USA > Indiana > Vermillion County > History of Parke and Vermillion Counties, Indiana : with historical sketches of representative citizens and genealogical records of many of the old families > Part 50
USA > Indiana > Parke County > History of Parke and Vermillion Counties, Indiana : with historical sketches of representative citizens and genealogical records of many of the old families > Part 50
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church. He has been a faithful patriot, an industrious citizen and an hon- est public servant in each position, giving the public the benefit of his cool- headed justice and untiring endeavors in every righteous cause. He is an example for the youth of Parke county and they may well point to him as a man whose being has been justified by his works.
THE PARKE COUNTY TIMES.
One of the progressive and wide-awake county newspapers of western Indiana which has attained a high rank is The Parke County Times, pub- lished by F. L. and C. L. Sherrill, both of whom are natives of New York state, C. L. Sherrill having been born at Sandy Hill, where the Sherrill family was long, well and favorably known. His wife, known as F. L. Sherrill in the firm, was born at Oswego, New York. Mr. and Mrs. Sherrill came to Rockville, Parke county, Indiana, in April, 1908, and purchased The Parke County Times. This paper, however, at that time, was published as Progressive Country Life, a sixteen-page paper devoted mainly to agri- culture. The publication was changed to the present title in 1909, and made a six- column eight-page paper. The paper was established ten years ago and has been a power for the development of this locality ever since, especially since the new management assumed control. It is one of the best papers of its kind ever published in Indiana. It is a weekly local paper, championing the principles of the Republican party, and advocating all kinds of improvements for the general good of the people of Parke and surrounding counties, and, needless to add, that it has accomplished much in this direction. The present owners have greatly improved its mechanical appearance, having strengthened its edi- torial columns and made it newsier and a more valuable advertising medium. Its circulation is increasing rapidly, is the largest in the county and it is to be seen by every fireside in this locality.
In connection with the regular publishing of the paper, there is main-
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tained a most excellent and up-to-date job printing office, the motto of which is prompt service and high grade work, and they are well equipped in every respect for this line of work, in which department also they are well patron- ized, and always give honest and satisfactory results.
Mr. and Mrs. Sherrill understand well the various phases of newspaper work; they are versatile, clever, and conduct a modern newspaper. They have made many friends since coming to Parke county, are regarded as among Rockville's best citizens, and they are making their paper a factor for good in their locality.
DANIEL C. WILLIAMS.
Fifty years ago the flower of the young men of this country enlisted in her armies to fight the battle for liberty and union; freely they offered their lives a sacrifice to her good. Not from all of them did she demand this last measure of devotion, for many of them were allowed to return to her fields and shops and factories and offices, there to serve her by nobly per- ferming the duties of peace. Among the number so many years ago laid their young manhood upon the altar of devotion to their country and whom she returned to their homes where the lessons of patriotism learned in war's experience might be translated into peaceful endeavor, was Daniel C. Will- iams, and but few of those who went out with him to the front have been spared so long as he, to aid in and to witness their country's recent marvel- ous growth and development.
Daniel C. Williams was born in Ross county, Ohio, in 1840, the son of Urias and Isabel Williams. In 1842, when he was but two years old, his parents moved from Ross county to what was then one of the newer por- tions of Indiana, settling near Rockville. in Parke county, Indiana, where Urias Williams created a farm out of the wilderness and spent the remainder of his life, being one of the respected and influential men of his time. Daniel C. Williams attended the common schools, and when his schooling was finished began to work for neighboring farmers. In 1862 he enlisted in Company A. Eighty-fifth Indiana Volunteer Infantry. His regiment be- came a part of the Army of the Cumberland, and took part in Sherman's famous march to the sea. The regiment then went north with General Sherman to Washington, and was there mustered out on June 12. 1865. Mr. Williams passed through three years of hard campaigning, and through it all bore himself as a soldier should, whatever the occasion. At the close of
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the war he again took up farming, which he has since followed and in which he has been successful.
