A portrait and biographical record of Delaware and Randolph counties, Ind., containing biographical sketches of many prominent and representative citizens, together with biographies and portraits of all of the presidents of the United States, and biographies of the governors of Indiana, Part 136

Author:
Publication date: 1894
Publisher: Chicago, A. W. Bowen & Co.
Number of Pages: 1474

USA > Indiana > Randolph County > A portrait and biographical record of Delaware and Randolph counties, Ind., containing biographical sketches of many prominent and representative citizens, together with biographies and portraits of all of the presidents of the United States, and biographies of the governors of Indiana > Part 136
USA > Indiana > Delaware County > A portrait and biographical record of Delaware and Randolph counties, Ind., containing biographical sketches of many prominent and representative citizens, together with biographies and portraits of all of the presidents of the United States, and biographies of the governors of Indiana > Part 136

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).

Since the death of her husband Mrs. Moon has made her home with her mother in Wash- ington township. Her parents, Ezekiel and Anna (Platt) Robbins, were of English ex- traction. Her father removed from New Jersey to Butler county, Ohio, and in 1841 came to Randolph county, Ind., where he entered 160 acres of land, the present home of his daughter and her widowed mother. Building a log cabin, he began clearing away the trees preparatory to developing a farm, and made of the place a valuable property. He was quite successful and left his family in good circumstances. He passed away in 1876, and was laid to rest in Cherry Grove cemetery. The grandfather of Mrs. Moon, John Robbins, died in 1861, and his wife, Dorcas (Chestnut) Robbins, died in 1869. Her great-grandpar- ents came from Ireland to America, settled on Nantucket island, and afterwards went to North Carolina. To Mrs. Anna Robbins were born the following children: Clayton, a farmer of Delaware county; Elizabeth A.,

wife of Frank Dervage of Michigan; Charlotte, wife of Hugh Davis of Blackford county, Ind. ; Mrs. Sarah J., Moon; Susan, wife of William Bower of Michigan; Hannah, wife of Elwood Hinshaw; Mary, wife of Elzie Hinshaw; David, a farmer; and Margaret and Benjamin F., both deceased. Mrs. Robbins now has thirty- five grandchildren and sixteen great-grand- children. Mrs. Moon is a most estimable lady, and has many warm friends throughout the community. She has a pleasant home, which is supplied with all the comforts and many of the luxuries of life, and here she is devoting herself to the care of her aged mother and the interests of her family.

ALPH V. MURRAY, a prominent and influential citizen, who follows farm- ing in Washington township, Ran- dolph county, was born in Henry county, Ind., December 4, 1841, and is a son of Cornelius B. and Lucinda (Burroughs) Mur- ray, who were of Irish and German descent. The father was born in Ohio in 1812, and when a lad came to Indiana with his parents, William and Martha Murray, who settled on a farm, in Henry county, of 160 acres, and there spent their remaining days.

The great-grandfather of Ralph V. Murray was Cornelius Murray, born in Dublin, Ireland, and came to America and served through the Revolutionary war, enlisting at about twenty- seven years of age. He was, after the war, married to Elizabeth McFadden, and settled in New Jersey; later he removed to Butler county, Pa., where the grandfather of Ralph V. Murray was born. His name was William Murray, who married Mary Boal, in 1804, and they were the parents of ten children. In 1813 they removed to Butler county, Ohio.

In 1834 William Murray, the grandfather

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of Ralph V. Murray, moved to Wayne county, Ind., and for six years was keeper of the coun- ty infirmary. He, later, removed to Henry county and located on a farm, where he lived until his death, at about eighty years of age. The father of Ralph V. Murray, whose name is Cornelius B., came to Indiana in 1833, and was an early school teacher in Wayne county, Ind.

Under the parental roof R. V. Murray was reared, and remained on the home farm until August, 1861, when he joined company D, Thirty-sixth Indiana infantry. He par- ticipated in the battles of Pittsburg, siege of Chickamauga, and Corinth. He was wounded during the service at Chickamauga; for two months lay in a hospital and nine months were passed before he could again rejoin his company. He was discharged November I, 1864, and returned to Farmland. For a short time he operated his father's farm and then worked in a woolen factory for six months.

