History of Northeast Indiana : LaGrange, Steuben, Noble and DeKalb Counties, Volume II, Part 45

Author: Ford, Ira, 1848- ed
Publication date: 1920
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 618

USA > Indiana > LaGrange County > History of Northeast Indiana : LaGrange, Steuben, Noble and DeKalb Counties, Volume II > Part 45
USA > Indiana > Noble County > History of Northeast Indiana : LaGrange, Steuben, Noble and DeKalb Counties, Volume II > Part 45
USA > Indiana > DeKalb County > History of Northeast Indiana : LaGrange, Steuben, Noble and DeKalb Counties, Volume II > Part 45
USA > Indiana > Steuben County > History of Northeast Indiana : LaGrange, Steuben, Noble and DeKalb Counties, Volume II > Part 45

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

DE Luckey MR.

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HISTORY OF NORTHEAST INDIANA

Commandery of Knights Templar at Coldwater and had an appointment from the grand commander of Knights Templar of Michigan to go to Porto Rico in the interests of that order. Mrs. Pessell was a member of the Order of the Eastern Star. Politic- ally Mr. Pessell was a democrat and stood high in the councils of his party locally.

To Henry D. and Susanna Pessell were born eight children, of whom seven are living, namely: George, superintendent of the city water works at Los An- geles, California; Arthur, assistant baggage master on one of the railroads running into Los Angeles ; Lucile, who is a teacher in a polytechnic school in Los Angeles; Sarah, of Glenellyn, Illinois; Fred, a manufacturer of butter at Arcadia, Ohio; Cora, who lives in the old home at Quincy, Michigan; and the subject of this sketch.

J. Bruce Pessell attended the public schools of Quincy, being a graduate of the high school, after which he attended and graduated in the agricul- tural course from the Ohio State University. Dur- ing the ensuing three years he was employed in the making of butter and ice cream at .Cleveland, Ohio, and in 1904 he came to Butler and engaged in the same line of work, in which he was successful. On February 11, 1915, he was appointed postmaster of Butler, and is now serving his second term in that position, his reappointment meeting with the hearty approval of the patrons of the office whom he had faithfully served for four years. Attentive to the interests of the people of the community and cour- teous in his dealings with them, he has won a host of friends. Mr. Pessell is also captain of the Butler fire department. Fraternally he is identified with the Masonic order, in which he has met with distinctive preferment, being a past master of the Blue Lodge, a past high priest of the Chapter and past illustrious master of the Council. Religiously he and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, in the advancement of which they are deeply inter- ested.

Mr. Pessell was married to Addie Austin, of Quincy, Michigan, and their union has been blessed by two children, Rovelle and Clyde. Mr. Pessell is well endowed with those qualities which go to the making of good citizens, and he has won and retains the esteem of his fellow citizens to a marked de- gree.

DANIEL OURY. When the people of an Indiana township select their most responsible and important official, a township trustee, their choice usually falls upon a man of known and proved substantial character, good business ability and with a public spirit that when necessary will make him sacrifice his private interests in order to serve the public welfare, especially in the matter of good schools. It was that type of man which was selected to manage the affairs of Jackson Township in Steuben County when Daniel Oury was promoted to the office. Mr. Oury is now serving his second term.

He was born in Jackson Township April 26, 1874. son of William and Rachel (Bowerman) Oury. His mother was born in Seneca County, Ohio, a daugh- ter of Simon and Lydia (Spangle) Bowerman. William Oury, who was born in Knox County, Ohio, in 1849, was thrown upon his own responsibilities when a boy and what he achieved in later years was an exhibition of his personal resources, industry and all around ability. He was married in Ohio and about 1874 he came to Jackson Township in Steuben County with his wife and one child. In 1876 he bought the farm in sections 16 and 21 where he spent the rest of his life and where he died in 1901. He built a house on that farm, built a barn,

and at the time of his death left a good property of 200 acres. He and his wife were active members of the Methodist Church at Flint. Their children were six in number: Charles Berton; Daniel C .; Pearl, wife of Guy Barr; George J .; Simon; and Ethel, wife of Clyde Ferris.

