USA > Indiana > Delaware County > A twentieth century history of Delaware County, Indiana, Volume II > Part 49
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The marriage of Mr. Ross was celebrated in Monroe township, in 1865, Rachel Gibson then becoming his wife. She is a native daughter of the township of Monroe, in which her father, Robert Gibson, established his home in a very early day, coming from Tennessee. Of the nine children born to Mr. and Mrs. Ross, five sons and four daughters, three daughters and a son are now deceased. All were born in Monroe township. The names of children now living are Frank W., Loren, Orville, Arthur and Hazel L. Mary Alice married Daniel Rees and died aged nineteen years. Cora married Watson Martin and died aged twenty-two. Wilbert died at the age of twenty-one, and Agnes died in infancy. The fraternal relations of Mr. Ross are with the Masonic order and the Red Men, and he also holds pleasant relations with his comrades of the blue by his membership in the G. A. R. Post. During the long period of twenty-two years he has been a local minister in the Methodist church, and in that time has officiated at three hundred funerals and about two hundred and fifty marriages. His sterling worth and fidelity have won him the confidence of his fellow citi- zens, and he is at all times active in promoting the work of the church and all that pertains to the advancement of the Kingdom of Christ upon earth.
GARRET Ross. One of the best known men of Monroe township is Garret Ross, who is prominently identified with its farming and stock-raising interests. He is also a representative of one of its earliest pioneer families, which was established here by his grandfather, William Ross. He bore an active part in the early history of Monroe township and was a native of Ten- nessee, where he was married to Susan Paten. They became the parents of three sons and a daughter, of whom Nepthfalum R. Ross, the father of the subject of this review, was the eldest in order of birth. He was born in Connersville, Kentucky, and when a lad of seventeen years the family emi- grated to Delaware county, Indiana, where Mr. Ross, Sr., purchased two hundred and forty acres of land in Monroe township. He died shortly after his arrival, and to his sons fell the task of clearing the farm and placing it under cultivation, while in the meantime the family made their home in a little log cabin. Mr. Nepthfalum Ross cleared a tract of eighty acres in section 35, Monroe township, the birthplace of his son Garret, and he farmed and dealt in stock all his life. He was the oldest stock dealer in the township and shipped the first carload of stock that was sent over the Bee or the Big Four line. He also drove many herds of stock to Cincinnati in those early days, walking the entire distance. He first allied his political interests with the Whigs, and after the organization of the Republican party he joined its ranks, continuing an active worker in the public life of his community until his busy and useful life was ended in death, when he had reached the age of
Elizabeth Silson
Garrett. B. Gibson
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eighty-four years. He was one of the best known men in Delaware county.
Mr. Ross married one of Monroe township's native daughters, Nancy Gibson, her father, Garret Gibson, having taken up his abode within its borders in a very early day. They became the parents of eight children, all of whom were born and reared in Monroe township, namely: Elizabeth, deceased ; Garret, whose name introduces this review; William, Jasper N., Robert, Emma, James and Borter.
Garret Ross was born in Monroe township on the 8th of March, 1843, and during the early years of his life he assisted in clearing and cultivating the old home farm. He was married, August 21, 1862, to Margaret Jane Lenox, who was born and reared on the old Lenox homestead in this town- ship, of which her father, John Lenox, was one of the early pioneers, but was a native of Tennessee. His father was John Lenox, Sr., killed in the War of 1812, and the son afterward went with his mother to Ohio and thence to Delaware county, Indiana. On his first purchase of eighty acres in Monroe township he erected a little log cabin, but with the passing years he added to the boundaries of his estate until it contained four hundred and seventy acres, but the land has since been divided among his heirs. Of the eight children, four sons and four daughters, born to Mr. and Mrs. Ross, one died in infancy, and those living are Nancy, Dianah, Betsy, Marion, Richard, Thomas Baker and William B. Mr. Ross gives his political sup- port to the Republican party, and he and his wife are members of the New Light Christian church.
GARRETT B. GIBSON, who is numbered among the prominent farmers and business men of Monroe township, Delaware county, is a member of one of the best known families of this community, where they took up their abode in the early days of the county's history, and have ever since been prominently identified with its interests. Monroe township numbers Mr. Garrett B. Gibson among her native sons, his birth occurring here on the 3d of April, 1853. His father, Walter Gibson, has his name enrolled among the earliest of the county's pioneers, but his birth occurred in Ohio, and he was brought to Delaware county by his parents when but eighteen months old. He was the son of Garrett Gibson, Sr., whose sketch will be found on other pages.
