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 56

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 56

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Dr. Bartley began the study of medicine when he was about twenty-three years old, and in 1880 was graduated from the Ben- vett Medical College, an eclectic institution a: Chicago, Illinois. For about eleven years he was engaged in general medical and sur- gical work, chiefly in Noble county, Indiana, and in 1885 and 1886 attended additional lectures at the Chicago College of Ophthal- mology and Otology, and was graduated in

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BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS.

1886, since when he has confined his at- tention exclusively to affections of the eye, ear, nose and throat, and to nervous dis- orders.

In January, 1890, the Doctor settled in Marion, where he has won a fine reputation in his treatment of the disorders mentioned. Being a member of the Grant County Medi- cal Society and of the Indiana State Medical Society the Doctor also keeps abreast of the progress of medical science in general.

Dr. R. W. Bartley is a son of Isaiah and Catherine .Ann ( Blair) Bartley, the former or whom was born in Orange county, New York, in 1818. Isaiah Bartley was a steel- plate printer and for a number of years was employed by the United States government as a bank-note printer and the printing of postage stamps-the latter chiefly by con- tract. He was a soldier of the Civil war, and died March 14, 1880, in the National Military Home for Disabled Volunteer Sol- diers at Dayton, Ohio. Mrs. Catherine Ann Bartley was a native of Baltimore, Maryland, and died about 1850. She had borne her husband two children-Dr. R. W. and an- other son, the latter of whom died in early infancy. To a second marriage of Isaiah Bartley were also born two children, one of whom died in infancy, and the other, Mary May, died in young womanhood.

Dr. R. W. Bartley married at Wawaka, Noble county, Indiana, June 6, 1878, the bride being Miss Elizabeth Nimmon, a na- tive of the county and a daughter of Hon. W. H. Nimmon, M. D., an ex-state senator, having served in the state senate with Oliver F. Morton, and who died in April, 1878. Mrs. Catherine J., widow of W. H. Nimmon, su. vived until August, 1890. To Dr. and Mrs. Bartley have been born two sons, of

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whom one, William Ray, died at the age of five years. The survivor, Karl Nimmon, is a student of medicine and has spent three years in the College of Physicians and Sur- geons at Indianapolis.

Dr. Bartley and family attend the First | M. E. church of Marion of which she is a member. The Doctor is a member of the subordinate lodge and encampment, and the Rebekah degree of the I. O. O. F. Polit- ically, the Doctor is independent, but of late has been a supporter of the principles of the Prohibition party. His father, however, was an ardent Republican and active worker for the party, and even after being paralyzed to such an extent that he could not stand on his feet, he, at the request of the Republican State Central Committee canvassed the state of Ohio, addressing his audiences from his chair.

Doctor Bartley held the chair on diseases of the eye and ear in the Indiana Eclectic Medical College in Indianapolis in 1889 and subsequently was offered the same chair in the Georgia Eclectic Medical College at At- lanta, Georgia, and also the same chair in the American Medical College at St. Louis, Missouri, but he was compelled to refuse the two last named on account of poor health.

JORDAN FUTRELL.

Jordan Futrell, a prosperous farmer of Monroe township, Grant county, Indiana, was born in Clinton county, Ohio, Novem- ber 15, 1835, and is the second in a family of nine children born to Michael and Mary (Rix) Futrell. The six of these children living to-day are : Enos, a resident of Michi- gan and a veteran of the Civil war; Jordan,

Jordan Lutrell

Rebecca Jutrell

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tlic subject of this notice; Elizabeth, wife of William Ballinger, a farmer in Fremont county, Iowa; Nancy, wife of Robert Nel- son, a farmer of Monroe township; Joseph, a prominent farmer of Blackford county who served as county treasurer two terms and trustee one term; and Martin, who is a farmer of Wright county, Minnesota.

Michael Futrell was born in Northamp- ton county, North Carolina, where he remained until twenty-one, when with sev. eral others he set out for Ohio, making the trip on horseback and crossing over the Blue Ridge mountains seven times. Arrived in Clinton county he tarried there for some time and during his stay met and married Miss Mary Rix, who was a native of that county and is still living. She was eighty- seven years old in December, 1900, and is a bright, intelligent lady who has retained all the faculties of her younger days. In 1837 they came to Grant county in a two-horse wagon and purchased eighty acres of land in Mill township, which at that time was al- most a wilderness. The land was partially improved and had a log cabin built on it. Indeed, although Mr. Futrell was reason- ably successful in life and had accumulated one hundred and eleven acres of land, never lived in other than a log house. After keep- ing and working the first farm on Sugar creek a short time he sold it and purchased another eighty on Walnut creek, which with some thirty acres added later was his home until claimed by death. His wife still con- trols this farm. He was a Jackson Demo- crat and he and his wife were both earnest members of the Christian church, helping in the erection of the first temple of worship which was located on Sugar creek, and later attended the New Light church south of Walnut creek.

