USA > Indiana > Knox County > History of Knox and Daviess Counties, Indiana : from the earliest time to the present; with biographical sketches, reminiscences, notes, etc. ; together with an extended history of the colonial days of Vincennes, and its progress down to the formation of the state government > Part 6
USA > Indiana > Daviess County > History of Knox and Daviess Counties, Indiana : from the earliest time to the present; with biographical sketches, reminiscences, notes, etc. ; together with an extended history of the colonial days of Vincennes, and its progress down to the formation of the state government > Part 6
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Coal L, caking, white ash. .4 in. to 4} ft.
Fire clay. .4} ft.
*Adapted to this volume from the report of the State Geologist.
59
HISTORY OF KNOX COUNTY.
Brown sandstone and silicious shale. 10 to 17} ft.
Hard bituminous limestone, full of fossils. .3 to 5 ft.
Calcareous and pyritous "clod" .3 in. to 2 ft.
Black sheety slate, with fossils .5 in. to 1} ft.
Coal K, caking or laminated. 3 to 6} ft.
Fire clay, shales, iron-stones, etc. .23 to 40 ft.
Shale, slate and cannel coal (?). .1 to 3 ft.
Coal I, part block.
1§ to 3 ft.
Fire clay and sandstone. .4 to - ft.
GENERAL OBSERVATIONS.
The above gives in descending order a careful estimate of the average strata met with in Knox County. The group belongs to the upper part of the coal measures and dips from east to west at an average of twenty-two feet to the mile; and from the fact that the depth becomes greater in the valley of the Wabash, and the relative distance of the strata farther from each other, owing to the thickening of the intervening strata, the coal seams there may be looked for far under the surface. The most noticeable rock is the "Merom sandstone." It consists of coarse red and white sandstones, disintegrating upon exposure to a coarse sand, owing to the iron which is oxidized and rendered soluble in water charged with carbonic acid gas. The stone may be seen at Fort Knox, Wolf's Hill, and numerous other places forming the high bluffs along the Wabash. The stratification is so uniform and the com -. position so similar that it is reasonable to conclude that the rock occupied all the intervening area, but has been worn away by water, save the bluffs. This will also account for the large quan- tity of sand in the southern part of the county and vicinity where it has been washed, and for the logs, etc., found deep under ground at Vincennes and elsewhere, imbedded in muck deposited in chasms formed by ancient erosive agencies. Owing to its lith- ological character and position, it is thought further examination will give to this rock a more recent origin. In the western part of the county the rash coals of the above section are found near the surface, but they occur higher going eastward, and finally dis- appear in a line extending from near Freelandsville via Cox's Hill and High Point to the head of Wilson's Creek. These coals are not of workable thickness, and the slate over them usually contains so muchi bituminous matter that it will support combustion. The
·
4
60
HISTORY OF KNOX COUNTY.
limestones superimposing these coals (the upper two of the above section) are compact, hard and clinky, but on the west line of the county they became soft laminated beds or calcareous shales con- taining fine Pleurotomaria, Macrocheilus, Bellerophon, Moulfor- tianus, Athyris, Myalina, etc. The yellow sandstone, the roof of Coal M, is soft but weathers hard, and furnishes excellent ham- mered masonry. Coal M has an average thickness of about three feet. It is fat, caking, contains considerable sulphur, but is excellent for grate use, and underlies the county west of a line drawn from Edwardsport to Freelandsville. Between Coals L and M there sometimes occurs among the sandy shales and soapstones a massive argillaceous sandstone. It is too soft for foundations. Coal L averages over three feet in thickness. It is semi-caking, burns to a white ash, is usually free from sulphur, and compares well with the same coal at Washington, Daviess County. It underlies the entire county save a small tract around Edwards- port. The limestone forming the roof of Coal K is compact, massive, often pure enough for lime and durable enough for building purposes, but in places it suddenly becomes calcareous shale. It is full of Producta, Spirifera, Allorisma, Athyris, Hemipronitis, Chonetes, Bellerophon, Rhynchonella, Orthoceras, Lophophyllum, and others. The black sheety slate under it con- tains scales, spines and dermal slates of the shark Petrodus, also Orthocerata, Discina and Lingula. It also contains potstones of iron ore. Coal K is the lowest outcrop of coal in the county which appears at the surface. It is from three to six and one- half feet thick, and future investigation may give it a thickness, as in places in Daviess County, of seven to ten feet. It no doubt underlies much of Knox County and will be found thick and oth- erwise valuable. It is usually a strong, fat, caking coal, occa- sionally sulphurous. Coal I below K has not been well exam- ined, but though comparatively thin doubtless contains much good coal, block and cannel.
