USA > Ohio > Delaware County > Memorial record of the counties of Delaware, Union and Morrow, Ohio > Part 61
USA > Ohio > Morrow County > Memorial record of the counties of Delaware, Union and Morrow, Ohio > Part 61
USA > Ohio > Union County > Memorial record of the counties of Delaware, Union and Morrow, Ohio > Part 61
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).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68
446
MEMORIAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD OF
the Captain was a stanch Presbyterian, and a liberal supporter of the church. Polit- ically he was first a Whig and afterward a Republican. He was truly a self-made man. He started out in the world with only $50, and by his honest industry and good man- agement he accumulated a large property. Personally he was of commanding presence, six feet and three inches in height. He was twice married and had a family of ten chil- dren, his first wife being Margaret Hamil- ton, and his second, Jane Moody, daughter of Rev. John Moody. The names of his children are as follows: John M., of In- diana; Mary Kilheath, New York city; Joseph A., the subject of this article; H. Clay, Cincinnati; Samuel D., of Union county, Ohio; William, deceased; Robert, Cincinnati; Anna Addy, Cincinnati; Frank, Texas; and Elizabeth Annore, New York city.
J. A. Culbertson was reared in his native city, and was educated at Princeton College. When the first call for troops was made, in 1861, to put down the Rebellion, he en- listed in Company A, Sixth Ohio; went to the front, and was first under fire at Bev- erly, Virginia. For meritorious service he was made Adjutant of the Fiftieth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and later was promoted to the Captaincy of the Fifty-second Ohio; was on duty in Virginia and Kentucky, and participated in the battles of Perryville, Lexington and others. After the battle of Stone River he resigned his commission and returned home.
In 1863 Mr. Culbertson settled on his present farin, a fine tract of 300 acres, which is ranked with the best farms in the township. His commodious residence is surrounded by attractive grounds, and the whole premises, from the substantial build-
ings, good fences, etc., to the well-culti- vated fields, all give evidence of the owner's prosperity.
Mr. Culbertson was married in 1864, at Columbus, Ohio, to Miss Martha Trumell, daughter of Francis and Elizabeth Trumell. Her widowed mother is a resident of Cleve- land, Ohio, her father having died in 1890. He was a soldier in the United States Army, and his three sons, David, Albert, and John, were also in the army, two of them being in his regiment, and Albert in an Ohio vol- unteer regiment.
Personally our subject has the bearing of a soldier. He is six feet and one inch high, perfectly erect, and weighs 288 pounds. He has what few possess, namely, a mag- nificent personal presence. Socially he is identified with the Knights of Pythias and Silas Kimball Post, G. A. R.
0 AVID B. LOCKWOOD, who is engaged in farming in Liberty township, Union county, Ohio, is one of the well known and highly esteemed citizens of his township.
Mr. Lockwood was born in the Province of Quebec, Canada, March 21, 1826, son of Walter and Dorothea (Barnes) Lockwood, the former a native of Harrisburg, Vermont, and the son of an Englishman, and the lat- ter a native of Worcester county, Massa- chusetts, and a daughter of Willard Barnes, of that State. The Lockwood family re- moved from Canada to Ohio in 1844 and settled in Liberty township, Union county, and in 1857 the parents went to Iroquois county, Illinois, where they spent the resi- due of their lives, both living to advanced age. The mother died in 1880, at the age of eighty-one, and the father in 1885, at
447
DELAWARE, UNION AND MORROW COUNTIES, OHIO.
the age of eighty-five. Both were mem- bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church and were highly esteemed for their many excellent qualities. They had six children, namely: Frederick, Iroquois county, Illi- nois; David B., the subject of this article; Amelia Donferth, of Illinois; Adison, de- ceased; Ellen deceased; and Elmer, Iroquois county, Illinois.
His father being a farmer, the subject of our sketch was reared to farm life and has always been engaged in agricultural pur- suits. With the exception of ten months that he spent in Illinois, he has resided in Liberty township ever since he came to Ohio in 1844. His farm comprises sixty- six and a half acres and has good improve- ments upon it.
Mr. Lockwood was married March 28, 1849, to Miss Mary J. Harsha, who was born near Saratoga Springs, New York, daughter of Thomas and Lorena (Beers) Harsha, the former a native of Washington county, New York, and the latter of Con- necticut. The Harshas are of Irish descent. Mrs. Harsha's father was Uriah Beers, a member of one of the prominent early fam- ilies of Connecticut. Thomas Harsha and his family came to Ohio in 1837, and, after a sojourn of two weeks in Columbus, came to the farm where Mr. Lockwood now re- sides. At that time there was a log cabin on the place and a few acres had been cleared. Here Mr. and Mrs. Harsha passed the rest of their lives and died, he being sixty-two at the time of death. She died March 4, 1861. Religiously they were Pres- byterians. Of their family of three chil- dren we record that Clarisa died in 1841, at the age of eighteen years; that Mary was the second born and is the only one now living, and that Sarah died in infancy.
