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OHIO GENEALOGY EXPRESS
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WELCOME TO
ROSS COUNTY, OHIO |
BIOGRAPHIES
The following biographies are extracted from:
Source #1 - The County of Ross: a history of Ross County, Ohio
By Henry Holcomb Bennett
Published by S. A. Brant, Madison, Wis., 1902
Source #2 - A Standard History of Ross County, Ohio
Vol. II.
Published by The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago & New York 1917
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Biographies will be added upon request.
Contact Sharon Wick
MACE, Phelix Burns
MADER, Fred C.
MADDUX, Nelson C.
MADDUX, Samuel F.
MAINS, Russell
MALLOW, Jesse B.
MALLOW, Jesse B.
MALLOW, John E.
MALLOW, William
Dice
MANLY, Robert W.
MARINE, Lewis Franklin
MARR, Frank Tilden, M. D.
MARSH, Herbert H.,
M. D.
MARSHALL, DeWitt Clinton
MARTIN, Edgar J.,
M. D.
MARTIN, William H.,
M. D.
MARZLUFF, Frank D.
MARZLUFF, Paul
MARZLUFF, Richard
B.
MASSIE, Nathaniel
MATTOX, Frank Grant
MAULLAR, Frank B.
MAULLAR, Frank Byron
MAXWELL, John W.
MAXWELL, William A.
MAY, J. Myron
McCALLA, George
McCOLLISTER, Warren
McCOY, Joseph M.
McCRACKIN, Robert
H.
McDANIEL, David H.
McDONALD, John, Col.
McKEE, Edward R.
McKENZIE, Joshua M.
McNALLY, John
McNeal, Floyd C.
McNEILL, Ambrose
McVICKER, Hector
MEAD Pulp & Paper Company, The |
MEAD, George Houk
MEGGENHOFEN, Edward, M. D.
MEGGENHOFEN,
Edward, M. D.
MENDENHALL Family
METCALF, Wilbur S.
METTLER, William E.
METZGER, Charles
METZGER, Charles
MIDDLETON, Theron
O.
MILLER, George W.
MILLER, Henry
MILLER, James D., Dr.
MILLER, John
MILLER, John H.
MILLER, L. D.
MILLER, Ludlow D.
MILLER, Orley W.
MILLER, William
MILLER, William L.
MINEAR, Ephraim H.
MINEAR, Ephraim H.
MINSHALL, Addison Pearson
MINSHALL, Thaddeus, Hon.
MINSHALL, Thaddeus
A.
MOOMAW, Jacob B.
MOOMAW, John A.
MOOMAW, John A.
MOORE, George
Bernard
MOORE, Noah B.
MORGAN, J. B. F., M.D.
MORGAN, John F.
MORRIS, Henry V.
MORROW, Jeremiah Henry
MOTTER, J. R., M.D.
MOTTER, James R.
MOXLEY, C. C.
MURPHY, Thomas I.
MURPHY, Thomas I.
MURRAY, George A.
MURRAY, Thomas |
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NELSON C. MADDUX,
veteran of the civil war and long prominent in the
agricultural affairs of Deerfield township, is a
descendant from one of the early settlers of Ross
county. David and Elizabeth Maddux left
their native state of Maryland during the earlier
portion of the eighteenth century and were among the
first to locate in the vicinity of Clarksburg.
Both lived to an advanced age and in the fullness of
years became tenants of the little cemetery near
the village where repose the remains of so many pioneers
of the past. They had a family of ten children,
all now dead, their names being: Benjamin, Collins,
Zachariah, William, Mitchell, John, Smith, Samuel, Sarah
(wife of William Norris), and Mary Smith,
the seventh of these children, was born in Maryland,
Aug. 2, 1800, grew to manhood in Ross county and married
Eleanor Norris. The latter, who was a
daughter of Arnold Norris, a soldier of the
revolution, had recently come from Virginia with her
parents. There were six children by this union:
Harriet (deceased), William, John
and Angeline (deceased), Nelson C., and
Elizabeth, wife of John and Angeline
(deceased), Nelson C., and Elizabeth (wife
of Benjamin Bates, of New Holland, Ohio,
Nelson C. Maddux was born near Clarksburg, Ohio,
Dec. 18, 1838, and when two years old had the misfortune
to lose his father by death. After this event, his
mother became an inmate of the home of her brother
Zachariah, who assisted in rearing the children, and
Nelson C. remained with his uncle until he became
of age. For a while thereafter he was engaged in
farming, but this occupation was interrupted by the
opening of the civil war and his enlistment in Company
K, Eighty-ninth regiment Ohio infantry. This
command was first sent to Kentucky and from there to the
Kanawha valley in West Virginia where the "boys" got
their first taste of fighting in a few small skirmishes.
The next move was to Tennessee and up the Cumberland
river to Carthage, where Mr. Maddux became sick
and had to be taken to the hospital at Gallatin.
He was detained there three months, when he obtained a
furlough of thirty days which was spent at home in
recuperating his strength. He joined his regiment
at Chickamauga, from which point it went with the army
to Atlanta, participating in all the fighting incidental
to that campaign. Mr. Maddux was one of the
great force which made the famous "march to the sea,"
accompanying Sherman in his advance through
Georgia to Savannah, thence into South Carolina and
finally to Raleigh, N. C. From that point his
route was overland to Washington, D. C., thence to
Louisville, Ky., where he was discharged, and lastly up
the river to his home. For four years after his
return from the war, Mr. Maddux was engaged
in farming. Dec. 3, 1868, he was married to
Miss Rhoda Blake, a native of Ross county of English
descent, since which time, with the exception of ten
years spent in Pickaway county, he has made his home in
Deerfield township. Mr. Maddux carries on
general farming and stock raising, has been successful
in his operations and enjoys the esteem of all his
neighbors. Mr. and Mrs. Maddux have had ten
children, of who Mary E. and Eula, the
eldest and youngest are dead. The others in order
of birth are: Melissa, Francis, John N., Elmer D.,
George W., Carson S., Jesse E. and Samuel R.
