USA > Ohio > Putnam County > History of Putnam County, Ohio : its peoples, industries, and institutions > Part 111
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John Maidlow was a Mason and took an earnest part in the affairs of that popular ritualistic order in this county. In all the relations of life, he stood four-square with the world and his memory will not soon be per- mitted to perish in this county, whose best concerns he served so well and so faithfully during his long and useful life.
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PUTNAM COUNTY, OHIO.
BERNARD I. STECHSCHULTE.
Mental and physical activity go hand in hand with material success in life. The success of individuals generally means the success and prosperity of the community. The community honors its most active men by entrusting to them the responsibities demanding careful and wise attention, and one of the most important positions is that of school trustee, and it is with great pride that we may mention here the work of Bernard I. Stechschulte, now president of the board of trustees of Liberty township.
Bernard I. Stechschulte, the son of Henry and Bertha (Kahle) Stech- schulte, was born in Ottawa township, near Glandorf, Ohio, in Putnam county. The sketch of August Stechschulte, found elsewhere in this volume, gives in details the family history.
Bernard I. Stechschulte was married at the age of twenty-six years to- Thersia Morman. She was born in Greensburg township, about four miles west of Ottawa, and is a daughtr of John and Gertrude (Verhoff) Morman. John Morman was born in Hanover, Germany, and is a farmer of Greens- burg township, in this county. His wife, Gertrude Verhoff, was born one- mile west of Glandorf, the daughter of Frank and Mary Verhoff. Mrs. Stechschulte was reared on his father's farm in Greensburg township.
After his. marriage, Mr. Schechschulte farmed one year in Van Buren township on rented land, after which he bought sixty acres near Elm Center, in Liberty township, and has lived there since that time. He is now the owner of one hundred and ninety-six acres of fine farming land, having gradually added to his original purchase as his prosperity increased.
The farm premises of Mr. Stechschulte are neat and attractive, with good buildings and modern equipment. He has recently engaged in the horse-breeding business and keeps a full-blooded Percheron stallion which is registered by the American Percheron Association and is of splendid pedigree.
Bernard I. and Theresia (Morman) Stechschulte are the parents of four sons and three daughters, all of whom are living, while one child died in infancy. These children are as follow: Agatha, the wife of Albert Karhoff, who lives in Ottawa township; Amelia; Lawrence; John; Gertrude ; Bernard and Frank.
Bernard I. Stechschulte is a Democrat, and is now serving as trustee of Liberty township. He has served in other important official positions, such as a member of the school board, and is now serving his third year as.
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trustee and is president of the trustees of Liberty township. In all of his official duties, Mr. Stechschulte has discharged his duties to the entire satis- faction of the people to whom he is responsible.
Bernard I. Stechschulte and family are all devout members of the St. Nicholas's Catholic church at Miller City. He is a genial, active and popular man in the community where he lives.
JOHN M. CARDER.
The rich agricultural section' comprised within the bounds of Putnam county, Ohio, is replete with pleasant homes, housing a happy and contented people. No spot in the great state of Ohio is more favored in this regard than is the county with which this volume particularly treats, and in this county there are few spots more highly favored than is that section comprised within the borders of Perry township and the picturesque country surround- ing. the pleasant town of Continental. Among the farmers in that township there are few who are better known than is John M. Carder, to a brief and modest biography of whom the reviewer here engages the attention of the reader.
John M. Carder was born in Union township, Putnam county, Ohio, on December 1, 1862, the son of John and Arminta (Baer) Carder, the former of whom was a native of Putnam county, who died in 1903, at the age of sixty-seven years, and the latter of whom also was a native of Putnam county, born near Ottawa, and who died in 1882 at the age of forty-seven years.
John Carder was reared upon the parental farm in Union township, this county, and farmed there for some time after reaching manhood, and . then moved to Perry township, where he spent the rest of his life. At the time of his death, the older John Carder owned forty acres of land in Union township and sixty acres in Perry township. He was a man of considerable substance and was a good citizen in all the name implies. For many years he was a member of the township school board and the influence of his sound judgment and deep interest in educational affairs ever was exerted in behalf of the schools of the township, his work in that connection being an imper- ishable monument to his memory in that neighborhood. He was an earnest member of the Dunkard church and frequently occupied the local pulpit of that organization, his sermons being noted for their deep devotional char- acter and their earnest expression of faith. He was a Democrat and his
JOHN M. CARDER AND FAMILY.
