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BIOGRAPHIES
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record
of Miami Co., Ohio
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company
1900
< CLICK HERE TO RETURN TO
BIOGRAPHICAL INDEX of History Publ. 1900 >
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ANDREW JACKSON
 Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 71 |
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MARION JACKSON
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 727 |
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"STONEWALL" JACKSON
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 67
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THOMAS JONATHAN JACKSON
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 67 |
Henry Jay
Mrs. Laura Jay |
HENRY JAY.
Each calling or occupation of life, if honorable, has its
place in the ranks of human existence. Emerson
said, "All are needed by each one; nothing is fair or good
alone." It is thus that each honorable work becomes an
intricate part in the activity and prosperity of the nation,
but is a recognized fact that the noblest lives are those
which are devoted in a large measure to aiding and assisting
others. "Bear ye one another's burdens" is the divine
command, whose execution ennobles and uplifts all who follow
the mandate. Mr. Jay is devoting his
life to a most humane work. It is concerned with those
large, loving interests affecting humanity, and his broad
sympathy and great kindliness well qualify him for the
important task which he is now discharging. He is at
the head of the Knoop Children's Home, at Troy, and
under his supervision the institution has had a prosperous
career. Its beneficent influence is like the
ever-widening circles of the water and cannot be measured by
any known standard. "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto
the least of these, ye have done it unto me."
Mr. Jay was born at Pleasant Hill, Miami
county, on the 20th of November, 1850, his parents being
Joseph Furnas and Mary (Coate) Jay.
His father's birth occurred on the farm where Henry
first opened his eyes to the light of day, the grandparents
being William and Mary (Furnas) Jay, who entered the
land prior to the war of 1812. There the grandfather
resided until his death, which occurred at the age of
sixty-five years. His wife, Mary, had passed
away many years previous. She was born in Montgomery
county and at the time of her marriage was a resident of
Miami county. After her death her husband was twice
married. Joseph Jay, the father of our subject,
was born about 1814, spent his entire life on the homestead
farm, and died in 1874, in his sixtieth year. His wife
survived
him until seventy-three years of age. The farm passed
into possession of their son, Oliver Perry,
who sold it about two years ago.
Henry Jay, whose name introduces this
review, spent his boyhood days under the parental roof and
early became familiar with the work of the farm in its
various departments. He pursued his education in the common
schools of the neighborhood and in a high school at Pleasant
Hill. He manifested exceptional mechanical skill in
his youth, but was connected with agricultural interests
until his marriage, which occurred Aug. 27, 1875, Miss
Laura A. Griffith, of Adrian,
Michigan, becoming his wife. Her father, Rev.
George L. Griftith, a minister of the Christian church,
is now living retired near Troy, and is widely known in his
denomination. He carried on farming in Miami county
until he assumed charge of the Ludlow Falls Saw & Lumber
Mill, which he operated until chosen superintendent of the
Children's Home, at Troy. He was well known to the
trustees of the institution, having had numerous business
deals with them previous to this, and thus gained their
confidence and proved his ability to superintend the home.
On the 1st of March, 1891, he became its superintendent and
his wife was appointed matron. Under his careful
supervision the work has been carried forward most
successfully. The task of securing homes for the
children devolves almost entirely upon Mr. and Mrs. Jay,
and they have been very fortunate in placing many of these
little ones in families where they have received good care
and are trained in habits of industry, economy and honesty,
so that they become honorable men and women. Such is
the confidence that the trustees repose in Mr. Jay
that they have given him great latitude in his work, not
hampering him with restrictions which would limit the field
of his usefulness. Thesanitary condition of the school
is most excellent, and during the past five years, with an
attendance of six hundred children, there has not been a
single death in the home. An excellent Sabbath school
is conducted in connection with the home, under the
direction of S. G. Harbaugh, of Casstown, who is
acting as superintendent. The Woman's Christian
Temperance Union, of Troy, also gives an earnest supervision
to the work of the institution, and annually sends its
representatives to the home with beautiful flowers for each
child. Although there have been epidemics in the
institution, about forty per cent, being sick with
diphtheria, the splendid care and attention which were given
the children by the superintendent, the matron and the
attending physician have enabled them to report that not a
single death has occurred. Mr. Jay is a
man of excellent business and executive ability, as well as
of broad sympathy, and thus his labors are rendered
effective and practical. His life is indeed a useful
and honorable one. commending itself to the regard of all,
and winning him high admiration for his many excellent
qualities.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 534 |
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JOHN JAY, first chief-justice
of the United States, was born in New York, Dec. 12, 1745.
He took up the study of law, graduated from Iving's College
(Columbia College), and was admitted to the bar in 1768. He
was chosen a member of the committee of New York citizens to
protest against the enforcement by the British government of
the Boston Port Bill, was elected to the Continental
congress which met in 1774, and was author of the addresses
to the people of Great Britian and of Canada adopted
by that and the succeeding congress. He was chosen to
the provincial assembly of his own state, and resigned from
the Continental congress to serve in that body, wrote most
of its public papers, including the constitution of the new
state, and was then made chief-justice. He was again
chosen as a member of the Continental congress in 1778, and
became president of that body. He was sent to Spain as
minister in 1780, and his services there resulted in
substantial and moral aid for the struggling colonists.
Jay, Franklin, and Adams negotiated the
treaty of peace with Great Britain in 1782, and Jay was
appointed secretary of foreign affairs in 1784, and held the
position until the adoption of the Federal constitution.
During this time he had contributed strong articles to the
"Federalist" in favor of the adoption of the constitution,
and was largely instrumental in securing the ratification of
that instrument by his state. He was appointed by
Washington as first chief-justice of the United States in
1789. In this high capacity the great interstate and
international questions that arose for immediate settlement
came before him for treatment.
