USA > Indiana > Hendricks County > History of Hendricks County, Indiana, her people, industries and institutions > Part 35
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Alfred S. Lineinger spent his boyhood days in Center township and grew to manhood on the farm where he now makes his home. His early education was obtained in the township schools, later attending the academy at Danville. On March 8, 1877, Mr. Lineinger was united in marriage with Sarah A. Hollingsworth, daughter of Samuel V. and Lydia ( Mullen) Holl- ingsworth, of Washington township, this county. To their union have been born three children, two of whom died in infancy, the surviving member being their son Floyd, who is a farmer, living on a part of the subject's home- stead. Floyd married Bernice Euseba Wiley, a native of this county, and their union is without issue. Mr. Lineinger originally owned three hundred and twenty acres of excellent land, located on the Danville electric line, but about one year ago sold one hundred acres of this at a price of one hundred and thirty dollars per acre. This was at considerable profit, as he paid thirty-five dollars per acre for the same land twelve years earlier.
Mr. Lineinger is a stanch Republican, very active in local politics. He gave nine years' service on the board of county commissioners. He was elected in the fall of 1900, taking his seat in January of 1902 and served until January, 1911, from district number two. During his years of service on the board the subject of the erection of concrete bridges came before that body, and several excellent bridges were constructed during the subject's term of office. Mr. Lineinger's fraternal affiliations are with the Indepen- dent Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias, the Free and Accepted Masons, and the Tribe of Ben-Hur, being associated with these bodies through the local lodges at Danville. He has filled the various chairs in the first two societies mentioned and has also been a member of the grand lodges of those same societies. He is also chief of the Tribe of Ben-Hur in his local lodge. Both Mr. and Mrs. Lineinger are members of Bartlett chapel (Methodist Episcopal), Mr. Lineinger serving that society as trustee for many years. Both he and his wife are earnestly interested in the welfare of that society and do much toward the support of same.
Like his father, Mr. Lineinger is a man of excellent business ability and sterling qualities of heart and mind. He stands high in public estima- tion by reason of his many years of unquestioned uprightness of life and the helping hand he is ever ready to extend to those in need. He is a man of genial, though quiet, temperament ; active and progressive in all his ideas. He is one of the leading men of the county in his chosen vocation and both his public and private life have ever been above reproach. Needless to say, a man of so many engaging qualities is not only highly respected, but also is warmly esteemed by a large circle of friends and acquaintances.
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JAMES W. PHILLIPS.
All callings, whether humble or exalted, may be productive of some measure of success if enterprise and industry, coupled with a well directed purpose, form the motive force of the person directing the same, and in no case is this fact more apparent than in agricultural pursuits. It is a well authenticated fact that success comes as the result of legitimate and well- applied energy, unflagging determination and perseverance as well as the above enumerated qualities. When a course of action is once decided upon, these attributes are essential. Success is never known to smile upon the idler or dreamer and she never courts the loafer, only those who have dili- gently sought her favor being crowned with her blessings. In tracing the history of the prosperous and influential agriculturist whose name forms the caption of this biographical review, we find that the above-named elements have entered largely into his make-up and therefore we are not surprised at the large and ever-growing success which he has attained.
James W. Phillips was born in Jefferson county, Indiana, on April 7, 1837, the son of Thomas and Susan (Wilson) Phillips, both of whom were natives of North Carolina. When young, they were brought to Kentucky with their parents, and later came to Indiana with their families, their mar- riage not taking place until after they had become residents of the Hoosier state. Thomas Phillips was killed by a tree falling on him while felling timber, at the time the subject of this sketch was fifteen years old. Being the oldest of the family, many of its burdens and responsibilities then fell upon his young shoulders and he remained at home for a number of years, assisting the mother in the care and support of the family of younger brothers and sisters. In 1861 Mr. Phillips was united in marriage with Lydia Gray, whose death occurred in 1879. She was the mother of two children, namely : Charles H., who died at the age of twenty-nine years, never having been married, and Clarence B., who took as his wife Leoda Wilson. By this wife he has two children, Wilma, who makes her home with her father, and Harold, who has always been under the care of his maternal grandmother, his mother having passed away when he was only four days old. Clarence B. chose as his second wife Cornelia Pearcy, by whom he has one child, Otis, residing with his parents.
