USA > Indiana > Pulaski County > Counties of White and Pulaski, Indiana. Historical and biographical > Part 24
USA > Indiana > White County > Counties of White and Pulaski, Indiana. Historical and biographical > Part 24
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).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77
Emma & Juspie
7 PUPLA MIABARY
AS. LENI À AND TILEKN W LSDATIONS
241
CITY OF MONTICELLO.
from which institution he received his diploma. January 1, 1874, he formed his present partnership, and the firm of Reynolds & Sellers is among the best in White County. In politics, Mr. Sellers is a Democrat, and he is a member of the Masonic, Odd Fellows and Knights of Pythias fraternities. July 3, 1877, he was united in marriage with Miss Mary Woltz, daughter of George B. Woltz, of Monticello.
WILLIAM SILL (deceased) was born in Shelby County, Ky., August 9, 1801, and died in Monticello January 7, 1846. He was mar- ried, November 22, 1822. in Shelby County, to Elizabeth Martin, a native of the county, and born March 16, 1803; she died in Monticello, September 4, 1882. Adam Sill, father of William, was a native of Lan- cashire, England, and came to the United States about 1780, first set- tling in New York and afterward moving to Kentucky. Moses Martin, father of Mrs. Elizabeth Sill, was a native of Virginia, and his father a native of Germany. William Sill and wife came to Washington County, this State, in 1828, and two years later moved to Tippecanoe County ; then, in the fall of 1830, came to what is now Prairie Township, and taught school that winter. In 1834, he located in what is now Monti- cello, erecting the first house in the town, on Lot No. 1. In August, 1834, he was elected the first Clerk of the county, which office comprised the duties of Clerk, Auditor and Recorder. He served seven years, and was in the fifth year of his second term when he died. He was the father of eight children, of whom four only are living-Robert W., ex-Sheriff of White County : Miranda J., widow of James C. Reynolds; Milton M. and Mrs. Georgiana Jones, of Oskaloosa, Iowa. Milton M. resides in Monticello. He was born in Tippecanoe County, Ind., May 20, 1833, but was reared in this county. At the age of nineteen, he began teaching school, and taught three winters. In 1859, he was elected County Sur- veyor by the Republicans ; in 1862, he became proprietor and editor of the Monticello Herald, and the same year was made Draft Commissioner. In 1863, he accepted J. G. Staley as partner in the paper, and in the fall left him in charge and accepted a position as clerk in the Paymaster- General's office at Washington. In 1864, he resigned and returned to ' White, and the same fall was elected County Sheriff, and was appointed Provost Marshal. In 1854, he had been admitted to the bar, but did not go into practice until 1866; in March, 1881, he formed his present part- nership with T. F. Palmer. He was married, December 13, 1859, to Miss Mary McConahay, who died October 10, 1873, the mother of six children - George (deceased), William, Charles, Bertha, Nina and Edward. Mr. Sill has been a Mason for twenty-eight years.
REV. J. B. SMITH, pastor of the Presbyterian Church of Monti- cello, was born in Union County, Ind., August 29, 1836. His parents,
15
242
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES :
William and Mary (Buck) Smith, are dead. He was reared on the home farm until sixteen, when he entered Miami University at Oxford, from the classical course of which he graduated in 1858. The fall of the same year, he entered the Western Theological Seminary at Allegheny City, Penn., and graduated therefrom in 1861. The spring of 1862, he was made Chaplain of the Nineteenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, which position he resigned in August, 1865. During his army career, Mr. Smith served as Adjutant General during the race between Bragg and Buell from Bat- tle Creek, Tenn., to Louisville, Ky., in the fall of 1862; he also served as Provost Marshal of the Third Brigade, Third Division, Fourth Army Corps, of the Army of the Cumberland, three months during the summer of 1863, while the army lay at Murfreesboro. After resigning, Mr. Smith went to Edinburgh, Scotland, where he continued his theological studies a year, since when, with the exception of seven years passed in Ohio, he has been actively engaged in ministerial work in Indiana. For two years preceding his settlement in Monticello, in 1879, he was Presi- dent of Farmer College, College Hill, Ohio.
