Hole, Harrison B

Posted By: Wally Garchow
Date: 10 October 2004

transcribed from Frazer Wilson's History of Darke County, v. 2, 1914, pp 222-224.

HARRISON B. HOLE.

If it were not for the acumen and business experience of the wholesale produce dealers of the country, the farmers would have difficulty in finding a profitable market for their products, and thus it is that men like Harrison B. Hole of Versailles, Ohio, are public benefactors. Throughout his long experience along this and kindred lines, Mr. Hole has proven his worth as a business man and his desirability as a citizen. He was born one mile north of Versailles, in Wayne township, Darke county, Ohio, June 13, 1864, a son of Harvey and Eliza J. (Brandon) Hole, natives of Ohio.

Charles Hole, the paternal grandfather of Harrison B. Hole, married Phoebe Baker, and they became pioneers of Darke county, entering the farm now owned by H. B. Hole. At that time this property was all covered with heavy timber, so it was no light task to clear it, or to place the ground under, cultivation, but the grandfather accomplished these tasks, paying the penalty, however, of a shortened life, for he passed away in middle life, as did so many of those who endured the hardships of frontier life. His widow survived him many years. They had nine children : Jonathan, William, Adam, Lewis, Harvey, Benjamin, Lark, Abner and Mart. The maternal grandfather, John Brandon, and his wife were born in Ohio, and became pioneers of Wayne township, Darke county. They had the following children: Mary, Louise, Lucinda, Eliza J., Joel, John, Lewis, Lot and one who was unnamed.

During the boyhood of Harvey Hole he learned to be a brick molder, while he worked on the farm and attended school as occasion offered. Later on in life, however, he devoted himself to agricultural pursuits, becoming the owner of the eighty acres in Wayne township, formerly entered by his father, upon which he reared his family, and which is now inthe possession of his son, H. B. Hole. He also owned 160 acres in Patterson township, and forty additional acres in Wayne township, all of which was divided among his children. In 1885, he moved to Versailles, Ohio, and there he died in 1900, being seventy-five years old. His wife died in 1895, aged sixty-nine years. He was born September 3, 1825, while she was born June 18, 1826. They were earnest and devout members of the Christian church. An energetic man, although he retired from farming in 1885, Harvey Hole was not content to live inactive, so devoted some years to operating a sawmill. He and his wife had the following children: Marinda, who died at the age of five years ; Lucinda, who is deceased, married William H. Stover, and have children, Margaret A., Harvey G., Isaiah K., Thomas B., Hettie (deceased), Clement H., Bryson and Eliza H.; Isaiah F., who resides at Versailles, Ohio, married Sarah Murphy and they have nine children, as follows : Harrison W., Charles H., Caroline L., George C., Mary F., Irma F., James C.., Grace M. and Margaret S.; Margaret Ann, who married Milton E. Stover of Greenville, Ohio, and has two children, Ethel and Kell (de-ceased) ; Mary Isabel, who married Newton Beal of Versailles, Ohio, and has two children, Milton E. and Grace A.; J. B. Weller, of Versailles, Ohio, who is a prominent man of that place, married Lydia Mast and they have three children, Carrie, Bertha and Marie, and Harrison B., whose name heads this review.

Harrison B. Hole attended the schools of his district and found employment on his father's farm until he was twenty-one years old. He then began conducting a sawmill at Versailles, and in 1888 embarked in a poultry business which he has continued ever since. For thirteen years Milton E. Stover was associated with him, but he then bought out his partner and has continued alone ever since. Mr. Hole has several large plants, as follows : One at Versailles, one at Greenville, one at Arcanum, one at Dayton, one at Springfield, and one at Sidney, all in Ohio. He is one of the largest produce merchants that ships to New York city in this part of the State, his operations aggregating $1,000,000 annually.

On December 18, 1890, Mr. Hole was married to Miss Otillie Engleken, born at Versailles, Ohio, a daughter of Barthold and Susanna (Kleinschmidt) Engleken, natives of Germany, the former of whom died in 1891, the latter surviving. Mr. and Mrs. Engleken had four children, namely: Anna Marie, Otillie, Amelia and John Edward. Mr. and Mrs. Hole became the parents of the following children: Robert M., Homer M., Harvey B., William E., Norman W., Dorothy O., Mildred L., and Richard E., who are all at home, except Norman W., who died at the age of four 'months. The Christian church holds the membership of Mr. and Mrs. Hole. He belongs to Versailles Lodge No. 290, F. & A. M., and the Knights of Pythias. Strong in his support of the Republican party and its principles, he spent seven years as a member of the board of public affairs at Versailles and two terms on the school board.

In November 1913, Mr. Hole was elected mayor of Versailles, receiving 286 out of a possible 376 votes cast.

Mrs. Hole is prominent in church and social work, being a member of the T. E. O. Altruian.

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