History of Ravenna, (Portage County) Ohio United States of America

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Biographies:

William Rufus Day, statesman, was born in Ravenna, Ohio, April 17, 1849; son of Judge Luther and Emily (Spalding) Day; grandson of Judge Rufus Paine Spalding, a representative from Ohio in the 38th, 39th and 40th congresses; and great-grandson of Judge Zepheniah Swift, chief justice of Connecticut and author of "Swift's Digest." He was graduated at the University of Michigan, B.S. in 1870, read law in the office of Judge Robinson at Ravenna, attended law lectures at the University of Michigan, 1871-72, and was admitted to the bar in 1872. While in the university he served as librarian of the law library. He began the practice of law at Canton, Ohio, with William A. Lynch, and Austin LynchDavid B. Day were subsequently admitted to the firm. He was judge of the court of common pleas of the 9th judicial district in 1886; and declined, by advice of his physician, the U.S. district judgeship for northern Ohio in 1889, offered by President Harrison, giving his decision after the appointment had been confirmed by the senate. In February, 1897, he was selected by President-elect McKinley as a commissioner to visit Cuba and determine the exact condition of affairs, preparatory to executive action on the subject. He was, however, detained in Washington by Mr. McKinley and when the confirmation of Bellamy Storer as assistant secretary of the state became impossible, the President requested Mr. Day to take the place. The condition of Secretary Sherman's health made the position one of great responsibility, and the young lawyer from Canton was reluctant to accept the office, but the wishes of his lifelong friend prevailed. Early in 1898 an incident occurred which gave the first example of the traits of diplomacy afterward so prominent in his official life. The Spanish minister to the United States, De Lome, had written a letter to a friend in Cuba casting aspersion upon President McKinley. When the matter came to light, instead of opening a long diplomatic correspondence, Mr. Day, with the letter in his hand, went to the Spanish minister and bluntly inquired if he was its author. The reply was affirmative and De Lome's resignation at once followed the interview. On April 28, 1898, upon the resignation of Secretary Sherman, he succeeded to the portfolio of state and he asked the appointment of Prof. John Bassett Moore as his assistant. On August 12, 1898, at 4:23 P.M. at the White House, Washington, D.C, in the presence of the President, he signed a protocol which was the basis of the final treaty of peace with Spain, his signature following that of M. Cambon, the French ambassador empowered to act for the Spanish government. Mr. Day resigned the position of secretary of state Sept. 16, 1898, to accept a place on the commission appointed by the President to negotiate a treaty of peace with Spain, which was executed in December, 1898. Mr. Day acted as president of the commission. On Feb. 25, 1899, he was nominated by President McKinley for U.S. circuit judge of the sixth judicial circuit, and in 1903 he was called to the bench of the U.S. supreme court. He was married in 1875 to Mary Elizabeth, daughterof Louis Schaefer, of Canton, Ohio. z

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

William Tappan Thompson, editor and author, was born at Ravenna, Ohio, Aug. 31, 1812; of Irish-American parentage. His mother, a native of Dublin, Ireland, died in 1823, and with his father he removed to Philadelphia, Pa., where, after the latter's death, he was employed in the office of the Chronicle. Subsequently he acted as secretary to Gov. James D. Westcott of Florida, and under his instruction began the study of law. He was associate editor of the States Rights Sentinel, Augusta, Ga., in 1835; participated as a volunteer in the war against the Seminoles, 1835-36; returning to Augusta founded the Mirror, and was connected with its successor, the Family Companion, at Macon until 1838. He conducted the Miscellany, Madison, Ga., 1840-45, in which he published his "Major Jones' Letters"; was associate editor and subsequently sole editor and proprietor of the Western Continent, Baltimore, Md., 1845-50, and in the latter year established the Morning News at Savannah, Ga., which he edited until his death. He served as aide on the staff of Gov. Joseph E. Brown in the civil war, and as a volunteer in the Confederate army, 1864; was subsequently a warden of the port of Savannah; a delegate to the Democratic national convention in New York city, July 4, 1868, and a member of the state constitutional convention in 1877. He edited: "Hotchkiss's Codification of the Statute Laws of Georgia" (1845); dramatized Goldsmith's "The Vicar of Wakefield," produced in America and in Europe, and is the author of the humorous publications: Major Jones' Courtship (1840); Major Jones' Chronicle of Pineville (1843); Major Jones' Sketches of Travel (1848); The Live Indian: A Farce, and John's Alive; or the Bride of a Ghost and Other Sketches, collected by his daughter, Mrs. May A. Wade, and published posthumously (1883). He died in Savannah, Ga., March 24, 1882.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

