USA > Ohio > Sandusky County > Commemorative biographical record of the counties of Sandusky and Ottawa, Ohio, containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens > Part 84
USA > Ohio > Ottawa County > Commemorative biographical record of the counties of Sandusky and Ottawa, Ohio, containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens > Part 84
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J OHN H. OVERMYER is one of the esteemed and representative citizens of Washington township, Sandusky county, and it is with pleasure that we present to our readers the record of
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his life, knowing that it will be received with interest, for his friends are many. He was born July 20, 1819, in Pennsyl- vania, son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Hoke) Overmyer, who were also natives of the Keystone State, and in 1834 came to Ohio, locating in Washington township, Sandusky county, on the farm which is now owned by our subject. There they spent their remaining days.
John H. Overmyer received but lim- ited school privileges. When only ten years of age he came to Ohio, and this region, being then on the frontier, afford- ed few advantages to its residents. His training at farın labor, however, was not meager, and he was soon familiar with the arduous task of developing wild land. He worked with his father up to the time of the latter's death, and then inherited the old homestead, a valuable property, which is accounted one of the best farms in his locality. He has made farming his life work, and the evidence of his labor is seen in the highly improved place which he to-day owns.
The domestic relations of Mr. Over- myer have been of the most pleasant character. On January 24, 1856, he was married to Miss Mary Boyer, who was born December 25, 1833, daughter of John and Catherine (Smith) Boyer, and of this union were born eleven chil- dren, a brief record of whom is as follows: (1) Barbara E., born January 2, 1857, is the wife of David Miller; they were mar- ried October 27, 1881, and have four children-Wesley, born October 15, 1883; Rosella, December 5, 1885; Harry, Oc- tober 14, 1888, and Lula, April 14, 1894. (2) Mary E., born September 24, 1859, was married September 13, 1892, to Jeffer- son Notstin, and children as follows were born to them -- a daughter, born August 30, 1893, died in infancy; and Berl Em- erson, born June 6, 1895. (3) Catherine A., born November 23, 1860, was mar- ried December 17, 1885, to Fred Gnep- per, who was born May 12, 1859, son of
Ernst and Mary Gnepper, and children as follows have blessed this union-J. V., born December 18, 1886; P. M., January 30, 1889; A. F., January 21, 1891; and M. F., April 6, 1894. (4) Amos A., born November 6, 1862, was married June 16, 1892, to Emma Hetrick, and they have two children-Clyde, born January 31, 1893; and Ray F., November 30, 1894. (5) Alvin S., born October 9, 1864, was married December 15, 1887, to Edessa Lattig, and two children were born to them-a son on May 16, 1892, died in infancy; and R. Ruth, born April 24, 1895. (6) Susanna, born April 28, 1867, died May 27, 1883. (7) Celesta, born November 8, 1869, was married March 19, 1891, to Alfred D. Hetrick, and two children blessed their union -- Lloyd E., born July 14, '1892, died July 30, 1893; and Vida, born Sep- tember 3, 1894. (8) Elam, born Febru- ary 15, 1873. (9) Festus, born March 23, 1876. The two other children died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Overmyer have also an adopted daughter, named Mabel Overmyer, who was born May 25, 1880.
Mr. Overmyer and his sons are sup- porters of the Republican party. The family is one of prominence in the com- munity, and its members are highly es- teemed for their genuine worth. The long life of our subject has been well spent. He has ever been true to all trusts, whether public or private, and those who know him best are his warm- est friends.
G EORGE MALLORY is one of the extensive fruit growers of Marble Head, Ottawa county. Promi- nent among the brave old pio- neers of Danbury township stands this worthy citizen, who is deserving of more than a passing notice in this volume. His birth occurred in Newtown, Fairfield Co., Conn., December 27, 1823, and he
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is a son of Nathaniel and Laurena (Foote) Mallory, who were both also natives of the Nutmeg State. Of the family of four children, George was the only one to lo- cate in Ohio, while his sister and two brothers are still supposed to reside in Connecticut. The father died in Au- gust, 1825, and in 1830 George went to live with an uncle.
The education of our subject was very limited, as in boyhood and early youth his time was almost entirely occu- pied in laboring for his uncle and his only opportunity for attending school each year being the short winter term, while ofttimes not even then could he be spared from the farin duties. He is a thorough, practical farmer as his well-cultivated lands bear evidence, and for the past twenty years almost his entire attention has been devoted to fruit growing. In September, 1843, he located on Catawba Island, there being at that time but twen- ty-two voters on the Island. For seven years he there engaged in agricultural pursuits, and in 1850 he sold that place, purchasing his present farm in Danbury township, upon which he has now made his home for over forty-five years.
