USA > Indiana > Posey County > History of Posey County, Indiana > Part 28
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cessful distillers, and was one of the most influential citizens of his dis- trict. His death occurred on August 27, 1893. John Willis Turner re- ceived his early educational discipline in the public schools of Owen county, graduated from Owenton High School and in 1889 entered the literary department of the Kentucky State College at Lexington and was graduated in the class of 1893. The succeeding two years he was engaged in raising hogs on an extensive scale, purchasing the refuse from his grandfather's distillery for feed. The markets of 1894 and 1895 were high and he sold at a large profit. The success he had attained in his initial business venture attracted the attention of the officers of the First National Bank of Owenton and he was offered and accepted a position with that institution. He resigned from this position in 1897 and entered the People's Bank of the same town, where he remained until 1899, when he accepted the position of corporation clerk in the State Capitol at Frankfort. While in charge of this office he gained a com- prehensive grasp of banking as conducted in Kentucky, which has been of great advantage to him in his later career. He became a resident of Posey county in 1903, when he came to Poseyville and organized the First National Bank of that town. His connection with this insti- tution, of which he was cashier, continued until 1907, when he was offered and accepted the position of cashier of the First National Bank of Mt. Vernon, the oldest financial institution in the county and which, at this writing, 1913, has the largest deposits. In the administration of the business of this bank, of which he has been the dominant execu- tive since 1907, his progressiveness, energy and resourcefulness have been largely responsible for the healthy growth enjoyed by the institution, as well as the high reputation of the organization. He is known to the banking fraternity as an able and discriminating financier and one who has brought the administrative policy of his bank up to the point of highest efficiency. Essentially a business man, he has neither the time nor inclination for public office, though he never neglects in the least his civic duties and obligations and has taken an active part in the councils of his party. He has been a lifelong Democrat. Mr. Turner has attained the Thirty-second degree in Scottish Rite Masonry, is a mem- ber of Indianapolis Consistory, and Hadi Temple Shrine, Evansville. He is a member of Mt. Vernon Lodge, No. 277, Benevolent and Pro- tective Order of Elks. Mr. Turner married on October 14, 1896, Miss Anna Lee True, the daughter of William R. and Sue Katherine True, of Louisville, Ky. They are the parents of one child, a daughter, Mary Louise, born March 12, 1907. Mrs. Turner is a woman of broad culture and refinement and popular in the social circles of Mt. Vernon, in which she is a leader. The Turner residence, one of the most attractive in Posey county, is known for its gracious hospitality. Mr. Turner is in
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all respects a high type of the conservative, unassuming American, dil- igent in his various duties and business affairs and conscientious in all things.
James Madison Greathouse .- Great, indeed, have been the changes which time and man have wrought in Posey county since the birth of Mr. Greathouse in 1847, and no man has been more actively identified with the work of improvement in Point township than he. He is best known to the citizens of his native county through his service as town- ship trustee, to which office he was elected in 1908, in the administra- tion of which he has proven the possession of sound financial ability, marked executive talent and sound business judgment. To him the township is indebted for an extended school term, modern school build- ings, greatly improved roads, substantial bridges and a financial policy which has wiped out a considerable indebtedness, replaced it with a comfortable cash balance, and this has all been accomplished without an increase in the tax rate. James M. Greathouse was born on his father's farm in Point township, on April 27, 1847, a son of John Tecum- seh and Eliza (Browning) Greathouse. The father was a native of Union county, Kentucky. Little is known of his early life or occupa- tions, except that he operated a grist mill on Highland creek, Union county, previous to his locating in Posey county, Indiana. In some manner he learned that relatives were living in the latter county and acting on an impulse to join them, he tied his belongings on a slab and, pushing it ahead of him, swam across the Ohio to the Indiana shore. In Point township he found three cousins, the sons of David Greathouse (see sketch of Frank M. Greathouse) .. During the year of his arrival in Posey county, 1844, he married Eliza Browning Great- house, the widow of his cousin John. They became the parents of the following children: Aaron, born in 1845, a resident of Mt. Vernon and veteran of the Civil War; James Madison, our subject; William R., a traveling salesman; and Sarah Ann, the wife of James Dowell, a farmer of Black township. John Tecumseh Greathouse underwent the hard- ships incident to the early life of the county, cleared and improved land and became a prosperous farmer. The first frame building in Point township, a school house, was built on his farm in 1872, and was named the Greathouse school. This building was replaced in 1913 by one of concrete, substantially finished and furnished and erected under the supervision of his son, James M., trustee of the township. Mr. Great- house died in 1880. He was a charter member of Mt. Vernon Lodge, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and of the Methodist church. His wife died in 1863. James Madison Greathouse was reared on his father's farm and received his education in the school bearing the family name. From boyhood his occupation has been that of a farmer. He is recog- nized as one of the progressive and successful men of his district; one
