USA > Ohio > Huron County > History of Huron County, Ohio, Its Progress and Development, Volume II > Part 41
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MR. AND MRS. E. BIGELOW
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They also have a very extensive trade in northern Ohio and the indications are that the business will constantly increase for it is founded upon a safe, substantial basis and because of its owner's broad experience and keen discernment.
E. O. Biglow, the junior partner, is an only child. He acquired a good pre- liminary education and then attended Baldwin College at Berea, Ohio, after which he joined his father in business. He is energetic, wide-a-wake, alert and enterprising and both he and his father, are popular with their employes, of whom their treatment is ever just and fair.
E. O. Biglow was married in 1899, to Miss Ida King, a daughter of Dr. King, of New London. They have three children, Irena, Ernestine and James Otis.
E. O. Biglow is a thirty-second degree Mason, having thus attained high rank in the Scottish Rite. While devoting their energies largely to their busi- ness interests, which are continually growing in volume and importance, the Biglows, father and son, take an active part in public affairs and have always given earnest support to those independent office seekers whose course seems to promise loyal and valuable service rather than strict party allegiance. They are men of high ideals in relation to public life and also in their business connections. They have never regarded their employes as a part of a system of machinery or business, but have looked upon them as individuals whose co-operations, assist- ance and good will can be won and maintained through just treatment and ap- preciation of reliable service. All who know of their business prophesy for it a successful future and prosperity is well deserved by them for both, father and son are genial, unassuming men of true worth and with good business ability.
THE W. H. GARDNER GRAIN & MILL COMPANY.
The W. H. Gardner Grain & Mill Company, of Bellevue, Ohio, is an enter- prising concern that has put three brands of flour upon the market: Roller King, patented ; Electric Light, a straight flour ; and White Rose, which is a first clear. W. H. Houle is the president of this concern; W. H. Gardner the vice-president and general manager ; and E. F. Lienhard, the secretary and treasurer. These men, with the addition of George Busch and D. Calhoun, also constitute the board of directors. The mill which they started and maintain has a capacity of three hundred barrels daily and employs a force of twenty-five hands. Since its organi- zation the company has made good its claim to existence, and gives promise of continuing success in the future.
W. H. Gardner, the general manager, was born in Wayne county, Ohio, No- vember 22, 1850, a son of Joseph and Sarah (Slanker) Gardner. His father was born in 1826 and died in 1854. He was a carpenter by trade and was the father of three children : one who died in infancy ; C. D., of Canton, Ohio; and W. H. The mother, who was born three years after her husband, is still living at the advanced age of eighty. W. H. Gardner lived in Wayne county until 1869, at- tending the public schools there and learning the milling business. At the age of seventeen he had his first experience as a miller, when he was put in charge of
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a small mill at Burton City, Wayne county. From there he went, m 1869, to Olney, Illinois, where he was connected with the mill business. A year sufficed to prove to him that Wayne county, Ohio, was more to his liking, so he returned to Wooster, where he worked in the Brick Mill. In the spring of 1875 he went to Pittsburg, where he continued at his trade. After two years, he came to Bellevue, where he was in the employ of Higby & Company, until his marriage in 1889, when he located on his father-in-law's farm in Seneca county, Ohio. For four years he lived there, following farming, after which he returned to Bellevue and bought a fourth interest in the mill with which he is still connected, paying thirty- five hundred dollars for his share. This was on the 7th of January, 1890, and his partners were William Mclaughlin, W. H. Kern and W. P. Collins. The undertaking did not win its expected success, and Mr. Gardner, realizing that he had lost five thousand dollars in one year severed his connection with the com- pany, in November, 1891. Thereupon he entered in the grain business with W. H. Kern on the Wheeling railroad, under the firm name of Kern & Gardner, con- ducting their operations from the cars. Later on they built an elevator on the railroad and leased another at Parkertown. As the business prospered they built one at Flat Rock and another at Omar, south of Bellevue. In 1897 Mr. Gardner purchased Mr. Kern's interest and sold a quarter interest in the business to Mrs. Addie S. Heimbach and another quarter to E. F. Lienhard. The firm then be- came known as W. H. Gardner & Company. In March, 1904, a stock company ยท was formed and incorporated under the laws of Ohio as the W. H. Gardner Grain Company, with a capital stock of seventy-five thousand dollars. In June, 1904, the corporation bought out the Bellevue Grain Company which owned elevators at Bellevue and Colby. In April, 1905, the company obtained possession of the Mclaughlin & Biebuiher elevator at Franks, at the same time increasing their capital stock to one hundred thousand dollars and changing the style of the cor- poration to The W. H. Gardner Grain & Mill Company. In June, 1909, they leased the mills at Norwalk, known as the Globe Mills, which they are rebuilding and installing with the latest and best machinery, the demand for Roller King flour being so great that it was necessary to increase the facilities to take care of the demand. Mr. Gardner is a man of pronounced business ability and the suc- cess of the firm is due in no small measure to his efforts. On the 24th of Feb- > ruary, 1880, he was united in marriage to Miss Helen Alice Currin, a daughter of George and Harriet Currin, and they have become the parents of one daughter, E. Gertrude, who was born December 26, 1883.