Jordan Futrell was a child of two years when his parents landed in Mill township, and has been a resident of Grant county for a period of sixty-two years. He received a primitive education in the old log school- house in Mill township, which was sus- tained by subscription for a short term each winter. The building was much larger than the average school-room of those years, being ISx24 feet, but it was heated in the same manner as others by a fireplace of mud and sticks. The seats were made of slabs with holes bored in them to receive the wooden legs upon which they were supported, while the writing desk was a broad board which rested upon wooden pins that were driven into the sides of the walls. Steel pens were not in existence in those days, the goose quill, pointed and kept in repair by the master, doing duty in their stead. Indiana has not been a laggard in the matter of her educa- tional institutions. To-day the country is dotted with pretty school houses furnished in the most approved manner in a style that is not only attractive but conducive to the comfort of the pupil be he large or sınall.

Mr. Futrell led a life of activity and gave valuable assistance to his father in clearing the land, grubbing stumps and felling trees day after day until the little farm was ready for cultivation. Then he went into the field to prepare the soil for sowing, and when the harvest was ripened with sickle or cradle gathered the crops. He has always been a man of great strength, with a splendid phy- sique and he has figured conspicuously in many a log rolling and other festivities of pioneer days. He remained with his parents until he had attained his majority, when ha started out to do for himself.

In August, 1858, he married Miss Re-

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BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS.

becca Ballinger, who was born in this county in 1833 and was here reared to a noble wo- manhood. Five children were born to this union, four of whom are living, namely : Mary E., wife of John M. Dollar. a farmer of Monroe township, to whom she has borne three children, Laura, Ruth and Emma : Nancy, wife of Jasper Hodson, a farmer of Blackford county, is the mother of four chil- dren. Rebecca, Evard, Ethel and Zelda ; John E. resides on a farm in this township and has two bright children, Mabel M. and Dorothy R. : he is a natural mechanic, very handy with tools; Emma, wife of William Bird. of Blackford county, has three sons, Jordan L., James C. and Ralph.

Soon after their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Futrell journeyed by wagon to Iowa, where they remained four years, returning to In .. diana in the same way. They purchased forty acres of swamp land on which was a log house and log stable, securing it on time. as he had no means with which to buy, his entire cash capital at that time being repre- sented by a ten dollar bill. Neither of them was afraid of work, and both at once set about clearing the home from debt. This done, a second forty-acre tract was added and permanent improvements began to take the place of the rude buildings which first did duty. A comfortable residence stands invitingly to the front, offering ever ready hospitality, and the attractive barns and and other outbuildings, filled with stock and grain, are evidence of bounteous harvests and affluence, and afford a glowing example of the result that attends patient and per- severing industry. Mr. Futrell has also a two-thirds interest in the flour-mill at I'D- land and is regarded as a man whose every

act is open to the closest scrutiny. He is a Democrat in his political views.

Mr. and Mrs. Futrell vie with each other in benevolent works and are a most worthy couple who have the esteem and honorable regard of their fellow men, and it is to such men and women that Grant county owes her prestige.

CALVIN H. FITE, M. D.

Calvin H. Fite, M. D., of No. 3721 South Washington street, Marion, Grant county, Indiana, was born in Warren coun- ty, Ohio, September 18, 1852, and is a son of William L. and Julia A. (Shafer) Fite. The parents were natives of Tennessee and Ohio, respectively, and were married in War- ren county in the latter state. where they have been born to them a family of eight chil- dren. of whom seven still survive, viz. : Dr. Calvin H. : Samuel L., a farmer of Logan county, Ohio; Courtland, in the same lo- cality: Callie, also of Logan county and married : Syren, married and living in Spring Hill. Ohio; Frank is a farmer in Grant county, Indiana, and Lewis Melvin lives with the Doctor.

Dr. Calvin H. Fite, after the usual pre- 1.minary instructions in the common schools, was graduated from the National Normal College at Lebanon, Ohio, and for twelve years was a prominent teacher in both Ohio and Indiana. While teaching he began the study of medicine under his uncle. Dr. G. M. Shafer, at Bloom Center, Logan county, Ohio, and took his first course of lectures in 1877 at St. Louis Medical College, an allopathic school. He next took a two-year

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BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS.

course in the Physio-Medical Institute at Cincinnati, Ohio, from which he was grad- uated in 1883.

