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 9
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ATLIFF BOON, who became gov- ernor of Indiana upon the resignation of Jonathan Jennings, September 12, 1822, was born in the state of Georgia January 18, 1781. When he was young his father emigrated to Kentucky, settling in War- ren county. Ratliff Boon learned the gun- smith trade in Danville, Ky., and in 1809 came to Indiana and settled on the present site of Boonville, in what is now Warrfck county. In the organization of this county he took a prominent part, was elected its first treasurer, in the session of 1816-17 he was a memher of the house of representatives, and in 1818 was elected to the state senate. In 1819 he was elected lieutenant governor on the ticket with Jonathan Jennings, whom he succeed, as stated above. He was re-elected to the office of lieutenant governor in 1822, but resigned that office in 1824, to become a candidate for congress, to which he was elected in August of the same year. He was re-elected in 1829-1831-1833-1835 and 1837, serving most of the time as chairman of the com- mittee of public lands. In 1836 he was a candidate for United States senator, but was defeated by Oliver H. Smith. His congres- sional career ended March, 1839, and a few months afterward he removed to Missouri, settling in Pike county. In that state Gov. Boon became active in public affairs, and was one of the leading men of the state. Placing himself in antagonism to Col. Thomas H. Benton, who then controlled the politics of Missouri, he incurred the latter's deadly enmity. He again became a candidate for congress in 1844, but his death on November 20th of that year put an end to his earthly career. Mr. Boon was a pioneer of two states and left the impress of his character upon both.
ILLIAM HENDRICKS, governor of Indiana from 1822 to 1825, was born at Ligonier, Westmoreland county, Pa., in 1783. His parents were Abraham and Ann (Jamison) Hendricks, descendants from old families of New Jersey. William Hendricks was educated at Cannons- burg, Pa., and shortly after his graduation, in 1810, went to Cincinnati, Ohio, where he studied law in the office of Mr. Carry, sup- porting himself in the meantime by teaching school. In 1814 he removed to Indiana, and located at Madison, which continued to be his home during the rest of his life. He began the practice of law at Madison, where he was also identified with journalism for some time, and shortly after his removal to the state he was made secretary of the territorial legisla- ture at Vincennes. In June, 1816, he was appointed secretary of the constitutional con- vention, and in August of the same year was elected as the first and sole representative to congress from the newly created state, serving three successive terms. He discharged the duties of his high position with so much acceptability that at the end of his third term, 1822, he was elected governor of the state without opposition. Before the expiration of his term as governor, the legislature elected him a senator of the United States, and on February 12, 1825, he filed his resignation as governor. In 1831 he was re-elected, and at the expiration of this term, in 1837, he retired to private life and never afterward took upon himself the cares of public office. In 1840 he was one of the state electors on the Van Buren ticket, and it was during the campaign of that year that he contracted a disease from which he suffered the remainder of his life. Gov. Hendricks was a man of imposing ap- pearance. He was six feet in height, hand-
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some in face and figure, and had a ruddy com- plexion. He was easy in manner, genial and kind in disposition, and was a man who at- tracted the attention of all and won the warm friendship of many. He was brought up in the Presbyterian faith, early united with that church, and lived a consistent, earnest, chris- tian life. The Indiana Gazette of 1850 has the following mention of him: "Gov. Hen- dricks was for many years by far the most popular man in the state. He had been its sole representative in congress for six years, elected on each occasion by large majorities, and no member of that body, probably, was more attentive to the interests of the state he represented, or more industrious in arranging all the private or local business intrusted to him. He left no letter unanswered, no public office or document did he fail to visit or examine on request; with personal manners very engaging, he long retained his popu- larity." He died May 16, 1850.
J AMES BROWN RAY. governor of Indi- ana, was born in Jefferson county, Ky., February 19, 1794. Early in life he went to Cincinnati, Ohio, and after studying law in that city he was admitted to the the bar. He began the practice at Brook- ville, Ind., where he soon ranked among the ablest and most influential of an able and ambitious bar.
