USA > Ohio > Williams County > Commemorative biographical record of northwestern Ohio : including the counties of Defiance, Henry, Williams and Fulton, containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families > Part 45
USA > Ohio > Fulton County > Commemorative biographical record of northwestern Ohio : including the counties of Defiance, Henry, Williams and Fulton, containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families > Part 45
USA > Ohio > Henry County > Commemorative biographical record of northwestern Ohio : including the counties of Defiance, Henry, Williams and Fulton, containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families > Part 45
USA > Ohio > Defiance County > Commemorative biographical record of northwestern Ohio : including the counties of Defiance, Henry, Williams and Fulton, containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families > Part 45
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Our subject resided at home during his boyhood, and about ten years of his life have been spent in Michigan. He was educated mainly in the schools of Hesperia, in that State, and Waterman, Illinois, where he grad- uated from the high school. On completing his course there, he taught for
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one year, and he has ever since been connected with the newspaper business, in which he has shown marked ability. While in Hesperia he began to learn the details of the printer's art, and for one year he was in partnership with his father as publisher of "The Hesperia Herald." In 1892 he located at Hicksville, and in company with his father took a half interest in "The In- dependent." On his father's removal from the place in 1895, Mr. Coulter became a half owner in the enterprise, with his uncle, James E. Coulter, Esq., as his partner. The paper is an eight-column folio, published weekly, and has a circulation of nine hundred. It supports the principles and pol- icy, of the Republican party, and its columns are always open to the discus- sion and promotion of any progressive movement.
HON. JOHN VOGT.
There is no element which has entered into our composite national fabric which has been of more practical strength, value and utility than that fur- nished by the sturdy, persevering and honorable sons of Germany, and in the progress of our Union this element has played no unimportant part. Intensely practical, and ever having a clear comprehension of the ethics of life, the Ger- man contingent has wielded a powerful influence, and this service cannot be held in light estimation by those who appreciate true civilization and true ad- vancement. Among the German-American citizens of Henry county, none stand higher than Mr. Vogt, of Deshler.
Born in Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany, May 1, 1853, our subject was a small child when brought by his parents, John and Catherine Vogt, to this country, landing July 4, 1857. They located in Toledo, Ohio, where the lad was reared and educated, receiving also a good practical business training. In that city he learned the trade of a file cutter, but on coming to Deshler, in 1871, he embarked in the lumber business, in which he engaged for three and one-half years. In 1874 he opened a general store, which he conducted until [894, when he sold out and has since given his attention to the life-insurance business.
Mr. Vogt has always taken quite an active and prominent part in local affairs, and has been a member of the school board of Deshler for many years, president of the board for some time; and treasurer of Bartlow township some nine years. So faithfully did he discharge the duties of these offices that his fellow citizens could not fail to recognize his fitness for more responsible positions, and in the fall of 1895 he was elected to the Ohio State Senate, where he served with distinction, and his efforts were duly appreciated by his con-
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stituents. He is a progressive man, pre-eminently public-spirited, and all that pertains to the public welfare receives his hearty endorsement. Socially he is a Knight Templar, and also belongs to the Knights of Pythias. In March, 1898, Mr. Vogt was appointed, by President Mckinley, to the office of post- master at Deshler, and assumed the duties thereof April 15, 1898. In addi- tion to this he conducts a life-insurance business, representing the "New York Life."
JOHN MILTON KILLITS.
Mr. Killits, who is prosecuting attorney for Williams county, is one of the most talented lawyers of this section, and his success in his difficult and responsible position and in general practice furnishes convincing evidence of his ability. His preparation for his work was thorough, and his keen and active intellect enables him to grasp the most abstruse legal principles, and to apply them effectively to the complicated problems that come under his notice. His gifts as a speaker are of a high order, making his presentation of a case both forceful and pleasing, and his many friends look forward with confidence to a bright future for him.
