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 22
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John H. Persinger was born October 2, 1835, in Warren county, Ohio, and is a son of Eli and Sophia (Blinn) Persinger. His father, a native of Virginia, removed to Ohio in young manhood, and about the year 1850 brought his family to Indiana, the remainder of his life being passed in agricultural pursuits in Cass county, where both he and his wife passed away. They were the parents of the following children: Christopher, who is deceased; John H .; Mary Ann and Julia Ann, who are now deceased; Harrison and Amanda. John H. Persinger received his education in the district schools of his native state, where he was reared to agricultural pursuits, and taught the dignity and value of hard
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labor. He was still engaged in assisting his father when the War of the Rebellion broke out in all of its fury, and with youthful patriotism he at once offered his services to the Union army. They were accepted and he was enrolled upon the list of privates of the Forty-sixth Regiment, Indiana Volunteer Infantry, Captain Thomas. This hard-fighting regi- ment was detailed to the Army of the West, and participated in some of the bloodiest engagements of the war, at all times acquitting itself with the ntmost gallantry. Mr. Persinger continued to take part in all the movements of this regiment for four years, and after a service marked by bravery in action and duty well performed, he received his honorable discharge and returned to his home from Louisville, Kentucky. He at once resumed farming, and at the time of his marriage came to Tipton township, where he has since made his home, now being the owner of some valuable property. He carries on general farming and stock rais- ing, has wisely invested his means, and is considered one of his locality's substantial men. He receives a pension from a grateful government. Mr. Persinger is popular with the comrades of the local Grand Army post, and has numerous friends in business and social life.
In 1868, Mr. Persinger was united in marriage with Miss Mary Mil- ler, who was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, and they have had three chil- dren : Mitchell, Ira and Mrs. Bessie Berk. Mr. Persinger is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
WILLIAM SMITH. Located in "Hilltop," Washington township, about six miles south of Logansport, is the eighty-acre farm of William Smith, a tract that compares favorably with any of its size in this part of Cass county. From his boyhood Mr. Smith has been engaged in agricultural pursuits, and the position he has gained among the success- ful farmers and stock breeders of his locality has come through consci- entious labor and intelligent management of his affairs. Born January 31, 1844, near Hamilton, Butler county, Ohio, Mr. Smith is the son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Schafer) Smith.
Samuel Smith was born in Pennsylvania, and was a young man when he left his native state and journeyed to Ohio. He did not remain in the Buckeye state for long, however, but pushed on to Indiana, and here settled at once in Tipton township, Cass county, having made the journey by way of wagon. He became successful in his operations, was a large land owner, and in his death Tipton township lost one of its best citizens. He married Elizabeth Schafer, and they became the par- ents of eleven children, as follows: William, David, John, Elizabeth, Sarah, Samuel, George, Mary, Daniel, Alta and Caroline.
William Smith was a lad of nine years when he accompanied his par- ents to Tipton township, and completed his education in the log school- house of his locality, in the meantime assisting his father in the work of the home farm. He was married first to Miss Sarah Long, a sister of Simon Long, a sketch of whom appears elsewhere in this work, and she died after becoming the mother of four children: Marvin, who mar- ried first Anna Showtax, and they had three children,-Marie, Gladys and Irene; he married a second time and had four children,-Adah, Leffie, Evelyn and Charles. William B. married Ruby Easton, and had two children,-Fern and Hazel. Walter married Ellen McMillen, and
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had two children,-Sarah and Josephine. William Smith was married October 8, 1902, to Mrs. Mary H. (Beeler) Atherton, the widow of August Atherton, by whom she had eight children: Ida, Albert, Gertrude, Daniel, Walter, Cora, Willie, deceased, and Elmer. Mrs. Smith is the daughter of Daniel B. and Margaret (Schafer) Beeler. Mr. Beeler was born in Pennsylvania, and removed to Darke county, Ohio, in young manhood, becoming one of the successful farmers and stockmen of that locality, where the rest of his life was spent. He was the father of six children : William, Joseph, Lizzie, Mary, George, and Samuel.
