USA > Ohio > Richland County > History of Richland County, Ohio, from 1808 to 1908, Vol. I > Part 52
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On the 22d of October, 1874, Mr. Gammer was married at Adamsville. Ohio, to Miss Susan Slater, a daughter of Harrison V. Slater, a prominent farmer of that place. Their home is a beautiful residence at No. 30 South Mulberry street, which was erected by Mr. Gaumer twenty-two years ago.
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His rise in the world has been by the gradual stages that mark orderly pro- gression. Each forward step in his career is easily discernible and the success which he has achieved is attributable to the fit utilization of the innate talents which are his and the directing of his efforts along the lines where mature and rare discrimination lead the way.
SAMUEL S. BRICKER.
Samuel S. Bricker, judge of the probate court, and one who in his official service has gained high commendation, was born in Jackson township, Rich- land county, about two miles east of Shelby, on the 15th day of April, 1865. His father, Isaac Bricker, was a native of Pennsylvania and arrived in Richland county about 1840 in company with his parents, who lived on what is now known as the Bricker homestead, four miles southeast of Shelby. There Isaac Bricker remained until his marriage, when he removed to the farm upon which the birth of Judge Bricker occurred. Subsequently he purchased the old homestead property and continued to reside there until his demise in 1889. He had crossed the plains in 1849, making two trips to California, where he engaged in mining with considerable success. This gave him his start in life and with the capital he had acquired on the coast he returned about 1856 to resume farming in Richland county. He married Caroline Sipe, who was also a native of Pennsylvania and came to Richland county with her parents about the time the Bricker family arrived here. She is still living at the age of seventy-one years.
Mr. and Mrs. Isaac Bricker became the parents of fifteen children, of whom twelve are living and are married. One brother, William R., is title officer of the Hamilton Trust Company, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. B. B. Bricker is a hardware merchant at Prattville, Michigan, while a sister, Mrs. Dr. W. J. Barnes, also resides there. Another brother, C. R., is engaged in general merchandising in the west, while the others are living in the vicinity of Shelby and the old family home.
Judge Bricker, who was the sixth in order of birth, acquired his early education in the country schools of this county and afterwards attended the Northwestern Ohio Normal University at Ada and a private school at Mon- mouth, Illinois. He subsequently spent two years on farms in Illinois and Iowa, after which he returned to this county and taught his home school for several years. He then entered the law office of Connelly & Laser at Mansfield, where he read law for one year, after which he further continued his studies in the Ohio State University, from which he was graduated in 1892. In June of the same year he was admitted to the bar and at once entered upon the active practice of his profession, forming a partnership with J. C. Laser, under the firm name of Laser & Bricker. Later C. H. Workman was admitted as junior member of the firm and this partnership continued until 1895, when it was dissolved and the firm of Bricker & Workman was organized. Judge .Bricker continued in the general practice of law until elected probate judge in 1902. He received public endorsement of his first term's service in his reelection in
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1905, having been given an unusually large majority. During his term the law was passed permitting the establishment of juvenile courts, and he has availed himself of the opportunity to establish such an institution, which has proven most far-reaching and beneficial in its work. He appointed Captain A. G. Thornton a probation officer and has been judge of this court since its establishment, has handled a large number of cases and has done much tangible good in the reformation of juvenile offenders and in finding good homes for many children.
Judge Bricker has always been active in the local work of the democratic party and earnestly desires its success. He has also figured somewhat promi- nently in the financial and commercial institutions of the city, being a director and third vice president in the Farmers Savings & Trust Company and also interested in other financial institutions of the city and the public service corporations. He also owns some county and city real estate, including an interest in the old family homestead and his own home at 112 Sturges avenue, one of the finest residence locations in the city.
On the 1st of November, 1892, Mr. Bricker was married to Miss Harriet Auld, a daughter of D. N. Auld, a prominent farmer of Marion county, Ohio. They have four children, Marguerite, Genevieve, Samuel A. and David J., aged respectively fifteen, thirteen, eleven and eight years.
