USA > Indiana > Clay County > Counties of Clay and Owen, Indiana : Historical and biographical. > Part 82
USA > Indiana > Owen County > Counties of Clay and Owen, Indiana : Historical and biographical. > Part 82
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W. H. Lynn keeps the only jewelry store in the city.
O. Mear and John Grim are shoe-makers. Hiram Murphy, cooper.
The legal profession is represented by James R. Fritz, one of the suc- cessful lawyers of the county, William A. Montgomery, D. L. Weir and Thomas Van Buskirk.
Valuation .- The assessed value of the town property for taxation in 1882 was, on lands and lots, $43,180; improvements, $81,060. Personal property, $98,320. Total, $222,560. Total amount of taxes, $3,755. 72. The above cannot be taken as a correct estimate of its actual value, which must far exceed these figures.
JEFFERSON TOWNSHIP.
BY G. N. BERRY-
J EFFERSON TOWNSHIP lies in the southwest corner of Owen County,
and embraces a geographical area of forty-eight square miles, the quarter portion of which is included in Congressional Township 9 north, Range 5 west. It is bounded on the north by the townships of Marion and La Fayette, on the east by Franklin Township, on the south by Greene County, on the west by Clay County, and was named in honor of Thomas Jefferson, third President of the United States. As originally organized, it contained a much larger area than at present, as appears from the order creating the township, which bears date of May, 1828, and reads as follows: " It is ordered by the board that all that part of
40
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HISTORY OF OWEN COUNTY.
Owen County included in the following boundaries be known and desig- nated by the name of Jefferson Township, to wit: Beginning at the line dividing Ranges 4 and 5 west on the line dividing Owen and Greene Counties, thence north to the south line of Morgan Township, thence west with said line to the line dividing Owen and Clay Counties, thence south to the southwest corner of Owen County, thence east to the place of beginning."
This outline underwent many subsequent changes, owing to the for- mation and adjustment of the adjoining divisions, but the precise date of the township's reduction to its present limits was not ascertained. The country is well watered and drained by a number of streams which trav- erse it in various directions, the largest of which is Eel River. This stream, which is the second water-course of importance in the county, flows through the southwest corner of the township in a southeasterly direction, entering in Section 35, Town 9 north, Range 6 west, and cross- ing the southern boundary from Section 32, Town 9 north, Range 5 west. Lick Creek enters the township from the north about two miles from the Clay County line, and flows a southerly course through Sections 6, 7, 18, 19, 29 and 30, Town 9 north, Range 5 west, and leaves from Sec- tion 32 of the same town and range. It receives a number of small tributaries, the largest of which heads in the northeastern part of the township, and flows a southwesterly direction to Section 19. In the east- ern part of the township are a number of small streams, all of which are tributaries of Fish Creek, which flows a southerly course through the adjoining township of Franklin. The township presents a pleasant diversity of surface, being high and rolling in the eastern and central parts, and comparatively level for several miles along the western border.
An irregular elevation in Section 21, Town 9 north, Range 5 west, known as Mount Good, is the highest point in the township, around which the country for several miles is very uneven, and consists of a light soil resting upon a bed of sandstone. This part of the township abounds in much beautiful and romantic scenery, and presents many pleasing prospects to the lover of nature. The land skirting Eel River is the lowest part of the township, and was originally covered with a dense growth of large weeds, so tall that a person riding through them on horseback would be almost completely hidden from view. As a con- sequence, the soil remained damp during the greater part of the year, which, with the abundance of decaying vegetable matter, made the lo- cality very unhealthy in an early day, and caused the first settlers to abandon their claims and seek homes farther back among the hills. The broken portions of the township consist principally of conglomerate sandstone, which crops out in various localities, affording an abundance of building material, which the citizens have not been slow to utilize. Limestone formations abound in the northeastern part near the village of Middletown, and a good quality of iron ore is found on Lick Creek, not far from Stockton, in Section 1, Town 9 north, Range 6 west.