In 1794, at a time when the people in gratitude for the
aid that France had extended to us, were clamoring for the
privilege of going to the aid of that nation in her struggle
with Great Britain and her own oppressors, John
Jay was sent to England as special envoy to negotiate a
treaty with that power. The instrument known as "Jay's
Treaty " was the result, and while in many of its features
it favored our nation, yet the neutrality clause in it so
angered the
masses that it was denounced throughout the entire country,
and John Jay was burned in effigy in the city
of New York. The treaty was finally ratified by
Washington, and approved, in August, 1795. Having been
elected governor of his state for three consecutive terms,
he then retired from active life, declining an appointment
as chief-justice of the supreme court, made by John
Adams and confirmed by the senate. He died in
New York in 1829.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 39 |
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LAURA
JAY - See HENRY JAY
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 534 |
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JOSEPH JEFFERSON
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 47 |
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THOMAS JEFFERSON
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 34 |
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SOLOMON JENNINGS
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 754 |
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ANDREW JOHNSON,
the seventeenth president of the United States, served
from 1865 to 1869. He was born Dec. 8, 1808, at Raleigh,
North Carolina, and was left an orphan at the age of four years.
He never attended school, and was apprenticed to a tailor.
While serving his apprenticeship he suddenly acquired a passion
for knowledge, and learned to read. From that time on he
spent all his spare time in reading, and after working for two
years as a journeyman tailor at Lauren's
Court House, South Carolina, he removed to Greenville,
Tennessee, where he worked at his trade and was married.
Under his wife's instruction he made rapid progress in his
studies and manifested such an interest in local politics as to
be elected as "workingmen's candidate" alderman in 1828, and in
1830 to the mayoralty, and was twice re-elected to each office.
Mr. Johnson utilized this time in cultivating his talents
as a public speaker, by taking part in a debating society.
He was elected in 1835 to the lower house of the legislature,
was re- elected in 1839 as a Democrat, and in 1841 was elected
state senator. Mr. Johnson was elected
representative in congress in 1843 and was re-elected four times
in succession until 1853, when he was the successful candidate
for the gubernatorial chair of Tennessee. He was
re-elected in 1855 and in 1857 he entered the United States
senate. In 1860 he was supported by the Tennessee
delegation to the Democratic convention for the presidential
nomination, and lent his influence to the Breckinridge wing of
the party. At the election of Lincoln, which
brought about the first attempt at secession in December, 860,
Mr. Johnson took a firm attitude in the senate for
the Union. He was the leader of the loyalists in East
Tennessee. By the course that Mr. Johnson
pursued in this crisis he was brought prominently before the
northern people, and when, in March, 1862, he was appointed
military governor of Tennessee with the rank of
brigadier-general, he increased his popularity by the vigorous
manner in which he labored to restore order. In the
campaign of 1S64 he was elected vice-president on the ticket
with President Lincoln, and upon the assassination
of the latter he succeeded to the
presidency, Apr. 15, 1865. He retained
the cabinet of President Lincoln, and at first
exhibited considerable severity towards the former Confederates,
but he soon inaugurated a policy of reconstruction, proclaimed a
general amnesty to the late Confederates, and established
provisional governments in the southern states. These
states claimed representation in congress in the following
December, and then arose the momentous question as to what
should be the policy of the victorious Union against their late
enemies. The Republican majority in congress had an
apprehension that the President would undo the results of the
war, and consequently passed two bills over the executive veto,
and the two highest branches of the government were in open
antagonism. The cabinet was reconstructed in July, and
Messrs. Randall, Stanbury and Browning
superseded Messrs. Denison, Speed and Harlan.
In August, 1867, President Johnson removed the secretary
of war and replaced him with General Grant, but when
congress met in December it refused to ratify the removal of
Stanton, who resumed the functions of his office. In
1868 the president again attempted to remove Stanton, who
refused to vacate his post and was sustained by the senate.
President Johnson was accused by congress of high crimes
and misdemeanors, but the trial resulted in his acquittal.
Later he was United States senator from Tennessee, and died July
31, 1875.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 145 |
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CHARLES F. JOHNSON.
Charles F. Johnson is a worthy representative, of
the farming interests of Miami county, and is numbered among the
valued citizens that Virginia has furnished to the Buckeye
state. His birth occurred in Fluvanna county, Dec. 28,
1845, he is a son of Colonel Peter Ross Johnson,
whose birth occurred in the Old Dominion, in 1800. When
the war of 1812 was inaugurated he desired to enter the service
as a substitute for his father, and was always a loyal and
patriotic citizen. He died in his native state, in
1873, leaving a number of children to mourn his loss. He
was twice married, his first union being with a Miss
Wilson. After her death he wedded Miss Amy Venable,
who was born in Fluvanna county, Virginia, and was descended
from one of three brothers who came to the United States from
England. Her cousin, Captain Venable, wrote
the history of the United States which was adopted as a
text-book by the schools of Ohio. By his first marriage
Colonel Johnson became the father of five children:
John, who died in Alabama; Johanna, who became the
wife of John Bainbridge and died in Texas; Mrs.
Jennie Bainbridge, of Texas; Nancy, who became the
wife of Jessie Howard, and died in Virginia; and
Betty, wife of David Branham, of Albemarle county,
Virginia. By the second marriage there were five children:
William R., of City Point, Virginia; Arabella,
wife of L. B. Moon, of Fluvanna county, Virginia; Mary
Petrus. who became he wife of James Sutherland
and died in Fluvanna county; and Abraham D., who died as
a prisoner of war in Elmira, New York. He was a soldier in
the Confederate army, and just prior to the surrender of Lee
was captured, being taken to a prison in the north, where he was
confined until July, 1865.
