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 64
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 64
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 64
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In the early days, our subjeet was engaged in making brick on the farm, there being here a good elay pit, and he was awarded the first contract ever let by the village of New Bremen for macadamiz- ing the streets. Ile later took the contract for building the turnpike in the township and has done considerable of such work.
In 1870. Mr. Barth was married to Miss Louisa
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Sprain, of Dayton, Ohio. Her parents had come to this country from Prussia. Mr. and Mrs. Barth have been the parents of nine children, of whom seven are now living: Marietta, Clara, Emma, Ella, Samuel, Edwin and Frances. The tenets as held by the Democratic party are those to which our subject is loyal. In recognition of his worth and ability, Mr. Barth has been elected as Township Trustee, which position he has occupied for ten years. He was elected County Commissioner in 1889. Ile has been connected with the German Mutual Fire Insurance Company for twenty-two years and during that time he held the office of Secretary for ten years and of Treasurer for twelve years. At the present time lie is serving his second term as a member of the Executive Committee of the Wapakoneta Agricultural Society. Upon his farm is a good natural gas well which supplies him abundantly with fuel. He with the other members of his family worship at St. Paul's Lutheran Church in New Bremen, in which body he has held various official positions.
UGH MATHERS, LL. B., a young and prominent member of the Ohio Bar and solicitor for the city of Sidney, Ohio, comes of a distinguished family of lawyers, both his father, John Hutchinson Mathers, and his grandfather, James Mathers, being noted attor- neys-at-law. Grandmother Mathers, whose maiden name was Jane Hutchinson, was the daughter of the Rev. John Hutchinson, who was an eminent minister in the Presbyterian Church, preaching the Word of God for a period of about forty years in the Mifflintown and Lost Creek Churches, in Pennsylvania. Both James and Jane (flutch- inson ) Mathers were members of the Presbyterian Church and active workers in the same.
John Hutchinson Mathers was born in Mifflin- town. Juniata County, Pa., February 25. 1830, and at an early age evinced a taste for the legal profession. Hle was graduated with high honors
in his literary course at Jefferson College at Can- nonsburgh, Pa., and returning home, devoted him- self with great assiduity to the study of law in his father's office, and after the latter's death with the Ilon. A. Parker .. After this, he practiced law at Mifflintown and was District Attorney until the summer of 1855, when he went to Jefferson, Tex., and was for some time engaged in teaching school. In October, 1856, he came North and settled in Sid- ney, Ohio, where he resumed the practice of law in partnership with the Hon. Jacob S. Conklin, soon obtaining a leading position at the Bar. In 1863, he entered into partnership with Judge Hugh Thompson, in which relation, with but brief inter- mission, he continued until his death, serving six years as Prosecuting Attorney for Shelby County. Ilis success as a practitioner was owing to his great force of character, the skill with which he met un- expected emergencies in the course of trial, his in- tense energy, thorough preparation of every case before entering court and his devotion to his clients. At the same time, he was characterized by high moral rectitude. He was earnest, too, in his endeavors to maintain the dignity of the law and to secure the punishment of its offenders.
His efforts as prosecuting attorney in the inter- est of temperance brought upon him the displeas- ure of many, but he did not falter in the discharge of his duty. He was ardently attached to the Dem- ocratic party and was one of its most earnest advo- cates. On the 14th of October, 1863, he was united in marriage to Miss Elizabethi Thompson, daughter of Judge Thompson. Three children were the fruits of this union, one son and two danghters. Early in 1874, Mr. Mathers' health began to fail and consumption rapidly developed. After spend- ing some time in the mountains of Pennsylvania, and in Florida, he returned home to Sidney and here his death occurred on the 29th of April, 1875. Although not a church member until late in life, he was an ardent Presbyterian, devoted to the doctrines, order and polity of the church and died a member of that church in Sidney.