Mr. and Mrs. Lockwood have four chil- dren, viz: Clarisa Lavina, wife of Newman Dillion; Alice, wife of John Mahaffy, has two children, Evan L. and Dwight E .; Charlie married Dela Jenkins and has three children, Guy, Pearl, and Dyer; and Thomas Frost married Lora Burham and has one child, Alice. Mrs. Dillion and Mrs. Mahaffy are both ladies of education and culture and were before marriage engaged in teaching.
Mr. Lockwood is a Republican in his political views, and in his religious faith is a Methodist, while Mrs. Lockwood is a mem- ber of the Baptist Church.
ALVIN TIMMONS, Raymond's, Union county, Ohio, is ranked with the successful and well-known farmers of Liberty township. He is a native of this county, born near Irwin Station, March 14, 1841.
His father, George W. Timmons, was born in one of the Eastern States, and his mother, whose maiden name was Sarah Smith, was born in Ohio. They had a fam- ily of six children, three of whom are living, all in different States, -John in Missouri, Lewis in Kansas, and Calvin in Ohio. James was a Union soldier, and died from disease contracted while in the army. The father died in Champaign county, Ohio, at the age of fifty-seven years; the mother lived to be over eighty-two.
Calvin Timmons was reared on a farm in Champaign county, and early in life was inured to such work as is found on a fron- tier farm. His education was obtained in the common schools and in the practical school of experience. Twenty-five years ago he settled on his present farm and here he has since lived. He has made all the im-
448
MEMORIAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD OF
provements found here now, the old fences and buildings all having been replaced by new ones, and the farm now being classed with the best in the neighborhood. The residence is a story-and-a-half cottage lo- cated on a beautiful building site and sur- rounded by an attractive lawn dotted over with shade trees; and the barn, 34 x 60 feet, adorned with a cupola, is as convenient as it is neat. A fine orchard and an acre of small fruit are among other additions to this valuable property. Indeed, the whole farm has an air of thrift and prosperity and shows the owner to be a man of more than ordi- nary enterprise.
At the age of twenty-four Mr. Timmons married Miss Mary E. Argo, who was born in this township, daughter of D. S. and Sarah (Hensen) Argo. Her father was one of the prominent early settlers of Union county, as also was her grandfather, William Hensen. Mr. and Mrs. Timmons have three daughters, namely: Ida Mary, wife of Frank Jones, residing near Urbana, Ohio, has four children, Omer, Norma, Oral and Twan; Enola Leota, wife of Frank Scott, of Lib- erty township, has one daughter, -Fern; and Autice, at home.
Like his worthy father, Mr. Timmons affiliates with the Republican party. Both he and his wife are members of the Freewill Baptist Church. Few men in this vicinity are held in higher esteem than is Calvin Timmons.
ILLIAM H. SIDEBOTTOM, principal of the Milford Centre schools, was born in Mount Pleas- ant, Jefferson county, Ohio, De- cember 31, 1852, son of John H. and Eliza (Taylor) Sidebottom.
Mr. Sidebottom traces his ancestry back to the English and Welsh. His grand- father, John Sidebottom, came from Old- ham, England, to America when he was seventeen years of age, and located at Win- chester, Virginia. There he formed the acquaintance of Elizabeth Drake, a de- scendant of Sir Francis Drake, which ac- quaintance ripened into love and resulted in an elopement, the young couple coming West and settling in the Quaker town of Mount Pleasant. Here they enjoyed a long and happy married life, and celebrated their golden wedding. He died at the age of ninety-three and she at ninety-five. By trade he was a weaver, weaving blankets and carrying them across the mountains to market. Prior to his coming to this coun- try he was a member of the Church of England, and afterward he became a mem- ber of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and a local preacher in the same. Always in a good humor, and with a kind word for everybody, he was popular with all who knew him. He was a fine musician, as also was his wife, and both taught music.
