USA > Indiana > Newton County > A standard history of Jasper and Newton counties, Indiana : an authentic narrative of the past, with an extended survey of modern developments in the progress of town and country, Volume I > Part 20
USA > Indiana > Jasper County > A standard history of Jasper and Newton counties, Indiana : an authentic narrative of the past, with an extended survey of modern developments in the progress of town and country, Volume I > Part 20
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).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40
ORGANIZATION OF THE TOWNSHIPS
When the first Board of Commissioners of Newton County met, April 23, 1860, there were five townships within their jurisdiction- Beaver, Jackson, Lake, Iroquois and Washington, and the first busi- ness which came before that body was the proposition to form another township from that portion of Washington lying south of the Iroquois River. The petition to that effect, which was granted, was signed by Ralph Swigget and others, and thus Jefferson Town- ship was created.
On June 7, 1860, the commissioners ordered that Civil Township No. I, Iroquois Township, should consist of towns 27 and 28, range 8; No. 2, Jackson Township, of towns 29. 30, 31 and 32, range 8; No. 3, Lake Township, town 31, ranges .9 and 10; No. 4, Beaver Township, towns 29 and 30, ranges 9 and 10; No. 5, Washington Township, town 28, ranges 9 and 10, lying on the north side of the
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Iroquois River; and No. 6, Jefferson Township, town 27, ranges 9 and I0, lying south of the river.
On December 2, 1862, the petition headed by Z. T. Wheaton to set off McClellan from Beaver Township was granted, its territory to comprise town 30, ranges 9 and 10.
Grant Township was organized December 6, 1865, by striking from Iroquois Township all of town 27, range 8. The petitioners were R. C. Currens, Blake Wilson, F. C. Pierce and thirty others, and the commissioners appointed A. L. Martin to act as trustee of the new township until regular officials should be elected.
On March 9, 1871, Philip Miller and others presented a petition asking for the erection of a township out of the territory lying in towns 30, 31 and fractional 32, range 8, to be called Colfax. It was granted; and thus Grant and Colfax, who were then in the middle of their term as President and vice president of the United States, were embalmed in Newton County history.
On September 2, 1872, the board of commissioners granted the petition of M. D. Kay and fourteen others that Colfax Township be divided, and on this petition town 31 and town 32 south of the Kankakee River in range 8, was erected into Lincoln Township. It was also ordered that Aaron Wilson be appointed its trustee.
The foregoing accounts for the formation of the ten townships into which Newton County is now divided.
ROSTER OF COUNTY OFFICIALS
Zechariah Spitler was the first clerk of the Circuit Court of Newton County, serving from 1860 to 1864. The successive in- cumbents of that position have been as follows: E. L. Urmston, 1864-68; Nathaniel West, 1868-70; Andrew Hall, 1870-76; W. W. · Gilman, 1876-80; John G. Davis, 1880-88; W. H. Kenoyer, 1888-96; Ira Drake, 1896-1904; Reuben Hess, 1904-10; Howard McCurry, 1910-15 (died in office) ; Charles M. Daniel, present incumbent, appointed to succeed Mr. McCurry.
County treasurers: Samuel Mccullough, 1860-64; Samuel Bramble, 1864-68; Alexander Myers, 1868-72 ; Daniel A. Pfrimmer, 1872-76; John F. Johnson, 1876-80; George G. Jenkins, 1880-84; Isaac Smart, 1884-88; Samuel Martindale, 1888-92; Alfred Jenkins, 1892-96; William H. Ade, 1896-1900; Frank Coovert, 1900-04; Charles Spinney, 1904-09; Albert J. Schuh, 1909-14 ; Frank C. Rich, in office (1916).
Recorders : John Ade, 1860-64; John Peacock, 1864-72; Ezra
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B. Jones, 1872-80; George M. Bridgeman, 1880-84; Elisha Parsons, 1884-87; Henry Parsons, 1887-88; John Higgins, 1888-96; Albert M. Boyle, 1896-1901; W. H. Boyle, 1901-10; W. H. Burton, in office (1916).
