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. II > Part 6
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Harris's Station is situated between Linksville and the Michi- gan road on the line of the Terre Haute & Logansport railroad and about half way between Plymouth and East La Paz. It was laid out and platted by John Seltenright, October 31, 1885. It has a grain elevator, store and postoffice, but will never be a very large village.
Polk Township Vo. 8 .- This township, organized March 4, 1845, the day James K. Polk was inaugurated president of the United States. It was considered in keeping with the fitness of things that the new township should take the name of Polk, and it was accordingly so called. Prior to its organization the territory was the west part of North township. The petition, which was dated March 1, 1845, is as follows:
To the Honorable Commissioners of the County of Marshall:
We, the undersigned citizens of North township, in said county, would represent that, in our opinion, it would be of pub- lic utility to divide said township into two townships, on account of the great disadvantage in voting and doing township business. And we would further request that said township be so divided as to hold the elections at or near James Sherland's and Thomas Singleton's. And this your petitioners would ever pray.
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Robert J. Evans, Lewis Beagles, Isaac Thomas, H. A. Ranck, Thomas Singleton, Sr., Willoughby M. McCormack, Reuben Farnsworth, Jacob H. Miller, Henry Smith, Charles Ousterhout, Samuel B. Knott, Hallis Merrick, Luther Wentworth, Steven Singleton, Simeon Hendricks, William Montgomery, Consider Cushman, Charles Cook, Thomas Bently, Edward Smith, Joel James, James Keely, George A. Ruggles, John Schroeder, Dennis Stow, Jonas Fulmer, Place C. Ruggles, George Myers, John Hopkins, Ansel T. Cole, David Knott, Elliott Knott and Joseph Redding.
Tyner City .- Tyner City, the seat of justice of Polk township, was laid off and platted June 18, 1855, by Jacob H. Miller, Maynard French and Thomas Tyner. It took its name from the last-named proprietor. It is located in the west half of section 10, town 34, range I east, on the I., P. & C. R. R., about seven miles northwest of Plymouth. It is laid off into twelve blocks, 315 feet feet square, including alleys, each block containing twelve lots, each 50x100 feet. The streets are named Race, Vine, Main, Walnut, May, Miller, French, Allen, Boyce. The first four were named after streets in Cincinnati, where some of the proprietors at one time resided, and the remainder were named in honor of railroad men who flourished there about that time.
Tyner was incorporated as a town under the state laws for that purpose, in 1872-74. A feud had sprung up between the people of the town and those who resided outside of its limits. It was carried to such an extent that no resident of the village could be elected to a township office, and, as it was desirable to have a justice of the peace resident of the town, the only way to accomplish it was to organize under a corporation government, the law providing that, where there was such a form of govern- ment, one of the justices should reside within the limits of the corporation. The organization had the desired effect. A justice who resided in town was elected, and, in course of time, the war- ring elements having subsided, and there being no apparent necessity for a town government, an election was called to vote upon the proposition to disband the organization. The result of the election is embodied in the following, filed in the clerk's office:
I, George E. Leroy, do hereby certify that an election held in the town of Tyner City, on the 29th day of November, 1879, for the purpose of dissolving the incorporation, that the whole num- ber of votes cast were 33, and that the number of voters in the town are 47, and that there were 22 votes cast to dissolve and II cast to maintain the incorporation.
GEORGE E. LEROY, President.
WASHINGTON WILSON, Clerk.
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HISTORY OF INDIANA.
The incorporation was accordingly dissolved. The population are generally law-abiding, and really had very little need of a corporation government.
Elizabeth Town .- This was a town on paper, located on the La Porte road, twelve miles from Plymouth and eighteen miles from La Porte. It was elegantly laid out in the shape of a cross. There were twelve blocks, each containing twelve lots. It was laid out May 23, 1837, by G. A. Cone. At a time it was consid- ered to be an eligible location for the building of a town, being about half way between Plymouth and La Porte. But some way it failed to attract any settlers within its limits, and, except the record in the recorder's office, from which the foregoing infor- mation is derived, nothing remains to mark its untimely demise.
Blissville .- Blissville was a place near the west line of the township, on the La Porte road, that attained some celebrity in the early days. It was owned and managed by Justice T. F. Stevens, an old gentleman of commanding presence, who sup- plied the weary traveler that passed that way with all the neces- saries, comforts and conveniences of life. Upon the completion of the I., P. &. C. R. R., in 1856, the current of trade centered at Tyner, and Mr. Stevens found his occupation gone. He has since died.
