USA > Indiana > Clay County > Counties of Clay and Owen, Indiana : Historical and biographical. > Part 79
USA > Indiana > Owen County > Counties of Clay and Owen, Indiana : Historical and biographical. > Part 79
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There are three large stone quarries near Mundy's Station, on the I. & V. R. R., operated by E. R. Bladen, John Parisho and the Pennsylvania R. R. Company. Mr. Parisho also runs a limekiln in connection with his quarry, and ships large quantities of a superior quality of lime and stone. Bernhard Schweitzer operates an extensive limekiln and stone quarry about a half mile southwest of Spencer, near the I. & V. R. R. The quarry and kiln are high above the railroad, and are connected with it by a double track narrow gauge line of road, so arranged that the descending cars pull up the empty cars that have been unloaded at the I. & V. track below. Mr. Schweitzer employs a large number of men, and has a heavy capital invested in this enterprise. He furnishes all the stone used for masonry by the I. & V. R. R., and some other branches of the Pennsylvania Company, and fills large contracts besides. He ships immense quantities of stone and lime, and it is probably the most extensive enterprise of this kind in Southern Indiana. There are also several smaller quarries in operation in the town- ship.
With its magnificent stone quarries, operated on an extensive scale, with good roads, improved farms and farming methods, and greater enterprise in the development of its resources, there is no reason why Washington Town- ship should not become rich and prosperous.
698
HISTORY OF OWEN COUNTY.
WAYNE TOWNSHIP.
BY G. N. BERRY.
W AYNE TOWNSHIP was created in the year 1820, and named in honor of Gen. Anthony Wayne. As originally organized, it in- cluded the present township of Harrison and embraced an area of terri- tory nine miles long from north to south and four miles from east to west. Harrison was cut off in the year 1837, and subsequently a strip one mile wide was added from the adjoining township of Morgan, mak- ing the area of Wayne at the present time a fraction over twenty square miles, the greater portion of which lies in Congressional Township 11 north, Range 2 west. White River touches the southeast corner, flowing a northwesterly direction to Section 29, where its course is deflected due south. Skirting the river for some distance are fine bottom lands, while the remainder of the township is more uneven and in some places considerably broken, especially in the southern part. There are a num- ber of streams flowing through the township which afford ample drainage, while fine limestone springs are found in many localities. There are some fine farm lands in the township, especially the bottoms, which for fertility cannot be excelled, but as a general thing the country is better adapted to grazing, and stock-raising is now the leading industry.
COMING OF THE PIONEERS.
To a person who has not witnessed all the changes which have taken place in the Western country since its first settlement, its former appear- ance is like a dream or romance. He will find it difficult to realize the features of that wilderness which was the abode of his infant days. The little cabin of his father no longer exists. The diminutive field and truck patch which afforded him a scanty supply of the necessaries of life have been swallowed up in the extended meadow, orchard or grain field. Everywhere surrounded by the busy hum of men and the comforts and refinements of civilization, his former state and that of the country have in a great degree vanished from his memory; or if he sometimes bestows a reflection on its original aspect, the mind seems carried back to a period of time much more remote than it really is. The immense changes which have taken place in the physical and moral state of the country have been gradual, and therefore scarcely perceptible from year to year, but the view from one extreme to the other is like the prospect of the opposite shore over a vast expanse of water whose hills, valleys, mountains and forests present a confused and romantic scenery which loses itself in the distant horizon.
But few of the aged pioneers of Wayne remain to weave the historical fabric of facts with the thread of personal incident. The lapse of more than half a century has not only swept from the theater of life the most of the heroes of the old and perilous times, but has dimmed the memories of those who yet remain, so that some have forgotten the exact time when many events appertaining to the township's history transpired. However, by a careful comparison of the different statements and dates, we think
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WAYNE TOWNSHIP.
they have been given with sufficient accuracy for general utility, even in instances where there is lack of coincidence.
