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 6

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 6
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 6

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

OLI' SETTLERS' PICNIC.

During the great fourth of July celebra- tion of 1872 at Stndabaker's Grove, near Bluffton, where ten thousand people assem- bled to hear the " eagle sereech " and to have a good time generally, the old settlers had a pienie, and as their speeches on that occasion

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HISTORY OF WELLS COUNTY.

were rich with allusions to early times, we cannot refrain from giving a condensed ae- count of them.

Henry Miller being first called upon, gave a rather gloomy account of the state of the country when he settled here, he being one of the first white men in the county. Bread- stuff for a family of ten children was pro- enred at a distance of 100 miles from his home, and had to be ferried across the Wa- bash in canoes. The county was so sparsely settled that but six or seven could be col- lected to raise a cabin. Ile had gone seven miles, and with six other men raised a cabin, and reached home before night. Mr. Miller suggested that all the old settlers write their experiences in full, and on some appointed day place their manuscripts in the hands of some one in Bluffton, to be compiled into a complete history of the county.

William Stobie related a little affair that occurred at the first preaching in the county. A fellow with a load of deer-skins rode up to the door during the services, and called out, " Is Lewis Linn here ?" Lewis went ont, ex- amined and assorted the skins, and returned to his seat in church. The first marriage, which was also a very laughable affair, was also described by Mr. Stobie.

David Bennett, although his voice was somewhat affected by nervousness, greatly interested the audience and drew their sym- pathy. Said he, "I well remember the first Fourth of July celebration I attended in this county. It was thirty-seven years ago. For mnsie we had our three babies; my wife was the 'delegation,' and I was the 'chief mar- shal.'"

Judge Garton related the particulars of his settling in 1842 where he now [1872] lives. It was then an unbroken wilderness, and they " had to roll up sleeves and breeches and clear np the country." They arranged a mor-

tar in which to pound corn, and even then could not get it fit for use until the coarser portion was sorted out. Buckwheat was ground in coffee-mills.

L. L. Ilolines being called upon, stated that he had just arrived, and felt like the young attorney who arose once at a railroad celebration, and as he said " Ladies and gen- tlemen," the wind carried away beyond re- covery the nice little speech he had written out for the occasion. He was utterly non- plussed. Mr. Ilolmes, however, did make an interesting speech. When he came here the only mill in this section of the country was in Adams County. The customers furnished the power with the horses they brought. Ile and a neighbor once shelled each a bushel of corn and went to the mill, where there were twenty men awaiting their turn, and the most of them had to wait a day or two. Dis- gusted with that slow machine, he went next time to Richmond for a load of provisions. Returning he struek into a good track near Fort Recovery, but it did not continne very good, for at night he could look back and see the smoke from the cabin he had left in the morning. Ile went back and staid over night. Second night, ditto.

In those early days taxes were light, being only $2.50 on a quarter section of land. If there were thorns in pioneer life, there were also roses. Mr. Holmes became enthusiastic over the genuine happiness and independence which lightened the burdens and hardships of the early settlers.

Thomas Wallace mnade a longer speech, re- plete with reminiscences of early days, and contrasting the past with the present. IIe could look around and see those who had gone with him to Muneie and other places for provisions, on trips ocenpying two weeks, with eight men and eight yoke of oxen, and four wagons, four men going in advance to

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EARLY SETTLEMENT.

ent out a road. He also gave an account of the organization of the first Sunday-school in the county, in Rock Creek Township, by a Yankee from New York.

Rev. W. M. Donaldson delivered a fine speech. Ile eamc to the county twenty-five years previously on horseback, a large por- tion of the way from Fort Wayne to Bluffton through water so deep that he had to hold his feet as high as he could. He was " par- tienlarly attraeted by the appearance of the people-liked their countenances so well that he eoneluded to settle here, and he never had had occasion to regret it." He spoke of the manifestations of joy, peace and hospitality which attended the pioneer life. The frontiers- man was always glad to see strangers come and enjoy conversations at his fireside. He maintained that the necessities which brought cook, children and strangers all together were more eondueive to genuine hospitality than those which consign the visitor to a parlor remote from those whose company he fain would enjoy, surrounded by the formalities of latter-day etiquette.

Wilson M. Bulger added similar testi- mony.

