USA > Ohio > Richland County > History of Richland County, Ohio, from 1808 to 1908, Vol. II > Part 25
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wife of Walter Wilds and likewise makes her home in Washington township. Mr. and Mrs. Ray have four children : Edna, Fannie, George B. and Bertha.
In his political views Mr. Ray is a stanch republican and has served as justice of the peace for three years, his decisions being strictly fair and impar- tial. For the past twenty years he has also acted as notary public. Both he and his wife are members of the Disciples of Christ church, in which he is serving as superintendent of the Sunday school. Having resided in this county throughout his entire life, he is well and favorably known here and has gained the warm regard and friendship of all with whom he has come in contact.
GEORGE M. SKILES.
George M. Skiles, senior member of the law firm of Skiles, Green & Skiles, practicing at Shelby and in the courts of this district, has been a member of the bar since 1878 and has gained distinction as a representative of the profession. He is also connected with various corporate interests and the extent and importance of his professional and business connections make him one of the most prominent and representative citizens of Richland county. He was born at Stowstown, Pennsylvania, February 25, 1852, a son of John G. and Sarah J. (Martin) Skiles, who were natives of Pennsylvania. They lived in Cumberland county, that state, and in 1855 came to Richland county, Ohio, where they spent their remaining days, the father following the occupation of farming here. The mother is still living at the advanced age of eighty-six years, but the father passed away in 1891. Their children were Mary, the wife of A. L. Cramer, of Shelby; the Hon. W. W. Skiles, who was congressman of this district and is now deceased; George M .; John C., who was county commissioner at the time of his death; Valley, the wife of H. E. Bell, an attorney at Mansfield; Jennie, the wife of George Smith, of Marion county ; and Getta, the wife of Bart Crum, of Franklin township, this county.
George M. Skiles at the age of three years was brought by his parents to Shelby, where he has since made his home. He attended the Baldwin Uni- versity, at Berea, Ohio, from which he was graduated in 1876 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. In preparation for the practice of law he studied with the firm of Matson, Darlam & Layman, of Mansfield, and was admitted to the bar in 1877. He began practice in Shelby, where he has remained continuously in the profession for thirty years. He is now largely confining his practice to railroad and personal injury cases, although he yet engages to some extent in general practice. His comprehensive understanding of the law, his keen intellectual power and his logical deductions make him a formidable adversary and one whose strength is indicated in the many verdicts which he has won favorable to his clients.
Aside from his profession Mr. Skiles is recognized as a man of keen business discernment and executive ability. He is connected with various corporate interests in positions of administrative direction, being now vice
GEORGE M. SKILES.
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president and director of the Shelby Electric Company, with which he has been thus identified since its organization; vice president of the Shelby Printing Company from its organization; and vice president of the Shelby Water Company since it was organized. He is likewise the president of the Shelby Telephone Company and a director of the Citizens Bank, vice president of the Ohio Seamless Tube Company, of Shelby, Ohio; and these various con- cerns have profited by the stimulus of his sound judgment and business enterprise.
In 1877 Mr. Skiles was married to Miss Elizabeth Clark, a native of Richland county and a daughter of S. A. Clark. Their children are Roscoe C., who is a law partner of his father; Blanche G., the wife of T. J. Green, who is also in partnership with her father; Grace A., the wife of H. D. Kuhn, a druggist of Shelby; and Glen, at home.
In politics Mr. Skiles has been a life-long republican and is presidential elector for the fourteenth congressional district for the year 1908. He is a most earnest and active worker in local party ranks and has done much to advance the interests of the organizations in this part of the state. In all his public dealings that he is actuated by the desire for general improvement and progress no one questions. He was one of the organizers and is a popular member of the Colonial Club and is chief tribune for the state of Ohio in the Grand Tribunal of the Knights of Pythias. He has been connected with it since its organization and is now serving for the fourth term. His life has been a most active and useful one. His career, both public and private, is marked by the strictest integrity and faithfulness to every trust reposed in him. He is known in his home community as an honorable man, a pleasant, social companion and one who is devoted to the welfare of his family and friends.
DAVID CRAIGHEAD.