Teegarden-The following is the description of the location of Teegarden, as filed by Eli Taylor and Calvin J. Wright, the proprietors, November 18, 1873: "Teegarden is located in the southwest corner of the southeast quarter of section 23, town- ship 35, north of range I east, in Marshall county, Indiana. The south line of said town is the section line, and the west line is the center line of said section 23, there is fifteen feet left on the north side of the section line for half of a street; also twenty feet on the east side of the center section line for half a street, and forty feet on the south of the right of way, of the Baltimore & Ohio railroad for a street, called Wright street. The south line of Taylor street commenced on the center section line - fifty feet north of the center of the Baltimore & Ohio railroad, and runs east at right angles to the north and south center sec- tion line of said section 23," etc. The plat contains thirty-three lots, and they are 100 feet wide by 144 feet in length. The streets are sixty, and the alleys 20 feet wide. The Baltimore & Ohio railroad runs through the southern portion of the original town. On the 20th day of June, 1874, Lewis Lemert laid out and caused to be platted and recorded an addition to Teegarden, joining the original plat on the west. The addition comprises fifteen lots of the same size as those in the original town. There are two good dry goods, grocery and notion stores, a saw-mill, a tile manufac- tory, coal kiln, blacksmith shop, etc. The town is surrounded by a good farming country that is being improved by drainage.
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Associations .- A mutual detective association, for the purpose of capturing horse-thieves, was organized July 29, 1867. The members of the association were: Consider Cushman, Bryan McDaniel, C. J. Wright, Van Gilmore, Joseph Ogilwy, C. Wat- kins, Francis Weisner, Francis Black, Willis Wright, Hiram Mongold, Warren Burch, James W. Falconbury. Levi C. Myers, Thomas Nichols, Jonathan Wyant, Peter Walsh, J. W. Sherwood, N. A. Lane.
Magnetic Springs .- There are a number of magnetic springs in the village of Teegarden. The water flows out of the ground in large quantities, and, besides being strongly magnetic and containing other medical properties, is considered the best quality of drinking water.
Huckleberry Marsh .- A huckleberry marsh two or three miles west of Tyner has of late years attained considerable notoriety as a frontier village, during the gathering of berries, with all that the name implies. Hundreds of people from far and near locate there, and, during the "season," it has more the appear- ance of a mining camp than a temporary village for peaceful pursuit. Huckleberries (whortleberries, more properly) are gathered there by the car-load, and the products in favorable seasons are a source of considerable revenue to those who en- gage in the business. When the "season" is at its height, amuse- ments of every description and kind known to temporary places of that sort are indulged in by the inhabitants and the hundreds of visitors who go there out of curiosity or for pure, unadulter- ated cussedness. If one is bibulously inclined, the cravings of his appetite can be satiated at the 'Alhambra," on a convenient corner, and if he wants to indulge in a set-to at "old sledge," or the more interesting game of "poker," the appliances are always at hand; and it is a rule of the inhabitants of the village, when a visitor arrives, to "take him in," and he will find a dancing hall, with the ‘Arkansaw Traveler" to make the music, where he can
" Trip it as he goes,
On his light fantastic toes,"
to his heart's content, with the blooming lasses that there do congregate for partners.
Near this huckleberry marsh lived an old man, who was ar- rested by the United States authorities early in 1880, charged with manufacturing and putting into circulation counterfeit silver coins. He was tried, convicted and sentenced to imprisonment in the state's prison for a term of years, but through the clem- ency of President Hayes, was pardoned out some months later. The coins found in his possession were mostly Mexican dollars, and were said to be exceedingly well executed. He had erected a small, high building, in which he had an immense iron weight,
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HISTORY OF INDIANA.
which had been cast for the purpose, in which the "die was cast." It was elevated by means of a windlass, and, when the metal out of which the bogus money was to be made had been properly placed on a solid block of wood beneath, the weight was dropped, descending with such force as to coin a single piece at each blow. A large number of these coins were found in and about the premises, and quite a number of them had found their way into circulation. Underneath the building was found a cellar with a floor. Underneath this floor was found another apartment, in which was discovered a complete set of tools, metal and other articles necessary to make a complete outfit. These implements were carried away by the officers, and of course that kind of manufacturing enterprise in this part of the county has entirely ceased.
