A biographical history of eminent and self-made men of the state of Indiana : with many portrait-illustrations on steel, engraved expressly for this work, Volume I, Part 12

Author:
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Cincinnati, Ohio : Western Biographical Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1038

USA > Indiana > A biographical history of eminent and self-made men of the state of Indiana : with many portrait-illustrations on steel, engraved expressly for this work, Volume I > Part 12

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF INDIANA.

List Dist.

a company for the South, and many isolated individuals actually entered in its service. Mr. Reavis then opened a correspondence with General Grant regarding the situ- ation, which resulted in the latter's sending a company of men to that place to quell disturbances. Under these circumstances Mr. Reavis went forth to make speeches and recruits for the 6th Cavalry and 40th Illi- nois Infantry. Those were the days that tried men's souls, but he had the love of his country in his heart, and forgot all else in the many dangers he passed through. Often was he assaulted, and attempts were even made to assassinate him. He claimed no credit for loving his country, he simply could not help it. He was taught it between his father's knees, and he drew it from his mother's breast, while the songs concerning the victory of Perry on the lakes, and of Jackson at New Orleans, sung by his mother as a lullaby, were recollections that buoyed him up in the face of all danger. At McLeans- boro, Illinois, some bold rebels threatened to kill any man who should attempt to make a recruiting speech at that place. Captain Scott, of the 40th Illinois, was there with a few soldiers. A few hundred men gathered about him, and so intimidated them that they feared to go into the court-house. Mr. Reavis came upon the ground, assumed command, at once ordered the doors unlocked, and marched the men in and mounted the platform. Taking Stephen A. Douglas's dying words for his text, he assumed the ground that there were but two parties, patriots and traitors, and boldly discussed the issues of the day. Thus, day after day, he spoke for his country; and it is safe to say he did more recruiting for the 40th Illinois Infantry and the 6th Cavalry Vol- unteers than any other one man, encountering more dangers in this work than he did while in actual service. He assisted in recruiting the 56th Illinois Infantry, being a captain in Company G of that regiment, and with it he participated in the siege of Corinth, Mississippi, when Beauregard evacuated the place, and was also at the bat- tle of Corinth, on October 3 and 4, 1862. When the battle began he was sick in camp quarters, with a sur- geon's certificate of disability, but longed to be on the field; and, when the news was received that the troops were surrounded by General Price, with a force of two to one, he sprang from his couch, aroused his sick com- rades, thirty-eight of whom followed him to the front. There he headed his own company, and by his words of cheer and encouragement gained for them a victory. In acknowledgment of his services, a portion of his regi- ment held a meeting, and passed and signed a preamble and resolutions, the concluding portion of which reads:

"Resolved, That for his courage on the battle-field of Corinth, Mississippi, on the 3d and 4th of October, 1862, in leaving his sick-quarters and rallying thirty- eight convalescents to the scene, heading his company, fighting all through that ever-memorable battle, and

cheering us on to victory both by words and actions, he deserves to be held in everlasting remembrance by a grateful people and country."

After his resignation he removed to Evansville and engaged in the government claim business. He was ap- pointed by Chief Justice Chase register in bankruptcy, and held that office for four years. Mr. Reavis is above the medium height, has a strong and well propor- tioned physique, and has an unusual amount of vitality and energy. He is characteristically positive, reads men readily, and, with his impulsive nature, always acts promptly. He has an excellent command of language, is a forcible partisan, and an eloquent statesman. In what- ever employment Mr. Reavis has been engaged or posi- tion he has occupied, either civil or military, he has acquitted himself honorably, creditably, and to the sat- isfaction of the people.

APP, GEORGE, the founder of New Harmony, Indiana, and of the Society of Harmonists, was born in October, 1757, at Iptingen, in Würtem- berg. He was the son of a small farmer and vine- dresser, received a moderate common school education, and upon leaving school assisted his father on the farm, working as a weaver during the winter months. Rapp from his early years was fond of reading, and, his sup- ply of books not being plentiful, he became a student of the Bible, and began to compare the condition of the people he lived among with the social order described in the New Testament. He became dissatisfied, especially with the lifeless condition of the Churches; and in the year 1787, when he was thirty years old, he began to preach in his own house on Sundays to a small congre- gation of people, whom he evidently found to hold the same opinions as himself. The clergy resented this in- terference with their office, and persecuted Rapp and his adherents, who were fined and imprisoned. This had a tendency to increase the number of his followers, and in the course of six years he had gathered about him not less than three hundred families. He had la- bored upon his farm so industriously that he had accu- mulated some property, and in 1803 his adherents de- termined upon emigrating in a body to America, where they were sure of freedom to worship God after their own desires. In 1783 Rapp had married a farmer's daughter, who bore him a son, John, and a daughter, Ro- sina. In 1803, accompanied by his son John and two other persons, he sailed for Baltimore, and, after look- ing about in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Ohio, they purchased five thousand acres of wild land about twenty-five miles north of Pittsburgh as a place of set- tlement. In the summer of 1804 six hundred of Rapp's people, under the supervision of Frederick (Reichart)

REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF INDIANA.

