History of Greene and Sullivan Counties, State of Indiana, Part 73

Author: Goodspeed Bros. & Co.
Publication date: 1884
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 901

USA > Indiana > Greene County > History of Greene and Sullivan Counties, State of Indiana > Part 73
USA > Indiana > Sullivan County > History of Greene and Sullivan Counties, State of Indiana > Part 73

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

ENCAMPMENT.

A charter was granted Morse Encampment, No. 139, on the 16th day of May, 1876, on application of Benjamin R. Helms, John Wheeler, John W. Speake, Robert Massey, R. H. Milam, M. S. Heavenridge and S. P. Troxell. The present officers of the encampment are: Thomas Hardy, C. P .; R. L. Jenkins, H. P .; J. T. Akin, S. W .; William Hackney, J. W .; E. D. Denison, Scribe, and John Wheeler, Treasurer. Encampment meets first and second Friday nights of each month.

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OFFICERS OF TOWN.

The officers of the town are: Trustees, A. C. Malone; William Trigg, Wiley Howell; Town Clerk and Treasurer, William D. Ballow; Marshal, Frank Buckley; Secretary Board of Health, Dr. E. D. Denison; School Trustees, C. P. Gwin, R. L. Jenkins, E. W. Akin.

BUSINESS INTERESTS.

The following are the business firms: General stores, R. W. Akin's Sons, C. T. Akin & Co., A. C. Malone, George Whipps, R. W. Benefiel; grocers, P. Romele & Son, Frank Davidson; meat markets, Frank Davidson, Charles Cummins; J. W. Warner, confectionery and res- taurant; Mrs. Mary Malone, bakery and restaurant; W. J. Curtner druggist; Roberts & Alembaugh, hardware and agricultural imple- ments; F. M. Davidson, barber; blacksmiths and wagon makers, S. Greenfield, John Listan; coal dealers, Joseph Rooxbury, G. G. M. Ar- nold; J. E. Speake, loan and collecting agent; C. B. Robbins, lawyer; physicians and surgeons, C. N. Young, E. D. Denison, W. A. Lisman, J. M. Mathes; dentist, A. C. Davis; Carlisle Flouring.Mill, R. W. Akin's Sons, proprietors; Eureka Flouring-Mill, Benefiel & Harvey, proprietors, dealers in grain and hay, Rotramel & Gwin: Jenkins & Davidson, harness and saddles; Mary A. Markey, millinery and sewing machine agent; Helms & Webb, broom manufacturers; Eugene Ice Company; saloons, William Dant, G. M. Davidson; Telephone Company; Haddon House, D. Haddon, proprietor; J. M. Warner, postmaster; Carlisle Cemetery, controlled by Town Board. Mercantile business amounts to about $150, - 000 per year. Large shipments of grain and hogs are made; one firm alone, R. W. Akin's Sons, having paid out as much as $75,000 per an- num for wheat.

PAXTON.

The village of Paxton, which lies on the E. & T. H. R. R., three miles north of Carlisle, was laid out in 1868 by W. P. Walter, who set apart twelve acres for that purpose. The depot of the E. & T. H. R. R., called Paxton, had been located near the site of the village for some years, and that name was taken. The population is about 100, and the village contains two general stores, kept respectively by J. T. Mckinney and R. F. I'nrman; a tile manufactory and a blacksmith shop. Two physicians, Drs. Charles Briggs and Harvey Peyton, attend to the needs of the sick. A Christian Church, with a membership of about 100. is located here, and Rev. P. C. Cauble preaches for them sometimes. A graded school, with a neat brick schoolhouse, affords instruction to the young. A. B. Smith. Principal; Miss Mary Love, intermediate, and D. A. Had- don, primary grades. Numbers of scholars attending, advanced grades, 24; intermediate grades, 30; primary grades, 30. Considerable grain, cattle and hogs are shipped from this point.

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CHAPTER XIII.

BY J. B. NORRIS.

CURRY TOWNSHIP-BOUNDARIES AND ORGANIZATION-THE OLD PIONEER- WILLIAM CURRY-PASCHAL SHELBURN-THE SMOCKS AND GASKINSES- OTHER EARLY SETTLERS-PRIMITIVE RESOURCES-GAME-NOTED HUNT- ERS-THE LAST PANTHER-WILLIAM JULIAN AND WIFE-JULIAN'S MILL-DISTILLERY AND SAWMILL-EARLY PREACHERS-FIRST CHURCH- ES-SCHOOLS - NATURAL ADVANTAGES - SHELBURN-FARMERSBURG- THE ADVENTISTS-CURRYVILLE-BURCHARD.

