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 39
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 39
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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
Ross LUCAS. Most of his life Ross Lucas has spent in Newton County and in and around the City of Morocco. His has been an active and prosperous career, whether as a farmer, business man or public spirited citizen. He began life dependent upon his own re- sources and had to swim against the current of circumstances for a number of years. He is now well established in business at Morocco, and has an honorable record in all his relations with the community.
Ile was born May 24, 1877, in Tippecanoe County, Indiana, a . son of David T. and Sophia ( Wells) Lucas. His father, who traces his ancestry back to Ireland, was born in Tippecanoe County and is now seventy-nine years of age, having spent his active career as a farmer and carpenter. The mother is still living at the age of sixty-nine.
The younger of two children, Ross Lucas, secured a common school education, and at the age of sixteen took his place as a laborer on the farm. In that way he spent six years, duly acquiring experi- ence and accumulating a small capital for a future career.
On December 25, 1900, Mr. Lucas married Miss Laura E. Peter- son, whose father was a native of Denmark and his mother a native of Sweden. Her father came to America and located in Brookston, Indiana, and in 1861 went as a pioneer to Newton County, where he bought land in Washington Township. His was a life of hard work, thrift and honorable integrity and it bore large fruit. At one time he owned about 1,400 acres of land, was still identified with its management at the time of his death in 1903.
After his marriage Mr. Lucas engaged in farming in Washing- ton Township for several years, but on January 4, 1912, removed to Morocco. For one year he was in the garage business, then began handling automobiles as sales agent. He still owns a choice farm of 380 acres in Washington Township, and has numerous business interests in this county and elsewhere. He owns the electric light plant at Uniontown, Kentucky.
Politically Mr. Lucas is an active republican and he and his family worship in the Methodist Episcopal Church. Of the four
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children born to Mr. and Mrs. Lucas the only one now living is Willard, who was born March 31, 1904.
RILEY C. HARWOOD. Few of the farmers of Newton County have made a better showing from a similar beginning than Riley C. Harwood of Beaver Township. He owns and occupies a fine farmi of 110 acres in that township, with his postoffice and market town at Morocco. He began life with practically no capital, and has since acquired prosperity and a place of influence in his com- munity.
llis birth occurred in New York State November 1, 1852, and he is a son of Barton and Irene ( Morse) Harwood. His paternal ancestors came from England. Barton Ilarwood came west in 1853 and settled in La Salle County, Illinois. He was a cooper by trade, having learned that occupation in New York State but did not follow it after coming west. In La Salle County'he was an active farmer, and from there in 1870 he moved to Newton County, Indiana, and spend the rest of his days on a rented farm in Beaver Township. His death occurred in the spring of 1880. He was a good citizen and a man whose life accounted for much in any com- munity where he lived. He was a republican and a member of the United Brethren Church. His wife died in 1889.
Of the ten children of his parents, Riley C. Harwood is the only one now living. He grew up in La Salle County, Illinois, and has always followed the occupation to which he was reared. He worked hard as a young man, and by thrift and good management was able to make his first investment in a tract of forty acres. With growing prosperity he has increased his farming land and added constantly to its value, and at the same time has prospered and lived well.
On March 22, 1874, in Beaver Township Mr. Harwood married Miss Sarah Wink. Her people formerly lived in Henry County, Indiana. After nine years of married life Mrs. Harwood passed away July 21, 1883. There were three children, John E., a farmer of Beaver Township, and Irma and Frank, who are deceased. After the death of his first wife Mr. Harwood was married in Beaver Township to Mrs. Carrie (Hicks) Hemphill. Seven children were born to their marriage, and the five now living are: Ralph, born April 1, 1888; James, born August 30, 1890; Ethel, born March 3, 1892; Vannes, born February 2, 1895; and Byron, born November 8, 1903. The church of the family is the Baptist, of Beaver City, Indiana.
EDGAR L. MARTIN. Prominently known in Newton County as a farmer and representative of an old time family, Edgar L. Martin since leaving his farm in Washington Township has been an active merchant of Morocco.
