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BIOGRAPHIES
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record
of Miami Co., Ohio
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company
1900
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BIOGRAPHICAL INDEX of History Publ. 1900 >
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LIST of BIOGRAPHICAL INDEXES >
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ELLIS H. KERR.
Ellis Hamilton Kerr, attorney-at-law of Tippecanoe
City, Ohio, was born in Vandalia, Montgomery county, Ohio,
Feb. 10, 1855. He is the son of Jonathan T. and
Matilda (Westlake) Kerr. The father
of our subject was the son of James Kerr, a
soldier in the war of 1812, who married Sallie
Thompson, whose thrilling and eventful history is one of
interest to the descendants of the early settlers of Miami
county. His grandfather, George Kerr,
was born in the count of Kerry, Ireland, and
emigrated to America previous to the Revolutionary war, in
which he took part as a soldier in the Continental army.
After the war was over, he came to Ohio and was one of the
first settlers in Marietta, and later, in 1813, removed to
Lebanon. Ohio. The father of E. H. Kerr removed
from Vandalia to Lost Creek township, in this county, and
from there in 1862 removed to Monroe township, in this
county, and settled on a farm in section 16 of that
township.
On that farm E. H. Kerr passed his boyhood
years, receiving what education he could from the country
schools. He received a certificate to teach school at
eighteen years of age and taught school for two winters.
He was married to Miss Etta Tenny,
of Vandalia, Ohio. September 27, 1874. She received her
education in the common schools of Ohio, and was a
successful teacher. There have been born to this union three
children: Loran A., Vera Mae and Raymond A.
With a worthy ambition Mr. Kerr and his wife
were determined to give their children a good education.
The eldest son, Loran A., completed the classical
course and was graduated at the Ohio Wesleyan University in
Delaware, Ohio, in the class of 1900. The only
daughter, Vera Mae, graduated at the Ohio
Wesleyan University in the class of 1899, and also graduated
in the classical course at Boston University in the class of
1800. The youngest son, Raymond A., is a
student in the Ohio Wesleyan University, and will graduate
in the class of 1902.
In 1879, at the age of twenty-four years, Ellis H.
Kerr removed to Tippecanoe and read law with his
brother, J. A. Kerr, and afterwards entered the
Cincinnati Law School, in which he was graduated with the
class of 1885. He formed a partnership with his
brother, J. A. Kerr, which continued until Jan. 1,
1891. Since that date lie has had no partner, but by
close attention to his business he has succeeded in building
up a good paying clientage and his practice extends to all
the courts of the state and in the United States courts.
He has been connected with a number of very important cases.
One of much local fame was the case of John W. Underwood
versus the village of Tippecanoe, involving the liability of
municipal corporations for defective streets, which was
carried through all the courts to the supreme court of the
state, and he was successful in every court. He also
was one of the attorneys in defense in the celebrated case
of the state of Ohio versus Jefferson Shank,
indicted for murder in the first degree, which occupied the
common pleas court of Miami county for three weeks and
attracted much public attention. Mr. Kerr
is noted for his fidelity to his clients, the zeal and
energy with which he prosecutes or defends every case
entrusted to his care, and although living in a village six
miles from the county seat, he has a large and lucrative
practice, and stands high with the Mimi county bar as
an able and honest lawyer, and has made and saved in his
practice a handsome competence.
In politics Mr. Kerr is a Democrat, and
while not an extreme partisan he takes an active part in
every campaign. He has been nominated by his party for
prosecuting attorney and probate judge, and in each campaign
received the full party vote with an addition of personal
friends from other parties. He has served five terms
as mayor of Tippecanoe City, which is Republican in its
politics. Twice he was elected without opposition.
He has served as city solicitor four years. Sir.
Kerr is in the prime of his manhood and is a man of
high morality and sterling worth. His children are
educated, and before him is a bright future.
E.S.W.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 258 |
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J. A. KERR.
J. A. Kerr, the son of Jonathan D. and
Matilda (Westlake) Kerr, was born in Chambersburg,
Montgomery county. Ohio, July 7, 1853. He is a
descendant of George Kerr, a native of the county of
Kerry, Ireland, who came with his parents to America
sometime prior to the Revolutionary war. George
Kerr was a soldier in the army of Washington and
after the war for independence was won, he, with other
hardy, adventurous men emigrated to the Northwest territory,
and was one of the first settlers in Marietta, Ohio.
In 1813 he moved to Lebanon, Ohio. One of George
Kerr's sons, James Kerr, married
Miss Sallie Thompson, whose early history
was one of thrilling interest and is published in this
volume; and her son, J. T. Kerr, is the father of our
subject. It would be interesting to trace the family
history back to the time when they left old Ireland for a
home in America, but the writer has not the record to give a
correct statement of the ancestors of the Kerr
family.
