USA > Indiana > Blackford County > Biographical memoirs of Blackford County, Ind. : to which is appended a comprehensive compendium of national biography embellished with portraits of many well known residents of Blackford County, Indiana > Part 80
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Mr. and Mrs. Bantz are the parents of fifteen children, as follows: Rena, wife of Elkanalı Gilbert, of Jay county; Luella, wife of George Buckles, of Delaware county; Rhoda, who married Saul Wilson, and died October 6, 1894, at the age of twenty-seven, leaving five children: Irwin, of Blackford county, who married Hesea Irene; Frank; Sivilla, wife of William Stoughton, of Din- kirk; Enima, wife of George Whitaker, of Blackford county ; Daniel, who married Dose DePo., of Dunkirk; Levi, living at home in Dunkirk; Viola, wife of George Fromyer, of Dunkirk ; Zula, wife of George Crumwell, of Noblesville, Indiana; William, living at
home: Grover, who died at the age of fif- teen, and Vernie, living at home, and two that died in infancy. Mrs. Bantz died Au- gust 25, 1894, aged fifty years, seven months and twenty day In May. 1900, Mr. Ban had twenty-six grandchildren living. He has always taken great interest in his chil- dren's welfare, assisting them to get a start in the world to the extent of his ability, and doing all in his power to further the moral and material welfare of his community.
JESSIE HAMILTON DOWELL ..
Few men of Blackford county were as wide and favorably known as the late Jessic Hamilton Dowell, of Hartford City, and no one exercised a more potent or wholesome influence upon the business and industrial interests of this part of Indiana than Ik For quite a half century he was a familiar figure on the streets and public thoroughfares, and for nearly that length of time his name was identified with a number of enterprises which give stability and added to the reputation of the city at home and abroad. The birth of this excellent man occurred on the 25th day of June, 1833, in Virginia, and when five years old he was taken by his parents to Wayne county, Indiana, where he made his home until some time in 1845. The date of his arrival in Blackford county is the year 1850, at which time he became a resident of Hartford City, and here he remained the rest of his life, assisting in many ways the development of the town and impressing his strong personality upon its material and moral growth.
On the 26th day of May, 1851, he was united in marriage to Fannie A. Ellis, daugh-
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ter of Selah and Hepsiba (Saxton) Ellis, and became the father of four children, namely: Frank P .: Eher E., deceased; Charles M., deceased, and Arthur G.
Shortly after taking up his residence in Hartford City Mr. Dowell engaged in the shoe business with William IT. Campbell, a partnership terminated by the death of the latter gentleman fourteen months later, after which Mr. Dowell continued actively identi- fied with the commercial interests of the place until 1866. In 1867 he began han- dling grain, and the better to facilitate this business he erected one of the largest ware- houses on the Panhandle Railroad, which he continued to operate with most encourag- ing success until 1873, the meantime running a large saw-mill which afterwards under his management was converted into a heading factory.
During the above period Mr. Dowell also carried on the hardware trade in Hartford City, which, with the manufacture of lum- ber and heading, he disposed of in 1873 and a little later he discontinued the grain busi- nc s. After retiring from active participa- tion in grain transactions he became inter- ested in banking, being one of the leading spirits in the organization of the Blackford County Bank, of which he became president. After filling that position three years he dis- posed of his interest in the bank and turned his attention to farming and dealing in real estate, his success in the latter being com- mensurate with that realized in his several p: ious lines of business. By judicious investment he became in time the possessor of five hundred and fifty acres of valuable land, all lying within one and a half miles of the city and a considerable tract adjoining the city limits. This has since greatly in- creased in value, and is classed with the 38
most productive and highly improved as well as most valuable real estate in Blackford county.
In 1886 Mr. Dowell organized the Hart- ford City Natural Gas & Oil Company, of which he was president until the time of his death, and previous to that date, in 1881, he was chosen drainage commissioner of Blackford county, the duties of which posi- tion he discharged with signal ability for several years. During his term of service as commissioner Mr. Dowell planned and carried into successful execution the pres- ent efficient drainage system, by means of which much fertile land has been reclaimed and other large tracts greatly enhanced in value. His services in this one office alone are sufficient to place him among the coun- ty's greatest benefactors, as the system lic inaugurated and carried out is pronounced one of the most scientific and successful in the state.
