USA > Indiana > Elkhart County > History of Elkhart County, Indiana; together with sketches of its cities, villages and townships, educational, religious, civil, military, and political history: portraits of prominent persons, and biographies of representative citizens > Part 75
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H. L. Shupert .- Among the soldiers that fought valiantly for the freedom and liberty of our county, we find the name of H. L. Shupert. He was born Dec. 15, 1829, in Montgomery county, Ohio, and is a son of Jacob and Ann Shupert, natives of Pennsyl- vania. Mr. Shupert was raised on a farin and educated in the common schools. His father was a cooper by trade, and when · yonng our subject learned the trade and worked at it for about 25 "cars. He was married in September. 1855, to Julia A. Shaw, and had 2 children, viz .: Laura J. and Samuel (dec.). Mrs. S. died in 1859, and Mr. S. again married, September, 1861, Mary E., daughter of Samuel and Nancy Barnhart. To this union were born 3 children, viz .: Nellie, Charles L. and William, March, 1863. Mr. Shupert enlisted in Co. C, 9th Ill. Vol. Inft., under Capt. Braden and Gen. Sherman. He accompanied Gen. Sherman on his entire campaign, and participated in the battles of Resaca, Peach-tree Creek. Atlanta. Chattanooga, Jonesboro, Franklin and Nashville, Tenn. At the last place he received a slight wound. He served till the close of the war, and received his honorable discharge. In politics he strongly adheres to the principles of Republicanism.
George Franklin Shutt, editor and proprietor of the Elkhart Democrat, was born in Allen county, Ind., Feb. 21, 1855. He was the son of Daniel and Barbara Etta (Cope) Shutt. His father for a large portion of his life followed farming as a pursuit, but lat- terly he has been in the mercantile business at Maysville, Ind. George remained on the farm till he was 19 years of age. During his youth heattended the Maysville and Spencerville graded schools. At 19 he entered the Auburn (Ind.) normal school and pur- sued a course of study there. Subsequently he taught school two terms in DeKalb and Adams counties. He was also employed as a clerk in a general store, and afterward in a drug store. In October, 1876, he bought a half interest in the Maysville Reporter. C. F. Mosier owning the other half. Maysville proving to be an
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unprofitable field for the newspaper business the partners moved the office to Bristol, and there established the Banner. In the following July Mr. Shutt sold his interest to Mr. Mosier, and took a trip to Nebraska, and remained there till April, 1878. During his stay in Nebraska he taught school at Clarksville six months. Returning to Indiana, he resumed liis connection with the Bristol Banner, which he retained till the following August, when he retired from that paper and purchased the Democratic Union, of Elkhart, and changed its name to Elkhart Democrat. Since then he has continued proprietor of the paper, and in March, 1879, he assumed its editorial control. Mr. Shutt is a young man, of good newspaper ability, and is a consistent advocate of Demo- cratic principles. Socially he is a member of the order of Odd Fellows.
A. P. Simonton was born in Clarke county, Ohio, Feb. 5, 1816, and is a son of Samnel and Anna (Pierce) Simonton, natives respectively of Delaware and the District of Columbia, and pioneers of Elkhart county. His Grandfather Simonton was from Wales, and settled in America in an early day among the Indians. His son John, uncle of A. P., was taken by the Seneca Indians when a small boy, and never returned. He finally forgot his name, except the Christian part, John. He was made chief, and was known as Capt. John. Ile was afterward heard of, and his nephew, A. P.'s brother, Lientenant (afterward Captain) Isaac Simonton, went to see him, and found him the husband of a squaw, and father of several half- breeds. It seemed that he had become so thoroughly heathenized that he had no desire to return to the settlements and mingle with his own blood relations, and died as he had lived, a savage.
Mr. A. P. Simonton came to this county with his parents in 1832, where he has since lived. His early educational advantages were limited, as schools were few and inferior in his boyhood days. In 1844 he engaged in general merchandising in Elkhart for 26 years. He still owns 280 acres of land, besides town property. Was mar- ried in 1844 to Miss Celia Martin, by whom he has 4 children, viz .: Caroline (Eby), Alice L. (Stiner), Ervaetta (Joy) and Phemia (Prim- ley). Mrs. Simonton died Jan. 26, 1860, and he again married May 27, 1862, this time Miss Maria B. Mason, by whom he has 2 children, Minnie F. and Jennie M. B. Mr. Simonton's eldest brother, Capt. Isaac P., was Captain of the 2d Regiment of dragoons, and died at Fort Wayne, near Fort Gibson, in the Indian Territory, in 1842, while in command of that fort. Samuel, the second brother, died in Elkhart March 9, 1874, Our subject is the third son, and David S., next mentioned, is the fourth. The fifth, Jolin E., died March 16, 1876. The sixth son, Marcellus T., died in London, England. He was a graduate of Yale College, and of the law school. He had started to sail around the world, going by way of California and India, and on arriving in London, death overtook him. Eliza C., the first daughter of the Simonton family, is now Mrs. Beardsley (a widow), of Wisconsin. The second danghter,
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Hannah, is Mrs. Giles A. Jackson, of Oakland, California. The third daughter, Eliza F., is now Mrs. Geo. M. Tibbitts (a widow), of Elkhart.
