< BACK TO 1917 BIOGRAPHICAL INDEX >
< BACK TO BIOGRAPHICAL INDEXES >
 

	A. F. TAYLOR.     A. F. Taylor is a retired farmer and yet is interested in farming under the firm name of A. F. Taylor & Son, proprietors of the Hereford cattle farm consisting of two hundred and seventy-five acres, heated three miles west of Urbana, on the Urbana and Piqua pike.      Mr. Taylor was born in Cambridgeshire, England, Nov. 8, 1850.  He came to the United States in 1854, locating in Ontario county.  New York, and came to Champaign county, Ohio, in 1875.  In 1887 he located on a farm one mile west of Woodstock, in Champaign county, and three years later he came to his present farm.  He received his early education in New York state and remained at home until he was twenty-one, when he started out for himself without a dollar.  He first took a contract for furnishing plaster rock, one thousand tons, at seventy-five cents a ton.  This gave him a little start, and he came to Summit county to engage in farming.  He rented a farm and, in connection with his brother, began the experiment of farming and stock raising, in which he was quite successful.  He after wards purchased a half interest in a farm of one hundred and sixty acres, his brother-in-law taking the other half.  After two years he purchased the other half interest and operated the farm alone.      Mr. Taylor was married to Rachael Spensly.  She was born in Medina county, Ohio, where she was educated and engaged for some time in teaching.  Edward T. is the only son of Mr. and Mrs. Taylor.  He was born on Feb. 15, 1878, and was educated in the district schools, graduating in the Urbana high school and in the agricultural school at Columbus, Ohio.  He married Mabel Jenkins, of St. Paris, Ohio, who was educated in the graded schools and a graduate of the St. Paris high school.  They have one child, Melvina A., born June, 1909.      Mr. Taylor is a member of the Universalist church, of Westville, Ohio, and is one of the trustees of that church.  He is a charter member of Magrew Lodge No. 433, Knights of Pythias, and served as treasurer of that order.  He is a Republican, but has never taken an active part in party affairs.      Mr. Taylor is largely interested as a breeder of Hereford cattle and has a herd of three hundred, and is a feeder of a large number of hogs.      Mr. Taylor's house was destroyed by fire in 1914 and he built a modern bungalo in which he now lives.  It is a very comfortable home and nicely  located. Source:  History of Champaign County, Ohio, Vol. II - publ. 1917 - Page 329
	BURTON A. TAYLOR.     Burton A. Taylor, cashier of the Central National Bank of St. Paris, this county, and former auditor of the neighboring county of Madison, is a native son of Champaign county and has lived here and in the adjoining county of Madison all his life, a resident of St. Paris since 1906, in which year he aided in the organization of the Central National Bank of that place and has since been serving as cashier of the same.  He was born on a farm in Salem township, this county, Aug. 16, 1867, son of Thomas I. and Hannah (Stewart) Taylor, both of whom also were born in this county, members of pioneer families, and who are still living at their home in Salem township, honored old residents of that section of the county. To Thomas I. Taylor and wife seven children were born, namely: Burton A., the subject of this biographical sketch; Cora, wife of O. K. West, of Columbus, this state; Effie, deceased; Frank, of Springfield, this state; Nellie, wife of C. H. Bentley, of Columbus; Floy, wife of W. F. Shrigley, of Springfield, and Blanche, who is at home with her parents.      Reared on the paternal farm in Salem township, Burton A. Taylor received his early schooling in the district school in the neighborhood of his home and supplemented  the same by a course in the Urbana high school, after which for two years he was engaged as a teacher in the public schools of his home township.  He then went over to Plain City, in the neighboring county of Madison and there became engaged as a bookkeeper in the Farmers Bank of that place and later to the position of cashier, remaining with that bank of eleven years, or until his election to the office of auditor of Madison county in 1898.  Upon entering upon the duties of that office in 1899 Mr. Taylor, who in the meantime had become married, moved to London, the county seat where he made his home until the completion of his official service.  He was re-elected auditor and thus served for two terms, a period of six years, his term of service expiring at the end of the year 1905.  Short afterward, in 1906, Mr. Taylor returned to this county and located at St. Paris, where he aided in the organization of the Central National Bank of that place and was made cashier of the same, a position he ever since has occupied.  Upon the organization of the bank David McMorran was elected president and G. Lear Smith, vice president.  