USA > Indiana > Miami County > History of Miami County, Indiana : a narrative account of its historical progress, its people and its principal interests, Volume II > Part 13
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Mr. Faust is a Democrat, and has served as chairman and secre- tary of the Democratic County Central Committee. He was twice a mem- ber of the Peru school board, serving on the board as secretary of the body, and each time he resigned from service in that capacity to accept the city attorneyship. While acting on the board he helped to design and plan the present magnificent high school building that is the pride of Peru, and he gave to that work a generous share of his time and attention. Mr. Faust was first elected to the office of city attorney in June, 1900, and served two years in that post. In 1904 he was elected a second time, and his third election to the office followed in 1909. He assumed the official duties of the office on January 3, 1910, and is still acting for the city as its legal adviser, his term expiring the first Monday in 1914.
Mr. Faust was married on May 13, 1879, to Mary Jane Comer- ford, and to them have been born seven children, namely : Mary Eliza- beth, wife of Charles E. Gosselin of Kansas City, Missouri ; Mary Agnes ;
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Anna Louisa, deceased; Mary Josephinc; Clara Gladys; and Joseph Anton; and Rose.
If Mr. Faust may be said to have a hobby, it will unquestionably be his interest in numismatics. He has a splendid collection of rare coins, with a decided penchant for the quest of trade dollars, and he furthers his work along that line' by his membership in the Ameri- can Numismatists' Association.
WILLIAM H. AUGUR, of Peru, a resident of this city for nearly a half a century, and who for eight years and seven months was clerk of the courts of Miami county, was born in Laurel, Franklin county, Indiana, Decem- ber 22, 1850, one of the eleven children of whom three are now living, born to the marriage of William S. Augur, a native of the State of New York, and Jane McKown, who was born in Pennsylvania. William S. Augur was a butcher by occupation, a vocation which he followed principally throughout life. He died in 1855, his widow surviving him until 1895. They were both born in the year 1810.
William H. Augur lived in his native county until he was fifteen years of age, and after securing his primary education in the public schools attended about five terms in Kuhn & Curran's Academy, at Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1865, he came with a brother to Peru and engaged in the butchering business, which he continued, together with attend- ing school and engaging in railroad work, until 1891. From March of the latter year he was city editor of the Miami County Sentinel until 1895, when he became deputy county clerk for Charles R. Hughes, and thus continued until June 6, 1903. In 1902, however, he had been elected to this office, his term to begin January 1, 1904. It was dur- ing this time that the Legislative enactment went into effect changing the beginning of an official term to January 1st of each year. Mr. Hughes' regular term having expired June 6, 1903, there was a vacancy to be supplied from the expiration of his term until the newly-elected officer should take his place, and by action of the county commissioners Mr. Augur was appointed to fill this term. After his regular term of four years, he was re-elected for another term of a like period, and his entire administration was marked by the most faithful and conscientious devotion to duty. Mr. Augur has long been prominent in Democratic politics. In 1910 and again in 1912 he was elected chairman of the Democratic County Central Committee, and at this time he is directing the affairs of that influential body. By spe- cial election he was made city treasurer of Peru in 1882, and in the spring of 1883 was reclected, serving until the spring of 1885. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity, the Knights of Pythias, the Royal Arcanum and the Royal Fellowship. For many years he has belonged to the Amalgamated Mcat Cutters and Butchers Workmen of North America, of which he is a member at large. He also belongs to Peru Local, No. 225, American Federation of Musicians.
On December 22, 1873, Mr. Augur was married to Miss Eva Jose- phine Mason, of Mattoon, Illinois, and to them four children have been born, namely : Ruby Louise, Charles J., Frederick O. and Josephine T., the last named now being Mrs. J. Omer Cole, of Butler town- ship, Miami county. The family are Presbyterians in religion.
When a boy, before the Civil War, Laurel, the native village of Mr. Augur, organized a martial band which became famous throughout the entire country. As a lad he learned to perform on a fifc, and he has continued to keep up his practice on this difficult instrument until he has become widely known as a fife musician. It was the Laurel Mar- tial Band, of which he was a member, that escorted the troops raised
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"THE VALLEY GRANGE" RESIDENCE OF MR. AND MRS. DELBERT HARTER
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from Franklin county to their place of starting to the front. In Miami county today, wherever martial music is presented, Mr. Augur participates, at old settlers meetings, Grand Army of the Republic gatherings, and similar ceremonies. He is at present the incumbent of the position of national fife major of the National Association of Civil War Musicians.
