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 48
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and he acquitted himself in that celebrated case with an ability that gave him a high standing as an astute and brilliant lawyer. Mr. Warner has also been retained' as counsel in much other important litigation, and his serv- ices are frequently in demand where large and important interests are at stake. He is am- bitious and zealous in his chosen calling, and, in addition to achieving what men call success, has established a reputation for honesty and integrity that has accomplished this laudable aim. In politics Mr. Warner is an active re- publican, and he is often called upon to can- vass the county in the interest of his party being a forcible, effective and eloquent speak- er. He served as attorney for Henry county for two years and resigned the position of city attorney of New Castle upon his removal to Muncie at the date above noted. In 1891 he was made city attorney of Muncie, the duties of which position he has discharged in a very able and satisfactory manner ever since.
In October, 1889, Mr. Warner and Miss Mary V. Cecil, daughter of Gordon and Susan E. Cecil of Perry township, this county, were united in the bonds of wedlock, and their wedded life has been blessed by a family of five interesting children: Etta, Everett, Mabel, Cecil and Emily. Mrs. Warner is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and both she and her husband are prominent factors in the social life of Muncie.
ILLIAM F. WATSON .- Prominent among the representative business men of Delaware county the name of William F. Watson, now prac- tically retired from active life, is worthy of specific mention. Mr. Watson is a native of Ohio, born July 31, 1829, in Licking county, the son of James Watson, a Virginian, who
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settled in the Buckeye state in early manhood. At the age of twenty-one, James Watson married Fanny Francis, daughter of William Francis, of Licking county, and immediately thereafter located on a farm and followed agricultural pursuits until his death, which occurred in the year 1842. He reared a large family, nine members of which, six sons and three daugh- ters, are yet living, namely: Stephen, William F., James, Strawder, Levi, Abraham, Frances, Lacy and Miranda. Two years after her hus- band's death, Mrs. Watson moved with her family to Delaware county, Ind., and settled on a farm, which Mr. Watson had previously bought, and there resided until her death in 1854.
William F. Watson accompanied his widowed mother to Delaware county in 1844, and was early obliged to contribute his full share to the support of her and the other members of the family. He worked at differ- ent places, principally as a farmer, until his twenty-fifth year, at which time he married Miss Mary Brown, daughter of Hugh and Ann (Stephenson) Brown, the ceremony which made them man and wife having been solem- nized on the 26th day of March, 1856. After his marriage, Mr. Watson and wife moved to a farm in Monroe township, where he lived for thirty years, giving his entire attention to agri- cultural pursuits, in which his success was sat- isfactory in an eminent degree. For some time he served as supervisor of highways of his township, and in 1866 was elected trustee of the same, which position he filled by succes- sive re-elections for a period of eight years, which fact attested his popularity with his fel- low citizens, and was also a compliment to his ability as an official In 1876 Mr. Watson was elected to the important office of county commissioner, the duties of which responsible position he discharged with creditable ability for a period of fourteen years, and it was dur-
ing his incumbency that the contract for the present beautiful court house, one of the most imposing temples of justice in the state of Indiana, was awarded, and the building fin- ished. While a member of the board he was untiring in his efforts to promote the welfare of the county by judicious legislation, and he became, in truth, a true guardian of the inter- ests of the people. In the year 1881 he re- moved to a farm one and one-half miles south of Muncie, which he afterward sold and which is now within the corporate limits o' Conger- ville, a suburb of Muncie, and in 1887 moved to the elegant home on east Washington street, where he has since lived.
Mr. Watson still owns his farm in Monroe township, besides other valuable property in the country and city. He was a director in the Delaware County bank for five years, and has since held a similar position in the Delaware County National bank, and is considered one of the financially strong and reliable men of Muncie. In addition to the property enume- rated, he owns a fine farm on the Bethel turn- pike, which he still manages.
Mr. and Mrs. Watson are the parents of five children, namely: Emma, married to Benjamin Rees, died in 1888; Olive, wife of Frank Wilson; Frank, a highly respected young business man of Muncie, who died October 13, 1892; Oscar and Hugh Watson. Mr. Watson has been a republican ever since the organiza- tion of the party, and has taken a very active interest in political questions, on all of which he has very decided and intelligent opinions. Fraternally he is an Odd Fellow, belonging to Muncie lodge, No. 74. Mr. Watson's business career has been signally successful, and for years he has been recognized as a man of force and character in the affairs of Delaware county and the city of Muncie. His chief character- istics, caution, resolution, and determination, combined with intelligent foresight, mark him
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as the peer cf any man in Delaware county, and fully justify the high estimate placed upon him by the business community in which for so many years he has been a prominent factor.
