USA > Indiana > Wayne County > Richmond > Memoirs of Wayne County and the city of Richmond, Indiana; from the earliest historical times down to the present, including a genealogical and biographical record of representative families in Wayne County, Volume II Pt II > Part 3
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54
459
BIOGRAPHICAL
factory are sold direct to jobbers and retailers. Electric lights and power are used in the building, which is heated with steam throughout. In November, 1896, was celebrated Thaddeus E. Frazer's marriage to Miss Maggie Wright, of Economy, Ind., who for eight years was a teacher in the schools of that place. Mr. Frazer is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
Cornelius M. Connell, who is actively engaged in agricultural pursuits and who maintains an attractive farm residence in Wash- ington township, is one of the honored and distinctively popular citizens of the county. He is a native of Wayne county, Indiana, having been born in Washington township, a son of Morris and Hannah (Sullivan) Connell, born in Ireland. They came to the United States and located in Washington township, Wayne coun- ty, Indiana, where the father followed farming. Later he removed to Connersville, Ind., where he was engaged in the mercantile busi- ness twelve years, and then engaged in farming in Fayette county, where he died. The mother passed away when Cornelius M. was a small boy, and both parents were consistent members of the Catholic church. They became the parents of five children : Cornelius M .; Mary, the wife of John McDumich, a mechanic of Connersville, Ind .; Catherine, the wife of Peter A. Coss, of Brook- lyn, N. Y .; Anna, deceased ; and William, a mechanic at Conners- ville, Ind. By a subsequent marriage of the father there were five children: Elizabeth, the widow of a Mr. Mailey, resides at Con- nersville; Nellie, the wife of Andrew Herrald, a farmer of Conners- ville; and Margaret, Alice, and Morton, a telegraph operator, all of whom reside in Connersville, Ind. The father was a man of strong individuality and impregnable integrity-one who ever com- manded the unqualified confidence and regard of his fellow men. Ile took a loyal interest in public affairs and was a supporter of the cause of the Democratic party from the time of his arrival in America until his death. Cornelius M. Connell was reared at the parental home and his early educational advantages were those afforded in the public schools of Connersville. Ile continued to be associated with the work of the home farm until his father's death, and then, in 1898, purchased his present place of forty acres in Washington township, where he built a residence and has since resided, engaged in general farming. In politics Mr. Connell is aligned as a loyal advocate of the principles of the Democratic party, and he and his wife hold membership in St. Elizabeth's Catholic Church, Cambridge City, in which faith he was reared. On Nov. 3, 1808, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Connell to Miss Catherine Creighton, daughter of Patrick and Winifred ( Jor- dan) Creighton, of Jackson township, Wayne county, Indiana. The parents were born in Ireland, but came to the United States and settled in Jackson township, where Mr. Creighton followed farming, which industry engrossed his attention during the major portion of his active business career. Ile and his wife are both deceased. Mr. Creighton was a Democrat in politics, and both he and his wife were zealous members of the Catholic church. To Mr. and Mrs. Connell has been born a danghter, Agnes, born
460
MEMOIRS OF WAYNE COUNTY
July 19, 1900. The living children of Patrick and Winifred (Jor- dan) Creighton are: Mary, widow of William Kirt, of Rushville; John, of Fayette county ; Anna, of Rushville; Mrs. Connell is the next in order of birth ; and Dennis, of Fayette county.
