Biographical and historical record of Adams and Wells counties, Indiana : Containing portraits of all the Presidents of the United States from Washington to Cleveland, with accompanying biographies of each : a condensed history of the state of Indiana : portraits and biographies of some of the prominent men of the state : engravings of prominent citizens in Adams and Wells counties, with personal histories of many of the leading families, and a concise history of the counties and their cities and villages, pt. 2, Part 10

Author:
Publication date: 1887
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 948

USA > Indiana > Adams County > Biographical and historical record of Adams and Wells counties, Indiana : Containing portraits of all the Presidents of the United States from Washington to Cleveland, with accompanying biographies of each : a condensed history of the state of Indiana : portraits and biographies of some of the prominent men of the state : engravings of prominent citizens in Adams and Wells counties, with personal histories of many of the leading families, and a concise history of the counties and their cities and villages, pt. 2 > Part 10
USA > Indiana > Wells County > Biographical and historical record of Adams and Wells counties, Indiana : Containing portraits of all the Presidents of the United States from Washington to Cleveland, with accompanying biographies of each : a condensed history of the state of Indiana : portraits and biographies of some of the prominent men of the state : engravings of prominent citizens in Adams and Wells counties, with personal histories of many of the leading families, and a concise history of the counties and their cities and villages, pt. 2 > Part 10

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then to give apparently small items of matters near home. Mr. Smith died in April, 1850.

BLUFFTON BANNER.

This has always been the chief and the official paper of the county, being Democratic in politics. It was established in 1850, the second paper in the county, and practically the sneeessor of the Bugle, the first editors and proprietors being Samuel G. Upton and Lewis S. Grove. The paper has passed through many hands, namely, in order: T. J. McDowell, George McDowell, James Gerry Smith. D. J. Callen and T. B. Gutelins, J. II. Smithi, Theodore Horton & Co., J. G. Smith again, William J. Craig (September 15, 1870), Homer L. Martin, E. A. K. Hackett, Martin & Roth (1881), Samnel S. Roth, Sturgis, Gorrell & Gorrell (E. Y. Sturgis, Dr. A. G. Gorrell and J. J. Gorrell), and lastly, E. Y. Sturgis alone, since August 1, 1884. The paper was enlarged June 9, 1881, and is now a nine-column folio, faithful in giving the news, and honest in criticism.

Mr. Craig also served for eight years as

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elerk of the court, and while in that position he became interested in the Narrow Gauge Railroad, was appointed its receiver, which position he resigned, and took charge of the famous Indianapolis Sentinel. A specimen of his editorial wit is given toward the con- elusion of this chapter.

Mr. Haekett, also one of the ablest editors of the Banner, was from Pennsylvania, a practical printer, and a newspaper man. Although he had but little means, he conducted the paper with snecess. On leaving this position, he took charge of of the Fort Wayne Sentinel, when that paper was losing money, and raised it also upon a pecuniarily successful basis.

THE BLUFFTON WEEKLY CHRONICLE.

Under this head it will probably be best briefly to notice first what may be considered practically the line of predecessors of the Chronicle; and the first was the People's Press, Republican in polities, established in 1855, by a company consisting of John L. Wil- son and Michael Karns. The first editors were Mr. Knox, James Bramagem and J. J. Gor- rell. In 1857 Mr. Nelson Kellogg took charge, and continued up to 1861, with Messrs. Bixler & F. N. Kellogg as proprietors a part of that time. During the first year of the war the name was changed to Wells County Union, with W. J. Bright as editor. IIe was followed, after a suspension, by Cephas Hoyt and J. II. Smith. In 1866 it became the Wells County Standard, with James Sewell, editor. lle was succeeded by A. Colton and J. Sewell, and in 1869 it became the Wells County Chronicle, with S. Davenport as editor. In May, 1873, the paper was again suspended for a time, and then revived by J. W. Ruckman, who in 1877 sold to J. F. Pierson, and he to C. A. Arnold. Since 1878 Mr. George Arnold and his son Charles have been editors and proprietors. During

the proprietorship of the present incumbents the paper has been greatly enlarged and im- proved, and is a nine-column folio, uncompro- misingly Republican in politics, and has assumed a position in the front ranks of local journalism, and commands an influence second to none in the county. Its eirenlation is con- stantly increasing, and it is highly appre- ciated by its patrons.

