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PHYSICAL FEATURES.
Harison
township is situated in the northeastern corner of
the county, and is known as township seven of range
three. It is bounded on the north and east by
Darke and Montgomery counties, while to the south
and west lie the sister townships of Twin and
Monroe.
The country in this portion of the county is hilly,
except along the banks of the several creeks, where
the richest land in the township lies. To
these bottoms the attention of the pioneers was
called, and these were the first lands entered
within the limits of the township. The western
parts of this township are more level than those in
the eastern portions.
The principal crops are com and wheat. A good
deal of attention is also paid to the cultivation of
tobacco, and competent critics say that the quality
is not much inferior to that raised in those States
where tobacco culture is a specialty. Immense
warehouses are being erected in different parts of
the township for the storage of the fragrant weed.
About seventy-five per cent. of the soil of the town
ship is cleared and under cultivation. Very
little timber is now found along the banks of the
several streams, but along the uplands it is still
standing in large quantities. The soil on the
uplands is of a clayey nature, but in the bottoms a
rich loam is found. Beech, oak, and poplar are the
chief woods. Walnut is also found, but not in
such large quantities as the others.
There are several quarries in the township which yield
a good quality of gray limestone. This stone
is in great demand for pavement and foundation work.
At present there are as many as a dozen quarries in
different parts of the township. There are
also two lime-kilns which are in operation.
The prosperity of the township is doubtless largely due
to the presence of two railroads within its limits.
These furnish a ready means of transportation for
the products of the soil, an advantage which is
denied some of the other townships. Some years
ago the people were led to believe that a railroad
was to be built which would cross the southeastern
corner, passing through Lewisburgh, but after
spending an immense sum on the grading the work was
abandoned, much to the disappointment of the
inhabitants of Lewisburgh.
Four creeks flow within the boundaries of this town
ship, viz.: Twin, Miller’s fork, Swamp, and Price’s.
Twin crosses into Harrison from Monroe, near the
northeastern corner. It flows along the
western side of the township for several miles.
It then flows nearly east through three sections and
finally turns south again near Lewisburgh. Miller’s
fork and Swamp creek are strictly branches of Twin,
but are of considerable size. The former rises
a little north of the dividing line of this township
and Darke county. Both Miller’s and Swamp flow into
Twin creek about the same place, just east of
Lewisburgh. Swamp creek rises near the village of
Verona, in the northeastern part of this township,
and was named Swamp from the character of the
country through which it flowed. Price‘s creek
crosses the township in the southwestern corner.
It only remains in the township a short while,
confining all its meanderings to one section, number
thirty-one, and then passes on into Twin township.
The creek takes its name from Major Price,
one of the earliest settlers of Twin township, who
located on the banks of this creek. All of
these creeks afford good fishing, and, in Twin
creek, some members of the finny tribe often reach
the weight of four and five pounds. In earlier
days these, with the game of the woods, must have
formed an agreeable, and, often, a timely addition
to the larder of the settler.
Harrison township boasts of the possession of three or
four pike roads, all in a fine state of repair.
One of these, which runs due north and south through
the center of the township, is a toll pike, as the
traveller some times finds out to his discomfort.
Of the other two, one extends from the toll pike in
section twenty-one, to the northwest; the other is a
part of the old National road, from Cumberland,
Maryland, to St. Louis, Missouri. This road
was the offspring of Heny Clay’s genius, and was
intended to further the interests of the emigrants,
furnishing a good road through the best lands of the
west. It was completed only in the mind of the
great orator. A considerable portion is piked
now—thanks to the efforts of the counties through
which it passed. The other roads in the
township are in a fair state of repair. The
hilly nature of the country, and the fact that a
board of supervisors is not now numbered among the
regularly elected officers of the township, is in a
great part the cause of the neglect of these roads
in some portions of the township.
EARLY SETTLEMENTS.
The rich bottom lands along the three creeks
which cross this township were entered early in the
present century. The land is of the finest
quality, and settlements we3re soon made upon both
banks of the streams. Twin was the first creek
to be located upon. Considerable difference of
opinion exists as to the date of the first settler's
entrance, although all concur in the tradition that
the first settler was George Leas and that he
settled on section twenty-one, on the north bank of
Twin creek.
Page 203
Leas was a Pennsylvania,
born in Cumberland county, of that State. He
probably entered the country soon after the
beginning of this century, as there were quite a
number of settlements in the year 1806.
The first settlement of any size was on Swamp creek,
where old Tobias Tillman
had located with his
family. Tillman was an old man when he
came to this country. He had served in the war
of the Revolution, and was afterwards drafted into
the War of 1812, but escaped service by sending a
substitute. The year before his arrival in
this county, his son, John, had arrived and
entered his land. In the following year, 1805,
Tobias Tillman, with his three sons and seven
daughters - four of whom were married before they
came, and possibly more - came to Harrison township
and settled on Swamp creek, in the eastern part of
the township. His sons were John, Jacob
and Henry, and his sons in law were Martin
Rice, husband of Barbary Tillman; Alexander
McNutt, who had married Betsey; Jacob Loy,
who had married Phoebe, and James Abbott,
who had married Catharine. This made a
colony of eight able-bodied men, sufficient for
their own protection, and a strong addition to the
force of the township. Tobias Tillman
and wife Nancy (Sharp), made the journey from
Tennessee on horseback, by riding turn about.
His only possessions were a keg of powder and a
horse. He immediately commenced clearing land,
and at the time of his death was the owner of one
hundred and sixty acres.
Mr. Tillman had eight children, none of whom are
now alive. John, who died in 1850, had
seventeen children, nine of whom are still living,
viz.: Jesse, who lives in Drake county;
John and Henry in Greenville, Darke
county; Joshua and Anderson live in
Harrison township; Martin lives in
Drake county; Polly lives in Darke county;
Rachel lives in Illinois; Sally lives in
Manchester, Monroe township.
Alexander Tillman, grandson of the pioneer, was
born in 1827, on the farm on which he is now living.
He married, in the year 1852, Susan Emrick,
who was born in Twin township in 1833. They
have had six children born to them, four of whom now
survive. Mr. Tillman owns a farm of
about three hundred and twenty acres. Both his
farm and his handsome residence are evidences of the
prosperity of the owner.
Joshua Tillman was born in 1824. In the
year 1842 he married Cynthia M. Estabrook,
who was born in New York in 1822. Eight
children have been born to them, three of whom
survive. Mr. Tillman served three
months during the war of the Rebellion in the
Ninety-third Ohio volunteer infantry. He was
engaged at Perrysville and Crabapple Orchard, in
Kentucky, under General Jackson.
Alexander McNutt,
a son-in-law of Tobias Tillman, came from
Tennessee with his father-in-law. He was a
native of Virginia, and served in the war of the
Revolution. After moving to this State, he
served in the War of 1812, and was stationed at Fort
Recovery. To Mr. and Mrs. McNutt there
were born thirteen children, five of whom are now
alive, viz.: John, Solomon, Peter, Jacob and
Elizabeth. Mr. Alexander McNutt was the
first county surveyor.
At the time of McNutt's settlement on Twin
creek, there was an old Indian named Possum,
who had located there, and had cleared up as many as
eight acres. For many years these two men were
neighbors until at last, the Etzlers moved in
and located near the place, where the Indian was
living. This was too much for the son of the
forest. Too much company drove him farther
west, and he left his laboriously cleared lands for
the settlers.
At about this time
Joseph Singer came into the settlement. He
came on foot from Virginia, and camped with the
Indians for a year or two. He afterwards
settled on the west bank of Twin creek, on section
thirty-four. His wife was Elizabeth Rape.
He had thirteen children, all of whom lived to raise
families. Two of his sons, John and Abraham,
are now residents of Lewisburgh. John's
present residence is on the site where his father
built his first cabin, a little affair about
fourteen by eighteen feet.
The northeastern part of
the township was settled by a party of Irishmen by
the name of Cochrane. For a long time
they lived there, but finally left in 1840.
Price's creek was chosen
by John Judy, a Virginian, as a settling
place, in the year 1812. It is doubtful
whether any other settlements were made on this
creek within the limits of Harrison township.
Judy is said to have been the most powerful
man in the settlements around, and some strange
stories of his prowess are still related by the
pioneers now living.
Tillman Rice
was
born in 1802, and died in 1875. His wife,
Mary, daughter of John Meroney, was born
in 1805. She died one year before her husband.
Tillman Rice was the son of Martin Rice,
one of the first settlers of this township.
Martin came to Preble county with his
father-in-law, Tobias Tillman, in the year
1805. He had married Tillman's
daughter, Barbara, and settled on the farm
now owned by Michael Horn, near Lewisburgh.
He only stayed there a few years, and then moved to
the farm now owned by Julius C. Rice, about
one and a half miles north of Lewisburgh. Only
two of the children of this pioneer are now living,
viz.: Jesse, who is living in Harrison
township, and Dicey (Colville) in Darke
county. Tillman Rice had six children,
four of whom are living: John M., William H.
and Levi live in Indiana, and Julius C.
in this township. Mr. Rice owned a farm
of one hundred and twenty acres, where his son,
Julius, now lives. Julius C. Rice
was born in Preble county in 1841. In the year
1862 he married Lydia, granddaughter of
Christian Sheller. One child was born
them. His first wife died in 1879. He
afterwards married Sally A., daughter of
Henry Horn. He owns a farm of ninety-four
and a quarter acres, north of Lewisburgh - part of
the farm entered by his grandfather,
Martin Rice.
