USA > Ohio > Brown County > History of Clermont and Brown Counties, Ohio, from the earliest historical times down to the present, V. 2 > Part 68
USA > Ohio > Clermont County > History of Clermont and Brown Counties, Ohio, from the earliest historical times down to the present, V. 2 > Part 68
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Mr. and Mrs. Bolender made their first home on one hun- dred and twenty acres of land, where he now lives. For a number of years they raised corn and tobacco principally, and eighteen years ago set out their first fruit trees, consisting of apple and peach trees. The following year he added one hun- dred and fifty pear trees, and later added plums and quinces. He has become an extensive fruit grower and ships all his choicest fruit to Cincinnati. He has been successful in rais- ing a high grade of fruit and has found a good market for his product. In 1911 he erected an elegant modern home, well arranged and one of the finest in the county. He has put up substantial barns and other buildings and keeps his place in an excellent state of repair. He stands high with his neigh- bors and fellow citizens, and is regarded as a useful member of the community. He was reared a Democrat and in spite of the fact that he votes for the men he considers best fitted for office, he is a Democrat in principle today. He has never as- pired to office. He and his wife are members of the Apostolic Holiness church, and their children are members of the Meth- odist Episcopal church at Felicity, Ohio. The family is one of refinement and culture and worthy to represent the best type of America. They are all proud of their ancestry and interested in the earlier history of the community, with which · many of their forebears were closely associated.
Three children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Bolender: Josie M., Herbert J. and Harry H., all born on the home farm. Josie M. was born August 2, 1889, and after graduating from the Felicity High School spent one year at Miami University at Oxford. She is now teaching her fourth year in the school near home and boards with her parents. Herbert J., who was born August 15, 1890, graduated from the Felicity High School, taught two winters in Clermont county, and assists his father on the farm. Harry Il., born September 29. 1896. is now a student at God's Bible School, Cincinnati, Ohio.
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J. C. GINNINGS.
J. C. Ginnings belongs to one of the older families of Cler- mont county and is well known for his former business activi- ties and connections. He has retired from active life and re- sides in Felicity, where he was born in 1847, son of Joseph M. and Mary A. (Young) Ginnings. The father of Joseph Ginnings was a soldier in the Revolution and his wife's father served in the War of 1812. Mr. Young started for New Or- leans, but as he heard of the victory of General Jackson, he returned to Virginia. Joseph Ginnings was born in Virginia in 1808 and died in Clermont county in 1894. His wife was born in Virginia in 1812 and died in Clermont county in 1882. Both are buried in Felicity cemetery. He came to Adams county, Ohio, with his parents, about 1820, and soon after- wards the family located in Clermont county. The Youngs also came to Clermont county at an early day. Joseph Gin- nings was a Democrat in politics, and served as assessor and constable when a young man. He became prominent in local affairs and was a man of influence. In 1849 he went to Cali- fornia, one of the first from Clermont county to make the trip, and seek for gold. He remained there with advantage for four years, then returned to Felicity, where he spent the remainder of his life. He and his wife had nine children, all born in Clermont county, five of whom grew to maturity : Melissa C., married John Walker and died in 1893; Margaret E., married Louis Miller, of Franklin township; Mary A., is the wife of J. A. Smith and resides at Fullerton, Cal .; Joan B., wife of B. F. Moreland; J. C., whose name heads this sketch.
In boyhood Mr. Ginnings attended Felicity public schools and later worked for a time in the local tobacco houses. Later he was employed as clerk on a steamer on the Ohio river for some nine years. He then became bookkeeper for the Globe Tobacco Warehouse in Cincinnati for six years, after which he returned to his birthplace. He has since been retired from active life. He is largely self-made and became successful through energy, uprightness and industry. He is much re- spected as a progressive citizen and has many friends, among whom he is very popular for his pleasant manner and kindly spirit. He has recently purchased an automobile, which af- fords him much interest and pleasure. For many years he was a director in the Traction Railroad Company, which con-
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structed a line to Felicity, and was a charter member and secretary until 1912, when he resigned.
