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 41
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58
Crown Point, in Center township, is the county seat. It is a small but thriving town, with fair public improvements, and good educational facilities.
LA PORTE COUNTY.
THIS is one of the finest counties in the State, and contains one of the most prosperous towns in Indiana. The name given to the county is the French name of the beautiful lake included in it. The range of country east and west, from eight to twelve miles south-east of Lake Michigan, was origi- nally timbered land, and parts of it are somewhat hilly, and the soil is mostly thin. The timber was mostly oak and hick- ory. The level part was originally covered with beech, poplar, sugar, etc., and in the vicinity of the lake and Michigan City, are sand hills, originally covered with pine. The county south of the above, for six or eight miles in width, is gently undu- lating prairie, interspersed with groves of timber and small lakes, which has a very rich soil. Still further south are the bur-oak openings, a few dry prairies, and the Kankakee marshes, of which large portions are better for grazing than for grain. It is estimated that one hundred and eighty-eight
566
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
sections of land lie in the different prairies in the county, the principal of which are Rolling, Door, La Porte, Stillwell, Domain, and Hog prairies, which, with the exception of a few wet places, are well adapted to wheat, oats, corn, barley, hemp, and vines, and garden vegetables of every description. Fruit succeeds well, and the wet prairies, when drained, are excellent for grass. The oak openings are not inferior to the prairies in respect to soil.
La Porte, a flourishing and prosperous city of over eight thousand inhabitants, is the county seat. It is located in Center township, and has excellent railroad facilities. Sur- rounded by a rich agricultural district, with an abundance of good timber on every hand, it has all the elements of com- mercial prosperity. In a literary and educational point, the city has made great progress. Its schools stand high, and are a credit to the great system of education of Indiana. Its public improvements are excellent, and, in every point La Porte is a prosperous and flourishing city. The La Porte reading-room and natural history association attests the literary culture of its citizens. This institution was organized and incorporated in 1863; it started with seven hundred volumes, all standard works, and is, at the present time, in a high state of efficiency. Michigan City, in the northern part of the county, on the margin of Lake Michigan, is a very prosperous city of over five thousand inhabitants. All that can be said of the public improvements, educational facilities, and prosperity of La Porte, may, with propriety, be said of Michigan City. It is the gate to Lake Michigan commerce from Indiana, and, as such, must soon become a great com- mercial city.
MARION COUNTY.
THIS county was named in honor of General Francis Marion. It is the seat of the capital of the State,* and contains the great and prosperous city of Indianapolis. In the northern part of the county, near White river, Fall creek, and Eagle
* See Future Great Cities of Indiana, to find sketch of Indianapolis.
567
MARSHALL COUNTY.
creek, is a rolling country, beautifully diversified with hills - and a small portion of the southwest of the county is of the same description; but the residue, with few exceptions, appears to be almost level, with slight ascents from the creeks. As farms are improved, they become dry, in most seasons, with very little draining. "One-third of the county, at least, is a kind of second bottom; it was originally covered with large sugar trees, walnut, ash, white and burr oak, beech, and a few poplar." The soil in this section is a black loam, clay and sand, intermixed, and based on limestone gravel four or five feet beneath the surface. This kind of land lies next to the streams, is easily farmed, and is very productive in corn, wheat, oats, potatoes, vines and fruits, and in fact all the articles usually raised in the climate. Further back from the streams the timber is not so good; the soil is a black muck, based on clay, which, though at first not well adapted to corn, yet becomes so in most seasons. It improves with continued cultivation. Indianapolis is the county seat, of which we make further mention in the latter part of this work.
MARSHALL COUNTY.
THIS county was named in honor of Chief Justice Marshall. The surface of the county is generally level, though there are places in which it may be called rolling. About one-half of the county is timbered land; the other half is oak openings or barrens, interspersed with wet and dry prairies, which are mostly of a small size, and in their vicinity are several small, beautiful lakes. The soil, where the land was originally tim- bered, is very rich and fertile, as also in the prairies. In the barrens it is thinner, though yet a greater portion of them is well adapted to wheat, oats, and vines. This portion of the soil improves with continued cultivation. There are in this county rich beds of iron ore. Marshall county has already become one of the leading agricultural counties in Indiana.
