Biographical memoirs of Grant County, Indiana : to which is appended a comprehensive compendium of national biography with portraits of many national characters and well-known residents of Grant County, Indiana., Part 102

Author:
Publication date: 1901
Publisher: Chicago: Bowen
Number of Pages: 1000

USA > Indiana > Grant County > Biographical memoirs of Grant County, Indiana : to which is appended a comprehensive compendium of national biography with portraits of many national characters and well-known residents of Grant County, Indiana. > Part 102

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DANIEL WHYBREW.

Daniel Whybrew, one of the popular and influential farmers of Fairmount, Grant county, Indiana, was one of nine children born to Joseph and Phœbe (Bull) Why- brew. His parents were very poor and it was only by exercising the strictest economy that they managed to save a sufficient sum to bring them to America with all their children, except the eldest son, who followed them at a later time. They came at once to Grant county and located on the farm in Fairmount township which is still the home of their son Daniel. Their children were Joseph, Phebe, James, Daniel, William, John, George, Hannah and Mary Ann.

Daniel Whybrew was born January 2, 1837, in Chapel parish, Essex county, Eng- land, his boyhood days being spent in the hard work to be found on the old English farms. He was very ambitious for an ed- ucation, but as his poverty precluded him from obtaining this inestimable boon in the usual way he found he must depend on his own personal efforts during his leisure mo-

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ments if he would gain the much coveted wisdom. He was not afraid of work, so he began with a will to improve each and every opportunity that offered to learn to read and write. By continued application and perservance he soon mastered the rudiments of these branches, when his advancement began to be more rapid and pronounced. He continued the habits thus formed until he had acquired a good practical education and established a systematic course of ju- dicious reading which makes him one of the most intelligent men of his township.

Daniel Whybrew came to this country at the age of eighteen and again took up the pursuit of farm life, carving a comfort- able home out of the almost unbroken for- ests of Grant county. By the exercise of thrift and economy he has accumulated one hundred acres of fine land which hard work and persevering labor have placed among the best improved in the township, his buildings being commodious and comfort- able in design and modern in their appoint- ments. In addition to general farming he has also engaged in stock-raising and has at present six head of horses and fourteen head of cattle.

Mr. Whybrew was joined in marriage November 19, 1860, with Miss Eunice Wil- son, by whom he has had a family of ten children, namely : Lucy Jane, who married Morton Clark; Henry M .: William M. : Della, the wife of Chapman Duling: John ; Daniel Webster: Cora B., wife of Edward Nicholson; Olive C .: Thomas T .: and Cynthia Ann, deceased wife of John De- Long. The great-great-grandfather of Mrs. Whybrew came from England at an early time and settled in the state of North Caro- lina, where the family lived and multiplied

for many years. Her parents located in In- diana when she was but a little girl. She was an only child, her father dying soon after her birth and her mother being again joined in marriage, first to Lewis Jones, by whom she had three children, Calvin, Lewis and an infant, all deceased. She was mar- ried a third time, this union being with Elem Dougherty, and became the mother of seven children, viz. : William M .. Margaret, Samuel. Henry, Arthur, Cyrus and Ellen. One of these half-brothers enlisted in the Civil war, as did the eldest brother of Mr. Whybrew, and both sacrificed their lives on the altar of their country. Mr. Why- brew is an influential member of the Friends church, has held a number of offices in the society and is a liberal contributor to that cause as well as any other which will be of public benefit. He possesses a strong per- sonality, which is a dominating influence in the section in which he lives, and he is highly esteemed for his integrity and honor.

JAMES McDOWELL GILLESPIE.

James McDowell Gillespie, son of Will- iam and Rebecca (Balsley), was born in Jefferson township, Grant county, Indiana, July 19. 1862. He was educated in the public schools and chose farming as his life work. His great-grandfather came from Scotland. first settled in Pennsylvania and subsequently removed to Ohio. His father came to Grant county, Indiana. in 1838, when a boy with his parents, settled in Mon- roe township, and his father, grandfather of James, helped to make the first road in that part of the county. William and his wife reared eleven children. The first born died in infancy; George W., deceased;

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BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS.

James M., the subject of this sketch; Al- bert A., of Delaware county ; Mary Frances (Mrs. Timothy Cassady), of Marion ; John ; William, of Illinois; Henry, of Jefferson township; Elmer, of Fairmount township; Anna and Ella, twins, the former now Mrs. Alvin Howe, of Jonesboro, the latter de- ceased ; and Thomas Harlan, of Fairmount township.