D. S. Simonton, whose portrait, from a photograph taken this year (1880), appears in this work, was born in Clarke county, O., near Springfield, Dec. 17, 1817, son of Samuel and Anna (Pierce) Simonton, the former a native of Pennsylvania, and the lat- ter of Maryland, near Washington, D. C. He emigrated to Indiana in the fall of 1832, bringing his family, which consisted of 5 sons and 3 daughters, and settled in Osolo tp., on the bank of what has since been known as Simonton lake, which derived its name from Mr. Samuel Simonton. This gentleman was a farmer during life; he died in 1850, and his wife the following year; during life he was a Democrat, took an active part in poli- tics, and served as one of the three County Judges in an early day; was also Justice of the Peace, and held other positions. Isaac P., one of his sons, was a Captain in the U. S. army, a graduate of West Point, served in the Seminole war, and was employed by the Government in removing the Choctaw and Cherokee Indians from Kentucky and Tennessee to their reservations west of the Missis- sippi river; he was also appointed Post Captain of their reservation, and was holding that position at the time of his death; he was regarded as one of the best and most efficient officers, and would doubtless have risen much higher in his profossion had he lived, as he was but a little over 30 years of age at the time of his death.
Mr. D. S. Simonton, the subject of this sketch, obtained the most of his education at the common schools, and was brought up on his father's farm; at the age of 28, Jan. 24, 1844, in Cass county, Mich., he was married to Miss Emily Allen, a native of New York and a daughter of Luke Allen, one of the old settlers of that county; Mr. S. and wife commenced keeping house on the old homestead, in a house built by himself, near the home of his father; at the age of 33 he commenced working at the carpenter and join- er's trade, which, in connection with farming, he followed for sev- eral years; in 1860 he abandoned farming entirely, and moved to Elkhart city, where he has since resided, a builder and contractor; he now owns seven brick buildings on Main street, which he built himself, and he also owns four or five private residences which he has erected; altogether he has put up 15 buildings in this city, besides 12 or 15 in the country. No one of the early settlers has done more than Mr. S. in things that will live after him. Politi- cally he is a Democrat. He was a member of the first Council after Elkhart was chartered as a city. His children are Lawrence, Emma and Clara. Lawrence married Alice Carpenter, and lives on a farm in the city limits; Emma is the wife of Cyrus Williams, and lives at Bellevue Place, Batavia. Ill .; and Clara is the wife of Frank Sleeper, superintendent of the Ottumwa (Iowa) Starch Factory, where they reside. Mr. S. may be considered a self-made man, as
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he had very little to start with in life, and his large property is the product of his own management and labor.
Michael Spangler was born in Stark county, Ohio, April 26, 1817, and is a son of Benjamin and Priscilla (Weyer) Spangler. He is the eldest of S children; was reared on a farm and educated in the common schools. He came to this county in 1864, and located on a farm, but sold his farm and removed to Elkhart in 1866, where he engaged as clerk in a grocery store for a time; has been Secretary of the Elkhart Farmers' Home Fire Insurance Company for several years, and has filled the office of County Col- lector for the past eight years. He was married in 1838 to Miss Saloma Essig, a native of Stark county, Ohio. They have 3 chil- dren: Alpheus, Augusta and Cora J. Mr. S. resided a short time in Kalamazoo, Mich. Mr. and Mrs. Spangler are worthy members of the Presbyterian Church, and he is a member of the I. O. O. F.
