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Introduction | Biographical Sketch | Scope and Content | Series Description | Inventory
Introduction
The Bentley Family Papers consists of over 10 linear feet of correspondence, genealogical research files, photographs, books,
and artifacts relating to the Bentley and allied families.
The donation and transfer of these records to the Center for Archival Collections was arranged through the cooperation of
Hilda Grosh Bentley from March through July, 1996. No part of the collection may be duplicated for publication purposes without
the written authorization of Mrs. A. Lewis Bentley, Senior, or the Bentley family heirs. Duplication is permitted for the
purposes of preservation and research. The register was completed by Marilyn Levinson, Curator of Manuscripts in July 1996.
Biographical Sketch
The two family groups represented in this collection cover branches of the allied Lewis, Perky, and Bentley families on the
paternal side, and the Chamberlain, Hascall, Grosh, and Ritchie families on the maternal. Two separate published family histories
for both groups were written by Hilda Grosh Bentley and are contained in this collection; The Bentley-Lewis Story: Finding
the American Dream in Ohio, and The Chamberlain-Hascall, Grosh-Ritchie Families in Direct Line, 1598-1991: A Journey of New
Beginnings. Although the families characterized in this collection came to the United States from different countries, over
a period ranging from the Colonial era to the late 19th century, all found the American Dream and were significant contributors
to their communities.
The Bentleys were originally from Bradford, in Yorkshire, England. Coming to the United States in 1871, Anderton Bentley settled
in Toledo, Ohio, where he found employment as a carpenter. He was joined shortly thereafter by his wife Elizabeth and daughter
Ethel. One of his first jobs was working on the Boody House in Toledo, and later the Lonz Winery on Middle Bass Island. The
Bentley name would be associated with construction in the city for the next century, connected with such landmark buildings
as the Gardner Building, the Secor Hotel, and the Odd Fellows Temple. Anderton was joined in the business just before the
turn of the century by his sons, James and Thomas, and the business was incorporated as a partnership in 1907. In 1898 Thomas
married Katherine Stewart Lewis, daughter of E.N. and Abigail Perky Lewis of Defiance, Ohio. A third generation became involved
in the business in 1924 when A. Lewis Bentley and James joined their father Thomas. Two years later in 1926, A.L. Bentley
was married to Hilda Grosh. The Company was liquidated in 1982, after more than a century of building Toledo.
The family of Brandon and Sarah Lewis emigrated to the United States in the early 19th century, settling in Chillicothe, Ohio.
The oldest son in their family, Edmund, served as a hospital steward during the Civil War in Company C of the 11th Ohio Volunteer
Cavalry, which was posted in the Wyoming Territory to guard the Oregon Trail. Upon his discharge, Edmund settled in Williams
County, Ohio, marrying Abigail Elizabeth Perky in 1868. Their family, consisting of five children, Harry, Martin, Katherine,
Emma, and Edmund Jr. relocated to Defiance, where Edmund operated a pharmacy. After Katherine married Thomas Bentley, she
moved with him to Toledo.
The Perky Family first appear in America in the late 18th century in the frontier area of Pennsylvania, with the family of
Christopher and Mary Perky. One of their nine children, Christopher Jr., served on the Ohio frontier during the War of 1812,
returning to Pennsylvania for a few years after the conflict before relocating to Seneca County, Ohio with his family in 1819.
During the Civil War, Martin Perky, one of Christopher's sons, served briefly as Chaplain in the 68th Ohio Volunteer Infantry,
and then returned to Pioneer, In Williams County, Ohio, where he later was elected Probate Judge. It was his daughter, Abigail,
who married E.N. Lewis.
As a contrast, on the maternal line, the Chamberlains came to America in 1647, settling in colonial Massachusetts. During
the Revolutionary War, Ebenezer Chamberlain, along with his sons Ephraim, Jonathan, and Daniel, served in the companies of
Bedel's Regiment. During the War of 1812, Joshua Chamberlain was involved in the shipbuilding industry and was followed in
that profession by his sons, Ebenezer Mattoon and Elbridge. Service to the country continued in the person of Joshua Lawrence
Chamberlain, nephew of Ebenezer and Elbridge (his father was their other brother Joshua), who gained fame during the Civil
War at Gettysburg in command of the 20th Maine for his daring maneuver on Little Round Top, for which he was awarded the Congressional
Medal of Honor. His accomplishments were held in such high esteem in the family that one of his cousins, Mary Chamberlain
Grosh, named her eldest son after him. The name was carried on in succeeding generations into the Bentley family as well.
