USA > Indiana > Delaware County > A portrait and biographical record of Delaware county, 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 36
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city, among his improvements in the latter being the well known Mitchell block. Orig- inally he was a supporter of the democratic party, but of late years has gradually drifted from the principles of that political faith, and is now a republican. In his religious views he adheres to the Christian church, of which he has been a consistent member for a number of years.
Dr. Mitchell was married in Granville, Delaware county, Ind., October 9, 1853, to Miss Catherine Ash, who was born in Green county, Ohio, May 30, 1837, daughter of William Ash. Two children resulted from this union: Sarah Florence, deceased, and Har- riet B., wife of C. H. Anthony.
J AMES F. MOCK, senior member of the firm of Mock Bros., manufacturers of brick and brick machinery, Muncie, Ind., was born in Clarke county, Ohio, October 4, 1843, the son of Peter and Sarah (Ayers) Mock. These parents were married in the above county and state and resided upon a farm there until 1845, at which date they re- moved to Delaware county, Ind., and pur- chased 120 acres of land in Centre township, now Boyceton. They resided upon this place until 1851, when they moved to what is now known as Mock avenue, Muncie, thence, in 1864, to the corner of Macedonia and Kirby avenues, where the widow now resides, Mr. Mock having died November 11, 1885. Mr. and Mrs. Mock were the parents of six chil- dren,'namely: Mary, wife of J. Russell; James F., John D., Martin G., Riley (deceased) and Andrew. James F. Mock, was reared to agri- cultural pursuits, received his education in the common schools, and on attaining his legal majority entered into partnership with his father and brother in the manufacture of brick
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and drain tile, with which business he was con- nected for a period of twelve years. Disposing of his interest in the above business, he went to Indianapolis and there engaged with Cooper, Lamb & Co. in the manufacture of brick, and after one year thus spent he was for the same length of time engaged in the manufacture of carriages. He then returned to Muncie and continued in the same line for a period of two years, meeting with success in the meantime. His next venture was as a manufacturer of farm implements, which he carried on with a fair degree of success until 1881, at which time, in partnership with his brother, John D. Mock, he engaged in the manufacture of brick and brick machinery, a business which is still conducted by the same firm, and which has be- come one of the well known industries of Mun- cie. The Messrs. Mock employ forty men continually, and the output of their mill is es- timated at over six million brick per year, nearly all of which find ready sale in the local market. Mr. Mock was married November 6, 1876, to Elizabeth C. Vannort, who was born in Brookville, Ohio, on the 16th day of Janu- ary, 1860, the daughter of Thomas and Mary (Williams) Vannort. To Mr. and Mrs. Mock have been born the following children: Annie, Arthur and Leo C. Politically Mr. Mock is a democrat, and as a business man his reputation is not confined altogether to Muncie and Dela- ware county, but extends throughout the vari- ous parts of the United States.
J OHN D. MOCK, brother of the pre- ceding, was born in Delaware county February 28, 1846. He grew to man- hood in his native county and early effected a business partnership with his father and brother, and for many years has been a prominent manufacturer of Muncie. Mr.
Mock was married May 2, 1870, to Mary Jackson, daughter of William and Sarah (Col- lins) Jackson, of Delaware county. Mrs. Mock was born March 23, 1852, in the county of Delaware, and is the mother of seven chil- dren, whose names are as follows: James Frank, now bookkeeper for the firm; Wini- fred, deceased; Harvey; Jesse, deceased; Mil- dred, and two infants who died unnamed. Mr. and Mrs. Mock are members of the Bap- tist church of Muncie, and are most estimable and highly esteemed people. Mr. Mock has shown commendable energy in connection with the manufacturing establishment with which he is identified and is recognized in business circles as a man of honesty and integrity of purpose. He is a democrat in politics and a member of the Pythian fraternity. He is a member of the Order of Maccabees, and for fifteen years has been a deacon of the Baptist church of Muncie, also holding the position of trustee in the same at this time. John D. and James F. Mock recently purchased a valuable tract of land, consisting of sixty acres, known as the Cooper farm, north of the city, where they now operate an extensive brick factory, the capacity of which is over 40,000 per day, being one of the largest establishments of the kind in Delaware county.