Plymouth, located in Centre township, is the county seat. It is one of the most enterprising towns in the State, has a population of over three thousand five hundred, and is rapidly
568
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
increasing in wealth and importance. It has excellent railroad facilities, being located on the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne & Chicago and the Chicago, Cincinnati & Louisville railroads. Bourbon is another smart town in this county. It is located on the railroad first mentioned. Tyner City and Argos are also smart towns on the latter road.
MARTIN COUNTY.
THIS county was given its name in honor of Major Martin, of Newport, Ky. The face of the county is quite uneven. There are a number of hills, and the soil is of various qualities, but mostly clay. Nine-tenths of the county was originally timbered upland, the balance about equally divided between river bottoms and oak openings.
Shoals, the county seat, is a thriving town, located on the Ohio & Mississippi railroad. It has good public improve- ments, good schools, and is increasing in agricultural and com- mercial importance, as is the whole county.
NOBLE COUNTY.
THIS county was named in honor of Noah Noble, Governor of the State of Indiana from 1831 to 1837. The face of the county is quite diversified, portions of it being nearly level, and other parts somewhat rolling or hilly. About one-half is heavily timbered; the balance, with the exception of one prairie of four thousand acres, and several small ones, is oak openings. The soil is mostly a black loam mixed with sand; there is very little clay. In places, small, wet prairies are intermixed with small lakes and rolling, gravelly barrens, and , the soil is poor; but generally the soil is rich, and well adapted to wheat, oats, and, in the timbered land, to grass. As a whole, the county is well adapted to agriculture, and the labors of the husbandman are fully rewarded.
Albion, the county seat, is located in the centre of the county. It is a lively town, with good public improvements, excellent school advantages, and considerable commercial im- portance.
569
ORANGE COUNTY.
ORANGE COUNTY.
THIS county was named after a county of North Carolina, in which many of the early settlers had previously resided. The south part of the county is hilly, and abounds with fine springs of water; the north is undulating. About one-fifth of the county is bottom land, with a rich, fertile soil, and an equal amount of openings; the balance is uplands, and was origin- ally heavily timbered with oak, hickory, poplar, ash, walnut, cherry, sugar and beech, and the soil well adapted to wheat, corn, oats, etc. There are many "sinks" in the county. "These, for the most part, have limestone for a base, where many of the streams and springs fall into the earth, and there find subterraneous passages, until they unite with larger streams or reappear with larger and stronger currents."
Paoli, the county seat, is located in the centre of the county. It is a small town and is improving in population and wealth rapidly, with the country around it. The schools are improv- ing.
PERRY COUNTY.
THIS county was named in honor of the gallant Commodore Oliver H. Perry. With the exception of about twenty thou- sand acres of bottom land, along the Ohio and Anderson rivers, and some tracts of wet beech lands at the heads of the streams, the balance of the county is very hilly. On the bottoms and a portion of the hill-sides and tops, the soil is rich, but much of the largest part of the county is what is usually denomi- nated poor land, though there is but a small part of it which may not, with careful farming, be made productive. The timber is of an excellent quality; the best of oak and poplar are found on the hills, and in the bottoms sugar, beech, ash and walnut. The surplus articles exported are corn, hay, pork, etc. The trade in wood and coal for the Ohio river steamboats is large and profitable.
Cannelton, the county seat, is located in the southern part of the county, on the Ohio river. It is quite a large and flourishing town, with creditable public improvements.
570
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
PORTER COUNTY.
THIS county bears the name of Commodore David Porter, of the United States navy. The surface of the county is gently undulating. About one-fourth of the county was originally timbered with oak, walnut, poplar, pine, maple, butternut and beech; one-third is oak openings, and the rem- nants prairie and bottom land. Except near Lake Michigan and the marshes of Kankakee, the general character of the soil is good, and best adapted to wheat, oats, corn, and grazing.
Valparaiso, the county seat, is located in the centre of the county. It has good railroad facilities, a growing commerce, flourishing educational institutions, and a general prosperity.
POSEY COUNTY.
