USA > Ohio > Wayne County > History of Wayne County, Ohio, Volume II > Part 33
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One sad accident happened in the Bechtel family. In 1837 there was a fire and the house burned, and four girls were burned to death. This affected the health of the father so that he passed away and one year later on Christ- mas day they buried him.
Abner G. Orr was born in East Union township, Wayne county, Feb- ruary 3, 1856, and was reared under the parental roof. He attended the common schools of his locality, supplementing this by attendance at Pro- fessor Eberly's school at Smithville. On the completion of his education he began teaching school and followed this vocation seven years. He then re- sumed labor on the farm and subsequently came into possession of a fine farm of his own, on which he is successfully prosecuting his chosen vocation. He has a splendid farm of three hundred and eight acres, on which he raises all the crops common to this locality, and in connection therewith he also gives considerable attention to the breaking and raising of live stock, in which also he has been successful. He is a careful and painstaking man, and the appearance of his property indicates him to be a man of good taste and sound judgment. He has a comfortable and commodious resi- dence, substantial and convenient outbuildings and barns, and in all depart- ments of his work he is up to date.
On February 27, 1890, Mr. Orr was united in marriage to Sarah M. Bechtel. She is a daughter of Jacob Bechtel, who was born on February 29,
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1836, in Greene township, where he spent his entire life. Mrs. Orr was born July 26, 1861, on the farm on which she now lives. To Mr. and Mrs. Orr have been born four children, as follows: Walter B., born April 16, 1894; Mary E., born July 10, 1896; Emily A., born January 23, 1899; Charlotte K., born September 27, 1901 ; Sarah Lucille, born March 17, 1906, died August 24, 1907.
In politics Mr. Orr is an enthusiastic Republican and is now serving as one of the trustees of Greene township, having also served as a member of the school board. In religion, he and his wife are active members of the Presbyterian church at Orrville, to which they give an earnest and generous support. Mr. Orr is an excellent citizen, quiet and unostentatious, and enjoys the respect and confidence of his neighbors and friends, who have known him from early boyhood.
DAVID WENGER.
One of the best-known and most progressive native sons of Wayne county is David Wenger, whose entire life has been spent within her borders, and he has always had deeply at heart the well-being and improvement of the county, using his influence wherever possible for the promotion of enter- prises calculated to be of lasting benefit to his fellow men, besides taking a leading part in all movements for advancing the community along social, intellectual and moral lines. Mr. Wenger was born in Sugar Creek town- ship, March 22, 1864. He is the son of Emanuel Wenger, who was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, where he grew to manhood and where he was educated, having married there, and soon afterwards came to Wayne county, Ohio, his wife also having been a native of Pennsylvania. They lived on a farm and became prosperous and highly respected citizens of Sugar Creek township. To them seven sons were born, three of whom are de- ceased; those living are David, Emanuel, Christian and Amos. They have a half-sister living, Anna, the daughter of Emanuel Wenger by his second wife, who was Mary A. Tschantz.
David Wenger was reared upon the home farm; however, when eleven years of age he removed with his parents to Burton City, where he attended the common schools and received a fairly good education. Not content to begin the battle of life with a common school education, however, he
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went to Oberlin, Ohio, and took a commercial course, graduating there in the spring of 1885.
Mr. Wenger's bent seemed to be toward merchandising and he accord- ingly sought employment in a store at Orrville, clerking in a clothing store there for a period of four years, giving his employers entire satisfaction, for he was courteous, alert and possessed innate ability that went to make a first-class clerk. Seeking a broader field, where he could learn more of the life of a merchant, he betook himself to the city of Dunkirk, New York, and he remained in this prosperous little city for about a year, during which time he picked up many helpful hints, being a man of well-developed per- ceptive faculties, enabling him to closely observe the trend of events in the commercial world, so that in 1891 when he returned to Wayne county he was well equipped to enter business for himself. He purchased a stock of goods at Burton City and conducted a general store there, being successful from the first, and is still managing the same, having built up a very lucrative patronage with the surrounding country. He has a carefully selected and well-arranged stock, of large dimensions, and he owns his store building. He is also postmaster at Burton City, the duties of which he is ably dis- charging.
