The Augusta Cemetery Family Trees

WILLIAM DeFORD.-- In the history of eastern Ohio few names are as prominent as that of DeFord. Those who bore it in early days were men of character, position, positive convictions and great personal force and it is needless to state thatthesewith other admirable qualities have been displayed by their descendants from the pioneer period to the present time. As the name implies, the DeFord family is of French origin. Of the ancestral history little is known beyond certainfactsconnected with the life of one Jean DeFord, who with his wife, Marie (nee Marchand), was a native of France and a devout Huguenot in a time when to avow Protestantism was equivalent to confiscation of property if not death. On therevocation ofthe edict of Nates, in 1686, Jean DeFord and wife, together with members of their respective families and others of like faith, fled from the city of Toulouse and, after various experiences, finally sailed for the new world, whichthey reached indue time, settling in Kent county, Maryland, where freedom of conscience was then allowed. Mr. and Mrs. DeFord had been married but a short time before their escape and were both young and without children when they reached theirdestination onthe shores of Maryland. After coming to this country, they reared a large family of thirteen sons and one daughter, the latter in young womanhood marrying a prominent business man in the city of Philadelphia by the name ofMerchant. From thesons all the DeFords in the United States are descended, the father, Jean (or John, as the name has since been anglicized), being the great-grandfather of William DeFord. The old family Bible containing the names of the earlyDeFords was broughtto America by Jean DeFord and is in possession of a relative living in the city of Baltimore. It is a well-preserved volume, bound in canvas-covered boards, with large bronze hinges and clasps, very clear, legible print andby reason of its earlydate and long continuance in the family has a value far greater than mere dollars and cents.

When the war of the Revolution broke out John DeFord, son of the above Jean and grandfather of the subject, entered the American army and did heroic service for the country in many campaigns and noted battles, besides losing the bulk ofhisfortune during the struggle. Having confidence in the integrity of the colonial government, he converted much of his property into continental script, which finally became so much worthless paper, entailing upon him a loss from which it tookhima long time to recover. At the close of the war he migrated from Maryland to what is now Fayette county, Pennsylvania, at that time Westmoreland county, where two of his sons, John and Marchard, were then living, selecting for his futurehome atract of land near Redstone creek. He cleared and developed a farm and in due time became widely and favorably known as a man of affairs, taking an active interest in the material development of the country and by his correct conductadding muchto the social and moral status of the community in which he resided. The death of this worthy citizen was the result of an accident under the following circumstances: Having occasion to carry a grist of grain to a mill on theRedstone, he threwthe sack across the back of his horse and mounting behind made the trip in safety and, as was the custom, waited until the grain was converted into flour. On his way home he led the horse until reaching the ford, when he againmounted and to makesure of crossing the creek took the sack of flour in front of him, letting it rest upon his knees and against his body. Being a very portly man, of great weight, he was obliged to lift the sack of flour as high as his chestand in so doingruptured an internal blood vessel, from the effects of which he died before reaching home.

John DeFord, son of the above John and father of the subject, was born in Kent county, Maryland, and was about eighteen years old when his parents changed their abode to Pennsylvania. He worked in Fayette county several years for a farmer bythename of Stevens and in 1799 was united in marriage with Miss Nancy Hopwood, whose birth occurred in Maryland in 1785. Mrs. DeFord was the daughter of Rev. John Hopwood, a well known Baptist divine, who preached in various parts of Fayettecountyin an early day and helped to found several churches of his faith there and elsewhere in Pennsylvania. The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. DeFord resulted in the birth of six children, whose names were as follows: Hannah, John, William,Harriet,Elizabeth and Daniel. The mother, a most worthy woman and for many years a sincere and faithful member of the Methodist Episcopal church, departed this life in 1815. A few years later Mr. DeFord married Miss Lydia Brownfield, ofPennsylvania,who died in 1838, leaving one son, now living near Kansas City, Missouri.

