USA > Indiana > Madison County > Historical sketches and reminiscences of Madison county, Indiana : a detailed history of the early events of the pioneer settlement of the county, and many of the happenings of recent years, as well as a complete history of each township, to which is added numerous incidents of a pleasant nature, in the way of reminiscences, and laughable occurrences > Part 8
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In relation to the deposits that the late Allen Makepeace claimed to have made with the First National Bank of Ander- son, the following receipt was introduced in evidence, to wit : " The First National Bank of Anderson received of Allen Makepeace for safe keeping $14,000 in 7 3-10 United States bonds, said bonds to be returned to said Makepeace at any time called for. Interest on said bonds due August 15th and
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY, INDIANA.
February 15th. (Signed.) J. G. Stillwel, T. N. Stilwell, Anderson, Indiana, December 28, 1865."
It would seem, from the reading of this receipt, that the bonds were not actually deposited with the bank as money, but that they were merely left with J. G. and T. N. Stilwell for safe keeping. In a suit afterwards brought by the Allen Makepeace estate a verdict was given against the estate of Colonel Stilwell for the full amount of the bonds so depos- ited ($14,000).
It will be unnecessary in these pages to go into the full details of all the doings and sayings at the preliminary hear- ing, or to make any comment on the affair at length. It was decided by the Justice of the Peace, Asa Pratt, before whom the case was tried, after all the evidence that could be offered was heard, that Colonel Thomas N. Stilwell met his death at the hands of his antagonist, John E. Corwin, while acting in defense of his own life, and Mr. Corwin was accordingly acquitted.
This affair cast a gloom over the city of Anderson that was not effaced for many years, and it is never mentioned or referred to by anyone but with regret and the deepest sorrow.
Mr. Corwin remained in this city for several years after the occurrence and organized the Madison County Bank, of which he became president. It was afterwards merged into the Madison County National Bank, of which he was also elected president, and did a thriving business until the year 1884, when he sold his business to Major C. T. Doxey and Daniel F. Mustard, and removed to Middletown, N. Y., where he at this writing is residing.
CHAPTER LIX.
A NUMBER OF AMUSING INCIDENTS.
LEE M. TREES IN THE ROLE OF "SQUIRE."
In the year of 1880 the young fellows of Anderson town- ship, by way of a joke, voted for Lee M. Trees, the " Merchant Prince " of Anderson, for Justice of the Peace, and Morris M. Williams, commonly known as " Bundy" Williams, for con- stable. When the votes were counted it transpired that they had each received enough to elect them, to the surprise of themselves and friends. They thought to further the fun, so they both qualified and entered upon the duties of their offices.
Soon after 'Squire Trees had filed his official bond, and been " qualified " he was called upon by a young and buxom couple from the country with a request to join them in holy wedlock. The " 'Squire " very graciously ushered them into his elegantly furnished rooms over his store, and for a few moments excused himself. He went out and found his chief of staff, Mr. " Bundy" Williams, high constable, and fifteen or twenty of the " boys" and returned to his apartments where the groom and blushing.bride were in waiting.
Lee ordered the waiting couple to arise to their feet and join hands. Constable " Bundy " Williams " gave the bride away " and the ceremony proceeded when in a very impressive manner, Lee said :
" Do you each solemnly swear in the presence of God and these witnesses assembled, that you will support the constitu- tion of the State of Indiana ; that you will love, cherish and . honor each other through sickness as well as in health ; that you will neither of you depart from the paths of virtue and rectitude, but will cling to each other as the ivy clings to the trunk of an old tree, so help you God."
To this they both nodded and replied " we will."
"I then, by the power vested in me by the State of Indiana, in the name of God and the holy Saint John now declare you husband and wife."
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY, INDIANA.
" Boys, let us take a light drink."
The decanter was set out and the 'Squire, Constable, bride and groom partook first of the claret, then it was passed to the bystanders. Thus ended 'Squire Trees' first marriage ceremony.
He and Constable Williams only held their offices a short time and resigned, other business being too pressing for them to attend to the duties imposed upon them."
THEY'LL HAVE IT IN THE HORSE-FLY.
