USA > Ohio > Fulton County > The County of Fulton: A History of Fulton County, Ohio, from the Earliest Days, with Special Chapters on Various Subjects, Including Each of the Different Townships; Also a Biographical Department. > Part 57
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three months after his second enlistment he suffered a sun-stroke, being confined in the hospital about one month thereafter and then receiving his honorable discharge, as he was considered physically incapacitated for further field service. He is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, is an adherent of the Republican party, and both he and his wife are zealous members of the Methodist Episcopal church. December 22, 1863, Mr. McMannis married Miss Rebecca Bayes, who was born in Holmes county, Ohio, March 1, 1841, and who died in July, 1874, having become the mother of three children: Cora D. is the wife of Charles Wright, a farmer of Pike township; Kittie D. is the wife of Joseph Emerling, of Wauseon; and Alfred T., a bachelor, is employed in a hospital at Gallipolis, this State. In 1875 Mr. McMannis married his present wife, whose maiden name was Hattie Peters and who was born in Mercer county, Pa., in 1847. They have four children-Florence M., Ivah I., Effie and Alta M., all of whom remain members of the home circle.
JACOB R. MURBACH .- Fulton county is favored in the fine class of men who represent its agricultural community, and among the leading farmers and stock-growers of Fulton township is numbered Jacob R. Murbach, proprietor of the attractive Clover Blossom Farm. He was born on the old homestead farm, across the road from his present place, in Lucas county, on the 4th of August, 1859, and is a son of Jacob and Elizabeth (Rudy) Murbach, both of whom were born in Switzerland, whence they came to America shortly after their marriage, settling in Lucas county, Ohio, as pioneers, and having ever since maintained their home in this section. They now reside in Swanton, and the father is retired from active labor, having gained a competency through his able efforts as a farmer. Of the seven children Caspar, individually mentioned in the preceding review, is the eldest, and Jacob R. is the second in order of birth. Lizzie, who has never married, resides with her parents in Swanton; Edward is deceased, being survived by his wife and two children, his death hav- ing occurred on his farm, near Sylvania, Lucas county, in November, 1904, at the age of forty-one years; Amelia became the wife of Frank Schaffer, and her death occurred in 1899; Katie is the wife of Jonas Wicks, a farmer of Fulton township; and Richard is a plumber and electrician, residing in the city of Cincinnati. Jacob R. Murbach not only availed himself of the advantages of the public schools of this locality, but also devoted much attention to study in an individual way, having a distinctive predilection for reading and study and thus making marked advancement in securing a broad fund of information. He has been actively identified with agricultural pursuits from his boyhood to the present day, and he has so ordered his course as to. retain at all times the unqualified confidence and regard of the people of the community which has represented his home from the time of his birth. "Clover Blossom Farm," his homestead, comprises one hun- dred and three acres of most fertile land, is exceptionally well- improved and is under most effective cultivation. In the installing of drain tiles Mr. Murbach has personally drained his farm, of which
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he came into possession in 1894. He follows diversified agriculture. raises good grades of live-stock and is engaged in the cultivation of sugar-beets upon an extensive scale, employing from eight to ten men in caring for the crop in the earlier period of its cultivation. In politics he gives support to the Republican party, and his family holds membership in the Mission church at Swanton. May 1, 1884, Mr. Murbach was united in marriage to Miss Barbara Ziegler, of Lucas county, a daughter of Jacob' and Mary Ziegler, both of whom are now deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Murbach have four children, all of whom still remain at the parental home, namely : Maude, Christina, Herbert and Grace.