The present officers of the bank are as follow:  President, David McMorran; G. G. Jones, the directors of the bank, besides the officers above named, being J. H. Batdorf, Charles Heck, R. M. Kite and Cephas Atkinson.  Mr. Taylor is a Republican and during his residence in Madison county, besides serving as county auditor, was for some time clerk of Darby township in that county.      In 1893, at Plain City, Burton A. Taylor was united in marriage to Ada Delano, who was teaching school at that place at that time.  She was born in Iowa and is a graduate of the Plain City high school and of Western College at Oxford.  Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Taylor.  B. Allen, who was graduated from the St. Paris high school and is now a student at Wooster College, and Martha E., who is a student in the high school at St. Paris.  The Taylor are members of the First Baptist church and take an active interest in the various beneficences of the same, Mr. Taylor being one of the trustees of the church and a teacher in the Sunday school.  He is a Royal Arch Mason, having affiliated with the Masons while living at Plain City, and is past master of the lodge at that place and a member of St. Paris Lodge No. 344, Knights of Pythias, and takes a warm interest in both Masonic and Pythian affairs.  Since taking up his residence in St. Paris Mr. Taylor is given his earnest attention to the general business interests of that city and is widely known in financial circles throughout this part of the state. Source:  History of Champaign County, Ohio, Vol. II - publ. 1917 - Page 883
	CHARLES O. TAYLOR.     The late Charles O. Taylor, for years a well-known hardware merchant of Urbana and a substantial landowner of Champaign county, who died at his home in Urbana in the fall of 1906 and whose widow is still living in that city, was a native son of Champaign county and lived here all his life.  He was born on the Mad River farm in Concord township on Aug. 12, 1852, son of Oliver and Catherine (Caraway) Taylor, both of whom also were born in this county, members of old families, and who spent all their lives here.  Oliver Taylor was born on a pioneer farm at Spring Hills and there grew to manhood and was married.  He continued a farmer and stockman all his life, his death occurring on the old home place.  He was a man of much energy, a leader in his community and was for years president of the Citizens National Bank of Urbana, and was one of the best-known and most influential bankers in the county.  He and his wife were members of the Presbyterian church and he was a deacon of the local congregation.  Three children were born to Oliver Taylor and wife, Charles O. Taylor being the only one who grew to maturity.      Reared on the home farm on Mad River, Charles O. Taylor received his early education in the schools of Concord township and supplemented the same by a course in Gundray Commercial College at Cincinnati.  From the days of his youth he took an active interest in the work of the farm and upon leaving college returned to the home farm.  Later he located on a farm of three hundred and twenty-three acres, where he established his home and became actively engaged in stock raising, a breeder of fine stock, his specialty being Percheron and Norman horses.  He made several trips to Scotland to import those breeds, his efforts in this connection doing much to improve the strain of horseflesh throughout this part of the state.  In 1892 Mr. Taylor retired from the farm and moved to Urbana, where he engaged in the general hardware business and was thus successfully engaged until his retirement from business.  He continued to make his home in Urbana and there he spent his last days, his death occurring on Nov. 12, 1906, about two years after his retirement from business.  Mr. Taylor was an active Republican and was a member of the local lodge of the Knights of Pythias.      On Mar. 29, 1876, Charles O. Taylor was united in marriage to Emma E. Downs, daughter of William and Catherine (Saunders) Downs, and to this union three children were born, namely: William Oliver Taylor, who married Adah Rhodes and is now living in New York City; Vance, who married Gladys Blackmer, of St. Gonis, where they live, and has two children, Catherine and Caroline, and Elizabeth, who married William M. Dixon, of Urbana, and has one child, a daughter, Catherine Caraway.  Mrs. Taylor is still living at Urbana, where she is very pleasantly situated. Source:  History of Champaign County, Ohio, Vol. II - publ. 1917 - Page 781