3 AMES E. WILCOXON, deceased, far- mer and merchant, of Muncie, Ind., was a son of Lloyd Wilcoxon, Sr., and was born in Scioto county, Ohio, March 22, 1818, and in 1832 was brought to Indiana by his parents, who settled on a par- tially cleared farm about three miles east of Muncie. He here attended school in the win- ter until of age, and June 25, 1840, married Miss Jemima E. Moore, daughter of John Moore, and at that time' nineteen years old. John Moore had then entered 640 acres on the Smithfield road, all in the woods, excepting a small strip, with numerous red men for neigh- bors. Mr. and Mrs. Wilcoxon began farming near Granville, but, not liking the location, re- turned two years later to a portion of the old Moore homestead, three miles east of Muncie. Here Mr. Wilcoxon became owner of 100 acres, but a few years later sold out and moved six miles north of Muncie and farmed for several years. When the railroad was run through he put in his farm for $5,000 worth of stock in the road, and then traded his stock for 200 acres of the old Moore place and $1,- 800 to boot. On this farm he lived for some years and prospered; he then went to Selma, formed a partnership with his brother-in-law, William J. Moore, in the grain and general goods business, but three years later, about 1857 or 1858, sold his interest in Selma and joined his father, Lloyd, in the grocery trade at Muncie; later he purchased the Neely farm, now a part of Riverside, and this, in turn, he traded for a stock of dry goods, and entered into the trade on Main street, Muncie, oppo-
site the court house, and so continued until some time after the close of the late war, when he retired from active business, and died June 24, 1872, in the fifty-fifth year of his age. He had been a member of the Metho- dist church since his nineteenth year, was a class leader, and died, triumphant, in the arms of Jesus. He had been a great sufferer for eight years from a complication of disorders, but was patient and uncomplaining under his afflictions, relying upon the promise of a bless- eď immortality, and leaving behind an un- spotted name. His widow, Jemima E. (Moore) Wilcoxon, was born May 5, 1821, was converted to Christ in her fifteenth year, and has been a devout and consistent member of the Methodist church to the present day.
Eight children were born to the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Wilcoxon, viz: Levi, sales- man in a wholesale grocery in Indianapolis: John S., whose health was impaired by ex- posure while serving in the Twenty-first Indi- ana heavy artillery during the late war, and who died at the age of twenty-eight years; three that died in infancy; Emma F., wife of Marion M. Richie, general superintendent of the Calumet & Blue Island railway at South Chicago; Lloyd Pierce, a contracting painter, at Muncie, and Flora May, wife of J. Russy Smith, plumber, of Muncie.
LOYD WILCOXON was born May II, 1821, in Scioto county, Ohio. His grandparents, both paternal and maternal, were of English birth and owned large tracts of land in that country. His father, Lloyd Wilcoxon, Sr., was a native of Maryland, and served in the war of 1812. He was afterward engaged at the carpenter's trade in Ohio, and died at Muncie, Ind., at the age of seventy-five years. His mother,
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whose maiden name was Elizabeth Truitt, was a native of Pennsylvania, and a lady of Eng- lish antecedents. When in the eleventh year of his age (1832), the subject of this biog- raphy came with his parents to Delaware county, with whose industrial interests he afterward became very prominently identified. Too young when he left Ohio to have enjoyed to any extent the educational privileges of that state, he attended the subscription schools of Delaware county during the winter seasons fol- lowing his arrival. The daily round of labor on the farm occupied the greater portion of his time, and trained thus to early habits of indus- try, he grew up with a character that taught him to love work, rather than to shun it. He soon became the owner of a farm, in the cul- tivation of which he was engaged until 1852. So successful were his labors that, in that year, he was enabled to come to Muncie and engage in the purchase and sale of grain. In 1858 he added the manufacture of flour, erecting a large flouring mill just south of the Bee Line track, on Walnut street. To this he has added substantial improvements from time to time, supplying it with the best ma- chinery and making it, in all respects, a first- class mill. In 1883 the mill burned, was af- terward repaired, and now is used as a hominy mill.
