USA > Indiana > Marshall County > History of Indiana : containing a history of Indiana and biographical sketches of governors and other leading men. Also a statement of the growth and prosperity of Marshall County, together with a personal and family histry of many of its citizens, Vol. I > Part 27
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29
ALBERT G. PORTER .- Among the self-made men of Indiana, none stand higher or have a more noteworthy career than the distinguished gentleman whose name heads this sketch. Albert G. Porter was born in Lawrenceburg, Ind., April 20, 1824. He was graduated at Asbury university in 1843, studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1845, and began to practice in Indianapolis, where he was councilman and cor- poration attorney. In 1853 he was appointed reporter of the supreme court of Indiana, and was subsequently elected to the same position by a very large majority of the voters of the state. He was elected to congress from the Indianapolis dstrict in 1858, on the republican ticket, overcoming an adverse democratic majority of 800, which he converted into a majority for himself of 1,000. Two years subse- quently, he was re-elected by a smaller majority. On March 5, 1878, he was appointed first comptroller of the United States treasury, which position he filled with distinguished ability until called there- from to become a candidate for governor of Indiana on the republi- can ticket. He resigned, and entered into the campaign of 1880, which will ever be memorable in the history of the state. After a canvass of remarkable bitterness and excitement, in which every inch of ground was stubbornly contested, Mr. Porter was elected governor by a handsome majority. He held the office from 1881 to 1884, his administration being regarded by friend and foe, alike, as one of the
302
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
ablest in the history of the state. Mr. Porter has for many years ranked as one of the ablest and most successful lawyers in Indiana, and his "Decisions of the Supreme Court of Indiana " (5 vols., 1853-6), are regarded as among the best of their kind in the state. Besides his talent in politics and law, Mr. Porter enjoys a literary reputation of no mean rank, attained chiefly from his law writings and lectures. He is especially good authority on all matters relating to pioneer his- tory in the west, and has in preparation a history of Indiana, which will undoubtedly rank as a classic in that line of literature. At this writing (September, 1890), Mr. Porter occupies the position of United States minister to Rome, which high honor was conferred upon him by his friend, President Harrison.
ALVIN P. HOVEY .- This gentleman, who was elected governor of In- diana in 1888, has had a notable career, both civil and military. He was born in 1821, in Posey county, Ind., where he has spent his whole life. After a common school education, he studied law and was admitted to the Mt. Vernon bar in 1843, where he has practiced with suc- cess. The civil positions he held previous to the war were those of dele- gate to the constitutional convention of 1850; judge of the third judicial circuit of Indiana from 1851 to 1854, and judge of the supreme court of Indiana. From 1856 to 1858 he served as United States district attorney for the state. During the civil war he entered the national service as colonel of the Twenty-fourth Indiana volunteers, in July, 1861. He was promoted brigadier-general of volunteers on April 28, 1862, and breveted major-general for meritorious and distinguished services in July, 1864. He was in command of the eastern district of Arkansas in 1863, and of the district of Indiana in 1864-1865. Gen. Grant, in his official reports, awards to Gen. Hovey the honor of the key battle of the Vicksburg campaign, that of Champion's Hill. This is no small praise; also, it is remembered that military critics, in view of the vast consequences that flowed therefrom, have ranked Champion's Hill as one of the five decisive battles of the civil war, and second in importance to Gettysburg alone. Gen. Hovey resigned his commission on October 18, 1865, and was appointed minister to Peru, which office he held until 1870. In 1886 he was nominated for congress by the republicans in the Evansville district, which thereto- fore had steadily given a large democratic majority. Gen. Hovey's personal popularity and military prestige overcame this, and he was elected by a small majority. In congress, he attracted attention by
303
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
his earnestness in advocating more liberal pension laws, and every measure for the benefit of the ex-Union soldiers. Largely to this fact was due his nomination for the governorship of Indiana, by the re- publican party in 1888, the soldier element of the state being a very important factor in securing his nomination, and his subsequent election. In his social relations, Gov. Hovey has always been very popular, and his family circle is one of the happiest in the state. Though a strong partisan, he is never abusive or vindictive, and at every trial of strength at the polls, he has received strong support from many personal friends in the ranks of the opposite party.
