USA > Indiana > Warren County > Biographical history of Tippecanoe, White, Jasper, Newton, Benton, Warren and Pulaski counties, Indiana, Volume II > Part 12
USA > Indiana > Jasper County > Biographical history of Tippecanoe, White, Jasper, Newton, Benton, Warren and Pulaski counties, Indiana, Volume II > Part 12
USA > Indiana > White County > Biographical history of Tippecanoe, White, Jasper, Newton, Benton, Warren and Pulaski counties, Indiana, Volume II > Part 12
USA > Indiana > Newton County > Biographical history of Tippecanoe, White, Jasper, Newton, Benton, Warren and Pulaski counties, Indiana, Volume II > Part 12
USA > Indiana > Pulaski County > Biographical history of Tippecanoe, White, Jasper, Newton, Benton, Warren and Pulaski counties, Indiana, Volume II > Part 12
USA > Indiana > Benton County > Biographical history of Tippecanoe, White, Jasper, Newton, Benton, Warren and Pulaski counties, Indiana, Volume II > Part 12
USA > Indiana > Tippecanoe County > Biographical history of Tippecanoe, White, Jasper, Newton, Benton, Warren and Pulaski counties, Indiana, Volume II > Part 12
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Dr. Furman Leaming, of the next generation and the father of our sub- ject, was born August 30, 1815, at Cape May, New Jersey, and was taken when a child by his parents to Philadelphia, where he was educated in the University of Pennsylvania. He obtained a medical education and a diploma in the medical college attached to that university, and practiced his chosen profession in the same city for two years, being connected with the dispen- sary. He spent one year as surgeon on a vessel sent out to make some improvements at the mouth of the Mississippi river. After that he practiced
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medicine again in Philadelphia, but, his heart becoming affected, he decided to abandon his profession.
In 1845 he purchased land near Romney, Tippecanoe county, Indiana, and here he took up his residence with his family in July, in Randolph town- ship, on the farm where George Curwen Leaming now lives. Being entirely unaccustomed to farm life and the hardships incidental to the pioneer, which he encountered in his new home, and the family suffering greatly from fever and ague incident to a new country not far above sea level, the first years of their life in Indiana were marked with hardships, vicissitudes and unex- pected disappointments, which both himself and family endured with great fortitude and patience.
The Doctor built his house on the edge of a beautiful prairie and de- voted himself to agriculture and the care of his family. He and a few other Presbyterians founded at Romney a little Presbyterian church, and here their children were all married and all became members of the church in which their father had been ruling elder for many years, and where he also conducted a Bible class.
Dr. Leaming was married in Philadelphia, September 28, 1843, to Mary Curwen, who was born in Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, the daughter of George F. and Eleanor (Ewing) Curwen. Her father, of English ancestry, was a farmer. Dr. and Mrs. Leaming were the parents of the fol- lowing: Henry, Joseph, Eleanor, George Curwen, Mary E., Elizabeth M. and Furman. In his political views the Doctor was an old-line Whig and after the formation of the Republican party a Democrat. While interested in all matters of public good, he took no interest in holding office himself, but served as township trustee for a time. He was a man of broad educa- tion, posted in current events, advanced in scientific subjects, and of a kind and accommodating disposition, much beloved and respected by all. He died on his farm, named Hazlewood, near Romney, April 1, 1891, aged seventy-five years.
Henry Leaming, the subject proper of this sketch, was born January 20, 1845, in Randolph township, on the farm already described, received the usual primary education and attended West Jersey Academy, at Bridgeton, New Jersey, and afterward studied under his father's instructions and under those of Rev. Jennings, of Lafayette, Indiana, and thus acquired a good education, to which he has added by his practical business life and by his love of reading valuable books and the current literature, until he is a man of broad culture and information and an independent thinker.
He early began the labors of the farm, his father being unaccustomed to such labor, and as he was the eldest son the management of the farm was
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devolved upon him at a very early age, and he continued in this relation un- til he had reached the age of twenty-six years. By his economy and industry he was by this time able to buy a ten-acre lot near his father's place, which he improved while still an inmate of his father's home. At the age mentioned he married and settled on the Fox homestead, that of his father-in-law, im- proved it and made of it a comfortable home. In 1891 he erected a tasteful, inodel farm residence; and he now owns three hundred and sixty-five acres of splendid farming land.
