The Wilson Families of Fayette County, Ohio

WILLIAM WESLEY WILSON.

lliere is no positive rule for achieving success, and yet in the life of the successful man there are always lessons which might well be followed. The man who gains prosperity is he who can see and utilize the opportunities that come in his path. The essential conditions of human life are much the same, the snrroimdings of individuals differing but slightly, and when one man passes another on the highway of life it is because he has the power to use advantages which probably, in the main, encompass the whole human race. Today among the prominent citizens, prosperous farmers and successful business men of Fayette county stands the gentleman whose name forms the caption to these paragraphs. The qualities of keen discrimination, sound

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

William W. Wilson, who owns and operates a splendid and well improved farm in Union township and who is also interested in a prosperous fencing and implement business in Washington C. H., comes of good old Virginia stock in both the paternal and material lines, and exemplifies in himself those splendid qualities which have ever characterized the people of the Old Dominion state. He is himself a native of Fayette county, having been born in Perry township on August i6, 1857. Hig parents, James and Martha (Simmons) Wilson, were born in Highland county, Ohio, but became early settlers in Fayette county, in the pioneer life of which they became active factors. For a number of years after coming to this county their home was in Perry township, but in April, 1877. they moved to Union township, where the father bought a farm of one hundred and thirty-four acres, to the improvement and cultivation of which he devoted himself. Subsequently he located on another farm near Washington C. H.. where his death occurred in 190 1, when past sixty-seven years of age. He was a man of splendid qualities of character and was an affiliated member of the Baptist church. His widow, who still survives him, is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. James Wilson was a man of sound business judgment and rendered efficient service as real estate appraiser in 1890 and

The subject's paternal grandparents, William Wesley and Elizabeth ( Fishback) Wilson, were born and reared in Staunton, Virginia. Having determined to seek a home in the New West, they started on the overland journey to the Indian Reserve in Indiana, but when they reached East Monroe, Highland county, Ohio, one of their horses sickened and died, preventing their continuing their journey further. They were the parents of five children, Williain, James, Henry, Alfred and Joseph.

The maternal grandparents of Mr. Wilson were William and Sarah ( Harber) Simmons, also natives of the state of Virginia, who settled in Highland county, this state, in an early day and there spent the remainder of their lives, dying there when about ninety years of age. Their children were Elijah, Oliver, Trusten, Edmund, Sarah, Mary, Martha and Louisa.

He to whom the following lines are devoted has spent practically his entire life in the county of his nativity, never having been induced by the wanderlust spirit to seek richer fields elsewhere, and in this he has shown a commendable judgment, for he has, by perseverance, good judgment and

Google indefatigable energy, succeeded in his material affairs, until today he is one of the leading men of his community. He is indebted to the district and graded township schools for his educational training, which he has liberally supplemented through the years by habits of close observation and by extensive reading. He was about nineteen years of age when the family moved from Perry to Union township, and he was reared to manhood on a farm. At the time of his marriage, Mr. Wilson rented land, and was so successful in his vocation that a few years later he was able to purchase thirty-five acres in Union township. In the management of this tract he was also successful and has added to his original holdings until today he owns one hundred and seventy acres of as good land as can be found in his section of the county, the farm being located about one mile south of Washington C. H. In addition to his farming operations, Mr. Wilson is, as stated earlier in this sketch, interested in the fence and implement business at Washington C. H.. in which he has met with well deserved success. He is also a stockholder in the Fayette County Bank, one of the strong and popular banks of this county.

Politically, Mr. Wilson has been a life-long supporter of the Democratic party and for the long period of twenty-eight years he has rendered faithful and appreciated service as a member of the school board. Religiously, he is, with his wife, an active member of the Methodist Episcopal church, to the support of which they give of their time and means.

