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 56
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Mr. Heffley owns a fine residence in Logansport, which he built him- self, as well as having erected the buildings on his farm. He attends the Methodist Episcopal church and politically he gives his aid to the Republican party.
On November 25, 1908, Mr. Heffley was married to Mrs. Elizabeth Potthoff Miller, the daughter of John and Fredericka (Eberlein) Pott- hoff, who were early settlers in Cass county.
CHARLES A. ENYART. Charles A. Enyart has for the past twenty-five years been continuously engaged in carrying mail in Logansport, in which city he was born, reared and passed his days thus far. He is the
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son of Pearson and Martha J. (Gearhart) Enyart, and the grandson of Benjamin and Sarah Enyart.
Pearson Enyart was born in Hamilton county, Ohio, on December 28, 1828, and when he was six years old accompanied his parents to Cass county. In those early days the region was infested with Indians and wild animals, and the lives of the sturdy pioneer settlers were much harassed by the unwelcome attentions of these older inhabitants of the country. Pearson Enyart was reared in a log cabin on the old place in Clay township, and his boyhood days were passed for the most part in the strenuous toil of grubbing and clearing up the wilderness farm and -assisting in the cultivation of such crops as were practicable under the conditions. In yonng manhood he married Martha Gearhart and soon thereafter moved to Logansport, where he began working at the trade of a plasterer and mason. Thus he continued until 1893, when he moved to Medford, state of Oregon, and there he now resides. With the excep- tion of a four-year period, from 1872 to 1876, when he lived in Indian- apolis, he has made his home in Logansport after he married and settled there, and much of the work in his line which has been done in the city is the work of his hands. Mr. Enyart is a Republican, stanch and true, and his religious belief is that of a Methodist, as is that of his wife. They became the parents of two children-Charles A. and Jesse E. Enyart.
Of the immediate family Charles A. Enyart is the only one now making Logansport his home, and he was born and reared here, and regards the city as his real home. In his boyhood Mr. Enyart worked with his father a considerable time, and for some years worked with his cousin in the bottling business. It was in 1888 that he first entered the employ of the government as a substitute letter carrier, and he was thus employed for three years. He was then regularly appointed and for the past twenty-one years has been engaged in the government service as a mail carrier.
Mr. Enyart has lived quietly and has been able to save considerable from his salary, which has been carefully invested, so that he is now the owner of a nice home, new and of his own designing. Mr. Enyart is a Mason of the Knight Templar degree and also a Knight of Pythias. He is a Republican in his politics.
On May 10, 1882, Mr. Enyart was married to Miss Carrie C. Fiddler, the daughter of Frederick and Margaret (Hager) Fiddler. The Fiddler family is of German ancestry, the name at one time being rendered "Fieddler." One daughter has been born to Mr. and Mrs. Enyart- Ethel B. The family are of the Methodist Episcopal church in their religious faith, and Mrs. Enyart and daughter are active and enthusias- tic members of the Eastern Star.
WATERMAN G. SWEET. The great state of Ohio has contributed many of her sons to the growth and development of her sister state, Indiana, and Cass county owes much to the new life and blood that has become a part of her through migration from Ohio. Many of the leading men, farmers, merchants, mechanics, followers of the professions, etc., who have made names for themselves in all these varied fields of activity in Cass county, have had their origin in Ohio and there received their
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early training. One of these is Waterman G. Sweet, born and reared in Lorain county, Ohio.
The natal day of Waterman G. Sweet was May 12, 1858, and he is the son of Colvin and Bricena (Chadwick) Sweet. The father was a New Yorker by birth, born there in about 1812, and came to Ohio when a boy. He received the best part of his education in the schools of his native state, and after reaching man's estate he married in Ohio, and there passed the remainder of his life. He was a farmer and gave his life to that business. Eight children were born into this home, and of that number four are living at this writing (1912). Bricena Sweet is unmarried; Mary M. is the wife of Clement B. Snow; Waterman G. of this review; and Charles D., who lives on the old home place in Ohio. The four who are now deceased are: Theodore P., Luther A., William E. and Calvin M.
