USA > Indiana > Huntington County > History of Huntington County, Indiana : a narrative account of its historical progress, its people, and its principal interests, Volume I > Part 15
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Sometime in the latter '50s a man named Bolinger erected a steam sawmill at Claysville. It manufactured most of the lumber used for several years in the northern part of the township. After changing owners a few times it was finally removed from the township, leaving that section without a mill of any kind. Cole's steam sawmill was built in the southeastern part a little later. Bradley Howenstine, Reuben Bentz, Mossman & Smith and Mossman & Company all operated saw- mills in the township at some period in its history, while the timber was plentiful.
The schoolhouse erected at Altman's Corners in 1841 was the only schoolhouse in the township for several years. John Funk was the first teacher at this place. He was succeeded by a Mr. Anderson, who taught two winter terms and one summer term. In the winter of 1842-43 this school was attended by nearly fifty pupils, some of whom came a distance of four or five miles from Clear Creek Township and the southern part of Whitley County. The teacher received $13.00 per month for his services. The first schoolhouse erected by the township and paid for from the public funds, stood on Section 13. It was a hewed log struc- ture, somewhat better than the schoolhouses built by the cooperation of the citizens, and marked the beginning of the free school system in Warren. During the school year of 1912-13 ten teachers were employed in the public schools of the township, three of them in the certified high school, and the amount paid in teachers' salaries was $4,259.50. The school property has an estimated value of $13,500, but a new township graded school building at Bippus is in contemplation, which, when built will add materially to the value. Twelve students were graduated in the common school branches at the close of the school year in 1914.
The Huntington & Goshen Road was cut out through the township in 1838 and for a number of years was the only public highway of any consequence. John Funk cleared the logs from a section of this road in 1839. As the natural resources of the country were developed and the
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population increased, new roads were opened and improved, until at the present time Warren has a splendid system of gravel roads, constructed at a cost of nearly $40,000. The amount of gravel road bonds outstand- ing in the spring of 1914 was $28,222.
With the completion of the Chicago & Erie Railroad through the northwestern part of the county in the early '80s, an era of prosperity set in in Warren Township and has continued almost without interrup- tion to the present time. A station was established at Bippus and from this point large shipments of farm products are made every year. Three miles north of Bippus is the little hamlet of Claysville. These are the only two villages in the township. In 1910 the population of Warren Township was even 1,100, an increase of 16 over the census of 1900. The value of taxable property, according to the tax duplicate for 1913, was then $1,117,200, an average of more than $100 for each man, woman and child living in the township.
WAYNE TOWNSHIP
The Township of Wayne is situated in the southwest corner of the county and embraces the eastern two-thirds of Congressional Township 26, Range 8 east. It is four miles wide from east to west and six miles long from north to south, with an area of twenty-four square miles, or 15,360 acres. It is watered by several small streams that flow in a north- erly direction and unite with the Salamonie River in Lancaster and Polk townships. Foremost among these are Richland, Prairie, Logan and Rush creeks, which afford good natural drainage to all parts of the township. Along these streams the surface is undulating, slightly hilly in places, but back from them the country is generally level, with a fertile soil, well adapted to all the crops grown in this latitude.
When the first white men came to this region they found great forests of poplar, oak, ash, elm, hickory, maple and some other varieties of trees, hence the manufacture of lumber by means of the primitive saw- mill, operated by water power, was one of the lucrative industries in early days. Attracted by the valuable timber, the fertile soil and the prospective water power, some of the earliest land entries in the county were made in what is now Wayne Township. During the years 1834-35 land entries were made as follows: Isaac Branson, Moses Kelly and Asher Fisher, in Section 1; Miles Gray and William Richey, Section 2; Samuel Bullock, Smith Grant and Joseph Anthony, Section 3; Moses Herrell, James Starbuck, Jacob Wister and Rinard Rinearson, Section 4; John Scott, Jacob Snyder and Caleb Satterthwaite, Section 9; James Hildreth, Section 10; Thomas Fisher, John Moffatt, John Ruggles and
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one or two others, Section 11; John Buzzard and James Brelsford, Section 12; Thomas G. Runnells, Section 13; William McBride, Section 14; Elias Stowe, Jacob Coon and John D. Lindsey, Section 15; John Reicker, Aggrippa Henderson and Robert A. Robertson, Section 21; Jackson L. Stevens, Ephraim Johnson and Robert McKnight, Section 22; James Campbell, Section 23; Joseph McGarrough and John Black- ledge, Section 24; John Crest and Asbury Steele, Section 25; John V. Deacon and Anderson Meheffy, Section 26; Jefferson Helm, William Read and John Teavis, Section 27; James Dearth, Henry Klum and John Hawkins, Section 28; J. P. Thompson, John Robb and Abraham Hackleman, Section 33; John Thomas, Section 35; Charles Morgan and Charles Ginley, Section 36, and perhaps half a dozen others in different sections.