Ellis D. Filby, proprietor of the Cambridge City Cigar Com- pany, was born in that city, April 18, 1864. His father was John Filby, born in Pennsylvania. He was a cigar manufacturer by trade and in early manhood removed to Cambridge City, Ind., where he followed that vocation until the breaking out of the Civil war. Then he enlisted as a private and served valiantly as a sol- dier of the Union. He died about three months after being dis charged from the army. He was married to Anna M. Smith, who survives him and resides in Cambridge City, and of this union was born an only child, whose name introduces this review. Mrs. Filby is also a native of Pennsylvania. Ellis D. Filby was edu- cated in the public schools of Cambridge City, and after his schools days were completed began life's work in the store of E. R. Ilastings & Son, after which he was a traveling salesman for safes, in the employ of II. D. Cary, two years. At the expiration of that period, about 1888, he started a feed and implement store in partnership with E. W. Whelan. This partnership was later dissolved, Mr. Filby taking the grocery department, and he con tinued in this line of endeavor until January, 1890. He then re- moved to Indianapolis, but in June of the same year returned to Cambridge City and formed a partnership with E. R. Hastings. Later he disposed of his interest in this business to Mr. Ilastings and went on the road as a traveling salesman for the William Doney Cigar Company, in which capacity he served until 1897, and then for a time handled a line of furniture on the road. He then became associated with Frank Ohmit in the cigar brokerage business, which developed into the Cambridge City Cigar Company in 1903, in which A. W. Bradbury became a partner. On July 6. 1906, Mr. Filby purchased the interest of Mr. Bradbury, a fire hav ing occurred at this time, and has since been the sole proprietor. doing a jobbing business in cigars, tobaccos, pipes, and smokers' articles of all kinds. Two men are kept constantly on the road and they cover all of Indiana and as far east as Dayton, Ohio. The business has grown to considerable extent under the management of Mr. Filby. His duties as a citizen have not been neglected and the office of trustee of the Fifth ward of Cambridge City is now held by him. He is placed among the first citizens of the com- munity and ranks among the most progressive in Cambridge City. On June 18, 1890, was celebrated his marriage to Miss Lillian Maud Cole, daughter of Joseph J. and Margaret (Thomas) Cole, of Connersville, Ind. Her parents are natives of Fayette county, Indiana, and the father is now a retired farmer, living in Conners- ville. A daughter, Helen Cole, has been born to Mr. and Mrs. Filby. Fraternally, Mr. Filby is a member of the Masonic order, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and the Knights of Pythias, and he also has membership in the Travelers' Protective Association and the Indiana Travelers' Association.
461
BIOGRAPHICAL.
Joseph A. Commons, a substantial citizen of Wayne county, now living retired, was born on a farm in Center township, May 22, 1842, son of David Commons. The paternal grandfather was Robert Commons, born in Ireland of English parentage, in 1748, and removed in infancy with his father's family to Chester county, Pennsylvania. He was married to Ruth Hayes and removed to West Virginia in 1702, and thence, in 1812, to Center township, Wayne county, Indiana, locating a mile. and a half northwest of Centerville, where he resided until his death, Dec. 19, 1837, aged eighty-nine years. To him and his wife, whom he married in Pennsylvania, were born nine children: Lydia married Adam Davis in Virginia, removed to North Carolina and thence, in 1811, to Washington county, Indiana, and finally to Mercer county, Illi- nois; Phebe married Jesse Bond; Isaac came to Whitewater in 1807, married Mary, daughter of John Townsend, and in 1810 set- tled seven miles north of Richmond, in what is now Franklin town- ship; William married Sarah Brady; John married Elizabeth Mote, of Ohio; Ezekiel married Sarah Julian; Hannah married Greenbury Cornelius in Virginia, and they both died in Center township in 1824; Nathan married Martha, daughter of Patrick Beard; and David, father of Joseph A., was the youngest of the nine children. He was born in Grayson county (now West Vir- ginia ), July 18, 1800, and came with his father to Center township in 1812. Hle was reared on the pioneer homestead and in 1836 pur- chased a farm, on which was a small mill for grinding corn. lle rebuilt this mill in 1839 and furnished it with two runs of buhrs, one for grinding wheat and one for corn. lle also built a saw mill and, in 1838, erected the brick residence now owned by his son, Walter S. He was