USA > Indiana > Hendricks County > History of Hendricks County, Indiana, her people, industries and institutions > Part 38
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Mr. Pennington's mother is still living, at the advanced age of ninety- seven years, and has the distinction of being the oldest woman in the county. She is hale and hearty in spite of her years and still retains an excellent memory. For many years she has been a member of the Baptist church. Mrs. William Pennington is a member of the Christian church, to the support of which Mr. Pennington contributes, although not a professor of religion himself. He is considered among the foremost farmers in the county and his farm of one hundred and fifty-five acres shows what up-to-date methods in agriculture can accomplish. Mr. Pennington stands in the fronk rank as a man who honors his calling in the present day and, because of his industry, integrity and genuine worth, he stands high in public estimation. As a citizen he easily ranks with the most influential in his community and is ever looking toward the betterment of those about him. Upright in every relation of life, he is eminently worthy of mention in a biographical work of the scope intended in the present one.
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HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA.
JAMES L. DARNELL.
There could be no more comprehensive history written of a city or county, or even of a state and its people, than that which deals with the life ivork of those who, by their own endeavor and indomitable energy, have placed themselves where they well deserve the title of "progressive," and in this sketch will be found the record of one who has outstripped the less active and less able plodders on the highway of life, one who has not been subdued by the many obstacles and failures that come to every one, but who has made them stepping stones to higher things and at the same time that he was win- ning his way in the material affairs of life gained a reputation for upright- ness and honor.
James L. Darnell, the proprietor of the "Yaller Front," was born in Danville, August 25, 1854. His parents were John F. and Virginia (Dicks) Darnell, his father being a native of Kentucky and his mother of Indiana. John F. Darnell came to Hendricks county when a small boy with his mother and located in Danville. He was a carpenter by trade, but later went into the mercantile business, which he managed until his death, in 1897. His wife died about four years later. Mr. and Mrs. John F. Darnell were the parents of eight children, six of whom are living: Charles S., of Indianapo- lis, Indiana ; Dora, the wife of A. S. Pierce, of Colorado; Kate, the widow of Frank Gladden, of Texas; Rhoda May Howell, of St. Louis, Missouri; Mrs. Jennie Calvert, of Texas, and James L., the immediate subject of this sketch.
James L. Darnell was educated in the public schools of Danville, and at the age of eighteen became a salesman in an Indianapolis clothing store, remaining there for eight years. He then began to indulge his desire for travel and for the next two years was salesman for the Famous Shoe and Clothing Company, of St. Louis. Following this he worked for mercantile establishments in New Orleans, Denver, Springfield, Missouri, and other places in the West, spending a short time working in San Francisco. He then returned to Indianapolis, where he remained for a short time, but the wanderlust seizing him, he went west again and took service with a farmer near Keokuk, Iowa, at fifteen dollars per month. He had the management of twenty to thirty farm hands, and he had the native ability to do his work well. The owner recognized his capacity and increased his salary to forty dollars per month and gave him the entire management of the farm. How- ever, he soon returned to Indiana because of his father's declining health,
JAMES L. DARNELL
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HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA.
and for five years before his father's death he was in his father's store. Upon the death of the latter he continued the grocery business and has been re- markably successful. He is a very popular and prosperous grocer and is one . of the busiest and most enterprising merchants in this part of the state.
Mr. Darnell was first married in 1878 to Nancy Reed, of Danville, and to this marriage there were born three children: Edith, the wife of C. P. Bond, of Boston, Massachusetts; Ralph, deceased, and Bessie, the wife of Rev. George Kline, of Glenwood Springs, Colorado. Mrs. Darnell died in 1891, and in 1895 Mr. Darnell was married to Margaret Cook, the daughter of Silas and Mary Cook, of Danville.
James Darnell is a Democrat in politics, but has never taken an active part in the political game. Faternally, he is a member of the Knights of Pythias and, religiously. is affiliated with the Presbyterian church, having long held the office of deacon in that denomination. Mr. Darnell is one of the most active members of the Danville Commercial Club and is one of the most enthusiastic boosters for a greater Danville. He has given a great deal of thought and energy in organizing the Business Men's Club, of Danville, in order to bring factories and capital to his local town. He is interested himself in the Danville Creamery and Danville Canning Company, being a stockholder in both companies. He is a broad, generous and worthy busi- ness man and citizen. His store, familiarly known as the "Yaller Front," is rapidly becoming a household word in Hendricks county, and by his ac- commodating, genial and business-like way, he has built up a large business.
