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(Source: A Centennial Biographical History of Crawford County, Ohio -
Chicago: 1902)
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~ Thanks, Sharon Wick
SAMUEL
DEWALT. The well-known citizen of Lykens township,
Crawford county, Ohio, whose name is mentioned above, is of that
sturdy Pennsylvania stock, which, transplanted to all parts of
the United States, has been fruitful in enterprise,
progressiveness and enlightenment.
Samuel Dewalt was born on the farm on which he now
lives October 18, 1855, a son of Robert Dewalt,
who was born in Lehigh county, Pennsylvania, in 1818, and was
married there to Elizabeth Broder, who bore him
six children, of whom the subject of this sketch was the fifth
in order of birth. Their daughter Isabella married
Owen Olds 1, of Texas
township, Crawford county, Ohio. Their daughters Henrietta
and Savannah and their son Alexander are dead. The
fifth in order of birth was the subject of this sketch. Their
youngest son, Richard, is dead. In 1850 Robert
Dewalt removed from Lehigh county, Pennsylvania, to Crawford
county, Ohio, and settled on the farm on which his son Samuel
now lives. His first purchase of land there was two hundred and
twenty acres, thirty acres of which were cleared, and on which a
log cabin had been erected. He died there February 17, 1894,
aged seventy-seven years, and his wife died October 10, 1877.
They were members of the German Reformed church and Mr.
Dewalt took a great interest in all its work, serving in
the offices of deacon and elder and as a member of the building
committee which had charge of the erection of its house of
worship.
Samuel Dewalt was
interested with his father in agricultural enterprises until
1876, when he took charge of the farm on which he now lives. He
owns one hundred acres of the old Dewalt homestead,
which, together with eighty acres in another tract, makes his
real estate holdings aggregate one hundred and eighty acres.
These two pieces of land adjoin and constitute one of the best
farms in the vicinity. Mr. Dewalt is a Democrat in
politics and is a member of the German Reformed church.' He was
married in 1876 to Mahala Shawk, of Seneca county,
Ohio, and they have four children, Dora; Delora,
who is the wife of J. W. Swalley; Alta and
Ralph. Mr. Dewalt is a man of much recognized
public spirit, who remembers with pride the fact that he was
educated in the public schools of his native township and has
always taken an interest in their development and improvement.
There is no question affecting the public welfare in which he
does not take an intelligent interest and there is no movement
for the general good which he is not ready to assist to the
extent of his ability. He naturally takes an interest in the
church, toward the upbuilding of which his good father labored
so zealously, and he is liberal in his assistance of all its
varied interests. |
GEORGE
DONNENWIRTH. There is ever a degree of satisfaction
and profit in scanning the life history of one who has attained
to eminent success as the diametrical result of his own efforts,
and has had the mentality to direct his endeavors toward the
desired end and to singleness and steadfastness of purpose.
As a distinctive type of the self-made man we can refer with
singular propriety to the honored subject of this sketch, the
president of the Bucyrus City Bank and a well known and honored
resident of Crawford County.
A native of Columbus, Ohio, George Donenwirth
was born Jan. 28, 1835, a son of George and Sophia (Anthony)
Donnenwirth. His paternal grandparents, George and
Magdalene (Ruth) Donnenwirth, were natives of France, who in
1827 crossed the Atlantic to the United States, locating first
in Buffalo, New York, whence they removed to Stark county, Ohio.
In 1834 they came to Crawford county and secured land in
Cranberry township, where they spent the rest of their lives.
They were the parents of five children, including George
Donnenwirth, the father of our subject, who was born in
Strasburg, France, Sept. 7, 1810, and was educated in the
schools of his native town. At the age of fifteen he was
apprenticed to the blacksmith's trade, and soon afterward
accompanied his parents on their emigration to the new world.
He found employment at his trade in Buffalo, New York, and later
in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, and then in Stark county, Ohio, and
then worked on the Ohio canal, drifting to Columbus, Ohio, in
1833, and there he wedded, in 1834, Miss Sophia Anthony,
who was born in Lorraine, France, in 1809, and died in Crawford
county in 1849. Their children were George and Adam
(twin brothers), Jacob, William, Magdalene, Charles and
John. Three other children died in childhood.
William, Charles, and Jacob are deceased.
After the death of his first wife the father wedded Miss
Caroline Derr, a native of Bavaria, Germany, and four
children graced this union, namely: Lewis C., Franklin P.,
Sophia M. and Caroline M. but the last named has
passed away. In 1838 the father came to Crawford county
and located at New Washington, where he engaged in
blacksmithing, continuing with success for several years.
He became well and favorably known, and about 1846 was elected
to the lower house of the state legislature, representing
Crawford and Wyandot counties. In 1855 he was elected
county treasurer and the following year removed to Bucyrus, the
county seat, where he resided up to the time of this death, in
1884. In 1868 he was chosen mayor of Bucyrus and filled
the office for two terms of one year each. In all the
public positions which he was called upon to fill he discharged
his duties with entire satisfaction to all concerned, his
loyalty being above question, was prompt and energetic and
gained the unqualified approval of the best citizens. His
judgment was considered sound and reliable in the councils of
the Democratic party, and he aided materially in advancing the
best interests of his community.
