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 65
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was born in Henry county, Ohio, December 31, 1877, died on the 28th of December, 1899. Ira J. was born in York township, Janu- ary 21, 1882, and is associated with his father in the operation of the home farm. On the 28th of January, 1904, he was united in mar- riage to Miss Florence Berkeybile, daughter of George Berkeybile, of York township, and of this marriage has been born one child, Agnes Laura, whose advent in the world occurred on the 17th of February, 1905.
JOHN P. ROOS, one of the sterling pio- neer citizens of Fulton county, and one who was long and prominently, identified with the agricultural interests of Chesterfield township, where he continued to reside un- til his death, was born in Dutchess county, N. Y., on the 5th of December, 1821, and was a son of John B. and Elizabeth (Ben- ner) Roos. His father was likewise a na- tive of Dutchess county and a representa- tive of one of the pioneer families of that part of the old Empire State. He was born in 1791, and was reared and educated in his native county, where he was married and where he continued to reside until 1836, when he came with his family to what is now Fulton county, Ohio. March 20, 1839, he se- cured a tract of government land, in Chesterfield township, the deed to the property being signed by Martin VanBuren, who was then President of the United States. Mr. Roos instituted the work of re- claiming his farm and developed the same into a productive place, continuing resident on the homestead until his death, in 1859. His wife, who was born in Dutchess county, N. Y., in 1791, died in Fulton county, in 1872. They became the parents of eight children, of whom one is yet living. Three of the sons, James W., Richard and Edward, 'served in the Union ranks during the Civil war, and the last named died in Virginia, while still in service, the others eventually receiving honorable discharge. John P. Roos was about sixteen years of age at the time when he came with his parents to Fulton county, his educa- tional training having thus been secured principally in Dutchess county, N. Y. He had his full quota of pioneer labors and experiences, aiding in the reclaiming of the home farm and ever afterward continuing to be concerned in agricultural pursuits. He was a man of strong in- tellectual force and of inflexible integrity, becoming one of the in- fluential citizens of Chesterfield township and attaining definite success in temporal affairs. He served for a time as township trustee, and for a number of years was incumbent of the office of township assessor. He owned a portion of the original land secured from the govern- ment by his father, and the property has never passed out of the possession of the family. In addition to general farming he made a specialty of raising and dealing in live stock for many years. He was
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a Republican in politics and was one of the leading members of the Christian church, being a charter member, his widow likewise having long been prominent as a member of the same, and they were num- bered among the organizers of said church. Mr. Roos was summoned to his reward on the 14th of January, 1896, and the community lost one of its most honored citizens and the county one of its noble pio- neers. January 25, 1849, was solemnized the marriage of John P. Roos and Miss Emily L. Noble. Mr. Roos was born in Genesee county, N. Y., on the 28th of February, 1832, and came to Ohio with her parents in the pioneer days. Mr. and Mrs. Roos became the parents of six children, concerning whom the following brief record is entered: Libbie E., born July 25, 1850, is the wife of J. Rutter Haley; Eunice N., born October 24, 1857, is the wife of James C. Holt; Olive E., born December 10, 1860, remains on the old home- stead with her mother; Nettie, born December 5, 1863, is the wife of Charles H. Stutesman ; Ann E., born October 12, 1869, is the wife of A. F. Patterson; and Lena May, who was born December 2, 1872, died on the 12th of the following January. Mrs. Roos is still residing on the old homestead, endeared to her through the memories and associa- tions of the past, and is being cared for with deepest filial solicitude by her daughter, Olive. The home farm comprises ninety-three acres, and is one of the fine old places of Chesterfield township. It may be said in conclusion that Dwight and Eunice (Watrous) Noble, the par- ents of Mrs. Roos, were born in Vermont and Connecticut, respectively, the former on the 22d of January, 1804, and the latter on the 12th of November, 1806. They passed the closing years of their lives in Lyons, Royalton township, Fulton county.
