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 74
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81
Mr. Long spent the first years of wedded life at his present farm of eighty aeres in Section 26, Montgomery township, and then rented the . Arnold Farm," in Section 36, where, although he paid a large cash rent, he secured his start
toward prosperity. He lived there nine years, and on April 1, 1890, returned to his first farm, which he now owns. His first child, Cora M .. was born May 29, 1877, and died November 25. 1878; and the second, Rosa, born June 7, 1879, is a member of the class of '96, in the Risingsun High School. Mr. Long's own disadvantages in early life have made him feel keenly the need of bringing educational opportunities within the reach of all, and he has been an active friend of improvement in this regard; he served on the Risingsun school board when the new school building. was erected. He is a leading member of the U. B. Church, in which he has held the offices of trustee and superintendent of the Sun- day-school, and is now steward. Politically he has always been a Republican, and he has served as township trustee four years and constable two years.
C. H. MILBOURN, a well-known and honored pioneer of Bloom township, is a native of Ohio, born in Columbiana county, January 23, 1835. and is a son of David and Emma (Taylor) Mil- bourn. The paternal grandfather, Andrew Mil- bourn, who was born in the Old Dominion, served in the war of 1812, and died in Columbi- ana county, this State.
David Milbourn was one of the youngest in a family of nine children-eight sons and one daughter-and his birth occurred in ISot. He was married in Columbiana county, March 26. 1826, to Emma Taylor, who was born in Lan- caster county, Penn., February 4, 1802. They became the parents of the following children: Levi D., born November 15, 1828, was a mem- ber of the 144th O. V. I., as a 100-day man, and now makes his home in Bowling Green, Ohio: Richard T., born June 9, 1830, was killed in July. 1857, by a falling tree, while driving along the road returning from a visit in Wood county to his home in Hancock county; Rachel E., born iu- gust 21, 1832, is now Mrs. Michael Auverter. of North Baltimore, Ohio; our subject is next in or- der of birth; Mary J., born February 23, 1837, is the wife of Peter Boozer, of Bloom township: Lydia, born November 3. 1839, died June 23. 1846, and Jacob H., born March 18, 1842, was a member of Company F. Sth O. V. I., and now makes his home in Barry county, Michigan.
On December 3, 1838, the father arrived with his family in Wood county, locating in Section 8. Bloom township, and they were sixteen days in making the trip from Minerva, Ohio, where he had owned a house and lot. He there worked in a gristmill and at the carpenter's trade, but the
-..
1
.----
------
2
2
1
Charles H. millbourn
WOOD COUNTY, OHIO.
cheap lands of Bloom township enticed him, and lie entered eighty acres. He cleared two acres. and erected a cabin, 18x 24 feet, into which the family moved. They were compelled to go to Perrysburg or Maumee to mill, which required five days; but a great deal of their grist was ground in an old hand-mill. On that farm the father lived until his death, which occurred March 8, 1851, and his remains were interred in Sugar Grove cemetery, Bloom township. He was a Whig in politics, and for several years had been constable of that township. The mother lived to the advanced age of eighty-six years, and was buried in Jerry City.
There were no schools in the locality at the time the family located here, and our subject 'was nine years of age before he began his educa- tion in the subscription school. At the age of twenty he left the farm, and began learning the carpenter's trade with John McMillen, of Portage township, Wood county. Later he followed that occupation, receiving $16 per month and board, which was considered good pay at that time, and in the winter would chop wood at twenty-five cents per cord and his board. On August 27, 1862, in Bloom township, Mr. Mil- bourn wedded Miss Rachel Stull, a native of that township, and daughter of Urie and Mary (Hockenbarger) Stull, who at an early day owned the present site of Jerry City. In No- vember, 1865, our subject purchased forty acres of wild land in Section 9,. Bloom township, to which he removed in the following March, and has since bought eight acres additional. In 1885 he erected a pleasant home, which is sur- rounded by good and substantial outbuildings; and there are found all the accessories seen on a modern farm of value. For several years he worked at his trade in connection with his agri- cultural pursuits, thus securing a comfortable competence. He is a man of the strictest integ- rity, and his upright, honorable life had gained him many friends.
During the Rebellion, Mr. Milbourn enlisted August 13, 1862, at the Red School House, in Portage township, in Company D. frIth O. V. I., under Capt. J. E. McGowan. For two weeks he remained at Perrysburg, and while at Camp Toledo returned home to be married. His first engagement was at Huff's Ferry, in Tennessee, and he continued with the regiment until March 5, 1864, while at Dandridge, East Tenn., when he was sent to the hospital at Knoxville, after- ward to Nashville, and later to Ward 5, General Hospital, at Jeffersonville, Ind. On November 5, 1864, he rejoined the regiment at Chattanooga,
1
serving as corporal, to which rank he had been promoted in September, 1863, while at Smith- land, Ky., on top of the Cumberland Mountains. He received his discharge at Salisbury, N. C., June 27, 1865, and arrived home at midnight July 14, following. During his absence his wife had made her home with his widowed mother.
