USA > Indiana > Posey County > History of Posey County, Indiana > Part 26
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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43
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prior to his death, which occurred January 31. 1899. He was married July 15, 1840, and had thirteen children as follows: Julia A., Darius North, Mary Jane, Charles P., Louise Catherine, Nathaniel Stewart, Al- vin Hovey, Emily, William, Ira Hackett, James Madison, Edwin Sher- man and Derusha Ella. Mr. and Mrs. MacGregor had three children: Olive, born October II, 1869, married Frank M. Smith, June 27, 1894. had one child. Francis McGregor, born April 5, 1900, and lost her husband January 6, 1900; Inez, born October 1, 1872 ; Charles Monroe, born June 2. 1876, graduate of Purdue University, at Lafayette, Ind .. now an electrician of Mt. Vernon. Charles Married Miss Mabel Clair Highman, on November 27, 1907, and they have one child, Sarah Catherine, born December 2, 1908.
William Espenschied, prominent attorney, popular citizen, and senior member of the law firm of Espenschied & Curtis, of Mt. Vernon, was born at Leavenworth. Kan., April 27, 1876, the son of Peter and Kath- erine (Schnarr) Espenschied. Mr. Espenschied was reared in the city of Mt. Vernon, of which his parents became residents in 1878, was grad- uated from its high school in 1892, and completed a two-year course in the State University at Bloomington. From 1895 until 1897, he was en- gaged in teaching in the public schools of Posey county. He then read law and was admitted to practice in 1898. In November of the last named year he was appointed deputy prosecuting attorney for the Eleventh judicial district, composed of Posey and Gibson counties. He remained in this position until 1901, when he became prosecuting attor- ney of this district, having been elected in 1900. He was elected to succeed himself in 1902. His record in the office was creditable to him- self and to his constituents. Following his retirement, in 1905, he re- sumed the practice of law, and in 1910 formed with Hon. George Wil- liam Curtis the firm of Espenschied & Curtis. During the years of his practice, Mr. Espenschied has appeared in connection with important litigations in both the State and Federal courts, and is recognized by members of the bar as an able and conscientious practitioner. He is a member of the Masonic order and of Mt. Vernon Lodge. No. 277. Benev- olent and Protective Order of Elks. Mr. Espenschied married, on October 30, 1901, Miss Katherine Gonnerman, daughter of Hon. William Gonner- man, a personal review of whom appears elsewhere in this work. They are the parents of one child. William Peter Espenschied, born August 28, 1903.
Kelly De Fur, clerk of the circuit court of Posey county, was born on his father's farm near Wadesville, Center township, on May 5, 1875, the son of Theophilus and Eliza (Wade) De Fur. He is of French an- cestry on the paternal side, the De Fur family having been founded in America during the Colonial period, when his ancestors came from France to the Carolina colony. The family dates its founding in Posey
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county from the settlement in Robb township of De Fur, the great-grandfather of our subject. Thomas De Fur, his son, became a man of influence in his township, was a farmer, a lifelong Democrat, and supported the Christian church. Theophilus, the son of Thomas and father of our subject, was born in Robb township. He was a car- penter and cabinet maker. He sold furniture, made coffins, and acted as the undertaker of that district. He married Eliza Wade, the daughter of Thomas Wade, a native of South Carolina, and a pioneer resident of Center township. He was a successful farmer, influential, and founder of the town of Wadesville. Theophilus De Fur and wife were the par- ents of four children, three of whom survive his death, which occurred on January 24, 1886. They are: William E. De Fur, a machinist of Ash- ton, Ill .; Kelly, the subject of this sketch, and Omar, born May 18, 1885, of Wadesville, with whom the mother resides. A son, Thomas, died an infant. Kelly De Fur received his education in the schools of Center township, working during his boyhood years as a farm hand. In 1893, he entered the employ of Thomas D. Shelton, grain dealer of Wades- ville, as bookkeeper and buyer, remaining in this position until 1895, when he became a clerk in the general store of James Cross, Wadesville. In 1904, he formed a partnership with Walter Williams, under the firm name of De Fur & Williams, and they engaged in the hardware busi- ness at Wadesville. He disposed of his interest in this enterprise in 1905 and secured a position as a traveling salesman, which he followed until March, 1906, when he formed with Louis Schlosser, a brother-in-law, the firm of De Fur & Schlosser, general merchants, Wadesville. In 1909, the