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 66
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 66
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prosperity, and one would indeed be compelled to make a wide search through- out the state to find his superior as a modern agriculturist. He has his place well improved and under a high state of cultivation, on which stands a beau- tiful home and numerous substantial outbuildings.
Mr. Collings was married on December 24, 1884, to Laura B. Hamilton, daughter of Norval and Mary (Cress) Hamilton, a highly respected family. To this union four children have been born, namely: Edgar G., Brooks T., H. Banks, Sylvia M. Brooks T. Collings married W. E. Ferguson, but this union was without issue. Norval W. Hamilton was a patriot in the Mexican war. Among the most conspicuous of the deeds of daring performed during that great conflict was that of Private Norval Hamilton at the battle of Bellen Gate. It was one of those desperate assaults previous to the capture of the City of Mexico. The fighting was hand to hand and raged furiously. The Mexicans were often intrenched behind works that were deemed impregnable. At Bellen Gate the regiment of mounted riflemen, to which Norval Hamilton belonged, was in the front rank, and he was the first man to force his way through and among the enemy. This act was recognized by the personal thanks of President Polk in a "certificate of merit." Mr. Hamilton served two years and two months in the Mexican war. He was born in Ripley coun- ty. Indiana, November 18, 1826. He married Mary J. Cress November 12, 1853, and became the father of fifteen children.
Mr. Collings is a member of the Masonic order and is master of Parke Lodge No. 8, which position he has held for the past three years. He has long manifested an abiding interest in public affairs and is an influential factor in the Democratic party. In the year 1910 he was his party's candidate for state senator from this district. He made an excellent race, but was defeated, however by only thirty votes.
W. H. MAXWELL.
One of the enterprising farmers of Parke county who has appreciated home conditions and has been content to spend his life in his native locality is W. H. Maxwell, the scion of one of our worthy old families, and he has ever endeavored to keep the good name of the same untarnished, and is there- fore highly respected in his neighborhood. He has been very successful in his chosen line of endeavor and is now living on a productive and well im- proved place on the Bloomingdale road. He was born in Adams township. about a half mile from his present farm, on the place known as the General
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Howard farm and while young his parents moved to town. There he grew to manhood, attending the schools in town. He is a son of Samuel and Eliza Ann (Sunderland) Maxwell. The father of the subject came from Bloom- ington, Indiana, where he attended college, and after graduation came to Rockville, Indiana, and took up the study of law under General Howard, who was a prominent attorney here at that time. Having been duly admitted to the bar he opened an office and became one of the leading attorneys of the county and a man prominent in public affairs. He was finally elected common pleas judge for two counties, Parke and Vermillion; afterward judge of the circuit court, consisting of three counties, Parke, Vigo and Sullivan, which important office he filled to the eminent satisfaction of his constituents, being one of the widely known and honored jurists of his day and generation in this section of the state.
Four children were born to Judge Maxwell and wife, namely: Mary, Jewell, Louise and W. H., the subject.
W. H. Maxwell was not robust during his young boyhood days and his schooling was interrupted on this account. At the age of twenty-one he went on a farm of three hundred and twenty acres of fine timber land. He later sold some of this place to an Indianapolis concern, then purchased his present home place of two hundred and thirty acres, which he has brought up to a high state of cultivation and improvement, where he carries on general farming and stock raising, and on which he has a commodious dwelling and good outbuildings.
PARKE PHILLIPS.
Wabash township, Parke county, Indiana, has produced many young men who have proven successes in whatever they have attempted as a life work, and among them we are glad to add the name of Parke Phillips, the present capable and popular engineer of the Mecca Coal Company. He decided to learn the mining business when but a boy and he began earnestly at the bottom, so there would be no missing links, and, having laid a broad and sound foundation, he is in line for much greater success in the future. He is not only capable, but is a man of good personal habits and has proven to his em- ployers that they can repose the utmost confidence in him.