LOCAL DETAILS.
Just north of Griswold the upper rash coal of the above section was reached forty-three feet below the surface. At Emison the valuable coals are 200 to 250 feet below the surface. South of
61
HISTORY OF KNOX COUNTY.
Emison and north of Marie Creek 1} feet of coal and black slate appears at the surface. One mile south of Vincennes a shaft of 54 feet revealed 1 foot of coal and 40 feet of soft sand-stone.
SECTION AT BUNKER HILL.
Outcrop-shaft and bore:
Feet.
Slope
.30
Red sandstone-Merom rock.
22
Silicious ironstones in shale.
3
Black sheety slate
5
Gray argil. shale.
2
Dark bituminous shale.
4
Top of shaft four feet above high water:
Feet.
Inches.
Dark limestone.
5
0
Soft sandstone.
7
0
Dark shale.
4
0
Soft dark limestone.
2
0
Fire clay
0
6
Flaggy limestone or silicious shale
11
0
Silicious soapstone.
6
0
Dark slate ..
5
0
Gray limestone.
2
0
Calcareous shale.
1
6
Coal-rash
0
11
Fire clay
3
6
Sand rock, compact.
7
0
Gray soapstone.
8
0
Sandstone.
3
0
Dark soft limestone.
1
6
Sandstone
5
0
Soft gray limestone.
8
0
Dark gray shale
10
0
Soapstone
0
6
Coal parting.
0
1
Soapstone.
1
6
Hard limestone.
2
0
Sandstone.
8
0
The coals there given are the upper rash varieties of the for- mer table. The valuable Coals M, L and K are from 250 to 500 feet lower down. It should be remembered that all the country around Vincennes was once covered with the "Merom sandstone" 50 to 70 feet thick. The limestone which superimposes the rash coals outcrops at several places in the southern part of the county, being usually 2 to 3 feet thick. Though argillaceous it furnishes
62
HISTORY OF KNOX COUNTY.
a strong dark-colored lime. Thin outcrops of the rash coals are also found in the southern part. The coal is bright, lustrous, pure, semi-caking, turns to a white ash and is used by residents and by blacksmiths. The following section was taken in the southeastern part of Harrison Township:
Slope
Laminated sandstone. 3 ft.
Soapstone. .5 ft.
Bituminous parting. 1 in. to 4 in.
Soapstone, fern bed, with Alethopteris Serlii, Sphen- ophyllum Schlotheimi, Pecopteris arborescens, P.
(Sp?), Neuropteris hirsuta, Cordaites borassifolia 2 in. to 5 in. Coal N ?. 1 ft. 6 in. to 3} ft.
Fire clay 4 ft.
The section at the old Williams shaft is as follows:
Feet.
Red clay soil-slope.
20 to 30
Fire clay -- coal ?.
2
Shaly sandstone. 8
Compact sandstone. 3
Shaly sandstone.
12
Shaly soft sandstone.
10
Massive quarry sandstone.
15
Heavy bedded sandstone
10
Top of bore:
Feet.
Sandstone
2
Shale.
5
Blue sandstone.
21
Black slate.