On the Ist of November, 1870, when he was twenty-six years of age, he was united in marriage with Miss Martha Frances Fox, who was born in Randolph township, on the farm where they now live, July 6, 1835, the daughter of Amos and Sarepta (Allen) Fox. Her father was born in Hamp- shire county, Virginia, July 1I, 1802, a son of William and Jemima (Vause) Fox. William Fox was a farmer and slave-holder of the county, and the fa- ther of thirteen children, namely: Ida, born January 6, 1787; Absalom, May 15, 1790; Vause, August 16, 1791; Eliza, January 22, 1793; George, Septem- ber 5, 1794; Gabriel, March 18, 1796; Ann, August 26, 1798; Rebecca, Feb- ruary 28, 1800; Amos, July 11, 1802; Richard, May 3, 1803; Johana, July 29, 1805; William F., August 29, 1810; and Sarah J., November 21, 1812.
Amos Fox came to Indiana and settled in Tippecanoe county, in Ran- dolph township, about 1833-4, married Sarepta Allen, who was born in Ken- tucky May 27, 1811, a daughter of William and Susan (Spurgeon) Allen. William Allen located in Montgomery county, Indiana, as a pioneer, from Kentucky, and afterward in Randolph township, Tippecanoe county, in early day, where he became a prominent citizen. Amos Fox cleared up a goodly farm and at length became well-to-do and an influential citizen, own- ing two hundred and ninety-five acres. He died in 1848, at the compara- tively early age of forty-five years. His children were Martha F. and a son who died an infant. Mrs. Fox was a member of the Methodist church, while in politics Mr. Fox was an old-line Whig. He was a successful farmer, an old-time pioneer, a self-made man, a straightforward citizen and a useful member of society. Beginning with nothing, he accumulated a competency.
Mr. and Mrs. Leaming are the parents of the following children: Mary, Lewis, Emily, Charlotte and Hunter Bell. Both the parents are exemplary members of the Presbyterian church, in which he has followed his forefathers in holding the office of elder for many years, - more than twenty-five years. In politics he was a Republican, voting for U. S. Grant for his first term ; but as a result of the Tilden-Hayes controversy he became a stanch Demo- crat. He takes an active interest in politics and keeps himself well posted ; is independent in his views and action, and a fearless advocate of his princi-
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ples ; a public-spirited man, in favor of good roads, good schools, and every public improvement, one of the prominent and reliable citizens of the county, well known as a straightforward man and kind neighbor.
His children married as follows: Mary became the wife of Samuel C. Malsbury, a farmer of Randolph township; Charlotte married Samuel S. Kirkpatrick, a farmer of Jackson township, and has one child, named Leaming S .; Dr. Lewis wedded Alice Patton and resides in Otterbein, Benton county, where he is a successful physician: he received his literary education in Purdue University and his medical at Rush Medical College at Chicago; Hunter Bell is attending Purdue University; and Emily is at home with her parents.
WILLIAM W. WISHARD.
The grandfather of the subject of this sketch, William Wishard, was a native of Scotland, who fled from that country to Ireland on account of re- ligious persecution in his native land. In his adopted country he married a daughter of Lord Lytle, and with her came to the United States, settling in Kentucky, with a brother who came with him and settled in Pennsylvania. It is supposed that from these two brothers all in this country of the name of WVishard have descended. James L. Wishard, a son of William Wishard, was born in Kentucky in 1794, grew up in his native state and married Miss Mary Glenn, of Irish parentage. In 1828 he emigrated to Indiana, with his family, and resided about a year on a farm near Indianapolis, and then re- moved to Vermilion county, where he entered land, which he improved, and where he lived until his death, February 19, 1884, at the age of nearly ninety years. He was a farmer by occupation, of strong physical powers, and served in the war of 1812, taking part in the battle of the Thames, where the celebrated Indian chief, Tecumseh, was killed. He was a man of stern qualities, firm in his convictions of right and wrong, and of unswerving in- tegrity. Politically he was an ardent Whig and later a radical Republican. In religion he was a Methodist, and was a pioneer of his denomination in his neighborhood, earnestly attached to the institutions of the church and ever ready to assist in their advancement. His first wife died at about the age of forty-five years, and he was the second time married, and he survived also his second wife. By his first marriage he became the father of eight chil- dren, four of whom are now living. Of these the subject of this sketch is the oldest. Mrs. Sarah Morey is the second in order of birth now living ; the third is Mrs. Susan Wishard, and the fourth is James H. Wishard, of Butler county, Kansas.