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PUTNAM COUNTY, OHIO.
voice ever was lifted on behalf of good government, his influence in the coun- sels of his party in that part of the county having no small weight.
John Carder was united in marriage to Arminta Baer, a member of an old family in Union township, whose parents came from Stark county to Putnam county at an early ray and settled near Ottawa, where they engaged in farming, and where they spent the rest of their lives, being among the honored and influential residents of that section of the county. To John and Arminta (Baer) Carder were born three children: Mrs. Martha Prowant, who also lives in Perry township; John M., with whom this review treats, and Harvey, who died in 1884.
John M. Carder was reared on the parental farm in Union township, his early schooling being obtained in the district schools of that township. He was about fourteen years of age when his parents moved to Perry town- ship, and he remained at home until after the death of his mother in 1882, when he started out for himself, working by the month until his marriage, in 1886, at which time he settled on a farm of forty acres and cleared off a space in the woods upon which to erect a house, and here he lived for more than ten years, moving to his present farm in Perry township in the year 1899, at which time he bought two hundred acres, only forty acres of which was cleared, the remainder being in timber. He had learned the secret of hard work while clearing his former and smaller farm, and he set to work with diligence to clear and improve his forest farm. In this he has been suc- cessful and his fine, well-ditched and well-fenced farm today carries but eighteen acres of woodland, the remainder being in an excellent state of cul- tivation. He reduced the size of his farm by the sale of forty acres from his tract of two hundred acres, and now has one hundred and sixty acres, one of the best farms in that part of the county, containing a fine dwelling, a com- modious barn, silo and other essential outbuildings. In addition to general farming, Mr. Carder also engages extensively in stock raising and has some- thing more than a local reputation as a breeder of fine thoroughbred Jersey cattle. He started this herd in 1910, and since then has exhibited at the Ot- tawa fair and has made many sales of Jerseys in the neighboring counties of Defiance and Paulding, as well as in this county. He also has given much attention to the breeding of Duroc-Jersey hogs and his sales of full-blooded stock in this line have proved quite profitable.
On November 25, 1886, John M. Carder was united in marriage to Mary Troyer, who was born in Perry township, Putnam county, Ohio, on July 24, 1863, the daughter of Levi and Eliza (Dickey) Troyer, and to this
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union six children have been born, Clyde, Blanche, May, Alta, Henry and Ralph, all of whom are at home and who make merry around the fireside of their devoted parents.
John M. Carder and wife are members of the Zion's Chapel United Brethren church, in which faith they have reared their children, and they are active in all the good works of the community. Mr. Carder is a Democrat and is one of the influential men in his vicinity in that party. He gives the most earnest attention to all matters relating to local government, and for the past three terms has served as trustee of the township, in which capacity his work on behalf of the schools has done very much to raise the educational standards of that township. For five years previously he had served as a member of the township school board. He has been township committeeman for his party for some time and is recognized as among the political leaders in the county. He is a fine, congenial man, a good farmer and an excellent judge of stock. He is well liked and popular among all his acquaintances.
HON. ALFRED PUTNAM SANDLES.
Human life is like the waves of the sea. They flash a few brief moments in the sunlight, marvels of power and beauty and then are dashed upon the remorseless shores. Nevertheless, the lives of enterprising men, especially of good men, are instructive as guides and incentives to others. The examples they furnish, of steadfast purpose and inflexible integrity, strongly illustrate what it is possible to accomplish in the world. Some men belong to no exclusive class in life. Apparently insurmountable obstacles have, in many instances, awakened and developed their faculties and served as a stimulant to carry them to ultimate success, and Hon. Alfred Putnam Sandles has lived to good purpose and has achieved a much greater degree of success than falls to the lot of the ordinary individual. By a straight- forward and commendable course he has made his way upward to a position of unique prominence. By his own efforts he has won the esteem and hearty admiration of his fellow citizens, and has justly deserved the honors which the public has graciously bestowed upon him.