JAMES NOBLE was the son of Thomas T. Noble, who moved from Virginia to Kentucky, near the close of the eighteenth century. James Noble grew to manhood in Kentucky, and after his marriage, which was consummated before he had attained his majority, began the study of law in the office of Mr. Southgate, of Covington. After finishing his legal studies and being admitted to the bar, he removed to Brookville, Ind., and commenced the practice of his pro- fession, and soon became known as one of the most successful lawyers and most eloquent advocates of the Whitewater country. When In - diana became a state Mr. Noble represented Franklin county in the constitutional convention, in which he was chairman of the legisla- tive and judiciary committees. In August, 1810, he was elected a mem- ber of the first legislature under the state government, which met at Corydon, November, 1816, and adjourned January, 1817. November 8, 1816, the general assembly, by a joint vote, elected James Noble and Waller Taylor to represent Indiana in the senate of the United States. "In the senate Gen. Noble had for associates the ablest men the country has yet produced. He was not dwarfed by their stature, but maintained a respectable standing among them." He remained in the senate until his death, which occurred February 26, 1831. Mr. Noble was a large, well proportioned man of fine address and bearing. He was a good lawyer and as a speaker was very effective before a jury or promiscuous assembly. Personally he was quite popular and his warm heart and generous nature made him the idol of the people of his section of the state.
WALLER TAYLOR, one of the first senators from Indiana, after her admission as a state, was born in Lunenburg county, Va., before 1786, and died there before 1826. He received a common school edu- cation, studied law, served one or two terms in the Virginia legisla-
304
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
ture as a representative from Lunenburg county. In 1805 he settled in Vincennes, Ind., having been appointed a territorial judge. He served as aid-de-camp to Gen. William H. Harrison, at the battle of Tippecanoe, and in the war of 1812-15. On the admission of In- diana as a state he was elected United States senator, and at the close of his term was re-elected, serving from December 12, 1816, until March 3, 1825. He was a man of fine literary attainments, and a prominent political leader of his day.
ROBERT HANNA was born in Laurens district, S. C., April 6, 1786, and removed with his parents to Indiana in an early day, settling in Brookville as long ago as 1802. He was elected sheriff of the eastern district of Indiana in 1809, and held the position until the organiza- tion of the state government. He was afterward appointed register of the land office, and removed to Indianapolis in 1825. In 1831 he was appointed United States senator, to fill the unexpired term caused by the death of James Noble, and served with credit in that capacity from December, of the above year, until January 3, 1832, when his successor took his seat. He was afterward elected a member of the state senate, but suffered a defeat, when making the race for a re- election. He was accidentally killed by a railroad train while walk- ing on the track at Indianapolis, November 19, 1859.
GEN. JOHN TIPTON was born in Sevier county, Tenn., August 14, 1786, and was a son of Joshua Tipton, a native of Maryland, a man who possessed great positiveness of character, with keen percep- tions and uncommon executive ability. These peculiarities induced him to remove from his native state and settle in a home further west, where he afterward became a leader in the defense of the fron- tier against the hostile Indians. He was murdered by the savages on the 18th of April, 1793. Left thus early in life in the midst of a frontier settlement, surrounded by the perils incident thereto, the son inheriting the sagacity and self-reliance of his father, soon be- gan to develop that positive energy of character which distinguished his after life. In the fall of 1807, with his mother and two sisters and a half-brother, he removed to Indiana territory and settled near Bringley's Ferry, on the Ohio river, where he purchased a homestead of fifty acres, which he paid for out of his scanty earnings, making rails at fifty cents a hundred. These carly experiences laid the foun- dation of his future success in life. June, 1809, he enlisted in a com- pany recruited in his neighborhood, which was soon afterward
305
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