The first recorded settlement within the present limits of Wayne was made in the spring of 1818 by Ephraim Goss, who located on a tract of land in Section 30, Town 11 north, Range 5 west, which had been pur- chased from the Government two years previous by one Jonathan Lind- ley, who sold it to Goss in the fall of 1817 while the latter was passing through the country on a tour of observation. Goss was a native of North Carolina. He emigrated to Indiana in 1810, and settled first in Washington County, where he remained until he secured a home in this township in the year mentioned. A son of Mr. Goss now living describes the journey to their new home as having been made in the face of many difficulties, chief of which was the almost impassable condition of the road -- if road it might be called-owing to the mud and snow, the time being in the month of March and the weather extremely disagreeable. Much of the way had to be cut through the dense forests, and the family and household effects were conveyed in a couple of six-horse wagons, the same that were used by our pioneer when he first left his native hills of Carolina.
Mr. Goss had made no improvements on his land prior to moving to it-not even a shelter -- and it would be difficult to imagine a more dreary prospect than their new home presented on the cold murky day of the family's arrival. On every side were deep, gloomy forests, among the recesses of which but few white men had ever penetrated, and the whole country at the time of which we write was uncheered by the slightest presence of civilization.
The first habitation was a tent hastily constructed by the side of a large log, and served the family for a dwelling until a rude pole cabin. was erected, which for convenience and comfort was but little if any superior to the first shelter, being without windows and floor, and very imperfectly covered with rough clapboards made with a common chop- ping ax. Into this primitive domicile Mr. Goss' family, consisting of seven persons, and a couple of young men who came with him to the new country, were safely housed, after which life in the backwoods com- menced in earnest. During the first spring, ten acres of ground were cleared and planted in corn, but so late was the seed put into the soil that the grain did not mature well and the entire crop was used for fodder.
Comparatively few of the inconveniences which are the common lot of the majority of settlers in a new country were experienced by the family of Mr. Goss, as he was a man of considerable means, and brought with him sufficient provision to last until crops were raised and harvest- ed. As years passed by, Mr. Goss became the owner of valuable tracts of real estate, the greater part of which is in possession of his descend- ants at the present time. He was a man of many sterling qualities, and his word was as good as his bond in all parts of the country. He was the proprietor of the town of Gosport, which was named for him, and died in the year 1833, highly respected in the community which he was instrumental in founding. A part of the old home farm is occupied at the present time by Frederick Goss, who came to the country with his father and assisted in making the first farm ever carved from the forests of Wayne. Upon this place he has continuously resided for sixty-five years, and is now passing the evening of a useful life in quiet and con-
700
HISTORY OF OWEN COUNTY.
tent. Several other sons of the stanch old pioneer became residents of the township in an early day, and his numerous descendants are among the substantial citizens of the county.
In the year 1819, Col. Robert Wooden, of Kentucky, came to the township and settled about three miles northwest of Gosport, on land owned at the present time by his son, Dr. J. Wooden. Mr. Wooden was a man considerably in advance of the majority of the pioneers in intel- ligence and business tact, and early acquired the dignity of a kind of leader and legal adviser among his neighbors, the majority of whom car- ried their litigation no further than his decisions. He became very pop- ular as a politician, and in an early day represented the county in the State Legislature, besides serving the people as Sheriff and filling vari- ous other official positions.
Early in 1819 came Abner Alexander, a native of North Carolina, and settled about two miles west of Gosport, in Section 32, where Will- iam Haltom lives. Mr. Alexander's family came to the new country un- der the most adverse circumstances, their only means of conveyance be- ing a single horse, upon which the wife and two children, and the few household effects were packed, while the husband and father walked and led the way.
Upon his arrival in the country, Mr. Alexander moved into a part of Mr. Goss' residence, w ere his family lived until a habitation was built on the land mentioned, after which they moved to their own quarters. Many obstacles conspired to discourage Mr. Alexander, chief of which was poverty in its most abject form, the sum total of his wealth at that time being one horse and a dollar bill. His subsequent life may be taken as a practical demonstration of what energy and thrift can accom- plish in the face of opposing circumstances; being naturally a skillful trader, he soon turned this gift to his advantage, and erelong became the possessor of ample means and a valuable tract of land. His death oc- curred a number of years ago. His son, J. W. Alexander, and daugh- ters, Mrs. Hays, Wampler and Spillman, are residing in the township at the present time.
William Alexander, brother of the preceding, came to the country about the same time, and became a leading citizen in the community where he resided.