GEORGE W. MYERS, who is successfully engaged in farming in Clinton township, his place being located a short distance west of the city of Wauseon, was born in Henry county, this State, on the 27th of August, 1879, and is a son of John and Magdaline (Rich) Myers, con- cerning whom more specific mention is made in the sketch of the career of their elder son, Lewis J., which immediately follows this review. Mr. Myers secured his educational training in the public schools and accompanied his parents on their removal to Fulton county, in 1891, thereafter living one year in the State of Michigan. He then located on the home farm which he now operates, and was here engaged in the dairy business for three years, at the expiration of which he disposed of this enterprise to his brother, Lewis J., and attended school for a time, in the city of Wauseon. Since leaving school he has given his attention to the cultivation of the farm, which is one of the attractive and eligibly located places of Clinton township. March 16, 1898, Mr Myers was united in marriage to Miss Bessie Hale, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Hale. When Mrs. Myers was but two years of age her mother died and, in accordance with . provisions made by the latter, she was taken into the home of her foster parents, Mr. and Mrs. Garman, by whom she was reared and educated. Mr. and Mrs. Myers have two. children, Floyd and Wa- netta. John C. Garman, foster father of Mrs. Myers, is a representa- tive farmer of Clinton township, his farm being located northeast of Wauseon. He was born in Tuscarawas county, Ohio, November 25, 1843, and is a son of John P. and Elizabeth (Koos) Garman, both of whom were born in Germany, whence the former came to America when eighteen years of age, and the latter was twelve years old at the time of her parents' immigration to the United States, the family locating in Tuscarawas county, where the parents passed the remain- der of their lives, attaining advanced age. In 1876 Mr. Garman mar- tied Miss Caroline Gasman, who was born in March, 1846, being a daughter of John Gasman, who was at that time a resident of Findlay, Ohio. Mr. Garman followed the trade of carpenter for thirty years, and then purchased the farm where he now lives, the same comprising one hundred and five acres of good land, and he also owns and oper- ates a saw-mill on his farm. He is a Republican in his political pro- clivities and served two years as township supervisor. He and his wife have reared two children, one of whom is Mrs. Myers, as already
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noted, and the adopted son, Harry Hoff, still remains with them, being twenty-five years of age, and being associated with Mr. Garman in the operation of the home farm.
LEWIS J. MYERS, one of the representative farmers of Clinton township, was born in Ridgeville township, Henry county, Ohio, on the 8th of April, 1869, and is a son of John and Magdaline (Rich) Myers, the former of whom was born in Pennsylvania, in. 1829, and the latter was born in France, in 1843, and accompanied her parents on their immigration to America, in 1855, the family locating in Wayne county, Ohio. In 1843 John Myers removed with his parents from Pennsylvania to. Bucyrus, Crawford county, Ohio, and in 1864 he married Magdaline Rich. They thereafter remained in Bucyrus about two and one-half years, at the expiration of which, in 1866, they removed to Henry county, locating on a farm in Ridgeville township, where they maintained their home until 1891, when they came to Ful- ton county, locating on a farm in Clinton township and there remain- ing until the spring of 1905, when they took up their residence in Wauseon, where they now make their home, the father having retired from active labor, having accumulated a competency through his well- directed endeavors in past years. Lewis J. Myers was reared on the homestead farm, in Henry county, secured his early educational train- ing in the public schools, and he has been continuously identified with agricultural pursuits from his youth to the present time. After his marriage he remained for a time in his native county and then removed to Defiance county, where he was engaged in farming during the ensuing five years, at the expiration of which, on the 22d of August, 1901, he came to Fulton county, where he has since resided, having a well-improved farm of thirteen acres and devoting special attention to the dairy business, which department of his farming enter- prise he has made a very profitable one. He is a progressive and enterprising citizen, and in politics gives a stanch allegiance to the Republican party, and in a fraternal way he is affiliated with the Knights of the Maccabees. On the IIth of October, 1888, Mr. Myers was united in marriage to Miss Matilda Oden, daughter of Thomas and Susan (Jones) Oden, the former of whom was born, October 14, 1835, and the latter on August 3, 1836, and came to Ful- ton county in 1881, Mr. Oden having since been engaged in farming in this county. His wife met her death in a runaway accident, August 13th, 1896. Following is a record of the names and respective dates of birth of the children of Mr. and Mrs. Myers: George A., Novem- ber 6th, 1889; Stanley J., February 12, 1892; Howard J., March 6, 1894; Enod E., November 20th, 1899; Harold R., March 20th, 1902; and Magdaline A., February 6th, 1905. Mr. Myers deserves the credit for his dairy enterprises, as the quality of milk served to his patrons is of the finest type.
