Centennial History of Butler County, Ohio, Part 94

Author: Bert S. Bartlow, W. H. Todhunter, Stephen D. Cone, Joseph J. Pater, Frederick Schneider, and others
Publication date: 1905
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 1149

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ANDREW C. BROWN.

Among the old and highly respected res- idents of Butler county, who have been prime factors in its development, is the well- known and popular citizen whose name ap- pears at the head of this article. During a continuous residence of eighty-four years in the vicinity of Middletown he has not only been an eye-witness of the numerous changes that have taken place. but has also been an active participant therein. and it is

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to such sound minds, strong arms and ripe judgment as his that this part of Ohio is so greatly indebted for the prosperity which has characterized its growth and develop- ment along the various lines of agricultural, industrial and general business activity and advancement.

Christopher Brown, father of the sub- ject, was born in Wyeth county, Virginia, and grew to maturity in his native state, marrying, in his young manhood, Miss Mary Conmary, whose ancestors were among the pioneer settlers of Pennsylvania. In an early day he moved to Clinton county, Ohio, and after a short residence in that part of the state changed his abode to Warren county, where he lived until 1820, when he migrated to the county of Butler and en- gaged in the distillery business, which he carried on for a period of five years in con- nection with agricultural pursuits. Dispos- ing of his distillery at the expiration of the time noted, he purchased the place a short distance east of Middletown now known as the Marsh farm, where he spent the remain- der of his life as a prosperous tiller of the soil, dying about the year 1868, honored and respected by all who knew him. Of the eight children that constituted the family of Christopher and Mary Brown the subject of this review is the only living representa- tive and to a brief outline of his career the reader's attention is herewith respectfully invited.

Andrew C. Brown was born in Warren county, Ohio, February 9, 1818. and was two years of age when his parents moved to the county of Butler. His earliest experi- ences were connected with his father's dis- tillery, and when about seven years old he went to the farm east of Middletown, in

the clearing and development of which he subsequently took such an active and effect- ive part. Reared to hard labor, he shirked no duty, however onerous, and turned from no responsibility, but with true filial regard gave the best of his strength to the general welfare of the family and while still a mere youth was able to do a man's work at almost any kind of toil. As opportunities afforded, he attended the indifferent subscription schools common to this part of the country sixty and seventy years ago, but at best his education was limited, although in later years he obtained a wide knowledge of books by devoting his leisure hours to read- ing, in this way and by close observation be- coming in the course of time an intelligent and remarkably well-informed man.

Mr. Brown assisted in cultivating the home farm until his twenty-third year, at which time he was united in marriage with Miss Sarah M. Sutphin, daughter of John and Jane Sutphin, the ceremony being sol- emnized in 1841. During the ten years fol- lowing his marriage he farmed as a renter, but at the end of that time' purchased the place south of Middletown which now ad- joins the corporate limits of the city and which he still owns. Moving to his new home in 1850. he at once began the work of its development, and by well-directed in- dustry and a general system of improve- ment succeeded in due time in making the place not only one of the finest and most productive in the township, but also one of the model farms of Butler county. System appears to have characterized all of his un- dertakings and, being an excellent manager, with an eye to detail, he reaped abundant returns from his time and labor and it was not long until he forged to the front as one

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of the leading farmers and stock raisers in a section of country long distinguished for the intelligence, success and progressive spirit of its agricultural class. For a num- ber of years Mr. Brown devoted great at- tention to stock. especially cattle and horses, and from this source and the raising of grain the greater part of his ample fortune has been derived. After acquiring a com- fortable competency and feeling the need of rest from his many years of arduous toil, he left the farm in 1886, and moved to Mid- dletown. where. surrounded by everything calculated to minister to his comfort and enhance his enjoyment, he has since been living a retired and contented life.

Mrs. Brown, who was born a few miles east of Middletown in 1821, bore her hus- band four children' and died on February 27. 1896. Only one of these children lived to years of maturity, namely. Moses P., whose birth occurred in 1853, and who is now traveling representative for a large machinery and agricultural implement house, his territory including Ohio and other central and western states. He is a married man, his wife having formerly been Miss Susan J. Howell, who was born in St. Louis and moved to Ohio in infancy and they reside at this time in the city of Mid- dletown.

