USA > Indiana > Wayne County > Biographical and genealogical history of Wayne, Fayette, Union and Franklin counties, Indiana, Volume I > Part 46
USA > Indiana > Franklin County > Biographical and genealogical history of Wayne, Fayette, Union and Franklin counties, Indiana, Volume I > Part 46
USA > Indiana > Union County > Biographical and genealogical history of Wayne, Fayette, Union and Franklin counties, Indiana, Volume I > Part 46
USA > Indiana > Fayette County > Biographical and genealogical history of Wayne, Fayette, Union and Franklin counties, Indiana, Volume I > Part 46
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Jabez Talbert was a farmer all his life, connecting it for many years with the butchering business. He was a hard worker and very industrious, married in March, 1837, to Mary C. Cook, daughter of John and Hannah (Macy) Cook, who was born in Wayne county, August 6, 1815, of good Quaker stock, which was formerly domiciled in Nantucket, Rhode Island, and later in North Carolina, previous to the settlement in Indiana.
Jabez Talbert and wife made their home on the Huddleston farm imme- diately after their marriage and this was practically their home during his life, and here they experienced life's joys and sorrows, saw their children, all beautiful daughters, grow to maturity and leave the old home, and it became a holy place to all of them. Their home was blessed by these children: Verlinda (Mrs. Calvin Huddleston), Emeline (Mrs. Elwood Ellis, deceased), Jane (Mrs. Joseph Macy), Josephine (Mrs. Verling K. Stanley), Lucina (Mrs. Warner Gardner), Sarah D. (Mrs. Sylvanus Wright, deceased), Anna (Mrs. James Kissel) and Florence Nightingale (who married Henry Compton). ·Mr. Talbert lived a quiet business life, preferring home to public life; and when he died, on August 14, 1885, at Spiceland, Indiana, a good citizen passed away, a loving companion and father was called from earth and a large circle mourned his loss. We have already spoken of Mrs. Talbert.
M. M. LACEY.
One of the most honored residents of Fountain City, M. M. Lacey is a native of Wayne county, his birth having occurred in New Garden township, about two miles north of this place, May 21, 1835, and in this portion of Indiana the major part of his life has been passed.
The history of the Lacey family has much of interest, extending, as it does, overa number of centuries, and being interwoven with the annals of several countries. A brief outline, only, can be given here, but sufficient to show that the ancestors of our subject have borne an important part in their time and country. The family is of French origin, the name being spelled DeLacey, meaning " house of Lacey." The first authentic history of those bearing the name relates to three brothers, William, John and James
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DeLacey, who fought under the leadership of William the Conqueror, and figured extensively in the wars and political strategies of their day. One of the brothers went to Austria, where he won fame as a general in the army of the celebrated empress, Maria Theresa, but suffered defeat at the hands of Frederick William, of Prussia. One of the brothers went to Spain, and served with distinction in the Spanish army. His surname was spelled " Lassey " by the people of that country.
Though it is not definitely known from which of these three brothers the family in the United States is descended, it is recorded that, at an early day, Robert Lacey and two of his brothers came to America to cast in their fortunes with the young British colony since known as the United States. The Robert Lacey mentioned settled in Virginia, on the banks of the James river, and one of the other brothers located in New York. Robert Lacey became the father of several children, among whom was John, who, in turn, had five sons and four daughters. The sons were: Benjamin, who removed to New Jersey; Ephraim, who settled in Maryland; James, who went to the vicinity of Blue Licks, Kentucky; Robert, who went to the then far west, Arkansas; and William, who took up his abode in Georgia in 1793. The last mentioned, who was the father of John and William Lacey, of Wayne county, Indiana, was a distinguished officer in the Revolutionary, war, serving throughout that struggle under the leadership of Marion, the "swamp fox," and holding the rank of a colonel of Virginia cavalry. The old records, moreover, state that Colonel William Lacey and John Lacey were among the wedding guests at the marriage of General Washington. Three of the sisters of the Colonel were: Susanna, who married Joseph Scofield, and settled in Maryland; Elizabeth, who became the wife of a Mr. Horniday, and lived near Elk, Noble county, Ohio, and Mary, who married a Georgia gentleman, whose name is not remembered.
