A Twentieth Century History and Biographical Record of Laporte County Indiana, Part 103

Author: Rev. E. D. Daniels
Publication date: 1904
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 1273

USA > Indiana > LaPorte County > A Twentieth Century History and Biographical Record of Laporte County Indiana > Part 103

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His son, Abial Rogers, the father of Dr. Rogers, was likewise born in the old Bay state, and was reared to the occupation of farming, which he followed for a number of years in Massachusetts. Later he engaged in shoemaking in a factory in Byfield, and in that town both he and his wife are still living. At the time of the Civil war he offered his services to the govern-

ment as a defender of the Union cause and was mustered in, but the regiment was never called forth to active service. He wedded Miss Susan A. Rogers, who like her husband, was a native of Massachusetts. Mrs. Rogers is a daughter of James Rogers, who was a native of New Hamp- shire and was a miller and millwright by trade, and whose death occurred when he had attained the very advanced age of eighty-seven years. To Abial and Susan Rogers were born five children, three sons and two daughters, but only the oldest and the youngest are now living, the former being Forester, a resident of Byfield, Massachusetts.

Dr. Rogers, who is the youngest of the fam- ily, was reared in his native town, and at the usual age entered the public schools, there con- tinuing his studies until he had completed the high school course in Newburyport. He was then graduated with the class of 1883, after which he entered Dartmouth College and was graduated from that institution with the class of 1887. He had pursued a scientific course, and after leaving college engaged in civil engineering, but did not find this profession entirely congenial and in 1891 he took up the study of medicine under the di- rection of Dr. C. G. Higbee, of St. Paul, Minne- sota. In 1892 he entered the Hahnemann Medi- 'cal College of Chicago, Illinois, from which in- stitution he was graduated with the class of 1895. He then began practice in Lincoln, Illi- nois, and thence removed to Michigan City, here becoming the successor of Dr. E. Z. Cole. He has practiced here continually since, and the lib- eral patronage accorded him is evidence of his ability and of the confidence reposed in him by the public. He has strong regard for the ethics of the profession, is careful in the diagnosis of a case, and his judgment is seldom at fault in pre- dicting the outcome of a disease. The Doctor also has business relations of another character, being connected with the Michigan City Ice and Cold Storage Company.

On the 14th of November, 1893, Dr. Rogers was married to Miss Marian S. Woods, a daugh- ter of Oliver S. and Laveine (McIntyre) Woods. Her father was a prominent lumberman of the state of Wisconsin and was also a leading mem- ber of the Masonic fraternity. By his marriage he has two sons and two daughters : Walter, who is now city civil engineer in LaCrosse, Wiscon- sin ; Marian, the esteemed wife of Dr. Rogers; Helen, a school teacher in LaCrosse ; and Ralph, who is superintendent of a ranch in Mexico, which is largely owned by capitalists of La- Crosse. The home of Dr. and Mrs. Rogers has

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been blessed with two children : Seabury Belmont and Helen Crofton, but the latter died when only nineteen months old. The parents are both con- sistent Christian people, the Doctor holding mem- bership in the Congregational church, while his wife is a member of the Baptist church. He be- longs to Acme Lodge No. 83, F. & A. M .; Mich- igan City Chapter No. 25, R. A. M .; and Mich- igan City Commandery No. 30, K. T. He is also identified with Michigan City Lodge No. 265, I. O. O. F .; and Washington Lodge of the Knights of Pythias. He exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the Republican party. In connection with his profession he belongs to the American Institute of Homeopathy, and is continually studying to broaden his knowledge and render his labors more effective in coping with disease and restor- ing to man his most priceless possession, health. He is widely known as a conscientious and cap- able member of the calling, and well deserves the success which is accorded him.

JOHN H. CANNON, a pioneer settler and progressive farmer of LaPorte county, has been prominently identified with the growth and settle- ment of this locality. He was born in Porter county, Indiana, southwest of the city of Val- paraiso, on the 16th of March, 1838, and is the fourth son of James and Mary (Jackson) Can- non, who were numbered among the early pioneers of LaPorte county, having come to this locality from Ohio. The father was born near Dayton, Ohio, while the mother, nee Mary Jack- son, was a native of Kentucky, born near Boons- boro, where she spent a part of her girlhood days, but her death occurred in LaPorte county, Indi- ana. James Cannon, who was born in 1808, passed away in death on the 19th of October, 1889. To this worthy pioneer couple were born ten children, seven sons and three daughters.

