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BIOGRAPHIES
Source:
A Standard History of Springfield and Clark County,
Ohio
An Authentic Narrative of the Past, with Particular Attention
to the Modern Era in the Commercial, Industrial,
Educational, Civic and Social Development
--
Prepared Under the Editorial Supervision of
Dr. Benjamin F. Prince
President Clark County Historical Society
--
Assisted by a Board of Advisory Editors
--
Volumes 2
--
Published by
The American Historical Society
Chicago and New York
1922
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W. C. WALLACE.
One of the well kept and valuable country properties in
Bethel Township, owned by W. C. Wallace, has been in
the Wallace family for three consecutive generations
and is the homestead of a family that has been in Clark
County for more than a century. This farm is situated
ten miles west of Springfield and a mile south of the
National Road.
W. C. Wallace, his father, Joseph C., and
the two sons of W. C. Wallace were all born in the
same house. W. C. Wallace was born July 13,
1864. The pioneer of the family here was Reuben
Wallace, who came from Rockingham County, Virginia, and
bought the land included in the Wallace homstead
in 1818. This land then cost $11 an acre. He
acquired a half a section. A school stood on adjoining
land, and he had to acquire a strip eleven rods wide,
containing twenty-two acres, in order to make the school
accessible to his land Two school houses stood on that site,
the second one a brick building erected about 1833 and
abandoned in 1872 and torn down in 1888. Reuben
Wallace was born Aug. 13, 1778. He became a man
of substantial character in Clark County, and was a member
of the State Legislature at the time Fayette County was
created and was one of the three commissioners to locate the
county seat. Reuben Wallace was a
cabinet maker by trade. He sold off from his original
tract until he owned two hundred acres at the time of his
death. His sons Joseph C. and Benjamin F.
acquired this portion of the homestead. Reuben
Wallace died May 11, 1855. On Apr. 5, 1803, he
married Anna Lamme, of a family that came from
Virginia about the same time as the Wallaces.
His second wife was Barbara Cecil, and his third
wife, Eleanor Mitchell, survived him some years.
There were several children by the first marriage, and a
granddaughter living at New Carlisle is Mrs. William
Higgins. The children of the second marriage were:
John W., born in 1820 and died young; Benjamin F.,
born in 1822, and removed to Indiana, where he died; Anna,
born in 1823, became the wife of Robert Black
and died, north of Carlisle, in middle life; Reuben B.,
born in 1825, and died young; Joseph C.; Nancy,
born in 1828, died unmarried in 1903; Sarah, born in
1830. married Monroe Dyche, and died in
California in 1905, and William W., born in 1831, was
drowned at the age of nineteen.
Joseph C. Wallace was born Dec. 7, 1826. Oct. 3,
1861, he married Mary N. Smith, who was born at
Greenfield, Ohio, June 16, 1838. She died Mar. 19,
1903. Joseph C. Wallace was killed at a
railroad crossing Jan. 7, 1897. At the time of his
death he owned 153 acres of the homestead, and also another
place of eighty-six acres near there. He was a
prosperous farmer, stockman and cattle feeder. His
family consisted of two sons, W. C. and Fred S.
The latter attended the University of Delaware, Ohio, read
law, was editor of the old Republic, and is now publisher of
the Tribune at Coshocton, Ohio.
W. C. Wallace was given a high school education,
and his life has been practically devoted to the interests
of the farm since early manhood. On June 9, 1906, he
married Grace Wise, daughter of William and Martha
(McKinney) Wise. Her great-grandfather, Samuel
McKinney, came to Clark County about the same time as
the Wallaces. Martha McKinney was the
daughter of Cyrus McKinney. The Wise family
were pioneers at Medway, where they owned the site of
the old power house and erected a saw mill and woolen mill.
William Wise is now living retired at
Medway and was for over fifty years a justice of the peace.
After his father’s death W. C. Wallace acquired the
old farm, and his business life has been completely devoted
to its management. He is a dairyman and stock raiser.
