USA > Indiana > Miami County > History of Miami County, Indiana : a narrative account of its historical progress, its people and its principal interests, Volume I > Part 15
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Runnells' mill was of the most primitive type. It was a log structure, with a single run of "nigger-head" buhrs, and the meal it made was coarse, but for all its imperfections it was of great utility to the early settlers. It was built about 1846 and continued to be the principal mill in the township for about five years. The water of Deer creek supplied the motive power. About 1850 John Hicks built a mill on Deer creek a short distance southeast of where the village of Miami now stands, and from the numerous stories told of this mill it must have been a curiosity. One of these stories is to the effect that a customer brought half a bushel of corn to the mill in the morning and toward nightfall insisted that Mr. Hicks take out some more toll, as he wanted to get home before it got dark. Another is that one day, while the mill was crushing the grains of corn at the rate of thirty or forty a minute, the buhrs suddenly stopped running. Investigation showed that an old sow had found a resting place in the mill race, effectually shutting off the supply of water. Probably the first saw-mill in the township was the one erected by Oliver and Nelson Sandifur about 1850. It was what was known as a "sash saw," slow in its operations, but for several years it supplied the settlers with lumber. The first steam saw-mill was established at Miami, by Alexander Blake, in 1852. Austin Herrell and Lewis Miller were like- wise prominently identified with this line of business, and "Eb." Hum-
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rickhouse built a large steam flour mill at Miami about 1871. He after- ward sold it to William Tubbs, who removed it to Walton, Cass county.
John H. Runkle, a former county superintendent of the Miami county schools, is authority for the statement that the first school in Deer Creek township was taught in 1845, by a man named Henry Garrett, and that the first school house was built the next year on the farm of Austin Her- rell, where John Truax taught the first school. In 1913 the township had eight brick school houses, valued at $8,000, enrolled 194 pupils in the public schools, employed ten teachers, who received in salaries the sum of $4,277.
The Lake Erie & Western Railroad runs north and south through the eastern part of the township. Parallel to it is a line of the Indiana Union Traction system of electric railways, which has its northern ter- minus at Peru. These two roads furnish excellent transportation facilities to the greater part of the township. Both roads pass through the villages of Bennett's Switch and Miami, which are the only post- offices in the township.
As early as 1846 a few Methodists gathered at the home of Lewis Snodderly and held the first religious services in the township. A little later a society of that faith was organized. Since then the Baptists, Christians and some other denominations have organized and built houses of worship.
In the southern part of what is now Deer Creek township was the Indian village of the chief Shap-pan-do-ce-ah. In 1846 this village con- sisted of a few log huts and a number of bark wigwams. The next year the inhabitants removed to Kansas with the other members of the tribe of Miamis. Among them was a white woman about fifty years of age, who, like Frances Slocum, had been captured in childhood and brought up as an Indian. She accompanied her Miami husband to Kansas in 1847.
ERIE TOWNSHIP
Erie township is the smallest in Miami county. It is situated on the eastern border, directly north of the Wabash river, and has an area of about nineteen square miles. On the north it is bounded by Richland township; on the east by Wabash county; on the south by the Wabash river, which separates it from Butler township, and on the west by the township of Peru. The surface is diversified, being somewhat rolling in the eastern and southern portions and level in the northern part. Along the Wabash river the soil is of more than ordinary fertility and is under a high state of cultivation. In the northern part, while the soil is less
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fertile than the river bottoms, good crops are raised, and throughout the township agriculture is carried on with excellent results. Like the greater part of the county, the surface of Erie township was originally covered with timber, the principal varieties of which were black walnut, poplar, ash, maple, elm and sycamore.
In the fall of 1827 Samuel McClure established a trading post in the southwestern part of the township, where he carried on a successful traffic with the Indians for several years, when he removed to Grant county. No efforts were made by him to establish permanent improve- ments or cultivate the soil, and the honor of being the first actual settler belongs to Henry King, who settled near the western boundary in 1835. Shortly after he had located his claim Joseph Fox settled near the old Wabash & Erie canal, and before the close of that year Joseph and John Hale, James Burton, Daniel Potter, L. B. Bartlett and Pierre La Von- ture all selected land and settled within the present limits of the town- ship.