Benjamin F. Stephens was born in Dauphin county, Pa., Jan. 17, 1831, and is a son of Andrew and Mary (Braden) Stephens, also natives of Pennsylvania. His boyhood days were spent upon a farm, and at the age of 17 he learned the trade of cabinet-maker, which vocation he pursued, in connection with the furniture busi- ness, until 1876. He also kept hardware for six years. He came to Elkhart in 1852; was married March 4, 1858, to Miss Euphemia Martin, by whom he has had 2 children: Herrick E. and Ann (dec.). In 1870 Mr. Stephens made a tour through the Southern States. He has closed out his furniture and cabinet business on account of ill health, and is now administrator for four estates, and agent for a life-insurance company. He held the office of Trustee for Concord tp. for two years, and was also President of the Board of corporation Trustees, of Elkhart, for two years prior to city organi- zation; was a member of the Board of Education for four years; is now President of the City Board of IIealth, and has been Treasurer of the Bible Society for 20 years. He also held the responsible position of Sabbath-school superintendent in the M. E. Church for about 22 years. In 1876 Mr. Stephens, in company with his wife and son, visited his former home at Harrisburg, and also Washing- ton, and attended the Centennial Exposition at Philadelphia. Dur- ing this tour they visited New York, Mrs. Stephens' former home, in Dutchess county, New York, and the Niagara Falls.
Milton L. Stevenson, of the grocery firm of Boyer & Stevenson, was born in Concord, Elkhart county, Sept. 16, 1854. He was the son of Daniel S. and Susanna (Miller) Stevenson. Milton passed his boyhood on his father's farm, and his education was obtained in the district schools and those of Elkhart, where the family resided after 1871. Ile at length became clerk in the grocery store of B. O. Manchester, and thus remained till the proprietor sold out to H. J. Kremer, after which he continued with the new owner till he sold to Kinzy & Boyer, and remained with these gentlemen till Oct. 26, 1878. when he purchased Mr. Kinzy's interest, and the
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firm of Boyer & Stevenson was formed, which is doing business at the present time. Their store is at 210 Main street, south of the railroad. They have the only well-stocked grocery store on the South side, and are doing a large and increasing business. They carry a stock valued at $4,000, and have a full line of groceries, provisions, queen's-ware, wooden ware, and all goods usually sold in a store of' the kind. Mr. Stevenson was married on May 20, 1880, to Ada L. Minnick. He belongs to the English Evangelical Church, and is a member of the Odd Fellows fraternity.
S. S. Strong, one of Elkhart's prominent citizens, was born in Cleveland, Ohio, in June, 1817. In September, 1834, his father's family removed from Ohio, and settled on a farm in Cleveland tp., this county. His father's name was Walter Strong, an early settler in Cleveland tp. Mr. Strong spent his boyhood on his father's farm, and attended school during the regular terms. At the age of 21 he was employed as a elerk in a store in Elkhart. At length he ventured in business for himself. He at first formed a partnership with Mr. A. Defrees, and afterward was in partnership with A. N. Hascall. Altogether he was in trade for 20 years. His last partner was Mr. Maxon, and the firm was known as that of Strong & Maxon. After going out of trade Mr. Strong became connected with the hydraulic works of Elkhart, and assisted in the construction of that improvement, collecting all the money for stock. He afterward assisted in the organization of the Exelsi or Starch Mill Company; he sold his interest in this cor- portaion in February, 1880. He was a prime mover in the formation of the Elkhart Knitting Company, established in 1879, and is at present its president, and devotes nearly all his time to the management of that enterprise, which is in a flourishing con- dition, manufacturing all kinds of hosiery. Mr. Strong was a City Connelman one term. He is a member of the Masonie order. He has been secretary of the hydraulie company since its organi- zation, with the exception of three years, and is now a stockholder.
Mr. Strong was married Dec. 31, 1840, to Miss Harriet B. Still- man, daughter of Jared A. Stillman, of Elkhart. This lady died in 1854, leaving 3 children, Norman H., Charles 1., and Walter A. Mr. S. was again married in 1856 to Miss Louise M. Strong, daughter of James Strong, of Cleveland, Ohio, who is still living. By the last marriage there are 5 children, all at home: Laura Belle, James E., Freddie, Clarence and George.
Mr. Strong is a Republican in polities. His oldest son, Norman, enlisted in the Union army during the Rebellion, leaving home without consent of parents, being only 16 years of age, and par- ticipated in the battle of Fort Donelson before being enlisted; he soon afterward enlisted and participated in the battle of Shiloh; was soon afterward taken sick and discharged, having been out nearly a year.
Mr. Strong's portrait is given in this work.
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Chas. H. Stuart was born in Farmington, Mich., Oct. 14, 1846. His parents were E. and Mary C. (Bowers) Stuart. In early child- hood he was taken by his parents to Hudson, Mich., where he lived till he was 18, when he went to Hannibal, Mo., and was two years engaged in the wood and brick business; at the expiration of that time he went to California in search of his fortune, and after an eight years' exploit returned to Coldwater, Mich., and subsequently came to Elkhart, where he has been engaged as machinist with the exception of two years, which was improved in the same business at Jackson, Mich. He was married Oct. 4, 1873, to Melissa Scoles, a native of Marshall county, Iud. She was born Aug. 27, 1849. To them were born 2 children: Samuel, now living, and Arthur, deceased. In politics Mr. S. advocates the principles of Republi- canism.