WELLS COUNTY TIMES.

This was established in 1878 as a Green- back paper, by James Gerry Smith, pre- vionsly noticed. It was a four-column quarto. In January, 1881, it was taken by W. P. Me- Mahon, who changed it to a seven-column folio, and afterward to a five-eoluinn quarto, and for a time issued a daily in connection with it, and continued to conduct it as a green- back organ until September 10, 1882, when Frank T. Waring, a resident of Bluffton, pur- chased it. Next it was for three or four months owned by the Times Publishing Com- pany, and managed by John Studabaker, as a Prohibition paper. January 1, 1886, Mr. A. S. Roberts, a young, smart man from South Bend, assumed control and eondueted the paper simply as a newspaper, independent in polities, until March, 1887, when he sold out to William F. Clark, Sr., and William F. Clark, Jr., from Michigan.

Mr. Roberts was born in Wabash, Indiana, in 1864, graduated at a Methodist Episcopal college in 1883, attended De Pauw University abont fourteen months, learned the trade of printing when young, and has continued therein since his school days. Was with his father, Rev. W. W. Roberts, a Methodist minister, on the Indiana Phalane, at In- dianapolis, and came from there to Bluffton.

INDIANA BUGLE.

The Messrs. Clark eame very highly recom- mended, and their work so far corroborates

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HISTORY OF WELLS COUNTY.

that reputation. They have changed the name of the Wells County Times to Indiana Bugle, its policy to Prohibition, and enlarged its geographical range, being the only Pro- hibition paper in this Congressional Distriet. Volume 1, Number 1, was the number for March 10, 1887.

PEOPLE'S ADVOCATE.

This ambitious little advocate of the rights of labor, published weekly in the Williamson Bloek at Bluffton, was established by William Patrick McMahon. He has traveled eonsid- erably in Canada and in several States and Territories, has had mneh experience with men, and with that vim that is characteristic of the Irish nationality, permitted to have free play in this land of opportunity, he will make a mark in the world not easily erased.

CUTE.

This is a lively little juvenile weekly, started in the autumn of 1886, and edited and published by J. M. Park, a bright lad. Special attention is paid to the school chil- dren, their "compositions" being printed therein. The paper deserves a thoroughi patronage in this loeality. Office in the basement of McFarren's Block.

Several other papers have had short lives in this county, as the Wells County Daily Democrat, which lived but for a day, the Wells County Telephone at Ossian, etc.

IGNORANT OF SUNDAY.

As a small but interesting item of history, and also as a specimen of editorial wit in Wells and Adams eonnties, promised on a preceding page, we give here, as good a place perhaps as elsewhere, the following instance:

About nine o'clock on the morning of Sunday, November 5, 1871, when all the re- spectable people of Bluffton were either wending their way to church or remaining

quietly at home, there might be seen a wagon and team slowly approaching the city from the east. In the wagon were an elderly lady and a lad about twenty years of age, with several bags of wheat, a grist of corn and buckwheat, and a considerable quantity of butter, on their way to mill and market. On arriving in town both mother and son were astonished to find that Bluffton merchants were such sluggards as to fail to open their establishments by nine o'clock. Their aston- ishment was increased when they were in- formed that it was Sunday, and that our people rested on that day.

" Well, I declare," exclaimed the woman, "it seems to me I do recolleet hearing of Sunday when I was a little girl; but you know I was very young when we came to Adams County, and, never being reminded of it, it is not strange that I should forget all about eivilized rules."

The Bluffton Banner, W. J. Craig, edi- tor, after giving the above account, added the reflection: " Is it possible that Adams County is so far removed from civilization that the people there do not know when Son- day arrives? No wonder they voted against the east and west railroad."