Alexander McNutt
was born in Virginia, from which State he moved to
Tennessee, and afterwards to Ohio, where he settled
in Harrison township, in 1805. His wife was
Elizabeth Tillman, a daughter of Tobias
Tillman who was among the first to settle in
this town-
Page 203 -
ship. He had thirteen children born
to him, five of whom are still living, viz.: John,
who is living in Wisconsin; Solomon, in Darke
county; Peter, in Harrison township; Jacob,
in Indiana; and Elizabeth, who has joined the
Mormons. Peter McNutt was born in
Harrison township, in the year 1811, and in 1832
married Margaret Vance, born in Preble
county, in 1816, and who died in 1875. He had
eleven children by this marriage, nine of whom are
still living. IN 1880 he married the widow
Rogers, nee Catherine Etzler, born
in Pennsylvania, in 1823. Mr. McNutt
owns about one hundred and five acres of land,
besides several lots in town. He has given up
farming, and is now residing in Euphemia.
Jacob McNutt was born in 1834, and in 1855
married Salome C. Lock, born in 1830.
They have no children. Mr. McNutt has
been township supervisor, and has always been
identified with the interests of the township.
He still owns a farm of fifty-one acres, as a part
of the old homestead.
John Lock,
son of
Captain John Lock, was born in Maryland,
about 1780. From Maryland he moved to
Euphemia, in Harrison township, about 1805.
His wife was Elizabeth Stimell, who was born
in 1775. John Lock was drafted into the
War of 1812, but escaped service by sending a
substitute. He owned the stone mill at Rock
Ridge, built by his father, and at present owned by
Bowman & Co. He died in Harrison
township in 1856, and his wife died five years
later, in 1861. They had nine children, seven
of whom still survive: Sarah, widow of
Adam House, lives in Monroe township; Eva,
wife of Samuel Bunger, lives in Harrison
township; Peter is married and lives in
Illinois; George C., married, lives in
Harrison township; Catharine, wife of Levi
Dillon, lives in Indiana; William M.,
married, lives in Illinois; Elizabeth, wife
of Jacob Price, lives in Indiana.
Abraham Hapner
moved from Virginia to Ohio, and settled in Harrison
township, about 1805. His wife was Sarah
Ott, born in Virginia. Abraham Hapner
was entirely without possessions of any kind on his
arrival in this State, but by dint of hard labor and
industry, he became possessed of a farm of two
hundred and twenty acres, which he left unencumbered
to his children. Hapner was in the War
of 1812. He died in Harrison township.
Seven children are still living, viz: Jacob,
married, lives in Monroe township; Jesse and
Abraham live in Harrison; Fred lives
in Elkhart county, Indiana; Eli, Susannah
(Mrs. Charles Lock), and Andrew,
all live in Harrison township.
Jacob Werts
was
born in Pennsylvania in 1783. From
Pennsylvania he moved into Ohio, and settled in
Harrison township, section twenty-one, in 1807.
His wife, Katherine Bosler, was born in
Pennsylvania, in 1790. She died in 1862, in
Darke county, Ohio. Jacob Werts
was constable during the War of 1812, and also
captain of the Ohio riflemen. He has had
fourteen children, all of whom lived to raise
families. Of these nine are still living.
Christopher, married, lives in Mercer county,
Ohio. John C. lives in Brown county,
Indiana. Baltzer lives in Illinois.
Elizabeth, widow of Richard Phillips, lives
in Illinois. David, married, lives in
West Baltimore. William, widower, lives
in Darke county. Sarah Ann, widow of
William Schlosser, lives in Jay county, Indiana,
Jesse S., married, lives in Illinois.
Nancy Jane, wife of Thomas Neal, lives in Allen
county, Indiana.
In 1809
John Aikman
migrated to Harrison township, section twenty-three,
from Cumberland county, Pennsylvania. He was
born in New Jersey about 1760. In the early
part of the Revolution he served under Captain
Brady as a private, and participated in several
engagements. He afterward held several
township offices in Harrison township. His
wife, Mary Dysert, a Pennsylvanian, died in
1809 at Greenville, Ohio. He had six children,
one only of whom, Benjamin D., survives.
Benjamin Aikman
was born in Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, in
1796. His first wife was Rebecca Piles
born in North Carolina in 1796, died in 1840.
He had eight children, four of whom survive -
William Franklin, born 1827, Elizabeth,
born 1825, widow of Lewis Thomas, Benjamin E.,
born 1836, Joseph, born 1838.
Benjamin, D. Aikman was married
was married again to the widow Rhinehart nee
Elizabeth Sellers, who was born in Virginia in
1802. By the second marriage he has had no
children. Benjamin D. Aikman has held
several township offices, viz.:
constable, trustee, supervisor, etc. He had a
brother, John, who served in the War of 1812.
He served for twelve months in a block-house built
on the Daniel Wolf homestead in this township.
Mr. Aikman has spent a lifetime in
clearing, and owns one hundred and sixty acres of
land. He has always lived on the old
homestead.
Thomas Wilson
emigrated from Berks county, Pennsylvania to
Harrison township about 1809. His wife was
Elizabeth Leas, born about 1802. Wilson
was justice of the peace for six years - from 1872
until 1878, in which year he died in Harrison
township. His son, F. J. Wilson is one
of the leading business men of Lewisburgh, being
largely engaged in dry goods, etc. His store
is located on the site of the first store ever kept
in the town.
John Ott, sr.,
was born in Virginia in 1785, from which State he
emigrated to Ohio and settled in this township about
1809. He was engaged in fighting the Indians
at Forts Greenville and Recovery during the War of
1812. He was married twice. His first
wife was Mary M. Lock, who was born in 1783,
and died in 1848. He was married subsequently
to Anna Hinkel.
John Ott, son of the pioneer, was born in 1820.
He married for his first wife Matilda Brown
in 1844. She died the next year at the age of
nineteen, leaving one child - John A. Mr.
Ott was married again in 1848 to Barbara
Link, born in Virginia in 1822. By this
marriage there have been born eight children, seven
living and one deceased, viz.: Daniel,
Matilda, Eliza Jane, Sarah, Barbara Ann,
George F. (deceased), Eliza and Mary.
The two last named are single, the rest are married.
Patrick McGriff
was born in South Carolina in 1786. From South
Carolina he moved to Virginia, and from there to
Tennessee. From this latter State he moved to
Ohio and settled in section six of Harrison
township, about 1810. His wife was
Elizabeth Price, of Mont-
Page 205 -
gomery county, Virginia.
She was born i n1791 and died in 1864, surviving her
husband about ten years. Patrick McGriff
was constable for nearly fifteen years. During
the War of 1812 he served under General
Harrison as second lieutenant of the company
commanded by Captain Philips. The
children are: Price, who lives in Darke
county; Alfred, who lives in Darke county;
Phoebe married Uriah Gard, and lives in
Manchester, Monroe township, who lives in Darke
county; Parker C., who lives near
Ithaca, Darke county; Rachel, who married
Joseph Clark, and lives in Darke county.
Jackson McGriff married Lucinda Baker, of
Darke county, who was born in 1842. They have
four children, all of whom are living at home.
Jacob Kesler
emigrated from Virginia and settled about a mile
south of where Lewisburgh now stands, in the year
1811. The farm is now owned by A. P.
Zeller. Jacob Kesler was a soldier in the
war for independence. He died at the residence
of his son George, near Lafayette, Indiana,
in 1837, at an advanced age.
About 1812
Abraham Lock moved from Maryland to section
twenty-one in Harrison township. He was born in
Frederick county Maryland, in 1796. His wife,
Margaret Ott, was born in Virginia, in 1794;
died in Harrison township in 1869. Abraham
Lock was at one time the owner of a distillery
in this township. He was a private in the War
of 1812, and served in an engagement at Fort McHenry
and at Baltimore. Lock was always a
prominent citizen of the county. He died in
1872, in Harrison township. The members of his
family were as follows:
John Lock married Deborah Dinwiddie, and
lives in Kokomo, Indiana. George E.
married Phoebe Combs, and lives in Harrison
township. Abraham married Elizabeth
Harsh (deceased); married a second time Jane
Brightwell, and resides in Harrison township.
Eli, married Sarah Brown, lives in
Kokomo, Indiana. Sarah married Jacob
McNutt, and lives in Harrison township.
Michael married Susan Lyons (deceased)
lives in Kokomo, Indiana. Peggy married
David Bender and lives in La Salle county,
Illinois. Daniel married Amanda
Hapner, and lives in Harrison township.
Mary married George Faulkner, and lives
in Kokomo, Indiana. George E. Lock,
married Phoebe Combs, and has four children.
Franklin married Jane Kisching, and
resides in Harrison township. Levi
married Josephine Dequasie, and
resides in Harrison township. Mollie
married Byron Ozias, and lives in
Versailles, Darke county. Daniel
married Martha McGrew, and resides in
Harrison township.
John Wikle
was
born in Pennsylvania in 1777. He emigrated
from Virginia to Ohio in 1812, and settled at
Lewisburgh, Harrison township. He wife was
Catharine Shirer; born in 1777 in Pennsylvania,
and died in Darke county in 1861.
