BLOOMFIELD TOWNSHIP.

     The township of Bloomfield was organized June 3, 1816, and it composed the original survey of township 8, range 17.  It is bounded on the north by Milton Township, on the east by Gallia County, on the south by Madison Township, and west by Franklin and a portion of Lick townships.  Its first Assessor was Joshua Scurlock, and the amount of taxes paid by the township for the year 1817, the first returns being in June of that year, was $48.55.
     At the election of 1824 the judges and clerks in Bloomfield Township were: Judges, Geo. Campbell, John Callahan and Alex G. Stephenson; Clerks, John Stephenson and John Corn.  Geo. Campbell was also one of the first grand jurors of the county in August, 1816, and John Callahan on the second grand jury in November, 1816.    

TOPOGRAPHY.

     The surface of the township is extremely hilly, but it is doubtful if there is a section of the land within its limits that is not underlaid with coal, iron ore or fire-clay, especially the two former.  The small valleys here and there scattered over the township are fairly fertile. In the northeast portion of the township, on Raccoon Creek, while the hills are higher, steeper and less adapted to cultivation, yet where the endings of these hills have caused small valleys, they are extremely productive.  It is undoubtedly a fair stock-raising township, and every part of it, its hills, valleys, gulches and ravines, is good pasture ground, with plenty of timber for shade in summer and protection from the winter blast.  It is not a very well watered township.   Raccoon Creek passes through the northeast corner of the township, watering some three sections, and in its meandering has a length of nearly four miles within that township.  It has but one tributary, which has three heads, one crossing the entire north part from west to east, one head rising in the center, and
one in the southeast.  Water can, however, be easily secured by wells at no very great depth, and sufficient in quantity for all farm purposes.

OLD SETTLERS.

     Bloomfield can boast of being among the early settled townships of the county, and among those who gave it a local habitation and a name were:  George Scurlock, Samuel McClure, Moses Hale, George Poor, Alexander Stephenson, William Burris, Martin Poor, Alexander Poor, Thomas Vaughn, John Callahan, Picket Marvin, Robert Fletcher, Anderson Cremeens, Joseph Boggs, Samuel McCray, Enoch Russell and David Keeting.
     In June, 1831, a petition was received from inhabitants of section 12, township 6, range 18, asking that said section be changed from Franklin to Bloomfield township on account of inconvenience of attending public meetings.  The petition was granted.

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     This was followed just five years later, June 7, 1836, by a petition to be placed back again, and "it was ordered that section 12, township 6, range 18, be detached from Bloomfield and that the same be attached to the township of Franklin."

POPULATION, VALUATION, ETC.

     The population of Bloomfield Township showed at first rapid progress from 1840 to 1860, but since then it has declined.  The population by decades from 1840 is here given: 1870, 1,775; 1880, 1,557.
     The assessed valuation of the chattel  property of the township was, in 1880, $82,844.  The valuation of real and personal property in 1882 is as follows: Real estate, $229,392; personal property, $94,884; total, $324,276.  The township is assessed on 23,854 acres of land.

TOWNSHIP OFFICERS.

     The first record found only dates back to 1841.  That year the officers were: Trustees, Geo. Scurlock, Win. Hale and Jno. Stephenson; Treasurer, Joel Frasier; Clerk, Robert Mims; Constables, Barnsel Lackey, Thos. Frasier and Jno. Andrews; Overseers of the Poor, James Corn and Geo. W. Ware; Justices of the Peace, Jno. Callahan and James
Miller.
     The present officers (lS83) are: Trustees, Jas. Plummer, James E. Lackey and John Buckley; Treasurer, William Scurlock; Clerk, Harrison Poor; Assessor, Benj. F. Callaghan; Constables, J. W. Cole and David T. Janes; Justices of the Peace, Richard T. Jones and David D. Edwards.
     Williamson Scurlock was elected a Justice of the Peace in 1857 and held the office continuously for twenty-one years.

SCHOOLS AND CHURCHES.

     There are ten school districts in Bloomfield Township named and numbered as follows: 
     Key Stone School No. 1;
     Pattonsville School, No. 2;
     Union School, No. 3;
     Winchester School, No. 4, joint district with one in Franklin Township;
     The Run School, No. 5;
     No District, No. 6;
     Callaghan School, No. 7;
     Veja School, No. 8;
     Buckley School, No. 9, joint district with one in Franklin Township;
     The White School, No. 10.

     The Winchester Methodist Episcopal Church was organized by the Rev. Richard Doughty in 1842.  In 1858 they built their church and appointed the following Trustees:
Randall R. Russell, Findley Cherington, Wm. Poor, J. W. McClure and Stephen Vaughn.  The membership was about thirty and the pastor was the Rev. W. S. Benner.  The present pastor is Rev. Mordecai D. Vaughn; its Trustees are: James Plummer, Hamby Barton, John Buckley, J. W. McClure,Sr., and Armstead Scurlock, and its members now number thirty-five.  Services are held every two weeks, and Sabbath-school every Sunday from April 1 to Oct. 1.

     The Bethania Calvinistic Methodist Church was organized sometime about 1847, and erected the present church building in 1856, at a cost of $600.  The ministers on the circuit who take turns preaching at Bethania are as follows: Revs. John Rogers, John Evans, Evan Janes, Benj. Thomas, John M. Janes and Wm. R. Evans.  Services and Sabbath-school every Sunday.  Present membership, twenty-seven.  The church is located in the southeast corner of section 27 and has a cemetery in connection.

     Carmel Congregational Church was organized in 1856, by Rev. Jonathan Thomas.  A neat church was erected in 1857, at a cost of $600, and was dedicated by Rev. John P. Thomas.  The Trustees at that time were:  Evan T. Evans, Isaac S. Evans and Thomas S. Morgan. The present pastor is the Rev. George Reese, and the Trustees are: John J. Richards, David Edwards and D. D. Davis.  It has a membership of about forty-five with ser-

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vices and Sabbath-school every Sunday.  The church is located in the east-central portion of section 35.

     The Veja Methodist Episcopal Church was organized in 1840 by Rev. John Ferree, with about twenty members.  The church was built the same year.  Trustees, John J. Evans, James A. Dair and Thomas Wilmore.  The present pastor is the Rev. James Q. Laken; Trustees, John J. Jenkins, Henry Sharp, James Lackey, Riley Corn and William Raker, and has a membership of sixty.  Service is held every Sunday and also a Sabbath-school.  The value of the church property is $750.

     The Bethlehem Baptist Church was organized in 1869, by Rev. Daniel Lloyd, with about thirty members.  The present pastor is Rev. Daniel Jones; Trustees, John Williams, Enoch Thomas and David Morgan.  Its membership is now about thirty.  Preaching every two weeks.  The church is located on the northeast corner of section 35, and was erected in 1870.  The property is valued at $600.
     Just what year the Methodist Episcopal church was organized at the Key Stone Furnace could not be ascertained, but in 1858 Rev. Mr. Wakefield preached to a class of
ten.  In 1866 Rev. Mr. Tresenrider held a protracted meeting at that place.  There were
some twenty persons joined, and that was the first class of any consequence.  In 1867 the furnace company gave $400 toward building a school-house with the privilege of holding church meetings in it.  The first pastor after the church or school building was finished, was Rev. S. P. Matthews, there being about thirty-five members in the organization.  The present pastor is the Rev. Mordecai Vaughn.  Services are held every two weeks.

     The Union Methodist Episcopal Church was organized by Rev. R. M. Doughty at the residence of Father Martin in 1842, with a
membership of twelve or fifteen.  They have held their meetings ever since in the Union school-house, except occasionally at the residence of some of its members.  The present minister is the Rev. M. D. Vaughn; Class Leader, S. M. Vaughn; Steward, T. H. Vaughn; membership, sixty.  Services every Sabbath, and Sunday-school nine months of the year.

AN OLD BOOK.

     There is in possession of Harrison Poor a copy of the Royal Standard English Dictionary, published in Edinburg, Scotland, in 1777.  It is an interesting work, and really, while valuable, a great curiosity.  It is quite different in its typographical style from the books of the present day.  It is prized greatly by its owner..

THE KEYSTONE FURNACE.

is located on section 12, in the northeast corner of the township.  The furnace was erected by John McConnell & Co. in 1848, and it continued in their hands until 1853, when it was purchased by Green, Benner & Co.  This firm kept it pretty constantly in blast for some eighteen years, when late in 1871 Hon. H. S. Bundy became its proprietor.  It is a charcoal furnace and is now making twenty-four tons of pig iron every twenty-four hours.  It formerly made but twelve tons.  There are employed about 100 men in all its departments.  The manager is Augustus Robb; bookkeeper, David Montgomery; storekeeper, Timothy H. Ewing; foundry manager, Peter McClain, and blacksmith, H. W. Higgins.  In February, 1879, Mr. Bundy erected a grist-mill on Raccoon Creek, near the furnace, for the convenience of the furnace men and the people around.  It is a substantial building and has the celebrated turbine water-wheel.  The postoffice at Keystone Furnace was established in May, 1855, and Samuel Benner was the Postmaster.
The office is still continued, and Au-

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gustus Robb has the office in charge.  There is another postoffice at Pattonsville, near the north center of the township, and one at Veja, near the south center and line.

WINCHESTER.

is a small hamlet located near the geographical center of the township, and near a beautiful grove long used for religious and political meetings.  At the south end of this grove  the Methodists erected a house of worship some years ago.  The populatoin of the hamlet is about sixty, and it has one general store, Willialmson Scurlock, proprietor; one saloon, kept by G. W. Reed, and one blacksmith shop, kept by W. E. Markham.  The Postmaster is E. W. Marvin.  The narrow guage railroad passes through the township from north to south near its center, thus giving the people good transportation facilities.

