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Biographies
 Source:
History of Morgan County, Ohio
with
Portraits and Biographical Sketches
of some of its
Pioneers and Prominent Men.
By Charles Robertson, M. D.
- Published Chicago: L. H. Watkins & Co.
1886
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JUDGE NATHANIEL SHEPARD.
Nathaniel Shepard was born in Southington,
Conn., Oct. 21, 1790. In 1809, his health having
become seriously impaired, the doctors held a
consultation, told him his lungs were affected beyond
earthly help, and if he had anything to say let it be
known immediately, as he had but few days to live.
He replied, “I have something to say: I am going to Ohio
before I die.” The next day he walked a quarter of
a mile, and felt so exhausted that he was compelled to
stop for the night. In the morning he resumed his
journey. Continuing on, each day he was able to
walk a little farther, until his daily journey amounted
to several miles. He persevered and reached Ohio.
He came to what is now Morgan County, crossing the
Muskingum by wading it at the head of the island below
McConnelsville. Proceeding along the bank to the
top of Sandy Hill he made his way through dense woods
along what is now Center Street, McConnelsville.
That he might not lose his way he blazed trees with a
hatchet as he went along.
After an absence of six months Mr. Shepard
reached his home in Connecticut. He had so
recovered his health that on the day he arrived at his
home he walked forty miles. Oct. 14, 1810, he
married Hyla Merriam in Meriden, Conn.
In 1817, his health again beginning to fail, he put his
wife and two children in a small one-horse wagon and
again started for Ohio. After a journey of six
weeks the family stopped three miles from Malta, and
moved into a little hut without door or window.
There (in 1818) Mr. Shepard entered a
quarter section of land. He soon put up a cabin,
and as the old stage road passed by it he kept
travelers. While at work hewing timber to make an
addition to his house his broad-ax slipped and split his
kneecap. The nearest doctor was at Zanesville.
The wound required immediate attention, therefore Mr.
Shepard dressed it himself, and sewed up the gash
by taking six stitches. The first term of court in
Morgan County he attended, going in his bare feet, as
shoes were not easily procured at that day.
Whether from this circumstance, or from the wound made
with the broad-axe, he was given the name of “
Broadhorns,” which he bore until the title of Judge
Shepard took its place. He served as one of
the associate judges of the county in 1847-51. In
1851 he removed to Athens County where he remained five
years. In 1856 he moved to McConnelsville, where
he resided until his death—caused by consumption— May
21, 1857. He followed mercantile business many
years in the town. Mrs. Shepard died Jan.
20, 1876, at the age of eighty-six. They had five
children, two of whom were born in Connecticut and the
rest in Morgan County; Eli, who died in Iowa;
Roxa (Gaylord) now a resident of Morgan
County; Seth, who died in this county in 1885;
Milly, wife of Worley Adams, McConnelville;
Eliza (Dickey), now living near
McConnelsville.
Source: Chapter XVII -
McConnelsville - History of Morgan
County, Ohio with Portraits and Biographical Sketches of
some of its Pioneers and Prominent Men. By Charles
Robertson, M. D. - Published Chicago: L. H.
Watkins & Co. 1886 - Page 322 |
Edwin Sherwood |
EDWIN SHERWOOD.
Edwin Sherwood, son of the venerable
William Sherwood, is a well-known citizen and
a leading farmer of Morgan County. He is a native
of the county, having been born in Malta Township, Nov.
28, 1823. Reared in the then new country, he had
only the advantages for education afforded by the
inferior schools of that period. After working on
the farm until a young man, he entered the store of
Henry Dawes, in Malta, where he acted as a clerk for
about two years. In 1843 he became a clerk in the
store of his father, who was then doing business in
Malta in partnership with Milton Seaman.
He continued this employment until 1847. His
father having purchased the Union Salt Works, he then
moved to them and took an interest in the business.
In 1852, the salt industry being dull, he went to
California, where he remained for two years mining and
working at other business. In 1854 he returned and
purchased his father’s interest in the salt works.
