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 30
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Mr. Frushour and wife were the parents of the following children : Della, born August 18, 1881, is now the wife of John Spencer; Olive, born May 27, 1883, married Lora Early, and Lottie, born July 24, 1888, married Harley Moore. Industry and thrifty management have been characteristic of Mr. Frushour's career throughout his many years of activity as a farmer. He has been the owner of three different farms in this immediate section of the county, and has improved them all with excellent buildings, and other facilities for high-class agriculture. At the present time, he is just completing the building and general im- provement of his third farm. Much of the land has been cleared by his own labor, or under his immediate supervision, and he is a farmer who has never relaxed his attention to business, and keeps all his inter- ests to the highest point of efficiency. He still works untiringly, and his prosperity is well deserved and earned. He and his family are mem- bers of the Presbyterian church. His pretty home is known as "Forest Glenn," located about five miles from the city of Logansport.
BENJAMIN F. YANTIS. Seventy-seven years ago the family of Ben- jamin F. Yantis made their way by ox team and by boat from their home in Spencer county, Kentucky, to Cass county, Indiana, and from then until the present writing, Cass county has been the home of this represen- tative family, and has known the activities and influence of its members. The subject, Benjamin F. Yantis, was born in Spencer county, Ken- tucky, on February 2, 1831, and was thus a young lad when the migra- tion of the family changed his home to Cass county. He is the son of Aaron and Martha (Cockran) Yantis. The father, Aaron Yantis, came from Germany with his brother George in the year 1760 and settled in Kentucky. The mother of the subject was of Scotch parentage. With the arrival of the family in Logansport from their Kentucky home, they settled there, remaining for two years, and then taking up their residence on a farm at the place where the street car line now ends, within fifty yards of the city limits. It was in the spring of 1841 that they removed to the George H. Harland farm in Bethlehem township for six years and then to the present farm, or the one that is now owned and occupied by Benjamin F. Yantis.
Benjamin F. Yantis was one of the eight children of his parents. One brother, John, secured some prominence in engineering as the result of much work on the Wabash & Erie canal in Indiana. The Yantis resi- dence was destroyed by fire in 1906 and since that time Mr. Yantis has replaced the old brick residence with a new and handsome brick house, one of the finest to be found in the township. The place boasts many improvements, all of which have been installed by the owner and proprietor.
Mr. Yantis has taken his place in the activities of the township in a public way, and one time served as township treasurer. He was drainage commissioner of the county for six years and served as trustee of the township for nine years, giving the most efficient service on all those positions, and proving his merit and calibre as a citizen.
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On September 13, 1855, Benjamin F. Yantis married Mary J. Hill, the daughter of Joseph and Esther (Jenkins) Hill. Eight children were born to Joseph and Esther (Jenkins) Hill, concerning whom brief mention is made as follows: William married Sarah Horn; Stephen J. married Hannah Conrad; Elizabeth A. married Isaac W. Wilson; Mary J. married B. F. Yantis; Martha A. married Jackson L. Thompson; Orlando married Savina Garber; Hannah died at the age of seven years; and Israel J. married Martha Gordon.
Mrs. Yantis is a native of Washington county, Pennsylvania, born May 21, 1831, and she was reared in her native state. Her father was a farmer and lawyer in Pennsylvania and Indiana. He was a Republican, and he and his wife were members of the Methodist Episcopal church, al- though she was reared as a Quaker. Both of Mrs. Yantis' parents are dead. The mother died in Fulton county, Indiana, June 21, 1873, and the father died in Bethlehem township, May 12, 1876. Father Hill was a splendid scholar, a fine penman and could write the German text. To the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Yantis were born eight children, four sons and four daughters ; five are living, as follows : Mary E., wife of Charles J. Moss, resident of Chicago and engaged in mercantile business; they have three children, two sons and one daughter. They are members of the Episcopal church. Elvira A. is the wife of Sumner E. Buck, a farmer in Bethlehem township. They have four children, one son and three daughters, and are members of the Methodist Episcopal church. Ruth A. resides at home with her parents. She was educated in the common schools and then took the Logansport teachers' course and musical in- struction in Chicago, both vocal and instrumental. She is a member of the Presbyterian church. Joseph A. is a farmer in Bethlehem township. He married Miss Frances Calvert. They are members of the Baptist church and he is a deacon therein and a Republican in politics. Lyman A. is a farmer in Bethlehem township. He wedded Miss Maude Evans, and they have two sons and two daughters. The name Yantis is of German extraction and was formerly "Yandes." Two brothers came from Germany during the time of the Revolutionary war and were soldiers in the war.
