USA > Indiana > Pulaski County > Counties of White and Pulaski, Indiana. Historical and biographical > Part 54
USA > Indiana > White County > Counties of White and Pulaski, Indiana. Historical and biographical > Part 54
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In 1879. Clinton Rodman, a young widower living in the town of Francesville, shot himself through the head with a revolver and died in- stantly. He had been at one time a consistent church member, but had afterward became very much dissipated and greatly reduced in circum- stances.
In the latter part of December, 1881, Albert Hazen suicided by shooting himself in the side with a revolver. He had been for a long time addicted to the intemperate use of ardent spirits, and had been ar- rested several times on criminal charges, on which occasions his father, who was a man of considerable wealth, always rendered him pecuniary assistance. At the time of the commission of the rash act which caused his death, he was under a penal bond for his appearance in court, to answer to a criminal charge of a serious nature, and upon his father's refusing to give him $60 with which to defray the expense of his defense, he threatened to commit suicide, and contrary to his father's expectation, carried his threat into execution.
Henry Eldridge was accidentally shot at a charivari, at the house of Daniel Gordon, about the middle of January. 1876, and died on the 17th of the same month.
Religion .- The Methodist Episcopal Church in the town of Frances- ville was organized in 1853, by Thomas Markman, pastor. Early mem- bers, M. E. Davison, W. B. Nicols, Paris Robison, J. C. Farris, William Imes and Peyton Davison. The church building was begun in 1873 and finished in 1874, at a cost of about $2,200. Pastor at time church was built, II. C. Neil. Present pastor, James McCoy ; present number of niembers, between fifty and sixty.
The Christian Church was organized about 1865, with John H. Philips, pastor. The names of some of the first members were John C. Brewer and wife, William Brewer and wife, Cynthia M. Brewer, Candacia Brewer, Joseph Frederick and wife, Eli Farris, William Hallett and wife.
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HISTORY OF PULASKI COUNTY.
Present pastor, William A. Hennegar ; present membership, about ninety- five. Elders, John C. Brewer, James McMurray and William N. Jones ; Deacons, William A. Brewer, Stephen Thrasher and W. A. Geer. The Christian Church has no house of worship, but hold their meetings in the schoolhouse. The Catholic Church in the town of Francesville was erected in the latter part of 1866, and completed in the spring of 1867, at a cost of about $900. Priest in charge at time church was built, Father Burns ; present priest, Father John Schroeder.
The Free- Will Baptist Church was organized January 29, 1876, with B. F. Ferguson, pastor ; S. W. Hubbell and W. C. Haymond, Deacons ; Etta Haymond, Treasurer, and A. F. Anderson, Clerk. The last meet- ing, as shown by the church record, was held March 6, 1880. The church has never had any other pastor than Rev. B. F. Ferguson. Num- ber of members, as per yearly report for the year 1879, thirty-seven. They have no church building, but they have, it seems, a building fund, as the record of the last meeting shows that the Treasurer of the Building Committee (Sarah E. Jones) was at that time ordered to put all money in her hands at interest, subject to call at fifteen days' notice.
Secret Societies .- Monon Lodge, No. 208, A., F. & A. M., was or- ganized in the winter of 1856-57. First officers, Charles G. Hartman, W. M .; W. B. Nicols, S. W .; Henry Banta, J. W .; other charter mem- bers, William Barkley, M. E. Davison, Paris Robinson and J. C. Farris. Lodge constituted under charter May 26, 1857, with Charles G. Hart- man, W. M .; William B. Nicols, S. W .; and Henry Banta, J. W. Pres- ent officers : D. J. Loring, W. M .; L. N. Hallett, S. W .; S. F. Vose, J. W .; G. Daske, Treas .; J. H. Mallon, Sec .; F. McGinnis, S. D .; W. R. Jones, J. D. Present number of members, forty-four. Regular meet- ings, first and third Saturday evenings of each month.
