USA > Ohio > Ashland County > History of Ashland County, Ohio > Part 51
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David Long has always resided upon the farm where his birth occurred. He acquired his education in the public schools and was trained to the work of the fields, early becoming familiar with the best methods of plowing, planting and cultivating the land and caring for the harvests. His life of diligence has been rewarded with success and he is now the owner of eighty acres in the home place and a farm of forty acres in Plain township, Wayne county, about a mile east of the farm on which he now resides. His entire life has been devoted to tilling the soil and he now has a well improved place upon which are good build- ings that he erected. His work has been carefully managed and his unfaltering diligence has made him one of the substantial agriculturists of the community.
Mr. Long has been married twice. In October, 1873, he wedded Caroline Hipp, who was born in Hanover township, Ashland county, Ohio, October 21, 1854, and died in the fall of 1894. She was a daughter of Peter and Elizabeth (Hansler) Hipp, natives of Germany. By that marriage there were ten children : Sarah Margaret; Martin Luther; George Peter; Theodore Philip, who died at the age of two years; Ida Katharine; Rena Elizabeth, the wife of Louis Richard, of Knox county, Ohio, by whom she has a daughter Mildred; Dora Henrietta, who is the wife of Fay Chase, living on a farm near Ashland; Thornton M., at home; Paul Edward; and Miriam May, who died in infancy. Having lost his first wife Mr. Long was married in 1896 to her sister, Miss Sarah Katharine Hipp, a native of Hanover township.
In his political views Mr. Long was a stalwart democrat and has filled school and road offices. He belongs to the German Lutheran church of McZena, of which he is one of the trustees and was on the building committee when the
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new house of worship was erected. He did much of the team work himself and assisted materially in putting up the church. He is a man of unfaltering honesty and business integrity and displays those qualities which in every land and clime awaken confidence and regard.
EBEN E. DUDLEY.
Eben E. Dudley, a prosperous farmer and representative citizen of Sulli- van township, was born in this locality June 30, 1857. His parents, Alfred L. and Mary Ann (Harrison) Dudley, were natives of Hartford, Connecticut, and came to this state as a young married couple, settling in Medina county, where they spent a few years and then removed to Sullivan township, where they remained on a farm for the rest of their days, the father having departed this life August 24, 1878. His wife survived him by eighteen years, her death having occurred in November, 1896. In the family were eight children: Eben E .; Mary A., who became the wife of Leander Loomis, of Sullivan township; Bela D. L., of Camstota, South Dakota; and Frederick A., of Sioux Falls, that state. The other children are deceased.
On his father's farm Eben E. Dudley was reared and there enjoyed the usual experiences common to the country lad, engaging in the routine of agri- cultural life during the summer months and in the winter time attending the district school, where he acquired his education. Upon leaving school he re- mained under the parental roof and has since applied his energies to the culti- vation of the home farm, except an interval of a few years which he spent as a traveling salesman for various merchandise companies. His farm is in a desirable location, has upon it sufficient timber for ordinary purposes and is provided with all the necessary improvements with which to carry on the work successfully. The attention which Mr. Dudley has given it has made it one of the best tracts of land for the production of general crops that can be found in the county. He has made quite a study of the soils for the purpose of so ar- ranging the rotation of crops as to derive the maximum yield per acre and his experiments have been so successful that he annually reaps abundant harvests. He gives some attention to stock raising, his horses being of excellent breeds and keeps on hand a number of head of the finest specimens of cattle, sheep and hogs, in which he does a shipping business throughout the state. Being an agriculturist he is always on the alert for innovations by which to carry on farming to the best advantage and has all the machinery requisite to agriculture and does his farming strictly upon modern principles.
On December 14, 1891, Mr. Dudley was united in marriage to Rosa A. Becker, a daughter of Hiram and Rosa L. (Fisher) Becker of Lorain county, the former a lake captain. To this union have been born seven children, namely : York, Florence R., Fern, Hope, Dorothy, Dot L. and Thomas. Mr. Dudley has taken quite an interest in local affairs and has filled the offices of road super- visor and township assessor. He is an advocate of general good roads and was a strong supporter of the central school system, which was finally adopted by
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this township and which has since proved eminently satisfactory. Among the fraternal organizations with which he is affiliated are the Junior Order of United American Mechanics and the Knights of Maccabees. His political faith is that of the republican party and while he is not an active politician he takes sufficient interest in public affairs to keep himself well informed regarding paramount issues and regularly casts his vote for the candidates of his party. He is a man who is in every respect aggressive and his industry and high moral character merit the confidence and respect of his neighbors.