The father of J. A. Kerr was a farmer and a man
of more than ordinary intelligence, and was desirous that
his children should receive as good education as his means
would permit. J. A. Kerr spent his early years
upon the farm and attended the common schools until the age
of sixteen. He was sent for two winters to the Normal
school at Lebanon, Ohio, where he studied mathematics and
surveying. He afterwards studied law and at the age of
twenty-three he was admitted to practice in the courts of
Ohio and in the United States courts, and located in
Tippecanoe in 1876. He has ever since devoted his time
and energy to the practice. He is a successful
practitioner, a close student of the law and has won for
himself a large clientage and a fine reputation as an able
attorney.
In politics he is a Democrat, but he is an independent
thinker and does not hesitate to criticise the mistakes of
his own party. He indulges now and then in writing
humorous sketches and as a humorist has a local reputation.
He is a constant reader and is inclined to use his pen on
political and literary subjects, and is at present connected
with the Troy Democrat, the leading Democratic paper of this
county.
Mr. Kerr was married to Miss
Elizabeth Coote, in 1873, and one daughter and a
son have blessed their home. She has been indeed a
helpmate to her husband in all his enterprises. The
daughter has passed away. The son, a young man of
eighteen years, is the comfort and pride of his parents.
J. A. Kerr is now in the prime of manhood, and
has yet before him a life of much usefulness. He has
by his practice accumulated a comfortable competence and won
a reputation as a man of intellect and ability. He has
the energy and industry that will win victory in the battle
of life. E. S. W.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 421 |
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JOHN M. KERR.
The specific history of the west was made by the pioneers;
it was emblazoned on the forest trees by the strength of
sturdy arms and gleaming ax, and written on the surface of
the earth by the track of the primitive plow. These
were strong men and true who came to found the empire of the
west—these hardy settlers who builded their rude domiciles,
grappled with the giants of the forest, and from the sylvan
wilds evolved the fertile and productive fields which have
these many years been furrowed and refurrowed by the
plowshare. The red man, in his motley garb, stalked
through the dim, woody avenues, and the wild beasts disputed
his dominion. The trackless prairie was made to yield its
tribute under the effective endeavors of the pioneer, and
slowly and surely were laid the steadfast foundations upon
which have been builded the magnificent superstructure of an
opulent and enlightened commonwealth. To establish a
home amid such surroundings, and to cope with the many
privations and hardships which were the inevitable
concomitants, demanded an invincible courage and fortitude,
strong hearts and willing hands. All these were
characteristic of the pioneers, whose names and deeds should
be held in perpetual reverence by those who enjoy the fruits
of their toil.
John M. Kerr is not only a representative of one
of the pioneer families of Ohio, but has been himself also a
resident of Miami county for three score years and ten. He
was born in Monroe township. Apr. 2, 1829, on the old
family homestead which his grandfather, George
Kerr, entered from the government prior to 1812.
Hamilton Kerr, the father of our subject, was
born in Ohio, in 1803. The land purchased by George
Kerr has since been in possession of the family,
being now owned by Furnas Kerr, a brother of
our subject. Upon taking up his abode in Miami county
he erected a log cabin, about twenty by twenty-four feet,
which continued to be his home for several years. He
then built a brick house of two rooms, and in that residence
died in 1836. He was a very successful farmer, his
enterprising efforts having made him the possessor of five
hundred acres of land. He married Miss Rhoda
Furnas, a native of Monroe township. Miami county,
and unto them were born four children: Newell, who
died July 18, 1876, at the age of forty-nine years; John
M.; George, a farmer of Concord township, Miami
county, and Furnas, a retired farmer who is now living in
Tippecanoe City.
John M. Kerr, whose name introduces this review,
can relate many interesting incidents of pioneer life in
Miami county. He pursued his education in a little log
school-house, walking a mile and a half through the woods in
order to recite his lessons in that institution. His
training at farm labor was not meager, for he early learned
to handle the scythe and to follow the plow. Until
twenty-four years of age he assisted his father in the work
of field and meadow and then removed to an adjoining farm of
one hundred and sixty acres on sections 10 and 15, Monroe
township. There he resided until 1889 and developed
one of the best farming properties in the neighborhood.
His richly cultivated fields and substantial buildings
indicated to the passer-by the thrift and enterprise of the
owner. Upon his removal to Tippecanoe City, in 1889,
he put aside business cares and has since lived retired,
enjoying the rest which he has truly earned.
On the 17th of May, 1866, Mr. Kerr was
united in marriage to Miss Sarah Coates,
who was born in Warren county, Indiana, and died in 1867, at
the age of twenty-eight years and eighteen days.
Mr. Kerr has no children of his own, but his niece, now
Mrs. J. F. Deitrick, lived with him from her early
childhood and was to him a daughter. He is yet the
owner of a valuable farm of three hundred and twenty acres,
and from his place derives a good income. He has been
a member of the Masonic fraternity since 1859, and his
membership is now in Tippecanoe Lodge, No. 74.
In politics he is a Democrat. Having witnessed
the entire growth and development of this county he is well
informed concerning its history, and is accounted one of the
valued citizens whose efforts have contributed in no small
degree to the general prosperity and progress. His
activity in business affairs, combined with honorable
dealing and sound judgment, brought to him creditable
success, while his upright life has won for him the high
regard of all with whom he has been brought in contact.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 667 |
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MRS.