In 1878, Mr. Ginnings was united in marriage with Miss Fannie Gill, a native of Felicity, born in 1852, daughter of John and Maria (Lawson) Gill, both natives of Ireland, who emigrated to Ohio in the early 40's. Mr. Gill was a tailor by trade and he and his wife have been dead many years. They had five children: George, of Indiana; Mary, wife of Frank Lanham, is deceased ; Fannie M., Mrs. Ginnings ; Julia, widow of E. Prather, of Felicity ; Annie, widow of Charles Adams, of Felicity. After the death of her first husband, Mrs. Gill mar- ried Thomas Simmermon, and by this union there were four children : . Thomas L., of Pleasant Ridge, Hamilton county, Ohio, where he is principal of the schools; E. A., also a teach- er of Hamilton county ; Fred H., of Felicity, a druggist ; Mar- garet, deceased, was the wife of C. E. Day. Mr. Ginnings is a Democrat in politics, and although much interested in pub- lic affairs, is not an office seeker. Fraternally he is a Demo- crat. Mrs. Ginnings was a devout member of the Christian church and was an exemplary wife and mother, striving to do her duty in all relations of life. She died in 1879, deeply and sincerely mourned by her family and her many friends, and was buried in Felicity cemetery.
DANIEL BOLENDER.
Daniel Bolender is one of the substantial citizens of Frank- lin township and belongs to an old family of Clermont county. He is a native of the township. born November 5. 1849, son of Joel and Melissa (Trisler) Bolender. A sketch of Joel Bolen- der, also a native of the county, is given at some length in con- nection with the sketch of John J. Bolender, which appears in this history. The Bolenders and Trislers were early com- ers to Clermont county and influential in the early history of Ohio. They are old American families and people of industry and integrity. The children of Joel Bolender and wife are mentioned in connection with the sketch of J. J. Bolender, mentioned above.
In boyhood Daniel Bolender attended Benton school in Franklin township and remained on the home farm until his marriage. November 24. 1874, to Miss Ida Wells, born in
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Franklin township, April 5, 1855, daughter of James C. and Sarah (McMurchy) Wells. Mr. and Mrs. Wells were born in Clermont county and their parents came from Scotland. They were farmers of Franklin township but both are now deceased, the father having died some twenty years ago and the mother when Mrs. Bolender was a small child. They had six children: Edwin R. and Charles J., deceased; James C. lives in Arkansas; Ida E., Mrs. Bolender; Milton, deceased ; a daughter who died in infancy.
Three children were born to Mr. Bolender and wife: Jessie Wells, born November 17, 1879, married Harley O. Hanna, lives in California, and has one daughter, Elizabeth Lou, aged one year; Norman J., born March 19, 1882, married Nellie, daughter of Dr. Trout, and they live in Columbus and have one daughter, Helen Marie, six years of age; Ida Blance, born September 4, 1888, wife of Stanley Manchester, of Feesburg, Brown county, and they have one son, Herman. The mother of these children died September 14, 1888, and is buried in Mount Zion cemetery.
On October 8, 1889, Mr. Bolender married (second) Miss Lucy Owen, born near Georgetown, Lewis township, Brown county, daughter of George and Mary Bole Owen. Her par- ents were natives of Brown county and the mother died when Mrs. Bolender was a small child. Mr. Owen lives in Fees- burg and is now eighty-four years of age. He served in the Mexican war and was a farmer of Brown county. There are only two veterans of the Mexican war now living in Brown county or State of Ohio.
Mr. and Mrs. Owens had nine children: Joseph lives in Brown county; Charles died in Missouri; Martha, wife of William Slack, of Hamilton, Ohio; Lee, of Brown county ; Ella, wife of Oliver Hendrickson, of Brown county; Edward, deceased ; George W., of Clermont county; Jennie, wife of Charles Bryant, of Cincinnati; Mrs. Bolender. The Owen family came to Brown county in an early date and were mem- bers of the Methodist church.
After marriage Mr. Bolender located on a farm in Wash- ington township, which he purchased, and this was the home for four years. Later he moved to his father-in-law's place in Franklin township, the latter moving to Felicity at that time. After residing there four years Mr. Bolender moved to his present farm of two hundred and six acres, and in the fall of that year erected the elegant home which they have
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since occupied, and which is one of the best in the county. It is located on a good road, near a school house, and is con- venient to church and the town. About 1880 Mr. Bolender put up one of the best barns in the county, thirty-six by sixty feet, and he built all the outbuildings and fencing on the farm. This is one of the best kept places in the county and its ap- pearance is a true index of the thrift and industry with which the work is conducted in general. Mr. Bolender is a man of energy and foresight, managing his affairs with business acu- men and ability. He is a Democrat in politics and has served as school director. He and his wife are devout members of the Benton Christian church, he being a charter member. They are much interested in its work and he has been an elder for many years. He is a worker in the Sunday school, has been superintendent many years and is now assistant super- intendent. He is a man of simple tastes and is very fond of his home and family. He is self-made man, having won suc- cess through long years of hard work.