Coal M?
4
Fire clay
4
Sandstone.
5
Gray shale and soapstone.
21
Black slate ..
25
It is probable that had this shaft been sunk a short distance farther one or more workable seams of excellent coal would have been found. Beds of massive sandstone outcrop with precipitous or projecting walls near this shaft. Coal M may be found about fifty feet below the base of Lucky Point. Coal M has been worked by stripping near Wheatland, and varies in thickness from one to two and a half feet. The Niblack section is as follows:
63
HISTORY OF KNOX COUNTY.
Feet.
Drift.
17
Red sandstone. 7
White sandstone. 6
Dark soapstone. 16
Coal M ..
24
Fire clay
3
Dark coarse rock 20
White sandstone. 10
Blue hard rock.
8
Dark hard rock.
4
White fine rock, argillaceous sandstone 4
Had this shaft been sunk a few feet deeper Coal L would have been reached. At the old Weaver bank north of Wheatland Coal M is 3 feet 4 inches thick and is a fat caking coal full of gas and bitumen. The section is:
Slope.
Quarry sandstone-soft part. .15 ft.
Gray shale-pyritous. 2 ft. to 4 ft.
Coal M. 6 in. to 3} ft.
Fire clay 3} ft.
Soapstone, with iron stone nodules. 16 ft. to 25 ft.
Slate.
.4 in.
Coal L.
4} ft.
Fire clay
3 ft.
Coal K is found about forty feet below the surface, Coal M from 45 to 78 feet and Coal L from 70 to 108 feet. On Dona- tion 131 the section was:
.Drift.
Feet. 20 0
Hard sandstone.
41
0
Fine grained sandstone. 16
0
Gray slate.
0
2
Black slate.
0
4
Coal M.
4
6
At the Kelty & Swick bank the section is:
Feet.
Slope
20
Shelly sandstone
6
Laminated sandstone. 15
Quarry sandstone 14
Laminated sandstone.
4
Silicious shale with iron nodules 9
Coal
to 34
Limestone and soil 30
Coal
4
Inches.
64
HISTORY OF KNOX COUNTY.
At Bicknell a coal seam 2 feet thick was found 82 feet below the surface. A section at Edwardsport is as follows:
Feet.
Inches.
Clay ..
12
0
Shelly sandstone
18
0
Argillaceous sandstone.
1
6
Soapstone.
0
8
Coal L:
Feet.
Inches.
Fat coal
1
8
Parting
0
0
Cubic coal
0
6
Parting
0
1
Laminated coal
2
0
Parting
0
1
Coal
0
10
Fire clay.
3 feet.
Coal L of this section is bright and glossy and burns to a white ash. Three shafts a mile or more northwest of Edwards- port found coal L varied from 3 feet 2 inches, to 5 feet 8 inches. Near this Coal K was 6 feet deep. On Section 12, Town 4, Range 8, the following is the section:
Feet.
Inches.
Soil and loess
12
0
Argillaceous sandstone
8
0
Soapstone.
0
8
Coal L.
2
6
Fire clay
3
0
Sandstone, laminated.
17
0
Bituminous limestone
3
0
Black sheety slate
.6 in. to 1
6
Coal K:
Feet.
Inches.
Laminated coal
1
6
Parting, pyrite and smut
0
Compact coal, part block
1
4
Smut parting.
0
01
Blacksmith-fat coal.
1
6
-
4
5
Fire clay (in bore).
4
White sandstone and shale
30
Soapstone becoming darker
27ł
5
2
FOSSILS.
The following fossils occur in the limestone and calcareous shale overlying Coal K: Productus costatus, P. punctatus, P.
