Memorial record of northeastern Indiana, Part 92

Author:
Publication date: 1896
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 932

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837

NORTHEASTERN INDIANA.

ICHAEL E. LAWRENCE, who devotes his time and energies to agricultural pursuits and to the raising of fine horses, resides on section 25, Columbia township, Whitley county, where he has 219 acres of rich and arable land. Of this 1 30 acres is under cul- tivation, and in addition to general farming he is extensively and successfully engaged in stock-raising. In 1892 he began to breed and raise roadsters, Morgan, Mambrino and Hambletonian horses. He now has thirty head of fine horses, including a standard-bred, Canada, registered as No. 15,430. His farm is one of the best improved in the county and his barns and outbuildings are models of con- venience, while the neat and thrifty appear- ance of the place indicates the careful super- vision of the owner.

Mr. Lawrence was born in Wayne county, Ohio, on the 2d of June, 1855, and is the eldest of the three children of George W. and Eva A. (Mowrey) Lawrence, honored pioneer settlers of Columbia township, Whit- ley county. During the infancy of our sub- ject his parents emigrated westward to this county and upon his father's farin he was reared to manhood, early becoming familiar with all the duties that fall to the lot of the agriculturist. His education was acquired in school district No. 10, of Union town- ship, and no event of special personal im- portance occurred during his boyhood and youth. His training was such as to fit him for the practical duties of life, and to-day he is one of the honored and representative farmers of Whitley county.

Mr. Lawrence was married in April, 1878, to Miss Alice A. Van Meter, a native of Whitley county and a daughter of John and Francis (Du Puy) Van Meter, residents of Union township. The lady died in 1879, 43

leaving one son, William E., who was born on the 3Ist of January, 1879. In 1886 Mr. Lawrence was again married, his second wife being Miss Iantha B. Cassel, a native of Richland township, Whitley county, born in 1865, a daughter of Daniel Cassel, and a granddaughter of Nathan Chapman, one of the first settlers of Richland township. Three children grace this union,-George Ray, Pearl Keller and Victor Lyman.

In 1887 Mr. Lawrence removed to his present farm and since locating thereon has remodeled all the buildings and to-day he has one of the best improved places in the county. Both he and his wife are members of the Lutheran Church, and socially, he is connected with the Knights of Pythias and the Grange, of Spring Run. By his ballot he supports the men and measures of the Democratic party, but has never sought or desired office, preferring to give his time and attention to his business interests, in which he is meeting with good success.

J OHN A. SNYDER, a well known and much respected farmer residing on section 4, Washington township, Whitley county, Indiana, is rated as one of the oldest settlers now living here. Mr. Snyder is of German origin and possesses to a marked degree the sturdy characteristics of his worthy ancestors.

His parents, Adam and Elizabeth (Knop) Snyder, were both born in Germany, his fa- ther in 1801 and his mother in 1795. His maternal grandfather, Christian Knop, was a man of some prominence in Germany, and passed his life and died there. Adam Sny- der was a blacksmith by trade. In 1831 he and his wife emigrated to America, and on their arrival here selected as a place of loca-

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MEMORIAL RECORD OF

tion Mulberry township in Stark county, Ohio, where he had his first experience in farming. For a time he worked by the day and the job. Then he bought thirty acres, which he cleared and subsequently sold, and after this leased some land and cleared the same, receiving in payment the crops for seven years. In 1843 he came to Indiana, and at first rented a place eight miles north of Huntington. Six months later he moved to Whitley county, bought of Henry Sell three acres of land in Washington township, and after clearing the same sold it back to Mr. Sell. Then he purchased forty acres on sec- tion 20 of the same township, and four years later sold it. After this he moved back on Eel river just across the line in Columbia township, where for two years he lived on rented land. His next purchase was thirty acres where Jerry Steiner lives, in Columbia township. This land he cleared and on it made his home for a number of years, but finally sold out and bought sixty-six acres in Union township, the farm now occupied by Milo Harshbarger. Here he died in 1866, and his wife in 1870. They were the parents eight children, five of whom grew to matur- ity, namely: Elizabeth, deceased wife of William Lesley, left six children, three sons and three daughters; Mary, deceased wife of George W. Essig, deceased, left eight chil- dren, four sons and four daughters; Julia Ann, wife of William Lesley, South Whitley, this county; John A., whose name heads this article; and Catharine. Mrs. Lesley has no children by her present husband, but by her first husband, John Harshbarger, has five, a son and four daughters. The parents were members of the Lutheran Church, and for many years the father took an active part in church work.