DAVID SHAFFER, one of the sterling pioneer citizens of Delta, was born in Holmes county, Ohio, January 1, 1840, and is a son of Josiah and Mary (Tomb) Shaffer, the former of whom was born in Pennsylvania and the latter in Ohio, and their marriage was solemnized in Tuscarawas county, Ohio. They came to what is now Fulton county in the autumn of 1844 and located in Delta, the father being the first shoemaker of the town and here continuing to follow the work of his trade for three years, at the expiration of which he located on a farm two miles north of the village, where he resided eight years, devoting his attention to the reclaiming and cultivation of the place, and he also continued to follow the work of his trade, especially dur- ing the winter seasons, going from house to house and doing repair work, and he also manufactured boots and shoes, being a skilled work- man. In 1855 he removed to a farm two miles west of Delta, and there passed the remainder of his life, having been a comparatively young man at the time of his death. His wife died at the age of sixty- two years. They became the parents of four children : John W., who was a farmer and teacher, died in Swan Creek township, in `1900; David is the immediate subject of this sketch; Mary J. is the wife of John Hanley, a farmer of Dover township; and Elizabeth died in infancy. David Shaffer grew up on the pioneer homestead, and his educational advantages were such as were afforded in the primitive
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log school-house of the locality and period. He attended school dur- ing the winter months until he had attained the age of sixteen years, but through well-directed reading and study in an individual way he has gained a broad fund of information and is a man of marked intel- lectual power. At the age of fourteen years he was converted, and he then began a systematic study of the Bible, being well-versed in sacred lore, and he has kept in touch with the topics of the day and has been a reader of the best standard and current literature. As a youth Mr. Shaffer enjoyed the diversion and sports common to the pioneer days. He gained many dollars through the sale of raccoon skins, having been very successful in his hunting trips in this line. After devoting a night to hunting these gamy little animals he would spend the following day in cutting timber or in some other of the heavy manual labor of the pioneer sort. He recalls the fact that in the early days the principal market-town for this section was Maumee, which was then the county-seat of Lucas county, in which the greater portion of Fulton county was then included. . He has seen five men start forth with a wagon-load of walnut timber, drawn by three yoke of oxen, and five days would be consumed in making the journey to Maumee and return, as en route it was frequently necessary to unload the timber, owing to the wagon becoming mired in the swampy places, carry the same forward to solid ground and again reload, this experi- ence being frequently repeated several times on the trip. Very little money was in circulation, and timber and other products were utilized in making exchanges for groceries and other necessities. Ashes constituted a valuable commodity of barter at the time, there having been two asheries in Delta. Pelts and hides of all kinds were also merchantable commodities. When Mr. Shaffer came to Fulton county deer and wild turkey were plentiful, and largely supplied the larders of the pioneers, and bear, wolves and wild hogs were much in evidence. The herds of wild hogs were often as formidable as so many wolves. Mr. Shaffer has passed the major portion of his life in Delta. As a youth he began to work at the shoemaker's trade, under the able direction of his father, and he has worked continuously at his trade during the last thirty years, and previously he followed the same dur- ing the winter months for a number of years. He has assisted in the clearing of much land in the county, and has contributed a due quota to the development and progress of this section. In his youth he was very athletic, possessed of great strength and endurance. He served as marshal of Delta for three years, and his name was held in fear by all malefactors, for he never failed to effectively discharge his duty. In politics Mr. Shaffer has ever been a stanch supporter of the cause of the Democratic party, and from early youth he has been a faithful member of the United Brethren church, of which his wife likewise was a devoted member. July 4, 1859, Mr. Shaffer married Miss Eliza- beth Hostetler, who was born in Holmes county, Ohio, and who was a resident of Logan county at the time of her marriage. Mrs. Shaffer died April 25, 1905, and of the six children born to Mr. and Mrs. Shaffer five are living: George William owns and operates a general grocery store in Delta; Eli Augustus conducts a meat-market in
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Bloomington, Ill .; Samuel Thurber is a barber by vocation and resides in the city of Toledo; Laura Belle is the wife of John Cottney, of South Bend, Ind .; Mary Elizabeth died at the age of twenty-two months; and Minnie Idola, who is the wife of Peter Kenny, is house- keeper for her father.
