USA > Indiana > An illustrated history of the state of Indiana: being a full and authentic civil and political history of the state from its first exploration down to 1875 > Part 25
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RELIGIOUS .- There are more than twenty fine, elegant, and well-furnished churches in Fort Wayne. The architecture is generally handsome, and the material is substantial. Among them should be mentioned the Roman Catholic Cathedral. This is a very beautiful structure of brick, surmounted by two steeples. Trinity Church (Episcopal) on West Berry street, is one of the handsomest church edifices in the State, though by no means as large as some others in that city. The Lutherans, Presbyterians, Methodists, and Christians have all built them- selves fine and costly churches.
RAILROADS .- The lines of railroad leading from Fort Wayne in eight different directions, give to the city a decided metro- politan appearance, and bring untold wealth to its doors. These roads are all important lines, that connect the "Summit City " with all the principal cities of the country. The tracks and equipments of these roads are first-class, while the accom- modation for all kinds of transportation is as good as could be desired. It is estimated that thirty-four passenger trains arrive at, and depart from, the city every day, while freight trains may be estimated by the hundred daily. Other important roads are in contemplation, but even at the present day Fort Wayne is the great railroad city of Northern Indiana.
WABASH AND ERIE CANAL .- The importance of canals as a
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means of inland navigation, attracted much attention in the early days of this country, and it is due to them, in a great measure, that our country has been settled and cities founded. In 1820 an act was passed by the Ohio legislature, appointing three commissioners to locate a route for a canal between Lake Erie and the Ohio river, but it was not until 1824 that a survey was made of what is now the Wabash and Erie Canal. The members of Congress from Indiana then procured a survey of the canal by a corps of United States topographical engineers. This survey was commenced at Fort Wayne, about June, 1826, and at its completion, Congress passed an act, granting to the State of Indiana one-half of five miles in width of the public lands on each side of the proposed canal, from Lake Erie to the navigable waters of the Wabash river. This grant amounted to three thousand two hundred acres per mile. It was accepted by the State legislature, during its session of 1827-28, and Samuel Hanna, David Barr, and Robert Johns, were appointed a Board of Commissioners. This grant was the first of any importance made by Congress for the furtherance of any public works, and may be considered the inception of the policy afterwards adopted, of granting so much of the public domain for public improvements. In 1828 the State granted to Ohio all the land which had been granted for canal purposes in that State, upon the condition that they would, in consideration therefor, construct the works through their territory. In 1843 the canal was opened for navigation, and two years afterwards the Miami extension was completed, thus perfecting a continuous line of canal between Maumee bay and the Ohio river at Cincinnati. The Mahon Brothers commenced running two small packets between Toledo and Fort Wayne, in 1843, but not with any regularity, and it was not until the summer of 1844 that a line making regular trips was established. Samuel Doyle and William Dickey, of Dayton, Ohio, were the pioneers in this enterprise, running ten boats and one steam propeller between Toledo and Lafay- ette, and Toledo and Cincinnati. In 1846, the act known as the "Butler Bill " was passed by the legislature, by which the canal was transferred to three trustees, two of whom were
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appointed by the bondholders, the remaining one by the State.
PUBLIC BUILDINGS .- The County Court House and County Jail, both located at Fort Wayne, are substantial buildings, well adapted to the purposes sought. There is yet no commo- dious city hall, nor is any needed at the present day, that would impose a heavy tax upon the city. The building in which the headquarters of the fire department are located, is well suited to that branch of the municipality. Further remarks on the present condition and future prospects of Fort Wayne, financially and commercially, are noticed in another part of this work, under the department of the "Great Indus- tries of Indiana." See Index to Biographies to find interesting biographical sketches of pioneers and prominent men of Allen county.
The leading newspapers published in Fort Wayne are the Gazette and Sentinel, both well conducted and influential journals.
CHAPTER XLVI.
HUNTINGTON COUNTY - HISTORICAL AND DESCRIPTIVE.
