The County Seat - Continued
The above summary was taken largely from "Lest We Forget", which is a translation of a letter which Nicholas Fankhauser wrote to his relatives in Switzerland a few years after he came to the United States. The translation was published in 1915 by his great-grandson, F.A. Scherzinger, of Nelson, Nebraska.
Nicholas Fankhauser had sixteen children: Nicholas, Warner, Andrew, William, Louis, Susanna, and Marve (all of whom were born in Switzerland and being children of his first wife); and Elizabeth, Louisa, Charlotte, Magdalena, Justina, Margaret, Caroline, Rosina, and Philip (all of whom were children of his second wife, Sophia Splittler).
Daniel and Nicholas Fankhauser also had a brother, John, who may have come to the United States at a later date.
The Town of Graysville was settled in 1835 by Daniel Gray. In 1880, there was a post office and there was a population of 174. At this time, Graysville was a point of considerable trade having four dry goods and grocery stores, two drug stores, two blacksmith shops, one furniture store, two shoe shops, one saddle and harness shop, two doctors, and two justices of the peace -- being W.J. Crawford and J. Beardmore. There were eleven school houses. The average wages paid to the eleven school teachers were $23.00 to ladies, per month, and $27.00 to the men, per month. There were 482 pupils enrolled, making an average of 44 pupils per teacher. There were two rooms in the school at Graysville with 99 pupils attending. A primary teacher earned the sum of $27.00 per month and the high teacher earned the sum of $35.00 per month.
Abram Mann, a farmer, was born in Malaga Township on June 26, 1817, a son of Peter and Elizabeth Barnhard Mann. It is not known when he moved to Washington Township. He was married to Julia A. Leck on December 30, 1841. She was born in Maryland on August 14, 1823, a daughter of Elisha and Margaret Garwood Leck. Nine children were born to Abram and Julia Mann. They were as follows: Henry, born on March 21, 1844; Clarkson, born on May 8, 1845; Clarissa J., born on October 10, 1847; Thomas Flanders, born on February 21, 1850; Oliver P., born on September 21, 1852 (he died at the age of four years); Harriet E., whose birthdate is unknown (she died on December 2, 1856); Vachael, born on September 9, 1858; Makel M., born on May 4, 1861; and Ross L. born on January 15, 1865. Abram Mann served as Trustee and Treasurer of Washington Township, serving three terms for each position.
This family was interested in race horses and, at one time, they owned, Ida Mae, a sorrel mare of the Old Hillman stock -- being the fastest half-mile horse in this part of the country.
Makel, familiarly known as M.M. Mann, served as Clerk of the Courts of Monroe County, Ohio. Thomas Flanders was a farmer and the father of C.R. Mann, who served two terms as Monroe County Commissioner. Ross was a teacher and a postmaster at Graysville, filling this position for 20 years. Vachael was in business in Graysville for several years. Members of this prominent family are now scattered over many states -- some as far as India.
Floyd Mann, Woodsfield, Ohio, and Denver C. Mann, Graysville, Ohio, are grandsons of Abraham and Julia Mann who, 100 years ago, built a 10-room house with high ceilings. This house, like many others in the county, was a center of community activities.