Donley, James Edwin

Other Events:

• Residence: 1966, 130 South Samaritan Avenue, Ashland, Ohio 44805.

Family/Spouse: Comer, Lois Naomi. Lois was born on 2 Jun 1910 in Lorain, Lorain, Ohio, USA; died on 24 Feb 2001 in Ashland, Ashland Co., Ohio, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. Living
2. Living
3. Living

John married Grabill, Elizabeth on 24 Dec 1906 in Ashland, Ashland Co., Ohio, USA. Elizabeth (daughter of Grabill, Samuel Harper and Ewing, Sarah Ann) was born on 22 Jun 1882 in Hayesville, Ashland, Ohio, USA; died on 10 Aug 1965 in Ashland, Ashland Co., Ohio, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Married:
possibly 26 Dec 1906

Thomas married Smith, Iva. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Residence: 1880, Vermillion, Ashland, Ohio, USA

Notes:

Farmer and president of Star Telephone and Director of the First National Bank of Ashland.

Source: Olga A. Krebill Hirschler, The Altleiningen Krebills 1730-1966 (Paul and Olga Hirschler, 020 Lassen Street, Richmond, CA: 1966), Newberry Library, Chicago, also personal collection of Michael Hervey.

Samuel married Ewing, Sarah Ann on 13 Mar 1877 in Hayesville, Ashland, Ohio, USA. Sarah (daughter of Ewing, William and Kregg, Elizabeth) was born on 7 Nov 1855 in Hayesville, Ashland, Ohio, USA; died on 24 Nov 1915 in Ashland, Ashland Co., Ohio, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Birth:
one half mile south of Hayesville

Other Events:

• Residence: 1880, Vermillion, Ashland, Ohio, USA

Notes:

"JOHN S. GRABILL was born in Bavaria, Germany, in 1818. In the fall of 1833 he left Germany in company with his parents and arrived in America Christmas week of 1833, spending the holidays of that year in Philadelphia. In January, 1834, the left Philadelphia for Ashland county, Ohio, traveling some five or six weeks by team, and located in Vermillion township. Mr. Grabillwas fiftenn years old when he arrived in Ashland county, and has resided in Ashland county ever since. His father died in 1845, and his mother at a later date. Mr. Grabill has given his whole time to farming, and by industry, economy, and good management occupies a front rank among the best farmers of Ashland county. On August 21, 1845, he married Miss Nancy Harper, of Vermillion township. They had one son, Samuel, born August 29, 1846, who was married March 13, 1877, to Miss Anna Ewing, by whom he has two children. Father and son live in the old house happily. In 1877 Mr. Grabill made a southern tour, visiting Atlanta, Jacksonville, St. Augustine, Charleston, and many other cities, returning by way of Washington city."

Source: History of Ashland County, Ohio; George William Hill, M.D., published by Williams Bros., 1880

Johannes S. Grabill was nearly sixteen years of age when on February 9th,1834 he with his parents, five brothers and a sister arrived at the Hayesville cross-road in the State of Ohio. It was this John who wrote the letters from Havre de Grace in France, to his grandmother at Altleiningen describing their journey from the Pfalz through south-west Germany and France to the port where they embarked for America.

These and other letters which were written by members of this family from their pioneer home in America to their relatives in Germany were ultimately retrieved from there.

Still more letters which were received by Johannes from his brothers and sister after they had left the vicinity of Hayesville and settled in other localities were contributed to the Bluffton College Historical Library at Bluffton, Ohio, by present descendants of Johannes Grabill.

These letters provided the earliest information about our common ancestor Friedrich Krebill that we have. The following excerpts are from notes kept by "Johannes."

"1833. I was born of Christian parents who fed, clothed me and saw that I received a good school education as well as Christian instructions.

1837. Now I am nineteen years of age. We have left the Fatherland and came to the United States of America. My father's home was in a mill near Altleiningen. His name is Friedrich Krebill. My mother's name was Anna Risser and her home was at Friedelsheim near Bad Durkheim. They were married in 1818 and moved on to a farmstead called Messerschwanderhof, near Otterberg.

I was born May 4, 1818
Bro. Samuel was born October 24 1819
Bro. Abraham was born May 10 1821
Bro. Jacob was born Nov. 28 1822
Bro. Heinrich was bornJune 18 1824
Bro. [Peter] b-May 13, 1825 & d-Jan. 4, 1827 ( ed - Should read Christian)
Peter was born Nov. 5 1827
Sister Agnes was born Sept. 12 1830

We lived on the Messerschwanderhof for about 14 years. My father then sold this farm and rented half of the large Quirnheim estate. About three years later we left the Fatherland and moved to America where we settled on a farm near Hayesville Cross-Road. Father bought this 80 acre farm with a Saw Mill, a windmill, two small houses and half under cultivation for $1050/00."

The following he added later: "When I was attending school in Germany I wrote my name "Johannes Krebill" and was told that we were not related to the "Krehbiel" families in the Pfalz. In America the teacher suggested I spell my name Grabill. If I had it to do again it would not be done."

In a letter written in 1849 to his uncle Heinrich Krebill in Germany, Johannes mentioned that his wife was English and could speak only a few words of German. They, with their two year old son, were living on an eighty acre farm about a half mile from his parents' place.

After the demise of his father that year and of his mother early in 1857, it was to "John" that his brothers Abraham, Jacob, Henry and Peter as well as his sister Agnes Eyman-Eberle directed their letters from their new homes farther west.

Abraham was probably the first to leave the old home vicinity when he settled in Bureau County in Illinois. Jacob and his sister Agnes Eyman were the next for they arrived in Lee County, Iova in the fall of 1856. Henry who was following a trade as a craftsman had been working in various localities and did not settle down right away. Peter and his wife and newly born babe
left in the spring of 1857 for Lee County in Iowa which made three of these Krebill descendants living within walking distance of each other.

After so short a space cf time as 22 years only one of the descendants of Friedrich and Anna Krebill remained in the Hayesville vicinity in Ohio.

It was in the 1920s that my uncle Fred. H. Krebill of Donnellson, Iowa had come into possession of the letters written by the Friedrich Krebill pioneers to their relatives in Germany. Of the five translated copies which Uncle Fred made, the one he gave to me was typed on some John L. Donley business stationery at Ashland, Ohio. Mr. Donley had married Elizabeth Grabill, a
granddaughter of John S. Grabill.

This seemed to have been about the last time that the Ohio and Iowa Krebills were in contact with each other until a few years ago Howard Grabill from Ashland contributed some letters and other papers to the Historical library of Bluffton College at Bluffton, Ohio and finally more recently when we began to solicit reports about the John S. Grabill descendants for our genealogica lbook.

Donley descendants still possess some acres from the ancestral properties in the Hayesville, Ohio area.

Source: Olga A. Krebill Hirschler, The Altleiningen Krebills 1730-1966 (Paul and Olga Hirschler, 020 Lassen Street, Richmond, CA: 1966), Newberry Library, Chicago, also personal collection of Michael Hervey.

Johannes married Harper, Nancy on 21 Aug 1845 in Hayesville, Ashland, Ohio, USA. Nancy was born on 12 May 1822 in Virginia, USA; died on 27 Mar 1876 in Hayesville, Ashland, Ohio, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

William married Kregg, Elizabeth. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]