Mr. Phillips was born on June 30, 1882, in Wabash township, Parke county, Indiana, and he is a son of Samuel and Anna (Chew) Phillips. The father was born in this county in 1861 and is still living in Wabash township, where he has devoted his life to general farming and is still active. The
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mother of the subject was born in 1864 in this township and county, and she, too, is still living. Here these parents grew up and received a common school training and were married in their native community. They became the parents of five children, all of whom are still living.
Parke Phillips grew to manhood on the farm, where he worked when growing up, and he received his education in the public schools. On August 10, 1902, he was united in marriage to Effie Buffington, who was born on October 18, 1884, in Parke county, the daughter of John and Mary (Berkis) Buffington. To this union two children have been born, Lena and Muriel, the latter being deceased.
Mr. Phillips remained on the home farm until he was about nineteen years of age, when he began working in the mines, starting at the bottom and working up, and his rise was rapid. He has been in the employ of the Mecca Coal Company for a period of eleven years, and is now engineer, which position he has held for four years, giving the utmost satisfaction. He has the usual duties of a mine engineer, all of which he discharges very faithfully and conscientiously. He is liked by both his employers and the men about the mines.
Fraternally, Mr. Phillips belongs to the Woodmen at the town of Mecca. Politically, he is a Republican. He has been very successful in a business way, and he owns a cozy home near Mecca and thirty acres of excellent farming land in Wabash township, about one-half of which is in condition to be tilled advantageously.
CHARLES A. LIVENGOOD.
The subject of this sketch has succeeded in life because he has, in the first place, never been afraid of hard work, and also because he has done his work well, and has at the same time so conducted himself as to earn a reputation for good citizenship and fair dealings with his fellow men.
Charles A. Livengood, well known blacksmith and farmer of Greene township, Parke county, was born in Montgomery county, Indiana, June 28, 1858, and he is a son of John P. and Christena (Sappenfreld) Livengood. The father was born in 1819 in North Carolina, from which state he removed to Indiana when a boy and lived here till his death, which occurred on October 6, 1859. The mother of the subject was born on November 20, 1827, in the same county in North Carolina as was her husband, and she, too, came to Indiana in her youth, and they were married in the latter state and here spent the rest of their lives. Her death occurred on March 11, 1889. John
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P. Livengood had only a limited education, but he was a student all his life and by nature a fine penman. He was a preacher in the Lutheran church and did a great amount of good among the early settlers here. To these parents two children were born, Mary M., who married J. Etter, a farmer, and they live in Montgomery county, Indiana, and Charles A., of this sketch.
Charles A. Livengood received a common school education, and on December 22, 1887, he was married to Mary Stark, who was born on October 24, 1858, in Parke county, this state, and here she grew to womanhood and received a good common school education. She is a daughter of John and Elizabeth (Connelley) Stark. To this union four children have been born, namely : Jessie I., who is teaching school in Greene township; John W. is at home : David C. and Hazel.
Mr. Livengood has always followed farming, and he is the owner of a small farm in Greene township, on which he resides. But blacksmithing has been his chief life work, he having conducted a shop near his home here for a period of twenty-one years, always having an excellent patronage from the surrounding country, for his superior skill in his chosen calling has won him a wide reputation, and not only high grade, but prompt, work has ever been his aim.
Mr. Livengood is a Democrat, and he was elected township trustee in Greene township in 1908 and is still discharging the duties of this office in a manner that reflects much credit upon his ability and to the entire satisfaction of all concerned. Fraternally, he is a member of the Modern Woodmen at Judson, Indiana. He is a member of the Lutheran church.
WILLIAM LANNING.
It is gratifying to note that so many of the enterprising men of Greene township, Parke county, are native sons. Many communities lose their best blood by not being able to offer sufficient inducements to keep it at home, but in this respect Greene township has been fortunate, for nature has been lavish in her favors here and the young men of thi's locality have been able to see successful futures for themselves right here at home, consequently they have not been lured away by the beckoning of the wanderlust spirit into unknown, uncertain and precarious fields, for the youth is always at more or less disadvantage when he leaves his native heath and takes up his lot among strangers in a strange land.