SALLY KERR. In the history of the
pioneers of every county some name stands out more prominent
than others, either for the influence the individual has
exerted for the benefit of the community in which he lived,
or because of some hardship more than ordinary in the
settlement of a new country. In Miami county among the
few who remain that were reared amid the privations of
pioneer life no one is more frequently mentioned in
tradition or story than "Aunt Sally Kerr."
Her posterity is numerous and many of them are at the
present date wealthy and influential in this county.
Mrs. Sally Kerr was born on the
banks of the Susquehanna river, in Pennsylvania, on the 3rd
day of May, 1800. She was the daughter of Jonathan
and Olive Thompson. Mr. Thompson had a good
home but a large family of ten children and he desired to
acquire more land. He and his eldest son, therefore,
went to Canada and purchased one thousand acres of land, and
in 1810 he removed his family to their new home, where for
two years they were prosperous. They were becoming
accustomed to the country and satisfied with their new home,
when unfortunately the war of 1812 came on and Great Britain
demanded of her Canadian subjects the oath of allegiance. Mr.
Thompson refused to take the oath of allegiance to
the British government, and was in consequence proscribed as
a traitor and compelled to flee for liberty and life,
leaving his wife and children behind. He reached
Cleveland, Ohio, and from there sent a letter to his wife
directing her to leave Canada and come to Cleveland,
bringing with her as much of their goods as could be hauled
with the teams she had. The Indians were by that time
killing and capturing every one that they found unprotected.
Yet the brave wife and mother decided to make the journey,
although it was midwinter. She loaded as much of their
goods as could be hauled on two sleds, one drawn by horses
and the other by oxen. The road lay through an almost
trackless wilderness, and Sally was then but eleven
years of age, but she, being the eldest of the children at
home, went before, driving the team of horses, and her
mother followed driving the oxen. It was a fearful
undertaking for the mother with her family of small
children. Mrs. Kerr. in relating the
incidents of that fearful journey, said: "Our road was a
very rough one and being poorly cleared there were many
stumps, brush and great snow drifts, but our teams were
gentle and we were making good headway under the
circumstances. When the night overtook us before we
four shelter and the oxen in some way caught their sled on a
stump and broke the tongue out. Unwilling to leave the
oxen and goods behind we decided to stay where we were until
morning. We had no way to make a fire or light, and would
not have dared to build a fire if we had for fear Indians.
So securing our teams and covering the children with
blankets, mother and I began walking around the little
encampment to drive back the wolves, which had been howling
since nightfall and now were getting close. Why they
did not rush in and kill us I never could understand, unless
God preserved us. Oh, but the night was long
but at length the blessed sun arose. We soon
ascertained that he could not fix the sled; so we left it
and the oxen and started on with our horse team. After
going four or five miles we came to a cabin and hired a man
to go back, repair the sled and bring the oxen to his house.
That was the most miserable night I ever spent. My
mother's feet were so badly frozen that she could scarcely
walk for three weeks."
The next day they continued on their journey and
arrived at the home of her father's brother. Here
Mrs. Thompson was compelled to remain for several
weeks on account of her frozen feet. Three gentlemen,
who were acquainted with Mr. Thompson, stopped
at the house and told Sally's mother that if she and
her family would trust to their protection they would take
them to Cleveland. Sally's uncle prevailed upon
her mother to leave Sally with him as he intended
leaving the country. Sally bade her mother and
the children a loving farewell, expecting soon to rejoin
them in Cleveland, but she never again saw her mother,
father, brothers or sisters, and never received any word or
tidings from them. Before Sally's uncle had
time to arrange his affairs for leaving Canada he was
drafted into the British army, and she was left with her
aunt. Shortly afterwards she was placed in the care of
some people who promised to take her to Cleveland. But
unfortunately the parties to whom she was entrusted were
dishonest, and after traveling around the country came to
Fort Meigs, and left her among a lot of French and Indians,
she being the only American in the place. This rough
set of people were not kind to the little waif and when an
old lady she often said that at times she often prayed that
death might come as a relief to her hardships and
sufferings. However a Colonel Cromer, with a
band of Indians, friendly to the American cause, stopped at
the fort. The Colonel observed Sally, and asked
why she was there. After hearing her pitiful story he
told her if she could ride a horse he would take her to
Piqua. She gladly consented, hoping that in some way
she could find her parents. The journey was two
hundred miles, and the road was a bridle path through an
unbroken forest. They rode in single file, her place
being next to the Colonel. She was riding a man's
saddle, but Colonel Cromer was kind to her and
had a tent for her accommodation, and trusty guards to see
that she was not molested. Upon arriving at Wapokoneta
the Indians were given a ration of rum. Sally
was placed in the care of a squaw who could talk some
English. She, fearing trouble because the Indians were
drunk and could not be controlled, took Sally as soon
as it was dark upon her pony to Fort Loramie, twenty miles
distant. Upon Colonel Cromer's arrival
at Loramie he again took charge of Sally, and upon
reaching Piqua delivered her to Colonel John
Johnson, the Indian agent. She lived in
Colonel Johnson's family for one year, and
afterwards lived with a Mrs. Ewing and finally
made her home with the family of Jesse Miller,
with whom she lived until her marriage to James
Kerr, in 1818. She came to Piqua in August, 1812,
and was married in her eighteenth year. During their
married life she was the mother of eleven children.
