USA > Ohio > Hamilton County > History of Hamilton County, Ohio, with illustrations and biographical sketches > Part 107
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Jonathan T. Martin, sixth child and fourth son of Robert and Jane Martin, was born in Chenango county, New York, January 4, 1818. The subject of our sketch emigrated to Ohio, Hamilton county, with his father
when he was but a year old, and has been a resident of the county ever since. Mr. Martin was married to Miss Elizabeth Lucky, daughter of Henry and Sarah Lucky, who was born in New York, October 9, 1814. They were married in February, 1841, and to them have been born seven children-William, Henry, Robert T., John, Sarah A., George, Jane. Of these, four are living-Wil- liam, Henry, Robert T., and John. Although Mr. Mar- tin is not a member of a church, he is a strong advocate of law and order. The subject of our sketch is one of Hamilton county's enterprising farmers, and one of its worthy and respected citizens.
John E. Rude, son of Zala Rude, was born in Symmes township, Hamilton county, August 29, 1820, and has since been a resident of Hamilton county. He was married to Miss Christiana Apgar, daughter of Daniel P. Apgar, November 23, 1857. To them have been born nine children-Isabel, Frank P., Catharine, John E., Liz- zie, Anna, Peter S., Hannah and Robert. All living and still at home. Mr. Rude is a member in the Christian church.
Oliver P. Buckingham, son of William Buckingham, was born in Hamilton county, Ohio, August 30, 1830, and has been a resident of the county all his life. He was married to Miss Eliza J. Weller, daughter of John W. Weller, November 24, 1852. They have four chil- dren-Lola, Frorence, Montford and Lee-all living at home. Mr. Buckingham lost his wife July 14, 1880, at the age of forty-nine years.
William B. Cunningham, son of John Cunningham, was born in Symmes township, Hamilton county, No- vember 28, 1829, and has been a resident of this county all his life with the exception of about two years. He was married twice-first to Miss Selina Pancost, daugh- ter of Enoch Pancost, February 28, 1855. She died February 22, 1866. He was married the second time to Miss Mary R. Montford, daughter of William P. Mont- ford, June 25, 1867. To them have been born seven children-Mary B., Edwin M., Charles W., James C., Francis L., Joseph F. and Florence-all living and at home. Mrs. Cunningham is a member of the Catholic church. Our subject is now serving his seventh year as trustee of Symmes township and is in every way a worthy and excellent citizen.
Rachel Price, seventh child of Frederick Bucking- paugh, was born in Symmes township, Hamilton county, February 28, 1808, and has been a resident of the county all her life. She was married to Nimrod Price January 19, 1823. To them have been born ten children-Mar- tha J., Marcus S., Marious B., Amanda M., Malen F., John N., Milton D., Ennis J., Albert P. and William P. Of them nine are living, Albert being dead. Mrs. Price is a member in the Universalist church. She has reached the ripe old age of seventy-four years.
Levi Buckingham, a native of Delaware, emigrated to Ohio in the year 1788, and took up a section of land in Symmes township. He then returned to Pennsylvania, and in 1794 returned to his land with his brother, Enoch Buckingham. The first thing they did was to build a log cabin to shelter the family. The Indians were very
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HISTORY OF HAMILTON COUNTY, OHIO.
troublesome at that time, and a man was fined who went to church without a gun. Levi Buckingham was the father of six children-William L., Lizzie, Isaac, Jane, Maria and Lydia H. Of these but two are still living- William and Maria.
William S. Buckingham was born in Symmes township, Hamilton county, August 26, 1811, and has been a resi- dent of the county all his life. He was married twice- first to Miss Elizabeth Harris, in 1834; she died the same year. He was married the second time to Miss Nancy Sanders, daughter of Meeryarter Sanders, of Tennessee, September 22, 1835. To them has been born one child -Jane-who married John Quail, and is a resident of Symmes township. Mr. and Mrs. Buckingham are both members of the Methodist Episcopal church, and are among its liberal supporters.
Maria Buckingham, daughter of Levi Buckingham, was born in Symmes township, Hamilton county, August 6, 1818, and has always been a resident of this county. She now lives on part of the section of land on which her father settled in 1794. She superintends her own farm.
