Henry County Genealogical Society Newsletter
Volume 4, Number 6, November-December 1990
MEETINGS
November 19, 1990, Monday, 7:00 pm
Potluck supper and recognition of First Families of Henry County. Please bring one hot dish, one cold dish and your own table service. Drinks will be provided. Our special speaker will be James Nagel of Napoleon.
December 1990
No meeting. Happy holidays!
Congratulations to the 1991 officers elected at the October meeting. They are:
President: Karen Sunderman
Vice president – Jane Shively
Secretary – Kathy Bishop
Treasurer – Lucille Van Scoyoc
Reporter – Clara Ellen Courtney.
If you are interested in volunteering or helping in any way, don’t hesitate to talk to an officer! HCGS depends on you.
The latest cemetery inscriptions book will be available by the end of November. Entitled Napoleon Township Cemetery Inscriptions, it includes the following cemeteries: Bremer, Zion, St. Paul, Gilson (Union Chapel), County Home, St. Augustine’s, Glenwood, and Brey. The book is 175 pages long, considerably larger than any previous cemetery book. Due to the increased size we will be charging $10.00 instead of $8.00. Postage will remain at $2.00. This would make an excellent Christmas gift for your favorite geneaphile.
Don’t forget to attend our November meeting honoring our first inductees into First Families of Henry County.
QUERIES
SCHLAEGEL, SCHLEGEL
Looking for descendants of Heinrich (Henry) Schlaegel or Schlegel who came to Napoleon, OH in 1913 from Gololobovka formerly Donhoff, Russia.
–Elvest L. Lehl, Wichita, KS 67203
SWISHER
Looking for information on John Swisher b. 8 Mar 1854 d. 13 Jan 1910 in Henry Co. Who were his parents? Where was he born?
–Jane Shively, McClure, OH 43534
HISTORY OF MARION TOWNSHIP, 1888
(abstracted from History of Henry and Fulton Counties, Ohio, edited by Lewis Cass Aldrich)
Marion is the extreme southern township in the county of range seven, being bounded on the south by township two of that range, the line between the two forming the line between Putnam and Henry counties.
There is little to distinguish this township from the balance of the county except the south or (as named by the geologists of the State) Belmore Ridge, which runs through it, entering the township near the half section line of section thirty, and running in a winding track eastward through sections twenty-nine, twenty-eight, and twenty-seven, when it turns southeasterly through sections twenty-six, thirty-five and thirty-six, crossing the township line near the southeast corner of the latter section. The lands along this ridge are high and dry. The remainder of the township is, or rather was, very wet, but exceedingly well timbered with burr and white oak, walnut, maple, poplar, ash and the softer woods.
The settlement of the township has been slow, and even comparatively modern. Located in a dense forest, no roads, not even “cow paths,” and no way to reach market except on foot, it was absolutely inaccessible, except from the ridge, which made a good natural road to Defiance. The wetness of the soil, the density of the forest and the isolation of the territory from market and civilization, were, however, not the only causes which retarded the settlement and improvement of the township. In the years 1850-51, before the adoption of the new constitution, Samuel Medary, then editor of theOhio Statesman, and other Columbus gentlemen and capitalists, conceived the idea of founding a settlement in the “Black Swamp,” and laid out a village, which they named Medary, in township two of this range of land, in Putnam county. About the same time a scheme was formulated by John M. Palmer, who subsequently became a judge of the Court of Common Pleas, to construct a plank road from the above village, northward, to intersect the Kalida pike in section thirty, Monroe Township. The road is still know as the Medary road. Palmer, by some process of manipulation in which rascality is ever fruitful, succeeded in getting a board of stupid trustees to issue the bonds of Marion township, which at that time had scarcely any population, in the sum of five thousand dollars for the ostensible purpose of building this plank road. Having secured the bonds Palmer negotiated them at once, put the proceeds in his pocket, and the road was never built. The debt, however, was entailed on the township, and to that extent was a mortgage on all the land. The lands were valued very low, and the duplicate being small, the tax was correspondingly high, and the debt was not finally paid until 1864. This aided materially in preserving Marion as the camping and squatting ground of the hunter, and gave to it the name “Big Woods.”
