USA > Indiana > Allen County > History of the Maumee River basin, Allen County, Indiana > Part 41
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Elva C. Kelsey was reared on the old home farm, to whose work he early began to contribute his quota, while he secured his educational training in the public schools. He continued to be associated in the work of the home farm until his first marriage, in 1871, to Miss Arabella Michaels, who was born and reared in this county, and whose death occurred in 1889. She left three children, Dessie, who resides in Fort Wayne; Glenn, who remains with his father on the farm; and Morton, who is in the employ of the American Express Company in the city of Chicago. After his mar- riage Mr. Kelsey located in Zanesville, Wells county, where he engaged in the meat-market business, and also bought and sold live stock, which he shipped to the metropolitan markets. He con- tinued in these lines of enterprise in Zanesville for a period of seven years, and in 1890 he and his brother Elias located in Fort Wayne, where they established themselves in the grocery and meat business, in which they continued to be associated for four years, at the expiration of which our subject disposed of his interest and pur-
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chased his present fine farm property, known as the Mason farm and comprising one hundred and thirty-one acres of the most fer- tile land, improved with good buildings and well equipped in all respects. Mr. Kelsey still continues to devote much attention to dealing in live stock, of which he raises high-grade lines on his home farm, having at the time of this writing eight head of thor- oughbred Galloway cattle as well as other stock of fine type. Prac- tically his entire farm is available for cultivation and is devoted to diversified agriculture. He enjoys marked popularity in his com- munity and has been called upon to serve in various local offices, the principal one being that of township supervisor, of which he was incumbent five years. In politics he gives an unequivocal allegiance to the Democratic party and fraternally he is identified with the Knights of the Maccabees, while both he and his wife are members of the Congregational church.
In 1891 Mr. Kelsey consummated a second marriage, being then united to Mrs. Anna Evans, widow of Calvin Evans, of Warsaw, this state. She was born and reared in Indiana and is a daughter of John and Urania (Browning) Starr, the former of whom was born in the province of Quebec, Canada. He came to Allen county in 1848, being a millwright by trade and vocation, and the closing years of his life were passed in Lagrange, this state. His widow now resides in the home of her daughter, Mrs. Kelsey.
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ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA.
JOHN C. MEYER.
This honored citizen is now living practically retired, having a fine little homestead in Wayne township, while he has long been identified with the agricultural industry in Allen county, where he accumulated a large landed estate, a portion of which he has devised to his sons, who are proving able successors to him in this important field of enterprise.
Mr. Meyer was born in the province of Hanover, Germany, on the 20th of December, 1838, his birthplace being in the vicinity of the city of Bremen. He is a son of John Henry Meyer, and the maiden name of his mother was Katherine Bishop. His father was a skilled blacksmith, having served the thorough apprenticeship re- quired in the fatherland and having been a foreman in large shops prior to his immigration to America. On the 20th of June, 1845, in company with his wife and their two sons and two daughters, as well as the venerable mother of his wife, he arrived in what is now the city of Fort Wayne. Soon afterward he expended all his avail- able funds in the purchase of forty acres of land, in Adams town- ship, paying three dollars an acre for the property. The original family dwelling was one of the primitive log cabins of round logs, and the father soon erected a little blacksmith shop on his farm and there devoted the major portion of his time to work at the forge, having previously been employed at his trade in Fort Wayne. While there he ironed a buggy for the late and honored pioneer, the Hon. Allen Hamilton, and this was in all probability the first buggy ever manufactured in Fort Wayne. While he worked at his anvil for his neighbors, they would recompense him by attending to his farm work, so that he was able to reclaim his land and improve the property in other ways. He continued to reside on this homestead, five miles southeast of Fort Wayne, on the Decatur road, until his
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death, which occurred on the 20th of December, 1868. His wife long survived him, being summoned to the life eternal on the 12th of May, 1884, three days before attaining the age of eighty years. Both were consistent members of the Lutheran church. Of their children we enter brief record, as follows: John C. is the immediate subject of this sketch; Henry was never married and was practically an invalid during the closing years of his life, having been for sev- eral years a valued member of the home circle of our subject and having died at the age of fifty-six years; Mary became the wife of John Rodewald, and both are now deceased, she having attained the age of about sixty years, while they reared several children; Katherine is the wife of Herman Torbeck and they reside in Fay- ette county, Illinois.