He conducted the business from that time until 1875,
having also a farm and a store besides. He has
always been a hard-working man, and often worked day and
night about the salt works. Having purchased a
part of the Leggett property (about 200
acres), in 1867 he bought the Alexander McConnel
farm of 500 acres. His land, which is equal to
any in Morgan County in point of excellence, lies
together upon the Muskingum River in the southern part
of Morgan Township. Mr. Sherwood is one of
the largest and most successful farmers and
stock-raisers of the county. He is a man of
excellent business capacity, and withal is self-made.
He has the satisfaction of knowing that he has earned
what he has—and such industry as he has shown richly
merits success, he is a liberal man, a genial friend and
neighbor, and much respected. Mr.
Sherwood is a republican. He has adopted no
religious creed, but believes in doing right and doing
good. He is a friend to every religious
denomination and to the cause of temperance. He
has never sought office, yet has served as infirmary
director and as president of the Morgan County
Agricultural Association. He was married June 2,
1843, to Margaret G. Simpson, daughter of
David Simpson. She was born in Loudon County, Va.,
and came to Morgan County with her parents when young.
Mr. and Mrs. Sherwood have six children—Arthur
L., William, Eva (Lovell ), Charles W., Oscar T. and
Edwin M.
Source: Chapter - Malta Twp. - History of Morgan
County, Ohio with Portraits and Biographical Sketches of
some of its Pioneers and Prominent Men. By Charles
Robertson, M. D. - Published Chicago: L. H.
Watkins & Co. 1886 - Page 353 |
William Sherwood |
WILLIAM SHERWOOD.
Zurial Sherwood, the progenitor of the
Sherwood family in Morgan County, was born near
Hartford, Conn., in that memorable year, 1776.
When a young man he moved to Pennsylvania, settling on
the Susquehanna River. There he married Lucy
Keeler and for some time kept a tavern and
operated a ferry ten miles below Tunkhannock, in the
present county of Wyoming. In December, 1809, he
decided to remove to Delware, Ohio, to which
place a brother-in-law, the Rev. Jacob Drake, had
preceded him. Accordingly, with his family,
consisting of his wife and four children, and his
household goods, he started on his journey. They
traveled with a span of horses and a yoke of oxen
through a wild region, and arrived at their destination
without accident. At Delaware they stopped with
Mr. Bigsby, who was the founder of the town.
At the outbreak of the war of 1812, the inhabitants of
Delaware became alarmed fearing an attack of Indians,
and many of them tied in quest of a place of safety.
Mr. Sherwood and his family started out without
any definite idea of where his stopping place would be.
He passed the site of the present city of Columbus, and
between that point and Worthington, met the army of
General Harrison. The sight of the army
brought a feeling of safety, and advancing to Putnam,
Muskingum County, Mr. Sherwood decided to
locate there for a time. During the war he engaged
in the transportation of army supplies and kept tavern.
In 1814 he bought what was known as the Moore
farm in the present county of Morgan, to which he
removed with his family in the fall of 1818. He
was a pioneer salt-maker, and the salt-well which he
bored on his farm is believed to have been the first in
the county. He continued the business many years.
Mr. Sherwood died at the extreme old age
of ninety-five. He was the father of nine
children: — William, Raymond, Asa
(who died young), Nancy (Conaway),
Keeler, Polly (Wells), Sarah (Atchison),
Eliza (Robb) and Lucinda (Burgoon).
William Sherwood, a venerable pioneer,
and one of the most worthy citizens of Morgan County,
was born in Pennsylvania, Oct. 1,1801. As will be
understood from the foregoing sketch, he had his full
share of pioneer experiences and hardships.
Possessed of a- keen, discriminating mind, he was an apt
scholar, and made the best use of his limited
opportunities. He was reared on the farm, and in
the winter of 1818-19 engaged in teaching a school on
Oil Spring Run. By various kinds of labor he
became possessed of a few hundred dollars, which he
invested in goods and engaged in the mercantile business
in Malta about 1825. After being in trade several
years he engaged in salt-making on quite an extensive
scale, which he followed successfully. The active
business career of Mr. Sherwood covered a
period of more than forty years. During that time
he was largely interested in mercantile business,
salt-manufacture, farming and dealing in real estate.
