Portrait and biographical record of Fayette, Pickaway and Madison counties, Ohio : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, together with biographies and portraits of all the presidents of the United States, Part 79

Author: Chapman Brothers
Publication date: 1892
Publisher: Chicago, Chapman Bros.
Number of Pages: 894


USA > Ohio > Fayette County > Portrait and biographical record of Fayette, Pickaway and Madison counties, Ohio : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, together with biographies and portraits of all the presidents of the United States > Part 79
USA > Ohio > Madison County > Portrait and biographical record of Fayette, Pickaway and Madison counties, Ohio : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, together with biographies and portraits of all the presidents of the United States > Part 79
USA > Ohio > Pickaway County > Portrait and biographical record of Fayette, Pickaway and Madison counties, Ohio : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, together with biographies and portraits of all the presidents of the United States > Part 79


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Although Mr. Coffland is a politician, he is by no means a partisan, and guards the honor of his chosen party as sacredly as his own. He has served as Delegate to county and State conventions; Trus- tee of Jackson Township for seven years; School Director for a number of years, and is greatly in- terested in educational matters. For three years he has served as Justice of the Peace, and is now


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filling that responsible position to the satisfaction of all interested. He was elected Director of the County Infirmary in the fall of 1881, and served two terms of three years each. Mrs. Coffland is identified with the Methodist Episcopal Church, and is active in promoting its welfare.


In connection with farming, Mr. Coffland has al- ways devoted considerable attention to stock-rais- ing and each year makes shipments of cattle to the Eastern markets, often shipping as many as three car-loads. He has introduced an excellent system of drainage upon his farm and every modern im- provement which reduces manual labor, making his farm one of the best in the community. The family residence is an attractive brick structure, whose cozy interior arrangement indicates refined tastes and domestic happiness. In his social con- nections, Mr. Coffland is a member of the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows and the Improved Order of Red Men, having held the various Chairs in both orders.


R OBERT S. WATERS ranks among the suc- eessful and progressive agriculturists of Madison Township, Fayette County. The acreage is all under cultivation, and even the passing stranger will note the orderly arrange- ment of substantial buildings and the evidences of thrift that pervade the entire tract.


Our subject is a native of Massachusetts, having been born January 7, 1829, in Berkshire County. He is a son of Levi and Lucinda (Twining) Waters, also natives of that State and county, the father being born April 9, 1796, and the mother Novem- ber 9, 1798. Thomas Waters, the paternal grand- father of our subject, was a patriot in the War of 1812, and died in the Bay State about 1836 or 1837.


The father of our subject was a farmer by oc- cupation and remained in his native State umtil abont 1862, when he moved to Copenhagen, Lewis County, N. Y., and there made his home until his decease, December 11, 1882. The mother departed this life in the above-named place January 1,


1886. They were the parents of six children, five of whom are living. Lyman is a farmer in Copen- hagen; William also follows that occupation in Champaign County, Ill .; Joseph is a hardware merchant in Oakland, Coles County, Ill., having formerly been engaged in the grocery business in New York City; our subject is the next in order of birth; Nelson lives in Marshall County, Kan.


Robert S. Waters grew to manhood in his na- tive State, and in addition to attending the com- mon schools, took a course of study in a select school at Otis. When reaching his majority, he came West to Ross County, this State, and made his home in Chillicothe for three years. July 20, 1857, he was united in marriage with Miss Mariame Leach, of Madison Township, Fayette County, where she was born March 10, 1832. Mrs. Waters was the daughter of Benjamin and Sarah (Bost- wick) Leach, her father being born in Virginia, November 2, 1803, and her mother in Vermont, July 21, 1805.


He of whom we write located in Cincinnati in 1853, where he made his home for ten years, being engaged in a wholesale jobbing house. In 1863, he settled upon his present estate, which then con- tained one hundred and thirty acres, but to which he has since added until he is the proprietor of a tract of five hundred acres. He has placed his farm under excellent cultivation and as an agri- culturist he has been very successful, ranking among the worthy and representative citizens of this township.


Four children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Waters, one of whom died in infancy and one when seven years of age. Charles A. was born June 16, 1858, and died May 21, 1863; Byron B., born June 18, 1860, died February 14, 1862, Charles B., born June 7, 1863, was given a good education, and September 6, 1883, was married to Mattie Durham, and to them have been born two children; Frankie, born January 11, 1868, mar- ried John M. MeCafferty, whose sketch will be found on another page in this work.


