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 70
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AVERY O. CHAPMAN, an intelligent and pros- perous farmer of Liberty township, is a native of Wood county, born in Weston township, on the 25th of June, 1855, and is a son of William H. and Sylva Ann (Avery) Chapman. The father's birth occurred in Connecticut, August 11, 1820, and while still single removed to Huron county, Ohio, where he wedded Miss Avery, who was
born in New London, Conn., in 1830. It was in 1850 that he came to Wood county, locating first in Weston township, where he began the im- provement of a farm, which he sold five years later, and, on selling that tract, purchased another in the same township, where his widow still re- sides. He was well and favorably known through- out the county, and his death, which occurred in Connecticut, July 19, 1890, was deeply mourned. In politics he was a stanch Republican.
In the family were ten children, nine of whom are still living, namely: Oliver, and Mrs. Lucy Lewis, both of whom reside in Milton township, Wood county; Avery O., of this review; Isandra, wife of Clarence Palmer, of Weston township; Fannie, wife of Dr. Lathrop, of Deshler, Ohio; Charley, of Weston township; Eulalia, wife of James Hutchinson, of Liberty township, Wood county; Fred, who resides on the old homestead; and Amasa, who is married, and lives in Liberty township. Zackeus died in Weston township, September 5, 1855, at the age of four years.
Our subject was educated in the common schools of Weston township, and in early life re- ceived a practical training in the labors of the farm. In 1883 he purchased his present farm of eighty acres of rich and productive land, which he immediately began to improve and cultivate, erecting thereon good and substantial farm build- ings, and has converted his place into one of the most highly developed farms of the community.
In Weston township, in 1880, Mr. Chapman led to the marriage altar Clara C. Allyn, a native of Hopkinton, Delaware Co., Iowa, a daughter of Phineas and Celia C. (Butler) Allyn, who were born and reared in Connecticut. The father had removed to Delaware county, in 1854, but he later returned east. locating near Wellington, Lorain Co., Ohio, but now makes his home in Michigan. His wife died in Traverse City, that State, on the 27th of December, 1870. To our subject and his wife have been born five children: Sherman, Edward, Ula, Mabel and George. In her younger days, Mrs. Chapman successfully engaged in teaching, being for four years em- ployed in the schools of Weston, half of the time having charge of the primary department, and. the other half, of the intermediate grade. For four months she also taught at Pottertown, hav- ing one year taught through the entire twelve months without interruption.
Mr. Chapman has identified himself with the interests of the township. especially in educa- tional affairs, realizing that the future prosperity of the county will be in the hands of the rising generation, and it must be fitted for the respon-
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sible position it is soon to occupy. He has served as a member of the school board, and has also been supervisor of his township. In politics he is a Republican, and works for the interests of that party, firmly believing in its principles ..
CHARLIE E. BAKER, a worthy representative of one of the honored pioneer families of Mont- gomery township, was born on the farm which is . still his home, in Section 35, on November I, 1867, and is a son of Adam and Lydia (Zimmer- man) Baker. The birth of his father occurred in April, 1840, upon the same farm, where the grandfather, Jacob Baker, had located on coming to Ohio from Maryland at a very early day, when the land was in almost its primitive condition. He was the second owner, and our subject now has in his possession the deed for eighty acres that is dated 1837, and signed by Andrew Jack- son.
The father was one of the youngest in a fam- ily of ten children. His marriage was celebrated in Sandusky county, where his wife was born in 1849, the daughter of Adam Zimmerman. He then located upon the old homestead in Section 35, Montgomery township, where the grand- father had passed his remaining days. By trade he was a carpenter, which occupation he followed during his younger years; but, after his marriage, he bought out the interests of the other heirs in the home farm, and later devoted his entire at- tention to agricultural pursuits. There his death occurred on April 7, 1881, and he was laid to rest in the Prairie Depot cemetery. He was a good citizen, a stanch Republican in politics, and served as school director in his district. He was a large man, being six feet in height. In the family were four children - Charlie E .; Emma, now Mrs. Clark Graber, of Montgomery town- ship; Alta, of the same township; and Jessie. After the death of the father, the mother became the wife of George Gebhart, by whom she had one son, Clifford, who now lives in Sandusky county, Ohio. She departed this life in May, IS88, and was also interred in the Prairie Depot cemetery.
