History of Richland County, Ohio : (including the original boundaries) ; its past and present, containing a condensed comprehensive history of Ohio, including an outline history of the Northwest, a complete history of Richland county miscellaneous matter, map of the county, biographies and histories of the most prominent families, &c., &c., Part 104

Author: Graham, A. A. (Albert Adams), 1848-
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Mansfield, O. : A. A. Graham & co.
Number of Pages: 968

USA > Ohio > Richland County > History of Richland County, Ohio : (including the original boundaries) ; its past and present, containing a condensed comprehensive history of Ohio, including an outline history of the Northwest, a complete history of Richland county miscellaneous matter, map of the county, biographies and histories of the most prominent families, &c., &c. > Part 104

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cessfully, until 1875, when he ceased the active labors of life, and went to Bryan, where he now lives in re- tirement. Mrs. Newman died June 30, 1876; since her death, he makes his home with his daughter, Fran- ces ; his memory is remarkably clear concerning pio- neer days and incidents ; he can give accurate histories of those early times when Richland Co. was a frontier county, and to his recollection more than to any man now living are the accurate details of pioneer days in this county as given in the historical part of this vol- ume due; that it might be made accurate, he visited the county, and pointed out to the compiler of these pages, localities, and narrated incidents that otherwise would have been forgotten.

NEWMAN, JOSEPH (deceased), was the youngest child of Jacob and Susanna Newman, and was born on the 25th day of September, 1812, at the block-house at Mt. Vernon, Ohio, where his mother had been sent as a place of comparative safety from murderous attacks of hostile Indians. A few months afterward, his father returned from the army in Northwestern Ohio, where he contracted a fever that soon terminated his life. Thus early deprived of a father, his early care and training devolved upon his mother, who was wonder- fully well qualified to perform these duties. She was a woman of " great good sense," and her keen inten- tions for the future welfare of her boy soon told her that nature had fitted him to adorn the highest walks of life. And his brief career shows how even a mother's love " builded better than it knew." He early showed a disposition to acquire an education and was not satis- fied with the usual " quarter in winter time," but went to Norwalk, Ohio, then a prominent seat of learning in Northern Ohio, where he laid the foundation that de- termined his success in after life. The close applica- tion to study and habits of thought that he acquired at this academy followed him through life, and though his scholastic attainments were not the most classical, they were enough, combined with his strong, natural intellect, to rank him among the most scholarly men of his day. He attended law school at Cincinnati and then prepared himself for admission to the bar, and then entered into partnership with Judge James Stewart, and rapidly rose in his profession until he was considered one of the best lawyers in Central Ohio. Of commanding pres- ence, far above the ordinary stature, a handsome person and magnetic voice, of rare habits of thought and study, he was singularly well qualified to fill a high position at the bar or in the halls of legislation. About 1841, he married Ann Catlin, of Harrington, Conn., a cult- ured lady of rare beauty and accomplishments, who survived him. No children were born of this marriage. He was a Major General of the Ohio militia and took great interest in its organization and proficiency. He was an Assistant Clerk of the Ohio Senate, and, about 1845, after having served four years as Prosecuting Attorney, was elected a member of the Ohio Senate. His entrance into the Ohio Senate was at the time when new counties were being formed, and personal feelings in this respect ran high. The new county of Ashland was about to be formed, which would despoil his native county of some of her most desirable terri- tory. He took an active part in the Senate to preserve his county in her fair proportions, which was the great

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desire of his life. He regretted to see, and did all in his power to prevent, his native county from being clipped almost on all sides, despoiled of her original territory and fair proportions, but the feeling of the hour was for more new counties, and he was compelled to submit to a movement that he was powerless to resist. He took a high position both as a speaker and a careful, painstaking legislator, and filled the position with great credit and was regarded as among the foremost men of his party. In politics, he was a Democrat of the Jefferson and Jackson school and an earnest advo- cate of their political views. Toward the close of his senatorial career, his bodily health gave way, his mind became clouded under constant study and excitement, and he was removed to an asylum at Utica, N. Y., where his friends hoped that rest and the proper re- storatives would bring back his wonted vigor of mind and body. But this was not to be; he died July 17, 1847. Thus closed a career of remarkable activity and usefulness, and one whose high and pure character passed the fiery ordeal of public life blameless and without reproach.