For a time he was also the largest producer of petroleum
in this section. In company with G. C. Devol,
for some time he handled nearly all the salt
manufactured on the river.
While so extensively engaged in business Mr.
Sherwood did not neglect matters of public import.
He has always been found willing to encourage and assist
every worthy enterprise. In 1852 he was a
candidate for member of the constitutional convention.
He was also nominated for State senator in 1875, but
unfortunately the party to which he belongs has usually
been in the minority. He was active in the
building of the McConnelsville and Malta bridge, and has
ever been in favor of public improvements. He
organized the first county agricultural society, and for
many years was its president.
Mr. Sherwood was married in 1823 to
Rachel Palmer, daughter of William Palmer,
one of the pioneers of Malta. It is a fact worthy
of mention that this aged couple are now living on the
spot where they first met over sixty-five years ago.
They have reared a family of five children, all of whom
are still living—Edwin, Permelia (Potter),
Jane (Mortley), William Oscar
and Mary (Gage).
Source: Chapter __ - History of Morgan
County, Ohio with Portraits and Biographical Sketches of
some of its Pioneers and Prominent Men. By Charles
Robertson, M. D. - Published Chicago: L. H.
Watkins & Co. 1886 - Page 352 |
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DAVID B.
SHIVEL, a native of McConnelsville, was county
recorder in 1852-55. He afterward studied law and
was admitted to the bar, but practiced very little.
He became a teacher and died while following that
profession.
Source: Chapter XV - History of Morgan
County, Ohio with Portraits and Biographical Sketches of
some of its Pioneers and Prominent Men. By Charles
Robertson, M. D. - Published Chicago: L. H.
Watkins & Co. 1886 - Page 259 |
Eli C. Smith |
ELI C. SMITH, an early
pioneer and an honored and beloved citizen, died at the
home of his son in Malta Township, Nov. 23, 1885, in the
ninety-fourth year of his age. He was born in New
Jersey, Oct. 15, 1792. When ten years of age he
moved with his parents to Fayette County, Pa., and there
at the age of nineteen he was married to Elizabeth
Rounzoin. In 1821 he moved with his family
to Ohio, settling near the present Bernard Mills,
in Penn Township, afterward removing to Union Township.
In 1833 his wife died, and the following year he married
Ellen Quigley, who departed this life Mar. 8,
1872. He was the father of Lovina (Hummel),
Aaron, George W., Sarah (Raney), Elizabeth (Sargent),
Solomon, Eli, Rhoda (Boal) and William R., by
his first marriage, and of Arthur T. Smith, by
the second.
Father Smith, as he was called, was a devout and
consistent member of the Disciples Church for about
seventy-five years. He was a good man and widely
esteemed. During the last five years of his life
he resided with his son, W. R. Smith. His
health was good for a man of his years up to the 19th of
November, when he was stricken with paralysis, from
which he died four days later.
Source: Chapter XV - History of Morgan
County, Ohio with Portraits and Biographical Sketches of
some of its Pioneers and Prominent Men. By Charles
Robertson, M. D. - Published Chicago: L. H.
Watkins & Co. 1886 - Page 496 |
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WM. R. SMITH,
son of Eli C. Smith, was born in Penn Township,
Morgan County, Mar. 17, 1829, and passed his boyhood in
Penn and Union Townships. At the age of nineteen
he was apprenticed to a blacksmith, but though he
learned the trade he has followed farming. He
married Eliza J. Newman, daughter of David
Newman, an early settler. She was born in
Malta Township, Oct. 27, 1829. The names of their
children are Seth, Mary M., Solomon F., Eli
W., Charles E., Clara E. and Sadie (twins).
Mr. Smith is a republican. Both he and his
wife belong to the Christian or Disciples Church.
Source: Chapter XV - History of Morgan
County, Ohio with Portraits and Biographical Sketches of
some of its Pioneers and Prominent Men. By Charles
Robertson, M. D. - Published Chicago: L. H.
Watkins & Co. 1886 - Page 496 |
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ROYAL T.
SPRAGUE came to McConnelsville from Muskingum
County "along in the forties," and remained three or
four years, practicing in partnership with c. C.
