USA > Indiana > Boone County > Early life and times in Boone County, Indiana, giving an account of the early settlement of each locality, church histories, county and township officers from the first down to 1886 Biographical sketches of some of the prominent men and women. > Part 9
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holes where the large roots had been taken out filled up, the contract for bridging the streams was let. The bridges when finished were very rough but substantial. The road was now ready for the four-horse coaches which were soon carrying the daily mail from Indianapolis to Logansport.
For months at a time while I was postmaster, I had to get up at three o'clock in the morning and change the mail. When the roads were bad they had to use what they called mud wagons. When we first settled in Boone County the woods were covered with pea vine, which afforded excellent pasture for cattle. There were a good many black and yellow rattlesnakes. Just west of Squire Sheets place there was a little mill, or corncracker, which had been built by the neigh- bors for their convenience. Jesse Davenport said when it was in use it was a faithful little mill. Just as soon as it would finish one grain of corn it would jump right on to another. At that time there was no regular miller, each person doing his own grinding. One of the neighbors took a little sack of corn to the mill, put it in the hopper, started the mill and went home, to return when his grist should be ground. Hav- ing accidently shut his dog in the mill, he returned to find the meal eaten out of the chest as fast as it had been ground in. The county seat of Boone was located about 1832, and named Lebanon. The board of county commissioners were called to meet and let the contracts for building a court house and jail. The court house was a hewed log house, about 16 x 24 feet, two stories high, and was built on a lot on the north side of the public square. The first jail was built east of the public square and was made of hewed logs about a foot square. After the contracts were let for the building of the court house and jail, Jesse Davenport, who was one of the county commission- ers, returned home. Several of the neighbors called to learn the result of the first meeting of the board at the new capitol. In answer to. the question regarding the size of the court house, Mr. Davenport said : " It is to be ten feet square and ten rails high." There were some mud and several log shan-
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ties scattered around in different parts of the town. There was one log shanty on Main street, near the southwest corner of the public square, that seemed to attract as much of the crowd as the court, which was then in session. There was a man in that log house who was retailing whisky by the drink. The floor of the cabin was laid with round poles about four inches in diameter, and in walking over these they would spring down into the mud and water until it was a perfect lob- lolly. At that time I believe there was no license required for selling whisky, which retailed at twenty-five cents a gallon. At the first court in Lebanon there were not many cases on the docket. Nearly half the cases were called hog cases, per- sons indited for stealing hogs. At a subsequent court held in the same court house, Mr. Thos. Kersey, a respectable farmer, and three or four other gentlemen who had been summoned on the jury, were sitting in a room in the hotel. Col. C. C. Nave, a prominent attorney of Hendricks County, was walk- ing back and forth across the room with his thumbs stuck in the armholes of his vest. Suddenly facing those jurors he said: " I am hell on a hog case." Mr. Kersey said he sup- posed the colonel took them all to be hog thieves.
The auditor's, treasurer's and recorder's offices were all destroyed by fire in October, 1856. The auditor, James A. Nunn, succeeded in saving one book, which was of but little value. The treasurer, John C. Daily, got the tax duplicate for that year, which was of more value to the county than any other book in the office. There was nothing saved in the recorder's office. Thomas P. Miller was not at the fire, but could not have saved anything if he had been there, as the recorder's books were all at the back part of the room, the most remote from the head of the stairs. The three offices were in the same room, in the second story. The entire block was consumed by fire. In the recorder's office there were at least one thousand deeds burned, that had been recorded and not taken out, which made it necessary to get a proof record and also a record of deeds heretofore recorded, which made
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much trouble, expense and some litigation. The two first brick dwellings built in Lebanon were built by Samuel S. Brown and William Zion. Thomas P. Miller had the first brick business house, which was built for William Bowers, the saddler, and was built of brick out of the old court house. William F. Boyd was the bricklayer, Frank Williams the car- penter, and George James and Allen Coombs the tin roofers. When the house was finished a scuttle-hole was made in the roof and Billy Bowers constructed a rope ladder, so as to have easy ascent to the roof in case of fire. ,That house stands on the south side of the public square, and is joined on the east by Dr. James Evans' building, the second brick building erected in Lebanon. Lebanon's second jail was built on the same lot that the first log court house was built, and was of hewed logs a foot square. The third jail was built on the same lot. It was of brick, stone and irou. It was