NETSCHER, J. B., manufacturer, Mansfield ; was born in Germany, in 1834, and is a self-made man. He began business in this city some thirty years ago, in a very small way, but has increased his facilities fully 200 per cent, for, in fact, as a manufact- urer of vinegar, he stands pre-eminent; by means of his pomace leach and vinegar generator, no pomace is lost ; as soon as the cider is pressed out, what was considered useless is utilized by Mr. Netscher, and six or seven bushels of apples, after being pressed, will yield one barrel of choice vinegar that is ready for use in a few hours, and of a quality that never fails to please the consumer; by means of this generation, from two to ten barrels of vinegar can be produced daily; this handy contrivance is secured by letters of patent, No. 199,854, dated Jan. 29, 1878; it is without doubt one of the inventions of the age, and will, when it becomes better known, create a revolution in the production of vinegar, while the price of this standard commodity will very materially diminish. Mr. Nets- cher by no means confines himself strictly to the making of vinegar, but apple-wine and cider as well, all of which is warranted pure, or no pay desired. This enterprising gentleman also deals in bituminous and anthracite coal, and occupies with his coal yard a lot 450x450 feet, located on Short street, near the B. & O. depot ; at this yard, parties can always be sure of obtaining the very best bargains in coal that any firm in the city can offer. The warehouse and cellar wherein Mr. Netscher stores his cider and vinegar, is a two-story brick, 30x60 feet; immediately in front of this building is a four-story brick structure, 30x70 feet, also owned by Mr. Netscher, which he rents for business purposes ; a telephone extends from the yard on Short street to the warehouse, or upper office, on Main street, thus affording immediate communication to either place. When running full time, Mr. Netscher employs twenty-eight men all the time, and uses the power of a fifteen-horse engine; everything is com- plete, from the coalyard to the vinegar manufactory. Mr. Netscher is not only doing a public good in the manufacture of vinegar by his invaluable patent process.

He is giving truth to the universal decision that America is the birthplace of all great ideas.

NEVIUS, L. W., dentist. Dr. Nevius was born in Knox Co., Ohio, Oct. 5, 1846 ; his father was an enter- prising, well-to-do farmer; L. W. lived with his parents on the farm until the fall of 1861, when he entered the Ohio Wesleyan College of Delaware, where he remained until the fall of 1863, when he enlisted in the 2d O. H. A., and remained in the service until the close of the war; as soon as he returned home he began the study of dental surgery, in the office of Drs. Semple & Stephens, Fredericktown, Ohio; in 1867, he bought the office and practice of his preceptors, and carried on the business for himself; in the spring of 1871, he came to Mansfield and opened an office over Black's dry-goods store, on the corner of Main and West Mar- ket streets, a location he still occupies; the Doctor fitted his office in an exceedingly neat and tasteful manner, an improvement on the most of the offices then seen where dental surgery was practiced ; his ideas were to disabuse the minds of his patients of the im- pression that a dental office was only a place of torture ; he placed beautiful pictures on the walls, an organ in the room, statuettes in the corners, books and music on the shelves, an aquarium with gold fish swimming in its waters, a variety of house plants in the windows and other tasty and pleasing ornaments about his room ; the result of this ornamentation soon had its effect ; patients not only came from the city and the country, but from a distance, for a man who exhibits a cultivated taste for fine arts will always be a good workman. The Doctor's patients found him a man of pleasant address, free from every evil habit, and one who could not only appreciate their needs, but one who could relieve them ; his practice soon grew so that the rooms needed extending, and new improvements ; in 1875, he remodeled his office, added new rooms, giving him a cheerful, homelike reception-room, two operating rooms and a convenient laboratory ; these he fitted in the best style, making them the largest, best-lighted and most commodious dental rooms in Central Ohio; his practice now comes from all parts of Northern Ohio, attesting his skill as an operator, and standing as a gentleman. Dr. Nevius' recreation consists in driving a spirited horse, an amusement not only very pleasurable but invigorating ; it steadies his nerves and makes his brain clearer, when each morning he can enjoy a vigorous drive for an hour or more, and thus inhale abundance of fresh air, strengthening his sys- tem, and preparing him for his day's labor; whatever may be said of the practice, if other professional men would follow Dr. Nevius' example, either by riding or walking, a healthier and more cheerful class of human- ity would certainly exist. Dr. Nevius has lately asso- ciated with himself Dr. C. M. Roe, son of Joseph Roe, one of the pioneers and principal men of Springfield Township, a recent graduate of the Dental College of the Michigan University ; he bids fair to become a dentist of the best ability, and is a gentleman in every respect.

