Oberlin was educated at common schools and Avery Academy in Canton.

They had five children, John Frederick, Gertrude, Harold Vincent, Benjamin Gans and Edith.

While in the House, Oberlin introduced a bill to establish a home for disabled children in Ohio.

[2] He was elected to the Ohio Senate, representing the 21st district (Stark and Carroll counties), in 1916.

While in the Senate, Oberlin served as chairman of the soldiers' and sailors' home committee.

[6] In August 1917, Oberlin defeated incumbent Charles A. Stolberg in the Republican nomination for mayor of Canton.

In mid-September, a man was found dead by suicide in nearby Lima, but the body was determined to be a different person.

[12][13] After he was found in Norfolk, it was reported that Oberlin shaved his mustache to disguise his identity.

[12] In an interview in May of that year, Oberlin revealed he ran away to avoid being elected mayor of Canton and no longer sought political office, but wanted to do physical work.