USA > Ohio > Preble County > History of Preble County Ohio: Her People, Industries and Institutions > Part 71
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On March 11, 1875, Mr. McCoy was married to Martha A. Pence, a native of this county, her birth having occurred in Monroe township in 1852. To this union three children were born, Leroy, Meda and Maude. Leroy, who was born on January 9, 1876, is unmarried and lives at home, assisting his father in the management of the home farm. Meda is the wife of Bolton Hinerman, who is a graduate of Otterbein College, now liv- ing in Jefferson township. Maude is unmarried and lives at home with her father. The mother of these children died on April 12, 1903.
Mr. McCoy is an adherent of the Republican party, but has never taken a very active part in political matters, although he is much interested in local affairs and an ardent supporter of every measure having for its object the betterment of his home community. He has been instrumental in the building of many of the good roads of his township and vicinity. The fam- ily are all loyal and earnest members of the Presbyterian church at Gettys- burg, and Mr. McCoy is serving as treasurer of that church at the present time, while his son, Leroy, is one of the trustees of the church. Mr. Mc- Coy is a devoted member of the Grand Army of the Republic and takes an active interest in the welfare of his old comrades in this organization.
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JAMES F. RICHARDS.
The unostentatious routine of private life is of vast importance to the welfare of a community. It is the average man in this country who is most worth while, because it is to him that falls the duty of performing a great deal of necessary work. The examples which men of this character fur- nish to the communities in which they live are well worthy of considera- tion. One of the farmers of Jefferson township, Preble county, Ohio, who enjoys the respect and confidence of his neighbors is James F. Richards.
James F. Richards was born in Monroe township, Preble county, Ohio, August 29, 1868, a son of Benjamin and Mary E. (Fudge) Richards, the former a native of Gettysburg, Jefferson township, born on March 16, 1840, a son of Sampson and Mary A. (Coleman) Richards, and the latter a sis- ter of David L. Fudge, in a biographical sketch of whom, elsewhere in this volume, is presented the genealogy of the Fudge family. Sampson Rich- ards and wife were early residents of Monroe township, where he owned one hundred and sixty acres of land. In his later years he moved to a farm in Washington township, south of Eaton, where his wife's death occurred. He died at the home of his son in Jefferson township. He and his wife were the parents of seven children: John, deceased; Benjamin, a farmer of Monroe township; William, also a resident of Monroe township; Henry, of Richmond, Indiana; Andrew, of Dunkirk, Indiana; Catherine, deceased, and Rachel, the wife of Levi Petry, of Monroe township, in this county.
Benjamin Richards was reared in Monroe township, receiving his edu- cation in the common schools of his home neighborhood. His wife was Mary E. Fudge, who died November 22, 1909. They were the parents of five children, all but one of whom are now living. Alice is the wife of Ervin Brown, a farmer of Monroe township; James F. is the subject of this sketch; Rosa is the wife of James Howell. of Monroe township; Charles is a farmer of Monroe township.
James F. Richards, the immediate subject of this review, spent his boy- hood days on a farm in Monroe township, receiving his education in school district No. 8. He remained at home until he was twenty-eight years old, farming, however, only one year after he had reached his majority, after which he became a general contractor in wood cutting and ditching.
Mr. Richards was married, February 28, 1897, to Flora D. Imes, who was born in Twin township, this county, February 28, 1877, a daughter of Francis and Clara ( Witterman) Imes. Mrs. Richards was educated in the common schools. Her father was born in Gratis township, and her mother
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was a native of Twin township. Mrs. Richards was born on the same farm on which her mother was born.
After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Richards settled on a farm in Mon- roe township, where they lived for one year, at the end of which time they moved to another farm in the same township, where they lived four years. They then moved to Jefferson township, and have lived on the same farm for eleven years. They are the parents of two children: Benjamin F., born on June 5, 1899, who was graduated from the common schools and at- tended the New Paris high school, and Elsie M., born on July 17, 1901.
Politically, Mr. Richards is a stanch adherent of the Democratic party, while, fraternally, he is a member of Harmony Lodge No. 396, Knights of Pythias, of New Paris, Ohio. The Richards family are eminently deserv- ing the respect and good will bestowed upon them by all their neighbors and friends.
JOHN D. BRIGHT.
