USA > Ohio > Champaign County > History of Champaign County, Ohio, its people, industries and institutions, Volume II > Part 60
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IVAN CLEM.
A farmer of progressive ideas is Ivan Clem of Salem township, Cham- paign county, in which township he was born, October 17, 1883. He is a son of David and Romelia ( Peery ) Clem, the father a native of this county and the mother a native of Virginia. David Clem was born in Johnson township, September 30, 1836. He and his wife are both of German descent. His great-grandfather emigrated from Germany to America the latter part of the seventeenth century. He was the father of David Clem, the grandfather of David Clem, father of the subject of this sketch. Isaac Clem was the father of David Clem, father of Ivan Clem. Isaac Clem came to Champaign county, Ohio, in 1829, among the earliest pioneers, and located on land in Johnson township where, by hard work and close application he developed a farm from the wilderness. He continued to reside here until in 1853, when he sold out and bought a place west of St. Paris on which he spent the rest of his life. He married Rebecca Crabill, a native of Virginia.
David Clem, father of the subject of this sketch, received his education in the early-day schools of Johnson township. After leaving school he worked out by the month for some time, then learned the shoemaker's trade in St. Paris, Ohio, at which he worked for about six years, then bought a farm in Johnson township, near Millerstown, where he lived about nine years, then bought one hundred acres in Johnson and Adams townships which he farmed for four years, then sold out and moved to Caldwell county, Missouri. He later bought a farm in Daviess county, that state, but after remaining there only a short time, sold out and returned to Champaign county, Ohio, buying one hundred and thirty-five acres in Urbana township, which he operated five years, then moved to Salem township and bought three hundred acres, where he farmed on an extensive scale until he retired from active life, moving to Urbana where he has since made his home. He was very successful in a business way and at one time owned over one thousand acres of valuable land. He started out as a poor boy and forged to the front unaided and through his own perseverance and good management. In 1876 he married Romelia Peery, a daughter of George and Margaret (Hensley) Peery, and to their union six children were born, namely: Joseph, Samuel, Pearl, Ivan, Blanche and Grace, who died in infancy.
Ivan Clem grew up on the home farm where he worked hard when a boy, and he received his education in the public schools of Salem township, mostly at the Lippincott school. After leaving school he took up farming with his father with whom he remained until his marriage, then rented a farm in Con-
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cord township, but a year later moved to the farm where he is now residing and where he is successfully engaged in general farming and stock raising, owning a productive and well improved place of two hundred acres. There is no more up-to-date farmer in his township.
Ivan Clem was married, June 2, 1912, to Madrid Bates, a daughter of Theodore and Clara Bates, and to their union two children have been born- Beatrice and Ruby. Politically, he is a Democrat.
JUDSON JENKINS.
Judson Jenkins, the owner and proprietor of a garage at Thackery, Ohio, is a native of this county, his birth having occurred on a farm in Jackson township, January 15, 1879. He is a son of John and Martha (Furrow) Jenkins, the former of whom was a native of Clark county, Ohio, and the latter of Champaign county.
John Jenkins was born on a farm in Pike township, Clark county, Ohio, his parents being of old Virginia stock, who came as pioneers to Clark county, Ohio, in an early day. Martha Furrow was born in Jackson township, this county, but moved with her parents to Clark county as a young girl, where she met and married John Jenkins. After their marriage they located on a farm in Pike township, that county, and lived there three years, after which they came to Jackson township, this county, locating on a farm north of Christiansburg, where they lived a number of years, after which they moved to the city of Piqua, where they lived for eight years, when they returned to their farm in Pike township, Clark county, where they now reside. They were the parents of seven children, five of whom grew to maturity: Alice, the wife of Arch Mckinney, of Piqua, Ohio; Frank, who died in January, 1916; Effie, the wife of Charles Berkshire, of Piqua, Ohio; Oscar, of Piqna; Judson, of this review, and Elva, the wife of Guy Shipley, a farmer of Pike township, Clark county. The family are members of the Emanuel Reformed church, in which they take an active interest. John Jenkins is a Democrat in politics, and while interested in public affairs, yet takes no active part in polit- ical matters. Fraternally, he is identified with the township grange.