WILLIAM NEVITT is one of the venerable citizens and retired farmers of Amboy township, where he has made his home for half a century, and his is the distinction of being a veteran of each the Mexi-
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can war and the Civil war. He was born in East Providence, Bedford county, Pa., March 1, 1826, and is a son of Thomas and Rebecca (Earnesh) Nevitt, natives respectively of Scotland and Germany. They were married in the city of Washington, D. C., and thereafter continued resident of Bedford county, Pa., until death, the father hav- ing been a farmer by vocation. William Nevitt was reared and edu- cated in his native county, and was there residing at the time of the outbreak of the Mexican war. In the spring of 1847 he enlisted as- a private in Company D, Eleventh Pennsylvania volunteer infantry, and proceeded with his command to the scene of action. He took part in the battle of Galveston, Tex., and in the Rio Grande campaign, including the battle of Palo Alto. His command was then ordered to Vera Cruz, but met with shipwreck at Tampico. where he contracted the yellow fever. After an illness of six weeks he rejoined his regi- ment, near the city of Mexico, the day before the attack on the city, in which action he took part. At the time when peace was declared he was with his regiment at Taluca, Mexico, and he received his hon- orable discharge in 1849, in the city of New York. Thereafter he remained principally in Pennsylvania until 1854, when he came to Fulton county, Ohio, and settled in Amboy township where he pur- chased eighty acres of wild land which he cleared and improved, de- veloping one of the valuable farms of the county. On this old home- stead he continued to reside until 1901, when he disposed of the prop- erty, but he still continues to make his home in the township, where he is held in high regard by all who know him. In November, 1861, Mr. Nevitt's martial spirit led him to tender his services in defense of the Union. He enlisted as a private in Company A, Sixty-seventh Ohio volunteer infantry, taking part in the battle of Winchester and in the engagements at Fort Wagner and Fort Sumter, but being principally on detached duty. In the spring of 1865 he re-enlisted, as a veteran, receiving his final discharge in December of that year. Mr. Nevitt, though one of the few survivors of the Mexican war, is still hale and hearty, and finds his evening of life grateful and pleasant. He is identified with the Grand Army of the Republic, and is a stanch Re- publican in politics, having been identified with the party from the time of its organization. He is one of the oldest citizens of Amboy township, and is well known to its people. In 1856 Mr. Nevitt wedded Miss Mary Welch, a daughter of Nathaniel and Drucilla (Chase) Welch, of Fulton county, and their son, George, now a resi- dent of the West, was born in 1861.
JAMES H. NOBBS, a prominent and highly esteemed farmer of Fulton township, is a representative of one of the early pioneer fami- lies of Fulton county, with whose annals the name has been identified for seventy years. He was born in the log cabin homestead, one and one-half miles west of his present farm, on the 2d of June, 1836, and is a son of John and Jane (Mason) Nobbs, both of whom were born and bred in England, where their marriage was solemnized. Soon afterward they came to America, and during the first two years they resided in the State of New York. . In 1836 they came to Ohio and
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settled on the farm on which James H., subject of this review was born. This farm was located on the Ohio side of the Michigan line, in the "disputed strip," which was then in Lucas county, Ohio, now being in Fulton township Fulton county. The parents passed the remainder of their lives here and were held in high regard by all who knew them, having lived lives of signal honor and usefulness. The father was killed by a runaway team, having been seventy-four years of age at the time, and his wife was seventy-nine years of age at the time of her death, which resulted from an attack of typhoid fever. Of the nine children all are living except three: Thomas is a resident of Wood county; Sarah is the wife of Samuel Saeger, a retired farmer, residing in Delta, Fulton county ; William died in infancy ; James H. was the next in order of birth; John resides in the village of Ai, this county; Robert was a member of the Thirty-eighth Ohio volunteer infantry, in the Civil war, and died in the general hospital in Missis- sippi, from disease; Anna is the wife of John D. Halsey, of Bowling Green, Wood county; Jane, who is deceased, was the wife.of Edward Vaughan; and Daniel M. resides on a farm adjoining the old Nobbs homestead. James H. Nobb's was reared on the pioneer homestead and had such educational advantages as were afforded in the common schools of the locality and period. He early became familiar with the details of the agricultural industry, and through his essentially life- long identification with the same he has found ample scope for intelli- gent and successful effort. He was engaged in the mercantile busi- ness for a short time, soon resuming his allegiance to farming. His present farm, which he purchased in 1865, comprises one hundred and ten acres, well-improved and under excellent cultivation, and de- voted to diversified farming and stock-growing. In politics Mr. Nobbs has been identified with the Republican party from the time of its organization, and he has been influential in public affairs of a local nature. He has held the offices of township assessor and supervisor and has also served as school director, his fidelity and able efforts hav- ing justified the course of his fellow-citizens in electing him to these positions of trust. During the Civil war he was a member of an in- dependent military company and, by reason of ill-health, supplied a man to go to the front in his place. July 4, 1861, Mr. Nobbs was united in marriage to Miss Anna Fetterman, who was born in Pennsyl- vania, as were also her parents, George and Maria (Bacon) Fetterman. The mother died in the old Keystone State and Mr. Fetterman later married her sister, the family coming to Fulton county when Mrs. Nobbs was a child of two years. The father and his second wife passed the remainder of their lives in this county .. Mr. and Mrs. Nobbs be- came the parents of eleven children, of whom nine are living, the names and respective dates of birth being as follows : Hattie G., born April 21, 1862; Etta Estelle, November 2, 1863; Cora May, October 7, 1865; Robert Ozza, January 15, 1868; Anna Belle, May 29, 1870; Jen- nie Luella, July 30, 1873; the next died in infancy, unnamed; Ethel, October 1, 1878; Myrtle Fannie, June 9, 1880; George Lloyd, August 30, 1882; Nellie, August 8, 1885; and Alta Leona, May 18, 1888, de- ceased. All the children are married and established in homes of their
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own with the exception of George L. and Nellie, who still remain at the parental home.