Had all these persons settled at once upon the lands they entered, Wayne would have been the most densely populated township in the county at the beginning of the year 1836. But a number of them never became residents of the township, having taken the lands purely for speculative purposes.
The first actual settlers were John Buzzard and John Ruggles, who located upon their lands in the spring of 1835. They were both natives of Ohio, brothers-in-law, and afterward became prominently identified with township affairs. Mr. Ruggles was at one time trustee. In the fall of 1835 Anderson Leverton came from Wayne County, Indiana, and entered the northwest quarter of Section 12, adjoining the Buzzard place. Asher Fisher also came from Wayne County about the same time and settled upon the southwest quarter of Section 1, which he had previously entered. His brother Thomas came a little later and located his cabin on Prairie Creek, near the northwest corner of Section 12.
During the years 1836 and 1837 the population was increased by the arrival of Jacob Coon, the Rinearsons, Jacob Snyder, David Clingenpeel, William C. Parker, James Price, Thomas Hollowell, George and Joseph Weaver (father and son), Henry Klum, Joel Chenowith, Thomas and Richard Stevens, and a few others. Following them, during the next two years, came George Klum, Moses Herrell, Ebenezer Thompson, James Ruggles, James Campbell, John Deacon, James Pattison, Benjamin Price, Charles Morgan, J. P. Thompson, John Sparks, Joseph Hall, James and William Bain, Ephraim Johnson, Watson Sparks, and the Cecil, Starbuck, Reicker, McDaniel and Hawkins families, so that by 1840 Wayne began to wear the appearance of a civilized community.
One of these pioneers, James Campbell, was an avowed abolitionist and never hesitated to speak his opinions upon the subject of chattel slavery-a subject upon which he delivered a number of public addresses
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in Huntington and adjoining counties. By his blunt way of expressing his views he incurred the enmity of some of his neighbors, who looked upon slavery as a "divine institution." It was rumored that Mr. Camp- bell was connected with the "underground railroad," which aided fugi- tive slaves to reach Canada, where their masters could not follow, and it is quite probable that more than one negro found a secure hiding place upon his premises until he could be forwarded with safety.
Wayne Township was a part of Salamonie until June, 1844, when the commissioners, in response to a petition signed by a number of people living in the territory, ordered: "That all that part of Sala- monie township being and lying west of the line dividing Ranges 8 and 9, is hereby declared to be a separate and distinct township, to be hereafter known and designated by the name of 'Wayne.' "
Some people believe that the township received its name in honor of Gen. Anthony Wayne, a hero of the Revolution, the builder of the fort from which the City of Fort Wayne derives its name, and the officer who conquered the Indians in the Maumee and upper Wabash valleys in the closing years of the eighteenth century. Indirectly this is true, but the name of "Wayne" was conferred upon the new township at the suggestion of Asher and Thomas Fisher, who had come from Wayne County, Indiana, a few years before the organization of the township.
The first election was held in the fall of 1844 at the house of Joseph Weaver, Henry Kline acting as inspector, but the result of that election cannot be ascertained. Ebenezer Thompson, James Campbell and Asher Fisher constituted one of the early boards of trustees, but it is not definitely known that they were the first to serve in this capacity.
