USA > Indiana > Posey County > History of Posey County, Indiana : from the earliest times to the present, with biographical sketches, reminiscences, notes, etc. : together with an extended history of the Northwest, the Indiana territory, and the state of Indiana > Part 25
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HISTORY OF POSEY COUNTY.
Robb and Joseph Davis are the only male residents who were born here before Indiana was admitted as a State in 1816.
THE BLOCK-HOUSE.
Numerous Indian depredations throughout the country in- duced the pioneers, about the year 1809, to erect a fort or block -. house, as usually termed in those days, as a common place of refuge in case of an attack by the treacherous red skins. It was: located about one mile southwest of Stewartsville, on land then owned by John Cox ("double head "). The oldest inhabitant says it was two stories in height, and built of heavy round logs. The dimensions of the lower story were about 30x30 feet, while that of the upper was about one foot greater, thus necessarily projecting over the first story about one foot all around the
fort. In this upper room loop-holes, in the shape of the letter V, were sawed into the logs, some with points down- ward and others outward, thus affording view of an enemy approaching the fort as well as when against its walls. The. blocks sawed out in making loop-holes, were kept to plug up the holes after firing at the enemy, leathern straps being: fastened to them to facilitate handling. There were two doors- and no windows; one door to the first story and one at the head. of the rude stairway leading to the second floor, light being ad- mitted through the loop-holes. Notwithstanding all these precau- tions tradition fails to reveal any engagements at the fort, though the families of John Cox, Moxey Jolly, Thomas Robb, V. Lea- vitt, John Wallace and others frequently took refuge there dur- ing troublous times with their Indian neighbors.
Constant exposure to danger not only emboldened the hearts of the men, but of the women as well, as is illustrated in the he- roic conduct of Mrs. Sarah Cox, wife of John Cox. Her husband had gone to Vincennes for a load of salt, and she and her little children were left alone in their cabin in the woods. During his absence the Indians became troublesome, and visited his cabin in war paint, but his intelligent and brave wife received them with marks of great respect, sat cake and eatables before them, and thus reaching their hearts through their stomachs, they departed without the least molestation. On another occasion, while her husband was making the journey to Terre Haute on foot to secure.
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HISTORY OF POSEY COUNTY.
a superior article of seed corn, she discovered, upon arising one morning, the foot-prints of what appeared to be a huge bear plainly visible in the light sprinkling of snow that had fallen the night previous. Fearing that the beast would return and attack her children while at play, she armed herself with a butcher knife and tracked bruin to his hiding place in a hollow log in the ad- joining woods. Being without firearms, she notified the neigh- bors, and the beast was dispatched. Tradition goes no further, but it is presumable that she dressed a portion of the meat as food for herself and children, reserving a choice steak for her husband upon his return from his long and tedious journey. Her husband, John, familiarly known as "double head," on account of the peculiar formation of his cranium, was a local surveyor, and a man of much intelligence for that day.
EARLY SCHOOLS AND SCHOOLHOUSES.
The privations and hardships endured by the settlers never caused the better class of them to lose sight of the fact that their children should be taught, at least to read and write, though there were then, as now, a few old fogies who thought more of the training of the physical than mental powers. As early as 1816 a substantial hewed log house, about 20x30 feet, was erected as a schoolhouse on the Wesley Jaquess farm, about one mile west of Poseyville. The floor was of puncheons, the roof of boards held in their place by rib-poles, and the cracks between the logs were chinked and daubed with mud. At each end of the house were fireplaces, 4x10 feet. They were made of logs, poles and sticks, heavily plastered on the inside with mud as a protection from the fire. Into these huge receptacles logs and limbs were piled, and bright, glowing fires kept up all day long, the school day then being from sun up till sun down. The girls sat at one fireplace and the boys at the other, showing that even in that day lads and lassies were like unto lads and lassies of to-day. The seats were about ten feet in length, and made of logs a foot in diameter split into halves. On the bark side auger holes were bored, and pins inserted for legs. They were usually all of the same height and without backs, there being no thought taken of health or comfort in their construction. The writing desks consisted of wide heavy planks, sawed with a whip-saw, resting on pins driven into auger
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HISTORY OF POSEY COUNTY.
holes in the side walls of the room. There were no windows then, as now, light being admitted above each writing desk through an opening a foot wide hewed out of the upper and lower sides of two logs in the wall. Over this opening greased paper was pasted as a substitute for window glass. Henry W. Hunt is said to be entitled to the honor of having taught the first school in this primitive temple of learning, as well as of being the first teacher in the township.