DANIEL AND DELBERT D. HARTER. Daniel Harter was one of the fore- most men of his day in Miami county, and was one of those whose life career was a credit and whose memory will long linger in the minds of those who knew him. He was born in Preble county, Ohio, on March 4, 1834, a son of Jacob and Elizabeth (Rhodes) Harter, and he came with his parents to Miami county, Indiana, in the year 1849, while yet in his teens. The family located on Section 32, in Jefferson township, and there Jacob Harter died in 1879 and his widow followed him in 1881. The greater part of the life of Daniel Harter was passed amid the pioneer scenes and incidents relating to this particular locality, and the austere upbringing he had in his home, coupled with the rigors of country life, united to produce in him a strong and positive character that marked him. as an example of one of the most admirable types of man. His citizen- ship was one of the highest order, and he bore his full share of the bur- den of civic responsibility in his community throughout his life. He married on November 21, 1867, Nancy, the daughter of Levi Miller, a record of whose life and work appears elsewhere in this work. Mrs. Har- ter died on January 19, 1879, the mother of four children, who are here mentioned with more or less brevity as follows: Dora O. married Wil- liam F. Stevens and is now a resident of Canada. William E., a resident of Peru ; Iva L., and Delbert D., who is mentioned at greater length in a later paragraph.
Mr. Harter was a member of the Church of the Brethren, and his life in its every phase showed forth the influence and teaching of the church of his faith. None was more dependable than he, and the greatest confidence was reposed in him at all times and by all who knew him, his sturdy integrity and right living establishing him most firmly in the good books of his fellows.
He was a consistent Republican in his politics, and though he was never a man who aspired to political notice, he firmly believed it the duty of every man to exercise his right of franchise in the defense of his political principles, regarding that as one of the most distinctive proofs of citizen- ship, as indeed it is.
Mr. Harter, several years after the death of his first wife, married Mary Johnson, who yet survives him.
Delbert D. Harter, one of the sons of Daniel Harter, and a grandson of Jacob Harter, the pioneer of the days of forty-nine, was born on the old Harter homestead in Jefferson township, on July 1, 1875. He has always resided here and has converted the old place into one of the finest improved farms of the township, and in all probability, the finest in the county. His education was acquired in the public schools, and was not in excess of that accorded to the average youth of his station. He was married on September 2, 1896, to Miss Laura J., the daughter of Everett and Emma (Meek) Smith, and to them one son has been born,- Russell Evett Harter, whose birth took place on September 8, 1897.
Mr. Harter is a stanch Republican in his political propensities, and his wife is a member of the Baptist church. The pretty homestead is known as "The Valley Grange, " and is modern in every detail and lighted by acetylene.
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ELLIS H. ANDREWS, M. D., a resident of Peru since 1897, is a native of Macy, Indiana, born November 12, 1870. His father, Amos B. Andrews, was born in Pennsylvania, September 20, 1840, and came with his parents to Miami county, Indiana, about the year 1855, settling in Rich- land township. There he was residing at the outbreak of the Civil War, and upon President Lincoln's first call for volunteer troops he enlisted in the Thirteenth Regiment, Indiana Volunteer Infantry. On the expiration of his term of service, he veteranized in Company H, Eighty-seventh Regi- ment, Indiana Volunteer Infantry, August 9, 1862, and continued to serve with that hard-fighting organization until his honorable discharge, June 9, 1865. The greater part of his military career was under Gen. Thomas, and he was an active participant in many of the great battles of the war, rising to the rank of corporal. On returning to the occupations of peace, Mr. Andrews took up the vocation of school teacher, and later he became engaged in the insurance business. He was a life- long member of the Republican party. In his death, which occurred February 22, 1909, the Grand Army of the Republic lost one of its valued members. In 1866, Mr. Andrews was united in marriage with Miss Sarah C. Derck, who still survives her husband and makes her home in Peru, and they became the parents of five children, all of whom are still living.
