USA > Indiana > Cass County > History of Cass County Indiana : From its earliest settlement to the present time with biographical sketches and reference to biographies previously compiled, Volume II > Part 19
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HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
of Chicago: Marcellus T., born in 1847, a resident of Tipton township ; Alice, born December 26, 1848, who married A. J. Sharts; Carrie, born May 4, 1851, a resident of Los Angeles, California; Linnie J., born Au- gust 8, 1853, who married Andrew Shirley ; Mary Louise, born June 22, 1855, deceased; James A., born October 5, 1857, who died in infancy ; Jennie, born February 24, 1859, who married J. M. Stucky, and is now deceased ; Charles B .; Martha E., born November 1, 1863, who married Thos. East ; and Laura, born October 12, 1868, who married Grant Hug- hell, resident of Madison county.
Charles B. Wilson divided his boyhood days between work on the home farm and attendance at the old Wilson school, and he subsequently was a student in Logansport for one year. On reaching his majority he engaged in farming on his own account, and as the years passed gradu- ally bought more and more of the old homestead, finally purchasing the interests of the other heirs to his father's estate. He now has a well- cultivated property of 176 acres, and is justly regarded as one of his' township's most substantial citizens. He nses the most approved mod- ern methods in his work, takes a pride in being able to advance his in- terests by the use of the latest invented machinery, and a consequence has attained a full measure of success. He is known as a man of public spirit, who has the welfare of his community at heart, and his neighbors and associates cheerfully testify to his integrity in matters of a business nature.
Mr. Wilson was married to Miss Amanda Catherine Gottschall Janu- ary 1. 1884. Mrs. Wilson was born in Cass county, Indiana, August 25, 1863, the fifth in a family of six children, two sons and four daughters, born to Henry and Maria Jane ( Roderick) Gottschall. Both of her par- ents are deceased. Mrs. Wilson was reared and educated in her native county and is a lady of pleasing address, sociable, and has a kind word for all. The eldest of Mr. and Mrs. Wilson's children is Chester H., who received his diploma from the public schools, class of 1912, and put in one year at high school work at Onward, Ind. Byron A. received his diploma from the public schools at the age of thirteen and spent one year in high school. Clara Louise is in the seventh grade and has also taken music. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson are giving their children good prac- tical educations. Mr. Wilson is a trustee of Tipton township and was elected to that office in 1908 for four years, but his term is extended and will end in 1914. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson are consistent members of the United Brethren church, and he is affiliated fraternally with the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows, of Anoka, Indiana. Their homestead is known as Maple Grove Stock Farm.
ADELBERT C. POWYER. One of the best known families of Cass county and of the most highly esteemed ones. is represented worthily by Adel- hert C. Bowyer, a well known farmer in the vicinity of New Waverly. in this county. A sketch of the family is presented elsewhere in this work in the biography of John Bowver, the paternal grandfather of the sub- ject, and for details of the father of Adelbert Bowyer, the reader is re- ferred to the life of John M. Bowyer mentioned above. It suffices to say at this juncture that Adelbert C. Bowyer is the son of Allen W. and Elizabeth (William) Bowyer, and the grandson of Lewis M. Bowyer,
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pioneers of this section of the state and esteemed throughout their long and useful lives as only honest and worthy men are honored.
Adelbert C. Bowyer was born in Miami township in this county, on February 7, 1866. As a boy he attended the school at Walton and the Cross Roads, after which he turned his attention to the farm and its care, early learning much of the practical side of farming as a result of his association with his father in the home work. At the age of twenty the young man had rented a tract of farm land from his paternal grand- father, who assisted him greatly by the advice and instructions he was so well qualified to offer. The lessons he had early learned in industry and general good management soon enabled him to purchase land in the vicinity of Walton, where he lived for some years, eventually buying his present farm near Lewisburg. The place is a well managed one of one hundred and fifty acres lying on Pipe ereek, and is well known for one of the most thrifty and productive places in the community. Prosperity and contentment are attributes of the Bowyer home that are readily discernible to the most casual observer and the family is one that enjoys the friendship and high regard of all who share in their acquaintance.