Judson Jenkins was reared on the farm in Jackson township, receiving his education in the district schools of his home neighborhood. He continued to live at home until his marriage, assisting his father with the farm work. Upon starting out in life for himself, he decided to leave the farm, and engaged
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in the grocery business for two years in Pike township, Clark county, Ohio, after which he farmed for two years in that county, when he came to Thackery, this county, where he was employed in an implement store for three years, after which he engaged in the implement business for himself for three years, when he disposed of this business and opened a garage, which he has been very successfully conducting for the past two years.
On August 20, 1907, Judson Jenkins was married to Julia Shell, the daughter of Frederick and Rosie Miller, of this county, and to this union four children have been born, Harold M., Martha E., Thelma and Lois R., the two eldest being now in school. Mrs. Jenkins is a member of the Lutheran church in Thackery, and takes an active part in church and Sunday school work. Mr. Jenkins is a member of Lodge No. 878, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, in which organization he takes a warm interest, and is past noble grand of the local lodge. Like his father, he is a Democrat in politics.
JACOB S. HILL.
One of the leading farmers of Mad River township, this county, is Jacob S. Hill, the owner and proprietor of a fine farm located on the Urbana and Northampton pike, one-half mile southwest of Terre Haute, Ohio. He is a son of Jacob and Catherine (Shaffer ) Hill, and was born on October 4, 1874.
Jacob Hill was born in Donnelsville, Clark county, Ohio, in 1831, the son of Jacob and Nellie ( Robinson) Hill, both of whom were born during Washington's administration as president of the United States, the latter born in Bedford county, Pennsylvania. Jacob Hill, Sr., came to Cincinnati, Ohio, from LuBeck, West Virginia, where he was born and reared, in 1820, and from there came on to Clark county, Ohio, and still later to Champaign county, locating in Mad River township on a farm located on the Valley pike, where he lived until 1847, when he moved to Allen county, where his death occurred. This family of Hills are descended from a son of the Irish aristocracy, who was shipped to Massachusetts from his native land and sold there for his pas- sage to America during the Revolutionary War. Catherine Shaffer, the mother of our subject, was born in Shenandoah county, Virginia, and came as a young girl with her father, Solomon Shaffer, to Champaign county, Ohio, in 1832, locating in Mad River township, on a farm near where the village of Terre Haute now stands. Jacob Hill and Catherine Shaffer were married in 1873, locating at once on the farm where their son, J. S., now lives, and on
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this place Jacob Hill's death occurred in 1911. His widow still survives him, making her home with her son, the subject of this brief review, who was the only child of his parents. Jacob Hill was a good man in all senses of that term, and highly respected in his community, a Republican in politics, but never a partisan, being liberal in his view of men and affairs. He was a member of the famous "Squirrel Hunters" band, who did splendid service in going after the noted Morgan raiders in 1864.
Jacob S. Hill was reared on the home farm, receiving his education in the district schools of his home neighborhood. After reaching manhood, he mar- ried and decided to make farming his life work, settling at once on the old home farm, where he has since lived. He is engaged in general farming and stock raising, and ranks among the progressive and enterprising farmers of his township.
On December 28, 1899, J. S. Hill was united in marriage to Ursula Kreitzer, a daughter of Samuel and Hannah Kreitzer, residents of Kansas, and to this union four children have been born: Ralph L., a graduate of the Terre Haute high school in 1917; Mildred B., now a student in the first year of high school; Kathryn, attending school at Terre Haute, in the sixth grade, and Wayne Theodore. Mrs. Hill is an earnest and consistent member of the German Baptist Brethren church, and actively interested in church and Sunday school work.
Like his father before him, Mr. Hill is a Republican in politics, but is not active in political affairs, although always warmly supporting all public measures having for their object the betterment of his community.
EDWIN M. BAKER.