This musical talent was transmitted to their only child, John H., who at six years of age played the dulcimer and sang alto by note in the church. At sixteen he was bound out to an architect, who was also a musician and from whom young John learned to play the violin, becoming an ex- pert on that instrument. When Ole Bull, the Norwegian violinist, was in Cincinnati, Ohio, he played with him. He was also an apt student at his trade, and at nineteen was pronounced a full-fledged architect, at which he worked until about the year 1857. At that time he built a Presbyterian church, was beaten out of his pay, and vowed he would quit the business. From that time
449
DELAWARE, UNION AND MORROW COUNTIES, OHIO.
he devoted his attention to music. He had always been a lover of band music. At the age of twenty he led a band at a band tour- nament at Pittsburg and there took second prize. During the civil war he enlisted as Fife Major in the Army of the Cumberland, where he served until he was honorably dis- charged on account of disability. He wrote and arranged much of the music used by that branch of the army. After the war he gave his attention to writing and arranging' music. He was an active Mason and a member of the Grand Army of the Republic. His death occurred in Mount Pleasant, Ohio, in 1885, at the age of sixty-five years.
The mother of our subject died in March, 1873, at the age of forty-eight years. She was a daughter of John and Dorothea (Klein) Taylor. John Taylor was born in Wales about the year 1792 and came to America in 1812. He was a veteran of the war of 1812. His wife, Dorothea, belonged to a Pennsylvania-Dutch family. Soon after their mariage they located at Mount Pleasant, Ohio, where he followed the trade of carpenter until his death, which occurred when he was fifty-six years of age. His wife lived to be ninety-four. Both were devout members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. They had a family of sixteen children who grew up to occupy honorable and useful positions in life and who are widely scattered over the United States.
John H. and Eliza (Taylor) Sidebottom had ten children, viz .: John, a resident of Belmont county, Ohio; James, who was killed in the battle of Manassas; Orpha, wife of Josiah Morris, Madison county, Ohio; Anna, wife of S. Morris, Kirksville, Missouri; Henry, who died in 1874, at the age of twenty-three years; William H., whose name heads this article; Amanda, who died at the 29
age of three years; Minnie, wife of Charles Neff, Belmont county, Ohio; Lida, wife of Frank S. Wilson, Clarke county, Ohio; and Mary, widow of John Osborn, Mechanics- burg, Ohio.
William H. was reared in his native town. When he was nine years of age he went into a woolen factory, where he worked three years, keeping up his studies by candle light, and after this spent two years on a farm. During these five years he attended school only three months. From the time he was fourteen until he was seventeen he was in school five months of each year, working during the summers. Then he be- gan teaching, and to this profession he has faithfully applied himself for twenty-four years, fourteen of which have been in graded schools. In 1886 he came to Milford Cen- tre. At that time the schools here were un- graded, the attendance was small, and only three teachers were employed. His first work was to get out a manual and grade the schools, and by his untiring efforts he has brought them up to their present high stand- ard of excellence. The Milford Centre school now has six departments. He was the one to propose and draw plans for the addition to the school building, and he also superintended the construction of the same. Through the combined efforts of F. E. Rey- nolds and himself, furniture, apparatus and books to the amount of $700 have been added to the school. It was largely through his influence that the office of Township Superintendent was established, thus mak- ing the school at Milford Centre a high school, and he was chosen the first to fill this office, which position he still holds. Over forty pupils have graduated from this school. Mr. Sidebottom is also County School Examiner, having served as such
.
450
MEMORIAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD OF
since 1888. In 1893, through his efforts, Union county was made the banner county of the State in the Ohio Teachers' Reading Circle.
Politically he is a Republican. He has held the office of Justice of the Peace, at the election receiving every vote, Democratic as well as Republican. In fraternal circles he is also prominent. He was made a Ma- son in 1880 and is now a member of Pales- tine Lodge, No. 153, F. & A. M .; he be- came a Knight of Pythias at London, Ohio, in 1874, and was one of the charter mem- bers of the Milford Centre Lodge, No. 274, having ever since held official position in it and also serving twice as representative to the Grand Lodge; and in Derby Lodge, No. 636, I. O. O. F., he has passed all the chairs.
Mr. Sidebottom was married in Mechan- icsburg, Ohio, December 30, 1875, to Miss Artie Geer, a native Clarke county, this State, and a daughter of Lewis and Rebecca Geer. They have two children, Alameda and Morris.
Mr. Sidebottom is identified with the Methodist Episcopal Church, having been a church member since he was seven years old.
HOMAS J. CONNER, a prosperous farmer and highly respected citizen of Union township, Union county, Ohio, was born in the township in which he now lives September 20, 1845.
