USA > Indiana > Clay County > Counties of Clay and Owen, Indiana : Historical and biographical. > Part 18
USA > Indiana > Owen County > Counties of Clay and Owen, Indiana : Historical and biographical. > Part 18
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He took a lively interest in inducing substantial settlers to locate in his neighborhood, and assisted them in securing good lands, which made him very popular with all new-comers. At the first election ever held in the township, he was chosen Justice of the Peace, an office he filled very acceptably for several consecutive terms. He was a citizen of Harrison
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HISTORY OF CLAY COUNTY.
until 1834, at which time he sold his land to Peter Cooprider and moved back to his native State, where his death occurred many years ago.
Maxwell appears to have been a man of more than ordinary tal- ents, and was appointed first Surveyor of the county in the year 1826. He sold out a few years later to David Owens and emigrated to Arkansas. In the spring of 1825, John Cooprider came to the township and settled near the village of Middlebury. He had previously made a settlement in the township of Lewis, where, in 1821, he entered, as he supposed, 400 acres of land, intending to make it his home. After mak- ing a few improvements, he ascertained that there had been a mistake made in the description of his lands, the tracts which he really entered lying over a mile south, and were at that time in possession of another person. The land on which he settled had been purchased in the mean- time, and so he had nothing to do but to look out for another location, and, with the loss of the greater part of his fortune, he came to this township and took a claim as noted above. Mr. Cooprider was born in Pennsylvania, but left that State in 1805, emigrating to Kentucky, where he remained two or three years, at the end of which time he moved to Indiana Territory and settled in Vigo County, then an almost unbroken wilderness in possession of the Indians. On account of exposure and the various hardships incident to a life in the Western wilds, he became seriously afflicted, and at the time of his settlement here was in no con- dition to perform any great amount of manual labor. With the assist- ance of his sons and wife, who was in every respect a helpmeet, and who was not ashamed to be seen wielding an ax, a small beech-log cabin, 14x16 feet, was hastily constructed, and answered the purpose of a dwell- ing for a number of years. The family of our pioneer at that time con- sisted of six children, and Mr. Cooprider's mother, an aged lady, with whom the hardships and rough diet of a backwoods life did not agree, as she had been accustomed to better things where she formerly lived. The manifold privations and adverse circumstances which early settlers in a new and undeveloped country are compelled to encounter were experi- enced in a marked degree by this pioneer family, and for several years they were denied many of the common necessaries of life, such as bread, groceries and wearing apparel. Their little stock of meal became exhausted soon after their arrival, and there being no mills in the coun- try, and the nearest market place being almost 100 miles distant, they were compelled to do without the "staff of life " until a small corn crop could be raised. They used the breasts of wild turkeys and a kind of a squash known as "cashaw" for bread, which, when baked well and dipped in venison tallow, answered as a tolerable substitute. The grand- mother, however, did not take kindly to such a bill of fare, and day by day sighed for "cake," until at last Mr. Cooprider determined to gratify her wishes, and sent one of her sons on horseback to a settlement in Har- rison County, about 120 miles distant, for a sack of flour.
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After an absence of over a week, the boy returned with the precious material and the family enjoyed a grateful feast, the happiest one of the lot being the good old mother. Their corn crop had matured suffi- ciently by this time to afford them meal, which was manufactured in a mortar, made by burning a hollow in a large block of wood, the grain being crushed with an iron wedge. An improved mill was afterward made out of two large ash blocks, hollowed out with an ax and securely fastened together with strong wooden pins. In the meantime, the work of clearing up their farm progressed slowly but steadily, and all able to handle an ax were put into the woods to assist in removing the trees and underbrush, and in time a goodly number of acres were fitted for cultiva- tion. Mr. Elias Cooprider, son of John Cooprider, came to the new country with his father, and says that he worked in the clearings day after day with his mother and chopped races with her. Their first ground was broken, or scratched over rather, with a one-horse shovel plow, and the first crop produced consisted largely of potatoes, squashes, beans and a small amount of corn. In the fall of 1826, Mr. Cooprider sowed the first wheat ever planted in Clay County, which made a very poor yield, owing to the cold winter, which froze the greater part of it out. When grandmother Cooprider was apprised of the probable failure of the wheat, she actually burst into tears, as she had been counting the days until it should ripen, and the prospect of living another year on " corn pone" proved a sad blow to the poor old lady. She was not doomed to be entirely dis- appointed, however, for a small portion of the grain matured, and suffi- cient was saved to furnish them bread a part of the time, and to raise a tol- erable crop the following year. Mr. Cooprider was an honored resident of the township, until the 19th day of March, 1877, at which time he was summoned to that rest prepared for all those who have acted well their parts here. A number of descendants live in the township, and are among its most worthy and substantial citizens and business men.