David Lukinbill came as early as 1819, and settled two miles west of Gosport, on the farm owned at the present time by Millard Wampler. Mr. Lukenbill was a native of North Carolina, but moved here from Wash- ington County, where he had been living several years. He was a man of ample means, a model farmer and a reputable citizen in every respect. He subsequently emigrated to Iowa, in which State his death occurred a number of years ago. Several of his descendants live in Gosport and the surrounding country.
During the year 1820, the following additional settlers came io the country, viz .: Bartlett Asher, James Thompson, Isaac Brasier, James Partlow, Thomas Waters and Thomas Sandy. The Asher family came from Kentucky. Bartlett settled three miles north of Gosport, on the place owned and occupied at the present time by George Goss. His brother, John Asher, became a resident about the same time, or perhaps a little later, and is remembered as a man of remarkable physical powers. Dan- iel Asher came in 1821, and purchased from the Government a tract of land lying in Section 13, Town 11 north, Range 3 west. Thompson lo-
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WAYNE TOWNSHIP.
cated in the Asher settlement and became a prominent farmer. Brasier was a brother-in-law of Thompson, and settled in the same neighbor- hood. He entered land in 1830, and is remembered as a good-natured man, whose propensity for joking and telling stories was unbounded by time, place or circumstance. Partlow settled in Section 7, near the northern boundary of the township, and was the first blacksmith who worked at his trade within the present boundaries of Wayne. He occu- pied his farm and operated his shop until the year 1830, at which time he sold out and emigrated to one of the Western States. Waters was a native of Kentucky. He was the father of a large family, but few of whom are living in this county at the present time.
Jeremiah Mathes became a resident of the township about the year 1820, moving here from Washington County, where he settled as early as 1816, while on his way to Sullivan County.
In 1819, he came to the " new purchase " for the purpose of securing a home, and selected a claim where Thomas Sandy afterward settled, which land he could not pay for at the time on account of his money not being acceptable at the land office. As soon as he ascertained this fact, he went back to his native State, Kentucky, and procured a suffi- cient amount of good money to enable him enter his claim, but judge of his surprise and chagrin, upon his return, to find the land in possession of another who "bought it from under him" during his absence. To purchase another's claim was considered by the early settlers an act of contemptible meanness, and a person guilty of doing it at once lost his standing in the community, and became virtually ostracised. So we judge from this that the person who "jumped " Mathes' claim gained nothing in the long run by his little act of treachery. Not securing the land of his first choice, Mathes afterward purchased from the Gov- ernment a homestead in Section 30, about one mile northwest of the site of Gosport. Mr. Mathes was a wheelwright by trade, and after settling in the new country exercised his mechanical skill in making chairs and other articles of furniture for the early settlers; he also operated a blacksmith shop, and was considered the handy man of the community. He was a resident of the township until 1830, at which time he sold out to Daniel Goss, and moved to Morgan County, where his death occurred many years ago. His son, Elder J. M. Mathes, now living at Bedford, is one of the prominent preachers of the State, and was for many years identified with the religious and educational history of Owen County. His reputation as a minister and writer is not confined to Indiana alone, but wherever the Christian Church has gained a footing there his name is known and honored. The following reminiscence from a sketch, writ- ten expressly for this work by Mr. Mathes, will show that he was the only white man in Indiana ever dignified by the title of an Indian Chief:
"In 1823 or 1824, the Delaware Indians, who were owners of the country about Indianapolis and Noblesville, exchanged their lands in Indiana for new hunting grounds in what was then known as Kansas Territory, now Kansas, and in moving to their new land their line of march was along the West Fork of White River. The head chief, whose name was 'Big Fire,' took sick on the way, and when they reached our neighborhood they camped just above the mouth of Indian Creek, a half mile above where Gosport stands, and right on the river bank. Here Big Fire died, and was buried with much ceremony on the bluff just north of their camp near the railroad crossing, and south of the I. & V. Rail-
702
HISTORY OF OWEN COUNTY.
road. The body was carried by four elders of the tribe on a bier, made of two poles interlaced with bark, to the grave, where it was painted, dressed in his best blanket and beaded moccasins, and buried along with his ornaments and war weapons. The grave was three feet deep, lined with rough boards and bark; over it was planted an oak post five feet high and eight inches square, tapering to a point and painted red. The monument was often visited and long revered by the band. It has dis- appeared within a few years.
