USA > Ohio > Darke County > The history of Darke County, Ohio, containing a history of the county; its cities, towns, etc.; general and local statistics; portraits of early settlers and prominent men; > Part 94
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES :
GEORGE COBLENTZ, farmer ; P. O. El Dorado, Preble Co .; one of the oldest residents of Butler Township now living ; was born in Frederick Co., Md., Nov. 26, 1812 : when he was a young man, his parents came West and settled in Montgomery Co., Ohio, where he remained until his marriage with Miss Eva Foutz, which was solemnized March 16, 1834; she was the daughter ef Frederick Foutz, a native of North Carolina ; she was born in Montgomery Co., Ohio, Dec. 22, 1813; after their marriage. they remained in Montgomery County about two years, then came to Darke County ; his father had entered a piece of land in Sec. 21 for him, and they put up a cabin on it and lived there about one year, but, feel- ing that this was too slow a way to get a start, he bought 55 acres in See. 29, upon which there were about 10 acres cleared, a log cabin, and a young orchard started : they removed to this place in February, 1837, and have since resided here, improv- ing and adding to the original 55 acres, until he had about 600 acres, all of which he has divided out among his children; Mr. and Mrs. Coblentz, now quite ad- vanced in years, have seen the forest, once the home of the roving savage, cleared by the woodman's ax, the swamps, foul with decaying vegetable matter, drained and renovated, and all made beantiful by the advance of civilization and the im- provements and embellishments they helped to make, creating fertile fields and pleasant homes for themselves and the generations to follow ; Mr. Coblentz has been a quiet, industrious citizen ; both he and his devoted wife have been worthy members of the U. B. Church for more than forty years ; they are kind neighbors and useful members of society ; they are the parents of nine children-Catherine, Mary, Ezra, William Henry Harrison, Susanna, Elizabeth, John. Rebecca J. and Eliza E .; Ezra is deceased ; the rest are all married, and are substantial citizens of Darke County ; John is the youngest son, and has the old homestead, and his parents reside with him; he was married to Mary C. Garrison May 26 1870 ; she is a daughter of Simcon Garrison, and was born in Butler Co., Ohio, March 5, 1852 ; they have two children-Charles H. and William R.
GEORGE EMRICK, retired farmer and blacksmith, Sec. 34; P. O. New Castine ; was born in Germantown, Montgomery Co .. Ohio, Nov. 2, 1818 ; he learned the blacksmith's trade while a boy and worked at it for a number of years. He was married to Frances Arnold June 16, 1842 ; they first commenced the duties of domestic life in Montgomery Co., and removed to Darke Co. in 1852, and carried on a shop at Versailles and afterward at Hill Grove, and still later farmed in the vicinity of Hill Grove two or three years, then returned to Montgomery Co. and purchased a farm there upon which they remained until 1863, when he pur - chased and removed to the farm in Sec. 33, Butler Township, Darke Co., where Samuel Emrick now resides ; four years later, he purchased and removed to the farm on Sec. 34, where he now resides ; Mr. Emrick now has 159 acres of well- improved land, with neat, commodious buildings, suggestive of industry and econ- omy, and is a substantial, respected citizen : both he and his wife are members of the German Baptist Church, and useful members of society. They are the parents of fourteen children, eleven of whom are living, viz., Josiah, Silas, Zacha- riah, Barbara A., Matilda, Uriah, Benjamin F .. Samuel, George W., Solomon and Sarah E. The first seven named are married and all residents of Darke Co. but one, who resides just over the line in Indiana.
SAMUEL EMRICK, retired farmer, Sec. 34; P. O. New Castine ; was born in Montgomery Co., Ohio, Jan. 17, 1818, and lived in Preble Co. during his minor- ity ; he is the son of Jacob Emrick. He was married to Elizabeth, daughter of Coonrod Emrick. April 19, 1845 ; after their marriage, they remained in Preble Co. until August, 1867, when he purchased and they removed to the farm in Sec. 33, Butler Township, where they now reside ; the spring following his removal, he was elected Township Treasurer, and has continued to hold that office ever since ; he is now a member of the Board of Directors of the County Infirmary ; his home consists of 180 acres of well-improved land, with good buildings, and, although not an old resident, he is a substantial and respected citizen. Mr. and
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Mrs. Emrick are worthy members of the Lutheran Church, of forty years' standing, and useful members of society. They are the parents of eight children, only two of whom are living, viz .: Matilda, now Mrs. Geo. Bidlow, and Ananias, both residents of Butler Township.
