USA > Indiana > Memorial and genealogical record of Representative Citizens of Indiana > Part 43
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On May 22, 1889, Thomas Murray was united in marriage with Amanda Haines, who was born in Dayton, Ohio, on Febru- ary 7, 1863, the daughter of George and Margaret Ilaines. Of her mother, Mrs. Murray knows but little, as she died many years ago when Mrs. Murray was but an infant. George and Margaret Haines were the parents of fourteen children. The family came to Kokomo when Mrs. Murray was quite young. George Haines was a native of Pennsylvania, but when but a child he was taken to Ohio by his parents. During the greater part of his life he fol- lowed the voeation of a butcher, but about sixteen years before his death he engaged in the express business, which he followed thereafter. He returned to Dayton, Ohio, to live, and there his death occurred on March 28, 1894, at the age of seventy-three years. Ile was a man of splendid personal qualities and stood high in public esteem in the communities where he had lived. To Mr. and Mrs. Murray no children were born.
If "Tom" Murray had a fad it was music, and especially brass-band music. He possessed unusual talent himself as a mu- sician, and all his life this trait was one of his most noticeable characteristics. As a boy he was a drummer in the old Johnnie
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MeReynolds Light Guard Band and subsequently took up the euphonium, in the playing of which he became an expert. With him music was a passion, and it has been said that his own private business would be laid aside in order that he might go with his band when it appeared in public. He was largely instrumental in promoting the interests and guaranteeing the success of the dif- lerent bands with which he was connected, giving liberally of both his time and his money when needed. At the time of his death he was manager of the Kokomo Citizens Band, one of the best organizations of its kind in this part of the state.
But little behind his love for music was his attachment for dogs and horses. Being a good hunter, and exceedingly fond of the chase, he was never happier than when surrounded with his dogs, mounted on a good horse and on the trail of a good scent.
Mr. Murray was a man of unusual mental ability and was a wide and intelligent reader, keeping in close touch with current topics and the trend of public affairs. One who knew him well said of him in this regard: "IIe had a keen, analytical mind, an inheritance from his father, quick to see and grasp a proposition in business or in politics, even in law, to which had he devoted himself it is easy to believe he would have been a master mind." Optimistic in temperament, he always saw the bright side of life and endeavored to spread the gospel of good cheer among all with whom he came in contact. He possessed a rare fund of good humor and was a splendid story teller, having also that other and more rare faculty of being a good listener. Though not dem- onstrative in his feelings towards others, he easily made friends, whom he valued at their true worth, and intense loyalty to his friends was one of his striking characteristics.
Politically, Mr. Murray was aligned with the Republican party up to within a few years of his death, and took an active and influential part in the local campaigns of his party, but eventually he transferred his allegiance to the Democratic party. Fraternal- ly, he was a member of Good Intent Lodge No. 29, Knights of Pythias, and Kokomo Aerie No. 255, Fraternal Order of Eagles. Mr. Murray's home for the past sixteen years was at No. 414 North Market street, and on the site of the old home Mrs. Murray has recently completed the erection of an elegant apartment build- ing, modern in every way. She is a lady of many splendid quali- ties of head and heart and is well liked by all who know her.
G. m. H. Kemper.
ยท GEN. WILLIAM HARRISON KEMPER, M. D.
Among those who stand as distinguished types of the world's workers is Gen. William Harrison Kemper, one of the able and honored pioneer physicians and surgeons of Muncie, Indiana, who is now spending the serene Indian summer of his years in honor- able retirement from the more active duties of life, and who showed his unqualified loyalty to the federal government during its days of crisis in the early sixties by his effective interposition in various capacities in the Union army. He is a man of fine in- tellectual and professional attainments, an author of national re- pute, of most gracious personality, of strong and noble character, and who has labored with zeal and devotion in the alleviation of human suffering. As one of those who have lent dignity and honor to the medical profession in Indiana and who brought to his chosen vocation the strength and devotion of a great soul and a broad mind, it is most consonant that in this publication be en- tered and perpetuated a tribute to his worth. He is plain and un- assuming, a fine type of the self-made man. He is charitable and benevolent; those in need or distress of body or mind seek not his aid in vain. These and many other commendable qualities have won for him the good will and esteem of the people of Dela- ware county. It is no very rare thing for a poor boy in our coun- try to become a prosperous man and occupy a commanding posi- tion in the world's affairs, but many who have fought their way from poverty and obscurity to a place of power and influence in the various relations of life, retain some marks and scars of the confliet. They are apt to be narrow and grasping, even if not sordid and serupulous. Doctor Kemper, however, is an instance of a man who has achieved success without paying the price at which it is so often bought; for his success has not removed him farther from his fellow men, but has brought him into nearer and more intimate relations with them. The more influence he has had the more he has done for those around him.