After his marriage, Mr. Smith settled on his present farm in Wash- ington township, which he has brought to a high state of cultivation. He is thoroughly conversant with erop and climatic conditions, understands crop rotation and other scientific methods of gaining the best results from his land, and is a believer in the use of modern farming machinery. He supports movements tending towards progress and is always found among those who are advancing their community by promoting its interests. He has always been a man of temperate habits, and indicates his inclinations by supporting the candidates and principles of the Prohi- hition party. His religious faith is that of the Christian Science church, and he is a man who has good reason to be a devotee to the Christian Science and its great miraculous healing of body and mind. The Sci- entists are to erect one of the most beautiful and costly church edifices in the city on the corner of Ninth and North streets, Logansport.
CHARLES O. ROUSII. In every community there may be found among its citizenship men who direct their lives in harmony with the old rule known as that of the "Three P's-Push, Pluck and Perseverance." Given to any town one or more men of that stamp, a fair degree of pros- perity must inevitably characterize that place, for they invariably stand for prosperity and advancement, whatever may be the nature of the community wherein they are found. C. O. Roush is undeniably one of these plucky and persevering men. His farm, one of the fine places of the township of Tipton, is in section seventeen, and its eighty acres is intersected at one corner by the Pennsylvania Railroad. Its owner, one of the young and successful agricultural men of Cass county, began his career in that uncertain and ofttimes unsatisfactory status of the renter, has risen above many unpropitious conditions, and is today one of the most capable and prosperous farming men in the county, as has already been said.
C. O. Roush was born on June 23, 1882, and is a son of Christopher and Martha (Long) Roush. The father, who was born in Wabash county, was for many years a farmer in Bentou, and after a successful career, is now living retired from active business. His four children were: Charles, Mary, Tammie and Burdette.
Charles O. Roush attended the Green school in Jasper county, this being one of the largest schools in the county. His schooling was inter- spersed with vacation periods of active work on the home farm, and throughout his boyhood days he was carefully instructed in the duties and responsibilities of farm life, so that when he had finished his school work, he was well equipped to take his place as an intelligent and prac- tical farmer. The lessons learned under the able tutelage of his father
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have stood him in excellent stead in the years of his independent farm- ing career, and have gone far toward establishing his present success. .For seven years after he began his work on his own responsibility Mr. Roush was a renter, and from his savings in that length of time he was able to purchase the George Enyart farm, which is his present home. The improvements in evidence on this farm today are all of first-class order, the dwellings and outbuildings, fences and well-kept fields, all offering indisputable testimony to the thrift, energy and good man- agement of this young husbandman.
Mr. Roush was married on November 26, 1902, to Miss Cynthia Julian, a daughter of Elias and Harriet (Dresbach) Julian. The father of Mrs. Roush was a farmer, originally from Sheldon, Illinois, and he was the father of eight children, as follows: Milton, Milo, Guy, Lucien, Cynthia, Amanda, Nancy and Ruth. To Mr. and Mrs. Roushi have been born two daughters, Lillian and Harriet, both of whom are attending school in the home community. The family are members of the Metho- dist Episcopal church.
CHARLES E. JAMES. Agricultural methods have changed very materially during the past decade or two, and now that even the chief executive of the nation is taking a deep interest in progression among the farmers, there is every reason to suppose that still further advance will be made along all lines. Interurban service, telephones, automo- biles, and the consequent bettering of the roads on account of the latter, have brought the farmers much closer together, and as well have placed thiem in close touch with the centers of activity, and the man who today devotes himself to the cultivation of the soil is more inde- pendent than any other worker in the world. Among the progressive and enterprising farmers and stock raisers of Cass county, one who has recognized the value of modern methods and innovations and has profited accordingly is Charles E. James, whose well-cultivated tract of land is located in Noble township. Mr. James is a native of this township and was born October 13, 1881, a son of John and Nancy J. (James) James, who came to Cass county, locating on the farm on section 2, where Mrs. James is still making her home. John James was an agriculturist throughout his life, was a loyal and public-spir- ited citizen, and in his death, which occurred in 1906, his community lost one of its best and most highly esteemed men.
