USA > Ohio > Champaign County > History of Champaign County, Ohio, its people, industries and institutions, Volume II > Part 68
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Politically, Mr. Barger is a Republican and has been a notary public for twenty-four years. His papers have always been very accurately and neatly drawn, none of them having ever been rejected on account of irregularities in them. He is a member of Pharo Lodge No. 355, Free and Accepted (43a)
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Masons, and he and his wife are members of the Up-to-Date Grange, Lodge No. 1873. Mr. Barger organized this lodge, of which he is past master, and his wife and son are charter members of this lodge.
For six years Mr. Barger has operated a home canning plant and has sold all his goods within a radius of twelve miles of home. He cans all kinds of fruits and vegetables and even rabbit meat, twenty varieties of canned goods in all. There has been more of a demand for the canned goods than he can supply.
JOSEPH H. MADDEX.
Joseph H. Maddex, proprietor of a fine farm of one hundred and three acres in Goshen township, this county, on the Mechanicsburg and Catawba pike, two and one-half miles south of Mechanicsburg, on rural mail route No. 2 out of that city, is a native of Virginia, but has been a resident of Ohio since he was twenty-five years of age. He was born in the Shenandoah valley, in that part of the Old Dominion now comprised within the borders of West Virginia, May 22, 1849, son of James S. and Ann Amanda ( Melvin) Maddex, the former a native of Maryland and the latter of Virginia.
James S. Maddex was born in Harford county, Maryland, and was but a boy when his parents moved into the Shenandoah valley in upper Virginia, where he grew to manhood and married Ann Amanda Melvin, who was born in that valley, her parents having settled there upon moving from Pennsyl- vania. Her father, Joseph Melvin, was of Pennsylvania-Dutch stock. To James S. Maddex and wife were born twelve children, of whom ten grew to maturity, those besides the subject of this sketch being as follow: Lorenzo D., who died in Maryland; Mary E., who married William Brantner and died in West Virginia, leaving five children; Hannah V., widow of Thomas Link, of West Virginia ; John, a well-known farmer of Goshen township, this county ; Butler L., also a resident of this county ; Sarah C., deceased; Rosa B., wife of Bine Maddex, of West Virginia; James J., of Union county, this state, and Benjamin N., a resident of Maryland.
Reared in his native state, Joseph H. Maddex received a common-school education and remained there until he was twenty-five years of age, when he came to Ohio and began working at farm labor in Clark county, not far from Catawba. In the spring of 1888 he married and established his home on a. rented farm in Goshen township, this county, continuing as a renter until in 1907, when he bought the farm on which he is now living and where he ever
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since has made his residence. Mr. Maddex has a well-improved farm of one hundred and three acres and is doing well in his farming operations. He is a Democrat and has served the public in the capacity of supervisor in his home township.
On May 14, 1888, Joseph H. Maddex was united in marriage to Anastasia Gault, who was born in Goshen township, this county, daughter of Thomas and Johanna Gault, and to this union two children have been born, Ruie J., wife of Edward Young, of Detroit, Michigan, and James Paul, who married Mary Carr, of the neighboring county of Madison, and is assisting his father in the management of the home farm. Mr. Maddex was made a Mason, a member of Elk Branch Lodge No. 13, Free and Accepted Masons, at his old home in West Virginia, before coming to Ohio, and has always maintained his connection with that order, many years ago having transferred his member- ship to the local lodge of Masons at Mechanicsburg, and takes a warm interest in Masonic affairs. He and his family have a pleasant home on the farm and have ever taken an interested part in the community's general social activities.
KIRBY O. LUCAS.
Kirby O. Lucas, living on a farm on route No. 7, out of Urbana, Ohio, was born in Luray, Virginia, April 6, 1878, a son of James F. and Isabella (Prince) Lucas. Both his parents were natives of Virginia and are still living in that state, where our subject was reared and educated and grew to manhood. There were eight children in this family, seven of whom are now living. J. D. Lucas lives in Cincinnati, C. J. and H. F. Lucas live in Virginia, Charles and Edward live in Virginia.
Kirby O. Lucas remained at home until he was twenty-one years of age when he started out for himself. He found a wife in the person of Miss Nellie G. Kite, who was also a native of Virginia. They were married in 1900, and they came to Champaign county, Ohio, in 1904, and located in Westville. He worked on a farm for three years and then rented a farm which he cultivated for nine years. He then bought a farm of sixty-two acres and a half on which he established a home and in which he has since lived. They have two daughters, Linda and Clara, both in the schools at Westville. Mr. Lucas is a member of the Lutheran church; Mrs. Lucas is a member of the New School Baptist church. He is a member of the Westville Grange, and his political affiliation is with the Republican party.
