USA > Indiana > Montgomery County > History of Montgomery county, Indiana; with personal sketches of representative citizens, Volume II > Part 21
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To the Doctor and wife one child has been born, namely: Roy C., who married Lula Crane, of Wingate, and they live in this place, he being engaged in business here. They have one child, John William.
Dr. Dickerson started out in life on a farm. On September 1. 1876, he enlisted in the United States army, under Capt. F. W. Benteen, in Company H, Seventh Regiment, Western Cavalry, at Indianapolis. He at once became a member of the expedition that was sent to the hostile Indian country of the West, and he was in the campaign down the Missouri river that fall for the purpose of disarming the Indians that were supposed to have engaged in the battle of the Little Big Horn, in Montana, the preceding June. The Seventh cavalry was commanded by Col. S. D. Sturgis. They were in the Yellow- stone expedition in 1877 under the command of Col. N. A. Miles, being then in the Fifth Infantry. In 1878 our subject was with the troops that escorted the Cheyenne Indians as far as the Black Hills, being then under the com- mand of Lieut .- Col. E. Otis. The Seventh Cavalry in 1879 changed from Fort A. Lincoln, to Fort Meade in the Black Hills. In 1880 our subject was a scout for twenty days in pursuit of the hostile Indians on the Little Missouri river, under Col. F. W. Benteen. In 1881 he was in camp on the Little Mis- souri river, protecting that country from the hostile Indians, and in August of that year Dr. Dickerson was honorably discharged. He proved, according to his comrades, to be a very courageous and faithful soldier, and he took part in a number of important campaigns against the Indians who gave the government so much trouble in those days. The doctor talks most interest- ingly of his experiences in the wild West thirty-five years ago. After his career in the army he returned to the East and went into the drug business in Illinois, later he began the practice of medicine and surgery in Rush county,
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Indiana, where he built up a very large patronage. He came to Montgomery county on January 1, 1894, and here he has remained to the present time, maintaining a well equipped office at the town of Wingate, Coal Creek town- ship. He has a large and constantly growing practice and has been very suc- cessful as a general practitioner and surgeon.
Dr. Dickerson is a Democrat and is a loyal supporter of his party's prin- ciples. In religious matters he is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and fraternally belongs to the Masonic Order at Wingate, the Knights of Pythias at Wingate, and the Tribe of Ben-Hur.
S. A. HAMPTON.
Franklin township, Montgomery county, has no more painstaking or skillful tiller of the soil than S. A. Hampton, who is deserving of rank among our best citizens, a statement in which all who have known him well during his life-long residence in this locality will readily acquiesce. For while laboring for his individual advancement, he has not been neglectful of his larger duties as a neighbor and citizen, always being willing to assist a brother toiler on the highway of life and to do his little part in keeping public affairs as pure as possible, not being of those, pessimistically in- clined, who believe that the "purification of politics is an irridescent dream." On the other hand, he has faith in the future, believing that the right and harmony must eventually prevail, however great may be the obstacles.
Mr. Hampton was born in this county on February 8, 1868. He is a son of Samuel and Phoebe (Guntle) Hampton. The father was born in Tennessee on February 20, 1828, and his death occurred on April 12, 1907. The mother was born in Indiana on August 13, 1826, and her death oc- curred on August 28, 1889. These parents each grew up in their respective communities and received meager educational training in the old-fashioned schools. The father devoted his life to farming. Politically, he was a strong Democrat.
Eleven children were born to Samuel Hampton and wife, nine of whom are still living.
S. A. Hampton received a common school education. In August, 1887, he was married to Ida Walton, who was born in Montgomery county on October 8, 1870. She is a daughter of Ayre Walton and wife, the father
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having come from Jennings county. Mrs. Hampton received a common school education.
Two children have been born to our subject and wife, namely: Cecil B., born September 25, 1888, married Flora Heffner, and they live on the Woody farm in Sugar Creek township; Ernest, born November 29, 1890, is living on the home farm, assisting his father with the work.