When the Martin family came to this section of Indiana three
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quarters of a century ago the entire country was a wilderness, and very few homes as yet had sprung up to mark the progress of civili- zation. Egdar I. Martin was born in Newton County, April 14, 1860, and even during his boyhood the face of the country presented a vastly different aspect from what it does now. His parents were Joseph C. and Charlotte (Camlin) Martin, the former a native of Kentucky. Ilis father lived for a time in Madison, Indiana, but in 1840 came to Newton County and located in Washington Town- ship. He pre-empted eighty acres of land, and was identified with its cultivation and development until 1893, when he sold out and moved to Kansas. He died in Crawford County, Kansas. He was a democrat, a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church and a sincere Christian and an upright citizen.
The youngest in a family of six children, one daughter being now deceased, Edgar L. Martin grew up in Newton County and after his schooling and other early experiences was married in Washington Township to Miss Ida Padgett, a daughter of John and Mary ( Bower) Padgett. Mr. and Mrs. Martin have three sons : Charles D., John Owen and Harold O. Charles D., after a common school training, studied at Valparaiso University and was a teacher in Newton County seven years. He married Miss Emma Purkey. He is a democrat and a Mason. John Owen graduated from the Morocco High School. He married Miss Pearl Yates, and they have one little son, Robert O. John O. Martin is a farmer, a demo- crat and a member of Knights of Pythias fraternity. Harold O. is a graduate of Morocco High School and he is a freshman in Purdue University.
After his marriage Mr. Martin bought a farm in Washington Township, containing 160 acres," and he afterwards acquired his father's old homestead. He prospered by hard work and competent management of his affairs and was regarded as one of the most substantial agriculturists of Washington Township for twenty years. After leaving the farm Mr. Martin retired to Morocco, and here engaged in the hardware business under the firm name of Martin Bros.
Fraternally he is affiliated with the Knights of Pythias, and is a deacon in the Baptist Church of Morocco, Indiana. His home has been in Morocco since 1914.
DAVID A. PROTSMAN is one of the men who claim Jasper and Newton counties as their birthplace and the seene of their substan- tial activities in later life. Mr. Protsman has found in farming both a congenial and a profitable occupation. The management of well tilled fields, the care and superintendence of good stock, the task of winning a living and at the same time increasing and im- proving the value of his farm, and the duties of good citizenship, have occupied him here for many years, and he is one of the most substantial residents of Beaver Township in Newton County.
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Ile was born in Jasper County May 23, 1868, a son of Daniel and Martha (Lakin) Protsman, the former a native of Maryland and the latter of Franklin County, Indiana. Daniel l'rots- man was brought to Dayton, Ohio, when a youth, and lived on a farm there for twelve years. He then removed to Porter County and later to Jasper County, Indiana, near Rensselaer, and was em- ployed in operating a 150-acre farm for three years, following which he moved to Jackson Township in Newton County. There he also bought 160 acres and lived on it until his death in 1893. He was twice married. llis second wife was Martha Lakin, whose first husband enlisted in the Civil war in 1861, and after two years died while still in the army. She married Daniel Protsman about the close of the war, and became the mother of three children.
D. A. Protsman grew up in Newton County, found his education in the local schools, and is now proprietor of 308 acres of choice farm land in Beaver Township. He has one of the most attractive homes in that section, and a part of his land is covered with a heavy growth of native timber. This wood has a special historical interest since it was the scene of one of the earlier Indian battles. Mr. Protsman has long been a student of local history, and is un- doubtedly the best authority on the Indian history in this section of Indiana.
Mr. Protsman is a republican in politics, a member of the Chris- tian Church, and is always ready to work for the advancement of any community enterprise.
Ile married Miss Margaret Spence on May 26, 1897, and four children- three sons and one daughter-were born to them, and all are living : Francis A., who is a practical farmer; Roscoe E., a graduate of the Morocco High School, enters Valparaiso Univer- sity ; John E., in the eighth grade of the public schools, and Margaret E., in fourth grade.
Mrs. Protsman is a native of Crete, Illinois, and was born June 23, 1870. She is a member of the Christian Church. Her parents, Francis and Elizabeth (Dowson) Spence, were both natives of Scotland. Mr. Spence is living at the age of eighty-six, and he is a cousin of the celebrated African explorer, David Livingston. Mrs. Spence died in Illinois in 1885. The estate of Mr. and Mrs. Prots- man is known as "Turkey Foot Farm."