Ebenezer Mattoon Chamberlain left Main in 1832, traveling West to Indiana, where he taught school for a short period and then
studied for the bar and became a lawyer, settling in Goshen in 1832. His brother, Elbridge, joined his older brother in Goshen
the following year. Ebenezer married Phoebe Ann Hascall in 1838; his brother Elbridge married her sister Avaline Hascall in
1841. The family of Ebenezer and Ann resulted in eight children, including Mary Henrietta, who was born in 1846. She taught
school at Redfield, Indiana, where she married Emil Grosh, a German immigrant, in 1868.
Emil Grosh (originally spelled Grosch) was born in Sonnenburg, Thuringia, Germany in 1841. After being orphaned at an early
age, Emil emigrated to the United States to join an uncle, Henry Schmidt, in Buffalo, N.Y. Well educated by his family, Emil
moved to Goshen, Indiana, where he worked for the hardware firm of Lawrence and Noble. In 1868 he married Mary H. Chamberlain,
eventually moving from Goshen to Toledo, Ohio. They had two sons, Lawrence Chamberlain Grosh and Jerome Emil Grosh (who drowned
in 1903). Lawrence, who studied medicine at the University of Michigan and became a doctor in 1898, married Caroline Eugenia
Ritchie in 1899. When Dr. Grosh began practicing medicine, as a pioneer in the specialty of diagnostician, he became associated
with Toledo Hospital, where he eventually became Chief of Staff. Their first child, Hilda, was born in 1902, followed two
years later by Lawrence Chamberlain Grosh Jr.
The Ritchie Family first arrived in America in 1832 when Thomas Ritchie, a mason from Parish Crieff, Scotland, emigrated to
St. Lawrence County, New York, with his wife Ann and four children, including two year old James Monroe Ritchie, named for
the American President. Eventually his family would grow to a total of ten. James taught school in Ogdensburg for a while,
before moving to Ohio, where he began legal training. He was admitted to the bar in Toledo in 1857. Married in 1852 to Tirzah
A. Foster, who died in 1854 leaving him with a 2 year old son, James married a second time in 1855 to Samantha S. Jones of
Grafton, Ohio. His son from his first marriage, Byron, followed his father in the practice of law, eventually distinguishing
himself by serving in Congress in 1892, and being elected Common Pleas Judge in 1914. His marriage to Samantha, who died in
1865, resulted in one daughter, Ada Malinda Ritchie. James married for a third time in 1869 to Eugenia Arabella Jones, the
younger sister of his second wife. Their two children included Caroline Eugenia Ritchie (who married Lawrence Chamberlain
Grosh in 1899), and Maurice A. Ritchie.
The rich heritage of each of these families was brought together by Hilda Grosh Bentley, who in her investigation of her family
compiled an extensive collection of material. As the firstborn child of Dr. Lawrence Chamberlain Grosh, Hilda benefited from
an upbringing which included a period of living in Europe while her father pursued advanced medical studies, education in
Toledo (at the insistence of her aunt Ada Ritchie) at the Janes-Franklin School and the Smead School for Girls, and a year
of college at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. Married in 1926 to Anderton Lewis Bentley, she had three children,
Anderton Lewis "Peter" Bentley, Jr., and twins Thomas Northrup and Lawrence Chamberlain Bentley. Through the years, in addition
to her attention to her family and the concerns of the Bentley construction business, Hilda was deeply involved in community
affairs in the areas of history, historic preservation health, mental health, art, conservation, and education. Her activities
with such organizations as the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Ohio Historical Society, Maumee Valley Historical
Society (as a founding member of its Landmarks Committee), Friends of the Library and Center for Archival Collections at Bowling
Green State University, Toledo Hospital, Mental Health Association of Toledo, and the Toledo Museum of Art, have demonstrated
her continuing commitment to her community.
Scope and Content
The Bentley Family Papers consist of separate groups of research material compiled by Hilda Grosh Bentley relating to her
family history. Families represented include the Chamberlain, Hascall, Grosh, Ritchie, Perky, Jones, Lewis, and Bentley families.
