Biographical history of northeastern Ohio : embracing the counties of Ashtabula, Trumbull and Mahoning, Part 29

Author: Lewis Publishing Company
Publication date: 1893
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 786

USA > Ohio > Mahoning County > Biographical history of northeastern Ohio : embracing the counties of Ashtabula, Trumbull and Mahoning > Part 29
USA > Ohio > Trumbull County > Biographical history of northeastern Ohio : embracing the counties of Ashtabula, Trumbull and Mahoning > Part 29
USA > Ohio > Ashtabula County > Biographical history of northeastern Ohio : embracing the counties of Ashtabula, Trumbull and Mahoning > Part 29

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

Wallace Jolinson was married March 15, 1867, to Martha J. McCorkle, who was born in Champion, Ohio, April 27, 1846, daughter of John and Elizabeth (Slough) McCorkle. Her parents both lived to a good old age and died in this county. Three of their four chil- dren are still living. The McCorkles are of Scotch origin. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson have three children, namely: Rolla, born in Mil- ton, Ohio, July 5, 1868, is married and set- tled in life; Frances A., born at Milton, Au- gust 8, 1870, at home; and Jolin R., born in Newton township, November 16, 1881, is also at home. Mr. Johnson has given his children the benefit of good educational ad- vantages. He has served on the Board of Education for thirteen years, and it may be well to state liere that his father was one of the early school teachers of this part of the country. Mr. Johnson and his family are prominent and active members in the Con- gregational Church. For a number of years he has been a member of Masonic lodge No. 462, of Newton Falls. Politically, he is

a Republican. His whole time and attention are given to his farming operations, he being the owner of one of the best farms in the township.

In connection. with the history of his an- cestors, we further record that his grand- father Force was a soldier in the war of 1812 and was a pensioner of that war.

E LIJAH JOHNSON, one of the pron- inent farmers of Newton Falls, Trum- bull county, Ohio, now living retired was born in Genesee county, New York, March 4, 1821. His father, Isaac Johnson, was a son of Elijah Johnson, a prominent minister of the Presbyterian Church, who was born, passed liis life and died in Massachu- setts. Isaac Johnson's birthplace was near Mt. Tom, Massachusetts. When he was twenty-one years of age he went to New York and settled on Fly creek, near Utica, where he carried on farming operations and also ran a carding mill. He removed from there to Le Roy, Genessee county, and later to Trumbull county, Ohio (1833), where he died at the age of sixty years. The mother of our subject was before her marriage Miss Sarah Dodge. She was born in Utica, New York, and died at the home of her son, Elijah, at the age of seventy-four years.

Elijah Johnson was the third born in a fanily of ten children, all of whom grew to maturity and five of whom are still living. His early life was not unlike that of other farmer boys, his summer being spent in work on the farm and his winters in attendance at the district schools. He was married at the age of twenty-three to Miss Jane Fenton, a native of Milton, Ohio. They had five chil- dren, four of whom are still living, namely,

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BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY

Erastus, Ancil, Chauncey and Randall. All are married and have families of their own except Randall, and all have had excellent educational advantages. The mother of these children died at the age of fifty-nine years. September 27, 1884, Mr. Johnson married his present companion, whose maiden name was Electa Oviatt, who was born in Trumbull county, Ohio, December 25, 1825.

Previous to his first marriage Mr. Johnson had bought a farm, and to it he took his bride. After they had resided there two years, he sold out and bought another farm in the same vicinity, Newton township, which, at the time of purchase, was partly improved. This he developed into a fine farm and made a lovely home on it, and there he lived for forty-eight years. He then turned the property over into the hands of his sons and retired from active life. Upon retiring from the farm, he bought a home in Newton Falls, and here, surrounded by all the comforts of life, he is spending his de- clining years.

Mr. Johnson was an old-line Whig in his early life. His first vote was cast for Henry Clay. Since the organization of the Repub- lican party he has cast his vote with it. He has filled various local offices, always pre- forming his duty faithfully and in a manner which reflected credit on himself as well as on his fellow citizens. He and his family are church goers, are active and pseful mem- bers of society, and are held in the highest esteem by all.

