USA > Ohio > Auglaize County > Portrait and biographical record of Auglaize, Logan and Shelby Counties, Ohio : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, together with biographies and portraits of all the Presidents of the United States > Part 48
USA > Ohio > Logan County > Portrait and biographical record of Auglaize, Logan and Shelby Counties, Ohio : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, together with biographies and portraits of all the Presidents of the United States > Part 48
USA > Ohio > Shelby County > Portrait and biographical record of Auglaize, Logan and Shelby Counties, Ohio : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, together with biographies and portraits of all the Presidents of the United States > Part 48
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Henry Ahroyer.
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pany G, Fifteenth Ohio Infantry, and served his | of a self-made man, who has acquired his exten- country faithfully and well as a private soldier sive possessions through his nnaided toil, the rec- ord of his life is worthy the perusal and emula- tion of the young. Ilis portrait is also presented to our readers. for over four years. Mr. Stough participated in many of the important battles of that period. among which were Shiloh. Stone River, Liberty Gap, Chickamauga. Missionary Ridge, Atlanta, Nashville and Franklin. During the Atlanta cam- paign he was wounded at Resaca in the head, but was soon enabled to report for duty.
On being mustered out of the service, he of whom we write returned home, and June 21, 1866, was united in marriage to Miss Sarah Post. The young couple came to this place in the fall of that year, where Mr. Stough engaged in the manufacture of horse collars, in which trade he continued for some years, and then embarked in the mercantile business, which he conducted suc- cessfully until he was elected to his present office in November, 1890.
Mr. Stough has been a resident of this city for a number of years, and has always taken a very active and prominent part in local affairs. So- cially, he is a Grand Ammy man. and served his post one year as Commander. Mrs. Stough, who is a very intelligent and efficient woman, be- longs to the Evangelical Lutheran Church, with which denomination her husband has long been identified and is one of its most zealous workers. They have a family of two sons and one daugh- ter: Georg . O., Luther and Mary E. Our sub- ject is one of the solid men of Logan County. in whom his fellow-citizens know they can place their reliance at all times and under all circum- stances, and he is esteemed accordingly.
ENRY SHIROYER. So successful has this gentleman been in his farming operations that he is now the owner of three hundred and forty-three aeres of fine land in Salem Township, Shelby County. Among the represen- tative and influential farmers of the community, Le occupies a prominent place, and as an example
Joseph Shroyer, father of our subjeet, was born in Maryland. of German descent, and was orphaned when quite young. In 1820, he removed West to Ohio and commenced to clear a small traet of land in Miami County, where he was married to Mary Shroyer, a native of the Old Dominion. In 1835, he located in Shelby County, upon the okl homestead in the northern part of Salem Town- ship. At that time the land was heavily timbered and roads had not yet been opened, while Indians and wild animals roamed at will through the dense forests. Few people had penetrated the wilder- ness in an endeavor to convert the far-reaching wooded land into habitable homesteads. Piqua was the nearest market and depot of supplies, and thither the early pioneers were accustomed to go in order to purchase provisions.
Gradually the woodman's axe penetrated the forests, wild animals became less numerous, the Indians sought distant homes on the broad prai- ries of the West, and where the father of our suh- ject had originally entered a claim of apparently valneless land. fifty years later the site was marked by a beautiful homestead. adorned with orchards and embellished with farm buildings. Ile suc- ceeded in clearing one hundred aeres (twenty- eight acres being yet in timber), and was a hard- working, enterprising farmer. In church work, he was equally zealous, and for many years re- ligious services were held at his home. lle aided substantially in the erection of two churches, and presented each of them with an acre of land on which to build. Ilis membership was in the Ger- man Reformed Church. in which he served as Elder until his death in 1880. So popular was he, that he had not an enemy in the community, but everyone was his friend and well-wisher.
The fifth in a family of nine children. our sub- jeet was born August 26. 1834. in Miami County. this State. Ilis educational advantages were lim- ited to the subscription schools of this county. and his time wa- principally devoted to tilling
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the soil on his father's farm. May 18, 1865, he was married to Miss Mary, daughter of Gottlieb and Elizabeth (Clapper) Strahlen, natives respec- tively of the city of Breslau, Germany, and Ohio.