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who has always taken an active interest in public affairs and who has given generously of both time and money in assisting those movements which had the public good in view. He has been a lifelong Democrat. He was elected trustee of Point township in 1908. When he entered upon the duties of this office the affairs of the township were in a deplorable condition. The treasury was empty and an indebtedness totaling $17,000 had been incurred by previous incumbents of the office. During his administration of the affairs of the township its indebted- ness has been reduced to $2,250; two modern school buildings have been built, one a graded school building of two rooms at a cost of $3,500, and the new Greathouse school, a one-room building costing $3,000. These buildings are modern in all respects. They are constructed of concrete and the interior finish and equipment are of the best. The roads of the township have been greatly improved and a number of substantial bridges have been built. The township treasury has about $4,000 in cash (1913). These improvements have been made and the debt reduced without increasing the levy of previous years and the levy for 1913 was cut four cents. The record made in the administration of the affairs of this office by Mr. Greathouse will probably stand as the high-water mark of efficiency and accomplishment for many years to come. Mr. Greathouse married on March 29, 1871, Miss Victoria Combs, a daughter of David Combs, a farmer of Black township. He was born in Kentucky in 1816 and died in 1876. His wife was Jane Thompson, also a native of Kentucky. Mr. and Mrs. Greathouse are the parents of the following children: Evaleen, born September 21, 1876, the wife of Edwin V. Spencer, Jr., a farmer of Black township; Flora May, born July 4, 1880, the wife of Edward Morlock, also of Black township; and Bessie, born March 10, 1889, residing with her parents. Three children died in infancy-David A., James C. and Ida Belle. Mr. Greathouse is in all respects a high type of the conservative American, diligent in his various duties and commercial affairs, and conscientious in all things. He is rich in the possession of a well earned popularity and the esteem which comes only from honorable living.
Joseph Robinson Haines, auditor of Posey county, editor and pub- lisher, was born at St. Wendel, Ind., January 31, 1864, the son of Charles and Jane (Culley) Haines. The first of the family to settle in Indiana was Peter Haines, a native of Kentucky, who located in Robinson town- ship, Posey county, during its formative period. He was a farmer and the grandfather of the subject of this article. His son, Charles Haines, born in Posey county, also a farmer, married when a young man Miss Jane Culley, also a native of the county, where she was born in 1835. Charles Haines died when our subject was a child. He is survived by his widow, now a resident of Cynthiana, and the following children, viz : Mary E., the wife of James R. Smith, a farmer of Smith township, Posey
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county ; Martha, the widow of Albert Whiting, Anna, Ill .; Ella, the wife of Crawford B. Smith, a farmer of Smith township, Posey county ; Jo- seph R., auditor of Posey county ; Charles L., Cynthiana; and Fannie J., the wife of William M. Chappel, a farmer of Oakland City, Gibson county, Indiana. Joseph Robinson Haines was reared on the Haines farm in Robinson township and assisted in the work incident to its car- rying on until he was aged nineteen. He received his education in the public schools of Posey county and was graduated from the Cynthiana High School in 1883. From 1883 until 1890 he was engaged in teaching in the schools of the county. In the latter year he purchased the Posey- ville "News," of which he was the editor and publisher until he entered the office of auditor in 1912, and of which he retains the ownership. Mr. Haines has always taken a keen interest in the questions of the day and has been active and influential in the political life of his home county. He is a Democrat. He was elected to the lower house of the State Legislature in 1900 and re-elected in 1902. His work during the sessions of 1900-01 and 1902-03 received the commendations of his constituents and he was considered by his colleagues as one of the energetic and active leaders of his party in the house. He was elected auditor of Posey county in 1910 and entered upon the duties of the office on Jan- uary I, 1912. His administration of the business affairs of this depart- ment of the county's official life has received favorable comment, effi- ciency has been the mark consistently sought, and promptness in the conduct of work constantly maintained. He had previously served as an official of the county through appointment, having filled the office of treasurer from February 28, 1907, until January 1, 1908, succeeding Fred A. Morelock, who had died in office. He is a member of the Masonic order, Knights of Pythias and Modern Woodmen of America. Mr. Haines married on December 20, 1893, Miss Virgie C. Dougherty, the daughter of James H. Dougherty, a farmer of Rolla, Mo. They are the parents of one child, Edith May Haines, born May 7, 1895.
