Centennial history of Summit County, Ohio and representative citizens, Part 72

Author: Doyle, William B., b. 1868
Publication date: 1908
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : Biographical Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1150

USA > Ohio > Summit County > Centennial history of Summit County, Ohio and representative citizens > Part 72

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In 1869, Joseph Cooper was married ( first) to Agnes Lang, who died soon after marriage. Ile married (second) Mary Palmer, of which union there is one daughter, Emily, who mar- ried Samuel Crisp, and resides at home, with her parents. Mr. Cooper is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. He belongs to the English Society, known as the Sons of St. George. In politics he is a republican.

HIRAM F. SNYDER, who owns an excel- lent farm of 104 acres in Franklin Town- ship, was born on the old Snyder homestead, in Franklin Township, Summit County, Ohio, August 10. 1859, and is a son of Mich- ael and Nancy (Marsh) Snyder.

Michael Snyder, father of Hiram F., was born in Alsace, France, and accompanied his parents, Michael and Barbara (Weimer) Snyder to America. They came to Spring- field Township, Summit County, by way of the canal, and when they passed through Ak- ron, in 1838, there was but one store in the village. Mr. Snyder was looking for land on which to establish a home and he was offered 100 acres on the site of Akron for the sum of $600. He considered the soil there too light for deep cultivation and purchased a farm in Springfield Township, from which he moved, eight years later, to another near that on which his grandson, Hiram F., re- sides. He died in 1897. aged ninety-two years, his wife having passed away in 1876, aged seventy years. In France he engaged in milling, but confined himself to farming after coming to Ohio. Michael and Barbara Snyder, or Schneider as the name was spelled in their day, had the following children : George: Michael; Frederick, residing at Bar- berton ; Eve, who married John Dailey; and

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Julia, who married David Steel. Frederick Snyder is the only survivor of this family.

Michael Snyder, father of Hiram F., was six years old when his parents emigrated, and as he grew to youth and manhood, found much hard work in assisting in the clearing up of his father's property. He accumu- lated land of his own and at the time of his death in 1893, he owned 246 acres. He mar- ried Nancy Marsh, who was born in Franklin Township, and they had a family of ten chil- dren, two of whom died in infancy. Those who reached mature age were: Milton, re- siding at Barberton; Hiram F .; Samuel; Louisa, who married James Henry ; Amanda, who married C. Blough; William E., resid- ing at Akron, where he is a well-known attor- ney; Elliott; and Ida, who died at the age of nineteen years.

Hiram F. Snyder was fourteen years old when the family moved to a place near the one he owns, and he remained at home until his twenty-third year, when he secured his present farm from the family estate. In 1866 coal was found on this farm and rich veins have been opened, many tons having been excavated by the Franklin Coal Company

and the C. F. Wagoner Company. Mr. Sny- . 1870, and is a son of Joseph and Adaline der was employed by the coal company for eighteen months, but with this exception, has devoted himself entirely to farming. He has served as a member of the School Board for several terms.

On December 12, 1882, Mr. Snyder was married (first) to Elizabeth Keller, who died in the spring of 1894, leaving three children : Eva, Frank and Howard. In 1896 he was married (second) to Mary Limbaugh, and they have four children : Henry, Martha, and Paul and Ruth, the latter twins. Mr. Snyder and family belong to the Reformed Church.

C. LEE BRIGGS, one of Akron's enter- prising young business men, engaged in gen- eral contracting, was born in Medina County, Ohio, in 1871, and is a son of Thomas G. Briggs, a prominent farmer, and a grandson of Daniel G. Briggs, who settled in Medina County in 1852.

