USA > Indiana > Posey County > History of Posey County, Indiana > Part 25
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George Washington Robertson, deceased, inventor, banker and public official, was born December 22, 1842, in Connersville, Ind., son of Thomas
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and Lydia (Frost) Robertson, natives of Westchester county, New York. He was the eldest of five children. After finishing high school he became a clerk to a quartermaster in the United States Navy at the age of nineteen. At the age of twenty-one he was commissioned pay- master of the flag ship "Carondelet" for a fleet of twenty-one vessels. On account of sickness he resigned after a service of four years, and after remaining one year at a sanitarium in New York he entered the college at Marietta, Ohio, taking the full collegiate course. He then took a commercial course in Chicago, all at his own expense. He be- came clerk in a bank at Muncie, Ind., and later in Evansville, Ind. In 1880 he organized the Monticello National Bank at Monticello, Ind., becomings its cashier and its active head. Three years later he came to Mt. Vernon and became assistant cashier of the First National Bank. Under President Harrison's administration he was appointed chief of the redemption division of the United States Treasury, holding this office ten years. He assisted in counting all the funds in the United States treasury for both the outgoing and incoming administrations of Presi- dents Cleveland and Harrison. Mr. Robertson also was an inventor, hav- ing patented the Robertson machine gun, which he sold to the Govern- ment for use in the army and navy. He had a number of other patents, among which was the automobile seat. He retired from active life in 1899 and died July 5, 1912. In politics he was a Republican and his fra- ternal affiliations were with the Knights Templars. On June 10, 1875, Mr. Robertson married Miss Anna Pullar Lockwood, daughter of John M. and Caroline Charlotte (Newman) Lockwood. She was born Novem- ber 23, 1852, at Evansville, Ind. John M. Lockwood was a descendant of Edmund Lockwood, who came with Governor Winthrop and his Pil- grim band in 1630. Mr. and Mrs. Robertson had one child, Estella Lock- wood. She lives with her mother at 604 Main street, Mt. Vernon, on Lot No. 179, corner of Main and Sixth streets, which is the same lot on which the first school house in Posey county was built. Miss Robertson is an expert musician and a teacher of theory, harmony and composition. She was educated in Chicago and in Washington, D. C. Mrs. Robertson is a literary woman, making frequent contributions to the press on historic subjects and on present day matters of general interest.
Hon. William Gonnerman .- Success in any line of occupation, in any avenue of business, is not a matter of spontaneity, but represents the result of the application of definite subjective forces and the controlling of objective agencies in such a way as to achieve desired ends. Mr. Gonnerman has realized a large and substantial success in the business world and his career has well exemplified the truth of the foregoing statements. He occupies today a large place in the commercial circles of the city of Mt. Vernon and is a potential force in its most important industry. He has large and varied capitalistic interests and is one of the
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distinctively representative men of Posey county. Progressive and en- ergetic in the management of these varied affairs, loyal and public spir- ited as a citizen, he holds a secure position in the confidence and esteem of the community and has contributed in large measure to the industrial advancement of Mt. Vernon. He is vice-president of the Keck-Gonner- man Company and the People's Bank and Trust Company and president of the Industrial Brick Company, specifically mentioned on other pages of this volume. William Gonnerman is a native of Germany and was born in Solz, county of Rodenberg, Province of Hessen-Nassau, on Jan- uary 5, 1856, the son of Adam and Martha (Ripple) Gonnerman. The father, Adam Gonnerman, owned and managed a bakery in the town of Solz, having learned the trade when a boy, and the business has, since his death, been conducted by his son-in-law. Mrs. Gonnerman survived the death of her husband but three years, passing to her reward in 1904. The surviving children by this union are: Catherine, the widow of Johann Schaefer, machinist of Sontra, Germany; Christina, the wife of William Shaus, a farmer of Armstrong, Vanderburg county, Indiana; Conrad, foreman of the Louisville & Nashville railroad's freight depot in Evans- ville; Rudolph, in the forestry service of the German government ; Wil- . liam, the subject of this review; Henry, secretary