BIOGRAPHICAL

      Hamby Barton, third son of Thomas and Charlotte (Hale) Barton, was born in Jackson County, Nov. 30, 1827.  He was reared a farmer, and educated at the log-cabin subscription schools.  He was engaged in dealing in iron ore for eighteen years, but for the past several years has followed farming.  He purchased and removed to his present farm, formerly known as the Dr. Marvin farm, in 1876.  He has filled the office of Trustee of this township for fifteen years.  He was Assessor for 1862 and District Assessor for 1870.  He was married Nov. 10, 1853, to Lucinda Quickel, who was born in Gallia County in 1835, and is a daughter of John and Elizabeth Quickel.  Five children have been born to them, of whom three are living - Isaac F., born Nov. 23, 1854; Mollie C., Sept. 14, 1859 (wife of A. J. Nelson), and Ross A., Sept. 19, 1862.  John was born Feb. 4, 1857, and died Sept. 26, 1865, and Grant was born May 2, 1866, and died Feb. 18, 1869.  Mr. Barton and family are members of the Methodist church, of which he has served as Leader and Steward a number of years, and at the present time is District Steward.  His parents were born in Patrick County, Va., and settled in Gallia County, Ohio, in 1811, with their parents,  Sharp and Jennie Barton and James and Mary Hale, and where Mr. and Mrs. Barton were married in 1815.  They reared a family of four sons and three daughters, our subject being the third son.  Mr. Barton died Aug. 27, 1845, and his wife died Sept. 28, 1877.

      John Buckley, farmer, stock-raiser and dealer in stock, was born Feb. 19, 1825, in Franklin Township, Jackson County.  He attended the log-cabin schools and was reared to the life of a farmer, which avocation he has always followed.  He experienced many of the hardships of pioneer life and has seen Jackson County change from a wilderness to what is now is.  He purchased his present farm many years ago, where he has been very successful in all his business operations.  He was married Dec. 31, 1849, to Frankie, daughter of George and Elizabeth Scurlock.  Of their nine children one son and six daughters are living.  His wife died June 26, 1868.  She was a member of the Methodist church.  He was married again May 1, 1870, to Nancy J., daughter of Samuel R. and Susan (Ward) Johnson, by whom he has had two sons.  He and wife are members of the Methodist church, which he has served as Steward and is at present Trustee.  He was Land Appraiser of Bloomfield Township in 1880, and one of the judges for election for 1882.  He was elected to his present position of Township Trustee in 1883.  His parents position of Township Trustee in 1883.  His parents were born, reared and married in Greenbrier County, Va., and came to Ohio in an early day, and in 1814 entered land in Franklin Township, where they reared a family of eleven children.  Mrs. Buckley died at the age of forty years and Mr. Buckley lived to be seventy-four years of age.

     William Burris was born in North Caro-

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lina, Aug. 15, 1802, and came with his parents to Gallia County, Ohio, in 1804, and to Jackson County in 1811.  He was first married to Charlotte Ross, by whom he had five children, of whom one daughter only survives.  His wife died in 1828 and in 1830 he married Margaret, daughter of Jonathan and Isabelle Dempsey.  This union was blessed with seven children, of whom four sons are living.  He was Land Appraiser of Bloomfield Township, and died Sept. 18, 1881.  His widow still survives.

     Benjamin Callaghan was born in Jackson County, Ohio, Mar. 22, 1936, a son of William O. H. and Martha (Hanna) Callaghan, natives of Virginia, his father born in Bath County, Nov. 16, 1797, and his mother in Greenbrier County, July, 1803.  His father came to Jackson County in 1811 and his mother in 1815.  They were married Nov. 26, 1826, and had a family of ten children.  His father was a Justice of the Peace about twenty years and Township Trustee a number of years.  He died Mar. 15, 1879.  His mother died June 28, 1882.  Our subject was reared to the life of a farmer and has always followed that vocation.  He has served as Assessor of the township three years.  Sept.9, 1858, he was married to Sarah E., daughter of Caleb and Mary P. Sharp.  They have seven children - Augustus, William V., Benjain F., Emma J., Mary C., Anna and Laura.  Mr. and Mrs. Collaghan are members of the Methodist Episcopal church.

     William James Callahan, only son of John and Elizabeth (James) Callahan, was born in Jackson County, Mar. 2, 1822.  He has followed agricultural pursuits through life and for the past seven years been engaged in raising and dealing in stock.  He was married in October, 1845, to Sarah A., daughter of Thomas and Ann Strain, of Jackson County, formerly from Pennsylvania.  This union was blessed with ten children, of whom three sons and four daughters are living.  Mrs. Callahan died July 3, 1876, aged fifty-one years.  She was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church.  Mr. Callahan also belongs to that church.  His father was born in Bath County, Va., in 1795, and came with his parents from Bath County, Va., to Jackson County, Ohio, in 1811.  He entered land where our subject now resides.  He filled the offices of County Assessor and Township Trustee a number of years and was also Justice of the Peace.  He was one of the Board of County Commissioners at the time of his death, which occurred Oct. 1, 1852.

     Riley Corn, eldest son of James and Milly (Vernon) Corn, was born in Jackson County, Ohio, May 28, 1827.  His father was born in Patrick County, Va., Sept. 28, 1804, and his mother in Stokes, N. C., June 11, 1805.  They were married in Jackson County, Ohio, where their parents had removed about 1811, and had a family of nine children, eight of whom grew to maturity.  His mother died Oct. 10, 1878.  His father still lives in Gallia County, Ohio.  Riley was reared on a farm, but being desirous of an education studied evenings and when nineteen years of age was qualified to teach.  He taught twenty-five terms, eight terms in his own school district.  Since then he has been engaged in farming.  in 1856 he purchased an interest in the Limestone Iron Company, retaining his interest till the furnace closed.  In 1859 he was elected Clerk of Bloomfield Township, and held the office till 1865, when he refused to serve, but in 1866 was again elected, serving till 1878.  In June, 1865, he was elected Justice of the Peace and served six years.  Apr. 18, 1860, he married Jemima, daughter of Gilbert and Abigail (Patten) Weed.  They have five children, three sons and two daughters.  Mr. and Mrs. Corn are members of the Methodist church.  He is a Class-Leader and Trustee.

     David Dudley Edwards, market gardener, Winchester, Jackson County, was born Apr.

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8, 1844, in what was then Gallia County, but now Jackson County.  During his boyhood days he attended the common school and worked at the grist and saw mill and woolen factory owned by his father.  Although only seventeen years old, he enlisted in the late war in Company G, Seventh Ohio Cavalry, as a private for three years.  He was on detached duty as scout through Kentucky and was for a time mail messenger on the railroad from Knoxville to Cleveland, Tenn.  He was with General Burnside as messenger, for a time and with General Parks at Bean Station.  He was then assigned to General Scofield's command and was messenger on his staff till he was disabled by a fall from his horse and discharged at Raleigh, N. C., June 12, 1865.  Returning home he attended a select school one term at Winchester, after which he purchased a portable saw-mill and was engaged in milling over a year.  He then sold his mill and ran a saw-mill for other parties for three years, when he operated a saw-mill in Kentucky for two years.  He then engaged at bridge-building on the Scioto Valley Railroad for three months, after which he and his brother built the bridges on the Scioto Valley extension from Wheelersburg to Hanging Rock.  Since then he has been successfully engaged in his present business. In 1880 he took the census of Bloomfield Township and in 1883 was elected Justice of the Peace of that township.  He is a member of Trowel Lodge No. 132, A. F. & A. M., of Jackson, and belongs to the Methodist church.  His parents, David A. and Hannah Edwards, were natives of Cardiganshire, South Wales.  They emigrated to the United States and settled in Gallia County in 1838.  He died in January, 1879.  His widow and five sons are still living.

     Joseph Hale, farmer, Bloomfield Township, Jackson Co., Ohio, was born in Gallia County, Ohio, June 23, 1837, the eldest son of Robert and Mary Hale.  His great-grand-father, James Hale, settled in Jackson County in 1800, and was one of the first settlers of the county.  Our subject was reared a farmer and has always followed that occupation.  He has filled the office of Trustee eight years, and in the spring of 1881 was elected Assessor and re-elected in 1882.  Jan. 20, 1859, he married Levina, daughter of George W. and Lucy Ware.  Her parents were early settlers of Jackson County, from Virginia.  Eight children have been born to them, three sons and five daughters.  Mr. and Mrs. Hale are members of the Methodist Episcopal church.
(SharonWick's Note:  Click here for 1870 census page for children.  There is another male named John, aged 23 yrs. on page 30 with John Rupert family)

     Henry Whitfield Higgins, blacksmith at Keystone Furnace, was born Sept. 9, 1837, in Jackson County, and is a son of Henry J. and Ann Higgins, who were born and reared in Bedford County, Va.  They came to Ohio in 1832, and died in Jackson County.  Our subject began to work at furnaces when nine years old and continued to work at them till the breaking out of the late civil war, when he enlisted in August, 1862, in Company H, Twenty-Seventh Ohio Infantry, as a private for three years.   He participated in the battles of Corinth, Resaca, Kennesaw Mountain, siege and capture of Atlanta, and a number of others.  On account of having injured his eyes, he was discharged at Camp Dennison, Ohio, July 7, 1865.  He then returned home and engaged in blacksmithing for a time, after which he was engaged in making roads and attending to the wood supply for the Keystone Furnace, and was assistant manager of the furnace for eight years.  He was married Mar. 14, 1858, to Virginia, daughter of Thomas and Amanda Dickason, early settlers of Gallia County.  They have a family of six sons and one daughter.  He and wife are members of the Methodist church, of which he is Steward.

     Edward Lewis Johnson, physician and surgeon, Winchester, Jackson County, was born Apr. 7, 1851, in Jackson County.  He was reared on a farm, and attended school till he

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was fourteen years old, and before he reached the age of fifteen years taught school.  He continued teaching during the winter months and working on the farm a portion of the summer till he was twenty-one years old, and during that time he attended the National Normal College at Lebanon, Ohio, one year and two terms.  After leaving school he taught a short time.  In his twenty-second year he began the study of medicine with Dr. A. B. Monahan, of Jackson.  During the winter of 1873-’74, he attended the Ohio Medical College at Cincinnati, and in the winter of 1874-’75 attended Jefferson Medical College at Philadelphia, graduating in the spring of 1875.  He immediately became associated with Timothy Marvin, who died shortly after, and since then Dr. Johnson has practiced his profession alone, and is meeting with much success. Apr. 7, 1879, he was married to Nancy A. Cherington, who has borne him two children —Erma and Holm.  Mrs. Johnson is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church.  Her father, Spencer Cherington, was a volunteer in Company K, Thirty-sixth Ohio Infantry, and gave his life for his country.   Samuel R. Johnson, grandfather of our subject, was one of Franklin Township’s first settlers.

