USA > Ohio > Licking County > Newark > Centennial History of the City of Newark and Licking County Ohio > Part 86
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worth of animals, so that he will undoubtedly meet with good results in this field of activity.
The home of Mr. and Mrs. Conger has been blessed with five children, of whom three survive, these being Earl J., Lena Blanche and Helen M., all still under the parental roof. Mr. Conger is a liberal democrat in his political views, not feeling bound by party ties. He is largely a self-made man, for he started out upon his own resources at an early age and in the years that have come and gone, through the inherent force of his nature and the utilization of opportunities, has passed from a humble position to one of prominence in agricultural and stock- raising circles of Licking county. He is well known in Licking county and other sections and none with whom he has been brought in contact, either in a business or social capacity, have found him other than what he represents himself to be- a straightforward, honorable citizen.
JASPER M. KECKLEY.
Jasper M. Keckley, manager for the Edward H. Everett Company of which he is also the vice president, has worked his way steadily upward in the business world and his record is at all times commendable, for he has ever regarded an engagement made or a promise given as a sacred obligation. At the same time he possesses a spirit of determination that has opened to him new avenues of oppor- tunity when others have seemed closed and his salient characteristics commend him to the good will of his contemporaries and his associates.
Mr. Keckley is a native of Union county, Ohio, his birth having occurred November 26, 1860. His paternal grandfather, John Keckley, came from the east to Lieking county with Mr. Bowers and Mr. Crotinger, and they were among the first settlers in this part of the state. The three young men married sisters and all took up land in the northern part of the county, promoting the agricul- tural development which is always the forerunner of business activity in other lines. John Keckley gave his political support to the whig party until its dis- solution when he advocated the candidacy of Abraham Lincoln and voted for him at the polls. He filled several minor offices but did not particularly care for official honors, preferring to devote his time and energy to his farming interests whereby he won well merited success.
His son, George Keckley, father of Jasper M. Keckley, was born on the old homestead in Licking county and also made farming his life work. About 1848, however, he removed to Union county, Ohio, where he remained until his death. He married Nancy Davis, a native of Knox county, Ohio.
Jasper M. Keckley obtained his education in the public and normal schools of Ohio and for ten years successfully engaged in teaching, imparting with clear- ness and readiness to others the knowledge he had acquired. Thinking to find broader scope in industrial and commercial lines, in 1890 he became associated with the Edward H. Everett Company with which he is still connected. His advancement has followed recognition of his ability and worth and he is now the vice president of this company which is a part of the American Bottling Company. He is also secretary of The Busch-Everett Company.
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industrial and commercial lines, in 1890 he became associated with the Edward H. Everett Company with which he is still connected. His advancement has followed recognition of his ability and worth and he is now the vice president of this com- pany which is a part of the American Bottling Company. He is also secretary of The Busch-Everett Co.
On the 3d of October, 1883, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Keckley and Miss Amy Fry, a native of Licking county. They have three children, Hazel A., Vernal E., and J. Russell. Mr. Keckley belongs to the Masonic Lodge and for several years has been a member of the Newark school board, stanchly advo- cating the adoption of highest standards of education and the employment of methods of instruction that will best qualify the young for life's practical and responsible duties. He is interested in all matters pertaining to the welfare of the community and has given many tangible evidences of his progressive citizen- ship. His ability in business lines is well known and the success to which he has attained has followed as a logical sequence of his well directed labors.
C. D. LAKE.
C. D. Lake, a well known and successful liveryman of Newark, was born in Hopewell township, Licking county, Ohio, on the 1st of January, 1860. His par- ents, William and Elizabeth (German) Lake, were also natives of this county The father was called to his final rest the 21st of January, 1906, but the mother is still living in Licking county at the age of seventy years. Unto this worthy couple were born seven children, namely: A. A., a resident of this county : Mattie; C. D., of this review ; Bertha, of Columbus, Ohio; Ella, the wife of K. K. Hines, of Newark, Ohio; and two who are deceased.