JACOB C. SMITH, editor and proprietor of The National, was born in La Fayette, Ind., January 28, 1845. At an early day, his par- ents moved from Ohio to Tippecanoe County, Ind., where his father still resides, and where his mother died when he was but a mere lad. On the breaking-out of the war, although very young, he joined the Tenth Indi- ana Regiment as drummer boy, remaining as such until the consolidation of his company, when he was discharged. In 1864, he again enlisted, this time as private in Company C, Sixty-ninth Indiana Volunteers, and participated in several hard fought engagements, the last being the battle of Mobile, Ala. On his return, he entered the office of the Courier, at. La Fayette, as " devil," remaining there until 1869, when he located in Monticello. For five years, he filled the position of foreman on the Monticello Herald, and in 1873 married Miss Euphemia Black. In 1875, he accepted the position of local editor of the Constitutionalist, a Democratic newspaper published in Monticello by J. W. McEwen. Mr. Smith retained this position until the paper was sold to other parties. In 1878, he founded The National at Monticello, and by his energy and ability, has made it one of the best advocates of the National party in Indiana. The National is a six-column folio, and will soon enter its sixth year of existence. It is a bright, newsy paper, enjoys a liberal advertising patronage, is on a solid foundation financially, and is cheap at $1.50 per year.
DR. WILLIAM SPENCER was born in Zanesville, Ohio, Novem- ber 5, 1833, and is the son of Dr. Robert and Eleanor (Barnett) Spen- cer, natives respectively of Ohio and Washington, D. C. Dr. Robert
243
CITY OF MONTICELLO.
Spencer was a graduate of the Ohio Medical College, and was engaged in the practice of medicine until his death in February, 1863. In 1835, he came to this county, and remained three years, working at carpenter- ing and studying medicine, and then returned to Ohio, graduated, and for ten years practiced in Ross and Muskingum Counties. In 1848, he came back to White County, his four brothers, Benjamin, George, James and Thomas, having preceded him. In 1855, he was elected Professor of Anatomy in Cincinnati College of Medicine, and retained the position seven years. In 1862, he was made Surgeon of the Seventy-third Indi- ana Volunteer Infantry, and died in the service. His widow died of heart disease a few years later, and both were buried in the cemetery at Monticello. Dr. William Spencer began the study of medicine under his father, and graduated from Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, in 1855. He then practiced with his father in Monticello until 1861, when he raised and was made Captain of Company E, Forty-sixth Indi- ana Volunteer Infantry. At the end of seven months, he resi commission to accept an appointment as Assistant Surgeon of the Seven- ty-third Indiana Volunteer Infantry. While attending the sick and wounded in Morgan County, Ala., he was taken prisoner, April 30, 1863, and detained until November 22, when he was exchanged. April 16, 1864, he was appointed Surgeon of the Tenth Tennessee Cavalry. He afterward served on Gen. Jackson's staff, and held various other positions until his discharge, while Surgeon of the post at Johnsonville, August 5, 1865, since when he has been in practice in Monticello, where he is also conducting a drug store. He was married, January 1, 1856, to Miss Harriet V. Kistler, who has borne him three children-Charles, deceased ; Gertrude, now Mrs. C. D. Meeker, and May. The Doctor owns, besides town property, nearly 2,000 acres of land in the county, and a half interest in the bank at Fowler.
JOSEPH W. STEWART, County Sheriff, was born November 3, 1839, in Henry County, Ky., and is one of twelve children, only three of whom are yet living, born to Hiram and Lucy (Chilton) Stewart, both natives of Kentucky, and of Scotch and English descent. John Stewart, the father of Hiram, was a soldier in the war of 1812. Hiram and his family came to Indiana in 1845, and located in Tippecanoe County, just across the line from Prairie Township, this county. In November, 1847, Mrs. Stewart died of consumption; in 1850, Hiram and his family moved into this county, engaged in farming, and here he died in July, 1866. Joseph W. Stewart was reared to farming, and principally in Indiana. He was married, February 5, 1863, to Miss Mary A. Gwin, daughter of Capt. George H. Gwin, of Prairie Township, and to this union has been born one child-Addie. Mr. Stewart continued farming in Prairie Town-
244
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES :
ship, where he yet owns 120 acres, until his election to the office of Sheriff in 1882, when he moved to Monticello. He is a Democrat, and both he and wife are members of the Free-Will Baptist Church.
JOHN M. TURNER, junior member of one of the leading firms of Monticello, is a native of the county in which he now resides, and was born February 1, 1847. His parents, William and Susanna (Imes) Turner were married in White County in 1843, and his mother, who was born in Greene County, Ohio, came to White County, Ind., with her parents in 1836. Mr. and Mrs. Turner removed to Montgom- ery County, Ohio, in about 1853, where Mrs. Turner died in May, 1878, and where Mr. Turner remarried and is yet living, engaged in farming. John M. Turner is one of five living children, in a family of seven, and besides receiving the common school benefits, has secured a good com- mercial education. At the age of seventeen, he began doing for himself, and in 1867 became a partner of J. H. McCollum, at Monticello, which firm has continued with prosperity until the present. February 18, 1873, he was united in marriage with Miss Annie E. Anderson, who was born and reared in White County, and to them have been born two children- Frank A. and May. Mr. Turner is a Democrat, a member of the I. O. O. F., and he has entire charge of the grain, hay and fuel business, while Mr. McCollum has supervision of the firm's large store on Main street.