On the 8th of March, 1866, Mr. Murray wedded Frances J. Boyden, daughter of Or- ville and Bertha (Miller) Boyden. Her father was a Methodist preacher, and died in Angola, Ind., in 1865. His wife survived him ten years, dying in Muncie, Ind. Their children were: Mrs. Murray; Dr. Wilbur J., of Mun- cie; and Linny, wife of Charles Linn. The brothers and sisters of Mr. Murray are: John, an engineer, of New Castle; William H., a farmer of Delaware county; Martha E., wife of John Beeson of Buffalo, N. Y .; Orilla, wife of Jerome Wiggins of this county; Owen, of this county; Marcus; a liveryman of Farmland; and Julia, wife of Sam Beeson of Buffalo, N. Y. The mother died in 1871, but the father is still living in Hagerstown, Ind.

Mr. Murray first settled on land south of Farmland where he lived two years, then spent a year in Wayne county,. He after-

wards operated his father's farm and at length purchased 104 acres of land. His place is now a valuable one, neat and thrifty in appear- ance and yields to the owner a good income. For about sixteen years he engaged in oper- ating a threshing machine.

To Mr. and Mrs. Murray were born eight children; five are yet living and they lost three. Nora is the wife of Oliver Lambert, who died in 1861. The others are: Boyden, Hubert A., Gilbert M., and Gusta I. Mr. Murray is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and his wife is a member of the Christian church. In politics he is a stalwart republican. An honorable upright life has won him universal confidence and esteem and gained him the confidence and good will of all. In 1881 he was elected sheriff of the county and served one term.

ENRY D. NICHOLS, who is the poplar landlord of the hotel of Lynn, Ind., was born in Greensfork town- ship, February 14, 1832, and is a son of Malachi and Sarah (Mann) Nichols. The father was born in North Carolina in 1804, and was a son of Abner and Margaret (Davis) Nichols, natives of the same state, and of English and Scotch-Irish descent, respectively. They had two children: Josiah, who is now living retired in Hancock county, Ind., and Malachi. Abner Nichols died in 1808, and in 1812 Mrs. Nichols came to Randolph county, Ind., where she married Isaac C. Overman, and made her home until her death, which oc- curred in 1859. Her second husband died in 1885. They were members of the Baptist church. Malachi Nichols was a lad of only eight summers when he came with his mother to this state. At the age of twenty, he married the daughter of Isaac and Sarah (Stout) Mann,

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and the young couple began their domestic life upon the farm in Greensfork township, where they lived until death. The wife died in 1845 of cholera, and a week later the husband was stricken with the same disease and passed away. Their family were as follows: Abner, now deceased; Isaac, of this county; Riley, de- ceased; Henry D .; Maria and Margaret, both deceased; Martha, wife of Thomas J. Brown, a farmer of Wayne county, Ind .; Tarlton M., a carpenter of Lynn, and two who died in in- fancy. The father of this family came to the county in its pioneer days and did much to- ward its developement and improvement. He was a hard working man and led a useful life. Honorable to the highest degree, his word was as good as his bond, and the confidence of the entire community was his. In politics he was a stalwart democrat.

Henry D. Nichols remained on the home farm until the death of his father and then lived with his brother Abner until the latter's death a year later. He then learned the car- penter's trade with Nathan Morris, and then followed the same in connection with his brother Isaac for four years. They then car- ried on general merchandising for a year, after which Mr. Nichols resumed farming in Greens- fork township. He thus spent two years, and the following two years were devoted to car- penter work. On coming to Lynn, in 1861, he began clerking for C. Longfellow, spending one year in his employ and one year with Josiah Elliott. He then resumed carpenter- ing, which he followed two years.

