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BIOGRAPHIES
Source:
THE
HISTORY OF CLINTON COUNTY, OHIO
Volume 2 of 2
containing
A History of the County; Its Townships, Cities, Towns, Schools,
Churches, Etc.; General and Local Statistics; Portraits of
Early Settlers and Prominent Men; History of the
Northwest Territory; History of Ohio; Map of
Clinton County; Constitution of the
United States, Miscellaneous
Matters, Etc., Etc.
- Illustrated -
Chicago:
W. H. Beers & Co.
1882
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Richland
Twp. -
W. H. SANDERS, editor Sabina News,
Sebina.
Source: History of Clinton Co., OH, Vol. 2, Published 1882 -
Page 1112
NOTE: No more is mentioned. |
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Greene
Twp. -
ZEPHANIAH SPEARS, retired farmer, P. O.
New Vienna, born in Westmoreland County, Penn., Aug. 12, 1807,
is a son of Robinson and Elizabeth (Bryan) Spears,
natives of Pennsylvania. The grandparents were John and
Mary Spears. He emigrated to America when but a boy
and settled in Pennsylvania, where he married his wife, who was
of German descent. He lived and died in Pennsylvania,
where he married his wife, who was of German descent. He
lived and died in Pennsylvania, but his widow subsequently came
to Ohio with her son Robinson, and died in Brown County.
Robinson Spears grew to manhood brought up to farm labor
in his native State, and married there. In June, 1817, he
with his family removed to Ohio, and first settled in Ross
County; thence, in 1821, he removed to Brown County; thence, in
1827, removed to Guernsey County, Ohio, where he died in 1850.
His wife survived him till the fall of 1873 aged ninety-two
years. Mr. Spears was one of the pioneer farmers of
Ohio. When he settled in Brown County, he purchased 300
acres of land, nearly all of which was in the woods, and there
he labored six years, clearing up a large portion of his land;
but, as the country was level and quite wet in that day, he
desired a more hilly and drier country; hence he sold out and
removed to Guernsey County, Ohio, as above stated. He was
the father of eleven children, all of whom but one grew to
maturity, married and settled in life. Five now survive -
Zephaniah; Elizabeth, now Widow Oliver; Ellen, now
Widow Stewart; Jane Ann, now wife of John Willis,
and Prudence, wife of William Willis. Zephaniah,
the subject of this sketch, was the third child of his parents,
and was about ten eyars of age when his father came to Ohio, and
here grew to manhood. At nineteen years of age, he went to
learn the blacksmith trade, which he followed ten years; thence
he entered upon farming, purchasing the farm where he now lives,
then known as the "Morgantown farm," in 1836, having carried on
blacksmithing upon the place eight years previous to his
purchase. Hence he has been a continued resident upon this
farm fifty-four years with Lovina Mathews, a daughter of
Joel and Phebe Mathews, natives of North Carolina.
By this union they had nine children; six now survive - Mary
Jane, wife of M. L. Turner; Washington; Margaret,
wife of William Boatright; Thompson, James A. and
Jefferson D. When Mr. Spears settled upon this
farm, there was but little improvement, he having cleared up
right from the woods the greater portion of his now fine
cultivated farm, erected his present fine brick dwelling, and
all the other buildings upon the place, which now constitute a
beautiful home and farmer's residence. Mr. Spears
started in life without a dollar of capital, and, by his own
industry and economy, became owner of 450 acres of land, and one
of the most substantial farmers of the county. His first
purchase of land was 250 acres at $12 per acre; his second
purchase was 200 acre at $44 per acre. Now it is all worth
$100 per acre. Mr. Spears has served as Trustee and
also Treasurer of his township several years; has been a worthy
member of the Christian Church for forty years. His long
life and residence here have been marked with such integrity and
high moral and Christian character that he has won the
confidence and respect of a very large circle of friends and
acquaintances, and his life will ever stand forth to the rising
generations as a bright and shining example of industry and
financial success, coupled with a high standard of moral and
Christian excellence. Mrs. Spears died Mar. 14,
1875, in her sixty-fourth year. She born her full share of
the toils and labors of their early life, and was a true
helpmeet and companion, and a devoted wife and Christian mother.
Washington Spears, the second surviving child of
Zephaniah and Lovina Spears, now has the home place of his
father, with whom he now lives, retired from all active labor.
Washington was married, Dec. 1, 1859, to Lydia Roush,
daughter of George and Rachel Roush, of Highland County.
By this union they have three children - Ivey, Ollie and
Ellsworth. Mr. Spears, like his father, is
possessed of a high moral and Christian character, and is
highly respected by all who know him.
