USA > Ohio > Portage County > Portage heritage; a history of Portage County, Ohio; its towns and townships and the men and women who have developed them; its life, institutions and biographies, facts and lore > Part 90
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Mr. and Mrs. Keller now divide their time between their homes in Streetsboro and Mt. Dora, Florida.
Mr. Keller served as a member of the Board of Education in Streetsboro for a number of years. He is a member of the Kent Kiwanis Club.
Mr. and Mrs. Keller are the parents of three children, Aileen Keller Power of Edin- burg; Richard Horace (Dick), of Streetsboro; and Dorothea Keller Taylor of Cuyahoga Falls.
Mr. and Mrs. Arthur G. Sperry
Arthur Gleason Sperry, son of Arthur Newton and Susan Delight (McGrew) Sperry, was born Feb. 2, 1885, in Streetsboro. Six months later Arthur Newton passed away, leaving his little sons, Robert Martin and Arthur Gleason.
Mr. Sperry was educated in the Streetsboro schools and later attended Hammel Business College in Akron. In 1903 he was employed by Fred Sperry in Colorado Springs, Col., and in 1910 entered the employe of the Davey Tree Expert Co. He worked in Maryland and South Carolina and in 1912, at Indian River, Mich. He then came back to the farm with his brother.
On June 3, 1916, he married Lorena Bosworth, daughter of E. H. and Connie (Green) Bosworth, of Streetsboro. To them five sons were born. They were: Lyman Newton, May 6, 1920; infant (deceased) Nov. 21, 1923; Donald Bosworth, Dec. 12, 1924; Elwood Gleason, Sept. 13, 1926; Arthur Clair, Aug. 11, 1929.
Mrs. Sperry's ancestors came over in the Mayflower. One, Elizabeth Tilley, married John Howland, the oldest man to arrive on the ship. Mrs. Sperry was a teacher for several years and has been active in the annual violet sales for the M. E. Church.
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On March 1, 1921, the Sperrys purchased the C. E. Kent farm on Route 14, which was their home for many years. For 20 years Mr. Sperry served as clerk and member of the board of education. In 1938, he moved his family to the E. H. Bos- worth farm. From this location he and his sons also ran the farms on Route 14. After Mrs. Bosworth's decease he bought the home farm. During this period three of his sons were in the U. S. Navy. Lyman was an airplane pilot while Donald and Elwood served as radar and electronic electricians. Arthur trained at Hiram college and Oberlin Graduate School of Theology.
Although a lifetime Presbyterian, Mr. Sperry, with his family, have been members of the Methodist church.
He is a charter member of the Portage County Farm Bureau and also has been affiliated with the local Grange.
At present semi-retired, he and his wife live on their farm on the Kent-Mantua road, where he tends his herds of Here- fords.
Mr. and Mrs. Carl Straight
Carl Straight was born in Streetsboro, April 8, 1887, on the farm which he now owns and operates. He is the son of Charles and Cora Burroughs Straight. He attended Hiram College and was in his third year of a Civil Engineering course at Ohio State University when he returned home to farm because of the loss of his father's arm. On November 15, 1911, Carl married Ellen (Nelle) Keller, daughter of Dr. B. T. and Eliza- beth Castile Keller, Hudson, Ohio. For two years Carl operated a variety store in Kent. He returned to the farm in 1914. That year he founded the Edlolah herd of pure- bred Holstein Friesian cattle which is known throughout sever- al states. For three years this was the only tubercular tested herd in the township. He is still operating the sugar-bush which was first family operated by his father in 1887.
Mr. and Mrs. Carl Straight
Carl's activities include member- ship in Streetsboro Methodist Church, Grange, Farm Bureau and National Holstein Friesian Association. For fifteen years he has been one of the directors for the County Dairy Unit. Nelle belongs to the Streetsboro Methodist Church, its women's organizations and the Y. C. B. Club.
Carl and Nelle Straight have three children, Lelah, Lois Dene and Edward. Lelah (Mrs. Glenn R. Cowan, Streetsboro) has two children, Anne Elizabeth and Robert Carl Cowan. Lois Dene (Mrs. Ray Ward, Kent) has one son, Larry Ward. Edward married Anna Rae Esworthy, of Charleston and they have one daughter, Sue Ellen Straight.