Mr. Hampton has devoted his life to general farming and stock rais- ing; however, he was in business for awhile at Thorntown, later returning to Montgomery county and resumed farming, which he has carried on to the present day. He owns one place of eighty-five and twenty-four one- hundredths acres. His land is well improved and all tillable, and on his place stands a comfortable dwelling and convenient outbuildings. In con- nection with general farming he handles a good grade of live stock.
Politically, he is a Democrat and is loyal to the colors whether in de- feat or victory. In 1910 he was placed on the advisory board of Franklin township.
WILLIAM SIMPSON HARDING.
We are glad to note in this series of biographical articles that so many of the progressive citizens of Montgomery county have been born and reared here, for this is an indication of at least two things, namely, that they are men of keen discernment, being able to see and appreciate present-day condi- tions as they are and that the county is indeed one of the favored sections of the great Hoosier commonwealth, else these people would have sought oppor- tunities elsewhere. As it is, they did not need to heed the call of the wander- Just that is heard at some stage or other in the lives of all young men. It very frequently leads them to forsake the "land of milk and honey", and go in search of a never-to-be-obtained oasis of a mirage, ultimately finding instead the barren, sand-swept waste of a Sahara, often, too, after it is too late to return and establish themselves in their own native heath. William Simp- son Harding, who is connected with the county surveyor's office as field engineer, is one of the large number of boys of Montgomery county who have had the good judgment to remain right at home and devote their energies to the things with which they are most familiar, and labor among the people who know them and whom they know, hence they have had a bet- ter opportunity of ultimately attaining the ever-sought-for guerdon-success.
Mr. Harding was born in Union township, Montgomery county, Indi-
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ana, May 7, 1869. He is a son of John A. and Elizabeth W. (Farrow) Harding. The father was born in Shelby county, Kentucky, September 7, 1835, and came to Montgomery county with his parents when a lad and here grew to manhood and received his education. He was a son of Josiah Hard- ing, who was born in Maryland in the year 1801. The latter resided in his native state until attaining his twentieth year, when with his father Nathan he removed to Shelby county, Kentucky. Josiah Harding married Elizabeth Miller, daughter of Ellis Miller, who was a farmer and stock raiser in Ken- tucky, to which state he removed from Virginia about the year 1821. In 1835 Josiah Harding came to Putnam county, Indiana, locating in Greene township, where he entered one hundred and sixty acres, and lived there for about two years when he settled in Putnam county, which was his home for twenty years. At the expiration of that time he moved to a farm two miles south of Crawfordsville, where he died in April, 1889. His wife, who was born March 12, 1806, died. Josiah Harding was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and was, politically a Republican. He owned two hundred and forty acres of land in Montgomery county at the time of his death. His family consisted of five children, four of whom grew to maturity, among them the following : Charles W., who became a merchant; John A., father of the subject of this sketch; Henry W., who also became a farmer.
John A. Harding devoted most of his life to farming, but was for some time in the mercantile business in Crawfordsville, also in Leavenworth, Kan- sas. He is now living retired. He and Elizabeth W. Farrow were married in 1864. She was born in Putnam county, Indiana, March 10, 1844, and her death occurred in 1904.
William S. Harding received a common school education, and he spent three years in Wabash College, after which he clerked in Crawfordsville, for a period of ten years, for Smith & Morgan, druggists, giving them eminent satisfaction. He then entered the county surveyor's office, and has since been connected with it as field engineer. He has filled this position in a man- ner entirely satisfactory to all concerned. He is familiar with every phase of this line of endeavor.
Fraternally, Mr. Harding is a member of the Masonic Order, belonging to the Blue Lodge, also belongs to the Knights of Pythias. In religious mat- ters he is a member of the Methodist church, and politically is a Republican.
Mr. Harding was married on September 22, 1906 to Maude McIntosh, who was born in Montgomery county, Indiana, June 5, 1877. Here she grew to womanhood and was educated.
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DR. M. H. LIDIKAY.
