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. 3 > Part 80
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WH Ewing
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of Fort Amanda, which was built during the war of 1812, and there resided until his death, in 1887. His widow is yet living on the home- stead. They had nine children-Georgiana, who died at the age of five; California, who was born in Ohio in 1849, while her father was in the State of that name prospecting for gold; Rod- ney, who died in infancy: Harry, a station agent at Browntown, Wis .; Charles Sumner, who is living on the old homestead with his mother; Grace, wife of J. W. Black, of Fort Amanda, Ohio; Eugene Grant; William U., a merchant; and Clarence L., at home.
Our subject is descended from Samuel La- throp, one of the twenty men who founded the town of Norwich, Conn. He came to this coun- try from England in the latter part of the 17th century, and the mother of our subject was also descended from one of the founders of that town.
Mr. Lathrop, of this review, acquired a good education, and successfully followed school teach- ing for about eleven terms. In 1883 he pur- chased twenty acres of land in Auglaise county, and has since carried on farming. He was mar- ried in Weston, Ohio, October 12, 1887, to Laura D. Lathrop, who was born in Liberty township, a daughter of Adoniram Judson and Isadore E. (Delano) Lathrop. They located on a 160-acre tract of land owned by Mrs. Lathrop, of this review, which had been secured by her grand- father, who received a patent from Gen. Jack- son. Four children graced their union-George D., Charles S., and Hope, at home; and Frank, who died in infancy.
Mr. Lathrop is a Republican in politics, and served as supervisor for one term, but has never sought or desired political preferment, his time being devoted to his farin work, in which he is meeting with good success. Mrs. Lathrop is a member of the Presbyterian Church.
passed away, and he subsequently wedded Mary Brown. His death occurred in 1890. The children of the first union were David, who died in Liberty township: Mary Ann. widow of James McCrory, and a resident of Liberty; Mrs. Isabel Wolf, who died in Pennsylvania; William, of Portage township; John, of Waterville, Ohio; George, of Liberty township; Reason and Daniel, who died in Liberty township; Samuel, of Bowl- ing Green; Horace; Caleb, of Liberty township: and Jane, wife of Peter Durey.
Our subject received his education in the common schools, and early became familiar with the labors of the home farm. Prompted by a spirit of patriotism, he enlisted in his country's service August 13, 1862, as a member of Com- pany D, ILIth O. V. I., and with his command went almost immediately to the front. He par- ticipated in many important engagements, went through the entire Atlanta campaign, and was honorably discharged July 17, 1865, at Salis- bury, N. C. At Cleveland, Ohio, he was mus- tered out and returned home with the conscious- ness of having faithfully defended his country in her hour of peril.
On the 3d of July, 1862, Mr. Mercer was united in marriage with Phoebe A. Whitacre, a native of Bloom township, and a daughter of Reason and Mary (McCrory) Whitacre. They located on their present farin, Mr. Mercer having inherited eighty acres from liis father. He has built a good residence here and made many ex- cellent improvements, and now has one of the most desirable farins of the community. The home has been blessed with nine children-Mil- ton; Samuel A .. a farmer of Liberty township: Mary, wife of Frank Cook, of Jackson township: Daniel D .; Clarence; Rose, wife of Fred Whit- aker, of Liberty township; Jefferson; Frank; and George.
Mr. and Mrs. Mercer belong to the Disciples Church; in politics he is a stalwart Republican. and is serving as township trustee. Extensive reading has made him a well-informed man, and in all the relations of life he has been found true and faithful to his duty, manifesting the same loyalty which characterized his career as a soldier.
HORACE MERCER is one of the enterprising and progressive agriculturists of Liberty town- ship, and a well-spent life has won for him the confidence and liigh regard of many friends, He was born in Liberty township, October 18, 1841, and is a son of George and Jane (Montgomery) Mercer, natives of Pennsylvania. The father was a lifelong farmer, and was married in his native State, where he operated a tract of land JOHN ROTHENBUHLER, a well-known agricult- urist, residing near Luckey, was born in Web- ster township, April 11, 1856. His father, John W. Rothenbuhler, is a native of Berne, Switzer- land, whence he came to this country in 1840, locating in Webster township on co acres of for some years. He is numbered among the pioneers of Wood county, where he secured sixty- eight acres of wild land, building thereon a log cabin, and turning his attention to the develop- ment of a farm. His wife died in 1854, after which he was married to Elizabeth Moore. She | land which he still cultivates. He built a saw -
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mill on his farm, which he operated for over twea- ty years. In 1855 he married Mrs. Barbara Rv- der, the widow of John Ryder, and seven chil- dren were born of this union, of whom our sub- ject is the eldest. The others are: Fred, Henry, Gotlieb, Sophia (now Mrs. Emil Christian), and Emma (the wife of West Eggleston). The young- est child died in infancy. Both parents are de- vout members of the Evangelical Church.
