USA > Indiana > Wayne County > Biographical and genealogical history of Wayne, Fayette, Union and Franklin counties, Indiana, Volume I > Part 32
USA > Indiana > Franklin County > Biographical and genealogical history of Wayne, Fayette, Union and Franklin counties, Indiana, Volume I > Part 32
USA > Indiana > Union County > Biographical and genealogical history of Wayne, Fayette, Union and Franklin counties, Indiana, Volume I > Part 32
USA > Indiana > Fayette County > Biographical and genealogical history of Wayne, Fayette, Union and Franklin counties, Indiana, Volume I > Part 32
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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | 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 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61
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Thrown upon his own resources, Abner found employment at various pursuits beginning as clerk in a dry-goods store at Richmond in the summer of 18 9. and ending with a short term of service as deputy sheriff of Wayne county. It Ifst be bought a tannery which his brother Josiah had pre- Tions.y estabhsbed at Jacksonburr This be conducted for a number of years afterward engaging m merchandising and farming until advancing age and _ health prompted him in 1869 to retire from active business pursuits. He said hus farm and removed to Cambridge City where he remained until the end & his life, his death occurring in ISSE.
He took an active interest in public affairs. supporting the Whir and afterward the Republican party He filed many positions of usefulness and mfbence in his community He served three terms in the state legislature. Iwc terms = the state senate and for three years as associate jodge In TELS be was a delegate to the Whig national convention, beld at Philadel- phia. He discharged the duties of these posmons with abiny and courage and with fidelity to the interests of his constituents.
In March. : 521, he was married to Miss Mary Boyd, daughter of Rer. Samuel Bord. With her be lived happily for more than sixty-four years. She survived him until ISgo. They became the parents of a large family. sever sons and Eve daughters reaching years of maturity. Of these the eldest son is the subject of this sketch, James is a successful farmer in Henry county Indiana. Samuel B is engaged in merchandising at Van Wert. Ohio- Daniel M. is an attorney at Indianapolis: Robert B. resides in Muncie. Indiana Albert W. is promment in business circles at Cambridge City: and Absor B was killed a few years since while crossing & railroad Dear Muncie. at which place he was in the practice of medicine. The eldest daughter. Caroline Russell, now a widow, resides at Anderson, Indiana Isabella Leeson died some years ago from injunes received in a runaway accident Elizabeth Harmed, a widow. lives in Richmond- Martha Mundell is on a farm near Hagerstown and Emma Bradbury, the youngest, resides at Indianapolis with her brother. Dame, M.
When H Bradbury was reared in and bear his native town, working upon the farm and attending schoch in the neighborhood ci bis bome. He begar bosmess for himself when twenty-one years of age at the old Jackson- burg tannery which be continued to operate unti the spring of j657, when De sold the tannery and removed with his family to Kansas, locating Dear Topeka, where be engaged in farming for one year He then returned to Jacksonburg He afterward engaged in merchandising at New Lisbon, in Henry county for two years. He then removed to Dublin, where his sons could have better school privileges, and was in the barness business there.
In I65, be came to Richmond, where be served as deputy provost mar-
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shal until the end of the war. For a time he conducted a bakery, which he eventually sold to D. K. Zeller. In 1867 he purchased from John L. Thomp- son his interest in the insurance and real-estate agency of Thompson & McMeans. The business was conducted under the firm name of Bradbury & McMeans until his partner retired to remove to Nebraska. On January I, 1871, he associated with him his son, Wilbern K. Bradbury, under the firm name of William H. Bradbury & Son. Excepting a short interval this firm has continued in the business from that time until the present, and is now the oldest firm in this line in Richmond. These gentlemen handle for the owners much of the best real estate in Richmond, and have a large insurance business. For many years William H. Bradbury has given most of his time to the management of various trusts, having been administrator, executor, guardian, trustee and receiver in a large number of cases. All of these he has handled with fidelity and skill. He is superintendent of the beautiful Earlham cemetery, which position he has held continuously for more than nineteen years. Under his skillful management the "silent city " has grown into a most attractive place of rest. In politics Mr. Bradbury has been a Republican since the organization of that party, though not an active par- tisan, and in no sense a politician. He has never asked the suffrage of the people for any office, although he was several times elected by the city council as a member of the board of education. Here he rendered good service, taking deep interest in the improvement of the schools. Five of the build- ings now in use were erected while he was a member of the board.