Covey. He was a man of excellent ability.
In 1849 he went to California and he has since served as
chief justice of that state.
Source: Chapter XV - History of Morgan
County, Ohio with Portraits and Biographical Sketches of
some of its Pioneers and Prominent Men. By Charles
Robertson, M. D. - Published Chicago: L. H.
Watkins & Co. 1886 - Page 259 |
L. M. Stanbery |
HON. E. M. STANBERY is a
leading member of the bar, and the most prominent and
best known business man of Morgan County. His
history, therefore, is an essential part of the history
of the county, though Mr. Stanbery very
reluctantly yielded his consent to the appearance in
this chapter of a personal mention of himself.
Elias Millen Stanbery, son of Jacob W. and
Eliza (Jones) Stanbery, was born on the farm now
owned by David Frash, one mile north of
Triadelphia, in Deerfield Township, Morgan County, Apr.
20, 1833. He received his early education in the
primitive log school houses of pioneer days, with their
slab benches, high writing desks and other uncomfortable
appointments. He was a quick and diligent pupil,
and, as many of his old schoolmates remember, a leader
in boyish sports. In the summer of 1853 he
attended the high school at McConnelsville, then under
the superintendency of Daniel T. Johnson and in
the following fall and winter taught school at Big
Bottom and Locust Grove. In the spring of 1854 our
subject entered the Ohio University at Athens, where he
took an exceptionally high rank in his studies, and
graduated with the degree of A. B. in 1857. He
attended the Cincinnati Law School the following winter
and graduated from that institution with the degree of
LL.B. in 1858. The next year was spent in Kansas,
Iowa and Nebraska, but becoming convinced that the West
at that time had more than a sufficient number of
lawyers, he returned to his native county and in
October, 1859, opened a law office in McConnelsville,
where he has since resided. He entered upon his
professional career with the industry and earnestness
which have been characteristic of al of his
undertakings, and soon rose to prominence. He made
it a rule to refuse all cases that he believed to be
without merit; but when he accepted employment, he gave
his best skill and most earnest efforts to the cause of
his client and was usually successful. From 1862
his law practice was large and profitable, and aside
from this he dealt in real estate, and the loaning of
money. In 1875 he came into possession, and later
became sole owner of the McConnel mill, and since that
time he has given most of his time to his large business
interests, having retired (but not wholly) from the
practice of law.
To the management of his business Mr. Stanbery
brought the same industry and perseverance with which he
had entered upon the practice of the law; and his
business enterprise and good judgment have rendered him
abundantly successful. The records of Morgan
County show that he has owned and conveyed more real
estate and now pays more taxes than any other person now
or heretofore living in the county. He takes a
commendable interest in all that tends to advance the
best interests of the town and county; and every worthy
public enterprise finds in him an earnest advocate and a
worm supporter. He gave his assistance and support
to the founding of the First National Bank in
McConnelsville, to the erection of the bridge across the
river at that place, and to the establishing and
upbuilding of the Brown-Manly Plow Company of Malta.
For fifteen yeas he has worked zealously to secure a
railroad through the county and to the county seat, and
has spent much time and money with that object in view.
After subscribing to no less than ten different railroad
projects, it gives the writer pleasure to note that the
final success of the efforts of Mr. Stanbery, and
those of other public-spirited citizens, now seems near
at hand.
In 1883 and 1884 Mr. Stanbery erected in
McConnelsville a dwelling house and a business block,
that if not destroyed, will attest his energy,
enterprise and public spirit long after he has passed
from off the stage of life forever.
Mr. Stanbery is a republican and takes a deep
interest both in local and national politics. He
has also been honored with some offices, in which he
discharged his duties most satisfactorily to the people
who gave him their votes, and to citizens generally,
even though they might differ with him in politics.
In 1862 he was elected prosecuting attorney; reelected
in 1864 and 1866. He performed the duties of his
position without fear or favor. In 1880 he was
elected to represent his district in the State board of
equalization. In 1881 he was elected
representative from Morgan County to the 65th General
Assembly, and by reelection served in the 66th Assembly.
