USA > Indiana > Howard County > History of Howard County, Indiana, Vol II > Part 10
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In 1888 he was united in marriage with Etta East, who was born in Iowa, but came to Kokomo with her parents when she was a child and has been a continuous resident here since. To this marriage two very estimable daughters have been born. Fae and Ruth.
Fraternally Mr. Cochran is a member of the Knights of Pyth- ias. Red Men and Ben-Hur lodges. Although he is deeply inter-
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ested in lodge work he has never passed the chairs in these orders on account of his numerous business engagements.
Mr. and Mrs. Cochran are members of the Methodist Episcopal church in which they take an active interest, he being one of the stewards and a liberal supporter of the same.
Our subject was elected a member of the city council of Ko- komo from the third ward and is at present ( 1908) regarded as one of the most influential members of this body, having been from the first an ardent worker for temperance and was the instigator in putting many of the suburban saloons out of business in this city, believing that in this way the saloons would be in the business dis- tricts of the city directly under the police charge, where they could be properly looked after, and in many other ways he has been of great service to the city, all of which is much appreciated by the residents.
Mr. Cochran has been successful in a financial way. Coming to Kokomo with comparatively nothing, he now owns a beautiful and commodious residence at 1009 West Taylor street, where he has resided for some time. Besides he has a well established credit with the men with whom he deals. Mr. and Mrs. Cochran are widely known for their honesty and uprightness and are highly re- spected citizens of Kokomo.
JOHN NEARY.
Among the progressive men of Kokomo identified with impor- tant industrial enterprises whose technical training and executive ability have enabled them to achieve noteworthy success as the prac- tical head of one of the city's largest manufacturing establishments
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is John Neary, the efficient superintendent of the Kokomo Rubber Works. A man of intelligent ideas and wide experience, his inter- ests have become so interwoven with the plant with which he is identified as to make the history of one practically the history of both. The development of the rubber industry in the West is the result of many years of study and scientific research, and so differ- ent from all other lines of enterprise as to require the clear brain and sound judgment, technical skill and practical experience of the trained specialist. That Mr. Neary stands at the head of this im- portant branch of manufacture in the city of Kokomo is without question, and as an expert in the line of endeavor to which his en- ergies and talents have been devoted he has an honorable and much more than local reputation.
Mr. Neary is a native of New York City, New York, where his birth occurred on the 27th day of May. 1865. When a mere lad he became interested in the rubber industry, and as soon as old enough entered an establishment where it was manufactured and in clue time acquired a practical knowledge of the business in its every detail. To become an expert he devoted ten consecutive years to close and painstaking scientific study and at the expiration of that time became foreman of one of the departments of the establishment. Later he served in the same capacity with different firms in various cities and then came to Indiana to take charge of the plant at Jones- boro in which D. C. Spraker was a stockholder, remaining at this place until the business was established in Kokemo a few years later.
The industry in the latter city grew up and developed under the direct management of Mr. Neary, whose wide knowledge and technical skill made the enterprise a pronounced success from the beginning. As superintendent he has devoted his energies untir- ingly to the building up of a large and profitable business, gradually enlarging the capacity of the plant and adding to the lines of mann-
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facture until now nearly every article and device made of rubber is included among the output of the plant, the goods bearing the firm's trademark being noted for their excellence and commanding the highest prices in markets of United States and Canada, to say noth- ing of frequent shipments to other countries. The demand for these goods has been so great and insistent as to render imperative addi- tional enlargements of the plant from time to time, with a corre- spending increase in the working force, the number of men employed averaging one hundred and seventy-five, all under the immediate management and direction of the efficient superintendent and rely- ing upon him for any necessary instruction in their various depart- ments of labor.
At the beginning of his career Mr. Neary determined to so master his trade as to make his services of value, and that he has succeeded in this laudable ambition is abundantly indicated by his wide reputation as a skilled specialist and the large and important enterprise in Kokomo which stands an enduring monument to his wisely directed energy and ability.