THIS county was named in honor of General Thomas Posey, who was appointed governor of the Indian territory to suc- ceed General Harrison. The surface of the county on the Ohio and Wabash, with the exception of the bluffs, com- mencing at Mount Vernon and extending four miles below, is flat bottom land, and was formerly subject to yearly overflows, varying from a half to two miles in width. But by the use of dams this land has been improved. The interior of the county is undulating or rolling, and some parts are compara- tively hilly, but, upon the whole, lie remarkably well for agri- cultural purposes. The only prairie in the county is about three miles in length and one in width; and there are, prop- erly speaking, no barrens, though the soil is thin in places; and near the junction of the rivers there are so many ponds and so much low ground that it cannot be improved with much profit. The bottom lands comprise about a sixth, and the forest lands three-fifths of the whole. The soil in the bot- tom is a rich, sandy loam, formed from the deposit of the rivers; that in the interior is mostly a dark, rich loam, resting upon a yellow-clay formation. It is best adapted to corn and grass, though fine crops of wheat and oats are raised annually with very good profit in various portions of the county.
571
RANDOLPH COUNTY.
Mount Vernon is the county seat, located on the Ohio river. It is a city of nearly five thousand inhabitants, with excellent public improvements, fine literary and educational institutions and increasing commercial interests. New Harmony is also a flourishing town of Posey county. It is noted for the literary taste of its citizens, and for its education and refinement.
PULASKI COUNTY.
THIS county bears the name of the celebrated Polish soldier, Count Pulaski, who, failing to sustain the Independence of his own country, came to this during the revolutionary war, was appointed a brigadier-general, and fell, mortally wounded, in the attack on Savannah, in 1779. The surface of the county is mostly level, though in several parts there are ridges of low sandy hills. About one-half of the county is prairie; the other half oak openings, though portions of it have a very heavy growth of the various species of oak timber. A few of the bottoms of the Tippecanoe and other streams have small groves of walnut, sugar tree and white maple, and the soil is well adapted to the growth of fruit trees. An arm of the Grand Prairie extends several miles into the southwest corner of the county. The other principal prairies are Fox- grape, Dry, Northwestern, Oliver's, and Pearson's. The west prairies are favorable for grazing, and, through a process of drainage, they are being rapidly improved, so as to be culti- vated with profit. The dry prairies and openings are mostly a black loam mixed with sand, and occasionally a good deal of mud, and are well adapted to wheat, corn, oats, etc.
Winnemac, the county seat, is located a little to the east of the center of the county. It is a flourishing town, with good railroad facilities, educational advantages, and commercial thrift. The county is well settled and in a very prosperous condition.
RANDOLPH COUNTY.
THIS county was named, at the request of the early settlers, after the county in North Carolina, from which they emigrated.
572
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
The surface of the county is nearly level, and portions of it are, at times, wet and marshy, so that it would seem to be low, though, in reality, it is about as high as any land in the State, for " in or near Randolph county the head waters of the Big Miami, Whitewater, Blue river, White river, the Mississinewa, the Solamonie, Wabash, and St. Mary's, all running in different directions, take their rise." There are no " barrens," and but few prairies (all of which are wet), in the county. The timber is of an average quality, the soil well adapted to wheat and corn, oats, etc.
Winchester, the county seat, is located in the centre of the county. It is the largest town, and is quite prosperous, hav- ing fair public improvements, good schools, churches, etc. Union city is located on the extreme western border of the county, and is bisected by the State line dividing Indiana and Ohio. Both of these towns have good railroad facilities, and increasing commercial interests.
RIPLEY COUNTY.
THIS county bears the name of General E. W. Ripley, a dis- tinguished officer of the war of 1812. The general surface of the county may be called level, except in the vicinity of the water courses, where the hills are abrupt and high. The bot- tom lands along Laughery, and other streams, are rich and fertile, but they are, for the most part, quite small; the up- lands, when dry, usually produce well, and much of them is based on beds of blue limestone; but large tracts incline to be wet, and will be adapted to grass only, until drained.
Versailles is the county seat, and is located nearly in the centre of the county. Ripley county has made very good suc- cess in agriculture and education.
RUSH COUNTY.
