History of Preble County Ohio: Her People, Industries and Institutions, Part 39

Author: R. E. Lowry
Publication date: 1915
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 985

USA > Ohio > Preble County > History of Preble County Ohio: Her People, Industries and Institutions > Part 39

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After the war had ended, General Harris returned to his farm in Preble county. The wounds he had received disabled him from manual labor and he continued preparing for the bar, having been admitted to practice by the district court of the county in 1865. He was an active member of the legal profession until 1875 and won distinction as a leading member of the Preble county bar. He was connected with much important litigation and displayed marked ability in handling intricate problems in jurisprudence. General Harris was elected to the state Senate in the fall of 1865 to repre- sent Perble and Montgomery counties in the fifty-seventh General Assem- bly. He served two years in this capacity and later served in the House of Representatives in the sixty-seventh and sixty-eight General Assemblies. During his service in the Legislature he served on some of the most impor- tant committees in both branches. His painstaking investigation and mature judgment made him a valuable member of the Legislature. He labored earnestly in support of every movement and measure which he believed would prove of public benefit and the results have proved the wisdom of his acts.

General Harris continued his law practice in partnership with Robert Miller until 1876 when, having been elected to the office of probate judge of Preble county, the partnership was dissolved in order that he might enter upon his judicial duties. In 1878 he was re-elected and proved a faithful and capable judge. In 1891 General Harris became the choice of the Republican state convention for lieutenant-governor of Ohio and ran on the ticket with William Mckinley. He was re-elected in 1893. Gov- ernor Harris has always possessed the statesman's grasp of public affairs and his political actions are the result of earnest investigation and careful study. He has given much attention to the labor situation, and there are probably few men in the country better informed on industrial conditions than he. His efficiency was recognized by President Mckinley, who ap- pointed him as a member of the industrial commission, in September, 1898. This commission made an extensive and exhaustive investigation of labor and industrial questions. and the report is considered to be one of the most important government documents ever issued. The commission was com- posed of five senators, five representatives and nine members at large ap- pointed by the President. It was organized after the plan of the British royal commission and its report was based upon inquiries and investigations made into many subjects, agriculture, transportation, labor, immigration and gen- eral business matters. The work of this commission is now being repeated by the new industrial relation commission. The statistics gathered by the

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WALTER C. HARRIS.

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MRS. ETHELWYN (SHERMAN ) HARRIS.

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industrial commission on conditions of labor, wages and method of pay- ment, crop-sharing, partnership, tenantry, immigration and education have been of inestimable value to the new industrial relation commission in the investigation it is now making. Governor Harris was at the head of the commission on agriculture and agricultural labor. President McKinley well understood his ability when he was appointed a member of the commis- sion, as throughout his life he had been identified with farming interests. Today he is the owner of considerable valuable land in Preble county, which is cultivated under his immediate supervision.

Governor Harris has been a stanch Republican since casting his first presidential vote for Abraham Lincoln in 1860. He is particularly able to uphold his political position by intensive intelligence and comprehensive ar- gument. He retains his interest in military affairs through his connection with the Grand Army of the Republic and the Loyal Legion. He is a culti- vated, polished gentleman whose position in life is due no less to his marked social qualities and admirable personal characteristics than to his learning and ability. He has long been a leader in thought and action in the political life of his state, and while he has enjoyed honors and triumphs in his pub- lic career, he has in private life gained that warm personal regard which arises from true nobility of character, deference to the opinions of others, kindness and congeniality. He has inscribed his name high on the roll of fame, yet is a very approachable, cordial gentleman.

In 1905 Governor Harris was elected lieutenant-governor for the third time. In that year Governor Herrick was defeated and Governor Patter- son was elected. Governor Patterson died in June, 1906, and Lieutenant- Governor Harris became the governor, serving out that term. He received the nomination for governor in 1908 by acclamation, having no opposition, but was not elected. He was too strong a temperance advocate that year.

Governor Harris was married October 17, 1865, to Caroline Conger, the daughter of Eli and Lucinda (McWhinney) Conger, and to this union was born one son, Walter C., who was graduated from the academic depart- ment of the Miami University and who also took an electrical course in Ohio State University at Columbus, Ohio. Walter C. Harris was employed as an electrician at the World's Columbian Exposition at Chicago in 1893, and now has charge of the photographic division of the art department of the New York World. He married Ethel Sherman.