CURRY TOWNSHIP is that portion of Sullivan County occupying the center of the tier of townships forming the northern third of the county, and is bounded on the north by Linton Township, Vigo Co. ; on the south by Hamilton Township; on the east by Jackson Township, and on the west by Fairbanks Township. The township was named in honor of William Curry, among the oldest, if not the oldest, settler within its borders. The exact date of the organization of Curry is now lost. the records of the county, in which occurred mention of the organizations within Sullivan County, having been destroyed in 1850; but Curry was among the earliest townships organized, and as a consequence was one of the first settled. It is to be regretted that no much valuable information should have been swept out of existence by the destruction of the court house and all it contained; but enough, however, has been handed down from father to son upon which to base with reasonable certainty all the leading and interesting facts connected with those hardy old heroes who came out from the midst of the comforts and even luxuries of civilization to build up and make blossom this beautiful land, wherein their children and grandchildren might dwell in peace and plenty, and surrounded by smiling fields and lowing herds. Too much praise cannot be given-too much respect cannot be paid-to the old pioneer of the West, who, with his rifle on his shoulder and ax in band, shot and hewed his way through heart of savage, as well as heart of oak, to the wilderness, which soon gave token of his presence by the curling column of smoke from his cabin chimney, and the ringing stroke of his keen-edged ax. The true lover of the grand and great can never pass the grave of one of those sturdy old henchmen of civilization, without lifting his hat to, or dropping a tear upon, the moldering dust that covers his last resting-place.

WILLIAM CURRY, OF KENTUCKY.

About the year 1817, or possibly previous to that date, William Curry came from Kentucky and settled upon a tract of land where now is located

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the village of Curryville, and just a little later Paschal Shelburn, also a native of Kentucky, settled in the same section of country as Curry. Then came Henry Smock, about 1819, bringing seven sons and four daughters, they also being from Kentucky. From 1819-20, for several years, there arrived numbers of whose descendants now help to make up the popula- tion of Curry Township. Samuel and Robert Curry came; Hardy Hill, William Carrithers, William Julian, of Ohio; Nelson Siner, of Kentucky, father of J. P. Siner, of Shelburn; then Abram Smock and Andy Weir, Athel, William and Joe Liston, of Ohio; Sebrun Barbre, Levi Ridgway; William Watson, Robert. G. Cummins, John A. Cummins, John and Will- iam Lloyd, Elijah Gaskins, James Gaskins, Abram Fox, Alexander Mc- Donald, John and Samuel Anderson, Joseph Smith, William Martin, James Ralston, John Cuppy, Robert McGrew, and many others who are now dead, but whose descendants are now living in the township, among whom may be mentioned-and who are, by the way, from age and ances- try, old settlers themselves-the following: Several of the Smock family -John, Samuel and Henry; the Gaskinses, also, are well represented- William, E. C. and Samuel; there are also William and Robert Curry, Wallace Mckinney, Felix J. McConklin, William R. Bennett, J. P. Siner, John A. Cummins, J. W. Lloyd, Isaac H. Mckinney, Spencer Russell, Jackson Hinkle, David Stutsman, and many others, some of whom came in along in the forties and fifties. Mrs. Nancy Smock, widow of Joseph Smock, deceased, is the oldest person in the township, being eighty- five years of age, and Henry Smock is probably the oldest man, being eighty years old.

PRIMITIVE RESOURCES.

When the Currys and Smocks and Shelburns came to Sullivan, bring- ing with them their entire earthly effects, which consisted often of only a pair of ozen, a rickety wagon and a few rude farming implements, the country, as a matter of course, was extremely wild. Wolves, deer and turkeys were in the woods and valleys in almost abundance the wolves, in fact, most too abundant, while bears and panthers were frequently met with in the recesses of the forests that covered almost the entire surface of not only Curry Township, but Sullivan County. Where there were openings in the timber, a very thick growth of wild pea-vines covered the ground, and to such an extent as to interfere seriously with travel, roads, or rather narrow wagon ways, having to be cut through with almost as much labor as through the forests themselves. Clearing a patch or two was no child's play, as one can readily imagine, and this had to be done as the first step toward laying a foundation for a home in the wilderness, for it was from these patches of corn and potatoes the pioneer expected to derive his supply of food, in addition to the game his rifle would bring down. A patch of flax also, and a patch of cotton had to be put out, for clothing was as necessary as food. There did not exist