Mr. Bolender and wife have two children, born on the present farm: Elbert Owen, born December 20, 1891, is a graduate of Felicity High School and is now attending the State University at Columbus, and Homer Wright, born June II, 1897, attends Felicity High School.
GEORGE WASHINGTON HALSE.
George Washington Halse is one of the most industrious and progressive farmers and has one of the nicest homes in Tate township. He is a native of that township, being de- scended from two of the oldest families of the region. He was born October 12, 1846, son of William and Margaret Lu- cetta (Bredwell) Halse. William Halse was a son of George Halse, who came to Clermont county from England in 1818 and became the owner of some six hundred acres of land there. The latter was a carpenter as well as a farmer. William Halse was born in Tate township, August 26, 1824, and died June 22, 1904, and his wife was born in Tate township, No- vember 15, 1824, and lives in Tate township, where she has resided continuously since 1865. She is active and in good health and has a large number of friends. Her grandparents, Elventon Bredwell and Catherine Collins Bredwell, came from
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Kentucky to Clermont county in 1806-07, and her parents were Thomas Bredwell and Mary Willis Bredwell, and they had fifteen children. There are four sisters and two brothers of Mrs. William Halse now surviving, namely: Mrs. Mary D. Malick, of Amelia, Ohio; Mrs. Rachel Sapp, of Bethel; Mrs. Josephine Phillips, of Bethel; Elizabeth O. . Canter, of Point Isabel; Thomas S. Bredwell, of Blanchester, Ohio; Dean M. Bredwell, of Bethel, Ohio. Another sister, Mrs. Lydia Willis Dean, died September 5, 1912, and was buried on the 8th, in Bethel cemetery. She was the mother of Thomas Albert Dean, of Fremont, Ohio, who was elected to the Senate of the Seventy-eighth General Assembly as a Democrat, and re- elected to the Seventy-ninth General Assembly.
William Halse applied for enlistment in the army at the. time of the Civil war, but was rejected on account of poor health. He and his wife had children as follows: George Washington, of this sketch; Sarah Catherine, wife of William A. Aultman, of Mt. Orab, Ohio; Thomas Lewis, living on Rural Route No. 4, Bethel; Miss Mary Ann, of Columbus, who is the general manager and secretary treasurer of the Felber Biscuit Company. Mr. Aultman served in the Civil war in an Ohio regiment.
The early boyhood of George W. Halse was spent on the home farm, but his education was received away from home, for he had the sad misfortune to lose his speech and hearing. He entered the School for the Deaf in Columbus, Ohio, and .graduated with honors in 1869. His grandfather, George Halse, gave each of his daughters a farm of one hundred acres, and to his grandson, George W., in consideration of his mis- fortune, gave the nice farm of seventy-seven acres where the family now reside. There was a nice house on it, which George W. Halse later remodeled, and his parents lived on the place while he was away from home. After graduating, he taught in the Columbus school for a period of twenty-two years, and at Salem, Ore., nine years. In October, 1909, he returned from Oregon, and has since been operating his farm, which lies two miles southeast of Bethel.
Mr. Halse is a Democrat in politics, but takes no very active part in public affairs and he belongs to no secret societies. He and his wife are active members of the Bethel Baptist church.
On July 26, 1876, he was married to Adeline Trunkey Evans, and in May, 1898, she passed away. She was a graduate of the Columbus (Ohio) School for the Deaf. where she after-
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wards taught for five years. She was a daughter of Harvey Trunkey and Ann Fell Trunkey, of Burgh Hill, Ohio. Her grandfather Trunkey helped to fight with Lafayette in the Revolutionary war, after which he, with his wife, lived in the State of Connecticut to the end of his life. Harvey Trunkey was for a period of thirty-two years a justice of the peace of Vernon township in Trumbull county, Ohio, and was often called to act as judge in the courts of that county.
On September 3, 1902, Mr. Halse was united in marriage with Beulah B., daughter of Willard D. and Cordelia J. Crout, born in Fulton county, Ohio, November 28, 1867. Mr. Crout was born March 12, 1838, and died in October, 1902, and her mother, whose maiden name was Hodge, was born August 29, . 1842, and died in March, 1907. Mr. and Mrs. Crout had chil- dren as follows: Mrs. Ella Shadle, of Wauseon, Ohio; Mrs. Ida Borton, of Toledo; Ora E., of Wauseon, Fulton county ; Beulah C., Mrs. Halse; Ray D., of Ironton, Ohio, who is now the principal of the high school. Mrs. Halse was educated in the School for the Deaf in Columbus, from which she grad- uated in 1884, and after her marriage spent seven years teach- ing and supervising the small boys in the school at Salem, Ore. Both she and her husband are well read and take an intelli- gent interest in the topics and issues of the day. She is a dis- tant relative of Lafayette, a famous French military officer and statesman.