Francesville Lodge, No. 190, I. O. O. F., was instituted August 5, 1857, by Schuyler Colfax. Officers, John S. Riley, N. G .; Harry Phil- ips, V. G .; F. S. Drake, Sec .; Clair Oxley, Treas. Present officers, William A. Geer, N. G .; Lewis C. Renn, V. G .; David Bachtenkircher, Treas .; William A. Hennegar, Per. Sec .; William Shortridge, Rec. Sec. Present number of members, twenty-eight. Regular meetings, Wednes- day evening of each week. This is an old lodge; and although it, is neither a wealthy one nor a large one, it has always been in a flourishing condition. Its initiates are scattered all over the State, and at least one full lodge (Monon Lodge) has been organized out of its members.
Henry S. Lane, Post No. 76, Department of Indiana G. A. R., was organized June 15, 1882, with a membership of twenty-two comrades and the following officers : M. M. Gordon, Commander ; Stephen Thrasher, Sr. Vice Commander ; Frank Vose, Jr. Vice Commander ; David Engle,
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Quartermaster ; Charles H. Garrigues, Surgeon ; Samuel Petre, Officer of the Day ; James McMurray, Adjutant ; Thomas Fitzpatrick, Officer of the Guard ; Augustus Geer, Q. M. Sergeant ; and John Stephen, Ser- geant Major. The Post has about sixty members, and is in splendid working order. They meet every two weeks in the town hall.
Francesville has a live Temperance Society, organized May 16, 1882, under the auspices of the National Christian Temperance Union. Presi- dent, William A. Hennegar ; Vice President, W. C. Haymond ; Secre- tary, Lizzie Earl ; Treasurer, Miss Sallie Rice ; Corresponding Secretary, Mrs. J. B. Rees. Present number of members, 111. Regular meetings are held on Tuesday evening of each week, at which speeches are made by home talent. There is a Glee Club in connection with the Temper- ance Society, composed of thirty members, to which number the member- ship is limited.
Militia .- A company of State militia, named the Carnahan Guards, was organized at Francesville September 15, 1882, with M. M. Gordon, Captain ; Joseph Engle, First Lieutenant ; and Frank McGinnis, Second Lieutenant. This company is named after the Adjutant General of Indi- ana and Commander of the Department of Indiana Grand Army of the Republic. They drill once a month, and are armed with Enfield rifles.
The Francesville Cadets were organized October 6, 1882. Cecil Mal- lon, Captain ; Henry Bledsoe, First Lieutenant ; Well Ross, Second Lieutenant ; M. M. Gordon, Drillmaster.
Drainage .- It had long been seriously que tioned by many whether the land in this section of country could be successfully tile-drained. This doubt arose from the fact of there being a very large amount of sand in the soil, which, it was believed, would work into the tile at the joints and lodge at certain points, and eventually stop the passage of the water through the tile. This question has been put at rest, however, by laying tile-drains under Montgomery and Bill streets, in the town of Frances- ville, in the spring of 1882, as an experiment. So far, the experiment has proved signally successful. Encouraged by the success of this ex- periment, many of the farmers in the vicinity of Francesville are adopt- ing this method of drainage upon an extensive scale.
Creamery .- In the spring of 1881, a creamery was started at Frances- ville by a firm, under the firm name of Benson, Leach & Co. They bought milk, from which they manufactured butter, and, with the refuse, fattened hogs. It is not in operation at present, but it is said that the pro- prietors intend to resume business in the coming spring.