The mother of James M. Gillespie was of German descent; her ancestors settled in Virginia during colonial days and later re- moved to Pennsylvania and thence to Ohio and Indiana. His wife's people went from Indiana to Missouri and her great-grand- father came from England.

On January 1, 1887, James M. Gillespie married Sarah E. Nottingham, daughter of Owen P. and Mary Ann (Couch) Notting- ham. She was born December 13, 1868. Five children are the fruit of this union, viz. : Mildred, born December 5, 1887; Inez, July 19, 1889; Park, July 21, 1891 ; Pearl, September 18, 1893; and Dollie, June 28, 1900. Her parents came from Ohio and earlier from Pennsylvania.

Mr. Gillespie has about forty-one acres of land where he lives in Fairmount town- ship. He belongs to a religious class that call their meetings the "Dawn Circle" and meet once a week in the home of Elder Gillespie, and he also attends the meetings of the class in Marion. This is the old the- ology.

The following poem refers to the teach- ing of this cult :

OVERCOMING THE WORLD.

" Shall I, for fear of feeble man, Refrain from showing God's great plan? Under a cover hide my light, While thousands grope in cheerless night? 49

" Shall I, for this world's mean renown, Regard a mortal's smile or frown? How then could I my trial stand? Or what excuse could I command?

" Lord, I would loyal prove to Thee ; Let Thy reproaches fall on me; To spend my days in Thine employ Shall be my chiefest earthly joy.

"O! what are all earth's gilded toys Compared with heaven's eternal joys? Or even to the feast now spread For pilgrims through the desert led?

" Its manna is a foretaste sweet Of heavenly bounty, full, complete; Its cloudy pillar, guiding light, Are earnests of the future bright.

" This path I therefore humbly tread, In footprints of our living Head; In hope rejoicing as I go In him who leads and loves me so."

HENRY WINSLOW.

Henry Winslow, a retired farmer and highly respected citizen of Fairmount, Grant county, Indiana, was born in Randolph county, North Carolina, January 26, 1829,. a son of John and Elizabeth (Henly ) Winslow, both from North Carolina.

John Winslow, the father, came from his native state, North Carolina, in 1840, bring- ing his family with him, and located on a farm four miles from Fairmount, but ere reaching their destination the family was cieprived of the mother, who died near Jones- boro; the death of the father occurred in Fairmount. The family born to John and Elizabeth Winslow comprised five sons and three daughters ; by a second marriage there were born two sons and three daughters. The children born to the first marriage were named, in order of birth, as follows: Jesse H., who died in Des Moines, Iowa; Hugh

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BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS.

W .; Henry, whose name opens this sketch; William died in Kansas City, Missouri, dur- ing the Democratic national convention held there in 1900; Hezekiah resides in Oregon, is a stock-raiser and gardener; Mrs. Mary Needham, now living in Iowa; Susan Jane died unmarried in Henry county, Indiana ; Elizabeth Rush is living in Fairmount. To the second marriage of John Winslow there were born the following named children : Rebecca, who was twice married and died in Kansas; Penina, also deceased, was mar- ried to a Mr. Milligan, and died in Logans- port, Indiana, where her husband also died ; Jennie, who was the wife of Isaac Gossett, and died in Fairmount; Thomas J. resides near Swayzee, Indiana; and Charles F. lives in Illinois.

Henry Winslow left his native state of North Carolina when he was a lad of ten years, and then entered upon a regular course of study in the pioneer log school- house in the back woods of Indiana, which he attended until twenty-one years old dur- ing the winter season, and started in life as a farmer, going to Iowa in 1854, and purchasing a farm in Linn county, within sight of Cedar Rapids, and there followed agriculture until just before the Civil war, when he sold out, came to Indiana and lo- cated in Fairmount, where he opened a meat market ; at the first draft for the Civil war Mr. Winslow was one of the victims, but furnished a substitute; at the second draft he was again victimized, and was sent to the front as a member of the Thirty-second Indiana Infantry. His chief duty was at Indianapolis, as a guard over prisoners and in apprehending deserters ; he was also twice sent to New York to aid in escorting re- cruits to South Carolina. "Bounty jump-

ers" were very numerous in those days, and it was a part of Mr. Winslow's duty to see that the men who had received a bounty did not escape to play the same "game" in some other locality.

After about nine months' service in the army Mr. Winslow returned to Fairmount and engaged in farming for about two years, and then embarked in the meat business, in conjunction with which he bought and shipped stock until 1896, when he was pros- trated with disease and has since been in- capacitated for active work. His life up to this time had been a very industrious one, and as he was possessed of a vigorous con- stitution his confinement is the more irk- some than it otherwise would be.