Among the local young men who have been contented to spend their lives
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at home is William Lanning, who was born on July 7, 1877, in Greene town- ship, Parke county, Indiana, the son of William E. and Eliza (Mottem) Lanning. The father was born in this county, on the old home place in this township, the Lanning family having been among the early pioneers here and they have been well known and influential in Greene township from that early day to the present time. The mother was born in Adams township, near New Discovery church, and she is still living on the old Lanning home- stead, but the father was called to his eternal rest on August 12, 1912, after a successful and honorable life as a general farmer here. His family consisted of five children, two of whom are still living, namely: William, of this re- view : John, Sarah Catherine and Nichols Lee are all deceased; Charles W. is the youngest child.
William Lanning grew to manhood on the home farm and there he worked when a boy during the crop seasons, and he received a good education in the common schools. On November 30, 1911, he was united in marriage to Nellie Settles, who was born on December 12, 1881, in Washington town- ship, Parke county, Indiana. Here she grew to womanhood, was educated in the common schools and the State Normal School, graduating from the latter institution in 1910. She taught school in Greene township awhile. She is a daughter of William F. Settles, who was born on April 2, 1849, in Ken- tucky, and who, upon reaching manhood, married Emma Dickon, who was born in Indiana on August 3, 1861.
Mr. Lanning has always followed farming and each succeeding year has found him farther advanced than the preceding, and as a general farmer and stock raiser he ranks high with his neighbors in the same lines of endeavor. Fraternally, he is a member of the Masonic order at Judson and the Knights of Pythias at Bellmore. Politically, he is a Democrat, but he has never been especially active in public affairs.
ALBERT WHEAT.
The name of Albert Wheat, cashier of the Ogara Coal Company, is well known to the people of Parke county, for here he has spent the major part of his active, honorable, public-spirited and well ordered life, being a scion of one of our most influential old families, members of which have done much toward the permanent good of the community, so the name should be repre- sented in this work.
Mr. Wheat was born on July 25, 1863, in Roseville, Parke county, In-
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diana, and is a son of Edward L. and Margaret (Nail) Wheat. The father was born on January 16, 1833, in Washington, D. C., and his death occurred in March, 1906. The mother was born in 1845 in Indiana and her death occurred on March 19, 1877. Edward E. Wheat came to Roseville, Indiana. when a young man and there engaged in merchandising for some time, devot- ing his later life to agricultural pursuits, and he here became very comfortably established through his industry. His family consisted of twelve children, six of whom are still living.
Albert Wheat grew to manhood in Roseville and received his education in the public schools and in the State Normal School at Terre Haute. On April 30, 1885, he was united in marriage to Margaret Neilson, who was born on March 7, 1863, in Edinburgh, Scotland, from which country she was brought to the United States when five years old by her parents, Robert Neil- son and wife. Thus she grew to womanhood and was educated in this coun- try. Six children have been born to the subject and wife, namely: Edna E., who married Fay Calvert, and they live in Clinton, Indiana; Clarence S. is deceased; Lawrence is with the Lavin Brothers' wholesale house, in Terre Haute : Ernest A. is deceased ; Mabel M. and Ruth D. are both at home.
Mr. Wheat started in life as a merchant, assisting his father in the store at Roseville, also working on his father's farm some. After leaving'the State Normal School he engaged in merchandising in the town of Mecca on his own account for a period of about nine years, during which time he got an excel- lent start, then sold out in 1901 and went to Indianapolis, where he engaged in the sand and gravel business on White river, remaining there about one year, then accepted a position with a fuel concern in Chicago, with which he re- mained, giving eminent satisfaction, until about 1906, when the firm with which he was connected sold out. Later the subject became manager of the Hyland Coal Company, of Ohio, remaining in that capacity with his usual success for about a year and a half, then returned to Terre Haute and took a position with the A. Grafe Company, wholesale grocers, as assistant book- keeper. Resigning there, he took a position on the road, traveling for about three years, selling advertising specialties out of Iowa City for awhile, then resigned and accepted a position with the Canine Milling Company, at Clinton, Indiana, and after selling flour for a while he resigned and was appointed deputy county auditor with James E. Elder in 1911, which position he filled with credit until June 4, 1912, when lie accepted a position as cashier with the Ogara Coal Company, of Chicago, which operates in Wabash township, Parke county, and he is still in this work, giving his usual high grade and conscien- tious service. Mr. Wheat has an interest in a good farm in Parke county. Politically he is a Democrat, and he attends the Methodist Episcopal church.