John C. Meyer received a good common-school education and in his youth learned the blacksmith's trade under the able direction of his father, with whom he worked at the forge for seventeen years, while also associated with the reclaiming and cultivation of the farm, which came into his possession upon the death of his father. This farm comprised eighty acres, and in 1874 our subject sold the prop- erty and purchased two hundred and forty acres in Pleasant town- ship, paying thirty dollars an acre. He improved this place and con- tinued to reside on the same until 1898, making the property one of the best in the township. He added twenty-five acres to the place and also inherited one hundred acres which had been owned by his brother, so that the estate was increased to an aggregate area of three hundred and sixty-five acres. In 1878 Mr. Meyer built a large brick house and a fine large barn, while about fourteen years ago he erected a second house and barn, cutting the place into parts, in order that he might give his two sons an opportunity to carry for- ward their independent efforts as farmers. The subject was actively concerned in the operation of his fine estate until 1898, when he purchased his present attractive little homestead of thirty-one acres, on St. Mary's river, three miles south of Fort Wayne, in Wayne township, paying sixty dollars an acre. He has erected a good house and barn and has a most attractive home, while in his orchard and garden and at other duties about the place he finds ample scope for his active labors, though he is practically retired. He also owns
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a store building on Columbia street in the city of Fort Wayne. He is one of the substantial men of the county and his life record has been one of consecutive application and one of unbending integrity, so that he has ever held the confidence and regard of his fellow men. He is a stanch Democrat in his political proclivities and is a mem- ber of the Lutheran church, as was also his wife.
On the 15th of November, 1866, Mr. Meyer was united in mar- riage to Miss Mary Schroeder, who was born in Marion township, this county, on the 5th of February, 1849, and whose death occurred on the 26th of November, 1904, involving the greatest bereavement and loss which our subject has ever suffered. Mrs. Meyer was a daughter of Frederick Schroeder, one of the pioneers of Marion township, and in said township her brothers, William and Augustus, still reside. Mr. and Mrs. Meyer became the parents of two sons and six daughters, concerning whom we enter the following data: Frederick H. married Bernardine Mayland, and he resides on a portion of the old homestead in Pleasant township; Henry J. mar- ried Louisa Trier, and they reside on the other division of the home- stead; Joanna is the wife of Charles Mayland, of Marion township; Marie is the wife of Rev. Gustave Eifrig, of Ottawa, Canada ; Sophia is the wife of Edward Koenemann, of Hoagland, Indiana; Louisa is the wife of Rev. George Blievernicht, of Accident, Mary- land; and Emma and Matilda remain with their father. All of the children received good educational advantages.
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CHARLES STELLHORN.
Another of the native sons of Allen county who has here passed his entire life and who has attained a high degree of success through energy, integrity and progressive methods, is Mr. Stellhorn, whose fine farm property lies in section 26, Wayne township, four and one-half miles distant from the city of Fort Wayne. He was born on the farm which is now his home, on the 25th of July, 1862, and is a son of Frederick and Frederika (Moellering) Stellhorn, both of whom represented sterling German ancestry. The father of our subject resided in Fort Wayne for a number of years, and in 1860 he removed thence to the present homestead farm of his son Charles, where he continued to be identified with agricultural pursuits until his death, which occurred on the 5th of August, 1898, only fifteen days before his eightieth birthday anniversary. His widow is still living on the home farm and is eighty years of age at the time of this writing, in the spring of 1905.
