USA > Indiana > Johnson County > History of Johnson County, Indiana > Part 74
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 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84
Politically, Mr. Brewer is a Democrat, though he assumes an independent attitude in local affairs, voting for the men whom he deems best qualified for office. He was elected justice of the peace, serving four years in this ca- pacity to the entire satisfaction of all concerned.
In 1867 Mr. Brewer married Melissa, the daughter of Cordonand Springer, a native of Virginia and an early settler in Johnson county, having
Digitized by
.
1
762
JOHNSON COUNTY, INDIANA.
come here in the late twenties. To Mr. Brewer have been born the following children : Mrs. Annie Graham, who lives one mile east of Whiteland and is the mother of seven children: Roy, Earl, William, Fannie, John and two others; Mrs. Fannie Alexander, now deceased, lived in Illinois, and left three children, Mary, Anna and Melissa; Edward, who died in 1900, left two chil- dren, Samuel and Marcie; Mrs. Leona Tingle lives in Greenwood. Mr. Brewer's career has been one of honor and trust and no higher eulogy can be passed upon him than the simple truth that his name has never been coupled with anything disreputable, and that there has never been the shadow of a stain upon his reputation for integrity and unswerving honesty. He has been a consistent man in all that he has ever undertaken and his career in all of the relations of life has been absolutely without pretense. His actions are the result of careful and conscientious thought and when once convinced that he is right no suggestion of policy or personal profit can swerve him from the course that he has decided upon. He is essentially a man of affairs, sound of judgment and far-seeing in what he undertakes and he has won and retained the confidence and esteem of all classes.
GEORGE W. HECK.
That life is the most useful and desirable that results in the greatest good to the greatest number and, though all do not reach the heights to which they aspire, yet in some measure each can win success and make life a blessing to his fellow men; and it is not necessary for one to occupy eminent public posi- tions to do so, for in the humbler walks of life there remains much good to be accomplished and many opportunities for one to exercise talents and influence which in some way will touch the lives of those with whom we come in contact, making them brighter and better. In the list of Johnson county's successful citizens the subject of this review has long occupied a prominent place. In his career there is much that is commendable and his life forcibly illustrates what a life of energy can accomplish when his plans are wisely laid and his actions governed by right principles, noble aims and high ideals.
The subject of this sketch, George W. Heck, who operates a splendid farm of one hundred acres in Clark township, Johnson county, Indiana, was born in this township on January 29, 1871, and is a son of Peter and Jennie (Cutsinger) Heck. Peter Heck, who was the son of Jacob and Mary Heck,
Digitized by Google
763
JOHNSON COUNTY, INDIANA.
was born in Ohio on July 28, 1825, and died on April 10, 1907. His parents were sturdy Germans, from whom he inherited many of the characteristics for which that great nation is noted. He was one of eleven children. The family moved to Indiana when he was an infant and settled near Mt. Auburn, Shelby county, Indiana, where, on December 7, 1854, he was married to Jennie Cutsinger and on October 7, 1855, settled in Johnson county. Jennie Cutsinger Heck was born on June 16, 1836, and died on April 25, 1909. Peter Heck became the owner of six hundred and forty acres of land and was considered a very successful farmer. He inaugurated a system of giving to each of his twelve children forty acres of land or its equivalent in money, though the boys earned the same by work. Upon his death Peter Heck left an estate of three hundred acres. To him and his wife were born twelve children, namely : John R., James B., Mary, Hannah, deceased, Elizabeth, Saloma, George W., Abraham, Nancy, Emma, Samuel, and Jacob, deceased.
The subject of this sketch received his education in school house No. 9 in Clark township, and his boyhood days were spent in work with his father on the home farm. In 1896 he received forty acres of land from his father, to which he at once gave his attention and which he has increased from time to time until he is now the owner of one hundred acres of splendid land in Clark township. To the improvement of this he has indefatigably devoted himself and in 1911 he built a fine, new barn, thirty-eight by sixty feet in size, and has a neat and attractive residence set in the midst of a grove of locust and apple trees, the whole presenting a very attractive appearance. Mr. Heck gives his attention to the raising of all the cereals common to this locality, having twenty-six acres in corn, twenty-five acres in wheat, and raising annually about forty head of hogs. By his efficient labor and success- ful management his farm has become one of the most productive and valua- ble of its area in the county, as well as one of the county's most beautiful and attractive rural homes.