In 1856 Mr. Brown united with the Methodist Episcopal church and entered upon the consistent Christian life for which he has since been characterized. He has been active in all lines of religious and be- nevolent work, gives liberally to all worthy enterprises and charities and for many years has held official positions in the local con- gregation with which he is connected, his influence having always been on the side

of morality and right as he has understood the meaning and significance of these terms. Mr. Brown cast his first ballot in 1839 and one year later voted for Gen. William Henry Harrison for president, from which time until its dissolution he was an earnest and uncompromising supporter of the old Whig party. When the Republican party came into existence he at once espoused its principles and, believing that every good citizen should be a politician, he has ever since consistently adhered to his course, vot- ing for the candidates of his party and con- tributing to its success by able and judicious counsel, as well as by active work with the rank and file. A reader and a thinker, he is well informed on the great political is- sues of the time, keeps in close touch with public matters and current events, and, not- withstanding his advanced age, is still rec- ognized as an influential factor in political circles and a leader whose advice has con- tributed not a little to the success of the principles which he upholds and of which he has so long been such a stanch and unswerv- ing advocate. It is a fact worthy of note, that during the long period that has elapsed since he was old enough to exercise the rights and prerogatives of citizenship, Mr. Brown has never voted anywhere except Middletown; sixty-five years having dis- solved in the mists of the past since he cast his first ballot where his last one was de- posited, an instance perhaps without a par- allel in the history of the state. Mr. Brown has reached the ripe old age of eighty-six years, but is still strong and vigorous physi- cally and able to do considerable manual la- bor, besides attending with all the mental clearness and insight of his prime to his various business interests. He has always

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been temperate, which accounts largely for his remarkable strength and longevity, and having ever looked on the bright side and avoided pessimism, his life has been pleasant and cheerful, as all who have come within the range of his influence will bear witness.

MRS. L. D. DOTY.

This estimable and popular lady is sec- ond in a family of four children. Her father was Hugh Vail, whose ancestors were among the early settlers of New Jersey, and the maiden name of her mother was Jane Porter. The Vails came to Butler county during the pioneer period and settled on the site of Middletown. Stephen Vail, grand- father of Mrs. Doty, made the original plat of the town in the year 1802, placed the first lots on the market and was the real founder of what has since become one of the most important industrial and general business centers in the county of Butler, also one of the most beautiful and flourishing cities in the southern part of Ohio.

Hugh Vail accompanied his father to the new home in the wilderness of Butler county about the year 1800, and a little later entered a large tract of land north of Mid- dletown, which he cleared and on which he made a number of substantial improvements. He was active in promoting the growth and development of the town, took the lead in directing its various business interests and for many years was a man of wide influence in the community. He erected and for some years resided in a fine brick dwelling at the corner of Third and Clark streets, now owned by Mrs. Hiet, and later occupied the

house on the corner of Curtis avenue and Fourth streets, now owned by Mr. Har- wood.

Miss Lydia J. Vail was born in Middle- town, November 15, 1833, and spent her childhood amid surroundings and under in- fluences conducive to the best possible physi- cal and mental development. Her early home life was exceptionally exemplary, and in the schools of her native place she en- joyed the best educational advantages which the part of the state at that time afforded. Being naturally studious and ambitious to excel, she spent several years in a high-grade academy conducted by Professor Nathaniel Furman, one of the leading educators in this part of the state fifty and sixty years ago. In addition to a pretty thorough in- tellectual training in the above institution, Miss Vail spent a number of years under the direction of the old-fashioned singing teachers, and was a member of the glee club directed by Stephen Vail, this with her gen- eral education making her one of the cul- tured and refined young ladies of Middle- town. She moved in the best social circles of the place, enjoyed wide personal popu- larity among the large number of friends and acquaintances with whom she associated and stood high in the esteem of all with whom she came in contact. On April 1I, 1850, was solemnized her marriage with L. D. Doty, a native of Butler county and a representative of one of the oldest families of Middletown, his grandfather settling on or near the site of the city about the begin- ning of the nineteenth century, or perhaps a little earlier. Like the Vails, the Dotys came from New Jersey and were among the intelligent, substantial and progressive peo- ple of Butler county, the name from an early

