USA > Indiana > Lawrence County > History of Lawrence and Monroe counties, Indiana : their people, industries, and institutions > Part 54
USA > Indiana > Monroe County > History of Lawrence and Monroe counties, Indiana : their people, industries, and institutions > Part 54
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J. W. BLAIR.
Among the younger members of the bar of Monroe county, Indiana, who has, through his ability and industry, attained to a prominent place among his fellow attorneys, is the gentleman whose name appears at the head of this paragraph. He was born in Bloomington, Indiana, on October 15, 1884, and is the son of W. T. and Julia A. (Waldron) Blair. W. T. Blair was born in Bloomington on May 1, 1866, the son of John and Hannah (Fullerton ) Blair, the father a native of Tennessee and the mother of Ire- land. John Blair, who was a farmer by vocation, came to Monroe county in an early day and settled in Bloomington, where he was actively engaged in agricultural pursuits until his death, which occurred in 1900. W. T. received his education in the public schools and in the university, where he graduated in 1880. He then became employed as a clerk in the W. J. Allen hardware store, but three years later engaged in the shoe business on his own account, in which he was successful, carrying on the business for five years. At the end of that period he was nominated by the Republicans for the office of county auditor, and, being elected, served as such with efficiency and satis-
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faction four years. Upon leaving his public position Mr. Blair engaged in the stone business, becoming interested in the Central Oolitic Stone Company, with which he was connected from 1893 until 1906. He then organized the Bloomington Cut Stone Company, but sold his interest in that company and is now engaged in handling real estate in stone lands and other propositions, and also contracts to build houses, furnishing the stone. In all the various avenues of activity in which he has engaged he has met with splendid suc- cess and is numbered among Monroe county's substantial and enterprising citizens.
Politically a Republican, Mr. Blair has served actively in the ranks of his party and has been honored by public position, in which his ability has been demonstrated in an unmistakable manner. He served as a member of the county council and on the Bloomington city school board, as well as council- man at large for the city of Bloomington. He is a member of the Phi Kappa Psi college fraternity, and, religiously, is a member of the United Presby- terian church.
In 1882 Mr. Blair was united in marriage with Julia A. Waldron, the daughter of John and Anna Waldron. The father, who was a tanner by trade, came to Monroe county in 1856 and bought David Judy's tannery, the operation of which he continued until his death. To W. T. Blair and wife have been born three children : William, at home, who married Mallie Jordan ; James W., the immediate subject of this sketch, and Mary L., at home. WV. T. Blair, who is a man of splendid personal character and high attain- ment, has so lived in this community as to win the warm regard of all who know him. He has been an important factor in the development of the stone industry here and in many ways has evinced a live interest in the welfare of the community.
J. W. Blair received a good, practical common school education, sup- plementing this by attendance at the State University, where he was gradu- ated in 1909 with a degree in law, having received his degree in literature in 1908. Upon completing his studies he embarked in the stone business, but a short time later he entered the office of Duncan & Batman, where for one and one-half years he steadily pursued the study of law, at the end of which time he became a junior member of the legal firm of Batman, Miller & Blair, the co-partnership having been established on February 18, 1911. Mr. Blair has evinced ability of a high order as a lawyer and has been associated as counsel in a number of the most important cases tried at the local bar since he began his professional work. He has a due regard for the ethics of his profession and because of his fine personal qualities, ability and his industri-
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ous habits, he has earned the warm regard of all who have been associated with him.
Politically, Mr. Blair is a stanch Republican and takes an intelligent interest in current public issues. Fraternally, he is a member of the Knights of Columbus, while, socially, he belongs to the college fraternities of Phi Kappa Psi and Phi Delta Phi. Possessing a strong social nature, Mr. Blair is genial and companionable and has won a host of warm personal friends throughout this community.
ALBERT J. FIELDS.
There are individuals in nearly every community who, by reason of pronounced ability and force of character, rise above the heads of the masses and command the unbounded esteem of their fellow men. Characterized by perseverance and a directing spirit, two virtues that never fail, such men al- ways make their presence felt and the vigor of their strong personalities serves as a stimulus and incentive to the young and rising generation: To this energetic and enterprising class the subject of this sketch very properly be- longs. Having never been seized with the wanderlust spirit that has led many of Lawrence county's young men to other fields of endeavor and other states, Mr. Fields has devoted himself to his adopted profession and to the public duties to which he has been called, and, because of his personal worth and his accomplishments, he is clearly entitled to representation among the en- terprising and progressive men of his locality.