C. Lee Briggs was reared in Medina County and, after completing the common school course, entered Buchtel College. After leav- ing college he made his home for some five years at Springfield, Missouri, where he was first employed in the office of a street railway and later in the Bank of Springfield. Since 1898 he has been engaged in a general con- tracting business, but for eighteen months previously he had served as secretary of the Builders' Exchange. In 1905 he erected a fine home at Akron and this city has been his place of residence up to the present time. In 1895 Mr. Briggs was married to Mary Brown, of Akron, and they have one son, Clifton. Mr. Briggs is interested in a num- ber of organizations at Akron, is a director in the Dollar Savings Bank, is a member of the Masonic club and the Portage Country club, and of the Builders' Exchange of Cleve- land.

IRVIN H. SPANGLER, residing on his farm of forty-seven acres, which is situated in Franklin Township and is a part of the old Spangler homestead, was born on this farm in Summit County, Ohio, August 4, (Iloy) Spangler.

Joseph Spangler was born in Franklin Township, Summit County, Ohio, and is a son of David Spangler, who settled here at an early day. Joseph Spangler was married (first) to Caroline Smith, who also was reared in Franklin Township, and the four chil- dren born to that marriage were: Adam, John, Charles and Jennie, the latter of whom married O. W. Baum. Mr. Spangler was married (second) to Adaline Hoy, who died July 4, 1904. She was a daughter of David Iloy, of Hocking County, Ohio. Three chil- dren were born to the second union, as fol- lows: David E., Irvin H. and Joseph. The father still survives, having reached the age of eighty-seven years, and is a resident of Akron.

Trvin H. Spangler was reared on the home farm and attended the local schools. With the exception of six years spent at Manches-

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ter, in boyhood, he has lived continuously on the present farm, having purchased forty- seven acres from his father. He cultivates both his own farm and the one his father retains, which is also situated in Franklin Township.

On December 18, 1890, Mr. Spangler was married to Laura Bender, who is a daughter of Harvey F. Bender, and they have had six children, namely: Florence, Robert, Lydia, Burdette, Frene and Ira, all of whoni are liv- ing, with the exception of Lydia, who died aged four months. Mr. Spangler is a mem- ber of the order of Maccabees.

IHARVEY A. MYERS, a well known farmer and stock dealer of Norton Town- ship, was born on the excellent farm of eighty acres on which he now resides, De- cember 29, 1853, son of Alpheus and Salome (Myers) Myers.

Alphens Myers was born in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. July 10, 1818, and in boy- hood accompanied his father, Henry Myers, to a farm near Wooster, Ohio. Later, Henry Myers, with all his family except Alpheus, removed to Indiana, where he died. Alpheus Myers came to Summit County April, 1846, where he purchased the 80-acre farm now owned and operated by his son, Harvey. He later bought the Sherman farm of 140 acres, and during the Civil War he further increased the extent of his property by purchasing a farm of 100 aeres situated across the road from where he lived and which was called the Mosier farm. In addition to these farms he owned one of 140 acres in Missouri. He also drilled and found coal and opened the mine, known as the Myers mine in Wads- worth Township, Medina County. He was a man of excellent business qualifications. and during the Civil war made a large amount of money in buying and shipping horses for the government. He was a highly respected citizen of Norton Township and died March 1, 1878. His death was the result of an ac- cident. He was about to make a business trip to the west and also visit his aged mother. While waiting at the Wadsworth station, en-

gaged in conversation with a friend, he ac- cidentally stepped in front of a moving train and was instantly killed.

Alpheus Myers married Salome Myers, who survived him many years, dying in October, 1900. They had six children, the young- est of whom, Owen. died October 7, 1905. The others were as follows: William H., resid- ing in AAkron; Mary, wife of Isaac Tinsman, and a resident of Akron; Lavina, who mar- ried Solomon Kraver, and resides in Medina County; Josepha, residing in Medina County, who married (first) Septimius Siberling, and moved to Fowa, where he died, and (second) Jacob Slamker, whom she survives; and Har- vey A., of Norton Township.

Harvey A. Myers was reared in his native place and has always resided on this fine, old farm, where he successfully carries on gen- eral farming and stock-dealing, making & specialty of cows. He attended the district schools during his boyhood, and is a man of much general information, keeping himself abreast of the times, as the modern farmer has to do to enjoy a full measure of pros- perity.