In that township, on May 18, 1845, Mr. Mallory was married to Miss Cather- ine D. Hartshorne, who was born in San- dusky City, Erie Co., Ohio, March 8, 1825, a daughter of Wyatt and Jane (Kelly) Hartshorne. Their union was blessed with five children, three of whom are yet living: Eliza J., born November 15, 1850; Hattie M., born April 3, 1853, married to F. A. Rice, February 6, 1883, and resides at Lakeside, Ohio; and George, born September 23, 1865. The mother of this family passed from earth July 27, 1892. Her father had come to Ohio in 1810, and two years later located in Erie county, where in 1824 he married Jane Kelly. Later he removed to Danbury township, and here resided up to the time of his death. He was one of Otta- wa county's most progressive and popu-
lar agriculturists, and was a highly es- teemed citizen. His faithful wife still survives him at the advanced age of ninety years, and makes her home with a daughter in Sandusky City.
Mr. Mallory is one of the few remain- ing pioneers of the county, who has been spared to see the wild timber land give place to fertile farms, and the untutored Indian and wild animals of the forest vanish before the inevitable march of civilization, while his personal unswerv- ing integrity and general rectitude through life has gained for him an enviable repu- tation in the community where he is best known. In his political principles he has always been a stanch Republican, and the family attend the Congregational Church.
W ILLIAM WONNELL. Among those who follow farming and fruit growing in Portage town- ship, Ottawa county, and well deserve mention among the leading citi- zens of the community is Mr. Wonnell.
Born December 28, 1832, in the township which is still his home, he is a son of Isaac and Margaret (Shook) Won- nell, the former of whom was born in Maryland, June 18, 1810, and died Feb- ruary 18, 1875, while his wife, to whom he was married February 16, 1832, was born in Pickaway county, Ohio, August 18, 1814, and died February 2, 1895. Both became early settlers of Ottawa county, the Shook family locating in Port- age township about 1825, the Wonnell family a short time afterward. John Shook, father of Mrs. Wonnell, died April 20, 1865, at the age of seventy-five, and his wife Susanna passed away March 3, 1856, at the age of sixty-two; the mother of our subject died at the ad- vanced age of eighty years. Mr. and Mrs. Wonnell had a family of seven children, namely: William; Samuel, born March 24, 1834, and died January 5, 1858; Su- sanna, born November 8, 1835, and died
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November 4, 1836; Margaret, born De- cember 9, 1837, and died October 17, 1861; Sarah, born February 19, 1842, and died October 10, 1893; Daniel, born December 13, 1843, and died September 26, 1849; and Ephraim, born January 8, 1850. The eldest and the youngest are now the only surviving members of the family.
William Wonnell acquired his educa- tion in the district schools of the town- ship, and since early life has devoted his energies to agricultural pursuits, while for the past twelve years he has also exten- sively engaged in fruit growing. His labors were interrupted, however, by his enlistment in his country's service May I, 1864, with the one-hundred-day men of Company K, One Hundred and Thirty- ninth Ohio V. I. During his service he was stationed at Point Lookout, Md., and after being discharged he returned to his home, where he resumed farming.
Mr. Wonnell was married March 26, 1861, to Mary S., the estimable daughter of Joshua C. and Stila (Shirley) Martin. Her father was born in the Mohawk Val- ley, New York, in 1806, and was of En- glish lineage, while her mother was born in Almeda county, N. Y., October 13, 1811, of American parentage. The grand- parents of Mrs. Wonnell removed from the latter county to Ohio, in 1817, and af- ter living in Erie county, for a short time took up their residence in Danbury town- ship, Ottawa county, where they both passed away. Joshua Martin was one of the first settlers of Erie county, and was a sea captain, sailing on the lakes for many years, during which time he resided in Sandusky county. He died December 23, 1840, his wife on January 28, 1885, at the age of seventy-five years, three months and thir- teen days. She removed to the l'enin- sula when a young girl with her parents who located near Lakeside, which at that time was mainly the home of the Indians. She endured many trials and hardships incident to the frontier, and lived a noble
Christian life. In 1831 she became the wife of J. C. Martin, who died nine years later, and a year after married Elijah Nichols, whose death occurred ten years later. In 1858 she became the wife of James Metcalf, who survived her about two weeks, dying at the very advanced age of ninety-two. In 1843 Mrs. Metcalf be- came a member of the Methodist Episco- pal Church, and her exemplary life was in harmony with her profession. She reared eleven children, including two adopted children and one grandson. Her devo- tion to her family was unceasing, and she had not only their love and esteem, but also the high regard of all who knew her.