John T. Gill, a retired farmer of Posey county, now living at 324 West Ninth street, Mt. Vernon, Ind., was born in Black township, Posey county, March 20, 1845, son of John T. and Anna (Moore) Gill, also na- tives of Posey county. Their parents, who were natives of Virginia, came to Posey county at an early date. Samuel Gill, the grandfather of our subject, at one time owned a part of the land on which Mt. Vernon now stands. Before his death, in 1850, he owned 300 acres three miles northwest of the town, where he had been an active farmer all his life. He had two daughters and six sons as follows: Joseph, John T., Samuel, Sarah, Anna, James M., Quincy A., William H., all born in Posey county, and all now deceased. John T. Gill, Sr., the father of John T., of this record, was born in Posey county in 1806 and married Miss Anna Moore in 1831. She was born October 5, 1810, in Posey county, her parents,
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Mr. and Mrs. James Moore, natives of Virginia. Mr. and Mrs. John T., Sr., had ten children: Sarah (deceased), born April 18, 1832; Sam- uel (deceased), born December 23, 1833 ; James (deceased), born April 21, 1836; Joseph (deceased), born December 14, 1837; Rachel, born Septem- ber 24, 1839, now the widow of David Lyttle, Clarkston, Wash .; Charles (deceased), born May 6, 1841 ; Martha Ann, born December 30, 1842, now the widow of John M. Crunk, Mt. Vernon; John T., of this sketch; Zachariah Taylor, born October 28, 1848, now deceased; Harriet, the youngest, died in infancy. John T. Gill, our subject, was educated in the public schools of Posey county. His father died when he was but five years of age and he was reared by his uncle, Joseph Gill, who lived five miles northwest of Mt. Vernon. Here John T. lived until 1864, when he enlisted in Company B, First Indiana cavalry, and was mustered out in July, 1865 at St. Charles, Ark. He took part in the battles of Pea Ridge, Pine Bluff and Helena, Ark., but was never wounded. He is now a member of the Harrow post of the Grand Army of the Republic, of Mt. Vernon, in which he has served as adjutant and has from time to time been honored with other offices. His brothers, James and Joseph, were also veterans of the Civil war, serving in Company F, Twenty-fifth In- diana volunteer infantry. In 1902 Mr. Gill was elected a member of the advisory board of Black township, serving eight years. In 1904 he was elected councilman from the Fourth ward in Mt. Vernon, serving six years. He is a Republican, and belongs to Beulah Lodge No. 578, An- cient Free and Accepted Masons. On March 10, 1875, Mr. Gill married Miss Mary A. Brookins, daughter of Milton and Sarah (Davis) Brookins. She was born May 2, 1855, near Mt. Vernon, Ill. Her parents were na- tives of Ohio. They have had but one child, Fannie, born March 23, 1879, and died April 30, 1907. She was educated in the schools of Mt. Vernon. Mr. Gill was a farmer all his his life until his retirement in 1900. His farming interests comprise eighty-seven acres in Black township, which he rents. He now lives in Mt. Vernon.
John A. Deig, a prominent farmer of Mt. Vernon, was born in Black township, March 21, 1870, son of John S. and Mary (Muller) Deig, the fa- ther born in Germany, came to this country in 1838 with his parents and settled in Posey county near St. Phillips. John S. was but five years of age at that time and he was educated in the common schools of his locality and later engaged in farming and stock raising. He married Mary Muller, daughter of Louis Muller, in 1855. They became the parents of twelve children: Caroline, Mary, Margaret, Joseph, Charles, Louis, William, John A., Frank, Lillie, Anna, and one who died in infancy. Of these only John A. and Frank are living. Caroline married Antone Breiner (see sketch). John A. Deig was raised in Black township, Po- sey county, where he was educated in the public schools and worked on the farm with his father until of age, when he started out for him-
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self, farming one year on the home place on the Fourth street road. After the first year he removed to his farm adjoining the town of Mt. Vernon, and has recently built one of the finest residences in the city, located on Main street, the last house inside the city limits. It is near one of his farms containing ninety-one acres. He has 160 acres east of town, making a total of 251 acres. On Octo- ber 10, 1893, occurred the marriage of John A. Deig and Matilda Fischer, daughter of Valentine and Barbara (Soellner) Fischer, her parents natives of Germany, the mother from Bavaria and the father from Hessen- Darmstadt, Germany. The mother came to Posey county in 1836 with her parents, who located in the county. The father came in 1839 with his parents, who located in West Virginia, and after two or three years came to Posey county, where they engaged in farming and stock raising. Mrs. Deig was born in Marrs township, December 13, 1869, where she was reared, and educated as far as the common schools went. She then attended St. Joseph Academy at Evansville, where she graduated in 1886. Mr. and Mrs. John A. Deig became the parents of five children: John (deceased), Cecelia (deceased), Sylvester S., Alfonso W. F., and Francis J. Sylvester S. and Alfonso W. F. are attending school in Mt. Vernon. Mr. Deig is a Democrat in politics, and he and his family are members of the Catholic church.