Mr. Bowyer in young manhood married Miss Mary C. Fidler, Feb- ruary 27, 1887, and to them have been born two children, Clifford A., their first born, married Luella Flannigan, and Wayne W., is the younger child.
Fraternally Mr. Bowyer is affiliated with the Improved Order of Red Men, Kokomo, Howard county, and he and his family are mem- bers of the New Light Christian church. He gives all due attention to the duties of citizenship, and has a share in all the works of civic im- provement carried on in his town and county. The homestead of Mr. and Mrs. Bowyer is known as "Pine Lodge."
OSCAR WILSON. Among the members of that elass of self-made men of whom Cass county has reason to be proud, men who, unaided, have fought the battles of life without capital or influential friends, and have worked their way to the top through the sheer force of their own abil- ity and industry, Oscar Wilson, now a farmer of Tipton township, takes prominent place. He has been a resident of this part of Indiana all of liis life, and has accumulated a handsome property of 200 acres, located on the banks of the Wabash river, near Lewisburg. Mr. Wilson was born April 7, 1856, near Peru, in Peru township, Miami county, In- diana, and is a son of Absalom and Magdalena (Fisher) Wilson. The parents of Mr. Wilson both came from Clarksburg, West Virginia, not long after their marriage, settling in Miami county, where they passed the remainder of their lives in the cultivation of the soil. They were the parents of nine children, namely: Oscar, Thomas J., George F., Omer, Absalom, Olive, Margaret A .. Ella and Noah.
Oscar Wilson received his educational training in an old log school house in the vicinity of his native home, which he attended during the short winter terms, the whole period of his boyhood being devoted dur. ing the spring, summer and fall months to work on his father's farm. For some years after attaining his majority he rented land from his father. but subsequently acquired enough means to purchase a property
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on Big Indian creek, in Pulaski county, where he managed to bring 160 acres of land under a high state of cultivation, although when he first located thereon it had been in its virgin condition, without improvement of any kind. There he continued to reside until 1895, in which year he came to his present location, here purchasing 100 acres, to which he has added from time to time, now having 200 acres of some of the best land to be found in this part of Cass county. He has carried on general farming and stock raising, and has made improvements of a substantial and valuable nature, the general appearance of his land testifying to luis ability as an agriculturist and business man. Among his neighbors and associates, Mr. Wilson bears a high reputation for integrity and probity . of character, and lie is generally esteemed by all who know him. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson reside in their modern, eight-room residence, recently erected by Mr. Wilson, and equipped with all modern conveniences and comforts. Here they entertain their numerous friends with old- fashioned hospitality.
On February 22, 1881, Mr. Wilson was married to Miss Julia C. Sco- vel, daughter of Harmon and Cornelia (Huested) Scovel. Her father, a native of Germany, emigrated to the United States when nineteen years of age, locating first in New York, and later at Fort Wayne, In- diana, and finally settled on a farm in Allen county. Mr. and Mrs. Wil- son have had five children : Elma M. and Zelma C., twins, the former of whom is deceased, while the latter resides with her parents; Carrie, who is deceased ; Nola L., residing at home, and Harmon, who is a student at Defiance, Ohio. Mr. Wilson is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, No. 52, of Peru, Indiana, among the members of which he numbers many sincere friends. His religious affiliation is with the Christian church, of which for years he has been a consistent member and liberal supporter. He has been a lifelong adherent of Democratic policies and candidates. His career has been a long and honorable one, and now he may look back over a life that has been not alone of benefit to himself but to his fellowmen, content in the knowledge that no stain or blemish mars an honorable record.
GEORGE P. SHARTS. Among the old and honored residents of Cass county who are devoting their activities to the cultivation of the soil, George P. Sharts, of Tipton township, holds prominent place. Mr. Sharts has been a resident of Tipton township since 1849, and has borne no small part in the development of this section from a practical wilder- ness, into one of the most productive sections of Indiana, and bears a high reputation among the people of his vicinity, who know him as an industrious agriculturist and a citizen who has always had the best in- terests of his community at heart. His present sixty-acre farm is lo- cated on the Galveston road, about ten miles from Logansport. Mr.