The early education of Charles E. James was secured in the district schools of Noble township, and in boyhood he was accustomed to the hard work which develops the mind and hardens the body. Spending his time in assisting his father on the home farm, he was thoroughly trained in all the details of agricultural work, and this he chose as his life vocation, nor has he had any desire to follow any other line of endeavor. He has been uniformly successful in his operations because of hard, industrious labor, intelligently directed along well-defined lines, and the soil of his land has responded gratefully for the work expended upon it, yielding him large and profitable crops. Mr. James has realized the value of modern machinery and scientific methods, and is an advocate of progress along all lines, not only in his own work, but in movements making for the public welfare. Such movements
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have always had his hearty support and co-operation. He has never had any desire for public office, being essentially a farmer, and has never, therefore, entered the public arena, although a stanch advocate of good government.
On August 7, 1901, Mr. James was united in marriage with Miss Nora Lontz, who was born March 1, 1882, in Carroll county, Indiana, daughter of William A. and Sarah Lontz. The latter died in Decem- ber, 1885. Mr. Lontz served one term as county assessor of Cass county, his term ending in 1902, and shortly thereafter he left for the West, where he has since made his home. Mr. and Mrs. James have had one child : Clarence E., who was born April 14, 1903. Both Mr. and Mrs. James are widely and favorably known in Noble township and are recognized as representatives of Cass county's best people.
JAMES M. DENISTON. Among the citizens of Cass county who are adding to the commercial importance of their section by their activi- ties in the business field, James M. Deniston, of Onward, holds a fore- most place. A product of the farm, reared to agricultural pursuits, he belongs to that class of men whose versatile talents allow them to meet with success in more than one line of endeavor, and has proven himself as able a business man as he was a farmer. He is now the proprietor of a general store at Onward, where he handles a large trade in merchandise and farming implements, his customers being drawn from a wide contiguous territory. Mr. Deniston was born De- cember 25, 1862, in Miami county, Indiana, and is a son of Thomas B. and Elizabeth (Wilkinson) Deniston. His father, a miller by trade, came to Miami county, Indiana, from Ohio, and here spent the rest of his life in agricultural pursuits. He and his wife had six children : Eva, Clara, who is deceased; James M., Belle, deceased; Charles and William. The mother of these children died in 1873.
James M. Deniston attended the district schools of Miami, but the greater part of his education was secured in the schools of hard work and experience. An energetic, industrious youth, he spent his early years in faithful labor, carefully saving his earnings with the idea ever in view of becoming the owner of a property of his own. Ilis per- severance and industry were rewarded by the accumulation of a farm of one hundred and twenty acres, located in Pulaski county, Indiana, on which he carried on operations for a number of years, but in 1892 he decided to enter upon a commercial career, and accordingly traded ninety acres of land for his present store. Here, by good judgment, honorable dealing, and attention to minor details as well as large ones, he has succeeded in building up a large trade, carrying a full line of articles demanded by the people of his community and an up-to-date stock of farming implements. He is known as a man of the strictest integrity, and possesses the full confidence of all who have had deal- ings with him. In addition to attending to the affairs of his store, he also carries on agricultural operations in Cass county.
Mr. Deniston was married in 1882 to Miss Rebecca Leffel, and to this union there were born four children, namely: William, a resi- dent of Logansport and bookkeeper in the First National Bank. He graduated from the public schools, and then took the teacher's course
Charles A Brandt And five,
"BLAKEMORE," RESIDENCE OF MR. AND MRS. ALBERT O. BRANDT
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of the Marion Normal, of Marion, Indiana, and taught two terms. He also graduated from the Logansport business college. He wedded Miss Anna Leffel, and they are members of the Christian church, and he is a Mason. Herman C., graduated from the public schools and is an agriculturist in Pulaski county, Indiana. He wedded Miss Alice Kelsey, and they have two children, Herbert and Mildred. He is a member of the United Brethren church and a Mason, and his wife is a member of the Progressive Brethren. Minnie is the wife of T. J. Sullivan, a resident of Adams township, and they have one son, Lloyd. He is an agriculturist and a Mason. Mabel, the youngest, is at home and in the sixth grade of the public schools. Mrs. Deniston is a native of Cass county, Indiana, and was reared and educated in her home county. She and her husband are consistent members of the United Brethren church, located at Twelve Mile, Adams township, Cass county. Mr. Deniston has interested himself to some extent in fraternal work, and is affiliated with the local lodge of the Masonic order at Twelve Mile. All matters pertaining to the betterment of his com- munity or its people find in him a hearty supporter, while among his associates he is known as a man who, having succeeded himself, is always ready to help others to succeed.