When he first made his advent and solicited employment as a teacher, he met with some opposition from the "old fogy," or ignorant element of the community. They thought him " a lazy, trifling, good for nothing feller, who wanted to make a livin' with- out work," forgetting that if everybody raised corn and pump- kins, there would be no market for such commodities. . Not daunted by these unkind and foolish remarks, he started out with his " article " for subscribers to his school and met with much encouragement from the intelligent portion, but from the opposite element he was told that " book larnin' neither clothes the back nor feeds the belly." Strange or unstrange as it may seem, the descendants of the families who opposed "book larnin'," as they termed it, are but little farther advanced in education and general knowledge than were their remote ancestry. They are suspicious of and prejudiced against all tradespeople, as well as everybody that " makes a livin' without work " verifying the truthfulness of the Scriptural adage that " the sins of the fathers are visited on their children to the third and fourth generation." As popula- tion demanded, other houses of similar structure sprang up in different portions of the township and other teachers came seek- ing employment. Robert Curry, Alexander Ferguson, Chapman, James Rankin, John Cooper and James Lafferty are among the early teachers.
The schools were taught during the winter months after the big boys had finished gathering corn. The course of study was usually spelling, reading, writing and arithmetic as far as the " Double Rule of Three."
The early schools were, as a rule, so many little petty despot- isms in which the teacher played the part of a despot, and the pupils his subjects; the most trifling offenses being punished with an injudicious application of the rod. " Lickin' and larnin'"
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HISTORY OF POSEY COUNTY.
were thought to go hand in hand, one and inseparable, by the majority of teachers and patrons. The salary of teachers was usually small, being paid from $1 to $1.50 per pupil for term of three months and "board around " among the patrons gratuitously; patrons and pupils feeling highly honored when it came their turn to have the teacher board with them. The present free school system did not take effect until after the adoption of the new constitution in 1852, though there was, previous to that date, a small seminary fund that was occasionally apportioned among the schools. Though the early schools and early teachers were far from perfection, the bosom of the " oldest inhabitant " swells with emotions of joy and tears bedim the eye when the mind re- verts to the old masters, the old schoolhouse, with desks scarred and begrimed by jack-knife and ink, the play ground and the boys and girls who romped thereon and who perchance "looked love to eyes that spake again."
From such rude beginnings the schools of the township have steadily advanced until they are now almost models of perfection. There are eight school districts with as many neat and commodi- ous buildings, all of which are furnished with neat school furni- ture and necessary apparatus.
THE CHURCHES.
The Methodist and the Baptist (Hardshells) were the princi- pal churches represented, though occasional itinerant preachers representing other denominations made their advent and preached to the settlers.
Rev. John Schroder, a Methodist, came about 1814, and was one of the first preachers to locate. He was regarded as a pow- erful preacher and traveled extensively in this State, Illinois and Missouri.
Revs. Scripps, Holaday and Thomas Davis were among the early Methodist ministry. Elders James Martin, Benny Keith, Charles Whiting, Ezekiel Sanders, Louis Williams and Joel Hume, were pioneer Baptist preachers. Their first houses of worship, like all other buildings of that day, were rude log buildings but they have long since given way to neat frame structures. The Methodists have buildings and congregations at Poseyville and. Stewartsville, the Baptists at Bethlehem near
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HISTORY OF POSEY COUNTY.
Poseyville, and the Christians or Wasonites at Bethsada near Stewartsville.
CEMETERIES.
Respect for the dead was characteristic of the early settlers. It was customary for each farmer to set apart a spot for burial purposes as a family graveyard and not until later times did it enter into their minds to have a common burying ground. Pub- lic cemeteries are now established at Poseyville and Stewartsville and at Bethlehem and Bethsada churches.
THE POOR ASYLUM.
The board of county commissioners in September, 1857, purchased of Asbury Ferguson 120 acres of land as a site for. the county poor asylum. It is located two miles west of Posey- ville and is a large two-story frame. Solomon C. Dunlap is the present superintendent.
EARLY MILLS.
The first saw-mill seems to have been erected by James Ran- kin on Black River about 1817. It was short lived, the waters taking it away in a few months after its erection. Grammis' Saw- mill located on Cox's Creek was probably the next, but the pro- prietorship soon changed to James Robb. Before the erection of these mills the little lumber that was used was sawed with whip- saws.
