USA > Indiana > Fountain County > Past and present of Fountain and Warren Counties, Indiana, Volume 2 > Part 52
USA > Indiana > Warren County > Past and present of Fountain and Warren Counties, Indiana, Volume 2 > Part 52
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WILL B. REED.
A due measure of success invariably results from clearly defined purpose and consecutive effort in the affairs of life, and in following out the career of one who has gained success by his own efforts there comes into view the in- trinsic individuality which has made such accomplishment possible. Such
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attributes have been possessed by the subject of this taglow, Who, during the major part of his active life has been closely identified with the business and civic life of the city of Attica. He has always stood ready to identify him self with his fell & citizens in any good work and extend a co-operative hand to advance any measure that was calculated to better the condition of things in his community, that would give better government and insure higher standards of living, being, like his honored father before him, a man of cor- rect conduct and lofty ideals.
Will B. Reed was born in Delphi, Indiana, on March 1, 1856, and is the son of J. C. Reed, D. D., and Emma ( Boothroyd ) Reed, natives, respectively, of Butler county, Ohio, and England. The subject's paternal grandfather, Thomas Reed, was a native of Pennsylvania, who moved to Ohio, where he successfully followed farming, his death occurring near Lafayette. Indiana. He was the father of four children, namely: Joseph C., the subject's father ; Willard, Thomas and Anma, who married Emma Boothroyd. Joseph C. Reed was educated in and about Dayton, Indiana, and during the first years of his active life followed farming. Eventually he entered the ministry of the Methodist Episcopal church, to which the remainder of his active years were devoted. He was an earnest and faithful worker in that cause and as a preacher he was held in high repute, being a man of great eloquence, possess- ing a wonderful command of language and an earnestness of manner that carried conviction to the hearts of his hearers. He married Emma Booth- royd, the daughter of Joseph Boothroyd, of England, and they became the par- ents of the following children : Mary, the widow of the late James Adams, who was a railroad conductor : Will B., the immediate subject of this sketch ; Anna, the wife of J. Brady, of Attica ; Enma is the widow of the late Prof. A. E. Davisson, of Lincoln University, Lincoln, Nebraska; since her hus- band's death, Mrs. Davisson has held a chair in the same institution ; Jose- phine is the wife of F. E. Beular, an architect. Politically, Joseph C. Reed was a Republican; fraternally, was a Free and Accepted Mason. He died in 1888, being survived a number of years by his widow, whose death oc- curred in 1906.
Will B. Reed was educated in the graded and high schools of Lafayette, Indiana, and at the close of his school work he was for two years employed as a clerk in a grocery store. During the following two years he taught school, but his ambition was to enter the legal profession and to this end he devoted his spare time to the study of law, being admitted to the bar in 1882. He had moved to Attica in 1877 and during the first nine years of his profes- sional career he was associated with Judge Isaac E. Schoonover, after which
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he practiced alone. He was successful as a lawyer and commanded an ex- cellent practice at the local bar. On March 1, 1883, Mr. Reed became tecre- tary of the Attica Building and Loan AAssociation, which position he still holds, his long retention in the office being a testimonial to the efficient and faithful manner in which he has handled the affairs of the association. He has given his best efforts to the building up of the association, the assets of which now amount to $550,000, being the largest institution of the kind in the state, loc. I population considered. Mr. Reed devoted himself enthusi- astically to this work and this caused him to some extent to drift away from the active practice of the law, so that for a number of years the only legal work he does is in connection with the building and loan association.
In September, 1894, Mr. Reed was elected mayor of Attica and so thor- oughly satisfactory has been his discharge of the duties of this office that he has been retained continuously in the office to the present time. The growth and prosperity of the city has kept pace with the growth of the building and loan association and Mr. Reed has been indefatigable in his efforts to upbuild the city and to advance the best interests of the entire community. In these efforts he has been backed by the best sentiment of the city and he has stamped the impress of his personality on the history of Attica, many of its improvements and much of its advancement being directly attributable to his personal efforts and influence. Politically, Mr. Reed is a Republican and from 1886 to 1890 was prosecuting attorney of the district composed of Fountain and Warren counties, while from 1890 to 1893 he was city attorney of Attica. Fraternally, he is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, the Knights of Pythias and the Modern Woodmen of America. In addition to his duties as outlined, Mr. Reed also does a general probate business, in- surance, receivership and managing estates. His honesty and integrity have never been questioned and because of his high character he has always en- joyed the unstinted friendship of all who know him.