The principal event of the day-of the celebration of July 4, 1872-was an histor- ical address prepared and delivered by Hon. Newton Burwell, and published in the Bluff- ton papers, from which we glean many items of interest for this work.

OLD SETTLERS' ASSOCIATION.

September 10, 1879, the " Wells County Pioneer Association " was organized at Bluff- ton, and at the same meeting the members made arrangements to visit the State Fair at Indianapolis, as the managers of that exhibi- tion had promised free passes on the rail- roads to and from the fair, to all persons over seventy years of age who had resided in the

State forty years or more. N. Kellogg was elected president; Michael Karns, treasurer, and J. C. Silver, secretary. The movement resulted in seventeen residents of Wells County visiting the fair who answered to the above deseription.

September 20, same year, old settlers enjoyed a celebration in Lancaster Township, near Oakland; it was a basket pienie. Prom- inent speakers were present, and there was a general love-feast over old reminiseences.

The first old settlers' picnic and celebra- tion was held July 4, 1859; the fourth, July 4, 1872, and the fifth, July 4, 1879. On each of these occasions Hon. Newton Burwell delivered the address.

The organization above referred to was un- fortunately suffered to go down. Hlad they kept up sufficiently long to carry out Mr. Henry Miller's suggestion seven years prev- iously, namely, to write out their reminis- eenees of early days, how it would lighten the labors of the present and future histo- rians, and render their work more complete and satisfactory. What is there that creates so much pleasure, at so little expense, as ex- change of memories of long by-gone days? What do the aged residents more enjoy, or are more apt to engage in, than conversation abont old times? Doubtless many more of these experiences and scenes would have long since been committed to paper, could the living pioneers have had a seribe at their side, to write down the thoughts as they came up in their memory. It is an almost impossible task, for even those somewhat used to writing, to carry a recollection in the memory definitely until they can find an op- portunity to write it out satisfactorily.

About all the reminiscences we have col- lected for this volume are classified in their proper places; we give a few here for which we can not find a more appropriate place.

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THE CHASE.

Pioneer life naturally develops great hunt- ers. Conspicuous atnong such in the early epoch of Wells County were Isaae Covert, " Wils." Bulger and others. Messrs. Covert and Miller indulged in the luxury of killing she bears and robbing them of their eubs. On one occasion, in 1836, Messrs. Covert and Isaac Lewallen were trapping near Samuel Crum's farm in Rock Creek Township, and discovered that an otter had burrowed itself in the bank of the river. They dug it out, but it sprang into the stream. They had no gun, and Covert, a large and plueky man, fearing that he would lose the object for which he had labored, jumped in after it. A combat ensued, in which Covert came out victorious, though with several wounds. He killed the otter by choking and drowning. Lewallen, like the lady of story, stood off and partici- pated in the conflict by " hurrahing for our side."

Mr. Covert trapped many wolves through the country, which he lashed into slavery, fied lin bark in their months, strapped them on his back and brought them to market. But the unaided efforts of all the hunters were not sufficient to extirpate the howling fraternity, and the board of commissioners, with an eye to wool-growing, offered, in Jan- nary, 1839, a premium of $1 for every wolf sealp brought them. This encouraged the slaughtering business and made the trade lively. Covert then had plenty of help; yet the board, in March, 1840, increased the premium to $2. In a short time, however, they rescinded this order, as they aseertained that an old gentleman southwest of Bluffton had domesticated a lot of she-wolves and at divers times sold sealps of their young to them.

As late as the spring of 1886 a eireular fox hunt was made in the county, resulting in the slaughter of several foxes.

" Wils." Bulger, the " Davy Crockett " of Indiana, the " Killbuck of the Wilderness," is noted as being one of the greatest hunt- ers of his day, killing as high as sixty-four deer in one season! Of course, his anecdotes of the chase are numerous and interesting, and he has not a reputation for exaggerating. In calling a turkey, and in the imitation of the tones, ete., of many other animals, he eould deceive the most practiced disciple of Nimrod. Many a laugh has he created at the expense of rival hunters. He is now too aged and feeble to keep up his old-time ens- tom, and is living a quiet life at his home near the foot of Main street, Bluffton.