As a Republican, Mr. Wenger takes considerable interest in local polit- ical affairs. Having studied law and having been admitted to the Ohio bar, before which he passed a very satisfactory examination, he does a little office work and is a notary public. He is at present clerk of Baughman township, filling this office to the satisfaction of all concerned. He has studied law at home until he is well grounded in its fundamental principles and should he devote his attention exclusively to the practice of law he would doubtless build up a large practice and achieve more than ordinary success, seeming to be possessed of innate qualities that would redound to the accomplish- ment of definite and large results in the legal field. He is a man of untiring industry, force of character, public spirited and honest in his relations with his fellow men, consequently he has the confidence and good will of all who know him.
In 1891 Mr. Wenger married Mary B. Spindler, of Burton City, Ohio, and they have two daughters, Grace M. and Margaret E., aged respectively fifteen and seventeen years.
In 1898 Mr. Wenger was the Republican candidate for the Legisla- ture, but Wayne county's Democratic majority was too great to overcome and he went down to defeat with the balance of the Republican ticket.
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DAVID CALVIN ARMSTRONG.
The first half of the nineteenth century was characterized by the immigration of that pioneer element which made the great state of Ohio what it is. These immigrants were sturdy, heroic, upright, sincere people, such as constitute the intrinsic strength of a commonwealth. It scarcely ap- pears probable that in the future history of the world another such period can occur, or indeed any period when such a solid phalanx of strong-minded men and heroic, self-sacrificing women will take possession of a new country. Too careful or too frequent reference cannot be made in the pages of history concerning those who have figured as the founders and builders of a great commonwealth, and in connection with this brief review of the personal his- tory of Mr. Armstrong it is our privilege to touch incidentally and specifically upon interesting data in regard to the sterling pioneer family of which he is a member and which has been identified with the annals of the Buckeye state since an early period in the last century. The subject of this sketch is known as one of the influential and worthy citizens and successful agricul- turists of Seneca county, where he has passed practically his entire life.
David C. Armstrong was born in Canaan township, Wayne county, Ohio, on the 2d day of October. 1853, and is a son of Calvin and Mary (McKee) Armstrong, the former of whom was born in Canaan township on June 3, 1826, and the latter in Wooster, Ohio, April 24, 1826. The subject's paternal grandfather, Thomas Armstrong, was born in Northumberland, Pennsylvania, on the 22d of August, 1776. In his youth he came to Ohio, locating in Columbiana county, where he grew to manhood, and, in 1801, married Jane Cook. He was a soldier in the war of 1812, and after the surrender of General Hull at Detroit, he was commissioned a captain and won other military honors. After the close of the war he came to Wayne county, Ohio, and settled on Clear creek, where he lived two years. He then located on what became the Armstrong homestead in the southwestern part of Canaan township. This section of the county was at that time very sparsely settled, there being but three families within a radius of four miles of his cabin. He at once entered upon the herculean task of clearing this land and putting it in shape for cultivation and none but those who have performed this class of work can have any adequate idea of what it really meant. Mr. Armstrong quickly took a front place among the early settlers and long was considered one of the most influential and prominent men in his part of the county. He was the first justice of the peace in Canaan township and officiated at the wedding of the first couple married in the township. At the
D C. ARMSTRONG RESIDENCE
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time of his death, which occurred on March 2, 1842, he was the owner of about four hundred acres of land. Mrs. Jane Armstrong died April 14, 1856. They were both members of the Wayne Presbyterian church, which he had materially assisted in erecting in 1840, and his was the first body interred in the graveyard adjoining.
Calvin Armstrong, the subject's father, was married September 5, 1847, and built a fine residence one mile east of his father's home in Canaan town- ship. In 1885 he moved two miles south and bought a farm of one hundred and sixty acres, where he lived until his death, which occurred on April 21. 1901. Mary McKee Armstrong died on June 16, 1909. They were both members of the Presbyterian church, and in politics he was a stanch Repub- lican, and took an active interest in local public affairs, serving efficiently as township trustee. The children born to Calvin and Mary Armstrong were David C., the subject of this sketch ; Thomas Albert, born June 10, 1849, who lives in Canaan township; Jane A., who was the wife of W. F. Johnson and died on December 14, 1905; Ina M., the wife of Thomas Fletcher, of Illinois.
