History of Carroll and Harrison Counties, Ohio, Part 90

Author: H. J. Eckley, William T. Perry
Publication date: 1921
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 678

USA > Ohio > Harrison County > History of Carroll and Harrison Counties, Ohio > Part 90
USA > Ohio > Carroll County > History of Carroll and Harrison Counties, Ohio > Part 90

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).

Robert Herron, father of William G. Herron, was born at Holliday's Cove, West Virginia, September 4, 1830, but was taken to New Cum- berland, Tuscarawas Countv. Ohio, and was there reared to manhood. In 1864 he traveled by wagon to Atwood, Monroe County, Ohio, and later on established himself as a farmer and stock-raiser near Carrollton. He married Ra- chel Palmer Galbreath, and they became the parents of the following children : William G., Robert Randall, and infant who died in 1866, at the age of six months; James Lawson, who died March 14, 1878; Calmet; Sedgewich, of Chester, West Virginia, who married Lena Gamble; Elroy C., and Joseph Glenn, a teacher at Malvern, Ohio.

An uncle of William G. Herron, Joseph B. Herron, served in Company H, Ninety-eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, during the war be- tween the two sections of the country. During the battle of Perryville, Kentucky, October 8, 1862, he received a gunshot wound which re- ceived no attention from Wednesday, when it was received, until Saturday, when he was sent to a hospital at Louisville, Kentucky. On ac- count of this unavoidable neglect and the sever- ity of his injury he was honorably discharged for disability, and was attached to the Smith- sonian Institute at Washington, District of Columbia. After the death of President Gar- field, Mr. Herron was selected as one of the guards of honor of the funeral cortege from Washington to Cleveland, Ohio. Joseph B. Herron died in April, 1882.

William G. Herron attended the Valley Hall School until he reached his majority, during

which period he had made himself useful on the homestead, and he was then afforded the educational advantages offered by the Carroll- ton High School for two fall and winter terms. Returning to the farm, he has made his home upon it ever since, carrying on general farming in conjunction with his brothers, their property being one of the best in the neighborhood. The homestead originally comprised ninety-seven acres, but they have increased it to Its present size of 208 acres. William G. Herron belongs to the United Presbyterian Church of Carroll- ton, and he has been an elder of it since 1898. He is a republican, but aside from exercising his right of suffrage does not participate in public life. In addition to his interest in the farm Mr. Herron is a stockholder of the Farm- ers Exchange at Carrollton. He is not married.

Robert Randall Herron, a brother of William G. Herron, was born in June, 1864, and he, too, makes his home on the farm, having never mar- med. Another brother, Elroy Herron, also liv- ing on the home farm, is a school-teacher at Cold Spring Run, Carroll County. He married Belle Shotwell, a daughter of James W. and Mary Ann (McCray) Shotwell, of Union Town- ship, in 1901, and they have two children, Mary meien and John Wendell. Elroy Herron has had charge of his present school for twelve years, and has been a school-teacher since 1897, so that many of the young men and women of the county have been under his instruction at one time or another. He and his wife are members of the United Presbyterian Church.

The record of an old-fashioned American family like the Herrons is an interesting one, and those possessing it have every reason to be proud of their ancestry. The majority of the Herrons have been agriculturists, taking pride in developing valuable farms, and all of them have been earnest, purposeful men, upright in their dealings and devoted in their service to church and country.

WILSON EDGAR WHEREBY is a farmer of Carroll County who is demonstrating on his farm of 186 acres in Harrison Township that farming is an industry which requires the best of atten- tion and skilled knowledge to make it a paying business. His experiments are watched with interest and his results are used by his neigh- bors in their operations. He was born on his present farm August 9, 1868, a son of Jackson and Margaret Ann (Foraker) Wherry, and grandson of Joseph Wherry, a native of Wash- ington County, Pennsylvania, who married a Miss Gardner, and with her came to Harrison Township, Carroll County, Ohio. They had two sons, Adam and Deams, when they came to Harrison Township, and the homestead then comprised 160 acres of land. He bought this farm from a Mr. Reed, who had obtained it from the Government, and the sale was made November 21, 1821. Joseph Wherry lived on this farm until his death, which occurred in 1875, and two years later his wife passed away. Five children were born to them after they came to this farm, making seven in all, and of them Jackson Wherry was the sixth in order of birth. His life was spent on this farm, and

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here he died in October, 1904, aged sixty-nine years. His widow survived him for a year. They had three children, of whom Wilson Edgar Wherry is the eldest.

