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 91
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Chauncey R. F. Berry was united in mar- riage in April, 1892, with Miss Lulu Sewell, daughter of David and Rebecca (Green) Se- well.
Fraternally, Mr. Berry is a member of Swayzee Lodge, No. 625, I. O. O. F., he is likewise a member of Swayzee Lodge, No. 451, K. of P., of which he was the first chan- cellor commander and was the first man to go through all the chairs and a member of the grand lodge. He is in addition, a mem- ber of Swayzee Camp, No. 5447, Modern Woodmen of America, and is the present venerable consul; moreover, Mr. Berry is a member of the Kedarkan Temple, No. 66, and of the auxiliary branch of the I. O. O. F., the Rebekahıs.
In politics Mr. Berry is a Democrat, and in 1899 was elected clerk of Swayzee and was re-elected in 1900-a very emphatic proof that he carries the confidence of his party and of the general public and that he is fully com- petent for the discharge of any duties en- trusted to his care.
SAMUEL P. BRUNDIGE, M. D.
The subject of this biography is a native of Pickaway county, Ohio, where he first saw the light of day on the 9th of Feb- ruary, 1838. His early years were spent on the home farm where he became inured to the toil and fatigue of the husbandman. This was interspersed with periodical at- tendance to the district school, as farming interests permitted. But his desire was for higher education and an opportunity to make his mark in professional life. The first was readily gratified by a thorough course in Otterbein University, at Westerville, Ohio. But it was not until 1872, when he was graduated from the Medical College of Ohio, at Cincinnati, that his hopes for professional honors seemed in a fair way to be gratified. The intervention of the Civil war, in which he bore a prominent and conspicuous part, delayed his medical studies for some years. After leaving Otterbein University he taught school-principally in Ohio, though in Illi- nois for about ten years. He was thus em- ployed when, on the 16th of August, 1862, he responded to the call of his country, and enrolled his name as a member of Company K of the One Hunderd and Fourteenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. From that day until
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the end of the war he was ever to be found at his post of duty, except as disability from hard service rendered his temporary absence a necessity. He was promoted for faithful and efficient services, together with his rec- ognized executive and clerical ability, to the rank of orderly sergeant. Every ex-soldier will recognize this as the most responsible position in a company, not excepting the commissioned officers, from which it is but one step removed. The last year of the war-that year which was fraught with so many thrilling experiences, so much hard and continuous service, the year which cost the Union armies more men and treasure than the preceeding three years-was spent at the front as orderly sergeant of his com- pany.
The first military service of Mr. Brun- dige was with the Army of the West. There he shared in the triumphs and failures of that noble army in some of the most hotly contested fields of the nineteenth century. Of these we will mention the battles of Chickasaw Bluffs, Arkansas Post, Grand Gulf, Vicksburg, capture of Mobile, April 9. 1865, etc., twelve in all, not to mention innumerable skirmishes and battles of then lesser importance, but which would now be rated as "grand military achievements." It is difficult to convince the survivors of Santi- ago that more men were slaughtered on the skirmish line at Gettysburg than were lost in the whole Spanish-American war, yet such is a historical fact. But this is no re- flection upon the bravery and sagacity of modern soldiers, but a compliment, rather. to the bravery and military genius of the opponents of the Union armies during the great Civil war. They, too, were "Amer- icans."
Though occasionally detached for spe- cial services, the regiment of which our sub- ject was a member was usually to be found as a very distinguished part of General Os- terhaus' Division of Thirteenth A. C., the chief commander being that great military genius, the lamented General W. T. Sher- man. Here as elsewhere they took part in the stirring events of the times. The record of the Thirteenth Corps under General Os- terhaus and John A. McLernand is an open book with which every studious school boy is familiar, and if he chances to be a boy imbued with the spirit of American patriot- ism he finds much in this history to stimulate him to noble achievements.
