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Scioto County, Ohio
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JOHN G. WAGNER.    Few residents of the country community in Scioto County have more thoroughly deserved the esteem and high standing among fellow citizens than John G. Wagner, whose home has been in Scioto County since his birth.  His years were still those of boyhood when he first took a hand in the practical affairs of life, and with little education and relying almost entirely on his native ability and industry has prospered as few other residents in this section have, considering his humble beginning, and now enjoys not only a comfortable competence, an excellent home, but is favored with a position of high esteem in his community.
     John G. Wagner was born on the George Davis farm in Clay Township of Scioto County Dec. 25, 1862, a son of Leonard and Rosa (Kedch) Wagner.  Both parents were Germans by birth, came to the United States alone, and Leonard Wagner was for some years employed by farmers living in Scioto County.  They married in this county, and are both now deceased.  There were six children, and five sons are living at the present time: Fred, a farmer in Missouri; George, who lives on a farm in Iowa; John G.; Henry, whose home is in Scioto County; find William, a farmer in Valley Township.
     John G. Wagner was reared on a farm, and when the seasons of constant employment relaxed sufficiently he was able to attend the country schools.  Most of his education came from practical work, and from early boyhood he did much to support the family, and contributed to the means which allowed his good mother to maintain a home until he was past twenty-one.  When he started out for himself, he had only his proved industry and no money capital.  Thus his material accomplishments represent his individual labor and good judgment.  At the present time Mr. Wagner is the owner of a fine farm of two hundred acres in Valley Township, and his neighbors refer to him with the respect which is always paid to successful men.  Mr. Wagner is one of the trustees of the Miller's Run Wesley Chapel, where he and his family worship.  In politics he is a democrat.
     Mr. Wagner married in December, 1893, Martha Porter.  They be came the parents of two children, and the one daughter now living is Carrie, wife of Walter Rapp, and they in turn have a child, Melvin Rapp.  Mrs. Wagner was born in Madison Township of Scioto County May 27, 1870, daughter of John and Eleanor (Carley) Porter, both now deceased, and both natives of Pennsylvania.  There were seven children in the Porter family, five of whom are living: Mary, widow of Joseph Kronk of Scioto County; Alice, widow of Mr. Puterage; Frank, who lives in Scioto County; Anna, widow of John Kline of Cincinnati; and Martha.  Mrs. Wagner was reared on a farm, was educated in the district schools, and since her marriage has co-operated effectively with her husband in producing the generous prosperity which they now enjoy.
Source: A Standard History of The Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio, Vol. II - Illustrated - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, 1916 - Pages 1319 - 1320

WILLIAM HARRISON WAGNER.     A veteran of three wars, Capt. William H. Wagner, of Portsmouth, Scioto County, met with many a thrilling experience during his varied career, and a recital of the scenes through which he passed would furnish sufficient material for an exciting and interesting tale of romance.  A son of Jacob Wagner, he was born, Apr. 6, 1830, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which was also the birth place of his father.
     Peter Wagner, grandfather, was born in Alsace, France, and on coming to the United States settled in Philadelphia, where he was engaged in the ice business until his death.  He married Elizabeth Cook, who was born and reared in Alsace, Germany, and to them four sons and five daughters were born.
     During his earlier life Jacob Wagner was engaged in the ice business in his native city, at first being associated with his father.  Leaving Philadelphia in 1842 he crossed the Mississippi, and for three or four years resided in the Territory of Iowa.  Returning then to Philadelphia, he remained there until the breaking out of the Mexican war, when he enlisted in the Logan Guards, and with his command went to Mexico, where he did his duty as a brave soldier until the close of the war.  Receiving his honorable discharge, he returned to Philadelphia, but shortly afterwards bought land in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, and was there engaged in agricultural pursuits for many years, living on his farm until his death, in 1880, at the venerable age of ninety-six years.  His wife, whose maiden name was Hannah Kane, was born in Pennsylvania.  She died at the early age of thirty-eight years, leaving eight children.
     Leaving school at the age of eleven years, William H. Wagner secured work at the Baldwin Locomotive Works, in Philadelphia, and was there employed until war with Mexico was declared.  Entering then the Logan Guards as a drummer boy, he marched with his command to Pittsburgh, from there going by boat down the Ohio and Mississippi rivers to New Orleans, and thence via the Gulf of Vera Cruz, from there marching with his comrades to the City of Mexico, a distance of two hundred and sixty miles.  Continuing with his command in all of its marches, campaigns and battles until the close of the conflict, he then returned to Philadelphia, and was honorably discharged.  Resuming his former position in the Baldwin Locomotive Works, Mr. Wagner, still a beard less youth, remained with that company until 1851, when he entered the employ of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company as fireman.  He was soon promoted to engineer, and given a run between Columbia and Philadelphia.
     Going westward to Independence, Missouri, in 1855, Mr. Wagner there enlisted in the Second United States Cavalry, and went into camp for the winter in the Northwest Territory.  In the spring of 1856 he was one of a band of forty soldiers that went out on a buffalo hunt.  This little company of hunters was subsequently surprised by a band of one thousand or more redskins, who gave battle.  Although the brave soldiers killed many of the Indians, twenty-eight of the forty soldiers lost their lives, and the remaining twelve were taken prisoners by the savages, who tortured and burned eight of their captives, the remaining four soldiers witnessing the brutal treatment given their comrades.  Mr. Wagner was one of the four saved, and he was held in captivity for two and one-half years, during which time he became familiar with the Indian language, and learned the art of making Indian medicines.