William W. Wishard, whose name introduces this sketch, was born in Fleming county, Kentucky, December 4, 1818, and was about ten years of
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age when he came to Indiana with his parents. He well remembers the ap- pearance of the country in those early times. It is needless to mention that he had but little opportunity for a school education, and he remained at his parental home until he was twenty-five years of age, assisting his father in clearing land and in farm work generally. At the age mentioned he began improving a piece of land of his own. Shortly he engaged in carpentering, which he followed for a number of years.
April 28, 1853, he married Miss Mary Irwin, a native of Kentucky, and soon after his marriage he came to Rensselaer, arriving here April 3, 1855, and here he engaged in business with his father-in-law, Thomas Irwin. His wife died May 23, 1864, and November 27, 1867, he was married to Jennie Porter, a daughter of Asa Porter. Mrs. Wishard was born in Orange county, this state, February 16, 1842. After his second marriage Mr. Wishard set- tled on his farm in Jackson township, Newton county, Indiana, where he lived and labored until 1892, when he returned to Rensselaer, where he has since resided, but he still owns his fine farm in Newton county.
By his first marriage Mr. Wishard was the father of five children-two sons and three daughters. Of these five only one son, William L., of Rensselaer, is now living. By the last marriage there were five children, of whom three are now living, namely: Melville B., a student of Purdue Uni- versity; Ernest E., a student of medicine, and Glenn at his parental home.
Mr. Wishard has ever been prominent in the advancement of the best interests of the community in which he has lived. For two terms, six years, he was a commissioner of Newton county. In the educational and religious interests of his town and county he has ever been efficiently active. He has been a member of the Methodist church for over half a century; a class- leader for thirty successive years, and his religious duties he holds of more importance than all else in the world.
JAMES B. MARKER.
James Buchanan Marker is a substantial and influential farmer of Van Buren township, Pulaski county, Indiana, and has achieved his present emi- nent position entirely by his own unaided efforts. Left at an early age to battle with the world, he learned habits of industry and frugality which have since characterized him and led to his ultimate success in life. He was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, May 4, 1841, and is a son of Michael and Annie (Reynolds) Marker.
Michael Marker was a meritorious actor of English birth and education. His special line was tragedy, and his career gave promise of great brilliance when it was suddenly terminated in the very prime of life. He died in Lan-
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caster, Pennsylvania, May 25, 1841, when our subject was but three weeks old. His wife was Miss Annie Reynolds, by whom he had three children, two of whom are dead. These were Michael, who died at the age of five years, and John, who was a child of three at his death. Left with an infant to care for, Mrs. Marker found a trying ordeal before her, and after vainly trying to provide for the comfort of the little one, gave him to Moses Wes- cott to raise, much as her mother's heart rebelled against the separation. She was married to a Mr. Hatfield, and her third marriage was to Johnson Lidgard, a farmer. With him she went to Ohio, reaching there in the fall of the year, when excitement ran high over the presidential candidacy of Henry Clay. They remained in the state two months and then came west to Pu- laski county, Indiana. The journey was made by team, their outfit consist- ing of two horses, a wagon, and their household goods. They located in In- dian Creek township on the eighty acres now owned by Lawrence Hines, in the fall of 1851. Forty acres of this land was bought from the government and forty from John Hadge. A log cabin adorned this land, ten acres of which was improved, and here he remained until death removed him from his earthly labors. One child, Mahala, was added to their family. She is the wife of Henry Moyer. The mother of our subject was born in Pennsylvania, and was of German descent. She was a member of a large family of chil- dren, namely: Sophia, who married Samuel Plotner and lives in De Kalb county, Indiana: her children were John, deceased; Louisa and Electa, both the latter of whom are married; Deck, a resident of Des Moines, Iowa, and a younger daughter. Hannah, the second sister, married a Mr. Angus and after his death was married to a Mr. Bradley, with whom she moved to Illi- nois. Isaac lived in De Kalb county, Indiana, married, and during the gold fever of 1849 went to California, as did so many others, and engaged in gold- mining: he was taken with the small-pox and died there; James lived in Marion county, Ohio, and married a Miss Slick; Anna, the mother of our subject; and Eliza, who married and lived in De Kalb county, Indiana, mov- ing later to Champaign county, Illinois.
