USA > Indiana > Tipton County > History of Tipton County Indiana > Part 28
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Mr. McGraw 'is a man of genial disposition and enjoys a large popu- larity in the community where he has spent his life. In his home life he is a man of marked domestic tastes, and finds his greatest enjoyment in the company of his loved ones and in the entertainment of his many friends, to whom he shows the spirit of true hospitality. He has shown himself to be a man of broad character, kindliness of heart and ever willing to aid in any cause for the betterment of the community and the public with whom he has to deal.
JOHN RICHARD NASH.
To such men as John Richard Nash life is so real that they do not find time to plot either mischief or vice. Their lives are bound up in their duties, they feel the weight of their citizenship, and take pleasure in sowing the seeds of righteousness in order that their contemporaries and their descen- dants may be benefited. It is an axiom demonstrated by human experience that industry is the keynote of prosperity. Success comes not to the man who idly waits, but to the faithful toiler whose work is characterized by sleepless vigilance and cheerful celerity, and it has been by such means that John Richard Nash has forged to the front and won an honored place among the substantial citizens of Tipton county.
John Richard Nash was born October 20, 1872, in Cicero township,
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Tipton county, the son of William G. and Rebecca E. (Galloway) Nash. William G. Nash is the subject of a biographical review elsewhere in this volume, to which the reader is referred for the genealogy of the Nash family.
John Richard Nash was reared on his father's farm in Cicero town- ship and attended the district schools, after which he taught for four terms. On the completion of his pedagogical pursuits, the subject rented farm land and engaged in agriculture for several years, at the end of which period he was enabled to purchase ninety acres in Cicero township, which he cleared, improved and added to until he now owns two hundred and thirty-six acres of the best land in the community, on which he has a splendid home and every comfort and convenience essential to an up-to-date agricultural plant.
On September 20, 1913, Mr. Nash became cashier of the First National Bank, in which he had been interested for several years. This financial in- stitution is one of the most substantial in the state of Indiana and was or- ganized in 1876, its present capital stock being one hundred thousand dollars. The present officers are: J. E. Hawkins, president; W. A. Phares, vice- president ; John R. Nash, cashier, and Horace Matthews, assistant cashier. The subject is also interested in a stock company known as the Grishaw- Nash Sheep Feeding Company, incorporated by Fred Youngman, the late Edward Grishaw, J. B. Grishaw and John R. Nash, the objects of this con- cern being to bring lambs from Montana and other western states and to feed them by thousands, a large tract of land having been leased on which barns and other necessary improvements have been erected.
On September 30, 1896, Mr. Nash was united in marriage to Jennie Belle Frier, daughter of William Henry Frier, Mrs. Nash having been born in Clinton county, Indiana, near Scircleville, November 21, 1872. Her par- ents were natives of the Hoosier state, the father of Clinton county and the mother of Henry county, both now being deceased. The parents of Mrs. Nash had three children : Alice E., now the wife of Woody Patterson; Mrs. Nash; a son died young. To Mr. and Mrs. Nash have been born five chil- dren, Jean Alice, Mary Elizabeth, Richard Leland, Margaret and Robert Lee.
Mr. and Mrs. Nash are members of the Christian church, while the sub- ject gives his support in matters of politics to the Republican party. Fra- ternally, Mr. Nash belongs to Austin Lodge No. 128, Free and Accepted Masons ; 'Tipton Chapter No. 114, Royal Arch Masons; Tipton Council No. 80, Royal and Select Masters, and Tipton Commandery, Knights Templar, also holding membership in Tipton Lodge No. 220, Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
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CLINTON H. HOBBS.
ยท Agriculture has been an honored vocation from the earliest ages and as a usual thing men of honorable and humane impulses, as well as those of energy and thrift, have been patrons of husbandry. The free, outdoor life of the farm has a decided tendency to foster and develop that independence of mind and self-reliance which characterize true manhood and no greater blessing can befall a boy than to be reared in close touch with nature in the healthful, life-inspiring labor of the fields. It has always been the fruitful field from which have sprung the moral bone and sinew of the country, and the majority of our nation's scholars and distinguished men of letters were born on the farm and are indebted to its early influence for the distinction which they have attained.