Source #1 |
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SAMUEL F. MADDUX
was born in Rosabell, Ross county, Apr. 27, 1837.
His father, John Maddux, was born near Frankfort
in 1813 and was a son of David Maddux, a native
of Delaware. The latter, a direct descendant of
one of three brothers who emigrated to this county about
the year 1600, married a Miss Lingo and came with
his bride to direct to Deerfield township, Ross county,
where he engaged in farming and followed that occupation
until his death. He had a family of nine children,
all of whom are now dead. His son John
remained at home until his marriage in 1836 to Susan
Fisher. They went to housekeeping on a rented
farm near Roxabell, where they remained two years and
ten removed to what was then known as the Fisher farm,
which John Maddux subsequently bought. He
died at the early age of thirty-nine, leaving an estate
heavily encumbered, which his wife and only son,
Samuel F., succeeded in freeing from debt by much
hard work and good management. Mrs. Maddux,
who was a woman of great force of character and strong
intellect, passed away in 1887, at the age of
seventy-seven. She had two children, one of whom
died in infancy, and the other was Samuel F., the
subject of this sketch. School advantages were
poor in his youth and he received but a meager
education. He was only fifteen years old when his
father died, leaving the place encumbered with debt, and
only the widow and her boy to face the discouraging
situation. They grappled with it bravely, however,
and he performed a man's part in assisting his mother.
Together they conducted the farm until he was
thirty-seven years old, when, on April 16, 1874, he was
married to Annie Porter. Mr. Maddux
took his bride to the old home place which, under the
industrious management, has been greatly improved and is
now one of the cosiest and neatest places in the
township. Mr. and Mrs. Maddux have six
children: May, Grace, John, Samuel, Bonnie
and Wright; all at home except John, who
lives in Springfield, Ohio. Mr. Maddux is a
member of the Masonic lodge at Frankfort and belongs to
the chapter and commandery at Chillicothe. His
mother's ancestry is deserving of more than passing
notice. She was a daughter of Jacob Fisher,
who first visited "Ross county in 1799 and later brought
his wife from Virginia, built a log cabin and settled in
Ross county in 1800. He owned two hundred acres of
land in Concord township, served in the war of 1812, and
in every way was a fine sample of the earliest and
sturdiest of the pioneers. He married Barbara
Kyle and by her had nine children, who became the
founders of some of the stanchest families in the Scioto
valley. Mrs. Susan Maddux was the sixth of
these children and born in 1810. She had few
equals and no superiors as wife, mother and business
woman, combining strong mental and physical traits so
characteristic of the oldtime matrons.
Source #1 |
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NATHANIEL MASSIE,
the leading pioneer of the Virginians in the settlement
of Ohio, was born in Goochland county, Va., December 28,
1763. His father was a highly respected planter of
that state, whose ancestors came originally from
England. Young Massie received a good
education, entered the Revolutionary army at the age3 of
seventeen, and after the close of the war went to
Kentucky, carrying with him valuable letters of
introduction to many of its leading citizens.
During the next few years he followed his profession of
surveyor and land locator, and seems to have built up a
fine reputation for skill in his calling as well as for
courage and honesty. In 1788 he made his first
journey into the Virginia Military District of Ohio,
which was the land lying northwest of the river Ohio and
between the Scioto and Little Miami rivers, and which
had been reserved by Virginia for the purpose of paying
her soldiers a warrant for as much of this land as his
services entitled him to receive. The holders of
these warrants would then employ a surveyor to select a
tract of land and survey it for them. They surveys
were then entered at the land office in Richmond, and
thereupon a patent or deed for the land included in such
survey was issued by the United States to the owner of
the warrants. Nathaniel Massie was a
surveyor duly authorized to make such entries and
surveys, and it was for this purpose that he first
entered Ohio, which at that time was an unbroken
wilderness inhabited only by hostile Indians.
During the winter of 1790 he organized a colony of
thirty families and made a settlement on the north bank
of the Ohio river at the place where Manchester now
stands, which was the first settlement within the
Virginia Military District, and the fourth within the
bounds of Ohio. He continued making surveys until
1794, penetrating far up the rich and beautiful Scioto
valley. These explorations and surveys were made
"in the midst of the most appalling dangers" during the
winter of 1795, and he and his party suffered great
hardships on account of the depth of the snow and
scarcity of wild game, on which they entirely depended
for food. In the spring of that year Mr. Massie
put into operation a long cherished plan.
Organizing a body of men, he went up the Scioto valley
for the purpose of founding a town near the mouth of
Paint creek. They had two serious conflicts with
the Indians, being victorious in both. They
completed their explorations and returned to Manchester
for the winter. About the first of March, 1796,
another party was organized by Mr. Massie, and on
the first day of April he encamped on the present site
of Chillicothe, which Massie already owned and
which he laid out for a town, giving to each settler an
in-lot and an out-lot. Additions have been made to
his original plat of this place, but it has never been
changed, the principal streets and alleys remaining
exactly as he located them. The young town grew
rapidly, attracting to it many families from Virginia
and Kentucky, and soon became an important political
factor in the Northwest Territory. Massie
was elected a member of both the first and second
legislatures of this Territory, and was one of the
leaders of the movement for the admission of Ohio into
the Union, being a bitter opponent of the Territorial
governor, Gen. Arthur St. Clair, against whom he
preferred charges to President Jefferson, which
ultimately led to the removal of St. Clair from the
office. Massie was elected a member of the
convention which framed the first constitution of Ohio,
and was largely instrumental in giving it a strong
Democratic tendency. He was also elected a senator
to the first and second general assemblies. In
1804 and i 1808 Mr. Massie was one of the three
presidential electors selected in Ohio, voting for
Jefferson and Madison respectively. In
1807 he was a candidate for governor, but was defeated
by Return Jonathan Meigs, whose election
Massie contested on the ground "that Meigs
had not been a resident of this State for four years
next proceeding the election, as required by the
constitution;" and the general assembly in joint
convention decided that Meigs was not eligible.
