History of the Indiana democracy, 1816-1916, Part 95

Author: Stoll, John B., 1843-1926
Publication date: 1917
Publisher: Indianapolis : Indiana Democratic Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1104

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The Knox County Democrat was established in 1890 by Allen Campbell. Frank G. Signor suc- ceeded Mr. Campbell in 1893 and sold it to James Garrard and Ed. Quittle. In 1894 Mr. Quittle withdrew and Mr. Garrard continued its publi- cation until 1909 when he sold it to A. R. Cochran who sold it March, 1910, to J. Kimmel, the pres- ent owner. Two years ago he changed the name to the Vincennes News under which name it is now published weekly. Its editorial policy is Democratic.

Knox county has furnished many great names in the history of Indiana, but in a history as limit- ed as this it is impossible to mention them all. Even a short history would not be complete with- out some mention of William H. Vollmer, Treas- urer of State from 1910 to 1914. He was perhaps the best political organizer Knox county ever had. He always met everyone with a smile and the glad hand and was more than a success more than once in getting the boys together. He filled the office of county treasurer twice with distinction to himself and honor to his party and the Democracy of Knox county was more than pleased when he was nominated as State Treas- urer. Other Vincennes men who have recently filled positions of importance under the State gov- ernment are H. Thornton Willis, Deputy State Treasurer; General George W. McCoy, Adjutant under Governor Marshall, and Will E. Tuite, Dep- uty in the State Statistician's office.

Knox county is proud of her fathers, of her sons and her future.

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HISTORY OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY OF KOSCIUSKO COUNTY

By M. L. Gochenour

T HADDEUS KOSCIUZKO, the young Polish noble who tendered his services to the cause of American freedom and was early made aid-de-camp on the staff of General George Wash- ington, and who later became immortal in Polish memory as commander-in-chief of the ill-fated rebellion in Poland in 1794, died in 1817. He left unaltered a will which had been drawn by Thomas Jefferson upon the occasion of Kosciuzko's last visit to America in 1798. The will reads:

"I, Thaddeus Kosciuzko, being just in my de- parture from America, do hereby declare and di- rect that, should I make no other testamentary disposition of my property in the United States, I hereby authorize my friend, Thomas Jefferson, to employ the whole thereof in purchasing negroes from among his own, or any others, and giving them their liberty in my name; in giving them an education in trades or otherwise, and in hav- ing them instructed for their new condition in the duties of morality which may make them good neighbors, good fathers or mothers, and in their duties as citizens, teaching them to be defenders of their liberty and country, and of the good or- der of society, and in whatsoever may make them happy and useful. And I make the said Thomas Jefferson my executor of this.

"5th day of May, 1798.

T. KOSCIUZKO."

According to tradition, Kosciusko county was named by John B. Chapman, one of the pioneer leaders of the county, after Thaddeus Kosciuzko. The town, later city of Warsaw, was christened by the same godfather after the capital of Kos- ciuzko's native land. Chapman was an admirer of Kosciuzko's character. Chapman's widely scat- tered neighbors must have subscribed to the sen- timent of Kosciuzko's will, for the political par- ties which advocated the freedom and citizenship for the negro predominated in Kosciusko county from its organization to the end of the Recon- struction period. By that time the habit of vot- ing the straight Republican ticket had become an affliction for an overwhelming majority of the sovereigns of the county which they have seldom been able to shake off.

The lands lying within the present limits of Kosciusko county were ceded to the United States on October 27, 1832, by a treaty concluded on the banks of the Tippecanoe river, about three miles from Rochester, Fulton county, Indiana, by Chiefs Benack, Mary Ann Benack, Checose, Flat- belly, Mota Monoquet, Musquawbuck and Wa-

wasee. In the cession each of the chiefs retained reservations consisting of three to eight sections, according to the importance of the respective tribes. This treaty was ratified the following year. On February 7, 1835, the present county boundaries were established and the county was organized in April, 1836. For judicial purposes the county had previously been attached to Elk- hart county and known as Turkey Creek town- ship.

"New York Yankees," New Englanders, "Penn- sylvania Dutch," some dissatisfied settlers from Ohio, with a sprinkling from Virginia and the Carolinas, chiefly comprised the pioneer stock of the county. They found lakes, rivers and streams in abundance, but very little prairie land except the Leesburg and Turkey Creek prairies. The remainder of the county was covered with hardwood timber, lakes and marshes. The Tip- pecanoe river has its source in the beautiful Tip- pecanoe lake, in this county, and is the outlet for all of the principal lakes of the county except four. This historic river is fed by Webster lake, Pike lake, Winona lake, Huffman's lake, Crystal lake, Palestine lake, Yellowcreek lake and many smaller lakes. The Eel river drains the extreme south part of the county and is fed by Silver lake and Rock lake, while on the other side of the water shed, the largest lake in the State, various- ly called Nine-Mile, Turkey Creek and Wawasee lake, empties the water from the northeast corner of the county into the Great Lakes. In area the county is second only to Allen in the State and now has a population of over 35,000. In fertility of the soil it is second to none, and the rich marl deposits in many of the lakes constitutes the most valuable natural resource; but this is a political review.