The Killits family is of German origin, the name having formerly been spelled Killitz, and for many generations our subject's ancestors made their home near Hamburg, North Germany. In 1805 his grandfather, John Killitz, then a young man, came to America and located at Womelsdorf, Berks county, Pennsylvania, where he married, and established his permanent home. He prospered in business, and was also prominent in public affairs, being especially well known for his able service as "State armorer" for the entire militia of Pennsylvania. This position he held for many years previous to his death, which occurred in 1847 from violence, his murderer robbing him and throwing his lifeless body into the Susquehanna river, from which it was not recovered for some time. His widow died in 1849, and the remains of both were interred in the cemetery at Womelsdorf. They had seven chil- dren, of whom our subject's father, Andrew Welser Killits, was the youngest. The other children were as follows: Frederick, married Margaret Arnold; Eliza, married Frederick Clous, of Reading, Pennsylvania; Charles; Henry ; Levi; and Caroline, now Mrs. Bash, of Lebanon, Pennsylvania.
Andrew Welser Killits, the father of our subject, was born in 1836 in Berks county, Pennsylvania, where he attended school in early boyhood and later found employment in a cigar factory. In 1855, when about nine- teen years old, he came to Ohio and located at Lithopolis, Fairfield county, where he was employed in a dry-goods store until 1861. During this time
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he was married at Lithopolis to Miss Clarissa Crumley, and in 1861 he re- moved with his family to Findlay, Hancock county, where for a time he clerked in a dry-goods store. In 1862 he removed to Kalida, then the county seat of Putnam county, and established a dry-goods business on his own account, but in 1867 he settled at Bryan and engaged in a similar en- terprise which he conducted successfully for fourteen years. He then re- tired from mercantile life and engaged in agricultural work. continuing for about nine years; but in 1890 he removed to Chicago and again became in- terested actively in business. As he had always been an ardent supporter of Republican principles and had been a valued adviser of the local organi- zation wherever he had resided, he naturally took an active interest in par- tisan work in his new home in Illinois. His business relations threw him into companionship with many prominent Republicans of that State, who quickly recognized his superior executive ability, and in 1896 he was ap- pointed superintendent of the Illinois Industrial Home for the Blind, a po- sition which he resigned after a year to go into business.
Our subject is the eldest of five sons, the others being: Charles C., Miner L., George H., and Arthur C., all of whom reside in Chicago.
The Crumley family originated in South Germany, the ancestral home being in the Kingdom of Wurtemberg. At an early date members of the family, including the great-grandfather of Mrs. Clarissa Killits, came to America and became pioneer settlers in eastern Pennsylvania, while their descendants moved gradually west as the frontier line was pushed in that direction by the advancing tide of civilization, many of them locating in central and western Pennsylvania. They were chiefly engaged in agricul- ture and Mrs. Killits' father, the late Daniel Crumley, was a well-to-do far- mer in Fairfield county, this State, where he was also prominent in local affairs, serving as justice of the peace for many years. He was married in Fairfield county, in 1827, to Miss Jane Betser, and both died there some years ago. Of their fourteen children only five lived to adult age, viz .: Israel, who married Celia Baugher; Clarissa, our subject's mother; Martha, wife of C. J. Arnold; Emma, wife of William Stahlsmith, and Miner, who mar- ried Miss Lillie Ballentine.
Our subject was born October 7, 1858, at Lithopolis, Ohio, and his elementary education was obtained in the common schools of the various localities in which his parents resided during his boyhood. He has always been an earnest student, making the most of every opportunity for advance- ment, and at the age of sixteen entered the preparatory department of Ober- lin College. In 1876 he matriculated at Williams College, Williamstown,
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Massachusetts, where he was graduated in 1880 with the degree of A. B., ranking among the best in the class. In the same year he went to Red Oak, Iowa, to engage in journalism, purchasing the plant of "The Red Oak Express," a daily and weekly newspaper of Republican proclivi- ties. In this venture he succeeded, but his strong inclination toward the legal profession led him to return to Bryan in 1883 in order to begin his studies under the direction of the well-known firm of Pratt & Bentley (the latter being lately Judge Bentley of the Ohio Circuit Bench). In March, 1884, Mr. Killits was appointed to a clerkship in the War Department at Washington, D. C., and this position he held until October 31, 1887, when he resigned. Washington offered special advantages to a student of law, and on going there he lost no time in entering upon a course in the Columbia University Law School, where he received the degree of LL. B. in 1885. Not content with this he took a post-graduate course in the same institu- tion, preparing himself for the higher branches of the profession. In 1886 he was admitted to the Bar of the District, and in December, 1887, having returned to Ohio, he was admitted at Columbus, to practice before the Su- preme Court of this State.
