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(Source: History of Guernsey County, Ohio by Col. Cyrus P. B.
Sarchet - Illustrated - Vol. I. B. F. Bowden & Company,
Indianapolis, Indiana - 1911
NOTE: As
always, if there is a particular biography that you want
transcribed,
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~ Sharon W.
REV. ISAAC N. WHITE, D. D.
The good that a high-minded, whole-souled man like Rev. Isaac
N. White does in this practical, worldly-minded age, cannot
be measured in metes and bounds, and such an one should receive
our heartiest commendations; but man of such pure ideals does
not court the admiring plaudits of men, merely striving to do
his Master's will.
Rev. I. N. White, of Fairview, Oxford township,
Guernsey county, was born Aug. 17, 1835, at Hickory, Washington
county, Pennsylvania, the son of Nicholas and Ann (Edgar)
White, the father born in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, and the
mother of Westmoreland county, the same state. The parents
spent their entire married life at Hickory, Washington county,
Pennsylvania, where they died many years ago, and where they are
buried. The father was a farmer and a devout member of the
Associate church, and died a member of that church in 1851.
Isaac N. White spent his youth on the farm,
assisting in the general work, and his early education was
obtained in the village schools of Hickory. He later
attended Jefferson College at Canonsburg, Pennsylvania,
graduating in 1855. He then taught school in Natchez,
Mississippi, for one year and in the fall of 1856 entered the
theological seminary at Xenia, Ohio, preparatory to entering the
ministry. He graduated from the seminary in 1850 and the
same year was licensed to preach the gospel and was first called
to the congregation at Hebron, in Washington county, New York,
where he remained about three years. He then came to the
Steubenville presbytery, Ohio, and was placed in charge of the
United Presbyterian congregations of Lebanon and Glade Run, in
Columbiana and Carroll counties, and was with this charge for
ten years. He then came to Guernsey county, in the
Muskingum presbytery, and was placed in charge of Fairview.
Washington and Sandhill congregations. In serving these
congregations he was to give Fairview one Sabbath and Washington
the next Sabbath, and at the Sandhill church on the evening of
his Fairview service, riding seven miles through all kinds of
weather and bad roads to fill this appointment. He
remained serving these three congregations for thirty years,
resigning the charge on Dec. 1, 1904, and since that time he has
not been engaged in active ministry. During all those
years he was active not only in his own church affairs, but in
all movements for the betterment of the local conditions, and
was foremost in all work for the uplift of the people of all
classes.
Reverend White has been twice married, first on
Oct. 28, 1865, to Mary Miller, daughter of Mr. and
Mrs. Thomas Miller, of Hickory, Washington county,
Pennsylvania. Two children were born to this union,
Alice M., at home, and John C., in business at
Cleveland, Ohio. The wife and mother died in April, 1870,
and his second marriage was in December, 1871, to Margaret
McGowan, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. David McGowan, of
Steubenville; no children were born to this marriage. In
1902 Muskingum College, at New Concord, Ohio, conferred on
Reverend White the honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity.
He ahs been a Republican in politics since the birth of the
party in 1856, voting for John C. Fremont for President;
has always been interested in educational matters and has served
as a member of the board of education. After his well
spent years he is now living a retired life in Fairview where he
has since spent so many active and useful years. His
ministerial labors and influence covered a greater portion of
the eastern half of Guernsey county and his services were a
constant demand in performing marriage ceremonies and conducting
funerals of persons both in and outside of the church
membership.
The daughter, Alice M. White, is a highly
educated and cultured woman, being a graduate of Washington
Seminary at Washington, Pennsylvania, and has been a teacher in
the Western Pennsylvania Institute for the Deaf about ten years.
During the summer of 1910 she made a tour of European countries,
visiting most of the cities and points of interest.
~ Page 676 |
HENRY H. WILSON. The
name of Henry H. Wilson is too well known about
Byesville and generally throughout Guernsey county to need any
special laudation on the part of the biography, for his career,
which has been a busy and upright one, is familiar to our
readers, none of whom, we are sure, could or would say aught
disparagingly against him.
Mr. Wilson was born two miles from Byesville, in May,
1847, and he is the son of Thomas and Elizabeth (Witten)
Wilson, the former born in Pennsylvania, near Peyton's
Monument about 1804. His father,
SAMUEL WILSON Sr., and his mother, Eliza
(Dickinson) Wilson, came here from Pennsylvania very
early in the nineteenth century, prior to 1804, and located near
Middleton. The Indians acted somewhat hostile at their
intrusion and the mother went back to Pennsylvania for safety
and while there Thomas Wilson was born.