Although reared a Whig, our subject joined the ranks of the Democratic party when reaching his majority. He has represented his township as Clerk one year but has since refused all political


Mary M. King 2


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honors, as he prefers to devote his time and atten- tion to his private interests. With his wife, he is a member of the Grange, and by his honorable course in life has won the universal respect and esteem of all who know him.


ISS MARY M. KING. This well-known and highly-esteemed resident of Madison Township, Pickaway County, came to Ohio with her parents from her native home in Pennsylvania when only three years old, and when about seven years old they removed to Madison Township and located on the farm where she now resides.


The birthplace of Miss King is in Berks County, Pa., and she is a daughter of Henry and Barbara (Stump) King, who were also natives of Berks County. The family is of German descent, as the great-grandparents of our subject on both sides came from Germany. Her great-grandfather Stump is said to have engaged as a soldier in the Revolu- tionary War under Washington's command.


Henry King, the father of our subject, did not live long after coming to Ohio, as he died about a year and a half after his emigration. Some three years after his death, his widow and daughter re- moved to the farm where Miss King now lives, in Madison Township, thus becoming pioneers of sec- tion 35. They took a quarter-section of land, which was largely in timber, and endured great hardships and self-denial in their sturdy efforts for self-support and their endeavors to subdue the wild- erness and derive a maintenance from their new farm.


A number of years after settling here, the widow was again married, becoming the wife of John Souser, a native of Pennsylvania, who came to Pickaway County at an early day. Ile was an es- teemed citizen and highly regarded on account of his upright character and intelligence. He was a consistent and earnest member of the German Re- formed Church, and in his political views espoused the doctrines of the Democratic party. For some


time, he served the community as School Director, but died in 1877. Ilis wife, the mother of our subject, passed from earth May 12, 1892, mourned by all who knew her.


Miss King is an active and efficient member of the German Reformed Church, and her influence is always cast for good in the community, she being ever ready to help on every worthy cause. She owns about one hundred and forty-five acres of land, which she is cultivating in a thorough man- ner and from which she obtains excellent erops. She has a large circle of friends, whose attention is invited to her portrait.


AMES G. BEATTY. The main features of our subjeet's life are those of many another, he having had but few opportunities as a boy. His educational advantages, though consisting of but a few months' schooling in each year and at such odd times as he could be spared from the duties of the farm, were improved as far as possible, and in later years, possessed of a strong individuality and perseverance, by reading and investigation so broadened and enlarged his earlier studies as to become an intelligent student of the topics of the day, as well as a wide-awake business man.


James Beatty, Sr., the father of our subject, was born in Virginia in 1793. He, in turn, was the son of Charles Beatty, who was also a native of the Old Dominion, where the family were among the F. F. V's, and of English descent. The lat. ter-named gentleman died September 27, 1850, and the wife September 2, 1826. The father of our subject came to Ohio in 1818, and, locating a few miles southeast of Bloomingburgh, began life in the woods by erecting a cabin and clearing his land. Ile then returned to Virginia, brought his father's family to this section, and here made a permanent home, where they were among the earliest residents.


The maiden name of our subject's mother was Margaret Gibson, a native of Virginia and a daugh- ter of Robert Gibson, a prominent pioneer of this


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State. She was born in 1800, and passed from this life July 28, 1828. To them were born six children, three of whom are living, and bearing the respective names of Isaac Newton, Charles M., and James G. The father of our subject was a soldier in the War of 1812, and also an officer in the State militia. After the death of Mrs. Margaret Beatty, he was married to Elizabeth Evans, by whom he became the father of three children, all of whom are deceased. Mr. Beatty died in January, 1878. He was an influential member of his community and served as Ap- praiser of the county. Ile was also Associate Judge of the county, and his wise and judicious decisions are known wherever he was known.