Doctor Kemper was born in Rush county, Indiana, December 16, 1839, and he is the scion of one of the state's sterling old fam- ilies, being the son of Arthur S. and Patience (Bryant) Kemper,
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natives of Kentucky and of German descent, and he is the grand- son of John Kemper.
Doctor Kemper's early life was spent about like that of the average country boy. Ile was ten years old when his father died in 1849, which event threw him very largely upon his own ro- sources; this, no doubt, fostered in the boy a spirit of courage, for- titude and self-reliance, which led to his eneeres in later years. During the succeeding seven years he was employed in tilling the home farm, attending the common schools at intervals in the meantime, in which he acquired a practical English education, and later pursued the higher branches of learning at the seminary at Greensburg, Indiana. In 1856 he removed to Iowa, locating at the town of Montezuma, where for one year he was employed as clerk in a dry goods store, at the end of which time he accepted a posi- tion in a printing office and there worked for two years. Return- ing to Indiana late in the year 1859, he resided at Greensburg until the following December, 1860, attending school. He had long cherished a laudable ambition to enter the medical pro- fession, and when twenty-one years old he began the study of the same in the office of Dr. John W. Moodey, under whose instruc- tions he continued until the commencement of the great war be- tween the states, when he unhesitatingly gave up his studies, sev- ered home ties and enlisted in Company B, Seventh Indiana Vol- unteer Infantry, April 18, 1861, only a few days after Fort Sum- ter had been fired upon, thus being one of the first to go to the front. This was the first company to enter the service from Decatur county, and young Kemper served three months as a pri- vate. On September 25, 1861, he re-enlisted and was appointed hospital steward of the Seventeenth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, in which capacity he served until February 20, 1863, when, owing to his faithfulness and ability, he was appointed assistant surgeon of said regiment, a position which he very creditably filled until the expiration of his term of service, July 27, 1864. He had ac- companied his regiment through its varied experiences, partici- pating in many trying campaigns and important battles and minor skirmishes, including Chickamauga, Peach Tree Creek, Kene- saw Mountain, Dallas, Hoover's Gap, Chattanooga, Missionary Ridge, Farmington, Big Shanty, Noonday Creek, MeMinnville, Cleveland, siege of Knoxville, and various engagements before Atlanta. His practical experience with the army resulted in ren- dering him proficient in surgery, and he left the service with the
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determination of furthering his knowledge of medicine and with this end in view he entered the medical department of the Uni- versity of Michigan in October, 1864, and the following spring took a course at the Long Island College Hospital, Brooklyn, New York, from which well known institution he was graduated in June, 1865. He also took a post-graduate course of instruction at the New York Poly dinic in 199C.
Thus exceptionally well equipped for his life work, Doctor Kemper located in Muncie, Indiana, in August, 1865, and here he has since been engaged in the practice of his profession, with ever-increasing success, having practiced in Delaware county longer than any other physician, his name having been a house- hold word in this section of the state for nearly a half century. Ile has ever been a profound student and has kept fully abreast of the times in all that pertains to his profession, and his fame as a general practitioner and surgeon has far transcended the limits of Delaware county, until he has long ranked with the leading medical men of the state and is now not unknown in national circles of the fraternity. He was coroner of Delaware county from 1870 until 1875, and he was one of the examining surgeons for pensions from May, 1872, to June, 1893, with the exception of a period of two years, when he was removed for political reasons. He was again appointed United States examining surgeon for pensions in 1901, which position he has held to the present time. As a public servant he has performed his duties ably and well, winning the hearty approval of his constituents.