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J. NEWTON BARNETT.
J. Newton Barnett, the owner and proprietor of a general store in the village of Spring Hill in Harrison township, this county, was born in Paris, Edgar county, Illinois, on May 24, 1868, the son of Nathaniel and Mary (Rawlings) Barnett, the former of whom was a native of Kentucky and the latter of Ohio.
Nathaniel Barnett was but a small lad when he accompanied his parents from Kentucky to McLean county, Illinois, and there he grew to maturity and married Mary Rawlings, who was born in Quincy, Ohio, but went as a young girl with her parents to McLean county, Illinois. After his marriage, Nathaniel Barnett and his wife settled in Edgar county, Illinois, where they lived for some years, and where their three children were born, as follows: J. N., the immediate subject of this review; Harriett, deceased, who was the wife of Perry Body, of Adams township, and Emma, the wife of Elwood Forshee, of Sidney, Ohio. Prior to his marriage, Nathaniel Barnett served as a soldier in the Union army, enlisting from McLean county, Illinois. On June 15, 1882, when J. Newton was but a lad of fourteen years, the widowed mother came with her family to Quincy, Ohio, locating immediately afterward in Adams township, this county. In November, 1882, Mrs. Barnett was mar- ried to Cornelius Houseman, with whom she lived until his death in 1898. They removed to Spring Hill in 1897. Her death occurred on February 19, 1917. To this union three children were born: Bessie, the wife of T. Ruddy, of Tippecanoe City, Olio; Clarence, deceased, and Merrill, of Dayton, Ohio. The mother of these children was a faithful and consistent member of the Methodist Episcopal church, in which faith she had been reared.
J. Newton Barnett lived at home with his parents until he was nine years of age, and spent five years in the Soldiers Orphans Home in Bloomington, Illinois, where he received most of his early education. As stated above, when fourteen years of age, he accompanied his mother and the rest of the family to Ohio, and on September 10, 1888, came to Harrison township, where for the next six years he lived with the family of William Mohr. In 1888-9 he was a student in the commercial course at Valparaiso University, at Valparaiso, Indiana. He afterwards worked out by the month in Harrison township, and . after his marriage engaged in farming for two years, renting land and working out by the day. On February 13, 1895, he came to Spring Hill, where, in partnership with Edward Mohr, he engaged in the general mercantile busi- ness for a period of seven years. At the end of that time, Mr. Barnett took over the entire business, and has been very successfully conducting the same
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ever since. In 191I he erected a new store building into which he moved his stock the same year. Mr. Barnett has a large and lucrative patronage in the village of Spring Hill and surrounding community, and ranks among the leading citizens of his township.
On June 5, 1892, J. Newton Barnett was united in marriage to Anna Mohr, a daughter of Fred and Sarah (Brinser) Mohr, and to this union three children have been born: Carrie, the wife of Harry Garver, of Spring Hill; Grace, who died in infancy, and Ethel, a student in the public schools. The family are members of the Presbyterian church at Spring Hill and Mr. Bar- nett is serving as deacon of the local congregation.
Mr. Barnett is a Democrat in politics, and has always taken an active interest in local political affairs, serving as township treasurer for eight years, and is now serving as assessor of the village of Spring Hill. He is also a notary public, and has been for the past six years. Fraternally, he is a mem- ber of the Masonic order, and also holds membership in Hamlet Lodge No. 242, Knights of Pythias, and is past chancellor of that lodge at DeGraff, Ohio.
WILLIAM H. MOHR.
William H. Mohr, a farmer of Spring Hill, Harrison township, Cham- paign county, was born one mile southeast of his present home, his present farm being a part of the old Mohr estate, on February 4, 1860. He is a son of Conrad and Catherine (Forry) Mohr.
Conrad Mohr was born in Germany, from which country he came to America, when a boy, with his parents, Frederick Mohr and wife. The family located in Logan county, Ohio, later moving to Champaign county, being among the early settlers in this section of the state. Catherine Forry was also of German descent, but was born in Pennsylvania, and when a girl she came with her parents to this section of Ohio. After his marriage Conrad Mohr located in Logan county, but later moved to Harrison township Cham- paign county, where they spent the rest of their lives. Their family consisted of seven children, all of whom survive at this writing, but one, namely : John, who is deceased; Mary, Martha, Fred, Chris, Kate and William H. The father of these children was a successful farmer and accumulated a large acreage of valuable land and other property. He was one of the leading men of his township in his day. Politically, he was a Democrat but never sought public leadership, being a quiet home man. He and his wife were members
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of the German Baptist church in Logan county and active in the work of the same.