Governor Harris's wife was born in Jackson township, Preble county, Ohio, in 1840. Her parents were both born and reared in Preble county (27)

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and both died in Eaton, her father in 1902, and her mother in 1887 at the age of 66 years. They had four children, Caroline, James H., Elizabeth and Newton, the latter of whom died in infancy. Eli Conger was a farmer and a man of wide influence in the community in which his whole life was spent.

The paternal grandparents of Mrs. Harris were Josiah Conger and wife, natives of Ohio. The maternal grandparents of Mrs. Harris were William McWhinney and wife, natives of Ohio, who were the parents of five children, James, Thomas, Samuel, Lucinda and Newton.

Concerning Governor Harris, the biographer writing in the "History of Preble County," printed in 1900, wrote: "He holds distinct precedence as an eminent lawyer and statesman, as a man of high scholarly attain- ments, a valiant and patriotic soldier, and his knowledge of the industrial interests is scarcely equaled throughout the length of the land. In every re- lation of life he has borne himself with such dignity and honor as to gain the respect of all. He has been and is distinctly a man of affairs and one who has wielded a wide influence. A strong mentality, invincible courage and a most determined individuality have so entered into his life as to render him a natural leader of men and a director of opinion. Prominent in the affairs of state and nation, his influence and reputation are by no means limited to the confines of his native state, and yet no history of Preble county would be complete without the record of his career, for it is here that he has spent almost his entire life. While respected and honored throughout Ohio and in Washington, where he is well known, he has in Preble county the warm friendship of those with whom he has had con- nection, and no man is more widely known in the county than he."

CAPT. GEORGE H. KELLY.

No citizen of Preble county, perhaps, occupies a more prominent position in the community life of the county than Capt. George H. Kelly, nor does Preble county have any more worthy citizen than he. Descended from a long line of illustrious forefathers, from men who fought bravely in the earliest war of this country, Captain Kelly has acquitted himself as becomes one in whose veins flows the blood of Revolutionary heroes. Captain Kelly is the type of the true patriot, and with the help of his good wife, who is descended from equally patriotic stock of Revolutionary days, he has maintained in

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the county where he lives the nobility of a name of which he can be justly proud.

Capt. George H. Kelly was born just west of Eaton, Ohio, on a farm in Washington township, on the Eaton and Boston turnpike, July 2, 1849, the son of Matthew B. and Nancy (Stephens) Kelly, the former a native of But- ler county, Ohio, and the latter of Campbell county, Kentucky. He was one of nine children born to his parents: Sarah Hester, who was the wife of Thomas J. Winters; Jacob Clinton; Jeremiah Dayton; Nancy Margaret, who was the wife of John Dean Campbell, of Dayton, Ohio; Francis Matthew; George H .; Mary Amanda, who was the wife of Robert D. White, and two who died in childhood, Malinda D. and James T. George H. is the only one of this family now living. Malinda was the first-born child.

Matthew B. Kelly, the father of George H., was born February 19, 1810, in Butler county, Ohio, and was always a farmer. He came to Preble county in an early day, and in 1828 entered land in section 3, Dixon township, and partially cleared and improved that farm, which he traded for a farm of two hundred acres in Washington township, near Eaton, where his family was reared, and here his death occurred August 24, 1869, at the age of fifty- nine years, five months and twenty-seven days. His wife, who was the mother of George H. Kelly, and who was born in Campbell county, Kentucky, died September 15, 1875, at the age of sixty-three years, six months and eleven days. Matthew B. Kelly and his wife were Old School Baptists. He be- longed to the early-day militia of Ohio, and was a lieutenant-colonel. He was a member of the board of education and a member of the commission which constructed the Eaton & Boston turnpike. In the early pioneer days he hauled the produce of Preble county to the nearest market, then many miles away, and returned with dry goods and groceries.