Thomas Tyner, the founder of Tyner City, and from whom it took its name, died in that place on the 18th of October, 1880. He was born in Kentucky in 1800. He was a worthy and highly respected citizen, and during his long life, filled many important positions of trust and honor, always in a satisfactory manner to all parties concerned. In the earlier portion of his manhood he assisted in moving the archives of the state from Corydon to Indianapolis, after the capital was established there. He was one of the old land-marks, not only in this county, but of the state, and was well acquainted with many prominent citizens of Indiana. He was generous, kind and charitable, almost to a fault-was honored and esteemed while living, and died sincerely regretted by all who knew him.
West Township No. 9 .- Originally the territory comprising this township was the west part of Center. In 1853 a township was organized which was christened Pierce township, but for some cause which does not appear, the order was cancelled and nothing done to perfect the organization. Afterward, however, on the 8th of March, 1854, it was placed upon record by the board of commissioners that all that part of Center township lying west of the range line dividing ranges 1 and 2 east, be constituted into a civil township, and no change has since been made in its bound- ary lines. A brief mention of the organization of the township appeared in the Plymouth Banner of April 14, 1854, as follows:
" The citizens of this new township, which was set off by the county board at its late meeting, have taken the necessary steps for an efficient organization. At the election on the 3d inst., James A. Corse, William Slayter and Hiram A. Lyon were elec- ted trustees; John Coleman, clerk; and Maj. Tuttle, treasurer - all good and prompt men. Daniel Barber was elected one of the justices of the peace."
Among the early settlers in this township, Charles Cook was perhaps the earliest. He had been in this region prior to his
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settlement here-probably as early as 1832. At that time he was what was known as a "pack-horse trader." He traded the Indians, who were numerous here then, such things as they needed, for furs and venison, which he carried on pack-horses to market. He lived with the Indians from the time he was eight years old until he arrived at the age of sixteen. He learned to talk their language fluently. Pretty lake, which is situated in this township, around whose beautiful shores cluster many of the scenes and incidents of early Indian life, was called, in the Indian tongue, Qua-uck-eu-bus. He also states that the Indian name for Plymouth was Aus-ka-nuk; Yellow river, Wau-sau-auk-a-to-meek. Another name for Yellow river in the Indian language has been given as Wy-thou-gan. Probably the first was Pottawatamie and the last Miami. Repre- sentatives of both of these tribes were here at that time. Mex-en-kuck-eek was the Indian name for our delightful Max- inkuckee lake, and signified Moccasin lake, on account of its shape resembling the shape of an Indian moccasin. Edwin Dwinnell was another early settler here, whose recollec- tions of days long gone were still quite fresh in his memory to the day of his death. He could "talk Indian " as glibly as an original Pottawatamie, but the lapse of time had caused most of it to slip from his mind. Hiram A. Ranck was another old resi- dent of this locality, and has served more years as county com- missioner than any other man in the county. James A. Corse was another. He served a number of years as probate judge during the continuance of that system in the county, and has taken an active part in the organization and development of the county. And then there were Manlius Root, James Case, George Dickson, Isaac How, Joseph Waters Simeon Ells, Lyman H. Andrews, John G. Burch, Ransom Barber, Daniel Barber, Nor- ton S. Burch, Sooy Belangee and a number of others whose names cannot be recalled. Up to 1854, as before stated, this township was a part of Center township, and to that date it had no separate identity.
The "Old Forge," located at the lower end of Twin lakes, gave promise in an early day of becoming a place of considerable im- portance. Like the famous Duluth, the sky came down in equal distances all around it, and hence it was considered about as near the center of the universe as it was possible to figure it. One of the first grist-mills in the county, if not the very first, was built at this place by Timothy Barber. It was known as Barber's mill and was patronized far and near for many years. The forge hammer, that could at one time be heard miles and miles away, has long since been removed, and the mining and forging of the very inferior bog iron ore found in that vicinity has been abandoned, and but little remains to indicate that such an enter prise ever existed.
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HISTORY OF INDIANA.
