Greater Indianapolis : the history, the industries, the institutions, and the people of a city of homes, Part 81

Author: Dunn, Jacob Piatt, 1855-1924. cn
Publication date: 1910
Publisher: Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 972

USA > Indiana > Marion County > Indianapolis > Greater Indianapolis : the history, the industries, the institutions, and the people of a city of homes > Part 81

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Mr. Merrill was one of the loyal sons of In- diana who went forth to render valiant service in the cause of the Union when its integrity was thrown into jeopardy through armed re- bellion. On the 14th of July, 1862, he was commissioned second lieutenant of a company of the Seventieth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, receiving. this commission from Governor Mor- ton. He proceeded with his regiment to the front and he endured the full tension of the great internecine conflict, in connection with which he continued in active service until the close of the war. He rose through successive grades of promotion to the office of lieutenant colonel of the Seventieth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, of which regiment he had command while the same was with General Sherman on the historic march from Atlanta to the sea. He has ever retained a deep interest in his old comrades in arms and has been a prominent and valued factor in connection with the af- fairs of the Grand Army of the Republic. He served onc year as commander of the Cali- fornia and Nevada division of this patriotic organization, retiring from said position in May, 1909.

In politics Colonel Merrill has been aligned as a stalwart supporter of the cause of the Re- publican party from the time of its inception to the present, and both he and his wife are zealous and devoted members of the Presbyte- rian Church. For fully twenty years he served as elder and also as superintendent of the Sunday School of the Fourth Presbyterian Church of Indianapolis, and he is now an eld- er of the Presbyterian Church at La Cres- centa, California. In his native city and state Colonel Merrill's circle of friends is limited only by that of his acquaintances, and he is known as a generous, affable, courteous gentleman, and as one ever appreciative of his stewardship, so that he is kindly and tolerant in his relations with his fellow men, the while he commands their confidence and esteem by reason of his intrinsic worth of character. He has contributed in liberal measure to the in- dustrial and civic progress of Indianapolis and retains a deep and inviolable interest in all that touches its welfare, as the city is endeared to him by the hallowed associations and memo- ries of many years.

In the year 1859 was solemnized the mar- riage of Colonel Merrill to Miss Emily F. White, daughter of the late Rev. Charles White, D. D., who was at that time president of Wa- bash College. Mrs. Merrill is a direct de- scendant in the paternal line of that historic character, Peregrine White, and in the mater- nal line is a great-great-grandniece of the cele- brated Rev. Jonathan Edwards. The children

of Mr. and Mrs. Merrill are Charles White Merrill, secretary-treasurer of the Bobbs-Mer- rill Company; Anna Ellesworth Minna Foster, wife of Prof. F. C .. Foster, Canton, New York; and Samuel Merrill, Jr., on an orange and lemon ranch near Pasadena, California.

ARMIN C. KOEHNE has maintained his home in Indianapolis from the time of his birth and is one of its popular and representative citizens. He has held various public offices, including that of state senator, in which position he had the distinction of representing his native county. His election indicates the estimate placed upon him by those familiar with every stage of his career.

Armin €. Koehne was born in Indianapolis on the 19th of August, 1860, and is a son of Charles and Minna (Fritsche) Koehne, both of whom were natives of Germany, the former having been born in Wildeshausen, province of Hanover, and the latter in Beutelsdorf, king- dom of Saxony. The father became a success- ful business man in Indianapolis, and died here May 5, 1910.

The subject of this review was reared to ma- turity in the beautiful capital city of Indiana, and his early educational training was secured in its public schools, including the high school. He had varied business experiences in his youth and finally became a traveling commercial sales- man. He followed this vocation for many years and in the same attained to much of success and prestige. From his youth up Mr. Koehne has taken a deep interest in the cause of the Republican party, and he has been a zealous and active worker in its ranks. He served several years as market master of Indianapolis, was city treasurer for a time, and was incum- bent of the responsible office of treasurer of Marion County, in which position he gave an admirable and popular administration of the fiscal affairs of the county. In 1904, Mr. Koehne was made the nominee of his party for state representative of the district, which includes the County of Marion, and in the ensuing election he rolled up a gratifying ma- jority at the polls. He served as a member of the sixty-fourth and sixty-fifth sessions of the general assembly, and proved an able and effective worker, both on the floor of the senate and in the councils of the various committees to which he was assigned. He is identified with various fraternal and social organizations in his native city, and here his circle of friends is coincident with that of his acquaintances.