Waterman G. Sweet was reared in Lorain county, Ohio, and as a boy of eighteen years he migrated in 1876 to Indiana, and located in Cass county. He was engaged as a clerk in Royal Center, and continued to be connected with mercantile work for something like twenty years. He saved some of his earnings regularly, and in 1896 he embarked in business upon his own responsibility, entering into a general merchan- dise business, with grain and live stock dealings as a side line. He has experienced a pleasing degree of success in all departments of his business, his long mercantile experience as an employee giving him a thorough education in mercantile principles, and his own natural ability making it possible for him to succeed as a dealer in grain and live stock. He has gradually assumed other business relations, and is a director and stockholder in the State Bank of Royal Center, and the president of the Royal Center Light Company.
In June, 1888, Mr. Sweet was married to Miss Laura E. Thomas, the daughter of Dr. James Thomas. Two sons have been born to them :- Theodore T., who is now a student in the Wabash College, and Garold G., a graduate of the Royal Center high school and also a student at Wabash College. The family are members of the Baptist church. Mr. Sweet is a Republican, and takes an active part in the workings of that party in his district.
A man of few words, but ever up and doing, Mr. Sweet, in the twenty years of his clerkship in Royal Center, established a reputation for veracity, faithfulness and general business integrity that made it possible for him to step into a new business of his own establishing without passing through a preliminary try-out period in the community. So well had he become known as a business man who was in every way reliable, that his success was made when he embarked in business on his own initiative. He stands high in the regard of all who know him, and he has proven himself to be worthy in all the relations of life.
JOHN L. LEONARD was born at New Castle, Henry county, Indiana, on October 14, 1857, and was one of the six children of Zephaniah and Elizabeth (Rogers) Leonard, two of that number now being de- ceased. Both families are of American birth and ancestry, dating back for several generations in the history of America. The father of
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Zephaniah Leonard moved to Henry county when that locality was yet in a most primitive condition, and there he battled with the unpierced forests, brought his family up after the manner of those pioneer times, and reared them in the knowledge of good, hard work and its many benefits, and in the doctrine of the Methodist church. He settled on the Blue River valley bottom and there, through his hard work and incessant economy, prospered beyond the average man of his time. As his chil- dren grew up and married, he gave to each an eighty-acre farm. Zepha- niah Leonard, his son, lived in Henry county, Indiana, practically all his life. In 1877 he and his family moved to Logansport and there he con- ducted a garden on Orphan's Hill for some years. Both he and his wife are now dead.
John L. Leonard was twenty years old when he came to Cass county. He had been reared on the home farm, and in the district school acquired what education he possessed. After coming to Logansport he spent two years in the employ of Sanderson & May in the marble business, then clerked for a year for Michael McCaffrey in his grocery store. His next position was with the Adams Express Company, and for almost eleven years he was employed as a messenger on the Panhandle Railroad. It was in 1890 that he established the grocery store in Logansport which has proved so successful to him. He began in a small way in one room at his present location, and by close and careful attention to the wants and requirements of the public, as well as the application of safe and sane business methods, he has prospered through the passing years, and his is now one of the largest retail groceries in Logansport.
Mr. Leonard is a Republican in his political views, but he has never aspired for office, preferring to devote his entire attention to his personal business. He was once nominated, without his consent, for the office of councilman, but much to his satisfaction was defeated, although without any effort on his part he reduced the usual Democratic majority from a nominal one hundred and fifty to about forty. Mr. Leonard has no fra- ternal affiliations beyond his membership in the Knights of Pythias.
On May 25, 1885, Mr. Leonard was married to Miss Dora Busjahn, and they have one son, Russell Leonard. The family are members of the German Lutheran church.
CHRIST BABER. A native of Ohio and a member of a family well known in the Buckeye state, Christ Baber came to Cass county some twenty years ago, and since has been engaged in agricultural pursuits. He belongs to that class of successful men who prize their success the more because it has been self-gained, for since attaining his majority he has been the architect of his own fortunes, and the position he now holds warrants him in taking a pardonable degree of pride in the title of self-made man. At this time he is the owner of an excellent farm of 285 acres, in the accumulation of which his dealings with his fellow men have always been of an honorable nature, thus winning him the respect and esteem of all with whom he is acquainted. Christ Baber was born February 20, 1864, in Fayette county, Ohio, and is a son of James and Elizabeth (Hanawalt) Baber. The family first came to Indiana during the early 'fifties, Mr. Baber's father following farming
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here, but later went to Illinois, from whence they returned to London, Ohio, and there a number of people of the same name are to be found today. There were ten children in the Baber family: John, William, Christ, George, Alfred, Andrew, Eliza, Melissa, Ella and Alice.
