Counties of LaGrange and Noble, Indiana : historical and biographical, Part 28

Author: F.A. Battey & Co
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Chicago : Battey & Co.
Number of Pages: 976

USA > Indiana > Noble County > Counties of LaGrange and Noble, Indiana : historical and biographical > Part 28
USA > Indiana > LaGrange County > Counties of LaGrange and Noble, Indiana : historical and biographical > Part 28

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

ROBERT McCLASKEY is the next oldest in a family of seven children. At manhood he married Hannah Durnnell, and in 1844 immigrated to La Grange. La Grange at that time was pretty much all woods, and with only a few houses. He traded for a quarter-section of land in Bloomfied Township, near the village, built a cabin in town, and began clearing and farming his property. He was in very moderate circumstances, and the hard labor all devolved upon him. Of the 160 acres he now has, one hundred were cleared principally through his own exertions. His wife died in January, 1849, having borne our subject five daughters-Rachel, deceased ; Juliann, Margaret J., Sarah R. and Nancy A. December 25, 1849, he married his present wife, Mrs. Hannah (Humiston) Durand, who came to La Grange County in 1834. To this union has been born two sons-Miles R. and John E. By her first husband, Amasa Humiston, Mrs. McClaskey had nine children, viz. : Edgar R., Lucilla E., Juliett, Henry, James, Jason, George, Ira and Susan Janette. Only these two are now living-Ira, who is in California, and George, who resides in La Grange County. Mr. McClaskey is an enterprising citizen, and

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has always favored the advancement of all laudable public enterprises. Polit- ically, Mr. McClaskey was formerly a Whig, tinctured a little with Free-Soilism. He is at present a stanch Republican, while his wife is a member of the M. E. Church.

JAMES H. MCKIBBEN was born in Richland County, Ohio, November 5, 1833, son of James and Sarah (Smith) Mckibben, who were parents of eight children and early settlers of Richland County Ohio. The father was a farmer, and in 1849 emigrated to this county, and engaged in farming. In 1863, moved to Goshen, where he died, December 10, 1876. Mrs. Mckibben is yet living at that place. James H. Mckibben was raised a farmer, and was married March 13, 1856, to Eliza R. Sargent, daughter of Daniel and Maria (Young) Sargent, who came to La Grange County from Cayuga County, N. Y., in 1842, and were among the early settlers of Bloom- field Township. Mr. Mckibben continued farming in Bloomfield Township until August 6, 1862, when he enlisted in Company G, Eighty-eigth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry. He participated in the battles of Perryville, Stone River, Chickamauga, Mission Ridge, through the Atlanta campaign, and was discharged at Indianapolis, July 5, 1865. Mr. Mckibben returned and engaged in farming, at which he continued until 1876, when he rented his farm and retired. He is a Republican, and he and wife are members of the M. E. Church. They are the parents of two daughters-Clara and Bertha D. Mrs. Mckibben was born in Cayuga County, N. Y., June 12, 1838. Mr. McKib- ben owns a farm of 120 acres in Bloomfield Township, on Section 32.

FRANCIS D. MERRITT, attorney at law, was born October 17, 1849, in Cass County, Mich., the son of John S. Merritt, whose sketch appears in this work. He removed with his parents to Branch County, Mich., and from there to La Grange County, in 1860. He attended the schools of La Grange, Orland and Coldwater, and, in 1872, entered Hillsdale College. The latter part of 1873, he read law under James Galloway, Esq., of Hillsdale, after which he took a thorough course in the Law Department of the University at Ann Arbor, graduating in 1874. Mr. Merritt then went to Kansas and began practicing his profession, but in March, 1875, returned, opened an office, and resumed the practice. In 1879, he formed a partnership with James S. Drake. Mr. Merritt is a Republican, and in 1878 was elected President of the Town Board of Trustees. He was married January 3, 1877, to Miss Margie R., daughter of John and Mary (Will) Rice.