Source: History of Clinton Co., OH, Vol. 2, Published 1882 -
Page 1014 |
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Union Twp. -
J. J. STAGG, Wilmington, of Stagg &
Abell, proprietors West House, was born in Hamilton County,
Ohio, Aug. 3, 1819. His father was Thomas Stagg,
a native of New York, who located in Ohio in 1808. He was
a farmer by occupation, and died in 1833. Mr.
Stagg’s mother was Susannah Hewlett, a native
of Vermont. She departed this life in 1868. Mr.
Stagg was reared in Hamilton County, and is thoroughly
conversant with the early history of Cincinnati. He was a
farmer in early life, and came to Clinton County in September,
1858. He took possession of the present hotel (then the
Gates House), in 1865, and has since been its
proprietor. In 1878, Harvey H. Abell was admitted
as a partner, and the firm has prospered very well. Mr.
Stagg was made a member of the Odd Fellow fraternity in
1850, and is now a member of Dove Lodge, No. 234, of Mount
Washington, Ohio. He was married in 1839. Mr.
Stagg was formerly a Whig, but is now a Republican.
Source: History of Clinton Co., OH, Vol. 2, Published 1882 -
Page 907 |
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Union
Twp. -
JESSE G. STARBUCK,
farmer, P. O. Wilmington, was born in Union Township, Clinton
Co, Ohio, Oct. 8, 1819. His paternal great grandparents
were Thomas and Rachel Starbuck, he born on
Nantucket Island May 12, 1707, and died Feb. 2, 1777, and she
born in 1710 and died May 31, 1789. His grandfather,
Hezekiah Starbuck, was born on Nantucket Island, Apr. 10,
1749, and on Nov. 19, 1771, he married Mary _____. He was
a seafaring man, and for a part of his life was a Captain of a
whaling vessel. He was on a cruise when the Revolutionary
war broke out, and on his return he had great difficulty in
entering the harbor which was blockaded by the enemy. In
1785, he emigrated to Guilford County, N. C., where he raised
his family and where his wife died June 9, 1806. He
afterward removed to Clinton County where he remained until his
death, which occurred on the 10th of June, 1880. Mr.
Starbuck’s father, Gayer, was born on Nantucket
Island Aug. 10, 1777, and removed with his parents to North
Carolina, where he spent the early part of his life. He
learned the blacksmith’s trade and for many years followed that
avocation. He was married Jan. 17, 1799, by permission of
the New Garden Monthly Meeting, to Susannah, daughter of
Jesse and Hannah Dillon. By this marriage five sons
and five daughters were born, of whom one son died, aged
twenty-two years, and the rest married and raised families.
He removed to Ohio in 1807, and settled temporarily in the edge
of Greene County, near where Paintersville now is, but in 1810
they came to Clinton County (then an unbroken forest) and
located where our subject now lives. Here they remained
until their death, he Dec. 30, 1866, and she Mar. 12, 1861.
Our subject’s maternal grandfather, Jesse Dillon,
of Irish descent, was born in North Carolina, in October, 1753,
and on Apr. 29, 1778, married Hannah Ruckman, who
was born Mar. 20, 1754, to Joseph and Sarah Ruckman.
They came to Ohio in 1807, and settled in the wilderness on land
now owned by John T. Starbuck. Our subject was
educated in the common schools of the township, and was married
at Fairfield Meeting, Hendricks County, Ind., on Oct. 20, 1842,
to Amy Cox, daughter of Harmon and
Martha Cox. She was born in Wayne County,
Ind., June 1, 1823, and moved to Hendricks County with her
parents when a child. After their marriage, Mr. and
Mrs. S. settled on the farm where they now reside in this
township. For the first ten years of his married life
Mr. S. was engaged in running a steam saw-mill which had a
run of buhrs attached for grinding corn. The balance of
his life has been devoted to farming. They have raised a
family of five children, their other children having died in
early life. The survivors are Adin L., born May 10,
1844, and married Oct. 12, 1865, to Louisa M. Pidgeon,
who was born in Guilford County, N. C., Nov. 21, 1847, to
Charles and Catharine Pidgeon; they have seven children,
viz.: Nellie May (an adopted daughter), Mary
Amy Ernest, Correna, Inez, Leola and Mamie.
Mr. Starbuck’s second son, Asa, was born March,
1846, and on June 25, 1868, married Almira Custis,
daughter of John W. and Louisa (Smith)
Custis. She was born Oct. 28, 1846, and by her eight
children were born, viz.: Nettie M., Laura B., Adin C., Jesse
C., Sarah A., Cora D., Marion R. and Louisa A. The
third child, Martha, was born Jan. 29, 1848, and on Feb.