But the maneuvers around Vicksburg and the Red River campaign are of the most thrilling interest. In the former the soldiers were prostrated with the terrible heat of mid- summer in that semi-tropical clime. The enemy and death within speaking distance in front, the boiling sun overhead, and dis- grace and humiliation in the rear. It re- quired the nerve and fortitude of American soldiers to withstand the terrible ordeal and choose the honorable course, stimulated, as they were, by the constant presence of the greatest chieftain of modern times or any times, General U. S. Grant. They held their posts until carried away by heat prostra- tions, or the kindly services of a Rebel bullet or bomb-shell. But thousands were pros- trated with disease which has hurried them to premature graves. Forty-seven days in May. June and early July was sufficient to try the souls of men. The regiment lost heavily, both by bullets and disease, as they did also on the disastrous Red River cam- paign. But once in his long career as a sol- dier did our subject have the satisfaction
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of witnessing a battle without being a par- ticipant in it. This was at Yellow Bayou, when the Sixteenth Army Corps under com- mand of General A. J. Smith engaged about an equal number of Rebels in a hard-fought battle. From an exalted perch in an accom- modating tree Sergeant Brundige watched the proceedings with unbounded interest. He says it was a thrilling scene. Though he shudders at the thought of the great courage and sacrifice of human life, he then recognized it as one of the necessities of warfare.
From data carefully prepared by mem- bers of the regiment it is estimated that the One Hundred and Fourteenth Ohio Volun- teer Infantry traveled sixteen thousand miles during their three years' service, and par- ticipated in more than fifty battles and skir- mishes. But very few officers who went out with it were permitted to return, and as they fell here and there along the line of duty their places were filled by promotions from the ranks. The losses from disease and bullets were something terrible, yet the ranks were kept fairly well filled by recruits who were sent out from time to time; but at last even these were not sufficient to keep the or- ganization up to the standard required for a full quoto of field and line officers. But for this depletion of the ranks our subject would have returned with "shoulder straps" and a commission among his effects.
It might be mentioned incidentally that Dr. Brundige participated in the last gen- eral engagement of the Civil war-the battle of Mobile, Alabama, began at 5 o'clock P. M., April 9, 1865. The surrender of General R. E. Lee's army occurred in the forenoon of the same day. Subsequently to this date there was some skirmishing and desultory
fighting between Generals Sherman and Johnston until the surrender of the latter, but no general engagements.
Such, in brief, is the record of a military experience in the Civil war of which any man has reason to feel proud. It is a record of patriotic self-sacrifice-abandonment for the time of his dearest hopes for future life -the baring of his breast to the enemies of his country with the results always in doubt, the distortion of his youthful plans for future achievements, all for the sake of the living principle "the equality of man" and the preservation of the Union as established in blood and sacrifice by the forefathers at Lexington and Bunker Hill.
Realizing that memory is treacherous and that after the lapse of nearly forty years the record of campaigns and battles as given above may not be given in strict chronolog- ical order, yet the patient reader will pardon the discrepancy and consider only the facts as a complete whole.
Dr. Brundige incurred serious disability in the service and returned to his home in August, 1865, in broken health. This has followed him all through life and has seriously impaired his professional work. Not until 1866 was he physically able to begin the study of his long-chosen profes- sion. He then entered the office of Dr. T. F. White at Williamsport, Ohio, and there pursued the study of medicine, with oc- casional interruptions by reason of poor health, until 1870. In the year last named he entered the Medical College of Ohio at Cincinnati and graduated with honors in 1872. For two years following this he was in practice at Montra, Shelby county, Ohio. While there he met Miss Laura A. Murphy, whom he chose for a life partner on the
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18th of December, 1873. The following year they removed to Wapakoneta, where the Doctor was in general practice for nearly twenty years. He established and maintained a very large and lucrative practice, but his health gradually failed him and he felt that possibly a change of surroundings would be beneficial. While on a visit to the World's Fair in 1893 he decided to combine business with pleasure and select a new location. The prosperous and growing city of Marion, In- diana, offered healthful surroundings, good society and "room to grow," considerations which were tempting at least, if not en- couraging. For a year after locating here he was not able to engage in active busi- ness, but no doubt the change of environ- ments gradually benefited him, and he put in a stock of drugs and notions and engaged in general office practice, which he still con- tinues with good success.
Dr. Brundige has always been a Repub- lican in his political affiliations. He served four years under the Harrison administra- tion as a member of the board of pension ex- aminers. Though in hearty sympathy with religious enterprises tending to the better- ment of the race, he is not connected with any church organization. Mrs. Brundige is a worthy member of the Methodist Episcopal church.
