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 67
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 67
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Juel A. Delp is the son of Luther and Mary (Stares) Delp. His father was a native of Parke county, Indiana, and died there April 9, 1912. His mother was born in Fountain county, Indiana, and is still living. They were . farmers and were highly respected in Parke county, where they made their home. They had only one child, Juel A. Delp, who was born August 15, 1880, in Sugar Creek township, Parke county, Indiana. His early life was spent on the farm, learning the best ways of managing crops, and learning by practical experience the lessons that have been of so much benefit to him
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since. He attended the common schools and the high school, and after graduating turned his attention immediately to farming.
On December 19, 1902, Mr. Delp married Leona Dotson, the daughter of Joseph and Jula (Barker) Dotson. She was born December 9, 1885, in Parke county, Indiana, and was educated in the common schools of that district. They have three children, Ruby and Doris, and Hubert, who is at home. Mr. Delp now has four hundred and fifty-six acres of some of the best land in Sugar Creek township, Parke county, Indiana, and has brought it to a high state of cultivation himself. He has built his home on the place, and the farm, its equipment and condition, and his modern home, are a monu- ment to his industry and forethought.
Politically speaking, Mr. Delp has always been an ardent Republican. In 1908 he was made township trustee and still holds that position, as he lias gained the confidence of his friends and neighbors by his careful attention to business, his honesty and integrity, and his good service. Mr. Delp has been very successful and as he has won his way already to a place of promi- nence in Parke county, his services will probably meet with an abundant re- ward. It is such men as Mr. Delp who, in the midst of the multitudinous duties which constantly surround the farmer, can find the time to give to public affairs and time to think and express themselves on all the large issues of the day ; it is such men to whom America must look for her prosperity.
IRA HOBSON.
The West has always drawn the young and enterprising men of the East, with her promise of a new country, equal opportunities, and a fair reward, and, therefore, the first and second generations in a new country are always marked by their progress and unceasing work in the upbuilding of the district. When the father of Ira Hobson came to Indiana as a young man he selected a growing country, and both he and his son's have contributed a large share in forwarding its growth to the present state of prosperity.
Aaron Hobson was born in North Carolina in 1810, coming to the state of Indiana with his parents, Isaac Hobson, Sr., and Amy Marshall Hobson. in 1830, when he was a young man. He lived with his parents until his marriage to Polly Newlin in 1834. She was the daughter of Joshua and Achsah Newlin. The Newlin's migrated to Indiana about the
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same time as did the Hobsons. His chosen companion aided him greatly in building a home in the New West. They commenced farming and lived here in Parke county, Liberty township, until death claimed them, Mr. Hobson in 1845, and his wife in 1851. They had seven children namely : Newton, Matilda, Joshua, Ira, Isaac, Achsah and David, all of whom departed this life while they were young, with the exception of Ira, who was born in Liberty township, Parke county, Indiana, June 26. 1838. He spent his youth on the farm, attending the common schools, and learning many valuable lessons regarding agriculture, which he had ample opportunity to put into practice. He was married December 22, 1861, to Elve Newlin, the daughter of Nathan and Sarah Newlin. She was born January 14, 1838. and was also a native of Parke county, Indiana. She was educated in the common schools of that county. To this union were born eight children, three of whom are still living, Jimmie L., Henry and Hermon. Milton A. and Melvin departed this life while they were quite young, Octavia S. was born the 9th of March, 1863; she was married to Charles Ratcliffe in the year 1882, and now lives near DeWitt, Arkansas. Martha C. was born February 13, 1873; she was married to Perl Printy, May 24, 1891, and now lives in Warren county, Indiana, near Danville, Illinois. Love was born July 13, 1876, and was married to Artie Hobson in the year 1894, and is now living on his farm near his father's.
Ira Hobson, Sr., has devoted his life to his family and his farm. When he was a young man he taught school for a while, but later he turned his entire attention to his farm; at which time he owned one hundred and fifty acres of land. He has now seventy-four acres, all in fine tillable soil. He has taken excellent care of his land, and has received his reward in fine crops and extensive production. He has brought his land to a high state of culti- vation and it is now well tilled.