NIMAN, W. B., was born Sept. 29, 1831, in Mad- ison Township. Married Feb. 28, 1867, to Mary H. Slocum, who was born Dec. 2, 1842, in Sandusky Co. Mr. Niman enlisted in the army July 24, 1861, 2d O.

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V. C .; went as private in Co. M; after returning home, lie engaged with 163d, in Co. A; after the death of Capt. Avery, Mr. Niman took the command of Co. A through the service. At the expiration of service, he received an honorable discharge and returned to Mansfield, and was for a time engaged in keeping the American Hotel; the site of the hotel is one of the oldest corners in the city.

OBERLIN, WM. KELKER, farmer; was born in Stark Co., Ohio, Feb. 28, 1839; came to Richland Co. with his parents April 4, 1849, with whom he lived thirty-one years. His father, John Oberlin, located in Washington Township. He was married Oct. 19, 1869, in Washington Township, to Miss Kate Ford. They are the parents of two children-Thomas W., born Feb. 1, 1875; Arthur B., born Sept. 9, 1879. He is now engaged in business in Mansfield.

OTTINGER, SAMUEL F., Deputy Recorder; was born in Stark Co., March 13, 1847; came to Richland Co. in 1860. He was married in 1870, to Catherine Grubb, who was born in Knox Co., April 4, 1845. They have two children-Minnie Bell, born Jan. 5, 1873; Lizzie Ordella, April 18, 1877. Mr. Ottinger has been engaged as Deputy Recorder since September, 1878.

PAINTER, MICHAEL, farmer ; was born in Madi- son Township May 2, 1839. His father, the late An- drew Painter, resided east of Mansfield for a great many years, where he followed farming, and also pro- prietor of a carding-mill, which still stands; in this business Michael was engaged during its continuance, and afterward at farming. He was married in 1868 to Miss Margaret Sproats, by whom he has raised two sons. Now a resident of Madison Township.

PARKER, JACOB (deceased); was born on the island of Newfoundland Sept. 5, 1791. Although born in a foreign land, he was an American in fact, his father being a citizen of Massachusetts, and resided in Newfoundland only temporarily ; early in the present century, he removed with his father to Ohio. In 1815, he graduated at the Ohio University at Athens-he and Thomas Ewing being the first two who received the de- gree of Bachelor of Arts from an Ohio college. After his graduation, Mr. Parker, in company with Thomas Ewing and John M. May, entered the law office of Philemon Beecher, in Lancaster, where he studied until admitted to the bar. In 1819, he removed to Mansfield and entered upon the practice of his pro- fession ; in 1829, he went into the mercantile business with Robert McCombs, of this city, in whichi he con- tinued until 1837 ; in the winter of 1840-41, he received the appointment of President Judge of the Court of Common Pleas of this county ; he held this office seven years, and discharged its duties with great ability and to the entire satisfaction of the bar and the people. Upon leaving the bench, he retired from active life ; he, however, always took an active interest in the wel- fare and prosperity of the city ; he was a persevering worker, and a man of sound judgment. His death occurred in December, 1857.

PARSONS, LE ROY, real-estate and insurance agent ; he was born in Bennington, Vt., in May, 1843; when a youth, he removed with his parents to Eastern Penn- sylvania, where he received in part his elementary

education ; he came to Mansfield in 1867, and was engaged for a number of years in the sale of farming implements ; in 1872, he opened an insurance and real- estate office in this city, in which business he has since been exclusively engaged. The assets of the companies he represents, which are classed among the very best, amount to over $1,000,000. He was married in Mansfield, Sept. 14, 1876, to Miss Mary Shumway, of this city ; one child, a son, was born in March, 1878. Mr. Parson's ancestry dates back among the early set- tlers of New England. They were vigilant participants in the Revolutionary war. During his residence in this city, he has taken an active part in the promotion of its interests, and been elected to the office of Clerk of the City Council for four consecutive terms; a period longer than any of his predecessors.

PATTERSON, A. C., proprietor of the carriage man- ufactory ; he was born in Lexington, Ohio. Married, in 1862, to Lizzie A. Cope, daughter of Franklin E. Cope ; they had the following children: Franklin E., born in July, 1864, died in 1871 ; Florence J., born in October, 1868, died in August, 1871, and Gracie A., still living with her parents. Mr. Patterson established the buggy factory in 1864 ; has been connected with this business ever since, and has met with marked success ; his work is among the best in the county.