In 1822 he was elected to the legislature. On the 30th of January, 1824, Lieut. Gov. Rat- liff Boon resigned his office, and Mr. Ray was elected president pro tempore of the senate, and presided during the remainder of the ses- sion. He was governor of the state from 1825 to 1831, and during this time was appointed United States commissioner with Lewis Cass and John Tipton, to negotiate a treaty with
the Miami and Pottawatomie Indians. The constitution of the state prevented the gov- ernor from holding an office under the United States government, in consequence of which he became involved in a controversy. He remembered the difficulty Jonathan Jennings had encountered under like circumstances, and sought to avoid trouble by acting without a regular commission, but his precaution did not save him from trouble. Through his exertions the Indians gave land to aid in building a road from Lake Michigan to the Ohio river. Gov. Ray was active in promoting railroad concen- tration in Indianapolis, and took an active part in the internal improvement of the state. At the expiration of his term of office he resumed the practice of law, and in 1837 was candidate for congress in the Indianapolis dis- trict, but was defeafed by a large majority. This want of appreciation by the public soured him, and in later years he became very eccen- tric. In 1848, while at Cincinnati, he was taken ·with the cholera, which terminated in his death, August 4, of that year. In person Gov. Ray, in his younger days, was very pre- possessing He was tall and straight, with a body well proportioned. He wore his hair long and tied in a queue. His forehead was broad and high, and his features denoted intel- ligence of high order. For many years he was a leading man of Indiana, and no full history of the state can be written without a mention of his name.
OAH NOBLE, fourth governor of Indiana, was born in Clark county, Va., January 15, 1794. When a small boy he was taken by his parents to Kentucky, in which state he grew to man- hood. About the time Indiana was admitted into the Union, Mr. Noble came to the state
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and located at Brookville, where, a few years later, he was elected sheriff of Franklin county. In 1824 he was chosen a representative to the state legislature from Franklin county, in which body he soon became quite popular and gained a state reputation. In 1826 he was appointed receiver of public moneys to suc- ceed his brother, Lazarus Noble, who died while moving the office from Brookville to Indianapolis, in which capacity he continued with great acceptability until his removal, in 1829, by President Jackson. In 1830 he was appointed one of the commissioners to locate and lay out the Michigan road. In 1831 he was a candidate for governor, and although a whig, and the democracy had a large majority in the state, he was elected by a majority of 2,791. This was remarkable, for Milton Stapp, also a whig, was a candidate, and polled 4,422 votes. In 1834 Gov. Noble was a candidate for re-election, when he was also successful, defeating his competitor, James G. Reed, by 7,662 votes. In 1839, after his gubernatorial term had expired, he was elected a member of the board of internal improvements. In 1841 he was chosen a fund commissioner, and the same year was offered by the president of the United States the office of general land com- missioner, which he declined. Gov. Noble died at his home, near Indianapolis, February 8, 1844. Gov. Noble had a laudable ambition to go to the United States senate, and in 1836 was a candidate to succeed William Hen- dricks, but was defeated by Oliver H. Smith. In 1839 he was again a candidate to succeed Gen. John Tipton, but was defeated by Albert S. White on the thirty-sixth ballot. Oliver H. Smith says that Gov. Noble "was one of the most popular men with the masses of the state. His person was tall and slim, and his consti- tution delicate, his smile winning, his voice feeble, and the pressure of his hand irresisti- ble. He spoke plainly and well, but made no
pretense to oratory. As governor he was very popular, and his social entertainments will long be remembered."
0 AVID WALLACE, governor of Indi- ana from 1837 to 1840, was a native of Mifflin county, Pa., born April 24, 1799. He removed with his father to Brookville, Ind., when quite young, and in early manhood began the study of law in the office of Miles Eggleston, a distinguished jurist of that day. In 1823 he was admitted to the bar and soon obtained a large practice. He served in the legislature from 1828 to 1830, and in 1831 was elected lieutenant governor of Indiana, and re-elected in 1834. In 1837 he was elected governor over John Dumont, an able and distingnished lawyer, who lived at Vevay, on the southern border of the state. During his periods of service as legislator and lieutenant governor, he was active as an advo- cate of internal improvements and in estab- lishing a school system, and he was elected governor upon those issues.