Mrs Wonnell, who was born in Ohio, October 11, 1840, is the only surviving member of the family. By her marriage she has become the mother of four chil- dren, only one of whom is now living- Maggie Estelle, born November 5, 1865. The youngest child died in infancy; Ella May, born December 25, 1861, died July 31, 1883; William Courtland, born April 14, 1863, died November 1, 1888. Mr. Wonnell is a member of George R. Mc- Ritchie Post, No. 524, G. A. R. In poli- tics he is a stalwart Republican, and has served as school director and supervisor for several terms. He and his family at- tend the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which he is a consistent member. His friendship is prized most by those who know him best, a fact which indicates a well-spent and honorable life.
W ILLIAM G. MILLER, a most prominent fruit grower of Dan- bury township, Ottawa county, was born December 13, 1859, on the old homestead farm which is still his place of abode, and throughout the community in which he has always lived he is held in high regard, a fact which in- dicates a well-spent life.
Descended from German ancestry, the family was founded in America by
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Claus Miller, the father of our subject, who was born in the Province of Han- over, June 2, 1821, and emigrated to this country in 1838, locating in New York City, where he engaged in the grocery business until 1851. In that year he came to Ohio, and took up his residence in Danbury township, Ottawa county, casting in his lot with its early settlers. Here he successfully engaged in agricul- tural pursuits until his death, which oc- curred May 2, 1880. He was married in New York City. June 2, 1847, to Kath- rina Buck, who was born in the Province of Hanover, Germany, August 1, 1824, and with her parents crossed the briny deep in 1840. To Mr. and Mrs. Miller were born five children: Anna C., who was born in New York, April 2, 1848, is now residing in Toledo, Ohio; John H., born in the same place, March 11, 1851, was a prominent farmer and fruit grower of Danbury township, Ottawa county, and died April 20, 1894, leaving a widow and two sons; Herman, born March 4, 1853, is now residing in Sandusky, Ohio; William G. is the next in the family; Ma- tilda R., born May 5, 1862, is the wife of J. W. Muggy, who is living in Catawba Island.
In the usual manner of farmer lads William G. Miller spent the days of his boyhood and youth and acquired his ele- mentary education in the district schools of his native township, after which he en- tered Oberlin College, at Oberlin, Ohio, where he pursued his studies four years. In the meantime he taught school three terms, and after the completion of his school life continued teaching several terms, being employed seven terms in Danbury township, and two on Catawba Island. During this time he also followed agricultural pursuits on the old home- stead, and since 1886 he has devoted his entire attention to farming and fruit rais- ing. He now owns and operates a rich and well-cultivated tract of land, forty acres being devoted to peaches, pears and
plums, and the neat appearance of the place indicates his systematic and careful supervision. He has made the growing of different kinds of fruits adapted to the soil a specialty, and believes in thorough and intensive cultivation, to obtain best results.
On January 20, 1892, Mr. Miller mar- ried Miss Lydia Reitz, daughter of Rev. G. F. Reitz, who was born in Browns- ville, Minn., June 29, 1866, and one child graces their union-Helen C., born No- vember 8, 1892. Mr. and Mrs. Miller attend the Lutheran Church. He is highly esteemed in the community, where he resides, for his sterling worth and strict integrity, and belongs to that class of progressive and public-spirited young men to which the West owes its prosper- ity and advancement.
E LIHU LINDSLEY. Among the prosperous farmers of Carroll township, Ottawa county, the records of whose lives fill an im- portant place in this volume, it gives us pleasure to commemorate the name of the gentleman whose sketch is here given. He is a native of Ottawa county, born in the town where he now resides, March 14, 1849, and is a son of Elihu and Nancy (Webster) Lindsley, both of English de- scent, the former a native of New Jersey, the latter of Kentucky.
