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OHIO GENEALOGY EXPRESS
A Part of
Genealogy Express
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Welcome to
Fulton County, Ohio
History & Genealogy
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‡ Source:
Standard History of Fulton County, Ohio
Publ. by The Lewis Publishing Company
Chicago & New York
1920
Transcribed by
Sharon Wick
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JOSEPH D. SARGENT
is proprietor of one of the high class farms found in Gorham
township, the place where he was born, and where his
grandparents in pioneer times acquired land direct from the
Government.
Mr. Sargent was born in Gorham township, Mar.
26, 1878, a son of Oscar M. and Georgia (Cottrell)
Sargent. His father was a native of New York state
and his mother was born in Gorham township. The
paternal grandparents were Ephraim and Hulda (Collins)
Sargent, while the maternal grandparents were Joseph
and Maria (Lloyd) Cottell. All were natives of New
England and all of them arrived at an early day in Fulton
county and settled on land grown up with heavy timber.
Thus three generations of the Sargent and Cottrell
families have contributed to the improvement of northern
Fulton county. Oscar Sargent and wife after
their marriage settled in Gorham township, and Oscar
spent his active life as a substantial farmer in that
section. He died Feb. 24, 1912, and his widow is still
living on the home farm. They had three sons,
Joseph D. being the youngest and only survivor.
Frank, the oldest, died when one year old, and Wilber
was accidentally shot and killed at the age of fourteen.
Joseph D. Sargent since he was eight years of
age has lived on his present farm. He acquired his
education in the district schools, supplemented by courses
in the Fayette Normal. For a number of years he has
been specializing as a dairy farmer, and has a herd of ten
Holsteins, the prevailing dairy breed in this county.
His farm comprises a hundred sixteen acres. Mr.
Sargent is an official of the Methodist church and in
politcs is a republican.
Oct. 2, 1902, he married Jessie Baker, also a
native of Gorham township, was a daughter of Thomas and
Eliza (Muhn) Baker. Her father was born in New
York state and her mother in Pennsylvania.
‡ Source:
Standard History of Fulton County, Ohio - by The Lewis
Publishing Company - Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page 150 |
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WILLIAM
THOMAS SAXTON, of Delta, Fulton county, Ohio, one of
the leading business men of that place, has lived most of
his life in the county, and is well-regarded among the
people of Delta, who have known him two years old when his
parents came to live in the county.
He was born on Oct. 15, 1850, the son of Nathaniel
and Catherine (Nort) Saxton, the former a native of New
York state and the latter of German birth. His
paternal grandparent, Cyrus Saxton, was born in New
York state, the Saxton's being among the colonial
families of America. His maternal lineage is Teutonic,
his mother and her parents having been born in Germany.
Dr. John and Margaret Nort, his maternal
grandparents, came to Trenton, Butler county, Ohio, in 1841,
and there Doctor Nort practiced medicine until
1851, when he and his wife came into Fulton county, settling
in Swanton of that county. During the remainder of his
long professional life Doctor Nort practiced medicine
throughout the eastern part of Fulton County and the western
section of Lucas county. He died in Swanton in his
ninetieth year, and was buried in Swanton Cemetery.
Nathaniel and Catherine (Nort) Saxton, parents
of William T., soon after marriage settled in
Muskingum county, Ohio, where their first two children were
born. About eighteen months after the birth of their
second child, William T, they came to live in
Fulton county, where Nathaniel Saxton farmed for one
year, and having then contracted inflammatory rheumatism,
and succumbed to that complaint on July 29, 1853. The
widow had limited resources and three young children.
Fortunately she was near her parents, and in the home of her
parents, Dr. John and Margaret Nort, the Saxton
children were reared. The three children born to
Nathaniel and Catherine (Nort) Saxton were:
Maggie E., who eventually married William Hollis,
of Swanton, Ohio; William Thomas; and George E.,
who died in infancy. The mother spent the last years
of her life in the home of William Thomas, where she
died Aug. 30, 1914.
William Thomas, second child of Nathaniel and
Catherine (North) Saxton, lived from the time of his
father's death until he was seventeen years old in the home
of his grandparents, Doctor and Mrs. North, in
Swanton, Fulton county. He attended the old
Centreville district school, about 1/2 mile south of
Swanton, and when seventeen years old began his business
career, taking employment in a general store in Waterville,
Lucas county, Ohio, where he remained for twelve years.
In April, 1880, he came to Delta as clerk in the general
store of J. M. Longnecker, with whom he was
associated for eight years. Sargent Brothers &
Saxton then bought the Longnecker store. At
the end of fourteen years Mr. Saxton became the sole
owner, having purchased the Sargent interest.
He is widely known throughout Fulton county, and has an
enviable reputation as a man of honorable trading and good
business and moral integrity. He has shown marked
enterprise in his business, having expanded it in many
lines, so that today he does a substantial volume of
business in general merchandise, seeds and coal.
He has entered much into civic activities and community
interests. By religious conviction he is Methodist
Episcopal and for six years has been trustee of the local
church of that denomination. Politically he is a
democrat. He has taken an intelligent interest in the
general national affairs and a keen interest in local
administrations, but he has never been an aspirant for
public affairs. He is identified with the Masonic
fraternity, a member of Fulton Lodge No. 240, and of the
Octavius Waters Chapter of that order.
In June, 1886, he married Octavia A. Waters, who
was born in Delta, Ohio, daughter of Octavius A. and Mary
Ann (Hollington) Waters, well-known Delta residents of
English antecedents. Two children have been born to
Mr. and Mrs. Saxton: Mabel W., who married E.