C. D. Lake acquired a common-school education and remained under the parental roof until he had attained his majority. He was afterward employed as a farm hand until the time of his marriage, subsequent to which event he was engaged in the operation of a rented farm for three years. He then purchased a tract of eighty acres of land in Franklin township, residing thereon until 1901, when he took up his abode in Newark and became connected with the business interests of this city as proprietor of a livery stable, which he still owns. In its conduct he has met with a gratifying and commendable measure of prosperity and is widely recognized as a substantial, progressive and enterprising citizen of his native county.
In 1885 Mr. Lake was united in marriage to Miss Jessie M. Johnson, whose birth occurred in Licking county in 1859 and who is of Irish descent. Her par- ents, Josiah and Mary (McFarland) Johnson, are both deceased. Mrs. Lake was one of a family of eight children and by her marriage has become the mother of two: Harriett A., who is now attending high school at Newark ; and Jessie Helen, at home.
In his political views Mr. Lake is a stalwart democrat and has served as school director for twelve years, the cause of education ever finding in him a stanch champion. Fraternally he is connected with the Knights of Pythias Lodge,
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No. 13, at Newark ; the Eagles, No. 387, at Newark; and the Modern Woodmen of America, No. 4727. Both he and his wife support the Methodist Episcopal church and reside in a fine home of their own at No. 59 Clinton street. They are well known and highly esteemed throughout the county in which they have spent their entire lives, having ever displayed those sterling traits of character which in every land and clime awaken regard and admiration.
HORTON J. BUXTON.
Horton J. Buxton needs no introduction to the readers of this volume for he is one of the best known citizens of Johnstown and Licking county. For almost thirty years he figured as a successful and energetic merchant and is now the presi- dent of the Johnstown Bank. His name has long been an honored one on com- mercial paper, for his fellow citizens have come to know him as a most reliable man whose word is as good as any bond ever solemnized by signature or seal, while his devotion to the general welfare marks him as a public-spirited and loyal citi- zen. He has now passed the Psahnist's allotted span of three score years and ten, and to some extent is living retired from the more arduous cares of business life. He was born September 29, 1838, and is a son of Norman and Lovine (Jones) Buxton. The parents came from Vermont in 1826, settling in Mount Vernon, Ohio, where they remained for more than a year and then removed to Brandon. A year later they established their residence in Homer and in 1830 came to Johnstown, since which time the family has figured in the public life of this com- munity. The parents were young married people when they left their Vermont home on a journey to Ohio in a one-horse sleigh, and after many adventures which involved a number of difficulties and obstacles, they arrived safely in Mount Vernon, Ohio, after six weeks' travel. They had at the time but eighteen cents but they possessed courageous hearts and willing hands and thus made their start in the west. When they removed to Johnstown their household possessions were hauled in a wagon by the father of General Rosecrans who later figured so promi- nently in the Civil war. For fifteen years Norman Buxton engaged in the hotel business in Johnstown, continuing at the head of a hostelry until 1846, when he was injured by a fall and rendered helpless. However he became a large land- owner and influential citizen, his sound judgment enabling him to make judicious investments in property and to gain gratifying profits from his sales. The com- munity valued him as a friend, a citizen and as a business man, and his death, which occurred on the 16th of September, 1872, was therefore the occasion of deep and widespread regret. His wife, a most estimable lady, survived him until the 3d of November, 1883.