Massie did not claim the office, "being of too
magnanimous a nature to accept any offering that was not
of the free will." For many years Mr. Massie
was major-general of the Ohio militia; and the last act
of his public life was to raise a force of 500 men
for the relief of General Harrison and his army
at Fort Meigs in the spring of 1813. General
Massie accumulated a large landed estate and engaged
in many manufacturing enterprises for the good of the
community. During the later years of his life he
resided on his farm at the falls of Paint Creek, near
Bainbridge, in Ross county. In 1800 he married
Susan Meade, a daughter of Col. David Meade,
of Kentucky, whose magnificent estate, - "Chaumiere,"
near Lexington - was famous through the Southwest for
its social splendor and hospitality. General
Massie died Nov. 3, 1813, leaving, besides his
widow, three sons and two daughters. In June, 1870
the remains of General Massie and his wife were
removed from the old family burial-ground to the
cemetery at Chillicothe,,, where they now rest under a
handsome granite monument erected by his descendants,
and which overlooks for miles the beautiful valley into
which he first brought civilization.
Henry Massie, the youngest child of Gen.
Nathaniel Massie, was born July 11, 1811, and was
but two years of age when his father died. He was
mainly reared by his maternal grandfather, Col. David
Meade, of Kentucky. He graduated at
Transylvania university, at Lexington, Ky., in 1828,
returned to Chillicothe, studied law and was admitted to
the bar. The early death of his father, and bad
management of those having charge of his large landed
estate, had led to almost hopeless confusion in his
affairs, to the disentanglement of which young Massie
studiously devoted himself for many years, recovering
too much property for himself and brothers and sisters,
at the same time acquiring a knowledge of the land laws
in force in the Virginia Military District, which made
him the best real-estate lawyer in all this region.
He also enjoyed an excellent general practice, being for
many years one of the leaders of the bar in southern
Ohio. During the last years of his life he gave
most of his time to the management of the Chillicothe
bank, of which he was president at the time of his
death, which occurred Mar. 10, 1862, at St. Paul, Minn.,
whither he had gone in search of health. HE
married Susan Burton Thompson, daughter of
John B. Thompson, of Harrodsburg, Ky., and by this
marriage there was one child, David Meade Massie.
David Meade Massie was born at Chillicothe, Feb.
26, 1859, was graduated at Princeton, N. J., in 1880,
and at the Cincinnati Law school in 1882, and in the
same year was admitted to the bar of Ohio. During
the next two years he traveled extensively, both in this
country and aboard. In 1883, according to
the example set him by his father and grandfather, he
went to Kentucky for a wife, marrying on Nov. 6th of
that year, Juliet S., the youngest daughter of
the late Major Thomas A. Matthews, of Covington.
Mrs. Massie's eldest brother, Claude Matthews,
was governor of Indiana in 1892-1896. In 1884 he
located permanently at Chillicothe and and began the
practice of his profession. In 1887 he was
nominated as the Republican candidate for state senator
from Ross and Highland counties, and elected over
the Hon. Lawrence T. Neal, after a most
vigorous and exciting campaign; and in 1889 he was
reelected, practically with opposition. While in
the senate Mr. Massie was the author of several
important laws, among which may be noted the law
regulating the contest of the election of presidential
electors, and the law prescribing the fees charged in
this state for articles of incorporation. The
latter measure, commonly called the "Massie
incorporation. The latter measure, commonly
called the "Massie law," has added hundreds of thousands
of dollars to the revenues of the state. While in
the senate Mr. Massie also acted as chairman of
the joint committee on taxation, which introduced
many new ideas on that subject, notably the taxation of
collateral inheritances, and the Massachusetts system of
taxing certain corporations, both of which have since
became laws. Most of the tax reform ideas now 1902
being urged i Ohio by the republicans as party measures
were first advocated by Mr. Massie in his report
on the subject of taxation to the Sixty-eighth general
assembly in 1889. In 1888 Mr. Massie was
appointed by Governor Foraker, a trustee of the
Ohio State university; in 1892 was re-appointed to the
same position by Governor McKinley, and in 1901
was re-appointed by Governor Nash. Mr. Massie
has served as a member of the Republican state executive
committee, and in 1896 was a delegate to the national
convention at St. Louis which nominated McKinley
for president. He has for many years been a
director of the First National Bank of Chillicothe, and
also a director in several other business corporations,
and is largely interest in agriculture and agriculture
and all real estate. |
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WARREN
McCOLLISTER, has given his useful and energetic
years to the business of farming. His home is in
Union Township, and the farm and its improvements
represent the value of his long continued industry and
efficient management.
A native of Ross County, he was born near Yellowbud in
Union Township Jan. 6, 1875, the only child of Irvin
and Mary (Lutz) McCollister. His mother, who
was born in Union Township, was the daughter of
Samuel Lutz, Jr., and the granddaughter of Hon.
Samuel Lutz, who was one of the very prominent early
settlers and prominent men of Pickaway County.
Reared on a farm, Warren McCollister received
such education as the rural schools could give him, and
by previous training and experience was well qualified
to become an independent farmer on reaching manhood.
for twenty years or more he has industriously tilled and
soil and reaped its fruits, and all of his activities
have been within the limits of his native township.