GEORGE UHL, one of five children born to John and Eva K. Uhl, was born in Asch, Austria, July 21, 1842. The father and two of the children dying in the old country, the mother and three sons, of whom George was the eldest, emigrated to America in 1854, and engaged in farming in Huron County, Ohio, remaining there until 1857, when they removed to Tippecanoe Township, Pulaski County, Ind., where Mrs. Uhl purchased a tract of swamp land, and started a farm. This lady is yet living near the site of her first settlement, being since married to Henry Crites, Esq., and of the three sons who came with her to this country two remain. One, John, died in the defense of his adopted country during late war. George Uhl attended the common schools only of his native and this country prior to the close of the rebellion, when he attended the " Male and Female College " at Valparaiso two years. In 1867, he came to reside in Monticello, and for nearly a year read medicine under Dr. William S. Haymond. Mr. Uhl is a Republican, and was elected by his party, in 1868, County Auditor, and, after serving four years, was re- elected, with an increased majority. He is a member of the I. O. O. F .; has served two terms as Noble Grand, and is the present Commander of Tippecanoe Post, No. 51, G. A. R., of Monticello. December 12, 1872, he married Miss Emily C., daughter of Dr. Philo Hamlin, of Juniata County, Penn., and to their union have been born three children-Byron H.,
245
CITY OF MONTICELLO.
Agnes E. and Stewart C. The parents are members of the Presbyterian Church. While a resident of Pulaski County, Mr. Uhl came to Rey- nolds, this county, and here joined Company K, Twentieth Indiana Vol- unteer Infantry, and shortly thereafter went with his regiment to Mary- land, on guard duty near Baltimore. The fall of the same year, they went to Cape Hatteras, remaining there several weeks; thence they went to Old Point Comfort, at Fortress Monroe, and from there, early in 1862, to Newport News, where Company K took an active part in the memor- able contest between the rebel ram " Merrimac," and the Union frigates "Cumberland " and "Congress." The succeeding day they witnessed the naval engagement between the ironclads "Monitor " and Merrimac." The regiment took part in the capture of Norfolk and Portsmouth, and were then transferred to the Army of the Potomac, arriving in front of Richmond before the commencement of the " seven days' fight." On the 30th of June, 1862, at the battle of Glendale, Mr. Uhl, Capt. Reed and his son William-the first seriously and the latter mortally wounded- and others of their company, were captured and taken to Richmond. Mr. Uhl was alternately incarcerated in Libby and Belle Isle Prisons until the September following, when he was paroled and sent to the hos- pital at Annapolis. After recuperating and being exchanged, he rejoined his regiment near Fredericksburg. He took an active part in the field with his regiment, including the battle of Chancellorsville, until the beginning of the Gettysburg campaign, when he was assigned duty in the Quartermaster's department, where he remained until relieved and ordered with his regiment to New York City to suppress draft riots during the summer of 1863. The succeeding fall they returned to the Army of the Potomac, participating in its movements and battles, until February, 1864, when he re-enlisted, together with most of his regiment, but con- tinuing the old organization. After a brief visit home on veteran fur- lough, he returned with his regiment to the Army of the Potomac. Mr. Uhl participated in the "Battle of the Wilderness," on the Po, at Spott- sylvania, North Ann, Cold Harbor, Deep Bottom, Weldon Railroad, Hatcher's Run, and the numerous and almost incessant engagements in the final siege of Petersburg, in one of which he had a portion of his left ear shot away. During a part of this time he, as First Sergeant, had command of the remnant of Company K. Upon the 25th of March, 1865, in front of Petersburg, the Twentieth had its last engagement, in which Mr. Uhl was struck by a cannon ball, almost severing his left limb from the body, and that night, of the original company starting from Reynolds in 1861, only two were there to answer at roll call. After his recovery at Army Square Hospital, Washington, D. C., Mr. Uhl was discharged from the United States service in July, 1865.