interest of Mr. Schlosser was bought by John A. Wade, and the firm style changed to De Fur & Wade. The business was liquidated in 191I. Subsequently, Mr. De Fur, a lifelong Democrat, received the nomination of clerk of the circuit court, and was elected by more than the normal majority. He entered office on January 1, 1913. Since his incumbency of the office, the administration of its business affairs have been such as to receive public commendation. He is an untiring worker, his courtesy is unfailing, and he possesses the qualifications for the success- ful conduct of the office. Mr. De Fur is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and of the Modern Woodmen of America. He married on November 3, 1898, Miss Emma Schlosser, the daughter of Christian Schlosser, a well known farmer of Wadesville. They are the parents of two children : Dale De Fur, born June 3, 1900, and Clyde De Fur, born January 1, 1910.
Charles Smith, Jr., founder of the retail lumber firm of Charles Smith & Sons, well known citizen of Posey county, and veteran of the Civil war, was a native of Germany, born in Baden on June 8, 1844, the son of Carl Schmidt, who brought his family to the United States in 1852, and first settled in Shawneetown, Ill. He afterwards removed to Carmi,
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that State, and later became a resident of Mt. Vernon, Ind., where he was engaged in the saw mill and lumber business, from which he retired in 1890, and died in Mt. Vernon in 1902. Charles Smith, Jr., as the name is now spelled, enlisted in Company F, Eighty-seventh Illinois volunteer mounted infantry on August 15, 1862, and served for three years with his regiment, being mustered out in Helena, Ark., June 16, 1865. On the conclusion of his military service he entered the employ of Charles Schaumberger, a retail grocer of Mt. Vernon. About 1868, he formed with his father, the firm of Charles Smith & Son, and engaged in the manufacture of lumber, their mill being at the corner of Sycamore and Saw Mill streets. In 1882, Louis Smith, a brother, was admitted to part- nership, and the firm named changed to Charles Smith & Sons. In 1886, the entire plant was destroyed by fire, the loss suffered being a total one, as they carried no insurance. Two years later the business was moved to its present location on Second street. In 1890, the elder Smith retired and the business was continued by the sons under the firm style of Charles Smith, Jr., & Brother. In 1901, Louis Smith retired from the firm, and Mr. Smith's four sons were admitted to partnership, under the present name of Charles Smith, Jr., & Sons. On January 24 of the fol- lowing year, 1902, Mr. Smith died, his life work ended, and which in- cluded one of his cherished wishes; the establishing of his sons in the business which he had developed until it was the leading one in its line in Posey county. He was a man of strict integrity, of warm friend- ships, a home builder ; a predominant characteristic of whom was his fatherliness, his great foresight in caring for his own, and his tender sympathy with them was conspicuous in his life. He believed in the family and the fireside, and in the sacredness of the hearth. Mr. Smith married on January 7, 1869, Miss Lizsette Armbruster, the daughter of Barnabus Armbruster, a well known farmer of Black township, and a native of Germany. She was born on September 2, 1844, in Marrs town- ship, Posey county. They were the parents of seven children, five of whom, with their mother, survive. They are in order of birth, as follows : Charles Edward, born February 14, 1871; William Lee, born February 20, 1874; Clinton F., born December 19, 1876; Ira A., born December 28, 1878, all of whom are members of the firm of Charles Smith, Jr., & Sons ; Winona A., born March 28, 1882, the wife of Otto Weilbrenner, of Mt. Vernon ; Ordella M., born November 20, 1869, and Ruby, born July 4, 1885, are deceased. The business of Charles Smith, Jr., & Sons, owned by the four sons of its founder and their mother, is conceded to be, by those in the lumber industry, one of the best managed enterprises of its kind in Southern Indiana. They operate a planing mill, carry a general line of rough and dressed lumber, and finished builders' material. The buildings are models of their kind and equipped with modern labor saving devices for the satisfactory conduct of the business. The build-
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ings and yards occupy a space having a frontage on Second street of 148 feet, and extending back to the Ohio river. The plant represents an investment of $18,000, one half million feet of lumber is carried in stock and the average sales per year total $40,000. In the conduct of the busi- ness Charles E. Smith is in charge of the mill and yards, Clinton F. Smith is the buyer, William Lee Smith, who is an architect, the sales depart- ment, and Ira F. Smith is the office manager.