William H. Mohr grew to manhood on the home farm in Harrison town- ship and was educated in the district schools and he lived at home until he married Clara E. Leffler, in 1883. They located a half mile east of the old home farm and remained there a few years, then moved back to the homestead and spent three years there, after which he returned to the farm he first occu- pied after his marriage. He remained there until 1911, when he moved to Spring Hill, where he has since resided and where he built a pretty home. He owns one hundred and seventy-nine acres of excellent land in Harrison township and is carrying on general farming and stock raising with gratifying results. He has a good farm and a well-kept group of buildings.
Three children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Mohr, namely: Brooks, who died when eighteen months old; Oakland, who married Mabel Speece, lives on the home place, which he helps his father operate, and Harvey, attend- ing school.
Politically, Mr. Mohr is a Democrat. He is treasurer of the Spring Hill Cemetery Association. His wife is a member of the Presbyterian church at Spring Hill.
STEPHEN N. JENKINS.
Among the sturdy sons of the pioneer farmers of this county is Stephen N. Jenkins, a resident of Millerstown, who was born in Concord township, on April 26, 1864, the son of Presley and Mary (Snyder) Jenkins, the former of whom was a native of this county, and the latter of Shenandoah county, Virginia.
Presley Jenkins was born in Concord township in the early twenties, and was a son of Jesse and Annie ( Pence) Jenkins, both of whom were natives of Virginia, who came to Ohio in an early day, settling in Champaign county, on a farm in Concord township, where Elijah Jenkins, an uncle of Stephen N. Jenkins, now lives, the land still being in the family name. Mary Snyder was the daughter of Valentine Snyder, who came with his family from Virginia to Champaign county in the early days, settling on a farm in Johnson town- ship, this land lying just north of where the village of Millerstown now is. After his marriage Presley Jenkins and his wife settled on a farm in Concord township, two miles north of the old home place, where they lived until 1865, when they removed to a farm in Johnson township, known as the Isaac Bru-
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baker farm, where they lived until the death of Mr. Jenkins in 1881. His widow survived him until 1893, making her home with her children after her husband's death. Presley Jenkins and wife were the parents of seven children : Rebecca C., wife of John M. Burkholder, of Rosewood, Ohio; Elijah W., deceased; T. J., a farmer living in Johnson township, represented elsewhere in this work ; Jane A., widow of David Jenkins, of Terre Haute, Ohio; Willis P., a resident of Johnson township; Stephen N., the immediate subject of this review, and Mary Etta, deceased. The family were earnest and devoted mem- bers of the Nettle Creek Baptist church, being among the leaders of the Old School Baptist faith in this vicinity. Presley Jenkins ranked among the lead- ing pioneers of his community, and was a self-made man in the truest sense of the word, as he started out in life with nothing, and at the time of his death was the owner of over four hundred acres of land which he had acquired by his own honest endeavor and with the help of his family. He was a man who attended strictly to his own affairs, and while deeply interested in public matters, yet was never an office seeker, preferring rather his home life.
Stephen N. Jenkins was reared to manhood on his father's farm, receiv- ing his education in the common schools of his home neighborhood. After reaching maturity he continued to operate the home farm for some years, and in 1893 he in partnership with Charles Heck, engaged in the mercantile busi- ness in Millerstown, in which line he was continuously engaged for a period of thirteen years. In 1906 this firm disposed of their business in Millerstown, since which time Mr. Jenkins has been engaged in looking after his various business interests.
On November 22, 1885, Stephen N. Jenkins was married to Lizzie A. Sturm, who was born at Galion, Ohio. To Mr. and Mrs. Jenkins two children have been born: Carrie A., the wife of Walter Pence, of St. Paris, Ohio, and Byron G., who was in the employ of the government at Washington, D. C. He is now (July, 1917) a sergeant of the first class, attached to the medical department of the Reserve Corps, located at base group, American expeditionary force, France.