Mr. Strahlen emigrated to the United States when eighteen years old, making the voyage in a sailing-vessel and spending twenty-eight weeks on the ocean. He had left his native country in order to avoid being pressed into the army to fight Napoleon Bonaparte. By trade he was a piano and organ builder, but after coming to America followed the vocation of a farmer. Ilis marriage took place in Fairfield County, where he eultivated a farm twenty aeres in extent. After the birth of four children. he and his wife re- moved to Shelby County and entered one hun- dred and sixty acres of unimproved land on sec- tion 35, Salem Township. There they resided until their death, Mr. Strahlen dying in 1863, and his wife in 1889. Politieally. he was a mem- ber of the Democratic party. In his religious ad- herence, he was a Lutheran, while his wife held membership in the Reformed Church. Four of their nine children now survive.
Mrs. Shroyer was born on the old homestead in Salem Township May 18, 1845, and was there reared to womanhood, meanwhile receiving a lim- ited schooling. After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Shroyer resided on the Strahlen homestead for one year, then spent the ensuing twelve months on the farm of her brother, after which they re- mained with another brother for two years. At that time, Mr. Shroyer commeneed for himself on an eighty-acre farm just west of the John F. Shroyer place, and there he engaged in general farming until 1885, when he settled on his present estate.
The family of Mr. and Mrs. Shroyer consists of six children. as follows: Clara, wife of William Rubert. of Salem Township; Eliza Ellen. who is Mrs. John Wones, also a resident of Salem Town- ship; Hattie, who married George Rose, of Salem Township; Elmer, Nelson C. and Harrison W. Mr. Shroyer has always devoted himself exclu- sively to agricultural pursuits, and has cleared and improved one hundred and twenty-five acres of his place. He is a whole-hearted, free-souled
man, frank in the expression of his convietions and firm in his adherence to the principles of truth and justice. In him the German Reformed Chureh has one of its most active members and the Democratic party one of its strongest ad- herents.
OHN II. BOSCHJE, merchant and grain- dealer, is one of the most prominent and substantial men of New Bremen, Auglaize County, Ohio, and has accumulated all his wealth by his own exertions, for he started out to figlit life's battles for himself with little or no means. Like many of the foremost men of the county, he is a native of Germany, and has inher- ited all the sterling principles of his ancestors. among which may be mentioned unswerving hon- esty, industry and frugality. Ilis birth occurred in Hanover, on the 29th of April. 1831, and his father, John H. Bosche, was a native of the same place. The mother of our subject, whose maiden name was Louisa (Sehroder) Bosche, was also a native of Germany, and in that country both par- ents passed their entire lives, the father dying in 1833, when our subjeet was about two years old, and the mother passing away in 1866. Both were members of the Lutheran Church. Two children were born to this union, but only our subject is living. The other ehild, Sophia, grew to mature years. married. and died in 1859, leaving two children.
After the death of his father, our subjeet re- mained with his mother until twelve years of age, and attended the schools in his native country. In 1845, when but fourteen years of age, he eame to America with some relatives with whom he had been living for about two years, and was nine weeks and three days in crossing the ocean. The vessel on which he took passage was given up as lost at one time, for the Captain informed the pas- sengers that she was doomed. She drifted far out of her course, and for three days the passengers
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were without food and exposed to the fury of the gale. They expected every moment to be sent to the bottom, but she brought them through all right and a very thankful lot of passengers landed at Baltimore in the fall of 1845. Word had reached Germany that the vessel had been lost. and the mother had given her boy up as drowned, when other news reached her.
From Baltimore. our subject pushed on to Cin- cinnati, where he immediately entered a school, and there remained for two years. After this, he secured a position in hotels and restaurants, was thus engaged for two years, and in 1849 he came to New Bremen, where he secured a position as clerk in a general store owned by his uncle, John F. Bosche. In 1852. he started a small business for himself at Montezuma. Mercer County, re- mained there two years, and in 1855 he purchased property in New Bremen, where he engaged in general merchandising. Later, he embarked in the gram and pork business. which he has continued up to the present, and which has brought him in hig returns. Being very industrious and econom- ical. he saved his money, and although he made no big display of his wealth, he soon became well known as one of the most sagacious and thorough- going business men and a man of superior judg- ment. He often sent money to his mother in Germany, and was also liberal in his contributions to all worthy enterprises. In former years, more than at the present time. he had a thriving pork- packing business and would keep his produce until the market snited him.
