BIOGRAPHIES
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of
Harrison and Carroll, Ohio
containing Biographical Sketches of Prominent and
Representative Citizens, and of Many of the Early
Settled Families.
Illustrated
Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. -
1891
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D. B. WALLACE
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll, Ohio, Publ. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 492 |
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ELIJAH R. WALLACE
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll, Ohio, Publ. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 259 |
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NATHANIEL A. WALLACE.
Of the old settlers yet residing in Green Township, Harrison County, none are
more prominently identified with its history, or are better known than the
subject of this sketch, who is a native of the township, born July 16, 1811.
Thomas Wallace, grandfather of N. A., was a native of
Scotland, "land of the mountain and the flood," from which country he emigrated
to America with his family, settling in eastern Pennsylvania, where he and his
wife remained until their death. Their family consisted of three sons and
six daughters, of whom John, the father of the subject of these lines,
was born in York County, Penn. On October 6, 1795, he married Elizabeth,
daughter of Abel McCleary, of York County, Penn., and in the spring
following their marriage the young couple came to Ohio, and located in Warren
Township, Jefferson County. Here they remained eight years, removing to
Harrison County, same State, in 1804, where he purchased a farm in Green
Township, on which they lived until death called them from earth. Mrs.
Wallace died February 19, 1855, Mr. Wallace following her
to the grave June 4, 1S63, and both lie buried in Beech Spring Cemetery.
He was a supporter of the Whig party, and took a lively interest in all public
questions which came before the people at his time. The names of the
children born to this honored couple, together with dates of birth, are as
follows: William, October 3, 1796; Isaac, born October 9, 1798;
Thomas, September 20, 1800; Robert, October 26, 1802; Rebecca,
June 6, 1804; Margaret, July 16, 1806; John, May 5, 1809;
Nathaniel A. (our subject); Abraham, August 24, 1813; Elizabeth,
March 22, 1821. The parents and all of the children were or are members of
the Presbyterian Church.
Nathaniel A. Wallace remained at home, assisting
in the duties of the farm, and attending school, where he acquired a liberal
education. For a time he was engaged in teaching, and then returned to the
more pleasant pursuits of agriculture. On March 4, 1834, he was married to
Jane, daughter of Robert Watson, of Athens Township,
Harrison County; she died February 18, 1868. leaving no issue, and is buried in
Beech Spring Cemetery. On September 2, 1869, Mr. Wallace married,
for his second wife, Sarah Goodrich, daughter of George
Goodrich, at one time a resident of Carroll County, Ohio; on October 9,
1873, she, too, passed away, and was laid to rest at New Hagerstown, Carroll
County. To this union one child was born June 19, 1870, named Mary,
who was married September 11, 1889, to John Stringer. On
June 24, 1S75, Mr. Wallace was again united in the bonds of
wedlock, on this occasion with Elizabeth, daughter of Oliver
Marsh, a resident of Pennsylvania. Mr. and Mrs.
Wallace are active members of the Beech Spring Presbyterian Church, and
are ever in the van of all charitable movements. Politically he was a Whig
till the organization of the Republican party, which he has since strongly
supported. Mr. Wallace is among the representative men of
his section, and has by his integrity won the confidence and esteem of all.
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll, Ohio, Publ. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 718 |
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JACOB WARNER, an enterprising
farmer of Monroe Township, Harrison county, is a native of the same, born Mar.
13, 1832, and is the second children and eldest son of Isaac and Tina (Weyandt)
Warner, who were among the early pioneers. He grew to manhood with his
parents on the farm, wore home-made clothing, and walked two miels to a
subscription school which was held in a log school-house, having slab benches,
puncheon floor and other primitive furnishings. On Jan. 7, 1862, he
married Elizabeth Crumrine, a daughter of Henry and Mary Crumrine,
a daughter of Henry and Mary Crumrine, and they began farming in Monroe
Township. In May, 1864, Mr. Warner enlisted in Company B, One
Hundred and Seventieth O. N. G., was taken sick and lay in hospital at
Annapolis, and was honorably discharged in September, 1864. In 1865 he
volunteered as a member of Company F, One Hundred and Ninety-fourth O. V. I.,
and his regiment was attached to the Army of the Potomac, was in the Shenandoah
Valley, at Appomattox at the surrender of Lee. Returning to his home, he
resumed his business as a farmer in Monroe Township, and has met with every
success.
The children born to Mr. and Mrs. Warner were
seven in number, as follows: Mary C., born Nov. 22, 1862, died Nov
15, 1864; Emma J., born Apr. 27, 1864; Clara M., born Dec. 22,
1866; Lovina E., born Oct. 17, 1868; Dora O., born Oct. 11, 1870,
died Oct. 22, 1871; Sarah E., born June 21, 1873, and James H.,
born June 3, 1878. In politics Mr. Warner is a stanch Republican,
but has never been an office seeker. His industry and good management have
made him a competence, and his walk through life has won for him the respect of
all his neighbors.
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll, Ohio
- Publ. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 285 |
Rezin Welch |
THE
WELCH FAMILY. A commemorative record of the noble army of pioneers
of Harrison County and their immediate descendants would be most incomplete were
prominent mention not given of the distinguished family of Welch, a name that
has become the synonym of progressiveness in everything tending to the welfare
of the county at large.