She made the entire return trip to Ohio on horseback, carrying
her six-weeks-old baby. Here the grandparents spent the
rest of their days. Their family consisted of five
children: Henry; Samuel; Jane
is the wife of Philip Shoff; Zachariah
died when twenty years old, and Thomas.
When the last named child was two yeas old, he was stolen away
by squaws, when his father was absent from home and endeavored
to induce the mother to come into the woods after him, but she
pretended as though she thought they were playing and remained
within doors, and the Indians finally returned the baby to the
house before the arrival of the father. Following is an
incident illustrative of the rough pioneer life as given by
Grandfather Wilson: A bully visited his
cabin early one morning, determined to fight for no reason other
than to prove who the best man was. Mr. Wilson
wanted to talk the matter over, but the intruder wanted to have
it out at once. Grandmother Wilson
encouraged her husband to "wade into him," and seized a
butcher's knife and cut of his hair, which was worn long as was
the custom of those days, so that the visitor could ot pull it
out and thus have the advantage. Needless to add, the
bully was bested in the melee. Samuel Wilson
was in the war of 1812 and, in company with a friendly Indian,
acted as a spy three months during that war and rendered
valuable service, making many perilous trips, during which, at
times, they were nearly starved, following trails with no food.
After the close of that war the old man and his good wife spent
the balance of their days in Guernsey county.
The Wilson, father of the subject, grew up in
this county and entered several pieces of land from the
government. Taking a fancy to one particular tract, which
was wanted by others, and, having no money, he rode sixty-five
miles to the home of a relative down on the Ohio river and got
the money rode home, changed horses here and then rode to
Zanesville, securing the land. He followed farming near
Byesville all his life. He was also a foreman on the
famous National pike east of Cambridge. He was a man of a
great deal of natural ability and tact, although having scarcely
any schooling. He dealt extensively in livestock, trading
a great deal and could mentally figure what amount of money was
due, before others could make the calculation on paper. He
lived to be about eighty years old, dying June 14, 1884, his
wife having preceded him to the "narrow house" two years before.
They were a grand old couple and highly respected by all.
Henry H. Wilson, of this review, was one of a
family of thirteen children, of whom five lived to maturity,
namely: Mrs. Rachael Riddle, now living about a
mile from Byesville; Mrs. Sarah Selby,
deceased; Mrs. Lizzie Crowe, deceased, who
formerly lived at Glenwood, Noble county, Ohio; Mrs.
Malinda J. Forbes, of Byesville, and Henry H.,
of this review.
The subject grew to
manhood on the farm near Byesville. Toward the close of
the Civil war he enlisted in the one-hundred-day service; being
then, however, only a boy, his father took him out of the
service. He has devoted his life to agricultural pursuits
and has been very successful. In December, 1865, he
married Amanda Orr, the daughter of
Josiah Parker Orr and Sarah (Burt) Orr. Her
father was born in New York City, Feb. 19, 1823, and there grew
to manhood. He was the son of Watson and Lavina
(Wheeler) Orr. Watson Orr was born on Feb. 27,
1780, and his wife on Jan. 7, 1788. Josiah P. Orr
came to Jackson township, this county, in an early day and on
October 12, 1847, married Sarah Ann Burt,
daughter of Daniel Burt. Joseph
P. Orr located at the northwest corner of what is now
Byesville when it was all a wilderness. There he made his
home and reared his family of five children, of whom
Mrs. Wilson was the first in order of birth.
Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Henry H.
Wilson: Lizzie married Silas
Conner, of Byesville; Lennie married
Edwin Finley, cashier of the First National
Bank of Byesville; she passed to her rest on July 5, 1907.
Most of Mr. Wilson's life was spent on the old
homestead south of Byesville. About 1885 he moved into
Byesville, where he now resides in a comfortable and neatly kept
home; however, he has retained his farm, which is highly
improved and is a very desirable property. He is a
stockholder in the First National Bank of Byesville and has been
financially successful in his life work, having been a very good
manager and industrious. Politically, he is a Republican,
as was his father, and he has held various township offices.
He and his wife are members of the Methodist Protestant church.
He is one of the best known and most substantial and highly
respected of Byesville' citizens. He, his parents and
grandparents, consecutively, have made this vicinity their home
for more than a century, during which time they have done much
for the general upbuilding of the locality and have borne
untarnished reputations. The same land has been owned by
this family for nearly one hundred years.
~ Page 638 |
JAMES MADISON WILSON.
The family of which the gentleman whose name heads this sketch
is a member has been long and favorably known in Guernsey
county, and for several generations the name of Wilson
has been borne by many of the most prominent and active citizens
of certain communities of that county. They have been men
of industry of certain communities of that county. They
have been men of industry and intelligence, who have, by the
exercise of these talents, attained their success in life, and
James Madison Wilson is one who have been aided
to reach his own success by the memory of the family traditions
and examples.