	DAVID E. TAYLOR.     D. E. Taylor, a well-known and substantial farmer of Champaign county and former deputy county auditor, now living on the old Sowers farm three-fourths of a mile north of Westville, in Mad River township, was born on a farm not far west of where he is now living, in that same township, and has lived in this county all his life.  He was born on July 24, 1870, son of Simeon and Susan (Ward) Taylor, both of whom also were born in that same township, Mad River, and the latter of whom is still living.      The late Simeon Taylor, former auditor of Champaign county, was born on a pioneer farm in Mad River township, this county, June 7, 1838, a son of Benjamin and Sarah (Miller) Taylor, the former a native of Tennessee and the latter of Virginia, the Taylors and the Millers having been among the early settlers of Champaign county.  It was in 1816 that John Taylor, father of Benjamin Taylor, came to this county with his family from Tennessee and settled in Mad River township and in that same year Valentine Miller came with his family from Virginia and also settled in Mad River township, the two families early becoming recognized as among the leaders in the pioneer life of that community.  Reared on the home farm in Mad River township, Simeon Taylor received his early schooling in the schools of that neighborhood and supplemented the same by a course in a business college in Cleveland, later becoming engaged as a school teacher in his home township, teaching durig the winter and farming during the summers, and was thus engaged for ten years, teaching for eight years in one school.  He was ever active in local political affairs, for years a leader in the Democratic party in his part of the county, and in 1889 was elected auditor of the county.  While serving in that public capacity Mr. Taylor made his home in Urbana, but upon completing his term of service returned to, his farm in Mad River township and there spent the remainder of his life, his death occurring there on Sept. 28, 1914.  In addition to his extensive farming interests Mr. Taylor had long given considerable attention to general business affairs and at the time of his death was president of the Citizens National Bank of Urbana, a position he had held for some years.  He also was one of the organizers of the Peoples Savings and Building Association at Urbana and was president of that institution.  He was a past noble grand of Urbana Lodge No. 46, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and a member of the local Grange, and in the affairs of both of these organizations took a warm interest.  He had been a member of the Methodist Episcopal church at Westville since 1872 and for thirty-eight years had served as superintendent of the Sunday school of that church.      It was on Oct. 1, 1863, that Simeon Taylor was united in marriage to Susan Ward, who also was born in Mad River township, this county, daughter of Noah and Lydia (Smith) Ward, both of whom also were born in this county and the former of whom for some time served as major of militia.  Major Noah Ward and wife were the parents of five children, of whom Mrs. Taylor is now the only survivor.  To Simeon and Susan (Ward) Taylor five children were born, of whom two are now deceased, A. W. Taylor, who was married (his wife also now being deceased), and Laura, who was the wife of Gerald Colbert, of Mad River township; the survivors being Bertha, wife of Robert Lee Grimes, of Westville; D. E. Taylor, the subject of this sketch, and Floy, wife of Floyd Garrett, also of Mad River township.  Mrs. Taylor is a member of the Westville Methodist Episcopal church and has for many years been one of the leaders in the good works of that congregation.      Reared on the home farm in Mad River township, D. E. Taylor was well trained in the ways of farming during the days of his boyhood and was a valued assistant in the labors of the farm.  He completed his schooling in the Urbana high school and upon his father's entrance upon the duties of the office of county auditor he was made deputy auditor and served in that capacity during the incumbency of his father.  He had married about the time of his entrance into the auditor's office and upon the completion of that term of service he returned to Westville and for a year thereafter was engaged in operating the grain elevator at that place.  He then, in 1893, took charge of a farm west of Westville, the farm now occupied by Charles Buell, and was there engaged in farming for two years, at the end of which time he returned to the old Taylor home farm, where he remained until 1902, in which year he moved to the farm he now occupies, three-fourths of a mile north of Westville, and there has since made his home, he and his wife being very comfortably and very pleasantly situated.  Mr. Taylor is the owner of a fine farm of one hundred and sixty-eight acres and his operations are carried on in accordance with the most highly approved and up-to-date theories of modern agriculture.  Mr. Taylor is a Democrat, as was his father, and takes an active part in local political affairs.      It was on Dec. 20, 1890, that D. E. Taylor was united in marriage to Mary Sowers, who was born on the farm on which she is now living, in February, 1870. daughter of Samuel K. and Eunice (Blose) Sowers, prominent residents of the Westville neighborhood, and to this union three children have been born, Helen M., Harry S. and Edgar S.   