ARTIN G. MOCK, a representative business man of Muncie, and the largest collector of ancient relics, curios, etc., in the west, is a native of Delaware county, Ind., a son of Peter and Sarah Mock, mention of whom appears in connection with a preceding sketch. Martin G. Mock was born in Centre township on the Ist day of May, 1848, and after obtaining an education, embracing the curriculum of the common schools, engaged with his father in
JAS. F. MOCK.
Jaho D. Mock.
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the manufacture of brick, which business he continued until 1874. From the latter year until 1878, he followed carriage making with financial profit in the city of Muncic, and then
MARTIN G. MOCK.
began dealing in hardware and furniture, with which lines of trade he was prominently identi- fied for a period of nine years. At the end of that time he discontinued the hardware business and has since given his attention almost exclusively to furniture and stoves of all kinds, being at this time the proprietor of one of the largest and best stocked houses of the kind in the city-known as the "World's Fair." His store rooms, situated on the cor- ner of Walnut and Wall streets, are stocked with a full line of all articles of furniture, ranges, stoves, etc., demanded by the general trade, and his business has been conducted with a wisely directed energy that has borne results of a most satisfactory financial char- acter.
For a number of years Mr. Mock has de- voted much time and attention to the collect- ing of ancient relics and curiosities of histori-
cal, archaological, geological, marine and general scientific value, and his large collec- tion, which is always open to the inspection of the public, represents an expenditure of
MRS. MARTHA D. MOCK.
several thousand dollars in money, and exten- sive travel throughout nearly every state of the Union. The collection is the largest owned by any individual in the state, if not in the United States, and compares favorably with the public collection of the different his- torical societies throughout the country. It is a museum within itself, and to enumerate the many curious and interesting objects with which his cabinets are stored would far tran- scend the limits of a sketch of this character. As already stated, the collection is the result of much travel, wide correspondence and pains- taking research, which certainly would have discouraged any one but a man actuated by the most intense enthusiasm in this valuable and fascinating pursuit. His collection of historical relics includes many articles not ob- tainable in any part of the country, embracing ancient arms of warfare, old muskets, which
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did valiant service in the hands of our fore- fathers in the struggle to throw off the British yoke; swords wielded by the sturdy hands of the colonists in their contests with the savages in ante-revolutionary times; curiously wrought fire arms from nearly all nations of the world, rude knives, clubs, spears, slings and other weapons, representing many of the savage tribes in different parts of the earth; imple- ments of domestic use and instruments of tor- tue, grewsome relics of savage butchery in the early history of the country, musical instru- ments used by the ancients, interesting mementoes from the leading battle fields of the United States and other countries, and from scenes of great national disasters, personal belongings of many of the leading men of this and other times, autograph letters of eminent soldiers, statesmen and other men of renown, books, whose value cannot be estimated, printed long before the existence of the American con- tinent was known to the civilized world, ancient coins, bearing the stamp of rulers who swayed the destinies of the Roman empire before the dawn of the Christian era, old land grants bearing the signatures of the early presidents of the United States, writs of attachment issued by the courts of the colonies, numerous missiles picked up on many southern battle fields, remnants of flags which annimated brave soldiers in many bloody struggles of the late war, and hundreds of other curious and interesting articles, the mere mention of which would be an exceedingly difficult undertaking.
Among the many articles in the historical collection deserving of specific mention the following may be noted: a flintlock pistol made in 1712 and carried by one of Gen. Braddock's men in the disastrous expedition against Fort Duquesne, a sword carried by Capt. Riggins in the Revolutionary war, gun barrel and six pound shot found at Fort Recov- ery, Ohio, 1791, German gun elegantly inlaid
with silver bearing the date of 1791, pair of pistols made in London in 1746, a pair of candelabrums that belonged to John Quincy Adams-while he was president of the United States, also snuffer and trays, and the hammer that made Washington's shoes while general of the army.