John H. Cannon accompanied his parents on their removal to Cass township, La- Porte county, when ten years of age, and from that time on received his education in its district schools, which he attended two or three months during the year, the house wherein he received his early training hav- ing been of the primitive log structures. Remain- ing with his parents until after reaching mature years and assisting his father with the work of the farm, he was then married and located on the farm on which he yet resides, this having been his home for the long period of forty-two years. His homestead consists of one hundred

and ninety-three acres, all of which is well im- proved, and there he is devoting his energies to . general farming and stock-raising. When a young man Mr. Cannon made a trip through the west, leaving home in the spring of 1860, and in his journeyings visited Kansas City, Omaha, Nebraska City and many other places, after which he returned home, and with this exception he has been in LaPorte county since his tenth year, thus being connected with much of its upbuilding and progress.

The marriage of Mr. Cannon was celebrated in 1865, when Maria B. Redinbaugh became his wife. She, too, is a native of the Buckeye state. The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Cannon has been blessed with six children, namely: Emma, the wife of Aaron Snyder, of Nebraska; Alonzo, also a resident of Nebraska and a farmer by oc- cupation; Elizabeth, at home; Carra, also at home; William, who is married and engaged in agricultural pursuits in Cass township, LaPorte county ; and Edith, who is unmarried and resides in Herscher, Illinois. The family attend worship at the Christian church, of which Mr. Can- non is a valued member. His political support is given to the Democracy, and at all time he is loyal and true to his duties of citizenship. During the Civil war he was obliged to hire a substitute as he was not in a condition to undergo the hard- ships of army life. He was formerly a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at Westville.

REV. HENRY V. HITCHCOCK. Many years ago the Hitchcock family was founded in the United States by three brothers who came from England and settled in Connecticut and Massachusetts. In the former state Peter Hitch- cock, the grandfather of Rev. Hitchcock, was born. He became a prominent member of the legal profession and while residing in Ohio served as a chief justice for many years, while during the war of 1812 he was a brave and loyal soldier. His wife bore the maiden name of Nabby Cook, and they reared a number of chil- dren. On the maternal side Henry V. Hitch- cock is a grandson of Stephen Ford, who also claimed Connecticut as the state of his nativity, and who was a farmer by occupation. For his wife he chose Eunice Brooks, and he lived to the good old age of eighty years.

The parents of Rev. Hitchcock were Henry L. and Clarissa M. (Ford) Hitchcock, natives of the Buckeye state. Eleven children were born to them, six sons and five daughters, and three

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of the sons are now living: Henry V .; Charles Edward, a resident of Claridon, Ohio; and Herbert A., of Michigan City. The father was a minister in the Presbyterian church, having preached for fifteen years in Columbus, Ohio, and was afterward president of the Western Reserve College at Hudson. He was thoroughly earnest and sincere in all his thoughts, words and deeds, and his noble, manly life proved an inspiration to many of his old friends and associates. He passed away in death in 1873, when he had reached the sixtieth milestone on the journey of life, and his wife survived him until 1878, pass- ing away in Michigan City, Indiana, when also in her sixtieth year.

Henry V. Hitchcock was born in Ashtabula county, Ohio, on the 29th of September, 1838, but his boyhood days were spent at Columbus, that state, where he attended the common schools and later the college at Hudson, graduating in that institution in 1859. For a short time there- after he followed the teacher's profession, while later he was employed at farm labor, and then en- tered the Lane Theological Seminary, where he completed the course in 1864. This was at the time when the great conflict between the north and south was at its heighth, and the young student immediately entered the service of his country, as chaplain of the One Hundred and Seventy-seventh Ohio Volunteers, his military services covering a period of twelve months. After the close of the conflict he took up his min- isterial duties at Streetsboro, Ohio, and later be- came principal of the preparatory department of the Western Reserve College, being thus engaged for three years, while for a similar period follow- ing he turned his attention to the tilling of the soil. The year 1872 witnessed the arrival of Mr. Hitchcock in Michigan City, Indiana, where he secured the position of shipping clerk in the fac- tory of Ford, Johnson & Company, which he held for several years, and was then made treasurer of both the Ford-Johnson Company and the Hitchcock Chair Company, which were consoli- dated in 1901. He is now a director and the assistant treasurer of this well known chair man- ufacturing company.