Reared in his native township and sent to Its schools, Wilson Edgar Wherry worked for his father until he reached his majority, and then took charge of the farm where he has always lived. He carries on general farming. He is a stockholder in the Farmers Exchange at Carrollton. He is independent in the matter of voting, but has been active in politics, and was elected on the democratic ticket trustee of Harrison Township, and as a member of the School Board, he holding the latter office for eight years. For twenty-seven years he has been ruling elder of the Presbyterian Church of New Harrisburg, of which he has long been a consistent member. Mr. Wherry and his sis- ter, Mrs. Frank Harsh, of Harrison Township, are the only survivors of their father's family, their only other member, Arthur J., having died unmarried in 1893, at the age of twenty-one years.

On December 5, 1894, Mr. Wherry was mar- ried to Laura Viola Snively, a daughter of Joseph and Susan (Grunder) Snively, of Wash- ington Township, Carroll County. There were five children born of this marriage, namely : Mary Zella, who died August 27, 1918, was the wife of Roy B. Sutton, of Canton, Ohio, and left one daughter, Mildred Irene; Arthur Vale, who is at home, was drafted into the army dur- ing the World war, but the armistice was signed before he was called into the service; Earl, who died in 1904, aged ten months; Ruth Eliza- beth, who is thirteen vears old, and Joseph Alton, who is eleven years old, and the young- est. Mrs. Wherry died November 11, 1920, and is deeply mourned as a lady of high Christian character and kindly disposition, which en- deared her to all who knew her.

SIMPSON ORE BOGGS. Practical farming is a line of business that yields ample returns for money and effort invested. Some of the most aggressive and level-headed men of Carroll County have devoted much of their time to agricultural pursuits and have no reason to regret their decision in favor of farming. One of these men thus prosperous is Simpson Orr Boggs, who owns and operates a valuable farm of 182 acres in Harrison Township. He was born on his father's homestead March 31, 1864, a son of Ezra and Clarentine (Scott) Boggs.

Growing up in his native county, Mr. Boggs attended the country school at Cold Spring Run during the winter terms, and at other times assisted his father and brothers in operating the homestead. In this way, when still a lad, he learned to be a practical farmer, and his early training has been of immense value to him in later years. He had to work hard, for he was the fifth in a family of ten children, but does not regret this, for he feels that his early training established his habits of thrift and industry.

In 1898 Mr. Boggs was united in marriage with Mary Gotschall, a daughter of Hamilton and Hannah (Duell) Gotschall, of Harrison

Township, and they have three children, namely : James Wilbur, Robert Warden and Kenneth Orr.

Following his marriage Mr. Boggs lived for two years on the home farm, and then for five years conducted the Need farm, which he rented. He then moved on his present place, where he has since been engaged in general farming. During twelve years of this period he has been a timber merchant, sawing his timber in the woods and shipping it to different mar- kets. In addition to these occupations he has other interests and believes in encouraging home industries. He is a democrat and active in his party, serving as township clerk for one term, and always taking an interest in politics with the idea of getting the best class of men in office. The Presbyterian Church holds his mem- bership, and he is earnest in his support of its faith. Mr. Boggs has practically devoted his life to farming, and has made his work pay. At the same time he has established a reputa- tion for fair and honest dealing, and is recog- nized as a good farmer and public-spirited citizen.

JOHN ELI BOGGS. While agriculture has given employment to the energies and brains of men since the beginning of the world, it is only within recent years that the farmer has been accorded his proper place among the workers of importance, and science and govern- mental power have been employed to give him assistance. The modern farmer conducts his business much more expeditiously and profitably than did his forefathers, and in consequence is able to enjoy many comforts that were utterly out of the reach of people in the rural districts a few years ago. One of the representatives of this great and important class of workers of Carroll County is John Eli Boggs, owner of 133 acres of land in Harrison Township. He was born in this township, on the homestead of his parents, Ezra and Clarentine (Scott) Boggs, December 25, 1865.

The grandfather, Joseph Boggs, was born in Washington County, Pennsylvania, where he was married to a Miss Simpson, and came to Harrison Township, Carroll County, Ohio, after that event, settling on a quarter section of land. He and his wife had six children. Ezra Boggs was eight years old when brought to Carroll County, and he continued to live on his father's homestead the remainder of his life, and there he died in 1905, but his widow sur- vived him for a year. They had ten children, of whom John Eli Boggs was the sixth in order of birth.