John Wikle was drafted into the army in 1812,
but sent a substitute. He cleared up about
fifty acres of land near Lewisburgh. He died
at Lewisburgh in 1829. Eleven children were
born to him, of whom three only are living:
William, living in Harrison township;
Magdelen, widow of James Wilkinson,
living in Darke county; Phoebe, widow of
Thomas Walker, living in Phillipsburgh,
Montgomery county.
William Wikle was
born in 1801 in the Shenandoah valley, Virginia.
He married, in 1828, Katharine Yost, born in
Rockingham county, Virginia, in 1808. They
have had seven children, four of whom are still
living. Andrew married and lives in
Twin township. Elizabeth married and
lives in Dayton. Katharine - single -
lives at home. Lewis married and lives
at Euphemia.
William Wikle ahs been road commissioner, deputy
sheriff, and tax collector, and has held every
township office. HE has also cleared up about
one hundred acres of land and owns about the same
amount; also two lots in town. At one time he
owned about two hundred and forty acres. He
has always been a prominent citizen and a hard
working man. He had one son, Henry, who
died in Jefferson barracks during the war of the
Rebellion. He enlisted in an Illinois
regiment. His brother, Lewis, was in
the Ninety-third Ohio volunteer infantry, and saw
three yeas of hard service under Sherman.
In 1814
Henry Hendrickson
moved to section thirty-one from Virginia. He
was born in 1787 in Roanoke, this State. He
married, in 1821, Catharine Wilt, who was
born in Westmoreland county, Virginia, in 1784.
Hendrickson was drafted in the War of 1812,
but was never called out. His son was drafted
in the War of the Rebellion but sent a substitute.
Henry Hendrickson died in Harrison township
in 1870. He has had four children, three of
whom are still living: Zachariah, born
in 1822, died in 1858; Katharine Jane, born
in 1826 - single - lives at home; David,
married and lives in Harrison township; Amelia,
born in 1829, wife of Samuel Covert.
Mrs. Hendrickson holds the original patent of
the land granted by John Quincy Adams to her
husband, Henry Hendrickson This is the
only deed they have ever had.
David Hendrickson
was born in 1827. In 1854 he married
Katharine Hapner, born in Harrison township in
1832. They have had ten children, seven of
whom are still living.
Henry Horn
was born in
Germany, in the year 1755. At the age of nine
years he came to America, and in 1815 he moved to
Preble county from Rockbridge county, Virginia.
He settled on the farm now owned by his eldest
surviving son, Michael, on section
twenty-seven, where he died in 1839. His body
was buried in the cemetery at Euphemia. His
wife died in Virginia the year previous to his
removal to this county. He had thirteen
childreen born to him, of whom four survive,
namely: Sarah (Black), living in
Lewisburgh; Michael, living on the old home
farm in Lewisburgh; Susannah (McHuan),
in Indiana, and Andrew in Logan county, Ohio.
Michael Horn was born in Virginia, in
1802. He married Catharine, daughter of
John Risinger, born in Germantown,
Ohio, in 1808. They have had seven children
born to them, six of whom are still living, viz.:
William, Elizabeth, Henry, Amanda, Allen T.,
and Isabel (Trimble). These all reside
in Lewisburgh. Mr.
Page 206 -
Horn owns a farm of one hundred and forty
acres, in sections twenty-seven and twenty-eight.
His son, Allen T. Horn, was born in
Lewisburgh in 1842, on the old homestead. In
the year 1869 he married Frances B., daughter
of William Sloan, born in 1850.
Five children were born to them, three of whom are
living. Mrs. Horn and the two
children died in 1879. In 1880 he married
Fannie M., daughter of Jeremiah
Gilmore, of Hamilton, Ohio, born in 1857.
Mr. Horn started business as a
druggist, in Lewisburgh, in 1869. In the early
part of the war of the Rebellion he enlisted in
company H, Ninety-third Ohio volunteer infantry, and
served about four months. He was then attached
to the field hospital near Murfreesborough, and
afterwards sent to Nashville, where he served over
two years as the assistant steward in charge of the
drug department. He was discharged in 1865.
In 1816
John Etzler
moved from Maryland into Har rison township.
He was born in Frederick county, Maryland, in 1788.
His wife was Susannah C. Lock, born in
Frederick county, Maryland, in 1776. She died
in 1846, surviving her husband twenty-eight years.
She was married a second time to John
Vance, of Harrison township, by whom she had
four children. John Etzler was a
lieutenant in the War of 1812, and was engaged in
the battle of Fort McHenry. He had four
children - Abdiel, born in 1813, married
Rachel Kelley—still living; Mary
Magdalene married John W. Cullers,
died in 1879. Two others died in childhood.
Abdiel Etzler has been town assessor
for twenty-five years, from 1855 to 1880, and
township supervisor from 1854 to 1855. His
son, John W., was in One Hundred and
Thirty-first Ohio infantry as private
John Brown
was born in North Carolina in 1797. He
settled in Harrison township about 1816. His
wife was Eve Hoffman, who was born
about 1793, and died in 1873. They have three
children living, viz.: Adam, married, lives
in Illinois; Jacob, married lives in
Harrison; David. married, lives in Sonora.
In 1817
John Bunger settled in
section twenty-seven, of Harrison township. He
was born in Virginia in 1760, and from that State
migrated into Ohio. His wife, Eve House,
was born in Virginia in 1771, and died in Preble
county in 1843. John Bunger was for six
months in the Revolutionary war, and was engaged in
several battles. His son Samuel still
lives on the old homestead owned by his father. John
Bunger died in 1821 in Harrison township.
He had fourteen children, three of whom are living,
viz: Samuel, Eli and Simeon.
Samuel Bunger was born
in Virginia in 1806. In 1831 he married Eva
Lock, who was born in Harrison township in
1815. They have had eleven children, of whom
eight still survive. John lives in
Harrison township; William lives in Euphemia;
Elizabeth, wife of Levi Brown,
lives in Euphemia; Rachel, wife of George
Chambers, lives in Montgomery county; Sarah,
wife of Andrew Redman, lives in
Illinois; Samuel lives in Harrison township;
Mary, wife of Baker Dye, lives
in Harrison township, and Jacob lives at
home.
Samuel Bunger’s son William was
out in the one hundred days’ service in the last
call of the rebellion, in the One Hundred and
Forty-fourth Ohio national guard.
John B., born in 1834, was married in 1854 to
Ellen Redman. They have had two children,
one of whom, John B. has been road
commissioner and school director. He owns a
farm of fifty-seven acres in Harrison township.
William Swisher a
son of the above, was born in Pennsylvania in 1798,
and died in 1863. He was married three times—
first to Annie Boom, by whom he had
one child; second to Charity Leas, who
bore him two children, and third to Julia
Ann Fouk, born in 1822. Mr.
Swisher was a miller by trade, and for twenty
years ran the mill at Rock Ridge. His son
Robert was born in 1836, and married Lydia A.
Greer, by whom he has had four children, all of
whom are living. For four years he ran the
mill, but after that time sold out, and since then
devoted his time to his farm and quarry.
Henry Cassell
moved into Harrison township in 1816. He
emigrated from Virginia to Warren county, Ohio, in
1812. He was born in Virginia. His wife,
Christina Bickcl, was born in Pennsylvania,
and died in Harrison township in 1852.
Henry Cassell came to this country
possessed of little or no capital. He came to
Harrison township, entered a quarter section, and by
hard labor cleared one hundred and sixty acres.
He also had a farm of two hundred acres in Indiana.
He died in 1857, in Harrison township. He has
six children living, viz.: Catharine,
married to Peter Klinger, resides in
Marshall county, Indiana; Sarah, married to
Isaac Klinger, lives in Allen county,
Indiana; Rhoda, single, lives at home with
her brother; Eliza, married to Robert
Calhoun (deceased), resides in Baltimore,
Harrison township; Samuel, married to Mary
Jane Nosworthy, lives in Richmond,
Indiana; Allen, born in 1816, is still
single, and resides on the old homestead. He
was first lieutenant in the Ohio light infantry for
five years and first lieutenant in Ohio volunteer
cavalry four years. Mr. Cassell
has always been a prominent citizen of this
township, and is always identified with any
improvements.
John
Mills, father of Joseph Mills,
county commissioner, located at Lewisburgh, Preble
county, Ohio, about the year 1809. He was born in
1802, and was married to Marian Singer,
who was born in Lewisburgh about 1809. Mr.
Mills finally removed to Wabash county,
Indiana, where he still lives. He had ten
children, seven of whom are living-—Joshua
lives in Montgomery county, Ohio; Joseph in
Twin township, this county, near West Alexandria;
Henry in Wabash county, Indiana; Sebastian
in Cass county, same State; Samuel in Wabash
county; Elizabeth, widow of John J.
Cunningham, with her brother Joseph;
Rebecca, wife of William H. Legitt, in
Whiter county, Indiana. Joseph Mills
was elected county commissioner in 1875, and is now
Page 207 -
serving his second term. He was born in 1832
in this township, and was married in 1857 to
Amanda L. Curry, the descendant of an early
family in the county, and who is now deceased.
Mr. Mills has had four children, three
of whom are living.
John Schlosser
was
born in Adams county, Pennsylvania, in 1781.
In 1822 he moved from Pennsylvania into Ohio, and
settled in section twenty-three of Harrison
township. He married, in 1805, Magdalena
Smetz, who was born in Pennsylvania in 1781.
When he came to Ohio he had only a few dollars.