He distinguished himself as one of the "working members"
of the legislature and was identified with several
prominent measures. During his membership of the
assembly, large appropriations were secured for their
repair and improvement of the Muskingum Rover. He
supported amendments to the general appropriation bills
for the distribution of fish in the inland waters of the
State; and was among the foremost of those favoring
appropriations for the extension and improvement of the
Ohio and the Ohio State Universities, and all State
benevolent institutions. In general, his
representation was useful to the State and county, and
honorable to himself. He secured the passage of a
road law, applicable to Morgan County, for the purpose
of building up an improved system of roads. Though
he knew at the time that the measure would probably
prove unpopular at first, he acted upon the principle
that it is better to be right than to hold office,
following the dictates of his judgment, and willing to
submit the decision of the matter to time and
experiment.
Through life he has been generous with his friends and
charitable toward the worthy poor. He has never
refused aid to the distressed, if he believed them
worthy. He has taken pleasure in assisting
deserving young men to start in business, and in helping
those who have been unfortunate, if he believed that
their misfortunes were without their own fault.
Mr. Stanbery was married Feb. 28, 1861, to
Miss Kate M. Miller. Of this union two
children have been born - Lizzie and Lelia.
Source: Chapter XV - History of Morgan
County, Ohio with Portraits and Biographical Sketches of
some of its Pioneers and Prominent Men. By Charles
Robertson, M. D. - Published Chicago: L. H.
Watkins & Co. 1886 - Page 262 |
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A. W. STEWART
was born in Belmont County, Ohio, Jan. 24, 1831.
He received a common school education and read law under
Tompkins & Hopper. Nov. 14, 1861, he
enlisted in Company E, 78th O. V. I., and directly after
the regiment reached camp was made orderly sergeant of
the company. In February, 1863, has was made
second lieutenant, and by the death of the commanding
officer of Company K in the battle of Champion Hills was
given command of that company, which he retained until
the reorganization of the regiment. After this
time he was placed on the staff of General Leggett
and participated in all the battles in which the 17th
Army Corps was engaged. In March, 1865, he was
promoted to first lieutenant. After the close of
the war he returned to his home and shortly after
resumed his law studies with Evans & Jones, and
in 1872 was admitted to practice and established himself
in his profession in McConnelsville. Mr.
Stewart was married in 1857 to Sarah E. Metcalf.
She died in 1876, having borne five children, of whom
four are living.
Source: Chapter XIV - History of Morgan
County, Ohio with Portraits and Biographical Sketches of
some of its Pioneers and Prominent Men. By Charles
Robertson, M. D. - Published Chicago: L. H.
Watkins & Co. 1886 - Page 266 |
E. R. Swayne |
EUGENE R. SWAYNE.
The subject of this notice, an enterprising
farmer and much-respected citizen of Homer Township, is
the son of Eli and Maria Swayne. The former was
born in Belmont County, Ohio, Aug. 29, 1821, and the
latter was born in the same county, Jan. 1, 1819.
In 1840 they moved to Marion Township, Morgan County.
They were married Nov. 25, 1842. From this union
there were born five children—three sons and two
daughters: Narcissa, Eugene R., Joseph
B., Eliza Jane and James M.
Eugene R. Swayne was born in Chesterfield,
Morgan County, June 7, 1847. Nov. 12, 1868, he was
married to Miss Jennie D. Clancy, who was born in
Smithfield, Jefferson County, Ohio, Apr. 6, 1842.
They have but one child—Augustus E. Swayne, born
Dec. 12, 1872. In 1869 Mr. Swayne moved to
Federal Creek, in Homer Township, where he has since
resided. His occupation is farming and breeding American
Merino sheep. He held the office of township
trustee in 1884 and 1885; was president of the Morgan
County Agricultural Society for the year 1885; has been
director in that society for five years, and has one
more year to serve; in 1885 was president of the
Southeastern Ohio Wool-growers’ Association.
Source: Chapter __ - History of Morgan
County, Ohio with Portraits and Biographical Sketches of
some of its Pioneers and Prominent Men. By Charles
Robertson, M. D. - Published Chicago: L. H.
Watkins & Co. 1886 - Page 506 |
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