The paternal grandparents of George H. Kelly were Joseph L. and Keziah (Blackford) Kelly. Joseph L. Kelly was born in Scotland and came to America and first settled in Connecticut. Later he moved to Virginia, where he joined the Continental army under General Washington, serving with distinction in the War for Independence. After the close of that war he came west to the present site of Cincinnati, Ohio, there then being only two cabins there. He built the third cabin in Cincinnati, and lived there five years, following various lines of activity. He was married in Cincinnati, and moved from that place to near Posttown, Butler county, Ohio, where he took up three hundred and twenty acres of land and partly cleared the same. He sold this tract and took up a new claim near Jacksonburg, on Killbuck creek, where he spent the remainder of his life, his death occurring at the age of

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ninety-seven. His widow, who survived him about two years, also passed away at the age of ninety-seven. They were the parents of fifteen children : Ambrose D., Nathan R., Matthew D., George N., Joseph L., Jr., Margaret, Phoebe, Keziah, Rachel, Hannah, Sarah, Elizabeth, Mary, Naomi and Nancy.

The maternal grandparents of George H. Kelly were James S. and Nancy S. (Shaw) Stephens, natives of Virginia and pioneers in Campbell county, Kentucky. They were tillers of the soil and died, well advanced in years, on the land they entered from the government. They were the par- ents of seven children : Sallie, James, Jerry, Thomas, George W., Nancy S. and Frank.

George H. Kelly was reared in Washington township and attended the country school located on his father's farm. He lived at home until he reached his majority and then engaged in the grocery business in Eaton with his fath- er-in-law, John Rhea, the firm name being Rhea & Kelly. This partnership continued for ten and one-half years, when Mr. Kelly entered the service of the government, in the internal revenue department, and was United States storekeeper of distilleries and auditor of gaugers' accounts for five and one- half years, at the end of which time he resigned and came home and engaged in the insurance business, in which line he has since continued.

Captain Kelly was married December 24, 1871, to Emma Rhea, the daughter of John and Mary P. (Day) Rhea, who was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, November 10, 1852, on the "governor's circle," where the soldiers' and sailors' monument now stands. Her parents, John and Mary P. (Day) Rhea, were natives of Preble county, Ohio. John Rhea was born March 19, 1827, and died December 1I, 1901. His wife was born in 1833, and died August 17, 1909. Mr. and Mrs. Rhea were married October 11, 1849, and to their union two children were born, Mrs. George H. Kelly and Frank Foster Rhea, the latter of whom was born May 5, 1856. John Rhea and wife are buried in Mound Hill cemetery, at Eaton, Ohio.

John Rhea was a son of James and Mary (Gray) Rhea, the former born in Kentucky in 1800 and the latter in Blount county, Tennessee, in 1801, who were married October 10, 1821. James Rhea died in Preble county, Ohio, in 1862, his widow surviving him until October 15, 1879. They were the par- ents of ten children : Ann, born June 15, 1822, and a twin, who died; Alex- ander, born April 27, 1824; John, born March 19, 1827; Jehu, born October 16, 1827; Elizabeth, born April 15, 1832; George Washington and Nancy, twins, born September 17, 1834, and Mary, born May 29, 1838, also one of twins, the other having died. James Rhea was a son of Robert and Elizabeth

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Rhea and his wife, Mary (Gray) Rhea, was a daughter of Major William and Ann Gray.

Maj. William Gray was born in Pennsylvania in 1755. He was the grandfather of Mrs. George H. Kelly, and was a captain of a company of cavalry in the army of Gen. Francis Marion, of Revolutionary fame. After several years of service, he held the distinguished post of major on the staff of Gen. George Washington. After the close of the War for Independence he married in Tennessee, and later moved to Ohio and settled in Dixon town- ship, in this county, where his death occurred March 8, 1849, at the ad- vanced age of ninety-four. His wife, Ann Gray, died December, 1854, at the age of ninety-five. Maj. William Gray and his wife are buried on the farm which is now owned by Ohio's famous war colonel and ex-governor, A. L. Harris.

Mrs. Kelly's mother, Mary (Day) Rhea, was the daughter of Nicholas P. and Lucinda (Spacht) Day. Nicholas P. Day, who was a son of John and Providence Day, was born in 1803, and died, on May 24, 1853, at the age of fifty. His wife was the daughter of John and Barbara Spacht, and was born in Eaton, November 8, 1809. Nicholas P. Day and Lucinda Spacht were married March 29, 1827. Mrs. Day died on May 4, 1870, at the age of sixty-one. They were the parents of ten children, as follows: John Wesley, born April 28, 1828; Harvey Theodore, born June 3, 1830; Mary Philura, born August 31, 1831 ; Robert Daniel Webster, born May 3, 1834; Celia Jane, born June 29, 1836; Alzina Josephine, born July 4, 1838: Clay Isaac, born May 4, 1841 ; Emily Elizabeth, born December 23, 1843; Samuel Mar- ion, born October 13, 1846, and Marks Kitely, born August 23, 1849. Nich- olas Day and wife are both buried in the Mound Hill cemetery at Eaton, Ohio.