He drove two blind horses, taking twenty-three days
to make the journey. By hard labor and
perseverance he became possessed of a farm of three
hundred acres, which he distributed among his
children. He died in 1868, in Harrison
township, Preble county. There are four
children now living —Moses, born in 1814,
married and lives in Kan-sas; Jonas, born in
1817, married and lives in Harrison township;
Samuel, born in 1821, married and living in
Illinois; and John, born in 1824, married and
living in Harrison township. John
Schlosser was married in 1851 to Lydia
Pease, who was born in Harrison township in
1833. They have three children-Noah;
Mary Magdalena, wife of William
Swank; and John. John
Schlosser, sr., was drafted into the war
of the Rebellion, in the one hundred days’ service,
but sent a substitute.
David Werts
was born in Harrison township. At the age of
seventeen he learned the trade of cooper with his
brother. He followed this trade for twenty
years, at the expiration of which time he moved on a
farm near West Baltimore. He afterwards bought
the mill at Pyrmont, Montgomery county, and in 1864
he moved it to West Baltimore. Mr.
Samuel Arnold was his partner in this
transaction. The firm was Werts &
Arnold. Mr. Arnold sold out
after fourteen months to Messrs. Stewart
and Duncan. The firm was then Werts
& Company. Stewart afterwards
sold out his interest to Studebaker. At
this time they built their saw-mill.
Studebaker sold out to Stewart. The
business was run for a time by Werts &
Stewart. Finally, in 1871, Mr.
Werts bought Mr. Stewart’s
interest in the business, and has been sole
proprietor ever since. It is owing largely to
the presence of the mill that West Baltimore has
grown to its present size. Mr. Werts
bought a portion of land of Mr. Hecathorn,
and laid out part of the present town. In 1844
Mr. Werts married Elizabeth
Piles, born in North Carolina in 1824.
Eight children have been born to them, seven of whom
are now living, namely: Rachel, Corilla,
Amanda, Jane, Joseph, Perry,
and Elizabeth.
Peter Studebaker
was born about 1775, in Adams county, Pennsylvania.
From this State he migrated to Ohio in 1825, and
settled in section sixteen, of Harrison township.
His wife, Barbara, was born in Northampton
county, Pennsylvania, about 1780, and died in 1838.
He volunteered in 1812, afterwards bought and
cleared one hundred and sixty acres of land.
He has two children now living: David
Studebaker, born 1813, married in 1840,
Rachel Mills. They have nine children
living and three deceased. Mary married
Jonas Schlosser, and resides in Harrison
township. David Studebaker has always
been a hard working, industrious man. He has
always been identified with any improvements in the
county. He has accumulated over five hundred
acres of land, all but sixty of which has been
distributed among his children.
Christian Disher, sr.
settled in section thirty-five, in the year 1829,
having previously purchased a half section of land.
He was a native of Maryland, born in 1788, but when
quite young removed to Botetourt county, Virginia,
where he afterwards married Frances Circle.
He emigrated to Ohio in 1829, as above stated. and
resided in Harrison township until his death, in
1872, at the age of eighty-four; his wife died
previously at the age of seventy-two. They
raised a family of five children, as follows:
Captain Mathias Disher, born Jan.
1, 1817, and settled where he now lives, in Twin
township, in 1843; Daniel, who lives in
Euphemia; Frances, wife of David
Kumler (deceased); Christian, who lives
on the old homestead; and Catharine, wife of
John Corder, also in this township.
Daniel Wolf
was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, in 1804.
From Pennsylvania he moved to Maryland, and from
there to Ohio. He settled in section
twenty-one of Harrison township, in the year 1830.
His first wife was Caroline Bentz, who
was born in Maryland, in 1809, and who died in
Harrison township, in 1852. He had twelve
children by this marriage, nine of whom survive.
His second wife was Mary Baker, born
in 1832. He has three children living born of
this marriage. Mr. Wolf had no
capital when he came to this country. He
afterwards received a legacy of one thousand eight
hundred (1800) dollars, and with this as a start he
finally became possessed of one hundred and sixty
acres of land. He volunteered during the
Mexican war, but was not called upon to serve.
He served sometime as township supervisor.
Peter Homan
was born in Pennsylvania in 1797. About 1813
he moved to Ohio and settled in Warren county.
In 1830 he settled in Lewisburgh, Harrison township.
Mrs. Homan (Sarah Brunden) was born in
Kentucky in 1799. Mr. Homan was a
shoemaker and worked at his trade in Lewisburgh.
He owned one hundred and twenty acres in Preble
county. They have had seven children.
Peter Homan died in Lewisburgh in 1860,
and his wife died in 1866.
Vincent Homan
the
only surviving child of the above, now living in
Monroe township, was born in 1820. In 1844 he
married Eliza Ann Ebersole,
born in Preble county, in 1822. They have had
five children, four of whom survive. Mr.
Vincent Homan has been township
trustee and school director. At one time he
owned one hundred and sixteen acres of land, eighty
acres of which he gave to his son. He also
gave each of his daughters a home, and is now
farming thirty acres.
Joseph, son of
Matthias Corwin, was born in section six of
Harrison township in the year 1830. In 1855 he
married Jane Martin, who was born in
Twin township. She died in 1857, leaving one
child - Oscar. Mr. Corwin
married again in 1861. His second wife was
Barbara Pease, born in Harrison township
in the year 1836.
Page 208 -
They have eight children. Mr. Corwin
served during the war of the Rebellion. He
enlisted in May, 1864, in the Fifty-sixth Ohio
national guard. Afterwards he was mustered
into the United States service as private in company
C of the One Hundred and Fifty-sixth Ohio volunteer
infantry. In September, 1864, he was mustered
out at Camp Dennison. He was engaged at
Cumberland, Maryland.
Andrew Zeeler
was
born in Berks county, Pennsylvania in 1791.
From Pennsylvania he emigrated to Ohio, and in 1834
settled in section thirty-four of Harrison township.
His first move into Ohio was made in 1806, at which
time he settled in Montgomery county, Ohio.
Mrs. Zeller, nee Mary Hontz, was
born in 1793 and died in 1874. Mr. Zeller
died in Euphemia in 1864. He was engaged in
the War of 1812 after moving to this State.
Six children were born to them, four of whom are now
living. Sarah, widow of Adam Riggle
resides in Chicago, Illinois. Maria,
wife of Samuel Flickinger, lives at Seven
Mile, Butler county, Ohio. Andrew P.
lives in Harrison township. Catharine
wife of Asher H. McCowen lives in Cook
county, Illinois.
Andrew P. Zeller
was
born in Montgomery county in 1824. In 1848 he
married Maria Flickinger, born in Butler
county, Ohio, in 1830. They have had nine
children born to them, seven of whom still survive.
Of these the six youngest still live at home. Mr.
Zeeler has been township trustee three
times. He owns a farm of four hundred and
forty-seven acres, all of which is in a good state
of cultivation.
SHARON WICK'S NOTE: This had the
surname spelled both ways as shown above here.
Elias Bunger
was born in Greenbriar county, Virginia, in the year
1809, and came to Preble county with his father in
1817. In 1840 he married Nancy Utz,
who was born in Rockingham county, Virginia, in
1812. Eleven children have been born to them.
Mr. Bunger has been an elder in the
Lutheran church for several years. His sons
Samuel, William and Andrew were in
the war of the Rebellion. At the time he
commenced life for himself he had only fifty cents,
which was all that remained after paying the
marriage fee; but by dint of hard labor and economy
be accumulated a farm of two hundred acres.
Frederick Miller
was born in Pennsylvania in the year 1760. He
afterwards moved to Virginia and from there to
Tennessee. From this latter State he moved to
Ohio, and in 1804 he settled in Twin township, where
he died in 1835. His wife, Elizabeth
(Sharpe), was born in Pennsylvania in 1762, and
died in Twin township in the same year as her
husband. Nine children were born to
them, one only of whom, Solomon, is living.
Mr. Frederick Miller was at
Yorktown at the time of the surrender of
Cornwallis, and witnessed the transaction.
He was also the first man that ascended Miller’s
fork, which was named from this fact. He took a
prominent part in the War of 1812. The
soldiers were in the habit of making his house a
place of rendezvous.
He entered one hundred and sixty acres of land, and
built the second brick house in the county, between
Lexington and West Alexandria. The building is
still standing on the old spot.
Jacob F. Miller
was
born in Hawkins county, Tennessee, in the year 1792.
His first wife was a Miss De Camp, who
bore him two children, neither of whom survive.
In 1827 he married the widow Pierce nee
Dicy Weaver, born in Virginia in 1799.
Nine children were born them, eight of whom still
survive. Mr. Miller died in Monroe
township in 1849, and his wife died in 1880.
James W. Miller,
son
of the above, was born in Monroe township in 1837.
In 1864 he married Ann Charman, who
died in 1868. Two children were born him by
this marriage, both of whom are dead. In 1871
he married Martha J. Banta, born in Preble
county in 1845. They have two children. J.
W. Miller attended the eclectic school of
medicine in Cincinnati, where he graduated in 1862.
Since that time he has practiced his profession both
in Indiana and in this State. For the last
five years he has practiced in West Baltimore, of
this township, where he is at present residing.
Jesse Smith
moved to Ohio from Adams county, Pennsylvania, and
in the year 1833 settled in Preble county, near
Euphemia. His first wife was Jane,
daughter of Michael Deitrich, by whom
he had eight children, seven of whom are still
living. Mrs. Smith died in 1835.