The original of this sketch was born May 25, 1828, on the home farm near Bloomingburgh, where he was reared to man's estate and attended the district school. He remained at home until attaining his majority, and in April, 1852, was married to Miss Airy House, daughter of Isaac and Mary (Winegardner) House, natives respec- tively of Virginia, and Fairfield County, this State. The parents were married in the latter- named county, and, settling in the woods, passed through all the privations and hardships which fall to the lot of the pioneer. Mrs. House died in 1831, and her worthy husband in 1850. They were the parents of six children, four of whom grew up and three are now living: Mrs. Jane Zimmerman, Mrs. Charity Plyley and Mrs. Beatty. The latter-named lady was born September 14, 1829, in this county. Soon after her marriage she located with her husband on the old homestead, which they operated until 1856. In February of that year, they settled upon their present farm, which comprises two hundred acres of valuable land, which the persistent industry and good man- agement of our subject have placed under excellent cultivation.


To Mr. and Mrs. Beatty have been born one child. Talcott, who married Frostie Evans and re- sides in Greenfield; they are the parents of two children. Our subject and his estimable wife are members in good standing of the Methodist Epis- copal Church. with which denomination they have been identified since 1855, and in which body Mr.


Beatty has been Steward, Class-leader and Trus- tee. He is also active in Sunday-school work, and has been Superintendent of the same. In school matters, he has served his district as Direc- tor. His son has been given a fine education, having attended college at Delaware, Ohio, also at Poughkeepsie, N. Y. In politics, Mr. Beatty is a believer in and supporter of the principles ad- vocated by the Republican party.


G ARDNER A. WILDER, M. D. This promi- nent physician and skillful surgeon is en- gaged in the practice of his profession at Circleville, and has probably met with greater suc- cess than any physician in the city. It is a re- markable and peculiar fact that any case which he may read about in medical history, its treatment and success, dwell in his memory in the form of a panorama passing before his eyes, while the lan- guage of the article and the work in which it ap- peared have been entirely forgotten.


A peculiar fact in the history of the Wilder family is that our subject's father, grandfather and great-grandfather are buried in the same graveyard, side by side. The great-grandfather was a farmer, and one of the earliest settlers of Buckland, Franklin County, Mass. He owned several hundred acres of land, upon which he built a frame house, 12x14 feet in dimensions, which is still standing. The grandfather, whose name was Gardner Wilder, occupied the same place and en- gaged in farming until his death, which occurred when he was about sixty-five. He was Captain in the State militia and a prominent citizen of Frank- lin County.


Ilon. Gardner Wilder, father of our subject, was also born in Buckland, where he was reared and gained a good education in the common schools of the village. He and his brother became owners of the old homestead, which they divided. The father of our subject built a commodious house upon his half and cultivated the land, which was beautifully located in the Deerfield Valley. He was a man of influence in the community and rep-


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resented his district in the State Legislature. Ilis interest in educational matters was great, and while a member of the School Committee, he was the first to insist upon the public securing the services of some one to build fires in the schools, and inaugurated the plan by paying the first fee himself. A man of liberality and enterprise, prompt in attendance at the services of the Con- gregational Church, of which he was a member, a stanch advocate of the Union during the late war, and an old-line Whig in early days, he was uni- versally mourned when he died in December, 1888, at the age of eighty-two years.


The mother of our subject was Fidelia, dangh- ter of Joseph Griswold, who was born in Buck- land. Mass. The first representatives of the Wilder and Griswold families came from England in 1638 and settled in the old Bay State. Grandfather Griswold was a carpenter by trade, and was Major in the State militia. Mrs. Fidelia Wilder died when scarcely forty years old, leaving five chil- dren who grew to mature years. Lorenzo is a bridge builder and contractor, and resides in Cald- well County, Tex .; Jane, Mrs. Davis, lives in the vicinity of the old home; Joseph enlisted during the Civil War, in the Fifty-second Massachusetts Infantry, and, contracting lung trouble while in the service, died in New Orleans; Mary, Mrs. Ilawkes, resides in the East.


The subject of this notice was born in Buckland, Mass., March 23, 1837, and was reared to manhood upon the old homestead. Ile was fitted for col- lege in select schools, and remained at home until he was nineteen. In the spring of 1856, he came West to Circleville, where he became clerk in a drug store and read medicine with Griswold & Ballard, the former gentleman being his unele. Ile employed his leisure hours for seven years in reading medicine, and in 1863 entered Berkshire Medical College, where he graduated in the fol- lowing year. Upon completing the course of lec- tures, he returned to Circleville and commenced to practice with Dr. Griswold, with whom he re- mained in partnership some three years. When Dr. Bowers entered the firm, Dr. Griswold retired, and the partnership has since continued for twenty- five years under the firm name of Wilder & Bowers.