     Richard Thomas Jones, eldest son of Thomas E. and Ann Jones, was born in Cardiganshire, South Wales, Nov. 16, 1837.  In 1849 he came with his parents to the United States, and lived in Jefferson Township, Jackson County, till the spring of 1851, when his father purchased the farm where he now resides.  Our subject attended school in Wales, and completed his education at the common schools of Jackson County.  He was reared a farmer, and at the age of nineteen went to Pike’s Peak during the mining excitement, and was engaged trading across the plains fur six years.  He then returned home, where he remained a short time, when he embarked for Wales, where he remained nineteen months.  While in Wales he was married, Jan. 11, 1865, to Mary Jones, of Cardiganshire, South Wales.  Their children are - John T., born Dec. 17, 1865; Catherine A., April 20, 1867; Anna G., June 27, 1878, and Evan E., Feb. 6, 18S3.  Mrs. Jones is a member of the Calvinistic Methodist church. Since returning from Wales he has followed farming.  He served two terms as Trustee of Bloomfield Township, and is at present Justice of the Peace, having been elected in the spring of 1881.

     Albert Wesley Lackey, son of Adam and Nancy (Stephenson) Lackey, was born Aug. 29, 1858, in Bloomfield Township, on the farm where he now resides.  He attended the common schools, and spent one term at the Rio Grande College in Gallia County. With the exception of having taught school two terms he has pursued farming through life, together with raising and dealing in stock.  He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church.  His father is a native of Bloomfield Township, and his mother of Milton Township, Jackson County.  The former filled various township and county offices during his life.  He was on the Board of Commissioners for the county two terms.  He died at the age of sixty-eight years, in 1882, and his wife died in July, 1879, aged sixty-two years.

     James Ephrodidus Lacky, eldest son of Alexander and Catherine (Stoker) Lackey, was born Feb. 6, 1833, on the place where he still resides.  He has always followed farming, and is one of the practical and successful farmers of the county.  He held the office of Trustee of his township from 1865 till 1875, and was again elected to the position in 1882, and re-elected in 1883.  He was married Aug. 29, 1855, to Mary A., daughter of Caleb and Mary Sharp.  They had a family of two children—Leonidas F. and Laura M.  His wife belonged to the Methodist church.  She died July 10, 1881, and Mar. 14, 1882, he married Tilla A., daughter of John J. and Betsy Jones. She is a member of the Meth-

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odist church.  Our subject’s father was born in Virginia, Feb. 14, 1803, and came to Jackson County when three years of age.  His wife was a native of North Carolina.  They had six children, of whom two sons and one daughter are yet living.  Mr. Lackey died in his seventy-fourth year.  His widow survives, being in her seventy-fifth year.

     Peter McClain, eldest son of John and Jane McClain, natives of Ohio and Scotland respectively, was born in Gallia County, Sept. 1, 1844.  He lived on a farm till he was eighteen years old, after which he worked at the Keystone Furnace till he enlisted, June 1, 1863, in Company F, One Hundred and Twenty-ninth Ohio Infantry, as a private, to serve six months, but served over his time.  He was in the campaigns through Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia, and was at the surrender of the Southern troops at Cumberland Gap, and participated in the battle on Clinch River, in Fast Tennessee.  He was mustered
out at Cleveland, and discharged Mar. 1, 1864, after which he was engaged at the Keystone Furnace, and is at present foundryman at the furnace, having been appointed to his present position in 1880.  Aug. 1, 1864, he was married to Califirna, daughter of Enoch and Zerna Russell, who were the first settlers where the Keystone Furnace now stands.  Four children have been born to them, all of whom are living.  Mr. McClain and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church.

     Jacob McClure, Jr., son of Arthur and Jane (Stephenson) McClure, was born Jan. 2, 1836, on the farm where he now resides.  His parents were natives of Monroe and Greenbrier counties, Va., respectively, and when children came with their parents to Jackson County, Ohio, where they were married, and reared a family of ten children, all of whom survive.  They were members of the Methodist Episcopal church.  Mr. McClure followed farming all his life.  He was born Apr. 18, 1803, and died Mar. 18, 1857.  His widow still survives, aged seventy-six years.  Our subject has endured many of the privations of pioneer life, as his father settled on the farm now owned by him when it was all in the woods.  He has been engaged in farming all his life, and has one of the best kept farms in the township.  Nov. 1, 1860, he was married to Almira E., daughter of Samuel R. and Susan (Ward) Johnson, of Jackson County, Ohio.  Five children were born to this union, of whom four are living— Elta G., Minnie S., Rexie A. and Jennie F.  Their eldest child, Myrtie M., died at the age of four years, five months and twenty days.  Mr. McClure, wife and children are members of the Methodist Episcopal church.

     George Washington Poor, farmer and dealer in stock, is the youngest son of Alexander and Nancy (Burris) Poor.  His father was a native of North Carolina, and in 1809 came to Jackson County, where he entered land in Bloomfield Township, and was one of the first settlers of the township.  He was Colonel of the Jackson County militia for many years, and represented the county in the State Legislature one term.  Our subject has always followed agricultural pursuits, and has been one of the most extensive dealers in stock in the county.  He was married Mar. 7, 1850, to Arthalinza, daughter of Harry and Phoebe Phillips, of Jackson County.  Of the nine children born to this union, three sons and three daughters are living.  He is a member of Trowel Lodge, No. 132, A. F. & A. M., and the chapter and council R. A. M., of Jackson, Ohio.  Mr. Poor was one of the first men in Bloomfield to favor the principles of the Republicans, and has been an active worker in that party since its organization.

     Benoni Rhodes, farmer, was born May 24, 1827, in Jackson County, Ohio, and is the third son of William and Mary Rhodes, who were natives of Fayette County, Pa.  His parents settled in Jackson County in 1819, where his father died at the age of thirty-five years.  Our subject was reared on a farm and was educated at the subscription schools.  Upon reaching manhood he began burning charcoal at furnaces, and followed this for several years, but for the past ten years he has been engaged in farming.  He was married Oct. 10, 1853, to Hannah Gill, a native of Baltimore, Md., and daughter of John and Sarah Gill.  He has a family of five children —two sons and three daughters.  His wife died Dec. 4, 1876. She was a member of the Methodist church.  Mr. Rhodes was Trustee of Milton Township for a number of years.

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     Elisha Scurlock, sixth son of George and Elizabeth (Hanna) Scurlock, was born Feb. 8, 1840, in Bloomfield Township, Jackson County.  He was educated at the common schools and at the select schools at Ewington and Berlin.  At the age of twenty-one years he engaged in teaching school, which he followed during the winters for eight years and engaged in farming in the summers.  Since then he has pursued farming in connection with raising and dealing in stock.  Mr. Scurlock, our subject’s father, was a native of North Carolina, and when six years old, in 1806, he came to Ohio.  He died in Jackson County at the age of eighty-one years. His wife came from Greenbrier County, Va., to Ohio.  She died in her sixty-ninth year.

     Williamson Scurlock, farmer and merchant at Winchester, was born Nov. 22, 1830, in Jackson County.  He was educated at the common schools and the graded schools of Jackson.  He has followed agricultural pursuits through life and deals very extensively in stock.  From 1866 till 1871 he was engaged in the dry-goods, grocery and general mercantile business at Winchester, and in 1879 resumed his mercantile business, in which he still continues, together with farming.  Mar. 4, 1858, he was married to Martha, daughter of George and Mary (Billups) Poor.  To them have been born two sons and two daughters, of whom the daughters are living.  In 1857 Mr. Scurlock was elected Justice of the Peace, which office he held for twenty-one years.  He is a member of Trowel Lodge, No. 132, A. F. & A. M., of Jackson.  His father, George Scurlock, was born in Stokes County, N. C., July 19, 1800, and when six years old came with his parents to Jackson County.  Our subject’s mother, Elizabeth (Hanna) Scurlock, was born in Greenbrier County, Va., Oct. 27, 1800, and came to Jackson County at an early age.  Mr. Scurlock died at the age of eighty years.  His wife’s death occurred several years previous.  Of their nine children, four sons and one daughter are living.

     Henry Milton Sharp, was born in Jackson County, Ohio, Nov. 7, 1841, a son of Caleb and Mary Sharp.  Aug. 29, 1862, he enlisted in Company H, Twenty-seventh Ohio Infantry, for three years, and sixteen months later re-enlisted as a veteran.  He was in the battles of Kermesaw Mountain, Decatur and Atlanta.  At the latter place he was wounded, and was in the hospital at Marietta, Ga., two weeks, when he received a furlough, and arrived home Aug. 9, 1864.  Nov. 9, 1864, he returned to Chattanooga and was stationed near Ringgold, in a block-house, six weeks when he returned to his regiment and was in the engagement at Kingston, N. C.  He was then at Raleigh and afterward at Washington at the grand review of the army, when he was sent to Louisville, Ky., for muster out, and was discharged at Camp Dennison, Ohio, July 22, 1865.  Since his return home he has been engaged in farming.  In August, 1870, he was married to Mary, daughter of Hiram and Lizzie (Doddridge) Russell.  Three sons and three daughters have been born to them, one son being deceased.  Mr. and Mrs. Sharp are members of the Methodist church.

     John C. Sharp, farmer, was born in Jackson County, in April, 1840.  His father was born in Bedford County, Va., in 1803, and in 1828 was married to Mary Taylor, a native of Bedford County.  They removed to Gallia County, Ohio, in 1830, and in 1831 purchased land in Bloomfield Township, Jackson County, where he now resides.  They reared eleven children, of whom three sons served in the late war.   Our subject attended the common schools, and also spent four months at the National Normal College at Lebanon, Ohio.  Sept. 16, 1862, he enlisted in Company G, Seventh Ohio Cavalry, as a private, for three
years.  He was on special detail duty as bearer of dispatches—first, on General Gilmore’s staff, then with General Burnside, after which he served on General Schofield’s staff during the war,  he was with Sherman through Georgia until Sept. 2, 1864, when he was taken prisoner and confined for seven
months in Andersonville prison.  He was on the steamer Sultana when it blew up and 1,300 men perished.  He was discharged at Camp Chase, May 20, 1865, after which he returned home.  After recovering his health he engaged as clerk in a store, where he remained but a short time.  Since then he
has been engaged in agricultural pursuits.  He is a member of Lodge No. 609, I. O. O. F., of Centerville, Gallia Co., Ohio, and also belongs to Lincoln Encampment, I. O. O. F., No. 100, Lebanon, Ohio.