Frederick Stellhorn originally purchased one hundred acres, and to this he added from time to time until his farm comprised two hun- dred and twenty-two acres, all in one body. The old homestead stood on the banks of the St. Mary's river, but owing to the rise of the water in the river in the spring seasons it was found neces- sary to remove the building to the present location of the residence, on higher land, the house having been practically rebuilt by our subject a few years ago. Other excellent improvements have been made on the farm since he came into possession of the property, upon the death of his honored father, and he is known as one of the pro- gressive farmers and substantial citizens of the county, command- ing the same high regard as did his father, who here lived and labored to goodly ends. The father was a Democrat in his political proclivities, and his son Charles adheres to the same faith, while the
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family have long been prominent and valued members of the local Lutheran church, which was here organized only the year prior to the removal of Frederick Stellhorn to the farm. Of the ten chil- dren three sons and three daughters are living, and the subject of this sketch is the youngest son. He was reared on the home farm and early began to aid materially in its work, while he received good educational training in both German and English schools. He has had entire charge of the homestead farm for the past seventeen years.
On the 27th of September, 1889, Mr. Stellhorn was united in marriage to Miss Sophia Lang, daughter of Henry Lang, the pio- neer grocer and baker in Fort Wayne, where she was reared and educated, her birth having occurred on a farm in Wayne township. Mr. and Mrs. Stellhorn have no children. Both are zealous members of the Lutheran church and take an active part in the work and sup- port of the local organization of the same.
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WARREN McKEE.
This well-known farmer and popular citizen of Pleasant township is recognized as one of the progressive agriculturists of Allen county, and his finely improved landed estate indicates the careful and ef- fective methods which he has brought to bear on the management of his farm. Mr. McKee is a native of the old Buckeye state, having been born in Trumbull county, Ohio, on the 4th of April, 1849, and being a son of John and Emeline (Beston) McKee. The father of the subject was born in the state of Pennsylvania, being of Scotch lineage, and as a young man took up his residence in Ohio, which ever afterward continued to be his home. He was identified with farming for many years, and before the war traveled through the south as a salesman of carriages and other vehicles, while for a time he was also engaged in the butchering business.
Warren McKee passed his boyhood days in Ohio, in whose com- mon schools he secured his early educational discipline, while he completed his scholastic work by taking a course of study in the high school at Lordstown Center, Ohio. At the age of twenty years he associated himself with two of his brothers in the butchering business, at Niles, Ohio. He was identified with this enterprise for nine years, meeting with success, but in 1881 his health became so greatly impaired that a change of climate and occupation became im- perative. He accordingly disposed of his business interests and re- moved to Cheboygan county, Michigan, where he took up timbered land and initiated the development of a farm, his place being twenty miles distant from the nearest town, Petoskey, while in the township, whose area was as great as three of ordinary size, there were but five white families at the time he located therein. He purchased one hundred and twenty acres of land, for which he paid ten dollars an acre, and within the ensuing twelve years he had reclaimed sixty
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acres to cultivation, while during the winter seasons he devoted his attention to lumbering.
The father of the subject had loaned money in Indiana, and finally took property on a mortgage, said property being the farm now owned and occupied by Warren. His father deeded the place to him, the same comprising one hundred and fifty-one acres of fine land, and here he took up his residence in 1893, his health having in the meanwhile been fully restored by his residence in the bracing climate of northern Michigan. The original village of Sheldon was laid out on one corner of the farm owned by the subject. The place was comparatively well improved at the time Mr. McKee took up his residence here, but he has made many modern improvements since that time, installing an excellent system of tile drainage and remodeling the buildings, etc. The farm is now one of the best in Pleasant township, and is eligibly located, being eleven miles south of the city of Fort Wayne. Mr. McKee devotes his attention to general farming and stock growing and is one of the leading farm- ers and citizens of this section of the county. In politics he accords a stanch allegiance to the Republican party, but he has no office-seek- ing proclivities. Mr. McKee is a devotee of the sports of the forest and stream, and only once in the past thirty-six years has he missed making an annual deer hunt, generally in northern Michigan. In 1904 he made such a trip to the south shore of Lake Superior, and he customarily passed the heated term of each summer in fishing and hunting in that attactive section.
