History of Wayne County, Ohio (1910)

History of Wayne County, Ohio (2 vols., Indianapolis: B. F. Bowen, 1910). Biographical sketches written from information supplied by the subjects, so strong on family detail, weaker on exact dates.

Local copy: vol. 2 PDF in ../Family Tree Archive/books/History_of_Wayne_County_Ohio_1910_vol2.pdf. Page images of the Ramseyer sketch: Attachments/Books/History of Wayne County Ohio (1910)/.

Daniel Ramseyer, vol. 2, pp. 985–988

Key facts (transcribed 2026-11-01):

• Daniel Ramseyer, Greene Township, Wayne Co.; “born in Stark county, Ohio, on the 30th of July, 1853” (the vault has 1856), son of Peter and Barbara (Reich) Ramseyer.
• Grandfather John Ramseyer, a native of Switzerland, “a poor man when he came to the United States, having to borrow part of the passage money. His son, the subject’s father, afterwards helped to repay this debt. He landed in this country in 1834 and came at once to Stark county”, where he “died a comparatively poor man”.
• Peter “worked hard, contributing to their support”; when he married he had “but fifty cents in cash”; “after his marriage he worked for his father-in-law” [Jacob Reich]; bought a small hill farm in Stark County on credit, “commencing with a yoke of oxen”; in 1857 bought 160 acres near Paris, Ohio; at his death owned 412 acres and $12,000. “From boyhood he had been a member of the Amish Mennonite church.” Eleven children: Jacob, John, Peter, Joseph, Catherine, Leah, Daniel, Mary, Lizzie, Sarah and Amos.
• Daniel married at 22 (1875) Rebecca Smiley, a native of Indiana; his father gave him $1,000. Moved to Wayne County in 1878, 124 acres, later 322 acres; famous Norman horse feeder, selling to eastern markets; built a 90 × 45 ft barn in 1890. Sold 118 acres to his son A. C. Ramseyer.
• Children: Alvin C. (17 Jan 1880; Goshen graduate; married first Miss Yoder, second Miss Schrock), Amanda (8 Jan 1883), Melvin (8 Jan 1886), Chauncey (13 Dec 1888), Mary (22 Apr 1892), Ward (5 Aug 1894). All Amish Mennonite. Democrat, but voted for McKinley.

Note: the sketch says the immigrant came in 1834; the family’s ship, the Richmond, is dated 1835 elsewhere in the vault.

Record compiled 1 November 2026.

About this research

Supporting documentation is linked throughout. This project is an exercise in AI-assisted research and development, and I haven’t manually verified every link or conclusion. All transcriptions and translations of Swiss parish records were made with AI, and their accuracy should be treated accordingly.