History of the Western Reserve, Vol. II, Part 95

Author: Upton, Harriet Taylor; Cutler, Harry Gardner, 1856-
Publication date: 1910
Publisher: Chicago ; New York : The Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 886

USA > Ohio > History of the Western Reserve, Vol. II > Part 95

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

Charles A. Beckley was reared to manhood in Ravenna, to whose common schools he was indebted for his early educational training. As a youth he became associated with his father's mercantile business, in which he was eventually accorded a partnership, and after the death of his father he continued the enter- prise under his own name until he, too, was called from the scene of life's endeavors, April 4. 1904. His estate still owns the business and the same is conducted under his name. The enterprise has thus been continued for more

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than half a century without interruption, and the present commodious and attractive head- quarters have been maintained for forty-three years. Charles A. Beckley was a man of sterling character, strong individuality, pro- gressive ideas and utmost civic loyalty, and he was thus well equipped for leadership in local affairs. His name ever stood as a syno- nym of invincible integrity and honor, and he commanded the unqualified esteem of the community in which his entire life was passed and to the furtherance of whose interests he contributed in liberal measure. He served as a member of the city council and was other- wise prominent in public affairs of a local order. His political support was given to the Republican party.

Mrs. Sarah (Root) Beckley, mother of Charles A. Beckley, was a daughter of David and Clarissa (Buell) Root. David Root was the first settler at Rootstown, Portage county, where he took up his residence in 1801, be- fore the admission of Ohio to the Union. His brother, Ephraim Root, was the original owner of the land now constituting Rootstown town- ship, which was named in honor of this old and influential family of the Western Re- serve. Ephraim Root also became the owner of other extensive tracts of land in the Re- serve and was one of the original members of the Connecticut Land Company, of which he was secretary for many years. Due record concerning this company is incorporated in the general historical department of this publi- cation.

In the year 1865 was solemnized the mar- riage of Charles A. Beckley to Miss Henri- etta Brigham, who likewise was born in Ra- venna, and who is a daughter of John S. and Frances (Barker) Brigham, who came from Vermont to the Western Reserve in an early day and became pioneers of Portage county, where they passed the residue of their lives. The Brigham family is of stanch English ori- gin and was founded in New England in the colonial cpoch of our national history. Mrs. Beckley survives her honored husband and. surrounded by a wide circle of cherished and devoted friends, she still maintains her home in Ravenna, where she has lived from the time of her birth. She was born in the year 1848, and has thus passed the sixty-first mile-stone on the journey of life. Of her three children, Willis J. is the eldest and is the only son. His elder sister, Miss Sarah F. Beckley, is a successful and popular teacher in the public

schools of Ravenna; and the younger sister, Maude J., is the wife of A. H. Webb, of Ravenna.

Willis J. Beckley, whose name initiates this article, was reared to manhood in his native city, where he duly availed himself of the ad- vantages of the public schools. He was grad- uated in the high school in 1883, and he was then matriculated in the literary department of the famous University of Michigan, at Ann Arbor, in which institution he was graduated as a member of the class of 1889, and from which he received the degree of Bachelor of Philosophy. Thereafter he was a student in the law department of his alma mater for one year, at the expiration of which he returned to Ravenna, where he completed his law studies under effective preceptorship and where he was admitted to the bar of his native state on the 18th of June, 1891. He has since been engaged in the active practice of his profes- sion in his native city, where he has gained distinctive success as a strong advocate and able counselor, and where as a citizen he has admirably upheld the prestige of the honored name which he bears. In 1898 Mr. Beckley was elected prosecuting attorney of Portage county, and his administration was so effect- ive and satisfactory that he was chosen as his own successor in 1901, and served two con- secutive terms, during which he rendered ad- mirable service as a public prosecutor and ap- peared in connection with many important cases, as prosecuting attorney having charge of the state's interest in the Goss, Hickox and Vaughn murder trials. For several years he held the office of city solicitor. In politics he is arraved as a stalwart advocate of the princi- ples and policies for which the Republican party stands sponsor, and in its cause he has rendered yeoman service in the various cam- paigns. In the Masonic fraternity he is affil- iated with the lodge and chapter, having served as master of the lodge and high priest of the chapter, and is a frater in the commandery of Knights Templar in the city of Akron. He is a charter member of Ravenna Lodge, No. 1076, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and had the distinction of serving as its first exalted ruler.