Horace Buckingham, son of Enoch Buckingham, who settled in Hamilton county in 1794, was born in Hamil- ton county, September 22, 1806, and lived in Hamilton county until about the year 1832, when he moved to Clermont county, and was a resident there to the time of his death. He was the father of eight children : Agnes, Charles, Albert, Louisa, Oregan, Lewis, Walter, and Victor ; of these six are still living. Albert, the third child, was born in Clermont county, Ohio, June 16, 1839, and remained in Clermont until October, 1877. He was married twice, first to Miss Virginia Doyle, December 6, 1860, who died March 29, 1871. The fruit of this union was three children : Effie, Alvin, and Horace ; all living, and still at home.
Henry Nenfarth, jr., son of Henry and Katie Nen- farth, was born in Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany, in 1837. He emigrated to America, and settled in Hamilton county, in 1845, since which time he has been a resident of the county. He was married to Miss Elizabeth Mil- ler, daughter of George Miller, January 2, 1869. They have six children : William, Katie, Henry J., Anna I)., George E. and Cary; all living, and at home.
Henry Nenfarth, sr., son of Jacob and Catharine Nen- farth, was born in the Grand Dutchy of Hesse-Darm- stadt, Germany, May 8, 1827 ; emigrated to America with his father, and settled in Hamilton county, May 27, 1839, and has been a resident of the county since that time. He was married to Magdaline Sur, daughter of John Sur, July 23, 1850. The children are Kate, Clara, Malinda, Amanda, Sophia, Julia, Ellen, and Magdaline. Kate, Clara, Sophia and Ellen are still living. Kate is married to William Birchfield, and is a resident of Lock- land, Hamilton county ; Clara is married to Morris Linke; the other two are still single and living at home. Mr. and Mrs. Nenfarth are both members of church, Mr. Nenfarth of the Evangelical, and Mrs. Nenfarth of the Catholic Church. Mr. Nenfarth is a redistiller by trade ; had worked at that trade for about sixteen years,
up to the time he moved on his farm, in March, 1873, since that time he has been farming in Symmes town- ship. His father set out the first vineyard in the garden of Eden, now Eden Park, in the year 1844.
Charles J. Link, son of John H. Link, was born in Saxton, Germany, February 8, 1807 ; he emigrated to America and settled in Hamilton county in the fall of 1856, and has remained a resident of the county. He was married to Miss Hannah Crouse, daughter of Charles H. Crouse, in May, 1834. To them have been born fourteen children : Richard, Caroline, Hannah, Minnie, Henry, Augustus, Mary, Augusta, Ida, Robert, Morris, Gustavus, Clara and Charlotte ; of these eight are still living. Mr. and Mrs. Link are both members of the Lutheran church. Up to the time of his emigration Mr. Link worked at the wagonmakers' trade; since he has been in America he has been farming.
Jacob Klick, oldest child of Peter and Louisa Klick, was born in Bavaria, Germany, December 30, 1809, and emigrated to America January 1, 1832. He settled in Butler county, and remained until the year 1857, when he moved to Hamilton county, and has been a resident of the county ever since. The subject of our sketch has been married three times-first to Louisa Fisher, of Butler county, in the fall of 1832; the second wife, mar- ried in 1838, was Miss Martha Fetherly, of Indiana; the third wife was Margaret Hinkle, a resident of Butler county, married in the fall of 1848. Mr. Klick is the father of eleven children, five by his first and six by his last wife, Louisa: James, Amelia, Catharine, Mary A., Ella, Jacob, Laura, William H., George and Ida, all living but James, Amelia and Ella. Mrs. Klick is an earnest member in the Presbyterian church.
Philip Weller, oldest child of John W. and Elizabeth Weller, was born in Symmes township, Hamilton coun- ty, June 8, 1817, and has resided here ever since. He was married to Miss Belinde Vorhees, daughter of Al- bert Vorhees, April 1, 1840. To them have been born eleven children: Melissa, Robert E., John W., Anna E., Jane, Edwin, Mary, Perry, Frank, Cass and Florence, all living but Melissa, Anna E. and Frank. Mrs. Weller died August 18, 1862. Mr. Weller is one of the model farmers of Hamilton county. He has served one term as treasurer of Symmes township.
George Miller, child of Adam and Dora Miller, was born in Hussian, Germany, July 18, 1811, and emigrated to America, settling in Hamilton county, Ohio, in the year 1854, and has been a resident of the county ever since. He was married to Miss Mary Krebs, daughter of Peter Krebs, in May, 1839. To them have been born eight children: Henry, John, Cary, Lizzie, William, Le- na, Barney and George. But three of these are living: Lizzie, William and George. Mr. and Mrs. Miller are both members of the Evangelical Lutheran church.