JOHN S. MERRITT was born in Onondaga County, N. Y., May 6, 1823, and when two years old emigrated with his parents to Toledo, Ohio, where he was reared and educated. Samuel Merritt, deceased, father of John S., was a native of Orange County, N. Y., his parents being among the first settlers of that county. This gentleman was three times married, his first two wives being cousins of Gov. Clinton, of New York. They each bore him three children, our subject being the youngest by his last wife, Nancy W. Saturly.

· Samuel Merritt came to Toledo in 1825, where he died. In 1842, John S. Merritt went to Cass County, Mich., and engaged in agricultural pursuits. In 1847, he married Miss Mary Bull, and in 1852 removed to Branch County, Mich. Mrs. Merritt died there in March, 1853, leaving one son, Francis D., whose biography accompanies this work. January 1, 1857, Mr. Merritt mar- ried his present wife, A. H. Spaulding, daughter of Judge T. J. Spaulding, and in 1860 moved to this county and purchased a farm in Greenfield Town- ship, where he continued farming until 1866, when he was elected County

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Sheriff by the Republicans, and moved to La Grange. After his term of Sheriff had expired, he engaged in farming until 1874, when he took part in the organization of the First National Bank, and by the stockholders was elected President. Since that time Mr. Merritt has been engaged in banking, and after serving three and a half years as President was elected Vice Presi- dent, a position he still holds. To his union with Miss Spaulding were born three children-Mary, Etta and John.

JOHN A. MILLER, furniture dealer, is a descendant of one of the very first settlers in La Grange County. He was born in Greenfield Township, September 16, 1836, and is a son of John and Naoma (Barr) Miller. In 1829, the family of Amos Barr and John Miller, whose wife was a daughter of Amos Barr, emigrated from Marion County, Ohio, to White Pigeon, Mich., where they lived until the next season, and then came to English Prairie, in Green- field Township, this county, and laid claim to land there not then in market. In 1830, they moved to this place, and were among the county's earliest set- tlers. Mr. Miller died the spring of 1837. John A. Miller passed his youth- ful days on the old farm, doing the duties of a pioneer boy's life. In 1857, he came to La Grange and engaged in the grocery trade about five years. In 1864, he and a number of others were sent South by the Government to do mechan- ical work, and on this expedition he learned house joining. He followed that trade until 1874, when he, together with William H. Jackson, purchased the furniture stock of John Rice, and engaged in a general furniture trade and undertaking. In about a year, Mr. Miller retired from the firm and engaged in the same business alone. In 1875, he formed a partnership with his present partner under the firm name of Miller & Lutz. They erected their present business block in the fall of 1878. Mr. Miller was married in 1862 to Ellen M. Kinney, whose parents were among the old settlers of Lima Township. To this marriage there were born four children, viz. : Flora, Emma, Frank and Libbie. Mr. Miller is a Republican and a member of the Knights of Honor.

SOLOMON C. MILLER, was born in St. Joseph County, Ind., Febru- ary 22, 1840, and is a son of David and Louisa (Connor) Miller, natives respectively of Pennsylvania and Ireland. David Miller was one of the earliest pioneers of St. Joseph County, Ind., settling at South Bend when there were only two business houses in the place. He was a farmer and also a minister of the Dunkard denomination. He entered land in St. Joseph County and remained there until his death, which occurred at North Liberty, November 28, 1876. Solomon C. Miller received a good education and passed his youth on the home farm. In 1861, he enrolled in Company F, Twenty-ninth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and served until the fall of 1862, when he was mustered out at Nashville, Tenn. After his return he clerked in a grocery and dry goods store at South Bend for about two and a half years, since which time he has principally been eagaged in the restaurant business at Detroit and Allegan, Mich., and Elkhart and La Grange, Ind. Of the last-named place he has been a resident seven years. He was married, May 10, 1868, to Miss M. McCor- mick, who was born in Allegan, Mich., August 5, 1852. She is a daughter of John P. and Josephine McCormick, the former a native of Virginia and the latter of New York. Mr. and Mrs. Miller have a family of four children, Maud E., Edna J., Claude D. and Oral L. Mr. Miller is an experienced hunter, and makes annual hunting excursions to Michigan and the West.