246
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES:
W. E. UHL was born in Carroll County, Ind., October 25, 1848, and is the only survivor of the three children born to Peter and Emma (Saunders) Uhl, natives of Virginia and England. Peter Uhl is a farmer, and is now living in Fulton County, Ind. W. E. Uhl was quite liberally educated, and in his earlier days was a school teacher. His mother died in 1853, and he was that year brought to this county by his grandpar- ents, William and Matilda Saunders. In 1857, however, he returned to his father in Fulton County. In 1870, he came to Monticello and entered the law office of A. W. Reynolds, remaining there two years and then beginning practice. In 1872, he was elected Prosecutor of the Court of Common Pleas for White, Carroll and Benton Counties, but the office was abolished in 1873, and the Circuit Court of Tippecanoe and White Coun- ties established, and of this he was appointed Prosecuting Attorney in March, and at a special election in October was elected to the office, which he filled until 1875, when the circuit was changed to the Thirty-ninth Judicial Circuit, comprising Carroll, White and Pulaski Counties, to which he was appointed Prosecutor, which office he held until October, 1876. He continued the practice of law alone until January 1, 1880, when he formed a partnership with H. P. Owens, which partnership was dissolved January 1, 1883. Mr. Uhl was married, October 15, 1874, to Miss Fannie A. Brown, of Rochester, N. Y., and to this union has been born one child -- Fara. Mr. Uhl is a Democrat, and as a counselor at law is meeting with abundant success.
ZACHARIAH VAN BUSKIRK, deceased, one of the first of White County's pioneers, was a native of Hampshire County, Va., and was born August 18, 1808. His advent in White County was in the year 1833, when but few settlers were living within its borders, and those were far outnumbered by the Indians. Mr. Van Buskirk located at Monticello, and his worldly possessions at that time consisted of the clothes on his back and 50 cents in money ; but aside from these he possessed a strong heart and willing hands, and thus equipped began working at his trade of carpenter and joiner. This was his occupation for twenty-two years, and many of his neighbors had reason to remember him as the builder of the cabins in which they resided. He was married to Miss Sarah Mc- Minn December 25, 1848, and soon after this event built the house now known as the Switzer property, on Main street, in which he passed the remainder of his life. At one time, during his early residence here, he served the public as County Assessor, performing the duties of this office in person and making the entire canvass of the county on foot. He afterward served as Democratic Township Trustee for a number of years. Owing to asthmatic trouble, he was compelled to abandon his trade in course of time, and for several years pursued the calling of house-painter,
247
CITY OF MONTICELLO.
but at the time of his death was engaged in the grocery trade. He died June 24, 1866, preceded by his wife two years. They were the parents of three children-Jay B., William H. and Leacy C., the last two named being twins, and the last deceased. Jay B. Van Buskirk was born No- vember 5, 1850, graduated from the classical course of Asbury Univer- sity in 1872, and in November, 1874, became a partner of W. J. Huff in the proprietorship and publication of the Monticello Herald, one of the best county newspapers in Northern Indiana. November 25, 1875, he married Miss Emma Coen, and they are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church of Monticello.
S. R. VINSON, of Roberts & Vinson, hardware dealers, is a mem- ber of one of the oldest families of White County, his parents being Isaac S. and Rebecca (Johnson) Vinson. S. R. Vinson was born October 18, 1840, in West Point Township, White County, receiving in youth a fair education. He enlisted in Company F, Twenty-seventh Indiana Volun- teer Infantry on the 12th of September, 1861, and after remaining at Camp Morton about a month, was ordered into active duty, and the first important engagement in which he participated was Ball's Bluff. After this, Mr. Vinson participated in the battles of Newmarket, second Win- chester, second Bull Run and Antietam, and at this last-named engage- ment he was wounded by a ball in the ankle. He was an inmate of Find- lay Hospital at Washington, D. C., for some time, and succeeding his recovery was employed as hospital clerk until he was finally discharged with his regiment September 12, 1864. He then came home, and shortly afterward embarked in railroading, being first stationed in Iowa, subse- quently at Windfall, Crown Point, and lastly at Elwood, in Indiana. In May, 1882, he discontinued railroad life, took a trip out through Colo- rado, New Mexico and Kansas, then returned to the county of his birth to settle down into a steady business. He formed a partnership with E. P. Roberts in the hardware trade in Monticello, and this firm is doing a good business, carrying a full stock of everything to be found in a first- class store of its kind. Mr. Vinson is a Mason and a member of the I. O. O. F .; he is a Republican in politics, and November 22, 1871, he was united in marriage with Miss Lizzie A. Firth, of Reynolds. They have two children-Maud and Hattie.