Walter Gibson received his educational training in the district schools of this vicinity, and during the early years of his life he assisted in clearing the homestead farm of its dense growth of timber and then placing the fields under cultivation. He was married in Monroe township to Ruth Brown, whose birth occurred in Wayne county, Indiana, but she was reared in Dela- ware county, whence she removed with her parents when a child. She was the daughter of David and Betsy Brown, who were numbered among the early and honored pioneers of Monroe township. On their arrival here they purchased a farm, and the subsequent years were spent in clearing it and placing it under cultivation. Seven children were born to Mr. and Mrs.
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Gibson, namely: Betsy; David and Nancy Jane, both deceased; Garrett ; John F .; Isaac B., also deceased; and William. All were born in Monroe township and were educated in its district schools. Mr. Gibson, the father, followed the tilling of the soil as a life occupation, and his entire career was one of uniform honor, thus winning for himself the respect and high esteem of all who had the pleasure of his acquaintance, and his acquaintances and friends were many. He gave his political support to the Republican party, and was a member of the Christian Friends church. His death occurred when he had reached the seventy-fourth milestone on his life's journey.
On the old homestead farm which his father had evolved from the wilderness in Monroe township Garrett B. Gibson grew to a sturdy man- hood, assisting in the meantime in the arduous work of a new and densely wooded farm. On the Ist of September, 1877, he was married to Elizabeth Hoober, whose birth occurred in Henry county, Indiana, where she was also reared and educated. She is the daughter of David M. Hoober, who was long numbered among the prominent agriculturists of that county, but is now deceased. He was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, and was there married to one of the commonwealth's native daughters, Fannie Baker, of German descent. Of their eight children, four sons and four daughters, all were born in Henry county, Indiana, where the parents had emigrated in an early day in its history, there purchasing and clearing a farm. Mr. Hoober later removed to Monroe township, but his death occurred two years afterward, when he was seventy-seven years of age. During about twenty- five years of his life he voted with the Republican party, but he then trans- ferred his political relations to the Democracy. He had two sons in the Civil war, John B. and William C. The latter was killed in the explosion of the old Sultana. Eli K. Hoober, youngest son of David M. Hoober, graduated at Purdue University and was a successful and popular teacher in both Delaware and Henry counties. He died at the age of thirty-one years. Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Gibson: Jonas B., who died in infancy ; and Eli K., who is now serving as a soldier with Company I, Eighteenth United States Infantry, in the Philippines.
Mr. and Mrs. Gibson reside on their pleasant and valuable estate of eighty acres in section 12, Monroe township, which has been their home since 1883. He has cleared twenty acres of the place, and the farm is mostly under cultivation. He is prominently identified with the Republican party, and is one of the best known and most highly esteemed residents of Monroe township.
DARLIN M. TUTTLE. The genealogy of the Tuttle family is traced to a son of Jubiter, God of Thunder. The name is said to be spelled in various ways, to wit: Tuttell, Tathill, Toothill, Tolehill, Toteles, Touthill, Tutoil, Taythill and Tothyll. In Ireland the name is said to be spelled Tuthill, O'Tulhill, O'Toole and O'Tauthall. In Ireland the name is said to be spelled Tathill, O'Tathill, O'Toole and O'Tauthall. The family take pride in the fact
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that the first name on the role of the Battle Abbey (1066) is Toteles. As far as known the first Tuttle to come to America was John, of Herefordshire, England, who, accompanied by his family, came in 1635 in the ship Planter and settled on Long Island. In the same year another John Tuttle came on the ship Angel Gabriel and settled at Dover, New Hampshire. William Tuttle settled in New Haven. Jeremiah Tuttle, who died in New York in 1705, served as alderman, was vestryman of Trinity church and owned property on Pearl street. Several Tuttles were commissioned officers of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary war. The Tuttles can boast of a sober, temperate ancestry. None of them were known to be intemperate. Among the family traits and characteristics is the tendency of the hair to grow gray at an early age. The color of the eyes so universal in the family is rather a remarkable gray, slightly dashed with hazel.
