The Peters Families of Pickaway County, Ohio

JOHN PETERS, a prominent citizen and prosperous farmer of Scioto township, resides in a beautiful home of brick construction, which is situated on a magnificent farm of 600 acres, all of which is in one tody. He belongs to one of the oldest and most substantial families of the county. He was torn in Royalton township, Fairfield County, Ohio, October 27. 1847, and is a son Andrew and Ann H. (Reher) Peters.

Andrew Peters, the father of our subject, was born August 15, 1809, in Maryland, and accompanied his parents to Ohio, when he was just old enough to cause his mother anxiety by persisting in looking over the old-fashioned wagon-bed, as the family was being conveyed over the mountains, across unbridged streams and through unbroken forests. Samuel Peters, the grandfather of John Peters, located in Fairfield County, where he became a man of substance and finally passed away. His son Andrew died in Fairfield County on July 8, 1894. He had been a farmer and trade all his life. He married Ann H. Reber, who was born in Fairfield County, Ohio, January 31, 1821, and died May 21, 1897. They had five children, as follows: Alice, deceased in October, 1894, who was the wife of George Creed, of Fairfield County; Emma, deceased at the age of six years; Frank, who is a large farmer and wealthy resident of Harrison township; John, the subject of this sketch; and Milton, who is also engaged in farming in Fairfield County.

The old Peters family ancestry can be definitely given from the birth of the grandfather, Samuel Peters, who was a son of Jacob Peters, of Philadelphia, and was born November 27, 1772. On November 28, 1795, he married Mary Stevenson, who was born September 28, 1773, and was a daughter of Daniel Stevenson, of Baltimore, Maryland.

The children of Samuel and Mary (Stevenson) Peters were: Henry, born October 1, 1796; Robinson Jones, born December 18, 1799; Nathan, born June 20, 1800; Wesley, born October 10, 1801; Rachel, born August 25, 1803; Stevenson, bom June 23, 1805; Leah, born November 19, 1806; Andrews born August 15, 1809; Gideon, born August 29, 1811; Lewis L., bom March 23. 1816: Elizabeth, born November 17, 1814; and Ebenezer.

John Peters attended the district schools in his boyhood and then became a student under Dr. John Williams, who conducted a noted private school at that time, at Lancaster, and subsequently founded the Greenfield Academy, which Mr. Peters attended-for three months. In the fall of i86t he entered Ohio University at Athens, where he completed his education in 1867. Mr. Peters then engaged in farming and remained in Fairfield County until the spring of 1871, when he came to Pickaway County and located on the farm on which lie now resides. At that time this property was all covered with hazel brush and wild briefs, but under Mr. Peters’ management the land has been converted into its present fine condition, probably being one of the very finest farms in this section of the State, as his residence is one of the most attractive, substantial and comfortable, an ideal rural home.

On January 21, 1875, Mr. Peters was united in marriage with Clara Rebecca Beckett, who is a daughter of James A. and Margaret Beckett, of Commercial Point, both of whom are deceased. Her ancestors were among the first settlers of Virginia birth, to come to this section of the State and her grandfather was the first merchant at Commercial Point. Mr. and Mrs. Peters have these children: Laura May, Alice B., Emma. Homer

Hoyt and Margaret Anne. The eldest daughter was born November 15, 1875. and was married on December 27, 1894, to Alva B. Courtright, a prosperous farmer, and they have one son, John Peters. Alice B., who was born August 26, 1877, married Owen P. Lamb, and they reside at Columbus, where Mr. Lamb is interested in the Columbus Packing Company. Emma, born September 13, 1879, was married in June, 1903, to Seymour M. Millar, a son of Michael Millar, a substantial farmer of this section; they reside 011 a farm near South Bloomfield, Harrison township, and have a little daughter — Louise. Homer Hoyt, born August 14, 1882, is at home with his parents. He first attended school at Granville, then was a student at the Randolph-Macon Academy, in Virginia, and then took a two-years' university course at Athens, Ohio. He supplemented his literary training with a commercial course at a Columbus business college. Margaret Anne completed her education, as did her older sisters, at Mrs. Phelps’ Private School, an aristocratic institution at Columbus. All the ladies are highly educated and variously accomplished.

Both Mr. Peters and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church at Commercial Point. For more than 35 years Mr. Peters lias been a member of this religious tody, uniting with it at Royalton. He is considered one of the largest capitalists in Scioto township, having, beside a large amount of real estate, a number of safe investments, including stock in the First National Bank, now known as the New First National Bank, which is one of the strongest institutions in Columbus. He was one of the original stockholders of the Market Exchange Bank. For the past 20 years he has systematically invested in stocks and bonds but has also expended some $10,000 in educating his children. He is the largest tax-paper in his part of the county. Personally, Mr. Peters is a courteous gentleman, whose pleasant address and friendly interest place a visitor at ease and instinctively inspire admiration and confidence.