On February 1, 1888, he began the practice of his profession in Bryan, where he has steadily made his way upward, gaining a large and lucrative business. He has never ceased to be a student, his professional reading cov- ering an unusually wide range, and no task seems too arduous in the pur- suit of his chosen calling. In 1892 he was nominated, by the Republicans of Williams county, for the position of prosecuting attorney, and was elected by a majority of only fifty-one votes; but so acceptably did he perform the duties of the office during his first term that on his re-nomination in 1895 he was chosen by a majority of one thousand one hundred and twenty-five votes. His administration has been marked by some important cases which were prosecuted by him against a formidable array of legal talent, including the best lawyers of northwestern Ohio, but he has always succeeded in en- forcing the demands of justice. One of the most notable of these cases was that of the State vs. Plummer, in which he secured a verdict of murder in the second degree; and another was that of the State against Elkins, for the murder of Arthur Brown, in which a similar verdict was obtained after a trial lasting twenty-two days and requiring the examination of one hun- dred and seventy-eight witnesses. In all his dealings Mr. Killits has shown a high sense of honor, and this, united with a most courteous and pleas- ing address, has brought him an enviable popularity. He is connected with various social orders, being an active member of the K. of P., and of the
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Masonic fraternity, being high priest of Northwest Chapter, R. A. M., at Bryan.
In 1887 Mr. Killits married Miss Alice N. Stuart, of Washington, D. C., and two bright and interesting daughters have blessed the union: Alice Milton, born March 28, 1888, and Edith Stuart, born December 4, 1891. Mrs. Killits was born in 1863, near Corpus Christi, Texas, a daughter of Captain Alexander S. Stuart, who was extensively engaged in the raising of cattle and horses in the Lone Star State, and was robbed and murdered by Mexican bandits, while attending to his ranches there. He was a de- scendant of the famous Stuart family of Scotland, but his ancestors settled in Maryland in Colonial times. The American branch of the family has been distinguished for military valor, members having served in the Revo- lutionary war, the war of 1812, the Mexican war, and the war of the Re- bellion, during which some fought with the North and others with the South, Captain Stuart himself being an officer in the Confederate army. He mar- ried Miss Emily Nourse, of Washington, D. C.
JAMES A. FIELD.
This well-known agriculturist is pleasantly situated in Section 19, Wash- ington township, Defiance county, where he owns one of the many fine farms for which that locality is justly noted. He was born in Mayfield township, Cuyahoga county, Ohio, June 16, 1848, but since two years old has made his home in Defiance county. His father, Albert Field, was born in Vermont, May II, 1816, and when a young man went to Newport, Rhode Island, where he was married September 4, 1842, to Miss Ann Elizabeth Whittington, who was born in Providence, that State, February 19, 1817. At an early day they emigrated to Cuyahoga county, Ohio, in 1850 coming to Defiance county and locating in Section 25, Farmer township, where they continued to make their home until called from this life, the mother dying April 2, 1879, the father on September 2, 1880. Of their five children, James, Eugene (I) and George are all deceased, leaving only James A., of this sketch, and Eugene (2), now living.
In Defiance county the subject of this sketch was reared and educated in much the usual manner of farmer boys of his day, assisting his father in the work of the home farm in Farmer township until 1876, when he purchased his present farm in Washington township, to the cultivation and improvement of which he has since devoted his energies with most gratifying results. The place comprises 101 1-3 acres of fertile and productive land. and as he is a
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thorough and skillful farmer, it yields to him abundant harvests for the care and labor bestowed upon it.
On November 19, 1873, Mr. Field was united in marriage with Miss Annie Pask, who was born in Richland county, Ohio, June 15, 1845, a daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth Pask, both natives of Lincolnshire, Eng- land, who died at the home of our subject. Mr. Field is a true and consistent Christian gentleman, a worthy member of the Church of God, takes an active part in all Church work, and for five years has been superintendent of the Sunday-school. Mrs. Field is a member of the German Reformed Church.
HENRY GREENLER.