     Escaping from his captors, Mr. Wagner waded a stream for several miles in order to avoid the dogs.  He was without food, but finally killed a wolf with his sword, and sucked its blood.  Skinning the wolf, he kept a quarter of the carcass for future use, and ate some of the meat raw.  Running across a mountain lion, he threw away the wolf meat, and escaped by swimming a stream.  Subsequently catching a fish, he built a fire with some punk, and having covered the fish with mud baked it in the coals, and had one of the best meals he ever enjoyed.  At the end of thirteen days, he rejoined his regiment, with which he remained until 1860.  Receiving his honorable discharge from the service in January of that year, he returned to Philadelphia, and resumed work as an engineer.  In April, 1861, Mr. Wagner enlisted for three months in Company B, First Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, and took part in the battle of Bull Run.  His term of enlistment expiring while he was still in the field, Mr. Wagner enlisted in Company A, First Pennsylvania Cavalry, under Captain Robinson, and with his comrades was at the front in many of the more important engagements of the war, among them having been the battles at Culpeper, Spottsylvania, Antietam, Kelleys Ford, Gettysburg, Brandy Station, and at Port Republic.  He participated in twenty-six engagements, and was seven times wounded, in the battle of Bull Run receiving a saber wound in the side.  In October, 1864, he was honorably discharged on account of disability arising from his numerous wounds.
     Returning North, Mr. Wagner went to Huntington, West Virginia, to live, and on recovering his health resumed work as an engineer.  In 1884 he accepted a position in Cuba as master mechanic on the Cuba Central Railroad, and was there thus employed until the blowing up of the Maine, on Feb. 15, 1898.  Returning to the United States, he lived first in Charleston, and later in Huntington, West Virginia, from the latter place, in 1899, coming to Portsmouth, Ohio, which has since been his home.  The Captain has on Second Street a laboratory in which he compounds Indian medicines, and in his office he has one of the most valuable collection of Indian relics privately owned in the world.  He is a member of the G. A. R. and an ex-commander, and in the Masonic order has attained the thirty-third degree, which he received in London, England.  He is an ex-grand master of the thirty-third degree in Philadelphia.  He also belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and to the Knights of Pythias.
     Captain Wagner has been twice married.  He married first, in 1860, Sarah Pheasant, who was born in Huntington, West Virginia, and died Feb. 28, 1912.  The maiden name of the Captain's second wife was Sarah Rucker.  She was born in Lawrence County, Ohio, a daughter of Elias and Margaret (Webb) Rucker, and a granddaughter on the maternal side of James and Sarah (Brown) Webb, who came from North Carolina to Lawrence county, Ohio, in early pioneer days, and taking up land from the Government hewed a farm from the wilderness.  By his first marriage Captain Wagner had one son, Harry Wagner, of Portsmouth.  Harry Wagner married Mary Shaffer, and they have six children, namely: Pearl, Elsie, Harry, Charles, Albert, and Richard.
Source: A Standard History of The Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio, Vol. II - Illustrated - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, 1916 - Pages 873 - 875

GILBERT D. WAITE.     The native-born citizens and substantial business men of Scioto County have no more worthy representative than Gilbert D. Waite, of Portsmouth, a son of the late John Heaton Waite, and grandson of Benjamin Waite, Jr., an early pioneer of this part of the state.  He is born Oct. 15, 1851, in Portsmouth, of honored English ancestry, being a lineal descendant in the eight generation from the immigrant ancestor, Richard Waite, his lineage being thus traced: Richard, Thomas, Joseph, John, Benjamin, Benjamin, John Heaton, and Gilbert D.
     Richard Waite was born in England in 1608.  Coming to America in early life, he settled in Watertown, Massachusetts, where he is recorded as a landholder in 1637.  John Waite, a lifelong resident, it is supposed, of Massachusetts, was for many years proprietor of the Waite Tavern, which was located on the old stage road leading from Boston to Worcester.
     Benjamin Waite, Mr. Waite 's great-grandfather, was born in Sudbury, Massachusetts, Feb. 13, 1736.  A young man of fine physique, tall and well proportioned, famed as an athlete and a hunter, he enlisted, in 1755, as a private in a provincial regiment for service against the French and the Indians.  Subsequently transferred to Roger's Corps of Rangers, he was always one of those selected for the most hazardous undertakings of that famous body of soldiers.  In 1756 he was captured by the enemy, taken to Quebec, and from there was taken with other prisoners to France.  Before landing, however, the vessel was captured by the English, and he was returned to America.  With his brother, Joseph Waite, he again enlisted under command of General Rogers, and distinguished himself in many desperate encounters with the savages.  He was again captured in 1757, and taken to St. Francis, Canada, where, with other prisoners, he was forced to run the gauntlet, that is to make his way through two rows of Indians, armed with whips, clubs, etc., facing each other, each redskin to give him a whack as he passed through the line.  Many prisoners were killed in going down the line, but young Waite understood Indian tactics, and when given the order to start seized a weapon and wrenched it from the hand of the Indian nearest him, and swung it right and left as he went on, much to the amazement of his torturers, and of the older braves who witnessed the scene, passing unscathed to the very end of the line.  There a French woman beckoned to him, took him under her protection, and he was well cared for.  Making his escape at the end of three months, he joined General Amherst's forces at Louisburg.
     In 1760 Benjamin Waite was among the soldiers sent to Detroit to bring in the French garrison of the Illinois forts.  In 1775 he joined Ethan Allen and Seth Warner in their expedition against the forts at Ticonderoga and Crown Point.  On Oct. 10, 1776, he was commissioned captain of a company of rangers attached to Major Haisington's Brigade, which was raised to protect the northern frontier, and to guard the road to Crown Point.  After the death of Major Haisington, Captain Waite succeeded him as commander of the battalion.  After the close of the Revolutionary war he became prominent in public affairs.  He opposed New York State in its claim for jurisdiction, and was an active member of the conventions at Westminster and Windsor that gave to the New Hampshire grants the name of Vermont, and framed the state constitution.