The archaeological department is especially rare, and contains many valuable articles such as are found in no other private collection in the country, and the counterparts of which are to be seen in but few state historical col- lections. The collection of relics from mounds in different parts of the United States is es- pecially valuable, and the well preserved specimens of pottery, axes, knives, spear and arrow heads, and various stone implements of domestic use, speak eloquently of a strange and numerous people whose civilization ante- dated that of ancient Egypt, but whose his- tory is forever wrapped up in the silent mystery of the past. Stone tomahawks, flint knives, darts, pipes, scrapers, hoes, war clubs and other arms and numerous specimens of skillful as well as rude ornaments, are among the hundreds of relics of the aboriginal period, while implements and arms of a more recent type, namely, iron and brass hatchets, bows and arrows, knives, guns, etc., etc., represent the more modern status of the Indian tribes of the United States. A lover of books could desire no greater pleasure than to linger awhile among the ancient and rare volumes in Mr. Mock's collection, some of which represent the earliest stages of the art preservative, and speak of an age when only the wealthy could afford to gratify the taste for literature. In this department may be noted a Latin book 250 years old, Luther's translation of the Bible 346 years old, a complete set of Peter Pindar's works, very rare; school books of all kinds, readers and spellers used in our country in pioneer times, papers printed during the
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Revolutionary period, complete files of the Illustrated Press printed during the late war, and other publications, manuscripts, etc., too numerous to mention.
In addition to the numerous articles, of which but a mere mention has been made, Mr. Mock has a large and valuable collection of geological specimens, many varieties of marine plants and animals of great scientific value, many of which were gathered by himself in his travels and search after treasures. His large collection of ancient clocks, watches and sun dials is very valuable, and other specimens of skilled workmanship from many countries cannot be duplicated in any other collection in the west. All in all, the collection is a very creditable one and its value cannot be estimated in dollars and cents. Mr. Mock certainly deserves great credit for getting together so many rare and interesting articles, and the col- lection represents the labors of no ordinary mind in this field of research.
Mr. Mock was married October 19, 1871, to Miss Martha D. Langdon, a native of Law- rence county, Ohio, born September 5. 1855, daughter of Elijah J. and Lucinda (Yingling) Langdon. The wedded life of Mr. and Mrs. Mock has been crowned with the birth of four children: Pearl (dead), Robert (living), and Minnie, and an infant that died unnamed. Mr. Mock wields an influence for the democratic party, but has never been an aspirant for politi- cal recognition or a seeker after the emolu- ments of office. Religiously he is a Baptist, to which church his wife and son also belong, both being valuable members of the Muncie congregation. He is an active worker in sev- eral fraternal orders, in which he has held important official positions: He is P. G. S., Improved O. R. M .; P. C., K. of P. ; member of the I. O. O .; F. P. M. W., A. O. U. W .; S. V. K., K. of P .; second vice-chieftain Na- tional Chieftains' League, I. O. R. M. Per- |
sonally Mr. Mock enjoys popularity with all classes, and his life has been characterized by a uniform kindness and courtesy that are com- mendable in every respect. His many sterling qualities of mind and heart have won for him the confidence and esteem of all, and it is with pleasure that his biographical sketch is here- with presented with those of other representa- tive citizens of Delaware county.
0 R. ANDREW R. MOCK, son of Peter and Sarah M. (Ayers) Mock, was born near Muncie, March 13, 1859, and received his early education in the common schools of the city. In his youth and early manhood he was employed in farm- ing and brickmaking, and in his maturer years became a street contractor. But medicine early attracted his attention, and for some time he was a student in the office of Dr. D. Schaub, of Muncie. In 1882 he graduated from the vitapathic school of the American Health co lege, and for three years was engaged in active practice, and still occasionally con- sents to give professional advice in urgent cases. The system includes the clairvoyant diagnosis of diseases and the magnetic and massage treatment. In 1888 he entered largely upon taking street contracts, and im- proved several of the principal avenues of the city, graveling Ohmer avenue three miles, Macedonia avenue one-half mile, and finishing Heekin avenue over a half mile, and also graveling other streets and sidewalks, employ- ing in active times twelve to fifteen men, five teams of his own, and hiring others.