Mr. Conner comes of Irish ancestors. His father, John Conner, was born in county Kings, Ireland; was reared, edu- cated and married there, the maiden name of his wife being Catharine Connely. Soon after their marriage they came to the United States and first located in Albany, New York, from whence they subsequently re-
moved to Ohio and settled in Union county. Here at first they lived with Ed. Moran and later owned a farm of their own. Mr. Con- ner landed in this country with no means whatever, his only capital being his strong arm and his willingness to work, and by his industry and frugality and the able assistance of his good wife he secured a valuable prop- erty and was ranked with the solid men of the township. At the time of his death he owned 465 acres of good land, well improved with brick residence, etc. His wife died at the age of forty-three years and he lived to be seventy-six. They had seven children, namely: Maria, deceased; Eliza, wife of Dr. A. Boylon; Ann, deceased; Thomas J., the subject of this sketch; Selestine, wife of Marion Hopkins, Marysville; John P., a res- ident of Allen township, this county, and George, of Mill Creek, Ohio.
Thomas J. Conner was reared on his father's farm, and was educated in the dis- trict schools. When the civil war came on and continued to rage, and President Lin- coln called for "300,000 more," young Conner enlisted in Company B, Thirty- second Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and went to the front. While near Harper's Ferry he received a bullet wound in the left leg, after which he was in hospital at An- napolis for some time. April 10, 1863, he was honorably discharged, after which he returned home. For two years and a half Mr. Conner was in the oil fields of Penn- sylvania, at St. Petersburg, Clarion county. The greater part of his life, however, has been devoted to agricultural pursuits. He came to his present farm in 1891. Here he has 126 acres of choice land, nicely im- proved with good residence, barn, fences, and orchard, and everything kept up in first-class shape.
451
DELAWARE, UNION AND MORROW COUNTIES, OHIO.
Mr. Conner was married September 14, 1869, to Miss Rose Spain, a lady of educa- tion and refinement, who was, before her marriage, engaged in teaching. She, too, is a native of Union township. Her father, Ed Spain, was born in Petersburg, Virginia, in 1811, and was married in Union county, Ohio, in 1831, to Mary Reed Gabriel. He died in 1881. Following are the names of their children who are living: Mary Elizabeth; Lusetta Smith, Minneapolis, Minnesota; Rose Conner; Ella Rowe, Min- neapolis; and William, also of Minneapolis.
Mr. and Mrs. Conner have three chil- dren: Anna, Harry, and Edna, aged re- spectively twenty, seventeen and eight years. Miss Anna is a graduate of the Milford Centre high school with the class of 1892.
Politically Mr. Conner is a Prohibi- tionist. He is now in the prime of life, is genial and jovial, and has an abundant supply of that native wit which is a striking characteristic of the race from which he is descended.
0 AVID HILDRETH, who resides on a farm near Pharisburg, Ohio, is one of the prominent men of Union county, he having resided here for nearly half a century. We take pleasure in presenting the following sketch of his life:
David Hildreth was born in Knox county, Ohio, on the banks of Dry creek, October 7, 1821. His father and grandfather, both named William, were natives of Connecti- cut, and the latter was a soldier in the Rev- olutionary war. The younger William Hil- dreth was a boy when he came with his par- ents to Ohio and settled in Muskingum county, which was then on the frontier and
nearly all covered with forest. There he grew up and married, the lady of his choice being Elizabeth, daughter of David Stoakly, who had moved from Kentucky to Ohio. In 1817 he and his wife took up their abode in a log cabin in the woods of Knox county, they being among the first settlers of the county. Game of.all kinds was plenty then, and by actual count the father of our sub- ject killed over 200 deer. His home was located five miles southwest of Mount Ver- non. The first load of goods that was ever brought into Mount Vernon was hauled there with an ox team by him from Zanes- ville. He continued to reside there until 1850, when he removed to Union county, and here he spent the rest of his life, and died at the age of sixty-nine years. In Leesburg township he built a saw and grist- mill, which he ran for some time. He also practiced medicine some. Indeed, he was a man of general usefulness, and always ex- erted an influence for good in the communi- ties where he lived. His good wife survived him some years, she being eighty at the time of death. The names of their ten children are as follows: David, William, Gilman, Benoni, Lafayette, Marcus, Abigail, Eliza- beth, Mary and Bethsheba.
David was reared on his father's farm in Knox county. He received his education in the log school house near his home and later in the dear school of experience. At the age of twenty-five he married and came to his present location, and here he has ever since resided. He built his log cabin in the woods, cleared away the forest and cultivat- ed the land, and in time from his own planting a fine orchard sprang up. He now has ninety-eight acres of land and good farm buildings, his residence being made at- tractive by a pretty lawn in front, and here
452
MEMORIAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD OF
he is surrounded with all the comforts of life, the result of his years of honest and earnest toil.