ordered to the frontier for the protection of the settlements. Sep- tember, 1811, the company entered the campaign which terminated in the battle of Tippecanoe. Early in that memorable engagement all his superior officers were killed, and he was promoted to the captaincy, when the conflict was at its height. Subsequently he rose by regu- lar gradation, to the rank of brigadier general. At the first election under the state constitution, he was chosen sheriff of Harrison county, which position he filled two terms, and in 1819 was elected to represent this county in the state legislature. While a member of that body he served on the committee to select the site for the loca- tion of the state capitol, which selection was made in June, 1820, and approved January, 1821. He was re-elected in 1821, and at the fol- lowing session was chosen one of the commissioners to locate the boundary line between the states of Indiana and Illinois. In March, 1823, he was appointed by President Monroe, general agent for the Pottawatamie and Miami Indians on the upper Wabash and Tippe- canoe rivers, and immediately thereafter moved to Ft. Wayne, the seat of the agency. At his instance the agency was removed from Ft. Wayne to Logansport, in the spring of 1828, where he continued to discharge the functions of his trust with fidelity and success. At the session of the legislature, December, 1831, he was elected United States senator from Indiana, to fill the vacancy occasioned by the death of Hon. James Noble, and was re-elected at the session of 1832-33, for a full term of six years. While a member of that dis- tinguished body, he was noted for the soundness of his judgment and the independence of his actions on all questions involving the inter- ests of the state or general government. He opposed the views of President Jackson in reference to the re-charter of the United States bank, and recognized no party in determining the line of duty, al- ways acting from motives of public right. As a civilian and citizen, he was alike successful in directing and executing to the extent of his power, whatever purpose his conscience approved or his judgment dictated. After locating in Logansport he directed his energies to- ward the development of the natural resources of that town and sur- rounding country, and to him more than to any other man is due the credit of supplying the settlements with grist and saw-mills and other improvements, and for taking the initial step which led to the organi- zation of the Eel river seminary, at that time one of the best known educational institutions of northern Indiana. He was also proprie-
306
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
tor of four additions to the town of Logansport, and was interested with Mr. Carter in the plan and location of the original plat thereof. Mr. Tipton was twice married, the first time to a Miss Shields, who died within two years after their marriage. The second time was in April, 1825, to Matilda, daughter of Captain Spier Spencer, who was killed at the battle of Tippecanoe. The second Mrs. Tipton died in the spring of 1839, about the close of her husband's senatorial career. Gen. Tipton closed an honorable life on the morning of April 5, 1839, in the full meridian of his usefulness, and received the last sad honors of his Masonic brethren on Sunday, April 7, 1839.
OLIVER HAMPTON SMITH, congressman and senator, was born on Smith's island, near Trenton, N. J., October 23, 1794. He attended school near his home at intervals, until 1813, at which time, owing to the death of his father, he was thrown upon his own resources. He afterward found employment in a woolen mill in Pennsylvania, and on attaining his majority, received $1,500 from his father's estate, which he soon lost in an unfortunate business investment. Mr. Smith came to Indiana in 1817, and settled at Rising Sun, Ohio county, but in a short time, moved to Lawrenceburg, and began the study of law. In March, 1820, he was licensed to practice, and soon afterward removed to Versailles, Ripley county, where he opened an office, but becoming dissatisfied with the location, in a few months he located at Connersville, thence in 1839, moved to the state capital. In August, 1822, he was elected to the legislature from Fayette county, and while a member of that body, served as chairman of the judiciary committee, an important position, and one usually given to the ablest lawyer of the body. In 1824 he was appointed prosecutor of the third judicial district, and in 1826, became a candidate for con- gress against Hon. John Test, who had represented the district for three full terms. He made a vigorous canvass, and defeated his popu- lar competitor by 1,500 majority. Mr. Smith served with distinction in congress, and was ever attentive and industrious in his public du- ties. In December, 1836, he was a candidate for United States sena- tor, his competitors being Noah Noble, William Hendricks and Ratliff Boon. He was elected on the ninth ballot. In the senate, Mr. Smith was chairman of the committee on public lands, and took great pride in the place, which he filled with distinguished ability. In 1842 he was a candidate for re-election, but was defeated by Ed- ward A. Hannegan, and in March, 1843, his senatorial services ter-
307
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