Early Events-The first white child born in Wayne Township was Wesley, son of John and Rachel Buzzard, whose birth occurred on April 15, 1835, about a month after the family settled in the township. The first marriage was that of Oliver W. Sanger and Catherine A. Snyder, in 1837. This marriage was solemnized by one of the associate judges of the county and it was afterward discovered that the associate judges had no authority to perform the marriage ceremony. To remedy the error the union of Mr. and Mrs. Sanger was legalized by a special act of the legislature at the succeeding session. The first death was that of Ary Cecil, April 8, 1839. John Ruggles built the first house and the first log-rolling occurred on his farm. The first frame house was built by John Buzzard, and the first brick house by Jacob Snyder. Thomas Fisher established the first nursery, from which came the trees that were used in setting out a number of the early orchards. The first religious meeting was held at the house of Anderson Leverton in Vol. I-9
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1836, by an itinerant Methodist Episcopal minister, whose name cannot now be learned. The first church building was erected by the Baptists in 1860, on Section 34, near the Grant County line. The first school was taught by Nancy Hildebrand on John Buzzard's place, and the first schoolhouse was built on Anderson Leverton's farm in 1839. Wil- liam C. Parker taught the first school at that place.
The first sawmill was built by John Sparks, near the southwest corner of the township, but the exact date when it was erected is not definitely known. Subsequently several mills were built at various points and for a number of years all did a successful business. As Wayne is without a railroad, agriculture is practically the only occupa- tion of the inhabitants. A few tile mills have been operated from time to time, manufacturing drain tile for local use. Among those who were among the first to engage in this line of business were Riley Stephens, James Campbell and a man named Minnich. During the oil boom a number of producing wells were drilled, but the lack of transportation facilities kept the industry from becoming prosperous. Natural gas was also found in this township and used to some extent for local consumption.
The early schools mentioned above, taught by Nancy Hildebrand and William C. Parker, were subscription schools. In 1851 the free public school system was first introduced in the township. After that date better schoolhouses were built and the schools regularly maintained, though the people often made up by subscription an addition to the public fund, in order to have longer terms of school. In 1914 there were seven districts, with buildings valued at $26,000. This includes the building at Mount Etna, the schools there being under the Wayne Township jurisdiction. Seven teachers were employed in the district schools and two in the commissioned high school at Mount Etna, and the amount paid in salaries to these teachers was $3,726.40. Eleven students were graduated at the close of the school year in 1914.
In 1910 the population of Wayne Township was 955, an increase of 55 over the census of 1900. The value of taxable property in 1913 was $795,920, or about $83 per capita.
CHAPTER VIII
THE CITY OF HUNTINGTON
LOCATION-TRADITIONARY HISTORY-THE HELVEYS-FLINT SPRINGS HOTEL-GENERAL TIPTON-EARLY TRADERS AND PIONEERS-MARKETS AND PRICES IN EARLY TIMES-INCORPORATED AS A TOWN-BECOMES A CITY IN 1873-LIST OF MAYORS AND OTHER CITY OFFICIALS-FIRE DEPARTMENT -- WATERWORKS-STREETS AND SEWERS-BOARD OF TRADE -COMMERCIAL ASSOCIATION - THE POSTOFFICE - MISCELLANEOUS FACTS-MUNICIPAL FINANCES-GENERAL CONDITIONS.
Huntington, the county seat and only incorporated city in the County of Huntington, is situated on the Little River, near the center of Hunt- ington Township, and a little northwest of the geographical center of the county. Long before the first white men came to the county, the site of the city was known to the Indians as We-pe-che-an-gan-ge, which means "Flint Place," or "place of the flints." Here the natives were wont to assemble and drink of the pure water that flowed from the fine springs, which the early Indian traders named "Flint Springs," and to the little tributary that entered the river near this place they gave the name of Flint Creek.
There is a tradition that General Harrison's army, while on the march from Fort Recovery, Ohio, to the Tippecanoe River in 1811, camped upon the ridge where the city now stands. It is certain that the army passed through the county on that occasion, but it is not certain that a camp was made near the mouth of Flint Creek.
The civilized history of the city begins with the settlement of two brothers, Champion and Joel Helvey, in 1831, when they selected a tract of land in what is now the northeast quarter of Section 15, Township 28, Range 8 east, and built a large double log house, two stories in height, with additions of one story, which extended the length of the building to nearly 100 feet. This rambling structure afterward became known as the "Flint Springs Hotel," one of the first houses of entertainment between Fort Wayne and Logansport. Champion Helvey had come to the Wabash Valley some years before locating on the site of Huntington. In the report of the surveyors for the Wabash & Erie Canal, in 1826, the statement is made that between Fort Wayne and the mouth of the
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Tippecanoe River they found but six white settlers, "one of whom is Champion Helvey, whose cabin is situated near the mouth of the Sala- mnonie river."
