USA > Ohio > Morrow County > History of Morrow County, Ohio; a narrative account of its historical progress, its people, and its principal interests, Vol. II > Part 19
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On the 31st of October, 1888, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Pipes to Miss Iona M. Graham, who is a daughter of Benton and Candace (Selover) Graham and whose birth occurred ou the 27th of May, 1865. Benton Graham was born in Congress town- ship, Morrow county, and his wife was born in Franklin township. Benton is a son of Samuel Graham, who was born and reared iu the state of Pennsylvania, whence he came to the fine old Buckeye state of the Union. £ Mrs. Pipes is from a large family of eleven
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children and all living but the mother. Mr. Graham is seventy- four years old and in good health. Mrs. Pipes grew up on the old home farm in Congress township and she early availed herself of the advantages afforded in the district and high school at Mount Gilead. She was very studions and bright and for seven years prior to her marriage was a popular and successful teacher in the public schools of Morrow county. Mr. and Mrs. Pipes have three children, namely : Delta Mae, born July 8, 1891, was graduated at the Cardington high school in 1909. She attended school at Granville one year and will pursue a business course in the fol- lowing year. Mabel F., whose birth occurred on the 31st of Jan- uary, 1894, is now a student in the Cardington high school. Pliny P., born April 12, 1896, is attending public school at Fulton. All the children are at the parental home.
In politics Mr .. Pipes accords an unswerving allegiance to the principles of the Democratic party and while he has never been anxious for the honors or emoluments of political office of any description he has ever manifested a keen interest in all matters touching the general welfare. He is a member of Fulton Lodge, No. 433, Independent Order of Odd Fellows and his wife is affil- iated with the Daughters of Rebecca, in which she is vice grand of the Fulton Lodge. Mr. Pipes is a man of distinct and forceful individuality, of marked sagacity, of undaunted enterprise, and in manner he is genial, courteous and easily approachable. His career has ever been such as to warrant the trust and confidence of the business world and as a citizen he holds no mean place in the confidence and esteem of his fellow men.
PROFESSOR MILTON C. LEHNER .- A man of scholarly tastes and ambitions, Professor Milton C. Lehner has met with much success in his career as an educator, and as superintendent of the Blooming Grove school is filling the position with credit to himself and to the satisfaction of all concerned. A son of C. F. Lehner, he was born November 19, 1889, in Cardington township, Morrow county, Ohio, of excellent German stock, his grandfather, Christian F. Lehner, having been born in Germany, near Heidelburg.
C. F. Lehner, a prosperous farmer of Cardington township, married Catherine D. Kuehner, a daughter of Joseph and Magda- lena Kuehner, natives of Germany, and into their household five children were born, namely : George J., of Marion, Ohio; Emma, wife of Hollie Fate; Milton C .. , the special subject of this brief biographical sketch ; Mary C., and Clara M.
Brought up on the home farm, Milton C. Lehner obtained his elementary education in the district schools of Cardington town- ship, and was graduated from the Cardington high school with the class of 1907. Entering upon a professional career, he taught in the district school for two years, and in 1909 and 1910 was princi- pal of the Edison school. Professor Lehner was then elected super-
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intendent of the Blooming Grove school for the school year of 1910 and 1911, and is performing the duties resting upon him in this capacity most successfully. This is a special district school and has two teachers and thirty-six pupils, all of whom are making good progress under the Professor's instruction and superintend- dence. Professor Lehner has continued his studies at the Wooster Summer school, in Wooster, Ohio, and now holds a high school certificate good for three years. The school of which he has charge is a third grade chartered high shool, and when a school of higher rank is needed here it will, without doubt, he raised to a first grade high school. The Professor is independent in politics, voting as his conscience dictates, without regard to party prejudices. He will enter school at Wooster in the summer of 1911.
ANDREW M. ROSE .- The history of Andrew M. Rose shows how potent an element is persistent purpose in the active affairs of life. Dependent upon his own resources at an early age, he went into debt for land in Lincoln township, Morrow county, where he applied himself vigorously to the work at hand and where he steadily worked his way upward. Being imbued with a laudable ambition to attain something better than ordinary success he grad- ually advanced in those walks of life demanding business ability and fidelity to duty and to-day commands the respect and esteem of all with whom he has come in contact.