Albert J. Fields is the scion of a long line of sterling ancestry. His paternal great-great-great-grandfather, Jeremiah Fields, who was a native of England, came to America in 1765, locating in Virginia or North Carolina. He sided with the colonists in their contentions with the mother country and was a soldier in the war of the Revolution. His son, Robert Fields, who was born in Virginia or North Carolina, fought in the war of 1812. Absalom, son of Robert Fields, came to Lawrence county, Indiana, in 1817, settling near old Port William, and was one of the earliest settlers in this county, securing his land from the government. His son, Joseph, grandfather of the subject of this sketch, was born in Lawrence county, and married Eliza- beth Green, by whom he had eight children, among whom was George Fields, father of the subject. George Fields was born in Martin county, Indiana, but moved to Lawrence county in 1878. Some time later he moved back to
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ALBERT J. FIELDS
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Martin county, but in 1907 he again became a resident of Lawrence county and now resides in Bedford. During his active years he followed farming pursuits, but is now practically retired from active affairs. He married Mary Sheeks, the daughter of David L. and Susan (Horsey) Sheeks. Her father was one of the prominent and wealthy citizens of Lawrence county, and served at one time as county commissioner. At the time of his death he was the owner of four thousand acres of land. To George and Mary Fields were born five children, namely : Addie, who remains at the old home; Albert J., the immediate subject of this sketch; Lizzie M., the wife of Willis Kilburn, of Indianapolis: Laura M., the wife of William Lynch, of Martin county, this state; and Mary Fern Fields, who remains at home.
Albert J. Fields was born in Lawrence county, Indiana, on August 26, 1879, and his elementary education was received in the public schools of Martin county, graduating from the high school at Shoals. Having deter- mined to make the practice of law his life work, Mr. Fields then entered the law department of the State University, at Bloomington, where he was grad- uated in 1904, with the degree of Bachelor of Laws. In September of that year he entered upon the active practice of his profession at Bedford and was soon in command of a good share of the legal work in the local courts. Natural aptitude and rigid training have qualified him for the most intricate phases of legal practice and he has been eminently successful in the practice. Of marked force of character and strong personality, Mr. Fields was, in 1909, elected by the citizens of Bedford to the chief magistracy of that city, a choice the wisdom of which has been abundantly verified since he assumed the position. During his term as mayor the city of Bedford has made re- markable strides as a municipality, the notable improvements consisting of extensive and valuable additions to the water works system, a new electric lighting contract, much more favorable to the city than the former one, an increase of more than twenty-five per cent. in the number of street lights, and the installation of the pedestal cluster light system for many of the streets, and, notwithstanding all these improvements, more than twenty-five thousand dollars of city indebtedness has been paid off, certainly a record of which any administration would have a right to be proud. Mr. Fields is a Democrat in politics, and the second mayor of that political faith to be elected in this city, while the last city election was the first in the history of the city when an entire Democratic ticket was elected. Mr. Fields, by his sound business methods and wise judgment in the handling of public affairs, earned the commendation of his fellow citizens and in 1913 he was again placed in
(36)
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nomination by his party for the mayoralty. He has in mind several other extensive improvements, which he will endeavor to make if successful in re- election, notably in the fire department. He is entirely unselfish in the various efforts he has made to advance the welfare of his city, in which he takes a pride, and he has earned the confidence of all who know him.
Fraternally, Mr. Fields is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and the Loyal Order of Moose. Religiously, he is a member of the Christian church. Personally, he possesses to an eminent degree those char- acteristics which gain friendships and he is deservedly popular in the com- munity.
HOLLIS HENRY CHASE.
Whether the elements of success in this life are innate attributes of the individual or whether they are quickened by a process of circumstantial de- velopment, it is impossible to clearly determine. Yet the study of a success- ful life, whatever the field of endeavor, is none the less interesting and profit- able by reason of the existence of this same uncertainty. In the life record of Hollis H. Chase, who for many years has been identified with various in- terests in Lawrence county, Indiana, we find many qualities in his make-up that always gain definite success in any career if properly directed. The splen- did success which has crowned his efforts has been directly traceable to the salient points in his character, for he started in life at the bottom of the ladder, which he mounted unaided. He comes of a splendid American family, one that has always been strong for right living and industrious habits, for education and morality, for loyalty to the national government, and for all that contributes to the welfare of a community, and, because of his success in life and his high personal character, he is clearly entitled to specific mention in the annals of his county.
