Biographies
(Transcribed by Sharon Wick)

Source:
 A Portrait and Biographical Record of
Mercer and Van Wert Counties, Ohio
Containing Biographical Sketches of Many Prominent and Representative Citizens,
together with Biographies and Portraits of all the
Presidents of the United States
and Biographies of the Governors of Ohio
CHICAGO: A. W. BOWEN & CO.
1896

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	JAMES HARNER, a prominent farmer of Center township, Mercer county, Ohio, was born in Fayette county, Ohio, Jan. 26, 1819.  He is a son of Michael and Hannah (Roebuck) Harner.  His paternal grandfather, Michael Harner, was a sailor by occupation, and was a native of Germany.  For some time after he left the sea he lived in Bedford county, Pa., but later removed to Ohio, and is supposed to have died in Richland county.  His wife, also a native of Germany, died in Richland county at the advanced age of ninety-five years.  Michael Harner and his wife were the parents of the following children: Henry, John, Michael, William, Charlotte, Susan and Polly.       MICHAEL HARNER, the father of the subject, was born in Bedford county, Pa., in 1794.  He learned the trade of saddler, and when a young man in company with two others came to Ohio, locating in Fayette county.  In the spring of 1819 he removed to Mercer county, with an ax, a grub hoe, and $1.50 in money, and squatted on government land one mile south of the present village of Mercer, on what is now the Green farm, and there raised a crop the following summer.  Having erected a cabin on the land, he brought his family to his home in the wilderness in the following fall, and remained upon this land one year.  Then he removed to Twelve Mile Creek, and squatted upon the land now known as the S. B. Collins farm, in Union township, and there made sufficient money to enter eighty acres of government land, which is now the homestead of the subject of this sketch, in Center township.  Subsequently he purchased eighty acres more land, which was also in Center township, and upon this land he lived until his death, which occurred in 1870.  At the time of his death, which occurred in 1870.  At the time of his death he owned 160 acres, and had given three eighty-acres farms, and two forty-acre farms, to his children.      In politics he was a whig in early life, but later became a republican.  IN religion he was a member of the United Brethren church, and served as steward and class leader.  To his marriage with Hannah Roebuck, who was a daughter of James Roebuck, there were born the following children:  James, the subject of this sketch; William, deceased; Benjamin, of Center township; Rual, supposed to have died  in Andersonville prison; Jane, wife of Elihu Davis; Michael, who died from exposure during his military service in the late Civil war, his death occurring in hospital at Nashville, Tenn., and his remains being buried in the National cemetery at Nashville; and Susan, wife of Lewis Shaub of Wayne county, Ohio.      James Harner, the subject, was reared upon the homestead in Center township.  The education he received was such as was then afforded by the public schools.  When twenty-seven years of age, with a capital of $5, he settled upon his present farm, then a wilderness, but now a well improved farm, to which he has added forty acres.  In his earlier days Mr. Harner was more or less associated with the Indians, of whom he has many pleasant recollections, especially of Chief Shane, after whom Shanes Crossing was named.  Mr. Harner's father was familiar with the language of the Indians, and spoke it fluently.  James Harner has served as justice of the peace two terms, and as township clerk and constable.  For forty years he has been a member of the United Brethren church, and has during that time always taken an active part in its work, having been steward and class leader in the church to which he belongs.      Mr. Harner married Susan Hartog, daughter of Christian Hartog, a native of Germany, who settled in Pennsylvania and later removed to Fairfield county, Ohio, from which county he still later removed to Mercer county, locating in Black Creek township, where he died.  To the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Harner there have been born eight children, four sons and four daughters, only two of whom grew to mature years, viz.: Rual, who married Maggie Webb, by whom he had two children, and is now himself deceased, and Hannah C., wife of L. W. Houts, of Center township.  Such is the brief record of Mr. Harner's life, which has been well spent in doing good to his fellow man, and in honoring the name of a long line of respectable ancestry, and is well deserving of a place in this work. Source: A Portrait & Biographical Record of Mercer and Van Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co. - 1896 - Page 593
	E. H. HARRIS, proprietor of the well known tin and stove store at Rockford, Mercer county, Ohio, is a native of Mount Vernon, Knox county, Ohio, was born Apr. 28, 1853, and is a son of Elijah and Ann (Evans) Harris, the former of whom is now a resident of Van Wert, Ohio, engaged in the tin and stove business, and still active and hale at the age of seventy-six years; the latter passed away at the age of fifty-two years, a truly devoted Christian.      E. H. Harris, our subject, was a child of but five years of age when his parents removed from Knox county to Van Wert, where he was educated in the public schools, and at the age of thirteen began and at twenty-one finished learning the tinsmith trade under his father; he then worked a year for Mr. Ross, after which he visited the towns of Gallion, Crestline, Mansfield, Fredericktown and Mount Vernon, working at his trade for about three years, and then returned to Van Wert, and where he was employed on the cornice work of the county court house, and after its completion entered the employ of O. P. Clark & Son, with whom he remained as foreman until 1892, when he came to Rockford and purchased present establishment of J. L. Hileman.  