Auditors : Alexander Sharp, 1860-64 ; John Ade, 1864-68; Alex- ander Ekey, 1868-72; John S. Veatch, 1872-76; John Z. Johnston, 1876-80; Alexander Sharp, 1880-83 (died in office) ; John Z. John- ston (by appointment and election), 1883-88; Marion C. Coover, 1888-96; Schuyler C. Jones, 1896-1905; Alonzo Purkey, 1905-09; Elmer R. Brigham, 1909-13; S. R. Sizelove, since January 1, 1913.
Sheriffs : Elijah I. Shriver, 1860-64 ; Horace K. Warren, 1864-66; Charles Frankenberger, 1866-68; Horace K. Warren, 1868-72; Wil- liam A. Patrick (resigned), 1872-73; Jira Skinner (by appointment and re-election), 1873-78; Hugh Parker, 1878-80; John W. S. Ulrey, 1880-84; Samuel Martindale, 1884-88; John W. Randall, 1888-92; Lawrence Graves, 1892-96; Chester Wickwire, 1896-1900; Jasper J. Collins, 1900 (six months) ; John A. Wildasin, 1900-04; Henry Stoner, 1904-08; Moses C. Sawyer, 1908-12; William Dow- ling, 1912-14; E. S. Hess, since 1914.
Surveyors : Adam W. Shideler; Barnett Hawkins, 1864-70; Joseph Chambers, 1872-74 ; Milton Cook, 1874-76; Benjamin Harris, 1876-78; Otis Shepard, 1878-82; N. F. Jenkins, 1882-84; Robert Hamilton, 1884-90; Jesse M. Lockwood, 1890-94; Barnett Hawkins, 1894-1900; Edward H. Hamilton, 1900-07; John J. Alter, 1907-09; Greenberry G. Lowe, 1909-12; William A. Parker, 1912-14, by appointment, John A. Bruck failing to qualify ; J. R. Deardurff, in office since the latter year.
THE COUNTY'S GOLDEN ANNIVERSARY
On the 21st of April, 1860, Thomas R. Barker, organizing sheriff of the new County of Newton, met the two county commissioners, William Russell and Michael Coffelt, at the Town of Kent, which had just been selected as the county seat, and, after administering the oath of office to them, declared them qualified to transact any business which should come before them. The board then approved the bond of the clerk of the Circuit Court; the sheriff swore that official into office, and, through the official acts of the commissioners, the clerk of the court and the sheriff, as has already been described in detail, the complete civil machinery of the new county was set in motion on that day (April 21, 1860).
Fifty years afterward, the event was commemorated by a public
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celebration at Kentland, which had maintained its position as the county seat ; but, with one exception, all of the officials who had thus been present at the civil birth of Newton County had been called away to a state of being where politics are presumably unknown. The exception was the venerable John Ade, the first recorder and auditor of the county, and to him the author is also indebted for the following account of the celebration: "Thursday, April 21, 1910, was a great day for Kentland and Newton County, for on that day was celebrated the golden anniversary of the organization of Newton County. About a week previous to that time a public meeting had been called by the citizens for the purpose of making arrangements to celebrate the event. Committees were appointed to make the necessary arrangements, and well did the several committees per- form their respective duties. The day opened beautifully, so far as weather was concerned. This was the more remarkable from the fact that it was the only fine day we had for a long time, both be- fore and after this date. There was nothing doing in the afternoon, except the meeting of old friends and acquaintances, the talking over of old-time incidents and the comparing of conditions existing fifty years before with those of the present day.
"The afternoon program began with an automobile parade of school children, each waving an American flag. There were about forty autos in the parade, conveying not less than 350 school chil- dren. All were singing songs and waving flags, showing that they were happy, and all who witnessed this unusual parade were happy with them. This parade was followed by a meeting in the court- house, the courtroom being filled to the last inch, and scarcely one- third of those desiring admittance could get in.
