SOLOMON KERNS, retired farmer; P.O. Troy. Among the early settlers of this township we are pleased to notice Mr. Solomon Kerns, who has lived the longest, perhaps, of any man in the county in one township; he was born, within One mile of his present home, sixty- seven years ago, and his entire life, with but short intermissions, has been spent in this county; he is a son of Henry Kerns, who was born in North Carolina, in 1784, and emigrated from Rowan Co., N. C., and settled in Concord Township, in 1809; a few years later, he purchased the place now occupied by our subject, upon which he resided until his decease, which occurred in May, 1861, at the advanced age of 77 years. He married Mary Summey, also a native of the above State, who died in Concord Township, about the year 1875, at the remarkable old age of 93 years; they were the parents of sixteen children, of whom seven now survive; Solomon Kerns was born May 13, 1813, upon the farm where he has always lived; he has witnessed the transformation of the vast wilderness into well- cultivated farms, fine residences, take the place of the rude log cabins, and the wild savage become entirely extinct. The marriage nuptials of Solomon Kerns with Diana Frazier were celebrated in. Concord Township in 1839 ; she was born March 22, 1822, and died March 5, 1879; they were the parents of three children, of whom Philadelphia and Harriet Frances now survive ; Mr. Kerns has devoted his whole life to agricultural pursuits, and was also extensively engaged in stock-dealing; he owns 203 acres in his home farm, with good buildings, under a fine state of cultivation, and some timber land in other parts of the county, all of which he has accumulated by his own hard labor, energy and correct business habits; he is no w retired from active labor, having his farm rented out to good tenants. He is a Republican in politics, and, while he has no aspirations for political honors, he has held the office of Township Trustee for a period of twenty years in succession.