Charles F. Johnson, of this review, was
reared on a plantation in his native state, and attended the
subscription schools, but is largely self-educated. His
mother died when he was only three years old, leaving him to the
care of sisters until the age of sixteen, when he enlisted.
After the war ended his slaves, his only property, were free.
He was then taken into the home of Mr. and Mrs. William Haden.
In her he found a mother, who looked after his welfare, giving
him words of encouragement, for which she will always have a
warm place in his heart. When hostilities broke out
between the north and south his father furnished a substitute,
who jumped his bounty in three weeks. Mr.
Johnson was then called upon to furnish another substitute,
and his son Charles manfully volunteered tn go. He
joined Company F, of White's Thirty-fifth Battalion,
Ross' Brigade and Stewart's Cavalry. Two of his
brothers also went to the front at the commencement of the war,
and both were in the first battle of Manassas. A. D.
was captured in the seven days' fight around Richmond.
Mr. Johnson, of this review, remained with the army
until the close of the war, when he returned to his native
county. All he possessed in the world was his faithful old
gray horse, Thomas Glen. This he gave to a Mr.
Taylor in payment for six months' board, and during that
period he attended school. On putting aside his text-books
he had nothing except his clothing that he wore. He worked
at any honorable employment that offered, and for a time was
proprietor of a small store at Buffalo Gap, in Augusta county,
Virginia. He was at that time paying court to a daughter
of a wealthy planter. Mr. Meyers, who
greatly opposed his suit. When the opportunity came,
however, the young couple quietly left for Washington city, and
were there married in room 222, in the Willard Hotel, the
ceremony being performed by Rev. Gregory, a Presbyterian
minister, Feb. 16, 1869. His wife bore the maiden name of
Miss Mollie Jane Meyers, and to her husband she has
indeed been a faithful companion and helpmate. They were
almost entirely without funds, hut possessed a rich store of
ambition and energy. They decided to try their fortune
in Ohio, and accordingly made their way to Greenville, Darke
county, w hence they afterward removed to Pikesville, in the
same county. There they rented one room in a log cabin and
furnished their little home with furniture which Mr.
Johnson made with an ax and auger. They borrowed bed
clothing enough from neighbors to do them for a time, and then
Mr. Johnson made application for work to Philip
Hartzell, a well-to-do farmer of the neighborhood.
He told Mr. Johnson he did not think he could do
the work, but the latter pleaded for the chance and Mr.
Hartzell supplied him with a maul and two wedges and went
with him to see him begin his task. Such work was entirely
new to our subject, who felled a tree and then began to split it
very awkwardly. Finally he got his wedge fast in the tree
and could proceed no further. All this time Mr.
Hartzell sat on the fence laughing at him, but finally
showed him how to do the work right. At night he went home
to his cabin, his hands badly blistered. Showing them to
his wife, he said: "Molly, what shall I do? I can't
stand it in this country." "Charles," she answered," we
have got to succeed. We are without friends, and can't go
back if we want to. Try it good and hard: I know you can."
He followed her advice, and it proved the turning point in his
career, for when people saw his resolute purpose and noted his
ambitious spirit they were willing to help him. For a time
he worked at any employment that would yield him an honest living,
and in 1875 he rented the Rarick farm in Newberry
township, Miami county, for a term of five years. On the
expiration of that period he removed to his present farm, and
after ten years purchased the tract for six thousand dollars.
It comprises eighty-nine acres of rich and arable land, and
nearly all the improvements upon it are as monuments to his
thrift and enterprise. He has tiled the place, erected
good buildings and transformed the tract into highly cultivated
fields which yield to him a golden return for the care and lahor
he bestows upon them.
Mr. and Mrs. Johnson have made several
visits to their old home in Virginia, but prefer their Ohio
home, which has become endeared to them through the struggles of
their earlier years, as well as the later and more prosperous
epoch in their lives. They enjoy the warm regard of many
friends, and their home is celebrated for the true spirit of
southern hospitality. In politics Mr. Johnson is a
Democrat, and has served as school director. He is a
faithful member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and for
twenty years has acted on its board of trustees. He is a
man of distinguished appearance, and is highly honored by all
who know him. His record is indeed creditable. Many
difficulties and obstacles were in his path, but by determined
purpose and encouraged by his wife he has pressed steadily
forward toward the goal of success. Today he is numbered
among the substantial citizens of his adopted county, and his
record is in- deed worthy of emulation, for it is that of one
who in all life's relations has been true to duty.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 884 |
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EASTMAN JOHNSON
stands first among painters of American country life.
He was born in Lovell, Maine, in 1824, and began his work in
drawing at the age of eighteen years. His first works were
portraits, and, as he took up his residence in Washington, the
most famous men of the nation were his subjects. In 1846
he went to Boston, and there made crayon portraits of
Longfellow, Emerson, Sumner, Hawthorne
and other noted men. In 1849 he went to Europe. He
studied at Dusseldorf, Germany; spent a year at the Royal
Academy, and thence to The Hague, where he spent four years,
producing there his first pictures of
consequence, "The Card-Players" and "The Savoyard." He
then went to Paris, but was called home, after an absence from
America of six years. He lived some time in Washington,
and then spent two years among the Indians of Lake Superior.
In 1858 he produced his famous picture, "The Old Kentucky Home."
He took up his permanent residence at New York at that time.
His "Sunday Morning in Virginia" is a work of equal merit.
He was especially successful in coloring, a master of drawing,
and the expression conveys with precision the thought of the
artist. His portrayal of family life and child life is
unequalled. Among his other great works are "The Confab,"
"Crossing a Stream,' "Chimney Sweep," "Old Stage Coach," "The
New Bonnet," "The Drummer Boy," "Childhood of Lincoln,"
and a great variety of equally familiar subjects.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 202 |
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JOHN JOHNSON.
