History of Greene County : together with historic notes on the Northwest, and the state of Ohio, gleaned from early authors, old maps and manuscripts, private and official correspondence, and all other authentic sources, Part 44

Author: Dills, R. S. cn
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Dayton : Odell & Mayer
Number of Pages: 1034

USA > Ohio > Greene County > History of Greene County : together with historic notes on the Northwest, and the state of Ohio, gleaned from early authors, old maps and manuscripts, private and official correspondence, and all other authentic sources > Part 44

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In the year 1830, James C. McMillan, in his twentieth year, was furnished by his father with a horse and saddle, and instructed to travel through Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, for the purpose of selecting a home to which the family, then number- ing one dozen, could remove. The principal reason for moving was that the Reformed Presbyterian Church, of which the whole family were members, did not permit any of her members to hold slaves. This law was enacted by the synod of that church in 1806, and it was probably the first church organization in the United States of America that adopted this rule. In accordance with in- structions received from his parents, in company with a relative, John McMillan, the journey was undertaken in March of that year, and he returned in September. During that time portions of each of those states were visited, and before he returned he selected what was then known as the Gibson farm, two miles east of Xenia, on the Columbus road, agreeing to pay twelve dollars per acre for two hundred and forty acres. On his return to South Carolina, his father ratified the contract by sending United States Bank notes with a friend to pay for the farm. . At that time there were six brothers of that family, Daniel, John, David, Gavin, James, and Hugh, all married, who with their families, removed to Ohio. Two of them were ministers in the same church. In March, 1832, James C. McMillan and Margaret Millen were united in marriage by Rev. L. Davis. Shortly after, his father's family, with seven other families, in wagons, entered on the journey which took near five weeks, camping out every night. All enjoyed good health throughout the trip. That summer was spent on the farm. As- sisted by James Wilson, he cradled the first field of wheat of twenty

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acres known to be cut with a cradle in the county. £ In September of that year, he engaged with John Dodd as clerk for three years, selling goods at a salary of three hundred dollars a year, in what was then known as the Galloway corner. At the close of this term he entered into partnership with Eli Millen, and sold goods for ten years in the same building. J. Dodd removed to his own building, now known as St. George's Hotel. At the opening of the Little Miami Railroad to Xenia, having built on the corner of Second and Detroit streets, he removed his stock of goods in the railroad store, where he continued in business until he sold out to Cooper & Hut- cheson. For twenty-five years he has acted as corresponding sec- retary, and treasurer of Greene County Bible Society, canvassing the county annually, some years raising one thousand two hundred dollars in the county. In 1860, he was elected director of the Greene County Infirmary, and with the exception of one term has filled that office, acting as secretary of the board, ever since. This is the only office he has had in the county or state. He only raised one son, Samuel, who graduated at Miami University in 1860. At the breaking out of the war in 1861, he volunteered and went out as a private soldier in the one hundred and tenth regiment in company. with A. M. Stark, who was captured at the battle of Winchester. Samuel escaped by a singular incident. Mr. Stark, having a fine gun that was cumbersone at such a time, threw it away, saying to Samuel, " if you can take care of that gun you may have it." Stoop- ing to pick it up and arrange it with his knapsack, he fell behind the company through a thicket of brush, missed their track, and struck out in another direction. He thus escaped being captured,

and serving a term of fifteen months in Libby Prison. He after- wards fell in with another portion of the regiment under the com- mand of General Keifer, and was engaged in the battle at Mono- cacy, where he was wounded by a ball in his foot. Receiving a furlough, he came home, and afterwards returned to his post, re- maining in the army until the close of the war. While at Wash- ington City, when the troops were being examined in 1865, on the Potomac, without the usual equipage, lying on the damp ground he caught a severe cold that settled on his lungs, and about a year after he was honorably discharged. He died of consumption, aged thirty-three years. Out of seven children, two daughters, Emma and Mary, only survive. In 1849, the Reformed Presbyterian Church, on the corner of Columbus and Market Streets, was built ;

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the first pastor being Rev. J. A. Crawford. J. C. McMillan, with Wm. McQuiston, and John Miller, was elected ruling elder, which office he still holds in the Third United Presbyterian Church of Xenia, which was formed by a union of the remaining members of the Reformed Presbyterian Church, and a portion of the Second United Presbyterian Church, in 1870, their first pastor being Rev. W. H. McMillan, the next, Rev. R. Turnbull, and the present pas- tor, Rev. W. G. Morehead.