Zenas Kent was born in Middletown, Connecticut, July 12th, 1786. He came of good old Puritan stock, a nobility of descent which rests its claim upon a robust manhood and hardy virtue. His father was a carpenter and joiner by trade, and carried a musket in the war for American independence. When Zenas Kent was a boy, even New England had made but a beginning in the development of the common school system, and though he made the best of his opportunities, exhausting the facilities of the country school of that time and place, his early advantages were very limited as compared to the common school privileges enjoyed by the youth of to-day. Mr. Kent has left at least one monument of the methodical perseverance with which he addressed himself to every task. A copy of Adam's Arithmetic, published in 1802, which Mr. Kent used at school, is now in the possession of his son, Marvin. It is a well-thumbed book, now yellow with age, and a plodding student has left his impress on every page. Indeed he has left considerable additions to the original text. The publisher had had the forethought to bind numerous blank pages with his letter-press, to stand the pupils instead of a slate, and remain a record of his industry. On these leaves young Kent carefully worked out and proved every example in the book. Here was a combination of excellent traits--application, method, thoroughness--in which the boy well foreshadowed the man. He entered his work on the leaves of the book of his life, and he left not a blank page in it all. In selecting a pursuit in life, Zenas Kent chose the trade of his father, and endeavored to make himself master of it. By the time he reached his twenty-fifth year, young Zenas Kent was united in marriage to Pamelia Lewis, a native of Farmington, Connecticut, a young woman of most excellent traits, and withal a fitting helpmeet for him. Her father, like the elder Kent, was a veteran of 1776, and a carpenter and joiner by vocation. These two young people joined their honest hands and humble fortunes for the battle with the world. In 1812 Zenas accompanied his father's family to the far West. The family located in Mantua, Ohio, where the elder Kent died, at an advanced age. Zenas had left his young wife in Connecticut, while he went prospecting in the western wilds, and as soon as he had chosen a place for his home, he returned for his wife. Together they set out for the tedious journey to the West, and arriving in Ohio settled in Hudson, then a township of Portage county. This was a fortunate selection for Mr. Kent. Here he met Captain Heman Oviatt, to whose friendship it was his pleasure to acknowledge himself indebted for many kind offices. Here he built a tannery for Owen Brown, father of John Brown, of Ossawatomie fame. Mr. Kent taught school during the winter while he remained in Hudson. His friend, Captain Oviatt, impressed by Mr. Kent's upright walk and industrious habits, was disposed to do him a good turn and help him to start fairly in the world. Conferences led to conclusions, and in the summer of 1815 the firm of Oviatt & Kent was formed to conduct a typical pioneer store in Ravenna. Thither Mr. Kent went to erect a building before the firm could begin business. The site chosen was that upon which the Second National Bank now stands. With his saw and plane and hammer Mr. Kent helped to put up the wooden building which was to serve for store and dwelling. This building was subsequently moved to the south side of Main street, in Little's Block. After the firm of Oviatt & Kent had been in successful operation for several years, Mr. Kent was able to refund the capital advanced by Mr. Oviatt, and the firm dissolved, leaving the junior partner the sole control of the business. In 1826, while managing his growing business, Mr. Kent entered into a contract to erect the court-house, which still stands in Ravenna, one of the most substantial buildings of its kind in the State. In its early days it was looked upon as a wonder in architectural art. From 1831 to 1850 Mr. Kent was senior partner of the firm of Kent & Brewster, which did a profitable trade in Hudson. In the meantime Mr. Kent was accumulating a store of the world's goods, and making investments where there was fair prospect of good returns. In 1832 he joined David Ladd in the purchase of a tract of land embracing between five and six hundred acres of land in the township of Franklin, now the village of Kent. This tract embraced the water-power of the Cuyahoga river at that place. The connection of Mr. Ladd with this property was short, Mr. Kent soon becoming sole proprietor. In the year of the purchase he erected Kent's Flouring Mill, the product of which has been held in high repute for more than a third of a century. This mill produced the first flour shipped from northern Ohio to Cleveland, going by way of the Ohio canal. Having dissolved business