PETER FARST, farmer, Sec. 22; P. O. New Castine ; an old resident of Darke County ; was born in New York Oct. 7, 1818, and came to Ohio when 23 years of age. Was married in Pickaway Co., in 1844, to Matilda Stout ; in the year 1850, they removed to Darke Co. and settled on the farm where they now reside, which consists of 200 acres of well-improved land, with good, substantial build- ings. Mr. Farst is a quiet, substantial, respected citizen ; has raised a family of seven children, viz .: Catharine (now Mrs. Martin Bowman), John, Amos, Susan .(now Mrs. Joseph Elliker, of Neave Township), Lavina (now Mrs. Geo. Schlecty), Geo. W. a resident of Indiana, and Lida.
BENJAMIN FOUTS, farmer ; P. O. and residence El Dorado, Preble Co. A Buckeye by birth, and an early resident of Butler Township; was born in Mont- gomery Co. May 18, 1813 ; he is a son of Jacob Fonts, who was a native of North Carolina, and settled in Montgomery Co., Ohio, in 1803, entering land upon which he lived all the remainder of his days ; his decease occurred in 1864, he being in his 83d year. Benjamin was married Sept. 21, 1834, to Susannah Coblentz, sister to George Coblentz, whose biography appears in this work ; soon after their mar- riage, they came to Darke Co .; settled first in Sec. 14, Butler Township, his father having entered the southwest quarter of that section ; here he remained about seven years ; afterward lived near New Madison, and later, a short time, in Preble Co .; he removed to the farm in Sees. 32 and 33, which he now owns, in 1848. Mr. Fouts is one of the pioneers of Butler Township ; came when Butler was a wilderness, in the days of log-rolling and other social enterprises common to new settlements ; he remembers attending rollings twenty-one days in succession one spring ; Mr. Fouts has contributed a full share toward the development and improvement of the county, morally as well as physically. Both he and his wife are members of the United Brethren Church. They had six children-Enos, now married, has a family of five children, and resides on and farms his father's place ; Wilson B., married, and a resident of German Township ; Ahnira, now Mrs. Philip Coons, of Arcanum ; Julia, deceased, was married, and resided in Twin Township, and left a family of four children ; Jacob K., was a single man of about 24 years «of age at his decease. and Uriah, also deceased. In 1871, Mr. Fouts removed to Dallas, and Mrs. Fouts' decease occurred there, Aug. 15, 1867 ; he then lived with his married sons, part of the time at Dallas, and part of the time at the farm in Butler Township, until his second marriage, which occurred Dec. 7, 1879, the bride being Sarah Marshall ; since his last marriage, he has resided in El Dorado.
JOHN P. FREDRICK, farmer ; P. O. Castine ; is the son of Peter Fred- rick, who came from Germany to America in 1842 ; there were ten in the family when they crossed the ocean, and it required sixty-three days to make the trip ; they landed in New York City in August, and came on West to Montgomery Co., Ohio, coming by water to Columbus, and then by wagon to Dayton, where they arrived after a three-weeks journey ; the same season, they came to Darke County and settled in Harrison Township, near the lake ; the subject of this sketel re- mained on the farm with his parents until he had attained his majority ; then went to Indiana and worked at the carpenter trade. Was married there Jan. 25, 1852, to Rebecca, daughter of Wmn. McFarland, who was an early settler of Butler Town- ship and made the first clearing on the George Coblentz farm ; afterward he removed to Randolph Co .. Ind. ; Rebecca was born in Butler Township, Darke County, March 18, 1833, and was about 3 years old when her parents moved to Indiana ; after their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Fredrick began housekeeping in Ran- dolph County, he working at the carpenter trade there several years ; also dealt in merchandise a short time. In 1861, he enlisted in the 40th O. V. I., and was elected 1st Lieutenant of Co. F ; after about eighteen months' service he resigned and
,
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
returned home, and in 1863 purchased a farm, and has followed farming ever since , in October, 1870. they removed to Darke County, and he purchased a farm in Sec. 4, where they resided until the spring of 1875, when they removed to their pres- ent farm, known as the Aaron De Camp farm, which he had purchased the previ- ous December. Mr. Fredrick is a substantial, respected citizen, a member of the order of F. & A. M., and both he and his amiable wife are respected members of society. They are the parents of five children, two of whom died in infancy, and three are now living-Flora E., now Mrs. C. F. Bell, of Arcanum ; George W. and John E., both at home ; a little orphan niece, Iva Murray, also lives with them.
