Andrew M. Morrow resides upon one of the good farms of Washington township, Miami county, and is successfully carrying on agricultural pursuits. He owns one hundred and thirty-seven acres of rich land, forty of which he has himself cleared. He comes from a family of Scotch-Irish lineage. His ancestors fled from Scotland to Ireland on account of religious persecution and changed the name from Murray to Morrow, and came to America and settled in Perry county, Pennsylvania, in 1766. The grandfather of our subject lived and died in Sherman's valley, in Perry county, Pennsylvania. Major Richard Morrow, the father of our subject, was born at the old family homestead in Sherman's valley, in 1788. He was left an orphan during early childhood and was bound out to a millwright with whom he learned the trade. In his native valley he was married on the 5th of July, 1814, to Miss Frances Clark, whose birth occurred December 26, 1787, her parents being Robert and Mary (Alexander) Clark. In the fall of 1814, Mr. Morrow and his wife joined a party of colonists from that section and started for Ohio. The Morrows located in Highland county, where they remained until the following spring, when they came to Miami county, locating on a quarter-section of land, three miles south of Piqua, in Washington township. The region was almost an unbroken forest at that time, and the tract which Mr. Morrow entered on the 20th of December, 1815, was covered with a heavy growth of timber so that he had to cut away the trees in order to plant crops. He erected a double log house with a two-story front, one of the most pretentious homes in the township, and there he and his wife spent their remaining days, with the exception of about five years, during which time they resided in Piqua, returning to their farm in the summer of 1861. As before indicated, Mr. Morrow was a millwright in his youth, but after taking up his abode in the Buckeye state, he devoted his attention to farming. The married life of this worthy couple covered a period of more than half a century, and they were separated only a short time by death, as Mr. Morrow passed away on the 28th of May, 1864, while his wife was called to her final resting place on the 12th of August, of the same year. They were people of the highest respectability, active and consistent members of the Presbyterian church and were also leading members of the Bible society. His fellow townsmen, realizing his worth and ability, frequently called Morrow to positions of public trust and responsibility, and he was almost continuously in office. For many years he served as township trustee, was also county commissioner, and at one time was major of a regiment of the Ohio state militia. He took an active and commendable interest in everything pertaining to the welfare of the county, did all in his power to promote its growth and substantial improvement, and left the impress of his strong individuality upon its development.

Mr. and Mrs. Morrow became the parents of the following children: Joseph Marshall, born March 11, 1815, was accidentally killed on the farm of Judge Adams, south of Piqua. Robert, Alexander, born April 11,1818, was married December 8, 1842, to Mary Whittaker and died November 19, 1846. Hugh Clark, born October 9, 1820, was married May 7, 1851, to Susan F. Morrison, and died near the old homestead September 5, 1874. James, whose sketch is given in this history, is the next of the family. Milton, born February 14, 1825, married Clarissa Prugh, and died on his farm in Washington township, January 26, 1889. William, born July 31, 1828, died in Dayton, Ohio, January 5, 1893. Andrew M. completes the family.

Andrew Mitchell Morrow has spent his entire life in Miami county, his birth having occurred on the 17th of November, 1833, on the old family homestead upon which he now resides. At the usual age he began his education in the country schools, pursuing his studies for two months each year, except when the citizens would raise money to prolong the session to three months. He was a studious boy and improved his opportunities in the school room, thus laying a good foundation for a practical English education. Possessing an observing eye and retentive memory, he has become a well informed man, and reading keeps him in touch with the general interests of the day. In his youth, after school hours and during vacations, he employed his time diligently at home with the farm duties. At his father's death he inherited a portion of the old homestead and afterward purchased the interest of the other heirs, becoming the owner of the present valuable farm of one hundred and thirty-seven acres, the greater part of which is under a high state of cultivation. His present residence was built by his father, in 1840, but he has erected other buildings and made other substantial improvements which stand as monuments to the thrift and enterprise of the owner. On the 8th of April, 1858, Mr. Morrow was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth Ellen Drake, who was born in Washington township, November 22, 1833, a daughter of Daniel and Margaret (Curry) Drake. The Drakes were from New Jersey, and in 1833 took up their abode in Washington township, Miami county. Their ancestry can be traced back for many generations to Sir Francis Drake. Mr. and Mrs. Morrow became the parents of three children: Ellen Frances, born May 16, 1680; Margaret Caroline, who was born May 14, 1862, and died in October, 1880; and Harland D., born September 5, 1866. The mother died October 28, and, on the 26th of December, 1876, Mr. Morrow was again married, his second union being with Olive L. Dennis, born August 6, 1844, in Clermont county, Ohio, a daughter of James and Sarah Ann (Parker) Dennis. Her paternal grandfather, Francis Dennis, was a native of Ireland, and when three years of age was brought to America by his parents, who died soon after reaching the United States. Having arrived at years of maturity, he married Miss Mary Murray, and from Kentucky they removed to Clermont county, Ohio. Mr. Dennis died near New Boston, this state, in 1832, and his wife near Williamsburg, Ohio, in 1860.

Their son, James Dennis, was born in Clermont county, Ohio, August 10, 1809, and for many years operated a grist and saw-mill and also a chair factory. He died in his native county, in December, 1889, when about eighty years of age. He was twice married, his first union being with Sarah Ann Parker, daughter of Isaac Parker, of New Jersey, whose wife was a Miss Culberson before her marriage. Mrs. Dennis died in October, 1874, and Mr. Dennis afterward married Mrs. Susan Morrow, the widow of Hugh Morrow, the brother of our subject. She died in Leavenworth, Kansas. Mr. Dennis was the father of nine children, namely: Caroline, wife of Samuel Scott Lynn, of Altaloma, Texas; Charles P., a practicing dentist of Portsmouth, Ohio, who wedded Miss Sarah M. Lane; Mary Ann, widow of Thomas Page, of Fayette county, Ohio; Martha J., widow of the Rev. Isaac J. Cushman, of Oxford, Ohio; Eliza V., who become the wife of Newton D. Spence, and after his death married Simms Tate, of Adair county, Iowa; John F., a dentist, who wedded Miss Lida Gilfillen and lives at Washington Court House, Ohio; Mrs. Morrow; Theodore G., who married Miss Lida Kennedy, and is a dental practitioner of Jamestown, Ohio; and Arabelle, who died in this state. By the marriage of Andrew M. Morrow and Olive L. Dennis four children have been born, namely: Clifton Parker, born October 28, 1877; Eliza Dennis, born October 14, 1879; Raymond Clark, born September 22, 1881 ; and Forrest Ely, born September 25, 1883.

Mr. Morrow was reared in the Whig party, but on the organization of the Republican party became one of its stanch supporters, and has since fought under its banners. Of the Presbyterian church of Piqua he is a devout and faithful member, and has served as one of its elders since 1880. He is a well-informed man, an extensive reader and an entertaining conversationalist, and his pleasant home is noted for its generous hospitality. His amiable disposition and devotion to the welfare of the family renders him an ideal husband and father, and to him friendship is inviolable. He possesses those sterling traits of character which in every land and in every clime command respect.