ELAND ABELL, of Johnston town- ship, Trumbull county, Ohio, is one of the intelligent and highly respected citizens of his community. He was born

February 14, 1847, on the farm adjoining his present home, son of Edward Lewis Abell, who was born in Litchfield county, Connect- icut, December 1, 1815, son of Erastns Abell, also a native of Connecticut, born April 16, 1788. The Abell family came west to Ohio in 1832 and settled in Johnston township, Trumbull county. In this township Edward L. Abell was married, December 1, 1840, to Mary L. Root, daughter of George Root. He and his wife had eight children, of whom four sons are still living: Leland, H. G., Calvin C., and Charles E. Those deceased are Sarah Ann, Julia A., George aud Lucy E. The mother of this family died April 8, 1871, and the father passed away August 5, 1890. The latter was engaged in sawmilling for a number of years. He sawed most of the lumber used in building the first frame houses in this part of the county. He was also a brick and stone mason by trade. Po- litically, he was a Republican, and he and his wife were both members of the Disciple Church.

Leland Abell was reared on his father's farm, and was educated in the public schools and at Oberlin College. He is now the owner of a valuable farm, comprising 104 acres, located near Cortland. His modern frame residence is located on a natural build- ing site, and his barns and other farm build- ings are all in first-class order. For twenty- five years he has made a specialty of the poultry business, and there is not another man in this part of the country who has been as successful as he. He has two large poul- try houses, one 15x 110 feet, and the other 16 x 100 feet, fitted up with four incubators, purchased at a cost of $450. They are heated by steam. His annual business amounts to froni $15,000 to $20,000, and his product finds a ready market in the best houses in

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New York city. During the busy season he employs from fifteen to thirty-five hands.

Mr. Abell was married November 25, 1873, to Huldah Smith, daughter of Rev. Calvin Sinith, a prominent pioneer minister of the Disciple Church. During his work in the ministry Rev. Mr. Smith had no less than 1,500 converts. He has long since passed to his reward. His widow is a resident of this township. Mr. and Mrs. Abell had seven children; two, Lucy and Etta, are de- ceased, and five are living. The names of the latter are Myrtie S., Alda G., Shiner Laing, Pearl L., and Margarite.

Mr. Abell formerly affiliated with the Re- publican party, but is now a Democrat. He has served as Constable and Town Clerk. Fraternally, he is a Mason, being a member of Cortland Lodge, No. 529. Socially, po- litically and financially, he is ranked with the substantial men of the county.

D R. JAMES S. BROWN, of Mecca, Ohio, has been identified with the inedical profession of Trumbull county for the past decade. He was born in New York city, June 3, 1854, his name at birth being James Smith. Of the first five years of his life nothing is known, except that he was placed in a home for the friendless in New York city. He was brought to Ober- lin, Ohio, October 5, 1859, and was adopted by James M. and Rachel B. Brown, a highly- respected couple in Mecca, Ohio, who had come to this place from Plainfield, Connecti . ent, in 1836. They gave him loving care and attention, and reared him as their own child, educating him at Granville, Ohio, and at Madison University, in New York. While

a senior in the latter institution he was com- pelled, on account of ill health, to leave college, and he then spent one year in Min- nesota. In 1869 and 1870 he was at Grinnell College, Iowa. Following that he taught school for some time. He began the study of medicine under the instructions of Dr. S. H. Smith, of Mecca, Ohio, who subsequently removed to Warren, where he died. Dr. Brown then took a- medical course at Adel- bert, and is also a graduate of the Western Reserve Medical College, at Cleveland, Ohio, being a member of the class of 1882. Upon completing his college course, Dr. Brown located at Mecca, where his skill and thorough knowledge in his profession soon gained for him a position among the leading physicians of the county.

Dr. Brown was married June 20, 1883, to Miss Rosa J. Smith, a cultured and refined lady, who was previous to her marriage en- gaged in teaching. She is a daughter of William N. and Prudence Smith, prominent citizens of this township. Dr. S. H. Smith, above referred to, was a brother of Mrs. Brown. The Doctor and his wife have five children: May L., James Herbert, Edna Frances, Emily R. and Lawrence Nelson.

Dr. Brown is prominent, not only in his profession, but also in fraternal, political and socials circles. He is a member of the I. O. O. F, No. 707, in which he has passed all the chairs, and is captain of Camp No. 41, State Police. He is identified with both the Trun- bull County Medical Society and the Ohio State Medical Society. Politically, he is a Republican. He has served for three terms as Township Clerk. For the following in- surance companies he is examiner: The Na- tional Insurance Company, New York Life, Equitable of New York, Manhattan, and Northwestern of Milwaukee. The Doctor's

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musical talent has brought him into promi- nence in musical and social circles, where he is a great favorite. He is a member of the glee club, and was organist at the Dennison University.

H F. COLTON is another one of the respected citizens of Johnston town- ship, Trumbull county, Ohio, who served in the late rebellion, and who bas a brilliant war record.

