USA > Ohio > Allen County > History of Allen County, Ohio and Representative Citizens > Part 34
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but a youth of 15 years, entered the service of his country. It was in November, 1861, that he enlisted in Company E, 67th Reg., Ohio Vol. Inf., was mustered in at Columbus and proceeded with the command to Martins- burg, Virginia, and in the spring of 1862, but a few months after leaving the peaceful sur- roundings of his home, that he participated in his first battle, that of Winchester. On March 23, 1862, he fought against General "Stone- wall" Jackson, his regiment facing the 26th Mississippi Tigers, Jackson's favorite com- mand. Then followed the weary marches and various hardships of a soldier's life, and before he had attained man's estate he had faced dan- ger and death on a score of battle-fields. Dur- ing his service, which extended until the close of the war, he participated in these battles : Front Royal, Fort Republic, Harrison Land- ing, Bermuda. Hundred, Folly Island, Morris Island, charge on Fort Wagoner, siege of Fort Sumter, Johnson's Island, Wire Bottom Church, the long seige of Petersburg, Chapin's Farm (where he was wounded), the battle before Richmond, Bunker Hill, New Market, Strausburg, charge on Fort Gregg, and was present at the final surrender of General Lee at Appomattox. Entering the army as a pri- vate, Mr. Heffner was mustered out of the service as a sergeant.
After the close of the war, Mr. Heffner returned to his home in Auglaize County, and in 1870 came to Lima and entered into the employ of the C., H. & D. Railway Company. He served one year. as brakeman, was then pro- moted for efficiency, and for 28 years continued on the road in the capacity of freight and pas- senger conductor. He sent in his resignation in 1895, but did not sever his connection with this corporation, as since that year he has been foreman of its freight house at Lima. He is `also interested in city real estate.
In 1869 Mr. Heffner was married to Sarah Spyker, who was a daughter of Samuel Spy- ker, a pioneer of this county. Mrs. Heffner died in 1872, leaving a daughter, Hattie, who is the wife of George Darling, a business man at New Castle, Ohio. In 1875 Mr. Heffner. was married to Urania F. Bowers, a daughter
of Jacob Bowers, and they have three children, viz: Mettie, wife of E. M. Stradley, and Ethel, wife of J. R. Meiley, both of Lima; and Ray, living at home. The family is connected with the First Baptist Church. Mr. Heffner is quartermaster of the Mart Armstrong Post, No. 202, G. A. R., Lima, Ohio, and belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
REDERICK O. OLSON. Americans are very proud of their prominent and successful business men, but they are equally generous in awarding praise to natives of other lands whose ability enables them to reach the front rank in any line of endeavor. It is the man who counts, instead of the land of his birth. These few remarks are given as an introduction to the sketch of F. O. Olson, one of the leading railroad men of Ohio. He has been a resident of Lima since 1903, but he was born in Sweden, in 1869, and is a son of the late John Olson.
John Olson was for many years a right- hand man to President Hill of the Great North- ern Railroad, whom he assisted by his practi- cal advice and was most useful to him because of his long experience in railroad building in Sweden. His death occurred in 1903.
F. O. Olson was reared and educated in Sweden until he was 15 years old, and immed- iately after coming to the United States secured a position in the auditor's office of the Great Northern Railroad Company at St. Paul, Min- nesota. After two years of office work, he en- tered the mechanical department, and during the following four years worked as a machin- ist in the locomotive works. The next three years were spent in Chicago, with the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha Railroad-one year as a working machinist and two years as foreman. Then he accepted a position in the emergency department of the Great Northern road, and 18 months later went to Duluth, where he took a contract for railroad building. From there he came to Ohio and constructed the greater portion of the Toledo & Western Railroad, still later becoming one of the active
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promoters of the Sandusky & South-Western Railroad and the Lima & Eastern Railroad. His knowledge of railroading covers every de- tail and, in addition, he is a practical electri- cian, having spent six months with the West- inghouse Company. His present railroad con- nections are important, and, considering that he is yet a comparatively young man, indicate the possession of a very high order of ability. He is president and general manager of the Sandusky & South-Western Railroad-a line projected from Wapakoneta to Sandusky and from Lima to Bellefontaine, 40 miles of which is already graded; vice-president of the Lima Eastern Railroad, a line to run from Lima to Kenton, via Marion ; president of the Missouri, Oklahoma & Western Railroad, and a controll- ing director in the Guthrie & Oklahoma Rail- road.