James B. Marker was placed with the family of Moses Wescott when three years of age and remained with him until he was nine years old. His mother then returned to Pennsylvania and took him with her to Ohio. In a few weeks he was sent to live with an uncle. He met George Wiscover and James Hatfield, who were on their way to Indiana to buy hogs and persuaded them to take him along. This was in the spring of 1849 and they bought five hundred head of hogs in Steuben and Kosciusko counties, taking them to Sandusky, Ohio. Our subject now returned to Marion county, and cut corn, for twenty-five cents a day. His mother was now married to Mr. Lid- gard, and his home was made with her as long as she lived. After her death
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he made his home with Riley Brown, who was appointed his guardian. James staid with him six years and then went to Grand Prairie, near Brook- ston, Indiana, in 1858. He engaged in work there and attended the winter school. The following year he started for Pike's Peak, went on to Oregon, and was back in Indiana. He worked for Riley Brown during the fall and winter of 1859-60, and in January, 1860, took charge of forty acres of land which had been left him by his mother. Later he bought another one hun- dred and sixty, which in 1867 he traded for the eighty-four acres where he now lives. The trade was made with Lawrence Hines. A log stable was on this land, and also a part of the house now occupied by Mr. Marker, the addition having been added about 1878, and the barn built in 1879. He has dealt quite extensively in real estate throughout the county, the following being some of his trades: one hundred and twenty acres in sections 19 and 20, which he exchanged for forty acres in section 19; one hundred and sixty acres in section 29, which he sold; eighty acres in section 19 and eighty in section 29, forty-seven acres in section 29, which he sold; forty acres in sec- tion 30, sold later; sixty-three acres in section 19; forty acres in section 32; eighty acres in section 24, forty of which he still owns; and one hundred and sixty acres in section 21. All of this land is in Van Buren township; and in addition to this he has owned eighty acres in Indian Creek township, and one hundred acres in Boone township, Cass county.
Mr. Marker was united in marriage, February 17, 1860, to Mariah Lid- gard, a daughter of Solomon and Anna (Hatfield) Lidgard. Their home has been blessed by the advent of the following children, namely: John, who was born January 2, 1861, and died five months later; Azuba Ann, who was born January 27, 1862, and married Joseph Horner: her children are Ada, Ray and Alice; Mary Elizabeth was born February 21, 1865, and married James Washburn, of this county; her children are Clyde, Rosa, Frank, Annie and James; Sophia was born September 15, 1867, and married William Burk, a son of John Burk; William Henry was born October 2, 1869, and died at the age of three years; Etta was born May 17, 1872, and married David Warner, who lives north of Star City: her children are Everet, Cecil, Sylvia and Darrel; James Franklin was born March 26, 1875, and married Elva Henshaw; they have one child, named Dale; and Bertha Alma was born May 31, 1878, married Elmer Henshaw, and lives near her father; their children are Wayne and Carl.
Mr. Marker is a member of Star City Lodge, No. 543, F. & A. M., the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias. He is a Republican, and the present trustee of the township, having been retained in that capacity for the past fourteen years, although the township is Demo- cratic. The duties of this office are not light, as the township is one of the
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wealthiest in the county, and a great deal of business must be transacted. He is one of the most respected men in this section, and is considered author- ity on most local questions.
GEORGE PARROTT.
George Parrott, of Winamac, Pulaski county, Indiana, represents a type of men seldom met with in this, the nineteenth, century. A noted hunter, brave and chivalrous, he is a worthy son of the aristocratic southern family from which he sprung. He was born February 26, 1826, in Ross county, Ohio, and is a son of John and Nancy (Sewell) Parrott. The family were originally of French Huguenot extraction, but the grandfather of our subject, John Parrott, was a large planter and slave-owner in the state of Maryland. He had four sons: William, who settled in Dubuque, Iowa; George, who located near Dayton, Ohio; Isaac; and John, the father of our subject. All of these sons, with their father, were in the war of 1812.
John Parrott, the father, would not receive a cent from his father's estate because it had been cursed by the taint of slavery, and he accepted the slaves inherited by him only in order to set them free. He fought in the battle of Fort McHenry, and was also a soldier of the Black Hawk war. He was a Whig and a strong admirer of Henry Clay. He served his county as trustee and also took an active part in church work, being a member of the Free-will Baptist church. He was born near Easton, in Talbot county, Maryland, and died in Marion county, Ohio, in 1836, in his forty-eighth year. His grave is in Sullivan cemetery, Prospect township, that county. He grew to manhood in his native place and there married Miss Nancy Sewell. The ceremony took place at 7:30 o'clock one evening, and in one-half hour afterward they left for Ohio, their future home. They made a short stop in Pickaway county, and then pushed on to Ross county. Here they rented a piece of land which they tilled for twelve years, when they moved to Marion county and lived there until his death. He was a man of moderate stature, measuring five feet, five inches and one-half, and tipping the beam at one hundred and sixty-five pounds. His wife was a native of Easton, Maryland, and was seven years younger than he. Their children are: Elizabeth Ann, born in 1819, and married to John Essex. They lived in Ohio and had four children,- Lemuel J., John P., William and Martha J. Mr. Essex died and she married John B. Andrews. One child was born to this union, in 1821, Frances by name, who married Henry Ulsh and lived in Marion, Ohio. Their children are Jacob, deceased, Nancy Ann and Isaac. Isaac Parrott, born in 1823, is probably a resident of Ohio; he married An- toinette Miner and has four children,- Angeline, John, George and Gordon.