Almost every farmer in Madison county will remember Robert Shinn, who kept a place where Louis Blest's " White House " now stands. Robert's place was headquarters for farmers to lunch, and to get all' the political news. Robert and his good, old wife, recently deceased, kept posted on the politics of the day, and many politicians and candidates have been made and unmade in the Shinn grocery. Robert was a liberal fellow in all things, and had a heart as large as a tub. When the crusade against the saloons was raging in 1874, the ladies sat in little booths upon the streets, taking the names of all who entered the saloons, one of which was in front of Robert's place. Some one passed down that way and saw Robert complacently sitting beside the ladies who were watch- ing his door, fanning himself with a large palm leaf hat. When he was asked, " Well, Robert, what do you think of the proceedings?" he answered with a big laugh, " Oh, I think they are a set of d-n fannyticks."
In 1866, W. E. Cook and Tom O'Neil, who were con- nected with the Anderson Standard, published a "fly-by night" paper called the Fire Fly. It was gotten out in the night when every one was supposed to be asleep. It " roasted " every one without respect to person, and nothing escaped it. Robert Shinn was, one sleety morning, strolling down the street, when, without a moment's warning, ont went his feet on the ice, landing Robert on his back. Ile was as thick as he was long, and in his scramble to get up, be rolled until he got over against the court house fence before he could regain his footing. Climbing up against the fence, he began to brush the offal of the public square from his clothing, and, limping up to the corner, with a look of dispair, said : " I . sposhe' they'll have it in that danged . horse-fly ' to-night."
Robert Shinn died several years ago in Anderson, at a ripe old age ; while he was a saloon keeper, he was universally
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY, INDIANA.
liked by all who knew him and was an honest man. He paid his debts to the last farthing, and believed in doing to others as he would have them do unto him.
TWO LARGE BLACK COONS.
Lafe J. Burr, one of Anderson's old-time citizens, holds the title of president of the "coon club." It is an organiza- tion that meets on the street corners and talks a great deal about coon hunting, but really does but little hunting. It is composed of Lafe Burr, James II. Snell, George IInghel, Thomas J. Stephens, Jack Brunt, John P. Davis and several others whose names do not now come to mind.
Some friend of Mr. Burr's one day, in a moment of hilarity, went to the Bulletin office and put in a two-line advertisement and signed Lafe's name to it, wanting two large black "coons."
In a few days an old farmer drove up in front of Mr. Burr's gate with a farm wagon and stopped. He called Mr. Burr out of the house, and, after passing the time of day, said :
"Well, Lafe, here's your coons."
""What coons? "
"Why, the coons you advertised for in the Bulletin."
"I haven't advertised for any."
This aroused the old man's ire. "I reckon you did; I 'seed' it in the Bulletin, and I can read writin' and printin' as well as you can, and it's in the paper."
Lafe still insisted that there was a mistake somewhere in the matter. The old man began to warm up. "Look here, Mr. Burr, I've knowed you a long while, and respected you as an honorable man. Me and my boys quit our work and went to a great deal of trouble to catch these coons for you, and you don't want to play none of your foolishness on me. You can either take them and pay me for them or there will be trouble and our friendship is at an end." .
"Well," said Mr. Burr, "I don't want to lose you as a friend, but I assure you this is a practical joke some one has put up on me; but I'll take the coons. What are they worth? "
"Two dollars and a half."
"All right; here's your money. Take them and put them in C. K. Mccullough's Riverside Park, and come back and get your dinner and call it square."
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY, INDIANA.
The old man dumped the coons into the park and went home happy, and is yet a friend of Burr's.
Burr has always had a lingering suspicion in his mind that James H. Snell, the vice-president of the club, set up this job on him.
Mr. Burr, besides being an old coon hunter, is one of Anderson's respected citizens, and has been a great success in business affairs. At the November election, 1896, Mr. Burr was elected County Commissioner on the Republican ticket.
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CHAPTER LX.
INDIAN REMINISCENCES.
As has been stated in other parts of this work, the ground upon which Anderson stands was at one time an abiding place for the Indians. The tribes who are known to have dwelt in Madison county at one time were the Delawares and the Pottawattamies. The headquarters for the Delawares was for a long time at " Anderson's Town," and as such it was known from the earliest pioneer history.
"It may at present be an unknown fact, yet it is an interesting one to state that the first suit at law in Anderson was heard in a cabin or lodge which had been occupied by Chief Anderson. At the time Anderson lived here there was another chief of the name of Green, in whose honor the stream of water that meanders through the western part of the town was named ' Green's Branch.' This is all that is left to per- petuate his memory. His wigwam stood on the grounds in the immediate vicinity of the present home of the Hon. James WV. Sansberry, at the west end of Tenth street.