     Benjamin Waite surely led a strenuous life.  Ere he had completed twenty-four years of life, he had participated in more than forty battles.  At the breaking out of the Revolutionary war he turned his property into cash, and loaned the Government $4,000 in gold.  He received in payment Continental scrip which was so near worthless that he gave a peddler $1,200 for a half pound of tea and a quarter of a pound of indigo.  The Revolutionary records in Washington, D. C, mention him first as major, and later speaks of him as Lieutenant Colonel Waite, Vermont Battalion.  After the war he was commissioned brigadier general of Vermont Militia.  General Waite served as high sheriff of Windsor County, Vermont, and the Towns of Waitsfield, Vermont, was chartered by him.
     Gen. Benjamin Waite married Lois Gilbert, a daughter of Thomas Gilbert, of Brookfield, Massachusetts, who was also a soldier in the Revolutionary war.
     Benjamin Waite, was born at Windsor, Vermont, Sept. 11, 1773, and there grew to a sturdy manhood.  In 1814, accompanied by his family, he followed the march of civilization westward to the wilds of Ohio, making an overland trip with teams to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he embarked, teams and all, on a boat, and came down the Ohio River to Portsmouth, Ohio.  It had been his intention to settle in the rich bottom lands of the Scioto Valley, but on account of the prevalence of malaria in the lowlands he bought a forest-covered tract of land in Porter Township, and began the pioneer labor of redeeming a farm from the wilderness.  Improving a water power on Weed's run, he erected a saw mill, one of the first in the vicinity.  For many years he, or his sons, used to take all of the surplus products of the farm to New Orleans on flatboats, and after selling their cargo would dispose of their boats, and make their way back home as best they could, probably on a steamer.  On the farm which he improved he spent the remainder of his days, dying Jan. 8, 1858.  His wife, whose maiden name was Lavina Heaton, died Oct. 7, 1872, aged ninety-six years.  They were the parents of twelve children.
     John Heaton Waite was born at West Chazy, New York, Mar. 22, 1811.  Being brought by his parents to Portsmouth when but three years of age, he grew to manhood amid pioneer scenes, receiving his education ill the rural schools.  Leaving home in early life, he went to Pittsburgh, where he served an apprenticeship of two years at the cabinet maker's trade, which he afterwards followed for a year in Cincinnati.  Returning then to Porter Township, he started in business for himself on a modest scale, manufacturing furniture to order, making the most of it at first by hand.  Being a skilled workman, and a clever designer, he was kept very busy.  In 1838 he located in Portsmouth, and met with such assured success from the start that he added horse power to the equipments of his shop, and ere long installed steam power, being one of the first to use steam in a furniture factory.  It was from that small beginning that the immense business of the Waite Furniture Company of the present day was developed.  Soon after the close of the Civil war Gilbert D. Waite, son of the founder of the business, was admitted to the firm, becoming junior member of the firm of J. H. Waite & Son.  The senior member of the firm continued active in business until 1884, when he retired, and subsequently lived free from business cares until his death, Oct. 10, 1807.
     John Heaton Waite married Malvina Sikes, who was born in Scioto County, Ohio, a daughter of Levi Sikes.  Her grandfather, John Jones Sikes, the maternal great-grandfather of Gilbert D. Waite, served as a soldier in the Revolutionary war, having been a private in Capt. Gideon Burt's Company of Guards, Massachusetts Militia of Hampshire and Worcester counties, the pay rolls of the company bearing date of Sept. 1, 1777, and Jan. 1, 1778.  He also served in Capt. Abel Holden's Company of Light Infantry, Sixth Massachusetts Regiment, commanded by Col. Thomas Nipon.  On July 3, 1780, he enlisted for six months, and served until September, 1780.  In 1804 he came to Ohio, and a short time later removed to Marion County, Kentucky, where his death occurred in 1807.  His widow, whose maiden name was Sarah Sowles, survived him many long years, and in 1850 applied for a pension.  Levi Sikes was born in Wilbraham, Massachusetts, Oct. 29, 1794, and was in his seventh year when his parents settled in New York State, in the Genesee Valley.  In 1804 he came with them to Scioto County, and subsequently learned the brick maker's trade, which he followed in Portsmouth from 1815 until 1822.  Going then to Porter Township, he was there engaged in farming until 1836, when he took up his residence in Harrison Township, where he spent his remaining days, dying Mar. 30, 1870.  Levi Sikes married, in February, 1819.  Mary Keyes, who was born, July 17, 1799, in Rockbridge County, Virginia, a daughter of Selma Keyes, a native of Massachusetts, and a soldier in the Revolutionary war.  Mrs. John Heaton Waite survived her husband but a few months, passing away Mar. 5, 1898.  She reared six children, as follows: Isabella, who married Rev. Walter Wyeth; Gilbert D., the special subject of this sketch; Fanny married S. F. Leiter; Emma became the wife of W. H. W. Avery; Sarah, who married George W. Holman; and John Wesley.
     Acquiring his early education in the Portsmouth schools, Gilbert H. Waite began as a boy to clerk for his father, continuing until after the outbreak of the Civil war.  Filled with the same patriotic ardor that inspired his ancestors, he enlisted, Aug. 14, 1861, at the age of nineteen years, in Company A, Thirtieth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and was mustered in as fifth sergeant of his company.  He was later promoted to first sergeant, and was with his command in many marches and engagements, among the more important battles in which he participated having been those of South Mountain, Antietam, Vicksburg, Jackson, and Mission Ridge.  Accompanying Sherman on his march to Atlanta, Mr. Waite took part in the many engagements on the way, and assisted in the capture of the city.  In August, 1864, at the expiration of his term of enlistment, he was honorably discharged from the service at Jonesboro, Georgia, and immediately returned home.  About two years later Mr. Waite became associated in business with his father under the firm name of J. H. Waite & Son, and for several years after the retirement of his father conducted the affairs of the concern, and is now a director of the Waite Furniture Company, its successor.
