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 8
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Recorders .- Silas Morgan, April 29, 1836, to May 1, 1837; Evan B. Hobson, August 15, 1837, to September 13, 1838; Isaac Crocker, September 13, 1838, to November 14, 1839; Gilson S. Cleveland, November 14, 1839, to August 21, 1854; Johnson Brownlee, Au- gust 21, 1854, to August 21, 1858; Thomas K. Houghton, Au- gust 21, 1858, to August 21, 1866; John W. Houghton, August 21, 1866, to October 26, 1874; J. B. N. Klinger, October 26, 1874, to October 26, 1878; John L. Place, October 26, 1878, to December 4, 1882; Theodore Cressner, December 4, 1882, to November 11, 1892.
Coroners .- John Johnson, 1836; James Bannon, L. H. Andrews, John K. Brooke, William Bailey, James Logan, Isaac Shadle, Robert McFarlin, Lorenzo Matteson, Keim K. Brooke, Adam
77
MARSHALL COUNTY.
Vinnedge, Henry M. Logan, E. R. Shook, John Bauer, Jr., A. C. Holtzendorff, Dr. John H. Johnson, Dr. Jac. W. Eidson and Dr. J. J. Hamilton.
Surveyors .- Daniel Roberts, November 9, 1836, to -, 1840; Grove Pomeroy, appointed 1840, to -, 1841; Henry B. Per- shing, November 9, 1841, to January 3, 1848; A. W. Reed, Jan- uary 3, 1848, to December, 1850; Jacob B. N. Klinger, December, 1850, to November 29, 1854; Oliver W. Morris, November 29, 1854, to November 16, 1856; Jacob B. N. Klinger, November 29, 1856, to November 29, 1858; Oliver W. Morris, November 29, 1858, to November 12, 1860; J. S. Crampton, November 13, 1860, to June -, 1861; Fred H. Hall, June 6, 1861, to November 12, 1863; J. M. Klinger, November 12, 1863, to November 12, 1867; Martin H. Rice, November 12, 1867, to November 12, 1871; Mor- gan Johnson, April 17, 1872, to November 12, 1872; J. M. Klinger, November 12, 1872, to November 12, 1876; Achilles North, No- vember 12, 1876, to October 29, 1880; E. O. Boyce, October 29, 1880, to October 10, 1881; Achilles North, October 11, IS81, to November 11, 1884; Jerry M. Klinger, November 11, 1884, to November 11, 1886; John C. Butler, November 11, 1886, to Novem- ber II, 1890.
County Commissioners .- Robert Blair, May, 1836, to May, 1837; Abraham Johnson, May, 1836, to September, 1840; Charles Oster- haut, May, 1836, to July, 1836; John Gibson, September, 1836, to September, 1839; Andrew Roberts, May, 1837, to August, 1837; Ewell Kendall, August, 1837, to March, 1838; Abel C. Hickman, May, 1838, to September, 1838; Thomas McDonald, November, 1838, to September, 1840; James Nash, September, 1839, to Sep- tember, 1842; Joseph Evans, September, 1840, to June, 1842; John B. Dickson, September, 1840, to August, 1841; Ira Allen, August, 1841, to December, 1844; Abraham Johnson, June, 1842, to September, 1842; Ransom Barber, September, 1842, to Sep- tember, 1851; George Metcalf, September, 1842, to September, 1843; Charles Palmer, September, 1843, to December, 1845; Enos S. Tuttle, December, 1844, to September, 1847; Hiram A. Ranck, December, 1845, to March, 1847; Designey S. Conger, March, 1847, to September, 1847; Hiram A. Ranck, September, 1847, to December, 1849; Tyra Jones, September, 1847, to March, 1851; Robert Schroeder, December, 1849, to December, 1851; Sanford Gordon, March, 1851, to June, 1857; David Van Vactor, September, 1851, to December, 1857; H. A. Ranck, December, 1851, to March, 1853; Robert Johnson, March, 1853, to March, 1855; Jacob Knoblock, March, 1855, to March, 1856; S. N. Champlin, March, 1856, to December, 1856; William Hughes, June, 1857, to December, 1859; Robert S. Piper, December, 1857, to December, 1859; Moses Keyser, December, 1858, to December, 1861; Isaac N. Morris, December, 1859, to December, 1862; J. L.