In the year 1896 Mr. Beckley was united in marriage to Miss Lora B. Geiger, daughter of the late Captain David and Hattie (Shurtz) Geiger, of Ravenna. No children have been born of this union. Mr. Beckley is essentially progressive and public-spirited as a citizen

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and has manifested a loyal interest in all that has tended to conserve the advancement and material prosperity of his native city. He is a stockholder in a number of manufacturing corporations in Ravenna and is the owner of valuable real estate in this city.

HENRY J. KNAPP was born January 10, 1846, in Windsor, on his present place of resi- dence, and is a son of Ely and Mabel E. (Grant) Knapp. His grandfather, Moses Knapp, was the first of the family to locate in Ohio. He was born in 1783, in West Stock- bridge, Berkshire county, Massachusetts, and came to Cleveland from New York by boat, intending to land at Ashtabula, but the lake was so rough that the boat was landed in Cleveland. This was in 1808, and he settled in North Bloomfield, Trumbull county, Ohio, where he took a farm in the woods. He mar- ried Laurina Elliott, and their children were : Elliott, served two terms as county surveyor of Trumbull county, now deceased ; Delight, deceased ; Ely ; and Horace, deceased.

Ely Knapp was born January 1, 1815, in New York state, and died in California in 1892. Until his marriage he taught school. He married April 16, 1840, Mabel E. Grant, born February 12, 1822, died January 1, 1865, and they had children as follows : Ellen Mary, Julia L., Henry J., Elliott M., Emily and Mabel C.

When fifteen years, Henry J. Knapp tried to enlist and was rejected, but in 1862 he en- listed in Company H, Twenty-ninth Ohio; he was discharged in May, 1865. He was wounded four times, and spent one year in a hospital. After the war he resumed his edu- cation, attending Orwell Academy. He was after the war first lieutenant of Company F, Eighth Ohio National Guards. Later Mr. Knapp turned his efforts in the direction of farming, and now owns ninety-two acres of land, which he has improved, and has some fine stock. He keeps Shropshire sheep, a few blooded Jersey cows, and also has white leg- horn chickens.

Mr. Knapp is a Republican, and takes an active interest in local public affairs. He served formerly as a member of the State Police, served nine years consecutively as township trustee. and has also been school director and road supervisor. He and his wife are members of the Methodist church, and for twenty years he has served as church trustee. Both are also members of the Grange. Mr.

Knapp is a member of Hartsgrove Lodge, No. 397, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, and served a year as chaplain. He belongs to C. A. Eddy Post, No. 558, Grand Army of the Re- public, at Windsor, and has held .every office in the post; he served three years as com- mander, and is now chaplain. His wife is a member of C. A. Eddy Woman's Relief Corps, No. 164, and served nine years as secretary and one year as president.

Mr. Knapp married Emily Sackett Land- pfear, daughter of Chauncey and Sarah (Glad- ding) Sackett, born March 24. 1849. Her parents are given further mention under the sketch of Skene D. Sackett, found elsewhere in this work. Mr. Knapp and his wife have four daughters, namely: Eva L., married E. B. Alvord, and lives in Springfield, Massachu- setts ; Mabel E., married and lives in Middle- field, Geauga county, Ohio; Elinor M., mar- ried Emory St. Clair, and lives in Springfield. Massachusetts; and Ethel, unmarried, lives at Warren, Ohio.