Politically, Mr. Heck gives his support to the Democratic party, while his church membership is with the Rock Lane Christian church.
On February 21, 1896, Mr. Heck married Addie May Huffman, a daughter of Aaron and Sarah (Halfacre) Huffman. Abel Huffman was born in 1842 in Johnson county and died in 1910. He was a son of Aaron and Jemima (Wells) Huffman, natives of Kentucky, and his wife, whose maiden name was Sarah Halfacre, was born in 1838 and died in 1905. They were the parents of two children, Mrs. Eva Heck and Mrs. Addie Heck. Aaron Huffman was the owner of ninety-two acres of land in Marion town-
Digitized by Google
764
JOHNSON COUNTY, INDIANA.
ship, Johnson county. Jemima (Wells) Huffman was the daughter of Charles and Violet Wells, natives of the state of Pennsylvania. To Mr. and Mrs .. Heck has been born one child, Odine, born November 26, 1896, who is now living at home and is a member of the senior class in the Clark town- ship high school.
JAMES L. GRIFFITH.
The occupation of farming, to which the major part of the business life of James L. Griffith, one of the well known and popular citizens of Johnson county, has been devoted, is the oldest pursuit for a livelihood of mankind and the one in which he will ever be the most independent. His name has long been inseparably connected with the general growth of Johnson county, of which he is a native and where, in fact, he has spent most of his life. While primarily attending to his own varied interests, his life has been largely devoted to his fellow man, having been untiring in his efforts to inspire a proper respect for law and order and ready at all times to uplift humanity along civic and social lines.
James L. Griffith, one of the leading farmers and influential citizens of Clark township, Johnson county, Indiana, was born in this township on January 19, 1869, and is the son of Granville R. and Mary E. (Fitzpatrick) Griffith. The father, who was'a native of Jennings county. Indiana, came to Johnson county at the age of seven years with his parents, his father, James Griffith, having been an early settler of this county, where he followed farm- ing during his entire residence here. He was a public-spirited citizen and took an active interest in all public affairs, although he never held office. He was the father of six children: William, Robert, John, one who died in infancy, Melissa and Granville. To the latter were born four children, James L., Maggie M., 'Mary V. and Annabelle. In the common schools of Clark town- ship the subject of this sketch secured his education, and then followed the pursuit to which he has been reared, that of agriculture, in which he has al- ways been successfully engaged. He is the owner of two hundred and forty acres of land in Clark township, the improvements on which are of the best, the splendid and attractive residence being one of the best in the country, and all the other improvements on the farm are in accordance therewith. For many years he has carried on the various departments of his work with that discretion and energy which are sure to find a natural sequel in definite success, having always been a hard worker, a good manager and a man of
Digitized by
-
765
JOHNSON COUNTY, INDIANA.
economical habits, and, being fortunately situated in a thriving farming com- munity, it is no wonder that he gained the front ranks of the agriculturists of this favored locality.
Mr. Griffith has been twice married, first on January 2, 1894, to Minnie B. Von Talge, the daughter of Henry and Laura (Curry) Von Talge, the father being a native of Kentucky and an early settler of this county, to which union were born two children, Marie and Granville Ray. On September 12, 1906, Mr. Griffith married Florence Depue, daughter of William and Lavin- na (Records) Depue, both families having been prominent in the early his- tory of this county.
Politically, Mr. Griffith has given his support to the Republican party, while his fraternal relations are with the Knights of Pythias. He is a member of the Baptist church and takes a deep and active interest in the verities of the . spiritual life. In every avenue of life's activities he has been true to every trust and is justly popular in his home community.
ARCH W. BYERS.
The science of agriculture-for it is a science as well as an art-finds an able demonstrator as well as successful practitioner in the person of Arch W. Byers, who is widely known in Johnson county, maintaining a very pro- ductive and desirable farm in Franklin township. He comes of a very highly honored pioneer family, members of which have played well their parts in the general development of this favored section of the great Indiana commonwealth.
Arch W. Byers, well known throughout Johnson county as the owner of the celebrated "Melrose Farm" in Franklin township, was born on Decem- ber 28, 1869, in this township, and is the son of Henry S., Sr., and Maria (McCauley) Byers, natives of Kentucky, his mother being a daughter of Dr. Robert McCauley, a native of Scotland, and the latter was also one of the early pioneer physicians of Johnson county, where he was held in high esteem. Henry S. Byers, Sr., was born in 1823 and died in 1900. He came to Johnson county, Indiana, with his father, Henry Byers, in 1825, the family settling in Franklin township, where the father had filed on govern- ment land, one hundred and sixteen acres of this tract being still in posses- sion of the family. Henry S. Byers became an extensive land owner and live stock man, owning at one time five hundred and eighty acres in one tract.