One of the most energetic and progressive citizens of Defiance county is Mr. Greenler, the subject of this sketch. He was born September 24, 1851, on the farm in Section 35, Richland township, where he still makes his home. His parents, G. C. A. and Mary (Heollrich) Greenler, were natives of New Bavaria, Germany, where they were reared and married. On crossing the Atlantic to the United States in 1837, they came to Defiance county, Ohio, locating first at Independence, later removing to the farm in Richland town- ship, whereon our subject now resides, and there made their home until called to the world beyond, the father dying December 14, 1873, the mother on April 27, 1896. They had five children who reached years of maturity, namely : John, William, Matilda, Henry and Mary.
The subject of this sketch was reared to habits of thrift and industry upon the home farm, and is now one of the most skillful and thorough agri- culturists of Richland township. During his boyhood and youth he received a good common-school education, which has been of great practical benefit to him in later years. In connection with general farming he is also interested in stock raising, making a specialty of Belgian horses and Red-polled cattle. The old homestead, which he now owns, consists of one hundred and fifty acres of fertile and productive land under excellent cultivation and improved with good buildings, and eleven miles of tile drainage. He also owns eighty acres along the river in Section 23.
In Highland township, Defiance county, Mr. Greenler was married April 8, 1880, to Miss Maria Ottillie Troeger, who was born in that township, Octo- ber 28, 1860, a daughter of George and Anna (Sawer) Troeger, the former a native of Bavaria, Germany, the latter of Pleasant township, Henry county, Ohio. After the marriage of her parents they located in Highland township, Defiance county, where the father died May 6, 1877; the mother is still living.
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Millie Greenler
Henry Greenler
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Their children were: Maria O., Catherine, William, Lewis, Michael, Lizzie and Maggie. To Mr. and Mrs. Greenler have been born eight children, as follows: Cora, Carl, Anna, Adam, William, Harmon, Lizzie and Richard.
In political sentiment Mr. Greenler is a Populist, and in local politics he takes quite a deep interest. He has been a member of the school board, and also trustee of Richland township, discharging the duties of both positions in . a most satisfactory and capable manner. With his family he holds member- ship in the Lutheran Church, and at the time of the erection of St. Stephen's Church in Highland township, Defiance county, he was serving as treasurer and trustee of the society. To the building of the church, which cost six thousand dollars, he contributed liberally of both time and means. He is one of the most popular and influential citizens of his community, over whose life record there falls no shadow of wrong.
WILLIAM W. HUFF.
This influential and popular citizen of Sherwood is one of the ablest lawyers practicing at the Defiance County Bar. A man of sound judgment, he manages his cases with masterly skill and tact, and has gained an enviable reputation among his professional brethren.
A native of Defiance county, Mr. Huff was born February 15, 1858, in Delaware township, a son of John and Celestia (Haynes) Huff, the former a native of Crawford county, Ohio, the latter of Summit county. Early in the '50s they came to Defiance county, where they were married, and in Delaware township they began their domestic life, and still continue to reside there, honored and respected by the entire community.
William W. Huff, the eldest in the family of ten children, was reared on his father's farm in Delaware township, in much the usual manner of farmer boys, obtaining his early education in the public schools of the neighborhood. Subsequently he attended the high school of Bryan, Ohio, for four years, graduating from that institution with the class of '81. In the same year he commenced the study of law in Bryan, but concluded his preparation for the legal profession with F. W. Knapp, of Defiance. Being admitted to the Bar, he opened an office in Sherwood, in 1890, where he has since successfully engaged in practice. After his graduation he organized the Sherwood high school, which was then known as the township high school and was after- ward merged into the Sherwood high school, which is a great credit to its founder. For five years he engaged in teaching.
The Democratic party has always found in Mr. Huff an earnest advocate
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of its principles, and by his fellow citizens he has been honored with a num- ber of political positions, the duties of which he has most conscientiously and satisfactorily performed. During President Cleveland's first administration, he was appointed postmaster of Sherwood, filling that office for four years, and for the nine succeeding years, ending in April. 1895, he served as justice of the peace. He has taken an active part in all local affairs, and has cheerfully supported all enterprises for the public good. Both his public and private life are above reproach, and he is held in high regard by a large circle of friends and acquaintances. Socially he affiliates with the Knights of Pythias.
SINCLAIR M. HAGUE.