GEORGE THOMAS CLARK. For many years one of the highly respected and substantial residents of Newton County, and now living in Washington Township, George Thomas Clark has been principally identified with farming, and has not only provided well for his family, but is regarded as one of the men of influence in his community. His people were among the pioneers in this section of Indiana, and Mr. Clark himself has earned no little prestige to the name through his capable and honest career.
He was born September 13, 1862, in Johnson County, Indiana,
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sou of George W. and Eliza Sybert Clark. His father, who was born in the State of Kentucky, came to Northern Indiana about fifty years ago, locating four miles cast of Morocco. He bought forty acres of land there, and during his active career was identified with farming, but is now living retired in Morocco.
It was in the home of his parents that George Thomas Clark spent the first twenty-one years of his life. He was reared to habits of industry and thrift and was given a substantial education in the local schools. On starting out for himself he bought 100 acres of land in section 36 of Beaver Township, and that was his home and the scene of his activities as an agriculturist for six years. He then removed to Washington Township, and has since bought J75 acres in sections 3 and 4 in Washington Township.
On March 4, 1896, Mr. Clark married Miss Charlotte Rolls, who has been his capable helpmate and a sharer in the joys and sorrows of their mutual companionship for twenty-one years. Mrs. Clark was born in Kankakee County, Illinois, February 6, 1878, the fifth of the seven children, three sons and four daughters, of Reuben and Elizabeth ( Allen) Rolls. Five of the children are still living. Mr. Rolls was born near London, England, and came to the United States when about thirty years of age. Mr. and Mrs. Rolls came to Beaver Township of Newton County thirty-four years ago, and he bought eighty acres in section 27 of that township. Ile was a member of the "Hard Shell" Baptist Church, and he died on the 17th of December, 1912, at the age of seventy-five years, while his wife, who is also a Baptist. is living at the advanced age of eighty- one. The children born to Mr. and Mrs. Clark are: George R., Leonard S. and Clifford M. Mrs. Clark is an active worker in both the Sunday school and church of the Baptist denomination. Mr. Clark is a "true blue" republican. -
ROBERT B. KESSLER. It is one of the old and prominent families of Newton County that Robert B. Kessler represents. He has spent his active career as a farmer, has an attractive and valuable home- stead in Beaver Township, and his name stands for the best things in the community life of that locality.
The Kessler family was established in Newton County in pioneer days, and Robert B. Kessler was born in Beaver Township there December 23, 1864. His parents were John L. and Sarah (Goddard) Kessler. In their home Robert B. Kessler grew to manhood, gained his education in the local schools, and at the age of nineteen started out for himself.
For three years he farmed on the renting plan, and in that way gained confidence and a small capital which justified him in estab- lishing a home of his own. He married Miss Lulu Kinney. Into their home have come six children: Carrie, May, Vivian, Donald, Dorothy and Gwendolyn.
After his marriage Mr. Kessler settled-down to an active career
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of farming which has brought him a substantial position and large material means. Since then he has acquired an estate of 239 acres, and on that farm he has erected one of the most attractive residences in Newton County. His home is 174 miles west of Morocco.
While successful as a farmer, Mr. Kessler has not neglected the public welfare, and has manifested his public spirit in behalf of every movement for the upbuilding and progress of his community. He and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church at Morocco, and he is a stanch supporter of the prohibition cause, and takes high ground on the subject of temperance.
GEORGE H. HILLis conducts one of the largest stock and grain farms in Newton County. He was formerly associated with a syndicate in the purchase and development of an immense tract of land in this county, and after that syndicate was dissolved Mr. Hillis took his share, which in itself amounted to almost a princely estate.
No greater service can be rendered mankind than the proper . utilization of land, which is the basis of all wealth, as a source of those fruits which are required for the sustenance and welfare of the human race. While several generations of people have lived in Newton County, it is in comparatively recent years that the real forward movement of development and prosperity has begun, and in that movement Mr. Hillis has been one of the most prominent factors.
Besides his successful management of large property interests, he is also closely identified with the public welfare of his county, and is now filling with much credit the office of county commissioner. llis home is near Fair Oaks in Colfax Township, but most of his farming property is located in Colfax Township. Besides his office of county commissioner he has filled other offices in his township, having been trustee for five years.
