Counties of LaGrange and Noble, Indiana : historical and biographical, Part 56

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 56
USA > Indiana > LaGrange County > Counties of LaGrange and Noble, Indiana : historical and biographical > Part 56

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).

HISTORY OF NOBLE COUNTY.

countenance was stern, and reminded one of that old hero, Andrew Jackson. In the management of his cases, his comprehensive mind at once grasped the strong points, and to these he clung, and cunning or sophistry could not drive him from his position. All who were present at the time will remember his last appearance here. It was after the burning of the court house at Albion, and the court was held in the Lutheran Church. An old man had fallen into the hands of a set of sharpers, who had succeeded in swindling him out of over $10,000. Chamberlain was employed to unearth the dark trans- action. He spent much time in the preparation of the case, and had obtained a full history of the facts, which he had embodied in complaint. Two of the defendants were present when he commenced the presentation of the case to the court.

As he proceeded to expose the transaction, and as link after link of the chain was unfolded, and as Chamberlain, warming with his subject and aware of the righteousness of his cause, hurled against them his charges, couched in such words as only he could string together, though all felt that they deserved exposure and punishment, yet all felt pity for the trembling cul- prits who were his victims. As if aware of the fact that he had them securely in his grasp, like the cat who sports with her prey, he would for a time relax his coils, giving them a short respite, then again tightening his hold, until at last he broke forth in a torrent of invective, at once so withering and over- whelming, that one of the defendants, unable to endure the mental torture, left the church and did not return until Chamberlain had closed. He was at one time a member of Congress from this district, was for many years Judge of the Circuit in which he resided, and held many offices of trust, and no official corruption was ever laid to his charge. To his family he was kind and indul- gent, and the tenderness and affection of woman were as much his character- istics at home as was sternness and inflexibility in the discharge of his public duties. He died at his home in Goshen in the spring of 1861.

It is not certain who was the first physician who settled in the county. This distinction lies between Dr. Victor M. Cole, who located at Wolf Lake, and Dr. Dudley C. Waller, who came to Rochester about the same time. Both came in 1837, but it is uncertain which was first in the county. They were both considered good doctors, were both men of good hearts, and when called to minister to the suffering never asked whether they were sure of their pay. In fact, much of the service rendered by them was never paid for, and both died poor many years ago. Waller left the county in 1839, and returned to his former home in Vermont, where he died soon after. Cole is buried at Augusta, and it is uncertain whether the place can be identified. Dr. W. H. Nimmon was also one of the early physicians, having settled at Rochester in the latter part of 1839. He died in 1879, at Wawaka. Before any physicians settled here, Dr. Johnston Latta, of Goshen, practiced in the county, and Dr. S. B. Kyler, of Benton, and Dr. E. W. H. Ellis, of Goshen, were frequently called.

HISTORY OF NOBLE COUNTY.

Dr. John H. G. Shoe lived at the Indian village, and though some said he was not much of a doctor, yet it must be admitted that he was a good singer, and that he was careful not to give medicines that would injure any one, as he never kept any on hand.

Jacob Wolf, Esq., of Perry Township, who settled here in 1831, says that the first sermon preached in the county was in the summer of 1832, and that it was preached on Perry's Prairie, by a Presbyterian minister from South Bend, but is unable to give his name. Rev. Robinson, of the M. E. Church, and Rev. Plumstead and Christopher Cory, Presbyterians, preached here at a very early day, and a Presbyterian Church was organized as early as 1836 on the Haw Patch, but whether it was in Noble or La Grange is not settled. Members of the church lived in both counties, and services were held at the house of William McConnell, in La Grange, and also at Isaac Cavin's and Sey- mour Moses', in Noble. In 1837, Mr. Cavin and Mr. Moses built a log cabin near the place where the Salem Chapel now stands, which served the double purpose of a church and schoolhouse. This was the first building in the county used for these purposes aside from private houses. In this house, humble though it was, the fathers and mothers met to worship God, and with sincere hearts gave devout thanks that they had even such a temple. Here Seymour Moses taught a school. From this small beginning, what results are seen ! From the log cabin, erected at a cost of only the labor of a few pious settlers, we have now within the limits of the county fifty-four churches, erected at a cost of over $200,000. If genuine piety and religion have advanced in pro- portion, what a power for good would now go out from Noble County !

