USA > Indiana > Clark County > Baird's history of Clark County, Indiana > Part 38
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BAIRD'S HISTORY OF CLARK CO., IND. 1 763
the father of the subject was born. The house on this place was built about 1808, and was one of the first two-story frame houses in the county. It was a meeting place where frequently circuit-riders from Indianapolis held services. During one of these meetings a herd of deer, attracted by the music, gathered in front of the house and during the prayer which followed, Aaron Apple- gate observed them, and quietly reached for his rifle and shot one before the prayer was ended. This startled the minister and stopped the meeting, all adjourning to the yard, where the minister assisted in dressing the deer. Mr. and Mrs. Aaron Applegate died on this place. John D. Applegate, father of the subject, was born and reared on this farm. Soon after his marriage he found employment as cooper in a tobacco warehouse in Louisville, later be- coming the superintendent of the same place, where he remained for a number of years, until his health gave way and he returned to the old homestead, re- suming farming. He was a man of thrift and accumulated a competency and died in Louisville, March 5, 1876. His wife also died in that city on February 10, 1874. They were the parents of twelve children, as follows: Mary Jane, born November 16, 1839; Josephine, born June 9, 1842; America, born March 22, 1844; Joseph, October 10, 1846; Sarah Ellen, February 14, 1848; Louisa B., November 29, 1850; Annie Elizabeth, March 16, 1852; Florence Ross, November 23, 1854; James D., of this review; Burge, September 3, 1859, Archie Clark, February 11, 1862; Julia B., September 11, 1865. Of the above, only four are now living.
James D. Applegate was reared on the old home farm and in Louisville, Kentucky. He received a liberal education. Preferring farm life he early devoted his attention to the same. He became heir to a part of the old home- stead, and he later purchased the remaining portion of this place, which has now been in the possession of the family for over one hundred years. It con- sists of one hundred acres, well improved and although it has been in cultiva- tion for a long time, the soil has retained its fertility, having been skillfully managed and it still produces abundant crops.
Mr. Applegate has been four times married, first on December 20, 1882, to Clara B. Whiteside, daughter of W. S. Whiteside, which union resulted in the birth of three children, one of whom is living-Frank ; Mrs. Applegate died September 17, 1890. His second marriage was to Ida K. Anderson, daughter of George S. Anderson, the wedding occurring in November, 1893; she died August 2, 1898, leaving one child, Maude P. His third marriage was to Maggie May Terry, November 16, 1898; she was the daughter of Joshua Terry, and she passed to her rest without issue, on October 18, 1899. The subject's last wife was Lorena L. Robertson, daughter of Alexander Robertson, a member of a prominent family, this marriage occurring May 21, 1900.
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In his political relations Mr. Applegate is a Democrat, and fraternally he belongs to Hope Lodge, No. 13, and the Uniform Rank, No. 9, Knights of Pythias, of Jeffersonville.
EP HAWES.
` The ancestors of the subject on both sides of the house were early pioneers of Clark county, Indiana, having lived here when neighbors were no nearer than six or seven miles, but they were hardy people and long-lived, the paternal grandfather dying at the age of eighty-nine years and the mother of the sub- ject reaching the advanced age of ninety-four years. The latter, who was known in her maidenhood as Nancy Kelly, was born in Ohio in 1804, and when about thirteen years old she came to Utica township, Clark county, where she witnessed the first steamboat that ever passed Utica on the Ohio river. She never resided outside of this county after coming here. Nathan Hawes, father of our subject, was born in 1802, in the state of New York, and he came to Clark county, this state, with his parents in 1817, settling in Utica, where he remained for two years, then went to Washington county and bought wild land which he improved, engaging in farming all his life. When about twenty-one years old, he returned to Clark county, and was a resident of the same until his death at the age of sixty-eight years. He and Nancy Kelly married in this county about 1827, and to them ten children were born, only three of whom are living, namely: Martha I., who married Jesse J. Coombs; Thomas J., and Ep, our subject.
When Nathan Hawes first came to Clark county, he settled on grant 220 in Union township. Charlestown was the principal town and voting place at that time. He bought a farm in grant 203 in 1852, where the subject now lives. He devoted practically all his time to his home, not being a public man. In politics he was a Whig. He operated the first horse-power threshing ma- chine in this county, and his son, our subject, taking up the work, was the first to operate a steam threshing machine in Clark county.