In August, 1867, Daniel C. Williams was married to Nancy J. Dowdell, and to them were born two sons, Otto D. and Delbert P. His second mar- riage was in July, 1880, to Armilda Grimes, to which union were born three children, Alma, Edna and Carl. Mr. Williams' religious affiliations are with the Methodist church. For seventy years he has been a resident of Parke county, and has seen his community grow from a pioneer settlement to one of the best improved farming districts in the country. Throughout this time he has fully taken the part he was able to take in this development, and he has always been devoted to the good of the community. Mr. Williams is a member of Altoona Post, Grand Army of the Republic, whose members are now becoming few in number. Father Time having claimed the most of them for his own.
AQUILLA LAVERTY.
The name of Aquilla Laverty is well remembered by the citizens of the Parke county community in which he spent the greater portion of his life and became one of its leading men in every respect. He was born to no fortune save the heritage of strong character ; by his own efforts he accumu- lated a large amount of property, and by his interest in the welfare of all those who were his neighbors he became influential with an influence based upon true brotherly feeling for mankind. He did not spare himself when his country needed men in war, but cheerfully offered his life, and though his country returned it to him, and did not demand it on the field of battle, he spent his remaining years no less truly in her service.
Aquilla Laverty was born in Parke county, Indiana, on October 3, 1822, and departed from this life on November 30, 1896, aged seventy-four. He was the son of James and Margaret (Guffey) Laverty. James Laverty was a native of Pennsylvania, who removed to Kentucky, and later to Ohio, in which state he assisted in erecting the first buildings of the city of Columbus. In the winter of 1817-18 he came by wagon to Parke county, Indiana, where his brothers, John and Samuel, had preceded him, and settled on sixty acres of land. Besides . James and his brothers mentioned, his remaining five brothers and sisters, Alexander, Polly, Mary, Rachel and Margaret, all moved to Indiana near the same time. James Laverty served in the war of
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1812. He was twice married, and by his first marriage was the father of nine children : Jane, who married William Brockway; Cynthia, who married Thomas Melvin, and, after his death, Joshua Fisher; Samuel, who died at Powder River, Oregon; John, accidentally killed at the raising of a school house in 1832; Mary, who married John Bronson, and later James McNutt; Indiana, the wife of Hiram Brockway; Lucy A., Aquilla, and Alexander, who died in 1823. The mother of these children passed away in 1851, and afterwards James Laverty married Mrs. Saracida Woods, nee Luster, to which union were born two children, James, of Kansas, and Emily, Mrs. Albert Griffin. Margaret Guffey was a descendant of the old Scotch Guffey clan. She was born in Pennsylvania, the daughter of Captain Henry and Margaret (McDowell) Guffey. Captain Henry won his title in the war of 1812. He was killed by Indians in ambush while plowing on his farm with his gun strapped to his plow.
Aquilla Laverty attended the early loghouse schools, and when nine- teen began to work by the month for ten dollars per month. He then farmed on rented land, saved some money, with one hundred dollars went to Galena, Illinois, and by prospecting in lead mines multiplied his money many times, then began building flatboats to run to New Orleans, making the trip nine- teen times. In 1847 he purchased a farm of one hundred and thirty-seven acres in Wabash township. He prospered in his business undertakings, and increased his holdings to five thousand acres of land, besides other property. When the war broke out, he was running a steamboat on the Wabash river. He took a leading part in raising a company in the fall of 1861, and was offered its captaincy, but refused and went as a private soldier. He took part in the battle of Fort Donelson, was wounded at Shiloh, and was dis- charged at Indianapolis on account of his wounds, with the rank of corporal. In politics he was a Whig, and later a Republican. He was a figure of strong and commanding importance in all the earlier history of Parke county.
On September 12, 1851, Aquilla Laverty was married to Elizabeth Justus, the daughter of Aquilla and Mary (Gormely) Justus, who came from Ohio to Parke county in 1824. To this marriage were born six children : Mary, deceased ; Henry, deceased : George, Irena. Mrs. J. C. Casto, Erminie, Kittie C., and Jessie F., deceased. Mrs. Elizabeth Laverty passed from this life on August 2, 1890.
On January 30, 1895, Aquilla Laverty was married to Lillian Mann. the daughter of Albert and Harriet (Ward) Mann. Her parents were natives of New York state who emigrated to Indiana, and lived at Summit
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Grove for thirty-five years. They had five children: Stella, deceased; Lil- lian : Frederick, of Summit Grove; Eva, now Mrs. Henry Gilmore, of Sum- mit Grove; and Kate, who married Elmer Potter, of Summit Grove. Albert Mann died in 1904, aged sixty-four, and his widow is living with her daugh- ter, Mrs. Laverty, at the age of sixty-eight. By his second marriage Aquilla Laverty was the father of two children, Aquilla, living at home with his mother, and Cecil Frederick, deceased. Mrs. Laverty resides in the handsome home erected by her across the road from the old homestead which he first purchased, and which became the center of his later large holdings.