As a member of the common council, where he served over five years, Mr. Dowell was instrumental in bringing about much important municipal legislation and the in- terest he always manifested in the city's welfare earned him the reputation of a most conscientious, painstaking and absolutely impartial public servant. He contributed much to the city's material prosperity by investing his means in business blocks and other improvements and through his efforts many individuals in the comm: walks of life were enabled to procure homes on long and easy payments. For two years or more he was connected with a local fire, loan and insurance company which did a safe and conservative business, and the set of abstract books made by him and containing a descrip- tion of every piece of property in the county from the beginning are said to be the most
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complete and accurate records of the kind ever made in the county.
Mr. Dowell was for many years active in Masonic circles, belonging to the Blue Lodge and Chapter, in both of which he passed all the chairs, and upon numerous oc- casions he was a representative to the grand lodge of the state. In politics he was a Re- publican, carnest in the support of party principles, but his zeal in this direction never led him to aspire to official honors. Indeed the methods of the successful partisan were not at all to his liking, and he always pre- ferred the claims of business to the unsatisfy- ing allurements which such men so fre- quently hold out to their followers.
In the several enterprises with which he was from time to time connected Mr. Dowell exercised sound judgment and rare insight which, combined with the most scrupulous integrity, made his name synonymous with all that is honorable and upright in the busi- ness world. He was an able banker, and as a financier ranked with the first in the county. His ready and clear comprehen- sion of all business transactions dependent upon the aid afforded by his enterprises, his ability to read character and his strict sense of justice won for him many warm friends as well as the confidence of those more inti- mately associated with him. No transac- tion was too minute to escape his observa- tion, nevertheless he never stooped to little things, and always manifested a broad and liberal spirit in his relations with his fellow men.
Few if any of his contemporaries ac- complished as much as he for the general good of the community, and his death, which occurred at his home in Hartford City on the 11th day of May, 1899, came as a per- sonal bereavement to the many who knew
him so long and so well. That he may have made mistakes during a residence in one place of a half century is to be expected, but compared with the many virtues which adorned his life they were few.
What imperfections he may have had are now covered with the broad mantle of Christian charity as is his body with the green turf of the beautiful cemetery where he sleeps so well, while his virtues, more en- during than marble shaft or granite obelisk, will ever live, an enduring monument, in the hearts of his fellow men.
Mrs. Dowell's father, Selah Ellis, was born in Delaware, and came from an old family that lived in that state prior to the war for American independence. When a young man he married Hepsiba Saxton, a native of New York city, and shortly there- after located in Steuben county, New York state, and engaged in farming. He re- mained there until 1844, in which year he disposed of his real estate, and loading his personal effects on a wagon drove through to Blackford county, Indiana, locating about one and three-fourths miles east of Hartford City, where he again turned his attention to the cultivation of the soil. At the time of the long and somewhat tiresome journey to the new home in the west, Mrs. Dowell was a miss of thirteen years, and she distinctly recalls the many thrilling experiences of the trip, and how she assisted with her own hands in cutting away the brush and clearing a spot whereon to erect the little log cabin first used as a residence by the family. She continued to reside on this place until her mother's death, in September, 1851, when she came to Hartford City, and for some time thereafter made her home wth a sister, Mrs. Morley. While residing with the lat- ter she met the gentleman who afterwards
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became her husband, and from her marriage. to the present time her life has been inter- woven with Hartford City, which she has seen grow from an insignificant backwoods town to the center of population of one of the wealthiest and most prosperous sections of our highly favored commonwealth. From youth up she has exhibited the qualities of womanhood so greatly admired, and those who knew her best are profuse in their tes- timonials as to her worth as a wife, mother and neighbor. As a member of the Meth- odist church, to which she has belonged for nearly a half century, she has willingly and cheerfully made any sacrifices to render her services useful, and she exemplifies her re- ligion by a life devoted to bettering the con- dition of humanity. Endowed with strong mental powers, an affectionate disposition and a generous heart, she has acted well her part in life and in going out and in among the people she carries with her, not only sympathy and counsel, but equally needed food and raiment for those whose condition is beset with misfortune and suffering. While exact in all her dealings, she is ever ready to respond to all worthy calls for as- sistance, never refusing to hear the cry of the needy, but always willing to contrib- ut: to their wants and if possible direct them to the means of self-support.