The collection has been maintained as two discrete groupings, based on the maternal and paternal lines, in the general arrangement
established by Mrs. Bentley. Each segment contains similar types of material, including correspondence, genealogical research
files, photographs, and books.
In addition to general documents and correspondence related to genealogical research on the Chamberlain-Hascall, Grosh-Ritchie
families, the collection includes a nice series of personal correspondence dating back to 1835. The early letters are mainly
between Ebenezer, Elbridge, and Joshua Chamberlain during the 1830's and 1840's, a few from Jerome Chamberlain while serving
during the Civil War, scattered correspondence between various members of the Grosh Family during the 1890's, and a group
of letters between Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain (the Civil War General, who played a pivotal role at Gettysburg), with his
cousin, Mary Chamberlain Grosh (primarily dealing with family matters.) There are typed abstracts to these letters in the
collection.
Included in the literary productions among the manuscripts is the original of a sketch book or journal of Ebenezer Mattoon
Chamberlain, which consists of an account of his trip to Indiana in 1832 and his early years there until 1835, as well as
an undated speech to the Fayette County Agricultural Society (written from the back of the volume, inverted); and a copy of
his 1846 diary describing a return visit to his home and family in Bangor, Maine after an absence of 14 years.
Miscellaneous items in the collection include a rare opalotype of Emil Grosh (a photographic process where the image is on
frosted glass), as well as a few striking artifacts representing the material culture of the time, which include two beaded
bags, on with colored glass and the other metal beads.
Some notable items included in the Bentley-Lewis portion of the collection are materials relating to Bentley Construction,
including Nicholas Building construction photos from 1905; a series of photographs and biographical sketches of prominent
Toledo businessmen, architects, and buildings, compiled by James Bentley; mementos of small prayer books and both Lewis and
Bentley Family Bibles; a ledger belonging to E.N. Lewis; photo albums; a collection of family historical sketches; and numerous
artifacts belonging to the Bentley and Lewis Families, including hair combs, shirt studs, an initial seal, and an autographed
scroll.
Series Description
CHAMBERLAIN-HASCALL, GROSH-RITCHIE PAPERS
CORRESPONDENCE - CHAMBERLAIN-GROSH FAMILIES
1835-1956
Arranged chronologically
Personal correspondence, with the early letters mainly between Ebenezer, Elbridge, and Joshua Chamberlain during the 1830's
and 1840's, a few from Jerome Chamberlain while serving during the Civil War, scattered correspondence between various members
of the Grosh Family during the 1890's, and a group of letters between Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain (the Civil War General,
who played a pivotal role at Gettysburg), with his cousin, Mary Chamberlain Grosh (primarily dealing with family matters.)
Includes typed abstracts
LITERARY PRODUCTIONS
DIARIES - EBENEZER CHAMBERLAIN
1832-1835, 1846
Arranged chronologically
Sketch book or journal of a journey west to Indiana, and diary of a return visit to his home and family in Bangor, Maine after
an absence of 14 years. Sketch book in original handwriting; diary copied from the original by his daughter Mary C. Grosh
RESEARCH NOTES - GENEALOGICAL
Circa 1850-1990
Arranged alphabetically, by family name
Material collected in the course of doing genealogical research; includes correspondence, clippings, photographs, maps, and
printed material relating to Chamberlain, Hascall, Grosh, Ritchie, Jones, and Perky families
RESEARCH NOTES - TOPICAL
1848-1991
Arranged by topic
Includes notebooks with family information, subject files on a variety of topics, Family Bibles which include record pages,
a Baby Record book of Hilda Grosh Bentley, and computer printouts of genealogical information using the Personal Ancestral
File (PAF) software. Folder on Burpee Prouty located in Oversize flat box 3
MANUSCRIPTS (LITERARY)
1991
Proof pages : The Chamberlain-Hascall, Grosh Ritchie Families in Direct Line, by Hilda G. Bentley. Located in Oversize flat
boxes 1-2
SCRAPBOOKS AND SCRAPBOOK MATERIALS
SCRAPBOOKS - RITCHIE-JONES FAMILY
1812-1880
Scrapbook of clippings of the Ritchie and Jones families, with births, marriages and deaths, including an envelope of loose
clippings and a copy of an 1812 almanac.