Sharts was born November 9, 1839, near Germantown, in Montgomery county, Ohio, and is a son of George and Frances (Bear) Sharts. His parents were born in the vicinity of Hagerstown, Maryland, from whence they moved to Frederick county, that state, and later removed to Montgomery county, Ohio, where they resided for some years. In 1849 they came to Cass county, Indiana, settling first on the farm now occupied by N. B. Richinson, and lived in a little log house for some
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HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
years, until this shelter was replaced by a dwelling of more modern character and architecture. A large portion of this land was covered with a heavy growth of timber, which was cleared by Mr. Sharts and his sons, and there he spent the remainder of his life, his death occur- ring in 1853, when he was fifty-three years of age, and that of his wife in 1875, when she was seventy-two years old. They became wealthy and substantial people of their section, although the elder Sharts did not live to see his labors bear their full share of fruit. George P. and Frances (Bear) Sharts became the parents of the following children : Mary M., Rose Ann and Elizabeth, who are all deceased; Mrs. Cather- ine Hahn; Mrs. Jane P. Phillips; Abraham and John, who are both de- ceased; George P .; William O., who is deceased; Abijah J., who is en- gaged in farming in Tipton township, and Caroline Lucas, who is de- ceased.
George P. Sharts was only sixteen years of age when his father died, and, being the eldest of the sons he was called upon to bear the brunt of the farm work as soon as he was old enough to do so. His educational advantages were somewhat limited, but he made the most of his oppor- tunities, and being an intelligent and observing youth soon acquired a good schooling. On leaving the parental roof, he started working out among the agriculturists of his locality, thriftily saving his earnings with the end in view of becoming the owner of land of his own, and this ambition has been accomplished, for his present land is now one of the best properties of its size in this part of the township. He is engaged in general farming and stock raising, and the success that has rewarded his efforts may be taken as an indication of his ability in his chosen line of endeavor. Mr. Sharts is a member of the local lodge of the Ma- sonic fraternity at New Waverly, No. 484, and his religious connection is with the Christian church, which he attends consistently and sup- ports liberally.
On February 13, 1861, Mr. Sharts was united in marriage with Miss Maria Surface, who was born July 21, 1843, daughter of the Rev. Adam Surface. She was born in Preble county, Ohio, and joined the United Brethren church when she was fifteen years of age, continuing to be a faithful member thereof until her death, December 19, 1885. Mr. and Mrs. Sharts had two children : George A., born August 20, 1876, who lived only six months; and Elnora M., who married Fremont Haynes, is a resident of Tipton township. The home of Mr. Sharts is known as "The Sunset View Farm."
JOHN A. RUSH. To the uninitiated in farm lore, no especial credit attaches to the accomplishment of the man who begins his farming ac- tivities as a renter, dependent upon the extent of his crop for the means to reserve to himself the privilege of harvesting another crop in the fol- lowing year ; but to one who has seen something of the trials of the rent- ing farmer, or better yet, has experienced in some measure the hard- ships that follow thick and fast through some seasons, the success that a renter finally evolves stands out, brave and staunch. John A. Rush is one of these men who command the admiration and esteem of every honest man who has witnessed something of his rise in agriculture in the past forty years. He is known today for one of the ablest and most
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successful farmers and stock raisers in the county, and his place is sit- uated in the fine farmning neighborhood south of the Wabash river, near the mouth of Hart creek in Tipton township. A native of the county, here reared, he has been identified practically all his life with the indus- try of agriculture and its associated business of stock raising, and from his slender start as a renter, he has accumulated a very substantial and productive property, while in his capacity as a citizen and a member of the social community, is one of the most highly esteemed men in Tipton township.
Mr. Rush was born on the old Lendall Smith farm, near Onward, in Tipton township, on March 11, 1857. His parents were John and Eliza- beth (Colvin) Rush, and the father was a native of the state of Penn- sylvania, whence he came to Indiana as a boy with his parents, and it may be mentioned here, that they were the first of the name of Rush to locate in Cass county, which has ever since known the business and so- cial influence of the family. The ten children of John and Elizabeth Rush were named as follows, and nearly all of them are living today in places of usefulness in various parts of this county : Silas, the eldest, is now deceased ; Mary; William ; John A., of this review ; Frank ; Milton ; Ira ; Willard : Charles and May.