ROBERT GILFILLAN, farmer and Justice of the Peace, Sec. 25; P. O. Castine; a native of Ireland, and was born on Nov. 12, 1833, and came, when a child, with his parents, to the United States ; they settled in Chester Co., Penn., where Robert grew to manhood ; he learned the tanner trade, and when 17 years of age struck out to see the world and make a start in life for himself ; he first visited Baltimore. then Washington, and while there went to the White House and had the pleasure of shaking hands with President Fillmore ; from there he came West, having to stage it from the mountains to the Ohio River, thence by steamer to Cincinnati ; from there he came to Dayton, and found he had just $5 left ; he then began to look around to find work, which he soon found in a tannery at West Milton, Miami Co .; afterward came to Ithaca, Darke Co., where he remained a little more than a year ; went to Preble Co. in the fall of 1852 and remained until 1859 ; he cast his first vote in Preble Co., when Know-Nothingism was at its height. He was married March 1, 1859, to Margaret C. Miller, daughter of Jacob F. Miller, a native of Tennessee, and an early resident of Preble Co. They removed to Darke Co. in the April following their marriage ; first settled on a tract of land south of Castine. which he had purchased in partnership with Lewis Howell. In 1862, Mr. Gilfillan purchased his partner's interest and became sole owner of the quarter-section ; in 1867. he sold that tract and purchased 160 acres in Sec. 25. a part of which is his present homestead; he was elected Justice of the Peace in 1862, which office he held until 1867; he resigned, and in 1870 was again elected, and has held the office ever since. Mr. Gilfillan's life is an illustration of what can be accomplished by indus- try, integrity and economy. He started from Chester Co., Penn., a lad of 17, with- out means, and is now a substantial and important citizen. He has a family, three daughters and two sons living, and three daughters are deceased, one of whom, an unusually bright and promising girl, of about 10 years of age, was burned to deatlı in 1874, by the accidental explosion of a can of coal oil.
JOSEPH W. HAMIEL, merchant, Castine; a Buckeye by birth, and an old resident of Darke Co .; was born in Montgomery Co., Feb. 15, 1828 ; when he was about 5 years of age, his father removed to Darke Co. and rented a farm north of Greenville ; after about two years' residence, he started on horse- back to look up a location for a permanent residence, but never returned, nor was anything learned of him except that a man answering to his description was drowned while attempting to cross the Wabash River in Indiana ; this sad event made it necessary for the family to return to Montgomery Co., where the subject of this sketch grew up, being bound to an uncle ; the terms made it necessary for his unele to see that he was educated until competent to cipher in "the rule of three." and the contract was scrupulously adhered to in not educating him beyond that point ; in the spring of 1847, he came to Castine ; first worked by the month for Mr. - Minich, and afterward became a partner in the lumber business ; in 1859, he changed from the lumber to a general merchandising business, and has continued to conduct a general merchandise store here ever since. His marriage with Miss Rachel, daughter of John Bettelon, an early settler of Butler Township, occurred April 3, 1852 ; they have resided in Castine all their married life ; they have six children-John R., Joseph W., Jr., William H., Elmore E. E., James F. and Emma Nettie. John R. is now married, and resides in Castine ; Joseph W. is a traveling salesman, with C. W. Darst & Co., wholesale dealers in hats, caps, furs.
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and umbrellas, at Dayton ; the latter four are still members of the family household.
WILLIAM B. HARTER, farmer ; P. O. New Madison ; a descendant of Francis Harter, and a life resident of Darke Co .; is the only child of Silas and Lydia (Michaels) Harter ; Silas was the son of David and brother to Elias Harter, whose biography appears in this work ; his decease occurred Dec. 1, 1861. Lydia Michaels is the daughter of John Michaels, an early settler of Butler Township ; she is now Mrs. James Clarke, of German Township. The subject of this sketch was born in 1846 ; he grew up on the farm upon which he now resides ; at his father's decease, he took charge of the farm ; afterward rented it, and learned the wagon-maker's trade, but returned to the farm in 1867, and has resided here ever since. His father first had 40 acres, and had increased them to 80, before his death, and had a barn partly built; the son finished the barn, remodeled the house, and has also made other improvements, besides paying over $700 pike tax and has lately purchased an additional 40 acres, with buildings. Mr. Harter, though a young man, is already one of the substantial citizens of Butler Town- ship ; is an