USA > Ohio > Brown County > History of Clermont and Brown Counties, Ohio, from the earliest historical times down to the present, V. 2 > Part 9
USA > Ohio > Clermont County > History of Clermont and Brown Counties, Ohio, from the earliest historical times down to the present, V. 2 > Part 9
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77
Thomas W. Hill grew to manhood on the home farm and received a common school education. He was one of the earliest from the neighborhood to enlist for service in the Union army, the date being 1861, when he became a private in Company C, Second Ohio volunteer infantry, being later trans- ferred to Company E, of the same regiment. He proceeded to Camp Dennison. After going to the front to the quartermas- ter's department and later to an ammunition train, having quite a thrilling experience at the battle of Chickamauga. After- wards he was transferred to General Thomas's headquarters, where he was serving at the time he was mustered out, at which time the regiment was commanded by General Anson G. McCook, now of New York City. He gave faithful service for more than three years, and during this time was never in the hospital, captured or wounded, although he saw much active fighting.
At the close of his term of enlistment, Mr. Hill returned home, and on January 18, 1865, was united in marriage with Miss Eliza J. Smysor, to whom he had been engaged before he joined the army. He bought a part of his father's former farm, and about one year after his marriage erected a log house, in which the family lived until 1879, when he erected a brick dwelling on the site of the log house, which is as good a house as is to be found in the whole county. He has now re-
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tired from active life, having brought his land to a high state of cultivation and made all possible improvements. His home is in the northeastern part of Stone Lick township, near Mil- ford and Woodville pike, but his postoffice is Cozaddale, War- ren county. He lives near Belfast, Clermont county, where he and his son own nearly three hundred acres of fine farm land.
Two children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Hill, the elder of whom died in infancy. The other, Lyman Lee Hill, was born December 16, 1869, graduated from Milford High School, under Prof. Byron Williams, and spent a year at Delaware, Ohio, and then taught school a few years. On December 24, 1890, he married Carrie E. Durah, of Belfast, and they had one child, born October 30, 1897, Lida Beth, now attending school at Milford. Mrs. Hill died when this child was an in- fant and Lyman L. Hill married (second), September 30, 1901, Miss Effie J. Myers, by whom five children were born : Twins, who died in infancy ; Thomas Sumner, born November 3, 1905; Stanley Eugene, born September 9, 1908, and Mary Dorothy, born October 16, 1912.
Thomas W. Hill is a Republican and cast his first presi- dential vote for Abraham Lincoln, in 1864. He voted for Governor Brough while on the field at Chattanooga, Tenn., as Ohio had passed a law authorizing her soldiers to vote wher- ever they were stationed. He is in no sense an office seeker, although he takes an active interest in all public affairs. He served from 1892 until 1895 as a director of the infirmary, and rendered very satisfactory service. He became a member of the Methodist Episcopal church at the age of ten years and his wife was also reared in this faith, joining the church at the age of sixteen. He is a member of Kilpatrick Post, No. 189. Grand Army of the Republic, at Goshen, and has served as its commander. He has attended many National reunions and he and his wife attended the one held at San Francisco in 1903. He is one of the best known men in the county, where his en- tire life has been spent, and has a host of sincere friends.
MRS ESTELLE NORRIS OCHILTREE.
Elizabeth Caroline Stockton was born in Williamsburg. Ohio. June 28, 1840. She is the daughter of Lewis and Eliza- beth Kain Ellis, daughter of John and Elizabeth Raper Kain,
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elsewhere mentioned in this book. On June 29, 1858, Elizabeth C. Ellis was married to John Jasper Norris, a dentist and drug- gist of Felicity, Ohio. They resided in Felicity until the death of Dr. Norris, which occurred March 2, 1860. Dr. Norris had a fine dental practice, which extended from Ripley, Ohio, to Petersburg, Ky. He was a Mason of some prominence, and was devoted to his lodge, holding his membership at Bethel, Ohio. After the death of her husband, Mrs. Norris returned to her father's home in Williamsburg. On April 27, when her husband would have been twenty-seven years of age, had he lived, Mrs. Norris gave birth to a daughter, Estelle May Nor- ris, who is now Mrs. William E. Ochiltree, of Connersville, Ind.
On May 15, 1864, Mrs. Norris became the second wife of B. N. Stockton, a prominent merchant of Williamsburg. Mr. Stockton's family at that time consisted of two daughters, Clara and Florence, and two sons, George and Charles. Mr. Stockton was the son of Job Stockton, and learned the mer- cantile business from his father. For forty-two years he fol- lowed the business, occupying one building for over thirty years. He was known far and wide as a man of good business judgment and integrity. Mrs. Stockton was again made a widow February 21, 1893, by the death of Mr. Stockton.