of insurance for the Province of Nassau ; Elizabeth, the wife of George Gross, of Sontra ; Her- man, a retired baker, of Eschwege, Germany; Eliza, the wife of Fred Eichholz, a saloonkeeper, of Cassel; Christian, proprietor of a bakery in Eschwege, Germany; and Julia, the wife of Henry Abel, baker, of Solz, Germany, and successor to Adam Gonnerman. Adam J. Gonner- man, the eldest child of this union, died in 1883. William Gonnerman re- ceived his education in the public schools of his native town, was ap- prenticed to the machinist's trade, which he learned under his brother- in-law, Johann Shaefer, and became a journeyman machinist at the age of seventeen. In 1873 he decided to avail himself of the broader opportu- nities offered in the United States. He landed at Castle Garden, and later came to Evansville, Ind. He secured employment in the foundry and machine shops of Conrad Gratz, and was made foreman in 1878, a position which he creditably filled until 1884. In the year mentioned he removed to Mt. Vernon, and here instituted his first independent busi- ness venture. With John Keck and Henry Kippler he formed the firm of Keck, Gonnerman & Co., and engaged in the foundry business. From the modest enterprise thus established has been developed the extensive and important industry of the Keck-Gonnerman Company, the most important industrial plant in Posey county, and one of the largest and most successful in southwestern Indiana. As vice-president in charge of the manufacturing and sales departments of the company he has been responsible for the high standard of quality maintained in its products, their efficiency in performance, and improvement in design. That he
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possesses the qualifications necessary to the successful management of the departments under his charge is proven by the highly satisfactory growth of the business of the corporation. He is also president of the Industrial Brick Company, of Mt. Vernon, of which he and Louis A. Keck were the principal organizers. A review of these enterprises is found in the chapter, "Manufacturing and Commercial Enterprises," to which the reader is referred for supplemental information. In 1908 he, with Charles A. Greathouse, organized the People's Bank and Trust Company, of Mt. Vernon. He was elected vice-president on its incorpora- tion and is still serving in that capacity. A review of this institution is found in the chapter, "Banks and Banking." For some time he was the senior member of the form of William Gonnerman & Co., who owned and operated the electric lighting plant at Mt. Vernon. Mr, Gonnerman has always taken an active interest in the questions of the day and he has actively supported, both with time and money, those measures which have had for their object the betterment of civic, commercial and social conditions. He is a Republican. He was elected to the city coun- cil in 1890 and served for ten years. He introduced the measure, which was passed, providing the fund for the building of the present city hall, and it was through his efforts that modern fire equipment was provided by the city. He was elected to the State senate in 1904 and served one term, which included the regular sessions of 1907 and 1909 and the special session of 1908. He was made chairman of one of the most important of the committees, that of manufactures, and was a member of those on banks and banking, agriculture, executive appointments, labor, fees and sal- aries, claims and expenditures, and congressional apportionment. He refused to become a candidate for renomination, as his business affairs required his attention. His election to the senate was a distinct personal victory, as he received a majority of 198 in a district having a normal Democratic majority of 600. Mr. Gonnerman is a member of Mt. Vernon Lodge, No. 277, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks; Criterion lodge, Knights of Pythias, and the Modern Woodmen of America. He is a member and generous supporter of the German Lutheran church .. Mr. Gonnerman married, on September 7, 1875, Miss Lena Alexander, the daughter of Henry Alexander, a farmer of Rheinfaltz, of Germany. She died on April 5, 1891. They were the parents of the following chil- dren : Margaret, born November 13, 1876, the wife of Joseph Forthof- fer, a machinist in the employ of the Keck-Gonnerman Company ; Cath- erine, born July 20, 1878, the wife of William Espencheid. an attorney of Mt. Vernon, a sketch of whom is published in this work; Caroline, born May 15, 1880, the wife of Ray Smith, lumber dealer of Mt. Vernon ; William H. Gonnerman, born July 23, 1884, mechanical engineer, Keck- Gonnerman Company, and a graduate of Purdue University, class of 1906, and Lena, born December 31, 1888.