Elias Cooprider, from whom the above and many other facts were obtained, is the oldest living settler in the township and the oldest native Indianian in the county, having been born in Harrison County several years before the State was organized.
OTHER SETTLERS.
In the fall of 1825 came John L. Gillaspie, a brother-in-law of Coop- rider, and settled on the site of Middlebury, where he started the first blacksmith shop in the township, bringing his tools with him. He was a native of Virginia, and resided on his purchase until the year 1836, at which time he went with several others on an excursion to New Orleans, and died while on his way home.
Frank Strader and his son Jesse came prior to 1829, and settled two miles south of Middlebury, where they remained about seven or eight
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HISTORY OF CLAY COUNTY.
years, when they moved to Terre Haute, and later to Illinois. They were hunters rather than tillers of the soil, and spent the greater por- tion of their time in quest of game, or in fishing, the streams at that early day being alive with fine varieties of the finny tribe. They afterward gave considerable attention to raising cattle and hogs, selling their stock to speculators, a business which paid them very well.
An early settler deserving of special mention was one Daniel Harris, who came to the country in company with the Indians and trapped for some time along Eel River. He was born in Virginia, but being of a roving disposition he left his native clime in an early day and found his way into Ohio, when that State was on the outskirts of civilization. The date of his arrival in this part of the county was not learned, but is sup- posed to have been some time prior to 1828 or 1829. Being pleased with the country, he selected a claim in the northeastern part of the town- ship, on Eel River, and later entered the land where William Connolly lives. In 1853, he sold this farm to William Levitt and moved into Sugar Ridge Township, where he died the following year. He assisted in surveying the greater part of the county, and had the honor of being the first Probate Judge.
About the year 1830 came John B. and Alexander Poe, two advent- urous Kentuckians, who settled in Section 7, Town 10 north, Range 6 west. They were hunters and stock-raisers, and led a kind of nomadic life, moving about from place to place, never accumulating sufficient money to enable them to enter land. They resided in Harrison but a few years, afterward moving to Greene County, where Alexander became a minister of the Christian Church. Charles Inman, a transient settler, came about the year 1830, and is remembered as a pioneer of the true backwoods type.
Zaachriah Denney became a resident as early as 1829, settling about one mile southwest of Middlebury, on land which had been previously entered by James Hickey. He was a man of fine abilities and education, and taught the first school in the township; his death occurred in 1839. His son, Mordecai Denney, came the same time, as did also his sons-in- law, David White, Jacob Van Trees and James Defore, and a man by the name of Blevins, all of whom settled near the central part of the township.
Another settler, whose arrival dates as far back as 1827 or 1828, was Ivan Rawley, who secured a valuable tract of land on Eel River, in Section 9, Town 10 north, Range 7 west. He cleared a fine farm here, and in 1831 erected the first brick residence in the county. He seems to have been a man of many peculiarities, and lived an isolated life, dying in 1834.
Among the many arrivals of the years from 1830 to 1840 may be noted Isaiah Duncan, who founded a settlement in the southeast part,
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where George Duncan now lives; William Cole, W. Buckalew, J. Buck- alew, Joseph Alexander, William Edmonson, Joel Owens, Presley Owens, Larkin Cash, -- Baker, William Luther, William Owens, Peter Luther and James Luther. The following persons purchased land from the Gov- ernment principally between the years 1819 and 1836: Caleb Jessup, John Walker, Philip Zenor, John Long, Joseph Graham, Michael Luther, Frederick Halfacre, George Toney, J. T. Alexander, J. P. Dunn, Omer Tousey, George Tousey, William Sullivan, G. W. Pratt, G. M. Thatcher, Joseph Griffith, G. P. Buell, Andrew Wilson, Henry Gibbs, Nicholas Crist, J. B. Poe, Ephraim Walker, Jonathan Owens, A. L. Killion, Lar- kin Lankford, F. Lankford, Joel White, Azariah Bean, Dakin Baker, A. D. Phipps and others.
CHARACTER AND CUSTOMS OF THE EARLY SETTLERS.