Daniel Oury was born soon after his parents came to Steuben County. He attended the No. 4 district school in that township, and was well trained in habits of industry, his father keeping him busy in the fields when he was not in school. He was thus well qualified to assume the responsibilities of managing the home farm when his father died in 1901, and he has since acquired the individual ownership of 166 acres of the land formerly owned by his father. He does general farming and stock raising and breeds Chester White hogs.

Mr. Oury married Miss Katie M. Jackson, a daughter of Charles and Martha Jackson. They have two children. Cecil L., a graduate of the Flint High School, spent two terms in Angola Normal School, was a teacher for three terms and is now farming in Jackson Township. He married Mildred Miller and has a daughter, Catherine Elizabeth. Clarence McKey, the second son, is a graduate of the Flint High School.

Mr. Oury was elected trustee of Jackson Town- ship in 1914, and after one term of four years was re-elected in 1918. He is affiliated with the Masonic Lodge at Flint, and his wife and sons are members of the Methodist Church there.

JAMES E. LUCKEY, M. D. For over a quarter of a century Dr. James E. Luckey has borne the re- sponsibilities and performed the duties of a busy practitioner in and around Wolf Lake, and is one of the foremost medical men of Noble County in point of years of experience and personal ability.

He was born in Noble County July 18, 1865, son of Robert and Abigail (Adair) Luckey. His mother was the second white child born in Washington Township of Noble County. Her father was a native of Ireland and married Eliza Window, who was born on the Isle of Wight. Robert Luckey was born in Nelson County, Virginia, in 1824, moved from that state to Pennsylvania, and at the age of thirteen came to Indiana, locating in Elkhart County. In early life he learned the trade of bricklayer, and as a contractor erected many buildings in Ligonier, Goshen and at various points in Elkhart County. Some years later he moved to a farm in Washington Township of Noble County and spent the rest of his life in that locality. He was a member of the Presbyterian Church and was a democrat until 1896, when he became affiliated with the republican party. He and his wife had seven children, as follows : Anna, wife of Dr. W. C. Hontz, of North Webster, Indiana; Lydia, wife of T. I. Ashlick, of the State of Washington; Dr. James E .; May, wife of Dr. D. S. Hontz, of North Webster ; Thomas A., a Noble County farmer ; Mary J., wife of J. H. Starkey, also a farm owner in Noble Township; and Joseph E., one of the extensive farmers and onion growers in this section of the state.

Dr. James E. Luckey spent his early life on his father's farm, attended the district schools and the high school, and was graduated in medicine from the Indiana University School of Medicine. He began practice at Wolf Lake in 1892, and has been steadily engaged in the work of his profession at that point for over a quarter of a century.

September 8, 1892, Doctor Luckey married Dott B. Benfer, a native of Noble County. They have three sons: Hugh A., a graduate of high school, married Hazel Gandy; Harold A., who is now liv- ing at home and has taught school for two years, is

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a high school graduate and also attended Goshen College and spent one year in the State University; Robert C. is a high school student. Doctor Luckey is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, is affiliated with the Masonic Lodge at Albion, with Kendallville Chapter No. 19, Royal Arch Masons, with Ligonier Council, Royal and Select Masters, with the Knights Templar at Columbia City, and is a member of the thirty-second degree Scottish Rite and the Mystic Shrine at Fort Wayne. He is also affiliated with the Elks at Ligonier. In politics Doc- tor Luckey is a democrat. He is a member of the United States Pension Examining Board, is a stock- holder in the Wolf Lake State Bank, and is also in- terested in farming, owning ninety acres in Noble Township.

HARVEY A. STRATER is one of the successful farmer citizens of Noble County, owns a good place of eighty acres situated three miles west of Kendallville in Orange Township, and has been identified with the agricultural and civic affairs of his county for over thirty years.