Our subject attended the district schools of his neighborhood during boyhood, and at an early age began to make himself useful in his father's sawmill. At the age of twenty-three he bought twenty acres of land, to which he has added until he now has sixty-five acres of fine land under cultivation. He is mainly engaged in dairying. He was married, April 20, ISSo, to Miss Mary Ann Burkholder, who was born Au- gust 27, 1862, a daughter of Christopher and Katie (Kassamon) Burkholder, both natives of Germany. Three children were born this mar- riage: William, May 27, 1881; Joseph, July 28, 1.883, and Lena, July IS, 1886. In politics, Mr. Rothenbuhler is a Republican, and he and his wife are both members of the Evangelical Church. Their industry and economy make them well-worthy of the success to which they have attained, and they stand high in the esteem of a large circle of friends.
PETER D. CURRAN has been a welcome guest in the home of Mr. Rothenbuhler for the past sixteen years. He is a native of Stark county, Ohio, born March 15, 1836. His father, James B. Curran, was born in Pennsylvania, and in early manhood moved to Zanesville, Ohio, where he married Miss Elizabeth Dugan. Their later
years were spent in Peru, Ind. Six children were born to them: John S., Caroline, Thomas Hannah, Peter, and Harriet. Mr. Curran's edu- cational advantages were limited, as he was obliged to make his own way from the age of eleven, but he has gained a wide range of information by private study. At the first call to arms in the Civil war he enlisted in Company B, 12th O. V. I. (Capt. Albert Galloway and Col. John W. Lowe commanding). He took part in the battles of Scary Creek, Antietam, South Mountain, Lynchburg, New Burnbridge, among others, and was discharged in 1863. He soon re-enlisted. this time in Company K, 23rd O. V. I., and dur- ing the engagement at Winchester he was cap- tured and confined in Libby prison, where he re- mained until 1865, when he was discharged by order of the War department. After his return to the North, he worked for fourteen years on the C. C. C. & 1. R. R., at Versailles, Ohio, and !
then moved to Toledo, where he worked some years. He then came to Luckey, and has since resided with Mr. Rothenbuhler.
GEORGE TYSON, one of the enterprising and prosperous agriculturists of Perry township, was born in Columbiana county, Ohio, October 8. 1829, and is a son of Daniel and Elizabeth (Landis) Tyson, natives of Pennsylvania, the former born in Montgomery county, July 11, 1792, and the latter April 11, 1795. After their marriage in the Keystone State, they removed t.) Knox township, Columbiana Co., Ohio, in 1825. and on the end of September, 1847, brought their family to Wood county, where the father had previously purchased eighty acres of land in Section 36, Portage township. Wild game was quite plentiful at that time, and our subject once caught a deer with his hands which had been chased by the dogs. In the family were six chil- dren: David. who died in Michigan; Maria, who became the wife of Isaac Hunisecker, and died Portage township: Henry, of Wayne county, Ohio; Barbara, widow of John Echelberger, of Bloom township, Wood county; Isaac, of Elk- hart county, Ind., and George. The father was a weaver by trade, and in early days supported his family by his loom. On coming to Wood county he was quite poor, but became the owner of 100 acres of good land. Politically he was a Whig, and religiously was a member of the Men- nonite Church, being one of the organizers of that denomination in Perry township. His death oc- curred in Portage township, March 17, 1874. and his wife passed away in Bloom township, September 14, 1875, and they were buried in th Mennonite cemetery of Perry township.