He was married on August 30, 1846, to Miss Jane Kinley, who was born on her father's farm between Centerville and Jacksonburg. November 15, 1826, and died in Richmond, April 6, 1880. She was a daughter of Isaac and Ann (Reece) Kinley, also pioneers, who belonged to the religious society of Friends, and had a large circle of relatives in eastern Indiana, including the Hoover, Julian, Ratliff and others of the old families.
Unto Mr. and Mrs. Bradbury were born three children, all in the old house at Jacksonburg, in which their father was born. The youngest, Abner Marshal, died in childhood. The others are Clarence Edward and Wilbern Kinley. The former was born October 24. 1847, was married in 186; to Nancy J. McWhinney, and now resides in Indianapolis, where he and his only son, Frederick W., are conducting a hotel. Wilbern K. was born Septem- ber 13, 1849. He attended the public schools in his native county, closing his school career at Hadley's Academy, at that time a flourishing private school, conducted by Hiram Hadley. After quitting school, he held a clerical position in the Richmond postoffice. This he resigned in 1870 to join his father in the insurance and real-estate business. In the spring of 1873 he went to Indianapolis, where he was in the real-estate business for nearly
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three years. Returning to Richmond at the end of 1875, he rejoined his father in the firm of William H. Bradbury & Son. On June 27, 1877, he was married to Miss Lizzie A. Lupton, daughter of Joseph Abijah and Eliza- beth (Hampton) Lupton. They have three children, -Anna, Clifford C. and Robert L.
TOBIAS M. RIDENOUR.
One of the old and honored citizens of College Corner, Union county, is the gentleman whose name stands at the beginning of this brief tribute to his sterling worth and ability. Born in the house which he now occupies as the proprietor, July 21, 1833, he is a son of Samuel and Barbara (Miller) Ride- nour. The old home is situated about half a mile from the village, in Union township, not far from the state line, and the fine, substantial brick house is considered a veritable landmark, as it was erected over three-score and ten years ago. The Ridenour family has long been one of the most prominent in this region, the ancestors of the present generation having been among the founders of this commonwealth, and active and influential in all of its early affairs and enterprises. From the pioneer days down to the present time, those bearing the name have been noted for traits of character which call forth the admiration and esteem of their associates and neighbors.
The paternal grandparents of the subject of this sketch were Peter and Margaret Dorcas Ridenour, who lived in Maryland prior to the year that they set out to found a new home in the wilds of the then far west. They settled in Preble county, Ohio, and there the father of Tobias M. married Barbara, daughter of Tobias and Sarah Miller and sister of William Miller, of South Bend, Indiana, whose son, Hon. John F. Miller, was United States senator from California a few years ago. A year or so after their marriage the young couple removed to the farm now owned by their son, Tobias M., the date of their settlement here probably before 1825. Mr. Ridenour built the large brick house mentioned above, and became very well-to-do. He died, at the age of fifty-six years, in 1850. His widow survived until 1882, dying in her eighty-third year. She was a woman of remarkably ability and force of character, and reared her children to lives of usefulness. At the death of the father she was left with thirteen children, eight of whom were under age. Two of the number died in infancy, and in 1898 five of the brothers were still living, namely: Peter and Samuel, who are members of the wholesale grocery house of the Ridenour-Baker Company of Kansas City, Missouri; T. M. Irving Monroe, of Richmond, Indiana; and Elisha, of Liberal, Missouri. The mother outlived all of her five daughters, and when she died there were but seven of her children living. The eldest, Jonathan M., died in Indian- apolis. He was president of the Cincinnati & Indianapolis Junction Rail- road for years, and was a wealthy and influential man in the world of busi-
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ness. His father was connected with the first survey for this railroad, but the son, J. M., was the one to whom the line owes its completion. He was a wide-awake, energetic business man, and carried to a successful finish almost everything which he ever undertook. Charles Perry, another son, a banker and prosperous business man of Kingston, New York, died in that city, and his family still make their home there. The Ridenours owned sev- eral farms in this vicinity at various periods. They had one whole section, divided into four farms, and cultivated by them, and besides owned two farms in Butler county, Ohio, and one in Preble county, that state. When he located here, in the almost unbroken forest, Samuel Ridenour was obliged to borrow the money to make the first payment upon his land, but his energy and well-directed business talent soon overcame all obstacles and placed him on the road to wealth.