On the 27th day of October, 1878, William W. Wilson married Martha Swift, who was born in Highland county, Ohio, the daughter of William and Nancy (Amos) Swift, the former a native of Ireland, born in Kirkele, county Down, Ireland, in 1810, and died in 1902. In 1818 he voyage to America by sailing vessel. Nancy Amos was born in Highland county, Ohio. Both are now deceased. Of the eight children born to Mr. and Mrs. Swift, five are now living, namely: John Wesley, Elijah William, Harrison, Elizabeth and Martha. Mrs. Wilson's paternal grandfather preceded his family to the country, and was supposed to have been killed by the Indians. His widow and children came later, but found no trace of him and they settled in Pennsylvania, later coming to Highland county, Ohio, where their deaths occurred.

To Mr. and Mrs. Wilson have been born the following children: Eva became the wife of E. C. McCoy, of Union township), and they have three children, Wilby, Dorothy and Helen: Marion, who operates a farm adjoining that of his father, married Mary Cavinee, and they have five children, Marjoric. Ilnio. Elizabeth. Woodrow and Rosaline: Willard, who is in the employ of his father in the fence and implement business, married Blanche

Michael; Everett and Horatio are also in the employ of their father. Everett was married October 29, 1914, to VVynema Wilson, no relation.

Thus briefly have been recorded the salient features in the life history of one who has, by proper motives and a lofty example, honestly won a place in the front ranks of lXvette county's citizens, and because of his sterling integrity and his efforts for the advancement of the public welfare, has won the approval of all who knowhim.

gp:orge w. mcCOY.

The McCoy family has been identified with the history of Fayette county, Ohio, for nearly a century, and during all of these years they have performed their share in the development of this favored spot of Ohio. George W. McCoy, whose history is here presented, has spent his entire life of more than sixty years within the limits of this county, consequently he is well known among the citizens with whom he has lived. A life of such duration spent in one community enables a man's character to be familiar to everyone with whom he has been associated, and the high esteem in which ilr. McCoy is held by his fellow citizens is indicative of the clean and wholesome life which he has lived.

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

Bom during the last year of the Civil War, Elba Wilson has been a resident of Fayette county since the day of his birth. He has never been seized with the desire to wander, but has been satisfied to spend his career in the county which gave him birth. There is no better farming county in the state than Fayette, a county which, according to the census of 1910, produced $3,129,313 worth of farm products. Consequently, there is no good reason why a farmer should want to leave this county to seek his fortune elsewhere. The success which has attended Mr. Wilson's efforts is sufficient evidence that he has made no mistake in choosing to remain in the county where he was born.

Elba Wilson, the present road superintendent of Union township, was born December 14, 1865, in Perry township, near New Martinsburg. He is the son of James M. and Martha (Simmons) Wilson, natives of this county, and the parents of six children: Libby (deceased), Wesley, Mrs. Armilda Cox, Elba, Mrs. Emma Chaffin and Trustin (deceased). James M. Wilson was the son of Wesley Wilson, who was born in Virginia and located in Greene county, Ohio, early in its history.

Mr. Wilson received a good common school education in the district schools of his home township and remained under the parental roof until he

Google was twenty-two years of age. He then secured two old horses and started to farm on some land belonging to Samuel Hidy. He continued to rent until his marriage, when he bought his present farm in Union township and has li\ ed on this farm ever since. He is recognized as one of the best farmers of his township because of his progressive methods. He has paid special attention to stock raising and has been very successful along this particular line of endeavor. His farm is well improved and he takes pride in keeping everything about him in a neat and attractive manner.

Mr. Wilson was married October 5, 1887, to Almedia Hidy, the daughter of Simon and Mary F. (Adams) Hidy. Simon Hidy was the son of (george Hidy, a native of Virginia and an early settler of Union township. One daughter has been born to Mr. and Mrs. Wilson, Grace, who married Alva McCoy, and has four children, Harry, Lillian, Willard and Marion.

The Democratic party has claimed the support of Mr. Wilson and he has been one of the leaders in his party for many years, always active and foremost in its councils. He served for several years on the school board of Union township and at the present time is filling the responsible position of road superintendent in his township. Mr. Wilson is a man of pleasing personality and is one of the best known and liked men in the county. While primarily devoted to his own interests, he has not neglected his duty as a member of society and gives his hearty support to all public-spirited enterprises.

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

HORACE W. WILSON.