Our subject and wife became the parents of six children : Lewis W., who was born April 17, 1866, and died in Bloom towifship, October 9, 1891 ; Thomas E., born July 27, 1867; Willis, born July 25, 1868; Riley, born October 6, 1869; Emma, who was born in November, 1870, died in January, 1873; and Jennie, who died in in- fancy. Thomas and Willis are still with their father, while Riley is now in Cygnet, Ohio. The mother's death occurred October 12, 1875, and she was laid to rest in Sugar Grove Cemetery. On May 17, 1877, at Tiffin, Mr. Milbourn was again married, this time to Iona S. Rollins, who was born in 1831, in Seneca county, Ohio. At the age of sixteen she began teaching in Wood county, and she subsequently worked at tailoring for twenty years. Her parents, Almerin and Mary (Sherwood) Rollins, died in 1846 and 1847, respectively; the mother was a native of New Jersey. They had a family of seven children -- six daughters and one son-four of whom are now living. The son, W. B. Rollins, is now a resident of Fostoria; he was a soldier during the Civil war in the 49th O. V. I.
Our subject belongs to Bronson Post No. 85, G. A. R .. of Jerry City, and is a firm believer in the principles of the Republican party, which he supports with his ballot. For three terms he served as assessor of the township, was school director of District No. 2, and has also been a member of the board. Mrs. Milbourn is a mem- ber of the Methodist Church.
MORRIS B. REIDER, proprietor of the Union four mills at Bowling Green, was born in Berks county, Penn., December 18, 1857. He lived in his native county until of age, and attended the public schools; and when eighteen years old he - commenced to learn the miller's trade. He worked at this for three years, and then removed to Ohio, locating in Tiffin, Seneca county, where he worked on a farin for nine months. He then went to Hancock county, where he worked in a mill for four years, and in 1883 came to Wood county, and with a partner purchased the flour- mill in Bowling Green, which he has operated "ever since. He has devoted his entire attention to his business, and since he took charge of the mill has remodeled it, taking out the old barrs
85S
WOOD COUNTY, OHIO.
and putting in the new system of rolls. The mill now has a capacity of fifty barrels per day, and is doing a large custom exchange business, all its products being sold at home.
Mr. Reider is an energetic business man, pro- gressive in his ideas, and has made a success of his present enterprise. His mill runs the year round, and has gained an excellent reputation for the fine quality of its flour, as well as for the straightforward dealings of its proprietor. Mr. Reider was married November 8, 1883, to Miss Katie Sharp, who was born in Hancock county, Ohio, September 21, 1860. Three children have blessed their union, namely: Nellie Gray, Joy Frank, and Roxie Rachel. In politics our sub- ject belongs to the Prohibition party, and uses his influence in the cause of temperance when- ever possible. He is a worthy member of the United Brethren Church, and fraternally belongs to the I. O. O. F. and F. & A. M.
The parents of our subject were Simeon and Rachel (Breidegam) Reider, both natives of Berks county, Penn., where they are still living. They are of German descent, their grandparents com- ing to America from that country at an early day. Grandfather John Reider was a stone mason by trade, and one of his brothers was a soldier in the Revolutionary war, and was made prisoner by the English. Benjamin Breidegam, our sub- ject's maternal grandfather, was a shcemaker by trade. The paternal family consisted of nine children, namely: Mary, who died in infancy; Benjamin, who died when twelve years old; Ezra, residing in Pennsylvania; Morris B ; James, also residing in Pennsylvania; Catherine, who married Joseph Hoch; Jonas, who lives in Penn- sylvania; Sally, who married A. Nein, of Penn- sylvania; and Elizabeth, deceased.
GEORGE W. SMITH, a fariner of Plain town- ship, was born in Monroeville, Huron Co., Ohio, December 9, 1847. Daniel, the father of our subject, was born in New York, and while still young came west, and located at Monroeville, where he bought 160 acres of land, which he built upon and improved. He was united in marriage with Miss Fanny Phillips, and five children were born of this union, namely: Hannah, the wife of Philip Kitchen, of Plain township: Jadson D., a farmer of Middleton township; Phæbe, who mar- ried D. D. Johnston, of Toledo; George, the sub- ject of this sketch; and one who died in infancy. In 1851, Mr. Smith went to California, and never returned. Mrs. Smith was married again, this time to R. Winton, and four children were born to themn: Millie, wife of Calvin Fox; Josiah, of
Toledo; Eli, a farmer living in Plain township; and one who died in infancy. Mrs. Winton. formerly Mrs. Smith, died in 1882.