Digitized by Google
.
766
JOHNSON COUNTY, INDIANA.
Besides this tract he bought other land and gave a farm to each of his chil- dren, allowing them to pay out in time. During his life he owned over one thousand acres of land and was numbered among the most prosperous agri- culturists of Johnson county. Politically, he was a staunch Whig, and upon the formation of the Republican party he became aligned with that political faith, from which he never departed. He was a member of the Home Guards, and his religious membership was with the First Mt. Pleasant Baptist church. The subject's mother died in 1901. They had become the parents of thirteen children, of whom nine were reared to maturity, namely : Robert McCauley, who died at the age of forty-two years; Sarah M. Vandivier, of Franklin township; George W., of Franklin: Alonzo N., of Franklin township: Ade- line, who married a Mr. Wilkes and lives in Hensley township, and Caro- line, the wife of Mr. Riggs, of Franklin township, are twins; Sylvanus, of Franklin township; Susanna (Mrs. McCaslin), of Franklin township. R. N. McCaslin now occupies the old home place, where the subject of this sketch first saw the light of day, it having belonged to the old Dr. McCauley estate. The house, a fine old brick mansion, was built in ante-bellum days, but was burned down during the war and later rebuilt. The subject of this sketch received his education in the little brick school house near his home, and he was reared to the life of a farmer. Upon starting out in life for himself he applied himself diligently to the vocation of agriculture, spending seven years on his father's farm. In 1897 he received one hundred and thirty-six acres of the home farm,on which he built a house, and in time he paid his father for the land. The father had a peculiar plan of distributing his proper- ty among the children. When a child had accummulated two thousand dol- lars, the father gave him a farm and also two thousand dollars and gave him time to pay for the land without interest. The payment notes were .five hundred dollars yearly, and if all the notes aggregating thirty-seven hun- dred dollars were paid as they came due they bore no interest. Nine chi !- dren in the family were thus treated, and were thus enabled to accumulate good estates. The subject lived on his tract of land for eleven years and then traded with George W. Byers for his present farm, which comprises one hun- dred and thirty-one acres, and which is improved with a fine sixteen-room modern residence, large and substantial barns and other necessary outbuild- ings. Mr. Byers feeds stock largely with the grain produced on the farm, and has thus been able to realize unusually good profits from his efforts. He keeps fifteen to twenty full-blooded Jersey cows and sells the milk from these, aver- aging three hundred pounds a day or thirty-five gallons. He has twenty acres
Digitized by Google
.
767
JOHNSON COUNTY, INDIANA.
of land planted to wheat, fifty acres to corn, fifteen acres to oats and forty acres to clover and hay.
Politically, Mr. Byers is a staunch and active supporter of the Progres- sive party, heartily endorsing the policies of that party as promulgated by Theodore Roosevelt. His religious membership is with the First Mt. Pleasant Baptist church, to which he gives liberally and of which he is a regular at- tendant.
In 1890 Mr. Byers was united in marriage to Nona Nichols, and to them have been born two children, Paul and Raymond Nichols.
Reverting to the genealogical ancestry of the subject of this sketch, it is worthy of note that the emigrant ancestor of the subject, George Frederick Byers, who came from Germany to this country, married Catharine Sams. Among their children was Henry, born January 15, 1788, who married Elizabeth Wylie, September 5, 1811, and whose death occurred on April 14, 1865. They had eleven children, George, Sarah, John, Isaac, Benjamin, Henry S., Sr., Catharine, Elizabeth W., Cynthia Ann, Jacob and David. Henry Byers was born in Pennsylvania, and, having lost his father while quite young, he was taken into the family of Demaree, who brought him to Henry county, Kentucky. He was there reared and in the spring of 1825 he was married and moved to Indiana, the trip being made on horse-back, on which he also carried a sack of flour. He entered a farm five miles south- west of Franklin, the same being that now owned by Sylvanus Byers, of which he cleared five acres and planted it in corn. He then returned to Ken- tucky after cultivating his crop and brought back his family. He was an expert drummer, and was presented with a drum by the state for his services during the Indian troubles. This drum, with the gift inscription, is now owned by Arch W. Byers. Henry Byers married Maria McCauley on January 9. 1845, and to them were born the following children : Robert M., born November 17, 1845, died November 30, 1887; Mary E., born March 27, 1847, died September 18, 1851; Sarah M., born October 4, 1848; George W., June 15, 1851 ; Alonzo N., October 3, 1853; Caroline, December 7, 1855, and Adaline, the same date, twins; Syl- vanus, April 20, 1858; Clarissa, July 4, 1860, died April 4, 1863; Rachel, November 10, 1862, died December 4, 1862; Almira, February 7, 1864, died April 22, 1865; Susanna, April 13, 1866; Arch W., December 28, 1869, the last named being the immediate subject of this sketch.