One of the most influential men in Miami county in the
early settlement of western Ohio was Colonel John
Johnson, of Upper Piqua. For many years he held the
then very responsible and important office of Indian agent.
In 1818, at the treaty of St. Mary's, he was senior agent in the
service and had under his command, to manage, care for and
supply, ten thousand Indians. These were the Miamis.
Delawares. Shawanese, Wyandottes, Pottawatamies, Chippawas,
Ottawas, Senecas, some Kickapoos, Saukees and Kaskaskias.
His administration was noted by reason of the integrity of the
man, the honesty of his dealings with the Indians, his humane
and judicious policy with them and his fidelity to the
government. Colonel Johnson was born in
1775, in the north of Ireland, and at this point the writer
will insert a portion of a narrative written by him, Oct.
10, 1857. "My father, Stephen Johnson, with
his brothers. John and Francis, each
having large families, emigrated from the north of Ireland at
the close of the American Revolution, and settled in
Sherman's valley in the then county of Cumberland, now Perry
county, Pennsylvania. My paternal ancestors went from
Scotland into Ireland with the Protestant King
William, and, being officers, were rewarded with estates
near Enniskillen, in the county of Fermanagh. My
maternal ancestors, named Bernard, were of the Huguenots
who fled from France, for conscience' sake, and took refuge in
Ireland. I can therefore, with some truth, boast of having
descended from good stock.
"Several of my blood relations, both by father
and mother, fought, bled and died under Washington, in the
glorious contest for independence: and I humbly trust as their
blood flows in my veins. the spirit which guided them has still
an abiding place in my affections, for my rule throughout a long
life of more than four score years, in peace or war, has
invariably been to go for our country, no matter who may govern
it; and this lesson has been evermore instilled into the minds
of my children; and so it was with their excellent mother, who
trained them up for God and their country.
"My two gifted and gallant sons who perished in
the Mexican war, went forth, fortified by such household words,
to battle for their country. My parting adieu to them was
'You are to know nothing of party men: be faithful to your flag,
and always remember that the first and last duty of a soldier is
to keep a shut month and obey orders.'
"My early years were spent at Carlisle,
Pennsylvania. in the mercantile establishment of Judge John
Creigh. That place was the rendezvous for the troops
enlisted for the war with the western Indians. General
St. Clair had been defeated, and another army had to be
recruited and equipped for the field, under the gallant and
chivalrous Wayne, in order to chastise the savages and
regain the ground that was lost in the campaigns of Harmar
and St. Clair. At times there were large bodies of
troops in the barracks of Carlisle. These were marched off
to the west as soon as they were properly drilled for the
service. Colonel Thomas Butler, who
was wounded in St. Clair's defeat, with other
officers who survived that sanguinary contest, were there
stationed, and it was hearing their descriptions of the
boundless prairies, forests and rivers of the great west, that
first inspired my mind with an ardent desire to visit the
country. An opportunity soon occurred. Samuel
Creigh was prepared to go west with a stock of goods for
sale to the troops. I agreed at once to accompany him,
traveling the whole distance to Pittsburg on foot, in company
with wagons loaded with army supplies and private property."
Colonel Johnson's life was
intimately connected with the settlement of the Indian question
in Ohio and Indiana, and was so rich in incidents and so
interwoven with the early history of Ohio that his biography
would have added so much to the meager record of the pioneer
history of western Ohio, that it is a source of much regret that
it was never written, but from the records of the government and
an occasional paper prepared for the Pioneer Association of
Ohio, the writer gathers that he was a modest man, a trusted
official and had the confidence, as an Indian agent, of
Washington, John Adams. Jefferson,
Monroe and John Ouincy Adams.
He heard President Washington
deliver his farewell address to congress in 1796, and was the
trusted friend of General W. H.Harrison. He
personally knew the first settlers of Miami county and was with
General Wayne at Greenville, in 1795. He was
a personal friend of Daniel Boone and received an
invitation from the Governor of Kentucky, which he accepted, to
act as one of the pall bearers at the re-interment of Daniel
Boone and his wife, when, after lying in the soil of
Missouri for thirty years, they were re-interred in the public
cemetery at Frankfort, Kentucky, the funeral being conducted
under the direction of the state officials of Kentucky and
attended by twenty-five thousand people. Colonel
Johnson says that Daniel Boone was always poor
and did not own an acre of ground at the time of his death, and
also justly said that if one-half the money spent in
re-interring Boone thirty years after he was dead had
been given to him when living it would have done Boone
some good.
