsmouth, and Stewart Salladay a youth of seventeen years. Mrs. Bierley has resided within four miles of Portsmouth all her life, At present she resides at 381 East Eleventh street. She is a member of the Valley Chapel Methodist Episcopal church, and a woman highly respected and loved by all who know her.

William Biggs, Jr.,

was born January 16, 1830, at Greenup, Kentucky. He was one of twins, his twin brother being Robinson Biggs, who died June 22, 1852, unmarried. He was reared on his father's farm, and attended the local schools. He attended college at Washington, Pennsylvania, in 1848. In 1849, he went to Mount Savage Furnace, Carter county, Kentucky, as a store keeper of the furnace there, and followed that occupation and stock receiver for nine years, while his brother, Andrew was manager. In 1858, he took charge of his father's farm below Greenup, and managed it for eight years. March 15, 1860, he was married to Rebecca, daughter of Benjamin King, a prominent iron man of Laurel Furnace, Kentucky. In the year 1866, he removed to his present home, "Gravenstein Place," Greenup county, Kentucky, near Portsmouth, Ohio, where he has resided ever since. Mr. Biggs has had seven children: Robinson, a physician; Maurice, who married Nina Mitchell, of Greenup, Kentucky; Anna, wlio died in young womanhood; Lucy Davis, wife of Joseph Damron, engaged in businesss in Huntington, West Virginia; Sara and Helen Rebecca, at home; Winifred, wife of Irwin Smith, of Huntington, West Virginia. Mr. Biggs has always been a democrat. He is one of the most kind hearted men in the community where he resides, and is highly esteemed for his civic virtues.

Louis N. Bishop

was born in Portsmouth, Ohio, January 25, 1871. He is the son of Jolin Bishop of Portsmouth. His great-grandfather removed from England to Germany.

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HISTORY OF SCIOTO COUNTY.

and his father came from Germany to the United States. His mother, Clara Koch, was a native of Wurtemburg, Germany; she was a descendant from the Kohler family, and among them were those holding the title of Baron and Baroness.

Young Bishop received his education in the public schools of Portsmouth, and then learned the trade of a tailor, and later that of designing garments. In 1889, he left Portsmouth, and traveled for a year. In 1890, he took charge of the manufacturing department of Sanford, Varner &

Company of Portsmouth, and was soon afterward promoted to the position of designer, which position he has occupied ever since with the same house or its successor. He gives instructions in the art of designing and has pupils in different parts of the country. To such an extent was he called upon to give instructions, that he decided to publish his book entitled "The Modern Designer."

Mr. Bishop possesses fine literary tastes, and has quite a collection of books on scientific, historical and technical subjects.

Daniel Thompson Blackburn,

merchant of Rarden, Ohio, was born at Pine Grove Furnace, Lawrence county, Ohio, May 19, 1854. His father, Thomas Blackburn, was the son of Edward Blackburn, a native of Ireland, who came to America in 1815, in search of his brother whose whereabouts had been lost sight of. While here he married Elizabeth Thompson of Butler county, Pennsylvania.

The mother of our subject was Caroline (Scott) Blackburn, daughter of James Scott, of Butler county, Pennsylvania, and was of Scotch descent.

His parents moved to Mt. Joy, in 1854, where our subject spent his boyhood and received his early education. He attended the National Normal University at Lebanon, Ohio, for a short time. He commenced teaching at the age of eighteen and continued to teach for seventeen years, never teaching out- side of four districts, which speaks well for his ability as a teacher. While teaching, he was also interested in farming and fruit growing and was at one time known as the "peach boy of Mt. Joy."

In 1890, he gave up teaching and traded a farm he owned for a stock of merchandise in Moulton, Auglaize county, Ohio, and carrried on a general merchandise business there for three years, when he sold out and went back to Mt Joy, and the next year formed a partnership with J. R. Davis in the general merchandise business at Rarden, which partnership lasted till March 15, 1901, when Davis withdrew and the firm was changed to D. T. Blackburn & Son as it is still known.

While he is known as a merchant, he takes a very deep interest in agri- culture and has been a very active member of the organization formerly known as the Mt. Joy Fair Association, but at present is the Scioto County Ag. riculture Society, and has been its President for the past six years .. It is largely owing to his management that the fairs have been so successful.

When only ten years of age, he offered to volunteer in the 82nd O. V. I .. but was not accepted on account of his age. His father was a member of Com- pany H. 176th O. V. I. and served from September 2, 1864 to June 14, 1865. Mr. Blackburn served as assessor two years in Brush Creek township and was land appraiser of Rarden township for the year 1900. He has served one term as councilman of Rarden and was elected Treasurer of the corporation in 1902. which office he now holds. He was elected township Treasurer at the spring election of 1902, and was a member of the Rarden township Board of Education four consecutive years.

Mr. Blackburn is very liberal in his political views voting more for the man than his politics. He is strongly inclined to prohibition but votes the democratic ticket on national issues. He was reared a Presbyteran of the old school, but owing to the decay of his home church, he has placed his member- ship with the Mt. Joy Christian church.