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date to the present time being synonymous with all that is honorable and upright in manhood and citizenship. L. D. Doty was reared to agricultural pursuits, but in his young manhood took up the legal profes- sion and after graduating from the law school at Cincinnati opened an office in Middletown, where he soon built up an ex- tensive and very successful practice. He rose to a conspicuous place among the lead- ing members of the Butler county bar, en- joyed the reputation of an eminently honor- able as well as able practitioner and achieved marked prestige in the profession to which his life and energies were devoted.

In addition to his chosen calling. Mr. Doty always manifested an enthusiastic in- terest in the cause of education and religion and for many years was an influential mem- ber of the Baptist church of Middletown and a leader of the various auxiliaries under the auspices of the same. He was active in pro- moting missions both at home and abroad; was a great Sunday school worker and long the efficient superintendent of the Baptist Sunday school. Few theologians were as profound and critical and few excelled him in his knowledge of religious subjects in general. Mr. Doty was for many years a power in public affairs and until the break- ing out of the great Civil war he stood high in political circles as a leader of the Demo- cratic party in the county of Butler. Being a strong friend of the Union and an uncom- promising foe of any agency tending to its dissolution. he became dissatisfied with the policy of his party and severed his connec- tion therewith, threw his aid and influence with the Republican party. of which he con- tinued a strong and zealous supporter to the day of his death. The life of Mr. Doty was

a strenuous one, also successful in a ma- terial way and sufficient has been said to indicate the stand he always took in relation to public issues and moral questions. He lived as nearly as possible according to his conception of right, exemplified in his rela- tions with his fellow men the spirit of truth and righteousness by which he was ever animated and as a. public-spirited citizen, keenly alive to the best interests of the com- munity, state and nation, was easily the peer of any of his contemporaries. This good man was called to his final reward on the 5th of October. 1902, and his memory is gratefully cherished by the people among whom he lived so long and so nobly and to whom he was largely indebted for much of the success he so signally achieved.

The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Doty re- sulted in the birth of six children, namely : Annie, wife of Dr. T. E. Reed, of Middle- town; Frank, a civil engineer of this city ; Ida, who married Frank Marshall and re- sides in Atlanta, Georgia; Edna, now Mrs. E. H. Edson, of Kansas City, Missouri; Charles, who is connected with the United States mail service, and Lucile, who is still with her mother at the old home.

Little of interest can be said of a woman wholly devoted to her home and domestic duties, whose life is a ceaseless round of activity. doing through all the best years of her life the humble work that lies before her. . And yet the labors and far-reaching in- Auence of such a woman is impossible to measure by any worldly standard, for to her has been committed the high and holy office of making and presiding over the home; of bringing children into the world and of forming characters that are destined to live through the countless ages of time and

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eternity yet to be. The noble tasks peculiar to wifehood and motherhood have been ably and unselfishly performed by the worthy lady of whom the biographer has essayed to write in the preceding paragraphs, and throughout a long and useful career she has well sustained the character and reputation which have won her the love and gratitude of her immediate family circle and the un- bounded esteem of the community in which her life has so long been an influence for good and an inspiration to noble aims and ideals. Hers has indeed been a full life, true to the highest conception of right, and thor- oughly consecrated to the good of others, hence all who know her call her blessed and are proud to be numbered among her friends.

ABRAHAM H. ILER, M. D.

. In viewing the mass of mankind in re- lation to the varied occupations of life, the conclusion is forced upon the observer that in the vast majority of cases men have sought employment not in the line of their peculiar fitness, but rather in those fields where caprice or circumstances have placed them, thus explaining the cause of the fail- ure of so large a percentage of those who enter professional or commercial circles. In isolated cases we find. however, that men have seemed endowed with the prescience which enables them to select the vocation for which they are best adapted. and such an instance is offered in the case of the hon- ored subject of this review, who is one of the venerable physicians of Butler county, and who attained marked success and pres-

tige in the noble profession to which he devoted so many years of his life, being now practically retired from practice, though re- sponding to the calls of the families to whom he has ministered for so long a time and by whom he is held in affectionate regard. He retains his residence in Blueball, an at- tractive village in Lemon township, where he has made his home for more than half a century and where his friends are in num- ber as his acquaintances, so that he may well feel that in the golden evening of his life his "lines are cast in pleasant places."