. A valuable and well improved farm of two hundred and twenty-eight acres, which is located on sections 25 and 36, Jackson township, stands to the credit of David Craighead, who deserves great praise for what he has accom- plished, for he started out in life empty-handed and through his own and well directed labors he has acquired the property on which he today makes his home.
He is a native son of the Buckeye state, born in Mansfield, December 19, 1836, a son of John and Alesenna (Johnson) Craighead, both natives of Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, the former born May 5, 1802, and the latter November 20, 1804. They were married February 10, 1831. After a residence of five years in the Keystone state they removed, in 1836, to a farm near Mansfield, where the father engaged in agricultural pursuits. In 1850 the father removed with his family to a farm in Jackson township and there his remaining days were passed. Their family numbered eight children, as fol- lows: William, deceased; Mrs. Anna Marley, a resident of Missouri; James, who has departed this life; David, of this review; Stevenson, who is also
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deceased; and three who died in childhood. The father died in 1857 while the mother's death occurred November 2, 1856.
David Craighead, the immediate subject of this sketch, was reared on his father's farm, assisting in plowing, planting and harvesting from the time of his early youth, so that when he started out in life on his own account he was thoroughly familiar with farm labor. He has always followed the occupa- tion of farming and is today the owner of two hundred and twenty-eight acres of valuable land, situated on sections 25 and 36, Jackson township. On the place are found two sets of buildings, all of which have been placed here by our subject, while in many other ways he has improved the farm so that today it is a model property. In addition to raising the cereals best adapted to soil and climate he is also engaged in stock-raising to some extent, and in carrying on his business he follows only the most modern methods and uses the latest improved machinery to facilitate his labors.
Mr. Craighead was united in marriage in Mansfield, November 29, 1859, to Miss Louisa Hall, who was born in Franklin township, Richland county, September 3, 1839, a daughter of Robert and Susan (Craut) Hall, both of whom were natives of the Buckeye state and both are now deceased. By her marriage Mrs. Craighead became the mother of five children, namely : Alice, the wife of Smith Kirkpatrick, of Jackson township; William, who resides on a part of the homestead farm; Caroline, the wife of J. H. Hess; Robert B., at home; and Lee, of California. The wife and mother died in 1902 at the age of sixty-three years.
Mr. Craighead supports the men and measures of democracy and served as trustee of Jackson township for three terms. He is a member of the Lutheran church at Spring Mills. Starting out in life with no education and with no financial assistance he has steadily worked his way upward year by year, brooking no obstacles that he could overcome through determined and persistent effort, so that he is well entitled to be called a self-made man. Today his fine farm of two hundred and twenty-eight acres stands as evidence of what he has accomplished in the business world and no man of this section of the state is more highly esteemed than is Mr. Craighead.
WILLIAM BERNO. -
The commercial interests of Mansfield find a well known and worthy representative in William Berno, who is successfully conducting a dry-goods store at No. 28 Main street. In an analyzation of his life record it will be found that his prosperity has resulted from his ambition and determination to succeed, coupled with a strong personality and a genial disposition, together with an ability to make friends. Obstacles seemingly insurmountable have been overcome by him and he is justly accounted one of the most progressive merchants of the city.
He was born in Mansfield July 29, 1869, a son of Jacob and Dorothy (Gutale) Berno, both of whom were natives of Wurtemberg, Germany, but
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came to America between the ages of fifteen and eighteen years with their respective parents, who located in the vicinity of Mansfield. The father died thirty years ago, in 1878, while the mother's death occurred in 1876. Their family numbered seven children, of whom William was the sixth in order of birth. Five of the number are now living: Anna, the wife of James Moore, of Manchester, Virginia; Katherine E., the wife of George Kline, a groceryman of Mansfield; Charlotte, the wife of George Stuhldreher, also a groceryman of this city; and Mary, the widow of John Casey, of Mansfield.