STEPHEN H. JEFFRIES.
One of Parke county's leading agriculturists and highly respected citi- zens is Stephen H. Jeffries, owner of a fine farm in Adams township, a man who has tried to keep fully abreast of the times in all that pertains to his vocation and who, while laboring for his own advancement, does not neglect his duties to his neighbors and the community in general. He has always stood ready to support such measures as make for the material and civic improve- ment of the county. He is a man of esthetic tastes and loves nature, being able to get a great deal of pleasure and benefit from the study of the things around him. He has ever borne an exemplary character.
Mr. Jeffries was born March 4, about 1850, in Clay county, Indiana, and is the son of Stephen and Elizabeth (Payne) Jeffries. the father a native of Fanquier county, Virginia, and who became an extensive planter there. Seven children constituted his family.
Stephen H. Jeffries grew up on his father's farm and there he worked during his boyhood days, attending the public schools during the winter months. When his mother died he worked out at farm work until he was about thirty years old. After working for some time in Frankfort. Indiana. he went to Edgar county, Illinois, where he rented land on which he farmed a while, then purchased eighty acres and lived there about thirteen years, during which time he got an excellent start in life, then sold out and came to Parke county, Indiana, buying his present farm, having added to the same later. It contains two hundred and forty acres which Mr. Jeffries has brought up to a high state of improvement and cultivation. It is well located about six miles from Rockville in one of the richest sections of the county. Here he is carrying on general farming and stock raising on an extensive scale
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and is one of the most progressive agriculturists of the county. He has a commodious residence and a number of large, substantial outhouses.
Mr. Jeffries was married on October 26, 1884, to Laura E. Benson, daughter of Nathaniel and Mary ( Ellson) Benson. To this union have been born six children, namely : Pearlie is deceased : Oscar, Charles, Ora and Carl, the sons, are all unmarried and at home; Grace Marie is the youngest. This family hold membership in the Baptist church at New Discovery.
HUGH MONTGOMERY.
Those who belong to the respectable middle classes of society, being early taught the necessity of relying upon their own exertions, will be more apt to acquire that information and those business habits which alone can fit them for the discharge of life's duties, and, indeed, it has long been a notice- able fact that our great men in nearly all walks of life in America spring from this class. The reasons are too evident to need enumerating here. Hugh Montgomery, well known furniture dealer and undertaker at Monte- zuma. Parke county. Indiana, whose life history we here briefly delineate, is a worthy representative of the class from which the trite noblemen of the Republic spring, whether they be men of eminence in public affairs, the arts and sciences, or plain, every-day citizens, striving merely to lead useful, clean and upright lives.
Mr. Montgomery is a scion of a sterling old family of the Blue Grass state and many of the commendable characteristics of the Southerner have outcropped in him, so that he has always enjoyed the confidence and esteem of all who know him. He was born in Bowling Green, Indiana, August 17, 1870. He is the son of Andrew J. and Mary E. ( Porter ) Montgomery, both natives of Kentucky, where they grew to maturity, were educated and married and there spent their earlier lives. Andrew J. Montgomery was a man of considerable influence in his community and when the war between the states began he quite naturally cast his fortunes with the South and be- came an officer in the Confederate army, serving faithfully and gallantly under General Morgan. He saw considerable hard service, and after his military career he returned home and resumed a quiet life in Scott county, where he remained until in the seventies, when he settled in Bowling Green, Indiana, where he remained with his family until about 1884. when they returned to Scott county, and there the father of the subject of this sketch was killed in 1891. The widow subsequently removed to Indiana and her
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death occurred in Clay county several years ago. They were the parents of five children, four sons and one daughter, Hugh, the subject, being the second in order of birth.
