USA > Ohio > Wood County > Commemorative historical and biographical record of Wood County, Ohio : its past and present : early settlement and development biographies and portraits of early settlers and representative citizens, etc. V. 2 > Part 16
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Hox. E. F. DAY, mayor of Risingsun, is also one of the most prominent business men of that vicinity, being the head of a well-known firnt of contractors and builders, and of the oil company known as Day, Burnett & Winchell.
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WOOD COUNTY, OHIO.
His grandfather, Dr. Stephen F. Day, was a successful physician in Wayne county, Ohio; where he continued his practice to an advanced age. His wife, Elizabeth (Strause), a native of Pennsylvania, died in her seventy-sixth year in Montgomery township, Wood county, at the home of their son, Steplien F. Day, Jr., our subject's father. He was born in Wayne county, February 28, 1827, and came to Wood county at the age of fifteen. He lived near Longley until his marriage, in September, 1849, in Scott township, Sandusky county, to Miss Mary A. Phillips, who was born in Stark county, Ohio, October 26, 1828, the daughter of David and Mary A. (Bates) Phillips. The young couple be- gan housekeeping near Risingsun, upon an un- cleared tract of eighty acres, which Mr. Day sold after making some improvements. In the fall of 1860, he purchased 150 acres in Scott township, Sandusky county, and lived there until IS83, when he moved to a farm in Gratiot county, Mich. Later he went to Coffee county, Tenn., but, not liking the place, he only remained one winter, and returning to Wood county traded it for forty acres in Section 1, Perry township, where he now resides in a comfortable home. When a young man he worked at the carpenter's trade, but farming has been his chief occupation. Of his family of ten children all are married and well settled in life. They are-Emily, Mrs. Martin Shively, of Risingsun; Ezra F., our sub- ject; Charles H., of Risingsun; David, of Seneca county, Ohio; Jane, Mrs. Edwin Ballinger, of Risingsun; Emanuel, a resident of the same town; the twins, Rosetta (Mrs. William Bovie, of Scott township, Sandusky county), and Rosanna (Mrs. Charles H. Williams, of Risingsun); Willis, who also lives at Risingsun; and Effie, Mrs. Eli Hol- lenbaugh, of Seneca county, Ohio.
Mr. Day first saw the light September 3, 1852, in Section 25, Montgomery township, and his early education was such as the district schools of that day and locality afforded. He was stout and active, and helped his father to clear up two farms during his boyhood; but at twenty-one he began to learn the carpenter's trade, for which he had already shown remarkable aptitudc. Un- der the training of Adam Shively, of Scott town- ship, Sandusky county, he readily mastered the details of the business, and then continued for two years as a partner. After this he engaged in contracting and building, and he has put up some of the finest residences in that locality. His' ability as a mechanic is of the highest order, and he draws his own plans after a system which is unexcelled for simplicity and effectiveness. In |
the spring of 1896 his brother C. H. became as- sociated with him in the business.
On January 17, 1878, Mr. Day was married in Tiffin, Ohio, to Miss Charlotte Riley. the daughter of Thomas and Hannah (Mossgrove Riley. They began housekeeping in Risingsun, in a very comfortable home which he had pre- viously prepared, and here six children were born to them: Alfred J .. Ada L., Bessie E., Homer F., Ethel, and Minnie. All are at home, and the first two are members of the class of 1896, Ris- ingsun High School. Their mother departed this life November 17, 1891, and her mortal re- mains were consigned to earth in Trinity ceme- tery, Sandusky county. Mr. Day has since formed a second matrimonial alliance with Miss Ida Mills, of Ohio county, W. Va., the daughter of Jaines Mills.
As a financier, Mr. Day has shown marked ability. His earlier years were by no means prosperous, and he was obliged to borrow money for the first ham that he ever had in his house: but his industry and shrewd management have brought a good reward. He owns eighty-three acres of land in Seneca county, and some very valuable town property for residence and business purposes, in Risingsun, and his oil interests and other enterprises now bring him, under his con- stant and judicious care, a fine competence. In principle he is a Democrat, but party lines are secondary with him to the public welfare. No man commands more fully the confidence of his fellowmen, and he began his public service at the age of twenty-one as clerk of Scott township. Sandusky county. He was the first mayor of Risingsun, and has since been elected several times, this being his fifth term. His decisions have never been reversed in the courts, and it may be said that he displays rare legal talent, all the more remarkable from his lack of early train- ing. He has drafted ordinances and documents such as other incumbents of the office have not attempted; as an enemy to the disorderly ele- ment he has thie esteem of the better classes. His popularity is proven by his repeated election to this office, and he lias also served as treasurer of the village, and has been a member of the council every year except one since the incorpor- ation of the town. Socially, he is a member of the I. O. O. F.