The honored pioneer physician to whom this sketch is dedicated is a native son of Ohio and a representative of a sterling fam- ily which settled here in the early days when the now populous and opulent section was little more than a sylvan wilderness. He was born in Franklin township, this county. on Christmas day. 1820, and is a son of Jacob and Margaret (Dean) Iler, the for- mer of whom was born in Germany and the latter in the state of New Jersey, whence she came with her parents to Ohio when a. young girl. The father of the Doctor be- came a successful farmer of Butler county. and here he died in the very flower of his vigorous young manhood. being survived by two children, the Doctor and one daugh- ter, Mary Ann, who died in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1893. The subject was but eighteen months of age at the time of his father's death and was taken to the home of his maternal grandfather. in Franklin town- ship, this county, where he was reared to the age of fourteen years, in the meanwhile attending the somewhat primitive schools of the locality and thus laying the foundation of that broad and exact fund of knowledge which he has accumulated during the long

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years of a signally active and successful career. He accompanied his grandfather on his removal to Darke county, and when fourteen years old he ran away and returned to Butler county, where he joined his mother, who had in the meanwhile been married a second time. Shortly afterward she bound him out to a blacksmith, under whose direction he learned the trade, be- coming a capable workman. The work proved too severe a physical test, however, and the Doctor did not long devote his at- tention to the same. He continued his studies in a select school in Middletown, and in the meanwhile engaged in farm work and teaching in order to secure the funds neces- sary for the pursuing of his further educa- tional work. He soon formulated definite plans for his future life work, determining to adopt the medical profession. He began his technical reading under the direction of a local preceptor and finally entered the Ohio Medical College, in Cincinnati, where he was graduated as a member of the class of 1851, receiving the degree of Doctor of Medicine and coming forth well fortified for the active work of his profession. He im- mediately established himself in practice at Blueball, this county, where he has ever since maintained his home and has built up a large and representative practice in this section of the county, having ministered to a large majority of the leading families in the locality and being now frequently called upon to attend the children of those at whose birth he attended. Dr. Iler is known to practically' every person, young and old. in this section, and his name is honored in the county in which he has so long lived and labored, while he has ever held a high place

in the confidence and esteem of his profes- sional confreres. He withdrew from active practice in 1902, having attained the age of more than four score years, but those to whom he has been family physician for so many years still call upon him for profes- - sional service, so that he finds it impossible to entirely lay aside the work which has claimed so much of his life. His attractive home is located on a four-acre tract of land, and across the road from the same he owns a well-improved and valuable farm of one hundred and sixty acres. In politics the Doctor is a stanch advocate of the principles of the Democratic party, and his religious views are in harmony with the tenets of the Presbyterian church, though he is not for- mally identified with the same. It should be noted that at the time of the war of the Rebellion Dr. Iler did effective service at the front, having enlisted in 1864 as surgeon of the One Hundred and Eighty-second Regiment of Ohio Volunteer Infantry, with which he continued to serve until the close of the war.

On November 11, 1852, Dr. Iler was married to Miss Margaret J. Carr, who was born and reared in this county and who died in. 1866, being survived by two daughters, Dora, who died in Chicago in 1891, and A-, who is the wife of Scott McClel- lan, who has charge of the Doctor's farm, while the daughter presides over the home of her venerable father, to whom she ac- cords the utmost filial solicitude. Dr. Iler has accomplished a noble and unselfish work in this community and his name is entitled to a place of honor on the roll of the repre- sentative citizens and able physicians of his native county.

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GEORGE W. MARSH.