Doctor Kemper is a member of the Delaware County Medical Society, of which he was president in 1879; also a member of the Delaware District Medical Society, and he has been a member of the Indiana State Medical Society since 1867, and he was treas- urer of the same from 1879 to 1885, inclusive, and clected presi- dent in 1886, and presided in 1887; he is also a member of the American Medical Association, and for years he has taken a very active interest in the deliberations of these bodies. The Doctor belongs to the Grand Army of the Republic, the Military Order of the Loyal Legion. He is a loyal Republican in politics when the candidates are worthy men, and religiously belongs to the Metho- dist Episcopal church, and was superintendent of the Sunday school in the local congregation from 1867 to 1888, his work in this connection being most beneficial to the church,
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Doctor Kemper was assistant in the chair of obstetrics and diseases of women, Central College of Physicians and Surgeons, Indianapolis, Indiana, during the session of 1875 and 1876. He has been a member and secretary of the board of trustees of Medi- cal College of Indiana, Indianapolis, since 1890. From 1900 to 1908 he was president of the board of trustees of the Medical Col- luge of Indiaim. In 1002 he was appointed hectares on the history of medicine. In 1904 he was elected professor of the history of medicine, and in 1908, upon the combination of the several medi- cal colleges, was made emeritus professor of the history of medi- cine in the Indiana University School of Medicine, a position he still holds.
As intimated above, Doctor Kemper is well known in the field of medical literature, having at different times contributed a num- ber of valuable and widely read papers on various medical sub- jects. Ilis style is clear and lucid, direct and entertaining. He has conducted a wide research, carefully examining hundreds of cases, and, being a keen observer and a logical thinker, he has given the results of his investigations in convincing essays con- tributed to various medical journals or read before medical socio- ties. Of the more than fifty articles from his pen the following have been much discussed: "Operation for the Radical Cure of Varicocele," Louisville and Richmond Medical Journal, Vol. 9; "Exophthalmic Goiter," Transactions of Indiana State Medical Society, 1871; "Retention in Utero of the Dead Foetus, Considered Particularly with Regard to its Effects Upon the Mother," 1875; "Affections of the Gall-Bladder Tending to Result in Cutaneous Bilary Fistula," 1879; "Primary Cancer of the Lung," 1882; "Angel-Wing Deformity," 1884; "President's Address," 1887; "Is Labor Protracted by Early Spontaneous Rupture of the Mem- branes?" American Practitioner, Vol. 9; "A Contribution to Medical Jurisprudence," American Practitioner, Vol 15; "Inear- ceration to the Placenta at Full Term," American Practitioner, Vol. 22; "Ligation of the Femoral Artery," American Practi- tioner, Vol. 23; "Syphiliphobia," Indiana Medical Journal, Vol. 2; "A Case of Lodgment of a Breech-Pin in the Brain; Removal on the Second Day; Recovery," American Journal of the Medical Sciences, Vol. 89; "A Study of the Subject of Spontaneous Rup- ture of the Membranes at Full Term of Gestation Preceding the Beginning of Labor," American Journal Medical Science, Vol. 89;
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"A Case of Painful Paraplegia," Journal of Nervous and Mental Diseases, Vol. 12; "One Thousand Cases of Labor, and Their Les- sons," Medical News, Vol. 59; "A Case of Senile Gangrene Treat- ed by Amputation," Virginia Medical Monthly, Vol. 20; "A Plea for the Cesarean Operation, Based on a Report of Fifty-three C'ases Performed in Indiana," The Journal of the Indiana State Medical Association, Vol. IV, page 162, April, 1911. He also re. ported a ease of "Podeleoma," American Practitioner, Vol. 14, being the only ease on record as having occurred in the United States, at that time.
Doctor Kemper has also written several books which have had a wide circulation among medical men. In 1896 he contrib- uted a booklet entitled "Uses of Suffering," Cincinnati, Curtis & Jennings. In 1905 appeared "The World's Anatomists," sev- enty-nine pages, Philadelphia, P. Blakiston's Son & Company. In January, 1909 (Vol. II, the Journal of the Indiana State Medical Association, Fort Wayne, Indiana), began a series of articles en- titled "Sketches of the Medical History of Indiana." These were continued over two years, and in June, 1911, were revised, cor- rected and enlarged and published in book form in a volume of four hundred and fifteen pages, entitled, "A Medical History of Indiana." This excellent work was well received, and to the present time is the only work on the medical history of Indiana that has been published. Several years ago the "Physicians and Surgeons of America" contained a biographical sketch of Doctor Kemper and a list of his writings.