He was married to Keziah. Unger, daughter of Jacob and Sarah Unger, of Pike county, March 7, 1878. They have seven children, two of whom died in infancy, one at the age of twelve and one at thirteen. Their names in order are: William H., deceased; Randall C., Daisy P., deceased; Ocie M., Quinton V., deceased; Lula M, deceased, and Sarah C.

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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.

Thomas Bartlett Blake

was born at Biddeford in Devonshire, England, on the 6th day of August, 1843. His father was William Blake, and his mother's maiden name was Elizabeth Bartlett. He attended the public schools in England, but left there at eleven years of age and went with his parents to Hamilton, Canada. His father was a butcher and he was brought up to that business. He soon learned it and at the age of nineteen years started in business for himself at Hamilton, Canada. He, however, had a desire to see something of the world and worked a while at his trade in Detroit; and afterwards at St. Louis. In 1862, he returned to Hamilton, Canada, where he engaged in his trade but a short time. In the latter part of 1862 and 1863 he was located in Detroit. From 1836 to 1870 he engaged in the same business in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. In the last named year he became tired of the long winters in Michigan and longed for a better country. While a boy in England at the age of nine, he had read and re-read and cried over, "Uncle Tom's Cabin." He then formed a great de- sire to see the Ohio river and visit the scenes along the river depicted in that work. So in 1870, when he determined to find a warmer country, the memory of "Uncle Tom's Cabin" came to him and he resolved to come to the Ohio river. In the fall of 1870, he was engaged in the sewing machine business at Eagle river, Keweenaw county, Michigan. In connection with this business he came to Cleveland and consulted with Mr. Wilson, of the Wilson Sewing Ma- chine Company; and as the result of such interview he came to Portsmouth and engaged in the selling of the Wilson Sewing Machine for four years. In 1874, he concluded after four years observation in Portsmouth that he had better re-enter the business he learned when he was a boy, so he started a meat shop on the corner of Second and Chillicothe and has kept it up ever since. He was married June 20, 1865, in Hamilton, Ontario Province, Canada, to Adelaide, daughter of Jacob Hess. The family originally came to Penn- sylvania and later to Canada. Mr. Blake has six children: Alice M., the well known violinist; Cora M., married Ralph Johnson; George H., who is in business with his father; William T., who is in the same busness in Chicago; Harry C., the famous base ball player; and Charles B., who is engaged in the meat business in Columbus. In his political views, Mr. Blake is a republican. He was naturalized in 1870. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity. Mr. Blake is a model citizen; and never at any time in his life let a draft or note go by; but at the same time, like other mortals, he has his weakness, and one is his pride in his English ancestry. Those who know him, and know how to work him, can get anything out of him by praising England and her institu- tions. He is the happiest when he can get with Henry Vincent, or some other Englishman, and talk over dear old England.

Philip Bobst,

the son of Philip Bobst, Sr., and Magdalena Frank, his wife, was born Sep- tember 3, 1847, at Lorain, Lorain county, Ohio. His parents were born at Durkheim, Bavaria, and emigrated to Lorain, Ohio, in 1846, where the son was born. In 1853 his parents moved to Beaver, Pike County, Ohio, and took up Congress land. Philip attended school only about nine months. He was raised on a farm and continued to work at farming all his life until 1896. He came to Scioto county, in 1871, and located near Portsmouth. He engaged in the grocery business on the Chillicothe pike in which he continued until 1900, when he went back to farming and gardening. He served as Jus- tice of the Peace of Clay township from 1883 to 1886, and was constable of the township for a number of years. He was a member of the School Board of Clay township a number of years, and served as president two terms. He was once elected Justice of the Peace but failed to qualify. He has always been a republican, and formerly took an active part in politics, but of late years he has been out of it. Mr. Bobst has been a member of the United Brethren church since 1864; and at present is a steward of the official board of the United Brethren church of Portsmouth. He was married May 3, 1867. to Margaret Brush, a daughter of John Brush of Beaver, Pike county, Ohio. By this marriage they had eleven children all of whom are living: Henry; Magdalena, married Charles May; Philip; Margaret, married George Vogel;

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Jacob, Aaron. Louis, Elizabeth A., Adam H., Fred C., and Clara M. His first wife died April 27, 1889, and he was re-married June 13, 1889 to Grace Voll- mer daughter of Leopold Vollmer, near Portsmouth, who emigrated from Bad- en, Germany.

Carl Christophf Bode

was born in Hanover, Germany, May 2, 1835. His father was Conrad Bode. He attended school in Hanover till the age of fourteen, when he was ap- prenticed to the stone mason's trade. He served in the Hanoverian troops for seven years. He came to the United States in 1864 and located in Cincinnati, where he worked two years at his trade and became acquainted with Henry Rosenberg, who induced him to come to Portsmouth, Ohio, in 1866. He built the Rosenberg business house on Gallia street, now occupied by Charles E. Welch, the grocer, and the Tribune. Mr. Bode conducted business alone until 1872 when he formed a partnership with Ignatius Reitz which continued for ten years. In 1882, he established a stone saw-mill on Twelfth street and went into business alone. In 1889, he opened a queensware store on Gallia street which is conducted by his widow. Mr. Bode went into the marble business in Portsmouth, in 1870. He was married in 1865 to Maria Theresa Koke, in Cincinnati, who with two children survive: Charles J., who is engaged in the monument business and is also a stone contractor and John Arthur, the well- kown music teacher. Three children died in infancy. Mr. Bode was a mem- ber of the German Evangelical church, and a republican in his political views, but never held any public office. He took a great interest in the Masonic order and in the Harugari society. He died August 26, 1902.