In addition to his official connection with the company he owns a large share of stock in the enterprise, the advance in which within the last few years making him and others equally interested com- paratively wealthy men, there being but few industries that pay such liberal dividends as that of the manufacture of rubber.
Since becoming a resident of Kokomo Mr. Neary has mani- fested an abiding interest in the city's welfare and as a public-spirited citizens co-operates with others in carrying forward enterprises for the advancement of the community along all laudable lines. A Dem- ocrat in politics, well informed on the questions of the day and deeply interested in the success of his party, he is by no means a partisan : neither has he ever aspired to leadership nor sought public office at the hands of his fellow citizens. Personally he has always
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been popular, especially with his workmen, between whom and him self feelings of mutual respect and trust have ever obtained. Such is the hold he has on their esteem and regard that but few have given up their positions to find employment elsewhere, a number having been identified with the plant in Kokomo ever since the busi- ness was inaugurated.
Mr. Neary is a married man and the father of an interesting family of five children, whose names are as follows : William, John, Kate, Ed and Ralph. The maiden name of Mrs. Neary was Kate McDonald, and the ceremony by which it was changed to the one she now so worthily bears occurred in the city of Chicago, where she formerly resided. Our subject and wife were reared in the Catholic faith and have always remained loyal to the Holy Mother church, belonging at this time to the congregation worshiping in Kokomo.
JAMES H. COY.
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 work of those who, by their own endeavor and in- domitable 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 winning his way in the industrial affairs of life gained a reputa- tion for uprightness and honor.
James H. Coy, although not long a resident of the city of Ko-
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komo, has stamped his individuality upon those with whom he has come in contact and has gained a solid footing in the business life of this city. He was born in Center township, Howard county, Sep- tember 19, 1853. the son of Alexander and Mary ( Smith) Coy, who were old settlers in Howard county, having been among the hardy pioneers of the early forties, and played their part in the affairs of those days. They came here from Decatur county, this state. The father was among the state's patriotic citizens who offered his ser- vices in defense of his country during the Civil war, having served about a year in the One Hundred and Forty-seventh Indiana Volun- teer Infantry.
James H. Coy, our subject, was reared in the country, having received a good education in the common schools, from which he graduated. He also attended school in Iowa. a Quaker seminary for two years, and he has since supplemented the excellent text-book training he received by close observation and systematic home read- ing. After completing his education he returned to Howard county and worked on his father's farm.
Our subject was united in marriage May 23. 1874. to Mary J. Mason, who was born and reared in Ervin township. Her family has long been well known and influential in that section of the coun- ty. The subject owns land in Clay township, three miles north- west on the Harlin pike. He rented a farm for several years and made a success of agricultural pursuits. He came to Kokomo in 1907 and purchased the feed barn on the corner of Wall and Jack- son streets, where he does an extensive business, having built up a large patronage by his courteous treatment of all customers and his honest business methods. He has leased the extensive feed yard adjoining his barn.
Mr. and Mrs. Coy are the parents of six children. two of the daughters being married. Their names follow: Oscar. Eva, Anna, Emma, Hazel and John.
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Fraternally the subject is a member of the Pathfinders' lodge, in which he carries insurance. He is a Republican in politics, but has never taken an active part in the affairs of his party.
Mr. Coy is a man who would win his way in any locality where fate might place him, for he has sound judgment, coupled with great energy and business tact, together with upright principles, all of which make for success wherever and whenever they are rightly and persistently applied. He is fast winning a host of friends in Kokomo and vicinity by reason of these principles.
CAPTAIN DANIEL SHAFER.