JUDGE GUY C. NEARING, of Bowling Green. now (1896) serving his second term as judge of the probate court of Wood county, has for near- ly twenty years been a prominent member of the legal fraternity in the county.
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WOOD COUNTY, OHIO.
He comes of old pioneer stock, and is of Ger- man descent. His grandfather, Guy Nearing, left central New York in 1817 to settle in Perrys- burg, Ohio, where he died in 1840 at an ad- vanced age. He was a contractor by occupa- tion, interested in canal construction, and in a number of important buildings, among them the old court house and jail at Perrysburg, and a mill on the river. He was twice married; by his first wife .he had three sons-Horatio, Zepheniah and Neptune (our subject's father)-and by his sec- ond wife he had two daughters, and three sons- Freeman, Henry and Emilius; of these Free- man died in infancy; Henry lives near Tontog- any; and Emilius (who was deaf and dumb), fol- lowed the carpenter's trade in Fulton county until his death, in August, 1890. Of the daugh- ters, one married, and died in Wood county; the other died in infancy.
Neptune Nearing, our subject's father, was born in New York State in ISOS, and died in Wood county in 1844. He learned the cabinet maker's trade in his youth, but was engaged chiefly in assisting his father on his contracts. For a few years he conducted a hotel at Texas, Ohio, and then retired to his farm in Plain town- ship. He returned to New York State for a wife, and married a distant relative, Mrs. Stella Nearing Parsons, who was born in Vermont in 1809, and died in 1890. Of their three children, the eldest, Scott, died in infancy; Sarah Rosetta is now the wife of J. Hayes, of Chicago, Ill. ; our subject being the youngest.
Guy C. Nearing was born at the old farm in Plain township March 12, 1843, and had the ordinary educational advantages of a country boy of his time. In 1861 he enlisted as a private in Company B, 6th O. V .. I., was first sent to West Virginia, was later transferred to the Ohio re- gion, and finally to the army of the Cumberland. He was in several noted battles -- Shiloh, Stone River, Chickamauga and Missionary Ridge-and after three years' service received an honorable discharge, leaving the army with the rank of ser- geant. In December, 1862, he was wounded at Stone River, and fell into the enemy's hands. He was sent first to Nashville, and later to Louis- ville, and was absent from his command until the following May.
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On his return home he attended school for a short time in Perrysburg, aad then engaged in teaching during the winter time, though he was a farmer in summer. Thus he continued until 1873. when he began to study law. In 1876 he was admitted to the bar, and opened an office in Bowling Green, where his strong vitality and
commanding presence, his gift of accurate and rapid analysis of legal principles, and his untir- ing energy, brought him quick recognition in professional circles. He is also interested in various commercial enterprises, being a director in the First National Bank, having extensive in- vestments in the oil fields of Wood county, and owning a farm of 120 acres in Center town- ship. Politically he is a Republican, and he is regarded as a leader in county and muni- cipal affairs, holding various offices. He has been a member of the city council, city solici- tor, clerk of Center township, and since 1891 has been probate judge, having been re- elected to this second term by a large majority over an able and active competitor. He is a member of Wiley Post No. 46, G. A. R., and also takes an active interest in fraternal organiza- tions, being a prominent Mason, a valuable mem- ber of the Blue Lodge, in which he has filled all the chairs, and a Royal Arch Mason; he also affiliates with the subordinate lodge, 1. O. O. F., in which he has passed all the chairs.
On December 13, 1865, our subject married E. V. Rockwood, a native of Lorain county, born January 27, 1846, and they have one son, Charles R., who is deputy probate judge. As leading members of the M. E. Church, they take a prominent part in the social and phil- anthropical movements of that progressive body, and are also ready friends of every worthy enter- prise outside of denominational lines.