Our subject practices in every township of Pick- away County and in adjoining counties, and has had some very intricate cases, in which he has met with success.


In August, 1885, Dr. Wilder was appointed Post- master at Circleville and filled that position four years, during which time he advanced it from a third-class post-office, with sales amounting to $6,700 per year, to a second-class office, with $8,000 worth of sales. He has served at different times as member of the Board of Education, and was its President for six years. In 1862, he was married at Circleville to Miss Martha Wilkes, a lady of in- telligence and amiability, who received her educa- tion in Circleville, and at the Ohio Female Col- lege, at College Hill, Ohio. Her father. Joseph Wilkes, was born m England, and emigrated thence to America when about nineteen years old.


Dr. and Mrs. Wilder are the parents of six chil- dren, namely: Joseph Gardner, who is in the drug business at Circleville; Wayne Griswold, who re- sides at home; William Ballard, who is in partner- ship with his brother as druggist; Fidelia, Arthur Lorenzo and Mary Emily, who are at home. The family residence on Mound Street is a commodious structure, erected by the Doctor, and the center of true hospitality. Politically, Dr. Wilder is a Dem- ocrat, and has served as a delegate to county and State conventions, and as Secretary of the County Central Committee.


ILLIAM M. TWAY, who occupies a high place among the representative farmers and stock-raisers of Range Township, Mad- ison County, is residing upon his beautiful estate located one-half mile from Chenowith on the old Federal Road. Ile was born in Paint Township, Fayette County, August 10, 1848, and is the son of John and Elizabeth (McMillen) Tway.


The father of our subject was born in Madi- son County, while the mother was born in West Virgina, and came with her parents to Ohio when a child. The father started out in life a poor man, and at his death left an estate of six hundred broad


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acres of land, which was the direct result of his in- dustry and good judgment. He was born August 4, 1814, and cast his first Presidential vote in 1836 for William II. Harrison. He was opposed to slavery, and in 1856 voted for John C. Fremont, and during the War of the Rebellion was a firm sup- porter of the Union cause.


The parental family included the following chil- dren: Catherine married James Whiteside and died in Fayette County, leaving seven children; Allen served in the army from 1862 to 1863 and died during the siege of Vicksburg; Morgan de- parted this life in Fayette County in 1881; Mary E. became the wife of Ezekiel Whiteside and at her death left ten children; our subject was the next in order of birth; Margaret married William Durflinger and is the mother of three children; John W. makes his home in Fayette County, is married and has two children; David is a farmer in that county and has a family of two children, as has also James Anstin, who is also an agrienlturist in Fayette County.


William M. Tway was given a fair education in the schools of his day and remained under the parental roof until his marriage, October 17, 1877, at which time Miss Amanda R. Wilson, of Pleasant Township, Madison County, became his wife. She was born in Darby Township, Pickaway County, December 23, 1853, and was the daughter of Will- iam E. and Mary A. (Creath) Wilson, natives re- spectively of Virginia and Madison County, this State, the father being born April 23, 1829, and the mother February 11, 1834. Mr. Wilson was one of the prominent farmers in Madison County, and is a stalwart Republican who is always found at his post during campaigns. Mrs. Tway was the eldest in the family of five children; Milton II., the next in order of birth, died at the age of six- teen years; Mary J. and Ota M. reside at home, the latter having been a school teacher for some time; William F. died when twelve months old.


Mr. Tway was for many years Township Trustee and has represented his party as delegate to county con ventions many times. Ile took an active part in raising men for the army during the war, and in this manner saved his township from the disgrace of be- ing drafted. At the time of his marriage, our sub-


ject had $700 in money and owned several head of stoek, which represented his earnings. He rented land from his father three or four years, and in 1880 moved to his present home, which he inherited from his parents. He has thoroughly drained the estate and added to the dwelling which now takes on the air of a more modern structure. The three children born to Mr. and Mrs. Tway are Edward M., born in 1879; John M. in 1881, and Vonna Lee in 1886. Our subject and his wife are active members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, in which body he is Trustee, and takes a leading part in Sunday-school work. In politics, he cast his first vote in 1872 for U. S. Grant, and since that time has voted the straight Republican ticket.