Of John A. Snyder, the immediate sub-

ject of this sketch we record that he was born in Stark county, Ohio, February 18, 1836, and that he was seven years old at the time his parents removed to Indiana. Although quite young, he distinctly remem- bers their early settlement here. The chief inhabitants at this place then were Indians, while wolves, and deer, and occasionally a bear, were seen. His first schooling was at district No. 9 in Washington township. William Schultz was the teacher, and the school was a subscription one. He re- mained at the home place until two years after his marriage, and in the meantime he took the contract for and cleared several tracts of land. In 1863 he came to his present location. This land was then cov- ered with woods and was wholly unim- proved. His first work was the building of a log cabin, into which he moved his family and then he went to work in earnest to clear and improve the land. To his original tract, eighty acres, he added by subsequent purchase until now his farm comprises 220 acres, 160 of which are cleared and under cultivation, and of this he himself cleared 120 acres. All the improvements in the way of buildings and fences were placed here by him. Mr. Snyder is what may be termed a self-made man, for at at the time he started out in life on his own responsibility he had as his only capital the small sum of $30. To-day he is ranked with the prosperous and well-to-do farmers of his vicinity.

Mr. Snyder was married in 1860 to Elizabeth Cox, a native of Portage county, Ohio, born September 14, 1839. Her par- ents, George W. and Maria Cox, came to Whitley county, Indiana, in 1853, and set- tled in Columbia township. Both are de- ceased. Mrs. Snyder died July 27, 1887,

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and her remains are interred in Eberhard cemetery. She was the mother of eight children, seven of whom are living, as fol- lows: William A., who married Annie Goble, has one child, and lives in this town- ship; Maria E., wife of J. J. Goble, same township, has three children; Mary Jane, wife of Simon Ummal, Peabody, this county, has one child; John E .; Sarah Ann, wife of Victor Vincent, Forest, this county; George W., deceased; Charles F .; and Elmer E. Mrs. Snyder was a member of the Christian Church, while Mr. Snyder, like his parents, is a Lutheran. He is an Elder in the Church and has for years been an active member, for some time also being a leading Sunday- school worker. Politically he casts his vote and influence with the Democratic party. In 1888 he was elected Township Trustee, and he served in this office eighteen months, resigning at the end of that time.

Such, in brief, is a sketch of the life of one of Whitley county's reliable and worthy citizens, a man who is justly deserving of the high esteem in which he is held by all who know him.

OU G. SCHOLZE, proprietor of the Columbia Machine Works, Fort Wayne, is a native of Angola, Indiana, born September 16, 1865, and is a son of Theodore and Wilhelmina (Gruhl) Scholze, natives of Saxony, Ger- many. The parents came to America in the early '50s and located in Angola, where the father established a machine shop,- he being a machinist by trade, -and where he still resides, at the advanced age of seventy-six years. Five children com- prised the family of whom Lou G. is the youngest.

His primary education was obtained in the schools of his native village, and he was early in life trained in his father's shop, where he spent his leisure hours in master- ing, fundamentally, the intricacies of the machinist's trade. At the age of eighteen years he was graduated at the high school, and at this time was also quite proficient in his trade. His first position was in the machine shops of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Company, at Garrett, where he worked six months to acquire the finesse of a skilled artisan. Subsequently he worked in various shops in several States, acquiring a thorough and complete mastery of every detail in the business. In 1891 he located in Fort Wayne, securing employment in the shops of the Pittsburg Railroad Company, and in 1893 he bought the general machine works of Messrs. Carey & O'Connell and established his present enterprise.

His manufacturing facilities are com- prised in a commodious and well equipped shop, operated by steam power, and furnish- ing employment to a large force of skilled workmen. He conducts a regular machine jobbing and repairing business, including the specialties of model making and bicycle re- pairing, and he also builds special and ex- perimental machinery to order, in which department his intelligent ideas and large experience will be found of great assistance to inventors in perfecting their improvements.

