History of Hamilton County Indiana, her people, industries and institutions, Part 57

Author: John F. Haines
Publication date: 1915
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 1051

USA > Indiana > Hamilton County > History of Hamilton County Indiana, her people, industries and institutions > Part 57

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cause of his high attainments and his exalted personal character, he is emi- nently entitled to representation in a work of this character.

Dr. Frederick A. Tucker, the son of Dr. Albert R. and Anna C. ( Benja- min) Tucker, was born February 26, 1874, in Cicero, Hamilton county, Indi- ana. His father was one of the prominent physicians of his county and state for more than forty years, and a review of his interesting life is found else- where in this volume. The death of Dr. Albert R. Tucker in the summer of 1913 removed one of the most influential citizens of Hamilton county and a man who was ever on the alert for the good of his county.

Dr. Frederick A. Tucker was reared in a home which had not a little to do with his present high standing as a citizen in the community. It has often been said that the home life of a man is a determining factor in his career and observation confirms this statement. Doctor Tucker led the life of the ordinary boy, with the exception that his parents gave him every chance to improve his condition, was graduated from the high school at Cicero in 1890 and then took a post-graduate course in the Noblesville high school for one year. The father, wishing to give him the best medical educa- tion that the country afforded, sent him to Johns Hopkins University at Balti- more, a university which ranks first among the many excellent medical train- ing schools of the United States. Here he spent two years of hard study and then spent the next three years at Rush Medical College at Chicago, from which institution he was graduated in 1897. His father had graduated from Rush Medical College in 1869. After graduating from the medical college in 1897, Doctor Tucker was fortunate in being able to secure a position as an intern in the Presbyterian Hospital at Chicago and the Lying-in Hospital of the same city, which experience was of incalculable benefit to him. It is but fitting to say that these appointments are given only to those of the high- est rank in scholarship. After completing his year of training in the best hospitals of Chicago. Doctor Tucker returned to his home in Noblesville and became associated with his father in the practice of medicine. Two years later he began the practice of medicine alone and has since maintained separate offices. In order to keep fully abreast of the latest advancements in medical science, he has taken several post-graduate courses at Chicago and New York city. In 1910 he took the full summer course at Harvard Medical College at Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is needless to add that with this fine train- ing, Doctor Tucker is widely recognized as a man of superior talent and training.

Doctor Tucker was married December 22, 1897, to Katherine Durfee. the daughter of Josiah and Sarah J. (Frary) Durfee, of Noblesville. Josiah

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Durfee was a prominent bridge builder and contractor, building all of the large wooden bridges that are yet standing in Hamilton county. He built the old wooden bridge over White river at Noblesville in 1864 and it still stands as a silent tribute to his sturdy workmanship. He and his wife died many years ago. Doctor and Mrs. Tucker have one daughter, Elizabeth, who was born December 4, 1904.

Doctor Tucker is a member of the Hamilton County, Indiana State and American Medical Societies. He also is a member of the National Congress for the Treatment of Tuberculosis, the American Public Health Association and the American Surgical Society. He always has taken a great personal and professional interest in public health matters and served four years as health officer at Noblesville. In 1905 he was appointed by Governor Hanly as a member of the State Board of Health and in 1909 was reappointed by Governor Marshall, serving eight years in all, four years of which he was president of the board. He is now a member of the executive committee of the Indiana State Anti-Tuberculosis Society and also district councilor for the Indiana State Medical Society. In all of these different organizations Doctor Tucker always has taken an active and interesting part. He has been chairman of the hospital committee of the County Medical Society, through whose efforts the county commissioners have appropriated thirty thousand dollars for the building of a county hospital in Noblesville. This is a new feature in the history of medical science in Indiana and it is to be hoped that in the years to come there will be ninety-two such hospitals scattered through- out the state of Indiana. This thirty thousand dollar building is a tribute to the work of Doctor Tucker who has been largely instrumental in creating the interest which has made this possible.