He is a strict temperance man, and carries his principles into his business, employing no man who uses intoxicating liquors as a bever- age. He has been identified with the Meth- odist Episcopal church since he was sixteen years of age, and has proven himself a worthy exemplar of the faith he professes. In 1854, he became a member of the Independent Or- der of Odd Fellows; during that year he re- ceived. all the degrees of the subordinate lodge and encampment, and, two years later, he was chosen to represent both branches of the order at the grand lodge of Indiana. His early po-
litical training was in the democratic school; but the platform and the principles of the re- puqlican party, at its organization, harmonized with his own views, and he was among the first to join its ranks. March 28, 1842, he was united in marriage with Miss Rhoda, daugh- ter of Lewis Moore, an early settler of Dela- ware county. This union was blessed with nine children-Mary A., now deceased, was the wife of John R. Mason; Sarah E. is the wife of J. Milton Long; Amanda H. is the wife of Henry Bowman; John W., deceased; Martha C., wife of W. H. Long; Charles N .; Lydia J., wife of Thomas O. Cunningham; Zulena and Emma P., who reside with their parents.
a HARLES FREDERICK WILDER- MUTH, deceased, was born in the kingdom of Wurtemberg, Germany, October 26, 1844. He was a son of Gotleib and Friedrica (Rieger) Wildermuth, both natives of Wurtemberg, and born respect- ively in 1814 and 1819. Gotleib was a baker by trade, and in early life married Miss Rie- ger; their union was blessed with five chil- dren, born and named in the following order: Charles Frederick, whose name opens this sketch; Friedrica, now Mrs. Oehler, of Union City, Randolph county, Ind .; Lewis, a farmer near Winamac, Pulaski county, Ind .; Freder- ick, deceased, and Wilhelmina, the wife of Joseph Vogt, a merchant tailor of Muncie. Gotleib Wildermuth resided in the town of Ottmarsheim, Wurtemberg, all his life, and there he reared his children and followed his trade until he reached an advanced age, when he retired, to enjoy in ease and comfort the fruit of an industrious early life. April 27, 1876, he passed away from earth at the age of sixty-two, he being a member of the Lutheran church, and mourned by a large circle of
CHAS. F. WILDERMUTH.
off & Hildman
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friends and acquaintances. In 1878 his widow was wedded to Carl Klein, and the pair there- after made their home in Waldheim, Germany, where they still reside.
Charles Frederick Wildermuth learned the baker's trade in his native city, with his father, beginning his apprenticeship at the age of four- teen. When twenty-one he came to the United States, landing at New York. whence he made his way to Dayton, Ohio, where for a short time he industriously worked at his trade, and then went to New Orleans, where, as is usual with unacclimated residents, he was seized with yellow fever. He was then a vigorous young man, and succeeded in baffling the dreadful disease, and after his recovery he re- turned to Dayton, Ohio, where he again fol- lowed his calling for a short time, and then located permanently in Muncie, which city, however, he had previously visited, and where he worked for Mr. Joseph Hummel, being also otherwise employed for a short time, and then purchased a business place for himself, which he successfully conducted until his death, July 6, 1893.
February 22, 1872, Mr. Wildermuth was most happily married to Miss Fannie Geiger, daughter of Frederick and Christina (Harbold) Geiger, residents of Muncie, but natives re- spectively of Germany and Canada. The union was blessed with three children, Edward, Min- nie, and Lewis, all of whom, with their mother, are still living.
Mr. Wildermuth was reared a Lutheran, having been confirmed at the age of fourteen. He was a member, also, of Muncie lodge No. 74, I. O. O. F., also of the German Benevo- lent association, and was an upright man. He was of a happy, cheerful disposition, a doting father and loving husband, was easy of ap- proach to all who sought his charity or assist- ance, and was a careful and successful busi- ness man. His loss will be long felt by his
family and the public in general, with whom he had hosts of friends.
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AJ. JOHN F. WILDMAN, senior of the firm of Wildman & McClung, proprietors of the Muncie Times, was born near Madison, Jefferson county, Ind., January 1, 1842, and is a son of Enos and Jane M. (Elliott) Wildman. Enos Wildman was a native of Leesburg, Va., and died in Jefferson county, Ind., in 1878. Mrs. Jane M. Wildman, whose father was a soldier in the war of 1812, was born in Dayton, Ohio, and died iu Jefferson county, Ind., in 1880.