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Mr. and Mrs. Charles Henry Straight
Charles Henry Straight was born August 30, 1860, in Hambden, Ohio, the son of Henry Powell and Mary Jane Stevens Straight. He was head cheesemaker and bookkeeper for fifteen cheese factories ownd by W. J. Eldridge of Aurora. On April 8, 1886, he married Cora Burroughs, daughter of Howard and Sophronia Bliss Burroughs of Streetsboro. They purchased the Sumner Jenkins farm, Streetsboro, where they spent the rest of their lives. Charlie was a farmer specializing in dairying and potato raising. He boiled syrup for fifty-six years, and shipped it to many states and to Germany.
Charlie and Cora were the par- ents of three children: Carl, Ethel, and Lida. Cora passed away No- vember 24, 1936. A short time after her death, son Carl pur- chased the farm which he had operated in partnership with his father since the loss of his father's left arm in 1908. Carl's children are Lelah (Mrs. Glenn R. Cowan, Streetsboro), Lois Dene (Mrs. Ray Ward, Kent) and Edward (Mt. Dora, Florida). Edward is married to Anna Rae Esworthy of Charles- town, Ohio. Ethel passed away November 22, 1911. Lida (Mrs. Dennis Stewart, Ravenna) has two children, Marjorie and Charles, both at home in Ravenna.
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Henry Straight
Civic activities of Charlie included membership in Streetsboro's Band, Board of Educa- tion and Portage County Farm Bureau. Cora belonged to the Riverside Reading Circle and the women's church organizations. Both were loyal members of Streetsboro Methodist church.
Charlie's death on May 28, 1944, ended life's rich combination of religion, work and fun interspersed with songs and quotations from the Bible and old McGuffey readers.
Lucy Root Treash
Lucy Alice Root, daughter of Ernest Combs and Emma (McGrew) Root, was born in Streetsboro, O., Nov. 2, 1889. She was the great-granddaughter of Stephen Myers, Jr., the first settler of Streetsboro, in fact all her great-grandparents were early pioneers of the town. She graduated from Streets- boro High School, 1907 and from the Music Department of Lake Erie College, 1912. She taught piano at the Chicago Training School and in Streetsboro and nearby towns.
She was married to John R. Cox, of Waldron, Arkansas, Oct. 4, 1922, making her home there until his death in 1931. She was married to Harvey Beaumont Treash, prominent Portage County farmer, May 5, 1934.
She is the writer of Streetsboro History in this book, and of many poems, the outstanding poem being, "The Church's Spire." She received Honorable Mention for her poem, "God's Sky Writing," in the Dr. Pease Poetry Contest for 1956 of the Akron Branch of the Ohio Poetry Society.
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She has been a member of the Methodist Church since early childhood, some offices held are: Treas. of Church; Treas. of Sunday School; pianist; organist; Sunday School teacher; Leader of Standard Bearers; Cor. Sec. of Women Society Christian S .; member of Official Board; etc. She served as Vice President of the Akron District Women Foreign Mission Society.
Some hobbies are knitting heirloom lace doilies, making needlepoint pictures and other hand work.
Mrs. Treash died Oct. 28, 1957.
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Hamilton Wilcox
Charles Hamilton Wilcox was born August 12, 1877, in Streetsboro, Portage County, Ohio, one of thirteen children of Charles E. Wilcox and Ida Packer Wilcox. He is a ninth generation descendent of William Wilcoxon, who came from Hertfordshire, England and settled in Massachusetts in 1636. His great-grandfather, William Wilcox, came from Sandersfield, Mass., to Akron, Ohio, then to Deerfield, Ohio.
Mr. Wilcox has operated a farm in Streetsboro most of his life.
