USA > Ohio > Union County > History of Union County, Ohio; its people, industries and institutions > Part 104
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Willis Epps was reared in the township where he was born and attended its rural district schools. He remained at home until his marriage and then began farming on the place where he has since resided. As a farmer and stock raiser, he has long ranked with the most progressive and enterprising in his township and. by directing his energies along proper lines, he has made a comfortable living for his family.
Mr Epps was married in 1870 to Sarah Burgendine, a native of Union county. To this union six children have been born, all of whom are still living : Medford, Everett, Etta, Laura. Dott and Ethel.
The family are loyal members of the Methodist Episcopal church and have always taken an active interest in its welfare. Mr. Epps is the class leader in his church at Pottersburg, where the family attend. In politics, he has given his hearty support to the Republican party, but has never taken an active part in its deliberations. Mr. Epps is one of the oldest native-born farmers in his township and during his long career he has endeared himself to a large circle of friends and acquaintances.
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THOMAS CODY.
Of the sturdy sons of the Emerald Isle it has been said that they have "won every country's freedom but their own," and a review of the struggle against oppression in any land will disclose the fact that in the forefront of the battle line, if, indeed, not leading it, the valiant lads from the land of the harp and the shamrock have borne well their part. During the dark days of the war between the North and South in the sixties, there were no better fighters in the ranks of the boys in blue than the sons of Ireland, and among those worthy defenders of the integrity of their adopted country, no soldiers from foreign lands bore a more noble part or acquitted themselves with greater honor than these sons of Ireland. Union county, Ohio, is honored in saving one of these sturdy old soldiers as one of its citizens, and Thomas Cody, of Dover township, is one of the most highly respected citizens of the county.
Thomas Cody, the son of Joh nand Margaret (Crook) Cody, was born in county Tipperary, Ireland, in 1845. The family later came to America and first settled in Vermont, later moving to New York. The father, John Cody, first came to this country, and about two years later the family fol- lowed. John Cody was the son of Michael and Mary ( Fleming) Cody. In 1853 John Cody came to Union county, Ohio, and located in Marysville, and some time afterwards, bought a farm of one hundred and ten acres in Dover township, where he made his home. Later he added forty acres more and on this farm he and his wife reared a family of eleven children, Michael. Edward, Mrs. Clara Herbert. Thomas, Mrs. Anna Cain, John, Edward, William, Richard and two who died in infancy. All the other children are still living with the exception of Edward.
Thomas Cody went to the little old school house in Ireland in the county where he was born. His teacher was an old soldier by the name of John Maher, who fought under the Duke of Wellington at the battle of Waterloo, and was severely wounded at that memorable struggle. Thomas Cody was nine years of age when he came to Union county and attended school for a time in Marysville.
On July 21, 1863. Mr. Cody enlisted in Company G, One Hundred and Twenty-ninth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, with which he served until March 8, 1864. In August of the same year he re-enlisted and was assigned to the Ninth Army Corps, under General Burnside, at Crab Orchard, Kentucky. Ile marched over the mountains and was at the capture of Cum-
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MR. AND MRS. THOMAS CODY.
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berland Gap, where he remained six weeks, the remainder of the time being put in marching and skirmishing between the Gap and Strawberry Plains, taking part in a severe fight at Walker Ford, on the Holstine river. At the end of his enlistment period he was discharged and on the 20th of January. 1865, he enlisted in Company B, One Hundred and Eighty-seventh Regiment. Ohio Volunteer Infantry. They left Columbus in the following February. reaching Nashville, Tennessee, the same month. The regiment was assigned to the Army of the Cumberland. under General Thomas, and from there they went to Dalton, Georgia, in which state they received the surrender of Cobb's Confederate Army of Georgia. They went as far south as Macon, where the subject was detailed on reconstruction work of the Freedman's Bureau. The regiment remained at Macon most of the time until it was mustered out of the service, on January 20, 1866.
After the close of the war Mr. Cody returned to Union county, and for about twenty years followed the sawmill business in connection with his farming. He owns a well improved farm of thirty-three acres in Dover township and also has property in the village of New Dover, where he is now residing.