The township was organized in the spring of 1847, at which time there were but ten voters living in it. The duplicate of that year shows but seven chattel tax payers: John Hamler, Samuel H. Harshberger, Daniel Harshberger, William Bales, William Rayle, S. K. Warnick and W. M. Warner. The value of the personal property was $680; that of the land, there being but 9,266 acres listed for taxation, was $13,031.15, and the total tax paid was $480.45. Most of the persons named are either dead or removed. The descendants of Samuel H. Harshberger and of Wiliam Rayle still reside in the township and are the owners of some of the best farms in Marion, well improved, good, and large buildings erected, and the land under a high state of cultivation. W. M. Warner soon tired of wood life and sold out to Casper Zeirolf, now dead, but the old farm, perhaps in all respects, being situated on the ridge, the best in the township, is owned and occupied by his son William, at present one of the commissioners of the county. Samuel Harshberger, son of Samuel H., was the first white child born in the township, and inherited from his ancestors one of the best farms in the township, upon which he now resides. Of these pioneers John Hamler deserves more than a passing notice, although he is elsewhere spoken of in this book. He was the first settler in the township, having entered land and located in section twenty-one, September 16, 1846. The forest was dense, and wild beasts and mosquitoes the only inhabitants. The Indians, a remnant of the Ottowas, were only twenty-six miles east; the nearest house was fourteen miles, twenty miles to the nearest trading point, and thirty miles to mill, may give some idea of the inconveniences and hardships of frontier life. Yet Mr. Hamler says that his life was not devoid of enjoyment, and that he took almost as much pleasure in the rude and wild life of the woods as he does now surrounded by all the comforts and luxuries of civilization.
The real improvement and settlement of the township did not commence until 1869, when the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was constructed. This road enters the township at the southeast corner of section twelve and runs northwesterly to the northwest corner of section six. The construction of this road assisted largely in draining the lands, lead to the erection of saw-mills and stave factories; the cleaning out and deepening of the creeks, the main ones of which are Turkey Foot, Beaver, Brush and Lost creeks, and to the location, construction and improvements of roads. These improvements caused heavy taxation and assessments, and this obliged the non-resident land speculator to dispose of his holdings, which, passing into the hands of those who became permanent settlers, improvements seemed to spring up like Jack’s bean pole, in a single night, and makes Marion to-day as good a township as there is in the county.
The growth of the township may be indicated by the tax duplicate and the census returns. We have already shown the duplicate of 1847. That for 1887 shows 22,962 acres of land for taxation valued at $203,035, and personal property to the amount of $130,613, and the amount of taxes paid to be $7,541.17. The population in 1860 was only 195 souls; in 1870 it amounted to 513; in 1880 to 1,202, and at present may be safely estimated at 1,500.
The educational interests of the township have been carefully provided for and there are at present, in addition to the graded school at Hamler, nine good and substantial school houses erected. In each of the villages and at one or two points in the country, church buildings have also been erected.
The growth of this township has certainly been pheomenal and is owing largely to foreign immigration, the population outside of the descendants of the pioneers and the few Yankees who have been attracted by the wealth to be made of the great forests of timber, being composed mostly of industrious, sober, quiet and religious classes of Irish and German. These mixing and inter-marrying, including the native born, make the progressive and energetic homogeneous American, and indicates that our national motto, “e pluribus unum,” means not only one State for many States, but one nation from all the nations of the earth.
DID YOU KNOW?
ALSACE EMIGRATION BOOK, PART I by Cornelia Schrader-Muggenthaler — This book lists 13,500 emigrants from France and Germany to the United States with places of origin researched from microfilms, passenger lists, ship lists and private sources for 1817-1867. $24.95 includes postage and handling. Order from Closson Press, 1935 Sampson Dr., Apollo, PA 15613.
–Cuyahoga West Newsletter May 1990
The Florida chapter OGS will hold its annual conference on Feb. 15. 16, 1991 at the Sheraton East Hotel, Tampa, Florida. For more information contact: Elmer C. Spear, Tampa, FL 33624-4756.
