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BIOGRAPHIES
 Source:
A Portrait and Biographical Record of Allen & Van Wert
Counties, Ohio
Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co.
1896
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HON. C. N. LAMISON
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen & Van
Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co., 1896 -
Page 355 |
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GEORGE F. LANG
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen & Van
Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co., 1896 -
Page 356 |
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WlLLIAM
U. LATHROP, general merchant of Westminister, Auglaize
township, Allen county, Ohio, is a native of Auglaize county,
and was born in old Fort Amanda, Auglaize county, May 29,
1865, of English descent, his paternal progenitor having come
from England to America in the colonial days.
George Denison Lathrop, father of our subject,
was born in the city of New York August 2, 1821, and when five
years of age his parents moved to Albany; during the next
three or four years much of his time was spent with his
grandfather on a farm near Cazenovia, N. Y. About 1830 his
father moved to Sandusky, Ohio, where at the age of fourteen,
he entered the warehouse of Townsand & Co., where he remained
some years, later going to Tiffin with Meryman & Co.;
later we find him in Bucyrus for a time, then at
Bellefontaine, in
company with a man by the name of Follet, in the grain
and merchandise business. There, October 23, 1845, he married
Miss Columbia A. Hover. In the spring of 1848, through
the speculations of his partner, he was forced to close out
his business; from this place he moved to Lima, where he
remained until the spring of 1849, where, in company with a
number of others, under the lead of Mr. Carland, of
Findlay, he started overland for the gold fields of
California, where he remained five years, following the
fortunes of a miner. Becoming discouraged by continued
reverses of fortune he returned to Ohio by way of Panama. The
next two years were spent in the employ of Haney & Debean,
wholesale hardware men of Milwaukee, Wis., as bookkeeper; in
1856 he went with a company of four statesmen, under the
command of ex-Senator E. G. Ross, to Kansas, settling
on a claim twelve miles southwest of Topeka, in Shawnee
county— remained there until the spring of 1863, when, with
his little family, he made the return trip to Ohio, with an ox
team, and settled on a farm ten miles southwest of Lima, where
he lived until his death, enjoying the confidence and esteem
of all who knew him. He was a justice of the peace almost
continuously for twenty-one years. In the spring of 1887 his
health gave way, and after an illness of several weeks he died
on the first day of June, aged sixty-six years. His children
were: Calla, born at Sandusky, Ohio, March 28, 1849;
Harry born at Milwaukee, Wis., March 6, 1856; Charles
S., born at Auburn, Kans., May 19, 1858; Grace,
born at Auburn, Kans., October 20,1860; Grant, born at
Auburn, Kans., January 25, 1863; William Ulysses, born
at Fort Amanda, Ohio, May 29, 1865; and Clarence, born
at Fort Amanda, Ohio, December 31, 1872.
Rodney Lathrop, father of George D. Lathrop,
was born in Susquehanna county, Pa., April 15, 1794, learned
the trade of a carpenter and followed building in New York
city, Albany and Buffalo; in Sandusky, Ohio, he was the
architect and builder of some of the .finest houses in the
city; was foreman in the Mad River car shops, in 1849, and
during the cholera epidemic of that season, when his shop was
turned into a coffin factory, his whole time was spent in
nursing and burying his friends, and at the close of the
epidemic was himself stricken down, August 17, 1849.
His wife, Columbia A. Hover, was born in
Trumbull county, Ohio. Her father, Ezekiel Hover,
was born in Essex county, N. J., September 13, 1771, and was a
civil engineer; he emigrated to Washington county, Pa., then
to Trumbull county, Ohio, in 1802, and later, in 1833, came to
Allen county, settling on the farm now occupied by the
Orphans' home; nine years later we find him keeping a tavern
in Bellefontaine. In the spring of 1846 he returned to Lima,
where he died in 1852 at the .age of eighty-four years.