Joseph Milton Causey, sheriff of Posey county, successful agriculturist and prominent citizen, was born on his father's farm in Lynn township on February 27, 1864, the son of David Bryant and Margaret E. (Cox) Causey. The family was founded in Indiana in 1830, when Hutson Bryant Causey, born in North Carolina, in 1795, came to Posey county and settled in Center township, where David Bryant was born on July I, 1840. The latter married in early manhood, Margaret E. Cox, the daughter of David Cox, who was also a pioneer resident of Center town- ship. Hutson Causey and his son, David, were farmers. They under- went the hardships incident to the development of a wilderness, cleared away the forest and made productive farm lands from it, were active and influential in the various phases of the life of their period, and performed men's work at a time when living was a strenuous performance and suc- cess was obtained only through hard work and the enduring of many privations. Hutson Bryant Causey died in 1872, aged seventy-seven. His son, David Bryant, on September 13, 1900. Margaret Cox Causey preceded her husband to the rest eternal on October 1, 1892. They were the parents of eight children: Jane D., born December 11, 1861, is the wife of Daniel Willis, a farmer, who resides near Dexter, Mo .; Joseph M., the subject of this review; Maria, born June 3, 1866, the wife of Henry Travers, a farmer of Center township; William H., born January 20, 1870, a farmer, residing at Mt. Vernon; Emma B., born September 20, 1872, the wife of Henry Shaffer, a farmer of Lynn township ; Sarah J., born March 30, 1875, the wife of Elvis Wiley, also a farmer of Lynn town- ship; Enoch E., born December 30, 1877, a farmer of Lynn township, and Seth L., born January 22, 1880, of Lynn township. Joseph Milton Causey was reared on his father's farm and acquired his education in the district schools of Lynn and Center townships. Reared a farmer, he has continued in that line of endeavor, and has made a success of it. His farm property, which consists of 170 acres, is situated near Wadesville, in Center township, its improvements, which include a modern residence, erected in 1913, are of the best, and in the conduct of his farm work, he is recognized as one of the most progressive agriculturists in the coun- ty. To the citizens of Posey county, Mr. Causey is best known through his service as sheriff, a position he has filled since 1910, although he had attained prominence in public life as trustee of Center township, an office to which he was elected in 1900, and in which he served from No-
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vember 16 of that year until January 1, 1905. During his incumbency of, this office he built some twelve miles of new dirt roadway, repaired or reconstructed nearly all of the bridges in the township, and secured the addition of high school work in the schools. He left the office with a cash balance of about $1,000 more than when he entered it, and not- withstanding the large expenditures necessary for the improvements made by him, was able to reduce the tax levy from sixty-three to fifty- five cents. He has been a lifelong Democrat. He has always taken an active part in the work of his party, has been influential in its coun- cils, and his record as trustee of his township was such as to secure for him the nomination for sheriff in 1908, which was followed by his elec- tion by a flattering majority. He entered upon the duties of his office on January 1, 1910, and his administration of the business of this de- partment of the county's official service has been commended for its effi- ciency. He has always made good ; as a farmer, as trustee, and as sheriff. His methods have been clean, capable and honest, and he possesses a pop- ularity which is deserved. He is a member of Mt. Vernon Lodge, No. 277, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks; Posey Aerie, Fraternal Order of Eagles, and Wadesville Lodge, Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Mr. Causey married, on August 10, 1884, Miss Laura Travers, the daughter of Joseph A. Travers, a well known farmer of Harmony township. They adopted, in 1894, a son, Edwin A. Causey, who is the manager of the Causey farm in Center township. He married, on July II, 1909, Miss Lois Wade, the daughter of James A. Wade, a farmer of Center township. They are the parents of two children: Ralph Causey, born November 6, 1911, and Joseph Merle Causey, born January 27, 1913. James M., born May 18, 1910, died January 26, 19II.