     Mr. Waite married, Nov. 10, 1868, Catherine Wetherbee, who was born in Tioga County, Pennsylvania, a daughter of Francis and Fanny (Graves) Wetherbee.  She died in 1878, leaving one child, Bertha Waite.  Mr. Waite married for his second wife, Sarah J. Dillon, daughter of Rev. John W. and Mary Dillon, of whom further account may be found on another page of this work.  Mr. and Mrs. Waite have three children, namely: Helen, who married Dr. Walter Sheldon, and has one child, Katherine Sheldon; Katherine, wife of Charles D. Scudder and Gilbert D. Jr.  Mr. and Mrs. Waite are members of the Bigelow Methodist Episcopal Church, and Mr. Waite is a member of Bailey Post. Grand Army of the Republic.
Source: A Standard History of The Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio, Vol. II - Illustrated - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, 1916 - Pages 1332

CARY A. WALDEN.     A native son of Scioto County, Mr. Walden has here found ample opportunity for successful endeavor along normal lines of enterprise, and is now a prosperous and progressive merchant of Sciotoville, the while there is definite voucher for his secure hold upon the confidence and esteem of the local public in the fact that he is serving as township clerk of Porter Township.
     Mr. Walden was born on the homestead farm of his parents, in Harrison Township, this county, and the date of his nativity was Aug. 18, 1873.  He is a son of Charles H. and Harriet (Colgrove) Walden, the former of whom is still a resident of Porter Township, and the latter of whom is deceased.  He whose name introduces this review acquired his early education in the public schools of his native county and as a mere boy he began to learn the lesson of personal responsibility and practical application.  He has been a resident of Sciotoville since 1884 and from a clerical position in a local mercantile establishment he has won advancement to the status of a representative business man and loyal and progressive citizen of his native county.  He is conducting a well-appointed grocery store at Sciotoville and controls a substantial trade, based alike upon fair and effective service and upon his personal popularity in the community.
     In politics Mr. Walden may be designated as a progressive republican, and he has been influential in public affairs of a local order.  He served as township clerk of Porter Township from 1901 to 1911 and after a brief interregnum was again called to this office in 1913, his continued incumbency being virtually a matter that will be regulated by his own desires, for there is no lack of popular appreciation of his efficient services.  Mr. Walden is affiliated with the Modern Woodmen of America, and both he and his wife are zealous members of the Methodist Episcopal Church in their home village, he being a trustee and formerly assistant superintendent of its Sunday school.
     In the year 1901 Mr. Walden wedded Miss Ella Ellesser, and they have four children: Pauline, Ruth, Louis and Harriet, the eldest daughter being in first year of high school.
Source: A Standard History of The Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio, Vol. II - Illustrated - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, 1916 - Pages 1010

MRS. EFFIE MAY WALKER.     A woman of pleasing personality, energetic and eminently capable, Mrs. Effie May Walker, vice president of the Portsmouth Veneer & Panel Company, is well known in the business and social life of her home city, being ever mindful of her official duties, and never neglectful of the pleasant demands of society and friends.  She was born near Chillicothe, Ross County, Ohio, a daughter of James Petrie, Jr., and is the widow of the late William Seymour Walker, for many years a prominent and much-beloved citizen of Portsmouth.
    Mrs. Walker's paternal grandfather, James Petrie, Sr., was born and bred in Scotland, and there married.  Immigrating with his family to the United States, coming with a colony of brave Scotchmen, he settled in Pike County, Ohio, near Jasper, and having purchased land, was there engaged in agricultural pursuits during his remaining days, he and his wife both dying on the home farm.  They were the parents of two children, James and Charles.
     James Petrie, Jr., was born at Patrick, a suburb of Glasgow, Scotland, and was but a lad when brought to Ohio by his parents.  He grew to man's estate in Pike County, and in 1862 enlisted in Company A. Fifty-third Ohio Volunteer Infantry.  Going South with his regiment, he took part in many of the more important engagements of the war, including among others the battle of Monterey, Tennessee, and the engagements at Corinth, Chickasaw Bayou, Black River, Mission Ridge, and in the numerous skirmishes occurring while en route to Atlanta.  He was at the front in the siege of Atlanta, and took part in the battles at Jonesboro, Fort McAlester and at North Edisto River.  Being honorably discharged with his regiment at the close of the conflict, Mr. Petrie returned to his home in Pike County, Ohio, and there resumed farming.  Removing later to Ross County, he remained there two years, and then again returned to Pike County, settling on a farm located about two miles from Jasper.  He was soon apointed appointed postmaster at Jasper, and retained the position until his death, at the age of seventy three years.
     The maiden name of the wife of James Petrie, Jr., the mother of Mrs. Walker, was Louisa Frances Ashton.  She was born in New Richmond, Ohio, a daughter of Joseph Ashton, Jr., and granddaughter of Joseph Ashton, Sr., who was the great-grandfather of Mrs. Walker.  Joseph Ashton, Sr., served as a soldier in the Continental army during the Revolutionary war, his record as given in the archives of Pennsylvania being as follows: He was commissioned second lieutenant of the Second Regiment of Artillery, commanded by Col. John H. Lamb; on Jan. 23, 1777, he was promoted to first lieutenant and adjutant; on May —, 1778, he was transferred to the Pennsylvania Artillery Regiment, under Col. Thomas Proctor; Apr. 19, 1781, he was promoted to the rank of captain; and on Jan. 1, 1783, was made paymaster.  He marched with Arnold to Quebec, where he was taken prisoner.  He continued a member of the militia after the close of the Revolution, and fought the Indians in the Northwest Territory.  He lived to a ripe old age, dying in 1816.