The land upon which the city stands is a part of the grant made by Congress to the State of Indiana by the Act of March 2, 1827, to aid in the construction of the canal, and the knowledge that the canal was to pass near this point may have had some influence upon the Helvey brothers in locating their establishment in 1830. At that time the official surveys had not been completed through this part of the Indian session of 1826, and about two years later Gen. John Tipton obtained a patent for the land from the state. The records do not show how General Tipton acquired the interest of the Helveys, but it was evidently in a manner satisfactory to all parties concerned, as the two brothers went a short distance east and selected another tract, which is now within the city limits.
Shortly after the passage of the Act of February 2, 1832, which fixed the boundaries of Huntington County as they are at present, General Tipton conceived the idea of laying out a town, with a view to having it declared the seat of justice of the new county. Accordingly, in 1833, Elias Murray, acting as the agent for General Tipton, laid out the Town of Huntington. The statement has been made that Captain Murray gave the town the name of Huntington, "in honor of Samuel Huntington, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, and Captain Murray's uncle." But the Act of the Legislature above referred to, which was passed more than a year before the town was platted, expressly provides that the county should be called Huntington, in honor of Samuel Hunt- ington, who was a member of the Continental Congress from Connecticut at the time the Declaration was adopted. Hence, the state had already recognized this distinguished patriot, and it is quite probable that the name of the county was adopted for the future city, without especial regard for Captain Murray's uncle.
Among the trading firms in early days was that of William G. and George W. Ewing, whose headquarters were at Fort Wayne. As early as 1829 they established a trading house at Logansport, and about 1831 or 1832 they founded the first mercantile establishment in Huntington, under the firm name of Edsall, Ewing & Company, with William Edsall as the resident partner. Mr. Edsall soon became a prominent figure in local affairs. When the postoffice was established in 1832 he was ap- pointed the first postmaster, and when the county was organized in 1834 he became the first clerk of the Circuit Court. Col. George W. Ewing, of this firm was the man who discovered in 1835 that Frances Slocum was a white woman-a discovery that led to her identity by her relatives in
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Pennsylvania after she had spent more than half a century among the Indians and had become the wife of a Miami chief.
The second mercantile house in Huntington was founded in 1833 by Dr. George A. Fate, who came from Dayton, Ohio, as the representative of and manager for S. T. Harker. He put in a larger stock of goods than that carried by Edsall, Ewing & Company and soon built up a thriving trade. Dr. Fate was a public spirited citizen and at his own expense brought a cannon from Dayton to fire a salute to the first canal boat that ever arrived at Huntington. In 1842 he was elected county treasurer, which office, as well as that of postmaster, he held at the time of his death in 1843.
The patronage of these early merchants came principally from the Indians, who were numerous in the locality, and from the contractors and laborers upon the Wabash & Erie Canal. Much of the goods they sold were paid for with coon skins, deer skins, etc. In May, 1834, one of these firms shipped 1,452 deer skins, 3,140 coon skins, 135 muskrat skins, 28 bear skins and about 100 skins of other animals. In this year 1914, of the twentieth century of the Christian era, much is said and written of the high cost of living. A comparison of prices now with those of early days shows the pioneer of Huntington did not enjoy very great advantages in this respect over the inhabitants of the present gen- eration. From an old account book of one of the early trading establish- ments it is learned that the early settlers were paying much higher prices for staple articles than are paid now. The merchants of that period handled mainly the necessaries of life, and before the completion of the canal these had to be hauled long distances by wagon before they could be placed on the shelves and offered for sale. One of the old account books shows that in 1837 brown sugar sold for 20 cents per pound; loaf sugar, 25 cents to 30 cents ; candles, 25 cents ; nails, 10 cents to 15 cents, according to size; tea, $1.00 to $1.25; coffee, 20 cents to 30 cents; calico, 20 cents to 50 cents per yard ; unbleached muslin, 16 cents to 25 cents ; bleached muslin, 20 cents to 30 cents; flour, $11.00 to $12.50 per barrel. Men's boots (few men wore shoes in those days), from $3.00 to $5.00 per pair, and women's shoes from $1.00 to $2.50 per pair. Most of the boots and shoes were made by local shoemakers from leather tanned in the country tanyards. They were built for rough usage, rather than appear- ance, and would hardly pass muster at an evening reception or social function in Huntington society at the present time.
