USA > Ohio > Champaign County > History of Champaign County, Ohio, its people, industries and institutions, Volume II > Part 92
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DAVID DETWEILER.
A painstaking and successful farmer of Salem township is David Det- weiler, who has long been interested in the general development of Cham- paign county. He was born in Mifflin county, Pennsylvania, December 9, 1877, a son of Eli B. and Rachael S. (Greer ) Detweiler. The father also was born in Mifflin county, where he grew up and learned the car- penter's trade He also followed bridge building, working at both trades in Pennsylvania until he came to Ohio in 1885, and located in Salem town- ship, Champaign county, working out as a farm hand the first year. In 1889 he worked near Kennard for a short time, then settled in Kings creek. He died in Pennsylvania while on a visit there, October 3, 1909. His wife had preceded him to the grave only a few months, her death having occured on June 29 of that same year. Eli B. Detweiler was a son of Jonathan Detweiler, who engaged in farming in Pennsylvania all his life. Fourteen children were born to Eli B. Detweiler and wife, eight of whom are now living, namely: Rufus, of Salem township, Champaign county ; John P., a farmer, of Salem township; William, of Marysville, Ohio; David, the subject of this review; Orin, who lives in Salem town- ship; Anna, who married Harry Cooper; Margaret, who married Clint Boyer, and Ella, who married Marion Gaul.
David Detweiler spent his boyhood in Pennsylvania and there attended the public schools. He also went to school after coming with the rest of the family to Champaign county. After leaving school he worked out as a farm hand from the age of fifteen to twenty-two. He then married and rented a farm of seventy-seven acres, two and one-half miles from Kings creek, for two years; then moved to near Hagenbaugh, where he rented a farm of one hundred and fifty acres. A year later he located on the Carson farm south of Urbana, which place consists of one hundred and sixty acres and there he farmed four years; then moved back to Salem township and farmed the J. R. Block place of eighty acres for three years. then, in 1909, bought thirty-two acres east of Kings creek, which he operated three years, at the end of which time he sold it and rented one hundred and eighty acres in Harrison township, remaining there for four years. In March, 1917, he moved on the Tritt farm in Salem township, where he is 110w carrying on general farming operations.
Mr. Detweiler was married in 1900 to Anna Clark, a daughter of James and Amanda (Gorley) Clark, and to this union five children have
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been born, Esta, Pauline, James. Raymond and Francis, all of whom are attending school in Salem township at this writing.
Mr. Detweiler is an independent voter. He belongs to the Grange, and holds membership in the Methodist Episcopal church at Kings Creek.
JOHN G. WOLCOTT.
The late John G. Wolcott, who died in the summer of 1917, was one of the well-known farmers living in the western part of this county and was the proprietor of a fine farm of eighty-two acres on rural mail route No. I, out of St. Paris, three and one-half miles west of that city and one mile east of Lena. He was born on a farm in Brown township, in the neighboring county of Miami, February 20, 1851, son of Benjamin L. and Jane E. (Boyd) Wolcott, prominent residents of that community. Ben- jamin L. Wolcott was born in Warren county, this state, and his wife was born in Bucks county, Pennsylvania. They were married in Miami county and after their marriage located on a farm in Lost Creek township, that county, but three years later moved to a farm in Brown township, same county, where they spent the remainder of their lives. Benjamin L. Wol- cott was a carpenter as well as a farmer. Politically, he was a Republican and, fraternally, was a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He and his wife were members of the Lena Baptist church and their children were reared in the faith of that communion. They had five children, those besides the subject of this memorial sketch being Louis, a farmer, living near Conover; Emma J., wife of John Michaels, of Lena; Jared, who is farming the old home place, and William, who died at the age of three years.