Mr. Rose is a native of Cass township, Richland county, Ohio, where his birth occurred on the 23d of February, 1839. His parents, Thomas T. and Elizabeth A. (Armstrong) Rose, were born in Sussex county, New Jersey, and Erie county, Ohio, re- speetively. The father was born on the 13th of July, 1814, and was a son of Aaron Rose, whose birth occurred in New Jersey on the 5th of October, 1782. Aaron Rose came to Richland county, Ohio, with his family in 1828, and he was identified with agricultural interests in that section during the remainder of his life, his death having occurred on the 27th of September, 1849. He was the father of the following named children: Frederick, Thomas T., William, Andrew, May A., Emily, Margaret, Martha and Isabelle, the father of the subject of this review being the second in order of birth. Aaron Rose was a devout member of the Methodist Episcopal church and he was an active participant in the public affairs of Richland county during his lifetime. Thomas T. Rose was afforded good educational advantages in his youth and as he reached man's estate he turned his attention to the ministry, be- coming a preacher in the United Brethren church and traveling in connecton with his calling for some ten years. Ile married Miss Elizabeth A. Armstrong on the 12th of July, 1837, and they became the parents of eight children : Andrew M., Catharine, Mina, Eliza, Seaberry Ford, Alice E., Emma and Charles H. Catharine and Eliza are deceased and Mina is the widow of JJudson Benton, of
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Shiloh, Ohio. Mr. Rose was summoned to eternal rest on the 8th of October, 1864, and his cherished and devoted wife, who was born on the 1st of March, 1818, survived him for fully two-score years, her death having occurred on the 3d of August, 1905, at the venerable age of eighty-seven years.
Andrew M. Rose, the immediate subject of this review, was sixteen years of age at the time when his father was appointed to the United Brethren church at Cardington, where the family re- sided for a period of five years. He had been edueated in the public schools of Richland county and after his marriage, in 1859, he worked by the day for a time and eventually went into debt for land in Lincoln township, where he continued to be engaged in diversified agriculture until 1903, in which year he retired from active business affairs and removed to Cardington, where he is now living in the enjoyment of former years of earnest toil and endeavor. With the passage of time Mr. Rose became a most successful farmer and after paying for his land he raised the same to a high state of eultivation and introduced the best of im- provements. At the time of the Civil war he was an ardent Union man and on the 24th of October, 1863, he enlisted as a mem- ber of Company F, Eighty-first Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He saw much active service in the Sixteenth Army Corps in the Army of the Tennessee, participating in many of the important confliets marking the progress of the war, and after the fall of Atlanta he was transferred to the Fifteenth Corps, accompanying General Sherman on his ever memorable march to the sea. He was never wounded while in service and at the close of war received his honorable discharge. He retains a deep and abiding interest in his old comrades in arms and signifies the same by membership in James St. John Post, No. 82, Grand Army of the Republic. He is the recipient of a pension of fifteen dollars a month as a reward for his services to the country in the time of her direst need.
In politics Mr. Rose aceords a loyal allegiance to the cause of the Republican party, and although he was never anxious for political preferment he gave most effiicent service as clerk of Lin- coln township for a period of twenty-five years, aequitting himself most creditably in the demands of that offiee. In a fraternal way he is affiliated with Bennington Lodge, No. 433, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, at Fulton, Ohio, and in the same is past grand. He and his wife are most worthy citizens and their home is a re- cognized center of refined and generous hospitality.
On April 6, 1859, Mr. Rose was united in marriage to Miss Catharine Cliek, who was born in Franklin county, Ohio, on the 13th of January, 1840, and who is a daughter of Andrew and Sarah (Alspauch) Click, who established their home in Lincoln township, this county, when Catharine was a child of four years of age. She was educated in the publie schools of this eounty and is a woman of most gracious personality, being deeply beloved by all who have
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come within the sphere of her gentle influence. Mr. and Mrs. Rose became the parents of two children, concerning whom the following brief data are here incorporated: Ada A., born on the 11th of January, 1860, is the wife of James R. Sage, who is engaged in agricultural pursuits in Lincoln township; and Judson H., born on the 25th of March, 1863, resides on his father's farm in Lincoln township. He married Miss Sarah J. Ocher and they have one son, Avon M., whose birth occurred on the 3d of November, 1897. The grandson is attending school at Fulton, Ohio.