Ostensibly Kosciusko county has been Repub- lican since the organization of that party and Whig-rather anti-slave-before that time, with only enough exceptions to prove the rule. The spirit expressed in the will of the patriot for whom the county was named became the political creed of the first settlers and the parties espous- ing the anti-slavery cause claimed consistent ma- jorities until long after that issue had become a memory only. When the Republican party had nothing but its reputation to commend it, a big majority of the county's electorate continued to "trod in the paths that their fathers had trod."

Prior to 1873 Kosciusko county had but one

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HISTORY INDIANA

DEMOCRACY-1816-1916

Democrat in the county office. He was David Rip- pey, who was commissioner of the middle district from 1836 to 1844. During the year 1873 E. Van Long of Warsaw was appointed Judge of the Cir- cuit Court by Governor Thomas A. Hendricks. The circuit was then Fulton, Kosciusko and Mar- shall counties. The following year Judge Long was elected for a six-year term. In order to dis- place Long the Republicans "gerrymandered" the circuit in 1880, placing Kosciusko and Whitley counties upon the same circuit, but Long was elected in that year as Judge of the new circuit, although in neither election did he receive a ma- jority in this county. Vice-President Thomas R. Marshall of Columbia City was the Democratic nominee for Prosecuting Attorney of the circuit in this campaign, but was defeated. No Demo- crat tasted public office in Kosciusko county after that year until the miracle year of 1906.

Complete official statistics of the vote prior to 1890 are not available. We must be content with the observation that prior to 1890 the Democratic county, State and national tickets were the losers by consistently wide margins, with the sole ex- ception of David Rippey, which has been noted. Claude Matthews lost the county to Milton Truss- Jer for Secretary of State in 1890 by a margin of 656 votes, the smallest Republican majority since the Civil war. Since that date the vote on State and national tickets has been as follows:

Demo- Repub- Pro- Ma-

crat.

lican. gressive. jority.

1892. Highest elector. 3,064

3,823

759

1894. Secy. of State. 2,767

4,094

1,224

1896. Highest elector. 3,354

4,342

988

1898. Secy. of State. 2,795

3,911

1,116

1900. Highest elector. 3,265

4,422

1,157

1902. Secy. of State. 2.843

3,803 960

1904. Highest elector. 2,913

4,550

1,437

1906. Secy. of State. 3,042

3,646

604

1908. Highest elector. 3,362

4,377

1,015

1910. Sec'y of State. 2,970

3,860 890

1912. Highest elector. 2,817

1,767

2,096 1,050 ( Ph- raiity.)

1914. Secy. of State. 2,770

3,090

867 320

1916. Highest elector. 3,447

4,025

15 578

From these figures it is seen that until very recent years the Republican margin has been wide, reaching its height in 1904, falling to low water mark in 1906, and for the only time in the county's history it was wiped out in the three- cornered fights of 1912 and 1914.

Consequent carelessness and inefficiency result- ing from too long unbroken tenure in control of the county upon the part of the local Republican party led to the revolution of 1906, when every Democrat on the county ticket was elected except- ing the nominee for Representative, who lost by six votes. In that campaign Benjamin F. Shive- ly carried the county for Congress against A. L.

Brick by a majority of eighty-one, Shively being the only Democrat ever to have carried the county for Congress. T. Wayne Anglin was elected Prosecuting Attorney; C. Edwin Stout, Clerk; John C. Beagle, Auditor; George W. Irvine, Treasurer; John C. Pinkerton, Recorder; Edward Haas, Sheriff; William S. Kiplinger, Coroner; S. Linsey Blue, Surveyor; William H. Thomas, As- sessor; Samuel P. Glant, Commissioner of the Northern district, and Peter Clemer, Commission- er of the Southern district, by majorities ranging from 113 to 337. Two years later Francis E. Bowser, Democrat, defeated Lemuel W. Royse, his Republican opponent, for Judge of the Kos- ciusko Circuit Court by 178 votes, and George W. Irvine was re-elected Treasurer, Edward Haas re-elected Sheriff and Peter Clemer re-elected Commissioner of the Southern district.