Judge Ricker is well known as an exemplary representative of the Masonic fraternity. He is identified with its various bodies and he also belongs to the Benevolent & Protective Order of Elks, the Knights of Pythias, the junior order U. A. M. Maccabees, the Modern Woodmen and the Foresters, while for eight years he has been record keeper for the Maccabees. He is also a trustee in the First Presbyterian church, in which he holds membership. His influence has always been on the side of right, progress and humanitarianism, and in the discharge of the duties of his office, especially in the work of the juvenile court, he is demonstrating the fact, which is too often forgotten by the judiciary, that the law is not merely for a punishment to the individual but a protection, and thus he is working toward that higher ideal which in recent years has been manifested in the work of the courts whereby the individual is saved from his own evil tendencies by the efforts that are brought forward to cultivate his best qualities.
JAMES EDWARD PAYNE.
James Edward Payne, who since 1904 has been successfully engaged in the cement business in Mansfield, prior to which time he served for two terms in the office of sheriff of Richland county, was born in Wooster, Ohio, April 17, 1861, his parents being John Henry and Mary Ann (Hunt) Payne. The father, a native of Somerset, England, where his birth occurred April 10, 1828, emigrated to America in 1847 and departed this life on the 29th of January, 1872. He was a stonemason by trade. The mother of our subject, who still survives, was born in Mercer county, Pennsylvania, April 25, 1825, and made the overland journey to Ohio in the spring of 1832.
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James Edward Payne has spent practically his entire life in Mansfield, having been brought to this city in August, 1861. He acquired his education in the public schools here, well equipping himself for the practical and responsible duties that come after text-books are laid aside. Becoming a promi- nent factor in local politics, he was made chairman of the democratic central committee in 1899, and in November of the following year was elected sheriff. That he won the approval of his fellow townsmen in the faithful and capable discharge of his duties is indicated by the fact that he was again elected to the same office in November, 1902, and, as during his first term, fully justified the confidence and trust that had been reposed in him. Upon retiring from his official duties he became connected with the cement business, in which he is still engaged, meeting with a creditable and gratifying measure of success by reason of his excellent business qualifications and well directed energy.
On the 31st of March, 1886, at Mansfield, Ohio, Mr. Payne was united in marriage to Miss Jennie Hall and they have two daughters-Evangeline, now the wife of Paul A. Wien; and Mary Martha Payne.
Fraternally Mr. Payne is connected with Mansfield Lodge, A. F. & A. M., Mansfield Commandery, No. 21, K. T., and Mansfield Lodge of the Benevolent & Protective Order of Elks. His religious faith is indicated by his membership in the United Presbyterian church, and he is well and favorably known in the city which has always been his home, his many good traits of heart and mind having won for him the esteem and regard of all with whom he has come in contact.
JONAS G. SMITH.
Jonas G. Smith, well known in Mansfield, was born in Wooster, Wayne county, Ohio, June 27, 1827, but in his boyhood days became a resident of Mansfield, which was then a little village, giving but little promise of the growth which would transform it into a populous city. He continued a resi- dent of Mansfield up to the time of his death, with the exception of a brief period of five years spent with his parents on their farm four miles east of the city on the Ashland road. As a business man and as a public official he made an excellent record, for in every relation of life he was true to the trust reposed in him and he never deviated from a course which his judgment dictated as right between himself and his fellowmen. He lived to witness remarkable changes in Mansfield, including the arrival of the first railroad engine in the city. It made the trip in August of the year in which the Smith family took up their abode here and the line was the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad.
Entering upon his business career, Jonas Smith secured a position in the auditor's office as deputy, there remaining from 1854 until 1866.
