My Genealogy Hound

JAMES R. CALDERWOOD, farmer, Sec. 33; P. O. Versailles, Ohio. George Calderwood, the father of James R, was born in Huntingdon Co., Penn., on the 15th day of December, 1783; Margaret, his wife, was born in Adams Co., Penn., on the 28th day of May, 1792; they emigrated to Montgomery Co., Ohio, in the year 1818, remaining there about fourteen years, after which he moved to Darke Co.; this was in the spring (April), 1832; they drove through to Greenville, the distance being only thirty-five miles, but were three days in making the journey, as the roads were very heavy, making it almost an impossibility to travel; settled in Butler Township, where he remained until his death, which occurred on the 7th day of November, 1849. Margaret, his wife, died on the 12th day of October, 1874. James R, the subject of this sketch, was born in Montgomery Co., Ohio, on the 6th day of October, 1821; came with his parents to Darke Co. when he was 10 years old; he assisted his father in clearing and cultivating the soil, and, when the opportunity presented itself, he would attend the district school, which at that time was not of a very high order, being held in an old log cabin, covered with clapboards, puncheon floor, split slabs for seats, writing desks, etc.; greased paper for window-lights, one end of the house being the fire-place; lived with his parents until he was about 21 years of age, when he commenced to learn the carpenter and millwright trade with Mr. Moses Harriman; worked at his trade for a period of about twenty-six years, and, at the same time, carried on the farm, occasionally working on the farm himself, his boys doing most of the work; would work hard all day at his trade; coming home late, he would go out on the farm and gather brush, piling it on log-heaps, after which he would burn them, working sometimes until a very late hour in the night; he bought a farm of 160 acres in Neave Township, in the year 1845, paying $800 for the tract; moved on the farm, but remained only about one month, after which he sold out at a gain of about $50; moved on his father’s farm, which contained 160 acres, buying out the heirs, paying $1,200; lived on and cultivated this farm for a period of about five years, after which he sold the farm for $3,100, and bought the old Weaver farm, containing 100 acres, but could not get possession at the time, so he bought another farm of 70 acres, on which he moved, remaining about six months, after which he sold the farm at a gain of about $50; he then moved on the old Weaver farm in the fall of 1854, where he remained until the year 1869, when he sold out, receiving $60 per acre; this farm cost him, in the first place, only $17 per acre; he had, however, made some improvements thereon, having built a house and barn, and cleared about twenty acres; in 1869, he bought the John Hughes farm, in Wayne Township, Sec. 23, paying $7,400; he moved on the farm in the same year, where he has resided ever since. Mr. Calderwood has had his full share of township offices; served as Trustee for three years, School Director, Supervisor, etc.; is a firm Republican; his religion is to do right, and he aims to live in harmony with nature’s laws, and might be called a child of nature; is kind, courteous and obliging, and has a host of friends. Was united in marriage to Miss Jemima Otwell, in Greenville, Ohio, on the 8th day of May, 1845; she was born in North Carolina, near the Gilbert Court House, on the 13th day of April, 1825; six children were the fruits of this union, of whom four are living, viz.: Clinton, was born on the 20th day of September, 1846; George, was born on the 11th day of September, 1849; Mary was born on the 25th day of January, 1853; Albertis, was born on the 4th day of March, 1855; Curtis, died on the 5th day of April,1854; John, died on the 5th day of April, 1870. Mr. and Mrs. Calderwood have passed through the many struggles, trials and incidents so common to the old pioneers of the West; have, by their industry and strict temperate habits, combined with economy, accumulated enough of this world’s goods to live at their ease the balance of their days while in earth-life.