This representative and honored citizen of Howard county has been distinctively the architect of his own fortunes, has been true and loyal in all the relations of life and stands as a type of that sterling manhood which ever commands respect and honor. Captain Daniel S. Shafer was born in Franklin county, Indiana, November 28, 1838, and grew to manhood on the farm in that county. His parents were John and Mary Shafer, the former a native of Butler county, Ohio, of Pennsylvania ancestry of German descent. Many Shafers still live in Franklin county, both families having been pio- neers of Indiana. The subject's parents spent the major part of their lives in that county, where they died. The subject remained at home, working with his father on the farm and attending the com- mon schools and the seminary at Scipio, leaving that institution to defend his country's flag, believing that it was his duty to sever home ties and leave his lessons unlearned to fight in defense of his native land. Consequently he enlisted in Company B. Twentieth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, at Oxford, when the company was organized
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mainly from that city, April 18, 1861. The company went over the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad to West Virginia, having stopped at Grafton and Piedmont. After his first term of enlistment ended he helped raise Company G for the Thirty-seventh Indiana Regiment at Mount Carmel and was made second lieutenant in September, 1861. They were in camp at Lawrenceburg, this state, until they were sent into Kentucky, visiting Elizabeth, Bowling Green and Nashville, Tennessee, spending the winter at Bacon Creek. Later General Mitchell took the company to Huntsville, Alabama, where they guarded a trestle work. While here the subject was captured while on duty, being run down by a handcar loaded with Confeder- ate troops. He was taken to Tuscumbia, later to Montgomery, and then to Camp Oglethorpe, Georgia : later to Columbus, Georgia, where he was cast into prison full of officers and Tennessee political prisoners. He was kept there four or five months and was finally sent to Libby Prison. He was soon afterward paroled and given his freedom. After having been a prisoner for seven months he re- joined his company at Nashville and was soon sent on the Murfrees- boro campaign, having been promoted to first lieutenant, and as such fought at the battle of Murfreesboro, having commanded the com- pany there, the captain being wounded. His company was in the front rank of the regiment and in the hardest part of the fighting, the company losing about one-third of its men in killed and wounded. The subject took part in the battles of Chickamauga and Lookout Mountain, having charge of the company most of this time. The captain resigned in the spring of 1864, when Lieutenant Shafer was promoted to the position of captain of his company. During the At- lanta campaign the subject was wounded in the battle near Dallas, Georgia, while leading his company in a gallant charge, having been shot through the right thigh by a musket ball. He was sent back to the hospital at Nashville, but in a few weeks he was able to re-
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join his company and was with it at the storming of Atlanta. Ilis term of enlistment expired in October. 1864. He returned to In- diana and was mustered out at Indianapolis after rendering his coun- try inestimable service and showing his loyalty to the Stars and Stripes in a manner that brought praise from his comrades.
After returning from his career in the army Mr. Shafer bought a farm in Franklin county, which he successfully managed. He was married in September, 1865. to Kate Lovett, of near Mount Carmel. Indiana. He remained on the same farm, making it equal in pro- ductiveness and general improvements to any in the county until 1883. when he moved to Howard county. Selling his former place he bought a new farm in the last named county at about thirty-five dollars per acre. It included a half section of improved land in Clay township. He still owns this three hundred and twenty-acre tract. which has been improved under his able management until it is in splendid condition, being well tilled. No better farm can be found in Clay township. He managed this farm for six years, giving it his personal attention exclusively. Although he moved to Kokomo some time ago he has always looked after his farm.
In 1892 the subject was elected county assessor, serving one term of four years in a most satisfactory manner. He spent three years in Greencastle for the purpose of educating his sons, but he has since made his home in Kokomo, having a commodious and comfortable residence on East Sycamore street. He has been very successful in his enterprises owing to good management.
The subject has always been a loyal Republican, and has often been a delegate to the various conventions, where his influence is always felt for the good of the party. He is a member of the Thomas J. Harrison Post. No. 30. Grand Army of the Republic, at Kokomo. He has attended two national encampments and always meets with his old regiment.
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The subject has the following children: William H., living under the parental roof : J. C. is at Seattle, Washington ; D. C. died March 4. 1908, at the age of twenty-five years ; Omar L. is a stenog- rapher in Chicago: Cora A., who lives at home, is a graduate of the Kokomo high school.
The Shafer family subscribes to the Methodist Episcopal church, and it is safe to say that no family in Howard county is regarded with any higher respect and admiration for their well or- dered lives.