In September, 1864, Mr. Nichols enlisted in company C, Ninth Indiana infantry, and participated in the battles of Franklin, Nash- ville and the Hood campaign. He was dis- charged in Indianapolis in July, 1865, and now receives a pension of $8 per month. After his return from the war, he again worked as a carpenter for a year, and in 1869

became clerk in the store of George Bascom, of Lynn. A year later he was elected town- ship trustee, and served from 1869 until 1872, when he began clerking for Ives & Cox, with whom he remained seven years. The year 1871 was spent in carpentering. and from 1880 until 1882, he was a salesman in the store of W. L. Cox & Brother. For the past eleven years he has devoted his energies to the hotel business and keeps a first-class house, which receives from the traveling public a lib- eral patronage.

On the 26th of January, 1859, Mr. Nichols wedded Elizabeth Gray, who was born in Wayne county, in December, 1836, and is a daughter of Miles and Elizabeth (Morris) Gray, who were natives of North Carolina, and of English and Scotch extraction. The following children have been born to this union: William A., railway agent of Portland, Ind .; Alonzo L., county clerk, of Winchester; Jennie, wife of A. Beard, a farmer; Isaac Stewart, a railroad agent living in Colorado City; Frederick G., railway agent at Win- chester; Bird, wife of A. L. Farquhar, deputy clerk of the county; Emma, a successful school teacher, in Union City schools; Oliver H., a telegraph operator of Richmond, and Charles, at home. Mr. and Mrs. Nichols are members of the Christian church, in which he serves as elder, and in religious work he takes an active interest. In politics he is a repub- lican and for four terms has served as assessor. He belongs to the Grand Army of the Repub- lic, and since 1862 has been a member of the F. & A. M., of which he was secretary fifteen years. Mr. Nichols is genial and pleasant in manner, is straightforward in all business deal- ings and has therefore won the confidence and high regard of all with whom he has been brought in contact. His popularity with his party is undiminished, but he is not an office seeker in the usual sense of the term.

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SAAC N. STANLEY, who is a native of Wayne county, Ind., was born May 15, 1848, his parents being Levi and Su- sannah (Butler) Stanley, the former of whom, reared to agriculture, but acquiring an education above the average in his youth, en- gaged in the profession of teaching. Levi Stanley was born in Miami county, Ohio, July 13, 1814, to Aaron and Mary (Cuppy) Stan- ley, who were natives of North Carolina. Mrs. Susannah Stanley was a daughter of Samuel and Mary (Davenport) Butler, her birth occur- ring May 20, 1818. She became the wife of Levi Stanley in 1836, their marriage taking place in Wayne county, Ind. Eleven children were born to them, viz: Thomas, Mary E., deceased; William H., deceased; Rebecca (Mrs. Frank Campbell), Jesse B., Issac N., Abraham C., Anna E. (Mrs. Webster Church), Mary E. (Mrs Charles Druly), Susan E. (Mrs. Thomas Smelser), and Levi E. Mr. and Mrs. Levi Stanley located in Wayne county, Ind., where, for two years, he secured employment in a saw-mill, subsequently purchasing forty acres of land, to the cultivation of which he gave his personal attention, later increasing his possessions by 133 acres, which he suc- cessfully farmed until his death, in 1891, three years prior to which time his wife preceded him to their immortal home, both being in- terred in Boston cemetery. In politics he was a republican, and both found christian fellow- ship in the Methodist Episcopal church, of which they were members.

Isaac N. was the sixth child, and his youth, like that of his father, was passed in a farm home, where, having the hunger for knowledge born in him, he acquired the rudiments of an education, later expanded by wisely chosen and well taught courses of study in the Richmond high school and at Earlham college, to which were due the success of his subsequent tutor- age in the common schools of the county. His

marriage was solemnized Novemher 6, 1878, the bride being the daughter of Levi and Mary (Meyers) Jessup-her name Gulielma -- and the date of her birth, January 23, 1849, Wayne, Ind., being her native county. Mrs. Gulielma Stanley is a lady of refinement and possesses a superior education, having been a successful teacher. Their union has been blessed with four sons and two daughters, viz: Levi, Isaac, Marianna, William H., Clinton F., Grace R., none of whom have gone out from the parental home. Prior to his mar- riage Mr. Stanley purchased eighty acres of land in Randolph county, where they have since resided, and where he does a lucrative general farming business. Both he and his estimable wife are members of the Society of Friends, attending meetings at Cherry Grove. Mr. Stanley supports the prohibition party by his vote, believing that a more effectual means of creating public sentiment requisite to the branding of the liquor traffic with a legal "Thou Shalt Not" than prayer alone.