Colonel Lacey married Mary, daughter of James Moore, of Pennsylvania. She had several sisters and three brothers, Benjamin, Hiram and James, all of whom served in the war for independence. James was shot and killed by a Tory, while he was quietly returning from church one Sunday. The last will and testament of Colonel Lacey is dated February 9, 1804, and his death occurred the same year, in Columbia county, Georgia. His widow later removed to Clinton county, Ohio, with her four children, John, Mary, William and Jane. Afterward she became the wife of George McKenzy, and lived and died near Spring Valley, Ohio. Her daughter Mary died unmar- ried, and Jane wedded a Mr. Mills and after his death a Mr. Hawkins, and she spent her last years in Hendricks county, Indiana. During the war of 1812 both William and John Lacey gave their services to their country, the former serving one year in a volunteer company commanded by Captain
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Titus, and the latter being in the army for two years. John Lacey married Elizabeth, daughter of James and Naomi (Hollingsworth) Spray, of South Carolina.
The early years of M. M. Lacey, sixth child of John and Elizabeth Lacey, were passed on the old homestead in New Garden township. He became a thorough and practical farmer, under the guidance of his father, and worked for neighbors from time to time until he was eighteen years of age, thus earning money to pay for his clothing and to meet other expenses. He had but very limited educational advantages, and did not realize the importance of the matter until he was in his nineteenth year, when he pursued a course of study in the graded schools of Fountain City. In 1857 he began learning the milling business in the Richmond flouring mill, and at the end of two years he accepted a position as clerk in the clothing store of J. S. Starr, of the same city.
A notable period in the history of our subject was the years which he spent in serving his country. as his patriotic ancestors had done. One of the first to respond to the president's call for brave men and true to put down the rebellion, he enlisted in April, 1861, soon after Fort Sumter had been fired upon. Becoming a member of Company I, Eighth Regiment of Indiana Infantry, he was commissioned captain of the company and acted in that capacity until August 6, 1861, when his term of service expired. Soon afterward he re-enlisted with the Sixty-ninth Indiana, and continued with that regiment until he was mustered out and honorably discharged at the close of the war, in July, 1865, at Mobile, Alabama.
Returning to Indiana, when his country no longer needed him, Mr. Lacey engaged in buying wheat for the firm of Henley, Stratton & Starr, for about one year, after which he was bookkeeper for the Richmond Plow Works for two years. Elected chief of police of Richmond, in 1869, he served, to the satisfaction of all concerned, until 1873, when he resigned the duties of the office. During the following year he kept the books of William King & Son, lumber dealers. In 1875 he went to Prince George county, Maryland, and for the next decade was industriously occupied in the culti- vation of a farm. Then, going to Washington, D. C., he opened an office as an attorney, and practiced until ill health compelled him to leave that section of the country. Returning to Fountain City, he established an office here and has continued in business. As long ago as 1888 he was elected justice of the peace, and is still serving in that office, and since 1889 he has been the president of the city board of trustees. In his political convictions he is an unwavering Republican, firmly trusting to the party which has safely steered the ship of state through two wars, through the stormy period of reconstruction, through two financial crises, and passed other perilous
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breakers. Fraternally he is a member of the Odd Fellows' society, which order he joined in 1858; has been connected with the Knights of Pythias since 1891, and assisted in the organization of Fountain City Post, No. 420, Grand Army of the Republic.
On the 2d of February, 1857, a marriage ceremony was performed which united the destinies of Mr. Lacey and Miss Eliza A. Osborn, who was a daughter of Eli and Edith (Reynolds) Osborn, of Wayne county. W. L., the eldest son of our subject, is assistant engineer of the public parks of Indianapolis; Walter D. was killed in June, 1888, on the railway bridge at Dayton, Ohio; Maud, the eldest daughter, is the widow of J. E. Rogerson; Edith is the wife of J. Clyde Powers, superintendent of public parks, in Indianapolis; Mabel J. is the wife of J. L. Scarce, of Fountain City; and Laura Pauline, also a resident of this place, is the wife of G. A. Dwig- gins. On April 5, 1899. Mrs. Eliza Lacey passed into the silent land, leaving a large circle of friends to mourn her loss. The Lacey family is held in high esteem, and the kindly social qualities with which they are endowed by nature win for them the friendship and good will of every one.
THOMAS W. BENNETT.