"John Ade, the only surviving member of the roster of county officials, who were installed fifty years before, on April 21, 1860, called the meeting to order. He was immediately presented, by Sherman White, of Brook, with a gavel made from a part of the chinking between the logs of the building in which the first term of court was held, after the organization of Jasper county, in 1838. The venerable C. McCain then offered up a prayer of thankfulness to the Author of all good for the many blessings enjoyed and asked that the same might long be continued to us.
"This was followed by a short talk by the presiding officer. William Darroch then reviewed the history of the courts of the county. He embellished his narrative with some good stories and also gave a history of some of the noted trials in the county. Fred H. Longwell then made a most interesting address, after which the
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meeting adjourned to the courthouse yard. Here the crowd was treated to a very fine display of Japanese day fireworks, something entirely new to many and a source of great pleasure to all. Then came a game of soft baseball between the business men of Brook and Kentland, followed by more fireworks and adjournment until 7:30 P. M.
"At the night meeting, held in the courthouse, the presiding officer read letters from Judge S. P. Thompson, Judge Peter H. Ward, John B. Conner, J. C. Martin and Daniel Dearduff. He then introduced Judge U. Z. Wiley, of Indianapolis, formerly judge of Newton circuit court. Judge Wiley is a pleasing speaker upon any occasion, but especially so when the line of talk is reminiscent.
"Judge Edwin P. Hammond was then introduced by the chair, and in his quiet, dignified manner, talked for nearly an hour. His association with Newton county, he stated, extended back to the days of the famous Bank of America, at Morocco, in the early fifties. Judge Hammond is a grand old man and Newton county is proud of the claim she has upon him."
INCREASE IN POPULATION
Although the population of Newton County has steadily in- creased since its first census was taken in 1860, the most noteworthy growth has been in the southern portion, which contains the in- corporated towns, the best railway facilities and the most improved highways. The most marked increase is exhibited by Iroquois Township, which is largely attributable to the expansion of the Town of Brook. Jefferson Township, including Kentland, and Grant Township, including Goodland, have also increased in population within the past twenty years, although not so rapidly as Iroquois. These three southern townships now contain nearly 60 per cent of the population of the county. The cause of this is largely due to the fact that, with drainage and scientific farming, the productive area of the lands has been increased, while the number of required cultivators has been lessened; many of the older residents have moved to the towns, where they have invested their capital or gone into business, with the result that the centers of population have expanded at the expense of the country districts.
POPULATION, 1860, 1870, 1880
Keeping in mind the years when the different townships were organized, the following tabular statement of the county's population by townships will be understood :
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Townships
1860
1870
1880
Beaver
501
637
898
Jackson
412
766
795
Iroquois
434
619
818
Jefferson
304
1,606
1,964
Lake
173
378
593
Washington
536
983
1,105
Grant
699
1,508
McClellan
I4I
155
Colfax
I50
Lincoln
Totals
.2,360
5,829
8,167
The first census of the towns taken by the national enumerators was as follows: Kentland, 1870, 802 ; Goodland, 1880, 620; Morocco, 1890, 397 ; Brook, 1900, 677 ; Mt. Ayr, 1910, 231.
POPULATION, 1890, 1900, 1910
The Federal census for the years 1890, 1900 and 1910, by town- ships and towns, presents the following figures :
1910
1900
1890
Newton County
10,504
10,448
8,803
Beaver Township, including Morocco Town ..
1,524
1,600
1,052
Morocco Town
927
020
397
Colfax Township
297
27I
128
Grant Township, including Goodland Town ..
1,762
1,716
1,624
Goodland Town
1,105
1,205
889
Ward I
465
Ward 2
228
Ward 3
412
... .
Iroquois Township, including Brook Town ..