" This chief, so it is stated by the old settlers, was the worshipper of an idol. It bore a great resemblance to a human countenance, and was carved in a large slab of wood and elevated to a distance of twelve or fifteen feet above the ground. It was known to have been used for such purposes for years before the people located here. Judge John Davis secured this idol as a relic and placed it in a room in the old court house, from which it was afterwards stolen.
"It is said that prisoners taken by this tribe in times of war were brought before this chief for trial, and were forced to run the gauntlet, and traces of the same could be very easily observed by the early settlers near Green's wigwam.
" Another chief was Killbuck, who is said to have been a Delaware. Ilis lodge was on the north side of Killbuck creek. He is spoken of as a wise chief and one friendly to the whites. His remains occupy an unknown site in the woods north of the dam across Killbuck creek, on the Sparks farm.
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY, INDIANA.
" Nanticoke was the name of a chief whose village was located on the south bank of White river, on the present farm of Robert Cather, about four miles west of Anderson.
"' White Eyes' was another chief, whose lodge stood near the present site of the poor farm. All information in regard to him is very vague, and but little is known of him or his tribe.
" The Delawares, judging from early pioneer history, were a very war-like people, and were engaged in many most
AN IDOL WORSHIPED BY CHIEF GREEN.
desperate battles with the whites during the last century. At Fort Recovery, Ohio, in an engagement which resulted so dis- astrously to the whites, under General St. Clair, the Dela- wares bore a prominent part.
" Fronting the beautiful eminence upon the north bank of White river, some eight miles west of Anderson, is an old Indian burying ground which occupies nearly an acre, and from the depressions in the ground it is surmised that one hundred or more Indians are buried there. This ground is a part of the farm of Alexander McClintock. No excavations have been made on it, and should the privilege ever be granted
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY, INDIANA.
of making an examination of the ground some valuable in- formation might be gleaned concerning the early occupants of Madison county soil.
" A peculiar looking pipe weighing about a half pound was found upon a grave in this ground sometime since which was donated to the Madison County Historical Society.
" Upon the farm of Matthias Hughel, some two miles east of Anderson, upon a high point overlooking the country for a distance of two or three miles to the south, is the site of the village of Moravian Indians, mention of which is made else- where. The evidence of the location of their lodges and wig- wains were very easily traced with the advent of the white settlers into this region. When the excavations were made for the earthwork of the Anderson Hydraulic in 1870, the workinen exhumed a great number of skeletons which were be- lieved to have belonged to the Moravian Indians.
" A tradition existed for many years among the early set- tlers that both lead and salt abounded in some of the valleys and hills in the vicinity of Anderson, and to some extent this belief prevails at the present day. The Indians appeared to obtain them easily, and upon short notice, but steadily kept the secret to themselves. If lead was found at all, it is thought its place was among the hills along White river .. to the north- west of Anderson.
" The farm of Harrison Canaday, two miles north of An- derson, was in early times a favorite spot with the Indians for hunting deer. The early settlers thought that a salt well dug by the Indians existed near Killbuck creek by means of which the deer were induced to come to that place; but if that was really so, the Indians carefully guarded their secret and never revealed it to the white man."
The descendants of the Madison county Delawares are now said to be found in the Indian territory. The above ac- count of our early Indian history is taken from a paper by Fleming T. Luse of the Madison County Historical Society.
A LEGEND.
The following beautiful story was written by Miss Nellie Lovett, the accomplished daughter of the Ilon. John W. Lovett, now the wife of Earle Reeve, of Anderson, and is re- produced in these pages by special permission of the writer :
Early in the present century, Indiana territory stretched from the Ohio river to the great lakes, and embraced within
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY, INDIANA.