Of course this fling at Adams County was too much for the Decatur Eagle to let pass unrebuked. Accordingly, in a subsequent number of the paper, he reported as follows: "Simply to gratify onr enriosity and love of adventure, we determined to hunt up the he- roine of Craig's [editor of the Banner] story. After considerable trouble, our perseverance was rewarded with a sight of the old lady's domicile, but she had departed. Inquiry re- vealed the fact that the building of our rail- road, the visit of a Bible agent, and several similar annoyances, had induced her to emi- grate. She had taken up her abode with her sister in the backwoods of Wells County,

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remote from the annoyances of a higher eiv- ilization. In fact, she was in the aet of moving when she became the subject of the Banner man's notice.

" Desirous of learning more of her event- ful history (which was, perhaps, stimulated by a desire of knowing more of the Darwin- ian theory of development), we visited her new retreat, found her uneommunieative, but her sister sufficiently garrulons. The latter volunteered the information that she was ' borned, raised an' 'lowed to die on this yere spot.' Then she asked, ' Be you one of these yere town fellers?' We said Yes.' 'I thort so,' said she, and continued: ' Tryin' to git women to vote in town, hain't ye? We don't 'low to work the roads for you ones if we do vote. Stranger, we've had a heap o' trouble this suminer on 'count of Betsy Jane. Last spring a low down ornery euss, a printer man from Bluffton, got to hankerin' arter Betsy Jane, an' Betsy Jane she got to hankerin arter him. Well, stranger, I thort we had trouble when Jake died; then the twins follered; but it war nothin' 'side of the idea of Betsy Jane marryin' that feller. But as she got to pinin' arter that an' gittin' thinner 'n a shadder, I coneluded to let him have her, but when he went and put her aunt Berlinder, my only sister, in the papers, like she war no better'n a heathen Chinee, then, stranger, it war un- possible. IIe shouldn't have Betsy Jane if it war the death of the hull family.'"

Thus the Banner rejoined: " A mystery so dark as the above could not remain un- !

solved. Accordingly we started in search, and after reaching French Township, Adams County, we were unable to get close enough to any one to make inquiries. When we obtained a glimpse of a native and attempted to approach within speaking distance, he would rapidly swim to a distant stump and perch upon it in the greatest fear and bewil- derment. When we made a second at- tempt to approach, he would wiggle his fins, shake his moss-covered sides, show his teeth and beat a hasty retreat to a more distant place of supposed safety. Knowing that . mu- sie hath charms to soothe the savage breast,' we had taken the precaution to borrow and take with us one of the wind instruments of our cornet band. Wading back to the buggy, we took the instrument and sounded it. It so nearly resembled a locomotive whistle that the denizens verily believed it was one, and all over French Township there was a general buzzing of fins, and straightway every inhabitant went for his hole in the ground. All was silence. Several hours' search failed to discover one of those terrified beings.

" Sadly we sought our vehicle, and kept the road. After proceeding about a mile, we came across a lonely tent, upon which was written, with charcoal, 'BERLINDER-Gone to Wells County in search of the light of day.'

" We are glad the Eagle excepts us from the alleged heathenisin of this county, and that the 'printer man ' referred to belongs to the establishment across the street."

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HISTORY OF WELLS COUNTY.

MISCELLANEOUS. K-

AGRICULTURAL.

Y reference to the first chapter in this work, the reader will see what "foundation " there is in Wells County for agri- cultural prosperity. A large portion of the sur- face is a rich clay or loam, and the rest a gravelly loam. The gravel, or drift, lies at various depths from the surface down to many feet, constituting a system of under-drainage for most of the land. Every sec- tion of land is either till- able now, or in a short time will be inade so, by drainage into the respective water-courses. The swamps are nearly all high above the creeks and rivers, and in course of time will be effectively drained.

