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Adam Neer Mrs. Adam Neer	ADAM NEER, living in Saint Paris, Champaign county, was born in Logan county, Ohio, May 7, 1843.  His father, George Neer, was born in Licking county, Ohio, in 1817, and his death occurred at his home in Bellefontaine, on the 18th of November, 1901.  He was of German descent, his father, Adam Neer, having been born in that country.  For his wife he chose Anna Karnes, their wedding having been celebrated on the 4th of August, 1842, and she was called to the home beyond Mar. 18, 1894. She was the eldest of eight children, six sons and two daughters, born unto Michael and Rhoda Karnes, and during her early life she lived among the Indians near Cherokee, Logan county.      Adam Neer, the eldest son of his parents' ten children, six daughters and four sons, received his elementary education in the district schools of Logan county and later became a student in the school in Bellefontaine, while during the summer months he assisted his father in the work of the farm.  In early life he evinced a talent for mechanics, and as he grew in stature and years his bent in that direction was correspondingly developed and when yet in his “'teens” he conceived. a number of original mechanical ideas which later on took practical and definite form.  On the 30th of April, 1807, he was granted a patent on a dumping device for unloading wagons, and with this he traveled for a number of years, selling territorial rights.  In 1872 he was allowed a patent on a pitman connection for reapers and mowers, a device of unquestionable merit, and in 1882 he perfected and had patented an anti-rattling buggy coupling.  On the 7th of June, 1898, he was allowed a patent on a corn harvester, a machine which easily takes precedence over any other of its kind in use.  It is of one-horse draft, cuts two rows at a time and with it two men can easily cut and set up two hundred shocks in a day.  It works equally well in large or small corn, and Mr. Neer has testimonials from farmers over the entire country who speak in words of highest praise of this invention.  In 1897 be arranged with a manufacturing company to introduce his machine on a royalty contract, but this company succeeded in defrauding him of the royalty on several hundred machines, they having put out the harvesters under their own name and rendered no account whatever to Mr. Neer.  In December, 1901, he brought suit against this company under the original contract, and although he was successful in the suit he only obtained a settlement for fourteen machines, and now has a suit pending in the federal court for forty thousand dollars damages against H. L. Bennett & Company, one-half of which is in favor of the United States for violation of the patent laws.      After his marriage, in 1873, Mr. Neer moved to a farm three miles east of Saint Paris, but in 1877 sold this place to George W. Kite and purchased a tract of fifty acres just west of his first farm, purchasing the land of William Kite.  Disposing of this farm to Simon Snapp, in the spring of 1880, he bought ninety-five and a quarter acres two miles southwest of Bellefontaine, on which he took up his abode on the 1st of March of that year.  On the 16th of August, 1883, he again disposed of his possessions, after which he bought sixty-five acres of land three and a half miles southeast of Saint Paris, purchasing the property of his father-in-law, William Kite, and on which he erected an attractive and commodious residence in 1884, while later, in 1888, he further improved the place by building a substantial barn.  In the spring of 1887, however, he left his farm and moved to Urbana, where for a short time he was engaged in the restaurant business, but again desiring to take up the quiet duties of the farm he disposed of his restaurant and returned to his country home.  From August, 1893, until the 1st of November, 1893, he was employed by the Milsom Rendering and Fertilizer Company, of Buffalo, New York, whom he represented in western Ohio and Indiana, his work being to establish agencies and to look after collections.  On the 10th of February, 1896, he removed to Saint Paris, where he is now living.  Mr. Neer is now extensively engaged in the manufacture of the corn harvester in the Neer Manufacturing Company, of Saint Paris, Ohio, of which G. P. Shidler is president; A. C. Brown, secretary; Grant McMorran, treasurer, and Adam Neer, superintendent and general manager.      On the 1st of October, 1873, Mr. Neer was united in marriage to Miss Mary E. Kite, a daughter of William and Catherine Kite, who reside in Champaign county.  Unto this union three children have been born, two sons and a daughter.  Warren, the eldest son, was born July 6, 1875, and now resides on his father's farm southeast of Saint Paris.  He was married to Miss Anna Wiant, and they have one daughter, Lois.  Catherine was born Nov. 28, 1880, and William Alonzo was born Mar. 10, 1885.  In his social relations Mr. Neer is a member of the Knights of Pythias, Lodge No. 344, of Saint Paris, and is also a charter member of the United Commercial Travelers, Urbana Council No. 139, in which he is junior counsellor.  He exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the Democracy, has held the office of road supervisor of Mad River township, Champaign county, and while residing in Logan county was a member of the school board.  His religious preference is indicated by his membership in the Myrtle Tree Baptist church. Source:  A Centennial Biographical History of Champaign Co., Ohio - Illustrated - New York and Chicago - The Lewis Publishing Company - 1902 - Page 26