In reading over the record of the lives of many of the leading citizens of a county one becomes impressed with the fact that certain families show at the outset their strong inclinations toward books and learning generally, or in at least keeping up with the times on current topics. Among the farming community it is the rule, and not the exception, to find ordinary educations, but occasionally a family is met with that rises above the others in the scale of education and the capacity to grasp the larger questions of mental improvement. Such families are numerous in Montgomery county, and it is a sign that this locality is equal to any in the state in point of citizenship. One such is that represented by the subject of this sketch, Dr. M. H. Lidikay, well known veterinary physician, of Darlington, a man who is in every way deserving of the large material success and the high regard of his neighbors which he enjoys for his life has been one of industry and honor.
Dr. Lidikay was born on September 13, 1872, in Montgomery county, Indiana. He is a son of George E. and Mary (Grayville) Lidikay. The father was born in 1839 in Kentucky. For a full history of the Lidikay and Grayville families the reader is directed to the sketches of J. E. Lidi- kay and Josephus Grayville, appearing elsewhere in this work. The father of our subject is still living, making his home in Kansas. The mother of the Doctor was born in Virginia and her death occurred in April, 1902. George E. Lidikay has always followed general farming, but is now leading a retired life. His family consisted of nine children, seven of whom are still living.
Dr. Lidikay grew to manhood on the home farm, where he made him- self generally useful in his boyhood days, and he received a good common school education, later attending the Toronto Veterinary School at Toronto, Canada, where he made an excellent record and from which he was gradu- ated with the class of 1907.
He made his start on the farm, later engaged in business in Ladoga for awhile, then took up the study of veterinary surgery, and after proper preparation began the practice of his profession at Darlington, where he has since remained. He enjoys a large and rapidly growing patronage and has made a great success of his vocation, being regarded as one of the best in his line in the county, and he is kept very busy. He keeps well up with the times in all that pertains to his profession and is well equipped
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with instruments and apparatus for prompt and high grade service. He owns an attractive, modernly appointed nine-roomed dwelling in Darling- ton, and nearby, on the rear of his lot, is a substantial and convenient cement office and hospital.
Politically, he is a Democrat, and, in fraternal affairs belongs to the Masonic Order at Darlington.
On June 25, 1901, Dr. Lidikay married Mertie Lee Foster, who was born in Montgomery county, Indiana, July 24, 1875. She grew to woman- hood here and received her education in the common and high schools, and later she attended college at Covington, Indiana. She is a daughter of Henry Allen and Mattie E. (Allen) Foster.
To our subject and wife three children have been born, two of whom are still living; they were named Mary Helen, the first born, is deceased; Henry A., born March 18, 1907; Harry Davis, born April 12, 1910.
RICHARD C. HARPER.
Few men of a past generation in Sugar Creek township, Montgomery county, sought any harder to advance the general good of his locality than the late Richard C. Harper, a man whom to know was to admire and re- spect, for he was the possessor of that peculiar combination of attributes which results in the attainment of much that is worth while in this world. He aimed to be progressive in what he did, was always in sympathy with enterprises having for their object the common good, and his influence was invariably exerted on the right side of every moral issue. Like all men of positive character and independence of mind, he was outspoken in what he considered right, and his convictions were such that his neighbors and fel- low-citizens knew well his position on all questions of a political, moral, and religious nature. His private life was exemplary and his amiable character and many virtues made him popular with all who knew him, and his passing away was regretted by all.
Mr. Harper was born on June 19, 1849, in Hamilton county, Ohio, but most of his life was spent in Montgomery county, Indiana, whither he was brought from the old Buckeye state, when six months old, by his parents, Silas and Mary Jane (Allen) Harper. They were both natives of Ohio, the father having been born in Hamilton county, and there grew to man- hood, and when the Civil war came on was a soldier for the Union, and died
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while in the service. He had devoted his life to farming. The subject's parents had four children, only one of whom is now living; they were Eliza- beth and Mary, both deceased; Angeline, living; and Richard C., subject of this memoir.
Richard C. Harper grew to manhood on the home place in this county and there he made himself generally useful during his boyhood days. He received a common school education. On October 21, 1875, he married Mahala Holloway. She was born in Clinton county, Indiana, on August 8, 1857. She is a daughter of Thomas and Sarah (Truett) Holloway. The father was born in this county, and he died in 1896. The mother was born in Clinton county. Indiana, and her death occurred in Clinton county in 1855. Mrs. Harper grew to womanhood in her native community and received a common school education.