Like the majority of the young men of that day, our subject received but a limited education in the primitive log schoolhouse of the district, and from early life has been engaged in agricultural pur- suits. His life has been a quiet one, without any uncommon incidents, as he had no adventures as a pioneer in a new country, was engaged in business in a new town, nor has he aspired to any conspicu- ous office. Yet to those who know him, it is evident he would have been success- ful in any line of life as he has been in that which he has chosen. On March 7,
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1869, in Carroll township, he wedded Vashti E. Humphrey, who was born in Ashtabula, Ohio, January 15, 1849, and is a daughter of Henry and Catherine (Zieg- ler) Humphrey. To this union have come eight children, as follows: Charles H., born May 10, 1870, now makes his home in Ashtabula; Katie O. I., born August 12, 1872, is the wife of Albert Gyde, of Car- roll township; Florence A., born January 15, 1875, is the wife of Elliott Whipple, of the same township; Ralph B., born De- cember 9, 1876, is residing in Ashtabula; Lelila M. was born February 3, 1879; Wesley R. was born January 1, 1881; Bertha M. was born November 15, 1882; and Laura M. was born July 16, 1885.
Mr. Lindsley is a prominent citizen, especially as a leader in such good deeds as need sympathy, active work and be- nevolent contribution-in fact, his whole life has been an example of what princi- ple, square dealing and honesty can ac- complish. He and his family are faith- ful attendants of the United Brethren Church, and are held in the highest esteem. Though no office seeker, Mr. Lindsey has been called upon by his fellow citizens to serve as school director and constable of his township, and he served as trustee of his township a number of years.
J OHN F. RUDY, who for some time has been mail agent at Limestone, Ottawa county, is a native of Penn- sylvania, born in the town of Lan- caster, July 14, 1831, son of Theophilus and Elizabeth (Frittz) Rudy.
The parents of our subject were both al- so born in Pennsylvania, the father in about 1810, and of their family five are still liv- ing-three sons and two daughters-all but John F. living in Pennsylvania, where the mother also makes her home. The father died in that State May 29, 1894. Mr. Rudy's maternal grandfather, John Frittz, was born in Pennsylvania, and lived to be seventy-five years old; the
grandmother, who was some years his junior, died at a comparatively early age. The great-grandmother, Mrs. Merrick, was born in Philadelphia in 1754, and lived to the extraordinary age of one hun- dred and five years and five days.
John F. Rudy attended the district schools until fifteen years of age, when he commenced to work, turning over his wages to his father until of age. In his youth he learned the blacksmithing trade, but he has never devoted himself to it, preferring farming and other work. At the age of nineteen he married Miss Liz- zie Porter, of Pennsylvania, and this mar- riage has been blessed with two children: Emma, born May 6, 1861. and Ida, born in 1867, the last named dying in infancy. Emma is married and lives in Pennsylva- nia, where her husband, Mr. Wilcox, is act- ively engaged in the tobacco business. Af- ter marriage Mr. and Mrs. Rudy lived at his father's for two years, after which he worked by the day among farmers in his native State for two years, or until 1863. when he came west to Ohio, locating in Clark county. Early in 1865 Mr. Rudy entered the war of the Rebellion, enlist- ing in Company I, One Hundred and Ninety-seventh O. V. I., with which he served to the close of the conflict. He was never in any hard-fought battles dur- ing his service, and the command was just on its way to assist in the siege of Rich- mond when the news of its surrender reached them. During his absence Mrs. Rudy was in Pennsylvania with her people.
After his return from the army Mr. Rudy farmed six months in Ohio, and then went to Pennsylvania to visit his parents, remaining there one year, after which he traveled for a time through Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. He finally took a position at Cincinnati, Ohio, as clerk on a steamer on the Ohio river, which he held one year, and subsequently farmed near Dayton for three years. Af- ter making another trip to Pennsylvania to visit his parents, he traveled exten-
John F Rudy.
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children have been born to them: John A. and Mary Eunice. Socially Mr. True is a Knight Templar, and has been mas- ter of O. H. Perry Lodge, Port Clinton, for a number of years. Politically he is a Democrat.
GEORGE A. TRUE was born December 31, 1865, at Port Clinton, Ohio, the pub- lic and high schools of which city he at- tended, graduating from the latter in the spring of 1886, in the fall of which year he entered the high school at Ann Arbor, Mich., remaining there one winter. In the following spring and summer, having returned to Port Clinton, he did some work in the interests of the Ohio Farm- ers Insurance Co., and in the fall of the same year (1887) he commenced teaching the Port Clinton High School, as principal, a position he held some two years. In 1890 he was appointed county school ex- aminer, an incumbency he has since filled, and, same year, commenced reading law in the office of T. J. Marshall, attorney at law, Port Clinton. After about a year he entered the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, graduated therefrom in the spring of 1893; was admitted to the bar, in Ohio, in March, same year, and in Michigan in the following June. In August, 1893, he opened an office in Port Clinton for the general practice of law, was elected city solicitor in the spring of 1895, and still holds that office. In politics Mr. True is a Democrat. He has not yet enlisted in the noble army of benedicts, preferring to disport himself for some time longer, at least, in the Arcadian fields of single- blessedness.