William U. Lathrop, whose name opens this biography,
was reared on the farm until .seventeen years of age, and
received his earlier education in the district schools. He had
attended the Ada normal for a time and then went to Wisconsin
and worked for different railroad companies for four years—two
years of this time was railroad agent at Pound, Wis. He was
called home by the death of his father, and after that was
operator for the Buckeye (Pipe) company for six years, and
then, in 1893, engaged in his present business, in which he
has met with the most encouraging success. He married, in
April, 1891, Miss Ella M. Butcher, a native of Auglaize
county, Ohio, the union being now made the more happy by the
birth of two children—Emma and Elizabeth. Both
parents are members of the Methodist Protestant church, in
which Mr. Lathrop is a chorister and
superintendent of the Sunday school. In politics he is a
republican, and fraternally a member of lodge No. 165, Knights
of Pythias. Socially Mr. Lathrop and family are
held in the highest esteem, and he and his young family are to
be envied in their happy society and domestic relations.
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen &
Van Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co.,
1896 - Page 361 |
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H. J. Lawlor |
HON. HENRY J. LAWLOR
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen & Van
Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co., 1896 -
Page 359 |
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JOHN
L. B. LEATHERMAN, the leading general merchant
of Harrod, Allen county, Ohio, was born in Washington
county, Pa., December 16, 1834, and paternally is of German
descent. His grandfather, John Leatherman, was a
very prominent and influential citizen of Washington county,
especially during the middle and declining years of his life,
and, being a democrat in politics, was intrusted by
that party with several offices of honor and trust. Pie was a
devout Christian and died in the faith of the Baptist church.
Michael Leatherman, son of John
and father of John L. B., our subject, was also a
native of Washington county, Pa., and was born January 16,
1799. He was more than ordinarily well educated for the early
days in which he attended school, and, being a youth of
exceptional intelligence, he supplemented his school studies
by a diligent application to the study of the best didactic
literature of his time, and in his earlier manhood became a
successful school teacher, achieving a reputation that
extended far beyound the limits of his county. He
married Hannah Ohler, a native of Pennsylvania,
born September 19, 1801, and shortly afterward, in 1834, came
to Ohio and entered 400 acres of land in Jackson township,
Allen county, to reach which he was compelled to cut a road
through a dense forest. Having had much experience in his
native state as a politician, and been honored with many
public offices, he immediately assumed a leading position in
the guiding of the politics of Allen county, and his education
fully qualifying him for any office within the gift of the
people, he soon received substantial evidence that his
abilities were recognized by the voters controlling the public
offices of his new home. He was first elected as township
trustee, next as justice of the peace, and later, for twelve
consecutive years, as joint surveyor of the counties of Allen
and Auglaize; next he was honored by an election to the state
legislature as representative from Allen county, and finally
to the office of probate judge, filling the latter office for
six consecutive years. As a patriot, Mr. Leatherman
enlisted in the Fourth Ohio volunteer cavalry and saw some
very hard service in Kentucky, Tennessee and Alabama, but, on
account of his advancing age and weakened constitution, was
honorably discharged before the date of his term of
enlistment had been reached. Returning to his farm, which,
notwithstanding his multifarious public duties, he had cleared
up from the wilderness and transformed into one of the finest
in the county, he passed the remainder of his years in peace,
dying July 22, 1866, one of the most honored men of the county
and state. The respected family born to Michael
Leatherman and wife were named as follows: Henry,
deceased; Hiram; Michael, deceased; Sarah J.,
wife of William Custer; Adam; John L. B.,
our subject; Elizabeth, deceased; Thomas P.,
whose sketch appears elsewhere; Catherine A., widow of
Samuel A. Bodell, and Hannah, wife of James
Moss. The mother of these children was. called
from earth April 1, 1886, deeply mourned by her sorrowing
family and a large circle of devoted friends.
John L. B. Leatherman, the subject proper of
this sketch, was reared on his father's farm and educated in
the pioneer log school house of Jackson township, but was
sufficiently well educated to himself become a school
teacher—a vocation he followed during the winter months of
nineteen consecutive years. In May, 1864, he enlisted in
company F, One Hundred and Eighty-first Ohio volunteer
infantry, was assigned to the eastern army,. and saw active
service until October, 1864, when he was honorably discharged
on account of the expiration of his term of enlistment. Almost
from the incipiency of the village of Harrod, Mr.