Mr. Cody was married in October, 1868, to Augusta Gibson, and to this union four children have been born, Cora ( deceased ), Clara, Nellie and Jen- nie. Nellie is the wife of Charles Wesley and has three daughters, Chris- tina, Gladys and Clara. Jennie is the wife of H. Thompson, and has one daughter, Doris.
Fraternally, Mr. Cody is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, the Knights of Pythias and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Polit- ically, he is a Republican. He has been elected to the office of township assessor no less than three times, a fact which speaks well for his ability in the administration of the affairs of this important office. He is a loyal and enthusiastic member of the Ransom Reed Post. Grand Army of the Re- public, and has served as past commander. Mr. Cody has always made his influence felt for good in his community, and the well regulated life he has led has gained for him the respect and admiration of his fellow citizens to a marked degree. Genial and unassuming in all of his relations, he has won and retains the confidence and good will of all with whom he has been thrown in contact. There are not many of the sons of the Emerald Isle living in Union county, and very few who served during the great Civil war. For this reason it seems eminently fitting that the career of Mr. Cody be presented in the annals of his county. Edward, a brother, served four
(68)
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years in Company F, Sixty-sixth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and died at Springfield, Ohio, in 1910, dying from the effects of his wounds received at Peach Tree Creek, Georgia, fifty years before his death, being con- tinually bothered and sick from the wound.
Nepatian Gibson, a brother of Mrs. Cody, was killed on Red River in Mississippi while serving in the Union army, and her father died in the army, 1864, at Rome, Georgia.
WILLIAM SANDERS.
For more than three score years William Sanders has been a resident of Union county, and most of his life has been spent in Leesburg township, where he owns a farm of one hundred and fifty-one acres about five and one-half miles north of Marysville. His farm is well improved in every way and pre- sents as attractive an appearance as any farm in the township. While engaged primarily in advancing his own interests, he has also taken an active part in the civic life of his township, and has served two terms as assessor, giving his fellow citizens efficient service in this capacity.
William Sanders, the son and only child of Martin and Margaret ( Lee) Sanders, was born in Dover township, Union county, Ohio, April 23, 1854. His father was a native of Virginia and came to Union county with his par- ents about 1835. locating in Mill Creek township. The family later moved to Dover township, where Martin Sanders grew to manhood and was mar- ried about 1853 to Margaret Lee. The mother of William Sanders died in the same year he was born, and his father later married a Miss McCampbell, and to his second marriage five children were born, Delmer, Almeda, Dora, Benjamin and Mary. Martin Sanders farmed until the time of his death in 1894, his widow living until 1909.
William Sanders was reared by his uncle, Eli Hildebrand, a farmer of Leesburg township. He received a good common school education and re- mained with his uncle until he was grown. He then began working for him- self and after his marriage moved on to his present farm. He has placed extensive improvements upon this farm and has engaged in general farming and stock raising for the past thirty years.
Mr. Sanders was first married in 1885 to Laura Standley, a native of Champaign county, Ohio, and to this union one child was born, the child and mother passing away together. On March 27. 1900, Mr. Sanders was
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married to Mrs. Mary E. ( Harriman ) Thompson, the widow of W. J. Thomp- son, who had died September 8, 1895. Mrs. Sanders was first married November 5, 1874, to W. J. Thompson, and to her first union two daughters were born, Olive May, the wife of F. D. Slifer, of Wilmington, Ohio, and Florence, the wife of E. M. Lee. Mr. Lee and his wife have one daughter, Dina Elmora, who was born June 16, 1903.
The second wife of Mr. Sanders was the daughter of William and Ellen (Johnson) Harriman, who were married in Logan county, Ohio, and reared a family of five children, E. G., of Alger, Ohio; Sarah J., the wife of R. B. Thompson, of Kenton, Ohio; John E., who died at the age of eighteen ; Mary E., the wife of Mr. Sanders, and Lydia, the wife of John McMahan, of Harding county, Ohio. Mr. Harriman and his family moved from Logan county to Harding county, where they spent most of their lives, her father dying in March, 1895, and her mother in January, 1900.
Politically, Mr. Sanders has always taken an active interest and his party nominated him to the important position of township assessor, and at the ex- piration of his first term he was renominated and re-elected for a second term. Mr. Sanders is a member of the Disciples church.
MICHAEL H. DEA.