The marriage of Mr. Hitchcock was cele- brated on the IIth of April, 1867, when Miss Susan E. Delano became his wife. Three chil- dren have been born of this union, the eldest of whom, Henry L., is serving as assistant manager of the Ford-Johnson Company. He married Grace M. Hutchinson, and their three children are William H., John H., and Eunice. The eldest

daughter Clara D., is employed as a kindergarten teacher, and the third child died in infancy. Mrs. Hitchcock is also deceased, having passed away in 1875, when but thirty-two years of age. Rev. Hitchcock gives his political allegiance to the Republican party, and as would be expected of such a man, true in all his relations to his fellows, he is loyal to his duties as a citizen of this com- monwealth and uses his franchise in favor of all noble principles and upright candidates for public office.

LEONIDAS AMES. After a useful and well spent life, in which he has prospered, Leon- idas Ames is now living in retirement from active labor on his fine farm on section 30, Center town- ship. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on the 9th of November, 1831, and is a son of Charles and Matilda (Wicks) Ames, whose his- tory will be found in the sketch of their son, Augustus Ames, in this volume, the latter being the only brother of Mr. Ames.

When five years of age the son Leonidas was brought by his parents to LaPorte county, Indi- ana, receiving his education in the public schools of Center township. At the age of nineteen years, however, he returned to his native county in Massachusetts, there remaining for seven years, during which time he was employed in the Ames Shovel Works at West Bridgewater. On the ex- piration of that period, in 1856, Mr. Ames again came to LaPorte county, taking up his abode in Center township, where he turned his attention to agricultural pursuits. He is numbered among the honored pioneer settlers of the county, having located here during the era of its early develop- ment, and has watched with interest the wonder- ful advancement which has since taken place, having at the same time borne his part in the work of development and progress. He has met with success in his work of tilling the soil, hav- ing placed his land under a valuable state of cul- tivation, and his work in former years now en- ables him to live in honored retirement.

Mr. Ames was first married in 1854, when Miss Susan Caldwell became his wife. She was born in West Bridgewater, Plymouth county, Massachusetts, and is a daughter of William Caldwell, also of that state. On the 2d of Feb- ruary, 1893, Mrs. Ames passed into eternal rest, at her death leaving one son, Andrew Ames, who is engaged in agricultural pursuits in Center township, LaPorte county. The latter married Sarah Welker, and they have become the parents of four children, two sons and two daughters,

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namely : Alice W., Addie E., Charles and Nelson. For his second wife Mr. Ames chose Mrs. Martha J. Jones, a native daughter of the Key- stone state, her birth occurring in Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, but at eighteen years of age she removed with her parents' family to Pulaski county, Indiana. The father of Mrs. Ames is Leslie Hazlett, born in Pennsylvania in 1821, and he now resides with his youngest daughter in North Chicago, Illinois. The mother of Mrs. Ames was Martha (Weasner) Hazlett, born in Pennsylvania in 1821 and died in Pulaski county, Indiana, about 1886. Mrs. Ames by a former marriage has a daughter, Bessie Ann Jones. In his political affiliations Mr. Ames is a life-long Republican. He holds membership relations with the Methodist Episcopal church, being an active worker in religious circles, and is a valued citi- zen of LaPorte county.

REV. JOHN BLECKMANN, pastor of St. Mary's Roman Catholic church at Michigan City, and dean of South Bend district of the diocese of Fort Wayne, has been one of the spiritual forces of this community for nearly nineteen years. He is the familiar and beneficent figure in many homes, the healer of broken hearts and wounded spirits, and in addition to his powers of comforting the soul he has been one of the most energetic workers for the improvement of the material and intellectual conditions of his parishioners. His church has more than doubled in numbers, educational facilities have been im- proved and increased, harmony and the working spirit have been preserved, and all departments of church work and the extension of its influence have progressed toward the high ideal which is always in Father Bleckmann's mind. He has been in the active work of the church for over thirty years, and each year increases his ability to do good and gives him the broader spiritual insight and sympathy through which the greatest works of God are accomplished.