The education of George Tyson was obtained in Columbiana county, having to walk a distance of two miles to the log school house, with its słab seats, and writing desk made of slabs sup- ported by pins driven into the wall. The school was conducted on the subscription plan, and his was allowed to attend the three winter month. during which time he made good progress, so . the age of fourteen he was as far advanced in hu studies as the other members of the family. and was taken from school. At the age of eighte " he came to Wood county. the family coming with others, and made the journey in five days Work was plentiful in the new country. com being their best crop as the land was then too wet for wheat. The father had allowed his to leave home at the age of eighteen years. B as our subject remamed with him he was given forty acres of timber land in Section 36, Portal
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township, a part of the original purchase, and after liis marriage resided there, working his father's land on the shares during the summer, while in the winter he cleared his own place. In April, IS71, he located on eighty acres of his present farm in section 20, Perry township, to which he has since added until he now has 127 acres of arable land. In 18SI he erected his pleasant brick residence, and he has met with a well-deserved success in his calling. His well- ordered farm, with its carefully cultivated fields, its neat buildings, and all their surroundings, de- note the skillful management, industry, and well- directed labors of the owner.
Mr. Tyson was married in Tiffin, Ohio, Octo- ber 9, 1851, to Miss Frances Snyder, who was born in Mahoning county, Ohio, January 19, 1833, a daughter of George Snyder, who at an early day located in Bloom township, near Bloomdale, Wood county. Their family consisted of four daughters -- Sarah A., now Mrs. S. E. Brande- berry, of Perry township; Margaret E., now Mrs. David Shue, of Michigan; Lucy J., now Mrs. Allen Brandeberry, of Perry township; and Rachel, who died in infancy.
Since the dissolution of the Whig party, Mr. Tyson has been a Democrat in politics. In 1858 he united with the German Baptist Church, the following year was ordained as a local minister, and still later was advanced for faithfulness to a higher grade of ministry, having full power to solemnize marriages and baptize converts. In 1891, however, he voluntarily retired on account of his age, but still retains his license. He has traveled over the country considerably, often fill- ing pulpits twenty iniles distant, and has ever been a faithful and conscientious worker in his Master's vineyard.
AMOS TRIBBLE has for about sixty years been a resident of Wood county, and is therefore num- bered among the honored pioneer settlers who have witnessed almost its entire development, watching the transformation of the wild lands into beautiful homes and farms, the growth of hamlets and villages, and the onward march of progress. He is a worthy representative of the agricultural interests, and is now farining in Mid- dleton township. Born in Clermont county, Ohio, April 10, 1820, he is a son of Cornelius Tribble, a native of South Carolina, who served in the war of 1812. He married Sarah Steven, and they became the parents of seven children, of whom five are living, namely: Ann, widens of William Brecker; Allison, a farmer of Clermont county; Amos; Cynthia, wife of B. Johnson; and
Alphos. The parents both died in Clermont county, Ohio.
Our subject attended school in Clermont county until 1836, at which time he came to Wood county. Subsequently he purchased eighty acres of land in Middleton township, which he cleared, afterward adding thereto twenty acres. The land was swanipy, so in order to make it cultivable he was obliged to drain it. He had to endure the hardships of pioneer life, and the dif- ficulties occasioned by limited circumstances in those early days; but as time passed he secured a comfortable competence, erected a residence at a cost of $1,200, and now has an excellent farm. In 1840 he was married in Clermont county to Margaret, daughter of Absalom Higby, and they became the parents of six children: Julia, wife of H. N. Rush; L. P., treasurer of Middleton town- ship; Lizzie, wife of Eli Chapman; Charles, a farmer, who married Ella Snyder, and has one son-Fred; and Helen and Annie, who both died in childhood. The mother of the family passed away November 1, 1892. Mr. Tribble is a Re- publican in politics, has been called to public of- fice by his fellow townsmen, and has served as supervisor and trustee for three terms. He was a faithful Christian, a thoroughly reliable and trustworthy man, and his life has been an hon- orable, upright one, which has made hint a re- spected and valued citizen of the community in which he has so long resided.
CHRISTIAN HAGER was born May 27, 1818, in Washington county, Md., and is a son of Christian and Rachel (Hamil) Hager. The lat- ter was a native of Maryland, but the foriner was a native of Berks county, Penn., and was a weaver by trade. Soon after their marriage Mr. Hager and his wife removed from Maryland to Franklin county, Penn., and there spent their re- maining days, the father following weaving. He served as a soldier in the war of 1812. There were born to them four children-Harriet, de- ceased wife of John Hayfrick; Christian; Hattie, twin sister of our subject, was drowned when a child; and John, who served in the Mexican war, was heard from only once after its close, and is supposed to be dead.