He was married in 1911 to the former Mabel Ann Myers, daugh- ter of Daniel Woodruff Myers and Lelie Janet Bediant Myers, both of whom were descendents of early New England settlers. Her paternal great-grandparents. Daniel. Woodruff, an officer in the War of 1812, and Sarah Ann Mills Woodruff, came to Freedom, Portage County, Ohio, from Far- Mr. and Mrs. Charles Hamilton Wilcox mington, Conn. in 1838. Her ma- ternal great-grandparents, Belden Bediant and Prudence Baldwin Bediant, came from Dan- bury, Conn., and settled in Streetsboro, in the part formerly called "Streetsboro Corners," now called "Moran," about the year 1836.
Mr. and Mrs. Wilcox are the parents of four children: Clarence R. Wilcox, E. Ross Wilcox, Lynnwood L. Wilcox and Dorothy L. Wilcox Terrill.
Mr. and Mrs. Clare W. Wilcox
Clare W. Wilcox was born on a farm in Streetsboro, Feb. 28, 1910. He was the son of William W. and Maude Marie Wilcox. His education was received in the local schools with graduation from Streetsboro high school in June, 1928. He then followed farming, including stock raising, for twenty years, selling his products mainly in the Akron area.
On May 26, 1928, he married Ida Marie Thomas of Streetsboro, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Osman Thomas. They were married at the M. E. parsonage in Mentor by Rev. Mr.
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Bowers, a former Streetsboro pastor. To them five children have been born: Claire Elaine, Nov. 4, 1936; Gwendolyn Irene, Oct. 6, 1941; Treva Marie, Oct. 19, 1942; Sylvia Pa- tricia, Dec. 18, 1945; Shirley Ardell, Sept. 17, 1949.
In 1946 Mr. Wilcox purchased the old Bentley farm of 212 acres and in the following year started dairying with approximately 50 head of cattle, and marketing milk mainly in Akron. This was continued until August, 1951, when his barn and all contents were completely destroyed by fire. This forced the sale of the dairy. In the same year he enter- ed the employe of the Morse Instrument Co. at Hudson where he is still employed.
Mrs. Wilcox has also been active in farm work in ad- dition to her household duties, helping out in the dairy. She is a member of the Streetsboro Methodist church and is active in circle work.
Julia Ida Wilcox
Julia Ida Wilcox was born in Streetsboro, Ohio, June 1, 1886, the seventh in a family of thirteen children, and daughter of Charles E. and Ida (Packer) Wilcox. Her maternal great-grandparents were Josiah Combs and Jesse Packer, both early settlers in Streetsboro, and Aurora, coming respectively from Connecticut in 1837 and Vermont in 1835. Her paternal great-grandparents were Alexander Wilcox and Joseph Diver, early settlers in Deerfield, Ohio, coming from Massachusetts in 1816.
She graduated from Streetsboro High School and Ohio University (two year Normal), then taught school 39 years in Cleveland public schools. Locations included Downing (17 years), Harper (8), and Sackett (14 years). While teaching, she took extension classes, evenings and summers at Western Reserve University and Boston University.
She received her Bachelor's Degree from W.R.U. in 1926 and M.A. Degree from W.R.U. in 1937, majoring in English. She also graduated from West Side Musical College in Cleveland in 1918.
She has been a member of Brooklyn Memorial Methodist Church in Cleveland since 1913. She is a member of Cleveland Natural Science Club, Audubon Club, and Wild Flower Club, and for the past seven years has been president of Cuyahoga County W.C.T.U., and a member of that organizations for 30 years.
Miss Wilcox is a frequent caller in Streetsboro among her many relatives there.
Mr. and Mrs. Lynnwood L. Wilcox
Lynnwood L. Wilcox was born June 18, 1915, in Streetsboro. He is the son of Charles and Mabel A. (Myers) Wilcox. He was educated in the local schools, graduating from high school in 1933. Following this he went to farming until 1935 when he started operation of a coal business which continued until 1942.
On June 7, 1941, Mr. Wilcox married Miss Martha Louise Thomas, daughter of Osman and Louise Thomas of Streetsboro. Five children were born to them: Lynnwood Eugene,
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Nov. 4, 1943; Gary Edward, May 8, 1947; Dale Arden, April 4, 1949; twins Marlin Leslie and Marlene Louise, Nov. 20, 1953.