Mr. Bosche married Louisa Neitert, a native of Ohio, but of German parentage. her parents com- ing to this country abont 1830. Nine children have been born to our subject and wife. and are as follows: Alvina, who is married and resides in New Bremen; Lafayette is married. and resides at Ft. Recovery, Ohio: Herman: Pulaski and Edward. both in Western Kansas in business: Franklin; Ferd- inand. deceased: Felix and Clara. all of whom were given excellent educational advantages. Mr. Bosche is a Republican in politics, and held the position of Clerk of the School Board for just eight years. Ile has ever taken a deep interest in local school matters. as well as in all other matters
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of moment. He was a member of the Town Coun- cil for several years, and served as Village Re- corder for some time. MIr. Bosche owns eighty acres of land near New Bremen, and he also owns his place of business in that town. Hle is well known all over the county, and is universally re- spected.
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LINTON S. BREWER, who was born on the old Brewer homestead in Noble Town- ship. November 7, 1852, is numbered among the sons of the pioneers of Auglaize County, who have stepped to the front of late years to carry forward the work so well begun by their fathers. He is a competent and wide-awake farmer of his township. and one of its most important civic officials.
Our subject is a son of Nicholas Brewer, ex- County Commissioner, and one of the first set- tlers of Noble Township. He obtained his first schooling in an old log house, that was rudely furnished with slab seats, and was afterward re- placed by a frame schoolhouse. Ilis boyhood days were passed on the farm which was his birth- place, and there he received a thorough training in agricultural pursuits. Hle worked on the old homestead until he attained his majority, and then he began farming on his present farm, which com- prises eighty acres of land on section 24, Noble Township, lying along the Amanda Turnpike, and watered by Two Mile Creek. Mr. Brewer has his land under excellent tillage, has his farm well stocked with all kinds of stock of good breeds. and the buildings are neat and well ordered.
The marriage of Mr. Brewer with Miss Minnie A. Teunnerman, of Darke County. occurred in the year 1874. Mrs. Brewer's parents were from Germany, and they settled in Ohio after coming to this country, the father pursuing his calling as a farmer until his death. The mother is also dead. Mr. and Mrs. Brewer had three children: Roena E., Claude Elton. and one that died in infancy. Mrs.
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Brewer, who is a woman of sincere picty, is a Seventhi-day Adventist in religion.
Our subject is a young man of good habits, possesses a clear, active brain, and bas a fine repu- tation as a farmer and business man. He is influ- ential in politics as one of the prominent local Democrats, and he has been a delegate to county, distriet and State conventions. Ilis fellow-citi- zens have at various times placed him in charge of offices of trust, and for ten years he bas held the responsible position of Treasurer of the Township, discharging his duties to the perfect satisfaction of all concerned, of whatever political creed. Mr. Brewer is noted for his prowess as a hunter, who handles a rifle with unusual skill, and he is very fond of the pleasures of the chase. In pursuit of this pastime, he goes every fall to Northern Wisconsin. Arkansas, Michigan and Col- orado, and kills every kind of game to be found in those States. Ile has killed as many as four deer in one day, and has many trophies of the Int to remind him of the various excursions he has made.
OHN II. GOCHIENOUR. One of the finest farms in Logan Township is owned by Mr. John H. Gochenour, and is situated on see- tion 10. This tract of land consists of four hundred and fifty acres, nearly all of which is im- proved, and is the result of industry and persever- anee. Our subjeet is a native Virginian, born in Shenandoah County, as were also his parents, Abraham and Catherine (Neff) Gochenour. Both parents were esteemed members of the Lutheran Church and died in that faith, the father in 1839, and the mother in 1854. They were honorable, Christian people, and were classed among the best citizens of their community. After the death of the father, the mother married John Dingledine, a native of the Old Dominion.
The original of this notice was born in the year 1835. and when but a child was left fatherless. Ile
was educated in the common schools of Shenan- doalı County and made his home with his mother and step-father until eighteen years of age. In 1849, he emigrated to Ohio and began learning the carpenter's trade in Champaign County. He selected his wife in the person of Miss Sarah C. Weaver, and their nuptials were celebrated in 1858. Iler father, William Weaver, was a native of Champaign County, Ohio. After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Gochenour moved to Logan Town- ship, Auglaize County, Ohio, and settled on the farm now owned by our subject. This land was then very different from the fertile and enltivated fields of the present day, for it was covered with wood and very few improvements had been made. Mr. Gochenour erected a log cabin, and in this he and his ambitious and economical young wife be- gan their career as pioneers. MIr. Gochenour cleared seventy-five acres of this farm, and in 1861 he erected a good, substantial frame house, in which he is now living. Year by year, as his means allowed, he added to the original traet of land, until he is now the owner of four hundred and fifty acres of excellent land, all the fruits of his exertions, coupled with that of his esteemed and agreeable helpmate.