As an Indian agent he became intimately
acquainted with leading Indian chiefs and has stated that the
chiefs distinguished for their oratorical powers were Little
Turtle, of the Miamis, Black Hoof, of the
Shawanese, and Togwane, or John, of the Senecas;
but that his opinion was that Little Turtle was by
far the most eloquent and the ablest Indian diplomatist and
statesman. He was an intimate friend of Little
Turtle and often visited him at his home on Eel river, a
branch of the Wabash river. He says that Little
Turtle received a pension of one hundred guineas a year from
the English government, and that high living destroyed the
health of this chieftain, who died at Fort Wayne, Indiana,
before he was sixty years of age and was buried with military
honors. After his death, the Miamis possessed no one of
equalabilities, and the tribe degenerated into dissipation and
lost its rank and influence in the confederacy of the northwest
tribes.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 414 |
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JOSEPH ECCLESTON JOHNSON,
a noted general in the Confederate army, was born in
Prince Edward county, Virginia, in 1807. He graduated from
West Point and entered the army in
1829. For a number of years his chief service was garrison
duty. He saw active service, however, in the Seminole war
in Florida, part of the time as a staff officer of General
Scott. He resigned his commission in 1837,
but returned to the army a year later, and was brevetted captain
for gallant services in Florida. He was made first
lieutenant of topographical engineers, and was engaged in river
and harbor improvements and also in the survey of the Texas
boundary and the northern boundary of the United States until
the beginning of the war with Mexico. He was at the siege
of Vera Cruz, and at the battle of Cerro Gordo was wounded while
reconnoitering the enemy's position, after which he was
brevetted major and colonel. He was in all the battles
about the city of Mexico, and was again wounded in the final
assault upon that city. After the Mexican war closed he
returned to duty as captain of topographical engineers, but in
1855 he was made lieutenant-colonel of cavalry and did frontier
duty, and was appointed inspector-general of the expedition to
Utah. In 1860 he was appointed quartermaster-general with
rank of brigadier-general. At the outbreak of hostilities
in 1861 he resigned his commission and received the appointment
of major-general of the Confederate army. He held Harper's
Ferry, and later fought General Patterson about
Winchester. At the battle of Bull Run he declined command
in favor of Beauregard, and acted under that general's
directions. He commanded the Confederates in the famous
Peninsular campaign, and was severely wounded at Fair Oaks and
was succeeded in command by General Lee.
Upon his recovery he was made lieutenant-general and assigned to
the command of the southwestern department. He attempted
to raise the siege of Vicksburg, and was finally defeated at
Jackson, Mississippi. Having been made a general he
succeeded General Bragg in command of the army of
Tennessee and was ordered to check General Sherman's
advance upon Atlanta. Not daring to risk a battle with the
overwhelming forces of Sherman, he slowly retreated
toward Atlanta, and was relieved of command by President
Davis and succeeded by General Hood.
Hood utterly destroyed his own army by three furious
attacks upon Sherman. Johnston was restored
to command in the Carolinas, and again faced Sherman, but
was defeated in several engagements and continued a slow retreat
toward Richmond. Hearing of Lee's surrender, he
communicated with General Sherman, and finally
surrendered his army at Durham, North Carolina, Apr. 26, 1865.
General Johnston was elected a
member of the forty-sixth congress and was appointed United
States railroad commissioner in 1885. His death occurred
Mar. 21, 1891.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 85 |
C. C. Jones |
CHARLES C. JONES, now
deceased was for many years a prominent agriculturist of
Brown township and was a man whom to know was to respect and
honor. He was born in the township where he so long
resided, and on the farm adjoining his homestead. His
birth occurred Oct. 13, 1837, his parents being Solomon
and Mary (Tuly) Jones. His father was born in
Shelby county, Kentucky, Dec. 25, 1816, and was brought to
Ohio by his parents. Having arrived at years of
maturity, he married Mary Tuly, daughter of Thomas
and Elizabeth (Borden) Tuly. She was born in New
Jersey, Jan. 24, 1814, and when six years of age was brought
to Ohio, the family settling in Warren county, whence they
came to Miami county when she was twelve years of age.
Her parents died in this county, the former at the age of
forty-six years and the mother at the age of seventy-five
years. Solomon Jones began his domestic
life in Lost Creek township, but, during the infancy of our
subject, removed with his family to the present homestead
farm in Brown township. He died at the age of
thirty-eight years, leaving four children, namely:
Charles Clinton; Elizabeth, who died at the age
of sixteen years; Miranda, wife of Henry
Chambers, of Princeton, Indiana; and Caroline,
wife of Henry Eyer, of Troy. The mother
of this family remained on the farm and is still living
there with her daughter-in-law. Mrs. Charles C.
Jones.
Mr. Jones, whose name introduces this
review, was about eighteen years of age when his father
died, and after two years passed in Fletcher he assumed the
management of the old home place. During the Civil war
he volunteered at Camp Piqua, Aug. 12, 1862. and served for
two years and eleven months with the One Hundred and Tenth
Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He participated in the
battles of the Wilderness, Winchester, Locust Grove and
Kelly's Ford. At Winchester he was captured by "Stonewall"
Jackson's army and held as a prisoner of war for
forty days, being among the last prisoners of war exchanged.
He rose from the ranks to the position of sergeant, and at
the close of the war received an honorable discharge, having
made an excellent military record as a brave and loyal
soldier.
After his return home Mr. Jones resumed
the operation of the home farm, and later purchased his
sister's interest in the property. His mother had
remained on the old homestead and superintended the
cultivation of a portion of it. The home place
comprised one hundred and sixty acres, to which Charles
C. Jones added from time to time until the farm is now
four hundred and seven acres in extent. It is improved
with four sets of excellent farm buildings and all of the
place is rented, except the original homestead, which is
occupied by Mrs. Jones and her family.
In connection with the raising of grain Mr. Jones
became an extensive and successful stock raiser, and kept on
hand a fine grade of horses and cattle. During his
life time he operated the entire farm and was very
successful in both branches of his business. In 1874
he erected the present resilience. He was married in
that year, on the 28th of May, to Miss Jeanette R.
Reynolds, who was born in Urbana, Ohio, Sept. 27, 1855.
her parents being Benjamin and Mary Ann (Townsend)
Reynolds. She lived at Urbana until her marriage,
and to her husband she was ever a faithful companion and
helpmate. Their union was blessed with seven children:
Fred R., born Mar. 6, 1876, who is cultivating
a part of the farm; Edith C., born Sept. 30, 1877;
Thomas E., born Dec. 2. 1879, who is living on the old
farm; Mary B., born May 9, 1882; Blaine,
who was born May 13, 1884, and died at the age of two years
and three months; Reah A., born Mar. 27, 1886: and
Charles Leonard, born Nov. 30, 1896. All of the
children are living- at home, Fred R. was married
Dec. 24, 1895, to Clara A. Anderson, of Shelby
county, and after four years of married life she departed
this world, dying May 3. 1900.