16, 1876, married William D. Moorman, born Apr. 3, 1845,
to Samuel and Lucy (Johnson) Moorman,
and by him she has one child, Charles R. Mr. Starbuck’s
fourth child, William R., was born May 12, 1858, and
graduated in the Wilmington College; he is now teaching school.
The fifth and youngest child is Jesse H., born Nov. 11,
1864, and is now assisting his father on the farm while
attending the public school. Mr. Starbuck is
a good husband, a kind father and an intelligent and moral
citizen. He has dealt liberally with his children, giving
them good educational advantages and the means of starting in
life. He is one of Clinton County’s best and most
successful farmers and stands high in the estimation of the
people.
Source: History of Clinton Co., OH, Vol. 2, Published 1882 -
Page 907 |
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Union Twp. -
JOHN T. STARBUCK,
farmer, P. O. Wilmington, was born in Union Township, Clinton
County, Ohio, Oct. 6, 1822. He was the son of Latham
and Sarah (Milton) Starbuck, natives of North Carolina, who
emigrated to Ohio and settled in Clinton County in 1811.
They had a family of twelve children, seven boys and five girls,
of whom our subject was the fourth. He received a limited
schooling while his people were relieving the land of the timber
and underbrush, very often being obliged to absent himself from
school to help them. He selected farming for his life
occupation, but for a short time followed carpentering. In
his farm work he has met with marked success, being now
possessor of 222 acres of good farm land. He was married
in 1852 to Margaret Shields, a native of Union
Township, and daughter of William Shields, who came to
this county with his wife in 1806. His marriage was
blessed with four children, viz.: Josephine, wife of
Samuel T. Compton, of this county; William, married
and farming in this township; Clara A. and Albert.
The family are all members of the Society of Friends.
Mr. Starbuck is a man who ranks high among the farming
community of Clinton County, and all he has was made principally
by his personal exertions.
Source: History of Clinton Co., OH, Vol. 2, Published 1882 -
Page 908 |
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Union
Twp. -
NATHAN STARBUCK, farmer, P. O. Wilmington,
was born in Clinton County, Ohio, Feb. 13, 1820. He is the
son of Latham and Sarah (Milton) Starbuck, natives of
North Carolina, of English descent. He was educated in the
common schools and chose farming for a life occupation, but
owned and conducted a saw-mill from 1866 to 1869. He is
the inventor of Starbuck’s Ditching Machine for cutting
the trenches in which drain tile are laid. This machine is
operated by two men and six horses, and is capable of cutting
forty rods of trenches per hour. It is a perfect success
and has been awarded two medals for merit, but it has not as yet
reached extensive sale on account of the inventor’s farm
operations preventing him from pushing it on the market.
Mr. Starbuck was married in 1849 to Ruth Underwood,
who died in 1854, leaving two children. He was again
married in 1857 to Sarah Hoddy, by whom he has had three
children, viz.: Samuel H., Clifford K. and Eddie L.
Mr. and Mrs. S. are members of the Christian Church, and he
is a Republican. He was the seventh child of a family of
twelve children.
Source: History of Clinton Co., OH, Vol. 2, Published 1882 -
Page 909 |
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Union
Twp. -
FRANK STEPHENS, farmer, P. O. Wilmington,
was born in Warren County, Ohio, June 30, 1842. He is the
son of Obadiah and Susannah (Ireland)
Stephens, He received his education in the common
schools, and chose the occupation of farming which he still
follows. He was married in 1867, to Sarah
Gallaher, a native of Clinton County, and a daughter of an
early Ohio settler. By this marriage four children were
born, viz.: Charles M., Minnie May, John Hawev and Edwin
Forrest. Mr. Stephens is a prominent Democrat and a
successful farmer.
Source: History of Clinton Co., OH, Vol. 2, Published 1882 -
Page 909 |
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Liberty
Twp.
HENRY STEPHENS, farmer, P. O. Port William, is a son of
David Stephens, who was by birth a Virginian, born Apr.
14, 1806. At an early age, his parents moved to Clinton
County, Ohio, where the latter died at advanced age, after
enduring the privations of pioneer life, and David was
reared amid the unbroken forest, which he assisted in clearing
away, and opening up the furtile fields that now lie in the
limits of Liberty Township. His enthusiastic and
persevering nature carried him through many pioneer hardships,
which could only be properly related by the pioneers themselves.
About 1827, he married Catherine Shields and
settled on the farm now occupied by our subject, where he
remained as a farmer until shortly before his death, Apr. 3,
1881, when he located in Port William. Catherine
was born in Clinton County May 22, 1810, and preceded her
husband to the eternal home a period of five years.