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     Rev. J. E. Thomas, third son of Enoch and Jane (James) Thomas, was born in Caermarthenshire, South Wales, Dec. 25, 1816.  When sixteen years of age he joined the Welsh Congregational church of Glandwn, Pembrokeshire.  His brethren immediately sent him to Llanboidy College to be educated for the ministry.  He began preaching when sixteen years of age.  In 1835 a number of the brethren came to the United States and he accompanied them as their pastor.  They located in St. Louis, Mo., and were granted the privilege of worshiping in the basement of Dr. Cox’s (Presbyterian) church, where Mr. Thomas preached the first sermon in the Welsh language in St. Louis.  He preached in St. Louis three years, and then followed farming near Hannibal, Mo., four years, being unable, on account of ill health, to preach regularly.  He then removed to Cincinnati, Ohio, where he worked as a machinist on locomotive engines.  In 1846 he came to Jackson County, where he has since resided.  He preached for different churches in the surrounding country seven years, and was missionary for the Welsh in Portsmouth four years, and organized the Union Church of that place.  He also organized the Welsh church at Williamsburg, Iowa.  In 1862 he enlisted in Company C, Fifty-sixth Ohio Infantry, and after serving nine months as a private was elected Chaplain.  Three months later he was detailed by General Prentiss as Superintendent of the Freedmen at Helena, Ark. , and was in charge of their farm till the summer of 1865.  He sent a small bale of cotton to President Lincoln as the first fruits of the labor of the race he had emancipated.  After his discharge he joined the Regular Baptist church, and labored in the ministry in the counties of Gallia, Jackson, Lawrence, Scioto and Pike.  On account of impaired health he now has charge of but two churches.  While living in Cincinnati he was married to Mrs. Margaret Griffith.  They have had four children—Sarah (wife of Rev. C. S. Baxter, of Jackson County), Enoch M., David J. and Robert I. G.

     Thomas Harrison Vaughn, farmer, stockraiser and dealer in stock, is the youngest son of Thomas and Rebecca Vaughn.  He was born on the farm where he now resides, Sept. 16, 1837, and has always followed the avocation of a farmer.  He was married Nov. 19, 1863, to Eveline, daughter of Adam and Nancy Lackey, early settlers of Jackson County.  They have had five children born to them, of whom three sons and a daughter are living.  Mr. and Mrs. Vaughn have belonged to the Methodist Episcopal church since childhood, and he now holds the position of Steward of the church.  In politics he affiliates with the Republican
party.  His father was born Sept. 2, 1787, in Pennsylvania.  He was in charge of Fort Meigs in the war of 1812, and was present at the death of the Indian chief, Tecumseh.  He settled in Jackson in 1822, where he filled the office of Justice of the Peace of Bloomfield Township a number of years.  He was in official life in Jackson County forty years, and seventeen years of that time was Associate Judge of the county.

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     Stephen N. Vaughn, fifth son of Thomas and Rebecca Vaughn, was born Feb. 24, 1828, in Jackson County, Ohio.  He was educated in the log-cabin subscription schools which he attended a short time during the winters.  He was reared to farm life, and experienced many of the privations of pioneer life.  All his life lie has pursued farming and stock-raising, at which he has been very successful.  He was married May 25, 1858, to Lucinda D., daughter of John and Mary A. Parrel, of Pike County.  They have had eight children, of whom one son and four daughters survive.  Mrs. Vaughn has belonged to the Methodist church since her fifteenth year.  Mr. Vaughn joined the Methodist church when eighteen years of age, and has been Trustee and Steward for a number of years.  He is now Leader of the church, and is an active worker in the temperance cause.  He was a Whig in politics till the organization of the Republican party, since when he has always affiliated with that party.

     JEFFERSON AND MADISON TOWNSHIPS.

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SCHOOLS AND CHURCHES.

OAK HILL.

MANUFACTURES

     Ætna Fire-Brick Manufactory. -

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     Flouring Mill. -

     Jefferson Furnace

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OAK HILL IN 1883.

THE WELSH SETTLEMENT IN JACKSON AND GALLIA COUNTIES, OHIO

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CHURCHES.

     The Congregational Church of Oak Hill

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     The Methodist Episcopal Church

     The Welsh Baptist Church of Oak Hill

OAK HILL PUBLIC SCHOOLS

OAK HILL ACADEMY.

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BIOGRAPHICAL - JEFFERSON TOWNSHIP

     John J. Davisson, carpenter and builder, was born in Lawrence County, Ohio, Dec. 15, 1830, a son of Abed and Lucretia (Ashley) Davidson.  He was reared on a farm and educated in the common schools, and when sixteen years of age began learning the carpenter's trade, at which he served two years.  After working one year as a journeyman in Lawrence County, and the same length of time in Vinton County, he came to Jackson County, where he has since worked at his trade.  He was married Dec. 29, 1853, to Mary Shore, a native of Pittsburg, Pa.  They have had nine children, seven of whom are living - James L., born Oct. 12, 1854; Richard M., born June 5, 1858; John H., Aug. 29, 1859; Mary A., June 5, 1862; Flora A., Feb. 12, 1864; Alfred N., Aug. 27, 1867; William S., born Apr. 22, 1871, and died Oct. 11, 1872; Charles E., born Nov. 9, 1873, and Edna May, born Feb. 15, 1876, and died Apr. 9, 1877.  Mr. Davisson is a member of Portland Lodge, No. 366, A. F. & A. M.

    Thomas P. Davis, miller, was born in Cardiganshire, Wales, in 1836, and came to America in 1840 with his parents, John and Elizabeth (Phillips) Davis, who settled in Oak Hill, where Mr. Davis died two years later.  Our subject lived on the home farm till he grew to manhood, and in 1858 he engaged as engineer at Jefferson Furnace, where he remained till Sept. 1, 1864, when he enlisted in Company C, One Hundred and Seventy ninth Ohio Infantry.  He served till the war closed and was honorably discharged June 17, 1865.  After his return home he worked at the furnace for seven years, since when he has been engaged in his present business.  He was married in March, 1860, to Betsy, daughter of John C. Davis.  They have had nine children, of whom seven survive - Elizabeth, John T., Daniel J., Mary J., Thomas C., Annie and Kate.  Ellen and David are deceased.  Mr. Davis and wife are members of the Calvinistic Methodist church, and he is a member of Portland Lodge, No. 366, A. F. & A. M.

    Thomas G. Davis, a son of David and Jane Davis, was born in Cardigan, South Wales, in May, 1801.  He resided on the home farm till he grew to manhood, and in 1837 came to America.  He first located in Pittsburg, Pa., where he clerked for Ladley Coal Company ten years.  He then came to Oak Hill and purchased his present farm, containing eighty acres of heavily timbered land.  He began to clear his land and by industry has accumulated a good property.  When the Jefferson Furnace was being built he donated thirty acres of his land to encourage the enterprise.  He was married in 1847 to Kiner Williams, a native of Wales.  They were blessed with six children, of whom three are living - Margaret, Jane and David.  His wife died in 1863.  She belonged to the Calvinistic Methodist church.  Mr. Davis belongs to the same church.  He is now in his eighty-third year and has always enjoyed excellent health,

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having never been sick till over eighty-one years old.

     Thomas E. Davis, farmer, was born in Cardiganshire, South Wales, Oct. 6, 1839.  When he was one and a half years old his parents, Evan O. and Mary (Jenkins) Davis, emigrated to the United States and settled on a farm in Jefferson Township, where they spent the remainder of their lives.  Our subject attended the common schools and completed his education at the Ohio University in Athens.  During the civil war he enlisted in the Forty-first Regiment Martial Guards, and served four months.  He re-enlisted Sept. 1, 1864, in Company C, One Hundred and Seventy-ninth Ohio Infantry, and served till the war closed.  He returned home and taught school for nine years.  He is at present engaged in farming on section 23, where he has 100 acres of well-improved land.  Mr. Davis was married in 1872, to Maggie, daughter of Nathaniel and Elizabeth Edwards.  They have had six children - Evan C., born May 28, 1873; Nathaniel E., May 6, 1875; Mary E., July 9, 1877, and died Oct. 3, 1880; Elizabeth born Feb. 6, 1879, and died Feb. 21, 1879; Lizzie J., Jan. 14, 1880, and Mary Ann, May 3, 1882.  Mr. Davis is a member of the Masonic fraternity.  He and wife belong to the Calvinistic Methodist church.

     Stephen J. Davis was born in Cardiganshire, South Wales, Nov. 12, 1838, a son of John W. and Mary Davis.  When eleven years of age he came with his father's family to America and settled near Oak Hill, in Jefferson Township, where he was reared on a farm and educated at the common schools.  After attaining his majority he worked as engineer at the furnaces for several years.  In 1864 he purchased a farm in Allen County, where he resided two years, after which he purchased an interest in a portable saw-mill, which he operated several years.  In 1880 he returned to the old homestead, where he is still following the avocation of a farmer.  He was married Nov. 27, 1873, to Mrs. Lizzie (Morgan) Jones.  They have one child - Mary C.  Mr. and Mrs. Davis are members of the Calvinistic Methodist church, and he belongs to Portland Lodge, No. 366, A. F. & A. M.

     John J. Davis, farmer, section 11, is the only son of John C. and Mary C. Davis, who came from Wales in 1837, and in 1844 settled in Jefferson Township.  He was born Dec. 13, 1844, in Jefferson Township, where he attended the common schools and lived with his parents till he grew to manhood, after which he worked at furnaces several years.  During the late civil war he enlisted, Sept. 1, 1864, in Company C, One Hundred and Seventy-ninth Ohio Infantry.  He served till the close of the Rebellion, and was honorably discharged June 17, 1865.  After the war he again worked in furnaces for a time.  He was married Nov. 2, 1868, to Mary B. Evans, born in Jackson County, May 21, 1851.  They have one child - Mary Ellen, born Apr. 29, 1870.  Mr. Davis purchased his present farm in 1880, which contains forty acres of valuable improved land.  He and wife belong to the Oak Hill Calvinistic Methodist church.