Dr. Fite first practiced in Logan coun- ty, Ohio, one year, then in Jay county, In- diana, three years where he was professor of chemistry in the Portland Normal school at the same time. He next removed to Modoc, Randolph county, and there practiced three and a half years. At Modoc he met Miss Cannie M. Snodgrass, who he mar- ried in September, 1885. She was born and educated in Randolph county. From Modoc Dr. Fite went to Auglaize county, Ohio.fol- lowed his profession there three years, then came to Jalapa, Grant county, Indiana, and ir: 1889 accepted the professorship of chem- istry and toxicology in the Marion Medical College, a position he still holds. He re- mained in Jalapa until 1895, when he moved to Marion. In March, 1897, Dr. Fite was graduated from the National College of Eiec- tro-physics and Therapeutics at Indianapolis.

The Doctor is a member of the Physico- Medical Association of Ohio, and the Phy- sico-Medical Association of Northern In- diana, and stands very high in the profes- sional circles with which he is identified. He is a member of subordinate Lodge and en- campment and Rebekah degree in the I. O. O. F., a member of the Tribe of Ben Hur, and has always been very punctual and atten- tive to his fraternal affiliations. He is in politics a Democrat and in his religious views is free and broad minded.

Dr. and Mrs. Fite are the parents of five children : Donald W. was born in Uniopolis. Ohio, June 16, 1886; Bloom was born at the same place March 14, 1888; Ada DeV'ere was born at Jalapa, Indiana, June 13, 1890; William Hamilton, at Jalapa, November 17.

1895. The children are all bright and active and are especially interested in the study of music and have the advantages of various in- struments, including piano and organ. They have the best teachers, and Dr. Fite has adopted a systematic course for their guid- ance in study as well as play.

Mrs. Fite is a daughter of Hamilton Snodgrass, of Losantville, Randolph county, who was a philanthropic and public-spirited citizen. The Fite family is of French de- scent, the paternal great-grandfather of the Doctor having come from France and set- tled in Tennessee in early manhood. The Shafer family is of German origin.

Doctor Fite ran away from home to en- list during the Civil war but was rejected on account of his youth. He has been very successful in his practice and has secured for himself and family a comfortable compe- tence, owning several valuable residences and other property in Marion, also a resi- dence in Jonesboro and one in Jalapa.

FIELD W. SWVEZEY.

Among the more prominent of the younger practitioners at the bar of Grant county stands Field W. Swezey who was born at Chardon, Geauga county, Ohio, July 17, 1863, and is a son of Watson D. and Cor- nelia (Field) Swezey, who were natives of New York and Ohio, respectively.

Tracing the lineage of the families back through three or four generations it is found that the early progenitors had settled in Long Island and that they were of English and Scotch origin. When Field W. was yet a mere lad. his father located at Paines- ville, Ohio, where he established a factory

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for the manufacture of butchers' supplies, more especially that of meat skewers. The business grew till it became one of the city's important establishments, its proprietor being recognized as prominent in the commercial circles of that thriving Ohio town. Believ- ing that more favorable opportunities awaited him in the west, he came in 1883 to Marion, where he at once resumed the same line of manufacture, the business assuming hand- some and satisfactory proportions. The re- turns from the plant resulted in giving him an easy competence so that his latter years were passed in the satisfaction that comes from the conduct of a successful and lucra- tive business. February 14, 1898, he passed to the Unseen Universe, there to re- join the loved companion of his youth, the sharer of his joys and sorrows, who had gone before, in December, 1892.

Two sons were the fruits of the union- Field W. and Harvey N .- the latter being a student in Rush Medical College.

The success he attained from the start was most gratifying-his thorough law training, his logical mind, which seemed to be able to grasp the essence of a cause, his painstaking preparation of briefs, his clear but forcible statements on pleadings before judge or jury, and his gentlemanly and courteous bearing upon all occasions having won for him the good will and respect of all. Having assumed a leading place in the bar of the county, his abilities being generally recognized, he was selected as city attorney in 1898 to succeed Judge Paulus, who was raised to the bench.

As an able conservator of the public in- terests, his reputation has been enhanced, his treatment of damage cases, especially, tending to discourage that ofttimes easy road to the public treasury. Probably the most far-reaching and important line of work, during his incumbency of the office, has been a case involving the constitutionality of the "Barrett law," which is still pending, on ap- peal from the United States circuit court to the supreme court of the United States. 1 decision in this matter is awaited anxiously, as it involves the right of a city to levy assess- ments according to the front footage rule for the improvement of its streets.

