The Jacob Rychener Family

Jacob and Elizabeth Rychener, both born in Fulton County, Ohio, of Swiss immigrant parents, were married in Enterprise, Kansas, where I was born. Returning to Ohio, my father became a partner in the Reynolds and Rychener hardware firm in Wauseon until 1906, when we moved to Ridgeville Corners, and he became cashier of the new Ridgeville Savings Bank, a subsidiary of the First National Bank of Wauseon. Pending construction of a proper structure, business began March 8 in a corner of what was known as the Rand & Beckham Building, then and for many years occupied by Fred Otte & Sons. The move into the new quarters, sandwiched between the Roth & Conway Meat Market and the Huner grocery, was soon accomplished. (The building still stands and after closing of business in 1931 was used as a restaurant, a residence, and in 1975 will be remodeled and enlarged to once again house a bank - a branch of the Farmers State Bank of McClure.)

The Rycheners of Ridgeville Corners

Those were the horse and buggy days, and with no rail connection it was necessary to drive to Pettisville and take the T & I trolley to Wauseon to procure operational funds from the home bank. Until Franklin Knape became assistant cashier, later, cashier, my mother and I were charged with that duty. Roads, gravel and sand, were rough, often muddy. Our horse, a high spirited animal, was given to runaways, doubtless aggravated by our fear of her. It was a relief when she was replaced by one of the first automobiles in the village - a little open Maxwell, with a tool box on behind. I well remember the exciting day when my father and I drove it home from Wauseon. It was touch and go whether my father's inexpert handling would get us there. We traveled all of ten miles per hour, never more than twenty, and darkness overtook us, forcing us to contend with the newfangled acetylene lights. There being no age or license requirements, I learned to drive immediately. The money trips continued, often unpredictable, adventurous. Once, on muddy roads, we ran out of gas, and mother, because she wore rubbers, walked a quarter of a mile to the nearest farmhouse for help. I sat in the growing dusk, beside a dense woods, clutching $2,000.

The year 1906 was exhilarating: the new business, a home built after my mother's plans, the addition to our family of my maternal grandfather, soon known to all as Grampa Seiler, but alas lost to us by death within the year, becoming involved in community life. As time passed we were deeply involved in the work of the Congregational Church, which was served one Sunday evening every two weeks by theological students from Oberlin College. This meant that someone must transport them to and from the railroad and entertain them over night, a rewarding task often assumed by us. The influence of these young men was critical to the unfolding of our youth.

A lending library, my mother's project, was established in one of the bank rooms. My father organized a band and a church orchestra. The band gave concerts Saturday evenings in the bandstand at the juncture of five roads which formed the 'Corners'. This stand was a landmark until its destruction in a big fire in 1915.

In 1918 we moved to Napoleon and my father became Henry County agent for the Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, a cherished accomplishment. Of all his business connections he was proudest of this, wearing his 35 year pin to his grave. My mother, a remarkable woman, became active in literary, church, and civic work. They died within two months of each other in 1944.

Submitted by Margaret R. Neidig nee Frieda M. Rychener