G EORGE A. BEEBE, one of the most prominent and successful fruit growers and highly respected citizens of Danbury township, Ot- tawa county, was born in Columbia town- ship, Lorain Co., Ohio, January 3, 1836, to Willis and Sally (Bronson) Beebe, the former a native of the Empire State, the
latter of Lorain county, Ohio. Our sub- ject received an elementary education in the schools of his native township, after which he attended Oberlin College, at Oberlin, Ohio, and in early life he learned the carpenter's trade, which occupation he followed until 1861.
In October of that year Mr. Beebe became a member of Company E, Sixty- fifth O. V. I., and with his regiment took part in many important engagements no- ticeable among which were the battles of Shiloh, Chickamauga, Buzzard Roost Mountain and Resaca. For four years he valiantly aided in the defense of his country, being mustered out of service at Nashville, Tenn., in November, 1865, after which he returned to Columbia township, Lorain county. In the winter of 1865 Mr. Beebe went to Middletown, Conn., where, March 13, 1866, he mar- ried Miss Selina L. Tryon, a daughter of Joseph and Lucetta Tryon, and their un- ion has been blessed with two children: Gertrude L., born May 27, 1867, now teaching school in Middletown, Conn .; and T. Ervin, born January 2, 1870, now a civil engineer in Cleveland, Ohio.
Shortly after his marriage, in 1866, Mr. Beebe located in Danbury township, Ottawa county, and for almost thirty years has been one of its most progressive and honored residents. Of late years he has been extensively engaged in fruit cul- ture, and thoroughly understands that business as well as farming in all its de- tails, to which fact his well-cultivated fields, productive orchards and neat sur- roundings bear ample evidence. In all his duties of husband, father and neigh- bor he occupies a high place in the es- teem of his fellow citizens. He has never been a seeker after public office, but has efficiently filled the position of trustee of his township for several terms. Socially, he belongs to O. H. Perry Lodge, No. 241, F. & A. M., and I. B. Richards Post, No. 454, G. A. R. In political preferences he is a Republican, and both
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he and his wife are consistent members of the Congregational Church, and at the organization of the Church in March, 1873, in his township, he was elected clerk of the Church, and has filled that position till the present time.
Willis Beebe, the father of our sub- ject, was born March 16, 1806, and was a son of Abram Beebe and grandson of Zera Beebe, the latter of whom was a lieutenant in the Colonial army during the Revolutionary war. The father lo- cated in Danbury township in 1866, with his sons Sherlock, George A., and Bela B., and became an honored and revered citizen of the community, but did not live long to enjoy his home, dying April 25, 1868. In Lorain county, Ohio, March 18, 1827, he wedded Miss Sally Bronson, whose birth occurred November 11, 1810. She passed away October 4, 1889. By this union nine children were born, six of whom are still living, namely: Sherlock D., residing at Lakeside, Danbury town- ship; George A., subject of this sketch; Mary B., widow of Norris C. North, of Marshall, Minn .; Miles A., the oldest letter carrier in the Cleveland post office department, and the second oldest in the United States; Eva B., wife of Frank G. Lee, of Lakeside, Danbury township; and Bela B., who enlisted in the One Hundred and Eleventh O. V. I., in 1862, and served during the war.
Sherlock Beebe, the oldest living member of the family, is a leading fruit grower of Danbury township; his orchard adjoining that of our subject. He was born in Liverpool, Medina Co., Ohio, June 12, 1831, and received the advant- ages of a very liberal education in the select schools of his native township. He was reared to agricultural pursuits, and also engaged in fishing; but of late years his entire attention has been given to fruit culture, and his fine orchards bear evi- dence of the care, thrift and sound judg- ment of the owner, who justly enjoys the good will and confidence of his neighbors.
He was married June 12, 1862, in Xenia, Greene Co., Ohio, to Miss Louisa L. Stowe, a daughter of Joseph and Mary Stowe, but she was called to her final rest on the first of the following Septem- ber. He is an earnest supporter of the Republican party, and has served as clerk of Columbia township one term, and for six years was justice of the peace in Dan- bury township; at the organization of the Congregational Church in Danbury town- ship, he was chosen as one of its deacons, and has held that office in the church continuousiy till the present time.
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