     Joseph Ashton, Jr., Mrs. Walker's grandfather, was born at Old town, Pennsylvania, near New Castle, and in his youthful days served an apprenticeship at the trade of a steamboat builder in Pittsburgh.  In 1847, having completed his trade, he came to Ohio, and for eight years lived in New Richmond.  In 1855 he embarked in the feed business at Portsmouth, being in partnership with his brother-in-law, Milton Kennedey, for a year.  He was afterwards in company with Henry Dinsmore as a bottler of mineral waters.  During the progress of the Civil war he removed to Ross County, Ohio, which was his home for ten years.  In 1864 he was appointed treasury clerk, and sent South, being stationed at Vicksburg and other points, and at one time while thus employed was captured by the enemy at Goodrich's Landing, Louisiana.  Returning from the South, Mr. Ashton lived in Pike and Ross counties a few years, and then assumed charge of the City Hospital in Portsmouth, an office which he filled for a number of years, being quite successful as superintendent of the institution.   From 1878 until 1891 he was justice of the peace in Wayne Township.  Resigning the position, he moved to Sinking Spring, Highland County, where he resided until his death.
     Joseph Ashton, Jr., married Matilda Kennedey, a native of Pennsylvania, and among their children was a daughter named Louisa Frances, who became the wife of James Petrie, Jr.  Mrs. Louisa Frances (Ashton) Petrie died at the early age of twenty-six years, leaving five children, namely: Effie May, Jessie, Flora, Harry Victor and Martha.  After the death of his first wife, Mr. Petrie married for his second wife Helen McGregor, a native of Scotland, and to them three children were born, namely: George, Charles and Cecil.
     Effie May Petrie received excellent educational advantages when young, and at the age of twenty-three years became the wife of the late William Seymour Walker, of whom a brief biography is given on another page of this volume.  Mrs. Walker is vice president of the Portsmouth Veneer & Panel Company, as previously mentioned, and is president of the New Century Club and of the Country Club.  She is a member of the Bigelow Methodist Episcopal Church, and has reared her children, Paul N., Harold H. and Sara L., in the same faith.
Source: A Standard History of The Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio, Vol. II - Illustrated - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, 1916 - Pages 844

WILLIAM SEYMOUR WALKER.     Among the prominent citizens whom Portsmouth has been called upon to mourn during the past few years, none have been more genuinely missed than William Seymour Walker, a man of great heart and strong character, whom it was a privilege to know, either in the business world or in social circles.  A native of New York State, he was born Mar. 18, 1861, in the City of Buffalo.  He received his early education in the public schools of Chicago, where his parents located when he was a small child.  After the terrible conflagration that destroyed that city, in October, 1871, he went with the family to Milwaukee, where he and his sister completed their studies.
     At the age of eighteen years, with the confidence and self-reliant spirit characteristic of one possessing his keen ability and enterprise, he began the battle of life on his own account, first as a bookkeeper, and later as an expert accountant.  Preferring a more active career, he visited various cities of the Union as a commercial traveler.  Coming to Portsmouth, Ohio, on one of his trips, Mr. Walker was so favorably impressed with the city and its future prospects that he made up his mind to locate here permanently.  In 1887, therefore, he secured a position as bookkeeper with the firm then known as the Goldsmith & Rapp Veneer Company.  Thoroughly efficient and industrious, and much interested in advancing the interests of his employers, he was promoted from time to time, and in 1900 became general manager of the entire business now known as the Portsmouth Veneer & Panel Company.  He was also founder and president of the Walker Veneer & Lumber Company of Mound City, Iowa, which is a stock company.  He ably and satisfactorily filled the responsible position, winning the respect and good will of all with whom he came in contact.  Early in October, 1911, Mr. Walker, who was suffering from a malady which nothing but skilful surgery could relieve, went, accompanied by his faithful wife, to Cleveland to consult an eminent surgeon, and died in that city on Nov. 5, 1911, news of his death coming as a shock and a profound sorrow, not only to his family and friends, but to his associates and to the public in general.
     Many expressions of sympathy were tendered Mrs. Walker and her family in their great affliction, not only from personal and business friends, but from fraternal, industrial, financial and other associations with which Mr. Walker was connected, including Portsmouth Camp No. 3993, Modern Woodmen of America, the Employers' Association of Portsmouth, Ohio, and the Central National Bank of Portsmouth.
     The funeral services of Mr. Walker, held at his home in Portsmouth, Nov. 7, 1911, were attended by many of his business associates, some of whom came from many miles away, from distant towns and nearby states, all desirous of paying the last mark of respect to a man whose influence for good will long be felt throughout Central Ohio.  He was a man of keen intellect; wise in council; firm in his convictions, yet gracious in yielding to the will of others; and true as steel in his integrity.  In his domestic life, which was one of rare happiness, there were the more sacred and tender qualities that are too hallowed to he spoken by other than household lips.  Of Mr. Walker it can truly be said,

     Mr. Walker married, on Aug. 14, 1889, Miss Effie May Petrie, of whom a brief sketch may be found on another page of this volume, and into the household thus established three children, were born, namely, Paul Norton, Harold Holcomb and Sarah Louise.
Source: A Standard History of The Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio, Vol. II - Illustrated - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, 1916 - Pages 843

THOMAS WALLER, M. D.     Distinguished as the first physician to settle in Scioto County, Hon. Thomas Waller, M. D., was conspicuously identified with its growth and development, and as an early resident of Portsmouth filled many public positions of trust and responsibility.  A son of John and Mary (Mathews) Waller, he was born Sept. 14, 1774, in Stafford County, Virginia.
     He received superior educational advantages for his time, and in 1797 was graduated from William and Mary College, in Williamsburg, Virginia.  Going soon after that important event to Kentucky, he was for a short time engaged in mercantile business at Washington, Mason County.  Subsequently attending medical lectures at the Pennsylvania Medical College, in Philadelphia, he was graduated from that institution with the degree of M. D., and immediately began the practice of his profession in Kentucky.