He soon afterwards married Mrs. Eliza Dephendall,
by whom he had eight children, of whom six survive.
Jacob, son of Jesse Smith, was
born in 1824, and in 1844 married Julia
Ann, daughter of William Swisher,
born in 1822. He had two children by this
marriage, one of whom is living. His first
wife died in 1850, and the following year he married
Sarah Keltner, born in 1833.
Four children were born to them—all now living.
Mr. Smith owns a farm of one hundred and
sixty acres, where he has lived since 1849.
David Hoffman
came to
Preble from Montgomery county, and settled on the
farm he now owns, which is located in the northern
part of the township. He was born in 1804, and
in 1828 married Catharine Shuler, born
in the year 1800. She died in 1870 leaving a
family of three children. Mr.
Hoffman married, in 1877, Sarah D. Hubley,
born in the year 1813. He was at one time the
owner of one hundred and sixty acres of land, all of
which be divided among his children. His son,
Ephraim, served during the war of the
Rebellion, during the hundred days’ service.
Samuel Dinwiddie
settled in section fifteen of Harrison township.
He was born in 1777, in New Castle county, Delaware,
and emigrated to Ohio from that State in 1803, but
did not settle in Harrison township until 1834.
His wife, Mary Reed, was born in 1785,
in North Carolina, and died in Warren county in
1832. They have had five children: James R.,
born in 1817, married Sarah Niswonger,
deceased in 1844— he resides in Sonora, Harrison
township; Eliza married Louis Thomas,
deceased; Deborah married John Lock,
and lives in Kokomo, Indiana; Ruth married
John Thomas, and resides near Baltimore,
Harrison township.
James R. Dinwiddie has held several offices of
trust. He was justice of the peace from 1860
to 1863, and is now township trustee. He has
one child, Mrs. Michael Brown.
GEORGE BROWER.
John Brower, the grandfather the subject of this
sketch, emigrated to Ohio from Rockingham county, Virginia, in
1801, and settled in Montgomery county, near Germantown.
He lived there until his death, which occurred several years
after his settlement. His wife Magdaline survived
him, and died in Indiana. His children were John,
Abraham, Jacob, George, Susan,
Polly, and Betsey. All are now dead except
George, who resides in Miami county, Indiana, and is over
eighty years of age. Abraham, the father of our subject,
was a native of Rockingham county, Virginia; married near the
close of the last century, Elizabeth, daughter of
George Harter, who was one of the early emigrants
from Virginia to Preble county. Abraham Brower,
moved out from Virginia in 1801, and settled on Little Twin, in
Montgomery county, where he resided until 1815, when he moved to
Preble and settled in the woods on the farm now owned by
George T. Potterf. He died in 1821, aged about
forty-two, his wife surviving him many years. They were
the parents of twelve children, five boys and seven girls, viz.:
John. Polly (Banta). Rebecca (Shively),
Catharine (Han), Nancy (Teal),
Joseph, Susan (Parker), George,
Elizabeth (Hart), Abraham, Henry, and
Christena (Campbell). All are living except
the first three.
George Brower was born in Montgomery
county. Ohio, Dec. 22, 1810. His educational advantages
were limited to the subscription schools of pioneer days, and he
attended those but very little after his father's death.
His father died when our subject was but eleven years of age,
and although he left his family a comfortable home, it was
necessary for the children to be industrious, which term in
those times signified to work hard. When about seventeen
our subject cleared for Henry Brower six acres of
land, and received for the work one dollar per acre. The
six dollars were paid in silver, which seemed a large sum, and
with the money he purchased a cassinet coat, which is remembered
as an important event in his life. He
continued to remain |
|
at home, but worked out at whatever offered itself. From 1836 to
1837 he conducted successfully with his brother John the
Eagle hotel at Eaton. On April 20th, of the latter year,
he married Christina Swihart, daughter of Adam
Swihart, of Gasper township, born July 1, 1814.
For one year he resided on a small farm belonging to his mother,
and in the spring of 1838 moved on to the old William
Campbell place. The following autumn he moved on to
the homestead, and soon after began purchasing the interests of
the other heirs, eventually acquiring the entire ownership of
the farm. Mr. Brower has since bought and
sold a number of times, but has constantly increased his
prosperity, and is now recognized as one of the leading
agriculturists of the county. He was formerly a Whig, but
since the formation of the Republican party has been a staunch
adherent of that organization. He has never aspired to
office, but the experience acquired in an active and busy life
has qualified him for any office that he would accept. In
the fall of 1866 he was elected county commissioner, and served
three years. His wife died Feb. 28, 1866, and February
29th, of the following year, he was married to Mrs. Harriet
Baker, widow of Evan Baker, esq., an attorney of
Greenville, Ohio. Mrs. Brower's maiden name was
Gain, born in Baltimore county, Maryland, Mar. 24, 1815.
Mr. Brower is the father of nine children by his
first marriage, as follows: William H., born May 30,
1838, living in Darke county; Annanias, born Feb. 16,
1840, died Nov. 9, 1845; Thomas J., born Dec. 20, 1841,
living in Miami county, Indiana; Benjamin F., born Mar.
22, 1844, residing in Wabash county, ln diana; Joseph S.,
born Feb. 1, 1846, residing in Darke county; D. L., born
Sept. 1, 1848, of Washington township, this county, an infant
died Feb. 14, 1850; Susan E., born Nov. 2, 1852: wife of
Jesse B. Rollman, of Washington township; Mary Ellen,
born Mar. 10. 1857. wife of Walter Surface, of
Sonora. |
ALLEN CASSEL
|
Mr. Cassell's father was of English, and his mother of
German descent. His father, Henry Cassell, was a
native of Wyth county, Virginia, where he was born Movember
20, 1773. He married Christena Bickel, who was born
in Pennsylvania in 1777. They emigrated from Virginia to
Ohio, with a company of eight families, in 1812. They
crossed the Ohio river at Cincinnati, which was then but an
insignificant village, and while tarrying there, Mr. Cassel
was offered a quarter section of land adjoining the town in
exchange for his team and wagon. He, however, had left
Virginia on account of the hills and could not see that a
settlement among the hills of Cincinnati would better his
condition. He continued his journey into the interior of
the State until he arrived near where Lebanon, the county seat
of Warren county, now stands, where he rented a farm. Four
years afterwards - in the fall of 1816 - he moved to Preble
county and settled in Harrison township, entering one hundred
and sixty acres in section thirteen, which is now owned by his
son, Allen. Here he erected his log cabin and began
pioneer life. His cabin was replaced by the present
residence in about the year 1836. In 1840 Mr. Cassel
bought, or entered, two hundred acres in Allen county, Indiana,
near Fort Wayne. He died May 14, 1857, his wife having
preceded him nearly five years. They were the parents of
twelve children, nine of whom they raised, viz.:
Catharine (Klinger), born Apr. 22, 1797, now aged nearly
eighty-four, and living at Plymouth, Indiana; Elizabeth
(Klinger), born July 4, 1799 (deceased); Sarah (Klinger),
born Dec. 5, 1801, living near Fort Wayne, Indiana; Rhoda Ann,
born June 10, 1806, unmarried and living with her brother,
Allen; Rachel and Eliza (twins), born Aug. 31,
1807. Rachel (now deceased), was the wife of Christian
Parker, of Fort Wayne, and Eliza is the widow of
Robert Calhoun, and resides in West Baltimore, Preble
county, Ohio. Samuel Cassel, born Dec. 11,
|
|
1809, lives in Richmond,
Indiana; Allen C. was born Sept. 15,
1816; Daniel, born Oct. 5, 1819, is dead. Two boys
and a girl died when young.
Allen Cassel, the subject of this sketch, grew
to manhood under the disadvantages as to education, which
farmers' boys usually enjoyed in those times, never having
attended school more than about six months. When a lad of
not more than ten years he used to go on horseback to mill on
the Stillwater, in Miami county. This was no small
undertaking. There were but few settlements along his
route, and the journey frequently consumed two days. From
1830 to 1840, when there was a large emigration to Indiana, our
subject made a number of trips by wagon for the purpose of
removing families to their new homes. As showing the
difficulties of travel in those days it may be mentioned that on
the occasion of moving his brother-in-law, Christian Parker,
to Fort Wayne, the journey required nine days, during which the
party did not once sleep under cover. On travelling along
in the dusk of the evening Mr. Cassel saw by the side of
a log near the road what he supposed to be some wild animal.
Taking his gun from the wagon he raised it to his face, when at
that instant the movement of another object by the side of the
other disclosed to his astonished gaze the form of a child.
On going up to them he found a squaw and pappoose preparing a
place for the night. Only a short distance away was an
Indian village, and our subject had great reason to
congratulate himself that he had not made the fatal shot.
In the old militia times Mr. Cassel was first lieutenant
of light infantry, and also of cavalry. After the death of
his parents he purchased the homestead, to which he has since
added thirty acres. Mr. Cassel is a man of great
energy and industry, of sound judgment, and is one of the
substantial farmers of the county. He is unmarried. |
Page 209 -
Jonathan Pease
was
born in Monmouth county, New Jersey, in 1806.
He moved from New Jersey in 1838, and settled in
section sixteen of Harrison township, where he now
resides. His wife, Diana Stillwell,
was born in Monmouth county, New Jersey, in 1799. Mr.
