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BIOGRAPHIES
The following biographies are extracted from:
Source:
A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio
Vol. II.
Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago & New York
1917
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HUGH FRANCIS EGAN. A
native son of Ross County, Mr. Egan has for a
great many years been known as a editor and newspaper
publisher and has made himself and his paper valuable
factors in the growth and development of the little city
of Adelphi. In addition to publishing and editing
the Adelphi Border News, which is recognized as the home
paper for a large number of subscribers not only in Ross
but adjacent counties, he is owner, publisher and editor
of the Ohio Red Man, the official organ of the Improved
Order of Red Men in Ohio. He also conducts an
extensive job printing plant, and has one of the most
completely furnished offices in Southern Ohio.
Born in the City of Chillicothe, Aug. 24, 1856,
Hughes Francis Egan is a son of Joseph and Sarah
A. (Savage) Egan. His parents were of humble
Irish birth, and like many people who came from that
country in the middle years of the last century they had
to work hard for all they ever got or enjoyed. The
maternal grandfather of Mr. Egan was quite active
in the early days in Chillicothe and held a number of
commissions of trust. The Egan family came
by sailing vessel to America and settled in Chillicothe
in 1850. Joseph Egan, who was a native of
Limerick, married Miss Sarah Savage in
Chillicothe in 1852. He was for several years a
laborer and then became a gas plumber. He was a
man of but moderate education, but was industrious,
careful and a man properly honored in his community.
He did his share toward maintaining his church, the
Catholic, the parochial schools and other local
institutions. His death occurred at the age of
eighty-four. His wife, who was born in County
Cork, Ireland, died in 1869 at the age of thirty-five.
Hugh Francis Egan, who was one of a family of
ten children, had to assume certain serious
responsibilities connected with making his way in the
world at an early age. He attended both the
parochial and public schools of Chillicothe, and at the
age of fifteen entered the office of the old Advertiser
to learn the trade of printer. He remained in that
office until 1883, and then removed his family to
Adelphi and bought out the Adelphi Border News, a weekly
paper which had been founded in 1879. Mr. Egan
confesses to many hard struggles and ups and downs in
his early career as a newspaper man. He finally
gave to Adelphi a paper of which that community is
proud. It is a wide circulation not only in Ross
County but in Pickaway, Hocking and Fairfield counties.
In September, 1874, Mr. Egan married Sarah T.
Bennett. They have reared and educated eight
children, five sons and three daughters. All are
married now. The sons all learned the trade of
printing with their father, and four of them are now
working at the trade. A brief record of these
children is a follows: Hugh B. Egan who was
born in Chillicothe, is a printer by trade, and is
married and lives in Columbus; Sarah, born in
Chillicothe married, at Adelphi, Elgernon Flannigan,
a farmer; Joseph Henry, who is a barber by trade
and is married and living in Adelphi; Carolyn Egan,
born in Chillicothe, was married in Adelphi to
Hugh L. Reedy, a clerk in the United States mail
service, and they live in Columbus; George W.,
born at Adelphi, is married and lives in Columbus, where
he is a salesman; Mary M., born at Adelphia,
married William H. Barton, principal of the
Adelphi schools; Edward, born in Adelphi, is a
printer and is married; Robert, born at Adelphi,
is also a printer. All the children received their
education in the public schools.
Mr. Egan was reared in the faith of the Catholic
Church. While a resident of Chillicothe he was
identified with several religious, civil and military
organizations, and has always enjoyed the confidence of
his fellow men in every position of life. He
served as mayor of Adelphi for twelve years and was
clerk of the township board of education and board of
trustees for twelve years, and was also for several
years a councilman and member of the local board of
education. He was a member of the Board of
Trustees of the Ross County Memorial Commission by
appointment from James M. Cox, governor of Ohio,
Sept. 4, 1914. Through these positions, as editor
of the leading paper, and as a private citizen, he has
done much to build up and promote the welfare of his
home locality.
He is particularly well known not only in Ohio but
throughout the country for his work in the Improved
Order of Red Men. He joined that order of June,
1895. In 1897 he represented Corn Planter Tribe in
the Great Council of Ohio and continued as
representative until 1901. He was then elected
Great Junior Sagamore of the Great Council of Ohio, and
in 1902 was elected Great Senior and in 1903 became
Great Sachem. That high post he filled with credit
until May, 1904, when he presided over the Great Council
at Mansfield. He has also represented Ohio in the
Supreme Great Council of the United States and in the
national body has served on several important
committees. Mr. Egan has been a member of
Adelphi Lodge of the Knights of Pythias for fifteen
years, and formerly held membership in the Modern
Woodmen of America. At Adelphi he superintended
the construction of the Knights of Pythias Fair and
Carnival, and helped make the local lodge of Knights of
Pythias highly successful.
Mr. Egan deserved much credit for the
establishment of the Adelphi Banking Company, in
which he has held the position of secretary to the board
of directors since it was founded. He has a
beautiful modern home, and has also employed his taste
and experience in supervising various public buildings
at Adelphi, including the Opera House. Though
now in his sixtieth year, Mr. Egan is found at
work from morning until night and when questioned on
that matter he is disposed to ascribe to hard and
constant work what measure of success he has attained in
the world.
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Publ. by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page 532 |
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JAMES
MILTON EVANS, M. D. A life prolonged
beyond ninety years in always an interesting spectacle.