Emil F. Lienhard, the secretary and treasurer of the company, was born in Zurich, Switzerland, January 16, 1862, a son of Heinrich and Rosina Lienhard. The father was born in 1832 and died in his forty-first year but the mother, on the other hand, is still living at the advanced age of eighty-eight. There were five children born to this couple: Rosina; Louisa, deceased ; Heinrich ; Emil F .; and Carl, who died in 1873-the year of his father's death. Emil F. Lienhard attended the schools of Switzerland and after completing his education traveled throughout the principal countries of Europe. At the age of twenty he came to the United States, desiring to enter the regular army, but as he was unable at that time to speak English he was refused. His purpose was not changed, however, and after spending a year in working in Philadelphia, he acquired the requisite knowledge
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of the language and in 1882 was enlisted as a soldier. At a large number of west- ern posts he served with honor, and on August 21, 1893. was discharged. During the World's Fair at Chicago, he was employed as correspondent and in the secret service with the Columbian Guards. When the Fair closed he came to Wayne county, Ohio, where he lived with his wife's parents. On the 16th of October, 1894, he can e to Bellevue, entering the employ of Kern & Gardner. His services proved of such worth that when the present company was organized he was asked to assume the duties of secretary and treasurer. On the Ist of September, 1893, Mr. Lienhard was united in marriage to Miss Alta A. Smith, a daughter of Na- than W. and Rebecca Smith, of Wayne county. One child, Grace R., has been born to them. Fraternally Mr. Lienhard has relations with the Masons. He is also a member of the German Aid Society and belongs to the Association of Cleveland Commercial Travelers. In religious matters he gives his adherence to the Lutheran church and is both a good churchman and a Christian. In the com- pany of which he is secretary and treasurer he is also a stockholder, and his coun- sel, that of a responsible man of business, is always asked in matters of import- ance affecting the welfare of the company.
STEPHEN M. YOUNG.
Stephen M. Young, a representative of the Norwalk bar since 1878, has dis- played in his practice in the courts an ability which has gained him a large client- age and connected him with much of the important litigation tried in the courts of the district. With a keenly analytical mind and laudable ambition to attain suc- cess, he has worked diligently and persistently for the enviable position which he now occupies.
A native of Mansfield, Ohio, he was born March 27, 1848, and is a son of Downing H. and Angeline (Marvin) Young. On the paternal side he comes of Scotch-Irish ancestry, while in the maternal line he is of French and Holland Dutch ancestry. His mother was a lady of notable refinement and liberal educa- tion. The father, Downing H. Young, was a native of Virginia, and removing westward to Richland county, Ohio, there met and married his wife. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in Mansfield, practiced there until 1857, when he removed to Toledo, where he continued successfully in the practice of law for about four years. He next came to Huron county and for forty-five years was one of the honored representatives of the bar of Norwalk and county. In his family were eleven children, of whom Stephen M. was the eighth in order of birth. Four sons of the family were soldiers in the Federal army in the Civil war and A. J. Young died at Danville, Kentucky, while defending the interests of the Union. Another brother, Henry, was mortally wounded at Stone River, Tenn- essee, December 31, 1862, and died on the 3d of January, 1863. Samuel Young served throughout the entire war uninjured but died in 1868, from disease con- tracted in the service and Howard Young was also at the front through the period of hostilities and was never wounded. Daniel and George Marvin, uncles of our subject, in the maternal line, were also enlisted soldiers of the Union army and
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were wounded, while J. B. Howard, the husband of his sister, died in Ander- sonville prison.