     On Jan. 10, 1800, Doctor Waller married Elizabeth Macfarlane, daughter of Capt. Andrew Macfarlane, of Shippensburg, Pennsylvania, who served as captain of a company in the Revolutionary war.  Going with his bride to Pennsylvania, Dr. Waller remained there a year, and then, in 1801, accompanied by his wife and infant child, he came to Ohio, traveling on horseback to Wheeling, and thence by boat to Alexandria, Ohio, arriving there on June 21, 1801.  Purchasing property there, the Doctor immediately began the practice of his profession, and in 1803 was elected justice of the peace.  At the organization of Scioto County he had the distinction of being the first representative, to the State Legislature elected from that county.  Subsequently removing to Portsmouth, Dr. Waller continued his residence in this city until his death, July 19, 1823.
     Doctor Waller was the first postmaster of Portsmouth, holding the position at the time of his death.  He was the first president of the Commercial Bank of Scioto County, which was organized in 1817, being the first institution of the kind in the county.  He was also the first president of the first council of the Town of Portsmouth, and was one of the first wardens of the first vestry of All Saints' Church.
     Mrs. Waller died in 1824, in Portsmouth.  Nine children were born of the union of Doctor and Mrs. Waller, namely: Margaret, who married Capt. Francis Cleveland; Mary married Washington Kinney; William died unmarried; Thomas married Miriam Coppage; Elizabeth; Hannah died unmarried; John married Mary J. Baldridge; Susannah married John P. Berry; and George A. married Jane Davey.
Source: A Standard History of The Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio, Vol. II - Illustrated - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, 1916 - Pages 925

CHARLES VINCENT WERTZ.     Noteworthy among the enterprising and prosperous residents of Portsmouth is Charles Vincent Wertz, who is carrying on a substantial business as a dealer in real estate.  A son of Charles Wertz, he was born Apr. 27, 1872, in the City of Portsmouth, coming from German ancestry.
     A native of Germany, Charles Wertz was left fatherless when a young child.  His widowed mother being left in somewhat straightened circumstances, came with her little family to America, locating in Portsmouth, where she subsequently married Jacob Kunzelman, with whom she removed to Beaver, Pike County, where they both spent their remaining days.  Charles Wertz became self-supporting at an early age, working at any honest employment until entering a printing office, where, in addition to learning the printers' trade, he acquired a very good education.  He was afterwards clerk on a steamer plying between Cincinnati and New Orleans for a number of seasons.  Resigning that position, he opened a cafe in Portsmouth, and thereafter conducted it successfully until his death, in 1897, at the age of fifty years.  The maiden name of the wife of Charles Wertz was Elizabeth Barr.  A daughter of William Barr, she was born in Portsmouth, Ohio, of German lineage.  Her paternal grandfather, Thomas Barr, was born, reared, and married in Germany.  Late in life he bade adieu to the fatherland, came to Ohio, and spent his last days in Chillicothe.  Born and educated in Germany, William Barr was fourteen years of age when he came to America.  Locating in Pike County, Ohio, he was for a while employed in the stone works at Waverly, and subsequently lived for two or three years in Iowa, and for two years in Portsmouth.  He died, at the early age of forty-eight years, in Waverly, Ohio.  The maiden name of the wife of William Barr was Phebe Rodenmeyer.  Born and bred in Germany, she came to this country at the age of twenty-two years, and until her marriage kept house for her uncle, Valentine Frey, near Waverly.  She died in Portsmouth, at the age of forty-seven years, leaving four children, as follows: Katherine; Frederick; Elizabeth, who married Charles Wertz; and Charles.  Mrs. Elizabeth Wertz died Mar. 9, 1815.  She had two children, namely: Charles Vincent, the special subject of this brief biographical sketch; and Laura, who married John Wilhelm, and has one child, Harold Wilhelm.  Both parents belonged to the German Evangelical Church, and the father was a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
     Having obtained a practical common school education, Charles Vincent Wertz began his career as a clerk in a mercantile establishment.  Not content, however, with his position and future prospects in that capacity, he finally turned his attention to the real estate business, and in his various transactions has met with most satisfactory results.  He makes a specialty of buying extensive acreage, and after platting his property, builds upon it, and sells at a fair profit.  In this way Mr. Wertz has built up a large and lucrative business, and has done much to promote the growth and prosperity of city and county.
     On Sept. 15, 1897, Mr. Wertz was united in marriage with Clara Slagle, who was born at Powellsville, Ohio, a daughter of Dr. Jacob and Katherine Slagle.  Mr. and Mrs. Wertz are the parents of three children, namely: Margaret, Charles, and William.  Fraternally, Mr. Wertz is a member of Magnolia Lodge, No. 390, Knights of Pythias.
Source: A Standard History of The Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio, Vol. II - Illustrated - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, 1916 - Pages 949

DANIEL WEBSTER WILLIAMS.  As editor of that portion of the "History of the Hanging Rock Iron Region" pertaining to Jackson County, the publishers desire herewith to present a brief sketch of the career of Daniel Webster Williams, whose many years spent in Jackson County have been accompanied with valuable service as newspaper man, author, and a leader in public affairs.
     George David Williams, grandfather of the Jackson editor, was born Feb. 11, 1785, and died Dec. 30, 1871.  He was the founder of the Williams name is Southern Ohio.  He was a freeholder at Lledrod, Wales, and in 1839 emigrated to America and settled on a farm in Greenfield Township, Gallia County, Ohio.  There he assisted to organize Sardis Church, Calvinistic Methodist.  He married Hannah Lewis of Aberaeron, Wales, a descendant of a Huguenot who had tied from France in a coasting vessel at the time of the St. Bartholomew massacre, and settled in Wales.  Hannah Lewis died March 22, 1870.