Daniel Welch, the progenitor of the family
settling in an early day in what is now Green Township, first came to the
Territory of Ohio in 1801. In the following year he revisited Washington
County, Penn., whence he had come, and after a brief sojourn returned to his
new, wild home in Ohio, bringing with him his wife (whose maiden name was
Elizabeth Wait) and his then small family. Here he entered two
sections of land near the present site of Beech Spring Church. For many
years he was a justice of the peace, and was a member of the first
Constitutional Convention, convening then at Chillicothe, Nov. 1, 1802.
This honored pioneer died at the age of fifty-six, the father of a numerous
family, of whom the eldest son, John died in the War of 1812 of camp
fever. Eight sons and two daughters lived to old age, viz.: Sons -
Daniel, Rezin, Benjamin, Pressley, Jacob, William, Cyrus and Samuel;
daughters - Mary, who became Mrs. Jacob Voorhes, and resided
in Millersburg, Holmes Co., Ohio, and Rhoda, who became Mrs. John
Mansfield, and a resident of Jefferson County, Ohio, all being now dead,
leaving numerous descendants scattered far as wide from the Atlantic to the
Pacific.
The first sermon ever preached by Rev. John Rea,
the pioneer Presbyterian in eastern Ohio; was delivered in Mr. Daniel Welch's
horse-mill, located on what is now known as the Scott-Simpson Farm; and
the first Presbyterian Church building erected in Harrison County was located on
his land, on the farm now owned by Dwight Black. The present
cemetery for the Beech Spring Church was donated by Mr. Welch to the
congregation, as well as the ground for the first church.
REZIN WELCH, the third son of Daniel and
Elizabeth (Wait) Welch, was born near Miller's Run Church, Washington
Co., Penn., Apr. 27, 1795, and when a lad of seven years he was brought by his
father to near the present site of Beech Spring Church, in Green Township,
Harrison County. His early education was necessarily limited, the schools
and everything pertaining to them in pioneer days being very primitive.
Leaving home at the age of sixteen years, Mr. Welch was apprenticed to
learn the saddle and harness business, which he completed and worked at as a
journeyman in eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania. In the year 1818 he
was married, by Rev. Obediah Jennings, at Steubenville, Ohio, to Eliza
Bayless, and the young couple immediately located in Smithfield, Jefferson
Co., Ohio, where he established himself in the saddle and harness business.
In those early days, when money was not to be had, he had to trade his goods
occasionally for cattle and horses, which, in order to convert them into cash
wherewith to replenish his stock in the shop, he was compelled to take to the
then Far East, "away over the mountains." This became introductory to a
much more extensive business in droving, and afterward he became familiarly
known in Harrison, the adjoining counties, and in western Pennsylvania, as a
buyer of horses. From Smithfield he moved to Cadiz, in the spring in 1833,
where he established a dry-goods store, in company with his brother William,
in the upper room fo what was then the hotel kept by John S. Lacey, and
now known as "The Globe," Mr. Welch continuing his droving intersts
until 1853. Age coming on him, however, and feeling able no longer to
pursue the arduous labors of a drover, he opened, Apr. 10, 1855, a private
banking house, under the name of Rezin Welch & Co. (the "Co."
being his son, D. B.), of which firm he remained a member up to the time
of his death, which occurred Nov. 24, 1881, when he was in his eighty-seventh
year. His first wife died in July, 1842, and his second (whose maiden name
was Maria Bayless), whom he married in 1846, survived him a few years,
dying in 1886. His children are Maria now Mrs. Walter Butler
Beebe, of Columbus, Ohio; Rachel Ann, now Mrs. William R. Allison
of Steubenville, Ohio; Caroline now Mrs. Thomas C. Rowels, of
Topeka, Kas.; David Barclay, of Cadiz, Ohio, and Eliza, now
Mrs. Rev. H. Parks MacAdam, of New York Mills, N. Y. Rezin Welch
was, politically, an Old-time Whig and a Republican, and in religion he was a
member of the Presbyterian Church.
DAVID BARCLAY WELCH, son of Rezin and Eliza (Bayless)
Welch, was born in Smithfield, Jefferson Co., Ohio, Nov. 23, 1830 and in the
spring of 1833 he made his debut in Cadiz, with his parents. Here
he received a fair common-school education, such as the then young town
afforded, which was supplemented with an attendance of three terms at Franklin
College, New Athens, Harrison County. Several years of his boyhood and
youth were passed in droving with his father, and, like many of the young men of
to-day, he started from home in the twenty-first year of his age, to seek his
fortune. Arriving at St. Louis, Mo., he there attended commercial college,
and afterward found employment as book-keeper for a wholesale grocery at Pekin,
on the Illinois River. After remaining there about a year, Mr. Welch
returned home on a visit, and, having contracted malaria, was persuaded by his
father to remain in Cadiz. During the following year or two he was engaged
in the live-stock business, in partnership with Mr. Tom George (now of
Des Moines, Iowa), the firm being familiarly known as "The Mammoth Sheep
Company, " such title having been suggested, doubtless, by the magnitude of the
business transacted by two young men. Financially, the company was only
tolerably successful, their greatest gain being in experience, and in the
restoration to health of our subject. This co-partnership having been
dissolved, Mr. Welch became associated, in the spring of 1855, with his
father in the banking business, the style of the firm being Rezin Welch &
Co. This partnership existed until the death of the father in 1881, when
the son continued the business (having with him as a partner Mr. I. Craig
Moore) until 1884, at which time an arrangement was made for the
consolidation of the bank of Rezin Welch & Co. with the First National
Bank of Cadiz, Ohio. Mr. Welch was then appointed president of the
latter institution, which position he still holds.
