Surnames: Cornue, Ehle, Empie, Failing, Green, Greenaw,
Grove,
Keller, Rice, Sailor, Van Buskirk, Walrath, Wessels
Towns and villages: Canajoharie, Gloversville, Nelliston,
Palatine, Rural Grove, Sharon Centre
Counties: Fulton - Montgomery
Source: History of the Mohawk Valley - Gateway to the
West- 1614-1925
Covering The Six Counties of Schenectady, Schoharie,
Montgomery, Fulton, Herkimer and Oneida.
Volume IV, Illustrated
Chicago, The S. J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1925; (Pages 642-645)
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Montgomery County numbered among her native sons the late Daniel Ehle, who devoted the greater part of his life to the development of the agricultural industry in this section. The Ehle family has long been established in the Mohawk valley, where it has contributed substantially to the vast development that has taken place in this fertile region in past generation. Harmanus Ehle, great-great-grandfather of Daniel Ehle came to this country from his native Germany some time prior to 1760, the exact date being unknown His son, Harmanus, the great grandfather of Daniel Ehle, was born in America in 1762, at Canajoharie, New York. He had a twin brother, Anthony, and five other brothers: Jacob, father of Abram Ehle; Michael, John, William and Peter; and three sisters. Harmanus, Jr, and his brother Anthony served in the Revolutionary war. They were musicians as well as soldiers and it is related of then that they took turns at fighting and playing as the engagements went on.
When he was about twenty eight years of age Harmanus, Jr , married Betsy Cornue, of Canajoharie, daughter of Daniel and Sally (Wessels) Cornue, and became the father of three sons and three daughters: Herman, Daniel, John, Sally, Eliza and Maria. Daniel, the second son and grandfather of Daniel of this review, was born March 8, 1795. He served a short time in the War of 1812 and about the year 1817 was married to Magdalen Cornue, daughter of Peter and Jane (Greenaw) Cornue, by whom be had the following children: Eliza, wife of Luke Walrath of Palatine; Elisha; Maria, who married John J. Walrath; Jane Ann; Marcus; Sarah; Abram B.; and Henry E., father of Daniel Ehle of this review. Henry E. Ehle was born on the Montgomery County homestead, on the 27th of September, 1822, and obtained his education in the common schools near his home. On July 21, 1851, he was united in marriage to Almira Failing, daughter of Henry and Margaret Sailor Failing, and to them were born five children: Daniel, subject of this review; Herman; Maggie, who is now Mrs. Aaron Keller; Eliza, the wife of Charles Empie of Sharon Centre; and Ardella, who became Mrs. John C. Grove of Rural Grove.
Daniel Ehle was born on the first day of December, 1852, in the house that been his father's birthplace and boyhood home. He grew to young manhood on the paternal farm and was educated in the schools at Port Lighton and in select schools. For fourteen years he taught school during the winter months, devoting the remainder of the year to agricultural pursuits. Eventually he gave up teaching to spend all of his time on his farm, which he operated successfully the rest of his life. Mr. Ehle‘s life work was one that calls for the best that our American manhood can produce, both in brain and muscle. Only by unremitting industry can the agriculturist hope bring his land to the high state of cultivation necessary for satisfactory results, while in the last generation or so science has demonstrated that to be a successful farmer a man must be a student as well. In 1894 and 1895 Mr. Ehle was elected supervisor of the town of Canajoharie. To his work Daniel Ehle took a keen mind as well as a practical knowledge of rural life gained from a boyhood spent on the farm an his well-directed efforts were productive of gratifying results. Yet he never allowed his work to monopolize his time as to exclude opportunity for acquaintance with those interests which are of intellectual worth, and maintained his interest in educational work especially, to the end of his life. He was an accomplished musician and played the violin at many local church and social gatherings. He died in 1907.
On October 29, 1879, Mr. Ehle was married to Miss Gertrude Rice of Palatine, daughter of John and Nancy (Green) Rice. The three children of Mr. And Mrs. Ehle were: Mertie, born February 20, 1882, who is now Mrs. Charles Van Buskirk of Indianapolis, Indiana, and they have two sons; Virgil, born February 2, 1884, who is a civil engineer of Gloversville, and he is married and has one son. Mrs. Ehle now makes her home in Nelliston with Mrs. Vedder.
Daniel Ehle was a second cousin, once removed, to Harrison Ehle.