0 AVID M. THORN, a practical and progressive farmer of Washington township, Randolph county, Ind., and residing on section 33, has here made his home since 1876, and devoted his energies to the cultivation of his 159 acres of valuable land, which yields to him a golden tribute. His life record is as follows: He was born in Greenefork township, November 16, 1841, and is a son of Taylor and Maria (Bundy) Thorn. The father was born in North Carolina, in 1820, and in an early day came to Indiana, locating in Greensfork town- ship, Randolph county, where he entered land and carried on agricultural pursuits until 1868, when he came to Washington township. His wife died in 1889, and since that time he has

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lived with his children. The family numbered eight children, as follows: Jane and Orpha, both deceased; Demaris, wife of H. Hunt; David; Martin V., who was a member of com- pany B, Fifty-seventh Indiana infantry, and died in New Orleans, in 1865; G. T., of this county; Elizabeth, wife of G. Longfellow; and Alice, wife of D. Kinsey, Mr. Thorn is a member of the Masonic fraternity, a republi- can in politics, and a member of the Christian church. His life has been a busy and useful one, and has gained him the esteem of all.

David M. Thorn was reared to manhood under the parental roof, yet began earning his own livelihood at the age of fifteen by work as a general laborer. At the age of twenty he married Jane Hill, daughter of Philip and Mary (Stubbs) Hill. They began their domes- tic life upon a rented farm in Greensfork town- ship, where after a yeer the young wife died, leaving one son, Harlan of this county. Mr. Thorn joined the boys in blue in February, 1864, entered company B, Fifth Indiana cav- alry, in which he served until honorably dis- charged, at Indianapolis, in September, 1865. He participated in the battles of the Georgia campaign and did scouting duty much of the time. He was crippled in a railroad wreck, and taken to Pulaski hospital, but was soon sent home. The war over, he turned his at- tention to farming, which he carried on in Greensfork township until 1876, when he came to his present farm. The improvements upon the place stand as monuments to his thrift and industry, and its neat appearance indicates his careful supervision.

In January, 1866, in Fountain City, Ind., was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Thorn and Miss Lucy A. Keever, who was born in Wayne county, and is a daughter of Michael and Hen- rietta (Pierce) Keever. They have seven chil- dren: Griffa E .; Ada, wife of Albert King of this county; Lizzie, Oliver P., Frank, Martin

and Howard. Mr. and Mrs. Thorn are mem- bers of the Christian church, and he belongs to the Masonic fraternity and the Grand Army of the Republic. The government grants him a pension of $4 per month. In politics he is a stalwart republican. In 1888 he was elected trustee for a term of two years, and so well did he fill the office, that, in 1890, he was elected for a four years' term. No higher testimonial than his re-election could be given of his fidelity to duty.

ILLIAM R. TISOR, M. D., a well known physician of Randolph coun- ty, who is now living at Woods Sta- tion, was born in White River town- ship, December 10, 1844, and is a son of John and Elizabeth (Carter) Tisor, who were of English extraction. The father was born in Miami county, Ohio, in January, 1824, and was a son of David and Ruth Tisor, natives of England. He began life empty handed, enter- ed forty acres of land from the government, and afterward added to it 160 acres. In poli- tics he was a democrat, and he and wife were members of the Methodist Episcopal church. He took great interest in the education of his children, and was a very devoted man in the family circle. The doctor is the eldest of five children, the others being Thomas, a farmer of White River township; Mary, wife of Henry Study, superintendent of the county farm; Enos M., a teacher of Farmland; and Allen A., a farmer of White River township. Dr. Tisor spent his boyhood days in the usual manner of farmer lads, acquiring his literary education in the common schools; he afterward entered the Rush Medical college of Chicago, in 1857, from which he was graduated in 1869. He began practice in Lynn, Ind., but after a year and a half removed to Myer. Grant

ALEXANDER ALMONRODE.