Mr. Jones died Oct. 13, 1899, on the
sixty-second anniversary of his birth. His death
occurred quite suddenly as the result of heart trouble,
which had been contracted by exposure in the army. For
two or three years previously he had suffered considerably
from his heart, but it was not thought that he was in a
precarious condition, and even upon the day of his death he
attended to his business affairs. His demise came as a
great bow to his many friends as well as to his immediate
family. In politics he was a stalwart Republican,
unswerving in his support of the principles of the party,
yet was never an aspirant for office. For twenty-three
years he held membership in the Masonic fraternity, of Lena,
and was buried with Masonic honors, many lodges throughout
the county sending delegations to the funeral to pay the
last tribute of respect to a brother whose life was a
splendid exemplification of the benevolent principles of the
fraternity, its mutual helpfulness, kindness and
forbearance. He was an earnest, upright man, always
just, and not without that greater attribute of mercy.
In his farm work he took just pride, made first-class
improvements upon the place, laid hundreds of rods of tiling
and did all in his power to make a good home for his family
and supply them with all the comforts of life. He was
laid to rest in the family burying ground beside his father
and sister. His friends were legion; he had no
enemies. In all life's relations he commanded the
respect of all with whom he came in contact, and to his
family he left the priceless heritage of a good name.
Mrs. Jones and her children still reside upon
the old homestead, their residence being one of the best in
the northeastern part of Miami county. The family is
one of prominence in the community. Its members occupy
leading positions in society, and are respected for their
good equalities of both heart and mind.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 342 |
| |
JAMES K. JONES, a noted
senator and political leader, attained national fame while
chairman of the national executive committee of the
Democratic party in the presidential campaign of 1896.
He was a native of Marshall county, Mississippi, and was
born September 29, 1839. His father, a well-to-do
planter, settled in Dallas county, Arkansas, in 1848, and
there the subject of this sketch received a careful
education. During the Civil war he served as a private
soldier in the Confederate army. Fromr 1866 to 1873 he
passed a quiet life as a planter, but in the latter year was
admitted to the bar and began the practice of law.
About the same time he was elected to the Arkansas senate
and re-elected in 1874. in 1877 he was made president
of the senate and the following year was unsuccessful in
obtaining a nomination as member of congress. In 1880
he was elected representative and his ability at once placed
him in a foremost position. He was re-elected to
congress in 1882 and in 1884, and served as an an
influential member on the committee of ways and means.
Mar. 4, 1885, Mr. Jones took his seat in the United
States senate to succeed James D. Walker, and was
afterward re-elected to the same office. In this
branch of the national legislature his capabilities had a
wider scope, and he was recognized as one of the ablest
leaders of his party.
On the nomination of William J. Bryan as its
candidate for the presidency by the national convention of
the Democratic party, held in Chicago in 1896, Mr. Jones
was made chairman of the national committee.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 171 |
| |
JOHN PAUL JONES, though a
native of Scotland, was one of America's most noted fighters
during the Revolutionary war. He was born July 6,
1747. His father was a gardener, but the young soon
became interested in a seafaring life and at the age of
twelve he was apprenticed to a sea captain engaged in the
American trade. His first voyage landed him in
Virginia, where he had a brother who had settled there
several years prior. The failure of the captain
released young Jones from his apprenticeship bonds,
and was engaged as a third mate of a vessel engaged in the
slave trade. He abandoned this trade after a few
years, from his own sense of disgrace. He took passage
from Jamaica for Scotland in 1768, and on the voyage both
the captain and the mate died and he was compelled to take
command of the vessel for the remainder of the voyage.
He soon after become master of the vessel. He returned
to Virginia about 1773 to settle up the estate of his
brother, and at this time added the name "Jones,"
having previously been know as John Paul. He
settled down in Virginia, but when the war brook out in 1775
he offered his services to congress and was appointed senior
lieutenant of the flagship "Alfred," on which he hoisted the
American flag with his own hands, the first vessel that had
ever carried a flag of the new nation. He was
afterward appointed to the command of the "Alfred," and
later of the "Providence," in each of which vessels he did
good service, as also in the "Ranger," to the command of
which he was later appointed. The fight that made him
famous, however, was that in which he captured the
"Serapis," off the coast of Scotland. He was then in
command of the "Bon Homme Richard," which had been fitted
out for him by the French government and named by Jones
in honor of Benjamin Franklin or "Good Man
Richard," Franklin being author of the publication
known as "Poor Richard's Almanac." The fight between
the "Richard" and the "Serapis" lasted three hours, all of
which time the vessels were at close range, and most of the
time in actual contact. Jones' vessel was on
fire several times, and early in the engagement two of his
guns bursted, rendering the battery useless. Also an
envious officer of the Alliance, one of Jones' own
fleet, opened fire upon the "Richard" at a critical time,
completely disabling the vessel. Jones
continued the fight, in spite of counsels to surrender, and
after dark the "Serapis" struck her colors, and was hastily
boarded by Jones and his crew, while the "Richard"
sank, bows first, after the wounded had been taken on board
the Serapis." Most of the other vessels of the fleet
of which the "Serapis" was convoy, surrendered, and were
taken with the "Serapis" to France, where Jones was
received with greatest honors, and the king presented him
with an elegant sword and the cross of the Order of Military
Merit. Congress gave him a vote of thanks and made him
commander of a new ship, the "America," but the vessel was
afterward given to France and Jones never saw active
sea service again. He came to America again, in 1787,
after the close of the war, and was voted a good medal by
congress. He went to Russia and was appointed
rear-admiral and rendered service of value against the
Turks, but on account of personal enmity of the favorites of
the emperor he was retired on a pension. Failing to
collect this, he returned to France, where he died,
July 18, 1792.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 97 |
| |
JOSEPH JONES.
