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 37
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George Washington Wilson was born on a farm in Union county, Indiana, near the village of Liberty, on May 11, 1843, and when he was twelve years of age accompanied his father to Cass county, In- diana. His educational advantages were meager, as his services were needed in cultivating and improving the home farm of one hundred and sixty acres of wild land, on which, when the family first settled thereon, not one furrow had ever been turned.
Upon the death of his father in 1871, Mr. Wilson took charge of the homestead, which he continued to operate during the period of his activity, and in addition, accumulated a tract of seventy-eight acres on section 20, in Deer Creek township. He placed both tracts under a high state of cultivation, made most of the improvements on them, and continued to carry on general farming and stock raising for many years, attaining financial success and the confidence of all with whom he had transactions. He was a Republican in politics, and his religious affiliations were with the Christian church. On January 29, 1873, George W. Wilson was married to Miss Catherine Beamer, and to them were born six children, as follows: Harry, now a farmer of Deer Creek township; Lora, of this review; Stella; Carl; William A. and Almi I., the last two named now being deceased. George Wash- ington Wilson was a Republican and a lifelong member of the Chris-
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tian church. He was born on May 11, 1843, and died on March 30, 1911, and his wife was born September 1, 1845, in Virginia and is living.
Lora Wilson was early trained to the duties of farming, spending the summer months in assisting his father on the home place, while the winter seasons were passed in attendance at the district schools of his native township. He received the equal of a grade school education of the present day, after which he had some training in the Normal schools of various nearby cities, and his education was terminated by a year in the agricultural department of Purdue University. When he was eighteen years old he began teaching school, and for the ensuing five years he gave himself to that work, spending the summers either in school, in the pursuit of further knowledge, or helping with the work of the home farm, which he so well knew how to carry on. Mr. Wilson was twenty-one years old when he began to farm independently, renting the farm of his father as a beginning and operating the place on shares for something like ten years. At the end of that time he had so prospered that he was able to purchase an eighty acre tract for him- self, and his attention since then has been devoted to the cultivating and improving of this place. It may well be assumed that Mr. Wilson has made many improvements along modern lines in the conduct of his farm, and the erection of commodious and substantial buildings is not the least feature along the line of such improvement. His stock in its appearance indicates his thorough knowledge as a breeder, and modern machinery of all kinds betrays the progressive spirit of the man in his farming capacity.
Mr. Wilson has maintained the family reputation for honesty and integrity in business affairs, and his pleasant personality has gained him a wide circle of sincere friends. He is a Republican, and is a mem- ber of the Masonic fraternity, but has no other associations that would detract from his attention to his farm and his home.
On March 22, 1905, Mr. Wilson was united in marriage with Miss Grace Idel Billiard, of Carroll county, Indiana. She is the daughter of Lewis and Susan Amanda (Debolt) Billiard. Lewis Billiard was a farmer of Carroll county, and served as a soldier during the Civil war. Mrs. Wilson received her education in the grade and high schools of her native community, and takes her place among the most estimable and highly regarded women of the township, where she has a host of good friends. Three interesting children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Wilson, Florence, George and Lucille, all of whom were born on the farm near Young America, where the family home is maintained. The eldest was born on September 9, 1906; the second on November 19, 1909, and the third born claims July 7, 1912, as her natal day.