RANCIS M. CHENOWETH, retired farmer and capitalist, has materially added to the wealth of Madison County by his skill as an agriculturist, by his enterprise in the stock business and by his sagacity as a financier. The home that he has built up in London, pleasantly sit- nated on Elm Street and surrounded by well-kept grounds, is one of the finest in the county.


Mr. Chenoweth is a native of this county, born in 1833, on Deer Creek, in Fairfield Township. Ile is a son of the Ilon. John F. and Margaret (Ferguson) Chenoweth, who were of Kentucky birth. The paternal grandfather of our subject, Elijah Chenoweth, and his wife, who was a Foster, were born in Kentucky, in the earliest days of its settlement, and they, too, became pioneers, crossing the Ohio into this State in 1796 and locating in Franklin County, near Harrisburgh, being among the first to settle in that county. There the grand- father lived, and died at a ripe old age, and left behind him a good name as a Christian gentleman.


The Hon. John F. Chenoweth was one of the foremost men of Madison County in his day, tak- ing the lead in business and in public life. He was one of the extensive land-holders of this part of Ohio, owning over three thousand acres of realty, and he was a large stoek-dealer, often in


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early life driving cattle over the mountains to Pennsylvania markets. He was Justice of the Peace for thirty years or more, and in an early day was a Representative for his district in the State Legis- lature. He was known far and near and was held in high honor. The latter part of his life was spent in London. Of his fifteen children, only seven are now living, namely: Mrs. Rachael Bales, Jeremiah, Mrs. Isabel Warner, Lewis F., Mrs. Mary Warner, . Elijah and our subject.


Ile of whom we write attended the local schools in his boyhood and was reared under wholesome home influences. He remained with his parents until he took upon himself the responsibilities of domestic life by marrying, in 1856, Miss Margaret, daughter of Mathew and Ann (Amos) Rea, who were natives, respectively, of Virginia and Mary- land. They had come to this county with their parents, who were among its original settlers, and they were here married. They settled near Lon- don and Mr. Rea was one of the large farmers and stockmen, and one of the wealthy citizens of the county in his day. He was a Democrat and was prominent in local politics. He gave liberally of his means to support churches and all good causes. His worthy wife was a member of the Methodist Church. They had a family of seven children, of whom only two are living beside Mrs. Chenoweth, Jeremiah and Robert.


When he married, our subject settled on a farm of three hundred aeres in Oak Run Township, to which he afterward added seventeen hundred acres, a part of which lay in Fairfield Township. Ile lived in the former township fifteen years and then spent fourteen years in the latter township, and in the meantime was engaged in the cattle business and in raising hogs with corn that grew on his land. He had several tenants, renting a good deal of his land, and he employed many hands by the month to look after his immense farming and stock interests. Six years ago, he left the farm and, coming to London, selected a few lots on Elm Street and built the handsome residence in which he now lives retired. Ile still superintends his property, and is connected with some of the leading interests in the city. He was one of the organizers of the Central Bank of London, and is one of the


stockholders of that institution, and President of the Building and Loan Association. He has been a member of the Board of Education and has been an incumbent of various publie positions, to which he brought the same business acumen, promptitude and habits of accuracy that have characterized the administration of his own affairs. His political views are in full accord with those promulgated by the Democratic party.


In his wife, our subject has one of earth's choicest blessings. She is a pure, noble-hearted woman, of serene and kindly bearing, and she understands ful well how to guide her household affairs so as to contribute to the well-being of all underneath her roof. Iler husband and sons may well be proud of her. She and our subject are identified with every good work of the Presbyterian Church as among its most earnest members. Two of their eight children are living: Robert F. and Rea. Rob- ert, who lives on and manages his father's farm, was educated at Kenyon College. Ile married Gen- evieve Kennedy and they have one son, Austin K. Rea hves at home with his parents and is a student at the London Iligh School. The following are the six children of Mr. and Mrs. Chenoweth who have passed to the land of the immortals: Emma A., Ada, Annie E., Myrtle, Ella, and an infant un- named.


6 SHOMAS H. BALDWIN, who holds an hon- orable place among the farmers and stock- raisers of Fayette County, was born in Range Township, Madison County, on the farm, where he now lives, June 5, 1852. Ilis farm, which consists of one hundred and fifty-two acres, the greater part of which is under the plow, shows signs of good management and intelligent im- provement.




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