James Madison
Wilson was born in the southwestern part of Valley
township, Guernsey county, on Nov. 18, 1856, the son of
William Craig and Mary (Seaton) Wilson.
William Craig Wilson was born
in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, on Sept. 10, 1809.
His father was James Moore Wilson, who came
with his wife from Vermont to Pennsylvania, and made that state
his home until death. William Craig Wilson
came to Guernsey county in early days, first locating at
Cumberland, where he was for several years a blacksmith.
About 1831 he bought a farm of eighty acres in Valley township,
and there spent the rest of his life. He prospered in
farming, and added to his land until he owned four hundred and
twenty-one acres.
William
Craig Wilson was first married to Pulina
Heinlein, by whom he had five children. His wife
and three children perished when the cholera scourge swept over
the county; the survivors were Harriett, who married Dr.
William Helm, and Sarah, who married
Andrew E. Scott. William Craig
Wilson afterward married Mary Seaton,
who was born near New Concord in Muskingum county, Ohio, a
daughter of Robert and Nancy Richardson Seaton.
Three sons were born to this marriage, one of whom died in early
infancy. The others are John William and
James Madison. William C. Wilson
was a Republican, and held various township offices. He
and his wife were both stanch members of the Bethel Methodist
Episcopal church, and were among its founders, while Mr.
Wilson was identified with the church as an official
all his life. He died on Aug. 30, 1891; his wife survived
until July 1, 1907.
James
Madison Wilson grew up on the home farm. He
attended Muskingum College, also Northwestern University at Ada,
Ohio. From 1881 to 1893 he was engaged in school teaching
in Guernsey county, and since that time has followed farming on
the old home place. As a teacher he was very efficient and
commanded the love and respect of his pupils. He was
married in 1882 to Lottie Johnson, the daughter
of William Thomas and N. Cathren (Clark)
Johnson, his neighbor from girlhood. Two
children were born to them, both dying in early infancy, the
mother and one child dying at the same time, on May 28, 1883,
and the other child four days later.
In 1885 Mr. Wilson married Ida M. Crow,
the daughter of John and Elizabeth (Wilson) Crow,
who was born in the same neighborhood as Mr.
Wilson. John Crow was the son of
William J. and Margaret Jane (Johnson) Crow. William J.
Crow came from Pennsylvania in the early thirties, when
he was about twenty-one, and entered a whole section of land
from the government. This was located in the southwest
portion of Valley township, and part of it extended a whole
section of land from the government. This was located in
the southwest portion of Valley township, and part of it
extended over into Noble county. He later bought more
land, increasing his holdings to eight hundred acres. Here
he married Margaret Jane Johnson, who was the
daughter of John Johnson, one of the early
settlers of Buffalo township, Noble county, whose farm adjoined
Mr. Crow's. To this marriage seven
children were born: Michael, John, Emma (who
married Samuel Dollman), George, Nan
(who married James Dollman), one daughter who
died when two years old, and Alexander.
John Crow married Elizabeth Wilson,
the daughter of Thomas J. and ____(Witten) Wilson.
she was the sister of Henry H. Wilson,
whose sketch gives her ancestry. John Crow
continued on the old Crow homestead the
remainder of his life. Five children were born to this
marriage, William Thomas, Charles Franklin, Ida May,
Theodosia and Mary Amanda. Mrs. Crow
died on April 23, 1897. She had been a faithful Christian
and a devoted mother. John Crow died on
Apr. 11, 1910. He was a lifelong Presbyterian, faithful to
the teachings of his church, and well known and highly esteemed
by those who knew him.
Mr.
and Mrs. James M. Wilson are the parents of four
children: Earl, who married Elizabeth
Wilson, of near Cambridge, is a fireman on the
Panhandle railroad, and lives at Dennison, Ohio; Reed,
the youngest, is at home attending school; Byrl Meredith,
the oldest, died when two years old; Paul C.
the third son, died from accidental scalding when fourteen
months old.
Mr. Wilson
is a Republican and has held various township offices,
to the satisfaction of the people. He and his wife are
members of the Bethel Methodist church. Mr. Wilson
ahs been active in his community in many ways, is an
enterprising and progressive farmer, and a man of considerable
influence, whose judgment is much esteemed.
~ Page 963 |
REV.
WILLIAM HENRY WILSON.
The writer of biography, dealing with the personal history of
men engaged in the various affairs of every-day life,
occasionally finds a subject whose record commands exceptional
interest and admiration, and especially in this true when he has
achieved more than ordinary success or made his influence felt
as a leader of thought and a benefactor of his kind.
