USA > Indiana > Hendricks County > History of Hendricks County, Indiana, her people, industries and institutions > Part 65
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On January 4, 1860, Mr. Hession was united in marriage with Mary Hagon, who was born in September, 1840, in county Galway, Ireland. Her parents died in the old country when she was young and when but fourteen years of age she journeyed to the United States alone, landing at New Orleans and coming directly to Marion county, this state, where three of her brothers and one sister were already settled. These were John, Michael, Martin and Kate. After arriving at the home of her brothers she went out as a domestic to service on various farms in Marion county and in this way made her own way until the time of her marriage. Her parents were James and Bridget Reddington. To the union of Martin and Mary (Hagon) Hes- sion have been born nine children, two of which have passed away. The others are: James, who married Belle Sharkey and resides on a farm about one mile north of the subject; Sarah is the wife of Martin Hession and lives on a farm in Middle township, this county; Delia married Darby Mulrine and lives in Indianapolis. Her husband is employed by Kingan & Company, Limited. They have two children, Nora and Martin. Martin F. married Nellie King, of Indianapolis, and they reside just east of the sub- ject's home; Daniel, John and Mary remain at home; they are the parents of three children, namely: Elizabeth, Mary and Martha. Charles died
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when thirty-three years and six months of age and a little daughter, Julia, died in infancy. The family is considered one of the very best in the com- munity and has a host of friends. The atmosphere of the home is thor- oughly hospitable and both friends and strangers find appropriate welcome there. Mr. Hession, after a strenuous career, has practically retired from active duties and is enjoying the fruits of many years of unceasing labor. There is much that is commendable in his life's record, much that might well be an inspiration to young men with life before them and without in- fluential friends to come to their aid. By his own effort and right princi- ples of living he has not only won for himself an enviable competency for his declining years, but has so conducted his affairs with his fellow men as to win for himself the reputation of one absolutely trustworthy and honorable in his business dealings, and worthy in every respect of the warm- est personal friendship. The entire family are communicants of the Roman Catholic church and give liberally of their substance to its support.
WILLIAM S. DICKERSON.
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 and stock raiser of the township in which 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 men of the country.
William S. Dickerson, the son of Ennis and Anna (Ross) Dickerson, was born February 24, 1865, in Marion township, Hendricks county, In- diana. His father was a native of Virginia, and came to this state with his parents, Andrew R. and Mahila (Dodd) Dickerson, when but a small boy. They settled in Marion township about three and one-half miles north of New Winchester. Here Andrew R. Dickerson bought a forty- acre farm which had been entered by Paul Faught, and is known as the old Dickerson homestead. Ennis Dickerson was a member of the Friends church and a farmer in this county until his death, in 1899. He was an invalid most of his life, but in spite of this affliction he was a hard worker and successful in life. His wife, Anna Ross, was a native of Kentucky and came to this county with her parents when she was a small child. She
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is now seventy-four years of age and is living in Indianapolis. Mr. and Mrs. Ennis Dickerson were the parents of six children: John Calvin, de- ceased; William S., whose history is herein set forth; Mrs. Eva E. Hadley; James Ora; Frank O. and Ella, who died at the age of eight.
William S. Dickerson spent his boyhood days on the farm, and lived with his parents until he was twelve years of age in Marion township. 'T'hey then removed to Center township, near Mill Creek, where he remained until he was nineteen years of age, returning to care for his grandmother, with whom he lived until his marriage. He moved on his present farm of fifty- three acres in 1905, and has improved his farm until it presents a very at- tractive appearance in every way, built fences, put up buildings and a neat country home.