Edwin M. Baker, one of the most progressive farmers of Concord township, Champaign county, was born in Madison county, Ohio, October 16, 1852. He is a son of Peter and Martha Ann (Johnson) Baker. The father was also a native of Madison county, this state. He was a son of Peter Baker, Sr., who was probably of German birth, as was also his wife. They both came from Germany to Virginia, and later made the overland journey to Madison county, Ohio, in an early day. Four Baker brothers immigrated to the United States at the time of the French revo- lution. In 1856 Peter Baker, Jr., who had grown to manhood and married in Madison county, moved to Champaign county, locating on a farm in
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Concord township, buying the farm where the subject of this sketch now lives, and where the old home still stands, and here Peter Baker, Jr., and wife spent the rest of their lives, with the exception of a few years in Urbana. He was one of the successful farmers and stockmen of his day in this township. He was a strong Republican and in later years was an ardent advocate of prohibition. He was very religious and always practiced family worship. He and his wife belonged to the Methodist Episcopal church, holding their membership at Neer's Chapel, in Concord township. Their family consisted of eight children, six of whom grew to maturity, namely : Emily Jane is now deceased; Anna P., widow of Charles Harbour and lives in Quincy, Ohio; Wilson M. makes his home in Urbana, this county ; Mary M. is the wife of Harrison Craig of Urbana; John is farming in Concord township; and Edwin M., of this sketch.
Edwin M. Baker was reared on the home farm in Concord township, and educated in the district schools there and the high school at Urbana, then studied one year in Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware. He then began teaching, which he continued with much success for a period of seven years in Urbana, Adams and Concord townships, Champaign county, being regarded as one of the leading instructors in the public schools of this county and he gave eminent satisfaction to both pupils and patrons every- where. He continued to live at home until his marriage on September 2, 1874, to Lucinda Pence, a daughter of Jacob and Sarah Pence. After his marriage he continued to teach for awhile, then went to college at Dela- ware, Ohio, one year, after which he located on the home farm in Concord township, where he has since resided. He has been very successful as a general farmer and stock raiser, farming on an extensive scale and employ- ing modern methods. He owns one hundred and fifty-five acres in the home place, also two hundred and forty acres in another farm in Concord township and eighty-eight acres in Harrison township. His land is all well improved and under a fine state of cultivation. He has a modernly appointed home and everything about his place denotes good management and prosperity. He raises large numbers of cattle and hogs annually, which he fattens for the market, feeding most of the grain he raises.
To Mr. and Mrs. Baker five children have been born, namely: Laura May, widow of Harry Howard, lives at home; Leonard Watson and John C. are farming in partnership in Concord township; Clarence C. and Paul E. are living at home.
Politically, Mr. Baker is independent, but he is an ardent advocate of
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prohibition, and was one of the first in Concord township to cast his vote for temperance. He is an active member of the Neer's Chapel, Methodist Episcopal church, in fact, has long been regarded as one of the pillars of the same. His family also belong to this church.
JOHN H. HAMMON.
John H. Hammon, an honored veteran of the Civil War and a well- known and substantial farmer of Champaign county, now living retired at his pleasant farm home in Salem township, is a native son of this county and has lived here all his life. He was born on a pioneer farm in Wayne township on October 24, 1838, son of John and Mary Ann (Pickern) Ham- mon, both of whom -were born in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where they grew up and were married, later becoming pioneers of this county, settling in Wayne township, where they spent the remainder of their lives. John Hammon was a shoemaker and followed that vocation all his life. He died in 1874, then being sixty-nine years of age. His wife died in 1869, at the age of seventy-nine. They were members of the Baptist church and their children were reared in that faith. There were nine of these children, of whom the subject of this sketch was the eighth in order of birth, the others being as follow: Rachel, deceased, who was the wife of John Thackery; James, who went to Illinois, thence to California and thence to Australia, where his family lost trace of him; Martha, who mar- ried Thomas Harris and lived in the neighboring counties of Clark and Logan; Elizabeth, who married Jesse Williams and lived in this county and in the neighboring county of Union; Richard, who married Jessie Audry and lived at various places; Matilda, who married George Eastwood, of Clark county ; Mary, unmarried, who has always made her home with her brother, John, and Edward, who was a soldier during the Civil War, a member of the First Ohio Battery, and died at Baltimore.