Her husband was a prosperous farmer and owned a good farm in
Monroe township, this county. He died in 1863 and his
wife lived on the old homestead with her son Perry.
While she had no opportunity for an education, she learned
to read and was fond of good books. She was a thrifty
housekeeper, was a devout member of the Baptist church and
was loved and respected by the whole community, and as she
was a good conversationalist, her neighbors and friends
often gathered around her to hear her relate the thrilling
events of her early life. She lived until eighty-three
years of age, and died Aug. 28, 1883. E.
S. W.
Source:
Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co., Ohio -
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page 375 |
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THE KNOOP CHILDREN'S HOME.
Perhaps no institution in Miami county reflects more credit
upon the citizens of the locality than does the Knoop
Children's Home, at Troy, wherein many little homeless boys
and girls are each year provided with tender care and given
not only the necessities, but also many of the comforts of
life. Under the able superintendence of two men, who
have had the place in charge, it has indeed been made a
hope, and the kindliness and attention denied children by
their parents or as the result of an adverse fate is here
accorded them. The institution had its beginning on
the 4th of June, 1877, when John K. Knoop deeded to
Isaac Clyne, W. H. Northcutt and D. E. Branson,
commissioners of the county, and their successors, the place
known as the John Statler farm, comprising one
hundred and sixty acres of valuable land in Elizabeth
township, the condition attaching thereto being that the
commissioners erect a building and maintain it as a
children's home. The question of accepting the gift
and providing funds to build and maintain the place was
voted upon the October of that year, with the following
result: five thousand eight hundred and ninety-one votes for
and one hundred and seventy-five against its establishment.
D. W. Gibbs, of Toledo, was selected as the
architect, and on the 8th of May, 1878, contracts were
awarded to various buildings, the home being erected at a
cost of sixteen thousand two hundred and seventy dollars and
twenty-five cents. The total cost of the main
building, including the gas fixtures, was twenty-four
thousand one hundred and seventy-ne dollars and fifty-nine
cents and the entire improvements up to date have been made
at a cost of forty-eight thousand dollars. The first
trustees selected were William Scott, of Piqua;
Jacob Rohrer, of Tippecanoe City, and S. K. Harter,
of Troy. Mr. Scott, however, declined to serve
and R. P. Spiker was selected in his place.
W. Barnes was chosen superintendent and his wife,
Mrs. Martha Barnes, was made matron. On the 10th
of March, 1878, he assumed control, and when the institution
was opened fifty-two children were placed in its care.
Throughout the intervening years it has had a prosperous
existence. The idea was put forth that the home would
be overcrowded and that the expense would be too heavy for
the tax payers, but in 1899, twenty-one years after the
establishment of the home, there were during the intervening
years it has afforded shelter and secured homes for seven
hundred and seventy children. Mr. Barnes, the
first superintendent, remained in charge for twelve years,
or until 1890, when he was succeeded by Henry Jay.
Instructions equal to the regular ten-months schooling is
given to the children in the home, who are under the care of
two competent teachers. The terms of admission to the
home are very liberal, the institution furnishing shelter
and protection to such children, who by reason of
abandonment by parents or orphanage or neglect or inability
of parents to provide for them, become dependent on others.
They must have resided at least one year in Miami county, or
may be residents of other counties if the trustees wish to
admit them to the school. All kinds of small products
and fruits and grain are raised in sufficient quantities to
provide the table and also for stock-feeding purposes, and
thus the institution contributes largely to its own
support., The majority of the children who have
entered the home have been placed with private families, and
in a greater number cases have received good care and
attention and have grown to be a credit to those who have
kindly sheltered them.
Source: Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co.,
Ohio - Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page
541 |
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DANIEL H. KNOOP. No
name is more inseparably connected with the history of Miami
county than that of the Knoop family, for its
representatives have been identified with the growth and
development of this section throughout the century.
Mr. Knapp, whose name introduces this review, was one of
the most extensive and successful farmers in Lost Creek
township, and was prominently identified with other
interests and public affairs which contributed to the
general prosperity and welfare of the community. He
was born in Dillsburg, near William Mills, in
Adams county, Pennsylvania, Nov. 6, 1806, and was a son of
Jacob and Frances (Hursh) Knoop, who were also
natives of the Keystone state. His grandparents were
American born, but his great-grandparents were natives of
Germany. Jacob Knoop lived and died in
Pennsylvania, but the mother came to Ohio with her son,
Daniel, and died in the Buckeye state. In their
family were six children, but all have now passed away.