In 1942 they moved to Hudson where he farmed for two and one half years, when he entered U. S. service, March 15, 1945, serving in the Southwest Pacific area with the engi- neers and postoffice. He received his discharge July 26, 1946. After his discharge he was employed by the B. F. Goodrich Co. experimental department, remaining there until 1948 when he purchased his father's farm and operated a dairy until 1951. In that year he entered the employe of the Morse Instrument Co. of Hudson.
Mr. Wilcox has been active in 4-H club work in Streets- boro and is committeeman of Troop 263, Boy Scouts. Mrs. Wilcox belongs to the Daughters of America and the Streets- boro Methodist church. She was also Den Mother for Cub Scout troop 3263.
Mr. and Mrs. R. E. Weingart
Rolland E. Weingart, son of Edward and Emma Weingart, was born at Salem, Ohio, February 24, 1903. He was educated in Salem schools, graduating from high school there and also attended Ohio State Uni- versity.
On January 5, 1924, he married Lena Rogers, daughter of George and Ella Rogers, also of Salem. She, too, attended Salem High School and Ohio State University. To this union were born four sons. They are Vernon, Raymond, Gene and Glenn.
Farming has been the main ac- tivity of the entire family. The Weingarts moved to Portage County in April, 1939, following the purchase of the Doolittle farm near Streetsboro from H. B. Treash. The place is now being Mr. and Mrs. R. E. Weingart operated under the name of R. E. Weingart & Sons, with the four sons as partners in the growing of 250 acres of sweet corn and 175 acres of potatoes an- nually. They have made a high reputation for their products and enjoy regular sales over a wide territory.
Mr. Weingart belongs to the various farm and growers organizations and is a director of the Kent City Bank. The Weingarts are members of the First Christian Church of Kent.
SUFFIELD
Mr. and Mrs. Howard Cook
Howard Cook was born April 25, 1887, on a farm in Suffield township. He and his
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sister Blanche (Mrs. D. E. Woozley of Dravosburg, Pa.) were the children of Newton and Mary Garl Cook, both of whom were descendents of Revolutionary War soldiers from Pennsylvania and Connecticut. The farm on which he still resides is part of the original Connecticut Land Co. holdings which his ancestors purchased when they came from Con- necticut after the Revolution, when this part of the country was first settled.
Howard received his education in the grade and high schools of Suffield township. He married Ruth Schmiedel on Oct. 5, 1912. Mrs. Cook was educated in the Suffield grade and high schools and attended Wooster College. She has been active in civic work such as the Township's 4-H groups, the local P.T.A., the American War Mothers and the Garden Club. She taught Sunday school classes and has been identified with music circles of church and school.
Mr. and Mrs. Cook are the parents of ten chil- dren. These are Leigh, Chester, Harry and Charles, with the Cook Motor Lines, Akron; James, with the Miller Excavating Co., Suffield; Miriam, now Mrs. S. F. Ulm, Miami, Okla .; Pauline, now Mrs. Michael of Goodyear Aircraft; Mary Jane, now Mrs. Vadasz, Hartville; Joanne, now Mrs. Garner of Mogodore; and Vance in Kent State University. There are also 18 grandchildren. Four of the sons and two sons-in- law were in the armed services in World War II.
In addition to running a large farm Mr. Cook also operated a threshing and silo filling outfit for many years. He served on the local school board and at present is a township trustee. He is a member of LaFayette Chapter, Sons of American Revolution.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Cook belong to the Brimfield Grange and have been life long mem- bers of the Evangelical and Reformed Church of Suffield.
M. L. Fox Family
Michael Leroy Fox was born in Lake town- ship, Stark County, July 3, 1891. He was the old- er son of William H. Fox and the former Eliz- abeth Witsaman. The family moved to the present farm home in Suffield, Portage County, in March of 1892. This farm has been owned and operated by the Fox family continuously since that time.
M. L. Fox was married in 1914 to Blanche Blet- zer, the daughter of the village blacksmith, Hart-
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man Bletzer and his wife Catharine.