In the first half of the nineteenth century Joseph
Jones was numbered among the leading citizens of Miami
county and took an active part in its pioneer development.
He was born Dec. 31, 1788, in Frederick county, Virginia,
and was a son of Joseph Jones, Sr., who was a native
of the same locality and a planter and slaveholder there.
In his family were four children: Rachel, Mary, Joseph
and James. The subject of this sketch was
reared on the old Virginian plantation and in the early part
of the nineteenth century removed to Ohio. He loyally
served his country in the war of 1812, and performed
services no less arduous in reclaiming the wild land of
Miami county for purposes of civilization. In 1819 he
entered the farm upon which his daughter, Mrs.
Hustler, now lives, and he purchased of Richard
Carr five hundred and forty acres of land, at five
dollars per acre. The tract was still in its primitive
condition, being covered with a heavy growth of oak,
hickory, walnut and maple trees, which stood in their
primeval strength. In the midst of the forest he
erected a double log cabin and there began life in true
pioneer style. Indians still visited the neighborhood,
wild animals had their haunts in the forests and wild game
of many kinds could be had in abundance. The task of
cutting down the trees, grubbing up the stumps and preparing
the land for cultivation cultivation was an arduous one, but
with characteristic energy and strong determination Mr.
Jones continues his labors and in the course of time
gathered rich harvests where once stood the native forest
trees. In his business he was quite successful,
becoming one of the substantial citizens of his day.
Mr. Jones wedded Mrs. Elizabeth Smalley,
widow of Benjamin Smalley and a daughter of Jacob
Collins. By this marriage four children were born:
Henry, Phoebe and Theodore, who died in
infancy, and Mrs. Mary Violet Hustler, who is living
on the old home farm, when Mrs. Hustler was
six years of age her father took his little family back to
Virginia and there resided from 1831 until 1845, when he
again came to the old homestead in Ohio, making it his place
of residence until called to his final rest on the nth of
August, 1848. His time was largely given to his
farming interests, yet he belonged to a progressive class of
citizens, who promoted all measures calculated to prove of
public benefit. In business matters he was
straight-forward and honorable, and in all life's relations
he commanded the respect of his fellow men.
His daughter, the only child who survived him, spent
her girlhood days under the parental roof, and on the 11th
of February, 1845, gave her hand in marriage to John
Secrest, who died June 29, 1864. By their marriage
five children were born, namely: Laura, Zelora,
Isadore, Francis and Medora.
Zelora, Isadore and Francis died in
infancy. Laura married Sylvester Dye
and Medora is the wife of William Foster.
After the death of her first husband Mrs. Secrest
was married, on the 6th of April, 1865, to George W.
Hustler, by whom she had one son, George W., Jr.,
who died when two and a half years old. Mr. Hustler
served as a hospital steward during the Civil war with the
One Hundred and Forty-seventh Ohio Infantry. Previous
to this time he had practiced medicine in connection with
Dr. Coleman, but after his return from the army
he gave up medical practice and devoted his attention to
agricultural pursuits until his death, which occurred on the
18th of March, 1875. He was a member of the
Independent Order of Odd Fellows and of the Methodist
Episcopal church. Mrs. Hustler is also a
member of the church, with which she has been connected for
almost sixty years. She owns one hundred and ninety-eight
acres of land — the old family homestead—and the income
therefrom supplies her with all the comforts and many of the
lu.xuries of life. With the exception of a brief time spent
in Virginia she has always resided in Miami county, and
therefore has a very wide acquaintance. Her circle of
friends is extensive, and she is highly esteemed for her
many excellencies of character.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 303 |
| |
MARK C. JONES. Mark
C. Jones was born in Union township, Miami county. May
2, 1841. His father, Alexander Jones,
remained in Union township until the son was fifteen years
of age, when he removed to Newton township. After a
happy married life of sixty-one years Alexander
Jones and his wife were called to the home beyond.
The mother died on the 6th of March, 1900. the father on the
9th of the same month, and they were buried on the same day.
Mr. Jones was then eighty-two years of age, his wife
seventy-seven, and they were people of the highest
respectability, enjoying the warm regard and friendship of
all who knew them. They held membership in the
Friends' church and their exemplary Christian lives
commended them to the confidence, regard and love of all
with whom they were associated.
Mark C. Jones remained with his parents until
the time of his enlistment for service in the civil war.
On the 22d of August, 1862, he joined Company G, One Hundred
and Tenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, as a private, and was
mustered in at Piqua. He then went down the Ohio river
to Virginia, and the first engagement in which he
participated was the battle of Winchester, on the 13th, 14th
and 15th of June, 1863. He also took part in the
engagement at Port Royal, July 25, 1863; Kelly's Ford,
November 27; Brandywine Station, November 8; Locust Grove,
November 27; Mine Run, November 28; the battle of the
Wilderness from the 5th to the 11th of May, 1864;
Spottsylvania, from the 12th to the 21st of May of the same
year; Gainesville, May 30 and 31; Cold Harbor, from the 1st
to the 12th of June; Bermuda Hundred, June 19; Petersburg,
June 22 and 22,; Monocacy, July 9; Charleston, August 21;
Smithfield, August 29; Winchester, September 19; Flint
Hill, September 21; Fisher's Hill, September 22; Cedar
Creek, October 19; and Sailor's Run, which was the last
battle in which he participated. His regiment formed a
part of the Eighth Army Corps, and was under the command of
General Sedgwick until his death, and
afterward under the command of General Wright.