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in those primitive times the handy stores in the villages or larger towns, for those could be found only at long distances, nor were these country stores, as now, every few miles apart, from which could be purchased all that the housewife might need, and where she could exchange her butter and eggs and chickens for supplies of all kinds. A store was almost an unheard-of luxury in those wilds, so the women folks had to hackle and spin their flax, and card their cotton and weave and cut the cloth, and make the clothing for themselves and husbands and children. Many an anxious hour has some rustic beauty waited for the finishing of her frock to be worn on the next Sabbath, and many an anxious lad has watched his good mother as she put the last finishing touches to the blouse or pants of linsey-woolsey to be worn at some gathering on Saturday evening after his week's labor had been finished, or in which to go off to the log cabin church on Sunday. Those good old days had their pleasures as well as their trials and hardships. The muscular frames, the strong step and the unerring eye of those sons of toil, and the rosy cheeks and well- developed forms of their wives and daughters, bore evidence of the healthfulness of their mode of life, and laid the foundation for the vigor- ous constitutions, the stalwart forms, and that innate integrity we find in so many of their descendants.

NOTED HUNTERS.

Among the noted hunters of those days were William Julian, Will- iam and Joe Liston, William Watson, Robert Curry and Harrison Smith. The last bear killed in the township was shot by William Julian, and the last panther, a very large and ferocious one, was shot by Robert Curry. This panther had been seen in the vicinity of where he was killed for many months, but the beast was so wary of his two-legged enemies that he had always successfully evaded his pursuers, or, if seen, was so swift in his endeavors to escape that he eluded the rifle balls that were sent after him. On his last, fatal day, however, he ventured closer to the settlement, or rather farther away from his lair, than usnal, presumably in search of food. Now, it so happened that Curry was out on the look- out for him that very day, and as it was only a matter of getting his eyes on the beast to bag him, so when Curry espied him in the crotch of a large tree, the panther might have said, with Davy Crockett's coon, when the latter saw Davy raise his gun, knowing Crockett's unerring aim: "Don't shoot, Davy; I'll come down." Well, the panther did come down, having been wounded fatally, but was not dispatched until after a slight struggle. He was a monster of his kind, and weighed probably 125 pounds, whilst be measured from tip of tail to muzzle over ten feet.

GAME.

Deer were very plentiful, and sometimes " bunches" of them, to use a modern cow-boy expression, could be seen browsing on the hillsides,

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almost within easy gunshot. The Listons were known to have killed as many as ten in a single day. Turkeys were extremely abundant, and they formed a large portion of the meat of the settlers. Wild honey could be obtained in "quantities to suit," as -they say nowadays, by simply " following " a bee trail, spotting the tree and cutting it down in the fall.

William Watson was not only a noted hunter, but a noted Indian fighter. He had been in the famous battle of Tippecanoe, and camped with his command near the scene of the battle the night before it occurred. As is well known, the Indians commenced the battle, really, the night before, and Watson, with a companion, sought rest near a strip of woods, and to deceive the redskins hung a light-colored blanket up some distance from where they lay. In the morning they found eleven bullet holes in the blanket, having saved themselves by their artifice, and beaten the Indians at their own game. As an antagonist, a civilizer and an inventor the Caucasian has no equal in the economy of this world, and Mr. "Lo! the poor Indian" must go, as well as all antagonistic races. If they can- not be abolished, they must succumb.

A NOTED CHARACTER.

First, possibly, among the noted hunters, stands the name of William Julian. He was not only a noted hunter, but an eccentric, yet withal a stanch and estimable citizen. He had many peculiarities, now well remembered by those who knew him, yet his kindly old face and singu- larity of manner made him one of the marked personages of his day. He was a large, round-faced man and somewhat nervous in temperament. He built the first mill in the township-a water mill, which stood on Turman Creek-and run it for many years, supplying a want that was sorely felt up to the time of the erection of the establishment, small in its way, but of prime necessity. The old man was very particular about making a good quality of meal and prided himself much upon the soft- ness, or lack of grit, in his product. So habituated had he become to "feeling" the meal as it ran out of the spout into the bin, that he was continually at it, and even when at the " store " not far off, or church on Sunday, his fingers were going as if in the act of testing the grade of his invisible meal. The old fellow was bald, and it is said that he became so from resting his head against the frame work near the bin as he leaned forward to " feel" the running meal.

MRS. JULIAN.

Mrs. Julian, wife of William, was also a noted personage for years in Curry Township and the adjacent country. She possessed considerable knowledge in regard to diseases, and knew many remedies for all sorts of ills and ailments, besides being indispensable at an accouchement, her handinens as a midwife being acknowledged by all. Besides, she was a

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resolnte, fearless woman, as well as a kind and accommodating one, and would get upon her horse at any hour of the night and ride off alone into the darkness for miles, to render all the assistance that her knowledge and skill could bring to bear upon the sick or afflicted.