Previous to June 1, 1882, there had been

240 miles of public ditching done. At that date a new system was begun, under a new impetus, and by November 1, 1853-seven- teen months-11,000 acres were effectually supplied with ditches, at a cost of only $30,000-not quite 83 to the acre. It is estimated that there is now between 1,300 and 1,400 miles of ditching in the county, besides many miles of road graveled; and work in both these lines is progressing more rapidly than ever before. The cost of gravel- ing a road is about 81,700 per mile.

The " Wells County Agricultural Society" was first organized in 1853, with Rev. D. H. Drummond as president, who continued in that position until the career of the society was interrupted by the great civil war. Mr. Drummond has since died, at his residence near Bluffton. During his time the society held annual fairs, all of which were success- ful. In 1867 the society was reorganized, with John McFadden as president, and suc- cessful annual exhibitions were held until

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MISCELLANEOUS.

1882, when the expenses became so great as to prevent the association from awarding premiums, and thus killed the interest in these best holidays of the year. By the phrase " successful fair," we mean that the exhibits were generally good and the receipts liberal. Some departinents of agriculture, horticulture and stock-raising would be com- paratively poor some seasons. while the ma- jority were excellent, and the quality varied much from year to year. The fair of 1879 was particularly exciting, as there was a " baby show," and premiums were awarded to Mrs. Joseph Lipkey, Mrs. J. J. Todd, Mrs. William Grooms, Mrs. Kittie Smith and Mrs. William Ernst, in the order here named.

Eminent men from abroad were often en- gaged to deliver an address, among them " Blue Jeans" William, Governor at the time (1873), and B. F. Butler, in 1880, etc .; but when the last-named was here, on Thurs- day of the fair, he seemed to draw more away from the fair-ground than to it. In 1880 the Presidential campaign interfered seri- ously with public interest in agricultural and stock exhibits, and the two succeeding years the crops were ent short, and thus caused the interest to wane still more.

Succeeding Mr. McFadden as president of the Agricultural Society were Joseph C. Silver, Abram W. Johnson, Levi Mock, John T. Glass, John Shoemaker, Nathaniel Green- field and Branson Weaver, each a term of two years except Mr. Glass, whose term was only one year. Messrs. Greenfield and James R. Bennett have been especially identified with the interests of the society from the be- ginning.

The old fair-ground was sold for a park, but the latter feature has been neglected. There is also a good stone quarry there, but it is not now worked. The "park " is now a

farm. Situation, across the river northeast of Bluffton.

A "Short-horn Breeders' Association " was organized September 11, 1886, with Dr. Jolin C. Fulton, of Murray, as President; Branson Weaver, Vice-President; David D. Studabaker, Treasurer, and David T. Smith, Secretary. Total membership (March, 1887) thirty, all but two being residents of Wells County. They meet the last Saturday of each month, and have arranged for an ex- hibition and sale of stock the second Tuesday and Wednesday of June, 1887, at Bluffton.

When the Patrons of Husbandry took the country in 1870 they afterward, of course, "took in" Wells County in their march, or- ganizing granges in every part of the county, two or three of which are yet in successful operation, at Five Points, Rockford, etc. Several prominent citizens in Bluffton were members of the Bluffton grange, as E. Y. Sturgis and wife, William J. Craig and wife, George E. Gardiner and wife, S. M. Dailey, J. G. Smith and others. At one time during an exciting political campaign, one of the parties undertook to work in the Bluffton grange in its own interest, but was thwarted. It caused some trouble, raising a question of jurisdiction between the grange in the city and that in the country near by, which had to be settled by an appeal to the State grange officer. The interests of this movement are thought to have been greatly damaged by an effort to establish and conduct co-operative stores, which proved abortive.