Ist Dist.]

Rapp, an adopted son of George Rapp, arrived in this country. There were among them a few of moderately good education, and some who had considerable prop- erty for emigrants in those days. All were thrifty and few were destitute. Rapp met them upon their ar- rival, and settled them in different parts of Maryland and Pennsylvania, while he took a number of the ablest mechanics and laborers to proceed to the destined place of settlement to prepare habitations for the remainder. In 1805 they removed to the settlement and organized themselves into the Harmony Society, agreeing to place all their possessions in a common fund, adopt a uniform style of dress, keep all things in common, and labor for the good of the whole body. By a further addition in the spring of that year, the community embraced one hundred and fifty families, or about seven hundred and fifty men, women, and children. The community pros- pered with great rapidity, and in 1807, amid a deep religious fervor which pervaded the society, they adopted as a new article of their creed a resolution to forever after refrain from marriage. A certain number of the young people, feeling no desire for a celibate life, with- drew from the society; but the great majority, how- ever, remained, and faithfully ceased from conjugal relations. At the same time they agreed to cease using tobacco in every form. The site in Pennsylvania not being a desirable one, the society in 1814 determined to remove to Posey County, Indiana, where they purchased a tract of thirty thousand acres of land. Thither one hundred persons proceeded, in June, 1814, to prepare a place for the rest, and by the summer of 1815 the whole colony was in its new home, now known by the name of New Harmony. Here they erected large factories, mills, and dwelling-houses, many of them very substan- tially built of brick, most of which are still standing. In 1817 one hundred and thirty persons came over at one time from Würtemberg and joined them, and they received at various times other accessions, so that while at New Harmony they numbered some seven or eight hundred. The Harmonists appear to have been under the complete control and direction of their leader, Rapp, whom they believed to be led by a sort of inspiration from God, and who appears to have guided his people wisely. He was a man of robust frame and sound health, with great perseverance, enter- prise, executive ability, and remarkable common sense, a man who was seldom if ever idle, an indomitable worker, and a hard student and reader. He remained with his followers at New Harmony but ten years, when, the Harmonists having suffered severely from the malarial fevers of that locality and from unpleasant neighbors, they sold out their thirty thousand acres of land, with all improvements, including about one hun- dred and twenty buildings, to Robert Owen, of Scot- land, for one hundred and fifty thousand dollars. They

then bought property at Economy, Pennsylvania, and removed to this their final home in the summer of 1825. With their habits of industry, they gradually acquired large wealth, which is still retained by the few adherents to the society. Rapp continued his control over the Harmonists, which in his old age became almost abso- lute, and died in 1847, at the age of ninety years.

EINHARD, GEO. L., attorney-at-law, Rockport, Spencer County, was born in Bavaria, Germany, July 5, 1843, where he attended the primary schools until the age of fourteen, thereby receiv- ing the groundwork of a very liberal education. He then at that early age emigrated to the United States, in the year 1857, and remained for a time in Cincinnati, Ohio. During 1858-59 he attended school at Cincinnati, and at the same time was employed in working at the spoke and wheel manufactory of his uncle, who was a large and wealthy manufacturer there. In 1860 he re- moved to Union County, Indiana, where he attended public school and labored hard for a livelihood. The war breaking out, he determined to defend the old flag, enlisting as a private in Company I, 16th Indiana Vol- unteers, under Captain (afterward general) T. W. Ben- nett. His company was subsequently transferred to the 15th Regiment, and he served until the expiration of his term, three years and four months, engaging in the battles of Greenbrier, Perryville, Pittsburgh Landing, Stone River, and many others. At the battle of Stone River he had his gun shot from his shoulder and shat- tered into fragments by a cannon ball. He was never either wounded or taken prisoner, but came home very much broken down in health. After his discharge he determined to pursue his studies still further, and to obtain as good an education as his circumstances would permit. From 1864 to 1868 he attended a high school at Cincinnati, and Miami University, at Oxford, Ohio. During part of this time he taught school, and also a German class among the students, and clerked in a dry-goods store, in order to acquire means to prosecute his studies. Later he gave instruc- tion at Owensboro, Kentucky. He had thoroughly studied Greek, Latin, mathematics, the sciences, and the German and English languages, making rapid pro- gress in his acquirements in all. Early in 1868 he commenced the study of law, and in September, 1869, was admitted to practice at Owensboro, Kentucky, after passing a successful examination before Judge G. W. Williams. In the winter of 1870 he removed to, and settled in, Rockport, Indiana. He succeeded at once in establishing a good practice, and has been most remarkably successful. He is now recognized, not only as one of the leading attorneys of the bar, but also

REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF INDIANA.

[Ist Dist.

as one of the ablest and most popular lawyers of South- 'ern Indiana. His success is due to his indomitable pluck, perseverance, and native talent. He had to un- dergo many privations and hardships in early life, but he started with a determination which was not easily discomfited by obstacles. He has fought his way to the front, and to-day as a reward he occupies a high posi- tion. He always endeavors to discharge his official and professional duties with honesty and fidelity. In. 1876 he was elected to the office of prosecuting attorney of the Second Judicial Circuit, by a majority of twelve hun- dred. In 1878 he was re-elected without opposition. He is the author of " Reinhard's Indiana Criminal Law," a work that reflects the greatest credit on its author. It was written during his first term of office, and is a work to which his brethren at the bar and the bench and critics have testified in the most flattering terms. Hon. W. E. Niblack, Judge of the Supreme Court, said: "I take great pleasure in saying that I am very much pleased with its general scope and arrangement, and have no doubt that it will prove to be not only a valua- ble contribution to the legal literature of the state, but of great assistance to those engaged in the administration of our criminal laws." Hon. R. S. Hicks, of Rockport, said : "It is one of the best digests of Indiana criminal law ever put before the public." John B. Elam, prose- cuting attorney of Marion Criminal Circuit Court, said : " To prosecuting attorneys it is invaluable." Hon. J. B. Handy said : "I keep it by me while on the bench. It is a good, convenient, and useful book. Every Justice of the Peace in the state ought to have a copy." Hon. Benjamin Harrison said : "I am satisfied that this book is one which will meet with general favor." The Evans- ville Journal remarked:

"Mr. Reinhard has done his work thoroughly and conscientiously, and he is to be congratulated upon hav- ing given the profession an accurate and useful book."

Many other favorable comments might be given. In politics he is a Democrat, though formerly a Republican. He is very conscientious in his convictions and acts by them. Ile speaks English and German with equal flu- ency, and frequently addresses audiences in both lan- guages. He married, in the fall of 1869, Mary E. Wilson, a most estimable young lady, daughter of a Kentucky farmer of good family. They have two children living, a boy of ten and a little girl of three. They have also lost two little girls. June 12, 1880, he was nominated as Circuit Judge, but, owing to a decision of the Supreme Court, the election is postponed two years. Mr. Rein- hard is about five feet ten inches in height, has dark hair and eyes, a full, smooth face, large head, broad, intel- lectual forehead, and weighs about two hundred pounds. His voice is full, clear, and round. As a speaker, he is strong, convincing, logical, and terse, rather than eloquent, though at times, when he warms up in debate,

he rises to the highest pitch. He possesses good social qualities, is highly successful in his business career, and stands in the front rank of his profession. He is hon- ored, admired, and respected, and enjoys the confidence of the community. He is a well read and courteous gentleman.