Ellis H. Andrews passed his boyhood and youth in attending the common schools and working on farms in the neighborhood of his home. He subsequently became a teacher in the public schools, thus earning the means whereby to further his own studies, and completed his literary education in the Northern Indiana Normal School, at Val- paraiso. His medical studies were commenced in 1891 under the pre- ceptorship of Dr. J. W. Newell, of Denver, Indiana, and in January, 1895, he matriculated at the Kentucky School of Medicine. Succeed- ing this, he attended lectures until June, 1897, when he was elected superintendent of schools of Miami county, and subsequent re-elec- tions brought his service in this capacity up to six years. He was one of the most popular educators Miami county has known, but desired to further his medical studies, and in January, 1901, re-entered the Kentucky School of Medicine, and received his degree in July of the same year. Since that time he has been engaged in active practice in Peru, although he has continued to devote himself to his studies, hav- ing taken two post-graduate courses in Chicago. Like his father, Dr. Andrews is a Republican, but the responsibilities of his heavy prac- tice have given him no chance to think of entering the political arena as an aspirant for public preferment. He is a member of the Masonic and Odd Fellows fraternities, and has also affiliated himself with the various leading medical organizations.
On June 8, 1898, Dr. Andrews was married to Miss Ethel Hurst, of Macy, Indiana, and they have become the parents of four daugh- ters : Ruth G., Helen J., Florence E. and Frances C. Dr. and Mrs. Andrews are members of the Baptist Church, and have numerous friends in religious and social circles of Peru.
PLINY M. CRUME. The various activities which have marked the career of Pliny M. Crume, one of the most successful of Peru's busi- ness men, stamp him as a man of energy, ability and resource, and one who, no doubt, would have succeeded in any field of endeavor. In this city he has been identified with various enterprises of an exten- sive nature, in all of which he has met with a full measure of suc- cess, but everywhere and at all times he remembers that he has worked hard and that the good things that have come to him have been
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attracted by his own effort rather than by any chance of fortune. At the age of seventy years he is still carrying on his daily routine of busi- ness, in connection with general insurance, and maintains his position of prestige among the business men with whom he has been associated for so many years. Mr. Crume was born March 4, 1843, on the Wea Prairie, near Lafayette, Tippecanoe county, Indiana, and is a son of Mark and Malinda (Hamilton) Crume.
Mark Crume was a native of Fayette county, Indiana, and came to the western part of the State when it was more thickly populated with Indians than with whites. He was a trader by vocation and trav- eled up and down the Wabash river and the contiguous territory, bar- tering with the Indians. On one of his trips he entered three sections of land, one for himself and one for each of his two brothers, but never lived on this land, but spent his last years on Wea Prairie. He took an active part in Democratic politics, and at one time was sent as rep- resentative to the State Legislature. Mr. Crume married Malinda Hamilton, and they had five children who grew to maturity, of whom four are still living.
Pliny M. Crume was but one and one-half years of age when his father died, and he was reared in the home of an uncle, Dr. Pliny M. Crume, after whom he had been named, who was a physician widely known in the State of Ohio, his home being at Eaton, Preble county. There Mr. Crume attended the public schools until the age of fifteen years, when he returned to Indiana, and lived on the farm of his cousin, Adam Deem Crume, in Wabash county. It was while residing here that he twice endeavored to enlist for service in the Union army dur- ing the Civil War, but, was each time rejected on account of poor eye- sight. The third time, however, October 24, 1864, at LaFayette, he succeeded in enlisting in Company D, Thirtieth Regiment, Indiana Vol- unteer Infantry, with which he served until long after the close of the war, receiving his honorable discharge October 25, 1865. He was in the Army of the Cumberland, and among others participated in the engagements at Columbia, Spring Hill, Franklin and Nashville, and following the latter battle the command of which Mr. Crume was a mem- ber pursued the Confederate Hood as far as Huntsville, Alabama, where they went into winter quarters. At the time of the assassination of President Lincoln they were at Strawberry P.lains, and succeeding this were sent to New Orleans and later to Texas, Mr. Crume receiving his discharge at the Louisiana city. Mr. Crume was at all times a brave, faithful and gallant soldier, cheerfully performing the duties that fell to his lot, and winning the admiration of his comrades and the respect of his officers. On the completion of his