Leatherman has been identified with its interests, doing
much to promote its material progress. His general
merchandising establishment was the first to be opened in the
village, and has met with continuous prosperity ever since—a
period of nine years. He resides in a modern village dwelling,
rents out three others, and is, besides, the owner of 116
desirable residence lots in the heart of the village, and
these are always in the market at reasonable prices and on
easy terms; in addition to this valuable property he owns a
farm of 120 acres in the township, improved with a building
that cost $3,000.
The marriage of Mr. Leatherman took place in
August, 1855, with Miss Adelia H. Weatherill,
who was born in Richland countyr Ohio, November 8, 1837, a
daughter of John R. and Elizabeth Weatherill.
This union has been blessed with the following children, born
in the order named: William T.; Ida, wife of Frank
Graham; Frank; French; Rosa, wife of Arch Malcom,
and Minnie Maud, wife of Cliff Biteman.
The parents are adherents of the Christian church, of which
Mr. Leatherman has been a deacon for twenty-two
years; he has also filled the office of clerk of the
Northwestern Ohio Christian conference, a position he found
necessary to resign last year on account of his numerous
business engagements, In politics Mr. Leatherman
is a stanch republican, and for nine years has held a notary
public's office, but he has never sought office for the sake
of emolument.
French E. Leatherman, son of J. L. B.
Leatherman, is now associated with his father in the
mercantile business at Harrod, the firm name being J. L. B.
Leatherman & Son, and carrying a stock of goods suitable
to every conceivable want of the community in which they live.
He, too, is a republican in politics. He married Miss
Jennie L. Harrod, daughter of Perry and
Charlotte (Curtis) Harrod, and this marriage has been
blessed with three children, viz: Don V., Neva
(deceased), and Murriel.
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen &
Van Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co.,
1896 - Page 362 |
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T. P. LEATHERMAN
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen &
Van Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co.,
1896 - Page 468 |
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FRANK M. LEECH
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen &
Van Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co.,
1896 - Page 468 |
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W. H.
LEETE, attorney-at-law of Lima, Ohio, is an
illustration of what close attention and hard study will
accomplish when united with special adaptability to a
profession. Mr. Leete was born in Burlington, Lawrence
county, Ohio, .October 12, 1850, and is a son of Ralph and
Harriet (Hand) Leete, the Leete family coming originally
from Connecticut.
The father of Mr. William H. Leete was for many
years a prominent man in the affairs of the state of Ohio. He
is a lawyer of pronounced success and was a legislator of more
than ordinary ability. Mr. Leete married at
Gallipolis, Ohio, and located at Burlington, and there was
engaged in the practice of the law until the next year, when
he removed to Ironton, Lawrence county, from which county he
was elected to the lower house of the general assembly of the
state, and held the office of representative during the years
1858 and 1859. He also held many honorable and honorary
positions in the state. He and his wife were the parents of
five children, viz: William H., our immediate subject;
Edith, wife of John Hamilton, an
attorney; Frederick, a civil engineer; Elizabeth,
all of Ironton, and Ralph H., M. D. of Pikeville, Ky.
Mr. Leete is politically a democrat, and in many ways
he is one of the most prominent and successful men of the
state of Ohio. He is withal a public speaker and writer of
great force and ability, and his services are frequently in
demand. He has always been alive to the interests of the
commonwealth and is well known all over the state.
William H. Leete, eldest child of the above mentioned
gentleman, was reared to man's estate in Ironton, where he
received his preliminary education. Then entering
Sewickleyville ecademy, located near Pittsburg, Pa., he
remained there in study one year, when he entered a military
school in Cleveland, Ohio. After leaving this institution, he
remained at home until 1869, when he became a student at the
university of Michigan, and there pursued the study of law.
Returning again to his home, he read law with his father and
Judge W. W. Johnson (the latter of whom has been chief
justice of Ohio), until his admission to the bar, in January,
1872, and he then began the practice of the law in Abilene,
Kans. Remaining there one summer, he made a tour to the
southwest, along the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe railroad,
looking for a promising location, but finally established
himself at Portsmouth, Ohio, and from this center worked in
the interest of the Ohio State university and private
individuals in West Virginia, looking up and locating lands.