Darlin Tuttle, grandfather of Darlin M. Tuttle, was born in Virginia and lived at Rumney. From Virginia he removed to Ohio and settled in Clinton county, where he purchased land and engaged in farming. He was a resident there the rest of his days and passed away at a good old age. His first wife and the mother of his children was a Miss Smith before marriage. The children were named John S., Mary and James.
In a very early day in its history the Tuttle family was founded in Delaware county by the father of the subject of this review, Rev. John S. Tuttle, who made his way hither by wagon and settled in the wilds of Monroe township. Here he cleared and improved an excellent farm, and was also identified with the Protestant Methodist Episcopal ministry for about thirty or forty years, being numbered among the best known and useful citizens of this section of the county, and his many excellent and beneficent traits of character have been inherited by his son, the subject of this review, who has been identified with the farming and stock-raising inter- ests of Monroe township throughout his entire business career. He also bears an honorable record as a soldier for the Union cause during the Civil war, having entered the ranks in September, 1864, and served his country valiantly and faithfully as a member of Company G, One Hundred and Thirty-fourth Indiana Volunteer Infantry.
Mr. Darlin M. Tuttle was born in Monroe township, Delaware county, Indiana, July 7, 1839. His father, Rev. John S. Tuttle, deceased, was born in Clinton county, Ohio, January 29, 1804, there receiving his educational training and attaining to years of maturity on a farm. On the 3d of June, 1823, he married one of the commonwealth's native daughters, Hannah Hale, who was a descendant of Sir Mathew Hale, of English fame, and they became the parents of fourteen children, six sons and eight daughters, all of whom lived to rear families of their own. They are as follows: Delilah, the wife of Solomon Clevenger, both now deceased; Mary J., Isaiah and Thomas W., also deceased ; Elizabeth, widow of Henry Remington ; Hannah, the wife of Morris Kidnocker; Abraham J., deceased; Amanda, the wife of Addison Stafford; Ellen, wife of Elisha Clevenger; Darlin M.,
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the subject of this review ; Minerva, deceased ; Catherine, the widow of Isaac Lake ; John W .; and William F., deceased. Eight of the number were born in Ohio, and the remaining six in Monroe township. In 1836 the family made the journey with wagons to Indiana, where Rev. Tuttle purchased one hundred and seventy-four acres of government land in Monroe township, built a little log cabin in the woods, and began the task of clearing and culti- vating his land. With the passing years he succeeded in clearing all but forty acres of his homestead, and here he reared his children to lives of usefulness and honor. While carrying on the work of his farm he also labored as a minister of the gospel in the Protestant Methodist church, being an efficient worker in the Master's cause. He continued to reside in Monroe township until his busy and useful life was ended in death, passing to his final reward at the age of sixty-nine years. During his lifetime Rev. Tuttle was also a great hunter, and many were the deer, wild turkey, wolves, bears and wild cats which fell from his trusty rifle, yet in the possession of his descendants and which is nearly a century old. In those early days his associates were Judge March and Judge Buckles, also the Kerbys, the Tomlinsons, the Rosses and the Gibsons, all of Delaware county pioneer fame. Rev. Tuttle was a member of the Union League during the war, and was one of the best known men of his day in Delaware county, always taking an active part in all movements for its upbuilding and advancement. His wife survived him one year.
A son of this honored early Delaware county pioneer, Darlin M. Tuttle began the battle of life for himself without capital, and by his own perse- verance and excellent ability he has risen to the high position which he has long occupied among the leading business men of Monroe township. After his marriage he assumed charge of the old home place, where he remained for eight years, in that time clearing a great deal of the land. On the Ioth of March, 1874, he moved to the farm on which he has ever since resided, purchasing one hundred acres of land, and the many improvements which the homestead contains have been placed there by his own ability and industry.
On the 17th of June, 1858, Mr. Tuttle married Susan L. Lake, who was born in Licking county, Ohio, the daughter of George D. and Nancy (Roe) Lake, who came to Delaware county about 1850 and were numbered aniong the agriculturists of Monroe township. The following children have been born of this union: John S .; Mary, the wife of Walter G. Shirey, assistant treasurer of the state of Kansas and a resident of Topeka; George A .; Oliver F., who was the leader of the Cowan Band and is now deceased ; Marion F., who is a talented artist, and is with the firm of Smith & Brooks, of Denver, Colorado ; and Lillian, who has taught school in Delaware county for seventeen terms and carries a three years' license. All of the children were born in Monroe and Salem townships of Delaware county. The Republican party receives Mr. Tuttle's active support and cooperation, and he has served in several of the township offices. He holds membership
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Mr. and Mrs. William H. Peacock and family.
