USA > Indiana > Memorial and genealogical record of Representative Citizens of Indiana > Part 56
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Henry Harrison. It was during this visit that Mr. Barnet all- vassed the situation and determined to make Fort Wayne his home. This design, however, he did not carry out until a num- ber of years later, and though it is impossible to determine with absolute certainty the date of Ins making a permanent home here, all evidence indicates that it must have been in the your 1919. 1. +1 PA, he had made several trips in transporting goods from the east to the traders in Fort Wayne. These trips were made in boats, by way of the Little river and St. Mary's river, the goods being carried across the portage some miles above Fort Wayne.
Upou making permanent location in Fort Wayne, Mr. Bar- nett opened a general store. In 1819 he was joined by Samuel Hanna, another of the honored pioneers of the county and one of whom individual mention is made on other pages of this work, and they formed a partnership under the firm name of Barnett & Hanna. The business of this firm was that of selling at whole- sale to the traders throughout the country hereabouts, and the headquarters of the firm was a log structure situated at the north- west corner of what are now Barr and Columbia streets. Goods were brought from the east by way of Toledo and thence up the Maumee river in pirogues or dug-outs, and from Fort Wayne the distribution was made to the various traders. About 1830 Mr. Barnett retired from active participation in this flourishing busi- ness enterprise, though he still continued to retain his interest in the same. About the same time Allen Hamilton was admitted as an active member of the firm, which continued the business under the title of Samuel Hanna & Company.
Among the other enterprises which gained the support and co-operation of Mr. Barnett at this time was that of milling. In 1824 he associated himself with Anthony Davis in the erection of a mill on the St. Mary's river, near the site of the present Or- phans' Ilome of Allen county, this mill Jater known as Beaver's mill and having been one of the first in this section of the state. Like many others of the carly settlers, Mr. Barnett made large in- vestments in real estate, and among other properties he owned a farm which embraced the block included between Calhoun and Harrison and Berry and Wayne streets, in the center of the city of Fort Wayne today.
In 1824 was solemized the marriage of Mr. Barnett to Nancy Welch Hana, of Troy, Ohio, a sister of Samuel Hanna, who came to Fort Wayne a few years later and became a partner with Mr.
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Barnett in business. For their first home Mr. Barnett erected what was then considered a very palatial residence, on East Columbia street, this being the first brick structure built in the town. It is interesting to note that this old land mark is still standing, being now utilized as a bakery. After residing in this banca fina number of yours Mr and Mrs Barnett built for them- selves another residence, on West Berry street, on the site now occupied by the establishment of the Wolf & Dessanr Dry Goods Company, and in this home he continued to reside until his death, June 7, 1851, while his wife survived him by a number of years, being summoned into eternal rest on August 10, 1857. Both were devoted members of the Presbyterian church, and Mr. Barnett was one of the founders and most influential members of the First Presbyterian church of Fort Wayne, and he was the second man buried in Fort Wayne under Masonic auspices.
James and Naney W. (Hanna) Barnett became the parents of eight children, of whom only four lived to adult age. Concern- ing them we incorporate brief record. Jolm Houston Barnett died in 1872, a bachelor. Mary was married, in 18-19, to Watson Wall, of Fort Wayne, and she now resides in St. Louis, Missouri, as do also her four children, Charles W., James, Mrs. Maitland Dyer and Mrs. Susan Beard. Abraham G. Barnett was married, in 1859, to Elizabeth Angell, and of their children four are living, Byron II., Mrs. Katharine Beamer, James and Susan. Susan R. Barnett, the next in order of birth of the four children who at- tained maturity, was married, in 1870. to John A. Shoaff, and they became the parents of three children, of whom two are living: Mary, who is the wife of Albert JJ. Mitchell of St. Louis, Missouri, and Fred B. Mrs. Shoaff still resides in Fort Wayne, where she was born and reared and where she has ever made her home. To her kindly offices we are indebted for the data from which this memoir of her honored father is prepared.