1,828
1,590
1,003
Brook Town
1,067
677
Jackson Township, including Mount Ayrtown
834
913
947
Mount Ayr
231
Jefferson Township, including Kentland Town
1,954
1,816
1,875
Kentland Town
1,209
1,006
918
Lake Township
489
489
462
Lincoln Township
701
760
518
McClellan Township
227
299
178
Washington Township
888
994
1,016
.
18I
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JASPER AND NEWTON COUNTIES
ASSESSED VALUATION OF PROPERTY, 1916
While in the field of statistics, it may be as well to close the topic with the last figures gleaned from the assessors' reports in the spring of 1916. From them the following facts appear, showing the value of taxables in Newton County and the amount of taxes raised from them:
Townships and Towns
Total Value of Real Estate
Value of Personal and Corporation Property
(Mortgage exemp- tions deducted)
Total Taxes
Iroquois Twp. .. $1,195,830
$ 244,940
$ 1,508,353
$ 29,550.98
Jackson Twp.
767,270
177,660
968,880
25,571.92
Lake Twp.
390,910
81,660
629,213
16,880.4I
Beaver Twp.
. 791,270
168,230
1,167.943
21,061.39
Washington Twp. 1,248,850
298,470
1,745,868
37,625.92
Jefferson Twp ... 1,667,330
261,280
2,248,744
42,761.91
McClellan Twp ..
414,040
37,980
631,551
14,979.88
Grant Twp.
1,251,920
207,780
1,592,179
32,756.19
Colfax Twp.
314,820
95,290
430,234
II,445.4I
Lincoln Twp.
445.940
135,740
800,566
24,740.74
Kentland Town ..
395,020
353,720
785,370
28,536.10
Goodland Town.
277,350
287,910
584,879
25,093.33
Morocco Town ..
240,080
197,760
433,651
17,395.99
Brook Town ....
306,630
272,570
576,222
18,901.57
Mt. Ayr Town ..
28,250
49,580
79,606
2,667.88
Totals
$9,735.510
$2,870,570
$14,183,259
$349.969.62
Net Value of Tax- ables
OTHER STATISTICS FOR 1915-16
The last report of the county auditor conveys a variety of inter- esting information. It indicates that on January 1, 1916, there was a balance of over $109,000 in the treasury, and that during the pre- ceding year $548,638 had been received from all sources and $439,142 disbursed. For the support and development of the public school system over $124,000 had been received from the various funds and $123,000 expended ; the receipts to be applied to macadam and gravel roads amounted to $169,000, of which $154,000 was expended. Over $36,000 was expended on the item of ditch con- struction and bonds. The most important ditches under construc- tion are the Templeton and Salisbury.
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IMPROVED ROADS IN THE COUNTY
It appears that the townships which were most enterprising in the issuing of bonds for the extension of good roads were Jefferson, Washington, Iroquois and Grant, in the order named, and that the greatest expenditures were upon the Kessler, Simons, Donohue Sil- vers, Mulligan and Rainford roads. The good roads movement commenced in Newton County about fifteen years ago and, although there are now nearly 400 miles of substantial macadam and gravel highways within its limits, there are still large tracts in the northern and central portions of the county in which such improvements are badly needed. But decided progress has been made, and more is to come.
In 1910, according to John Ade, the number of miles of good, finished stone roads in Newton County, was as follows: Jefferson Township, 36; Grant, 33; Iroquois, 28; Beaver, 23; Lincoln, 14; Lake, 8; McClellan, 8. Total, 150. Since that year great improve- ments have been made both in the quality of the roadbeds and the extent of the highways. Yet Mr. Ade cannot forbear to revert to the good old prairie roads, thus: "The old prairie roads in the fall of the year were, however, the model roads, and we will never have anything again to equal them for easy traveling. There was a yielding of the sod, so that a horse would not tire as he does on a hard road. Horses brought here in a lame condition, or with tender feet, would get entirely sound again in time." Of course, the all- around object of the good roads movement is to have the highways in such shape that they will be in good condition at all seasons of the year.