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CHARLES P. WALKER.
Self assertion is believed by many people to be absolutely necessary to success in life, and there are good reasons for the entertainment of such a belief. The modest man very rarely gets what is dne him. The selfish, aggressive man elbows his way to the front, takes all that is in sight, and it sometimes seems that modesty is a sin, with self-denial the penalty. There are, however, exceptions to all rules and it is a matter greatly to be regretted that the exceptions to the conditions referred to are not more numerous. One notable exception is the case of Charles P. Walker, general manager for the William E. Dee Clay Manufacturing Company, of Chicago, with interests in Wabash township, Parke county, Indiana, where the subject has long resided.
Mr. Walker was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, October 22, 1849, and is a son of Christopher and Rachael Elizabeth (Wiltsey) Walker. The father was born on May 4, 1812, in Ohio, and his death occurred on January 14. 1869. The mother was born in Pennsylvania in 1820 and here death oc- curred in 1857. Christopher Walker was a merchant in Cincinnati, also engaged in railroading for awhile. His family consisted of eight children, six of whom are still living.
Charles P. Walker was educated in the common schools. On October 15, 1873, he married Jeanie A. Sammis, who was born on April 8, 1851, in Brooklyn, New York, and she received a common school education. To the subject and wife six children were born, four of whom are still living, namely : Rachael is deceased; Antoinette married Charles Steward, who is deceased, and she is living in New York; Geniva H. married Charles H. Hughes and they live in Michigan; Fanny Frances is deceased; Charles P., Jr., married Annett Cutler, and they live in Maywood, Illinois; Jeanie A. married Samuel Cutler, and they also live in Maywood, Illinois.
Mr. Walker started in life for himself as office boy with a railroad com- pany, then became cashier in the employ of the Chicago & Great Eastern Railroad Company, later paymaster. He gave entire satisfaction in all the capacities in which he was placed while railroading, but finally, tiring of that field of endeavor, he went into the coal business at Clinton, Indiana, in which he remained with ever-increasing success for a period of twenty-five years, during which time he organized the Norton Creek Coal & Mining Company, of which he was general manager and which he made a great success through his energy and business sagacity. He eventually became general manager for the William E. Dee Clay Manufacturing Company, of Chicago, and Mr.
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Walker has been looking after the interests of this company in Wabash town- ship, Parke county, ever since it was organized, thirteen years ago, his long retention in this responsible post being criterion enough of his high grade and faithful service. The output here is about ten cars' per day, including sewer pipe, tiling, wall coping, culvert pipe, well tubing, fire-proofing, flue lining, chimney tops, fire brick, fire clay, hollow brick, terra cotta and others, and their products are of such high grade and up-to-date pattern that there is a very ready market for them. About one hundred and eighty men are employed in this plant, which is the largest of its kind west of Akron, Ohio. Mr. Walker is a Democrat, but has never been active in public affairs. Fraternally, he belongs to the Masonic order at Clinton.
DR. EVERETT MORTON EVANS.
One of the best known and highly esteemed professional men of Parke county, Indiana, is Dr. Everett Morton Evans, of the village of Mecca, who has long been successfully engaged in the practice of his profession and who ranks with the leading citizens of his community in every respect, being not only highly skilled in his chosen calling, but also public spirited and of high ideals, advocating honesty in both private and public life, so that he has ever enjoyed the confidence and good will of the people.
Dr. Evans was born on October 27, 1864, in Camden, Indiana, and he is a son of George D. and Sarah (Reynold) Evans. The father was born on May 30, 1830 in Brown county, Ohio, from which state he came with his parents to Indiana when he was four years old and here he grew to manhood, was educated, married and spent the rest of his life, his death occurring in 1904. The mother of the subject was born on April 15, 1837 in this state, and her death occurred in 1903. George D. Evans devoted his life to con- tracting, in which he was very successful. His family consisted of seven children, all still living but one.