Jonathan Pease has always been an
active citizen, and is always identified with any
improvements in the township. They have a
family of six children living, as follows:
Ann Eliza, wife of William Cox;
Cornelius, who married Ellen
Robinson; William, who married M. Amy
Sellers; Margaret Jane, single;
Werta R., who married Isabel Childers;
John N., who married Caroline Fester;
all are living in Harrison, except Cornelius,
who resides in Monroe.
Joseph Hoffman
was
born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, in 1780.
He emigrated to Ohio from Maryland in 1838,
and settled in section twenty-seven, of Harrison
township. He was a minister of the United
Brethren for fifty-two years, both in this county
and Baltimore, Maryland. His wife, Susannah
Limbert, was born in Pennsylvania in 1781,
and died in Euphemia in 1847. They have
five children still living, viz: Eli, born in
1806, married and living in Harrison township;
Henry, born in 1811, lives in Dayton, Ohio;
Joseph, born in 1813, lives in Champaign county,
Ohio; Kemler,
born in 1826, lives in Harrison township;
Susannah, born in 1815, married John
Stife and lives in Dayton. Eli
Hoffman was married in 1829 to Elizabeth
Waymire and has four children now living.
He was for twenty eight years a minister of the
United Brethren and a member of the Miami
conference.
John Eberly
was born in 1816, in Pennsylvania. From that
State he moved to Ohio. About 1840 he moved
from Butler county to Preble county, and settled in
Harrison township. Mrs. John Eberly was
formerly Sarah Wikle, born in
Pennsylvania in 1815. She died in 1871, in
Harrison township. John Eberly
died in 1844. They have had four children,
three of whom survive Daniel, living in
Montgomery county; Peter, living in
Montgomery county; Eli, living in Harrison
township. Eli was born in Harrison
township in 1844; married in 1872. His wife,
Henrietta (Smith), was born in 1849,
in Twin township. He owns and farms about
eighty acres in Harrison township, and is still
living on the old homestead.
John W. Cullers
was
born in Muskingum county, Ohio, in the year 1811,
and moved to Preble county in 1842. The same
year he married Mary M. Etzler, who was born
in Frederick county, Maryland, and who died in
Harrison township in 1879. Seven children were
born them, five of whom still survive, namely:
Catharine E., William S., Milton L., Rachel A., and
Rosetta B. Mr. Cullers was constable while in
Montgomery county, and school director for several
years in Harrison township.
John Yohe
was born in Montgomery county, in the year 1833.
He moved to Preble county in 1847, and settled in
Twin township. In 1857 he married Elizabeth
A. Rape born in Twin township in 1831.
They have four children. In 1857 he moved to
Lewisburgh, and in 1863 he commenced to run a
saw-mill, which he still owns and runs. It was
first built, by Michael Cotterman, and was
brought from Pyrmont, Montgomery county. Mr.
Yohe has added many modern improvements, and
has a mill capable of turning out six thousand feet
of lumber a day.
Abraham S. Dye settled in Euphemia, Harrison township, in 1840.
He was born in Butler county, Ohio, in 1818.
He was married five times. His first wife was
Mary Marshall, of Montgomery county, died
1840; his second, Esther Ann Baker, of Darke
county, died 1848; his third, Elizabeth Marshall,
of Preble county, died 1849; his fourth, Susan
Angel, died in 1862, and his last was Sarah,
widow of Alexander Cooper, of Preble county.
Of his children, William married Angeline
Bonner, and resides in Harrison township;
Clarke B. married Miss Bunger (deceased);
his second wife was Mary Bnnger; he is living
in Harrison township; Charles W. married
Amanda Ebersole, and lives in Missouri;
Edmund S. is studying law with Judge Campbell,
of Eaton, Ohio; Carl Dewitt and Joseph
Earl live at home. Seth Dye, the
father of Abraham, was born in Middlesex
county, New Jersey, in 1790, and died in Harrison
township in 1860. Margaret Simpson,
wife of Seth, was born in Middlesex county,
New Jersey, in 1793, and died in Harrison township
in 1872.
Michael Cotterman,
came to Preble county in 1845, and settled in
Lewisburgh. He was born in Montgomery county,
Ohio, in the year 1821. In 1846 he married
Mary E. Hapner, who was born in Twin township in
1818. Eight children have been born them, five
of whom are now living, viz.: Elmira,
Melissa, Dora, Oliver, and
Caroline. Mr. Cotterman has
been a township trustee for two terms and township
treasurer for four years. During the war of
the Rebellion he was drafted into service, and went
as far as Fort Dennison, but was refused on account
of disability. He is a carpenter by trade, and
has always followed this business. He owns a
saw-mill in West Manchester, Monroe township, which
is valued at four teen hundred dollars. At one
time he was the owner of the saw-mill in Lewisburgh,
now owned by John Yohe.
Dr. John M. Pretzinger was born in Wurtemberg, Germany, in the year 1808.
In 1835 he came to America. He moved to Preble
county from Darke county in 1845, and settled in
Euphemia, where he has since resided. His
wife, Sophia, daughter of Christopher
Rempler, was born in Prussia in the year 1814.
They had thirteen children, all of whom lived to be
married. Of these seven are still living.
Dr. Pretzinger'has two sons and four
sons-in-law who are members of the medical
profession. He himself belongs to the eclectic
school of medicine.
Page 210 -
John D. Niswonger
born in 1811, in Montgomery county, Ohio, settled in
Sonora, Harrison township in 1848. He was
township trustee for several years, and ever since
his arrival in Sonora has been identified with the
business interests of that place. In 1866
Mr. Niswonger, in partnership with
William Leas, started a large dry goods
store, and also began purchasing grain. Mr.
Leas sold out, and Horace Niswonger,
a son, was taken into partnership. The
business is now conducted by the son, under the name
of Niswonger & Son. The business of the
firm has increased rapidly and they are now among
the largest buyers of grain in the county.
Horace was postmaster at Sonora for seven or
eight years. During the war of the Rebellion
he volunteered in the one hundred days’ service in
the One Hundred and Fifty-sixth Ohio volunteer
infantry. Mrs. John D. Niswonger,
nee Mary Ruse, was born in Montgomery
county in 1822. They have six children.
John F. Davis
was born in Warren county, Ohio, in 1820. In
1850 he settled in section six. His wife,
Mary Corwin, born in Warren county in
1818, is still living. Mr. Davis
was drafted in the war of the Rebellion, but did not
serve, inasmuch as the citizens subscribed and
cleared the township. Three of his four
children are living. James C. Davis,
his eldest son, volunteered during the late war and
became a member of the Seventy-ninth Ohio volunteer
infantry, company A. He was in the battles of
Rocky Face, Snake Creek Gap, and Resaca. He
was mustered out at the close of the war in 1865,
after three years service. He lost a finger in
one of the engagements with the enemy.
Judge W. W. Wilson, of Lebanon, Ohio, was
captain of his company, and H. G. Kennett, of
Cincinnati, colonel of the regiment. B. F.
Davis was in the one hundred days’ service.
R. W. Davis
was born about 1826, in Warren county, Ohio, and
with his brother settled in section six about 1850.
His first wife, Rebecca Bradenburg, was born
in 1829, and died in 1849. His second wife,
Mary E. Smith, was born in 1829. By his
second marriage he had four children, all of whom
are living.
Leonard Brock
moved
from Virginia and settled in Harrison township about
1850. His wife, Mary Ann (Voze),
died in Union county about 1843. They had five
children, four of whom are dead.
Joseph, the sole survivor of the family, was born in
1833. He married Susan Vay, born
in 1835, and has had eight children, six of whom
survive: William, married, lives in Darke
county; the remaining five, Joseph,
Augustus, Noah, Perry, and
Elmer, live at home.
Ferdinand Grupe
was
born in Wurtemberg, Germany, in 1814. He came
from Pennsylvania to Ohio in the year 1851. He
settled in Somers township, and died in Harrison in
1879. His wife was Elizabeth Spice.— Louis
E. Grupe was born in 1843. In 1864 he
married Margaret Barnet, born in 1844,
in Somers township. Mr. Grupe
served for two years in the war of the Rebellion.
He was a private in the Twentieth regiment Ohio
national guard. He was discharged after the
battle of Stone River. lie was engaged in many hard
fights. At present he owns a flour- and
saw-mill at West Baltimore.
James Hunt
was born in Montgomery county, Ohio, in 1817.
In 1854 he moved to section three, of Harrison
township. Mrs. Hunt, formerly
E. Seybold, was born in Warren county, in 1822.
They had ten children, nine of whom are still
living: Catharine, wife of Jesse
Studebaker; Lavina, wife of Hiram
Hecathorn, lives in Harrison township;
George W., married, lives in Baltimore;
Joseph, married, lives in Darke county; Aaron
lives at home; Jane, wife of Edward
Bowline, lives in Darke county; Mary,
wife of Frank Pease, lives in Darke
county; Lizzie, single, lives at home;
Margaret, wife of Aaron Heller,
lives in Darke county. Mr. Hunt
is one of the most prominent and wealthy citizens in
the township. He owns about three hundred and
thirty acres, and his residence and buildings are
the handsomest of their kind in that neighborhood.
Hiram Hecathorn
was
born in 1842, in Montgomery county, and settled in
Harrison township, section ten, in 1855. He
marrried Lavina Hunt, born in
1844, and has five children: Seymour,
Elmer, Annie Mary, Luther,
and Malinda. Mr. Hecathorn
farms one of the best and largest farms in the
township. He owns one hundred and sixty acres,
and rents an additional one hundred and sixty acres.