William Berno acquired his education in the parochial schools of his native city and at the age of fourteen years entered the grocery business with the firm of Kallmerten & Koch, with whom he continued for a year and a half. He was afterward employed with other grocers of the city, including J. J. King and the firm of A. W. Ramey & Son, spending about eighteen months in each house. He next entered the employ of McCracken & Com- pany, dry-goods merchants, whom he represented for two years as a sales- man. On the expiration of that period he went to Dubuque, Iowa, where he was employed as clerk for James Levy & Company, proprietors of a dry- goods store, for two years. When that time had passed he returned to Mans- field and once more entered the old establishment in which he had formerly been employed, and which was now the property of the Thompson Dry Goods Company. That concern was four years later merged into the Hahn- Berno Company, of which Mr. Berno six years later became sole proprietor. This change took place about four years ago and since that time under the able management of the present owner the business has increased in large measure, now occupying nearly double the space that it did when he became the sole owner. It is one of the leading establishments of this character in the city. Mr. Berno carries a large and well selected line of goods, his prices are reasonable and his efforts to build up the business are meeting with the most gratifying success. He has never been content to follow in the lead of others, but is himself an educator and leader in business affairs. If new styles and goods appear on the market he does not wait until the demand is created and then make his purchases, but buys the goods and creates the demand. He is indeed a wide-awake, up-to-date, enterprising merchant who looks ahead and sees beyond the exigencies of the moment to the possibilities of the future. He has learned to discriminate between the essential and the non-essential, to retain the former and to avoid the latter, and his business, conducted along modern lines, is bringing him gratifying prosperity.
On the 10th of October, 1893, Mr. Berno was married in St. Peter's church, at Mansfield, to Miss Constance Louise Walter, a daughter of Fred Walter, a pioneer wholesale merchant of Mansfield. They have four chil- dren : Marie Frederica, Joseph Anthony, Constance Isabelle, and Paul Ignatius, aged thirteen, nine, four and two years respectively. Mrs. Berno is an accomplished musician, both as a vocalist and performer on the piano. Her services have been frequently solicited for publie performances in Mans- field and she has been a member of the choir of St. Peter's church for a number of years. She has had charge of the millinery department in the Berno establishment for the past three years, since which time it has grown to
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be one of the foremost departments of fashionable millinery in this section of the state.
Mr. Berno is independent in politics, preferring to support men and measures rather than party. He is a member of the Mansfield Mercantile Association and the Chamber of Commerce, in both of which he is an active worker and has served on numerous committees whereby the interests of the organizations in their objective purposes have been conserved. He also belongs to the Knights of Columbus, the Elks' lodge and St. Peter's Catholic church. He is a man of genial and social nature, whose admirable social qualities and unfeigned cordiality have gained him many friends. His life has been one of continuous activity, in which has been accorded due recog- nition of labor, and today he is numbered among the substantial citizens of his county. What he has accomplished represents the fit utilization of his innate talents and powers. He is distinctly a man of affairs and one who is wielding a wide influence.
RUFUS B. HAYES.
Rufus B. Hayes, who is successfully conducting business at Shelby as a florist, now enjoying a large and growing trade, was born on the old home- stead, two miles east and one mile south of Shelby, his natal day being June 5, 1860. He is a son of Charles L. Hayes, of whom mention is made elsewhere in this volume. He resided upon the home farm until twenty- eight years of age, early becoming familiar with all the duties and labors that fall to the lot of the agriculturist, while the public schools afforded him the educational privileges that equipped him for life's practical and responsible duties.
When he started out in life on his own account he cultivated rented land. Later he disposed of his farming interests and established a general store, which he conducted for five years, but thinking to find a more profitable and congenial field of labor in the florist business he established a greenhouse in the fall of 1893. He started first with a shed house twenty-five by thirty-five feet, but has kept enlarging from time to time to meet the growing demands of his trade until he now has sixteen thousand five hundred square feet under glass. His products are of various varieties, but he makes a specialty of the growing of lettuce. He began the growing of vegetable plants the first year and managed to make a living, although the hard times of 1893 came on. He now ships all over the state and in addition to the production of vegetables he is extensively engaged in the raising of flowers, with carnations as a spe- cialty. In addition to the square feet he has under glass he also utilizes four acres in the conduct of his business. Through experimentation and investi- gation he has brought forth some original carnations, which will be on exhibit at the meeting of the American Carnation Society next year in Indianapolis. Columbus is his principal shipping point, although his trade extends to many parts of the state. As the years have passed he has built up an excellent
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business and in the production of flowers and vegetables has a trade that is now very extensive and profitable.