John C. Stuck, the subject of this sketch, is a native of Stark county, Ohio, and was born May 3, 1844. His father, Adam Stuck, was a native of Pennsylvania, and his mother, Barbara (Rudy) Stuck, was born in Ohio. Mr. Stuck was brought up on a farm, and educated in the Canton (Ohio) Seminary, and Prairie College., He served three years for Uncle Sam in the late war, in Co. B 115th O. V. I.,and participated in the battles of Stone River, Laverne, Kenesaw Mountain, Chattanooga, Louisville and others. At one time he was mounted Orderly for Gen. Burnside. He was one of the many boys who were compelled to make their beds in the mud and water, on corn stalks, brush and fence rails. On one occasion, when he slept on the ice and snow, his hair became frozen fast to the ice so that his partner had to cut his hair in order to release him. When but a boy Mr. Stuck learned the molder's trade, and since the war he has been diligently pursuing this trade. He removed to Three Rivers, Mich., in 1868, remaining there 18 months, when he came to Elkhart, and has since been in the employ of the L. S. & M. S. R. R. Co. He was car-wheel molder for four years, and now is molder of drive-wheels. He was married, Sept. 25, 1867, to Mary Smith, who died Feb. 23, 1870. Mr. Stuck again mar- ried, March 17, 1872, this time Mrs. Freelove Smith. Mr. and Mrs. S. are members of the M. E. Church. £ Mr. Stuck has been Steward in the Church, and is now Class-leader, Sabbath-school Superintendent and Church Trustee.
Rinard Stutsman was born in Concord tp., this connty, Dec. 1, 1844, and is a son of David C. Stutsman, who came to this county in 1836, and who is a native of Montgomery county, Ohio. Rinard's inother was Barbara (Roof) Statsman, born in Alsace, France, Jan. 9, 1806. She died at the old homestead in Concord tp., four miles south of Elkhart, Aug. 17, 1880. David C. Stutsman still resides on the homestead. The subject of this sketch was reared on a farm, and educated in a log school-house with slab seats and old-fashioned desks. He was a soldier two years in the war; served in Company C, 9th Ind. Vol. Inf. He participated in the battles · of Resaca, Kenesaw Mountain, Atlanti, Jonesboro, Franklin, Tenn.,
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Nashville and others. His brothers, David R. and Abraham, also served in the late war, doing valiant service for Uncle Sam. Mr. Stutsman, after returning from the war, engaged in farming for one year. He then went to Ingham county, Mich., remaining four years, and engaged for the most part in the manufacture of pumps. He came to Elkhart in 1872, and has been engaged in the manu- facture of pumps ever since. He also drives wells and repairs pumps. He is doing a good business, and is a hard worker. He married Aug. 23, 1866, Miss Gemima Smith, a native of Greentown, Ohio, and is a daughter of Jeremiah Smith, and they have had 3 children, 2 of whom are living, viz .: Lula M. and Floran P.
Dean Swift (deceased) was a native of Clarkson, Monroe Co., New York, and was born Oct. 2, 1815. His parents were Lewis and Mary (Forbes) Swift, also natives of New York. Mr. Swift was reared and educated in his native town, where he also early learned the carpenter trade. He erected a saw-mill and ran it five years, then sold it. May 25, 1837, he married Miss Eme- line Winegar, in the town of Farmington, Oakland Co., Mich. She is also a native of Clarkson, New York. and is a daughter of John Winegar, who emigrated to Michigan in 1835. They had 3 children, viz .: Julia A. (wife of Gen. Hascall, of Goshen), Helen A. (dec.) and Susan (now Mrs. Wood). Mr. Swift removed to Detroit in 1843, and worked in the car shops, and in 1848 he came to Elkhart, and engaged in the inereantile and milling business. He was very successful in business, and grew wealthy. He was a brother of Prof. Lewis Swift, the great astronomer of Rochester, N. Y., who discovered seven planets, and has been awarded three gold medals for his discoveries. Mrs. C. E. Wolsey, the fine artist of Rochester, N. Y., is his sister. He died June 17, 1874. One pride of his life was that he never smoked or chewed tobacco or drank intoxicating liquors.
