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 II > Part 26
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 II > Part 26
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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 | Part 41 | Part 42
Mr. Ade was for many years actively affiliated with the time- honored Masonic fraternity, in which he held membership in Kent- land Lodge, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, at the time of his death. In politics he was a stalwart and well fortified advocate of the principles of the republican party, and both he and his wife were zealous members of the Christian Church, in which he served in official position for many years.
Mr. and Mrs. Ade became the parents of seven children : Anna, William, Alice, Joseph, Emma, George and Ella. The devoted wife and mother passed to the life eternal, and of their children Anna is the wife of John W. Randall; William is a resident of Kentland, Indiana; Alice is the wife of John G. Davis; Joseph is a farmer of Newton County ; Emma died November 28, 1865, at the age of five years; George has occupied a high vantage-place and "told the people a lot of things," his fame as an author and dramatist being such that mere words in this connection would be superfluous.
Mr. Ade was essentially an appreciative reader and student, and it was his privilege and pleasure to give to his children the best possible educational advantages. He himself wrote with vigor and directness, and one of his noteworthy works was the prepara- tion of a most interesting history of the Kankakee region, includ- ing Newton County, this having been published in book form and having called forth high commendation from authoritative sources.
JOSEPH F. ILIFF. The pioneer movement from the Eastern states to Indiana was at its height in the '30s and among those who
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sought liomes here were the Iliffs, the Parkisons and the McCollys, and their descendants still possess their old farms and in character perpetuate their sturdy virtues. Within less than a decade after the first white settlement was made in Jasper County, John Mor- rison lliff and his wife, Aun Elizabeth ( Parkison) Iliff, located in Barkley Township. The latter was a daughter of John G. Parki- son, extended notice of whom appears elsewhere. They passed their quiet, beneficent lives in Barkley Township and their ashes rest in the old Parkison burying ground.
Probably the birth of Joseph Franklin Iliff, son of John Mor- rison and Ann Elizabeth ( Parkison ) Iliff, which occurred on Christ- mas day, 1841, was one of the very first after the organization of the township. His opportunities for education were limited be- cause as soon as he was old enough to attend the district schools, his services were needed on the farm and he gave his father help until the breaking out of the Civil war and President Lincoln issued his first call for troops, when he enlisted for three months in a local regiment. Upon the expiration of this terin he re-enlisted, becoming a member of Company G, Ninth Indiana Volunteer Infantry. After serving faithfully in this regiment for one year he was honorably discharged on account of disability.
Mr. Iliff returned then to Jasper County and soon resumed his farm industries and continued them until 1868, when he moved to Lincoln, Nebraska. After residing there for seven years he re- turned to Jasper County where he made his home until in December, 1911, when he removed to Manchester, Tennessee, where he still resides. He is a man of sterling character and becomes influential wherever he chooses to inake his home. ITis political views have led him to give hearty support to the republican party. For many years he has been a Mason and an Odd Fellow. Mr. Iliff never accepted any public office except that of trustee of Barkley Town- ship.
In 1863 Mr. Iliff was married to Miss Henrietta S. Shields, and to them were born six children : John W., who is deceased; Charles Frederick; Laura A., who is Mrs. James Comer ; Ellis E., who is a resident of Hoopston, Illinois; Frank E., who is in business at Watseka, Illinois; and Ora E., who is deceased. The father of Mrs. Iliff, William Shields, was an early settler in Jasper County. Mrs. Iliff died in August, 1896.
CHARLES FREDERICK ILIFF. Fortunately for the world, there are men who love the farm and who, from choice, make farming a life business. These are the agriculturists who succeed in their farm undertakings and to whom are often entrusted responsibilities involving many thousands of dollars annually. One of these compe- tent farmers is found in Charles Frederick Iliff, or, as he is famil- iarly known, "Fred" Iliff, the only member of his father's family now living in Jasper County. He was born in Barkley Township,
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Jasper County, Indiana, December 25, 1866, the eldest surviving son of Joseph Franklin and Henrietta S. (Shields) Iliff, the latter of whom is deceased. He grew up on a farm and was educated in the public schools. He has always followed farming as an occupa- tion and at present is the capable manager of a 3,000-acre farm, a portion of the Simon P. Thompson estate, which lies in Union Township.