One cannot write history as a blind man goes about the street. Facts are transparent, and through them we catch gleams of other facts, as the rain-drops reflect the rays of the sun, and the beholder sees the splendors of a rainbow. We are writing of common men, whose lot it was to plant civilization in the Western wilds, and in so doing they displayed the virtues which render modern civilization a boast and a blessing. Those early days cannot be reproduced by any prose of the historian.
The pioneers had a thousand years behind them, and in their little space of time they made greater progress than ten centuries had wit- nessed. Theirs was a full life, and they did so much that it is difficult to recognize the doers. Of their constancy, one may judge by the fact that but few went back to their ancestral homes.
Life in nearly all new countries is almost the same, and the pioneers of Harrison were no exception to the general rule. There were among them many noble men, whose lives exerted a wholesome influence in so- ciety, and again there were others of a different cast, whose morals were bad, and whose removal from the country was hailed with delight by the lovers of law and order. As a general thing, however, the state of soci- ety was good, and the few settlers were a " law unto themselves," as to the leading obligations of our nature in all the relations in which they stood to each other. The turpitude of vice and the majesty of moral virtue were then as apparent as now, and were regarded with the same sentiments of aversion or respect which they inspire at the present time.
The punishment of lying, dishonesty, and many of the prevalent vices consisted of "hating the offender out," as they generally expressed it. This mode of chastisement was the one most generally adopted, and was a public expression in various ways of a general sentiment of indig- nation against such as transgressed the moral maxims of the community to which they belonged.
At house raisings, log rollings and harvest parties every one was ex-
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HISTORY OF CLAY COUNTY.
pected to do his duty faithfully. A person who did not perform his share of labor on these occasions was looked upon with contempt by his fellows, and when it came his turn to require like aid from his neigh- bors the idler soon felt his punishment in their refusal to attend his calls.
Of course, their manner of living was rude, owing to their surround- ings, yet with all their rudeness, they were given to hospitality, and freely divided their rough fare with a neighbor or stranger, and would have been offended at the offer of pay.
On the other hand, they were revengeful in their resentments, and the point of honor sometimes led to personal combats.
Election and muster days were generally the times set for the adjust- ment of such differences, and if a good article of fighting whisky could be obtained, a rough-and-tumble knock-down would be the result, and each belligerent had his " best friend " to see fair play.
Their sports were such as might be expected among a people who, owing to their circumstances, as well as education, set a higher value on physical than on mental endowments; and on skill in the use of the rifle in hunting than on any accomplishments or fine arts. The athletic sports of running, jumping and wrestling were the pastimes of the boys in common with the men. Shooting at marks was also a favorite diver- sion, and the skill of a man's aim often determined to a great degree his standing in the community.
They had weddings in those days, and these linger with us to some extent yet; but those good old fashions and "infairs, " where are they ? The wedding was at the bride's, and the "infair, " a kind of wedding number two, at the house of the groom's parents. Both meant to eat, drink, dance and be merry. Two days and two nights, with often a long horseback ride in the meantime, and the frolicking and dancing went on, and what dancing! not the dizzy waltz of this degenerate day and age, not the bounding polka, the delightful schottische, or any of the other modern fashionable dream-walks, but while the fiddler kept time with his foot to the inspiriting tune of the "Arkansaw Traveler," "money- musk" or the "lightning jig," the merry frolickers raced over the puncheon floor in the good old ginger-blue style of the hoe-down which filled with joy their innocent hearts, and their legs with soreness and pain. But the Virginia reel, the hoe-down, the jig and the infair are gone, and their places are taken by the rather tame wedding tour, and the published list of presents from friends and foes.
{ The state of society which existed at that early period was well cal- culated to call into action every mechanical genius. There was in almost every neighborhood some one whose natural ingenuity enabled him to do many things for himself and neighbors, far above what could have been reasonably expected; with the few tools which they brought with them
Respectfully yours. Alles W Carter
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HARRISON TOWNSHIP.
into the country, they certainly performed wonders. Their plows, harrows, with wooden teeth, and sleds were, in many instances, well made, and the cheaper ware, which comprehended everything for holding milk and water, was generally well executed.
INDUSTRIES.
The first saw-mill in the township was built by Elias Cooprider, in Middlebury, about the year 1849, and operated by ox-power. It was in use about seven years, and during that time manufactured both lumber and meal, and seems to have been well patronized. The machinery was afterward moved to New Brunswick, and used in the construction of a combination mill at that place. Mr. Cooprider run the mill several years at Brunswick, and finally sold out to Marion Dalton, who, after operating it a short time, allowed it to fall into disuse.
