Local History Collections

(Description ID: 609944)

Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums

The Michaels Family

LH - 462

Introduction

Biographical Sketch

Scope and Content

Inventory

Introduction

This collection was donated to the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library and Museums in 2024 by Larry Michaels.

Biographical Sketch

The Michaels family in Fremont, Ohio begins with Philip Michaels, who arrived in the area in 1858 and purchased a large farm on the northeast corner of Buchanan and McGormley Roads in 1871.  Philip’s ancestors have been traced to central Pennsylvania in the mid-1700s, over ten generations ago.  In 1860, Philip Michaels married Susannah Martha Batzole (Batesole), uniting two large families with area connections and producing future generations that include many familiar local names, such as Ernsperger, Hutchins, Remsburg, Keiser, Hampsher, Smith, Sachs, Reiter, Darr, Weichert, Durnwald, and Culbertson.  This family history records these ancestors and descendants of Philip and Martha, many of whom have lived or still reside in Fremont and Northwest Ohio.

Philip Michaels’ great-grandfather, also named Philip, was born in Franconia, Bavaria in 1736.  He had arrived in America by 1756, when he married Maria Catherine in Bockamixon, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, where their son Isaac was born in 1769.  Isaac Michaels moved to Northhampton, Pennsylvania by 1788 and his son Isaac (Philip’s father) was born there in 1802.  This second Isaac came to Fairfield County, Ohio by January 1829 when he married Elizabeth Hutchins with whom he had 12 children; including Philip, born November 10, 1840.  Philip grew up in Fairfield County, and along with his brothers, Jesse, John, Thomas, and James, fought in the Civil War.  Their lives are recorded in a sketch published in the History of Sandusky and Ottawa Counties, 1869, pages 488 – 489.  Philip arrived in Fremont in 1858.

On June 24, 1860, Philip married Martha Batzole, whose mother was Sarah Ernsperger, which brough him together with several landowning families of Ballville Township.  After much hard work, Philip was able to purchase the McGormley farm on the northeast corner of Buchanan and McGormley Roads, land that has remained in the family for over 140 years.  His original farmhouse was replaced about 1900 with the larger home still standing at 2731 Buchanan Road.  He also donated land for the McGormley-Michaels Cemetery.  Philip and Martha had eight children, and their son James William, born in 1863 and called William, continued to work the original farm.  Most of the family members in the area descend from him.

William Michaels married Minerva Keiser in 1889, and they also had eight children (seven sons followed by one daughter), whose descendants are included in this collection.  Carl, the eldest, is the father of Richard Michaels and grandfather of Larry, and lived most of his life in Fremont and Toledo.  The third son, Rutherford B. Hayes Michaels, farmed in Ballville Township all his life.  He and his wife Willetta (Adams) had ten children.  His daughter Mary married Howard Sachs, who also was a landowner in the township.  Harry, the fourth son, married Mary Hampsher.  The oldest son, Harry Jr., had three daughters: Krista, who married Fred Durnwald; Sharlyn, who married Bill Reiter; and Lesa, who married Bob Ray.  A second son, James (Pete), had six children and taught and coached at Fremont Ross High School.  The fifth son of William and Minerva, Hiram, settled near Burgoon where his descendants still farm.  Elwood, a seventh son, moved to the Cleveland area, and a daughter, Maebelle, moved to California.

Most of the Philip Michaels family descendants are buried in the McGormley-Michaels Cemetery on McGormley Road.  There are hundreds of family members recorded in these genealogical records, including many still living in this area, who bear the Michaels name or the surnames of other prominent pioneer families of Ballville, Fremont, and Sandusky County.  This Michaels Family collection is an effort to preserve the known information of past generations and also guide family genealogists of future generations.

Scope and Content

This collection is organized chronologically and contains records of all known generations of the Michaels family, specifically those who have lived in Ballville, Fremont, Toledo, and northwest Ohio.  The Philip Michaels material also includes charts and information about several generations of his ancestors.  Additional information gathered by Burton Michaels (also located at HPLM) has been incorporated into this collection.

The folder headings reflect the family members in direct line of descendants who lived in this area and who married into other well-known local families.  Some of these allied families, such as Hampsher, Keiser, and Batsole, have enough genealogical information for a separate folder.

The collection contains family tree charts, family member list, photographs, articles, invitations, and other ephemera.  Dates, names, and spellings have been researched and cross-referenced with other genealogists, as well as genealogical databases.

Inventory

Ac. 6143

Box 1 

1. Philip Michaels Family
2. Batezole/Batesole/Ernsperger/Hutchins Family
3. James William Michaels Family and Keiser/Bradford Families
4. James William Michaels Family and Keiser/Bradford Families
5. Hiram Michaels Family
6. Elwood Michaels Family
7. Maebelle Michaels Family (Johnson)
8. Rutherford Birchard Hayes Michaels Family
9. Mary Michaels Sachs Family
10. Harry Michaels, Sr. Family and Mary Hampsher and Children
11. Hampsher/Smith/Culbertson Families
12. Harry Michaels, Jr. Family
13. Mapes/Franks Families
14. Krista Michaels (Durnwald) Family
15. Sharlyn Michaels (Reiter) Family
16. Lisa Michaels (Ray) Family
17. James “Pete” Michaels Family and Zimmerman/Haslinger Families
18. Carl Michaels Family
19. Richard and Doris (Busack) Michaels Family
20. Conrad Family
21. Busack Family
22. Larry Michaels/Linda (Long) Michaels Families and Sherer/Conrad Families
23. Larry and Suzi Michaels – photographs
24. Larry Michaels – research
25. Burton Michaels – research
26. Photographs
27. Reunions
28. Larry Michaels – flash drive
29. McGormley-Michaels Cemetery

The Michaels Family Tree – compiled by Larry Michaels