Though Doctor Tucker has long been connected with the Republican party and always has been actively interested in all matters of public interest, he never has been an aspirant for any public office. He is a fine type of the American citizen who wishes to do everything possible for the good of his county. Fraternally, he is a member of the Masons, in which order he has attained to the thirty-second degree. He is also a member of the Knights of Pythias and the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. 'He and his wife are loyal members of the Methodist Episcopal church and take a prominent part in all the social and religious life of their community. It is needless to add that he has met with material success and his practice is second to none in the county and it has come to him solely because of his recognized ability. He has invested in property in the city of Noblesville and is also a stockholder in the American National Bank.

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HUGH ANTHONY MAKER.

The Maker family have been residents of Hamilton county, Indiana, since 1829, and since that time have been prominent in the various phases of the county's development. Hugh Anthony Maker is the third in direct line from Peace E. Maker, the first member of the family to locate in Hamilton county. Hugh A. Maker is one of the best known men of his county, a poet, a philosopher, a student of literature, and a man who is interested in every- thing pertaining to the welfare of the county in which he has spent his entire life.

Hugh Anthony Maker, of Noblesville, was born July 21, 1864, in Hamil- ton county, Indiana, in the same house where his mother had been born twenty-five years before. This house, which was built in 1836, is still standing and is in a good state of preservation. It is a substantial brick structure with a stone foundation. The stone was hauled from Pendleton, and the bricks were made on the spot where the house was built. The mortar was made from lime secured by burning in the same kiln with bricks the limestone which had been hauled from Pendleton for the foundation.

Hugh A. Maker is the son of Seth R. and Nancy J. ( Hamble) Maker. His father was born three miles west of Noblesville, November 6, 1836, a son of Peace Eber and Rebecca ( Richey) Maker. Peace E. Maker was born near Penn Yan, New York, November 25, 1801. He came to Cincinnati with his parents in 1818 by way of the Allegheny and Ohio rivers. The father of Peace Maker built a flat boat near the headwaters of the Allegheny, and floated down that river and the Ohio to Cincinnati, from which city the family went overland to Brookville, Franklin county, Indiana, where Peace E. Maker was reared to manhood and married Jane Ross, who died about 1827. In 1829 Peace Maker came to Hamilton county, Indiana, and worked for his brother- in-law, the late Gen. John D. Stephenson, who was the father of the late Judge Stephenson.

In Hamilton county, Indiana, Peace F. Maker was married a second time, on November 14. 1833, to Rebecca Richey, who was born in Huron county, Ohio, December 25. 1810, the daughter of William and Margaret (Bardeau) Richey. They had come from York county, Pennsylvania, to Ohio. Rebecca Richey came to Hamilton county June 2, 1822. before the organization of the county. At that time an Indian village was located on the site of the present city of Muncie, and as she came through there, all of the children of her father's family had the whooping cough. A squaw in the village dug some skunk cabbage root. peeled and scraped it and gave a dose

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BIRTHPLACE OF HUGH A. MAKER There's a halo that hangs 'round the place of our birth.

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HUGH A. MAKER

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of the scraped root to the children for the cough. The Richey family settled on the east side of White river near Clare, and about a year later moved across to the west side. When the three white men were hung at Pendleton for the murder of the Indians, they spent several days, without charge to the benefi- ciaries of their kindness, ferrying across the river both Indians and whites, who were on their ways to and from the hanging. William Richey served on the first jury in Hamilton county.

After Peace E. Maker married, he lived three miles west of Noblesville, and lived there all of his life with the exception of four years, which he spent in LaSalle county, Illinois, from 1838 to 1842. Peace Maker was a farmer, as well as a carpenter and mechanic, who was skilled in several different lines. He was a good citizen and actively interested in everything pertaining to the welfare of his county. He died January 27, 1879.

Seth R. Maker was reared on his father's farm and was married on June 19, 1861, to Nancy J. Hamble. She was born on the old Hamble farm, the first farm east of the present "poor farm" of Hamilton county, October 13, 1839, and is now living with her son, Hugh A.