Being thus engaged until 1877, he then retired from this line
of activity, and in 1878 located in Waverly, Pike county,
Ohio, where he opened an office and was there engaged in the
practice of the law until 1882. In the meantime, during the
years 1880 and 1881, he served the county as prosecuting
attorney, having been elected on the democratic ticket. In
1882 he removed to Ottawa, Putnam county where he remained
until 1888. In 1887 he was the democratic candidate for
attorney-general of Ohio, having been nominated by the
democratic convention at Cleveland, but, in common with the
rest of the ticket that year, was defeated. In 1888 he removed
to Lima, where he has since resided, engaged in the practice
of the law. For six years he was in partnership with Judge
T. D. Robb, but February 9, 1894, Judge Robb
retired from the firm, and since that time Mr. Leete
has been in practice by himself. Mr. Leete is an all
round lawyer of ability, worthy of confidence, and has been
most successful.
March 20, 1878, Mr. Leete was married to Miss
Mary Renick, a native of Circleville, Ohio, and a
daughter of R. O. Renick, a farmer by occupation, and a
successful and worthy citizen. Three children have been
born to Mr. and Mrs. Leete, viz: Harriet L., Helen
C, and Ralph R. Together with his family,
Mr. Leete lives in a handsome residence on Baxter street,
in the city of Lima, highly respected by all who knew him.
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen &
Van Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co.,
1896 - Page 364 |
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CHRISTIAN
B. LEHMAN, one of the active, industrious and
progressive citizens of Allen county, Shawnee township, is a
son of Christian and Elizabeth (Bookwalter) Lehman.
John Lehman, father of Christian, was a native of
Germany, and came to the United States with his father, who
settled in Franklin county, Pa., near the far famed city of
Chambersburg. Here John Lehman grew to manhood,
married and reared the following family of children: Peter,
who married a Miss Lehman, and afterward removed
to Columbiana county, Ohio, where they lived the rest of their
lives, rearing a family of four children: Joseph, who died in
Allen county; Annie, who died single; Christian, the
father of the subject, who died in Allen county; Elizabeth,
who died single, and Barbara, deceased wife of Peter
Diller, who was the mother of four children.
Christian Lehman, the
father of Christian B. Lehman, was born in Pennsylvania,
January 28, 1806, and was a farmer, all his life. In 1848 he
settled in Richland county, Ohio, and lived there six years,
in 1854 removing to Allen county, and settling within two
miles of Lima. Here he purchased a farm upon which he lived
the remainder of his days. To his marriage there were born the
following children: Jonas, of Illinois; Susan,
wife of Christian Lehman; Christian B.,
of Shawnee township; John, deceased; Elizabeth,
widow of John Forney, of Mercer county; Annie,
widow of Frederick Newcomer, and Sarah,
deceased.
Christian B. Lehman, the subject of this sketch,
was born in Franklin county, Ohio, June 25, 1840. He was
reared on the homestead farm in German township, and received
the rudiments of his education in the common schools. After
completing his education he learned the trade of carpenter and
followed this occupation for some years. In 1861 he enlisted
in company B, Eighty-first Ohio volunteer infantry, and served
three years and eleven months. In 1862 he was made corporal,
and later he was promoted to a sergeancy, serving in that
capacity the rest of the war. He veteranized in 1863. Mr.
Lehman saw a great deal of hard fighting and marching.
He was engaged in the battles of Shiloh and of Corinth; was in
the Atlanta campaign, from Pulaski to Resaca; was at the fall
of Atlanta, and went thence with Sherman to the sea. From
Savannah he went through North and South Carolina, and fought
until the close of the war. He was a good soldier, prompt in
the discharge of all his duties. In October, 1862, he was
wounded in the right shoulder, but after treatment in a field
hospital for a month rejoined his regiment. After the close of
the war he returned to Allen county, and in 1867 settled near
Hume, later, however, renting a farm near Lima. In 1885 he
purchased his present farm, where he owns 154 acres of land,
which he has for the most part cleared and improved.