No studier or better citizens have come to our shores than those sons of Ireland who have made their home in this country. Fortunate, indeed. is the community which receives these people and incorporates them in the body politic, for wherever found they are always industrious, upright and ready to do their share toward the material and moral welfare of the community in which they reside. In the old country they learn habits of industry which insure success and upon coming to this country they never fail to exercise those same habits which made them independent in okl Ireland. The United States has no better citizens than these sons of Erin, and Union county, Ohio, can count itself fortunate in having some of these good people among its citizens.
Michael H. Dea, the manager of the Union Light and Water Company, of Milford Center, Ohio, is one of the many native-born sons of Ireland who has made this county their permanent home. He was born in county Kerry, Ireland, near Listowel. August 28, 1861. His parents, John and Mary ( Hol- larn ) Dea, were natives of the same county, and had a family of four chil-
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dren, Michael H., John C., Anna D., single, and Patrick C., all of Milford Center.
John Dea came to this country with his wife and three children in 1867 and located in Milford Center, where he followed railroading the remainder of his life, dying in September, 1903, at the age of sixty-four. His wife still survives him and is now seventy-two years of age. Both were loyal mem- bers of the Catholic church.
The paternal grandparents of Michael H. Dea were Michael H. and Mary (Lynch ) Dea. He came to America about 1870 and located in Delaware, Ohio, where he died in 1877 at the age of ninety-two. His wife died in Ire- land, where their three children, John C .. Mary and Bridget, were born. Michael Dea's maternal grandmother Hollarn lived to be one hundred and eight years of age. Both she and her husband died in Ireland. Most of their children emigrated to Australia where they made their permanent home.
Michael H. Dea was six years of age when he came to America with his parents and has been a resident of Milford Center since 1867. He at- tended the public schools of Milford Center, and at the age of seventeen began working in the railroad office of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company at Mil- ford Center. In 1886 he was appointed station agent and held that position until 1908. In 1909 he helped to organize the Union Light and Water Com- pany, of which he was president the first year. He resigned the position of president to take the management of the company and is now filling this im- portant position. For the past three years he has been interested in the coal business and has built up a good trade in retailing coal in Milford Center and the surrounding community.
Mr. Dea was married November 4, 1884, to Mary Hinton, the daughter of Michael and Catherine Hinton. To this union one son was born, Walter Charles, who died at the age of six years.
Mrs. Dea was born at Broadway, Union county, Ohio, May 8, 1863. Her mother died in 1904, at the age of sixty-two, and her father is still living at Milford Center. Eight children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Hinton. James. Daniel, Andrew. Michael, John, Mary, William and one other. The paternal grandparents of Mrs. Dea, Hinton by name, were natives of Virginia and early settlers of Chillicothe, Ohio. Later they came to Broadway. Union county, and still later to Milford Center, where they died. The maternal grandparents of Mrs. Dea were natives of Ireland, but her grandfather on her mother's side came to America and died in Milford Center, Ohio.
Mr. and Mrs. Dea are members of the Catholic church and contribute liberally to its support. He is a member of the Knights of Columbus and,
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politically, he gives his stanch allegiance to the Democratic party. He is recognized as a man of probity and ability and has served his party on several occasions. He has been township and village clerk a number of times, has also served as township treasurer and as a member of the village council several years. In every place where Mr. Dea has been found he has mea- sured up to the full standard of an American citizen.
DR. DYER J. JENKINS.
For the past seventeen years Dr. Dyer J. Jenkins has been practicing his profession in Broadway, Union county, Ohio. By a strict devotion to his profession he has kept himself well abreast of the latest advances in medical science and has built up a reputation as a successful practitioner which ex- tends beyond the limits of his immediate community. He takes an intelligent interest in the civic life of his locality and has filled various offical positions with credit to himself and satisfaction to his fellow citizens.
Dr. Dyer J. Jenkins, the son of Jesse C. and Harriet (Carter ) Jenkins, was born at West Mansfield, Logan county, Ohio. June 20, 1873. His par- ents; both of whom were born in Ohio, have two children, Della, the wife of C. H. Lockwood, of Liberty township, Union county, Ohio, and Dr. Dyer J .. of Broadway.