minated. Soon after his return home, his attention was directed to railroads, and Indianapolis is mainly indebted to him for the building of the Indianapolis & Bellfonte road, now known as the " Bee Line." In 1857 he commenced writing a series of sketches for the Indian- apolis Journal, on early times in Indiana, which attracted much at- tention, and which were afterward brought out in book form. This volume is valuable as a record of early Indiana times, and contains much information not otherwise noted. Mr. Smith died March 19, 1859. As a political speaker, he exhibited much the same qualitie and powers of mastery that he did as a forensic speaker, but he was less successful on the stump, because argument and close reasoning, which were his mode of dealing with political questions, were not as popular as anecdotal and declamatory style. "As a lawyer, Mr. Smith was ever true to the interest of his client, and in the prosecu- tion of his cases in court, he displayed much zeal and earnestness. He was an honest opponent, and very liberal in his practice, and yet very capable, and sometimes ready to seize upon the weakness or over- sight of an adversary. His career at the bar was a successful one, and he well merited the high tribute paid to his memory at the time of his death." "In person, Mr. Smith was five feet ten inches in height and weighed about 180 pounds. He was broad chested, and large from the waist up. The lower part of the body was correspond- ingly smaller, and when he was subjected to great physical fatigue, it was too weak to bear him up. His eyes were dark, his hair was black and stood up upon his head. He had large shaggy eyebrows and the general contour of his features denoted energy, pluck and endur- ance. His place is in the front rank of the great men of Indiana."
ALBERT S. WHITE, one of the most scholarly of Indiana's distin- guished men, was born in Blooming Grove, N. Y., October 24, 1803. He graduated from Union college, that state, in 1823, in the same class with Hon. William H. Seward, and after studying law for some time at Newburg, was licensed to practice his profession in 1825. Soon after this, he came to Indiana and located at Rushville, thence one year later, moved to Paoli and subsequently took up his perma- nent abode in Lafayette. In 1830 and 1831 he was assistant clerk of the Indiana house of representatives, and served as clerk of the same from 1832 to 1835. In 1833 he was a candidate for congress against Edward A Hannegan, by whom he was defeated. "He had neither the brilliancy nor the eloquence of Mr. Hannegan, but was the superior
308
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
of that erratic man in education, culture and in most of the qualities which go to make up the successful man." In 1837 he was more suc- cessful, having been elected to congress by an overwhelming majority over Nathan Jackson. The year previous, he was on the whig elec- toral ticket, and in the electoral college, cast his vote for William Henry Harrison. In 1839 he was elected to succeed Gen. John Tip- ton, in the United States senate, the struggle having been an ani- mated one, requiring thirty-six ballots divided among Mr. White, Noah Noble and Col. Thomas H. Blake. He entered the senate a young man, but his training eminently fitted him for the duties of that distinguished body, in the deliberations of which he bore an ac- tive part. He strenuously opposed the annexation of Texas, as he did every measure which was calculated to extend the area of slavery. " He was of a conservative temperament, and usually voted with the moderate men of his party, but he was conscientiously an anti-slavery man and always acted with those who strove to confine slavery to the territory it then polluted." He was active in securing grants of land, to aid in the extension of the Wabash and Erie canal, and took a prominent part in shaping legislation, to promote other important internal improvements. On the expiration of his term, Mr. White resumed the practice of law, but soon abandoned the profession and entered actively into the business of railroad building. He was presi- dent of the Indianapolis & Lafayette railroad, from its organization until 1856, and during a part of that time, was at the head of the Wabash & Western railway. In 1860 he was again called into pub- lic life, as a member of congress, where his thorough knowledge of political and state affairs soon enabled him to take high rank. He was made chairman of a select committee, raised to consider the ques- tion of compensated emancipation, and also reported a bill appro- priating $180,000,000 to pay loyal men for their slaves, and $20,000,000 to aid in the colonization of freedmen. His congressional career was eminently honorable, but he failed of a renomination, mainly on account of his action in regard to the emancipation ques- tion. In January, 1864, he was appointed by President Lincoln, United States judge for the district of Indiana, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Hon. Caleb B. Smith. He soon adapted him- self to his new position, and had he lived, would have proven a wor- thy successor of his eminent predecessor. His term was cut short by his death, which occurred on the 4th day of September, 1864. " Mr.