Tobias M. Ridenour remained on the old homestead, and, as he was the eldest son at home then, the responsibilities of managing the place fell largely to his share after the death of his father. On the 10th of May, 1871, he married Miss Maria J. Beard, daughter of Thomas and Eliza Beard, the former deceased, but the latter still living in Liberty. To Mr. and Mrs. Ridenour one son and one daughter were born, namely: Louie, who is at home, and Charles M., who graduated in June. 1899, in the high school at College Corner.
For about six years Mr. Ridenour owned and carried on a general store, and dealt also in grain. This store, situated at College Corner, was pur- chased by him of the former owner, his brother, Jonathan M. Of late years he has devoted himself exclusively to agriculture, and has met with success, as he deserves. He has been a lifelong member of the Methodist Episcopal church, of which denomination his parents were also worthy members. The Ridenour family were active assistants in the building of three churches in College Corner, and have been very liberal in their donations to the cause of Christianity. Mr. Tobias M. Ridenour has been a trustee of the church for many years, has served on the building committee, and has occupied other official positions in the congregation. His parents were members of the original "class" organized in early days here. Politically he is affiliated with the Republican party.
JAMES O. JOHNSON.
Seventy-two years ago this much respected citizen of Liberty township, Union county, was born on the identical homestead where he is to be found to-day, the date being October 4, 1826. With the exception of a few months, perhaps, he has passed his entire life here, engaged in agriculture, and prosperity has blessed him in the majority of his undertakings. During
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a period of over forty years he has been an active and valued worker in the First Christian church of Silver Creek, and has occupied various offices of trust in the same. He has attended conventions of his church organization, has been liberal in his contributions to the spread of primitive Christianity, - the simple faith of love toward God and man, and in all the manifold rela- tions of life he has earnestly striven to do his whole duty.
James Owen Johnson comes of an old Virginia family: in fact, his ancestors on both sides of the house were residents of Bedford county, that state. In 1819 the parents of our subject, Garland and Elizabeth (Hensley) Johnson, came to Indiana with their three children and settled on land east of the town of Liberty, but scarcely two years later they removed to the homestead which is now owned and cultivated by James Owen Johnson. This property was given, in part, to Garland Johnson, and partly sold to him, by his father, Nicholas, who had come to this township in 1820 and had pur- chased a whole section of land here. He also gave farms to his sons, Jesse, Pleasant, Miner and Griffin, all of whom lived near and reared their children in this community. Later, Miner went to Illinois and Pleasant to Dublin, Wayne county, Indiana. Jesse died at the age of thirty years, and both of his children are deceased. Griffin died, leaving two sons: John, now of Center township, and Madison, of Marion, Indiana. Of the daughters, Nancy married James Cuney and resided in Dublin, this state; Sarah H. (Mrs. William Horton) lived here until well along in years and died at Knightstown, Indiana; Mary married Reuben Chapell and both are deceased; Betsy died unmarried; Josanna was another daughter; and Matilda died when about ten years old. Two daughters died in infancy, in Virginia. Of the large family of Nicholas Johnson it is a singular fact that but two of his descendants, John and James Owen Johnson, are now residents of this county, where he originally took up such an extensive tract of land and believed that this would be the permanent home of many of those bearing his name. He died at the age of seventy-seven years, and was survived by his second wife, whose maiden name had been Catherine Dobbins and whom he married in Virginia.