The family genealogy of the Doctor is as follows: He is the second son and third child in a family of eight born to William and Emily ( Palmer ) Brundige. His par- ents were natives. of Ohio and spent their lives on a farm in Pickaway county. His father died in middle life, being but forty- seven when he departed this life, leaving a large family to the care of his widow, who survived him for many years. She died at
the old home in Pickaway county at the age of seventy-five years. But five of the family are now living. The eldest, Mary J., died at the age of fifty-eight years. She never married. The second in the family is Thomas, a well-to-do farmer and stock- raiser in Pickaway county, Ohio. Samuel P., of this sketch was next in order of birth. John and Josephine were twins; the former lost his young life in the Civil war, being killed in battle the very day his term of en- listment expired. Instead of receiving the loving embrace from the strong arms of her soldier-boy the poor mother, who had made special preparations for his homecoming, received the message which enshrouded her future life in gloom and despair. The twin sister, now deceased, Josephine, was the wife of Simon Holderman, at present one of the county commissioners of Ross county. Rob- ert Noble was also a soldier in the Civil war, serving in the same company with our sub- ject until the close of the war. While in service he incurred serious disability and died in Texas a few years later from heart disease. Jesse is a wealthy business man at Kingston, Ohio. He is a dealer in grain, lumber, etc., and has been very successful. Naomi Ellen, the youngest of the family, resides with her brother's family at Kings- ton. She is unmarried.
Dr. Brundige stands high in the medical fraternity of Marion. Though not what may be termed an active practitioner, for the reasons already given, he is recognized as a physician thoroughly qualified in his profes- sion and successful in his practice. He and his estimable wife, who has been a help- meet, indeed, through all his varying for- tunes and physical sufferings, have the es- teem and confidence of all who know them.
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We cheerfully give space to the record of a family so worthy of representation as that of Dr. Brundige.
JAMES KILGORE.
James Kilgore, a highly respected farmer of Green township, Grant county, Indiana, is a son of David and Charity (Sizelove) Kilgore, and is a native of Franklin county, Indiana, born December 1I, 1837, where the family resided until 1849, when it came to and settled on a farm in Green town- ship, Grant county, which township has ever since been its residence, Mr. Kilgore own- ing a forty-acre improved tract on the main pike running from Point Isabel to Swayzee.
Mr. Kilgore attended school in the re- spective districts in which he lived until eighteen years of age, when he entered upon his life vocation of farming, at which he has made a decided success. October 19, 1862, he married Miss Margaret A. Leer, daughter of David M. and Amanda R. (Fox) Leer, and to this union have been born eight children, viz .: Emma I., born April 19, 1863, and married to Emery Will- iams November 16, 1888; Mollie, born June 7, 1865, and married to Charles M. Helmer September 25, 1889; Alonzo, born August 7. 1867, died July 9, 1873; Julia, born Sep- tember 9, 1871, married to Albert Faltner March 11, 1899; Roma, born August 7, 1874; Maud, born April 5, 1877, died Octo- ber 3. 1879; Marion, born June 19, 1878, and Lela, his twin sister, who married Thomas Martin October 17, 1896, and has one child, Helen, born November 18, 1898.
Mrs. Margaret (Leer) Kilgore was born May 13, 1846. James Kilgore's grandfa- ther, David, was a Scotch-Irishman, was
married in Pennsylvania, and had a family of seven children, viz. : Hugh, John, David M., Jonathan, Cyrus, Ellen and Larkin (Mrs. Riggs) ; Mr. Kilgore's parents had nine children, viz. : Margaret ( Mrs. Josuha Stillwell), Susan (Mrs. Wesley Keever), James, Hercules, George, Wesley, Saphrona (Mrs. Cyrus Nesbitt), John and Marcus M.
The mother's people on the Kilgore side came from Germany and settled in Clarion county, Pennsylvania, next moved to Ohio and thence came to Indiana, while Mrs. Kil- gore's people were from Kentucky and set- tied in Liberty township, Grant county, In- diana, in 1857. Her grandfather, William Leer, first married Mary Champ, and sec- ondly Mary Brown, and their children were Michael, David M., John, Maranda (de- ceased ) and William.