When with long years have been combined splendid service
to humanity, a helpful and inspiring character, then
such a life commands admiration and respect.
Ross County has in the person of Dr. James Milton
Evans of Clarksburg one of its oldest citizens and
most venerable men. He was born in Highland
County, Ohio, Feb. 26, 1824, and is still living in the
enjoyment of good health and his mental faculties at the
age of ninety-two. His father was Isaac Evans,
and his grandfather was also a native of Ohio and
settled in Highland County at a very early day.
The grandfather improved a farm on Clear Creek, where he
resided until his death. Isaac Evans
subsequently removed from Highland County and settled in
Buckskin Township of Ross County, where he was engaged
in farming until death claimed him. The maiden
name of his wife was Jane Norton, who was born in
Buckskin Township. Her six children were
Juliet, Cynthia, John B., Samuel R., William D., and
James M. A remarkable part of the family
record is that all of these sons except William
became successful physicians.
Dr. James M. Evans grew up on his father's farm.
He attended the rural schools of Buckskin Township and
was also a pupil at the noted South Salem Academy.
In his twentieth year he taught a term of school in
Highland County, also a term in Ross County and two
winter terms in Boone County, Kentucky. While
teaching he carried on his medical studies at Rising
Sun, Indiana, under his uncle, Israel Evans.
The winter of 1848-49 he spent in attending lectures in
the Cleveland Medical College and the following winter
at Starling Medical College in Columbus.
Graduating from Starling in the spring of 1850,
Doctor Evans is one of the few physicians of Ohio
still living who took their first cases ten years before
the war. He began practice about the time some of
the most important aids to modern medicine were
discovered. He began practice in the Clarksburg
community, and continued actively for fully sixty-five
years, and in that time his name was pronounced as a
benediction in hundreds of homes in which he had served
so well and faithfully. In 1885 he retired from
active practice, but in the past thirty years he has
been frequently called upon in consultation and even now
some old friend or neighbor asks his advice and services
in a professional capacity.
During the high tide of his career Doctor
Evans states that his cures were usually not
malignant cases of this dread disease.
Doctor Evans was three times married. In
1852 he married Emily Pryer Yates, who was born
in Pickaway County, Ohio, a daughter of John and
Elizabeth (Blue) Yates. At her death in 1860
she left four children named Mary E., John T., Isaac
C., and Milton. For his second wife
Doctor Evans married Eliza Caldwell, a
popular teacher in the public schools. At her
death she was survived by three children named Eldora
C., Edward and Orin C. For his third wife
Doctor Evans married Mrs. Mary Brown,
widow of Richard Brown. Doctor Evans joined
the Presbyterian Church when a young man, but there
being no church of that denomination in Clarksburg, he
subsequently became an active member of the Methodist
denomination.
The doctor's oldest daughter, Mary, married
William J. Mossbarger, son of Samuel and Eleanor
(Cherrington) Mossbarger. To Mr. and Mrs.
Mossbarger were born seven children who grew up
named Arthur T., Emily E., Milton C., Hugh S., Melva
E., John S., and Willie L. Arthur
Mossbarger, of these children, married Arlene E.
Dawson, and has a son named Owen W. Milton
Mossbarger married Olive Betty and has a
daughter named Betty Louise.
Melva Mossbarager is the wife of John
Dawson and their two children are Virginia M.
and John Milton. ~
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Publ. by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page |
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CAPT. SAMUEL H. FALTER
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page 494 |
Jas. C. Foster |
HON. JAMES C.
FOSTER. A gallant soldier, a judicious
agriculturist and an honorable citizen are apt terms to
use in mentioning one of Ross County's most
distinguished men, Maj. James C. Foster.
Major Foster was born in Franklin Township,
Ross County, where he still lives, May 18, 1842.
He comes of old pioneer stock and his parents were
Thomas C. and Jane (Davis) Foster.
John Foster, the great-grandfather, came
to Ohio with a large family of motherless children, from
near Cumberland, Maryland, in 1796, and settled in
Franklin Township, Ross County, where he died in 1800.
His six sons survived: Lewis, Thomas, John, Richard,
Joseph and Benjamin. Of these sons, the
third in order of birth, John Foster,
married Mary Prather and to one of their
sons they gave the name of Thomas C.
Thomas C. Foster married Jane E. Davis, a
sister of the late John H. Davis, and they had
the following children: Martha, who is the widow
of James P. Foster; James C.; Hannah; John C.,
and William and George. Hannah,
William and George are deceased. Thomas C.
Foster was one of Franklin Township's worthy men,
sturdy in his citizenship and honored and respected by
all who knew him.
James C. Foster attended the district schools,
in 1868 attended a commercial college at Cleveland and
in 1859 attended a military school at Chillicothe.
He remained on the home farm until the whole country was
aroused by the breaking out of the Civil war, and it was
on August 24, 1861, that he enlisted as a private in
Company C, Thirty-third Ohio Volunteer Infantry.
In the following September he was transferred to the
Fifty-third regiment, and on January 1, 1862, he
received his first promotion, being made orderly
sergeant. On September 21, 1862, he was promoted
to second lieutenant and on that day he was transferred
with this rank to Company I, Fifty-third Infantry.