L EAVING Allen county by the route mentioned in the foregoing chapter, we soon reach Huntington county, now rich in agriculture and commerce, and minerals, but once a dense forest. The county was named in honor of Samuel Huntington, a delegate in the Continental Congress from Con- necticut, and one of the signers of the Declaration of Inde- pendence. A small portion of the county is hilly, but for the most part it is level, or only sufficiently undulating to consti- tute a natural drain. The soil is a mixture of sand and clay, is very deep and fertile, and well adapted to all the products indigenous to the climate and country. At an early day the
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county was heavily timbered throughout, with the exception of a few small prairies.
The first settlement, as near as we can learn, was made in Huntington county in 1829. Messrs. Artimedee Woodworth and Elias Murray were the first settlers. They came in 1829. Mr. Woodward settled north of Silver creek, on the Wabash. Here he built a log house and began pioneer life in earnest. Mr. Murray settled a mile east on the opposite side of the river, where he also built a cabin. In 1832-3, a settlement was made on the Salamony river, near the present town of Warren. Samuel Jones erected a log house at this place in 1833, and moved into it with his family in September of the same year. James Morrison settled at the same place about the same time, and in the following winter Lewis Purviance, Lewis Richards, and George Helm, located with them.
The first settlers of the present prosperous city of Hunting- ton were C. and J. Helvey, who came from the White river section, originally from Clinton county, Ohio, to Huntington, in 1830, with their sisters. They built a hewed log tavern, which is known in history as the "Flint Springs Hotel." It remained a tavern until 1857, and was for a long time a favor- ite stopping place on the old "Fort Wayne and Lafayette trace." A few now living in Huntington county remember this trace. It was nearly the same pathway over which the bold Robert de La Salle traveled with his military escort in 1680, and the same trace upon which many a zealous French priest journeyed alone, before Americans explored the head waters of the Wabash.
There was another log tavern erected near the cabin of Mr. Woodworth in 1832, but that region remained unsettled until 1847. Clear creek, two and a half miles north from Hunting- ton, was first settled by Michael Doyle, in 1834. In that year he erected the pioneer log cabin of that section, and moved into it with his family.
The Helveys, who first settled at Huntington, sold their lands to General Tipton and Captain Murray, soon after they were located, and the latter gentlemen laid out the town in 1832. Mr. Murray moved to Huntington to reside, with his
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family, about one year previous. The Wabash and Erie Canal was commenced in 1832, which may be regarded as the imme- diate cause that led to the settlement of Huntington. The work on this important State internal improvement prospered, and the new town of Huntington shared in the prosperity. In 1835 the permanent population of Huntington was probably two hundred and fifty, although previous to that time gangs of canal men frequently visited the place, swelling its popula- tion temporarily to four and five hundred.
Huntington county was organized in 1834, previous to which it formed a part of Grant county. The first county election was held in the fall of 1834, as also the first court. The latter was held in the well known "Flint Springs Hotel." From this the court was soon after taken to the school house, which shows that Huntington, now so justly celebrated for her excellent schools, began the good work of education in her youth.
The first school teacher in Huntington was a Mr. Sergant. They called him a " down east Yankee," but he had consider- able influence, probably because he was the son of a Presby- terian clergyman. He " boarded round," and being a little on the particular order, it is not a wonder that the old settlers of Huntington tell some funny stories of his experience of this phase of his residence in their town. It is very probable. however, that he had enough to contend with, both in the school room and in society. But we shall not tax the reader with every step in the growth of Huntington county. Such was its social and political beginning. Let us look at results- its present condition.
The Huntington of to-day has a population of three thousand five hundred, and is surrounded by well settled, well cultivated agricultural lands, in every direction. It is the county seat, and a smart, thriving city. The streets have been admirably laid off, and the general appearance of the buildings favors the substantial. The new court house is a fine building, located in the center of a spacious square enclosed by a substantial iron fence. The churches are, for the most part, fine build- ings, erected in a modern style of architecture, and present
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striking evidence of the high moral taste of the people. The city schools are, at present, in a flourishing condition. For many years they lagged for want of the proper management, but within the last few years a splendid three story brick building has been erected, in which the city graded schools are now located, excellent teachers are provided, and the public schools of Huntington to-day are a credit to the State.