309
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
White had but little in common with the typical western pioneer, and it is therefore somewhat strange that he should have reached the eminence he did. He never sunk his manhood nor lowered his self- respect, by trying to get down to the level of every man who ap- proached him. He was in no sense a demagogue, and never sought to curry favor by pretending to be what he was not. He was always dignified and always a gentleman." In personal appearance, Mr. White was below the medium height, quite spare and had a narrow visage with a prominent Roman nose. Physically he was weak, but intellectually ranked with the strong men of the state and nation. " He was one of the first men of the Wabash country, and of the state, and his name will not be forgotten while learning and scholar- ship are cherished and honor and patriotism revered."
EDWARD A. HANNEGAN was a native of Ohio, but in early life moved to Kentucky, and settled at Lexington, where he grew to man- hood. He received a liberal education, and after several years spent in the study of law, was admitted to practice at the Lexington bar at the early age of twenty-three. Not long after this he settled at Covington, Ind., where he opened an office and practiced his pro- fession with flattering success for a number of years. He soon en- tered the political arena and ere long was honored by an election to the state legislature, in the deliberations of which he soon took an active and brilliant part. His career in the legislature brought him into prominent notice, and in January, 1833, he was elected to the congress of the United States, defeating Albert S. White, afterward his colleague in the senate. In 1840 he was again a candidate for congress, but after a very exciting contest was defeated by Hon. Henry S. Lane, afterward governor and United States senator. In 1842, much to the surprise of every one, Mr. Hannegan was elected United States senator, defeating Oliver H. Smith and Tilghman A. Howard on the sixth ballot. He took his seat in the senate on the 4th of December, 1843, and served until March 4, 1849, during which time he made several speeches which attracted the attention of the country. While a member of that body his votes were always in ac- cord with his party. In March, 1849, President Polk nominated him for minister to Prussia, but being unfit for diplomacy by nature and habit it is no wonder that his career at Berlin added nothing to the character of the government he represented. He was recalled the next January, and with that recall the public life of the bril-
310
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
liant but erratic statesman ended. He returned to his home at Covington, and the next year was defeated in a race for the leg- islature, which he took much to heart and which served to drive him further into the convivial habits which ultimately proved his ruin. The habit of drink continued to grow upon him until in a fit of drunken frenzy he took the life of one whom he dearly loved - his brother-in-law, Capt. Duncan. The two had been drinking deeply, and angry words passed between them. Mr. Han- negan finally went into a separate apartment, but was followed by Capt. Duncan, who applied some bitter epithets to him and slapped him in the face. Upon this Mr. Hannegan siezed a dagger and buried it to the hilt in Duncan's body, the effect of which was death the following day. He was not indicted and tried for this killing, the universal sentiment of the people being in his favor. He removed to St. Louis, in 1857, and on the 25th of January, 1859, he died in that city. Mr. Hannegan was warm in his friendships and had a large personal following. His manners were elegant, and he was ardent, impulsive and undaunted, thinking, acting and speaking with the ut- most freedom. In person he was below the medium height, firmly and compactly built, but in after years became quite corpulent. He was a charming companion, and as an orator was more eloquent than logical. " He was not a profound man nor a great scholar, but what he lacked in profundity he made up in brilliancy, and his deficiency in scholarship was largely compensated for by his quick wit and fer- tile imagination, and his power to express himself in the choicest lan- guage. He was of Irish descent, and inherited many of the charac- teristics of that warm-hearted, impulsive race."
JESSE D. BRIGHT, for twenty years a leading politician of Indiana was born in Norwich, N. Y., December 18, 1812, and came to this state when a boy, locating with his parents at Madison, where he grew to manhood's estate. He received an academic education, and after a preparatory course of reading, was admitted to the bar, where his talents soon won for him a conspicuous place among the successful lawyers of Indiana. He was not profound in the philosophy of juris- prudence, but, being a fluent speaker and quite popular with the peo- ple, he succeeded in gaining a lucrative practice, which extended throughout the counties of the lower Wabash and elsewhere. He was elected judge of probate in Jefferson county, and subsequently received the appointment of United States marshal for Indiana, and
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.