History of Whitley County, Indiana, Part 51

Author: Kaler, Samuel P. 1n; Maring, R. H. (Richard H.), 1859-, jt. auth
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: [Indianapolis, Ind.] : B. F. Bowen & Co.
Number of Pages: 940

USA > Indiana > Whitley County > History of Whitley County, Indiana > Part 51

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One Hundred Twenty-ninth Regiment. Company D-J. W. Briggs. James Garner. Adam Kerns. Samuel Kerns. Company G -John R. Buntain, Seth T. Hunt, Alfred Curtis, Samuel Curtis, Horace Hammon- tree. David Klinger, Appleton W. Cone, George Stanley. George Whipple. John Hammond.

One Hundred Thirty-ninth Regiment, Company K-Justus W. Burns, John C. Salmon. David C. Stillwell.

One Hundred Forty-second Regiment, Company G-Wilson Banning. W. L. Lamberson, Warren W. Martin. Samuel Parish. Jacob Essinger, Elisha K. Cady,

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Warren Rollins, John Jones, George D. likely that some are misplaced. I have done Trembly. Company E-Israel Young. the best I could.

One Hundred Fifty-second Regiment, Company I-Henry Norris, B. F. Seymour. I. N. Pritchard, Leander Smith, S. P. Cul- limore, James Harshman, Thomas Nickeles, Milton Bayman, William V. Hathaway, Jacob Fox, John H. Mann, Alfred J. Koontz.

Fifth Battery-Jolın Welker. Michael Alms, Squire Mack, William Rollins, Thomas Caldwell.

Eleventh Battery-Henry W. Caldwell, James Webster.

Fourteenth Battery-Ervin Whitman. Twelfth Cavalry - Samuel Crumb, James M. Kerr, Richard J. Parrett, Allen Sears.

Regiment Unknown-Wesley Davis, N. P. Guffey, Jeremiah Franklin, James Crumb, Solomon Garringer, Henry Wager, John Beard, Harvey Beard, Jasper Carder, Smith, William Buck, Leander Pinney, John Goodrich, Charles Ward. William Banning.

Drafted, Regiment Unknown-Oren Tippy, Wesley J. Carder, Reizin Beemer.

There were a few others who were away temporarily when they enlisted and called this township their home. Their names are Michael Long, Seventy-fourth Indiana ; Charles Shuh. Adam T. Steel, Samuel Beard, regiments unknown. Of the above, I think there were four commissioned of- ficers .: Isaac N. Compton and Alfred J. Koontz were first lieutenants; Stephen J. Compton and Ervin Whitman were second lieutenants.

I have given one hundred and fifty-five names, there may have been more. It is

The soldiers of the Spanish-American war were as follows:

One Hundred Fifty-seventh Regiment, Company B-William A. Seymour. Com- pany H-Edwin C. Barber. Company L- Eli Davis.

One Hundred Fifty-eighth Regiment. Company L-George N. Cady.

One Hundred Sixtieth Regiment, Com- pany G-Clyde Rindfusz, Elmer Curtis, Alvah Buntain, James Fletcher, Richard Butler, Gideon Klingaman, Clarence Eastom, Fred Norris, Floyd O. Jellison, Robert A. Jilleson, Raymond Prugh, Way- man Warner, Herbert J. Reece, Carlos D. Chapman, James Klingerman. Company H-Ulysis S. Maguire, twenty in all. Of these two are dead, Clyde Reindfusz and William A. Seymour.

The soldiers of the Philippines were Burton White, Harry Snyder, Albert Davis, Charles Plummer and John Secrist. Five in all.

THE GUTCHER SANITARIUM.

In the time of the war of the Rebellion, Michael Gutcher came to this township. He built a saw-mill east of Larwill, which he run a short time, sold out and went to Larwill, went into the hotel business, then dealt in lumber, kept grocery, sold mills for some machine manufacturers and set up the machinery, then dealt in chickens, was a vender of chicken and hog cholera medicine, and finally began treating people afflicted with rheumatism, by steaming and using barks. Up to this time, about 1890, or a lit-