David Calvin Armstrong received his education in the district school at Golden Corners and during his vacation periods he devoted his time to as- sisting his father in the work of the farm. He remained on the farm as assistant until 1885, when his father left the farm to him and moved to an- other place a mile south, since which time he has devoted his attention to its operation and in which he has been eminently successful. He lives in the commodious and attractive country residence, standing back a distance from the highway and at the end of an avenue of stately maples. His property embraces one hundred and seventy-three acres of as fine land as can be found in Wayne county.
On the 22d of February, 1900, Mr. Armstrong was united in marriage to Alice J. Smith, who was born January 25. 1859, in Lucas county, Ohio. the daughter of James and Elizabeth Smith, of Chester township, this county. James Smith had been a resident for many years near Toledo, Ohio, and in 1859 moved to Chester township, where he spent his remaining years.
NELSON R. COONEY.
There is no positive rule for the achieving of success, and yet in the life of the successful man there are always lessons which might well be followed. The essential conditions of human life are practically ever the same, the surroundings of individuals differing but slightly, and when one man passes
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another on the highway of life to reach the goal of prosperity before others who perhaps started long before him, it is because he has the power to use advantages which probably encompass the whole human race. One of the young men of Wayne county, Ohio, who seems to have the happy faculty of grasping situations as they arise is Nelson R. Cooney, who was born in Hardin county, Ohio, November 3, 1874, the son of William H. and Mary E. (Nelson) Cooney, each representatives of old and highly respected fami- lies, the genealogy of which shows that his paternal ancestors were Virgin- ians, while that of his maternal ancestors shows that they were among the early inhabitants of Wayne county. his Grandmother Nelson having been born while her parents lived in a settlement where the city of Wooster now stands.
The subject of this sketch was reared on the home farm and attended the district schools during the winter months, working in the fields during crop seasons. He had a natural literary turn and was ambitious to gain a higher education. consequently he entered Ohio Northern University, at Ada, Ohio. the winter of 1902-3, from which he graduated in the law de- partment in 1905, with the degree of Bachelor of Laws. He not only stood high in his class, but was prominently identified with all the affairs of the college affecting student life in any of its phases. He came out of college well equipped in his profession. After leaving college, he was associated with a law firm in Kenton, Ohio, for a year, at the end of which he became engaged in law editorial work on the editorial staff of the Laning Company, of Norwalk, Ohio, and assisted in the editing of several important treatises on Ohio law; later he was transferred to the sales department, and after a year and a half in the service of the above-named company he obtained a position on the sales force with the Edward Thompson Company, law book publishers, of Northport, Long Island, New York, with whom he remained until the spring of 1908.
About the time Mr. Cooney came of age he became a teacher in the public schools of his native county, which vocation he followed for a period of eight years in a very acceptable manner, his services as such always being in demand. Had he continued in this line of work he would doubtless have become one of the leading educators of his part of the state, but he chose the law and has won a wide reputation as a lawyer throughout the locality of his residence, not only as a man well versed in the law, but his arguments before a jury are always convincing ; he has also acquired some note as an orator and is frequently called upon to make public addresses.
In the spring of 1908 Mr. Cooney located in Dalton, and on June Ist
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of that year he was married to Lata B. Horbach, a talented and cultured young lady, the daughter of Frank E. and Mary E. Horbach, Mrs. Cooney's father, now deceased, having been a wealthy and successful business man of Dalton. Mrs. Cooney was born November 10, 1882, and aside from the edu- cation she acquired in the village schools, she is accomplished along musical and elocutionary lines, having studied in Otterbein and Oberlin colleges.
During the time Mr. Cooney was in college, he was interested in mili- tary affairs, he having held a commission as first lieutenant in Company G, Second Regiment Ohio National Guard. He is a member of Dunkirk Lodge, No. 549, Free and Accepted Masons, and of Ada Chapter, No. 138, Royal Arch Masons, and is also a member of Norwalk Lodge, No. 730, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, Norwalk, Ohio. Mr. Cooney is a fraternity man, being a member of Sigma Phi Epilson, in which organization he is quite prominent and well known, having held the position of grand president of his fraternity since 1906, as a result of four elections in the grand chapter.