When a mere boy Stephen M. Young went to Toledo, Ohio, where he remained until 1860 and then became a resident of New Haven, Huron county. His educa- tion was acquired in the schools of Mansfield, Toledo and New Haven prior to entering Oberlin College, where he obtained his more specificially literary educa- tion. In 1867 he engaged in teaching school in Crawford county, Ohio, and sub- sequently became assistant in the public schools of Cincinnati, but on account of his health he abandoned that profession and turned his attention to insurance, representing the Merchants Insurance Company of Chicago at Shelby, Ohio. Later he was with the Underwriters Association of Philadelphia. All this time he devoted every possible moment to the study of law and after mastering many of the principles of jurisprudence was admitted to the bar at Columbus in 1873. He first located for practice in Plymouth, Richland county, but after a brief pe- riod there passed removed to Bucyrus, Ohio, where he commenced practice in May, 1875. In October, 1878, he came to Norwalk and has since been numbered among the leading representatives of the Huron county bar. His practice is ex- tensive and of an important character. He is remarkable among lawyers for the wide research and provident care with which he prepares his cases. At no time has his reading ever been confined to the limitations of the questions at issue. It has gone beyond and compassed every contingency and his legal learning, analy- tical mind, and the readiness with which he grasps the points in an argument, all combine to make him one of the leading lawyers of the Huron county bar.
On the 29th of July, 1877, Mr. Young was married to Miss Isabella Wag- ner, and unto them have been born five children, Walburga, Henry, Don John, Stephen Marvin, Jr., and Isabella Wagner.
In his political views Mr. Young is independent formerly affiliated with the republicans but now with the democratic party. He is conversant with the lead- ing questions and issues "of the day but without political aspiration for himself. His fraternal relations are with the Masons and the Knights of Pythias. Without invidious distinction he may be termed one of the foremost men of Norwalk, standing for all that is progressive in citizenship and commendable in public and private life. A man of forceful character, he has left and is leaving the impress of his individuality upon the community.
FRANK CAMPBELL.
Frank Campbell is a representative of one of the old pioneer families of Huron county, where he has spent his entire life, so that he has witnessed much. of the growth and development of this section of the state. His memory goes back to the time when all of the evidences of frontier life were here found; when the prairies were wild and uncultivated ; when the forests were uncut ; the streams unbridged ; and when deer and other wild animals roamed over the country- side.
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He is now the owner of a highly improved and valuable tract of land of two hundred and seventy-six acres in Greenfield township, where he has made his home from his birth to the present time. He was born in one of the log cabins characteristic of those early times, his natal day being February 6, 1835. His parents were Lorenzo Q. and Betsy (Mather) Campbell, the former a native of Genoa, Cayuga county, New York, while the latter's birth occurred in Green- field township, this county. About the year 1826, Hugh Argyle and Margaret (Mather) Campbell, the paternal grandparents, took up their abode in a log house on the farm where our subject now resides. The grandfather was named in honor of the Duke of Argyle of Scotland. On his arrival in this county, he purchased a farm of two hundred acres and, as only a half acre of the entire tract had been cleared, he set himself resolutely to the task of cutting down the trees and preparing the land for cultivation. He underwent many of the hardships and privations incident to the life of the early scttler. There were no roads and he often went through the woods on horseback to Monroeville, following the blazed trail. After a time, his little cabin home was replaced by a substantial frame resi- dence, which he erected. He served as deacon in the Presbyterian church at Steuben, Ohio, which he had assisted in erecting and of which he was a valued and prominent member. His demise occurred in 1854 and the county thus lost one of its most respected and worthy pioneer settlers, whose labors had con- tributed in substantial measure to the early development and upbuilding of this section of the state.