The first Democrat to represent Kosciusko county in the State Legislature was elected in 1912, when Carlin Myers was chosen Joint Rep- resentative for Kosciusko, Whitley and Hunt- ington counties. T. Wayne Anglin was again elected Prosecuting Attorney that year. In 1914 Judge Bowser was re-elected by a majority of 166 votes over the same opponent, the remain- der of the county ticket being defeated, although in fairness it must be said that the Progressives had a full county ticket with one exception. They made no nomination for Judge. The entire Dem- ocratic county ticket was defeated in 1916 by small majorities, but the result had one unusual feature. For the first time the Democratic na- tional ticket led both the State and county nomi- nees.

The intensity of the contests cannot be de- scribed here. Odd and interesting incidents char- acterized each campaign. The party leaders in these "game," but too often losing contests, have mostly passed into the limbo of forgotten dreams. Memories of two of these will doubtless endure for generations. They are William Conrad and Andrew G. Wood.

William Conrad came to Kosciusko county in 1840. After serving a period of apprenticeship in the Studebaker Wagon Works at South Bend, in 1860 he founded the Conrad Wagon and Buggy Works in Warsaw. In 1868 he was chosen coun- ty chairman and served as head of the county organization until 1888. In 1892 he was made chairman of the Thirteenth congressional district and in 1894 was re-elected. He was a man of means and he gave unsparingly to the party in both time and money. It is said the organiza- tion never quit a campaign in debt during his leadership. One of Conrad's contemporaries, General Reuben H. Williams, who for years ed- ited the Republican organ, the Northern Indian-

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HISTORY INDIANA DEMOCRACY-1816-1916

ian, once paid this tribute: "If it were not for Conrad there would not be a Democratic party in Kosciusko county." He was succeeded by Francis E. Bowser as county chairman in 1888.

In the campaign of 1880, when Vice-President Thomas R. Marshall was on the ticket as the nominee for Prosecuting Attorney for this and Whitley counties, Marshall made his first polit- ical speech in the county at Palestine. He came over to Warsaw by rail and was taken to Pales- tine by Conrad in a buggy. Conrad says Mar- shall came dressed immaculately with a large bouquet of flowers in his coat lapel. As they neared the little village Conrad gently, but firm- ly, advised the now Vice-President that his audi- ence would be chiefly men, and farmers at that, and, in Conrad's opinion, the bouquet had better be taken off. Conrad's version of the incident is that Marshall threw the flowers away.

The State committee often embarrassed Conrad by sending speakers of slight ability to the coun- ty. During the campaign of 1884 Conrad re- ceived notice that the committee had billed the nominee for Supreme Court Reporter for three speeches in the county. The nominee was John W. Kern, and Conrad, with characteristic con- servatism, billed the then unknown quantity for Atwood, Milford and Silver Lake, sending Cap- tain Andrew G. Wood to Atwood to introduce the speaker and talk after Kern had finished for the purpose of patching up Kern's expected indiscre- tions. Wood introduced Kern, but did not speak after Kern had finished. His report to Conrad was that Kern left nothing unsaid, and that Con- rad had made the mistake of his life in not billing Kern for Warsaw. William Conrad is now eighty-three years old and Andrew G. Wood is but one year his junior.

At the close of the Civil war Captain Wood came to the county and entered the practice of law, in which he is still engaged. From his ear- liest residence Mr. Wood has been prominently identified with his party organization and has sacrificed unflinchingly in every campaign, city, county, State and national. In 1904 he was elect- ed Mayor of Warsaw, serving three years, and enjoys the unique distinction of having been the city's only Mayor who was a Democrat. For many campaigns the burden of stumping the county was upon him and he threw himself en- thusiastically into fight after fight without thought of reward. At the ripe maturity of eighty-two Mr. Wood yet constitutes the back- bone of the party leadership in his county.

The Warsaw Union has been the organ of the Democratic party of Kosciusko county. It was started in 1859 by A. G. Mugg as the Warsaw Experiment. The next year it passed into the