Dr. Arno Klein, a popular and successful young physician of Mt. Ver- non, is a native of Posey county. He was born at Mt. Vernon, November 19, 1886, and is a son of Charles P. and Catherine (Schwerdt) Klein. The former is a native of Alzei, Germany, and the latter of Evansville, Ind. The father came to America when a young man and, for several years, was engaged in buying furs. He then settled in Kentucky and engaged in the general mercantile business at a place which he named Alzei, after his native city. He remained there until 1882, when he came to Mt. Vernon and engaged in the grocery business, which he has successfully conducted ever since, and is one of the substantial business men of Posey county. He has accumulated every dollar earned by straightforward business methods, which has won for him the confidence of the business world. The Klein family consists of two sons: Dr. Klein, of this re- view, and Otto C., who is engaged in the grocery business with his father. Dr. Klein attended the public schools of Mount Vernon and was graduated from the high school in the class of 1906. He also at- tended the Culver Military Academy three years. After spending a year
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in Germany, he returned to America and entered the Jefferson Medical College, at Philadelphia, Pa. He graduated from this time-honored in- stitution of medical science and surgery in 1911, with a degree of Doctor of Medicine. After serving three months as interne in the Jefferson Hospital, he accepted a position in the Williamsport State Hospital, Williamsport, Pa. He remained there one year, when he returned to his home in Mt. Vernon, and engaged in the general practice of his profes- sion. Dr. Klein is well known in the county, and his skill in the field he has chosen for his life's work was recognized from the start. He is capable, diligent, and a close student of the science of his profession, and enjoys a good practice. He was united in marriage February 26; 1913, to Miss Emily V. Brower, of Williamsport, Pa. Dr. Klein is a member of the Mt. Vernon Medical Society ; a Thirty-second degree Ma- son, and a member of the Elks.
Vincent M. Cartwright, of Mt. Vernon, is a native son of Posey county, and a descendant of sturdy pioneer ancestors. He was born in Harmony township, January 17, 1843, and was one of a family of ten children born to Presley and Sidda M. (Mage) Cartwright. Presley Cartwright was also born in what is now Harmony township, then in the Northwestern Territory, August II, 1811. He spent his life in the locality of his birth, where he died November 26, 1896. He followed farming most of his life. He was also a cooper, shoe maker, and car- penter. Presley Cartwright was a son of Samuel, who came to the Northwestern Territory from Tennessee in 1800, at about the age of twenty. He settled in what is now Harmony township, which was an unbroken wilderness. The Cartwrights suffered all the privations and hardships common to the lot of the pioneers of the times. Two brothers of Samuel were killed by the Indians. The Cartwrights are of Scotch de- scent. Sidda M. Mage, our subject's mother, was a daughter of Daniel and Sidda (Green) Mage. The family came from Washington county, North Carolina, about 1825, and settled in the northern part of Posey county. They drove the entire distance from North Carolina, the girl, Sidda, walking most of the distance, as did the other members of the family. She died in February, 1882. Vincent