Lorenzo Q. Campbell, the father of Frank Campbell, was born in 1817 and was therefore a little lad of nine years, when he came to Huron county with his parents. The remainder of his life was spent in Greenfield township, this county, and he devoted his time and energies to general agricultural pursuits, in which he met with a most gratifying and creditable measure of success. He extended the boundaries of the home farm by additional purchase until it embraced two hundred and seventy-six acres of land and in 1861, built the commodious and at- tractive brick residence in which his son Frank now resides. He was highly es- teemed throughout the community and his fellow townsmen, recognizing his worth and ability, called him to various positions of public trust. He was a republican in his political views and held all of the township offices, including those of constable and justice of the peace. His death, which occurred in 1894, was the occasion of deep and widespread regret, for he had gained an extensive circle of warm friends in this county during the long years of his residence here. His wife, who passed away when her son Frank was but two years of age, was a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Horace Mather, likewise early settlers of this county. Both lie buried in the cemetery at Steuben. Mr. Campbell of this review had but one sister, Sitire, who is now deceased. She was twice married and both her husbands, John H. Easter and Jesse Snyder, have also passed away.
Frank Campbell began his education in a little log schoolhouse, later attended the district school, afterward further supplemented his education by a course in the Normal school at Milan and then for two terms pursued his studies in Hills- dale College at Hillsdale, Michigan. On putting aside his text-books, lte turned his attention to general agricultural pursuits, with which line of activity he has been identified to the present time. He owns the old homestead farm which his
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grandfather purchased on his arrival in this county and which has now been in possession of the family for eighty-three years, and as the years have gone by he has brought the fields under a high state of cultivation and improvements, an- nually gathering golden harvests which find a ready sale on the market.
On the 26th of September, 1860, Mr. Campbell was united in marriage to Miss Martha J. Shourds, a daughter of Daniel and Mehitabel (Sears) Shourds, who made their way from the state of New York to Greenfield township, this county, when Mrs. Campbell was a little maiden of seven years. Both Mr. and Mrs. Shourds passed away in Greenfield township. They reared a family of eight children, namely : E. H. and Chester, both of whom are now deceased; Charlotte ; John G., Ruth and Joseph, who have likewise been called to their final rest ; Jes- sie ; and Mrs. Campbell. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Campbell, was born a daughter, Dell, who is now the wife of R. B. Fisher, an attorney of Sandusky, Ohio.
Since age conferred upon him the right of franchise, Mr. Campbell has given his political allegiance to the republican party and is now serving for the second term as justice of the peace in Greenfield township, while for four years, he acted as constable and has also been a member of the school board. He is a prominent member of the Congregational church at Steuben and has served in various official capacities therein. Throughout his entire life, or for almost three-fourths of a century, he has made his home in Huron county and therefore few men have more intimate knowledge of its history or of events which have left their impress upon its annals. He is one of the best known and most highly respected citizens in the community and, by reason of his upright and honorable life, well merits the kindly regard and esteem which are uniformly accorded him.
HUSTED EUGENE REED.
Husted Eugene Reed is engaged in the poultry business on a farm of seventeen acres, located in Fairfield township, Huron county, and in this connection has be- come well known in this section of the state. He is a native son of this township, born September 2, 1846, of the marriage of Shadrock Hoyt and Sally (Roscoe) Reed, the former born in Connecticut, November 19, 1809, and the latter in White Plains, New York, October 10, 1811. Their family numbered four sons and one daughter, namely : David H., Clarissa, Charles E., Aranson S. and Husted E.
The last named was reared under the parental roof until he attained mature years and at the age of twenty-four years established a home of his own by his marriage in 1870 to Miss Ella Holloway, who was born January 29, 1849, a daughter of F. M. and Sibyl (Bassett) Holloway, natives of New York, but later they became residents of Hillsdale county, Michigan. Mr. Holloway became a very prominent man in political circles and for many years filled positions of trust and responsibility, while in 1880 he was candidate for governor on the demo- cratic ticket. Mr. and Mrs. Holloway had four children, George A., Leroy F., ! Cyrus C. and Mrs. Reed.
Following his marriage Mr. Reed settled in Hillsdale, Michigan, where he engaged in farming and in teaching, following the latter profession for about
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ten years, part of the time being spent in Ohio. In 1877 he returned to Huron, his native county, and with the exception of two years spent in the city of Cleve- land, has resided in the county to the present time, while since 1897 he has made his home in Fairfield township. For the past five years he has been engaged in the poultry business, owning a farm of seventeen acres, which he devotes to those interests. He makes a specialty of Barred Rock chickens and finds a ready sale on the market, where he demands good prices for the products of his farm.