A native of Indiana, Mr. Hillis was born July 16, 1870, in Green- castle, a son of George B. and Elizabeth ( Scobee) Hillis. His father was born in Putnam County, Indiana, was a carpenter and farmer, and spent all his active career in that county, where he died in 1898. He was a republican in politics, a Methodist, and a very liberal supporter of his own church and of all other worthy charitable enterprises. His home was noted for its hospitality, and he was a man of substantial character and integrity who enjoyed a long and useful life and the riches of community esteem. His six children are all still living.
George H. Ilillis began his career as a farmer, having been reared on his father's place and gaining his education in the local schools. For ten years he was in the ice business at Greencastle. In 1901 he came to Newton County, and there became associated with several other well known men in the purchase of 2,680 acres in Colfax Township. The company was formed of the following individuals : A. B. and A. W. Tolin, John J. Totten, and Mr. Hillis.
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After Mr. A. W. Tolin withdrew from the partnership the company was conducted under the name Hillis-Totten Company. This was dissolved in 1912, and the large land estate was divided, Mr. Hillis and Mr. Totten each receiving 1,580 acres, and then they purchased 648 acres more in Lincoln Township. Faking that amount of land as his share, Mr. Hillis at once proceeded with its further develop- ment, and has added to his holdings by the purchase of other tracts until he is now one of the largest land holders in Newton County, and owns considerable property elsewhere. All this land in Newton County he uses for the growing of grain and the raising of stock, and he is one of the largest stock shippers of the country.
In 1898 in Kansas City, Missouri, Mr. Hillis married Miss Maggie C. Cooper, a daughter of George C. Cooper. Two children were born to their union, and the only one now living is Ross 11., who was born May 29, 1912. Mr. and Mrs. Hillis have a fine rural home near Fair Oaks, and have surrounded themselves 'with all those comforts and conveniences which make country life attractive. Mr. Hillis is a stanch republican, and is affiliated with the Modern Woodmen of America.
VALERIUS P. HOPE. For more than thirty-five years Newion County has been honored and benefited by the presence within its borders of the Ilope family. In the character of its individual members, the interests and well being of the community have been advanced, and in many ways their influences have affected for good the social and business affairs of the county.
With a life of industry to his credit, Valerius P'. Hope has iden- tified himself with both merchandising and farming in this county, and is one of the most widely known residents of Beaver Township. He was born in Van Wert County, Ohio, December 16, 1851, a son of William K. and Eve Elizabeth (Wert) Hope. His father was born in Virginia, and his mother was a native of Germany. William K. Hope spent his early life near the City of Richmond, Virginia, and left home at the age of eighteen and moved to Wheeling, then a part of old Virginia, now West Virginia. For several years he worked as a day laborer there, and then moved to Crawford County, Ohio, where he spent five years in farming, and from there to Van Wert County. In Van Wert County he acquired eighty acres of land from the Government and made it his home for twenty-eight years. In 1880 he moved to Newton County, Indiana, locating on a farm of forty acres for one year. '
In the meantime Valerius P. Hope had grown to manhood. He received his early education in the public schools of Van Wert County, and after his marriage he took up his activities as a farmer on the old Smart homestead in Newton County. That farm had been purchased by himself. He afterwards lived on a farm of eighty acres north of Morocco, where most of his children were born, and he then went into the City of Morocco, where for eight
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years he conducted a restaurant, and for two years was in the harness business. On giving up merchandising Mr. Hope bought eighty acres or land 21/2 miles northeast of Morocco, and in that attractive locality he hopes to spend his last years. He has acquired an additional forty acres, making a total of 120 acres.
On September 30, 1877, Mr Hope married Miss Marie .1. Smart. Seven children were born to them and the five now living are Orval B., Otho Alfred, Lucinda E., Myron E. and Mary M.
Mr. and Mrs. Hope are active members of the Methodist Epis- copal Church at Morocco, Indiana, and she is an enthusiastic worker and teacher in the Sunday-school, holding the enviable record of twenty-six years as a Sunday-school teacher. She is well educated and for nine terms was a teacher in the schools of Beaver Township. Mr. Hope is a citizen of great public spirit, and served oue term as supervisor of Beaver Township and for three years was treasurer of the Morocco School Board. He is an ardent republican.