All who remember James Barnett seem to imite in apprais- ing him as a man of many sterling qualities. He is described as exceedingly frugal in his personal habits, yet generous to an un- usual degree toward others; as fiery-tempered, yet of strong self- control; honest and just, and of great physical strength and cour- age. It is said that he was known far and wide among the In- dians for his great strength and swiftness as a runner. Owing to the hardships and exposures of his early life, which were too great
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for even his natmally robust constitution to withstand, he lo. t his health at a comparatively early age, and, after a lingering ill- ness of about twelve years' duration, he passed to his reward.
As to the estimation in which James Barnett was held by his contemporaries, the following editorial, which appeared in the Fort Wayne Weekly Times of June 19 1931 "
.We last week performed the melancholy duty of amouue- ing the decease of this venerable and highly respected citizen, and we had reason to believe that some of his numerous friends who are acquainted with his early history and subsequent career would, in time for today's paper, prepare a suitable obituary. In this expectation we have been disappointed, but we cannot let the oc- casion pass withont testifying, however briefly and imperfectly, our respect for his memory. Strange as it may seem, we have been unable to ascertain with certahity his precise age or the place of his nativity, but from the imperfect items we have been able to gather we believe his age to have been abont sixty-five years, and that he was born in Kentucky. He was a hardy, efficient frontiersman of remarkable prowess and brave as Caesar. At a very early age he was employed with his father in packing pro- visions from the settlements, as Cincinnati and Dayton were then called, to the army in this region, and we have been informed that when a very small boy, as early as Wayne's campaign, he was at this place with his father. His peculiar personal qualifications, his great sagacity and his experience rendered him a most valu- able assistant as messenger and bearer of dispatches between difficult and ahnost inaccessible posts and places during the war of 1812. Wherever there were difficulties to overcome or dangers to be encountered in that line, on all this western frontier, there was James Barnett.
"He settled permanently at this place, as nearly as we can learn, about 1818, since which time he has constantly resided here and been intimately identified with the interests of the place, in its progress from a mere trading post, when the country for hun- dreds of miles in every direction was an unbroken wilderness, to its present prosperous and flourishing condition. He erected the first brick building that went up in this town, the two-story house vet standing on the north side of Columbia street and first door cast of the Times building. He served for many years as justice of the peace. We have been told, and that none doubt, that he
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brought more money here than any other of the old class of set- tlers, and it is believed that but few of the new ones brought as much, and with his abundant means at that day, if he had been avaricious and grasping, he might have amassed an immense for- tune. But he was nothing of the kind; his hand was always 'open the lost to the woods and suffering His capital was always employed, but more frequently for the benefit of others than him- self. It was a 'placer' from which the foundation of several splen- did fortunes were dug. He was emphatically the poor man's friend, and we doubt if ever a person approached him needing as- sistance and was turned away empty. Honest and confiding to an eminent degree himself, he was wont to confide too much in others, and frequently suffered by becoming involved in their liabili- ties. Still, it is supposed that he has left a handsome compe- toney for those near and dear to him whom he has left behind."
Such was James Barnett, a noble, honorable, generous, open- hearted man, and, as was said at his funeral, "the noblest work of God, an honest man." Owing to early hardships and exposures his constitution had been shattered, and for the last two or three years of his life le was quite feeble, being finally called from his earthly habitation to dwell in the home "not made with hands, eternal in the heavens." His funeral was attended by a large con- course of citizens and by the Masonic fraternity in full regalia. Ilis loss was felt as a personal bereavement by the citizens in general, and in these later years, seeing his life in strong per- spective, we can well understand the high regard in which he was held in the community which was so long his home and the scene of his earnest and effective labors.
WALTER S. PARIS.
