PERRY C. CHILCOTE, proprietor of the "Chilcote House" at WestMillgrove , is one of the best known landlords in Wood county, and hishotel stan ds in the front rank of the hostelries in' the county. "Perry," as he i s familiarly called, is one of the most accommodatinghosts to be found a nywhere, and seems to consider it a pleasure to doa service for a gues t. His establishment is complete in everyrespect, and his good wife, i n her turn, leaves nothing undone tomake it a pleasant, comfortable ho me for the weary traveler.
Mr. Chilcote was born February 18, 1841, in Perry township, Woodcounty , son of Joseph and Elizabeth (Jones) Chilcote. When he wasfive years o ld his father was permanently injured. A horse ran awaywith him, dragg ing him around a twenty-acre field largely coveredwith logs and, stump s, and fracturing his skull in such a manner thatthe bone rested upon t he brain. He never recovered from the effect ofthe accident, and his r estoration to life was due to the promptaction of his son, James, who, a s soon as the horse was caught,removed the dirt quickly from his fathe r's mouth and nostrils, andbreathed into his lungs the breath of life' ! The accident socompletely exhausted Mr. Chilcote that he was unconsc ious for severaldays. He was ever afterward tenderly cared for by his w ife, to whomthis was no small burden, as she had at that time six chil drenneeding her constant attention. Soon after this event the family moved to Seneca county, Ohio, where Perry, when eight years old, wentto w ork for his uncle, Gideon Jones, for one shilling per day. Wheneleven y ears old he began work on a farm belonging to IsraelNestlerode, here r eceiving four dollars per month, and he lived withvarious other farmer s, being at home only a small portion of histime, but giving most of h is earnings to his parents. He was astrong, robust boy, and physically m uch superior to the average man.When the Civil war broke; out he was w orking for R. W. Kelly, whomade him a most liberal offer : he would gi ve him the use of his bestteam and all the land that he could farm, be ar all the expenses, andallow Mr. Chilcote one-third of all the crops h e could raise, tellinghim he would I see him through." But this was no i nducement to Perry.He dropped the plow and seized his gun, and on Augu st 15, 1861, wasenrolled in Company H, 49th Regiment, O. V. I., and ma rched away todefend the stars and stripes. He took part in some of the m ost famousbattles of the war, among them those of Stone River, Corinth , Shilohand Chickamauga. At the latter place he was taken prisoner, an d washeld as such just fourteen months, during that time seeing terrib lehardships in the Rebel prisons of Belle Isle, Richmond, Danville and Andersonville. On November 20, 1864, he was exchanged, and was taken bya v essel from Savannah, Ga., to the parole camp at Annapolis, wherehe was p aroled, after which he returned to Ohio, here receiving hisfinal disch arge at Columbus, on January 21, 1865.
The marriage of Mr. Chilcote and Miss Martha J. Harts took place inMon tgomery township, January 5, 1867. Mrs. Chilcote was born inCumberland c ounty, Penn., April 17, 1851, and is the daughter ofConrad and Eliza ( McMillen) Harts, who came to Wood county when theirdaughter was two ye ars old. No children have ever been born to thisunion. For a short tim e after his marriage Mr. Chilcote rented asmall farm in Montgomery tow nship, and later removed to WestMillgrove, where he acted as fireman a nd engineer in the gristmill ofCol. Miles, having learned this busines s with his brother James. FromWest Miligrove he went
634 - WOOD COUNTY, OHIO.
onto the home farm in Section 26, Perry township, remaining there ayea r, when he returned to his former home and worked at teaming andfarmin g. He also for several years carried on a shingle factory incompany wi th his brother' Marcus D.
On April 21, 1877, Mr. Chilcote assumed the management of the hotelkno wn as the " Millgrove House," which had been conducted by WilliamMcCor mick. For this property he traded his house and lot inMillgrove, and a b alance, which left him over a thousand dollars indebt. The name of the h otel was afterward changed to that of the"Chilcote House," which is no w one of the most widely known andpopular public houses in northern Oh io. Besides this property Mr.Chilcote owns a house and lot in West Mil lgrove, and is comfortablyfixed financially. He is one of the stanches t Republicans in thecounty, and an active worker in the interests of h is party. He hasserved as constable of the township. For over twenty-f ive years hehas been a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and h as been aclass-leader and superintendent of the Sunday-school. At pres ent heis acting as steward. His wife, who is a most kind-hearted and excellent woman, is also a consistent Methodist. Mr. Chilcote is amembe r of Conley Post, G. A. R., at West Millgrove.
Military records say:
Perry C. Chilcote, H, 49, en. Aug.,'61, cap. Sept. 20,'63, at battleof C hickamauga, Ga., and confined in Rebel prisons at Richmond,Danville an d Andersonville, ex. Nov. 20, '64, m. o. Jan., '65.