In every sense of the word Mr. Rose and his estimable wife are representative citizens whose loyalty and public spirit have been of the most insistent order. He is a man of extensive information and broad human sympathy and no one in the community holds a higher place in popular confidence and esteem.
BYRON DAVIS, a well known and highly respected farmer of Franklin township, Morrow county, Ohio, was born in Richland county, this state, August 12, 1846, a son of Thomas J. and Caroline M. Davis.
Thomas J. Davis, a native of the "Keystone state," born December 4, 1821, left Pennsylvania when he was eighteen years of age and came to Ohio, making settlement near Fredericktown. Here for a time he rented and leased land, and finally he bought a two acre tract near Hagerstown. By hard work and careful economy he saved enough money with which to purchase eighty acres of land in Richland county. This gave him a start. Then he bought, developed and sold other tracts, and in 1890 bought his present farm of one hundred and twenty acres in Franklin town- ship. In his youth he took advantage of his educational oppor- tunities and was more or less of a student all his life. In addition to conducting farming operations, he taught school for a time at Woodbury. On December 4, 1845, he married Miss Caroline Hips- ley, daughter of Caleb and Charlotte Hipsley, natives of Maryland and pioneers of the Western Reserve. Her maternal grandfather -Grandfather Nelson- was a noted Methodist minister in early days. It was in 1830 that the Hipsley family crossed the moun- tains on their way to the new home in Ohio, the journey being made in a covered wagon. Arrived in Knox county, the elder Hipsley purchased a hundred acres of land near Fredericktown, where he settled and prospered exceedingly. His children were George, Elizabeth, Caroline M., Hannah and Lottie America, all now de- ceased.
Caroline M. Hipsley was born September 19, 1823, in Fred- erick City, Maryland, and was a child of nine years when the family came to Ohio. After her marriage to Thomas J. Davis they're- sided for a time in Richland county, coming from there to Morrow county, which was ever afterward their home. To their union were born four children, namely : Byron, whose name introduces Vol. II-11
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this review, and Henry R., George and Mary, all deceased, Mary having died in infancy. Henry R., the youngest son, was drowned while bathing in the river at Delaware in June, 1883. He was twenty-four years of age, and at the time of his death was a student in the Ohio Wesleyan University. George lived to be forty-two years of age and died at home February 27, 1900. The father died after a lingering illness, December 29, 1890. He was buried in the Baptist cemetery. The remains of the son Henry R. who was interred at the "Shauck" cemetery near Johnsville, were brought from there and placed by the father's side at the same time
Mrs. Davis died February 28, 1911, aged eighty-seven years.
Her own testimony was that she was converted to God one Sabbath on her way to Sabbath school and united with the church when fourteen years of age. It was her delight to hear the word of God expounded, and on the oceasion of pastoral calls she was always very appreciative of the comfort and counsel given. She had the adornment of a meek and quiet spirit, refined and purified through mueh tribulation. Her later years were passed amidst comfortable and happy surroundings, and, mellowing in experienee with the inerease of her years, when the end eame she was as a shoek of eorn, ready for the garner of God. At home in the midst of her family she had much peace, and her very last years were filled with delight in the possession of her grandchild who was named for her. Besides her son and his family, there were twenty- four neiees and nephews on both sides who share in their sorrow.
Byron Davis and Verna V. Watson were united in marriage December 31, 1903, and they were the parents of one child, Mary Caroline, born July 13, 1907. Mrs. Byron Davis was born Janu- ary 22, 1880, a daughter of William and Rosanna (Elder) Watson, who reside in Perry township and aged, respectively, seventy-one and sixty-four years, the former a native of Pennsylvania and the latter of Ohio.