PATTERSON, A. V., DR., physician ; he was born in Springfield, Jefferson Co., April 9, 1831; came to Mansfield in 1837 ; attended the Mansfield Academy, also Oberlin College, after which he attended the Uni- versity of Cleveland ; graduated at the Cleveland Medi- cal College Feb. 25, 1857 ; commenced the practice of medicine at Galion, where he remained until he was commissioned Surgeon of the 102d O. V. I .; continued till the close of the war, after which he located in Mansfield ; engaged in the practice of medicine, and still continues. He was married, March 3, 1857, to Miss L. L. Gladden, daughter of Capt. Solomon Glad- den, of Monroe Township.

PLATT, WILLIAM (deceased). Among the old resi- dents of Madison Township who have passed away, and who will be remembered by many of the living, was William Platt, who resided on a farm near Mansfield, known by his name, but now within the city limits, and partially covered with dwellings. He was born in the year 1803, and came to this county in 1821. The site of the old homestead, and a part of the lands, which have never passed out of the family name, can be seen from many parts of the city. He died Feb. 17, 1850, in the 46th year of his age, well known by all the citi- zens of that time, and universally respected and esteemed. Quiet and amiable in his manners, he made no enemies. Highly moral in his conduct, and upright in all his dealings, he always sustained the most unsul- lied character ; living at a time when it was generally customary among farmers to allow the use of liquor among their employes, particularly during the harvest, he was among the few who peremptorily forbid it. Mr. Platt was married, May 1, 1835, to Miss Charlotte Bell, by whom he had seven children-one, a son, alone sur- vives him, a resident of the city, near the old home- stead.

POTTER, E. J., photographer ; he was born in Wayne Co. Sept. 19, 1844. He was married to Mary

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CITY OF MANSFIELD.

Backenstoe, who was born in Mansfield; they have two children-William, born March 10, 1867; James, Oct. 6, 1868. Mr. Potter enlisted in the 3d O. V. C., Co. E, in September, 1861; was in the service about three years and four months, and was in different engage- ments-among them the battle of Stone River. This regiment was noted for its service in this battle. He was taken prisoner at Benton, Tenn .; he was prisoner eleven months-first at Atlanta, second at Libby Prison, in Richmond, third at Belle Island, and from there to Andersonville ; was kept there seven months; from there to Florence, S. C .; was then exchanged at Charles- ton, and came from there to Annapolis, Md .; from there to Columbus, Ohio, and received an honorable discharge. Came to Mansfield, where he has since been engaged in the photographic business, having one of the best gal- leries in the city. He has established a very extensive business, and an excellent reputation, as an artist. He stands at the head of his profession in Northern Ohio, and is prepared to do all kinds of first-class work in his line.

PRITCHARD, W. H., born in Worthington Township, Richland Co., Ohio, July, 1850. After taking an aca- demical course at Greentown Academy, Perrysville, Ohio, he went to college at Denison University, and thence to the University of Wooster, where he gradu- ated in June, 1874. The expenses of his education were paid almost exclusively by the results of his own labor, working summers and teaching winters. In July, 1874, he was married to Miss Sophie Leiter, of Lucas, Ohio, and for four years thereafter he was em- ployed as a teacher-one year as assistant in Greentown Academy and three years as Superintendent of Schools in Shelby, Ohio. He was admitted to the bar in De- cember, 1878, by the Supreme Court at Columbus, Ohio, and immediately thereafter formed a copartnership with Norman M. Wolf, under the firm name of Pritchard & Wolf, and since that time has been enjoy- ing a good and successful law practice. In the spring of 1879, being an enthusiastic Republican, he was active in organizing and was elected chairman of the Young Men's Republican Club of Mansfield. His family consists of his wife and two boys-J. Sample, aged 5 years, and Natscher W., aged 2} years.

PROCTOR, FRANCIS M., REV., minister, U. P. Church; was born in Troy Township in 1829; he is the second son of James and Margaret (Mitchell) Proc- tor, who were both old residents of that township; James Proctor came to Ohio with his parents from Alleghany Co. in 1816, and settled in Troy Township where he lived until four years previous to his death ; he died in Mansfield Oct. 9, 1871, aged 73 years ; Mar- garet (Mitchell) Proctor died March 31, 1837. Francis M. received his elementary education in this county, and graduated at Franklin College, Ohio, in 1856; he studied theology at the Alleghany Seminary, and was licensed by the Mansfield Presbytery of the U. P. Church to preach in 1857; in the year 1858, a call was made out for him by the Cuylerville congregation under the care of the Caledonian Presbytery of the State of New York, which call he accepted, and was ordained Nov. 9, 1858, and installed Pastor of that congregation, where he remained until February, 1866, when on ac- count of poor health he was compelled to resign his

charge, and returned to Richland Co., Ohio, where he has since resided, a resident of Mansfield, and has not regained his health sufficiently to engage in the active work. On June 18, 1857, he was married to Miss Lovenia Bowers, of Morrow Co., with whom he has raised six children, two sons and four daughters.