Mr. Myers married Alice B. Miller, a daughter of Frank Miller, of Norton Town- ship, and they have a family of eight chil- dren. namely: Frank, married and residing in Akron : Fred, who married Emma Weaver and resides at home with his parents; Sadie, who is the wife of Charles Messner, and has one child, Florence: Mattie, who married William Helmiek, and has one child, Floy; Hattie, who married Elmer Hall and has one child, Harold; and Elsie, Vernie and Chloe. Mr. and Mrs. Myers have their children set- tled around them, or still remaining under the home roof, and have never vet been called on to part with any of them. The family is one well known all through Norton Township.

C. W. MOORE, president of the Union Printing Ink Company, one of Akron's use- ful industries, with a plant located at 1031 South High Street, has been a resident of this city for over a quarter of a century, and

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HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY

from boyhood has been identified with many of its various interests. Mr. Moore was born April 10, 1866, at Erie, Pennsylvania, and when fifteen years old came to Akron, where he attended school for a time. Ile then went to work for the Thomas Phillips Paper Com- pany, with which he remained for nine years, being for six years afterwards with the Akron Chemical Company. He then became one of the organizers of the Union Printing Ink Company, which enterprise was incorporated April 27, 1901, with a capital stock of $10,- 000. Mr. Moore has been president of the company since its incorporation. The com- pany manufactures all kinds of ink, and its field of trade is constantly widening. Mr. Moore has that practical knowledge of the business, combined with executive ability, which enables him to direet its course sue- cessfully in the face of competition.

On June 30, 1896, Mr. Moore was mar- ried to Louise E. Meir, who was born in Ak- ron. Ile and his wife are members of Grace Reformed Church, and he belongs to the Board of Deacons. His fraternal connections inelude membership in Nemo Lodge, and the Encampment, T. O. O. F.

WEBSTER FRANKLIN CARMANY, an enterprising and progressive agriculturist of Stow Township, who is engaged in the cultivation of a farm of 108 acres, was born on his present farm July 18, 1878, son of Isaac and Ellen (Durstein) Carmany.

Isaac Carmany was born in Manchester, Franklin Township, Summit County, where he now carries on extensive farming opera- tions. His wife, Ellen, who was the daughter of Jacob Durstein, died in July, 1903, aged forty-eight years. She professed the faith of the Evangelical Church of the local organiza- tion, of which Mr. Carmany is treasurer. An earnest Christian woman, she was active in church and charitable work. Three children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Carmany-Cora Elnora, who is deceased; Webster Franklin; and Russell Glennard, who lives at home.

Webster Franklin Carmany was educated in the common schools and at the age of

eighteen years received a teacher's certificate in Manchester, to which place he had come in 1887. IIe never engaged in teaching, however, but learned the trade of drafting and patternmaking in Franz Body's shop in Akron, which he followed for ten or twelve years at different places. In 1904, on ac- count of ill health, he was forced to give up this occupation, and purchased his present farm from his father, it having been former- ly the property of his mother. Mr. Carmany cultivates seventy-five acres of this tract, rais- ing oats, wheat, corn and potatoes, and his farm is one of the most highly cultivated in this section of the township. In the win- ter months he keeps seven or eight head of cattle and disposes of his milk to the Co- operative Creamery at Stow Corners.

Mr. Carmany was married to Amelia Shu- maeher, who is a daughter of Charles Shu- macher of Akron, and four children have been born to them: Florence Blanche, ITelen May, Mabel Celia and Charles Isaac. Mr. Carmany is a member of the Maeea- bees at Elkhart, and in polities is independ- ent. With his family he attends the Metho- dist Episcopal Church. Mrs. Carmany's father was born in Germany, coming to America at twenty-one years of age, in 1865. Ile married Celia IFerbruek, of Stark Coun- ty, Ohio. Both parents are now living.