     Benjamin G. Williams, father of Daniel W., was born in Wales, emigrated with his parents and spent the rest of his life in Ohio.  He was a fanner, first in Gallia County, and then near Banner, in Jackson County.  He was born March 2, 1821, and died Jan. 8, 1912.  By two wives he was the father of seventeen children.  His second wife, the mother of Daniel W., was Margaret Evans, who was born in Jackson County, Ohio, Mar. 18, 1839, and died February 9, 1908.
     Daniel W. Williams was educated in the common schools and in the Ohio University, leaving college in his junior year.  After some experience in other lines he took up newspaper work July 15, 1889, and that has been his vocation ever since, except during the period from April, 1905, to June, 1907, when he served as consul at Cardiff, Wales.  As consul he wrote many exhaustive reports to the American Government.  He resigned that post in the consular service to return home and care for his mother during her last days.  Mr. Williams was given the honorary degree of A. M. by Ohio University in 1904.  Besides his contributions to the current newspapers, Mr. Williams is author of a history of Scioto Salt Licks in Jackson County; and edits the Standard Journal, a weekly regarded as a unique contribution to journalistic technic.  His "Day by Day" notes on varied subjects, politics, personalities, philosophy, humor, etc., have been widely quoted.
     On the republican ticket Mr. Williams was elected in 1908 as senator from the Seventh Ohio District, and served one term. In that time he was chairman of the committee on mines, and introduced the present milling code for Ohio. He was also chairman of the Ohio food probe committee of 1910, the first to publish a report on that subject in this country.  In 1914 Mr. Williams was candidate on the progressive ticket for lieutenant governor of Ohio.  He has long been active in the Presbyterian Church, having served as elder, Sunday school superintendent, trustee and in other relations with his home church, and as president of the Jackson County Sunday School Association several terms.  In college Mr. Williams was a Delta Tau Delta, and is affiliated with the Improved Order of Red Men.  In his home community he has performed a number of civic services, and was a library trustee of Jackson.
     Jan. 6, 1887, Mr. Williams married Sarah Marshall Ames at Macon, Mississippi.  Mrs. Williams is of a notable Southern family.  She received her education at Macon, Mississippi, and in the Ohio University.  Her parents were Charles Bingley and Sarah Jane (Longstreet) Ames.  Her ancestor, Sylvanus Ames, died while with the American army at Valley Forge.  Her father was a soldier in the Confederate army, and held many positions of honor in Noxubee County, Mississippi, including those of probate judge, superintendent of education, etc.  Mrs. Williams' mother was the youngest sister of Gen. James Longstreet, one of the ablest leaders of the Confederacy.  Of the children born to Mr. and Mrs. Williams, two, Maude and Chilton, died in infancy.  Ben Ames Williams, who was born at Macon, Mississippi, March 7, 1889, graduated from Dartmouth College in 1910, and since that year has been employed on the Boston American, and on Sept. 4, 1912, at York Harbor, Maine, married Florence Talpy; Helen Ames Williams, born at Jackson, Ohio, July 20, 1893, was graduated at Glendale College, Ohio, in 1913.
Source: A Standard History of The Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio, Vol. II - Illustrated - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, 1916 - Page 796

SAMUEL A. WILLIAMS.     One of the fine old characters of a generation that is now a past was the late Samuel A. Williams, who lived for many years in Scioto County and whose descendants are still represented among the honorable and successful citizenship of this locality.
     Samuel A. Williams was born in Bath County, Kentucky, Feb. 20, 1807.  His father, Capt. William A. Williams, was born in England Nov. 16, 1774, as a boy began the life of a sailor and rose to the captaincy of  a vessel.  Finally retiring from the sea, he came to America and on May 8, 1805, married Harriet L. Forrest.  She, too, was a native of England and a daughter o a wealthy sea captain, but at the time of her marriage was visiting the family of Judge Salter in the United States.  After their marriage Captain Williams and wife located on a farm in Bath County, Kentucky, and that was their home until death. Captain Williams died Mar. 20, 1845.
     Samuel A. Williams, who was one of several children, was reared and educated in Kentucky, and in young manhood moved to Portsmouth, where he was employed in the Gaylord Rolling Mill until after the breaking out of the Civil war.  He was more than fifty years of age when the war came on, and was therefore not subject to duty.  However, he enlisted in Company B of the Seventy-third Regiment of Ohio Volunteer Infantry, went to the front, and remained in the service until his honorable discharge on account of disability.  After his return from the army he continued a resident of Portsmouth until his death on Nov. 1, 1871, at the age of sixty-nine.
     Samuel A. Williams married Mrs. Sidney A. (Huston) Anderson.  She will always have a special distinction in the history of the City of Portsmouth, since she is credited with having been the first white girl child born on the site of that city, Aug. 7, 1808.  Her parents were William and Susanna (Boyd) Huston, a family that is sketched else where in this work.  Mrs. Williams died Dec. 8, 1892.  She had one child by her first marriage, Eliza A. Anderson, now deceased.  Mr. and Mrs. Williams reared six children: Maria L., William H., Susanna H., Cyrus Brooks, John M. and Samuel Vinton.  Three of the sons, William H., John M. and Cyrus B., all saw service in the Civil war, and the two first are the subjects of special sketches found else where in this publication.  The son Cyrus Brooks enlisted with his father in Company B of the Seventy-third Regiment of Ohio Infantry, went to the front, and after nearly a year was honorably discharged on acount account of disability.   Returning home and recuperating, he again enlisted, this time in the One Hundred and Seventeenth Regiment of Ohio Volunteer Infantry, a regiment that subsequently became the First Ohio Heavy Artillery.  After his second enlistment he again went to the front and remained with his command until the close of the war.  An honorable discharge was followed by return to Portsmouth and some years later he went West and died in Denver, Colorado, a few years ago.
