JACOB WIDENER deceased, formerly one of Covington's representative business men and. highly esteemed citizens, was born at Covington, Ohio, September 22, 1845, and was a son of Jacob and Margaret (Fahnestock) Widener. Both the Widener and Fahnestock families came from Saxony, Germany, and a complete ancestral line, together with the old coat of arms, is in the possession of the widow of the late Jacob Widener.

The first Jacob Widener, father Jacob (2), was born in Franklin County Pennsylvania, April 9, 1809, his fathers having come directly from Germany. His earlier years, Jacob Widener worked as a tanner at Strasburg, Pennsylvania. In October 1834 he was married at Landisburg, Pennsylvania, to Margaret Fahnestock, and in the spring of 1836, with their oldest child, William Fahnestock, they made the journey to Ohio by wagon and in the fall of that year settled near Covington, Miami County. Jacob Widdner started into business first with a tin shop, and later, after a period of official life, embarked in a hardware business in which he continued until succeeded by his son. He was one, of the charter members of the Christian Church which was organized at Covington in 1837. A Democrat, he was elected by that party first a justice of the peace and was later appointed postmaster of Covington under the administration of President Polk. Upon retiring from that office he was elected county recorder, and during that time lived at Troy, and in 1850 moved from there to Versailles, where he was a dry goods merchant and also conducted a tannery. In 1866 he returned permanently to Covington, founding the hardware business at that time. His death occurred April 12, 1882, when aged seventy-three years.

Jacob Widener, the second, was reared in Miami County and attended school at Troy, Versailles and Piqua. He succeeded his father in the hardware business and conducted it until 1899, when he sold out and lived more or less retired from that time until his death on May 21, 1905, at the City Hospital, at Dayton, Ohio. He was a worthy and valued member of the Christian Church, in which he was a member of the choir for many years and he served for a like period as treasurer of the Sunday-school. Personally he was a man of many admirable and amiable qualities and he had a wide circle of friends. He was identified with the order of Odd Fellows.

On April 13, 1870, Mr. Widener was married to Miss Julia J. Birely, who was born at Lebanon, Ohio, and is a daughter of Joseph and Effie (Samson) Birely. To this marriage were born four children, namely: William B., born January 30, 1871, died in February, 1872; Manley B. and Stanley F., twins, born February 1, 1872, the latter living at Pomona, California, the former of whom lives at Chicago, Illinois; and Edna Lulu, born September 24, 1879, who married William Conrad, a contracting and construction engineer. Mr. and Mrs. Conrad had one son, William Widener, who lived but six days. Manley B. Widener married Etoile Patterson. Stanley F. Widener married Minnie Webb and they have one daughter, Catherine Lavinia.