In 1896 Mr. Olson was married to Edith Sturdeven, of West Virginia. They have three daughters : Melba, Emily and Gene. Fraternally Mr. Olson is a member of the Elks. He takes no active personal interest in politics, but is al- ways ready to assist the political ambitions of his friends. A portrait of Mr. Olson accom- panies this sketch.
RANCIS Y. DAVIS, who has a fine home and 80 acres of land in the southeast quarter of section 8, Perry township, has been a resident of this township during almost the entire period of his active business career. Mr. Davis was born in Orange County, Vermont, Oc- tober 29, 1827, and is a son of Francis and Lydia (York) Davis.
The Davis family is of Scotch-Welsh ori- gin, and the ancestral line can be traced to the birth of Sir Francis Davis, in 1590. His home was in Cardiganshire, Wales. Three of his sons, Gideon, Philip and Francis (2) crossed the ocean in search of fame and fortune, but of these only Philip and Francis (2) safely reached Halifax, Nova Scotia, Gideon having been lost at sea during the voyage. Francis Da- vis(2) has passed his 21st birthday at this time and and with his other possessions brought a
cane, which his father had presented him when he had reached his majority. This cane is still in the possession of the family, being owned by a Francis Davis, the subject of this biog- raphy. The wood of this ivory-headed cane was cut in the Grampion Hills of Scotland by the grandfather of Sir Francis Davis, in 1550. It has survived generations of its owners and typifies the solidity of the Scotch hills on which it grew, affording support to youth, feebleness and age for more than 300 years. Francis Davis (2), son of Sir Francis, remained with his brother in Halifax for about one year. There in 1749 Philip married Mary Wells; he subsequently settled in Virginia.
The above Francis Davis (2) was born in 1626 and died in 1709. He married Gertrude Emerson, of Halifax, Nova Scotia, who was born in 1629 in England and died in 1715. They settled at West Amesbury, Massachu- setts, in 1652, bringing the old cane with them.
Francis Davis (3), son of Francis (2), was born in 1653 in Massachusetts and died there in 1737. In 1673 he married Mary Taylor, a daughter of Walter Taylor, of Ames- bury ; she was born in 1657 and died in 1733. The old cane came into the hands of this Fran- cis and was in turn given to the next Francis.
Francis Davis (4), son of Francis (3), was born September 29, 1687, and died October 9, 1753, at Amesbury, leaving the old cane to his son, Captain Francis Davis. His wife, to whom he was married at Haverhill, Massachusetts, September 6, 1716, was born September 6, 1693 and died December 3, 1775.
Capt. Francis Davis, the fifth of the name, was born October 26, 1723 and died November 26, 1784. He was married September 3, 1745, to Elizabeth Ferran, who was born September 20, 1724, and died December 20, 1793. It was Capt. Francis Davis, who took the old cane from Amesbury to Davisville, Warren County, Vermont, a town he founded in May, 1766. In 1740 he had built a mill there which was destroyed by fire in 1746, and he built a second one. He was a Revolutionary soldier and a man of influence and wealth, and was the first representative to the General Assembly from Warren County.
Francis Davis (6), son of Capt. Francis
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Davis, was born at Amesbury, Massachusetts, May 27, 1758, and died at Barre, Vermont, October 30, 1840. He married Philena Thurber, who was born at Portsmouth, New Hampshire, August 26, 1758, and died at Barre, Vermont, December 21, 1841. These ancestors were the grandparents of the subject of this sketch. The family resided at Warren until the fall of 1794, when they removed to Barnard, Vermont, taking with them the old cane. There it remained until the grand- father's death, when it came into possession of Francis Davis (7), father of its present owner, who is in the eighth generation from Sir Francis Davis.
Francis Davis (7) was born March 7, 1788, at Warren, New Hampshire, and was six years old when he accompanied his parents to Bar- nard, Vermont, where he was given as good educational advantages as the times afforded. He worked at the carding and fulling business for some years. When the War of 1812 be- came imminent, he enlisted in a cavalry com- pany which was ordered by the Governor to proceed from Montpelier to Plattsburgh, New York. After three days, the company reached that place and took part in the closing engage- ments of the battle there. He was discharged at the end of the war. After the passage of many years, he received 160 acres of land in recognition om his military services. After his marriage he lived in Orange and in Washing- ton counties, Vermont, and owned and oper- ated a sawmill and also dealt in tombstones. He was an expert worker in stone and samples of his work took first premium when exhibited at Montpelier.