Cartwright remained at home and worked on the farm after the fashion of the average boy of the times, until the peaceful life of the Nation was interrupted by the coming on of the Civil war. At this time, young Cartwright enlisted August I, 1862, at Evansville, in Company C, Sixty-fifth regiment, Indiana vol- unteer infantry. His regiment was immediately sent to Kentucky to oppose the Confederate operations in that section. The campaigning there was mostly of a skirmishing nature, and what insurance com- panies would term "extra hazardous." Mr. Cartwright did a great deal of scout duty. He was wounded September 22, 1863, at Bloutsville, Tenn., but recovered after a few months and took part in Sherman's At-
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HISTORY OF POSEY COUNTY
lanta campaign. He participated in the engagements at Jonesboro and Franklin, Tenn. His regiment was in the pursuit of Hood and from Clifton, Tenn., went by boat to Cincinnati, then to Annapolis, and from there to Fort Fisher. Took part in the North Carolina campaign, and was at the surrender of Johnston at Greensboro, N. C. Here Mr. Cart- wright was mustered out, June 22, 1865. When discharged, he was ser- geant of the color guard. He had been elected first lieutenant of his company and recommended by the captain of his company for appoint- ment, but never received his commission. At the close of the war, Mr. Cartwright returned to his Posey county home, and attended school for a time. He then went to Missouri and from there to Salina, Kan., where he was engaged in the lumber business. He was thus engaged when he lost his left hand in a mill accident, September 2, 1866. He then re- turned to Harmony township, and attended school again for a time where he engaged in teaching in Lynn, Center and Harmony townships until 1876, when he was elected trustee of Lynn township, serving two terms. In 1882, Mr. Cartwright was elected county recorder and served two terms, or until 1890. He then engaged in the real estate business and did an extensive business as pension attorney. In 1910, he was elected justice of the peace, which office he still holds. As a public offi- cer, Mr. Cartwright's methods have been of the character that has won for him the confidence and esteem of his fellow citizens. He was united in marriage March 25, 1869, to Miss Elizabeth, daughter of William Wil- son, of Lynn township. She was born in that township and her father was also a native of Posey county. To Mr. and Mrs. Cartwright were born five children, three of whom are. living: Cynthia, married Aaron Shuffert, of Chicago; Ethel, married Noble Utley, of Mt. Vernon, and Fannie O., married Henry A. Deutsch, of Strathmore, Cal. Mr. Cart- wright has been a lifelong Democrat, and taken a keen interest in the af- fairs of his county, State and Nation. He was chairman of the Demo- cratic central committee of Posey county in 1884, and as a token of appre- ciation of his services, the committee presented him with a beautiful gold-headed cane, which he prizes very highly. He is a member of the Knights of Pythias, and is past chancellor of the lodge. He was the first State representative at the grand lodge at Indianapolis; he is a mem- ber of the Grand Army of the Republic, Post No. 491, and is the presi- dent of the Sixty-fifth Indiana Regimental Association, which meets on September 22 of each year. The meeting of 1913 was held at his resi- dence. He is a charter member of the regular Baptist church.