He was born in Trumbull county Septem- ber 9, 1839, son of Alanson Colton, one of the well-known early settlers of the county. Alason Colton died in 1855, leaving a widow and four children. His widow survived him until 1871. He was a farmer all his life and was a faithful niember of the United Breth- ern Church.

H. F. Colton was reared on his father's farm in Bazetta township, and received a comnion-school education there. When the war came on and continued to rage, and when Lincoln called for fresh troops to suppress the rebellion he enlisted in the One Hundred and Fifth Ohio Infantry for a term of three years. Near Chickamauga he was taken prisoner, was held on Bell's island five days, and from there was taken to Libby prison, where he was held a month. The hardships and sufferings lie saw and endured during that time can better be imagined than de- scribed. From there he was taken to Dan- ville, Virginia, where he was held four months. He was one of those who had the courage to tunnel out of prison, sixty prison- ers making their escape in this way, and twenty of that number being retaken by the rebels. Young Colton escaped to the mount- ains, traveled hundreds of miles on foot, sought refuge in the mountains or in negro

huts, and by the aid of the Union Home Guards was enabled, after weeks of suspense and suffering, to reach the Union lines. Shortly afterward he joined General Sher- man's forces on the famous " march to the sea," and on that long journey he also en- dured many hardships and much suffering. He was among the victorious soldiers who took part in the grand review at Washing- ton, was honorably discharged, and returned to his home in Trumbull county, Ohio. He lived in Bazetta township for some years en- gaged in farming, and in 1880 he located on his present farm of 100 acres, in Johnston township. This property is well improved, and is devoted to general farming and stock- raising.

Mr. Colton has been twice married. Be- fore he entered the army he wedded Miss Elizabeth Sherbondy, who died in 1864 while lie was in a hospital. July 9, 1868, he mar- ried Miss Sarah Murphey, who was born and reared in Pennsylvania, daughter of Jacob Murphey. They have no children.

Mr. Colton is a member of Creyton Post, No. 435, G. A. R., his name being among the list of charter members. He votes with the Republican party.

EORGE MURDOCK is one of the successful farmers of Johnston town- ship, Trumbull county, Ohio. He is an ex-soldier of the Civil war, and a man in every way entitled to the highi esteem in which he is held by his fellow-citizens. Of his life we present the following résumé.

George Murdock is a native of Ayrshire, Scotland, that region noted for its fine cattle and sturdy men. He was born in May, 1824, son of George Murdock, Sr., who was also a

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native of that place. The subject of our sketch was reared on a farm, and was edu- cated in his native land. When he was about twenty-eight years old he came to the United States and settled in Kinsman, Ohio, where he has lived for nineteen years, engaged in farming. September 4, 1862, he enlisted in Company B, One Hundred and Twenty-fifth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and rendered gal- lant service during the war. He was in nu- merous engagements and was twice wounded. At Franklin, Tennessee, he was struck in the leg by a ball, and at Kenesaw mountain re- ceived a wound in the head. He was confined in a hospital for some time, but as soon as he recovered he rejoined the ranks, remaining at the front, a brave, trne soldier, until the con- flict was over, when he was honorably dis- charged.

Mr. Murdock owns twenty-six acres of land in Gustavus, and has seventy-eight acres in Johnston township, both Trumbull connty. His farming operations have been character- ized by success, and there is not another man in this vicinity who is more highly respected than this sturdy Scotchman. He is firm in his convictions of right, and his word is ever regarded as good as his bond. Mr. Murdock has never married. His brother, McGarvin Murdock, was a resident of Shelbyville, Indiana, and died in September, 1893. Po- litically, our subject is a Republican.

S MITH CLARK, one of the highly re- spected and well-to-do citizens of Brookfield township, Trumbull county, Ohio, is a native of this place. He was born December 28, 1819, one of the seven children of Ira and Sarah (Smith) Clark, he being next to the oldest. The names of the other chil-

dren are Lester, Clarinda Elira, Seth, Alva, and Lucy. His father, one of the prominent pioneers of this county, owned a farm of 150 acres and was engaged in agricultural pur- suits all his life. He was born in 1793 and died in 1882, and his wife, born in 1795, died in 1880. Both were members of the Disciple Church.

Smith Clark remained on his father's farm until he was twenty-two, when he turned his attention to work at the carpenter's trade. IIe subsequently returned to the farm and for the past thirty years has been engaged in farming and stock-raising. He owns 210 acres of fine land.

Mr. Clark was married in 1845 to Jane Mervin, who died in 1858. Her two chil- dren are now dead. In 1860 he married again, and by his present wife has had four children: Charles W., Mandie B., Frank A. and Mary Lonella. Charles W. died at the age of nineteen.