In 1912 Mr. McCollister bought the farm he now
owns and occupies. This is known as the Noble
homestead, and one of the well improved farms of the
county. Besides general farming, he is also
engaged in stock raising, and makes a specialty of
Shorthorn cattle and Poland China hogs.
In 1893 Mr. McCollister married Rose Leist.
Mr. and Mrs. McCollister have two children, Cary
L. and Blanche. Cary married Hazel
Parker, while Blanche is the wife of Bert
Wood. As a voter Mr. McCollister cast
his first ballot for William McKinley twenty
years ago, and has ever since been a steadfast supporter
of the republican party. He has been a public
spirited as he has been industrious in the management of
his private affairs, and has served as a member of his
township school board.
Source #2 - Page 903 |
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JOSEPH M. McCOY.
A few families can claim the distinction of having
existed continuously and contemporaneously with the
entire history of Ross County, covering almost one and a
quarter century. Such a family is that of McCoy,
one of whom, Joseph M. McCoy, has been chosen as
a subject of this brief sketch.
Mr. McCoy now owns and occupies a fine old
homestead which is in itself a landmark in Union
Township, and has a host of associations connecting it
with the bygone generations of this name.
The founder of the family here was John McCoy or
MacCoy, as the name was variously written.
This pioneer was a native of Scotland. When he was
nine years of age he showed his independence and
enterprising character by running away from his native
land and in course of time found his way to America.
He lived a number of years in the province and state of
Pennsylvania and eventually came to Ohio. He was
the father of four sons.
One of these sons was also named John and was
born in Pennsylvania Apr. 15, 1771. He married
Margaret Kerr, also a native of Pennsylvania.
The ten children reared by them were named Martha,
Margaret, Jane, Silence, Alexander Spear, William Kerr,
John Montgomery, Mary Gene, Eliza and Sally Ann.
The daughter Margaret was the first white
child born in Ross County. Her birth occurred here
Mar. 1, 1795, and that date of itself attests the very
early settlement of the McCoy family within these
borders.
William Kerr McCoy, father of Joseph M.,
was born in a log house on the same spot subsequently
occupied by the home in which his son Joseph was
born. William K. first saw the light of day
Jan. 30, 1807. He grew up and shared the lot of
the early pioneer in the last century, and eventually
succeeded to the ownership of the old homestead where he
pursued general farming, and lived there until his death
in 1892. William K. McCoy married
Margaret Afflick. She was born in Scotland
Jan. 11, 1815. Her father James Afflick was
born in Drumelgier in the County of Peebles, Scotland,
in 1776. On July 19, 1799, James Afflick
married Marian Gladstone. She was a niece
of John Gladstone and a cousin of Hon. William
Ewart Gladstone, the great English premier. In
1818 James Afflick and wife came to the United
States, and located near Winchester, Virginia.
Margaret Afflick when a young girl left her parents'
home in Virginia and came to Ross County to live with
her ant and uncle, Mr. and Mrs. James Steel, and
remained there until her marriage to William K.
McCoy. She reared nine children named
James, Margaret, John A., Mary, David, Wilson,
Gladstone, Addie and Joseph M. The son
James was for many years connected with the
Baltimore & Ohio Railway and is now deceased.
Margaret is the wife of Moses Steel. John
A. died when about twenty years of age.
Mary married Samuel Shortridge and now lives
in Circleville, Ohio. David was a soldier
in the Union army and lost his life in the service.
Wilson died when about thirty years of age.
Gladstone was a farmer and spent his last days at
Circleville. Addie is living near
Ashville, Ohio, the wife of Howard Veail.
Born on the old McCoy estate in Union
Township in September, 1856, Joseph M. McCoy
spent his early life in the usual manner of farmer boys
of half a century ago. He attended rural schools
and developed his strength and judgment by the tasks of
the home farm. After reaching manhood he moved to
Pickaway county, and there farmed as a renter for
seventeen years. He then went back to the old
homestead, and has since become its proprietor and it
shows many evidences of his careful management and
cultivation. The McCoy home occupies a
conspicuous and attractive site on a high tableland
commanding an extended view in every direction.
The improvements on the farm rank with the best fund
anywhere in the township. The fine dwelling has
withstood the storms of many years, and is a very
substantial old building, a part of it including the
original log cabin in which Mr. McCoy's father
was born. Besides being an active farmer Mr. McCoy
has served as a member of the board of township trustees
for many years.
Source #2 - Page 901 |
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EDWARD R. MCKEE.
For nearly three score years closely associated with the
banking interests of Chillicothe, Edward R.
McKee possesses to an eminent degree the business
ability and acumen that inspire confidence in his
integrity and honesty of purpose, while his long record
of service with one of the leading financial
institutions of Ross County bears speaking evidence of
his trustworthiness in positions of responsibility.
A son of David McKee, he was born, Jan. 28, 1843,
in Chillicothe, of colonial ancestry, being a lineal
descendant, according to a well-preserved tradition, of
one of eleven brothers named McKee that
emigrated, in 1769, from Scotland to America, and
settled, nearly all of them, in Pennsylvania.
Hugh McKee, Mr. McKee's paternal grandfather, was a
lifelong resident of Philadelphia, and an active member
of the Society of Friends.
Born and educated in Philadelphia, David McKee
came to Ohio in early manhood, locating in Chillicothe,
where he was subsequently engaged in the wholesale and
retail confectionery business until his death, in 1854,
at the early age of forty-three years. His wife,
whose maiden name was Mary Ann Reister, was born
in Chillicothe, a daughter of Adam Reister, and
to them four children were born, as follows:
Estelle, Eloise, Edward R., George W. and Harry.