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tle later, he had met with varing success, sometimes he seemed to have an abundance and other times would be hard up. Of course his manner of doctoring and the remedies were a secret. He traveled a great deal in a closed rig in his practice, and would sometimes bring some of his patients to his home for treatment. This led to the building of a sanitarium. It was called the East Elkhart Sanitarium and stood about one mile east of Larwill. The main build- ing was erected about 1895, at a cost of some five thousand dollars. It was a two-story building of some thirty rooms, well equipped with water, heat and light. The location was in a picturesque part of the country with considerable natural scenery. The pro- prietor afterward added other buildings as they were needed till the whole institution would have cost not far from fifteen thou- sand dollars, or perhaps more. He graveled at his own expense, the road from the sani- tarium to the railroad depot at Larwill, and run a line of hacks to meet the trains. There were usually two hacks and sometimes there were more patients and attendants than could be hauled and a second trip would have to be made. From fifty to sev- enty-five could be accommodated at the buildings, but sometimes the quarters were not sufficient and some would have to be cared for at town. The charges, I have been told. were only two dollars to three dollars per day and board. And I think that a good many went there in hot weather for an out- ing. The manner of treatment and the treat- ment itself must have helped a great many. I believe there was only one death among the patients in the nine years this institution was run. The Doctor, as he was called,

was hated by all the licensed physicians of the county, and they would have used any honorable means to have him put out of business. He accumulated a considerable property, bought several farms which he deeded to his children. The beginning of the decline was when he lost his wife. Then after a time he married again and this woman seemed to be after the money, and got a good part of it. It was thought these domestic troubles had something to do with his death. He died in the spring of 1904. I think Mr. Gutcher was a native of Hol- land. The property went into the hands of an administrator and all had to be sold, which paid only about thirty-five cents on the dollar of indebtedness. One or two have tried to revive the business but with 110 success.

REMINISCENCE.

In about 1847. David Payne, Jr., and Sarah Croy were married. They were both working out at the time, and went to Ed- win Cone's to get married. Dave had been hoeing corn for Joab McPherson and Sarah was doing housework for Mrs. Stephen Biddlecome. The bride was a resident of Kosciusko county, and Mr Cone was not posted as to the law, but thought it would be best to have the ceremony in the county where the license was issued. So the bridal party went about three quarters of a mile through the woods and across a swamp on a foot log to where they knew they were in Kosciusko county and were married. They were afraid of being "belled" as that was a custom. They wore their working clothes and slipped back to their work. But there was an old lady who always wanted to

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have something going on, who gave the alarm and they were duly "belled" the first night.

When Jacob Kistler and Sophia Payne were married in 1838, Thomas Webb, Lige Scott and John Anderson made two "pad- dies" at Andrew Compton's and at night carried them over to Mr. Payne's, where the wedding was and set them up. The old gentleman got up the next morning before it was light, and saw the hideous things in the door yard. It is said he went in and got his old gun and fired at the paddies.

It will be remembered that prior to about 1852 there were no matches and the people would have an old log on fire not far from the house in the summer, and in the winter it was not much trouble to keep fire, al- though sometimes it would go out. A story is told of a widow. Denman by name, whose fire had gone out and it was in the winter. Her family mostly were girls, one boy about sixteen years old. The old lady started him to a neighbor's, about a mile away after fire and she and the girls intended to lie in bed until he got back. Well, he went to the neighbors and stood around their fire and warmed himself for an hour or so and never told what he went for, but presently the old lady appeared with a big whip and reminded the young man of what he was after.

There was another story told of this same young man, Cornelius Denman. He was going to school one winter and Edwin Cone was the teacher who always wore his hat in cold weather on account of being bald. One afternoon they were having a spelling contest. Neal could pronounce pretty well so Mr. Cone asked him to take the floor and pronounce. So Neal got up and deliberately

walked around to the hat pile and put on his hat and went at it.

Many years ago there was a man named John Harris. He could stand more hard- ships than a tramp. He went barefooted nearly all the time. He had been known to go barefooted when there was snow. He loved to talk and the cold made no differ- ence to him. He would stand on one foot and hold the other up like a turkey and would change once in a while. He had been known to carry a bushel of corn to More- head's mill on Tippecanoe river, on his shoulder a distance of eight miles or more. He was a strong man but a little lazy. He had a wife and several children and was a poor provider. He was bragging about having plenty to eat at his house. He said : "All that's lacking is the meat." But when it was found out they had only corn bread and pumpkin. He went into the army and made a good soldier. He could eat any kind of rations and stand any kind of hard- ships. He told about being run over with an army wagon and had his back broken and they hitched a span of mules to each end of him and tried to stretch him enough to set his back, but could not get him straightened, so the doctors took out a section of his backbone and he got well.

In1 1867, Haldermans had a lot of lum- ber at the mill on Spring creek east of Lar- will. There had been a switch at this mill for the purpose of loading cars but it had been taken away. They made arrangements with a local freight conductor to stop the train at the mill long enough to load the lumber, some thirty thousand feet. It was all walnut lumber. The train stopped with five empty flat cars, and Halderman had

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about thirty men ready. The lumber was loaded in thirty-five minutes. The cars were set off at Larwill and the lumber re- loaded and sorted.