As a boy John A. Rush attended the common schools of Miami county, and there he received a practical schooling that well equipped him for the career he has since followed. While a school boy he was being trained thoroughly in the duties of the farm, building up a sound physical constitution that has stood him in excellent stead all through his rugged life in the farming industry. At the age of twenty-three he began independent farming as a renter, and from his good manage- ment and the profits of his labor, was in later years able to purchase his present estate. In early life he wedded Emma J. Grimes, the danghter of John and Nancy (Gard) Grimes, and to them have been born three children, as follows : Minnie B., the eldest, is the wife of Harry Griffith ; they have three children-Dorsey, Esther and Thelma; Edna May, the second child of the Rush home, is the wife of Harry Rhodes, and their one child is named Helen; Walter E., the third and youngest child, is yet a school boy, and gives promise of a life of usefulness in maturity.
Mr. Rush and his family are active members of the Christian church, and are prominent in the social affairs of the community. During his residence in Tipton township, Mr. Rush has taken an active and whole- some interest in civic affairs, and any improvements calculated to bet- ter conditions in his community never fail of his generous support.
JOHN T. DECKER. Too much cannot be said in praise of the worthy influence emanating from the life of a man who devotes his entire life to the development of a given section of the country, and who continues in that work despite the disconragements and misfortunes that may attend his efforts. It may be said that the man who devotes his life to the wresting of prosperity from the soil is benefited as much thereby as is his community, and some truth is found in that counter-claim, but the fact remains that it is thuswise that prosperity comes to any com- munity, and so it must continue to be attained. Among the well estab- lished farming men of Cass county who have given years of toil to the
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42-17
F
"IDLE WILD." HOME OF MR. AND MRS. JOHN T. DECKER
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HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
npbuilding of his particular part of the town may be mentioned John T. Decker, who is a native son of the county, born within its confines on April 10, 1862, and thus has better than half a century of identifica- tion with the county to his credit. His parents, Moses and Sarah (MeHenry) Decker, came from Ohio in their younger days, here settling and passing their remaining days. The Decker family is one of New Jersey ancestry and associations, and is of German and Irish blood. Moses and Sarah (MeHenry) Decker were the son and daughter or John Decker and John MeHenry, and they were married in Cass county, where they settled down on a farm and here reared their family. The father built with his own hands the log cabin in which his children were born, and there he lived in quiet and contentment until death claimed him in 1897.
John T. Decker, the Miami township farmer whose name heads this review, lived on the old home place until December, 1911, when he moved to his present fine place of two hundred acres. He was married November 15, 1881, to Miss Esther A. Scott. Mrs. Decker is a native of Fulton county and was born December 10, 1861, and educated in the common schools. Both her parents are deceased. She is a lady who has the universal respect of all who know her, as she is a woman of pleasing and agreeable personality, and has always aided her husband in counsel and advice. Her pretty and comfortable home is her paradise. To Mr. and Mrs. Decker one son was born, Clande, who was taken by death when he was a promising young man of twenty-four years. He was provided with many noble attributes of character and loved by all. Since deprived of the aid and companionship of his one son, Mr. Decker has continued to care for his farm without the help of any, and he has one of the most attractive and productive places in the township. He is regarded as one of the prosperous and competent farming men of the vicinity, and his standing among his fellow-men is one of the highest order, and of which he is in every way worthy. With his good wife, he attends the Christian church, and he is a Republican in his political faith. He has served his township on occasions as supervisor, giving praiseworthy service on those occasions, and he is known for one of the capable and consistent citizens of the township.
JOHN M. BOWYER. A resident of Cass county for more than seventy years, and of Tipton township for a period exceeding forty-five years, John M. Bowyer is entitled to mention as one of the old and honored citizens of his section, and as such is deserving of mention in a work of this nature. Mr. Bowyer has devoted his whole life to the cultivation of the soil in Cass county, and has witnessed and participated in the wonderful changes that have transformed what was onee a wilderness of timber and brush into one of the most productive agricultural sections of Indiana. He is now the owner of ninety acres of fine farming land on the Anoka river, about ten miles southeast of Logansport. Mr. Bow- yer was born April 24, 1841, in Miami township, Cass county, and is a son of Lewis and Malinda (Wilson) Bowyer. His father, a native of Germany, came to the United States in young manhood, and first set- tled in Pennsylvania, from which state he came to Indiana at an early Vol. II-10
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day, locating in Cass county, where the remainder of his life was passed in farming and stock raising. He and his wife became the parents of fourteen children, of whom only two survive at this time: John M. and Sylvester.