CORWIN F. MILLS properly finds representation in this publication by reason of his standing as a citizen and as one of the prosperous far- mers and stock-raisers of Fulton township. Mr. . Mills has passed essentially his entire life in this section of the old Buckeye State, having been born on a farm in Lucas county, not far distant from Swanton, Fulton county, on the 22d of August, 1860, and being a son of Arthur and Jane A. (Hogle) Mills, whose marriage was solemnized at Swanton this county, and who located finally in Swan Creek township, where they continued to reside during the greater portion of their lives there- after, the father following agricultural pursuits and being one of the well-known and highly-esteemed citizens of this section. He died Feb- ruary 20, 1884, at the age of fifty-eight years and his wife was of the same age at the time of her death, which occurred on the 12th of Janu- ary, 1894, Corwin F. having been their only child. Arthur Mills had one daughter by a previous marriage, Louisa, who is now the wife of Clarence C. Quiggle, a merchant in Delta, this. county. Corwin F. . Mills passed his boyhood days on the farm, and he was afforded the advantages of the excellent public schools of Fulton county. At the age of nineteen years he entered the employ of the Deering .Harvesting Machine Company, of Chicago, with which concern he remained six years, operating a turning-lathe in the wood-working department of the great manufactory. He was industrious and provident during these years, and the money which he saved served as the means by which he came into possession of his present fine farm property, and his position is one of definite independence and prosperity. Within the six years he saved from his earnings a sufficient sum of money to pay for forty acres of land in Swan Creek township, this county. He located on the place in 1893, and there continued to reside until March 20, 1899, when he sold the property and purchased his present farm of eighty acres, which is eligibly located two miles northwest of Swanton. The initiative and progressive tendencies of Mr. Mills have led him to engage in a line of enterprise aside from his farming operations, and from each he has reaped good returns, through energy and good management. "Since-leaving the employ of the Deering company he has given much attention to contracting for the erection of bridges, having built bridges in every township in Fulton county, besides many in Lucas and Henry counties. His home farm is improved with buildings of the best modern type, his fine barn having been erected in the summer of 1905. It is thirty-four by sixty-six feet in dimensions in the main, with an L thirty-four by forty-eight feet, the self-supporting roof reaching a height of thirty-six and one-half feet, and the cost of the structure was fifteen hundred dollars. In addition to his general agricultural operations Mr. Mills gives attention to the raising of Short-horn cattle, Poland-China swine and other live stock of good grades. In politics he is a Republican, and in a fraternal way he is identified with Swanton Lodge, No. 528, Independent Order of Odd
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Fellows, and Swanton Lodge, No. 588, Knights of Pythias, and both he and his wife are identified with the Rathbone Sisters, auxil- iary of the latter order, and also with Berry Grange, No. IIII. Mrs. Mills is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church at Swanton, and both she and her husband are popular in the best social life of the community. On the 23d of November, 1893, Mr. Mills was united in marriage to Miss Addie M. Purdy, who was born in Huron county, but who was reared and educated in Fulton township, where her parents, Dwight and Fannie J. Purdy, located when she was a child, her father being now deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Mills have four children-Robert, Fannie, Harold and Arthur.