JOSEPH TAYLOR JOHNSON, one of the pres- ent proprietors of the well established Linden Hotel, is not the least successful of those who have been established here. He was born near Burlington in Carroll County, Indiana, No-

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vember 4, 1848, a son of John and Sara ( Hinchman ) Johnson, both of whom were born in Greenbrier County, Virginia, and both are now deceased, the father dying on the 5th of September, 1855, and the mother on the 1st of November, 1872. They were married in Greenbrier County, and seven children were horn to them, three sons and four daughters, and the four now living are: Mary, the wife of John Thomas; Sarah, wife of Franklin Thomas; Susan, the wife of E. Snyder; and Joseph T. John Johnson, the father, came to Indiana in 1840, locating first in Rush County, but after a year there moved to Burlington Township in Carroll County, and engaged in agricultural pursuits. He spent the remainder of his life there. He was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and in politics was first allied with the Whig party and after- ward with the Republicans.

The boyhood days of Joseph T. Johnson were spent on his father's farm, attending school during the winter months and assisting with the farm work during the summers. Contin- uing there until his twenty-fourth year he then moved to Knightstown, Indiana, where he was engaged in the livery business for about a year and a half, and from there went to Rushville, this state, and engaged in the livery and hotel business. In September of 1896 he came to In- dianapolis and associated himself with the business life of this city as the proprietor of the Exchange Hotel at the stock yards and also as a dealer in horses. In fact he was one of the largest representatives of the latter industry in Indiana up to 1900, since which time he gave his entire attention to his hotel, buying the Oneida Hotel in 1896. He sold this out in 1910 and became one of the proprietors of the Linden Hotel. He is yet a lover of fine horses, and always keeps some fine animals for his own use.

Mr. Johnson married Alice Blacklidge on the 14th of March, 1873, in Rushville. She was born on her father's farm near that city Sep- tember 24, 1851. a daughter of Jacob and El- vira (Buell) Blacklidge, the father born in Rush County, Indiana, October 8, 1828, and the mother in Miami County, Ohio, August 11, 1831, and they are now living on their farm in Rush County, the former aged eighty-one and the latter seventy-seven. Four children blessed their marriage union, two sons and two daugh- ters, and all are yet living, in fact there are now four generations in this family. Mr. Black- lidge has lived on his present farm all his life. and he is a worthy member of the Presbyterian Church and a stanch Republican in his political affiliations. A son, William Frasier Johnson. has been born to Mr. and Mrs. Johnson, and

he is now the manager and treasurer of the Capital Lumber Company and a prominent business man in Indianapolis, Mr. Johnson, Sr., is a stanchi adherent of Republican prin- ciples.

JAMES B. SEDWICK. As peacefully as it be- gan, the life of James B. Sedwick, the pioneer live stock commission merchant of Indiana, slowly ebbed away at his home in this city on the 23rd of January, 1910. The honored head of the firm of J. B. Sedwick's Sons and Com- pany, live stock commission merchants at the Union Stock Yards, in point of continuous identification had the distinction of being the oldest representative identified with that im- portant line of enterprise in the capital city of Indiana up to the time of his death, and he was one of the most prominent and influential figures in connection with the upbuilding of the splendid live stock industry now represent- ed in the operations of the great stock yards of Indianapolis. He maintained his home here for more than forty years, and ever held a reputation for maximum business honor and integrity, for a broad and comprehensive knowl- edge of commercial affairs, and his success, which was of a pronounced type, was the logical result of ability, discrimination and close ap- plication.