Hollis H. Chase is descended from a long line of sturdy progenitors, his paternal genealogy, briefly stated, being as follows: (I) Thomas Chase, of Hundrich, in the parish of Chesham, county of Bucks, England.
(II) Richard Chase, baptized August 3, 1542; married Joan Bishop, April 16, 1564.
(III) Aquila, sixth child of Richard and Joan ( Bishop) Chase, was baptized on August 14, 1580. His wife's given name was Sarah.
( IV) Aquila, son of Aquila and Sarah Chase, was born in 1618, and was
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one of the first settlers of Hampton, 1636-9. He married Anne, daughter of John Wheeler. About 1646 he removed to Newbury and made many voyages from there as master. His will was dated September 19, 1670, and his death occurred on December 27, 1670. John Wheeler came to America in the "Mary and John" in' 1634. His wife, Anne, died on August 15, 1662, at New- bury. In his will, dated 1668, he mentions sons in Salisbury, Wilts county, England.
(V) Daniel, the tenth child of Aquila and Anne Chase, was born on December 9. 1661, and became a wheelwright. On August 25, 1683, he mar- ried Martha Kemball. His death occurred in Newbury February 8, 1707. Richard Kemball, of Rattlesden, Suffold county, England, came in the "Eliza- beth" in 1634, settling in Watertown, Massachusetts, where he was made a freeman on May 6, 1635. He later went to Ipswich. He married Ursula Scott, daughter of Henry Scott, from Rattlesden, and his wife, Martha Whatlock. Richard Kemiball died June 22, 1675, and his wife on March I, 1676. Their son Henry was baptized August 12, 1615, at Rattlesden, Eng- land. He came with his father in 1634. and married, about 1640, Mary, daughter of John and Mary Wyatt, who came in the same ship with Henry and his father. Henry died in Wenham in 1676- and his wife died August 12, 1672. Their twelfth child was Martha, who was born on August 18, 1664. In 1710 Widow Martha (Kemball) Chase became the wife of Josiah Heath, of Haverhill, Massachusetts.
(VI) Isaac. the first son and fourth child of Daniel and Martha ( Kem- ball) Chase, was born on January 19, 1691. On October 29, 1710, he mar- ried Hannah Berry, who died of cancer on May 8. 1771. His death occurred on February 27, 1786, aged ninety-one years, one month and eight days. Isaac Chase removed to Sutton March 2, 1722. He is said to have bought of the Indians six hundred acres of land in Sutton for forty pounds sterling and a gallon of rum.
(VII) Timothy, the third son of Isaac and Hannah ( Berry) Chase, was born February 12, 1719, probably in Newbury. Ile married Leah Rob- bins. He removed to Townshend, Vermont, and died in Rovalston, Massa- chusetts.
Leah Robbins' ancestral line is as follows: Henry Adams, of England, whose son, Thomas, was born in 1612, and married in 1642 to Mary Black- more. To the latter union was born Jonathan on January 6, 1646, who mar- ried Leah Gould, born May 6, 1663, daughter of Francis and Rose Gould. Lydia, daughter of Jonathan and Leah Adams, was born April 2, 1691, and, on August 6, 1713. was married to Thomas Robbins, born probably in 1680.
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The last-named was a son of Robert Robbins, born in 1645, and Mary Max- well, born in 1650, and who were married in 1670. To Thomas and Lydia Robbins was born Leah Robbins on April 25, 1718.