On November 10, 1895, Mr. Hiff was married to Miss Mary L. McColly, who is a daughter of Willis H. McColly, and a grand- daughter of Clark McColly, who was one of the early settlers of Jasper County. Mr. and Mrs. Iliff have had three children: Ora Opal, Bernice Pearl and Florence Latonia. The second daughter died July 22, 1913, at the age of fifteen years.
Mr. Iliff is affiliated with the republican party and as a well informed man takes much interest in public matters especially in these days of national anxiety. He has long been a member of the order of Odd Fellows.
JAMES BENNETT BABCOCK. The pioneers of Jasper County mnet with hazards and hardships which are happily spared the present generation. It is difficult to picture the present richly cultivated and productive fields as wild. unbroken, uninhabited prairie, but such a sight met the eyes of James Bennett Babcock when he came here in early days. Although accustomed to conditions prevailing in an old settled section, he was not discouraged, on the other hand, being already trained as a farmer he saw great possibilities in the virgin soil and located on a tract situated 31/2 miles southeast of 'Rensselaer.
James Bennett Babcock was born in Courtland County, New York, December 16, 1834. He was the fourth son in a family of eight children born to his parents, Nathan and Ruth ( Foster) Babcock. Ile married early as was more or less customary in those days but died five years later, a victim, perhaps, of hard work. He was a man of exemplary life and a devout member of the Missionary Baptist Church. His death occurred in October, 1858.
James Bennett Babcock was married in August, 1853, to Ellen Jane Price, who was one of a family of four children born to her parents, Joseph and Esther (Elwood) Price. They were natives of Logan County, Ohio, and there Mrs. Price died, after which, in the early '50s, Joseph Price and his three daughters came to Jasper County, Indiana. They, like other pioneers, endured many depriva- tions and hardships the like of which none of their descendants . know. To James B. Babcock and wife three children were born : Frank J., Nathan B. and James Llewellyn, all on the old Babcock homestead, where the second son, Nathan B. died. The carly death of Mr. Babcock fell heavily on his family, his children all being yet young, nevertheless they were faithfully cared for by the mother, who, despite her heavy cares, survived into advanced age.
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JAMES LLEWELLYN BABCOCK. Born in a log cabin on his father's pioneer farm, in Marion Township, Jasper County, Indiana, James L. Babcock had few educational advantages and worked hard even in boyhood. He gave what assistance he could on the home farm and also herded the cattle on the great open spaces of country when all his faculties had to be kept alert to keep them from straying and to protect them from possible attack from wolves that yet infected the stretches of woodland. When he reached manhood he moved from Marion to Carpenter Township and in 1893 came from there to his present valuable farm in Union Township. Here he owns 182 acres which he operates in connection with raising stock. His undertakings are carried on with prudence and good judgment and he is numbered with the successful agriculturists of Jasper County.
On October 10, 1889, Mr. Babcock was united in marriage with Miss Alice Gray, a daughter of the late James Gray, formerly a well known farmer of this county. To this marriage three children have been born: Blanch, who is the wife of Walter M. English, of Rensselaer, Indiana ; and Edna and James.
In politics Mr. Babcock is a republican and fraternally is identi- fied with the Knights of Pythias. He began life's battle on his own responsibility with no material outside assistance and the success he has achieved has been entirely through his own enterprise and industry. He is one of Union Township's most respected citizens.
HON. WILLIAM L. WOOD. Prominent among Jasper County's men of worth and achievement is Hon. William L. Wood, farmer, merchant, public official and statesman, widely known because of his ' honorable identification with many interests. He was born at Deers- ville, Harrison County, Ohio, February 25, 1867, and is a son of Samuel Cope . and Rebecca ( Mahan) Wood.
On the paternal side the ancestry is Scotch and the founder of the family, in America, was William Wood, who reached the Ameri- can colonies just two years before the war of the Revolution was declared, and threw in his efforts with the patriot army, taking part in the battle of the Brandywine and afterward serving equally well as a soldier at other points. He probably settled subsequently in Ohio, and reared a family, one of his sons, Thomas, becoming the father of Samuel Cope Wood, and this brings the record down to recent years. On the maternal side an ancestor was, in the person of William Brown, an English Quaker preacher.