PURDY, JAMES, retired capitalist ; was born July 24, 1793, in Hopewell, York Co., Penn .; his father owned a farm on which he had a flouring-mill, located forty miles north of Baltimore; the non-intercourse laws of 1808-09 and embargo on shipping in our ports embarrassed his business, reduced his income and the value of his property ; James had been given more than an ordinary common-school education, with the inten- tion of giving him a college course ; he was the oldest son, and a change of the pecuniary circumstances re- quired his personal services ; he was put to work on the farm, in the mill, and at whatever he would be most useful.

In 1811, his father sold out, and purchased a farm near Canandaigua, N. Y., to which place he removed with his family ; James continued to labor with him until he became of age, and his father's farm was well improved; he then determined to acquire a liberal education by his own exertions ; to that end he de- voted two years in an academy of high repute in the acquirement of a classical education ; a gentle- man of the bar in Canandaigua tendered him a position in his office on very liberal terms, which he accepted, and entered as a law student, in which position he continued three years, the time required in that State for admission to the bar ; during all this time, he sustained himself by teaching, either common schools or as assistant teacher in the Canandaigua Academy, with some perquisites of the office ; Sept. 5, 1822, he left for Pensacola ; he stopped at Louisville, Ky., on ac- count of the sickness below; while thus waiting, he be- came acquainted with the effect on society produced by slavery, and determined to settle in a free State ; he crossed the river into Indiana and went to Corydon, where the Supreme Court of the State and the United States District Court were in session, and was admitted to practice in both ; on trial, the location did not suit him, he returned eastward, and May 29, 1823, settled in Mansfield, then a rough, unsightly hamlet, and then the farthest west town in that latitude ; the county was then thirty miles square, sparsely settled, with intelli- gent, industrious and energetic pioneers,

Some years before this time, J. C. Gilkison had brought a printing establishment to this place, and made an unsuccessful effort to establish a paper; he sold to a Mr. Croswaite, who had also issued a pros- pectus, but failed to get sufficient support, and offered the property for sale; Mr. Purdy purchased it, and gave his note on time therefor, employed J. C. Gilki- son as printer, and issued the Mansfield Gazette; he now discovered that the type was worn out and insuffi- cient to print a respectable paper ; he went to Cincin- nati on horseback, purchased type on credit, and brought it to Mansfield in saddle-bags, the only mode of trans- portation then available.

In connection with his professional business, he con- tinued to edit the paper until 1831, when he sold it to T. W. Bartley, then a young lawyer, since Judge of

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES:

the Supreme Court of the State of Ohio ; a new circuit of the Court of Common Pleas was organized in the winter of 1823-24, composed of the counties of Richland, Huron, Sandusky, Seneca, Crawford and Marion ; in these, the Courts of Common Pleas held three terms annually, and the Supreme Court one ; this circuit he traveled four times a year on horseback, accompanied with other members of the bar, also the Supreme Court in Colum- bus, and the courts in other counties occasionally ; as the country improved and increased in population, he reduced the territorial extent of his practice ; by care- ful and strict attention to business, and prompt remit- tances, he was intrusted with a full share of the most important business of the country, from which his in- come was principally derived.

Canals were located and being constructed in other parts of the State, for which water could not be ob- tained in this and other counties ou the dividing ridge. A canal from the mouth of Little Beaver, on the Ohio River, to the mouth of Big Sandy, on the Ohio Canal, was located and in process of construction by the State. Railroads were then considered quite inferior to canals. He had made an eastern tour and saw the railroads there being constructed and doing business, and thought a railroad from the western terminus of Sandy and Beaver Canal, westward, through Richland and other counties to the west line of the State, would create a valuable thoroughfare, connecting this part of the State with Pittsburgh, and thence eastward. His professional calling had introduced him to the prom- inent men of that city, and made him acquainted with the most prominent men on the line of the contemplated improvement.

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Author: Graham, A. A. (Albert Adams), 1848- Publication date: 1880 Publisher: Mansfield, O. : A. A. Graham & co. Number of Pages: 968

Author: Graham, A. A. (Albert Adams), 1848-
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Mansfield, O. : A. A. Graham & co.
Number of Pages: 968