	FRED NEER is one of the progressive, wide-awake and enterprising men of Mechanicsburg, where he is conducting a creamery.  He was born in Clark county, Ohio, Nov. 22, 1864, and is a brother of J. S. Neer.  He was the fifth child in his father's family and like the others of the household pursued his early education in the district schools, later continuing his studies in the high school of Mechanicsburg.  He was only four years of age when brought by his parents to this county and remained with his father upon the old farm homestead until he had attained his majority, assisting in the labors of the field.  When nineteen years of age he began teaching school, following that profession for ten years in Union and Champaign counties.  For two years he was a teacher in the Milford Center high school and assistant principal at that place.  In his educational work be displayed marked zeal and his own interest was an inspiration to his pupils.  In 1894 he pursued a course in pharmacy in Ada, Ohio, and afterward engaged in clerking in a drug store at Milford Center, where he worked for about two years.  In 1896 he came to Mechanicsburg, where he engaged in the grocery business in partnership with J. E. Whittemore, there remaining three years.  On the expiration of that period they dissolved partnership and Mr. Neer turned his attention to the creamery business in connection with D. McCreery & Son, who are now located in Urbana.  He was associated with them while they were at Milford Center for a period of about one year and in 1898 embarked in the creamery business at Mechanicsburg, his enterprise being known as the Mechanicsburg Creamery.  His plant cost about three thousand dollars and is one of the best in the state for the purpose.  The capacity is about seven hundred pounds of butter per day and the product is of such excellent quality that it finds a ready sale on the market.       In 1886 Mr. Neer was united in marriage to Miss Sallie Wilson, a daughter of William and Minerva Wilson.  Her father served for four and one-half years in the war of the Rebellion and died soon after his return from the army.  In his family were four children, two sons and two daughters, of whom Mrs. Neer was the eldest.  She was born in Milford Center, Union county, and is a graduate of the high school of Mechanicsburg.  For two years she engaged in teaching in Goshen township, Champaign county, and is a lady of culture and refinement.  The marriage of our subject and his wife has been blessed with two children: Lois E., and Reed B.      Mr. Neer exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the Republican' party.  He is president of the school board of Mechanicsburg and has always taken an active interest in educational matters, exercising his franchise prerogatives in support of all movements and measures that he believes will promote the intellectual advancement of his community.  Socially he is identified with the Knight of Pythias order and has filled all of the chairs therein.  He is a member of the Methodist Protestant church and is well known in business circles as a man of responsibility and energy, who has placed dependence not upon fortunate circumstances, but upon unremitting labor and sound judgment. Source:  A Centennial Biographical History of Champaign Co., Ohio - Illustrated - New York and Chicago - The Lewis Publishing Company - 1902 - Page 362
J. P. Neer Mrs. J. P. Neer	JOHN P. NEER.  Among the native sons of Champaign county who went forth in defense of the Union when its integrity was menaced by armed rebellion, rendering the valiant and loyal service of a leal and loyal son of the republic, is John P. Neer, who is most consistently given representation in this work, for he has practically spent his entire life in this county, is a member of one of its honored pioneer families and through his identification with the agricultural industry has become one of the successful and influential citizens of this section.      John P. Neer was born on the old homestead, in Concord township, on the 27th of April, 1842, being a son of Joseph and Margaret Susan (Monroe) Neer.  Joseph Neer was born in Loudoun county, Virginia, the paternal lineage tracing back to German origin, though the family had been established in the Old Dominion at an early epoch in its history.  Joseph Neer was reared and educated in his native state, where he remained until about 1826, when he came to Ohio and became one of the pioneers of Champaign county, having settled on the homestead in Concord township which is now a part of our subject’s estate, as early as 1831.  This was school land and was purchased by Mr. Neer at the time when it was first placed on the market, and it has ever since been retained in the possession of the family.  He cleared the tract of its heavy growth of timber and developed a good farm, while he was a man of dauntless spirit and progressive ideas, doing much to further the advancement of the interests of this section in the early days and to conserve the general welfare.  