The family residence now occupied by him was erected in
1900. He is a republican, and is a member of the
Methodist Episcopal Church at Medway. The Ward Chapel
was practically built by his grandfather, and was used by
the congregation until a new church at Medway was built,
about 1855. Mr. and Mrs. Wallace have a family
of three children: Donald M., who graduated from the
Ohio State University in 1922; Roscoe W., a member of
the class of 1923 in the state university; and Anna E.,
who graduated from high school in 1922. Both sons are
also graduates of high school.
SOURCE: A Standard History of Springfield and Clark County,
Ohio; Vol. 2; Benjamin F. Prince, 1922 - Page 149 |
E. A. Watts |
ELMER A. WATTS. In
the necessary realization of modern discoveries and
inventions that have in the last quarter of a century or
more most tremendously changed and bettered conditions and
operations in many lines of human effort, it would be folly
to assert that inventive genius can go no further, yet, in
the light of the large measures of perfection that has been
introduced into some lines of present day manufacturing it
may seem problematical. The ordinary, uninspired man
may well consider with wonder and admiration his brother
whose marvelous inventions have wrought these changes, for
his talents are truly extraordinary and without them the
world would make little progress. In this field no one in
the State of Ohio may be justly named more prominent than is
Elmer A. Watts, president of The Miller
Improved Gas Engine Company of Springfield, also president
of the Watts-Dunn Air Pump Company, and interested in the
manufacture and distribution of many articles of his own
invention that have proved to be invaluable in modern
mechanics.
Elmer A. Watts has been
a resident of Springfield for twenty-four years. He
was born in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, June 20, 1873,
and is a son of George L. and Mary (Watson) Watts.
After completing his public school course at Muncy he
started as an apprentice with the Williamsport Machine
Company in his native state, learned his trade there and in
1895 came to Ohio, spending three years at Greenfield.
In 1898 he came to Springfield, and for many years has
been identified with The Miller Improved Gas Engine
Company, of which he is now the head.
The history of the above company began in March, 1898,
when a charter was granted to Charles A. Miller, N. H.
Fairbanks, Oscar T. Martin, A. R. Cobaugh and M. L.
Milligan. The Miller Gas Engine Company was
incorporated for the purpose of making gas engines. It
had as a basis an engine invented by C. A. Miller,
and began business with a capital stock of $25,000.
The first officers were: Charles A. Miller,
president; N. H. Fairbanks, vice president; M. L.
Milligan, secretary and treasurer. The first site
was the old Whitely plant on East High Street, removal being
made to its present location on Plum and Fair streets in
1902. In 1909 Mr. Miller died, and all the original
incorporators have ceased connection with the business.
In 1910 a new engine, designed by Elmer A. Watts,
superseded the Miller engine, and this new engine,
with later improvements, has since continued as the
principal product of the plant. In 1913 Mr. Watts
introduced a new engine and compressor combined (his own
invention also) for compressing air and gas, which is '
manufactured here, and is used in gas and mining fields.
The product of this plant is used industrially, in electric
lighting, street railways, oil, gas and mining fields.
Within the last four years the company has installed for the
Charles F. Noble Oil & Gas Company at Burk-Burnett,
Texas, a number of its products, this being the largest
gasoline plant in the world. The Miller
Improved Gas Engine Company now operates with a capital of
$120,000, and employs 150 hands. Its officers are:
Elmer A. Watts, president and general manager; Homer
C. Miller, vice president; Fred E. Kirchner,
secretary and treasurer. Among other notable
inventions to be credited to Mr. Watts is an
automatic pump for pumping oil and water, the same being
manufactured by the Watts-Dunn Air Pump Company, of which
concern Mr. Watts continues to be president.
In 1895 Mr. Watts married Miss Jessie May
Brown, of Greenfield, Ohio, and they have two children:
Lawrence Fay and Thelma Louise. Mr.
Watts and his family are members of the Christian
Church. He is an active member of the Springfield
Chamber of Commerce, being notably enterprising and
progressive in all that concerns the welfare of his city, in
political life he is an earnest republican, but no
politician, and for many years has belonged to the Masonic
fraternity.