There is probably no other city in Indiana of equal popula- tion that can boast as much success in manufacturing as Huntington. The manufacture from wood has increased until the city is now supplying many of the towns in northern Indiana with staves, headings, plow handles, etc. In this particular industry Huntington possesses many advantages. Wood of nearly all kinds exists in large quantities in many parts of the county. Labor is cheap, and the surrounding country affords an ample and remunerative market. However, the manufacture of lime is perhaps the largest industrial interest of Huntington. During the present year there were over thirty kilns in successful operation, employing a capital of over one hundred thousand dollars, and giving employment to an army of men either in immediate connection with the kilns or in chopping wood to supply them with fuel. Over ten thousand cords of wood were consumed during the year just closed, for which over twenty-five thousand dollars have been disbursed throughout the county. The product of the Huntington lime kilns is unsurpassed in quality. "Hunting- ton white lime," has become a favorite brand in the northwest, and is sought after even to the full extent of the supply. The lime business of Huntington shows a steady and healthy increase, and is capable of great extension. The total product in 1874 was over four hundred thousand bushels.
Huntington county is rich in agricultural wealth, and most of the farmers have become wealthy. Old-time log houses have, for the most part, disappeared, and new and elegant rural residences are scattered over the entire county. Villages have sprung up, and in every quarter there are indications of thrift and prosperity. With the increase of wealth have come all the other desirable acquisitions. Education, once so sadly
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neglected in the county, has now its full share of attention, and the youths are as far advanced in the usual course of study as in any other rural section of the State.
CHAPTER XLVII.
CASS COUNTY - HISTORICAL AND DESCRIPTIVE.
P ASSING over Wabash and Miami counties, for the pres- ent, we will take up Cass county. This jump in our route is made necessary by the absence of data, at this writing, for the complete history of those counties, as well as by the fact that the settlement of Cass county is of earlier date .*
Cass county was organized on the thirteenth of April, 1829: previous to which it was under the jurisdiction of Carroll county, being originally, however, under the jurisdiction of Tippecanoe county. Previous to its existence as Cass county, it was known as Eel township, in Carroll county.
"The mouth of Eel," which, in early times, acquired con- siderable notoriety as the point where the main line of travel crossed the Wabash, is the point where the first settlement was made in Cass county. As early as the fall of 1824,+ Ed- ward McCartney came down from Fort Wayne, under the auspices of a company of "fur-traders " located there, with head-quarters at Detroit, and erected a small trading-house on the north side of the Wabash, a little below the "mouth of Eel," which was, perhaps, the first house built for the occu- pancy of a white man within the present limits of Cass county. A year and a half later, about August, 1826, Alexander Cham- berlain, a native of Kinderhook, New York, but more recently from the vicinity of Fort Harrison, in Vigo county, Indiana, brought his family and settled on the south side of the Wabash,
* See Index to find sketches of Wabash andMiami counties.
+ From MS. furnished by T. B. Helm, of Logansport.
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jast opposite the mouth of Eel river. Here, with the assist- ance of his neighbors from the "Deer Creek settlements," more than twenty miles down the river, he built the first res- idence, also used as a " hotel," (a double hewed-log cabin, two stories high,) in the county.
About the same time, William Newman settled with his family and built a cabin, also situated on the south bank of the Wabash, and three miles below Chamberlain's. The same season, James Burch made a settlement less than one mile below the former, and on the same side of the river, on what is since known as the Simons' farm. These two last remained but a short time, selling out their claims and returning to older settlements.
Mr. Chamberlain, after selling out his first residence to General Tipton, who lived there afterward and established the Indian Agency formerly at Fort Wayne, built another house, a little further down, where he lived and "kept tavern " until the year 1835, when he moved to Rochester, in Fulton county, and died there a few years since.
On the twenty-seventh day of March, 1827, Major Daniel Bell, a son-in-law of Captain Spear Spencer, who was killed in the battle of Tippecanoe, and brother-in-law of General John Tipton, crossed the Wabash river and built his cabin, the first one built between the rivers, within the present limits of the city of Logansport. It was situated just south of the canal, and a few feet west of Berkley street. He lived there until sometime in the spring of 1830, removing thence to a claim, subsequently purchased, a little way north of Eel river, in what is now Clay township.
Not long after the settlement of Major Bell, Hugh B. McKeen, an Indian trader, from Fort Wayne, erected a tra- ding-house and domicil on the banks of the Wabash, a few rods above the mouth of Eel river, near where McKeen street, in the city of Logansport, strikes the Wabash river.