Here he carries a full line of stoves and tinware, does a repairing business, and also carries on plumbing in all its branches.  He is thoroughly qualified in his calling and is an expert in spouting, and especially in roofing in both tin and steel.  He has worked all through the counties of Van Wert and Mercer, in which maybe found many fine specimens of his handcraft.      Mr. Harris was united in marriage July 25, 1881, with Miss Mary Schroeder, daughter of John Schroeder.  This lady was born in Hamburg, Germany, and was but four years of age when she was brought to America by her parents.  The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Harris has been blessed with four children - Edna, Oren, Russell and Helen - all of whom are still left to add enjoyment to the home circle.  The parents are consistent members of the Presbyterian church, to the support of which they are free contributors, and fraternally Mr. Harris is a member of Shanes lodge, No. 293, K. of P., of Rockford lodge, No. 1790, I. O. O. F. and also of the Rebekah degree.  As a business man Mr. Harris is conscientious and bears an untarnished name, and as a workman is unexcelled by any tinner in Mercer county. Source: A Portrait & Biographical Record of Mercer and Van Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co. - 1896 - Page 333
	PERRY M. HARRIS, one of the most prominent farmers of Dublin township, Mercer county, was born in Licking county, Ohio, Jan. 12, 1845.  He is a son of JOSHUA and Mary (Fadely) Harris, the former of whom was born near Newark, that ocunty, September, 1814.  Joshua Harris was a son of Joseph and Rachael Harris, the former of whom was a native of Virginia and of English descent, while the latter, whose maiden name was Barlow, was of Dutch descent.  Joseph and Rachael Harris were the parents of eight children, as follows: Isaac, Abraham, Jacob, Stephen, Mary, Sarah, Elizabeth and Joshua.  Joseph Harris moved his family to Licking county, settling near Newark, in the early times, when there were more Indians than white men in that part of the state.  In this county he entered land, upon which he lived the rest of his life.   Politically he was a democrat, and he and his family were Primitive Baptists.      Joshua Harris, the youngest son of Joseph, was reared on the farm in Licking county, and about 1834 married Mary Fadely, who was born in Virginia, December, 1917, was of German ancestry, came to Ohio when a child, and here she was married.  To Joshua and Mary Harris there were born seven children, as follows: John, a farmer on a portion of the home farm in Licking county; Perry M., the subject of this sketch; Levi, deceased; Marquis, a farmer of Licking county; Isaac, deceased; Mary E., wife of Eli Haynes, of Licking county; and an infant daughter, deceased.  Ever since their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Harris have lived on their present farm.  This farm he cleared and improved and has put in a good state of cultivation.  He is a most industrious and prosperous man, careful in the management of his affairs, and yet liberal in the support of all worthy enterprises.  He is regarded as a pillar in the Baptist church, in which he has held all the offices his wife being also a member of the same church.      Perry M. Harris, reared on the farm, was educated in Licking county, and in the summer of 1872 married Mary Jewell, daughter of Harrison and Mary (Miller) Jewell.  Mrs. Mary Harris was born in Licking county, and died in 1874, two years after her marriage.  On Oct. 31, 1876, Mr. Harris married for his second wife Mrs. Jennie Hamilton, daughter of Justus and Mary J. (Panabaker) Hamilton.  To this marriage there has been born one child, Kent, born July 1, 1890.  Mrs. Jennie Harris was born in Mercer county Dec. 14, 1851, and was educated in the public schools of Celina.      Justus Hamilton, her father, was born in Kentucky in 1819, and was a son of Justus Hamilton, one of the earliest settlers in Mercer county, and was Mercer county's third auditor, in 1827.  He served as county surveyor in 1827, 1835 and 1837.  As a representative from his district, which was composed of the counties of Darke, Mercer, Allen, Putnam, Henry, Paulding and Williams, he served two years in the state legislature.  This was in 1832 and 1833.  In 1838 he was elected to represent the district composed of Mercer, Miami and Darke counties, and in 1840 to represent Mercer, Miami, Darke and Shelby counties.  During the years 1846, 1847 and 1848 he served as probate judge.  Justus Hamilton, the father of Mrs. P. M. Harris, was brought to Mercer county when but a babe, was reared on a farm of Union township, and lived there until his marriage to Mary Panabaker, a native of Virginia, who was brought by her parents when a child to Ohio, they locating in Pickaway county, whence they removed to Mercer county when she was a young lady.  The Panabaker family comprised the following children: Mary J., wife of Mr. Hamilton; Rebecca, wife of Dr. Elliott, of Poseyville, Ind.; and William, a physician of the state of Illinois.      After their marriage Justus Hamilton and his wife lived for some time in Union township.  They are the parents of eight children: Maria, deceased; Belle, wife of George Wells, of Union township; Hugh, of Union township; William, a mechanic of Michigan; Jennie, wife of the subject of this sketch; Hattie, wife of Adolph Gilberg, proprietor of a printing office in Celina; Charles, a farmer of Union township; and Silas, on the home place.  