HENRY TINCHER. A resident of Newton County since early youth, no man is better known in this community or more genuinely esteemed than Henry Tincher, now living retired in Morocco. He has been a successful farmer.
His birth occurred March 3, 1848, in Jennings County, Indiana, a son of Robert and Sarah (Justice) Tincher. His father was born in IJenry County. Indiana, and both parents are now deccased. Of their six children all are living but one, Robert Tincher.
In 1861 he volunteered and became a member of Company C in the Thirty-seventh Indiana Volunteer Infantry. Soon after his enlistment he was afflicted with rheumatism and that prevented him from taking a very active part during his three years of service, and much of the time was spent in hospital.
The Tincher family moved to Newton County in the very early days, when Henry Tincher was eighteen years of age. He was educated in Jennings County, Indiana, received very limited educa- tional advantages, and from the age of twelve years became de- pendent upon his own resources to advance him to fortune and a good name in the community. He was engaged in the shingle manu- facturing business, to which he gave about fourteen years of his active life. He then bought ninety-three acres of land in Beaver Township and was prosperously identified with its management for thirty years until he removed to Morocco in 1913. In Morocco his son bought a beautiful residence and his father and mother have since lived there in comfort and with all the fruits of a well spent life.
On May 22, 1870, Mr. Tincher married Miss Mary Graves. Their three children are Maggie May, Maud and Guy. Mr. Tincher and wife are active members of the Christian Church at Antioch, and politically he is a republican and has accepted every possible opportunity to serve the community and promote its welfare.
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SAMUEL BRIDGEMAN. About three quarters of a century ago, when Newton County was still in the wilderness, the first member of the Bridgeman family came to the region, and this is a name which has veen very closely connected with all phases of develop- ment in this section from that year to the present, when Mr. Samuel Bridgeman represents the family and is proprietor of one of the splendid country estates in Beaver Township. As the older members of the family did their part in transforming the barren land into cultivated fields, so Mr. Bridgeman has continued this worthy work, and at the same time has exemplified the qualities of enterprise and good citizenship which are valuable assets to any community.
Mr. Bridgeman is one of the oldest native sons of Newton County, having been born there January 20, 1853. His parents were Samuel and Lavina (Murphey) Bridgeman. His father was a native of Pennsylvania. The paternal grandparents moved west in the '3os, locating first in Fountain County, Indiana, and after a few years grandfather Bridgeman came into the wilderness of Newton County, locating on land south of Morocco, where he spent the rest of his ycars. Samuel Bridgeman, Sr., was also a farmer, and owned and developed a good place west of Morocco. This Samuel Bridgeman and his four brothers came from Virginia to Logansport with their father, Michael Bridgeman. They soon began working on a Government road leading to Michigan City, and they chopped the trees and cleared the way for the road. They then moved to Hillsboro, Fountain County, where they cleared off timber land and obtained the use of the land for five years for clearing it. They then moved to Beaver Township, Newton County, where Michael Bridgeman took a claim in section 29. IIe came here in 1840 and stayed till 1851, when he moved to Oregon.
Samuel Bridgeman, Sr., took a claim in Beaver Township, west of Morocco. He made several trips to Chicago, taking the hogs they had butchered. They would drive three yoke of oxen, and the meat would sell for about 2 cents a pound. The trip consumed about a week.
Samuel Bridgeman, Jr., was the sixth in a family of nine children. While he was a boy growing up in Newton County there were very few public schools, but he wisely improved his opportunities, and came to mature age with a substantial education and with a training that has stood him in good stead during all subsequent years. When he was seventeen years of age he started out to make his own way in the world. Five years he worked as a laborer. Thus he began on the bottom round of the ladder, and thrift and industry have been the forces which have taken him higher and higher in the scale of prosperity.
On November 22, 1876, Mr. Bridgeman married for his first wife Ida James. At her death she was survived by one child, Ephraim. For his second wife Mr. Bridgeman married Miss Eliza- beth M. Murdock. She was the mother of three children, all of
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