Daniel H. Knoop spent the first twenty-four
years of his life on the farm in Pennsylvania, but in 1830
he came to Ohio. His brother, Christopher, had
already come to this state, having located in Wayne county.
Daniel H. Knoop made the journey on foot and returned
to Pennsylvania in the same manner. In 1832 he again
came to Ohio, this time accompanied by his mother and sister
Ann. His mother acted as his housekeeper until his
marriage. She died in Clark county, Ohio, and was
buried in Black cemetery, north of New Carlisle. The
sister became the wife of Jacob Fortney and both she
and her husband died in Clark county. On the first
trip Mr. Knoop, of this review, joined a man at
Columbus, who was a drover taking cattle to Baltimore, and
worked for him for eight dollars per month. He and his
mother had sold the old homestead in Pennsylvania, but as he
did not report favorably on Ohio they decided to repurchase
it and gave five hundred dollars more than they had received
for it. In 1832 however, Mr. Knoop again came
to Ohio with his mother and sister, having the second time
sold the Pennsylvania homestead. They made the journey
by wagon, bringing with them their household goods,
containing an old barrel churn, which had been purchased in
Baltimore in 1816 and was used in the family until after the
marriage of Albert Knoop, in 1880, and it is still in
his possession.
DANIEL KNOOP purchased land in Lost Creek
township, which had been entered from the government, in
September, 1807, by Richard Palmer, and came into
possession of our subject on the 17th of September, 1832,
the transfer price being five hundred dollars. There
has been but one transfer of the title, the original patent
being written on parchment and signed by Thomas Jefferson,
president, and James Madison, secretary of state, and
is now in the possession of Albert Knoop. Their
first home was a frame residence, built on a stone basement.
Mr. Knoop had some capital and energetically went
forward with the work of improving his farm, his mother
acting as his housekeeper until after his marriage.
She then spent a portion of her time with her daughter,
Ann, the wife of Jacob Fortney, of Clark county,
where she died when well advanced in years.
In 1842 Mr. Knoop was married to Miss Cassa
Jackson, of Elizabeth township, who was born Mar. 1,
1810, and was a daughter of William and Elizabeth
(Criddlebaugh) Jackson, who were natives of Pennsylvania
and came to Ohio at an early day. They had a family of
eight children. Mr. Knoop was in the possession
of a fine farm at the time of his marriage and thereon he
and his wife resided throughout his business career.
He, of course, carried on his farming operations in
primitive style in that early day. His son, Albert
Knoop, can remember how the father with a few of his
neighbors, reaped a field of rye, using an old fashioned
sickle, and one of the men who took part in the work was
Jacob Hufford, who is still living. He resided
upon one of Mr. Knoop's farms, there making his home
for twenty-one years, during which time he accumulated a
handsome competence. Mr. Knoop had one hundred
and sixty acres of the old homestead farm and the greater
part of the land was under a high state of cultivation.
IN 1861 he erected the present buildings and all of the
improvements upon the place stand as monuments to his thrift
and enterprise. In early life he had learned the
trade, both of tanner and cabinet-maker, and frequently made
cradles and coffins for the people of the neighborhood and
attended the funerals for miles around. His services
as a coffin maker were in demand, especially during the
cholera epidemic, which raged violently in Miami county.
All alone, at midnight, he carried to his burial the father
of Isaac Clyne, who died of that dread disease.
His old account books show several interesting items,
including the making of coffins, cradles, and other products
of the cabinet-maker's skill. As the years advanced
Mr. Knoop prospered in his business affairs, and in
addition to the old homestead became the owner of three
other farms, all in Lost Creek township, together with three
hundred and sixty acres in Indiana. In company with
Daniel Knoop, a relative, William Green and
William Burton, he built and owned the Troy & Casstown
pike. This was four miles long, was constructed in
1850 and was continued as a toll road for twenty years,
proving a profitable investment. Mr. Knoop
favored the plan of the county owning the pike and extended
the system. In early years he was frequently called
upon to act as trustee and to various public positions of
honor and trust. He was a director of the National
Bank of Troy for nine years, was the director of the
hydraulic works and at one time held five different
directorships. He was also township trustee for
several terms and at all times was faithful to the county's
good. In early life he gave his political support to
the Whig party and on its dissolution he joined the ranks of
the new Republican party. He cast his first vote for
William Henry Harrison, in 1834, and afterward voted
for his grandson, Benjamin Harrison. In his
last days he was a Prohibitionist and took an active
interest in every movement that advanced the temperance
cause.