At Deersville, Ohio, in 1860, Samuel Cope Wood and Rebecca Mahan were united in marriage and to this union eight children were born : Jessie, Mary Jane, William L., Hannah Elizabeth, Ann Eliza, Linnie Adeline, Taylor Fremont, Harry Melville and Blaine, all sur- viving except Ann Eliza, who died July 29, 1870. The father of the above family engaged in farming and stockraising and in Ohio gave much attention to sheep. In 1877 he moved to Jasper County, Indiana, reaching here on November 7th of that year. He settled
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first in Marion Township but later removed to Barclay Township and there died on November 1, 1895. Ile was a republican in politics but political agitation displeased him and he would never consent to hold any public office. The mother of the above family survived until October 5, 1897.
William L. Wood attended the public schools in Barkley Town- ship and during two terms was a student in the normal school at Rensselaer. When his fifteenth birthday canie he decided he was old enough to become self-supporting, and this resolution he never regretted although, no doubt, on many occasions he found, difficult obstacles in his path to be surmounted. He still further progressed in his books and for fifteen years has been a member of the county bar. Farming for many years was his vocation and for ten years he was in the grain business, and for a period covered by twenty- three years was in the mercantile line, first at Aix and later at Parr, retiring from the same in February, 1913. During his long term as a merchant he was postmaster of the above villages and also was railroad express agent.
These many important industries, intelligently, carefully and suc- cessfully carried on, served to bring Mr. Wood a wide acquaintance and public confidence and this was expressed by his election in 1914 to the State Legislature. The records will show how busy and useful a member he was. He served on the following com- mittees: State Prison Affairs, Drains and Dykes, Government Apportionment, Fees and Salaries, Federal Relations, Insurance and Benevolent and Scientific Institutions. Mr. Wood introduced the following important bill in relation to elections. Its features were : compelling petitioners asking subsidy elections be seventy-five instead of twenty-five and that they file bond with commissioners guaran- teeing the cost of any special election that might be called. In case election failed petitioners to pay the cost, if carried, the cost to be deducted from subsidy voted. He also introduced an amendment to a law on the statute books since 1869. The full value of his as of other public men's services will be better appreciated as time goes by, for a perspective afforded by time is helpful in viewing achievements of the present. Mr. Wood made an honorable and highly efficient record in the General Assembly, perfectly satisfy- ing to his friends and constituents.
On November 16, 1889, Mr. Wood was married to Miss Margaret E. Price, a daughter of William and Isabel (Whited) Price. They came to Indiana from Ohio in 1836 and Mr. Price settled in Barclay Township, where he conducted a blacksmith shop. He died July 3, 1900, and his burial was in the Prayter cemetery in Barclay Town- ship. Of his ten children, eight survive. Mr. and Mrs. Wood have had two children: Milton G., who died in infancy ; and Ocie Olive. The family belongs to the Christian Church and are interested in Sunday school work. Mr. Wood is identified with Earl Lodge,
.
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Free and Accepted Masons, at Rose Lawn, and with the Odd Fel- lows at Parr.
JOHN M. MOORE. The changes that come over an agricultural section in the lapse of forty-seven years when they are the result of well directed intelligent industry, are indeed marvelous, and in no part of Indiana are these more marked than in Jasper County. The majority of the pioneers who came here shortly after the close of the great Civil war were largely home-seekers, men and women accustomed to everyday toil, and willing to assume still heavier labor if, thereby, they might secure ownership of land. Some came too late in life and died before their hopes were realized, but they usually left descendants and they are the ones who, almost a half century later, possess the goodly heritage their fathers saw. Among the families settling in Jasper County in 1868 was one named Moore, a worthy representative of which is found today in John M. Moore, a respected citizen and substantial farmer of Barkley Township.
John M. Moore was born in Pennsylvania, May 23. 1849, and is a son of Moses and Sarah (Tice) Moore, the former of whom was born in Pennsylvania in 1800, and the latter in New Jersey, February 8, 1804. They were married at Lewistown, Pennsylvania. Five children were born to them in Mifflin County and with them, in 1868, Moses Moore and wife came to Jasper County, Indiana. The chil- dren were thus named: Mary Bell, Elizabeth, Martha, Caroline and John M. The father was a general laborer. In politics he supported the democratic party. His death occurred in May, 1872, the mother surviving him for three years. She was a devoted member of the Methodist Episcopal Church and a church worker into old age.