He seemed to be particularly well fitted for military
life and thus was entrusted with the duties of a
recruiting officer and had the satisfaction of
recruiting the first company of colored soldiers in West
Tennessee. He was made captain of this company and
served as such until June 18, 1864, when he was promoted
to the rank of major and in that military office served
until the close of the war. Thus the title by
which he has ever since been known was fairly and
honorably earned. He took part in many of the great
battles of the four-year struggle, and patriotism,
courage and efficiency marked his course.
Major Foster returned then to Ohio and resumed
agricultural pursuits, in which he has ever since been
interested. He owns a magnificent farm of 497
acres and extensive farm and stock operations are here
parried on.
In 1868 Major Foster was married to
Miss Emma Davis, who was born in
Franklin Township and died here in August, 1871.
They had
one daughter, Daisy, who was born June 2, 1870.
She was married to H. J. DuBois on December 20,
1888, and they reside at Houston, Texas.
In October, 1875, Major Foster was married
to Mary D. Vause, who was born in Liberty
Township, Ross County. They have the following
children: Ada, born March 16, 1877; Vause,
born April 29, 1879; Jean M., born July 16, 1881;
Harry L., born March 18, 1884; James C,
born November 25, 1887; Mary H., born December
19, 1889; and Sallie, born September 13, 1894.
Educational and social advantages have been happy
adjuncts in the lives of each. Vause is a
graduate of the Ohio State University, and Jean M.,
Mary and Sallie are graduates of the
University at Oxford, Ohio.
Major Foster has always been sound in his
republicanism and is a very influential member of his
party in this part of the state. During 1902 and
1904 when serving as a member of the State Legislature,
he had much to do with the formulating and passing of
some of the wisest and most just laws ever put upon the
statute book. His acquaintance with other
prominent men is wide and his personal friendships are
with those who, like himself, have high ideals of
citizenship and live up to them. He belongs to the
Grand Army of the Republic and served as commander of
Post No. 691, at Omega, Ohio, for seventeen years. He is
also a member of Loyal Legion.
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Publ. by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page 539 |
John C. Foster |
JOHN C. FOSTER.
Of the families which have contributed to the
agricultural welfare and development of Ross County, one
of the best known and most highly regarded is that
bearing the name of Foster, of whom a worthy
representative is found in the person of John C.
Foster. Mr. Foster, who is now nearly
seventy years of age, has spent practically his entire
life in one community, and by constant devotion to one
line of business, farming, has prospered beyond the
ordinary. His home place of 260 acres is on rural
route No. 1 from Higby and in Franklin Town ship. He
also owns another farm of 260 acres and a three-fourths
interest in one of 110 acres, one being located in
Franklin Township of Ross County, and the other in
Jackson Township of Pike County.
A substantial quality of human character is persistence
and permanence. This is well illustrated in the
fact that two successive generations of the Foster
family were born in the same house on the same
farm. John C. Foster was born on the farm
where he now resides January 4, 1847, and his father
Thomas C. Foster was born in the same house and on
the same farm in 1813. This latter date indicates
how early the Foster family came to Ohio.
The grandfather John Foster was born and
spent his early life on the line between Maryland and
Virginia. He married there, and soon afterward
came west to Ohio. Ohio was not a state then and was
part of the great Northwest Territory. John
Foster arrived about the year 1795, soon after
Gen. Anthony Wayne had completely
subdued the Indians of the Northwest and had opened the
way for white settlement. John Foster the pioneer was
accompanied by his brothers Thomas and Joseph,
each of whom took up a quarter section of land in Ross
County. John Foster lived in this
county the rest of his useful years, but he died while
visiting his sons in Madison County, Ohio. He was
a man of much prominence in his day, and besides the
heavy work of farming he was also a local Methodist
minister.
Thomas C. Foster married Jane E. Davis,
and he subsequently bought out the heirs of the old
homestead and lived there until he was killed in a
railroad accident in 1882. His wife was the daughter of
John Davis, one of the early settlers of Ross County.
They had six children, and the three now living are
Martha, widow of J. P. Foster of Franklin
Township; James and John C., both of
Franklin Township.
Reared on the old farm, John C. Foster found
abundant opportunities for work and improvement of mind
and body from an early age. His district school
education was continued by a course in the National
Normal College at Lebanon during the years 1866-67.
With the exception of six years spent in Scioto County,
he has lived on the old homestead in Franklin Township
since his birth. On August 14, 1867, he married
Mary E. Foster, daughter of Joseph Foster of
Pike County, Ohio. Eleven children were born to
their union, and the six now living are Jennie,
wife of Joe Higby; William, at
home; Emma, at home; John, living in
Liberty Township; Joseph, in Pike County;
Charles, of Marietta, Ohio. The other children
died young with the exception of Herbert W.
In politics Mr. Foster is a republican.
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Publ. by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page 559 |
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MRS. MARTHA
FOSTER is a member of a family that has been
associated
with Ross County for more than a century. Her married
name is the
same as her maiden name, and it was her grandfather
Foster who led
the way into the Northwest Territory and established a
home in Ross
County in the latter part of the eighteenth century.
Mrs. Foster is a daughter of
Thomas Coke and Jane E.
(Davis)
Foster. She was born in Franklin Township of Ross
County, July 30,
1840, and for a number of years has lived in her
attractive home in
Franklin Township, and she also owns land in Pike
County.