Now, reader, should we drop the sketch of Mr. Bulger here, your impression of him might be that of the traditional rough, illit- erate and somewhat immoral frontiersman; bnt, for a rarity, there is probably no more intelligent, refined man in Bluffton than this same Wilson M. Bulger, as was demonstrated about twelve years ago in a theologieal debate on Universalism between him and a Method- ist named Samuel Kenagy. We cannot give a history of the rise and progress of the con- troversy here; but suffice it to say that our hero manifested a sweetness of temper throughout that disenssion seldom if ever witnessed among professional debaters and doetrinal divines themselves. That diseus- sion was carried on through the Bluffton newspapers, and the articles have been pub- lished in the form of a duodecimo book of about 200 pages. He says he has sold 800 copies in Bluffton and vicinity.

WILD WOMAN.

In pioneer times, between 1840 and 1850, there was occasionally seen in the woods east of Bluffton, one season, a woman who was living in a wild state. She obtained her sub- sistenee mainly by robbing gardens and

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fields, and once in a while she would venture up to a pioneer's cabin and beg for some- thing; but before anything definite was as- certained concerning her history, Mr. Abram W. Johnson and his wife were ont one day, and, perceiving a peculiar, rank, eadaverous odor, they followed the direction indicated and soon found the corpse of the strange woman in a hollow log. It is supposed that she had escaped from an asylum or other place in the East, in a freak of insanity.

POSTAGE THEN AND NOW.

At that age of the country when postage on a letter for 500 miles was 12g cents, and the wages for a day's work was not much more than that, Benjamin Starr, who had

located about nine miles south of Bluffton, in the edge of Chester Township, came to town one fine morning and found that there was a letter in the postoffice awaiting him, with the postage due on the same. It was from his old home in the East, and, being anxious to get it, and not having any money with him, he was in trouble. But 'Squire HIale gave him the job of cleaning out a well for him, which occupied the rest of the day, and he was then enabled to pay the postage. At the present day the average wages per day is about $1.50, while postage on a letter weigl- ing an ounce or under to any part of the United States, even to the Pacific coast, is only two cents-equal to only six or eight minutes' work.

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HISTORY OF WELLS COUNTY.

COUNTY GOVERNMENT.

THE SUBDIVISION of the Northwest Ter- ritory into five States has already been de- scribed in the first portion of this vol- ume, we need here go no further baek than the organi- zation of Wayne County in 1796, under the first form of our Ter- ritorial government, when that county comprised about twenty- six of the present counties in Ohio (being the northwest quar- ter of the State), the whole of the southern peninsula of Michigan, and the northern part of Indiana, ineluding Wells County. Detroit was then the county seat, and is still the county seat of Wayne County. Subdivis- ion of this territory into smaller counties went on as population increased, State boun- daries were defined, etc., until we come to the date 1835, when Wells and Adams eoun- ties were set off from Allen County.

During the session, that year, of the In- diana Legislature, Colonel Jolin Vawter, of Jennings County, Chairman of the House Committee on New Counties, introduced a

bill for an act to " lay out all the unorgan- ized territory to which the Indian title had been extinguished in the State into a snita- ble number of counties." This was approved February 7, 1835. The counties laid out nn- der this act were Wells, Jay, DeKalb, Steu- ben, Whitley, Kosciusko, Fulton, Marshall, Stark, Pulaski, Jasper, Newton and Porter. Wells County was named in honor of Cap- tain William II. Wells, who had been killed in the massacre at Fort Dearborn, Chicago, in 1812, by the Indians.

An aet was passed, and approved February 2, 1837, to organize the county May 1 follow- ing, appointing David Bennett, sheriff, to notify the eleetors to meet at the house of Robert C. Bennett, to elect three commission- ers, and also appointing five commissioners, non-residents, to locate the county seat. As these five commissioners for some cause failed to meet, a special aet of the Legislature was passed, and approved January 20, 1838, appointing Zachariah Smith, of Adams Coun- ty, Christopher IIanna, of Jay County, Champion IIelvey, of Huntington County, William Kizer, of Randolph County, and John Rogers, of Grant County, commissioners to locate the permanent seat of justice for