Fifteen years prior to his death, he rented the farm
and removed to Casstown, where he lived retired until called
to the home beyond. As his children started out in
life he gave to each a deed to a farm and in this way and by
sale he disposed of nearly all of his property during his
life time, and according to his own ideas. He held
decided views on all questions that interested him, but
never attempted to convert others. For sixty years he
was connected with the Lutheran church of Casstown, becoming
one of its charter members and throughout much of that time
acted as one of its officers. He was well read, but
did not enjoy argument or dispute and was rather quiet and
reserved. He was never concerned in a lawsuit or
neighborhood quarrel and attended closely to business, and
in leisure hours enjoyed the comforts of his home and the
companionship of his family. In November, 1890, he was
called upon to mourn the loss of his wife, with whom he had
traveled life's journey for almost half a century. She
was born Mar. 1, 1810, and was therefore in her eighty-first
year. Mr. Knoop survived her until May 20, 1897, and
passed away in his ninety-first year. He had retained
his mental faculties unimpaired to the last and was a genial
old gentleman, who received the respect and veneration which
should ever be accorded to old age. His life had been
a quiet, yet useful and honorable one, and over the record
of his career there falls no shadow of wrong nor suspicion
of evil.
In the family of Daniel and Cassa Knoop were
five sons: Henry C.;
Josiah; George, who died at the age of sixteen years;
William M., who died Nov. 24, 1899, and Albert,
who is living on the old homestead. Albert Knoop
was born Dec. 18, 1849, and was the youngest of the family.
He spent the days of his childhood with his parents and
pursued his education in the public schools and in the
summer months aided in the work of the farm. Soon
after attaining his majority he was given charge of the home
farm and here has been passed his entire life. He was
married, Feb. 18, 1880, to Miss Mary Stewart, a
daughter of William and Ann (Wilson) Stewart, of
Elizabeth township. Their union has been blessed with
four children: Wilbur Stewart, who died at the age of
four years and four months; Walter Wellington; William
Lauren and Albert Kenneth. The parents are
members of the Lutheran church, in which Mr. Knoop is
serving as a deacon. In the community they have a very
large circle of friends.
Mr. Knoop's father deeded him the old homestead
and they occupy the residence which was built in 1860.
Albert Knoop, however, has erected a new barn and has
made many other valuable improvements, including the placing
of two thousand rods of tile upon the wet tracts which he
has thus converted into rich and arable fields. The
homestead contains one hundred and sixty acres to this
Albert Knoop has added thirty five acres and another
small tract, so that he now has two hundred and eighteen
acres, all in one body. He makes a specialty of
raising corn, wheat and clover, and in addition he is
engaged in feeding cattle and sheep. He has also
bought and shipped hogs and other stock to some extent.
He is a stockholder in the Troy National Bank and is a
wide-awake and enterprising business man, thoroughly in
touch with the progressive spirit of the times. He was
reared in the faith of the Republican party, but for several
years has voted with the Prohibition party and has attended
its county, district and state conventions. He was
also in attendance at the national convention at Cincinnati.
As a citizen he manifests a commendable interest in
everything pertaining to the upbuilding and advancement of
the county. All who know him esteem him for his
sterling worth and he well deserves mention in connection
with the history of one of the most honored pioneer families
of Miami county.
Source: Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co.,
Ohio - Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page
246 |
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HENRY CLAY KNOOP
is now living retired in Casstown. His entire life has
been passed in Miami county and the fact that his warmest
friends are numbered among those who have known him from
boyhood is an indication that his career has ever been an
upright and honorable one. He was born in the old
family homestead, adjoining the village of Casstown, Dec. 4,
1843, his parents being Daniel H.
and Cassa (Jackson) Knoop. His boyhood days were
spent in the country and the work of the farm occupied most
of his attention. He pursued his education in the
public schools of the neighborhood and enjoyed the sports in
which boys of that time indulged. He watched with
interest the progress of the war, and, in 1864, prompted by
a spirit of patriotism, enlisted in Company I, One Hundred
and Forty-seventh Ohio Infantry, at Washington, for three
months service. On the expiration of that period he
re-enlisted, becoming a member of Company B, One Hundred and
Ninety-fourth Regiment of Ohio Volunteers, in which he was
made sergeant. In February, 1865, the regiment was
sent to the Shenandoah valley, where it was largely engaged
in guard duty, spending much of the time at Winchester.
After Lee's surrender it was sent to Washington and
stationed in that city of guard duty throughout the summer
or until October, 1865, when, with his command, Mr. Knoop
received an honorable discharge, after about one year's
service.
After his return home he engaged in the operation of
his father's farm on the shares until 1869. On the 23d
of February of that year he was united in marriage with
Miss Almeda Odaffer, of Lost Creek township. She
was born in that township Dec. 7, 1848, and was a daughter
of John and Mary (Sword) Odaffer, natives of
Pennsylvania, who came to Miami county at a very early day.
Her parents had a family of nine children, namely:
Elizabeth, wife of John Price, of Clark county,
Ohio; Catherine, wife of M. Bennett, of
Springfield, Ohio; David, deceased; Harriet,
wife of J. Routzahn; Eleanor, deceased;
Sarah, deceased wife of Alexander Long; Emeline,
wife of William Bemer, of Iowa; Mary, deceased
wife of D. J. Whitmore; and Mrs. Knoop.