Hugh Montgomery grew to manhood under his parental roof-tree and received a good common school education. He lived at home until he was fourteen years of age, then went to Kentucky, continuing to reside there until 1903, when he removed to Montezuma, Parke county, Indiana, and here established his permanent home, soon engaging in the furniture and undertaking business, in which he was successful from the first. He was for some time in partnership with his brother, but since the year 1908 he has con- tinued the business alone and has built up a wide and rapidly growing patron- age, his patrons coming from all over this and adjoining counties. He always carries a complete and carefully selected stock of up-to-date furniture, and his hundreds of regular customers always find his prices right and receive con- siderate and courteous treatment.
Mr. Montgomery was married in Brazil, Indiana, in 1891, to Nellie D. Perry, a native of Brazil, Clay county, this state, and there she grew to womanhood and was educated. She is the daughter of Col. H. W. and Emma (Cole) Perry, a highly respected and well known family of that place.
Mr. Montgomery has always taken an active interest in public affairs and since coming to Parke county has been influential in the general progress of the town of Montezuma and vicinity. He was elected trustee of Reserve township in 1908 on the Democratic ticket, having secured the highest ma- jority since the township was organized, which is certainly sufficient evidence of his popularity in his home township, and the eminent satisfaction he gave in this office was proof of the good judgment his constituents and friends manifested in his choice for the position. He keeps well posted on public mat- ters and his support may always be depended upon in movements looking to the general good.
GEORGE E. MARKS.
While in the most of the farms in Indiana are to be traced three stages of development, taking place in three generations, there are some exceptions. Usually the grandfather of the present occupant opened the ground, and introduced agriculture, the father extended the area, and began using new methods and machinery, and the man of today has built a modern home and
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farms scientifically. In the case of the old homestead of George E. Marks, in Liberty township, Parke county, Indiana, we find these three developments taking place in two generations, and see one of the prettiest and most produc- tive farms in that part of the state.
George E. Marks is the son of James and Jane (Howey) Marks, who were both natives of Kentucky. James Marks came to Parke county in 1829, entering ground from the government when this state was only thinly settled. and the farmer had many dangers to overcome in connection with his work. They cleared their land and built their log cabin. Immediate shelter was needed, and they moved into their cabin before it was finished, it fur- nishing but a primitive protection from the weather, not even having any doors. Many hardships had to be endured before they had their house in good condition and the work on their farm successfully started. George E. Marks now owns the same farm which witnessed the trials of his mother and father. They had nine children, Lydia A., Jacob O., William S., Margaret R., Mary Jane, Kesiziah, James H., who was a fifer of Company E, One Hundred and Fifteenth Indiana Volunteer Infantry and who died in the army, Thomas M. and George E.
George E. Marks was born in Liberty township on March 22, 1848. He lived there all his early life, gaining a common school education. Dur- ing his vacations he helped on the farm and his work on the old home place engendered a love for it which has caused him to still hold to that ground. As soon as he finished school he took up farming as his occupation for life, and is still actively engaged in his work.
Mr. Marks was married March 25, 1869, to Lydia A. Wilkey, the daughter of Willis and Mary (Lindley) Wilkey. Her parents settled here in 1830. She died October 23, 19II, at the age of sixty-one years, and the vacant place in the home is very keenly felt. Mr. and Mrs. Marks had four children, the oldest of whom is Horace Elmer. He married Piety May and they have one daughter, Doreen M. Horace resides in Rockville and is in the clothing business. James B. Marks married Armilda C. Allen, and they are the parents of three children, James G., Lydia D. and Mary K., who reside on the home farm. Jennie M. is the wife of Alvin Lindley. They live in Liberty township and have one child, George W. Mary Effie is dead.
George E. Marks has always been a hard working, honest and straight- forward man, making friends throughout Parke county and gaining the respect of his neighbors. He is a Republican, but has held no office. his time
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being taken up entirely by his duties at home. He still lives on the old home- stead, that holds all the associations he holds dear, and sees in it the products of much of his life's work. It is such men as Mr. Marks that form the back- bone of this country and build the foundations for all trading, manufacturing and invention that have made this a great nation.
JOHN R. MILLER.
One of the oldest, best known and most respected names in Parke coun- ty, Indiana, is that of Miller. They have been residents of that county for many years, and have been active in building up that section of the country. The representative of the family during the present gencration is John R. Miller, who lives on the land in Raccoon township which was first tilled by his grandfather, Tobias Miller.
