USA > Ohio > Montgomery County > Dayton > History of the city of Dayton and Montgomery County, Ohio, Volume II > Part 78
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DAYTON AND MONTGOMERY COUNTY 811
both now deceased and are survived by their three children, Ellen, Harry and Ida. Michael, the third in order of birth, is now deceased. He was twice mar- ried, his first union being with Sarah Breghm, by whom he had two children, Korah and Walter, while for his second wife he chose Sally Johnson, who be- came the mother of one child, Dora. David wedded Fannie Hart, of Washing- ton, Pennsylvania, by whom he had four children, Katic, Frank, George and Jesse. Katie and George are both deceased. He was a Lutheran minister and very prominent in the community in which he resided. His death occurred when he had attained the age of forty-two years, his remains being interred at Wash- ington. Pennsylvania. Jacob married Ellen Miller and became the father of five children, Charles, Ira, Ada, Isaac and John. He passed away in 1899 and was buried at Lewisburg, Preble county. John, who is a graduate of Witten- berg College, never married and is now residing in Dayton. Emma became the wife of Leander Coffman, who is now living retired in Lewisburg, Ohio. In their family were six children, namely: Wilbur; Addie and Elmer, both de- ceased : Francis ; Edmund ; and one who died in infancy. Henry C., of this re- view, is the next in order of birth. Anna passed away at the early age of four years, her remains being laid to rest in Butler township.
Henry C. Ryder, whose name introduces this record, spent the early years of his life upon his father's farm and no event of especial importance came to vary the routine of his life during the period if his boyhood and youth. He ac- quired his early education in the common schools of Butler township while later he pursued a course at Wittenberg University at Springfield. He also studied for a terin and a half at the Lebanon University, and after leaving that institu- tion he was engaged in teaching in Van Buren township, accepting and filling for two and a half years the position of a teacher who had been dismissed. He also taught one term at Little York, after which he withdrew from that profession, thinking to find other pursuits more congenial and profitable. In seeking for a life work he wisely chose the occupation to which he had been reared and in the spring of 1876 took up agricultural pursuits and has since been thus engaged. At first he rented a farm, which he continued to operate for several years, but pos- sessing the laudable ambition to some day own a farm of his own, he applied himself with unfaltering industry and perseverance to the accumulation of suffi- cient means whereby to gratify this ambition. He engaged in general farming and later branched out into stock raising, being untiring in his efforts along those lines to win success. He did not, however, engage in any reckless speculation or unsafe investment, but on the other hand confined his business activities strictly within the limits of his means, and through well directed diligence intelligent labor and careful economy sought to gain his end. Nor were his labors in vain for his close application and good management in time brought their own reward and he became prosperous and successful in his undertaking, so that at the end of seven years he purchased the farm upon which he resided, although in so doing he placed himself under a rather heavy financial obligation. However, the qualities which had been his salient characteristics throughout the previous years continued to be the dominant features in his labor and he persevered in his efforts until in 1897 he was able to pay up all debts and became the sole owner of the farm. Two years later he removed to his
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father-in-law's farm, upon which he resided for four years, and in 1893 he pur- chased the old homestead farm, to which he removed and upon which he has since continued to reside. He now owns two fine farms which are under a high state of cultivation and are among the well developed and valuable farming properties of Montgomery county, while he occupies a prominent place among the agriculturists and extensive landowners of the community.
It was on the 4th of March, 1879, that Mr. Ryder was united in marriage to Miss Alice Stoner, the daughter of Daniel and Marguerite (Miller) Stoner. Her father, who was born in Maryland about seventy years ago, came to Ohio at an early date and became identified with agricultural pursuits here, being recognized as one of the most prominent and influential men in Montgomery county. He has now retired from active business life, however, and makes his residence in Dayton. His wife, who was born in Montgomery county, passed away several years ago at the age of forty-five years. She and her husband were both members of the German Brethren Baptist church and were the parents of ten children, namely : Alice, born in April, 1859; Edgar, born August 4, 1861 ; Elizabeth, born in August 1862; Jennie, born in 1866; Irene, in 1868; Mar- cus, in 1870; Nora, who passed away in infancy ; Effie, born in 1874; Harry, in 1876; and Maude, in 1879. Of this number Edgar married Nettie Yost, by whoin he has seven children: Eugene; Vivian; Mary; Russell; Cosette; Daniel; and Myron, deceased. The third child, Elizabeth, became the wife of Moses Wamp- ler, by whom she has the following children : Bessie, Maud, Amos, Emma, Dora, Mary and Maurice, all of whom are living, while several passed away in infancy. Jennie married D. J. Wample and they have one child, Lyman. Irene is the wife of Jesse Waybright and with her husband and five children resides in Maryland. Marcus, who lives in Minnesota, is married and has four children, while Nora, who is now deceased, is buried in the family graveyard. Effie married Clinton Miller, and they have two children, while Harry and Maude are both single.