In 1857 David Barclay Welch was united in
marriage with Miss Martha Collins Lyons, daughter of Robert Lyons,
of Cadiz, and to this union have been born three daughters and one son, all yet
living, viz.: Anna E. (now Mrs. I. Craig Moore), Id A., Mary D.
and Rezin. Mr. Welch was a member of the school board twelve
years, and an active member of the Harrison County Military Committee during the
Civil War. Politically he is a Republican, and in religion a member of the
Presbyterian Church.
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll, Ohio, Publ. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 62 |
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WILLIAM WELCH.
Among the earliest settlers of Harrison County none probably preceded the
parents of William Welch - Samuel and Katherine. The
father came from Ireland at an early age, landing almost penniless in New York,
where he met and married a young native of his beloved Isle, by name
Katherine Coulter. Together, poor in goods but rich in hope and
health, they commenced their journey westward, arriving in Harrison County, and
settled on what is now known as Lyons Welch's Farm, where
they remained until they took their departure to that "country from whose bourne
no traveler returns." Samuel Welch entered what is now known to the
residents of Archer Township as the Lewton Farm also the Sil Palmer
Farm and William Welch Farm, on which the latter now resides.
In the forests swarming with wild beasts and fierce Indians he manfully
struggled to effect improvements, that his children might at least have more of
the comforts of life than he and his wife enjoyed. Returning from felling
the stalwart trees that crowned the hills and stood out in majestic pride on
their slopes, he would take his gun to kill a wandering deer, or perchance the
savage bear that during the night may have raided his pig pen; or would lie in
wait for the wolves, which, becoming hungry, would hover about the door of his
cabin, snuffling and growling, meantime licking their half-famished jaws for
some one with whom they might appease their ravenous appetite. Under such
difficulties and dangers did our early settlers labor, until, in the sunset of
their life, they saw the wild beasts replaced by lowing herds and bleating
flocks, the mighty forests felled, and the soil now clothed with green meadows,
waiving fields of grain, or cheerful woodland. Six children were reared by
this old pioneer couple, of whom only two now survive: William, in
Archer Township, Harrison County, and James, in Deersville, same county.
The mother died in 1842, and was buried in Ridge Cemetery, and in 1846 Mr.
Welch was married to Mrs. William Keepers, a resident of Stock
Township, this county. On Mar. 30, 1850, he died, surrounded by his
children, and was buried by the side of the wife of his youth.
William Welch was born Sept. 18, 1818, in Archer
Township, Harrison Co., Ohio, and until he was of age he remained at home,
assisting his father in the working of his farm. On Oct. 22, 1840, he was
married to Agnes, daughter of George Fisher, a resident of Rumley
Township, and then settled on the farm on which he now resides. To this
union was born Susana, now Mrs. William Sampson, residing in Stock
Township, this county. On Feb. 14, 1845, Mrs. Welch died and was
laid to rest in Ridge Cemetery, and Sept. 18, 1845, Mr. Welch married
Miss Emily Jane Nixon, a resident of Archer Township, who bore him four
children: James W., now living at home; Rebecca Jane (Mrs.
A. J. Palmer), in Stock Township, Harrison County; John N., in North
Township, Harrison County, and Rev. A. C., in Youngstown, Ohio, a member
of the Eastern Ohio Methodist Episcopal Conference. The mother of this
family died Feb. 28, 1887, and was buried at Hanover, Harrison Co., Ohio.
Mr. Welch is one of the prominent Democrats of
his section, though not an office seeker. He is a man of sound judgment,
deep convictions, and sterling qualities. By the aid of his children and
his own perseverance he has brought his farm up to its present state of
cultivation, and now in his declining hears he trusts the arrangement of his
farm to his son James W., with whom he resides. He can look back on
a life well spent, and, with full knowledge that he has the respect and esteem
of the entire neighborhood, he rests contented and happy.
JAMES W. WELCH, son of William Welch, was
born July 1, 1847, in Archer Township, Harrison Co., Ohio, where he received an
ordinary common-school education, at what was called Opossum Hollow
School-house, during the winters, laboring assiduously on the farm during the
summers until the winter of 1865, when he went to Harlem Springs, Carroll Co.,
Ohio, and attended one term of school at what was then known as Rural Seminary,
and the following spring he went to Hopedale Normal College, Harrison County,
Ohio, where he attended school one year. Up to this time he had in his
mind to study medicine, but he now decided to be a farmer and returned home
where he remained until May 25, 1869, when he became united in marriage with
Rate M. daughter of Aaron Conaway. He then removed to North
Township in the same county, where he remained until the spring of 1885, when he
came to the old homestead to manage the farm for his father. Only one
child has resulted from this marriage, G. Emery, born Sept. 6, 1870, at
present at home assisting in the farm work. Mr. Welch is a
Republican and has been elected at various times to offices of honor and profit;
he is very active in politics, and contributes liberally of his time and money
to the cause. Both himself and family are members of the Methodist
Episcopal Church, and prominently identified with all the worthy and benevolent
projects of the society. Mr. Welch is a representative of one of
the leading families of the county, and fully merits and retains the respect and
esteem in which they were held.