ller moral nature is sweet and beautiful, and while not blind to the shortcomings of others, she would see the good rather than the evil and thoroughly believes in the ulti- mate victory of right over the combined forces of ungodliness. By her judicious advice and wise counsel she greatly assisted her husband during his long and varied business experience, and he was ever ready to give her due credit for much of the suc- ! cess which he attained in life. Since his
death she has displayed rare discrimination and excellent judgment in looking after the interest of the large estate, and her man- agement of the same marks her as a woman of uncommon good sense and business sa gacity.
Throughout her entire career Mrs. Dow- ell's dominant motive has been to do the right as she sees the right, and now as her race is being run and the afternoon of life begins to wane, to see her as she passes along to the twilight and the journey's end, re- ceiving the love, reverence and respect of all. is a picture indeed that many loving hearts will wish may never fade.
JAMES WILLIAM WHITAKER.
James William Whitaker, a successful school teacher and farmer of Blackford coun- ty, was born September 4, 1861, in Guern- sey county, Ohio. He is a son of William Whitaker, who was also a native of Ohio, and dying on the home farm at Trenton, In- diana, October 15, 1894. William was a son of Obed and Elizabeth (Neal) Whita- ker, and passed his boyhood in his native state, where he married Miss Amanda Chance. In 1860 he removed to Indiana, locating in Trenton village. Soon after re- moving to Indiana he became engaged in farming, but on rented land until he pur- chased the tract which is now considered the home farm, which had upon it at the time a small amount cleared and a little log house. This farm it took him some years to finish paying for, but that was at length accom- plished. Upon this farm he devoted most of his time to general agriculture and to clearing up the timber as well t other im-
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provements, including a great deal of tile di: age. Ilis timber he cut up into logs, lumber and staves. For eighteen years he served as supervisor of his township, taking charge of the opening and improvement of the roads and the construction of bridges. After the war he was strongly in favor of the freeing of the slaves, but left the Repub- lican party because of its attitude on the granting to the freedmen of their right to vote, which was done by the adoption of the fifteenth amendment. : nce that time, while a member of the Democratic party, he has never been active in its counsels or man- agement. He was a member of the Meth- odist Episcopal church at Trenton during the later years of his life, and he was much interested in the cause of general education. He and his wife were the parents of the fol- lowing named childre. : Sarah Elizabeth, a maiden lady living with Dr. Louden at Tren- ton; James W., the subject of this sketch; Naomi, a maiden lady still living at the old home; George M., who operates a portion of the homestead farm; John, who died when thirteen years of age; Myrtle, who married Henry Strait, and died a few years later, September 7, 1894.
James William Whitaker was brought to Indiana soon after his birth by his par- ents, who located as above related. lie re- ceived his early education in the district schools of his adopted county, and also at- tended normal school one session, beginning to teach at eighteen years of age. His first school was No. 6, of Jackson township, af- ter teaching which he took other normal courses and then continued teaching in Blackford county, in Jackson, Newburg and Harris townships. He then took a higher course of study at the DePauw University, and afterward kept on teaching until he had
taught seventeen terms in all and all in Blackford county. As a teacher he kept himself well informed as to the progress being made in different por- tions of the country, operated in county institutes, belonged to educational as- sociations, reading circles and other or- ganizations whose objects were the improve- ment of the teaching force of the country. He taught five terms in district No. 6, Wash- ington township, and continues to give con- siderable attention to all practical educational affairs.
Mr. Whitaker was married, September 2, 1896, to Miss Jennie Parker, a sister of Jacob Perry Parker, whose biography ap- pears elsewhere in these pages. Mr. and Mrs. Whitaker have one child, Emerson, born June 26, 1897. They are both mem- bers of the Methodist Episcopal church and stand high in the community in which they live.
JAMES A. LUZADDER.