IRA E. COOMER .- Through well directed efforts in connection with the great basic industry under whose effective discipline he was reared Mr. Coomer has gained precedence as one of the repre- sentative farmers and stoek-growers of his native county and town- ship, where he has so guided his eourse as to retain at all times the unqualified esteem and confidenee of all who know him. His finely improved farm of one hundred aeres, known as "Pinehurst," is eligibly located in Peru township, and on every side are patent evidenees of thrift and prosperity. Mr. Coomer is a seion of one of the sterling pioneer families of this favored seetion of the old Buek- eye state, with whose history the name has been identified for more than four seore years, and his personal standing as well as his anees- tral prestige render most consonant a review of his eareer within the pages of this history of his native eounty, where he has applied his energies as to gain sueeess and independence of no uneertain order.
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On the old homestead of his father in Peru township, Morrow county, Ira E. Coomer was born on the 19th of April, 1858, and thus it may be well understood that this fine section of his native county is endeared to him by the gracious memories and associa- tions of the past as well as by those of the present time, involving his connection with both civic and industrial affairs. He is a son of William and Barbara A. (Place) Coomer, the former of whom was born in Delaware county, Ohio, a son of Ira W. Coomer, who was born in the state of New York, as was also his father, Benjamin Coomer. The family was founded in America in the Colonial era of our national history and the major number of its representatives have followed agricultural pursuits. Ira W. Coomer came from the old Empire state to Ohio in 1828 and numbered himself among the pioneers of the central part of this commonwealth. Here he reclaimed a productive farm from the forest wilderness and here both he and his wife passed the residue of their lives. Of their thirteen children William was the eldest, and of the number six are now living, namely: Leander, Adelbert, Sophia, Mary E., Viola and Priscilla.
William Coomer was reared to maturity on the old pioneer homestead and contributed his quota to its reclaimation and de- velopment. He never wavered in his allegiance to the great industry of agriculture and through the same he eventually became numbered among the representative farmers of Peru township, Mor- row county, where he commanded secure vantage ground in the confidence and good will of his fellow men. He was a man of ster- ling character-honest and industrious and loyal to all the duties of citizenship. IIe was summoned to the life eternal in 1884, and his venerable widow still resides on the old homestead, secure in the affectionate regard of all who have come within the sphere of her gracious influence. Wiliam Coomer and Barbara A. Place were married in Morrow county and here they reared their seven childen, whose names are here entered in respective order of birth : Elmore, Ira E., Leonora, Irene, Emma, Frederick and Willington. All of the children are still living except Leonora, whose death occurred in 1896.
Ira E. Coomer's early experiences were those gained in con- nection with the work of the old homestead farm, which was the place of his birth, and thus he learned the value and dignity of earnest toil and endeavor, the while he duly availed himself of the advantages afforded in the public schools of the locality. He con- tinned to be associated in the work and management of the home farm until he had attained to his legal majority and he then went to Illinois, where he found employment at farm work and other occupations, as did he later also in the state of Kansas. Ile was absent from his native state somewhat more than three years and in the meanwhile he carefully conserved his earnings, so that he had a modest capital upon his return to Ohio, in 1883. In 1885
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he married and he and his bride established their home in a two- room log cabin, in which they resided for a short time. Mr. Coomer then rented a farm in Peru township, and there he initiated his independent efforts as an agriculturist and stock-grower. Inde- fatigable industry and careful management marked his course under these conditions and he bent every energy to the work in hand, with the laudable purpose of securing eventually a farm of his own. Economy ruled in the household and all other depart- ments of the farm, and in 1890 he had accumulated sufficient capitalistic reserve to justify him in the purchase of twenty acres of land in section 2, Peru township. This formned the nucleus of his present fine farm of one hundred acres and it may readily be understood that the advancement made was through consecutive industry and determined purpose. His present homestead, "Pine- hurst," was purchased by Mr. Coomer in 1900, and the property is most eligibly located two and one-half miles east of the village of Ashley. The buildings on the place are of substantial order, with modern equipment and facilities, and the owner has shown much discrimination in improving the property, which has been brought up to high standard, though he still consults ways and means to increase still further the productivity of his land and to gain the maximum returns from his various operations, in which he makes use of the best modern appliances and scientific methods. In connection with diversified agriculture Mr. Coomer raises high- grade live stock, and in this latter department he is devoting special attention to the breeding of registered Merino sheep.