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll, Ohio, Publ. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 122 |
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WILLIAM A. WELCH
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll, Ohio, Publ. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 343 |
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JAMES M. WELSH, a respectable
and skillful farmer of Stock Township, Harrison Co., was born in Archer Twp.,
Harrison Co., Ohio, Oct. 11, 1832. His father, John Welsh,
was born in Ireland about 1787, but when ten years old came to the United
States, and spent some time in Westmoreland Co., Penn., as a common laborer.
He married Miss Jane McClellan, who was born in
Pennsylvania in 1797. In an early day Mr. Welsh came to
Harrison County, Ohio, and entered one-quarter section of land in Archer
Township. This land was cleared by him and here he remained till 1860,
when he moved to Stock Township and purchased the farm now owned by our subject,
where he remained till his death. To Mr. and Mrs. Welsh
were born ten children, viz.: Mary, Elizabeth, Ann, Samuel, John K., Jane,
Matthew, James M., David and William. Politically Mr. Welsh
was a Republican. He and his wife were members of the Presbyterian
Church for many years, and were highly esteemed in the community.
James M. Welsh, the subject proper of these
lines, grew to manhood on the old farm in Archer Township, and received a
common-school education. Since 1860 he was resided in Stock Township on
the farm he now owns, which contains ninety-seven acres. In politics
Mr. Welsh is a Republican.
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll, Ohio
- Publ. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 676 |
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AMOS WEST. The West family,
which has been largely instrumental in the development of the northwestern in
the development of the northwestern portion of Franklin Township, Harrison
County, are of Irish descent, and came from Pennsylvania to Ohio in 1811.
In his early manhood Jonathan West, the father of the present Franklin
Township family, was married to Comfort Arnold, a daughter of Benjamin
Arnold, of Pennsylvania. She bore him the following family: Amos,
Rezin, Samuel, Jonathan, Mary, Esther, Actia, James, Elizabeth, Comfort and
Sarah. After his arrival in Harrison County, Jonathan West
pursued his calling of gunsmith, in connection with farming, having purchased a
tract of land adjoining the present city of Cadiz, which farm he and his family
largely cleared.
The early life of Amos West was spent in Cadiz
Township, in clearing and cultivating his father's farm. In 1832 he was united
in marriage to Margaret Baker, daughter of Otho Baker, of Archer
Township, Harrison Co., Ohio, and the children born to this marriage were as
follows: Mary (deceased), Samuel, Wilson S., Sarah
(deceased), and Naomi (Mrs. John Renshaw). In politics Mr. West
has been a life-long Democrat, casting his first vote for Jackson, and
ever since has taken an active part in his party's success. Soon after his
marriage he entered a farm on which he resided for some time, and finally
purchased his present residence, where he has ever since remained. He is a
man of strong constitution, and has endured a vast amount of hard work; and now,
at the advanced age of seventy-nine years, he is enjoying remarkably good
health. His life has been a temperate one, and his present condition,
physically, is due to his good habits. Known far and wide, he is respected
and esteemed, and is passing down life's pathway in the full consciousness of a
life well spent and of work well done.
Wilson S. West was born Aug. 7, 1842, in
Franklin Township, Harrison Co., Ohio, where his early life was spent, and where
he has ever been identified with the interests of the county. In 1868 he
was married to Susannah Renshaw, who has borne him the following named
children: Amos, John, Alice, Orpha, Martha, Robert, Bertie, Mary, Elsie,
and Margaret. Like the family generally, Mr. West is a
Democrat, and takes an active part in politics.
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of
Harrison and Carroll, Ohio - Publ.
Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 745 |
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JOHN D. WEST, M. D.
From two Caledonian families of distinguished lineage on the one side, and of
honorable ancestry on the other, is descended the subject of this sketch, Dr.
John Douglass West, of Hopedale, Green Township, Harrison Co., Ohio.
His paternal grandfather was John West; his father was James West,
born in Kirkcaldy, fifeshire, June 11, 1791. The latter emigrated to the
United States, and settled in Maryland in 1815. Here for two years, in the
capacity of superintendent, he was connected with the construction of what was
then known as the Baltimore Turnpike. Removing to Wood County, Va., (now
West Virginia), he purchased a farm, which he occupied and improved for eight
years, and then lost by reason of the worthlessness of his title. While in
Wood County he met and married Miss Isabella Douglass, a daughter of
Scottish parents, whose father, John Douglass, was a descendant of the
distinguished Scottish family of that name. Isabella Douglass was
born in Akeld, Northumberland, Sept. 15, 1802. Her mother was Susan
Howey, daughter of Andrew Howey and Margaret Mitchison, and
her paternal grandmother was Anna Davidson. The marriage of
James West and Isabella Douglass took place in 1825, and thus the
descendants of two Scottish homes united across the sea, and laid the foundation
of an American family of honorable record. The young couple moved to
Summit County, Ohio, shortly after their marriage, the husband for about two
years being engaged as a superintendent in the construction of the Ohio Canal.
Determined upon making a home for himself and his family, and on account of the
health of the latter, he bought a farm in 1828, in Fox Township, Carroll Co.,
Ohio, where he removed in the fall of that year, and lived until his death.
This farm, if it could be distinguished by such a name, consisted chiefly of
wild, uncleared land, surrounded by a wilderness; only a few acres had been
cleared for cultivation. the home of the couple was a rude two-story log
house, windowless, with clapboard door and puncheon floor. But here they
toiled, suffering the privations of life in a new country, until they had
improved their farm, assisted in the development of the country around them, and
reared their children respectably. In 1851 the husband and father died.