On the other hand, the things the farmer had to sell, because of the restricted market, commanded low prices. Owing to the great scarcity of currency, the merchants gave long credits and accepted in payment only such produce as they could haul away and exchange for goods. Beef sold
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at from 5 cents to 7 cents per pound ; pork, 6 cents to 8 cents; butter, 18 cents to 25 cents ; eggs 10 cents to 121/2 cents per dozen, and chickens from 15 cents to 183/4 cents each. The workingman fared equally as badly as the farmer. Laborers received from 50 cents to 75 cents per day, and mechanics, such as carpenters and stonemasons, from $1.00 to $1.25.
During the fall and winter seasons the pioneer added to his income by trapping fur-bearing animals, frequently selling as much as one hun- dred dollars worth of furs in a season. Hunting, which is now a pas- time, was then an occupation for a number of the population, and it was more rare to see one of these men without his rifle than with it. Game was abundant and they undertook to supply the town with meat. The first meat market was started by a man named Durand (or Denand), but
A PIONEER RESIDENCE OF HUNTINGTON, BUILT BY JAMES BRATTON IN 1852 the great packing companies, railroads and refrigerator cars were not then in existence, so he supplied his customers with venison, pork, from wild hogs of the razor-back variety, and an occasional roast of bear meat.
While the Wabash & Erie Canal was under construction, many of the pioneers found employment for themselves and their teams, thus earning a little "ready money," most of which was applied to the purchase of land. After the canal was opened for traffic the market was widened, the prices of store goods increased somewhat and the prices of farm products correspondingly increased, bringing better times to the inhabitants of the county and the merchants of Huntington.
Among the early settlers in the town were Elias Murray, who was the first county treasurer, William and James Delvin, Dennis O'Brien, Oba-
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diah Brown, Jonathan Keller, who built the second hotel, David and Patrick Johnson, Martin Roche, whose two sons, John and Thomas, after- ward became conspicuous in business and political affairs, Townsend G. Bobo, Henry Brown, who was sheriff of the county some years later, and Samuel Moore.
On February 16, 1848, Governor James Whitcomb approved an act to incorporate the Town of Huntington. If any records of the town prior to that time were kept, they cannot be found. At the first town election, which was held shortly after the passage of the act of incorporation, Dr. Abel M. Lewis was elected mayor; O. F. Stewart, recorder; John Roche, F. W. Sawyer, Alfred A. Hubbell and D. L. Myers, trustees. The first meeting of the board of trustees was held on Saturday evening, April 22, 1848; and it is said that almost the entire population turned out to hear Dr. Lewis deliver his "inaugural address" as the first mayor of Huntington. The doctor was an orator of more than ordinary ability and on this occasion he "did himself proud." He congratulated the people of the town upon the fact that they had given the privilege of conducting their municipal affairs as their judgment might dictate ; advised them to take steps for the improvement of the streets, and pre- dicted that, if the powers granted to the people by the Legislature were judiciously used Huntington would in time become one of the really great cities of the Wabash Valley.
After Doctor Lewis, the mayors of Huntington under the town govern- ment were as follows : W. C. Smith, elected in 1851; Warren Hecox, 1852 ; Abel M. Lewis, 1855; William C. Kocher, 1856; Henry Drover, 1857; L. C. Pomeroy, 1858; F. Kopp, 1860; J. Z. Scott, 1861; William F. Kocher, 1862; Samuel F. Day, 1865; William C. Kocher, 1866; Sam- uel F. Day, 1867 ; B. F. Hendrix, 1868; Peter L. Paullus, 1869; William Brown, 1870; Porter Ayres, 1871; William Thomas, 1872; George W. Stults, 1873.
During the existence of the town government the officers were elected annually in March. Where more than one year is credited to any of the mayors in the above list it shows that he was re-elected, as in the case of Doctor Lewis, who served as the chief executive until the election of Mr. Smith in March, 1851.
On September 17, 1873, Huntington was incorporated as a city. The first election of city officers occurred on November 3, 1873, when George W. Stults was chosen mayor; John Skiles, clerk; Joachim Fernandez, treasurer, and A. Shaffer, marshal. Mr. Stults had been elected mayor in March, 1873, under the old regime, and served at the head of the town government until the city was incorporated, when he became a candidate for mayor and was elected. When the city government was established
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