Unto the union of Mr. and Mrs. Ryder were born six children, namely : Ralph, who was born on the 3Ist of December, 1881 ; Claude, born in May, 1883; Nellie, on the 17th of March, 1887; one who passed away in infancy and is buried at Polk cemetery ; Raymond, born October 16, 1893; and Mark B., on the 29th of February, 1896. Ralph, who is now deceased, graduated in 1904 with the first high school class of Butler township, after which he taught school dur- ing the winter of 1904-05. He later entered Manchester College at North Man- chester, Indiana, with the purpose of pursuing a classical course, but during his junior year he contracted pneumonia and died on the 30th of November, 1907. His remains were taken home and interred at Polk Cemetery. He was a very active member of the Brethern church and was a young man of excellent traits of character. Claude attended the common schools and also attended high school He lives at home and assists his father in the work of the farm. Nellie, who attended the common schools, was a member of the first class to graduate from the township high school, graduating from that institution with brilliant honors. She has traveled extensively throughout the western part of the United States and is now taking a two years' course in domestic science at the State Nor- mal at Ypsilanti, Michigan. Raymond, living at home, is a member of the junior
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class at high school, while Mark B., who is also under the parental roof, entered the eighth grade in the fall of 1909.
Mr. Ryder has been a very prominent figure in educational circles in Butler township and is not only a man of considerable intellectual ability himself but has given his children excellent educational advantages. He was among the few who were instrumental in establishing the township high school and has served the township in almost every capacity pertaining to work along educational lines. He and his wife are both members of the German Baptist church of which he is a trustee, and he always takes a deep and active part in the various phases of church work. He is a man of high moral character who wields a wide influence throughout the community by reason of his honorable manhood and high ideals, and he stands as a splendid type of the high-minded American gentlemen with whom contact means expansion and elevation.
HARRY N. ROUTZOHN.
Harry N. Routzohn, formerly assistant prosecuting attorney for Montgomery county, is one of the younger representatives of the bar but his reputation is such that his colleagues of youthful years might well envy. His birth occurred in Day- ton, November 4, 1881, and he is a representative of the young American of today, being descended from French, German, Irish and Swedish ancestors. His paternal grandfather was of a family that came originally from the province of Alsace-Lorraine, while his paternal grandmother was a native of Dublin, Ire- land. His mother's parents were of German and Swedish origin, his grand- mother having been a descendant of the famous Springer family, which came from Sweden and settled in Delaware during the Revolutionary period. His father, Henry J. Routzohn, is a native of Maryland, who came to Dayton in 1866, and now devotes his attention to general farming.
Reared under the parental roof, Harry N. Routzohn attended school to the age of fourteen years when, in 1896, he was appointed court page under Judge A. W. Kumler. He was then associated with the work of the courts until Feb- ruary 13, 1905, when he became an active practitioner of the bar, having been admitted on the 22d of June, 1904. His leisure hours in previous years had been devoted to the mastery of legal principles and he was also familiar with the routine work of the courts so that he entered upon his chosen calling par- ticularly well qualified to discharge the onerous duties devolving upon him in this connection. On the 13th of February, 1905, he formed a partnership with C. J. Mattern under the firm style of Mattern & Routzohn, which continued until January I, 1906, when he was appointed to the position of assistant prosecuting attorney of Montgomery county, in which connection neither fear nor favor swerved him in the discharge of his official duties. Mr. Rontzohn after serving for a period of three years in this position, on December 1, 1908, formed a part- nership with Julius V. Jones with whom he is now engaged in the general practice of law in the city of Dayton, under the firm style of Jones & Rontzohn.