Mr. Byers has long been numbered among the progressive agriculturists and public spirited citizens of this county, and is now the owner of a very desirable farm property and is one of the substantial men of his community.
Digitized by Google
768
JOHNSON COUNTY, INDIANA.
Endowed by nature with strong mental powers and possessing the courage and energy to direct his faculties in proper channels, he early became a man of resourceful capacity, as the able management of his private affairs abun- dantly testify. He possesses the happy faculty of not only making friends, but binding them to him by his good qualities of head and heart.
WILLIAM A. RUSSELL.
In his special line of effort, probably no man in central Indiana has achieved a more pronounced success nor a larger record than William A. Russell, who is not only a farmer of large importance, but is also a noted horse breeder. For a quarter of a century he has given his particular atten- tion to the breeding and raising of Percheron draft horses and mules, and be- cause of the eminent success which he has achieved he has gained a reputation which extends far beyond the borders of his own locality. Sound judgment, wise discrimination and good common sense have so entered into his make-up as to enable him to carry on his business along lines that have insured his suc- cess. Because of his splendid record and his high personal qualities, he is eminently deserving of representation in the annals of his county.
William A. Russell was born on January 18, 1866, on the farm where he now lives, and is a son of Alexander R. and Mary (Durbin) Russell. Alex- ander R. Russell, who was born in Shelby county, Indiana, on July 28, 1818. was the first white child born in Shelby county. He was the son of John Rus- sell, a native of Kentucky and one of the first settlers of Shelby county, In- diana, having made the trip by horseback to his new home in 1815. His wife, Mary, was born in Blue River township. Johnson county, Indiana, on July 8, 1836, and was a daughter of William Durbin, a Kentuckian by birth and also an early settler of Blue River township, Johnson county. Alexander R. Rus- sell, whose death occurred in April, 1900, was one of the most successful farmers of Johnson county, and accumulated four hundred and eighty acres of fine land .. He was twice married and was the father of thirteen children, ten of whom lived to mature years. His first wife was Susan Cutsinger, who bore him Margaret, Harvey, Jacob, Mary, Malvina, Sarah, John and Susan. To his union with Mary Durbin were born William A., Mrs. Harriet Solen- burg and Matilda.
William A. Russell was reared to the life of a farmer and secured his education in the common schools of his home neighborhood and one year in
Digitized by Google
769
JOHNSON COUNTY, INDIANA.
the Edinburg high school. He has never seen any reason to induce him to forsake the vocation to which he was reared, and he has been eminently suc- cessful. He is himself the owner of fifty-two acres of land in Blue River township and forty acres in Nineveh township, while he and his mother to- gether own two hundred and eighty acres of land, and he oversees one hun- dred acres in Nineveh township. He is thoroughly up to date in all his operations, giving proper attention to the maintenance of the fertility of the soil, while the building and other permanent improvements on his farms indi- cate him to be a man of good taste and sound ideas.
It is, however, as a breeder of horses that Mr. Russell has achieved his greatest reputation and it is deemed consonant in this connection to recite in some detail the description of some of the splendid animals which are in his stables. During the past twelve years Mr. Russell has devoted his attention principally to the breeding and raising of Percherons and jacks. He has ten registered Percherons, the finest of their kind in Johnson county, and nine- teen grade horses. He also gives careful attention to the breeding and raising of Duroc Jersey hogs, in the handling of which he is also highly successful. Mr. Russell began his breeding operations with Wannetta, 45592, recorded by the Percheron Society of America, and which was purchased by Mr. Russell on February 28, 1909. Prior to that time, however, he had owned a number of pure-bred horses. The next mare, a daughter of Wannetta, was Belvia, 45593, and Wannetta's second colt was St. Elmo, 59694. St. Elmo is a black stallion and is as handsome a horse as there is in the country and is recorded in the Percheron Society of America. Sire, Madrid, 41499 (57014).