F. Pennywitt, of Cleveland, Ohio; and Helen Marie,
who died when thirteen years old.
Mr. and Mrs. Saxton are well-regarded in Delta,
and have throughout their married life been residents of
Hospitable inclination.
‡ Source:
Standard History of Fulton County, Ohio - by The Lewis
Publishing Company - Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page 518 |
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ED SCOTT,
vice president, director and one of the stockholders of
Brigham, Guilford & Company, owners of a large department
store business in Wauseon, Ohio, is a well-known man of that
place. He has had good part in the business and public
activities of that place, is well-regarded in the district,
and was twice elected to the office of county clerk.
He was born at the family homestead in Richland county,
Ohio, in 1867, the son of W. C. and Jennie (Stewart)
Scott, his lineage connecting with families of Scottish
and Scotch-Irish ancestry, although the branch to which he
belongs has been resident in America for many generations,
and his forebears are among the pioneer settlers in Eastern
Ohio, where they generally took to the customary pioneering
and later agricultural pursuits. Ed Scott has
spent practically the whole of his life in Wauseon, for he
was not much more than three years old when his parents
moved to the city from Richland county. Ed
received all his academic education in the public schools of
Wauseon, and during his later years of schooling worked on
Saturdays and during vacations as grocer-boy for W. A.
Wilson, his services commanding a daily pay of
twenty-five cents. When he finally left school he
worked for two years as delivery boy for Charles Schwartz,
successor to W. A. Wilson, afterward, for two years,
associating his father in the sale of agricultural
implements. Then, with commendable confidence and
self-reliance, he ventured into independent business in a
partnership with Harry Downs, of Wauseon, the
partners trading as Scott and Downs. He
was then scarcely twenty years old, and although the
partnership was dissolved within a year, it gives an
indication of the aggressive, optimistic trend of the boy's
character. From 1887 until 1892 young Scott was
in California, where he worked for commission houses, and
for some time ranched in San Diego county, eventually
managing a hay and fruit farm in that section. In
July, 1892, he returned to Wauseon, and for a while
effectively sold insurance. Later he entered the
employ of the Lake Shore Railway Company, but eventually he
became a salesman in the hardware store of C. E. Brigham.
In 1904 he was elected county clerk for a three-year term,
in the republican interest, and his standing in the
district, as well as his efficiency in public office, may be
gauged by the fact that he was re-elected in 1907. In
the following year he aided in the organization of the firm
of Brigham, Gilford & Company, a corporate concern
capitalized at $60,000, to conduct a department store
business in Wauseon. Mr. Scott was one of the
stockholders, was elected vice president, and when the
company became established in business he had completed his
term in office, so he at once devoted his whole time to the
management of the shoe department of the new store, which
responsibility he still holds in connection with that
business. The partners, Messrs. Brigham, Guilford,
Palmer, Scott, and Dalrymple, were all men of
sound business ability and extensive experience, and were
thus able to guide the business into an enviable condition
of stability.
Mr. Scott considers Wauseon to be, to all
intents and purposes, his native place, and has always
keenly followed its progress. He ahs throughout his
life taken pride in the city, and during his more
responsible later years has co-operated effectively in
public work. He is among the business leaders of the
place, and has held staunchly to the republican party in
national politics. Fraternally he is a Mason, a member
of the Wauseon Blue Lodge.
He married Jessie, daughter of Mrs. Addie
(Hough) Demeritt, of Wauseon, the marriage taking place
in 1893. They have no children, but gave parental
affection to four children, Mavina, Nelsie, Pauline
and Sally Stone, whom, when orphaned, Mr. and Mrs.
Scott took into their home and reared as though they
were their own daughters. Bereavement came to them
when Pauline died in February, 1919. Mr. and
Mrs. Scott have many life-long friends in Wauseon, are
generally well-liked, and esteemed as good neighbors and
charitably-disposed citizens.
‡
Source: Standard History of
Fulton County, Ohio - by The Lewis Publishing Company -
Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page 47 |
Mr. & Mrs. Allen Shadle |
ALLEN AND ANN SHADLE
Source: Standard History of Fulton County, Ohio - by The
Lewis Publishing Company - Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page
139 |
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GIDEON REUBEN SHAFER.
One of the substantial farmers of Fulton county who is
successfully engaged in operating his fine 140-acre farm in
German Township is Gideon Reuben Shafer, a native son
of the county. He was born in Franklin Township,
Fulton county, in 1855, his parents, John B. and Mary
Catherine (Huke) Shafer, having come to the United
States from Germany and settled in Franklin Township, where
they bought fifty acres of land. They continued to
live on this farm until claimed by death, she passing away
in 1907 and he in 1910.
Growing up in his native township, Gideon Reuben
Shafer attended the Fisher and Masters schools during a
few months each winter until he was seventeen years old,
after which he had to spend all his time working hard, first
assisting his father and later as a hired man. In
those days wages were small and the hours long, and a man
certainly earned all he received, and generally a good deal
more.
When he was twenty-three years old Mr. Shafer
was married to Mary Shetler, a daughter of George
and Sarah Ellen (Collins) Shetler, of Franklin Township.
Of the three children born to them, only one survives, he
being Jesse Dale, who married Rody Bemo.
Following his marriage Mr. Shafer bought seventy-five
acres, to which he later added land until he now has 140
acres, and on it has since engaged in general farming.