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William Mason Holton, M. D .- Among the physicians and surgeons of Indiana who attained a distinction merited by years of study, observa- tion and practice, was he whose name initiates this article. An active practitioner in his profession for fifty-eight years, he equalled, in length of service, the record of American practice. Doctor Holton was born in Westminster, Vt., on July 15, 1827, a son of William and Betsey (Mason) Holton. His ancestors, paternal and maternal, were among the early settlers of America, and numbered among them are men who achieved distinction in the frontier life of those early days, in the commercial era which followed, in the French and Indian wars, and later in the War of the Revolution. The Holton family was founded in America by Wil- liam Holton, a native of Ipswich, England, who came to the Massachu- setts Colony in 1634. He removed to Hartford, Conn., in 1636, where he was one of the first settlers, and died in Northampton, Mass., August 12, 1691. He was a member of the first board of magistrates and a repre- sentative to the grand court. Doctor Holton is descended from William Holton as follows: John, the son of William, born in Hartford, died in Northampton, Mass., April 14, 1712. William, son of John, a resident of Northampton, Mass., died in 1756; John, son of William, was born in Northampton, Mass., August 24, 1707, died in Northfield, Mass., Octo- ber, 1793. Joel, son of John, born in Northfield, Mass., July 10, 1738, died August 12, 1821. ] He was one of the twelve original settlers of Westminster, Vt., built and owned the first saw mill in the town, and was one of its most influential citizens. His brother, Solomon Holton, was a lieutenant in the Colonial army and served throughout the War of the Revolution. William, the son of Joel, was born in Westminster, Vt., July 26, 1771. He was a farmer and removed to McDonough county, Illinois, in 1835, where he died in 1857. His son, William, born in West- minster, Vt., October 31, 1801, was the father of Doctor Holton. He was a farmer, and with his father settled in McDonough county, Illinois, in 1835. He married, on September 15, 1826, at Cavendish, Vt., Betsey Ma- son, a member of a pioneer family of that State. William Mason Hol- ton acquired his literary education in the public schools of Vermont and Illinois. He later determined to make the practice of medicine his life work and entered the College of Physicians and Surgeons, of New York City, from which he was graduated with the degree of Doctor of Medi- cine in 1852. Following his graduation he spent one year in practice in that city. In 1853 he removed to Plymouth, Ill., practicing his profession in that town until 1859, when he came to Posey county, Indiana, and located in Stewartsville. Doctor Holton served for about two years in support of the Union cause in the Civil war. He enlisted in 1861 in Com- pany D, Sixtieth Indiana volunteer infantry, and became lieutenant of his company. He was transferred by Governor Morton, in 1862, to the Twenty-fifth Indiana and served as assistant surgeon of that regiment
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until 1863, when he was compelled to resign on account of ill health. In 1863 he located at New Harmony, his place of residence until his death, which occurred on December 13, 1910. As a physician and sur- geon he was considered one of the most able in his section of the State. Until his death, at the age of eighty-three, he continued to keep up his interest in the advancement of the science of medicine. He possessed a large library, which was well selected and of wide range. He was a stu- dent all his life, a great reader, and kept abreast of the times, not only as to his profession, but upon general subjects as well. He was a mem- ber of the Posey County Medical Society, the Indiana State Medical So- ciety and the American Medical Association. The meetings of these or- ganizations were his opportunity for relaxation from practice, kept him in touch with fellow practitioners and the advancement in medicine and surgery. He seldom failed to attend these gatherings, even during his latter years. He took an active interest in the political affairs of his county and State, was a Republican from the birth of the party, and in- fluential in the councils of his local organizations. He had neither incli- nation nor time for public office, although frequently urged to become a candidate. Doctor Holton married, at Elizabethtown, Essex county, New York, on March 14, 1853, Miss Caroline E. Cuyler, the daughter of Col. E. S. Cuyler, a prominent lawyer of Essex, and a member of one of the pioneer families of that section of the State. She was born in Essex, Essex county, on December 24, 1833, and died in New Harmony, March 8, 1873. They were parents of eight children, five of whom are living. They are as follows: Mrs. Fannie C. Kight, of