Reared in Wayne township, John H. Hammon received a limited schooling there, having to walk a mile through the woods to the neighbor- hood school house. He remained with his parents, as did his sister, Mary, until their death and since then the brother and sister have kept house together. On August II, 1862, John H. Hammon enlisted for service in the Union army, a member of Company H, Forty-fifth Regiment, Ohio Vol- unteer Infantry, at Urbana, and with that command was sent to Lexington,
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Kentucky, where the winter was spent, the command later joining the Fourth Army Corps at Danville, in that same state. For the first year of its service this command was mounted. Mr. Hammon served all through the Atlanta compaign and was in numerous battles and skirmishes. For some time during his service he was quite ill, but always stayed with his company and did service. He received his discharge on June 12, 1865, the war then being over. Upon the completion of his military service Mr. Hammon re- turned home and took up farming in Wayne township, making his home there until 1901, when he bought his present farm of one hundred two and one-half acres in Salem township, the same being known as the J. H. Yoder place, where he and his sister have since lived and where they are very pleasantly situated. Since 1913 Mr. Hammon has been living practically retired from the labors of the farm, though he continues to give some super- visory attention to the place. He is a stanch Republican and he and his sister are members of the Kings Creek Baptist church, in the various benefi- cences of which they take a warm interest.
WILLIAM D. BAKER.
A prominent farmer of Jackson township, this county is William D. Baker, living on his fine farm of one hundred and seventy-five acres in section 3, on rural route No. 3, out of St. Paris. Mr. Baker was born - in this township, on the farm now owned by his brother, H. O. Baker, on January 6, 1863, the son of Obadiah and Elizabeth (Bowers) Baker, both of whom were natives also of the Buckeye state.
Obadiah Baker was born in Clark county, Ohio, on a farm, in 1833, the son of John and Barbara (Friemood) Baker. John Baker was a native of Virginia, coming with his parents to Clark county, Ohio, when he was a lad of eighteen years. The family located on a farm in German township, that county, and here the elder Bakers lived the remainder of their lives. Barbara Friemood was also a native of Virginia, coming with her parents when but a small child to Clark county, Ohio. Obadiah Baker grew to manhood on his father's farm in Clark county, and came as a young man to Jackson township, this county, where he met and married Elizabeth Bower, who was born and reared in Jackson township, her parents living on the farm now owned by John Hook. Her parents were natives of Vir- ginia, and were among the pioneer settlers of this section. After his mar-
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riage, Obadiah Baker and his wife settled on a farm of eighty acres which he received from his father, and here they lived the remainder of their lives, his death occurring in 1885, when he was a comparatively young man, his widow surviving him a number of years, passing away in 1906. They were the parents of seven children, six of whom are now living : Jasper, who died in infancy; William D., the immediate subject of this review ; Alma, the wife of J. C. Richeson, a business man of Addison, Ohio; Jacob, a resident of Mad River township; Sarah, the wife of Charles Pence, of Miami county, Ohio; Irving, of Christiansburg, this county, and Harry O., a farmer of Jackson township. The family were members of the Luth- eran church, and Obadiah Baker was prominent and influential in church affairs in his community. He was a Democrat in politics.
William D. Baker was reared to the life of a farmer on the old home place, receiving his education in the district schools of his township, al- though his opportunities for schooling were limited, owing to his father's early death, and William, being the eldest child living, very early in life assumed the responsibilities incident to the management of the farm work. He started out in life for himself after his marriage by locating on a small farm close to the homestead place, where he lived for two years. He then moved to Rosewood, in Adams township, locating on a farm of two hun- dred and forty acres, where he remained until 1897, when he purchased seventy-nine acres of land where he is now living, and moved to this place, where he has since resided. Mr. Baker is a successful and up-to-date farmer, and besides raising all the crops common to this section of the state, he is also engaged in buying and feeding cattle for the markets, and also raises full blooded hogs, making a specialty of the Spotted Poland China variety. He has gradually added to his holdings until he is now the owner of one hundred and seventy-five acres of fine farming land, all of which has been made by the untiring efforts of himself and wife, who has been a true helpmate to him in every sense of the term.