Mr. Hobson has always been a prominent man in his community, as he is a man of high mental ability, and his honesty and integrity in any position of trust is unquestioned. He is a Republican, and in 1879 he was elected to the position of township trustee, in Liberty township, in which capacity he served for four years. Ira Hobson is still active on his farm and in the affairs of his county. He has seen Parke county grow in importance, and has helped to settle all of the questions of importance which his community has had to face for the last half century. He is respected by all his friends and neighbors, as a man of sober judgment and sagacity in all affairs which affect the community as a whole, or any individual in it who may seek his advice.
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S. G. LINDLEY.
If one judges a doctrine by the lives of those identified with it, and tests the efficiency of a church by the works of its members, the Quaker or Friends' church in Indiana must be highly esteemed and universal respect given its members. The kindliness of their spirit and the strict honesty and integrity everywhere observed among them, have made them some of the most valuable citizens of the state, and we find them in positions of trust everywhere. The life of S. G. Lindley is a monument to his church, and he has long been regarded as one of the most prominent citizens of Parke county.
Stephen G. Lindley is the son of Hiram and Hannah (Woody) Lindley. His father was born September 4, 1842, in Liberty township, Parke county, and is still living. His mother was born November 11, 1865, and is also a native of Liberty township, Parke county, Indiana. Hiram Lindley has for years been one of the most prominent farmers in that district and he is still active in his work. They had nine children, five of whom are still living. Stephen G. Lindley was born November 24, 1869, in the same location where his parents were born and raised. During his early life he attended the com- mon schools of that county, and later attended high school. Together with his school education. Mr. Lindley gained a great deal of valuable information about farming during his boyhood days, but after graduating he turned his attention to the trade of a carpenter.
Mr. Lindley was married April 28, 1895, to Icy Pickard, the daughter of John S. and Rosebelle (Wilknis) Pickard (whose biographies will also be found in this work). She was born January 31, 1870, in Sugar Creek township, Parke county, Indiana. They have one daughter, Dora, who is in college.
After his marriage Stephen G. Lindley gave up his carpenter work and ran a blacksmith's shop. He soon left this, however, and went to farming, and he has been very successful on his farm. He owns forty acres of land, all of which is tillable. There are many improvements on the place, and it is one of the best equipped farms in that part of the country, Mr. Lindley having made all the improvements himself. Mr. Lindley has found the time in the midst of his arduous duties on the farm to take an interest in a number of affairs outside his immediate vicinity. He is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at Tangier, as well as the Knights of Pythias at King- man, Indiana. The family belongs to the Friends church, and Mr. Lindley has been a faithful worker in this church for years. So well is he thought of in his community, and respected as a man of the highest integrity and standards
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that the people have often depended on his judgment in local affairs. Mr. Lindley is a Democrat and was elected to the office of township trustee in 1908, which position he still holds. It is such men as Mr. Lindley who leave a marked impression on the people with whom they associate, and whose influence in their community lives long after they are no longer with us personally.
M. HUDSON NEAL.
The coal mines in Vermillion county, Indiana, are a great source of income to that section of the state, and in them are employed some of the finest men in Indiana. The ordinary picture of the miner should not present itself when we think of these mines. They are not among the smoky flat topped mountains of Pennsylvania, nor near the proverbially dirty city of Pittsburgh, but lie in the midst of a beautiful green agricultural district in Indiana and offer opportunities for some brilliant accomplishments in engi- neering. Among the workers in these mines is Hudson Neal, who has been interested in them all his life, being raised in this district.
Mr. Neal was born in Clay county, Indiana, July 6, 1886. His father is W. T. Neal, who has spent his life around the mines. He was born in 1864, and is still living in Hymera, Indiana. He married Ella Christ, who was born in Indiana in 1866. They received common school education when they were young, and their nine children had the same advantages. The father being interested in the mines, it was a natural attraction and ambition for the children, and Hudson has spent his time perfecting himself in an engineer's work there. He is a single man and has given a great deal of time and thought to his work. Mr. Neal has been a miner for sixteen years, but has only recently been at his present location in The Deering Company mine No. 2, having come here April 2, 1909. He has improved the work at the mines in a great many ways since he has been occupied there, and his careful attention to his work and his thorough knowledge of it have made him invaluable to his employers.