Reared on a farm, John G. Wolcott early became a practical farmer and continued engaged in that vocation all his life, becoming the owner of a well-improved farm of eighty-two acres, which he brought up to an excellent state of cultivation. He had other interests besides those of his farm and was a stockholder in the Central National Bank of St. Paris. In addition to his general farming he also gave considerable attention to the raising of live stock and did very well. Politically, Mr. Wolcott was a Republican, but was not an office seeker. He was a member of the official board of the Methodist Episcopal church at Lena and was treasurer of the same. Fraternally, he was affiliated with Industry Lodge No. 256, In-
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dependent Order of Odd Fellows, and was a past noble grand of the same. Mr. Wolcott was twice married. His first wife, Hannah L. Wells, died at the age of twenty-three years, leaving two children, Maude D .. wife of Harvey Coddington, and Harley, who died at the age of three years. On March 5, 1885, he married, secondly, Rosella M. Hewitt and to this union two children were born, Stella B., wife of George H. Printz, of St. Paris, and Mary A., wife of Albert Leedom. Mrs. Wolcott is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and takes an active interest in church work, as well as in the general good works and social activities of the community in which she lives.
ALEX T. McBETH.
The late Alex T. McBeth, for years one of the best-known and most prosperous farmers in Harrison township, the owner of a choice parcel of land containing three hundred and forty acres of the best quality and a breeder and shipper of stock, was born in the house, located in Harrison township, where he died on May 19, 1917. . He was born on November 26, 1865, a son of Robert and Mary J. (Black) McBeth, who were farm- ing people; the father a brother of Alex McBeth, who was well known throughout the county.
Robert McBeth was one of the most extensive farmers of Champaign county in his day. He was widely known as a stock buyer and shipper, and was among the pioneer farmers and breeders in this part of the state. He was a general farmer and his land was always kept in a high state of cultivation. In the days when he shipped cattle to all parts of the country, transportation facilities were limited as contrasted with the railroad facilities of today. Large numbers of cattle and hogs were driven over roads which were not of the standard now enjoyed, and some of the journeys would occupy several days before the destination was reached. Robert McBeth died on the farm on which he was born, July 16, 1895.
Alex T. McBeth was reared on his father's farm and early displayed a desire to follow the life of a farmer. It was on his father's farm that he was born. He was educated in the public schools of Harrison township and on the completion of his school course he worked on the home farm for several years. Some time later he was married and commenced farming on his own account and was successful along that line. His fine farm of
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three hundred and forty acres was brought up to an excellent state of cultivation, the outbuildings and the farm equipment being of an up-to-date class. He bought and shipped cattle on a large scale and was generally re- garded as one of the progressive and substantial farmers in the township.
On October 17, 1889, Alex T. McBeth was united in marriage to Ida Craig, the daughter of William B. and India Anna ( Hess) Craig, the former born in Berkeley county, Virginia, and the latter in Champaign county, Ohio. William B. Craig died in 1886, and his wife died in 1911, at the age of eighty-four. As a boy William B. Craig located in Muskingum county, Ohio, coming from Virginia. Later he came to Champaign county. He had only fifty cents when he married and finally owned four hundred acres. He had a farm on the edge of Urbana at first. He then located in the southeast corner of Harrison township. He was a stanch Republican. He and his wife belonged to the Methodist Episcopal church.
To the union of Mr. and Mrs. McBeth two children were born. Flor- ence, the eldest, is the wife of Walter Scott, the county surveyor of Logan county, Ohio, and they are the parents of two children, Virginia and Dorothy. Taylor McBeth, the other child, was graduated from the Wesley Chapel school and is now engaged at farming. Mr. McBeth was a supporter of the Republican party, but was never a seeker after office, preferring to devote his time to his farming interests. The brick house in which he spent his life was built of brick made on the farm. The house was erected by his grandfather. Andrew McBeth and is in good condition, although more than one hundred years have elapsed since it was erected. Mrs. McBeth is still living there, very comfortably situated and has a host of friends, by whom she is held in the highest regard.
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JAMES L. KINGSLEY.
James L. Kingsley, one of the well-known and substantial farmers of Goshen township, this county, and the proprietor of a fine farm of one hundred and twenty acres on rural mail route No. 2, out of Mechanicsburg, where he and his sister, Miss Louise R. Kingsley, have a very pleasant home, is a native son of Champaign county and has lived here all his life, formerly, and for years, a teacher in the public schools of the county. He was born on a farm two and one-half miles south of Mechanicsburg on September 23, 1865. son of Lewis and Catherine (Blue) Kingsley, both
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members of pioneer families in this part of the state, the latter a daughter of Jacob and Nancy Blue.