Mr. Dickerson was married January 30, 1887, to Lizzie Faught, the daughter of Henry H. and Martha J. (Armstrong) Faught. Henry H. Faught was born August 23, 1841, in this county, the son of George Washington and Annie Jane (Hayes) Faught. George Faught was reared in this township, being born in 1818, the son of Paul and Elizabeth (Liszt) Faught. Paul Faught was one of the first settlers to enter land in this county. His wife, Elizabeth, died April 26, 1860, and he died one month later, May 26, 1860. Their son, George W., lived and died in the same locality and was a farmer all of his life, dying June 26, 1880. His wife, Annie Jane, died September 4, 1874. Henry H., the son of Mrs. Faught, was married August 27, 1863. to Martha J. Armstrong, the daughter of William and Mary Ann (Ross) Armstrong. William Armstrong was born in 1818 in Shelby county, Kentucky, the son of Levi and Susan (Johnson) Armstrong. Levi was born February 27, 1791, and his wife in 1793. Levi was a son of George, born in 1763, and Sarah Armstrong, born in 1766. The Armstrong family has traced their ancestry back to a much earlier date in the state of New York. They came to Kentucky in wagons and have lived in that state for several generations. William Armstrong grew up in Kentucky and in 1837 married Mary Ann Ross, a native of Kentucky. Soon after marriage they came to Indiana and settled near New Winches- ter, where they lived and died. His first wife, the mother of Mrs. Faught, died in 1875. In 1876 he married Amanda Harris, and died July 15, 1899, at the age of eighty-one, having spent a very busy and useful life. After Henry H. Faught was married he moved to Edgar county, Illinois, where he remained for five years. He then came back to Marion town- ship, Hendricks county, and located two miles north of New Winchester
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on a farm, which belonged to his father. After his father's death, Mr. Faught bought his brother's interest in the farm, thus becoming the owner of one hundred and twenty acres. He lived here the rest of his life, farm- ing and trading in live stock. He was a Mason and both he and his wife were members of the Christian church, although at the time of their mar- riage she was a member of the Baptist church. He died March 30, 1911, after nearly half a century of married life. He was an earnest believer in the faith of the Gospel and his life was one devoted to making friends and keeping them. Three children were born to Mr. and Mrs. H. H. Faught: George W., a clothing merchant of Indianapolis, who married Mrs. Cather- ine (Morris) Adams; they have one child, Cecil. Dora May, the deceased wife of John C. Himes of Ladoga. She left one son, Fred C., who was only nine months old at the time of his mother's death. He was reared by Mr. and Mrs. Faught and has been a member of the home ever since. Lizzie Etta is the wife of W. S. Dickerson and has two children, Harry B., born February 8, 1890, and Lester F., born January 26, 1895.
Harry B., the oldest son of Mr. and Mrs. Dickerson, married Kate Christie July 2, 1911, and is a farmer in Putnam county. Lester is still at home with his parents. Mr. Dickerson is a Democrat, but is not active in politics. His wife is a member of the Christian church at New Winchester, Indiana. Mr. Dickerson is liberal in his views and charitable to the faults of his neighbors. He has advanced ideas on farming and does not hestitate to put them into operation, with the result that he is rightly regarded as one of the representative farmers of this county.
FRED ALBERT HAYS.
The subject of this review as one of the most enterprising of our younger generation of farmers in Hendricks county, who has believed from the outset of his career that the "wisdom of yesterday is the folly of today," and that while the methods of our grandfathers in tilling the soil were all right in their day, yet in the twentieth century we are compelled to adopt new methods and farm along different lines, in view of the fact that condi- tions of climate, soil, grains, etc., have changed since the days of the pio- neers. He has been a close observer of modern methods and is a student at all times of whatever pertains to his chosen life work, and he has there- fore met with encouraging success all along the line, and, judging from
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his past record, he will undoubtedly achieve much in the future years and take his place among the leading agriculturists of a community noted for its fine farms and adroit husbandmen.
Fred Albert Hays, the son of James and Mary (Kelley) Hays, was born in Marion township, Hendricks county, Indiana, June 3, 1876. His father was born in this township March 10, 1836, the son of John and Catherine (Munday) Hays. John Hays was a native of Virginia and was a son of William and Mary Hays. When John was about eight years of age his parents moved to Mercer county, Kentucky, and there he grew up and married Catherine Munday, who was a native of Mercer county, the daughter of Woodson and Nancy Munday. In 1829 John Hays and his wife came to Hendricks county, Indiana, and entered land not far from New Winchester, where they lived, reared their family and there they both died. John Hays was a life-long farmer and owned between three and four hundred acres of land at the time of his death. James Hays, the father of Fred Albert, is one of nine children, only two others being alive at the present time, Harvey Hays, of New Winchester, and John Thomas Hays, who lives two miles southwest of Danville, in Center township.