He was born in Orange Township April II, 1862, son of John F. and Anna M. (Toby) Strater. His parents were both born in Germany. His father came to the United States when a boy with his parents. The mother was twelve years old when her parents came to the United States. Both families settled in Richland County, Ohio, where John F. Strater and wife were married. Later they moved to Noble County, Indiana, and settled where Martin Strater now lives. In that locality they spent the rest of their lives. John F. Strater was a man of great industry, of fine moral char- acter, and enjoyed the full esteem of his friends and neighbors. He came to Indiana with only $400 in capital, and by an industrious life he accumu- lated 280 acres of land. He was a very ardent democrat in politics. He and his wife had a large family of twelve children. . One died in infancy, one passed away recently in 1916, and ten are still living, as follows: Catherine, wife of Samuel Linzy; Mary, wife of Ephraim Acton, of Wayne Township; Jenetta, widow of Nelson Shamlin, of Orange Township; Laura, unmarried and living in Wayne Township; George, of Wayne Township; J. M., Strater of Orange Township; Harvey A .; Minnie, wife of Walter A. Rhea, of Orange Town- ship; Emma, wife of John Rhea, of Orange Town- ship; and Albert, of Wayne Township.

Harvey A. Strater grew up on the home farm in Orange Township and had a common school edu- cation. At the age of twenty-one he began work- ing out for others and also rented a farm. He married for his first wife Isabella I. Imes. She left two children: Glenn and Carl, both of whom are married and established in homes of their own. On June 24, 1895, Mr. Strater married Mollie Spence. She was born in Jefferson Township of Noble County October 12, 1872, and was reared in that locality. Her father, Rev. T. P. Spence, a minister of the United Brethren Church, was born in Morrow County, Ohio. His wife was a native of Wyandot County, Ohio, and they were married in Seneca County of that state in 1859, and in 1865 moved to Noble County, Indiana. T. P. Spence served three years as a soldier in the Union army. Mrs. Strater was educated in the common schools, graduating at the age of sixteen. Mr. and Mrs. Strater had seven children: Dale, a graduate of the common schools and now married and living in Kendallville; Wilma, a graduate of the common schools; Edna, a student in high school; Claire, who has finished the common school course; Olive, now in high school; Reva, and one

that died young. Mrs. Strater is an active member of the Uniited Brethren Church. In politics Mr. Strater is a democrat.

JOSEPH Y. HOOLEY, a resident of LaGrange County since 1881, started life with no particular advantages and from farm labor has progressed steadily during the passing years to a comfortable independence rep- resented in the ownership of a fine farm in New- bury Township.

Mr. Hooley was born in Mahoning County, Ohio, June 30, 1861, a son of Joseph and Rachel (Yoder) Hooley. His mother was a daughter of Jacob Yoder. She was born October 10, 1834, and died March 21, 1893. Joseph Hooley was born in Mif- flin County, Pennsylvania, January 13, 1829, and he and his wife were married January 9, 1855. For a number of years he farmed in Mahoning County, but in 1863 moved to St. Joseph County, Michigan, where he spent the rest of his life on a farm. He and his wife were members of the Amish Mennonite Church. They had a family of children as follows: Enos, who married Lydia A. Yoder; Menno S., who married Frances' Hostetler ; Anna, who became the wife of Isaiah Hostettler; Joseph Y .; John F., who died November 4, 1865; Emma J., who became the wife of Jacob Hostetler; and Magdalene, who mar- ried William W. Hartzler.

Joseph Y. Hooley grew up in St. Joseph County, Michigan, attended the district schools there, and was about twenty years of age when he came to Newbury Township. He worked out as a farm hand and on March 1, 1884, married Gertrude Yoder. Then for several years he followed the trade of carpenter and in 1891 bought his first farm, com- prising eighty acres. After two years he sold that and bought another eighty acres, which he still owns, and in 1902 bouglit a place of 120 acres, on which he has lived since 1907. He also owns nearby forty acres, and has eighty acres in Elkhart County. Mr. Hooley has rebuilt the buildings and put many im- provements on his home farm, and in the matter of buildings it is one of the best places in the town- ship. His home is in section 8 of Newbury Town- ship.