Henry Weissinger (deceased), former undertaker and furniture dealer, of Mt. Vernon, Ind., was born in Springfield, Ohio, July 14, 1834, and died in Mt. Vernon, Ind., May 22, 1906. He was a son of Carl and Marie (Klenck) Weissinger, both natives of Hessen-Darmstadt, Ger- many. They came to Mt. Vernon when their son, Henry, was a boy. Henry was bound out to a cabinet maker of New Albany and remained with him many years. During the Civil war he was in the United States Marine Service on the gunboat "Autocrat," and as a ship carpen- ter had the the rank of second lieutenant. He came to Mt. Vernon in 1866 and opened an undertaking and furniture establishment. Later he discontinued the furniture business, but continued in the undertak- ing line until his death. In 1894 his son, Allison V., became his part- ner and the firm of Weissinger & Son was formed. The business is still conducted under this name, Allison V. now having as his partner his own son, Merle A. Henry Weissinger was married, in New Albany, Ind., in 1857, to Martha Venable, who was born and reared in that town and who now lives in Mt. Vernon at the age of seventy-five years. They became the parents of eight children: Allison Venable, of Mt. Vernon; Harry, of Chicago; John R., of Enid, Okla .; Elizabeth, now Mrs. Henry Walters, of Sapulpa, Okla .; Manor, of Mt. Vernon; Frank, of Enid, Okla .; Mattie, now Mrs. Jesse Sutton, of Danville, Ill., and Jesse, of Enid, Okla. Henry Weissinger was a Democrat, served as councilman of Mt. Vernon and was county coroner four terms. He
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was a Master Mason and with his wife belonged to the Missionary Baptist church. Allison V. Weissinger was born in New Albany, Ind., March 31, 1859. He was reared in Mt. Vernon to the age of about sixteen, when he returned to his maternal grandparents in New Albany, remaining there for eight years attending school. He then came back to Mt. Vernon to work with his father. From 1888 to 1894 he was with the Adams Express Company and was away in the West a greater part of this time. In 1894 he became his father's partner and has con- tinued in the business since that time, building his present fine estab- lishment in 1911. He is a licensed embalmer and served as secretary of the State board of embalmers, to which office he was appointed by Governor Durbin, for seven years. Mr. Weissinger is a member of the Elks lodge and of the Knights of Pythias. He is a Democrat in politics and a member of the Presbyterian church. In 1882 he was married, at Mt. Vernon, to Adellah Duckworth, daughter of John K. Duckworth, a liveryman and stage line owner of Mt. Vernon and related to one of the early pioneer families of Posey county. They have but one child, Merle, who is associated with his father in business and has served his third term as county coroner. He married, in 1906, Miss Grace Sullivan, daughter of Richard L. Sullivan, grain dealer of Mt- Vernon. They are the parents of one child-Emily Dee-born April 22, 1908.