SKENE DOUGLAS SACKETT was born in 1765. in New Milford, Connecticut, and died in 1852, in Ashtabula county, Ohio. He served during the latter part of the Revolution, enlisting at the age of fourteen years, in the Second Regi- ment of Connecticut, under the name of Skene Douglas, so his uncle could not have him dis- charged. He came to Painesville, Ohio, in 1801, and later moved to Mesopotamia town- ship, Trumbull county, in 1803. He married Hannah Saxton, and their children were : Gary, born February 7, 1789, died February 13, 1866, was a soldier in the War of 1812, and mar- ried Julia Adams; Polly, born December 25, 1791, died November, 1855; Elizabeth, born September 7, 1793, died before reaching ma- turity ; Marvin, born January 23. 1796, died in infancy ; Chauncey : and Horace, born Sep- tember 25, 1803. died March 22, 1870.

Chauncey Sackett was born April 28, 1798, and died October 9, 1863. He was an expert carpenter and joiner, and his work was in great demand on account of its neatness. He was very conscientious and painstaking in every piece of work he turned out. He was a strong Abolitionist, and his house was one of the stations of the "Underground Railway." He was a highly respected citizen, and his death was widely mourned. Mr. Sackett mar- ried, October 23, 1828, Sarah Gladding, and they had children as follows: Hannalı, born October 3, 1831, died March 18. 1889; Orse-

Henry J. Knapp

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mus, born September 26, 1833, died June 10, 1882; Mary A., born May 13, 1840, lives in Cherry Valley, Ohio, widow of Corvus J. Gray, a farmer, who died September 3, 1899; Lucy E., born October 31, 1845, married Leroy Simmons, and lives in Chicago, Illinois ; Fred G., born August 4. 1847, married Ida A. Hess, and lives in Robinson, Illinois; Emily F., born March 24, 1849, married Henry J. Knapp, of Windsor township; and Francis J., born Sep- tember 1, 1856, married Mand Achor, is a trav- eling salesman, and lives in Cincinnati. Fur- ther mention is made of Emily F., in connec- tion with the sketch of her husband, Henry J. Knapp, found elsewhere in this work.

BUELL S. GILLETTE, an enterprising citizen and business man of Amherst, Ohio, is a native of Lorain county, born in Avon township July 20, 1848; he is a son of Gershom and Betsie (Moe) Gillette, natives of Connecticut, and grandson of Gershom Gillette, of Connecticut, and Averon and Eliza Moe, also of Connecti- cut. 'The Moe and Gillette families both came to Ohio among the pioneers, and took tim- ber land in Lorain county. Gerdhin Gil- lette, Jr., was married in Avon township, and was employed several years in an ashery, manufacturing potash, etc .; he was proprie- tor of a hotel at French Creek, Ohio, ten years, and at the death of his wife sold out and removed to Coldwater, Indiana, where he died in 1889. He and his wife were parents of five sons and four daughters, of whom Buell was the youngest child; only one other still survives-Elida, Mrs. Frantz, of Oakland, Cal- ifornia.

When twelve years of age, Buell S. Gillette began working for a living, being first em- ployed three years near home, in a livery es- tablishment ; he spent two years in the same kind of employment at Elyria, and then came to Amherst to live with a sister who had there started a millinery business. He re- mained with his sister three years and she then removed to California; Mr. Gillette was employed in a hotel two years, then worked two years for Mr. Barber, who at the end of two years sold out to Mr. McNiel, who con- ducted the livery business four years and in turn sold his interest, Mr. Gillette retaining his position and working three years for the new proprietor. At the end of this time he decided to begin business on his own account. starting with only a horse, which he traded to good account, invested his money, and by

excellent management and untiring industry came to have an establishment of his own. Since June, 1906, Mr. Gillette has his son, Jay B., as a partner, the firm name being B. S. Gillette & Son. The livery is located on Ten- ney street, and the buildings and fittings have been so improved that the establishment is the finest and largest of its kind in this sec- tion of Lorain county, the equipment consist- ing of several coaches, a funeral car, and all other accoutrements of a first-class livery busi- ness.