James Hays was married twice, his first wife being Mary Kelley, a native of this county and the sister of his second wife. After his marriage on March 24, 1857, he began farming on the place where he is still living. At that time the land was heavily timbered and he had to clear off a plot of ground large enough to build his cabin, a task of no small magnitude in those days. On this farm he has built three houses, his first two having been destroyed by fire. To his first marriage there were born four chil- dren : Annie Belle, the wife of James Clark, of Danville, died in 1898, leaving three children, Mabel, Rennice and Carlos; Hattie lives south of New Winchester, where she owns a farm; Frank, who married Ida Myrtle Sears, the daughter of Jeptha and Emily (Hamrick) Sears, lives on a farm adjoining his father's place on the east. He has a farm of one hundred and twenty-seven acres; the youngest child of this first marriage is Fred Albert, whose history is herewith outlined. After the death of his first wife, in 1882, James Hays married Mrs. Margaret (Kelley) Rose in 1889, who was a sister of the first Mrs. James Hays. She is the mother of William M. Rose, of Eel River township, this county, whose history will be found else- where in this volume.
Fred Albert Hays spent his early days on his father's farm, and has been a tiller of the soil all his life. He moved to his present farm in March,
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1902, and now has one hundred and twenty acres of land which he operates in an up-to-date manner. In addition to his general farming he makes a specialty of buying, feeding and selling cattle.
Mr. Hays was married June 2, 1901, to Emma L. Hardwick, the daughter of Warren and Nancy (Graham) Hardwick. Warren Hardwick was born September 25, 1839, in Marion township, this county. He was the son of Silas and Rhoda (Cook) Hardwick. Silas Hardwick was born about 1809, in Montgomery county, Kentucky, and moved to Shelby county, in the same state, when a child, where he remained until 1830. In 1832 he came to Hendricks county, Indiana, with his parents, Charles and Eliza- beth Hardwick. Charles Hardwick entered one hundred and sixty acres of government land in Center township, Hendricks county, and one hundred and sixty acres in Marion township. Both Charles and his son, Silas, were blacksmiths and started the first shop in Danville. Silas Hardwick was an all-around mechanic, a good carpenter and an excellent cabinet-maker and in addition was a farmer of more than ordinary ability. Warren Hardwick grew up on the home farm and received his education in the old academy at Danville. He taught school for several terms in Indiana, Illinois and Iowa, and was married March 16, 1871, to Nancy G. Graham, the daugh- ter of Young W. and Emily (Harris) Graham. Mr. Graham came from Mercer county, Kentucky, in November, 1840, and bought two hundred acres of school land in section 16, of Marion township, this county, and here his death occurred on April 22, 1846, at the age of thirty-five years, his wife surviving him for forty years, her death occurring on April 14, 1886. Warren Hardwick spent the rest of his life in Marion township, where he followed the occupation of a farmer and stock raiser. He be- came the owner of several fine farms and owned nine hundred acres in Marion township. Mr. and Mrs. Hardwick reared a large family of eight children, one of whom died in infancy; the other seven are still living and are as follows: Glenn; Silas; Emily L., the wife of Mr. Hays; Everett W .; Harry J .; Florence R., the wife of Fred Creech, and Bessie E. In the fall of 1907 Mr. Hardwick bought a fine residence on the Danville and North Salem road, where he lived until his death, which occurred May 6, 1909. Mrs. Hardwick and all her children except the two married daugh- ters still reside at this home. Mr. and Mrs. Fred Hays have a daughter. Irene, born May 8; 1902.
Mr. Hays is a Democrat in politics, but has never been active in the affairs of his party. He is interested in all public enterprises and takes a
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kindly interest in the welfare of his fellow citizens. His wife is a member of the Missionary Baptist church at New Winchester and is a woman of refinement and culture who adds grace and charm to the home. Mr. Hays is a congenial man and one who is well liked by every one. He and his wife are prominent in the best social circles of their community and still have many years of usefulness before them.
WARREN HARDWICK.