The doctor was married, in 1883, to Miss Lillie F. Stewart, daughter of Mark O. and Hannah M. (Beemer) Stewart, and this union has been blessed with the birth of five chil- dren, viz: Calaburn, George A., Ada May,
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Mabel and Grover Mock. The doctor and his wife are among the respected members of Muncie society, and enjoy the reputation of being among the foremost to forward every enterprise calculated to advance the moral and material progress of the city of Muncie.
ARKER MOORE, one of the oldest and most respected agriculturists of Centre township, Delaware county, Ind., deserves to the full a brief notice among those other worthies of the township of whom mention is made in these pages. He was born February 28, 1826, in Scioto county, Ohio. His father, Lewis Moore, was born in Pennsylvania January 4, 1797, and on the 4th day of January, 1816, married Patience Truitt, a native of Arm- strong county, Pa., then residing in Scioto county, Ohio. They were the parents of ten children, namely: Nancy, Aaron, Amanda, Rhoda, Parker, John, Lewis, Sarah, Mary and Patience, of whom Nancy, Aaron and John are deceased. The father was a farmer, and followed that occupation during life. He sometimes built flat boats while living in Ohio, and, loading them with produce, sold it to towns along the river. He came with his family to Delaware county, Ind., in 1829, and entered land in Centre township, where he claimed and proved a farm. He died Novem- ber 20, 1841. His wife died September 22, 1874.
Parker Moore was but three years of age when he came to this country, and grew up with but very limited educational advantages. At the age of twenty-three years he married Miss Martha, daughter of John and Harriet Smith, who died December 10, 1871, leaving four children-Caroline, William R., George W. and Parker T. August 8, 1872, he was
united in marriage with Mrs. Christina, daugh- ter of Gilpin E. Cook, and widow of the late Andrew N. Ribble, of this county. Her par- ents came to Delaware county in 1846, where the mother died in 1854. The father then moved to Blackford county, Ind., where he was engaged in milling operations until his death, which occurred in 1861. Mrs. Moore died July 17, 1876. April 16, 1887, Mr. Moore was wedded to his present companion, Miss Mary Cook, of this county, and the daughter ot Gilpin and Sarah (Bush) Cook, who were natives of Pennsylvania and who are both now deceased. Mr. Moore is one of the representative men of this township and occupies the old homestead farm. He is a successful farmer and an active friend to pub- lic improvements and the cause of education. He and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church, and they enjoy the good will of all who know them. He is one of the earnest republicans of this county and has been voting that ticket since the organization. of the party in 1854.
ILLIAM R. MOORE, the subject of of this sketch, is an old Delaware county boy, born and reared in this county, where he has spent all of his life, with the exception of about eighteen years. He is one of a family of eight children, the son of William J. and Sarah Moore, nee Wilcoxon, both of whom are now deceased.
His parents were born and raised in Scioto county , Ohio. They came west with their parents and settled in this county in 1832. John Moore, the paternal grandfather, who was quite well to do, located on the old State road, about three miles southeast of Muncie, and built for himself a substantial brick dwell- ing on what is now known as the James Boyce
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farm. Loyd Wilcoxon, senior, grandfather on the maternal side, located on the same road a little east of the other grandfather.
William J. was given the farm by his father about one-half mile east of the old homestead, now known as the Charles W. Cecil farm, to which he added, by purchase, land enough to make in all 400 acres. He built for himself a comfortable two-story frame dwelling, which has been moved back to give place for Mr. Cecil's elegant farm dwelling.
There was quite a colony of Scioto county people located, about the same year, near and around the Moores and Wilcoxons, nearly all related to them by blood or marriage ties, of whom we will mention the Truitts, Parker, George and James; Jackson's, Mahlon and Lemuel G., the latter an uncle of William J., and one of the founders of Muncietown, the Jackson donation to Muncie cornering at the northwest corner of Walnut and Jackson streets, being a part of his farm.