Jefferson lies in the great coal field of Indiana, and is especially rich in that mineral, outcroppings of which are found in almost every section of the township. The richest veins are in the western part, near Coal City, where several mines have been developed and are successfully op- erated. The Trump bank was opened about ten years ago by Joseph Grim, who operated it for neighborhood purposes, supplying the citizens within a radius of several miles with cheap fuel. The quantity is ap-
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JEFFERSON TOWNSHIP.
parently inexhaustible, and the quality is the well-known block coal, sec- ond only to the famous Pittsburgh coal for heating and smelting purposes. The proprietor of the bank at the present time is Mr. Davis, who oper- ates it only at intervals, the mine not being sufficiently equipped to com- pete with the large mines in the adjoining county of Clay. The first mine opened in the township is on the land of L. Arney, in Section 9, Town 9 north, Range 5 west. This was opened about twenty years ago, and has been successfully operated ever since. Other local banks have been worked in Sections 7, 8, 17 and 29, of Town 9 north, Range 5 west, and Sections 1, 12, 13 and 14, of Town 9 north, Range 6 west. The completion of the Cincinnati & Terre Haute Railroad through the southwest corner of this county gave the coal interest a new impetus by affording shipping facilities, and several companies have been organized. Men of enterprise and capital are now prospecting, and at no distant fut- ure this part of the country promises to become one of the richest coal producing regions in the State.
AGRICULTURE.
Jefferson has always sustained the reputation of being a good agricult- ural district, and among her citizens are many of the best farmers in the county. The soil in the western part of the township rests upon an im- pervious shale and clay subsoil, and is well adapted to the production of wheat and the other cereals. The sandstone soil on the ridges is not so fer- tile, but when properly cultivated it produces good crops of the smaller grains. The southwest corner of the township abounds in a black sandy loam, which is very fertile. It is better adapted for corn, and yields good crops of that staple every year.
The general appearance of the majority of the farms indicates a spirit of thrift and prosperity on the part of the citizens, which speak well for their enterprise. Good residences, large barns, and other evi- dences of comfort exist, all of which go to show that the inhabitants of Jefferson are blessed with an unusual degree of happiness and content- ment.
SETTLEMENT.
The first permanent white settlement within the present boundaries of Jefferson was made about the year 1820, along Eel River, in the southwest corner of the township, by emigrants from North Carolina. In the year 1818, Adam Fiscus, a native of North Carolina, made a tour of inspection through Owen and Greene Counties, for the purpose of selecting a site for a settlement, and being pleased with the locality mentioned, on account of the fertile soil, he determined to make it the objective point for a number of families who were desirous of leaving their native State. After marking his claim, he returned to his native home, and in the following fall, in company with several of his neigh- bors, he started for the new country. They did not reach their destina- tion that season, however, on account of stormy weather, and stopped during the winter on Blue River, in the southern part of the State. The next spring the little band of home seekers loaded their few household goods on their clumsy wagons, and after several weeks' rough traveling, through almost impenetrable forests, and across streams swollen to over- flowing by the rains, succeeded in reaching the spot which Fiscus had visited the year previous. Hastily improvising rude temporary shelters,
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HISTORY OF OWEN COUNTY.
the pioneers went to work and erected cabins, around which small patches of ground were cleared and planted. The names of these early pioneers, as far as known, were Adam Fiscus, Henry Arney, Sr., Henry Arney, Jr., Hieronymous Speas, William Boyles and John Stokeley.
William Winters and his son Obadiah, afterward a preacher of the Christian Church, came a little later, and settled in the same neighbor. hood. They were North Carolinians also, but moved here from Greene County, where they had been living during the previous two years. In 1821, the little community was increased by the arrival of Frederick and George Hauser, the first of whom settled on Lick Creek, the latter taking a claim near the central part of the township.
Andrew Arney and Peter Speas came in 1822, and located in the Eel River settlement. In 1823-24, Adam Fiscus sold his improvements to Obadiah Winters, and moved to the northern part of the township, near the present site of Middletown Village, where he entered land on which his son, Adam, Jr., still lives. Henry Arney died in the year 1822, his death being among the first events of the kind that occurred in the township. His sons, Henry, Andrew, John and Laurence became prom- inent citizens; the last named is still living in the township. The above- named pioneers, with their respective families, were the first settlers of Jefferson Township.
Later came Frederick Fiscus, a brother-in-law of Adam Fiscus. He settled near the Bethel Church as early as the year 1825, and was the first blacksmith in the township. His brothers, Peter and Henry, came some time later, and settled not far from the village of Middletown.