In 1892 Mr. Hayes was married to Miss Emma Droll, a native of Illi- nois and a daughter of M. P. Droll. They now have one son, Damon, and they lost a son, Martin L., in infancy. Mr. Hayes has always lived in this county and is well known here, while his business record has won him the admiration and deserved commendation of all. He has applied himself closely to the mastery of the work which he took up fifteen years ago and the secret of his success is found in his application, his unfaltering enterprise and his genuine interest in his chosen vocation.
J. E. HUMPHREY.
J. E. Humphrey was born near Mckay, Ashland county, Ohio, May 15, 1863, his parents being John and Rebecca Humphrey. They were widely known and highly respectable people, who after fifty-four years of married life, during which time they helped clear away the forest on their farm, placed broad acres under cultivation for the first time, reared a family of eight children, and noted the advent of sixteen grandchildren and ten great- grandchildren, passed from time to eternity on the morning and evening of the same day. Mrs. Humphrey died at 7:30 o'clock on Friday morning and her husband at 5:30 o'clock in the evening, his wife preceding him about ten hours. The Ashland Press, of Wednesday, December 19, 1906, contained a sketch of Mr. and Mrs. Humphrey, which was such a true portrayal of their lives that we copy the same: "Mrs. Humphrey had been an invalid seven years and for five years had not been able to walk. This condition was brought about by a stroke of paraylsis, which left her powerless from the hips down. During the greater part of the five years that preceded her death, she was able to sit in a chair and to be carried about the house by her daugh- ter, Miss Della Humphrey, who devoted much of her life to the work and caring for her aged and feeble parents. During all her sufferings Mrs. Humphrey never murmured at the hardness of her lot, but bore her afflictions with a patience and resignation possible only to one who is at peace with her God and with her neighbors. She was an earnest Christian woman, having been affiliated with the church from the time she was eleven years of age, first with the Baptist church at Greentown and later with the German Reformed church at Mckay. Mrs. Humphrey's maiden name was Tawney, and her birthplace was in Green township, Ashland county. She was born March 1, 1832, and was in the seventy-fifth year of her age at the time of her death. Mr. Humphrey died Friday at 5:30 o'clock, the direct cause of his death being pneumonia, which he had contracted on the Tuesday of the previous week. Sixteen months before his death he was stricken with paralysis, after which time he was never able to sit up. His whole left side was paralyzed and his mind as well as his body was affected.
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"Mr. Humphrey was born November 6, 1830, and was in the seventy- seventh year of his age when he died. He was born in Green township on what is still known as the Humphrey farm, and was a farmer all his life and a thresherman in later years. The fact that he was a thresherman implies that he was an energetic, hardworking, late-to-bed-and-early-to-rise worker, as there is no more strenuous life than that. It was this nerve racking, body killing pace that undoubtedly was a chief cause of the fatal paralytic stroke which laid him low for so many weary weeks and months before the final summons came. Like his wife, Mr. Humphrey early entered the church body, first the Disciple and later the German Reformed.
"Mr. and Mrs. Humphrey are survived by the following children : Mrs. Mary Bittinger, Frank Humphrey and Harvey Humphrey, all of whom reside at Mckay; Mrs. Emma Kellogg, of Caledonia; John Humphrey, of Mansfield; Michael Humphrey, of Nankin; and Miss Della Humphrey at home. Andrew, another son, died twenty-four years ago and from that time until last Friday there had not been a death in the family. Mr. Humphrey was the last of his family. Mrs. Humphrey is survived by one brother and three sisters: David Tawney, of Findlay; Mrs. Catharine Shambaugh, of Mansfield; Mrs, Sophia Hossinger, of Widowville; and Mrs. Mary Ann Hossinger, of Jeromeville.
"Funeral services were held Sunday at the home and at Bethel Chapel, five miles north of Hayesville, where the remains were interred side by side. Rev. England, of this city, and Rev. Walker, of Mohican, officiated. Mr. and Mrs. Humphrey lived in the same home for the last twenty-three years."
