TOPE FAMILY PAGE

Dedication and Acknowledgment

This book is dedication to the memory of Levi and Sarah (Davis) Tope,

their children who made the arduous trek from Carroll County, Ohio to Van

Wert County, Ohio, and to the many men and women who worked to de-

velop the southwestern part of Van Wert County, Ohio. In the present days

when we are angered when we face the hazards of potholes in paved high-

ways, we marvel that our ancestors were able to cope with trails, unpaved

roads, and wild animals as they made the westward trek.

This history of the Levi Tope family is a collection of information obtained

from descendants of Levi and Sarah as compiled by Donald L. Kear, a fourth

generation descendant. Thanks go to Christine Tope, William G. Tope, Roy

Tope, Lois Snouffer, and the many descendants identified throughout the

book for their extensive input into the project - especially for photos, specific

family information and preparation of the index.

I especially thank Meledie Gregory, who in her research of her branch of

the Davis family discovered the parents of Sarah Davis, wife of Levi Tope.

Her information in chapter 2 makes this book more valuable, proving some

information known only by tradition and disproving some traditional infor-

mation. I acquired the documents to which she referred and am confident

that her information is accurate

Thanks, also, to Austin Dale Maddux, whose 1980 revision of the History

of the Tope Family, first published in 1896 by Melancthon Tope, is quoted

and cited with permission. Dale's wife, Dorothy, is a descendant of Frederick

Tope, one of the three brothers who started this Tope family in the United

States. Dale is the author of Now You Know Who That Is!, a history of the

Frederick Tope family.

Donald L. Kear

May 2004