During his boyhood and youth Charlie E. Baker attended the district schools of his town- ship, his first teacher being Rose Griffin, who conducted the school in District No. 7, and his life was passed in the uneventful manner of most farmer lads. He worked for some time as a farm hand on several different places, but in 1893 began buying the interests of the other heirs in the old home farm, which he now owns with the
seventy-one acres of excellent land. He is a steady-going, prosperous young farmer, and with continued good health can place himself in the front rank among the substantial farmers and citizens of Montgomery township. Politically, he is identified with the Republican party.
H. W. KELSEY, one of Portage township's prosperous young farmers, is a native of New York State, born September 15, 1860, in La- Salle, Niagara county. His parents, Henry and Caroline (Michael) Kelsey, had four children: John, who is now a resident of Buffalo, N. Y .; Ida, Mrs. J. W. Lindower, of Portage township; Henry, who died young, and H. W., our subject. The father was a sailor, sailing on the great lakes, and, as he was a man of somewhat limited means, the children commenced to work early in life.
When H. W. Kelsey was about eight years old the family came to Ohio, and he received the greater part of his education in the schools of Fremont. When only ten years of age he com- menced to work and support himself, doing such labor as his strength permitted until he reached manhood, after which he was engaged in various lines of employment. He sailed on the lakes, worked in the pine woods of Michigan, was en- gaged on the railroad, building in Dakota and Minnesota, and for some time was employed in a freight house at Buffalo, N. Y., during these years seeing mnuch of the country, and living in several different States. In 1884 he came to Wood county, Ohio, where his sister Ida was living, and took up his home in Portage township, where, on December 25, 1885, he was united in marriage with Miss Winnie B. Northrup, who was born in Plain township, Wood county. daughter of William Northrup, a farmer. Up to this time Mr. Kelsey had saved but $125, and he invested that amount in forty acres of land in Section 23, Portage township, his present farm, removing thereon in the following year, after he had moved a house there from Six Points. Farmi- ing was new work to him, as he had only spent one season at it, and that, in a vinevard on Catawba Island. However, he set to work to do the best he could, and the result of his labors would do credit to many an older man, for he has placed his land under fine cultivation, and conducts a profitable, general-farming business. He is much esteemned and liked in his neighbor- hood, and his thorough honesty and untiring in- dustry have won him the respect of all
To Mr. and Mrs. Kelsey have come three exception of a quarter interest. It consists of ; children: Melvin R., born in March, 1888, killed
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in a runaway August 3, 1896; William H., born in July, 1891, died August 21, 1896; and John W., born in 1893. Politically Mr. Kelsey is a lifelong Democrat, and an ardent believer in the principles of his party; he has served as super- visor of his township. Socially he is a Mason, being a member of the lodge at Pemberville.
CHARLES S. WOODFORD, the able and popu- lar postmaster at Haskins, and a leading mer- chant of that town, was born September 7, 1855, in Riley township, Sandusky Co .. Ohio.
His paternal grandparents, Sylvester and Sarah Woodford, were "down-east Yankees" who made their home in Riley township at an early day, and died there at a good old age. Zera Woodford, our subject's father, was a native of Connecticut, born April 6, 1812, and came to Ohio with his parents when a boy. His first money was made by hiring out by the month to "shoot deer," then plentiful near his home. He afterward taught school for eight years, and is said to have been the first teacher in Sandusky county. The greater part of his life was spent, however, in agricultural pursuits, and he died at the old farm June 26, 1872. He was married December 25, 1839, to Miss Sarah Karshner, a native of Circleville, Ohio, born August 1, 1820. She survives him, and resides with our subject, who is the youngest of their six children. Of the others the names with dates of birth and death are as follows: Lucy, October 15, 1840, died August 31, 1876, was the wife of H. H. House; Louisa, April 3, 1842, died November 6, 1867, married H. H. Arlin; Sarah, November 16, 1843, died April 12, 1870, married Daniel Mackey; Rachel, February 28, 1845, died August 11, 1870; and Henry, March 25, 1849, died August II, 1870.
Our subject spent his boyhood days at the old homestead, where he worked on the farm, and at- tended the district school. Later he studied in the Union schools at Fremont, and attended the Northwestern Normal at Republic and at Fos- toria. He taught school for eight years, and re- ceived the highest salary which had been paid up to that time in his native township, as he was considered the best disciplinarian and the most competent teacher obtainable in that locality. He was clerk of Riley township for four years, and then came to Wood county, and engaged in mercantile business at Grand Rapids, where he remained five years. Selling out his store, he traveled for three and a half years as salesman for Leland Smith & Co., of Toledo, and then came to Haskins and established his present store,
of which he has made a decided success. Since August 16, 1892, he has been postmaster, and fills the position with characteristic ability and tact.