(VIII) Henry, son of Timothy and Leah ( Robbins) Chase, was born in 1746, probably in Sutton or Upton. In 1775 he was living in Upton and served "in Captain Batchelor's company, Colonel Joseph Read's regiment. He was one of the eight months' men who served in and around Boston in 1775;" was with the army at Bunker Hill, and on the 16th he went home. His son Bazaleel, grandfather to the subject of this sketch, was born on the day of the battle and he returned to the army the following day ; other records say he was in the battle. His three elder children were probably born in Sutton or Upton. Tradition in the family is that he removed to Town- shend, Vermont, from Sutton in 1776, and that he settled in Townshend, near the line of Newfane, where he resided on the south side of West river for some time and until the birth of a child, upon which interesting occasion there was such a freshet that the "family doctor was unable to cross, and that he then made a vow that if the waters ever subsided he would remove to the north side of the river, and did so." He purchased, in October, 1783, the farm about three miles northeast of Townshend village and remained thereon until his death, December 12, 1831. It is also tradition in the family that when he lived south of the river one child was born to him, which died young and was buried in the cemetery in the vicinity. There is a tradition also that when he came to Townshend it was from Swansey, New Hampshire. He was the grantor in seventeen deeds of land in Townshend and grantee in four- teen. In 1784 he was in a militia company under Capt. Josiah Fish, called out in Windham county to subdue the rebellious New Yorkers at or near Guilford and Brattleboro. He was a lieutenant, probably in the militia. He married Hepsibah Walker, daughter of Obadiah Walker (and his wife, Hep- sibah Shumway), of Douglas, Massachusetts, who afterwards removed to Royalston. The date of the marriage is unknown. To Henry and Hepsibah Chase were born the following children: ( 1) Abagall, born July 18, 1766, died October 15, 1853. Was twice married, first to Amasa Wheelock on No- vember 27. 1789, and, second, to her cousin, Enoch Chase. (2) Henry, Jr., born October 24. 1767, died November 19, 1849. On November 27, 1788, he married Irene Wheelock, who was born in 1769, and died June 24, 1848. (3) Edith, born July 15, 1770, died in August, 1848. She married Charles Kim- ball about 1785-6. (4) Elias, born probably about 1772, died prior to July 24, 1806. On April 4, 1792, he married Phoebe Gould, and sometime prior to 1804 married Lucy Pierce, nee Cheney. ( 5) Bazaleel (IX) is referred to
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specifically in later paragraphs. (6) Hepsibah, born 1780-1, died July 6, 1867, aged sixty-six years. On May 3, 1801, she married Ebenezer Johnson, who was born on February 14, 1777. (7) Electa, born 1783-4, died August 9, 1867, aged eighty-three years. She became the wife of William Fisher. (8) Sardis Riley, born May 18, 1788, died February 24 or 26, 1863, in Washington, Indiana. He married Persis Paine.
(IX) Bazaleel Chase, the sixth in order of birth of the above children, and grandfather of the subject of this sketch, was born at Sutton or Upton on June 17, 1775, the day of the battle of Bunker Hill. He was a farmer, laborer and mechanic, spending his life at various places, including Jamaica (and probably some part in Townshend), Windham county, and Andover, Windsor county, Vermont. Politically, he was a Whig. His death occurred at Andover, Vermont, on July 26, 1854, at the age of seventy-nine years. On May 13, 1801, he married Susannah Taft, a direct line relative of ex-Presi- dent William H. Taft, and to them were born the following children: Hib- bard T., (X) Balis, Alanson B., Elliott C., Sardis R., Winifred, who married Henry Whitman, and Welthy, who married Amos Howard. None of these children are now living. The mother of these children died at Andover or Jamaica, Vermont, September 10, 1854, at the age of seventy-three years.