In April, 1886, Mr. Reed was married to Carrie L. Hays, the daughter of Dr. D. K. Hays, and they have one child, Nayne, a graduate of the Indiana University at Bloomington and who is now teaching school.
. JOHN T. MOFFIT.
It is oftentimes considered by those in the habit of superficial thinking that the history of so-called great men only is worthy of preservation and that little merit exists among the masses to attract the attention of the biog- rapher or historian. A greater mistake was never made. No man is great
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in all things and very few are great in many things. Many by a lucky stroke achieve lasting fame who before that had no reputation beyond the faits of their neighborhoods. It is not a history of the lucky stroke that hemis humanity most, but the long study and effort which made the lucky stroke possible. It is the preliminary work, the method, that serves as a guide for the success of others. Among the oldler residents of Warren county who have achieved success along steady lines of action is John T. Moffit, a man whose character is above reproach and who richly merits the confidence and esteem which all freely accord him, for he took a deep interest in the develop- ment of the locality and always stood ready to do his full share in the work of progress.
John T. Moffit, who is now living retired in his comfortable and attrac- tive home, is a native of the state of Maryland, having first seen the light of day in Washington county, in June. 1828, and is the son of John and Mary Moffit. In 1863 John Moffit came to Indiana, locating in Warren county, and during the remainder of his years he has been continuously identified with this section of the state. As a farmer lie wa: practical and industrious and cleared up and put into cultivation much land, having in that way done his full share in developing this localitv. He bought land, being the owner of some of the choice farming land of this locality. Though he is now, at the age of eighty-four years. retired from active labor, he still takes his old-time interest in the public welfare and is rightfully numbered among our best citizens. To him and his wife were born the following children: Mollie, Rena Belle, J. Edward ( who is mentioned more fully in a separate sketch elsewhere in this work) and William, who is a successful farmer in Prairie township, this county. The mother of these children, to whom Mr. Moffit was married in 1863, the year of his arrival in this state, bore the maiden name of Anna Davis.
Mr. Moffit is a man of sterling character and his stanch support and in- fluence have ever been found on the right side of every moral question.
JOHN S. DAVIS.
One of the worthy native sons of Warren county who has spent his life in his native community, having wisely decided that better opportunities ex- isted for him right here at home than elsewhere, is John S. Davis. His methods of tilling the soil might well be studied with profit by many who seem unable to wrest from a resisting nature the annual returns which their land in the rich Wabash country should yield, for he has made a careful study
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of all phases of general farming and has put into practical operation the le- sons he has learned.
Mr. Davis was born on july 13, 1864, in Pine township, Warren county, Indiana, and he is the son of Charles and Margaret Davis, a highly respected and well known old family, complete mention of whom will be found on another page of this work.
The subject grew to manhood in his native community and he first went to school in Good vine schoolhouse, in Liberty township, Jater finishing his schooling in the township where he now resides, having in the meantime worked at farining during the crop season. He worked hard when a young man and was economical and he was in time able to purchase his first piece of land. He managed well and prospered, so that now he is the owner of one of the choice farmsteads in the township, lying along the Dick and Judy pike road. His well improved and well cultivated farm consists of one hundred and twenty acres and on this he carries on general farming and stock raising. He has a good home and convenient outbuildings, and about his place may always be found a good grade of live stock and poultry. He has worked hard for what he has and is deserving of the large success which has attended his efforts.