THIS county bears the name of Dr. Benjamin Rush. The surface is mostly level, or gently rolling, though there are hills along the principal streams which, in general, are neither high nor abrupt. There are no prairies or barrens, or, in fact,
573
SPENCER COUNTY.
any poor land in the county; about one-twentieth is river and creek bottoms. The soil is principally loam, bedded on clay, with a mixture of sand, and it produces abundantly all the kinds of grain, grass, and vegetables common to the climate.
Rushville is the county seat, and is a growing, prosperous town. It has good railroad facilities, excellent school accom- modations, and good public improvements. The county has made good progress.
SPENCER COUNTY.
THIS county bears the name of the patriotic Captain Spier Spencer, of Harrison county, who fell in the battle of Tippe- canoe. The south part of the county is level, the middle un- dulating, and the northeast hilly. The soil, for the most part, is a rich, black loam, with an under soil of yellow clay, mixed with sand. Though in places steep hills or extensive flats do not encourage agricultural improvements, the prevailing timber was oak, hickory, ash, poplar, black-gum, walnut, sugar, beech, etc. Large crops of corn are raised on the extensive river bottoms; and, in the interior, corn, wheat, grass, and other grain.
Rockport is the county seat- a lively town on the Ohio river. The county has made general improvements.
STEUBEN COUNTY.
THIS county was named in honor of Baron Steuben, a Prus- sian officer of distinction, who joined the American army during the revolutionary war, and rendered the cause of in- dependence valuable aid. About one-half of the county was originally timbered land, one-third oak openings, and one- sixth prairie. The timbered and prairie land is very good, having a productive soil. The openings have a poor soil. Steuben county was first settled in 1833, by emigrants from Ohio, who located on Jackson prairie. The population has steadily increased since that time. The natural scenery in the county is very beautiful.
Angola is the county seat, is located in the centre of the
574
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
county, has good educational advantages, railroad facilities, and is rapidly increasing.
TIPTON COUNTY.
THIS county was named in honor of General John Tipton, a distinguished citizen of the State. The surface of the county is level, the soil excellent, and the timber of a superior quality. Tipton is the county seat. It has good railroad advantages, and its public improvements are in a good state of progress. The county is in a good condition.
UNION COUNTY.
THE eastern part of the county is level, the west undulating or hilly. About one-eighth is bottom land, the other seven- eights is timbered upland, originally covered with valuable timber. The soil is uniformly good, and well adapted to corn, wheat, oats, grass, etc. Hogs, sheep, and cattle are raised with profit. Liberty is the county seat, and is in a flourishing condition. The county is increasing rapidly in wealth and population.
VERMILLION COUNTY.
THE surface of the county is high and generally level, except near the streams. The soil is generally excellent; some of the best farms in the State are to be found here. The " block coal " of Vermillion county is among its most substantial resources. The county has made wonderful progress in agriculture, min- ing, and commerce. Newport is the county seat, and is a thriving town.
WARREN COUNTY.
THIS county bears the name of General Joseph Warren, of revolutionary fame, who fell in the battle of Bunker Hill. On the river there is an average width of bottom for half a mile; then come the bluffs, from sixty to two hundred feet in height, broken and precipitious; then follows a gently ascending, un-
575
WASHINGTON COUNTY
dulating surface to the Illinois State line. At least half the county is prairie, consisting of arms of the Grand prairie, which have uniformly a rich, loamy soil. About half the timbered land is either so hilly or so poor as not to be profitable for farming; the balance of the timbered land has a good soil. Williamsport is the county seat, is located on the Toledo, Wabash, and Western railroad, and has already built up a profitable trade. The county is making good, progress in agri- culture and education.
WARRICK COUNTY.
THIS county bears the name of Captain Jacob Warrick, a brave soldier and much esteemed citizen, who fell at the head of his company, in the battle of Tippecanoe. The surface of the county is mostly rolling or undulating, though there is a range of hills back of the river bottoms, and there are large tracts of flat, wet land at the heads of Pigeon and other creeks, with which the county is watered. The soil of the bottoms, many of which are large, is very rich, and immense crops of corn are produced there. Much of the upland is of a good quality, and the soil of the county, generally speaking, is pro- ductive. Booneville is the county seat, and is a thrifty place, having attained a growth equal to the development of the sec- tion of country around it.
WASHINGTON COUNTY.