Adam Reister, Mr. McKee's maternal grandfather, was
born in Maryland, in Reisterstown, a village established
by his father, who spent his entire life in that
locality. Having served an apprenticeship at the
carpenter's trade when young, Mr. Reister
followed his occupation in Chillicothe until 1840,
carrying on a good business as a contractor for several
years. Seized with the wanderlust in 1840, he
migrated, with teams, to the Territory of Iowa, which
was then in its pristine wildness, the greater part of
the land being owned by the Government. There were
no railroads in the state, the modes of travel and
transportation, and the ways of living being very
primitive. Taking up a tract of wild land near
Iowa City, he cleared an improved homestead, and there
he and his wife spent their remaining days.
Adam Reister married Rebecca Haynes, who
was born in Shepherdstown, Virginia, a daughter of
George Haynes, who came with his family from
Virginia to the Northwest Territory in the spring of
1798, making the removal with teams, his wife, however,
coming on horseback, and bringing her infant daughter,
the future Mrs. Reister, in her arms. Mr.
Haynes was a blacksmith by trade, and he and
Joseph Yates, a millwright, of Shepherdstown, had
assumed a contract to erect for a Mr. Worthington
a ill on the north fork of Paint Creek. Locating
in Chillicothe, Mr. Haynes moved into a log cabin
situated at what is now the corner of Second and
Mulberry streets, and after the completion of the mill
resumed work at his trade. He made the spikes and
bolts used in the construction of the old bridge, and
when that was finally destroyed by fire, it was found
that it was put together so strongly that the timbers
could not be taken apart. Many of the spikes were
saved, and are now kept as souvenirs. He lived to
the venerable age of ninety-seven years, his wife
attaining the age of ninety-four years.
In 1858, having acquired a practical education in the
public schools, Edward R. McKee secured a
situation as collector for the Valley Bank, of
Chillicothe, and has since been connected with that bank
and its successor, the First National Bank, until the
present time. Proving himself very capable in his
first position, he was made bookkeeper in 1859, and upon
the organization, in 1863, of the First National Bank
was elected teller. In 1882 Mr. McKee was
made cashier of the bank, and since 1905 has been its
vice-president.
As a young man, Mr. McKee joined Company A,
Twenty-sixth Regiment, Ohio National Guards, which
responded to the call to arms at the time of the
Kirby Smith raid, in 1863, and later in the year
when Gen. John H. Morgan made his famous raid, in
1863, and later in the year when Gen. John H. Morgan
made his famous raid north of the Ohio River. In
May, 1864, Mr. McKee enlisted in Company A, One
Hundred and Forty-ninth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, of
which he was commissioned lieutenant. After
remaining with his command in Baltimore six weeks, he
went with his regiment to the Shenandoah Valley, and
there took an active part in all of its marches and
campaigns, including several encounters with the enemy,
during the time, the captain being on detailed duty,
having command of his company. Returning home at
the expiration of his term of enlistment, Mr. McKee
resumed his position with the First National Bank, and
subsequently discharged the duties devolving upon him
with characteristic ability and fidelity.
Mr. McKee married, June 17, 1874, Miss Anna
R. Meek, who was born in Winchester, Adams County,
Ohio, a daughter of William M. Meek, and
granddaughter of Rev. John Meek, one of the first
Methodist preachers to locate permanently in Ohio.
Taking up the study of law when young, William M.
Meek was admitted to the Ohio bar, and subsequently
located permanently in Hillsboro, Highland Co., where he
continued in active practice until his death, for many
years serving as probate judge. Then maiden name
of his wife was Hester De Bruin. Her
father, Hyman Israel De Bruin, Mrs. McKee's
maternal grandfather, was born in Holland, of French
Huguenot ancestry. Immigrating to America when
young, he was engaged in the dry goods trade at
Maysville, Kentucky, until 1833, when he transferred his
residence and his business to Winchester, Adams County,
Ohio, where he spent the remainder of his life.
Mr. De Bruin married Rebecca Easton, who was
born in Scutter, Lincolnshire, England, and came with
her parents, Edward and Mary (Shadford) Easton to
America in girlhood, locating first in Maysville,
Kentucky, and in 1833 coming with them to Ripley, Ohio.
Mr. and Mrs. McKee have three children, Edna,
Mary, and William M. Mary married
Gustave A. Eerdmann of Chicago, Illinois, and has
one child, Edward McKee Eerdmann.
William M., an electrical engineer, is in the employ
of the Jeffries Manufacturing Company, at
Pittsburgh. He married Jean Bunton, who
died April 6, 1915, leaving one son, William M.
McKee, Jr.
Religiously Mr. McKee is an active member of
the Walnut Street Methodist Episcopal Church, of which
he led the chorus choir for thirty-five years, and is
president of its board of trustees. He takes great
interest in local affairs, and is now serving as
president of the Chillicothe Board of Park
Commissioners. He is also president of the Old
Guard, a military organization; and is a member of
A. L. Brown Post No. 162, Grand Army of the Republican,
and of the Loyal Legion. He is likewise a member
of Chillicothe Lodge, No. 52, Benevolent and Protective
Order of Elks, and president of its board of trustees.
Source #2 - Page 498 |
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FLOYD
C. McNEAL. The farm home of Floyd C.
McNeal is one with long and interesting associations
with members of that family. When his grandfather
first came to Springfield Township the site of the farm
was in the midst of the heavy woods. It was almost
entirely by the labors and persistent industry of the
McNeal family that the land was eventually converted
into a fertile and productive homestead.
