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OHIO GENEALOGY EXPRESS
A Part of Genealogy
Express
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Welcome to
Van Wert County,
Ohio
History & Genealogy |
David W. Wilson |
DAVID W. EVANS
History of Van Wert County, Ohio - Publ. by Richmond &
Arnold - Chicago, Illinois - Publ. 1906 - Page 441 |
Mr. & Mrs. William Thompson Exline |
WILLIAM THOMPSON EXLINE, now
retired and residing on his large estate of over 452 acres of land,
his home being in Section 17, Liberty township, is one of the
representative men of this locality and one who has had much
practical experience in the development of that great source of
wealth - the oil fields in his vicinity of Ohio City. He was
born in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, Sept. 22, 1837, and is a son of
Rev. Valentine and Evaline (Thompson) Exline.
The Exline family is of Swiss extraction and
the name can be traced centuries back to the period when the
Protestant Swiss were persecuted on account of their religious
opinions. History tells of an early martyr - an ancestor of the
present family - whose name was written Excellent Axline, and
who suffered at the stake on account of his religious convictions.
The first member of this old family to come to America was
Christopher Axline or Exline, as the name came to the
generally spelled, who located his home in Virginia. There his
son Adam was born, who married and reared his family near
Winchester, in the Shenandoah Valley. There was born
Bernard Exline, the grandfather of William T., and then
the family seems to have branched out, one section settling in
Pennsylvania. Valentine Exline, father of our subject,
was born in Bedford County, Pennsylvania, Apr. 4, 1809, and was one
of four sons who received a farm from his father. John
Axline, brother of Adam, was of the family branch that
remained in Virginia, following the old ways and retaining the old
spelling of John Axline moved to Muskingum County, Ohio,
where they still cling to the old Swiss spelling.
The Taylor family, with which the mother of our
subject was connected (John Taylor being her maternal
grandfather), is well-known to be one of the oldest in Virginia, and
it has produced one President of the United States, as well as many
noted statesmen and political heroes. She was a daughter of
William Redman and Sarah (Taylor) Thompson, both of old Virginia
families, and was born in 1814 and died in June, 1894.
In 1846 Rev. Valentine Exline, who was a
minister in the Lutheran Church, moved from Tuscarawas county to
Allen County and settled on a rented farm. As early as 1837 he
had entered 316 acres of wild land in Liberty township, Van Wert
County. In 1850 he built a log cabin here, in the midst of a
wilderness, and in 1851 planted wheat on his land, but did not
settle on it until May, 1852. For many years he was concerned
in the work of the ministry and was one of the early and well-known
pioneer preachers. His death occurred Jan. 5, 1887.
William Thompson Exline was nine years old when
his parents settled in Allen County and was 15 when they removed to
Van Wert County. Here he assisted his father to clear up the
land - a might task in those days when little machinery was used to
do the hardest part of the work. His education was the best
that the times and localities afforded. When he was 18 years
old, he was teaching school, being thus employed for five winters
preceding the Civil War. On Aug. 5, 1862, at Lima, Ohio, he
enlisted for the Union service in Company A, 99th Reg. Ohio Vol.
Inf., and remained at his post of duty until the close of
hostilities. At the storming of Lookout Mountain he was severely
wounded, being first sent to a hospital at Bridgeport, Alabama, and
later to the officer's hospital at Nashville, Tennessee. As
soon as he was sufficiently recovered, he was given a furlough of 30
days and came home to recuperate. For bravery and gallantry on
the field of battle, Mr. Exline received well merited
promotion. Upon entering the service he was made 2nd
lieutenant of his company, and in November, 1862, was promoted to be
1st lieutenant. At the battle of Stone River, the company lost
heavily and when its captain, the lamented W. C. Scott, fell,
Lieutenant Exline assumed command and was mustered out as
captain of Company A, 50th Reg., Ohio Vol. Inf., reaching home July
22, 1865. Two days later, as a mark of public appreciation of
his loyal services. Captain Exline was nominated for
the position of auditor of Van Wert County, to which he was
subsequently elected and served with efficiency through one term of
two years. In 1878 he was again elected county auditor and
served for three years. The election was something of a
Republican triumph, as he had a strong Democratic opponent. He
was re-elected in 1881 for a second consecutive term of three years.
At one time he also served as township treasurer, holding that
office in Liberty township for five years. For many years he
was a very prominent factor in politics throughout his section of
the county but of late has contented himself with simply casting his
vote.
For eight years Mr. Exline was superintendent of
the Ohio Wheel Works at Delphos, a position he resigned in order to
give his attention to oil development. He is familiar with all
the practical working of an oil field, and more than any other, he
was the man who was instrumental in opening the oil field in the
vicinity of Ohio City. His own land is rich in oil, and at the
present time he has seven producing wells. Recently, with
other heirs of Rev. Valentine Exline, he sold 160 acres of
farm land to James M. Dull, who paid the sum of $12,000 in
cash. He still retains over 452½
acres of land, which is really made up of three valuable farms.
From some time he has lived retired from any active agricultural
operations, having a capable farmer as a superintendent.
On Dec. 21, 1865, Mr. Exline was united in
marriage with Esther Scott, who is a daughter of Richard
and Margaret Scott, then of Putnam, but formerly of Warren
County, Ohio. Richard Scott died in 1884, but Mrs.
Scott, now in her 88th year, still survives and resides with
Mr. and Mrs. Exline. The latter have reared a family of
seven children, these being: Eva May, who married Joseph
Augustus Foor and resides in Denver, Colorado; Scott
Leroy, a prominent and wealthy citizen of Cleveland, Ohio, who
married Sarah Roberts; William Grant, who married
Della Nothnagle and resides in Cleveland, where he is the
assistant manager of the Exline Publishing Company, an
important business enterprise; and Margaret, Estella, Ethel
and Georgia, who all reside at home. Mr. Exline
is a well-read, intelligent man, and has given all his children many
educational advantages, fitting them to acceptably fill the business
and social positions to which his prominence as a man of affairs has
assisted them.
For many years Mr. Exline has been one of the
leading members of the Lutheran Church in Liberty township, of which
he is a trustee, the local organization belonging to the General
Synod of the Lutheran Church. His life has not only been
marked by unusual business enterprise, but he possesses the esteem
of those with whom he has come in contact because of his adherence
to honorable methods. A picture of Mr. and Mrs. Exline
accompanies this sketch.
History of Van Wert County, Ohio - Publ. by Richmond &
Arnold - Chicago, Illinois - Publ. 1906 ~ Page 450 |
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