ALBERT O. BRANDT. Noble township is the home of some excellent citizens who have employed themselves in tilling the soil. Many of them have spent their entire lives on the farm and have known no other oc- cupation, and in this class stands Albert O. Brandt, who for the past thirty years has been engaged in cultivating his present tract of land. Mr. Brandt was born in Noble township, June 21, 1859, and is a son of Charles A. and Rosanna ( Adair) Brandt. He has a full genealogical tree, and traces his lineage back to 1760, as his progenitors came from Germany.
Charles A. Brandt was born in Fairfield county, Ohio, December 14, 1828, and is a pioneer of Noble township. He is the oldest son born to John and Hannah (Coulson) Brandt. His father immigrated to Indiana in 1837, from Fairfield county, Ohio, with his wife and three children, having been persuaded to come by David B. Coulson and Jacob Bimes- dorfer, brothers-in-law, who were at that time residing here. Charles A. Brandt was but nine years of age at the time of the immigration, and when he was seventeen years old he was apprenticed to E. B. Williams, of Logansport, with whom he remained one year, learning the trade of wagon maker. He continued working at his trade in Logansport and LaFayette until 1850, when he started for Oregon, but on account of illness he did not proceed farther than St. Louis, Mis- souri, being compelled to return home from that point. Again, in the following spring, he started on another trip, with Oregon again as his destination. Leaving Logansport, March 18, 1851, by ox-team, in com- pany with two other young men. he journeyed to St. Joseph, Missouri, where he joined a company then en route for his point of destination. On September 27th of the same year the party reached Oregon City, and shortly thereafter Mr. Brandt journeyed to California and there engaged in mining. Some months later he returned to Oregon and en- gaged in the packing business, in conveying provisions from there to the
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mines in California by pack mules. In this line he was quite successful, and continued in the business until June, 1854, when he decided to return to Indiana, although the return journey was filled with diffi- culties as regarded methods of travel. Leaving San Francisco, June 1, 1854. on the steamship Yankee Blade, he traveled to Panama, went thence by foot to Cruces, on the Chagres river, and then by railroad to Aspinwall, a distance of twenty miles, for which he had to pay $12.50 in gold. He then again boarded a steamship, and landed at New York City, June 22d. He left New York on the following day, going by rail to Buffalo, where he laid over one day, and then continued by rail as far as South Bend, Indiana, arriving in Logansport June 27th on a stage-coach. He has resided in Cass county since that date. In 1855, he located on a farm in section 20, Noble township, and in 1864 he purchased and removed to a farm on section 21, in the same township, where he resided until 1889. At that time he made removal to his present farm in the same township. In 1857, with his father and brother, he built a grist-mill on what is known as Cottonwood creek, and was here engaged in milling until 1860. In the spring of 1860, Mr. Brandt made a trip to Pike's Peak, Colorado, but returned in the fall of the same year, and in the fall of 1866 went to Kansas, and returned one year later, these trips being more of a prospective nature than with any idea of permanently locating there.
On March 30, 1855, Mr. Brandt was united in marriage with Miss Rosanna Adair, who was born August 5, 1834, in Noble township, the daughter of Benjamin and Anna (McMillen) Adair, of Ohio and Penn- sylvania, respectively. Two children were born to this union: James M., born October 28, 1857, and died the following day; and Albert O. On March 30, 1905, the golden wedding anniversary of this honored couple was celebrated, an added interest at the time being the wedding of their granddaughter, Nellie R., the daughter of Albert O. Brandt. After a long and useful life, Mrs. Brandt passed away June 5, 1909. Mr. Brandt's political faith is that of the Republican party, with which he has been connected since its formation, prior to that time having been a Whig. With his family, he attends the Shiloh Christian church. Mr. Brandt takes a deep interest in biographical and genealogical mat- ters, having in his possession much information in regard to Cass county and its early history and being a pleasing and entertaining con- versationalist. He has ever been honest and straightforward in his dealings, and his reputation is that of an excellent neighbor, a true friend, a capable business man, and a loyal citizen.