Upon his marriage Mr. Knoop's
father gave him one hundred and eighteen acres of land, two
miles north of Casstown, and for thirty years he engaged in
farming there. As his financial resources increased he
made other investments of real estate, becoming the owner of
a farm of one hundred and fifteen acres in the same
township. At length he sold both properties and came
to Casstown, where he is living retired in his pleasant
home. Mr. and Mrs. Knoop had two children, but
their son, Charles V., died Feb. 2, 1897, at the age
of twenty-six years. He was graduated in the Troy High
School, in the class of 1892, and, after teaching for one
year in Lost Creek township, he entered the Ohio State
University as a member of the sophomore class.
Although never rugged, he was very energetic and of a
studious nature, and was well advanced in his class work.
His health, however, at length compelled him to put aside
his text-books. He contracted a heavy cold which
developed into lung trouble, and hoping to be thereby
benefited, he went to Texas where he spent two winters.
The first time he returned home was on Decoration day in
1896, at which time he had apparently fully recovered.
He had gained much in weight and had the appearance of
enjoying perfect health, but he soon began to fail again and
once more went to Texas, but after a few months he was
brought home, his death occurring two days later. He
was a young man of excellent ability, of strong purpose and
laudable ambition, and his loss was a great blow to
his family. The daughter, Mary C., was
graduated in Wittenberg College, in the class of 1896, and
is now at home with her father. The mother died after
a brief illness, Dec. 13, 1899. Her many excellent
characteristics had endeared her to all who knew her.
She was devoted to her family, was a consistent member of
the Lutheran church, and in her life exemplified her belief.
Mr. Knoop was also a member of the Lutheran church
for many years, and for some time has held the office of
deacon. He is a member of the present board of
trustees, and has filled that position altogether for about
fifteen years. He has also been township treasurer and
his duties have ever been discharged in a prompt and
faithful manner. He gave his political support to the
Republican party until 1896, and was often a delegate
to its conventions, but his sympathies were with the free
silver people, and in consequence at the last election he
voted for Bryan. It would be difficult to find
a resident of Miami county more widely or favorably known
than Henry Clay Knoop, who has spent his entire life
here. He has therefore been a witness of much of the
growth and development of the county, and has noted its
wonderful progress along many lines. His active aid
and co-operation have been given to many movements for the
public good, and he is regarded as a reliable and
substantial citizen.
Source: Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co.,
Ohio - Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page
249 |
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JOHN KNOOP & BROTHERS.
Among the first emigrants to Miami county were the Knoop
brothers, consisting of John, Benjamin, Christian
and Daniel. John was the eldest.
He was born in Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, Nov. 8,
1767. They emigrated to Ohio, then the Northwest
Territory, in 1797, and came down the Ohio in a flat boat to
Fort Washington, afterwards Cincinnati. Their father
was of German descent and died some years before his sons
removed to the west. Their mother was a native of
Switzerland and emigrated to America in 1732. When
they came to Fort Washington early in the spring of 1797
they planted a crop of corn on Zeigler's stone-house
farm about four miles above Cincinnati, on land then
belonging to John Smith. During the summer
John Knoop made two excursions into the Indian country
with surveying parties and at that time selected the land on
which he lived and died. The above statement is from
an article called "Miami County Traditions," written by
William Bossom and published in the Troy Times of Apr.
10, 1839, but notes prepared by William R. Saunders,
who married the daughter of William Knoop and who
lives on the settled by John Knoop in 1797, state
that the Knoop brothers came to Fort Washington in
1796 and located in tract of land in Warren county, and that
in 1797, when, on a second excursion into the Indian
country, he located on what is now section 4, Staunton
township in this county. On his return to Fort
Washington they immediately made preparations for their
removal, and in connection with other families made the
journey up the Miami river, following the trace road over
which General Clark traveled in 1872 in his
expeditions against the Indian towns of Piqua, on the Miami
river, until they came to the bend of the river where the
village of Staunton is now located, and there John Knoop,
his brothers Henry Girard, Benjamin Hamlet and
John Tilders established a station for the security of
their families. This station was called Dutch Station.
It was a stockade built so as to enclose the cabins of the
above named settlers, and for those days it was a rather
strong fort, proving an effectual protection against the
Indians. It was the first permanent settlement made in
Miami county. It became the stopping point for new
emigrants to this portion of the Miami valley and here
Jacob Knoop was born in 1798. He was the first
white child born within what is now Miami county, and was
the son of John and Barbara Knoop. The families
in this station remained there until 1800. In the
meantime they raised crops across the river, opposite the
stockade on a prairie that had been cultivated by the
Indian's and was afterwards known as Gahagan's prairie.
In the spring of 1800 the settlers commenced improving their
land by building cabins and clearing the ground.
John Knoop erected on his land in 1800 a cabin with a
loft to it, which is still standing, and which the writer
visited a few days prior to writing this sketch. It is
the oldest cabin now standing in the county of Miami and is
kept in good preservation by Mr. Saunders and his
wife. It may be a matter of interest to the readers of
this sketch, to state where each of the Knoop brothers
located. John settled on section 4, where the
old cabin stands, near the beautiful home now occupied by
Mr. Saunders and his wife. Benjamin Knoop
located on the farm adjoining. Lost creek dividing the
farms, and his place is owned at the present time by
George and Mary Sheets. Christian Knoop
located on the farm now owned by Presley Sayers,
while Daniel Knoop located on the farm where S. D.