There are one thousand eight hundred and forty-six farms in Fayette county, Ohio, and of this number there are only forty-three with an acreage of more than five hundred acres. Some of these large farms have come about as a result of inheritance and others have been the result of the individual labors of the owners. One of the most successful farmers of Marion township is Horace W. Wilson, who, by his own initiative, has accumulated a farm of six hundred acres, having started in with nothing at the beginning of his career. He started out to work by the month and later bought a small farm and to this has added from time to time until he has become the owner of his present fine farm. It has taken good management, close economy and progressive farming, and these qualities are strikingly exemplified in the career of Mr. Wilson. While he has been accumulating a comfortable fortune of his own, he has not neglected to bear his full share of the burdens of community life and has always been known as a public-spirited citizen, interested in everything which pertains to the welfare of his township and county.

Horace W. Wilson, the proprietor of Maple Lawn Stock Farm, on the Bloomingburg and New Holland pike, was born January 28, 1857, in Green township, Fayette county, Ohio. He is the son of John and Martha J. (Cockerell) Wilson, and one of eight children born to his parents, the others being Mrs. Clara Neil, William G., Mrs. Sylvitha Hidy, J. M., Charles, John and Chilton P. John Wilson was born in Rockingham county, Virginia, and came to this county with his parents, William and Peachy (Fishback) Wilson, about 1810 or 1812. John Wilson was a farmer and merchant and a man of prominence in his community. He was a man of excellent intellectual attainments and gave his children the best advantages which the schools of that early day afforded.

Horace W. Wilson attended the schools of Perry township and remained at home with his father on the farm until he reached the age of twenty-two, when he began to work out by the month, saving his wages with the intention of purchasing a farm of his own. He first bought one hundred and fourteen acres in Perry township, this county, and two years later sold it and purchased a farm in Ross county, Ohio, where he lived for a while, and then sold his farm at a good profit and invested the proceeds in land in Marion township, this county. After locating in Marion township, he added to his land holdings until he now has six hundred acres of as good land as can be found within the county. He has a beautiful country home, com-

Commodious and convenient barns and everything which the up-to-date farmer needs for the successful tilling of the soil. He is one of the largest stock raisers of the county and sells stock by the car load every year.

Mr. Wilson was married in 1882 to Emma J. Cline, the daughter of William and Xaonii (Glascow) Cline, and to this union have been bom five children, Ethel, Glenn, Ray, Verne and Dale. Glenn married Ada King, and has two children, Horace and an infant unnamed.

The Republican party has received the support of Mr. Wilson since reaching his majority and, despite his heavy agricultural interests, he has always been deeply interested in local political matters. At the present time he is serving on the school board of his township and doing everything within his power for the advancement of the educational interests of his township. He and his family are consistent members of the Presbyterian church, to whose support they are generous contributors. Fraternally, he is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Mr. Wilson has a wide circle of friends throughout the township and county and, owing to his honesty in business and his upright social and private life, he well merits the high esteem in which he is held by every one with whom he is associated. Thus far his life has been one of strenuous activity and, by reason of the success with which it has been attended, his friends are justified in predicting for him a future of still greater usefulness and distinction.

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

One of the most enterprising farmers of Payette county, Ohio, is he whose name forms the caption of this review. While still a young man, he has succeeded in a manner which might well be gratifying to a man twice his age. He is thoroughly up to date in all phases of agriculture, employing in his business only the most modern methods as approved by science and good usage. His farm, containing two hundred and five acres of as fine land as the county boasts, is located on the Columbus pike, alK)Ut two and one-half miles from Washington C. H. Mr. Wilson has recently constructed a comfortable and attractive residence on this farm and all farm buildings are both neat and well adapted to their various purposes.

Ray Wilson was born on April lo, 1887, on a farm located about six miles south of Washington C. H., being a son of H. W. and Emma J. (Cline) Wilson, the former being a native of this county also, and almost his entire life has been passed within its borders. He has long been one of the most prominent farmers of this section. Several years ago he decided to seek the favor of Dame Fortune in the western part of the country, but after a short sojourn there, he returned to his native state and has since here remained. He is the father of five children, those other than the subject being Ethel, Verne and Dale, remaining at home with the parents, and Glenn.