about the size of a hen-coop and a perfect nuisance. The fourth jail, which stands near the northeast corner of the public square, can be seen with the naked eye. The third court house can also be seen without a spy-glass. The names of the four county officers who were in office at the time the court house was built were cut in a stone and placed over the north door of the court house, viz .: W. C. Kise, clerk ; J. A. Nunn, auditor ; J. C. Daily, treasurer ; and T. P. Miller, recorder. Thomas P. Miller is the only one now living, although the eldest of the four. Hugh O'Neal, a prominent attorney of Indianapolis, who practiced in Boone County at an early day, said he thought Boone would be a very good county some day, but it would have to be jerked up about three feet. The man that did the first surveying in Boone County (before it was a county) was Col. Thomas Brown, of Union County, Ind. I was a small boy, but remember when he surveyed the new purchase, as it was called. Brown's Wonder took its name from a remark he made while surveying near that creek. Setting his jacob-staff down and looking all around, he said, " I wonder where we are?" In his field-notes he said the
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undergrowth consisted principally of hazel brush, prickle-ash and black rattlesnakes. Austin Davenport built the first brick house in Boone County, which is on the Michigan road, a half mile north of Eagle Village. T. P. Miller built the second house in Eagle Village, a hewed log house, one story, sixteen by eighteen feet, and a brick chimney, the first in the neighborhood. W. W. Miller built the first house in Eagle Village, which was a cabinet shop, sixteen by tweenty-four feet, hewed logs. The first dry goods establishment in Eagle Village, after the town was located, was the firm of Williams, Conner & Russell. At one time Eagle Village had two hotels, four or five dry goods stores, two groceries, two tan-yards, two saddle shops, two blacksmith shops, cabinet shop, tin shop, chair shop, and a half dozen carpenters. The Indianapolis and Lafayette State road was surveyed in 1829. James Mc Falin was the commissioner ; Col. George L. Kinnard, sur- veyor ; Robert Martin, the bush-whacker ; James McClelland and William W. Miller, chain-carriers. The first survey made from Indianapolis missed Lafayette two miles, but when there, the colonel knew where Indianapolis was, and had no trouble in correcting back. When they arrived at the point where Lebanon now stands, Col. Kinnard turned to the chain-carriers and asked how many pins they had. When told, he stuck his jacob-staff down and said: "Here is the center of Boone County " It was not long after that till Gen. James P. Drake and Col. George L. Kinnard were the owners of the land that the original plat of Lebanon was laid out on. Rose, Harris and Longley made the first addition. Spencer and McLaugh- lin made the second addition.
COMMUNICATION FROM WM. E. LANE.
ZIONSVILLE, IND., OCT. 18, 1886.
MESSRS. HARDEN & SPAHR, LEBANON, IND. :
Dear Sirs-Inclosed find a short sketch of my life, my parents and grand parents.
三
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My grand parents, Lambert Lane and Nancy Anderson, were emigrants from England. They were both young when their parents arrived in this country. Their parents settled on the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania about fifteen miles north of its mouth, in the wild woods and amongst the Indians. While living there my grand parents became acquainted and were married in the quaint old style. My grandfather wore a blue eloth coat cut " claw hammer " style, with no lapels, · ornamented with large brass buttons which closely buttoned up his coat ; his pantaloons were white linen, buckled with a large silver buckle just below the knees to a pair of white silk stockings. His shoes were leather, fastened with another pair of silver buckles. Grandmother wore a white cambric dress, with nice hand embroidery on the skirt. In a few years they moved to Virginia and lived there about four years; then they moved to Tennessee on the Holston River and remained there for a few years, after which they moved to Shelby County, Kentucky, about five miles from Shelbyville. While living there my father, Thomas Lane, became acquainted with Anna Ellis, and was married to her on the 11th day of April, 1799. They lived together thirty-six years, when my father took pneumonia and was sick for six weeks. His disease be- came chronic and he died August 18, 1835. My mother never married again, but lived to raise her family. She died of remittent fever May 24, 1848. My father served as a Revolutionary soldier for seven years; he was a private for three years, when he was commissioned as an officer, which he held to the close of his soldiery. He underwent many trials and privations, but was never sick a day while in the army, save from the wounds he received. He was wounded four times, once seriously while guarding the Moccasin Gap. He was surrounded by the Indians and would have lost his life if providence had not favored the occasion with a very severe rain storm, which wet the powder in the Indians' old flint-lock guns, and prevented them from firing. He put spurs to his gallant horse and was hastily making his escape, when a sturdy
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warrior seized his bridle rein and brought his horse to a sud- den halt. Father used his sabre and cut one Indian's arm off, hacked another on the head till he fell to the ground. He then forced his horse through their ranks, but received a severe cut in his right side which lasted him several weeks.