A due measure of sheepss ingervia le a from dearly defined purpose and consecutive effort in the affairs of life, but in following out the carver of one who gained success by his own efforts there comes into view the intrinsic individuality which made such accomplishment possible. Such attributes were evi- dently possessed by the late Walter S. Paris, who, during all his manhood years, was prominent in the commercial and industrial life of the city of Fraukfort, Indiana, and who succeeded in leav- ing the indelible imprint of his personality upon the lives of all with whom he came into contact. He always stood ready to iden- tify himself with his fellow citizens in any good work and extend a co-operative band to advance any measure that was calculated to better the condition of things in his native community, that would give better government, elevate mankind, insure higher standards of morality and the highest ideals of a refined, ennobling, intel- lectual culture, being, like his honored father before him, a man of public spirit and correct conduet, who, like him, enjoyed the confidence and esteem of all who knew him, by reason of these commendable characteristics, coupled with a genial, gentlemanly address and a heart of charitable and hospitable impulses. In- decd, no family in (inton county, from the days of its earliest history to the present time, has been better or more favorably known than that represented by the subject of this memoir, the name Paris having stood for progress and upright manhood through all the generations of the past, and Frankfort and Clin- ton county owe much to the several members of the same for their commendable work in present and past periods of their history.
Walter S. Paris was born in Frankfort, Indiana, April 21, 1865, and was the son of James II. and Julia A. (Blinn) Paris. James II. Paris came from an old English family and he was one of the pioneer settlers of Clinton county, Indiana, coming here whe, this locality was sparsely settled and when wild game was abundant in the great forests that covered the undrained swamps, but he had the sagacity to foresee a great future for this county and he was soon well established and in due course of time became
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one of the county's most substantial men. He was one of the or- ganizers of the First National Bank at Frankfort and was its president for a number of years, in fact, its large success was due for the most part to his able management. He and his son, Wal- ter S., of this memoir, were leaders in a business way of this lo- : :...... . . ..... II. dank an ahidines interact in publie affairs and did much in the general upbuilding of the county.
There were eight children in the family of James H. Paris, six of whom are living at this writing, namely: Jacob B. is de- ceased; Elizabeth, Georgiana, Linna, James H., Jr., Thomas C., May and Walter S., subject of this memoir.
Walter S. Paris grew to manhood in his native town and re- ceived his early education in the public schools here, and when he became of proper age he began assisting his father in the store, the 3 literally growing up with the business. After he finished school he took a regular position in the store and, being by nature a good business man, soon became familiar with the various phases of the dry goods business, continuing thus until the death of the father, his mother dying about a year later.
Walter S. Paris continued to conduct the store, with the as- sistance of his two brothers, for about ten years after the death of the father, then he sold out his interest in the same and went to Louisville, Kentucky, where he engaged in the hotel business with two of his friends, Charles and John Ross. He was very successful in this line of endeavor as he had been in the store, but his career was suddenly terminated by death when in the zenith of his powers, on June 23, 1909. Ilis body was brought back to Frankfort for interment.
Mr. Paris was united in marriage with Lunetta Clark, dangh- ter of Francis and Sarah E. (Buntin) Clark. Her father was born in Tippecanoe county, Indiana, and he came to Frankfort. Clinton county, about forty-four years ago, being amon, the carly settlers, and here, through close application and able management, he be- came well established and well known and is one of the influential men of his community for years. He has devoted his life to gen- eral agricultural pursuits, and owns one of the choice farms of the county, but has now turned over the active work of the same to others; however, he still manages it, overseeing it from bis residence in Frankfort, where he has been most comfortably lo-
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cated for some time. He has accumulated a competency through his long years of industry. The county owes much to him for its later-day progress in material lives, and he is held in high esteem by all classes and is regarded as one of the most representative mon of this locality.
His father. Daniel D. Clark, was the scion of a worthy 11
Jana fanny, and there he grew up and was educated, coming to Tippecanoe county, Indiana, from Concetient, and was prominent in railroad affairs for a member of years, having been one of the men who financed the Clover Leaf railroad when it came into Clinton comity. Francis Clark's wife, Sarah E. Bun- tin, was from pioneer Kentucky stock. Her father, Elilm Buntin, was one of Indiana's first settlers, a typical pioneer of the days of our early history, a brave, hard-working, honest man, who blazed the trail from Kentucky to Clinton county, when the far- reaching primeval forests were the haunts of the red men and all manner of kindreds of the wild. He was a famous Indian fighter. The old Indian trail went through his farm in this could- ty, which place he literally howed out from the dense woods. His father was a soldier in the war of 1812, and one of his brothers fought with Gen. William Henry Harrison against the Indians of Tecumseh and the Prophet in the early years of the nineteenth century. Francis Clark was a soldier in the Civil war, having seen much hard service as a member of the Seventy-second Regi- ment, Indiana Volunteer Infantry, serving three years and par- ticipating in a number of important campaigns and several great battles. He is a prominent and active member of the Grand Army of the Republic.