Joseph Cooper and his brother Daniel settled in the western part of the township prior to the year 1826, and about the same time came Jacob Mowry, and settled where John Fiscus now lives, near Eel River. Prior to the year 1830, the following settlers, additional to those enu- merated, became residents of the township, to wit: John Hilsabeck, Jon- athan Adams, John Fulke, Daniel Moser, G. M. Thatcher and William Price.
Subsequent settlers were David Furguson, Isaac Heaton, William Heaton, Samuel Kelly, Jesse G. Adams, Luke Philbert, M. Littlejohn, Jesse Roark, Henry Littlejohn, John Ridge, Isaac Littlejohn, Abijah Hubble, Thomas Winters and others. The first entry of land was made in the year 1816, by William Rilley, who obtained a patent for a portion of Section 36, Town 9 north, Range 5 west. Two years later, entries were made by Charles Patrick, in Section 13, Town 9, Range 6; Fran- cis Gobuile and Jean B. Trubell, in Section 24, Town 9, Range 5. Prior to the year 1837, the following persons secured lands in the town- ship by entry, viz., Andrew Wilson, M. S. Wines, John P. Dunn, Omer Tousey, George P. Buell, Isaac Halbert, Charles Butler, Samuel Dyer, Jesse G. Adams, Abraham Stough, John Mann, George Phipps, Charles Brush, William Halladay, David Halladay, Obadiah Harris, William Sullivan, Isaac Littlejohn, Thomas Baltzell, Isaac Richard, G. W. Pratt, Samuel Duncan, William Price, O. G. Duncan, Philip Baltzell and Green Price.
PIONEER LIFE.
We have been moderately curious as to the motive which set journey- ing hither so many from the far-off State of North Carolina. Most of the emigrants had not reached life's meridian. They were young, hopeful,
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JEFFERSON TOWNSHIP.
courageous-poor in finances, but rich in possibilities. A fat soil ready for the plow and temperate climate were not peculiar to Indiana or Jefferson Township. Not a few of the pioneers have left their record that they sought homes here because the country would not be blemished by negro slavery and class distinctions. They were an honest, hard- working class of people, but right nobly did they do their duty in laying the foundation for the civilization which to-day is the boast of their pos- terity. The inquisitorial list of questions in the Assessor's blanks pre- pared in the early history of the State is inferential evidence as to the condition of the early Indiana homes. A few articles of household fur- niture, a cow, a couple of pigs and perchance a horse, together with the rude farming implements and wagon, all of which would aggregate but few dollars, would form the sum total of taxable personal property. We have seen tax receipts of those relatively far-off days in which the taxes on 160 acres of land were only $1.20, and these receipts were given to the early settlers of Jefferson and its sister townships.
The wages of a stout, willing boy was a " bit " a day during summer, and a good harvest hand was paid as high as a half dollar, or the exact price of a pound of coffee. "Hired girls" were not a class; in case of illness, some young woman would leave home for a few days to care for the afflicted household, but her services were not rendered for the pay she received. The discharge of the sacred duty, to care for the sick, was the motive, and it was never neglected. The accepted life of a woman was to marry, bear and rear children, and prepare the household food, spin, weave and make the garments for the family. Her whole life was the grand simple poem of rugged, toilsome duty, bravely and uncomplaining- ly done. Some of these cheerful dames still live, and seem to regret the times that will never come again. One of them says the floor of her cabin was so uneven that she placed rude wedges under her table legs to keep it steady, and when the rain fell, the water which came down the chimney formed a pool in the depression called a hearth, and she bailed the water ont with a skillet. Another boasts of the fact that she wove over a thousand yards of woolen and linen fabrics, and still displays, with pride, bed spreads and other articles, which, for neatness of finish and durability, cannot be excelled by the fruit of the modern loom.
During the first two years of their sojourn, the settlers on Eel River obtained all their marketing from New Albany, more than one hundred miles distant. To make a trip there required several days, and sometimes, when the streams were full, it required a much longer time.
Two or three persons would generally do the hauling for the entire neighborhood, and take such produce as the country afforded, i. e., venison hams, feathers, beeswax, and, in later years, wheat and pork. In return for these articles, the traders would receive sugar, coffee and other gro- ceries, and occasionally a few yards of calico. The most of the wearing apparel, however, was manufactured at home, and consisted of jeans, linsey-woolsey and linen. Some of the settlers wore clothing made of deer skins, and manufactured their own shoes from deer and hog skins, tanned in large troughs.