" After the death of their chief, the Indians remained thirty days in their camp to mourn. The camp swarmed with men, squaws and pap- pooses to the number of several hundred, and there was a great deal of sport among them, and as the camp was only a mile from my father's cabin, we often went down to see them run foot-races, wrestle, etc. On one of our visits to the camp, I was induced to engage in wrestling with them, and found to my astonishment that I could throw down their best wrestlers. They challenged me to run a foot-race, and I did so, and found I could easily outrun the swiftest Indian in the camp. But they were not satisfied with this, and challenged me to run a race with their champion, a young chief who had remained at Strawtown when they started to move, for the purpose of attending to some business, but was to be on in a few days. My father urged me to accept, which I did, and they promised to notify me when the young chief would arrive. Noth- ing was at stake; we were simply to run for the championship. Finally, one day we were notified that he was in the camp and wanted to see me. So my father and I went down at once, and we shook hands, and fixed the day and time for the race.
" The day came, and the whole camp was astir, and all the whites for miles around, who came to witness the contest, were on hand. The race paths were in good order, 120 yards long, and were made near the river bank. terminating just above the mouth of the creek.
" We started at the upper end of the paths, and ran down the river. For the first fifty yards we were parallel, but I saw that I could beat him easily, and at this point I struck out with all the muscle and spring that I had, and in a few minutes I lost sight of him, and turned my head to see what had become of him, and the moment I looked back he stopped. He had fallen at least ten feet behind; he was done for and gave it up. I, however, ran on to the end, and jumped over the line. Then the vast crowd raised a shout that was heard at our cabins, and made my mother and sister quite uneasy, lest we had been murdered. But the Indians were not offended, but gathered around me, and, taking me up, carried me in triumph around the camp. We returned home, and about the middle of the afternoon, a committee of the honorable men came to notify · me that I had been chosen chief of the Delaware natives, under the name of Big Fire (the name of the fallen chief), and desired my presence at once at the camp, to be adopted into their tribe. I inquired what the ceremony of adoption was, and they informed me that on my arrival at the camp I would be expected to make a public declaration of my deter- mination to become an Indian, and renounce my former relations to the whites. I would then be led down to the water by one of the chiefs, and immersed; that in the act of immersion the pale face would be washed off and the Indian put on, and I would then be an Indian-' a big brave.' They were authorized to make the following grand inducements: 1. ' We will make you much rich.' 2. "In our hunting-grounds you may select
Som S. Lautenschläger
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WAYNE TOWNSHIP.
you a tract of land just where you please, and make it as large as you wish, and it shall be yours forever.' 3. 'And you may have heap squaw -heap squaw.' But I declined the adoption with all their tempting offers. "
Other early settlers who became residents as early as 1820 were John Treat, who located on what is known as the McCormick farm, in the northern part of the township; Abraham Littell, who entered land in Section 29, and ran the first ferry on the river near Gosport; James and Jack Dowden, B. Miller, Thomas E. Johnson, Jeremiah Sandy, Zachariah Glover and Daniel Hall, all of whom became owners of real estate. Later came Tobias Moser, John Wilson, Thomas Robertson, Robert Waters, William Truax and his son Benjamin, Aaron McCarty, John Holmes, John M. Young, William Wade, William Snodgrass, Thomas Dunnegan, B. B. Whitaker, Scott W. Young, James Beck and Abraham Stutsman, all of whom became residents prior to the year 1830. Among those who came in later may be mentioned William H. Fritz, Robert Spratt, Elijah McGinnis, John Wilson, Samuel Asher, John Condiff, George Condiff, Wiley Williams and others.
Among the first to secure land in the township by entry were Fetter and Hughes, whose patent dates from the month of September, 1816. John Stipp entered a portion of Section 32, Town 11 north, Range 2 west, the same year, and Jonathan Lindley secured 884 acres in Sections 31 and 32 about the same time. Other early entries were made by Ab- ner Frazier, John S. Anderson, William Dant, George John, John Goss, Samuel Evans, William Glover, John Snoddy, Elijah Waters, William Bowman, William Waters, Price Hayes, John R. Robards, Frederick Steiwalt, Thomas Dunnegan, John Hedrick, Martha Doughty, James Bolden, Isaac Reed, David Burke, Eli Greyson, Thomas Alexander, John Carter, John Craddock, William Craddock, John Moberly, Philip May- field, John Modrell and Abraham Goble.