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George Parrott, our subject, was next in order; Rebecca, born in 1828, died at the age of four years; William, born in 1830, died when in his fifth year; and Martha, born in 1832, married Charles Lansingmeyer, of Marion: they have one child, Jacob. After the death of her first husband, the mother of our subject married John Bates, and a third time entered the state of matri- mony, her third husband being a Mr. Bowdish. She moved to Crawford county, Illinois, after the war and remained there until her death.
William Sewell, the grandfather of our subject, was married three times, the first and second marriages resulting in large families of children. The third, with Nancy Sewell, was blessed with one child, Nancy, the mother of our subject. He was at the siege of Yorktown and was blown up in the French frigate by an explosion. Mr. Sewell was in France when the Revolu- tion broke out and came to the assistance of America with La Fayette's forces. The Sewells were of English origin and were in the crusades, going to Jerusalem, but on their return settled in France instead of their mother country. William Sewell owned some forty fishing smacks which plied up and down Chesapeake bay and the banks of Newfoundland.
George Parrott lived with John Andrews until he was sixteen years of age, when he went to learn the trade of carpenter with Jake N. Lakins. He remained there six months, and then went to Thomas Henderson to learn the trade of tanner. He finished this trade in two years, but did not follow it, as it was distasteful to him and his ambition was to be a carpenter. He again started at the carpenter trade and stuck to it, working with his brother- in-law, Henry Ulsh, and later entering into partnership with him. This partnership lasted until June 16, 1847, when he enlisted in the Mexican war. He was sent to Camp Washington, near Cincinnati, to join the Second Ohio Regiment, but was not accepted, as too many had already entered the ser- vice. He was one of a party of seven young men, among whom were Messrs. Williams, Arthur, Brannon and Huntsberry, who went west to New Mexico on an exploring expedition. They started well equipped for their journey, and prepared for an encounter with the Indians, who were now in a state of fury, and of whom horrible stories were told. Their expectations of an encounter were not to be disappointed, and their first experience with the red men was on the ground now covered by the city of Topeka, Kansas. The young men were forced to seek ambush, and were kept in a state of siege several days, but were not idle during that time, as they killed some- thing like fifty of the savages, while none of the whites were killed, but sev- eral severely wounded. The United States regulars at last came to their rescue, and they were enabled to move on their way, stopping first in the vicinity of Independence, and later on to Kansas City. Not being favorably impressed with life on the western prairies, Mr. Parrott made his way to St.
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Louis, and from there south to Vicksburg. Here he cut one hundred cords of wood before going on to New Orleans. At the latter city he ran into the yellow fever district and made his way back to St. Louis, and from there back to Indiana, arriving here in the fall of 1848. He later worked in Ohio as superintending carpenter until May, 1854, when he came to Pulaski county. He lived in section 33, Franklin township, and spent his time in hunting. At that time game was abundant through this part of the state, and as Mr. Par- rott was a crack shot he seldom failed to bring his quarry to earth. He has killed more deer than any man in the county, one hundred having been his number for one year, besides large numbers of muskrat, mink, 'coon and other small game. Venison was not the luxury in those days it is considered now, when it is so difficult to obtain, and, instead of the present price of thirty or thirty-five cents per pound, it was only occasionally that he was able to sell the meat, and then the "saddle," or hind quarter, only brought from seventy-five cents to one dollar and a half. Mink and 'coonskins were worth as much as a haunch of venison, while for the skin of the deer he received one dollar. He now bought the forty acres of land where he had located and on which he had built a cabin. In 1859 he sold that place, and in 1860 pur- chased his present farm of forty acres, in section 16, Monroe township. He built his house in 1861, and has lived there ever since.
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