He has always been identified with any improvments
in the township, such as churches, schools, roads,
etc.
John W. Werts
came to Ohio from Virginia in 1844. He was
born in Virginia in 1804, and in 1829 he marriedCatharine
Grisso, who was born in 1809. He first
settled near Pyrmont, Montgomery county; from there
he moved to Preble. Ten children were born to
them, eight of whom survive. He died in 1873.
His farm contained about one hundred and seventy
acres in section ten. John Werts,
son of John W., was born in Preble county in
1844. In 1870 he married Mary E.,
daughter of Tobias Selby, born in
1851. Mr. Werts has lived in
West Baltimore for eleven years and has engaged in
general merchandizing with David Werts,
under the firm name of D. & J. Werts.
During the war of the Rebellion he enlisted in
company H, of the Ohio volunteer infantry, and
served under General Jackson. He was
afterwards discharged for disability.
George Ruff
was born in Wurtemberg, Germany, in 1821. In
1847 he emigrated to America and settled in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. While there he
married Annie Reahfus, born in
Germany, in 1823. He moved to Preble county in
1855, and commenced business as a tanner in Harrison
township. His building is the distillery built
by Bolin, and which was discontinued.
Mr. Ruff‘s business is the manufacture
of shoe and harness leather. He has had seven
children, three of whom are still living.
John Schneider was
born in Wurtemberg, Germany, in 1819, and came to
America in 1847; he went to Cincinnati, and for
three years followed the bakery business. In
1850 he moved to West Alexandria, where he stayed
until 1856, at that time he moved to Lewisburgh,
where he has lived ever since. For the first
four years he fol-
Page 211 -
lowed his trade as baker, at the expiration of which
time he bought a small house from Franklin
Payne. To this he built extensive
additions and began business as proprietor of the
Eagle hotel, and has been in that position ever
since. In 1853, while in West Alexandria, he
married Anna M. Schlotterbeck, born in
Wurtemberg, Germany, in 1833. Four children
have been born to them, all of whom are living.
As hotel proprietor Mr. Schneider has
been successful, and is at present at the head of an
establishment that does credit to his skilful
management.
Perry Turner
was born in Montgomery county, Ohio, in 1825.
In the year 1856 he moved to Preble and settled at
Lewisburgh. In 1847 he married Mary F.
Martin, born in Kentucky, in 1828. Their
only child, Oliver M. Turner, is married and
living in Lewisburgh. When Mr. Turner
first came to Lewisburgh he carried on a distillery,
which he run from 1857 to 1871. In 1863 he
took the flour-mill of which he has ever since been
the proprietor. This mill occupies the site on
which the first mill that was built in the township
stood. The old mill was built as early as
1809, but who was the builder is a matter of doubt.
Some claim the honor for Henry Horn,
but Zachariah Hole was probably the
one who built there. The first mill was of
logs. In the year 1825 the mill was rebuilt;
this building was a frame one, and the first of the
sort in the township. The mill is forty feet
square, and has three run of stone. It is
furnished with every modern improvement, and is
capable of turning out fifty barrels of flour in
twenty-four hours. The mill may be run either
by water or steam power.
Peter Cox
was born in Virginia about 1793, from which State he
moved to Ohio, and in 1818 he settled in Twin
township, at Scuffletown spring. He died in
Harrison township in 1862. He was drafted into
the War of 1812, but sent a substitute. IN
1812 he married Sarah Liptrap, born in 1789,
and who died in 1880, in Harrison townshp. He
had six children: Susannah, Mary,
Elizabeth, Hugh, William and Sarah. Mr.
Coxhad no possessions at the time of his
arrival. He and Peter Wiseman came at
the same time in one wagon, each owning a horse.
He afterwards became the possessor of one hundred
and eight acres of land.
John Ozias
was born in Guilford county, North Carolina, in the
year 1782, and in 1803 moved to Ohio, and settled in
Twin township. He died in Harrison township in
1870. His wife was Elizabeth Higgins,
who was born in 1793, and who died in 1847.
They had ten children born to them, five of whom are
still living, viz: Phoebe, John, Ann, William H.
and Susan. Mr. Ozias was drafted
into the War of 1812, but sent a substitute.
William H. Ozias was born in 1825, and in
1847 he married Barbara Crider, born in 1827.
Five children were born to them, four of whom are
now living.
Samuel Gangwer
was
born in Virginia in 1807, and came to Ohio in 1837.
In 1841 he married Elizabeth Lines,
born in 1808. Three children were born to
them, two of whom, John and Amanda
(Lock), still survive, and are living in this
township. John Gangwer was born
in 1844, and in 1868 married Matilda Ott,
born in 1851. He has had six children born to
him, only two of whom survive. He owns a farm
of one hundred and eighty seven acres, located about
three miles west of Lewisburgh. It is
part of the same farm where his father has lived for
twenty-three years.
Henry Surface
came to
Ohio from Virginia, and settled west of Eaton, in
Jackson township. He entered a farm of eighty
acres. His wife, Catharine Long,
was also a native of Virginia. Eight children
were born to them, seven of whom are still living,
viz: Henry in Sonora; Elizabeth (Browcr)
in Jefferson; John L. in Iowa; Jacob L.
in Jackson township; Christina (Howard)
in Indiana, and George in Jackson township.
Henry Surface, son of the above, was
born about 1810, and about 1832 married Elizabeth
Redman, born in 1815. Seven children
were born to them, all of whom are living.
Mr. Surface was at one time a dry goods
merchant in New Hope, and was also mayor of that
town at the time of its incorporation. He was
afterwards a minister in the United Brethren church,
but has since retired from all active work.
Cornelius Surface, M. D., son of
the above, was born in Jackson township in the year
1833. He married Catharine, daughter of
Isaac Dickey, born in 1833. She
died in 1857. One child was born of this
marriage. In 1861 he married Mrs. E. A.
Crume, born in 1838. He has had three children
by his second marriage, all of whom are living.
Dr. Surface was, for a few years, a
farmer, but has followed the practice of medicine
for the most of his life. He is a graduate of
the Philadelphia Eclectic school of medicine, but
is, at present, an adherent of no school in
particular.
Ephraim D. Heeter,
was born in Montgomery county, Ohio in 1847, and in
1861 he came to Preble county with his father,
Jacob, and settled in Twin township. In
1869 he married Eleanor Hapner, born in Twin
in 1852. Two children have been born them.
Mr. Heeter commenced the dry goods and
general merchandising business in Lewisburgh in
1878, where he still resides.
Thomas Fletcher
was
born in Virginia in 1818, and in 1866 came to Preble
from Warren county. In 1836 he married Anna,
daughter of Christian Birkley, born in
1818. Six children were born them, four of
whom survive. George Fletcher,
father of Thomas, died in Virginia in 1838.
He was a veteran of the Revolution and of 1812.
Mr. Thomas Fletcher, on his
arrival in Sonora, in 1866, commenced business as
proprietor of the Fletcher house, and has
occupied that position ever since.
George Weaver
was
born in Clermont county, Ohio, in 1824. In
1840 he settled in Lanier township, and worked there
at his trade as blacksmith for three years,
commencing in 1846. He was afterwards nine
years in Enterprise, and nine years in Winchester.
In 1869 he came to his present home in Harrison
township, and has since then lived in section
thirty-three. His wife, Mahala (Marker),
was born in Maryland in 1825. They have had
nine children, two of whom are deceased. Mr.
Weaver has a farm of one hundred and fifty
acres which he works with the assistance of his
sons. He has also one of the largest shops in
the county, and has held the
Page 212 -
office of township trustee several times in the
different townships where he has resided.
John Zehring
was born in Montgomery county in the year 1841, and
came to Harrison township, Preble county, in 1869.
In 1868 he married Lucretia Jane
Kumler, who was born in 1844. They have
two children - Francis E. and Elizabeth C.
Mr. Zehring was in the war of the Rebellion
during the hundred days' service. He owns two
farms consisting of ninety-seven acres in Harrison
township.
W. F. Zehring
was born in Montgomery county in the year 1849.
He married Ida A., daughter of Dr. J. J.
Antrim of Germantown in 1877. She was born
in the year 1853. They have one child.
Mr. Zehring started in business as a dry
goods merchant in Euphemia in the year 1876, under
the firm of Zehring & Holp. After
staying there for about twenty months Holp
sold out to O W. Binkerd, and in the same
year they moved to Lewisburgh, where they
established a general merchandising business, the
firm being Zehring & Binkerd. They own
a large three-story building in Lewisburg, the top
story being used by the Odd Fellows as a lodge room.
Abraham McMitt
was born in Harrison township in 1838. In 1860
he married Sophia Werts, born in 1839.
Four children have been born them, three of whom are
now living. Mr. McMitt owns and farms
one hundred and eleven acres.
Andrew House,
whose4 father lived in Monroe township, was born in
Monroe township in 1843. In 1872 he married
Clarabel Phares, who was born in Montgomery
county in 1853. Two children have been born
them, only one of whom Nellie M., is now
living. Mr. House began business in
Lewisburgh in 1874, keeping groceries, hardware,
queensware, etc. He has been councilman of
Lewisburgh for one term. He served during the
Rebellion in the hundred days' service, in
company T, of the One Hundred and Fifty-second Ohio
national guard. He was at one time on
transport duty, taking provisions to General
Hunter at Lynchburgh, Virginia.