Capt. and Mrs. George H. Kelly are faithful and earnest members of the Presbyterian church, and Captain Kelly is president of the official board and one of the deacons of the congregation to which he is attached. Fra- ternally, Captain Kelly belongs to Bolivar Lodge No. 82, Free and Accepted Masons, and to Eaton Lodge No. 30, Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Mrs. Kelly has been a member of the Daughters of Rebekah since July 9, 1883, and has held membership in the Daughters of the American Revolu- tion since October 4, 1894.

Captain Kelly is a Republican and served on the board of public affairs for twelve years, and also served as mayor of Eaton for two years, 1912 and 1913. He has made a splendid record in every official position he has been called upon to fill. He was a member of the Ohio national guard five and one- half years, having been elected second lieutenant February 11, 1902. He was

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promoted to first lieutenant in the field by Governor Nash, July 15, 1902, and was commissioned captain on December 6, 1904. This commission was issued for life. He was one of the members of the board that built the old armory in Eaton. Captain Kelly is a stockholder and director in the Preble County National Bank.

Captain Kelly is now head of the firm of Kelly, Kline & Swihart, which deals in insurance of all kinds. The firm has enjoyed an unusual degree of prosperity, and is ranked among the most substantial and solid firms of the county.

HON. FELIX M. MARSH.

What a debt a civic community owes to the honorable profession of the law. When the conscientious practitioner at the bar comes to his profession bearing in his consciousness the best traditions of the bar as a guide to his conduct, a literal lamp to his feet; and particularly when he comes to that practice with the glowing memories of a brilliant inheritance of honorable practice on the part of the generation just preceding him as an inspiration to the performance of better deeds and a more useful service to his com- munity, then we have a combination that rightly enough must redound to the public good, a veritable stay and support to the public weal. With such an honorable ancestry behind him and with the memories of the service of his distinguished father ever an inspiration to public service, it is not dif- ficult to discern the mainsprings in the life of the Hon. Felix M. Marsh, mayor of Camden, Ohio, and one of the most brilliant and successful law- yers in Preble county, which have urged him on ever to higher things until, by natural and logical stages, he has reached his present eminence in the civic, moral and social life of the community in which he so long has per- formed such distinctive service for the benefit of his fellowmen. The les- sons of the past are the guiding rules of the future and it is but proper, in a historical and biographical work of this character, that a brief, though modest, resume of the career of the gentleman whose name forms the cap- tion of this biographical sketch should here be presented, not only for the intrinsic interest of the same, but as a matter of inspiration to the youth of coming generations whose aspirations may prompt them to the performance of equal public service.

The Hon. Felix M. Marsh, mayor of Camden, Ohio, was born in the

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town of Eaton, Ohio, May 15, 1843, the son of Felix and Rachael (Bloom- field) Marsh, the former of whom was born on a farm near Camden, New Jersey, and the latter of whom was born in Preble county, Ohio, on a farm three miles west of Eaton.

Felix Marsh, father of the subject of this biographical sketch, came west with his parents in 1818, locating in Cincinnati, Ohio, where his father followed his vocation of tailoring. In 1826 the Marshes moved to Camden, Preble county, Ohio, which ever since has been the family home, and where the father and the grandparents of Mayor Marsh spent the last days of their lives. The elder Felix Marsh received his education at Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, and was graduated from the law course. He entered upon the practice of his profession at Eaton, Ohio, and quickly took his place among the leaders of the bar in Preble county. He was elected prosecuting attorney of Preble county, performing the duties of that important office in a manner most satisfactory to the public. He also served his district in both branches of the Ohio General Assembly, his services, both in the House and in the Senate, proving most acceptable to his constituency. For thirty- eight years the senior Marsh practiced law in Preble county, and at his death, in 1872, left a name that not only was a priceless heritage to his family, but one of honor and distinction throughout this entire district. His wife, who was one of the best-loved and most useful women in this com- munity, survived her distinguished husband many years, her death not oc- curring until the year 1909.