a man of energy and endurance and was in advance of the time in the affairs of the day. In 1836 he was elected commissioner of Wayne county and served three terms. In 1847 he was elected to represent Wayne county in the State legislature and served two terms. He was an extensive farmer, real estate owner and a breeder of fine stock. He was very public- spirited, was energetic in securing pike roads, and was one of the builders of the Indiana Central railroad, being one of its directors for years. He was also one of the organizers and a director of the Centerville National Bank, and in politics was a Republican. In 1838, after the death of his father, he removed to the farm he had owned for many years, and there he died Feb. 7, 1874. Ile was married Feb. 26, 1824, to Rachel, daughter of John and Rachel Mote, of Miami county, Ohio, and had by her two sons-John, who married Eliza Jane, daughter of John Boyd, and Philip S., who married Hannah Ann, daughter of John Maxwell. The first wife died May 22, 1827, and on Sept. 29, 1831, Mr. Commons married Bethena, daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth (Jones) Carter, and a native of Greeneville, Ten., born Aug. 13, 1813. Of this union were born seven children : Sarah A. is the deceased wife of Thom- as Jordan, of Indianapolis ; William M. died Aug. 25, 1853; Isaac L. died in Evansville, Tenn .; Robert D. served three years in the Civil war with the Eighth Indiana infantry and was wounded 'at
462
MEMOIRS OF WAYNE COUNTY
Vicksburg, May 22, 1863; Joseph A. is the next in order of birth ; Mary E. is the widow of Ira Izor and resides in Indianapolis; and Walter S. (see sketch). Joseph and Elizabeth (Jones) Carter, parents of Mrs. Commons, came to Indiana in 1829 and settled in Madison county. They became the parents of thirteen children- Wesley, Mary, Bethena, Usiah, John C., Ililah, Edward J., Joseph, William, James C., Thomas E., Nancy, and Levi, all deceased. Jo- sephi .A. Commons attended the common schools, Earlham College, and the Miami Commercial College at Dayton, Ohio. After finish- ing his scholastic work he was engaged with his father and brother, Robert D., in the milling business, located at the old homestead, and he so continued until the fall of 1868, when he purchased a farm of 245 acres, three miles north of Centerville, on the Williamsburg pike. During the three years immediately fol- lowing he devoted his attention to the management of this farm, and in 1872 removed to Centerville and purchased the place which was the residence of Sylvester Johnston, remodeling the same in 1874. From 1872 to 1879 he was engaged in the live stock busi- ness, shipping hogs, cattle, horses, etc., to the Eastern markets, and in 1879 he purchased the saw mill of the John Sintz estate, and conducted that about twenty years. While engaged in the saw mill business he purchased a farm of sixty acres, lying one-half mile south of Centerville, and to this he later added 100 acres ad- joining, the 160 acres having formerly been the home of Levi Fox, the father of Judge Henry C. Fox, of Richmond. After retiring from the saw mill business, in 1902, Mr. Commons erected a mim. ber of suitable and modern horse barns and stables-models of their kind-on this farm, and gave his attention to farming in a general way and to the raising of horses, mostly for track pur- poses. In 1905 he retired from the active management of the place and his son, Lawrence D., assumed it. Mr. Commons is a public-spirited and generous man and has been a recognized leader in public affairs, having served as guardian and administrator of a number of estates. Ile was for years connected with the Wayne County Agricultural Association, and was superintendent and di- rector for several years when it met on the grounds south of Cen- terville. In the matter of politics Mr. Commons is allied with the. Republican party and he has served two terms as trustee of Cen- ter township. His second term in this position was cut short by his resignation, a change in the law effecting the office of town- ship trustee. He was also elected as Representative in the State. legislature from Wayne county, in which position he served two terms. Ile has been treasurer of the school board of the village of Centerville at intervals during the past twenty-one years, and for the past twelve years he has served in that position consecutively. In his fraternal relation he is a Scottish Rite Mason, being a mem- ber of the Indiana Consistory at Indianapolis. On Nov. 28, 1868, Mr. Commons was married to Amanda Beeson, daughter of David B. and Rebecca ( Bice) Beeson, of Wayne county. Mrs. Commons was born June 30, 1849, and her death occurred Oct. 2, 1906. Of this union was born a son, Lawrence D. Commons, who died Oct.