Green at present resides. There was, and is yet, a
good spring of water on each farm named. After John
Knoop had built his cabin he went back to Pennsylvania
after his aged mother and brought her to his new home,
making the trip of five hundred miles through the wilderness
on horseback. She died in 1805, and was buried on the
ground selected by herself only short time before her death.
This was the beginning of the Knoop cemetery, where
now sleep the old pioneer Knoops and their sons and
daughters, by the side of the emigrant woman from the
mountains of Switzerland, who raised her boys in the shadow
of the Alleghanies. The subject is one worthy
of the poet's song as well as of the historian's pen.
In the old house built in 1800 were raised seven children:
Five were born beneath its clapboard roof; one son,
George, the eldest, was born in Pennsylvania in 1795,
and Jacob, the second son, in the stockade at Dutch
Station. All the family - father, mother and seven
children - sleep side by side "waiting the judgment day" in
the beautiful Knoop cemetery* on the bank of Lost
creek, close by the old cabin of 1800; and over their graves
grow the flowers that were first propagated from the seeds
brought from Cumberland county, Pennsylvania in 1797.
Each one of the pioneers and their sons and daughters filled
a place in the early settlement of this county and are
entitled to the gratitude of the present generation.
George, the eldest son, died in 1862. He was
never married. He was a genial, generous, practical
man and was the head of the firm of "Knoop Brothers,"
or, as they were usually called, "The Batchelor Knoops,"
the rest of the bachelors being Jacob and John H.
Thomas, another son, died in the year 18__; William,
the youngest son, was born in 1812, married to Rachael A.
Kerr, and reared a family of eight children.
Nancy Knoop was born in 1801, was married to Isaac
Sheets in 1824. She was the mother of six
children, three boys and three girls. Elizabeth
was married to George Statler, in the year 1829, and
was the mother of two boys and one girl - Samuel K., W.
S. and Harriet Statler.
John Knoop, the pioneer, was an active energetic,
enterprising business man, and did much in his modest,
unassuming way towards building up and improving Miami
county. At an early day he erected a sawmill and
gristmill; also a distillery, and his whisky was noted for
its purity. In 1816 he erected a two-story brick house
as a residence, near the log cabin he erected in 1800.
His wife, Mrs. Barbara Knoop, planted apple seeds and
raised her own trees for a large orchard. One tree
grew to an enormous size, being ten feet in circumference
and branches shading over seventy feet. The fruit was
similar in color and shape to the popular Maiden Blush
apple, but was more acid. Pinks are growing in the
cemetery in the spring and summer of 1900, the seed of which
was brought to Miami county in 1797. John and
Benjamin Knoop married sisters by the name of
Holstine. Benjamin raised a large family of
sons and daughters. Daniel, a son of
Benjamin Knoop, was a merchant and at an early day
opened a store in Casstown. Jacob Knoop, Jr.,
was a surveyor by profession; was elected mayor of Troy and
justice of the peace. He also was elected and served
as auditor and treasurer of Miami county. Andrew,
another son, was an active business man, and became quite a
large land holder. Jacob Knoop, Sr., the son of
John Knoop, was twice elected county commissioner;
George Knoop, when only seventeen years of age, enlisted
in the army and served against the British and the Indians
in the war of 1812. The Knoop brothers brought
the first sheep to Miami county, and in everything
pertaining to agriculture and public enterprise they took an
active part and did much to lay wide and deep the
foundations for the present prosperity of this county.
The whole generation were Whigs in politics, and were stanch
supporters of Henry Clay. The family sent many
soldiers to the front to battle for the Union and the old
flag during the late Rebellion. Mrs. Henry Carver,
of Troy, and Henry Knoop, of Dayton, are the only
survivors of the first generation of Knoops born in
Miami county.
John Knoop and Colonel John Johnson, the
Indian agent, a sketch of whom appears in this book, were
fast friends and often visited each other. The sons of
John Knoop, Jacob and John H. Knoop, in
1873, purchased the Statler farm lying in Elizabeth
township, consisting of one hundred and sixty-three acres of
land. After making some necessary improvements, they
transferred it to the county of Miami in June, 1877, for a
home for orphan children provided the county, would erect
the necessary buildings. Miami county has now upon
this donation of the "Bachelor Knoops" one of the
finest county children's homes in the state of Ohio.
The Batchelor Knoops added to the competence left
them by their father, the pioneer of 1796, and when they
died they left to their heirs the snug fortune of four
hundred and fifty thousand dollars, yet they were generous
to all worthy charities. Jacob was one of the
originators of the old State Bank of Troy, which, under the
national banking act, was organized into the First National
Bank of Troy.
In preparing this sketch of a family that had had so
marked an influence upon the past of Miami county the writer
is under many obligations to W. R. Saunders.
Source: Genealogical & Biographical Record of Miami Co.,
Ohio - Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company - 1900 - Page
227 |
NOTES:
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