Our subject was reared on a farm, and re- ceived a limited education in the district schools. At the age of eleven he began work in Franklin county, Penn., as a farm hand for his board and clothes, and later worked for another farmer for $3 per month and board. His father received his wages until after he had attained his majority, and he then supported his parents nutil their
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deaths. On the 3Ist of December, 1846, in Franklin county, Penn., he wedded Mary Sny- der, a native of that State, and in the spring of IS47 traveled by wagon to Seneca county, Ohio. There he worked at making rails for fifty cents per day and board. After a time he purchased three acres of land near Tiffin, Ohio, for $330, and subsequently sold it for $450. He next rented a farm in Bloom township, Seneca coun- ty, where he remained for seven years, and then came to Wood county, operating a rented farm for one season. In IS70 he bought eighty acres in Jackson township, which he at once began to clear and improve, and has since transformed it into a fine farm.
On this homestead Mrs. Hager died in May, 1890. " Their children were as follows: Saman- tha A., now the wife of W. Valentine, of Seneca county, Ohio; Mary E., widow of George Gillett, of Seneca county: Daniel Francis, a farmer of Seneca county; George W., Jeremiah and Chris- tian, who died in childhood; Katie, wife of Dr. Wadsworth, of Hoytville; Luther, a farmer of Jackson township; Jesse, a merchant of Hoyt- ville; William, a machine agent of Jackson town- ship; Virginia Belle, who was born August 4, 1869, and was married in Findlay, Ohio, Novemr .- ber 7, 1886, to David Peter Bryan, who was born in Hancock county, July 26, 1860, and edu- cated in the district school and the Ada Normal School, of Ada, Ohio. Mr. Bryan is a farmer by occupation, and he and his wife have three chil- dren-Carl C., who died in childhood; Watson Henry and Jessie H. The youngest member of the Hager family is. Hattie, wife of George T. Beahm, of Findlay, Ohio.
Mr. Hager, of this sketch, is a stanch Demo- crat, and a member of the Christian Church. He has attained success in business through his own well directed efforts, and is a highly-esteemed citizen.
W. T. FARMER, an energetic young agricult- urist of Portage township, was born December 26, 1872, in Millbury, Lake township, Wood county, son of Edwin and Charlotte (Tyrrell) Farmer, a sketch of whom appears elsewhere in this volume.
Our subject was a small boy when his parents came to Center township, and there he received his education, attending the district school of the neighborhood. He worked at home the greater part of the time, and lived with his parents nutil his marriage, when he removed to his present farm, which he had purchased shortly before, buying the west half of the southwest quarter of Sec-
tion 34, a part of the Jonas Hampshire farm, in Portage township. Mr. Farmer erected a new house and barn, and is one of the prosperous agriculturists of his neighborhood, progressive in every way.
On December 20, 1894, he was married, in Toledo, Ohio, to Miss Ella Conklin, a native of Pennsylvania, daughter of James Conklin. Mr. Farmer is prospering, and is destined to become one of the substantial citizens of his neighbor- hood. In politics he is a stanch Republican.
G. SCHWECHHEIMER. Industry, economy, and good judgment are still at a premium in the business world, and the subject of this sketch. who arrived in Bowling Green, Wood county, only fourteen years ago, without means, and possessing no knowledge of the English language, furnishes an instance in proof. He was born in Baden, Germany, November 2, 1863, the son of Jacob Schwechheimer.
His ancestors were respected residents of that vicinity, and a full account of the family is given in the biography of a half brother of our sub- ject, Christoph Lehmann, a well-known business man of Bowling Green. At the age of eighteen our subject left his old home, where he had en- joyed the opportunities for education given in the excellent public schools, and in 1881, immediate- ly after his arrival, went to work for Mr. Leh- mann in his meat market. For eight years he re- mained there, learning our language, making acquaintances, the details of the business, and saving his money, and, when he opened a market of his own in 1889, he had so won the esteem of the community, that from the start he had a large patronage. He butchers his own meat, buying by the car load in Chicago, or from farm- ers in the vicinity, as occasion offers. He also runs a packing house, and cures hams, and pork of all grades, butchering for this line of work from five to seven hundred hogs per year. There are few business men in any locality who have more well wishers than has this young adopted citizen of Bowling Green.
In 1891 he was married to Miss Amelia Kauf- man, who was born in 1868, near Marietta, Ohio. They have one son, Frank. Politically oar sub- ject is a Democrat, and he and his wife are men- bers of the Lutheran Church.