There may be found in almost all Amer- ican communities quiet, retiring men who never seek official preferment or appear prominently in public affairs, and who nevertheless exert a widely-felt and benefi- cent influence in the community, helping to construct and solidify the foundation on which rests the social and industrial world. Such a man is the honored subject of this brief sketch, who has been identified with the agricultural interests of Butler county for the past fifty years and who still resides on his fine farm, in Lemon township, though he has practically retired from active labors, giving over the management of the place to younger hands and enjoying that rest which and endeavor. He has passed the psalmist's span of three score years and ten, but enjoys is the just reward of years of earnest toil marked physical vigor and unimpaired men- tal powers, so that his lines are indeed "cast in pleasant places," as the grateful shadows of life begin to lengthen from the west. where the sunset gates are open wide. Mr. Marsh has ever been found faithful to duty. under whatever aspect it has presented itself, never sacrificing integrity and honor to per- sonal expediency and so living as to com- mand unqualified confidence and regard in all the relations of life. He has attained definite success in temporal affairs and! stands as one of the representative farmers and honored citizens of Butler county, and is a member of one of its sterling pioneer families. His father took up his residence in Cincinnati as early as 1833 and died at Dayton, Ohio. July 31. 1888, at the age of ninety-three years.

The name borne by the subject has been

identified with the annals of American his- tory from the early colonial epoch and he is a scion of the stanch Puritan stock. The original American progenitor emigrated from England to the new world in 1635, and settled in Massachusetts, while descend- ants of this sturdy forbear are now to be found in the most diverse sections of the na- tional domain, many having attained distinc- tion in public profession and industrial af- fairs. Shubael Marsh, grandfather of the subject, resided in the historic old city of Salem, Massachusetts, and there was solem- nized his marriage to Elizabeth Foxcroft. In this old Puritan town was born their son Thomas, father of the subject, the date of his nativity having been October 6, 1794. While Thomas was an infant his parents re- moved to the state of Maine, where they passed the remainder of their lives and where he was reared to manhood, securing a common-school education and growing up under the sturdy discipline of the farm. As a young man of nineteen years Thomas Marsh left the old Pine Tree state and set forth to investigate the attractions and re- sources of the new state of Ohio. Here he remained for a time and then returned to Maine, where was solemnized his marriage to Mrs. Mariam Saxton. They continued their residence in Maine for a few years. where the subject was born, and then re- moved to Texas when the subject was nine years old. They remained in the Lone Star state about one year and then came to Ohio, and here Mrs. Marsh fell a victim to the memorable cholera scourge in 1833. the sub- ject being a child of two years at the time of her death. His father subsequently mar- ried Miss Elizabeth Hathang, who died in Dayton. this state, in November, 1868, and

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he eventually consummated a third mar- riage, wedding Miss Hortense Drinkwater, who survives him and who now maintains her residence in the state of Massachusetts. Of the first marriage were born four chil- dren, the subject being the third in order of birth. The honored father was summoned to the life eternal on the 31st of July, 1888, at the patriarchal age of ninety-four years, and of his children two are living.

George W. Marsh, the immediate sub- ject of this review, was born in Penobscot county, Maine, on the 16th of February, 1831, and, as before stated, was an infant at the time of his parents' removal to Ohio. He passed his boyhood days in this state, where his father was engaged in farming. and to him were afforded the advantages of the common schools of the day, so that he was able to lay a good foundation for that broad fund of practical knowledge which he was later to gain under the direction of that wisest of all headmasters, experience. He has devoted practically his entire life to agricultural pursuits and has been the owner of his present fine farm property since 1865, the place having the best of improvements and being one of the model farmsteads of the county. The area of the place is one hundred and five acres, and the major por- tion is under effective cultivation, while the permanent improvements are of excep- tional excellence and give indication of the energy, thrift and enterprise of the owner, who has made a success of his undertaking by reason of the discriminating and effect- ive efforts which he has brought to bear in the past years. The farm is now under the practical supervision of his son Willard, and it is gratifying to note in the connection that all of his children are located and well

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Centennial History of Butler County, Ohio, Part 94

Author: Bert S. Bartlow, W. H. Todhunter, Stephen D. Cone, Joseph J. Pater, Frederick Schneider, and others Publication date: 1905 Publisher: Number of Pages: 1149

Author: Bert S. Bartlow, W. H. Todhunter, Stephen D. Cone, Joseph J. Pater, Frederick Schneider, and others
Publication date: 1905
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 1149