On September 13, 1877, Mr. Woodford mar- ried Miss Jennie Matthews, of Millbury, who was born June 13, 1857, in Center township, Wood county. They have five children whose names with dates of birth are here given: Stewart L., July 7, 1878; Estella E., August 10, 1880; Wil- bur W., October 7, 1881; Gordon R., April 6, 1884; and Ettie, October 3, 1885. Politically Mr. Woodford is a Democrat, and holds an in- fluential place in the local management of the party. He is a member of the I. O. O. F. En- campment at Bowling Green.
SAMUEL J. DERN, a well-known citizen and a wide-awake, energetic business man of Prairie Depot, is a native of Seneca county, Ohio, born in Jackson township, July 11, 1848, son of Heze- kiah and Susanna (Hyter) Dern. The father's birth occurred in Frederick county, Md .. in ISoS. and he was one of a family of six children who grew to adult age, the others being Susan, Amy, Mary, Isaac and William. The paternal grand- father, William Dern, followed the occupation of an agriculturist in Maryland, where his death occurred.
On reaching manhood, Hezekiah Dern wed- ded Miss Susanna Hyter, who was also born in Frederick county, Md., August 7, 1814, the daughter of Jacob and Margaret (Kuntz) Hyter. By trade the father of our subject was a carpen- ter, but he was for the most part engaged as a huckster in Baltimore until 1839, when he brought his family in a covered wagon to Ohio, passing through Pittsburg, Penn., where the eldest daughter, Theodocia, strayed away, but was found after a short search. His first location was upon an acre of ground six miles north of Tiffin, in Seneca county, where the family made their tem- porary home in a log school house, while their hewed-log dwelling was being built, and they aft- erward used the former as a barn. There the father followed carpentering, but he later re- moved to a tract of forty acres in Jackson town -. ship, in the same county. His death occurred January 14, 1854, upon another forty-acre farm there, and he was laid to rest in Dysinger ceme- tery. The mother passed away at Fostoria. Ohio, in August, 1882, and was interred by the side of her husband. They were devout met- bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and in politics the father was an Old-line Whig. The family circle included the following children
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Theodocia R., now Mrs. I. W. Nestlerode, of Fostoria, Ohio; Theodore D., who was a mem- ber of the 72nd O. V. I., during the Civil war (he died at Memphis, Tenn., August 9, 1879); Margaret E., wife of C. H. Fundom, of Loudon. township, Seneca county; William C., a farmer of Montgomery township, Wood county; Wesley W., of Keokuk county, Iowa; Samuel J., who is the subject of this sketch; Frances A., now Mrs. Christopher Deal, of Jackson, Mich .; and Mary I., wife of Almon Baker, of Montgomery town- ship.
S. J. Dern was educated in the district schools of his time, which were much inferior to those of the present day, and the improved educational institutions now find in him a stanch friend and supporter. Reared as a farmer boy, he aided in the labors upon the old homestead, and after reaching his majority began to accumulate some property for himself. He bought the shares of the other heirs in the home farm from time to time, until he owned three-quarters of the place, and continued to reside there until his removal to Prairie Depot, November 1, 1876. On Au- gust 17, 1875, Mr. Dern had been married in that village to Miss Flora A. Bryant, a daughter of William R. and Melissa (Sherman) Bryant, and by her he had one son, Charles W., born July 19, 1877. From Prairie Depot our subject re- moved to a rented farm in Plain township, Wood county, where his wife died July 24, 1880, and she was buried in the cemetery at Prairie Depot. There he was again married, September 12, 1883, his second union being with Miss Jessie B. Gould, a daughter of John Gould, a veteran of the Rebellion, who during his younger days was a sailor, and is now a highly respected citizen of Prairie Depot. Mrs. Dern was born August 13, 1860, and has become the mother of two chil- dren-Hazel, born January 3, 1886; and Edgar G., born June 9, 1889.
