Our 2nd-great-grandfather Abraham Hoch Landis was born 14 February 1821 at Hickory Flats, Busenbark Station, Butler County, Ohio to parents Philip Landis and Catherine Beary, according to Mennonite vital records. He grew up in a blended family as his parents had previously been married and brought half-siblings into the family. His father was about 57 years old when he had Abraham. His parents were early pioneers in Butler County, moving from Pennsylvania between 1812 and 1816 for unclear reasons, but probably to procure cheap land.
According to Judge and Jury: The Life and Times of Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis, by David Pietrusza, Abraham was educated in a log cabin school house and later studied medicine under a Dr. Rigdon of Hamilton, Ohio. He eventually graduated from Medical College of Ohio in 1840 or 1849. The University of Cincinnati College of Medicine was established in 1819 as the Medical College of Ohio and became a part of the University of Cincinnati in 1896. It is the second-oldest public college of medicine in the United States. Upon graduation, our Abraham immediately commenced the practice of medicine in Butler County, according to his obituary.
Mary Kumler
A quote from Mary’s obituary captured her life and dedication to family:
“Mrs. Landis was universally known and respected in Logansport and Cass County. She was one of the pioneers of this city. She was of unusual resourcefulness and strength of character, was the companion and counselor of her sons throughout all the years of their active careers. They have always credited to their mother’s influence whatever success has been theirs.”
Our 2nd-great-grandmother Mary Kumler was born 27 August 1832 in Millville, Butler County, Ohio to parents Daniel and Catherine Kumler, according to Mennonite records and census data. Mary’s father Daniel was a physician in Butler County, according to census records. Perhaps her father somehow introduced her to Abraham through physician social and work circles. Mary was one of at least nine siblings.
Background on our Kumler lineage
Mary‘s grandfather was Henry Kumler (1775-1854), a bishop of the United Brethren Church. He was born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania and died in Hanover Township in Butler County. He was a man of great religious gifts, and for more than half a century labored as a servant of the Lord. He was married in 1797 to Susanna Wingart in Lancaster County. They had 11 children.
Henry came to Ohio as a wealthy man for the times, and he purchased land in Wayne Township, increasing the quantity gradually until he owned about 1100 acres. He was a very prominent man during his lifetime. He frequently crossed the Alleghenies on church business. He was noted for hospitality, keeping an open house for the ministry.
Of his sons, Mary’s father and our 3rd-great-grandfather, Daniel was born 30 September 1807 in Lancaster County. He was married in 1827 to Catherine Walter, also born in Lancaster County. They had ten children, of whom nine are living.
Daniel was for some years minister of the United Brethren Church, and went to Africa as a missionary in 1854, but had to return after a few months on account of illness. He studied medicine at Millville, and practiced for about 40 years, beginning about 1829, and at one time had a very large business. He also owned a great deal of land. Four of his sons were in the Civil War, serving in the 167th Regiment of the Ohio National Guard.
Excerpt from A history and biographical cyclopaedia of Butler County, Ohio
Marriage and children
Abraham married Mary A. Kumler on 19 September 1850, according to Ohio county marriage records. After the marriage, they moved to Millville and lived in a humble three-room brick cottage constructed on top of a hillside overlooking Indian Creek, according to Pietrusza’s book Judge and Jury. Local press articles noted Abraham at that time as one of the most promising physicians in the county. Abraham and Mary had the following seven children, according to Mennonite records:
- Katherine Jeanette (1851- )
- Sarah Frances (Frances Q.) (1853- )
- Walter Kumler ( 1856- )
- Charles Beary (1858- )
- John Howard (1860- 1949)
- Kenesaw Mountain (1866-1944)
- Frederick Daniel, our great-grandfather (1872- 1934)
Abraham’s Civil War service
On 9 November 1862, at the age of 41, Abraham enlisted in the 35th Ohio Infantry as an assistant surgeon, according to Civil War soldier records. Abraham witnessed so much death and human suffering during his years in the Civil War.
The Butler County Civil War website had the following write-up of Abraham’s experiences in the war:
Abraham Landis 
Libby prison
“Abraham Landis, a 41-year old doctor from Millville, Ohio, joined the 35th Ohio Volunteer Infantry as an assistant surgeon in November 1862. A man of strong beliefs, Landis enlisted out of patriotism and ardent abolitionist sentiments. At the Battle of Chickamauga in September 1863, Landis and fellow 35th Ohio surgeon Charles Wright were at the division field hospital set up over two miles behind the lines at Cloud’s Farm. On the morning of September 20, rebel cavalry stormed the hospital. While some doctors abandoned their patients to the enemy, Landis and Wright continued to treat the wounded in their charge and were captured. The Confederates promised the Union doctors that they would be allowed to continue their work unmolested but no help was provided. Landis was deeply frustrated by his inability to do anything for the wounded men around him. The rebels did provide small amounts of food, but not until an exchange of the wounded was arranged a week after the battle did conditions begin to approve. After the exchange of wounded, Landis and the other surgeons were taken to Libby Prison where they were confined until being exchanged toward the end of November.
He rejoined the 35th Ohio in time to treat wounded from the battle of Missionary Ridge. At Kennesaw Mountain, Georgia, in June 1864, a ricocheting cannonball broke Landis’ leg and put him out of the war for good. Landis returned to Millville to raise his five sons.”
According to Abraham’s son Kennesaw (named after Abraham’s final battle in the Civil War), “a 12-pound cannonball, apparently spent, was coming toward the group. Nobody paid any attention to it. But it struck my father’s left leg, just below the knee, and shattered it horribly… He had to keep his fellow surgeons off with a gun, in order to keep them from amputating it.”