Mr. Neal is a young man of sterling qualities and is highly respected in his neighborhood. He is a Mason at Clinton, Indiana, and is a Republican by political convictions. He is a man of energy and his influence is strongly felt in his. vicinity. It is men like Mr. Neal, who form the backbone of a community and keep it abreast with the best things that the age offers.
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J. CARL RUTTER.
The present able and popular county recorder of Parke county has spent his entire life in this locality and he has always had deeply at heart the well being and improvement of the county, using his influence whenever possible for the promotion of enterprises calculated to be of lasting benefit to his fellow men, besides taking a leading part in all movements for the advance- ment of the community along material, social, educational and moral lines. For a number of years he ranked as one of the successful and prominent educators of Parke county, having taken an abiding interest in educational affairs and done much to advance the same in this locality.
Mr. Rutter was born in Raccoon township, Parke county, Indiana, May 9, 1878. He is the son of David M. and Sarah Jane (Elson) Rutter, the father having been born in Ohio, from which state he came to Parke county, Indiana, at an early date and here became a substantial and influential citizen.
David Merriman Rutter was born at Carrolton, Carroll county, Ohio, October 13, 1837, and died at the home of Charles and Emma Rutter, April 19, 1912. He was a son of Joseph Rutter, a Methodist minister, and Mary (Bacum) Rutter, both of whom passed the greater part of their lives in Ohio. David M. was the last surviving of a family of ten children. He, like many another young man, caught the spirit of the "go West" movement and came to Indiana in the spring of 1864, which ever since was his home. He was married April 9, 1868, to Sarah Jane Elson, daughter of Hense and Elizabeth Elson. To their home were born seven children, viz .: Josie Alice Chapman, Eva Grace Bowman, William Elson, Charles Bacum, Joseph Carl, Arthur Earl, and Sylvia Floss, all of whom are living except Eva Grace Bowman and Arthur Earl. The wife and mother died August 12, 1902. David Rutter taught school at Carrollton, Ohio, and for many years in Parke county, Indiana, and there are many who can testify to his good influence as a teacher. He was a good and praiseworthy man. Mr. Rutter was a well- informed member of Bridgeton Lodge No. 169, Free and Accepted Masons. He was a devout Christian, having united with the Salem Methodist Episco- pal church in 1888, though at the time of his death he was a member of the church at Bridgeton.
J. Carl Rutter was reared on the home farm, where he assisted with the general work when of proper age, and received his primary education in the rural schools of his neighborhod and in the Indiana State Normal School
J. CARL RUTTER.
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at Terre Haute, where he made a good record. Thus well equipped for his life work, he began by teaching school, which he followed with uninterrupted success in Parke county for several years, giving eminent satisfaction to both pupil and patron, his services being in great demand. Taking an interest in public affairs, he was elected county recorder in 1906, and took office Janu- ary I, 1907, serving four years with such eminent satisfaction that he was re- elected in the fall of 1910 on the Republican ticket and is now discharging the duties of the same with fidelity and credit to himself; in fact, he is re- garded as one of the best county officers Parke has ever had. He has long been active in his party and influential in its counsels, and at the present time he is serving as chairman of the Republican county central committee, and is doing much to keep the principles of his party to the forefront in this locality.
Mr. Rutter was married on June 26, 1907, to Maude Seller, daughter of Benjamin F. Seller, of Bridgeton, this county. To this union two daugh- ters have been born, Dorothy Dale and Rozelle.
Fraternally, Mr. Rutter is a member of the Knights of Pythias at Bridgeton, also the Masons at that place. He and his wife are worthy mem- bers of the Methodist Episcopal church and both stand high in the circles in which they move.
HARRY L. LOWE.