Albert O. Brandt received his education in the district schools and the county normal school, and has always been engaged in farming. He has lived on his present property since November 8, 1883, and is now engaged in farming his own land and working with his father, and like him is known as a man of good habits, loyal to his township's in- terests, and a capable man of business. On September 12, 1880, he was joined in marriage with Miss Annie B. Grable, daughter of Joram and Lucy Anna (Carson) Grable, of Adams township, Cass county. Mrs. Brandt is a native of Cass county, Indiana, born August 31, 1858, and is the fifth in a family of six children, one son and five daughters, but there are only two children of the Grable family living, Mrs. Brandt
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and her sister, Samantha, wife of Isaac Watts, residents of Pulaski county, Indiana.
Mrs. Brandt was educated in the common schools and also received a normal training for the profession of teacher. She taught five years in Cass county. She is a member of the Shiloh Christian church and of the L. A. S. Her father was a native of Pennsylvania, and was a well educated gentleman, and followed the profession of teacher both in Pennsylvania and Indiana, but most of his life was spent as an agri- culturist. He was a Republican, and both he and his wife were mem- bers of the Presbyterian church.
To the union of Mr. and Mrs. Brandt there have been born two children : Olive A., born July 10, 1881, who died September 1, 1881; and Nellie R., born September 21, 1886, who was married March 30, 1905, to Oliver O. Leach, an agriculturist, who resides near her parents. On this last-named occasion, the house was decorated in white and gold, and three guests were present who had attended the wedding of Mrs. Leach's grandparents, fifty years before. Mrs. Leach received a good education, receiving her diploma from the public schools in 1899, and in 1900 entered the Logansport high school, and spent two years there as a student. She is a musician of merit, and taught music in her · home township. Both she and her husband are members of the Shiloh , Christian church.
Mr. Brandt has always been a faithful member of the Shiloh Chris- tian church, which he attends regularly, and is an official worker in the township and county Sunday school association, in connection with his church. In politics he has always been a stanch Republican, but has never cared for public office, preferring to devote all of his time and attention to his farming operations. His fraternal connection is with Royal Center Lodge No. 585, Free and Accepted Masons, in which he has many warm friends, as he has, indeed, in all circles of his com- munity. The homestead of Mr. and Mrs. Brandt is known as "Blake- more."
MARION E. REED. Among the public-spirited men of Cass county who are filling official positions with marked ability and conscientious devotion to duty, none stands higher in general esteem than Marion E. Reed, postmaster at Onward, a capacity in which he has acted for more than six years. In choosing the men who handle the United States mail, the government is careful in securing only those individuals who have proven their worth in business, their loyalty as citizens and their general fitness for public office as displayed in their past careers. Mr. Reed has not only met all of these qualifications, but by his courteous and obliging manner has won the friendship of all who have had occa- sion to come in contact with him in his official capacity. He is a native of Cass county, and was born on the Reed homestead, about one and one-half miles east of Onward, November 4, 1869, a son of George M. and Martha J. (Smith) Reed. Mr. Reed's mother's people were natives of Pennsylvania, from whence they migrated to Ohio and later to Cass county, Indiana, where they were engaged in tilling the soil. George M. Reed was born in Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, a son of John
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and Jane (Brandt) Reed. and was brought by his parents to Cass county as a lad, the family settling on government land, which George M. assisted in clearing from its native state. He is remembered as one of the very early settlers of Cass county and as an able agriculturist and sterling citizen. He and his wife were the parents of seven children, namely : Marvin, who is deceased; and Marion E., Virgie, Estella, Ed- ward, Homer and Otho.
Marion E. Reed first attended what was known as the Cross Roads school and later the Kinsey school, and finished his education in Onward. He was reared to the occupation of farming and remained under the parental roof until he was twenty-five years of age, at which time he embarked in agricultural pursuits on his own account, being engaged therein for about ten years. He then turned his attention to mercantile pursuits, in which he was engaged until recently, and in which he met with the same success that had rewarded his agricultural efforts. He has recently sold his business, and now resides quietly on his valu- able town property, devoting his attention to looking after his realty interests. Mr. Reed has been a lifelong supporter of Republican poli- cies and candidates, and on January 8, 1907, received the appointment of postmaster of Onward from President Roosevelt, a position which he has held to the present time.
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