In politics, the subject of this sketch is a Democrat, and has always taken an active interest in local political affairs, and in the fall of 1909 he was elected mayor of Dalton, on the Democratic ticket. Soon after his election, he was appointed to a position in the legal department of the general land office at Washington, D. C., which he accepted and held for several months, only returning to assume the duties of the office to which he had been elected and to execute the trust committed to his care by his constituents and fellow citizens. He takes an abiding interest in all matters pertaining to the welfare of his community, and by reason of his public spirit, genuine worth and his courteous demeanor he is held in high esteem by all who know him.
JOHN H. HOUSER.
The life of John H. Houser has been such as to bear aloft the high standard which was long maintained by his father, who was one of the early residents of Wayne county and whose life was signally noble, upright and useful, one over which falls no shadow of wrong in word, thought or deed. Such was the type of men who laid the foundation and aided in the devel- opment of this, one of the foremost counties in the Union, and to their memories will ever be paid a tribute of reverence and gratitude by those who have profited by their well directed endeavors and appreciated the lessons of their lives.
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John H. Houser was born in Baughman township, this county, where he has always made his home, his birth occurring on May 30, 1875, the son of John H. and Elizabeth (Lang) Houser, the former a native of Dauphin county, Pennsylvania, where he first saw the light of day on September 10, 1818. While yet a single man he came to Wayne county, Ohio, since he lived in an epoch when "westward" seemed to be the watchword. He ob- tained some good land, but farming was somewhat secondary, since he de- voted the major part of his time to stock raising, having been a great horse- man. He bought and shipped large numbers to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and made most of his money in that way. He was a competent judge of a horse and always had some fine ones about his place. He married, in this county, Elizabeth Lang, whose parents, Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Lang, were na- tives of Germany. After a very industrious, honorable and useful life the father of the subject of this review passed away in February, 1893. To John H. and Elizabeth (Lang) Houser three sons were born, namely : John H., of this review : Aquilla B. and Perry A.
John H. Houser, subject of this sketch, was reared on the farm and he quite naturally chose that line of work for a livelihood and he has suc- ceeded admirably well, being a hard worker and a good manager. While not working on the home place during the days of boyhod he attended the graded schools and the high school at Marshallville, this county, and he received a very serviceable education.
In January, 1897, Mr. Houser was married to Elma E. Kosier. She was born and reared at Dalton, Sugar Creek township, this county, and she at- tended the Dalton graded schools, receiving a very good education. Her family has long been a prominent one in that vicinity. To Mr. and Mrs. Houser one daughter, named Evelyn, was born in January, 1901.
After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Houser moved to Marshallville, Ohio, where, for a period of six years, which were very successful, he en- gaged in buying and shipping hay, then moved back to his farm, to which he has since given his undivided attention. He is the owner of one hundred and sixty-six acres of highly improved land in sections 8 and 9, Baughman township, which is well worth one hundred dollars per acre. He keeps it well stocked with cattle, and, in fact, many varieties of high grade live- stock, being. like his father before him, an excellent judge of stock, and no small part of his annual income is derived from this source. Everything about his place shows thrift and prosperity, and he has a modern and beautifully located dwelling and other substantial buildings.
Mr. Houser is always one of the first ones to get the late inventions
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and labor saving machinery, was one of the first to have the telephone placed in his home and is the owner of an excellent five-passenger auto- mobile, by means of which he gets a great deal of pleasure. In fact, he and his family have everything that could contribute to their happiness and they are well situated to enjoy life.
In his political relations Mr. Houser is a Republican, being an active worker in the party. Fraternally he is a member of the Maccabees. Mrs. Houser belongs to the Methodist Episcopal church. They are pleasant people to know and are held in high esteem by their neighbors and many friends by reason of their hospitality and genuine friendliness.
SAMUEL A. NOLT.
By perseverance, industry and wise economy, the gentleman to whom the biographer now calls the reader's attention has attained a comfortable station in life, and is well and favorably known throughout Baughman and surrounding townships,-in fact, he is one of the leading agriculturists of Wayne county, as a result of the industrious life he has lived here for over a half century.