     Joel Davis, son of David and Catherine (Evans) Davis, was born in Cardigan, South Wales, Feb. 19, 1825.  He came to the United States in 1851, and settled in Oak Hill, where he worked at the saddler's trade one year, and when the Cincinnati & Marietta Railroad was being built he worked on that for a time.  He was then in the employ of the Limestone Furnace Company two years, after which he teamed about fifteen years.  In 1869 he purchased his present farm, which contains 120 acres of valuable land.  He was married Feb. 4, 1858, to Elizabeth Edwards, born Apr. 28, 1832, a daughter of Daniel and Mary Edwards, who came from Wales to Jackson County in an early day.  This union was blessed with five children - David Charles, born May 5, 1859; Daniel Baxter, Jan. 7, 1861; Mary Catherine, Feb. 22, 1863; Susan,

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born Jan. 23, 1866, and died Mar. 8, 1866, and Elizabeth Jane, born Dec. 17, 1874.  Mr. Davis and his wife are members of the Calvinistic Methodist church.

     Evan T. Davis, foreman of the Oak Hill Fire-Brick Company, was born in Wales, Nov. 8, 1841.  His parents, Thomas and Mary (Williams) Davis, came to the United States in 1846, and settled on a farm in Jefferson Township, where the subject of this sketch was reared.  On attaining his majority he engaged in farming until Sept. 1, 1864, when he enlisted in Company C, One Hundred and Seventy-ninth Ohio Infantry, and served till the close of the war, when he received an honorable discharge.  He was married Mar. 22, 1866, to Elizabeth Ann Jenkins, born Aug. 15, 1846, daughter of David and Ann Jenkins, natives of Wales.  They are the parents of seven children - Thomas, born Oct. 29, 1867; David, born Mar. 27, 1870; William L., born June 1, 1872; Evan W., born Oct. 6, 1874; John R., born May 24, 1877; Margaret Ann, born Oct. 7, 1879; Mary Ellen, Nov. 15, 1881.  He and his wife are members of the Calvinistic Methodist church.

     Joseph T. Edwards, farmer, was born in Denbighshire, North Wales, May 8, 1830, and in 1836 came with his parents, Thomas and Catherine (Williams) Edwards, to the United States.  After living in Pittsburg, Pa., six months, they came to Pomeroy, Ohio, where the father engaged in coal-mining three years, when he came to Jackson County, and followed farming till his death, which occurred in May, 1843.  His wife lived till December, 1865.  They were the parents of eight children, all natives of Wales.  Our subject engaged in coal-mining at the age of fifteen years which he followed some time, after which he worked in the rolling mills.  He was married in 1857, to Mary Ann Morgan, who was born in Wales, Dec. 25, 1836.  Twelve children were born to them - Lizzie J., born Nov. 8, 1857; Kate, Feb. 28, 1859; Thomas Lincoln, Mar. 27, 1861; Mary Ellen, born Jan. 15, 1863, and died Aug. 30, 1863; Mary, May 22, 1864; Maggie, June 1, 1866; Hannah, Sept. 1, 1868, and died June 15, 1870; William Jan. 7, 1870; Evan Robert, Oct. 24, 1871; John Hugh Aug. 24, 1873; Ann Edith, Oct. 13, 1876, and David, Dec. 13, 1879.  Mr. Edwards has a finely cultivated farm of 120 acres on section 22.  He and wife are members of the Calvinistic Methodist church.

     David Edwards was born in Cardiganshire, Wales, in 1814, a son of Thomas and Margaret Edwards.  His father died when he was seven years old, and in 1835 his mother and her family came to the United States.  They remained in New York one year, when they moved to Cleveland, remaining there one year.  They then came to what is now Oak Hill, where David worked at the carpenter's trade, and his brother Thomas, who was born in Cardiganshire in 1818, worked at stone-cutting.  By strict economy they saved money, with which they bought 200 acres of unimproved land.  They soon purchased a horse-mill, which they ran in connection with their farming pursuits.  Their next purchase was a saw and grist mill, which they operated very successfully eight years, when they sold out and, in company with several others, built the Jefferson Furnace.  Our subject has retired from active service, but still manages his large farm.  His brother Thomas was married June 10, 1860, to Ellen, daughter of David Jones, who came from Wales in 1847.  They had four children, of whom only one is living.  Thomas Edwards died Apr. 30, 1867.

     David A. Evans, son of Evan and Ellinor Evans, was born in Monmouthshire, South Wales, about 1829.  He came to the United States in 1851 and lived in Richmond, Va., a year, after which he lived in Pittsburg about a year.  He then resided in Cincinnati about two years, when he came to Jackson County.  He worked in the rolling mills in the above-named places till he came to Jackson County,

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since which time he has been engaged in farming and has accumulated a good property.  His farm contains ninety-one acres of land.  He was married Jan. 6, 1851, to Elizabeth Shadrick who was born in Wales in 1831.  They have had twelve children - Jemima, born Oct. 24, 1851; Shadrack, Aug. 6, 1855; John H., Jan. 6, 1858; David S., Oct. 6, 1860; Mary born Mar. 15, 1863 and died in August, 1864; Phoebe, born Aug. 20, 1865; Evan R., Oct. 31, 1868; Newton, June 6, 1870; Benjamin, born July 20, 1871, and died in infancy; Thomas J., born Aug. 10, 1872; William H., Feb. 6, 1875, and Cora, born May 15, 1876, and died in infancy.  Mr. Evans and his wife are members of the Calvinistic Methodist church.

     David D. Evans was born in Jefferson Township, Jackson County, Jan. 2, 1838, where he was educated at the common schools and completed his education at the Ohio University, at Athens, since which he has been engaged in teaching school, and has taught twenty-seven years.  He was elected Magistrate in 1876 and had held the office since by re-election.  He was married Sept. 4, 1862, to Winnie A. Hughes, born Oct. 13, 1835, and daughter of John and Ann Hughes, natives of Wales.  They have had nine children, of whom six are living - Thomas L., born Jan. 9, 1864; John E. Dec. 10, 1865; Richard G., Apr. 12, 1867; Ann E., July 18, 1869; Jane Alice, Mar. 18, 1875, and Elail Jane, Aug. 29, 1876.  Mr. Evans has a fine farm of forty-three acres.  He and wife belong to the Welsh Presbyterian church.  His father, Thomas Evans, was a native of Wales, and came to America in 1836 and located in Oak Hill, where he followed blacksmithing till his death.

     Henry Horton, farmer, section 4, Jefferson Township, was born Nov. 19, 1820, in Jackson County.  He was married Sept. 9, 1841, to Nancy, daughter of William and Jemima Patton, who were pioneers of Gallia County, Ohio.  Mr. Horton followed farming till 1854 after which he engaged in the manufacture of lumber for six years.  He then returned to the old homestead where he owns 188 acres of well-improved land, and is still engaged in farming pursuits.  Mr. and Mrs. Horton are the parents of five children living.  Three of their children are deceased.  He and wife are members of their children are deceased.  He and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church.  John Horton, father of our subject, was born in Greenbrier County, Va., Oct. 14, 1787, of English origin.  He served five years in the war of the Revolution.  He came to Jackson County in 1811 with his wife, Mary (Radeburg) Horton, and two children, and lived in Madison Township till 1825.  He then removed to Jefferson Township and purchased the farm where our subject now lives, where his wife died in August, 1839, at the age of fifty-one years.  Of their ten children only three are living.  Mr. Horton was again married to Mrs. Sarah Shumate.  He died June 6, 1869, and his wife about a year and a half later.

     John H. Horton, son of William and Elizabeth (Gilliland) Horton, was born Jan. 26, 1842, in Jackson County, Ohio.  He was reared and educated in the county, and attended school in the first school-house built in District No. 5, Jefferson Township.  Jan. 1, 1863, he was married to Nancy Cummins, who was born June, 1846, and a daughter of Polina Cummins.  They have had three children, two of whom are living - Margaret and Mary E.  Milard F. is deceased.  Mr. Horton has a fine frame residence and a well cultivated farm of 240 acres on sections 5 and 8, Jefferson Township.  In politics he affiliates with the Republican party.

     Evan E. Hughes, physician and surgeon, was born in Jefferson Township, Jackson Co., Ohio, May 14, 1845.  His parents, Evan and Elizabeth (Evans) Hughes, were natives of Wales and came to the United States about 1842 and settled in Jefferson Township, where Mr. Hughes died when our subject was an in-

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fant.  His mother married again in about five years and died two and a half years later.  Our subject was, after the death of his parents, reared on the farm of his uncle, Thomas C. Jones and educated at the common school.  Sept. 1, 1864, he enlisted in the late war in Company C, One Hundred and Seventy-ninth Ohio Infantry, and was honorably discharged June 17, 1865.  After his return he went to school in Van Wert County, Ohio, a short time, after which he went to Wisconsin, where he attended the Spring Green Academy.  In the fall of 1868 he began the study of medicine with Dr. Henry Roether, of Van Wert County, and took his first course of lectures at the Cleveland Medical College in the winters of 1869 and 1870.  In the winter of 1871 and 1872 he attended the lectures at the Cincinnati Medical College, where he graduated March 1, 1872.  He then practiced in Meigs County, Ohio, one year, after which he went to Centerville, Ohio, where he remained two and a half years.  In March, 1875, he came to Oak Hill, where he has since followed his profession and built up a large practice.  He was married Dec. 8, 1880, to Jennie Morris born Mar. 25, 1853, and daughter of Edward and Mary Morris, natives of Wales.  They have been blessed with one son, born June 5, 1882.  The Doctor and his wife are members of the Calvinistic Methodist church.