GEORGE H. COWLING, residing on a very valuable farm of eighty-four acres, which was formerly known as the old Lin- ford Surfass farm, in Norton Township, was born in what is now known as Barberton, on the farm of his uncle, Abraham Betz, March 27, 1861, and is a son of Joseph and Cath- erine (Betz) Cowling.

The father of Mr. Cowling was born in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, where he learned the trade of weaving woolen blank- ets, at which he worked until about thirty years of age, when he went to farming. When he came first to Summit County he settled al Middlebury and operated a weaving factory for a time and then moved to the present site of Barberton, from which point,

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in 1865, he moved to the Jacob Wise farin, west of Norton Center. After living there for six years he moved to the J. F. Seiberling farm, which he rented for twenty-one years. Mr. Cowling then moved to Nebraska, ac- companied by all of his family except George H., where he bought a farm of 300 acres. He lived there for seven years, but sold on ac- count of the climate not agreeing with his wife, and returned to Ohio in the hope of restoring her to health. He settled in Me- dina County in 1893, where she died in 1894. Mr. Cowling still survives, aged eighty years, residing on his farm in Wadsworth Township.

George Il. Cowling was reared in Norton Township and has made farming his main business in life. In 1884 he was married to Mary Banghman, who died April 20, 1905. She was a daughter of James Baughman, a tanner by trade, who formerly lived at West- ern Star. Two children were born to this marriage, Bessie and William.

For sixteen years Mr. Cowling and family lived in Wadsworth Township, moving from there to Sharon Township for four years, and then came to Norton Township. Summit County. He purchased the present farm of George Dreisbach, January 6, 1903, and moved to it on March 7, 1904. Ile sold the property on May 28, 1907. to O. C. Barber. Mr. Cowling is a well known and highly re- speeted citizen.

FRANK SPRIGGLE, the owner and op- erator of the old Chamberlin mill, a land- mark in Summit County, which is situated in Springfield Township, as is also Mr. Sprig- gle's truck farm of seventeen acres, is a well- known and respected citizen of this section, where he has spent the whole of his life. He was born in Summit County, Ohio, May 18, 1856, and is a son of Jacob and Christina (Pontius) Spriggle.

The first of the Spriggle family to locate in Summit County was Emanuel Spriggle, who came from Lancaster County, Pennsyl- vania, and settled on the Rudy farm, one mile east of Uniontown, but a few acres of

which had yet been cleared, the rest of the land being covered with a heavy growth of timber. Emanuel Spriggle lived into his ninety-ninth year, and never moved beyond the radius of twenty miles from the place on which he first settled. Jacob Spriggle, father of Frank, was born in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in 1827, and accompanied his parents to Summit County in 1833. He often told his children, in later days, of the wild conditions that prevailed in his boyhood, where they only saw cultivated land and a comfortable home. There were many deer in this section and it was no unusual event to find them hiding in various places about the farm, sometimes in a hollow tree and at other times under a shoek of grain. They had not yet learned their later fear of hu- man beings and at that time were not diffi- cult of capture. Jacob Spriggle learned the blacksmith trade at Uniontown, which he followed more or less for forty-five years in Coventry Township. He retired from work by order of his physician, who had discov- ered heart trouble, and he now resides at Monroe Falls. During his aetive years he built hundreds of coal cars for Brewster Brothers and the Stcese Coal Banks. He was married (first) to Elizabeth Pontius, a native of Ohio and a member of a prominent old family. She died in 1865, the mother of two sons and two daughters, namely: Monia, who died at the age of twelve years; Frank; Amanda, who married Cyrus Kepler. and Malinda, who married Philip Danner. now deceased. The second marriage of Jacob Spriggle was to Elizabeth Spitler, and they had the following children: Allen, residing between Monroe and Cuyahoga Falls, married Emma Myers; Jacob, residing on the old home with his father and sister, operates the farm and also works in the adjacent paper mill: Jeremiah, residing at Cuyahoga Falls, engaged in a grocery business, married Ad- die ITuron; Jacob, residing a few miles west of Winnipeg, Canada: Barbara, residing near Monroe Falls, is the widow of Frank Donald- son, who died in 1904: Henry, who lives at home; Sarah, who married William Ritzman,

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residing between Tallmadge and Monroe Falls, and Mary, who married Isah Bechtel, residing in Monroe Falls.