In the fall of the same year, Joseph Barron, an interpreter of considerable celebrity, with his family, moved also from Fort Wayne, and settled on the reservation granted to his children by the treaty of October 16, 1826, below the mouth
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of Eel river, residing temporarily in the house before built and occupied by Edward McCartney as a trading-house, until the completion of his own house, a half mile above.
Beside those named, there were numerous other settlers who came shortly after, adding rapidly to the population from time to time, so that, by the spring following, the inhabitants num- bered about one hundred souls.
By the treaty with the Pottawatomies, at the mouth of the Mississinaway, in October, 1826, one section of land, "at the falls of Eel river," was reserved to George Cicott, which, hav- ing been surveyed in the month of July following, negotiations were at once entered into between McKeen, Chauncey Carter and General Tipton, for the purpose of acquiring an interest in, if not the entire control, of the Cicott grant. Mr. Carter succeeded in obtaining the control, and, on the tenth day of April, 1828, laid out the original plat of Logansport, between the Wabash and Eel rivers, just above their junction.
On the eighteenth of December, 1828, the legislative act authorizing the organization of Cass county, was approved by the governor, to take effect from and after Monday, April 13, 1829. Accordingly, on that day, an election was held by the qualified voters of the county, under proclamation from the governor, and the following officers chosen, as prescribed by said act, to wit .: Chauncey Carter, James Smith and Moses Thorpe, County Commissioners; John B. Durst, Clerk and Recorder; James H. Kintner, Sheriff; John Smith, Senior, and Hiram Todd, Associate Judges; Job B. Eldridge and Peter Johnson, Justices of the Peace. For the purpose of conducting this election and carrying the enabling act into effect, William Scott had been previously appointed by the governor, special sheriff, to serve as such until his successor . was elected and qualified.
By the supplemental act of January 19, 1829, the territory included within the present limits of Fulton, Kosciusko, Miami, Wabash, Marshall, Elkhart, St. Joseph, with portions of La Porte, Pulaski and Starke counties, was attached to Cass county, for civil and criminal jurisdiction.
The first session of the Board of Commissioners was held
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OASS COUNTY - HISTORICAL AND DESCRIPTIVE.
on the first day of May, James Smith and Moses Thorpe, Commissioners, with William Scott, Sheriff, being present. At this session, Cass county and the territory under its juris- diction, were sub-divided into Eel township, embracing "all that part of Cass county lying south of the Tippecanoe and west of the west boundary of the five-mile reservation "; Wabash township embracing all that part of the territory attached, "south of Eel river," and east of the eastern boun- dary of Eel township, and St. Joseph's township, embracing all that part of the attached territory "lying north of the 'Tippecanoe river, to the north line of the State."
On Thursday, May 21, 1829, the Cass circuit court held its first session in the old seminary building, occupying only one day, Hon. Bethuel F. Morris, Judge of the Fifth Judicial Circuit of the State, presiding, with Hiram Todd and John Smith Associate Judges, William Scott, Sheriff, and John B. Duret, Clerk.
A seal for said court was adopted on the same day, the device of which commemorates the agreement of Aub-bee- naub-bee, a principal chief of the Pottawatomies, and General Lewis Cass, one of the commissioners on the part of the United States to the terms of the treaty of October 16, 1826, by which the major part of the territory within the bounda- ries of Cass county came into the possession of the United States -" An Indian and a white man joining hands."
Henry Ristine, Erasmus Powell and Harris Tyner, appointed by the act of organization, Commissioners to locate the seat of justice of Cass county, by their report dated August 12, 1829, submitted to the Board of County Commissioners, then in session, selected LOGANSPORT, in consideration of certain dona- tions made by Mr. Carter, the proprietor.
The settlements in the outer townships, Miami in the east, Clay, Noble and Jefferson immediately north of the Wabash and Eel rivers, Boone, Harrison, Bethlehem and Adams on the extreme north, Clinton, Washington and Tipton south of the river, with Deer Creek and Jackson on the extreme south, as the public lands came into market from time to time, were filled up rapidly with an enterprising population. The last
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HISTORY OF INDIANA.
settlements were in the lower townships, that part having been surveyed in the winter and spring of 1846-7, came into market immediately after, though prior to that time and subsequent to the treaty of 1843, many settlements were made by pre- emption.