He is an experienced and practical man and understands every
phase of his work. Having spent his life in this line,
he feels that he is able to conduct his farm in his own
manner, and is somewhat conservative about making
experiments. However, when he is convinced that a new
method is good and can be adopted without serious
inconvenience, or that the outlay will pay him, he gives it
a trial.
He is a republican and has always given the candidates
of his party the support of his vote. For six years he
served as a justice of the peace of German Township, and his
decisions were so just and equitable that they were seldom
reversed by the higher courts. Mr. Shafer
has held a number of other offices, having been on the
township School Board for six years, township trustee for
two years, and county commissioner for four years.
Since 1914 he has been manager and one of the directors of
the Northwestern Mutual Telephone Company, and he is a
stockholder and director of the Farmers Commercial Bank at
West Unity, Ohio. Recognition of his integrity and
ability has been shown by his having been made administrator
of three different estates, and it is but just to him to
state that he settled all of them in a highly satisfactory
manner. There are few men in his neighborhood who
stand as high in public confidence as he, and he is a credit
to his community.
‡
Source: Standard History of
Fulton County, Ohio - by The Lewis Publishing Company -
Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page 374 |
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JOHN PETER SHAFFER.
While While John Peter Shaffer, of
Amboy, is Ohio born, his ancestry came to the United States
under cir of Amboy, is Ohio born, his ancestry came to the
United States under circumstances out of the ordinary.
Mr. Shaffer was born Feb. 24, 1855, at Upper
Sandusky. He is a son of Henry and Julia (Ottgen)
Shaffer. They were from Prussia and came from
Germany with a colony seeking a home in the United States.
They were married in Prussia, and in the winter of 1855 they
reached America in time for their son to be a native born
citizen of the United States.
The Prussian colony traveled directly to Maumee, and a
land agent met them there and escorted them through the
woods to Amboy Township, only five years after the
organization of Fulton county. On the way from Maumee the
travelers blazed the trees so they could find their way back
to civilization. The colony, however, bought a tract
of land and only returned to Maumee for their families and
household goods. The next western journey was made
with ox teams, and the Prussians were in Amboy Township to
live there. They cut a space in the timber and built a
large log house in the clearing, where they all lived
together until the different families could- build cabins
for themselves. The land was divided among the
colonists, and Henry Shaffer, who founded the
house of Shaffer in Amboy, received fifty-three acres
to his portion.
When Mr. Shaffer first lived in the wilds
of Amboy he walked to Maumee many times with a sack of corn
to have it ground into meal in order to furnish food to his
family. He would fill a two bushel sack half full of
meal and start on the long walk home again. The men
and the women of the colony all worked in the clearings
until finally the men had an opportunity of working on the
railroad to earn some money and the women went on with
clearing the land and planting crops in order to have food
for their families. The pioneers knew many hardships
the young people of today do not understand at all. It was
not the high cost of living, but the problem of something to
eat at any price or sacrifice. Would the men and women
of this day and generation survive the test that was given
the forefathers in the wilderness country?
Mr. Shaffer added to his place until he
had 132 acres of land, and he died there surrounded with
comforts. He died May 30, 1889, far from the land of
his birth, at the age of sixty-seven. She died there
Feb. 5, 1913, aged eighty-seven years. Their children are:
Evelyn, the wife of Elisha Barneby, of
Lyons; John Peter Shaffer; Thomas,
of Toledo; and Minerva, wife of Fred
Jeffries, of Toledo.
On Feb. 20, 1881, John Peter Shaffer married
Isabelle Snyder. She is a daughter of Jonas and
Susannah (Hostder) Snyder, the father from Pennsylvania
and the mother from Holmes county. For one year they
lived in the Shaffer home with his parents,
and then they moved into another house and worked part of
the same farm. At the end of two years they moved to the
Snyder farm in Fulton Township. They lived there
three years and returned to the Shaffer farm
in Amboy and remained six years as a tenant on the farm
owned by his father. They then bought a farm in Fulton
Township, remaining there three years, when they moved to a
farm in Swan Creek Township they had owned for eight years.
Mr. Shaffer remained three years in Swan
Creek Township, when they removed to Swanton. They
remained one year in Swanton and lived again in Amboy.
While he bought forty acres, he inherited part of the
Shaffer homestead and lived there. He
bought out other heirs and the old homestead is still in the
family name. The buildings are in good condition, and
a modern residence is the plan for the early part of 1920 -
a place to hold them the rest of their days. It is
called “The Popple Grove Farm.” Mr. Shaffer
has registered Holstein cattle and operates a farm dairy.
He is also a breeder of thoroughbred Duroc-Jersey hogs.
The Shaffer children are: Claud, who died
at the age of four and one half years; Harry, aged
twenty-seven, who met an accidental death Dec. 25, 1918;
Hollis E., who is the active farmer at “Popple Grove
Farm,” He spent twelve months as a sergeant in a truck
company in France and Germany.
Mr. Shaffer votes the republican ticket
and frequently serves on the election board. He has
been a member of the Board of Education for twelve years.
The family are members of the Methodist
Episcopal Church in the community.
‡
Source: Standard History of
Fulton County, Ohio - by The Lewis Publishing Company -
Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page 402 |
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FRANK LAWRENCE SIMON,
of Metamora, born Sept. 6, 1888, son of Jacob and
Catharine (Gillen) Simon. The father and mother
came from St. Wendell, Germany, locating in Amboy in 1880;
and he died there Sept. 29, 1909. Their children are:
Elizabeth, widow of Jacob Welter, of Lucas
county; Kate, who is a trained nurse; Lena,
wife of Adelbert Knight, of Blissfield,
Michigan; Frank; Mary, wife of John
Van Ama, LaGrange, Indiana; Nicholas,
of Amboy; Rosa, a Sister of Charity, Mercy Hospital,
Toledo; Veronica, a public school teacher, LaGrange,
Indiana; Lucy, wife of Arthur Zink,
Lucas county; Pauline, of Burkey; Barbara,
public school teacher of Adrian, Michigan; and Frank
Lawrence.