In April, 1861, just after the call for seventy-five thousand men to put down the Rebellion, there was a war meeting to get men to enlist. There was a pole raised some sixty or seventy feet high. This pole was of lind and stood somewhere on the ground now occupied by Whittenberger's store in Larwill. In the evening a speech was made by Lawyer H. D. Wilson, of Columbia City. There were other meetings and the excite- ment ran high, a few enlisting in the army. But the war went on and differences grew as to the manner in which it was being car- ried on and how it ought to be settled. Some were in favor of putting down the Re- bellion at all hazards and to use the last man and the last dollar if it was necessary. Others were in favor of compromise and wanted the "Union as it was and the Con- stitution as it is." I do not think the strife was any worse here than other places but it was bad enough.

POLE RAISING.

The conservatives raised a pole on the south side on Main street, a hickory pole and something over a hundred feet high, a nice pole for the kind, and placed on it a large flag with a spread eagle. The same inotto was on each side of the flag. Francis G. Guy says it was "God Speed the Right." but does not remember the size of the flag. I do not know who made speeches when this pole was raised. Shortly after this a pole was raised by the other party or faction, on

the north side on Center street. This was, I think, of ash and was some higher than its neighbor across the way. There was a large flag made for this pole. It was made by Mrs. Daniel Mitchell and, I think, was twen- ty by thirty feet, although Mr. E. L. Barber thinks it was only twelve by eighteen feet. The motto on one side was, "The Union Must and Shall be Preserved," and on the other side, "The Rebellion Shall be put Down." I do not remember who made speeches at this time. This did not end the pole raising. The conservatives then raised another pole, all hickory. I think part of their former pole was put in this. My re- membrance is that this pole was one hun- dred and fifty-six feet high and the same flag was raised. I have been unable to find out who made the speeches at this time. This called for another demonstration from the north side. This last pole was made of hickory, ash and tamarack, and, I think. was one hundred and seventy-three feet high. Mr. Barber thinks it was one hun- dred and eighty-five feet high. This pole was so long that it was feared it would not stand the strain in raising, and there was a great shout went up when the pole was straightened up. Then again when the flag was hoisted by a half dozen young ladies, dressed for the occasion, Colonel Charles Case and "Pop Gun" Smith, of Fort Wayne made speeches. These last two poles, I think, were raised with a block and tackle and by an expert boss. I think the Pierce- ton "sheepskin" band, aroused the patriot- ism of the people with music on most of these occasions. This band was composed of Dwight Nichols, Allen Downs and David

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Lichtenwalter. The flags were over one hundred feet from the ground. I think the last pole was the tallest that had been raised in the state at that time. The Rebellion was put down, the Union has been pre- served, the eagle is still an emblem of free- dom, and we think that God did speed the right. These poles were all raised in the summer of 1861.

In conclusion, I would say there are some things of importance which have not been . mentioned. Some of these are the public ditches, the draft in the war of the 'sixties, the bounty paid the soldiers, and ear marks on stock. They have not been for- gotten, but I have not had the time to in-

vestigate these matters and trust some one else has touched on these subjects.

I am under obligations to several of the citizens of this and Kosciusko counties for information furnished. Mention should be made of Jolin R. Anderson, Mrs. Nancy Gra- ham, Isaac N. Compton, Henry Norris, Mrs. Orril McBride, Mrs. Ann Clugston, J. W. Zartman, W. S. Smith, Charles S. Kline, Lewis Clevenger, H. B. Whitten- berger, E. E. Rindfusz, John Trachsell, Mrs. Lizzie Buntain, W. E. Young, George Ream, S. P. Kaler and Robert T. Smith, of this county, and Vincent D. Campbell, John E. Hayden and Clark Little, of Kosciusko county.

THORNCREEK TOWNSHIP.

BY JOHN H. SHILTS.

The genius of the civilization and the pursuits of the citizens of a country or any part thereof depend largely upon its geo- logical structure. An agricultural pursuit depends upon a fertile soil; mining results from mineral resources; and commerce de- pends upon navigable waters and other modes of transportation. It is known that phases of life, modes of thought, moral and intellectual qualities depend largely upon and are influenced by material conditions. Where the soil is rich in the bestowal of wealth, man is indolent, but where effort is required to live, he becomes industrious, enlightened and virtuous. The civilization of communities is, then, to a great extent. but the reflection of physical conditions.