Previous to the year 1821, the price demanded by Government for its land was $2 per acre, one-fourth of which was paid at the time of purchase, and the remainder in three annual installments, a liberal dis- count being allowed the purchaser if the whole was paid in advance. This arrangement, however liberally intended, was found to be product- ive of great mischief, as purchases were frequently made by persons who had not the means of payment. Persons who had only money enough to pay the first installment on one or more tracts, disbursed their entire capital in making the prompt payment required at the time of entry, de- pending on future contingencies for the power to discharge the other three-fourths of their liabilities. This was done in most cases without the least intention to defraud, the risk of loss being entirely on the side of the purchaser, and the allurement to make the venture such as few men have the resolution to withstand.
A rapid increase in the value of lands was generally anticipated, and many expected to meet their engagements by selling a portion of the land at an enhanced price, and thus securing the portion retained; some were enticed by a desire to secure choice lands, and others deluded by the belief that they could raise the sums required within the appointed time by the sale of produce raised from the soil. Others, by industry and good fortune, realized these anticipations, but quite a number of the pur- chasers, at the expiration of the term limited for the payment of the last installment, found their lands subject to forfeiture for non-payment.
39
706
HISTORY OF OWEN COUNTY.
Money was scarce; the country was new, without capitalists, moneyed institutions or manufactories, and with little or no commerce; and while the sale of lands and the purchase of such goods as were required to sup- ply the wants of the settlers, constituted a drain of the little circulating medium in the country, and the industry of the people not being brought into action nor the resources of the country developed, there were no means of bringing the money back. As a consequence of this state of things, a period of depression ensued, which was widespread, and some of the early pioneers of Wayne came in for their share of the general calamity. At one time, the whole population of the Western States trembled upon the brink of ruin; and had the Government proved a rigid creditor, an immense amount of distress would have resulted. The ma- jority of the purchasers became settlers, and built houses and opened fields upon the soil, the legal title to which remained in the Government. To drive such a people to extremity would have been ungenerous and fatally unwise, so a system of relief was devised, which extended the time of payments, and authorized purchasers to secure a portion of their lands by relinquishing the remainder. In the course of a few years much of the indebtedness was absorbed, without injury to the citizen, and with little or no loss to the Government. Upon granting relief to land purchasers, the credit system was abolished, and the lands were afterward sold at so much per acre, payable in cash. In no part of the country was the Government's generosity more appreciated than in the early settled counties of Southern Indiana, and in Wayne Township many of the first citizens were enabled to save their homesteads and ward off a general bankruptcy.
DEVELOPMENT OF THE COUNTRY.
The settlement of a new country in the immediate 'neighborhood of an old one is not attended with much difficulty, because supplies can be readily obtained from the latter; but the settlement of a country remote from any cultivated region is a very different thing, because at the out- set. food, raiment and the implements of husbandry are obtained in small supplies and with great difficulty. This was, in a great degree, the case in the early settlement of Wayne, as the nearest inhabited local- ities of any note were in Washington County, and the nearest market place at Louisville, between ninety and a hundred miles distant; a journey to Louisville and return in those early times required about twenty days, owing to the absence of roads, and one person was gener- ally selected to do the marketing for the entire neighborhood. There being but little money in the country, the few groceries and dry goods required by the settlers were obtained in exchange for such articles as could be produced, i. e., coon and deer skins, wild honey and venison. Later, the town of Bloomington became the nearest source of supplies, while flour and meal were obtained at a mill in the town of Salem in Washington County, about ninety miles from Gosport. The furniture for the table for several years after the settlement consisted of a few pewter dishes, plates and spoons, but mostly of wooden bowls and cups; if these last were scarce, gourds and hard-shelled squashes made up the deficiency. The iron pots and knives were brought from the older settle- ments, and corresponded well with the articles of diet on which they were employed. "Hog and hominy " were proverbial for the dishes of which they were the component parts, while " Johnny-cake " and " pone "
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