USA > Indiana > Clay County > A History of Clay County Indiana (Volume 2) > Part 72
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at Terre Haute. After leaving college he was engaged for two or three years in drilling for coal and also in drilling wells. It was about this time that the father had been called to the office of county treasurer and the son then served as his deputy, discharging his duties in prompt and able manner. After retiring from that public office he once more resumed his business interests in drilling for coal and drilling wells, a business which he has continued to the present time. He is meeting with grati- fying success in his undertakings-a success which is well merited, for it has come as a result of his honorable, straightforward methods and excel- lent business ability.
Mr. Brown was married December 14, 1898, the lady of his choice being Miss Sophia Melbille, who, like her husband, is a native of Clay county, her birth having occurred in Knightsville, August 9, 1875. Her parents, James and Euphemia (Lawson) Melbille, were both natives of Scotland, where they were reared and married, subsequent to which time they crossed the Atlantic and took up their abode near Knightsville, Clay county, where the father engaged in mining operations, acting as super- intendent of a mine there. In his native country, however, he followed the sea, and after his arrival in this country was engaged for a number of years as a hoisting engineer. His political allegiance was given to the Republican party, while fraternally he was identified with the Masons. having become a member of that body in Scotland. His family numbered three children, of whom Sophia is the second in order of birth, the others being David and Agnes Melbille.
The home of Mr. and Mrs. Brown has been blessed with three inter- esting little daughters, Euphemia, Thelma and Agnes Ellen. Following in the political footsteps of his father, Mr. Brown gives his support to the men and measures of Democracy, while fraternally he is connected with Brazil Lodge, No. 30, K. P., and Brazil Lodge, No. 215, I. O. O. F. Having spent their entire lives in Clay county, both Mr. and Mrs. Brown have a wide and favorable acquaintance and the hospitality of their pleasant home is enjoyed by their many friends.
JAMES M. RINGO, who is a life-long farmer of Posey township, Clay county, was born in that township, near the village of Turner, February II, 1860. William H. Ringo, the father, was a native of Henry county, Kentucky, born February 22, 1830, son of Major and Elizabeth (Bryan) Ringo. The grandparents came to Clay county in 1833 and settled in Posey township near the town of Staunton, and in that locality reared their family of ten children, namely: Morgan H .; George; Margaret. who married William M. Congleton : Allen ; Martha, who married Farmer Doyle ; Albina, who married Frank Congleton ; William H .; John W .; Lu- cinda ; and Cornelius. The father was three years of age when the family located in Clay county and he was reared in Posey township and educated in the public schools of the township. He married Miss Elizabeth Gainer. daughter of James and Elizabeth (Coffman) Gainer, both natives of Putnam county, Indiana, his wife being raised and educated near Green- castle. Their five children were: Jennie, who married William McCol- ough and still lives in Posey township; James M., of this sketch; Sarah, now Mrs. Philander Mace, who resides at Terre Haute, Indiana ; Mary, who died at the age of nineteen years; and Charles, who died when four years of age. The father was a Democrat and both he and his wife were
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leading and active members of the Methodist church. He himself was a farmer throughout life and died November 1, 1896, upon his homestead of one hundred and twenty acres. His wife followed him August 15, 1903.
James M. Ringo was reared to manhood in Posey township and creditably completed the common school course. He has engaged in farming all his mature life with the exception of three years when he was engaged in the mill and feed business at Brazil, being during that period associated with W. W. Lathrop. At the present time he is engaged in his life avocation on a farm of forty acres. He is a Demo- crat but has never sought public office or advancement. He is also a Mason in good standing, belonging to Brazil Lodge, No. 264, A. F. & A. M. On October 13, 1886, Mr. Ringo married Miss Myra Wilkerson, daughter of Urias and Penelope Wilkerson, of Cass township, this county. Their two children are Clifford W. and Cora E. Mrs. Myra Ringo died May 1, 1891, and January 12, 1893, Mr. Ringo married Miss Elnora Elliott, daughter of William and Chariot ( Winters) Elliott. The parents of his present wife were natives of Ohio, and came at an early day to Clay county, where Mrs. Ringo was born, reared and educated. The children born to this second union were: Hallie, Effie, Maude, Harvey, Raymond, and Stanley and Wesley, twins.