The subject of this sketch was educated in Norwalk, Huron county, and remained on the old homestead until 1871, when he bought eighty acres of land in Plain township, on which he built a house, barn, etc., and making all necessary improvements. In 1871 he was married to Miss Anna Mears, a daughter of William Mears, of Plain township, and six children were born to them. Daniel W., born November 25, 1873, at- tended the high school of Bowling Green, and works on the homestead; Phoebe, born March 8. 1875, married George Wilson, a blacksmith; Frank, born May 25, 1876, attends school at Haskins; Florence and Helen, twins, born June 3, 1878-Helen died in infancy, and Florence is at- tending school at Union Hill; Ralph, born April 2, 1893. Mr. Smith was school director and supervisor for six years. He is a Republican in politics, and is a member of the Baptist Church. the I. O. O. F., Roche-de-Bœuf Lodge. No. 530, of Haskins, and of the Rebekah Lodge No. 387.
DEWEE H. RUNNEALS. There is, perhaps, no medium through which the masses of the people are educated equal to the journalistic: and on the editors of our great papers rests the responsibility of molding the opinions of men on issues of national and even universal import- ance. It is a great undertaking for a man old in years and in knowledge of the world to assume the position of . popular educator;" but how much greater is the undertaking for a compara- tively young man! Dewee H. Runneals, the genia! owner and publisher of the Bradner Advocate, was born on September 1, 1867, at Adrian. Seneca Co., Ohio, the son of James C. and Cora (Weber) Runneals.
James C. Runneals was born in Rehoboth. Ohio, June 2, 1837. He enjoyed the benefit of an unusually good education for those days, and followed the profession of teaching, together with the occupation of bookkeeping, all his life. In- spired by the patriotic ardor that leads nien to offer up their lives, if need be, on the altar of their country, on Angust 14, 1861, Mr. Rinneals laid aside the birch and quill, and enlisted in Company D, 49th O. V. I., for the three-years' service. Bravely enduring all the hardships in- cident to the life of a soldier, and faithful in the discharge of every duty, he bore his musket through the years of his enlistment, and at At- lanta, Ga., on the expiration of the three years. October 20, 1864, he was mustered out and re-
859
WOOD COUNTY, OIIIO.
turned home. June 22, 1865, he married Miss Cora Weber, who was born in Paris, Stark Co., Ohio, August 9, 1845. Two children blessed this union: Frank C. and Dewee H., both of whom survive. The father passed away in Fos- toria, Seneca county, May 4, 1884, at the age of forty-seven, but the mother is still living, making her home in Fostoria.
Dewee H. Runneals, the subject proper of this sketch, was educated in the public schools at Fostoria, until September, 1884, when he laid aside his school books and began to learn the printer's trade, in the office of the Democrat. In 1886 he went to Abilene, Kans., thence to Denver, Colo .; in ISS9, in partnership with A. L. Clark, he published the People's Advocate, at Marysville, Kans. In IS90 he established the Fostoria Daily Journal, but after nine months sold out to the Democrat, and again went west, this time locating in Trinidad, Colo .; here he re- mained until February, 1893, when he settled at Deshler, Ohio, and with his brother leased the Deshler Flag, and successfully conducted it for one year.
On February 9, 1892, at Manhattan, Kans., Mr. Runneals was united in marriage with Miss Nellie I. Barksdale, of Bigelow, Kans. She was the daughter of Madison and Mary (Wilson) Barksdale, and was born February 9, 1873, at Salem, Washington Co., Ind. To the union of our subject and his wife have been born two sons, namely: James Madison, January 13, 1893, in Oketo, Marshall Co., Kans., and Cecil Howard, December 8, 1895, in Bradner, Wood Co., Ohio.
On October 26, 1894, Mr. Runneals started the Advocate, and, although a complete stranger, proved his business ability, and in a year had achieved a success seldom reached by the newspa- per of several years standing. The paper is wholly independent in politics, and the agreeable owner has made many friends by his strict impartiality, and his manly bearing has won him the respect of all with whom he has come in contact. So- cially he is a member of the Knights of the Mac- cabees, and the International Typographical Union.
CLARK CUMMINGS, a well-known agriculturist of Middleton township, was born in Perrysburg. October 8, 1834.