Horton J. Buxton was one of a family of two sons and a daughter who reached adult age. His brother is Harry S. Buxton. His sister, Sophronia, be- came the wife of Dr. W. F. Paige and is now deceased. Mr. Buxton was educated in the Johnstown schools and as a young man was employed on his father's farms until 1868, when, thinking to find commercial pursuits more congenial and prof- itable, he established a drug and grocery business in Johnstown, and for twenty- five years conducted commercial interests along those lines. During that perioxl
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he enjoyed a large and growing patronage, for his business principles and methods commended him to the confidence and support of the general public. In 1892 he formed a partnership with John Stevens and they conducted the business together until 1897, when Mr. Buxton retired after almost thirty years' connection with mercantile interests in this city. Since that time he has devoted his attention to looking after his fine farming property near Johnstown, for he owns more than seven hundred acres of rich and productive land in this locality, all splendidly im- proved and well stocked. In November, 1883, he assisted in organizing the Johns- town Bank, the first banking institution of the town. It was conducted as a private bank under the partnership name of Derthick, Buxton & Kasson. In the following year Mr. Kasson retired from the firm and Charles V. Armstrong became a partner under the firm style of Derthick, Buxton & Armstrong. In 1897, fol- lowing the death of Mr. Derthick, Mr. Buxton was elected president of the bank and the firm name was changed to Buxton & Armstrong. This has remained from the beginning a strong financial concern in which a general banking business is conducted, the institution well meriting the liberal patronage which is accorded it by reason of the well known reliability of the owners.
On the 13th of October, 1864, Mr. Buxton was united in marriage to Miss Armenia Geer, a daughter of Albert and Sarah (Schenck) Geer. They have two children, a son and daughter, Norman G. and Maude S., both at home. The fam- ily residence is one of the most attractive homes in Johnstown, not only by reason of its pleasing, artistic and tasteful furnishing but also owing to its warm-hearted and cordial hospitality. Mr. Buxton has also been active and prominent in public affairs and in office has proved his loyalty to the general good by his faithful and efficient service. For thirty years he acted as treasurer of Monroe township, was justice of the peace for six years, and as mayor of Johnstown for four years gave to the city a public spirited administration that greatly furthered its inter- ests along lines of needed reform and progress. He has also been a member of the board of education and the public-school system finds in him a stalwart cham- pion. In politics he is a democrat and has the distinction of having never been defeated in any office for which he was a candidate. This fact indicates in unmis- takable manner his personal popularity and the confidence reposed in him-a con- fidence that he has well merited.
WILLIAM EDWIN WRIGHT, M. D.
The publie makes more stringent demands, perhaps, on the physician than upon any other representative of business or professional life. If the lawyer chooses to be brusk or crabbed, we are apt to believe that it is a mark of genius. and if the minister is austere and distant we think it is because his mind is en- gaged in the contemplation of things beyond our ken, but the physician is always expected to be courteous, kindly, hopeful and sympathetic. There is undoubtedly no business so little commercialized as is the practice of medicine, or one in which the individual enters into more close relations with his patrons. Possessing all of the requisite qualities of the popular and able physician, Dr. Wright is doing good
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work in the practice of medicine in Newark. He was born in Arkansas in Decem- ber, 1875, and is the son of Theodore F. Wright. His paternal grandmother, a member of the Hillyer family, was the first white child born in Licking county. The Wrights, too, were also among the oldest settlers here and have been associated with progress and improvement in this section of the state from pioneer times down to the present. Theodore F. Wright, enlisting for service in the Civil war, became a member of the Seventy-sixth Ohio Infantry and afterward joined the One Hundred and Thirty-fifth Ohio Regiment. When the war ended he went to Arkansas where he remained until 1880, and then returned to the north to give his children the better educational advantages here offered. In 1906 he sold his plantation in the south and is now in active business in Newark, being secretary of the Licking County Building & Loan Association and a prominent factor in busi- ness and financial circles. He married Eliza Clark, a native of Indiana.
Dr. Wright, brought by his parents from his native city to Ohio, pursued his education in the Granville high school and in Denison University. The same patriotic spirit which animated his father at the time of the Civil war was mani- fest in him when the country became involved in controversy with a foreign country in 1898, and he served for one year as a soldier in the Spanish-American war. Following his military experience he took up the study of medicine and was graduated from the Starling Medical College at Columbus with the class of 1903. For a year and a half he was connected with the Mount Carmel Hospital as interne and the broad, practical experience there gained proved an excellent preparation for his later professional service. On leaving the hospital he came to Newark where he has since engaged in general practice. He is a member of the Licking County and Ohio State Medical Societies and of the American Medical Associa- tion. He is now acting as secretary of the local society and finds inspiration for his work through the interchange of thought and experience in those organizations.