THE soil is fully diversified. The range of hills called the " knobs," described in the sketch of the adjoining counties, passes along the east line of Washington, separating it from Clark and Scott counties. In the south are extensive barrens, parts of which are thickly matted almost with brush and grubs; other parts have wild grass only, and other parts are curiously diversified with sink-holes, varying in shape and size, but all showing the cavernous nature of the earth under- neath. In other parts of the county are swelling ridges, ever changing their features as you advance along them, presenting beautiful groves of walnut, sugar tree, or chestnut. Salem is
576
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
the county seat, located near the centre of the county. It is a small but flourishing town.
WHITE COUNTY.
THIS county bears the name of Colonel Isaac White, who fell by the side of Colonel Daviess, in the battle of Tippecanoe. About two-thirds of the county is prairie, mostly arms of the Grand prairie. All of it has a rich soil, and at least one- half is dry and gently undulating, easily farmed, and not in- ferior to any land in the same latitude for producing good crops of wheat, corn, rye, oats, roots, and fruit; and grass grows well in the flat prairies, where there is less sand mixed with the soil. Nearly one-half of them are of this character, and no part of the State is better adapted to raising stock than this kind of prairie. Taking it as a whole, this is a good agricul- tural county, and the farms have already been wonderfully improved. The Tippecanoe river enters the county six miles west of the north-east corner of the county, and flows in a southerly course, forming the east boundary of the county for a distance of about six miles, in the southeastern portion. This stream affords several very fine water powers, two of which, at Monticello, are considered very superior. Numer- ous streams flowing into the Tippecanoe, from the east and west, render the county a well watered district. Monticello, the county seat, is situated near the center of the county, on the Tippecanoe river, and the Toledo, Peoria and Warsaw rail- road. It has a population of about eighteen hundred, and contains good public improvements. There is located here one of the handsomest graded school buildings to be found in the State. Numerous church edifices attest the religious status of the place. The county possesses fair railroad facili- ties; the Toledo, Peoria and Warsaw and the Louisville, New Albany and Chicago passing through and crossing near the center of the county, at Reynolds. Among the towns of the county not already named, may be mentioned Bradford, Brookston, Chalmers, Norway, Walcott, Idaville, and Bur- netts. Much of the lands of this county are held by specu-
577
WHITLEY COUNTY.
lators, which, to a certain degree, has hindered a rapid settle- ment; this, however, is being changed very fast, and we may soon witness White county among the foremost of the State, on the road to prominence and success.
WHITLEY COUNTY
THIS county was named in honor of Colonel William Whit- ley, of Lincoln county, Kentucky, one of the bravest and most hospitable pioneers of that State, who fell at the battle of the Thames. The south part of the county is level, the middle and north undulating. One-ninth of the county is bottom land, one-seventh openings ; the remainder was originally timbered, interspersed with small, wet prairies. The soil of the county is generally a sandy loam, well adapted to agricul- ture. Columbia City, the county seat, is a flourishing town. with good schools. Its commercial interests are enhanced by good railroad facilities.
HOWARD COUNTY.
THIS county was first named Richardsville, after the cele- brated Miami chief, but, on the death of General T. A. How- ard, a distinguished citizen of Indiana, the name was changed. The surface of the county is either nearly level or slightly undulating; the soil is uniformly rich, though in places it had to be drained to render its cultivation profitable. There are a few prairies, slightly inclined to be wet. The soil was mostly covered with valuable timber, and is well adapted to corn, wheat, grass, etc. The county lies entirely within the Miami reserve.
Kokomo, a city of over four thousand inhabitants, is the county seat. It has excellent railroad facilities, good public improvements, unsurpassed school accommodations, and flour- ishing commercial interests.
STARK COUNTY.
THIS county is bounded on the northwest by the Kankakee
578
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
river, and partakes largely of the character of the lands lying along that river. There are numerous swamps in the county hardly susceptible of cultivation, and there are some low lands that are suitable only for grazing. Other portions of the sur- face are well adapted to agriculture, the soil being suited to the production of corn and wheat. The county is young, but thriving in its industries. Knox is the county seat, and, al- though a small town, is growing rapidly. The northern and southern portions of the county have good railroad facilities.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.