Washburn, Ill .; Mrs. Cornelia Catherine Brigham, of Chicago, Ill .; Mrs. Minnie G. Bailey, the wife of William S. Bailey, lawyer of Tulsa, Okla .; William E. Holton, cashier of the Mt. Vernon National Bank, a review of whose life follows this sketch; and Frank C. Holton, of Plymouth, Ill., an employe of the Post Office Department, rural mail service. Those deceased are: Emma E., who married Leo Kahn, of Evansville, Ind. ; Charlotte E., who was the wife of August Duysing, of Evansville; and Mary Alice, who died August 4, 1875. The tributes of respect, and in many cases of affec- tion, called forth by the death of Doctor Holton have seldom been equalled in Posey county in the passing away of a citizen. His life work was finished; it had met to a great extent the fullness of his ambition. But infinitely more precious and of personal consequence to him was the fact that he died rich in the possession of a well earned popularity, and in the affection that slowly develops only from unselfish works.
William Edward Holton .- The growth and development of Posey county, particularly its commercial and industrial development, has been accomplished by and with the assistance of its financial institutions. In the conduct of the business of its banks opportunity has been given many men to exercise not only their financial talents, but to greatly assist in
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molding public opinion along constructive, productive and progressive lines. In this respect no man has been a more consistent supporter of and worker for those measures which have had for their object the growth of the commercial and industrial enterprises of the county than he whose name initiates this article. William Edward Holton, cashier of the Mt. Vernon National Bank and treasurer of the People's Loan and Savings Association, was born in Stewartsville, Robb township, Posey county, on November 27, 1861, the son of the late William M. Holton, a prominent physician of the county, a personal review of whom precedes this article, and his wife, Caroline E. Cuyler. He acquired his education in the schools of his native county and was graduated from the New Harmony High School in 1881, a member of its first class, which had but two members, our subject and his step-sister (Miss Mollie Foe- tageot, now Mrs. John M. Hale, of Oklahoma City). From 1881 to 1883, he was engaged in teaching in Harmony and Bethel townships. In the last named year he initiated his banking career by entering the employ of the Mt. Vernon Banking Company in the capacity of individual book- keeper. He was made assistant cashier in 1889 and elected cashier in 1898. Since the death of Charles A. Parke, its president, in 1900, he has been the controlling executive. The history of the Mt. Vernon Banking Company and of its successor, the Mt. Vernon National Bank, since his employment by the former institution, is the history of Mr. Holton's identification with the banking life of Indiana. An article descriptive of this bank is included in the chapter on "Banks and Bank- ing," to which the reader may consistently refer for supplemental infor- mation. He is known to the banking fraternity as a close student, not only of banking, but of commercial and industrial methods and condi- tions, and is considered one of the most able financiers of Southern In- diana. He was one of the organizers of the Germania Loan and Savings Association, incorporated in 1887, and served as treasurer until the busi- ness was voluntarily liquidated in 1907. He is treasurer of the People's Loan and Savings Association, incorporated in December, 1905, and was one of its organizers. He has been a member and active supporter of the various commercial organizations of the city of Mt. Vernon. His efforts in assisting these organizations to attract manufacturing and commercial enterprises to locate in the city have been second to none; while his individual services along this line have been of inestimable value. Mr. Holton has always taken a keen interest in the questions of the day and has been actively identified with the political life of his county and State. He is a Republican. Political office has never ap- pealed to him. He is a member of Mt. Vernon Lodge, No. 277, Benevo- lent and Protective Order of Elks, and of Criterion Lodge, Knights of Pythias. Mr. Holton married on June 25, 1890, Miss Otillie E. Brink- man, the daughter of Henry Brinkman, pioneer manufacturer and mer-
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chant of Mt. Vernon, personal mention of whom appears elsewhere in this volume. They are the parents of one child, a daughter, Margaret Cuyler Holton, born August 18, 1899. The family have long been prom- inent in the social life of the county and the attractive home in Mt. Vernon is known for its gracious hospitality. Mrs. Holton is a member of the Episcopal church and active in the charitable and social work of that organization.