From the time he was twenty-one years old F. L. Simon
rented from others until 1916, when he moved to the Simon
homestead and has since then farmed for his mother.
On Jan. 8, 1919, he married Catharine Conolly,
of Toledo. She is a daughter of John and Catharine
(Roach) Conolly. They live at the family homestead
in Amboy.
Mr. Simon was educated in public school in
Metamora, and the family are communicants in the Catholic
Church, St. Mary’s of the Assumption at Caraghan. He
is a member of the Knights of Columbus No. 386, of Toledo,
and he is a trustee in the lodge of the Catholic Knights of
Ohio at Caraghan. Mr. Simon votes the
republican ticket. He was born in a presidential
election year.
‡
Source: Standard
History of Fulton County, Ohio - by The Lewis Publishing
Company - Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page 405 |
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FRED E. SKEELS.
One of the enterprising men of York Township who is
profitably engaged in conducting the homestead of his father
is Fred E. Skeels, a native son of the township.
He was born on Mar. 18, 1870. his parents being William
and Clara (Struble) Skeels, and his grandfather
Benjamin Skeels. The latter was one of the
pioneers of York Township.
After their marriage, William Skeels and
his wife located in section 33, York Township, their farm
containing eighty acres. This continued to be his home
until his death, which occurred Jan. 1, 1901. His
widow only remained on it for four years after he died, and
then removed to Wauseon, where she is still living.
Their children were as follows: Fred E., who was the
eldest born; and Nellie, who married Sherman
Frederick and died at the age of thirty-eight years.
Growing up on his father’s farm, Fred E. Skeels
learned to be a practical farmer and attended the Blue
district school. In 1900 he was married to May
Myers, who was born in York Township, a daughter of
George and Rhena (Farwell) Meyers. For the
first two or three years following his marriage Mr.
Skeels lived on his father-in-law’s farm, but then
went on the old Skeels homestead, where he is
still engaged in general farming. He has always been a
farmer with the exception of 1899, when he spent a year at
carpenter work.
Mr. and Mrs. Skeels became the parents of the
following children: Floyd, who is a. farmer of
York Township, married Dorotha Leist, and they
have two children, Vera and Carma; and Ward,
who is at home. Both these sons were sent to the local
schools and learned farm work under their father’s
experienced supervision. Unlike some young men of the
country they have not cared to leave farming for city life,
and Mr. Skeels is glad that he has taught them
a love for the country and developed in them a taste for
agricultural activities. In politics Mr.
Skeels is a republican, but he contents himself with
exercising his right of suffrage, not caring to participate
more fully in public affairs. Fraternally he belongs
to Wauseon Camp No. 3902, Modern Woodmen of America, and is
interested in its growth. Mr. Skeels is
a friend of the public schools and of the good roads
movement, and can be depended upon to give both these
important questions an intelligent support whenever they
come up for consideration in his neighborhood.
‡
Source: Standard History of
Fulton County, Ohio - by The Lewis Publishing Company -
Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page 220 |
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EARL ELVIN SLAGLE,
of York Township, was born July 29, 1880, and he has always
lived in the community. He is a democrat and has
served three times on the election board. He is a son
of
Solomon and Mary (Sharp) Slagle. The father was born
in eastern Pennsylvania while the mother is a native of
Tiffin, Ohio.
The grandparents, Charles and Hannah (Eck) Slagle,
came to Fulton county in 1867 from Pennsylvania.
Jacob and Elizabeth (Wagoner) Sharp lived in Seneca and
later in Henry county. Mr. Slagle died in 1917
and the widow lives among her children. They are:
Earl Elvin; Sadie, wife of Charles
Tremain, of York Township; and Opal, who is the
wife of Paul Wales, of Delta.
On Dec. 23, 1900, Mr. Slagle married
Minnie Detwiler, daughter of Oliver and
Mary (Teff) Detwiler, of Swan Creek.
For two years they lived on the Detwiler farm,
then bought seventy-five acres - a badly run-down farm, and
he improved it. He reclaimed the land by tiling and
grubbing, fenced it and erected new buildings on it.
Mr. Slagle has a modern house with running
water, electric lights and furnace heat. He is a
general farmer, specializing with a Holstein dairy.
The children born to Mr. and Mrs. Slagle are:
Vern LeRoy, Thelma Pearl, Cecil
Lionel and Kenneth Clare. The
family attends Raker Union Church in the community.
While Mr. Slagle’s parents and
grandparents did their part in the pioneer epoch of Fulton
county, his own active career belongs to the modern
twentieth century. Nevertheless, he has done a real
pioneer’s part, and it is possible to claim for his efforts
that they contributed to the large volume of production by
which Fulton county has distinguished itself as an
agricultural center during the last decade and particularly
during the war time period. The Slagle farm
shows the progressiveness of its owner, and his neighbors
everywhere speak of him as a man of thoroughly progressive
character.