He had been a Whig in politics, and in religion, a member of the Associate
Reformed Church, in which he had held for many years the office of ruling elder.
There were born to James and Isabella West nine children: Susanna
is the wife of Robert Philpot, of Humboldt, Neb.; John Douglass is
the subject of this sketch, and one of the best known and most successful
physicians in Harrison County, Ohio; Katherine was married to
John Hunter, of Dell Roy, Ohio, and is deceased; Margaret Ann is the
wife of John Bebout of Mechanicstown, Carroll County, Ohio; Isabella
is the wife of William A. Frater, of Douglass County, Oregon; James D.
is an undertaker in East Liverpool, Columbiana County, Ohio; Mary Elizabeth
was married first to John Smalley, and after his decease, to William
Kerr, and resides near New Lisbon, Columbiana Co., Ohio; two of the children
in infancy. The mother of this family, now (1891) in her eighty-ninth
year, has made her home with Dr. West almost constantly since the death
of her husband; she is still in the full possession of her faculties.
John Douglass West, in his early boyhood,
enjoyed such advantages of education as a subscription school had to offer.
This institution of learning was carried on in a log cabin two and a half miles
from his home. The cabin, in lieu of the plate glass used in the public
schools of these days, had greased paper for window panes; the seats were made
of slabs and flat rails, and the writing desk consisted of a rough board laid
upon two pins driven into the side of the cabin. Nevertheless, having the
advantages of an educated father, and bending his mind to such studies as were
afforded him in the primitive school, he so mastered the branches of a
common-school education, that, at the age of seventeen he was competent to enter
upon the duties of a common-school teacher himself. By the pursuit of this
calling he earned and saved sufficient money to enable him, in 1849, to enter
Franklin College, New Athens, Ohio, as a student. At the death of his
father, in 1851, he was called home to take charge of the family, and although
he had not then completed his college course, the board of directors afterward
conferred upon him the degree of master of arts. In 1852 the old homestead
was sold, and the family removed to Mechanicstown, Carroll Co., Ohio, where
John D. turned his attention to the study of medicine under the direction of
J. F. Lindsey, M. D. During this period he earned the
support of himself and family by employment in the small dry-goods store owned
by James Spears, and by teaching. For three years he was principal
of Neville Institute, Columbiana County, Ohio. He finished the study of
medicine under the direction of Dr. Benjamin Ogden, of East Liverpool,
Ohio, to whom he was assistant for three years. Later he attended medical
lectures at Rush Medical College, Chicago, Ill.
While studying medicine he married, in 1853, Martha
Jane Merrick, born June 9, 1832, the daughter of Israel J. and Sarah
(Arbuckle) Merrick, the former of whom was born in 1802 and died in 1881;
the latter, born in 1812, is still living. Mr. Merrick came from
Maryland, and was one of the first settlers of Carroll County. In 1863
Dr. West moved to Dell Roy, Carroll Co., Ohio and commenced the practice of
medicine on his own account. Here he remained until November, 1866, when
he moved to Hopedale, where he has since lived. In 1884 he rebuilt his
residence here, making it one of the best, in point of architecture, in the
village. On April 2, 1884, his wife died. The issue of this couple
consisted of three sons, all college graduates, and two daughters, as follows:
Mrs. W. S. Sheppard, Mrs. R. M. Thomas, James J. and William H. West,
all residents of Chicago, Ill., and Israel M. West, who died at Rush
Medical College, Chicago, in September, 1885, of apoplexy, the result of an
injury to the brain, caused by a fall some time previous. The mother of
these children is buried in Green Township Cemetery, where her husband has
erected a handsome family monument. In November, 1886, Dr. West
married Mrs. Josephine M. Mansfield, relict of Mr. Thomas Mansfield,
and daughter of Mr. Isaac Holmes, who was an early settler of Green
Township.
In 1886 Dr. West wrote a compiled for
publication a medical work entitled "Maidenhood and Motherhood, or Ten Phases of
Women's Life," a book of more than 700 pages, which met with a very large sale,
and is regarded as a standard volume on the subjects of which it treats.
Politically, Dr. West was a Democrat until the administration of James
Buchanan, when he abandoned that party and its policy and became a
Republican. He has frequently been solicited to accept office, by serving
as a member of the Ohio Legislature, but has invariably declined to enter active
political life. While a young man he became connected with the United
Presbyterian Church and at the death of his father was elected to fill his place
as ruling elder, which office he held for thirty-four years, when he left that
church and became a member of the Reunited Presbyterian Church.
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of
Harrison and Carroll, Ohio - Publ.
Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 148 |
| |
REZIN WEST was born Apr. 19, 1812,
in Cadiz Township, Harrison Co., Ohio, where he spent his youth and where he
grew to manhood. On Dec. 10, 1835, he was united in marriage with Nancy
Arthurs, daughter of Gain Arthurs, of Harrison County. Mr.
Arthurs was a native of Ireland, but was brought to America at an early age.
He came to Ohio soon after his marriage with Rachel Hall, of Maryland,
who bore him the following named children: Robert, William, James, Eliza,
Mary J., Amelia, Nancy, Sarah and Louisa. Mr. Arthurs was
Democratic in politics, and in religion held to the tenets of the Seceder
Church, of which he was a consistent member. He was a mason by trade,
which he followed till his death, which occurred Feb. 1, 1876; his wife died in
1845.