Helen M. Taylor, who was born on Jan. 22, 1892, died on Apr. 2, 1902.  Harry S. Taylor, who was born on Apr. 9, 1893, was graduated from the Westville high school and is now a senior in the Ohio State University.  Edgar S. Taylor, born on May 4, 1895, also is a graduate of the Westville high school.  He is a member of the local lodge of the Knights of Pythias, Magrew Lodge No. 433, of which his father is a past chancellor commander.  D. E. Taylor also is a member of Urbana Lodge No. 46, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and is past noble grand of the same, as was his father before him.  The Taylors are members of the Methodist Episcopal church at Westville and take an active interest in church affairs, Mr. Taylor being a member of the board of trustees of the local congregation.  They have a very pleasant home on their well-kept farm and have ever taken a proper and useful part in the general social activities of the community in which both Mr. and Mrs. Taylor have spent practically all their lives. Source:  History of Champaign County, Ohio, Vol. II - publ. 1917 - Page 438
	JOHN TAYLOR FAMILY.     In the Baptist church at King's creek there is a beautiful memorial window sacred to the memory of John Taylor, an honored pioneer of Champaign county, who donated the land on which that church stands and whose efforts in behalf of a proper social order, in the days of the beginning of the settlement in that neighborhood had very much to do with the orderly establishment of the community on its present sound basis.  John Taylor was one of the first settlers in that part of the county and one of the most influential factors in bringing about proper conditions there in the early days.  A Virginian by birth, he had been carefully reared and both he and his wife brought out here to the then wilderness fine ideas concerning the needs of a new community and it is undoubted that their influence in those early days had very much to do with the firm establishment of the King's Creek settlement.      John Taylor was born on Mar. 11, 1769, a son of William and Mary (Buckels) Taylor, substantial residents of what then was Berks county, Virginia, now Jefferson county, West Virginia.  He grew to manhood in that community and there married Catherine Orsborn, who was born on June 4, 1773.  After his marriage he remained in that community until in the spring of 1804, when he came out into the then new state of Ohio, this state having just been admitted to statehood the year before, and established his home in Champaign county, where he and his wife spent the remainder of their lives, honored and useful pioneers, ever devoted to the common good.  With them came seven children that had been born to them in Virginia and after taking up their home in this county three other children were born to them.  All of these children grew to maturity and all married and had children save one, hence the Taylor family presently became one of the most numerous in this section, gradually growing with the succeeding generations, until now the progeny of this pioneer pair in this part of Ohio form one of the most numerously represented families hereabout.      It was in April, 1804, that John Taylor came over from Virginia into the new state of Ohio and settled on a farm in the immediate vicinity of King's Creek, in Salem township, this county.  From Isaac Zanes, the white chief of the Wyandots, he bought there a section of land containing six hundred and forty-three and eight hundredths acres and on that practically unimproved tract established his home and spent the rest of his life.  He later bought from the government the west quarter of section 8, township 5, range 12, his deed to the same being signed by James Monroe, President of the United States.  July 13, 1819.  He also bought other lands hereabout and in time became the owner of one thousand seven hundred and eighty-eight acres of land, giving to each of his children a quarter of a section of land before he died.  A practical miller. John Taylor had brought out here with him upon coming from Virginia, the machinery for a grist-mill and at King's Creek he set up the first grinding-mill in that section, his mill early becoming the central point for the settlers for miles about.  He also erected a tannery and saw-mill and as the head of these three industries performed an admirable service in the new community.  He and his wife were ardent Baptists and upon the organization of a congregation of that communion at King's Creek he donated to the congregation the tract of land on which the church stands to this day and also a tract for cemetery purposes.  In that cemetery his body was laid away after his death on Aug. 21, 1825, and in the handsome church edifice which now marks the site of the first primitive church building he helped to erect, there is a beautiful memorial window testifying to John Taylor's distinctive service in behalf of the church.  