The first marriage in the county was that of Lewis Murphy to a sister of Isaac Tibbott. The bride was one of the children brought here by Joel Bristol in 1827, and at the time Noble County was attached to Allen, and the marriage license was procured at Fort Wayne. The next was that of Gideon Schlotter- back to Miss Mary Engle, in 1833, when this county was called La Grange. After the organization of Noble County, the first marriage was that of Jacob Baker, who died last spring. Schlotterback is still living, and is hale and hearty. Murphy left the county a long time ago, and whether living or dead is not known to the writer.

There has been some conflict of opinion as to who was the first white child born within the limits of Noble County, but it seems to be settled now that it was a son of Henry Miller. Miller came to the county in November, 1831, and on the 31st of December of that year his wife gave birth to a son, who lived but a few days or weeks, this being, so far as is known, the first birth as well as the first death of a white person in the county. The father died three years ago; the mother is still living. On the 8th day of August, 1832, Simon Hostetter, son of John and Mahala Hostetter, was born on the Haw Patch, and he is still living, being the first white child born in the county that lived to maturity.

Mary Bowman YORK TP.

HISTORY OF NOBLE COUNTY.

The first post office in the county was established in 1833, and, at the sug- gestion of Jacob Wolf, was named " Good Hope." Henry Miller was the first Postmaster. The mail was carried from Fort Wayne to Niles once in two weeks. John G. Hall carried the " bag " on a spotted ox or some other kind of masculine bovine. The receipts of the office were from $1.25 to $1.50 per quarter, hence there was not much strife for the place. Miller became tired of handling the mails and resigned, and Jacob Shobe became Postmaster, and the office was kept at the old Shobe farm in the southwest part of Perry Township. Subsequently the office was removed to Stone's Tavern, and thence to Ligonier, and the name changed from Good Hope to Ligonier.

The first house for a residence was built by Joel Bristol in Noble Town- ship, but there was a brick house erected by the Government on Section 30 in Sparta, the exact date of which is not certain, but was some time between 1816 and 1821. A fuller account of this house will appear in the history of Sparta. The first hewed log house was built by Jacob Shobe in 1833, and the first brick residence was built by Jacob Wolf.

CHAPTER III. BY WESTON A. GOODSPEED.

EARLY ROADS-MANNER OF VIEWING, IMPROVING AND SUSTAINING THEM-MAIL ROUTES AND STAGE LINES-THE PLANK ROAD-RAILROADS AND COUNTY STOCK-NOBLE COUNTY AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY-STOCK REARING-THE SEMINARY FUND-THE COUNTY PRESS-THE BLACKLEGS AND THE REGU- LATORS.

T HE first traveled highways which extended across Noble County were the Fort Wayne and Goshen road and the Fort Wayne and Lima road, each having been surveyed prior to the organization of the county in 1836, pursuant to special acts of the State Legislature. The precise time when these enactments were approved cannot be learned, but was probably about the years 1832 or 1833, as, at that time, both the roads were quite well traveled by set- tlers who lived in the older localities, at the extremities of the road distant from Fort Wayne. At that time, there was quite a large settlement at Lima, in La Grange County, while few, if any, settlers had located along the road in Noble County. The same is true of the Goshen road, save one settlement a few miles southeast of Wolf Lake. Both roads, at that early day, were mere winding paths through the woods, twisting around on the higher lands and abounding in mud-holes that apparently (if the statements of old settlers are to be believed) went through to China. It is stated that, when the pioneers first began to locate along the main roads, they would often keep a team of oxen or horses, and the necessary rails, to assist in extricating unfortunates from mud-holes, charging the modest sum of 25 cents to $1 for the trouble. Soon

HISTORY OF NOBLE COUNTY.