Mr. and Mrs. Fox established their home in Suffield on the farm one mile west of the Center. To them were born five children. These are William Garry, Kathryn, Genevieve, David and Eugene. William Garry married Martha Lee Schreckengost and they are now operating the former Stanley Honeywell fruit farm located one mile east of Randolph. Kathryn resides in the former Bletzer homestead in Suffield Center and is married to Alfred Capps. Genevieve taught Home Economics in Tuscarawas County and married Franklin Scott of New Philadelphia, where they now live. David L., after completing high school, was with the Naval Reserves eight years, serving both in World War II and the Korean war. He is married to the former Fayne Ritzman and they live on the farm. Eugene married Pauline Ritzman and they are now living on the original tract purchased by his grandfather, William Fox. The two sons, David and Eugene have now purchased the old farm which has been divided by the new 'Truck Route, 224.
Mr. Fox has long been interested in civic affairs and has been active in organizations of dairymen.
Mr. and Mrs. William H. Fox
William Henry Fox was born March 15, 1852, in Marlboro, Stark County. He was the son of Michael and Margaret (Grim) Fox. On April 30, 1874, he was married to Miss Eliza- beth Witsaman, daughter of a pioneer family in Uniontown, Stark County.
Mr. Fox was a mason by trade, helping to build many school houses, some of which are still in use as churches. On Mar. 15, 1892, they moved from their home near Uniontown
Mr. and Mrs. William H. Fox
to what was known as the Fisher Farm, Portage County. The place was almost a wilderness, with an old log house, and the future looked far from rosy. But stout hearts and willing hands made the farm and 40 acres of cleared muck land, a productive garden. It has been in the family since.
Here the Foxes raised their fam- ily of five girls and two boys. Sickness and death came in 1902 and the two eldest daughters, Or- ella and Nettie, died of typhoid just as their dream of a new home was realized. But Mr. and Mrs. Fox bravely carried on. But in 1914 the youngest daughter, Flor- ence, died of tuberculosis. Life
went on.
In that year M. L., the oldest son, was married to Blanche Bletzer. In 1921 the daugh- ter, Marie, married Dennis Swartz, and in the following year Anna was married to Nicholas Iriana and son Claude to Miss Ethel Nidy.
In 1924 misfortune struck again. The family home was burned to the ground but it was rebuilt immediately.
The years passed on and on Dec. 16, 1928, William Fox was called home and his wife followed him June 24, 1936.
Mr. Fox was an ardent temperance worker, for years a member of the Prohibition party and his wife was a charter member of the Suffield W.C.T.U. Both were members of the Reformed church, as were others of the family.
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The Kent Family
In England, New England and Western Reserve
Between the years 1634 and 1643 several men by the name of Kent from England set- tled along the coast of Massachusetts and Connecticut. In England the Kents appear to have been owners of much real estate. In this country we find them entering many other pro- fessions also.
Martin Kent, Sr., was born at Suffield, Conn. April 1, 1761. He married Abigail Hale, daughter of Samuel and Abigail Austin Hale, residents of Suffield. With his family he migrated to New Hampshire, but not being satisfied with his new home in the wilderness of New Hampshire, he decided to set out for the wilds of the "Western Reserve".
In the spring of 1807 Martin Kent, Sr., left New Hampshire with his family for Ohio. In July, after the usual long and toilsome journey, back through Connecticut, with horse teams they reached Ohio.
Along the route which they took from Suffield, Conn., to Suffield, Ohio, there were settlements in some of the townships on the Lake Erie Shore such as Painesville, Euclid, Cleveland, Hudson and in Tallmadge were two families with a few in Springfield and Suffield.
Altho they passed within a short distance of the log cabin of Rev. David Bacon, which marks the site of the Congregational Church of Tallmadge, they did not see him and pushed on southeast to "Kents Corners" as the place was known for many years, and took up his home on the Western Reserve in Suffield Township, Portage County.
He soon bought six hundred acres from Robert Pease and constructed a log cabin on the south side of the road not far from the "Elm Tree" the site which is now occupied by Goodyear Aircraft Radar Station, and planted many of the acres to wheat.
Six children were born to continue Martin Kent Sr's pioneer home in the Western Re- serve. Martin, Jr., James, Josiah, Eliza, Abigail and Almira.