Politically Mr. Lehman is a democrat, and though not
desiring office he has held the office of township trustee
seven years and has been school director six years. He is
always willing to labor for the success of his party in every
legitimate way, and his influence is widely felt. He is a
member of Mart. Armstrong post, No. 202, G. A. R., and is a
member of the Methodist Episcopal church of Shawnee township,
being a class leader in his church. In 1867 he was married to
Miss Amelia Ridenour, of Perry township, by whom he has had
the following children: Leroy H.; Annie,
Herman, Arthur P., and one that died in infancy. Mr.
Lehman, it will thus be seen, is justly entitled to be
classed among the foremost citizens in all good works, and is
consequently highly esteemed by all with whom he is
acquainted.
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen &
Van Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co.,
1896 - Page 365 |
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JOHN WM. LEHMKUHLE
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen & Van
Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co., 1896 -
Page 369 |
H. L. Leilich |
HENRY
L. LEILICH, one of the well-known citizens and business
men of Delphos, Ohio, and one of the proprietors of the
Delphos brewery, is a native of Hessen, Germany, was born July
6, 1865, and is a son of Jacob and Catherine
(Schwoebel) Leilich. The father was for years a
merchant in the town of Shaafheim, but is now retired from-
active business life. The subject of our sketch took the
regular course of schooling required by the government, and
and then took two courses at a normal school, attending the
latter for seventeen months. In July, 1881, he started for the
United States, arriving at New York August 24, of that year,
and came to Delphos direct, he having an aunt living in this
city. When he stepped aboard the steamer he had just $32 in
money in his pocket, and of that amount he had $11 when he
reached Delphos. His first work here was on a section of the
Clover Leaf railroad, at which he continued but a few days,
not being able to stand the fatigue. He was next picked up in
a drug store, where he had gone to get something to heal his
sore hands, caused by work on the section, by H. P.
Eysenbach, and by him put to work in a woolen mill,
running a picker and doing all the chores. He remained in
Mr. Eysenbach's employ for about four months,
during which time he took English lessons in the evenings from
a private tutor and was given daily instructions, when
opportunity presented itself, by Mr. Eysenbach's
father. From the woolen mill he next entered the shoe store of
F. J. Miller, where he clerked and also worked on the
bench. He remained with Mr. Miller for year, and then
went to work in the Clover Leaf railroad shops, taking a job
as striker in the blacksmith shop. He continued here three
years, learning the trade of blacksmithing. He then fell sick,
and while laying off, being unable to work in the railroad
shops, he returned to the store of Mr. Miller,
where he again clerked and worked on the bench for about two
and a half years. He next accepted a position as a salesman in
a Lima clothing house, of Delphos, where he remained five
years. In 1893 he purchased a half-interest in the Delphos
brewery, since which time he has given all his attention to
the business, he having all the office and outside business
under his charge. Notwithstanding the fact that Mr.
Leilich comes from a good family and was given a fine
education, when he came to America he began at the very
bottom, and alone and unaided he has climbed to his present
position in business circles. His efforts have been successful
to a high degree, and aside from his interests in the brewery,
he owns valuable improved real estate in Delphos, all of which
he has accumulated in less than fifteen years. He is a
stockholder in the Delphos Building & Loan association, and is
also interested in the development of oil and gas in the
neighborhood of Delphos.
Mr. Leilich was married
October 29, 1884, to Miss Louisa Werner, daughter of Jacob
Werner, a well-known contractor of Delphos. To their union one
boy—Clarence— was born July 3, 1888. Mr. and Mrs.
Leilich are members of the Lutheran church, and are highly
respected in the polite society in which they move. Mr.
Leilich is a business man possessing integrity of
character, and fully appreciates the value of prompt payment
of debts. Money in circulation is what makes business active
and creates prosperity. Integrity of character is as much of
an inheritance as any other peculiarity, and it is altogether
probable that Mr. Leilich is indebted to a considerable
extent for this quality, and also in a larger sense to his
nationality, for the German people, as a rule, are as noted
for sterling honesty as for strength of body, and are
everywhere welcomed by Americans, who believe in keeping up
the high tone of American citizenship.