Lewis Kingsley, who for years was one of the best-known residents of the Mechanicsburg neighborhood and for thirty-nine years a school teacher, was a native of Connecticut, born in the village of Scotland Society, in Windham county, that state, June 21, 1829, son of Jonathan and Eleanor (Howard) Kingsley, also natives of that county and both of old New Eng- land stock, the former a son of a Revolutionary soldier, who left their native state in 1835 and came to Ohio, settling in Union township, this county. Five years later, in 1840, Jonathan Kingsley moved with his family over into Madison county, but in 1846 returned to Champaign county and located at Mechanicsburg, where his wife died in that same year. He sur- vived her six years, his death occurring in 1852, he then being sixty-six years of age. They were the parents of four children, all of whom are now deceased, those besides Lewis, the youngest, having been William, Maria and Harriet.
The Champaign county Kingsleys are of a distinguished family, dating back to the year 1183, when Raueulfh, the first to bear the name, was made hereditary forester of the king's forest in the count of Chester, by King Henry of England, and was called Raueulfh de Kingsley, or Ralph of the king's land; "ley" being Saxon for land, which accounts for the name. That he was of good repute is evidenced by the marriage of his daughter, Mabilla, to the heir of the Mostyn family, which is now repre- sented by Lord Mostyn. The Kingsley family was on the side of the com- monwealth during the civil war, after the death of Charles. Of two brothers, the elder was an officer in Cromwell's army. The younger, John Kingsley, came to the American colonies about 1635, from the county of Lancashire, England. Charles Kingsley, the distinguished author and divine, was descended from the elder brother. This John Kingsley located in Massachusetts and was one of the seven founders of the Church of Dor- chester, founded in 1635 by the Rev. Richard Mather. He was married before leaving England and died in 1679, leaving several children. One. Elad, was a member of the first Baptist church formed in Massachusetts. He was born in 1638 and died in 1679, leaving among other children, John, who was born in 1665. In 1704 John Kingsley moved to Scotland Society, Connecticut, where he died on March 17, 1773. One of his sons, Ezra. had a son, Solomon, born on September 27, 1723, who married Lydia Burgess, of Canterbury, Connecticut. From Scotland Society he moved to East Windsor, Connecticut; thence to Granville, Massachusetts, and thence to
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Cazenovia, New York, where he died in 1812, at the age of ninety years. He had a family of eight sons and four daughters, one of whom, Jonathan, died in Scotland Society on September 12, 1832, at the age of eighty years. Of the children of this Jonathan, three grew to maturity and were married, the youngest of these having been Jonathan Kingsley, who married Eleanor Howard and in 1835 came to Ohio, as set out in the preceding paragraph, and here spent the remainder of his life.
Having been only six years of age when he came with his parents to this county from his native Connecticut, Lewis Kingsley was reared in this county and in the neighboring county of Madison and completed his school- ing in the schools of Mechanicsburg. He early evinced an unusual interest in his studies and qualified himself for the important profession of teaching. which he followed for thirty-five years, at the same time carrying on his agricultural operations, and became a substantial farmer. He was a Republi- can and ever took an interested part in local political affairs, his influence ever being exerted in behalf of good government. He was a charter member of Wildey Lodge No. 271, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, at Mechanics- burg, and was past noble grand of the same. Lewis Kingsley died on January 31, 1905. His wife died on March 25, 1898. They were the parents of seven children, of whom the subject of this sketch was the second in order of birth, the others being Nellie, wife of F. P. Elsworth; Charles L., deceased : Mary, wife of Albert Brown; Louise R., who makes her home with her brother James on the farm in Goshen township: William H., deceased, and Elizabeth, wife of Andrew Mueller.
James L. Kingsley was reared on the home farm in the neighborhood of Mechanicsburg and completed his schooling in the high school at Mechan- icsburg, after which he began teaching school and for thirteen years was thus engaged, meanwhile continuing his labors on the farm during the sum- mers, his last term of school being conducted in the winter of 1897-98, since which time he has devoted his whole time to the duties of the farm, with the exception of four years, 1901-05, during which period he served as deputy sheriff of Champaign county, serving under Sheriff Dan J. Hull. He has a well-kept farm of one hundred and twenty acres and is doing well in his farming operations. He and his sister have a very pleasant home and take an interested part in the general social activities of the community. Miss Kingsley is a member of the local chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and takes a warm interest in the affairs of the same. She also is a member of the local lodge of the Daughters of Rebekah and is past noble grand of the same and a member of the Ohio grand lodge of
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that order. Mr. Kingsley is a past noble grand of Wildey Lodge No. 271. Independent Order of Odd Fellows, at Mechanicsburg, of which lodge his father was a charter member and a past noble grand, and has also served as noble grand of that lodge and is a member of the Ohio grand lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He also is a member of the local Grange and has for years taken an active interest in the affairs of the same, both he and his sister giving their earnest attention to all movements having to do with the advancement of the general welfare of their home community.