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relations with the Masonic fraternity, affiliating with Muncie Lodge, No. 343, while in the Grand Army of the Republic he maintains pleasant rela- tions with his old army comrades of the blue. He is a member of the Society of Friends.
WILLIAM H. PEACOCK. Throughout his entire business career William H. Peacock has been identified with agricultural interests and he has long been numbered among the leading farmers of Monroe township. His birth occurred in Tyler county, Virginia, May 28, 1845, and in Loudoun county of that commonwealth his father, Elijah Peacock, also had his nativity, born July 4, 1808. He was there reared and educated, and for his wife chose Mary Jane Wright, whose birth also occurred in the Old Dominion, but she was reared in Ohio. Her parents died when she was young, and she was bound out, as was also her husband, in his boyhood days. In 1846 they removed to Henry county, Indiana, where in one of its small towns the father followed the blacksmith's trade, he having become familiar with that occupation in his native state of Virginia, and he continued its work until his retirement at a good old age. His death occurred on the 2d of July, 1884. In their family were six children, two sons and four daughters, all of whom grew to years of maturity, and William H. was the second child and son in order of birth.
Mr. William H. Peacock was reared and received his educational training in the schools of Henry county, Indiana. In 1863 he joined the Ninth Indiana Cavalry, Company G, with which he served until the close of the war. On the 25th of September, 1864, he was captured by General Forest and was taken to Castle Morgan, in Cahaba, Alabama, where he remained for nine months and suffered untold hardships and privations. In 1865, with the remainder of the prisoners, he was taken to Vicksburg and placed on the Sultana, whose boiler exploded when seven miles above Memphis, killing over sixteen hundred men. Mr. Peacock was wounded in the accident, and was disabled for three years thereafter. He was mustered out of the service at Indianapolis on the 24th of June, 1865, and returned to Henry county, Indiana, where he was married three years later. In 1870, with his wife, he came to Delaware county, Indiana, purchasing eighty acres of his present farm in Monroe township. He cleared the most of the tract and placed there the many improvements which it now contains. Mrs. Peacock inherited one hundred acres from her father's estate, and thus the homestead now consists of one hundred and eighty acres, all rich and fertile farming land and mostly under cultivation.
In Henry county, Indiana, July 25, 1868, Mr. Peacock was united in marriage to one of Delaware county's native daughters, Martha A. Reynolds, the daughter of Breckenridge Reynolds of pioneer fame. He was a Vir- ginian by birth and came to Delaware county during a very early epoch in its history, when the Indians were its principal inhabitants, and pur- chased timbered land in Monroe township. Taking up his abode in a little
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log cabin he began the work of clearing his land, and by indomitable energy and perseverance he carved his way to success, for he had not a cent when he began life in the wilds of Indiana. He grubbed for Andrew Gibson and thus obtained the first cow which he ever owned. By hard and laborious effort he succeded in securing a large estate, owning at one time over one thousand acres, and the death of this brave and hardy old pioneer occurred on the 17th of February, 1887. On the 13th of September, 1838, in Virginia, he had married Ellen Lucas, a native daughter of that commonwealth, and they became the parents of ten children, six sons and four daughters, but the wife and mother died in 1866, on the 11th of May. June 1, 1868, Mr. Reynolds married Euphamia Gibson, a daughter of Borter and Mary A. (Rhodes) Gibson and a representative of one of the oldest and most honored pioneers of Delaware county. Breckenridge Reynolds had three children by the second marriage, one son and two daughters. Three children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Peacock, two sons and a daughter: Mary, the wife of G. Crusey, of Muncie, Indiana ; James R. and John C., all born on the homestead farm in Monroe town- ship. James R. resides in Monroe township and his sketch will be found elsewhere. John C., a graduate in pharmacy, is now a drug clerk in Indianapolis. He married Abigail Trimmer, of Rochester, New York. Since age conferred upon him the right of franchise, Mr. Peacock has supported the principles of the Republican party. He is numbered among the leading citizens of Monroe township and is held in high regard.