hands of E. Van Long and Dr. Theodore Daven- port, who changed the name to the Union. Long edited the paper until 1864, when he sold it to Frank J. Zimmerman, who in turn sold it to An- drew G. Wood in 1886. The next year S. L. Baker and M. L. Crawford became the publishers, Wood continuing as editor until April, 1868, when the paper was again purchased by Zimmerman, who continued as editor and publisher until 1896, when it was purchased by J. V. Bowersox. In 1901 H. S. K. Bartholomew purchased the paper of Bowersox and acted as editor and publisher until 1904, when he sold it to C. William Smith. Mr. Smith, in addition to continuing the publica- tion of the weekly paper, started the Daily Union. Under Smith's management the Daily Union at- tained the largest circulation of any daily paper in the county. Smith sold the paper in 1915 to Andrew A. Gast and his son, Estil A. Gast, of Akron. Mr. Estil A. Gast became editor and as- sumed full charge of the paper on January 1, 1916, and has just closed the most successful year in the paper's history. During the year he changed the name of the daily to the Warsaw Union and that of the weekly to the Kosciusko Union. Early in the year 1916 Mr. Estil A. Gast was chosen Democratic chairman of the Thirteenth congressional district. The unusual ability and unlimited energy which he put into the campaign not only resulted in the re-election of Henry H. Barnhart to Congress, but added prestige and strength to the local Democratic pa- per which it had not enjoyed before. The Gasts have obtained Associated Press service and made the paper one of the best county dailies in the State.

Kosciusko county has a long list of prominent Democratic educators. We can mention only the most prominent. Joseph P. Dolan, for years su- perintendent of the public schools at Syracuse, rightly leads the list from the standpoint of party service. He is the most influential Democrat in the northeast part of the county and deserves bet- ter reward than he has received. His worthy successor as superintendent at Syracuse, Charles O. Baughman, made a good race as the party's nominee for County Auditor in 1914. The city of Warsaw now has an energetic, progressive Democrat as superintendent of the city schools in the person of H. S. Kaufman. Richard Van- derveer, who is now a member of the local bar, for many years was superintendent of the Mil- ford schools. Perhaps the best rewarded of our Democratic school teachers is Edson B. Sarber, who was chosen as County Superintendent of Schools in 1904 and was twice re-elected, resign- ing in 1916 to become Assistant Superintendent of Public Instruction.

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HISTORY INDIANA DEMOCRACY-1816-1916

Of the medical fraternity of the county Dr. Theodore Davenport, of whom we have already spoken, was the foremost Democrat, being re- warded by Governor Thomas A. Hendricks with the appointment as superintendent of the North- ern prison at Michigan City. Other prominent Democrats of the profession have been Dr. W. F. Seymour of Leesburg, Drs. A. C. McDonald and W. L. Hines of Warsaw and Dr. W. C. Landis of Claypool.

The lawyers of the county who have rendered service to the party named in the order of their admission to the bar are as follows: Messrs. J. Long, E. Van Long, Woodson S. Marshall, An- drew G. Wood, Samson J. North, William A. Marlow, Commodore Clemens, Samuel S. Baker,

Isaac L. Ayers, Samuel W. Cosond, Orange O. Felkner, James V. Van Guilder, Isaac H. Hall, Jesse D. Chaplin, John D. McClaren, Francis E. Bowser, Richard Vanderveer, John H. Aiken, Rex S. Emerick, Merl L. Gochenour, George Landers and Cecil Whitehead.

Since 1906 the Kosciusko county Democracy has taken a new lease on life. The enduring serv- ice of Woodrow Wilson's administration has meant much to us. Our path has not been strewn with roses and our triumphs have been few. We simply ask the indulgence of the Indiana Democ- racy to have even more patience and let us try again; if necessary, even again, for it is no small task we have been given.

22-History

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HISTORY OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY OF LAGRANGE COUNTY

By J. Frank Snyder

TN parceling out the territory in the arrange- ment of the counties of the northeast part of the State, Lagrange county was made up of what was left when the surveyors reached the Michigan line, hence it had scarcely three full squares of congressional townships. It was con- sidered a victory when the territory that had been set apart was retained, when, in 1834, our neigh- bor to the north-Michigan-demanded a "rec- tification" of her frontier. The escape was nar- row when Michigan asked a strip ten miles wide off northern Indiana, but her craving was not satisfied with a cession of a territory of Lake Su- perior region which she hoped to gain. Had she been successful there would have been nothing of this historical record, The southern and middle tier of townships received the United States sur- vey approved for congressional townships, and the other townships were filled out as best suited the distance to the boundary line, so that the upper tier of townships were cut down to a width of only four miles and two-thirds, there being but three hundred and eighty-four miles of territory to be divided into eleven townships.

The county takes its name from the country residence of Lafayette, the noted Frenchman, who yet lives in the esteem of all Americans. With but one county separating it from the Buckeye influence on the east, and scarcely knowing when it ceases to be a Hoosier and begins to be a Wol- verine at its northern boundary, it partakes of a genial character that makes the Lagrange coun- ty citizen a "long distance attachment" to gov- ernmental affairs at the State capital, the center of political orders and State House ambition. His only advantage has been in the opportunity of drawing a heavy mileage fee when called upon to do service at the seat of the State government. The Lagrange county citizen is grown in a pure atmosphere-the altitude is about an average of 950 feet above the sea level. Thirty-five or more lakes add to the charm of its scenery and purity of its atmosphere. The only river of any size is Pigeon, which flows through the county in a north- westerly direction and receives most of the lake and creek overflow. In this territory originates many startling fish stories.