The original of this notice was born in Sidney, Ohio, on tho 20th of May, 1866, and received his literary education in the High School of that place and in Princeton (N. J.) College. Ile subsequently
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read law with W. D. Davies, of this city, and was graduated from the Albany Law School in the Class of '88. In December, of that year, he lo- cated in Sidney and began praetieing alone and was elected solicitor in the spring of 1889. So ably and satisfactorily did he fill this position that he was re-elected in 1891 and holds that position at the present time. February 20, 1889, he married Miss Louisa P. Beeson, of Uniontown, Pa., and a daughter of Charles Beeson. One child has been born to this union, Ilugh, Jr. Mr. and Mrs. Mathers hold membership in the First Presbyterian Church and he is one of the Trustees of the church. He is a stockholder in the Citizens' Bank and also owns large farming interests, about three hundred acres in Orange Township, this county, and owns con- siderable town property. He is a rising young lawyer and a bright future is before him.
OSEPII T. BRUBAKER. There is in the development of every successful life a prin- eiple which is a lesson to every man follow- ing in its footsteps, a lesson leading to higher and more honorable position than the ordi- nary. Let a man be industriously ambitious, and honorable in his ambitions, and he will rise, whether having the prestige of family or the ob- seurity of poverty. We are led to these reflec- tions by a study of the life of the subject of this sketel, Mr. Joseph T. Brubaker, one of the old residents and prominent citizens of the county.
Our subject was born in Virginia on the 12th of November, 1846, to the union of Peter and Martha (Aleshire) Brubaker, also natives of that State. The paternal grandfather, John Brubaker, was a native too of the grand old State of Virginia, and was of German descent, his father being a native of Pennsylvania and one of the first settlers of Virginia. John Brubaker owned a large tract of land in that State and was a very extensive farmer for the times. He became quite wealthy and died in Virginia when quite aged. Peter Brubaker
followed farming in his native State and was the owner of three hundred acres there, on which he raised grain and some stoek. He was a hard work- ing man and an excellent manager, so that he had accumulated considerable wealth at the time of his death. Ile was very charitable, and the needy and helpless always found him liberal and sympa- thetic. He contributed freely to churches, and, in fact, to all worthy or laudable enterprises. To his marriage were born five sons and a daughter: Emma J. ( Mrs. Harrison), Joseph T., Peter A., Abram D., John C. and Jaeob P. The mother of these children died when but twenty-seven years of age. Iler people were of German descent.
Joseph T. Brubaker was trained to the duties of the farm at an early age and received a liberal ed- ucation in the district schools. When twenty years of age, he started out to fight life's battles for himself, and just at the close of the war, or in 1865, he came to the Buckeye State. He first set- tled in Licking County, was there one year, and then returned to Virginia, but one year later again settled in Licking County, Ohio. However, he only remained there one winter, and then removed to Champaign County, where he remained two years. From there he came to Logan County and has made his home here ever since. He chose for his life companion Miss Sallie R. Loudenback, a native of Champaign County, Ohio, born Novem- ber 24, 1849, and their nuptials were celebrated on the 15th of December, 1870. Two children were born to this marriage, one of whom died in in- fancy. The one living is named Minnie. Mrs .. Brubaker's grandparents, Daniel and Mary ( Pence) Londenback, were natives of Virginia and were quite wealthy people. The father was a soldier in the Mexican War, and was a very old settler of Ohio, loeating in Champaign County when the Indians were very numerous. Ile was an excellent shot and very few Indians could beat him as a marksman. Mrs. Brubaker, who was a Baptist in her religious belief, died on the 13th of May, 1874.
The original of this notice came to Logan County, Ohio, on the 10th of August, 1871. and settled in Washington Township. on land owned by his father-in-law, where he remained until
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1876. Ile then located in Lake View, this county, and in 1877 bought the land he now owns. This was nearly all covered with wood and on it was an old log house and barn. Ilis second marriage occurred on the 5th of September, 1878, to Miss Sarah E. Craig, a native of Logan County, born on the 17th of January, 1858. The following children have been born to them: S. Mand, Joseph C., Martha J. and Frederick. Mr. Brubaker is the owner of one hundred acres of land in this county, and has eighty acres under a high state of enlti- vation. He is one of the most progressive, thor- ough-going business men in the county, and the wide-awake manner in which he has taken advan- tage of every method and idea tending towards the enhanced value of his property has had con- siderable to do with his success in life. He has donc considerable ditching on his farm and is en- gaged in mixed farming, raising grain of all kinds, and also raises considerable stock. He built his present large frame house in 1888, and is now sur- rounded with all the comforts of life. In politics, he leans toward the Democratic party in national affairs, but is more or less independent in local politics. He held the position of Assessor for four years and discharged the duties of that office in a very satisfactory way. Ile was instrumental in getting the right of way for the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad through this section of country, although this road has not been built. During the Civil War, our subject enlisted in Company D, Seventh Cavalry, and served as Orderly Sergeant for two years. Ile enlisted when but seventeen years of age.