During the years 1836 and 1837 a few settlers located in this part of the county. Among them were James Fornash and his son William, Slath Cole and Horatio French. It is related of William Fornash that he was fond of Indian society, spent a goodly portion of his time with his red friends and, probably in a spirit of fun, was frequently seen upon the streets of Peru decked out in Indian costume. .
The settlement of Erie was rather slow until after the land sale at Peru in the fall of 1840, though the township was erected by the county commissioners on August 27, 1839, when "that portion of the territory of Peru township lying east of the recently established Range line and entirely east to the Wabash county line," was taken to form the new township. The name conferred upon the new political organization at . that time was "Black Hawk Township," and it went by that name until in September, 1847, when the name was changed to Erie, after the Wabash & Erie canal. Among the settlers who came into this neighbor- hood a short time before the organization of the township were two brothers-Sylvester and Elam Henton. The former was known as "Black Hawk" Henton, and there is a tradition that this was the origin of the original name.
Among those who settled in the township in 1839 and shortly after the land sale of 1840 were: John and James Bailey, Alfred and Morris Baker, Anson Jewett, Jeremiah Taylor, Lewis King and John Misener. A year or so later came John and James Bailey, Silas Chalmers, Sala- thiel Cole, Abner and William Beeson, Jeremiah Kaler, Solomon Wybal, John and William Nicholson, Samuel Philabaum and a few others. By the time the name of the township was changed, the territory was fairly
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well populated and most of the public land had been entered by actual settlers.
At the time the first settlements were made a large part of the town- ship along the Wabash river was included in the individual Indian reser- vations. In the southwest corner was the reservation of Francis Godfroy, No. 15, and east of this were two reservations of Richardville, extending up the river to within one mile of the Wabash county line. These lands have long since passed into the hands of the white men and are now some of the best improved farms in Miami county.
The first blacksmith shop in the township was established by Thomas Kennedy in the southern part, on the line of the old canal, where he carried on his vocation for a number of years. The first saw-mill was built near the northern boundary by a man named Williams. Some years later the mill was purchased by a Mr. Cowger and the boiler was taken to Peru. The first marriage was probably that of John Passon to Priscilla Fornash in 1838. The first white child born within the limits of the township is believed to have been John, a son of John and Hannah Hale, who was born in 1837, and the first death was perhaps that of Joseph Hale, in 1838.
The first election was held a few weeks after the township was erected, at the house of Anson Jewett, when Jeremiah Taylor was elected justice of the peace and Henry King, Daniel Henderson and Samuel Phila- baum, township trustees.
Early in the '40s Rev. John Davis, a Baptist minister, visited Erie township and held services at the house of Salathiel Cole, which was the first religious meeting in the township. Members of this faith held serv- ices for several years at what was known as the California school house. The Methodists, Christians and United Brethren also held services at an early date. An account of these early organizations will be found in the chapter on Church History.
Erie township is the only one in the county without a village or a postoffice. Mail is supplied to the inhabitants through the rural free delivery system from Peru. The Wabash Railroad and the electric line. of the Fort Wayne & Northern Indiana Traction Company cross the southern portion of the township, and on the latter there are local stations for the accommodation of Erie township people.
Owing to the sparse population during the years immediately follow- ing the first settlement, no public school was taught in Erie township until the year 1844. Then two school houses were erected-one on the farm of Samuel Philabaum and the other on the farm belonging to a man named Peer. Robert Taylor, Phœbe Cox and John Corwin were
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among the first teachers. In 1913 there were four good brick school houses in the township and four teachers were employed in the schools. The estimated value of the school buildings was $3,600, there were 84 pupils enrolled during the school year of 1912-13, and the amount paid in salaries to the teachers was $1,645.