His political allegiance was given to the Whig party until the time of the organization of the Republican party, when he became a stalwart supporter of the principles of the latter, having been strenuously opposed to the institution of human slavery and having exercised his franchise in support of' John C. Fremont, the first presidential candidate of the Republican party.  He was an active and zealous member of the Methodist Episcopal church, taking a deep interest in the promotion of both its spiritual and temporal affairs.      In Champaign county, on the 10th of November, 1835, he was united in marriage to Miss Margaret Susan Monroe, who was born in Harrison township, on the 27th of November, 1819, being a daughter of David Monroe. who was born in Virginia, of Scotch lineage, and who emigrated westward in an early day, becoming one of the honored pioneers of Champaign county, where he passed the residue of his life.  Joseph Neer was summoned into eternal rest in 1869. and his cherished and devoted wife passed away in 1880, having retained their residence on the old homestead from the time of their marriage until death released the silver cord of his life.  About four or five years later the widow with her youngest daughter moved to Urbana where she died.  Six sons and six daughters were born, concerning whom we incorporate a brief record in the following paragraph.      David C. is a successful farmer of Allen county, Kansas; Ann F. is the widow of James W. Ellis, who was a farmer of Oklahoma, where she still maintains her home; Eliza M. became the wife of Judge Joseph V. Offenbacher, of Champaign county, who died in the city of Washington, D. C., in January, 1895, her death having occurred on  birth, is the immediate subject of this sketch; Martha J. died on the 16th of September, 1870; Nathan A. is engaged in agricultural pursuits in Los Angeles county, California; Sallie C. is the wife of Lowel T. Clemans, an electrician of Los Angeles; Joseph F. is a farmer of Champaign county; Mary F. is the wife of Charles W. McMaster, of Los Angeles county, California; Samuel J., who is engaged in the book and stationery business in Winfield, Cowley county, Kansas, served for two terms as clerk of that county; Elizabeth died in infancy; and James M. is a farmer and stock-raiser of Cowley county, Kansas.      John P. Neer, the immediate subject of this review, was reared upon the old homestead farm and acquired his early scholastic training in the district schools, which he attended during the winter months, while during the summer seasons he assisted in the work of the farm.  In this peaceful vocation he continued to bend his energies until a higher duty faced him, when came the clarion call to arms, prompting the loyal sons of the north to defend the unity of the republic, now in jeopardy through civic rebellion.  On the 30th of July, 1862, he enlisted as a private in Company H, Forty-fifth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, with which he was sworn into service at Camp Chase, in the city of Columbus, on the 19th of August.  He continued on active duty with his regiment until the 12th of June, 1865, when he received his honorable discharge, at Camp Harker, Tennessee.  His service thus covered the greater period of the war, and his record as a soldier was one to which he may well advert with satisfaction.  He was promoted to be corporal of his company, later sergeant and orderly sergeant and before he returned to his home he was commissioned first lieutenant in recognition of valiant service.  Mr. Neer participated in many of the memorable and important movements and engagements incidental to the course of the great conflict.  He was in the battle at Dutton Hill, Kentucky, and later his regiment, while he was on detached duty, assisted in the pursuit of Morgan at the time of his famous raid through Ohio and Indiana.  On the 20th of October, 1863, he was in active service in the battle at Philadelphia. Tennessee, in which engagement his regiment lost in killed, wounded and missing, one hundred and sixty-eight men, while later the regiment was in the entire campaign in eastern Tennessee, and in an engagement at Holston river, on the 15th of November, they lost one hundred and one men, five of the number being officers.  They also had a spirited encounter with the forces under General Longstreet.  In this engagement. on the 17th of November, Mr. Neer was shot through the left lung and was taken to the hospital, where he remained during the entire siege of Knoxville.  As soon as he had sufficiently recuperated he returned to his regiment, going to Tazewell, Tennessee, and thence to Cumberland Gap, where he remained a short time, after which the regiment marched to Mount Sterling, Kentucky, where it remained about a month, he being detailed to take charge of the patrol of the city.  Thence the command returned to Tennessee, by way of Knoxville, and finally joined the forces proceeding onward for the Atlanta campaign, in all of which our subject participated, including the engagement at Franklin, which was one of the most hotly contested of all the fights of the war.  He was present at the battle of Atlanta and his regiment was actively engaged in that famous battle, while later it was in the hard-fought battle at Nashville, Tennessee, on the 15th and 16th of December, 1864.  We can but mention a few of the other notable engagements in which Mr. Neer took part, — Resaca, Dallas, Kenesaw Mountain, Pine Mountain and Lovejoy Station.      