ALFRED F. SHAFFER, president of the board of State Fair managers and ex-sheriff of Fulton county, was born in Franklin township of that county on June 15, 1847. He is the son of Jacob M. and Susan (Dodd) Shaffer, the for- mer a native of Maryland and the latter the State of Delaware. His grandparents, Martin Shaffer and wife, were natives of Maryland, where their ancestors had set- tled in an early day. Jacob M. Shaffer, a successful farmer, was born in Baltimore county, State of Maryland, June 15, 1824, came to Richland county, Ohio, in 1827, and from Richland county he removed in an early day to Fulton county and settled on a farm ten miles northwest of Wauseon, taking up the land in a state of nature and converting it into a fertile and profitable farm. His wife, Susan (Dodd) Shaffer, was born in the State of Delaware and when fourteen years old came to Delaware county, Ohio, with her parents, Thomas and Eunice (Lane) Dodd, pioneer settlers of Dover township, where they took up land in a wild state. In time the father became a successful farmer and business man. Jacob Shaffer and wife had four children : Allen L., a resident of Dover township; William B., also of Dover township; Alfred F., the subject of this sketch, and Orlena J., the wife of Harrison Schnall of the same township. The subject of this sketch was reared on a farm and educated in the schools of his home county. When a young man he bought a farm in Dover township and lived on it until the fall of 1892, when he was elected sheriff of the county. He then bought a farm adjoining the corporate limits of Wauseon on the south. He was three times elected assessor of Dover township, having served as justice of the peace three terms prior to going there. In Franklin township he held the same office. For five years he served on the Wauseon school-board and was president of that body when he re- signed in 1904. In agricultural matters he has always taken great interest. For fifteen years he has been a member of the Fulton County Agricultural society, and for the last six years has been president of that society. . On December 12, 1904, he was elected presi- dent of the Ohio State Fair Managers' association at Springfield. This association is composed of members from every county that is doing business under the rules of the State board of agriculture. Each of these counties is entitled to one delegate to the fair managers' asso- ciation. Mr. Shaffer is actively identified with the Independent Order
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of Odd Fellows. He married Miss Elizabeth J. Borton, daughter of Isaiah and Mary (Hamlin) Borton, the mother born in 1807, and having come to Stark county, O., from Virginia in an early day and the father was born in New Jersey. Isaiah Barton, father of Mrs. Shaffer, was born in 1804 and was one of the pioneers of Stark county. Mr. and Mrs. Shaffer have two interesting daughters : Florence M., the wife of Theodore Barnes of Clinton township, a farmer by occupation; Alwilda Jane, the wife of Charles P. Rey- nolds of Toledo.
AURELIUS R. SHAFFER is a representative of one of the ster- ยท ling pioneer families of Fulton county and is one of the well-known and progressive farmers and dairymen of Pike township, where he has a fine landed-estate and where he is an influential and popular citizen. He was born on the homestead farm, in Pike township, this county, on the 23d of September, 1856, and is a son of Joshua and Mary A. (Cole) Shaffer. Joshua Shaffer was bout in Richland county, Ohio, on the Ist of March, 1829, being a son of John and Elizabeth Shaffer, who took up their residence in Fulton county in April, 1834, having been numbered among the pioneers of Pike town- ship, where they passed the remainder of their lives. Joshua Shaffer became one of the prominent farmers and influential citizens of this township, and was called upon to serve in various positions of public trust and responsibility, having been infirmary director at the time of his death and having been incumbent of this office five years and three months. On the 15th of February, 1855, he was united in mar- riage to Miss Mary A. Cole, who was born in Pike township, this county, on the 24th of December, 1834, a daughter of Thomas and Sarah (Salisbury) Cole, who were numbered among the first settlers in said township. Joshua Shaffer died on the 9th of March, 1897, his wife having passed away on the 21st of June, 1872. Aurelius R. Shaffer, the immediate subject of this sketch, early became inured to the invigorating work of the farm, and in the local schools he secured his early educational discipline, which was supplemented by two terms of study in the graded schools of Wauseon. He has never severed his connection with agricultural pursuits, his success has been such as to amply justify his course, and to him has ever been accorded a full measure of popular confidence and esteem in the township and county which have represented his home throughout life. In 1890 Mr. Shaffer purchased his present valuable farm, which comprises eighty acres and which has been materially improved since the prop- erty came into his possession, the buildings being substantial and modern and all portions of the farm bearing evidence of thrift and prosperity. In politics Mr. Shaffer gives an unqualified allegiance to the Republican party, taking a lively interest in the promotion of its cause, and he has been incumbent of numerous offices of local trust. Upon the death of his honored father he was appointed to fill out the unexpired term as infirmary director, and at the end of the term, in the fall of 1897, he was elected to the office, of which he remained incumbent six years and nine months by successive re-elections. He
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has been justice of the peace for six years, also served as constable, and he has held other local offices of minor importance. He is affili- ated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights of the Maccabees and the Modern Woodmen of the World. On the 22d of November, 1874, Mr. Shaffer was united in marriage to Miss Ida Irene Dunbar, who was born in Fulton county, on the 2d of Novem- ber, 1856, being a daughter of Boyd and Rachel (Fitsimmons) Dun- bar, the farmer of whom was born in Pennsylvania, on the 2d of August, 1808, and the latter of whom was born in the same State, on the Ist of August, 1817. Their marriage was solemnized in Wayne county, whence they came to Fulton county in 1846, locating on a farm in Pike township, where Mr. Dunbar continued to be identified with agricultural pursuits until his death, which occurred on the 29th of March, 1882. His widow now resides in the village of Delta, hav- ing attained the venerable age of eighty-eight years (1905), and being remarkably well preserved in mind and physical powers. Of her twelve children seven are living. Mr. and Mrs. Shaffer have five children : Ada L. is the wife of Robert Howard; Blanche is the wife of Leonard Sindel; Carrie is the wife of William Shoemaker; Daisy remains at the parental home, as does also Reed R., who is attending school.