IN THE DAYS OF THE TRAILS AND STAGE ROUTES
The tendency in the early period of the settlement of Newton County was to conform to the main routes of the Indian trails, which either closely followed the Valley of the Iroquois in Newton County eastward toward the Grand Prairie, especially the Blue Grass Village, and thence on to LaPorte, or to strike off boldly on a tangent toward Lake Michigan and the Chicago District, via the Morocco Region. The first lines of land travel followed by the pioneers were along these trails until they became sure enough of their surrounding's to locate lines independent of them. An early if not the first road through Newton County was from Buncum, Illinois, to Rensselaer. Another was from Morocco to Rensselaer ;
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JASPER AND NEWTON COUNTIES
a third was one direct to Lafayette, and another to Momence, Illi- nois, and thence on to Chicago. A mail route was early established between Logansport, Rensselaer and Buncum, Illinois, with an office at White Post, the residence of Zachariah Spitler. This was main- tained between the two latter places until 1864. In the fall of 1854, as stated, a postoffice was established at the Town of Morocco, and a mail route allowed from there to Rensselaer on condition that it was to be sustained entirely by the citizens along the route. At the same time, or shortly after, a postoffice was established at Pilot Grove. This state of things existed until about 1859, when the Government adopted the route and placed it under the same rules and provisions governing other mail routes.
These lines of communication served the demand of the early community until the thicker settlements and the conflicting claims of the various farm owners demanded a more complete system of roads, when the numerous local trails from one neighbor to another were made to give way to regularly established highways. The marshy character of the streams and the unfortunate character of the gen- eral conformation of the land have made roads and bridges an im- portant and difficult subject. The character of the streams has changed from the rather sluggish current and pretty constant stage of water to a rapid rise and fall of water. This change, with the unfavorable character of the banks, has made bridging expensive, and a spirit of short-sighted economy has kept public improvements in this particular in a rather backward state. Three iron bridges have been constructed at a cost of upward of $20,000; four wooden bridges made up the seven which spanned the waterways of the county ; but all of these latter structures were swept away by the high water of the winter of 1882-83 and were replaced by more sub- stantial structures. Lafayette was the point at which the early mer- chants got their goods, and these were brought on wagons over the forty odd miles of tedious road that intervened.
"Prior to the year 1853," says John Ade, "at which time the railroad between Indianapolis and Lafayette was completed, and the Illinois Central began to run trains between Chicago and Kankakee, there would be in the fall of each year an immense amount of travel on the roads between Lafayette and Chicago, mostly farmers' teams hauling wheat to Chicago or coming back loaded with salt and groceries of all kinds, either for their own use or for the merchants who had purchased stocks of goods east and shipped the same to Chicago by way of the lakes. To accommodate this travel, camping places and in several instances 'taverns,' as they were then called, had
1
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JASPER AND NEWTON COUNTIES
been established a few miles apart all the way between Lafayette and Chicago.
"After leaving Lafayette the first would be Oxford, at that time the county seat of Benton county. Parish Grove was the next point ; then Sumner's Grove, between Mud Pine and Sugar Creek; then Bunkum, at which point there were two taverns, one on each side of the Iroquois river. The next was the Buck Horn tavern, located near where the present town of Donovan, Illinois, stands. This was kept for many years by the father of John Donovan, the latter now living at Watseka, Illinois, and one of its most prominent citizens. The next tavern was at the crossing of Beaver Creek, and the next was known as the Big Spring, about half way between Beaver Creek and Momence. Then, on to Momence, at the crossing of the Kanka- kee river. The next general stopping place was called Yellow Head Point, said to be named after an Indian who lived there, by the name of Yellow Head. The next point on the road was Blue Island, and then came Chicago, a distance of about one hundred and thirty miles from Lafayette and taking six to eight days to make the trip.