JOSEPH A. HERRON, a prominent and well known oil merchant in Brazil, has been identified with the business interests of this city for a number of years, first owning and residing on property in the northern part of the city. After five years there he sold and bought a house and lot at 24 West Logan street and began dealing in fire insurance, in which line he continued for a year and a half. On the Ist of January, 1884, he embarked in business as a retail oil merchant, delivering to customers in Brazil and vicinity, and he is now at the head of a large and remunerative business.
Mr. Herron was born in Perry township, Clay county, April 16, 1861. His father, James Herron, was born in Lancaster county, Penn- sylvania, March 8, 1798, a son of John and Rebecca (Clark) Herron, both of whom were born in Ireland. In Ohio, in 1833, James Herron was united in marriage to Margaret L. Archerd, who was born in Clearmont county, that state, in June, 1814, a daughter of John and Mary ( McMichael) Archerd, natives respectively of England and of Scotland. In 1838 Mr. Herron came with his young wife via the Ohio and Wabash rivers to Terre Haute, Indiana, entering two hundred acres of timber land from the government in Perry township, which he par- tially cleared and improved. In 1851 he sold his farm there and bought one hundred and fifty acres in Posey township, four miles west of Brazil, where he spent the remainder of his life and died on the 10th of Sep- tember, 1869. In 1901 Mrs. Herron sold the farm and moved to Brazil, where she died February 8, 1908. Of their family of eleven children eight are now living, three sons and five daughters, seven of whom are living in this vicinity, and the eldest son is in Scranton, Pennsylvania.
Joseph A. Herron spent his boyhood days on the homestead, assist- ing his mother with the work of the farm until his marriage. which occurred on the 10th of July, 1881, Carrie Cook becoming his wife. She was born in Clearmont county, Ohio, a daughter of William and Sophia (Enlows) Cook, natives of Baltimore, Maryland, and a grand-
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daughter of Absalom Cook, also of that state, and of -, and Elizabeth ( Petticourt ) Enlows, of Irish parentage. Mr. Herron votes with the Republican party and is a member of the Presbyterian church.
OSCAR O. VAN CLEVE .- Conspicuous among the more progressive and intelligent agriculturists of Perry township, Clay county, is Oscar (). Van Cleve, the owner of a fine farming estate in section 11, where in the pursuit of his chosen calling he is meeting with noteworthy success. He is a native of this county, his birth having occurred on the home- stead where he now resides, August 11, 1858. His father, Benjamin B. Van Cleve, was a pioneer settler of Clay county, and did his full share in leveling its forests and transforming its timbered lands into rich farms.
A native of Preble county, Ohio, Benjamin B. Van Cleve was bred and educated in his native state. He there married Jane Hays, who was born in Darke county, Ohio, a daughter of James Hays. Coming with his young wife to Clay county in 1846, he purchased eighty acres of land in section 1, and eighty acres in section II, and immediately began the improvement of a farm. In 1860 he erected a one-story house, finishing it in black walnut. It was a very pretentious structure. the finest in the county at that time, and it is still in good repair, and is now occupied by Mr. Van Cleve. He was an excellent farmer. was prosperously engaged in tilling the soil until his death, in 1868. His wife survived him, passing away on the homestead in 1894.
The youngest of a family of five children, Oscar O. Van Cleve was about ten years old when his father died. He received his early educa- tion in the district schools, after which he attended the Northern Indiana Normal School at Valparaiso, fitting himself for a professional career. He subsequently taught school for twenty-four years, commencing in 1877 in Brazil, where he was for many years principal of the Lambert Street school. For fifteen years previous to his mother's death Mr. Van Cleve rented the old home farm, and in addition to teaching had the management of the home estate. Subsequently buying out the remaining heirs, he has since devoted his whole time and attention to its care, and as a general agriculturist is meeting with uniform success, his farm, in its improvements and appointments, being one of the best in Perry township.
On January 15, 1882. Mr. Van Cleve married Belle Harris, who was born in Perry township, a daughter of Dr. William M. and Maria ( Barber) Harris, who came to this locality from Darke county, Ohio, in 1855. Dr. Harris was here engaged in the practice of his profession for upwards of forty years, dying here in 1898. His wife, mother of Mrs. Van Cleve, died in early womanhood, passing away in 1866. Into the pleasant home of Mr. and Mrs. Van Cleve, four children have been born, namely: Guy F., of Custer. Montana; Ray M., attending the Indiana Medical College at Indianapolis; Clara : and Gretchen O. Po- litically Mr. Van Cleve is a steadfast Republican, sustaining the prin- ciples of that party by voice and vote. Fraternally he is a member of Center Point Lodge, No. 597, A. F. & A. M .: and of Center Point Lodge, No. 449. I. O. (). F. Religiously he is an esteemed member of the Methodist Episcopal church.