Mr. Davis was married to Ida Hartz on May 1, 1889. She was born in Jordan township, Warren county, February 2, 1870, and was educated'in the common schools. She is the daughter of Adam and Mary Hartz. Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Davis, namely: Guy and Inez, the latter living at home and attending school; the former was married to Nellie Thorne, and they have two children, Edell and Eleanor.
Politically, Mr. Davis is a Republican, but he has never been an aspirant for political offices, preferring to leave the troubles of the office-holder to others while he looks after his farm and family.
J. L. COATS.
Among the successful agriculturists of Fountain county, Indiana, whose efforts and influence have contributed to the material upbuilding and general activity of their respective communities, J. L. Coats, of Van Buren township, occupies a conspicuous place. Early in his career he realized the fact that practical industry, wisely and vigorously applied, never fails of success; that it carries a man onward and upward, brings out his individual character and
J. L. COATS.
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acts as a stimulus to the efforts of others; that the greatest restilts in life are often attained by simple means and the exercise of the ordinary qualities of common sense and perseverance; that the every-day life affords ample opportunities for acquiring experience of the best kind; consequently Mr. Coats has ever been alert to seize the small opportunities that he has encoun- tered on the rugged hill that leads to life's better things.
J. L. Coats is a native son of Fountain county, having been born here on August 3, 1856. His parents were W. B. and Elizabeth ( Lucas) Coats, the father born in this county on October 18, 183 . and the mother born on December 1I, 1834. The subject's paternal grandfather, Joseph Coats, was born at Paris, Loudoun county, Virginia, on the 28th day of December, 1802, but was reared in Kentucky. The maternal Grandfather White bore the rank of captain and his ancestry is traced back to William, who was born in Eng- land early in the eighteenth century.
J. L. Coats was reared under the parental roof and he secured his educa- tion in the common schools of his neighborhood. During all of his mature life he has applied himself assiduously to agricultural pursuits, with a success commensurate with his efforts. He is the owner of four hundred and forty-five acres of as good land as can be found in his section of the county, all of which is tillable with the exception of about forty acres. He carries on diver- sified farming operations, raising all the crops common to this locality, and also gives some attention to the raising of live stock, of which he keeps at all times some good grades. Mr. Coats has made inany improvements on the place, including the remodeling of the buildings, so that today he has a com- fortable and attractive home.
On January 26, 1878, Mr. Coats was married to Eva Lynna Clark, daughter of Samuel Kyle and Rebecca Jane (Stafford) Clark, and to them have been born the following children: Zulah, born December 4, 1878: Fred, born June 13, 1880; Henry B., born December 10, 1881 ; Mable, born February 27, 1884; Lucas, born April 27, 1887: Max A., born March 14, 1889, and Ruby, born November 12, 1891. Their pleasant home, which is located four and a half miles south of Veedersburg, is the center from which flows a spirit of hospitality which has always characterized the members of the family. An automobile contributes to the pleasure of the home life.
Politically, Mr. Coats is a stanch Republican, but takes no part in public affairs beyond the casting of his ballot for the men of his choice, preferring to devote his time to his individual affairs. He is known to be a man of high- est integrity and he numbers his friends by the scores throughout the com- munity of his residence.
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CHARLES FRANCIS.
This is an age in which the farmer stands pre-eminently above any other class as a producer of wealth. Ile simply takes advantage of the winds, the warm air, the bright sunshine and the refreshing rains, and applying his own hands and skill to nature's gifts he creates grain, hay, live stock, etc., all of which are absolute necessities to the inhabitants of the world, for no matter what our vocations and avocations may be or where we may choose to main- tain our home, we cannot lose sight of the fact that we are depending upon the tiller of the soil and without him the entire human race would perish. It has been well said by one of our wisest men, "Burn down your cities and leave our farms and they will spring up again as if by magic, but destroy the farms and the grass will grow in the streets of every city."