Frank Spriggle was reared a farmer and all his mature life has been devoted to tilling the soil and milling. He owns seventeen acres of very valuable, productive land, and this tract he devotes to truck purposes, mak- ing it very profitable through his excellent methods. He divides his time between his farm and the mill, having acquired the latter property in 1896. He makes here only Gra- ham and rye flour and chops and has a steady run of custom. This mill was built sixty-five years ago by James Chamberlin, who oper- ated it for a number of years. Later it was the property of William Buchtel and still later of John Hosler, who made the last flour produced here. After his death the property was disposed of at the administrator's sale, and was purchased by Mr. Spriggle.

In 1881 Mr. Spriggle was married to Sa- villa Grable, who is a daughter of Jonathan Grable, a substantial farmer of Green Town- ship, Summit County, and they have had two sons and two daughters born to them, namely: Della, who married William Bri- ner, residing in Copley Township, has two children, Frank and Margaret; Susie, who married Frank Gougler, residing in Spring- field Township, has three children, Park, Pearl and Dayton ; Newton, residing at home and working in the mill, and Earl, residing at home and working on a railroad.

In political sentiment, Mr. Spriggle is nominally a Democrat, but he reserves the right to cast his vote independently. Re- ligiously, he is a member of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ, the Saints and the Last Days. There are many lessons to be learned in considering the life of Mr. Sprig- gle. He left home in boyhood after the death of his mother, and without the slight- est assistance in the way of counsel or finan- cial help, has acquired valuable property and has gained a place in the community where he commands the respect and enjoys the es- teem of his fellow-citizens. His success is the direct result of his own unassisted efforts.

ABRAHAM SNYDER, a leading citizen of Springfield Township, who is engaged in threshing and operating both a grain and sawmill, was born May 7, 1833, on a farm but one and a quarter miles distant from the one on which he lives, in Springfield Township, Summit County, Ohio. His par- ents were Jost A. and Salome (Baughman) . Snyder.

The father of Mr. Snyder was born August 25, 1791. in Low Hill Township, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, and came to Green Township, Summit County, which was then a part of Stark County, after his marriage. He served under General Jackson in the War of 1812, and participated in the battle of New Orleans. When he settled in Summit County he had a wagon and two horses, by means of which he had transported his family and possessions over the 500 miles between the old home and the new, and a money capital of $105, all but five dollars of which he paid for twenty acres of land. To this first purchase he made seven additions of adjoining land, and at his death owned sixty- three acres. He built first a cabin of logs, 10 by 15 feet in dimensions, which was sup- planted by a larger cabin having a board roof, and this in turn was followed by a hewed-log house, two and one-half stories in height, its dimensions being 30 by 20 feet, and his fourth house and the last one which he erected was also of logs, framed about, 24 by 16 feet in dimensions, with a kitchen attached which was 10 by 12 feet.

Mr. Snyder was a man of pioneer robust- ness and was reasonably proud of his prowess in hunting bear, and frequently shot wolves and deer on the very land on which Akron now stands. He never forgot the friends of his youth, and during his subsequent resi- dence in Ohio, walked the distance of 500 miles back to Pennsylvania to visit those left behind, on three occasions. He was welcome wherever he went, being a man of kindly na- ture, jovial spirit and great native intelli- gence. He married Salome Baughman and they had fifteen children, namely: Joshua, Elizabeth, George, Joel, Isaiah, Jacob, So-

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phia, Daniel, Paul, Ezra, Jonas, Abraham, Nathan and Peter, all surviving to a good age except two, one of these being an un- named infant born next to the youngest. They grew up resembling their father, large, fine appearing men and women. The survivors are: Nathan, residing in Brimfield Town- ship, Portage County; Paul, residing in West Township, Marshall County, Indiana, and Abraham, of Springfield Township.