Success in professional life depends more upon the ability and energy of the aspirant himself, than is the case with lines of effort in which ex- traneous advantages can be made to re-inforce a lack of capacity, and this well-known attorney of Napoleon, Henry county, may justly take pride in his high standing in the legal fraternity of this section.
Mr. Hague was born July 6, 1834, at Leesville, Carroll county, Ohio, whence during his infancy his parents removed to Moorfield, Harrison county, Ohio, where they remained until 1837. They then returned to Car- roll county, and in April, 1850, they settled at Urichsville, Ohio.
As our subject's youth was mainly spent in Carroll county, he received his education in the common schools of that locality, and after the removal of the family to Urichsville he taught school for five years in Tuscarawas, Harrison, and Carroll counties. In the meantime he began reading law, and in 1855 he was appointed deputy auditor of Tuscarawas county, a posi- tion which he held until the following year. While continuing his studies he supported himself by writing in various public offices in that county, and in September, 1857, he was admitted to the Bar at Zanesville, Ohio. The next few months were spent in teaching, but in April, 1858, he began his professional practice at New Philadelphia, Ohio, where he remained until December, 1859. During that winter he taught school at Florida, Henry county, and on May 8, 1860, he located at Napoleon, where he has since been successfully engaged in the practice of law. He is a public-spir- ited citizen, being active in all important movements in his locality, and he took an influential part in the incorporation of the town of Napoleon. In politics he is a strong Republican, and in religious faith he is a Methodist, being one of the leading members of the Church at Napoleon.
On October 2, 1860, he was married in Shanesville, Tuscarawas county,
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to Miss Helen L. O'Hagan, a native of Franklin, Portage county, Ohio, who died in Napoleon August 23, 1890. Of their seven children, three died in infancy ; the others are: Alice G., Harry C. (an attorney at Napoleon, now holding office as justice of the peace), Charles V., and Edwin C.
JERRY P. BELKNAP.
Mr. Belknap, who is the present mayor of Holgate, and the editor and proprietor of the "Henry County Review," is a native of Henry county, born near Napoleon, March 10, 1859, a son of John D. and Mary ( Weaver) Belknap, the former probably a native of New Jersey, the latter of Butler county, Ohio.
In 1850 the parents removed from Butler county, Ohio, to Henry county, locating on a farm near Napoleon, where they were living at the outbreak of the Civil war. Feeling that his country needed his services, the father enlisted April 22, 1861, in Company F, Fourteenth Ohio Volun- teer Infantry, for three months' service, and was commissioned first lieu- tenant of his company. A short time after going to the front he was in camp at Laurel Hill, West Virginia, after having participated in a skir- mish, and he was here accidentally shot and killed by one of his own men July 15, 1861, when thirty-four years of age. He left a widow and three children, the others beside our subject being: Charles H., now a farmer of Napoleon township, Henry county ; and Emma E., wife of Harry Lemon, of Fulton county, Ohio. The mother died in 1874 when about fifty years of age.
From the age of two years Jerry P. Belknap spent his childhood and youth in Napoleon, and in its schools obtained a good practical education, being a member of its first graduating class. In March, 1876, soon after leaving school, he entered the "Signal" office in Napoleon to learn the printer's trade, working there until 1880. Going to Stuart, Guthrie county, Iowa, he published the "Stuart Ledger" for a year and a half, and on selling that paper he purchased the "Portland Observer," at Portland, Michigan, which he published some four years. Returning then to Napoleon he bought the "Napoleon Signal," which he conducted for five years, from the fall of 1885 until the spring of 1891, when he sold out and removed to Chicago. There, in company with W. F. Baum, he established the "Chicago Stockman," which they published for nearly three years, and on disposing of his interest in that paper he came to Holgate, Ohio. He has since been editor and pro- prietor of the "Henry County Review," the circulation of which has been
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increased to nine hundred under his able management. It is independent in politics, and is one of the best papers published in this section of the State.
On April 15, 1881, in Napoleon, Mr. Belknap married Miss Carrie L. Hartman, a daughter of N. H. Hartman, of that place, and they have be- come the parents of three children: Laura, Marion and Nathaniel. So- cially, Mr. Belknap is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows of Napoleon, and of the F. and A. M. at Holgate.
DOCTOR J. V. LESNET.
Doctor J. V. Lesnet, medical practitioner, Montpelier, Williams county, Ohio.
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