During his school days in Ohio Christ Baber assisted his father in the work of the home farm, and on attaining his majority embarked upon a career of his own. Sober, thrifty and industrious, he carefully saved his earnings, purchased a team, and eventually became the owner of land in Ohio, which he disposed of at a profit when he left, in 1894, to come to Cass county. Here he purchased a tract of land, to which he has added from time to time, and he now has 285 acres of fertile soil, which he devotes to general farming and stock raising. His opera- tions have proved uniformly successful, and each year finds new improve- ments on the place, his buildings being of modern architecture and sub- stantial character, and modern conveniences and comforts have been installed. He uses the latest machinery and methods, practicing scientific farming, and is recognized as an excellent judge of live stock.
In 1887, near Danville, Illinois, Mr. Baber was married to Miss Sarah Fyllington, and to this union there have been born eight children, as follows: William, who married Woodruff, has two children, Orville and James E., and is engaged in farming; Bert, who is single and resides with his parents; Carrie, who married Wilsie Ramer and has three children-Marie, Mayne and Janice; Edward, who married Nellie Brown; Bud, who married Emma Sheets and has two children- Leonard and Milburn; Frank, who married Elsie Crane; Stella, who became the wife of John Maynes; and Effie, who married Len Shaft and has one daughter, Josephine. Mr. Baber has not mixed in politics, his time having been entirely engaged with his farm work. Neverthe- less, he has not been indifferent to the duties of citizenship, and has staunchly supported these men and movements which he has believed desirable for the community. During his long residence here he has formed a wide acquaintance, in which he numbers numerous friends.
JACOB W. DELAWTER. Farming is a business that has always paid well in Cass county, and people have been attracted to this locality from other parts of the country because of the fertile soil and excellent climatic conditions. One of the older agriculturists of the country, who was brought here in babyhood by his parents, is Jacob W. DeLawter, a prosperous citizen and owner of eighty acres of land located on the Seven-Mile road, about nine miles from Logansport, in Tipton township. Mr. DeLawter was born December 14, 1850, near Eaton, in Preble county, Ohio, and is a son of Ezra and Sophia (Heck) DeLawter. His father, also a native of Ohio, came to Cass county in 1853, and here spent the balance of his career in agricultural pursuits, becoming one of his community's substantial and highly esteemed citizens.
Jacob W. DeLawter was only three years of age when he was brought to Cass county by his parents, and here he received his educa- tion in the country schools, in the meantime being reared to agricultural work and trained to habits of honesty, integrity and industry. When he was twenty-one years of age he decided to engage in farming on his
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own account, and accordingly settled on a tract of forty acres, for which he went into debt. During the first few years he encountered many obstacles and discouragements, but continued ambitious and persevering, and his unflagging industry and determination soon brought him to a position where he was able to make a number of improvements and to add to his original purchase. He now has eighty acres of well cultivated land, which he devotes to general farming and stock raising, and has earned the right to be numbered among his town's substantial men.
On April 9, 1872, Mr. DeLawter was united in marriage with Miss Indiana McDonough, daughter of Enoch and Sarah (Cathire) McDon- ough. Her father, a farmer, died when still a young man, and she was brought to Cass county when seven years old by her mother, being accompanied also by her brother, Hugh, who is now a resident of Marion, Indiana. Mrs. DeLawter was reared in Cass county, and here attended the country schools. She and her husband have been the parents of five children, as follows: Jesse B., an agriculturist of Cass county, who married Jeanette Cherry and has two children-Jesse, Jr., and Nellie; Perry Franklin, also of Cass county, who married Catherine Casky and has two children-Florence and Esther; Sadie S., who is the wife of Charles Black and has one child-Pauline; Agnes, who married J. C. Hahn, and has three children-Dorothy, Alice and William; and Nellie, who is the wife of Charles Little.