Their union was blessed by the birth of four children, only two now living, Elva A. and Jean- etta, both of whom were thoroughly educated in the common schools and in colleges. The former is living on a farm near the old home, and the latter resides at Versailles, Darke County, Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Gochenour are members of the Chris- tian Union Church, and are zealous and active workers in the same. In his political career, our subject has always been a stanch Democrat and his first Presidential vote was cast for James Bu- chanan. He has been Township Clerk for several years, has also held the position of Land Appraiser and Supervisor, and, in fact, has held all the offices of the township, discharging the duties of each and all with credit to himself and to the evident satisfaction of the people.
Although he began his career in Auglaize County a poor boy, all enterprises prospered in his hands, and especially with agricultural pursuits did he seem exactly suited. With care and persever-
L. C. Bauer
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ance has he attended to his adopted avocation and with energy and thoroughness, until successful re- sults have been reaped, and he is now one of the wealthy and substantial men of the county. He has the confidence and respect of his neighbors to an unlimited degree and is universally liked.
A
Le EWIS C. BREWER is prominent as a farmer. influential as a local politician of the Democratic party, and a leader in church matters in Noble Township, of which he isa native, his birth having taken place here on the old Brewer homestead June 26. 1848. His father, Nicholas Brewer, ex-County Commissioner, and a prominent pioneer of Auglaize County, who is still living within its borders, is represented elsewhere in this volume.
When our subject first attended school, he went to a log schoolhouse for about three months, the building being of pioneer construction, with a huge fireplace for heating purposes, and furnished with slab seats. lle lived at home until he was twenty-one, helping his father in the farm work. IIe began his independent career as a farmer in 1871, in Noble Township. locating on his present farm that year, and went to work with character- istic energy to clear away the. timber with which his land was mostly covered. drained the soil where it was necessary, and has brought it into a high state of cultivation, besides providing it with a roomy and substantial set of farm buildings. Ile and his wife together have two hundred and fifty acres of as fine farming land as is to be found in this part of the county, pleasantly situated on sections 22. 23. 13 and 1t, Noble Township.
Mr. Brewer was married, in 1871. to Miss Harriet E. Shipman. a native of Noble Township. and a daughter of John L. Shipman. Her father, a native of llamilton County, came to Auglaize County at an early day. and died here in 1881, leaving a good record as a pioneer and as a soldier in the | great-grandson of Alexander Rowand, who was a
late war, in which he served from the time of his enlistment, in 1864, until the cessation of hostili- ties. He was a miller by trade, but afterward adopted the calling of a farmer. His wife, whose maiden name was Ann Bartlette, survives him. Mrs. Brewer is the only daughter of the family, but there were three sons. of whom one is yet living. Mr. and Mrs. Brewer have been blessed in their pleasant wedded life by six children: Wilshire, Bertie L., Von Ilallen Annie, Charles K., and Ettie.
Our subject has a well-poised, well-equipped mind, and his standing as a man of honor and unswerving probity is of the highest. Ilis sterling traits of character have brought him into promi- nence in the publie life of the community, and he has done good service in various official capacities. He has been Township Trustee for fourteen years, and has been School Director and was Constable for eight years. As a good citizen should, he in- terests himself in politics. and the Democratic party finds in him a zealous and intelligent worker. who has been of good use as delegate to county, district and State conventions. IJis social relations are with the Masonic fraternity. Religiously, both he and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which he is Trustee, Steward and Class-leader, and he is Superintendent of the Sunday-school.
On another page will be noticed a portrait of Mr. Brewer.
ARTIN V. ROWAND, a native-born resi- dent of Harrison Township, Logan County. Ohio. his birth occurring on the farm where he now lives September 17, 1836, is a prominent farmer and breeder of draft and standard-bred horses, also the proprietor of Springdale Stock Farm, situated on the northwest quarter of section 30. Ile is a son of William B. Rowand, the grandson of Joseph Rowand and the
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Welshman and the first of the Rowand family to settle in America. Hle first located in Penn- sylvania, where the grandfather of our subject was born, but did not remain there long, after- ward settling in Virginia, where he started an iron forge near Morganstown, which he operated the remainder of his days. He died when about middle age. Ile was twice married, and had three children by his first union, John, Joseph and Nancy, and four by the second marriage, Alex- ander, Edward, MeCauley and William.