OBERTS, JUDGE GAINS, of Newburg, one of the original settlers of Warrick County, Indiana, was born May 13, 1793, in Asheville, Buncombe County, N. C. He was married to Catherine Upp, of Henderson County, Ky., January 2, 1817, who died June 23, 1854. Nine children were the result of this union, of whom only one is now living. In November, 1855, the Judge married Mrs. Susan Morris, of Lima, New York, who died in the fall of 1862. It was at an early date in the history of Warrick County that Judge Roberts and his wife removed from Kentucky to the vicinity of Newburg, and located on an uncultivated tract of land. So eager were the young couple to taste the adventures of pioneer life that they took up their abode in their new log-cabin before it was completed, and on the first night enjoyed the novelty of having a blanket of snow for a bed-covering. This cool recep- tion did not, however, dampen their enthusiasm. From that time to the day of his death the career of Judge Roberts was marked by complete success. He bought farms and cleared them, owning at one time fifteen dif- ferent tracts of land in Warrick County. He first lived on a farm a short distance west of the town, but afterwards moved to the east of the village and built the Rock House, which still stands, a monument of his early enterprises. In 1864 he removed to Vanderburg County, about three miles west of Newburg, where he lived until the time of his death. Judge Roberts served for a number of years as Probate Judge, and then was elected state Senator from his district. He also filled other offices of less importance. He was bank director of the Evansville Bank for fifteen or twenty years, and took an active part in every public enterprise tending to promote the welfare of his neighborhood. He possessed a robust constitution, and seemed able to endure any amount of hardship. Near his home at the Rock House he kept a wood-yard, and supplied steamboats with fuel. There would often be three or four thousand cords of wood, so that "Roberts's wood-yard " was known by boatmen the entire length of the river. The Judge had no advantages whatever for an education; but he could write a good hand, and mastered a prac- tical business education. His twin children were edu- cated in good seminaries and colleges. One of them, Eliza Ann Roberts, married Mr. A. Hazen, who is ex- tensively known by steamboat men and along the banks of the Ohio River. He was born in Windsor County,

REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF INDIANA.

Ist Dist. ]

Vermont, but early went to Newburg, and has ever | of the Civil War, Doctor Ralston was appointed by since been identified with its growth and history. He has been in the commission business for a number of years; has also an extensive coal bank, in which he em- ploys about one hundred hands when in full operation.

ALSTON, WILLIAM G., M. D., of Evansville, was born February 13, 1819, in Princeton, Gibson County, Indiana. His paternal grandfather, Will- iam Ralston, was at the siege of Yorktown when Cornwallis surrendered to Washington. His maternal grandfather, Major Joseph Neely, a man of marked ability, was major of a regiment in the Revolutionary War. Andrew Ralston, his father, was a soldier in the War of 1812 when but eighteen years of age, having run away from home to enlist. He died of consump- tion when thirty-three years old. He was married, in 1818, to Patsy Neely, daughter of Major Joseph Neely, of Kentucky, who still survives her husband, and who, at the age of eighty-eight, retains to a wonderful degree her mental and physical vigor. She has always been a woman of much force of character. Doctor William Ralston was reared on a farm, and received only the limited educational advantages of a country school. His father having died when he was but ten years of age, and he being the oldest child, it devolved upon him to take heavy responsibilities when still quite young. He worked on the farm in summer and attended school in winter until 1840, when he taught school for one year. In 1841 he went to Posey County and studied medicine with his uncle, Doctor Joseph Neely, of Cynthiana. After a four years' course of study, he went to Boon- ville, and there practiced his profession until 1848, when, feeling the need of a course of lectures, he at- tended for a time the Ohio Medical College, in Cincin- nati, and some years after graduated in the Medical College of Evansville. On April 11, 1850, Doctor Rals- ton married Isabella Matthewson, daughter of Doctor R. C. Matthewson, of Boonville, whose sketch also ap- pears in this book. During the following eighteen years he practiced medicine in that town, as well as the adjacent counties of Spencer, Pike, and Vanderburg. The sparsely settled condition of that part of the coun- try in those early days caused his practice to be a very laborious one. His travels were performed on horseback, over roads rendered unsafe by swollen creeks, the ab- sence of bridges, and numerous other perils. In many ways he endured hardships which would have broken down a man of less robust constitution. In all proba- bility there was allied to the good constitution an in- domitable will, that helped to carry him safely through. He can boast of the fact that in all his life he never was sick but one week consecutively. At the beginning

Governor Morton surgeon of the 8Ist Regiment Indiana Volunteers. After serving less than a year in the Army of the Cumberland, and while still with his regiment in the field, he was appointed surgeon of the board of en- rollment of the First Congressional District of Indiana. This appointment was made by the Secretary of War, unexpectedly, and without his knowledge. While acting in this capacity he examined over ten thousand men as volunteers, substitutes, and drafted men. The office was continued until April 14, 1865, the day of the assas- sination of President Lincoln. In 1865 he returned to the practice of medicine, having removed with his family to Evansville, where he still resides, and where he is favored with an extensive patronage. He was appointed United States surgeon of the Marine Hospital at the port of Evansville. He occupied this position for four years. He has been a member for thirty-eight years of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, and ruling elder and clerk of the sessions most of that time. He has also been an Odd-fellow for twenty-five years; has taken all the degrees and filled all the chairs. He has three sons, all grown men, two of whom are following the profession of their father, and one is a druggist. Doc- tor Ralston bears an unblemished reputation. As a man, a physician, and a Christian gentleman, he stands high in the estimation of all who know him. He is now hale and hearty, in the sixty-second year of his age.