Mr. Hildreth was married March 19, 1846, to Eliza A. Riley, a most amiable lady, a native of Muskingum county, Ohio, and a daughter of William Riley, who came to Ohio from Kentucky. . After the death of her father, which occurred in Muskingum county, the widowed mother and her child- dren removed to Knox county, where Mrs. Hildreth was reared. Mr. and Mrs. Hildreth have children as follows: Columbus S., Harriet A., wife of A. Gardiner; Josephine, wife of S. I. Bell; Lucy, wife of E. M. Steneman; Alice, wife of McDow Bolinger; Angeline, wife of Alva Vamti; and Rosella, wife of William Soliday.
Politically Mr. Hildreth is a Republi- can. Both he and his wife are members of the Christian Church at Glendale, in which he has officiated as Elder. Cordial and jovial in manner, he has many friends among both the old and the young.
R. JOSEPH WATSON, one of the leading physicians of Cardington, Ohio, has resided here since 1861. He was born near Mansfield, in Richland county, Ohio, October 24, 1824, son of Dr. Noah and Elizabeth (Dodson) Watson. Dr. Noah Watson was a native of Luzerne county, Pennsylvania, born Decem- ber 10, 1790, son of Amariah Watson, a native of Hartford, Connecticut, and a sol- dier of the Revolution. The Watson family are of Welsh and English origin, and were for many years residents of Connecticut. Noah Watson was a Sergeant in the war of 1812. About the time that war opened he came to Ohio and located at Lexington,
where he was subsequently married to Bath- sheba Eastman, who died only a short time after their marriage. He remained in Rich- land county six years, after which he re- turned to Pennsylvania and studied medi- cine, and while there he married for his second wife Miss Elizabeth Dodson, who was born in Luzerne county, that State, April 29, 1796. In 1823 he came to Ohio and settled on a farm near Lexington. Here he spent the residue of his life and died. In politics he was a Whig, and in re- ligion a Universalist. His death occurred in 1862, and his good wife passed away in 1882. Three of their seven children are now living, viz. : William Watson, of Lyons, Kansas, who has been twice married and has five children; Lucy, widow of Rev. Clark Johnson, Fostoria, Ohio; and Dr. Joseph Watson, the subject of this article.
Dr. Watson spent the first twenty-four years of his life on his father's farm, receiv- ing his education in the public schools. He began the study of medicine at Iberia, under the instructions of Dr. L. L. Barnum, and attended the Western College of Homeopa- thy, where he graduated in 1853. After his graduation he entered upon the practice of his profession at Westfield, Ohio, where he remained six years. Since 1861, as stated at the beginning of this sketch, he has been identified with the medical profession of Cardington, being one of the pioneers of his school in this county.
Dr. Watson was first married in 1848, to Lucy Amelia Barnum, their happy married life being of short duration, as her untimely death occurred the year following her mar- riage. In 1855 he married Ella J. Mills, who was born in Marion county, Ohio, in May, 1836, and who was a lady of educa- tion and culture. She died of la grippe in
453
DELAWARE, UNION AND MORROW COUNTIES, OHIO.
1890. They had four children, of whom three are living, viz: Orville E., a gradu- ate of the Cardington high school, Kenyon College, and the Ohio Wesleyan University, spent one year of study in Europe, and upon his return to America was appointed minor canon of the cathedral at Cleveland, which position he still holds; Clarence V., de- ceased; Minette, an artist of some note, has been a student at both Cincinnati and New York city; and Jessie, who was a student in the Cincinnati College of Music, is a fine performer upon the piano and organ.
Mrs. Watson was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, while the Doctor is an Episcopalian. Politically he is an active Republican.
EORGE M. McPECK, one of the most enterprising business men of Marysville, Ohio, and one of the members of the company for sup- plying light and water to this city, has been a resident of Union county since 1852, and of Marysville since 1883.
He was born in Harrison county, Ohio, July 19, 1842, son of William H. and Eliza- beth (Speck) McPeck, natives respectively of Westmoreland and Washington counties, Pennsylvania; both died in this county, the father in 1891, at the of seventy-five years, and the mother in 1892, at the age of sev- enty-three years. In early life the father learned the trade of brick and stone mason, and carried on an extensive business in that line for some years. The most of his life, however, was devoted to farming. When he came to Union county, Ohio, he settled on 220 acres of timber land in Wash- ington township, which he developed into a good farm and upon which he resided from
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.