GEORGE W. SHAFFER, a prominent and successful grocer of Delta, is of German descent, his ancesters having emigrated to America in an early day, locating in Pennsylvania. He is the son of David and Elizabeth (Hostetler) Shaffer, both natives of Ohio" David Shaffer was born January 1, 1840. For more than sixty years he has resided in Fulton county, a great part of that time at Delta, where he is operating a shoe shop. He married Miss Elizabeth Hostetler, who was born in Bellefontaine, O., October 14, 1839. They are the parents of three sons and three daughters: George W .; Eli Augustus, of Toledo, O .; Laura, now Mrs. Cothney, of South Bend, Ind .; Samuel Thurbur, a barber of Toledo; Minnie, the wife of Peter Kenny, of Delta, and Mary, who died in childhood. George W. Shaffer was born on a farm in Fulton county on November 22, 1859. He grew to man- hood in Delta and was educated in its public schools. After leaving school he worked for two years on a farm near his home town. Then he entered the employ of J. T. Gates, a merchant of Delta, serving in. that capacity for six months. For the next three years he was en- gaged in the livery business, after which he spent three years learning the shoemaker's trade under his father. His next work was in the capacity of clerk in the general merchandise establishment of J. M. Longnecker and his successors, whom he served eighteen years. In 1898 he and H. B. Snyder formed a partnership in the grocery busi- ness at the stand now occupied by Mr. Shaffer, and conducted it suc- cessfully for four years, when his partner sold out to R. C. Snyder. The new firm was dissolved in 1903, after a year's existence, R. C. Snyder retiring, and since that time Mr. Shaffer has been alone in business. Under the management of Mr. Shaffer the establishment has become one of the largest and best equipped in Delta, enjoying
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a well-established trade. In addition to groceries he handles queens- ware, tinware, notions, etc., carrying a stock of at least three thousand dollars. Although busily engaged in his regular avocation he has found time to devote to the interests of the public schools, having served as a member of the board of education for six years. In poli- tics he is a Democrat, and he is now serving his second term as treas -. urer of Delta as well as of the board of education. He is a member of Fulton Lodge, No. 248, Free and Accepted Masons; of Delta Lodge, No. 199, Knights of Pythias; of the National Union; and with his wife and daughters of the Rathbone Sisters. In religious matters he and family are very actively identified with the United Brethren church. On April 18, 1882, he was united in marriage to Miss Della Pratt, of Delta, the daughter of W. W. Pratt, the pioneer blacksmith. They are the parents of three 'children, all living: Edna M., a clerk in her father's store; Nellie, the wife of R. S. Snyder, Mr. Shaffer's former partner, and Florence, who is still at home. During the 'twen- ty-five vears that George W. Shaffer has been in business, he has met with unusual success. By dint of close application and sound judg- ment he has been enabled to acquire his well-merited success.