While Mr. Scholze's trade is largely local it is gradually extending throughout In- diana and is reaching into Ohio. Those interested either in new or old machinery, or in overhauling old machines, will find many advantages and inducements by con- sulting the Columbia Machine Works, which already bear an important part in the in- ! dustrial resources of Fort Wayne.

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MEMORIAL RECORD OF

Mr. Scholze is a practical machinist, of sixteen years' experience, and a progressive and enterprising man. He is of a family of machinists, his grandfather especially hav- ing been a thorough machinist in the Father- land. For his wife the subject of this sketch married Miss Anna, a daughter of John Losch, of Newark, Ohio.

OBERT S. PETERSON .- It now becomes the privilege of the biog- raphist to offer a synopsis of the life history of one who holds preced- ence as the oldest member of the bar of Adams county, so far as active and consec- utive practice is concerned; one whose an- cestral history has been closely identified with this section of the Union since the early pioneer days when were essayed the initial efforts looking to its reclamation from the sylvan wilds; one who has gained dis- tinctive prestige in his profession, whose patriotic services to his country have been unstinted, and whose position in the respect and esteem of his fellowmen is assured be- yond peradventure.

John W. and Hannah (Smith) Peterson came to this country in an early day and here their marriage was consummated in the year 1840. The venerable father is still living, retaining his residence in St. Mary's township, three and one-half miles east of Decatur, and being one of the hon- ored patriarchs of Adams county. His wife was summoned into eternal rest in Febru- ary, 1859, her demise having occurred in Benton county, Iowa. Of their seven chil- dren five are yet living, our subject being of these the second in order of birth.

The date of our subject's nativity was February 1, 1845, and the place St. Mary's

township, this county, his father having early become possessor of a tract of land on section 17 and the same being still main- tained as the old homestead. Nurtured in the free and untrammeled life of the pio- neer farmstead and yet given that discipline which ever promotes healthful mentality and a regard for the dignity of earnest en- deavor, Mr. Peterson remained beneath the parental roof-tree until he had attained the age of eighteen years, his early educational advantages being such as were afforded in the district and select schools. He had not yet attained his majority when civil war cast its gruesome pall over a divided nation, and on the 9th of March, 1864, he showed his patriotism by enlisting as a member of Company G, Thirteenth Indiana Cavalry, with which he served with signal fidelity un- til the regiment was discharged, November 18, 1865.

After the close of the war and the main- taining of the supremacy of the Union arms, Mr. Peterson returned home and resumed the efforts which had been interrupted by the call to a higher duty. He devoted him- self to attending and teaching school in turn until the spring of 1867, when was opened to him the way to prepare himself for that profession in which he has labored so zeal- ously and attained to a high point of relative distinction. He entered the law office of Judge David Studabaker (to whom individual reference is made on another page) in the spring of 1867 and under his effective pre- ceptorage continued his legal studies until the following winter, when, in order to financially fortify himself for further effort, he again engaged in teaching school. In the spring of 1878 Mr. Peterson secured ad- mission to the bar, and the short time which he had given to acquiring that technical knowl-

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NORTHEASTERN INDIANA.

edge which entitled him to this distinction stands in striking evidence of his earnest devotion and his power of putting his knowledge to test under close and exacting examination. He continued his studies, however, for several months before his own preparatory standard was realized, and he then entered actively upon the practice of his profession in Decatur, forestalled with that personal confidence which begets ob- jective confidence. His active identification with professional work in Adams county, has now transcended the limitations of a quarter of a century, and within this time he has passed along the line from a " brief- less barrister " until he is known and hon- ored as one of the county's most able attor- neys and as one who has retained a client- age of representative character. His long residence in the county seat and the con- spicuous part he has taken in all important movements for the advancement of public interests have gained to him a personal ac- quaintanceship that makes his name a famil- iar one in almost every household in the coun- ty. His sterling probity and his scrupulous honor as a lawyer and a man have gained to him the respect and high regard of all who have known of his career and of the exalted principles which have actuated him.