Charles Francis was born on January 4, 1866, in Tippecanoe county, Indiana, close to the Montgomery county line, was taken by his parents to Illinois when two months old and in the following fall was brought to War- ren county, and has since continuously resided in the same neighborhood in Prairie township. His father, William A. Francis, was born in 1839, in Ripley, Brown county, Ohio, and when thirteen years old came to Indiana, locating at Attica. During the latter part of the journey he rode a horse down the banks of the old Wabash and Erie canal. Here he found employ- ment as a farm hand. His death occurred on February 25, 1896. On Febru- ary 16, 1865, he married Elizabeth Wallace, the daughter of Hugh and Jane Wallace, of Tippecanoe county, emigrants from Ireland, where, in county Cavan, the daughter was born. To William and Elizabeth Francis were born four sons, of whom the subject of this sketch is the oldest. The mother is still living and is making her home with the subject of this sketch.
The subject attended the Prairie Chapel school, on the prairie near his boyhood home, having no opportunity to secure higher education. How- ever, he has been a keen observer and has learned his lessons well in the school of experience, so that today he is considered a man of wide and varied information. In his boyhood days, before the advent of the railroads in this part of the country, he and his mother hauled the grain from the farm to the markets at Attica and other river points, a distance of twenty-four miles. The fine farm which Mr. Francis now owns was accumulated and improved through his own industry and economical management and he is entitled to the fullest meed of credit for what he has accomplished.
On March 19, 1891, Mr. Francis was married to Lena Keister, the
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daughter of George Keister, and to this union one son, Aaron, was born on April 24, 1892. On February 14, 1911, Mr. Francis married Jennie Luella Sears, the daughter of Francis M. and Rebecca A. Scars, her birth having occurred on July 29, 1873, in Prairie township, Warren county, Indiana, near her present home. The son, Aaron, has been educated in the common and high schools and has at his disposal the means for a college education.
Politically, Mr. Francis renders his support to the Republican party. Fraternally, he is a member of Wylie Lodge No. 687, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and Ambia Lodge No. 443. Knight- of Pythias, both at Ambia. He is a man of many excellent qualities of character and in his home com- munity, where he is best known, he is held in the highest regard by all who know him.
ALBERT BRIER.
This enterprising farmer and prominent citizen, who has attained to a position of financial independence and is now enjoying the fruits of his labors in a life of ease and honorable retirement, is a native of Warren county, Indiana, and dates his birth from the 20th day of February, 1848. His father, Andrew Brier, was born in Pennsylvania, but when quite young went to Urbana, Ohio, and from the latter pl. : e came in 1830 to Warren county, Indiana, where he decided to locate, being almost nineteen years of age at the time of his arrival. Pleased with the appearance of the country, he entered land, which he improved and at intervals thereafter added to his original purchase until he became the possessor of six hundred and forty acres, all valuable and, when improved, one of the finest tracts of real estate in the country. Andrew Brier was a typical man of the period in which he lived, a pioneer in the true sense of the term, and he bore no small part in the development and subsequent growth of the section of the country in which he settled. When he arrived at the scene of his new place of abode the country was a dense wilderness and the feet of the red man still pressed the soil, but with an energy born of a determination to succeed he addressed himself resolutely to the task of carving out a home and in dne season realized the results of his well-directed efforts in one of the finest farms in the country and a competency that placed him thercafter above the necessity of further active labor and gained for him an influential position among the leading agriculturists and well-to-do men of the community in which he resided. In early life he learned carpentry and for some years followed his trade in
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Chicago, where there was a great demand for mechanics, especially builders, whose services commanded higher wages than those of any other class of workmen. By husbanding his earnings with scrupulous care and at favorable opportunities investing them in real estate, he finally became quite well-to-do, at the time of his death, as already stated, being classed with the wealthiest men in his part of the country. His wife, Malinda, was a native of Ohio and well fitted by nature and training to co-operate with her hsuband in laying the foundation of home and fortune in the wilderness of Warren county. She was a true help-mate, bore her full share of the hard work required to make a farm in pioneer times and lived to see the wilderness give place to a very garden of beauty and plenty. To this estimable couple were born nine chil- dren, four boys and five girls, namely: John W. Asbury, Albert (the subject of this sketch), Horace (deceased), Mrs. Hannah Little, Mrs. Avis Liv- ingston, Mary, Sallie, Byron and Susan, the last three deceased.