In 1872 the Doctor formed a co-partnership with Dr. Robert Winton, and for years this was a very busy and prominent firm. Later he was associated with Dr. H. A. Cowing in practice nearly ten years. The subject has borne well his part in every relation of life and he has always enjoyed to the full the confidence and esteem of all who know him. He has the gentle manner and sym- pathetie nature, added to a quick apprehension and a thorough professional knowledge of the true master of the healing art.
On August 15, 1865, Doctor Kemper was united in marriage with Harriet Kemper, of Oskaloosa, Iowa, daughter of a promi- nent old family there. To this union four children were born, namely: Georgette Moodey, daughter, is the wife of John Law- rance Smith, of Terre Haute, Indiana; the eldest son, Dr. Arthur Thomson Kemper, is a practicing physician in partnership with
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his father, while the younger son, William Winton Kemper, re- sides on a farm near Lancaster, Ohio; the fourth, a son, died in in- fancy.
In the early part of the year 1905 Doetor Kemper made his only visit to foreign countries. Two weeks were spent in Egypt, and four in Palestine and Syria. The journey from Jerusalem to Damascus, and from Realhol to Rayrout, over the Lebanon moun- tains was made on horseback. Turkey, Greece and the European countries were hastily visited.
The Doctor has a pleasant and attractive home, containing a large and carefully selected library. Many of his old patients who will not consent to patronizing any other physician still cling to Doctor Kemper, but for some time he has not extensively en- gaged in the practice.
THOMAS M. KIRKPATRICK.
The career of the well-remembered gentleman whose name forms the caption of this biographical memoir was a stronons and varied one, the distinction which he attained in different spheres of activity entitling him to honorable mention among the leading men and representative citizens of his day and genera- tion in the county with which his life was so closely identified, and to him is due credit for giving additional prestige to the fam- ily name, an old and honored one, and adding to the brightness of an escuteheon which shines with peculiar luster in communities long noted for the high standing and distinguished achievements of its business and public men, and although his life record has been brought to a close by the inevitable fate that awaits all man- kind, his influence still pervades the lives of a wide cirele of friends and acquaintances who reverence his memory. As farmer, pub- lic official, soldier or private citizen, he was always true to him- self and his fellow men, and the tongue of calumny never touched him. As a soldier he proved his loyalty to the government he loved so well on the long and tiresome marches in all kinds of situations, on the tented field and amid the flame and smoke of battle, where the rattle of the musketry, mingled with the terrible concussion of the bursting shell and the deep diapason of the cannon's roar, made up the sublime but awful chorus of death. To such as he the country is under a debt of gratitude which it cannot repay and in centuries yet to be posterity will commemorate their chivalry in fitting eulogy and tell their deeds in story and in song.
Thomas M. Kirkpatrick was a native son of the old Buckeye state, his birth having occurred in Brown county, Ohio, on May 2, 1820. He was descended from sturdy Scotch ancestry, his grand- father, Andrew Kirkpatrick, having been born in the land of hills and heather. With two brothers he emigrated to America some time before the war of the Revolution, and they fought on the side of the colonists in their struggle for independence, one of the brothers, David, being killed at the battle of Bunker IIill. Andrew Kirkpatrick married, in Maryland, Elizabeth Bowen, and removed to West Virginia, subsequently becoming a pioneer of
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Ohio. Among their children born in West Virginia was James, father of the subject. After removing to Ohio, in 1812, James Kirkpatrick, with several brothers, enlisted for service in the second war with England and served in the campaign along the Ohio border. James subsequently was married to Mary Kincaid, the daughter of another Ohio pioneer, and remained a resident of Brown county until his death, which occurred in 1828. In 1834 his widow, with her six fatherless children, emigrated to Mont- gomery county, Indiana, where lived a brother-in-law, Absalom Kirkpatrick.