His wife had preceded him to the grave several years and she was buried in the old cemetery at Urbana.  When the family desired to have her remains removed to the cemetery at King's Creek, after John Taylor had donated a tract for such purpose, her grave could not be satisfactorily identified and her body still lies in its original resting place, though the monument erected at John Taylor's grave just northwest of the church at King's Creek bears her name as well as his.      As noted above John and Catherine (Orsborn) Taylor were the parents of ten children, these children, in order of birth, being named William, David, Mary, Samuel, Levi, Margaret, Thomas, Ruhama, Blanche and Elizabeth, or "Betsy."  William Taylor married Elizabeth Morgan and had nine children.  David Taylor married Ann Hendricks and had two children.  Mary Taylor married Archibald Magrew and had ten children.  Samuel Taylor was married three times and was the father of seven children. His first wife, Sarah Phillips, was the mother of five children, four of whom grew to maturity.  His marriage to Rachel Gray was without issue. His third wife, Susan Reynolds, was the mother of two children.  Levi Taylor, who was born in Virginia on Mar. 24, 1800, and who was therefore but four years of age when his parents settled in this county, grew up here and on June 16, 1825, married Mrs. Sarah Lowery. born Chamberlain.  Of the ten children born to that union but four lived to maturity, John, Sarah Ann, Elias and Job, all of whom married.  Sarah Chamberlain was thrice married, her first union having been contracted in Cayuga county, New York, with Robert Worden, who died two years later, leaving one child, a son. Alvin Worden, who was born in that same county.  After the death of her husband the Widow Worden moved with her parents to Indiana and at Lawrenceburg, that state, she married John Lowery, afterward coming to this state and locating at Urbana, where, after the death of Mr. Lowery, she married Levi Taylor.  Margaret Taylor married Timothy Powell and had eight children.  Thomas Taylor married Lucy Chamberlain and had nine children.  Ruhama Taylor, who did not marry, made her home during the later years of her life with her younger sister, Blanche, who married John Miller and had six children.  The last-born child of John Taylor, Elizabeth, or "Betsy" Taylor. married Charles Mathes and had two children. Source:  History of Champaign County, Ohio, Vol. II - publ. 1917 - Page 1065
	THOMAS IRVIN TAYLOR.     One of the oldest native-born citizens of Salem township, Champaign county, is Thomas Irvin Taylor, a well-known farmer of that township, who has been content to spend his life in his native locality, believing that here existed all the opportunities necessary for one's happiness and success.  He was born on the old Taylor homestead at Kings Creek, Ohio, Oct. 3, 1841.  He is a son of Thomas Taylor and wife, a pioneer family of this vicinity, a sketch of whom appears on another page of this work.      Thomas I. Taylor grew up on the homestead, where, like all boys of pioneer parents, he found plenty of hard work to do.  However, unlike most of them, he had the advantage of a good education, having attended school both at Urbana and Bellefontaine, Ohio.  He remained on the old home place until 1875.  Then he married, on Mar. 8, 1866, Hannah Stewart, who was born at Kings Creek, Champaign county.  She is a daughter of Matthew and Lucinda (Martin) Stewart.  He was born at Kings Creek, and her birth occurred in Kentucky.  The grandfather of Mrs. Taylor was also named Matthew.  He was a native of Ireland, from which country he came to America with his parents, when twelve years of age, the family locating at Kings Creek, and engaged in farming in Salem township, being thus among the early settlers here.  Grandfather Stewart's death occurred here at the advanced age of ninety-three years.  His wife preceded him to the grave when sixty-nine years of age.  They were members of the Baptist church at Kings Creek.      Nine children were born to Matthew and Lucinda Stewart, namely: Sarah married John Seaton, of Salem township, and both are now deceased; Samuel married Margaret Jones and they live in Auglaize county, Ohio William, who followed school teaching for many years, married Addie Boone, and he died in Salem township; Hannah, who married Mr. Taylor of this sketch: Thomas is a plasterer at Zanesville, Ohio; Charles married Serepta Taylor, who lives in Kings Creek, Ohio, he being now deceased; John died when two years old; Eliza married J. K. Michael and they live in Urbana; Elizabeth, who married William Jones (she deceased) lived in Kings Creek, Ohio.      The following children have been born to Thomas I. Taylor and wife; Barton A., a banker at St. Paris, Champaign county, married Ada Allen, and they have two children.  