On the 25th of November, 1882, J. E. Humphrey was united in marriage to Miss Mary Jane Byerly, whose birth occurred July 25, 1863. Our sub- ject was reared on his father's farm, but some years after his marriage he removed to Mansfield, and now resides at No. 276 Newman street. Mr. and Mrs. Humphrey are the parents of three children, one son and two daughters, named respectively, Harley E., Nannie and Maud. By occupation Mr. Humphrey is a carpenter.
ISAAC F. BRICKER.
A well improved farm of eighty acres, situated on section 23, .Jackson township, has been the home of Isaac F. Bricker since 1893. He is a native son of this township, his birth having occurred on a farm, August 29, 1868, he being one of a family of fifteen children, of whom twelve now survive, born of the marriage of Isaac and Caroline (Sipe) Bricker, both of whom are natives of the Keystone state. The father was born in Lebanon county, Pennsylvania, July 24, 1823, and came with his parents to Richland county when a youth of sixteen years. In 1849, at the time of the gold excitement on the Pacific coast, he went to California and after his return to Ohio resumed farming, which continued to be his occupation until the time of his demise, which occurred in November, 1889. The mother still survives and
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makes her home in Jackson township. S. S. Bricker, a brother of our subject, is now a probate judge, making his home in Ohio.
Isaac F. Bricker, the subject of this review, was reared on his father's farm while his early education was begun in the district schools, this being supple- mented by a course of study in the normal department at the Ohio University at Ada. He completed a law course in the latter institution in 1892, after which he engaged in practice with his brother, S. S., in Mansfield. How- ever, a professional life did not prove congenial to him and he resumed farming pursuits, having in 1893 purchased his present home, comprising eighty acres, situated on section 23, Jackson township. This tract constitutes a part of the old homestead property. On the place stands a nice home, con- taining ten rooms, a large barn, which was erected by Mr. Bricker, and every- thing about the farm indicates the thrift and progressive spirit of the owner. He is engaged in general farming and stock-raising, and, owing to his well directed efforts, he is meeting with excellent success. In earlier life he also engaged in teaching, following that profession during the winter terms for several years.
Isaac F. Bricker was married in 1893 to Miss Clara Brown, a native of Jackson township and a daughter of David and Anna (Styert) Brown. The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Bricker was blessed with a daughter and son, R. Marie and Bryon R.
Mr. Bricker gives his political support to the democratic party and has served as trustee and clerk of the township. He is a member of Union Grange, No. 1648. He has been closely identified with the educational, pro- fessional and farming interests of Richland county, so that he is well and favorably known. He has ever been interested in the progress and develop- ment of this section of the state and his marked ability and substantial worth make him a man who has won and deserves the unbounded confidence of his fellowmen.
JACOB W. KEEFER.
Jacob W. Keefer, who is successfully engaged in farming a tract of one hundred and sixty acres of land on section 12, Washington township, was born in Mifflin township, Richland county, March 11, 1865. His parents were Henry and Barbara (Culler) Keefer, the former born in 1822 on the same farm in Mifflin township on which the birth of our subject occurred, while the mother first opened her eyes to the light of day in Monroe town- ship in the year 1832. It will thus be seen that in both the paternal and maternal lines Jacob W. Keefer is descended from old pioneer families of this county.
Henry Keefer spent his entire life on the farm where he was born, and throughout his active business career successfully carried on agricultural pursuits, being at one time the owner of more than four houndred acres of valuable land. He was called to his final rest in 1906, but is still survived by
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his widow, who yet resides on the old homestead in Mifflin township. Unto this worthy couple were born five children, namely: Albert H., of Wash- ington township; James F., living on the home place in Mifflin township; Jacob W., of this review; Loretta, the wife of George Braden, of Washington township; and Vernon, who is also on the home place in Mifflin township.
Jacob W. Keefer was reared on the old homestead farm in Mifflin town- ship, and acquired his education in the district schools. He remained under the parental roof and assisted his father in the work of the fields until the time of his marriage, after which he was actively engaged in the operation of a tract of one hundred and sixty acres of land on section 12, Washington township, which he rented from his father. In 1900 he purchased this place and has since met with an enviable and well merited measure of prosperity in his farming interests here. He now has a model farming property of the twentieth century, having remodeled the buildings and made many substantial improvements.
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