JOHN REYNOLDS, one of the self-made mien of Montgomery township, whose early home was on the other side of the Atlantic, commenced life without other capital than his strong hands and resolute will, and has attained to a fine position,
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socially and financially, among his fellow citizens. His homestead, one of the most noticeable in the township, embraces a fertile tract of land under thorough cultivation, and is finely located in Sec- tion 18. Both as a business man and a citizen the proprietor stands well among the men of his township and vicinity, as having materially as- sisted in the development of the county.
Mr. Reynolds was born in County Derry, Ire- land, in 1841, and is the son of John Reynolds, a farmer of that country, where he is still living at the age of eighty-eight years. The mother of our subject bore the maiden name of Eliza Carr, and was a most loving wife and kind and indulgent mother to her large family of eleven children, who, in order of birth, are as follows: John, of this review; James, a merchant of Cole- raine, Ireland; Hugh, a farmer of Portage town- ship, Wood county; Nancy, widow of Robert Hutton; William, of Ireland; Sarah, who is also living in that country: Robert and Matthew, both of Ireland; Mary J. and Eliza, twins, the former now Mrs. Robert McCarty, and the latter Mrs. John W. Boyd, of County Antrim, Ireland. Most of the family still make their home on the Emer- ald Isle, where they are well-to-do and pros- perous.
Our subject received his education in the county of his nativity. A school-mate of his, Robert Caskie, had come to the United States and was employed in the slate quarries of eastern Pennsylvania. This friend sent Mr. Reynolds a ticket .in 1866, and the promise of work if he would come to America. Bidding adieu to home and friends, he left County Derry, and on the "Columbia " sailed for the New World, and, after a stormy voyage of seventeen days, he landed at Castle Garden, at 10 A. M. on Christmas Day, 1867. He went at once to Slatington, Penn., where he was employed in the slate quarries for ten years.
At that place Mr. Reynolds wedded Miss Josephine Fletcher, a native of Germany, who had been brought to the United States when a child of two years, and they became the parents of five children-James, who died at the age of three years; Sarah, who died in infancy; Will- iam, who also died in infancy; and John and Hugh, both at home. The mother departed this life in Wood county, in March, 1882. It was in the spring of 1875 that Mr. Reynolds had brought his family to this county, where he had two brothers, Hugh and Robert, farmers of Portage township, and there he purchased twenty aeres of land, going in debt for part of the amount re- quired. In Wood county our subject was again
married, his second union being with Miss Mar- garet McKaig, who was born in Coshocton coun- ty, Ohio, November 8, 1852. and is the daughter of Robert and Eliza (Reynolds) McKaig, natives of County Derry, Ireland. Six children have been- born of this union -- Robert; William J. ; Sadie and Willie, twins; and Charles and George, twins. All are living with the exception of George.
Upon his farm, in Portage township, Mr. Rey- nolds resided until 1893, when he removed to his present place, which comprises 165 acres of valu- able land. While employed in the slate quarries of Pennsylvania, he suffered from a broken thigh, and a stiff knee resulted. Though handicapped in this way to some extent, he has ever been a hard worker, and it renders his accumulations that much more creditable. He is just such a citizen as his nativity suggests, honest, progressive and upright, and is one of the representative farmers of the community, where he makes his home. Religiously he is a Methodist Protestant, in which Church he has served as trustee, and politically he has always been an earnest Republican.
W. R. CAROTHERS. A popular and well- known citizen of Wood county, was born in Beaver county, Penn .. January 24, 1815, and is a son of Andrew and Jane (Fitzsimmons) Caroth- ers. Both were natives of the Keystone State, and the former was born in 1783. At the age of nineteen he went to the South, and was engaged in teaching school among the planters in different States for seven years. Then returning home he was married, and in 1809 located in Ohio town- ship, Beaver county, where he purchased 100 acres of land, and carried on farming for a period of years, at the same time he conducted a hotel and taught school for ten years. Later he was employed at school teaching in various places in Columbiana and Crawford counties, Ohio, following that pursuit until seventy-five years of age. 'His death occurred in 1878, and his wife died in Morrow county, Ohio, about 1873. The first two children of the family died in early childhood, and the others are W. R. : Eliza Jane, wife of Andrew Morrison, of Tuscara- was county, Ohio; Reason Dawson, of Washing- ton county, Ohio; Jonathan, who died at the age of twenty-two; Dr. Janies Henderson, of Mar- tinez, Cal .; Samuel, who died young; and Dr. John, who died in California.
Mr. Carothers, of this sketch, was educated by his father, and at the age of twelve years began work as a farm hand, receiving only $2 per mouth and his board. He was thus employed
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