The Hardwick family have been in Hendricks county since 1832 and from the day that the first representative of the family arrived in the county until the present time they have played an important part in its history. They belong to that early group of pioneers who paved the way for the present civilization of the county and in all of these years they have always taken a leading part in promoting public enterprises which affected the weal of their community.
The Hardwicks. trace their ancestry back to the latter part of the eighteenth century, the first of the family to come into this county being Charles Hardwick, who was born during the Revolutionary War. Silas, the son of Charles and Elizabeth (Crook) Harwick, was born in 1809 in Montgomery county, Kentucky, and came with his parents to this county in 1832. Charles entered one hundred and sixty acres in Center township and he and his son Silas at once opened the first blacksmith shop in the little village of Danville, Silas being an excellent mechanic, carpenter and cabinet- maker.
Silas Hardwick married Rhoda Cook and they were the parents of Warren, whose interesting career is briefly set forth here. Warren Hard- wick was born September 25, 1839, on the New Maysville road in the northeastern part of Marion township. He grew to manhood on the home farm and after completing the course in the common schools of the neigh- borhood, he attended the old Methodist Academy in Danville. He then taught school for several years in Indiana, Illinois and Iowa, and made an enviable record as a teacher.
Mr. Hardwick was married March 16, 1871, to Nancy E. Graham, the daughter of Young W. and Emily (Harris) Graham. His wife was born in Marion township, her parents having come from Kentucky in the fall of 1840. Mr. Graham entered two hundred acres of school land in
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section 16 in Marion township and died on this farm on April 22, 1846, his wife surviving him until April 14, 1886. Mr. and Mrs. Hardwick have reared a family of eight children, seven of whom are still living: Glenn; Emily L., wife of Fred A. Hays, whose history is given elsewhere in this volume; Everett W .; Harry J .; Florence R., the wife of Fred Creech, whose career is presented in another part of this volume, and Bessie.
After his marriage, Mr. Hardwick retired from teaching and devoted the remainder of his life to farming and stock raising. He was very suc- cessful and at the time of his death owned several fine farms, aggregating more than nine hundred acres. In the fall of 1907 he purchased a fine residence on the Danville and North Salem pike and there his widow and all the children except the two married daughters are now living. Mr. Hardwick enjoyed his new home only two years, passing away on May 6, 1909.
Mr. Hardwick was a man of unusual power and concentration and achieved success because he was a skillful manager and a keen observer of men and conditions. His career was such that his honesty and integrity were never questioned and the result was that he was highly esteemed by a large circle of friends and acquaintances in the county.
GEORGE MONTGOMERY.
In the year that the United States opened up its second war for inde- pendence there was born in the state of North Carolina a lad whom destiny was to make one of the pioneers of Hendricks county as well as one of its wealthiest men. North Carolina has sent its thousands into Indiana, but no one of its early emigrants made a more pronounced success in the Hoosier state than did the youngest. who uttered his first cry on July 22. 1812. On this date there was born in the old state of North Carolina George Mont- gomery. His father was Samuel Montgomery and he came from sturdy old colonial stock, that could handle the musket and hoe with equal facility.
The first pictures of young George were filled with the terrible struggle which was then being waged between the United States and England, and those were stirring events which were happening just one hundred years ago. The girl whom he was to marry was born in the same year that Gen- eral Jackson won his famous victory at New Orleans, and when Nancy Sturman, who was his future wife, was born, on February 27, 1815, the
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territory of Indiana was just getting ready to apply to Congress for state- hood.