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For nine years after his return to Prairie Depot, Mr. Dern was engaged in the hardware business, being a member of the firm of Johnston 1 & Dern the first three years, at the end of which time he purchased his partner's interest, and was sole proprietor for the following three years. Lewis Newcomer then became a member of the firin, which assumed the name of Dern & Co., and they carried on business very successfully until July 8, 1890, when they sold out to the ! Buckeye Supply Company. For a year and a half Mr. Dern was then traveling agent for the Woodmen of the World Insurance Company, and has since been engaged in the oil business. He has also been more or less engaged in leasing
land, taking options, buying and selling real estate, etc., and has become one of the weil-to- do citizens of the place. His commodious and pleasant residence in Prairie Depot was erected in 1883. Mr. Dern is a stanch and influential Republican, always attending the conventions of his party in the county, and, while not an office seeker, served for four years as treasurer of Montgomery township, during which time his books were spoken of by the trustees, as the neat- est, best-kept and most systematic of any ever kept in the township. He has also been a mem- ber of the city council of Prairie Depot. He is a charter member of Petroleum Lodge No. 499, K. of P., of that place, and he and his estimable wife are connected with the Disciples Church, in which he is now serving as deacon.
E. H. MYERS, senior member of the firm of Myers Brothers, his partner being J. A. Myers, established business in Luckey in 1883. Their first store was located on their present site, and was a building 22 x 35 feet, where they carried a stock of general merchandise; but a year later they added to it a room 22 x 60 feet, in which they placed a stock of hardware and farming im- plements. That building, however, was des- troyed by fire in July, 1893, but the following fall they erected their present two-story brick block, which has a 44-foot frontage and is 60 feet deep. There they have a full and complete line of hardware and general merchandise, and the upper story is used for a store room. Their stock is well selected, and their courteous, kindly treat- ment of customers has gained them a liberal patronage.
In 1852 the birth of our subject occurred in Sandusky county, Ohio, and he is a son of C. H. and Dora (Deidmyer) Myers, natives of Ger- many, where they were reared and married. On coming to the New World they first located in Buffalo, N. Y., but in 1852 removed to San- dusky county, where the father followed agricult- ural pursuits until his death, which occurred in 1857. His wife later married Frank Rolfes, with whom she came to Troy township, Wood county, where she passed away in 1893. By her first marriage she became the mother of six children: C. H., who resides on a farm near Ehnore. Ohio: Mrs. Schroder, of Pemberville, Ohio; Mrs. L. Rolfes, of Troy township; E. H., of this sketch; J. A., who is in partnership with our subject: and W. F., who also makes his home in Luckey.
The district schools afforded our subject his educational advantages, and at an early age hie
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entered a grocery store at Elmore, Ohio, where he was employed for a time. For two years he also worked at the carpenter's trade in that place, and in 1861 came to Wood county. At Pember- ville, he was first employed in the store of a Mr. Rosinger, later with A. Froney & Schroder, and then worked for Mr. Froney until coming to Luckey.
In Troy township, Mr. Myers led to the mar- riage altar Miss Anna Rolf, a daughter of John Rolf, now deceased, and their wedding was cele- brated in 1873. They have no children of their own, but have an adopted daughter-Bertha. They are members of the Lutheran Church, and hold an honorable place in the estimation of their fellow citizens. The political support of Mr. Myers is given to the Democratic party, and for seven years he efficiently served as township clerk. Both in business circles and in private life he is honored and esteemed for his upright character.
JOHN W. SMALLEY, a substantial self-made citizen and prominent agriculturist of Bloom township, resides near Jerry City, his farm being one of the best of its size in that vicinity.
He is a native of Lincolnshire, England, born September 2, 1832. His father, William Smalley, a day laborer, married Sarah Freeman, and died in June, 1839, leaving seven children-four sons and three daughters-whom Mrs. Smalley, a woman of unusual energy and good judgment, supported for some years by working on neigh- boring farms. As the boys grew older they con- tributed a little to the family expenses, our sub- ject and his brother James going to service in aristocratic families, while another brother, Robert, worked on a farm. Their wages were small, never more than $15 per year. In the spring of 1848, Mrs. Smalley's father, Richard Freeman, sold his property, consisting of three acres of land and two tenement houses, and used the proceeds to bring a party of his relatives to America. Besides himself and his wife Sarah, there were Mrs. Smalley and her seven children (one of her family having, died), and another daughter, Ann, and her husband, William Win- ter. They sailed from Liverpool in April, 1848, in the "Colonist," and reached their destination in Akron, Ohio, where some relatives lived, on July 3. Mr. Freeman died from a sunstroke, shortly after reaching New York, and the others joined another party of emigrants going to Akron. ยท Mrs. Freeman survived her husband but a short time, dying in August of the same year.