MRS. ALEXANDER ALMONRODE.

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county, where he practiced for ten years. He then came to Woods Station, and has since carried on the prosecution of his profession in this community. He also 'engaged in teaching school for two terms, at Bartonia.

On the 5th of March, 1863, the doctor led to the marriage altar Miss Elizabeth, daughter of Andrew J. and Maria (Macy) Dine. Her people came from Butler county, Ohio, and were of English extraction. Her father was a blacksmith by trade. Their children were Joseph and James, both deceased; Mrs. Tisor; Sarah E., wife of Noah Dice, of Manchester, Ind., and Samuel, at home. The mother died in 1873, and was buried in Xenia cemetery. Mr. Dine is still living in Rossville, Clinton county, Ind. He is a local minister of the Methodist church. To the doctor and his wife were born six children, as follows: Leon- ard P., deceased; Ollie A., wife of Ransom

P. Bradford, a farmer; Lurton A .; Maudie M .: John T., deceased, and Clyde. During the late war, the doctor enlisted as a member of company A, One Hundred Forty-seventh Indiana infantry, under Capt. Nelson Pegg, and was sent to the Shenandoah valley, Va. When the war was over he received his dis- charge in August, 1865. He now draws a pension of $12 per month. The doctor has been engaged in practice since 1869, and has been very successful, winning a reputation of which he may justly be proud. He is a mem- ber of the Masonic fraternity and the Grand Army of the Republic, and his wife is a mem- ber of the Methodist Episcopal church. He is now notary public and for four years was post- master. The doctor and Mrs. Tisor are com- fortably located in a pleasant home, which is the abode of hospitallty and which is a favor- ite resort with their many friends.

WARD TOWNSHIP.

LEXANDER ALMONRODE has been a prominent citizen of Ward town- ship for a number of years, and his name is widely known throughout Randolph county, as a representative self-made man. Paternally, Mr. Almonrode is descended from German ancestry, and his parents, George and Margaret (Eckerle) Almonrode, were early settlers of Rockbridge county, Va., where the subject's birth occurred on the 16th day of August, 1827. When seven years of age, Alexander was taken by his parents to Preble county, Ohio, where the father died about 1835, and from which part of the state the mother three years later moved to Randolph

county, Ind., and settled in White River town- ship. Mrs. Almonrode purchased eighty acres of government land soon after her arrival, and resided on the same until her death, which oc- curred in June, 1865. George and Margaret Almonrode were the parents of ten children, nine of whom grew to maturity, viz .: Mrs. Sarah Holmes, afterwards Mrs. Bousman; Mrs. Betsey Wills; David, married E. Bous- man; John; Mrs. Katie Holmes; Joseph; Mrs. Nancy Bousman; James, deceased; Alex- ander and William.

Alexander Almonrode was eleven years old when the family came to Randolph county. Owing to the lack of school facilities he en-

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joyed but limited educational advantages, and from early youth he contributed his full share toward the support of the family, and nobly did his part in removing the forest growth and fitting the little farm for cultivation. His in- clination leading him to agriculture, he began farm life for himself at the age of twenty-two, purchasing an eighty acre tract adjoining his mother's place, the greater part of which he cleared and otherwise improved. His industry and good judgment were from the first appar- ent, and his success as a farmer is attested by the fact that from a very humble beginning he has accumulated a comfortable competence of this world's goods, owning at this time over 300 acres of valuable land, beside other prop- erty, from the proceeds of which he is able to pass his remaining years in pactical retirement from the active duties of life. For some years Mr. Almonrode, in addition to agricultural pursuits, operated a thresher, which added no little to his gains, and it is a fact worthy of note that every enterprise to which he turned his hand appears to have prospered. When a boy, he often worked early and late for the insignificent compensation of thirty-seven and one-half cents a day, and from money thus earned he made a payment on his first land, which cost him $2. 50 per acre. In the matter · of acquiring wealth Mr. Almonrode has exer- cised rare business tact; and in the higher relations of life, in the family circle, the church, exercising a wholsesome moral influence upon all with whom he comes in contact, he has indeed solved the problem of success. He was married July 4, 1850, to Delilah J., daughter of Thomas and Lydia Pierce, early settlers of Randolph county, where Mrs. Al- monrode was born about the year 1831. Ten children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Almon- rode, but four of whom grew to maturity, namely: Anthony R .; Thomas A .; Luther F., and Mrs. Sarah E. Barber. Mr. Almon-