It matters much less where a man comes into the world than how he comes into its life as a living force, or what he does and becomes in it. He- redity and environment have much to do in conditioning his character and power, and fortunate, indeed. is the individual who has been well born and whose surroundings have made for his best development. The well-known subject of this review has been peculiarly blessed in both these respects. He comes from highly esteemed ancestors and was reared under excellent home influences, the result being the fine specimen of manhood and citizenship which he today represents.
John D. Bright, the son of John and Mary J. (Browder ) Bright, was born in East Tennessee, June 10, 1867. His father and mother were both natives of Virginia, where they grew up and were married. after which they moved to the eastern part of Tennessee, where they spent the remainder of their lives. John Bright and wife were the parents of seven children, six of whom are now living: William A., of Sullivan county, Tennessee; Sarah, the wife of William McMurray, of Scott county, Virginia; James F., of Liberty, Indiana; John D., the immediate subject of this sketch; Thomas F .. of Dickerson county, Virginia, and Joseph, of Peadman, Vir- ginia.
John D. Bright was reared on his father's farm in eastern Tennessee, receiving his education in the common schools of his home county. He as-
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sisted his father with the farm work until he was twenty years old, and in 1888 went to Wayne county, Indiana, where he worked at farm labor until 1890, when he went to Darke county, Ohio, where he remained four years, at the end of which time he came to Preble county, since which time he has lived in this county. He is the owner of a little more than eighty-three acres of fine farming land in the northeast quarter of section 25, of Jeffer- son township, on which he carries on a general system of diversified farm- ing with a very gratifying degree of success.
On December 8, 1895, Mr. Bright was married to Ella Swerer, the daughter of Peter and Rebecca Swerer, of Jefferson township. Mrs. Bright was born on March 29, 1873, in this county, and was reared in Jefferson township, attending the public schools of her home township. . Mr. and Mrs. Bright are faithful and loyal members of the Presbyterian church at New Paris, and take an active part in the work of the congregation of that church.
Mr. Bright is a Republican and takes an active interest in local public affairs and is now serving as one of the trustees of Jefferson township. He belongs to Eldorado Lodge No. 389, Knights of Pythias, and takes an ac- tive interest in the welfare of that fraternal organization. Mr. Bright is a quiet, unassuming man and is held in the highest respect and esteem by his fellow citizens.
SAMUEL MILLER.
The farmer is the bulwark of the nation. Investigation has shown that a majority of our best business men in the cities were reared on the farm. George Washington was a farmer and was proud of the fact. Abraham Lincoln was reared on a farm in Spencer county, Indiana. Probably the most democratic governor Indiana ever had was "Blue Jeans" Williams, who prided himself on being nothing but a farmer. James A. Mount, an- other governor of the Hoosier state, was a farmer. Ohio has had several governors who either were active farmers, or heavy owners of farm prop- erty, among whom is former Governor Harris, of Preble county. Verily the farmer is the bulwark of the nation and the salt of the earth. Among the farmers of Preble county, few are more progressive than Samuel Mil- ler. Careful and conservative in his business methods and affairs, he is nevertheless sufficiently progressive to keep apace with twentieth-century
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ideas and methods of agriculture, and for these reasons it is eminently fit- ting that he be represented in this volume.
Samuel Miller was born in Monroe township, Preble county, Ohio, on January 8, 1847, a son of Levi and Susannah ( Wehrly) Miller, the former a native of Pennsylvania and the latter a native of Preble county, Ohio. Levi Miller came to Preble county at the age of thirteen and lived in Mon- roe township until his death in December, 1911, at the age of ninety-one years.
Mr. and Mrs. Miller were the parents of thirteen children, eleven of whom are still living, while two died in infancy: Samuel, the subject of this sketch; Amanda, the wife of S. D. Hensel; Andrew, a farmer of Mon- roe township; Jane, the wife of Lewis Richards; Catherine, the wife of Norman Caylor; Isaac, a resident of Eldorado; Lydia, the wife of C. A. Baker; Mary, the wife of Solomon Emrick; George, a farmer of Monroe township; Mina, the wife of William Guenther, and Cena, the wife of J. C. Ayers, of this county. Samuel Miller was reared on the home farm in Monroe township, and attended the public schools, remaining at home until he had reached his majority.