JOEL B. GARRISON.
Among the men of Hendricks county who have been important factors in the building up of the county is Joel B. Garrison, who, as a farmer and blacksmith, has been a prominent citizen of the community in which he lives for more than a half century. He was born in Putnam county, Indiana, December 6, 1845, the son of Jeremiah and Rebecca (Shaw) Garrison, both natives of New Jersey, who, after their marriage on January 24, 1826, came to Indiana and settled in Hendricks county early in the thirties. They remain- ed in this county only a short time, when they moved to Putnam county, but after a short stay in that county they returned to Hendricks county, where they remained for the rest of their lives. Jeremiah Garrison was a shoe-
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HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA.
maker and followed this trade all his life. He was married three times, and to him and his wife, Phoebe Whit, were born three children, Phoebe, Edward and Jane. His second wife was Ruth Erskine and to this marriage were born three children, Archibald, Mary J. and Sallie. His third marriage was to Rebecca Shaw and to this last marriage nine children were born, Ann, Eleanor, Arminda, Rebecca, Joseph, Charles W., Francis, Eliza and Joel. Ann married Thomas B. Borders; Eleanor died in childhood; Amanda married James Vermillion, and after his death, William Alley; Rebecca, de- ceased; Joseph married Susan Zearing; Charles W. married Jerush Wil- cox; Francis married Josie Laton; Eliza married Jesse Brazer.
Joel B. Garrison attended the common schools, near Stilesville, Indiana, for only a short time. When he was eighteen years of age he enlisted in Company B, Fifty-ninth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and served from February 25, 1864, to July 7, 1865. He then returned to his home and engaged in the blacksmithing trade, which he followed for about thirty-five years. He then purchased a farm and since that time has devoted himself to agricultural pursuits.
Mr. Garrison was married January 19, 1869, to Amanda Bryant, the daughter of Silas and Matilda (McCormack) Bryant, and to this union were born four children: Flora Alice, who married Elmer Fuson, and has two children, Winifred and Wendall; Rossie became the wife of Osro Hadley and has one child, Ethelyn; Don A., who married Bernice Owen and has one child, Helen Lucile; Elsie, who married O. Harper.
Mrs. Garrison's parents had a family of nine children : Lucy, the wife of Martin Sims; John married Ruth Sharp; Amanda, wife of Mr. Garrison; Nancy, wife of Mr. Balldock; Clementine, deceased; William, who married Helen Stingler; Anderson, deceased; Albert, and Woodford, who married Mary Clark. Mrs. Garrison's father had the distinction of being the first white child born in Hendricks county. His death occurred in 1899 and his wife died in 1913.
Joel Garrison, the grandfather of the subject of this sketch, was a soldier in the Revolutionary War. Jeremiah Garrison, the father of Joel B., died June 5, 1857, his wife having died ten years previously, October 15, 1847.
Mr. Garrison has been a life-long member of the Republican party, although he has never had any political office. He is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons and holds his membership in the Baptist church of Stilesville. During his long and busy life in this community he has so con- ducted himself as to win the sincere respect and esteem of all who know him.
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HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA.
R. M. HADLEY.
The two most strongly marked characteristics of both the East and West are combined in the residents of Indiana. The enthusiastic enterprise which overleaps all obstacles and makes possible almost any undertaking in the comparatively new and vigorous Western states is here tempered by the stable and more careful policy that we have borrowed from our Eastern neighbors, and the combination is one of unusual force and power. It has been the means of placing this section of the country on a par with the older East, at the same time producing a reliability and certainty in business affairs which is frequently lacking in the West. This happy combination of characteristics is possessed to a notable degree by the subject of this review, R. M. Hadley, of Plainfield. He is too well known to the readers of this work to need any formal introduction here, for he not only comes of a family whose name is deeply engraved in the financial, commercial, profes- sional and industrial history of this section of the state, but he himself is filling a large place in the public affairs of his community. Recognized as a man of strong and alert mentality, deeply interested in everything pertaining to the welfare of the community along material and civic lines, he is re- garded as one of the progressive and enterprising men of his city and county.