economical, industrious, useful citizen. He was married to Eliza J. Zimmerman Nov. 29, 1868 ; she is the daughter of Reuben Zimmerman ; her mother was a Brubacker, and is now Mrs. John Jamison, of Greenville. Mrs. Harter is a member of the United Brethren Church, and an intelligent and agree- able woman. They have three children-George A., Elizabeth Iola and Mary Rosetta. ELIAS HARTER, blacksmith ; P. O. New Madison. He is one of the few men who were born here in the early days of Darke Co., that now reside here ; he was born in Butler Township in 1821; is the son of David and Sarah (Boone) Harter. David was one of the married sons of Francis Harter, and was among the first settlers of Butler Township. David was a blacksmith, and Elias partially learned the trade, while at home, and after his marriage finished his apprentice- ship, and has continued to follow this trade most of his time since. Was a leading and active citizen of New Madison for many years, during which he erected several of the best buildings in town, but the crisis following the close of the war occasioned heavy loss, and he, with others, was bankrupted. When the war was raging and the Government called for more help, he, though above 40, enlisted in the one-hundred-day service, and traveled over a considerable portion of Virginia, where his father and grandfather had lived. The past season he has relaid more plows, perhaps, than any other man in Darke Co., and is still a vig- orous, active workman and a respected citizen. He was married in 1844, to Miss Gertrude J., daughter of William Biddle, a native of New Jersey, and an early settler of Butler Township. She was born in New Jersey in 1826, and was 8 years old when her parents came to Darke Co. Mr. and Mrs. Harter are worthy members of the Reformed Church, at New Madison, and useful, respected mem- bers of society ; they have raised a large family-five sons and three daughters, viz., George S., John O., William B., Millroy E., Charles S., Sarah K., Allie J. and Gertrude E. George S. volunteered in 1862, when only 16 years of age, and served three years, enduring many hardships and participating in many battles ; was a prisoner in the infamous " Andersonville," and came home from there in December, 1864, looking more like a corpse than a living being, but recovered, and is now the teacher of the Dayton (Ohio) High School ; Sarah K., now the widow of William Hetzler, deceased, is a teacher in the public school at Green- ville ; John O., formerly a teacher at the high schools at Ashtabula and Hudson, Ohio, is now retired, on account of his health, and resides in Summit Co .; Alice J. is now Mrs. David Wheeler, of Greenville ; Gertrude, now a young lady of unusual intelligence and culture, is also a teacher, and all the above-mentioned are members of the Presbyterian Church, thanks to the holy influences of a pious and intelligent mother. William B. is a medical student, while the two younger are schoolboys.
ELAM HARTER, farmer ; P. O. New Madison ; a life resident of Darke Co., grandson of the pioneer Francis Harter, and son of Solomon Harter, whose
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biography appears in this work ; his youth was spent on a farm in Harrison Town- ship ; when 20 years of age, he began to work at the carpenter's trade, and has followed that business ever since, with the exception of about three years of army service ; he worked in the vicinity of Terre Haute, and resided there in 1857 and 1858, part of the time in Indiana and part of the time over the line in Illinois ; in 1859, he returned to Darke Co., built a house on his father's place near New Madison, which house he removed after the war, on to the little tract he then purchased and has since resided on ; in 1862, he with others enlisted a company and went into the United States service, being mustered into the 110th Regiment O. V. 1. as Co. H, at Piqua, October 3, and in the same month joined the army in West Virginia, and was actively engaged in field service from that time to the surrender of' Lee at Appomattox. We cannot follow them in the long and weary marches, nor mention the almost numberless deeds of endurance and valor in which Mr. Harter always shared, but will mention some of the more noted battles in which he with his regiment took a part-Winchester in 1863, and later the Wilderness, under Grant, Spottsylvania, Cold Harbor, Cedar Creek, and the final siege of Richmond ; during the latter, Capt. Harter was wounded ; he entered the service as Second Sergeant, and, by bravery and persevering endurance, always being with his company, was promoted through the regular order to Captain ; at home he is a Past Grand in the I. O. O. F., and an intelligent, respected citizen. He was married in 1853 to Christina Ray, who is also a life-resident of Darke Co., having been born in Butler Township May 20, 1834, and is an intelligent, sociable lady. They have two children-Junietta, a young lady of unusual intelligence and culture, and a son, Eyevin V.