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen &
Van Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co.,
1896 - Page 366 |
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JOHN
WM. LEHMKUHLE, member m of the Delphos city council
from the m Third ward and a well-known citizen, is a
native of the Buckeye state, having been born in Springfield
September 25, 1849. His. parents were Bernard H. and
Catherine W. (Bach) Lehmkuhle, both of whom were
natives of the old country, the father of Hanover and the
mother of Nassau. The father came to America when he was
eighteen years old, and the mother when she was a child. They
were married in Springfield, Ohio, and in 1850 they removed to
Jennings township, Putnam county, where he bought a small farm
near Fort Jennings. The mother died November 6, 1874, at the
age of forty-one years. The father died August 20, 1894, in
his seventy-second year. The father was a member of the
Catholic church and the mother of the Lutheran. To these
parents twelve children were born—only one still living.
John W. Lehmkuhle was reared
on the farm at Fort Jennings at attended the district schools;
at the age of. seventeen years he came to Delphos and began to
learn the carpenter's trade with the late Frank Heitz,
for whom he-worked until the death of the latter, in 1881 and
then he went to work for the Ohio Wheel Works company, where
he has since continued. Mr. Lehmkuhle was
married on November 4, 1880, to Theresa Laudick, who
was born in Allen county, Ohio, November 4, 1859, and is the
daughter of Conrad Laudick, deceased. Mr. Lehmkuhle
is a member of the democratic party. In March, 1895, he was
appointed to fill a vacancy in the Delphos city council, and
in April, of the same year, he was the regular nominee of the
democrats of the Third ward for councilman, and was elected.
He is chairman of the sanitary committee, and a member of the
committees on sewer and ordinance. Mr. Lehmkuhle is a
member of St. John's Roman Catholic church, and holds the
office of church marshal of the congregation. Mrs.
Lehmkuhle died in November, 1881.
John H. Lehmkhule, deceased
brother of John W., was born at Fort Jennings, Putnam county,
Ohio, on February 22, 1854,and died in Delphos September 10,
1884. He was a farmer by occupation. He was married July 27,.
1880, to Mary C. Kaverman, who was born in Van Wert
county, Ohio, and is the daughter of John Mathias Kaverman.
To this marriage one son, John B., was born March 15,
1882.
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen &
Van Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co.,
1896 - Page 369 |
George R. Leist |
GEORGE R. LEIST
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen & Van
Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co., 1896 -
Page 384 |
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JOHN
LENNEY, deceased, once a well known engineer on the C,
H. & D. railroad, and later a farmer of Bath township, Allen
county, Ohio, was the eldest son of John and Mary Lenney,
and was born in Cumberland county, Pa. (near Carlisle), March
11, 1820. John Lenney, the father, also a native of
Cumberland county, Pa., married Mary Russell, a native
of his own state, the union resulting in the birth of five
children, viz: John, Isaac, James W., Rebecca and
Ella. John Lenney was a farmer, followed his
calling and died in his native state, but his widow died in
Forest, Hardin county, Ohio, at the home of her son, Isaac,
who had several years been a resident of that town and county.
John Lenney, the gentleman whose name introduces
this biographical sketch, married Miss Josephine
Miller, daughter of Peter Miller, a native of
France, and this union was blessed by the birth of three
children: John, now living with his mother on the
homestead in Bath township; Christopher M., and
William, also living at home. After relinquishing
his position as engineer, Mr. Lenney purchased a farm
of 120 acres in Bath township, which he greatly improved and
on which he made his home until his death, February 4, 1885, a
member of the Presbyterian church, an Odd Fellow and in
politics a republican. He was ever an industrious man and also
ever upright in his every act; he held the esteem of all his
fellow men, was an affectionate husband and a kind and
indulgent father, and his death was deeply deplored not only
by the family he loved so dearly but by a large circle of
sincere and true friends. His widow still lives on the farm
which his frugality secured, and is highly honored by the
friends of her deceased husband and by a large circle of her
personal friends, Peter Miller, the father Mrs.