In his political adherency Mr. Peterson is a stanch advocate of the principles and policies of the Republican party, but he has signally avoided anything in the line of seek- ing public preferment and has in no sense been a politician. Decatur has been a town whose political complexion is strongly Demo- cratic, and yet for the five years preceding the incorporation of the place as a city he held the position as President of the board of Trustees in the village, -a fact that shows his unmistakable popularity, since his party

was much in minority and could not alone have elected him to this important office. To our subject must ever be ascribed the credit of having given to Decatur that most important improvement implied in an effect- ive sewerage system-a provision which has great influence on the public health and which furnishes conveniences which can not be over-estimated in any community of consider- able population. He assisted in the work of securing and pushing through the narrow- gauge railroad in Adams county, and was also identified to a not inconsiderable degree with the promotion of the Chicago & Atlantic Railroad-now known as the Chicago & Erie.

In his fraternal relations Mr. Peterson is identified with the Grand Army of the Republic, having been one of the charter members of the organization, and he is also a member of the Masonic order. In religion he clings to the belief of the Presbyterian Church, of which he is a zealous member.

The marriage of our subject was solemn- ized September 25, 1868, at Concord church, Root township, this county, where he was united to Miss Fannie C. Kunkle, daughter of Samuel Kunkle, one of the pioneers of this county. Mr. and Mrs. Peterson became the parents of the following-named children: John S., Dora L., Martha A., Mary G., Kittie C., Lizzie Pearl, Calvin D., Bernice, Thomas E., and one who died in infancy. The family occupy a position of prominence in the social affairs of the city and are honored and esteemed by ali.

OUIS DIETHER & BROTHER, manufacturers of sash, doors, blinds moldings, etc., Superior street, Fort Wayne, is a leading house of its kind and was established January 1, 1888.

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MEMORIAL RECORD OF

The premises and possessions of the firm are large and complete, embracing lumber- yards and piling ground, a two-story plan- ing-mill, fully equipped with necessary wood- working machinery, operated by steam power, and employment being given to about fifty skilled workmen. The products com- prise all kinds of builders' finish, and the firm also carry a very heavy and complete stock of choice pine, ash and poplar lumber, lath, shingles, etc.

Mr. Louis Diether, the senior member, is a native of Fort Wayne, his birth occur- ring in 1850. In the city schools he obtained a practical business education. At the age of twenty years he made his debut into busi- ness by establishing himself in the hardware trade at Mendon, Michigan. Subsequently returning to Fort Wayne he accepted a po- sition with the well-known firm of Cochrane & Humphrey as bookkeeper; and later, with Nuttmann & Taylor, he filled a similar po- sition three years, and for five years in a sim- ilar capacity he was with Myer Brothers, wholesale druggists. Afterward he embarked in the lumber business, succeeding the firm of Cochrane & Humphrey, and in 1888 the firm of Diether & Brother was formed by the admission of Mr. John H. Diether to a part- nership. The junior member is also a na- tive of Fort Wayne, also receiving in the public schools of his native city a practical education. At the age of eighteen he began learning the harness-maker's trade, and two years later was admitted to the firm of F. Hitt & Company, manufacturers and dealers in saddles and harness, and was so engaged for twelve years when he disposed of his in- terest to enter into business with his brother.

He was married April 27, 1882, to Miss Malana McIlvaine, of Fort Wayne, who was born in New York city in 1862. Charles

and Barbara Diether, the parents of the Diether Brothers, were natives of the Fa- therland. Their marriage occurred in New York city and in 1850 they came to Indiana, locating in Fort Wayne the same year. They were cast in the same sturdy mold that characterizes all Germans who come to our shores. The mother departed this life in 1885. The Diether Brothers command the respect and confidence of all. They are men of excellent business ability, and their reputation for integrity and square dealing extends to the limit of their acquaintance.

ILLIAM JACKSON FREDER- ICK, who is one of the most pro- gressive citizens of northeastern Indiana, has for some years been prominently identified with the development of this section of the State, and its progress is due in no small degree to his efforts. He was born August 22, 1845, in the town of Franklin Square, Columbiana county, Ohio, and is a son of Joseph C. and Mary (Betz) Frederick. The maternal grandfather, Christian Betz, was born in Franklin county, Pennsylvania, and died in Ohio about 1863, at the age of seventy-eight years. He was a son of John Betz, who in 1804 removed from Franklin county, Pennsylvania, to Salem township, Columbiana county, Ohio, where he made a claim of the entire amount of land comprised in section II. He was the eldest son of Urban Betz, and was sent West by his father in 1803 in search of a favorable location for a home. He spent some time in Canada, and then returned, giving a good account of that country, but the father said that he had lived once under a king and never wanted to again.