     Thomas J. Hughes, son of John and Ann (Williams) Hughes, was born in Jefferson Township, Jackson County, Sept. 20, 1840.  He lived at home till September, 1864, when he enlisted in Company C, One Hundred and Seventy-ninth Ohio Infantry, and served till the close of the war, when he was honorably discharged.  He then returned home and engaged in farming, which avocation he still follows.  He was married Apr. 23, 1869, to Sarah D. Jones, born in Wales, July 16, 1845, and a daughter of David W. and Margaret (Pugh) Jones, who came to America and settled in Jackson County in 1847.  Mr. and Mrs. Hughes have had seven children, of whom six are living - Margaret, born Sept. 25, 1870; David, Jan. 31, 1873; Ann, Mar. 23, 1875; John, Feb. 15, 1877; Ellen Feb. 6, 1879, and Thomas, May 13, 1881.  John was born Sept. 11, 1871, and died Sept. 3, 1873.  Mr. Hughes and wife are members of the Calvinistic Methodist church.  Mr. Hughes's parents were natives of Wales.  They came to the United States and located in Jackson County about 1838.

     Edward J. Jenkins, was born in Cardiganshire, Wales, July 31, 1833, and came with his parents, James and Jane (Jones) Jenkins, to America in 1836.  They settled in Jackson County, where Edward was reared on a farm, and has always followed farming pursuits.  He lived at home till nineteen years of age, when he was married to Jane Davis, daughter of John C. and Mary Davis.  They have had six children, of whom five survive - Jennie E., Mary A., Charles, Jane H. and Maggie.  John is deceased.  His wife died Mar. 7, 1878, and he was again married July 1, 1880, to Ellen E. Jones, of Gallia County.  This union was blessed with two children, of whom one survives - Nellie.  Mr. Jenkins has been elected to many local offices by the people.  He and his wife belong to the Presbyterian church.

     Evan N. Jones, son of John N. and Ann (Davis) Jones, was born May 8, 1829, in Cardiganshire, Wales.  He came with his father's family to America in 1840.  They first lived in Pittsburg, Pa., two years, after which they resided in Gallia County five years, and from there moved to Lawrence County.  He is married Nov. 1, 1854, to Elizabeth Griffiths, a native of Cardiganshire, Wales.  They have had eight children born to them, six still living - John, born Aug. 14, 1855; Thomas, Aug. 28, 1858; Ann, Oct. 28, 1860; Mary, June 6, 1865; David, June 26, 1867; William, Dec. 11, 1870.  After his marriage he worked in the furnace till

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1868, when he came to Jackson County and purchased the farm where he still resides, on section 26.  The farm contains 140 acres of well improved land.  He and his wife belong to the Calvinistic Methodist church.

     John Davies Jones was born in Madison Township, Jackson County, Oct. 24, 1841.  He enlisted in the late war in October, 1862, in Company H, One Hundred and Seventeenth Ohio Infantry, but was soon transferred to Company H, First Ohio Heavy Artillery.  He served three years and was honorably discharged in August, 1865.  After his return to Jackson County he followed teaming for five years, since which he has been engaged in the manufacture of fire brick as foreman for the Ætna Fire-Brick Company at Oak Hill.  Since he was fifteen years of age he has been leader of the choir in the Congregational church, and his son, Daniel E., aged fourteen years, presides at the organ in the same church.  He was first married to Mary Morgan in 1866, by whom he had seven children, of whom four are living.  His present wife was Lizzie Evans before her marriage.  They have  one child.

     Eben Jones was born in Cardiganshire, South Wales, Jan. 14, 1834, a son of Thomas J. Jones, of Jefferson Township.  In 1837 his parents came to America and settled in Jackson County, Ohio.  When he was eighteen years of age he entered the Ohio University at Athens, remaining there two years.  He afterward attended Bartlett's Commercial College, at Cincinnati, from which he graduated in 1857.  That same year he began teaching, and taught six years.  In August, 1864, he enlisted in Company C, One Hundred and Seventy-ninth Ohio Infantry, and was appointed First Lieutenant, serving eleven months.  On his return home in 1865, he engaged in saw-milling.  In 1867 he became a stockholder in the Buckeye Furnace and served as its Secretary till March, 1873.  In the spring of 1873, he was employed to superintend the building of the Triumph Furnace, but on account of the inferiority of the coal the furnace was abandoned.  Dec. 1, 1873, he became a stockholder in the Globe Iron Company, and was its Secretary till Jan. 1, 1882, when he resigned to assume the management and superintendency of the Buckeye Furnace Company, but in May, 1883, he was obliged to resign on account of ill health.  Mr. Jones was instrumental in having a railroad built to the Buckeye Furnace, thereby increasing its value.  He was for many years taught vocal music, and is now chorister of the Presbyterian church, of which he is a member.  Politically he is a Republican.  He was married in 1857 to Ann, daughter of Morgan Williams, at Columbus, Ohio.  Of ten children born to them but seven are now living.

     Thomas Morgan, farmer, was born Sept. 8, 1820, in Llancwulle, Cardiganshire, South Wales, where he attended school two years.  His early life was passed in farming.  His parents, Moses and Elizabeth (Evans) Morgan, were natives of Wales, and emigrated from Cardiganshire in 1838 and settled in Pomeroy, Ohio.  In on year they removed to Jackson County, where they died, the former Jan. 20, 1861, and the latter in 1847.  They were the parents of nine children.  Our subject was apprenticed to learn the stone-mason's trade under Thomas Price.  He helped build the Buena Vista Furnace in Kentucky, Buckeye, Jefferson and Bloom furnaces in the Scioto Valley.  He was married in April, 1851, at Portsmouth, Ohio, to Mary Williams, who emigrated from Llangeitho, Cardiganshire, South Wales in 1847.  They have had eight children - Elizabeth, Stephen, Moses, Ann and David (twins) William, Mary Jane and Thomas Charles (twins).  David died at the age of two years and Thomas Charles at the age of nine years.  Mr. Morgan settled in Jefferson Township, Jackson County, in 1850.  He has worked at his trade occasionally, but has made farming his principal occupation through life.  He has

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held the office of Township Trustee ten years.  He is a member of the Patrons of Husbandry and belongs to the Calvinistic Methodist church.  In politics he was formerly a Whig, and cast his first vote for Henry Clay, but since the organization of the Republican party has voted that ticket.  Mr. Morgan has been a great reader through life, a good citizen and a consistent Christian.

     John Phillips, eldest son of Joseph and Mary (Mackley) Phillips, was born Nov. 24, 1823, in Jefferson Township, Jackson County.  His youth was spent in assisting his father on the farm and in attending the subscription schools.  He was married Sept. 10, 1845, to Mary Delaney, who died June 13, 1874, in her forty-ninth year.  They were the parents of seven children - William, born Aug. 2, 1847; A. G. Thurman, born Jan. 19, 1849, and died Feb. 1, 1880; Mary J., Jan. 19, 1851, and died Aug. 5, 1872; Josephus, born Mar. 10, 1853, and died Feb. 2, 1876; Octavia, born Feb. 28, 1856, and died in 1859; Minerva A., Apr. 13, 1858, and Samilda Sept. 19, 1861.  Mr. Phillips was again married Apr. 5, 1877, to Mrs. Lizzie Nichols, a native of Virginia.  He has a well-improved farm of eighty acres in section 25, and has made farming his principal business through life.  He enlisted in the late war in Company C, One Hundred and Seventy-ninth Ohio Infantry, and served till the war closed.  His second son, Thurman, enlisted at the age of sixteen, and served through the war.  He participated in twenty-nine hard-fought battles and was wounded at the battle of Petersburg, which unfitted him for further active duty, although he still remained in the army.

     Joseph Phillips, farmer, section 24, Jefferson Township, was born in Jefferson Township, Jackson County, August 15, 1846.  He was educated at the common schools and reared on the home farm, and since the death of his father has managed the homestead.  His father, Joseph Phillips, Sr., was born in Kanawha County, W. Va., Oct. 5, 1801, and in 1817 came to Jefferson Township, Jackson Co., Ohio.  He was married Mar. 25, 1821, to Mary Mackley, our subject's mother, and settled on the farm where he spent the rest of his life.  They were the parents of nine children.  His wife died Mar. 16, 1852, and he was again married Jan. 13, 1853, to Mary Allen, a native of Jackson County.  This union was blessed with four children.  Joseph Phillips, Sr., died Feb. 22, 1876.

     Milton Phillips, son of Joseph and Mary (Mackley) Phillips, was born July 17, 1840, in Jefferson Township, Jackson County.  He lived with his parents till the breaking out of the late war, when he enlisted, Aug. 5, 1861, in Company D, Thirty-sixth Ohio Infantry.  He was engaged in several skirmishes in West Virginia, and while at the battle of Louisburg, May 23, 1862, was shot through the right lung, from the effects of which he has never fully recovered.  He was honorably discharged in November, 1862.  He was married in September, 1870, to Jennie Tyler, a native of Jackson County, by whom he had two children who died in infancy.  Mrs. Phillips died in August, 1873, and he was again married, Mar. 22, 1877, to Elizabeth Overton, a native of Kentucky.  The union has been blessed with one child - John G., born Mar. 30, 1878.  Mr. Phillips is engaged in farming on part of the old homestead, where he owns seventy-nine acres of improved land.  He and wife are members of the United Brethren church.

     John Shumate, son of Harrison and Sabinah (Buckley) Shumate, was born June 11, 1839, in Jefferson Township, Jackson County.  He lived on the farm with his parents till manhood, and attended the common schools, and June 2, 1861, he married Jane, daughter of Amos Jenkins of Jackson County.  They are the parents of ten children - Eva, Sabinah, Elfie, Jennie H., William J., Flora, Mary D., Roy E. and Ross E.  He resides on a part of

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the old homestead which he owns in connection with his brother.

     William Shumate, farmer, section 1, was born in Jefferson Township, Jackson County, July 30, 1844, a son of Harrison and Sabinah (Buckley) Shumate.  When seventeen years of age he enlisted, Sept. 7, 1861, in Company D, Thirty-sixth Ohio Infantry.  He participated in many of the hard fought battles of the war, and was discharged Aug. 2, 1865.  He then returned home and has since been engaged in farming.  He resides on the old homestead which he and his brother John own and which consists of 364 acres of valuable land.  He was married May 29, 1867, to Emma Johnson, of Jackson County.  This union has been blessed with seven children - John, Herbert, Bertman, Charles, Nellie, Nora and an infant.  Mrs. Shumate is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church.