EVERETT T. SHAW, second head-miller of the Wauseon flour- mill, was born in Chatham, Medina county, O., in 1841. He is the son of Marshall and Mary Shaw, both natives of Massachusetts. His grandfather, Ebenezer Shaw, was a pioneer settler of Medina county. Orrin Shaw, the maternal grandfather of the subject of this sketch, was born December 16, 1790, and was the son of Thomas and Rebecca (Heisey) Shaw, who were married November 5, 1810. Joshua Shaw, the father of Thomas Shaw, married Mrs. Naomi Bates, a widow, in . 1764. . The wife of Orrin Shaw was Sarah P. (Pool) Shaw. Mar- shall Shaw was born in Plainfield, Mass., in 1818. He came to Ful- ton county in 1852, where he in connection with Joel Brigham bought two hundred acres of land. Then he bought one hundred and sixty acres in York township and lived on it one year. Having disposed of this land, he returned to Medina county. After a few years he came a second time to Fulton county and embarked in busi- ness in Wauseon. After a brief business career here he removed to .Cameron, Mo., where he bought a farm. He died here in 1890, aged seventy-two years. His wife, Mary Shaw, was born in Plainfield, Mass., in 1820, and died in Cameron, Mo., April 12, 1889, aged sixty- nine years. Everett T. Shaw, the subject of this sketch, was reared on a farm .and educated in the public schools of Medina and Fulton counties. After leaving the army he entered the employ of the pro- prietor of the Wauseon flour-mill, in which he is now serving as sec- ond head-miller. He has been an employee of the mill-owner for thirty-two consecutive years, having filled all positions from the lowest to the responsible one he now holds. The fact that he has been so long employed in the same capacity proves that he is an expert miller, understanding the business in all of its details. After quitting school he enlisted in Company D of the Twenty-ninth Ohio volunteer infan- try and served three years. For a time his regiment was a part of the
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Army of the Potomac and afterwards of that of the Cumberland. While serving in the Army of the Potomac he took part in the battles of Chancellorsville and Gettysburg, and after his transfer to the Army of the Cumberland he was present in the battles of Atlanta and Look- out Mountain. It was his good fortune to be with General Sherman on his march from Atlanta to the sea. He married Miss Catherine. Crane of Medina county. The children .that have blessed this mar- riage are : Erwin E. Shaw, who was born in Litchfield, Medina county, in 1866, and is now a resident of Cameron, Mo. At the age of twenty- two years he graduated from the Cleveland Homeopathic medical col- lege and for the past fifteen years has practiced medicine at Cameron, Mo., where for three terms he has filled the office of city physician. The second child is Edith M., now Mrs. Charles Dudley, whose husband is a salesman traveling for a Toledo firm from Wauseon. The subject of this sketch has one grandchild, named Burnham E. Shaw, the son of Dr. Erwin E. Shaw and his wife, Nettie Burnham Shaw, the latter being the daughter of Charles and Mary Ann (Carpenter) Burnham. Charles Burnham is editor of the Cameron Observer.
ANTHONY WAYNE SHEFFER is a scion of one of the fine old pioneer families of Fulton county, where his entire life has been passed, and his birth occurred on the farm which he now owns and occupies, in Fulton township, the date of his nativity having been September 17, 1848. He is a son of Jacob and Margaret (Keller) Sheffer, both of whom were born in Pennsylvania, of stanch German ancestry, and their marriage was solemnized in Richland county, Ohio, whence they came to Fulton county and located on the farm now oc- cupied by their son, Anthony W., in the spring of 1847. Of the eighty acres purchased by Jacob Sheffer the major portion was still unre- claimed from the wild state, much of the property being covered with a heavy growth of timber. He reclaimed his farm and made it one of the valuable places of this attractive section of the county, and here both he and his wife passed the remainder of their lives, his death occurring in 1888 and hers in 1896, and their respective ages at time of death were seventy-one and eighty-four years. They became the parents of seven children, all of whom are living with the excep- tion of Jacob, Jr., who died at the age of forty-one years, leaving a wife and six' children. He was a soldier in the Civil war and his death resulted from the effects of disabilities incurred during his arduous service in the army. Sarah is the wife of Henry Lake, of Fulton township; William resides on a farm adjoining that of his brother, Anthony W .; Samuel lived in the village of Fayette, this county, until the spring of 1905, and is now a resident of Nebraska; George is a farmer of Fulton township; Jacob was the next in order of birth, and Anthony W. was the next younger; and Margaret is the wife of John Fetterman, a farmer of Lucas county. Anthony W. Sheffer was edu- cated in the common-schools of Fulton township and has been identi- fied with the operation of the homestead farm from his boyhood to the present, having purchased the property in 1896, aside from the one-seventh interest which he inherited. He has since erected a com-
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