After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. West commenced
their struggle for a livelihood on the place where they have since resided.
The farm was then in its wild state, and the primitive log cabin was their home
for many years, while they toiled to clear the farm and render it productive.
What privations and hardships they endured, the present generation know but
little of. Gradually, however, the tree-clad hills gave way to waving
fields of grain, and the sterile slopes to the pastures where roam the peaceful
flocks and herds, instead of the wild beasts of prey. From the original
farm of eighty acres, which was paid for by the results of their hard work,
their possessions grew to 400 acres, thus showing what industry and perseverance
will accomplish. A man of strong convictions and unflinching adherence to
what he considered right, moved by his own judgment and convictions, Mr. West
was of great influence among his neighbors and acquaintances. Honest as
well as enterprising, he was ever foremost in the progressive movements of his
county and township, and was always identified with the more intelligent class.
His children are named Jonathan, Comfort, Rachel, Amos, Japatheth, Sarah E.,
William G., James M. and Esther. Of these Japatheth West
married Lucinda Yant, of Tuscarawas County, Ohio, who died Sep. 21, 1883,
leaving four children: James, John, Jesse and William; for
his second wife he married Martha J. Baker, who has borne him two
children. Amos West married Melissa Copeland, and he ahs the
following family: Roy, Nettie, Nancy, Mahala, Grover Charles and
Frank. William G. West was married Apr. 15, 1881, to Rebecca Wright,
daughter of Sylvanus Wright. He settled on the home place where he
has since resided. His children are named Ellazina, Charles and
Sadie. James M. West was married to Elizabeth Rinehart, of
Franklin Township, Harrison County, and has reared the following family:
James, Edward, Jennie and Clyde. The family have been and are
enthusiastic Democrats, and have always been active in the promulgation and
advancement of Democratic principles. As a family they are well known and
highly esteemed, being recognized as among the best of the township.
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of
Harrison and Carroll, Ohio - Publ.
Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 746 |
| |
ABRAHAM WEYANDT
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll,
Ohio, Publ. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 595 |
| |
DANIEL WEYANDT
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll,
Ohio, Publ. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 609 |
| |
WILLIAM WHEELER
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll,
Ohio, Publ. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 360 |
| |
JAMES WHITE (deceased), late
a resident of New Athens, Ohio, was born in County Tyrone, Ireland, May 15,
1819. His father also named James, was a farmer who made a
preliminary trip to America, entered a tract of land in Kentucky, and
resided upon it ten years. He then returned to Ireland, where he
married Elizabeth McDowell, but after many years came back to
America, with the intention of settling at Newvale, Cumberland Co., Penn.,
our subject being then two years old. But his father was ill when they
landed, and three days after reaching Pennsylvania he died, aged about
seventy-five years. The family being left in poor circumstances,
Mrs. White concluded to push on to Shepherdstown, Belmont Co., Ohio,
where she had friends. Mrs. White died at the residence of one
of her sons in Virginia at the age of eighty-seven years. She was the
mother of eight children, viz.: Mary, Jane, Charles, William, Margaret,
Sarah, Ann and James (our subject), all born in Ireland and all
deceased excepting James.
James White remained with his widowed mother until
he was fourteen years of age, and then began learning a trade, deciding
eventually to become a tailor, which trade, deciding eventually to become a
tailor, which trade he completed at Wheeling, W. Va., not being then quite
of age. He moved about from place to place for some ten years until
Apr. 25, 1839, when, in Beallsville, Monroe Co., Ohio, he was married to
Miss Sarah, daughter of William and Rebecca (Whitstone) Frost,
and a native of Winchester, Va. For a short time the young couple
resided in Jacobsburg, Belmont Co., Ohio, but eventually, in 1841, came to
New Athens, Harrison Co., Ohio. Here this couple shared life's joys
and sorrows until August, 1889, when Mrs. White departed this life,
aged sixty-seven years and eleven months, the mother of sixteen children,
viz.: Elizabeth R., Sarah Ann (deceased), William F., John
Love (deceased), Charles, Ellen C. (deceased), Dora B., Daniel
V., and an infant that died unnamed. After the death of his wife
Mr. White lived at the home place in New Athens, where he died Apr.
19, 1890, having been for a number of years retired from active business.
He was one of the well-known citizens of New Athens, and had held a number
of positions of trust in the township under the Democratic party, of which
he was a faithful member. In 1864 Mr. White enlisted in Company
H, One Hundred and Seventieth O. N. G. and was stationed near Washington and
in the Shenandoah Valley, and he also took part in various engagements, but
was never wounded.
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll,
Ohio - Publ. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 435 |
| |
ARCHIBALD B. WILKIN, M.
D., one of the oldest and most prominent surgeons of Harrison County, with
residence at Harrisville, was born in Washington County, Penn., Feb. 20,
1826. His grandfather, Archibald Wilkin, a native of Ireland,
came to America when but eight years of age, and the parents of our subject,
Andrew and Mary (Henderson) Wilkin, were early settlers of
Pennsylvania. Mrs. Mary Wilkin departed this life in
Pennsylvania, when her son Archibald B. was but thirteen years of
age, but Andrew Wilkin lived until eighty-four years old, dying in
1885, in Harrisville, Ohio, at the residence of our subject, with whom he
had made his home four many years.