78
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
Westervelt, December, 1859, to September, 1860; Elijah Boley, September, 1860, to September, 1863; Thomas Tyner, December, 1861, to March, 1865; John H. Voreis, December, 1862, to June, 1863; Leonard Alleman, June, 1863, to December, 1868; William Garrison, September, 1863, to December, 1868; Hiram A. Ranck, March, 1865, to December, 1867; Jonas Miller, December, 1867, to September, 1877; Henry Krause, December, 1868, to Decem- ber, 1874; James Abrams, December, 1874, to December, 1883; H. Barnaby, September, 1875, to June, 1880; William Sear, June, 1880, to September, 1881; H. A. Ranck, June, 1877, to December, 1879; Philip Dumph, December, 1879, to December, 1882; Peter Holem, September, 1881, to September, 1887; Ferdinand Hearn, December, 1882, to December, 1885; Pulaski Wickizer, Decem- ber, 1883, to December, 1889; John P. Huff, December term, 1885; G. M. Richardson, appointee, 1886; same short term, De- cember, 1886, to December, 1888; Milton Kleckner, September, 1887, to October, 1889; Marion A. Bland, October, 1889, to Sep- tember, 1890; Benjamin Snyder, December, 1889, to 1892.
TABLE OF PRESIDENTS.
No.
President.
State.
Born. Died.
Term of office.
By whom elected.
I
George Washington.
Virginia .
1732
1799
Two terms, 1789-97 --
Whole people. Federalists.
2
John Adams ..
Mass
1735
1826
One term, 1798-01.
3
Thomas Jefferson.
Virginia
174.3
1826
Two terms, 1801-09 ..
4
James Madison
Virginia .
1751
1836
Two terms, 1809-17 .-
5
James Monroe
Virginia -
1758
1831
Two terms, 1817-25 --
6
John Q. Adams.
Mass
1767
1848
One term, IS25-29. ..
7
Andrew Jackson.
Tenn
1767
1845
Two terms, 1829-37 - -
8
Martin Van Buren
N. Y
1782
1862
One term, 1837-41 ...
9
William H. Harrison
Ohio
1773
1841
One month, 1841.
10
John Tyler.
Virginia
1790
1862
3 yrs. II mo., 1841-45
JI
James K. Polk
Tenn
1795
1849
One term, 1845-49- --
Democrats.
12
Zachary Taylor.
Louisiana
1784
1850
I yr. 4 mo., 1849-50 .-
13
Millard Fillmore
N. Y
1800
1874
2 yrs. 8 mo., 1850-53 -
14
Franklin Pierce
N. H
1804
1869' One term, 1853-57. ..
Democrats.
J5
James Buchanan
Penn
1791
1868, One term, 1857-61. ..
16
Abraham Lincoln.
Illinois
1809
1865
One term, I mo., '61-65 3 yrs. II mo., 1865-69.
18
Ulysses S. Grant.
Ohio
1822
1885
Two terms, 1869-77.
19
Rutherford B. Hayes.
Obio
1822
One term, 1877-81.
20
James A. Garfield.
Ohio
1831
1881
Republicans.
21
Chester A. Arthur.
Vermont
1830
IS86
Elected 1881 to 1885. One term, Sept.,'81, to March, 1885 ..
22
Grover Cleveland
N. J.
1837
One term, 1885-89. 1889-93
23
Benjamin Harrison
Republicans. Republicans. All parties. House of Rep. Democrats. Democrats. Whigs. Whigs.
Whigs. Whigs.
Democrats. Republicans. Republicans.
17
Andrew Johnson.
Tenn
1808
1875
Republicans. Republicans.
Republicans. Democrats. Republicans.
The entire presidential vote in the county, in 1840, was 304; 1844, 470; 1848, 675; 1852, 879; 1856, 1,965; 1860, 2,724; 1864, 2,795; 1868, 4, 302; 1872, 3,759; 1876, 5,020; 1880, 5,360; 1884, 5,491; 1888, 5,909.
79
MARSHALL COUNTY.