GUETELIUS I. YEARICK.
In an analyzation of the life record of any individual it is usually found that certain pronounced characteristics and qualities bring him prominently before the public. In a review of the life record of Mr. Yearick one cannot fail to be impressed with the fact that it was because of a friendly nature and appreciation on his part of the good qualities in others, and his deference for the opinions of those whom he met that Mr. Yearick was so universally esteemed and respected. He made friends wherever he went and thus his death was the occasion of deep and wide spread regret when he passed away. He was born in Mifflinburg, Pennsylvania, August 11, 1829, a son of Peter and Katharine (Guetelius) Yearick. He was a little lad of ten years when his parents came to Ashland county, where both spent their remaining days. Here the son was reared to manhood, attending the public schools. The family home during his youthful days was at Red Haw, Ashland county, and at the age of twelve years he was apprenticed to a turner and painter, under whom he mastered the business. He afterward worked at his trade in Ashland county, in western Ohio and in eastern Indiana until 1855 and in the latter year returned to this
£ The following county where he embarked in business as a furniture dealer. He resumed operations in that year, however, he suffered a heavy loss by fire. line and continued in the trade until 1860 when he sold out to Colonel J. D. Stubbs. The following year, 1861, Mr. Yearick responded to the country's call, enlisting as a member of the Eighty-second Ohio Volunteer Infantry and became a recruiting officer. After the close of the war he established a loan agency in Ashland and conducted the business until 1869, when he was elected county treasurer on the democratic ticket. He was a stalwart supporter of that party, believing that its platform contained the best elements of good government, and during campaigns he used his aid and influence to further the principles of the democracy. He continued in the office of county treasurer from 1870 until 1874 and made an excellent record as a custodian of the public funds. On his retirement from official life he resumed the loan business, and. later branched out into other fields in the establishment of a livery business in partnership with Nelson Thomas. From that time until his death he devoted his energies to both enterprises and was sole proprietor of the livery stable for some years, having bought out his partner's interest. As a loan agent he was very successful, doing a big business in negotiating and placing loans, having
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among his clients many of the best known people of the county. In all of his business relations he was thoroughly reliable and his spirit of enterprise, combined with unfaltering industry won him his prosperity.
On the 17th of December, 1889, Mr. Yearick was married in Hartford, Connecticut, to Miss Carrie Maude Hamilton, a daughter of Thomas S. and Maria E. (Terry) Hamilton, both of whom are now deceased. They were the parents of seven children of whom three are yet living: Mrs. M. A. Rose and Thomas S. Hamilton, who are residents of Connecticut; and Mrs. Yearick, of this review. By her marriage she has one son, Leo G., who was born January 20, 1891, and who manifests the utmost filial love and devotion to his mother. He is a graduate of the Ashland high school and is now filling the position of message clerk in the senate at Columbus. Mrs. Yearick is a member of the Presbyterian church and enjoys the friendship and warm regard of many who know her. She now owns a fine residence on Claremont avenue and also the livery barn in the city of Ashland.
Mr. Yearick belonged to Mohican Lodge, No. 85, I. O. O. F., of Ashland, and was popular among his brethren of that fraternity. His death occurred August 3, 1898. He had long been accounted one of the leading citizens of Ashland county. He had a distinctive air that marked him as a gentleman of unfailing courtesy and easy and cordial address. His business interests brought him wide acquaintance, while his attractive social qualities won him warm friends, not only in Ashland, but also throughout adjoining counties. He was cordial and genial in nature, possessed of grace of manner and a spirit of friendliness, which were well calculated to retain the friendship of all with whom he came in contact. He was a man of fine physique and striking personal appearance and the substantial and sterling qualities of his character enabled him to retain his hold upon the affections of his colleagues and associates.