S. ROSCOE CHANCELLOR, M. D.
There is no class to whom greater gratitude is due from the world at large than the self-sacrificing. sympathetic, noble-minded men whose life work is the alleviation of suffering and the minis- tering of comfort to the afflicted, to the end that the span of human existence may be lengthened and a great degree of satisfaction en- joyed during the remainder of their earthly sojourn. There is no standard by which their beneficent influence can be measured : their helpfulness is being limited only by the extent of their knowledge and skill. while their power goes hand in hand with the wonderful laws of nature that spring from the very source of life itself. Some one has aptly said, "He serves God best who serves humanity most." Among the physicians and surgeons of Howard county who have lisen to eminence in their chosen field of endeavor is the subject of this review, whose career has been that of a broad-minded, consci- entious worker in the sphere to which his life and energies have been devoted and whose profound knowledge of his profession has won for him a leading place among the most distinguished medical men of his day and generation in the city of his residence.
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OF HOWARD COUNTY.
Dr. S. Roscoe Chancellor, son of John C. and Elizabeth ( Jus- tus) Chancellor, was born in the year 1868 in Benton county, In- diana, in which part of the state his parents were early settlers. Sub- sequently they removed to Daviess county, thence to Vincennes, and still later migrated to the state of Arkansas, where they still reside. Dr. Chancellor was three years old when the family moved to the county of Daviess, and at the age of six years was taken by his par- ents to Vincennes, where he enjoyed his first educational advantages. centering his studies in the schools of that city until completing the high school course in 1886. At quite an early age he evinced a fond- ness for the medical profession and decided to make it his life work. Accordingly, after finishing his literary training and a preliminary course of reading under the direction of a competent preceptor, he entered Rush Medical College, Chicago, in which noted institution he prosecuted his studies until 1889, when he was graduated with the degree of Doctor of Medicine. Following the completion of his course he devoted the ensuing ten years to practice in that city, the early part of that period being spent in the various hospitals, where he added continuously to his professional knowledge and became quite expert in applying the same to the treatment of patients under his charge. In 1808 he closed out his business in that city and came to Kokomo, Indiana, where he soon built up a lucrative practice. which, without any interruption, has steadily increased until he now holds distinctive prestige among the leading physicians and surgeons of the place, his business proving as satisfactory financially as pro- fessionally and giving him high standing among the people.
Dr. Chancellor is an enthusiast in his chosen calling, a close student, an original thinker and untiring investigator. He avails himself of every legitimate means to keep in touch with the trend of modern medical thought and is familiar with the leading authorities. having a fine library, in which he spends much of the time when not
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responding to the calls of his numerous patients. In him are com- bined two facts which have been the main contributing elements of his success-thorough preparation and a deep interest in the profes- sion-qualities which are absolutely essential to advancement in a calling requiring such proficiency and skill as the healing art. His knowledge of the kindred science of medicine and surgery is broad and comprehensive, and in his professional labors he has shown him- self amply qualified to cope with the intricate problems that contin- ually confront the practitioner in his efforts to prolong life and re- store health.
Dr. Chancellor's domestic experience dates from 1892, on April 20th of which year he was united in the bonds of wedlock with Min- nie R. Chancellor, of Knox county, Indiana, the union being blessed with three children-a son by the name of Emmett, who was born March 11. 1892, and two daughters, Virginia L. and Elizabeth Jo- sephine, the former born November 16. 1895. the latter November 19th of the year 1906.
A Republican in politics and manifesting a lively interest in the questions of the times, the doctor is not a politician, nor has he ever stood for office or public position of any kind. He is a believer in revealed religion, but subscribes to no man-made creed or state- ments of doctrine, taking the Scriptures alone as his rule of faith and practice and shaping his life according to the precepts enumer- ated nearly two thousand years ago by the Gallilean carpenter. With his wife he belongs to the Main Street Christian church of Kokomo. and in the quiet, unobtrusive way so becoming to the religious life. uses his influence and lends his assistance to further the cause of the Gospel at home and in lands beyond the seas. In his fraternal rela- tions he is a Mason of high standing. belonging to Lodge No. 93. in addition to which he is also identified with several other secret benevolent organizations, notably the Red Men, the Royal Neigh-
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bors and the Modern Woodmen of America. in which he holds the position of assistant chief surgeon with the rank of major.