PRESIDENTIAL VOTE OF MARSHALL COUNTY, 1840 TO 1888.
CANDIDATES.
Union.
Center.
Green.
Tippecanoe.
Bourbon.
German.
North.
Polk.
West.
Walnut.
Total.
Majorities.
1840-Van Buren.
D
5
131
9
18
-
1840-Harrison
W
5
IIO
I2
5
1844-Polk
D
4
156
31
9
31
7
238
58
1844-Clay
W
4
115
35
4
19
3
L
38
8
2
3
I
52
1848-Cass
D
38
178
50
15
37
37
23
378
106
1848-Taylor
W
20
119
52
19
16
29
17
272
1852-Pierce
D
49
199
50
39
40
63
39
32
511
168
1852-Scott.
W
28
131
51
28
23
45
II
26
343
1852-Hale
FS
3
25
1856-Buchanan.
D
120
348
102
54
87
63
75
72
1038
III
1856-Fremont.
R
64
206
104
IIO
I18
106
77
59
83
927
1860-Douglas.
D
120
344
86
62
163
142
103
84
92
77 1273
1860-Lincoln.
R
118
344
74
113
220
I27
98
109
128 1426
153
1860-Breckinridge
D
I
14
5
1860-Bell.
U
I
449
98
77
251
190
104
87
106
IOI
383
1864-Lincoln
R
84
308
64
99
217
104
69
96
55
IIO I206
460
1868-Grant
132
464
668
81
88
236
81
IIO
129
186
162 1855 27
1872-Grant
R
105
532
86
I47
286
96
122
151
106
197 1828 16
1876-Tilden.
D
169
681
144
125
323
382
22 I
223
228
291 2787
570
1876-Hayes
R
122
513
115
182
374
209
144
I68
144
246 2217 6
16
1880-Hancock.
D
176
666
144
126
342
315
184
254
219
2683 257
542
1880-Weaver
G
24
139
17
35
54
78
IOI
70
42
271 2928
76
1884-Blaine
R
165
442
113
359
175
222
144
118
143
279 2160
1884-Butler.
N
50
5
27
26
45
60
84
22
8
348
1884-St. John.
P
D
266
725
154
383
164
409
250
290
240
306 3187
603
1888-Harrison
R
191
520
I34
412
207
278
201
181
168
290 2582
1888-Streeter.
UL
I
7
3
5
8
12
I
37
1888-Fisk.
P
6
12
I
12
6
2
14
12
II
27
103
D., Democrat. R., Republican.
F. S., Free Soil. U., Constitutional Union.
G., Greenback. U. L., Union Labor. P., Prohibition.
G
4
2
4
1880-Garfield
R
476
134
189
381
248
106
130
115
249|2141 6 536
1884-Cleveland.
D
206
698
167
375
I41
372
224
240
83
I77 1921
1872-Greeley.
D
I14
1872-O'Connor
D
I
21
IO
13
IO
6
77
1868-Seymour.
D
168
669
117
120
284
252
174
196
185
216 2381
R
118
15I
323
I71
I44
158
1848-Van Buren.
FS
6
II
2
3
22
4
15
3
2
95 2
24 I
1864-McClellan
D
I26
7
170
36
2
134
180
1844-Birney.
4
25
3
2
7
41
1888-Cleveland
227
1589
1876-Cooper
L., Liberty.
As is shown by the above table, the increase in the number of votes polled at each presidential election has been rapid and permanent. The decrease in the vote of 1872 was occasioned by the dislike of the democracy to the nomination of Horace Greeley; 581 democrats, who voted at the October election, im- mediately preceding the presidential election, refused to go to the polls, and consequently did not vote at all.
80
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
CHAPTER II.
BY ALEXANDER C. THOMPSON.
AGRICULTURE - CONTRAST BETWEEN THE OLD AND NEW METHODS-
FARMING IN THE WILDERNESS- TERRORS THAT BESET THE PIO- NEERS-THE "JUMPING SHOVEL-PLOW" AND THE SURLY OX-TEAM - DESCRIPTION OF VARIOUS OLD-TIME IMPLEMENTS - MODERN DE- VELOPMENT AND IMPROVED PROCESSES -MARSHALL COUNTY NOW A GARDEN SPOT.