In its physical conditions Thorncreek township is very interesting. It lies in the great Saginaw-Erie moraine, and the crest of this moraine, which forms the divide or water-shed between the Tippecanoe river and the Eel river drainage systems of Indiana, passes through the northern part of the township. The surface, inclination and the direction of its drainage system, with the exception of a small part of the north and northwest, faces the south and southeast. The greater part is drained by Blue river. which crosses the southeastern part of the township, and its two tributaries, viz., Blue Babe creek and Thorn creek. Blue Babe creek, so named because of its being smaller than Blue river, therefore only a baby com-

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pared to the river, rises in the northwestern part of the township and flows in an irreg- ular southeasterly course, entering Blue river in Columbia township. Thorn creek, so named, it is related by old residents, on account of the many thorn bushes growing on its banks when the township was in its primitive state, rises in the northeastern part and flowing soutliward empties into Blue river near Blue River church in the eastern part of the township. A small portion of the southwest part is drained by ditches to the southwest. The rest of the township is drained into the lakes in a north and north- westerly direction and whose outlet is the Tippecanoe river. The surface of the town- ship is undulating and some portions of it very hilly. In some parts the hills are gen- tly rolling, in others rough and very pre- cipitous. There are nowhere any consider- able areas of level land aside from the lands which were once swamps and marshes. The surface geology consists entirely of glacial material which became subsequently altered in places by the atmospheric agencies and by erosion. The lowlands along the streams and in the valleys are of sedimentary mate- rial brought there by erosion of the uplands during rainy seasons. Even now there is a tendency of the uplands to wash and gully and the evil must be guarded against in the cultivation of these lands. The soil consists of loam, clay, sand and gravel, with here and there small areas of muck. All of this glacial material was originally rock and de- rived from the original earth formation and came from the north as evidenced by the boulders which fill and cover the soil in many places. These rock materials have suffered decomposition and disintegration

like everything else, and this decomposed rock material acted upon by vegetation forms the fruitful mold of the surface. We are accustomed to look upon the soil without considering its formation, its wonderful properties and its great importance in the economy of all life. It is not attractive in it- self, yet its productions are more elaborate than the finest works of art. It produces an endless variety which pervades the vegetable and animal kingdoms. It clothes the earthi with verdure and pleasant landscapes. Its mysterious elements bloom in the flowers, load the atmosphere with fragrance, blush in the clustering fruit, fill the fields with har- vests for the supply of food, and furnish the tissues which, when manufactured into fab- rics, decorate and protect the body. From the same source also come the elements which pulsate in the blood, give the cheek the glow of health, the eye its sparkle, the nerve its feeling of pleasure and pain, and the brain its reason and brilliant fancies. Happily for Thorncreek township that its soil formation precludes the possibility of sterile extremes arising from local causes. The en- tire surface of the township is a stratum of glacial drift. This immense deposit varies in thickness, and in places has become cov- ered by marshes where now are our fertile muck lands. Most of the surface was orig- inally covered with forests of heavy timber consisting of oak, ash, poplar, hickory, ma- ple, sugar. beech, elm, sycamore and bass- wood, under whose branches disported the various creations of animal life. Birds war- bled their sweetest music in these waving groves ; and in the groves the demands of the pioneer's meat supply were always filled without exhausting the resources. These

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primeval woodlands were also the homes of Indian tribes previous to the advent of the white man, who was known to the Indian as the "pale face." These noble forests have disappeared as rapidly as the settlers ap- peared until now there are only patches of timber here and there.

Thorncreek township, known and de- scribed in the government survey as town- ship 32 north, range 9 east, was laid off and platted as a congressional township in 1834 by one John Hendricks. Land entries were made the following year. During October of 1837, while it was yet a part of Hunting- ton county, Nathaniel Gradeless circulated a petition among its few citizens to organize the congressional township into a civil town- ship. This petition was signed by Benja- min F. Martin, Adam Egolf, Joseph Egolf, John H. Alexander, Martin Overly, Peter Shriner, Daniel Hively, Jacob Shearer and Jacob Brumbaugh, all residents of the town- ship. Opposite each petitioner's name was to be written a name for the civil township. Two had no choice, two wrote Lake and five wrote Thorncreek. This latter name was already given to the stream in the eastern part of the township for reasons as stated and was now also given to the township. Thus the township was named from the stream which is the outlet of a group of beautiful and interesting lakes which will be described and spoken of later in this sketch. This petition was presented to the board of Huntington county, and on the 6th of No- . vember, 1837, the board ordered that this township should be organized as a civil township and designated as Thorncreek. The board also ordered an election to be hield on the first Monday in December following

to elect a justice of the peace. At this elec- tion Adam Egolf was elected and thus be- came the first justice of the peace in the township. This township is the center one of the northern tier of townships in Whitley county. On its north side it is bordered by Noble county, on its east by Smith town- ship, on its south by Columbia township. and on its west by Richland and Troy town- ships.