Among the native sons of Hendricks county, Indiana, who have risen to a place of prominence in their community, there is no one who has filled a higher niche in his home town than R. M. Hadley, who was born November 23, 1863, in Washington township, this county. His parents were Hiram and Mary Elizabeth (Martin) Hadley, the father being a native of this county and his mother of Fulton county, this state. His father was a farmer by occupation and after his marriage went to Nebraska, where he lived the remainder of his life. Mr. and Mrs. Hiram Hadley were the parents of seven children: Ollie and Effie, both deceased; R. M., the immediate sub- ject of this sketch; C. L., of Plainfield, Indiana; Lucinda, deceased; James G., of Plainfield, and D. F., of New York.
R. M. Hadley was educated in the district schools of Washington town- ship, this county, and spent his boyhood days when not in school working on the home farm. He accompanied his parents to Nebraska, and upon reach- ing his majority he engaged in the grocery business at Fairmount, Nebraska. and subsequently conducted the same business in Lincoln, that state, for a number of years. Later, for a few years, he traveled out of Lincoln for a wholesale grocery house, afterwards being transferred to Indianapolis, and
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after traveling out of Indianapolis for six years he came to Plainfield in February, 1908, and purchased the dry goods store of A. J. Shaw, which he has conducted since that time. Mr. Hadley carries a large and well-selected stock of dry goods and kindred lines, caters to the trade and by his courtesy and evident desire to please his customers has succeeded in building up a large and lucrative patronage in Plainfield and surrounding country.
Mr. Hadley was married December 31, 1885, to Adah Keith, of Fair- mount, Nebraska, the daughter of Calvin and Abbie Keith, and to this union there have been born two children. Claude, deceased, and Hiram Irvin, twenty-two years of age, who is now in the piano business in Plainfield. Fraternally, Mr. Hadley is a member of the Modern Woodmen of America and, with his wife, is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church of Plain- field and for many years has been one of its trustees. Politically, Mr. Had- ley is a Republican, but has been too busy a man to devote much attention to public affairs, though his party did elect him to the office of town treasurer, in which he rendered valuable service for his fellow citizens. Also he was prevailed upon to accept the office of town clerk and is now filling that posi- tion in a very satisfactory manner. In the civic life of the community Mr. and Mrs. Hadley have been potent factors for the development of the best interests of the people. Mr. Hadley is a man of pleasing address and easily makes friends with all with whom he comes in contact. Because of his upright character and marked ability and pleasing disposition he is num- bered among the most popular residents of Plainfield.
EDWARD F. NASH.
Among the earnest men whose enterprise and depth of character have gained a prominent place in the community and the respect and confidence of his fellow citizens is the honored subject of this sketch. A leading farmer of the township where he resides, and a man of decided views and laudable ambitions, his influence has ever been exerted for the advancement of his . kind, and in the vocation to which his energies are devoted he ranks among the representative agriculturists of the county.
Edward F. Nash, member of a family who for years have been numbered among the good citizens of this county, was born on December 24, 1853, and has the distinction of having lived his entire life within the bounds of Hendricks county, one of the favored regions of the state. He is a son of
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Isaac C. and Celicia (Wilson) Nash, the former being a native of the Buck- eye state, being born in Madison county on March 27, 1817, and when only eight years old he was brought to Indiana by his parents, Thomas and Hannah (Brown) Nash, the family locating about two and one-half miles south of Brownsburg. Isaac remained under the paternal roof until the time of his marriage, attending the early schools of Hendricks county in his boyhood, and later being instructed in the secrets of successful agriculture, under the tuition of his father. He was twice married, his first wife being Celicia Wilson, mother of the immediate subject of this sketch, to whom he was united in marriage on January 28, 1841. Celicia Wilson was a native of Virginia, born on March 1. 1817, the daughter of William J. and Nancy Wilson. They came to Indiana when Celicia was twelve or fifteen years of age, and settled on a farm some four miles south of Brownsburg, where they reared a family of eleven children. Celicia always resided at home until the time of her marriage. Her death occurred on December 13, 1860, and she left a family of nine children, the youngest a babe but three days old. About that time three deaths occurred in the Nash family, coming quite close together. At the time of the marriage of Isaac C. and Celicia Wilson Nash his entire family, including parents, brothers and sisters, moved out west, leaving him the sole representative of the family in Hendricks county. His parents he never saw again, their deaths occurring while they were resi- dents of Missouri.