When the first settlers made their appearance, there was an Indian village not far from the site of Coal City. The Indians, while not hos- tile, caused the pioneers a great deal of annoyance by their persistent begging, and when favorable opportunities presented themselves they did not scruple to drive away pigs and calves, and steal any articles on which they could lay their hands. 1
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HISTORY OF OWEN COUNTY.
IMPROVEMENTS.
The first mill in the township was erected by Adam Fiscus as early as the year 1824, and stood near the village of Middletown. It was a small log structure, operated by horse power, and did all the grinding for the entire neighborhood for a period of seven or eight years. It stood for about fifteen years.
An early mill was built by Isaac Hubbell in the southwest corner of the township on Eel River, from which it received its motive power. The machinery was of the most primitive description, used only for grinding corn, and the mill-house was constructed of round logs. The old build- ing stood for many years, and the mill seems to have been well patron- ized by the pioneers of this and adjoining townships. Aaron Hubbell succeeded his father as proprietor, and remodeled the mill, erecting a frame building and supplying it with good machinery. The latter build- ing stood until the year 1880, at which time it was destroyed by fire. The first steam mill in the township was built about the year 1858 or 1859, at Middletown. It was erected by John Curry, who did a good business for about two years, when the building caught fire and burned to the ground.
A Mr. Littlejohn built a small water mill on Lick Creek many years ago. It was operated very successfully by Mr. Littlejohn, and later by different parties, the last proprietor being John Stants. The building fell into ruins a long time ago, and at the present time but few vestiges of it remain.
The early pioneers of Jefferson were noted for their many social virt- ues and good morals, but like all settlers in new countries, they were fond of the convivial cup, and whisky was an article found in every household. This fact led many to engage in its manufacture, and among the earliest industries of the township were distilleries, where the liquor could be obtained for the nominal sum of 15 cents per gallon, the price of a bushel of corn. The first distillery was put in operation by Adam Fis- cus, who brought it from North Carolina. He operated it about two years, at the end of which time he sold it to Eli Dixon, who moved it to Greene County.
John Fulke brought a distillery from North Carolina also, and set it up in the western part of the township, where it stood for about twenty years. Fulke did a good business and achieved the reputation of mak- ing a fine article of " fire-water," in consequence of which his "still " was well patronized.
Several other small distilleries have been operated at different times, as well as tanneries. The largest tannery was started by John Clarke and Jonas Fulke about the year 1858, and stood in the southwest part of the township. They carried on a very successful business for about twenty years, and abandoned the enterprise in 1878. Elias Hilsabeck and Henry Littlejohn were the first settlers to erect frame houses on their farms. Hieronymous Speas planted one of the earliest orchards in the township.
CEMETERIES.
The first burial place in Jefferson was laid out on the land of Henry Arney, in the Eel River settlement, as early as the year 1822. Among the first persons buried in this cemetery were Henry Arney, Mrs. Lau- rence Arney, Mrs. Catharine Hubbell, and several children whose names
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JEFFERSON TOWNSHIP.
were not learned. The second graveyard was laid out on the Frederick Fiscus land, about one-half mile from the Bethel Church, in the northern part of the township. Here were laid to rest in an early day a child of George Hauser, Mrs. Elijah Moser, Elijah Bass, and a child of John Arney.
The Bethel Graveyard was set apart for the burial of the dead as early as 1825, and probably a little earlier. The first interment here was Mrs. Henry Arney. Other early burials were Mrs. Laurence Arney, Mrs. Spenhoward, Mrs. Mary Fulke, Noah Arney and others.
The Littlejohn Graveyard is situated in the western part of the town- ship, on land entered by the Littlejohns. Among the first persons buried in this cemetery were Sarah Littlejohn, Isaac Littlejohn, Henry C. Slough, and an infant child of Abraham Slough.
There is also a graveyard at Pleasant Bethel Church, which was laid out more recently.
EARLY MARRIAGES.
In the year 1821, Hieronymous Speas and Anna M., daughter of Adam Fiscus, were joined in the holy bonds of matrimony. This, from the most reliable accounts, appears to have been the first marriage ever solemnized in Jefferson Township. Jacob Mowry and Elizabeth Fiscus were married a few years later.
EARLY BIRTHS.