Mr. Gillette is an energetic and enterpris- ing man, and is indebted to his own efforts for his financial success. He had but a mea- ger education in his early youth, but attended night school to make up the deficiency, and is an intelligent, public-spirited citizen. Polit- ically he is a Democrat, and takes an active in- terest in public affairs. He married, Decem- ber 31, 1879, Carrie P. Barney, born in Am- herst township, Lorain county, daughter of Ormal and Eliza Ann (Crocker) Barney, na- tives of New England. Mr. Gillette and his wife became the parents of two children : Jay B., at home, and Clifford, born in 1889, died in 1898. Jay B. Gillette married, October II, 1905, Cora Irma Sholton, of Brownhelm.

WILLIAM N. COLLISTER .- A man of me- chanical skill and ability, possessing excellent judgment and tact, William Collister is ren- dering his fellow citizens appreciated service as superintendent of the municipal light plant and waterworks at Painesville, Lake county. He is one of a family of three children born to Nelson and Marion (Russell) Collister, namely : Mrs. Louisa C. Babcock, deceased ; George: and William N.

Nelson Collister was born on the Isle of Man in 1831, and at the age of ten in 1841, was brought by his parents to Painesville, Ohio, where he grew to man's estate. A nat- ural machinist, he learned the blacksmith's trade, and carried on a substantial business for many years, being very popular with all classes of people. He was at one time a partner in the manufacturing firm of Coe & Anderson, which has since become the Coe Manufacturing Company, of Painesville.

ORRIN B. Cook is the leading liveryman of Elyria, and he is a native son of Connecti- cut, borii on the 9th of February, 1861, to Watson and Emma (Wells) Cook, also from that commonwealth. The family home was

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at Bloomfield, near the city of Hartford, Wat- son Cook being a butcher and farmer there. The mother died at that home many years ago, in 1869, and the husband survived her until 1906, dying at the age of seventy-four years.

Orrin B. Cook was reared in his native state of Connecticut, attending the common schools, and remaining on the home farm there until 1881 ; he in that year came to Ely- ria township, Lorain county, Ohio, joining an uncle and brother here, and for a time he was employed at the Lorain Brass Works and for five years was on a farm in Elyria township. In 1891 he came to this city to take charge of the livery business of M. A. Pounds, and after conducting that business for fifteen years he, in 1906, embarked in the same vocation for himself, and he has met with flattering suc- cess, and is now the proprietor of the most popular livery barn in Elyria.

Mr. Cook married Ella Warner, born in this city, a daughter of Charles E. Warner, and their three children are: Edith M., Florence L. and Ralph W. Mr. Cook is a member of Elyria Lodge of Eagles.

MRS. MARY E. (LANGDON ) HARDY. - A woman of culture and accomplishments, Mrs. Mary E. Hardy, widow of the late Lafayette R. Hardy, of Pierpont township, Ashtabula county, is held in high respect throughout the community in which she resides, being a kind and helpful friend and a genial companion. She was born, January 3, 1847, in Spring township, Crawford county, Pennsylvania.

Her mother dying when Mary E. Langdon was a little girl of ten years, she was well brought up by her father and relatives, re- ceiving excellent educational training. She attended the Conneaut, Ohio, high school two years, and continued her studies one year in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, attending the Chestnut Hill high school. Active and enter- prising, she subsequently made good use of her talents, learning the trades of a hair dresser, milliner and dressmaker, and kept busily employed until her marriage, October 28, 1877, with Lafayette R. Hardy.

