USA > Ohio > Mercer County > History of Mercer County, Ohio, and representative citizens > Part 31
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Edward W. Bertke was reared on his father's farm in German township, Auglaize County, and has always been engaged in farming. Prior to his marriage he rented his father's farm in Franklin township for two years, at the end of which time he purchased it, and has been engaged in operating it ever since. Mr. Bertke was united in marriage to Sophia Neddermann, daughter of William and Minnie (Nemeyer) Neddermann, and they have two children: Emma, born March 26, 1901, and Ada, born September 14, 1902. The parents of Mrs. Bertke were both born and reared in German township, Auglaize County, Ohio. They had seven children, as follows : Sophia, born July 19, 1877; William, who married Flora Witte; Elizabeth, who married John Bertke, a brother of Edward W .; and Fred, Leo, Lafe and Edward, all of whom are living on the home farm in German township. Mr. and Mrs. Bertke are members of the Lutheran Church at New Bremen.
ISAAC NEWTON KEYSER
ISAAC NEWTON KEYSER, an enterprising farmer of Center township, well known throughout the county, was born June 8, 1849, in this township on a farm adjoining his present farm on the west. He is a son of Jesse and Martha (Yost) Keyser, and a grandson of Jacob and Rebecca Keyser, of Penn- sylvania.
Jesse Keyser was born in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. He later moved to Miami County, Ohio, and in 1837 located in Mercer County, being the first of the Keyser family to locate in this county. He bought and cleared a tract of land and built a round-log cabin, later building a cabin of hewed logs. In time the latter was replaced by a frame house and this in turn by a brick residence. He died August 29, 1895, aged 79 years, 2 months and 13 days. Jesse Keyser's wife, Martha Yost, was a native of Pennsylvania and a daughter of Eli and Susan (Hendricks) Yost. She died September II, 1892, aged 73 years and 13 days. Nine children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Keyser, namely: Audora, Samaria, Sarah, Frances and Josiah (twins), Susan, Isaac Newton (our subject), Amanda and Celina. Audora married Daniel Fast and with him moved to Nebraska, where her death occurred. Samaria, deceased, was the wife of J. C. Journey, now a resident of Page County, Iowa. Sarah married J. G. Fast and lives at Rockford. Frances married Philip Fast, of Center township. Josiah, whose death occurred July 7, 1895, at the age of 51 years, 3 months and 2 days, was married in 1865 to Margaret Wright, to which union seven children were born; his widow is now a resident of Indianapolis, Indiana. Susan, who lives at Danville, Illinois, is
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the widow of W. M. Wright. Amanda married R. G. Baker and lives at Celina. Celina, who married Silas Harner, died January 7, 1893.
Isaac N. Keyser was reared on his father's farm in Center township and was engaged in farming the place for his father until after the death of the latter. For the past 10 years he has been on his present 120-acre farm, which he owns and has followed general farming and stock-raising. He also fol- lowed the trade of plasterer for some time, while still carrying on his agri- cultural operations. He built his present residence-a fine eight-room brick house, the main part being 16 by 34 feet in dimensions, while the two wings are 15 by 18 feet and 16 by 16 feet in size, respectively.
Mr. Keyser was married December 3, 1871, to Jennie Welch, a native of Kentucky and a daughter of John and Catherine Welch, both natives of Ire- land. To this union have been born five children, as follows: Eva, living in Center township three miles northeast of her father's place, who married Isaac Snavely and has three children-Stephen, Glenn and an infant; Myrtle, living at Chicago, Illinois, who is the wife of Walter Stanbery and the mother of one child, Kenneth; Kintz, who married William Roebuck and is now living at Fort Wayne, Indiana; and Elza and Bonnie, who live at home with their parents.
Mr. Keyser is a Democrat and active in local affairs. He has served as supervisor, was township trustee for 15 years and was a member of the School Board for 18 years. For six years he served on the Board of Infirmary Di- rectors. The Town Hall at Mendon, built jointly by the township and Men- don village, and the new public school building at Mendon were erected while he was township trustee and a member of the School Board. Although there was a hard fight to get these buildings, they are a credit to the community and the people are now proud of them.
SYLVESTER H. WEAVER
SYLVESTER H. WEAVER, the capable superintendent of the Mercer County Infirmary, has been a resident of Mercer County for the past 30 years. He was born in Fairfield County, Ohio, August 18, 1849, and is a son of Daniel and Elizabeth (Crider) Weaver.