For several years succeeding the year 1829, the growth of town and country kept nearly even pace in the progress of settlements and improvements, reaching, perhaps, the year 1836, when the country having fallen behind in the race, as a consequence, the trade being yet chiefly of a local character the town came nearly to a stand still, while the country moved steadily forward, producing, ere long, a large excess over the demands of home trade, for transportation to other localities. The completion of the canal to this point, in the fall of 1837, opened an avenue to trade with other points of commercial importance, which advantages the people were not slow to improve. The improvement of the Michigan road, also, from the fall of 1828 to 1834-5, tended to the development of resources scarcely known to exist before. The canal having been completed from Toledo to the lower Wabash, was about the only means of shipment of surplus products until 1852-3, and from that time forward, when the Richmond and New Castle, and the Lake Erie, Wabash and St. Louis Railroad that began to be operated about that time with telling effect upon the producing interests of the county, adding greatly to the wealth and prosperity of our citizens. Since that time other roads of equal importance traverse the county in various directions.
Beside Logansport, other smaller towns have sprung up, of greater or less importance, in different parts of the county; among these, Galveston, Walton, Royal Center, New Waverly are of most consequence, embracing a population of from three hundred to five hundred each in their own localities, car- rying on a substantial trade.
There are now published in the county, all of them in Logansport, the Logansport Pharos, daily and weekly; the Logansport Journal, weekly; Logansport Star, daily and weekly, and the Sun, weekly.
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CASS COUNTY - HISTORICAL AND DESCRIPTIVE.
And now, more particularly of the present city of Logans- port. The seat of justice of Cass county, as originally laid out, was a small, unpretentious plat, in the shape of a right angled triangle, its base, along the margin of the Wabash, being of the length of five, and its perpendicular of four squares, embracing one hundred and eleven lots and fractions. These lots contained an area of fifty square rods, and such of them as occupied a position on the corner of a square were offered and sold for seventy-five dollars, the others for fifty dollars. Some of the lots were sold on condition that the purchaser should erect thereon, within a prescribed time, a house not less than eighteen by twenty feet, and one story high. It was laid out on the tenth day of April, 1828, and the plat recorded in Carroll county, in which jurisdiction it then was. In connection with the name, the following inci- dent is related: While the survey was in process of comple- tion, the name of the new town site became the subject of conversation between Mr. Carter, the proprietor, General Tip- ton, Hugh B. McKeen, Colonel John B. Duret, and others present. General Tipton suggested a Latin compound, sig- nifying " the mouth of Eel," of historic fame, or otherwise, commemorative of the location above the junction of the two rivers known as the " Ouabache and Eel" rivers. Another submitted an Indian name by which the locality had before been known. Then Mr. McKeen, who had formerly resided on the Maumee, in the vicinity where Captain Logan, the Shawanoe chief, a nephew of Tecumseh, who lost his life while attesting his fidelity to. the white people, in the month of November, 1812, proposed that his memory be perpetuated in the name of the new town. Colonel Duret agreed with the idea, and thought Logan's port would be appropriate. These differences of opinion were then submitted to the arbi- trament of "shooting at a mark," an exercise common in those days. The several names proposed were "shot for," and that having "four best out of seven," should have it. The exercise was finally brought to a close by the declaration that Colonel Duret had "won." Hence, the name as now known - " LOGAN'S-PORT."
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HISTORY OF INDIANA.
By the action of the commissioners appointed for the pur. pose, Logansport was selected as the seat of justice of Cass county, on the twelfth day of August, 1829.
At the time it was laid out, and for several years succeed- ing, its importance was chiefly recognized in the light of a central "trading post " for a large extent of Indian territory surrounding, and as such it acquired a well merited fame. The consequence was that as soon as the sources of trade began to diminish, the producing population outside the town being inadequate to meet the demands of consumption, and the growth of the town was retarded for several years subsequent to 1836-7, indeed, until the country products equalled, overbalanced the consumption account of the non- producers in town, and the avenues of trade were opened between this and other more commanding markets.
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