‡
Source: Standard History of
Fulton County, Ohio - by The Lewis Publishing Company -
Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page 313 |
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CLARENCE C. SMITH,
B. A., prominent in Fulton county educational circles, a
well-known school principal, and latterly superintendent of
schools of Delta, Fulton county, Ohio, is a native of the
county, and is giving his most earnest attention to the
betterment of public facilities in the county generally, and
especially to the elevating of the standard of public
education in the county. He has had a goo1d collegiate
and academic record, and entered upon his life work well
qualified, having graduated from the Tri-State College,
Angola, Indiana, and Oberlin Business College, Ohio, and
attended the Ohio State University at Columbus. He is
a member of the Fulton County Board of Examiners of
Teachers, and, being still quite a young man, he will, it
seems, most probably take even more prominent part in
educational matters as the years pass.
He was born on May 14, 1882, the son of Hiram B.
and Evelyn (Kyper) Smith, his birthplace being in
Swan Creek Township of Fulton county. His father was
born in Huron county, Ohio, but his mother was a native of
Swan Creek Township, Fulton county, Ohio. The Smith
family is of British origin, but the branch to which
Professor Smith belongs has been resident in America
since colonial days. His grandparents, John and
Jane (Barber) Smith, were both born in New York state,
but were early settlers in Huron county, Ohio, coming into
Fulton county in 1865, when they settled in Swan Creek
Township. His genealogy connects with a Pennsylvania family
of English descent, his maternal grandparents being Cyrus
and Cynthia (Spaulding) Kyper, both of Pennsylvania
birth, the former the son of Africa Kyper, who was
born in England, but who in 1835 is of record among the
pioneers of Swan Creek Township, he having in that year
entered government (wild) land in the vicinity of Swanton,
and gaining title to several hundred acres. So that in
both maternal and paternal lineage Clarence C. Smith
comes of families which are among the early residents of
Fulton county. All the grandparents of Professor
Smith died in Swan Creek Township, and his parents,
Hiram B. and Evelyn (Kyper) Smith, settled in the
township soon after marriage, the former farming
independently from his parents. Eventually Hiram B.
Smith became superintendent of the Fulton county farm,
holding that office until his death on June 16, 1914.
His widow still resides in the family homestead in Swan
Creek Township, in which all of their children were born.
The four children of Hiram B. and Evelyn (Kyper) Smith
were: Clarence C., regarding whose life in its
connection with Fulton county more is written below for this
edition of county history; Grace, who married A.
E. Lawrence, but is now deceased; Maude, who
married E. A. Jones, and now lives with her mother
and brother on the home farm; and Fred, who resides
with the mother on the home farm.
Clarence C., eldest child of Hiram B. and
Evelyn (Kyper) Smith, in his boyhood attended the
district school nearest to his home, and later passed
through the high school of Delta, after which he entered the
Tri-State College at Angola, Indiana, eventually graduating.
He also attended Oberlin Business College, and was a student
at the Ohio State University at Columbus. He early entered
the teaching profession, being only seventeen years old when
he was first appointed a member of the teaching staff of
Swan Creek district school. He was a district school
teacher for six years, and for seven years was a teacher in
the Delta High School, eventually, on June 1, 1916, becoming
the superintendent of schools of Delta, which office he has
since held. He has a recognized place among the able
educators of the county, and is well-regarded in Delta.
He is a member of the Fulton County Board of Examiners of
Teachers.
Mr. Smith is of good personal repute, is
an earnest church worker and is esteemed as a man of high
moral integrity. By religious conviction a Methodist,
he has entered earnestly into church work, is a steward of
the Delta church of that denomination, and has been a Sunday
School teacher for many years. Politically he he is a
republican and fraternally is a Mason, of Royal Arch degree,
member of Octavius Waters Chapter of Delta.
On Dec. 29, 1907, Clarence C. Smith married
Chloe Putnam, who was born in Fulton county, daughter of
Israel and Mary (Bratton) Putnam, both of whom were
born in Pennsylvania. Mrs. Smith in
descent is German-Irish, the paternal line being of German
antecedents, and her mother having been born in Ireland.
Mr. and Mrs. Smith have two children: Roscoe,
who was born Apr. 21, 1910; and Ross, born May 5,
1911.
‡
Source: Standard History of
Fulton County, Ohio - by The Lewis Publishing Company -
Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page 355 |
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EDWIN J. SMITH.
It was in 1842 that John Smith, founder of the
American branch of the Smith family represented by Edwin
J. Smith of “The Walnut Grove Farm” in Royalton, came
from Scotland directly to the community since developed into
Royalton. Walter, the father of Edwin T.
Smith, came with his father, John Smith, to the
United States. However, they were not the only
Smiths in Royalton. He married Eleanor
Smith, who was already living there. Her parents,
Charles D. and Jane B. (Helms) Smith, had come in an
early day from New York to Ohio. They entered 180
acres of timber and developed it into one of the best farms
in Fulton county.
Charles D. Smith, the maternal grandfather of
Edwin J. Smith, was the second sheriff of Fulton county.
He held the office two terms, and died when he was
forty-eight years of age. Walter Smith,
after his marriage with Eleanor Smith, settled
on an eighty acre tract which he secured from the
government. It was all in timber and he cleared a
space for the cabin, and cleared and added to the land until
he had a farm of 200 acres in Royalton. He died in
July, 1910, while his wife died in October, two years later.
Edwin J. Smith, of “The Walnut Grove Farm,” was
the oldest, and he relates the family story. His
brothers are Charles, William and Scott,
William having met with an accidental death in 1888.
On Feb. 28, 1891, Edwin J. Smith married Mrs.
Rachael Cole, widow of Lemuel Cole. She had
two children: Addie, wife of Ezra.