A full sister to St. Elmo is Martha Washington, 71130, whose pedigree is the same as that of St. Elmo. The next colt was Red Pepper, 94445, whose sire was Glen, 49173, and recorded in the Percheron Society.
Other pure bred mares in Mr. Russell's stables are Dorothy, 55003 ; sire, Madrid (see St. Elmo). Lena, 86895; sire, High Top, 35557. Bertha, 94446; sire, Glen, 49173 ; dam, Dorothy, 55003. Pedigree runs back to 1884. Several of the pedigrees run back to the seventh dam, imported in 1851. Mr. Russell also has a colt, sired by Challenge, 63426; dam, Belvia.
Mr. Russell also has three splendid black jacks, the chief of which is Rastus, sired by Brud Ritter ; dam, Charlotte.
Mr. Russell is a member of the executive committee of the Indiana Draft Horse Breeders' Association, and a member of the Percheron Society of America, being in line for election as a director of the latter organization. He has exhibited his horses at a number of state and county fairs and has won
(49)
Digitized by Google
770
JOHNSON COUNTY, INDIANA.
many blue ribbons with them. He is justifiably proud of his attainments as a horse breeder, and has done much to promote among the rank and file of the farmers a desire for a better breed of horses than they were formerly satisfied to own.
Politically, Mr. Russell is a stanch supporter of the Republican party. He contributes liberally to the support of the Methodist church, to which his family belongs. Fraternally, he is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Improved Order of Red Men, at Edinburg.
On September 15, 1883, Mr. Russell was united in marriage to Lottie Burkhart, the daughter of Andrew and Ursula (Stevens) Burkhart, and to this union have been born the following children: Mary, Mrs. Hattie Kyle, Earl L., Alexander and Edna. Personally, Mr. Russell is well liked, being a man of pleasing address, and he is rightfully numbered among the leading men of his community.
ELMORE TODD EARNEST.
Specific mention is made of many of the worthy citizens of Johnson county within the pages of this work, citizens who have figured in the growth and development of this favored locality and whose interests have been iden- tified with its every phase of progress, each contributing in his sphere of action to the well-being of the community in which he resides and to the ad- vancement of its normal and legitimate growth. Among this number is he whose name appears above, peculiar interest attaching to his career from the fact that practically his entire life has been spent within the borders of this county.
Elmore T. Earnest, a successful farmer and popular citizen of Need- ham township, was born December 22, 1854, on the farm where he now lives, and he enjoys the additional distinction of having lived in the same yard for fifty-nine years, his first home having been in a log house built by Henry Henderson in about the year 1812, the present home having been built by his father in 1864. Therefore, but two houses have occupied this site in a period of over one hundred years. Mr. Earnest is a son of David E., who was born in Virginia in 1827, and came to Johnson county, Indiana, in 1842. Here he married Mary A. Bennett, a native of Oldham county, Kentucky, born in 1827, who came to Johnson county at the age of seven years, and here
Digitized by Google
771
JOHNSON COUNTY, INDIANA.
spent the remainder of her life, dying in 1906. David E .; who had come to this country in company with an uncle, Stephen Tillson, one of the early pioneers of this section of the state, became a well known and successful resident of this locality, and his death, in December, 1896, was considered a distinct loss to the community. To him and his wife was born one child, the subject of this sketch.
Elmore T. Earnest received his education in the common schools of the home neighborhood and was reared to the life of a farmer, which voca- tion he has followed ever since. On the death of his father he inherited the home farm of one hundred acres and has brought it up to a high state of cultivation, with splendid modern improvements, so that the place is now valued at one hundred and seventy-five dollars per acre. The land is extraor- dinary fertile; good fences are maintained on the place, and the land is properly ditched and tilled, these improvements making it one of the most attractive and profitable farms in the neighborhood. The land is all in culti- vation and practically all of the grain produced is fed to hogs and cattle, of which the output in the spring of 1913 was forty-nine head, although the annual capacity of the farm is about sixty head. The acreage of grain on the farm is twenty-five acres of corn and thirty acres of wheat, while thirty tons of hay will be cut this year. Mr. Earnest is indefatigable in his efforts and up-to-date in his methods, so that he is numbered among the representative agriculturists of this section of the county.
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.