John M. Moore attended school in Pennsylvania until he was about thirteen years old and then began to take care of himself. When sixteen years of age he learned the blacksmith trade but since coming to Indiana has not followed it as a business, although a knowledge of blacksmithing is of great help on a farm. For three years after reaching Jasper County he followed farming for others. In 1871 he bought 120 acres of land in Barkley Township, it being a part of the old Burgette homestead, from Wesley Hinkle, and in the cultivation and improvement of this land he has been more or less engaged ever since.
On September 1, 1872, Mr. Moore was united in marriage with: Miss Juliette Parkinson, who is a daughter of Addison and Barbara Ann (Kenton) Parkinson, very early families of this section. Mrs. Moore's parents were married May 5, 1850, and she was the first born of their six children : Juliette, Martha. Emma, Ida, Laura and Stella, the only survivors being Mrs. Moore and Stella. Mr. and Mrs. Moore have three children: Victor, Mary Bell and Joe, the three children being married and settled in homes of their own.
In politics Mr. Moore is a strong democrat, always being willing to work for his party's candidates in campaigns but has never been
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willing to accept any office for himself, although through years, experience and good judgment well qualified for the same. With his family he belongs to the Methodist Episcopal Church.
Among many interesting things that Mr. Moore tells of the times when he first came to Jasper County, are of the old methods of farming and of the old-fashioned farm implements then in gen- eral use. There were many fields of grain he cut, in his young days, with a cradle scythe. Mrs. Moore's father, Addison Parkin- son, was a man of much enterprise and was the first farmer of this section to invest in a hay-pitcher, and people came from miles around to see so wonderful a piece of farm machinery.
FELIX RILEY ERWIN. The business stability of a community is reasonably assured when reliable, far-sighted, substantial men have become prominent in its affairs, investing in property and honorably and conservatively conducting concerns of large importance. Such successful enterprises carry the fair name of a town to other points and attract purchasing visitors, and often, without doubt, induce investment of capital in other directions. The mercantile business conducted at Fair Oaks by Felix Riley Erwin, offers a case in point, as it has been developed into a large enterprise by a business man of acknowledged probity and of keen business understanding.
Felix Riley Erwin was born near Remington, Indiana, January 21, 1872, and is a son of Lorenzo Dow and Mary A. (Donnelly ) Erwin. The family is of Scotch-Irish extraction, the paternal great- great-grandfather of Mr. Erwin coming to the American colonies from Scotland prior to the Revolutionary war, during which period he served in the patriot army.
Lorenzo D. Erwin, father of Felix R., was born in Tippecanoe County, Indiana, October 2, 1831, where he attended subscription schools and grew to manhood. In 1858 he came to Jasper County and settled in the neighborhood of Remington, later married there and for many years continued to reside in that locality, at present, however, making his home with his son at Fair Oaks. Of his family of nine children, seven are living, but his wife died in August, 1897, her burial being at Brook. For the past fifteen years Mr. Erwin has been retired from active life but still retains ownership of land in Indiana and also in the Dakotas. He is a member of the Christian Church, and one of the organizers and a charter member of the Masonic Lodge at Remington. He has always taken much interest in public affairs and gives his political support to the present administration.
Felix R. Erwin was educated in the public schools of Carpenter Township, the Sheldon High School and the Normal School at Valparaiso, after which he went to the West and while there engaged in teaching school for six years. On returning to the East he located at Fair Oaks, Jasper County, Indiana, and embarked in a general store business, in which line he has continued ever since.
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For two years he has been a member of the advisory board of the American Merchants' Syndicate, and is a stockholder in the same.
On April 9. 1902, Mr. Erwin was united in marriage with Miss Alice B. Proudley, who is a daughter of Dr. George B. Proudley, and they have three children: Anna R., Olive Grace and Helen. Mrs. Erwin is postmistress at Fair Oaks.