The subject received his elementary education at the Greenville Pike school and also on the Circleville pike, east of Washington C. H., finishing later in Marion township. He also took a commercial course at the Bliss Business College. This liberal education well fitted him for his chosen vocation of farming, in which he engaged on his own account at the age of nineteen. He first rented various tracts of land, which he tilled, being signally successful in his venture. In addition to his home farm, he is now also man-

Google aging a portion of his father's estate. He makes a specialty of breeding and selling Shire horses, in which venture he Ims met with gratifying success.

On January 2, 19 13, Mr. Wilson was united in marriage with Marie Pavey, daughter of Austin and Ellen (Burris) Pavey, residents of Sabina, this state, being prominent farmers in that locality. One child, Robert Pavey, was born to Mr. and Mrs. Wilson October 15, 1914.

Ever since attaining his majority, Mr. Wilson has given his earnest support to the Republican party, although he has never been a seeker after office. His religious affiliation is with the Presbyterian church, while that of Mrs. Wilson is with the Methodist Episcopal church, both giving their most earnest support to these two church organizations. In the public life of the community where he lives, Mr. Wilson takes an intelligent interest, setting for himself a high standard of citizenship. He is a man of strong character and acknowledged ability and because of these elements and his genuine personal worth he enjoys a marked popularity in the locality honored with his residence.

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

James Wilson, farmer and teamster, is the second son of William and Sarah (Santee) Wilson, natives of Ohio. He was born October 3, 1825. His father's family consisted of ten children: Eli, James, Sarah, William, John, George, Joseph, Cynthia, Sophia, and Margaret. The parents died in Highland County, near Centerfield.

George Santee, the maternal grandfather of this subject, served in the war of 1812, and died near Petersburg, Highland County, at an advanced age.

Our subject was married. May 11, 1854, to Mrs. Elizabeth (Dowden) Wilson. She was a native of Ohio, and was born April 5, 1823. By a previous marriage she is the mother of two children: Margaret J., born February 11, 1844; William O., born May 5, 1847.

As printed in the source². Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.

DR. C. M. WILSON.

Dr. C. M. Wilson, physician, Washington, was born in Northampton, Pennsylvania, September 28, 1845, and is a son of Charles and Catharine Wilson, of Hillsboro, Ohio. They had a family of five children, two sons and three daughters.

Our subject was married, March 2, 1871, to Miss Mary L. Pricer, daughter of David H. and Amanda Pricer, of South Salem, Ohio. They have two children: Minnie and Amy C. The doctor enlisted in August, 1864, in Company A, 175th 0. V. I. He was wounded in the first engagement at Franklin, Tennessee, and November 30,

1864, had the second finger of his right hand shot off, and also received a flesh wound in his high. After being wounded he was taken to Nashville, and one week afterward was removed to Louisville, and from thence to Cincinnati, where he lay in West End Hospital, from which he received his discharge from the service on the 20th day of May, 1865. The following fall he entered South Salem Academy, where he remained until the fall of 1868, when he began his medical studies under Dr. Looker, of Cincinnati, graduating in Miami Medical College, in March, 1871, and commenced a practice which has continued up to the present time, with the exception of six months spent in the college and hospital in ITew York City. He and his wife are members of the Presbyterian Church. His residence and office are on Court Street, where he has been since June, 1875.

As printed in the source². Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.

JOHN L. WILSON.

John'L. Wilson, carpenter, Washington, was born September 18, 1835, and is a son of James N. and Maria Wilson, 'His father is a native of North Carolina, and his mother of Ross County, Ohio. The former came to Ohio in 1823, the latter in 1827. They had SIX children.

Our subject was married January 21, 1867, to Anna, daughter of James G. and Tabitha Jolly, of Clinton County, Ohio, who bore him two children: James G. and Zeda B. He is a member of Fayette Lodge No. 107, and Chapter No. 103, F. & A. M. He received his education in Washington, where his youth was spent. In politics he is a Republican.

As printed in the source². Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.