"I think it was in February, 1858, that John Darroch, John Smart, Daniel Ash, Elias Atkinson, myself, and possibly one or two others, each with a wagon loaded with twenty-five or thirty bushels of shelled corn in sacks, started from Morocco for Kankakee to dispose of the grain and bring back merchandise. The roads had been frozen enough to bear up our loads, but the weather had turned warm and the roads thawed quite rapidly during the day. When we reached the Kankakee river at Aroma (now Waldron) we could not cross below the dam. Above the dam the river was frozen over, but it was doubtful if the ice would bear up the team and load together. So we led the teams over and pulled the loads across by hand, and arrived at Kankakee some time after dark, putting up there for the night.
"The next morning we disposed of our corn at twenty-four cents per bushel, laid in our supplies, and in the afternoon started for home. Owing to the fact that the warm weather had continued and it was considered unsafe to cross the Kankakee on the ice, we returned by way of Momence, where there was a bridge across the river. We spent our second night there. The next morning after breakfast we struck out for home. Elias Atkinson, however, had got up early and started out a couple of hours ahead of the rest of us. We had made but a few miles, however, when we caught up with him. He had started across a slough and had stopped on a big cake of ice-was afraid to go ahead and could not turn around to come back. So
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JASPER AND NEWTON COUNTIES
there he stood, waiting for the rest of the company to come up and relieve him, which we did, and he remained with the crowd the rest of the day.
"We stopped to feed and eat our mid-day meal at what was known then as the outlet of Beaver Lake. In a wet time, Beaver Lake would overflow and the water run down through the willow prairie, emptying into Beaver Creek near the state line.
"After dinner (I cannot say just what it consisted of, but I have it stored away in my memory as one of the best meals I had tasted for a long time) we started for home, reaching there about night of the third day. At that time it was not thought the trip was any- thing strange or remarkable, but it is a fair illustration of the con- ditions under which this county began its history."
PROJECTION AND BUILDING OF ITS RAILROADS
The first railroad projects which interested the people of New- ton County proposed to build lines toward Rock Island and Chicago, Illinois, north instead of south of the Iroquois River. In 1854 a line was projected from New London, Ohio, to Chicago, but it was killed by the hard times of 1857. The air line from Fort Wayne to Rock Island met with the same fate from the same cause. Rensse- laer and Kankakee were competitors for the junction, the line to pass through Newton County, and considerable grading was actually done in Jackson and Beaver townships. As projected, the air line was to pass about three miles north of Morocco, but not only did the general hard times of 1857 descend upon the scheme, but the defalcation of the Ohio state treasurer, whose bond had been signed by some of the men most prominent in the railroad project, was a specially crushing blow which tended to completely blot out the pro- posed air line.
The Logansport & Peoria Railroad was built through the south- ern part of Newton County in 1859, the first train passing over the road on Christmas day of that year, and it was entirely opened for business in March, 1860. At that time there were few settlers along the line from Reynolds to the state line. Kentland was not platted until the following month. It has long been a part of the Penn- sylvania system, and both Kentland and Goodland are stations.
What is known as the Big Four Railroad, which cuts off a small southwestern corner of the county, was built in 1871. It was a revival of the old 1854 scheme, and was known as the Continental
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JASPER AND NEWTON COUNTIES
Railway, being mentioned more in detail in the history of Jasper County.
The Monon Railroad cuts through Lincoln Township, in the northeastern part of the county. It was at first a narrow-gauge, built in 1878 as the Plymouth, Kankakee & Pacific Railroad, but a few years afterward was changed to standard and became known as the Indiana, Illinois & Iowa Railroad Company. Roselawn and Thayer are stations on the road.
In 1882 was completed the Chicago & Eastern Illinois, with sta- tions at Goodland, Foresman, Julian and Mount Ayr, and in 1888 a branch was built through Brook, Beaver City and Morocco.
The Three I's road, a part of the New York Central system, was built through the northeastern tip of the county for less than two miles in 1883.
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