Dr. Evans received his primary education in the public schools, and Terre Haute high school, from which he graduated in 1885. Leaving that institution, he began preparing himself for his chosen calling and, with that end in view, he went to Cincinnati, Ohio, where he entered Pulte College. in which he made a splendid record and from which institution he was graduated in 1895. Soon afterward he returned to his native state and began the practice of his profession at Mecca, Parke county, and has since the day he opened his office. October 17, 1895. enjoyed an ever-increasing
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and lucrative practice, which is still growing. He has met with great suc- cess and his patients, many of them, come from remote parts of the county. He has remained a close student of all that pertains to his vocation and has kept fully abreast of the times.
Dr. Evans was married on April 4, 1886, to Sidney B. Stephens, who was born on April 6, 1877, in Putnam county, Indiana; there she grew to womanhood and received a common school education and also attended high school. She is a daughter of C. Stephens and wife. The union of the sub- ject and wife has been without issue.
Fraternally, Dr. Evans belongs to the Masonic order at Montezuma, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias and the Wood- men at Mecca, and he stands high in fraternal circles here. The Doctor has been very successful in a business way and he owns a commodious home and a modernly equipped office, also several valuable rental properties in Mecca.
DEE THOMPSON.
The proprietor of the general store in any community is always found to be one of the most influential of its citizens. He comes into contact with all phases of life, has to meet every problem which comes to the public at large, and his place of business is the center of the commercial life of the place. Dee Thompson, at Grange Corner, Sugar Creek township, Parke county, Indiana, is no exception to the rule. He is not only a man of influence because of his position in Sugar Creek township, but is prominent in all the activities of the place and well known for his honesty and integrity.
Dee Thompson is the son of Joseph R. and Dorinda ( Pickard) Thomp- son. The father is a native of Parke county, Indiana, being born here on February 3, 1849, his mother being born in the same county on May 27, 1851. They attended the common schools, and after they were married went on the farm, where Joseph R. Thompson was very successful. He has retired from active work now, and he and his wife are still living in Parke county. They had six children, four of whom are still living. Dee Thompson was born November 12. 1879, in Sugar Creek township, Parke county, Indiana. He lived on the farm, working during his school vacations, and, having finished school at the age of eighteen, commenced teaching.
On April 23, 1905, Mr. Thompson married Nellie Harrison, who was also a native of Sugar Creek township, Parke county, Indiana. Her father was George Harrison and her mother was Margaret ( Rankin) Harrison, who
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was born in Scotland. Mr. Thompson continued teaching until he was twenty-seven years of age, during which time he spent all of his free time farming, but in 1908 he went into the general mercantile business at Grange Corner, Sugar Creek township, Parke county, and he has been very success- ful there. He has been energetic and progressive in his management of his store, and his fair treatment of everyone, together with his interest in all the affairs of the community, have made him very popular. He has a good store, and is one of the most reliable and able of the citizens of Sugar Creek township.
Mr. Thompson has been active in the political as well as the social life of his home, and is a Republican by conviction. He is also identified with the Modern Woodmen of America, at Marshall, Indiana. As one of the younger and most reliable men of his section of the country, Mr. Thompson will undoubtedly hold his place among the men whose lives have counted for the good of Parke county.
JUEL A. DELP.
It is indeed a problem when we see the young men going to the cities to find their life work in manufacturing and mercantile pursuits, shutting their eyes to the opportunities that now, more than ever before, await the young farmer. It is true that conditions often show now-a-days that life for a family in general is easier in the city than on the farm, but gradually these unattractive elements are being eliminated from farm life, and it would be well to look at the success of some of the young farmers of Indiana and see how their efforts have been abundantly rewarded. A good example of the prosperous young farmer is Juel A. Delp, near Marshall, Indiana, who is already one of the most prominent men in his community. He is popular in Parke county, and has established himself as a reliable citizen and a man of highest honesty and integrity.
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