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On the 22d of September, 1901, Mr. Routzohn was married in Dayton to Miss Laura E. Poock, a daughter of Louis D. Poock. There are four children of this marriage: Norman E., Mary D., Conrad M. and Emma L. Mr. Routzohn is quite well known in fraternal circles. He has taken the degrees of the lodge, chapter and council in Masonry, belongs to the Knights of Pythias and to Ormus Grotto of the Mystic Order of Veiled Prophets. Socially he is connected with the Garfield Club; religiously with the Oak Street United Brethern church ; and politically with the republican party. These associations indicate much of the nature of his interests and activities. While a young man such is his keen in- sight and intelligently directed labor that his opinions carry considerable weight in the control of matters of general interest and moment.
REV. JOHN GOTTLIEB MUELLER.
It is with hesitancy that the historian takes up the task of preparing the life history of the Rev. John Gottlieb Mueller, not because of a lack of material but for fear that the record will not be the adequate expression of a life of such far- reaching influence and yet touch with modesty upon the history of one who ever keeps his own personality in the background save as his forceful character, actu- ated by the high ideals of humanitarianism and Christianity, leaves its impress upon the lives of those with whom he comes in contact. He has for fifteen years been the pastor of St. John's Evangelical Lutheran church in Dayton and no representa- tive of the ministry in this city is more uniformly honored and respected.
He was born October 18, 1861, on a farm in Medina county, Ohio, a son of Rev. John Gottlieb Mueller, who was born in Wurtemburg, Germany, in 1823, and on arriving in America in 1852 located in Liverpool, Medina county, Ohio. In 1867 he removed with his family to Knox county, Indiana, and in 1879 went to St. Louis, Missouri, to take charge of the St. John's Evangelical church until 1898, when he retired and came to Dayton, spending his last days in this city. He mar- ried Gottliebin Eckhardt, also a native of Wurtemberg, where they were married. Her death occurred in St. Louis in 1893, while Rev. Mueller passed away in Day- ton in 1905. Both were consistent members of the German Evangelical Lutheran church.
Their family numbered eight children, of whom three died in early life, while five are yet living : Lina, the widow of the Rev. Henry Brenner ; Rev. Carl Mueller, of Chicago; Lydia, the wife of the Rev. Louis Nollau ; Rev. J. G. Mueller, of this review ; and Selna, living in Dayton. The elder brother was the founder of the Deaconess Hospital of Dayton, now known as the Miami Valley Hospital, this institution having its beginning in the fact that he brought here from Ger- many the first trained nurse or deaconess and thits introduced a work which has gradually expanded and developed into one of the most important institutions of this character in Ohio.
Rev. John Gottlieb Mueller of this review was in his third year when his father removed to Knox county, Indiana, and there he attended the country schools until sixteen years of age, when he entered a preparatory school at Elmhurst,
REV. J. G. MUELLER
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Illinois, with the end in view of becoming a representative of the ministry. After completing his course in that institution in 1881 he was matriculated in the Eden Theological College of St. Louis, Missouri, from which he was graduated in 1884. His first charge was at Denver, Colorado, where he organized a congregation and erected a house of worship. He remained there for two and a half years, doing splendid work for the church in that time. Accepting a call to Middletown, Ohio, he spent four years in pastoral work there and a similar period in Newport, Ken- tucky, after which he came to Dayton in 1894, having been called to the pastorate of St. John's Evangelical Lutheran church.
The following year Dr. Mueller was married in St. Louis, Missouri, to Miss Emilia P. Schneider and they have two sons, Earl E. and Ernest Hugo. Their home is the center of a cultured society circle as well as a haven of strength for many who seek advice and counsel from their pastor. Mr. Mueller's work may be well termed practical Christianity. Thoroughly conversant with the doctrines of the church and with theological principles, he stands for that which is even higher than a knowledge of dogma or creed-the beautiful life of the spirit mani- fest in daily contact with one's fellowmen and the employment of one's powers and talents to the best advantage that all such may contribute to the world's progress toward the high ideals which the church ever holds before its people. Not only is the work of St. John's carefully organized along the lines in which all churches participate but into new fields as the pastor directed the efforts of his people, organizing various educational classes, believing, as do thousands of progressive thinkers of the present day that the work of the world is or should be a part of Christianity coming directly under Christian influence and guidance.
