Union County, Ohio Biographies Project - David Dort
DAVID DORT
David Dort, deceased, an old and
respected pioneer of Jerome Township, was born in New Hampshire
November 25, 1801. He was a son of Titus and Charlotte (Clark)
Dort, who were natives of Massachusetts, and came to Franklinton,
Franklin Co., Ohio, in 1811. They subsequently removed to Darby
Plains, Madison County, where Mrs. Dort departed this life. Mr.
Dort died at Frankfort, about 1840. At an early age, David was
apprenticed to the blacksmith trade, which he followed till 1835.
In 1836, he was married to Sarah A., daughter of Thomas and Barbara
Gray, the former a native of Delaware and the latter of Virginia.
They moved to Ross County, Ohio, in 1815, and in 1821 came to Darby
Plains, and afterward went to Keokuk, Iowa, where they died in 1844 and
1849, respectively. Mr. Gray was a soldier in the war of
1812. Mrs. Dort was born in Loudoun County, Va., June 4,
1813. Her great-grandfather came from Europe, and was one of the
first Baptist ministers in America. Mr. Dort removed with his
family and settled on the farm now occupied by his widow in 1845.
He purchased 125 acres of land and cleared and improved it to a good
condition. He was an energetic and persevering man, and made all
that he owned by his industry. In politics, he was Democratic
till the war broke out, when he joined the ranks of the Republican
party and was, during his subsequent life, an earnest advocate of its
doctrines and principles. During the war he was active in behalf
of the Union, and did much in the way of providing for the soldiers and
their families. He was not a member of any church, but was
inclined to the doctrine of the Congregational Church. He aided
in many charitable and benevolent enterprises, and was a man of
integrity. He died September 16, 1881, leaving a widow and one
son.