Burkey, of Fulton, and Donna, who lives at the
Smith homestead. Mrs. Smith is a
daughter of Reuben S. and Katie Ann (Watkins) Woodring,
and she was born in Fulton township, Fulton county, May 22,
1863. For eleven years after his marriage Mr. Smith
lived at the old family homestead, when he bought a farm
of eighty acres with few improvements, and now it has
everything modern and convenient upon it. He also owns
a small farm in Seneca township, Lenawee county, Michigan,
which is all under cultivation, and he rents it to others.
He lives on the farm in Royalton, where he operates a
Holstein dairy along with other farm activities.
The children are: Ruth, wife of Floyd
Ryder, of Lyons; Fern D., who died at the age of
sixteen, and Reuben E., who lives at the homestead.
Mr. Smith is active in local politics, and is a
member of the township democratic committee. He is a
member of the Modern Woodmen of America, and has served the
order as its treasurer for several years.
Edwin J. Smith was born in Royalton township,
Sept. 13, 1857, and has therefore had an active career of
nearly half a century. He is one of the honored
members of a real pioneer family of Fulton county, and what
he has done in developing the Walnut Grove Farm is of itself
an important contribution to the life and welfare of the
county. Only a few families can claim a continuous
residence of nearly eighty years in this section of Ohio,
and the fortunes of a family are in safe keeping when the
present generation is so well represented as in the person
of the proprietor of The Walnut Grove Farm.
‡
Source: Standard History of
Fulton County, Ohio - by The Lewis Publishing Company -
Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page 66 |
|
|
REUBEN A. SMITH.
In 1889 John Smith, of London, England, came
with his family to Guelph, Canada, and settled on land
secured from the English Crown. Here his son,
Reuben J. Smith, a school teacher, met a teacher in the
Toronto Normal, Esther Emma Clarke by
name, the daughter of Rev. John Clarke,
a minister of the Baptist Church. The two were united
in marriage, settling near Guelph on the farm of Reuben
J. Smith’s mother, by this time a widow. Later
they moved to Elora, Ontario, where Mr. Smith entered
the drug business.
Here the subject of our sketch, Reuben A. Smith,
was born in 1863. When fourteen years of age,
Reuben A. completed the course in the Elora High School
and passed his entrance into Toronto University. He
worked in his father’s drug store until he moved to Tuscola
county, Michigan. In Tuscola county Mr.
Smith became of age and thus became a citizen of the
United States. Mr. Smith purchased a
drug store at Mayville, Michigan. In this town he met
Margaret E. D’Arcy, daughter of William and Mary
(McLaughlin) D’Arcy, both of Irish descent. On
Mar. 11, 1885, they were united in marriage, and to this
union was born one daughter, Myrtle E., wife of
Bert A. Crockett.
Later, “R. A.”, as he is known to his friends,
sold his store at Mayville and for several years clerked in
several towns in Michigan. In 1893 he moved to
Morenci, Michigan, and lived there for five years, when he
bought out the drug store of E. C. Porter & Son at
Weston, Michigan, Mr. Smith successfully
conducted the drug business there until September, 1902,
when he moved his stock to Metamora. Since that time
he has built up a splendid business in Metamora, adding
groceries, crockery, jewelry, silverware, wallpaper, books
and stationery to his line. His store is known as one
of the finest in northwestern Ohio. Mr.
Smith is a pharmaceutical chemist, registered in both
Michigan and Ohio. Beginning as a drug clerk, later as
proprietor of a business of his own, and for eighteen years
a successful merchant at Metamora, Reuben A. Smith is
a Fulton county citizen who has made good use of his
opportunities.
He is a member of the Masonic Order, belonging to the
Blue Lodge and Chapter at Lyons, and the Council at Wauseon.
For eights years he has been a member of the Metamora town
council
and is now serving his fifth term. A good business man, he
has proved an equally good citizen and the people of
Metamora and vicinity know and respect him as such.
‡
Source: Standard History of
Fulton County, Ohio - by The Lewis Publishing Company -
Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page 85 |
|
|
THOMAS W. SMITH
has spent over fifty years of his life on the borders of
Fulton county, and his friends and neighbors recognize in
him a man of substantial industry and thrift, one who has
improved his opportunities and achieved a comfortable home
and farm, and altogether proved worthy of his American
citizenship.
Mr. Smith was born at Elyria, Ohio, on
June 4, 1860, son of Chapman and Mary Jane (Haden) Smith,
the former a native of Massachusetts and the latter of New
York. The maternal grandparents, Thomas Jefferson
and Hannah (Russell) Haden, moved from New York state to
Lorain county, Ohio. Chapman Smith also
went to Lorain county, was married there, and in 1865 moved
to Fulton county and located in Pike township. He
lived in that community about twenty years and then moved to
Fulton township, he died Feb. 3, 1901. His widow made
her home with her son, Thomas, until her death May
15, 1918. Each of his parents had been twice married.
Thomas W. was the only son of his parents.
He grew up on a farm, acquired a district school
education, and at the age of eighteen began earning monthly
wages from neighboring farmers. He continued in that
way until Apr. 29, 1883, when he married Flora Alma
Eldred. Mrs. Smith was born in Pike
township, a daughter of Ambrose S. and Cynthia O. (Hall)
Eldred, her father a native of Kalamazoo, Michigan, and
her mother of Ashland county, Ohio. Her maternal
grandfather was named Ambrose S. Eldred, while her
maternal grandparents were Charles and Ruth (Weeks) Hall,
the former a native of England and the latter of New York
state.