That one animated by such definite ambition in connection with personal affairs should also be liberal and progressive as a citizen is a foregone conclusion. Thus Mr. Coomer has ever been ready to give his influence and cooperation in the furtherance of measures and enterprises tending to advance the general welfare of the community, and he is well fortified in his opinions as to matters of public import. He accords a stanch allegiance to the Republican party, and the confidence and esteem reposed in him in his native township have been significantly shown, since he served for a number of years as a member of the board of trustees of Peru township, of which he is assessor at the time of this writing, in 1911. He and his wife are active and valued members of the local organizations of the fraternity known as the Gleaners, and the family is distinctively popular in connection with the best social activities of the home community.
In the year 1885 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Coomer to Miss Allie E. Eckles, who was born and reared in Delaware county, this state. She attended the public schools of Ashley, that county, until she had attained to the age of sixteen years, and later came with her parents to Morrow county, where she remained at the parental home until her marriage to Mr. Coomer. As al- ready intimated, the honeymoon of the young couple was passed in
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their little log cabin of two rooms, where they lived one year, and then lived on a rented farm until 1890, when they removed to their small farm of twenty acres, where the household accommodations were of better order. Their present home is far different than that in which they initiated their married life and they are fully ap- preciative of its advantages and attractions, the while they here find pleasure in extending a generous hospitality to their wide circle of friends.
In conclusion of this brief sketch is entered the following record concerning the children of Mr. and Mrs. Coomer: Joseph, who was born on the 1st of January, 1886, was graduated in the high school at Cardington, this county, as a member of the class of 1906. after which he taught school for a time, and he is now a student in the Bliss Business College at Columbus, the capital of the state, in which institution he will have completed his course before this publication is issued from the press; Carrie B., who was born September 12, 1890, is an expert stenographer but she is now married to Guy Legg and lives in Ashley, Ohio; the three younger children are to be found beneath the home rooftree, their names and respective dates of birth being as here noted: Elbert, May 10, 1892; Frederick M., November 16, 1898; and Margaret E., July 22, 1904.
JOSEPH HI. YEAGER .- A representative agriculturist of Morrow county, Joseph H. Yeager is a well-known resident of North Bloom- field township, where his finely cultivated and well appointed farm gives substantial evidence of the excellent eare and skill with which it is managed. He was born October 12, 1844, in Laneaster, Lancaster eounty, Pennsylvania, coming from sturdy German ancestry, his paternal grandparents having been born, reared and edueated in Germany.
William Yeager, his father, spent his earlier life in Pennsyl- vania. In 1850 he came with his family to Ohio, making the journey through the forests with teams, bringing with him all of his worldly possessions. Locating in Troy township, Morrow county, he there rounded out a long life, passing away in the ninetieth year of his age. To him and his wife, whose maiden name was Harriet Dase, seven children were born, five of whom grew to years of maturity and four are now, in the spring of 1911, living, as follows: Amanda, wife of Levi Texter; Belinda, wife of Wesley Texter; Mary, widow of Alonzo Carpenter; and Joseph H.
Joseph H. Yeager, a lad of six years when he came with his parents to Morrow county, well remembers the long ride in the covered wagon and the camping and cooking by the wayside. He obtained a practical education in the distriet schools, and soon after the breaking out of the Civil war ran away from home to join the army. Ilis father realized that he was not old enough or strong
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enough to endure the hardships of a soldier's life and refused to allow him to enlist. Beginning life then as a wage-earner, he worked by the day or month until twenty-five years old, when, having been wise in his savings and prudent in his expenditures, he found himself with a bank account amounting to eight hundred dollars. Then, in partnership with his brother-in-law he bought eighty acres of land in North Bloomfield township, and was busily employed in its management for four years, when he sold his interest in the place. He subsequently bought forty acres in the same township, and has since added to his landed possessions and now owns eighty acres of well tilled land, and has a half interest, besides, in ninety-one acres. In his agricultural operations Mr. Yeager has met with uniform prosperity and is one of the leading men of his community. Enterprising and active, he invested in a threshing outfit many years ago, being one of the first men in this part of the county to own a threshing machine, and each harvest season finds him one of the busiest of men, his services being in demand throughout the neighborhood.
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