Her father, Thomas Coke Foster, was born on the same
farm where
she first saw the light of day, on July 21, 1813. He was
the youngest
in the family of John and Martha (Prather) Foster. Grandfather
John Foster and his three brothers, Thomas,
Joseph and
Richard, came from
Cumberland, Maryland, about 1796 and bought tracts of
land from the
Government in Ross County. John Foster was a local
Methodist preacher
and held many meetings in this pioneer district of Ohio
and worked for
his church while developing and cultivating his land.
Thomas C. Foster, who was the youngest of a family of
thirteen
children, grew up on the old homestead in Ross County
and eventually
bought the interests of the other heirs in the place. He
remained with
his mother, and spent a very active and a useful career. He died as a
result of a railway accident in December, 1882. He
married Jane E.
Davis, who was born in Franklin Township of Ross County,
April 22,
1821, and died, August 12, 1852. They became the parents
of six children: Martha Foster; Major J. C. Foster;
Hannah, who was
born in
1844 and died in 1893; John, a resident of Franklin
Township; William,
who died at the age of twenty-four years; and George,
born in 1852 and
died in 1881.
Mrs. Martha Foster being a daughter of a substantial and
prosperous
family was given good educational advantages, attending
a private
school and finishing her education in the Hillsboro
Oakland Female Seminary. In February, 1865, she married
James P. Foster. In 1868
they moved out to Kansas, where they were early
settlers, and where they lived for eighteen years until
the death of Mr. Foster in 1886.
Since her husband's death, Mrs. Foster has returned to
Ross County
and has made her home in Franklin Township near Higby,
the old home
stead of her grandfather. She is an active member of the
Methodist
Episcopal Church, and her family were prominent in
organizing Foster's
Chapel, of which she is a member.
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page 831 |
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DR. LEWIS W.
FOULKE. Occupying a distinguished position among
the early physicians of Ross County was Dr. Lewis W.
Foulke, of Chillicothe, who won distinction not only
in medical circles, but in the business and social life
of the community in which he lived, having been popular
as a man and a citizen, and prominent as a financier.
A native of Pennsylvania, he was born in August, 1809,
in Carlisle. His father, George D. Foulke,
received a liberal education, having been graduated from
the Dickinson College, in Carlisle, and from the Medical
University of Maryland.
Having obtained his early education in the public
schools of Carlisle, and by private study, Lewis W.
Foulke, following in the footsteps of his father,
entered Dickinson College in 1825, and after his
graduation from that institution in 1829 entered the
Medical University of Maryland, where he was graduated
with the degree of doctor of medicine in 1832. For
four years thereafter Doctor Foulke was
engaged in the practice of medicine in his native state,
gaining valuable experience as a physician, and much
skill in the art of healing diseases. Coming to
Ross County, Ohio, in 1836, the doctor met with success
from the first, his rise in public confidence and in
professional circles being most rapid, and very
gratifying to himself. He continued in active
practice in this city until his death, in June, 1887.
Possessing marked ability as a business man, he
accumulated a large property, and was prominently
identified with various organizations. He was a
member, and president, of the Board of Trustees of the
Chillicothe Cemetery; was the first president of the
Ross County National Bank, and one of the organizers of
the Savings Bank Company; was president of the Ohio
Insurance Company; was one of the organizers of the
Chillicothe Gas Light & Water Company, and for many
years was an influential member of the Chillicothe
School Board.
Doctor Foulke married Elizabeth
McCoy, a daughter of John McCoy, and their
only child, Mary Steele Foulke, became the wife
of Gustavus Scott Franklin, M. D., of whom a
sketch may be found on another page of this volume.
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Publ. by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page 623 |
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CHARLES
LOVE FRANKLIN. Prominently identified with the
advancement of the financial and commercial prosperity
of Ross County, Charles L. Franklin, of
Chillicothe, manager of the estate of his maternal
grandfather, Dr. L. W. Foulke, is a man of broad
affairs, and a contributor, both directly and
indirectly, to the material interests of city, county,
and state. A son of Dr. Gustavus S. and Mary S.
(Foulke) Franklin, he was born May 1, 1875, in
Chillicothe, which has always been his home.
Finishing the course of instruction in the Chillicothe
public schools, he attended the Virginia Military
Institute for two years, completing his early education
at Marietta College. On the death of his father,
he succeeded to the trusteeship of the Foulke
estate, and has since devoted his time and energies
to its management, and to his own private interests, his
business duties being many and varied. He is
actively associated with one of the more important
financial institutions of the city, being one of the
directors of the Savings Bank Company.
Fraternally Mr. Franklin is a member of
Scioto Lodge, No. 6, Ancient Free and Accepted Order of
Masons; of Chillicothe Chapter, No. 4, Royal Arch
Masons; of Chillicothe Council No. 4, Royal and Select
Masters; of Chillicothe Commandery, No. 8, Knights
Templar; of Syrian Temple; of the Cincinnati Consistory;
and of Chillicothe Lodge, No. 52, Benevolent and
Protective Order of Elks.
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Publ. by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page 623 |
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GUSTAVUS
SCOTT FRANKLIN, A. M., M. D. A man of talent and culture,
with the greatest capacity for earnest and diligent labor, the
late Gustavus Scott Franklin, M. D., was for many
years one of the foremost physicians of Chillicothe, where the
major part of his life was spent, his birth having occurred in
this city November 22, 1837, and his death in February, 1901.