Mrs. Maker was the daughter of Anthony and Elizabeth (McPeak) Hamble, natives of Ohio. The Hambles started from Chillicothe, Ohio, in the winter of 1831, for the state of Illinois, and reached Strawtown, Hamilton county, Indiana, in December, 1831, at a time when the ground was covered with snow. They were compelled to stay in this county all winter, and during the winter traded his wheel horses and wagon with a man by the name of Dale for eighty acres of land just east of the present county farm. Here the Hambles lived until the death of Mr. Hamble. November 9, 1860. Anthony Hamble was the son of Robert and Mary ( Harper) Hamble. Robert Ham- ble was a native of Ireland, and was about twelve years of age when he started to this country in a sailing vessel which was wrecked on the coast of Virginia. Of all on board the ill-fated vessel he was the sole survivor. Robert Hamble became a ward of the state of Virginia and was bound out by the state to Ebenezer Harper, for whom Harper's Ferry was named. He grew to man- hood and married Harper's daughter, Mary, and about the year 1805 started for Ohio. He died on the road about two days' travel from Parkersburg, leaving his widow and children to continue the journey. The son of Robert Hamble was in turn bound out to John Wagner at Chillicothe, Ohio, grew to manhood and went as a substitute for John Wagner in the War of 1812, doing service as teamster in the regiment of Major Croghan. He was married June 12, 1816.

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Seth R. Maker farmed during the war on the Barker farm, and after the war moved to the "Sunny Slope Farm," three miles northwest of Nobles- ville, and there resided until March, 1887, when he moved to Delaware town- ship, and lived there until his death, October 5, 1905. Seth R. Maker was not a religious man, but was strictly moral and never used tobacco or whiskey. He was a good citizen, highly respected in the community where he lived.

Hugh Anthony Maker grew to manhood on his father's farm. He at- tended the Central Normal College at Danville, Indiana, and was a classmate of Governor Ralston, Judge Felt, Thomas Duncan, the chairman of the Public Service Commission, E. E. Barrett, state geologist, and other men who have since become famous in the history of Indiana. After leaving the normal college, Mr. Maker taught school for a time and then returned to his father's farm. He was always deeply interested in literature, and has been known to get up at two o'clock in the morning and write poetry until time to go to work. November 1, 1906, he issued his book of poems, entitled "Odd Odes," a volume which has attracted well-deserved mention. It is a book of nearly two hundred pages and contains poems on a great variety of themes. The poet expresses profound thoughts and excellent fancies and his poems are permeated with a homely philosophy which indicates that the author has a deep understanding of human nature. Many of his poems resemble those of Robert Burns and James Whitcomb Riley in their treatment of homely themes.

If man but knew what nature knows, What secrets she doth hold, It mines of knowledge would disclose, · Of value more than gold.

O, vanity, how thou wouldst shrink, And vanish all thy shows, And pompous pride, how thou wouldst sink If man but knew what nature knows.

If man but knew what nature knows, Our volumes then how small;

What little light our learning throws On subjects one and all.

O, Literature, how strangely mute, And Art what senseless pose ;

And Science of what ill repute. If man but knew what nature knows.

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ON THE POWER OF THE INFINITE.

The power that once could make me live Can surely make me live again. Should it but please that power to give Life unto the souls as unto man.

In truth I really cannot see Why that same power at pleasure may Not build a soul for eternity Just like a body for a day.

And everywhere-both high and low- Where space by heavenly orbs it lit, Material things all tend to show The potent power of the infinite.

EARLY MEMORIES.

It matters not where our lots may be cast, Howe'er our fortunes may rise or may fall, The memories of childhood will cling to the last, And be ever the dearest of all.

Mr. Maker was a member of the Western Association of Writers during the existence of that literary association, and attended the meetings with such men as Bliss Carman, Opie Reed, Madison Cawein, John J. Piatt, and many others noted in the annals of American literature. In his youth, Mr. Maker studied law at home, but gave it up in order to follow his love for literature. It frequently has been said of him by his friends that his ability is much greater than his fame.