"Horse mills" for grinding corn and wheat came with the first settlers. James Murphy and Joshua Overton established mills near Poseyville and Stewartsville, the Murphy Mill having in connection a still-house that was famous for distilling excellent quality of liquors and that too, at only 25 cents per gallon. The buhrs used in grinding were similar to those in use at this time, the same set being used for both kinds of grain, and the bolting done by hand. These mills were termed "horse-mills " because the motive power was that of horses hitched at each end of a long sweep erected above the stones.
About the year 1825 a still-house was established near Stew- artsville, by Turner Nelson who afterward became such a promi- nent character in county politics. James Robb was also the pro- prietor of a still-house, in an early day, on Cox's Creek.
Money not being plentiful with the majority of the settlers it
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HISTORY OF POSEY COUNTY.
was customary to barter corn for whisky, a bushel of corn being taken in exchange for a gallon of whisky. As late as 1852 whisky retailed by the gallon at 16. cents and by the barrel at 11. As early as 1820 a cotton gin was established about one mile south of Poseyville by Robert Downey. Every farmer raised sufficient cotton for home consumption and all cotton goods were manufactured by the women on rude and clumsy hand looms, hence a cotton gin was regarded as of much importance as a dis- tillery. A tanyard was established near Stewartsville some time in the forties by Allen Westfall who tanned hides on the shares There were numerous cobblers, some of whom worked up their own leather into shoes for themselves and families, while others cobbled on the shares, or for a moneyed consideration.
FARM IMPLEMENTS.
The farm implements first in use were very rude affairs. For breaking new ground a plow generally known as "jumping devil"' was used. It was formed after the fashion of single shovel plows, though it was much heavier and stouter. Plows with wooden mold-boards were also in use as late as 1850. Oxen were principally used in breaking ground and doing other farm work, as well as drawing the family to church or elsewhere. Corn was dropped by hand and covered with the hoe until within a few years. Wheat was originally sowed broadcast and brushed in with a huge pile of brush drawn over the field by the oxen or whatever power the farmer chanced to have.
In later years the wooden tooth harrow took the place of the brush, but that wonderful improvement was many years after supplanted by the iron tooth harrow. From 1820 to 1840 wheat was cut with sickles. Cradles were introduced into the township in 1840, and were regarded as a most wonderful invention. Per- fection in harvesting was now thought to be attained, but it too was superseded by the reaping machine, Mr. Asburry C. Jaquess introducing the first one in the township, as well as the county, in 1854. In the days of the sickle, farmers found it more diffi- cult to dispose of their meager products than now. Wheat sold at 40 cents and oats, 12g cents per bushel; pork, $1.50 to $2.25 per hundred. Much of the produce of that time found its way South in flat-boats. Hogs, however, were driven to Mount Vernon
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HISTORY OF POSEY COUNTY.
or Evansville. Wages were low. A good farm hand received $8 per month; harvesters 50 to 622 cents per day. The current money was silver, in 64, 122, 25 and 50 cent pieces, with an oc- casional "dollar of our daddies."
THE RAILROADS.
In the spring of 1880 the people of the township voted an appropriation of $13,199 to aid the Peoria, Decatur & Evansville Railway in extending its line through the township. The road was completed in 1881. In 1882 a few public spirited -citizens of the township, by private donations, secured the extension of the Mount Vernon branch of the Evansville & Terre Haute Road through the township, crossing the Pittsburgh, Detroit & Erie at Poseyville. In the first settlement of the township nearly all supplies were hauled from Fort St. Vincent, now the city of Vin- cennes, Ind., and latterly up to the building of these railroads nearly all goods were hauled out by wagon from Evansville. These iron highways, together with the rich soil, the salubrious climate, the pure water, the excellent schools and the general intelligence of the people must ever keep the township at the front as one of the best in the county.
FIRST TOWNSHIP OFFICERS.
Officers appointed by the county board from 1817 to 1820, viz .: Gillison Price, Nathan Britton, Joshua Wade, John Gale, constables; Thomas Robb, Peter Jones, Langston Drew, James Robb, William Casey, election inspectors; Robert Allen and Jona- than Jaquess, William Casey and John Waller, James Murphy, Job Calvin, Peter Jones and James Calvin, overseers of the poor; Joshua Overton, Thomas Owens, Leander Defer, Ezekiel Kight, James Calvin and John Allman, supervisors.