In 1841 he was elected to congress from the Indianapolis district, defeating Col. Nathan B. Palmer. As a member of the committee on commerce, he gave the casting vote in favor an appropriation to develop Col. S. T. B. Morse's magnetic telegraph, which vote had great weight in defeating him for re-election in 1843. At the expiration of his term in con- gress he resumed the practice of law, which he continued uninterruptedly until 1850, when he was elected a delegate to the constitutional convention from the county of Marion. In 1856 he was elected judge of the court of com- mon pleas, which position he held until his death, on the 4th of September, 1859. Gov. Wallace was twice married. His first wife was a daughter of John Test, and his second a
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daughter of John H. Sanders. The latter still lives and is prominent in reformatory and religious work. When a young man, Gov. Wallace had a well proportioned body, but in his later years its symmetry was marred by an undue amount of flesh. He had black hair, dark eyes, and a ruddy complexion. He was cultured and well bred, his address was good and his manners unexceptionable. He was a laborious and impartial jurist, a painstaking executive, and as an orator had few equals in the nation.
S AMUEL BIGGER, who succeeded David Wallace as governor of Indi- ana, was born in Warren county, Ohio, March 20, 1802, and was the eldest son of John Bigger, a western pioneer, and for many years a member of the Ohio leg- islature. He was prepared for college in his own neighborhood, graduated with honors from the university at Athens, and afterward began the study of law. In 1829 he removed to Lib- erty, Ind,, where he was duly admitted to the bar, and soon secured a lucrative practice. He remained at Liberty but a short time, remov- ing thence to Rushville, where his public life began in 1834 as representative of Rush coun- ty in the state legislature. He was re-elected in 1835, and shortly after the expiration of his term was chosen judge of the eastern circuit, a position for which he proved himself ably qualified, and which he held in an acceptable manner for many years. In 1840 he was nomi- nated for governor by the whig state conven- tion, and after an exciting race was elected, defeating Gen. Tilghman A. Howard. He was a candidate for re-election in 1843, but was defeated by James Whitcomb. After the ex- piration of his gubernatorial term, Gov. Big- ger moved to Fort Wayne, Ind., and resumed the practice of law, which he continued until
his death, September 9, 1845. "Gov. Bigger possessed talents of a high order, rather sub- stantial than brilliant. His judgment was remarkably sound, dispassionate and discrimi- nating. and it was this chiefly that made him eminently a leader in every circle in which he moved, whether in political life, at the bar, or society at large." He was a man of fine form and presence He was six feet two inches in height and weighed 240 pounds. His hair was black, his eyes a blue hazel, and his complex- ion dark. The expression of his face was kind and benignant, and denoted goodness of heart. He was a patriotic citizen, an incorruptible judge, and an executive officer of very respec- table ability.
J AMES WHITCOMB was born near Windsor, Vt., December 1, 1795. His father removed to Ohio, and settled near Cincinnati, when James was quite young, and it was there upon a farm that the youthful years of the future governor and senator were passed. He received a classical education at Transylvania university, subse- quently studied law, and in March, 1822, was admitted to the bar in Lexington, Fayette county, Ky. Two years later he came to Indi- ana and located at Bloomington, where he soon became known as an able advocate and suc- cessful practitioner. In 1826 he was appointed prosecuting attorney of his circuit, and in the discharge of the duties of this office traveled over a large scope of country and became acquainted with many leading men of the state. In 1830 and 1836 he was elected to the state senate, where he did much to stay the progress of the internal improvement fever which was then at its highest point. In October, 1836, President Jackson appointed Mr. Whitcomb commissioner of the general land office, to
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which he was reappointed by President Van Buren, and served as such until the expiration of the latter's term of office. Early in 1841 he returned to Indiana and resumed the prac- tice of law in Terre Haute, where he soon acquired a large and lucrative business. He was at that time one of the best known and most popular members of his party, and at the democratic state convention of 1843, he was nominated for governor of the state. His op- ponent was Samuel Bigger, whom he defeated by a majority of 2,013 votes. Three years afterward he was re-elected, beating Joseph G. Marshall, the whig candidate, by 3,958 votes. When he became governor he found the state loaded down with debt, upon which no inter- est had been paid for years, but when he left the office the debt was adjusted and the state's credit restored. He also, by his efforts, crea- ted a public sentiment that demanded the establishment of benevolent and reformatory institutions, and he awakened the people to the importance of establishing common schools and providing a fund for their maintenance. During his term of office he raised five reg- iments of infantry that represented the state in the war with Mexico. The legislature of 1849 elected Gov. Whitcomb to the senate of the United States, for which high position he was well qualified by talent, by education and by experience. Owing to feeble health he was unable to discharge his senatorial duties as he wished, and he died from a painful dis- ease when he had served little more than half the term. In 1843 he wrote a pamphlet entitled, "Facts for the People," the most effective treatise against protective tariff ever known. As a lawyer, Mr. Whitcomb ranked among the ablest in the country, and as gov- ernor will always be remembered as one of the ablest of the distinguished men who have occupied that position. Gov. Whitcomb was compactly and strongly built; he was some-
what above the average size of man; he had a dark complexion and black hair. His features were good and expressive, and his manners the most elegant. He was a talented and an honest man, and when the roll of Indiana's great men is made up, among the first in the list will be the name of Whitcomb.