JOHN W. COST was born at Fairfield, Green county, Ohio, July 24, 1844, his parents being Henry Joseph and Anna (Steele) Cost. He was of a family of four children, three sons and one daughter, all of whom are deceased except John W. Mr. Cost was six years of age when the family made removal to Dayton, Ohio, and there the mother passed away February 8, 1858, following which they removed to Logansport, Indiana. In his early boyhood, Mr. Cost attended school at the old seminary, and when he was sixteen years of age began an apprentice-
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ship with George W. Brown, in the drug trade. He was so engaged in 1863, when he enlisted in the One Hundred and Sixteenth Regiment, Indiana Volunteer Infantry, in the six months' service, and March 1, 1864, his time expired and he was mustered out of the service. During the following week he re-enlisted in the Seventy-third Regiment, In- diana Volunteer Infantry, remaining therewith until February 1, 1866, and during these enlistments participated in a number of import- ant engagements, among them being: Stone River, Murfreesboro, Ten- nessee; Decatur and Athens, Alabama; and Franklin and Nashville, Tennessee. In addition there were a number of minor engagements and skirmishes, in all of which he took an active part. At the close of his services, he returned to school in the old seminary for one year, and then resumed his training in the drug business, this time with Henry Bringhurst. During the following five years he engaged in the drug business with Rodney Strain, and at the end of this time embarked in business on his own account, in the old Magee Block, in what is now known as the George Hoffman store location, on Fourth street. Suc- ceeding this, Mr. Cost moved to the Thomas Bringhurst room on Broad- way, now occupied by Hall Smith's jewelry establishment, and in 1883 he came to Young America, where for thirty years he has been considered one of the town's leading business men.
On October 11, 1876, Mr. Cost was united in marriage with Miss Amanda Stapleton, the eldest daughter of J. J. Stapleton, and to this union there have been born two children: Joseph Albert and Clara Alice. Joseph Albert Cost is now timekeeper for the Kokomo factory of the Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company; Alice Cost became the wife of W. E. Kirkpatrick, of Young America. Mrs. Amanda Jane (Staple- ton) Cost was born in Bethlehem township, Cass county, Indiana, March 4, 1855, and has been a resident of this county all of her life.
The foregoing is a brief review of the salient points in the career of one of Young America's ablest and most highly esteemed business men, a veteran in the drug trade, and a citizen who has ever been devoted to the best interests of his adopted community. During the thirty years that he has been the proprietor of an establishment here, he has ever held a reputation for the strictest integrity and business honor, and each year has seen the extension of his wide circle of friends. He is a popular member of the Masonic fraternity, and with his family, attends the Christian church.
JOHN W. SPRINKLE. Among the progressive and enterprising agri- culturists of Cass county, one who has gained financial independence and business prestige through the medium of his own efforts is John W. Sprinkle, of. Deer Creek township. Embarking upon a career of his own when he was a young man, without financial assistance or influential friends, he so well directed his efforts that today he is the owner of a handsome property of 160 acres of land, on the Walton road, in addition to having other valuable interests. Mr. Sprinkle was born on what is known as the old Sprinkle home place, near Sprinkle Chapel, in Cass county, Indiana, February 13, 1862, and is a son of Jolın and Margaret (Roach) Sprinkle. His father, a native of Rock- bridge county, Virginia, was a machinist by trade, but after coming to
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Cass county, in young manhood, followed farming and stock raising, and also operated a sawmill and threshing machine. He and his wife were the parents of eight children, as follows: Ellen, who became the wife of a Mr. Orr; Wilson; William, who is deceased; Elizabeth, deceased, who was the wife of a Mr. McDonald; Hannah, who married a Mr. Brit- ton ; John W .; George; and LeRoy.
John W. Sprinkle began his education in the old Logan school and subsequently became a student in the Babb school, where he completed his training. On finishing his studies, he took up the trade of machinist, under the preceptorship of his father, and subsequently worked in the sawmill and with the threshing machine, traveling all over this and surrounding counties, but when the land became partly cleared, he turned his attention to farming. On reaching his majority, he embarked upon a career of his own, and through industry, energy and perseverance has gained an enviable position among the agriculturists of his section of the county. Starting in a modest manner, as the years passed and his finances would permit, he added to his land, to his stock and to his improvements, and now has a tract of 160 acres that is well cultivated and fitted with modern buildings. He believes in the use of modern machinery and scientific methods, and the success which has rewarded his efforts marks him as one of the substantial men of his community. He is also the owner of 320 acres of government land in South Dakota, located near Redfield. A man of the highest integrity, his business dealings have always been of a strictly legitimate nature, and his methods have gained him an enviable reputation and a wide circle of friends.