military ser- vice, he started on a trip overland to the West, and for two and one- half years was engaged in mining at Virginia City, Montana, and also spent six months at Salt Lake City, Utah. This venture, however, did not prove successful, and he returned to Indiana and for three years traveled for a dental supply house during the summers, while the win- ters were spent in teaching school, his home during this time being at Peru. In this manner he accumulated enough to enable him to embark in business, and in 1872, in partnership with William Walton, under the firm style of Walton & Crume, he opened a book and wallpaper business in this city. In February, 1879, he purchased Mr. Walton's interest in the business, which he conducted alone until January, 1905, when the business was sold to West & Stevens. Shortly there- after, Mr. Crume, with others, organized the Peru Canning Company of which he was secretary and treasurer for about two years, and then sold out and established himself in a general insurance business,
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in which he has continued to the present time. As secretary of the Peru Commercial Club, he is assisting in forwarding the city's busi- ness interests, and he has always been known as a public-spirited citi- zen who has had the welfare of his community at heart. For years a Republican, he was clerk of the city from 1873 until 1880, and also served as a city councilman for two years, but in 1912 cast his fortunes with the newly-organized Progressive party. During his long residence in Peru, he has formed a wide acquaintance, in which he numbers a great many warm friends, drawn to him by his sincerity, his integrity and his loyalty to his friendships.
On September 25, 1873, Mr. Crume was married to Miss Catherine Adelia Graham, daughter of John A. Graham, one of the well-known pioneers of Miami county, and to this union there were born three chil- dren : Alice E., who is deceased; Lenice, now the wife of James Mc- Namara; and Graham M. After the death of his first wife Mr. Crume married her sister, Alice E., Graham. Mr. and Mrs. Crume are faithful members of the Roman Catholic church.
LOUIS F. BETZNER, deceased, was identified with the farming inter- ests of Deer Creek township, Miami county, Indiana, for a number of years. He came here in 1851, from Trenton, New Jersey, and located at Leonda, Miami county, where he followed shoe making until 1861. He then bought the place on which his son, Louis C. Betzner, now lives. A log house stood on the farm at that time, into which he moved his family, and which served them for a home until they built the pres- ent farm house. With the assistance of his sons he cleared and improved the land, and here he spent the rest of his life and died. His death occurred September 14, 1903. He was born in Germany and had served six years in the German army. His wife, Catherine (Bender) Betzner, also was a native of Germany. She died June 9, 1911. They reared a large family of children who are now useful and respected members of the respective communities in which they live. Their names in order of birth are as follows: John G., Eli B., Carl E., Fred- erick H., Emma C. (now Mrs. Levi Bowser), Mary M. (now Mrs. War- ren Morrow) and Louis C.
John G. Betzner was born December 20, 1857. He was reared on his father's farm; assisted in the farm work, and attended the district school. In his youth he learned the blacksmith's trade, and for a time was employed as foreman in rolling mills at Marion. Following this he became superintendent in the rolling mills at East Chicago, where he remained until he came to his present location at Hammond, Indi- ana, where he is engine foreman in the Chemical Works. He married Miss Carrie Spangler.
Eli B. Betzner was born March 18, 1859 .. His boyhood days were passed on his father's farm until he was sixteen years of age. Then he learned the harness maker's trade in Peru, with Valentine Smith, and for a few years remained there in this line of business. He was then employed by Dr. U. A. Ayer in his harness shop, and continued there as foreman for fourteen years. In 1903 he became a partner in the Betzner Bros.' hardware store in Peru, and has since been identi- fied with this business. He married Miss Tillie Troster, and they have two children, Blanche and Clarence. Mr. Eli B. Betzner is both an Odd Fellow and a Knight of Maccabees.
Carl E. Betzner remained on the farm until he attained his twenty- first year. He was born February 3, 1861. In 1883 he became a clerk in the hardware store of Puterbaugh Bros. at Peru, and with the exception of about one year, when he was stock-keeper of the Peru Elec-
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tric Mfg. Co., he continued with them until 1903, when the Betzner Bros. (Eli B. and Carl E.) bought the Puterbaugh Bros.' store and have since conducted it. He married Laura F. Martin and they have one daughter, Hazel. He is a Democrat, as are also all the brothers, and he is a member of Peru Lodge, No. 539, I. O. O. F .; the Knights of Maccabees, and the United Commercial Travelers.
