Chapter 4, page 27
THE HIRAM J. TOPE FAMILY
16 Hiram J.4
Tope (Levi3, George2,
John1) was bom 30 October 1839 in Car-
roll County, Ohio.1
He probably
was
bom in Monroe Township, as Levi,
Sarah and one child are listed
there in the 1840 census.2 Hiram's
middle name
may have been "James"; his son
and a cousin had this same middle name. Hiram died on 9 March
1915 at
his home in Briceton, Paulding County, Ohio, at the age of 75
years, 4 months and 10 days.3 His funeral
washeld at St. Paul's church and he is
buried in the St. Paul Cemetery, Paulding County, Ohio.4
Hiram began his education in Richland Township, Putnam County, Ohio,but in 1848 Richland Township became a part of Allen County.5 Thus, mostof his education was obtained in Allen County, Ohio, probably in a one-room schoolhouse. One can see Hiram grabbing a dinner pail and making a long trek to school, a "Plank School." Plank schools were constructed of planks atleast two inches thick. Fireplaces or coal stoves provided heat, and by this time glass windows and wooden floors were standard construction.6
On 15 May 1864, Hiram enlisted to serve in the Civil War for 100 days. Hemustered in at Camp Cleveland by Captain T.J. Davis as a Private in Com-pany I, of the 139th Regiment of the Ohio Volunteer Infantry (OVI).7 At the time of enlistment, he was described as being a farmer, 23 years of age, brown eyes, dark hair and complexion, and five feet, eight inches tall.8 After serving his time, Hiram was discharged at Camp Dennison, Ohio, on 26 August 1864. The record shows that while on duty at Point Lookout, Maryland, around July 1864, he was disabled and hospitalized for treatment of chronic diarrhea.9
Two
years after being discharged
from the OVI, Hiram married Frances
Gates, daughter of Frederick Gates
and Sarah Black, at her home on 3 December 1866.10
The couple lived
in
Willshire Township, Van Wert County,
Ohio, for about 8 years, and lived
for about 38 years near Briceton, Paulding
County, Ohio.11
The family moved
to
Paulding County, Ohio, between 1874
and 1876, where Hiram cleared the
farmland and he and Frances their family.12
1Pension
Records, Civil War,
National Archives and Records Services. (Washington, DC.), 21840 Census,
Monroe Township,
Carroll County, Ohio, p. 237.
3Ohio Records
of Deaths, Volume
1607, Certificate 17889, Ohio Historical Society.
page title cutoff. To question No. 1
Date and place of birth? Frances Tope wrote, "October
30th 1839 bom in Carle Co. Ohio.
Date (of the record) March 19, 1915."
4Mortality
Records, Paulding
County, Ohio, Through 1993.
50. Morrow
and F.W.
Bashore,
Compilers Historical Atlas of Paulding County, Ohio, (The 6History
Magazine, The One-Room
Schoolhouse, December/January 2002, p. 43. 7Pension
Records. 8Company
Muster-in and Descriptive
Roll, Pension Records. 9Pension
Records, 13 December 1890. 10Record of
Marriages, Probate
Court, Van Wert County, Ohio, bk. 3, 249. No. 443. 11Pension
Records, Declaration for
Pension, 4 June 1912.
12Obituary, Obituaries
of Paulding
County. Ohio, (Paulding County, Ohio Genealogical Soci-
Western Publishing Company, Madison,
Wis., 1892), p. ?.
ety) for Frances Tope said the move
was in 1874, bk. 2, p. 378.
Updated Wednesday, 06-Feb-08 12:31:35 PST
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