The date of the marriage of Walter S. Paris and Lunetta Clark was February 11, 1891. This union was without issue.
Mr. Paris was, in his fraternal relations, a member of the Masonie order, having attained the Knight Templar degree, and he also belonged to the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. He was a man who lived for his family, spending as much time as possible at home, and was fond of every comfort that his wife could enjoy with him. He enjoyed traveling and motoring, loved the outdoors and was a genial, sociable, kindly gentleman whom everybody greatly admired.
HENRY D. S.TITH.
In the death of the late Henry B. Smith, Blackford county lost one of its representative citizens. As the day, with its morn- ing of hope and promise, its noontide of activity, its evening of complete and successful efforts ending in the rest of the night. so was the life of this honored man. His career was a long, busy and useful one, and although he devoted his attention primarily to his individual affairs, as is quite natural and right, he never al- lowed the pursuit of wealth to warp his kindly nature, but pre- served his faculties and the warmth of his heart for the broaden- ing and helping influences of human life, being to the end a kindly, genial friend and gentleman with whom it was a pleasure to meet and converse. Through the long years of his residence in this locality he was ever true to the trusts reposed in him, whether of a public or private vature, and his reputation in a business way was unassailable. He commanded the respect of all by his up- right life and engraved his name indelibly on the pages of Black- ford county's history. His actions were over the result of care- ful and conscientious thought, and when once convinced that he was right, ho suggestion of policy or personal profit conld swerve bim from the course he had decided upon. His career was com- plete and rounded in its beautiful simplicity; he did his full duty in all the relations of life, and he D .d beloved by those near to him, and respected and esteemed by his fellow citizens.
Henry B. Smith was des ended from sterling ancestry, his father, Hon. Jeremiah Smith, having been one of the most dis- tinguished citizens of Randolph county, Indiana. Jeremiah Smith was born in 1805 in South Carolina, and when twelve years of age accompanied his father, William Smith, to Randolph county, In- diana, locating at Winchester, where he was reared to manhood. Though his educa mal advantages were limited, he was a diligent student and ever aally became a successful teacher. He turned his attention to surveying, in which he soon became proficient, and from 1820 to 1822 was engaged in a survey of the Kankakee country. Having decided upon the legal profession as his life work, he began the study of Blackstone in the office of Zachariah Hiatt, at Winchester. He was admitted to the bar of Randolph county in 1837 and entered at once upon the active practice of his
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profession. He also sery i several years as deputy county re. corder. Hi abilities were quickly recognized by his fellow citi- zens and he was called at different times to fill nearly every local office of note, among which may be mentioned deputy recorder, clerk, deputy sheriff, sheriff, surveyor, prosecuting attorney and circuit judge, in all of which he displayed abilities of a high order. For thirty, years Judge Smith was recognized as a leader at the bar of his county and comment th .. is 'ining one of the most judges of English law in the state of Indiana. In 1839 Judge Smith created the Franklin House in Winchester and later, with Hon. O. H. Smith, he located the town of Union City. He was a volunninous writer, among his productions being "Reminiscences of Randolph County" and "Civil History of Randolph County," both of which are of great value as preserving important local historical data and both evincing a high order of literary talent. Judge Smith married Cynthia Dye, who bore him ten children, and her death occurred on July 7, 1872, his death occurring in December following. For over forty years Judge Smith was one of the most conspicuous figures in Winchester and Randolph county. In polities he was an uncompromising advocate of Demo- cratie principles, while in his religious views he was affiliated with the Disciple, church, of which he was an earnest supporter. He was ( dinently successful as a business man, while personally he was a man of the strictest integrity, retaining the confidence of all who knew him.