Mr. and Mrs. DeLawter and their children are members of the Chris- tian church, in the work of which they have always taken an active interest. Mr. DeLawter has not cared for public preferment, but is ready at all times to support good government, and shows himself especially active when the welfare of his community is at stake.
JOHN JAMES GUGLE. A thorough and comprehensive knowledge of the multitude of subjects upon which a good farmer must be informed in order to meet with a full measure of success in his vocation, an ener- getic and enterprising nature, and an inherent business ability that is his heritage from a line of thrifty, industrious German ancestors, have made John James Gugle one of the leading farmers of Tipton township, where he is now the owner of 160 acres of well cultivated land on the Peru road, about one mile west of Lewisburg. Although not a native of Cass county, Mr. Gugle has lived here since boyhood, was reared on a Cass county farm and educated in the district schools, and his entire business activities have been carried on within its borders. He was born September 17, 1851, in Ohio, and is a son of Jacob and Mary Ann (Essick) Gugle.
Jacob Gugle was born in Germany, and as a young man left the Fatherland for the United States, settling first on the lower Sandusky, in Ohio. From that section he enlisted for service in the Mexican war, some time after the close of which he came to Cass county, Indiana, where the remainder of his life was spent in agricultural pursuits. He and his wife were the parents of nine children, of whom five are still living : Christina, who married a Mr. Rush; Katie, who became the wife of a Mr. Lutmon ; Louisa, Sarah and John James.
Like most of the farmers' sons of his day and locality, John J. Gugle divided his boyhood between work on the homestead in the summer
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months and attendance at the district schools during the short winter terms. He was reared to agricultural pursuits, in which his entire life has been passed, and his home training was such as to make him thrifty, industrious and honest. At this time his handsome farm, a tract of 160 acres, shows the presence of good management, being well cultivated, neatly fenced, drained and graded, and improved with buildings of modern architecture and substantial character. Mr. Gugle devotes the greater part of his time to general farming, although he has also success- fully experimented in cattle raising. Among his neighbors and business associates he bears a high reputation for integrity and honorable dealing, and as a citizen he has at all times been ready to contribute of his means and time to the advancements made in his community.
On March 25, 1877, Mr. Gugle was united in marriage with Miss Mary Smith, the estimable daughter of Michael and Rachael (Collier) Smith. Michael Smith was about forty years of age when he migrated from his home in Dalton county, Pennsylvania, to Cass county, Indiana, and here settled on a farm in Clinton township, on which he spent the remainder of his life. Mr. and Mrs. Smith had three children : Catherine and John, who are both deceased; and Mary, who married Mr. Gugle. Mr. and Mrs. Gugle have been the parents of three children-Fannie, who became the wife of John Baines Harley, and Gertrude. With his family, Mr. Gugle attends the Methodist Episcopal church.
FREDERICK H. KLINSICK, well known and successful as a boot and shoe merchant in Logansport, is a native born citizen of this place, born here on March 1, 1866, and the son of Henry and Minnie ( Alfield) Klinsick. The father was a native born German, and he emigrated from his native land to America in the year 1844, four years later establishing himself in the blacksmith business in Logansport-a trade which he had learned in his youth at home. He followed that business practically all his life and ended his days in Logansport, death claim- ing him in 1873.
As a boy Frederick H. Klinsick attended the German Lutheran parochial schools and the public schools of Logansport, after which he took a commercial course in Hall's Business College. He was a mere youth when he set out to make his own way in the world, being but four- teen years of age, and he began as a clerk in the store of Murdock, Vigus & Co., beginning with that well-known firm on June 1, 1881, and continuing with them without a break until February 2, 1892. It was then that he branched out in an independent business, and entered a partnership with one Charles Stevenson, under the business appellation of Stevenson & Klinsick. They opened a boot and shoe store at No. 403 Broadway, and their venture proved a prosperous and successful one, so that they made very material progress in the business life of the com- munity. On July 1, 1901, Mr. Klinsick saw fit to take over the interest of his partner in the business, and since that time he has been the sole proprietor of the establishment, which is today one of the leading places of its kind in the city. With the passing years Mr. Klinsick has won an excellent reputation for business integrity and clean and wholesome methods, and is rightly regarded as one of the staple and dependable business men of the city. His enterprise represents a steady and con-
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servative growth, the business being founded upon the most praiseworthy principles, and its able proprietor has in every way proved up his claim to the title of business man.