Seven children, five of whom are still living, were born to Mr. and Mrs. Harper, namely: Charles, born September 10, 1876, died February 7, 1902; Florence, born August 28, 1878, married Charles Hall, and they live in Urbana, Illinois; Clifford, born November 21, 1881, died October 18, 1900; Clella, born April 20, 1883, married Francis Hutchings, and they live in Champaign, Illinois; Wallace, born December 19, 1885, married Edna Hunt, and they live in Indianapolis; Lester B., born on July 9, 1887, is attending Wabash College in Crawfordsville; Harry, born March 19. 1889, lives on the home farm.
Richard C. Harper began farming for himself early in life and that continued to be his vocation until his death, carrying on general farming and stock raising on bis finely improved and productive farm of one hun- dred and forty acres, all tillable but about twenty acres of woods and pas- ture. Since his death, which occurred on October 29, 1905, Mrs. Harper has been operating the farm in a manner that has brought gratifying re- sults, successfully carrying out the plans her husband had inaugurated ,and keeping up the excellent improvements which he made.
Mr. Harper was contented to spend his life at home, looking after his family and his farm, and thus he never took much part in public affairs, merely being a consistent voter of the Republican ticket. Fraternally, he belonged to the Knights of Pythias at Darlington. He served the people of Sugar Creek township very faithfully as justice of the peace for a period of twelve years. His decisions were known for their fairness to all parties, and he ever sought to do the right as he saw and understood it in the light of duty. He was an earnest church worker; in fact, was a pillar in the
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local Methodist Episcopal congregation, of which he was long a member, a trustee and class leader. Neither his sincerity nor his honesty were ever assailed, and he merited in every way the high esteem that was accorded him by all who knew him.
WILLIAM ENDICOTT.
We rarely find two persons in everyday life who attribute their success in their different spheres to similar qualities. Hard work and plodding in- dustry paved the way for one, good judgment and a keen sense of value for another, intuition and a well balanced mind for a third. An admixture of some of the qualities above named, emphasized by hard work, has been responsible for the success of William Endicott, the popular and widely known restaurant proprietor of Crawfordsville, in his battle for the spoils of victory, these winning attributes having descended from a sterling ancestry who played no inconspicuous part in the early history of Montgomery county, having done their share of the rough work necessary to redeem the fertile fields from the wild state in which the first settlers found them and it is to such as these that we of today are greatly indebted for the good farms,, the thriv- ing towns and the good schools and churches to be found in every community.
William Endicott was born in Franklin township, Montgomery county, Indiana, and he is a son of George and Amanda A. Endicott, a highly re- spected family who lived on a farm in that locality, and there the subject grew to manhood, assisted with the general work about the place when a boy and received a common school education. At an early age it became neces- sary for him to shift for himself. This early responsibility proved to be the making of him, although at the time somewhat severe, but it fostered in him self-reliance, fortitude, courage and perseverance. He first started to learn the machinist's trade, and with this end in view began working in Lyle & Smith's Foundry in Crawfordsville, later securing employment at the City Bottling Works. He then became a waiter in a restaurant at Crawfordsville Junction. He was enthusiastic over the work and made rapid progress. He later worked at the Union depot in Terre Haute, then returned to Crawfords- ville Junction in the same capacity, working for Charles Smith. He had by this time determined upon the restaurant business for his life work, and had not only mastered the ins and outs of the same but had saved his money and was thus enabled to purchase, on January 18, 1893 what was known as
WILLIAM ENDICOTT
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the Big Four restaurant, at the corner of Plum and Franklin streets, Craw- fordsville. He and Mr. Smith buying the same in partnership, they continued to manage it successfully until 1904, when Mr. Endicott obtained charge of all dining cars between Columbus, Ohio, and Peoria, Illinois, taking active charge of the same on December 31, 1904, and he remained in that capacity until November 31, 1906, having made a financial success of the proposition and winning the hearty approbation of the traveling public. In January, 1906, he opened a restaurant on Main street, Crawfordsville, now known as the Northern Cafe. This is regarded as the principal and most popular restaurant in this city, Mr. Endicott having made a great success here where others failed. He makes a specialty of game and sea foods in season, and his motto is cleanliness and prompt service. Everything about the place is sanitary, inviting, systematic and up-to-date, in fact, this well patronized cafe would be a credit to cities much larger than Crawfordsville. He is de- serving of a great deal of credit for what he has accomplished in the face of obstacles, and he is well liked by all who know him.