Henry Winslow was joined in marriage in 1854 with Miss Mary Jane Dillon, a na- tive of Ohio, who came to Grant county, Indiana, in her childhood, accompanied by her father, Jesse Dillon, an early settler of Madison county, Indiana. To this marriage have been born six children, of whom only two are now living-Susan Jane and Albert D. The daughter, now Mrs. Susan Jane Cassle, lives in Swayzee; Albert D., the son, served in the late war as a member of the Forty-second Indiana Infantry, and is now in the Philippine islands, where he has passed one year. One of the deceased chil- dren was named Stanton and was a clerk, but overtaxed himself and died of consump- tion, after having exhausted every effort for the prolongation of his life. He was a most exemplary young man, whose un- timely demise was a severe blow to the en- tire community, and especially so to the par- ents. The three other children whose names are not given died in infancy.

Henry Winslow was at first an old-time

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Whig in his political affiliations, but on the disintegation of that party and the organiza- tion of the Republican party he allied him- self with the latter and has been an earnest supporter of its principles ever since-al- though he has never sought nor held a public office. He and his family are members of the Society of Friends, of which society his ancestors were members for generations back, the family having come from England to America over two hundred years ago- first locating in New England and thence going to the south.

[Since these notes were taken Mr. Winslow died, March 18, 1901, after a long and severe sickness of about four years and a final confinement to the house for about four months. ]

JOSEPH POOLE.

Joseplı Poole, a highly respected agri- culturist of Fairmount, Grant county, Indi- ana, was born in Randolph county, North Carolina, February 3, 1842, but came to this state in early manhood, locating in this county, where he has become identified with all the best interests of the county. His parents, Joseph and Mary ( Hoover) Poole, were the parents of twelve children, five sons and seven daughters, he being the eighth. The five now living are as follows : Henry, a farmer of North Carolina; Chris- tina, wife of Joseph Davis, a farmer of Phelps county, Missouri; Joseph; Felix, a farmer of Center township, this county; and Romulus R., a gardener of Fairmount. The father was born in North Carolina about 1788, and remained there engaged in agricultural pursuits until his death, in 1858. He was an old-line Whig. His wife

was a native of the same locality and died some three years before her husband. She was a Christian woman whose life was de- voted to doing kindly deeds and lightening the load of others.

Joseph Poole, of this biography, came to Grant county to seek his fortune, and, ac- cording to his account, was "sixteen dollars worse off than nothing" when he reached Fairmount township. He began as a farm- hand, and his industrious, frugal habits soon won him friends of the better class, and he was not wanting for employment. His work was well done and consequently he was in demand and was kept busy until March 2, 1875, when he led to the marriage altar Miss Louisa Shields, and from that time worked for himself and family. The fruits of their industry is a fine farm of fifty acres, with a cosy, comfortable home and other good improvements, and the sat- isfaction they enjoy of knowing that their lives have been well spent and in such a manner as to confer blessings on those around them. They are held in the highest esteem in the community and have raised a family who are a credit to them. They have but two children, twins, and it has been the parents' aim to train them to lives of usefulness and honor, giving them educa- tions that would enable them to become in- telligent citizens. John makes his home with his parents and assists them as only a loving son can. Mattie married Charles Wilson, a prosperous resident of Madison county. Both children are members of the Friends church.

Mrs. Poole was born August 22, 1845, in Clinton county, Ohio, and is a daughter of John and Martha (Connell) Shields. There were but four children in the family,

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BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS.

and all are residents of this township: George, Alpheus and William J., are all farmers here. Mrs. Poole is the eldest. Both parents were natives of Clinton coun- ty, Ohio, and were educated in the old-style schools. The father, born January 24, 1819, died January 10, 1891. The mother was born April 10, 1818, and died September 20, 1888. They were farmers, and in 1862 came through to Fairmount township, where he purchased about three hundred and fifty acres of land. He was a prosperous man in life and contributed with liberal hand to both the Methodist and Friends churches, also helping the academy along and giving freely to other worthy objects. He believed in doing good with his money and reaping the fruits of his expenditures. He was a Republican in politics, and a man of great decision of character. His wife was an earnest Christian and a wise mother, train- ing her children in paths of uprightness and honor. Mrs. Poole was educated in her native state, and was seventeen when she came to this township. She has been a cheerful, untiring helpmate for her hus- band for a quarter of a century, sustaining him by her wifely councils and encourag- ing words while she kept the home sunny and pleasant-a very haven of rest. They are zealous workers in the Friends church at Fairmount, of which they are both mem- bers, and have assisted in building two other churches in that vicinity. Mr. Poole is a Re- publican and has been a stanch advocate of the policy of that party.