Daniel Weaver was also born in Fairfield County, but later removed to Mercer County and resides on a farm in Hopewell township. He is the father of 10 children, a number of whom are settled in this part of Ohio.
Sylvester H. Weaver was reared in Fairfield County and obtained his education in the district schools in the neighborhood of his home. Instead of becoming a farmer, he turned his attention to carpentering and followed his
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trade both in Fairfield and Mercer counties for 37 years, up to 1903, when he was appointed to the office of superintendent of the Infirmary. During the three years of his incumbency, Mr. Weaver has given excellent satisfaction and the affairs at the county farm were never in better shape. He has proven himself a capable executive officer and a kind, humane man.
Mr. Weaver married Anna Wagner, a daughter of Jacob Wagner, of Fairfield County, and they have six children, as follows: Charles A., a resi- dent of Hopewell township, who married Cora Hainline and has one child, Myrtle; Irena May, who married Hiley Hinton, a farmer of Union township, and has one child, Sylvester Roy; Clara E., who married John Klinger, of Celina, and has one child, Lela Blanch; Bertha Belle, who married Albert Johnson and resides at Celina; and Lettie Elnora and Grace Almina. Po- litically, Mr. Weaver is affiliated with the Democratic party.
ARLINGTON STEPHENSON, M. D.
ARLINGTON STEPHENSON, M. D., a medical practitioner of Celina, was born at Syracuse, New York, September II, 1853, and is a son of Thomas and Sarah (Wilson) Stephenson. Thomas Stephenson was born in Sussex, England, and died at Syracuse, New York, where he had been engaged in a mercantile business. After his death his widow and son made their home at Cincinnati, Ohio.
After completing the public school course at Syracuse, Arlington Ste- phenson entered Syracuse University, where he was graduated in the literary department, becoming well grounded in the French and German languages. This assisted him when he entered the medical department of Tübingen Uni- versity, in the principality of Würtemberg, Germany, where he remained two years. Upon his return to the United States, he spent one year in the medical department of the University of Michigan, and one year in the Cincinnati College of Medicine and Surgery, graduating from the latter institution. Dr. Stephenson entered into practice at Rochester, New York, in 1882, but one year later came to Mercer County, and located at Fort Recovery, where he won an enviable reputation as a physician and surgeon and enjoyed a remun- erative practice throughout the county, which continued uninterrupted until 1905. During two years of this time he conducted a private sanitarium. Upon leaving Fort Recovery he went to San Francisco, California, where he estab- lished a private sanitarium for the treatment of nervous diseases. It was equipped with Swedish movement and electric appliances and Turkish baths, which enabled him to employ the latest and most approved methods of treat- ment. In a few months his reputation was firmly established, but the great
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earthquake of April 18, 1906, destroyed his sanitarium and endangered the lives of himself and wife. For several days after the disaster, Dr. Stephenson and wife lived in Golden Gate Park, with hundreds of thousands of others, who had also lost their homes. During this period Dr. Stephenson devoted his attention to emergency work, doing what he could to alleviate the pain and distress of the injured and suffering. As soon as it was possible, he returned to Mercer County, to resume practice among his friends of many years stand- ing, locating at Celina. In his office here he has already installed a fine elec- trical outfit, a microscope of exceptional quality for use in diagnosis, a neb- ulizing outfit for treatment of lung and throat diseases, and an electric light bath cabinet.
In 1876 Dr. Stephenson married Ella Taylor, a native of Kentucky, and a daughter of Dr. M. and Lydia J. (Draper) Taylor, the former a surgeon in the Union Army, in the late Civil War. Dr. Taylor died in March, 1906, but his widow survives and is now residing in Portsmouth, Ohio. Six chil- dren have been born to Dr. and Mrs. Stephenson, three of whom are still liv- ing, namely : Maude, who is a piano instructor in the Radnor Female College at Nashville, Tennessee; Vinnie, who is a nurse in a public hospital at Cin- cinnati; and Arlie, who is a violinist by profession and leads an orchestra at Oakland, California. Two children died during infancy, and a son, Martin, died at the age of 18 years.
Dr. Stephenson is a Republican in politics. He is a member of the Catholic Church. Professionally he is identified with the Northwestern Ohio and American Medical associations.
JOHN SNAVELY
JOHN SNAVELY, who is probably one of the most venerable citizens of Liberty township, has been identified with its most important interests for more than 30 years and stands as a fair representative of its best citizenship. Mr. Snavely was born in Wayne County, Ohio, January 1, 1826, and is a son of George and Eliza (Wireman) Snavely.