Mr. Yantis, though now in the eighty-third year of his life, is active and strong, and is enjoying these later years of quietude and plenty in the home he has so long cherished and cared for. He is a prominent man in his community, and has all his life enjoyed the esteem of all who have shared in his acquaintance. The estate of Mr. and Mrs. Yantis is known as "Highland Place."
NOAH L. BESS has had a successful agricultural career, covering a number of years, and as one of the skilled farmers and stockmen of Washington township is deserving of personal mention in connection with biographical sketches of other representative men of this locality. Mr. Bess is a native of Missouri, having been born in Bollinger county, April 24, 1868, and is a son of John and Malinda (Shell) Bess, the latter of whom lives with her children. John Bess made removal to Illinois about 1875, settling in McLean county, where he became a leading farmer and land owner, and where the rest of his life was spent. He
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"ENGLEWOOD, " RESIDENCE OF MR. AND MRS. NOAH L. BESS
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and his wife were the parents of seven children, of whom three are now living: Noah L .; Jefferson Monroe and Siebert I.
Noah L. Bess was about seven years of age when he was taken by his father to McLean county, Illinois, and in that locality he secured his education in the public schools. Reared to agricultural pursuits, he has followed the vocation of farming throughout his active years, and about 1900 came to Cass county and settled on his present farm in Washington township, a tract consisting of 124 acres of well- cultivated land. Here he has made numerous improvements, erecting handsome buildings, thoroughly ditching, draining and tiling the land, and keeping his implements in the finest condition. That he is an able manager is testified by the general prosperous appearance of the farm, and he has demonstrated his ability as a stock grower by breeding some of the best stock to be found in his section. He is essentially a farmer, and has not cared for public life, his private affairs having left him no time to take an active part in politics aside from casting an intelligent ballot in the support of the principles which he believes will best se- cure the welfare of the nation. He is regarded as one of the busiest. most energetic and enterprising men of Washington township, and his methods in his business dealings have firmly established him in the respect and confidence with all who have come into contact with him. His fraternal connection is with the Modern Woodmen of America of Forest, Illinois, and he is popular among the members of the local lodge of that order.
Mr. Bess was married in Bollinger county, Missouri, to Miss Ellen Perkins, October 9, 1888, a member of an old and honored family of that county, and to this union there has been born one son, Grover I., who was born in McLean county twenty-three years ago. He was educated in that locality and has been reared to an agricultural career, now being his father's aid in the management of the home farm. In November, 1910, Grover I. Bess was united in marriage with Miss Lena J. Furst, who also belongs to an old Illinois family, and they have one daughter, Jessie May. All of the members of this family belong to the Union Presbyterian church. Mr. Bess has a No. 17 Buick, five- passenger touring car and he and family can take many hours of pleasure and recreation. Their beautiful homestead is known as "Englewood."
JOHN A. FRUSHOUR. The leading hardware establishment in the vil- lage of Lucerne, in Harrison township, is that conducted by John A. Frushour. Mr. Frushour took charge of this business some years ago, and by his ability as a merchant has succeeded in more than doubling his trade, and now has an enterprise which is probably second to none of its class in northern Cass county.
John A. Frushour was born in Harrison township on the tenth of January, 1861. The family have been residents in this county for more than seventy years, and have always been industrious citizens, and highly respected for their personal character. The name Frushour, how- ever, is of Belgian lineage. Mr. Frushour's grandfather was named Mathias, while his father was the late John W. Frushour. The maiden name of the mother was Cecelia Bierd. The late John W. Frushour, the Vol. II-15
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father, was twice married. The nine children by his first wife were as follows: Michael W., Samuel J., James E., John A., Francis X., Eleanor E., George M., Edward W., and Sarah J. His second wife bore the maiden name of Amanda M. Boyle, and she was the mother of four chil- dren, namely : Mary R., Joseph E., Rose and Margaret. The father of the Lucerne merchant, came to Cass county about 1840, his original home having been in Morgan connty, Virginia. He was accompanied by his father, and their first settlement was in Noble township, on what is known as the old Tipit farm. He resided at different places in Noble township, and finally moved into Harrison township, which was his home until his death, at an advanced age in 1911. His first wife passed away in 1871.