Mr. Smith after his marriage rented a
farm in Fulton township for six years, then bought twenty
acres in the northwest corner of that township, and his
parents lived with him there for thirteen years. He
then rented another farm in the same locality, and in the
meantime sold his place and bought sixty-four acres of
partly improved land in section 30 of Amboy township.
The Amboy township farm has been the scene of his best work
as a farmer. He has remodeled the house and other
buildings, kept the improvements up to the standard of the
times, and has conducted its operations as a general farmer
and also operates a small dairy of six cows. Mr.
Smith is a republican voter and is affiliated with
Lodge No. 555 of Masons.
Mr. and Mrs. Smith have one son, Emira
Willard, who was born Mar. 1, 1884. He is now a resident
of Detroit, Michigan. He has been twice married, his
present wife having borne the maiden name of May
Smith. By his first marriage he has three
children, Sidney Max, Marjory Fern
and Hazel May.
‡
Source: Standard History of
Fulton County, Ohio - by The Lewis Publishing Company -
Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page 61 |
|
Mr. & Mrs.
John J. Spiess |
JOHN J. SPIESS
Source: Standard History of Fulton County, Ohio - by The
Lewis Publishing Company - Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page
434 |
|
Lawrence A. Stevens Family |
LAWRENCE ALBERT STEVENS
Source: Standard History of Fulton County, Ohio - by The
Lewis Publishing Company - Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page
119 |
| |
WILLIAM STRAYER.
One year after the organization of Fulton county the
Strayer family story began in it with the coming of
William and Elizabeth (Kring) Strayer, from
Pennsylvania. Their son William Strayer of Pike
Township, was born Apr. 13, 1855, and all of his life has
been spent in Fulton county. There were thirteen
children, ten of them living today.
In 1886, William Strayer
married Augusta Dunbar, of the same community in Pike
Township. She is a daughter of Boyd and Rachel
Dunbar, the parents from Pennsylvania - the
Strayers and Dunbars both from the Keystone
state. For one year they lived on the Dunbar farm,
then bought forty acres of partly improved land and
remodeled the buildings on it. He added thirty acres,
and aside from three acres of timer it is all under
cultivation. Mr. Strayer has a Holstein dairy.
Mr. and Mrs. Strayer have
one son, Arby Clay Strayer, born July 4, 1894.
He married Gladys G. Bittikofer, and they have three
children: Geneva May, Lola Audrey and
Frances Mildred. They all live as one family at
the family homestead. They are member of the Disciples
Church in the community. The family vote is with the
republican party.
One of the older native sons of the county, and member
of one of its worthy pioneer families, William Strayer
has so ordered his own life that it has been productive in
the material sense, has served to create and build up one of
the farms of which the county is proud, and in all the
relations of a busy life has proved true to the standards of
manhood and good citizenship.
‡ Source: Standard
History of Fulton County, Ohio - by The Lewis Publishing
Company - Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page 514 |
| |
ANDREW STRONG
deserves success because he has always been a hard worker,
has gone out and sought opportunities rather than waiting
for them to come to him, and as a consequence, while still
by no means an old man, is able to take life at leisure and
merely supervise the fine farm where he lives in Amboy
Township.
Mr. Strong was born in Fulton Township
Feb. 18, 1854. He is a son of Hiram and Sophia Ann
(Johnson) Strong. His father, a native of New York
state, left home when a young man and came west to Michigan,
but moved soon afterward to Fulton county, where he married
and settled down to farming in Fulton Township. He
died in Pike Township Aug. 29, 1890, his widow surviving him
until Feb. 12, 1910. By a previous marriage he had two
daughters, while by her union with Hiram Strong
there were seven children.
Andrew Strong attended the district
schools of his home locality, and from the age of sixteen
until his marriage at twenty-four he was gaining experience,
making a reputation for industry, also providing for his
living expenses by working as a hired hand on farms.
After his marriage he rented for two years in Fulton
Township. He then bought a house and lot in that
section and for seventeen years was busily engaged in
buying, butchering and selling livestock. In the
meantime he acquired fifty-one acres of timber land in
section 19 of Amboy Township, and in 1893 moved to that
place and undertook the heavy task of clearing and
developing. All but twenty-four acres of his splendid
farm today is under cultivation, the rest being reserved for
timber pasture. He has added to his land until his
home farm now contains 117 acres. Its improvements are
of the highest class, comprising a large brick house, barns
and complete facilities for the business carried on. Mr.
Strong has not considered himself in the class of
active farmers since 1907, though he is busy every day, and
personally looks after the management of his land.
Feb. 10, 1878, he married Nancy Haynes,
who was born in Fulton Township, a daughter of Jacob and
Nancy (Berry) Haynes. They are the parents of four
children: E. J., of Metamora; Frank M., of
Columbus, Ohio; Zina, at home; and Zera, whose
husband, Roscoe Sullins, is the practical man
in charge of the operations of the Strong farm.
Mr. Strong has been quite active and
prominent in local affairs, serving as township trustee
seven years, and nine years as clerk of the School Board.
He is a republican and a member of the Gleaners in Amboy
Township.
‡
Source: Standard History of
Fulton County, Ohio - by The Lewis Publishing Company -
Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page 401 |
| |
HERMAN EDWARD STRONG.