Rev. John McMillan, brother of J. C. McMillan still survives, and is pastor of a Presbyterian Church.in Philadelphia. Daniel McMil- lian, his youngest brother, died in 1876. He had the reputation of having some years ago, the finest herd of Durham cattle in the state of Ohio, and did much in improving the quality of stock in Greene County.

F. D. Torrence, of the firm of McDowell & Torrence, lumber dealers, Xenia, was born in the above place in 1842, and is a son of David Torrence, deceased. His boyhood was passed in Springfield, where he received the rudiments of his education, which was after- wards developed by a course of study in a college in the above place. April 16, 1861, he enlisted in the Sixteenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and before leaving the state in August of the same year was transferred to Captain Mitchell's battery of light artillery, which was placed under the command of General Fremont, in the department of Missouri. He saw much active service, and was in the battles of Pea Ridge, Doniphan, Duvall's Bluffs, Arkansas Post, Champion Hill, Raymond, seige of Jackson, etc. In all he participated in twenty-two different engagements. The last two years of his term were passed in the quarter-masters department, at New Orleans and Matagorda. He was discharged in September, 1865, having passed more than four years in the service of his country. In 1869 he located in Xenia, and embarked in the lum- ber business, to which he has since given his attention. In 1874 he was married to Mary Ridgley, by whom he has had two chil- dren, Fred and Mary. Mr. Torrence and his estimable wife are exemplary members of the United Presbyterian Church, with which they have been connected some years.

James Harper, probate judge of Greene County, was born in Rockbridge County, Virginia, August 4, 1809. He is a son of An- drew and Jane (Currie). Harper. His father was born in Ireland, his mother in Scotland, and when a child emigrated with her

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parents and settled in Virginia. Mr. Harper, sr., came to this country when twenty-one years old, and located in Huntington County, Pennsylvania, where he lived a few years. He then went to Virginia, where he was married, and lived till his death, which occurred in the sixty-eighth year of his age. After his death, in 1834, his widow and children came to Ohio, where she died, aged seventy-two years. They were the parents of nine children who grew to manhood and womanhood, three of whom are living, Mary Hamilton, nee Harper, Andrew, and James. The deceased are Eliza, George, Hugh, Jane, William, and Margaret. The early life of Mr. Harper was passed in Virginia on the farm. He received his education in the common schools. After attaining his majority he embarked in life for himself, and for sixteen years after arriving in Ohio labored in a cooper shop, and during that time was elected justice of the'peace, the first public office he held. He afterwards served as recorder for three years, besides holding various town- ship offices. In 1852 he was elected probate judge of Greene County, a position he held continuously until 1862, when a break occurred of two terms. In the fall of 1867 he was again re-elected. In 1839 he was married to Jane, daughter of James and Kesiah Shields, of this county, by whom he has had three children, John, Lavina, and William. John was a member of Company D, Twelfth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, served upwards of three years, and passed through many of the hard-fought battles of the war. The judge and his exemplary wife are members of the Presbyterian church-having belonged for many years.

James A. Scott, of Xenia, is among the oldest and most promi- nent citizens of Greene County. He was born in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, in the year 1794, and is a son of William Scott, who was born in the same state. His boyhood was passed in his native state. He received a very limited education in the sub- scription schools, then the only system of learning in existence where a poor boy could obtain an education, which, at the most, was crude. In 1815, he, with his brother, came to Greene County, and in 1816 returned to Pennsylvania, married Elizabeth Shannon, and soon after returned to Xenia. He was just merging into man- hood, being in his twenty-first year, a time when human aspirations know no bounds. He first engaged in milling, which he followed for ten years. In 1826 he was elected sheriff of Greene County, a position he held two successive terms, discharging the duties with

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an impartiality and ability that paved the way for his nomination and election to the House in 1833. His parliamentary ability and great originality made him a favorite, and he was re-elected in 1838, and again in 1839. Upon his return home from the latter term, he was tendered the office of recorder, which he filled for a number of consecutive terms, after which he was elected auditor, being the last position he held in the county, though he has represented some of the offices of the township and corporation. During the war of 1812, he served under the command of Adamson Tannehill, and at the expiration of his enlisted term was honorably discharged. He is one of the few survivors of that war whose names are upon the pension rolls of our government. In politics he is strongly Repub- lican, and during the life of the old Whig party was one of its warmest and most zealous supporters, giving it his influence, as he has to all other principles which tend to promote the condition of man, whether in church, state, or society. He and his aged wife are members of the Presbyterian Church, with which they have been connected for thirty years, she having previously belonged to the Reformed Church. Nine children have been born to them, six of whom death has consigned to the tomb-William, John, Robert, Jane, Elizabeth, and Mary E. The living are David, Margaret, and James. His son John was a member of Company B, Seventy- Fourth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and a second lieutenant. He en- listed at the beginning of the war, and was killed at Jonesborough, Georgia, in the fall of 1864. His remains were brought home, and interred in the cemetery adjoining Xenia, where a monument has been erected to his memory.