In the autumn of 1834, with his wife and four children, the oldest being nine years and the youngest, five months, he started West- ward to find a new home. The wagon was filled with bedding and articles of wearing ap- parel. After a pleasant driving journey of six weeks, a pause was made at the town of Keene, Coschocton County, Ohio. Here Mr. Davis found a few settlers from New England and, tired of traveling, decided to stop a least over the winter. In the spring, on March 21, 1835, he purchased 100 acres of land for which he
paid $200. Three acres had been cleared, a small orchard had been set out and a log cabin built. Later he cleared about 40 acres of this land and entered into farming and stockrais- ing, also cutting and selling many tombstones from a quarry situated on the property. He built the first sawmill ever erected here, which was run by the waters of the Buckloo, a small stream which meandered through his farm.
In 1842 Mr. Davis leased the farm and moved to the town of Keene where he engaged in the tombstone and monument business but soon tired of village life and returned to the farm. In 1843 he purchased another 100-acre tract, but in 1846 he sold out and again made preparations to move westward. On April 6, 1846, with his wife, two sons and the youngest daughter, a grandson and a young neighbor who was starting West with some house- hold goods, Mr. Davis started his prairie schooner, drawn by oxen, in the direction of the setting sun. The horses which 12 years previously had assisted to move the family from Vermont to Ohio, were again made use of, being hitched to a farm cart and a flock of sheep and a herd of cattle were also taken along. On the eighth night of the journey the family camped in a vacated cabin which they found near the center of a seven by 20 mile forest, which then stood in its native state in Har- din County, Ohio. Here the hoots of the owls and the howls of the wolves made the night hideous. On the ninth day of the journey the family reached a point four miles east of Lima, in Perry township, Allen County, Ohio. Here Mr. Davis decided to locate, buying an 80- acre farm on which he lived and carried on farming and stock-raising. In 1863 he sold his farm and in 1864 moved to Defiance County, Ohio, where he purchased a farm of 120 acres on which he continued farming and stock-raising operations, assisted by his adopted grandson, Lucius, who lived with him until his death, which took place March 31, 1875. In politics he was a Whig and later a Republican. In his dealings with his fellow- men, he was honest and upright and his religion consisted more in good works than in profes- sion. In 1850 he and his wife made an ex-
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tended visit to relatives in Vermont and upon his return he brought with him the old family cane.
On October 21, 1813, in Randolph, Orange County, Vermont, he married Lydia York, a daughter of Gershom York, and they had II children. Mrs. Davis died March 1, 1863. In the course of time he married Mrs. Eliza- beth Gilbert, a widow, who also preceded him to the grave. Of the II children, those who reached maturity were: Roxanna P., de- ceased, who was the wife of Ira Fox; Francis Y ; George E .; and Fannie, deceased, who was the wife of John Bond.
Francis Y. Davis, our immediate subject, was 19 years old when he accompanied his father to Perry township, and he assisted in the clearing of the home farm. In 1852 he bought 40 acres in section 3, which is now known as the William Robert's farm, which he cleared and converted from timberland to fields of unusual fertility and productiveness. In 1863 he settled upon 80 acres in section 16 on which he lived and made extensive improve- ments until 1882, when he located upon a quarter-section in section 19, a part of which still remains in the family. He reclaimed a part of this farm from the forest and converted it into a productive farm and made his home there until 1894, when he purchased 40 acres of his present farm in section 8, to which he subsequently added 40 more acres. Mr. Davis here erected a fine residence and has made other substantial improvements until now it is an example of one of the best rural homes in Perry township. In addition to being fertile, his farms have have been noted for the pres- ence of oil; he had had a number of producing oil-wells and the three located on his present farm have brought him handsome returns.
Mr. Davis has a military record which should give him a very pardonable measure of pride. When the Civil War broke out and he recognized the fact that he was needed at the front, he put aside his previous ambitions and enlisted in the service of his country. His first enlistment was in September, 1861, in Company D, 54th Reg., Ohio Vol. Inf. He was discharged in August, 1862, on account
of disability, having been injured by the ex- ploding of a shell at the battle of Pittsburg Landing. On September 22, 1864, Mr. Davis reenlisted, becoming a member of Company A, 180th Reg., Ohio Vol. Inf., and continued in the service until the close of the war, his last battle being at Kingston, North Carolina. He was honorably discharged in July, 1865, and returned to his home in Perry township.