ARIS C. DUNNING was born in Guil- ford county, N. C., in March, 1806, but emigrated to Indiana with his mother and elder brother, and located at Bloomington in 1823. He studied law and was admitted to practice about 1830. In 1833 he was elected to represent Monroe county in the state legislature, and was three times re-elected. In 1836 he was elected to the state senate from Monroe and Brown counties, and remained there until 1840, when he vol- untarily retired. He was chosen as a demo- cratic presidential elector in 1844, and during the campaign exhibited extraordinary energy and ability as a public speaker. In 1846 he was elected lieutenant governor on the demo- cratic ticket, and when Gov. Whitcomb was elected to the United States senate, Mr. Dun- ning succeeded him as governor. After his retirement in 1850, he practiced his profession for many years, having meantime declined a nomination for congress. In 1860 he was a delegate to the Charleston and Baltimore national conventions, where he distinguished himself as an earhest advocate of Stephen A. Douglas, and subsequently worked assiduously for that statesman's election to the presidency. At the breaking out of the rebellion in 1861, Mr. Dunning identified himself with the Union cause, and throughout the war rendered val- iant aid to the country. In 1861 he was elected to the state senate without distinction of party. Subsequently he was elected twice as president of the senate. Goveror Dunning
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was twice married, first to Miss Sarah Alex- ander, and the second time to Mrs. Ellen D. Ashford. Ex-Gov. Dunning takes high rank as one of the self-made men of Indiana, and he filled the many positions of honor and trust conferred upon him with great credit to him- self and to the entire satisfaction of the cit- izens of Indiana.
J OSEPH A. WRIGHT, for seven years governor of Indiana, was born in Wash- ington, Pa , April 17, 1810. In 1819 his family moved to Bloomington, Ind., where he and his two brothers assisted their father at work in a brickyard, and in the brick business generally. In 1822 his father died and he, then fourteen years of age, hav- ing but little if any aid from others, was left entirely upon his own resources. He attended school, and college about two years, and while at college was janitor, rang the bell and took care of the buildings. It is said that what little pocket money he had was made by gath- ering walnuts and hickory nuts in the fall and selling them to students in the winter. He subsequently studied law with Craven P. Hes- ter, of Bloomington, and began the practice of his profession, in 1829, at Rockville, Park county, where he met with good success from the start. In 1833 he was elected to the state legislature, and in 1840, the year of the Har- rison political tornado, was chosen a member of the state senate. He was also elected dis- trict attorney for two terms in 1836 and 1837, and later was appointed by President Polk United States commissioner to Texas. In 1843 he was elected to congress from the Seventh district, over Edward McGaughey, by three majority, and served until Polk was in- augurated, March 4, 1845. In 1849 he was elected governor of Indiana, under the old constitution, and in 1852 was re-elected by
over 20,000 majority, and served until 1857. In the summer of the latter year he was appointed minister to Prussia, by James Buchanan, and as such served until 1861. In 1 862 he was appointed by Gov. Morton United States senator, and sat in the senate until the next January. He was appointed commis- sioner to the Hamburg exposition in 1863, and in 1865 went again to Prussia as United States minister, and remained there until his death, which occurred at Berlin March 11, 1867. Gov. Wright will be best remembered as governor of Indiana, his services in the general assembly, aenate and congress being too brief for him to make much impression in any of those bodies.