Hon. Alfred Putnam Sandles, president of the agricultural commis- sion of Ohio, was born in a log house in Blanchard township, Putnam county, Ohio, on February 5, 1871. As the biographical annals of Ohio set forth, "He was born in a log house near the Putnam county poor house, in 1871,
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farm product, home-grown and hand-spanked." Mr. Sandles is a son of David Ephraim and Ann (Maidlow) Sandles, the former of whom was born in Fairfield county, Ohio, and moved to Licking county, where he grew to maturity. At the age of sixteen or seventeen, he enlisted in Company D, First Ohio Cavalry, and served until the close of the Civil War. Before the age of twenty years, he voted for Lincoln. David E. Sandles was attached to the Army of the Cumberland. After the close of the war, he came to Blanchard township, Putnam county, and engaged in farming. Here he was married to Ann Maidlow, who was born in Blanchard township, near the county infirmary, and who was a daughter of John and Lucinda (Douds) Maidlow, who are referred to elsewhere in this volume. David E. Sandles and wife remained on the farm until well advanced in years, when they moved to Ottawa, where they now live.
Hon. Alfred Putnam Sandles spent his boyhood days on the farm. He attended Crawfis College, the Normal School at Leipsic, and Otterbein University, at Westerville, Ohio. He began teaching at the age of twenty- one years, and taught two years in Blanchard township, one year in Riley township, and six years in the schools of Ottawa. While in the latter posi- tion he served two years as president of the Putnam county teachers' in- stitute. During his first year, as president, he started the custom of devoting one day of institute week to parents' and directors' meetings. It proved a great success and spread over Ohio, and is continued to this day. During this period. Mr. Sandles's services were often in demand as a lecturer on educational topics.
In the early nineties, Mr. Sandles evinced an active interest in politics. He was an ardent Democrat and, in 1896, was made chairman of the Putnam county Democratic convention. In 1900 and 1903 he was elected clerk of the county courts of Putnam county, and in 1901 was elected chairman of the county executive committee. He was re-elected every campaign for twelve years. He was also elected a member of the Democratic state execu- tive committee in 1902, and became secretary and treasurer of the commit- tee, and practically managed the campaign. In 1903 and 1904 he was a member of the state central committee. So well and widely known over Ohio had Mr. Sandles become by 1904, as an enthusiastic party worker and or- ganizer, that he was practically unanimously nominated by the Democrats as their standard-bearer for secretary of state, his name heading the ticket. That was the Roosevelt landslide year, and, of course, he was defeated with the rest of the ticket, but he had the satisfaction of running ahead of Judge Parker in this state by several thousand votes. When the late Governor Pat-
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PUTNAM COUNTY, OHIO.
terson was nominated in 1905, Mr. Sandles was, at Governor Patterson's re- quest, made a member of the committee on resolutions, and as a member of the sub-committee, helped draft the famous platform which contributed so much to the success of the ticket. The platform was virtually the same as his principal campaign speech of the previous year. In the following Janu- ary he was elected clerk of the Ohio Senate, and served three years.
Mr. Sandles' interest in agriculture seems to have run in parallel chan- nels with his interest in education and politics. In January, 1895, he was elected secretary of the Putnam County Agricultural Society, and has served, continuously, ever since. He organized what was known as the Ohio Fair Managers' Association in 1897, and this association now includes every county in Ohio. Through its influence, several important laws have been enacted. He also conceived the idea of closer co-operation between fair and schools, and of paying premiums on "brains" as well as on "bulls." To en- courage educational and school exhibits at county fairs, premiums were of- fered, and the idea has grown more and more popular, and has been taken up by some forty other counties in the state, and also by the State Fair Association. The premiums consist chiefly of books, and today aggregate over twenty-six thousand volumes. Practically every school in Putnam county has at least a small library because of this feature of the county fair. This practice has had a good influence on the schools, for it presents each school on a competitive basis. For many years Putnam county had more Boxwell graduates than any other county because of the interest this com- petition has aroused.