S. D. MOON was born in the State of New York April 19, 1834; son of Salma and Caroline (Morton) Moon, who were parents of eight children,

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seven of whom are now living. The mother died in 1863, but the father is yet living and resides in Wayne County, Mich. S. D. Moon, when but an infant, came with his parents to Wayne County, Mich., where he continued to reside, farming until 1866, when he moved to Kent County, Mich. Subsequently, he moved to La Grange, and formed a partnership with his brother, Charles K., in the manufacture of wagons and carriages, and wagon and carriage wood stock. In 1870, Samuel Parker was admitted into the partnership, which then became Moon, Bro. & Co. In 1874, Charles R. Moon retired from the firm which then became Moon & Co. In 1879, Mr. Parker withdrew, leaving Mr. Moon alone. Mr. Moon, does an average annual business of from $5,000 to $6,000. He is a Republican, and he and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. He was married in 1855 to Sarah J. Dalrymple, and to them have been born two children-Adolphus D. and Eddie C., both of whom are now dead. Mrs. Moon was born July 15, 1837, in Wayne County, Mich. JACOB NEWMAN was born in Richland County, Ohio, October 15, 1832; son of Henry and Jane (Ward) Newman, natives of Pennsylvania and England, respectively, and parents of eight children, five only of whom are living. He is a grandson of Jacob and Catharine (Freymeyer) Newman, his grandfather being the first settler in Richland County, Ohio, and the founder of the city of Mansfield. Jacob Newman, when seventeen years old, moved with his parents to Williams County, Ohio. At the age of twenty-one, he returned to Mansfield, and for a year engaged in clerking. The firm by whom he was employed and John Will purchased a stock of goods, and in 1854 sent them to La Grange in charge of Mr. Newman, who remained with them a little over two years. From 1856 to 1858, he was in partnership with Maj. Bingham in a general store, which was built by them. In 1857, Mr. Newman married Isabel Menelaus, who died in 1860, leaving one son-John H. In October, 1861, he enlisted in Company H, Forty-fourth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and was elected Second Lieutenant of his company. At the battle of Shiloh, · April 6, while he was in the thickest of the fight, and during one of the most hotly contested engagements of the day, the color-bearer and supporter were shot down at the same time, and two others who immediately raised the colors were also shot down and the flag riddled with balls. Lieut. Newman bore it aloft but soon fell, mortally wounded, as was then supposed, and has never fully recovered from his wounds. During the remainder of the war, he was Deputy Provost Marshal and had charge of the enlistment roll. The Republican party elected him County Treasurer in 1864, and re-elected him in 1866. In 1869, he went into business with S. K. Ruick, and in 1871 he engaged in the marble trade with L. C. Wood ; in 1873, formed a partnership with H. J. Platt, which has continued successfully. The son by his first marriage died in 1862, and Mr. Newman married his present wife, Mary Menelaus, in 1863. To this union were born Mary, Jennie, Grace, Henry and Carl. Of these only Jennie and Carl are now living. Mr. Newman had two brothers who served in the Thirty-eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, one of whom was killed.

DR. J. P. NIMAN, one of La Grange's oldest physicians, was born De- cember 7, 1828, in Mansfield, Ohio, the son of Henry and Harriet (Greer) Niman, who were parents of eight children. His youthful days were passed at home on the farm of his parents, and his educational advantages consisted in self-instruction at night-time. At his majority, he went to Henry County, Iowa, on a business visit. While there, he met and, in September, 1849, married Laura Dennison, after which he returned to Ohio and continued the study of

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medicine in Richland and Crawford Counties. In September, 1852, he emi- grated with his family to La Grange, where he began the practice of his profes- sion. His wife died in 1857, leaving three children-Josephine, Laura and Charles H. In 1858, Dr. Niman married his second wife, Emily Oliver, and the same year removed to Missouri. In January, 1862, he entered the employ of the United States Government as physician and surgeon, but after about six months' service his wife died and he resigned. In 1862, he returned to La Grange and resumed his practice. To his marriage with his present wife, Jane Plats, there have been born three children-Alton, Jonas and George T. Dr. Niman is at present in partnership with his son, Charles H., who graduated from the medical school at Bellevue, New York City, in 1879. Dr. Niman, Sr., is a Republican, and one of the prominent citizens whose portraits appear in this work.