In 1853 Mr. Hamilton removed to Celina, and has lived there retired ever since.  As a republican he has held several of the local offices within the gift of his party.  For several years, both before and after his marriage, he taught school in Mercer county, and has always taken an interest in public affairs.  Mrs. Hamilton is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church.  Mr. Harris is still living on the farm he purchased soon after marriage.  He has 166 acres acres of excellent farm land, all in a high state of cultivation.  Politically he is a democrat, is a public spirited and popular citizen, and is highly regarded by all who know him.  Mrs. Harris is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and is a most worthy woman, wife and mother. Source: A Portrait & Biographical Record of Mercer and Van Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co. - 1896 - Page 332
	MILTON HAYS, of Dublin township, Mercer county, Ohio, is a grandson of JUDGE DAVID HAYS, deceased, the first of the Hays family to settle in Mercer county, having come here, in 1823, from Fayette county, Ohio.      Judge David Hays, it is supposed, was a native of Pennsylvania.  When he came to Mercer county he entered some u0p acres of land in Dublin township, in two tracts, made his home in section No. 26, and engaged in general farming and stock raising - driving the most of his cattle to the First Wayne, Ind., market, and carrying on the most extensive farm industry then conducted in this part of the country, having improved some 400 acres of his land.  He was a man of decided views and politically was mostly allied with the democratic party, by which he was elected probate judge of Mercer county.  He married Miss Polly Boroff, who died at about the age of fifty years, and his own death took place when he was about sixty years old.  Of a large family of children born to Judge Hays and wife, eight lived to become heads of families of their own, and were named Harrison, a deceased farmer, of Mercer county; William, of whom further mention will be made; Alford, a resident of Union township; Jackson, James and Milton R., all deceased farmers of Mercer county; Lucinda, deceased wife of Reason Webb, and Matilda, deceased wife of Dr. Dugdale - both of Mercer county.      WILLIAM HAYES, the second child born to Judge and Polly (Boroff) Hays, was a native of Fayette county, Ohio, and was born Mar. 8, 1811.  He was reared to farm life, a calling he relinquished only at his death.  He was very domestic in his habits, but was one of the solid men of the county, and, as a democrat, filled most of the offices of his township.  He married Hannah Lilly, who was born in Ross county, Ohio, Aug. 30,1816, and there were born to them eight children in the following order: Milton, May 14, 1837, and the subject proper of this memoir; Polly, Mar. 31, 1839 - deceased wife of Able Harden; Lucinda, Apr. 30, 1842, deceased wife of David Counterman; Alford L., Nov. 18, 1844 - was a soldier in the Civil war, was a farmer, and died in Kansas in 1895; Clayton T., Feb. 25, 1843, died when a year old; Edward L., Sept. 28, 1850, a resident of Van Wert, Ohio; Winfield S., Feb. 10, 1853, a painter and probably now in the west, and William T., Dec. 24, 1856 - died in Kansas.  The respected father of this family died Jan. 6, 1857, and the mother Dec. 1, 1862.      Milton Hays, with whose name this biographical record is opened, was reared to farming in Hopewell township, Mercer county, and when he had reached the age of seventeen years removed with his father, who had purchased the original Hays homestead in Dublin township, and at the death of the latter he himself became the purchaser - the estate then comprising 288 acres, and lying in sections Nos. 23, 24 and 26.  On becoming the owner of this valuable property he at once began making improvements which soon became obvious.  It is now one of the best improved farms in this part of the country, and all the modern improvements - which constitute the major portion - have been made by Mr. Hays.  In 1880 he erected his present elegant mansion which is of two stories, and occupies a ground space of 32x49 feet.  Mr. Hays devotes himself to general farming and stock-raising, and, being a progressive farmer and keeping well abreast of the advances made in his calling, is more than ordinarily successful.  Politically a stalwart democrat, he has served as township trustee, and for fifteen years has been on the board of education, and has also frequently been selected as a delegate to his party's conventions.      The marriage of Milton Hays took place Mar. 29, 1860, to Miss Elsie Counterman, born in Black Creek township, Mercer county, Oct. 5, 1842, and daughter of Alexander and Anna (Bullenbaugh) Counterman.  This union has been rendered the more happy by the birth of four children, in the following order:  Samuel, Jan. 17, 1861 - married to Miss M. Weist, and farming in Dublin township; Emma, Oct. 24, 1862 - wife of Rev. J. F. Street, minister of the Methodist Episcopal church, and residing in Delaware, Ohio; Allan, Aug. 13, 1864 - married to Miss Sadie Cobb, and a farmer and school-teacher, of Dublin township, and Charles, born Oct. 17, 1866, married to Miss Eva Coil, and also a farmer of Dublin township.  The family are all members of the Methodist Episcopal church, of which Mr. Hays is a trustee, and few people in the township and county stand as high in the public esteem as the Hays family. Source: A Portrait & Biographical Record of Mercer and Van Wert Counties, Ohio - Publ. Chicago: A. W. Bowen & Co. - 1896 - Page 339

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