My Genealogy Hound

GEORGE L. PAINE, D. D. S., the oldest resident dentist of Xenia, is a practitioner of forty years standing, having embarked in the profession of dentistry May 1, 1850. He, like so many of the prominent and successful citizens of Xenia, is a native of the Buckeye State, and was born July 3, 1822, in Montgomery County. His early years were spent on his father’s farm in Miama Township, Montgomery County, Ohio, where he attended the common school, and at the same time became familiar with the pursuits of agriculture.

Usually a man’s career is largely the result of his early surroundings, and especially of the principles which have been instilled into his mind during his tender years. The subject of this notice is the offspring of a good family, being the son of Henry Paine, of New England antecedents, and a native of Connecticut. Henry Paine, in 1820, and when a young man, cast his eyes toward what was then the Great West, the young State of Ohio, and in company with a brother, made his way mostly by stage to the present site of Cincinnati. For some years thereafter he was engaged as a steamboat captain, plying the waters of the Ohio, during which time he accumulated a little capital, which he invested in pork, and for twenty years thereafter was quite an extensive dealer in this commodity. During that period he was no unimportant factor in giving to the Queen City its other, and perhaps more forcible cognomen “Porkopolis.”

The elder Paine finally left Cincinnati and turned his attention in an entirely different channel, namely, that of education, and for many years thereafter he was directly connected with the school system of Montgomery County. Not long after becoming a resident of the Buckeye State, he met and married, at Franklin, Miss Alettah Lane. This lady was born in New Jersey, and accompanied her parents to Ohio when a child of eight years, they settling among the pioneers of Cincinnati, locating at that point when the now great city was only a village, to which they had made their way on a flatboat as early as 1808. Grandfather George Lane entered a whole section of land, upon which he erected a homestead where he spent the remainder of his days. Near that homestead subsequently grew up the town of Carlisle, on the Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton Railroad.

In the vicinity of Carlisle, Henry Paine was married, and there spent the remainder of his life, passing away about 1848. He held no civil office, but was quite prominent in military affairs in which he took a warm interest, and was for a long period a major in the old Ohio militia. His estimable wife survived him a number of years, her death taking place in Montgomery County, in 1862. The household circle was completed by the birth of six children, five of whom grew to mature years, and four are now living. George L., like his brothers and sisters, obtained his early education in the common school, being encouraged in his studies by his father, who was ambitious to have all his children avail themselves of the opportunities presented them in this direction. George L. became thoroughly acquainted with English and the classics, and like his father before him, developed into an efficient teacher, and was assistant in the academy at Germantown Ohio, for three years.

We next find young Paine, becoming interested in the study of medicine, but he abandoned this shortly after taking one course, and entered the Cincinnati Dental College, from which he was graduated as a dentist in 1852. He had, however, prior to this, practiced the art considerably, and with fine success. His interest in this profession led him to give to it his best efforts, and not many years had passed before he became noted for his skill, which resulted in the building up of a large and lucrative business. He was located for a time in Dayton, but about 1850 came to Xenia, of which he has since been a continuous resident, and is looked upon as one of the old landmarks inseparably connected with the welfare of the city.

Dr. Paine was Wedded January 27, 1846, at the bride’s home at Carlisle Station, to Miss Eliza Ann Barkalow. Mrs. Paine was born in Miami Township, May 3, 1826, and is the daughter of James and Catherine (Vandervere) Barkalow, who were natives of New Jersey, but who came to Ohio during the period of its early settlement. The parents of Mrs. Paine are now deceased. To the Doctor and his estimable wife there remains but one child, Elmer E., who is now a gentleman of fine capabilities, and managing editor of the Akron (Ohio) Daily Beacon. The younger Paine obtained a classical education in the Ohio State University at Columbus, and married Miss Margaret Humphreys, an accomplished lady, who, after being graduated from the Michigan University, was for some time employed as a teacher.

With the exception of supporting the principles of the Republican party at the general elections, Dr. Paine has very little to do with politics. Early in life both he and his wife identified themselves with the Presbyterian Church, with which they still remain connected. The family hold a high social position, and have a pleasant and attractive home in the northern part of the city where is dispensed a generous hospitality to their hosts of friends.