During a part of his time in early manhood he engaged in teaching school and he worked also at brick-making, but since he was 30 years of age he has devoted his attention exclusively to agricultural pursuits, with some attention given to the production of oil, as mentioned above, having had an interest in some 20 wells. Mr. Davis owns 120 acres of fine land in Allen County.
On May 5, 1852, Mr. Davis was married to Sarah Coats, a daughter of Rufus and Nancy (Dawson) Coats. She died April 1, 1893, leaving the following children: Lydia R. M., born July 26, 1854, who married Jef- ferson Shade, of Perry township; Ira E., born January 31, 1856; Albert E, born November 30, 1857; William F., born January 19, 1867, who lives in Franklin County, Kansas; Clara B., born July 25, 1868, who married John Howbert, of Allen County; Charles L., born November 25, 1869; Harmon C., born October 15, 1871 and Daniel E., born May 28, 1873, who died July 23, 1898. One child died in in- fancy. Mr. Davis remained single until No- vember 20, 1897, when he married Mrs. Rhoda J. (McPheron) Howbert.
In politics Mr. Davis is a Republican and he is a valued member of Mart Armstrong Post, No. 202, G. A. R., of Lima. He is widely known in Allen County and is held in the high- est esteem. Mr. Davis grew up at a time and in a section where educational advantages were meager but he has always been a great reader and has mixed with intelligent people and thus has acquired a broad and comprehensive knowledge of the affairs of the world. He is possessed of a truly remarkable memory and without effort recalls the day, month and year of many happenings of earlier days. During the period of 60 years covering his residence
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in Perry township, he has been foremost in its business affairs and has contributed his full share in the developing of this section into one of the most prosperous, progressive and best improved communities in the State.
u LYSSES REICHENBACH, a promi- nent agriculturist of Allen County, is a native of Canton Neuchatel, Switz- erland, where he was born on - Aug- ust 15, 1845. When he came to this country he was a poor man and his present property represents years of patient toil. In addition to the 146-acre homestead in section 34, Richland township, Mr. Reichenbach owns 80 acres in Putnam County, His parents were John and Margaret (Guntner) Reichenbach, who came to America in 1873 and made their home here for the rest of their lives.
Ulysses Reichenbach was one of 10 chil- dren, seven boys and three girls. At the age of 19 he left the parental roof to try his fortune in a new country, landing in New York in 1866. He first stopped in Wayne County, Ohio, where he worked on a farm by the month for one year, and then came to Allen County and for four years worked by the month in Richland township. By dint of saving every penny, he managed to get sufficient together to buy 80 acres of woodland in Putnam County. Renting a farm there he cultivated it for a year. He cleared off the timber on the 80-acre tract and erected a dwelling. Later he bought 106 acres in Allen County which, with the 40 acres received from his father-in-law, com- prise his present homestead. He has two good dwellings on this farm, one of which is oc- cupied by his son-in-law.
Mr. Reichenbach was married in Novem- ber. 30, 1869 to Fannie Basinger, who was born September 14, 1841, on the farm where she now lives, her parents being Seymour and Barbara (Steiner) Basinger. Eight children have blessed their union, namely : John, Leah, Henry, Lydia, Maggie, Emma, Lena, and Amos. John, who resides on the 80-acre farm in Putnam County, married Barbara Leichty and has three children-Lillie, William and
Titlam. Leah resides at home with her par- ents. Henry, who is engaged in farming in Richland township, married Emma Batcher and has one child, Mildred. Lydia died at the age of nine years. Maggie married William Steiner and has two children, Mabel and Odula. They live in Putnam County. Emma, who was the wife of Fred Beiderman, left at death one child, Sylvia, who lives with her grand- parents. Lena married Samuel Augsburger and had one child, Hazel, who died in infancy. They live on Mr. Reichenbach's farm in Rich- land township. Amos married Mary Welty, a daughter of Christ Welty, a farmer of Put- nam County. They have one child, Stella, and reside on the home farm .. Mr. Reichenbach has always supported the Democratic ticket. In religion he is a conscientious and consistent member of the Mennonite Church.
