James M. Bare

JAMES M. BARE.

James M. Bare is a representative of the farming interests of Seneca township. He was born near Mexico, Wyandot county, Ohio, June 29, 1832, and is a son of Abraham Bare, who was born in Virginia, and who, as a companion and helpmate for the journey of life, those Polly Miller. They became the parents of eight children: Ephraim, a resident of Wyandot county; John, who has passed away; James M., the subject of this review; Mary, the wife of Lewis Palmer and resides in Henry county; Elizabeth, the widow of Hosea Palmer and resides in Iowa; Eliza, who married John Istone, a resident of Iowa; Abraham, who makes his home in Wyandot county; and Emma, who became the wife of Lewis Lundy, of Wyandot county. The father of these children removed from Virginia to Fairfield county, Ohio, and it was there that his marriage took place. He remained in that county until 1827, when he went to Wyandot county and entered eighty acres of land from the government. Upon this claim he built a log cabin of one room. It had a luncheon floor and a chimney built of mud and sticks, through which the smoke had its egress from a broad fireplace. The land was covered with a dense growth of timber, the trees growing so thick that the sunlight could hardly penetrate to the ground beneath, but in the course

Google of time this was cleared away and the fields brought forth good harvests. The father was a cabinetmaker by trade, and in addition to his other work he engaged in making coffins for the early settlers. He afterward operated a carding machine and continued to make his home upon the farm which he developed in Wyandot county, it being his place of residence until his death, which occurred in 1869, when he was sixty-nine years of age. His wife died in 1866. Both were consistent members of the Methodist Episcopal church and all who knew them respected them for their genuine worth and many acts of kindness. Mr. Bare was particularly prominent in church work and was a man of strong temperament whose influence for good was widely felt. He was also known on account of his temperance principles and by reason of the work t\hich he accomplished in behalf of the county in laying out roads and otherwise as.sisting in its pioneer development.

It was upon the old farm homestead described above that James M. Bare first opened his eyes to the light of day. There he spent his childhood and youth, enjoying the sports common to boys of that period and assisting in the cultivation of the fields. He remained under the parental roof until January i, 1855, at which time he was married, Miss Eliza Pennington becoming his wife. They are now the parents of five children, who are yet living: Ada C, who married Charles Mangus; John, who is the proprietor of a hotel in Buffalo, Illinois; Elva, a brick and tile manufacturer of Tiffin; Alma, the wife of Rev. John T. Miller, a minister of the Church of God; and James L., a merchant at McCutchen. ville. Seymour, the eldest, became a farmer of Eden township and is now deceased.

After his marriage Mr. Bare rented a part of his father's farm and. continued to make his home thereon for fourteen years, on the expiration of which period, in 1868, he came to Seneca county and purchased the farm upon which he now resides. He owns here ine hundred and ten acres of land, and the soil is productive and returns to him golden harvests in rewards for his labors. He also engaged in the raising of stock and has excellent equipment upon his place, all of which indicate that the owner is a progressive and practical agricrlturist. In 1876 Mr.

Bare was called upon to mourn the loss of his first wife, and in 1878 he was again married, his second union being with Miss Ellen Bercaw. They have a pleasant home in Seneca township and have made many warm friends during their residence in this county. Mr. Bare exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the Republican party. He can relate many interesting incidents concerning pioneer life in Ohio and his knowledge comes from practical experience. He attended school in the little building which was erected of logs and in which the seats were made of slabs. The other furnishings were as primitive and the methods of teaching were totally unlike those of the present day. Great changes have occurred, not only in educational lines, but in all departments of life, and no one has been more in favor of progress and improvement in beneficial lines than James M. Bare, who is an enterprising and public-spirited citizen.

As printed in A centennial biographical history of Seneca County, Ohio (1902). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.