A few years later, her daughter having married, she began to travel, and perhaps no woman in Clermont county has seen more of the United States than has Mrs. Stockton. Being able to describe clearly the scenes of her travels, she brought back to her friends much valuable information, and has given them many hours of entertainment. Mrs. Stockton comes from a line of sturdy ancestors, several of whom were soldiers in the Revolutionary war. The father, Lewis Ellis, was a son of Jacob, Jr., and Margaret Joel Ellis, of Berkeley county, Virginia.
The Ellis family has handed from generation to generation a romantic little story dating back to the year 1725, when an Austrian Princess, Maria Louisa, of the House of Hapsburg, married a man beneath her rank, her tutor, whose name was George Nogelle. On account of opposition to their marriage (the nobility being Catholic and Nogelle a German Lutheran), they came to America on the ship "William and Sarah," Wil- liam Hill master, from Rotterdam, September 21, 1727, and settled in Philadelphia. Two daughters were born to them,
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Margret, the older, married Henry Joel, a German nobleman, and Rosina married Michael Burkett. Henry and Margret Joel had two daughters, Margret married Jacob and Katherine married Abraham Ellis, two brothers of Lancaster county, Pennsylvania. The name Ellis was originally Alles and is so written in an old German Bible, still preserved in the family. Johann Jacob Alles, the father of Jacob and Abraham, came to this country upon the ship "Dragon," from Alsace, Daniel Nicholes master, October 17, 1749.
Both Abraham and Jacob F.llis were soldiers in the Revo- lutionary war. Jacob was a fifer and lost his fife on the bridge at the battle of the Brandywine. He was a private in Cap- tain Barber's company, Second battalion, Chester county militia, 1780, Thomas Bull, colonel.
At the close of the war, the Ellis brothers took their wives and their mother-in-law, Margret Joel, to Berkeley county, Virginia, where they settled on a farm in a valley between North and Page mountains. In 1806, Abraham immigrated to Wilmington, Ohio. Jacob died leaving a large family of chil- dren, and was soon followed by his widow. The older children immigrated to Ohio, but Samuel, father of Thomas K. Ellis, and Lewis, the father of Mrs. Stockton, were so small that they rode in one saddle to Harper's Ferry, where they were reared by a family friend, Jane Walker. In early manhood Samuel came to Williamsburg, Ohio, and was soon followed by his brother, Lewis, who had been convinced by a fortune teller in Maryland that he would find his bride, a dark-haired, dark- eyed maiden, at the end of his journey. When he responded to his first invitation to an apple cutting, upon entering the room, he met Elizabeth Kain, whom he recognized as his heart's desire. They were an ideal couple, living together almost forty years. Their children were, Leonidas, Elizabeth Caro- line, John Henry, Laura Anna, and Elmer Coats.
Mrs. Stockton's first marriage to Dr. J. J. Norris con- nected her with two of the largest families in Southern Ohio, the Norris and Sargents. The Norris family was so prolific that it seemed to be sufficient unto itself, for an unusual cus- tom of cousins inter-marrying prevailed, and strange to say, they are a race of remarkable strength, vigor and mental clear- ness. Aquilla Norris, Sr., grandfather of J. J. Norris, immi- grated to Ohio from Herford county, Maryland. in 1806. In the war of the Revolution he was captain of a company of militia from Herford county. At the close of the war, his wife,
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Priscilla, died, and his home burned. Disheartened, he re- solved to go west. With a family of eleven grown children and his nephew, Abraham Norris, who had sixteen children, he immigrated to Ohio, and settled in Brown county. His wife's maiden name was Priscilla Norris, for she was his cousin, the daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth Bradford Norris, all of Her- ford county, Maryland. Aquilla Norris, Jr., their son, married a daughter of John Sargent, familiarly known as "Jacky." To their union were born eleven children, John Jasper being the seventh son. The Sargents were English people, James Sar- gent came from Snowhill, England in 1745, to Frederick coun- ty, Maryland. He married in England a Miss Snowden, whose mother's name was Nellie Taylor. James lived to be 107 years old. His ten children married into families well known in Southern Ohio. John married Mary Lamb, known as "Polly" to her intimate friends. Their daughter, Sarah, was married to Aquilla Norris, Jr., March 21, 1813.