A. E. DINGLEDINE.
A. E. Dingledine is a farmer living on his farm of one hundred and eighty acres in Mad River township, on the St. Paris and Springfield road, eight miles southeast of St. Paris, rural mail route No. 4, out of Urbana. . He was born on this place, but not in the house now standing, August I. 1856, a son of Nicholas and Catherine ( Zirkle) Dingledine.
Nicholas Dingledine, father of our subject, was born in Virginia and grew to young manhood at his home in that state. He came to Ohio and found employment working as farm laborer in this county for a few years. Here he was married to Catherine Zirkle, who was born in Clark county and was reared and educated in Champaign county. After marriage Nicholas Dingledine bought this place and he and his wife established a home here, and here they spent the remainder of their lives. They had nine children, namely : Jolin, who died in October, 1915, in Van Wert county, Ohio; Sarah, wife of Isaac Neese, of Van Wert county ; Lemuel, of Jackson township, this county ; Emeline, wife of Samuel R. Neff; Martha J., wife of Henry Dibert, of Mad River township; Mary, deceased, who was the wife of Robert Fowler, of Terre Haute, this county; Catherine, wife of Frank Gebhart, of Springfield, Ohio; Hannah, wife of Sol. Walborn. of Jackson township, and A. E., the subject of this sketch. Nicholas Dingledine was a member of the Lutheran church. He died at the age of forty-seven years. He was a very successful farmer. He was a Democrat in politics.
A. F. Dingledine was reared on the farm and received his education in the public schools of the neighborhood. He lived here until his marriage to Margaret Brown, a daughter of Nathan Brown, who was born and reared in Champaign county. After marriage he and his young wife set up house- keeping here and continued to make this their home. To them seven chil-
MR. AND MRS. A. E. DINGLEDINE.
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dren have been born, all of whom are living: Cella, who married Charles Bishop; Bert; Tressie: Elizabeth, who married Wesley Shafer; Ellet, of Bloomington. New York: Homer, of Mad River township, and Emmet, at home.
Mrs. Dingledine is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church at Terre Haute. Mr. Dingledine is an honorary member of the Junior Order of Mechanics, at Terre Haute. He is a Democrat in politics and served one term as school director of his township. He is engaged in general farming and gives a good deal of attention to cattle, hog and sheep raising.
D. M. BAKER.
D. M. Baker, a retired farmer, now living at St. Paris, this county, was born on the old home farm in Johnson township, September 10, 1847, a son of John and Eve (Bruner) Baker, the latter a native of Ohio and the former of Rockbridge county, Virginia. John Baker came to Ohio with his parents in an early day, the family settling in Mad River town- ship, Champaign county, buying a farm where Joshua Rhodes now lives. There John Baker grew to manhood, assisting in the clearing and the de- velopment of the home farm and there he married Eve Bruner. They settled near Mt. Zion church, on a farm in Johnson township, becoming very comfortably established through their industry and close application to general agricultural pursuits, and there they spent the rest of their lives. Their family consisted of eight children, five of whom are living in 1917. namely: William, who lives on a farm in Jackson township; D. M., the subject of this sketch; Lemuel, who is farming in Jackson township; Ruth, the widow of Ham Stephens and Laura, the wife of John Leathley, a farmer of Jackson township. Among those deceased was Peter Baker. who was a soldier of the Union during the Civil War, was wounded in battle, died in Nashville, Tennessee, and was buried there.
D. M. Baker was reared on the home farm in Jackson township and received his education in the district schools. He assisted his father with the work on the home farm until he was twenty-two years old. On Novem- ber 28, 1869, he married Anna Runyon, who was born on December 20. 1847, in Mad River township, this county, where she grew to womanhood and attended school.