Occupying the farm formerly owned by his father in Pike
Township, Herman Edward Strong has developed into one
of the prosperous and representative men of Fulton county,
of which he is a native son. His birth occurred in
Fulton Township on May 9, 1866, and he a son of Hiram and
Sophia Ann (Johnson) Strong. Hiram
Strong was born in the vicinity of Syracuse, New York,
and his wife in Tuscarawas county, Ohio, and they were
married in Michigan, following which they located in Fulton
county, Ohio, first owning a farm in Fulton Township known
as Dutch Ridge. From there in 1872 they moved to
another farm owned by him, located in Pike Township, and
there he erected a sawmill. After two years he sold
that farm and bought one in Swan Creek Township, but
subsequently sold it and returned to Pike Township and
bought another farm, which he conducted until 1885, and then
moved to Delta and for 2˝ years
owned an interest n a grocery, but disposed of it and bought
a farm of sixty-five acres in Pike Township, on which he
died in 1890. His widow survived him until 1910, when
she passed away. She was a widow, Mrs. Draker,
when she married Mr. Strong, and had three children
by her first husband namely: Jeanette, who died
at the age of three years; Adelia, who was Mrs.
Uriah Fuller of Detroit, Michigan; and Arake who
is Mrs. Israel Salsbury, of Pike Township.
Mr. and Mrs. Strong became the parents of the following
children: Elisha, who is deceased; Volney,
who lives in Michigan; Amos, who is a resident of
Zurich, Montana; Angeline, who is Mrs. A. P. Ross,
of Fayette, Ohio; Herman Edward, whose name heads
this review; Nathan Wesley who lives at Moorcroft,
Wyoming; and Alonzo, who died in infancy.
Herman Edward Strong grew up in Fulton county
and attended its country schools, while at the same time he
was acquiring a working knowledge of farming under his
father's supervision. When he was seventeen years old
he went to Iona county, Michigan, and worked as a farm hand
for one year. and as his parents during that time had
moved to Delta, he went to Benton Harbor, Michigan, instead
of returning home, and was engaged in working at various
jobs for two years. He then came back to Fulton county
for a time, when he returned to Michigan. In 1897 he
went to Toledo, Ohio, and for three years worked at painting
and paper-hanging for various concerns of that city, at the
expiration of that period coming back once more to Fulton
county and working on the home place in Pike Township. After
his mother’s death he bought out the other heirs to the
homestead of sixty-five acres of partly improved land.
Since then he has rebuilt all the buildings and put up some
new ones, ditched the place, erected a silo, and otherwise
improved it, having now a very valuable property, on which
he carries on general farming. At times he works at
his trade, generally to accommodate one of his neighbors,
all of whom appreciate the excellence of his work.
On Sept. 24, 1910, Mr. Strong was united
in marriage with Susie Enfield, born in Fulton
Township, a daughter of Jacob and Malinda (Luke) Enfield,
natives of Pennsylvania and Ohio, respectively.
Politically Mr. Strong is a republican, and
served as road supervisor for two years, and during that
period did some excellent work in behalf of securing good
roads for his section, and since then has supported the
“good roads” movement, for he realizes what a necessity they
are in order to keep a community abreast of modern
development. Good roads more than pay for the initial
expense through the amount of business brought in over them
since the almost universal use of the automobile.
Those communities which have the misfortune to be off the
improved highways cannot hope to compete with the ones which
have a constant stream of tourists passing through them
daily. Mr. Strong is one of the men who
has traveled considerably and been broadened through a
varied experience, and so he appreciates the value of
improvements of all kind, both private and public, and is in
favor of them, and of raising the general standard of the
neighborhood through the education of the masses.
‡
Source: Standard History of
Fulton County, Ohio - by The Lewis Publishing Company -
Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page 362 |
| |
CHARLES STURTEVANT,
of Swan Creek Twp, is identified with the Methodist
Episcopal Church & is a Republican. His birth occurred
Aug. 15, 1851, in Huron County. His parents, Russel &
Annette (Sturtevant) Sturtevant, were second cousins. He
lived in Rochester & she in Adams County, & they were
married in Jefferson County, New York. Soon after their
marriage they located in Huron County, Ohio. Later they
lived again in New York State, & in 1863 they removed to
Bellevue, Ohio, where he died in 1891 & his wife died in
1909. Their children are: Warren, deceased; Ellen,
widow of John Shoup, of Clyde, Ohio;
Charles, of Swan Creek; Melissa, wife of Fred
Warner, of Toledo; Alice, deceased; &
Spencer, of Akron. Charles Sturtevant
lived with his parents until his father went to the Civil
War in 1863, & from that time he worked by the month, giving
his money to his parents until Dec. 25, 1873, when he
married Jennie McFarland of Sandusky County. She was
born Aug. 14, 1857, & was the daughter of Aaron &
Clarinda (King) McFarland. They had come from New
York & had located in Sandusky County. Mr. & Mrs.
Sturtevant lived for a time in Sandusky County, but in
1886 they removed to Fulton County. After coming to
Fulton County Mr. Sturtevant rented farmland until
1913, when he bought 40 acres of partly improved land in
Swan Creek Twp. He is engaged in general farming, dairying &
raising livestock for market. The children are: Clarence,
born Sept. 11 1876, of Toledo; Estella, born
Dec. 18, 1878; Clara, born Nov. 16, 1881, wife of
Arthur Gingery, of Swan Creek; Russel,
born Mar. 1, 1889, died Mar. 31, 1890; & Charles
Laurel, born Mar. 1, 1899, who lives at the family
homestead.
Source: Standard History of Fulton County, Ohio - by The
Lewis Publishing Company - Chicago & New York - 1920 - Page
311
Contributed By:
Bob Weaver |
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