John W. Smalley has had only a few weeks
schooling in his life, as he was kept too busily at work in boyhood to take advantage of the good schools of his native place. His first work in this country was binding wheat at 373 cents a day. Later he worked as driver on the Ohio canal, going as far south as Chillicothe, and on the Sandy, Beaver and Ohio canal through Waynes- burg, Minerva, and Hanover. After working some two years at from $10.00 to $17.00 per month, he determined to secure a home in which his mother could pass her declining years. In February. 1853, he walked from Spencer, Me- dina county (where she then lived), to Wood coun- ty, and bought eighty acres in Section 33, Port- age township, for $450.00, paying $60.00 down. He returned on foot, and in April of that year brought his mother, two brothers, Robert and Joseph, and two sisters, Elizabeth and Eliza. traveling by wagon. They built a log cabin IOX 24, which had neither doors nor windows until the frosts of autumn made them an absolute necessity. Mr. Smalley returned to his work on the canal for three seasons, in order to raise money on his payments, and during the winters he cleared his farm.
On July 4, 1861, he married Miss Rebecca Snyder, a native of Mahoning county, and a daughter of Samuel Snyder, a prominent farmer of Bloom township. He mowed clover all the morning of his wedding day, and his wife helped him to make hay the next day. With this begin- ning it would be safe to predict financial success for the young couple; but Mis. Smalley did not live long to enjoy their growing prosperity, dying July 20, 1871. Five children were born of this marriage: Andrew J., a farmer in Bloom town- ship; Lucy, now Mrs. Jacob Spackey, of Six Points; Jerusha (deceased), who married Elliot Simons, of North Baltimore: William H., who farms the homestead; and Eliza J., who died in infancy. Mr. Smalley's second wife was for- merly Mrs. Susan (Riggle) Heckman, a native of Pennsylvania, the widow of Martin Heckman. and daughter of George Riggle, who came to Wyandot county, when she was an infant. He was a man of prominence in his vicinity, and for twenty years was a justice of the peace. One child was born of this union: Lorinda A., the wife of John Riggle, now the county surveyor of Hancock county.
In 1865 Mr. Smalley sold his first farm and bought 120 acres in Bloom township. But little clearing had beendone, and the land was swampy. causing him to lose several crops before his dram- age was perfected. He sold forty acres, and by diligent effort has brought the remainder into
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good order, paying for it all, and securing a com- petence for the future. He is a typical English- man, asking only for what he thinks belongs to him by right, and is ready to fight for that. His vitality is remarkable. He has had a shoulder and a leg broken at different times, and has re- covered without any doctor attending him. In his business dealings Mr. Smalley is noted for his strict sense of honor, and once, when he had agreed to lease a certain oil land for a bonus of $500, he refused an offer of $1, 500 for the same right, although the agreement was a mere verbal one, which could not have been enforced, and no money had been paid him. Six oil wells are now in operation on his farm, producing a tankful of oil per month. He is the only one of his family in Wood county, but the others have done well in life, those who had educational advantages following professional occupations. His wife is a member of the Church of Christ, and he him- self sympathizes with all movements for the im- provement of the community. In politics he has been a Democrat since the days of Stephen A. Douglas, and has been township supervisor and director of schools.
JACOB STAHL, one of Wood county's well- known citizens, is among the prosperous men in Montgomery township, and enjoys the distinction of being one of the four farmers who have suc- cessfully operated their own properties in search of oil, a notable feat, and one which sufficiently demonstrates the possession of sound business ability and unflinching determination.
He was born June 28, 1837, near the present site of the village of Bradner, of a line of ancestry in which he may well take pride, some member of it having yielded up his life in each war in which our country has been engaged. His great- grandfather, Jacob Stahl, was a lieutenant- colonel in the Revolutionary army, and met his death in the service. Jacob Stahl (2), the grand- father, was killed near Fort Meigs during the war of 1812, while the father, Godfrey Stahl, lost his life in the Civil war, and an uncle, John Stahl, was killed in the Mexican war. Godfrey Stahl was born in Somerset county, Penn., October 1 5, 1808, and was reared upon his father's farm. He was the youngest of four children: Mary, the eldest, married Daniel Edmonds, and died at Brad- ner at the age of ninety-one. Sarah married David Mogle, and is now living in Indiana at over eighty - five years of age; and John, as has been stated, completed the remarkable record of this family, and gave his life in the service of his country in the war with Mexico.
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