The Snavely family is of German extraction and it is a numerous and substantial one in Pennsylvania, where our subject's parents were born. The birthplace of the mother was near Gettysburg, the scene of one of the greatest battles of the Civil War.
Mr. Snavely remained in Wayne County, Ohio, until he was 14 years of age and then went to Shippensburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, where he was emploved in the store of John Gish, with whom he remained several years. Later he was employed in boating on the Miami and Erie Canal, in
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Ohio and Indiana. In July, 1863, Mr. Snavely entered the Union Army, en- listing in Company K, 88th Reg., Ohio Vol. Inf., which became a part of the 14th Army Corps, Army of the Cumberland. He was honorably discharged. July 3, 1865. During the greater part of this time he was detailed as commis- sary to the general hospital, at Camp Chase, Columbus, and performed his duties in this position just as faithfully and honorably as if he had been on the field. Since his return he has been a continuous resident of Mercer County. He came to Liberty township as a pioneer settler, when the forest still covered all this section and no roads had been cut through, and he still occupies his comfortable log house, which he built in 1873, in the year following his set- tlement.
On April 9, 1853, Mr. Snavely was united in marriage with Margaret. Rupert, born December 6, 1834, in Mercer County, Ohio, a daughter of George and Lovina (Parrott) Rupert, the former a native of Kentucky and. the latter of Tennessee. The Ruperts were among the earliest settlers of Salem township, Auglaize County, whence they removed to Mercer County and settled in Union township. They were people of worth and standing in pioneer days there and their remains rest in one of the old cemeteries of Union township.
Mr. and Mrs. Snavely have had eight children, as follows: Eliza J., wife of George Coakley, of Hopewell township; Andrew J., of Liberty town- ship; John L., of Liberty township; Philip S., of Hopewell township; Lovina B., wife of William Martz, of Liberty township; George W. and Charles E., both deceased; and a babe that died in infancy.
Mr. Snavely reared his children carefully and gave them many advant- ages he had never enjoyed. For 13 consecutive years he was a member of the Board of Education in Liberty township, and during 12 years of this time was clerk of the board. Both he and his estimable wife are worthy members. of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Liberty township, in which he has al- ways been active, serving nine years as superintendent of the Sunday-school and at present is a class leader. His Republicanism reaches back to the can- didacy of Gen. John C. Fremont, and he has been in sympathy with the party's aims ever since. .
JOHN W. DE FORD
JOHN W. DE FORD, president of the Citizens' Banking Company of Celina, of which institution he had been cashier for a quarter of a century be- fore he became its head, was born September 13, 1841, in Carroll County, Ohio, and is a son of John and Matilda (Littell) De Ford.
The De Ford family, as the name indicates, is of French extraction. Dur -.
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ing the French Revolution, this family, being of importance in France, was compelled to give up its estates and honors and flee from the country. The great-grandparents of our subject, upon reaching America located imme- diately, it is thought, in Pennsylvania, where they died and were survived by one son, John De Ford, who at that time was but a youth. He was reared on a farm near Uniontown, Fayette County, Pennsylvania, where he married and where he resided all the rest of his life, reaching the unusual age of 103 years. Many of his descendants have also lived into old age.
John De Ford, the second, the eldest son of John, was born in 1805 in Fayette County, Pennsylvania. His father was a man of substance and af- forded him excellent educational advantages, which culminated in a course at Madison College, in Fayette County, where he was prepared carefully for the ministry of the Presbyterian Church. This ambition was, however, de- nied him as his health failed and he subsequently became an agriculturist. He died in 1892, aged 87 years. In 1828 he married Matilda Littell and they removed to Carroll County, Ohio; where their son John W. was born. In 1848 the father removed to Columbiana County and in 1860, to Mercer County. He resided at Celina for some six years and then returned to Carroll County, where his last days were spent. His wife died aged 80 years, in January, 1893.
John W. De Ford, the immediate subject of this sketch, passed from the common schools into Mount Union College, where he studied three terms and there completed his education. He then began to teach school and by the time he had completed six terms in the different townships of the county, he had attracted enough favorable attention to be elected superintendent of the schools of Fort Recovery, a position he held for five years. In 1863 he was appointed school examiner for Mercer County, a position he filled with effi- ciency for six years. In 1866 Mr. De Ford was elected by the Democratic party to the office of clerk of the Court of Common Pleas and served for six years as such. During all this period he had been engaged in the reading of the law, as opportunity afforded, and in 1872 he was admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of the State of Ohio.