Mr. Jenkins is independent in politics, preferring to vote for measures rather than for men, and is not bound by any party ties. He is a stockholder and director in the Farmers and Merchants Telephone Company, of St. Paris, and at one time served as vice-president of the organization. He is also a stockholder in the Central National Bank of St. Paris. Mr. Jenkins is also much interested in bee culture, having more than fifty hives of fine Italian bees on his home place.
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HENRY MILLER BLACK.
The late Henry Miller Black, former agent for the Pennsylvania Rail- road Company at St. Paris and for years cashier of the First National Bank of that city, of which concern his son, Fred Black, is now the vice-president, was a native of Ohio and spent all his life in this state. He was born on a farm near Hillsboro, in Highland county, September 15, 1848, and was but a child when his father died. His mother later came to this county and located at Cable, in Wayne township, where he received his schooling, later moving with his mother to New Madison, in Darke county, where he took employment as a brakeman on the Pennsylvania railroad. While thus engaged he turned his attention to telegraphing and upon becoming qualified as a telegrapher was given a station on that road, finally, in 1876, being stationed as agent and telegraph operator for the Pennsylvania Company at St. Paris, where he at once took an active part in the affairs of that town, making that his permanent residence and there spending the remainder of his life, his death occurring in the fall of 1915.
When the First National Bank of St. Paris was organized Mr. Black became a stockholder in the new institution and later became a member of the board of directors. In 1888 he was made cashier of the bank and served in that responsible capacity until his retirement from the bank in 1913. The remainder of his life was spent in quiet retirement in St. Paris, his death having occurred at a sanitarium in Marion, Ohio. He died on November 10, 1915, leaving a good name, for he had done well his part in the general business and social life of the city and had done much to extend the interests of the town in various ways. Politically, Mr. Black was a Republican and ever gave a good citizen's attention to local civic affairs, but was not a seeker after public office. He was an earnest member of the Methodist Episcopal church, as was his wife, and ever did his part in church work. Fraternally, he was a member of Pharos Lodge No. 355, Free and Accepted Masons, at St. Paris, and the commandery of Knights Templar at Urbana, and took a warm interest in Masonic affairs.
On October 4, 1880, Henry M. Black was united in marriage at Cable, this county, to Mary E. Fuson, who was born near that village on August 21, 1853, daughter of William and Elnora (Keller) Fuson, the former of whom was born in Pennsylvania and the latter in Maryland, of German descent. To that union two children were born, Fred, vice-president of the First National Bank of St. Paris, and Fannie, who is making her home with her
HENRY M. BLACK.
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brother. The mother of these children died on July 1, 1915, preceding her husband to the grave by a little more than four months.
Fred Black was born on May 2, 1882, and was graduated from the St. Paris high school in 1901. He then learned telegraphy and was engaged as a telegraph operator in the employ of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company until 1907, when he became engaged in farming in Jackson township, this county, and was there engaged until his return to St. Paris in 1914. After his father's death he represented the latter's interest in the First National Bank of St. Paris and in 1916 was made vice-president of the bank, to the duties of which office he now gives his close attention. On May 2, 1907, Mr. Black married Elizabeth McMorran, daughter of Samuel and Sarah McMorran, who died on August 8, 1914. Mr. Black is a Mason, as was his father, and takes a warm interest in Masonic affairs. Miss Fannie Black was graduated from the St. Paris high school and later attended Oberlin Col- lege for two years. She is now keeping house for her brother, the two living in the old Black home, where they are very pleasantly situated.
TULLEY MCKINNEY.
Tulley Mckinney, former postmaster of Mechanicsburg, an honored vet- eran of the Civil War and formerly and for years engaged in the contractor business at Mechanicsburg, where he is now living retired, one of the best- known "old settlers" of Champaign county, is a native son of Ohio and has lived in this state all his life, with the exception of about four years during the latter sixties, when he lived in Illinois. He was born on a farm in the neighboring county of Clark on November 3, 1838, a son of Francis and Margaret (Lennox) Mckinney, natives of the Old Dominion state, who be- came pioneers of this part of Ohio and here spent the remainder of their lives.
Francis Mckinney was born in Jefferson county, Virginia, son of Tulley Mckinney, a native of Ireland, who came to this country in 1765 and settled in Virginia, where he was living when the colonists began their struggle for independence. At the beginning of that struggle he enlisted his services in behalf of the patriot cause and served with the Colonial army for five years. The family founded in this country by this Revolutionary soldier is still rep- resented in Virginia and has a wide connection throughout the country at large. Francis Mckinney grew to manhood in Virginia and there married Margaret
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Lennox, who also was born in Jefferson county, a daughter of Nathaniel Len- nox, a native of Scotland, who had come to this country in 1785 and one of whose sons served as a soldier in the United States army during the War of 1812. In 1836 Francis Mckinney and his wife came to Ohio from Virginia and settled on a farm in Clark county, where they spent their last days, the death of the former occurring in 1864. They were the parents of seven chil- dren, all of whom grew to maturity save two and of whom the subject of this sketch and Washington are the only survivors.