The commodious old house in which James O. Johnson, of this sketch, resides was erected by his father in 1843, and he assisted in its construction. The father's death took place under its hospitable roof some years later, in 1853, when he was in his sixty-fourth year. His original farm had com- prised eighty acres, and he added another tract, thus making his place one one hundred and thirty-three acres. His wife and mother, Elizabeth John- son, survived her husband many years, her death occurring February 4, 1869, when she attained her seventy-third year. Several of their children died in their early prime. They were named as follows: Samuel H., a phy-
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sician, died in 1842, when twenty-nine years of age; Jordan, a minister of the first Christian church in this community, died in 1861, aged forty-five years; Martha died in infancy; Margaret deid in 1845, in her twenty-seventh year; Abner died in 1844, when in his twenty-third year; Ephraim died in 1854, aged thirty years; James Owen is the next in order of birth; Elizabeth died in her eighteenth year, in 1846; William G. died in his sixtieth year, December 16, 1893; and Eunice died in 1871, in her thirty-fifth year. Will- iam G. was educated for the medical profession, but on account of failing health he abandoned it and for several years was the proprietor of Johnson's Commercial College, of Cincinnati. At the time of his death he was living in Covington, Kentucky.
Of the once large and happy family circle which used to gather around the fire-place of Garland Johnson, only one, the subject of this sketch, remains. He was next to the youngest son, and when his father's health declined the young man shouldered the burdens of the farm management. After the death of the elder Mr. Johnson, James O. purchased mainly all the interests of the other heirs in the old homestead and has since given his whole time to supervising its cultivation. Years ago he used his ballot in favor of the Democratic party platform and nominees, but for a long period he has faithfully rendered allegiance to the principles of the Republican party.
May 5, 1874, Mr. Johnson married Miss Lydia A. Van Meter, since he had evidently become tired of keeping bachelor's hall, as he had done for the five years succeeding his mother's death. Mrs. Johnson is a native of Franklin county, her birth having occurred in the vicinity of Colter's Corners. Her parents are William and Rachel Van Meter, who were worthy citizens of Franklin county.
SOLOMON MEREDITH.
Solomon Meredith was born in Guilford county, North Carolina, May 29, 1810, and was the youngest of twelve children. When nineteen years of age he came to Indiana, making the entire journey on foot, and the deter- mination and energy which he displayed in the accomplishment of that undertaking characterized his entire career. Arriving in Wayne county in May, 1829, he at once sought employment in the most important industry of that period,-the felling of trees, -and at what would now be considered a very meager compensation, -six dollars per month. His personal force of character and also the opportunities of the time are well marked by the fact that in 1834, when but twenty-four years of age, he was elected sheriff of Wayne county. Mr. Meredith possessed in a remarkable degree some of the qualifications that fit a man for public, or political life, -first, his ability to
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remember names and faces and upon sight begin a conversation by referring to incidents of the last occasion upon which he had met the person with whom he was speaking; and, second, a real sympathy with young men, -a feature of his character that became very pronounced in his later life. In 1836 he was re-elected to the office of sheriff, and during that term occurred his marriage to Miss Anna Hannah, a daughter of Samuel Hannah, a dis- tinguished citizen of Wayne county and later treasurer of the state.
The marriage proved to be a very happy one, and to the strong char- acter of his wife Mr. Meredith always attributed whatever of success he attained. She was a wise counselor and deserved the deep and lifelong devotion bestowed upon her by her husband. To this marriage were born four children: Samuel H. died in 1862, at which time he held the rank of first lieutenant in the Nineteenth Indiana Regiment. He was severely wounded at the battle of Gainesville, in 1862, and again at Gettysburg, but from the first injury he never recovered, and his death occurred while he was on a furlough at his father's home. The second son, David M., was a cap- tain in the Fifteenth United States Infantry, served through the civil war and was severely wounded at the battle of Chickamauga, where he was brevetted major for gallantry on the field of battle. He died at Mobile, Alabama, in 1867. The third son, Henry Clay, who died in 1882, achieved prominence in agriculture and in public affairs. The fourth child, Mary, died in infancy. .
Mr. Meredith was of an extremely hospitable nature and in his hos- pitality he was seconded and encouraged by his wife, no home of early times receiving more distinguished guests or welcoming more friends. On one occasion he entertained socially the legislature of the state at his Oakland Farm home. It was his custom in the first years of the agricultural fairs to provide a house or tent on the grounds where he would invite his friends by the score to dinner. In his later years, after the close of the war, his house was an asylum for the soldiers of his old Nineteenth Regiment; there they could find a welcome and a shelter when fate proved unkind In 1840 Mr. Meredith was a delegate to the Whig national convention. In 1846-7-8 he was a member of the state legislature and again in 1854. During this service he was especially active in promoting the educational interests of Indiana. From 1849 until 1853 he held the office of United States marshal for the district of Indiana, by appointment from President Taylor.