John Eli Boggs went to school during the winter terms at Cold Spring Run, and had to do a man's work on the farm from the time he was fifteen years old. When he was twenty- nine years old, in 1895, he was married to Gertrude Moore, a daughter of William and Margaret (McElderry) Moore, of Union Town- ship. Her grandfather, James Moore, married a Miss Riley, and they had eight children, but both are now deceased. William Moore was a farmer of Union Township, who died in 1907, and Mrs. Moore died In 1911. Mrs. Boggs at-

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tended the country schools, and then took a teacher's course at Scio College, but was mar- ried at the age of twenty years, so did not follow her girlish plans for becoming a teacher.

When Mr. Boggs was married he owned ninety acres of land, and since then has added land until he now has 133 acres and is raising a diversity of crops. He is a stockholder of the First National Bank of Carrollton, and be- longs to the National Grange at New Harris- burg. The Presbyterian Church of New Harris- burg affords him expression for his religious creed.

Mr. and Mrs. Boggs have had four children, namely : Charles Scott, who is twenty-four years old; Forrest M., who died in 1901, when thirteen months old; Paul J., who is fifteen years old, and Wilma, eleven years old. Charles Scott Boggs is a veteran of the World war, and was called to the colors under the selective draft August 29, 1918, and sent to Camp Taylor, Louisville, Kentucky, for two months, as a private in the Sixty-ninth Field Artillery. He was then transferred to Camp Knox, south of Louisville, Kentucky, and was there when the armistice was signed. Like thousands of others, he was very much disap- pointed at not having had a chance to get into action. He received his honorable discharge December 21, 1918, and returned home.

MRS. LYDIA JANE ECKLEY, one of the highly respected residents of Carroll County, is living on her farm of seventy-one acres in Center Township. She is the widow of Absalom F. Eckley, who was born in Carroll County August 5, 1860, a son of Joseph and Catherine (Custer) Eckley, of German ancestry, whose family were all farming people. Mr. Eckley attended the local schools and worked on the home farm until his marriage, which occurred when he was twenty-two years old. At that time he rented a farm of eighty acres near Leesburg, Ohio, for a year, and then moved to Carrollton, where they resided for a time, Mr. Eckley being street commissioner. Later he served for twelve years as road commissioner of Center Township, to which he was elected on the re- publican ticket. Leaving Carrollton, Mr. and Mrs. Eckley moved on the farm she now occu- pies, and bought it in 1904. Here Mr. Eckley died June 9, 1911. He was an excellent farmer, public-spirited man and very active in the re- publican party.

Absalom F. Eckley married Lydia Jane Brown, a daughter of John H. and Mary (Or- wick) Brown, of Dellroy, Ohio, and they be- came the parents of nine children, all of whom are living, as follows: Alice, who is Mrs. Heber Slates, of Carrollton : Harvey, who lives at Mal- vern, Ohio, married Margaret Harsh, and has one son, Roy; Viola, who married Ross Dun- lap, of Carrollton, and has seven children, Samuel. Ruth, Fouty. Phyllis, Martha, Cather- ine and Kenneth; Catherine, who married Charles Slates, of Jewett, Ohio; Charles, who married Lina Cramer, and has one son, Paul; Isabell, who married Charles Lucas, has a son. Charles, and lives at Massillon, Ohio; Harry. who lives at Sebring, Ohio, married Florence

Wright, and has one daughter, Catherine; Joseph R., who is at home and works in the pottery ; LeRoy, who married Ethel Deck, of New Harrisburg, Ohio, in 1915, has two chil- dren, Ralph Thomas and Absalom Fouts, and is operating the home farm for his mother. They are fine young men who understand farm- ing thoroughly, and are a credit to their parents, as are the remainder of the children, all of whom are doing well. It is a source of pride to Mrs. Eckley that she and her husband not only prospered in a material way, but that they were able to afford their children the proper training and advantages so that they developed into splendid men and women. She is a mem- ber of the Reformed Church of Carrollton, and is held in high regard in that congregation, as she is elsewhere, for she possesses a noble. Christian character and those qualities which endear her to those who know her.