65
HISTORY OF KNOX COUNTY.
semireticulatus, P. longispinus, Spirifer cameratus, S. lineatus, S. Kentuckensis, Allorisma (sp .? ) Hemipronitus crassus, H. crenistria, Chonetes mesoloba, C. spinuilifera, C. (sp .? ) Bellerophon carbonarius, Rhynchonella Osagensis, Orthoceras Rushensis, Lophophyllum proliferum, and crinoid stems and spines. Coal M outcrops northwest of Edwardsport, and is found in wells, and has an average thickness of 3 feet. The combined thickness of all coals in the vicinity of Edwardsport amounts to nearly 12 feet. A short distance northwest of Sand- born the following is the section:
Soil and sand
0
Yellow clay
7
0
Soft sandstone
10
0
Compact sandstone
5
0
Soapstone (cal. slate?).
4
6
Black sheety slate.
6
4
Coal K-part block.
3
0
Fire clay
3
0
On Section 3 northeast of Sandborn the following strata were struck :
Feet.
Inches.
Soil, sand and muck.
42
0
Sandstone
12
0
Rash coal
3
2
Soapstone
5
0
Coal K (?).
1
6
Hard sandstone
6
0
Clay and iron balls
16
0
Black slate
9
4
Slaty cannel
3
0
Coal L (?) part block
3
0
Fire clay
1
0
On Section 34 northwest of Sandborn, in Greene County, the bore was as follows:
Feet.
Inches.
Clay and sand.
16
0
Sandstone
10
0
Soapstone.
5
0
Slate.
10
0
Coal L.
0
8
Fire clay
1
6
White sandstone.
26
4
Soapstone.
7
0
Sandy shale.
3
6
Black slate.
0
3
Coal K.
0
6
Feet. 14
Inches.
66
HISTORY OF KNOX COUNTY.
Feet. 0
Inches.
Clay parting.
9
Coal K.
2
9
Fire clay.
3
4
Potter's clay.
5
6
Sandstone.
5
0
Hard limestone.
3
6
Limestone.
21
6
Coal I.
0
10
Fire clay
3
0
Potter's clay.
6
0
Argillaceous sandstone
6
6
Blue limestone.
2
0
Soapstone
0
4
Blue limestone.
0
5
Sandstone
13
0
Bituminous soapstone.
25
0
This section may be taken as a type for the region in and around Sandborn, though faults will be found and the thickness of the seams may vary greatly. A well dug in Freelandsville, passed through the Merom sandstone; it was 51 feet thick, and 12 feet below the surface.
On Section 8, Township 4, Range 8, the following is the sec- tion:
Feet.
Inches.
Clay soil.
5
0
Laminated Merom sandstone.
5
0
Thick bedded Merom sandstone.
10
0
Soft, friable. white sandstone.
15
0
Argil. limestone-conglomeratic.
3
0
Clay parting.
0 1 to 4
Dark limestone, containing crinoid stems, corals, Athy- ris subtilita, Productus punctatus, P. semiretic- ulatus, P. longispinus, Chonetes mesoloba, Spirifer
lineatus, Orthis carbonaria and Rhynchonella Osagensis
4 0
Place of rash coal.
0 0
Fire clay-potters' clay.
1
6
LIMESTONE AND SANDSTONE.
The limetone of this section often outcrops and leaves detached blocks scattered over the surface, and when burned, pro- duces the strong dark-colored lime. Deposits of Merom sand- stone may be seen near Bruceville. At this town the section is:
Feet.
Inches.
Soil and fluviatile drift
20
0
Soft red Merom rock.
20
0
Silicious shale. 2 0
67
HISTORY OF KNOX COUNTY.
Feet. Inches.
Hard ferruginous, argillaceous, conglomerate lime-
stone.
2 0
Upper rash coal, black slate.
0
2
Fire clay.
1 0
Soapstone and silicious shale.
20
0
Coarse sandstone.
8
0
Bituminous soapstone.
4
0
Limestone, layers and clay partings.
43
0
Coal N has been worked on Lots 12 and 143, and varies from one to three feet thick. Over the surface coals are two or three feet of bituminous slate, some of which will burn. The following is the section on Lot 183:
Slope
Feet. 30
0
Red and white Merom rock.