The first birth within the present limits of Jefferson occurred in the family of William Boyles, in the year 1821, at which time a son, Adam, was born. Hiram I. Speas, son of Hieronymous and Anna M. Speas, was born in the year 1824, and is still living on the place where he first saw the light.
VILLAGES.
Middletown is a small hamlet situated in Section 14, Town 9 north, Range 5 west. It dates its origin from about the year 1830, and was at one time the distributing point for a large scope of country. A number of merchants have done business here, and until within the past few years the village was a very good trading point.
At the present time there is one small store, a shoe shop, post office, and a population of about ten or fifteen families.
NEW JEFFERSONVILLE.
This is a paper city existing only upon the county records, the plat hav- ing been abandoned long since. It was laid out in the year 1840, and embraced a part of southeast quarter of the northwest quarter of Section 28, Town 9 north, Range 5 west. The plat was surveyed for Henry Slough, proprietor, and consisted of thirty-two lots, all of which were 100 feet deep and sixty feet wide.
It does not appear that any improvements were ever made in the vil- lage, and the plat at the present time is a plowed field.
STOCKTON.
This village was surveyed in the year 1852, and christened Davids- burg, a name it bore until 1854, at which time it was changed to Stock- ton, to correspond with the name of the post office. It is situated in Section 12, Town 9 north, Range 6 west, and consists of sixteen lots,
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HISTORY OF OWEN COUNTY.
which were laid out by David Bush and John Ridge, proprietors. The first store was kept by James Cole, who did business for a period of eighteen months with a small stock of groceries and whisky. The next merchant was J. J. Hochstettler, who dealt in general merchandise for about two years, at the end of which time the stock was purchased by Stephen Howland, who in turn sold to Isaac Walters after doing business three years. A Mr. Bryant succeeded Walters, and remained in the vil- lage about three years, when he disposed of the store to Nathan Hunt. Other merchants who sold goods from time to time were Henry Y. Miller, Miller & Kennedy, Miller & Gard, Gard & Fitro, Joseph and Moses Pearson, the Marley Brothers, Thomas J. Winters, Philip Faris and Jacob Dodd. Messrs. Stants & Bowen engaged in harness and shoe- making in 1862, and continued a very successful business until 1877, at which time they transferred their establishment to Coal City. The post office was established in 1854, with J. J. Hochstettler as Postmaster. The office was discontinued in 1879, and a new one established at Coal City. The completion of the Cincinnati & Terre Haute Railroad, and the rapid growth of the thriving town of Coal City a couple of miles west of the village proved its death-blow, and business men abandoned the place for the new town.
There is no business represented in the village at the present time, and the once thriving little city wears a dejected appearance and is rapidly falling into decay.
COAL CITY.
From a dead town we now turn to a live one. Coal City is situated in the western part of the township on the Cincinnati & Terre Haute Railroad, of which it is an outgrowth, and embraces a part of the south- west quarter of Section 11, Town 9 north, Range 6 west. The original plat was laid out by Henry and Charity Grim in the year 1375, and con- sisted of 104 lots. John J. Hochstettler's Addition of twenty-one lots was made in 1877.
In the year 1880, Mary J. Grim made an addition of fifty-five lots, and in 1881 an addition of twenty-four lots was made by Elizabeth Hochstettler. In 1868, a business house was erected on the site of the town by John J. Hochstettler, who moved a stock of goods here from Stockton. This store gave the place some local prominence, and Hoch- stettler did a good business, but it was not until the survey of the railroad through the country that any prospect of a village was entertained. Work commenced on the road in 1873, at which time the town site was pur- chased by Charles D. Wilber and Asa Turner, gentlemen connected with the Indiana Block Coal Company, who platted a town and named it Frazier, after the President of the road. This plat, however, was not recorded, and the speculators being unable to pay for the land it revert- ed back to the original owners, who had the town surveyed as described.
Among the first settlers in the town were John J. Summerlot, Dr. Joseph Hall, David Bolton, Dr. William Garvin and Israel Newport, all of whom purchased lots and erected residences thereon shortly after the town was laid out.
Hochstettler, the first merchant, sold goods until 1876, at which time an interest was purchased by Mr. Grim. Grim & Hochstettler continued as partners about two years, when the entire stock was purchased by the former, who did a good business until his death a short time afterward.
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