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Biographies
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Source:
History of Darke County, Ohio
From its earliest Settlement to the Present Time
Vols. I & II
Milford, Ohio - The Hobart Publ. Co.
1914.
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JAMES NEISWONGER.
James Neiswonger belongs to one of Greenville's old and
honored families and is financially a self-made man. He was
born in Greenville, Sept. 21, 1861, son of Daniel and
Rebecca (Gorsech) Neiswonger, natives of
Maryland. the father died about 1904. He came to Darke
county as a young man and for many years was engaged in business in
Greenville as a dealer in second-hand goods. He served in the
Ohio Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War. His widow now
lives in Greenville, aged seventy-six. they had several
children, all born in Darke county: Albert, of Greenville;
Clara, wife of Joseph Whiteley, of Greenville;
Jennie, wife of Arthur Avis, of Alabama; James,
of this sketch.
After completing the course in the common schools of
Greenville, James Neiswonger began learning the trade of
carpenter, in Greenville, and when he became expert in the trade he
and his brother Albert entered into partnership and they have
since continued in this line. They began taking contracts on
their own account and have been very successful in every
undertaking. They have been very successful in every
undertaking. They have built many business buildings and a
number of fine residences, including buildings for Charles Herr,
Guy Baker, John Whiteley, and many others. They have also
put up buildings in other parts of the county. James
Neiswonger erected his present beautiful residence at 301 Gray
avenue, which is a good sample of the high class of work turned out
by the firm. They are among the leading contractors of the
county and their work testifies to their ability in planning and
executing their work.
Mr. Neiswonger was married, Apr. 30, 1909, to
Mrs. Grace (Yost) Pearce, who was born near Arcanum, Darke
county, Feb. 13, 1877, daughter of Peter and Mary Ann (Downing)
Yost. Mr. Yost was born in Darke county in November, 1845,
and his wife was born near New Madison, Ohio, 1851, and died at the
age of forty-three years. Mr. Yost is a farmer by
occupation and lives near Arcanum. He served as 100-day man in
the Ohio Volunteer Regiment in the Civil War. He and his wife
had three children, all living: Nora, wife of Russell
Corwin, living near Arcanum; Elizabeth, wife of Frank
Beedle, of Norwalk, Ohio; Mrs. Neiswonger. Mrs.
Neiswonger is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church at Fort
Jefferson. Her mother was a member of the Mennonite church of
the same place. Mr. and Mrs. Neiswonger have friends by
the score, with whom both are popular. Their home is one of
refinement; both are fond of reading, and they are pleasant and
courteous in manner. they have the welfare of the community at
heart and are always ready to help along any worthy cause.
Mr. Neiswonger is a Democrat in politics. His business
associations are very pleasant, for he is progressive and
enterprising in his methods and upright in all his dealings.
Three children have come to brighten the home of Mr.
and Mrs. Neiswonger: Ralph, born Apr. 1,
1909; James and Janet, twins, born Dec. 5, 1912.
Source: History of Darke County, Ohio - From its
earliest Settlement to the Present Time - Vol. II - Milford, Ohio -
The Hobart Publ. Co. - 1914 - pg. 385 |
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CLIFFORD O. NISWONGER.
Clifford Niswonger, an honored and respected citizen of
Pitsburg, is a leading merchant and successful business man.
He is largely a self-made man, for his position is chiefly due to
his ambition and enterprise, coupled with his business acumen and
sterling qualities. He was born in Monroe township, Darke
county, Ohio, Dec. 21, 1887, and is one of the ten children born to
David Warner and Elizabeth (Olewine) Niswonger.
He has recently added the middle initial "O" to his name, which
stands for the name of his mother's family, Olewine.
David Warner Niswonger, now retired from active
life, was a carpenter by trade and now lives on a farm in Monroe
township, not far from Pitsburg. He was born on the section
wherehe now resides, Jan. 6, 1843, son of John and Susannah
(Warner) Niswonger, both of well-known Darke county families of
pioneer times. John Niswonger was born on a farm near
Salem, Montgomery county, Ohio, May 28, 1815, and was a son of
John and Elizabeth (Circle) Niswonger, both born, reared and
also married in Rockingham county, Virginia, the former also son of
a Virginian named John Niswonger and a farmer of Rockingham
county, Virginia. The American progenitors of the family were
three brothers who came from Germany, of whom one located in Canada,
one in Maryland and one in Virginia. Susannah Warner
was born on a farm near Union, Montgomery county, Ohio, June 2,
1815, daughter of David and Hester (Brumbaugh) Warner, who
came from Pennsylvania to Montgomery county, Ohio. It is
supposed that this family of Warners were descended from a
passenger on the Mayflower.