Judge William P. Edson (deceased), formerly an eminent jurist of Posey county, was born May 14, 1834, in Mt. Vernon, where he resided all his life and where he was the first mayor of the town. His father, the Hon. Eben D. Edson, was an early settler and a talented lawyer of Southwestern Indiana who came from Otsego county, New York, in 1828 and located in Mt. Vernon, where he resided until his death on March 4, 1846. He held several offices of trust and was representative in the legislature and at the time of his death was prosecuting attorney of Posey county. Sarah L. Phelps, the mother of Judge Edson, was a native of Litchfield, Conn., and removed to Leavenworth, Ind., where she was married. She lived to see her son attain a high position among his fellow men, who placed unlimited confidence in his ability and worth. Her death occurred September 2, 1868. William Edson entered the schools of Mt. Vernon when quite young and later obtained an excellent education in the seminary at that place. Before reaching manhood he had read every book in the public library of Posey county that was calculated to be of benefit to him in later years. He was a close student, consequently his mind was a storehouse containing the main facts in the many valuable works he read. After finishing his education he obtained a position as teacher in a country school. He then taught two terms at Mt. Vernon. At the age of nineteen he began the study of law in the office of Judge John Pitcher, and, after two years, was admitted to practice. In October, 1856, he was elected representative to the leg- islature, being the youngest member of that body. He was placed on some very important committees, among which was the joint senate and house committee on the State library, of which he was chairman. He introduced a bill providing for the geological survey of the State, to aid in its mineral development, and made several important speeches advocating its passage, on which he was highly complimented by the leading newspapers of the State. It was adopted at the next session of the legislature. In 1858 he was elected prosecuting attorney for Posey and Gibson counties and held that position one term. In 1871 he was appointed judge of the court of common pleas for Posey, Gibson, Van- derburg and Warrick counties, in which capacity he distinguished him- self by his knowledge of law and his business dispatch. On January 1, 1862, Judge Edson married Erruphene Lockwood, of Mt. Vernon, and to this union five children were born: Eben Darwin, born November 9,
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1862, died November 15, 1879; Louisa Lockwood, born May 17, 1864, died August 15, 1865; Sarah Phelps, born June 21, 1866, now the wife of Judge James W. Henson, of Henderson, Ky. ; John Murrey, of Evans- ville, Ind., born November 28, 1868; Caroline Charlotte, born December 27, 1873. Caroline became the wife of Amos Erwin September 6, 1893, by whom she had one child, Edson Lockwood, born September 12, 1897. She took as her second husband James Humber, a Mississippi cotton planter, to whom she was married July 12, 1910. Mrs. Edson, the esteemed wife of Judge Edson, is a daughter of John M. Lockwood, a prominent pioneer of Southern Indiana, born in Westchester county, New York, April 24, 1809. In 1852 he removed to Mt. Vernon, where he died April 30, 1902. He was a personal friend of Abraham Lincoln, was active in public life in Posey county, being one of the founders of the First National Bank of Mt. Vernon, in which he was a large stock- holder and of which he was president for sixteen years. He served in this capacity without compensation other than from the dividends upon his stockholdings in the institution.