In 1811 John DeFord went to Carroll county, Ohio, and entered one hundred and sixty acres of land in what is now Augusta township, after which he returned to his home in Pennsylvania. He was an industrious, hard working man, and bycarefuleconomy earned considerable money, which from time to time was judiciously invested in western lands, his last transaction of this kind in Ohio being about the year 1826, when his realty in this state amounted to something like ninehundred acres. As the country grew and population increased this land became quite valuable and in time represented a fortune of considerable magnitude. For over forty years Mr. DeFord kept a hotel at the foot of Laurel Hill, Fayette county,Pennsylvania,during which period his house became favorably known to the traveling public and earned the reputation of a first-class hostelry. The village in which it was situated was called Hopwood in honor of his father-in-law, but later thename waschanged to Monroe, by which it has since been known. Meanwhile his Ohio lands continued to increase in value and in 1842 Mr. DeFord disposed of his interests in Pennsylvania and moved to his possessions in Carroll county, settling onthe farm inWashington township which his grandson Benton now owns and cultivates. On coming to this state he turned his attention almost wholly to agriculture and was quite successful in the pursuit, developing a very fine farm and earning thereputation ofa praiseworthy and public-spirited citizen. For many years he was a consistent member of the Methodist Protestant church and in politics supported the Democratic party, having been one of its leaders in the township of hisresidence. He spenthis declining years on his farm in quite and content and lived to a remarkable age, departing this life in 1873 in his one hundred and second year, being the oldest man in Ohio at the time of his death. In his younger daysJohn DeFord becamepersonally acquainted with quite a number of the nation's leading man and distinctly remembered many of the stirring events of the early days. He was at Laurel Hill when Washington occupied the fort at Baltimore, and he notonly saw the father ofhis country frequently but was quite well acquainted with him. In many respects Mr. DeFord was much more than an ordinary man, being intelligent, public-spirited and in no small degree a leader of opinion among hisneighbors and fellow citizens. He stamped his individuality upon the community, took an active interest in promoting all legitimate enterprises and always stood boldly for the right, maintaining the course of his convictions under allcircumstances.

William DeFord was born April 28, 1807, in Fayette county, Pennsylvania, and there spent the years of his childhood and youth, attending while young the public schools of his native place. Actuated by a desire for a more thoroughintellectualtraining, he subsequently entered Madison College, of Uniontown, of which the Rev. Henry B. Bascomb was then president, where he made commendable progress in the higher branches of learning. In 1822 he made his first visit to Ohiohis futureplace of residence, accordingly, in 1835, he settled on a farm in Washington township, Carroll county, where he lived for many years, an industrious, energetic and successful tiller of the soil. In the month of April, 1838, Mr. DeFordand MissMary Williams, daughter of George and Elizabeth (Acres) Williams, became husband and wife, the latter born in 1801 in the state of New Jersey. She bore him two sons, Nathan and John, and finished her earthly course on the 10th day ofSeptember,1875, at the age of seventy-four. Until the breaking out of the Great Rebellion Mr. DeFord was a pronounced Democrat, but becoming dissatisfied with the party's attitude relative to slavery, state rights and kindred questions growingout of thedisturbed conditions of the times, withdrew his allegiance and become strongly and aggressively Republican. Being an active participant in public affairs as a warm and patriotic friend of the union, he was elected in 1873 to representCarrollcounty in the general assembly, in which relation he served until 1867, having been re-elected his own successor the meantime. His legislative experience was eminently satisfactory to his constituents and covering, as it did, one of themosttrying periods in the history of the state, was replete with duty bravely and fearlessly performed. While the Civil war was in progress he was untiring in his efforts in behalf of the union, visited all parts of his county, inducing youngen toenlist and otherwise appealing to the loyal sentiment of the people. For many years he held the office of justice of the peace, in which capacity he earned considerable repute as an able, impartial and judicious public servant. When ayoung manhe united with the Methodist Protestant church and entered upon that earnest, steadfast, religious life which has characterized his career to the present day. In his business relations William DeFord has been uniformly successful andnow in hisold age he is enjoying the fruit of his labors in a life of honorable retirement. His experience as a farmer in Carroll county covers a period of over fifty-seven years, during which time he has been an influential agent in promotingthe materialinterests of the country, while his activity in behalf of whatever tends to the moral and intellectual good of the community has been one the less active and fruitful. When a young man Mr. DeFord helped construct the old nationalroad, taking acontract to build a certain section over Laurel Hill, one of the most difficult sections in the entire route. He remembers having seen General LaFayette on the occasion of the noble Frenchman's revisit to the United States and hadthe furtherhonor of shaking his hand and engaging him in quite a lengthy conversation.

Nathan B. DeFord, the eldest of the two sons of William and Elizabeth DeFord, was born in Augusta township, Carroll county, Ohio, April 11, 1839. He was reared on his father's farm and after completing the public school course pursued hisstudiesfor some time in Springfield Academy, later becoming a student of the Western Reserve University. Finishing his education, Mr. DeFord decided to become a farmer and on attaining his majority began his career as such in the county ofCarroll,taking possession of one of his father's places for the purpose. Later he purchased a farm of seventy acres in Augusta township on which he lived and prospered until 1879, when he disposed of his real estate in Carroll county and boughthispresent valuable farm of two hundred and eighty acres in the county of Columbiana. This is universally conceded to be one of the finest and best cultivated places in West township and as an agriculturist Mr. DeFord enjoys precedence such asfewattain. During the Civil war he was active in upholding the Union cause and it was largely to his efforts that Augusta and Washington townships were three times saved from the draft towards the latter part of the struggle. To securesufficientmen to fill the required quota, he went to Cincinnati, where he spared no pains in recruiting, paying five hundred and sixty dollars per man. This experience was attended with much hard work, many trials and disappointments, bit hepersevereduntiringly until completing the task, thus earning the highest praise of his fellow citizens.