ARSHALL COUNTY, for agricultural purposes, is excelled by but few counties in the state, and her productiveness is being increased each year as the work of clearing up the higher, and the drain- age of the lower, lands progresses; and, consid- ering the many and radical changes that have been wrought in the pursuit of agriculture in our midst, since the organization of our county, which took place July 20, 1836, a brief contrast between the methods then and now employed in this most ancient, honorable and important vo- cation, might be interesting to the present and future readers of a work like this.
In its natural state much the greater portion of our county was covered with a splendid growth of timber that had to be cleared away and destroyed before any crops could be raised, and this "clearing" process was one that put to the severest test the wind, muscle and perseverance of those engaged in it. To clear even one acre of land that had enough large trees on it to make from fifty to 100 saw-logs, and smaller timber and grubs in pro- portion, and make it ready for the jumping-shovel or the break- ing-plow, was no small undertaking, and one that most of the young men of to-day would shrink from in despair; but one by one the magnificent monarchs of the forest were felled, and one by one the acres were cleared by our fathers and grandfathers until they had made the large, beautiful and productive farms now owned and occupied by their not always appreciative pos- teritỳ; for, those who were not residents of Marshall county from forty to fifty-five years ago, know but little of the hardships and privations of our pioneer settlers, to whom their latest gener- ations should never cease to accord greatest honor, praise and gratitude.
81
MARSHALL COUNTY.
As indicated in the paragraph above, the first plowing of the newly cleared land was done with what was called a "jumping- shovel" plow, or the "breaking plow." The former was made and stocked after the plan of the single shovel plow of to-day, but was, of course, very much heavier and stronger. It had a strong, sharp "cutter," fastened firmly to the beam that came down just in front of the point of the shovel. To this was hitched oxen or a horse or horses-most always oxen (for in those days there were but few horses in the country) -and then the tussle began with the roots, stumps and stones, and if the plowman succeeded in stirring up enough loose earth to cover the seed corn or the potatoes to be planted, he declared himself the champion, although he may have come out of the contest with his "shins" skinned, his spine nearly disjointed and his arms almost torn from his shoulders. This was the plow used in the heavier timbered land for breaking the ground and tending the crops, but a large, heavy and stout hoe was used generally, to cut down and knock off the grubs and sprouts that grew lux- uriantly, and it was also indispensable in digging up enough of dirt to keep the crop in growing condition.
The ground for wheat was plowed in the same manner as above described, and then thoroughly harrowed with an old-fashioned "A" harrow. The wheat was then sown broadcast, and as thor- oughly dragged in as possible, the farmer often using a "brush drag," consisting of a small tree top properly weighted down, to give the finishing touch to the sowing of the crop; but, after all this work and worry the "yield" was, for several years, as much, and often more than half weeds and sprouts.' The breaking plow was used in lands that had fewer stumps and trees. It was drawn by from seven to ten "yoke of oxen," and the team was driven by some agile and talented expert in the business, who had long sinewy arms hung on loose and powerful shoulders, and who was noted for "saying his prayers backward" when the plow got "stuck on a big grub." So well did the oxen get to un- derstand their driver that they appeared to guess to an inch the size of the grub they were stuck on by the language he used, and they put forth their strength and energy accordingly, having learned from experience that if they were found "shirking' they would be most severely punished. The ox that had earned the reputation of being a "skirk" was a most unfortunate and pitiable creature.
The model breaking-team whip consisted of a growth of iron- wood or water-beech, twelve or thirteen feet long and tapering from but to tip very like a first-class fishing rod, and to the tip was neatly fastened a well proportioned buckskin lash about ten feet long with a "cracker" of the very best buckskin, about nine inches in length attached. They are a symmetrical and infatu-
6-B.
82
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
ating implement to those who have ever used them in their younger days, and in our mature or even declining years we often dream of them, but the memory of them is undoubtedly more pleasant to the driver than it is to the memory of the driven (if they have any memory), more pleasant to him who handles the "stalk" than they who received the " lash."