In the comfortable prosperity of later years Mr. and Mrs. Hooley have the companionship and solace of both children and grandchildren. Their own children numbered eight. Levi F., the oldest, mar- ried Minnie Miller, and they are the parents of Nancy, Amos, Titus, Rachel, Reva and Vada. Noah J., the second son, married Syvilla Blough and has three children, Francis, Florence and Ernest. Menno S. married Dora Mast and has two children, Walter Harold and Verna. Lydia Ann is the wife of Elmer Murray, and their children are named Gerald, Joe- ulla, Elmer, Jr., Gladys and Grace. Beulah F. is the wife of Adam Birkholder, and they have Sa- verna and Mabel. The three younger children, still unmarried, are Ora J., Katie R. and Luella G.

SOLOMON ALWOOD, whose interests as a farmer, public spirited citizen and leader in church and com- munity affairs identify him prominently with Troy Township of DeKalb County, lives five miles south- west of Edon, Ohio.

He was born in Troy Township January 29, 1861, a son of Charles and Elizabeth (Rosenburg) Alwood. His parents were both natives of Ohio, his father, born January 22, 1827, and his mother August 24, 1827. After their marriage they came to DeKalb County and settled in Troy Township, where the father followed farming until he enlisted in Com- pany G of the Thirteenth Indiana Infantry. He was a faithful soldier and died July 4, 1865, before being mustered out of the army. He was a democrat in

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politics. His widow survived him many years, pass- ing away July 5, 1902. She was the mother of seven children : John, of Butler, Indiana; Henry, of Bat- tle Creek, Michigan; Leonard, of Angola; Saman- tha, of Edon, Ohio; Solomon; Warren, of Clare County, Michigan ; and Ananias, deceased.

Solomon Alwood was four years old when his father died. He grew up at the old home, was edu- cated in the district schools, and helped his mother run the farm until his marriage.

November 13, 1899, Della Van Wormer became his wife. She was born in Troy Township December 16, 1867, a daughter of William and Sarah (Has- well) Van Wormer, the former a native of Penn- sylvania and the latter of Ohio. Her parents were married in Indiana and her father served in Com- pany K of the One Hundredth Indiana Infantry until the close of the Civil war. The Van Wormers were members of the United Brethren Church.

Mr. and Mrs. Alwood after their marriage lived on the home farm until he bought his present place in Troy Township. He owns a 118-acre farm, and has specialized to a considerable extent in the breed- ing of Duroc hogs.

Mr. and Mrs. Alwood have four children: Clark W Chora Sent, mber 6, 1890, is a blacksmith in Steu- DuUse Rapp aude L., born June 27, 1892, a farmer in Troy Township; and Leland and Lelah, twins, born August 7, 1902, both graduates of the common schools and now in the senior year of the Butler High School. The family are members of the United Brethren Church and Mr. Alwood is a church trus- tee and superintendent and teacher of the Sunday School. He was a candidate on the democratic ticket for the office of trustee of Troy Township in 1918.

HOWARD E. LEES, cashier of the First State Bank of Fremont, is a banker of several years' experience, but for a much longer time was a popular and suc- cessful teacher. Most of his career was spent in Northwestern Ohio, but he is one of the well known and enterprising young leaders in business affairs in Steuben County.

He was born at Edon in Williams County, Ohio, July 14, 1889. His grandfather, Hugh Lees, was born in Belfast, Ireland, and spent much of his active life as a farmer in Ohio. He had the follow- ing children: Zeph, Murvin, Elmer, Willis, Edson, Mary, who married Henry Stuller, and Elizabeth, who became the wife of David Metzler.