Mrs. Stockton's daughter, Estelle May Norris, was educated in the public schools of Williamsburg, with an additional two years at Farmer's College, College Hill, Ohio. She taught two years in the Williamsburg public schools, after which she gave her time for several years to her step-father's business. On October 30, 1889, she was married to William Elmer Ochil- tree, of Connersville, Ind., where she has since resided. Mrs. Ochiltree has always been interested in religious and educa- tion affairs, and has been closely identified with the move- ments that have stood for civic improvement in her home town. She organized the first permanent literary club in her city, and it still exists, and is one of the best in the State. She has held responsible positions on the board of federation of clubs, is a Daughter of the American Revolution, and has written some fairly clever short stories for magazines.
William E. Ochiltree, a prominent attorney of Connersville, and through both the Ochiltree and McCrory families traces his Scotch blood. His people immigrated to Fayette county early in the Nineteenth century. The Ochiltrees trace to the Lairds of Scotland, and to Robert Aikin, to whom Burns dedi- cated his "Cotter's Saturday Night." They also connect with the early history of Clermont county, through their kinsman, Col. Thomas Paxton, of pioneer fame.
The children of Mr. and Mrs. Ochiltree are Bert James, born June 30, 1892, and William Norris, born July 26, 1894. Bert J.
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is an automobile machinist, and William N. is at the present writing a student at the Indiana University, where he is study- ing for the bar.
LULA M. BROADWELL.
Mr. Lula M. Broadwell, who for the past eight years has conducted an undertaking establishment at Felicity, Ohio, is a representative of one of the prominent Clermont county families who have been connected with the agricultural and industrial interests of the county for many years. He was born at Rural, Clermont county, Ohio, July 12, 1870, and his parents were Joseph A. and Louisiana (Mannen) Broadwell.
Joseph A. Broadwell was born near Milford, Clermont county, Ohio, in 1829, and was a dealer in leaf tobacco, also owning a large farm near Rural, Ohio, which has been his home since he was a small boy. He was an energetic and progressive business man, and was highly respected by all with whom he was associated. His wife, Louisiana Mannen, a native of Mason county, Kentucky, was born in 1840, and left this life in 1878. To this worthy couple were born five chil- dren, two of whom are still living:
Joseph L. is a resident of Rural, Ohio, and possesses three productive farms.
Lula M., the subject of this sketch.
Joseph A. Broadwell was a Democrat and had membership with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. His death oc- curred October 31, 1907, and both he and his wife were laid to rest at Rural.
Lula M. Broadwell obtained his education at Rural, and entered upon his business career in the warehouse of his father. He continued with his father and remained at home until his marriage and thus became familiar with all the details of the tobacco business.
He was married to Miss Maud Woodmansee on the 30th of May, 1897. She was a daughter of Joseph and Martha (Iler) Woodmansee, and was born near Rural in 1869. Her father was born near Rural and in early life was a farmer and stock raiser, but for the past twenty-five or twenty-six years has conducted a coal business. His birth occurred July 14, 1847, and he is now enjoying a retired life. His wife, Martha (Iler) Woodmansee, was born at Neville, Ohio, June 25, 1846, and died June 13, 1907. There were eight children in this family, six are still living :
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Maud is Mrs. Broadwell. .
Callie married Arthur Shinkle, of Rural, Ohio.
Annice is at home. .
Maggie, formerly a teacher of the schools of Rural, Ohio.
Grace is an instructor in the Rural school. She is a grad- uate of the Felicity High School, and also took a course at the Oxford school.
Hazel Houghton is at home. She also graduated from the Felicity High School.
Following his marriage, Mr. Broadwell turned his attention to the occupation of farming for one year, after which he con- ducted a general store at Rural for a period of three years. In 1904, he purchased the undertaking business of Mr. J. L. Ban- nock, and has continued in this business to the present time, meeting well deserved success. In 1900, he purchased the com- fortable home on the corner of Union and Light streets, and is counted among the substantial business men of Felicity.
In the family of Mr. and Mrs. Broadwell are two children : Burdette was born January 22, 1899.
Irene, who was born December 7, 1901, is the organist in the Sunday school of the Christian church of Felicity, Ohio.
Mr. and Mrs. Broadwell are consistent members of the Christian church, the former having filled the office of deacon for some time. Mrs. Broadwell is active in the church soci- eties, taking a great interest in all church affairs.
The political views of Mr. Broadwell are in accord with those of the Democratic party, and he has filled the office of township clerk and is at present a member of the educational board.
Mr. L. M. Broadwell affiliates with the Masonic order, and Mrs. Broadwell is a member of the Eastern Star.
The maternal grandfather of Mr. Broadwell, Gen. John Mannen, was a native of Mason county, Kentucky, and was a soldier in the Revolutionary war.