On the 9th of September, 1871, Mr. McKee was united in mar- riage to Miss Eliza Anderson, who was born and reared in Trumbull county, Ohio, and to their children we enter brief record as follows : Virgie, who was graduated in the normal school at Valparaiso, Indiana, was a successful and popular teacher in the public schools of Allen county, and later became assistant superintendent of a col- lege at Bloomington, Illinois, where she met Hanson T. Mace, editor and publisher of the Pantagraph, one of the leading newspapers of central Illinois; John was likewise graduated in the Valparaiso Normal School, as well as Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, while he was also engaged in teaching in the schools of Allen
36
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county for some time, and is now a leading merchant of Belle- plaine, Iowa; Harry was graduated in the Northern Indiana Normal School, at Valparaiso, and in Purdue University, at Lafayette, where he is now professor of mechanical engineering; and Ethel and Paul remain at the parental home.
563
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA.
JOHN S. POINSETT.
We here enter brief memoir concerning one of the sterling pio- neers of Allen county, where he lived and labored to goodly ends, having been one of the successful and influential farmers of Wash- ington township, where he died in 1892, at the venerable age of seventy-three years.
Mr. Poinsett was a native of the old Buckeye state, having been born on a farm in Hanover township, Montgomery county, Ohio, on the 23d of November, 1818, and having been a son of Peter and Mary (Rockhill) Poinsett, both of whom were born in the state of New Jersey, while both represented early pioneer families of Ohio, where their marriage was solemnized. In 1828 the family came to Allen county, Indiana, but remained only one season, then returning to their old home in Ohio. In 1834, however, they again came to Allen county and made permanent settlement, the parents here passing the remainder of their lives and each living to attain the age of about fifty-two years. Of their three children the subject of this memoir was the eldest, and all are now deceased. John S. Poinsett was reared on the pioneer farmstead and his youthful years were filled with hard work, while his educational advantages were necessarily limited, owing to the exigencies of time and place. A vigorous mental and physical equipment was his, however, and he developed a symmetrical character and became a power for good in the various relations of life, being sincere and straightforward, animated by a spirit of utmost integrity and ever commanding the high regard of all with whom he came in contact. He never abated his allegiance to the great fundamental industry of agri- culture, and through his association with the same he gained a high degree of success and prosperity. His farm, the scene of his many years of earnest endeavor, stands today as one of the model
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places of the county, having fine improvements and comprising two hundred and twenty acres of most arable land. The old homestead is eligibly located in Washington township, and is now the home of his widow, who has there resided for fully half a century. He took up his abode on this farm in 1855 and there remained until he was summoned to the life eternal, while he is held in grateful and af- fectionate memory in the community in which he so long lived and labored and where his sterling qualities were fully appreciated. In politics he was originally an adherent of the Whig party, having cast his vote in support of General William Henry Harrison for the presidency, but upon the birth of the Republican party he espoused its cause and ever afterward gave to it his unqualified allegiance.
In 1845 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Poinsett to Miss Ellen Rockhill, who survives him and who likewise is a member of one of the honored pioneer families of Allen county. She was born in Montgomery county, Ohio, and was a child at the time of her parents' removal to Allen county, while her memory links the early pioneer epoch with the latter-day epoch of opulent prosperity in this favored section of the Hoosier state. She is a daughter of Edward and Rebecca (Richardson) Rockhill, who reared a family of seven children. The parents came to Allen county in 1826, and Mr. Rockhill took up a large tract of land north of Fort Wayne, the section being at the time essentially a sylvan wilderness. Mr. Rockhill reclaimed much land to cultivation and was one of the influential and honored citizens of the county, where both he and his wife died, when well advanced in years. Mrs. Poinsett well recalls the fact that at the time when her parents came to the county the Indians were still much in evidence, and she personally knew a number of them, while the family did no little amount of trading with the aborigines. Mrs. Poinsett has lived on her present homestead for a half century, and it is needless to say that it is endeared to her by the memories and hallowed associations of the past, while it should further be noted that she has resided in Wash- ington township for a longer period than any other person now abiding within its confines, while she is held in affectionate regard by a wide circle of friends, both old and young, so that the evening
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of her life is being passed under most gracious influences and con- ditions. To Mr. and Mrs. Poinsett were born eight children, two of whom died in infancy, while John died in 1903. Those living are as follows: William, a farmer in Aboit township; Harriet J., the wife of William Knepper, a farmer of Aboit township; Joseph lives in Aboit township; Mary E., the wife of George Thumm, a farmer of Washington township; Edward, a farmer of Washing- ton township.