JAMES V. VINSON was born in this county February 2, 1845, and is one of the five living children of the thirteen born to Isaac S. and Rebecca P. (Johnson) Vinson, natives of Ohio, who came to this county about the year 1838. James V. was reared in the backwoods of White County until sixteen years old. Then, in July, 1861, he enlisted in Com- pany K, Twentieth Indiana Volunteer Infantry. He was at Cape Hat- teras, Fortress Monroe and Newport News ; he participated in the en-
248
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES:
gagement between the Congress and the Merrimac and Cumberland, and the next day witnessed the fight between the Monitor and Merrimac. He assisted in the reduction of Norfolk and Portsmouth, was then trans- ferred to the Army of the Potomac, and was with his regiment in all its engagements. At Chancellorsville, he was slightly wounded. At this point the Sixth New Hampshire battery lost nearly all its men, and a call was made for volunteers from the ranks to fill the battery, Mr. V. being one of the first. He served with it at second Bull Run, where he was taken prisoner, but luckily was paroled on the field. He served out his parole at Annapolis, and rejoined his regiment just before the battle of Gettysburg, in which he was an active participant At the battle of the
Wilderness, he was shot by a minie ball through the left leg, from the effects of which he still suffers. After his final discharge, dated in July, but not received until September, 1864, he came back to White County, and, being disabled, learned telegraphy; since 1866, he has occupied the position of agent for the Pittsburgh, Chicago & St. Louis Railroad Com- pany, at the Pan Handle depot, Monticello. Mr. V. was married, in 1865, to Margaret A. Burns, who has borne him two children-Charles R. and Frank E. In politics, Mr. V. is a Republican ; he is a Mason, a Knight of Pythias and also a member of the G. A. R.
H. VAN VOORST, County Auditor, was born in Lucas County, Ohio, February 27, 1844. His father, Abram Van Voorst, was a native of New York State, and was three times married-first, to Mary Murray, who bore him three children, two yet living, our subject being the youngest. Mrs. Van Voorst died in 1849. In 1850, the father brought his two children to this county, and in 1852 married Sarah Irvine. August 7, 1861, Henry Van Voorst enlisted in Company F, Twenty-seventh In- diana Volunteer Infantry, and for two years served in the Army of the Potomac, taking part in the battles of Winchester, Cedar Mountain, second Bull Run, Antietam, at which last he was wounded in the head. Gangrene set in, and for two months he was confined in the hospital at Philadelphia. His next engagement was at Chancellorsville, where he was wounded in the thigh by a fragment of a shell, and was sent to the Lincoln Hospital, at Washington. After a short furlough, he rejoined the Army of the Potomac, and in the fall of 1863 was transferred to the Army of the West, under Gen. Hooker. He was wounded in the right hip by a shell, at Resaca, was sent to hospital at Nashville, and finally discharged October 13, 1864. On his return, he clerked, taught school, learned telegraphy, and was station agent at Reynolds four years. In 1876, he was elected County Auditor, and re-elected in 1880. He was married, December 24, 1868, to Mrs. Ellen Bunnell, who has borne him two children -- Bertie and Fred. Mr. Van Voorst is a Republican, and his wife is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
249
CITY OF MONTICELLO.
JOHN H. WALLACE was born in Kingston, Ross Co., Ohio, Jan - uary 28, 1847, and is the son of William B. and Mary (Adamson) Wal- lace. The family located in Big Creek Township, this county, about 1857, engaged in farming, and there the parents yet reside. Mr. Wal- lace began for himself at the age of sixteen, and November 23, 1864, he enlisted in Company G, Thirty-fifth Indiana Volunteer Infantry. He took part in the Nashville campaign, in which the battles of Charleston, Pulaski and Nashville were fought. In July, 1865, his regiment left New Orleans for Texas, and September 30, 1865, was discharged at Victoria. Mr. Wallace was paid off at Indianapolis in October, and then returned to White County, where he has ever since resided. In 1870, he began reading law in the office of Ellis Hughes, at Monticello; was admitted to the bar in March, 1872, and the succeeding month began practice. In 1874, he was admitted to practice in the State Supreme Court, and in 1875 was admitted to the United States Supreme Court. In 1872, he became Deputy Prosecuting Attorney ; in 1876, he was elected on the Republican ticket to the office of Prosecuting Attorney, and in 1878 was re-elected. While holding this office, he was instru- mental in sending thirty-four men to the penitentiary, and two women to the penal department of the reformatory at Indianapolis. He was mar- ried, September 9, 1874, to Miss Susie Mills, who died November 27 of the same year. December 5, 1877, he married Anna Ripley, who has borne him one daughter-Bessie. Mr. Wallace is a member of the I. O. O. F., K. of P. and the G. A. R., and takes rank among the most suc- cessful criminal lawyers of the State.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.