On January 13, 1870, Samuel Miller was married to Lydia A. Stiver, who was born in Montgomery county, Ohio, October 21, 1844, a daughter of Henry Stiver, a native of Pennsylvania. Four children born to this union are now living: Henry, a graduate of the common schools, married Lillie M. Fudge, and is a successful farmer; Nettie, also a graduate of the common schools, is the wife of Holly Spitler; Martin O., a graduate of the common schools, married Grace Wurt, and Clara, a graduate of the com- mon schools, is the wife of Warren F. Petry.
The Miller family are all members of the Evangelical Association church, and Samuel Miller has long been prominent in the affairs of this church. Mr. Miller is a Democrat, and has taken an active part in local political affairs, having served as a member of the school board for thirty- five years, and as township trustee for three terms. He served as a member of the board of directors of the county infirmary for three years. He is a member of the Preble County Agricultural Association, and for the past eighteen years has served as president of that association, and is now serv- ing as vice-president of the same. Mr. Miller is one of the directors of the Farmers Banking Company, of Eldorado.
Mr. Miller is the owner of two hundred and forty-seven acres of splen- did farming land in Preble county, and is a successful breeder of Chester White hogs. Mr. Miller is not only a representative farmer, but, more than
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that, he is a representative citizen of Preble county, where he is well known, and never permits any movement for the promotion of the interests of the vocation with which he is identified, to pass without his active support and assistance. He is much respected by the rising generation of farmers, to whom he has ever been willing to extend a helping hand.
REV. McDANIEL HOWSARE.
There is no earthly station higher than the ministry of the gospel, no life can be more uplifting or grander than that which is devoted to the teach- ing of the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man. No man makes greater sacrifices than the one who is willing to cast aside earthly crowns and laurels of fame to follow in the footsteps of the lowly Nazarene. The height, depth and breadth of the influence of such a life cannot be estimated. Eaton, Ohio, has many worthy ministers of the gospel, but none is more prudent, or more forcefully illustrates what energy, integrity and fixed purpose can ac- complish than the pastor of the First Christian church, the Rev. McDaniel Howsare. He enjoys the highest esteem and confidence of the people with whom he labors and his career is a compelling lesson to the young man who stands at the parting of the ways.
Rev. McDaniel Howsare was born at Chaneysville, Bedford county, Pennsylvania, April 5, 1869. the son of Joshua and Sarah Elizabeth (Ash) Howsare. natives of Pennsylvania, who were the parents of three children, Rev. McDaniel, Mary Agnes, deceased, who was the wife of J. B. Cooper : and Cora Belle, who died in infancy.
Joshua Howsare was reared in Bedford county. Pennsylvania, and al- most all his life he was a farmer. He owned a farm of one hundred and sixty acres a mile and one-half from Chaneysville, where he reared his family and where he lived until about ten years ago. when he retired to Chaneysville, where he since has been conducting a boarding house.
The paternal grandparents of Rev. McDaniel Howsare were Asa and Catharine (Nycum) Howsare, natives of Pennsylvania. Asa Howsare was a farmer in Bedford county. He died at the age of sixty-nine and his wife at the age of ninety. They had three sons, Wesley, Jesse and Joshua. The maternal grandparents of Rev. Howsare were Owen and Sarah Ann ( Robin- son) Ash. the former of whom was a farmer in Bedford county and died there at an advanced age. They had a large family, Edmund, Dennis, Top G .. Emma, Sarah Elizabeth and several other children who died in infancy.
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REV. MeDANIEL HOWSARE.
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Rev. McDaniel Howsare was reared on his father's farm in the hills of Pennsylvania. He attended the township schools and began teaching at the age of sixteen. Besides the county normal school, he attended the Dick- inson Seminary at Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and Antioch College at Yel- low Springs, Ohio. In the meantime he studied for the ministry and began preaching when about twenty years old. His first regular charge after leav- ing school was with the First Christian church at Versailles, Ohio, which he served for five years, after which he served nearly two years as general sec- retary of the Ohio State Christian Association. He then was pastor five years at the Christian church at Maple Rapids, Michigan, at the end of which term of service he returned to the Versailles church, upon the unanimous call of the congregation, and remained there three years. From Versailles he was called to the Memorial Christian Temple at Norfolk, Virginia, where he remained two years. In November, 1911, he was called to Eaton, Ohio, and has been pastor of the First Christian church since that time.