Silas Green Howard, former auditor of Posey county, junior member of the firm of Hoehn & Howard, a leading real estate and insurance firm of Mt. Vernon, was born in Obian county, Tennessee, August 25, 1858, the son of William A. and Louisa E. (Roden) Howard. The Howard family is of Irish ancestry, was founded in the Virginia colony previous to the War of the Revolution, and was also early settlers of Tennessee. The Roden family came to Kentucky during its formative period. William A. Howard was reared a farmer, but later became a wagon maker. His death occurred in 1881, and that of his wife in 1893. Both are buried in Mt. Vernon, of which they became residents in 1873. Silas Green Howard acquired his education in the schools of his native State and in Posey county, graduating from the Mt. Vernon High School in 1878. Following his graduation he became a teacher in the schools of Mt. Vernon. In 1883 he resigned as principal of the East Ward School to accept the position of deputy auditor of Posey county and remained in this office through the administrations of George Green and Thomas J. Johnson. He was elected auditor of the county in 1898 and re-elected in 1902. His service as auditor and as deputy was cred- itable to himself and his constituents. He has always been a consistent advocate of the principles and policies of the Democratic party. He formed in 1908, with George L. Hoehn, the firm of Hoehn & Howard, with which he has since been identified. The firm is a leader in the real estate and insurance field in Posey county and its principles are recog- nized as among the progressive and successful men of their county. Mr. Howard married on September 24, 1902, Miss Catherine Mann, a daughter of Philip Mann, a successful business man of Mt. Vernon. They are the parents of two children: Catherine Louisa Howard, born
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August 16, 1903, and William Philip Howard, born November 16, 1907. Mr. Howard is a member of the Masonic order and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
Francis Braddock MacGregor (deceased), formerly a manufacturer and land owner on a large scale, veteran of the Civil war, was born at High- land, W. Va., July 24, 1845. His parents, who were natives of Scotland, had eight children : John, Sarah, Florence, Francis B., Susana, James F., Joseph P. and William Alexander, all deceased, except James F. and William Alexander, the last named being in the plaining mill business in Mt. Vernon. Francis Braddock was left an orphan at the early age of eight years, and went to live with his grandparents at Marietta, Ohio, where he received a public school education. At the age of sixteen years he enlisted in Company B, Seventy-seventh Ohio regiment, and served four years in the Civil war, attaining the rank of sergeant. He was in . many important battles, was taken prisoner once, but never wounded. He was discharged at the close of the war with an excellent record. He came to Posey county, Indiana, and purchased a farm near Mt. Vernon. A year later he engaged in the saw milling and grain threshing business, and in 1873 returned to Cairo, W. Va. Here he followed mercantile pursuits until November, 1876, when he returned to Posey county and took up his residence at Farmersville, and resumed the saw milling busi- ness. In 1880 he and his brother, William A., bought a farm of 1,000 acres on the Wabash river, clearing this farm and sawing up the timber. In 1883 he removed to Mt. Vernon and March 1, 1884, purchased a one- half interest in the saw mill and stave factory owned by Ford & Vander- grift, retaining Ford as a partner and later having a chain of mills in Mississippi and buying large tracts of timbered land in that State. He founded the town of Ritchie, Miss., and was a successful promoter on a large scale, accumulating quite a fortune. He was a liberal donor to charity. Mr. MacGregor was a Republican in politics, and his fraternal affiliations were with the Knights Templar Masons, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Knights of Pythias and the Elks. He belonged to the Presbyterian church. He served four years as a member of the city council from the second ward and being public-spirited and progres- sive he was instrumental in having the streets of Mt. Vernon paved. In 1880, he, with Mr. Ford, his partner, installed the electric lighting system. Mr. MacGregor died at Ritchie, Miss., November 24, 1906, and his re- mains were brought to Mt. Vernon for burial. On January 21, 1869, oc- curred the marriage of Francis Braddock MacGregor and Miss Louise Catherine Monroe, daughter of Edwin and Miranda (North) Monroe. She was born June 7, 1850, in Mt. Vernon, Ind. Her father was born in New York in 1815, his parents being natives of Scotland. He came to Mt. Vernon at the age of sixteen and was a brick mason. He later bought a farm four miles north of town and farmed for forty-seven years
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