Giles C. Rockwood, father of Mrs. Nearing, was born, in 1819, in New York State, and was a carpenter by trade. He came to Ohio with his parents in 1829, and was here mar- ried, in 1845, to Laura C. Wack, by whom he had three children: E. V. (Mrs. Nearing); Hoyt O., who died in October, 1877, leaving two sons -William P. and Ernest C. ; and Frank P., who died in infancy. In 1849 Mr. Rockwood went to California, and was absent ten months. Mrs. Rockwood was born, in 1819, in Vermont, and in 1834 came to Ohio with her parents, Frederick W. and Hannah Wack, the foriner of whom was born in Colchester, Conn., and moved to Vermont. Frederick W. Wack was the only child of Frederick Wack, who came to this country from Germany when a boy, and died while serving in the Colonial army in the Revo- Intionary war.
SYLVESTER ABBOTT, in whose death the com- munity lost one of its most valued citizens, was born July 13, 1812. near Boston, Mass., and at the age of five years came to Greene county,
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Sylvester B abbott
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WOOD COUNTY, OHIO.
N. Y., where he acquired his education and learned the trade of carpenter and joiner, follow- ing that pursuit until his removal to Ohio, in 1833. He located in Huron county, where for a time he again engaged in carpentering, and then fitted himself for the legal profession, being ad- mitted to the bar at Toledo.
In Huron county he was married, January 25, 1836, to Alzina Morey, by whom he had one child, John, born October 27, 1836, who is now a physician in Illinois. The mother died Jan- nary 27, 1837. On May 3, 1838, Mr. Abbott wedded Maryette Caswell, and they became the parents of eight children, namely: Reuben, born April 11, 1839, of Bowling Green; May Eliza- beth, born April 10, IS41, now the wife of By- ron Niles, of Michigan; Melvin L., who was born June 2, 1843, is a merchant of Bowling Green; George M., who was born August 26, 1847, is a farmer of Michigan; Sarah, born September 28, 1850, is the wife of I. L. Hankey; Alice E., born April 20, 1855, is the wife of Sylvester Ordway, of Bowling Green; Lewis, born Decein- ber 1, 1857, is a farmer of Wood county; one died in infancy. The mother of this family passed away November 24, 1875, and for his third wife Mr. Abbott, on March 22, 1876, wed- ded Helen Robins, a lady of culture and refine- inent, who successfully followed school teaching. She is a daughter of Eliakim and Susanna (Brown) Robins, the former a carpenter of Huron county. To this union have come two children: Celesta G., who was born July 24, 1879, and died February 23, 1891; and Jerry B., born June 4, 18SI, still at home.
Mr. Abbott practiced law in both Huron and Wood counties, coming to the latter in 1853, at which time he purchased 160 acres of land in Center township. In connection with law prac- tice he carried on agricultural pursuits, planting an orchard and making many other excellent im- provements, while the well-tilled fields yielded to him a handsome income. He continued farmning until his death, which occurred January 16, 1891. For several years he served as justice of the peace, discharging his duties with most conscien- tious fidelity. He was ever faithful to a trust re- posed in him, whether of a public or private na- ture. His business career and his home life were alike above reproach, and he had the warm re- gard of many personal friends. Mrs. Abbott is still living on the homestead in Center township. and is an intelligent lady of genial manner and kindly disposition, who is held in the highest es- teem by her neighbors and the community at large.
LORIN SMITH, one of the most prominent and highly respected farmers of Montgomery town- ship, was born October 11, 1822, in Kiltzheim, Baden, Germany. . In his native country his name was spelled Lorentz Schmitt. His parents were John J. and Anna M. (Bauman) Smith, the former of whom was a farmer in Baden, and owned a nice little home of twenty-six acres, where he lived in comfort, and was considered well off.
The parental family consisted of the following named children: John J., Jr., Emily, Frank, Frances, Margaret, Eva, and Lorin. As they grew up the question of finding homes for them was a matter of concern to the parents, and, as glowing reports of the wealth and land of the United States had reached the old country, it was decided to send the eldest son, John, and his sister, Emily, who had then reached the years of maturity, to investigate the truth of these stories of the New World. They accordingly came to the United States, and at Stockbridge, Mass., soon found employment, the son in a hotel. Emily was married soon after her arrival in this country. The reports sent back to the family were so satisfactory that two years later Frank and Frances joined their brother and sister, and were so pleased with the success with which they met that it was decided best for the rest of the family to come also. In IS30, the parents and other children left their old home, driving to Paris, France, with their own team. There
the horses and wagon were sold, and they went by boat down the river Seine to Havre, where they took passage for the United States on a three-masted vessel, "The Baird," which had formerly been a mail vessel, and was taking her first trip as an emigrant boat. Their destination was New York, and they were fifty-two days on the ocean, during which time they had a narrow escape from capture by pirates.