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Wells County. Having been duly notified by Isaac Covert, by this time elected sheriff, of their appointment, four of them came, the absent member being Zachariah Smith. The contestants for the county seat of government were Bluffton and Murray, and at first the four commissioners were evenly divided between the two points. Their first vote was taken about dusk in the evening. Mr. Abra- ham Studabaker, whose land lay at Bluffton, conferred with Daniel Miller, of Adams County, who also owned property near Bluff- ton, and was present at the county seat contest. The result of the deliberation was that Miller should immediately post off on horse- back to Adams County, and fetch in Smith, the absentee, in time for the final vote in the morning. It was very cold; ten inches of snow were on the ground; not a single road had been eut; and there were only traces through the timber. Ile followed the Wabash fourteen miles, to the residence of Peter Studabaker, where he obtained a fresh horse, and on he pushed twenty miles more to the St. Mary's River, near the State line, where he found his man, at three o'clock in the morning. Returning with him, they again obtained fresh horses at Peter Studabaker's, and reached Bluffton before the commission- ers met in the morning, after the messenger had traveled nearly seventy miles, mostly during the night, through a deep, unbroken snow and severe cold. The vote thus procured cast the die in favor of Bluffton. One his- torian says that the victory was won for Bluffton by the 8270 cash which Messrs. Bennett and Studabaker donated.

The report of the commissioners reads thus: " We met at the house of Robert C. Bennett, in said county of Wells, on the first Monday of March, 1838, and have selected the west half of the northeast quarter of sec- tion 4, township 26, range 12, for the site for

the seat of justice of Wells County, which land was donated by Abram Studabaker with a reserve of two choice lots. He also donated 31.90 aeres off the east end of the south half of the southwest quarter of seetion 33, town 27, range 12 east. Robert C. Bennett donates the southeast fraction of the north- east quarter of section 4, town 26, range 12 east, with a reserve of two and one-half aeres in the northeast corner. Studabaker and Bennett also donated 8270 in cash.

"Signed, March 9, 1838, Christopher Hanna, John Rogers, William Kizer, Zacha- riah Smith, Loeating Commissioners."

But county government did not wait for the loeating commissioners to do their duty. Long before the county seat was located the citizens, in June, 1837, proceeded to eleet their county board of three commissioners, namely, Solomon Johnson, James Seott and R. C. Bennett, Sr., for three. two and one years, in the order named. At this election six or seven non-resident land-holders living in Ohio were permitted to vote, especially as they intended soon to move into the county, among them being Dr. George T. Riddile, Adam Hatfield and Jolin Greer.

The first acts of these commissioners, as condensed from their journal, were as follows: The Board met Friday, July 21, 1837, at the house of R. C. Bennett, in accordance . with the above reeited aet, and produced the- certificates of the sheriff that they had been duly elected and qualified. David Bennett prodneed his commission appointing him sheriff (signed by Governor Noble) until the next annual election. Bowen Hale also produced a similar document appointing him clerk of Wells County. Both were certified to as having taken the oath as required by law. This being done, the Board was organ- ized, with Solomon Jolinson as president.

1. Ordered that W. H. Parmalee be

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HISTORY OF WELLS COUNTY.

appointed agent of the three per cent. fund donated to the county by the State for roads and bridges. Ile accepted and gave bond.

2. That Adnah Ilall be appointed treas- urer of Wells County. He also accepted, and gave bond in the sum of $3,000.

3. That David Whitman be appointed assessor and collector of revenues for the county. His bond was fixed at $800.

That for county purposes there be levied 18 cents on each $100 valuation, and 50 cents on each poll.

For several years taxes were often settled for by a promissory note, endorsed by two good men. Adnah Hall, Treasurer, had a little book of blank notes printed and bound for the purpose, with his name as payee. For the first three years after the organization of the county it is said that the treasurer kept his office in his jacket pocket, but was never corrupted or approached with a bribe while discharging his trust. The fees of the office for a while necessarily exceeded the funds in the treasury, owing to the condition of things.

As at that time the Government lands were exempt from taxation five years after entry, there were but three tracts of land in the county subject to taxation. The first tax duplicate was made out on a single sheet of paper.

The fifth order made by the board next day was that Wells County be divided into two election districts, by a line commencing on the southern boundary of the county and running north between what is now Chester and Nottingham townships, and Harrison and Liberty townships; thence east two miles between Harrison and Lancaster townships; thence north to the county line. The terri- tory on the east of this line was designated as IFarrison Township, and that on the west as Rock Creek Township.