Frederick H. Betzner spent his boyhood and reached manhood on his father's farm. When he left the farm he became a carpenter for the American Plate Glass Company at Kokomo, Indiana. Later he engaged in the restaurant business at Middletown, Indiana, where he remained until 1913. He is unmarried.
Louis C. Betzner, the youngest son, was born November 19, 1871, on the farm where he has since lived, having succeeded his father in the operation of the home farm. In addition to attending the schools near his home, he was for a time a student at Bunker Hill and later in St. Louis. He married, April 22, 1896, Miss Matilda Hartman, daugh- ter of John and Mary (Meek) Hartman. Her grandfather, Dr. Meek, was instrumental in getting a post office established at Bunker Hill. Mr. and Mrs. Betzner have two children: Wayne, born July 23, 1897, and Catherine, November 17, 1900. Fraternally, Mr. Betzner is identi- fied with both the Knights of Pythias and the Masons, at Bunker Hill. He has passed all the chairs in the K. of P. lodge, No. 299, and is senior warden of the Masonic lodge No. 683. He maintains relations with the Methodist Episcopal Church, now being chairman of the Board of Trustees and having served as superintendent of the Sunday school.
JOHN W. PARKHURST. The experiences gained in long years of connection with enterprises of no extensive nature have enabled John W. Parkhurst to ably discharge the duties of secretary and factory manager of one of Peru's principal industries, the Indiana Manu- facturing Company. Mr. Parkhurst is entitled to the honorable title of self-made man, having risen by his own efforts from a humble clerkship to a position of prestige in manufacturing circles. He has been a resident of this city since 1906, coming here from Indianapolis, and since his advent has not only been identified with large business ventures, but has also made a place for himself in the social and polit- ical life of the city.
John W. Parkhurst was born at Franklin, Indiana, October 15, 1861, a son of John M. Parkhurst, an agriculturist, upon whose farm he spent his boyhood and youth, it being his father's intention that he should follow in his foot-steps and become a tiller of the soil. The young man, however, had his own ideas as to what he should make his life work, and at the age of twenty-five years left the parental roof. He had received a good common school education, and secured a position as bookkeeper in a wholesale stove establishment in Indian- apolis, and two years later, when some of the employes of the concern bought out the business, he became secretary of the new con- cern, which was known as the Wells Manufacturing Company. His connection with this enterprise continued until 1891, in which year. with his brother, James H. Parkhurst, he organized the Famous Stove Company, which the brothers conducted four years. This was eventu- ally sold out to their former associates, and succeeding this the broth- ers purchased the Indianapolis Bolt and Machine Works, changed the name to the Parkhurst Manufacturing Company, and turned their attention to the manufacture of passenger and freight elevators to such good effect that in 1906 they were compelled to seek a field where they would have larger accommodations for their rapidly growing
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business and chose Peru as the site of their future operations. At the time that this business was sold to the Otis Elevator Company, in 1909, the brothers were employing one hundred mechanics and had built up a trade that extended far beyond the limits of the State. On disposing of his interests in the Parkhurst Manufacturing Com- pany, Mr. Parkhurst accepted a position as secretary and factory manager for the Indiana Manufacturing Company, a capacity in which he is acting at the present time. He has a thorough and comprehen- sive knowledge of his business, having learned every detail thereof during his rise from the lowest position on the ladder. A man of excellent judgment, foresight and shrewdness, he is at all times capa- ble of adapting himself to conditions as they arise, and has the full confidence of those with whom he is associated. At the present time he is president of the Home Savings and Loan Association, and his vari- ous other large connections in the business world of Peru make him a dominant figure in commercial and industrial life. As president of the Commercial Club, a position he has held two years, he has joined with others in promoting Peru's interests, and movements for the city's welfare find in him a stanch supporter. He belongs to the Knights of Pythias, the Moose and various other social organizations and, with his family, is a member of the Christian Church. He be- lieves that each man should choose the political candidate he deems best fitted for the office, irrespective of party lines, although he usu- ally supports Republican principles.
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