OHIO STATEWIDE FILES OH-FOOTSTEPS Mailing List Issue 308 *********************************************************************** USGENWEB NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. http://www.usgwarchives.net/ *********************************************************************** OH-FOOTSTEPS-D Digest Volume 00 : Issue 308 Today's Topics: #1 Bio - 1885 - Portage Co, OH, Nelso [Betty Ralph ] Administrivia: To unsubscribe from OH-FOOTSTEPS-D, send a message to OH-FOOTSTEPS-D-request@rootsweb.com that contains in the body of the message the command unsubscribe and no other text. No subject line is necessary, but if your software requires one, just use unsubscribe in the subject, too. ______________________________ ------------------------------ X-Message: #1 Date: Fri, 20 Oct 2000 19:19:07 -0500 From: Betty Ralph To: OH-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-Id: <2.2.32.20001021001907.0074087c@HiWAAY.net> Subject: Bio - 1885 - Portage Co, OH, Nelson # 1 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Bios: Bancroft, Cole, Colton, Couch, Crawford, Fowler, Freeman, Fuller - Portage County, Ohio, from "History of Portage County, Ohio" published by Warner, Beers & Co., Chicago, 1885 ************************************************************************ USGENWEB ARCHIVES NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. http://www.usgwarchives.net ZINA R. BANCROFT, farmer, P.O. Garrettsville, was born in Nelson Township, this county, March 11, 1838, son of Thompson Bancroft, a native of Connecticut, who was brought to this county in infancy, and here he attained his maturity, helping to cut down the forests, and following the occupation of a farmer. Thompson Bancroft was united in marriage with Lucy C. Atwater, also a native of Connecticut, who bore him five children: Sylvester, deceased; Edwin L., deceased; Zina R.; August P., and an infant, deceased. He died in 1877, and his widow in 1879. Our subject, who has always been a farmer, was married, October 6, 1859, to Clara Reed, born September 1, 1837, in Crawford County, Penn., daughter of Henry and Sarah (Moore) Reed, natives of Connecticut and early settlers of Mead Township, Crawford Co., Penn. Mr. and Mrs. Bancroft are the parents of three children: Lucy C., Henry T. and Eddie H. MILTON COLE, farmer, P.O. Garrettsville, was born in Nelson Township, this county, February 23, 1836; son of Jedediah Cole, a native of Vermont, who was twice married. In March, 1835, he was married (second occasion) to Parthena (Sanford) Hamlin, born in Harrington, Conn, April 10, 1810, who bore him five children: Milton; Francis, in Lorain County, Ohio; Mrs. Aurilla Thompson, in Garrettsville, Ohio; Mrs. Cordelia Bancroft, in Michigan, and Edwin S., born in 1848, and died in his seventeenth year. Jedediah Cole is deceased; his widow still survives. Our subject received a common school education, and has followed farming all his life, still living upon the old farm originally settled by John Noah, the eighth settler in Nelson Township. On April 22, 1863, our subject was married to Miss Jennie M. Doty, born in New York State April 22, 1840, daughter of Ebenezer and Rebecca (Pierce) Doty, natives of Massachusetts, both now deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Cole are the parents of one daughter - Lottie M., born March 5, 1864. Our subject is an active member of Portage Lodge, No. 436, I.O.O.F. JOHN B. COLTON, farmer, P.O. Garrettsville, a native of Connecticut, was born November 27, 1811, son of Theron and Elizabeth (Clark) Colton, natives of Connecticut, who moved to this county in 1815, and who were the parents of eleven children, one deceased in infancy, the remainder attaining maturity, four of whom are now living, whose combined ages aggregate three hundred years. Theron Colton, born in Granby, Conn., established the first blacksmith shop in Nelson Township, this county, and conducted an extensive business for three townships. He died in 1851 at the age of seventy-eight years, his widow surviving him about fourteen years. Our subject was raised on a farm, his education being limited to that obtainable in the log-schoolhouse of that early day. He has always followed the occupation of a farmer. He was married in 1847 to Mary L. Tilden, a native of Hiram Township, this county, where she was born in 1829. They are the parents of three children: George H., a Professor in Hiram College; Emily N., wife of G.W. Newcomb, and Sheridan B. Mr. Colton has added several acres to the old homestead where his parents lived and died, and which he now owns. Mr. Colton has served the people of his township in several offices of trust. He has never been a politician or office seeker, but has ever lived contented with the plain home life of a farmer. BURT F. COUCH, farmer, P.O. Garrettsville, was born in Nelson Township, this county, August 22, 1850, son of Ferris and Antoinette (Johnson) Couch, natives of Lee, Berkshire Co., Mass., and Cornwall, Conn. They were the parents of five children, three of whom attained maturity: Sarah A. (wife of Edward Burk), Emily J. and Burt F. Ferris Couch settled here in 1817, and became very prominent, serving as Sheriff of the county, having been elected in 1854, and in an early day as Captain of the militia. He died August 27, 1881, upon the same farm on which he ate his first meal upon his arrival in town July 25, 1817. His widow died at the same place July 6, 1884. Our subject was married July 25, 1872, to Miss Ella C. McElwain, born in Garrettsville, this county, December 7, 1855. By this union there are two children: Myrtle A., born June 24, 1874, and Lela B., born July 10, 1876. Mr. Couch is an enterprising young man, who has always followed the occupation of a farmer. He is now living on his father's old homestead; is a member of Portage Lodge, No. 456, I.O.O.F. In politics he is a Republican. CYRENUS CRAWFORD, farmer, P.O. Nelson, was born in Genesse County, N.Y., August 5, 1818; son of Stephen and Rebecca (Carpenter) Crawford, natives of New York, the parents of eight children, all of whom attained maturity, and of whom our subject is the eldest. Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Crawford came to Ohio in 1819, residing at Southington for eight years, thence moved to Farmington for one year, and finally settled in Nelson Township. The father died in 1868; the mother was killed in 1844 by being thrown from a buggy. Our subject has resided in Nelson Township since his parents came here, and engaged in farming, in connection with which has recently gone into the raising of a superior breed of stock. He was united in marriage, August, 1858, with Miss Mary Brown, a native of New York, and a daughter of Thomas Brown. BENJAMIN FOWLER, retired farmer, Garrettsville, was born July 25, 1807, in Northumberland County, Penn., and removed when nine years old to Lycoming County, same State, with his parents, James Fowler, born in Northumberland County, Penn., and Ann (Craft) Fowler, born in England, and who came to America at the age of sixteen years. The father was a distiller during early manhood, and later a farmer. He died at the age of seventy-five years, of palsy. He and his wife, who died in 1824, were members of the Presbyterian Church. Their children were eight in number, five of whom are now living: Benjamin, Daniel, Deborah, Nancy and Kate. Our subject was educated in the log-cabin schoolhouse, and during his short terms in the winters he progressed rapidly. It is a remarkable fact that he mastered every problem in what is now known as "Pike's Arithmetic" in twenty-one days and nights. At seventeen years of age he began labor on a vessel which plied on Baltimore Bay, and there remained five years. In 1829 he rented a large farm along the Susquehanna River, and five years later left there for Trumbull County, Ohio, where he settled among the wolves and other ferocious animals. Here he improved about 114 acres, besides clearing other farms. In 1853 he moved to this county, and settled where he now resides. He owns 175 acres, known as the old "Spencer farm," for which he paid $8,000. Since locating here he has made a specialty of stock-raising and dairying; he also continued the cheese-making business, which he had commenced in Trumbull County, Ohio, in 1848, but this industry he withdrew from in 1881. While in Trumbull County there were added to his various other duties the operating of a sawmill , and the first threshing machine ever used in that county. At one time he was interested in a banking business at Garrettsville, this county, which proved to be a loss to him. Our subject married, in 1829, Elizabeth, daughter of John and Abbie (McClow) Shaffer, natives, former of Pennsylvania, latter of New Jersey. To this union were born eleven children, eight of whom are now living: J. Wilson, married to Flora De Lon; Henry M.C., married to Caroline Bristol, born October 5, 1833, daughter of Lot and Lucy (Towsley) Bristol, natives of Connecticut and early settlers of Portage County (her father died in 1866, leaving two children: Fred and Caroline); they have two children: Ransom and Virginia; Harriet, married, for her second husband, to Oscar Hoskins; Sarah J., married to Fred Bristol; Lorenda, married to Samuel Craig; Cornelius, married to Hannah Missner; John, married to Rosa Doty; Watson, married to George Collins. Mrs. Fowler died in 1874. She was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, to which our subject has been closely attached for over forty years. Mr. Fowler cast his first Presidential vote for Andrew Jackson, and has since adhered faithfully to the principles of the Democratic party. The Fowler family are descended from three brothers who emigrated from England at an early period, and soon after separated. One, Nathan, was married and lived in New York, and his son Benjamin was on board a vessel which remained out of sight of land for three years and six months. He was with George Washington during the Revolutionary struggle. His father was killed in the French and Indian war. Another of the three brothers, Elithan, married and resided in Connecticut; and the third brother, David, married a French woman and settled in Pennsylvania, and from him the race, of which our subject is a member, sprang. The Fowler family as a rule are long lived. Benjamin, the grandfather of our subject, died at the age of one hundred and six years. OSCAR D. FREEMAN, farmer, P.O. Nelson, was born in Fredonia, N.Y., January 20, 1836, son of Joseph and Phebean (Freeman) Freeman, natives of New York, and to whom six children were born, our subject being the third. Joseph Freeman was a molder by trade, but subsequently adopted the life of a farmer, and is now a resident of Michigan. His wife died in 1843. Oscar D. Freeman was raised in Michigan, where he obtained a common school education and began his career in life as a farmer. In 1862 he removed to this county, and the year following was married to Miss Lavinia Knowlton, a native of Nelson Township, this county. By this union there is one son - Porter C. During the war of the Rebellion Mr. Freeman enlisted with the 100-days' men in Company I, One Hundred and Seventy-first Ohio National Guards, was wounded at the battle of Kelley's Bridge and discharged on account of disability. He has served one term each as Township Treasurer and Constable. COLUMBUS C. FULLER, farmer, P.O. Nelson, was born April 23, 1818, on the farm in Nelson Township, this county, which is still his home, and is a son of Jeremiah R. and Hannah B. (Bierce) Fuller, natives of Connecticut, who had a family of five children, two of whom are now living: Chauncey, in Iowa, and Columbus C. Jeremiah R. Fuller came to this county in 1817 and died in 1851; his widow died February, 1882, aged ninety-two years. Our subject was married, in 1848, to Mary A. Bierce, born in Nelson Township, this county, in 1830, and who has borne him the following children: Harry B., who was highly educated, and was a successful teacher, died at the age of twenty-seven years; William J.; Lucius B., a graduate of Oberlin College and a theological student, died in his twenty-sixth year; Marcus B., twin brother of Lucius B., who graduated at the same time and is now a missionary in India; Gerald M.; Columbus C., Jr., and George N. Mr. Fuller has always been a farmer, and for fifteen years has been an extensive breeder of Ayrshire cattle. He is a member of the Congregational Church; has held several of the township offices; in politics he is a Republican. -------------------------------- End of OH-FOOTSTEPS-D Digest V00 Issue #308 *******************************************