SOURCE: A Standard History of Springfield and Clark County,
Ohio; Vol. 2; Benjamin F. Prince, 1922 - Page 315 |
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CHAUNCEY ILES
WEAVER. Of the public utilities companies of
Clark County which have functioned to the entire
satisfaction of the people, few have been placed in a more
favorable light than the Springfield Light, Heat and Power
Company. Not a little of the credit for the success of
this concern and for its high standing in the confidence and
esteem of the people must be given to the vice president and
general manager, Chauncey Iles Weaver, a man of
liberal training and broad practical experience, whose
knowledge, ability and energy have contributed materially to
the placing of the concern upon a high pedestal.
Mr. Weaver was born at Everest, Kansas, Feb. 13,
1886, a son of Calvin B. and Margaret (Iles) Weaver.
He spent his youth in Kansas, where he attended the public
schools, including high school, and then entered the Kansas
State College, where he pursued a course in electrical
engineering, and was graduated from that institution after a
satisfactory college career with the degree of Bachelor of
Science. Following this he took up special work in
electric measurements at Armour Institute, Chicago.
Mr. Weaver was employed afterward by the General
Electric Company at Schenectady, New York, whence he was
subsequently transferred to that company’s sales department
at Minneapolis, Minnesota. When he left the General
Electric Company’s employ he went to Chicago, where he
entered the service of the Westinghouse Electric and
Manufacturing Company as salesman in connection with coal
mines.
In the fall of 1912 Mr. Weaver became
identified with the Commonwealth Power, Railway and Light
Company, which is the holding company for the Springfield
Light, Heat and Power Company. For three years at
first Mr. Weaver acted in the capacity of
sales manager. In 1915, 1916 and 1917 he was manager
of the Eastern Michigan Power Company, a construction
concern engaged in building hydroelectric and steam plants
and transmission lines, also doing other construction work
for the Consumers Power Company in Michigan. On Jan.
3, 1918, he took charge of the Springfield Light, Heat and
Power Company in the capacity of general manager, and in the
following year was also made vice president, having
held these two positions to the present time.
Mr. Weaver is an active member of the
American Institute of Electrical Engineering, the National
Electric Light Association and other organizations of his
profession. As a fraternalist he is a charter member
of H. S. Kissell Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, of
Springfield. He likewise holds membership in the
Springfield Chamber of Commerce, the Springfield Rotary
Club, the Lagonda Club, the Springfield Country Club and the
Young Men’s Christian Association. His religious
connection is with the Presbyterian Church.
In 1909 Mr. Weaver was united in marriage
with Miss Laura Lillian
Lyman, who was born Feb. 11, 1888, at Manhattan,
Kansas. Mr. and Mrs. Weaver have one daughter,
Margaret Gertrude.
SOURCE: A Standard History of Springfield and Clark County,
Ohio; Vol. 2; Benjamin F. Prince, 1922 - Page 128 |
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CHARLES F. WISE
has been an active figure in farming and stock raising
circles in Clark County for over forty years. While he has
turned over some of the heavier responsibilities to younger
shoulders, he still owns a large amount of valuable farm
property and lives on a farm in Greene Township, six miles
west of South Charleston. He was born on a farm in
Springfield Township, December 26, 1861, son of Lewis and
Malinda (Hatfield) Wise. His father was born in Madison
Township, near South Charleston, December 14, 1829, son of
Jesse and Debora (Strong) Wise. Jesse Wise was a
native of Virginia, and came on horseback with his mother
across the mountains to the vicinity of South Charleston
about 1810. His mother lived there the rest of her life, and
he grew up and at the age of eighteen married Debora
Strong. The Wise family has therefore been identified
with this part of Clark County for considerably more than a
century. The three children of Jesse Wise
were: Phoebe, wife of John Butcher;
Anna, who became the wife of Hamilton Wade;
and Lewis Wise. Charles F. Wise spent
his early life on the old farm in Springfield Township, and
while there attended the local schools. At the age of
twenty-one he went for himself and on August 1, 1883,
married Minnie A. Schukedantz, who was born in
Madison Township, November 5, 1863. After his marriage
Mr. Wise rented land from his father, and at his
father's death he secured 160 acres in Greene Township. He
lived on that place thirty-four years, and in 1920 moved to
his present home of seventy-nine acres. Altogether he owns
nearly four hundred acres. Mr. and Mrs.