Mr. Sprinkle has been twice married, his first wife, Eva Crawford, dying without issue. His second marriage was to Miss Lillie Ruth, of Cass county, a member of a prominent farming family, and to this union there have been born five children, as follows: Clifford, who married Pearl Plank, and has three children, Pauline, Luella and Ellsworth ; Addie, the wife of James Kay, who has one daughter, Frances; and Gracie, Edith and Gladys, all of. whom reside with their parents. The family is connected with the Methodist Episcopal church, in the sup- port of which they have always been liberal. Mr. Sprinkle holds mem- bership in the local lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
SAMUEL HURSH. A substantial representative of the agricultural interests of Deer Creek township is found in the person of Samuel Hursh, the owner of 160 acres of excellent farming land, located about one and one-half miles east of the village of Young America. Although a resident of Cass county only since 1903, he has become widely and favorably known among the citizens of his locality, and his ability and integrity have been recognized by his election to official position, in which he has served efficiently and conscientiously. Mr. Hursh is a
native of the Hoosier State, and was born March 26, 1863, in Carroll county, a son of Martin V. and Sarah E. (Quinn) Hursh. His father, a native of Butler county, Ohio, came with his parents to Indiana in boyhood, settling in Carroll county in 1842. There he continued to be engaged in agricultural pursuits during the remainder of his life, accumulating a comfortable competency and being highly esteemed as a neighbor and citizen. He and his wife are both deceased, and are
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buried in the cemetery at Flora, Indiana. They were the parents of six children, namely : Samuel, Ada, Minnie, Mollie, Fannie and Ambrose. Martin V. Hursh was a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
Samuel Hursh attended the Carroll county schools, and was reared to the vocation of farming, an occupation in which his ancestors had been engaged for generations. At the age of twenty-one years, he left the parental roof and embarked upon a career of his own in Howard county, Indiana, where he continued operations until 1903, which year saw his advent in Cass county. Settling in Deer Creek township, Mr. Hursh began to cultivate and improve his 160-acre farm, and his substantial buildings in good repair and his well-tilled fields give eloquent evidence of his thrift and enterprise. This property, known as the old Harness farm, is being devoted to general farming and stock raising, in both of which lines Mr. Hursh has attained a full measure of success. Through the careful direction of his business interests and by indefatigable industry, he has acquired a handsome property and at the same time has so conformed to the ethics of business life that he has the unqualified confidence of all with whom he has had trade transactions.
In August, 1894, Mr. Hursh was united in marriage with Miss Alice Harness, the estimable daughter of Jackson and Louise (Fisher) Harness, and to this union there have been born three children: Obie, who is engaged in farming in Deer Creek township, married Miss Laura Snider, and has two children, Robert and John; Ica, residing with her parents, a graduate of the local schools; and Oca, also living at home, who is still a pupil in the schools of the township. Mr. Hursh is a popular member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, as was his father, and takes a great deal of interest in its work. His political belief is that of the Democratic party, and at the present time he is serving as a member of the board of trustees of Deer Creek township, where he is laboring faithfully in behalf of the best interests of his community and its people. With his family, he attends the Christian church.
JOHN L. MAURICE came to Logansport, Indiana, in 1862, and with the exception of about four years has ever since made this city his home. He is a native of Departemant des Voge, Canton de St. Die, France, his birth occurred on June 13, 1841, and in 1852, when he was eleven years old, he came with his parents, Nicholas and Margarte (Markuere) Maurice, to America.
Nicholas Maurice located on a small tract of land near Dayton, Ohio, after coming to this country and engaged in the business of agriculture, in which he continued until his death.