Dr. Chancellor is a most genial and companionable gentle- man and has a host of warm and admiring friends among the resi- dents of his adopted city. All who come within the range of his in- fluence are profuse in their praise of his admirable qualities and the high regard in which he is held, not only professionally but so- cially, indicates the possession of attributes and characteristics that fully entitle him to the respect and consideration of his fellow men.
PROFESSOR D. P. BARNGROVER.
The men most influential in promoting the advancement of so- ciety and in giving character to the times in which they live are two classes, to-wit, the men of study and the men of action. Whether we are more indebted for the improvement of the age to the one class or the other is a question of honest difference in opinion ; neither class can be spared and both should be encouraged to occupy their several spheres of labor and influence, zealously and without mutual distrust. In the following paragraphs are briefly outlined the lead- ing facts and characteristics in the career of a gentleman who com- bines in his makeup the elements of the scholar and the energy of the public-spirited man of affairs. Devoted to the noble and hu- mane work of teaching, he has made his influence felt in the school life of the city of Kokomo and is not unknown to the wider educa- tional circles of the state, occupying as he does a prominent place in his profession and standing high in the esteem of educators in other than his own particular field of endeavor.
Professor D. P. Barngrover, principal of the fifth ward school
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in the city of Kokomo, is a native of Grant county, Indiana, and dates his birth from the year 1870, being the son of E. E. and Eliza- beth Barngrover, the father born in Ohio, the mother in Indiana. Professor Barngrover's family were among the early pioneers of Grant county, settling in Sims township, where the country was cov- ered with dense forests, and entering land near the present site of Swayzee. His grandfather, who purchased the land from the gov- ernment, cleared and in due time developed a fine farm, the original cabin on which is still standing as a memento of times and condi- tions forever past. E. E. Barngrover was quite a young boy when his parents moved to this new home in the wilderness of Grant county, and like the majority of lads of that period he grew up fa- miliar with the scenes of pioneer life and in close touch with the rugged duties and usages of a farm on which the labor was stren- uous and continuous and the discipline of which had much to do in moulding his character and shaping his subsequent course of con- duct. When a young man he married Elizabeth Long. of Grant county, after which he engaged in the pursuit of agriculture and fol- lowed the same with success and financial profit until accumulating a competency of sufficient magnitude to enable him to turn his farm over to other hands and move to Swayzee, where he is now living in honorable retirement, filling at the present time the office of justice of the peace in that municipality. Seven children were born to E. E. and Elizabeth Barngrover.
From his childhood Professor Barngrover manifested a stu- dious disposition and fondness for books, consequently his progress in the schools which he first attended was rapid and altogether sat- isfactory. By diligent and persevering application he completed the common school course, in which he was graduated in the year 1890, and then he became a student of the Marion Normal College, where he prosecuted his studies until sufficiently advanced to pass the re-
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OF HOWARD COUNTY.
quired examination and secure a license, after which he taught one term of school in his native county. Actuated by a laudable desire to add to his scholastic knowledge, he subsequently ( 1891) entered the Northern Indiana Normal University at Valparaiso, which he attended until completing the commercial and teachers' courses, dur- ing which period he also made substantial progress in the scientific department and earned an honorable record as a diligent, critical and exemplary student. After being graduated from the above institu- tion he was elected principal of the public schools of Swayzee, which position he held with credit to himself and to the satisfaction of pu- pils, patrons and officials for a period of two years, when he resigned to accept a higher and more responsible principalship in the city of Kokomo, where during the two years ensuing he had charge of the third ward school, in which his professional success soon brought him to the favorable notice of those in authority and put him in line of promotion. At the expiration of the time indicated he was trans- ferred to the larger and more important fifth ward building, of which he has since been principal, having at this time thirteen assist- ants and so discharging his duties as to win the highest encomiums of the superintendent and board, to say nothing of his great popu- larity with the pupils and teachers under his charge and of the gen- eral public.
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