He was sent home then and remained there about three months, when he was called back to resume his place in the army. He always obeyed his superiors, and was never pun- ished during his term of soldiery. He served his time out in the army and came home without a dollar in his pocket ; but the Government allowed him to bring his horse, sword and pistol home, with the assurance that he should be paid for the whole seven years' service and receive a land bounty, but too sad to think of, neither got money nor land; yet he came home in good health and good spirits, hoping that a large yield of his tillage might make prospects brighter. He soon made money enough to enter a quarter section of land.
He remained on that farm (Shelby County, Ky.) until the spring of 1811, when he with his family came to the Indiana Territory and settled on the Ohio River in what is now Har- rison County. He entered land there, built a cabin and went to work in the green timber to make a field, for it was root hog or die. He accumulated means very rapidly and was soon able to own a large tract of land, notwithstanding he raised a large family, five daughters and nine sons. All lived to be grown but one son. I herewith insert a copy of the old fam- ily register, just as it was written by my father, and only wish that I could give a fac simile of the writing :
THE FAMILY RECORD OF THOMAS LANE.
Thomas Lane was born June 5, 1763. Thomas Lane died August 18, 1835. Anna Lane was born January 25, 1782. Anna Lane died May 24, 1848. Isaac Lane was born October 17, 1800. Sarah Lane was born January 30, 1802. Craven Lane was born November 9, 1803.
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Malinda Lane was born June 13, 1805. William E. Lane was born July 3, 1807. Linna Lane was born October 10, 1809. Fielding W. Lane was born July 1, 1811. Eliza E. Lane was born March 3, 1814. Ellis Lane was born July 11, 1816. John A. Lane was born July 1, 1817.
Pleasant G. Lane was born July 3, 1819. Anna A. Lane was born November 19, 1820.
Davis W. Lane was born September 24, 1823. Nelson Lane was born January 8, 1827. Ellis E. Lane died August 22, 1816. Linna White died September 1, 1837.
John A. Lane died September 7, 1843. Nelson Lane died July 13, 1851.
Davis W. Lane died March 27, 1852. Isaac Lane died June 23, 1875.
Pleasant G. Lane died Angust, 1876.
Craven Lane died September 4, 1873. Saralı Keller died December 12, 1863.
Malinda Barnett died October, 1858.
Eiiza E. Barnett died September 15, 1868.
Anna Gresham died February 11, 1881. Fielding W. Lane died January 11, 1883.
Thomas Lane, Anna Lane and seven of their children, to wit: Ellis E. Lane, Linna White, Nelson Lane, John A. Lane, Davis Lane, Sarah Keller and Craven Lane, were bur- ied on Cedar Ridge on father's own farm, near Lane's Landing on the Ohio River, Harrison County, Ind. Malinda Barnett was buried in a Presbyterian cemetery near Reesville, Put- nam County, Ind. Eliza E. Barnett was buried in a Baptist cemetery near Reelsville, Ind. Pleasant G. Lane was buried in a country cemetery near Shoals, Martin County, Ind. Isaac Lane was buried at Shellsburg, Benton County, Iowa. Field- ing W. Lane was buried at Brookly, Iowa. This is the fam- ily record of my father, which carries all the family to their graves but myself.
In August, 1828, I came to Boone County and entered the tract of land that I now live on. I then went back to Harri- son County, and was married to Elizabeth Simpson on the 4th
ELI SMITH.
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day of February, 1830. Her father, Thomas Simpson, was a man of more than ordinary intelleet, was of foreign birth --- born in Scotland June 27, 1757. He, with his parents, came to Virginia in his boyhood days, and remained there until the beginning of the Revolutionary War; he then volunteered for a soldier, and went to the army as a private under General Washington. He was in the army for seven long years. Al- though he started as a private, he soon honored the First Sergeant's rank; but long before the war closed he bore the commission of Second Lieutenant. He, like many others, suffered many privations during the war. On one occasion, when camping for the night, he kicked the snow from a brush heap, spread his blanket and slept for the night, as they were in the enemy's country and no fire was allowed. He served his time in the army and when discharged went back to Vir- ginia to farming, and married Abigail Moore (the exact day and month we can not give, the paper being so old, and very pale ink, that it could not be read) in 1784. That coming February he went to Jefferson County (now Nelson County), Kentucky, and laid a warrant for a patent containing five hundred acres. He remained there the following summer and deadened the green timber on a parcel of ground, giving a desirable loea- tion for a house and field. The whole summer he was com- pelled to sleep on the bare ground to prevent the savage In- dians from sealping him, each night sleeping in a different place, with his old " killing iron " by his side.