In 1881 Mr. Phillips was united in marriage with Melvina Gray, a sister of his first wife, by whom he has six children. Lydia and Melvina Gray were the daughters of Hiram and Roxy (Young) Gray, the former from
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Clermont county, Ohio, and the latter of whom was a native of New York. They were married in 1834 and lived for several years in Ohio. Wishing to better their fortunes, they removed to the state of Kentucky, where they remained for only a year and, being dissatisfied, returned to their former home in Ohio. They later came to Indiana and settled in Jennings county, where Melvina was born. When she was ten years old, the family moved to Missouri, making the trip overland in covered wagons. They were there eight years, when the death of the mother occurred, and the father brought his family back into Indiana and settled in Hendricks county about two and one-half miles northeast of Brownsburg. Here he purchased a farm, where he lived for a number of years, later disposing of it and purchasing property in Brownsburg, where he lived until his death. Of Mr. Phillips' family by his second wife, the eldest is Iva Jane, wife of Harry Bell, a resident of Brownsburg. They have a family of three children, Mabel, Horace and Grant. Mr. Phillips has three children remaining at home, Hiram, Roy and Delta. Susan, another daughter, married James Smith and they are engaged in agricultural work in Boone county. They have a family of four children, Lloyd, Esther, Kellar and Noble. Ruth, another daughter, is the wife of Riley Smith and they live on his father's farm, one mile west of the Phil -. lips home.
James W. Phillips first came to Hendricks county in 1865 and for two ycars lived on rented farms, after which time he purchased the home where he has since resided. Mr. Phillips is a graduate of a military school, being second lieutenant of his company at the time of his graduation. During the dark days of the sixties, while not at the front, he was busy in the work nearer home. He did service in the Jefferson county militia, assisting in the pursuit of Morgan and his raiders. He also helped guard Confederate pris- oners which were brought to Indianapolis. He had three brothers at the front, one of whom died while in service, having contracted a serious ill- ness while on duty. He also had three brothers-in-law in the war, one of whom starved to death in Andersonville prison. Politically, Mr. Phillips is a strong supporter of the Republican party and, while not a seeker after of- fice for himself, his influence at the polls is a thing reckoned with by those who do seek such honors. Mrs. Phillips is a member of the Methodist Epis- copal church and, while Mr. Phillips does not hold church membership any- where, his sympathies would seem to be with the society chosen by his wife, for he gave the site on which the Corinth Methodist church is erected and has in other ways assisted financially in its support, while Mrs. Phillips gives
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much of her time to further the interests of the society. Mr. Phillips has ever shown himself worthy of the high esteem in which he is held. His life has been filled with activity and usefulness, while his untiring energy and ability have secured for him a conspicuous and honorable place among the citizens of his community. His strict integrity and unpretending bearing have elevated him in the confidence of his fellow citizens, and his influence has always been exerted in the interests of those things which have helped to elevate his fellow men socially, morally and educationally. Because of his successful career and his high personal character, he is eminently en- titled to representation among the leading men of his county.
WILLIAM J. NASH.
Success is only achieved by the exercise of certain distinguishing qualities and it cannot be retained without effort. Those by whom great epoch changes have been made in the political and industrial world began early in life to prepare themselves for their peculiar duties and responsibilities and it was only by the most persevering and continuous endeavor that they suc- ceeded in rising superior to the obstacles in their way and reaching the goal of their ambition. Such lives are an inspiration to others who are less courageous and more prone to give up the fight before their ideal is reached or definite success in any chosen field has been attained. In the life history of the honorable gentleman whose name forms the caption of this article we find evidence of a characteristic that always makes for achievement-per- sistency, coupled with fortitude and lofty traits, and as a result of such a life Mr. Nash stands today one of the representative citizens of Hendricks county.