Ep Hawes was born in Union township, Clark county, Indiana, December 7, 1839, and he has shown himself to be a worthy descendant of his sterling ancestors, according to the statement of those who have known him the longest and best. He got a good education in the free schools of the county, and early in life gave evidence of those habits of industry which have characterized his entire career, having been engaged in farming all his life in Union township, being known as one of the leading general farmers in this vicinity. He has an excellent farm which has been well tilled and his home is a pleasant one, where his neighbors delight to gather. This home is presided over by Mrs. Hawes. who was known in her maidenhood as Harriet Coleman, whom our subject
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married in 1864, at Edinburg, Indiana. She is the daughter of J. O. and Sa- lina (Gates) Coleman, of Edinburg. Harriet Coleman was born at Salem, Connecticut, on July 21, 1844. Her people were all hardy New Englanders. J. O. Coleman was a colonel of state militia and a captain in the Civil war.
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To Mr. and Mrs. Ep Hawes ten children were born, three of whom, Ep- sell, May and Lotta Belle, died within two days, having been stricken with diphtheria. They were all interred in the same grave. The names of the subject's children follow in order of birth: Jessie, born April 1, 1867, died when ten years old; Emma J., born September 12, 1868, died at the age of twenty-seven years; Gussie, born April 10, 1871, died in infancy ; James K., born July 28, 1874, is a practicing physician at Columbus, Indiana ; he married Myrtle Wisner, and they are the parents of four children : Elenore, born April 10, 1876, is living at home ; May, born December 4, 1877, died September 27, 1885; Epsell, born July 28, died September 29, 1885; Samuel C., born July 27, 1882, married Myrtle Carr, and they became the parents of two children ; he married a second time, his last wife, Jessie Carr, being a sister to his first wife; they are living at Memphis, Indiana. Lotta Belle, the ninth child of the subject, was born March 12, 1885, and died September 27, 1885; Arta C., born October 17, 1886, is a school teacher.
Ep Hawes is one of the best known men in that part of Clark county, where he has long resided, and no man in the county is more favorably known than he, for his life has been exemplary in many respects; among the most praiseworthy traits of his character being the fact that he has never used to- bacco in any form, nor ever taken a drink of whiskey. In his fraternal re- lations he is a Mason, having been affiliated with that great order for a period of nearly forty years, having cast his lot with this fraternity at Charlestown, Indiana, in 1870. He is now a member of the Henryville lodge. He is a faithful member of the Christian church.
BALIE L. BURTT.
It has been said that success treads on the heels of every right effort, and amid all the theorizing as to the cause of success, there can be no doubt that this aphorism has its origin in the fact that character is the real basis of success in any field of thought and action. He of whom the biographer now writes has gained a substantial footing in his native community not by reason of the fact that someone has mapped out his life work for him or aided him in any material way, but because he has been a man of industry and honesty of pur- pose all his life and employed such methods as always make for success.
Balie L. Burtt was born September 27, 1864, in Utica township, Clark
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county, Indiana, the representative of an old and highly honored family. He was educated in the common schools of Utica township in which he made a splendid record, but not being satisfied with a common school education he entered Oberlin College, where he remained two years, standing high in his classes.
After leaving college Mr. Burtt decided that the free and untrammeled life of the agriculturist and horticulturist was the most attractive for a man of his tastes and he accordingly went to farming, which he has since continued with signal success. He has a highly productive and well improved farm of one hundred and ten acres, which is mostly used for the raising of fruits, being in orchard and grass. He is known in this part of the county as "the peach king," being one of the largest peach growers in Southern Indiana. He is a good manager and has a most desirable farm on which stands a good dwelling and other buildings.
Mr. Burtt was united in marriage with Lillace Holman, a native of Jeffer- sonville township, and the daughter of an excellent family. The date of their wedding was October 22, 1890. Mrs. Burtt was born December 10, 1866, in Utica township, where she attended the common schools, after which she took a course at Oberlin College.