The breaking-plow was a ponderous implement, the mould- board being of cast-iron and the share and cutter or "colter" being of the best cast-steel and had to be kept as sharp as pos- sible to cut the roots and grubs they came in contact with. The plow turned a furrow of from twenty to twenty-four inches, owing to the size of the pattern, and was, including the beam and handles, from twelve to fifteen feet in length and weighed · from 400 to 600 pounds. A good one ran very level and steady, not requiring much effort on the part of the holder in smooth ground, but requiring the strength of a Hercules when in contact with large grubs, roots and stumps. There is probably not even the castings of one of these plows in the county at the date of writing this chapter, 1890, and there are but comparatively few citizens yet living who either " handled the whip" or "held the plow," in our pioneer days.
We must not forget or omit to mention the old " bull plow" or wooden mould-board plow, as probably the most ancient type of plow used in this county, or in the state, either, so far as that is concerned. It had a beam and handles similar to our modern mould-board plow, but the shin or front piece was made of iron or steel and was fastened to the beam by a strong bolt with a nut on the top of the beam. The share was of steel and the black- smith had to often be consulted to keep it in proper condition. The mould-board was made of wood and its shape and efficiency in turning the ground " up-side-down" depended somewhat upon the fancy or genius of the maker, but more largely upon the frequent and vigorous use of the wooden paddle, that was always kept hanging by a string, on the plow handle, which paddle was used to free the mould-board when the plow gave positive indi- cations of "jumping the job." The plow, in design, was well enough, but the material out of which it was made and the way it was put together, made it a most bungling and inefficient im- plement, doing but little better work in the way of cultivating the soil than would have been attained by dragging a sharpened log or chunk of wood over the ground. The foregoing list com- prises nearly all the implements used for clearing the ground and putting in the crops in our county in its earlier days, except the all-important axe, upon which but little, if any, improvement has been made in the last half century.
For many years after the organization of the county the small grain crops were cut with the old-fashioned sickle, the reapers
83
MARSHALL COUNTY.
each cutting their "land " through and then hanging their sickle over their shoulder they would turn and " bind back," thus put- ting, commonly, into the neatest of sheaves the swath of " land " they had just cut through. In those days there was scarcely a "harvest hand" but that had one or more scars on his left hand from wounds inflicted by the sickle, and it was not uncommon to see men with permanently crippled hands, some having even lost an entire finger or the thumb on the left hand. But this tedious and wicked little implement, in a few years after the organization and settlement of the county, gave way entirely to the "grain cradle," which was a vast improvement on the sickle, both for speed in cutting the grain and safety to the manipulator. The only advantage the sickle had over the cradle was that the reaper could pick the "wheat" out from among the "tares," weeds and sprouts, while the cradler had to cut everything before him, and the green weeds and leaves when bound in with the wheat made the sheaves very heavy and liable to mould.
For as many as fifteen years after the first settlement of the county there was but little, if any, " tame " hay made, the farm- ers depending almost entirely, for " roughness" for their stock, upon marsh or wild hay and corn fodder, and when both these were exhausted the farmer, in the timbered portion of the county, resorted to the cutting of bass-wood trees, off of the buds and twigs of which, his cattle would often subsist for weeks in late winter and early spring, the cattle often being joined by the deer that were then more numerous than were the cattle in the county, and like the cattle they were almost and sometimes quite "starved to death " by the long and hard winters. One of the earlier recollections of the writer and compiler of this chapter, is seeing his father and older brother starting to the woods with their axes on their shoulders, calling the herd of almost starved cattle, which readily learned to follow without calling.
The marsh hay was cut with the common scythe, upon which little changes (and surely none for the better), have been made since those days. The forks used in hay-making and for pitch- ing sheaves of grain and handling straw, were made commonly of an ash sapling of the proper crook or shape, and the prongs or tines were made by sawing into the stick lengthwise far enough to make the desired length of the tines and far enough apart to make the desired number. A band of iron was put around the stick to keep it from splitting, and then wedges were driven in to spread the tines which were then shaven down to the desired size and shape. On this implement some improve- ment has surely been made, as every farmer of the earlier days of the county will testify.