In the meantime he was elected to the office of auditor, his previous experience in the office well qualifying him for the position, the duties of which he discharged with promptness and fidelity. On his retirement he turned his attention to the grocery and produce business, in which he con-
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tinued until 1870, when he was appointed a special agent for the United States Life Insurance Company, having jurisdiction over a district that included Richland and six adjoining counties. He thus served for six years and was then again called to public office, being elected as city clerk in 1880. He filled that position in a most capable manner for six years, during which time he codified and superintended the first complete code of ordinances which the city of Mansfield ever had. In 1890 he was elected justice of the peace and was reelected in 1893, continuing in the office until his death. In his official capacity he acquired a vast fund of knowledge in regard to public affairs of the city and county and was a recognized authority on dates and figures pertaining to municipal interests. His political allegiance was given to the democracy and he never wavered in support of his principles, yet was never a bitter partisan. He was a warm personal friend of Allen G. Thurman and many others who figured prominently in political circles, and his record in office was one over which there fell no shadow of wrong or suspicion of evil. Indeed, for more than a half century he was a prominent figure in Mansfield, and no man enjoyed public confidence to a greater degree or was more widely and favorably known than was Jonas Smith. His activities also extended to other lines aside from political and business affairs. He was one of the four men who organized the first Lutheran church of Mansfield and his aid could always be counted upon to further public progress and promote general improvement.
On the 1st of July, 1851, was celebrated the marriage of Jonas Smith and Miss Esther Jane Leech, a daughter of John Leech, the ceremony taking place on her father's farm. They became the parents of six children, all of whom survived the father, namely: F. P., a resident of Plymouth ; Mrs. Peter Purtell, who is located in Columbus; Ella S., wife of Fred F. Black, of Mansfield; William B .; Elizabeth C., wife of J. H. Berry, of Mansfield; and Albert, of Pittsburg. The father's demise occurred in Virginia. June 29, 1897. He had for years been a prominent member of the Masonic fra- ternity and a loyal member of the Lutheran church, and, in fact, his entire life was characterized by an unfaltering fidelity to manly principles.
The family in its various branches is well known in Richland county and well deserving of mention in this volume. In 1874 Miss Ella Smith was married to Frederick F. Black, who was born in 1849, and unto them have been born three children, of whom two are living, Judson and Joseph Frederick Black. In the schools of Mansfield Mr. Black acquired his educa- tion. His father was the founder of the Brotherhood of Railway Conductors and was one of the oldest conductors on the Pennsylvania Railroad. When he passed away his fellow workers erected a monument to his memory. Frederick F. Black, like his father, became connected with railroading and remained in the service for over twenty years as one of the most competent and trusted engineers in the employ of the Pennsylvania Railroad. His run was between Mansfield and Toledo and he took the first train over the road from Mansfield to Toledo. He was also a member of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and likewise belonged to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. ITis political allegiance was given to the democracy. He died
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very suddenly July 6, 1887, and his loss was deeply regretted, for he was one of Mansfield's most highly respected citizens, enjoying the regard not only of his railroad associates, but of all who knew him.
John H. Berry, who was born in 1857, married Miss Elizabeth C. Smith, daughter of Jonas Smith, September 26, 1883, and to them has been born a son, Charles H. Berry, whose natal day was May 23, 1887, and who was educated in the Mansfield schools. John H. Berry is a prominent business man of the city, being the owner of the Mansfield Brass Foundry, with which business he has been connected since 1892, employing from fifteen to twenty men when operating the foundry to its full capacity. He is as well known and popular socially as he is in business circles and is a valued representative of the Odd Fellows and Masonic lodges. His political support is given the democracy, and he is a member of St. Luke's Lutheran church. He stands among those men whose progressive spirit is contributing much to Mansfield's upbuilding, and wherever he is known he is held in high esteem for what he has accomplished in the business world and the methods he has employed to secure his success.
JOHN CARLTON STAMBAUGH.
John Carlton Stambaugh, one of the owners and publishers of the Daily Globe of Shelby, his native city, was born November 17, 1875. His father, Samuel F. Stambaugh, was a real-estate dealer and is a native of Pennsylvania, who came to Shelby about 1867, and is still living at the age of sixty years. He wedded Mary E. Moore, who was a native of Crawford county, Ohio, and is also living, being now about sixty-one years of age. Their family num- bered two sons and a daughter, of whom John C. is the oldest. The others are: Mary Grace, the wife of R. L. Castor, city editor of the Globe, and Luther Earl.
As a public-school student in Shelby, John C. Stambaugh passed through consecutive grades until he completed the high-school course and afterward attended Midland College at Atchison, Kansas. When nineteen years of age he entered the office of the Daily Patriot of Atchison, of which his father was proprietor. His newspaper experience began in the composing room, where he remained for two years. In the fall of 1898 he came to Shelby and in 1900, in partnership with C. S. Moore, established the Daily Globe. This has been a most successful venture from the beginning, and extended mention is made of the business in connection with the sketch of Mr. Moore on another page of this volume. Aside from the paper, Mr. Stambaugh likewise has other interests in Shelby, including some city real estate.