Among the progressive citizens of Clinton, Vermillion county, who have been active in promoting the business and civil interests of that district, is Harry L. Lowe, a Hoosier by birth and affections. He has given much of his time and attention to public enterprises, and by his sterling integrity and unquestioned honesty has won the confidence of his friends and neighbors.
Harry L. Lowe is the son of George and Alice ( Brichelles) Lowe. George Lowe was born in Indiana, near Perrysville, in 1844, and died in August, 1911. He was a lumberman and reaped the benefits of the progress made in that line of business in the years when the state of Indiana was young. He married Alice Brichelles, a native of Michigan, who did not live to see this century. They both had common school educations and were modest, honest, reliable people. After the death of his first wife Mr. Lowe married again, and had two more boys, Harry being the son of his first wife.
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Harry L. Lowe was born in Indiana, November 11, 1878. He finished the common schools very creditably and later attended Valparaiso University. In school he excelled in mathematics and science, and after graduation he accepted a position as teacher of these two subjects in the high school at Clinton, Indiana, remaining identified with this school for three years. On April 15. 1902, he married Edna Cossey, who was born in Indiana on November 10, 1883, and received the common school education which the state provides for all. They have one child, Tom, who was born February 9. 1906.
After he finished his teaching in the high school at Clinton. Mr. Lowe turned his attention to the coal business. He accepted the position of pay- roll clerk in the office of the Clinton Coal Company in 1908 and. having familiarized himself with the work in the office. in a short time went to the mine to acquaint himself with the first step of the business. He holds the position of top boss at these mines at the present time ..
Mr. Lowe is a member of several lodges, among which are the Masonic lodge at Perrysville, and the Knights of Pythias at Clinton, Indiana. His family are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and are highly re- spected in their community. His influence is always thrown to all progres- sive measures, and he has realized that the greatest movements come through individual effort to arouse interest in those by whom they are personally surrounded. The influence of such a man may be compared to the wave caused by a ship in a large body of water-it goes on forever.
JAMES ASHMORE.
The mines in Vermillion county, Indiana, form one interest in that district which holds the people together, and in these coal mines are some of the most substantial men in the community. James Ashmore came there four years ago, and in that time he has worked his way to a place of promi- nence in the mines and has established himself as a highly respected citizen in that locality.
Mr. Ashmore is the son of Robert and Elizabeth (Clifton) Ashmore. His father was born in Ridge Farm, Illinois, March 17, 1840, and his mother was born May 16, 1852, and was also a native of Illinois. They received ordinary educations and lived on the farm in that state all of their lives, Mr. Ashmore dying February 7, 1903, and his wife February 13, 1908. They had seven children, all of whom are living.
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James Ashmore was born March 16, 1887, on the farm near Ridge Farm, Illinois. He spent his early life in that place, receiving a common school education and working upon the farm during vacations. March 2, 1907, he was married to Vermida Cannady, of Dana, Indiana, the daughter of Jones Cannady, a prominent farmer in that region. After graduating from the grade schools, she attended high school for four years. She was born March 1, 1889. James Ashmore and his wife have had two children, Ralph, born May 20, 1908, and Russell, born August 16, 1911.
After finishing school, James Ashmore farmed a few years, but, tiring of farm life soon, and longing to get into the outside world, he went on the railroad. He soon took a position as bookkeeper in Illinois and later fired on the railroad for two years. After this experience he found work on the railroad to be unsatisfactory and went back to the farm for three years. Mr. Ashmore now realizes that he could never be contented on the farm and when he heard of an opening in a brick yard he worked there for three years. During all this, time he was gathering a very valuable education in connec- tion with the men with whom he worked, and he was able when he took the position in the mines in 1908 to work so successfully with the men that he is now top boss at Crownhill mine No. 2. He has always done top work at the mines and has met with great success in this work.
Mr. Ashmore is a member of the Modern Woodmen of America, be- longing to Camp No. 1205 at Clinton, Indiana. He has taken an active part in all of the affairs of this community during the time he has lived here, and is a Republican, politically speaking. Mr. Ashmore is an enterprising and active young man, and his influence is felt, not only at the mines, but in the whole district.
MORGAN PUFFER.