The first mill for grinding grain in the township, and perhaps the first in the county, was constructed by T. L. Cooprider, and stood not far from Middlebury. It was a very simple affair, operated by horse- power, the buhrs being manufactured from native rock by Mr. Cooprider. It was in operation about eight or ten years, and did a very good busi- ness for a mill of its capacity. About the year 1847, Joel Owens built a horse mill in the north end of the township, which was kept in operation until the erection of the Middlebury steam mill, some fifteen years later. Many of the early settlers used hand mills for grinding grain, by means of which a coarse article of flour and meal could be made. These mills were constructed on a very primitive plan, and consisted of two circular stones set in a gum, or hoop, the upper one being turned by means of a long pole, which was sometimes placed in an opening in a joist over- head. The last mill of this kind was operated by Joseph Griffith, who was also one of the earliest blacksmiths of the township. In 1850, or thereabouts, a tannery was started in the northeast part of the township, by Jacob Shawacre. It was in operation until about the year 1870, and did a paying business.
An early industry was a small distillery, operated by W. Lankford, in the southwestern part of the township. Mr. Lankford brought the "still" from Kentucky, and operated it on a limited scale for a short time.
EARLY DEATHS.
The first death in Harrison occurred about the year 1827, at which time Midian Chamberlain, a temporary resident, departed this life. Elias Arthur died in the fall of 1827, and was laid to rest in the old Middle- bury Graveyard, being the first interment made therein. The cemetery was laid out by Thomas Gillaspie, and is said to have been the first place consecrated to the burial of the dead in Clay County. Among the early deaths were two children of William Maxwell, Elizabeth and Joseph
10
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HISTORY OF CLAY COUNTY.
Cooprider, and several children of John Cooprider, all of whom were buried in the cemetery mentioned.
The Cole Graveyard, in the northeastern part of the township, was first used as a place of interment about the year 1836 or 1837, and among those laid to rest there in an early day were William and Elizabeth Cole.
The Greenwell Graveyard was used as a burial place many years ago. Jonathan and Visa Owen, and a man by name of Purvis being buried there as early as 1837 or 1838. In addition to the cemeteries mentioned, there are a couple of private burying grounds in the township, and a graveyard in the southern part known as the Sink Graveyard, which was laid out in 1872.
EARLY MARRIAGES.
The first marriage that took place in what is now Harrison Township was solemnized under very peculiar circumstances, the particulars of which are as follows: The principal parties to the affair were Peter Cooprider, Jr., and Nancy, daughter of Lewis White, who lived just across the line in Owen County. The time was the winter of 1824, the year before the organization of Clay County, which then formed a part of Vigo County, with the seat of justice at Terre Haute, where Mr. White went to pro- cure the papers necessary to give legal sanction to the union. Know- ing that the marriage had to be performed in Vigo County, and being undecided as to the location of the dividing line, the wedding party, to make matters sure, went a considerable distance in the woods, and when they arrived upon what they knew was safe territory, Squire Downing, standing in snow about half boot-top deep, spoke the words which made the happy couple one, and with merry hearts the jolly crowd returned to a bounteous feast which the generous father-in-law had provided. The joyful occasion terminated with a lively hoe-down, and some of the boys present -- now gray-haired and venerable great-grandfathers-ascribe their first gentle drunk to a barrel of metheglin provided by the wise fore- thought of Mr. White.
Another early marriage was solemnized a little later, the contracting parties being Jacob Cooprider and Polly White, daughter of James White.
EARLY BIRTHS.
Ann Brush (née Cooprider), daughter of John and Elizabeth Coopri- der, was the first white person born under the present limits of Harrison, her birth occurring in the year 1826. Elizabeth Gillaspie, daughter of Thomas and Susan Gillaspie, was born one year later.
SCHOOLS.
No better eulogium can be pronounced upon a community or upon its individual members than to point to the work they have accomplished. Theories look fine on paper, or sound well when proclaimed from the
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platform, but it is the plain, honest work which tells on society. Thus, not only the township, but the entire county took an early interest in the cause of education. All the main settlements established schools as soon as they could support them.
As the population increased, and in the natural course of human events, children also, schoolhouses were built, teachers employed, and other improvements made in the facilities for education.