His father, William B. Franklin, had the family name of "Bussard"
changed, in 1831, by the Ohio Legislature, to its present form,
"Franklin." He was a son of Daniel Bussard, Jr.,
and a grandson of Daniel Boussard, Sr. There is a
well established tradition that the paternal grandfather of
Daniel Boussard, Sr., was born in France, having been a
Huguenot, and in 1685, after the revocation of the Edict of
Nantes, fled to Saxony, where he married the daughter of a
burgomaster.
Daniel Boussard, Sr., or Bussard, as the name
was afterwards spelled, was born, in 1743, in Saxony, Germany,
and when five years of age was
brought by his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Peter
Bussard, to America. He spent the next few years of
his life in the eastern part of Pennsylvania, from there moving
with the family to the Monocacy Valley, Maryland. After
his marriage he settled in Frederick County, Maryland, and there
the birth of his son, Daniel Bussard, Jr., occurred,
December 2, 1771.
William B. Franklin was born, October 29, 1804,
in Georgetown, District of Columbia. Scholarly in his tastes and
ambitions, he was graduated from Princeton College, now
Princeton University, in Princeton, New Jersey, with the degree
of bachelor of arts. Deciding to enter the legal profession, he
studied law under the preceptorship of Francis Scott Key,
author of the Star Spangled Banner. Going to Virginia, he
was tutor in the family of John Caile Scott until
1831, when he came to Ohio to accept the position of a teacher
in the Chillicothe Academy. Becoming active in public
affairs, he was elected county auditor in 1841, and was
continued in office by successive re-elections until 1857.
He again served in the same office from 1859 until 1863. In 1860
he was appointed registrar at the United States Land Office in
Chillicothe, and continued in that capacity for eighteen years.
He lived to a ripe old age, dying at his home in Chillicothe.
William B. Franklin married, August 25, 1827, at
Western View, on the Rappahannock River, Culpeper County,
Virginia, Marianne Scott, who was born at Rock
Hill, Maryland, January 2, 1803, of Scotch ancestry. Her
father, James Caile Scott, was a son of
Gustavus Scott, and grandson pf Rev. James Scott,
the immigrant ancestor. His great grandfather, Rev.
John Scott, master of arts, was born in Dipple Parish,
Morayshire, Scotland, and spent his entire life in his native
country.
Born and reared in Dipple Parish, Elgin, Morayshire,
Scotland, Rev. James Scott came to America in 1739,
settling in Virginia. For a few years he resided at Dipple,
Virginia, on the estate which he had inherited from his brother
Alexander, and then removed to Prince William County, where he
served as rector of the church at Dettingen Parish until his
death, which occurred thirty-seven years later, in 1782.
He married, at Rock Hill, Charles County, Maryland, Sarah
Brown, who was born August 29, 1815, a daughter of Dr.
Gustavus and Frances (Fowke)
Brown. She survived him two years, passing away in 1784.
Gustavus Scott, Doctor Franklin's
great-grandfather on the maternal side, was born at Westwood,
Prince William County, Maryland, in 1753.
Being sent, in 1765, to Scotland to complete his early
education, he studied for two years at King's College, in
Aberdeen, and in 1771 com
pleted his study of law at Essex Court, Middle Temple, London.
Thus equipped for a professional career, he returned to
Maryland, locating in
Somerset County, where he became prominent and successful as a
lawyer, and influential in public affairs. He was elected a
deputy to the Maryland convention, and served as such from June
22, 1774, until December, 1775, and was a member of the Maryland
convention of 1775, which
elected him as a member of a committee to prepare a draft of
instructions for the deputies representing that province in
Congress. He was also one
of the four delegates from the Maryland convention of 1776 that
formed a state constitution. After the adoption of the
constitution, he removed
to Dorchester County, which he represented in the Assembly from
1780 until 1784, and was appointed by the state as one of the
conferees to meet
those from Virginia at Annapolis, December 22, 1784, to devise
some action towards the improvement of the Potomac River. He
served as a
delegate from Maryland to the Continental Congress of 1784 and
1785. He was likewise one of the Maryland
Legislative Committee that reported
in favor of James Ramsey, the inventor of the
steamboat, who claimed the exclusive right of making and selling
his boats in Maryland. Forces'
Archives give many records of Gustavus Scott's work in the
Maryland conventions. On April 11, 1776, he was a member
of the committee on
prizes; he was one of the committee to prepare instructions for
recruiting sergeants, and a member of the committee on the
Potomac ferry. When
the State of Maryland loaned the United States $150,000, he was
one of the three men that endorsed the notes. His death,
at Washington, in
December, 1801, was a loss to the entire country. He married
Margaret Hall Caile.
John Caile Scott, son of Gustavus and
Margaret Hall (Caile) Scott, and Doctor Franklin's
maternal grandfather, was born in 1782, and lived until 1828 in
Culpeper County, Virginia, at Western View, having moved there
some several years before from Rock Hill, Maryland. Coming
to Ross County, Ohio, in that year, he remained here
permanently, dying in 1840, on the Mechlenburg Farm. His
wife, whose maiden name was Ann Love, was born in
1780, and died in 1832, in Ross County, on the Keys
farm.
Acquiring his rudimentary education in the public
schools of Chillicothe, Gustavus Scott Franklin
was graduated from the Marietta College with the class of 1859.