Mr. Maker farmed at home with his father until the latter's death, and remained on the farm only two years after that time. Mr. Maker was a member of the Farmers Alliance and sat in every lodge extant in that order, in subordinate lodge, county, state and national organizations. In the spring of 1907 he made a trip to California, and after his return moved to Nobles- ville, where he has since lived. On February 10, 1914, he was appointed justice of the peace in Noblesville, and took the office, not for the emoluments thereof, but for the experience which he might gain in handling cases coming before his court. He has never married and makes his home now with his mother in Noblesville.

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Mr. Maker is a Democrat, but has never been concerned with political affairs. He is a regular attendant of the Methodist church and the Men's Bible Class, but is not a member of this denomination. He is a genial man in disposition, optimistic in his views of life, and is highly honored and re- spected by all who know him. He has a wonderful memory and is one of the best informed men in the county on local history, and is at present secretary of the Hamilton County Historical Association.

THOMAS JEFFERSON PATTERSON.

The farmer of Indiana who was born three score and ten years ago can look back over a span of time which has brought about greater improvement in farming than any other period in the whole history of the world. In fact, there have been more improvements within the last fifty years than there were in all the previous years since the discovery of America. It is indeed difficult for the younger generation to realize what the conditions were which existed in Indiana seventy years ago. So different were they from what they are at present that the review of the lives of men who lived during all this period is interesting as well as instructive to the younger gen- eration. These forefathers of ours who were farming before the war can well remember the log cabin home, the mud roads, the rail fences, the grain cut with a sickle and threshed with a flail. Farming implements were very crude compared to the improved machinery of the present and much hard labor was demanded of the farmers as they undertook the task of transform- ing their lands into a rich and productive field. Gradually time and the white race have brought great changes to the country where the red men formerly roamed.

The late Thomas Jefferson Patterson, an honored veteran of the Civil War, who died at his home in Noblesville, Indiana, July 23, 1914, and whose body now lies buried in Noblesville cemetery, was born April 26, 1844, on a farm in Fall Creek township, Hamilton county, Indiana. He was the son of Samuel and Margaret (McBurney) Patterson, his father being a native of Preble county, Ohio, and his mother a native of Ireland. Miss McBurney came to America when a young girl with her parents, and settled in Ohio, where she and Samuel Patterson were married. After their marriage they came to Hamilton county, where he engaged in farming until his death, in 1852. His wife passed away in the same year.

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Thomas Jefferson Patterson was only six years of age when his parents died, and he never knew the loving ministrations of a father and mother. However, he was brought up in a good Christian home and was given as good an education as the country schools at that time afforded. The great rebellion broke out in the sixties and he was seized with the same patriotic zeal which fired the hearts of hundreds of thousands of youths of the North. In 1862 he enlisted as a member of Company B, Fifty-fourth Regiment, In- diana Volunteer Infantry, for three months' service. Upon the expiration of this term of enlistment he re-enlisted in Company A, Second Indiana Cavalry, and served until the close of the war. Most of his service was in the west in the Army of the Cumberland. He participated in all of the battles in which his regiment engaged, and though always at the front never was wounded and never taken prisoner. He was discharged in the summer of 1865, having served his country faithfully and well.

Immediately after the war he returned to peaceful pursuits in his home county and settled on a farm in Fall Creek township. He was married in 1866 and began to build up for himself a large landed estate, each succeeding year seeing him more prosperous than the year before. He was a man of unusual business ability and a farmer who always took the lead in adopting the latest improved machinery or the most advanced methods of agriculture. At the time of his death he owned three hundred and ninety-five acres of land in Fall Creek township, in addition to the valuable residence in Noblesville, into which he moved in 1904, upon retiring from active business. Later in life he became connected with the Manufacturers Natural Gas Company of Indian- apolis, as its superintendent, and moved to Frankton, in Madison county, the center of the gas belt. He was with this company, its efficient superintendent, until its dissolution. At the same time he was superintendent of the gas company he was also contractor for the laying of the mains, at the same time planting his farm and constantly keeping a close supervision over it.