its borders what is now the prosperous and populous State. It had never been subdivided by the surveyor's lines, and, with the exception of a few rude settlements of hardy pioneers and trading posts along the principal streams, it was inhabited only by the untutored children of the forest. members of the several tribes of the " Great Algonquin Nation," of which the Delaware formed a conspicuous part. It was a country beautiful to look upon, and lay just as the hand of nature had leftit. There wasno monotonous stretch of level prairie to weary the eye, but hill and valley, undulating upland and fertile river bottoms made up an ever changing landscape that was beautiful to behold, always pleasing and diversified. Near the center of the great territory in a bend of the river, then known in the Indian tongue as " Watseca," or White river, was the
VILLAGE OF THE DELAWARES,
ruled over and governed by that noble chieftain, Kik-the-we- nund," or Anderson. At the time our story opens Anderson was a splendid specimen of the Indian race. In the very prime of life, standing six feet in his moccasins, straight as an arrow, of powerful frame and dignified bearing, he seemed a born leader of men, worthy to wave the scepter of authority over the important tribe to which he belonged. He had listened to the Moravian missionary, had heard the wonderful story of the cross, and ever since he had been a steadfast friend of the whites. The hardy hunter, trapper or trader, courageous enough to penetrate the unbroken forest and reach his village, was sure of a welcome at his wigwam. The forests abounded in game of every variety known to the zone. The river teemed with the best of the finny tribe, and in the fertile bottoms grew, in luxuriant abundance, the fields of Indian maize.
Thus in peace and plenty dwelt Anderson and his tribe, keeping inviolate the early treaties with the pale face race. Years before the chieftain's squaw had been stricken by the fatal fever, and had been called by the Great Spirit to the happy hunting grounds, leaving to Anderson a little daughter, "Oneahye, or Dancing Feather." She had grown to early womanhood, the pet of the tribe, tall and lithe of figure, swift of foot as the red deer, yet gentle and loving of disposition ; this Indian maiden graced her father's wigwam, as the
WILD FLOWERS DECKED
the sloping hillside that stretched from its doorway to the margin of the beautiful river. The young braves of her own
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY, INDIANA.
and neighboring tribes, the Miamis and Pottawattamies, paid tribute to her beauty, and cast the trophies of the chase at her feet ; but thus far her heart remained untouched and her fancy as free as the breeze that sported in the tree tops, or the wild birds that were her daily companions. But one day there came to the village a stalwart young hunter of the pale-face race. Brave and fearless, the wild life of the woods and prairies had a charm for Charley Stanley that had won him from the haunts of civilized life and had caused him to seek as his companions the dusky, untutored children of the for- est. He was accorded a warm welcome at the chieftain's wigwam, and at her father's bidding " Oneahye " spread for him, under the shade of the old oak, a mat of soft and fragrant rushes, woven by her own deft fingers. To the young and susceptible hunter, this Indian princess was a vision of loveli- ness. He had never seen a form so graceful, or a face so ex- pressive. The days glided by, and still he tarried, the guest of the tribe. By day the hunter and maiden wandered through leafy bowers, and at evening under silvery moonbeams, or the silent stars, the two floated on the bosom of the river in the light birch canoe. It was the old, old story : and when the beautiful Indian summer came and cast its mellow haze over hill and valley, the two were made one after the Indian cus- tom, and thus another tie was formed to bind " Chief Ander- son " to the whites.
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The years grew green and grew brown; the moons waxed and waned, and time rolled on. The splendid country had attracted widespread attention, and each year saw new set- tlements of the ever restless Anglo-Saxons; saw the hand of civilization leaving its mark on the face of nature, and writing the doom of the red children whose heritage was coveted by the superior race. Already a trading station had been located at the village of the Delawares, and the log-cabin of the pioneer stood within arrow shot of the wigwam of the ". Aboriginal." Anderson recognized the hand of fate; saw the writing on the wall, and knew that the red man must soon move toward the setting sun. With the other chieftains of the Algonquin nation he signed the treaty of St. Marys, in 1518, ceding to the United States the remaining interests of the Delawares in the splendid Indian territory, whereby it was agreed that within three years from the signing of the same, his tribe
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY, INDIANA.
would leave its ancestral territory, removing to a reservation west of the Mississippi. In accordance with the stipulations of the treaty, the 20th day of September, 1821, saw the exodus of the Delawares from the lands of their fathers.
The day was a beautiful one. The woodlands were robed in gorgeous hues of the Frost King and were flying the flaming banners of autumn. Fifty canoes floated on the river, while a herd of ponies and pack horses, bearing the camp equipage of the tribe, stood ready for the journey.