the worst places were bridged over by rude log bridges, that were swept away by every freshet, and the long places of swampy road were corduroyed with rails, logs and brush. It was the custom, when a new road was petitioned for, to appoint competent "Viewers," who were to traverse the route, and report upon the practicability of opening the road. If the Viewers reported favor- ably, the State authorities ordered the clearing and working of the road, so as to make it passable for all sorts of teams. The Lima road, although surveyed about the year 1833, was not opened throughout its entire length until about 1837; but, if reports are correct, the Goshen road was opened about the time the county was organized. Previous to that time, neither had been worked, save here and there where some benevolent settler had seen proper to expend a few days to mend some bad break. Even after the roads had been opened, great trouble was experienced in keeping them in repair, and very often they were almost impassable. Probably, the third road in the county was the one branch- ing from the Goshen road north of Cromwell and running north, through what is now Ligonier, to the State line, in the direction of White Pigeon. This was ordered surveyed not far from the year 1838, and perhaps a year or two earlier, and came into existence largely through the influence of citizens living on "Perry's Prairie," who had petitioned the Legislature for the road. In 1843, the State road, extending from Columbia City to Augusta, was ordered sur- veyed, and John Hively and Joel Bristol were appointed special Road Com- missioners to establish this highway. They employed Thomas Washburn as Surveyor. The road was eighteen miles long, ten being in Noble County. The same year, another road was ordered built from Columbia City to a stake in the Goshen road, on the line between Townships 34 and 35 north, of Range 8 east, the whole road being twenty-two miles long. The special Road Commis- sioners were Stephen Martin, Ross Rowan and John Prickett. The following explains itself :

To the Commissioners of Noble County : In pursuance of an act of the twenty-seventh session of the General Assembly of the State of Indiana, appointing the undersigned Commissioners to locate a State road, from the forks of the roads near Isaac Tibbott's in Noble County to the county seat of La Grange County, said Commissioners hereby report that they met at the beginning point on the 12th of June, 1842, and after being sworn to faithfully discharge the duties of said appointment, and after employing the necessary number of hands, proceeded to survey and mark said road. We believe it will be a road of great public utility, and return it for public use. For a further description, we beg leave to refer you to the following field notes, all of which are respectfully submitted.

[Field notes subjoined. ]

JOHN L. STIENBERGER, ABRAHAM BROWN, WILLIAM F. BEAVERS, Commissioners.

This road was 33 miles in length, 1218% miles being in Noble County, and 20106 miles in La Grange County. In 1843, a State road was constructed from Kendallville to Perry's Prairie, the Commissioners being Mr. Trow- bridge, Jacob Sparbeck and Daniel Bixler. Previous to about the year 1844, all roads which touched more than one county were built at the expense of the

HISTORY OF NOBLE COUNTY.

State; but, at that time, this procedure was altered, and the counties were required to construct their own road, being authorized to levy, under stipulated conditions, the necessary tax for that purpose. Immediately after this, the Commissioners entered upon an active and much-needed system of constructing public highways, and the citizens were quite heavily taxed to secure the neces- sary funds. From that time until the present, scores of roads have come into existence.

Some time about the year 1847, a company of wealthy men at Fort Wayne, and along the Lima road, associated themselves together, with a capital stock of about $70,000, for the purpose of transforming the old Fort Wayne and Lima road into a plank road. Pursuant to the law of the State, this road was leased* by the company for a term of years, and saw-mills were erected all along the line to furnish three-inch oak plank, which was to be laid down on suitable sills, at right angles to the direction of the road. The planks were sawed and laid down in 1847 and 1848, and toll-gates were established from six to ten miles apart, and superintendents of sections, living along the line, were employed to keep the road in repair. The plank road was fifty miles long, and, in some places, deviated from the old Lima road. A few small dividends were struck, but the road failed to repay the stockholders for the outlay of construction, and the stock steadily depreciated in value. Many of the largest stockholders at Fort Wayne and along the road were wise enough to get rid of the stock to Eastern capitalists, upon whom much of the burden of failure fell when the enterprise collapsed. Toll was collected on portions of the road until about 1858, when the route was turned over to the County Commissioners.

There were well-established mail routes along the Lima road and the Goshen road several years before the county was organized, the mail being carried on horseback, or, as in the case of John Hall, the carrier along the Goshen road, on the back of a male bovine of gentle disposition. These con- tinued to be the principal mail routes for much of Northeastern Indiana, for many years. From time to time, branches were established at various points. As early as 1844, a route was established from Wolf Lake, on the Goshen road, via Port Mitchell and Albion, to Lisbon, on the Lima road. Another early mail route is said to have extended from Good Hope, on the Goshen road, to either Rome City or Lima, on the Lima road, passing via Rochester and Spring- field. Several other routes were established for the convenience of localities, but not by the Government. The Lake Shore Railroad did away with many of the old routes, and new ones were established from stations on this road to the various towns in the southern part of the county. Finally, the presence of other railroads rendered these routes unnecessary, and now they have about all disappeared. The vast improvements that have been made in the means of overcoming labor, save such as is necessary for exercise to preserve the health

* The real conditions as to how the company got control of the road are unknown to the writer, but from con- versation with men prominently connected with the project, the facts appear to be as stated in the text.