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HARVEY D. SCOTT BENNETT, the popular and well known liveryman of Cory, was born in Perry township, Clay county, Indiana, March 29, 1855, a son of Robert and Telitha (Laycox) Bennett, who were born in Dearborn county, Indiana. They were also married there, and soon afterward purchased and moved to a farm half a mile south of Cory. Shortly after purchasing this land he sold it and bought a farm two and a half miles south of Cory, where they spent the remainder of their lives. During two years of this time they resided in Terre Haute to afford their children good educational advantages.
Harvey D. S. Bennett, the seventh born of their eight children. spent his boyhood days on the home farm, and after his parents' death he bought a portion of the homestead, but later sold that land. He also owned forty acres adjoining the home place, where he resided and farmed until the 15th of April, 1907, moving then to Cory and embark- ing in the livery business. He has met with success in this venture, and his barn is now equipped with seven excellent driving horses and a number of carriages and vehicles of all kinds, and he enjoys an excellent patronage.
Mr. Bennett was married on the 6th of August, 1876, Mattie B. Crable becoming his wife. She was born in Virginia, and is a daughter of William D. and Charlotta ( Myers) Crable, both of whom were. also born in the Old Dominion state. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Bennett are: Orvil, at home with his parents; Virgil and Vincel, who are in Terre Haute: and Essie, Zelta and Truel. Mr. Bennett is a Republican in his political affiliations, and is a member of the Independent Order of Red Men at Cory and of the Masonic order at Riley.
JOHN B. LONGSHORE, prominently identified with the farming and stock raising interests of Jackson township, was born in Muskingum county, Ohio, September 5. 1838. His father, Thomas Longshore, and his mother, Effie Boyd, were both born in that state, and they became the parents of eight children, four sons and four daughters, all of whom were born in Ohio.
John B. Longshore, the fourth child and second son, left home at the age of twenty-one years and came to Indiana, purchasing eighty acres in the woods of Jackson township, on which he erected his house and began at once to clear his land. In time he added forty acres more to the place, a part of which he also cleared, but in the fall of 1861 he left the farm and moved to Peoria county, Illinois, where he worked as a farm hand until his enlistment for the Civil war on the 16th of August, 1862. He entered the Forty-seventh Illinois Volunteer Infantry. Com- pany A. in which he served for three years, and was in the battle of Jackson, the charge on Vicksburg, the battles of Pleasant Hill, Spanish Fort, Abbeyville, Hurricane Creek, Lake Chicot, in the march to Oxford with General Grant and in many other engagements. He was mustered out at Springfield, Illinois, on the 16th of August, 1864.
After returning from the army Mr. Longshore went to his old home in Muskingum county, Ohio, where he remained for one year, and in 1866 returned to Clay county, Indiana, and farmed here until his removal to Allen county, Kansas, in 1882. In 1884 he came again to Clay county and purchased the farm which he now owns, consisting of three hundred and ten acres of rich and fertile land in section 4, Jackson township.
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On the 5th of March, 1868, Mr. Longshore was married to Martha Hamaker, who was born in Richland, Ohio, and was but nine months old when brought by her parents to Clay county, Indiana. Her father, David Hamaker, was one of the pioneer farmers of Van Buren township, where he entered eighty acres of land and worked on the first railroad ever built through Clay county. He was of German descent, and was married to Mary Fisher, also born in Ohio, and they had nine children, of whom Mrs. Longshore was the third born, and all attended the district schools of Van Buren and Jackson townships. Mr. Hamaker was a Republican and a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. One of his sons, William Hamaker, was killed in the sinking of a shaft in Jackson township November 10, 1871. Mr. and Mrs. Longshore have had eight children, namely: Thomas and Mary E., both of whom are deceased; David W .; Joseph B .; Effie, wife of Benjamin Dougal, whose home is in the state of Washington; Anna Louetta and Mattie, both of whom are teaching in the schools of Jackson township; and Roy, a bookkeeper in Brazil. All were born in Clay county with the exception of one, whose birth occurrred in Kansas, and all were reared and educated here. Mr. Longshore has supported and upheld the principles of the Republican party throughout the years of his maturity, and he is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic and the F. M. B. A. He belongs to the Methodist Episcopal church, in which he has served as a trustee for many years.