Tobias Miller came from Butler county, Ohio, when the farms in Parke county were few and far between. It was in 1816 when he first broke the land in Raccoon township, built his home, and established a home in what was then almost a wilderness. He commenced farming there, and remained the rest of his days, leaving the land to his son. James N. Miller, who was born in 1827. James N. Miller became one of the richest farmers in that part of the country. He married Sarah Snow, a native of Parke county, who was born in 1825 and died in 1906. He survived her four years, dying in 1910. James N. and Sarah Miller had eight children : Alice married W. R. Clements ; Joseph A. married Emily Bell; Martha A. is the wife of W. J. White: Emma married William Goodin; Maggie is the wife of Isaac M. Overpeck ; George C., Dick and John R. Miller.
John R. Miller was born in Raccoon township, Parke county, May 10. 1857. He lived on the farm during his school days, working on the farm dur- ing his vacations and learning many valuable lessons. He became very much interested in the work, and after leaving school decided upon farming as his life occupation. He began farming at that time, and is still active. He was married, December 26, 1886, to Libby Cahill, the daughter of Jesse and Emma ( Morris ) Cahill, who were natives of Ohio. They have six children : Roy, Blanche, George. Edith, Pauline and Leone. The family are all members of the Methodist Episcopal church, and hold prominent places in the social as well as the business life of Parke county. Mr. Miller has devoted his life to
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his family and his farm, and his reward is a large happy family and one of the most productive farms in Indiana. He has been an honest, industrious, and just citizen, and has won the honor and respect of his neighbors and friends, by straightforward, clean and just dealings with all. The lives of such men cause those who have lived in the large cities, and had their huings filled with the smoke of the hundreds of factories, and their lives tarnished and stunted by hurry and limitation, to look with envy on that life, and ac- knowledge indeed that the farmer is the king of America.
ALONZO O. BENSON.
So many of the men who have made a name for themselves by their work in their community today, are the grandsons of those who came to Indiana when the country was a wilderness, cut away the forest and claimed the land for agriculture. It took bravery in those days to face the uncertainties of an unknown country and carve out a home by pure physical force. Those men gave to their sons a great heritage, and the latter brought the land to a higher state of cultivation and improved the farms greatly. But it takes none the less courage, and that of a more mental quality, to meet the problems of today that confronts the grandsons of those first-comers. Among those who have been foremost in facing these questions in Parke county is Alonzo O. Benson, in whose blood runs the courage that meant so much to his forefathers and whose sagacity is meet to face every obstruction in the pathway of the welfare of his community.
His grandfather, Samuel Benson, came to Parke county in 1820 and set- tled in Raccoon township, on a farm where he worked during life. He left the place to his son, Benjamin Thomas Watson Benson, who was born in Raccoon township. Benjamin Benson married Susan Moore, and they had four children : Charles E. was born in Raccoon township, as was also Alonzo O .; Franklin Benson died at the age of three years, and Samuel L. when he was only eighteen months old.
Alonzo O. Benson was born February 27, 1860. He lived on the farm when he was a boy and attended the common school in Parke county. On June 29, 1904, he married Myra S. Baker, daughter of Samuel N. and Mary Frances (Knapp) Baker. Samuel N. Baker was a native of Parke county, his father having come from Kentucky as a potter, and moved to Rockville.
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Myra S. and Alonzo O. Benson have only one child, Watson Lambert, who is at home.
Mr. Benson has been in Bridgeton, Indiana, in the livery business for twenty-five years, and he has been very successful. During the last twenty years he has also been an undertaker and funeral director. Although he has given his business his careful attention, Mr. Benson has found the time to also serve his community in many ways. Besides being an active and reliable citizen for over half a century, he has held a number of positions of trust in his community. Mr. Benson was trustee for two years. He is ex-chairman of the county council, which position he held for four years, and he has been a member of that body for eight years. Mr. Benson is a Republican, and has always been active in the politics of his community, taking a firm stand on all questions that appealed to his sense of justice and the general good. His wife has also been very active in the questions of the community. She is a native of Rockville, Indiana, and was identified with the schools of Parke county, particularly those of Rockville and Rosedale for over twelve years. Their influence in the community is always for something better in education, poli- tics, business and social life, and their work will bring forth fruit in unknown ways for many years.
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