rode cast his first vote for Franklin Pierce, but since 1860 has been an ardent supporter of the republican party. He and family belong to the United Brethren church, in which they are all active workers.

J ACOB HENRY BYERS, a representa- tive farmer of Ward township, is a native of Pennsylvania, born in the county of Westmoreland on the 11th day of April, 1839. His father, Peter Byers, a native of Armstrong county, Pa., was the son of David Byers, who was born in Germany, and his mother, Susanna (Sourwine) Byers, was also of German descent. While Jacob H. was a small boy his parents moved to Arm- strong county, Pa., and when fourteen he accom- panied the family to Ohio, settling in Scioto county, where his mother's death subsequently occurred. Peter Byers departed this life in the county of Fayette, Ohio, and is remem- bered as a man of sterling worth and a most exemplary citizen. To Peter and Susanna Byers were born thirteen children, whose names are as follows: 3 Mrs. Agnes James; John, deceased; Mrs. Elizabeth Brannan; Mrs. Sarah J. Burford; Jacob H .; Josiah A. (died near Nashville, Tenn., while in the United States service); Peter L., who resides in Cali- fornia; Mrs. Hester Daniels; Mrs. Margaret Maston; David A., a citizen of Scioto county, Ohio; Mrs. Margy E. Bowers; Mrs. Catherine S. Flint; and one that died in childhood un- named.

Shortly after moving to Ohio the subject of this mention left the parental roof and re- turned to Pennsylvania, where for a limited period he was engaged in getting out timber in the northern part of the state. Returning to Ohio he embarked in the pursuit of agricul- ture, which he followed in the Buckeye state

THOS H. CLARK.

MRS. JANE H. CLARK.

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until 1865, at which time he moved to Indiana where he also carried on farming in the county of Jay. Later he moved to Illinois, thence to Ohio, in both of which states and in Missouri he followed his chosen calling until 1875, living at different places in the mean- time. In the latter year he became a resident of Randolph county, Ind., locating in the township of Ward, purchasing a farm in sections 22 and 15, to which he has made additions from time to time and upon which he still resides. Mr. Byers is a successful agriculturist, has a beautiful farm under a high state of cultivation, and his improvements, including a handsome residence erected in 1891, are among the best in the township. He has given considerable attention to fruit raising, having set out five orchards, and in all matters pertaining to agriculture he is well informed and ranks among the wide-awake, broad minded, intelligent farmers of the com- munity in which he resides. For the past eight years Mr. Byers has not been actively engaged in the work of the farm, having rented his place, and he is now enjoying a well earned rest from his labor. He is universally re- spected in the community and is deserving of special mention as one of Randolph county's representative self made men. Politically, Mr. Byers is a democrat of the old school, and since casting his first vote for Stephen A. Douglas, he has been unswerving in his alle- giance to the party of his choice. He was married November 30, 1859, to Ruhannah Scott, daughter of Stephen and Sarah Scott, natives, respectively, of New York city and Pike county, Ohio. Mrs. Byers' paternal an- cestors were Irish, and on the mother's side she is descended from an old and well known Virginian family, which settled on the river James at a very early period in the history of the Old Dominion, and probably of English extraction.

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A portrait and biographical record of Delaware and Randolph counties, Ind., containing biographical sketches of many prominent and representative citizens, together with biographies and portraits of all of the presidents of the United States, and biographies of the governors of Indiana, Part 136

Author: Publication date: 1894 Publisher: Chicago, A. W. Bowen & Co. Number of Pages: 1474

Author:
Publication date: 1894
Publisher: Chicago, A. W. Bowen & Co.
Number of Pages: 1474