463
BIOGRAPHIICAL
3, 1911. He was married on April 25, 1895, to Ella, daughter of Thomas and Martha McConaha, and of that union there is a son, Howard, born Feb. 21, 1896. The "Western Horseman" of Oct. 6,. 1911, has the following to say in regard to the death of Lawrence D. Commons: "Indiana has lost another of its prominent breeders and trainers in the death of Lawrence D. Commons, of Centerville, Ind. He was a young man who had attained more than a fair share of fame, as a breeder, trainer, and driver. At the Commons' stock farm at Centerville the well known stallion 'Anderson Wilkes,' was the premier, and Mr. Commons had surrounded himself with a small but select group of brood mares. In addition to his breed- ing and farming operations, Mr. Commons each season campaigned a small stable over the tracks of the Middle West. This year Mr. Commons was very successful with the three-year-old pacing filly, 'Grace D' by 'Anderson Wilkes,' which he raced on the half-mile tracks in Ohio and Indiana, and after he was taken ill, late in Au- gust, this filly was turned over to Curt Gosnell, who gave her a world's record of 2:10 1-4, for a three-year-old pacing filly in a race over a half-mile track. Mr. Commons' death will come as a shock to a large number of friends, for although his death was not expected by his immediate relatives, yet the fact that he had raced up to the middle of the season led many to believe that he was en- joying his usual health."
Solomon Ebersol, deceased, for many years prominent as an agriculturist near Olive Hill, Wayne county, was born in Cumber- land county, Pennsylvania, April 12, 1803, son of Jacob and Bar- bara (Schalley) Ebersol. He resided in Pennsylvania until 1850, when he came with his family to Wayne county, Indiana, and set- tled on a farm north of Olive Hill, where he spent the residue of his life. He continued in the active management of the farm until his death, in 1877. Beside the members of his immediate family he left a wide circle of friends to mourn his passing. In November, 1826, was celebrated Mr. Ebersol's marriage to Anna Longenecker, born in Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, and of this union were. six children : Joseph, born Aug. 26, 1828, Jacob, born Feb. 8, 1830, and Sarah, born Dec. 10, 1833, died of scarlet fever on the 7th, 8th, and gth of January, 1839, respectively ; Mary Jane, born April 25, 1836, was married on Dec. 27, 1853, to William Culbertson ; George. W., born Jan. 13, 1841, was married on April 7, 1865, to Mary Jane King, and died Jan. 9, 1903 ; and Ellen B., born Nov. 19, 1844, was married on Aug. 27, 1868, to Harland Bond. George W. spent two or three years at Earlham College, after which he taught school two years and then engaged in farming. After his marriage he moved to the okl Daniel King farm and resided there until his death. Of his union with Mary Jane King were three children: Vashti K., born Jan. 25, 1867, was married to John Davis, Jan. 18,. 1888; Charles G., born June 25, 1871, was married to Laura Snyder, July 3, 1891 ; and Ida M., born Oct. 19, 1873, was married to An- drew J. Mckinney (see sketch). George Ebersol's wife was the daughter of Daniel and Maria (McAlister) King, among the oldest settlers of Wayne county. Daniel was a son of Jesse and Cinthia
464
MEMOIRS OF WAYNE COUNTY
King, of English descent. They came to Wayne county from Bour- bon county, Kentucky, in the year 1815, and located on what is now known as the "Beeson farm." A few years later they entered land north of Green's Fork and lived there the remainder of their lives. They were the parents of sixteen children: John, born May 13, 1783; Elizabeth, born Nov. 21, 1784; James, born April 10, 1786; Mary Jane, born Sept. 15, 1787; Samuel, born March 1, 1789; Joseph, born May 1, 1790; Elisha, born Oct. 11, 1791 ; Rebecca, born Feb. 1, 1793; Daniel, born Nov. 1, 1794; Nancy, born May 19, 1797 ; Sarah, born Jan. 1, 1799: Anna, born March 10, 1801 ; Elijah, born Aug. 10, 1803; Jane, born May 6, 1805; Lorenzo, born Aug. 7, 1807; and Presley, born May 5, 1809. In the year 1819 Daniel King entered government land, which he cleared and on which he built a house of logs, about three miles north of Centerville. Ile was married to Maria McAlister, June 21, 1821, and died at the home of his son, William, at Alexandria, Feb. 2, 1878. To him and his wife were born seven children: James E., born July 30, 1824, died Oct. 12, 1853; John A., born Oct. 17, 1826, died Dec. 24, 1861; Newton, born July 25, 1828, was married to Sarah Burton, Dec. 31, 1857, and died in 1902; William M., born Aug. 10, 1830, was mar- ried to Cinthia Norris, Jan. 13, 1867, and died Aug. 16, 1909; Isaac Y., born Jan. 25, 1833, married Sarah Study in 1853 and died July 17, 1910; Levi, born Jan. 20, 1837, married Demaris Cheesman in 1857 and died May 5, 1910; and Mary Jane, born Sept. 4, 1842, mar- ried George Ebersol, April 7, 1865, and died July 16, 1903.