To give some idea of the progress which Wells County has made in her agricultural developments, we give here the latest census report, that of 1884:

Wheat, 28,272 acres, 370,507 bnshels; corn, 34,607 acres, 821,585 bushels; oats, 7,727 acres, 253,921 bushels; potatoes, 89,- 390 bushels; apples, 38,500 bushels; timno-

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HISTORY OF WELLS COUNTY.

thy, 16,289 acres, 25,880 tons; elover, 10,689 acres, 15,227 tons; timber land, 66,260 acres; newly-cleared land, 2,039 acres; idle plowed land, 8,144 acres; blue and other wild grass, 5,741 acres; number of horses, 6,679; mules, 263; milch cows, 5,622; total cattle, 13,149; stock hogs, 26,720; fatted hogs, 26,672, weight 5,062,348 pounds; sheep, 12,045; lambs, 3,888; gallons of milk, 2,111,862; pounds of butter, 405,663; pounds of cheese, 106,603; wool elip, 45,358 pounds, which had averaged about 60,000 pounds for the five preceding years.

But it must be borne in mind that the official census generally falls far short of giving the full amount.

As to orchards, it must be confessed that they are gradually snceumbing to modern diseases and insects.

RAILROADS.

In introducing this subject we may notice briefly the only plank road ever built in this connty, before the day of railroads.

As long ago as 1848, we see by reference to the Republican Bugle, now in the possession of Dr. Melsheimer, a movement was set on foot for the laying of a plank road from Bluffton to Fort Wayne, the entrepot for this section of the country. The Bugle for January 6, 1849, gives an account of a publie meeting held at the court-house in Fort Wayne, December 16 previous, for the purpose of appointing delegates to attend the plank-road convention at Bluffton on the 19th. Twelve delegates were appointed, but only the following appeared at the conven- tion: Hngh McCulloch (afterward a mem- ber of President Johnson's cabinet), P. Hoagland, S. Edsall, P. P. Bailey, II. B. Reed, C. W. Aylsworth and S. C. Freeman. The mere attendance of these men at the convention was sufficient proof of their zeal

in the cause, for a trip from Fort Wayne to Bluffton those times, and especially at that season, was fraught with great diffienlties. In some places the roads surpassed deserip- tion. It was really amusing to see one of the horses walk on a pole and step on stumps, while another would be standing still with his head stuck into the mud up to his eyes, apparently meditating whether it were better to give up or make another effort to get out. Poor IIamlet !

On arrival at Bluffton the delegates found some of the citizens in favor of a plank road to Fort Wayne, and some opposed, favoring a railroad instead; but the latter were readily convinced that a railroad was impracticable at that early day, and joined the others in the plank-road enterprise. They combined their forces and pledged themselves to build ten miles of the road, and, if possible, to the county line.

We have not space here to give all the particulars that followed. Suffice it to say that the road was planked from Bluffton to Fort Wayne between 1852 and 1856, except in some places it was graveled only, kept in repair for a number of years, toll paid on it, and then it was suffered to run down.

As early as 1840 to 1850 railroad projects were talked of, various routes proposed, etc., but the people here were too poor to build them, and Eastern capital was busier with the main lines running east and west, north of us.

Fort Wayne, Cincinnati & Louisville .--- The route for this line, popularly known as the " Muncie Railroad," was surveyed through this county as early as 1852; bnt, before the work of construction actually commenced, the war came on and interrupted all railroad enterprises. In looking over the okl files of the Bluffton newspapers, one constantly meets with the characteristic, universal wail of

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MISCELLANEOUS.

"() how long, how long shall we have to wait for those Eastern men to go ahead and build the railroad, as they have encouraged us to believe they would," interspersed with a setting forth of the advantages of a railroad " through this point " and to a certain other point beyond us, and with exhortations to the people to wake up and take an interest in it, and with news of some railroad meeting somewhere, or interview with some railroad inagnate at some distant point, where some encouragement was contingently expressed. These contingeneies were generally some complications with other railroad companies or rights of way or local aid. The same may be said of the " Narrow Gauge " ronte.

In 1867-'68 Messrs. Hugh Dougherty, John Studabaker and others took the Muneie route in hand and soon had the road built. They first signed bonds to the amount of $100,000, then canvassed the county for support, finally seeuring the endorsement of the board of county commissioners, who made an appropriation of the above amount. The work of construction then went rapidly on to completion.