Rev. Mueller's views on the subject can perhaps best be stated, quoting from the little pamphlet sent out by the church in regard to the educational classes and which says: "Throughout the ages the fundamentals of Christianity have ever been the same, but its practice has undergone various changes. Christian religion at one time consisted only in endeavoring to solve the question, How can I be eternally saved? and in debating who will be saved and who will not. There came a period when it was determined that living a Christian life meant to turn away from the world and lead a lfe of idleness in seclusion ; again a period when the entire stress was placed upon good deeds. This naturally produced a reaction and deeds and sacrifices were cast aside and the entire emphasis laid upon Faith. All these different phases comprise religion and blessed is the church which suc- ceeds in combining them all. Service is the life of love and love is the life of Christianity. This is the aim of our educational class work, in a spiritual sense. We want to help to save our young people by helping to keep them busy." The church classes are instructed in dressmaking, fancy work, sewing, millinery, cook- ing, pyrography, mechanical drawing, freehand drawing, clay modeling, sten- ography, bookkeeping and common branches and there are also choral classes and a class in instrumental music for boys. A library is also maintained and one can- not visit any of these classes without being impressed with the interest manifested by the pupils and the helpful spirit which permeates the whole. It is almost need- less to say that St. John's Evangelical Lutheran church has a hold upon its young people that few churches have and that it is one of the most potent elements in all Dayton for the moral and religious progress of the city.
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Rev. Mueller is a man of scholarly attainments and broad learning, who is continually adding to his rich mental resourses but above and beyond that he posseses a deep human sympathy which enables him to perceive almost intuitively that which will be most helpful to his parishioners and to speak the word in season which is ofttimes the turning point in a life. There came to him at a recent date-October 18, 1908-a substantial manifestation of the confidence, good will and love which his parishioners entertain for him. It was the occasion of the forty- seventh anniversary of his birth and without his knowledge the members and their families to the number of one thousand people assembled at the church after which word was sent to the pastor that his presence was desired there. Not know- ing the reason thereof he responded to the call and when he had been ushered to the dimly lighted room the lights were turned on in full and he found the entire auditorium filled with his friends and parishioners. An attractive program was rendered, a substantial gift was made to him and then the thousand people sat down to a banquet which was perhaps the largest ever held in the history of Dayton's churches.
Rev. Mueller's work may well be termed "applied Christianity" and, as stated in the editorial of the Daily News of September 9, 1908, not until the seeds he has sown have reached their full fruition in the lives of those with whom he has come in contact will his influence and labors cease to be felt as a dynamic force for good in Dayton.
Through the work which they love, they are taught to love the church. Re- ligion is a matter of the hands and head as well as of the heart. Their work shows what has been wrought by building Christian character. It shows what can be accomplished with a spool of thread or a piece of paper as a text. Every stitch, every mark, every product of the mission circle is a sermon, and it would be well for the entire city if more such sermons were preached. It would be a glorious thing in fact if every church in the city would take up work along the same line.
CLEMENT JOSEPH FERNEDING.
A history of Dayton would hardly be complete without mention of Clement Joseph Ferneding, who has for a number of years been closely and helpfully connected with the business and public interests of this city. A native of Day- ton, he was born March 10, 1846, and was here reared to manhood. He acquired his early education in the parochial schools and later attended St. Mary's In- stitute of this city ; Mount St. Mary's of the West and the Catholic Institute of Cincinnati, after which he crossed the threshold of the business world and took up the broader and more difficult lessons taught in the school of experience. He became identified with the city railway interests and was president of the Dayton Street Railway Company for more than ten years. For four years he served as a member of the police board, during the last year acting as the president of that organization but at the close of his term declined reappointment to that office. He was one of the incorporators and director of The Union Safe Deposit &
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Trust Company, and was also the executive director of The Dayton Insurance Company, which went into liquidation after paying its stockholders in full. He is now serving as president of The Ferneding-Heymann Company, cigar manufac- turers of Dayton. He was one of the incorporators and is also a director of the Fourth National Bank and president of The Dayton, Springfield & Xenia South- ern Railway Company and has been president of this company and its prede- cessor for the past ten years. His business interests have been large and varied and he has been a guiding spirit in all of the enterprises with which he has been connected, manifesting excellent business capacity and executive force and also possessing the initiative spirit to a marked degree.