In 1832 the John Niswonger who married
Susannah Warner located in Darke county, having purchased 189
acres of land, part of it located in the same section as the one
where his son, David W., now resides. This was located
in tick woods and was secured from the Government. He erected
a log house there and occupied it some forty years. Their
first home was a story-and-a-half building of hewed logs, roughly
built, with one room above and one below, but this was soon added to
and remodeled, and finally replaced. The original house was
finally removed to Pitsburg and David Warner Niswonger lived
in it a number of years until it was finally torn down and used for
fuel. John Niswonger and wife became parents of five
sons and seen daughters, all of whom reached maturity and married
and eight of whom now survive. They are: Mary, who
married Henry Swank, and all their descendants except two
grandchildren, Mrs. Leibbie (Hullinger) Long and Miss
Margaret Hullinger, have passed away; Catherine, who
married Peter Layer, is deceased and her descendants are
scattered in various parts of the county; George, a resident
of Dawn, Darke county, married Keziah Bear; Elizabeth,
deceased wife of George Layer, whose descendants reside in
Darke county; David Warner; Hettie, wife of Harvey Mote,
of Chicago, whose descendants are much scattered; Lydia, wife
of Josiah Baker, of Pitsburg; Lucinda, wife of
Mathias Corwin, of Arcanum; Harriet, wife of John
Regan, of Brown county, Indiana; John, of Los Angeles,
California, married Emma Giblin; Harvey married
Mary Roser and lives in Arcanum; Nicholas, who married
Mary Reed, died at Ardmore, Oklahoma.
In boyhood David Warner Niswonger helped on his
father's farm and attended school three months in the year. In
1861 he was apprenticed to the trade of harness maker in Greenville,
boarding with his employer, but did not receive any regular wages
during this time. His employer often gave him a little
spending money and treated him well. On July 16, 1861, while
on his way to a point in Indiana, he enlisted in Company K
Nineteenth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, being the first man from
Monroe township to offer his services, but being accredited to
Indiana. From Indianapolis they were sent to Washington,
arriving there a few days after the first battle of Bull Run.
He participated in the second battle of Bull Run, also at South
Mountain and Antietam. At the latter battle he was shot
through the left lung but got up and walked a quarter of a mile,
then was taken to the hospital, and was sent to West Philadelphia.
He remained six months in the hospital and was discharged for
disability, Apr. 8, 1863. In the next few months, spent at
home, he fully recovered, and on January 30, 1864, enlisted in
Company B, One Hundred Tenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He was
sent to join the Army of the Potomac and participated in the Battle
of the Wilderness, went on into the Shenandoah Valley and was taken
prisoner and sent to Danville, whence he was sent to Libby Prison.
After being a prisoner seven months and thirteen days he was
exchanged and his honorable discharge took place June 2, 1865.
He resumed the harness trade and in 1867 started a shop in what is
now known as Old Pitsburg.
On May 19, 1867, David Warner Niswonger was united in
marriage with Elizabeth, daughter of David and Nancy (Graybill)
Olewine. After four years spent in business Mr.
Niswonger abandoned this line of work on account of his health
and after spending six months working with and for a boss carpenter
he began to take work on his own account. He lived at Old
Pitsburg and followed the trade of carpenter until 1893. He
and his wife had ten children, seven of whom reached maturity and
now survive, namely: William, superintendent of an
electric light plant at Bad Axe, Michigan, married Helen
Williams; Hettie, married Charles Mote, of Monroe
township, and has five children; Effie married James L.
Gilbert, of Logansport, Indiana, and they have two children;
Clifford, O., of this sketch; Harry, of Dayton, works for
the National Cash Register Company and married Helen Blose;
John is unmarried; Roy is a clerk in his brother's store
in Pitsburg. The father of these children is a Democrat in
politics and has served thirteen terms altogether as township
assessor, seven terms in succession, and for five years was township
clerk. He was a member of the school board several terms and
in 1890 was appointed to appraise the land in Monroe township.
He was reared in the German Baptist faith, as was his wife, and she
is a member of the church now. Her father, David Olewine,
was a son of Anthony Olewine, who was born in Pennsylvania
and after his marriage brought his family to Montgomery
county, Ohio, when his son David was about fifteen years old.
The latter received a good education and for may years was a teacher
in Montgomery and Darke counties. In an early day he purchased
one hundred and sixty acres of land in Van Buren township, which he
had to clear of timber.
The youngest child of David Warner Niswonger, Roy,
was ready at the age of twelve years to pass the Boxwell
examination, but was not allowed to do so, though he had an
opportunity to take it four years later and passed. He wished
to enter the high school at Arcanum but his parents would not allow
him to do so until a year later. After he had attended a few
months his parents went to Florida for a trip and took him along,
receiving his later education through observation and the books he
read by himself. Upon his return he worked for some time in
Dayton for the N. C. R. Co. but a few years since accepted a
position in the store of his brother, Clifford and has done
well in his work. He is well known as a young man of good
character.