After the war Mr. Neer returned to the old homestead, where he resumed his farm work being associated with his father for two years, and after the death of the latter, in 1859, he purchased the major portion of the old home place from the other heirs.  He now has an exceptionally attractive and valuable landed estate of six hundred and seventeen acres, upon which are the best of improvements, while he also gives special attention to the raising and handling of high-grade live stock, his business affairs being so capably conducted that splendid success crowns his efforts.  Mr. Neer is a stanch Republican in politics, has taken an active part in the work of the party and believes firmly in its principles.  He has served as county commissioner for two terms, filling the office from December, 1885, until 1891.  He and his wife are prominent members of the Concord Methodist Episcopal church, in which Mr. Neer is serving as trustee, while he contributed toward the erection of the church edifice.  He keeps alive the pleasing associations of the old days when he was following the old flag to victory by retaining membership in the post of the Grand Army of the Republic at Urbana, of which he was commander in 1899.      In 1899 Mr. Neer was united in marriage to Miss Ida M. Goble, who was born in Brooklyn, New York, where she was reared and educated, being a daughter of Ira and Catherine (Burke) Goble, both natives of the Empire state and both now deceased.      In recapitulation we may say that Joseph Neer, the honored father of our subject, was born on the 7th of August, 1804, and that his death occurred on the 26th of January, 1869, at which time he was in his sixty-fifth year.  His wife, who was born on the 27th of November, 1819, died Oct. 8, 1880.  At the time of their marriage they moved into the house where our subject now lives, and this contiued to be their home until death's hand intervened.  Both were devoted members of the Methodist Episcopal church and they contributed largely to the erection of the church building in this township. Source:  A Centennial Biographical History of Champaign Co., Ohio - Illustrated - New York and Chicago - The Lewis Publishing Company - 1902 - Page 500
	JONATHAN S. NEER.    On the roll of Champaign county's respected and leading citizens is found the name of Jonathan S. Neer, who for many years has been actively connected with the agricultural interests of Goshen township.  He was born in Clark county, Ohio, Mar. 25, 1851, and his father Joseph C. Neer, was also a native of that county.  In 1868 the latter took up his abode in Champaign county, and in the following spring he located on a farm in Goshen township, where he made his home until about 1884.  In that year he left his Ohio home and went to Kentucky, but after a residence in that state of seven years he returned to his farmer home.  His death occurred on the 25th of May, 1902.  He was a successful farmer, a life-long member of the Methodist Protestant church; a loyal soldier and a prominent member of the Grand Army of the Republic, and he passed into eternal rest while attending the memorial services at Mechanicsburg.  While yet a resident of Clark county Mr. Neer was united in marriage to Dorothy Smith.  Her father, James Smith, came from Pennsylvania to the Buckeye state in a very early day, locating on a farm in Pleasant township. J. C. Neer's mother. who bore the maiden name of Sarah Coffey, was the first white female child born in Pleasant township, Clark county, the date of her nativity being May 29, 1808.  Her death occurred on the 16th of August, 1887.  Unto Mr. and Mrs. Neer were born eight children, five sons and three daughters, namely: Jonathan S., the subject of this review; Maggie, who is still unmarried; Charles, deceased;  Frank, deceased; Albert K., who resides in Mechanicsburg; Fred, also of Champaign county; Maud, at home; and Mettie, the wife of J. E. Whitemore, of Tawas City, Michigan.      Jonathan S. Neer was but seventeen years of age when he came with his parents to Champaign county, and in addition to attending the district schools of Clark and Champaign counties he was also a student in the to engage in the active duties of life he chose the occupation to which he had been reared, and throughout his life has followed the tilling of the soil.  After farming for a time on rented land he accumulated sufficient means to purchase a tract of one hundred and seventy acres in Goshen township and as the years passed by he has added to his original purchase until he is now the owner of a valuable homestead of two hundred acres, located in the eastern part of Goshen township.  In addition to the raising of cereals best adapted to this soil and climate he is also extensively engaged in the dairy business, usually keeping about thirty cows, and he makes a specialty of this branch of industry.      Mr. Neer was married on the 28th of October, 1875. to Emma Darling, of Mechanicsburg.  She is a daughter of I. S. and Sarah (Riddle) Darling, respected old settlers of Champaign county.  Prior to her marriage she was a prominent and successful school teacher in Mechanicsburg for four years.  