On April 19, 1864, Isaac Nash was united in marriage with his second wife, Eliza Jane Faucett, daughter of Joseph and Rebecca N. (Hurron) Faucett. This union was without issue. Mrs. Nash's death occurred on July 24, 1909, lacking a short time of attaining her eighty-seventh year. Isaac C. Nash died September 25, 1897. He was regarded as one of the leading men of his community and was one of those unselfish men who did all within his power to advance the moral and material welfare of his friends and neighbors, often neglecting his own work to assist in some- thing partaking of a public nature. He hauled the logs used in the erection of the first business house in Brownsburg, driving a yoke of oxen. In his later life he enjoyed telling of how he would help his neighbors all day, in rolling logs, returning home near nightfall and would work until midnight on his own land endeavoring to get it into proper shape for cultiva- tion. He was a rigid churchman, being a member of the Presbyterian church, and took an active part in futhering the cause of that society.
Edward F. Nash received his early education in the district schools of
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his community, remaining with his father until twenty-six years old, at which time he was united in marriage with Sarah C. Garner, daughter of Harrison B. and Frances (Lowder) Garner. The Garners were originally from Kentucky, the Lowders coming to Indiana from the Carolinas. After marriage Mr. Nash took up his residence on a farm owned by his father and about three-quarters of a mile from the old home place, being some two miles northeast of Brownsburg. There they lived until 1881, when they removed to the present home, about two and one-half miles northwest of Browns- burg. Mrs. Nash died on March 27, 1896, leaving two children: Bertha, wife of Benjamin C. Weddle, son of Simon and Angeline (Bishop) Weddle, of Hendricks county. Bertha has one son, Marion, living and a little son, Paul, died when seven years old. The second child of Mr. Nash is Effie, who be- came the wife of Thomas L. Burns, son of James and Rebecca ( Patterson) Burns, of Hendricks county. Effie is the mother of five sons, Laurel, Louis, Leroy, Norman and Aubrey.
Mr. Nash's religious affiliation is with the Baptist church, the family identifying itself with the workings of same. He is also a member of the Brownsburg Horse Thief Detective Association and does all within his power to further the interests of all in his community. He is a man of sound practical intelligence who is keenly alert to everything relating to his interests and, in fact, with all that concerns the prosperity and advancement of his community. Because of his splendid personal characteristics and his genuine worth, he enjoys the confidence and esteem of all who know him and is eminently entitled to representation in a work of the character of the one at hand.
NATHAN H. KENDALL.
In every district we find a few sturdy families who grow up and de- velop with the country, by their industry and steadfastness adding to the stability of the community as a whole, becoming an integral part of the social and business life of the place, and by their inherent conservatism adding a dignity to those undertakings with which they are associated.
To such a family belongs the subject of this article, Nathan H. Ken- dall. Long a resident of Liberty township, though unassuming and un- aggressive, he has been closely associated with the educational and religious growth of the surrounding country until his name is well known far beyond the confines of his immediate neighborhood. He is the only son of Ahimaac
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and Minerva Kendall and descends from a long line of sturdy, industrious tillers of the soil. Like his ancestors, he has established himself as a sub- stantial member of the commonwealth, well known and highly esteemed.
More than a century ago, before the days of steam and electricity, Mr. Kendall's grandparents, Nathan and Ruth Harvey, left their home in North Carolina, taking the long and perilous journey westward, finally selecting for their abiding place a spot in Parke county, Indiana. To them, in 1832, was born a daughter, Minerva, who grew to maturity and married Ahimaac Kendall, a young farmer. His parents, James and Sally (Bayles) Kendall, were also natives of North Carolina. They, too, braved the terrors of the long, lonely journey westward, obtaining land from the government in Mor- gan county, Indiana, near the present site of Mooresville. Here their son, Ahimaac, was born in 1833. Six years later they moved to Hendricks county and here their son was married to Minerva Harvey. Like their parents, the young people spent their days upon the farm, becoming substantial members of society. To them were born four children, Nathan H., Sallie A. (Robin- son), Mary A. (Stipe), and Lydia E., single and living with her mother.