On that old place, which he now owns and occupies,
Mr. McNeal was born August 17, 1869. His
father, William McNeal, was born December 3,
1837, on the same farm. The grandfather was
Thomas McNeal, a native of Pennsylvania, of
Scotch-Irish ancestry. From Pennsylvania he came
to Ross County and was a contemporary of some of the
very early settlers of this part of Ohio. Like
other pioneers he journeyed out of Pennsylvania by means
of a wagon and team. His purchase in Ross County
was a tract of timbered land in the southeast quarter of
section 24 in Springfield Township. There in the
midst of the trees was constructed a log cabin. It
was the first home of the McNeal family in Ross
County. Many years passed before railroads or
canals were built, and Thomas McNeal like the
other settlers had to suffer the handicap of lack of
markets and other advantages that came after Ohio was
well settled. In those early days little money was
in circulation and the people lived largely off the
products of their own fields and the wild game in the
forest and the fish in the streams. Thomas
O'Neal was a man of great industry and in time had
most of his land cleared up and under cultivation.
He died at the age of eighty years. The maiden
name of his wife was Mary Gates, who was born in
Germany and who died at the age of seventy-three.
Reference to her family, which were also among the early
settlers of Ross County, will be found on other pages.
She reared eight children, named Henry, Benjamin,
Tomas, James, William, Kate, Rebecca and Jane.
William McNeal, in spite of the lack of good
schools while he was growing up, acquired a good
education. He had qualified as a teacher while
still in his teens, and many of the older generation
will take a special pleasure in recalling the splendid
services he rendered as an educator, continued upwards
of forty years during the winter seasons. With the
exception of the three terms taught in Illinois and
Nebraska his work was entirely within the school
districts of Ross County. With teaching he
combined the ancient and honorable occupation of
agriculture. He succeeded to the ownership of the
old homestead and there lived and prospered until his
death in his seventy-second year. He married
Rebecca Downs. She was born in Harrison
Township of Ross County, Dec. 3, 1840, and is still
living with her daughter, Mrs. M. L. Strawser, in
Colerain Township. Her father, John Downs,
was also a native of Harrison Township. His
parents probably were born in Pennsylvania and were
early settlers of Harrison Township, where the father of
John Downs bought a tract of timbered land in
section 16 and developed it into a farm before his
death. John Downs purchased and
developed it into a farm before his death. John
Downs purchased 200 acres in section 9 of
Harrison Township. At the time it was covered with
a heavy growth of yellow poplar. His industry
enabled him to convert this into fertile fields, and he
lived upon it until after the death of his wife, when he
made his home with his daughter, Mrs. William McNeal.
John Downs married Elizabeth Rout. William
McNeal and wife reared four children named
Foster, Floyd, Martie and Norris.
Floyd C. McNeal grew up in the country and obtained
most of his education from District No. 6 schoolhouse.
His years were spent in assisting in the labors of the
home farm and as an independent farmer until 1903.
In that year he entered the employ of the Baltimore and
Ohio Railroad Company, and was an active railroad man
until he met with an accident to his right arm in 1910.
In the meantime he had bought the old homestead, which
his grandfather had cleared up from the wilderness, and
has lived on it since 1912. In the past four years
he has erected a set of good farm buildings, has planted
many fruit and shade trees, and now has a place that
compares favorably with the best to be found in
Springfield Township.
In 1892, Mr. McNeal married Lillian
Hanson. She was born in Harrison Township, a
daughter of Greenbury Hanson. Mr. and Mrs.
McNeal have reared three children: Ralph H.,
Helen and Margaret. The family are all active
members of Mount Carmel Methodist Episcopal Church, of
which Mr. McNeal is a trustee. In politics
he cast his first presidential vote for Grover
Cleveland. He has rendered some valuable
public service to his community, having been elected
assessor of the Second Ward in Chillicothe in 1911,
filling that post two years. In 1915 he was
elected assessor of Springfield Township. Mr.
McNeal is affiliated with Chillicothe Lodge, No. 24,
Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and also with the
Independent Order of Foresters.
Source #2
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AMBROSE
McNEILL, long identified with the agricultural
interests of Concord township, is descended from one of
the earliest settlers as well as most extensive and
prosperous farmers in that portion of Ross county.
His grandparents were John and Gertrude (Roseboom)
McNeill, West Virginians who came to Ohio in 1809
and purchased about 4,000 acres of wild land in Concord
township. Included in this tract was the site of
the present village of Frankfort, the land for which was
subsequently deeded by Mr. McNeill in sufficient
quantity for the purposes of incorporation.
Besides his large real estate interests, John McNeill
was in the mercantile business at Frankfort and also an
extensive dealer in stock. As life's shadows
lengthened, the old pioneer realized the necessity of
rest and while all his faculties were still sound made a
division of his property and retired from active
business. His wife departed this life in 1855, and
ten years later John McNeill surrendered to the
great conqueror after a long and useful career.
All of his seven children who grew to maturity have long
since died, but their names are preserved in the family
records as follows: John, Rachel (wife of
Osmus Rowe), Strother, Mary (married
William Harvey and after his death Dr. Joseph
Sanford), Andrew R., Rhesy and Gertrude
(wife of Tillman Porter). John McNeill,
eldest son of namesake of his father, was born near
Moorefield, Hardy county, W. Va., in 1807, two years
before his parents started on their journey to the West.
In early manhood he married Rebecca Wiley, a Ross
county girl, with whom he went to housekeeping on one of
his father's places and farmed the same until the time
of his death, which occurred in1873, his wife surviving
him five years. Of their five children, Corbin,
William W. and Henrietta G. are dead, the
living ones being Eliza J., who married Dr.
Mayne, and Ambrose. The latter was born
in Concord township, Ross county, on the farm where he
now resides, January 4, 1835. He remained at home
until his twenty-third year and was married May 27,
1858, to Elizabeth Claypool, of Frankfort,
Ohio. Within a year or two afterward, he located
on the place of 128 acres where he has since made his
home, and engaged in general farming and stock-raising.