On May 1, 1873, Mr. De Ford organized the Citizens' Bank of Celina, which in 1897 was incorporated as the Citizens' Banking Company of Celina, After 25 years as cashier of this bank, Mr. De Ford became its president and so continues. The other officers are: S. A. Bowman, vice-president ; Henry Lennartz, cashier; and Frank Benke, assistant cashier. The directors are: John W. De Ford, S. A. Bowman, Henry Lennartz, Samuel J. Vining and W. T. Palmer. The officers of this institution are all well-known capitalists and men of irreproachable character. The Citizens' Banking Company has
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MR. AND MRS. ABRAHAM MOTT
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a capital stock of $50,000 and a surplus of $10,000; the deposits at the present time aggregate over $500,000.
Mr. De Ford has always been one of Celina's most liberal public-spirited men. He has made large donations to charity, has promoted innumerable movements which have contributed to the prosperity of the city and has erected many of the most important buildings, both in the business and residence districts.
Fraternally, Mr. De Ford is a Mason and a Knight of Pythias. He is - a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
ABRAHAM MOTT
ABRAHAM MOTT, a well-known citizen of Fort Recovery and owner of 240 acres of farm land in Gibson township, was born in Darke County, Ohio, November 1, 1838, and is a son of Abraham and Abigail (Coates) Mott.
Abraham Mott, Sr., a son of Zachariah Mott, was born in Pennsylvania, where he was reared and educated. Upon coming to Ohio, he lived for a time in Warren County and also in Miami County, subsequently settling in what is now Gibson township, Mercer County, but at that time included in Darke County, where he entered 80 acres of land, and later bought 23 acres of land in the same township. The farm on which he located is now owned by his son Abraham. He was married to Abigail Coates, à native of Virginia, who came to Ohio when a young girl with her father, James Coates, who was also a native of Virginia. Abraham Mott, Sr., was the father of 12 children, of whom our subject was the fifth.
Abraham Mott was reared and educated in what is now Gibson town- ship, Mercer County. His father was one of the earliest settlers of the town- ship, locating here in 1835. Mr. Mott remembers the time when the land was all a wilderness and when deer and other wild animals were often seen. Mr. Mott was educated in the district schools but never had more than three months schooling in any one year, being obliged to assist his father in clear- ing the land and in attending to other necessary farm work during the sum- mer months. In 1863 Mr. Mott enlisted in Company D, 134th Reg., Ohio Vol. Inf., and served one year in the army under General Butler, taking active part in all the regiment's small engagements and skirmishes in Virginia. After returning home from the war, he taught school for 27 years during the winter months and farming during the summer. He also engaged in the threshing business with George Sigler and John Wagoner; together they owned three threshing machines. Mr. Mott moved to his present home in August, 1905, where he has a large frame house situated on a two-acre lot.
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Mr. Mott was (first) married to Delilah Wagoner, a sister of one of his partners in the threshing business. She died in 1874, leaving one child, Allen, who lives in Joliet, Illinois, and is a railroad engineer. Mr. Mott was mar- ried (second) to Sarah Mahala Travis, who died in 1899, leaving four chil- dren : Russell Tilden, who owns and resides on a farm of 164 acres in Darke County ; Delphos Elra, who is married and lives on his father's farm; Minnie Ola, who married Daniel Trieschman and lives in Gibson township; Arlie Walter, who is married and lives in Fort Recovery, where he is engaged as a rural mail carrier. Mr. Mott's third marriage was with Mrs. Sarah A. (Moyer) Bobb, widow of John Bobb. Their marriage occurred in April, 1905. Mr. Mott has served his township as clerk and also as trustee. He was for three years county commissioner, his term expiring in 1894. He is a member of the German Baptist Church. Portraits of Mr. and Mrs. Mott accompany this sketch.
HENRY HONE
HENRY HONE, a pioneer of Liberty township and a most highly respected citizen, resides on his finely cultivated farm of 40 acres, situated in section 23, this being a part of the 248 acres which he wrested from the virgin forest. Mr. Hone was born in Auglaize County, Ohio, August 14, 1836, and is a son of David and Elizabeth (Morman) Hone.