The old Indian chapel, the first house of worship erected in the county, was located near the north bank of the middle Twin lake, a few miles above the Forge, on the farm now owned by John Lowry ._ The services were held in French by a Catholic priest, whose name is unknown. Many residents of the county now liv- ing remember to have attended church there, probably more out of curiosity than from the good they expected to derive in a spirit- ual sense. When services were held, the Indians congregated from different parts of the county in large numbers, and it is said they were very devout in their adorations to the Great Spirit. The best of order prevailed, no disturbance of any kind ever having occurred. The chapel was allowed to remain stand- ing for a long time after the Indians were driven away, but was finally torn down, and now nothing remains to point out the spot where the first religious services were held in the wilderness over half a century ago. Occasionally an arrow point or a stone im- plement of one kind or another is yet picked up by the relic hun- ter in that vicinity, but beyond these the footprints of the " noble red man " are entirely obliterated. Sic transit gloria mundi!
Donelson .- The original plat of Donelson was laid out Octo- ber 25, 1871, by D. W. Taft, Cornelius Tuttle and W. J. Richardson. It is located in the corners of sections 29, 30, 31 and 32, township 34, north of range i east, on the line of the Pittsburgh, Ft. Wayne & Chicago R. R., and is one mile east of the Stark county line. It contains twenty-two lots, their size being sixty- six feet wide by 132 feet in length. On the 14th day of Septem- ber, 1875, D. W. Taft laid out "Taft's addition to the town of Donelson," containing twenty-one lots of the same size as the lots in the original plat and lying north and west of the original town, and on the 14th day of September, 1875, Cornelius Tuttle laid off "Tuttle's addition to Donelson," comprising twenty-two lots, being of the same size as the original lots. It is a quiet little village and probably will always remain so as most of the farm products raised in its vicinity are marketed elsewhere. It has two stores, a drug store, a grain elevator, a blacksmith shop, one doctor, a good school house, church and all the conveniences and evidences of civilization common to villages of its size.
Walnut Township No. 10, was organized June 9, 1859. The territory now composing the township was, at the date of its organization, a part of Green township. A meeting of those in- terested was held at the school house near M. L. Smith's tavern, then in Green township, May 21, 1859, for the purpose of select- ing a name for the new township and recommending a suitable person to be appointed trustee. Merrill Williams was president of the meeting, and Samuel B. Corbaley, secretary. The names of Argos, Richland and Noble were proposed for the new town- ship. Noble was withdrawn, and the vote resulted: Argos,
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thirteen; Richland, eight. For some reason not stated, the board of commissioners ordered the township to be called Wal- nut. The names of John A. Rhodes and Charles Brown were proposed for trustee. The vote resulted: Rhodes, eighteen; Brown, four. Merrill Williams, John A. Rhodes and Dr. N. E. Manville were appointed a committee to attend to the necessary business before the board of commissioners. Immediately fol- lowing the organization of the township, the following petition was presented to the board:
WHEREAS, The town plats of Fremont and Sydney lie very near each other; and
WHEREAS, The postoffice of these two places is named Argos; and
WHEREAS, We, the undersigned citizens and petitioners, be- lieving that so many names are, and will continue to be, against the interest of citizens of said places, we, therefore, petition your honorable board to change the name of the above-named towns, and consolidate them into one name, namely, Argos, and thus, in duty bound, we will ever pray. John A. Rhodes, John Whitacre, M. E. Richards, J. G. Bryant, N. Siple, Thomas King, Joseph Rhodes, J. W. Harris, William Worthington, G. W. Gor- don, Martin Bucher, John Tribby, N. E. Manville, J. A. Haig, Joseph Litsinger, Joseph Finney, W. Nichols and J. J. Hough.
The petition was granted, and the consolidated towns were ordered to be thereafter known as Argos. Argos was the name of a city in Greece, made famous in the Iliad of Homer. This ancient city, according to history, is long since in ruins. "Her thirty temples, her costly sepulchers, her gymnasiums, and her numerous and magnificent monuments and statues have disap- peared, and the only traces of her former greatness are some remains of her Cyclopean walls, and a ruined theater cut in the rock and of magnificent proportions. The modern Argos, built on the ruins of the ancient city, is nothing more than a strag- gling village. The plain of the ancient Argos is said to be one of the most beautiful to be found. On every side except toward the sea, it is bounded by mountains, and the contrast between these mountains and the plain and the sea is strikingly beauti- ful." The Argus spelled with a " u" was the name of a fabulous being of antiquity, said to have had a hundred eyes, and placed by Juno to guard Io, and hence originated the term "argus- eyed."