During the civil war he was a member of the Home Guards
and joined in the movements to check those bold raiders,
Kirby Smith and John Morgan. Aside
from his own business, Mr. McNeill has often been
called on to fill township offices, such as trustee,
supervisor and member of the school board. Mr.
and Mrs. McNeill have five children, whose names are
thus given in order of birth: Frank, at
home; Ruth, wife of Charles Cox, of
Chillicothe; Mary, at home; Kate, wife of
Ernest Johnson, of Columbus; Maria, wife
of William Edmiston who is connected with the
business college at Columbus. |
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| JAMES
R. MOTTER, M. D., of Gillespieville, is a native
of Liberty township, Ross county, born Mar. 18, 1853.
His parents were Austin and Jane (Williamson) Motter,
both natives of Ross county. Austin was a
son of George and Mary K. (Knowls) Motter, both
natives of Virginia, who came to Ross county about the
year 1800 and spent the rest of their lives there.
George Motter dealt in fine horses on an
extensive scale and had a great reputation as a judge of
those animals. He died in Ross county about 1830
and his wife followed him about two years later.
Austin Motter was born in Ross county in 1822,
and became a merchant in Chillicothe and Londonderry,
and died at the latter place in 1879. His wife was
a daughter of John W. and Willie (Hagley) Williamson,
the former of New Jersey and the latter of Greenbrier
county, W. Va., who came to Ross county in 1814 and
ended their days here. John W. Williamson
was a notable and influential man; built the first hotel
at Londonderry, and was very successful in that
business; was shrewd and tactful and accumulated wealth,
and was postmaster under Jackson and other
presidents, holding that office about twenty-two years.
He was intimate with Allen G. Thurman, Governor
Allen and other prominent men of his day.
His wife died in 1874 but he survived until the year
1897. Austin Motter held the office of
deputy sheriff for four years, his chief duty being to
look after a family of six children, of whom four are
living. Dr. Motter was reared in
Londonderry and educated in the Chillicothe high school.
He began the study of medicine with Dr. Thomas
Farabee and, in 1873, was graduated from the Ohio
Medical college in Cincinnati, 1883 he was married to
Ida M., daughter of Joseph and Abigail (Ring)
Faust, the former of Germany and the latter a
descendant of Ross county pioneers. The mother of
Mr. Faust settled at Lancaster, Ohio, and
died at the extreme old age of one hundred and one
years. Dr. Motter and wife have two
children, Edwin Cameron and Jettie M.
The Doctor has taken an active interest in educational
matters and has been a member of the school board for
sixteen years, serving as president most of the time.
He now owns the old homestead of Dr. James Gillespie,
who was an uncle of James G. Blaine. Dr.
Gillespie kept the first postoffice at the place and
it was named in his honor. |
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EPHRAIM
H. MINEAR was born in Yellowbud, Ross County,
Ohio, Nov. 25, 1840. His parents were William
and Margaret (Hobbs) Minear, the former of whom was
born in Union township in 1815. He was a farmer by
occupation and spent his whole life on the same place.
Besides Ephraim Minear, the subject of this
sketch, there were two other children,
Elizabeth and Pelitha, both of whom died in infancy.
The father died at the early age of twenty-five, his
widow surviving until 1868. Their son Ephraim
lived in Yellowbud for five years and then went to work
in the country at a salary of some twelve or fifteen
dollars a year. August 11, 1862, he enlisted at
Yellowbud in Company K, Eighty-ninth Ohio infantry, as a
musician. After serving one year he was discharged
for disability and returned to his home in Ohio.
He then learned the carpenter's trade, which was his
means of livelihood for many years thereafter. On
March 18, 1868, he was married to Ellen Gamble,
of whose three children two died in infancy and
Fletcher, the only survivor, lives in Chillicothe.
The first wife died March 18, 1881, and Mr. Minear
married Ida Madden September 26, 1885.
Their only child is named Belle and lives at home
with her parents. In place he was appointed
postmaster in 1889. He held this place for two
years and in 1898 was reappointed by President
McKinley. In 1886, he was elected clerk of his
township and has retained that position ever since.
In politics he is a stanch Republican and he has been a
member of the Methodist Episcopal church since 1857.
(Page 610) |
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THADDEUS A.
MINSHALL, of Chillicothe, former chief justice of
the supreme court of Ohio and an eminent jurist, was
born in Ross county, Ohio, Jan. 19, 1834. His
ancestors were of English origin and accompanied
William Penn to this country as devout Quakers.
A branch of the family subsequently settled in Virginia,
whence Ellis Minshall, the grandfather, removed
to Ohio about the year 1800, and served through the war
of 1812 as a soldier from this state. After the
death of his mother in 1841 the subject of this sketch
spent about five years working in a woolen factory,
after which he attended Mt. Pleasant Academy as
opportunity afforded until 1854. At the age of
twenty he was a teacher in the public schools and in
this capacity he divided his time by studying law.
His earlier legal training was obtained in the law
office of S. L. Wallace, of Chillicothe, and he
was admitted to the bar by the supreme court in 1861.
Almost immediately thereafter Ft. Sumter was fired upon,
and President Lincoln called for volunteers.