CEMETERY CORRECTIONS
In the March-April 1990 printed version of the newsletter, Cemetery number 45 in Washington Township was listed as Edwards Cemetery. It should be Showman Cemetery, which was a private cemetery.
According to county records, this cemetery has been completely destroyed and the stones were moved to a brush pile as early as 1940.
Three of our members have searched the area where the stones were put and found only one stone remaining. The stone is that of David Edwards, his wife Cynthianna, and children Jesse, John, Euphemia, Sarah, Hannah C., and Infant.
As of the date of this newsletter (November-December 1990), the cemeteries in Pleasant, Marion, Monroe, Bartlow, Richfield, and Flatrock Townships have been recorded and published. Napoleon, Damascus, and Washington Townships have been recorded and will be our next publications.
It is our goal to record and publish the remaining cemeteries by townships at six month intervals within the next few years.
1890 Census of U.S. Union Veterans and Widows of Union Veterans of the Civil War
(continued from the last newsletter)
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP (CONT.)
| Name | Rank | Comp. | Reg. or Vessel | Date Enlist | Date Discharge | Length Service | Disability |
| Guseman, Jacob | pr | D | 22 PA Cav | 6 Sep 62 | 24 — 65 | 2y 8m 27d | |
| Stark, James W. | pr | I | 145 OH Inf | 2 May 6- | 27 Aug 6- | 4m 25d | |
| Helberg, Frederic | pr | H | 68 OH Inf | 20 Sep 61 | 17 Oct 62 | 1y 25d | |
| Burdue, Jacob | pr | B | 166 OH Inf | 2 May 64 | 6 Oct 64 | 5m 4d | |
| Goodell, Bethuel | pr | B | 3 OH Cav | 4 Jan 64 | 4 Aug 65 | 1y 7m | |
| Dibble, Miranda | pr | B | 22 OH Inf | 3 Sep 61 | 18 Nov 64 | 3y 2m 15d | |
| Ditto | Serg | F | 187 OH Inf | 15 Feb 65 | 20 Jan 66 | 11m 5d | |
| Matthews, Edward | pr | C | MI 1st US Sanc | 30 Nov 61 | 20 Mar 62 | 4m 5d | |
| Ditto | Corp | F | 129 IN Inf | 18 Dec 63 | 29 Aug 65 | 1y 9m 11d | |
| Close, Jennie, widow of Close, Samuel | pr | A | 118 OH Inf | 11 Aug 62 | 24 Jun 65 | —- | |
| Phillips, Franklin | pr | C | 123 I | —- | —- | —- | |
| Bortel, Raymond | pr | B | 184 OH Inf | 21 Jan 65 | 20 Sep 65 | 7m 29d | |
| Ginder, Isaac | pr | B | 184 OH Inf | 30 Jan 65 | 20 Sep 65 | 7m 20d | |
| Ditto | pr | B | 130 OH Inf | 2 May 64 | 22 Sep 64 | 4m 24d | |
| Moss, William H. | Corp | C | 31 OH Inf | 20 Apr 61 | 18 Aug 65 | 4y 3m 28d | socomotor ataxia, now paralyzed |
| Whitaker, William | pr | K | 65 NY Inf | 16 Aug 61 | 31 Dec 65 | 4y 4m 15d | shot thru right leg |
| Seitner, William | pr | I | 38 OH Inf | 15 Jul 61 | 3 Feb 62 | 6m 18d | discharge for left arm disabled |
| Jackson, William H. | pr | I | 38 OH Inf | 21 Aug 61 | 25 Aug 62 | 1y 7d | |
| Ditto | Serg | H | 130 OH Inf | 2 May 64 | 24 Sep 64 | 5m 22d | |
| Ditto | 1st Serg | C | 123 OH Inf | 11 May 65 | 4 Aug 65 | 4m 23d | |
| Poling, Elijah | pr | K | 58 OH Inf | 2 Dec 61 | 26 Dec 62 | 1y 24d | |
| Ditto | pr | F | 2 OH A | 8 Feb 64 | 23 Aug 65 | 1y 6m 15d | |
| Reighard, Solomon | pr | B | 67 OH Inf | 25 Sep 62 | 25 Jun 65 | 2y 9m | |
| Bennett, Thomas | pr | F | 14 OH Inf | 28 Aug 61 | 11 Jul 65 | 3y 10m 13d | |
| Myers, Nancy A., widow of Myers, Abraham | pr | I | 67 OH Inf | 1 Jul 62 | 27 Oct 64 | 2y 4m 26d | killed in battle |
| Jones, Joab C. | pr | C | 128 OH Inf | 19 Mar 64 | 13 Jul 65 | 1y 3m 24d | |
| Ditto | pr | I | 14 OH Inf | 16 May 61 | 16 Aug 61 | 4m | (this line crossed out) |