His father, the late Josiah Cummings, one of the pioneers of this county, was born in Connec- ticut, where he followed the occupation of fari- ing for some years, removing later to Massachu- setts. There he married Miss Lucy Churchill,
by whom he had four children, of whom our sub- ject was the youngest. Walter, a resident of Tontogany, died in 1887; Mary Ann married Richard Hollington; and Abner died in 1876. Josiah Cummings came to Wood county in 1832. locating first in Perrysburg, and later at Tontog- any, in Washington township, and in 1836 on a farin of forty acres, near Tontogany, which he cleared and cultivated. He died there, in :848. his wife surviving him until 1877.
Mr. Cummings attended the schools of Ton- togany until the age of fourteen; but after his father's death he worked upon the homestead. his labor being needed for the support of the family. When he attained his majority he bought eighty acres of land in Plain township, and cleared and improved a portion of it. He sold this farm. and bought fifty acres of improved land near the Maumee river, where he remained several years. He was married in 1857 to his first wife, Miss Caroline Bliss, a native of Pennsylvania, by whom he had five children, whose names, with dates of birth, are as follows: Lottie, Septem- ber 10, 1859, married John Kuirth. a carpenter: Charles, July 2, 1861, is a carpenter at Hastings, and married Hattie Hogland; Nettie May. born May 13, 1866, is the wife of Fred Ryder; Hulda Ann, October 2, 1873, married J. T. Twining. an oil operator; and Minnie, January 13, 1879, is at home.
In 1862, Mr. Cummings enlisted at Tontog- any, in Company K, 67th O. V. I., Capt. Lewis and Col. Voris, commanding. He remained at home a few weeks, and recruited fourteen men for his company, which he rejoined at Suffolk. Va., where they had gone into winter quarters. In January, 1864, at Port Royal, S. C., he re- enlisted, and took part in the battle of Richmond. June 26 to July 1, 1864, and was in a number of other engagements, among them the battles of the Wilderness, Spottsylvania, Cold Harbor, Petersburg, Winchester, and Charleston, and was at the surrender of Lee at Appomatox He had an attack of the ineasles, and took cold, which affected his lungs, his health being seriously and permanently impaired as a result. He was dis- charged June 21, 1865, at Richmond, Va .. and returned home.
His wife had sold the farm during his absence. and bought sixty acres near Bowling Green. where they remained until March, 1873, when he disposed of it to buy sixty acres in the same township, where he operated for two years. He then bought 100 acres in Middleton township. thirty of which were unimproved. He brought it all under cultivation, and lived there until Au-
860
FOOD COUNTY, OHIO.
gust, 1888, when he again sold out, buying a farm near Haskins, where he now resides, enjoy- ing the fruits of his labors. His first wife died August 19, 1884. and he married Miss Emma Dawson, a native of Norfolk, England, born April 21, 1845. No children were born of this union.
Mr. Cummings is highly regarded among his associates, and takes an active interest in all pro- gressive measures in his locality. He is a Re- publican in politics, and has been supervisor in Plain township, and school director in the dis- trict where he now resides. He is a prominent member of the Methodist Episcopal Church (joining in 1858) at Tontogany, and belongs to the G. A. R., Harry Carter Post, 56, at Haskins.
D. H. REX. Prominent among the represent- ative citizens and respected and influential men of Troy township is found the subject of this bio- graphical notice, who resides on Section 36, where he owns eighty acres of land, and also forty acres in Sandusky county, Ohio; both tracts are well improved and highly cultivated, and show conclusively that the owner has not mis- taken his calling in adopting agriculture. Mr. Rex was born in Adams county, Penn., December 31, 1818, and is a son of Jonas and Leah (Myers) Rex, natives of the same county, where they were reared and married. The paternal grandfather, Daniel Rex, served as a soldier in the Revolu- tionary war, thus aiding the colonies in freeing themselves from British oppression. In 1826 the father located in Crawford county, Ohio, in the midst of the wilderness, where he opened up a farm. In 1863 he became a resident of this coull- ty, and died in Troy township, August 1, 1865. His wife had preceded him to the other world, dying in Crawford county, on January 1, 1842.
Their only child was our subject, who was about ten years of age when taken by them to Crawford county, and there he acquired a limited education, though for five years after his arrival he never saw a school house. He was reared to agricultural pursuits. It was in 1863 that he lo- cated upon his present farm, since which time he has been very successful in his business affairs. He has fifteen oil producing wells upon his place (the first having been bored in his orchard), and they add not a little to his income.