Clinton H. Hobbs, retired farmer in Madison township, was born in Tipton county, Indiana, December 20, 1843, the son of Levi and Cynthia (Bowles) Hobbs. His father was a native of Virginia, while his mother was a native of Ohio. They were the parents of ten children, seven of whom grew to manhood and womanhood: Iby L.,. deceased, who was the wife of John W. Cook : Elmina, wife of Eli Houser, of Madison township; Clinton H., of Tipton : Martin M., of Hobbs Station : Miranda J., who died in childhood; William B., of Tipton: Ann Eliza, deceased, who was the wife of Jeremiah Ressler; and Preston L., of Hobbs Station, a merchant. The father of the subject of this sketch was reared in Virginia on a farm, and came to Indiana in 1837. For a short time he followed the profession of teaching, and taught several terms in Marion and Tipton counties. Being of a thrifty turn of mind, he saved his money and invested in land, until at the time of his death in 1863, at the age of fifty-six, he owned seventy acres of land in Tipton. His wife died on May 25, 1892, at the advanced age of seventy-six. He and his wife were both loyal supporters of the Methodist Episcopal church and contributed liberally of their substance to its support.
The paternal grandparents of the subject were Absalom and Susan Hobbs, both being natives of Virginia and lived in Lee county, that state. where they died at middle age. He was a farmer and was twice married. To the first union there were born eight children, Job, Absalom, William, Henry, Levi, John, Rebecca and Mary. His second wife was a Miss Olinger, and they also reared a large family of children, Jacob B., Vincent, Clinton, Caleb, Joshua, David C. and Peggy Ann.
The maternal grandfather was William Bowles and his wife was Anna
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Martin. They came from Ohio to Indiana many years before the Civil war and settled in Marion county. Later they moved to Huntington county, where they both died. He was a mechanic, a wood workman and also oper- ated a farm. They raised a large family, John, Henry, Llewellyn, William, Cinthia, Martha, Jane, Sophronia, Mary, Ann and Charlotte.
Clinton H. Hobbs was born and reared in Tipton county, and has spent his entire life, of more than three score and ten, in the county where he was born. He was reared under the parental roof and received all his education in the old-fashioned subscription schools. His father was his first teacher. He lived at home until he was grown, working on his father's farm until his marriage, after which he rented a farm in Madison township, his father-in- law's farm, and operated this tract of land for three years, then moved back to his father's farm, buying the interest of some of the heirs. After oper- ating this farm for a number of years, he bought a farm in Cicero township of forty acres, to which he added eighty acres more, making one hundred and twenty acres in all. He still owns this farm, for which he has been offered two hundred dollars per acre. He can remember when any farm land in this locality could be bought for ten dollars per acre, or even less. He moved into Tipton on the 8th day of March, 1911, and owns a fine residence at No. 433 North Independence street, where he and his wife are now living a re- tired life.
On January 11, 1866, Mr. Hobbs was united in marriage to Losada Jane Leavell, the daughter of Benjamin and Frances ( Thornburg) Leavell. Nine children have been born to this union: Nellie A., Minnie M., Thomas B., Melvin W., Jesse T. and Guy Fulton, and three who died in infancy. Nellie A. married Alva Foster, and they live in Madison township; Minnie married J. R. Click, and they also live in' Madison township and have two children, Leah and John H .: Thomas B. married Margaret Ford, and lives in Tipton. They have two living children, Mary Jane and Anna V .; Melvin W. mar- ried Frances Simpson, and they reside in Tipton, and are the parents of three children, William S., Cynthia I. and Melvin W .; Jesse T. died at the age of fifteen: Guy Fulton, who is a practicing physician in Indianapolis, married Gertrude Neville.
Mr. and Mrs. Clinton Hobbs belong to the Methodist Episcopal church and have always been loyal members of that denomination. Fraternally, he is a member of Austin Lodge No. 128, Free and Accepted Masons. He was a soldier in the Civil war, belonging to Company C., One Hundred and First Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and served about eight months, being
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discharged on account of disability. He belongs to the James Price Post, Grand Army of the Republic. Politically, he is a supporter of the Repub- lican party, but has never held any public office, though he was road super- visor of his township for two terms.
Mrs. Hobbs was born in Madison township, Tipton county, Indiana, on August 13, 1846. Her father was a native of Kentucky and her mother of Tennessee, and were early settlers of Tipton. Her father died in 1869 and her mother in 1894. They were the parents of seven children, John W., Martha R., Losada J., Nancy V., Sarah E., Mary E. and Josephine.