Martin Kent, Jr., was born in 1792, married Harriett Hathaway. Of this marriage were born George, Horace, Emily and Charity. Martin Jr.'s life was not long; he died at 43.
George Kent was born in 1824; died 1895. He was married to Ann Prudence Holcomb. Two children were born: Nellie May, who died at five years of age; and Florain M. who married Fannie P. Stone of Tallmadge.
Two children were born of this marriage, Nellie May and Eva G. Nellie May married George C. Larick of Cleveland in 1904, their two sons Kent George and Howard C. are now married and living in Franklin, Ohio. Kent married Margaret F. Sullivan, they have one daughter, JoAnn who married Charles Asher in 1955. A son, Kent C. Asher, was born to them in October 1956. Howard C. Larick married Jane Thurkil they have one daughter, Linda Jane.
Eva G., Mrs. James B. Smith, is now living on the northwest corner of the original Kent tract. Her only child, now Mrs. Kathryn E. Culp and husband W. Lee Culp, with their two children, Joel B. and Cheryl E., live on Dick Street, Mogadore, opposite the Holcomb homestead.
Horace Kent, second son of Martin Kent, Jr., born 1827, was married to Jemima Ann Peck. Two children were born to this family, Emily and Albert. Emily was born in 1850 and died 1907. Albert, who was born in 1853, was married in 1877 to Edith P. Hill. Two children were born to these parents, Harlan Gibbs and Horace H. Harlan was born 1877 and married Nettie A. Shanafelt February 14, 1901. To them were born Marjorie S., Lawrence S., and Morris H.
Harlan Kent farmed a part of the original Kent land until 1920 when he sold it and moved to Akron, where he managed several chain stores. In 1955 Mr. and Mrs. Kent moved
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to Lakeland, Florida. Their granddaughter, Carol Hansen Lopez, daughter of Marjorie, who married P. G. Hansen, with her husband and daughter live a few miles from the old Kent farm.
Josiah, the third son of Martin Kent, Sr., was born at Suffield, Ohio, 1811, he married Lucia Miller who was born at Granby, Connecticut. After his father's death Josiah continued the pioneer home until his death. He was the father of eight children-Dwight, Martin, Herbert, Norris, Duane M., Lorinda, Delia and Maria.
Duane M. Kent, born 1851, married Mary A. Stone of Tallmadge. To them were born Charles S. and Florence V.
Charles S. married Henrietta E. Scott of Hamburg, Pa., Four children were born while they were living on a part of the Kent farm near Suffield: Louise M., Charles S., Edward and Doris Jean. All are now married and living in Virginia, Pennsylvania and Minnesota.
Florence married Roy R. Larick of Euclid in 1910. Of this marriage were born Helen M., Duane L., Ernest K., and Roy R. Jr. All are married and living in Euclid, Ohio.
Helen married William F. Poese, they have two children: William F. Jr., and Louise ' Wilhelmina
Duane and his wife Hilery have three sons: Louis, Hugh and Duane. Ernest and Ann Larick have no children.
Roy R. and Betty have Roy R. 3rd and Susan.
Mr. and Mrs. Harry C. Miller
Harry C. Miller was born in Adrian, Michigan, June 30, 1899. He was the son of Mike and Sophia( Hitler) Miller, both natives of Portage County. When he was eight the family returned to Portage County where he attended local district and St. Joseph's parochial schools, later graduating from Suffield High School.
He then worked for his father on the farm, and also did considerable road work and trenching in the vicinity. In 1925 he worked on various road proj- ects in the county, including those in Aurora, Mantua, Windham and Charlestown. During the WPA era he worked on a number of slag road projects. Later he did excavation work in construction of buildings, sewer and water lines. He did work for Heslop & Krans, Alexander and many oth- ers. His business grew rapidly and he assumed the name of the Har- ry Miller Excavating Co. In 1952 he had several road grading jobs in Akron, also doing work for the Canton National Guard and for the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. Mr. and Mrs. Harry C. Miller Recently he entered a contract to do 10 miles of building parts of Route 21 and Route 8, and a 14-mile job on U. S. 224. At present there are approximately 200 men on his payroll.
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