John A. Frushour married October 22, 1892, Miss Mary A. Hoynes, a daughter of James and Margaret (Glenn) Hoynes. Seven children were born of their marriage, six of whom are living and one deceased, namely : John Leo, born January 15, 1894, and died February 14, 1911; James A., Ruth, Austin G., Margaret E., Edward H., Mary C.
Mr. Frushour was reared in his native vicinity where he attained such schooling as afforded him a practical preparation for life, and remained at home working on the farm and other occupations, until the time he was thirty-one years of age. During his youth he had acquired the trade of a carpenter, and when he began life on his own account, it was as a carpenter contractor, a business which he followed for about twenty years, with considerable success. It was on retiring from that occupation that he entered the hardware business at Lucerne, where he has since been a prosperous merchant. He bought out the present estab- lishment, and as already noted, has more than doubled the business in the years in which he has been engaged in same. His family attend the Catholic church, St. Elizabeth's, in Harrison township.
LUYE J. CLARY. Both industry and enterprise are required in the development of a first class farm from land which is in practically its native state. Mr. Clary, of Harrison township, has been characterized by these two qualities, and though still a young man he has succeeded beyond the ordinary, and is considered one of the most substantial men of his vicinity.
Mr. Clary was born in Harrison township, September 22, 1877. His grandfather and his father were both named Isaac. His mother's maiden name was Susan Julian, a daughter of Samuel Julian. Mr. Clary had three brothers and three sisters, whose names are as follows: William; Arthur, who married Blanche Morrison; Harvey, who married Mollie Tucker; Ida, who married Ervin Hull; Nellie, who married Roy Wol- ford; and Fern, who married George Bell.
On the eighteenth of February, 1906, Mr. Clary was united in mar- riage with Miss Daisy Wolford, a granddaughter of Abraham and daughter of Phillip Wolford. Her father was one of the old settlers of Cass county and the name Wolford is well known in this vicinity. The brothers and the one sister of Mrs. Clary are as follows: Mary, who was the wife of Bert Herd; George, who married Cora Clary ; Owen, married Hazel Deck; and Rowell, at home in Harrison township. Mr. and Mrs. Clary are the parents of one daughter, Esther, who was born November 17, 1906. After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Clary lived
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for some time in Fulton county, where they were farmers for four years and in that time did a great deal to establish a firm foundation for their subsequent prosperity. Mr. Clary had forty acres in that vicinity and during his residence there rebuilt the house, put in a cellar and also constructed a silo and many other minor improvements about the estate. From there he and his wife moved to the present farm in Harrison town- ship, Cass county, where he owns eighty acres in the homestead, besides fifty-one and one-half acres situated about half a mile from here. The land, when he took hold of it, had no improvements, and he has built a good house and put the entire place in condition for profitable agriculture. Mr. and Mrs. Clary are members of the Christian church, and in politics he is independent. The pretty homestead of Mr. and Mrs. Clary is known as "The Sunny Side Farm."
RICHARD WINN. Among the foreign born citizens of Cass county who have contributed their full quota to the best development and advancement of this district, the name of Richard Winn stands well to the forefront, and it is wholly consistent with the spirit and letter of a work of this order that more or less extended mention be made of his life and deeds on the pages of this historical and biographical record. Richard Winn has for many years figured prominently in the agricultural activities of Harrison township, this county, and of late years has con- cerned himself to a large extent with mercantile lines, although his inter- est has not been of an active nature. He has served in numerous public offices of prominence and has been prominent in church work for many years. He is now practically retired from all business activities, and his winters are spent in the warmth and sunshine of Florida.