Burton A. and Martha E.; Cora G. married O. K. West and they live in the city of Columbus; their daughter, Madge, married Floyd Hoffman, and they have one child, Elizabeth; Effie M., the child of the subject of this sketch, died when nineteen years of age; Frank S., who operates a garage at Springfield, Ohio, married Iva Herr, and they have one child, Neoma V.; Nellie M. married Clifford Beatley. of Columbus, and they have three children, Cleo, Carroll and Louise;  Blanche B. is at home; Floyd married Winifred Shrigley and lives at Youngstown, Ohio.  The Taylor children all received good educational advantages, attending the schools at Kings Creek, Urbana and Columbus.      Mr. Taylor lived in Clark county, Ohio, five years, and north of Urbana two years, then spent six years in Madison county, this state.  He lived on the old home place nine years, then purchased his present farm in Salem township, known as the J. Gerard place.  It consisted of one hundred and forty-nine acres, but has since added fifteen acres, and has been very successful as a general farmer and stock raiser, making sheep raising a specialty for many years.      Politically, Mr. Taylor is a Republican.  He is active in the affairs of his community and for some time served as school director, also as supervisor.  He is a member of Kings Creek Baptist church. Source:  History of Champaign County, Ohio, Vol. II - publ. 1917 - Page 170
	THOMAS L. TAYLOR, D. V. S.     Dr. Thomas L. Taylor, veterinary surgeon and one of the best-known residents of North Lewisburg, this county, was born at Norton, in Delaware county, this state, Apr. 18, 1878, son of Dr. Elam and Margaret Taylor, the former a native of this state and the latter of New York state, whose last days were spent in Delaware county.      Dr. Elam Taylor, also a veterinary surgeon, was a veteran of the Civil War, having served for two years as a member of the One Hundred and Twenty-first Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and four of his sons, half brothers of the subject of this sketch, served as soldiers of the Union during the struggle between the States, one of these sons, Albert Taylor, dying in Andersonville prison.  The other soldier sons were Joel B., Adam H. and Henry Taylor.  Dr. Elam Taylor was twice married, by his first wife having had five children, one daughter, Mary, besides the sons above named.  Upon the death of the mother of these children he married again and by his wife, Margaret, had seven children, those besides the subject of this sketch, the last-born, being James B., Carrie F., Hattie B., Effie, Josephine and Louis.      Upon completing the course in the public schools at Norton, T. L. Taylor worked for a few years as a farm hand in the neighborhood of his home and then began the study of medicine in the office of his half-brother.  Dr. Joel B. Taylor, at Broadway, in Union county, at the same time becoming engaged as a clerk in a drug store at that place, and was thus engaged for nine years, at the end of which time he decided to take up veterinary surgery, the profession to which his father had devoted his life, and with that end in view entered the Ontario Veterinary College at Toronto, and after a course of two years' study there entered the Grand Rapids Veterinary College, at Grand Rapids, Michigan, from which he was graduated in 1904, with the degree of Doctor of Veterinary Surgery.  Thus admirably qualified for the practice of his profession.  Doctor Taylor opened an office at North Lewisburg in that same year and has ever since been engaged in practice there, his professional duties taking him through three counties, his held of operations extending into the neighboring counties of Logan and Union, as well as widely throughout Champaign county, where he has an extensive practice.      In 1901, Dr. T. L. Taylor was united in marriage to Arie Harrington, a daughter of Lorenzo Harrington and wife, and to this union two children have been born, Bernard and Ruth.  Doctor and Mrs. Taylor have a pleasant home at North Lewisburg and take a proper part in the general social activities of their home town, helpful in promoting all good causes thereabout.  The Doctor is a Republican in his political affiliations and fraternally, is affiliated with the local lodge of the Free and Accepted Masons, in the affairs of which order he takes a warm interest. Source:  History of Champaign County, Ohio, Vol. II - publ. 1917 - Page 291