As printed in the source¹. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.

IOBERT W. PETERS, owner of a fine homestead of 210 acres in Walnut township and a well-known lay preacher in the Baptist Church, was born in Perry township, Franklin County, Ohio, February 7, 1846. He is a son of Gershom M. and Ann (Walcutt) Peters, the former a native of Walnut township. The Peters family originated in Virginia and at an early day became settled in Fairfield County, Ohio. Mahlon Peters, the grandfather of Robert W. Peters, settled in Walnut township, Pickaway County. Here Gershom Peters, the father, grew to manhood, and then moved1 to Franklin County, this State, where he married Ann Walcutt> daughter of Robert Walcutt.

Mr. and Mrs. Gershom Peters became the parents of six children, four of whom attained maturity, viz.: Mahlon, who died at the age of 54, leaving a widow, who is a resident of Columbus; Susanna H., wife of Edwin Newton, of Walnut township; Rachel L., wife of Robert A. Vandervort, of Pickaway township; and Robert W.

Robert W. Peters was raised in Franklin County, with the exception of the period between the ages of eight and 15 years, during which his parents lived in Iowa. In 1861 the family returned to Ohio, and in the spring of 1864, when Robert was 18 years old, he enlisted for service in Company E, First Reg., Ohio Vol. Cav., his term being for three years. The young patriot served under Sherman and Thomas, and participated in the siege of Atlanta, being discharged at Hilton Head Island, about 70 miles off the South Carolina coast, opposite Charleston. He received his final papers of honorable discharge from the service at Columbus.

One of the most signal services which Mr. Peters performed for the government was in connection with the capture of Jefferson Day is, President of the Confederacy. He is the only man in Pickaway County who is identified with that historic episode. He is one of 33 soldiers from Ohio who succeeded in entering the Rebel lines during the Civil War. Dressed as a Confederate soldier, he entered the lines of the enemy and spent 12 days getting information as a spy. Although he expected nothing for his services, beyond the valued thanks of his superior, in consideration of the dangerous character of his mission and its value in effecting the capture he received $293 as his share of the reward.

After the war, Mr. Peters returned to Walnut township and settled on the farm which his parents had bought while he was. at the front and which he still occupies. He was first married, October 28, 1868, to Emma Swope, of Fairfield County, by whom he had two children; Anna, who became the wife of Oliver Waddell and lives in Fayette County, this State; and Alice, who married George Barr, of Fairfield County, and has three children — Robert, Albert and Anna. Mrs. Emma (Swope) Peters died in March, 1871.

Our subject’s second marriage, April 2,

[This passage is too damaged in the scanned book to reproduce. See the original book.]

Aside from the faithful care of his household and the operations of his farm, which he has managed with such enviable results, Mr. Peters’ chief energies and abilities have been applied to matters religious. He is a member of the old-school Baptist Church, the pulpit of which he has repeatedly occupied within the past 20 years. A group picture of the Peters family accompanies this sketch.

As printed in the source¹. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.

L. PETERS, M. D., a prominent physician and surgeon at Circleville, was born in Walnut township, Pickaway County, Ohio, in 1851, and is a son of Lewis S. and Margaret (Ritter) Peters.

Lewis S. Peters was born in Fairfield County, Ohio, where he was reared and educated. Immediately after his marriage, he moved to Walnut township, Pickaway County, where he followed farming and was also a local preacher in the Methodist Episcopal Church, where his ministerial labors were highly valued. His first wife, Margaret Ritter, the mother of our subject, died in 1861. In 1864 Lewis S. Peters was married to Mrs. Lydia J. Beckwith, of Somerset, Ohio. He continued to live on the farm until the time of his death, with the exception of the years between 1866 and 1872, when he made his home in Circleville.

W. L. Peters was educated in the local schools and the National Normal School and spent three and a half years in the Ohio Wesleyan University. After teaching one term of school, he followed farming for 10 years and then entered the homeopathic medical department of the University of Michigan, where he was a student for two years, following which he attended the New York Homeopathic College, where he was graduated in 1890. He located for practice in Nebraska, Ohio, where he remained, following his profession, until October, 1900, when he moved to Circleville, where he has built up a very satisfactory practice.