Born in Yorkshire, England, on August 3, 1836, Richard Winn is the son of Richard and Alice (Batty) Winn, and the grandson of William Winn, a farmer in England. Richard and Alice Winn were the parents of a goodly family of eight children, named in the order of their birth as follows: William, Richard, Edmund, Thomas, Agnes, Isabelle M., Thomas B. and Leonard W.
In Harrison township Richard Winn, Sr., with his family, settled down in the resumption of farm life, further devoting himself to the business of cattle raising, in which he achieved a worthy success, his operations being more than usually extensive. He found that his entire time was absorbed by his own affairs, and thus never saw the day when he felt free to dip into political or municipal affairs. He was sixty-nine years old when he died in August, 1875, honored and esteemed by all who knew him.
Richard Winn, Jr., was twenty-four years old when he married and settled down on the home farm, on which he lived and prospered for many successful years. His farm, comprising five hundred acres, was one of the finest in the county, and yielded abundantly to his skilful manipulation. He later interested himself in the grain business at Lucerne, securing a half interest in a grain elevator at that place, and continued to be thus identified for many years, also becoming connected with certain other mercantile enterprises, all of which brought him bountiful returns, although his interest was always that of the silent partner, he never having connected himself actively with their operation.
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Success always attended his efforts, and his identification with a business venture ever seemed sufficient to insure its practical success.
On August 23, 1860, Mr. Winn married Miss Isabelle Herd, the daugh- ter of John and Agnes (Stainton) Herd, who, like the Winns, were also natives of England, Yorkshire being their ancestral home. Mrs. Winn was a daughter of John and Agnes (Stainton) Herd, and there were nine children in their family, five sons and four daughters, and there are five living : Mrs. Richard Winn; Thomas, a retired resident of Gas City, Indiana, and married; William, a retired resident of city of Logansport; George, an agriculturist of Harrison township; and Elizabeth, widow of Peter Castle, a resident of Logansport, Indiana.
The children of Richard and Isabelle (Herd) Winn are named as follows: Agnes, the eldest, married Edward Morrison, and they have two children, Blanch and Mary. John was accidentally killed some three years ago; he had married Mary J. Hall, who with their four chil- dren yet survive him, they being named, Maurice, Paul, Chester and Harold, last deceased; Mary Ellen, the third born child of her parents, married James Stevens and they have four children, Myrle, Ethel, James Monroe, and Florence; Alice died at the age of five years; Thomas died when three years old; Charles Emmett married Edith Myers, and they have five children, Earl, Dott, Mildred, Victor, and Irene; Harry married Violet McCoy, and they had two children, Wiley and Ruth, deceased; James married Catherine Wyand, and their only child died in infancy. Florence, wife of W. A. Brown, has eight chil- dren, Ralph, George, Carl, Mabel, Elmer, Russell, Harold and Horace. Edna, the youngest born of the family, is married to Ervan S. Grove.
Mr. Winn has been more or less prominent in municipal affairs dur- ing his career, and has held a number of important offices in the service of his town and county. He served two terms as county commissioner, was trustee of his township for a number of terms and has held other similiar offices. He has long been active in the Zion church and is at present, and has been for some years, one of its trustees. It is some years since Mr. Winn has been active in business, having retired to enjoy the fruits of his labors extending through several decades of useful and valuable citizenship. He has long enjoyed the high esteem and regard of his fellow townspeople, and is known for one of the most valuable men of the community, and an example of a high order of citizenship which the present and coming generations can not do better than to emulate.
WILLARD WINN. The president of the Bank at Lucerne, also the owner of a Harrison township farm of two hundred and twenty acres, is one of the native sons of this township, and represents a family, which has been identified with the development of this part of Cass county for more than sixty-five years. The Winn family came here when most of the country was in the wilderness, before any railroads were built, and by their own labors they contributed in no small degree to the substantial development and improvement of this part of Indiana.