As the track was being laid south from Fort Wayne, on approaching the county line, great excitement prevailed in Bluffton, and a pleasant strife was indulged in for being the first to lay a tie within the limits of Wells County.

On Tuesday, October 12, 1860, a great procession, with a band of music, cannon, ete., went with wagons to the point, where a dinner was enjoyed, ete., and when the critical moment arrived, IIon. Newton Burwell and J. Gerry Smith (the Banner editor) carried a tie to the county line, or a little south of it as they thought, and dropped it in place. Next eame W. B. Wolfe and J. J. Todd with a tie and laid it, claiming that Burwell & Smith's tie was not far enough

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south to be in Wells County. Many others also laid ties, continuing for several rods, amid music and cheers and roaring of eannon indescribable.

By previous agreement, the honor of driv- ing the first two spikes was conferred upon Colonel Hall, of Bluffton, and James Metts, of Murray. This occurred at half past three o'clock in the afternoon. Similar scenes occurred November 10 following, as the track reached Bluffton, at 11:30 A. M., where the first spikes were driven by John Studa- baker, then the oldest citizen, and by William Bluffton Miller, the eldest male ehild born in this town. Lively addresses were delivered by Levi Mock (then mayor), J. J. Todd, T. W. Wilson and others, a free dinner was given in Studabaker's new warehouse, silver cornet bands played, everybody shouted, and the "Little Giant" cannon fairly split its throat in endeavoring to overtop the noise of the crowd. Indeed, it blew itself all to pieces, knocking even the wheels of its carriage to splinters, and yet, provi- dentially, no one was killed, and but one or two injured!

It should be stated, before closing, that John Studabaker, above referred to, was for a time a director of this road, and W. W. Worthington, of Fort Wayne, has been su- perintendent nearly from the beginning, under whose management the line is well conducted. Mr. Dougherty continued to aid the road on its southward extension, until connection was made at Connersville with the Cinein- nati, Hamilton & Dayton road. For a time the name was the " Fort Wayne, Muncie & Cincinnati Railroad."

The capital stock of this road is now 84,000,000. In Wells County there are now 24.95 miles of track, assessed at $3,500 per mile, besides side-track, and $800 per mile for rolling stoek. The line has generally

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HISTORY OF WELLS COUNTY.

yielded dividends, but of course not so large as the east and west lines.

Toledo, St. Louis & Kansas City .- As just intimated, an east-and-west line of rail- road has ever been thought to be the greatest desideratum in respect to thoroughfares. Accordingly, a movement was set on foot, immediately after the completion of the Mun- eie Railroad, for the building a narrow-gauge railroad running from Toledo to some west- ern metropolis, through Wells County, under the impression that such a road could be more cheaply built, and more cheaply oper- ated after it was built. The long-delaying, soul-sickening hide-and-scek, now-you-sce-it- and now-you-don't performances of various supposed capitalists, including the presi- dents (?), "Colonel " Thomas S. Sprague, and others, have characterized the early history of this line to an unusual extent. The nn- merous chameleon changes and skillful pres- tidigitations of the various "companies," building or proposing to build the various links between Toledo and the Great West, generally are too tedions to relate here, and in faet uncalled for ._ Even the names of the routes are too numerous to catalogue here, the most prominent of which have been the To- ledo, Cincinnati & St. Louis," and for short the " Narrow-Gauge Railroad." The links which now constitute it have also had vari- ous names.

May we be pardoned for relating, in this connection, what took place in a Bluffton Sunday-school, illustrating the long and in- tensely felt desire of the citizens to have this line of road hurried up? It is related that a Sunday-school teacher had a boy in her class who had not failed in his penny contri- bution for more than a year; and when he was found empty-handed one Sunday, his teacher observed, " Why, Johnny, did yon forget your penny to-day?" " No, ma'am,"

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Author: Publication date: 1887 Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 948

Author:
Publication date: 1887
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 948