EDWARD POWER BOGGS deserves the reputation he enjoys of being one of the most capable farm- ers of Carroll County, and his fine farm of 133 acres in Harrison Township reflect his skill and industry. He was born on his present farm April 26, 1861, a son of Ezra and Clarentine (Scott) Boggs. He was reared on his father's farm, and attended the Cold Spring Run school during the winter months. until he was twenty years old, and during the rest of the year worked for his father. When he married he rented land for a time at Cold Spring Run, and then lived for a time at New Harrisburg. Ohio, where he was occupied with lumbering and farming. In the fall of 1898 he returned to the homestead and rented it from his father for eight months. The latter dying, Mr. Boggs inherited a portion of it, and purchased the remainder of his present holdings from the other heirs. He is carrying on a general line of farming, and has been very successful. He has other interests, being a director of the First National Bank of Carrollton, and is a member of the National Grange of New Harrisburg. A democrat, he is active in his party, and has served as assessor of Harrison Township and as a member of the School Board. The Presby- terian Church of New Harrisburg holds his membership, and he is generous in his donations to it. Mr. Boggs feels that his prosperity has come to him through his industry and thrift. and claims that no man need lack the necessi- ties of life if he is willing to work hard for them and save something of what he earns.

In 1894, when he was thirty-three years old. Mr. Boggs was married to Ella Booth, a daugh- ter of Joseph and Agnes (Workman) Booth, of Monroe Township, Carroll County, and they became the parents of five children, namely : Donald Booth, who is now at home. is men- tioned below: and Helen Emma, Ezra J .. Ed- ward Scott and Ethel Agnes, who are all at home.

Donald Booth completed a one year high school course and is now teller of the Cum- mings Trust Company of Carrollton. He is a veteran of the World war, having enlisted June 30. 1917. at Cleveland, Ohio, as clerk in the aviation branch of the service. and was sent

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to Camp Kelly, Texas, for training. From there he was transferred to New York city in Octo- ber of that year and placed in the Forty-Eighth Construction Squadron. Sailing from New York city, the unit was landed at Liverpool, Eng- land, after a short voyage, and from there sent to Brest, France. He was engaged in prepar- ing the airplanes for the flyers, and kept fol- lowing the advance of the Allied troops until the signing of the armistice. Promoted to .be a corporal, he was sent as one of the Army of Occupation to Coblenz, Germany. for the winter and spring, and was then returned home, being mustered out July 9, 1919.

ABRAHAM H. SMITH for more than half a century has been closely identified with the ag- ricultural activities and the community affairs of Harrison County in Nottingham and Stock Townships, and is one of the best known resi- dents of those localities.

He was born in Nottingham Township June 10. 1848. His paternal grandparents were John and Alice (Hopkins) Smith, natives of Ireland. John Smith whose home was in County Wick- low, Ireland, was a school teacher and veteri- nary surgeon. In 1819 he brought his family to America, and located at Deersville, Harrison County, Ohio. Deersville at that time contained only three log cabins. John Smith bought land in Nottingham Township, developed a farm and spent the rest of his life in that occupation and the farm is still in the family. John Smith and wife had the following children: John, born May 12, 1806, and died in infancy ; Thomas, born May 6, 1809; John, born August 12, 1810; Robert, born April 11, 1814; William, born July 20, 1816; and Sarah, who was the only child born in America.

William H. Smith, father of Abraham H. Smith, was born in County Wicklow, Ireland, and was about three years of age when brought to America. He grew up on the old homestead in Harrison County, lived an active career as a farmer in Nottingham Township, and died there June 1, 1873. He and his wife were mem- bers of the Methodist Church. In August, 1847, William H. Smith married Julia Hedges. She was born April 24, 1818, near West Liberty, West Virginia, a daughter of Abraham and Edith (Carter) Hedges. Abraham Hedges spent his life as a farmer near West Liberty, West Virginia. A brief record of his children is as follows: Joseph, born April 18, 1815, and died August 14, 1893; Samuel, born December 9, 1816, and died August 30, 1850; Julia, wife of William H. Smith, born April 24, 1818, and died February 28, 1890; Ruth, born January 8, 1820, and died April 22, 1901; Greenberry, born March 6, 1822, and died January 6, 1897; Abra- ham, born January 3, 1825, and died July 15, 1904.

The children of William H. and Julia Smith were Abraham, Mary, Frank, Emma, William, Samuel. Anna Bell, Julia, Robert and Ellen. Six of these are still living.

Abraham H. Smith acquired a substantial education as he grew to manhood and reached his majority well versed in the practical opera- tions of farming, a vocation he has followed

all his life. He still owns a hundred nine acres in Stock Township. He has been a member of the Methodist Church at Deersville for about forty years.

December 27, 1870, Mr. Smith married Nancy J. Spiker, daughter of William and Mary (Co- terol ) Spiker. She died August 31, 1904, the mother of six children. The oldest of these children is William who married Emma Mill- horn and has a daughter Hilda; the second is Charles who married Tentha McCave and has two children, Winifred and Wesley; the third in the family is Wesley who married Edith Hines and has a daughter Rebecca Jane and a son George: Mary, the fourth child of Abra- ham H. Smith. is the wife of William Robasky, a farmer in Franklin Township of Harrison County ; Clara is the wife of John Dunlap and has one daughter Ethel : Howard, the youngest, married Ida Freeburn and has two children, Walter and Lucile.