Father Bleckmann comes of a good Han- overian German family, and his paternal grand- parents were residents of Osnabruck, where Charles Bleckmann was also born and reared, learning the trade of blacksmith. He came to America in 1832, and after spending a short time in Pennsylvania came down the Ohio river in a flatboat as far as Cincinnati, where he settled and followed his trade for the rest of his life. His death occurred at the age of sixty-six years, in 1877, at Delphi, Indiana, in the home of his son, Father Bleckmann, who was pastor there at

the time. His wife was Elizabeth Nienaber, also a native of Hanover, Germany, and a daughter of John Henry Nienaber, a native of the same province and who married a Miss Rechtin, who died in Germany. After her death he came to America and located at Cincinnati, where he died in 1867. Father Bleckmann knows of only two of his sons. Elizabeth (Nienaber) Bleckmann died in Attica, Indiana, in 1874, aged fifty-six years, at the home of Father Bleckmann, who was pastor there. Both these parents were buried in the family lot in Cincinnati in St. Joseph's ceme- tery. The father was a soldier in the regular German army. They had nine children, five sons and four daughters: Philomina, widow of Fred Heulsmann, died November 4, 1903; and the three now living are: Rev. John Bleckmann; Joseph Bleckmann, of Cincinnati; and Miss Catharine Bleckmann, who is keeping house for Father Bleckmann.

Father Bleckmann was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, April 5, 1846, and was reared there. He took the classical course in St. Xavier's College, of that city, and then graduated in philosophy from Notre Dame University at South Bend, Indiana. He took his theological course at Mount St. Mary's Seminary from 1867 to 1870, and was ordained to the priesthood, April 27, 1870, by the first bishop of the diocese of Fort Wayne, the Rt. Rev. John Henry Luers, in his own parish church of St. Joseph's, in Cincinnati. He was im- mediately appointed assistant pastor of St. Mary's church and missions at Union City, Indi- ana, being assistant to Rev. Lawrence Lamour. Eight months later he was transferred and made pastor of St. Francis Xavier's church and missions at Attica, Indiana, where he remained until May I, 1875, at which time he was made pastor of St. Joseph's church at Delphi, Indiana, and remained there ten years. Father Bleckmann came to Michigan City and took the pastorate of St. Mary's church on February 15, 1885, and has continued his work here till the present time.

There are between four and five hundred families in the parish and when he came there were about two hundred. At that time the school known as St. Ambrose Academy was lo- cated at the corner of Washington and Fourth streets, and the parochial school was conducted in the old church building at the same location by the Sisters of the Holy Cross. The Irish and German Catholics had separate churches in the early history of Michigan City, but during the ministry of the Rev. Father Becks they had united and built the present church edifice. In

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1886, the year after his arrival, Father Bleckmann built the new school building and the Sisters' Convent in the rear, at a cost of twenty-three thousand dollars. One hundred and forty chil- dren were in attendance then, and there are now three hundred and seventy-six, including those in the high school, which is now attached. The church has been thoroughly renovated, frescoed and furnished with electric lights, and in 1902 three thousand dollars were expended for im- provements of this nature, and for a new pulpit. In 1903 new pews were put in at a cost of about fifteen hundred dollars, also new vestment cases in the vestry, and in the near future other im- provements are contemplated, such as a new tower, extension of the church building, etc. The Sisters of the Holy Cross had charge of the schools until 1895, and since that time the Sisters of Notre Dame, at Milwaukee, have been the teachers.

AUGUSTUS AMES, an old settler and re- tired farmer of section 30, Center township, where he has lived on the pretty "Woodside" farm nearly all his life, is the son of one of the oldest pioneers of LaPorte county, and belongs to one of the oldest families in America. The Ames ancestry goes back to John and William Ames, who were born in Somersetshire, Eng- land, December 10, 1610, and October 6, 1605, respectively. They came to America as early as 1640, and settled in Plymouth county, Massa- chusetts, whence their numerous descendants have disseminated themselves in many states of the Union.

Abiel Ames, the grandfather of Augustus Ames, was born in West Bridgewater, Massa- chusetts, in the house which stood for one hun- dred and thirty years and was the home of sev- eral generations. There, also, was born his son, Captain Charles Ames, who remained in the town of his birth for thirty years, and then moved to Boston, where he lived for a few years. In 1836 he brought his family to LaPorte county. He made the trip entirely by water, consuming fifty- two days. He went from Boston to Albany, thence by canal boat to Buffalo, and by schooner from that point to Michigan City. He located on the farm where his son Augustus now lives, and remained there the rest of his life, dying in his eighty-sixth year. His name is listed among the pioneers of LaPorte county, and he was one of. its honored and respected citizens. He was a blacksmith by trade, and followed that pursuit in Boston, but after coming to LaPorte county car-

ried it on only as an adjunct to his farming. He was originally a Democrat, but in 1856 joined the ranks of the Republicans and remained one the rest of his life. His wife's name was Matilda Weeks, and she was born in the town of Green- land, New Hampshire, but there is little record of her family. She died in LaPorte county August 3, 1836, having been the mother of two sons, Augustus and Leonidas, the latter a farmer in section 30, Center township.