Murvin A. Lees was born at Edon, Ohio, on the same farm as his son Howard, and has spent all his life as a farmer there. He has been prospered and for several years has specialized in Holstein dairy cattle. He is also one of the leading stock buyers in that section of Ohio. He married Hannah Fetters, a native of Wayne County, Ohio, daugliter of Samuel and Elizabeth (Kimmel) Fetters. Mur- vin Lees and wife are members of the Church of Christ. They had four children: Beulah, wife of Samuel Burkhart; Florence, wife of Orvie Eyster; Howard E .; and Fay, who married Juanita Skelton.

Howard E. Lees attended public school in Edon, graduating from the high school there, and first became acquainted in Steuben County as a student in the Tri-State College. In the years 1909-10 he took advanced work in Miami University.

Mr. Lees taught school for nine years, three years near his native Village of Edon, five years in that town, and one year in the State of Washington. In 1916, after his last work in school, he returned to Ohio and became an employe of the First Na- tional Bank of Hicksville. In December, 1916, he moved to Fremont, Indiana, and was assistant

cashier until he was made cashier in July, 1918, of the First State Bank.

In the fall of 1911 he married Pearl Musser, of Bryan, Ohio, daughter of E. A. and Carrie Musser. They have one child, Helen Lucile, born in 1912. Mr. Lees is a member of the Church of Christ and is affiliated with the Knights of Pythias Lodge.

F. E. SEYMOURE is a progressive farmer in Noble County, living on land a part of which was origi- nally entered from the government by his father. He has a large farm in section 16 and 21 of Noble Township, and for a number of years has devoted part of it to the cultivation of onions, and is one of the leading onion growers in this section of Indiana.

He was born at his present home January 12, 1864, son of McIntyre and Sophia (Boerger) Sey- moure, the former a native of New York State and the latter of Germany. His mother was brought to the United States at the age of thirteen, and she married for her first husband Henry Freer, and by her second marriage was the mother of four children : Alta A., wife of Thomas M. Ott, of Nohle Township; Rudolph J., a resident of Bluff Springs in Florida; F. E. Seymoure; and Anna, wife of Simon Hire, of Whitley County, Indiana.

F. E. Seymoure has always lived at the home he now occupies, and during his boyhood attended the nearby district schools. He remained with his mother until he was thirty-one years of age, and in 1895 married Alma Kimmell. She was born in Summit County, Ohio, July 14, 1866, daughter of M. J. and Christina (Getz) Kimmell. When she was a few months old her parents came to Noble County, Indiana, and since her marriage she has lived in Noble Township. Mr. and Mrs. Seymoure have three sons and one daughter. Carlos R., born April 30, 1896, is a graduate of high school, was a teacher for two terms, and is now following the occupation of agriculture. Martha, Roy and Harold are the three younger children and Martha is a student in high school.

Mr. Seymoure is a charter member of Wolf Lake Lodge of Knights of Pythias, and is a past chancellor and member of the Grand Lodge. His wife is a member of the Pythian Sisters at Wolf Lake. In politics he is a democrat. Mr. Sey- moure's fine farm comprises 120 acres, and 100 acres of this was entered by his father at a gov- ernment land office.

SAMUEL M. MILLER. A good farm in Newbury Township, with ample equipment and efficiently man- aged, is the distinguishing mark of the service ren- dered by Samuel M. Miller. Well known in that community, he is also a member of a widely known and numerous family, the Millers having been prom- inent in Pennsylvania and in Northeast Indiana for many generations.

Mr. Miller was born in Newbury Township De- cember 24, 1870. He is a son of Manassas Miller and a grandson of Moses B. and Susanna (Hersh- berger) Miller. Moses Miller spent his life as a farmer in Cambria County, Pennsylvania. His chil- dren, several of whom came to Indiana, were Isaac, Jacob, Manassas, Sarah, Lena, Susie, Mary, Chris- tina, Daniel, Samuel and Catherine.