connection with Mr. Ladd, Mr. Kent made arrangements with John Brown to carry on the tanning business in an establishment already under way. In 1836 Mr. Kent sold his large tract to the Franklin Land Company, which afterwards became the Franklin Silk Company. In 1849 the Franklin Bank of Portage County was established, and Mr. Kent was chosen its President. This important post he held until 1864, when the Franklin Bank gave place to the Kent National Bank, of which he was also made president, holding the position at the time of his death. In 1850 Mr. Kent began the erection of a cotton factory and a private residence in Franklin, where his interests had centered. Thither he removed on the completion of his dwelling house in 1851. In the spring of 1853 Mr. Kent was elected Treasurer of the Atlantic & Great Western Railroad Company, filling the position efficiently for one year. In April, 1860, he moved into an elegant mansion which he had built on Euclid street, Cleveland. While on a visit to Kent, on the 21st of October, 1864, death took from him the partner of his early toils and of his years of ease. Thus bereft he longed for quiet and repose, and in the following month returned to Franklin (the name of which had been changed to Kent) to pass the remainder of his days. Mr. Kent's business career was that of an industrious plodder, who gained success by deserving it. He was possessed of a great fund of solid common sense, to which it had pleased God to add an indomitable will, native business tact, energy that never flagged, and, above all, an unyielding integrity which gained him the confidence of all with whom he had relations. He was a cautious, methodical business man, not given to speculation, watchful of little things, and thrifty. Once, while in New York city to buy goods, an incident occurred which will serve to illustrate a marked trait in his character. A representative of a silk house called upon Mr. Kent at his hotel at the usual hour for beginning the day's business, for the purpose of soliciting his custom. Mr. Kent met his visitor and said to him, "If you expect to sell me goods, you must get up early in the morning. I bought all my silks before breakfast." Another instance will show how dearly he held his integrity and the good opinion of his fellows. While President of the banking department of the Franklin Silk Company, he required to be placed in his hands the means to redeem the company's issues, remarking that he would put his name upon no paper without having the power to protect it from dishonor. The arrangement was effected. Notwithstanding the disastrous termination of the silk company, thanks to Mr. Kent's honor and forethought, its paper was all redeemed at face value. His life record was made up of deeds that reflect lustre on his memory, and mark him as one of the pioneer noblemen of the West. In personal appearance Zenas Kent was tall of stature, erect and graceful of carriage, dignified of mien. Little given to society, he was nevertheless affable and agreeable in all of his relations. Though fair and equitable dealing made him popular as a tradesman, his retiring nature forbade many intimate friendships. While malice did not enter into his heart, the very firmness of his character made him quick to resent an abuse of his confidence. Beneath a dignified exterior, bordering at times upon austerity, he wore a warm and sympathetic heart. He held a kind act in tender remembrance, and the few friendships he formed remained unbroken to the end of his days. His tastes were simple and his habits the most correct. He never used tobacco or stimulants of any kind, and for thirty years did not have an hour's sickness. Mr. Kent was blessed with a family of thirteen children, nine of whom survive him. These he lived to see arrive at maturity, all occupying positions of prominence and influence in their respective homes. The surviving children are Mrs. Harriet Clapp, of New York city; Henry A., Edward and George L., of Brooklyn, New York; Marvin, Charles H., and Mrs. Amelia L. Shively, of Kent, Ohio; Mrs. Francis E. Wells, of Brownsville, Pennsylvania, and Mrs. Emily K., wife of R. B. Dennis, Esq., of Cleveland, Ohio. Of the four children deceased, Mrs. Eliza A. Poag died in Brooklyn, July 4th, 1864; three, Louisa, Amelia, and an unnamed infant, lie in Ravenna Cemetery. Zenas Kent died suddenly at his residence in Kent, October 4th, 1865, in the eightieth year of his age. His remains were interred in Woodland Cemetery, Cleveland's beautiful city of the dead. In a lovely spot, removed from the hurly-burly of a busy world, under the shade of the cypress and willow, by the side of the wife of his bosom, sleeps all that is left to earth of a man who fought the battle of life bravely and left a good name--the best of all heir-looms. At the time of his death Mr. Kent's estate was valued at $300,000.