On August 24, 1889, William D. Baker was married to Rosetta Bal- lentine, the daughter of William and Mary (Clark) Ballentine, who were residents of Clark county, Ohio. To this union nine children have been born : Cora May, the wife of Delbert C. Davidson, of Clark county ; Clement C., a farmer of Jackson township, this county; Charles A., of Springfield, Ohio; Mary E., wife of Walter C. Wiant, a farmer of this township; Delbert C., at home; Eva I., A. J., Pauline M. and Maynard C., the last four named being students in the district schools of the township. The family are all earnest and devoted members of the Methodist Episcopal
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church at Grafton, and take an active interest in the affairs of the local congregation, Mr. Baker now serving as president of the board of trustees. Mrs. Baker's parents lived on a farm in German township, Clark county, Ohio, where her father was born and reared, while her mother was a native of Randolph county, Indiana. They were the parents of nine children, all of whom are living: John W., of Springfield, Ohio; Emma, the wife of Moses Overholser, of Clark county; Rosetta, the wife of Mr. Baker; Marietta, the wife of D. C. Snyder, of Springfield; C. S., a farmer of Mad River township, this county; T. H., living in Clark county; Clifford, of Springfield; Albertus, of Clark county, and Alpha, a resident of Clark county.
Mr. Baker is a Democrat in politics, and is actively interested in the civic welfare of his community, having served his township as supervisor for a number of years. He is a member of Lodge No. 344, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, at St. Paris, and interested in the work of this fraternal organization.
GEORGE W. PENCE.
George W. Pence, a well-known and substantial farmer of Concord township, living on his son's farm of eighty acres located four miles east of Millerstown, on rural route No. 9, out of Urbana, is a life-long resident of this county, his birth having occurred on a farm in Concord township, known as the Joe Pence farm, on August 16, 1844. He is a son of G. W. and Mary (Barger) Pence, both of whom were natives of Virginia.
G. W. Pence was born on a farm in the Shenandoah Valley in Vir- ginia, and came as a lad with his parents to Ohio, the family being among the early pioneers of this county. Mary Barger was also a native of the Shenandoah valley, Virginia, who came with her parents in an early day to Ohio. The Pence family and the Barger family settled on adjoining farms in Concord township, and the children were all brought up together. Each of these families consisted of a large number of children, who all grew to manhood and womanhood, being among the sturdy pioneers of this part of the county. After the marriage of G. W. Pence and Mary Barger, they settled first on the old Pence homestead with the former's father, whose wife had previously died, and where they lived for some time, looking after the management of the home farm. In 1854, G. W.
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and his family went to Allen county, Indiana, where they located on a farm near Monroeville. This farm consisted of eighty acres of raw, unim- proved land in the wilderness. Here they erected a log cabin in true pioneer style, with neither door nor windows, and proceeded to clear and improve their farm and make a home. After having cleared and improved a goodly part of this farm, the family returned to Ohio, where they rented land in Concord township, locating first on what was known as the George Zim- merman place. After leaving this farm they moved to the old James Russell place in this same township, where they lived two years, after which they moved to the Jesse Kite place east of Millerstown, and here G. W. Pence and his wife lived the remainder of their lives. They were the parents of eight children, all of whom are now living: Kate, widow of Russell Cornet ; John, living in the West; George W., the immediate subject of this sketch; James A., a farmer of Concord township; Jennie, widow of James Heath, now living in the West; Andrew Jackson, a farmer of John- son township, this county; Emma, the wife of Peter Wilson, a farmer of Adams township, and Joseph, a farmer of Concord township.
George W. Pence, Jr., was reared to the life of a farmer, receiving his education in the district schools. He lived at home with his parents until his marriage, when he engaged in farming for himself, locating on a part of the old Miller farm in Mad River township, where he lived four years. after which he moved to a farm in Concord township. In 1881 he pur- chased a piece of land in Concord township, where he lived for two years, after which he bought a farm in Mad River township, where he lived for the next two years, at the end of which time he bought the farm where he now lives, and has lived here since. This farin consists of eighty acres of fine land, well improved and cultivated. Mr. Pence has always been engaged in general farming and stock raising, and has met with a very commendable degree of success. At the present time he is not operating his farm actively himself, being content to live in comfortable and pleasant retirement enjoying the fruits of his many years of active farm life.
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