18
0
Silicious shale and iron nodules.
3
0
Flaggy sandstone.
4
0
Silicious shale and shaly sandstone.
25
0
Conglomeratic sandstone.
2
4
Pyritous soapstone.
0
8
Lower rash coal:
Feet.
Inches.
Slaty coal.
0
8
Cannel slate.
2
2
Coal caking
0
2
-
3
0
Fire clay
3 feet.
ECONOMIC QUESTIONS.
Knox County has large tracts of alluvial bottom-lands. Crops of all descriptions grow well on them, while the higher and more barren soils produce fine grasses and fruits. Trees reach an enormous size. On the old Ochiltree farm was the " great pear tree," which was 12 feet in circumference at the base, 120 feet high, had a lateral spread of 60 feet from the trunk, and bore an average crop of 50 bushels. Gravel, suitable for the grading of roads, is found in several places. The whole eastern side of the county furnishes coals M, L and K, in an aggregate thickness of over ten feet, underlying probably half of the county. The Merom sandstone is generally too soft for building purposes, but other deposits of sandstone furnish durable material. The limestone is generally argillaceous and pyritous, but when other- wise, as is occasionally the case, furnishes good, though dark-
Inches.
68
HISTORY OF KNOX COUNTY.
colored lime. Clays for brick, tile, terra-cotta and pottery-ware abound. An analysis of the coals of the county shows the pres- ence of from 38 to 59 per cent of fixed carbon, with an average, from twenty-one critical examinations, of over 50 per cent. The lower part of the Weaver coal showed the largest percentage of fixed carbon and the smallest percentage of gas-33 per cent. The percentage of gas varied from 33 to 38.5 per cent. The quantity of ash varied from 2.5 to 25 per cent, but averaged 5.6 per cent.
CHAPTER VI.
COMPILED BY PROF. Z. T. EMERSON.
SETTLEMENT OF KNOX COUNTY-NAMES OF MANY OF THE EARLIEST RES- IDENTS, TOGETHER WITH AN ACCOUNT OF THEIR LIVES IN THE FOR- ESTS OF INDIANA-THE EARLY MILLS, DISTILLERIES, STORES, ETC. -INDIAN RELICS AND REMAINS OF THE MOUND-BUILDERS-ADVEN- TURES AND ANECDOTES-ANCIENT TITLES, OR LAND GRANTS-CLAIMS TO LAND IN THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY-GRANTS TO SETTLERS AT VINCENNES.
V INCENNES TOWNSHIP was one of the two townships laid off by the court in 1790. It then comprised all embraced in the township now and much more. Portions of the land at first were unfit for cultivation, particularly the lower part along the river. Large sums of money have been spent in reclaiming the lands. By an act of the General Assembly the 5,400 acres of land, the old "Vincennes commons," were sold, and the greater portion of the money spent in draining the big marsh. The last report on agriculture shows an acreage in cultivation of over 10,000 acres. Large portions of the land above and below the town were em- braced in the old French claims, in the upper and lower surveys and Cathilinette Prairie.
THE EARLY SETTLERS.
One of the first settlers at the beginning of the present cen- tury was Samuel McKee, who was a surgeon in the United States Army. He came from Kentucky to Vincennes about 1800. He
69
HISTORY OF KNOX COUNTY.