J. EDWARD MOFFIT.
The name of J. Edward Moffit is well known among the leading farmers of the eastern part of Warren county, a gentleman who, through close atten- tion to business and unswerving industry, has met with a large degree of material success. He has in him many of the elements that always win in the battle of life, no matter where fought out, and because of his upright life and commendable habits he enjoys the sincere respect and esteem of the entire community.
J. Edward Moffit is a native of the same section of the county in which he now lives and is the son of John T. and Anna C. (Davis) Moffit. John T. Moffit was born in 1828 in Washington county, Maryland, coming to Indiana in 1863, and engaged in farming. While in Maryland he was owner of a canal boat that ran from Cumberland to Alexander and Georgetown. In time of the war his boat was pressed into service and taken from him, but he never received any pay for it. He is still living, at the ripe old age of eighty- four years, being numbered among the fine old men of the county. He is the father of four children, Mollie, Rena Belle, J. Edward and William, the latter being a resident of Prairie township, Warren county. The marriage of John T. and Anna C. Davis was consummated in 1863.
J. Edward Moffit secured his education in the common schools of War- ren county. As a farmer he is a keen, sagacious man, of sound. principles and
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excellent judgment, and in his dealings with his fellow men he is actuated by only the right motives. In his farming operations he has shown ability of a high order and his excellent farm is kept under a high state of cultivation. He raises all the crops common to this section of the state and also gives some attention to the raising of live stock, in the handling of which he has been successful. He has a pleasant and attractive home and the general ap- pearance of the place is a credit to the owner. He has always followed farming, having worked on the home farm for his father during his boyhood vacation periods. He early formed habits of economy and, carefully saving his earnings, he was enabled to make his first purchase of one hundred and eighty-one acres in Liberty township, on the Range Line gravel road, near Winthrop, which he sold, and then purchased his present farm of one hundred and fifty-four acres one mile north of Williamsport on the State gravel road.
Mr. Moffit was united in marriage with Sylvia .A. Brier, the daughter of Albert Brier, an enterprising farmer and prominent citizen of Liberty town- ship, this county, who is now living in retirement at Williamsport. Albert Brier was born on February 20, 1848, and is the son of Andrew and Malinda Brier, who were pioneers of Warren county, having come here from Ohio, in 1830. To Mr. and Mrs. Edward Moffit has been born a son, Lester E.
Fraternally, Mr. Moffit is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons and the Knights of the Maccabees. He is widely known and is well liked by all who know him.
ORRIE MILLIGAN.
Orrie Milligan, whose fine farm of four hundred and fifty acres lies on the Independence road in Warren township, was born where he now lives on November 16, 1882, and he is the son of Robert A. and Mary (Smalley) Milligan. Robert Milligan, who was a pioneer of this county, was born in Hamilton county, Ohio, and came in a covered wagon. He had received his education in Ohio and his first trip to this section of Indiana was as a looker for land.
The subject of this sketch was reared under the parental roof tree and was given splendid educational advantages. After completing the course in the country schools, he attended the Attica public school. He then supple- mented this preparatory training by taking the classical course in Michigan University, at Ann Arbor, leaving that institution with a good practical edu- cation. He then returned home and assumed the management of his father's
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farm, to the operation of which he has devoted himself. He gives intelligent direction to the work to which he has applied himself and is meeting with results fully commensurate with his efforts. He is thoroughly up-to-date in his methods and no detail of the farm work escapes his attention. The place is well improved in every respect and is numbered among the best farms of this section of the county. Mr. Milligan raises all the crops common to this section of the country, and also gives considerable attention to the raising of live stock, in which he has been very successful and which he has found to be a profitable source of income.
On October 3, 1906, Orrie Milligan was united in marriage with Esta Judy, the daughter of John F. and Matilda (Hunter) Judy, a sketch of whom appears elsewhere in this work. To Mr. and Mrs. Milligan have been born two children, Dorothy Ellen and Elsie Virginia.
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