Six children have come to brighten and bless their home, namely: Ethel, who was born Oct. 14, 1877, and Dorothy, born May 25, 1879, are both preparing for the nurse's profession in a training school in Cincinnati: Frank, born July 19, 1882, died May 24, 1890; Charles, born Apr. 3, 1884, is a member of the Mechanicsburg high school; Alice F., born June 25, 1891, is at home; and Dorris, the youngest of the family, was born Nov. 8, 1894.  Mr. Neer gives his political support to the Prohibition party and is very active in its work.  He is also an active worker for the cause of education, having served as president of the school board for many years, and he has served also as president of the Farmers Institute at Mechanicsburg.  His social relations connect him with the Knights of Honor, and religiously he is a member of the Methodist Protestant church. Source:  A Centennial Biographical History of Champaign Co., Ohio - Illustrated - New York and Chicago - The Lewis Publishing Company - 1902 - Page 694
Orville Noble	ORVILLE NOBLE.     The old Bay state of Massachusetts. where was cradled so much of our national history, figures as the native place of this venerable and honored citizen of Urbana, where he has maintained his home for nearly half a century, having been actively identified with its business activities for many years, and finally retiring to that dignified repose and surcease of active labor which constitute the just reward of earnest and honest endeavor.  As the shadows of his life lengthen he can look back with satisfaction upon the exertions of past years and rejoice in the prosperity which has attended his efforts and enabled him to crown his days with peace and restful calm, “far from the madding crowd's ignoble strife."      Orville Noble was born in the village of Russell, Hampden county, Massachusetts, on the 2d of January, 1821, being. in both the paternal and maternal lines, a representative of old and honored families of this colonial commonwealth.  In the agnatic line the family is of English derivation, and the original American ancestor came from the "tight little isle" and settled in Massachusetts in the early colonial epoch.  The parents of our subject were Reuben and Cynthia (Gowdy) Noble, and both were born in Massachusetts, where they passed their entire lives, becoming the parents of two sons and three daughters, all of whom are deceased with the exception of the subject of this review.  Silas Noble, grandfather of our subject, was a man of prominence in his day and was one of the influential citizens of Hampden county, Massachusetts.  He  had five sons and two daughters and his descendents are to be found in diverse sections of the Union.  Our subject was reared to the age of six years in his native town and then the family removed to Granville, in the same county, and that place continued to be his home until his removal to Urbana, Ohio, in 1856.  Having availed himself of such advantages as were afforded by the common schools of Granville, he supplemented this discipline by a course of study in an excellently conducted select school in Springfield, Massachusetts.  That he duly profited by his scholastic advantages is evident from the fact that he qualified himself for pedagogic work, becoming a teacher at the age of twenty-one years and following this vocation with gratifying success for a period of eight years thereafter.      In the town of Granville, Massachusetts, in the year 1846, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Noble to Miss Caroline A. Bates, a member of a prominent family of that state.  She accompanied him on his removal to Urbana and here passed the residue of her life, proving a devoted companion and helpmeet to her husband, sharing in his joys and sorrows, aiding and encouraging him in his efforts and walking by his side down the checkered pathway of life for more than half a century, when the veil was lifted to gain the new glory of a gentle and noble life, death setting its seal upon her mortal lips on the 14th of November, 1899.  They became the parents of one child, Mary A., who is now the wife of William M. Rock, of Urbana. and who accords to her father the utmost filial solicitude.  Upon his arrival in Urbana Mr. Noble engaged in the garden-seed business, in which he successfully continued for a period of thirteen years, while he also became interested in agricultural enterprises and other ventures which rendered him good returns, enabling him to secure a competency for the declining years of his life.  He is the owner of a good farm in Salem township and has an attractive residence property in the city of Urbana, where he continues to make his home, honored as one of the venerable and sterling citizens of the county and having the solace conferred by many and warm friendships.      In politics Mr. Noble originally gave his support to the Whig party, but upon the organization of the Republican party transferred his support to the same, though he has never been active in political maneuvers and has never sought public office.  He has long been a devoted member of the Presbyterian church, as was also his wife, whose life was in harmony with the faith which she professed.  Fraternally our subject has long held membership in the Masonic order, being a member of Harmony Lodge, F. & A. M.; R. A. M.; and Raper Commandery, No. 19, Knights Templar, of which he was recorder for nine years. Source:  A Centennial Biographical History of Champaign Co., Ohio - Illustrated - New York and Chicago - The Lewis Publishing Company - 1902 - Page 358