IVY LUTHER.

Ivy Luther is a gentleman of prominence in Grant county, Indiana, both as a practical farmer and as a consistent member of the

Society of Friends, and is a man whose quiet, upright and Christian life has made him uni- versally liked and respected. Although un- ostentatious in his manner, he is possessed of great strength of character and a per- sonality that is felt throughout the entire community. He is a southerner by birth, having been ushered into the world in Ran- dolph county, North Carolina, on February 22, 1834. His parents were Martin and Sallie (Kearns) 'Luther, both of whom were natives of North Carolina, the father having been born in Randolph county Sep- tember 5, 1805, and the mother in David- son county August 15, 1807. The family originated in Germany, whence the grand- father, Michael Luther, emigrated to this country. Martin was a man of but limited education and was engaged in farming in his native state, dying there March 26, 1883. His wife was in her eighty-sixth year when she died, December 15, 1892. They were earnest members of the Methodist Episcopal church and reared their children to lives of righteousness. Six children were born to them, three sons and three daughters, five of whom are living and all but our subject residents of their native county. They are Mary Ann, wife of Richard Graves, who is a farmer on the old homestead ; Ivy, the sub- ject of this biography; Josiah, a farmer; Martha E., wife of Henry Rothrock; and Emily M., wife of William F. Hix.

Ivy Luther was educated in the common schools of North Carolina. the school he attended being known as the New Hope, a log building twenty-two by twenty-six feet in dimensions, with shingled roof and stone chimney. The room was heated by a fireplace, and the slab seats, which were without backs, were upheld by wooden legs.

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BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS.

A desk twelve or fourteen feet in length, with a long seat on each side, was furnished for the older pupils, the boys sitting on one side and the girls on the other.

August 28, 1855, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Luther and Miss Sarah Stuart, the ceremony being performed by a Methodist magistrate, Marshall Dorsett by name. One son and four daughters blessed this marriage, four of whom have grown to adult years and are filling lives of usefulness and honor, viz. : Dorothy E., who passed through the common schools with credit and was a student of Earlham College, at Richmond, for one year. She also attended school at Knightstown two or three terms and the State Normal two or three terms, and for the past seventeen years has been engaged in teaching, a work in which she is very proficient. Her ability is so well recognized that her services are in demand and she is the present efficient teacher of the sixth grade. Narcissa G., wife of Elias Bundy, a well-known attor- ney of Marion, was also a lady of educa- tion and a successful teacher. She is the mother of two bright little sons. James A. resides in Fairmount and is engaged in the. manufacture of glass at Summitville with his father and brother-in-law, A. B. Scott. He married Malissa Scott. His family con- sists of two daughters. Emma L., the youngest of the family, is the wife of A. B. Scott and the mother of two sons and one daughter. They reside in Fairmount.

Mrs. Luther was born in Davidson county August 21, 1833, and is a daughter of John and Rebecca (Hix) Stuart. She was reared to womanhood in Randolph county and was one of nine children, only four of whom survive. Henry resides on a

farm at Plymouth, Illinois, and has seven children; Elizabeth married W. M. Kearns, an agriculturist of Knightstown, Indiana, by whom she has two children; Mrs. Luther is next; and then comes Martha, who mar- ried Alsen M. Bell, of Summitville, by whom she has three children. Jehu Stuart, the father, was of Scotch ancestry, but was himself a native of Davidson county, North Carolina, where he was born June 23, 1797. He was a life-long Friend, and devoted his life to agricultural pursuits in his native state, dying there in 1878. His wife was born May 12, 1804, and died about 1890. She was reared in the Methodist faith and was a good woman, whose Christian teach- ings have made a lasting impression on the lives of her children.