While his success alone would entitle him to a place among the representative men of his native city, he is perhaps equally well known because of the deep in- terest he has taken in church work and in various benevolent enterprises of this city, He is a member of the Catholic church and for twenty-five years continu- ously served as secretary of Holy Trinity church. He was made chairman of the committee appointed from the different Catholic parishes throughout Dayton looking to the abandonment of St. Henry's cemetery, which had become sur- rounded by dwellings, and the property was sold and proceeds from the sale were sufficiently ample to cover the cost of removal of about five thousand three hundred unclaimed bodies which were transferred to Calvary cemetery and a beautiful mortuary stone chapel built in commemoration. When the increased at- tendance of St. Joseph Orphan Society of Dayton made it necessary some years ago to supply more adequate quarters and grounds for the institution, and there being no funds available for the purpose, Mr. Ferneding was named as chairman of a committee of Catholic citizens to devise ways and means of meeting the situa- tion. Some fifty-six acres of land adjoining the Orphans Home were purchased, a large portion of which was sold in building lots to such advantage as to entitle each member of the syndicate making the purchase a return of his investment with fifteen per cent interest, besides donating to the orphanage seventeen acres of ground adjoining the home and a large sum of money. The Society was thus provided with one of the most beautiful homes for orphans in the state and which is now one of the attractive places of interest in the city. At the time of the erec- tion of the new addition to St. Elizabeth Hospital, Mr. Ferneding was selected by the Sisters of the Poor of St. Francis and by the committee in charge to act as chairman of the building committee and the magnificent structure erected will ever prove a monument to his good judgment and untiring zeal in this worthy cause.
For a number of years Mr. Ferneding was associated with his father, the late Henry Ferneding, one of the pioneer residents of Montgomery county, in the flour and milling business under the firm name of H. Ferneding & Son and before the milling trade was transferred to the great northwest the volume of business done annually by this firm was one of the largest in this section of the country.
In 1869 in Dayton, Mr. Ferneding was united in marriage to Miss Barbara Barlow, a daughter of the late Theodore Barlow, and in their family are three children, namely: H. L., an attorney of this city ; Thomas A., vice president and general manager of The Dayton. Springfield & Xenia Southern Railway Com- pany ; and Marie C. Ferneding.
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Mr. Ferneding is a stanch supporter of the democracy and, although he does all in his power to further the influence and interests of his party, the honors and emoluments of public office have had no attraction for him. His interests are wide and varied, showing a well rounded character, and the value of his service in community affairs is widely acknowledged, while the consensus of public opinion accords him prominence among the representative citizens of Dayton.
WILLIAM P. HUFFMAN.
William P. Huffman, named with those men whom Dayton has honored as chief among the promoters of her growth and progress and as an exponent of all that is straightforward and commendable in business relations, was active in bank- ing circles and in real estate and building operations in this city for many years. At a period when Dayton had not emerged from villagehood his birth occurred within its borders, his natal day being October 18, 1813. His parents were Will- iam and Lydia (Knott) Huffman. His grandfather, William Huffman, who was of German descent, and his grandmother, who was of English lineage, emigrated to America from Holland sometime in the decade following 1730 and established their home in Monmouth county, New Jersey, where their son William was born May 24, 1769. On the 14th of June, 1801, he wedded Lydia Knott, who was born in Monmouth county, January 19, 1779. They became the parents of a son and four daughters, and on removing to the west in the beginning of the nineteenth century settled in Dayton, where William Huffman passed away January 23, 1866, having for a brief period survived his wife, who died March 21, 1865.
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