James Benjamin Sedwick was a native son of Indiana and a scion of one of its honored pioneer families. He was born at Spencer in Owen County on the 1st of January, 1837, a son of Dr. J. and Matilda (Archer) Sedwick. Dr. J. Sedwick was born in Indiana, but his father was from Maryland, where the family had been founded in Colonial days, having been of Scotch and English lineage. The grandfather became an extensive land owner and slave holder in Maryland, but sold all of his slaves with the exception of two at the time of his immigration to the wilds of Indiana. The two slaves mentioned accompanied him and his family to the Hoosier state, where he gave them their freedom, though they manifested their loyalty in continuing in his service. He became one of the sterling and influential pio- neers of Monroe County, was active in connec- tion with the civic and industrial development of the central part of the state, and both he and his wife there continued to reside until their death. Their son John was a boy at the time of their removal to Indiana, where he was reared to manhood and where he became one of the successful physicians and surgeons of the pioneer days. He and his wife were residents of this state at the time of their death, and in addition to the successful work of his profes- sion Dr. Sedwick also owned valuable landed estates and gave his attention to agricultural

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HISTORY OF GREATER INDIANAPOLIS.

pursuits. Dr. and Mrs. Sedwick became the parents of four children, but only one son is now living.

James B. Sedwick passed his boyhood and youth on the home farm in Monroe County, and his educational advantages were those af- forded in the common schools of the locality and period. As a youth he manifested distinc- tive ambition and initiative, and while he con- tinued to be identified with agricultural pur- suits until he was about thirty years of age he soon found it expedient to direct his energies along other channels of enterprise. In 1869 he came to Indianapolis in the capacity of solicitor for a Pittsburg live stock commission house, and as no definite market place for the handling of cattle had then been established in this city he made his headquarters at the Pan Handle Railroad yards. He had the prescience to realize that eventually Indianapolis could be made the headquarters for a prosperous and extensive industry in the handling of live stock, and his confidence in the future of the enterprise and of the city was such that in 1871 he was engaged independently in the live stock business, in which he was the pioneer operator in the city and one of the first in the state. He remained continuously identified with this important field of enterprise during the long intervening years, and his operations were well conducted and of an extensive order. His nanie at the head of his firm stood as a vouch- er for reliability and fair dealing, and the pres- tige of the firm rested largely upon his connec- tion therewith. In 1877 Mr. Sedwick became associated with others in building the Exchange Yards on the hne of the Indianapolis & Vin- cennes Railroad near White River, and there they built up a substantial business though it was principally of a local order, involving the supplying of retail meat markets in the City of Indianapolis. When the Indianapolis Union Stock Yards were completed in November, 1877, the Exchange Yards were sold, and Mr. Sedwick transferred his business headquarters to the new yards, where he remained contin- uously engaged in the commission business and where for many years he devoted his entire time and attention to the selling branch of the enterprise. He disposed of the first car of cat- tle sold at the old Union Stock Yards, on the 12th of November, 1877, and in this connec- tion it is worthy of note that his son, Charles W. Sedwick, who ably perpetuates his name, sold the first car of hogs at the present finely equipped stock yards, on the 29th of October, 1904. Within the time of his long and active identification with the live stock interests of In- dianapolis, Mr. Sedwick witnessed the develop- ment of the commission business from one of

modest order to proportions that place Indian- apolis among the important live stock centers of the Union. He witnessed commission offices grow to almost three times the original number and the receipts increase over one hundred per cent. In 1877 he became associated with Edwin Nichols and Adin Baber, and after their death the firm of J. B. Sedwick's Sons and Company was formed, the organization taking place on the 27th of June, 1904, and it was incorporated in 1909. Throughout his long and successful career as a commission merchant in Indianap- olis, Mr. Sedwick was continuously a member of the firm that has taken, unmistakable prece- dence of all other local concerns in this line of enterprise. He was progressive and public- spirited as a citizen, loyal to all that makes for the best interests of his home city, and stood unmistakably as a representative business man and was held in unqualified confidence and esteem by all who knew him. In politics he gave allegiance to the Republican party from the time of its organization until the time of his death, but was, however, essentially a busi- ness man and public office had no allurements for him. He became affiliated with the Masonic fraternity nearly forty years ago, and he was a member of the Methodist Church, as is also his wife.

Mrs. Sedwick was before marriage Miss Nancy MeNecley, who, like her honored and revered husband, was born and reared in In- diana and who is a representative of one of the honored pioneer families of the state. Of the three children of this union two are living,- Charles W. and Benjamin Franklin, who were associated with their father in business and who ably perpetuate his name in Indianapolis.