Prior to 1833 the territory where Democrats have been so sparingly grown, which afterward became Lagrange county, was attached to Elk- hart county, and known as the township of Mon- goquinong, with Goshen as the county seat of the

unit. The county was organized sixteen years after Indiana entered statehood, Governor Noah Noble approving the act for the organization of the county on February 2 (Ground Hog day), 1832. The first election for county officers was held in the spring of 1832, when Joshua T. Hobbs was elected Clerk; Daniel Harding, Sheriff; Thomas Gale, Treasurer; David St. Clair, Re- corder; Jacob Vandevanter, Edmund Littlefield and Arthur Barrows, Commissioners. Politics had little or nothing to do with the selection.

The first court house was erected at Lima in 1833, the center of population then being at that point, but it was soon discovered that the county seat must be more central, and Lagrange Cen- ter-as it was for years known-was hit upon, and the State Legislature of 1843 mapped out the new town, public buildings were erected and the county seat established at this place.

The very early days of the county found some Democrats in official position, but the foothold was dislodged and for more than half a century- up until the breaking away from "boss rule" in 1912-there had not been a Democrat elected to fill any county office since 1853, when John Kro- mer, a pronounced Democrat, left the office of county recorder, having been elected in 1843. He was one of the best-posted men on historical af- fairs of the county, having moved in the vicinity of Lima as early as 1830. He assisted for years in the business of the county in various offices in the court house.

Andrew Ellison, another unique Democratic personage, whose life history in northern Indiana politics would make an interesting volume of it- self, was county commissioner, leaving the office in 1853. Mr. Ellison was born in Ireland in the early days of 1817 and came to this county from New York in 1835, entering the practice of law in Lagrange county in 1842. He walked all the way to Indianapolis to be admitted to the Su- preme Court practice the following year. He was a candidate for Congress in the memorable can- vass of 1868 against "Billy" Williams, the early day congressman from Kosciusko county, and noted Republican politician, but was defeated. Later he was a candidate in the triangular fight when General Milo S. Hascal of Goshen was nom- inated as a candidate, expecting to lead the liberal Republicans and his Democratic friends to vic- tory against the regular Republican nominee. Mr. Ellison championed the cause of the "non-

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HISTORY INDIANA DEMOCRACY-1816-1916

mixable" Democrats and Hascal was defeated. He was also a. candidate for Judge of the Circuit Court two or three times, and made the fight as presidential-elector as many times, stumping northern Indiana with a vigor that gave him prominence as a political speaker. With it all, however, he closed his life having fought the bat- tles without having won any official position of distinction as a reward for his sacrifices.

The first vote in the county in 1836 gave Van Buren, Democrat, 136 votes, and Harrison, Whig, 128-Democratic majority of 22. In 1848, with Cass as the regular Democrat, Van Buren on the Free Soil and Taylor on the Whig ticket, the Democrats had a plurality of 7. In 1852, with Scott as the Whig candidate, Pierce, Democrat, and Hall, Free Soil, the principal parties tied. This was the last near-to-victory experience the party had until 1912. At this time Judge Otis L. Bal- lou was elected Joint Senator to represent La- grange and Noble counties in the State Legisla- ture and proved a Senator of large influence in both the sessions of 1913 and 1915, he being a holdover member. Mr. Ballou is an able lawyer, a forceful orator, and lives close to the interests of his home folk. He began the practice of law in the county in 1875, has been Circuit Judge by appointment of the Governor, and filled other im- portant positions of trust. Senator Ballou has filled the position of county chairman several times and been active in politics for a number of years.

The other successful candidates were George W. Choler, Clerk of the Circuit Court; Victor Camp, County Treasurer; Cloyd Lupold, County Recorder; George E. Henderson, Sheriff; Carl C. Mishler, Surveyor; Joseph F. Kimmel and David J. Norris, Commissioners. These men have all made excellent records as public officials. The sheriff and surveyor have been succeeded by Re- publican officials. Mr. Choler was re-elected and is midway in his second term.

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History of the Indiana democracy, 1816-1916, Part 95

Author: Stoll, John B., 1843-1926 Publication date: 1917 Publisher: Indianapolis : Indiana Democratic Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 1104

Author: Stoll, John B., 1843-1926
Publication date: 1917
Publisher: Indianapolis : Indiana Democratic Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1104