LEONIDAS S. SHEARER.
Leonidas S. Shearer is engaged in the cultivation of a farm of two hundred and sixteen acres on which he has made his home since 1882. He was born about one and one-half miles from this place in Clinton township, Wayne county, Ohio, June 5, 1834. His entire life has been passed in this neighbor- hood with the exception of about four and a half years, and he has therefore long been a witness of the development and progress of the county. His parents were John and Mahala (Webster) Shearer, the former born in Franklin county, Pennsylvania, May 11, 1811, while the mother was born in Vermont, May. 15, 1815. John Shearer came to Ohio with his parents in 1822 when a lad of eleven years. He was a son of Peter Shearer, whose family numbered four children: Katharine, who became the wife of Joseph Whitford; John; Samuel ; and Peter. On the homestead farm which his father secured John Shearer was reared to manhood and his entire life was devoted to general agricultural pursuits. Both he and his wife died on the farm where the birth of our
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subject occurred, the date of his death being May 20, 1876, while his wife died in July, 1880. She had come from Vermont to Ohio about 1817 and settled in what is now Lake township, Ashland county, where Mr. and Mrs. Webster spent their remaining days. He was considered one of the wealthy men of the locality. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Shearer were born five children: Leonidas S .; Ashel W., who was an auctioneer and farmer and who is now deceased; Louisa D., the deceased wife of Frederick Kelser; John P., who was formerly a farmer of Lake township, but is now living in Akron, Ohio; and Joseph W., who resides on the old homestead in Wayne county.
Leonidas S. Shearer was reared under the parental roof and early became familiar with the duties and labors that fall to the lot of the agiculturist. He has always lived in the locality where he yet makes his home, save for a period of four and a half years immediately following the Civil war, which he spent in Kendallville, Noble county, Indiana. His education was acquired in the common schools and he afterward engaged in teaching for seven winter terms. Most of his life has been devoted to the general work of the farm, but for a time he also engaged in dealing in garden products and in conducting a grocery business. He has resided on his present farm since 1882 and he and his wife own together two hundred and sixteen acres of rich and valuable land on section 22, Lake township, on which are two sets of good buildings, one set of which was erected by Mr. Shearer. The place presents a most attractive appearance, for an air of neatness and thrift pervades it in every department, and the fields through the spring and summer months promise rich harvests in the autumn. He is practical in all of his methods and is imbued with a progressive spirit in . his work. Round lake is situated on his farm, a beautiful little body of water to which people frequently make excursions in the summer for an outing.
Mr. Shearer has been married twice. In 1856 he wedded Martha Steward and unto them were born three children, who died in early life. On the 26th of September, 1882, Mr. Shearer wedded Sarah J. Metcalf, who was born in Lake township near her present home, which was once the property of her father. She is a daughter of Allen and Mary (Goudy) Metcalf, and her birth occurred May 24, 1846. Mr. and Mrs. Shearer are consistent members of the Baptist church of Loudonville, and his political allegiance is given to the republican party, but he does not seek nor desire office, preferring to concentrate his energies upon his business affairs, the capable management of which have brought to him most gratifying success.
STEPHEN BARRICK.
Stephen Barrick represented the business interests of Orange township as a farmer and carpenter. He was born August 16, 1826, in Columbiana county, Ohio, and was a son of George and Sarah (Wolfe) Barrick. His father was a farmer by occupation and in 1824 came to Ohio. After a few years he settled in Troy township and gave his attention to general agricultural pursuits through-
STEPHEN BARRICK
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out his remaining days. He died in 1887, at the venerable age of eighty-four years, while his wife passed away in 1893.
Stephen Barrick was reared to manhood on the home farm, aiding in the labors of the fields through the summer months while in the public schools he acquired his early education. He afterward learned the carpenter's trade and followed that pursuit in connection with general farming. His life was one of intense and well directed activity in which he had few leisure moments. His time was always well employed and his labors brought him a substantial profit so that he always had not only the necessities but many of the comforts of life.