Since then the townships have been set off' as follows: Jackson, September 4, 1837; Jefferson, March 3, 1840; Nottingham, Jan- mary 4, 1841; Chester and Lancaster, March 1, 1841; Liberty, June 8, 1841, and Union, June 7, 1847, immediately after the land there came into market subsequent to the extinguishment of the Indian title. Jackson has been called the " lost township," because the counties around it happened to be so formed that it could not be attached to any one of them without forming a geographical projection.

At the above session of the board Bowen Hale was granted a license for one year, for the sum of $5, to retail merchandise and foreign groceries " not the product of the State or of the United States."

September 4, 1837, the board met, and "on motion took their seats." Bowen IIale was allowed 856 for books for the use of the office, and other stationery, namely, ink- stands, ink powder, etc.

John Casebeer was appointed the first sur- veyor, and the first road established in the county was that part of the State road lead- ing from Greenville, Ohio, to Marion, Indi- ana. The expense of location through Wells County was 856.623. The next located in the county was the Fort Recovery and Hun- tington road, at the November session, 1837. For the opening of this road the board appropriated 81,000 of the three per cent. fund.

David Bennett was paid $32.50 in full for his services as sheriff; Solomon Johnson, $8 for his services as commissioner; David Whit- man, $6.56 for his services as "assessor of the revenue" of Wells County for 1837. John Casebeer was appointed assessor for 1838, and Thomas T. Smith school commissioner -the first in the county.

In August, 1837, an election was hehl,

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when Isaae Covert was chosen sheriff, and James R. Greer associate judge.

March 9, 1838, Mr. Greer was appointed county agent, and gave bond in the sum of $5,000.

John Casebeer was allowed $38, May 7 following, for surveying and platting the site of Bluffton. The recorded plat bears the date March 23, 1838.

In January, 1839, the commissioners offered a premium of $1 for each wolf killed, the evidence of killing being the presenta- tion of a fresh scalp. Adam Hattiekl pre- sented the first one the following May.

At the close of this year Adnah Hall, Treasurer, made his report, covering the period from November 6, 1838, to November 6, 1839, which showed that there had been received into the treasury from all sources the sum of $1,419.40. His commission was $19.43; notes, $301. Total assets of the

county, $1,701.41. This was principally de- rived from fines and sales of lots.

At the November session, 1839, Bowen Hale, Clerk, reported that he had procured for the county a metallie seal, and the follow- ing description of the design was ordered to be placed on the minutes: "A sheaf of wheat is the main design; a plane, a rake, a pitch- fork; surrounded by the following words, to wit: 'Commissioners of Wells County.'" Prior to this date a scrawl seal had been used in official business.

The first acts of the commissioners con- cerning the sale of lots, etc., in Bluffton, will be found under the head of Bluffton, and those concerning the first court-house and jail, under those heads respectively, in the latter portion of this work.

The present status of the county is given under the head of "Census," on a subse- quent page.

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HISTORY OF WELLS COUNTY.

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POLITICAL AND OFFICIAL.

Via

ENERAL observations concerning the great presidential eam- paigns, as affecting the politieal sentiment of this portion of Indiana, are given in the politi- eal chapter of the history of Adams County, in this work. We here append a few miseella- neous items of interest, prefatory to the cleetion returns of this county on the following pages. 1 The votes on the school law, and the various amendments to the State Constitution, referred to in these returns, generally excited but little popular interest. The vote in 1851, on the Constitution, was on its adoption, and at the same time a very decisive vote was given for the " exclusion of negroes from the State and their colonization" -588 to 97. Even on this point the exeite- ment was not great, as public sentiment was so nņiform.

From the old files of the Bluffton papers, we notice that apparently modern questions

were before the public as early as 1848-'50, one column in the Republican Bugle, for instance, being headed "Capital vs. Labor;" another artiele headed, " News from South Carolina favoring Secession ; " anc ther, "Land Monopoly," ete. The Bluffton Lyceum, in the winter of 1848-'49, debated whether the dissolution of the States under any cirenm- stances would be proper, ete. Hon. T. W. Borden, representing this district in Congress, delivered a speech there on the " necessity of limiting the amount of land which one should own."

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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