Augustus Ames was born in Boston, Massa- chusetts, May 11, 1829. Two important events of his life occurred in 1836, his removal to La- Porte county and his mother's death. He was reared on his present farm and attended school in one of the primitive log schoolhouses of early Indiana. He also helped much in clearing off the farm, and before he was of age had become a practical agriculturist. He has been on this farm for sixty-seven years, for a longer period on the same place than any other farmer in the town- ship. He has been a successful man, and his estate of one hundred and ninety acres is con- sidered one of the most valuable for its size of any in the neighborhood. He now rents his land, and has in a great measure retired from the ardu- ous duties of life.

October 21, 1856, Mr. Ames was married to Miss Amanda Mayhew, who was born in Shelby county, Indiana, but was reared in LaPorte county. Her parents were Elisha and Hannah (Huntington) Mayhew, the former being a pio- neer of LaPorte county, coming in 1835. The first wife died February 13, 1890. Mr. Ames' present wife was Lydia Ellen (Mayhew) Fuller, the widow of George Fuller. Mr. and Mrs. Ames have an adopted daughter, Charlotte Be- linda Ames, who was adopted in December, 1871. She was born December 17, 1871. Mr. Ames has been a Republican since the formation of that party, but cast his first presidential ballot for Franklin Pierce. He is a member and steward in the Methodist Episcopal church, and in all the relations of a long and busy life has performed well the duties that come to the public-spirited and good citizen.

HENRY D. CALLARD is a representative of the operative service of the Michigan Central Railroad, being now with that company as an engineer. He makes his home in Michigan City, residing at 222 East Sixth street. His birth oc- curred in Buffalo, New York, July 12, 1847, and he is of English descent. His paternal grand- father was born in England and became the

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founder of the family in the new world. He mar- ried a Miss Bailey, by whom he had seven chil- dren. His death occurred in Philadelphia.

George Callard, the father of Henry D. Cal- lard, was born on the Isle of Wight, England, and throughout the greater part of his life was a sailor. Coming to the new world he lived in Canada for some time and sailed on the lakes, owning a line of steamers. He followed the water up to the time of his death, and lost his life on one of his own boats on Lake Erie off Long Point in 1852. He had wedded Miss Mary Jane Vance, a native of Canada and a daughter of Alexander Vance, who was born in Nova Scotia, whence he removed to Canada, and for many years served as a justice of the peace in Port Burwell. There he died at an advanced age. He had two sons and four daughters, including Mrs. George Callard, who survived her husband for a number of years and died in 1861. She was a member of the Baptist church, while he was reared as an Episcopalian. In 1847 he served as a United States soldier in the Mexican war, and in 1849 he crossed the plains to California, but his chief interest lay in his vessels. To him and his wife were born two children, George and Henry D.

The latter spent his youth in Buffalo, New York, and attended the public schools there. He was but a lad of sixteen years when, in 1863, he jonied the American navy for service in the Civil war. He was thus engaged for a year, and when President Lincoln issued his last call for troops to serve for thirty days Mr. Callard en- listed in the Seventy-fourth New York State Militia, with which he was connected during the time designated. After the close of hostilities he returned to Buffalo, and in 1866 came to the west, being then a young man of about nineteen years of age. Making his way to Chicago, he secured a position as fireman on the Illinois Cen- tral Railroad, and later was-promoted to engineer. For the past thirty years, however, he has been an engineer on the Michigan Central Railroad, en- tering the services of that company in November, 1873. He continued to make his home in Chi- cago until 1897, when he was transferred to the Michigan City division of the road, and has since lived in this place. No higher testimonial of capability, of efficiency and of promptness could be given than the fact that he has been so long retained in one employ.

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A Twentieth Century History and Biographical Record of Laporte County Indiana, Part 103

Author: Rev. E. D. Daniels Publication date: 1904 Publisher: Number of Pages: 1273

Author: Rev. E. D. Daniels
Publication date: 1904
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 1273