Dr. Warren H. Thomas was born in Goshen, Ind., April 28, 1841, and is a son of Thomas Thomas, who came to this country in 1828, and now resides in Warsaw, Ind., at the age of 89 years. The Doctor was educated at Dickinson Institute, Romeo, Mich. He read medieine under Dr. Whippy, and practiced awhile in Monticello, Ind. He graduated at Hahnemann Medical College at Chicago, in 1874, and returned to Elkhart and resumed the practice of his chosen profession. When he began he had nothing, but now is elassed among the prominent physicians of Northern Indiana, and has a large and growing practice. He was married Jan. 2, 1867, to Miss Emma, daughter of Daniel Hill, of Elkhart. They have had 2 children, Royal (dec.) and George A. The Doetor was President of the Board of Education of Elkhart one year, and was a member of that body for three years. He has al- ways manifested great interest in educational affairs. and is widely known as a worker in that capacity. He is a member of the Ma- sonic fraternity, and was Master of a lodge at Goshen at one time; he is 1st Vice President of the Indiana Institute of Homeopathy.
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David Thompson, one of the few prominent octogenarians of Elkhart, has a history contemporary with the modern railroad era. He was born in Coventry, Orleans Co., Vt., in 1806. He was the son of Samuel and Lucy (Woodbridge) Thompson. Enoch Wood- bridge, member of Congress from Vermont, was his mother's cousin. David's boyhood was passed at home, and his early education was obtained from the district schools nearest at hand. At 21 years of age he went to Boston to seek his fortune. His father was a millwright, and David's mind was early turned toward mechanics. When the Boston & Providence railroad, the first work of the kind in America, was being constructed, by some fortuitous circum- stance Mr. Thompson secured the job of building the bridges of the road, and finally performed an important part in the comple- tion of the work throughout its entire length, having charge of the road-bed and track for some time afterward. Thus he was a sharer in one of the most important events in the history of the United States, and of civilization as well; for the construction of the Boston & Providence railway initiated what is often termed the railroad age, the most remarkable in the world's annals. He afterward, in 1833-'4, performed important work on the Boston & Worcester and the Boston & Lowell railways. He remembers the primitive rolling-stock of the first railroads, the wooden- wheeled coaches, the bodies of which were shaped like an old Con- cord stage-coach, and had a foot-board along their sides on which the conductor walked to collect fares; and the unconth, bungling and uncertain engines of American make, which it was necessary to supplant by locomotives made in England. He was contractor's agent ou the Worcester road, and laid part of the track on the Stonington line, and on several other New England roads. In 1834 he secured a contract on the Pensacola & Columbia railroad, and made the voyage from Boston to the scene of his labors in a sailing vessel. The Seminole war was then at its height in Florida, and Mr. Thompson's brother Samuel was in the Federal army and died in Florida of disease contracted in the everglades. Mr. Thompson was engaged in building bridges and laying track on the Pensacola line when the panic of 1836 prostrated the financial interests of the country and bankrupted the corporation by which he was employed. Work on the road ceased, and Mr. Thompson found himself down South without employment; but he was
fortunate enough to draw the last dollar of his pay from the Pen- sacola bank before the crash came. Looking about for new adven- ture, Mr. Thompson found a nian by the name of John Shepherd, who was traveling through the South selling maps. Desiring to travel and get out of the country in some manner, Mr. Thompson made an arrangement to travel with this Northern peddler, and with him made a tour through Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Tennessee, Iowa, thus spending the summer of 1836 and the winter of 1836-'7. At last he arrived in Chica- go, and took steamer for St. Joseph, Michigan, and coming to
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Edwardsburgh, Cass Co., Mich., he began work as a millwright and honsebnilder, employing several hands. IIe subsequently en- gaged in farming and dealt in cattle from 1854 to 1857. His for- tune began to accumulate during these years, and he bought and sold land on speculation. His landed property now is quite large; he owns a farm of 144 acres in Cass county, Mich., and 400 acres in Cleveland tp., this county. On his Michigan farm there is a saw-mill. He was married in 1840 to Elizabeth Hatch. This lady died, leaving 2 daughters. He was subsequently married to Ara- menta Wadleigh, by whom he has had 2 sons. Mr. Thompson is a member of the Odd Fellows, and has passed all the chairs in that order. He is also a member of the Masonic fraternity, hav- ing taken the Blue Lodge degree. He was prominent in tp. affairs, and was once a member of the Common Council. One of the remarkable reminiscences of Mr. Thompson's life is of his accompanying De Witt Clinton in his Erie, Champlain and Ver- mont canal surveys. He carried the tripod for the Clintons, and was with them for months. He speaks in glowing terms of both as perfect gentlemen, and kind and obliging to him as a boy. Mr. Thompson's life, as a whole, has been crowded with events and experiences of unwonted interest. A good portrait of this gentle- man is given on another page, from a picture taken at the age of 73 years.
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