In the year 1861 Mr. DeFord was united in marriage to Miss Martha Duncan, of Trumbull county, Ohio, daughter of Thomas and Susan (Leach) Duncan, the father at one time a prominent farmer and representative citizen of that part of the state. Mr.Duncan figured actively in the affairs of Trumbull for many years as an influential Democrat and as a justice of the peace of far more than local repute. Mr. and Mrs. DeFord have one child, a son, by the name of Edwin S.

In 1897 Mr. DeFord, in partnership with his son and H. B. Couch, established a private banking establishment at Minerva, under the firm name of the DeFord & Couch Banking Company, with which he has since been officially identified. One yearlaterthe name was changed to the Farmers and Merchants Banking Company and in 1900 it became the First National Bank of Minerva, by which name the establishments is still known, the subject holding the responsible position of president and hisson thatof cashier. This is one of the strong and popular monetary institutions of Stark county and its prestige in financial circles throughout the state has won for the proprietors honorable reputations as safe, practical and eminentlysuccessfulbusiness men. Mr. DeFord has capably discharged the duties of the presidency and the continued growth of the bank in public favor is largely due to his practical knowledge of finance. In addition to his farming and banking interestshe maintainsa lively concern in all enterprises for the public welfare and has done much in various ways to promote the material good of his township and county. In politics he is a Democrat and as such wields a potent influence for his partywithoutentering the arena as an office seeker. As a business man Mr. DeFord is clear, farsighted, shrewd, eminently honorable and his success may be inferred from the commanding position he occupies in the financial world and the large fortunein hispossession.

Edwin S. DeFord, distinguished as a business man and financier and holding marked prestige in the domain of citizenship, has made his presence fit in the world of affairs, and stand distinctively in the front ranks of the county'ssuccessfulself-made men. His ancestral history as outlined in the preceding paragraphs throws light upon the sterling character of his antecedents, but it is a careful study of the man himself that will account for his gradual rise from acomparativelyunknown station to the commanding position which he now occupies. Edwin S. DeFord is a native of Carroll county, Ohio, born on the family homestead in Augusta township, February 19, 1862. His home life was all that could have beendesired and itis not at all strange that he early formulated plans and purposes as to his future course of action. At the proper age he entered the public schools of his native county and the training thus received formed the basis of morethorough study inthe high school at Warren. Later he became a student of the Ohio Normal University at Ada, from which he was graduated in 1882, and subsequently he took a course in Mr. Union College, an institution attended by many of Ohio'snoted public andsuccessful business men. In 1886, soon after finishing his education, Mr. DeFord engaged in the milling business at East Rochester, New York

k, and spent ten successful years in that industry, at the expiration of which time, in partnership with his father and a Mr. Couch, he assisted in establishing what was formerly the DeFord & Couch Banking company; now the First National BankofMinerva. As originally organized the bank lasted until 1898, when the name was changed to that of the Farmers and Merchants Banking Company; in 1900 the name by which it is at present known was adopted, the subject being elected cashier,aposition he still holds.

Mr. DeFord's long connection with one of the leading monetary institutions of Stark county affords the best proof of his ability and judgment as a sound practical financier and he has discharged his functions in a manner well calculated toinspirepublic confidence in the stability and integrity of the bank, his official record being without a flaw and his private character far above the suspicion of any but the most worthy and honorable motives.

Mr. DeFord is one of Stark county's leading Democrats and his interest in behalf of the party has done much to strengthen its cause in this part of the state. In 1901, he was nominated for county treasurer, but, owing to theoverwhelmingRepublican majority, suffered defeat, though running ahead of the majority of candidates on his ticket. He has been quite active in municipal affairs, having served several terms in the common council of Minerva and at this time isfilling theoffice of township treasurer. Fraternally he is a member of Tubal Lodge No. 551, Free and Accepted Masons, and of the Minerva Lodge, Knights of Pythias, in addition to which organizations he is also identified with Tent No. 122,Knights of theMaccabees. He has risen high in the Masonic brotherhood, being a thirty-second-degree Mason, belonging to the chapter at Alliance and Commandery No. 38, Knights Templar, at Canton, the Mystic Shrine and Lake Erie Consistory atCleveland, Ohio, inall of which he has been honored with important official positions. His religious belief is embodied in the creed of the Methodist Episcopal; church, being an active and consistent member of the congregation which meets forworship in the town ofMinerva.

The domestic chapter in the life of Mr. DeFord bears the date of 1884, on the 17th of January of which ear he was happily married to Miss Mary A. Cunningham, of Paris township, daughter of Richard Cunningham, one of the county's prominentandinfluential agriculturists. Two children brightened the home of Mr. and Mrs. DeFord, namely: Mark Duncan and Gertrude Marie.