Mr. Endicott, although a very busy man, takes an abiding interest in public affairs, and during the recent national campaign was a prime factor, locally, in the Progressive movement, and he had the distinction of serving as a delegate to the national convention of that party in Chicago. Fraternally, he is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, Lodge No. 493 ; also the Loyal Odrer of Moose, Tribe of Ben-Hur, the Eagles and Owls.
Mr. Endicott was married on March 21, 1893 to Minnie A. Doyle, a native of Montgomery county, her birth having occurred in Union township, where her parents were well and favorably known, and where she grew to womanhood and was educated. To this union two children were born, Her- man and Darrell, both in school.
FRANK W. WAUGH.
One of the most enterprising of the younger generation of farmers of Sugar Creek township, Montgomery county, who has believed from the out- set of his career that "the wisdom of yesterday is sometimes the folly of today," and that while the methods of our grandfathers in tilling the soil were all right in their day, yet in the twentieth century we are compelled to adopt new methods and farm along different lines, in view of the fact that conditions of climate, soil, grains, etc., have changed since the days of the
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pioneers, is Frank W. Waugh. He has been a close observer of modern methods and is a student at all times of whatever pertains to his chosen life work, and he has therefore met with encouraging success all along the line, and, judging from his past record, he will undoubtedly achieve much in the future years and take his place among the leading agriculturists of a com- munity noted for its fine farms and adroit husbandmen.
Mr. Waugh was born on March 13, 1872, in the township and county where he still resides. He is a son of Milton B. and Sarah E. (Saulsbury) Waugh. The father was born in Montgomery county, Indiana, and his death occurred on December 20, 1904. The mother was born also in this county, and she was called to her rest on August 30, 1892. These parents grew to maturity in this locality, received common school educations and here they were married. They each represented old families, highly re- spected and well known in the pioneer epoch. Milton B. Waugh devoted his life to general farming in his native locality, and became well known as a raiser of well bred stock. Politically, he was a Republican and took an active interest in public affairs, being influential locally in his party. His family consisted of seven children, named as follows: James M., Emma O., John M., Mary L., Martha, Clara B., and Frank W., of this review, who is the youngest.
Frank W. Waugh grew to manhood on the home farm in Sugar Creek township, and there he attended the common schools, later was a pupil for some time in Valparaiso College, Valparaiso, Indiana. On December 26, 1895, he married Eleanor Stuckey, a representative of a well known family, an account of whose ancestry will be found on another page of this volume under the caption of Warren L. Stuckey. Mrs. Waugh grew to woman- hood in her native county and received a good education in the common schools.
Two children have been born to our subject and wife, namely: Mary Marie, born October 7, 1896; and Sarah Myrl, born August 26, 1908, are both attending school.
Mr. Waugh has always farmed in his native township, and he has met with a large measure of success as a general farmer and stock raiser. He makes a specialty of raising Hereford cattle and general bred live stock. He owns one hundred and sixty-four acres in this township and twenty-one and one-fourth acres in Clinton county. Of the home place,all is tillable but about ten acres. It is well tiled and otherwise well improved, and on it stands a good dwelling and outbuildings.
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Politically, Mr. Waugh is a Republican, and has been more or less active in public affairs. He was trustee of his township for one term, from 1905 to 1909. Fraternally, he belongs to the Masonic Order of Colfax, and religiously, he attends the Methodist church at Colfax.
J. E. DYKES.
The life of the twentieth century farmer is quite different from that of the tiller of the soil during the century that has only recently passed. Improved farming machinery is very largely responsible for this change, this improvement of condition, and yet if the present-day agricultural im- plements had been known to our grandfathers they would not have had the money to purchase them, for everybody was poor in those days. Another thing, the soil was at that time being redeemed from the wild state and was unsuited to the use of modern machinery.
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