     John W. Thomas, deceased, son of William Thomas was a native of Wales, born Sept. 30, 1814.  When a young man he emigrated to America, and worked in the rolling mills in several of the largest cities in the United States previous to his coming to Jackson County.  He worked in the rolling mills at Portsmouth several years, when he was married to Mary Owens, daughter of John Owens who died in Jefferson Township, June 6, 1883, aged eighty-four years.  They were the parents of nine children, three of whom died in childhood.  Those living are - Mary Ann, William, Margaret Jane, Sarah E., John O. and Susie.  After his marriage Mrs. Thomas came to Oak Hill, where he purchased the farm on which his children now reside.  After farming a few years he was chosen Financial Agent for the Cambria Furnace, which position he held for twenty-two years, after which he retired to his farm where he lived till
his death, which occurred May 25, 18S2.

     David D. Williams, miller, was born in Wales, Apr. 14, 1833, a son of David L. and Margaret (Phillips) Williams, who came to the United States in 1841, and settled in Oak Hill, where they passed the remainder of their days.  Our subject was reared on a farm and attended the common schools, and on reaching the aged of manhood engaged in mining, which he followed twenty-years.  Sept. 1, 1864, he enlisted in Company C, One Hundred and Seventy-ninth Ohio Infantry, and served till the war closed.  He was mustered out June 17, 1865, after which he was engineer at the Jefferson Furnace until 1871.  He then, in partnership, with Thomas P. Davis, purchased the flouring mill at Oak Hill.  He was married June 20, 1855, at Ann C. daughter of John C. and Mary (Lloyd) Davis.  Twelve children have been born to them - Mary Alice, born Dec. 31, 1856; Daniel D. Apr. 14, 1859; Margaret J. June 12, 1861; John D., Sept. 16, 1863; Edwin D., Apr. 14, 1866; Thomas L., born June 17, 1868; Caynor Ann, Jan. 31, 1870; Ettie E., Oct. 13, 1872; David N., Oct. 16, 1874; Lewis W., Apr. 4, 1876; Laura K., Sept. 9, 1878, and Evert B. June 15, 1880.  Mr. Williams and wife are members of the Calvinistic Methodist church.

MADISON TOWNSHIP

     Levi Brown,farmer and stock-dealer, was born in Marion Township, Pike Co., Ohio.  Jan. 7, 1838, a son of David and Lavina (Pool) Brown.  When eighteen years of age, in company with a Mr. Calder, he erected the grist-mill now owned by John B. Brown in Pike County.  He followed milling three years and then purchased a farm which is a part of his present estate.  He now owns 300 acres of fine improved land.  He was married Dec. 1, 1859, to Ruhima, daughter of William and Abigail Stockham, who have for many years been prominent citizens of Pike County.  They have a family of nine children, four sons and five daughters.  Mr. and Mrs. Brown are both members of the Baptist church.

     Timothy Evans was born in Madison

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Township, Jackson County, July 17, 1821, a son of John and Mary (Jones) Evans, who came from Wales in 1818 and settled on the farm where our subject now lives.  He was educated at the subscription schools, and was married in 1857 to Margaret, a daughter of John and Mary (Evans) Owens, who were natives of Wales.  They have had a family of nine children - Mary E., John O., Robert B., Sarah E., Gomver, Susannah, George W., and two who died in infancy.  Mr. Evans has always followed farming, and now owns 500 acres of valuable land.  He and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church.

     Captain W. J. Evans was born in Pittsburg, Pa., Feb. 18, 1821, the youngest of seven children of Daniel and Mary (Evans) Evans, natives of South Wales.  His parents were married in Wales, and came to America in 1810, locating in Pittsburg, where his father died in 1830.  Four of their children died in infancy.  David died in Jackson County in 1872, and John is a resident of Pittsburg.  W. J. came with his mother to Jackson County in 1835.  She bought some land and he assisted in clearing it up.  His education was necessarily limited, as from an early age he had been obliged to work.  His mother died in March, 1864.  In 1846 he married Jane A. Frazee.  Of their eight children five are now living.  In 1862 he raised Company H, One Hundred and Seventeenth Ohio Infantry, and was appointed its Captain.  In the latter part of 1863 the regiment was changed to heavy artillery.  In the fall of that year he was detached, and was Provost Marshal at Loudon, Tenn., seven months; from there he went to Cleveland, Tenn.  He returned home in the fall of 1865 and resumed farming.  His farm is underlaid with coal, ore and limestone.  He has six drift-mines of ore and one coal drift open.  His limestone is blue and of a good quality.  The fire-clay is of a superior quality.  Politically Captain Evans was first a Whig but is now a Republican.  In the fall of 1853 he was elected to the State Legislature.  He served as Justice several years until he refused further service.

     Daniel and James Herbert.  The subjects of this sketch own one of the largest and most fertile farms in Madison Township, and are representatives of a family whose history is closely connected with that of the early settlement and subsequent development of the southwestern part of Jackson County.  Their father, John Herbert, who died in 1881, was an important factor in the progress of this section, and a few items of his personal history as related to that progress may be interesting to the local historian and valuable for future reference.  Mr. Herbert was the son of James and Mary Herbert, of Cardiganshire, South Wales.  In 1825 he married Jane Jones, daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth Jones, of the same county.  In 1838 they emigrated to this country with five children—Elizabeth, Thomas, Daniel, John and Mary, and arriving here in May of the same year they located in Jefferson Township, about five miles to the southwest of Oak Hill, near the present site of Samsonville.  This section was then one dense primeval forest, with here and there a small cleared space with a log hut in its center, showing that the initiatory rites of a future civilization had already been performed.  In the midst of this wilderness a tract of land was bought from the Government, a log cabin was built and the battle of life began anew.  By the aid of the ax and a couple of borrowed mattocks a space of ground was cleared, the soil prepared and fine crops of corn and wheat soon rewarded the toil and cheered the hearts of the brave pioneers.  Thus in a new country, suffering the usual privations of pioneers and contending with a host of difficulties, John Herbert laid the foundation of a long and prosperous career.  Here were born the remaining children, James, Ann and Jane. Mr. Herbert, by habits of industry and economy,

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rapidly thrived and accumulated considerable wealth.  In 1854 he removed to the present homestead, three miles to the south of Oak Hill, on the recently completed T., C. & St. L. R. R., where the family has since resided.  The name of John Herbert throughout the southern part of Jackson County was the synonym of industry and whole-souled integrity.  A conscientious adherent of the Calvinistic Methodist denomination, he was yet noted for his liberal ideas and his toleration of those whose views differed from his own.  He was instrumental in establishing Sabbath-schools and churches in the neighborhood of his home, and prominently identified himself with all worthy movements of a religious nature.  Elizabeth, the eldest of the children, was married to E. Phillips, and is now living in Gallia County.  Thomas, the eldest son, married Elizabeth Davies, of Jefferson Township, and located in Gallia County.  He died in 1869, and his widow with her four sons now resides at Oak Hill. John married Elizabeth Morris, of Oak Hill.  He died in February, 1861, and his wife died in September of the same year.  They left one daughter, Mary, who also died in 1882.  Mary was married to Daniel Edwards, and lives in Madison Township; Ann married David E. Morgan, and lives in Gallia County, and Jane married John F. Morgan, and lives in Portsmouth, Ohio.  Mrs. Herbert resides on the homestead with her sons, Daniel and James.  Both of these sons are still unmarried.  They are well known as intelligent and wide-awake citizens, and rank among the most thrifty and wealthy farmers in the county; they are also proprietors of extensive landed estates in the West.  They have frequently filled positions of honor and trust in the township in which they reside, and were it not for their characteristic indifference to political honors both might have occupied public positions of trust and emolument.

     John J. Jones, agent for the Ætna Fire-Brick Company, Oak Hill, was born in Cardiganshire, South Wales, in 1826, and came with his father's family to the United States in 1838.  They settled in Gallia County, where he attended the common schools, and lived on the home farm till twenty-six years of age.  He was married Mar. 25, 1852, to Nancy Thomas, a native of Wales.  They had a family of six children, of whom only three are now living.  In 1853 he came to Oak Hill and engaged in the mercantile business which he followed successfully for twenty-four years.  He was appointed to his present position in 1873, and carried on his mercantile trade in connection with it till 1876, since which he has devoted with it till 1876, since which he has devoted his entire time to the Brick Company.  He still retains a half interest in the establishment of Perry, Warren & Co.  He served as Magistrate for six years, and has held many local offices of trust.  He and wife are members of the Congregational church, of which he holds the position of Deacon, and is also Clerk.  His residence is in Madison Township.

     Lakin J. Kirkpatrick, farmer, was born in Madison Township, Scioto Co., Ohio, Apr. 3, 1841, a son of John H. and Harriet S. (Beauchamp) Kirkpatrick.  Nov. 1, 1861, he enlisted in Company F, Fifty-third Ohio Infantry, re-enlisting at the expiration of his term and serving till the close of the war.  He was discharged Aug. 12, 1865, having seen much active service, and participated in many hard-fought battles.  He was wounded at the battle of Resaca, Ga., May 13, 1864, and was left on the field for dead; he would probably have been buried had it not been nearly night.   On their return to the field it was found that he was alive, and the proper restoratives were applied.  He afterward saw hard service as a soldier. Sept. 14, 1865, he married Ruhama James, of Pike County.  To them were born two children.  His wife died Oct. 14, 1874, and Oct. 23, 1875, he married F. Butchen, of Pike County.  They have two children.  Mr. Kirkpatrick has a fine farm of

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150 acres.  He and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church.  He is a member of the General Army of the Republic.

     Aaron McLaughlin, was born Aug. 15, 1818, in Chickamauga, near Gallipolis, Ohio, his parents having emigrated from Greenbrier County, Va.  He was taken in charge by the Overseers of the Poor, having lost his parents at the age of three years, and in his fifth year was bound to Jacob Moler, of Madison Township, Jackson County.  His early education was very limited, there being no public schools at the time, learning his alphabet at the age of thirteen, the school term being limited to three months each year, and up to his twenty-first year being obliged to labor on the farm; his school-days did not exceed ten months.  After serving on the farm until he was twenty-one years old, he then was engaged for a time in school teaching, but soon after, leasing a farm, he has ever since been engaged in that business, at present owning a fine farm of 200 acres of improved land.  He was first married Sept. 1, 1841, to Highley Ann Corn, a native of Jackson County.  They had eleven children, eight of whom survive.  His wife died Mar. 27, 1863, and he was again married Nov. 24, 1864, to Sarah Swanson, a native of Gallia County, Ohio, by whom he had two children, one still living—Oscar.  He and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church, and in politics he is a Democrat.  The subject of this sketch is a true type of the Anglo-Saxon race; with him honesty is esteemed the prince of virtues.  It is worthy of remark for the benefit of the young that through all the eventful years of his life he never was prosecuted in a court of justice for an offense against his fellow-man.