The first election in the township was held at the house of Langston Drew April 12, 1817, for the purpose of electing one justice of the peace, Peter Jones being elected to that position.
In 1852 David Waller, Thomas Robb and Moses Endicott were elected township trustees; Thomas Clark, clerk, and James Carter, treasurer. These constituted a township board and looked after schools, bridges, roads and the poor. By the acts of 1859 the township board was abolished, and in April of that year
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HISTORY OF POSEY COUNTY.
James Carter was elected township trustee. He was succeeded by Fritz Faul, who held the office continuously for about fifteen years, when he was succeeded by James A. Cox, his successors being George Faul, James H. Gwaltney and Dr. Thomas B. Young, incumbent.
It is reported of James Lafferty, an early and eccentric jus- tice of the peace, that on the occasion of a fight between Nathan Overton and Allen Moutry he rushed up to the belligerents and shouted at the top of his voice, "I command the peace; give him h-, Nath. I will only fine you $1 and pay half of it myself; give him h -; I command the peace." Later on, when the threads of life had about run, and while on his death-bed he requested that a post-mortem examination be held on his body for his own satisfaction that he might know what disease killed him.
Oliver Graves, a Frenchman, murdered his wife Cynthia in this township September 29, 1829, by forcing her to swallow three ounces of laudanum, but Graves managed to make his escape from justice.
About 1815 two human skeletons were discovered in the forest near Stewartsville. Near by them was found a jug of whisky. Their identity was never known, and it could only be conjectured as to whether they were murdered, killed by each other in a drunken quarrel, devoured by wild beasts or frozen to death while intoxicated.
SMITH TOWNSHIP.
This was formed and recorded by the county board, March 24, 1817, including at that time its present boundaries, with addi- tional territory that has since become a part of Gibson and War- rick Counties. It was named in honor of George Smith, an early. and prominent settler, at whose house the first election of the township was held. August 15, 1817, "all that part of Smith Township lying north of the main Big Creek and south of Reeter's Race" was added to and became a part of Lynn Township. The present boundaries are Gibson County on the north; Gibson and Vanderburgh, east; Vanderburgh County, Robinson and Center Townships, west, and contains an area of about 13,440 acres. The soil in the northern part of the township is black and rich.
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HISTORY OF POSEY COUNTY.
The central part is not as black and rich, yet it produces wheat, corn and other crops in paying quantities, only being excelled by the black soil in the item of corn alone. On the farm of Hollum Jones was the largest tree of the township. It was a cotton wood eight feet in diameter and nearly 150 feet high. The farms are all well cultivated, the major part of them being improved with neat residences and barns.
THE TIMBER.
Too much cannot easily be said in praise of the immense for- ests of valuable timber that originally covered the whole face of the township. The finest quality of yellow poplar, black walnut, and white oak grew in great quantities, the trees being large and as straight as an arrow, with their branches towering 100 feet in the air. But now this vast forest has nearly passed away, the greater part having found its last place in burning log heaps years ago. The pioneers had thought only to carving out of the forest homes for themselves and posterity, and in doing so de- stroyed valuable timber that would to-day equal in price the value of all the lands in the township.
EARLY, CUSTOMS.
Realizing that in union there is strength, log rollings and house-raisings were frequent, and thither the neighbors would gather for miles around. At these gatherings every man was expected to do his whole duty, and he who was found reaching for the "long end of a handspike" was the butt of all jokes foi .. the balance of the day. They also assisted each other in husking corn. It was customary to gather corn with the husk on and pile it up in one huge pile in a barn or adjoining cribs or pens, When the crop of the neighborhood was thus gathered, the husk, ing commenced. The women, also, were wont to assist each other in their arduous duties, and while the men were husking corn, and passing "the little brown jug" as often as a red ear was husked, the women were quilting and picking wool. At night- fall the dance commenced, and by the light of the tallow dip, and to the music of the flute and fiddle,
Danced on the joyous hours .. And it is well; youth has its time, Merry hearts will merrily chime.
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HISTORY OF POSEY COUNTY.
It was at these gatherings the whole heart of the neighborhood was made to rejoice. It was then that labor became a genuine pleasure. The husking season was looked forward to with as much interest as is the opening of the opera season by belles and beaux of fashionable society of to-day.
THE EARLY SETTLERS.