The first settlers of Thorncreek township were John H. Alexander in 1835. John and Joseph Egolf in 1836. The Egolfs came in July and were followed by Martin Overly in the fall of the same year. The Alexander family settled in section 33. John Egolf in section 1, Joseph Egolf in section 13 and Overly in section 11. In a former history of Whitley county it is recorded that Mrs. Mar- garet Egolf, widow of Joseph Egolf, related a circumstance which proves that the Alex- ander family came to the township eight or nine months before the Egolfs came. The circumstance recorded is as follows, viz .: "Mr. Joseph Egolf soon after he settled in the township, being out one morning hunt- ing his cows, heard voices which he confi- dently believed to be the voices of white people. An intervening lake and the want of time prevented him from going just then to see who his neighbors were. In a few days, however, he and his wife started out in search of them. After a long and tiresome walk they found the object of their search. which proved to be the residence of John H. Alexander. The distance between the two families was not, on a direct line, more than two miles. By the circuitous route they were obliged to travel, however, which meandered around the margin of the lake, it was prob-

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ably fully twice that distance. Mr. Alexan- der's folks told Mrs. Egolf that she was the first white woman but one they had seen for nine months. The first that they had seen within the preceding nine months was, they said, the wife of an emigrant who passed by their home on his way farther west." The lake spoken of by Mrs. Egolf in her narrative was a very wet cranberry marsh often en- tirely covered by water but which is now a very fertile field on which are raised the fin- est celery, potatoes, onions, cabbage, etc. There is a discrepancy in Mrs. Egolf's nar- rative as to distance. The distance between Joseph Egolf's place and John H. Alexan- der's place was, on a direct line, about three and one-half miles instead of two, as re- lated.

The farm upon which John H. Alexan- der then lived is now owned by Mr. Franklin Shilts. Mr. Alexander subsequently moved to Columbia City, where he died and his remains were buried on the farm he entered, and his grave is near the present buildings. His resting place is marked by a marble slab upon which is inscribed the following :

JOHN II. ALEXANDER. Died September 27, 1850. In His Thirty-seventh Year. And not a wave of trouble rolls across my peaceful breast.

His widow married a Mr. Bennett and they moved to California. Mr. Alexander was the surveyor who surveyed the Yellow River road from Fort Wayne through to the Yellow river, where the Michigan road crosses it. This road was established and

laid out during 1834 under the direction of a commissioner appointed by the state legis- lattre. This commissioner was one Fran- cis Comparet. This road enters the town- ship near the southeast corner and following a northwesterly course passes out of the township about two miles south of the north- west corner; and it at once became an im- portant highway for the emigrants into this new country. It was on account of a spring on the south side of this road just west of where it crosses Blue Babe creek that Mr. Alexander entered this farm in section 33. It was near this spring that he built his cabin and later built another on the hill to the east, near which site he is buried. Other early pioneer settlers were the families of Adam Egolf and Henry Egolf, in section 26; Jacob Shearer, in section 14; Peter Shri- ner and Jacob Hively, in section 9 ; and Dan- iel Hively, in section 11; John Olinger, in section 1 : Benjamin F. Martin, in section 12: Nathaniel Gradeless, in section 24. It is related that the mother of Adam. Henry and John Egolf came at the same time with Adam and Henry. This was in June, 1837, and this pioneer mother died in a very few days after she arrived and is, without doubt, the first white person dying in the township. Adam Egolf, Henry Egolf (or Harry, as he was familiarly known). Solomon Sum- ners and W. H. Widup lived for many years and died upon the same lands that they en- tered and settled upon when they came to the township. Some of the other early set- tlers and pioneers of the township who still have direct descendants living about here were John Olinger, Daniel Hart, Adam Humbarger, Benjamin Grable, Henry Knight, William H. Widup, Solomon Sum-

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History of Whitley County, Indiana, Part 51

Author: Kaler, Samuel P. 1n; Maring, R. H. (Richard H.), 1859-, jt. auth Publication date: 1907 Publisher: [Indianapolis, Ind.] : B. F. Bowen & Co. Number of Pages: 940

Author: Kaler, Samuel P. 1n; Maring, R. H. (Richard H.), 1859-, jt. auth
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: [Indianapolis, Ind.] : B. F. Bowen & Co.
Number of Pages: 940