Mr. and Mrs. Halse own a house and lot in Columbus, Ohio, and have one hundred and five acres of fine farm land in Tate township, all under cultivation except twenty-five acres of timber land. He is very handy in making improvements on his place and has done considerable carpenter work. He has also done a great deal of cement work and at present is laying cement walks all around the house and wherever needed. His wife as well, is an ambitious worker in improving her home, and has done all the papering and painting on the house, both inside and out. The home is modern in every way and most convenient. Mr. Halse's mother resides with them. He in- herited some land upon the death of his father. The family are very fond of reading and are examples of happy and de- voted members of a well regulated household. The mother, although eighty-eight years of age. retains great interest in her family and friends, and has a good memory of old days in the township and county. Mr. Halse has been undaunted by the misfortune which befell him and has always made the
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most of his opportunities, with upright and ambitious effort making light of every difficulty. He has accomplished a great deal and if he had been able to hear and speak would undoubtedly have made a brilliant career for himself. He and his wife have one child, Hazel Durand, born in Salem, Ore., February 19, 1909, also partly deaf.
Mr. Halse continues to do a great deal of good for his deaf friends and hearing ones and has held services in churches. He took a regular course in a business college in Columbus, Ohio. Besides her children, his mother has nine grandchil- dren, thirteen great-grandchildren, and one great-great-grand- child.
CHARLES J. POELTZ.
One of the most progressive farmers of Clermont county is Charles J. Poeltz, of Tate township. He and his family are interested in the advancement of every good cause and are devout and earnest workers in the Methodist church. They have a very pleasant home and the farm buildings are kept in good repair, giving the whole place an air of prosper- ity and thrift. Mr. Poeltz is a native of the county, born in 1862, son of Julius E. and Wilhelmina (Knull) Poeltz, both born in Germany, the mother in 1826 and the father in 1827.
The father died in 1885 and is buried in Laurel, Mt. Carmel cemetery, and she lives with her son, Charles J. They brought two children to America, in 1854, and settled in Madison, Ind., coming from there to Clermont county, where Mr. Poeltz spent the rest of his life in agricultural operations in Monroe township. He lived near the present farm of Charles J. Poeltz. He was in Capt. John McNeil's Company D, One Hundred and Fifty-third Ohio volunteer infantry
Julius Poeltz and wife had four sons and four daughters, all of whom had reached maturity by the time of the father's death, and all now surviving save one. They are: Edward, .of Adams county; Ida, wife of Philip Nort, of Clermont county ; Rosa, who died in 1885 and was buried in Carmel cemetery, was the wife of Dan Bohl; Annie is the wife of John Marsh, of. Oklahoma; John lives in Brown county; Charles J. is the subject of this sketch; Frank is a hardware merchant of Russellville. Brown county; Lyda is the wife of Almedia Marsh, of Clermont county. The parents were de-
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vout Methodists and during most of his lifetime the father served as a steward and trustee, keeping this post until his . death. He was an enterprising and progressive farmer and an excellent citizen. He was one of the best bass singers in the county and was in much demand at revival meetings to lead the chorus. After his death his widow at Laurel put in a memorial window in the church in affectionate remem- brance of his good life and earnest work for the cause. His widow is a great worker in the church and was a class leader for eight years. She is a woman of superior intelligence and has many firm friends.
Mr. Poeltz attended the public school at. Laurel and was reared to farm work. At the age of twenty-one years he began working away from home and was employed four years on the farm of David Y. Fisher, an old and influential member of the Methodist organization, whose father was an early preacher in Clermont county. On December 28, 1887, Mr. Poeltz was united in marriage with Miss Emma Gates, also a native of Clermont county, born October 28, 1862, and daughter of James Harvey Gates, a sketch of whom is to be found elsewhere in this work. The Gates family have a high standing in Clermont county, where they were early settlers.
After marriage Mr. Poeltz spent three years on a farm north of Moscow, then lived for a time near Calvary. After they had rented land five years they purchased a farm near Pekin, where he lived fourteen years. In November, 1907, they moved to their present farm in Tate township, where they have one hundred and twelve acres. They have repaired and improved the buildings and have erected a good barn and henhouse, as well as other farm buildings. Mr. Poeltz carries on general farming and stock raising and follows mod- ern methods in his enterprise. The place is known by the pretty name of "Maplewood Farm." Mr. Poeltz is well known and is very popular with all, for he is broad and liberal minded and a good friend and neighbor. He loves his home and his domestic life is very happy. He is a "dyed-in-the-wool" Republican and has served as road supervisor and several. years on the school board and treasurer of the same. He and his wife are earnest members of and workers in the Methodist church and for ten years he was superintendent of the Sunday school, during which time he was never late for service and missed but eight Sundays. He is a trustee and steward in the church fourteen years.