When George Montgomery and Nancy Montgomery were married they at once, if not before, began to plan to go West. It must have taken brave hearts to face a trip in those days to the plains of the Mississippi, but our grandfathers and grandmothers were never daunted by any fears. So George and Nancy talked it over with his people and her father and mother with the result that in the spring they decided to cast their fortunes in the rising state of Indiana. They induced the Sturmans to accompany them and the little party made their overland journey in the spring of 1837, arriving in Hendricks county, Indiana, when nature was at her loveliest. George and his young bride settled at Plainfield and the Sturmans located in Marion township. For seven years George worked as a farm hand for Jonathan Hadley, at the end of which time he felt able to purchase a forty-acre farm in Marion township. When they first located at Plainfield they occupied a rude log cabin with a dirt floor and a bed which was built into the wall. In this cabin their first three children were born and here was where they planned how they could buy the little farm. When they moved to the farm they put all of their possessions on a small sled and to the casual onlooker it would hardly have seemed possible that in a few years this little family would be one of the wealthiest in the whole county. But George Mont- gomery was a man who knew how to work and, what is more important, how to save his money. The result was that in the course of a few years he owned seven hundred and forty-five acres of land and was considered one of the wealthiest and best known men in the county. It is not every man who can start out in life with a wife, thirty-seven cents in cash and a roan horse, as did Mr. Montgomery, and accumulate over seven hundred acres of land, but that it has been and can be done is strikingly shown in his case. He and his good wife also reared a family of eight children: Julia, who died September 16, 1907, at the age of seventy-two; Jonathan, who was born October 11, 1836, and died June 6, 1851; Hannah, who was born December 31, 1839, and married Taylor Mills; James, who was born December 14. 1841, and whose life history is set forth in this volume; Har- lan, who was born July 6, 1843, and is now living at Bedford, Iowa; Sam- uel Thomas, who was born February 12, 1846, and died June 28, 1869; Mary Jane, who was born September 17, 1848, and died August 3, 1851; and Tyra, who was born December 9, 1852, and whose history is presented elsewhere in this volume.
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The mother of these children died April 8, 1881, at the age of sixty- six, and the father lived to the ripe old age of ninety-one, not passing away until October 26, 1903. They were truly good people and were a blessing to the community in which they lived so many years. The day of the log cabin is gone, the dirt floor is passed away forever, but the memory of such people as these will never die. They fought the good fight and the victory is theirs and their children and grandchildren shall always have cause to cherish their memory with filial reverence.
TYRA MONTGOMERY.
Descended from an illustrious family, one of the earliest pioneers of Hendricks county, Tyra Montgomery is an excellent type of the sturdy sons who have placed this county in the foremost ranks among the agricul- tural counties of the state. He has been one of the factors in the material development of his particular locality and has always been foremost in lend- ing his encouragement to worthy causes of every kind.
Tyra Montgomery, the son of George and Nancy (Sturman) Mont- gomery, was born in Marion township, Hendricks county, in 1852. Inas- much as a history of George Montgomery is presented elsewhere in this volume, it is not necessary to go into detail concerning his interesting career at this place. Suffice it to say that he was one of the best known of the early pioneers of the county and a man who left a deep impress upon the county.
Tyra Montgomery received an excellent common school education and continued to reside under the parental roof until after his marriage. As a boy he was ambitious and worked his own way through the graded schools at Amo by working out and fattening hogs of his own, thus early showing a dependence upon his own efforts. At the age of twenty-three he was married to Amanda Wilson, the daughter of Peter and Delilah Wilson, and to this union there were born two children, Alice and Grace Ann.
Mr. Montgomery continued to farm until 1891, when he decided to quit farming and go on the road for the Huber Threshing Machine Com- pany. He was in the employ of this company for the next seven years, part of the time being on the road and part of the time in their offices doing clerical work of various kinds. He is an expert penman and accountant and made a valuable man in the office for that reason. In 1898 he returned
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to Marion township and married Mrs. Mary Riley, the widow of William Riley, she being a native of Orange county, Indiana. She is the daughter of Mahlon and Charity (Morris) Leonard, and has one daughter by her first marriage, Nora, who has been adopted by her stepfather.
Mr. Montgomery is a stanch Democrat, but does not take an active part in the political game, preferring to devote his time and energies to his agricultural interests. He has two highly productive farms. One consists of eighty acres near the northwest part of Danville, where he has just built a modern home in a beautiful location commanding a very broad view of the country. His other farm is one of eighty acres in the northeast part of Marion township. The family are very fond of music and have several musical instruments in the house, the daughter being an accomplished musi- cian. Mr .. Montgomery is a very genial man who easily makes the stranger feel at home and is known throughout the neighborhood as a man who is charitable to the faults of others and who tries to help all those who are in distress in any way. He has a big, whole-souled heart, which makes him friends everywhere he goes.
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