Mr. and Mrs. Clark are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and in politics he is a Republican, as also was his father. Mr. Clark has served as Township Trustee.

H IRAM BENEDICT, one of the leading farmers of Braceville township, Trum- bull county, Ohio, was born at the old homestead where he now lives, Jannary 7, 1830, son of William and Mary (Lawson) Benedict.

William Benedict was born in Connecti- cut, and when a young man came with his parents to Ohio in 1809, settling in Brace- ville township, Trumbull county. They made the journey to this frontier settlement with ox wagons, landing at their destination after six weeks of tedious travel. They brought

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BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY

with them their household goods and a few dollars in money. Here Hezekiah Benedict, the father of William, bought 640 acres of wild land, and on it erected a log cabin, one of the first houses in this part of Trumbull county. This land was first owned by Mr. Brace, in honor of whom the township was named. As the land was still all wild when the Benedict family settled here, it was a year before they could make a clearing and raise a crop, and during the early period of their residence here they suffered many hardships. At first all their provisions had to be hauled from Pittsburg, there being no trading post nearer than that city. They liad considerable trouble with the Indians as well as with the wild animals. On one occasion, a certain Sunday, the Benedict family had a rattle- snake hunt, and it is stated as a fact that on that day they killed 425 snakes. William Benedict was prominently identified with the political affairs of his county at that early day. For twenty-five years he served as Justice of the Peace. He was married three times, and had twelve children, five of whom are yet living, two sons and three daughters. The mother of our subject died at the age of fifty-seven years. Of William Benedict, we further state that he was for eighteen months a soldier in the war of 1812.

After his father's death, Hiram Benedict bought the interest of the other heirs to his father's estate, and up to the present time has made his home on the old farm. In 1860 the residence and farm buildings here were all destroyed by a cyclone.

Hiram Benedict was married June 4, 1863, to Miss Olive M. Bacon, who was born Oc- tober 15, 1842, daughter of Enos and Kerren Happnch (Brooks) Bacon. They have two children, William F. and Maude I., the son having been educated at Farmington and Can-

field. William F. was born July 24, 1865, was married August 16, 1892, to Miss Hattie Ernst, and is now a resident of Sherman, Ohio, being the agent and telegraph operator at that place. Mande I. was born March 29, 1867. Mrs. Benedict is a woman of fine in- tellect and rare social qualities. Assisted by her daughter, she presides over their home in a most charming manner, their hospitality being unbounded and of the truest type. The whole family are members of the Disciple Church, and are active workers in both church and social circles. Mr. Benedict has been a Deacon in the church for many years.

Mrs. Benedict is a member of one of the most prominent pioneer families of eastern Ohio, and of the Bacon family we make the following brief record :

Enos Bacon, the father of Mrs. Benedict, was born in Bridgeton, New Jersey, in the year 1802, and when he was five years old moved with his parents to what was then the new State of Ohio. He died at Cortland, Trumbull county, at the age of eighty-six years. His life was one of great activity. He affiliated with the Democratic party and held various local offices. He was a novelty manufacturer in wood, and was for many years engaged in the lumber business also. Mrs. Benedict's mother was a native of this county, and died at the old Bacon home place in Cortland, aged fifty-four years. They liad seven children, four sons and three daughters, Mrs. Benedict being the youngest. Three of this number are still living. Enos Bacon was a son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Harris) Bacon, both natives of New Jersey. Upon their ar- rival in Trumbull county, Ohio, in 1807, they settled on the margin of the Mahoning river, two miles and a half from Warren, the county seat of Trumbull county. Enos Bacon's father first made the journey to Ohio on foot, a dis-

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tance of 450 miles. Enos Bacon, as above stated, was a manufacturer, and he was the first man to nse steam power in Bazetta township. He stood on deck of the first vessel that ever sailed Lake Erie, and he was also on deck of the vessel in which the cele- brated Perry won his victory. Mrs. Bene- dict's great-grandfather Brooks was a Baptist clergyman and preached General George Washington's funeral sermon.

W ILLIAM DAVIS, of Cortland, Ohio, is another one of the prominent and wealthy farmers of Trumbull county. He was born on the farm he now owns and occupies, in 1825, son of William Davis, Sr., one of the earliest settlers of this section of the country. The senior Davis was born and reared in Washington county, Pennsylvania, and came from that place to Trumbull county, Ohio, in 1811, making the journey hither by team. When he settled here the woods abounded in bears and wolves, and there were many Indians in various parts of the State. He built his log cabin near Cortland, improved a good farm of 160 acres, and here passed the rest of his life. His wife, whose maiden name was Ann Luce, was also a native of Washington county, Pennsylvania, she being a daughter of the Rev. Mr. Luce, a pioneer preacher in Pennsylvania. Mr. and Mrs. Davis were the parents of thirteen chil- dren, namely : Susan, Aaron, Mathias, Ruben, Mary, Permila, Eliza, Lucy, Maria, Judson and Stoton (twins), William and Elijah F. Elijah F. is an eminent physician of Cleve- land, Ohio. The father of this family was a soldier in the war of 1812. He died at the age of seventy-eight years. His wife lived to the advanced age of ninety-nine.