Two children living and one dead have been born to the subject and wife, namely: Eli Ivan, born October 17, 1891, died January 8, 1892; Glen Eli, born November II, 1895; Leta Kathryn, born November 25, 1903.
Mrs. Burtt is a member of the Christian church, and in politics Mr. Burtt is a Democrat. In his fraternal relations he is a Mason and a Woodman, and his daily life would indicate that he believes in living up to his lodge vows, for he is known as a man of upright principles in all his relations with his fellow men.
HENRY E. SMITH.
Among the many sturdy settlers from Kentucky that made their way across the Ohio river into Indiana in former years, were the parents of Henry E. Smith, who was born in Utica township, Clark county, Indiana, on the 25th of April, 1878. He was the son of George D. and Mary E. (Howes) Smith, both of whom were born on Kentucky soil, and were the parents of four chil- dren, two of whom, Alia and Mitchell, are at home. The third, Charles, was married to Lilly Eversole. Henry E., of this review, was the fourth in order of birth. He received his education in the local district school and as a boy proved to be a lad of steady habits and pleasant temperament. He made his schooling the instrument for wider study and self-culture, and after reaching maturity, entered into the Government service as a packer in the quarter-
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master's department, and has continued therein ever since. The same char- acteristics that marked him as a boy have clung to him in his maturer years, and his genial disposition has won for him many warm and appreciative friends.
Mr. Smith was joined in marriage to Mary Wallace, daughter of John and Lucy Wallace, the former being a native of Clark county, Indiana, while the latter was born in Kentucky. John and Lucy Wallace were the parents of five children, besides the wife of our subject. They were: Gertrude, Katie, Cora. Helen and Charles.
Mr. and Mrs. Smith have become the parents of four children, viz : Wal- lace F., Mary L., James H., and George D. They reside in Port Fulton.
Mr. Smith holds liberal religious views, and says that it has been his prac- tice through life to place the emphasis on the spirit of one's conduct, rather than on the formal side of creed or doctrine. Politically he affiliates with the Republican party, but has made no effort at office-seeking or political promi- nence of any kind. He is a member also of the Knights of Pythias, in which he has shown an active spirit and has contributed freely of his time to promote the welfare of the order. Thus as a citizen and a neighbor he fills a useful place in the community life.
FRANK G. DOBBINS.
County Armagh in Ireland has contributed generously of her citizen- ship to the building up of the great Republic across the sea. When the great army of Irish immigrants came pouring in during the forties and fifties no part of the Emerald Isle was better represented than old Armagh and many of those who came from there "made good" after they reached the American shore. They are found in all the walks of life, in the mercantile world, in politics, in every branch of trade, in the great manufacturing and the railroad world. They are always proud of their native land, the "old sod" as they call it, and well they may be as, in the language of the famous Sergeant A. Prentiss, " it has contributed to the world more than its due share of wit and eloquence and its sons have fought successfully on all fields save their own." It was previous to the Civil war that the Dobbins family emigrated from Armagh and took up their residence in the East. As the result of the marriage of S. H. and Sallie (Garwood) Dobbins, there were several children and one of these is the young man whose name appears at the head of this sketch.
Frank G. Dobbins was born in Trenton, New Jersey, in 1872, and re- mained at the place of his nativity until after passing his majority. He at- tended the public schools of Trenton, where he laid the foundations of the
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education, which is indispensable to all those who enter upon the sharp struggle for existence in this country of great competition, no matter what the line of business selected. It was in 1895 that young Dobbins decided to come to the West and grow up with the country as was advised by old Horace Greeley unto all who were ambitious of success in life. Arriving at Madison, Indiana, he first found employment in a drug store, a line of work which appealed to his taste and fancy. After a brief sojourn in the old Ohio river town he trans- ferred his residence to Bedford, and later came to Jeffersonville, where he found satisfactory relations and has since made his home. At the present time he is city salesman for the Peter Neat Richardson Drug Company, of Louis- ville, Kentucky, and is prospering satisfactorily in this employment. He is a young man of good address, of quiet demeanor and has the faculty of making and holding friends. As a salesman he has proved a success and he is popular both in the business and social circle in which he moves.