Archibald B. Wilkin availed himself of all the
educational advantages that fell to the lot of the boys of the pioneer days,
until he had attained his majority, when he entered Washington College, in
which institution he finished his literary education. In 1847 he began
the study of medicine, under the efficient instruction of Dr. Bemis,
the leading physician and surgeon of West Middletown, Penn., under whom he
assiduously pursued his studies until 1850, when he entered Cleveland
Medical College. After graduating, he entered upon the practice in
partnership with his former preceptor, but Jan. 1, 1854, he came to
Harrisville, where his superior medical abilities were at once recognized,
and here he has ever since been busily and successfully engaged in treating
his numerous patients. He has, in conjunction with his practice,
established a neat and complete pharmacy, stocked with fresh drugs, and here
are filled many medical prescriptions other than his own.
On July 7, 1853, the Doctor married Miss Lorinda
McKeever, a native of Pennsylvania, and for several years a teacher in
the Pleasant Hill Seminary of which her mother, Jane C. McKeever, a
sister of Alexander Campbell, was principal. This union has
been blessed by the birth of five children, of whom four are living:
Jennie C., now Mrs. Charles N. Watson, of Chicago; Mary E.,
married to I. W. Gray, of Steubenville; William A., of
Harrisville, Ohio, and Robert C., of Wheeling, W. Va. The
Doctor and his wife are respected members of the Disciples Church, and
politically he is a Republican. The Doctor is one of Harrisville's
most public-spirited citizens, and is never found lacking in his support of
any movement having for its object the general good. His success in
his profession has been achieved by his untiring researches through the
medical field, and his constant watchfulness of the progress made in the
advancement of the science, with which he keeps fully abreast, and he now
enjoys his reward for his constancy in this respect. Father Time has
silvered his hair to some extent, but he still remains strong and active,
and the fleeting years have in no way diminished his mental vigor; the
ripening of his intellect is like that of "an autumn that grew the more by
reaping." He is one who, outside of the esteem in which he is held for
his scientific knowledge, enjoys the admiration of all for his kindliness of
disposition and amiability of heart.
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical
Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: J. H.
Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 462 |
| |
SAMUEL WILKIN, one of the
self-made and prosperous farmers of Harrison County, was born May 23, 1818,
in Washington Township, where he still resides. His father,
Archibald, was born in Pennsylvania, in which State Robert,
father of Archibald, settled in 1770. Soon after his
arrival in Pennsylvania Robert married Mary Hyde, who bore him
the following children: Elizabeth, Nancy, Jane, Rebecca, Mary,
Samuel, Thomas, Archibald, William, James and Robert. He
came to Ohio about 1802, and leased a small farm near the city of Cadiz,
Harrison County, remaining there a few years, and then he proceeded to
Guernsey County, where he entered land where the town of Londonderry now
stands. There he built a roomy house and opened a tavern, which was
well known to the travelers of that time. He was a Whig, and served
his party many years as justice of the peace. He was also a member of
the Brethren Church, and was among its organizers. His son
Archibald remained with his family until he was of age, when he was
married to Hannah Davidson, daughter of Samuel Davidson of
Washington Township. The family resided in various places, but finally
settled down in Harrison County, where they died. Their children were
Samuel, Mary Ann, Jane and Angelina. In politics, Mr.
Wilkin was a Republican, and took quite an active part in party matters.
He was also a member of the Brethren Church, in whose faith he died in 1870,
Mrs. Wilkin having departed in 1856. their lives were full of hard
work and frugality, but they reared a large family, giving each such
instruction as was deemed best for them, and when the final summons came
gave up their work and sank quietly to rest.
Samuel Wilkin has spent nearly his whole life in
Washington Township, where, by faithful attention to business, by unceasing
industry and economy, he has succeeded in becoming one of the solid farmers
of his section. On Apr. 18, 1843, he was married to Margaret
Foraker, of Guernsey County, who bore him the following children:
Ellis, Mary Ann, Archie, Hannah, Samuel and Margaret S.
On Oct. 22, 1864, Mrs. Wilkin died, and Aug. 6, 1866, Mr. Wilkin
was married to Jeanette McCormack, of Guernsey County. No
children have resulted from this union. Mr. Wilkin engages in
farming and stock raising, his farm consisting of over 400 acres, about two
and a half miles from Tippecanoe, Washington Township. He is a
Republican, and one who has largely contributed to his party's success.
He has been justice of the peace for several years, and has given
satisfaction in the discharge of the duties of that office. The
Wilkin family are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church at West
Chester, in which for many years he has been trustee. Mr. Wilkin
has been an extraordinarily successful man in business matters, as he has by
his own work accumulated his entire property.
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll,
Ohio - Publ. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 596 |
| |
J. M.
WILLISON, a merchant of Moorefield Township, Harrison County, with
post-office at Cassville, is a son of Jerry Willison, who is a son of
Charles Willison, an early settler in Moorefield Township.
Charles Willison was the father of nine children, viz.: Amos,
Jerry, Elijah, Abijah, Charles, Rosilla, Annie, Rusha and Rachel,
all deceased. Jerry was born on the old homestead in Moorefield
Township, where he grew to manhood and received a common-school education.
In 1847 he was married to Miss Rebecca Figley, and to this union were
born two children, Rachel A. (deceased), and J. M. (our
subject). Jerry Willison died in 1850, and a few years later
Mrs. Willison married Joseph Olivar, and now resides in Athens
County, Ohio.