William Allen, clerk, Xenia, Ohio, was born in Charleston, West Virginia, and is a son of Arthur and Kitty Allen. They had a family of seven children, and immigrated to Ohio in 1862. Will- iam the subject of our sketch, was married to Miss Susan MeBra, daughter of Charles and Frances McBra, of Kentucky. They had a family of three children. Alice A. and Louis A. are dead, leav- ing only Lee Allen to comfort them in their trials and troubles through life. When the call was made in defense of our flag, he stepped to the front, and enlisted in the Sixteenth Colored Regi- ment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, under Colonel W. B. Gaugh, in Company K, Captain Possell commanding, and after going with his regiment through the bloody battles in which it participated, he was discharged on the 16th day of March, 1865, and returned

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to Xenia, where he has since lived as a man of trust and honor, in the employ of Samuel Allison, for over seventeen years.

Warren Anderson, printer, Xenia, Ohio, was born in Montgom- ery County, Ohio, May 28, 1832, and is a son of Noah and Mary Anderson. He is the eldest of ten children. The family moved to Elkhart County, Indiana, when Warren was in his sixth year. He assisted in clearing a farm of one hundred and twenty acres out of the thick woods. At the age of nineteen, broken down by hard labor and exposure, he entered a dry-goods house, with J. H. De- frees, at Goshen, in the same county, where he remained two years, after which he entered S. E. Davis' store for a few months. He then engaged in teaching, and taught his first school in 1852, a few miles south of Goshen. In 1854 he came back to Ohio, and opened books for his uncle, in his store on Wolf Creek, ten miles west of Dayton, Ohio, and remained with him until 1856, when he removed to Yellow Springs, Greene County, and entered the preparatory de- partment at Antioch College, under Horace Mann, where he re- mained four years, teaching during the winter, in order to prepare himself for a classical course, up to the year 1860. When Presi- dent Mann died he was at his bedside, and received his kind' fare- well. The following fall and winter he taught school at Cass, Miami County, and in the spring of 1861 became principal of Goshen Seminary, Clermont County, Ohio. Being near Camp Den- nison, the war demoralized the school, and it was discontinued for a time. In the winter of 1861 he taught near Tippecanoe City, Ohio, and in 1862 was principal of the Industrial Academy at Hills- boro, near Richmond, Indiana. The same year he returned to Goshen, Indiana, and commenced the study of law with George D. Copeland. Subsequently Copeland bought the Goshen (Indiana) Times, and Mr. Anderson became assistant editor. In 1863 he resigned, and visited Washington, D. C. In the winter of 1863- '64 he taught school in Miami County, Ohio, where he cast his vote for Honest Old Abe for president in 1860, and again in 1864. In 1864 he dismissed school, and enlisted in Company I, One Hundred and Forty-Seventh Regiment, Ohio National Guard. The regiment was mustered at Camp Dennison, sent to Forts Ethan Allen and Marcy, at the head of Chain Bridge, near Washington, D. C., and participated in the battle of Fort Stephens, July 12th, assisting in the repulse of General Early, in his march upon the capital. Was discharged, August 30th, at Camp Dennison, Ohio, and came to

