My Genealogy Hound

LEVI HUDDLE, retired farmer, Sec. 8; P. O. Webster, Ohio. Frederick, his father, was born in Shenandoah Co., Va., on the 21st of September, 1791; he married Magdalena Boyd, who was a native of the same State and county, born on the 25th of August, 1792; they emigrated to Ohio in 1829, locating in Fairfield Co., where they remained about six months, when they removed to Montgomery Co., eight miles north of Dayton, where they resided until 1833, when they came to Darke Co., locating in Wayne Township, near where Webster now stands, where, on the 5th day of June, 1834, he sank peacefully to rest in the knowledge of the blest immortality of the soul, as the veil had been lifted from the faculty of spirituality and the finer finis placed on the organ of clear sight, or clairvoyant faculty, and he caught a glimpse of that beautiful summerland; and here the writer desires to call attention to the remarkable accuracy and interesting account of his death, as given by his son Levi. A short time before his death, he caught a glimpse of the higher courts, in which he saw the day that he would leave his body and pass into spirit-life; this he related to his good wife and children, of which they did not understand, and passed it off as superstition; but on the day that the transition was to occur, there being several of the neighbors present, and his friends, to hear the good old man talk and give directions concerning his burial, etc., he placed himself in the large arm-chair, chatting all the while to his friends, and at the appointed hour, after bidding all good-bye, his arms fell lifeless by his side, when he drew one long breath, and his spirit had fled. Magdalena, his widow, survived the storm of life until the 27th of April, 1866, when she was found dead in her bed, her spirit having fled and joined the angel-band that was awaiting her arrival. They were the parents of five children, of whom two are living at present writing, viz., Catharine, and Levi, the subject of this memoir, who was born in Rockingham Co., Va., on the 20th of December, 1820; he spent his boyhood days on the farm, assisting his father in clearing land and cultivation of the soil; he received his education in the district schools; his father died when he was about 14 years old, which left his widowed mother with the family to his care and support, which duty he nobly performed; when he was 20 years old, he commenced to teach school; his first school was taught in an old log schoolhouse which stood on the farm where he now resides; he taught during the winter months, and in the summer he would farm and trade; he followed teaching for about twenty-three years, during which time he taught a term of eleven months in Vandalia, Montgomery Co.; while teaching here, he took lessons in higher arithmetic, algebra, penmanship and drawing, of Mr. David Ecker, and by hard study and close application he acquired a good academic education; in 1846, he traveled for a stove firm in Dayton, which he followed for about two years; he commenced work at $1 per day, and after the first month, the firm raised his wages to $52 per month, and at the close of the second month, his wages were raised to $100 per month. In 1849, he entered the employ of William Mitchell, of Dayton, as salesman and collector, where he remained about one year, after which he followed the same business until 1851, but for another party; in 1851 he traveled for a Piqua firm selling notions, which he followed for about four years. On the 9th of April, 1854, he celebrated his marriage with Miss Lucinda, daughter of Abraham and Salome Hetzler; three children were born to them, of whom two are living, viz., Mary L. Lucinda, Sarah Jane R. In April, 1871, the messenger of death entered this peaceful and interesting family, removing the mother from earth to heaven. His two daughters are attending the Westerville College, from which they will graduate in 1880. He celebrated his second marriage on the 16th of September, 1872, with Mary, daughter of Anson and Lydia Aldrich; she is a native of Massachusetts, born on the 19th of September, 1845; the marriage ceremony was performed by the Rev. William Jay. Mr. Huddle is the largest landholder in Darke Co., having accumulated a large amount of property by his hard labor, connected with strict temperate and correct business habits ; he now owns 3,400 acres, all of which is paid for, of which 600 acres are in Greenwood Co., Kan.; 320 in Phillips Co., Mo.; 220 in Pike Co., Ill.; and the rest lies in Ohio and Indiana; he was one of the first stockholders of the State Bank of Ohio—William Scott, President, and Young, Cashier; and, when the bank was changed to the First National, he took $11,000 stock; in the Citizens’ Bank of Piqua, $4,100; ten shares in the Farmers’ National Bank of Greenville, and 100 shares in the Building Association of Greenville, twenty shares of which belong to each member of the family. He is a member of the United Brethren Church, and his wife a member of the Christian Church, and his two daughters are members of the Methodist Church.