Henry Erford, I

Henry the 1st is the person we will center on because he settled in Henry County. He was born in 1856. Josephine was born in 1856. They married March 9, 1886, at St. Nicholas Catholic Church in Frenchtown.

After six children were born, they bought a 52 acre farm near Hamler for $25 per acre. It was all woods and no buildings. Henry and his brother, Nick, who lived nearby built a shell of a house with 4 rooms in the late fall of 1896. Henry moved his family in March of 1897. He moved by box car on the B&O railroad. They loaded all their household things, machinery, seed, feed, horses, and themselves at 8:30 a.m. They arrived at Hamler at 1:30 a.m. It took 17 hours to go 50 miles.

Later Henry bought 40 adjoining acres to his 52 acres. His seventh child was born near Hamler. Their first child was Peter Alvin, born in 1887. He married Effie Bauhaus in 1910 and lived near Hamler. In 1941 they moved to Miller City, Putnam County. Lillian was born in 1888. She married Michael Oedy in 1912 and lived the rest of her life near New Bavaria. Estella was bornin 1890. She married Jay Winemiller in 1914 and lived near Hamler for the rest of her life. Lucy was born in 1892. She married Robert Brady in 1924 and lived in Marion and Toledo, Ohio. Henry the 2nd was born in 1893. I'll refer to him later. Ester was born in 1896 and died 1898. She was one of the first to be buried at St. Paul's Cemetery, 1/2 mile northeast of Hamler. Florence was born in 1904. She married William Butler in 1933 and lives in Toledo, Ohio.

The Erford farm was cleared and became a very productive farm. Henry I's wife, Josephine died at age 42 in 1907. Later he moved to Hamler where he lived to be 86 and died in 1942. A quote from the weekly paper at Hamler read, "Mr. Erford was one of our true pioneers coming here about 45 years ago, hewing his way out of the forest land to the productive farm on which his son Henry II now resides. He was also one of the earliest members of St. Paul's Catholic Church here. His ready wit and pleasant disposition made him an agreeable and enjoyable companion."