Mr. Broadwell's success in life is attributable to his own efforts. He is a genial and pleasant gentleman, and his wife possesses many excellent qualities, so that they are highly es- teemed in the community where they reside.
WILLIAM J. HUGHES, M. D.
Among the best citizens of Moscow. Clermont county, is Dr. William J. Hughes, who is well fitted by nature and prepara-
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tion to minister to the physical ailments of mankind. He is popular because of his broad sympathies and general kind- :ness, and his genial manner and courtesy pave the way for happy friendship and companionship with his fellows. He is a man of large stature, well proportioned, and with a mind and heart in keeping with his bearing. Dr. Hughes was born near Ash Ridge. Brown county, Ohio. February 8, 1861, son of William T. and Elizabeth ( Jarman) Hughes. His father was born near Milford, Miami township, Clermont county, October 29. 1833, and died February 20, 1911. He was a carriage maker, coming to Moscow with his father at the age of thir- teen years. He attended school in Milford and one month after coming to Moscow, and although his education was lim- ited, he was ahead of the boys of his age in general knowledge, being especially bright in mathematics. He and his father worked at carriage making in Moscow until 1860, then moved to a farm at Ash Ridge, and when the war broke out William T. Hughes entered the commissary department, where he served some years. He then went to Cincinnati and later to Winchester, where he conducted a carriage shop for a number of years, then moved to Wamsley, Adams county, and died on a farm near that town. He was assistant secretary of the West Union Fair from the date of its organization until his death, and before this time had been connected with the Win- chester Fair. In this way he became very well known, and had become very popular in the various communities where he lived. He was a Republican in politics, and served as treasurer of Jefferson township for over twenty years. He was a Mason from the time of his twenty-second year and he and his wife were members of the Presbyterian church. His . wife was born on the Jarman homestead, near Neville, on Oc- tober 24. 1831. and still lives on the farm near Wamsley, where Mr. Hughes died. Mr. Hughes has one brother, Charles, of Elwood, Ind., the only survivor of twelve children. Mr. William T. Hughes and wife had four children: George S., of Pickrell, Neb .; Dr. William J .; Walter C. lives on a farm near Wamsley ; Mary L. is the wife of George Connor, of St. Paul, Kan.
William J. Hughes began his education at Winchester, at- tended school at the National Normal, at Lebanon, where he took a teachers' and scientific course, meanwhile having learned the trade of carriage maker with his father at Win- chester, where he worked a number of years. He went to his
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father's farm at Wamsley and taught six years in Jefferson . township, studying all his spare time. He read medicine with Dr. A. Gilfillen, of Russellville, Ohio, and later attended Ohio Medical College at Cincinnati, graduating in 1890 from the School of Medicine at Louisville, Ky., and then taking up active practice. He had gained his later education by his own efforts, teaching in summer and attending school in the win- ter, and studying all his spare time. He practiced near the home place at Wamsley three years after his final graduation, and came to Moscow in 1893, where he has since become well known as a skilled physician and surgeon, and at his home on Broadway street has a well-filled drug room, where he pre- pares all his own medicines. He stands well in his profession and enjoys a good reputation with all.
Dr. Hughes is a Republican in politics, and has been hon- ored by election to several local offices. He has served as councilman and mayor, and has at various times served on the school board at Moscow. He belongs to the Knights of Pyth- ias, and still holds a policy with the Ancient Order of United Workmen. He and his wife are devout members of the Pres- byterian church, and he is an elder, having been clerk of ses- sions for sixteen or eighteen years. He purchased his present home in 1898, and has added many improvements to it. He and his wife are prominent in many circles, and have a large number of friends. Their home is kept in spotless order and they are very hospitable.
On October 26, 1893, Dr. Hughes was united in marriage with Miss Mary A. Faul, born near Dover, Ky., September 15, 1871, daughter of Lewis and Margaret (Arn) Faul, the former born in Brown county, Ohio, November 29, 1837, and the latter born in the same place July 24, 1847. Mr. Faul died December 1, 1903, and is buried at Arnheim, Brown county, and his widow lives at Ash Ridge. He was a farmer, lived for some time near Dover, later near Higginsport, and still later as Ash Ridge. He enlisted in the Fiftieth regiment, Ohio volunteer infantry, and served through most of the Civil war. He was an Odd Fellow. He and his wife had six children, all of whom survive: Margaret, wife of Frank Brookbank, of Higginsport, Ohio; Katherine, wife of Henry Young, lives with her mother; Mary A., Mrs. Hughes; Dr. William -L., of Russellville, Ohio; Pearl P., with her mother; Lela, wife of C. C. Inskeep, of Urbana. Frederick Arn, an uncle of Mrs. Hughes, served from Ohio in the Civil war; Captain Hughes,
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brother of the doctor's father, also served, and a brother of his mother, George Jarman, was also in an Ohio regiment. Mrs. . Hughes is a charming woman, possessed of the graces and culture that help to make a home pleasant.