Agricultural Society .- In the spring of 1871, the Francesville Local Topic strongly advocated the organization of an agricultural society, which should be in the nature of a District Agricultural Society ; and proposed
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HISTORY OF PULASKI COUNTY.
that the farmers and artisans of the contiguous counties of White, Jas- per, Newton and Starke be solicited to join in the enterprise. The sug- gestion met with such favor that on the 15th of July, 1871, a large and enthusiastic meeting, in which all the counties named were represented, was held at Francesville for the purpose of putting it into practical oper- ation. The meeting was organized by the election of W. N. Jones as President and J. G. Culp as Secretary. A committee, which had been appointed for the purpose, reported a draft of a constitution, which, after being read, was adopted as a whole. The meeting then proceeded to the election of officers of the society with the following result: President, William N. Jones; Vice President, C. G. Hartman ; Corresponding Sec- retary, J. G. Winegarden; Recording Secretary, J. H. Mallon; Treas- urer, Jacob Byers ; Geologist, Benijah Johnson. A special committee on grounds was then chosen, to act in conjunction with the executive committee, with powers to buy or lease grounds for the society's use, as they might deem best. The following constituted the special committee : David Gray, Robert Cisna, George Mason, J. C. Brewer and Lemuel Osborne. A committee, consisting of two from each township, whose duty was to solicit sales of stock, was chosen. As this committee was quite numerous, their names are not given. At a meeting of the society held August 12, 1871, the Secretary reported that nearly 100 shares of stock (at $10 each) had already been taken. On the 26th day of August, 1871, at a meeting of the society held on that day, the Commit- tee on Grounds reported that they " had contracted for ten acres of ground with David Byers, for $250, he agreeing to take five shares of stock, in the society, in part payment, $100 immediately after the first fair, and the remaining $100 in one year from date, with eight per cent inter- est." The action of the committee was subsequently approved by the society, and the purchase consummated. The society has since purchased five acres of land adjoining the tract bought of David Byers, and extended their inclosure so as to embrace it. The office of geologist was dispensed with, by a change made in the constitution at a meeting held on the 13th day of January, 1872. At the same meeting, the office of General Su- perintendent was created. The present officers of the society are; J. G. Culp, President; W. R. Jones, Vice President; E. H. Applegate, Sec- retary; L. N. Hallett, Treasurer; W. N. Jones, General Superintendent. The first fair of the society was held in the fall of 1872, and there has been one held each fall since. The society is in debt somewhat (about $700); yet, taking into consideration the value of their grounds, with the improvements thereon, it may still be considered in a tolerably prosper- ous condition. The organization of a new agricultural society is talked of, the object being to purchase the property of the present society,
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assuming the payment of the debt with which it is burdened, thus affect- ing a dissolution of the Prairie Farmers' Agricultural Society, and getting rid of those lethargic members who. by resisting all efforts to tax the shares of stock for the purpose of freeing the society from debt, acted as a handicap upon its progress. The new society, if organized, will be composed largely of the active members of the old.
Hay .- Hay-baling is a business of considerable importance in this township, as being a means for the diffusion of large sums of money annually throughout the country. There are three baling-presses at Francesville, which bale in the aggregate about 7,000 tons of hay an- nually, and give employment to about forty-five men and twenty-five teams. One of the three presses is operated by S. F. Vose, of Frances- ville, one by William Rinehart, of Delphi, Ind., and the other by W. B. Allen & Co., of Indianapolis. Vose uses horse-power, and Rinehart and W. B. Allen & Co., steam-power. The three baling establishments do a business of $100,000 or over annually, and employ more labor than all other business in the town. Each ton of hay requires about $1 worth of labor to bale it and place it on board the cars ready for ship- ment. Vose manufactures his own presses, of which he is the inventor. His presses are said to possess great merits, and he is contemplating still further improvements. He is also inventor of a stacker, with which he says one man can put up twenty-five tons of hay per day.
Game .- The shipment of game is another business in which a good deal of capital is employed. W. S. Valentine commenced in this business the fall of 1862, and has been engaged in it ever since. He is probably doing the leading business in that line. Joseph Engle, though he has been in the business but a few years and commenced on a small scale, is now doing a large business. Valentine and Engle each has a refrigerator which cost a considerable amount of money, in which they freeze birds in the spring of the year, and thus keep them until such time as they will command a good price in the market. Valentine bought in the neighborhood of 12,000 birds in the month of April, 1882, and Engle bought about the same number. There are probably about $10,000 worth of game shipped from the town of Francesville per annum.