Armenius Templeton, retired farmer and stock raiser, of Mt. Vernon, Ind., was born in Black township, Posey county, October 30, 1849, a son of Gilbert and Desire (Phillips) Templeton, the parents natives of Posey county, where the father farmed and raised stock. Gilbert Templeton was the son of Samuel and Sally (Curtis) Templeton, natives of North
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Carolina, who came to Posey county about 1815, one year before State- hood and one year after the organization of the county. Samuel Tem- pleton entered land, the country at that time being a wilderness. His son, Gilbert, was born in Posey county in 1820, and grew to manhood, assisting in clearing the land. Our subject also cleared a great deal of farm land and can remember when a large part of the land now under cultivation was thickly wooded. The first school he attended was in a log building on his father's farm. After finishing school he worked on the farm with his parents. His father died in 1891. Mr. Templeton was engaged in farming and stock raising until twenty-three years ago, when he retired from active farming to look after his lands. All of his farms are in Point and Black townships, 300 acres being in the former, and 150 in the latter. On his retirement from farming he removed to Mt. Vernon, and in 1888 went into the hardware business, contining the store for sixteen years. He has served as councilman and has been in various ways identified with the upbuilding of the town and county. He is a member of the Methodist church, in which he is a trustee. In politics he is a Prohibitionist. Mr. Templeton was married February 3, 1880, to Pauline Newman, daughter of Charles and Rosana (Scheiber) Newman, parents natives of Germany, who came to this country when young. Mr. Newman was a farmer. Pauline was born in Posey county and attended the country schools at that time held in a log house. Later she continued her education at Mt. Vernon. Mr. and Mrs. Templeton be- came the parents of five children: Bertha, who married Edward Blake- ly, and lives in LaJunta, Colo .; Everett A. (see sketch of E. A. Temple- ton) ; Gilbert C., married Justine Stander, and lives in Fowler, Colo .; Arthur N., at home with his parents, and Raymond, deceased. Mrs. Templeton is an active worker in the Methodist church and the whole family are members.
Frederick A. R. Kemper (deceased), formerly a prominent farmer of Mt. Vernon, Ind., was born in that town February 14, 1860, a son of Frederick and Anna (Mehl) Kemper, parents natives of Germany. Fred- erick, Sr., was a veteran of the Mexican war. Before the Civil war he was a farmer and saw mill man, but died during the Civil war while a soldier in Missouri. The parents of our subject had six children. Fred- erick, Jr., was married January 27, 1883, to Miss Bertha Haas, daughter of Anton and Nancy (Henry) Haas. Bertha Haas was born September 23, 1863, in Mt. Vernon. Her father was a native of Germany, and her mother of Posey county. Mr. and Mrs. Kemper had six sons: Earl Vernon, born February 26, 1885, a steamboat clerk, Memphis, Tenn .; Royal Haas, born August 10, 1888, postoffice clerk at Mt. Vernon, be- longs to the Elks; Edmund Emil, born June 26, 1892; Raymond Lester, born July 3, 1895; Paul Frederick, born December 19, 1898; Walter
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Anton, born August 13, 1902. Mr. Kemper died November 15, 1910. He was a farmer all his life, and belonged to the German Methodist Epis- copal church.
David Walter Welch, M. D., of Mt. Vernon, was born in Saline county, Illinois, near Galatia, March 5, 1848, and is a son of Egbert G. and Nancy (Upchurch) Welch. His father was a native of Tennessee, and came of an old Virginia family, and at the age of eighty-eight years he died at Galatia, Ill., where he was a pioneer settler, and his mother was born at Galatia, Ill., and was a daughter of David Upchurch, who came from North Carolina to Illinois, and was the founder of Galatia. Dr. Welch was reared on the farm, attended the country schools, and the Illinois State Normal at Normal, Ill., and then engaged in the profession of school teaching for fifteen years. He was superintendent of schools at Rock- port, Ind., for two years, of the schools of Boonville, Ind., for two years, having previously been assistant superintendent of schools at Evansville, Ind. His early teaching was in Illinois. He was at Shawneetown for three years. He read medicine in the office of Dr. George B. Walker, dean of the Evansville Medical College. He then began practice in the country about five miles northeast of Mt. Ver- non. He located in Mt. Vernon in 1888. He did post-graduate work at the Chicago Clinical College, and is a member of the Mt. Vernon City, the Posey County, and Indiana State Medical societies, and also of the Ohio Valley Medical Association. Dr. Welch married in 1868 Jennie R. Wright, of Cloverport, Ky. They have five sons and two daughters. The Doctor is a Prohibitionist in politics. He is not only an able and prominent physician, but as a citizen is progressive. To him is largely due the steps that led to the improvement of the public roads in Posey county, in which matter he received strong opposition, but the splendid roads of the county stand as a monument to his spirit of progress and foresight.
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