Mr. Klinsick is a member of a number of fraternal organizations, among which are the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and the Knights of Pythias. He is a Democrat ordinarily, but is one who is inclined to assume an independent attitude when matters of a political nature are under consideration.
On September 22, 1903, Mr. Klinsick married Miss Emma H. Elliott, daughter of William H. Elliott, of Logansport.
JAMES DELAPLANE. One of the handsome farming properties of Cass county is that known as Sunny Dale Farm, a tract of 112 acres, located on the Cass-Carroll county line, about ten miles south of Logans- port, the owner of which, James Delaplane, is one of his locality's prac- tical agriculturists and sterling citizens. He has been a resident of Cass county for upwards of thirty-eight years, and although he is now retired from active pursuits, his sons looking after the farm, he still takes a keen interest in the welfare of his community, demonstrating his public spirit on every possible occasion. Mr. Delaplane was born July 17, 1856, in Butler county, Ohio, and is a son of William and Sarah E. (Zinn) Delaplane, and a grandson of James Delaplane, who was born in Mary- land and emigrated therefrom to Ohio, where William Delaplane was born. The latter was a farmer and stock raiser for many years, and during the Civil war did a large business in the latter capacity with the government in supplying meat for the Union troops. In 1875 he brought his family to Cass county, where he took up a farm, and here spent the remainder of his life. He and his wife were the parents of seven chil- dren, of whom five survive: Mary, who married a Mr. Yeider ; Margaret, who became the wife of a Mr. Coons; Bertha L., who married Mr. Cook; John, who resides in Carroll county, and James.
James Delaplane commenced his education in the common schools of Butler county, Ohio, which he attended until he was eighteen years of age, and at that time entered the normal school at Valparaiso and took a short course there. On the completion of his studies he turned his attention to the cultivation of the soil, in which vocation he had been reared, and in which he continued to the time of his retirement, since which he has lived quietly, merely superintending operations on the home property. This tract, a part of which lies beyond the line in Car- roll county, has been brought to a high state of cultivation. Its build- ings are large and substantial and its improvements modern and valuable, and to the visitor there is at once given the impression of the presence of thrift, ability and industry. Mr. Delaplane had led an active and useful life, and the success which has rewarded his efforts is but the result of well-applied energy. His business dealings have given him a widespread reputation for integrity and honorable methods and his public spirit has given him high place as a representative citizen.
On March 24, 1886, Mr. Delaplane was married to Miss Belle Borges, daughter of Ferdinand and Mary (Kerlin) Borges. Her father, a native of Germany, was educated in that country, and emigrated in young man- hood to the United States, subsequently serving in an Indiana cavalry
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regiment during the Civil war. After the close of that struggle he located in Logansport, and there for many years was engaged in the drug business. Mr. and Mrs. Delaplane have had a family of three children : William, a graduate of the agricultural department of Purdue University, Lafayette, who resides at home and assists his brother in conducting the home farm; Worth L., who is a graduate of the public schools of Young America, assisting his brother; and Robert, also at home, a student in the graded schools.
HOMER LYTLE, who has all his life been a resident of Boone township, and an occupant of the farm where he now resides, is one of the many prosperous and highly esteemed farming men in this community. He has lived a worthy representative of that fine old family which has been identified with this township since the year 1845, when his father, William Lytle, was born here, and which made for itself a good name and an enduring reputation in Cass county.
William Lytle, the father of Homer Lytle of this review, was born in Boone township, on May 4, 1845, and was the son of David and Mary (Burton) Lytle, the former of whom was born in Ohio, and became an early settler of Boone township in Cass county, where he lived until his death. He married into one of the oldest and most highly esteemed families of Boone township, from which Mary Burton, his wife, came, and they became the parents of four sons: George, John, Joseph, Wil- liam. John Lytle is still living at this writing.
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