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HISTORY OF PULASKI COUNTY.
CHAPTER V.
BY M. T. MATTHEWS.
HARRISON TOWNSHIP-NAME-FIRST SETTLEMENTS-CREATION OF TOWNSHIP-PROBABLE FIRST BIRTH, MARRIAGE AND DEATH- CHURCHES-SCHOOLS-EARLY TEACHERS AND PREACHERS-MILLS -ROADS-POST OFFICES-NOTES AND INCIDENTS.
B ETTER were it, almost, that a township, county or State had en- tirely been non-existent, if its history is forever to remain unwritten, and all its facts of historic merit are to sleep silently on and on through the cycles and epicycles of endless time, unnoticed and unknown ; but for Pulaski County and her various townships respectively, the historian has come but in time to glean from the old and fast decaying records, and wrest from the memory of the aged and others such historical informa- tion as will attract the attention of the present passing generation, and be of more than a common or ordinary interest to those myriads of genera- tions which will follow.
Origin of Name .- The name of Harrison Township dates back to the Harrison campaign (the log-cabin and hard-cider campaign) of 1340 and 1841, and was so called in honor of William Henry Harrison, Pres- ident of the United States. This township, as the territory comprising Harrison Township, existed until the year 1841 as a part of Monroe Township, being attached for purposes of a political nature until this period. At a meeting held in Winamac by the County Commissioners in March, 1841, Harrison Township was created, and to be henceforth distinct from Monroe Township. The boundary lines of Harrison are drawn with Tippecanoe Township on the north, Fulton County on the east, Van Buren Township on the south, and Monroe Township on the west.
Creation .- The year 1854 (about) found quite a number of citizens residing in the north western part of the township petitioning the Board of Commissioners to be detached from Harrison Township, and to be attached to Monroe Township for all political and civil purposes, and at the same session of Commissioners' Court it was ordered, in behalf of those petitioning, that all of Sections 6, 7 and 18, and the west half of Sections 5, 8 and 17, and all that portion of Section 19 lying west of the Tippe - canoe River, be and is hereby attached to Monroe Township. This attachment has ever since remained a part of Monroe Township.
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HARRISON TOWNSHIP.
First Settlement .- The first settlements made in the township were those known as the Mill Creek settlement, on Big and Small Mill Creeks, and the Bruce settlement, on Bruce's Lake, near the eastern boundary of the township. Those who lived on either of the creeks above mentioned were known and distinguished as the " Millcreekers." These early and first settlements date back to the years 1833 and 1339, and 1840 and 1841. In the first two years mentioned, the following persons came from Ohio, or some of the Eastern States, and commenced the construction of their new homes in the then wild and distant West: Tilghman Hackett, Abraham Hatterbaugh, Solomon Whitson, Benjamin T. Ballinger, David Klinger and John Shuey. In 1839, came E. T. Oliver, Joseph Oliver, Edward Gilliland, James Martin, Jonathan Washington, Michael Mowery, Joshua Turnpaugh, John Sutton, James Dempsey, Comfort Olds and others. Samuel Ward, Sr., Samuel Ward, Jr., Thomas Dempsey, Rob- ert Dempsey, William Cooper, Jethro New, G. S. Ward, Andrew Gants and John Lee came in 1840. Henry Bruce, Stephen Bruce, Isaac Harrow and others came in 1841. John P. Miller, Martin H. Venard, Milton Venard, George Conner, Jacob Decard, William Phillips and others came in 1842. The majority of the persons who came to the township up to this time settled in the central or western parts.
Elections .- At an election held in Monroe Township, while Harrison Township was yet attached to Monroe for election purposes, in 1840, the the following men from Harrison Township voted : J. O. Holmes, E. T. Oliver, Moses R. Holmes, Jesse Klinger, Solomon Whitson, Benjamin Ballinger, Tilghman Hackett, Abraham Hatterbaugh, James Murphy, Jonathan Washington, Michael Mowery and Comfort Olds.