James A. Luzadder, a successful farmer of Jackson township, whose postoffice ad- dress is Mill Grove, was born in Taylor county, Virginia, now West Virginia, July 13, 1855. He is a son of Aaron Luzadder, whose father was also named Aaron, and both father and grandfather were farmers of Virginia. About twenty years ago Aaron Luzadder invested in one hundred and nine acres of wild land, and his son, John M. Luzadder, began its improvement. About four years later James A. Luzadder, the subject of this sketch, came to this part of the state, and in company with his brother, John M., bought one hundred acres more, which was at the time about half cleared and
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about half-way cultivated. On this one hundred acres James A. settled and began its conversion into a farm. About 1892 to the above-mentioned one hundred acres James A. added forty acres more, and since then he has purchased the interest of his brother, having now in all a farm of one hundred and forty acres in his own name. This forty acres was purchased from his father, who is yet a resident of West Virginia. Nearly all of this land is n a fine state of cul vation, the work of improvement having been done by himself. At first he put in timber ditch- es, as did many of his neighbors, but in re- cent years this kind of ditch has been sup- planted by the best of tile drains. a great deal of tile having been laid and extending into every part of the farm. James A. Lu- zadder has for some years had the super- vision of his father's farm, which lies ad- joining his own ; has cleared and tiled it and now has of it rixty acres in a fine state of cultivation, notwithstanding it is farmed by tenants. Recently Mr. Luzadder has pur- chased a sixty-acre farm in Delaware coun- ty, two miles south of his present home. While his farm is largely devoted to grass, yet he grows about thirty-five acres of corn, which he feeds mainly to hogs, but keeps also to some extent young cattle, which he finds very profitable. So great has been Mr. Luzadder's success in the management of his farming operations, that, whereas six- teen years ago he started nine hundred dol- lars in debt, both his farms are paid for and from the products of the farms themselves. These farms are in the gas belt, and upon them three wells are operated by the Fort Wayne Gas Company.
Politically Mr. Luzadder is a Democrat, but has never had any political ambition, and has not held or sought to hold office.
Hle was married September 12, 1876, in Tay- lor county, Virginia, to Arthula J. Mathews. and they have had the following children : Chauncey Albert, who died at the age of three years; William Allie and Mary Alta. twins now fifteen years old; Dora A .; and James L. Mrs. Luzadder is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and in every way an excellent woman, and both she and her husband are highly esteemed by all who know them.
ALVIN B. ZIMMERMAN.
Alvin B. Zimmerman, one of the most careful and successful farmers of Jackson township, whose postoffice is Priam, was born in Fayette county, Ohio, March 1, 1859, and is a son of John Fletcher Zimmer- man, who also was a native of Ohio, and a son of Obadiah Zimmerman, of Pennsylva- nia, who removed to Ohio in the carly days, being one of the noble band of pioneers of that state.
Alvin B. Zimmerman passed the days of his minority on the old home farm, and there received his early mental and physical train- ing which gave him a sound body and a sound mind. Nor was his moral character by any means neglected, and the principles inculcated during his earlier years have been the guiding principles of his life. Leaving home two years after attaining his majority, he then began life on his own account, and was engaged in farming in Ohio from 1881 until 1887, and in 1887 located in Blackford county, one mile east of Hartford City, on a tract of sixty acres of land. This he greatly improved by the erection of neces- sary farm buildings and by fencing and ditching, so that he brought it to an excellent
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state of cultivation. In 1894 he purchased a farm of one hundred and fifty-seven and a half acres where he now resides, to which he has since added thirty acres of cleared land. Upon this farm he has laid some- what more than three hundred rods of drain tile of various sizes, and built his present residence and made other improvements. While he carries on general farming to a considerable extent, yet his main crops are wheat and corn. He also raises cattle and hogs, of the latter from one hundred to one hundred and fifty annually.
On February 1, 1900, his house, together with a portion of his furniture, was de- stroyed by fire, causing a loss of about three hundred dollars more than the insurance. Since then he has rebuilt and enlarged, so that now he has larger and better buildings, both house and barn. Mr. Zimmerman has during his entire life given his attention to his farm labors. and though he has attended as a delegate numerous Republican conven- tions, county and district, yet he has never desired to hold political office of any kind. Notwithstanding this, he is a well-read man, and has firm and positive convictions on all questions of public policy.