Nothing could have so forcibly demonstrated the unity of this nation as the recent war with Spain, when men from north and south, and east and west, flocked to the standard of the country and marched shoulder to shoulder to the scene of battle, there to gain a glorious victory for the cause of liberty and humanity. Just thirty-seven years before, the nation was involved in throes of a civil war. Aroused by what they believed to be a suppression of their rights, brave men from the south attempted to throw off all allegiance to the national power, but the guns of Fort Sumter awakened the loyalty and patriotism of the north, and thousands of men marched forth to defend the Union and to maintain the supremacy of the stars and stripes. Wayne county furnished her full quota of " boys in blue," but none gained greater prominence or more deserved the honors that came to them than General Thomas W. Bennett, of Richmond.
He was one of Indiana's native sons, and well might she be proud to claim him. He was born in Union county, February 16, 1831, and was the second of the ten children of John F. and Nancy (Burroughs) Bennett. His father was an extensive farmer, stock-raiser and merchant, and was promi- nent both in political and religious circles. Thomas was busily engaged in the lighter labors of the farm and in attending the common schools until the age of fourteen, when he entered his father's store as clerk. He remained there three years and then became " wagon boy," driving a six-horse team between Richmond and Cincinnati. After continuing in that business for
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nearly two years, he served as teacher of a district school for one term, and then continued his own education in the county seminary until the fall of 1851, when, at the age of twenty, he entered Asbury University. In 1854 he was graduated in the law department of that. institution, and was elected professor of mathematics and natural sciences in Whitewater College at Cen- terville. He acceptably filled that position until 1855, when he began the practice of law in partnership with Judge John Yaryan, at Liberty. He soon won a prominent position at the bar, and his comprehensive knowledge of the science of jurisprudence and his ability to handle the intricacies of the law enabled hitn to secure a liberal clientage. He also became a recognized leader in political circles, and took an active part in the campaign of 1856 as a supporter of the new Republican party. In 1858 he was elected state senator from the counties of Fayette and Union, and although the youngest member of that body he took an active part in senatorial proceedings and exerted a strong influence on the legislation of that period. In the campaign of 1860 he canvassed most of the counties of the state in support of Lincoln, and the following spring resigned his seat in the senate in order to join the army.
General Bennett had watched with keen interest the progress of events in the south and the trend of public sentiment, and had resolved that if an attempt was made to overthrow the Union he would strike a blow in defense of the national supremacy. The very day on which the president called for troops he began recruiting and raising a company of one hundred men in his own town, who with Mr. Bennett as their captain joined the Fifteenth Indiana Regiment under Colonel G. D. Wagner. The command joined General McClellan's army in West Virginia, and there participated in the battles of Rich mountain, Beverly, Greenbrier and Elkwater river. In Sep- tember, 1861, Captain Bennett was commissioned by Governor Morton major of the Thirty-sixth Indiana Volunteers, then in camp at Richmond.
With this regiment and in General Nelson's division, he participated in the Buell campaign and the military movement in Kentucky and Tennessee, including the capture of Nashville, the battle of Shiloh, the occupation of east Tennessee, the retreat to Louisville and the pursuit of Bragg out of Kentucky. In October, 1862, he was appointed by Governor Morton to the colonelcy of the Sixty-ninth Indiana Volunteers. In this command he fought under General Grant in all his campaigns from Memphis to the surrender of Vicksburg, embracing the celebrated river expedition under General Sherman, the disastrous defeat of Chickasaw Bayou and Haynes Bluff, the capture of Arkansas Post and the battles of Port Gibson, Raymond, Jackson, Cham- pion Hills, Black river bridge and finally the capture of Vicksburg. During the campaign he received many personal marks of favor from General Grant.
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He was selected for the difficult and perilous duty of exploring and opening a route from Morganza Bend on the Mississippi above Vicksburg to New Carthage, situated some distance below the city, and he accomplished the work with such swiftness that General Grant had a special order of con- gratulation sent him. In the winter of 1863, while the army lay at Young's Point, opposite Vicksburg, Colonel Bennett was by General Grant appointed president of a commission to examine and report for dismissal all incompe- tent officers. After the fall of Vicksburg he was ordered with his regiment to New Orleans to reinforce General Banks, and under that officer partici- pated in the Texas and the famous Red river campaign as a brigadier-general, and in 1865 was appointed to that rank.