John Betz wedded Mary Hawk, and a

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NORTHEASTERN INDIANA.

week later they began their long and labori- ous journey to Columbiana county, reaching that point in March, 1804. His first pur- chase made him the possessor of a pair of saddlebags, and he then started for the land office in Steubenville, Ohio, where he entered section 11. His father had a family of fourteen children, and nearly all reared large families of their own. In the spring of 1805 Urban Betz started from Franklin county, Pennsylvania, to join his son John in Ohio, bringing with him all of his own children save Mrs. Lovy Scott and Mrs. Katie Draher. With a six-horse team and three milch-cows they slowly made their way over mountains and through forests, and after twenty-five days of travel they reached Obbery Fork Bridge, Ohio, where they stuck fast in the mud and were obliged to send for John to help them out. Their trials and sufferings had been very great and the journey was particularly hard.

The founder of the Betz family in America was Ludwig Betz, who was born in Alsace, France, now Germany, and in 1751 left that country, probably sailing from Antwerp. He landed at Philadelphia, whence the family afterward removed to Franklin county. By trade he was a tailor. To Ludwick Betz and his wife Ann were born the following named children: Urban, Henry, Frederick, Conrad, Christian, Charles, Louisa, Barbara, and Maria. Of this family Conrad was about ten years old when they landed at Philadelphia. He worked in a bakery in that city for ten years in order to pay the price of the passage of the family across the ocean. The old Betz homestead on section 11, Salem township, Columbiana county, Ohio, has usually been willed to the youngest child in the family, and thus handed down from generation to

generation. It is at present occupied by David S. Betz, under whose management a reunion of the descendants and relatives of Urban Betz was called September 5, 1878, and 325 people responded and registered at this reunion. These people all belong to the Urban Betz branch of the family and repre- sented only about one-ninth of the descend- ants of Ludwick Betz.

The father of our subject, Joseph C. Frederick, was born in eastern Pennsylvania, and was a cooper by trade. He was brought West by his parents and for a time engaged in general merchandising in Washington- ville, Ohio. He wedded Mary Betz, and in their family were the following children: Mel- vina, deceased; Albert, who died at the age of seventeen; Alfred, a twin brother of Albert; Julietta, wife of Henry Sheets; Isa- bella, wife of Jesse Warrington; Isaiah, de- ceased; William J., of this sketch; Mary Ann, who died at the age of sixteen; and Joseph C. The father of this family died June 4, 1853, at the age of forty-five, when our subject was a child of nearly eight years. The mother is still living in Ohio, at the ad- vanced age of eighty-five. The paternal great-grandfather of our subject, Conrad Frederick, was a native of Germany. Emi- grating to this country he settled in Penn- sylvania. He was the father of six chil- dren, -four sons: David, John, Joseph and Conrad; and two daughters, Mary Adams and --- -. Conrad, the youngest of the sons and grandfather of our subject, and his wife, Ann Frederick, who was a native of Ireland, removed from Pennsylvania to a farm adjoining the town of Washingtonville, Ohio, about 1813, where they remained during the rest of their lives. They had seven children born to them, viz .: Sarah (Bossert), Katharine (Wollett), Nancy (Co-

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MEMORIAL RECORD OF

chel), Joseph C., John, Polly H. (Rosen) and Isaiah. Conrad with his wife Ann and eldest son, Joseph C., all lie buried in the Lutheran graveyard at Washington- ville, Ohio.

We now take up the personal history of our subject, who remained quietly at home until the 3d of September, 1861, when, at the age of sixteen, he joined the Union army as a member of Company I, First Ohio Infantry, Alex. McD. McCook's regi- ment. He was mustered out September, 21, 1864, at Chattanooga, Tennessee, after participating with his regiment in all the operations of the Army of the Cumberland and engaging in the battles of Shiloh, Stone River and Chickamauga. At the last named he was wounded in the left arm and for three months was unfit for duty, during which time he visited home. He took part in the campaigns to relieve General Burn- side at Knoxville, participated in the Atlanta campaign to within four miles of the city, when, his regiment's term of service having expired, they were sent North and were mustered out of service.

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Memorial record of northeastern Indiana, Part 92

Author: Publication date: 1896 Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Publishing Company Number of Pages: 932

Author:
Publication date: 1896
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 932