In 1822, when what is now a part of the Big Four railway system, then known as the Indianapolis, Pittsburg & Cleveland railroad, was being constructed through this county, William J. removed from his farm (which was at that time well stocked, some eighteen head of horses, with cattle, sheep and hogs in propor- tion), to Selma, a new station on that road, six miles east of Muncie, where he engaged in general merchandising and continued for many years. Uunfortunately for him he could not deny any one credit; the result was a large number of his customers afterward removed to the far west, owing him in the aggregate thou- sands of dollars. At about the same time he, like many others, put his fine farm and some Muncie property into a railroad company then proposed building between Cin- cinnati and Chicago, via Muncie, receiving therefor stock and bonds of the fraudulent corporation, which are still amongst the papers
of his estate, and if they bore interest at six per cent. would amount to more than $75,000, and yet they are not worth the paper they are engraved on. He was of the kind that never became discouraged, and possessed indomitable will power. Possessing the confidence and re- spect of all who knew him, he set himself the task of retrieving his lost fortune, which he ac- complished by slow but sure degrees. He and his life partner lived happily together for nearly fifty-eight years, both departing this life in the same year, 1893, in the firm belief that " Death does not end all."
William Roby, or "Robe," as many are in the habit of calling him, was the fifth child, was born on the farm referred to, March 9, 1845. He received a good common school education, becoming very proficient in mathe- matics. After leaving school he learned the blacksmith's trade. At the breaking out of the war of the rebellion, in '61, his father's patriotism was such that he volunteered his services to help put down the rebellion, which was then thought to be a matter that could be squelched before breakfast. He was too old to be received into the service. Roby was then but little past sixteen, too young, but owing to the trade that he was working at was remarkably well developed, physically, for his years. Patriotism was in the air, the war news and the fife and drum worked upon him until he finally persuaded his father to permit him to go in his stead. He enrolled himself in Capt. Samuel J. Williams' company, who was a near neighbor of the Moores. On the 2d day of July, '61, Capt. Williams proceeded to the state capitol with hiscompany. It was ordered into camp at Camp Morton. The various companies that were encamped there were being drilled daily in the arts and tactics of war by experienced drill masters. On July 28, Capt. Williams' company was mustered into the United States service for three years or
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during the war. The company was assigned to the Nineteenth regiment Indiana volunteer infantry and drew place as Co. K. Sol. Mere- dith, of Wayne county, an intimate friend of the governor, was commissioned as its colonel. The regiment left for the seat of war on August 5, arriving in Washington city, D. C., on the 7th, and went into camp on Kolorama Heights where daily drills continued. At the time that this regiment was organized, the United States government had not adopted any particular uniform for its troops. The state of Indiana, through the indomitable will power of its great chief executive officer, that grandest of war governors, Oliver P. Morton, although handicapped by rebel sympathizers, at its own expense uniformed, armed and equip- ped its own volunteers and sent them to the front. The Nineteenth was supplied with a gray uniform which proved to be a rebel color. The first engagement that the regiment was in it was necessary to tie strips of white muslin around their arms to distinguish them from the rebel soldiers. The Second, Sixth, and Sev- enth Wisconsin regiments, the Nineteenth Indiana and the Twenty-fourth Michigan, com- posed the famous Iron Brigade, being given this name after withstanding the furious on- slaught of a whole division of Stonewall Jack- son's corps at the battle of Gainesville, Va. At the time of the battle of Gettysburg, this brigade was the First brigade, First division of the First army corps. The First and Eleventh army corps opened the battle at Gettysburg and did heroic work in stemming the rebel advance during the first day until the Union army came up and secured position to wage successfully the decisive battle of the war.
Young Moore took part with his regiment in various heavy battles-those of Gainesville, Chancellorsville, Fredericksburg, Second Bull Run, South Mountain, Antietam and other minor engagements, thirteen in all, without
receiving so much as a scratch, until the bat- tle of Gettysburg, in the afternoon of the first day's fight, while bearing the regimental ban- ner, he had the index finger of his left hand shot away; was shortly after taken prisoner and held in the town of Gettysburg during all of the heavy engagements following. On the morning of the 4th day of July, 1863, the Union army having been victorious, he walked away from the place of his confinement, out through the streets of the little town, viewing the battle field covered with its thousand upon thousands of valiant dead soldiers-a battle field of historic renown, a battle field where . the noble martyr Lincoln in. his unapproach- able gem of a dedication address of the Nation- al cemetery said: "But in a larger sense we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow the ground The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have con- secrated it far above our power to add or de- tract. The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here."
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