Lenney, was a farmer in his native France, where he
married Catherine Ernst, who became the mother
of four children: Maria, wife of Charles Hort,
of Indiana; Magdaline, wife of Charles Roth, of
Mount Eaton, Wayne county, Ohio; Josephine, widow of
the subject of this sketch, and
Christopher, of Lima, Ohio. Mrs. Lenney, since
the death of her husband, lives the faithful mother that she
is, and has held her family well together, deservedly earning
the high esteem in which she is held by all who know her.
Mr. Lenney was one of the best known and oldest engineers
of northwest Ohio, and followed this calling for thirty-two
years. He was for many years on the Mad River road, now the
the Ohio division of the Indiana, Bloomington & Western
railroad, and was in Sandusky city at the time the cholera
made such dreadful ravages there. He helped bury Mr. and
Mrs. Townsend, who then owned the greater part of the land
the city now stands upon. He was also an engineer at one time
upon the P., Ft. W. & C. railroad. At the time of the
war he was employed upon the railroad running in and out of
Nashville, Tenn., which at that time were operated by the
government, in transporting troops and supplies.
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen &
Van Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co.,
1896 - Page 369 |
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HON. JOHN F. LINDEMANN
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen & Van
Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co., 1896 -
Page 370 |
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JOSEPH S. LONG
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen & Van
Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co., 1896 -
Page 372 |
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MOSES H. LONG
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen & Van
Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co., 1896 -
Page 373 |
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THOMAS C. LONG
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen & Van
Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co., 1896 -
Page 374 |
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THE LUGWIG LUDWIG FAMILY
is one of the most substantial and most highly respected of
Allen county, and among its members are many of the most
prosperous farmers of this county. The founder of this
family in America came from Germany, and fought with
Washington in the Revolutionary war. He was the
great-grandfather of Jacob Ludwig, and aged and
highly esteemed farmer of Marion township, Allen county,
Ohio, and is still living. One of the sons of the
above-named Revolutionary soldier, Jacob by name,
married a Miss Reece, who it is believed came
from Germany, and who bore her husband nine children.
The father of these children survived the mother many years,
and at the time of his death was nearly ninety years of age,
dying on the bank of the Susquehanna river, near the towns
of Mifflinsburg and Bloomsburg, Pa.
One of the eight children mentioned above, Jacob,
was the father of Jacob Ludwig, of Marion township,
and was born on the old farm in Pennsylvania. In 1811
or 1812 he married Miss Elizabeth Fink, who lived
near Milton, Pa. She was of Pennsylvania Dutch
extraction, and reared a family of four children that lived,
viz: Sophia, William, Jacob and George W.
The Jacob Ludwig now under consideration was a
soldier in the war of 1812, serving, however, only a few
weeks before peace was declared. About 1818 he removed
to Pickaway county, Ohio, taking with him his family,
consisting of himself, wife, and two children. Upon
the farm there located he lived till his death, which
occurred in1824, and, as he had married about twelve yeas
previously, it is believed he was about thirty-three years
old when he died.
In due course of time his widow married George
Crites, to whom she bore two children that lived to
mature years - Frederica and Ozetta, the
former of whom married John Deal, of Upper Sandusky,
Ohio, and the latter married Josephus Drum of the
same place. Mr. Crites died in Pickaway county,
and his widow followed him to the grave in 1877, dying at
the home of Mrs. Sophia Crites, who had married
Charles Crites, in 1833, in Pickaway county, but who,
with her husband, settled in Allen county in 1839.
Mr. Crites was one of the most prominent pioneers of
this county, and to himself and his wife were born Daniel,
who died when fifty years of age; Jacob, Catherine,
Betsey, Rebecca, who died when twenty-five years old;
Cyrus and Eliza (twins), Emanuel, Mary E.,
Charles, who died in infancy, and George and
Freedo (twins). All married except George,
and all that married reared families except Freedo.