William J. Nash was born in this county on June 9, 1849, the son of Isaac C. and Cilicia (Wilson) Nash, who at that time resided about three- quarters of a mile northeast of Brownsburg. Isaac C. Nash was born in Ohio on March 27, 1817, and when small was brought to Indiana by his parents, Thomas J. Nash and wife. Cilicia Wilson, mother of the immediate subject of this sketch, was a native of Virginia, born on March 1, 1817, and was also brought to this state by her parents while still a small child. Both the Nash and Wilson families entered tracts of government land somie three miles southwest of where the town of Brownsburg now is, in what was then almost a wilderness. It was there that Isaac C. and Cilicia grew to years of maturity, meeting the pleasures and privations of pioneers, and eagerly taking
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advantage of the meagre opportunities for education afforded them by the early subscription schools, while doing their share of the work about their respective homes. On January 28, 18441, they were united in marriage and for about a year lived on his father's farm. They then secured forty acres of government land about one mile northeast of Brownsburg. all located in virgin forest. It took several years of strenuous labor to convert this tract into well cultivated fields. Their first home on that land was a log cabin with a nice log barn near by, and in that cabin home the subject of this sketch first saw the light of day. Later on a commodious frame house was built; and there Isaac C. Nash passed his remaining years, his death occurring Septem- ber 25, 1897. His wife had preceded him a number of years, having passed away on December 24, 1860. They were the parents of nine children, those beside the subject being John A., Mary E., Clarinda, William J., Edward F., Alvertus, George A. and Cilicia.
William J. Nash remained at home with his father until the time of his marriage, in the meantime attending the district schools of his neighbor- hood and receiving from his father careful instruction in the secrets of hus- bandry. On November 2, 1870, he was united in marriage with Elizabeth McCray; who was born November 6, 1853, the daughter of Richard and Sarah (Avery) McCray, the latter dying when Elizabeth was a babe of but six months. She was the only child of that union and after her mother's death she was cared for by her mother's people. Richard L. McCray and Sarah Avery both were natives of Indiana, having been reared in Marion county, the former the son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Lucas) McCray, both of whom were born in the state of Ohio. Richard L. was born July 7, 1828, near Connersville, this state. The parents of Sarah Avery were Solomon and Fanny (Hawkins) Avery. Some two years after the death of his first wife, Sarah Avery, Richard L. McCray remarried, going directly to Iowa, where he located near Prairie City. In the fall of 1862 he enlisted as second lieutenant in Company G, Twenty-third Regiment Iowa Infantry, and at the battle of Black's River Bridge, near Vicksburg, Mississippi, on the 17th of May, 1863, he was killed by sharpshooters while on the skirmish line. He was captain of his company at the time of his death. Shortly after going into service he was raised to first lieutenant, and not long after that was com- missioned captain. Some time after his death, his widow and children re- turned to Indiana. He was a man of unusual and lovable qualities of heart and mind, looking at life in a sweet and serious way, as evidenced by this sketch inscribed on the fly-leaf of his much beloved copy of Holy Writ:
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"Richard L. McCray, son of Samuel and Elizabeth McCray, born in Fayette county, Indiana, near Connersville, July 7, 1828. . At an early period in life he evidenced a love of music and spent a great portion of his childhood days singing the familiar airs of those days. When in his sixth year, his father moved to Marion county near the capitol of Indiana. At the age of eighteen he left home to learn the joiners and framers' trade, but in this he made but little proficiency and returned at the age of twenty-one to the home of his childhood. In his twenty-second year he obtained this book of Adam Sham- baugh. At the age of twenty-five he joined the Christian church at North Liberty, in accordance with the teachings of this Holy Book." He was a singing-school teacher while young, and also taught school. He was a very religious and good man and, in addition to carrying on the regular work of his farm, was also a minister of the Gospel. During his service in the army he acted in the capacity of chaplain of his company.
After the subject's marriage he established his home on a sixty-acre farm which his father owned about a mile and a half northeast of Brownsburg and there they lived for four years. He then purchased eighty acres directly east of the Bethesda church in Brown township, and there the family lived for fourteen years. He then traded that for one hundred and twelve acres of land in Boone county, remaining there nine years, when he again traded that for another farm in Boone county, but never lived thereon, for he almost directly turned that for the one hundred and fifty acres where he now lives, a short distance north of Brownsburg. To Mr. and Mrs. Nash have been born four children, namely: Clarinda, the wife of W. J. Everitt, of Indian- apolis. They have two children, Chauncy and Edith. The second child, Olna Isaac, married Elma Smith and they reside on Mr. Nash's farm about a quarter of a mile from subject's residence. They have two boys, Carl and Clifford. Sallie married D. F. Smith and lives a short distance northwest of Brownsburg. She is the mother of five children, Lester, Millie, Victor, Harold and June. The youngest daughter, Ova L., married Porter Phillips and lives in Los Angeles, California. They are the parents of two boys, Avery and William M. Mr. and Mrs. Nash are both members of the Christian church and the family is regarded as among the foremost of the community. Mr. Nash has always been regarded as a supporter of move- ments having for their object the material advancement of the community, while his influence in promoting the social and moral welfare of his fellow men has been second to none. He has always been regarded as a man of upright principles, industrious and kind-hearted to those in need and few men
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in the community are more favorably known than he. By reason of the ex- cellent business judgment which he possesses, coupled with his untiring energy and ceaseless endeavor, he has succeeded well financially, and while so doing never lost sight of the principles that make for strong, upright man- hood. Consequently, he has the admiration and respect of those who know him.