Vermillion county is characterized by her full share of the honored and faithful element who have done so much for its development and upbuilding and the establishing of the institutions of civilization in this fertile and well favored section. In this work are comprised many biographical and memorial sketches of this class of citizens and it is not in the least too early to record in print the principal items in the lives of such honest people, giving honor to whom honor is due. Among this number is the Puffer family, of whom Morgan Puffer is the only survivor of the well known name. He is one of the best known and progressive agriculturists in Helt township. He is a
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descendant of a worthy pioneer citizen of this locality, who spent his life and did much toward the general progress of the county along material, civic and moral lines.
Morgan Puffer was horn in Helt township, Vermillion county, Indiana, December 26, 1846, and is the son of Reuben and Harriet (Depuy) Puffer. His father was a native of Massachusetts, coming to Vermillion county when a boy of thirteen. He came with his grandparents, Elisha and Hannah Mack, both old people and with limited means. The journey to Indiana was before the time of railroads. It began on December 1, 1837. The conveyance for the first two hundred miles was a one-horse sleigh. When the snow melted this was traded for a one-horse wagon, in which they came to Olenna, on the Allegheny river above Pittsburgh. The grandmother was there taken ill with lung fever and the journey was delayed for six weeks. The horse and wagon were traded for some money and a quantity of cloth. With the cloth as their stored treasure, they engaged passage on a raft on the Allegheny river and went to Pittsburgh; thence they went to Cincinnati on a larger raft, the same being two lashed together. At Cincinnati they engaged pas- sage down the Ohio river and to Clinton on a steamboat and from Clinton to his first Indiana home on Hiddle's prairie. Reuben Puffer was a farmer all his life. 'In politics he was a Democrat, but was not a public man and never held office. His mother was the daughter of one of the pioneer set- tlers, the Depuys being well known for several generations. She received her education and grew to womanhood in this vicinity. She was united in marriage to Reuben Puffer in March, 1845. and to them two children were born.
Morgan Puffer, the subject of this sketch, grew to manhood on the homestead in Helt township. There he assisted with the general work during the summer months, and in winter attended the district schools. Early in life he took up farming and this has been his vocation ever since. He has been content to remain in his native township; here he has met with success beyond the average tiller of the soil. He is the owner of one of the choice and productive farms of the county, consisting of four hundred and fifty-five acres, which he has brought up to a high state of improvement and cultivation and which he has managed so as to bring him in a handsome competency. His dwelling is one of the most commodious and attractive in Helt township.
Mr. Puffer was married in 1875 to Susan Whalen, daughter of Patrick and Almire (Lightfoot) Whalen. She was a native of Illinois, but her peo- ple were natives of Kentucky, moving to Edgar county, Illinois, in the early
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thirties. To this union two children were born, Ernest, who died in 1900, and Mabel, who married Stanwood Martin (now deceased), and lives at home with her parents. She has one child, Robert Puffer Martin.
Religiously, Mr. Puffer is a Baptist.
Mr. Puffer's one great hobby is the accumulation of old relics, consist- ing of old farm tools, old guns, Indian relics, etc. He has one of the largest collections of anyone in the county, especially old guns.
JOSEPH D. ADAMS.
It is both gratifying and profitable to enter record concerning such a man as he whose name initiates this biographical review, and in the follow- ing outline sufficient will be said to indicate the forceful individuality, initia- tive power and sterling character which have had such a decided influence in making their possessor a leader in an enterprise requiring the highest order of business talent, and to gain for him wide publicity among those who shape and direct policies of more than ordinary consequence. The dominating spirit of self-help is what has conserved the distinctive business success and prestige of Mr. Adams, who has for many years stood at the head of one of the leading industrial enterprises in the Middle West. At Indianapolis he has, from modest inception, built up one of the leading manufacturing establish- ments in a locality long noted for its commercial enterprise, and he controls a trade which ramifies throughout the United States and even pervades many foreign countries, and he enjoys the high reputation which is ever significant of personal integrity and honorable methods. He is one of the worthiest native sons of the locality of which this volume treats, and is a scion of a prominent old pioneer family of Parke county.
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