Biographical sketch extracted from:
Biographical and historical record of
Adams and
Wells counties,
Indiana. Chicago: Lewis Publishing Co., 1887. p. 842.
JOSIAH
DAVIS, deceased, was born in
Hocking County,
Ohio, July 12, 1825, son of William and Sarah
DAVIS, and of
Welsh ancestry. He was reared on a farm, and when he was fourteen years of age his mother died, after which he began the battle of life for himself. He worked out by the day and month until he reached maturity. About the year 1848 he came to
Wells County and purchased eighty acres of unimproved land on section 29,
Harrison Township, which he began to clear and improve. January 20, 1854, he was married to Miss
Harriet Groves, a daughter of Joseph
Groves. They settled on the farm owned by Mrs. Davis father and lived there three years, then removed to his own farm. By dint of perseverance and close attention to business, he soon had his farm in a good state of cultivation, and he followed farming during the remainder of his days. Of their four children, three still surviveEdwin R., Emma A., wife of Lewis Cobbum, and Henry
Sherman. Mr. Davis was an active member of the United Brethren church, as is also his wife. Politically he affiliated with the Republican party. After an illness of over two years with cancer, he died September 3, 1886. His wife still reside [sic] on the old homestead.