Mr. Luther remained in the south until 1866, when, in company with several neigh- boring families, they sought homes in Indi- ana, locating at first in Henry county, where they rented for seven years. October 21, 1872, they came to Grant county and pur- chased eighty acres of land in Fairmount township. As there were no improvements of any kind on the property, they resided in the village until their little home was erected, when they took possession and have remained there ever since. Their well-di- rected energy and thrift have resulted in well-fenced fields, comfortable dwelling, commodious barns and other improvements, with a competency to guard against want in their old age. Their prosperity has been well earned by years of industry and their lives have been governed by the golden rule, which has made them indulgent neighbors and lenient to the faults of others. They were both reared according to the tenets of the Methodist Episcopal church, but some

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thirty-three years ago they united with the guished here on earth and he was gathered Society of Friends, with whom they have unto his fathers. He was a young man not yet in the zenith of his life when the summons came to him, the snow's of thirty winters had fallen lightly over his head and the future was tinted with the roseate hues of promise; but faith led the way, and with unfaltering step he followed the beck- oning hand into the untried land beyond the grave. Some five years before, on March 24, 1869, he was joined in the holy bonds of matrimony with Miss Elizabeth S. Radley, by whom he had two bright lit- tle boys, William Arthur, born November 26, 1871, and John Henry, born June 14, 1873. On October 8, 1890, the spirit of William Arthur winged its flight to the better land, there to be reunited with the loving father, gone before. since been identified. They assisted in building the church and academy, both of which are a credit to Grant county, and have ever been ready in those measures tending to the moral, spiritual and intellectual growth of the community. Mr. Luther was at one time an old-line Whig, later a Repub- lican, and at the present time is a Prohibi- tionist, believing that the abolition of the manufacture and sale of spirits is the only manner in which our country will be freed from the curse now resting on her from the rum traffic. They are both earnest workers for the cause so near their hearts, and Mrs. Luther was one of the brave ladies who took part in the crusade. They have brought into the world a family of honorable citizens and are themselves representatives of the best class of people and stand high in the opinion of all who know them.

JOSEPH H. PEACOCK.

Joseph H. Peacock, deceased, was born February 9, 1844, in Liberty township, Grant county, Indiana, to William and Phebe ( Halsley) Peacock. His ancestors at an early day had resided in North Caro- lina, but migrated north and finally located in Grant county. His education was se- cured in the common schools of his native township during the dull season of the farm, his summers being employed in assisting in the plowing, sowing and harvesting. Leaving school, he still devoted his atten- tion to agricultural pursuits until May 14, 1874, when the lamp of life was extin-

Mr. Peacock was a steadfast member of the Friends church and was a young man of sterling character. He was overseer for two years and made one of the most ac- ceptable records ever known in that office.

John Henry Peacock, the only surviving son, was married to Miss Ruth A. Reese January 21, 1892, and two children have been born to them, namely: Myron Reese, born November 7, 1893, and Joseph Ed- ward, born March 24, 1897. Ruth Reeso was born in Cass county, Michigan, July 22, 1873, and is a daughter of Reuben and Jane ( Reeder ) Recese. Her father was born January 7, 1840, and died September 16, 1896, in the state of Texas. Her mother died April 29, 1877, when Mrs. Peacock was but a little child not yet three years old, and she was given a home with her grand- father. Spencer Reeder, with whom she re- sided until their deaths, about 18So. Spen- cer Reeder came from North Carolina about

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1842 and settled in Liberty township, and he and James Scott were the first justices of the peace of Grant county. Her paternal grandparents, Solomon and Ruthı Ann (Wright) Reese, were from Tennessee. . John Henry Peacock resides on the home- stead and cultivates the farm, relieving his mother from all care. He is an industrious, painstaking worker, and the condition of his farm speaks well for his ability as an agriculturist.

Elizabeth S. (Radley) Peacock, widow of Joseph H. Peacock, resides in Fairmount township on the homestead of one hundred and eighty acres, and is loved by all who know her. Her parents were both natives of England, in the vicinity of Chelmsford, Essex county, where they were married and where their four children were born. Sam uel Radley and his wife, Mary (Bull) Rad- ley, like the pilgrims of old, determined to seek a home in the new world, and in the summer of 1849 set sail from England, with their little family, in the sailing ves- sel "Westminister," under Captain J. M. Doane, and after a voyage of six weeks landed in New York harbor. They at once set out for this state, traveling by rail and canal to LaGro, thence by private convey- ance to Grant county, where they arrived about the Ist of September, 1849. A few days after their arrival in this county they were visited by their first great sor- row in the death of their baby and only son, Samuel J., who was born May 31, 1846, and was called to bloom in the garden of the Lord on September 12, three years later. They were members of the Friends church and had brought with them from the mother country

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Biographical memoirs of Grant County, Indiana : to which is appended a comprehensive compendium of national biography with portraits of many national characters and well-known residents of Grant County, Indiana., Part 102

Author: Publication date: 1901 Publisher: Chicago: Bowen Number of Pages: 1000

Author:
Publication date: 1901
Publisher: Chicago: Bowen
Number of Pages: 1000