LUKE W. DUFFEY.
It must be conceded that in this age of enterprise and marked intellectual energy, the successful men are those whose abilities lead them to assume the responsibilities and labors of leaders in their respective fields of endeavor. Success is methodical and consecutive and represents the concrete result of the determined application of individual abilities and powers along rigidly defined lines of labor, whether mental or manual.
Luke W. Duffey, a Hendricks county boy, has acquired a wide reputa- tion as a real estate operator, and his operations have included the handling and improving of many properties of important order. He is also a recog- nized factor in the "Good Roads" movement in America and as chairman of the good roads committee of the Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce has been one of the most'enthusiastic workers in the commendable cause of good roads. As a frequent delegate to the American Road Congress he has wielded a potent influence both as a worker and as an orator. He is a force- ful and logical speaker on road betterment, a subject to which he has given much study and on which he is now recognized as an authority, having been appointed by Governor Ralston to lead a state highway commission as its secretary. He was elected by the Indianapolis Real Estate Board to make the address for Indianapolis in the convention at Winnipeg, Canada, in 1913, where there were seventy-five cities represented, and a correspondent for an English newspaper gave him rating and credits over the Springfield. Ohio, representative who won the contest in which they were participating.
Mr. Duffey is a native of Hendricks county, born October 24, 1879, the son of Squire Eli F. and Nancy J. Duffey, who are now residents of Plainfield, this county. He is a grandson of Michael Duffey, who settled at Belleville, Liberty township, Hendricks county, in 1842, and whose father fought under Washington in the memorable revolutionary struggle to free the American colonies. On the maternal side he is the grandson of Elam Benbow, who came from Carolina and settled in Clay township, Hendricks
LUKE W. DUFFEY
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HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA.
county, in 1828 with his father, the latter entering a quarter section of land upon which a portion of the present town of Amo is situated.
After finishing his common school education, Luke Duffey entered the Central Normal College at Danville in the autumn of 1897. He completed the course in law and was admitted to the Hendricks county bar August +, 1900. While in attendance at the college he worked in private families for his board and took care of the office of Brill & Harvey for the privilege of using the books and getting better acquainted with the routine of work in a law office; here he developed a definite knowledge of the statutes of descent, becoming an expert titleman and thereby developing his real estate talent. He later became interested in the real estate business and has since devoted his energies and talents to this field exclusively. His success was assured from the first. Extensive deals soon gained for him a reputation that reached far beyond the boundaries of Hendricks county, and in 1910, seeking a larger field, he removed to Indianapolis and established the Luke W. Duffey Farm Sales Company, with offices at No. 8 West Ohio street, a large and substan- tial enterprise, specializing in farm lands, though buying and selling realty of all kinds in various parts of the country.
Mr. Duffey has probably done as much as any man living to boom his home county. He has laid out three of the finest additions to the town of Plainfield and constructed more than a score of their most beautiful and substantial homes, and to him must be given credit for the appearance of the great western wing of Indianapolis, which has sprung up like a mush- room in response to some able advertisements that he has written on the ad- vantages offered in that section lying west of Eagle creek and between the Hendricks county line and the city proper. He has platted the Sterling Heights tract, Lookout Plaza, Duffey's Second Addition to Lookout Plaza, Lookout Garden, and is credited with having first conceived the idea of this territory as a town site, which has now something like two thousand homes to evidence his judgment as a far-seeing real estate man.