Manassas Miller was born in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, November 28, 1842, and came to La- Grange County, Indiana, in 1864, locating in New- bury Township. He lived there the rest of his life and passed away October 8, 1916. On March 29, 1866, he married Anna Miller, who was born in Holmes County, Ohio, June 20, 1848, a daughter of

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Christian and Catherine ( Mast) Miller. Christian Miller was also a native of Somerset County, Penn- sylvania, but in early life became a farmer in Holmes County, Ohio, where his wife was born. In 1859 they moved to Newbury Township of LaGrange County, and in 1872 Christian Miller went further west, to Shelby County, Illinois, was a farmer there ten years, and in 1882 established a home in Reno County, Kansas, where he was a pioneer. He lived there until his death the year of the Johnstown flood, 1889. The children of Christian Miller were Susanna, Martha, Anna, Moses, Jacob, Christian, Katie, Joseph and Noah.

Manassas Miller and wife had twelve children, nine living, a brief record of whom follows: Levi M. married for his first wife Anna Troyer, who died in 1908, and for his second wife, Hosana Troyer ; Jacob married Polly Troyer ; Samuel; Susie, who lives in Kansas, the wife of Christian E. Troyer ; Christian, also a resident of Kansas, married Lydia Ann Miller; Elizabeth, wife of John E. Christner ; Moses, who married Elizabeth Yoder; William, who married Polly Borntrager; and Martha, who died when eighteen years old.

Samuel M. Miller received his educational ad- vantages in Newbury Township, and from early manhood has been a practical farmer. He farmed for about four years in his home locality, spent a year and a half in Elkhart County, and since then has been busy with the management of his farm in section 32 of Newbury Township. He owns 160 acres, and he has provided liberally for all his needs. He and his wife are members of the old order of the Mennonite Church.

In 1894 he married Lydia Troyer, a daughter of Eli D. Troyer. While they have no children of their own they have taken into their home two chil- dren to rear, Fannie and Ammon Troyer, who are children of his wife's brother, David E. Troyer.

HOMER L. CASEBERE is one of the younger men whose enterprise entitles them to special considera- tion among DeKalb County agriculturists. Mr. Case- bere operates the fine old Casebere farm in Stafford Township, on the eastern edge of the county. This farm has many characteristics to be admired in the way of improvements and productiveness, and its good features are by no means covered up and lost sight of by the name chosen by the owner and offi- cially recorded among farm names in the court house at Auburn. This name is "Just-A-Mere Farm."

Mr. Casebere was born on this farm July 27, 1887, a son of S. S. and Flora (Dunkle) Casebere. His father was born in Williams County, Ohio, January 22, 1860, son of George and Mrs. (Knisely) Casebere. His parents now reside at Butler and are active mem- bers of the Christian Church there. S. S. Casebere has been quite active in the republican party and was formerly township trustee and member of the County Council. In the family were three children : Lester, who married Lottie McDaniel, of Stafford Township; Mabel, wife of Frank Lyons, of Wil- mington Township; and Homer L.

Homer L. Casebere grew up on the home farm and finished his education with two years in high school. He married Princess Thomas, daughter of Elder Fred A. Thomas of Milford, Indiana. Mrs. Casebere finished her education at Valparaiso Uni- versity. They have three children: Mabel, born October 1, 1912; Harold, born May 31, 1914; and Rachel, born January 22, 1916. The family are mem- bers of the Christian Church and Mr. Casebere is one of its elders and also a teacher in the Sunday school.

His farm comprises 155 acres and while it fur-

nishes him ample employment for all his energies he has other interests, being a member of the Arctic Shipping Association of Arctic, is secretary of the Hobb Threshing Company, and a stockholder in the Hamilton National Bank at Fort Wayne. He is also a member of the Grange and is a republican in politics.

FRANCIS J. CLARK. In the person of the late Francis J. Clark, Steuben County had one of its most enterprising citizens, a successful and hard- working farmer, a thorough business man, and possessed of that character which makes his influ- ence still count for good in the community where he lived for so many years.

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History of Northeast Indiana : LaGrange, Steuben, Noble and DeKalb Counties, Volume II, Part 45

Author: Ford, Ira, 1848- ed Publication date: 1920 Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 618

Author: Ford, Ira, 1848- ed
Publication date: 1920
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 618