T. F. PERINE was born July 3, 1844, in Lawrenceburg, Ind., one of six children. His parents, P. R. and Mary E. (Tucker) Perine, moved to Indian- apolis, when he was but a child, where they are yet living. T. F. Perine was reared and educated in Indianapolis. At the age of seventeen, having twice be- fore made the attempt, he ran away, and, August 9, 1862, enlisted in Company I, Sixty-third Indiana Volunteer Infantry. He participated in the engagements of Rocky Face Ridge, Burnt Hickory, Resaca, Cartersville, Marietta and Ken- esaw Mountain, and in numerous skirmishes. He was shot by a rebel sharp- shooter, from the effects of which he lost all the muscles of his left hip and is still a sufferer from the wound. Shortly after his enlistment, he was appointed special detective at Gen. Carrington's headquarters, at Indianapolis, and for eighteen months was engaged in arresting rebel abettors and in breaking up meetings of the Knights of the Golden Circle. He had command of the troops at Indianapolis, and traveled over the State in the discharge of his duty. For three years each he resided in Chicago and Cincinnati in the real estate busi- ness. In 1874, he came to La Grange, soon afterward entering the County Recorder's office as Deputy ; after which, he commenced the insurance business and the prosecution of pension claims. He was married in September, 1868, to Miss Mary E. Jones, daughter of John Paul Jones. To their marriage have been born three children-Ida May, Perrie R. and Ethel.

JOHN M. PRESTON was born in Lordstown, Trumbull County, Ohio, December 29, 1836, the son of James and Mary (Matthews) Preston, who were of Scotch and Irish descent respectively and the parents of eight children. The mother died when he was fifteen years old, and his father remarrying, they came to Bloomfield Township, this county, in 1854, where the father is yet living. On the 28th of July, 1862, John M. enlisted in Company G, Eighty-eighth Indiana Volunteer Infantry. He was shortly after appointed Sergeant Major; February 18, 1863, was commissioned Second Lieutenant. For efficient serv- ices, he was promoted Captain of his company on the 1st of September, 1864. Capt. Preston participated actively in the engagements of Perryville, Stone River, Chickamauga, Lookout Mountain, Missionary Ridge and through the Atlanta campaign of 1864. He was mustered out in June, 1865, and returned to La Grange, where he engaged in mercantile pursuits. March 27, 1860, he married Maria Sargent, and in 1868 removed to Missouri, but in 1873 returned to La Grange and engaged in the insurance business. Mr. Preston is a Repub- lican, and by that party was elected Clerk of the town of La Grange in 1878 and re-elected in 1879. The fall of 1880, he was elected Treasurer of La Grange County, in which capacity he is now serving. He and wife are parents

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of four children-Anna Bell, Grace M. (deceased), Maud B. and Daisy B. Mrs. Preston is a daughter of Daniel and Maria (Young) Sargent, who were old settlers of La Grange County, and is a member of the M. E. Church.