Mr. Duffey is also proprietor of the famous Hotel De Hoss, the largest livery in the state of Indiana. He has always been interested in the live stock business and is a frequent speaker and judge at stock shows and con- ventions. He is a member of the Indianapolis Real Estate Exchange and was appointed vice-chairman of the agricultural development committee of the International Real Estate Exchange, the purpose of which is to co-operate with the House and Senate committees of Congress, with the Canadian Parliament and with the National Bankers Agricultural Committee to bring about im-
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proved farming conditions. He is a Mason, a Knight of Pythias and a Modern Woodman; he holds a birthright membership in the Quaker church, and is an active member of the Indianapolis Commercial Club.
Luke Duffey is a progressive and public-spirited citizen with a program. Poverty did not dishearten him, misfortune deter him, nor hardships turn him a hair's breadth from his course. His whole nature is dominated by the spirit of progress. He has shown marked executive ability and has handled his independent business with much of prescience and skill, so that his operations have yielded to him due returns and have proved of value to those whom he has served in his professional capacity. His success is the more gratifying to contemplate on the score that it represents the direct re- sults of his own labors and ability. He has been dependent on his own resources from early youth, and has made his business career by his own indomitable energy, and the scrupulous care and honor he gives to every transaction entrusted to him as given him a large and growing patronage. Per- sonally, he is genial, obliging and is universally popular.
HERSCHEL ELSWORTH DAVIS.
To write the personal record of men who have raised themselves from humble circumstances to a position of responsibility and trust in a community is no ordinary pleasure. Self-made men, men who have achieved success by reason of their personal qualities and left the impress of their individuality upon the business and growth of their place of residence and affect for good stich institutions as are embraced in the sphere of their usefulness, unwit- tingly, perhaps, build monuments more enduring than marble obelisk or granite shaft.
Herschel Elsworth Davis is a Hoosier by birth, born in Boone county on September 9, 1861, the son of Speer Bruce and Mary Ann (Smith) Davis, the former of whom was born in Scott county, Minnesota, the latter being a native of Hendricks county, having been born near Brownsburg. Speer B. Davis was a young physician who came to Hendricks county in 1855 and took up the practice of his profession in Brownsburg and Boone county. At the outbreak of the Civil War he enlisted and for three years served as surgeon on the hospital corps. In 1858 he was united in marriage with Mary Ann Smith, of Boone county, whose death occurred while he was at the front. They had two little sons and one of them also died while the father
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was absent. At the close of the war, Doctor Davis returned to his home in Boone county and took the remaining child, the subject of this sketch, to his former home in Minnesota, there to be cared for by his people. When the subject was seven years of age, he was again thrown on the mercies of the world owing to the complete disappearance of his father, who was not heard from for a great many years. In the meantime, the Smiths, parents of the subject's mother, sent to Minnesota and had the child returned to Boone county and to them, and there he remained until his marriage.
On March 8, 1887, Mr. Davis was united in marriage with Anna Lump- kin, a daughter of George W. and Sarah (Harrison) Lumpkin, born in Boone county, Indiana, on April 30, 1866. George W. Lumpkin was a native of Tennessee, born on December 8, 1825, while Sarah (Harrison) Lumpkin, daughter of Eli and Rachel Harrison, was a Hoosier by birth, born in Kokomo on September 2, 1828. Eli Harrison was first sheriff of Howard county, Indiana. George W. Lumpkin came from a family who had early settled in Tennessee and was a son of Richard and Rebecca Lumpkin, the former of whom was a soldier of the War of 1812. After his marriage, Mr. Davis continued to reside in Boone county on a rented farm for about a year, when he came over into Hendricks county and lived on rented land for four years. At that time he purchased his present farm of thirty-four acres, which was absolutely without improvement and in an almost primeval condi- tion. It cost him thirty dollars per acre and recently he refused an offer of two hundred and twenty-five dollars per acre, preferring to remain on the land he has so finely improved and to enjoy the fruits of his labors. For ten years Mr. Davis did gardening and attended the city market in Indianapo- lis during all that time. His ceaseless effort and untiring energy have won him material success and while winning a competence he ever conducted his business in such manner as to receive the confidence and respect of those who knew him, as well as from his business acquaintances. Mr. and Mrs. Davis have one child, a daughter Emma, who remains at home. She attended Brownsburg high school and early displayed marked musical ability. After the conclusion of her high school work, she took up the study of music in Indianapolis, attending the Metropolitan School of Music for three years, and has made herself an artist of no mean ability. She now teaches instru- mental music in Indianapolis.
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