Young Minshall was one of the first to respond
and on April 20, 1861, he enlisted as a private in
Company C, Twenty-second regiment Ohio Volunteers, for
the three months' service, and by the time he was
mustered out on Aug. 29, following he had been promoted
to sergeant-major of the regiment. He immediately
returned home and began raising Company H, Thirty-third
regiment, and on October 14, 1861, re-entered the
service of his country, this time as captain of
infantry, and continued to serve in this capacity for
the full period of his enlistment until mustered out in
Oct, 1864. His regiment was assigned to the
Fourteenth army corps, and he was with his command in
the hotly contested battles of Perryville, Stone River,
Hoover's Gap, Lookout Mountain, Missionary Ridge,
Ringgold, Resaca, Kenesaw Mountain, and Peachtree Creek,
and in many minor engagements of the Atlanta campaign as
well as Jonesboro and the siege of Atlanta,. For
some time prior to the capture of Atlanta he had held
command of his regiment. After the expiration of
his term of service he returned to Chillicothe and
resumed the practice of law, and in the fall of 1864 he
was elected to the office of prosecuting attorney of
Ross county but at the expiration of his term he
declined a renomination in order that he might devote
all his time and energy to civil practice in which he
became very successful. In 1876 he was elected
judge of the court of common pleas in Ross, Highland and
Fayette subdivision of the Fifth judicial circuit to
fill a vacancy caused by the death of Judge Thomas
Gray, and was re-elected for the full term in 1878
and again in 1883. In 1885 he was elete3d to the
supreme bench and in 1890 was again nominated by his
party and elected; and in 1895, the term having been
changed to six years, he was re-elected for the term
ending in 1902, serving the last year of this term as
chief justice. His opinions were of high order and
are to be found in Volumes 44 to 65, inclusive of the
Ohio State Reports. Judge Minshall has now
retired from the more active duties of life and is
taking the rest he has so honorably earned. Few of
Ohio's noble sons have done more to leave their impress
upon the state and the present generation than he.
A man of retiring disposition, unassuming habits and
strict integrity, he has justly earned the esteem of his
fellow men in every effort of his long and useful live.
On the 9th of April, 1873, he was united in marriage
with Julia Ewing Pearson, of Chillicothe, where
he has resided since 1861. |
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THOMAS I. MURPHY,
of the wholesale liquor firm of Frank Murphy & Co.
was born in Chillicothe Aug. 15, 1856. His parents
were Patrick and Mary (King) Murphy, both natives
of Ireland. The father came to America in 1846 and
settled in Chillicothe, the mother not arriving until
four years later. They were married in their
native country, where Frank, Mary and Lizzie
were born before the emigration. The other three
children, Kate, Thomas and John, were born
after the arrival in Chillicothe. Patrick
Murphy engage in the grocery business with his
half-brother, Martin O'Neil, on Water street.
All their stock, however, was consumed in the disastrous
fire of 1852, and after this, Patrick was
employed in various ways for ten or twelve years,
working most of the time as a common laborer. He
died May 17, 1874, at the age of sixty-four years, his
wife surviving him until April 7, 1881, when she expired
in her seventy-first year. Of their six children,
four are still living. John died in 1880,
at the age of twenty-two. Frank, in early
youth, engaged as a clerk with the firm of James
Boulger & Co., wholesale grocers and liquor dealers;
remained with this house for twelve years; then
purchased the grocery and liquor business owned by
Hugh McCurry and conducted it until his death, on
Sept. 6, 1901, the day of the assassination of
Prisident McKinley. In 1882, Thomas I.
Murphy, the subject of this sketch, became a partner
in the business, and since Frank's death he has
continued the same. In the spring of 1890, the
firm purchased the building now occupied by their large
stock. Frank married Miss Piatt, of
West Liberty, who only survived about a year after
marriage. Thomas I. Murphy was educated in
the Chillicothe public schools. When fifteen years
old he engaged as a clerk with his brother Frank
and has always followed this line of work. Both he
and his brother Frank were successful business
men, possessing universal confidence and the
esteem of all who knew them. Mr. Murphy
married Miss Annie Hydell, daughter of Anton
and Annie Hydell, both natives of Germany. Her
father, who was a moulder by trade, died in Chillicothe,
but the mother is still living. Mrs. Murphy
only lived a couple of years after her marriage when she
died, leaving one child which lived only about a year
after its mother's death. Mr. Murphy is a
leader of recognized influence in the Democratic party,
ahs held various official positions and served eight
years as a member of the city board of elections.
He is a member of the Roman Catholic church. Of
the sisters of Mr. Murphy, Kate resides in his
own household; Mary is the widow of
William Rusk, a real estate dealer of Cincinnati;
Lizzie is the wife of Thomas Surran, a
machinist of Cincinnati.
Source #1 |
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THOMAS
MURRAY, lately of
Buckskin township, was long and conspicuously identified
with the political and agricultural affairs of that
section of Ross county. His life extended over a
period of seventy-seven years, from the time of his birth
in 1819 until his lamented death in 1896. He took
much interest in the local political contests and served
on the township board of trustees several terms.
Entertaining strong religious convictions he was a
consistent member of the First Presbyterian church at
Greenfield and never failed to inculcate in his children
the precepts of morality. He married a daughter of
George Parrett, the latter being a member of a numerous
and influential family long prominent in the development
of Buckskin township. The progenitors were of
Virginia origin and were numbered among the earliest
arrivals in the Paint Creek valley. Mr. and Mrs.
Murray became the parents of five children. Of
these, George A. is living at Austin, Ross county; Anna is
the wife of George Cope, of Missouri; Charles is at home
and Frank E. is in the government service at Omaha, Neb.
T. Arthur Murray, third of the children in order of birth,
grew up on his father's farm and received a training that
fitted him for future work in that line. He attended
the common schools of Buckskin township and after reaching
suitable age engaged in agricultural pursuits.
Though not neglecting the general features, he has paid
special attention to live stock and deals in the famous
breed of cattle known as Shorthorns. He has achieved
a flattering measure of success as a breeder and feeder
and is well known to those connected with the local live
stock industry. Mr. Murray has a taste for politics
and has "had a hand" in all the township contests of late
years, being recognized by his party associates as a safe
counselor. He is also prominent in fraternal
circles, being connected with several of the most popular
orders. He is a member of the Knights Templar and
McClain lodge Knights of Pythias at Greenfield.
Inheriting his religious conviction of his good father, he
is a communicant in the Presbyterian church.
Source #1 |
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NOTES:
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