During these years he was closely identified with the public improve- ments of eastern Indiana,-notably the Whitewater canal, one of the most ambitious schemes of that period, and later, with his brother-in-law, John S. Newman, he acted as financial agent for the completion of the Indiana Cen-
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tral Railroad, now an important part of the Pennsylvania railway system. Later he was president of the Cincinnati & Chicago Railroad Company.
Upon the formation of the Republican party Mr. Meredith became a strong adherent of its measures and a vehement advocate of its policy. The strong majority of the party in eastern Indiana soon led to divisions within its own lines, and the intense party spirit developed by the friends of Mr. Meredith in his contests with other candidates for party favors gave to this congressional district the name of the "Old Burnt District," and certainly the fires of party devotion never burned more fiercely anywhere than in Wayne and the adjoining counties in the '60s.
Upon the first call for soldiers after the firing on of Fort Sumter, in 1861, Mr. Meredith raised a regiment of volunteers in his own and adjacent counties, which became the Nineteenth Regiment of Indiana Volunteers. He was appointed its colonel, and while he had no military knowledge whatever, yet he had the essential qualities of a soldier, and his subsequent brilliant career justified Governor Morton's confidence in bestowing the appointment upon him. The regiment was in the army of the Potomac and first saw service in Virginia. It belonged to the famous "Iron Brigade," so named because of its splendid courage under fire. In August, 1862, at the severe battle of Gainesville, the Nineteenth Regiment lost fifty per cent. of its force, in killed and wounded. In September of the same year it did splendid serv- ice at Antietam. In October, Colonel Meredith was promoted to be a brigadier general, and commanded the Iron Brigade in all its battles and marches until severely wounded, at Gettysburg. Because the brigade could stand like iron before the fire of the enemy, it was selected to force the crossing of the Rappahannock, in April, 1863. This duty it performed so gallantly that General Meredith and the brigade were thanked in general orders. In July the Iron Brigade carried the honors of Gettysburg, being again selected to receive the fire of the enemy while important movements were being made on another part of the field. Here General Meredith was so severely wounded that he was never again fit for active duty. In 1864 he was ordered to the command of the military post at Cairo, Illinois, and later was assigned to the command of the post at Paducah, Kentucky. In Feb_ ruary, 1865, he was relieved of the command and Major General Thomas was directed to fill the place by an officer from his department, whereupon General Thomas telegraphed to the war department, at Washington: "I have no general officer in my department who can take the place of General Meredith. He is the right man in the right place. I desire that he be retained." The wishes of General Thomas were respected, and General Meredith remained in command of the post until the armies of Lee and Johnston surrendered.
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General Meredith's health had been greatly impaired during his years of military service, and he lived in quiet retirement on his farm near Cam- bridge City after the close of the war, with the exception of two years, from 1867 until 1869, when he was surveyor-general of Montana. During his last years he gave renewed attention to the breeding of improved live stock, his herd of shorthorn cattle and flock of Southdown sheep being improved and augmented by imported animals from England. Once more he became an exhibitor at the leading agricultural fairs. He had, in the '50s, promoted the establishment of agricultural fairs, and had shown an energy and enthu- siasm in the improvement and exhibition of cattle and sheep and horses that had a most substantial effect upon the agricultural and live-stock interests of the state.
General Meredith died October II, 1875, and lies buried upon his home farm, with all of his family about him, none of the name now surviving. He has now been dead twenty-five years, and yet those who knew him at all doubtless remember him distinctly, for his personality was so pronounced that he could not easily be forgotten. He was six feet, seven inches in height, and on account of his unusual size his presence in any assembly was always noticed and secured for him instant recognition ever after. His size and muscular strength were inherited. He often recounted the vivid impression made upon his youthful mind by the sight of his grandfather riding with "peculiar erectness on horseback when past ninety years of age; while he repeated with pride the story of a stone set to commemorate the fact that in ยท Guilford county, North Carolina, a Meredith had jumped a longer distance than any other man could jump! General Meredith's three sons inherited his stature, the older being six feet, four, and the two younger six feet and two inches, each, in height.
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