The grandfather of our subject, Joseph Rowand, learned the tailor's trade when quite young and followed it more or less during his entire life. Ile was married in Virginia, and in 1809 moved by team and wagon to Urbana, Champaign County, Ohio, where he resided one year, there being at that time but a few round-log cabins on the site of that present thriving city. He rented a farm near Urbana for a short time and later rented land in Clarke County, Ohio, where he resided until after the War of 1812. After this he bought one hundred and sixty-eight acres of timber land in Madison County, Ohio, settled upon this, and partially developed it. Ile was killed, when forty- five years of age, by falling timber at a barn-rais- ing in Madison County. He was an honest, hard- working man, and in politics was a Jackson-Dem- verat. His wife bore the maiden name of . Rachel Clemens, and was a native of New Jersey, so far as known. They reared four children: William, Jolin, Lucy A. and Catherine. The two sons are living. The mother died when about fifty years of age.
William B. Rowand, father of our subject, is a native Virginian, born on the 22d of March, 1805, and now makes his home with our subject. Al- though in the eighty-eighth year of his age, time has dealt leniently with him and he is still quite strong and vigorous. He is one of the pioneers of Ohio, having entered the State in 1809, when four years of age, and he recollects many of the inci- dents of the journey from Virginia to Ohio. Ile has witnessed the wonderful development made in the country in the last fifty years, and delights in tell- ing stories and adventures of pioneer days. Ile was educated in the early log schoolhouses of Ohio, and the first he remembers attending was
built of round logs, having five sides, the rear end being built in the form of a V and devoted en- tirely to a fireplace. The seats were puncheons with pin legs and ran around the room, and the windows were of greased paper. This was in Clarke County, Ohio. At an early age, his muscles were toughened and hardened by hard work on his father's farm, and he assisted in clearing and improving the home place until twenty-one years of age, when he started ont on his own account.
Hle was married in Madison County, Ohio, and in 1831 came to this county, where he bought his present farm, paying 83 per acre for it. This land was then covered with a dense forest and not a stiek had been cut. lle first rented a farm near West Liberty, and raised a erop so that he would have enough to live on until he could build a log cabin and clear a patch of land on his own place. He settled on this farm permanently in the winter of 1831-32, and here he has made his home ever since. Indians from the reservation used fre- quently to call at his house to trade, and the woods swarmed with deer, bears, wild cats and wolves. Industrious and ambitious, he soon cleared up his farm, and bought additional land, until he at one time owned two hundred and eighty acres, most of which he had cleared himself. Hle selected his life companion in the person of Miss Matilda Graffort. a native of Kentucky, born in 1808, daughter of Benjamin and Elizabeth (Hornbeck) Graffort, of Virginia, who came to Madison County, Ohio, in 1825. Of the seven children born to them, six grew to mature years and were named as follows: Joseph (deceased), Elizabeth (Mrs. Wood), Martin, Benjamin, Kittie (Mrs. Spellman), and Alfred, who died in the late war. The mother was a worthy member of the Methodist Episcopal Church and died in 1883. Mr. Rowand is also a member of that church. He was reared a Democrat, but has been a Republican since the organization of that party.
Martin V. Rowand, the subject of this sketch, was reared on the farm where he now lives, and was educated in the log schoolhouse with open fireplace, slab seats, a log taken out for a window, and other rude contrivances of that day. These were subscription schools, and in them he was tanght the " three R's." He remembers seeing plenty
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of deer and wild turkeys during his boyhood and youth, but much of his time was employed in as- sisting his father in clearing the home place. On the 20th of February, 1858, he wedded Miss Rebecca Coulter. a native of Clarke County, Ohio, and one child. Jessie, was born to them. She is now the wife of William Thompson and resides in Bellefontaine. Mrs. Rowand died in the year 1869, and on the 20th of April. 1871, Mr. Rowand took for his second wife Mrs. Phoebe A. Harris, a native of Clarke County, and daughter of Thomas and Martha ( Hammon ) Harris, natives of Virginia and Pennsylvania, respectively, who bore him three children: Orie M., Edwin M. and Ethel M., all at home.
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