Mr. Stambaugh belongs to the fraternal order of Eagles and votes with the democracy. He is rather quiet and reserved in manner, but is at all times pleasant and courteous and possesses the substantial qualities of a successful and enterprising business man.
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GUSTAV ADOLPH BAER.
Gustav Adolph Baer, now filling the position of county sheriff, was born August 15, 1865, at Schoenfeld, in the province of Brandenburg, Prussia. His father, Henry Baer, was a native of that place and was a blacksmith by trade. Coming to America in 1872 he settled in Mansfield, where he worked at his trade in the employ of the Aultman-Taylor Company, and is still engaged in that line, although seventy-four years of age. His wife, Mrs. Augusta Baer, likewise a native of Brandenburg, Prussia, has now reached the age of seventy years.
Gustav A. Baer, the second in order of birth in a family of six children, all of whom are yet living, was but six and a half years of age when the family home was established in Mansfield, where he spent his boyhood days and largely acquired his education in the public schools, having previously attended school for six months in his native land. He became a factor in business circles when at the age of fifteen years he entered the Mansfield Woolen Mills, which were located on the present site of the Mansfield Lumber Company. There he remained for two years, after which he entered upon an apprenticeship to the machinist's trade in the Aultman-Taylor works. That he was faithful, trustworthy and competent is indicated by the fact that he remained in their employ until 1905, with the exception of one year spent in Chicago in the same line of business.
Mr. Baer has been more or less active in political circles and public life for a number of years. In 1896 he was elected township clerk of Madison township, in which office he served for two terms of two years each, or until 1900, continuing work at his trade in the meantime. In fact, he retained his position until the 1st of January, 1906, when he entered upon the duties of the office of county sheriff, to which he had been elected the previous November. He has been the incumbent in that position for three years and at the present time is the democratic candidate for reelection. He has done most strenuous duty in this office, having been called upon to enforce many laws against strong opposition, a situation which none of his predecessors had faced. In every instance he has proven himself equal to the occasion and his administra- tion has met with the hearty endorsement of both parties. He is very popular with all classes, but particularly with the working element. In all three cam- paigns in which he has been a candidate for nomination he has carried every precinct in the city in which he has spent ahnost his entire life and where he is well known. When he was a candidate for reelection for township clerk, and again for renomination for county sheriff, on which occasion a few of his political enemies put up an apparently strong opponent, he has led his ticket by an unprecedented majority of twenty-eight hundred. He came of a family in limited financial circumstances and had no special advantages at the outset of his career, nor did his family ties give him any particular influence. He has reached his present place of prominence by the manifestation of sterling qualities that he has displayed from his youth to the present time, and the honors which have come to him are well earned. After qualifying as a voter he was chosen by his ward and county to represent his party at
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various county, congressional, judicial and state conventions, wherein his opinion has carried weight, and he has always been an unitring worker for the best interests of democracy. While he had at all times a laudable ambition from his boyhood to hold public office he has never obligated himself to any politician nor accepted any pay for any political service outside of his well earned salary as an officer, even paying his own expenses at the conventions which he has attended.
Mr. Baer was married on the 24th of December, 1901, by the Rev. H. L. Wild, to Miss Mary Elizabeth Miller, whose home was in Sharon township, near Shelby. Fraternally Mr. Baer is connected with the Odd Fellows, the Maccabees, the Modern Woodmen, the Independent Order of Foresters, the Red Men, the Eagles and the International Association of Machinists, of which he was serving as financial secretary when elected sheriff. He is a member of the First English Lutheran church and has served on various committees in that body. His influence is always given on the side of right, justice, truth, of good government and clean politics. He makes no claim to being anything but a plain, unassuming man, but his fellow citizens have come to esteem and honor him as one who is loyal to a trust and who is working for what he believes to be right in municipal and civic affairs.
ELIZABETH C. BAUGHMAN.