Jesse C. Jenkins was reared in Champaign county, Ohio, and came to Union county when a young man. He farmed in his younger days and later engaged in the mercantile business in West Mansfield, where he remained three years. He then moved to Raymond, and opened up a general mercantile establishment there, but the close confinement of the store affected his health, so he disposed of his store and moved to a farm near Raymond, where he lived until 1899. In that year he and his wife moved into Raymond, where they are now living a retired life. Botli are members of the Christian New- light church. Jesse C. Jenkins has been a prominent member of the civic life of his community for many years. He has served as assessor and justice of the peace, as well as holding other important positions of trust. He has engaged in the buying and selling of stock and wool for several years, al- though he has now practically retired from all active business affairs.
The paternal grandparents of Doctor Jenkins were William and (Spillers) Jenkins, natives of Ohio. They lived in Champaign county most of their lives, but died in Union county at an advanced age. They had two
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sons, Isaiah, and Jesse C., the father of Doctor Jenkins. The maternal grand- parents of Doctor Jenkins were John and - (Griffin) Carter, pioneer settlers in Union county, Ohio. The grandmother died in middle age and Mr. Carter lived to an advanced age. Six children were born to John Carter and wife: Charlotte, Caroline, Eliza, Lorena, Harriet and Oliver.
Doctor Jenkins was reared on his father's farm and attended the public school of Raymond, and after finishing the course there he entered Antioch College. After graduating from that institution he took up the study of medicine and graduated from the Starling Medical College at Columbus, Ohio, in 1898. He began the practice of his profession at Broadway the same year and has since continued to reside in that village. He is a member of the Union County and Ohio State Medical Associations.
Doctor Jenkins was married October 8, 1901, to Ethel Colver, the daugh- ter of Horace and Jennie (Ford ) Colver, and to this union one son has been born. Harold C.
Mrs. Jenkins was born in this county, and her parents, both of whom were natives of Ohio, are still living in Richwood. Five children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Colver : Guy, who died unmarried; Charles, of Chicago, Illi- nois ; Arthur, also of Chicago: Ethel. the wife of Doctor Jenkins, and Edna. who is still unmarried. Charles and Arthur are manufacturers of Chicago.
Doctor Jenkins is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, the Royal Arch Masons and the Royal and Select Masters. He also belongs to the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows. Politically, he is identified with the Repub- lican party, and has always taken an active interest in local political matters. He has served as county coroner for two terms, and has filled the position of township treasurer for a similar length of time.
LEROY C. BROWN.
It is surprising to note the large number of farmers of Union county, Ohio, who are natives of this county. This is an indication that the county is an excellent agricultural section and the universal thrift of the farmers of this county bears ample witness to the fact. A native-born farmer of this county is Leroy C. Brown, who has spent practically all of his life within the limits of Union county. He has devoted all of his life to farming with the exception of a few years when he was in the west with an engineering corps. For the last five years he has lived in Mill Creek township. where he has a
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fine farm of one hundred and one acres, three and one-half miles south of Ostrander.
Leroy C. Brown, the son of William M. and Rosa ( Carr ) Brown, was born in Dover township, Union county, Ohio, June 6, 1868. His father was born in Union county and his mother in Delaware county, Ohio, and both are still residing in Dover township in this county. Four children were born to William M. Brown and wife, two of whom are living: Leroy C. and Floy. the wife of Will Mangans, of New Dover. The two deceased children are Frank W. and Willa H.
Leroy C. Brown was reared on his father's farm in Dover township and attended the public schools of the township. He remained at home until he was eighteen years of age and then joined an engineering corps and worked throughout Kansas, Arkansas, Missouri, Texas and Louisiana for the next four years. He then returned to Ohio and took up farming, which he has since followed. He first rented a farm in Dover township and lived there until April, 1909, when he bought the Elson farm in Mill Creek township, where he is now residing.
Mr. Brown was married in 1897 to Mary Rittenhouse, who died six years later, leaving two children, Monetta and Frank. Both of these children are now students in the high school at Watkins. Mr. Brown married a second time in 1909 to Cornelia Dunn, who was born and reared in Defiance county, Ohio.
Mr. Brown and his family are members of the Springdale Baptist church. Politically, he gives his allegiance to the Democratic party but has never aspired to an official position.