The paternal grandfather of Mrs. Hobbs was Robert Leavell and his wife's maiden name was Sarah Leavell, they being second cousins and natives of Kentucky. They raised a family of several children, James, Ezekiel, Benjamin, Caroline, Sarah, Melinda, Nancy, Elizabeth and Mary.
The maternal grandparents of Mrs. Hobbs were William and Martha (Bradshaw) Thornburg, natives of Tennessee. Their children were John. Benjamin, William, Frances, Mary Ann, Melinda and Betsy. The parents of both Mr. and Mrs. Hobbs were among the oldest pioneer families of the county. They used to haul their grain to Lafayette in what was then known as old "schooner" wagons, wagons which were near relatives to the old "Conestoga" wagons of the East. Their nearest market was Lafayette at this time, and all produce had to be hauled there for sale.
The success atttained by Mr. Hobbs in his business affairs has been greatly owing to his steady persistence, strict integrity and excellent judg- ment, qualities which have also won for him the esteem and confidence of the public to a marked degree. Prsonally, he is a man of quiet and unas- suming disposition, though genial and friendly in his relations to others, and he has for many years enjoyed a wide acquaintance and large prestige throughout Tipton county.
JEROME ANDREW GLEASON.
The gentleman to a brief review of whose life characteristics the reader's attention is herewith directed, is among the favorably known and representa- tive old business men of Tipton county, having maintained a mercantile estab- lishment at Tipton for over twenty years. He has by his indomitable enter- prise and progressive methods contributed in a material way to the advance- ment of this locality, and during the course of a long and honorable career
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has been very successful. This has been made possible because he is a man of energy, sound judgment and honest principles, and he is therefore well deserving of mention in this volume.
Jerome Andrew Gleason, retired merchant, was born in Glenwood, Rush county, Indiana, on December 25, 1854. He was a son of James Finley and Margaret Jane (Puntenney) Gleason. Both of his parents were natives of Indiana, his father being raised in Rush county. He was a tailor by trade and continued in that occupation until October, 1868, and then retired to the farm for two years. After coming to Tipton he engaged in the grocery busi- ness, first in partnership with G. W. Marsh, and, in 1874, with John R. Puntenney, the firm being known as Gleason & Puntenney. They continued this partnership until 1879, when the firm became known as Gleason & Son. They continued in joint partnership until 1883, when the son, the subject of this sketch, bought his father's interest, and his father retired from active participation in the business management of the firm. He died December 4, 1899, at the age of seventy-two, and his wife died September 1, 1888. Both were devoted members of the United Presbyterian church. The subject of this sketch was the only child of this union. Three years after the death of his first wife, Mr. Gleason, Sr., married Elizabeth Morgan, who still sur- vives him, living in Tipton.
The paternal grandparents of the subject were natives of New York, and while engaged on a boat in New York harbor the grandfather was acci- dentally killed. His wife came west to Indiana and was a pioneer in Mont- gomery county, where she died at an advanced age. They were the par- ents of the following children: Jerry, Cynthia Ann, James F. and three others not named. The maternal grandparents were Joseph and Martha (Russell) Puntenney, who came from Ohio to Indiana and located in Rush county in the early twenties. She died there in May, 1869, and he and two single daughters came to Tipton in the fall of 1874, living there until his death, which occurred two years later. They had eight children, John R., George H., Fannie, Sarah, Margaret Jane, Martha, Serepta and a son who died in childhood.
Jerome A. Gleason spent his boyhood days in Rush and Fayette counties, Indiana, until March, 1870, when he came with his parents to Tipton county. He received most of his education in the Tipton county schools. He clerked in his father's grocery store until taken in as a partner, and later bought his father's interest and continued the same until January, 1890, when he sold his stock. He has lived all his life since then in Tipton, except for a short
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time, which he spent in Kokomo. In March, 1878, he bought a small grocery store there, but retained possession of it only a few months. After selling his Tipton store, he bought the hardware stock of Armstrong, Puntenney & Company, and managed that for about nine months, when he sold his entire stock, but retained the building and grounds. Later he put in a stock of groceries and maintained a grocery business for nine months. He then dis- posed of this business and retired from active participation in any business at all, looking only after his property interests in the city. He owns a beautiful home, which he began building in the fall of 1900 and finished in 1901.