MAJ. JOHN H. RERICK, editor and proprietor of the La Grange Standard, was born, February 4, 1830, in Tippecanoe County, this State, the son of Henry and Elizabeth (Lamb) Rerick, natives respectively of New York and Indiana, the mother of English and the father of German descent. The latter died in 1876, in the seventy-second year of his age. John H., at the age of fifteen, began teaching school during winters. In 1851, he entered the Medical Department of the Michigan University at Ann Arbor, and graduated March 1, 1853. He then commenced the practice of his profession at Sump- tion Prairie, St. Joseph County, Ind., to which place his father's family had previously removed. December 2, 1853, he married Miss Elizabeth Green, of Sumption Prairie. The following spring he moved to Fort Wayne, where he was efficiently active during the cholera plague of the following season. Jan- uary 20, 1855, his wife died, leaving an infant son, Louis, born January 6. The following spring he removed to South Bend, where the child died July 27. In the fall he went to Elkhart and was married, May 1, 1856, to Miss Maria- nette Devor. In 1859, he removed to La Grange. Here, at the commencement of the war of the rebellion, the doctor became active in the enlistment of soldiers, writing the first enrollment paper, which he now has in his possession, with the signatures of those enlisting. In August, 1861, he enlisted in the Thirtieth In- diana Infantry, but was soon commissioned as Assistant Surgeon of the Forty- fourth Regiment. This command took the field in Kentucky, where the Doctor was left in charge of the sick at Calhoun, but joined his command the 1st of March, 1862, near Fort Henry, participating in the two days' battle of Pitts- burg Landing, notwithstanding he was wounded the first day. He accompa- nied his regiment to Corinth, Booneville and to Iuka, Miss., where he was taken sick and sent home for a month. Joining his command, he participated in its movements and took part in the battle of Stone River. In February, 1863, he was again sent home hopelessly ill, but recovered sufficiently to enable him to return the 1st of April. In October, 1863, he was commissioned Surgeon of his regiment, which took part in the sanguinary battle of Chickamauga. Here the Doctor displayed energy and judicious management in removing the wounded from the field-hospital and saving them from capture by the enemy. He served at Chattanooga until the close of the war and was mustered out in September, 1865. The Doctor's war record is a bright page in his history. Entering as a private, promoted to Assistant Surgeon, then Surgeon, and serving four years with the command with which he entered the field, complimented by his com- manding officers, form a brilliant career. Returning to La Grange, he resumed the practice of medicine with Dr. E. G. White. In 1867, he purchased the Standard and entered upon his editorial duties. His politics are thoroughly Republican, and by that party was elected, in 1868, Clerk of the Circuit Court and re-elected, serving eight years. He was one of the founders and is now President of the Island Park Assembly Association, which has its grounds at Rome City. He is a member of the I. O. O. F. and he and his wife are mem- bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church. They have three sons-Rowland H., born February 5, 1857; John D., July 1, 1860; and Carl, July 4, 1868.

EDWARD ROYER was born in Stark County, Ohio, September 3, 1836, a son of Jacob and Mary (Michael) Royer, now dead. Edward Royer was reared a farmer, receiving a common-school education. When nineteen

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years old, he began learning the harness maker's trade at Uniontown. In 1859, he came to Indiana; in 1860, he entered the employ of the Government as manufacturer, at Pittsburgh. In August, 1862, he enlisted in Company E, One Hundred and Fifteenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry; was discharged July 7, 1865, at Cleveland. August 24, 1865, he was married to Miss Lucy Sum- mers, daughter of John and Martha (Lee) Summers, of Covington, Ky. Mr. Royer at once moved to La Grange, where for two years he worked a journey- man at his trade, and in the winter of 1867 established himself in business. He and wife united with the M. E. Church in 1865, and in that year Mr. Royer assisted in the organization of the I. O. G. T. He is also a member of the I. O. O. F. of La Grange. He and wife are parents of three children- Edward H., born November 30, 1870, died February 23, 1881 ; Frank L., born September 8. 1874, and Mattie B., born September 10, 1878, and died September 12, 1879. The mother was born near Covington, Ky., May 5, 1841.