Philip Sauerback, son of Philip and Anna Sauerback, was born in Germany December 12, 1827. He emi- grated to America, Hamilton county, Ohio, in the year 1856, and has been a resident of the county ever since. He was married twice-first to Elizabeth Brigner, and the second time to Mrs. Anna Lell, widow of George
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HISTORY OF HAMILTON COUNTY, OHIO.
Lell. They have two children: Mary and Christina. His first wife also had two: Frederick and Philip, all living. Philip is a resident of Newport, Kentucky; the others are all at home. Mr. Saurback is a member of the Catholic church.
Jonathan T. Martin, the sixth child and fourth son of Robert and Jane Martin was born in New York, January 4, 1818. When but a year old he was brought to this county by his parents, and has been a resident here ever since that time. Mr. Martin was married to Miss Eliza- beth Lucky, daughter of Henry and Sarah Lucky, the first of February, 1841. His wife was born in the State of New York, October 9, 1814. Their family consists of seven children: William, Henry, Robert T., John, Sarah A., George and Jane. Of these, the first four mentioned are living.
Robert Walker, the son of John and Hannah Walker, was born in this county, March 13, 1816, and has since been a resident of the same with the exception of about twenty years. March 19, 1844, he was married to Miss Elizabeth Anderson, who was born in Warren county, Ohio, February 11, 1824. To them have been born nine children: William N., Mary E., Elizabeth, Charles M., Sharlon M., Orville, Ida B., Emerson, and Sarah F., four of whom are dead. Mr. and Mrs. Walker are both earnest members of the United Brethren church, and are among its most able supporters.
Anna Enyart, daughter of Robert McCane, was mar- ried to David Enyart, November 8, 1818. Their chil- dren are Elmer, Alsina, Verlinda, Stella A., Christopher C., and one that died in early infancy before being named. All are now dead. Her husband has been dead since 1826. Mrs. Enyart is still living on the old place, and has reached the ripe age of seventy-eight years.
Nicholas Rembis, oldest child of Louis Rembis, was born in Germany, March 9, 1835, and emigrated to America, settling in Hamilton county, January 6, 1861. He was married to Miss Katie Horner, daughter of Fred- erick J. Horner, January 8, 1861. To them have been born four children: Katie, Lydia, Lizzie, and Lewis-all living and at home.
George W. Brown, son of David and Emeline Brown, was born in Symmes township, Hamilton county, on the farm where he now lives, November 14, 1826, and has remained a resident of the county ever since. He was married to Miss Martha Kynon, daughter of Andy Kyn- on, July 4, 1856. He began life a poor boy, but has now one of the finest farms in the township; has held various offices of responsibility and trust.
Joseph Jones emigrated from Pennsylvania to Hamil- ton county in the year 1791, and was still a resident of this county at the time of his death, January 22, 1815. He was married to Miss Mary Covalt, daughter of Cap- tain Abijah Covalt, in September of 1792. They had twelve children: Evan W., Isaiah, Jonathan, Sarah, Jo- seph, Nancy, Joel, Mary, Reason, Elizabeth H., Ephraim C., and Sidney. Of these only three are now living- Mary, Reason, and Elizabeth H. Mary married David Vhoris, and is a resident of Iowa. Elizabeth married William C. Wycoff and lives on the old home, and has
her brother living with her. Their children are Ada, Laurinsky, Verner E., and Clarence C. Only Ada is liv- ing. Mrs. Mary Jones died December 8, 1851, at the advanced age of seventy-nine years. Mr. and Mrs. Wy- coff and Mr. Jones are all members of the Baptist church.
Josiah Harper, son of John and Mary Harper, was born in this township, March 11, 1821, and has since re- mained a resident of the county. He was married to Miss Elizabeth Roosy, daughter of Jacob Roosy, in June 1843. She died in 1879, aged fifty-five years. He has served ten years as township trustee, the last being the year 1876. He is a member of the United Brethren church and is considered one of its best supporters. During the last few years he has been employed in farm- ing, but previous to that time worked at the blacksmith's trade.
CAMP DENNISON.
The history of this very interesting locality, as a ren- dezvous and camp of equipment for many thousands of troops during the war of the Rebellion, has been given with sufficient fullness in our chapter on the military history of Hamilton county. After the war had closed it was thought worth while to found a permanent village here, and in 1866 Camp Dennison was regularly sur- veyed and platted by Mr. E. Campbell. The Camp Dennison Building association was also incorporated April 25, 1872. A flourishing village has grown up here. It is situated below Miamiville, in the northwest part of section nineteen, on the Cincinnati & Wooster turnpike and the Little Miami railroad and river.