AUGUSTUS NOBLE is accorded due recognition in this compilation by reason of his position as a representative citizen and prominent farmer of Royalton town- ship, his well-improved homestead being located immediately to the west of the thriving village of Lyons. He was born in . Warsaw, Wyoming county, N. Y., July 12, 1841, being a son of Dwight and Eunice (Watrous) Noble, natives respec- tively of the States of Connecticut and New York, from which latter they came to Ohio, settling in Royalton township, Fulton county, on the 3d of October, 1844, on the tarm now occupied by the subject of this review. The original homestead comprised one hundred and sixty acres, and the father reclaimed the greater portion of the land from the virgin wilds, developing one of the excellent farms of this section in the pioneer erar and both he and his wife died on the old place, of sixty acres of which he had previously disposed. They became the parents of five children, namely: Electa, wife of Warren Morey, Emily, wife of Philip Roos; Eliza, deceased wife of George Carrel; Catherine, deceased; and Augustus, subject of this sketch. Augustus, the only son, early began to contribute Mfis quota to the work of the old homestead, which has been his place of abode from the time he was three years of age, and he was given such educational advantages as were afforded in the common schools of the locality. His farm is. improved with excellent buildings and is under a fine state of cultivation, being one of the attractive rural farms of this section of the county, comprising one. hundred acres, and he gives his attention to diversified agriculture and stock-growing, his enterprise and good management making his success of cumulative character. May 22, 1864; when twenty-three years of age, Mr. Noble went forth to do yeoman service in the cause of the Union, enlisting as a private in Company D, One Hundred and Thirtieth Ohio volunteer infantry, with which he took part in numerous skirmishes and in the battle of Deep Bottom, Va., and he was honorably discharged, at Toledo, Ohio.
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September 22, 1864, at the expiration of his term of enlistment. In politics he is numbered in the ranks of the stanch Democrats of this county, and he has served in various offices of local trust, having been trustee of Royalton township several terms, assessor one term and a member of the village council of Lyons one term. He is a member of Baxter Post, No. 238, G. A. R., and Royalton Union Lodge, No. 434, F. & A. M. Mr. Noble has been twice married, his first wife, Delia, having been a daughter of Edward and Betsy (Beebe) Patter- son, of Royalton township. Two sons were born to this union, Al- bert and Edwin: Mr. Noble chose for his second wife Miss Almira Westfall, daughter of George and Lucy (Burnett) Westfall, of Gor- ham township, and they have four children-Opha, Frederick, Electa and Bernice. Opha is the wife of Floyd Barden, of Royalton town- ship.
JOHN ODELL, M. D .- At the venerable age of four-score years, and after an average lifetime devoted to the arduous and self-abne- gating duties of one of the most exacting of professions, Dr. Odell is now. living practically retired in a pleasant home in the attractive village of Delta, and his extended circle of friends in the county gives evidence of the popular appreciation of his character and his labors. Dr. Odell is a native of the Buckeye State, having been born in Windham township, Portage county, Ohio, on the 10th of March, 1825, and being a son of Roswell and Mary (Pedicord) Odell, the former of whom was born in Vermont and the latter in South Caro- lina, and both families were founded in America in the Colonial era. The father died in Lorain county; Ohio, aged fifty-five, and his wife attained the very venerable age of ninety-three years, passing her latter days in Barry county, Mich. They became the parents of four sons and three daughters Elizabeth, Nathan, John, William, Roswell, Mary Ann, and Caroline. Aside from Dr. Odell, subject of this sketch, only one is living, Nathan, who maintains his home near Hastings, Barry county, Mich. When Dr. Odell was about fourteen years of age his parents removed from Portage to Lorain county, and in the latter he was reared to manhood, being able to gain more than the average youth from the somewhat meager advantages af- forded in the common schools of the locality and period. A receptive mind and a rare power of assimilation aided him even in his rudi- mentary study. From the age of twenty-one years to the age of twen- ty-three he farmed in Lorain county. In 1848, in pursuance of his ambition to enter the medical profession, he entered the Cleveland Botanical Medical College, where he secured his technical training, having previously studied in a private way, under the effective pre- ceptorship of Dr. Marshall Chamberlain, his brother-in-law, and he had practiced for two years in Lorain county. In 1850 he located in Delta, Fulton county, the place being at the time a small hamlet in a section which was to a large extent yet unreclaimed from the forest wilds, and his was the lot of the average pioneer physician, in that he was compelled to make his way over almost impassable roads, in summer's rains and winter's snows, pursuing his humane mission with
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