On January 22, 1879, Mr. Gleason' married Mary J. Vickrey, the daughter of Absalom M. and Hannah E. (Burton) Vickrey, and to this union have been born three children, Beulah, Ralph O. and Malcolm Earl, who died on July 12, 1908, in his eighteenth year. Beulah married James Mood, a druggist in Tipton, and they have one child, Edith Pauline; Mrs. Mood is a graduate from the Tipton high school; Ralph O. is a graduate of the Tipton high school also, and is now a resident of Kokomo, Indiana. He was mar- ried to Teressa John. Mrs. J. A. Gleason, who died on February 18, 1889, was born in Tipton, her parents being natives of Indiana. Her father was a physician and was also in a private banking business in Tipton for a number of years. Mrs. Gleason was his cashier and bookkeeper for several years. His death occurred in Tipton in February, 1886. His widow is still living. and she had one sister who lived to maturity, and was the wife of A. F. Moore, and died three weeks after her sister died.
On the 29th of April, 1896, Mr. Gleason married Dora Tyner, daughter of John Harrison and Louisa J. ( Perry) Tyner. There were no children by his second marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Gleason are meinbers of the Presby- terian church. Politically, he is a stanch Republican and sees no reason why he should change his affiliations from that to any other party. Fraternally. he belongs to the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. He has always taken a prominent part in political affairs in his community and served two terms in the city council of Tipton, 1885 to 1889.
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Mr. Gleason's second wife was born in Marion county, Indiana, near Lawrence, and her parents were also natives of the Hoosier state. They came from Marion county to Tipton, where her father did contracting and also conducted a saw and planing-mill for a number of years. He died in Tipton on March 24, 1899, aged fifty-eight years, while his wife died on August 4, 1908, at the age of sixty-six. He was a member of the Baptist church, while his wife was a loyal member of the Methodist Episcopal church.
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Mr. Tyner was always actively interested in the educational and moral wel- fare of his city, and served for three terms on the school board. They were the parents of four children, Jennie, wife of C. D. Thatcher, of Elwood; Dora, wife of the subject; Georgia Grace, wife of J. B. Findling, of Cicero, and a son who died in infancy.
The paternal grandfather of Mrs. Dora Gleason was Stephen Tyner, while her grandmother was Elizabeth (Wolf) Tyner, both natives of Indiana. The maternal grandparents were William and Catherine (Newhouse) Perry, who were early settlers in Marion county, Indiana.
Mr. Gleason has been very successful in a business way, having been a good manager and by nature a man of sound judgment and foresight, and he stands high in the estimation of the people throughout Tipton county, and wherever he is known. He is a genial, hospitable and obliging gentleman and his character has never been assailed, honesty and the Golden Rule policy having ever been his principal virtues.
THOMAS L. JACKSON.
In the daily laborious struggle for an honorable competence and a solid career on the part of a business man there is little to attract the casual reader in search of a sensational chapter; but to a mind thoroughly awake to the reality and meaning of human existence there are noble and imperishable lessons in the career of an individual who, without other means than a clear head, strong arm and true heart, directed and controlled by correct principles and unerring judgment, conquers adversity and toiling on, finally wins, not only pecuniary independence, but, what is far greater and higher, the de- served respect and confidence of those with whom his active years have been passed.
Thomas L. Jackson, the proprietor of the largest saw-mill in Tipton, was born in Hamilton county, Indiana, November 28, 1860, and is the son of Micajah and Frances E. (Leslie) Jackson. His father was a native of North Carolina, while his mother came from the state of Ohio. They had fourteen children, ten of whom lived to manhood and womanhood : James H., of Tipton: Alfred R., deceased; William H., deceased; Thomas L .. of Tipton; Ida M., deceased, who was the wife of Albert Stewart; Eva E., single, of Cicero township; Lilly L., wife of Fred Sandmann, of Cicero town- ship; Daisy, wife of Ezra Overdorf, of Hamilton county; Charley, deceased ;
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Edward W., of Atlanta, Indiana; Ernest, and three who died in early child- hood.