CHARLES W. SEDWICK. On other pages of this work is entered a brief review of the life and labors of James B. Sedwick, who is one of the representative and honored business men of Indianapolis and who is the father of him whose name initiates this paragraph. In view of the appearance of said article, it is not neces- sary to offer further data in the present con- nection concerning the family history and ref- erence should be made to the sketch mentiond for further details concerning the important business with which Charles W. Sedwick is associated. The latter has well upheld the prestige of a name prominent and honored in connection with the business and civic annals of Indianapolis during a period of more than thirty years and he is today president of J. B. Sedwick's Sons & Company, Incorporated, live stock commission salesmen, which concern dates its inception back to the year 1871. He has been identified with this line of enterprise since his boyhood days and in connection with the

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HISTORY OF GREATER INDIANAPOLIS.

same has achieved noteworthy success and precedence, being known as an authority in the determination of live stock values, and being one of the aggressive, wideawake and essentially representative business men of Greater Indian- apolis.

Charles Wesley Sedwick was born at Elletts- ville, Monroe County, Indiana, on the 6th of September, 1867, and he was but two years of age at the time of the family removal to Indian- apolis, where he has ever since maintained his home. Here he was afforded the privileges of the public schools, including the high school, and in the summer of 1878 when in his twelfth year, he assumed the position of scale boy for the Union Stock Yards Company, receiving in compensation for his services the dignified sal- ary of $1.00 per week. His duties in this posi- tion were not onerous, as they were principally summed up in the carrying of scale tickets Incidentally, as the years passed, he gained val- uable experience and at the age of eighteen years he became actively associated with . the live stock commission firm of which his father was the head. Through able and effective service he won rapid advance and he is now virtually the active head of the old and im- portant commission firm of J. B. Sedwick's Sons & Company, to the administration of whose affairs he devotes practically his entire time and attention.

It is but natural to infer that a man who has been as active and successful in connection with business affairs in the community should maintain a lively interest in all that pertains to its welfare and progress and this is signifi- cantly true in the case of Mr. Sedwick, whose loyalty to civic duties is of the most insistent type and who is ever ready to lend his influence and co-operation in the promotion and main- tenance of enterprises and measures projected for the best interests of the City of Indianap- olis. In politics he gives his support to the cause of the Republican party so far as na- tional and state issues are involved, but in local affairs he votes for the men and measures meet- ing his approval irrespective of partisan lines. He is an appreciative member of the time- honored Masonic fraternitv, in which he has attained to the Thirty-second degree of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite, in ,which body his affiliation is with Indiana Sovereign Con- sistory, Sublime Princes of the Royal Secret. In the York Rite he holds membership in the Mystic Tie Lodge, No. 398, Free and Accepted Masons; Keystone Chapter, No. 6, Royal Arch Masons; besides which he holds membership in Murat Temple, Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He is a member

of the Columbia Club, one of the leading civic organizations of the·capital city.

On the 9th of September, 1901, was solem- nized the marriage of Mr. Sedwick to Miss Elfa L. Lake, who was born in the City of Logansport, Indiana, and who is a daughter of William P. and Mary (Daugherty) Lake, who are now residents of Indianapolis, and both of whom are natives of the State of Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. Sedwick have two children-Eme- line M. and Theodore L.

JASON S. CAREY. One of those who assisted materially in the industrial and civic advance- ment of the City of Indianapolis, where he took up his residence in the year 1864, was the late Jason S. Carey, who held prestige as one of the essentially representative citizens of the capital city and who was one of its leading business men up to the time of his death, which occurred on the 28th of March, 1884. He was the scion of a family whose name has long been identified with the annals of American history and his lineage is traced back in England to the reign of Edward I. English records indi- cate that William and John Carey were mem- bers of Parliament, in which they represented the County of Devon.

Jason S. Carey was born in Shelby County, Ohio, on the 28th of November, 1828, and is the son of Cephas and Rhoda (Jourd) Carey. In that county he gained his rudimentary edu- cation in the primitive pioneer schools, and when he was twelve years of age his parents re- moved to Sidney, Ohio, where he continued his studies in the schools of the period. At an early age he entered upon an apprenticeship to the saddler's trade and at the expiration of two years, in company with his brothers Simeon B. and Thomas, he started on the long and ven- turesome journey across the plains to the new Eldorado in California, this being shortly after the discovery of gold in that state. They were not successful in their quest for the precious metal, owing principally to the fact that one of the brothers was taken ill and on this account thev returned to the east. After his return to Ohio, the subject of this memoir became asso- ciated with his brother Jeremiah in the boot and shoe business at Sidney, that state, and he continued to be identified with this line of enterprise until 1861, when he there established himself in the produce business. In the same year he removed to Dayton, Ohio, where he had superintendence of the construction of the Rich- mond & Covington Railroad. He was iden- tified with this work until February, 1864, when he came to Indianapolis, which city represented his home during the residue of his long and useful life.