At New York City the family was met by the son, John J., and they concluded to come to Olio, then considered the " Far West." This western trip had been under consideration for some time by those of the family already in the United States, and was one of the motives which induced the parents to emigrate. The journey was made up the Hudson river to Albany, thence over the Erie canal to Buffalo, and by lake to Cleveland, Ohio, where a house was rented and a temporary home made, while the father and eldest son looked about for suitable land to pur- chase. Land could be bought where the great city of Cleveland now stands, for eight dollars per acre; but learning that there was better land 1
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WOOD COUNTY, OHIO.
farther west they set out on a journey which ended in Peru township, Huron Co., Ohio. The incident which caused them to locate here was a common one in the history of the western States. Halting at a spring to drink they found the water exceptionally cool and clear, the land in the vi- cinity and the location on the ridge between the sources of the Huron rivers favorable to health and industry. The physical features of the coun- try corresponded with their correct ideas of agri- culture, and they lost no time in obtaining the land, which had been somewhat improved, and on which an excellent orchard was then growing. This farm was known as the "Old Johnson Farm" at the time of their purchase. The fam- ily were moved to Huron county from Cleveland with an ox-team.
The Smith family had a fair amount of money on their arrival in America, as their property in Baden had brought in considerably over $1,000, and they were able to begin life in this country in a very fair way. After a few years residence in Huron county the father began. to look around for more cheap land. A large portion of Wood county was then government land, but it was known as the "Black Swamp," and did not tempt many settlers. The father was a good judge of land, and seemed to think that Wood county had a great future. He entered, after looking around, 162 acres in Section 5, Mont- gomery township, and the deed. signed by An- drew Jackson, bears the date of December, 1835, and is now in the possession of our subject. A few years after the family located in Huron coun- ty, the other members of it came west from Mas- sachusetts, except Emily, who had married Joseph Keller, and died in Boston. Of the other children, John J., Jr., died in Huron county, Ohio; Frank died in the same county in 1872; Frances died in Freedom township, Wood coun- ty; Margaret married Peter Stang, and died in Huron county; Eva is the widow of Joseph Ad- dleman, and lives in Huron county; onr subject is the youngest of the family.
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Lorin Smith had studied in the schools of his native land, and was a very bright boy, being able when seven years of age to both read and write the German language. After coming to Huron county he attended school there and ob- tained a good education. He worked on the farm with his father, and, being an obedient son, the latter showed his appreciation by giving him 162 acres of government land in Montgomery township, Wood county, out of which, however. he was to give his sister Frances fifty acres, which he did. This was in 1841, and two years
later Mr. Smith visited his land, and made some improvements on it. In the fall of 1844 he built a cabin of hewed logs, 20 x 30 feet, which had a shingle roof, the shingles for which he himself cut from oak trees. Being thus provided with a home, the young man secured for himself a wife in the person of Miss Mary T. Addleman, to whom he was married in Huron county, January 7, 1845. Mrs. Smith was born March 19, 1824, in the same village in Baden as her husband, and is the eldest child and only daughter of John P. and Mary Addleman. Her parents left Baden in the spring of 1831, and drove with their own team to Paris, where they waited two weeks for the horse market to open. Selling their horses. they went by boat to Havre, sailing from there on the vessel "Henry III." which landed them at New York City after a voyage of fifty-four days. They spent the winter of 1831-32 in Buf- falo, and in the spring of the latter year bought a farm three and a half miles from that city, where they lived until the fall of 1836. In that year they moved to Huron county, two and a half miles southwest of Norwalk, where they spent the re- mainder of their lives. Their family consisted of four sons and one daughter. On January 14. I845, our subject and his bride started to their new home in Wood county. Three teams were necessary to haul them and their goods, the roads through the timber being very bad. Two days were occupied in the journey, which was a rough and tedious one. They at once began to make improvements upon the place. Their cabin was a good one, but sparsely furnished, and the coun- try about them was in a primitive condition. Many of their friends had predicted their failure to put up with such a pioneer life. This, how- ever, only aroused their determination, and in- stead of disheartening them inspired them to new effort. A plentiful supply of provisions had been brought, which sufficed until the land produced its first crops of wheat and corn. Maumee was the nearest milling point, and it required two days under the most favorable conditions to make the trip. In June, 1847, the aged parents of our subject came to make their home with them, and on September 21. of the same year, the mother died and was buried upon the farm. She was sixty-seven years of age. The father lived with our subject until 1853, when he returned to Huron county, and there died at the age of eighty - four years. This worthy couple were consistent members of the Catholic Church, and were hon- est, industrious German people. The father was never naturalized, and consequently never voted. but in all things was loyal to his adopted country
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WOOD COUNTY, OHIO.