HISTORY OF NOBLE COUNTY.

and spirits, have driven many irksome and burdensome tasks from the obstacles to be met by human endeavor.

The Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway Company was formed, in 1869, by the consolidation of the following four railroads, each of which had previously been formed of two others : Michigan Southern and Northern In- diana, Cleveland & Toledo, Buffalo & Erie and Cleveland, Painesville & Ash- tabula. The Michigan Southern was projected in 1837, through the southern part of that State, from Monroe on the east to New Buffalo on the west; but was not continued on to Chicago until 1852. Of the Northern Indiana Rail- road, the Chicago Times, of 1877, has this to say : " In 1835, John B. Chap- man, of Warsaw, Ind., a member of the State Legislature, introduced a bill for the incorporation of the 'Atlantic and Pacific Railroad.' He was ridiculed out of this ambitious title, and finally consented to come down to ' Buffalo and Mississippi Railroad,' but would not yield another mile." Work on the road was begun in 1835; but in 1837 came the financial crash that doomed the rail- road to a sleep equal in duration to that of Rip Van Winkle. An effort at resuscitation was made in 1847, culminating, finally, in the road's passing to the Litchfields, under the name of Northern Indiana Railroad. The work went on slowly until at last, in 1855, the Michigan Southern and the Northern Indiana were consolidated with a union of those two names. The road was completed through Noble County early in 1858. Under the presidency of the Vander- bilts, the road is paying its stockholders dividends. So far as known, the citi- zens of the county contributed nothing toward the construction of the road.

The corporation first known as the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad Company was duly incorporated and organized by articles of association, bear- ing date January 18, 1854, with power to construct, maintain and operate a railroad from the town of Hartford, in Blackford County, Ind., to a point on the north line of the State, in the direction of Grand Rapids, Mich. Afterward, by various articles of consolidation and incorporation with other roads, it assumed the above corporate name in June, 1857, and at that time had a declared capital stock of $2,800,000, including large tracts of valuable tim- ber land grants in Northern Michigan ; but the paid-up capital of the company was so small that it was found impossible to meet the expense of constructing the road, in which case, the land grants, after a certain date, would revert to the Government. To prevent this, various expediencies were resorted to, and at last extension of the time for the completion of certain portions of the road was obtained. Work was resumed under several contracts, one of which was with George W. Geisendorff, of Rome City, dated December, 1864, to build and equip fifteen miles of road, understood to be between the latter town and La Grange, Ind .; $19,000 paid by Mr. Geisendorff to the company were ex- pended on the road north of Grand Rapids. Still the company found itself unable to continue the completion of the road, and a new executive administra- tion under the old organization was effected, that some relief might be obtained.

HISTORY OF NOBLE COUNTY.

Confidence was partially restored, and the citizens along the road in Noble and La Grange Counties subscribed about $200,000 in aid of the work, the most of which was payable conditionally, and hence was unavailable until the con- ditions had been complied with. Soon, after considerable difficulty, another extension of time to January 1, 1868, was obtained. The Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad was solicited for help, and furnished it conditionally by indorsing certain stipulations on fifteen hundred $1,000 bonds of the issuc of January, 1860. But this seemed to afford only temporary relief, as, in April, 1869, a number of responsible parties living in New York, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, and known as the Continental Improvement Company, obtained such control of the Grand Rapids Company that the completion of the road was rapidly pushed forward, with the aid of a declared capital of $2,000,000, owned by the last- named corporation, until, in December, 1873, the road, con- structed and completed in accordance with the contract, was turned over to the Grand Rapids & Indiana Company. Thus it was, that after a long, distressing struggle for life, the road, at the price of large profits, was placed upon a per- manent running basis. It is of incalculable value to La Grange and Noble Counties ; although the trade in some localities has been divided, but the counties on the whole have been greatly benefited. Kendallville has been in- jured in some respects, and benefited in others. Avilla has found a decided improvement.