The young braves and squaws were to go overland, while the chiefs and aged members of the band were to travel by water. The white residents turued out to witness their de- parture, and there were many touching scenes at the parting. Charles Stanley and Oneahye, his Indian wife, had decided to remain at the settlement. At a given signal the canoes were filled with their burden of swarthy beings, and the caval- cade took up its line of march. Anderson was the last to move. When all was in readiness he laid his hand on the head of his daughter. A hush fell upon the assembled multi- tude as he spoke in the expressive and figurative language of the Delawares a father's parting blessing and benediction. The eagle feather in his plume quivered slightly, but beyond this there was no outward sign of the deep feeling that stirred the bosom of the noble chief. This simple ceremony over, he stepped into the canoe and stood erect, while the fleet, re- sponsive to the strokes of the paddles, shot out into the cur- rent, and thus the long and tedious journey to the new hunt- ing grounds, was commenced. The people on the river bank stood silently watching the departing canoes until a bend in the river hid them from view.
Twenty years had passed since the departure of the Dela. wares. Hard years they had been on the tribe. Pestilence and war, disease and death had played sad havoc, and but few remained of that goodly band of warriors. Anderson still hved, but broken by age, hardships and disappointments, he felt the future had little in store for him, and his thoughts continually turned back to the days of his early manhood, and a longing, unconquerable desire to see once again with his own eyes his dearly loved daughter, and revisit the old scenes, filled his heart.
Gathering about him a few trusty companions, he turned his face eastward, and by easy stages and frequent rests he made the journey. Charles Stanley had built for himself and
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY, INDIANA.
family a log cabin, somewhat more pretentious than most of his neighbors, and here the old chieftain received a warm and tender welcome; but the days of rest and enjoyment, which he had anticipated, were not to be. The fever was raging in his veins and pain racked his frame. On the evening after his arrival he became delirious, and from his incoherent words it could easily be told he was living over again the old, old days. At times he was engaged in counsel with the neigh- boring Sachems. Again, he gave the directions for the jour- ney westward, and then he seemed to imagine himself in the old wigwam, and gently stroked the hair of his little grand- daughter as he had her mother's many years before. On the third day he died and was sorrowfully laid to rest under the spreading branches of an old oak not far from the cabin where he died. Fifty years have passed. Where the village of the Delaware stood stands a vigorous growing young city, just feeling the impulse of new life, caused by the wonderful dis- covery of natural gas. On every hand are evidences of rapid growth and substantial prosperity. The place where the old oak stood abutts on one of the leading thoroughfares, is marked for a splendid hostelry, and the work of its construction has commenced. In excavating for the basement and cellars of the building the workmen came upon a human skeleton. It was the remains of " Anderson," the Delaware. By direction of the owners the skeleton was buried in the crypt of the building, where it now rests. Over it was erected the noble structure, and it was eminently right and proper that in honor of the noble chieftain the hotel should be called " The An- derson."
It is said that on the night of the 21st day of September, 1891, the seventieth anniversary of the exodus of the Dela- ware, just as the clock in the tower of the court house struck the hour of midnight, the ghostly form of an Indian, clad in the full habiliments of a Delaware chieftain. might have been seen standing erect on the highest crest of the unfinished building, with folded arms, looking towards the cast, just as the chieftain had stood on the morning of his departure, sev- enty years before. It remained thus for a moment and faded out in a cloud of mist.
CHAPTER LXI.
INTERESTING CRIMINAL MATTERS, MYSTERIOUS AND OTHER- WISE, RECALLED.
A DARING BANK ROBBERY.
At the hour of high noon on Saturday the 10th of August, 1878, the city of Anderson was thrown into wild excitement over the announcement that the banking house of William Crim & Co. had been robbed of a large sum of money. This was one of the slickest pieces of robbery that was ever perpe. trated in this part of the country.
A well dressed stranger, a few days previously, had regis- tered at the Doxey House under the name of II. F. Tilden, of Mound City, Iowa. He was of very pleasant address, of un- assuming manner, talked but little to anyone but when in con- versation was entertaining and soon ingratiated himself into the good will of several leading citizens about the city, among whom was Joseph R. Cain, the cashier of the Crim Bank. Tilden made several visits to the bank for small accommoda- tions in the way of procuring change, at one time asking the cashier to give him silver for a twenty dollar bill. Mr. Cain took the bag of silver from the vault and counted it out, but just at that moment the stranger seemed to be troubled with a sore finger. He politely requested Mr. Cain to tie it up for him as he could not tie it with his other hand. Ile had a white rag wrapped around his finger which was also wrapped with a thread which was ready to tie. Mr. Cain, of course, complied with the request but in so doing he was compelled to reach over the counter. Mr. Tilden detained him as long as possible in tying it up by telling him that he had tied it too tight and had him to loosen it and retie it.
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