James Smith Fry, a representative farmer of Suffield Township, Portage County, Ohio, was born on the old Fry homestead February 14, 1854, a son of Wyerman and Martha (Brown) Fry, both natives of the Buckeye state. His paternal grandparents were natives of Pennsylvania. The grandfather served in the war of 1812, in the army of the Center, afterward became an early settler of Stark County, Ohio, where he was a shoemaker; from there he moved to Suffield Township, Portage County, located on a farm of 100 acres, on which he spent about a year and a half, and died of a fever in 1828. Then his wife and part of his family moved to Knox, Ind., where she died in the year 1874. They were both members of the Presbyterian church.

Wyerman, the father of James S., remained on the old homestead, where he passed nearly all his life, and which is now occupied by his son, James S. He had born to him six children, of whom but two survive--Margaret Jane and James S. He was a republican in politics, and honored by his fellow citizens by election to various offices of trust in his township; he died at the early age of forty-five years, a member of the Reformed church, in which he had filled all the offices. His widow, now about seventy-five years of age, is still in good health, and resides with her, son, James S., who is affectionately caring for her in her declining days. The paternal great-grandparents of James S. Fry were natives of Germany.

James S. has passed all his life on the on which he was born, with the exception of four months spent at school in Deerfield, for which he had been prepared by an attendance at the district school in his native township. February 20, 1879, he was married to Miss Ellen Myers, daughter of Simon and Catherine (Crist) Myers.