To Felix and Rachael (Bloomfield) Marsh were born four children, three of whom are still living: Amanda E., the wife of Theodore Hardy, who died in 1910; Frances, the wife of George Tittle, who resides at Eaton; Felix M., mayor of Camden, and William B., who is engaged successfully in the practice of law at Richmond, Indiana.

Felix M. Marsh received his education in the public schools of Eaton, Ohio, which he supplemented by a course in Miami University at Oxford, Ohio, following which he studied law at Washington, D. C., and was ad- mitted to the bar in the national capital in 1868. From that time until the year 1872 he was in the government service, being a valued attache of the legal department of the Postoffice Department. In the year just named Mr. Marsh returned to Eaton and formed a partnership with his father, the declining health of the latter necessitating the assistance of his vigorous son. Unhappily, this promising partnership was destined to be of all too brief duration and was sadly terminated by the death in that year of the

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elder Marsh. Felix M. and his brother, William B., then formed a partner- ship for the practice of law, which association was maintained for the ex- traordinary term of thirty-five years, continuing until the removal of Wil- liam B. Marsh to Richmond, Ind. Felix M. Marsh continued to maintain his office and to practice his profession, and today enjoys the honorable distinction of being the oldest practitioner, both in years and in point of term of service, in Preble county.

Felix M. Marsh was united in marriage, December 1, 1865, with Emma Yost, daughter of Samuel and Maria (Robinson) Yost, both of whom were natives of Pennsylvania, who, about the year 1840, came to Preble county, smith, a man of much skill in his art and a citizen of the highest repute.

To Felix M. and Emma (Yost) Marsh four children were born, all of whom are living : Frances, a trained nurse, makes her home with her parents; William A., one of the best-known and most popular newspaper writers in Eaton; Maud, an artist of much ability, resides in Chicago; Edward, a popular tailor, who lives in Camden. The Marsh home is one of the most hospitable homes in this section of the state, and Mayor and Mrs. Marsh are never happier than when contributing to the pleasure and comfort of their guests or adding to the social interest of the large circle of their friends.

Mayor Marsh was reared in the principles of the Republican party, and for many years gave his undivided allegiance to that historic party. Of recent years, however, he has become more independent in his political views and his re-election to the office of mayor in 1914 may be taken as an indication that his views in local political matters are shared by a majority of his fellow citizens. Mr. Marsh was first elected mayor of Camden in 1910, and his administration was so successful and marked by the extension of so many public improvements in the town that his re-election, when he was renominated in 1914, was taken almost as a foregone conclusion. In his fraternal relations Mayor Marsh has given a fair share of his attention to the gregarious habits of mankind and is one of the most influential mem- bers of the order of the Knights of Honor in Ohio and for two years served most acceptably as grand dictator of the order in this state.

As the dean of the legal profession in Preble county, Mayor Marsh is entitled to and receives a just meed of honor in his own district. Follow- ing humbly in the footsteps of his distinguished father, he, too, has created a name in this community which will live long after him, and which future historians of this county can not fail to take account of when they come to make up an impartial verdict on the lives and the deeds of the present generation of those who are doing well their parts in the community life.

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SAMUEL C. RICHIE.

To obtain worthy citizenship is no light and unimportant aim in life. It is no easy task to resist the many temptations of youth and early manhood and to establish a character in the minds and hearts of one's associates that will remain unstained for all time. One may take his place in public life through some vigorous stroke of public policy, and even retain the affections of his friends and neighbors, but to obtain this position by honorable and wholesome living, without craving for exultation or selfish objects, is worthy of the highest praise and commendation. A man who has gained the respect of his associates and who will retain, as long as he lives and even after he is gone, the admiration of his fellow citizens, is Samuel C. Richie, the presi- dent of the Farmers' Banking Company, of New Paris, Ohio. Mr. Richie is a man who has discharged his public and private duties in the spirit of utmost candor and concern for the common welfare. He always has been willing to assist in public movements and most certainly deserves the esteem which he holds in the hearts of the people of Preble county, whom he has served in other capacities than that of a banker. He is a former commissioner of this county and made a splendid record in that office.

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History of Preble County Ohio: Her People, Industries and Institutions, Part 39

Author: R. E. Lowry Publication date: 1915 Publisher: Number of Pages: 985

Author: R. E. Lowry
Publication date: 1915
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 985