MAPS, CHARTS, DIAGRAMS, GRAPHIS, LISTS, ETC.
MAPS
n.d.
Framed map - The Continent of Scotland : in Which are Marked the Several Shires and Principal Places Mentioned in this Book
[from unidentified book]. Located in Oversize flat box 3
PRINTED MATERIAL
PERIODICALS
1923, 1948, 1964-1990
Arranged by title
Genealogical periodicals relating to Scottish family associations; includes Clan Chattan, Stewart Clan Magazine, and Clan
Mackintosh material.
BOOKS
1850-1987
Published works dealing with genealogy, family history, Scottish culture, and general history.
CERTIFICATES
1968-1992
Appointment, award, commendation, recognition, and resolution certificates for Hilda Bentley, representing activities with
Ohio Historical Society, Ohio Historic Site Preservation Advisory Board, American Association for State and Local History,
Garden Club of America, Maumee Valley Historical Society, and the Landmarks Preservation Council. Located in Oversize flat
box 4
PHOTOGRAPHIC MATERIAL
POSITIVE PRINT
Circa 1860
Thomas Menzie Ritchie, Mary Lois Ritchie, and Anne Robertson Ritchie, Heuvelton, NY, (11" x 17" print). Located in Oversize
flat box 3
ARTIFACTS
BEADED BAGS
n.d.
Two beaded bags, one with colored glass beads, the other with metal beads. Both belonged to the Grosh family. Located in Oversize
flat box 3
PLAQUES
1978, 1987
Award and recognition plaques for Hilda Bentley from Bowling Green State University, Friends Award; Center for Archival Collections
Local History Conference; and Toledo Metroparks for supporting preservation of Isaac Ludwig Mill. Located in oversize flat
box 4
LEWIS-BENTLEY PAPERS
LITERARY PRODUCTIONS
RESEARCH NOTES - GENEALOGICAL
Circa 1860-1990
Arranged by family
Material collected in the course of doing genealogical research; includes correspondence, clippings, photographs, maps, and
printed material relating to Lewis and Bentley Family members
RESEARCH NOTES - TOPICAL
1845-1989
Arranged by topic
Extensive biographical sketches, with photographs, of prominent Toledo businessmen, architects, and builders, compiled by
Thomas Bentley; subject notebooks; Family Bibles for the Lewis and Bentley Families with genealogical record pages; and the
Funeral Memorial Album of Anderton Lewis Bentley
MANUSCRIPTS (LITERARY)
1990
Proof pages : The Bentley-Lewis Story: Finding the American Dream in Ohio, worksheets, proofsheets, and negatives of photos
used
FINANCIAL DOCUMENTS
LEDGERS
1899-1902
E.N. Lewis ledger
SCRAPBOOKS AND SCRAPBOOK MATERIALS
ALBUMS
1933
Album of family historical sketches (with some inset photos), compiled from family stories by Thomas Bentley
PHOTOGRAPHIC MATERIAL
PHOTOGRAPH ALBUMS
1963
Wedding album of Lawrence Chamberlain Bentley and Mary Mercer Wright
PHOTOGRAPHIC PRINTS
Circa 1850-1900
Ambrotypes, ferrotypes, carte-de-visites, and cabinet cards of members of the Bentley family, many with identification
MAPS, CHARTS, DIAGRAMS, GRAPHIS, LISTS, ETC.
MAPS
Circa 1860
Framed map of the West Riding of Yorkshire, including Bradford and nearby parishes. Located in Oversize flat box 3 of the
Chamberlain Papers
PRINTED MATERIAL
BOOKS - FAMILY PERSONAL MEMENTOS
1832-1944
Various small pocket Bibles, prayer books, and hymnals belonging to members of the Bentley and Lewis families
BOOKS - GENERAL
1920-1980
Published works dealing with genealogy, family history, and Yale University
ARTIFACTS
MEMENTOS
1837-1953
Miscellaneous family items, including wax seals, hair combs, pins, shirt studs, autographed scrolls, and ivory artifacts
Inventory
- Chamberlain-Hascall, Grosh Ritchie Papers
- Lewis-Bentley Papers
Manuscripts by Subject | Business & Commerce | Family Collections | MS 720: Introduction | Chamberlain-Hascall, Grosh Ritchie Papers | Lewis-Bentley Papers
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