On April 28, 1903, Mr. Dobbins was united in marriage with Margaret Mitchell, a worthy young lady of Jeffersonville. She is the daughter of James R. and Ellen (Blizzard) Mitchell, the former of Henryville and the latter of Scottsburg. The only child of Mr. and Mrs. Dobbins is a bright little daughter whom they have named Helen Frances. The family are well known and highly esteemed in the younger social set to which they belong.
ABNER BIGGS.
Abner Biggs, who resides near Henryville, Clark county, is a widely known native-born citizen of this community. At the close of the Civil war he started on his career as a farmer in his present location, and during the years since then he has met with the success which his hard-working disposition de- served. His personality has at all times been marked with the qualities which engender a sense of trustfulness and mutual helpfulness among neighbors. As a conequence he has made many life-long friends. He is the son of one of the older pioneers who engaged in many a grim encounter with the Indians from behind the palisade of the old fort which stood east of the present town of Henryville in those primitive days. The elder Biggs was in the fort at the time of the Pigeon Roost massacre.
Abner Biggs was born January 28, 1844, in Monroe township on the farm on which he now lives. He is the son of Abner and Emily (Miller) Biggs. Abner Biggs, senior, was born about 1799. In early life he lived with his father on the old Indian trail northeast of Henryville. Later, as above stated, he became an Indian fighter and was known as a man of great nerve and a good shot. There were large numbers of Indians in the immediate neighbor-
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hood in his day, and on one occasion he came within a narrow margin of being kidnapped by them; the event being planned with all the craftiness of the aborigine. Abner Biggs, Sr., was also a farmer and stock raiser. In his youth he attended school in the old log subscription schools. He acquired tim- ber land which included our subject's farm. In those days blazed trails through the woods were the only roads available and civilization throughout the entire Middle West was in its early stages. The mother of Abner Biggs was born February 6, 1802, in Clark county. Her marriage took place about 1820, and fifteen children were born to the union, Abner being the thirteenth in order of birth, and his brother, James, was the first person buried in Mount Zion cem- etery. His father died in December, 1872, in Henryville, and his mother at the age of ninety-one, in 1893.
Abner Biggs started on his own way in life when about eighteen years of age. In the year 1865 he enlisted in the Union army at Jeffersonville; in Company H, One Hundred Forty-fourth Indiana Volunteers, under command of Colonel Riddle and Capt. Stephen Cole. While on their way to Richmond, Virginia, news of General Lee's surrender was brought. Soon after our sub- ject was mustered out of service at Indianapolis. As a Civil war veteran he is a well known member of the Grand Army of the Republic, Post No. 461, at Henryville. On his return home he married in the year 1872, Mary Gray, who was born in 1850 in Clark county. She died April 13, 1891, having borne her husband eight children. They were: Claude L., who was born December 3, 1873, and died June 18, 1874 ; Jessie was born July 24, 1875, and married Mat- thew Clegg ; they have four children and live in Monroe township. Edgar H. was born August 19, 1876, and lives in Jeffersonville; Herman, born March 14, 1878, married Hettie Wells, lives in Monroe township, and has two chil- dren ; Alec G., born January 7, 1880, married Laura Mcclellan ; they have one child and live in Monroe township. Bertha M., born December 13, 1882, mar- ried John Nash ; she lives in Oklahoma, and has one child. Emma G. was born on March 7, 1885, and Anna J., who married Ernest Thomas, and lives in Clark county, was born June 7, 1886.
Our subject married secondly on October II, 1896, Mamie Wells, who was previously married to John Pfister. Mamie (Wells) Pfister was born in 1867, February 20th, and was the daughter of Isaac and Lucy ( Hall) Wells. She was born in Kentucky, her people being all Kentuckians, and came to Clark county when she was about five or six years old. Mrs. Biggs had two children by her first marriage, viz: Thomas F. Pfister, born December 28, 1886, and Annie May, born February 21, 1888, who died August 25, 1896. Mrs. Biggs has become the mother of one child, Claude R., born July 4, 1898, by her second marriage.
Abner Biggs is a Republican in politics and a staunch party supporter, though not himself desirous of public life. He received his education in the
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schools of the county, and in religious life belongs to the Methodist Episcopal church. Though he himself did not see extended service in the Civil war, his brother, Robert, did, having served all through that conflict.
JAMES R. FERGUSON.