The membership of the First Christian church is about six hundred, and it has the largest Sunday school in the city, having an enrollment of six hundred and fifty-five.
In 1904 Rev. McDaniel Howsare made a trip to the Holy Land, going as a delegate to the fourth world's Sunday school convention at Jerusalem. In 1910 he attended the sixth world's convention at Washington, D. C. At the present time he is a member of the board of the American Sunday school convention.
Rev. McDaniel Howsare was married. April 27, 1895, to Athella Mc- Kinney, the daughter of James L. and Elizabeth J. (Lowry) Mckinney. Three children have been born to this union, George Douglas, Evelyn Eliza- beth and James M.
Mrs. Howsare was born at Donnelsville, Clark county, Ohio. She was reared there and was a graduate of Antioch College. She taught in the Olive Branch township high school and other township schools. She is the only woman member at the present time of the general mission board of the American Christian convention, which is composed of nine members.
James L. and Elizabeth Mckinney were natives of Clark county, Ohio. The former owned a farm, but was a merchant in Yellow Spring for some years and at one time was manager of the dining hall of Antioch College. He was captain of a company in the One Hundred and Firty-third Ohio Volunteer Infantry, formerly having belonged to the Sixteenth Ohio Artillery. Mrs. Mckinney's mother died in Yellow Springs in 1912 and Captain Mc- Kinney died at Eaton in 1913. They were the parents of three children.
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Carena, Athella and Herschel. Carena was a high school teacher and also a music teacher in Antioch College. She was a splendid singer and possessed an exceptional soprano voice. The son, Herschel, died when a small boy. The paternal grandparents of Mrs. Howsare were Cyrus B. and Melinda Elizabeth (Lamme) Mckinney, who were the parents of the following chil- dren : William, Frank, James L. and Mrs. Mattie (Mckinney) Wise. The maternal grandparents of Mrs. Howsare were David W. and Eliza (Layton) Lowry, natives of Clark county. Ohio. Their children were William and Elizabeth J.
Captain James L. Mckinney, Mrs. Howsare's father, was descended from two pioneer families of Clark county, Ohio, the Mckinneys and the Lammes. The patriotism and musical talent of himself and children were inherited from the paternal side. The father of Captain James L. McKin- ney was Cyrus B. Mckinney, and his mother was Melinda E. Lamme, who was born in Clark county. The father of Cyrus B. Mckinney was Samuel Mckinney, who was a soldier in the War of 1812. Captain James L. Mc- Kinney was born in Clark county, Ohio, April 29, 1839. He was land ap- praiser of Miami township, Greene county, and held other minor offices. In 1861 he enlisted in the Sixteenth Ohio Artillery, engaging in the battles of Pea Ridge, Thompson's Mills, Round Hill, Cash River, Duvall's Bluff, the siege of Vicksburg. Jackson, Mississippi, and Champion's Hill. He was discharged and returned home, but in May. 1864, he prepared again for the service and became captain of Company E, One Hundred and Fifty-third Ohio Volunteer Infantry, which company he organized. The command was attached to Grant's army and saw some severe service. He was a highly educated man and served on the educational board of Antioch College. He always took an ac- tive interest in politics, adhering to the principles of the Republican party.
Rev. McDaniel Howsare and wife own a farm of eighty acres in Clark county and residence property in Yellow Springs, Ohio. At the formation of the Progressive party, Rev. Howsare became identified with that party and has been active in support of its principles and candidates. He is a member of the Versailles lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, and is a member of the Scottish Rite, belonging to the Dayton consistory. He and his wife are members of the Eastern Star chapter at Versailles.
Reverend Howsare is president of the Eaton Ministerial Association and chairman of the executive committee of the Preble County Anti-Saloon League. He is vice-president of the County Humane Society and president of the board of directors of the Faton Commercial Club. He is also a mem- ber of the Preble County Poultry Association, a member of the executive
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committee of the Chautauqua Association and also a member of the executive committee of the Lyceum Association.
Rev. McDaniel Howsare has enjoyed an extremely active career in en- terprises which reflect his interest in worthy causes. He is a true minister in every sense of the word and obviously is destined to perform greater services as a fulfillment of his great mission in life.
JOHN V. CURRY.