About the year 1859 reapers and mowers were first intro- duced into the county, the old McCormick make being the first
84
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
the writer remembers of seeing. Both as a reaper and mower it was a ponderous and heavy running machine as compared with the improved McCormick, and scores of other makes of machines now in use by our farmers, but it embodied the principle, and all new implements have been but inventions to lighten the machine and the draft; and, in this matter many makers have been most successful, and it is an exception to the rule now to see any well- to-do farmer who has not both a first-class reaper and mower, many of the reapers or harvesters being self-binders. In addi- tion to the mowers every well regulated farm is provided with hay-rakes and hay-forks all run or worked by horse-power, and, by using these improved implements, a farm hand can do as much in one day as he could in a week, before their invention.
The first crops of small grain raised in Marshall county were threshed with the flail, an implement so simple and cheap in its construction and cost that the young farmers of to-day would not, on inspection, take it to be a "threshing machine," but such it was and the most primitive, too, known to the historic period, so far as the writer knows. It consisted of a pole about as long and as large as the wooden pitch-fork handle, and had a club or chunk of wood somewhat thicker than the handle and about two feet long, tied with a strong and durable thong, to the pole or handle. It was run by the " one-man power," and its use was a literal ful- fillment of the decree that " in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread." The sheaves of wheat were commonly thrown on a platform of fence rails raised slightly above the ground, and under the platform was drawn a strong linen sheet, such as were made by our mothers in those days, and after a certain amount of wheat had been " thumped" out the rails were temporarily re- moved and the cleaning process was begun. This was done by some one holding a portion of the threshed grain in a half bushel measure above another sheet prepared to receive it, as high as possible, and to get the required fall the one holding the measure was usually elevated by standing on a chair or something higher. The grain was then gradually and slowly turned out of the meas- ure in order that the chaff might be blown away, while the grain fell straight down. The wind was " raised " by two of the strong- est muscled and best winded men engaged in the business, taking a strong sheet by the ends and swinging it in such a manner as to cause the strongest possible breeze or current of air where the wheat was being poured down. This operation was repeated until the crop was thought to be sufficiently cleaned for market or for the mill. Wheat in those days was worth forty cents in Michigan City -over forty miles from Plymouth -and the first breadstuff used by the earlier settlers was ground in Delphi, over sixty-five miles from our county seat.
These statements are made to let the present farmers and citi-
---
--
85
MARSHALL COUNTY.
zens of the county know what the generation before them had to endure and perform for their children and their children's child- ren in order that they might finally enjoy all the blessings and conveniences of wealth and civilization.
After there were a sufficient number of horses to be had in a neighborhood, wheat was "tramped out" by throwing the sheaves on an earthen or out-door floor, usually about forty feet in diameter, the floor being round, like a circus ring. The heads of the sheaves were all laid one way, so that the horses' feet, in turning to the left, came constantly in contact with the head of the sheaves, which were, of course, unbound before the horses were put on the floor. A small boy usually rode one horse and lead three, one at the side and two behind the one he rode, while an experienced man, with a pitch fork in hand, presided as “ ring- master," in the center of the circle, making himself useful, as well as ornamental, by stirring the wheat and doing other things "too. tedious to mention."
The first real threshing machine that was introduced into the county, was what was called the "Traveling Threshing Machine." It was mounted on four wheels, after the style of a common wagon, but the hind wheels were much larger and heavier, es- pecially the right one, was made heavy with a tire about ten inches wide and on the inner side of this tire was a lesser wheel that had cogs on it, which when thrown in "gear," or contact with the pinion that projects from the body of the machine, communi- cated the power to the thresher as it was being drawn about over the field, by from four to six horses. The " track " selected in a field was, as a matter of course, the most accessible to the wheat shocks, and on the most level and solid ground. The feeder stood in the front part of the machine and the sheaves were laid on a table to his right hand where the bands were cut. The greatest thing for the feeder was to feed according to the power at his command, and be careful and not "choke down," for this would necessitate a full stop of everything, and a general “ clean- ing out " of the apparatus. The straw was carried out at the rear of the machine, and in large fields, would get so deep that the " track " would have to be changed, as the "power wheel " would slip or slide on the straw, and consequently the power or motion would cease.
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