Rev. William Henry Wilson, of Byesville, Guernsey
county, is eminently one of that class who earn the indisputable
right to rank in the van of the army of progressive men and by
reason of a long and strenuous career, devoted to the good of
his fellows and to the dissemination of the Gospel, he occupies
a position of wide influence and has made a name which will long
live in the hearts and affections of the people, although
he cares little for the plaudits of men, merely seeking to do
his duty in following in the footsteps of the Nazarene.
William H. Wilson was born near Milnersville,
Monroe township, Guernsey county, Ohio Nov. 27, 1867, and he is
the son of John Neal Wilson and
Christian (Morrow) Wilson. Both parents were born
and reared in this county and are still living near Milnersville,
a highly respected couple, now advanced in years.
William H. grew to maturity on the farm and after
receiving a common school education and attending various normal
schools his early life was devoted to the profession of
teaching. After four years of successful work as a
teacher, he entered Dennison University and took select work in
view of the ministry. He was licensed to preach on May 27,
1893, by the Baptist church at Milnersville, and he was ordained
to the ministry on Mar. 22, 1894, by the Pleasant View Baptist
church at Newcomerstown. During the years of his pastoral
labor he has very ably and acceptably served the following
churches, building them up and strengthening them in a manner
that has proven him to be a conscientious and untiring worker;
Union Valley, Piedmont, Pleasant View, Bridgeville, White Eyes
Plains, Adamsville, Dresden and Byesville. On Dec. 7,
1903, he came to Byesville in response to a call from the
Baptist church, which was then only a mission of the old
Cambridge Baptist church. Shortly after he came it was
organized as an independent church, and he has been pastor of
this church to the present time, his work in this place having
been wonderfully blessed. This church now has a membership
of two hundred and thirty and is constantly growing, and it has
a remarkable Sunday school, consisting of about two hundred and
fifty members. The church is full of life and vigor and
their meetings are like one continuous revival. Their
pastor has implicit confidence in the promises of God and
inspires his flock with the same faith in the Supreme Leader,
with the result that the congregation is ever faithful and
earnest. His leadership has received honorable mention
throughout the state. He was for two years vice-president
of the southeastern district of the Baptist Young People's Union
of Ohio. For about four years he has been moderator of the
Cambridge Baptist Association. For three years he was
president of the Guernsey County Sunday School Convention.
He was active in Organizing the Byesville Law and Order League
about 1904 and has been chairman of the same ever since.
The population ahs grown a great deal since that time, with a
large influx of foreigners, but so well has the town been
governed that Byesville is an unusually law-abiding place, with
officials chosen not for political reasons but for well known
merit. The moral element was active from the first under
the leadership of the Reverend Wilson, and had
this not been the case of local government might easily have got
in the control of the baser element.
Reverend Wilson is an able organizer and
in his own church has adopted what he is pleased to call "The
company plan," of keeping each member actively at work as part
of a small organization or company. This plan has produced
great results and has been highly commended not only locally,
but has been approved and praised by men of national prominence
and leadership in the denomination. In the pulpit
Reverend Wilson is an earnest, logical and forceful
speaker, often truly eloquent. Besides his busy life as
pastor and citizen, he is also director of the First National
Bank of Byesville, and he has found time to write several books
that have received wide recognition. One of them is on
"homiletics," especially for the pastor, and is highly commended
by ministers of all denominations. Another is "Our
Responsibilities in the World's Conquest." He has a large
and carefully selected library of the world's choicest
literature.
At Cleveland, Ohio, in
1907, at the international convention of the Baptist Young
People's Union of America, his church at Byesville took both
banners, one for the highest grades in Christian culture work,
the other for all-around Christian work. For four years
the church was awarded two state banners for the same merits and
held the Christian stewardship banner until it became the
property of the church. Such records are criterions enough
to show the courage, the sound judgment and the great
earnestness of Reverend Wilson.
On May 23, 1900, occurred the marriage of the Reverend
Wilson to Estella Henry Ferrell, of
Dresden, Ohio, the daughter of Henry and Emma
(McFarland) Ferrell. She was born near Dresden,
and when twelve years of age moved to that place, where she
attended high school, completing the course there, and made that
city her home until her marriage. She is a lady worker,
and, as president of both the senior and junior branches of the
Baptist Young People's Union, had much to do with bringing them
to their present state of efficiency. In her the
Reverend Wilson has a most earnest and faithful
assistant, a competent aid in many branches of church and Sunday
school work. She is president of the Women's Baptist Home
and Foreign Missionary Society of the Cambridge Baptist
Association.
~ Page 569 |
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