The names of many of the early settlers are to be found on the records of the land office but we are without records showing when they came to the township. It is fair to presume that there were settlers far in advance of any land entries. Elsberry Arm- strong, Miles Armstrong and Joseph Garris entered land in 1810; James Rankin, 1811; W. M. Steel, David Benson, 1813; Joseph Rasborough, Simon Williams, George and Bennett Will- iams, William Downey, George Smith, Regina Gale, 1814; Thomas McLure, John Smith, Thomas Duncan, William Smith, Isaac Kimball, Robert Davis, Thomas Ashley, Simpson Richey, 1815; William Davis, Henry Casey, Stephen Eaton, John Neal, Sallie Sanders, Willis Armstrong, Zachariah Harris, 1816; John McConnell, Louis Williams, Jonathan Jaquess, George Eaton, John Eaton, Stubel Garrett, Samuel McReynolds, Joshua Elkins, 1817; Elisha Kimball, Herndon Meadows, George Lowe, Harri- son Meadows, 1818.
THE SCHOOLS.
Early in the settlement of the township came teachers prof- fering to teach the young idea how to shoot. Prominent among these were Eli Knowles, Ebenezer Phillips, Thomas Barrett, Elijah Goodwin, Josiah Elliott, John Moore, William Blackwell and Samuel McReynolds. Log schoolhouses were erected in different parts of the township. They were all built after the same general plan, viz .: Round or hewed logs for the walls; puncheon floor; board roof; fireplace; 4x10 feet with stick and clay chimney; heavy door, with wooden hinges and a wooden latch, operated by the proverbial "latch string;" windows in the sides, one foot wide by from ten to twenty feet long, and covered with greased paper. The furniture consisted of long puncheon seats and writing desks fastened to the sides of the room, or one large double desk sitting in the middle of the floor.
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HISTORY OF POSEY COUNTY.
The course of study was quite limited, consisting usually of spelling, reading, writing and arithmetic. The spelling book was the principal text book to most pupils in spelling, reading, geography, grammar and moral philosophy. Writing was done altogether with goose quill pens. All teachers were expected to be experts in making and repairing quill pens, it being one of the chief duties of the teacher to look after the sharpening of pens every day. The first year or two of the beginner's course was taken up in that useless waste of time and energy in teaching the tyro the alphabet, trying to impress upon the mind the recol- lection of fifty-two distinct forms-the capitals and small letters -not one of which standing alone could be associated with a single idea! At the end of this wearisome task for a beginner, another year or two was taken up in pronouncing monosyllables that were as utterly devoid of meaning or of the association of ideas to the child's mind as was the alphabet. At the completion of this second course the student was then prepared to commence the spelling of intelligible words. After a cruise of sometimes several years on seas educational the pupil could spell all the words from baker to incomprehensibility, even to the spelling of . the first dozen words on each page from memory, the fourth and last step was taken. This course consisted in reading short and simple sentences, fables and stories found in the spelling book, exceptionally bright students who were able to afford it, some- times reading from the English reader, in writing, ciphering from Pike's arithmetic, together with spelling long columns from the indispensable spelling book. The impressions made upon the youthful mind by the spelling book stories of the bad boy who commenced his wicked career by sticking pins in poor little innocent flies, of the neighbor's ox that was gored and the boy in the farmer's sour apple tree, were doubtless deep and lasting, and may have had something to do in shaping the course of many a statesman. When compared with the teachers, school- houses and educational system of to-day, what a contrast! When the circumstances surrounding the pupil's entry into school is considered, it is not strange that many soon learned to regard it. as a place of torture and punishment, and that a goodly number of the children of the first settlers failed to acquire the rudiments of an English education. Whatever knowledge the pupils acquired
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HISTORY OF POSEY COUNTY.
was attained under the greatest disadvantages. They were not only confronted with incompetent teachers but they were compelled to assist their parents, perform the duties of the household and the farm thus preventing anything like regularity in attendance. The present system seems in comparison to be absolute perfection. The rude and barbarous method of teaching the alphabet has given place to the word method, and pupils now commence read- ing simple sentences the very first day they enter the school- room. The progression in everything pertaining to schools is equally as great as in the"method of teaching beginners to read. The township is divided into four school districts, one of which, the Cynthiana School, is a township graded school. The build- ings are all respectable and supplied with modern furniture. Joseph Welborn is the present trustee, and manifests much inter- est in the educational affairs of the township.
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