Faithful and meritorious service won him continued promotion, and on the field of duty he manifested the most soldierly qualities, inspiring his men with his own courage and dauntless spirit, yet never needlessly exposing them to any danger. After the surrender of Lee he received an honorable dis- charge and was mustered out of the service, having for four years defended the starry banner upon southern battle-fields.
Returning to Liberty, Indiana, General Bennett resumed the practice of law, which he continued until 1867, when he went abroad, making a tour of Ireland, England, France, Germany, Switzerland and Italy. In 1868 he took up his residence in Richmond, and was an active supporter of Grant during the campaign of that year. In 1869 his fellow townsmen honored him by an election to the office of mayor, and for two years he acceptably admin- istered the affairs of the city, after which he resumed his law practice. At the bar he won distinction by reason of his careful preparation of cases, his clear reasoning, his incontrovertible logic and his forceful oratory. In 1871 he was appointed by President Grant as governor of Idaho, and with his wife removed to that territory, serving as its chief executive for eighteen months. He made an active canvass in the Grant campaign of 1872, speaking through Oregon and California. Returning, he once more took his place in the rank of the leading lawyers of Richmond, and was regarded as one of the leading representatives of the bar until 1877, when he was again chosen mayor of the city, serving until 1881 .. His long continuance in the office stands in unmis- takable evidence of his ability and the confidence reposed in him by his fellow townsmen,-a confidence that was never betrayed in the slightest degree. He labored for the best interests of the city, for progress and reform, and did all in his power to promote the public good.
In 1858, in Liberty, General Bennett was united in marriage to Miss- Anna Casterline, daughter of Dr. Ziba Casterline, of that town. Socially he was connected with the Masonic and Odd Fellows fraternities, and was . a member of the college society, the Beta Theta Pi. He was kind and benevo-
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lent, charitable in his opinions of others, yet firm and positive in his convic- tions. He possessed strongly that characteristic which, for want of a better term, we call personal magnetism, and inspired very strong friendships. The prominence which he attained in military circles, and the fame in political life, was equaled by the respect accorded him by those with whom he was brought in contact through social amenities. He died February 2, 1893, and Richmond mourned the loss of one of its most valued citizens. His widow still resides in this city. Her home is the center of culture and always an attractive resort for people of education and refinement.
JOHN A. BURBANK.
The name of this gentleman is one which stands conspicuously forth on the pages of Indiana's political history. He has been an active factor in administering the affairs of the government, especially in the west, and is widely recognized as a Republican leader who has labored earnestly for the success of the party and yet has never placed partisanship before citizenship. or self-aggrandizement before the national good. Close study has given him keen insight into the important political problems, and, though now living. retired at his Richmond home, his interest in the issues of the day that affect the national weal or woe has never been abated.
A son of Isaac and Mary E. (Troxell) Burbank, he was born in Center- ville, then the county seat of Wayne county, Indiana, July 23, 1827, and on: the paternal side is of English descent, while on the maternal side he is of German lineage. His grandfather, Eleazer Burbank, was a native of New Hampshire, whence he removed to a farm near Bethel, Windsor county, Vermont. There be made his home until his death. He was a Revolu- tionary soldier who fought for the independence of the nation, and was pres- ent at the surrender of General Burgoyne. He married Rachel Payne and. reared a number of children.
Isaac Burbank, the father of our subject, was born on the farmstead near Bethel and was educated in the common schools of the Green Mountain state. At the age of eighteen years he began teaching, and later removed to Emmettsburg, Frederick county, Maryland, where he engaged in school- teaching for several years. About 1825 he removed to Centerville, Indiana, becoming one of the pioneer residents of the place and aiding materially in- its development and advancement. He engaged in general merchandising for forty years, and in 1870 removed to Richmond, where he lived retired. until his death, which occurred when he had reached the age of seventy-eight years. By his marriage to Mary E. Troxell he had seven children, -three sons and four daughters: Rachel E., widow of Captain James W. Scott, and a resident of West Richmond; J. E., who formerly served as major in
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the United States Army, but is now retired from the service and makes his home in Malden, Massachusetts; Maria L., widow of Governor O. P. Mor- ton, and a resident of Indianapolis; John A., who is the next of the family; Joseph H., a resident of Burt county, Nebraska; Eliza, who became the wife of W. R. Haloway, the present consul general to St. Petersburg, Russia, and died fifteen years ago; and Sarah C., widow of Captain Caleb Gill and a resident of Indianapolis.