Field W. Swezey completed the course in the high school of Painesville, graduating in the class of 1881. He then entered upon the classical course in the Western University at Cleveland, from which he received the de- grec of .A. B., in 1885. Having decided upon the profession of the law, he prepared Mr. Swezey is an influential Republican, being one of the most popular campaigners, the logical and persuasive reasoning of his addresses making friends and supporters tor the party. He is often seen and heard in the party conventions and other councils, where his advice and arguments carry great weight. himself more fully by a three years' course in the Columbia Law School of New York : and, upon the completion of the prescribed technical course, was admitted to the bar of that state. His parents having removed to Marion during the time he had been in col- lege, he decided to take up the practice at this place, which he did in the fall of 1888. i Mr. Swezey was married September 14, Tle has been associated with Gus. S. Condo. | 1889, to Miss Anna B. Sweetser, daughter his present partner, for the last three years. | of the late D. B. Sweetser, the former pro-

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BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS.

prietor of the Sweetzer Bank which was the original of the First National, and who died November 25, 1899.

Mr. Sweetser was born in Marion Au- gust 14, 1840, his parents being James and Ann ( Vermilyea) Sweetser, one of the oldest and most highly respected families of Ma- rion, where the father was a merchant and banker for half a century, having begun the mercantile career here in 1837. D. B. Sweet- ser was graduated from the Ohio Wesleyan University, at Delaware, in 1861 ; and soon after became associated with his father in general merchandise, assuming full manage- ment of the extensive business one year thereafter. He was one of the firm that established the Sweetser Bank, conducting it till its dissolution in 1880. He was one of the active promoters of the system of pike roads in the county, having been secretary and treasurer of all and principal owner of some of them. He was a prominent Demo- crat and served the party many years on its various local and state committees. In many ways he had contributed to the growth and prosperity of the county, there having been few men who have ever lived in the county holding the esteem of the people to a greater extent.

Mrs. Swezey was born and reared in Marion, being among the most popular of the city's many charming and cultured ladies. She was educated in that well-known insti- tution of learning, Miss Armstrong's School, at Cincinnati, Ohio, after the completion of the course in the Marion high school.

Both she and husband take great interest in all the leading social functions of the city, the culture, ready wit and repartee of the lady, seconded by the familiarity with liter- ature, art and history of the gentleman, add-

ing a distinct phase to the general tone of local society.

The Swezey home is one of the popular resorts of the more select, both host and hostess having enviable reputations as enter- tainers, the "rubbers of whist," especially, affording the visitors food for pleasant reminiscence. Mr. Swezey is an active and honored member of the Benevolent and Pro- tective Order of Elks; and, being devoted to athletics, is an enthusiastic member of the Marion Golf Club.

ALVIN F. WHARTON.

Alvin F. Wharton, of Pleasant township, Grant county, Indiana, was born on the farm adjoining his present home on the 25th of September, 1855, his parents being William and Nancy ( Moorehead) Whar- ton. His father was a native of Virginia, being brought to Ohio as a boy, and about 1850 came a young man to Grant county, having some relatives already here. He is remembered by all the earlier residents as the operator of one of the old style thresh- ing machines, which he ran for several years extending his work over a wide area, there being but very few machines of any kind then in the entire country. Here he wedded Nancy, the daughter of Calvin and Eliza- beth Moorehead, whose home was the pres- ent farm of their grandson. This worthy couple had come from Ohio in an early day and entered the land from the · govern- ment. Calvin Moorehead was among those adventurers who in 1849 braved the un- dreamed of dangers in making the trip to California, Judge St. John and others of

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Grant county being of the party. The suc- cess attained was scarcely commensurate to the effort and hardship endured, return- ing after about three years but slightly bet- ter off than when he went. The remainder of his life was passed on the farm, his death occurring in 1873, at the age of sev- enty. One daughter, Susannah Beach, and four sons, William, Silas, John and Alex- ander are still living.

William Wharton is still a resident of Grant county, his home being in Sims town- ship. Soon after marriage he had taken charge of the Moorehead farm, operating that till the estate was settled, but having secured another farm in Pleasant. His wife died in 1873, the same year as her father, and after a second marriage he removed to Sims. His family were three children, Al- vin F., Perry and Isabel. The second is a farmer of Pleasant, while the daughter is the wife of a Mr. Achor, of Converse.