JONAS GIBSON. In reviewing the history of Delaware county, and especially of Monroe township, it will be found that the Gibson family were among the very first to take up their abode within its borders, dating their residence here from the early '30s, and from that time to the present its members have been prominently identified with its development and improvement. Monroe township numbers among its native sons Jonas Gibson, whose birth occurred on the old farm on which he now resides January 5, 1840. His father, Valentine Gibson, well known as an honored pioneer of Delaware county, claimed Ohio as the commonwealth of his nativity, and his father, William Gibson, was a native of Maryland, from whence he came to Delaware county in the early '30s and established his home in the wilds of Monroe township. He here entered a farm, erected his little log cabin and began the arduous task of clearing his land from its dense growth of timber and preparing the fields for cultivation. On this valuable old homestead he spent the remainder of his life, in the meantime winning for himself a leading place among the honored residents of the community.
Valentine Gibson also entered a tract of eighty acres of land in Monroe township, the present homestead of his son Jonas, which he cleared and improved, and many of its valuable improvements stand as monuments to his industry and ability. He here married one of the township's native
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daughters, Mary Clements, and they became the parents of four sons and a daughter: John, Jonas, Garrett, Richard and Nellie, all now deceased but Jonas.
On this valuable old homestead which he evolved from a wilderness the father spent the remainder of his life, and here his son Jonas was born, reared and has spent his entire career, the place being thus dear to him through its association with his early boyhood days as well as his subsequent years. In 1860, in Monroe township, he married Emeline Harold, the daughter of Allen and Rachel Harold, early pioneers of Delaware county, and in its township of Monroe their daughter Emeline had her nativity. Five children were born of this union-Garrett, Walter R., Mary M. and Allen, the third born dying in infancy. All were born on the old home- stead. The wife and mother was called from this life to the home beyond February 2, 1893, and two years later Mr. Gibson married her sister, Mar- garet Harold, also a native daughter of Monroe township. It is worthy of mention that on the Gibson farm is a tree which measures fifteen feet in circumference, it having started from a bush growing out of a coal pit. It is now sought by people who would be willing to purchase it at most any price. Mr. Gibson has allied his political interests with the Republican party.
JOHN W. JONES. Since the days when Indiana was a wilderness the Jones family has resided within its borders and have been influential in its development and gradually increasing prosperity. The genealogy of the family is traced to the land of Ireland, where occurred the birth of James Jones, Sr., the grandfather of the subject of this review. During the period of his young manhood he came to America and established his home in South Carolina, becoming identified with its agricultural interests, and he was there married to Mary Austin, a native daughter of Wales, where she was also reared. They became the parents of five sons and four daughters, namely : John, Bayless, Bewford, Jane, Elizabeth, Mary Ann, Martha, Henry and David. In 1808 Mr. Jones brought his family to Fayette county, Indiana, where they remained until 1832, and in that year came to Salem township, Delaware county, where he entered a farm of eighty acres, built a log cabin and succeded in clearing much of his land. Mrs. Jones made the journey from Fayette county to South Carolina on horseback, but returned to Indiana in a wagon, bringing with her her mother.
Bewford Jones, a son of these early Indiana pioneers, was born in South Carolina in 1806, and received his educational training in the early district schools of Salem township, Delaware county. He married Phebe Depew, who was born in Virginia, and they became the parents of the following children, all born and reared in Salem township, namely: John W., Mary (deceased), Nancy and Elizabeth. Mr. Jones gave a lifelong support to the Democracy, and was a member of the Methodist Episcopal
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church, passing away in its faith when he had reached the age of seventy- three years.
John W. Jones was born on his father's farm in Salem township, Delaware county, September 30, 1837, and his educational training was received in the schools of Monroe township and Henry county, Indiana, while in the meantime he assisted his father in clearing the home farm. When eighteen years of age he left the parental home and began farming for others, thus continuing until his thirtieth year, when he began farming as a renter. In 1873 he purchased twenty-seven acres of land, to which he has since added until his estate now consists of one hundred and thirty- eight acres of excellent farming land. He has cleared all of these many acres, placed them under cultivation, and has also made the many improvements which now adorn this valuable homestead.
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