He worked all summer on this piece of land, then returned to his native home and found his wife enjoying the sweet hum of her spinning-wheel. He then rented a farm of George Washington, and was to have the use of the horses and slaves on the farm. Simpson was to provide for the negroes and sell Washington's corn at "two shillings and six pence per bushel, hay at the same price." This quotation is taken from the original contract made between Simpson and Washington, dated December 21, 1785. While engaged in deadening the 8
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green timber on his Kentucky land, the Indians stole his horse, which left him with nothing but his ax and gun (old killing iron ) to fight his way with those savage wretches. This compelled him to walk from Bloomfield, Kentucky (nick- named Gandertown ), to his old home place on the Mononga- hela River, Marion County, West Virginia ( then Virginia ), a distance of over five hundred miles. He arrived on the Virginia home in good health, vigorously pushed the work on the Washington farm until 1790, when he, with his wife and two little children, went to his own home near Gandertown, Kentucky. He spent the remainder of his life on that farm, in the noble pursuit of a farmer's life, in the steadfast faith of a Presbyterian. His only brother, John Simpson, was the father of President U. S. Grant's mother. He was a member of the noble order Free and Accepted Masons, and died in good standing, a member of the Bardstown lodge. He died fron a bullet wound received from a British soldier while struggling for our nation's liberty. The bullet went through his right · lung and rested against the shoulder-blade, producing a run- ning sore, which brought his worthy life to a peaceful close about twelve o'clock, August 10, 1825. His wife, Abigail, died of dropsy of the heart on the 12th of February, 1825. They were both buried on the old farm on Simpson's Creek, near Bardstown, Kentucky.
THOMAS SIMPSON'S FAMILY RECORD.
Thomas Simpson was born June 27, 1757. Abigail Simpson was born July 6, 1761. Mary Simpson was born May 15, 1786. J. Moore Simpson was born November 2, 1787. Tamer Simpson was born January 15, 1789. Samuel Simpson was born December 5, 1789. Nancy Simpson was born August 4, 1793. Nelly Simpson was born January 29, 1795. John Simpson was born October 27, 1796. Gilbert Simpson was born January 23, 1799. Elizabeth Simpson was born January 19, 1801. Hannah Simpson was born June 18, 1804.
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The Simpson family was scattered all over the country in different states until I lost sight of them, and do not know where all of them died ; but all the family is gone, not one is left to tell the sad story.
My wife and I arrived in Boone County, on our wooded home, on the 31st day of December, 1830. That winter I cut trees to build a cabin ; the next spring I got a few of the old settlers and we erected a cabin 18 x 23 feet ; we covered it with clapboards that I had split out of a large red oak tree. They were made four feet long and laid down loosely and weighted down with heavy poles; the lower one, or eave- bearer, had a large pin through it to prevent it from slipping off.
We moved into our cabin without any shutter to the door, when there were plenty of rattlesnakes, wolves and bear in the country, and worse to be dreaded of all was the wild boar. There were no mills near us, and milling was a great item. On one occassion when it became necessary for me to get corn ground (for that was nearly all the kind of bread we used) I took a sack of corn and put it on a horse and started to mill to be gone over night, my wife remaining at home to do as best she could. In the early part of the night our large sav- age dog began baying at something. Betsy (as I called her) got up and built a fire, and stepped to the door and raised the blanket that hung up for a shutter ; she hissed the dog so as to drive away the intruder, but the coarse growl from a bear frightened her very badly. She stepped to the fire, took a burning stick in her hand to singe him if he came in. Sud- denly the dog was boxed into the middle of the room, but rose instantly and fought so hard that the bear was driven away. On another occasion when I had been away from home to do a day's work, I returned by the light of the stars, ate my sup- per, and went to doing my chores; and as corn was always scarce in the fall we fed pumpkins until they would freeze. This time I took my pumpkin stick, went to the field, got my load and came to the house to feed my horse and cow. Sud-
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denly I heard a rustling behind me, and I pitched my load off of my shoulder, turned around and saw a very large wild boar just ready to jump at me. I jumped the little yard fence, went into the house and got my gun and came out and " settled " with him.
We had a very hard time in the wilderness, as it might be called. Coming away from a locality where everything was plenty and market near. The nearest dry goods store or gro- cery was at Indianapolis, fifteen miles away. About three years after we came to this county, William Miller put up a few dry goods in an old eabin in old Eagle Village about two miles away.