Mrs. Elizabeth C. Baughman, daughter of Captain James and Hannah (Stateler) Cunningham, was born near the Black Hand, Licking county, Ohio, March 8, 1805. Her father, Captain James Cunningham, was well known to the early settlers of Licking, Knox and Richland counties. The mother of Mrs. Baughman died when Elizabeth was only six months old, and her grandparents on her mother's side took the little child to rear. Major John Cunningham, Mrs. Baughman's grandfather, was of the nobility of Ireland, and his coat-of-arms is greatly prized by his descendants.
Captain Cunningham, marrying the second time, removed to Richland county in 1809, and settled near Beam's Mills, on the Rockyfork, two miles below Mansfield. In the winter of 1819-20 he returned to Licking county for his daughter, whom he brought to his new home in this county. The trip was made in a sled and took two days. The family lived at that time near the St. John's church, in the Darling Valley, below Newville. The change from the home of her wealthy grandparents to a cabin in the Richland wilder- ness could not have been a pleasant one, but the daughter, with filial devotion, obeyed her father's command without a murmur.
On September 27, 1825, Elizabeth Cunningham was married to Jacob Baughman. Four daughters and one son blessed their home. Jacob Baugh- man died March 19, 1855, and Mrs. Baughman remained a widow from that time until her death, November 23, 1894,-nearly forty years. Mrs. Baugh- man's son, Abraham J., and her youngest daughter, Sade Elizabeth, remain single and always lived with their mother, and the Baughman home was noted for its hospitality.
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MRS. ELIZABETH C - BAUGHMAN
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After her husband's death Mrs. Baughman removed from Monroe town- ship to Bellville, and when her son established himself in Mansfield a family home was secured, and here she resided for thirty years, or until her death.
Mrs. Baughman's grandfather, John Cunningham, served through the war of the Revolution; her father, James Cunningham, was a captain in the war of 1812, and her son, A. J. Baughman, was a soldier in the war of the Rebellion.
We copy the following article from the Cincinnati Christian Standard, relative to Mrs. Baughman's life and death :
"Died, at her home in Mansfield, on Friday, November 23, 1894, Mrs. Elizabeth C. Baughman, in her ninetieth year. She was born at Black Hand, Licking county, March 8, 1805. She came with her father to Richland county in 1819, and was one of the pioneer women of the county. She saw it when it was a wilderness, when the Indian was a frequent visitor at her door. She saw the forests disappear before the sturdy blows of the woodman's ax, and in their stead towns and villages spring up. As Miss Elizabeth Cun- ningham she married Jacob Baughman, September 27, 1825. He died March 25, 1855, leaving her a widow with five children-four daughters and one son. Two daughters have preceded her to the Father's house. She remained a widow nearly forty years, and devoted her life to the training and comfort of her children, all of whom early gave themselves to the Lord, and who have ever shown their high appreciation of their inother's Christian worth. Over sixty years ago she embraced the Christian religion. She was baptized by Elder Newmyer, near Newville, and the remembrances of the occasion have ever been most precious to her. When the congregation feelingly sang.
'Come, humble sinner, in whose breast A thousand thoughts revolve ; Come with your guilt and fears oppressed And make this last resolve,'
she arose and went, and as they descended the banks of the beautiful stream for the typical burial they sang,
'How happy are they who their Saviour obey ;
and as they came up out of the water her ear caught the strain, 'Now, my remnant of days shall be spent to His praise,' when she exclaimed. By the help of the Lord they shall be so spent,' and through all these sixty years she has never wavered nor doubted. Her pastors have received as much spiritual comfort from her as they have been able to impart to her. While her son, A. J. Baughman, and her daughter, Sade E. Baughman, filled positions at Washington, D. C., during the first administration of Grover Cleveland, Mrs. Baughman was with them, and while a resident of the capital city she wor- shiped with the Vermont Avenue Christian church, of which the Rev. F. D. Power is pastor. By her simplicity of manner and her beautiful Christian spirit she won her way to all hearts, and since her return to Mansfield each year upon the anniversary of her birth, she has received a congratulatory letter from Brother Power, which she esteemed most highly. The next mutual
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