LYCURGUS HAWES, farmer ; P. O. Castine ; another life resident of Darke Co., is a son of James and Margaret ( Robeson ) Hawes ; James Hawes' parents were pioneers of Kentucky, and were both massacred by the Indians ; James, then a babe, and a sister 2 years old, being hid or overlooked by the blood-thirsty red men, were found by some neighboring settlers and cared for ; James was brought up by the famous Col. Patterson, who brought him to Mont- gomery Co., Ohio, when he was about 9 years of age ; he lived on a farm until about 18, then learned the carding and fulling trade, quite a profitable trade in those days ; having formed the acquaintance of Margaret, daughter of John Robi- son, while the family resided in Montgomery Co., he used to make a trip occasionally to her father's house, then in the wilderness of Butler Township ; Lycurgus remembers hearing his father tell how, on one occasion, he found the father and his six daughters at work chopping on one log, the father taking the hutt cut, Margaret, the oldest, next, and so on to the top ; we leave the reader to imagine how slyly Margaret slipped around into the house when she saw her lover's form coming. After their marriage, they settled in the woods, in the north part of Butler Township, in 1831, their cabin having no floor, window nor door, and their first fire being built on the top of a stump inside the cabin, which had to be burned out to allow a floor to be laid : an older son, John R., now resides on the old home- stead. The subject of this sketch was born Sept. 16, 1832, and grew up on the farm while the wilderness was being cleared, and consequently had but little op- portunity for book education. He was married, June 21, 1860, to Hannah H. Berger, whose parents were from Pennsylvania, and residents of Montgomery Co .; they commenced domestic life on his father's homestead ; in 1864. he leased a farm in Twin Township, where they resided three years ; in 1872, he purchased and removed to the farm where they now reside. During his life, now past the meridian, Butler Township has been transformed from a dismal wilderness, with here and there an opening, to a beautiful and fertile district, in which it is a pleasure to travel or reside. and Mr. Hawes has contributed his share toward the improvement ; in 1878 he built a fine two-story frame house of modern design, which with the fine barn and other improvements he has made, makes an inviting and pleasant home.
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Mr. and Mrs. Hawes are substantial, agreeable people; they have seven children living, four sons and three daughters.
JOHN R. HAWES, farmer ; P. O. Arcanum ; a Buckeye by birth and an old resident of Darke Co .; is a son of James Hawes, who is mentioned among the pioneers of Butler Township; was born in Montgomery Co. in 1827 ; his parents removed to Darke Co. and settled in Butler Township in 1829. John grew up during the early years of Butler Township, and, while he received such education as was common in those days, was much more proficient in disentangling the knots from trees and extracting roots from mother earth than in unraveling the knotty questions of books or extracting the square and cube roots ; he had acquired a knowledge of the carpenter's trade when 21 years of age, and continued to work at that trade for several years. In 1861, his parents being advanced in years, he took charge of the farm, which he has continued, and now owns, having purchased it after the death of his parents, his father dying in 1862, and his mother in 1866. He has continued to reside on the old homestead ever since. His father entered this land and moved on to it in 1831; it was then a complete wilderness, and Mr. Hawes was poor, but he persevered, and had at his death a very good home. The son, John, has further improved it since it came into his possession. The old log house, now used as a hog-pen, still stands, a reminder of the former days. Mr. Hawes also owns 77 acres of land a little east of his home- stead, and adjoining the Twin Township line ; this is also under a good state of cultivation. He was married in 1860 to Catherine Eliker, a daughter of Henry Eliker, of Fairfield Co. They have seven children-Fremont, Lafayette, James H., Ida. Emry, Julia A. and Myrtel.
JOHN HEMP, farmer ; P.O. New Madison ; was born in Frederick Co., Md., Feb. 11, 1816 ; and came to Montgomery Co .. Ohio, with his parents, Henry and Eliza- beth Hemp, in the year 1838. His marriage with Elizabeth Brunner was cele- brated Nov. 28, 1839 ; after his marriage, he rented and farmed in Montgomery County about twelve years ; then removed to a farm he had previously purchased in the northwestern quarter of Sec. 21, in Butler Township, where they lived until 1876 ; he built a fine brick house on the farm, in the sontheast quarter of Sec. 21, where they now reside ; they are the parents of nine children, viz., . Ephraim C., Wesley B., Jane, John, Emma, William H., Ellen, Margaret and Rebecca. Ephraim and Jane are deceased ; the others are all married, except Rebecca, now a young lady of 17. When the rebellion threatened to destroy our country, Eph- raim and Wesley answered to the call of their county, and went forth, risking their lives to defend the honor of our flag. Wesley returned after three years of hard- ship, having successfully passed through many battles, one of which was fatal to his brother. Ephraim fell in that memorable seven days' terrible fighting in the Wilderness, when Grant forced the rebels back on Richmond. how or just when no one can tell ; he was known to enter the bloody strife, but no knowledge of him afterward ; it is supposed he was so burned that he was not recognized, and so buried unknown. Mr. Hemp now has 159 acres in the northeastern quarter of Sec. 21, besides the home farm of 80 acres in the southeastern quarter of the same sec- tion, upon which is a fine brick dwelling, with a neat front yard, ornamented with a stone-base iron-frame fence-the result of his energy, industry and economy. aided by his devoted wife and family.
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