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Xenia in the spring of 1865, where he continued his law studies with Hon. R. F. Howard, and was admitted to the bar in April, 1869. In the winter of 1865-'66 he taught school at Alpha, Greene County, Ohio, keeping up the study of law. In the winter of 1866- '67 he was principal of Xenia High School, during which time he organized the Euphranine Literary Society, which still survives. Was secretary of the Republican Central Committee from 1866 to 1869, and secretary of the Greene County Sabbath-school Associa- tion in 1869; was married, May 30, 1867, to Miss Cannie Vigus, who was teacher of German in Xenia College, and a graduate of that institution. May, their first child, was born December 26, 1868, and died July 6, 1869. Their second child, Florence, was born March 16, 1874, and is still living. He was appointed mayor of Xenia in February, 1867, to succeed Hon. John Little, who re- signed. In April following he was elected to the same office for two years. Was also elected justice of the peace for Xenia Town- ship for three years, ending May, 1870. As one of the officers, drafted the articles of incorporation for the Young Men's Christian Association of Xenia, in January, 1869. In April, 1870, was ad- mitted by the Supreme Court of Ohio to practice law. Was one of the founders, with Hon. J. F. Patton and T. L. Tiffany, of the Xenia Gazette, in August, 1868, and its chief editor until 1870, when he sold his interest to Colonel R. P. Findlay, and in Novem- ber, 1870, removed to Ottawa, Kansas, where he established the Ottawa Herald, December 4th, same year. Sold out the Herald in 1871, and purchased an interest in the Journal of that city, which was founded by Hon. I. S. Kalloch, present mayor of San Francisco, California. Was admitted to the Kansas bar, December, 1871. Sold out the Journal in the fall of 1872, on account of ill health, and returned to Xenia, Ohio, where he resumed the practice of law, and in 1873 edited the Xenia Enterprise, afterward changed to "News," and now called the Xenia Democrat-News. Was again appointed by council mayor of Xenia, February, 1876, to fill the unexpired term of Hon. J. W. Keever. Was correspondent of the Cincinnati Gazette, and in October, 1875, was again elected justice of the peace of Xenia Township for three years. November 7, 1878, started the Xenia Nonpareil, changing its name, in the summer, 1879, to Xemia Sunlight. Sold his interest, in May, 1880, to O. W. Marshall, and the same year established the Yellow Springs Review, of which he is still editor and proprietor. Mr. Anderson has al-

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ways been a Republican in politics, as was also his father, who was Republican representative from Elkhart County, in the Indiana Legislature, in 1861-'62.

A. J. Archdeacon, telephone proprietor and agent, Xenia, Ohio, was born in Springboro, Warren County, Ohio, in the year 1846, on the thirtieth day of September. He is a son of George and Mary Archdeacon, of Cork, who immigrated to America, in the year 1841, with a family of eight children : Jane, Richard, Nicholas, George, Benjamin F., Edward T., May E., and A. J., our subject, who is now thirty-four years of age. He is only four feet high and weighs ninety pounds. He is a member of the Odd-fellows, has filled all the chairs, has climbed to the topmost round in the order, and is the smallest Odd-fellow in Ohio. He is one of the liveliest of the lively, and a general favorite wherever he is known; says his fighting weight is eighty-five pounds, and is now trying to bring himself down to enter the ring with the champion light weight of England sometime in August next, (day not set).

John S. Armstrong, insurance agent, Xenia, Ohio, was born at Portersville, Pennsylvania, August 8, 1833. His father, James Arm- strong, was born near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, in 1808, and his mother, Jane S., was born at Portersville, Pennsylvania, in 1812. They moved to Johnson County, Missouri, about 1857. He has five brothers, and six sisters, located in different parts of the United States. He received a good common school education at Porters- ville, and commenced teaching when seventeen years of age. Soon after this, he entered the Butler Academy and completed the pre- paritory course, and then entered West Minster College, Pennsyl- vania, finished his course in Ohio University, Athens, Ohio, then entered the senior class at West Minster, and graduated in the re- gular collegiate course in 1859. When twenty-six years of age, he taught for some time, and studied theology. At the breaking out of the war, he enlisted in the Ninety-Third Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, which being full, was mustered in the One Hundred and Seventh Regiment, at Camp Portsmouth, as orderly-sergeant of Company E; was soon appointed sergeant major of the regiment, chief clerk of the chief of artillery, Army of the Cumberland. He then received a commission as second lieutenant, and served for some time as regimental adjutant. In 1863 his regiment was changed to first regiment, Ohio heavy artillery, and he was promoted to first lieutenant, and assigned to battery C., and served in this company

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until the close of the war. He united with the associate church in 1855, and still continues a devout member and believer. He is also a member of the Knights of Honor. He was married in 1864, to Miss Esther E. Allison. Her father, Samuel Allison, an old citizen, of Greene County, and her mother, Mary C. Allison were born and reared in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, and moved to Ohio in 1819. His wife received a thorough education at Glen- dale Female Seminary, then taught school for sometime at Hagers- town, Ind. They have five children, Harry C., Frank S., Walter R., Mary B., and Maggie E., the last named. now at rest in the New Jerusalem. In 1871, he received an appointment as United States Indian agent for Capote, Wemeunche, Utes, and Irearilla Apache Indians of northwestern New Mexico, and remained with them about two years. He was employed in freight, and ticket depart- ments of Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and St. Louis Railroad, almost four years. At present, he is agent for the Pennsylvania Life Insurance Company of Philadelphia.