PRESTON COLTHARP .- One of the best known and most honored of the pioneers of Clay county was Joseph Coltharp, the father of Preston, and for many years a faithful and earnest laborer in the cause of Christianity and a minister of the Baptist church. He was born in Tennessee, September 15, 1808, and was there married to Nancy Coff- man, who was also born in the commonwealth, in 1810, and about 1828 they came to Indiana and located in Jackson township, Owen county, where he bought one hundred and twenty-three acres of land. They also lived a short time in Putnam county and in 1870 came to Clay county and bought, cleared and improved sixty acres of land on the Eel river, remaining there for three years. During the two following years Rev. Coltharp was a resident of Knightsville, and then bought the farm in Jackson township on which he spent the remainder of his life, dying at the age of seventy-four years. For a period of forty-four years he preached the gospel throughout Clay and the surrounding counties, labor- ing faithfully and earnestly as a minister of the Baptist church, and his efforts were abundantly blessed. Rev. Coltharp and his wife had nine children, five sons and four daughters, namely: James, John, Mary, Pres- ton, Samuel, Nancy Jane and Joseph. Two, the fourth and fifth born, died in infancy, and Samuel and Nancy Jane are also deceased. Rev. Coltharp supported the principles of the Democratic party, and his father was a soldier in the Revolutionary war.
Preston Coltharp, a son of this revered pioneer minister of Clay county, was born in Putnam county, Indiana, September 29, 1841, and when twenty-eight years of age he went west and located in Dent county, Missouri, where he bought and improved a farm of one hundred and twenty acres, and remained there for three years, returning thence to Putnam county. From there he came to Clay county in 1869 and located on his present farm in section 3, Jackson township.
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On the. 2d of July, 1863, he was married to Amanda Christenberg, who was born in Owen county, Indiana, February 28, 1844, a daughter of Green Christenberg, one of the pioneers of that county. Their twelve children are: Missouri, Mary Alice, Mary Jane and Anna, all of whom are deceased ; the next in order of birth died in infancy ; Joseph William, James Albert, Jesse Asbury, Robert Lee, Frances Lorina, Elda May and . Flora. Mr. Coltharp votes with the Democratic party, and is a member of the Grange and the F. M. B. A. Mrs. Coltharp is a member of the Predestinarian Baptist church.
LEWIS BAUM, a farmer and stock raiser of Posey township in section 30, was born in this township on the Ist of January, 1860. His father, Arthur Baum, was for many years a farmer in Posey township, and was born, reared and educated in Germany, coming to America when a young man and locating in Ohio, where he was married to a native daughter of his own land, Margaret Tiefel, a sister of Henry Tiefel, whose history is given on other pages of this work. They became the parents of nine children, six sons and three daughters, of whom Lewis was the first born, and five are now deceased. From Ohio the parents came to Clay county, Indiana, during an early period in its history, purchasing eighty acres of land from John Miller in Posey township, a part of which Mr. Baum cleared, and he in time placed his land under an excellent state of cul- tivation. He also owned other farming property in Clay county, but his home was in Posey township throughout the remainder of his life, dying at the age of eighty-four years. He was a member of the Lutheran church, and throughout his residence in this country gave his political support to the Democracy.
Lewis Baum spent the early years of his life on the homestead farm here, attending the district schools of the township, and after his mar- riage he moved to his present home farm, starting with forty acres, and he now owns a splendid farm of one hundred and thirty-eight acres, on which he has made many valuable improvements.
He was married on the 17th of April, 1883, to Mary Bilger, who was born in Clark county, Illinois, near Marshall, and when she was nine years of age she came to Clay county, Indiana, and was reared in the home of Thomas Keller, her mother having previously died in Clark county. Mr. and Mrs. Baum have had seven children, four sons and three daughters, namely: Amelia Rosetta, John C., William Jacob, Edward Andrew, Edith Maria, Grace Louise and Theodore, all of whom are liv- ing with the exception of Theodore, and all were born on the homestead farm. Mr. Baum votes with the Prohibition party, and is a member of the United Brethren church.