HARRISON TOWNSHIP
This township is one of the southern tier and is uniform in size with Clay, Deer Creek and Jackson, being four miles in width from east to west and six miles in length from north to south. It is bounded on the north by Butler township; on the east by Jackson; on the south by Howard county, and on the west by Clay township. The general sur- face is level and the soil is exceedingly fertile, though artificial drainage is necessary in some parts of the township before the best results can be obtained in agriculture. Consequently nearly twenty miles of ditch and tile drain have been constructed in the township. Across the northern part flows Big Pipe creek in a westerly direction, and Deer creek crosses the southwest corner. These two streams, with their smaller tributaries, furnish a good supply of water for live stock and serve as an outlet for the drains and ditches. A heavy forest of black walnut, oak, hickory, maple and other species of native trees once covered the land now included in Harrison township. Before the sound of the woodman's ax was heard, this forest abounded in game and was a favorite hunting ground of the Miami Indians. But the ax, the torch and the saw-mill have done their deadly work. Large quantities of lumber have been shipped out of the township and many valuable trees were felled and burned in early days to make way for the cultivated fields. Instances are recorded where the walnut timber on a single acre in Harrison has brought as much as $400.
In 1844 William Smith and Imri Murden came into the township and "squatted" upon the unsurveyed lands that were still in the hands of the Indians, although they had been ceded to the United States. Mr. Murden had formerly settled near Mexico, on the Eel river, and after a residence of several years in Harrison township removed again to the northern part of the county. Upon coming to the township in 1844 he located his claim in the southwest corner, Mr. Smith having previously selected land farther north. Late in summer or early in the fall of 1844 Joshua Dixon settled near the Clay township line, where he opened the first blacksmith shop in Harrison township. His customers were few at first, but as the country settled up his business increased and for about twenty years he continued to ply his trade at that point. Joshua Tharp also came in 1844 and settled in the northern part. He was one of the most successful of the pioneer hunters and many a deer
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fell at the crack of his rifle. Jacob Stitt came about the same time as Tharp and selected a claim on Pipe creek, near the northeast corner of the township, and made some substantial improvements. William Bur- nett, Richard Crane, Samuel Spurgeon, James and Simeon Dryer, Eli Stitt, Jesse Lee and John Wilson settled in the township late in 1844 or during the year 1845 and most of them secured title to their lands soon after they were opened for entry.
In 1846 the population was increased by the arrival of Levi Willis, Z. C. Smith, Tillman Hall, Stephen Reeves, Solomon Hauck, Jacob Miller, George C. Smith, William Love, Emsley Overman, George Cooper and William Wineburn.
On September 8, 1846, Harrison township was set apart as an inde- pendent political division and was named for General William Henry Harrison, the hero of Tippecanoe, who was elected president of the United States in 1840 and died a short time after his inauguration. The first election was held at the house of William Smith a little later, when Solomon Hauck was elected justice of the peace; David Roe and John Moorman, trustees, and Abel Hauck, constable.
Sarah A., daughter of Imri and Rebecca Murden, born in 1846, is believed to have been the first white child born in the township. In the spring of 1847 William Love married a daughter of William Smith and later in the same year Henry Daggy married Elizabeth Burnett. These were the first marriages in Harrison. The first death was probably that of a colored woman, wife of a negro known as "Black Bill," in 1847. Mrs. William Wineburn died in the same year and as there were no roads yet opened through the woods, her coffin was carried from Santa Fe, four miles distant. The first religious services were held at the house of Charles Cox in 1848 by a Methodist minister named Richardson. In the same year John Leach, another pioneer preacher, conducted serv- ices at the cabins of John Wilson and James Graham.
About 1846 or 1847 Matthew Fenimore built a saw-mill on Section 5, in the northern part of the township, on Pipe creek. Subsequently Mr. Fenimore erected a grist mill near by, which continued in operation for many years. The second saw-mill was built at the old village of Snow Hill, on Section 3, by Jacob Miller. Shortly afterward he sold out to Niccum brothers and built another mill at North Grove. A man named Thomas started a tannery in the eastern part of the township at an early date and carried on a successful business for some years. He then sold out and his successors could not make it pay, so the tanyard fell into disuse.
Accounts differ as to where and by whom the first school was taught in Harrison township. Prof. John H. Runkle, who was county superin-
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tendent of schools in the '90s, says: "The first school in Harrison township was a subscription school, taught by a man by the name of Jesse Lee, in 1847, in a small cabin that stood on his own farm. This cabin had for several years been used for a dwelling, but it was at this time fitted up for school purposes, so that it was the same characteristic log school house as was provided for the schools of Miami county in the good old primitive days."