OGERS, EDMUND J., of Rockport, is a direct descendant of John Rogers, the martyr, whose grandson, Thomas, came to America in the " May- flower," in 1620. Thomas Rogers's grandson, Noah, was born in Huntington, Long Island, but removed to Branford, Connecticut, where he married Elizabeth Taintor, whose father came from Wales. Their son, Noah, who married Elizabeth Wheeler, of Branford, had two sons, one of whom, Captain Edward Rogers, led a company to Danbury when it was invaded by the British in 1777. His men being unwilling to take Continental money, he paid them out of his own purse sixteen hun- dred dollars in gold, which the government has never refunded. The other son, Noah, was one of the soldiers sent to arrest the progress of Burgoyne; he married Rhoda Leet, daughter of Governor Leet, of Guilford, Connecticut. Their son John married Thankful Harri- son, of Branford, and settled at Damascus. John Rogers's son, who bore his father's name, married Sarah Barker, of Branford ; and Jonathan, their son, married Orphany, youngest daughter of Captain Edmund Rogers. The latter was a descendant of James Rogers, captain of the ship " Innocence," in which he came to this country in 1635. He settled at New London, from which place

REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF INDIANA.

[ Ist Dist.

Captain Edmund Rogers removed to Branford, where he married Lydia Frisbee. He was engaged in the West India trade, and sailed for the West Indies January 6, 1685, accompanied by his eldest son, Edmund, and John and Peter Rogers, brothers of Jonathan Rogers; but they and their companions were never afterward heard from. Jonathan Rogers settled at Stony Creek in 1798, whence he removed in 1810 to the old Rogers homestead at Damascus. In 1812 he became a member of the Branford Artillery Company, being elected lieutenant. This company was composed of seamen, many of whom had been owners and captains of vessels, or prominent in the Continental navy of 1776. In 1818, induced by the favorable report of Doctor Gould, he removed with his family to Carlisle, Sullivan County, Indiana. Ed- mund J. Rogers, his son, drove a four-horse team the entire distance. In 1822 Mr. Rogers was elected Asso- ciate Judge of Sullivan County, his commission being signed by Jonathan Jennings, then Governor. Two years afterwards he removed to New Harmony. His son, Edmund J. Rogers, remained at Carlisle until 1827, when he also went to New Harmony, and opened a store of general merchandise in connection with Adam Moffitt, of Mount Vernon. The establishment was soon closed by a writ of injunction from Judge Goodlet, on complaint of W. G. Taylor, one of a com- pany who claimed to have a lease giving them the ex- clusive right to sell merchandise in the town of New Harmony. A man who had been an apparent friend to the proprietors of the new store purchased a thimble of them and then made complaint to Judge Goodlet, who ordered them to be put in jail to await further orders from the court. They were locked in the old log jail at Mount Vernon, but were immediately released by order of the Associate Judges of Posey County. Suits growing out of this matter were carried to the higher courts, and decisions rendered in favor of Rogers & Moffitt; the latter, who sued for damages for false imprison- ment, received three thousand dollars. The history of these suits is to be found in "Blackford's Reports." In 1829 Mr. Rogers formed a copartnership with Alexan- der McClure, brother of William McClure, who died in Mexico, leaving a large estate to establish libraries. The firm conducted a tannery and shoemaking estab- lishment, besides dealing in general merchandise, until in 1844 Mr. Rogers bought the interest of his partner, and continued the business on his own account. In March, 1861, his warehouse, containing a large stock of goods upon which there was little insurance, was de- stroyed by fire. He sold his property in New Harmony in 1870, and removed to Rockport, where he engaged for five years in the general grocery trade. He retired from business in March, 1875. During the late Civil War, being too old to go into the service himself, Mr. Rogers donated money in aid of the Union cause to the

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

A biographical history of eminent and self-made men of the state of Indiana : with many portrait-illustrations on steel, engraved expressly for this work, Volume I, Part 12

Author: Publication date: 1880 Publisher: Cincinnati, Ohio : Western Biographical Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 1038

Author:
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Cincinnati, Ohio : Western Biographical Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1038