April 4, 1907, Abraham H. Smith married Catherine M. Hines who died February 22, 1918. On February 18, 1920. he married Laura A. Hines.

WILLIAM ROBASKY is one of the substantial citizens of Franklin Township, Harrison County, whose career is the more creditable because of difficulties he has overcome and the fact that his position has been achieved by industry and honesty and in no sense is due to circumstances.

Mr. Robasky was born in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, October 23, 1878. and was nine years of age when he came to live with the family of W. E. Cramblett in Stock Township of Harrison County. He grew up in the family home, ac- quired such education as was afforded by the district schools of Stock Township, and lived with the family until he was twenty-six. He spent seven years as a farm hand with E. C. Spiker of Franklin Township.

In the fall of 1910 he married Mary V. Smith, daughter of Abraham Smith, whose record is given above. For the past ten years Mr. and Mrs. Robasky have been farmers in Franklin Township, and since 1912 have been on their present farm of 155 acres. Mrs. Robasky is an active member of the Methodist Episcopal Church.

JAMES B. MCDEVITT is a representative of the fourth generation of the McDevitt family in Harrison County and here he has proved him- self resourceful and progressive in connection with the basic industry that engaged the atten- tion of earlier generations of the family in the county. He was born in Stock Township, April 27, 1880, and the major part of his life has been passed on the fine farm of 171 acres, of which he is now the owner, in Monroe Township. Here he is successfully engaged in general farm- ing and stock raising, besides which he has for the past several years controlled a prosperous enterprise in the operation of a saw mill in this section of his native county.

The founder of the McDevitt family in Har- rison County was James McDevitt, who came with his family from Pennsylvania and estab- lished his home in North Township about the

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year 1820. He took up a tract of wild land and developed the same into the productive farm on which he and his wife passed the re- mainder of their lives, as honored pioneers of the county. James, the youngest of their five sons, was born in Westmoreland County, Penn- sylvania, December 25, 1810, and thus was about ten years of age when he accompanied his par- ents on their immigration to the wilds of Har- rison County, where he was reared to manhood under the pioneer conditions. In 1830 he wedded Miss Annie Birney, who was born in Green Township, this county, in 1808, a daugh- ter of John Birney, who was another sterling pioneer of the county. James McDevitt devel- oped a productive farm in North Township, and there he remained until his death, March 19, 1874, his wife having passed away October 15, 1862, and both having been earnest members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Of their ten children the first five died in infancy, and the other five attained to years of maturity. Of this number John was the father of him whose name introduces this review.

John McDevitt was born on the old homestead in North Township, March 10, 1845, and his death occurred in July, 1918, on the farm now owned by his son James B. As a young man he served an apprenticeship to the carpenter's trade, and as a journeyman he applied himself to his trade about five years, in various parts of the state. In 1873 he became a successful con- tractor and builder, with residence at Scio, Har- rison County, and among the buildings erected by him was that of the Methodist Episcopal Church at Harlem Springs. In 1877 he engaged in farming in Stock Township, but he contin- ued to follow his trade to a certain extent for a number of years thereafter. In 1884 he sold his farm and purchased a place of 160 acres, on Plum Run, in Monroe Township, and in 1887 he established a tile manufactory on his farm. In this connection he developed a large and prosperous industry, with a productive ca- pacity for the output of one billion feet of drain tile annually, and his trade extended far out- side the limits of his native county. He was one of the highly esteemed citizens of the county, achieved large and worthy success, was a republican in politics, and was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, as is also his widow, who now resides at New Philadelphia, Tuscarawas County, with her son, James B. of this sketch. The marriage of Mr. McDevitt to Miss Martha M. Easterday was solemnized June 24, 1875, Mrs. McDevitt having been born in Carroll County, a daughter of David and Mary Easterday, who were residents of Har- rison County for many years prior to their death. Mr. and Mrs. McDevitt became the par- ents of four children, two sons and two daugh- ters, all of whom are living.

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History of Carroll and Harrison Counties, Ohio, Part 90

Author: H. J. Eckley, William T. Perry Publication date: 1921 Publisher: Number of Pages: 678

Author: H. J. Eckley, William T. Perry
Publication date: 1921
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 678