All the education John L. Maurice ever received was in the schools of his native county and a winter in the schools of Dayton. When he was twelve years of age he started out on his own responsibility and his first employment was as a farm laborer, and for his services he received four dollars a month and his keep. He continued work- ing as a farm laborer, with gradually increasing wages, until he grew older, and in 1861 he went to Indianapolis, Indiana, where for a year he was employed as a clerk in an ice cream parlor. The next year he
James Wilson
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came to Logansport and for a year thereafter he worked in the black- smith shop of John Jackson. On July 9, 1863, he enlisted in the Mississippi Marine Brigade and at first was a member of Company D Cavalry, which later became Company K Infantry. The duty of the command to which Mr. Maurice belonged was to patrol the Mississippi river and disperse bands of guerrillas. His military career was one of continual activity, and while he participated in no general engagement, he was continually exposed to attacks from the rebels. His command took part in the Red River expedition under General Banks, and he was finally honorably discharged from the service with the rank of corporal, his discharge taking effect on January 21, 1865. His original company comprised one hundred and four men, and of this number only sixteen were left at the close of the war. Succeeding the return of peace to the land, Mr. Maurice returned to Logansport, soon thereafter going to Dayton, Ohio, gardening about two years, and at the butcher busi- ness one year. He then returned to Logansport again and established a meat market at the corner of North and Sixth streets. For a period of thirty-eight years he conducted a market at this corner, and he still owns the corner where the shop stood, although he retired from active busi- ness in 1910. He was at that time the oldest living butcher in Logans- port. It is a fact that when he first began his meat market he had to borrow the money to buy a horse, and when he first opened his doors his capital was so limited that he could only buy one beef at a time. He has prospered in the most unmistakable manner, and bore the reputation of being an excellent butcher, a careful buyer, a good sales- man, always courteous and square in all his dealings with his patrons, and enjoyed during his entire career the patronage of many who first frequented his little shop with its modest supplies. Mr. Maurice is a man of excellent habits of life, temperate and saving, and these quali- ties have made possible the accumulation of his present property.
Mr. Maurice has been twice married. He has two sons by his first marriage-David W. and Charles L. In 1893 he was married to Mrs. Indiana Connolly, the daughter of James S. Wilson, an old pioneer of Logansport, and the widow of Robert J. Connolly. Mrs. Maurice has one son by her first marriage-Wilson J. Connolly. She is a member of the Second Presbyterian church.
Mr. Manrice is a Republican and is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.
JAMES S. WILSON. An old and distinguished citizen of Logansport in Cass county was James S. Wilson, who came to Logansport on a canal boat, became identified with the local milling industry, and for many years was one of the leading manufacturers of the city. James S. Wilson was born at Elizabethtown, in Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, October 9, 1823, was of staunch American stock, and a son of Andrew and Eliz- abeth (Shooley) Wilson, natives respectively of Pennsylvania and Eng- land. Until he was twelve years old he received an education in the common schools of his native town, and his first practical experience was as a clerk in a drug store. This he followed for three years, and it led him to take up the study of medicine, but he soon abandoned his inten- tion of becoming a physician and instead went West and found a position
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as steward on a packet boat plying along the Wabash and Erie Canal in the freight trade between Logansport and Toledo. In this way he visited Logansport, and practically became a permanent resident in 1845. For several years he was connected with the 'canal transportation, and in 1850 left that and accepted a clerkship with William Beach & Co. in the Forest Mills, an illustration of which old mills will be found on other pages of this history. Seven years later, having a thorough experience in all departments of the mill, he formed a partnership with Cecil & Co., and subsequently became proprietor of the Logansport mills. He was a prosperous miller and local manufacturer until 1890, at which time he sold out the water power and mills to the city of Logansport, which converted it to the use of municipal power and lighting purposes.
On May 21, 1844, Mr. Wilson married Delilah Creding, of Akron, Ohio. To their marriage were born two children: Indiana, first married Robert Connolly, and after his death became the wife of John L. Maurice, and now lives in Logansport; Virginia became the wife of G. W. Stevens, who is president of the C. & O. Railway, with residence at Richmond, Virginia. James S. Wilson was a Republican in politics, and was affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Elks of Richmond, Virginia.