R. W. R. KEVE, one of the most prominent physicians of Sidney, is well and favor- ably known all over the county and is ever to be found at the bedside of the sick and afflicted. He began practicing his pro- fession in Sidney in 1880 and here he has since continued. Public-spirited and liberal in his
views, his aid to the community in which he lives has been neither stinted nor infrequent.
Dr. Keve was born in Piqua, Miami County, Ohio, on the 14th of February, 1848, and is a son of W. C. and Phobe (French) Keve, natives re- spectively of New Jersey and Ohio. The elder Mr. Keve left his native soil and located in Piqua, Ohio, at an early date, following the trade of a wagon and agricultural implement manufacturer for many years. During the latter part of his days, he moved on a farm, and there he and his worthy wife passed the closing scenes of their lives.
The early education of our subject was received in the High Schools of Piqua and during vacations he worked with his father and learned his trade. However, he was not destined to follow that busi- ness very long, for a great desire took possession of him to study medicine, and he first began read- ing with Dr. J. F. Gabriel in the fall of 1876. Later he entered the Ohio Medical College in Cin- cinnati and graduated in the Class of '80 with the degree of M. D. Ile first located at Anna, this county, but six months later came to Sidney. When he first came to Sidney, he was in partner- ship with his father-in-law, Dr. H. S. Conklin, and remained with him until the death of the latter, since which time he has carried on the practice alone. He is a close and careful student of medi- cine, and is not only a physician of acknowledged ability and prominence, but one of the county's most genial and generous citizens.
He is a member of the Shelby County Medical Society, and a member of the American Society, in which he has held membership since the con- vention at Cleveland. He has also been a member of the Board of Health and a member of the Ex- amining Board of Pensions, at Bellefontaine, also Coroner of the county for six years. Socially, he is a member of the Knights of Pythias. Dr. Keve was united in marriage to Miss Mary Conk- lin, daughter of Dr. Conklin, in 1881. Dr. Conk- lin was a practitioner here from 1837 or 1838, for fifty years, and was one of the leading physi- cians of the county. He first made his trips to his patients on horseback, afterward in a sulky, then a buggy, and finally a buggy with springs, as
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improvements were made. To Dr. and Mrs. Keve were born two children, viz: Henry and Judson C. The death of Mrs. Keve occurred July 27, 1891. Dr. Keve owns a fine residence in Sidney, in which he has lived since locating here, and he is one of the public-spirited and worthy citizens of his locality.
BRAUIAM ELDER, M. D. Logan County, and especially the vicinity of Huntsville, has been the field of labor to which our subjeet has devoted himself for very nearly forty years. It would be very strange if in that length of time so affable and lovable a man and so excellent a practitioner had not made for himself hosts of friends, who owe as much, perhaps, in their sickness to his cheery smile and cordial, encouraging greeting as to his medieines. Hle is the oldest physician in the town and among the oldest in the county. lle is, moreover, a na- tive of this State, having been born at Somerset, Perry County, April 20, 1821.
Dr. Elder is a son of Abraham and Jane (.John- son) Elder, both natives of Pennsylvania, although the former was of English descent. Abraham Elder, Sr., came to Ohio in 1815, journeying hither by wagon, and settled at our subject's birth- place. He was engaged in dealing in horses, find- ing a market for them in Philadelphia. Twenty- one years were spent in this business and he became widely known throughout the country. In 1831, he made his headquarters at Bellefontaine, and after a trip to Philadelphia the return was made with a plentiful stock of goods for a store which he ran in Bellefontaine. He was elected Associate Judge of the Court of Common Pleas. lle had a good knowledge of law and was consulted far and near on legal questions, being generally recognized as a man of large mental calibre. He was & mem- ber of the Seceder Church, now known as the United Presbyterian. Politically, he was a Whig sand a Republican and a thorough patriot. Dur-
ing the War of 1812, he was engaged in hauling ammunition and during this employment he had some narrow eseapes
The mother of twelve children, Jane (Johnson) Elder reared nine of them, having named them as follows: Culberson, Jane, John, Margaret, James, Robert, Abraham, Maria and Rebecca. After in- stilling valuable lessons into the fertile minds of these young people, and feeling that her work was done, the mother died at the age of sixty-three years. Our subject attended school a short time at Somerset and then spent a year at Bellefontaine. Just at this point his father moved the family to a farm near lluntsville, and thereafter our subject conned his lessons in the log schoolhouse two miles distant from his home. It had an open fireplace, slab benches and greased paper inserted in the openings that served as windows, and was a subscription school.