Source: A Standard History of The Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio, Vol. II - Illustrated - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, 1916 - Page 825

CAPTAIN WILLIAM HUSTON WILLIAMS.     While his country needed his services on the battlefields of the South, Captain William H. Williams was a gallant soldier with an Ohio regiment, having enlisted from Ports mouth, the home of his childhood and early youth.  Since the war Captain Williams has been a successful and thrifty business man, and has enjoyed many tokens of esteem and evidence of the confidence of his fellow citizens in various public offices.
     Captain William Huston Williams was born in the City of Portsmouth Aug. 27, 1840, and was the oldest son of Samuel A. and Sidney (Huston) Williams, worthy pioneers whose careers are sketched on other pages of this work.  William H. Williams was educated in the Portsmouth schools, and on July 16, 1861, before he had reached his twenty-first birthday, enlisted in Company A of the 39th Ohio Volunteer Infantry.  This regiment, according to Evans' History; had more re-enlisted veterans than any other regiment from Ohio, and saw as much hard service if not more and was in more battles than any regiment ever formed in Scioto County. In December, 1863, Captain Williams re-enlisted, and was with his command in all its various marches, campaigns and battles, and a full account of the regiment's services would include a general account of the war, especially in the Mississippi Valley and in the critical campaigns through Georgia and North and South Carolina and Tennessee.  Captain Williams participated in the battles of New Madrid, Missouri, Island No. 10, luka and Corinth in Mississippi, Parker's Cross Roads in Tennessee, and was with Sherman's Command in all the engagements from Chattanooga to Atlanta, and also in the siege and capture of that city.  Following the fall of Atlanta he accompanied Sherman's victorious army on the march to the sea, entered the City of Savannah on Christmas Day of 1864, thence proceeded through the Carolinas and was present at Johnston's surrender near Raleigh, arriving an hour before he surrendered.  Captain Williams was then placed in charge of the regimental baggage and went by rail to Moorehead, North Carolina, thence by boat to Washington, and arrived in the capital in time to witness the grand review of the victorious hosts of the Union army.  He went with his regiment to Louisville, Kentucky, and was honorably discharged in July, 1865, after having seen fully four years of active service.  After the war Captain Williams enlisted in Company C of the Sixth Regiment of the Ohio National Guards, and served for a number of years with the rank of captain. 
     The war over, Captain Williams went to Nile Township in Scioto County and spent about five years in managing a general store for Thomas Adamson.  In 1877 he was elected county recorder and gave six years of capable and efficient management to that office.  For several years he was a contractor on public works and held the office of deputy United States marshal under President Harrison for four years.  He was also assistant sergeant of the Ohio State Senate for two terms.  Captain Williams now lives retired.
     On Oct. 8, 1866, Captain Williams married Nancy Arose, who died in 1869.  On Mar. 4, 1877, he married Florence Humble.  She was born at Bladensburg, Wapello County, Iowa, June 30, 1858.  Her father, Sylvester J. Humble, was born in Adams County, Ohio, near Cedar Mills, a son of James Humble, who was a pioneer of Adams County, and improved a farm near Wamsleyville, on Turkey Creek, and lived there until his death.  Sylvester J. Humble was reared and married in his native county, and in 1857 joined a colony bound for what was then considered the far west.  There were twenty teams in line, and for twenty-six days the caravan journeyed slowly to the west and finally reached the new state of Iowa, locating in Wapello County.  The greater portion of the state was then uninhabited and the land was sold by the Government at a price as low as $1.25 per acre.  For a part of the year Mr. Humble was engaged in teaming to Keokuk, sixty miles distant, which was the nearest convenient market.  He remained in Iowa two years, then returned to Southern Ohio and located in Nile Township of Scioto County.  During the Civil war Sylvester Humble enlisted in the One Hundred and Fortieth Regiment of Ohio Infantry and served until his honorable discharge.  His last days were spent in Portsmouth.  Sylvester Humble married Melissa F. Mott, who was born in Adams County, Ohio, a daughter of Henry Mott, who was born in Pennsylvania, Apr. 30, 1799.  Henry Mott was a son of Robert Mott, who was probably a native of Pennsylvania, moved from there to the State of Illinois and became an early settler in the Mississippi River valley, in Hardin County, and lived there until his death.  Mr. Mott was only a youth when the family moved to Illinois and at an early age left home and engaged in boating up and down the Mississippi and Ohio rivers, operating keel boats.  Later he settled in Adams County, Ohio, and lived near Sandy Springs a few years, then came to Scioto County, bought land in lower Nile Township, twelve miles from Portsmouth, and after thirteen years as a farmer there sold out and returned to Hardin County, Illinois, lived there seven years and finally returned to Scioto County and lived in Nile Township until his death on Aug. 24, 1846.  Henry Mott married Phebe Woodruff.  She was born in Philadelphia, Mar. 22, 1801, a daughter of Benjamin Franklin Woodruff, who was a native of Pennsylvania and served with the rank of lieutenant in the War of 1812.  In 1817 Lieutenant Woodruff moved out to Ohio, accompanied by his family, making the entire journey overland with ox teams and wagons.  The Woodruffs located near Sandy Springs in Adams County and that was his home until his death.  His remains are buried in the Sandy Springs Cemetery.  Lieutenant Woodruff married Jane Sheppard.  She was born in Pennsylvania in 1776 and spent her last years in Adams County, Ohio.  Henry Mott and wife reared nine children: Albina J., Albinus, Almira, Jasper, Melissa, Alvin, William, Phebe, and Clarissa.
     Mr. and Mrs. Williams are the parents of ten living children: Minnie I., Susan A., Hazel K., Huston S., Ethel I., Frank S., William J. S., Cary McKinley, Russell D. and Carol. Mr. and Mrs. Williams are members of the Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church of Portsmouth.  Captain Williams is a member of the G. A. R.  He was at one time commander of his post and at the same time was also commander of the Sons of Veterans.
Source: A Standard History of The Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio, Vol. II - Illustrated - Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, 1916 - Page 826