D. W. Todd	DAVID W. TODD.     Judge David W. Todd, an honored veteran of the Civil War, former probate judge of Champaign county, former assistant postmaster at Urbana and for many years one of the best-known lawyers at Urbana. is a native son of the old Keystone state, but has been a resident of Ohio and of this county since he was eleven years of age and may thus very properly be accounted as one of the real "old settlers" of Champaign county.  He was born in Dauphin county, Pennsylvania, Dec. 31, 1835, son of David and Sarah (McCormick) Todd, both natives of that same state, who came to Ohio in 1846 and in 1847 settled on a farm on Pretty Prairie, in Urbana township, this county, where they spent the remainder of their lives, useful and influential residents of that sterling community, the death of the senior Todd occurring there in 1868.      Reared on the home farm on Pretty Prairie, David W. Todd received his elementary schooling in the schools of that neighborhood and supplemented the same by a course in Miami University at Oxford, this state, from which he was graduated in 1860.  Meantime he had been giving close attention to the study of law in private readings and upon leaving the university entered the law office of Shellabarger & Good at Springfield and there completed his legal studies and was qualified for practice.  Upon being admitted to the bar in 1863 he opened an office for the practice of his profession at Urbana and in the fall of that same year he was elected county attorney of Champaign county, in which official position he served so satisfactorily that he was re-elected in 1865 and thus served as county attorney for two terms.  During this time he had given some attention to the work of developing the industries of Urbana and in 1873 was made general superintendent of the Urbana Machine Works, a position which he occupied for a couple of years, at the end of which time he resumed the practice of his profession and in 1878 was elected probate judge in and for Champaign county and by successive re-elections was retained in that office for four terms, or until 1890, since which time he has been engaged in the practice of his profession and in looking after his other interests in and about Urbana.  Judge Todd has ever given his earnest attention to local civic affairs and for ten years served as assistant postmaster at Urbana, retiring in 1916.  He is an ardent Republican and has for many years been looked upon as one of the leaders of that party in this county and throughout this part of the state.      The above brief review of Judge Todd's professional and civic activities has made no reference to his distinguished military service during the progress of the Civil War, mention of which has been reserved for a separate paragraph.  Upon President Lincoln's first call for volunteers in that memorable April of 1861, Judge Todd responded to the call with patriotic fervor and on April 29 enrolled his name as a member of Company F, Second Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, at Springfield, with which command he served until the following July.  In 1862 he assisted in organizinga Springfield company of recruits and went to the front with them as second lieutenant of Company B, Eighty-sixth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and was presently promoted to the rank of first lieutenant, later becoming regimental quartermaster, and was mustered out with that rank at Camp Delaware on Sept. 25, 1862.  On May 6, 1864. he was commissioned lieutenant-colonel of the One Hundred and Thirty-fourth Ohio and after some active service with that command in the advance on Petersburg was finally mustered out with the rank on Aug. 31, 1864.  Judge Todd has for years been one of the most active members of W. A. Brand Post.  Grand Army of the Republic, at Urbana, has held numerous offices in that patriotic organization and has long been a familiar and enthusiastic figure at the annual encampments of the Grand Army of the Republic.  Department of Ohio, and has likewise attended several national encampments of the Grand Army.      Judge Todd has been twice married.  It was in 1863 that he was united in marriage to Virginia Hamilton, who died in 1868, leaving two sons.  Lee H. Todd, for many years proprietor of a book store at Urbana, and Robert M. Todd.  In 1869 Mr. Todd married, Ella W. Hovey and to this union three children were born, Nancy H., wife of Gary G. Glessner; Frank W. Todd, who is one of the best-known newspaper men in Urbana, and Helen Todd, who died at an early age.  Judge and Mrs. Todd are members of the Presbyterian church and have for years been regarded as among the leaders in the various beneficences of the same, ever taking an earnest interest in church work, as well as in the general good works of the city and county at large, and have been helpful in many ways in promoting such agencies as have been designed to advance the common welfare hereabout. Source:  History of Champaign County, Ohio, Vol. II - publ. 1917 - Page 330