After his marriage Mr. Baker farmed on rented land a few years,
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then in 1872, bought a farm of eighty acres in Johnson township, on which he resided for a period of forty-four years, during which time he made a very comfortable living as a general farmer and stock raiser. He also owns property in St. Paris and is one of the stockholders in the First National Bank of St. Paris. By his own efforts he forged to the front from a beginning none too promising. His family consisted of seven chil- dren, five of whom are living in 1917, namely: Lola, wife of Perry Whea- ton; Carrie, wife of J. C. Heaston, of St. Paris; Sylvia and Sylvan, twins, the former of whom is now the wife of John C. Burnsides, of Troy, Ohio, and the latter of whom married Alice Bray and lives on a farm in Jackson township, and Maude, the wife of D. Huff, of Troy, Ohio. The other two children died in early life.
Politically, Mr. Baker is a Republican. He is a member of Grafton Chapel Methodist Episcopal church. He has spent his life in his native locality and has taken an active part in its development in a general way and bears an unblemished reputation for citizenship.
WILLIAM W. MILLICE.
William W. Millice, a well-known and substantial farmer of Goshen township, this county, and one of the most progressive citizens of the Mechan- icsburg neighborhood, was born on the farm on which he is now living, the old Christopher Millice place, and has lived there all his life. He was born on January 21, 1874, son of Benjamin A. and Emily (Yocum) Millice, who are still living there, substantial and honored "old settlers" of that community.
Benjamin A. Millice was born on that same farm in 1835. a son of Christopher and Mary Magdalene ( Rhinehart) Millice, the former of whom was a son of Henry Millice, who came to Ohio from Pennsylvania back in pioneer days and bought a thousand acres of the Arbuckle grant in Goshen township, this county, established his home there and became one of the most useful and influential pioneers of that section of the county, the family now being widely represented hereabout in the fifth generation. Henry Millice was born and reared in Pennsylvania, a son of Henry Millice, a native of Germany and a soldier of the patriot army during the Revolutionary War. The senior Henry Millice had come to this country in Colonial days with a brother ; and, when the Revolution broke out, both he and his brother
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joined the patriot forces to fight for the independence of the colonies. Dur- ing the progress of the war, the brothers were separated and Henry Millice never again heard from his brother. The junior Henry Millice was an excellent farmer and a good business man, who did well his part in the labors of developing the community in which he settled in this county in pioneer days. He established a comfortable home and lived to see the greater part of his extensive tract of land developed into good farms. The old home place, which was in turn farmed by his son Christopher Millice, is still in the possession of the family, owned by Christopher's son Benjamin and managed by the latter's son, William W. Millice. Christopher Millice was born in Pennsylvania, and reared on the farm in Goshen township. After his marriage to Mary Magdalene Rhinehart, also a member of one of the pioneer families of this section, he established his home in Goshen town- ship and there spent the remainder of his life, a well-to-do farmer and stockman. He and his wife were the parents of nine children, of whom Benjamin A. was the seventh in order of birth. Among the others are Samuel; Mrs. Elizabeth Spain; Jonathan N., a well-to-do farmer of Goshen township; George, of Mechanicsburg; Mrs. Susanna Spain, of that same township; Hannah, who married Morris Yocum, and Rosanna, twin sis- ter of Benjamin, who died in her infancy. As the youngest son of the family, Benjamin A. Millice remained on the home farm, where he is still living; and about a year after his marriage established his home there, becoming the mainstay of his aging parents, and has ever since made that place his home. He married Emily Yocum, who also was born in this county, August 17, 1847, her parents having been substantial farmers in the vicinity of Cable, in Union township. To this union two children were born, William W. Millice having a sister, Cora, wife of William J. Romine, of Mechanicsburg. During the progress of the Civil War, Benjamin A. Millice served as a soldier of the Union, enlisting in 1864 and going to the front as a member of the Company C, One Hundred and Thirty-fourth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and serving with that command until the close of the war. He is a member of Stephen A. Baxter Post of the Grand Army of the Republic at Mechanicsburg and has for years taken an earnest interest in the affairs of that patriotic organization. He and his wife are life-long members of the Methodist Episcopal church at Mechanics- burg, and have ever taken an active part in church work. Politically, he is a Republican.
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