James Columbus King, a successful farmer of Center town- ship, whose homestead is near the place of his birth, was born in Center township, this county, Aug. 6, 1854, son of James W. D. and Malinda L. (Jackson) King. His paternal great-grandfather was Jesse King, a native of Kentucky, who came to Wayne county, Indiana, with a large family, in 1826, and settled near what is now the village of Green's Fork. Five of his sons-Samuel, Daniel, Elisha, Lorenzo D., and John-preceded him to Wayne county about two years. John King, the grandfather of James C., located about one and one-half miles north of Centerville, but in 1830 moved to a place just north of the village, where he spent the residue of his life. He was a farmer by occupation and became one of the influential men of that locality. To him and his wife were born nine children : Lucinda, who became the wife of Joshua Eliason ; James W. D., the father of James C .; Joseph; William ; Mary, who became the wife of Oliver T. Jones ( see sketch of Lin- coln H. Jones) ; Presley ; Nancy, who became the wife of John M. Maxwell; Jackson ; and Jesse. James W. D. King was born Aug. 12, 1814, in Kentucky and came with his parents to Wayne county when twelve years old. He received his education in the schools of Center township and followed farming during all of his active career. On March 26, 1835, he was married to Malinda L. Jack- son, born May 2, 1816, daughter of Caleb Jackson, and they reared a family of eleven children: John W. died in infancy ; Olive be- came the wife of J. W. Boyd; Caleb W., a prominent citizen of Richmond, died in that place in 1911; William S .; Joseph J. (see
465
BIOGRAPHICAL
sketch) ; Judith E. became the wife of John Meyers; Eliza A. be- came the wife of Jesse C. Stevens (see sketch) ; Sarah M. became the wife of William Smith; James C. is the next in order of birth ; Lucinda became the wife of Charles Staats; and Mark P. James WV. D. King died Sept. 4, 1864, and his wife died July 24, 1879. James C. King received his preliminary educational traming in the district schools of Center township and the schools of Centerville. He resided at home until twenty-five years old, at which time he became the owner of a farm which he inherited from his father's estate. Hle traded this land for the farm where he now resides, consisting of 115 acres, to the operation of which he has since de- voted his attention. In the matter of politics Mr. King espouses the cause of the Republican party, but has never sought office. In religious matters he is identified as a member of the Christian church. On Aug. 7. 1879, Mr. King was united in marriage to Miss Rachel L. Martin, born in Center township, Aug. 27, 1859, daughter of the late James B. and Hilah Jane ( Humbert ) Martin (see sketch). To Mr. and Mrs. King were born six children: Edna May, born April 14, 1881, died Jan. 18, 1883; Florence J., born Nov. 3, 1883, died Aug. 13, 1884; Clifford M., born Nov. 19, 1885, is a graduate in the mechanical engineering course at Purdue U'niver- sity and is located at Gary, Ind., where he has the position of as- sistant rate-engineer in the American Steel Bridge Company ; Clai- born F., born Oct. 12, 1888, resides at the parental home; Mabel, born May 31, 1892, graduated in the Centerville High School with the class of 1910, took one year in Earlham College and is en- gaged at teaching in Green township; Mark G., born Aug. 19, 1896, graduated in the district school in the spring of 1910 and is a stu- dent in the Centerville High School. In 1902 Mr. King became afflicted with muscular rheumatism, which has become very seri- ous in its manifestations, and he is in a crippled condition. Ilis son, Claiborn F., manages the home farm.