Lafayette R. Hardy was born, March 25, 1842, in Ashtabula county, Ohio, and died on his farm, in Pierpont township, August 30, 1901. He came from New England ancestry, his grandfather, John Hardy, and his great- grandfather, Hans Hardy, having been born and bred in Vermont. His father, William Hardy, born June 6, 1800, in Carlisle, Pennsyl-

vania, came to Ohio in pioneer days, took up land in Ashtabula county, and from the dense wilderness reclaimed a good homestead, on which he resided, contented and happy, until his death, October 21, 1876. He married Olive Reed, who was born July 1, 1801, in Windsor, Massachusetts, and died in Ashta- bula county, Ohio, August 5, 1860. Seven children were born to them, namely: Char- lotte, born February 12, 1824, died in Febru- ary, 1907; Betsey, born April 12, 1827, died November 25, 1903; Rhoda, born March 25, 1830, died May II, 1905; William, born June I, 1833, died August 12, 1907; George, born June 26, 1837, lives in Missouri; Sophronia, born November 7, 1839, is the wife of George Aldrich, of Pierpont Center : and Lafayette R.

Never very robust, Lafayette R. Hardy never worked very much on the farm as a boy, but after leaving the Kingsville high school, where he completed his early educa- tion, he ran a livery stable for a while. He subsequently traveled extensively in the West for the benefit of his health, but never be- came physically strong, although he lived nearly three score years. He was an up- right, honest man, highly respected by all who knew him, and his death was a loss to the community in which he lived. Mary Blanche, the only child of Mr. and Mrs. Hardy, was born September 8, 1878. She was graduated from the Pierpont high school, and subsequently taught school twenty-three con- secutive terms, being successful and popular in her professional work. She subsequently married Alonzo Anderson, and is now liv- ing in Greenville, Pennsylvania. Mrs. Hardy is a member of the Pierpont Congregational church and takes an active interest in advan- cing its interests.

CHARLES C. BYERS, the owner and proprie- tor of Cherry Hill, one of the splendid resi- dence estates in Portage county, started in life for himself at the age of nineteen years as a bridge builder. His first bridge building work was with the A. & G. W Railroad Com- pany, now known as the Erie Company, but after one year in that occupation he traveled through Kansas and other western states, re- turning to Ravenna one year later and accept- ing the position of fireman on the A. G. W. Railroad. He continued in that capacity for six years, after which for seven years he was an engineer, and then, going to Virginia, served in the same capacity for the Ohio

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River Railroad Company for seven years, and then, coming again to Ravenna, he, with his brother, John F., organized the John F. Byers Machine Works, which is now one of the largest industrial institutions in the city. Charles C. Byers is its largest stockholder, and is the vice president of the company, W. S. Krake being its president, and Marvin Collins its secretary, treasurer and general manager. Mr. Byers was a traveling sales- man for the John F. Byers Machine Company for about ten years, but since 1890 has lived practically retired from an active business life, his home being a modern brick residence lo- cated on a tract of thirty-three acres in the southern part of Ravenna. He is quite ex- tensively interested in real estate, owning both city and farm property, and he is also an enthusiastic automobilist, having owned at different times four machines. His home, popularly known as Cherry Hill, contains one hundred plum trees, many apple trees, but the cherry is its principal fruit.

Mr. Byers was born at Frederick, Mahoning county, Ohio, May 13, 1850, a son of Freder- ick and Anna M. (Reichard) Byers, who were born in Franklin county, Pennsylvania. His grandfather, Frederick Byers, also from Franklin county, Pennsylvania, came to Ma- honing county, Ohio, during an early period in its history, and founded its town of Fred- erick. He was a very prominent man in his day, and he died in the year 1854. The ma- ternal grandfather, John Reichard, was born in Franklin county, Pennsylvania, and, com- ing to Frederick, Ohio, spent the remainder of his life here, and died in 1854. Frederick Byers and Anna Reichard were married in Franklin county, and after coming to Fred- erick, this state, Mr. Byers became an exten- sive dealer in horses and a large land holder, owning over four hundred acres in that county. But he sold his possessions there in the spring of 1859, and came to Ravenna township, and buying a farm just south of the city of Ravenna, he resumed his stock- raising interests and died there on the 4th of March, 1869, his wife surviving until May of 1887. Their five children were: Mary C., who died in 1877; John F., deceased ; George R., of Ravenna; Charles C .; Hattie A., the wife of S. A. Trowbridge, of Cuyahoga Falls.