A war correspondent
Not only did Abraham actively serve as a soldier surgeon in his regiment, but he also documented key details of battles and conditions through letters to his children and to local newspapers, some of which are preserved to this day and can be seen here and are apparently being auctioned here. Abraham’s early letters detail about his medical work in Tennessee, near Nashville. There are letters from his time in Libby Prison and one immediately after his release. About half of the letters then cover his service in the Atlanta Campaign, the Battle of Resaca, movements on and around Dallas, Georgia, and on Kennesaw Mountain. A partial transcription from one of his letters on 15 December 1862 can be found below:
“All the churches in town and many other buildings are used for hospital purposes. The sick soldiers that I am attending are in three large rooms. Every morning when I get up and get my breakfast I go into a room and find from 10 to 15 sick men. I go from one to another and write on a piece of paper what kind of medicine each one needs, and the paper is taken to the hospital steward and he doses out the medicine. When I get through one room I go to another room until I get done. One house in town is used to keep rebels in. I went to see them one day. They were hard looking cases. It would scare you to see them, there was so much dirt on the floor that I could hardly see it and their shirts looked as if they had not been washed in a month.”
The below captures part of another letter from Abraham about imprisonment conditions in November 1863, according to the Butler County Civil War website (click on the link to read the entire letter):
“On Saturday, September 19th, soon after the commencement of the battle of Chickamauga, I was ordered by the medical director of my division to the division hospital. It was on CLOUD’s farm, and at that time nearly two miles north of the left wind of our army. Early on Sabbath morning, in consequence of repeated flank movements on our left by the rebels, our hospital became exposed to a fire of shell and solid shot. The most of these deadly missiles passed over us, but some fell in our midst.
“About eleven o’clock a line of rebel skirmishers were seen to emerge from a wood about four hundred yards distant, followed by a large force of FORREST’s cavalry. All the ambulances we had were loaded with wounded and sent to Chattanooga, and many of the slightly wounded were sent on foot. The enemy continued to advance until they ascertained it was a hospital, when a squad of them rode up, and for the first time we were in the hands of the rebels.
“Soon afterward GRANGER’s forces approaching from toward Chattanooga, the rebels fell back, and we saw no more of them until the following morning, when they took us into custody, and from that time on we were prisoners. Generals FORREST, CHEATHAM, and ARMSTRONG honored us with their presence. General FORREST told us to go ahead and attend to our wounded, and we should not be molested. He also told us that our wounded yet on the field should be removed to the hospitals and receive precisely the same treatment that their wounded received; also that parties had been detailed to bury the dead on both sides. In a conversation I had with Dr. FLUELLAN, medical director of BRAGG’s army, the following day at CHATHAMS’s division hospital, he made the same promises. These promises may have been in good faith, but from observation I know-and every other medical officer who fell into their hands knows-they were not realized...” Read the rest of the letter here.
After the war
After his injury at the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain, Abraham mustered out on 27 September 1864 and returned to Millville. He was badly mangled and unable to immediately resume the practice of medicine.
He and Mary had two more children over the next several years: Kenesaw Mountain (named after his Civil War experiences) and our great-grandfather Frederick Daniel. All five sons and two daughters grew up to be incredibly successful in their own distinctive ways. The eldest, Walter Kumler Landis, worked as a journalist and became the first United States Postmaster for Puerto Rico. Charles Beary Landis served as editor of newspapers in northern Indiana and was elected to the United States House of Representatives six times. Dr. John Howard Landis taught medicine at the University of Cincinnati and served as a public health inspector. He also wrote many medical articles. Kenesaw Mountain Landis became the first commissioner of major league baseball. And finally, our Frederick Landis became an author, newspaper publisher, and served two terms in Congress. Daughters Katherine and Sarah Francis were active in civic work in Logansport.
In addition to raising a large family in Millville, Mary appeared to possess great culinary talents, winning the following prizes in 1874 in a local fair, according to press: best pickled peaches, best canned quince, best blackberry jelly, best assorted pickles, best bread hop yeast, best bread milk raising, best sponge cake, best crackers, and best brown bread.
The move to Indiana
In 1875, Abraham moved his family to Indiana, according to his obituary, ending up in Logansport, which was 150 miles northwest of Butler County. Abraham considered additional areas to relocate, according to the book Judge and Jury, to include Omaha and Chicago. He had even picked out a particular block-sized parcel in the Windy City, but finally decided that Logansport had a greater future as a railroad hub and opted to become a Hoosier.
Once settled, Abraham served on the board of the Logansport state hospital for the insane, according to his obituary. He also augmented his medical income with a $17 per month Civil War pension and did some farming. However, Abraham eventually gave up country life and in 1893 moved into Logansport, constructing a two-story frame house at 1706 E. Market St. for his large family.
According to his obituary, Abraham was a devoted member of the Broadway Presbyterian church. He also was a member of the Loyal Legion and of the John A. Logan post of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR).
Interestingly, in 1896, a local politician running against Abraham’s son claimed that Abraham never served in the Civil War. Numerous witnesses came forward to testify to his service and bravery (see adjacent article).
Abraham died 09 November 1896 at the age of 76 in Logansport, Indiana. He was buried in Mount Hope Cemetery. Mary died at her home at the age of 80 on 26 October 1912 from heart trouble. She was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery in Logansport.
Our Landis Ancestry 