My Genealogy Hound

S. S. WELLS, farmer; P. O. Ginghamsburg. S. S. Wells is quite a noted man in this county, and his ancestry dates back early in the county’s history; his grandparents emigrated to this county in 1816, and settled near Ginghamsburg; they had six children— William, Levi, Silas, Martha, Willie and John W.; none are now living; Silas was the father of the man whose name heads this sketch, and married Miss Alesa Skinner in North Carolina; afterward moved to Virginia, and finally came, together with all the Wells family, to this county. They were the parents of the following children— Thomas, Richard, William, Samuel S., John, Daniel, Robert, Levi, and two other sons who died in infancy; their daughters were Martha J. and Sarah Isabella; all are living except Richard and Daniel; the farm where Hitzman now lives was the one settled by the Wells family in 1816. Samuel S. Wells married Miss Caroline Lavy, in 1842; their children are Harriet, Matilda, Emily, Margaret, Evaline and Martha E.; all except Emily are living; Mr. Wells is a very prominent man, and is quite a local politician, being an ardent Democrat, a Granger, and Township Trustee. Both himself and wife are members of the Disciples Church; for fifty-nine years he has been a resident of Miami Co., and the vast improvements to him seem almost magical; very few of the pioneers are now living who first settled the Miami Valley, but Mrs. Sarah Brooks, an aunt of Mr. Wells, can almost claim that distinction, as she is past 81 years of age, and is hale and vigorous; she was born in North Carolina in 1799, and her memory is as bright as though she was only 20; many things of interest can be learned from her concerning early times in Ohio; she was a daughter of Thomas and Sarah Skinner, and was married to John W. Wells in 1818, they being the parents of the following children John W., Elbert, William H. H., Kitty F., Martha, Isabella and Elizabeth. Mrs. Skinner’s father died in 1862, and her mother in 1842. She was married to Isaiah Brooks in 1843; they had no children; he died in 1872. The family is a large one, and they are good and honest people.