Henry B. Smith, commonly known among his intimate friends as "Harry," was born in Winchester, Randolph county, Indiana, on the 22d of November, 1817. The first fourteen years of his life were spent in his native city and there he received his preliminary education. In 1862 he became a student in the Northwestern Christian University, where he continued his studies for three years. ITe theu went to Union City, Indiana, where he learned the trade of a jeweler. In April, 1869, he went to Hartford City and engaged in the jewelry business there until 1877, when he disposed of his stock and entered the office of county clerk, to whiel e had been elected the year previous. He served the peo- ple ciaciently in this capacity until August, 1881. In January, 1879, upon the organization of the Citizens State Bank, he had been unanimously elected its president and upon retiring from the county clerkship he devoted his entire time and attention to the interests of the bau .. The institution was successful from the
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start, much of its early prestige being dne directly to his influence and personal efforts. Upon the reorganization of the bank in 1859 Mr. Smith's labors received recognition in his re-election to the presidency, which office he held continously until his death.
In 1882 Henry B. Smith was elected to represent the district composed of Wells and Blackford counties in the Legislature. Ile served during one session on the house committees, on state's prison and library. He took an deuve part in Un Giovannivan of that legislative body and was influential in securing the passage of much needed and helpful log" tion. In 1890 he was elected to the state Senate from the district composed of Adams, Jay and Blackford counties, serving during, two sessions in this body and being assigned to several important committees. He devoted par- ticular attention to legislation bearing upon natural gas and in- troduced several important measures relating to this subject. In both houses of the General Assembly he had acquitted himself to his own great credit and to the entire satisfaction of his constitu- ents.
Besides being one of the largest stockholde's in the Citizens State Bank at Hartford City, Mr. Smith was interested financially in a number of other institutions over the state. He was a leading spirit in bringing about the organization of the Hartford City Glass Company, of which he remained a member of the board of directors until the concern was purchased, in 1899, by the Ameri- can Window Glass Company. He was one of the most extensive owners of real estate in Blackford county, his holdings aggregat- ing over one thousand acres. He was a leading spirit in bring- ing a number of manufacturing concerns to Hartford City and was always active in behalf of every movement for the good of the community. He had served as a member of the town board three years before a charter was obtained and was ever found ready to do his full share in pushing along the wheels of local progress.
In February, 1873, Henry B. Smith was united in marriage with Nancy A. Holliday, the daughter of Joseph W. and Elizabeth J. (Campbell) Holliday. Joseph .. Holliday was born in Eator, Ohio, on January 18, 1818, receiving his early education at Han- over and Greencastle, Indiana. Just before the Mexican war Mr. Holliday was elected to represent the district composed of Jay and Blackfe I counties in the Indiana Legislature, but in- stead of entering upon his duties as a member of that body he re- signed and enlisted as a soldier and was commissioned first lieu-
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tenant. On his Fram from the service he des again elected to the Logisk ture and a hile serving as a member of that body h death occurred in 1852, when his daughter, Mrs. Smith, was but two years of age. It was a stanch Whig in his political affili. tions. Mrs. Smith's mother was born in Greene county, Ohio September 28, 1929, and her death occurred in September, 1861. Mrs. Smith was their only child. To Mr. and Mrs. Smith Werd JANon, name: mianem, who hives at home; Cynthia, cho is the wife of R. K. Willum, a lumber man at Hait- ford City; Gretta, the wife of Benjamin May, of Woodbury, Ne .. Jersey; Addic, who became the wife of Stephen Trentman and re- sides in Chicago. They have a son, Henry Smith Troutman.
Politically, 11. B. Smith had been for many years one of the leaders of the Democratic party in Blackford county, having served three terms as chairman of the county central committee and being an ardent advocate of Democratie principles and an influential factor in the campaigns of that party. Fraternally, he was a member of Blackford Lodge No. 106, Free and Accepted Masons, in which he had passed all the chairs, and had several times heen a representative to the grand lodge of the state. Al- though a member of no church, Mr. Smith was inclined toward Presbyterianism, to which denomination all the members of his family belong, and he was an attendant on the services of that church. He was a member of the Blackford Club, a purely social organization.
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