	JAMES RAWLINGS TODD.     James Rawlings Todd, one of Champaign county's best-known and most substantial retired farmers and dairymen, former trustee of Union township and for years actively interested in the public affairs of the community, is a native son of this county and has lived here all his life.  He was born on a farm on Pretty Prairie, in Urbana township, Mar. 9, 1863, son of Thomas Mitchell and Mary Martha (Rawlings) Todd, the former of whom was a native of Pennsylvania and the latter of this county, prominent residents of the Pretty Prairie neighborhood.      Thomas Mitchell Todd was born in Dauphin county, Pennsylvania, on Apr. 17, 1827, son of David and Sallie Todd, who came to this state from Pennsylvania in 1846, locating first in Warren county and coming thence, in the spring of 1847, to Champaign county and settling in Urbana township, where they established their home and where they spent the remainder of their lives.  Thomas M. Todd was twenty years of age when he came to this county and on Mar. 12, 1857, ten years later, he married Mary Martha Rawlings, who was born in Urbana township on Dec. 25, 1831, daughter of pioneer residents of the Pretty Prairie section.  After his marriage he established his home on a farm five miles southeast of Urbana, where he developed a fine piece of farm property and where he and his wife continued to make their home until in April, 1896, when they and their daughter, Alma, moved to Urbana.  There Mrs. Todd died on Dec. 1, 1905.  Mr. Todd died in October, 1911.  They were the parents of seven children, of whom the subject of this sketch was the third in order of birth, the others being as follow:  Susanna, born on Mar. 18, 1858, who died on Dec. 14, 1862; David Solon, born Sept. 8, 1860, who after years of successful farming in Union township, moved to Urbana, married Florence Engle, Dec. 24, 184, and had two children, Herbert E., born on June 29, 1886, and Wilbur M., born Jan. 6, 1890; Alma, born Oct. 9, 1864, who is now making her home in Urbana; Henry William, born Aug. 7, 1867, who died on July 16, 1883; Thomas Rawlings, born Mar. 27, 1870, a well-known Champaign county farmer, who, on Nov. 14, 1895, married Laura V. Swinley; Pearl C., born Nov. 18, 1872, who died at San Antonio, Texas, Mar. 20, 1909, leaving a widow, Eveline (Cartmell) Todd, to whom he was married on Sept. 16, 1902, and one child, a daughter, Margaret L., born on Mar. 23, 1904; the widow and her daughter now living in Urbana.      James R. Todd was reared on the home farm on Pretty Prairie, a valued assistant to his father and brothers in the labors of improving and developing the same, and received his early schooling in the neighborhood schools, supplementing the same by a two-years course in Oberlin College, after which he returned to the old home place and there continued engaged in farming for about three years, at the end of which time he began farming on his own account and later became a landowner in Union township, establishing his home there after his marriage and continued farming there, his farm being a part of the old Todd farm, and there continued to make his home until 1912, when he moved to Urbana township, where he remained, operating a dairy farm, until in March, 1917, when he retired from the farm and moved to Urbana, where he and his family are now living and where they are very comfortably situated.  During Mr. Todd's long residence on the farm he was quite extensively engaged in the raising of cattle and horses, in connection with his general farming, and did very well in his operations.  He is a stanch Republican and for twelve years served as trustee of Union township.  He also served for six years as director of the county infirmary and in other ways has given his personal attention to local public affairs.      It was on Oct. 6, 1892, that James R. Todd was united in marriage to Kate A. Preston of Mutual, this county, who was born in Nelsonville, over in Athens county, this state, daughter of Dr. H. S. and Charity (Hushowa) Preston, who became residents of Mutual in 1876, where the Doctor is still engaged in the practice of his profession.  Doctor Preston was born in Columbus, this state, and is a graduate of Sterling Medical College in that city.  It was in March, 1876, that he located in Mutual, where he ever since has made his home, engaged in practice and in the mercantile business.  He and his wife had four children, those besides Mrs. Todd being William (deceased), Abba, wife of Frank Stone, of Springfield, this state, and Charity, wife of E. A. Baker, of Springfield.      To James R. and Kate A. (Preston) Todd two children have been born.  Elise Alma, wife of Harry Carnahan, head chemist for the Caldwell & Bloos Company, of Mansfield, this state, and Imogene, who is at home with her parents.  Mr. and Mrs. Todd and their daughters are members of the Presbyterian church and have ever taken a warm interest in church affairs, as well as in the general social activities of the community, helpful in numerous ways in advancing such movements as are designed to advance the common welfare.  Mr. Todd is a Mason and a member of the local lodge of the Knights of Pythias, and in the affairs of these popular organizations takes an active interest. Source:  History of Champaign County, Ohio, Vol. II - publ. 1917 - Page 300

.