Alvin F. Wharton remained with his parents till the age of twenty, when he set to work by the month for a couple of years. ad until his own marriage, March 25. 1880, to Miss Mary J. Wolf, daughter of Conrad and Hannah ( Williams ) Wolf, who was born in Champaign county, Ohio, and was brought to Grant county as a child, being reared on the farm adjoining the present home. Her parents died in March. 1883, but two weeks apart, and rest side by side in the family plat. They were highly respected citizens, few men of the vicin- ity having a wider circle of warm friends than he.

After marriage Alvin assumed charge of the Wolf farm, operating it for some ten years until it was sold to settle the estate. when he bought the present farm, which is

widely known as the Prickett farm. It was entered by William Prickett in 1829, and the old brick house erected by him is still standing, being one of but few of the old landmarks of the community. For years it was the only house for miles along the road or trail that it was reached by. His son George W. secured the west half of the homestead and erected the present buildings. which are of a modern plan and present a neat and handsome appearance, the farm being one of the best of the neighborhood. One fine feature of the place is a one-hun- dred-and-sixty-five-foot well that sen !s forth a constant flow of the purest and most wholesome water to be found in the country. Mr. Wharton has made additional improve- ments by tiling the farm and placing more of it under cultivation. The place is de- voted to the line of farming generally fol- lowed in the county, with the feature of Shropshire sheep as a leading factor. One daughter is the product of the union. Edna W. Wharton. a promising young lady of seventeen, has a pronounced taste for music, her talents in that direction having been cul- tivated to some extent. her abilities adding greatly to the natural charm and attractive- ness of the lady. Attending the Christian church at La Fontaine, Mr. Wharton and family are recognized as among those whose influence is cast in favor of all that makes for a better and more enlightened civiliza- tion. Politically, he is a Democrat, generally being found in the party councils, and ever taking an active and influential part in the campaigns of the township and county. He became the choice of the party for the posi- tion of trustee and was elected. receiving a handsome majority over a very popular opponent.

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BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS.

ALEXANDER BUTLER.

Of the many enterprising and influential citizens whose handsome farms and homes attract the admiration of the passer who travels the pike leading from Marion to Warren, Indiana, is that of Alexander But- ler, whose efforts during the past twenty- eight years have redounded emphatically to £

his comfort and satisfaction.

vice, her teachings doing much to form a substantial and creditable character for her children. Alpheus Butler passed from earthi to the reward that became his after enter- ing his eighty-second year. Possessed of much of the virility of hardy ancestors, his life was devoted to toil, being rewarded dur- ing lifetime by the satisfaction of knowing that his efforts had enabled him to render substantial assistance to his children, and in the thought that all of them fully appre- ciated the struggles and exertion he had un- dergone. He was a strong and puissant man, whose impress was effective in the formation and shaping the lives of others, great credit being due him for the assist- ance to all with whom he was actively brought in contact. Of five sons and three daughters born to him, three survived him and are living at the present writing. They are John and Alexander, and Artemisia, the wife of Joshua Green.

Alpheus Butler was born in Kentucky, . his parents being of those hardy pioneers whose lives were passed amid the many in- teresting scenes that made famous many of the old names in the history of "the dark and bloody ground." He grew to manhood surrounded by most interesting men and women, imbibing much of the spirit of ad- venture that characterized the people of his native state. Reaching the years of man- hood, he chose for a life companion Miss Rhoda English, and with her as his consola- tion removed in 1831 to Rush county, Indi- The boyhood of Alexander Butler was passed with his father, acquiring only such education as the local schools afforded, which were none of the best. Reaching the years of maturity, he was united in mar- riage at the age of twenty-one to Miss Ann Mariah Alexander, a young lady of the neighborhood. Upon his securing the pres- ent tract but a few acres were cleared, and that only of the higher land, the lower part being too wet to be operated. No adequate outlet was made for two years, when it be- came possible for him to place the remainder of the eighty acres in cultivation. He has added forty acres, and has expended in ex- cess of ten dollars per acre in the tiling, which has been laid with a system that in- stres a permanent drainage, the former ex - ana, quite a number of the sons of old Ken- tucky families locating in that part of the state about that time, the principal induce- being that here they were free from the curse of slavery, the evil workings of which they had known for so many years. In their humble cabin, in the wilds of Rush county, their son Alexander was born March 9, 1846. When he was but four years old the family was made desolate by the death of the mother, the result proving that her coming to the new country was a permanent severing of all ties that bound to the old state. The father soon after sought and won the hand of Miss Delilah Boring, un- der whose direction and guidance the young boy grew to maturity. This lady was well qualified to administer admonition and ad- tent of swale and slashes now supporting

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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 56

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

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