Hon. Alfred P. Sandles has been president of the Ohio Race Circuit, embracing fifty-seven counties, and in 1908, was elected to the board of review of the National Trotting Association, which is the supreme court of the trotting world. He was elected a member of the state board of agri- culture in 1892, and in 1906 was president of the board, and in 1907 was re-elected a member. In January, 1909, he resigned to become secretary of the board, holding this position until August 6, 1913, when the new law created the agricultural commission of Ohio. He was appointed for a six- year term as a member of the commission, consisting of four active mem- bers. When the commission met and organized, Mr. Sandles was elected its president, and still holds this position. His work in promoting the agricul- tural interests of Ohio has been truly wonderful, and has won for him a national reputation. Space is too limited to give more than a meager out- line of his work. His position on the Putnam county agricultural board gave him years of practical experience from his youth, so that from early life he
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PUTNAM COUNTY, OHIO.
has developed as an older man could not have done. Many of the plans in- stituted by him in Putnam county have been tried out, and after having proved successful, have been taken up in the larger field of the state. Under his leadership, orchard demonstrations, which eventually have led to the rejuvenation of thousands of acres of apple orchards and present enormous profit in fruit lands. The free pass nuisance and graft were eliminated in connection with the state fairs. The state board of agriculture has been taken out of politics and made bi-partisan. The people are employed be- cause of merit and fitness. Agricultural trains and demonstration cars are run over railroads for the betterment of the people, and the railroad com- panies were induced to give service free. The frauds and scandals in regard to farm fertilizers were brought to a close by turning on them the calcium light of publicity, publishing in the monthly reports issued by the state board of agriculture the chemical analyses of fertilizers, and posting in a "Danger" column the analysis of those fertilizers which fell below the standard of their published guarantee. This feature grew in importance, and later, Mr. San- dles had a bill passed by the Legislature that eliminated all of the fraudulent features of the business and put it on an honest basis, so that farmers may now know what they are buying.
Against much opposition, Mr. Sandles got the bill passed while he was clerk of the senate, and his position helped him to steer the bill past all the reefs and rocks of the tortuous channel of legislation. His fight in this contest alone would make a story of rare interest. At his suggestion, night exhibitions were successfully inaugurated at the state fair. The live stock interests of the state and sanitary conditions have been given attention, and liberal appropriations have been made. The manufacture of hog cholera serum was virtually instituted by the state at his suggestion and a plant erected for this purpose.
Attendances at farmers' institutes have doubled, and the work is now made practical and helpful. Extension courses have been established and laws were enacted permitting county experiment farms to be established. Laws were also passed requiring agriculture to be taught in the public schools and over two hundred thousand pupils in Ohio are now studying scientific agriculture. Agricultural colleges attendance has more than doubled in Ohio during this period.
Alfred P. Sandles also conceived and put into operation the idea of giving boys from each county a free trip to the Ohio state fair. He has developed this idea to a marvelous degree. He promoted the corn-growing contest for the boys, the first contest being held in 1912. Free trips to
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Washington were offered to boys growing the most corn on a single acre of ground. Five hundred and ten boys of an average age of sixteen years raised an average of eighty-five bushels of corn to the acre in 1912, while the state average for men was only thirty-five bushels. Hundreds of boys were taken on the trip to Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, Washington, D. C., and Mount Vernon.
The girls were also encouraged and had contests in baking, canning, apple growing and lawn gardening. Mr. Sandles was able to generate a wide and deep sentiment and enthusiasm for his work. The commercial clubs, the banks, the grain dealers' associations, have all contributed. One thousand and sixty-eight persons in 1914 went on the trip east, with two boys' bands and a girls' band to furnish music. They made the trip on special trains to Washington, where they shook hands with President Wilson and wife, and later had a big time in Philadelphia and New York city, where their coming aroused tremendous enthusiasm and was featured by the news- papers far and near. Great banquets at the Waldorf-Astoria and other places, a ride up the Hudson and out past Ellis Island to the ocean as guests of New York city, and an address by the mayor and others, combined to make the affairs memorable. The boys' badges read, "The rainbow comes down in Ohio," the idea being that they would get the gold at the foot of the rainbow by working in the soil. The girls' badges read, "Buckeye Anti- Divorce League," meaning that good home-keepers make happy homes. All this was done at a cost of about one hundred thousand dollars, but was worth all it cost and more, not merely for the good time these people had, but be- cause it gets the people to thinking, planning and striving to achieve and to excel in that noble calling that is at the foundation of all industry, producing direct from the soil.