At the election of the county organization in the spring of 1839, Elijah T. Oliver received thirty-eight votes, and was elected Associate Judge of the Circuit Court of Pulaski County. At the same election, Moses R. Holmes received fourteen for County Commissioner, but was not elected.
At an election held in Winamac in June, 1839, Abraham Hatter- baugh was elected Road Supervisor for both Congressional Townships ; and at an election held at the same place in August of the same year, Benjamin T. Ballinger was elected Probate Judge of the county. It is seen from the returns of these elections that Harrison Township, or the territory which afterward composed the township, was recognized by the .voters of the county as having its quota of influential and representative men.
Harrison Township was created by the County Commissioners at the March term in 1841, and at the first election held in the new township, at the house of Jonathan Washington, on the first Monday in April,
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HISTORY OF PULASKI COUNTY.
1841, the following men voted : Jonathan Washington, Isaac Sanders, Robert Dempsey, John Sutton, Thomas Dempsey, John Hackett, Michael Mowery, Benjamin Munson, Job J. Holmes, Moses R. Holmes, Luke Hackett, Abraham Hatterbaugh, Thomas B. Ward, Samuel Ward, Jr., Hiram Lunsford, James Gilliland, Runyon Compton, Bejamin T. Ballinger, Solomon Whitson, William Collins, Isaac Olds, Samuel Ward, Sr., Edward Gilliland and Joshua Turnpaugh. The following vote was polled : Justice of the Peace, Samuel Ward, Sr., 13 votes; Comfort Olds, 11 votes. Constable, Michael Mowery, 13 votes ; Job J. Holmes, 11 votes. Road Supervisor, Jonathan Washington, 32 votes ; Solomon Whitson, 14 votes, and Abraham Hatterbaugh, 10 votes. Overseers of the Poor, John Sutton, 14 votes; James Martin, 13 votes ; Michael Munson, 11 votes, and Solomon Whitson 10 votes. Inspector of Elec- tions, Edward Gilliland, 10 votes, and Samuel Ward, Jr., 9 votes. Fence Viewers, Comfort Olds, 13 votes; Thomas B. Ward, 13 votes ; Samuel Ward, Sr., 9 votes ; Michael Mowery, 6 votes, and Michael Munson, 1 vote. Inspector, Edward Gilliland ; Judges, Samuel Ward and Solomon Whitson ; Clerks, William Collins and Isaac Olds.
At an election held at the house of Jonathan Washington, in Harri- son Township, in April, 1842, the following men voted: Samuel Ward, Sr., Nathaniel Roberts, James Dempsey, Robert Dempsey, Thomas Demp- sey, Jonas Martin, Isaac Harrow, John Sutton, George W. Horine, Jon- athan Washington, Stephen Sutton, Samuel Ward, Jr., Joshua Turnpaugh, Martin H. Venard, Michael Mowery, Thomas B. Ward and Edward Gilliland. Elijah T. Oliver is supposed to have been the first man who purchased land in Harrison Township, the same purchase being made on the 5th of February, 1839, and in Section 30, the amount being 165 acres. The following are among the first who purchased land in the town- ship : Jonathan Washington, in Section 27, 160 acres, December 17, 1840; Jesse Klinger, in Section 19, 142 acres, August 25, 1840 ; Moses R. Holmes, in Section 30, 146 acres, June 20, 1840; Samuel Ward, Jr., in Section 22, 160 acres, May 3, 1841.
In the years 1843 and 1844, quite a number of persons came into the township, and most of them purchased land and at once began the im- provemeut of their new homes.
The following are among the deceased pioneers of Harrison Town- ship : Samuel Ward, Sr., John Sutton, Michael Mowery, Thomas B. Ward, Samuel Ward, Jr., Martin H. Venard and Andrew Gantz. Among those yet living may be mentioned the following : G. S. Ward, James Tobey, Henry Bruce, Allen Miller, William Ballinger, Milton Venard, and a few others.