Mr. Jones was promoted to the rank of
corporal. He was in the hospital for some time
suffering with measles and mumps, but was never wounded.
He received his final discharge at Columbus, in 1865, and
with a creditable military record returned to his home.
When the war was over and the country no longer needed
his services, Mr. Jones began farming upon the place
where he now lives. In the spring of 1866, however, he
removed to Union township, where he carried on agricultural
pursuits until 1893, the date of his return to his old home.
He has here forty-seven acres of rich land, all under a high
state of cultivation, and makes a specialty of the raising
of tobacco. As a companion and helpmate on life's
journey he chose Mrs. Mary C. Pierson, a daughter of
Isaac Coppock. They were married Feb. 1, 1866,
and became the parents of eight children: Nora,
deceased; Elizabeth, Harry, Elmer,
Laura and Julia, who have passed away; Judson
Ray, and one who died in infancy. After the death
of his first wife Mr. Jones was married, on the 6th
of April, 1893, to Mrs. Emma Coate, the widow of
James Coate and a daughter of Hiram Jones.
In his social relations Mr. Jones is a Mason,
belonging to the lodge at Pleasant Hill. He is a
charter member of Ludlow Grange, in which he has served as
the master, and in politics he is a Republican. He
belongs to the Christian church, and his daily life is in
harmony with his profession. As a citizen he is as
true and loyal as when he followed the starry banner on the
battlefields of the south.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 780 |
| |
SAMUEL PORTER JONES,
the famous Georgia evangelist, was born Oct. 16, 1847, in
Chambers county, Alabama. He did not attend school
regularly during his boyhood, but worked on a farm, and went
to school at intervals, on account of ill health. His
father removed to Cartersville, Georgia, when Mr.
Jones was a small boy. He quit school at the age of
nineteen and never attended college. The war
interfered with his education, which was intended to prepare
him for the legal profession. After the war he renewed
his preparation for college, but was compelled to desist
from such a course, as his health failed him entirely.
Later on, however, he still pursued his legal studies and
was admitted to the bar. Soon after this event he went
to Dallas, Paulding county, Georgia, where he was engaged in
the practice of his profession, and in a few months removed
to Cherokee county, Alabama, where he taught school.
In 1869 he returned to Cartersville, Georgia, and arrived in
time to see his father die. Immediately after this
event he applied for a license to preach, and went to
Atlanta, Georgia, to the meeting of the North Georgia
Conference of the M. E. church south, which received him on
trial. He became an evangelist of great note, and
traveled extensively, delivering his sermons in an
inimitable style that made him very popular with the masses,
his methods of conducting revivals being unique and original
and his preaching practical and incisive.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 115 |
| |
JUDGE WALTER D. JONES.
In the last half-century the lawyer has been a preeminent
factor in all affairs of private concern and national
importance. He has been depended upon to conserve the
best and permanent interests of the whole people, and is a
recognized power in all the avenues of life. He stands
as the protector of the rights and liberties of his fellow
men, and is the representative of a profession whose
followers, if they would gain honor, fame and success, must
be men of merit and ability. Such a one is Walter
D. Jones, of Piqua, Ohio, judge of the common pleas
court.
He was born in that city, June 21, 1857, and is a son
of Hon. M. H. and Jane (Wood) Jones. The father
is a prominent lawyer of Miami county, who has been
successfully engaged in practice for a period of fifty-two
years. He was born in the District of Columbia, in
1825. and his wife was born in New Hampshire, in 1828, a
daughter of Timothy Davis Wood, an old resident of
Miami county.
Judge Jones was reared and educated in
Piqua, graduating at the high school of that city in 1872.
He then learned the printer's trade, and subsequently
entered the office of the Miami Helmet, of Piqua, and he
continued his connection with newspaper work in various
capacities for several years. He read law in the
meantime under his father's direction, and in 1878 was
admitted to the bar before the supreme court of the state,
at Columbus, Ohio. He commenced practice at Piqua in
partnership with his father under the firm name of M. H.
& W. D. Jones, a connection which continued until he was
appointed by Governor Bushnell common pleas judge of
the second judicial district of Ohio, to fill the vacancy
occasioned by the election of Judge Theodore Sullivan
as circuit court judge. Judge Jones was elected
by the people, in the November election, 1899, to fill the
unexpired term of Judge Sullivan. As a
lawyer Judge Jones was careful, methodical and
industrious. He always came into court with his cases
well prepared, both on the law and the evidence, and was
very successful as a practitioner. He and his father
had for years enjoyed the leading practice in the city of
Piqua. He was elected for six terms city solicitor of
Piqua, and served for twelve years in that office to the
satisfaction of the people, he establishing the reputation
of being an able and excellent municipal lawyer.
In politics Judge Jones is an
uncompromising Republican, but not an active worker.
He was never an office-seeker and cared but little for the
honor of office, but was devoted to his chosen profession.
Upright, honest and honorable, he has the confidence of the
people, and is winning on the bench the character of an
able, impartial jurist. He is a man of good literary
taste and an able writer, but apparently has no ambition for
literary honors. He is a prominent Mason, having
served as worshipful master of Warren Lodge, No. 24, F. & A.
M., and high priest of Piqua Chapter, No. 31.
In 1879 Judge Jones was married to
Miss Laura Harlow, of Piqua, who was born in Tennessee,
and was in her eighteenth year when she came to Ohio with
her parents. Rev. William D. and Kate (Tuttle)
Harlow, locating in Miami county. To this
union was born a daughter, Laura C. Judge Jones
resided in the city of Piqua, where he was born and where he
has lived to the present time, and from the above record of
his life it will be observed that he is an exception to the
rule that a young man cannot rise to fame in his own city
and among his own kin.
E. S. W.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 598 |
NOTES:
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