He subsequently studied medicine under Drs. David Wills
and D. H. Scott, and in 1862 was graduated from the
College of Physicians and Surgeons at New York City. Immediately
entering the United States navy as a surgeon, Doctor Franklin
served on the steamships "Minnesota" and "Onondaga," continuing
thus employed until 1868. Returning then to Chillicothe, the
doctor was successfully engaged in the practice of his
profession until compelled by failing health to retire from
active pursuits. A physician of far more than average skill, he
was likewise a man of excellent executive and financial ability,
and from the time of the death of his father-in-law, Dr. L.
W. Foulke, until his own death, he had charge of the
Foulke estate, of which he was executor.
Doctor Franklin married, in 1870, Mary
Steele Foulke, the only child of Dr. Lewis W. and
Elizabeth (McCoy) Foulke, of whom a brief sketch may be
found elsewhere in this volume. Three children blessed the
marriage of Doctor and Mrs. Franklin,
namely: Elizabeth N.; Charles Love, of whom a personal
sketch appears on another page of this biographical work; and
Marianne Scott. The doctor was a member of the
Ross County Medical Society; of the Ohio Sanitary Society; of
the American Medical Society; and of the American Academy of
Science. He also belonged to the Sons of the American
Revolution, and to the A. L. Brown Post, Grand Army of the
Republic.
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Publ. by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page 620 |
|
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CHARLES H. FREE.
In the person of Charles H. Free, Paint Township has a
citizen who has contributed to the development of Ross County a
well cultivated farm that has been brought to its present state
under his own hands, and which is now yielding him an income
that makes him one of the substantial men of the community.
The township has likewise profited by his able discharge of the
duties of several offices to which he has been elected by his
fellow-citizens who have placed their confidence in his fidelity
and integrity and who have had no reason to regret their action
in so doing.
Mr. Free has passed his entire life in
Paint Township, where he was born Oct. 27, 1872, a son of
Nathaniel and Charity (Parker) Free. His
great-grandfather was a Hessian soldier who came to the United
States during the Revolutionary war, to fight for the English,
but who subsequently became convinced of the justice of the
cause of the colonists and afterwards remained in this country.
The grandfather of Charles H. Free was George
Free, who came from Pennsylvania to Ross County among its
earliest settlers, located on a farm, developed a well
cultivated and productive property, and was known as a farmer in
comfortable circumstances and a citizen who merited the respect
and esteem of his fellow men. Nathaniel Free
was born near Rapid Forge, at the mouth of Cleft Run, and was
only two years old when his mother died, but was well reared and
received a good education for his day and locality. He was
brought up on Cleft Run, and after his marriage settled on a
farm in the vicinity of his boyhood home. In 1866, with
his wife and children, he moved to Paint Township and purchased
the farm on which his son, William A. Free, now lives,
and on which he passed the remainder of his life. Mr.
Free was an energetic and industrious agriculturist,
practical in his ideas and ready to try new methods. He
started his career with practically nothing, and so well were
his efforts directed and so ably his affairs conducted, that at
the time of his death he was the owner of about 1,100 acres of
good land. Quiet and unassuming in manner, he did not seek
public office, his ambitions being realized in the making of a
home and the securing of a good education for his children.
Mr. Free married Charity Parker,
also of the Cleft Run community, and they became the parents of
eleven children, of whom nine are living at this writing, as
follows : Frank, who is a resident of the State of
Mississippi ; William A., who has a farm of 213 acres in
Paint Township, on the Greenfield turnpike; John M., a
resident of the State of Washington; Alice, the wife of
Jess Mossberger, of Harpers Station, Ohio ;
Lizzie, the wife of George Crutcher, of Paxton
Township ; Ed ; Carrie, who is now Mrs.
Lydon Smith, of Paint Township; George, who
died young; Charles H., of this review; Robert,
who died at the age of three years; and Sam, of Paint
Township.
In the district schools of his native township,
Charles H. Free received his educational training, following
which he supplemented this with a course at Valparaiso
University. He was reared on Paint Creek, and when he was
ready to enter upon an independent career he adopted farming for
his life work, being fitted for this vocation by predilection,
inheritance and training. Throughout his life he has done
general farm ing and stockraising, and has succeeded well in
whatever venture he has undertaken.
Mr. Free married Miss Bessie
West, and they have had two children: Charles H., Jr.,
who attended the public schools and spent two years at Ada
(Ohio) University; and Emma M. Mr. and Mrs. Free
are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and Mr.
Free is fraternally affiliated with the Benevolent and
Protective Order of Elks at Greenfield, and the Knights of
Pythias at Bainbridge. Politically he is a democrat.
He stands high in the public esteem and belief in his integrity
and good judgment have been variously made manifest. He
has been township treasurer, justice of the peace and member of
the school board, and takes a lively and intelligent interest in
polities. His home farm consists of 200 acres.
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page 905 |
|
|
CHARLES O. FREE.
Many years of connection with the agricultural interests of Ross
County has established for Charles O. Free a reputation
for ability, resource and unflagging energy. He is one of
the captains of industry who have piloted their own craft to
harbor, and at the present time is the owner of a magnificent
property consisting of 910 acres, located on the Rapid Forge and
Greenfield Road, in Paint Township.