JULIAN'S MILL.

Julian's primitive mill, as noted above, was an institution that was well patronized for many years, and the settlers for many miles around brought their grists to him for grinding. Some of them would have to wait a couple of days to be accommodated, so slowly did the little mill turn out its orders. So slowly, indeed, did the stones turn, that it is said that the old miller would pour a grist into the hopper, and then take down his gun and go for a hunt into the woods, returning ere long with a turkey or two.

A DISTILLERY.

William Haselrig had a distillery about 1840, and made, it is said, a superior article of tangle-foot, grapevine, forty.rod whisky. He could make liquor-that is, something that would produce intoxication-out of almost anything that would "mash up and ferment," and it is an easy process of the imagination to fancy what execrable stuff he would run through his still-pipes. That devil's den is now among the things that were, and there is none like it, either in Curry or any other section of the county.

Several tanneries were formerly in operation, but they have now passed away.

SAW MILL.

The first saw mill was built about 1840, and was located in the east- ern section of the township. It was replaced some years after by others of greater capacity and later improvements.

KARLY PREACHERS.

As is usually the case in all the early settlements of the West, we find the Methedist circuit-riders with the vanguard of civilization. These old pioneers of religion could have been found in every settlement.of the early days. Wherever there was a soul to save-wherever humanity needed the healing of the Great Physician, there the pioneer preacher was found, olad in the humble garb of those days-home spun suits and home-made hats and boots, and often' with one hand resting upon his pocket Bible and the other upon his rifle; for those old heroes of the Lord could draw a bead as nicely as he could a conclusion from the text he was expounding. His welcome form, coming through the woods in the distance, was a moment of joy to the settlers, for they knew that they would have meeting on the next Sabbath, and although that "meeting" would not be 'mid " cathedral arch," or " arches groined with gold," yet

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they felt, as they worshiped under the spreading branches of an elm or oak, or within some humble cabin, that He who was. born in a stable would not forget to visit the scene of their pious, yet lowly devotions. What joy those visits of the pioneer preacher, brought to the hungry souls of the devout and earnest Christian men and women, who, having left their homes of comparative comfort in the older States, left also be- hind them glorious privileges for attendance on divine service. No won- der, then, that the authorized soldier of the cross met with a warm recep- tion in the new settlements. Then, indeed, were all fine-drawn creeds and theological intricacies forgotten; Methodist could kneel in prayer with Baptist, and Christian with Presbyterian, and all feel that Heaven was no place for sects and isms, but that the bountiful grace of a Redeem- ing Savior covered all casta, shades and shadows and colors and lights of all religions and denominations; providing, only, that the worshiper was sincere, and that he trusted in the goodness and providence of God, and acted squarely with his fellow man. Thus the humble Christian men and women gathered together on Sunday morning, and their notes of praise, without the accompaniment of deep-toned organ, resounded through the arching branches of the forest trees, and their thanks in prayer went up as holy incense rises, pure and free from cant and affectation, straight to the throne of the Great Jehovah.

Among these early preachers, and more than probably the first, must have been Rev. Joel Collins, a Methodist, from Kentucky, who came with the Ledgerwoods and Haddons, of the southern part of the county. This old soldier in the advance guard of religion no doubt preached all over the county. And Job M. Baker and Orsinath Fisher both no doubt held forth in Curry, for they were here before 1820. Rev. Earnhard also was one of the early preachers, and he, too, was a Methodist circuit-rider. Rev. William Eldridge, a Baptist, was here as early as 1821. Rev. Abram Stark, a Baptist, and Rev. William Stansil, of the same denom- ination, were also here and preached at various points, before there was a church building in the township. Rev. Joseph Wolfe and Rev. John Bailey were among the earliest preachers also.

FIRST CHURCHES.

Little Flock Baptist Church society was organized in 1821, by Rev. William Eldridge, but they had no house of worship for several years afterward, and the first camp meeting was held by the New Lights in 1824.

Friendship Baptist Church was probably the first church in the town- ship. The building stood two miles west of Farmersburg, and was built of logs in the old primitive way. A neat frame building now occupies the place of the original humble honse of the Lord.

Ebenezer Methodist Episcopal Church, three miles southeast of Farm- crsbarg, was erected after Friendship, and was built by Rev. Thomas Man- warring, who owned and preached in it.

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Liberty Christian Church came after Ebenezer. It was located about the center of the township, and Rev. Joseph Wolfe. and Rev. John Bailey were the first who preached in it.

PRESENT CHURCHES.