On the 17th of January, 1850, he was married to Miss Catherine Chilcoat. whose death occurred February 16, 1866. On the 5th of December, 1867, Mr. Barrick was united in marriage to Miss Martha A. Chilcoat, a sister of his first wife and a daughter of Elisha and Martha (Tucker) Chilcoat, the former a native of Bedford county, Pennsylvania, born June 26, 1790. Having arrived at years of maturity the father was married in Ashland county, Ohio, in 1819, to Miss Tucker, whose birth occurred in Washington county, Pennsylvania, in April, 1803. They became the parents of five children, John, Margaret, Cather- ine, Rachel and Martha. The father was a farmer who devoted his entire life to tilling the soil, carrying on the work of the fields until his labors were ended in death on the 12th of March, 1854. His wife continued to reside in Orange township for many years, passing away on the 8th of May, 1884. Their daugh- ter Martha, when a young lady, engaged in teaching school, following that profession for thirteen years. She capably conducted the schools where she was employed and thus was a factor in the early intellectual progress of the county. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Barrick has been born one son, George W., who is now living with his mother on the old home farm. He is a man of affairs, enterprising and successful in his business interests, and is now the owner of considerable property. His integrity and true worth have gained him the un- qualified respect and confidence of all with whom he has been associated.
After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Barrick began their domestic life upon a farm in Orange township where Mrs. Barrick now resides. In addition to tilling the fields, Mr. Barrick also worked at the carpenter's trade. As his son advanced in years and strength he largely assumed the work of the farm and in addition to cultivating the cereals best adapted to soil and climate, he became a large producer of sugar and syrup, having eleven hundred maples upon his place. The old homestead is a valuable property, constituting one of the attractive features of the landscape.
Mr. Barrick was not only active in business but also a factor in the public affairs of the community. He was frequently called upon for office by the vote. of his fellow townsmen who recognized his worth and ability. He acted for many years as assessor and was chosen county commissioner in 1875, for a three years' term, at the expiration of which he was again called to that office, so that his incumbency covered six years and was characterized by the utmost fidelity to duty. No trust reposed in him was ever betrayed in the slightest degree and his life was all that was exemplary of a progressive and public- spirited citizenship. In politics he was a democrat who regarded the platform
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of the party as the exponent of the best principles of good government. Both he and his wife were members of the Methodist Episcopal church at Polk, and in the various departments of the church work he was interested and to its support contributed generously. He died in that faith on the 10th of May, 1895, when in the sixty-ninth year of his age, and his remains were interred at Nankin. His personal worth, his loyalty and progressiveness in citizenship and his faithfulness in friendship were such that the community mourned his loss, knowing that one of the very best citizens had passed from this life.
C. W. LANDIS.
C. W. Landis, who conducts one of the largest grocery enterprises in this county, his place of business being located in Ashland, descends from three German families, the members of which are prominent in various parts of the United States. Judge Landis, of Chicago, Illinois, noted for his famous decision in relation to the Standard Oil Company, being a descendant of that part of the family originally from Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, is his third cousin. His father, Samuel Landis, was a native of the Keystone state, where he was born in 1798. In 1828 he left Pennsylvania, locating in Richland county, Ohio, where he purchased a farm containing one hundred and sixty-six acres, which was then overgrown with timber. Being a man of strong consti- tution and great ambition, by the application of his energy he soon cleared off the land and had it under cultivation. He was the first man to grow barley in Richland county and it is thought that to him is to be accredited the honor of being the first barley grower in the state of Ohio. While he made a specialty of that grain he also produced large quantities of wheat and oats and became known . throughout the county for the quality as well as the quantity of his crops. As to his personal habits, he was modest, his conduct being upright and in every sense commendable; a man noted for his compassion and also for his charity; possessed of the noblest qualities of the human character. His geniality made him friends of all with whom he associated, and it is said of him that he departed this life without leaving an enemy. Throughout his career he maintained a high degree of health, having been noted for his strength and vigor, and up until his eighty-second year he had never needed the services of a physician. At that advanced age he contracted pneumonia which, after two weeks illness, caused his death. His wife was Mary Brubaker, whose birth occurred in the Keystone state in 1824, and her death here in 1900, and by her he had three children : Susanna Landis Redding; Maria Landis Hiller; and Charles Wesley.