J. M. Willison was born July 3, 1850, in
Moorefield Township, Harrison Co., Ohio, and remained with his mother until
he was fourteen years old, when he hired as a farm hand to John
Kirkpatrick, with whom he remained until he was twenty-one years of age;
he then hired to Robert Kennedy, for whom he worked three years.
On Jan. 8, 1874, J. M. Willison married Miss Julia McCullough,
a daughter of William and Julia (Leizure) McCullough, who were among
the early settlers of Nottingham, who were among the early settlers of
Nottingham Township. After his marriage Mr. Willison rented a
farm, which he worked for five years. In 1884 he engaged in mercantile
business at the place where he is now located, and where he has built up by
his own efforts a fine trade and he is now one of the most successful business
men of Moorefield Township. Mr. and Mrs. Willison are both
active members of the Nottingham Presbyterian Church.
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the
Counties of Harrison and Carroll, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. -
1891 - Page 679 |
| |
MRS. ELIZA WILSON, of
Moorefield Township, Harrison County, is a daughter of Jonah and Sarah (Joice)
Davidson, natives of Maryland. Jonah is a son of Samuel,
whose father was a native of Ireland and immigrated to the United States in
an early day, settling in Maryland. Samuel Davidson was born in
Allegany County, Md., in 1771; his brothers and sisters were thirteen in
number. Samuel Davidson married Mary Drake,
a native of Pennsylvania. They were the parents of sis children,
namely: Lewis, Jesse, Jonah, Mary, Hannah and Nancy.
Samuel Davidson migrated to Harrison County, Ohio, in 1812, and entered
a tract of land in Washington Township. His cousin had come to this
land prior to Samuel coming to it, and bad erected thereon a small
log cabin, in which Samuel and family took up their abode, and in
which they resided for some years. Samuel was a member of the
Protestant Methodist Church for many years; his wife was a member of the
Society of Friends. Jonah Davidson was born in Allegany
County, Md., July 4, 1804, and. in 1812, came with his parents to Ohio,
where he grew to manhood and was educated at the common schools. In
1829 be married Miss Sarah Joice, and to them was born,
October 20, 1832, one daughter, Eliza, in Washington Township,
Harrison County, on the farm on which her paternal grandparent first
settled. Mr. Davidson died June 16, 1889; his wife died
in 1859, a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church for a number of years.
Mrs. Eliza Wilson was reared to womanhood on the home farm, and on
August 4, 1864, she married James Wilson, who was born on the
farm where Mrs. Wilson now resides; he was a son of James
Wilson, Sr. , and Sarah (Brock) Wilson, natives of
Virginia, who were among the early settlers of Moorefield Township. James
Wilson and wife were the parents of three children, namely: Jonah D.,
Sarah B. and James A., all residing at home. Mr.
Wilson, previous to his marriage with our subject, had been married to
Nancy J. Tarbert, who was born in 1836, a daughter of James
and Nancy (McCollough) Tarbert, and to this union
was born one son named Madison, who resides with our subject.
Mr. Wilson departed this life in 1873. Mrs.
Wilson is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and enjoys the
esteem of all who have the pleasure of her acquaintance.
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll,
Ohio, Publ. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 95 |
| |
W. L. WILSON
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll,
Ohio, Publ. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 571 |
| |
ROBERT WOOD, the well-known
cabinetmaker, furniture dealer and undertaker, has been one of the leading
citizens of Cadiz for the past three decades. He was born in Dutchess
County, N. Y., in 1824, a son of John and Sarah (Thompson) Wood, both
natives of Lancashire, England. John Wood came to the shores of
America about the year 1821, bringing his wife and those of his children who
were born in the mother country, and settled in New York, where he became a
manufacturer of woolen goods, and later a commercial traveler; he died in
Stamford, Vt., where his wife had preceded him to the grave. They were
parents of four children, of whom one died in England, one son is living in
Connecticut, another in Maine, and the fourth, Robert (the subject of
this sketch), resides in Ohio.
Robert Wood moved from New York to Wheeling, W.
Va., in 1839, and thence, in 1842, to Toronto, Upper Canada (now Ontario),
where he learned the cabinet-making, spending three years in that country.
From there he went, in 1845, to England, where he finished learning his
trade, and at the end of a year he proceeded to Australia, but remained
there only eleven weeks, returning to England by way of Africa, working a
passage. After some time he recrossed the Atlantic to the land of his
birth. Thus for eight years did Mr. Wood gratify his natural
desire for travel and adventure, meeting with many interesting incidents,
and encountering no few hardships. On his return to the United States,
he located at Westport, Conn., one year, then in Bridgeport, same State, two
years, and after various other changes, he finally settled, in1861, in
Cadiz, Ohio, where he has since made his home, and in 1865 embarked in his
present prosperous business.
In England, in 1846 (some two years before his return
home), Mr. Wood was married to Miss Ann Owens, who bore him
two children: Frederick, who died in infancy in England, and
William T., a grocer, in Cadiz, born in England. The family are
members of the Methodist Episcopal Church; Mr. Wood is a member of
the F. & A. M., and in politics is a Republican. His present home is
the oldest house in the town, and has been kept in repair and greatly
improved by his own labor.
Source:
Commemorative
Biographical
Record of the Counties of Harrison and Carroll, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: J. H.
Beers & Co. - 1891 - Page 606 |
. |