Mr. Patterson was married in March, 1866, to Clara J. Brown, daughter of Franklin and Lucinda Brown, of New Paris, Ohio. To this marriage have been born seven children, four of whom are still living: Dora, the wife of Calvin Harrison, of Hamilton county ; Rose, deceased : Frank and Maude, twins, both of whom are deceased: Fred, who is married and lives in Hamil- ton county, and two, Myrtle and Finley, who are still living at home.

Mr. Patterson was a life-long Republican in politics and always was active in the deliberations of his party in Hamilton county. In 1884 he was elected county commissioner for a term of three years and was re-elected in 1890, serving for a period of nine years. The county never had a more

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efficient county commissioner than Mr. Patterson, and no suspicion of graft was ever connected with his name. He was also assessor of Fall Creek town- ship for nine years and discharged the duties of that important office in a , manner which brought the commendation of his fellow citizens. Fraternally, he was a member of the Free and Accepted Order of Masons and a loyal member of the Grand Army of the Republic Post at Noblesville. Though himself not a member of any particular church, his family are all members of the United Brethren church. He was one of the trustees of the church and a liberal supporter of its various activities. Mr. Patterson was one of the leading men of his county for more than fifty years and played well his part in every way possible. He was one of those men with brain and substance who are essential to the material government of a community's prosperity, and his influence ever was worthily extended in behalf of any worthy enter- prise that had for its object the advancement of the civic, moral and intel- lectual welfare of his county. He was personally a kind, large-hearted and charitable man, a friend to every one whom he met. He always maintained his high ideals, nothing ever swerving him from the path of rectitude and honor, and his memory is cherished by many in Noblesville and Hamilton county.

DR. JOEL DIXON STURDEVANT.

Among those men of sterling attributes of character who have impressed their personality upon the community of their residence and have borne their full share in the upbuilding and development of Hamilton county, Indiana, mention must be made of Dr. Joel Dixon Sturdevant, of Noblesville, where he maintains his home, and where he has exerted a strong influence for good on the entire community, being a man of upright principles and desirous to see the advancement of the community along moral, educational and material lines. Professionally, he is a man of recognized ability, who has in his chosen sphere of effort met with a large degree of success, winning the commendation and the confidence of all who have knowledge of the great value of the com petent physician to any community.

Dr. Joel Dixon Sturdevant, the son of Calvin and Emma ( Beals) Sturde- vant, was born November 7, 1877, on a farm in Washington township, this county. Both his parents were also natives of Hamilton county and are still living in Noblesville. In 1896 Calvin Sturdevant was elected auditor of Hamilton county and after retiring from the office in 1901, he returned to his

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farm, where he remained until 1907, when he moved to Noblesville, where he died February 3, 1914. Calvin Sturdevant was a lifelong Republican and active in political matters in his county. He served on the Republican county central committee and was a frequent delegate to district and state conventions.

Doctor Joel Dixon Sturdevant was reared upon the home farm and at- tended the schools of his neighborhood. Later he attended the high school at Westfield, this county, and was graduated from this splendid high school. Being a young man of keen intellectual ability, it was natural that he should take an interest in educational work. After graduating from the high school he taught school in the district schools of Washington township for three years. In the spring of 1898, having reached his twenty-first birthday, he became deputy county auditor under his father and served in this capacity until 1900, at which time he entered the Medical College of Indiana at Indi- anapolis and was graduated from that institution April 21, 1904. A number of the best students graduating in each class are appointed as interns to the leading hospitals of Indianapolis, only students graduating with high grades being accorded this honor, and Doctor Sturdevant was one of the few who was fortunate enough to receive an internship. He served in the Indianapolis City Dispensary from May 1, 1904, to January, 1905, and during this time received much valuable experience. On February 1, 1905, he opened his office in Noblesville for practice, and during the past nine years has built up a large and lucrative practice in Noblesville and vicinity. He keeps fully abreast of the times in his chosen profession and takes an active interest in the de- liberations of the Hamilton County, the Indiana State and the American Med- ical Associations.

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History of Hamilton County Indiana, her people, industries and institutions, Part 57

Author: John F. Haines Publication date: 1915 Publisher: Number of Pages: 1051

Author: John F. Haines
Publication date: 1915
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 1051