After the death of the father, our subject and his brother Robert together worked the farm for a few years; then they purchased sixty-two aeres, de- voting themselves to its improvement for two years longer. At this point our subject began his medical studies, having had a desire to do so for a long time. Ile began reading under Dr. Mam, Later, he went to Ilardin County, and started a dry-goods store, continuing at that business for three years and reading medicine at the same time. Railroads were then sending out their nervous fingers in every direction, and one coming near the residence of our subjeet. he, foreseeing that it would greatly enhance the value of property, pur- chased some land and then went into partnership with Dr. MeAndless, of Bellefontaine, in the drug business. The senior member of the firm was our subject's medical tutor and when, at the end of an association of three years. the enterprise was sold out, Dr. Elder entered the Starling Medical Col- lege at Columbus, in 1851. lle is also a graduate of the Cincinnati College of Medicine and Sur- gery. After a time spent in Hardin County, he came here, in 1854, and has since devoted his atten- tion to this locality.
The original of this sketch found his better half in Mary A. Wallace, a native ot Pennsylvania, who came to Ohio with her parents when only a
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little girl. She has been his faithful companion in life ever since, carefully rearing the children that have been spared them. Their names are Samantha E., Arra A., Carrie, Wallace S. and Vada V. In his profession, Dr. Elder makes a specialty of the diseases of women and children, including chronic diseases. He has had some re- markable cases and has been exceedingly success- ful. Since his location here, thirty doctors have come and gone, and where others have failed he has made a brilliant success.
The Elder home is a beautiful place comprising five acres of land and a fine frame residence which was erected at a cost of $3,500. He has a farm of fifty-twoaeres east of town and another of sixty acres north of town. Hle frees himself of the act- ual care of the place by renting it, and at the same time gratifies his taste for live stock by keeping fine animals.
Dr. and Mrs. Elder are members of the United Presbyterian Church. Our subject is a Republican in his political convictions and has held some im- portant offices. Ile has been on the School Board of this locality for thirteen years .. Most of this time he was President.
UDGE THOMAS MILTENBERGER. The subject of this sketch, who is one of the prominent residents of Logan County, was born April 24, 1820, in Rockingham County, Va. He is the son of Jolin and Eva E. (Bloss) Miltenberger, natives of Virginia. The paternal grandfather, John Miltenberger, Sr., was a drum- mer boy during the Revolutionary War in Wash- ington's army and when that famous general led his army across the Delaware River, the grand- father plugged up the holes in his drum, and on it he paddled himself across. lle was a farmer by occupation and spent his last days in his native State. The ancestors of our subject, on both sides, are from Germany, in which country they were re- spected and well-to-do residents.
The direct progenitors of our subjeet came to Warren County this State in the spring of 1832, where the father, who was a soldier in the War of 1812, departed this life in 1845. He reared a family of six sons and three dangliters, namely: William, Elias, Adam, Layton, Thomas, Jobn, Mar- garet, Caroline and Matilda.
He of whom we write was twelve years of age when his parents removed to this State, and here it was that he received his education in the primi- tive schoolhouse, with slab seats, greased paper for window lights, puncheon floor, etc. He remained upon the farm until reaching his seventeenth year, when, on account of ill health, he abandoned farm work and attended the lligli School at Springbor- ough, this State. After completing his education, Mr. Miltenberger was engaged in teaching school several years, in which occupation he was very suc- eessful.