Abraham Snyder had few educational ad- vantages in his youth, his real school attend- ance being covered by two months, but he has always made the most of his opportunities and is able to write intelligently in both the English and German languages, something very many of the younger generation cannot accomplish. He thinks he is probably one of the oldest threshers in all this section, as he was not more than ten years of age when he began feeding a threshing machine. Dur- ing his boyhood he worked in the mill in his neighborhood, during a large part of the time when not threshing, and during the winter seasons helped operate the old loom in the kitchen, where all the cloth for the big family was woven. He grew to manhood with ingrained habits of industry and thrift.

When the Civil War broke out, Mr. Snyder commenced to consider the subject of enlist- ing, but like many others, private duties and - responsibilities stood in the way. He had been reared a Democrat by a stanch Demo- eratic father, but both were men of loyal sentiment and, in 1863, Abraham Snyder proved that his patriotism was more than mere talk by offering his services and enlist- ing in Company F, Third Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and served until the close of the war, with the rank of first lieu- tenant. He participated in many important battles and traveled thousands of miles on long and weary marches.

After the close of the Civil War, Mr. Sny- der returned to his home and engaged in farming and his previous occupations until 1888, when he moved on his present farm, where he is still engaged in milling and also in threshing. Snyder's mill at Millheim is

a historic landmark. The dam was built in 1817 and the mill constructed shortly afterward, and it is the oldest mill in Sum- mit County. In 1828 it was rebuilt by Mi- chael Myers and is situated on a part of lot 7, tract 6, on the banks of Tuscarawas Creek. Mr. Snyder purchased the mill from H. J. Kreighbaum in 1899, he being the assignee of its former owner, William C. Shook. The stanch old frame work is of hewed timber. A sawmill formerly stood near, but the grain mill was built soon after the first settlement. It is a paying property under Mr. Snyder's excellent management. He grinds chop and feed and has all he can do, keeping the mill running both day and night.

On June 19, 1858, Mr. Snyder was mar- ried to Catherine Cranoble, who is a daugh- ter of Jacob and Elizabeth Cranoble. She was born in Grote Township, Center County, Pennsylvania, January 8, 1831, and accom- panied her parents to Suffield Township, Por- tage County, where they settled on the farm now owned by Jacob Mishler.

Mr. and Mrs. Snyder have had born to them four sons and one daughter, the sur- vivors being: William, Stephen Douglas, Sarah and George Pendleton. William Snyder, residing at Millheim, married Mary Rodenbaugh, who is now deceased. She left two sons and one daughter, Curtis, Oscar W. and Sadie. Stephen Douglas Snyder married Mary Ellen Tritt, who is a daughter of Jo- seph Tritt, and they reside in the brick house near Tritt mill. They have six children, namely: Agnes, Frank, George, Stanley. Harry and Anna. Sarah Snyder married William Tritt, who has a farm and owns a home at Middlebury. He is engaged in the rural mail delivery service. Their children are: Norman, Hugh, Elton, Wilbur and Net- tie, George, the youngest of Mr. Synder's fan- ily, is unmarried, and resides at home assist- ing his father. Both Mr. Snyder and his wife remain hale and hearty, and they both con- tinue their usual avocations and enjoy the pleasant social life of the neighborhood with as much ease and zest as they did many years ago. They are people who stand very

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Centennial history of Summit County, Ohio and representative citizens, Part 72

Author: Doyle, William B., b. 1868 Publication date: 1908 Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : Biographical Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 1150

Author: Doyle, William B., b. 1868
Publication date: 1908
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : Biographical Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1150