Colonel William Mather Bolles

was born February 28, 1827, at Brooklyn, Windham county, Connecticut. His father, David Charles Bolles, was a native of Connecticut and his mother, Fannie (Mather) Bolles was a direct descendant of Rev. Increase Mather, D. D. (1639-1723,) who was President of Harvard College from 1685 to 1701. He obtained a new charter for the Colony of Massachusetts and was the author of many works. His book to prove that the devil might appear as an honest man, enabled many convicted of witchcraft to escape death.

When our subject was six years of age, his father removed to Gran- ville, Ohio, resided there three years and then moved to a farm in Jackson county, near Jackson Ohio. Young Bolles lived on the farm until he was four- teen years of age, when he became a student at the Ohio University, where he attended for three years and then began the study of law with J. B. Johnson, at Athens, Ohio, where he studied until he was twenty-one, when he was ad- mitted to the bar at Pomeroy, Ohio, in 1848. He began the practice of law at McArthur, Ohio, and continued it until 1851, when he went to Ironton, Ohio, and went into the iron business with Campbell, Peters & Company, first as a book-keeper and then afterwards, a partner in the concern, in 1854. He also became a partner in Monroe and Washington furnaces. Monroe furnace was owned by McConnell, Bolles & Company and Washington by J. Peters & Com- „pany. These two concerns were combined in 1867, under the name of the Union Iron Company and Colonel Bolles was a partner in that and remained such until 1883, when the company dissolved.

When the war broke out he enlisted in Company C, 18th O. V. I., three months men April 22, 1861. He was appointed Captain on the same date and was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel, May 28, 1861. He was mustered out with the regiment August 28, 1861. The service of this regiment was on the Baltimore & Ohio railroad between Parkersburg and Clarksburg, West Vir- ginia. After this service he enlisted in the 2nd Virginia Cavalry and became Colonel of that regiment September 1, 1861. The regiment was mustered into the service November 8, 1861, and Colonel Bolles resigned the 7th of July, 1862. The regiment was engaged in the campaign at Lewisburg, West Virginia. Colonel Bolles after his service in the 2nd West Virginia Cavalry served as volunteer aide on the staff of General John F. Reynolds in the second battle of Bull Run and ending with the battle of Chantilly. He resided in Ironton until 1863, when he took up his residence in Portsmouth where he has re- sided ever since except the period from 1885 to 1896 when he was away on

COLONEL WILLIAM M. BOLLES.

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different employments. He was married October 21, 1852, to Miss Amaryllis Long. His children are: Mrs. George Crawford; William Bolles, who died in 1892, at the age of 30, leaving a wife and two sons, and Nellie, the wife of Ernest H. Merrick of Pass Christian, Mississippi. He was first a whig and af- terwards a republican. He is a Knight Templar Mason. Col. Bolles is at this time the oldest soldier of the Civil War residing in Portsmouth. He en- joys excellent health for his years. He is a gentleman of fine physical ap- pearance and great natural dignity. He developed great executive ability in the management of the iron business. He can unravel any set of books of any business and tell the financial condition of the concern with as much ability as any such work was ever done. His reputation for skill in this direction is known far and wide.

Henry Cole Bradford

was born September 27, 1838, at Friendship, in Scioto county. His father's name was Littleton Bradford, and his mother's maiden name was Abigail Sampson. He spent his boyhood at Friendship, and received a common school education. At the age of tewnty-one he began teaching school in Scioto county, which he continued for twenty years, seventeen years in the county and three years in the west. From 1869 to 1872, he lived in the west. In 1873, he began the occupation of a fruit grower, which he has continued ever since.

He was married December 2, 1863, to Miss Sarah Fenton, daughter of Bennett Fenton of Wheelersburg, Ohio. They have the following children: Claude, married Jessie Smith, residing in Portsmouth, Ohio, on Eighth street; Henry W., married Mertie Johnson, residing at Sciotoville; Ella, married Isaac Price, residing at Sciotoville; William Fenton, married Rosa Bolts, re- siding at Friendship; Emma, married David Gore, residing at Portsmouth, Ohio, on Findlay street; Littleton, aged twenty-five, and Herbert, aged twen- ty-one, at home.

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A history of Scioto County, Ohio, together with a pioneer record, Part 117

Author: Evans, Nelson W. (Nelson Wiley), 1842-1913 Publication date: 1903 Publisher: Portsmouth, O. N. W. Evans Number of Pages: 1612

Author: Evans, Nelson W. (Nelson Wiley), 1842-1913
Publication date: 1903
Publisher: Portsmouth, O. N. W. Evans
Number of Pages: 1612