Willard Winn was born in Harrison township on March 2, 1866. His father, William Winn, was for many years a well known citizen of the township, and passed away in 1908. The mother, whose maiden name
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was Susan Michael, was a daughter of Peter Michael, whose original home was in Virginia, from which state the Michael family came to Indiana. Richard Winn, the grandfather of Willard was a native of England, and in 1847 came to America and settled his family on a farm in Harrison township, Cass county. The place had already undergone considerable improvement, since it had a three room brick house, which at the time was considered one of the most substantial residences in this section, but nearly all of the land was covered with dense timber, and it was many years before the arduous labor of the members of the family succeeded in getting all of the land ready for cultivation. It was in that old brick homestead and on that farm that William Winn, the father, was reared, and after attaining his majority he started out for himself, and during his long lifetime won a commendable degree of prosperity.
Willard Winn had three brothers, whose names were Albert, Edmond and Gilbert. In November, 1886, Mr. Willard Winn married Miss Peggy Burton, a danghter of Levi and Ann (Eglin) Burton. Mr. and Mrs. Winn are well known in social circles of Harrison township, and possess a very attractive and beautiful homestead. The two hundred and twenty acres of land, comprising the farm are among the best in the township. Mr. Winn began his career by attending the district schools, and with the advantages of only such an education and largely upon his own resources, he has acquired a position where his influence counts for much in this part of Cass county. He is a breeder of fine registered stock, such as The Short Horn Cattle, Shropshire Sheep and blooded Barred Plymouth Rock chickens, and he is also a producer of "The Winn's Improved Reid's Yellow Dent Seed Corn." The estate of Mr. and Mrs. Winn is known as "The Indian Creek Stock Farm," located about ten miles from city.
JACOB W. CLARY. Beginning life in a log cabin in Harrison town- ship and reared amid conditions which might truly be called of pioneer character, Mr. Jacob Clary has now for more than forty years been one of the prospering farmers of this county, and has acquired many evi- dences of his thrift and business ability, as also the thorough esteem and respect of his fellow citizens.
Jacob W. Clary, who was a son of Isaac N. and Rebecca (Remley) Clary, concerning whom further details appear in other biographies in this work, was born in Harrison township, Cass county, December 14, 1848. At the time of his birth, the family habitation was a log house and he was old enough to witness some of the first trains which ran over the first railroad in this county, and has been a witness of nearly every other subsequent development of importance in this part of the state.
Mr. Clary was married on the fourteenth of November, 1869, to Miss Eliza Rush, a danghter of David and Lavina (Julian) Rush. Mrs. Clary, after more than thirty years of happy married life, passed away on March 29, 1901. She was born December 14, 1853, and was forty- seven years of age at the time of her death. Her remains now rest in Harrison township. The ten children of Mr. and Mrs. Clary were named as follows: Lonzo, who married Nellie Wilson ; William, who died at the age of two years; John, who married Anna Conn; Minnie, who married
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Bert Helkert; Rene, who married James Lamostros; Charles, who mar- ried Cora Thomas; Bertha, who married John Cummins; Cora, who married George Wolford; Hanford, who married Jessie Day; and LeRoy who is unmarried and resides at home. Mr. Clary moved to his farm in Harrison township, near Lucerne, in 1872. It was then unimproved with buildings, and everything in this nature has been the result of his own labors and management. He is now the owner of two hundred acres, some of the best land in the northern part of Cass county, and his busi- ness-like methods of cultivation have resulted in a substantial prosperity for himself and family. The first house on his farm was a small two- room structure, situated in the woods, and it was in that little cabin that he and his wife resided for six years, and some of the children already mentioned were born in this place. His father had given him eighty acres at the beginning of his career and it was from this nucleus that he built up his present estate, consisting of almost three times as much in quantity and many times more in value than what he started with. Mr. Clary also owns several houses in the town of Lucerne. He is a member of the Presbyatrian church, and fraternally is affiliated with the Indepen- dent Order of Odd Fellows in Lucerne. In politics he is now a Democrat. Mr. Clary married February 20, 1913, Mrs. Mabel Mummert, and they reside in the village of Lucerne, Indiana.
JOSHUA TUCKER. For a period of about forty years, Mr. Joshua Tucker has been one of the progressive farmers of Harrison township. He has spent practically all of his life in this vicinity, which is the loca- tion of the original settlement of this family in this county more than eighty years ago. No name is better known in that part of Cass county than Tucker, and few have with such credit to themselves and value to the community carried on their burden and life work during all these years of residence.
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