John F. Wildman had just entered Han- over college to prepare himself for encounter- ing the realities of life, when the cannon of Fort Sumter summoned him to a sterner en- counter. At almost the first call to arms for the defense of the Union, he volunteered as a private in company E, Third Indiana cavalry, June 28, 1861, and was mustered in, August 22, 1861, and was in continuous service, without being off duty one day, four years and eight days, being mustered out of the service September 4, 1865. His work was that of a faithful soldier, but his acts were brave, and his deeds daring, and in consequence his pro- motion rapid. For meritorious conduct at the battle of Gettysburg, he was promoted from private in the Third Indiana cavalry, and com- missioned adjutant of the One Hundred and Thirtieth Indiana volunteer infantry, Decem- ber 5, 1863, and for meritorious service at the battle of Nashville he was commissioned major of the One Hundred and Fifty-third Indiana volunteer infantry, March 30, 1865.
Among other of the battles in which the major took part, and in which bravery on the field led to his promotion, may be mentioned those with the Third Indiana cavalry: Fred-
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ericksburg, Thoroughfare Gap, Upperville, Piedmont, Chancellorsville, Brandy Station, Middletown, Boonsburg, Antietam, Gettys- burg, Beverly's Ford, Warrentown, etc., and with the One Hundred and Thirtieth Indiana volunteer infantry: Red Clay, Rocky Face Ridge, Resaca, Lost Mountain, Pine Mount- ain, Kenesaw, Chattahoochee River, Decatur, Atlanta, Jonesboro, Lovejoy's Station, Nash- ville, Wise's Forks, Kinston, Goldsboro.
In further recognition of Maj. Wildman's services, he was appointed to a position in the treasury department, Washington, D. C., in December, 1865, held it until April, 1867, and was appointed and confirmed collector of in- ternal revenue of the Eleventh district, Ind., with headquarters at Anderson, which position he held a number of years. Upon retiring from the revenue service, he purchased, in 1883, the Muncie Times, and has since been the act- ive manager and one of the leading writers. He has served the Odd Fellows as grand master of the state, and represented the state, with creditable ability, at two sessions of the Sovereign Grand lodge at the meetings in Boston and Denver. Also a member and worker in the Knights of Honor, A. O. U. W., Fraternal Union, G. A. R., and the various branches of the Masonic order, in some of which he held important positions. Politically a republican and an active worker, he was never a candidate for an elective office, and never held any office except the one mention- ed, revenue collector. He has frequently been a delegate to conventions of his party, and served as such in the national convention that nominated Benjamin Harrison for president, from the Sixth district. He is public spirited, and an advocate of all public improvements. The marriage of the Major took place Sep- tember 25, 1867, to Miss S. J. Pierce, of Ash- tabula, Ohio.
In the fall of 1892, a new building for the
Muncie Times, on north Walnut street, 223x 85 feet, at a cost of $4, 300, was erecled, and was taken possession of January 1, 1893, and under the management of Major Wildman the Times has become a recognized power in the republican party of the state. The attention of the reader is called to the life like portrait of the major on an adjacent page. The major is a fluent and trenchant writer and a shrewd business man withal. Not at all bombastic, he is nevertheless ornate, and his logic is in- controvertible, and his party may well con- gratulate itself on the fact that it has at the head of its principal organ in Muncie a gentle- man who so happily combines the qualities of a good writer with those of a first class busi- ness man.
J AMES S. WILLIAMS, treasurer of the city of Muncie, is a well known resi- dent and one of her most esteemed citizens. He was born in Adams county, Ohio, April 4, 1855, son of Ebenezer B. and Catherine M. (Nesbit) Williams, who removed from Ohio to Grant county, Ind., in 1855. The father was a carpenter by trade, politically a democrat and served as a justice of the peace in Grant county for many years. He and wife were both members of the Chris- tian church, and both passed their last days in Grant county.
James S. Williams is the third in a family of six children and was educated in the schools of Lebanon, attending the National Normal school at Lebanon, Ohio, and also the schools at Marion, Ind., after which he engaged in teaching school in Grant and Tipton counties for several years. During this time he was unfortunately sunstruck, and after recovering from this serious misfortune, found himself unable to accomplish anything in the way of employment which would necessitate any hard
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VOLNEY WILLSON.