George Donnenwirth, whose name
introduces this record, pursued his education in the schools of
New Washington, Crawford county, until his fifteenth year, when
he entered his father's shop and worked at the blacksmith's
trade for four years. On the expiration of that period he
removed to Sandusky, Ohio, where he was employed in a grocery
store for eighteen months. For a short time he was also a
clerk in Burlington, Iowa, but returned to Bucyrus and entered a
business career that has been prominently successful through a
long period of forty-four years. His first venture was in
connection with Henry Anthony. They established a
brewery and after a short time Mr. Donnenwirth's father
purchased Mr. Anthony's interest, the enterprise being
then conducted under the firm name of George Donnenwirth &
Son. Upon the father's retirement, in 1875, Frank
P. Donnenwirth, a half-brother of our subject, entered the
firm, and their business connection was maintained until 1889,
when they sold the business. They had built up an
excellent trade, having a large and constantly increasing
patronage, owing to the excellence of the brewing product and
through reliable business methods. In 1881 Mr.
Donnenwirth was one of the organizers of the Monnett Bank,
of Bucyrus, the style of which was changed in 1892 to Bucyrus
City Bank. He became a director of the institution upon
its organization, and was also elected vice-president of the
bank. Since 1886 he has been its president, and the
concern is one of the most substantial in this portion of Ohio.
His business career in Bucyrus covers a period of about
forty-three years and has been one of uninterrupted success due
to tireless energy, cool, sound judgment and to strict
integrity. These traits have been a tower of strength to
the bank, and have had much to do with its steady and
substantial growth.
In 1865 George Donnenwirth was united in
marriage to Miss Mary A. Fuhrman, of Bucyrus.
Fraternally Mr. Donnenwirth is connected with the Masonic
fraternity and teh Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.
A stanch advocate of Democratic principles, he exercises his
right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the
party, and on that ticket has been frequently called to public
office. He is also active in formulating the policy and
controlling the campaigns in his county, having served as a
member of several committees, while his advice and counsel carry
weight in Democratic circles. For twenty-five years, from
1874 until 1899, he served as a member of the school board, and
for a number of years was its treasurer. He has also been
a member of the city council for fifteen years, and was
treasurer of the township through a long period. In public
office he has labored for the good of the majority, and his work
has proved of benefit and value. In business affairs he
ahs displayed great discrimination and superior executive
ability, and such qualities, combined with industry and strong
purpose, never fail to gain success. He stands today among
the wealthy residents of Bucyrus, and his enviable position in
financial circles is well merited.
Source: A Centennial Biographical History of Crawford County,
Ohio - Chicago: 1902 - Page 164 |
JOHN JACOB DURR.
For four score years Mr. Durr has traveled life's
journey and his has been an upright, useful and honorable
career, which has made him a venerable and respected gentleman.
In pioneer days he came to Crawford county, and for two-thirds
of a century has been a witness of its development and progress,
aiding, as he found opportunity, in the work of growth and
improvements, and feeling a just pride in what has been
accomplished here.
Mr. Durr is a native of Wurtemberg, Germany,
born October 31, 1821, his parents being Henry and Elizabeth
(Crumb) Durr, who had five children, namely: Henry
and Mary, now deceased; John J.; Barbara, who has
also passed away; and Adam, who is living in Mercer
county, Ohio. After the death of his first wife the father
married Mary Coile, and their children were: Martin,
who is deceased; and David, who makes his home in
Chatfield township. The father was a farmer and baker, and
conducted a tavern in the old country, where he remained until
1832, when with his family he came to America, crossing the
Atlantic in a sailing vessel, which reached Baltimore harbor
after a voyage of sixty-five days. From that place the family
proceeded by team to Columbiana county, Ohio, and in the winter
of 1832 came on sleds, drawn by oxen, to Crawford county,
locating in Chatfield township. Here the father purchased one
hundred and twenty acres of government land, where Thomas
Regula now lives, and erected a double log cabin. The land
was heavily timbered, and the entire region was wild and
primitive, the family, therefore, experiencing the hardships of
pioneer life. Henry Durr continued to engage in farming
there until - his life's labors were ended in death, when he was
seventy-five years of age.
Mr. Durr of this review was a youth of eleven
years, when, with his father he came to Chatfield township. So
wild and unbroken was the trackless forest that he was several
times lost in the green woods while hunting the oxen and cattle
in his boyhood. He aided in the arduous task of developing the
raw land, clearing it of the timber and preparing it for the
plow. He lived with his father until his marriage, when he
established a home of his own, removing to his present farm,
whereon he has resided for fifty-seven years. His first home was
a log cabin, and the young couple began their domestic life in
true pioneer style, but as the years passed ail the comforts and
conveniences known to the older east were introduced and the
farm was thus transformed into a very valuable property.
He now owns one hundred and thirty-eight acres, of which he
cleared from the woods one hundred and twenty acres. He has
carried on general farming and stock-raising, and has also
successfully practiced veterinary surgery. His labors have been
crowned with an enviable degree of success and he has
accumulated a comfortable competence for the evening of life.
In 1844 Mr. Durr was married to Miss
Elizabeth Jacoby, and they became the parents of the
following- children: Daniel and Benjamin, now
deceased; Leo, the wife of the Rev. Philip Kessler;
Sarah, who married Fred Crother, of Liberty
township; Mary, who resides in Holmes- township; and
Lena. On the 18th of June, 1872, Mr. Durr was united
in marriage to Hannah Solge. His present wife bore the
maiden name of Hannah Herman, and they were joined in
wedlock in September, 1890. Their home is a large brick
residence, which was erected by Mr. Durr in 1858, being
one of the many excellent improvements which he has placed upon
his farm. He has long been a member of the Methodist church, and
when he first resided in the county religious services were held
in his father's cabin. He votes with the Republican party, and
has always favored every movement and measure tending to promote
the general welfare. |
NOTES:
* Note 1: See
Owen Ohl whose biography states
he married Isabella DeWalt
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