John M. Bowyer began to receive instruction in agricultural work when he was still a small boy, and long before he had passed his early 'teens was able to do his full share in the work of the home place. In the meantime he was securing his literary training in the district school of his neighborhood, which he attended during the short winter terms. He grew to manhood in Miami township, and with his father laid out a part of Lewisburg from the home property, there continuing to reside until reaching majority. At that time he began to carry on operations on his own account, and was so engaged at the time of his marriage, No- vember 30, 1865, to Miss Mary S. DeLawter. She was a daughter of Ezra and Sophia (Heck) DeLawter, who were born in Frederick county, Maryland, the former in 1818 and the latter in 1817, and who went to Ohio as young people with their parents, being married in the Buckeye state. Mr. and Mrs. DeLawter had four children, namely: Mary S., who married Mr. Bowyer; Sarah E., who married a Mr. Esquire Fenton ; Jacob W., who makes his home near the Bowyer place; and Rebecca, who married Mr. M. T. Wilson. Dr. DeLawter became an early settler of Cass county, and here spent the remainder of his life in agricultural pursuits. Mr. and Mrs. Bowyer have had eleven children, as follows: Charles Lewis, who married Maggie Layton, and has eleven children;
ยท Ella E., who is deceased; Horace, who married Minnie Helver, who died leaving three children : Milfred, Maria and Ocal; Edward; Effie Mae, who is deceased; Alvin, who married Rosa Timmons, and has six chil- dren ; Elmer E., who is deceased; Carrie, who married Clyde Smith, and has one child: Josephine; Marshall, deceased, who married Mattie Rob- inson and has one child : Susan; Iona, who married Seward Sullivan and has three children : Helen, Cleo and Carl; and Owen, who married Ruth Wilson. Mrs. Bowyer is a member of the Methodist church.
Shortly after his marriage, in 1866, Mr. Bowyer came with his wife to Tipton township, which has since been his home. His ninety-acre farm is in a high state of cultivation, gives eloquent evidence of the presence of good management and untiring industry, and is considered one of the valuable tracts of the township. Mr. Bowyer has been a life- long Republican, but has not entered public life, having been content to devote his activities to his farm. He is one of his township's highly es- teemed citizens and has gathered about him a wide circle of sincere friends.
AARON FLORY. The farming industry has received long and careful attention from men of the name of Flory in Cass county, and horticul- ture has come in for its full share of the attention of Aaron Flory, the immediate subject of this review, and his father, David Flory. The winter banana-apple was produced by these gentleman after years of experimenting and discouragements and the science of horticulture is directly indebted to them for this addition to the fruit bearing trees of the country.
Aaron Flory was born on the 5th of September, 1866, on the old
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homestead farm in Miami township that his father has settled some years prior to his birth. In the log cabin built by the father on the place all but three of the children of David and Sarah (Heffley) Flory were born. David Flory was the son of Henry Flory, a native of Dart county, Ohio, and it was in about 1843 that the father of the subject came from that place to Cass county. He was twice married. His first wife, whose maiden name was Richardson, died in about 1844, leaving him two chil- dren, William and Henry. He later married Sarah Heffley, and she bore him ten children. They may be mentioned as follows: Frank, who married Grace Adams; James, who married Lizzie Adams, a sister of Grace; Samnel, who died in infancy; Mary, who became the wife of Dr. J. C. White; Isabelle, died at the age of twenty-one; Florence, died when she was twenty-two years old; David, who married Marguerite Kelley; Charles, who married Ottie McCauley; Edward, who married Mabel Swigart; and Aaron, the subject of this brief record.
David Flory was a cooper by trade, and he devoted his winters to that work, while he gave himself to his farming and horticultural research work in the summer seasons. He was a devoted student of horticulture, and with his son succeeded in producing the famous win- ter banana-apple, as mentioned in a previous paragraph. During his later years he discontinued his work as a cooper, and confined his at- tention to the farm thereafter.
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