was stationed at Fort Knox. His death occurred May 6, 1809. John Badollet was born in Geneva, Switzerland, and was a friend of Albert Gallatin, Secretary of the Treasury under Jefferson. He was register of the land office a number of years, and, as a commissioner with Nathaniel Ewing, passed on the donation and militia claims of the county. He bought the present Badollet farm of Col. Vigo. He was one of the most prominent characters in the early history of the county. Col. Francis Vigo, whose name should be reverenced more than his fame is, came to Vin- cennes at the time of its capture by Col. Clark; after living in Vincennes for a time, moved out to the farm now owned by A. B. McKee, where he resided till his death. Quite a number of heirlooms of Col. Vigo are now owned by Mr. McKee. Col. Vigo was born in Mendovia, Sardinia, 1747. He enlisted in a Spanish regiment as a private soldier. The part of the regiment to which he belonged was sent to New Orleans. After leaving the army he was known as a Spanish trader among the Indians on the Arkansas, its tributaries and the Mississippi at St. Louis, then a Spanish post. On the capture of Kaskaskia by Col. Clark, he hastened to that place to offer the Americans assistance. The army was in great destitution and without credit. Vigo's pri- vate means were given in their aid; he, further, undertook a journey to Vincennes, then in the hands of the British. This had shortly before been captured by Gov. Hamilton, the Brit- ish commander. When near Vincennes he was captured by some Indians and taken as a prisoner to Gov. Hamilton. Knowing he was a Spanish subject, although with some misgivings, he was released on parole, through the influence of Father Gibbault. He was not long in informing Col. Clark of the weakness of the gar- rison. Col. Clark soon availed himself of the opportunity that resulted so gloriously to the American Army. Gen. St. Clair, governor of the Northwest Territory, paid this compliment to Col. Vigo in his report to the Secretary of War, September 19, 1790: "Mr. Vigo, a gentleman of Vincennes, the United States are much indebted to, and he is, in truth, the most disinterested person I have almost ever seen." He at one time owned large estates in the county, but disdaining to contend over technicalities he lost the greater part before his death. His girl-wife had the
70
HISTORY OF KNOX COUNTY.
most implicit confidence in him, as did the Indians. On being asked by an old citizen, now living, whence his great influence over the Indians, his answer was "Because I never deceive an Indian." It is an historic fact that any promise made by him to them, or by them to him, was faithfully carried out. He was one of the trustees of St. Francis Xavier from 1818 to 1821; he, however, did not die in the faith of that church. His death occurred in 1838. Nathaniel Ewing was one of the commission- ers of the land office; he was a resident of the county before the year 1800. He became quite wealthy, and was the owner of some large tracts of land, and was a large stockholder in the Vincennes Bank. He resided on his farm, near Mr. A. B. McKee's, for many years, where he died. His body was buried at Vincennes. Patrick Simpson was another early settler in the same vicinity. He became the owner at a very early day of the corner of Dona- tion of 115 and 300 acres of No. 4. In 1815 he made a donation of 100 acres of land to Indiana Church. John Johnson, great- grandfather of the present generation of Johnsons, settled in the same neighborhood. He was a highly educated man and a prom- inent citizen. It was with Mrs. Johnson that Judge Isaac Black- ford made his home in later years. A. B. McKee, one of the oldest men in the county, resides on the farm and in the house formerly owned by Col. Vigo. It was on this farm that bricks for the Harrison mansion were made in 1804. Jeremiah Dono- van resides on the donation drawn by Antoine Drouet, called Richardville. On this lived Christopher Wyant, an early sheriff of the county. In the family are many old relics of Gen. Harri- son, Gov. Hamilton and Richardville. Maj. B. V. Becker, who lived for many years about two and one-half miles east of Vin- cennes, was a man of great force of character. He was sheriff continuously for many years; commanded a company at Tippeca- noe; was commissioned major, October 6, 1812, of the first battal- ion of the First Regiment of Militia of Indiana Territory. He also commanded Company B of United States Rangers in the Black Hawk war. He was a man of prodigious physical strength, and a man of very strong likes and dislikes. The fol- lowing reports of a battalion drill held at Vincennes, October 13, 1813, are found among his papers, in the handwriting of the
71
HISTORY OF KNOX COUNTY.