LEWISBURGH.
Soon after
the organization of Harrison township, in 1816, the
town of Lewisburgh was laid out. The first man
to take a step in this direction was Zachariah
Hole, but his work was never recorded.
The first work record ed is that of Henry
Horn, who recorded the following statement in
the recorder’s office in Eaton, on the seventh of
September, 1818:
“To all who shall see these
presents, greeting:
"Know ye, that I, Henry Horn, of Preble
county, in the State of Ohio, having laid out a town
in the county and State aforesaid, on sections
number twenty-seven and twenty-eight, in range three
(east), on the southeast and southwest quarters of
said sections which the town contains, twenty-eight
in-lots, with one street running north, five degrees
east, namely: Greenville street; with three streets
running parallel with each other and crossing
Greenville street at right angles, namely: Dayton
street, Twin street and Water street.
Greenville street and Dayton street are each four
rods wide; Water street and Twin street are each two
rods wide. There are two alleys crossing
Greenville street at right angles, running parallel
with Dayton street, and one alley crossing Dayton
street at right angles and running parallel with
Greenville street, with alleys extending around the
town. The alleys are each eight (8) and
one-fourth feet wide. The town shall be called
Lewisburgh. * *
In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and
seal, this seventh day of September, in the year of
our Lord 1818.
"HENRY HORN.
[Seal]
"JACOB WERTS,
"ALEXANDER AIKMAN."
A
good many additions have been made since, but this
is the earliest recorded.
Lewisburgh is a quiet little town of some four hundred
inhabitants. It is situated in the southeast
part of the township, on the west bank of Twin
creek. All the trades have representatives
here, and some of them do a large business. It
contains four churches, all of which are in a
prosperous condition.
The following is a list of the business houses:
Groceries - J. A. Rhinehart, A. House, A. E. May,
and E. B. & J. McWhinney;
drugs - A. T. Horn;
dry goods - F. J. Wilson, Zehring & Binkerd, and E.
D. Heeter;
clothing - A. Frankman;
hardware - Z. T. Stevenson and M. G. Hollinger;
harness - B. S. Horn and J. R. Emens;
millinery - Miss Sally Johnson and Mrs.
Louisa Rundle.
Lewisburgh has one hotel, of which Mr. John
Schneider is the proprietor. Under his
skilful management it is well patronized, and is in
a prosperous condition. The only tannery in
the township is here—owned by George Ruff.
It is one of the largest in the county. Large
numbers of hides are stripped annually.
Lewisburgh labors under the disadvantage of being at a
great distance from any railroad; the nearest
station being at Sonora, a small town three miles to
the north.
The following are the present officers of the town:
Hiram Gay, mayor; Washington
Kelley, marshal; Randall Ayers,
clerk; Jacob A. Rhinehart, treasurer;
David Kumler, supervisor; A. T. Horn, L. F.
Palmerlee, Abra
ham Singer, Michael Cotterman, E. P. Ebersole
and Andrew House, councilmen.
The council room is a fine and imposing edifice
occupying a prominent position near the center of
the village.
Lewisburgh is the place of residence of many of the
oldest men in the township, some of whom were among
the first settlers. The country immediately in
this vicinity was that first selected for
settlement, and either the settlers themselves or
their immediate descendants now reside there.
EUPHEMIA
is a quiet little village on the
National road, about a mile and a half north of the
township line of Twin and Harrison. On the
south it joins Lewisburgh, and is by many included
in the latter town. It is, however, a separate
village, ranking second in the township, and has a
population of about two hundred and fifty persons.
There is one church in the place, the Evangelical
Lutheran. There are two stores here, a dry
goods establishment kept by W. N. Albert, and
a grocery, of which W. M. Bunger is the
proprietor. Euphemia was laid out by John
Muma, and the town was named after his wife.
SONORA
is a small, unincorporated village,
a little north of the center of the township, in the
southern part of sections nine and ten. It is
on the line of the Dayton & West-
Page 213 -
ern railroad, and
not only has a post office of its own but also
serves as the railroad office for Lewisburgh and
Euphemia, which are situated about three miles
south. It was laid off about twenty-five yeas
ago by Hiram McNutt.
The first house that was built in the township was
erected by Tillman and Leas, in 1851.
It has about one hundred and seventy-five
inhabitants. It has two churches, the
Methodist Episcopal and the United Brethren, besides
a large saw-mill and four flourishing business
houses. The saw-mill is owned by Hosefoss &
Ayers.
The following list shows the business houses:
Drugs, William Leas; dry goods, Horace
Niswonger, and N. W. Surface; grocery,
John Binkerd.
VERNONA,
or West Baltimore, as it is more
commonly called, is situated in the northeastern
part of the township, on the Dayton & Union
railroad. It has about two hundred and
seventy-five inhabitants. The business of
Mr. David Werts, of this place, is the largest
in the township. He has interests in the
saw-mill and store, and also owns a large amount of
land.
The county line of Preble and Montgomery counties pass
through the place. The firm name of the dry
goods store is D. & J. Werts. That of
the grocery store is A. Doll. The saw
mill is owned by Werts & Stroup.
CHURCH HISTORY.
THE SALEM
EVANGELICAL CHURCH
THE FIRST REFORMED CHURCH
UNITED BRETHREN
METHODIST EPISCOPAL
THE EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN CHURCH
Page 214 -
THE METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH
THE CHURCH OF THE UNITED BRETHREN
CEMETERIES.
The burial grounds of Harrison are all in charge of
the township. There are five now in the
township, which are named according to their
location, as follows: Euphemia, Lewisburgh, West
Baltimore, and Tillman. The fifth cannot be
properly termed a Harrison burial ground, as it is
partly in Monroe township. Of the cemeteries
mentioned above the one at Euphemia is the largest.
The cemetery at Euphemia is the oldest in the township.
It grew up around the old log church, built in 1817.
The first man who was buried there was Henry
Sharpe, who was buried in the place before
the church was established.
ANTIQUITIES
SCHOOLS.
THE MEDICAL STAFF
SECRET SOCIETIES.
There are five secret societies in this township:
One lodge of Masons, two of Odd Fellows, one of
Grangers, and a branch of the Sons of Temperance.
THE LIBANUS LODGE OF MASONS,
Page 215 -
LODGE NO. 67, INDEPENDENT ORDER OF ODD OF FELLOWS
LODGE NO. 571, INDEPENDENT ORDER OF ODD FELLOWS
was organized the sixteenth of June, in the year
1874. It is at present officered as follows:
G. H. Earhart, N. G.; Hugh Garrett, V.
G.; Samuel T. Zellers, R. S.; Samuel
McNutt, P. S.; and A. Frankman,
treasurer. The lodge has about fifty-six
members. THE LEWISBURGH SONS OF
TEMPERANCE
THE GRANGERS
THE FIRST MILL IN THE TOWNSHIP
THE BLOCK-HOUSE
MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS.
The first store opened in the township was by
Cornelius Van Ausdal. It was
situated in Lewisburgh, where the dry goods store of
F. J. Wilson now stands. It was opened
some time before the year 1816, but the exact date
cannot be ascertained. In this store the first
post office in the township was held, in the year
1825. The first postmaster was Henry Espich.
There are at present four post offices in the
township - one at Lewisburgh, one at Euphemia, one
at Sonora, and one at Verona. The two latter
post offices being on the line of railroads, have
the regular mails, but that for Euphemia and
Lewisburgh is brought over in a hack twice a day
from Sonora, the nearest railroad station.
When the post office at Lewisburgh was first started
the people were forced to be content with one mail a
week.
The first distillery in the townshi8p was run by
Henry Horn, in 1811, at Lewisburgh. One
was afterwards opened at Hole's mill before
1816, and in 1835 James Fraser had one where
the tannery in Lewisburgh in
Lewisburgh now stands. Six distilleries have
been run in the township at different times, but
there is only one at present, which is at
Lewisburgh, but is not now running.
The first man married in Harrison was David Price,
who married Catharine Vantz. The first
death in the township was that of Henry Sharpe,
a native of Scotland. After spending a great
part of his life in Germany, he came to Ohio, and
died in Harrison township about
Page 216 -
1814. He was
buried in the Euphemia graveyard, and is said to be
the first man buried on the spot now covered with
tombstones. The second death was that of Peter
Black in 1814.
There are two railroads in the township: the Dayton
Western, and the Dayton & Union. The latter is
the oldest, being built in 1849. The Dayton
Western was built in 1851, and it is to its presence
that Harrison township owes it rapid growth and
active trade. A railroad was once laid out
through the township, which raised the hopes of the
inhabitants to a high pitch. It was in
Evansville & Lake Shore railroad. It crossed
the southeastern part of the State, passing through
Euphemia and Lewisburgh. After completing the
grading and bridging as far as the State line
between Ohio and Indiana, and spending immense sums
on the preparation, the company broke up in 1855,
and nothing more has ever been done to it. In
Euphemia they have left a lasting proof of their
work. Across the National road they built
large arches for an iron bridge. These are
finished in fine style, and nothing is wanting, but
the body of the bridge. The stone work is
solid and well put together, and will last for
years. EARLY INCIDENTS.
THE FIRST ELECTION
Page 217 -
POPULATION
PROPERTY VALUATION
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
THE OTT FAMILY
COLONEL
SAMUEL KESLER Page 218 -
SAMUEL BUNGER,
SR. <
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