Since the above was written Mrs. Hughes died from the effects of a malignant disease, March 14. 1913. and was buried at the Lutheran cemetery. Arnheim, Ohio.
ALONZO JUDD.
Alonzo Judd is one of the most substantial citizens of Mos- cow, Clermont county, and belongs to one of the oldest fami- lies of the region. He is a self-made man and has a good helpmate in his wife. He was born in Higginsport, Brown county, Ohio, April 11, 1840, son of Joshua A. and Sarah (Akels) Judd. The father was born in Pennsylvania, in 1795, and died in 1881. and the mother was born in Hagerstown. Pa., in 1806, and died in 1881. Both parents are buried in Mars cemetery, Pendleton county, Kentucky. They came to Ohio in 1815, landing near the mouth of the creek. not far from Moscow. There was but one house in Moscow at that time and there were Indians on both sides of the river. At the same time Jesse Dugan came and settled at Higginsport ; Samuel Ebersoll came and located at Palestine, and Jimmie Selby came and located at Point Isabel. all in Clermont county. All these men came from Pittsburg. The Judds were respected and esteemed by their neighbors, and always did their share to help along measures for improvement and progress.
After coming to Ohio Joshua Judd was a ferryman on the Ohio river, and made forty-two trips from Higginsport to New Orleans and return, on flat boats and produce boats. Twice he walked back to Higginsport. In 1825 he left Cler- mont county and lived in Higginsport until 1841. He then removed to Nashville. Tenn., but not liking the institution of slavery, remained there but one year. although he had a sister and a brother there. He returned to his old home near Mos- cow, and in 1843 took charge of the ferry, which he and his sons 'kept some sixty-four years. This business was sold but a few years ago, passing out of charge of the family. He was known as Captain Judd and participated in the War of 1812. also belonged to a company of militia at Georgetown. He was
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a Whig before the formation of the Republican party, which he joined later. He and his wife had ten children, two of whom were born in Clermont county, namely: Samuel R. served in the One Hundred and Ninety-sixth regiment, Ohio volunteer infantry, was born in Ohio, and now resides in Ken- tucky; Mary, deceased, married (first) Jacob Kayser, and (second) William Eads, both of whom have died; Susanna, married William Blunkall, lived in Nashville, but she and her husband are now deceased; Daniel, born in Ohio, served three years and three months in Company B, Fifty-ninth regiment, Ohio volunteer infantry, and now lives in Indiana ; Nelson and Melissa, deceased; Alonzo; Leonidas and Edward, deceased ; one child was still-born.
Alonzo Judd received his education in Moscow, and when still a boy began working on his father's ferry, learning all branches of the business. He was first employed in steering and later ran a skiff ferry and gasoline boat himself. He re- mained on the river until 1864, then enlisted in Company K, One Hundred and Ninety-sixth Ohio volunteer infantry, serv- ing for ten months and nineteen days. He participated in a few skirmishes near Winchester, Va., and performed every duty expected of him. Returning to Moscow, he again took up the business of ferryman, which he continued until selling out a few years ago. He conducted the business in a way that was most satisfactory to the public, and was faithful in his attention to the needs of his customers. Like his father, he is Republican in political belief, and fraternally he is a member of the Odd Fellows. He is a prominent member of the local post of the Grand Army of the Republic, and is well known in various ways.
On March 20, 1866, Mr. Judd married Miss Melissa Fassett, born in Pendleton county, Kentucky, in 1847, daughter of Jacob and Emily H. (Eads) Fassett. Her father was a native of the same county, born in 1820, and he died in 1892. Her mother, born in Moscow, Ohio, in 1829, died in 1903, where both parents were buried. He was a farmer boy by occupa- tion and a Democrat in politics. He never sought public office and was a quiet, patriotic citizen. He and his wife had eight children, all born in Kentucky, namely: Mary Frances, wife of Samuel R. Judd, of Kentucky; Margaret, wife of David White, of Moscow; Charlotte, wife of Thomas Lancaster, of Kentucky; Permelia Bell, married William Langh, of Ken- tucky, and is now deceased; Rebecca, wife of George M. Whit-
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