7 H. DUDEN, a contractor and builder at Lima, whose excellent work and honest methods of do- ing business have brought him prominently before the public, has been a resident of this city since 1890. He was born on the line between Fairfield and Miami counties, Ohio, in 1852.
The father of our subject was John A. Duden, who was a soldier in the War. of 1812. He learned and followed the trade of a lock- smith, as long as it proved profitable, and then turned his attention to cigar manufacturing. In 1858 he moved to Clinton County, Ohio, and in the fall of 1861 to Allen County.
W. H. Duden was eight years old when the family settled in this county. He attended school until he was 15 years old and then learned the trade of a shoemaker. He was thus employed at Cridersville, Auglaize County, for some 12 years, after which he mastered the car- penter's trade, having always had a natural bent in that direction. This line of work he has since followed continuously, and for the past 26 years has been engaged in a general contracting business, during 15 years of which period he has been located at Lima. His work here is shown in some of the finest and most
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substantial structures of the city-among others, the St. Rose parsonage, the Holland Block, and the residences of W. L. Parmenter, M. Cohn, J. C. Ridenour, D. C. Dunn, James Cory and Dr. Van Note.
In 1873 Mr. Duden was united in marriage with Mrs. Mary A. Church of Cridersville, and they have three children, viz : Elmer, a minis- ter of the Methodist Episcopal Church, located at Walhalla, North Dakota; James Harvey, a painter by trade; and Ray, who is associated with his father. Mr. and Mrs. Duden are members of the United Brethren Church. In politics Mr. Duden is a Republican. Socially he is a member of the A. O. U. W.
n EWTON SAGER, M. D. Among the eminent physicians and surgeons of Allen County, the Sagers have been distinguished for two generations and the subject of this record bears the name of a father who was the pioneer phy- sician of Jackson township, and, indeed, one of the earliest practitioners of medicine in Allen County. Dr. Newton Sager, of LaFayette, was born in this village, in a home on the site of his present residence, on December 18, 1846, being the eldest son of Dr. Newton and Bethiah (Gilbert) Sager.
The Sager family probably originated in England and later established a home in Vir- ginia, where the grandparents of Dr. Sager, Henry and Lovina (Haines) Sager, were born and whence they removed to Union County, Ohio, at a very early date. Of their eight children, Dr. Newton Sager, Sr., was born in Union County, Ohio, October 31, 1817, and died at LaFayette, Allen County, on August 13, 1903, having been one of the most highly esteemed men of his day in this section of the State, both in private and professional life. He enjoyed better educational advan- tages than were afforded many of his associ- ates, for after he had completed the common- school course at the age of 19 years, he was entered at Oxford University, later pursued a medical course in Pleasant Valley, Madison County, Ohio, and in 1843 was graduated in
medicine at Jefferson Medical College, Phila- delphia.
The young physician settled in Jackson township, Allen County, Ohio, although it might be thought so sparsely settled a district as it was then would have little need for his services. In fact for some years his profes- sional visits covered a very wide territory. The settlement of the county meant a greater tax on his time and strength and for years he knew no rest from professional labor. He was one of the earliest settlers at LaFayette and established the first drug-store in the vil- lage which he continued for many years. On account of the prevailing malaria, which is the cause of much of the sickness in any newly set- tled community, the necessity for quinine was very great and it was difficult to obtain it in sufficient quantities, on short notice, in the days when journeys were made on horseback and by ox-team. It was in order to be able to supply the drugs he found it necessary to pre- scribe that Dr. Sager established his own drug- store.
Not only did Dr. Sager occupy a promi- nent place in his locality as a man of science, but he was also a dominating influence in all public affairs, a leader in educational move- ments and, had not his professional duties pre- vented, would have probably become his party's representative in many of the higher offices in its gift. He was a lifelong Demo- crat and on several occasions served as town- ship treasurer, but the duties of his profes- sion precluded but little more than a good citi- zen's attention to public affairs. He found time, however, to lend his influence and give support by word and purse to various public- spirited enterprises, one of the most important of these being the building of the direct rail- road line from Upper Sandusky to Lima. Al- though a member of no religious denomina- tion, he was a liberal supporter of all, possess- ing the broadened mind and trained under- standing which enabled him to see the good in every creed. Dr. Sager was charitable, in his daily life, 'for years, practicing that Christ- ian charity which perhaps, men of his profes- sion understand best of all. His memory is perpetuated in Allen County in the hearts of
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