William Davis, with whose name we begin this sketch, was reared on his father's farm until he was fifteen. At that youthful age he started out upon his own responsibility. To-day he is the owner of about 1,000 acres of land, being ranked with the largest tax- payers of the county, and nearly all of his accumulations are the result of his own honest toil and good management. For a number of years he has been largely engaged in the stock business, raising, buying and selling stock.

At the age of twenty-eight, in Johnston township, this county, Mr. Davis married Olive Deming. They have three children: Sarah, wife of Frank Freer, lives in Bazetta township, has three children; Frank, who married Nellie Green, has one child, Olive, their home being in Mecca township, this county; and Walter, a resident of Bazetta township, married Clara Hahusk, and has one child, Irene.

Mr. Davis has long been an ardent Repub- lican, but has never been an office-seeker, He helped to organize the Bank of Cortland, of which institution he is vice-president, and he is also a stockholder in the Western Re- serve Bank, of Warren. Mr. Davis is a man of strong physique, weighing about 230 pounds, and by nature is frank and jovial. Few men in Trumbull county have more friends than he. While Mr. Davis is not a member of any church, he is a liberal con- tributor to all denominations.

B T. BATTLES, a prominent citizen of Bazetta township, Trumbull county, Ohio, is a veteran of the late war, and is at present Commander of the Burrow-Co-

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burn Post, No. 466, G. A. R., of Cortland. The following brief sketch of his life is ap- propriate in this work:

B. T. Battles was born in Weathersfield township, Trumbull county, Ohio, August 28, 1840. Edward Battles, his father, was born in Trumbull county, Ohio. He was married here to Catherine Orah, a native of Lehigh county, Pennsylvania, and a daughter of George Orah, one of the early settlers of Warren. Mr. Battles died near Warren, at the age of seventy-seven years, and his widow is still living, now in her eighty-fourth year, making her home with her children. He was a farmer by occupation, and in politics was a Democrat. They had nine children, three sons and six daughters, namely: Lucy Jane, George, Mary, Elizabeth, Charlotte, Benjamin T., Almira, Priscilla and Ed Emery.

B. T. Battles was reared on his father's farm, and his education was limited to that of the common schools. When the Civil war came on he was among the brave boys who donned the blue. He enlisted October 5, 1861, in Company G, Nineteenth Ohio Vol- unteer Infantry, and was honorably dis- charged December 31, 1863, his term of enlistment having expired. He at once re- enlisted in the same company and regiment, and served until April 5, 1865, when he was again honorably discharged, this time re- ceiving a surgeon's certificate and being dis- charged on account of disability. He par- ticipated in many a hotly contested battle. Among the engagements in which he took part we mention those of Pittsburg Landing, Siege of Corinth, Stone River, Perryville, Crab Orchard, Peach Tree Creek, Missionary Ridge, Lookout Mountain, Atlanta and Chick- amauga. At Atlanta he received a painful wound in the hand, was taken to the rear and

was sent to Vinning Station, thence to Chat- tanooga, and from there to Indianapolis, where he received his final discharge.

The war over, he returned to Trumbull county, and after spending nine years in Howland and Weathersfield townships, came to his present location in Bazetta township, where he has since lived.

Mr. Battles was married February 23, 1864, to Miss Susan Hake, who was born and reared in Howland township, daughter of George and Catherine (Wortman) Hake, natives of Pennsylvania, and early settlers of Trumbull county, both now deceased. Her father died at the age of eighty-one, her mother at eighty-three. By a previous mar- riage her father had five children, and by her inother he also had five children, the names of the latter being Jacob, William, Susan, Eliza and Seth. Mr. and Mrs. Battles have four children: Lunie, wife of John Chapin, of Nelson, Ohio, has two children, Harry and Fred; Edward, a resident of Warren, Ohio; and Seth and Bert, both at home.

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Biographical history of northeastern Ohio : embracing the counties of Ashtabula, Trumbull and Mahoning, Part 29

Author: Lewis Publishing Company Publication date: 1893 Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 786

Author: Lewis Publishing Company
Publication date: 1893
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 786