Stephens' History of Miami County (page 344) says: "The first school was taught in an old cabin which William Smith hastily put up on his arrival. Imri Murden was the first teacher of the township."
Whichever account is correct, it is certain that the people who settled Harrison township believed in education and the precedent they estab- lished has been followed by those who came after them. In 1913 there were four brick school buildings in the township, valued at $20,000. Formerly there were seven school districts, but by consolidation three of them have been discontinued. During the school year of 1912-13 six teachers were employed, receiving in salaries the sum of $2,491.
Two lines of railroad run through Harrison township. The Pan Handle enters from the east, about two miles north of the southeast cor- ner, and runs across the township in a northwesterly direction through the villages of North Grove and McGrawsville. North of this road, and following the same general direction, is the Chesapeake & Ohio. These two roads furnish ample shipping facilities to all parts of the township. North Grove and McGrawsville are the only postoffices. Snow Hill, in the northeast corner, and Cary, not far from the southeast corner, were once thriving villages, but with the building of the railroads their trade was diverted to other points and they have ceased to exist. (See the chapter on Towns and Villages.)
JACKSON TOWNSHIP .
The main body of Miami county is a rectangle, twelve miles wide from east to west and thirty miles long from north to south. At the southeast corner of this rectangle, but outside of it, lies Jackson town- ship. It is four miles in width from east to west and six miles long from north to south, containing an area of twenty-four square miles, or 15,360 acres. On the north it is bounded by Wabash county; on the east by Grant county ; on the south by the county of Howard, and on the west by Harrison township, Miami county. Along the streams the sur- face is somewhat rolling, but back from the water courses it is generally level. The soil is a dark loam, fertile and well adapted to cultivation. In some parts the soil has to be drained in order to secure the best results. hence there are nearly thirty miles of ditch and tile drain in the town-
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ship. Before the coming of the white man the entire surface was cov- ered with a forest growth of valuable timber, in which game abounded and this section was a favorite hunting ground of the red man. Very little of the native timber remains, it having been cleared off to make way for the farmer or manufactured into lumber.
Like all that part of Miami county lying south of the Wabash river, this township was once a part of the Miami Indian "Big Reserve," hence it was not settled until after the region north of the Wabash was fairly well populated. It is known that hunters and trappers visited this part of the county before the land was disposed of by the Indians, but no attempt was made to form a permanent settlement until about 1842. Then Silas Braffet and Thomas Creviston built their cabins near the Grant county line, the latter locating in what is now Jackson township, while the other cabin stood just across the line in Grant county. Later in the same year came John Powell, Thomas Addington and Thomas Mason. Powell settled in the eastern part of the township; Addington built his cabin where the town of Converse now stands; and Mason located in the northeast corner, near the Wabash county line.
In January, 1843, Oliver H. P. Macy, an early settler of Grant county, removed across the line and located a tract of land which now lies within the limits of the town of Converse. John Gates settled about three miles north of Macy, and before the close of that year a few other . hardy pioneers had located claims in Jackson township. During the next three years quite a number of settlers came into this part of Miami county. Among them were James McKinley, John Long, James Poul- son, William Bowman, Samuel Long, James Que, James Calhoun, David Daniels, Samuel Butler, Samuel and David Draper, Henry Addington, William and Eli Overman, George Badger, Jonathan Pearson, Nathan Arnold, Solomon Wright, and perhaps a dozen others. Rev. Abraham See, a Methodist clergyman, settled about a mile northeast of Converse and was probably the first minister of the Gospel to establish a home in this township.
Most of the pioneers located their claims in the southern portion, near the present towns of Amboy and Converse, or along the Big Pipe creek, which flows in a northwesterly direction farther north. Samuel Butler, who settled near the northwest corner, afterward became a believer in the doctrines of the Mormon church and went to Utah.