Charles Wesley Landis was born in Richland county, Ohio, February 12, 1866, and spent his boyhood days in the pursuit of agriculture with his father, in the meantime acquiring his preliminary education at the district schools, and subsequently pursuing a course of study at the schools of Ashland, this county, to which he removed on the 1st of April, 1882. On September 21, of that year, he engaged as a clerk in the grocery establishment of Poag & Bru- baker, in whose employ he continued until 1894, in the meantime becoming
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familiar with the business and making himself an indispensable factor in the life of the firm. During that year he purchased a third interest in the enter- prise, in 1898 became half owner and in 1905 sole proprietor of the business. With the exception of a few hundred dollars Mr. Landis has accumulated his fortune through his own energy and business ability and is now at the head of the largest grocery enterprise in the village of Ashland. His patronage has steadily increased since he assumed full management and his trade amounts to forty-three thousand dollars annually. He takes great pride in his store, being solicitous at all times to handle only the very best commodities and particularly to please his patrons, and it is his consideration for the wishes of his customers, as well as to his careful business management, that much of his success is due. Aside from the grocery business he is connected with a number of other concerns and is vice president of the Reliable Match Company and director of the Ashland Steel Range & Manufacturing Company, and is one of three who own the patents of the United States cement block machine and the United States cement mixer, which are built by the Ashland Steel Range & Manufacturing Company.
On February 18, 1891, Mr. Landis wedded Miss Flora Jeannette Saal, who received her education in the public schools of Wooster, Ohio, and by whom he has three children, namely: Mary Aleen, whose birth occurred September 4, 1895; Lucile Jeannette, born December 10, 1899; and John Wesley, born Septem- ber 6, 1906. The two older are pupils in the public schools of Ashland and it is the purpose of the parents to send them to the higher educational institutions. Politically Mr. Landis votes with the democratic party, belongs to every branch of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of which he is a trustee, and also to the tribe of Ben Hur. He is an enthusiastic church worker and for the past ten years has been a deacon in the Lutheran church in which he holds member- ship. Mr. Landis is also connected with the Building & Loan Association in the capacity of a director, and also serves in that position as a member of the Ashland Commercial Club which was organized recently. Influential in the financial affairs of Ashland county, Mr. Landis is one of the most beneficial factors in the business circles of the city where he is noted for his strong character and integrity.
ALVIN CRITTENDEN.
Alvin Crittenden is proprietor of an extensive stock farm in Ruggles town- ship, on which he engages in breeding thoroughbred Delaine sheep and is con- sidered an authority on stock raising. He was here born October 1, 1855, a son of Medad and Sarah (Sutherland) Crittenden, both of whom removed westward from New York state in 1836, first settling on land now within the limits of the city of Chicago, Illinois, where he owned six hundred and forty acres of land. This he sold upon becoming dissatisfied with the place and located in Ruggles township, Ashland county, to which his wife's parents, Ebenezer and Sarah (Niffin) Sutherland, had preceded them. The Sutherland family were among
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the early pioneers and they took up extensive claims, their land being denomi- nated as the Sutherland survey. The country was at the time largely a forest tract and their first residence was a log cabin constructed out of timber which they had hewn and dressed. The grandfather of the subject of this review and his father were extensive landowners here and together with the Sutherlands were among the most prominent, prosperous and influential families of the early days, while their descendants are still among the representative residents of this community.
Medad Crittenden, father of him whose name heads this review, owned large tracts of land in Ruggles township on which he engaged in general farming, making a specialty of stock raising. Sheep breeding particularly commanded his attention and his flocks frequently numbered one thousand head. In the raising of sheep he became well known and was acknowledged to be one of the most successful stock men in this part of the county. After a useful and prosperous career he entered into rest in July, 1876, his wife having preceded him into the great beyond in February of the same year. They reared ten children, nine of whom attained maturity and eight of whom now survive, namely : Inner, who sacrificed his life in the Union army during the Civil war ; Phoebe J., who became the wife of Columbus Beech; Mary, the wife of Henry Fast; Charles; Henry ; Orlando; Medad; Sarah, wife of Miles Beech; Ella, who is wedded to James Edwards; and Alvin.
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