The lady who became the wife of our subjeet in 1842 was Miss Mary J. Brown, of Franklin, War- ren County. The young couple located in the above-named place, in the vicinity of which they remained for eleven years, when Mr. Miltenberger came to Bellefontaine and engaged as photographer, being the third man to take daguerreotypes in the State. In 1860, he was elected County Auditor of Logan County, of which office he was the ineum- bent for nine years. The following year he was elected to the Legislature and during his one term in the House served on many important commit- tees and performed the duties of the office with entire satisfaction to his constituents.
In 1874, the original of this sketch erected the Miltenberger House in this city, which he conducted as "mine host" in first-class style for five years. In 1874, he was elected Probate Judge and on the expiration of his term was re-elected to the same position. He was for six years Director of the County Infirmary and for about the same length of time was a School Officer.
Judge Miltenberger has been prominently iden- tified with polities all his life, and no man in the county has more friends than he. He is now en- gaged in retailing fine eigars and tobacco, keeping constantly on land on his shelves and in his show cases the best artieles of that kind to be had in the
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eity. In social matters, he is a member of the Masonie fraternity, in which order he occupies a high position. He takes a just pride in the progress of his county and has ever borne his part in the promotion of those enterprises ealeulated to ad- vanee its general welfare.
To Mr. and Mrs. Miltenberger have been born five children, one of whom is living. The wife and mother died in 1882 and in 1884 the Judge was married to Mrs. Fannie A. Eariek, of Sandusky, this State. They are both regular attendants of the Methodist Episcopal Church, in which body they hold membership and are liberal contributors toward its support. During the late war, James A., the eldest son of our subject, enlisted in Com- pany A, Thirteenth United States Army, and died near Vicksburgh, Miss., while in the service. His remains now lie in the Bellefontaine cemetery. The Judge is and always has been a stalwart Re- publican.
MOS CHERRY. It cannot be expected in a work of this kind, where but brief bio- graphieal sketeles of prominent citizens of the county are presented, that a lengthy laudatory article should be written of each one, and yet at times there are met with some who have been so intimately and elosely identified with the county, and whose names are so familiar to all, that it is only just to dwell upon what they have done and the influence of their career on others, not merely as empty words of praise, but the plain statement of still plainer truths. Amos Cherry, who is one of the largest land-owners in Washington Township, and one of its most exten- sive farmers, was born near Springfield, Ohio, on the 20th of September, 1820.
His parents were Abraham and Margaret ( MeMan- away) Cherry. The father was a native of Pennsyl- vania and the mother was of Irish extraction, and in the State of Ohio they were married. Our sub-
ject's paternal grandfather was a native of Eng- land, and when still a single man came to America. He was married in Pennsylvania, and tilled the soil until his death. The maternal grandparents were natives of Ireland, in which country they were married, and at an early date eame to America, settling in Pennsylvania. After the birth of one child, or in 1804, our subject's father eame to Ohio, making the journey on horseback, and settled near Columbus, Ohio, where he bought a traet of land from the Government. Mr. Cherry built a round-log cabin, with mud and stick chimney, and although he and his thrifty and in- dustrious wife had little else to help themselves with except their own strong hands and sturdy in- dependence, they began gradually to accumulate a comfortable competency. They resided there for four years, after which they sold out and bonghit Government land in sight of the present eity of Springfield, Ohio, where they continued their fru- gal existenee until 1833. The wood abonnded in wild animals, deer, wolves, etc., and fresh meat was never lacking on the table. After residing on that farm and improving it in many ways, Mr. and Mrs. Cherry sold out and onee more settled in the woods, this time in Washington Township, Logan County, Ohio, where the father's death occurred in 1852. He was a Presbyterian in religion, and a Demoerat in polities at tirst, but later he trans- ferred his allegiance to the Whig party. Of the seven children born to this mueh-esteemed couple, five grew to mature years, and were named as fol- lows: Christina, Charles, Amos, Andrew J. and Abraham. The mother, who was a devout member of the Presbyterian Church, died when fifty-five years of age.
Our subject was thirteen years of age when he came to this eounty, and he remembers that his parents made the journey with team and wagon. They were three days in getting from where the County Infirmary now stands to where they fin- ally located, and had to eut trees and build bridges. A rather limited education was received by our subjeet in the log schoolhouse, with large fireplace in one end of the room, split-log benches and other rude inventions of those days. and there was greased paper for window lights until about
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