S. K. RUICK is a native of Guernsey County, Ohio, where he was born August 20, 1830, the son of Daniel and Mary Ruick. S. K. Ruick was reared in Hebron, Ohio, until nineteen years of age, and in 1849, he visited relatives at Lima ; then returned to Ohio, settled up his affairs and came again to Lima and engaged in the stock business. Through the summer of 1853, he was in the employ of Knott & Hubbard, in a general store; he then took charge, for a year, of a store in La Grange for Mr. Knott; was then in part- nership with R. S. Hubbard three years. In 1857, this firm, with Bingham & Newman, erected the block now owned by John Will, on the corner south- east of the public square. After the dissolution of the firm of Hubbard & Ruick, in 1857, Mr. Ruick opened a dry goods store, but shortly afterward sold out. The spring of 1859, he erected another store building, and again engaged in the dry goods trade. In 1861, he sold his entire business interests in La Grange to Jewett, Morrison & Hill, and went to New York City, where for two and a half years he was employed selling goods. In 1864, he and fam- ily moved to Toledo, Ohio, where Mr. Ruick became a partner in a wholesale grocery house. He continued there until 1865, when he removed back to La Grange and engaged in farming. The fall of 1869, he and Jacob Newman engaged in the dry goods trade, but Mr. Newman's health failing shortly after- ward he withdrew. In 1870, Mr. Ruick erected the warehouse near the depot, and went into the produce and commission business. In 1873, he and William Hudson formed a partnership in the lumber trade, and the same vear erected the La Grange Flouring Mills. In January, 1875, the partnership was dis- solved, Mr. Ruick continuing the lumber business for about two years, when he formed a partnership with his son. In 1877, they erected the planing-mill, which they operated until 1879, when the firm was dissolved. Since that time Mr. Ruick has been operating in real estate. He was married in January, 1852, to Lucy A. Kinney, and they are the parents of three living children- Frank D., Flora M. and Etta E.

J. M. SHACKLETON was born August 6, 1852, in St. Catharines, Ont., of Francis and Fanny (Johnson) Shackleton, who were parents of nine children. Francis Shackleton was born in Wales, and there reared to manhood. When twenty-one years old, he emigrated to Canada, where he engaged in the milling business, and married our subject's mother. In 1867, he came to Ypsilanti, Mich., and still continued milling until May 7, 1880, when he was killed by an accident in his mill. His wife died in 1869, and he afterward

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married Harriet Lester. J. M. Shackleton began milling for himself at the age of eighteen, in Northville, Mich. In December, 1872, he returned to St. Catharines and entered the grocery trade, but owing to the financial panic, failed. He then went to Eastern Michigan and recommenced his trade. In 1878, he came to La Grange, and was employed in the mill he now owns for about six months, after which he went to Independence, Mo .; but at the end of eight months returned, and for a period of about eighteen months had charge of the Rome City Flouring Mills. In 1881, he formed a partnership in La Grange, under the firm name of Shackleton & Beach, and the fall of that year purchased the La Grange Mills. Mr. Shackleton was married in 1875 to Mary More- house, and they are the parents of one daughter-Lela M. Mr. Shackleton is a member of the Baptist Church, and a Republican. Mrs. Shackleton is a mem- ber of the M. E. Church.

SAMUEL SHEPARDSON, County Auditor, is a son of Otis and Susann (Gibbs) Shepardson, who were natives of the "Green Mountain State," and the parents of seven children. About the year 1835, they emigrated to this county, locating in Springfield Township, then an almost unbroken wilderness, thus becoming early pioneers. Here the father died in 1844, and the mother in 1880. Samuel Shepardson was born in Springfield Township March 19, 1839, and received a good education. September 24, 1861, he enlisted in Company G, Thirtieth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, as private, and was discharged as Sergeant, September 29, 1864. He participated in the battles of Shiloh, Stone River, Chickamauga, and in the Atlanta cam- paign. He was taken prisoner at Stone River December 31, 1862, and re- mained in rebel hands at Knoxville and Libby three months, after which he was paroled and exchanged. He returned home, and January 1, 1868, he and Miss Martha J. Huss were married. She is a daughter of Elijah and Phebe (Hutchins) Huss, and was born June 5, 1849. They have had two children-Kit C. and Ella P. In 1868, Mr. Shepardson began working at the carpenter's trade, and in that year was elected County Treasurer as a Repub- lican. In 1870, he was re-elected, serving four years. In 1874, he was elected County Auditor, and having been re-elected, is now serving his second term of four years. Mr. Shepardson's career in private life, and as a soldier and a county official, stamps him as a representative citizen, and the appreciation of his sterling worth by the people of the county is shown in their continuing him in official position.

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Counties of LaGrange and Noble, Indiana : historical and biographical, Part 28

Author: F.A. Battey & Co Publication date: 1882 Publisher: Chicago : Battey & Co. Number of Pages: 976

Author: F.A. Battey & Co
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Chicago : Battey & Co.
Number of Pages: 976