Enoch E. Thomas, former mayor of Mt. Vernon, Ind., and ex-sheriff of Posey county, was born October 8, 1837, on a farm in Lynn town- ship, Posey county, son of Capt. George W. and Ann L. (Noel) Thomas. George W. Thomas was born in Kentucky in 1813, while his parents were enroute from North Carolina to Posey county, Indiana, one year after the county was organized. The parents of George W. farmed in Posey county from 1813 to 1855, when they removed to Mt. Vernon. He became the owner of several hundred acres of land and was a pioneer miller, having built the first steam mill in Posey county. In 1855 he engaged in wharf and steam boating on the Ohio river, fol- lowing this business until his retirement. He represented Posey county in the State legislature two years and was county recorder four years, and at different times was city councilman. While recorder of the county he, with Governor Hovey, secured the passage of an act permitting the use of funds in the county treasurer's hands for building the present court house. He was a life-long Democrat and belonged to the Masonic lodge. Enoch Thomas was reared on his father's farm in Lynn town- ship, where he attended the country schools three months out of the year. In 1855 his parents removed to Mt. Vernon and he attended the old seminary two years. He is essentially a self-made man, and at the age of eighteen he engaged in the wharf and boating business with his father under the firm name of G. W. Thomas & Son. He continued in
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the business until 1882, when he embarked in the coal business. In 1884 he was elected on the Democratic ticket to the council from the Second ward, which is strongly Republican. This office he held two years. In 1886 he was elected mayor of Mt. Vernon, and was reëlected in 1888. The water works franchise was granted during his first term as mayor. In 1897 he was elected sheriff of Posey county, and was reelected in 1899, serving four years and four months in all. He is said to have been the best sheriff the county ever had. He was always a prominent and active citizen. He is a charter member of the Mt. Vernon Lodge No. 277, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and has filled all of its offices. At present he is treasurer of the lodge. On December 1, 1864, occurred the marriage of Enoch E. Thomas to Miss Anna Weaver, daughter of Dr. Warren Weaver, of Mt. Vernon. She was born in Evansville, Ind. They have five children: Gertrude, born in 1865, died in 1871 ; Mabel, the wife of Wilbur Cushman, lumberman, of Poseyville; Cornelia, the wife of Dr. C. H. Fullinwider, of Mt. Vernon; Emma, the wife of Charles Chislett, real estate, of North Vancouver, British Columbia ; Ena, wife of A. K. Boyce, commercial traveler, of Terre Haute, Ind.
Edwin Rinear, M. D., one of the leading physicians of Mt. Vernon, Ind., was born in Liberty Center, Wells county, Indiana, June 24, 1866, son of Elias M. and Mary Jane (Hupp) Rinear. His great-grandfather was a Frenchman who came to this country with Lafayette and served in the American Revolution. His grandfather, Charles Rinear, son of the French soldier, was born in New Jersey, and Elias M. Rinear, son of Charles Rinear, was born in Cuyahoga county, Ohio. Mary Jane Hupp was born in Wells county, Indiana, of Pennsylvania Dutch ancestry. Elias M. Rinear was a druggist in Liberty Center and other towns of In- diana, and now lives in Bluffton. He was a soldier in the One Hundred and First Indiana infantry and for three years was a "fife major." Ed- win Rinear was reared in the place of his birth and attended the public schools, later completing a teacher's course in Holbrook Normal at Leb- anon, Ohio, after which he taught for six years in the Wells county public schools. He then took up the study of medicine at Cincinnati, Ohio, graduating from the Medical College of Ohio, of that city, in 1890. He practiced at Liberty Center ten years, at Warren, Ind., three or four years, at Bluffton for a time and located at Mt. Vernon in May, 191I. He is a member of the Mt. Vernon Medical Association, which he or- ganized in 1912, is secretary of the Posey County Medical Association and a member of the Indiana Medical Society. In 1890 Dr. Rinear married Queen Mabel Webb, daughter of Benjamin F. Webb, of Warren, Ind. In politics he is a Democrat. Our subject is a self-made man, rising in the world by his own efforts. His chief distinction apart from his skill as a physician and surgeon is that he is a musician of more than ordinary skill and an artist of no mean ability.
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Rev. Paul Press, pastor of the Trinity Evangelical Church at Mt. Ver- non, Ind., was born at Cambria, Wis., March 30, 1877, son of Reverend Gottlob and Julia (Guenther) Press, both born in Germany, and married in Missouri in 1867, shortly after coming to America, having known each other in Germany. Gottlob Press has devoted his life to the ministry in the Evangelical church. When Paul was about three years of age his father accepted a pastorate at Arcola, Ill., and four years later was called to New Hanover, Ill., where our subject spent the greater part of his youth. Paul Press was educated in the public schools at Elmhurst Col- lege, Elmhurst, Ill., and at Eden Theological Seminary, St. Louis, Mo., where he completed a four-year course and was ordained in the ministry in 1898. His first work was at Murphysboro, Ill., where he remained five and one-half years, and in January, 1904, came to Mt. Vernon. He has been a member of the board of education since 1910 and in politics is a Republican. In 1905 Reverend Press married Anna Brauer, of Murphys- boro, Ill., and they have two children, Paul and Helen.
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