Mr. and Mrs. David M. and Amanda R. (Fox) Leer had a family of eight children, viz .: Merritt, born October 6, 1844; Mar- garet A., May 13, 1846; Charles, October 17, 1849; Alonzo, July 31, 1851; Axey Jane, December 7, 1852, died January 12, 1874; Harriet A., April 7, 1859; and two infants that died unnamed. Grandmother Axey was born March 18, 1799. David M. Leer, Mrs. Kilgore's father, was born Au- gust 20, 1824, while his wife was born April II, 1824, and their marriage took place No- vember 8, 1843.
In religion James Kilgore is a free think- er, and in politics is a Democrat.
WALDO E. HAISLEY.
The subject of this biography is a native of Fairmount, Grant county, Indiana, where he was born on the 18th of March, 1873,
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and is one of five children born to Elwood and Millicent ( Rush) Haisley.
His father was a native of Wayne coun- ty and mother of Grant, married in this county and located on a farm near Fair- mount, where he died October 2, 1897, at the age of fifty-nine years. He was a suc- cessful farmer and stock-dealer. The mother still lives in Fairmount. The names of their children are as follows: Sylvester is a prominent business man in Fairmount, where he is engaged in real-estate and in- surance business; Etta, now Mrs. Doherty, lives on a farm near the town of her birth; Lucy; Waldo E .; Kittie; and Otto.
Waldo E. Haisley was educated in the public schools of his native town and at Fairmount Academy, being a graduate from the last named institution. He then entered the State University of Indiana, the better to round out his business education. This was supplemented by a thorough course in law, and he was graduated from Indiana Law School in the class of 1898. He at once opened a law office in his native town, which he still continues, though since Jan- uary, 1900, he has also had an office in Marion. On the date last named he formed a law partnership with Evan H. Ferree, the firm title being Ferree & Haisley.
Though yet on the threshold of mature life, our subject has established a reputation for capability, honesty and integrity, which promises him a life of usefulness and finan- cial success. He is thoroughly qualified in his profession, possesses adaptability, keen perception and professional shrewdness, characteristics essential to the success of a young attorney, yet not always possessed by the most experienced in the profession.
Mr. Haisley is a member of the Friends'
church, an inheritance descending to him through his ancestors, a "birthright" in the usual language of that time-honored sect.
Mr. Haisley was united in marriage at Marshalltown, Iowa, December 26, 1900, to Miss Etta Mendenhall, and they reside at No. 1215 West Third street. She also af- filiates with the Friends' church, and Mr. Haisley is a member of the order of Wood- men of America.
ALFRED M. PRESNALL.
Alfred M. Presnall, deceased, was a na- tive of Indiana, was a son of James and Anna (Brown) Presnall, and was born in Henry county October 8, 1848. He re- ceived his education in the common schools, and, while the opportunities were limited, he always improved every opportunity he had for bettering his education. When a young man his highest aim was to be a business man, and while engaged in other employments he spent his evenings and leisure time in studying bookkeeping, in which he became an expert.
His first occupation was that of school teacher, which he followed for two years in Henry county, after which he accepted a position as foreman for his brother-in- law, John White, in a saw-mill, which posi- tion he filled for two years. The next nine months of his life were spent on a farm, at the end of which time he purchased a stock of dry goods and for two years was identified as one of the leading business men of Wind- fall. Indiana. After selling his interests in the dry-goods store he was engaged for nine years in the capacity of a clerk and later
ALFRED M. PRESNALL-GROUP.
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went to Kentucky, where he engaged in the saw-mill business again, operating it suc- cessfully for three years, but preferring to be in his native state he sold his plant and again returned to Windfall, and for two years acted as clerk in the store of Zane & Harris.
Mr. Presnall then received a very prom- ising position in Fairmount with the hard- ware firm of Parker & Small and acted as clerk and bookkeeper until 1898, when this plant exchanged hands, Mr. Dale buying the stock, and he was here for one year ; in 1899 he went to Marion, entering a hardware store as clerk, where he was engaged about six months. As a reward for his honesty and strict attention to business and ability he was again offered his old position in Fairmount, which he accepted and where he remained until his death, December 30, I900.
Fraternally, Mr. Presnall was a member of the Masonic Lodge of Marion, in which he had passed all the chairs and was at the time of his death a Knight Templar ; he also was a member of the Fairmount Lodge, I. O. O. F., in which he had also passed all the chairs and had represented the lodge in the grand lodge; he was also trustee in the lodge for four years, being re-elected to the same office just prior to his death. Mr. Presnall also became a member of the K. of P. Lodge of Fairmount, and, as in the other two orders mentioned above, passed all the chairs and was sent to represent the lodge in the grand lodge. He was a will- ing worker in the various lodges and was a beloved and honored member.