On September 8, 1881, Mr. Zimmerman married, in Greene county, Ohio, Miss Mary E. Chitty, a native of Fayette county, Ohio, both having been reared as children on ad- joining farms. Their children are as fol- lows: Clarence C., Pearlman F., Dean D., Vernon H., Elmer M., Clara B., Rose A. and Paul L. Mr. Zimmerman is a member and a trustee of the Methodist Episcopal church at Trenton, and of Tent No. 50, K. O. T. M., of Hartford City, Indiana. In common with the rest of his family he re- ceived from his father, when buying a farm for himself, cash to the amount of five hun-
dred dollars, and his farm is in the gas belt with a good well upon it. Both he and his wife are highly honorable and useful citi- zens of the community in which they live. and have the good will and respect of all who know them.
EZRA CLINTON ARMSTRONG.
Ezra Clinton Armstrong, a prominent and successful merchant of Trenton, Indiana, is a son of Andrew Morton Armstrong, de- ceased, who was born August 15, 1829, in Butler county, Ohio. At the age of ten years Andrew M. Armstrong removed to Iroquois county, Illinois, and three years later to Wayne county, Indiana, where he attained to manhood's estate. In 1853, in company with his parents, two brothers and three sisters, he removed to Blackford coun- ty, Indiana, locating one and a half miles south of Trenton, on a farm, which had but few improvements, and those few consisting of a small parcel of cleared ground and a little log cabin, but which, now recognized as the old homestead, is in fine condition. Mr. Armstrong was married, December 16. 1860 to Miss Christiana .\. Alfrey who was born in Switzerland county, Indiana, in 1841. and who died at Trenton in 1866. They were the parents of three children, only two of whom are now living : Ezra C .. the subject of this sketch, and Lilly Estelle. now the wife of J. F. Wheatly, a farmer and stockman living near Trenton, in Jackson township. The third died in infancy. Mr. Armstrong married for his second wife Miss Lavina Anderson, who was born in Black- ford county, her parents being Humphrey and Harriet (Haines) Anderson, both na- tives of Guernsey county, Ohio, and who re-
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moved to Blackford county, Indiana, in 1837. Mr. Anderson died in New Orleans in 1852, en route to California. To this second marriage of Mr. Armstrong there were born four children, viz: William, who lived on the farm until his death in 1894; Flora, now the wife of W. A. Curry, the clerk of the county of Blackford; Thurl. who operates the farm; and Ralph, who is a stu- dent at the Marion Normal College. Mr Armstrong died September 1. 1894, of ty- phoid fever, about sixty days previous to the death of his son, William. Mr. Arm- strong's parents were William and Eleanor (Kennedy) Armstrong, the former a native of Butler county, Ohio, and who died in Blackford county it 1876. Mrs. Armstrong died at the home of her daughter at Bluff- ton at the age of seventy-six. During his life A. M. Armstrong was a Democrat and served as land appraiser one term. He was very much interested in the success of his party, and at all times was its stanch sup- porter. At different times he was a dele- gate to county, district and state conventions, a fact which shows the estimation in which he was held. In addition to his farming op- erations he conducted a store at Trenton, which he purchased in 1878, and carried on up to the time of his death, since which time it has been operated by his son, Ezra C., with the exception of a few days, a period of twenty-seven years.
Ezra C. Armstrong was born in the vil- lage of Trenton November 11, 1859, and soon after the store was established by his father became a clerk, but had practically full control, his father giving it but nominal attention. After the death of his father he bought the stock on hand and added largely thereto and increased the business to a con- siderable extent, his annual trade becoming
about nine thousand dollars. £ Besides his store in Trenton he conducts a road and ped- dling business, and also handled country produce. Mr. Armstrong was one of the original stockholders of the Blackford County Bank. He also owns a farm on which is his grandfather's old homestead, now containing forty acres of land.
Mr. Armstrong was married, March 2, 1888, to Miss Anna Maude Cox, of Delaware county, a lady of education and refinement. Mr. and Mrs. Armstrong have two children : Claudie G., a young lady of twelve years, who is making commendable progress as a student of elocution; and Harry William. As a Democrat Mr. Armstrong has served his party in county, district and state con- ventions, but prefers a business career, for which by practical experience he is well qual- ified. Mr. Armstrong has served for twenty years as postmaster of Trenton, and is the present incumbent of that position. Mrs. Armstrong is a member of the Meth- odist Episcopal church and a teacher in the Sunday school. Both are highly respected and useful members of the community in which they live.
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