Mrs. Sophia Crites was born in 1813, and was the
eldest child of Jacob and Elizabeth (Fink) Ludwig.
Though now eighty-two years of age, she yet has a most
excellent memory.
Jacob Ludwig, of Delphos, one of the prominent
pioneers of Marion township, and a most highly esteemed
citizen, was a son of Jacob and Elizabeth (Fink) Ludwig,
and was born in Salt Creek township, Pickaway county, Ohio,
Dec. 10, 1818. He was but six years old when his
father died, his mother was left in somewhat straightened
circumstances and when Jacob was about eight yeas old
she found it necessary to put him out to live with Peter
Maney with whom he lived for a few months, and then with
John Pontius, with whom he lived seven years by whom he
was treated with great severity. He then lived with
his brother-in-law, Charles Crites, for two years,
and of whom he learned the blacksmith trade. About two
months before the expiration of his apprenticeship he
removed to Allen county, having served his employers about
fourteen years for his mere living and nothing more.
But little education fell to his lot, and when he atted
school it was in an old log school-house with the roughest
of benches and desks. Mr. Ludwig was married
when about twenty-two years of age, Mar. 2, 1841, in
Pickaway county, to Miss Louisa De Long, daughter of
Andrew and Catherine De Long. At this time he
was still in quite humble circumstances, and was compelled
to borrow the $1 necessary to pay the clergyman that
performed the marriage ceremony, and even that $1 was in
shinplasters, a sort of device then in sue among merchants
to take the place of a better kind of money.
Andrew De Long came as a pioneer from
Pennsylvania to Pickaway county, Ohio, where he became a
very prosperous farmer and died upon his farm when about
sixty-five years old. He and his wife were the parents
of the following children: Rebecca, John, Isaac,
Susan, Catherine, Louisa, Caroline, Sallie Miller and
Andrew. The De Longs were of a sturdy
Pennsylvania-Dutch stock and were a highly respected and
prominent family. Andrew De Long was a great
hunter in his day.
After his marriage, Mr. Ludwig settled in Salt
Creek township, Pickaway county, and there for some time
worked at the blacksmith trade. In May, 1847, he
removed with his family to Allen county, working there for
Mr. Charles Crites at the same trade until the
succeeding fall. In September, 1849, he removed to the
Auglaize river, having purchased 394 acres of land, upon
which he now lives. About sixteen acres were partly
cleared and there was a log cabin standing on the land.
By dint of hard work he cleared up his land, erected good
substantial buildings, and added other acres to his already
large farm, until at one time he owned a handsome farm of
507¼ acres, all of which he cleared of its timber and made
of it one of the best farms in the county, by his own hard
work and steady industry. This land he has divided up
among his children, giving each a share, with the exception
of 106 acres, which he still retains, including the old
homestead.
To Jacob Ludwig and his wife there have been
born six children that grew to mature years, and three that
have died, making in all a family of nine. Isaac
was born Jan. 3, 1842; John D., Oct. 14, 1849;
Charles C., May 12, 1853; Mary J., Feb. 2, 1856;
Obed A., Mar. 20, 1859, and Jacob L., Dec. 16,
1861. Isaac was born in Salt Creek township,
Pickaway county, and all the rest on the Allen county farm.
Mr. and Mrs. Ludwig were at first members of the
Lutheran church, but after removing to Allen county, they
joined, first, the Methodist and the Presbyterian church.
They have always been active workers in the various church
organizations to which they have belonged, and are in
religious as in other matters among the most honored members
of society. Politically Mr. Ludwig has been a
life-long democrat, and while he has neither held nor sought
office, he has not been without influence in the councils in
the party. No man stands higher in the estimation of
his fellow-men than does Jacob Ludwig.
For he is a man not only of sterling character but also of
wide reading and deep and independent thought. With
all this he gladly concedes to all other men the right to
think and act for themselves, holding them, so far as his
influence goes, only to strict moral conduct, by which
course he enhances the estimation in which he is held by
all.
Source: A Portrait and biographical record of Allen &
Van Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co.,
1896 - Page 567 |
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