The father of the subject was left an orphan when he was a mere boy and was bound out as an apprentice, but ran off and grew to manhood and earned his own way from a small boy. He settled in Hamilton county when a young man, and ran a saw-mill there for several years. He died in 1899 at the allotted age of three score and ten. His wife survived him only two years. The last six of the above mentioned children were by his second wife .. The others were by a former marriage to a Miss Thompson. Thomas L. Jackson was a child of the second marriage. The father was not identified with any church, but his faith was that of the Christian or Disciples church. His second wife was an earnest and loyal member of the Methodist Episcopal church.
The history of Mr. Jackson's paternal grandparents is unfortunately lost. His maternal grandparents were Mr. and Mrs. James Leslie, both natives of Ohio. They were early settlers in Hamilton county, Indiana, where he ran a farm until the time of his death. They had six children : Parker, Jeremiah Larkins, Sarah, Frances, Henrietta and Hannah.
Thomas L. Jackson was reared in Tipton and Hamilton counties on the farm. He attended the district school and lived at home until grown. Very naturally, he began working in the saw-mill of his father by the day, and has known the intricacies of the saw-mill business all his life. For the past seventeen years he has been in that business for himself in Tipton.
Mr. Jackson was married on January 1. 1882. to Sarah E. Ridge, the daughter of Ransom D. and Naomi Ridge. Six children have been born to them: Myrtle E., LeRoy, Hazel. Paul R. and two who died in infancy. Myrtle, the first-born daughter, died at the age of twelve. LeRoy works with his father in the saw-mill. He was married some years ago to Madge Taylor. Hazel married Arlie Shaw and lives in Elwood. They have one child, George Franklin Shaw. Paul R. is still in school at Tipton. Mr. Jackson's wife died April 7. 1902, at the age of thirty-seven. She was a devoted member of the Christian church, and never wearied in performing all the duties of the church and its societies. She was born in Hamilton county. Her father was a native of North Carolina and her mother of Indiana. She was one of four children, Hannah, Sarah. William and Charles.
On October 8, 1903, Mr. Jackson married again, his second wife being Mrs. Nannie Van Meter, widow of William O. Van Meter and daughter of William M. O'Banion and wife. Mr. and Mrs. Jackson are both members of the Christian church at Tipton.
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Mrs. Nannie Jackson was born in Rush county, this state, her father being a native of Kentucky and her mother of Indiana. Both were among the early settlers of Tipton county and have been dead many years. They raised a large family of eleven children, six of whom grew to maturity: Anna Behumer, Ira O'Banion, Allia Harlan, Nannie Jackson. Etta Holmes, and Logan, deceased.
In the strictest sense of the word, Mr. Jackson is a self-made man and is deserving of the high esteem which he enjoys among his neighbors. He is the type of hard-working man who has made the state of Indiana grow. A man of sound principles and strength of his convictions, willing to lend his influence at all times to the cause of justice, he is a man upon whom his children may look and admire. Personally, he is genial, unassuming and easily approached, so that he has easily won friends, who are in turn glad to number him as one of their acquaintances.
JOHN G. LITTLE.
The following is the sketch of a plain honest man of affairs, who by correct methods and a strict regard for the interests of his patrons has made his influence felt in Tipton and won for himself distinctive prestige in the business circles of that city. He would be the last man to sit for romance or become the subject of fancy sketches, nevertheless his life presents much that is interesting and valuable and may be studied with profit by the young, whose careers are yet to be achieved. He is one of those whose integrity and strength of character must force them into an admirable notoriety which their modesty never seeks, who command the respect of their con- temporaries and their posterity and leave the impress of their individuality deeply stamped upon the community.
John G. Little, of the Tipton Auction Company, was born a mile and three-quarters west of Tipton, in Cicero township, May 17, 1870. He was the son of Thomas Jefferson and Mary (Farley) Little, both of these parents being natives of Indiana. He was one of a family of four children : Ada A., wife of Henry Kinder, of Tipton: Jennie, the wife of Edgar McMunn, of Cicero township; Alice, deceased, who died single, and John G.
The father of the subject came to Tipton county with his parents when a child, and his father entered government land three miles west of Tipton, (20)
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on what is now known as the Judge Waugh farm. He grew to manhood there and always remained a farmer. He died in the city of Tipton on March 20, 1907, having passed the allotted term of three score and ten. His wife died August 12, 1907, at the age of seventy-three. Their daughter, Alice, died in October of the same year. They were members of the Presby- terian church.
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