Wise have three sons. Blain C., born June 1,
1884, is a graduate in the Pitchin High School, as are his
two brothers, and he is a farmer and married Emma
Truesdale. Clarence L., born June 16, 1886, is a farmer
and married Daisy Craig. Jesse C., born
December 14, 1891, married Louise Skillings.
He is a farmer, and is also a well trained and talented
vocal and instrumental musician. The entire Wise family are
members of the Pitchin Grange. Mr. Wise is a
republican, has served as trustee and a member of the School
Board, and is a stockholder in the Farmers National Bank at
Springfield. In live stock he has specialized in the
breeding of Poland-China hogs. Mrs. Wise is a
daughter of Christopher and Judith (Clemens)
Schukedantz. Her father was born near Frankfort,
Germany, and her mother near South Charleston, Ohio. Her
father was a boy when his parents came to America, locating
near South Charleston, where he grew up and married and
became a successful farmer and livestock shipper. Of the
nine children in the Schukedantz family five are
living: Sarah, wife of Thomas Day, of
Lagonda; Mary, wife of James Littler,
of Springfield; Anna C., widow of John Hess,
of Springfield: Mrs. Wise; and Henry,
living near Selma.
SOURCE: A Standard History of Springfield and Clark
County, Ohio by Benjamin F. Prince, 1922 - Page 92 -
Transcribed for Ohio Genealogy Express by Cathy Portz |
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LEONARD
S. WRIGHT is one of the men who is setting a high
standard for the agricultural and stock raising industry of
Clark County. He is a man of very good judgment and
business ability, and his industry has carried him far
toward the achievement of individual success. Mr.
Wright for the past ten years has lived on the old
McGrew farm, four miles west of South Charleston.
He was born on a farm in Fayette County, Ohio, Dec. 13,
1884, son of Allie and Alice (Fannon) Wright.
His father was born in Fayette County, Mar. 31, 1861, son of
Walter S. and Nancy (Allen) Wright, and grandson of
Benjamin and Rebecca (Cave) Wright. Allie Wright
was reared and educated in Fayette County, and after his
marriage lived on a farm there for a number of years.
He now owns a farm in Greene Township of Clark County, but
his home is in Springfield. He is affiliated with the
Independent Order of Odd Fellows and is a republican in
politics. Allie Wright and wife had five
children: Leonard S.; Ansel, a farmer in
Madison County, Ohio; Samuel, a farmer in Clark
County; Ova, wife of Thomas Winner, a
carpenter at Springfield, and Dorothy, attending the
Springfield High School.
Leonard S. Wright spent his early life on farms
in Fayette and Madison counties, and while there made the
best possible use of his advantages in the district schools.
He was at home until he was twenty-one, and two years later
he married Della Foster. She was born in
Madison County, Nov. 13, 1887, and had a public school
education.
After his marriage Mr. Wright rented a farm in
Madison County for four years, and then, ten years ago,
moved to Clark County and took charge of the extensive
property of 577 acres which has been under his capable
direction and management. He has made this farm the
home of a herd of registered Shorthorn cattle. He and
his brother Ansel own together a farm of 207 acres in
Greene County, Ohio.
Mr. and Mrs. Wright have two children: Ruth,
attending the Harmony Township High School, and Benjamin
C., who is still in the grade school. Mr.
Wright is affiliated with the Springfield Lodge of
Elks, is a republican, and the family are Presbyterians and
attend worship at South Charleston.
Source: A Standard History of Springfield and Clark
County, Ohio - Vol. 2 - Publ.: The American Historical
Society - Chicago & New York - 1922 - Page 75 |
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