Charles C. Byers married, on the 5th of December, 1872, Sadie A. Dawes, who was born in Atwater township, Portage county, October 24, 1850, a daughter of Harry and

Sophia (Valentine) Dawes, both from the mother country of England. Coming to the United States, they located in Mahoning county, Ohio, in 1830, and the father, a farmer, died there in 1865. His widow reared their nine children, and since 1898 she has made her home with them, having reached the age of ninety-two years. Mr. Byers is an in- dependent political voter, and he is a member of the Masonic order at Ravenna and of the Knights Templar at Parkersburg, West Vir- ginia. Previous to his marriage he had bought and furnished a home in Meadville, Pennsylvania, and he resided there until 1883, but in that year he sold his Meadville resi- dence and moved to Parkersburg, West Vir- ginia, which was his home for a year and a half. Since then he has maintained his resi- dence in Ravenna. No children have been born of this union.

ADOLPH FRIEDMAN .- One of the enterpris- ing and popular business men of the younger generation in the thriving village of Mantua, Portage county, is Adolph Friedman, who has gained success through his own well directed efforts and is well entitled to representation in this publication. Mr. Friedman was born in Gyulahaz, Austro-Hungary, on the 25th of August, 1884, and is a son of William and Rose Friedman, both natives of Austria, where the former was born in 1850. William Fried- man came to America in 1892 and settled in Cleveland, his wife and children joining him in Cleveland in 1896.

Adolph Friedman secured his early educa- tional training in his native land and was a lad of twelve years at the time of accompany- ing his mother to the United States. In Cleve- land he attended the public schools for three years, within which he familiarized himself with the English language. At the age of sixteen years he secured a position as clerk in a store in Cleveland, and later he there con- ducted a cut-flower stand, in partnership with William Feniger. They were thus associated in business about one year and Mr. Friedman thereafter conducted a gents' furnishing busi- ness in the Ohio metropolis for about two years. At the expiration of this period he removed to Orwell, Ashtabula county, Ohio, where he purchased a general merchandise store, which he successfully conducted for the ensuing four years, at the expiration of which in 1909, he removed to Mantua, where he bought the general store of C. H. Bowen, on

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Main street. Here he has built up a substan- tial enterprise and his well appointed estab- lishment receives a representative patronage, as he has gained a reputation for fair and honor- able dealing, and for making every effort to cater to the demands of his trade. He is identified with the Masonic fraternity.

On the 5th of August, 1907, Mr. Friedman was united in marriage to Miss Rose Dembitz, who was born in the city of Cleveland, on the 7th of April, 1883, being the only child of Henry and Hannah (Kretch) Dembitz, whose marriage was solemnized, in Cleveland, August 15, 1880. Her father was born in Hungary, February 23, 1853, and came to America in 1863. He served for a number of years in the United States army, having enlisted in the Third United States Cavalry in 1870, and hav- ing served under General Custer in the west. in 1873. He is a son of Emanuel and Helen (Klein) Dembitz, both natives of Hungary, where the former was born in the year 181I. He came to America in 1889 and settled in New York City. He died in 1898, and his wife passed away in 1856, in her native land. The paternal great-grandfather of Mrs. Friedman was Henry Dembitz, who passed his entire life in Hungary, as did also the maternal great- grandfather, Marcus Klein. Mr. and Mrs. Friedman have one child, Alvin, who was born on the 13th of August, 1908.

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History of the Western Reserve, Vol. II, Part 95

Author: Upton, Harriet Taylor; Cutler, Harry Gardner, 1856- Publication date: 1910 Publisher: Chicago ; New York : The Lewis Publishing Company Number of Pages: 886

Author: Upton, Harriet Taylor; Cutler, Harry Gardner, 1856-
Publication date: 1910
Publisher: Chicago ; New York : The Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 886