MRS. ELIZABETH WILLSON.
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labor, hence he learned the barber business. This he followed until August, 1881, when he came to Muncie, Ind., and opened up a bar- ber business, so continuing until 1891, when he was elected on the democratic ticket to his present responsible office. He is a prominent member of the I. O. O. F. and of the Citi- zens' Enterprise company.
Mr. Williams was married, in 1882, to' Miss Martha A. Randall, a daughter of Joseph Randall, of Muncie, and is the father of one little daughter, Blanche. He and wife are active members of the Central Christian church, in which he is a deacon and has served as superintendent of the Sunday school. The family possesses the regard and esteem of the entire community.
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POLNEY WILLSON (deceased) was an early settler in the town of Muncie, and was well known throughout the country as a farmer and capitalist. He was born April 12, 1816, at Easton, Wash- ington county, N. Y. His father, Osborn Will- son, was a native of Vermont, but removed to Washington county, N. Y., and resided at the town of Greenwich for sixty years. He died February 13, 1880, at the age of eighty-seven years. The mother of Volney was Susan (Clapp) Willson, a lady of Welsh antecedents on the father's side, while the maternal ances- tors were Scotch. She was born in Salem, Washington county, N. Y., and died in August, 1875, in her seventy-sixth year. Volney was the eldest of twelve children, eleven of whom, at some time during their lives, were engaged in school teaching. He received his prelimi- nary education in the district schools of his na- tive county, and when he was twelve years old, entered a seminary at Union village, N. Y., where he pursued his studies during the four
succeeding summers. Afterward he engaged in teaching school during the winter, and in summer was employed on the home farm. When twenty-one years of age he came to Muncie and taught school for two years. At the end of that time he formed a partnership with John A. Gilbert in the grocery trade, but about two years later, again engaged in teaching school. During the next few years he was engaged alternately in teaching, superintending his farm of 500 acres, and acting as deputy treas- urer of Delaware county. In 1844. he was elected to the office of county treasurer, and was re-elected three consecutive terms, this fact being a sufficient guarantee of his ability and the confidence reposed in him by the peo- ple. After 1853, he devoted his time to farm- ing and stock raising, brokerage transactions and buying and selling wool, cattle, etc. He was regarded as one of the leading farmers of the state, as he was one of the most system- atic. His domain of 900 acres was well culti- vated and bore evidence of skilled tillage in all of its departments. He was quite enthusiastic with the state fairs in an official capacity. He was a friend of public enterprises, and sub- scribed liberally to all the railroads and turn- pikes centering in Muncie. He was a director and treasurer of the Muncie & Granville turn- pike, and of the Muncie & Yorktown Turnpike company. For eight years he was a director of the Branch bank of the State of Indiana, at Muncie, and had been a stockholder in the Cincinnati & Chicago, the Lafayette, Muncie & Bloomington, and the Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati & Indianapolis railroads.
He was a man of vigorous physique, and, up to the day of his death, pursued his daily labor, uninterrupted by any premonition of his speedy demise. He died suddenly on Monday morning, June 1, 1868, leaving a wife and four children. A city paper, in an obituary article contained the following tribute to his
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memory: "He was widely known throughout this community, and respected by all who knew him. Honest, upright, enterprising and frugal, he was an example worthy of imitation by all young men. His integrity and fair dealing were above suspicion, and no one bore a more unsullied character. He was thor- oughly identified with the interests of Muncie, which he had made his home for so many years, and quietly accomplished much in ad- vancing her prosperity."
In politics, he was originally a whig, but later became a republican. He attended all of the political state conventions during the past twenty-five years of his life, having offici- ated several times as a delegate. In 1876, he was chosen as a delegate to the republican national convention, Philadelphia, but declined. He was independent in his religious views, yet he was a generous contributor to the erection and maintenance of churches, and every church in Muncie owes something to his liber- ality. He was initiated into the Independent Order of Odd Fellows in 1852, and has taken all the degrees of the subordinate lodge. He was also a friend to the cause of education. In his business relations Mr. Willson always sustained a reputation for honest and fair dealing, and he was never involved in a suit at law on his own account, He was appreci- ated by all who knew him, and was recognized as a reliable and worthy citizen. In Febru- ary, 1843, he was united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth Gilbert, a daughter of John Alsop Gilbert, and reared a family consisting of two daughters and four sons.
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