BIOGRAPHY OF OLIVER
B. VERITY
Submitted by Mark Lozer,
Fulton County Ohio Genealogy Web Page Coordinator
Was transcribing some
old obituary bios that were handwriiten and
submitted to the Fulton Co. Ohio Pioneer Society
in the latter
1800's here in my county. These original handwritten
letters showed up when our county recorder's office was being moved to
a
new building. The following was among them and it say this man
was
born in Schaghticoke, Rensselaer Co., NY January 8th 1815. He moved on
by
1830 to Cayuga
County, NY,
1831 to
Lysander, Onondago Co.N.Y.
( I see
you have Ruth Verity listed on your sight, with the
Plainville Christian Church records1822 - 1859,
Town of Lysander, Onondaga County, NY- Miss Ruth Verity --
removed in Autumn of 1846 to Ohio
and in 1843
to Lucas Co. OH , what is now Fulton County Ohio,
arriving in Gorham Twps
OLIVER B. VERITY
Our friend and
brother Oliver B. Verity was born Schaghticoke, Rensselaer
Co., NY January 8th 1815, he departed this life November 9th 1889 which
makes his earth life 77 years. He was first born of nine children; he
received the principal part of his education in the county where he was
born in the common school which he traveled from 2 to 3 miles daily to
attend.
In 1830 he, with
his parents, moved to Cayuga County, NY, in 1831 they
moved to Lysander, Onondago N.Y. where in the fall of 1835 he entered
the
school room as teacher and taught during winter term until 1842. On the
28th of February 1838 he was married to Caroline Scofield of
Connecticut
then residing in Onondago Co., N.Y., happily have they always lived
through clouds and sunshine. To them were born six children, four of
them
having passed on many years since. In 1843 our brother with his wife
and
2 children left their homes in the East and came to what is now Fulton
County, arriving in Gorham Twps., May 2 and has been a citizen of this
county ever since.
He taught school
winters until 1858; the first spring after he came here
he was elected township clerk of Gorham Township and was successively
elected to same office 9 years. He was chosen District assessor and
made
the assessments in 1853. In 1836 he was chosen School Examiner for
Gorham
and served until 1852, when he was chosen County School Examiner and
served eight years.
In 1856 he was
elected Justice of the Peace for Gorham Township; in 1857
he was elected Probate Judge which office he filled until 1870 a period
of 12 years. In 1870 he was chosen assistant Marshal for the Northern
District of Ohio, to tale the census, he was elected Justice of the
Peace
for Dover Township in 1870 and served until 1876, in April 1874 he was
selected as superintendent of the Fulton County infirmary and remained
there until March 1, 1880. In 1880 he was again elected Justice of the
Peace for Dover Township.
During the War
he was on of the Military Committee of this county, he was
secretary of the Agricultural Society of Fulton County for 12 years to
him are we indebted for many pages of useful history which has taken
months and years to compile.
For many years
he has been an active member of the Masonic Fraternity and
patrons of Husbandry and ?.
And now his
active pen lies useless, at the table the chair is empty, his
work in Manual form is ended. In the enterprizing Days of Modern
Spiritualism he became interested and a thourough investigation
convinced
him of the truthfulness of its teachings , it became an absolute
knowledge with him, with him he verily believed that he would enter a
higher plane of life and a grander field for the display of his
intellectual and spiritual culture.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Then the
following was a biograpghy Oliver submitted to a local Atlas
published in 1875 with personal Histories
of their patrons
of the project.
OLIVER B. VERITY was descended from
parental stock who
emigrated to Long Island, New York in the reign of Queen Anne of
England.
James Verity was a Frenchman and belonged to the French army occupying
Turkey; became a prisoner with the Turks, formed an attachment with a
Turkish lade, ran away, were married and came to Long Island as above
stated. The parental lineage on my father’s side came through the name
of
James to me. My grandfather, James Verity was born in 1760 in Queens
County, Long Island, New York and in 1788 was married to one Hannah
Gritman of the same county. My father, James G. Verity, was the third
child of said union, was born in Queens County, Long Island, New York
January 21, 1786. At the proper age was apprenticed to a Quaker, weaver
by trade, at which he worked until the age of 21 when he moved to
Renselaer County, New York and married Eunice Banker at Pittstown,
Renselaer County, February 12, 1812. My mother was the youngest child
of
Adolphus Banker and Ruth Banker, whose maiden name was Ruth Oakley of
the
City of New York, of English descent all the way down. Oliver B.
Verity,
the writer, is the first child of the marriage of James G. Verity to
Eunice Banker; was born January 8, 1815, the same day and year that
Andrew Jackson fought the British at New Orleans. There were eight
children born afterwards: Ruth, born January 21, 1816; Caroline, born
April 6, 1818; William B, born June 8, 1820; Mary Ann, born 1821;
Nancy,
born 1823; Hopy Jane, born in 1825; James H. born in 1830; Day Otis,
born
in 1832. I was married to Caroline Schofield February 28, 1838 at
Lysander, Onondaga County, New York , and the children born to us were:
Amasa B. S, born in Lysander County, New York May 20, 1839; Polly Eliza
born at Lysander May 7, 1841; James L. born in Gorham, Lucas County,
Ohio
October 8, 1846; Harriet Antoinette born in Gorham July 21, 1853;
Oliver
Adelbert born in Gorham June 9, 1855; George N. born in Ottokee, Fulton
County, Ohio December 29, 1860. There are but two living children at
this
date, Amasa B. S. and Oliver A. Verity. The writer came from Renselaer
County, New York to Onondaga County, New York in 1830; lived there 13
years and moved to this county, then Lucas May 8, 1843. When I was at
Adrian I had 50 cents in my picket and with wife and two children had
to
get to this county; found a friend in Albert Crane, then living south
of
Adrian who volunteered to keep me overnight and fetch me on the next
morning; did so, and came into Gorham May 8, 1843, my goods back in
Adrian. Hired a dwelling of W. A. Mace, and went keeping house without
any furniture or anything to eat. Went to work by the day and in three
weeks earned enough to get my goods from Adrian. In 1857 was elected
probate judge of Fulton County and February 9, 1858 entered upon the
duties of the office; re-elected and again in 1866 and served to
February
9, 1870. In April, 1874 was called again from my farming duties to take
charge of the county infirmary of Fulton County, and at this writing am
in charge as superintendent. O. B. Verity.
Submitted 15
September 2005