In the summer of 1846 a petition was circulated by Oliver H. P. Macy among the settlers, asking the county commissioners to organize a new township, which should be known by the name of "Liberty." Nearly every resident within the territory to be included in the new township signed the petition, two men objecting because they wanted "to keep Vol. I-9
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law and order out of the country as long as possible." Mr. Macy then walked to Peru and presented the petition to the county commissioners and on September 2, 1846, the board issued an order for the erection of the township, with its present boundaries and dimensions, but the name was changed from Liberty to Jackson, in honor of Andrew Jackson, who commanded the United States forces at the battle of New Orleans and was afterward elected president of the United States.
The first election was held soon after the township was established, at the house of James Poulson, Rev. Abraham See acting as inspector. David Daniels was elected justice of the peace and Abraham See, con- stable. The records of that election have disappeared, but it is thought that James McKinley and Gabriel Hayes were two of the first board of township trustees.
Susannah, daughter of James C. and Delilah Poulson, was born in May, 1844, and is believed to have been the first white child born in Jackson township. The first death was that of an infant child of Thomas and Mary Addington, which occurred soon after the family settled in Miami county, and this little child was the first to be buried in the cemetery at Converse. Among the early marriages were Charles Marine to Maria Ballinger; Oscar Addington to Mary A. North; and David Draper to Elizabeth Ballinger. In the case of the last named couple, the bride lived in Grant county and Mr. Draper made the mis- take of securing his license from the clerk of Miami county. When he arrived at the house of his intended father-in-law, where the wedding guests were already assembled, the minister who had been engaged to perform the ceremony informed him that a marriage could not be legally solemnized in Grant county under a license obtained at Peru. Conster- nation reigned. It was several miles to Marion and it appeared that the wedding would have to be postponed. In this emergency some one pro- posed that, as it was but a short distance to the county line, the entire company should walk over into Miami county, where the license could be used. The suggestion was accepted and the procession, headed by the minister, started for the boundary. When satisfied they were safely within the precincts of Miami county the party halted, the young couple joined hands, and there in the primeval forest Elizabeth Ballinger became Mrs. David Draper.
As early as 1845 a few Methodists gathered at the cabin of John Powell, where Rev. Abraham See conducted the first religious services ever held in Jackson township. A little later services were held by the United Brethren at the home of James C. Poulson, where Rev. George C. Smith addressed the little congregation. Both these denominations afterward organized churches in the township, and still later the
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Friends, Christians and some other denominations founded congrega- tions, accounts of which will be found in the chapter on Church History.
Immediately after the township was organized in 1846, the people began to think of establishing some sort of a school system. To this end O. H. P. Macy, Samuel Draper and Thomas Mason were elected school directors. By their direction the first school house was built in 1848 on the farm of Benjamin Davis. David Stanfield, Thomas Reese and Mason Sharp were some of the pioneer teachers. In 1913 the six brick school houses in the township were estimated to be worth $10,000; the school building in the town of Amboy was valued at $27,500, and the one at Converse was valued at $25,000, making a total of $62,500 as the value of all the school property in the township. Four teachers were employed in the township schools and received in salaries $1,635. The seven teachers at Amboy, three of whom were employed in the com- missioned high school, received $4,100 during the school year of 1912-13, and the ten teachers at Converse, of whom four were in the commissioned high school, received $5,021.60.
The Pan Handle and Chesapeake & Ohio railroads both enter the township near the southeast corner and run in a northwesterly direction across its entire width. Amboy and Converse, both incorporated towns, are the only postoffices in the township. Rural routes from them supply the population with daily mail.
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CHAPTER VIII
TOWNSHIP HISTORY-Continued
JEFFERSON TOWNSHIP ONE OF THE FIRST TO BE SETTLED-PERRY-PERU- PIPE CREEK-AN INDIAN VILLAGE-RICHLAND-UNION-WASHING- TON-LOCATION, BOUNDARIES AND PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF EACH-PIONEER SETTLERS-EARLY BIRTHS, MARRIAGES AND DEATHS- PRIMITIVE INDUSTRIES-FIRST RELIGIOUS MEETINGS-PIONEER SCHOOLS AND TEACHERS-TOWNS AND VILLAGES-TRANSPORTATION-MISCELLA- NEOUS EVENTS-THE PIONEER'S PLACE IN HISTORY.
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