There are Dine church organizations in the township: Ebenezer Methodist Church, Rev. Marion Rose, pastor. Friendship Baptist Church, Rev. H. R. Liston, pastor. Liberty Christian Church, Rev. W. N. Littell, pastor. Concord Christian Church, Rev. W. N. Littell, pastor. Little Flock Baptist Church, Rev. Jacob Smock, pastor.

Shelburn Baptist Church, Rev. Jacob Smock, pastor. Shelburn Christian Church, no regular pastor.

Shelburn Metbodist Episcopal Church, Rev. Marion Rose, pastor. Farmereburg Methodist Episcopal Church, Rev. Marion Rose, pastor. Seventh-Day Adventists, no regular pastor.

BARLY SCHOOLS.

Wherever the pioneer settled, in addition to his cabin and his clear- ing and his patches for food, and his humble church building, he must have his schoolhouse, with its accompanying teacher. Many of those carly teachers tramped over large sections of country in the then far West. They could be found in Ohio, then in Indiana, then in Illinois, and then farther westward. They adapted themselves to all circum- stances, and were as earnest and careful in their vocation as the most ex. sct professor of our modern schools, and if their lore was not as deep as the latter, it was, at least, adapted to the times and circumstances. What they did not know of the calculi was made up by practical, hard, com- mon sense, and a certain modus operandi of getting the "rule of three" into the noddle of the backwoods boy. No thinskinned, palefaced, spec. tacled bookworm was our old pedagogue of the bygune days. Ah, no! he was one of your double-fisted, rawboned, resolute fellows, who, if a boy couldn't spell off-hand the word the master would "give out," was able to take that 125-pound boy by the top of the head and turn him in- side out. And he would come very near doing it, too, sometimes. Many's the hard rap over the head with an oak ruler, or a sounder dressing-off with a hickory wand across the most prominent portion of his anatomy, have most of the older citizens of Curry received from their old teachers. Yet this same pedagogue was kindly to a fault. He thought it his duty tolwhack knowledge into his pupils, and he thought by sparing the rod that he was not doing his duty-that he would be robbing the parent who expected, when he paid for his son's tuition, that the teacher would put "spellin " and "readin " and "writin " and "rithmetic " into the boy, if not in one way, then in another. The world moves, however, and it is found that education can now be imparted more effectually by " moral suasion " than by harsh methods.

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FIRST SCHOOL.

The first schoolhouse stood where now is Currysville. It was erected in 1821, and was of the usual pioneer pattern-puncheon floor, greased paper windows, etc., etc. When this log structure was completed, it was looked upon as a remarkable acquisition to, the township, and pupils attended from a radius of five and six miles. There being no schoolhouse here up to that time, and as there were beginning to be quite a number of children in the vicinity, the school was well attended. A man named Graham was the first teacher, and after him came John Dodd. It is thought that Haywood and Baker, who had taught in the southern part of the county, also taught bere, they having come to Sullivan at quite an early day.

PRESENT SCHOOLS.'

There are nine schoolhouses in the township outside of the villages, five of which are frame and four brick, and the average attendance is about 480 pupils. The schools are well conducted and reflect much credit upon the Trustee, Mr. E. C. Gaskins, who takes great interest in matters of education. All the school buildings are comfortable, and are located at the most accessible points throughout the township. The teach- ers are well selected and the curriculum will bear comparison with the best township school.

TOWNSHIP OFFICERS.

Trustee, E. U. Gaskins; Assessor, W. M. Denuey; Justices of the Peace, Joseph Hendrix, W. H. Snider.

NATURAL ADVANTAGES.

The township of Curry has, like most of the country in Sullivan County, many natural advantages. The soil is excellent, producing, with a minimum of labor, as much as any spot in Indiana. It is well tim- bered and well watered, and has the advantages afforded by a well-con- ducted railroad, the Evansville & Terre Haute, which passes longitudin- ally across the township. The timber alone could be made a source of great revenue, in addition to a very prolific soil, and in the matter of stock-raising it has the best of facilities. Considerable grain is raised, and large supplies of butter, eggs and chickens are annually shipped to all sections of the State. But nature has placed beneath the soil a store- house of wealth in the immense coal beds that underlie the country, that will some day run the price of land in Curry Township up to what would now seem fabulous figures. Development is all that is needed to bring to this section of country much business and consequently much wealth.

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History of Greene and Sullivan Counties, State of Indiana, Part 73

Author: Goodspeed Bros. & Co. Publication date: 1884 Publisher: Number of Pages: 901

Author: Goodspeed Bros. & Co.
Publication date: 1884
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 901