Clifford O. Niswonger began his education in
Monroe township schools, which he attended some years, and for one
year he
Source: History of Darke County, Ohio - From its
earliest Settlement to the Present Time - Vol. II - Milford, Ohio -
The Hobart Publ. Co. - 1914 - pg. 273 |
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ELI NISWONGER.
Eli Niswonger, a highly respected citizen of Pitsburg, is a
retired farmer and has a comfortable home at the corner of Madison
and Harrison streets. He was born on a farm in Clay township,
Montgomery county, Ohio, Aug. 31, 1836, son of George and
Elizabeth (Warner) Niswonger. The father was born on the
same farm in 1809 and was a son of John and Elizabeth (Circle)
Niswonger. John Niswonger and his wife came to Darke
county from Virginia in 1808 and located in the woods in Clay
township, and his father, also named John, was a native of Germany.
The second John was a farmer and spent the remainder of his
days in Clay township. He became owner of a large tract
and one of the largest landholders in Monroe township, Darke county,
including the land where the town of Pitsburg now stands. He
was the father of nine children who reached maturity. He died
comparatively young, being in the sixties. Of his five
daughters three married men of the name of Baker, two of them
being brothers.
George Niswonger and his wife died in Montgomery
county. Of their six children five reached maturity: David
died when about sixty-five years of age; Eli is the
second child; Catherine married John Peffly, lived in
Darke county many years and then removed to Montgomery county, where
both passed away; Mary married Joseph Wenger and they
live in Montgomery county; Moses is a retired farmer and
resides in Oregon. The parents of Mrs. George Niswonger
were reared and married in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, and there
she was born and was a babe in arms when her parents came to
Montgomery county, Ohio, with a one-horse wagon, her mother walking
most of the way and carrying the young child in her arms.
Eli Niswonger received a common school education
and worked for his father until attaining his majority, then
attended school one year. He rented land of his father, who
allowed him every fourth bushel of his crop of grain. On Feb.
3, 1859, he was united in marriage with Miss Mary A. Coffman,
a native of Montgomery county, born July 29, 1838, daughter of
Jesse and Eliza (McCord) Coffman. Her parents were born,
reared and married in Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, and came to
Ohio in 1836, driving from Pennsylvania with a horse and wagon.
Her father worked at his trade of cooper in West Milton, Miami
county, where he located when his daughter Mary was ten years
old. Her great-grandfather, William McCord, was a
native of North Ireland, but of Scotch ancestry, and on her father's
side was of German ancestry. She is not positive, but believes
his given name was George and that the family then spelled
the name Kaufmann.
About five years after his marriage
Mr. Niswonger located on a farm about one mile east and a half
mile south of where Pitsburg now stands in Monroe township.
His father gave him eighty acres of land in the woods, where he cut
and hewed logs for a house. Later he weather-boarded his house
and added to it, making this his home until 1889, and adding ten
acres to his land. He and his wife became parents of nine
children, three of whom were born in Montgomery county, and there
were two sets of twins. The first child died in infancy;
Ella and Bella, twins, never looked much alike, and while
Ella has never weighed over ninety-seven pounds, Belle
weighed one hundred sixty-five pounds; James O., a merchant
of Columbus, is married and has three children; George E.
lives in Arcanum; Jesse and Ira, twins, who looked
very much alike, the latter of whom died in infancy, and the former
married and has three children and is a resident of Pitsburg;
Willie Roy is a stock dealer of Pitsburg; Granville W.
died at the age of two years. Belle, mentioned above,
married Arodine Isenberger, and died, leaving two children,
and her twin sister, Ella, married Charles Delk, whose
sketch appears in another part of this volume.
Mr. Niswonger made a success at farming and in
the management of his affairs showed the effects of his excellent
training in early youth. His ancestors have been thrifty and
industrious and he inherited a strong desire to conduct his affairs
with care and forethought. He was a Democrat in early life but
has now espoused the cause of the Prohibitionists. He has
served as township trustee and school director. His
grandfather and father were members of the German Baptist church and
his wife were reared in the Methodist Episcopal church, but feeling
she was not wholly in sympathy with that belief, she began reading
the Scriptures for guidance, and she and her husband, through her
influence, eventually joined what was then known as the Ludlow
church, now in Pitsburg. He gives his wife great credit for
having the courage of her convictions and for her influence upon him
in this connection. They have a host of friends and enjoy the
respect and honor of their children and all others who know them.
They worked hard in early life and now enjoy the fruits of their
toil. Mr. Niswonger, through nearly seventy-eight years
of age, is still able to do a man's full day's work and both he and
Mrs. Niswonger are hale and hearty.
Source: History of Darke County, Ohio - From its
earliest Settlement to the Present Time - Vol. II - Milford, Ohio -
The Hobart Publ. Co. - 1914 - pg. 438 |
NOTES:
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