Though he belonged to no lodges and aspired to no political office, Ahimaac Kendall was esteemed by all who knew him as an intelligent, loyal citizen and an influential member of the Friends church at Mill creek. Death came to Mr. Kendall at the ripe age of seventy-nine years, on November II, 1912, he being at that time near Danville, Hendricks county. His widow now resides with a daughter near New Winchester. Nathan H., his only son, was born November 30, 1856, in Clay township, Hendricks county, Indiana, two miles southeast of Amo. Here Nathan spent his boyhood and received his schooling, and here, in 1877, he was married to Mary E. Smith. At the age of thirty years he came to Liberty township, his present home, where he purchased one hundred sixty acres of good land. This is now a beautiful country home in that most ideal setting, a well cultivated, liberally stocked farm. Surrounding Mr. Kendall are the fruits of his toil, the tangi- ble evidence of a life well spent-surroundings which say to the most casual beholder, "Within abides a man of sterling worth."
That Mr. Kendall has the highest confidence of his fellow men is evi- denced by the fact that he was selected for ten consecutive years as director of the schools of his district, before the present system of graded schools was introduced into the township. For twelve years, also, he has been an elder in the Christian church at Clayton, where Mrs. Kendall is also an influential member In politics. he was known as a Republican until the formation of
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the new Progressive party, in 1912, since which time he has lent his in- fluence to its growth.
Mr. Kendall is the father of five children, Owen, Milber, Marcena, Goldie and Ethel. Owen, the eldest son, married Nellie Ratliff, and resides in Liberty township. He, too, follows the pursuit of agriculture, and has one child. Villa. Milber, the second son, married Effie Woods, and lives on a farm two miles southwest of Pecksburg. He holds a position of responsibil- ity in the First National Bank of Amo. Goldie, the eldest daughter, is the wife of Cecil Martin, a farmer, and lives near her father. She is the mother of one daughter, Audrey. Ethel is in far-away South Dakota, her husband, Earl Given, being instructor in the Indian school at Smithwick. Two chil- dren, Dean and Elenore, have been born to them.
This history would not be complete without further mention of Mr. Kendall's most faithful ally in all his undertakings, his devoted wife, and her family. Mrs. Kendall was the second of nine children born to Asa and Julia (Trullinger) Smith. These were Emma, who married George Beemer, Mary (Mrs. Nathan Kendall), Margaret (Mrs. Hitchens), Frank, Cath- erine (Mrs. Kenneth), Theodore, Edward, Charles and Delia.
Asa Smith, the father, was born in Kentucky, but while yet an infant was brought by his parents to Covington, Fountain county, Indiana. Here they remained until he grew to manhood, moving to Vermillion county and later to Danville, Illinois, when Asa was about twenty-five years of age, their son accompanying them. This was his home until death called him, October 15, 1910. He led the life of a farmer, taking no active part in lodges nor political affairs, giving his energies to his home and family. He and Mrs. Smith were both affiliated with the Missionary Baptist church.
HENRY SIMPSON COX.
Among the citizens of Clay township, Hendricks county, Indiana, who have built up comfortable homes and surrounded themselves with valuable landed estates and personal property, few have attained a higher degree of success than the subject of this sketch. With few opportunities except what his own efforts were capable of mastering and with many discouragements to overcome he has made an exceptional success in life and in his old age has the gratification of knowing that the community in which he resides has been benefited by his presence and his counsel.
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HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA.
Henry Simpson Cox, one of the largest landowners in Clay township. Hendricks county, Indiana, was born in the township where he has lived for the past sixty-six years. He is the son of William and Lucy ( Plasters) Cox. and was born on September 12, 1848. William Cox was a native of Morgan county, and his wife was born in this county. William Cox moved to this county when he was a young lad with his parents and after leaving school he worked on his father's farm until he was twenty years of age. He then married Lucy Plasters, the daughter of William and Polly (Cleveland ) Plasters, and rented land for a few years, after which he purchased a farm in Middle township, where he lived until his death, April 15, 1881, his wife surviving him until 1884. To Mr. and Mrs. William Cox were born six chil- dren : John M., who died in childhood; William D., who died from injuries received from being kicked by a horse; Mary C., the wife of Stephen Morb- ley; James M., who died in infancy ; Charles, who married Fanny Leachman, and Henry Simpson.
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