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CHRISTIAN BAADE.
Among the first German families to settle within the confines of Allen county was that of which the subject of this sketch is a member, and the name has been closely and worthily linked with the industrial and civic development and progress of this section of the state, while it has ever stood synonymous of integrity and honor in all the relations of life. He whose name initiates this re- view is one of the sterling pioneers and prominent and substantial farmers of Wayne township, where he has made his home for more than sixty years.
Christian Baade was born in Prussia, Germany, on the 14th of August, 1828, and bears the full patronymic of his honored father, Christian, Sr., who immigrated with his family to America in 1844, in which year he took up his residence in Allen county, where he died less than a year afterward. He had purchased eighty- nine acres of wild land on the St. Mary's river, south of Fort Wayne, in Wayne township, paying seven dollars and eighty cents an acre for the property. His money was all in the German double gold pieces, each worth at that time seven dollars and eighty cents, so that each piece of gold used exactly paid for one acre of land. He was a carpenter and wagonmaker by trade and had accumulated a considerable sum of money prior to coming to America. He was accompanied also by Diedrich Hartman, a brother of his wife, and Heinrich Menzing and family were also numbered among the early German families to locate on the banks of St. Mary's river. Mr. Hartman, just mentioned, settled on land now owned and oc- cupied by his son William. Among the other sturdy German settlers of those pioneer days was Ernest Nieman, who located on the farm now owned by Henry Wiebke, who purchased the property from the original owner, who left no children. Frederick Wiebke, father of
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Henry, also settled here in an early day, his farm being now owned by his son Frederick. All of these farms are contiguous to or in the immediate vicinity of that owned by the subject of this sketch, so that the settlement has been distinctively German in certain of its characteristics from the time when the reclamation of this section of the county was inaugurated. All these families came from the same district of Germany and all became representative in the social and industrial life of Wayne township, where the respective heads of each died at advanced age, while all left children except Mr. Nieman and all are here represented at the present time save that of Menzing. Henry Korte located in the same neighborhood somewhat later.
When Christian Baade, Sr., died he left his widow with five children, of whom the subject was the eldest, being at the time about sixteen years of age. Under these imperative exigencies he assumed the practical charge of the farm and undertook the her- culean labors demanded in its development. Four or five acres had been cleared, and the original family residence was a log cabin, con- structed of small logs and having only one room. Ten years elapsed before a new house was built, and that continued to be the family home until the present comfortable and commodious brick residence was built, about thirty years ago. The loved and devoted mother continued to reside on the old homestead until her death, at the age of seventy-seven years, having married a second time, becoming the wife of Frederick Gehle. Of the children we record that Wil- helmina is the wife of Conrad Tielker, and Louise is the wife of his brother, Henry Tielker; William Baade was a well-known truck- man of Fort Wayne, where he died in 1904; Frederick Gehle, a half-brother to the subject, removed to Illinois, where he died.
Christian Baade gave his attention to the reclamation and im- provement of the old homestead farm, and in course of time he came into sole ownership of the property, purchasing the interests of the other heirs. He has added to the area of the original property until he now has a fine farm of eighty-eight acres, most eligibly and attractively located, since the property lies contiguous to the city limits of Fort Wayne on the south. Mr. Baade has given his attention to diversified farming, has been indefatigable in his in-
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