The town of Sidney, of which Argos is the successor, was laid out by John Pleak and M. L. Smith, January 8, 1851. It was named in honor of Sidney Williams, who settled there probably as early as 1835. Sidney was surveyed and platted by Amasa W. Reed, county surveyor, and contained sixty lots.
Fremont, adjoining Sidney, was laid out by Joseph H. Rhodes,
5-B.
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HISTORY OF INDIANA.
November 6, 1856, and contained twenty lots. It was named in honor of Col. John C. Fremont, who was on that day voted for as the republican candidate for president.
Mastodon Relics .- In June, 1874, Mr. Oscar L. Bland, while bathing in a pool in Deep creek, on the farm of his father, Alexander Bland, in the northeast corner of Walnut township, Marshall county, Ind., found a very large tooth, whose weight at that time, including the debris connected with it, was about eight pounds. Further search was made, and within a few feet another tooth, about the same size, was found. Further exam- ination of the banks of the stream was made, and, some 200 feet farther up, several very fine specimens of the re- mains of what must have been a very large animal, were found. The "find" naturally created quite an excitement in the neigh- borhood, which extended all over the country, and many exag- gerated descriptions of the relics and the supposed size of the animal were made by newspaper correspondents and others. In December, 1874, a correspondent of the Warsaw Northern Indianian had the following in relation to it:
" Mr. Alexander Bland has discovered on his farm near Bourbon a great number of large bones of an unknown animal, that, according to careful measurement, was certainly a huge old monster, the largest ever known. Several of the teeth are in a partial state of preservation, and weigh over eight pounds each, and several of the ribs are almost like the ribs of a mammoth man-of-war ship in size, the other bones being proportionately large. One of the officers of the Academy of Sciences of Chi- cago came here to investigate the remains, and pronounced the animal to have been over sixty feet tall and of proportionate length! The bones are to be carefully collected and sent to the Academy Museum in the city, as of rare value to antiquarians."
Of course the above statement was exaggerated beyond all reason, as neither sacred nor profane history gives any account of any living thing one-fifth the height or length indicated. But it had the effect of calling the attention of the people to it, and hundreds have visited the residence of Mr. Bland and made an examination of the relics and locality where they were found, and numerous letters have been received making inquiry in regard to them.
The specimens found consisted of two teeth almost exactly alike, each now weighing six pounds. They are eight inches long, seven inches high from point of root to upper surface, and four inches wide, and contain five divisions or separate grinders. The preservation is perfect, both as to the teeth and the enamel. The enamel is composed of a mixture of black, white and brownish gray. The third tooth is four and a half inches long, three and a half inches wide, three inches high, the roots having
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been broken off. Its weight is about two pounds. There are four sections of the vertebræ, all in a perfect state of preserva- tion. Their measurement is about thirteen inches across at bottom part, eight inches at upper part, two and a half inches thick, twelve inches from top to bottom, and weigh four and three-fourths pounds each. The section of the skull measures twenty-one inches in length by thirteen inches in width, is about one inch thick and has about 100 brain cells. It is a grayish color, having much the appearance of the first coat of plaster on a building. One tusk was found in a splendid state of preservation. Since it came in contact with the air, portions of it have dissolved and fallen off. It was about nine feet long and about twenty inches in circumference where it joined the head. A section of the shoulder blade was also found. It measures eight inches in thickness and fourteen inches in width, and weighs thirty-six pounds. The outer extremity has been broken off, so that it is impossible to say what its length originally was. Two ribs were also found, one of which measures two and three- fourths feet in length; the other, somewhat smaller. About one hundred pieces of various sizes were found, a description of which is impossible. The place where they were found is low, marshy ground, on the east bank of Deep creek. All the speci- mens, except two of the teeth, were found in a wet place, where a branch had run into the creek, and about four feet under ground, near and under the roots of a beech tree four and a half feet in circumference. The earth under and surrounding the tree is made entirely of drift, and has undoubtedly accumulated and the tree has grown since the animal mired down and died. There is no doubt but the remains are those of a mastodon, probably about eleven feet high, seventeen feet long and about sixteen feet in circumference. They inhabited this country so long ago that the memory of man runneth not to the contrary - certainly long prior to the Christian era.
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