Alfred P. Sandles has shown ability as an organizer. He knows how to touch the various chords of human interest, to bring out the enthusiasm and publicity, and withal to put it on a solid basis where the results are per- manent and valuable. He is a man of tireless energy, working regularly until near midnight, as well as busy all day, yet he is not too busy to be courteous and friendly, and is every inch a man.
On May 27, 1894, Hon. Alfred Putnam Sandles was married to Laura Moffit, who was born on September 6, 1874, on a farm in Blanchard town- ship, Putnam county, Ohio, a daughter of Joab and Amanda (Hopkins) Moffit, who were born and reared in Hancock county, Ohio, and who lived many years in Blanchard township, in this county. They moved to Findlay, Ohio, in 1902, where Mr. Moffit died in July, 1914.
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Alfred P. and Laura (Moffit) Sandles are the parents of one son and seven daughters, Bryan Putnam, Frances, Beatrice, Martha, Dorotha, Helen, Catharine and Eleanor.
Alfred P. Sandles is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, and was master of the Ottawa lodge for four years. He is a member of the Knights Templar at Lima and also of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine at Toledo. He also belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks at Findlay, Governor Dennison Camp, Sons of Veterans, and the Grange. Mr. Sandles has been a member of the Ottawa school board for some time.
Alfred P. Sandles has a rare sense of humor. He helped to institute the famous Crow banquets, which are held at Ottawa following elections, and is attended by many of the most prominent men of Ohio. It is a humorous celebration, participated in by victors and vanquished at the expense of the losing party, certain persons in one party having been paired with certain persons in another party before the election.
With all his other occupations, Mr. Sandles prefers to call himself an editor. He is the editor of the Putnam County Sentinel, and has filled this position since 1908, although he was connected with the paper for several years previous to that time.
Alfred Putnam Sandles is a kind and indulgent father, devoted not less to his family than to his country, his state and the county he calls his home.
HENRY KNUEVEN.
It has been a comparatively short time since Putnam county, Ohio, was a dense wilderness. Today there are fine farms where heavy timber once sheltered wild deer, and beautiful homes where a mass of thick under- brush covered fertile ground a few years ago. Among the brave men who struggled for their homes and living and have succeeded in a great measure, is Henry Knueven, who was born in this county and has made it his home all his life.
Henry Knueven, the son of Barney and Mary (Hueve) Knueven, was born on March 5, 1856, at Glandorf, Putnam county, Ohio. Barney Knue- ven was a native of Glandorf, Hanover, Germany, and came to America when fifteen years of age. He located first in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he worked in a brick yard. He worked here until his marriage, after which he
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removed to Glandorf and purchased a farm, and here he lived the remainder of his life.
Henry Knueven grew to manhood on his father's farm near Glandorf, and received his education in the schools of his home neighborhood. On September 4, 1880, he was married to Catherine Ellerbrock, the daughter of Theodore and Anna (Ricker) Ellerbrock. She is a native of this county.
Theodore Ellerbrock was born in Germany on October 4, 1830, and came to America with his parents when about eight years old. The family located on a farm near Glandorf, where his parents developed a farm out of the wilderness, and here they spent the remainder of their lives. Anna. Ricker was born near Glandorf about 1872. Theodore Ellerbrock and family moved to Liberty township, near where the Nickel Plate railroad now runs, about three miles west of Leipsic. They bought one hundred and sixty acres of land, of which only a very small part had ever been cultivated. Two of the boys saw deer in the woods feeding with their cattle, which ran in fear of the animals with the big horns. Mr. Ellerbrock gradually improved his. land, adding more acreage to his holdings, and later in life, gave each of his five sons a farm. Theodore Ellerbrock and wife were the parents of the following children : Barney, Kate, William, Ferdinand, Henry, Mary and Theodore J. The father died on September 3, 1908, and the mother died on September 13, 1909.
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