No profession has made greater advancement during the last half cen- tury than has the agricultural profession. Practically all of the disadvan- tages which formerly surrounded the farmer have been done away with because of the multitude of modern inventions which tend to lighten the farmer's labors. . It takes less labor now to operate a farm of fifty acres than it did to operate a farm of ten acres fifty years ago, and inventions constantly are coming into use which are helping the farmer to increase his sphere of usefulness. Ohio is recognized as one of the best farming states of the Union, and no county in this state has better or more prosperous and progressive farmers than has Preble county. Among the hundreds of farm- ers who have made this county famous as an agricultural section, there is no one more worthy of a place in a historical and biographical work of this character than James V. Curry, of this review, who has been a life-long resident of the county.
John V. Curry, the son of James H. and Elvira J. (Hawley) Curry, was born on the farm where he is now living, April 9, 1869. James H. Curry was a son of Capt. John Curry, and also was born on the farm where his son now lives in Jefferson township. Elvira J. Hawley, the mother of Mr. Curry, was born in Butler county, Ohio. James H. Curry and wife were the parents of two children, the younger of whom is John V. The elder son, Elmer A., is a graduate of the Medical College of Cincinnati, and is now a successful practicing physician of that city. He married Fan- nie McKee, and to this union one child was born, who is now deceased.
John V. Curry was reared on the farm in Jefferson township, attend- ing the district schools of his home neighborhood until he was about seven- teen years old, at which time he started farming for himself, and is now the owner of a fine farm of one hundred and thirty-five acres. He carries on general farming and stock raising, making a specialty of high-grade stock, and has been more than ordinarily successful in this latter line.
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In 1890 Mr. Curry was married to Clara Creager, who also is a native of Preble county, the daughter of Joseph Creager and wife. To this union two children have been born, Erma and Lois M. Erma is a graduate of the New Paris high school, and is now the wife of Russell Rider, a farmer of Jefferson township. Lois M. is unmarried and lives at home with her parents. The mother of these children died on July 6, 1903, and later Mr. Curry married Viola M. Imes, the daughter of Frank and Clara J. (Whitte- man) Imes, who was born in Twin township, this county, August 8, 1885. To this second union two children have been born: Dorothy, born on July 26, 1909, and Ruth E., born on June 9, 1913.
Mr. Curry is an adherent of the Democratic party, but has never been actively interested in political affairs, preferring rather to give his entire attention to his agricultural interests. Mr. Curry and his family are loyal and earnest members of the Presbyterian church at Gettysburg and are lib- eral contributors to the support of the same. Mr. and Mrs. Curry are high- ly esteemed in the community in which they have lived so many years, and popular among a wide circle of friends and acquaintances.
DR. LOGAN ROBERT PRYOR.
Dr. Logan R. Pryor, physician and surgeon at Eaton, Ohio, was born in Eaton, June 24. 1873, the son of William B. and Mary (Straw) Pryor, natives of Maysville, Kentucky, and Preble county, respectively. They had four children : Dr. William Edward, of Camden, Ohio; Hattie, the wife of William Wooster, of Wellsville, Ohio; Dr. Logan R., of Eaton, and Jen- nie, who died at the age of five years.
William B. Pryor lived in Maysville, Kentucky, until he was fourteen years of age, when he came to Eaton, and here he lived the remainder of his life. He was a painter by trade. He was a soldier in the Civil War, and belonged to Company C, Twentieth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, later re- enlisting in Company F, Eighty-first Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He served four years and five months and was in many of the hard fought battles of the war. After the war he returned to Eaton and followed his trade of painting. He died in 1893, at the age of fifty-six, his wife dying in 1897, also at the age of fifty-six. He belonged to the Grand Army of the Re- public.
The paternal grandparents of Doctor Pryor were William and Rhoda
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(Ball) Pryor. He was a native of county Cork, Ireland, and she of Eng- land. They came from Maysville, Kentucky, to Eaton, Ohio, where he conducted a shoe store for several years. They died in Eaton. They had four sons: John, Joseph, Robert E. and William B. The maternal grand- parents of Doctor Pryor were Peter and Maria ( Hoffman) Straw, both na- tives of Germany. They came to America, settling first in Pennsylvania, from which place they came to Preble county, Ohio, where they bought a farm two miles north of Eaton. They died in Eaton at advanced ages. He was killed in an accident while moving a house. They were the parents of the following children: Joseph, William, George, Sallie, Emma and Mary.
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