Charles O. Free was born on a farm in Paxton
Township, Ross County, Ohio, Nov. 1, 1859, and is a son of
Isaac and Nancy (Ogle) Free. His paternal grandfather
was George Free, who was born in Pennsylvania, and who as
a young man, shortly after 1800, came to Ross County and settled
close to old Rapid Forge, where he was manager of the outside
part of the Forge farm. Later he bought a property of his
own, and the closing years of his life were passed in farming in
Paint Township. He was one of the substantial pioneers of
Ross County and established a reputation for integrity and fair
dealing which those who have followed him have substantiated.
Isaac Free was born at Rapid Forge, Paint Township, where
he was educated in the public schools, and when still a young
man began agricultural operations on his own account. He
commenced his career as a renter, but through industry and
perseverance became a farm owner, and his good management and
business ability enabled him to accumulate 280 acres of land,
which he owned at the time of his death. He and his wife
were the parents of the following children, all of whom grew to
maturity: Charles O., of this review; Julia,
who is the wife of Warren Ogle; Joseph who is deceased;
Lena, who is the wife of Robert Dill of
Jeffersonville, Ohio; Lizzie, a resident of Carmel, Ohio;
Ella, who is deceased; John of Carmel, Ohio;
Alfred whose home is at Bainbridge; and Mattie the
wife of David Jones, of Bourneville, Ohio.
Charles O. Free received his education in the
district schools of Paxton Township and passed his boyhood,
youth and young manhood on the homestead. At the age of
twenty-eight years he left the parental roof and entered upon a
career of his own as a renter of a part of the Austin Pepple
farm in Paxton Township. He was a renter for four years,
but at the end of the third season formed a partnership with his
brother, Joseph Free, and A. Clark West the three
buying 261 acres of land in Paint Township, adjoining the
Pepple place. Later the Free brothers bought
Mr. West's interests, and continued to farm together until
the death of Joseph Free in March, 1915. They had
started with but small means and poor equipment, but so
successful were their operations that at one time they owned
1,400 acres of highly cultivated land, with the best of
machinery and buildings, and when death dissolved the
partnership they had in their possession more than 1,000 acres.
Since the death of his brother, Charles O. Free has
continued alone, and still is meeting with excellent and
deserved success. His 910-acre property is devoted to the
raising of all the standard products of this locality, and he
also gives some attention to the growing of a good grade of
livestock. Mr. Free is inherited the industry,
tenacity of purpose and acuteness of his worthy progenitors,
which are apparent in the success of his operations, while the
spirit of modern progress is evidenced in his up-to-date
buildings and highly improved machinery.
In October, 1897, Mr. Free was married to
Miss Ida Swindell who was born in Madison County, Indiana, a
daughter of Ashley Swindell. Mr. and Mrs. Free
have four bright and interesting children: Arthur,
Herman, Helm and John all of whom are attending
school. Fraternally, Mr. Free is affiliated with
Bainbridge Lodge, No. 4, Knights of Pythias. With the
members of his family, he belongs to Bainbridge Methodist
Episcopal Church. A democrat in political matters, he ahs
been active in the ranks of his party. Mr. Free has
been one of the prime factors in the advancement of the cause of
education in his community, having been a member of the township
school board for the past twenty years, and at the present time
is a member of the county school board, with three more years to
serve to complete his present term.
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page 641 |
|
|
EDWARD FREE.
It has been the fortune of Edward Free to have realized
many of his early ambitions, and through the exercise of good
judgment, industry and business sagacity, to have wrested from
his opportunities financial and general success. He is now
the owner of 400 acres of good land, lying on Bainbridge Rural
Route No. 3, in Paint Township, the greater part of which has
been self-acquired, and his standing in the community stamps him
as a worthy representative of a family that has long contributed
to the development and advancement of this part of the county.
Mr. Free was born on his father's farm in Paint
Township, July 30, 1867, and is a son of Nathaniel and
Charity (Parker) Free, and a great-grandson of the Hessian
soldier who came to America to fight against the colonists
during the War of the Revolution, but who remained to became a
citizen of the new country. George Free, the
grandfather of Edward Free, was born in Pennsylvania and
came to Ross County among the early settlers, here establishing
a home and developing a fertile and productive farm. He
was known for his good citizenship and his sterling qualities of
character, and had the unreserved respect and confidence of the
people among whom he made his home. His son, Nathaniel
Free, was born in 1832, in Paint Township, near Rapid Forge,
at the mouth of Cleft Run, and although he lost his mother when
he was two years old, was well reared and well educated.
He was brought up on Cleft Run, and in 1866, with his wife and
children, moved to the farm in Paint Township which is now
occupied by his son, William A. Free where he passed the
remainder of his life. An industrious and energetic
agriculturist, he was practical in his views, although always
ready to experiment with new ideas, and from practically nothing
at the outset of his career, became the owner of nearly
1,100acres of valuable land. He was a democrat and
somewhat active in local politics, but did not seek public
office, contenting himself with cultivating his farm, making a
good home and educating his children. He was a faithful
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Free
married Charity Parker, who was born in 1842, in North
Carolina, and was a girl when she came with her parents to Ross
County. They became the parents of eleven children, of
whom nine are living: Frank, who was a teacher in
the local schools for four terms, and now a farmer in
Mississippi; William A., who is farming the old homestead
of 213 acres, located on the Greenfield Turnpike in Paint
Township; John W., who resides in the West; Alice,
the wife of Jefferson Mossberger, of Harpers Station,
Ohio; Elizabeth, who is the wife of George Kretzer,
of Bainbridge, Ohio; Edward, of this notice; Carrie,
who is now Mrs. Lyndon Smith, of Paint Township;
George, who died in youth; Charles H., who is farming
a fine property of 200 acres in Paint Township; Robert,
who died at the age of three years; and Samuel, who is
farming in Paint Township.