Incidents .- Harrison Township, not unlike its adjoining townships,
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HARRISON TOWNSHIP.
had its almost unnumbered scenes of hardship, peril and trial ; and many of the new-comers were compelled to bring to bear all the care, inventive power and good management they possessed to "get along," and to be able to do battle with all the conflicting circumstances of an early Western life; but the pioneers of Harrison Township were men of untiring energy and dauntless courage, and triumphed over all the opposing forces to a successful life and comfortable home. Time has brought its changes. The rude log cabin has long since been exchanged for a better house; the large and well-filled frame barn has taken the place of the shed stable; the "little old log schoolhouse" is now unknown, and numerous and commodious frame schoolhouses exist in the township, and the old pioneer is himself led to exclaim, "Whence and how these changes ?"
Thomas Turnpaugh, son of Joshua and Martha (familiarly known as Patsy) Turnpaugh, is supposed to have been the first white child born in the township. Joshua Turnpaugh, Jr., who died in the spring of 1842, is supposed to have been the first white person deceased in the township. The funeral sermon was preached at the house of Joshua Turnpaugh, by an early traveling Methodist preacher by the name of Abraham Snea- then. The funeral was attended by nearly every adult in the township. The remains were interred in what was known as Hackett's Graveyard. The occasion is more particularly remembered by having connected with it an uncommon incident which ran as follows: A man, by name Isaac Sanders, was so eager to hear the funeral discourse that he walked four miles barefooted (boots he owned not, and shoes the poor man did not have), and when he came near the house where the deceased lay, a sense of shame or bashfulness overcame him, when he realized that he was com- pelled to attend the exercises barefooted, but the unpleasant thought was dispelled when he remembered and removed, from an inner pocket, a pair of long, white stockings, of the cotton quality, that he had provided himself with before he left home. He donned the stockings and attended the funeral, but many and long years had past ere the white-stocking- man was forgotten.
The first marriage in the township occurred on the 25th of April, 1842, with Isaac Sanders and Elizabeth Canfield as the matrimonial con- tractors. The ceremony was conducted by Samuel Ward, Justice of the Peace.
Harrison Township has two places of public burial, one located on the northwest corner of Section 28, and known as Sutton's Graveyard, the ground being donated by John Sutton; and the other and principal place of interment in the township is located on the northwest quarter of Section 34, and is known as Olive Branch Cemetery. The ground was given by Edward Gilliland.
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HISTORY OF PULASKI COUNTY.
The first divines in the township were Eventus Doud, of the Method- ist Episcopal Church, who preached the first sermon in the township, at the log cabin of James Martin, in the spring of 1840; and Abraham Sneathen, of the Old Christian Church ; and Ephraim Dukes and Will- iam Hunter, of the Disciple Church. These ministers traveled their wilderness way on horseback, and preached in many country cabins, and endured numberless hardships.
Church .- The only church in the township is the Olive Branch Methodist Episcopal, located on the southwest quarter of Section 27. The exact location of the ground is as follows : Beginning twenty-seven rods east of the half-way stake on the south side of Section 27, Township 30 north, of Range 1 west; thence north nine rods; thence east nine rods; thence south nine rods ; thence west nine rods to the place of beginning. The lot contains eighty-one square rods. The county rec- ords of 1850 give the returns of the election of the first trustees of the church as follows :
Methodist Episcopal Church on Mill Creek, Pulaski County, Ind. Election return. After ten days' notice given, there was an election held at the house of James Martin, in Harrison Township, Pulaski Co., Ind., on the 22d of February, 1850, for the purpose of electing three trustees of the Methodist Episcopal Church, whereupon James Martin, Wesley Borders and John K. Benifield were elected said trustees. Wesley Borders was elected Clerk of said election. The society deter- mined to get its trustees according to the rules of the Methodist Episcopal Church hereafter. February 22, 1850. WESLEY BORDERS, Clerk.
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