Henry, whose name appears above, is one of a family of ten
children, six daughters and four sons, of whom the former are
all dead and the latter all survive. Of the sons, Henry
is the third, and was born in 1839 on the farm where he now
lives. He was raised a tiller of the soil, and is such
still. On Oct. 30, 1861, he married Mary E. McDonnan,
with whom he had eleven children, of whom six now survive.
Mrs. Stephens is a native of Clinton County, Ohio,
born June 20, 1844.
Source: History of Clinton Co., OH, Vol. 2, Published 1882 -
Page 1065 |
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Union
Twp. -
OBADIAH STEPHENS, farmer and stock-raiser,
P. O. Wilmington, was born in Morris County, N. J., Apr. 22,
1813. He is the son of Ebenezer and Maria (Phoenix)
Stephens, natives of New Jersey, of English and German
descent. His maternal grandfather was a soldier in the war
of the Revolution, and his father in the war of 1812. Our
subject’s sole education was obtained from Webster’s spelling
book, studied in the little log schoolhouse of early days.
In early childhood he manifested wonderful energy and bravery
and these characteristics followed him through life. He
takes pleasure in relating the following incident of his school
days: During his early school days, the larger boys
carried a fire-stick into the school-room one day, and when the
stick had burned partially through they were vainly endeavoring
to break it in order that it might be put into the old
fire-place, little Obadiah seeing their efforts were
fruitless rose from his seat, ran to the fire-place and jumping
on the fire-stick succeeded in breaking it to the satisfaction
of the larger boys. He then walked complacently to his
seat and was at once recalled by the teacher and, fearing a
flogging which he knew would be severe from that teacher, he
reluctantly went to the teacher’s desk. Instead of
punishing him for his breach of discipline, the teacher took a
bottle of whisky from his desk and gave the youth a drink, thus
showing his approval of the lad’s efforts. Mr.
Stephen’s father was a millwright by trade and occupied
himself also in farming. Our subject followed farming for
a time and subsequently operated a distillery, the latter
proving very successful. He purchased 100 acres where he
now lives, and by dint of great industry he has added to it from
time to time until he now owns 430 acres. He came to
Clinton County in 1847. On Apr. 13, 1837, he married in
Warren County Susannah Ireland. She was a native of
Frederick County, Virginia, of Scotch-English descent.
They were blessed with four children, viz., Ann Eliza,
Emeline, Frances I. and John. Mr. S.
is a prominent member of the Odd Fellow fraternity and of the
Democratic party. His paternal grandmother was a native of
Wales, and lived to reach ninety-seven years of age, when she
received a fall which resulted in her death. She left 144
descendants at her death. Previous to her death she was
enabled to say to her daughter: “Daughter, arise and go to
thy daughter, for thy daughter’s daughter has a son.” Thus
it will be seen that she was the first of five generations then
living.
Source: History of Clinton Co., OH, Vol. 2, Published 1882 -
Page 907 |
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Union
Twp. -
JOSEPH N. STEVENS, Superintendent of the
Clinton County Infirmary, Wilmington, was born in Marion
Township, this county, Sept. 15, 1833. He is a son of
John and Elizabeth Collins, natives of Virginia and of
English descent. Mr. Stevens was reared on a farm
in Marion Township, receiving a fair education in the public
schools. He engaged in farming when young and followed
that vocation until the fall of 1864, when he enlisted in
Capt. Dennison’s company, and served till June 13, 1865,
when he received an honorable discharge. He was under
Gen. Thomas, and was mostly engaged in guarding railroads.
During his war service, Mr. Stevens suffered the loss of
the fingers on one hand, which disabled him at the time.
He was a mail carrier for eight years, and during this time
(1876) his eldest son, Alva A., was drowned while
crossing a swollen stream. In 1880, Mr. Stevens was
appointed to his present position by the Board of County
Commissioners. He is Republican in politics and has
formerly officiated as Constable and Assessor of Marion
Township. He now owns a good farm of 100 acres in Marion
Township and a house and lot in Westboro. He was married
in 1865 to Melissa M. Manker, born in Highland County,
Ohio, Feb. 15, 1834, and a daughter of Hiram Manker, of
that county. Six children have been given them, five
living— Eberly C., Emma E., Effie A., Otto D. and
Charles L. Mr. Stevens and wife are members of the
United Brethren Church, in which denomination Mr. S. has
been class teacher and Superintendent of Sunday school for a
number of years.
Source: History of Clinton Co., OH, Vol. 2, Published 1882 -
Page 909 |
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