Soon after taking up his residence in In-

O. S. lo any

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HISTORY OF GREATER INDIANAPOLIS.

dianapolis he turned his attention to the manu- facture of staves and was the first to introduce machinery for the dressing and finishing of staves. That enterprise, under his effectual direction, grew to be one of wide scope and importance, and he followed this business up to the time of his death. As a business man he was progressive and farsighted, and through his operations in connection with the industry noted he did much to further the advancement of the city. He was also identified with other interests of important order and was thoroughly loyal to all the duties of citizenship. Though he was never desirous of political office he took an active interest in public affairs, especially those of a local nature. In politics he origi- nally gave his support to the Whig party, but upon the organization of the Republican party he transferred his allegiance to the same and ever afterward continued a stanch advocate of its principles. Mr. Carey was a devout member of the Meridian Street Methodist Episcopal Church; was generous and liberal as a citizen, and gave his aid and co-operation in the sup- port of all worthy objects. He was a member of the directorate of the Merchants' National Bank at the time of his death. He was well known in connection with both business and social life of the community and ever com- manded the unequivocal esteem and confidence of the city that so long represented his home. At Sidney, Ohio, on the 28th of October, 1855, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Carey to Miss Ada M. Smith, a daughter of Rev. James M. Smith, one of the pioneer clergymen of the Methodist Episcopal Church in the Buckeye state. She survives him and still retains her residence in Indianapolis, a city endeared to her by the associations and memories of many years. Of the two children, Hervey died at the age of two years and Margaret is the wife of Clarence Winter, of New York City.

WILLIAM FRASIER JOHNSON. A scion of one of the old and honored families of Indiana, of which commonwealth he is a native son, William Frasier Johnson is numbered among the representative business men of the younger generation in Indianapolis, where he is incum- bent of the dual office of treasurer and general manager of the Capital Lumber Company.

William Frasier Johnson was born at Rush- ville. Rush County, Indiana, on the 18th of October, 1874, and is the only child of Joseph T. and Alice (Blacklidge) Johnson, both of whom were likewise born in Indiana. They are now residents of Indianapolis and concern- ing them more specific mention is made on other pages of this work, in a sketch of the career of the former. The subject of this re- view gained his earlier educational training in

the public schools of his native place and later continued his studies in the schools of Ash- ville, North Carolina. After leaving school he was for some time associated with his father in the hotel business, with which line of en- terprise he was identified after the family re- moval to Indianapolis, in 1900, and later he identified himself with the retail lumber busi- ness in this city, where he has held the office of treasurer and general manager of the Capital Lumber Company since 1902. He is one of the aggressive and enterprising business men of the city and has a secure place in the esteem of its people. In 1907 he was elected vice- president of the Indiana Retail Lumber Deal- ers' Association, retaining this office one year, at the expiration of which, in January, 1908, he was further honored by the members of the organization in being chosen president of the same. From this position he retired at the expiration of the regular term of one year. He shows a distinctive interest in all that con- cerns the progress and civic welfare of his home city and is identified with various fraternal and social organizations, including the Commercial Club, the Columbia Club and the Woodruff Place Club, of which latter he is a director.' In the Masonic fraternity his affiliations are as here designated: Pentalpha Lodge, No. 564, Free and Accepted Masons; Keystone Chapter, No. 6, Royal Arch Masons, and Raper Com- mandery, No. 1, Knights Templar. He is also identified with the lodge of Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks at Muscatine, Iowa. In politics he gives his allegiance to the Re- publican party, and both he and his wife hold membership in the Second Presbyterian Church.

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Greater Indianapolis : the history, the industries, the institutions, and the people of a city of homes, Part 81

Author: Dunn, Jacob Piatt, 1855-1924. cn Publication date: 1910 Publisher: Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Company Number of Pages: 972

Author: Dunn, Jacob Piatt, 1855-1924. cn
Publication date: 1910
Publisher: Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 972