The first school in the township was taught about the year 1828, by Zachariah Denney, in a little log cabin which stood a short distance south of Middlebury.
The house was erected by the neighbors for the purpose, and the school was supported by subscription, and attended by about twenty-five or thirty pupils. Another school in the same house was taught later by a man from Kentucky by name of Rout, who is remembered as a very competent instructor for that time. The second school building was a hewed log structure, erected on the farm of George Wiltse, about three-quarters of a mile southwest of Middlebury, and was first used in 1832 by Isaac Richart. The second term was taught by William W. Ferguson, after which the house was destroyed by fire. Another building was afterward erected on the same spot, and was used until the law providing free schools went into effect. A schoolhouse was built in the Duncan settle- ment in an early day, and one in what is known as the Horton District, the first teacher in the latter place being Rev. B. D. C. Herring, a Baptist preacher of Owen County.
A log building on the Weaver farm south of Middlebury was erected about the year 1850, and is still standing. Another house of the same kind was built about the same time on the Smith place, southeast of Clay City, and stood about ten years, at the end of which time it was aban- doned.
A house was erected in the northeast corner of the township, in an early day, and stood on the farm of Ed White. Early teachers in that locality were William Long and J. Barnhart.
The township was supplied with public schools about the year 1848, at which time the old buildings disappeared, and a better class of houses took their place. The schools of Harrison have ever been noted for their efficiency and high standing, and some of the best country schools to be found anywhere are in this township. Much credit is due to old teach- ers, among whom may be mentioned William Brothers, David Alexander, A. J. Tipton, W. H. Long and John Hanie.
The teachers for 1882-83 were William Chilson, Lizzie Travis, D. P. Love, D. T. Cromwell, Mattie E. Witty, F. J. W. Toelle, W. S. Tipton, James B. Arnett, William Arnett, A. M. Storm, W. H. Long, W. B. Schwarts, Hattie Chilson, Maurice Markle, N. B. Markle, S. A. Travis, H. H. Harris and S. B. Everhart.
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HISTORY OF CLAY COUNTY.
Enumeration of children for the above year, 1,168.
Revenue for tuition, $3,710.92.
Trustees. - The following are the Trustees of the township since the year 1859, to wit: William Brothers, H. Brothers, Henry Bolick, Robert Dalton, Peter Barrick, Henry Shideler (the only Republican ever elected to office in the township), John White, and Eli Cooprider, the present incum bent.
Other officials of the township at the present time are William Graber, Jacob Buzzard and Cyrus Davis, Justices of the Peace, and James Low- ery, Constable.
CHURCH HISTORY.
The religious history of Harrison dates from its first settlement, many of the pioneers having been active members of different churches in the countries from which they moved. In the new country, with its sparse population, there were comparatively few stationary ministers vet. A number, embracing several denominations, traversed this region in an early day, forming an itenerant corps, and visited in rotation every settle- ment, town and village. Unsustained by the rigid precepts of law in any privileges, perquisites, fixed revenue, prescribed reverence or author- ity, except such as is voluntarily acknowledged by the clergy, those early preachers found their success depended upon their own efforts, and with an untiring zeal for the great cause, mixed, perhaps, with a spice of earth- ly ambition, they went forth to their work, traveling from month to month through deep forests, and enduring many hardships for the good of humanity. Their preaching was of a highly popular cast, its first aim being to excite the feelings and mold them to their own; hence excite- ments, or, in religious parlance, " awakenings " or revivals, were common in all this region. Living remote from each other, and spending much of their time in domestic solitude in vast forests, the appointment for preaching was often looked upon as a gala-day or a pleasing change, which brought together the neighbors from remote points, and enabled them to associate together and interchange social congratulations. Mr. Cooprider is our authority for the statement that one John Benham preached the first sermon in Harrison as early as the year 1827. Of Mr. Benham but little is known, save that he was an eccentric character, styled himself an evangelist belonging to Christ, and preached very much after the manner of the celebrated Lorenzo Dow. The circumstance of his visit to this community, as described by Mr. Cooprider, is as follows: Learning of the existence of the little settlement near Middlebury, he sent an appointment to John Cooprider, saying that he would hold re- ligious services at his residence nine months from that day at 10 o'clock sharp. Of course the neighbors had ample time to circulate the appoint- ment, and at the stated day several of the settlers' families assembled at Cooprider's dwelling, the majority of them more through a spirit of curi-
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