This village had two hundred and ninety-two inhabi- tants by the census of 1880.
ALLANDALE.
Three miles west of Camp Dennison, almost in the extreme southwest corner of the township, on the Mari- etta & Cincinnati railroad, is the station and hamlet of Allandale. We do not learn that it has ever been platted.
GLENWOOD
is another station on the Marietta & Cincinnati, about at the centre of section thirty-two, a mile and a quarter northeast of Allandale. It likewise has no regular sur- vey and plat.
REMINGTON
is a small village at the terminus of the roads from Mont- gomery to the railroad and river, a mile east of north from Glenwood, and with
MONTGOMERY STATION
in its immediate vicinity.
SYMMES STATION.
This was formerly called Polktown, and is much the oldest village in the township. It was laid off May 6, 1817, by James Pollock, who was the first settler in this region, having bought his land here, several hundred acres, of Judge Symmes in 1795. The first regular grist- mill established on the Little Miami-Elliott's, or "the company's" mill-was situated here, not far from the site of the present mill. The village, in the early days, as a point of rendezvous for travellers, adventurers, and
.
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HISTORY OF HAMILTON COUNTY, OHIO.
the settlers from far and near, was a place of much greater relative importance than now. The trail of the Indians, through the wilderness between Columbia and Chillicothe, crossed near it at the Three Islands. Now the splendid iron bridge before mentioned spans the Little Miami between this place and Branch Hill. A pond of considerable size along the river in this vicinity was formerly called the Symmes' fishing ground. On the other side of the stream, a short distance above Branch Hill, are the Cincinnati camp-meeting grounds of the Methodist Episcopal church. They occupy a beautiful woodland tract, near the Little Miami railroad, on an eminence overlooking the river and valley, with an easy ascent and otherwise well adapted to its present purposes. The grounds are owned by a Methodist as- sociation in the city, and are highly improved. The railroad gives them a special station in camp-meeting times.
Branch Hill is considerably used as a place of subur- ban residence, and it was here, near his home, that the very able editor of the Cincinnati Enquirer, Mr. G. M. D. Bloss, met his death by a railway train striking him, on the twenty-seventh of May, 1876.
Symmes station is on the Marietta & Cincinnati rail- road, about midway between, or two and a half miles from Loveland and Remington. It has a good public school and a Methodist Episcopal church.
WEST LOVELAND
is virtually an addition to the village of Loveland, the latter on the Clermont, the former on the Hamilton county side. Most of the population, and all of the public institutions, are on the Clermont side. The Ham- ilton side covers but fifty-eight acres, and had a popula- tion in 1880 of one hundred and ninety-seven.
SYCAMORE CHURCH
is an old locality still marked on the county maps, on the Montgomery road, about four miles northeast of that
village, and two and one-half miles northwest of Symmes station, in this township. A Presbyterian church was organized here very early, sometime before October, 1801, when the Rev. James Kemper was giving one-third of his preaching services to it. A year from that time he was appointed by the presbytery to give his whole time to this and the Duck creek (now Pleasant Ridge) churches for one year. This appointment was renewed in October, 1803, when the name Sycamore was changed to Hopewell. He was invited to the pastorate of the two churches at the expiration of this year, and was installed in the Hopewell church April 4, 1805, the Rev. David Rice, his old Kentucky tutor in theology, preaching the installation sermon. In April, 1807, Mr. Kemper ap- plied for a dissolution of the pastoral relation, against the remonstrance of his people, who declared their finan- cial ability and desire to retain him. He was, however, released from the pastorate in October, and served as stated supply for six months, after which he went into Kentucky and labored there for a season. He was suc- ceeded at Sycamore (or Hopewell), by the Rev. Daniel Hayden, who was ordained and installed at the Duck Creek church, November 17, 1810. He served the Hopewell church until April 8, 1819, and the other so- ciety from that time till his death, August 27, 1835. Some further notice of him has been given in the history of Columbia township.
Governor Jeremiah Morrow, whose home was a few miles north of Sycamore church, was buried in the old cemetery here.
POPULATION.
Symmes township has grown in population rather slow- ly. It had one thousand, one hundred and fifty-eight inhabitants in 1830; but two hundred and nineteen more, or one thousand three hundred and seventy-seven in 1870; and four hundred and fifty-eight more, or one thousand six hundred and twenty six, the tenth census, or that of 1880.
WHITEWATER.
ORGANIZATION AND DESCRIPTION.