In 1906 Dr. Wright was married to Miss Josephine Veach, a daughter of W. E. Veach of Newark, while her mother belonged to the Ball family. Dr. and Mrs. Wright belong to the Presbyterian church and are well known in Newark, their home being the center of a cultured society circle. Attractive social qualities render them popular, while professional skill has gained Dr. Wright a prominent place in his chosen calling.
HARVEY ORR.
The farming interests of Licking county have always been in the hands of a class of men noted for their enterprise and industry and among those who are now numbered among the prosperous agriculturists and worthy citizens of Frank- lin township is Harvey Orr, who was born in this township, August 3, 1858, a son of John B. and Eliza A. (Cooperrider) Orr. His father was a native of Bowling Green township where he spent his early days, eventually removing to Franklin township, where he remained until his death which occurred in August, 1884, when he was laid to rest in Fairmount cemetery, Licking township. He was numbered among the thrifty and substantial farmers of the county. In national
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and state politics he always favored the democratic party, and, having taken a deep interest in the welfare of his own immediate community, he was called to serve in a number of local offices. He was as well known for his religious as for his business endeavors and was one of the leading factors in the life of the Lutheran church with which he was affiliated. His wife was also a native of Bowling Green township, where she had always lived and was united in marriage. Her death occurred in 1895 and her remains were interred in the same cemetery as her husband. She reared six children, namely: Martha, who passed away in infancy; Leroy, who departed this life in February, 1903; Austin, an agriculturist of Franklin town- ship; Stephen; one who died in infancy; and Millie A., deceased.
Harvey Orr's boyhood days were spent on his father's farm, in the meantime availing himself of the educational advantages of the district schools. He remained under the parental roof until he was twenty-five years of age when he rented land in Franklin township, where he began farming for himself and has since been so successful in the venture that he owns his present farm, which contains two hun- dred and fifteen acres. Here he has erected an attractive residence of modern style of architecture together with all the other necessary buildings and, his farm receiving his undivided attention, everything about the place is in excellent repair and presents throughout a fine appearance. General farming commands his ener- gies and he also takes some interest in raising stock. His labors have been so remunerative that he is not only the owner of this excellent farm but is also financially interested in a local bank.
In 1883 Mr. Orr wedded Miss Fannie A. Hoskinson, a native of Franklin township, by whom he had one son, Fred C., who resides with his parents. Mr. Orr is loyal to the democratic party in national and state affairs. He has served as township clerk for twelve years and for four years as treasurer, having also officiated in a capable manner for four years as a member of the board of state supervisors of election, being appointed to this office by the secretary of state. He is an ardent devotee of a progressive school system and as a member of the school board has done much in this line. He is affiliated with the Masonic Lodge, meet- ing at Fredonia. Amid the pressure of his business and other affairs Mr. Orr has never overlooked the fact that a man's religious duties are of more importance than any others confronting him and he holds membership in the Methodist Episcopal church, to which his wife also belongs, and of which he has officiated as steward for a number of years. In every respect, both from a point of view of enterprise in business lines and his upright and exemplary character, Mr. Orr is one of the township's most useful and worthy citizens.
WARREN S. WEIANT.