We struggled on in life, striving to raise our family, which had to be clothed by our home production, which was flax and tow linen for summer, and jeans colored with walnut bark for winter. Wool was carded by hand and spun on a little spin- ning wheel.
We had eleven children born to us-eight sons and three daughters-six sons and two daughters still living. But my devoted companion bid adieu to earthly friends and went to her heavenly home on the morning of March 28, 1879; but ere long I too will have gone to meet her, for I am now sev- enty-nine years old, having been born July 3, 1807, and my companion, Elizabeth Simpson, Jannary 19, 1801.
WILLIAM E. LANE.
COMMUNICATION FROM GEO. B. RICHARDSON.
The subject of this sketch was born August 24, 1828, in Decatur County, Indiana, eight or nine miles north of Greens- burg, consequently a Hoosier by birth. At the age of nine years my father moved to the State of Boone, being the fall of 1837. This carries us back half a century, when this country was almost an unbroken wilderness, and to the time when there were but few residents in Marion Township, and from the best information that I ean gather, the man that my father
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.
bonght out was probably the first white man that ever settled in Marion Township. His name was Isaac Srite. He moved on north where it was not so thickly settled. There were but few families, to my knowledge. I will name the most of them. They were Jacob Parr, Sr., John Parr, Wm. Parr, John Holl- ingbaek, Caleb Richardson, Moody Gilliam, T. J. Linsy, John F. Johnson, Jonathan Scott and my father Jonathan Richard- son, and James Richardson. This, so far as I know, was about the number of citizens of Marion Township. This may suffice for the names of the early pioneers. Probably it would be more interesting to refer to the condition that things were in fifty years ago. Then our county was almost an unbroken wilderness. Game was abundant, such as deer, turkey, wolves, wild cats, and there was said to be some bear and panthers, though I never saw any of the last two named; and as to small game, such as squirrels, pheasants, coon and oppossum, I suppose Boone could have taken in as many to the square mile as any county in the state. And then there were some bad snakes, such as the black rattlesnake, the red belly, the water moccasin, the chicken or cow snake, and a number of other different kinds. Some were said to be very poisonous. One thing I know, I was always a little afraid of a big snake ; I did not like his looks, especially when he was reaching for fight. But about the most dangerous thing we had to contend with were the wild hogs. Some of them, old he fellows, with tusks four or five inches long, were formidable foes, and the best way you could manage was to shoot them down or to keep entirely away from them. They could kill a dog too quick. There were but few dogs that had any business to tackle him in those days. They were troublesome in leading the tame ones off. Some had their hogs belled so they could find them in the woods. I have known hogs to live out all winter without a grain of corn, and it was no uncommon thing for ns to kill our meat off the most fat and nice without feed- ing them one ear of corn, which was a good thing for most of he early settlers. It it had to have been fattened on corn we
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would have had some very thin meat. And as to all the hard- ships and privations through which my father and all the early settlers had to pass, I am perfectly familiar with. Our houses were generally built of round logs, about 18 x 20 feet, pole joists, clapboard loft and roof, with the boards held on the honse with poles called weight poles, and a puncheon floor, a fire-place in one end of the house, six or seven feet long, back and jam made of dirt, the chimney was sticks and clay, the door or doors were made of long boards and hung on wooden hinges, a wooden tack or a pin to hold it shut. The windows were generally one or two logs cut out and paper pasted over it and greased, so as to let the light shine through the paper. Now, when you get the house chinked and danbed, you have the house ready to move into. You move into your new house with six or seven children, and this has to serve as parlor, bed room and kitchen, and sometimes as shoe shop and cooper shop. Then comes your cooking vessels, which were about this : a skillet and lead teakettle, stewkettle and a frying pan. Your water shelf was made by boring two holes in the. house and driving pins in them, and then putting a load on the pins. Your enpboard, or dresser for your dishes, was gotten up much on the same style. Your table was either made of split boards or a slab split out of a big log and holes bored in each corner and legs drove in them I have not yet said anything about the bed and bedstead. Some few had bedsteads with turned posts, or fancy post bedsteads, as they were called in those days. The most of them were made by splitting out the posts and dressing them up with a draw knife and boring holes for the rails. But then there was a cheaper class of bed than this, which was constrneted on this plan, by putting two poles in the cracks of the house and one leg with holes bored in it to fasten the other end of the poles in. This was called a one-legged bedstead. I have had many a good night's rest on the last kind spoken of that I know of.
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