Mr. Presnall was reared a Quaker, but after his marriage became a member of the Methodist church. In politics he was a 44
Republican, always taking an active part in all political affairs, serving on many polit- ical committees, but never aspired to office.
On January 27, 1870, Mr. Presnall was united in marriage to Miss Phebe J., daugh- ter of Abram and Susan (Cox) Brandon, who was born May 6, 1848. To this union were born four children, named as follows: Rose Ella, born November 12, 1850 (Mrs. Robert Miller, of Windfall) ; James Edgar, deceased ; Henry B., deceased; and an in- fant, deceased.
The parents of Mr. Presnall come from North Carolina in an early day and settled in Henry county, where they became well known.
Mr. Presnall was a kind husband and a loving father and had a wide circle of friends; he did much in a quiet way for the public good, and the people of Fair- mount recognized in him one of their pro- gressive and most substantial fellow citizens.
GEORGE M. C. HIMELICK.
George M. C. Himelick is one of the en- terprising and leading farmers of Jefferson township and is worthy a place among the representative men of Grant county, Indiana, both on account of his own merits and be- cause of an ancestry that has been closely identified with the early life of the state. He is a native of Jennings county, this state, where he first opened his eyes to the light of day March 23, 1864. He is the eldest of nine children who composed the family of John and Mary E. ( Morris) Himelick, both of whom are natives of this state. The father was born on Christmas day, 1840,
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in Jennings county, but now resides in Fair- mount. The mother was born in September, 1843. She is a member of the Christian church and a woman whose life has been an example for good. The father received an ordinary education and grew up an agri- culturist, making it a most successful busi- ness. He is a Democrat. Their living chil- dren are George, our subject; Joseph F., a farmer of Madison county, Indiana ; Robert, a graduate from Terre Haute and superin- tendent of the city schools of Jonesboro; John W., a teacher by profession and a farm- er by occupation, residing in Fairmount township; Ollie J. was also a teacher before her marriage to Virgil Duling, a farmer of Fairmount ; Maud A., who makes her home with her parents, is also an efficient teacher and has accepted a position in the Jonesboro school; Orville, a graduate in the class of 99, and Earl, a graduate in 1900, complete the family.
George Himelick remained at home un- til his twentieth year, when he became a wage-earner, hiring out by the month as a farm hand until he was twenty-five, when he was married and rented a piece of land, upon which he began farming. This land was partially theirs by inheritance and they soon accumulated sixteen hundred dollars with which to purchase a clear title to the one hundred and fifteen acres which is their home. Their industry and frugality are highly commendable and worthy the emula- tion of those who would prosper in business. Mr. Himelick has combined farming and stock-raising,'making the one branch sub- servient to the other and increasing the fer- tility of his land while he fattened his stock for the market. He is a clear-headed, prac- tical business man and applies the same
principles in his business as would be nec- essary for success in commerce.
July 16, 1889, celebrated his marriage to Miss Lydia A. Wise, daughter of Jacob and Elizabeth (Marine) Wise, who are among the most highly respected residents of the county. She was born in this township No- vember 16, 1871, and received her primary education in the district school, supplement- ing it with much valuable knowledge not in- cluded in the curriculum. Five children, Ernest, Clarence, Bertha M., Orvin and Waldo have brought sunshine into their home, while one more was lent them for a brief space ere it winged its flight to the New Jerusalem. Mr. and Mrs. Himelick are zealous workers in the Jefferson Chris- tian church, of which they are members and which they assisted materially in erecting. He is a trustee of the church and also of the beautiful cemetery. He is the capable and zealous superintendent of the Sunday- school, which was never in a more pros- perous condition. He is non-partisan in politics, giving his hearty support to the man who represents law and order.
JAMES JOHNSON.
James Johnson is probably as widely known as any man in Grant county, In- diana, and is one of the progressive, sub- stantial agriculturists of this section. He and his estimable wife also enjoy the dis- tinction of being the oldest married couple i:1 Jefferson township, having long since passed the fiftieth milestone in their wedded life and approaching close to their fifty- eighth.
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