For some years prior to 1872, the Chicago & Canada Southern Railway Company announced its intention of passing across the northern part of Noble County, provided suitable aid was secured from the citizens along the route. The townships through which the road was to pass were called upon to vote aid ; but all did not respond. The question of levying a small tax for this purpose was submitted in each of the townships, and carried in Perry and Wayne only. The tax to be paid by Perry amounted to $19,000 ; and that of Wayne to $20,500. Of these amounts about $1,000 were paid ; but the citizens were then relieved by legislative enactment from any further payments, and the $1,000 was returned to the tax-payers. Thus was severed all connection with the road. The Eel River Division of the Wabash Railway passes across the extreme corner of the county, and was constructed and equipped in about the year 1872.

Early in 1872, the townships Allen, Jefferson, Albion, York and Sparta were called to vote a tax to aid the present Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. Allen refused such aid, although she would undoubtedly receive greater benefit than any of the others. The vote in Jefferson was 187 for, 75 against ; the tax amounting to $3,078.60. That in Albion 103 for, none against; tax, $3,- 380.80. That in York 131 for, 19 against; tax, $2,793.95. That in Sparta 115 for, 25 against ; tax, $3,796.15. Total tax voted, $13,049.50, of which $12,322.99 have been paid to the company. The grain buyers at the stations on this road report that, on account of direct transportation to Baltimore, an

HISTORY OF NOBLE COUNTY.

Eastern sea-board, the other roads not having such direct transportation, a higher price can be paid for grain by them than by buyers on the other roads. Farmers confirm this statement, and govern their sales accordingly.

The Noble County Agricultural and Horticultural Society had its origin in 1855, in accordance with an act of the Legislature, providing that the citizens of a county might institute the necessary conditions for a county fair. In response to notices posted up or published at the time, a meeting of the citizens was called to effect such an association, and some thirty or forty persons appended their names to a code of by-laws, and paid $1 each, after which the necessary officers were elected to carry into effect the measures adopted by the membership. A fair, with a few premiums offered, was announced to be held on the farm of Mr. Bassett, a few miles northwest of Albion, . during the fall of 1855; and on that occasion there was a respectable display of county products, notwithstanding that the premiums offered were few and made proportionally small, contingent on the failure of the receipts to meet the obligations of the society. The gate-money was not far from $60. Horse-races were witnessed around the quarter-of-a-mile track ; but the time made need not be mentioned. The fair continued to be held annually on Mr. Bassett's land for some four years, when it was removed to a ground of five or six acres, owned by Mr. Clapp, a portion of which is now covered with houses, being the northern part of the county seat. In 1865, by sharp management on the part of Ligonier, it was voted to remove the fair to the latter place, where Mr. Harrison Wood had offered a nice ground with a half-mile track to the asso- ciation without charge for the first year, and $30 for each subsequent year. This movement was opposed by most of the citizens at Albion, several of whom grind their teeth at the recollection even to this day. The fair was held on Mr. Wood's land for twelve years, and was then removed to the present ground, about a mile west of Ligonier, which at that time was purchased by an associa- tion of stockholders for $1,700, there being about twenty-three acres. The stock (about eighty-five shares) is owned by some forty-five individuals. These stockholders rent the ground to the association. The receipts were largest about two years ago, being not far from $1,600; of late years they reach on an average about $1,000 annually. They probably did not exceed $100 prior to the removal of the fair to Ligonier. The directors are usually elected, one from each township, and from these the officers are chosen. The usual premiums are paid for all varieties of live stock, products of the farm, manufactured implements and ornaments, plants and flowers, fruit, wearing apparel, kitchen products, etc., etc. The Agricultural Society is in a fairly prosperous condition, although there have been times in its history when the outlook was decidedly unpromising. So it is with all enterprises that tend to bind society closer, or remove the films from the eyes of humanity. The present officers of the society are : W. W. Latta, President ; J. H. Hoffman, Secretary ; John Weir, Treasurer ; J. C. Zimmerman, Superintendent. In

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Counties of LaGrange and Noble, Indiana : historical and biographical, Part 56

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