Mr. Erwin has long been active in democratic political circles and for the past two years has been chairman of the democratic county organization, an exceedingly responsible position, the duties of which he has performed with the greatest efficiency. His fra- ternal connections are with the Odd Fellows and the Modern Wood- men of America. With his family he belongs to the Methodist Episcopal Church. He stands high in public regard, is public spirited and broadminded, lends his influence at all times in support of good government and stable reforms and, although in no osten- tatious manner, gives to charity as his conscience prompts and his good judgment justifies.
LARKIN C. LOGAN. Profitably engaged in farming in Gillam Township, with his farm located on a rural route out of Medary- ville, Larkin C. Logan is one of the most enterprising and pro- gressive men of Jasper County. He has interested himself in the public affairs of his township and county, and has spent nearly all his life in the honorable industry of agriculture. . His home has been in this section of Indiana for more than forty years, and with the help of his good wife and later with the assistance of his children he has placed many improvements which have increased the value and comfort of his own home and have served to keep up the high standards of rural life in Gillam Township.
While most of his active career has been spent in the North, Larkin C. Logan is a Southern man by birth and training and is a veteran of the Confederate army in the war between the North and the South. He was born in Surrey County, North Carolina, August 29, 1840. His father, John Logan, spent all his life in North Carolina. Educated in Southern schools, about the time he reached manhood he became a soldier in the Twenty-first North Carolina Volunteer Regiment, and for two years fought with all the vigor of his young manhood the cause of the South. He was present at the battle of Bull Run, at Fredericksburg, was engaged in the seven days' fighting around Richmond, and the climax of his military career came at Gettysburg, where he was shot in the arm and being completely disabled was sent home. For two years after the war on account of this injury he was unable to perform any hard labor. On coming north he spent one year in Peoria County, Illinois, and arrived in Jasper County in 1869, locating in Gillam Township. There he was employed as a farm hand four years, and then bought forty acres of the fine farm where he is now located. Subsequently he bought another forty acres from his sister, and at the present
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time has 160 acres, making one of the best farms in Gillam Town- ship, and all of it under cultivation except twelve acres in timber. His success has come from general farming and stock raising.
In politics he has naturally been inclined to the democratic faith, though in local affairs he is somewhat independent, and has never sought any public office. On August 4, 1872, Mr. Logan married Maria Ellen Mason, a daughter of George and Maria (Gillam) Mason. Her father entered the land from the Government where Mr. and Mrs. Logan now live, and was one of the true pioneers of Gillam Town Mi. having for several years had his home in the midst of the Indians and wild animals. To the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Logan were born six children. George, who married Molly Ferris; Sally, Mrs. Edward Rockwell; Jennie, Mrs. C. W. Ferris; Howard, who died in 1894; Thomas, who married Mand Culp; and Mira, Mrs. Marion Sands.
Mr. and Mrs. Logan are both attendants of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Together they have made all the improvements on their farm, and they constitute two of the best citizens in their section of Jasper County.
WILLIAM FOLGER. For upwards of twenty years the name William Folger in Barkley Township has been synonymous with high class agricultural work and with the faithful performance of every duty that devolves upon him as a business man and citizen. His prosperity as an agriculturist is known to all who are familiar with conditions in Barkley Township, and among local citizens his recent administration as a township trustee is recalled with a great deal of satisfaction, since he has always been a leader in matters of public improvement and advancement.
An Illinois man by birth, William Folger was born in Coles County August 4, 1873, and part of his education came from one of the old time country schools, conducted in a log cabin, with split log benches for the pupils to sit upon. His parents were George W. and Sarah (McDonald) Folger, who were married April 26, 1865. All their four children are still living, named Horace, Edward, Rose and William. George W. Folger, the father, spent fourteen years as a teacher in Coles and Douglas counties, Illinois, and was an active republican in politics. Mr. William Folger's paternal grand- parents came from Ireland, while in the maternal line he is of Scotch descent. Some time before the Civil war the Folger family moved to Texas, and while there the brothers of Grandfather Folger ran away to escape service in the Confederate army and joined the Federal forces. One of them was shot because he refused to join the Southern cause. William Folger's mother was also a school teacher and gave about twenty-two years of her life to that calling.
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