James R. Ferguson, retired farmer and veteran soldier, of Henryville, Clark county, is one of the older generation that has contributed so much to the progress and upbuilding of the community. His father, Colonel Ferguson, who died in 1868, was the founder of Henryville. He was the foremost man in getting the railroad through that part of the country and induced Ben Marsh, the engineer who surveyed the railroad, to survey and help him lay off the town of Henryville, which was afterwards named in his honor. Our subject is well versed in the blacksmith trade, having spent ten years of his life in that business ; the remainder of his career, outside of his military experiences, was spent in farming pursuits in which he has been unquestionably successful. He and his wife live in retirement in Henryville in a manner fitting to their time of life.
James R. Ferguson was born on June 23, 1837, in Washington county, Pennsylvania, and was the son of Henry and Nancy (Young) Ferguson. Col. Henry Ferguson, as he became known in later life, was born in 1804, in the same county in Pennsylvania. He was a farmer and came to Clark county, Indiana, about 1842, and located on the present site of Henryville, owning all the land on which the town now stands. In order to induce the railroad authorities to open up Clark county, about 1848 or 1849 he both donated and sold them land. He helped to do the grading work on the road and was after- wards kept in the company's employ as paymaster, holding the position until his retirement from same. He retired from the service of the railroad in his fiftieth year. Colonel Ferguson was educated in the common schools of Pennsylvania, was a Democrat in politics, and belonged to the Presbyterian faith. He was a great friend of President Armstrong, of the Jeffersonville, Madison & Indianapolis Railroad, and was known all over the county. He was quite active in the political circles of his day, but never sought a public office. He was at one time colonel of a regiment of Pennsylvania militia, and was also employed by the state to collect all the old government arms in Clark, Scott, Floyd and Washington counties. He and James Allen hauled them to Indianapolis. He died in 1860, just before the war broke out His wife died in 1844, when our subject was quite young. James R. besides himself had five brothers and two sisters. He and his sister, Maria Calender, of Louisville, Kentucky, are the only survivors.
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James R. Ferguson started for himself when about sixteen years old. He learned the blacksmith trade, at which he worked for ten years with good results. In the year 1861, at the outbreak of the war, he enlisted in Company D, Forty-ninth Indiana Infantry, as a private, on September 19th. He fought in the battles of Cumberland Gap, Memphis, Tennessee; Vicksburg, and in the campaign around the last named district. He then participated in the Red River Expedition, came home on furlough, and was mustered out in 1865, at which time he held a commission as captain. From that time until a year ago he was a prosperous farmer.
In the year 1879 he married Mamie Connor, who was born on the 22d of November, 1850, and was the daughter of Mary and Bryan Connor. Her parents were natives of Ireland, though she herself was born in Maryland. Her mother died in Henryville and her father was killed in an accident on the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, in Virginia, about 1856. Her mother, whose death occurred in 1885, was in her sixty-first year. Mrs. Ferguson and her husband have been blessed with the following children: Ray, born May 5, 1880; Earl R. was born December 4, 1881, and lives in California ; Chester C., born May 13, 1885; Henry H. was born in February, 1887; Charles Blaine was born in 1890, January 11th, in Louisville, and James A. on December 31, 1893.
James R. Ferguson obtained his education in the common schools. He and his family are members of the Methodist Episcopal church. In politics he is a Republican and served as Assessor of the township for one term. He is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, Post No. 461.
RICHARD J. ELROD.
Richard J. Elrod, of Henryville, Clark county, is one of Monroe town- ship's representative farmers and a man of straightforward and honorable character. Ever since 1876 he has been associated with the district in which he lives and has met with marked success in the general farming line. He is now approaching his seventieth year and his long life of industry enables him to enjoy the declining period of his career in security. He was born on the Ioth of August, 1840, in Washington county, and was the son of Stephen and Elizabeth (Wyman) Elrod. Stephen Elrod belonged to an old North Carolina family and was born there in 1793. He was a farmer, and in his young days came to Washington county, Indiana, where his marriage took place, and where his after life was spent. He became known as a raiser of hogs, cattle and sheep on a large scale. As a Justice of the Peace he was widely known as 'Squire Elrod. In his early life he obtained an education in the old log sub-
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