On October 16, 1879, Dr. Peters was married to Belle L. Beckwith, who is a daughter of Joel King Beckwith, a prominent business man of Somerset, Ohio. Dr. and Mrs. Peters had one son*, Howard R., who was one of the most promising and popular young men of this city. He graduated at the Everts High School at Circleville in 1904 and spent the following year at the Ohio Wesleyan University. It was while enjoying his first vacation that he suffered from an attack of appendicitis, and. owing to the fact that a number of such attacks had occurred in the preceding 10 years, he decided to have an operation for relief from these recurring attacks. On* account of slow recovery, he did not return to college at the opening of the term, as he had intended, although his convalescence had given hope of a complete recovery. On the night of March 8. 1906, while returning home after spending a very enjoyable evening with three of his most intimate friends at the home of one of them, he was seized with* a hemorrhage and died within half an hour after reaching his home. Sympathy with the bereaved parents was universal. His college fraternity, the Sigma Chi, sent three representative members and a beautiful floral offering to his funeral.

Dr. Peters is a member of the Ohio State Homeopathic Medical Society and the American Institute of Homeopathy. He is a member of the Odd Fellows and the Foresters. He is a member of the official board of the Methodist Episcopal Church. He owns two farms in Pickaway County, one of 160 acres in Circleville township and another, of 84 acres, in Walnut township.

As printed in the source¹. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.

FRANCIS J. PETERS, one of the efficient members of the School Board of Madison township, and a well-known agriculturist and breeder of thoroughbred Jersey cattle, resides at St. Paul and owns a fine farm of 135 acres in Madison township. He was born in this township on August 22, 1848. and is a son of William L. and Susanna (Hoffhines) Peters.

John Peters, the grandfather of Francis J., was one of the very early settlers in Madison township. William L. Peters, the father, was born in Walnut township, Pickaway County, Ohio, and accompanied his parents in early life Madison township, where he was reared and became a very well-known citizen, holding many of the local offices at various times. In politics he was a Democrat. He married Susanna Hoffhines, who was born at Hagerstown, Maryland.

Francis J. Peters was reared in Madison township, attended the schools in his native neighborhood and later engaged in teaching in this township for a number of years. He has always been more or less interested in agriculture and for a number of years has been breeding fine Jersey cattle.

On September 21, 1876, Mr. Peters was married to Mary J. Cromley, who was born in Madison township, and is a daughter of the late John Cromley and his wife, Rachel C. TeegaTdin. Mrs. Cromley still survives, a highly esteemed resident of Madison township. Mr. and Mrs. Peters have these children: Ansel V., George T., Lawrence E., Homer F. and Watson E.

Mr. Peters has been a life-long Democrat and has frequently been chosen by his party for important local offices. For a number of years he has been township trustee, for two terms has been township clerk and is serving his first term as a member of the township School Board. He belongs to the Masonic fraternity and has been prominent in Masonic affairs in his part of the county, being a charter member of the Royal Arch Chapter at Canal Winchester, Ohio, and an honorary member of the Chapter at Circleville. On July 3. 1906, he was elected president of the Ashville Banking Company, a new bank organized on that date with a capital of $50,000. Mr. Peters is recognized as one of the township's reliable, substantial,! citizens.

As printed in the source¹. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.

A. PETERS, whose fine farm of 260 acres is located in both Pickaway and Fairfield counties, and whose comfortable and attractive home is situated in Walnut township, Pickaway County, is one of the leading men of this section. Mr. Peters was.born in Walnut township, Pickaway County, Ohio, August 14, 1852, and is a son of A. A. and Famah (Swisher) Peters.

A. A. Peters, the subject of this sketch, was one year old when his parents settled on the homestead farm in Walnut township he now owns and occupies. He has lived here until the present time. His father erected the comfortable and commodious residence and it has been still further improved by our subject. Here he spent his boyhood and attended the district schools, and on these broad acres he was trained to be a practical farmer. In addition to managing this large body of land, Mr. Peters, for years, has efficiently discharged the duties of public office, having, on numerous occasions, been elected as the choice of the Republican party. He served one term of three years as county commissioner, retiring in the fall of 1905, declining a re-election. He has been township trustee for two terms and has always taken an active part in all movements looking to the advancement of the township’s interests. For 12 years he served as a director of Reber Hill Cemetery, giving careful attention to the duties pertaining to this office.

Mr. Peters was married (first) to Emma Brobst, who was a daughter of David Brobst. She died some two and a half years after marriage, leaving no issue. Mr. Peters was married (second) to Olive Meeker, who passed away one year later, leaving no children. Mr. Peters was married a third time, to Elizabeth Stein, who was a daughter of David Stein. Mrs. Peters died September 14, 1905, the mother of four children, viz.: Annie, who married Frank Glick, a successful attorney at Columbus and has had three children — Helen and an infant, deceased, and Dudley; Chester, who resides at home; David, who died aged seven months; and Mary, who lives at home.

Both Mr. Peters and his son Chester are members of the Masonic order. The family is a leading one in Walnut township.

As printed in the source¹. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.