JOHN W. SKIDMORE.
The proprietor of the "Pleasant Ridge Stock Farm," in York township, Union county, Ohio, is John W. Skidmore, who has been a resident of this county since 1849. In that year he came to this county with his parents from Logan county, Ohio, and here he has made his home since that time. His father was a prosperous farmer and an influential citizen of this county until his death, and the various members of the Skidmore family have taken an active part in the advancement of the county along material, moral, religious and educational lines. Mr. Skidmore and his wife reared a family of chil- dren to lives of usefulness and honor, who have taken their places as useful
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members of the commonwealth and in so doing have shown themselves to be the highest type of good American citizens.
John W. Skidmore, the son of Isaac and Sarah A. ( Haines) Skidmore, was born in Logan county, Ohio, July 26, 1845. His father was born in Virginia, and came with his parents, William Skidmore and wife, to Colum- biana county, Ohio, and later to Logan county. In Perry township, of that county, Isaac Skidmore grew to manhood and married Sarah A. Haines, who was born in Logan county, the daughter of Joseph and Rachel ( Bal- linger) Haines. After their marriage Isaac Skidmore and his wife located on a farm in Logan county, where they lived until 1849, in which year they came to York township, Union county, and purchased one hundred and twenty-one acres of land, to which they subsequently added, until they owned two hundred and seventy-five acres of well improved land. Both were members of the Church of Christ, and deeply interested in its welfare. Isaac Skidmore was a Whig, later a Democrat and when Garfield was nom- inated voted with the Republicans and remained a supporter of that party to his death. Five children were born to Isaac Skidmore and wife, four of whom are still living: Alonzo Skidmore, who gave three years in defense of his country in the Civil War and who was also a pmoinent educator and minister of the Gospel; Emeline, the wife of L. K. Drake, a farmer of York township; Almina, the wife of John Huffman, deceased, of Union county, Ohio, who later became the wife of A. H. Dean, of Logan county, Ohio: Hester, the wife of J. W. McDonald, a farmer of York township, and John W., with whom this narrative deals.
John W. Skidmore was four years of age when his parents moved from Logan county, Ohio, to Union county. in 1849, and he now lives on the same farm where his parents settled in that year. He received such edu- cation as was given in the common schools of his home township and re- mained at home until his marriage. He then began farming for himself, and has had success in hog raising. He and his son, I. B., make a specialty of the breeding of Ohio Improved Chester White hogs and handle other high-grade live stock as well. In addition to his farming interests, he is a stockholder in a grave vault company at Columbus, Ohio. His farm of one hundred and thirty-three acres lies one and one-half miles northeast of West- Mansfield, Ohio, and is improved in such a way as to make it one of the most attractive farms in the township.
John W. Skidmore was married April 11. 1870, to Mary A. Inskeep, a
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native of Logan county, Ohio, a daughter of David and Martha ( Downs) Inskeep. Mr. Skidmore and his wife began housekeeping in a hewed log cabin on the farm where they are now living, and as the years have rolled by they have become more and more prosperous. Six children have been born to them, five of whom are still living : C. A., a college trained photographer. who is still living at home; Ava, a retired school teacher, who also lives at home: Dr. D. I., a veterinary surgeon, now in the employ of the United States government, with headquarters at Amherst. Massachusetts; I. B., a graduate of a business college, and now on the old home farm, and Esther F., who is now teaching in the public schools of Union county. Dr. D. I. Skidmore is a graduate of the Ohio State University at Columbus, and a man who ranks high in his profession as a veterinary surgeon.
The Skidmore family are members of the Church of Christ, and have always been interested in its welfare. The Republican party has claimed the hearty support of Mr. Skidmore, and that he stands high in the estimation of his fellow citizens is shown by the fact that they nominated and elected him to the important office of township trustee. Mr. Skidmore has taken an active part in the life of his community for more than half a century and has always measured up to the highest standard of American citizenship.
ZACHARIAH H. MCILROY.
The MeIlroy family have been identified with the history of Union county, Ohio, for more than three quarters of a century and have always taken an active part in everything pertaining to its welfare. Zachariah H. McIlroy is a worthy representative of this family and is now farming three hundred acres of excellent land in Liberty township, where he was born and where he has always made his home.
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