JAMES G. JOHNSON. After spending many years in mercantile lines in Young America, J. G. Johnson is now living retired from active pursuits, the greater part of his time and attention being given to looking after his realty interests. A worthy representative of an old and honored family, he has been a resident of Indiana since infancy, and his entire career has been one of industry and energy conducing to well-merited success. J. G. Johnson was born September 27, 1838, near Cincinnati, in Hamilton county, Ohio, and is a son of William and Sarah (Godfrey) Johnson. His father, born and reared in Ham- ilton county, received excellent educational advantages, became a physician, and after some years of practice came to Spencer county, Indiana, in 1838, and here lived for several years; then came to Young America, Cass county, where he practiced medicine. Thence he moved to Durham, Missouri, where he died. He became a well-known mem- ber of the Indiana medical profession, accumulated a comfortable com- petency, and when he died left a wide circle of friends to mourn him. He and his wife were the parents of five children, namely: William, Martha, Robert, Eliza Ann and J. G., all dead but the last named.
J. G. Johnson was educated in the common schools of Spencer county, and his boyhood was spent much the same as that of any other country ·physician's son. He was eighteen years of age at the time he first came to Cass county, at that time locating in Deer Creek township, where for some time he worked as a farm hand. Subsequently he became apprenticed to the trade of mason, and after thoroughly master- ing its details followed that occupation for some time, eventually, how- ever, turning his attention to mercantile pursuits. Mr. Johnson became one of the pioneers in his chosen line in Young America, and for years was a leading business man of this town. Always trustworthy and reliable, he built up a business that covered the entire contiguous territory, and, while he was shrewd and farsighted in his business
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operations, his transactions were ever of a legitimate nature, and not only did he establish himself in the confidence of his business associates through the force of his integrity, but also gained the friendship and esteem of his customers by a pleasant, genial and obliging personality. He continued to enjoy a steady and well-balanced trade until several years ago, when, feeling that he had earned a rest from his years of labor, he retired. He still retains an active and intelligent interest, however, in all that affects his community, giving the support of his influence, his time and his means to promoting its welfare. Although nearing his seventy-fifth year, his faculties are unimpaired, his memory is excel- lent, and he recalls in a pleasing conversational manner many incidents and experiences of early days in Young America. Everywhere he has the respect and esteem of his fellow citizens. Mr. Johnson holds prestige in the Masonic fraternity as the first man in Young America to receive his Masonic emblem. With his family, he attends the Christian church.
On July 19, 1862, Mr. Johnson was married to Miss Margaret P. Burrows, and they had three children : William H., Sarah J. and John. All these children died before the mother. Mr. Johnson is a Prohibi- tionist, but is not an office seeker.
A. A. SEGRAVES. One of the native sons of Indiana who has conferred honor and dignity upon the state of his birth is A. A. Segraves, general farmer and stock raiser of Deer Creek township, who owns and operates a handsome tract of 180 acres on the Kokomo road. Reared to agricul- tural pursuits, he has made this his life vocation, and his success has come as a result of persistent industry, unfailing energy and integrity in business matters that have won him the confidence of his associates. Mr. Segraves was born January 2, 1859, in Carroll county, Indiana, and is a son of William and Mary (Plank) Segraves.
Elam and Martha (Moore) Segraves, the paternal grandparents of A. A. Segraves, were natives of the Old Dominion, from which state they migrated to Ohio as pioneers, settling near Eaton. There their son, William, was born and reared, taking up the occupations of farmer and carpenter and subsequently coming to Carroll county. During the Civil war, William Segraves enlisted in the Seventy-second Regiment, Mounted Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and he starved to death with others at Andersonville prison. He and his wife were the parents of three children, namely : A. A .; James H., who died unmarried, March 2, 1885; and Martha, who became the wife of William Johnson and has three children.
A. A. Segraves was a boy when brought to Deer Creek township, and here he secured his educational training in the district schools, finishing his course in the Swamp school. In the meantime he had spent the summer months in working upon the home farm, thoroughly assimilating all the details of agricultural work, and continued to remain under the parental roof until he was twenty-four years of age, at which time he embarked upon a career of his own. He began his operations by renting land from John Hendrickson, but subsequently became his stepfather's partner, and since then his rise has been steady and continuous. His present farm of 180 acres, on the Kokomo road, has been brought to a high state of cultivation and improved with good
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