There was need of a township in that part of Hamil- ton county which lies west of the Great Miami, later than in any other portion of the county similarly large. For more than twelve years after the Miami Purchase and the Virginia Military district were open to settlement, and while they were being filled with a busy population, the fertile tracts beyond this river were still withheld from sale and settlement, and only "squatters" could venture upon it. At length, in 1799 and 1800, the official sur-
veys were made under direction of Government, chiefly by Vantrees-how carelessly, too, in places, has appeared in our history of Crosby township-but still not until April 1, 1801, could a rood of the land for which some of the pioneers were watching and waiting at the east- ward, and others already upon its soil, be purchased and improved. The land sales then occurring in Cincinnati, and for many years thereafter, at the Federal land office, gave the desired opportunity, and settlers flocked to the rich bottoms of the Great Miami and the Whitewater.
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HISTORY OF HAMILTON COUNTY, OHIO.
By 1803, when the general reconstruction of the old and the creation of the new townships occurred, it was thought well to provide such a municipality for the Con- gressional division of the territory of Hamilton; and the township of Whitewater was set off, "to include all that part of Hamilton county west of the Great Miami river." The voters thereof were instructed to meet at the house of John Benefield, and elect three justices of the peace.
This was, like most of the early townships, a large one. It comprised the entire tract now occupied by White- water, Crosby, and Harrison townships, and covering not less than sixty square miles. Soon, however, in 1804, it was deemed advisable to subdivide the little State, and the township of Crosby was formed, to include the five northernmost tiers of sections, and so something more than half the former territory of Whitewater. This ar- rangement endured for half a century, when, with the dense settlement of the country, and especially the growth of Harrison village, a further subdivision was called for, and, in 1853, the township of Harrison was formed, to include, as we have seen, a tract of three sec- tions wide by six sections long, or eighteen sections in all. Whitewater was cut into by the amount of the three southernmost sections, and compensation was given in almost the same amount by taking sections twenty-five, twenty-six, and twenty-seven, from the southern part of Crosby, and making them the northern tier of sections in Whitewater, thus keeping the territory of the latter pretty nearly intact, as regards quantity.
Whitewater lies in range one of township one,and range one of township three, with a fractional section (thirty- one) belonging to range two, township two and three other bits of sections along the Great Miami belonging to other ranges or townships. It includes nineteen full and fourteen fractional sections, or fourteen thousand three hundred and twenty square acres. It is bounded on the west by Dearborn county, Indiana, and for the breadth of two miles at the northward by Harrison township, Hamilton county, on the north by Harrison and Crosby townships ; on the east and south by the Great Miami, beyond which lie the townships of Colerain and Miami. The township does not touch the Ohio river, although it approaches within a mile of it, at the lower part of Guard's island. The Great Miami has an exceedingly tortuous course along the front of this township, requir- ing about sixteen miles for its course, while the air-line distance between the point where it first touches the township and that where it makes its exit, is but ten and one-half miles. This is the extreme diagonal of the township ; its greatest length is six and one-half miles, being on its western line; its greatest width the same, on a line of latitude passing a little below Miamitown, from that deviating to a point at the southwest corner. The Whitewater river comes in from Harrison township, on the western side of section five, and flows in a southerly course four and one-half miles, reaching the Great Miami near the southeast corner of section twenty. Nearly two miles from its entrance it receives the waters of the Dry fork of Whitewater, which enters at the south- east corner of Harrison township, flows southward in a
crooked course two miles, then westward two miles to the Whitewater. Another, but smaller tributary, head- ing in the border of Indiana, intersects sections eighteen, seventeen and twenty, and reaches the Whitewater near the railroad crossing. Two or three very pretty tribu- taries also enter the Great Miami from the side of this township. From time to time this river has changed its bed in the flow of the ages, and old channels are plainly to be seen, especially in the lower part of its course, as that south of Elizabethtown. The streams are generally well bridged at the desirable points ; and the White- water, at a point on the road from Elizabethtown north- eastward, has the finest suspension bridge, exclusively be- longing to this county. A notable pioneer ferry was kept across the Great Miami, a short distance from Cleves. A mile from the mouth of this stream, at the extreme southwestern corner of the township, about half a section of land is isolated by an irregular arc of water connecting at each end with the river, and probably one of its oldest channels-which takes the name Guard's island, from the old Guard family of pioneers. From this northeast and north for several miles the island is low, and part of it much subject to inundations. It is very fertile, however, some of it yielding, after more than two generations of culture, its hundred bushels of corn per acre with tolerable regularity. In the north of the township some of the characteristic hills of Hamilton county appear.
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