ALBERT MILLER, whose name is familiarly associated with the farm- ing and stock raising interests of Posey township, is one of the township's native sons. born within its borders on the Ist of June, 1864, a son of John Nicholas Miller, whose history is incorporated in the sketch of Emanuel Miller on other pages of this history.
The district schools of Posey township afforded Albert Miller his educational training, and after his father's death he came into possession of eighty acres of the old homestead farm, but in 1896 he moved from that place to Parke county, Indiana, and bought a farm. In 1903, how- ever, he returned to his home township of Posey and bought his present
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homestead of one hundred and sixty acres, on which he has made all of the improvements and has placed his land under an excellent state of cul- tivation. He has been a life-long supporter of Democratic principles, an active and efficient local worker for the party cause, and at one time made the race for the office of treasurer of Parke county, having been defeated at the polls by three hundred votes. He is a Mason in his fraternal rela- tions, a member of Center Point Lodge No. 597.
The marriage of Mr. Miller was celebrated on the 20th of September, 1883. when he was married to Ann Chaney, born in Parke county, Indiana. in 1854. Her father, William Chaney, is a Parke county farmer and an honored early pioneer of that county. Her people are of English and Welsh descent, and her mother, Tamer Burson Miller, is a member of another of the honored early families of Parke county. Mrs. Miller is the youngest of their family of seven children, three sons and four daughters, all of whom were born in Parke county and all grew to years of maturity with the exception of one, who died at the age of seven years. The union of Mr. and Mrs. Miller has been blessed by the birth of one son, Oscar Wiles, born in Posey township, Clay county, November 27, 1887. The family are members of the Predestinarian Baptist church.
MITCHELL GUM .- Patriotic, energetic and progressive, Mitchell Gum bravely served his country during her time of need, taking an active part in the Civil war. and now as an active and true citizen of Van Buren township is equally as faithful in the performance of the duties devolving upon him in this capacity. He owns and occupies a farm near Carbon, and is also interested in mining. A son of William B. Gum, he was born, October 28, 1840, on the banks of the Kentucky river, in Estill county, Kentucky. His grandfather, William B. Gum, was born in Owsley county, Kentucky, a son of Elias Gum, whose birthplace was on the Duck Fork of Sturgeon creek.
Choosing farming as his life occupation, Elias Gum bought a tract of heavy timber in Owsley county, and having cleared a part of it sold it at an advanced price. Then buying another tract, he had equally as good success in disposing of it, and in the buying and selling of land was largely employed during his years of activity. He removed from Owsley county to Lee county, and there spent his declining years, passing away at the venerable age of eighty-five. His wife, whose name before marriage was Edie Phillips, was born, of Scotch ancestry, and died in that county.
Familiar with the river and its pursuits from early life, William B. Gum spent more than half a century as a pilot on the Kentucky, whose waters he loved, and was a life-long resident of his native state, dying there at the age of seventy-six years. He married Lucinda Benton, who was born in Estill county. Her father, Jesse Benton, a native of Ken- tucky, started in life even with the world. Energetic and enterprising, he dealt for a number of years in hogs, driving them to Richmond, Virginia. where he would buy slaves to take back to his neighbors, in this manner amassing a fortune. While yet in the prime of life, he suffered a stroke of paralysis, and for twenty years was a helpless invalid. Before his illness he was quite prominent in public affairs, and in 1840 and 1842 was elected to the state legislature. He married Phebe Quick, who spent her entire life in Kentucky, at her death being buried beside him in the Mount Taber churchyard. in Estill county. She was the mother of fifteen children, eleven of whom grew to years of maturity.
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Beginning life for himself on the Kentucky river, Mitchell Gum became an expert pilot, an occupation that he followed until after the breaking out of the Civil war. On August 17, 1861, he enlisted in Com- pany A, Seventh Kentucky Volunteer Infantry, and was mustered into service at Camp Dick Robinson, in Garrard county. Going with his regiment from there to Cumberland Ford, he crossed the river in time to take part in the battle there fought, then proceeded to Camp Cotterell, going from there to Tazewell, Tennessee, thence back to Big Tree Gap, Kentucky, where after a sharp skirmish they captured the Gap. With his comrades. he remained there several months, in the meantime being sur- rounded by Confederate soldiers. The battalion to which his regiment was attached managed to slip through the lines, and arrived in Richmond, Kentucky, in season to participate in the battle fought there on August 30, 1862. The battalion was that day captured, and on the second day of September was paroled, the parole reading as follows :
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