Tulley McKinney grew to manhood on the home farm in Clark county, receiving his schooling in the schools of that neighborhood and during his youth served his apprenticeship as a carpenter and was working at that trade when the Civil War broke out. On the President's first call for volunteers in April, 1861, he responded and on April 23 enlisted his services as a member of Company F. Sixteenth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and served with that command until honorably discharged at the completion of that term of service on August 11, 1862. Upon receiving his discharge Mr. Mckinney re-enlisted as a member of Company A, Ninety-fourth Regiment, Ohio Volun- teer Infantry, and with this latter command served until the close of the war, being mustered out on June 5, 1865.
Upon the completion of his military service Mr. Mckinney returned home and resumed the pursuits of peace, taking up his work as a carpenter, and after his marriage in the summer of the following year went to Clay county, Illinois, where he made his home for four years, at the end of which time he returned to Ohio and with his family settled at Mechanicsburg, where he ever since has made his home and where he was actively engaged as a builder until his retirement from that vocation. Mr. Mckinney is an ardent Repub- lican and has ever taken an active interest in local political affairs. On June 19, 1898, he was appointed postmaster of Mechanicsburg and served in that important office for eight years. Mr. Mckinney is an active member of Stephen Baxter Post No. 88, Grand Army of the Republic, and has for years taken an earnest interest in the affairs of that patriotic organization.
On July 19, 1866, Tulley Mckinney was united in marriage to Sarah Alcinda Wilkinson, who was born on a pioneer farm in Pleasant township, Clark county, this state, June 17, 1839, daughter of Joseph and Hannah (Ellsworth) Wilkinson, the former a native of Virginia and the latter of this state, a member of one of the first families to settle in this part of Ohio. Joseph Wilkinson was born on August 20, 1803, and was but a boy when he came with his parents from Virginia to Ohio, the family settling in Adams county, where he grew up and became a school teacher. As a young school
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teacher he found service in the schools of Clark county and while thus engaged there met and married Hannah Ellsworth, who was born in Pleasant town- ship, that county, May 20, 1805, a daughter of one of the earliest settlers in that section. To Mr. and Mrs. Mckinney the following children have been born: Forest, of Mechanicsburg; Charles, who died at the age of thirty-one years ; Mary, who died at the age of four years; Effie May, who was grad- uated from the high school at Mechanicsburg and from the Western Reserve University at Cleveland and is now teacher of Latin in Stivers high school at Dayton ; Dorothy, who was graduated from the Mechanicsburg high school and from Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware, later becoming teacher of German in Steele high school at Dayton and who married K. S. Carlisle, a lawyer, and is now living at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and Bertha, who also was graduated from the Mechanicsburg high school and was teaching her third term of school at the time of her death at Mutual, this county, she then being twenty-one years of age. Mrs. Mckinney is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church at Mechanicsburg.
WESLEY A. MAURICE.
Wesley A. Maurice, one of the enterprising business men of Rosewood, Champaign county, was born in Clark county, Ohio, March 3, 1872. He is a son of Joseph and Isabelle ( Neese) Maurice. The father was born in Clark county in May, 1847. His father was a native of England who came to Clark county, Ohio, in 1836 and there he married Carolina Davis, a native of that county. They established their home in that county and spent the rest of their lives there. Isabelle Neese was born in Mad River township, Champaign county, near the village of Thackery, in 1849. Her people came to Clark county, this state, from Pennsylvania, and later moved to Champaign county. Joseph and Isabelle Maurice located on a farm in German township, Clark county, after their marriage and continued to reside there until in 1881, when they moved to Adams township, Champaign county, locating on a farm south of Rosewood, but no town had been started at that time. There Mr. Maurice operated his farm successfully until his death in 1909. His widow still owns the place, but makes her home with her daughter at Carysville. To Joseph Maurice and wife twelve children were born, namely: Wesley A., of this sketch; Adella I. is the wife of S. Bowers of Adams township; George A. lives in Shelby county, Ohio; Clinton A. lives in Rosewood; Sarah V. is the
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