PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL ALBUM 

pg 471, 472 

     CHARLES L. GERLAUGH.  Although still a young man the above named gentleman is one of the most prominent and public spirited residents of Bethel Township, Clark County.  He belongs to a family whose representatives are numbered among the early settlers of Greene County, and who in former times sent pioneers into Pennsylvania, the remote ancestors being German.  He is a shrewd business man, a fine manager of the land which he operates, and personally is hospitable, good natured, and every inch a gentleman.  He commands the respect of his fellow men, his prominence among them being due as much to his personal character, as to his ability in worldly and public affairs.  His home is a fine farm of two hundred and fifty-six acres on sections 31 and 36, which although held by his father has been largely improved by himself, and is under his sole control.  He is a shareholder in the Osborn Bank, and an ex-President of that institution, having been at its head the first year of its life.

     The first of the GERLAUGH family to make a home in the Buckeye State was Adam, a native of Frederick County, Md., who came here about 1816.  He was poor and empty handed, but locating on a new piece of land in Beaver Creek Township, Greene County, he set to work with right good will to carve out his fortune.  He cleared and improved the farm, and so successfully prosecuted his labors that he became the owner of some one thousand acres of land, all lying within five or six miles of Dayton.  In the early days his market was Cincinnati, to and from which city he hauled produce with teams.  He was still a young man when he came to this State, where he married and reared a family, one of whom a son, Arthur, was born in Beaver Creek Township, in1819.  There Adam GERLAUGH breathed his last, respected by his fellow-men.

     Arthur GERLAUGH bought and located on his father’s original homestead, where he is now living, having some three hundred acres of land in the farm.  He is one of the oldest settlers of the community, being now about seventy-one years old, and is numbered among the most prosperous farmers of this vicinity.  He also owns two good farms in Bath Township, Greene County, and after the marriage of his son, our subject, purchased the property upon which the latter is located.  In politics he is a thorough Republican.  As a citizen he is public spirited, reliable and prominent, while his private character is that of an honorable, kindly and upright man.  His wife, formerly Miss Catherine ROCKAFIELD, was born near Fairfield, Bath Township, and was educated there; she is the possessor of an intelligent mind, a Christian character, and many useful accomplishments.  She has now reached the age of some fifty-six years, and belongs to the United Brethren Church.  The family includes two sons—Charles L., the first born; and John, who is farming on the home place in Greene County.

     The maternal grandparents of our subject were John and Elizabeth (COST) ROCKAFIELD, both of whom were born in the Keystone State, and came to this section when young with their parents, who were early settlers of Bath Township, Greene County.  Grandfather ROCKAFIELD took up his residence there about 1825, and began working out on the farm of Peter COST, whose daughter he afterward married.  He then rented the place, afterward buying it, and continuing to reside upon it until his death.

     The gentleman who name introduces this biographical sketch was born March 6, 1855, in Beaver Creek Township, Greene County, five miles from Dayton.  There he grew to manhood, learning the rudiments of farming when a boy, and enjoying excellent educational advantages, together with the best of home training.  He remained under the parental roof until twenty-seven years old, when he was married and located upon the farm which his father had purchased for him.  The entire acreage is tillable, and the estate is well improved, having all necessary and convenient farm buildings upon it, being well fenced, and supplied with fruit of various kinds.  There are two tenant houses for the use of workmen upon the estate, which is devoted to general farming, and in the carrying on of which three teams are constantly employed; the whole is under the efficient supervision of Mr. GERLAUGH.  He is now raising thoroughbred Short-horn cattle, of which he has some fine specimens on which he has taken premiums at the fairs; he also raises full-blooded Poland-China swine.  He feeds about a car-load of cattle per year also, while his crops are not neglected but are equal to any in the county in amount and quality.

     The hospitable and attractive home of Mr. GERLAUGH is presided over by an intelligent and accomplished lady, whose gracious manner prepossesses strangers in her favor, and whose virtues endear her to many hearts.  She comes of an excellent family, being a daughter of John HOWER, whose sketch found on another page in this volume, furnishes an account of her ancestry.  She is a native of Bath Township, in which her marriage took place February 1, 1882.  For a time she was a student at Wittenberg College, Springfield.  Four bright children have come to bless her union, their names being Arthur, Howard, Ella and Bertha.

     The Clark County Agricultural Society numbers Mr. GERLAUGH among its patrons.  According to his judgment the principles embraced in the Republican platform are those best calculated for the needs of the people, and he never fails to support them by his vote, and he has also served his party as a delegate to county conventions.  He is a member of the School Board, and takes a deep interest in educational affairs, and in the improvement of the schools.  He belongs to the Lutheran Church.  We invite the attention of our many readers to a portrait of Mr. GERLAUGH on another page.