In Richland county, in 1843, Mr. Rex was united in marriage with Miss Sarah Stentz, who was born near Harrisburg, Penn., December 24. 1823, and is a daughter of John and Sonia (Wentz) Stentz, also natives of that locality, who at an early day removed to Richland county,
Ohio. There the father made his home until his death, which occurred in 1869, and his wife de- parted this life in ISSo. In their family were children as follows: Mrs. Rex, honored wife of our subject; Mary Crawl, who makes her home in Richland county; Harriet, deceased, Mrs. Sophia Fullmer, of Ashland county, Ohio; Mrs. Eliza Knott, of Richland county; Mrs. Susan Sears, of the same county; Rebecca, who died unmarried; Mrs. Elizabeth Rife, who died in 1893; John, a resident of Shelby, Ohio; and Philip, who lives on the old family homestead.
To Mr. and Mrs. Rex have been born three children --- Mrs. Sophia Amelia Spada, of Casta- lia, Ohio; Mrs. Sarah Ann Hartman, of Wood- ville, Ohio; and John, who makes his home with his father. He was married, but his wife died, leaving one child, Henry J. Mr. Rex takes quite an active interest in political affairs, voting with the Republican party; and lie and his wife are sincere and faithful members of the Lutheran Church. He well merits the deep respect and high estimation in which he is held by his friends and neighbors, and has been a prominent factor in the upbuilding of his township, aiding in every- thing for its advancement.
HENRY BERNTHISEL, a well-known pioneer agriculturist, now residing at Haskins, was born in February, 1820, in Perry county, Ohio. His reminiscences cover an interesting period, and he is one of the few men now living who attended the great mass meeting at Fort Meigs in 1840, during the "hard cider and log cabin campaign.
His parents, Jacob and Jane (Willey) Bern- thisel, were born in Pennsylvania, the father in the year 1784, the mother in 1772. They came to Ohio a few years after their marriage, and located first in Perry county, where they remained fifteen years before finally settling in Wood county. They were the first to locate on the bank of Tontogany creek, and the land on which they made their home was originally a swampy forest. Their goods, which they unloaded under a large white oak tree, had been brought from Perry county with two teams, one of oxen, the other of horses. They were devont members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mrs Bern- thisel died November 11, 1857; Mr. Bernthisel on September 28, 1858. Nine children were born to them: Anna, deceased, the wife of James Bradley; Levi, who went to California, and was never heard from afterward: Jane. the wife of David Mandook, both now deceased. Sarah, the widow of Thomas Heflinger, of Scot- land, Ill. ; Henry; Parmelia, who married Daniel
Sara Rex
6
861
WOOD COUNTY, OIIIO.
Blodgett, of Weston; Mary Ann, deceased wife of Charles Holloway; Susan, who died in infancy; and Isaac, who lives at Whitehall, Illinois.
Mr. Bernthisel was a boy when his parents came to this county, and his early schooling was obtained in a log cabin in his district. He worked for his father until he was twenty-three, and then farmed on shares for others some four years, after which he engaged in farming on his own account, buying some wild land at Haskins, which he cleared and improved. On May 23. 1844, he married Miss Julia Ann Jenkins, who was born in Pennsylvania, in 1825, and died October 23, 1861. They had six children: Sam- uel, deceased in childhood. Nettie, who married David Bash, and has three children -- Willie, John and Julia (of these, John is a school teacher at Dickey, and is married to Ida Robinson, by whom he has two children). Lottie married Joseph Garrett, of Bowling Green, and has two children living -- Charles and Fray (Julia died when twelve years old). Ollie, who married Peter Penny, of Tontogany, and was murdered there in 1895. Wallace married Alice Ashley, and has five children -- Willey, Willie, Floyd and Bnrnette, living, and one that died in infancy; and Charles, who married Miss Frankie Pitcher, and lives at the old homestead; they had three children -- Henry, Electa and Stella. After the death of the mother in 1861, Mr. Bernthisel married Mrs. Matilda (nec Barnes) Sargeant, widow of William Sargeant. Two children were born of this union, one of whom died in early childhood; Lillie, the survivor, is the wife of William Garrett, the adopted son of Elwood Garrett; they have one son, Ross. Our subject's second wife died in 1883, and August 14, 1883, he was married to Mrs. Emma J. Rigg, daughter of Clark and Elizabeth (Stackhouse) Chapman, natives of Ver- mont; the latter was of German descent, and died in 1846, leaving five children. Mr. Chapman, by trade a cabinet maker, died in 1876. Einma J. Chapman was born in Seneca county, N. Y., January 26, 1840, and was quite young when she accompanied her parents to Ohio. By her first husband, Joseph Rigg, she had six children, named respectively: William, Hirato, Charles, Sherman, Alice and Albert. Mr. Rigg died in 1879.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.