| Mohler, David E. | pr | A | 3 OH Cav | 10 Dec 63 | 14 Aug 65 | 1y 18m 4d | |
| McGiffin, Hannah, widow of McGiffin, James M. | pr | I | 68 OH Inf | 25 Nov 61 | 8 May 62 | 5m 13d | discharge on surgeon cert. |
| Durbin, William | pr | D | 68 OH Inf | 15 Oct 61 | 28 Oct 64 | 3y 13d | |
| Bellinger, Jerusha, widow of Bellinger, William | pr | 10 OH SS | 17 Mar 64 | 19 May 65 | 1y 2m 2d | trans. to 60 OVI | |
| Courtright, Daniel C. | pr | C | 15 OH Inf | 26 Jul 61 | 15 Jan 65 | 3y 5m 17d | |
| Myrice, Samuel | pr | D | 14 OH Inf | 1 Oct 62 | 11 Jul 65 | 2y 9m 10d | |
| Russel, Henry | pr | G | 87 OH Inf | 2 May 62 | 20 Sep 62 | 4m 18d |
20 WAYS TO FIND A MAIDEN NAME
(taken from Cuyahoga West Newsletter)
- Ladies death certificate–if within period of vital state registrations
a. See International Vital Records Handbook, by Thomas J. Kemp. Genealogical Publishing Co., 1990, for forms & addresses, or
b. “Where to Write for Vital Records” and other similar books
c. Use Ancestry’s Red Book or Everton’s “Handy Book” for records available each state and county plus addresses. - All children’s certificates if they lived into 20th century.
a. should name father and mother and often their places of birth. - Copy of her obituary published in newspapers in nearby towns.
a. then also check to see if father or any brothers survived her
b. obituaries of her children often give mother’s maiden name also. - Marriage certificate
a. if county and husband’s name is known
b. check children’s marriage certificates–these may give parents
c. if married young, a parent may have given permission to marry - Probate records
a. check for Probate Proceedings, including will or Administration
b. witnesses often include one person who is a wife’s relative - Land Records
a. quit claims for father’s real estate will prove her relationship
b. any mortgage was very often carried by woman’s father - Printed Church records or printed marriage records
a. published in books found in libraries
b. published in journals–check PERSI Index - Unpublished Church records of marriage
a. microfilmed by LDS
b. find and check individual churches and/or their church archives - International Genealogical Index (IGI)
a. microfiche index in LDS libraries, includes entries and abstractions from all over the world; over 18 million entries. Not all, however. - Divorce papers
a. if great-grandfather seemed to vanish, worth a check - Newspaper indexes
a. many localities have indexed marriages & other vital records. Write distant libraries, historical or genealogical societies.
b. Use July/Aug [1990] issue of “Genealogical Helper” for addresses. - Histories
a. Biographies of her husband and/or any children - Widow’s Military Pension
a. Revolutionary War (at WR)
b. Civil War, write National Archives
c. War of 1812 (this index at WR)
d. any other war where she may have received a pension - Locate a family genealogy of husband’s line
a. in LDS catalog
b. Index to Genealogies in Library of Congress
c. NUCMUC-National Union Catalog of Manuscripts
d. other libraries - Locate distant relatives who have information
a. query in Helper, HQ, newsletters, newspapers, etc. - Census 1880, 1900, 1910
a. relationship is stated and in-laws may be living with family - Certificate of Naturalization of husband (sometimes)
- Bounty Land Warrant – application by wife must prove marriage to veteran
- Tombstone company, cemetery office or funeral director’s records
- What new source have you discovered?