officers: Capt. Rodarmer's company, 1 captain, 1 lieutenant, 1 en- sign, 4 sergeants, 4 corporals, 30 privates, 44 rifles, 44 pouches and 2 muskets; Lieut. Conrad Crum's company, no captain, 1 lieuten- ant, 1 ensign, 2 sergeants, 35 privates, 17 rifles, 2 fuses, 1 bayo- net, 1 cartridge box, 18 powder horns and 15 pouches; Lieut. Pierre Brouyette's company, no captain, 1 lieutenant, 1 en- sign, 4 sergeants, 4 corporals, 34 muskets, 34 privates, 42 "totalle;" Capt. John Scott's company, 1 captain, 1 lieutenant, 1 ensign, 4 sergeants, 4 corporals, 82 privates; Capt. James Junkins' com- pany showed 1 captain, 1 lieutenant, 1 ensign, 4 sergeants, 4 cor- porals and 41 privates; Capt. Ambrose Malett's company had 50 men, and Captain Gen. W. Johnson had 83. In his report was given the number of officers, privates, bombardiers, fifers, drum- mers, pairs of pistols, steel rods, and in addition were 43 pounds of powder and 8,500 balls.
WIDNER TOWNSHIP.
This township was organized early in the history of the coun- ty. It was named in honor of John Widner, its first settler. It occupies the central portion of the northern part of the county, and is bounded on the north by Sullivan County, on the east by Vigo Township, on the south by Vigo and Washington, and on the west by Busseron, Marsh and Marie Creeks, being the dividing line between it and the last named. The township embraces a few sections over thirty-six square miles. The land is largely under cultivation; the population to a great extent is German. Large quantities of grain and other produce are raised in this township and shipped to other markets. The latest reports show about 15,000 acres in cultivation, or about three-fifths of the entire area of the township. The improvements are not as fine as in some townships, yet it is the remark that a person, in traveling through the township, will pass over less mortgaged land than any in the county.
SETTLEMENT, MILLS, ETC.
The first settler in this township was John Widner, who set- tled about two and a half miles northwest of Freelandsville. He came from Virginia to Knox County in 1798, and in 1804 moved to the land above described. He followed the simple and
72
HISTORY OF KNOX COUNTY.
unostentatious life of a pioneer farmer. Fort Widner was built at this place in 1812 for protection against the Indians. Andrew Wilkins, a brother-in-law of Widner, settled at the same time on No. 2. William Taylor settled on No. 3, near Wilkins and Wid- ner. This family are now all gone. Charles Carrico also came in 1804, and settled on a part of No. 2. He afterward moved to Sullivan. Michael Starner, from Pennsylvania, settled Surveys 30 and 4. He also came in 1804. He was the father of John and Jacob Starner. Ludwig Ernest was another who came in 1804. He was a ranger in 1812. Charles Polk moved from Virginia to Kentucky in 1780, where, in 1782, his wife and children were captured by the Indians and afterward carried to Detroit. They were rescued by friends and returned to the settlement. It was during this captivity that Charles Polk, Jr., was born. He moved to Knox County in 1806, and settled in Widner Township. Will- iam Polk, uncle of James Polk, settled on No. 238, about two miles from Widner's, in 1808. No. 236, adjacent to Polk's, was owned by a non-resident, and was first settled by Hollingsworth.
Alex Chambers, who came from Ohio, settled Location 112 in 1808. He was the father of a large and respectable family that bore a part of the hardships of a pioneer life. William Pearce settled 31, near Starner; he was from Kentucky. John Lemon also was on 238, where he settled in 1808, and where he remained until his death. Isaac McCoy settled on a part of Survey No. 2, where he settled in 1808. He was the pioneer Baptist preacher not only of Knox County, but it might also be said of Indiana. He was a man of sterling worth and the idol of his friends. He remained until 1818. He was for a time a missionary to the In- dian nation. Others might be mentioned. Many squatters lived in the neighborhood, who, from indifference for a home, never fixed any permanent habitation.
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