Charles M. Hurst, a popular farmer of Washington township, was born in that township, Wayne county, Indiana, Sept. 1, 1860, son of Elijah and Maria ( Lewis) Hurst, natives of Washington township. The paternal great-grandparents were Jacob and Mary Ilurst, born in Maryland of Irish ancestry. John Hurst, the grand- father of Charles M., was born in Maryland in 1781, and in that State, in 1802, was married to Elizabeth Marshall. Shortly after his marriage, with his wife and his brother Benedict, he started for what was then called the Western Reserve. His wife's father had given her a horse. The young husband arranged a pack saddle into which he placed their worldly goods, and with his wife on the horse, he and his brother walking, they started on their journey. In this way they traveled, stopping wherever night overtook them, on the plains or in the mountains, and they continued westward until their small amount of money was exhausted, this occurring near Hamilton, Ohio. There John Hurst sought employment. About the only kind of work to be found was clearing and rail splitting. Hard work, however, had no terrors for him. He took contracts for both himself and brother and together they worked
466
MEMOIRS OF WAYNE COUNTY
early and late. In 1804 his wife gave birth to a child, and two years later another child was born to them. By 1807 he had accumulated a little sum, besides having supplied the meager wants of his little family, and that year they pushed further west, coming over into Indiana and making a permanent location in what afterward be- came Wayne county. He selected first an eighty-acre tract of land on Noland's Fork, built a rude cabin, and as soon as possible got his family comfortably located. When the land was placed on the market he entered same and, as after years showed, made a wise selection. Then he commenced in earnest the work of development and making a home. Soon he had a few acres under cultivation, and never from that time on did his family want for the necessaries of life, and ere many years had come and gone he was able to pro- vide them with some of the luxuries also. As soon as he got his land opened up he began raising corn and hogs, finding a mar- ket at Cincinnati, and later he dealt largely in stock, driving to the Cincinnati market. In his earnest efforts to make a home and ac- cumulate a competency on the frontier, Mr. Hurst was ably as- sisted by his good wife, who was a helpmate in the truest sense of that word. She, too, worked early and late to clothe and feed her family. In those days the spinning and weaving for the family were all done in the home. Both Mr. Hurst and his wife were noted for their hospitality and generosity, friend and stranger re- ceiving a welcome at their door, and the needy were never turned away empty handed. Mr. Hurst kept pace with the progress of the new settlement, or, rather, kept in advance of it, for he was always the first to give his support to any improvement or new invention. The first cooking stove in the community was bought for his home and in his parlor was placed the first ingrain carpet of the neighborhood. These "luxuries" came after the old cabin had van- ished and a commodious frame house had taken its place. As the years passed by and his prosperity increased, he invested in more land, until his estate comprised 2,000 acres of the best land in Wayne county. Hard work and exposure in all kinds of weather shortened his days, however, and he died in May, 1838, at the age of fifty-seven years. His wife survived him until Nov. 5, 1850. The record of her children is as follows, the first two having been born in Ohio, the others in Indiana: Cynthia, Dec. 8, 1804; Benedict, Dec. 11, 1806; Bennett, Dec. 8, 1808; Sanford, April 5, 1811; Be- linda, Dec. 7, 1812; Marshall, Feb. 13, 1814; Isaac, Feb. 5, 1817; Anna, born April 11, 1819, died young; Dickson, Dec. 7, 1821 ; twins, Elijah and Silva (wife of Robert Watt), Oct. 29, 1824; and Mary E. (wife of John Orr), July 12, 1827. John Hurst, though never aspiring to political honors, was a stanch Democrat, and to this party his descendants, with few exceptions, have given their support. Elijah Hurst, the father of Charles M., grew to manhood on his father's farm, and after his marriage settled in the same neighborhood. He cleared and improved a farm and devoted his active career to carrying forward the work inaugurated by his father. He inherited the many sterling characteristics of his worthy sire and, like him, has the confidence and respect of the entire
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.