     Anthony Smith was born in Jackson County, Ohio, Apr. 24, 1840, a son of Robert Smith, now a resident of Pike County.  He was reared and educated in his native county.  In September, 1863, he enlisted in Company K, Seventy-Eighth Ohio Infantry.  In the latter part of the same month he participated in the battle at Murfreesboro, Tenn.  From there he went to Atlanta, Ga.; thence to Savannah, Beaufort Island, Pocatelico Station, and Columbia, S. C.  HE assisted in the liberation of the prisoners at Andersonville.  At Orangeburg, S. C., he received a severe wound in the right leg by charging a field piece.  He was discharged in 1865 and returned home, and has since been engaged in burning charcoal.  He married Tryphenia Shepard.  They have a family of five children.

HAMILTON TOWNSHIP.    

     This is the most western of the southern row of townships in Jackson County, but does not extend to the western limit.  It is only a partial township, being the eastern two-thirds of township 5, range 19, and is consequently rectangular in shape, four miles wide and six miles long from north to south.
     At the session of the county commissioners in December, 1825, a petition, which was granted, was received from the inhabitants of the present township of Hamilton asking for a township, described in about the following language: ‘‘Beginning at the northeast corner of section 1, township 5, range 19, running south along the township line to the southeast corner of section 36, of said township; thence west along the county line, between Jackson and Scioto counties, to the southwest corner of section 33; thence north to the northwest corner of section 4; thence east to the place of beginning.”  The township has always remained as thus described.  At the time of its formation there were only about twelve voters in the township; there are now about 150. The first officers were: Trustees, Samuel Gilliland, John Canter and John Cantwell; Treasurer, John Walls; Clerk, Solomon Dever.  Since 1840 the population for each decade is as follows: In 1840, 415; in 1850, 665; in 1860, 923; in 1870, 1,108; in 1880, 819.

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     The occupation of the people is mainly farming and grazing, although the surface is too rough to be favorable to the farmer.

SETTLEMENT.

     The farm now owned by Franklin Dever was, it is said, settled temporarily in about 1300 and was permanently settled by his father, Solomon Dever, in the year 1816.  This was probably the first settlement in the township.  Solomon Dever, Jr., now eighty-seven years of age, is the oldest representative of this family, and the oldest surviving pioneer of the township.  He was born in Hampshire County, Va., in December, 1796, and came with his father’s family to what is now Hamilton Township, in 1816.  They came into the almost unbroken wilderness, settled on the old farm when the woods were full of wolves and other wild beasts, requiring the protection of stock by shelter in the night.  Solomon Dever has been married over sixty-two years, and has a child over sixty.   He was the first Clerk of the township, and has all his life been a prominent citizen.  Other surviving pioneers of the township are: Samuel Stephenson, Thomas Lyons, Jackson Gilliland, William Parker and others.
     The topography of this township is similar to that of the most of the county, very hilly and marked by numerous small water-courses.  The hills contain coal, iron ore and fire-clay, besides a strata of excellent building stone.  The north end of the township has the Jackson shaft coal which comes to the surface near the middle of the township.  The quality is about equal to, but the vein is thinner than where it is worked further north in the county.  Two veins extend through the hills of the entire township, twelve and thirty inches in thickness, but the coal is inferior in quality.  Excellent fire-clay is found in many of the hills, some of which are worked extensively.  From the hills in the southern part of the township considerable iron ore has been taken. Jackson Furnace was located near the southern border.  Most of the land in the two southern rows of sections is held in large bodies, bought for mining purposes, and consequently thinly settled.

SCHOOLS AND CHURCHES.

     Hamilton has 303 pupils of school age and five schools.  In 1882 the entire enrollment only reached 223 with an average attendance of 126.  The average salary paid to teachers is $33.33 a month.

     The Hamilton Christian Church was established in about 1821, by the Rev. Mr. Summerbell.  This society, the first in the township, struggled for many years with but a meager existence, meeting in dwellings and school-houses.  Their present church, the only one ever owned by the society, was built in 1871, costing about $1,000.  The society has now grown to 100 members.  The church has a flourishing Sabbath-school.

     Pleasant Hill Methodist Protestant Church was organized in 1850, by Rev. William Hatfield, pastor.  There were fifty-six organizing members who met for a time in the residence of James Davis.  The first church was a log building, built in 1856.  The Trustees were J. R. Hunter, James Davis, William Parks, John Cool and Solomon Norris.  The new church was built in 1875 at a cost of about $1,600, and was furnished at a cost of $100.  The entire church property is estimated at $2,000.  At the time the new church was built, Rev. E. Looman was the pastor and James Davis, J. R. Hunter, N. D. Parks, William Parks and John Pierce, Trustees.
     The present membership is about 120.  Preaching is had every two weeks by the Rev. Win. Hollingshead, present pastor.  The church has a flourishing Sabbath-school, superintended by C. Weed.

     St. John's Lutheran Church was founded in 1851 by the Rev. Mr. Hatfield.  In 1878 the present church building was constructed,

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costing nearly $2,000.  The society at present comprises about 100 members.

POST OFFICE.

     Almost in the center of the township is the only store and postoffice, called Mabee's P. O.  A grist mill is located here also, and with the few other houses a scanty village is formed

BOUNDS, VALUATION, ETC.

     The township is bounded on the north by Scioto Township; east by Jefferson Township, and south and west by Scioto County.  It has a landed area of 15,360 acres, of which the assessor returns 15,187 acres.  The valuation in 1882 on real estate was $92,507; chattel property, $36,279; total, $128,786,

BIOGRAPHICAL.

     Harrison Canter was born Aug. 25, 1833, a son of Henry and Malinda Canter, the former being a native of Virginia, and the latter born Dec. 25, 1808, in Woodford County, Ky.  Henry Canter came to Lawrence County, Ohio, in an early day, where he lived till his death, June 17, 1856.  Our subject spent his youth in helping his father on the farm in attending the common schools, where he obtained a fair education.  He was married Feb. 3, 1859, to Hannah, daughter of Jackson County.  They have had nine children - Amanda (deceased), David F., Ermilda, John W., Henry, Lizzie, George W., Martha J. and Thomas M.  Mr. Canter has followed farming through life, and now owns 164 acres of land in Hamilton Township, which is underlaid with three veins of fine coal, ranging from fourteen to thirty-six inches in thick ness and has also a good vein of iron ore.  Mr. Canter has acted as Justice of the Peace for six consecutive years, and in 1874 was elected Township Treasurer.

     Jackson Gilliland, son of Samuel and Sarah Gilliand, was born Dec. 22, 1829, on the farm where he now resides.  His father settled on the home farm in Jackson County, Nov. 2, 1815, which he converted from a wilderness to a good farm, and where he spent the rest of his life.  His death occurred Jan. 25, 1852, at the age of sixty-four yea.rs.   Our subject attended the common schools till he was fourteen years old.  At the age of twenty-two years he took charge of his father's farm, which he now owns.  He has 444 acres of land which is underlaid with several veins of coal and iron ore.  In1861 he became a partner in the Jackson Furnace, which he operated very successfully for three years, since which he has been engaged in faring and stock raising, and is one of the largest stock dealers in the township.  He was married Nov. 14, 1865, to Jennie, daughter of Samuel and Jennie Baker, of Jackson, Ohio.  They have three children - Samuel B., Cranson E. and Oscar C.  Mr. Baker, father of Mrs. Gilliland, was an officer in the war of 1812, and during Jackson's administration was a clerk in the auditor's department.  He is yet living in the town of Jackson, aged ninety--two years.

     Vinton McCoy was born July 18, 1835, on the old home farm, where he now resides, and is a son of Michael and Elizabeth McCoy, who lived in Jackson County.  The father was born May 22, 1800, and died Nov. 8, 1869.  Vinton was reared on the farm and attended school till he was twenty years of age when he began teaching and followed that profession six or eight years.  In 1863 he was chosen First Lieutenant of a company raised in the neighborhood for the purpose of protecting the homes.  All of the company were captured by Morgan, but were soon liberated.  He also served as enrolling officer during a part of the war.  He was also appointed Postmaster at Mabee's during the war, which position he held several years.  Mr. McCoy was married Jan. 25, 1857, to Louisa J., daughter of Daniel and Louisa Foster, by whom he had five children - Louisa E., William J., John W., Elmira F. and D. V. F.  Mrs. McCoy died Apr. 13, 1868, and he was again married Jul. 18, 1872, to Hester L., daughter of Amos and Hester Jenkins.  Five children have been born to them, four now living - Warren E., Everet W., Nettie E. E. and Jessie M. M.  Mr. McCoy has a good vein of coal on his farm.  He has been engaged in the saw-milling business for many years, and still follows that occupation.  He is also

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 engaged in farming.  His Grandfather McCoy came from Ireland and settled on the Ohio River near Millersport, Lawrence Co., Ohio, in an early day.

     Samuel Stephenson was born Dec. 31, 1799, in Monroe County, Va., and is a son of James and Margaret (Smith) Stephenson, who were also natives of Virginia.  In 1819 the family moved to Ohio, settling near the cross roads on Symmes Creek, where his parents spent the rest of their lives.  His father died Feb. 7, 1846, aged eighty years.  Samuel had his name enrolled as a soldier in the war of 1812, but was rejected on account of his age.  He was married Jan. 15, 1824, to Martha McClure.  They had eight children, four now living - James, Nancy (wife of Reuben Slavens), Washington and Harrison.  Those deceased  are - Samuel, Jacob, Smith and Charles.  The two last mentioned died in defending their country.  Mr. Stephenson has a splendid farm, on which is found a fine quality of iron ore and several veins of good coal.