John A. Burbank was reared in Centerville and acquired his education under the instruction of Professor Samuel K. Hoshour, one of the most cele- brated teachers of that time. Among his schoolmates were Governor Mor- ton, General Lew Wallace, Judges Peelle and Frazer and George W. Julian. Leaving school when about eighteen or nineteen years of age he began mer- chandising, in connection with his father, and was thus engaged for about five years. In 1858 he began business for himself, in Falls City, Nebraska, to which place he shipped a stock of goods, carrying on merchandising there for four years.
Since 1861 Mr. Burbank has been an important factor in politics in the west. He became the first mayor and the first postmaster of Falls City, Nebraska, and by President Lincoln was appointed agent for the Iowa, Sac and Troy Indian tribes, of Missouri. He resigned that office to return to Center- ville in 1866, and soon afterward he went to Indianapolis, where he engaged in the wholesale crockery business for two or three years. In 1869 he was appointed governor of the territory of Dakota and ex officio superintendent of Indian affairs, filling that position for six years, with most marked ability and fidelity. It was a position requiring great tact and discretion on the part of the executive, owing to very peculiar political conditions that had arisen. In 1870 there occurred a disruption in the ranks of the Republican party, resulting in great bitterness between the two factions. It originated in Yank- ton, eventually taking in all the residents of that city and extending to other sections of the state. The Democrats, taking advantage of the trouble, twice elected their candidate to congress. Later an effort was made to keep the Democratic candidate from office by declaring certain election returns illegal or irregular. Governor Burbank and his two associates on the board of elec- tion opposed this, on account of its fraudulent nature, and stood for right, regardless of party affiliations or party disturbances. The position of the governor, however, was an exceedingly difficult one,-to act with fairness toward all and at the same time rouse not the opposition of either section, thus causing greater disruption in the party. He was at all times true to duty and right, and eventually the party was reunited and carried the state to victory ·on its ticket
While in the west Governor Burbank was also active in organizing the
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territory of Wyoming and was a candidate for governor of that common- wealth when appointed by General Grant governor of Dakota. On his removal to Yankton he at once became prominently identified with the development of the young territory. He acquired large real-estate interests in Yankton and Springfield, and is still interested in property in the latter place, which owes much of its growth and advancement to his efforts in its behalf. When in Yankton he was associated with Major Hanson, Judge Brookings and Chief Justice French in the firm of J. R. Hanson & Company, owners of a large interest in the well-known Picotte plant.
In 1875 Governor Burbank left the northwest and came to Richmond, where he has since made his home. He held the position of postoffice inspector, having exclusive charge of all postoffice buildings in the United States rented by the government. He is the only person who ever held that position, for the office was discontinued at the time of his retirement there- from. He has since lived retired in Richmond, but his interest in the polit- ical issues of the day has never flagged, and the Republican party yet claims him among its stalwart supporters.
Mr. Burbank has been twice married. In 1856 he wedded Miss Annie E. Yates, who died in 1860, leaving two children: Nora B., wife of Judge Joseph H. Kibbey, of Phoenix, Arizona; and Mary B., wife of Harry I. Miller, superintendent of the Vandalia line. In 1884 Mr. Burbank married Miss Sarah Parry, eldest daughter of the late William Parry, who is mentioned elsewhere in this volume. Governor Burbank is a man of strong mental- ity, keen discernment, great tact and resolute purpose, and was therefore well-fitted for the political honors conferred upon him. His business inter- ests have also been capably managed and have brought to him the handsome competence which to-day enables him to live retired. He commands the respect of his fellow men by his sterling worth, and Indiana numbers him among her honored sons.
ZACHARIAH J. STANLEY.
Zachariah J. Stanley was born in Harrison township, Union county, Indiana, on July 3, 1819, a son of Zachariah and Mary (Bedwell) Stanley, who were natives of Guilford county, North Carolina, where they were mar- ried. In 1812 they made their home as pioneer settlers of Harrison town- ship, and passed long and useful lives there as successful farmers and rearing to maturity thirteen children. They were birthright Friends, Joseph Stanley (father of Zachariah and son of Thomas Stanley, the emigrant to North Carolina in 1700) being a minister of that sect. The children were named respectively: Pleasant, James, Jonathan, Sarah, Tempy, Jehu, Synthia, Eliza, Mary, Zachariah J., Elizabeth, Joseph and Esther.
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