Warren S. Weiant is connected with many of the most important business interests of Newark and has been termed the busiest man of the city, an appella- tion which is well deserved when we note how many and how important are the commercial and industrial concerns that have felt the stimulus of his activity and well applied energy. He who studies the signs of the times and the forces
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that have contributed to the country's greatness, recognizes the fact that those who have aided most largely in the upbuilding and development of their respective localities are those who have become strong and forceful men by reason of the development of their native powers through the stimulus of competition and neces- sity. It is not men who are born to affluence that are ruling the world today, but those whose lack of advantages in youth caused them to exert and thus develop the inherent forces of their character, improving opportunities that others have passed by heedlessly. Mr. Weiant has become one of the forceful business men of Newark, contributing to the general prosperity in the control of his individual interests. He was born in Licking county, February 8, 1858. His father, Andrew Weiant, a native of Newburg, New York, came to this county in 1822, with his father, Andrew Weiant, the family home being established sixteen miles north of Newark. The grandfather and father both operated the old homestead farm, Andrew Weiant, Jr., continuing the further development and improvement of that place up to the time of his death, which occurred in 1885, when he was sixty-five years of age. He wedded Mariette Taylor, a native of Ballston Spa, New York, who died in 1908, having reached the ripe old age of eighty-three years. Their family numbered four sons and four daughters.
Warren S. Weiant, whose name introduces this review, was a pupil in the district schools of Licking county and afterward attended the high school of Newark. Early in life he learned valuable lessons concerning industry, economy and perseverance, and these have been manifested in his later careful manage- ment of business affairs, his keen discernment and executive force. When eighteen years of age he became a coal merchant of Newark, conducting business at the corner of the Square and East Main street, opposite the Warden Hotel, paying four dollars per month rent. His business grew rapidly and he continued in that line until 1888. Ten years before this time he connected his coal office with his coal yard, half a mile away, by telephone and at the same time he placed his first advertisement in the paper, taking a whole page of the Advocate to tell people that for each ton of coal purchased they could talk to him half a mile away over the telephone, for this means of communication was at that time a great novelty, and after the appearance of the advertisement the public lined up on the sidewalk waiting their turn to thus talk to Mr. Weiant. As the years passed his business grew along substantial lines and in 1888 he withdrew from that line and formed a partnership with his brother, Miles A. Weiant, for the manufacture of crackers. In 1890 their business became a branch of the United States Baking Company, and in 1892 the United States Baking Company became a part of the National Biscuit Company, at which time Warren S. Weiant was appointed manager of the Newark branch and still continues in this position. He is a man of resource- ful business ability whose efforts have not been limited to one line but have been exercised in various fields of endeavor, and in every instance success has been attained. In 1894 he became associated with several substantial business men of Newark in organizing the first independent telephone company in the United States and in installing a system. Since that time he has been one of its directors, the enterprise becoming a profitable one. For seven years he has been actively engaged in the real-estate business and has contributed materially to the improve- ment of the city by the erection of forty-two houses on Hudson avenue. For him-
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self he built a fine modern residence about four miles east of Newark. His investments and activities along other lines have brought him into close connec- tion with many of the most important business concerns of the city, all of which have benefited by his intense and well directed energy and sound business judg- ment. He is now the president of the Licking County Building Association ; pres- ident of the Newark Lumber Company; vice president of the Newark Real Estate & Improvement Company; a director of the Powers-Miller Company; and a director of the New Arcade, having been one of its active promoters.
In 1882 Mr. Weiant was married to Miss Elizabeth Thumm, a native of Pitts- burg, Pennsylvania. Her father, Charles F. Thumm, was born in Baden Baden, Germany, and left that country at the time Carl Schurz and other eminent Ger- mans sailed for America following the war of 1848, in which they had partici- pated. Four children were born unto Mr. and Mrs. Weiant: Carl A., Helen E., Marion T., and Warren S. The eldest is now conducting a greenhouse in this county.
Mr. Weiant is a Mason and has taken high rank in the order, being now a Noble of the Mystic Shrine. Prominent among the business men of Newark he has for years been closely identified with the history of the city as a representative of its commercial and industrial interests. The safe, conservative policy which he has inaugurated in all of his business connections commends itself to the judg- ment of the public. He has never faltered in the prosecution of a business under- taking, for when one avenue of advance seemed closed he has sought out other paths leading to success.
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