As governor, he was an important factor in shaping legislation and molding public opinion. He was an orthodox democrat of the straightest sect, stood high in the councils of his party, and contested with Jesse D. Bright for the leadership, but without success. He was strong with the people but weak with the leaders. In personal appearance Gov. Wright was tall and raw-boned. He had a large head and an unusually high forehead. His hair was light and thin his eyes blue, and his nose and mouth large and prominent. He was an effective speaker, mainly on account of his earnestness and simplicity. While not the greatest man in the state, he was one of the most influential; and to his honor be it said, his influence was exercised for the public good. Economy and honesty in public life, and morality and religion in private station, had in him an advocate and an examplar.
A SHBEL PARSONS WILLARD was born October 31, 1820, at Vernon, Oneida county. N. Y,, the son of Col. Erastus Willard, at one time sheriff of Onedia county. He pursued his pre-
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paratory studies in the Oneida Liberal insti- tute, and when eighteen years of age entered Hamilton college in the class of 1842. After graduating from that institution he studied law for some time with Judge Baker, of his uative county, and later emigrated to Michi- gan, locating in the town of Marshall, where he remained for over a year. He then made a trip to Texas on horseback, and on his return stopped at Carrollton, Ky., and there taught school. After this he taught for some time at Louisville, but subsequently left the school room for the political arena. In the contest for the presidency in 1844, between Clay and Polk, young Willard began stumping for the latter, and during the campaign made a speech in New Albany, Ind., which made such a favorable impression that many of the first men of the town solicited him to come and settle among them. He soon afterward located in New Albany which place remained his home nntil his death. He at once opened a law office, but was compelled to encounter a very able bar, in consequence of which his practice for some time was by no means lucra- tive. The first office he held was that of com- mon councilman. He took pride in the place and won the good opinion of the people irre- spective of party. In 1850 he was elected to the state legislature, and from that time until his death he occupied a conspicuous place in the public mind. Such was his career in the legislature that when the democratic conven- tion of 1852 convened the delegates were met by an overwhelming public sentiment demand- ing the nomination of Willard for lieutenant governor. The demand was recognized and the nomination made. He filled this office until 1856, when he was elected governor, after a very bitter and exciting political con- test. In the summer of 1860 his health gave way, and he went to Minnesota in quest of health, which he did not find, but died there
on October 4th of that year. Gov. Willard was the first governor of Indiana to die in office. The people, without respect to party, paid homage to his remains, and a general feeling of the most profound sorrow was felt at his untimely taking off. "In person Gov. Willard was very preposessing. His head and face were cast in finest molds, his eyes were blue, his hair auburn, and his complexion florid. A more magnetic and attractive man could nowhere be found, and had he lived to the allotted age of mankind he must have reached still higher honors."
BRAM ADAMS HAMMOND, who succeeded to the governorship on the death of A. P. Willard, by virtue of his office of lieutenant governor, was a native of Vermont, born in the town of Brattleboro, March 21, 1814. He came to Indiana when six years of age, and was raised near Brookville, where he began the study of law in the office of John Ryman, a lawyer of note in that town. He was admitted to the bar in 1835, moved to Columbus, Bartholomew county, in 1840, where he was afterward chosen prosecuting attorney, an office which he filled with more than ordinary ability. In 1846 he became a resident of Indianapolis, and the following year removed to Cincinnati, Ohio. He returned to Indianapolis in 1849, and in 1850 was chosen first judge of the com- mon pleas court of Marion county. In 1852 he emigrated to California, and for some time practiced his profession in San Francisco. He soon returned to his adopted state, loca- ting in Terre Haute, where he resided until his election as lieutenant governor in 1852. He made a most excellent presiding officer of the senate, his rulings being so fair and his decisions so just that even his political oppo-
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