From: The Biographical Encyclopedia of Ohio of the Nineteenth Century. Columbus, OH, USA: Galaxy Publishing Co., 1876.

Lieutenant-Governor of Ohio, son of Chauncey and Melisendra Hart, was born July 4th, 1830, in Vienna, Trumbull county, where his father followed the occupation of farming. The family came originally from Hartford county, Connecticut, where their name and connections are very numerous, and settled in Ohio only a few years previous to the birth of their son. Mr. Hart enjoyed the usual advantages of the country youth, in the public schools of his native county, up to the age of fourteen, when his father died and the little family of five children was dispersed. Alphonso was bound out to a neighboring farmer for three years; but dissatisfied with the treatment he received, and having no opportunity for improvement and culture, at the end of seven months he signified his unwillingness to remain, dissolved the connection, and assumed the regulation of his own career. He determined to obtain an education, and achieved his purpose without the aid of a dollar from relation or friend. By laboring and teaching in vacations and winters he maintained himself at the Grand River Institute, in Ashtabula county, till he acquired a fair knowledge of Latin, Greek, mathematical and other sciences. At the age of nineteen he registered for the bar, and pursuing his legal studies during the intervals of labor, was admitted August 12th, 1851. In the spring of 1852 he entered the office of Judge John Clark, of New Lisbon, Columbiana county, to begin practice under his direction. He remained with Judge Clark two years, and in 1854 was elected Assistant Clerk of the lower branch of the Ohio Legislature. The same year he purchased the Portage Sentinel, a weekly newspaper published at Ravenna, which he conducted in the interests of the Democratic party till 1857, when he disposed of the concern to associate himself with Samuel Strawder, of Ravenna, in the practice of law. This association continued till 1860. In 1861 Mr. Hart was elected Prosecuting Attorney for Portage county, and was re-elected to the same office in 1863, but resigned in 1864 to accept the seat in the State Senate vacated by the elevation of the Hon. Luther Day to the Supreme Bench. Resuming his practice at the expiration of his term, he devoted himself rigidly to his profession till 1871, when he again entered the political arena and was elected to represent his district in the Senate. In 1873 Mr. Hart received the signal honor of being elected Lieutenant-Governor of the State, and that at a time when his party sustained quite a general overthrow, and their executive nominee was defeated by Governor Allen. A career so marked as that of Mr. Hart discloses the character of the man without the comment of the historian. Since the breaking out of the war, in 1861, he has been a Republican, but his legislative course has been marked by a degree of political sagacity and an independence of judgment which distinguishes the statesman from the mere politician. When a member of the Senate, over which he now presides, he was Chairman of the Standing Committee on Judiciary, and also of the Committee on Privileges and Elections. As Chairman of the latter he made the majority report upon the Senatorial contest from the Third District, which resulted in establishing the right of the inmates of the National Military Asylum for Disabled Soldiers, at Dayton, to vote. The measure was one of grave importance, involving questions of constitutional law, the jurisdiction of States, and the political status of people in a State who were living upon land ceded to the general government for national purposes. Deciding as it did their right of citizenship, it excited the deepest interest among soldiers, and especially those at the various government asylums throughout the Union. The immediate question involved was the right of a Senator to a seat which he had gained by having the soldiers' vote thrown out; and as the Senate was a tie, and the unseating of the member would give the Republicans a majority and the power to control legislation, the contest was the most obstinate and bitter in the legislative history of Ohio. As Chairman of the Committee Mr. Hart brought in a report adverse to the sitting member and in favor of the contestant for whom the soldiers had tendered their ballots. In the hot debate that followed he maintained his position with such eloquence and ability as made him the leader of his party in the General Assembly. The Senate adopted the report and the seat was given to the contestant, and in a subsequent review of the case the Supreme Court, notwithstanding a former decision to the contrary, affirmed the policy advocated by Mr. Hart, and the right of soldiers to vote in the State where their asylums are located is now judicially settled. Impartial, able, and courteous, with great knowledge of parliamentary law, Lieutenant-Governor Hart has gained the good-will and confidence of both parties as presiding officer of the Senate. As a political speaker he is well known, having frequently made the canvass of the State. In 1872 he was Presidential Elector at Large for Ohio on the Republican ticket, and in the electoral college cast his vote for the re-election of General Grant. In his profession he has gained a reputation not less distinguished and honorable than that obtained in the field of politics. He was mentioned to the writer by the Chief-Justice of the State as a lawyer excellent in general practice and eminent in the sphere of an advocate. In forensic debate he possesses a style fervid, collected, and persuasive, which warms the imagination not less than it satisfies the judgment. During the summer of 1864 he removed to Cleveland, where he formed a professional association with Messrs. Marvin and Squire, and since his retirement from office at the close of his term he has been constantly engaged in the practice of law. He was married on November 22d, 1856, to Phebe Peck, of Warren, who died in September, 1868, leaving two children, a son and a daughter.

From: The Biographical Encyclopedia of Ohio of the Nineteenth Century. Columbus, OH, USA: Galaxy Publishing Co., 1876.