Thomas M. Kirkpatrick remained at the family home with his mother, on the line between Montgomery and Tippecanoe counties until 1843, when he removed to what was then called the "Miami Reserve," having previously given the section a thor- ough examination. During his boyhood he had applied himself to farm work as an assistant to his uncle and he received such educational advantages as could be secured in the pioneer schools of that day. The claim which he entered upon locating in the Reserve remained in his possession until a short time before his death. He at once set himself to the task of clearing the land and putting it in cultivation, a herculean task in those days, and he developed one of the best farms in the locality, making it his home for thirty-five years. A number of years before his death Cap- tain Kirkpatrick retired from active labor and moved to Kokomo, where he rested in the enjoyment of that leisure which he had so richly earned. As a farmer he was energetic in action, progressive and intelligent in his methods and sagacious in his business deal- ings, so that he was enabled to pass his latter days free from any worry as to his temporal needs. Ilis business life was character- ized by the strictest integrity, his word being literally consid- ered as good as his bond, and he never countenanced, even to the slightest degree anything suggestive of chicanery or sharp prac- tice. Captain Kirkpatrick assisted in the development and im- provement of Howard county as much perhaps as any other citi- zen of the county. He subscribed five hundred dollars towards the first railroad enterprise, though at the same time he was heavily in debt for his land, and he was a contractor in the build- ing of the road, clearing the timber for the track. Having been for the greater part of his life engaged in agricultural pursuits, he took a great interest in the county agricultural society, to
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the success of which he largely contributed, and he took a defi- nite stand in his advocacy of progressive and advanced ideas re- Inting to agricultural methods.
When the slave holders of the South threatened to secede from the Union and the cloud of war hung over the land Thomas J. Harrison, Barnabus Busby and Thomas M. Kirkpatrick met in Kokomo. They realized the seriousness of the situation and be- fore separating they mutually pledged each other that if war came they would go together to the defense of the flag, regardless of pay or position. Upon learning of the fall of Fort Sumter, Mr. Kirkpatrick hastened to Kokomo, where he found that Harrison had already enlisted one hundred and fifty men for the active service. Kirkpatrick and Busby joined the company and they proceeded to Indianapolis. There the men were divided, there being too many men for one company, and Harrison and Kirk- patrick were elected captains, Busby being elected first lienten- ant under Kirkpatrick. Captain Kirkpatrick's commission was dated April 23, 1861, and on May 12th his company was assigned to the Twelfth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry. Captain Kirkpatrick was anxious to enter the three-year service and in order to do so he was, by permission of Governor Morton, trans- ferred to the Thirteenth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, fifty-five of his men following him. This became known as Company E, and, one hundred and one strong, they were mustered in on June 18th. Captain Kirkpatrick participated in all the campaigns, battles and skirmishes in which his regiment had a part, the command having a record of which it has just reason to be proud. Captain Kirkpatrick was a faithful, valiant and courageous soldier, lead- ing his men into the thickest of the fight and never shirking his share of the hardships and dangers of the campaigns in which they took part. At the close of his period of enlistment he returned home, having received an honorable discharge. In April, 1865, Congressman Stillwell requested Captain Kirkpatrick to organize the One Hundred and Fifty-third Regiment from this district, of which he was to be commissioned colonel. This the Captain hastened to do, but upon arriving at Indianapolis he found that the surrender of Lee prevented the fruition of the plan. However, Captain Kirkpatrick rejoiced, as did every true American, at the close of the terrible struggle, and returned to his home. Early in the spring of 1865 the Captain had been offered the commis-
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sion as lieutenant-colonel of the One Ilundred and Forty-seventh Indiana Regiment, but he had declined the appointment.
Politically, Captain Kirkpatrick was a Republican from the organization of the party and took an active part in advocating its principles and electing its candidates. He was called to a number of positions of trust and honor and in every station he acquitted himself with honor and to the entire satisfaction of his constituents. He served as a justice of the peace for six years, in 1852 was elected sheriff of the county, serving two terms, in 1865 and 1866 he served as county commissioner and served two years as township trustee. During three terms, from 1870 to 1874, he represented Howard county in the state Legislature, and in 1878 he was again elected and served one term. In that body he ren- dered effective service as a member of several important com- mittees and advocated on the floor the passage of a number of beneficent laws. In 1883 Captain Kirkpatrick was appointed by President Arthur as collector of internal revenue for the eleventhi district, his nomination being promptly confirmed by the national Senate. It is a noteworthy fact that in all the instances where his name was mentioned for publie office, it was done unsolicited by him, and in his discharge of the official responsibilities thus put upon him he disappointed no one, his administration always being characterized by firmness, ability and faithfulness.
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