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.Mr. and Mrs. Poeltz had five daughters, all born in Cler- mont county : Minnie, born October 16, 1888, wife of Glen Hill, of Tate township, whose farm adjoins her father's; Mary Elvira, born January 27, 1890, died July 7 of the same year and is buried in Carmel cemetery ; Anna Louise, born July 26, 1891, taught school two years at Macedonia and now teaches in the home school, Crane District, No. 4; Gladys Armilda, . born August 6, 1893, has prepared for teaching and holds a certificate; Lydia Naomi, born October 23, 1895. The three first named are graduates from the high school at Bethel and the youngest expects to complete the same course. They are four charming young ladies and help to make the home a very happy one. Mr. Poeltz is a self-made man, for when he left home he owned nothing but a horse, on which he owed $70.25, and now he is one of the most substantial farmers in his town- ship. His wife has worked intelligently and earnestly as his faithful helpmeet and his daughters have been an inspiration to both, as well as some practical help. All know how the comforts they now enjoy have been earned and appreciate them for what they are worth. Mr. Poeltz is a genial, pleas- ant man to meet and is well read.
B. F. ELLSBERRY. i
Clermont county has no more respected citizen than B. F. Ellsberry, who belongs to a fine old family of the region and is a man of liberal ideas and broad sympathies. He is reasona- bly proud of the part taken by his parents in the early history of the county and has followed in their footsteps by becoming himself actively interested in the public welfare. He is a native of Bethel, Clermont county, born March 24, 1842, son of John and Sarah (Carter) Ellsberry.' The father was born July 12, 1806, in Tate township, Clermont county, and the mother was born May 17, 1814, in New Jersey. He died on August 10, 1888, and she in 1895. He was a Democrat in politics and held township offices for many years. He was a member of the school board, for many years justice of the peace, and for several terms was county treasurer. They had ten children, all born in Clermont county : Aurealius, Thomas Benton and Isaac, deceased; B. F., of this sketch; George, deceased ; Darius, a retired blacksmith of Bethel; John, deceased ; Mary
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died unmarried, and two died in infancy. The parents were strong Methodists and the father of Mrs. Ellsberry, John Car- ter, was a Methodist preacher. Mr. Ellsberry's father, Isaac Ellsberry, served in the Civil war, from North Carolina, and his father, great-grandfather of the subject of this sketch, served in the war of 1812 and died in Bethel, an old resident of Clermont county.
John Ellsberry was a brickmaker and building contractor and erected many of the substantial brick houses in Bethel and other parts of the township. He was township trustee four years, for fifteen years was a peacemaker in the office of justice of the peace, and from 1851 to 1854 was county treas- urer, as before mentioned. He was an honest man-one of the noblest works of God-greatly beloved and revered by all who knew him, and never wishing to see anyone receive un- fair or unjust treatment. He helped many of his neighbors to keep out of litigation and settled many disputes and differ- ences of opinion. He was a most faithful church worker and firm in his faith. His funeral, held in Bethel, was conducted by Rev. George W. Swing, and was attended by friends and acquaintances from all parts of the county, all feeling that they had lost a valuable friend and the county a citizen of the highest integrity.
Benjamin Franklin Ellsberry attended Bethel schools and in young manhood worked in a saddler's shop, learning the trade. He remained at this occupation until he was twenty- five years old, and later took up farming. February 2, 1867, he was united in marriage with Melissa Jane Eder, born in Brown county, November 15, 1841, daughter of Samuel and Mary (Green) Eder. The Eders came from Maryland and were farmers to some extent, although Mr. Eder had a saddlery business in Bethel for a number of years. Mr. Eder was born in 1816 and died January 23, 1903. He was a prominent Odd Fellow and lived in Bethel for a period of nearly eighty years, where at times he engaged in manufacturing and other local enterprises. He was affectionately known as "Uncle Sammy" by all and was always regarded as a man of the highest integ- rity and uprightness of character, whose word was as good as his bond. For many years he kept one of the largest stores in Bethel. He was buried in the Odd Fellows cemetery and his funeral was conducted by Rev. Washburn. Mrs. Eder was born in Clermont county and was a good Christian woman, a good helpmeet to her husband and liked by all. She was probably some seventy-five years old at the time of her death.
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