Edward Free was reared on the hoe farm in Paint
Township and received his education in the district schools,
which he attended until he was about nineteen years of age.
At that time he began farming for his father, and was employed
by the ender man at a salary of $150 per year, feeding cattle.
He continued to be so employed until he was twenty-five years of
age, when he decided to start farming on his own account, and
Feb. 22, 1894, was married to Miss Alice
Michael, who was born in 1876, at Roxabell, Ohio, and there
educated. Mr. and Mrs. Free began married life with
but few resources, but were willing and energetic workers, and
soon had a comfortable home and a productive farm. They
have continued to add to their property, and at the present time
there are 400 acres in the home place, the greater part of which
they have accumulated without outside help. Mr. Free
has nice buildings and a good equipment and cultivates his
property along modern lines, thus being able to secure a full
measure of profit from his labor. He has an excellent
reputation in the community for fair and honorable dealing, and
as a citizen takes a leading part in all progressive movements.
He belongs to the Knights of Pythias Lodge at Bainbridge, and
politically is a democrat. His public service includes
membership on the township board of trustees, a position which
he holds at the present time.
Mr. and Mrs. Free are consistent members of the
Methodist Episcopal Church at Fruitdale, and have been generous
in their support of its movements. They are the parents of
three children: Harold E., born in January, 1896: Paul
T., born in May, 1902; and Margaret, born in
September, 1907.
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page 647 |
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WILLIAM A. FREE.
Of the progressive and energetic exponents of agriculture and
stock raising, Paint Township may well place reliance upon such
enterprising native sons of Ross County as William A. Free,
who, with the exception of several years, has passed his entire
career within the limits of this county. Since 1910 he has
been living on his farm of 213 acres on the Greenfield Turnpike,
four miles from Bainbridge, where he has developed an excellent
property, the ownership of which makes him one of the
substantial representatives of the agricultural element in this
section.
Mr. Free was born on Cleft Run, Paint
Township, Ross County, Ohio. Oct. 30, 1862, and is a son
of Nat and Charity (Parker) Free. Nat
Free was born near Rapid Forge, at the mouth of Cleft
Run, a son of George Free, who came to Paint
Township from Pennsylvania among
the earliest settlers, located on a farm, developed a well
-cultivated and productive property, and was known as a farmer
in comfortable circum
stances and a citizen who had the respect and esteem of his
fellows. Nat Free was only two years old
when his mother died, but he was well
reared and received a good education for his day and locality.
He was brought up on Cleft Run, and after his marriage settled
on a farm in the vicinity of his boyhood home. In
1866, with his wife and children, he moved to Paint Township and
purchased the farm on which his son now lives, here spending the
rest of his life. Mr. Free was an energetic
and industrious agriculturist, practical in his ideas and ready
to try new methods. He started his career with practically
nothing, and so well were his efforts directed and so ably were
his affairs managed, that at the time of his death he was the
owner of about 1,100 acres of good land. Quiet and
unassuming in manner, he did not court publicity nor seek public
office, his ambitions being realized in the making of a good
home and the securing of a good education for his children.
Mr. Free married Charity Parker, who
was born in North Carolina and came to Ross County when 12 years
old. They became the parents of eleven children, of whom
nine are now living: Frank, a resident of Mississippi;
William A., of this review; John M., a resident of
the State of Washington; Alice, the wife of Jess
Mossberger, of Harpers Station, Ohio; Lizzie, the
wife of George Crutcher, of Paxton Township; Ed;
Carrie, who is now Mrs. Lydon Smith,
of Paint Township; George, who died young; Charles H.,
of Paint Township; Robert, who died at the age of three
years; and Sam, of Paint Township.
The district schools of Paint Township furnished
William A. Free with his educational training, and until he
was twenty-four years of age he was his father's assistant on
the home farm. At that time he entered upon a career of
his own, and after three years in Paint Township, went to
Jefferson Township, Fayette County, where he rented for two
years, was employed by the month for a time, and then rented
again. On his return to Paint Township he located on the
farm where Charles Free now resides, and on which
he remained for three or four years, or until the spring of
1910, when he came to his present farm. He has 213 acres
under a high state of cultivation, and has substantial buildings
and improvements of a modern character. Mr. Free
is a believer in up-to-date methods, and the success which has
attended his efforts would seem to indicate that he has the
right idea. He takes an interest in the affairs that
affect the community's welfare and the well-being of its people,
and has not been backward in volunteering his aid in progressive
enterprises. He exercises his political right of franchise
as a democrat.
Mr. Free was married Apr. 27, 1907, to
Miss Leona Pool, daughter of Peter and Hannah Pool.
To this union there were born twin daughters, Sept. 16,
1908: Hazel, who is attending school, and Ruth,
who died July 5, 1909.
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page 646 |
|
PORTRAIT |
GOTTFRIED FRICK
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page 635 |
|
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CHARLES ALBERT FROMM
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page 553 |
|
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GEORGE W. FRY
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page 760 |
|
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JOSEPH S. FULLER
Source: A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio -
Vol. II. - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago &
New York 1917 - Page 832 |
. |
