LEXINGTON — Ed Harpster has seen and lived through days that most will only know through history books.
Lexington’s oldest resident was born on June 4, 1914 in Republic, Ohio. On Thursday, his family celebrated his 106th birthday by inviting the community to drive by, honk their horns and wave.
Harpster spent the day in his daughter’s garage, greeting family and friends who popped by to say hello. With each honk of the horn, he raised his arm and gave a quick wave. Whenever someone new walked up, a youthful grin spread over his face.
It’s easy to see that he’s well loved.
“He’s a genuine person. He won’t ever turn anyone down. He believes in everyone,” said Erin Underwood, Harpster’s granddaughter.
Harpster’s early years were spent on his family’s farm in Seneca County, fifteen miles away from Tiffin. The family only ventured into town once a year — when Harpster and his sister got a new pair of shoes for school.
Harpster was four at the onset of the Spanish flu epidemic. Both his mother and sister took ill, but survived. He and his father cared for them, but never contracted the virus.
Things took a turn for the worst ten years later, when Harpster’s father died of pneumonia in April 1929. Just shy of 15, Harpster dropped out of school and began working on neighbor’s farms to help support his mother and sister.
“You start out in the morning, taking care of the livestock and then hitch up the horses and go to the field,” he said. “Then at 12 o’clock you come back for lunch, one o’clock you’re back in the fields again til six o’clock.”
Harpster earned $10 a month for his farm work. In the early 1930s, he joined the Civilian Conservation Corps. In order to report to Fort Knox, he had to catch a train from Findlay — so he hitchhiked from Tiffin in an ice cream truck.
When he arrived in Findlay that evening, he couldn’t afford a hotel room, so a fellow recruit suggested they ask to sleep in vacant jail cell.
“That was terrible,” he recalled.
After reporting to Fort Knox, Harpster was assigned to a barracks in Portsmouth, Ohio.
“The barracks was built, but there was no sidewalk, no road to it or anything. It was just mud up to your knees,” he said.
He worked as a surveyor and laborer, drawing property lines and clearing land for new roadways. The work was hard — and sometimes dangerous.
“You had to be careful, so you didn’t step on a rattlesnake. Lots of rattlesnakes,” he said. “There was hardly a day passed that we didn’t see a rattlesnake.”
While in the CCC, Harpster continued to support his family by sending $25 of his $30 monthly pay home to his sister. After ten months, he went back to farming. Later he spent three months as a railway worker, straightening the track and replacing ties on the B&O Railroad, before being laid off.
After that, Harpster made his way to Richland County to stay with his cousins in Mansfield. He settled in the area and worked various jobs over the years for Ohio Brass, Raemelton Farm and Richland Lumber Company.
He tried to enlist in the Army in World War II, but was denied entry due to health issues, so he worked at Westinghouse making ailerons and tail cones for war planes.
He also co-founded Hartwood Services, a carpentry business. A skilled carpenter, he designed and built everything from magazine racks and cabinets to tables and chairs.
“He never copied anything. He always came up with his own ideas,” Underwood said.
Family friends Dale and Belva Kissling introduced him to Lillian Reel, whom he married August 12, 1949. They had two daughters, Debb and Dolores.
Harpster and his family have lived in three different houses in Lexington — all of which he had a hand in building. Underwood described her grandfather as a meticulous man who takes pride in his work and keeping it in good condition.
“When he was growing up he didn’t have the luxury of having this stuff that he has now,” she said. “He used to have a motor home and he repaired everything himself. He took every screw out by hand, painted the screws by hand and put them back in. Every single screw.”
Harpster retired at 72, but he didn’t slow down. Instead, he traveled, taking his family across the country on camping trips.
“He’s a family man. That’s all he ever wanted to do is be with his family,” Underwood said.
Harpster also remained involved in the village of Lexington, helping build the ball parks in town and practice football field at the high school. He spent nearly thirty years on the village charter committee, resigning his seat at the age of 102. For his hundredth birthday, the village planted a tree in his honor.
“He made friends with everybody,” Underwood said. “Some of his closest friends are in their 70s.”
Harpster’s tips for living a long, healthy life are simple. Be honest, be true to yourself and make lots of friends.
A sense of humor helps too.
“I have lots of friends,” Harpster said. “I don’t have any enemies either — not that I know of.”