(X) Balis Chase, father of the subject of this sketch, was born at Ja- maica, Vermont, on December 13, 1807, and was there reared. He attended the public schools during a term of two months each winter. During his school days he worked out for his board and clothes, and during about four to six months of the year he received from six to ten dollars a month for his labor. He thus worked and saved until he had accumulated six hundred dol- lars, when he married. He was a teamster and followed contracting and farming in Chester and Andover, Vermont, and was a man of good char- acter and respectable standing in his community. His death occurred at And- over on April 29, 1887, at the age of eighty years. Balis Chase married Sarah Howard, who was born at Andover, Vermont, the daughter of David and Cynthia (Crossman) Howard. Her father was an extensive and prosperous farmer on "Howard Hill," Andover, near whose home the first school house in the town was built. He died at Andover on December 25, 1869, aged eighty-eight years. His wife died February 2, 1811, aged fifty-seven years. Their children, all of whom are deceased, were as follows: Elmira, Dr. C. W. Chandler, Lois, Sarah (Mrs. Balis Chase, and mother of the subject of this sketch) ; Cynthia, Rosina, Henry and Elias. These children were all active and capable in their various departments of life, and one, Elias, was a prominent and successful physician and surgeon at Akron, Ohio, where his
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death occurred. To Balis and Sarah Chase were born the following chil- dren: (1) Albert Balis Chase, who died at the age of five years. (2) David Howard Chase, born September 17, 1833, died at the age of fifty-one years, after a successful and useful career as a physician. He married Rebecca Ann Burton, who also is deceased. (3) Hollis Henry Chase (XI), the imme- diate subject of this review. (4) Sarah Elizabeth Chase, born April 7, 1840, became the wife of Commodore Perry Williams, now deceased, and she lives at Mt. Olive, near Williams, Indiana. (5) Clement Balis Chase, born Oc- tober 1, 1844, is a farmer at Simonsville, Vermont. He first married Emma Zora Stootley, and, after her death, Alice Haseltine. (6) Laurin Whiting Chase, born April 28, 1851, died at the age of eighteen years, unmarried. The mother of these children, at the age of seventy-five years, came from her Vermont home to Lawrence county, Indiana, to visit her children who were residing here, and, while at the home of the subject of this sketch, her death occurred about a week after her arrival.
(XI) Hollis Henry Chase was born at Andover, Windsor county, Ver- mont, on October 11, 1836, and spent his early years amid the rough, stony and precipitous hills of that locality, the residents of which had long been characterized by sturdiness, honesty, industry and patriotism. Of the early settlers of Andover, eighteen were in the war of the Revolution, and when the call was made for volunteers for the war of 1812 twenty-five of its citi- zens enlisted, two of whom had served in the Revolutionary struggle. The town first voted to pay the men five dollars each, but subsequently increased this amount to ten dollars per month. Alvin Adams, the founder of the Adams Express Company, and Rev. William S. Balch, the noted traveler and author and eminent Universalist minister, were reared in Andover, near the subject's boyhood home, he being acquainted with both families, and it has been his pleasure to hear Dr. Balch preach.
Mr. Chase secured his elementary education in the district schools, sup- plementing this by attendance at Chester Academy, Chester, Vermont. At the age of about seventeen years Mr. Chase engaged in teaching school in North Springfield, Vermont, during the winter months, his summers being devoted to farm work. Mr. Chase relates that when he engaged to teach the school, the director contracted to pay him seventeen or twenty dollars a month, ac- cording to his success, the director to be the judge. At the end of the term, while taking him home in his sleigh, the director inquired as to how much he owed. Mr. Chase replied, "You know the agreement." To the latter's great gratification, the director said, "I shall pay you the twenty dollars per month." Eventually, desiring a field of larger and better opportunities. Mr Chase
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came to Indiana, locating first at Washington, where he found employment in a marble shop. Here he was employed by the piece and for a time he did not make enough to pay his board, but, in the course of time, he became so ex- pert in his work that the most important work was intrusted to him and he was thus enabled to earn good wages. He boarded with a relative and paid four dollars a week for his board. Then, for a while Mr. Chase engaged in teaching school in Martin and Lawrence counties, this state, after which he engaged with A. J. Johnson, publisher, of Brooklyn, New York, to introduce his large atlas in the state of Delaware, securing changes and corrections of the surveys for the maps, and introducing and canvassing for the work. Subsequently he returned west and resumed teaching, being engaged in Law- rence county, Indiana, and Stanford, Kentucky. While at the latter place Abraham Lincoln was elected to the Presidency, and soon afterwards Mr. Chase returned to Indiana and enlisted as a private in Company K, Forty- ninth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry. He was made first sergeant and served with his command about two years, when he was detailed for duty in the office of the military commander at Indianapolis, Colonel J. S. Simonson, where he remained until finally discharged from the service. During the years since those eventful days Mr. Chase has been variously engaged, as a teacher some, but principally as a farmer and stock raiser. He has been suc- cessful in his efforts and is now the owner of three hundred acres of good land along White river, with some property interests in Akron, Ohio. His life has been a strenuous one until recent years, and his success has been due solely to his perseverance and well directed efforts. He is now residing in the attractive town of Williams, where he has ever been found in support. of such measures as have promised to benefit the community.
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