In the course of a few years the results of Mr. Smith's long days of hard work were manifest in the fertile fields and blooming orchards into which the land had been. transformed. He bought eighty acres additional; but when the Civil war broke out, and it was very hard to pro- cure sufficient help, he disposed of this property. The old log house continued to be the home of the family, and in it all the children were born. These are as follows: Mary T., born October 27, 1845, is now Mrs. Peter Hettel, of Wapakoneta, Ohio; Caroline J., born November 22, 1847, is the wife of James Fish, of Freedom township, Wood county; Louisa A., born April 25, 1850, is the wife of William Davidson, of Center town- ship, Wood county; John L., born April 13, 1854. died December 21, 1885; F. B., born October 31, 1856, was married October 22, 1895, to Miss Julia Shepler, of Bradner, Ohio (he is a fariner in Freedom township); Charles L., born April 4, 1859, was married December 19, 1889, to Miss Nellie Brandeberry, of Pemberville, Ohio; Frances A., born May 4, 1862, was married Oc- tober 29, 1889, to George Adams, of Montgom- cry township. In 1869 Mr. Smith built his pres- ent elegant brick residence, which is the finest farm house in Montgomery township, and one of the best in the county. He has added to his original property at various times until he now owns 276 acres, and he has given his sons 170 acres. The land is rich in oil, and is admirably adapted to farming purposes.
The life of Mr. Smith presents an excellent example of what industry, perseverance and good management can accomplish. No man has worked harder than he, and many a moonlight night, in his early days, has found him toiling away until a late hour. He has become a master of the art of agriculture, and is able to procure the best results from his work. He has developed his splended farm from its primitive condition, and in doing so has spent the best years of his life. With his excellent wife, who has shared in all his labors and privations, he deserves the greatest credit for the success to which he has attained. This estimable couple have passed their fifty-first year of married life; have reared a large family, of which they may justly be proud. and have accumulated a handsome competency in an upright, straightforward manner. No one can accuse Lorin Smith of dishonesty, or question his integrity. In all his business dealings he has never been sued, and he is to-day a man whom everyone respects. He became a naturalized citizen in 1843, but though a loyal Democrat has never been an office seeker. Both he and
his wife are members of the Catholic Church, al- though not able to attend the services on account of the distance. Notwithstanding the many trials and years of toil through which Mr. Smith and his wife have passed, they are well preserved, and Mrs. Smith, although over seventy-two years of age, is still able to do her own house work. Their life has been full of usefulness, and in the evening of their days, which they are enjoying in ease and comfort, they can look back over the past years with the consciousness of duties well performed.
HIRAM JOHNSON, an honored veteran of the Civil war, who is now living retired in Liberty township, was born in Lisle, Broome Co., N. Y .. July 27, 1837. His father, Stephen Johnson, was also a native of the Empire State, and when a young man learned the trade of wood turning. which he followed until his marriage to Eunice Thurston, also a native of New York. Several years later they removed from Broome county, to Bradford county, Penn., where Mr. Johnson took up land, and followed farming in connection with his trade. In 1855 he located thirty miles north- west of Chicago, in Lake county, Ill., where his death occurred about 1865, and his wife survived him only two years. Their children were Liddy, deceased wife of Peter Tanner, of Iowa; Girard, who became a farmer in Minnesota, but has not been heard from for ten years; Hiram; and Ed- win, a farmer of Wisconsin.
Mr. Johnson, of this review, was educated in the schools of New York and Illinois, and at the age of twenty-two began learning the mason's trade, which he has followed through much of his life in connection with farming. During the Civil war he manifested his loyalty to the government by enlisting, in 1862, in Kankakee, Ill., as a mem- ber of Company K. 76th Ill. V. I. He partici- pated in the battle of Shiloh. then went down the Mississippi river to the Gulf and to Mobile. Ala .. participating in the battle at that place and the siege at Fort Blakely. Being taken ill, he was sent to the hospital in New Orleans, where he remained until honorably discharged in 1865. when he at once returned to his home in Paxton, Illinois.
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