John W. Baldwin, farmer, Xenia, Ohio, was born in Hampshire County, Virginia, in the year 1827. He is the son of James and Amy Baldwin, both natives of Virginia. They immigrated to Ohio, in the month of May, 1829, with a family of seven children, four sons and three daughters. John, the subject of our sketch, was married in the year 1857, to Miss Laura A. Bonner, daughter of Styth and Maria H. Bonner, of Greene County, Ohio. They have a family of three children, William II., Annie M., and Mary A., all now living. John W. enlisted in the Union army, in 1861, under Captain Samuel T. Owen, in Company C, Seventy-Fourth Reg- iment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Colonel Granville Moody, and was engaged in the following battles: Fort Henry, Neeley's Bend, Stone River, Hoover's Gap, Tullahoma, Dug Gap, Chickamauga, Mission Ridge, Tunnel Hill, Dalton, Resaca, Dallas Gap, Pine Mountain, Pumpkin-vine Creek, Kenesaw Mountain, Peach-tree Creek, Chat- tahoochie River, Atlanta, and Jonesborough, Georgia, where he re- signed his commission as second lieutenant, and came home, No- vember 4, 1864. IIe received his education in Greene County, where he has spent the greater portion of his life; is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and is one of the leading farmers of Greene County.

Brinton Baker, dealer in saddles and harness, Xenia, Ohio, was born in Chester County, Pennsylvania, in 1807. Thomas and Sarah,

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his parents, were both born in Pennsylvania, and immigrated to Ohio in 1812, and have since made this county their home. It is said the first saw mill in the county was built by them. Brinton, the subject of this sketch, was married, in 1831, to Miss Eliza Hiv- ling, of Xenia, Ohio. Six children were born to them, Abraham H., Sarah, John A., Joshua S., Eliza J., and an infant. Abraham, the only one living, is in partnership with his father, was educated in Xenia, and has spent his life here. Mr. Baker was reared by Quaker parents, and is a very moral man. He served as county treasurer from 1852 to 1857, and has been a county infirmary director for fifteen years. He has always been, and is to-day, one of the energetic business men of Xenia. Abraham is now living on the same lot on which he was born. In 1865 he was married to Miss Sallie A. J. Miller, of Frederick City, Maryland, and is the father of three children, Mary E., John A., and Rachel J., all of whom are living with their parents. When the war broke out, he was one of the first to respond, and after its close came home with an honorable discharge, and resumed his labors at his trade. He and his father to-day are in the foremost rank in their business.

Andrew HI. Boughman, retired banker, Xenia, Ohio, was born in the State of Maryland, in the year 1807. He is a son of An- drew and Esther Baughman, who immigrated to Ohio about the year 1800, with a family of six children, four sons and two daughters. Andrew, the subject of this sketch, while yet in Mary- land learned the milling trade, and after coming to Ohio he at- tended a mill owned by John Harbine, and continued with him about two years. He then rented J. Snyder's mill, and attended it on the shares for some six years, and then with Casper Snyder bought it, and run it until the year 1853, when they sold out. He then came to Xenia, and engaged in farming, trading, etc., and in 1876 he was elected president of the First National Bank of Xenia. When he came to this country his circumstances were such that he was compelled to walk the whole distance from Hagerstown, Mary- land, to Xenia, and worked for sometime for his board and clothes. His untiring energy, and industrious habits and faithfulness to business have gained for him a position in life, and among business men a place attained by very few. He held the office of township trustee, and was commissioner for twelve years; president of the city council for a number of years; has been a member of the Odd-fellows for thirty-four years, and is a member of the grand

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lodge and grand encampment; has been a member of the Reform Church for over forty years, filling some office of importance nearly all the time. He has never had any children, but like a Christian gentleman has raised three children of other parents. He was married in 1833, and his wife is still living, assisting in cheering his declining years.

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History of Greene County : together with historic notes on the Northwest, and the state of Ohio, gleaned from early authors, old maps and manuscripts, private and official correspondence, and all other authentic sources, Part 44

Author: Dills, R. S. cn Publication date: 1881 Publisher: Dayton : Odell & Mayer Number of Pages: 1034

Author: Dills, R. S. cn
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Dayton : Odell & Mayer
Number of Pages: 1034