Samuel A. Nolt was born in Stark county, Ohio, August 27, 1854, the son of Samuel H. and Fannie ( Huntsbarger) Nolt, both natives of Lan- caster county, Pennsylvania, the former's birth occurring on April 7. 1830, and the latter on June 7, 1827. The father was a man of many sterling qualities and he became a fairly well-to-do farmer for those days. He reached an advanced age, dying on February 15, 1900, his faithful help- meet having preceded him to the grave by many years, having died August 6, 1883. They were the parents of nine children, namely: Sarah A., born December 22, 1850: David, January 15. 1852; Samuel A., of this review, was the next in order of birth : John L., September 1, 1856; Jacob H., March 21. 1859: Barbara, November 23, 1861 ; Benjamin, April 16, 1865: Jacob and David (twins ), May 20, 1867. This family came from Lancaster connty, Pennsylvania, in 1854, to Stark county, Ohio, but not being favorably im- pressed with conditions there came on to Wayne county in the autumn of the same year.
Samuel A. Nolt was reared on his father's farm in Wayne county, which he helped to develop when he became of proper age. He attended the common schools and got a very good education. On November 26, 1878, he
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was married to Mary Eicher, who was born February 7, 1855. She came of a good family and received a common school education. To Mr. and Mrs. Samuel A. Nolt four children have been born, namely : Ada, born August 24, 1879, is the wife of Vernon Jackson; Clara, born March 14, 1881, is the wife of Carl Zimmerman; Banks, born January 30, 1883, has remained single ; Esta, born February 26, 1885, died on December 25tlt of the same year.
Mr. Nolt has devoted his life to agricultural pursuits, with the result that eminent success has attended his efforts, he now being the owner of one of the model farms of Baughman township, consisting of two hundred and ninety-two acres, worth conservatively seventy dollars per acre. He is also the owner of forty acres of good land in Texas. All his land is well improved and carefully managed. He has a modern, commodious and nicely furnished residence which is located in the midst of attractive surroundings. He keeps an excellent grade of various kinds of livestock, he being fond of good horses and cattle. His place shows that a gentleman of good tastes and ex- cellent judgment has its management in hand. He has made his ample competency by hard work and honest investment and speculation.
Mr. Nolt is influential in his community. He takes considerable inter- est in Republican politics; however, he devotes nearly all his time to his personal affairs. For six years he was one of the trustees of Baughman township. He managed the affairs of this office in such a manner as to gain the hearty approval of all concerned. When he began in this office there was a balance of only eight hundred dollars in the treasury and when his term of office expired there was a sum of seven thousand and two hundred dollars.
Personally Mr. Nolt is a man whom it is a pleasure to meet, jovial, agreeable, hospitable and a well informed man. The Nolt family bears an excellent reputation throughout the county and takes first rank in the citi- zenship of this favored section of the Buckeye state.
FREDERICK ANTHONY.
Among the vast horde of progressive citizens which the province of Alsace-Lorraine ( formerly belonged to France, now a part of Germany ) has sent to the United States it is safe to say that none are more deserving of specific mention for what they have accomplished for themselves and their fellow citizens and for the exemplary lives they have lived than the Anthony
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family, of whom Frederick, whose name introduces this sketch, is an hon- ored representative. He was born in the country referred to on February 4, 1857, the son of George and Caroline (Young) Anthony. George An- thony was a shoemaker of more than ordinary skill, having learned his trade in the old country. He married there and brought his family to the United States in 1865. They first located at Williamsport, Pennsylvania, where they remained for one year, then moved to Lockhaven, that state, remaining there for three years. In 1869 they moved to Loudonville, Ohio, but soon located on a farm in the vicinity of Burton City, Wayne county. After establishing a good home here for his family, George Anthony died in 1892, having become known as one of the leading farmers of his com- munity and a man of exemplary character. He took a great interest in the Lutheran church, of which he was a devoted member. His widow, a woman of kindly and pleasing disposition, is still living, making her home at this writing in Akron, Ohio. They were the parents of the following children : Julia, wife of Levi Wolf, of Akron, Ohio; Lena, wife of Ellsworth Cooper, also of Akron; Caroline is the wife of Will Coonday, living in Akron; Tena, wife of Henry Bigler, of Akron, and Frederick, of this review.
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