Unto Mr. and Mrs. Reed have been born three sons and three daughters : Jennie H .; Clara, the wife of George Page; Sibyl, the wife of Paul R. Lehmann ; Ralph, who wedded Mabel Rice; Fred, who is in the service of the navy; and Kent, who has departed this life.
Mr. Reed has served as township trustee and as a member of the school board and his religious faith is indicated by his membership in the Disciples church. He is a public-spirited citizen whom the people of Huron county look upon as an exemplary man and they are proud to call him their own.
GEORGE W. RITZ.
George W. Ritz is the owner of one hundred acres of very valuable farming land in Richmond township and his wife owns fifty acres more in the same town- ship, where they make their home. Mr. Ritz was born in Erie county, Ohio, Sep- tember 29, 1847, being a son of Fred William and Anna Catherine (Friermuth) Ritz, who belong to that class of worthy citzens that Germany has furnished the United States that are welcomed everywhere on account of their sterling traits of character. They were born in Germany, and Fred William Ritz was twenty- one when he came to the new world, while his wife was but six years old. The father escaped service in the army in his native land, not drawing a fatal number. and so he emigrated. Upon coming here, he located in Huron county, Ohio, and for the remainder of his life was a farmer, although he was a weaver by trade. The children born to him and his wife were as follows: George W., the eldest ; Catherine, who married George Litts and lives in Norwich township; Mary, the widow of William Resh and a resident of Chicago, Ohio; Caroline, who married Morgan Clark and lives at Attica, Ohio; John and Elizabeth, who were twins. Elizabeth married George Wolfe, and they live in Richmond township.
Until he was seventeen years old. George W. Ritz attended the district schools of his neighborhood, and then began farming and has been engaged in that work ever since. He has lived in Huron county from the age of three years old, and remembers distinctly when the farm was all timber land, and he helped his father clear it off. Mr. Ritz was married December 31, 1871, to Mary Ann Resh, a daughter of Henry and Mary Resh. She had a brother Henry, and a sister Catherine, who married Wesley Sparks. By this marriage, Mr. Ritz had the fol- lowing children: William H., who is the present township clerk of Richmond township ; Carrie E., who married Perl Wurtz and lives in Norwich township; George Edward; John ; Albert ; and Gustavus. The wife and mother died in 1882.
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On July 6, 1884, Mr. Ritz married Johannah Kleinknecht, a daughter of Jacob and Mary Kleinknecht, natives of Peru township, who had a family as follows: Carrie, who married Abraham Stahl and lives in New Haven township; Louise Barbara, who is deceased; Elmer ; Greves; John; Frank ; Wilhelmina ; William, who is deceased; and Amelia. The children born of the second marriage of George W. Ritz are: Charles, Jacob, Louise, Amelia, Walter and Fred.
Mr. Ritz has served as road supervisor and as school director, being elected on the democratic ticket. He and his wife belong to the Lutheran church and are interested in its good work. He is a man of considerable energy and has in- herited from his German parents those habits of industry, thrift and economy which make for success.
JAY WASHBURN.
Jay Washburn, one of the leading farmers of Greenwich township, was born April 14, 1852, on the old homestead where he now resides, being a son of Henry G. and Ann Maria (Van Benschoten) Washburn, of whom extended mention is made in the sketch of his brother, Daniel S. Washburn. Our subject acquired his early education in the district schools of Greenwich township and later attended the normal at Milan, Ohio. He grew to manhood upon his father's farm, early becoming familiar with the duties which fall to the lot of the agriculturist, assist- ing in the general farm work and also in the care of the extensive stock which his father raised.
On the 21st of June, 1873, Mr. Washburn was united in marriage to Miss Mary Brady, a daughter of David and Pamelia ( Franklin) Brady, who were formerly from New York and came to Ohio in 1849. Although Mr. Brady fol- lowed farming in this state he liad studied dentistry in his younger years and for many years practiced that profession to some extent in his own neighborhood. He was also an ingenius mechanic along many lines. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Wash- burn were born five children, two of whom died in infancy, the others being: Howard, Myrtle and Etta. The daughters are still at home but the son was mar- ried September 9, 1905, to Miss Bertha Sutliff, of Greenwich township, by whom he has two children, Walter J. H. and Grace. Howard Washburn is now engaged in farming on the home place and is a natural mechanic of considerable ability.
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