The parents of Mr. Hone were early emigrants from Germany. In 1832 they settled in Maryland and came to Auglaize County, Ohio, in 1834. Their lives were spent in that county, and their remains rest in one of the burying- grounds near their old home. They were representative German people, possessed of the thrift and sturdy virtues of that race.
Henry Hone was reared on his father's farm and obtained his education in a little log schoolhouse that was built on a corner of the home estate. His practical father trained him in all the details of farming, and agriculture has been his business through life. His industry and good management caused his accumulation of a large property, at one time aggregating 248 acres! The larger part of this he has given to his children, retaining only 40 acres for his own home. He settled on this farm in 1867, when it was practically a great expanse of heavily timbered land. All the clearing and developing he accomplished himself and the farm as it stands to-day, one of the best in Liberty township, is what he has made it. For many years he resided in the old log house, but in 1900 he erected a more modern residence, into which he has introduced many comforts.
On June 26, 1861, Mr. Hone was united in marriage with Catherine Meyer, who was born in Auglaize County, Ohio, July 31, 1838, and is a
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daughter of John and Lenora Meyer, who were born in Germany and who came to Auglaize County as early settlers. Of the 10 children born to our subject and wife, there are eight survivors, as follows: John H., of Liberty township; Frank F., of Hartford City, Indiana; William H. and Christian, of Liberty township; Henry B., of North Dakota; George W., of Liberty township; Catherine, wife of Charles Weitz, of Liberty township; and An- drew J., of Liberty township.
Politically, Mr. Hone is a Democrat. He has always taken an intelligent interest in local matters and as a man of judgment and integrity has been invited on many occasions to accept political office. For 13 consecutive years he served as a trustee of Liberty township, filling the office with satisfaction to his fellow-citizens. Both he and his estimable wife, who remains like him- self, vigorous in body and mind, are held in the highest esteem in the com- munity where they have lived so long. They can tell many interesting stories of the early days in this section and of old families contemporary with theirs, some of whom have entirely passed away. They are among the leading mem- bers of the Reformed Lutheran Church.
LEWIS A. HALL
LEWIS A. HALL, proprietor of a general store and barber shop, at Nep- tune, was born November 9, 1869, in Mercer County, Ohio. He is a son of Curtis and Caroline (Bonifield) Hall.
Atwater Hall, grandfather of Lewis A. Hall, came to Center township and established the first blacksmith shop in this section of the country. Until his death he lived on a farm which he managed in addition to his blacksmith business.
Curtis Hall, who was 10 years old when his father settled in Center town- ship, subsequently bought out the other heirs, and he lived on the home farm the remainder of his life, his death occurring June 28, 1890, at the age of 64 years. He was a Democrat in politics and served as township trustee, assessor and constable. During the Civil War, he enlisted in the 100-day service, in Company K, 193rd Reg., Ohio Vol. Inf., and served from 1864 until the close of the war. He married Caroline Bonifield, who was born in what is now the town of Neptune, being a daughter of William Bonifield, the first settler here, who laid out the town and donated the Public Square on which the Township Hall now stands. Mrs. Hall still resides at Neptune. Curtis Hall and wife had 12 children, as follows: Thomas, who died in 1881, aged 23 years; Arabella and Clarabella (twins), the former of whom keeps house for her brother, Lewis A., and the latter of whom died aged about 15
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years; Curtis, Jr., who lives at Ingram, Wisconsin; Lillie, who married Dr. J. S. Pierce, of Red Key, Indiana; Milton, who lives at Albany, Indiana; Lewis A .; Alice and Albert (twins), the former of whom married H. O. Mowery and resides two and a half miles east of Celina, and the latter of whom died in infancy ; Edith, who married Robert Kinkley, of Mendon ; Mar- garet, who lives at home, and Ada, who married Ivan Hamilton and lives at Celina.
Lewis A. Hall was reared on his father's farm in Center township. He has been in the general merchandise business since 1900, in 1897 establishing a barber shop which he has run continuously ever since, in connection with the store.
- Mr. Hall was married (first) to Leona Miller, a daughter of Mrs. Ellen Miller, of Neptune. She died September 12, 1902, leaving three children; Guy C., Mary L. and Harry T. Mr. Hall was married (second) September 7, 1905, to Ada M. Weaver, a native of Celina, and a daughter of Charles and Matilda Weaver. Her death occurred in December of the same year. Politically, Mr. Hall is a stanch Democrat and has served as township clerk and in various minor offices.
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