USA > Indiana > Tippecanoe County > Past and present of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, Volume II > Part 20
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HARRY C. SENSE
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Glen and Paul. Clarence married Elda Garman, of Mulberry, this county. Harvey G. married Anna Jacoby, of Clinton county, and they are the parents of one son, Clifford. Ottis G. married Miss Casman, of Lafayette, and they have two sons. The daughters .of William H. and Susan Sense are Dora A., married to Charles Wakeman and reside in Millersburg, Indiana; Ella married Henry Haag and they reside in West Lafayette; Ada B. married T. W. Lugar and reside in West Lafayette; Jessie married Robert Foster, of West Lafayette. Ida, at home.
Harry C. Sense spent his early life at home and received a fairly good common school education. Early in 1891 he married Emma V. Glick, who lived near Mulberry, Indiana,, where her family was long well established. This union has resulted in the birth of two daughters, Hazel C. and Fairy C .: also one son, Harlan Ray.
Mr. Sense early in life decided to become a carpenter and builder by trade and he set to work to learn the same, with the result that he has become one of the most skillful workmen in this locality. Two of his brothers, who became stone-masons, and one who learned carpentry, worked with him in partnership. and they incorporated for the purpose of contracting and man- ufacturing in 1904 under the firm name of Sense Brothers Company, and ever since they have grown in the volume of business they carry on until this is one of the important firms of Tippecanoe county, doing an extensive business throughout this and adjoining counties. About 1906 they began the manufacture of cement blocks. In the fall of that year and in the spring of 1907 they added a planing mill and lumber yard, and in 1909 another de- partment was added-tin and galvanized iron. Their business in all these departments has steadily grown and the future outlook for the firm is de- cidedly encouraging. They have handled some large jobs and their work has always been eminently satisfactory, owing to their skill and the high grade material they use, together with their strict honesty in dealing with the public.
Members of this family all grew up in Tippecanoe county and the brothers began making preparation to learn useful trades, and while working on the farm which their father rented they often discussed the various phases of the building trades. This farm was located in Perry township, near Monitor.
Their father, William H. Sense, started a tile factory about. 1881 or 1882 on the farm which he worked, but he sold the tile factory about 1883 and moved to Wabash township, north of Octagon, buying a tile factory there which he managed successfully for four or five years, then sold it and pur-
(45)
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chased a farm in the same township. Then Harry C. Sense went to Mul- berry and began learning the carpenter trade. After working at this trade for two years he began contracting in a small way and, seeking a larger field for his operations, he came to Lafayette, where he has since continued with unabated success.
Mr. Sense is a man of excellent business ability, exercising rare sound- ness of judgment and foresight and the fact that he has built up an extensive and well patronized business from a very small beginning is evidence of his industry and integrity.
FRANK KIMMEL.
Frank Kimmel, prosecuting attorney of the twenty-third judicial dis- trict and one of the leading members of the Lafayette bar, is a native of Tippecanoe county, Indiana, and a son of John and Tinnie (Newman) Kim- mel, the father born in Germany, but since childhood a resident of the county of Tippecanoe, where he is now engaged in business.
Louis Kimmel, the subject's grandfather, was reared in the old country, but when his son John was about four years old immigrated to the United States and settled at Lafayette, Indiana, where he engaged in business and in due time became one of the influential men of the city. At the breaking out of the Civil war, he went to the front as captain of a company recruited in Lafayette and served in that capacity until the cessation of hostilities. Later, in 1871-72, 1877-78-79-80. he was elected mayor and held the office with great credit. During the administration of President Benjamin Harri- son, Captain Kimmel was assistant United States marshal, with headquar- ters at Washington, D. C., and he was also in the government service for some time in Alaska, besides filling various other official posts. After a long and eminently useful career, Captain Kimmel discontinued active pur- suits and for some years past has been living a life of honorable retirement in the national capital, having reached the ripe old age of eighty-two years, but retaining to a marked degree the possession of his faculties, both physical and mental.
John Kimmel, father of the subject, has spent all but four years of his life in Lafayette and in point of continuous service is one of the city's oldest and most enterprising business men. He has been engaged in the book and stationery business for over thirty-five years, during which time he has built up a flourishing establishment and in the lines of goods handled
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commands the largest patronage in the city. For a number of years he has been active in promoting the progress of the community, served on the county committee from 1885 to 1890, inclusive, and has always manifested a lively interest in those measures and enterprises having for their object the good of his fellowmen.
John and Tinnie Kimmel are the parents of three children, the sub- ject being the oldest of the family; Estella, the second of the number, is still at home, and John, Jr., the youngest, is assistant division engineer of the Missouri Pacific Railroad, with headquarters at Little Rock, Arkansas.
Frank Kimmel, whose birth occurred at Lafayette, on May 25, 1876, was reared in his native city and, after finishing the course of the graded schools, entered Purdue University, where he pursued his literary studies for a period of two and one-half years, when he became a student of the law department of the University of Michigan. Entering the latter institution in 1898, he applied himself diligently until completing the prescribed course and receiving his degree in 1901, following which he practiced law one year in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and then returned to Lafayette, where he soon built up a lucrative professional business. He served five years as United States commissioner and 'in 1908 was elected prosecuting attorney of the twenty-third judicial circuit, for a term of four years, the duties of which position he has since discharged with commendable ability, proving a very capable and judicious official, earnest and untiring in his efforts to uphold the dignity of the law and bring the violators to the bar of justice, though not lacking in the elements of sympathy and charity in cases where circum- stances rather than intentions lead to the commission of crime.
Mr. Kimmel is well grounded in the principles of jurisprudence and stands today among the leading lawyers at a bar which from the beginning has enjoyed wide reputation for the commanding ability of its members. In the trial cases he is careful and easily perceives the weak points in the po- sition of his adversaries and before courts and juries frequently wins ver- dicts by clear, cogent argument, which at times rises to the impassioned and eloquent, but always logical and convincing. Mr. Kimmel is a Republican and as such has rendered valuable services to his party in a number of campaigns, being wise in council, judicious in leadership and an untiring and influential worker. Capt. Louis Kimmel, his grandfather, was one of the original Republicans of Indiana and a leader in the organization of the party in Tippecanoe county, all of his male descendants being loyal to the principles which he espoused and among the most active and influential local politicians in the city of Lafayette.
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Mr. Kimmel has one of the finest collections of law books in the city and when not otherwise engaged finds his greatest pleasure in poring over their contents, thus adding to his legal lore and fitting himself for greater efficiency in his chosen field of endeavor. His acquaintance with the world's best literature is also general and profound and his library large and carefully selected. Socially, he belongs to the Lincoln Club, a popular political organization composed of the leading young Republicans of Lafay- ette; he is also identified with the Lafayette Club and holds membership with Lodge No. 143, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.
ALBERT R. JAMISON.
Albert R. Jamison, of the mercantile house of Jamison Brothers, La- fayette, is a native of Tippecanoe county, Indiana, born in the township of Tippecanoe on June 25, 1847. John W. Jamison, his father, was a Kentuckian by birth, and his mother, who bore the maiden name of Prudence Wright, was born in Maryland. These parents became residents of Tippecanoe county as early perhaps as 1832 and were married in Tippecanoe township, where their respective families located on moving to their new home, in what was then a somewhat wild and undeveloped country. John W. Jamison died March 28, 1876. at the age of fifty years, and his wife died September 21. 1903.
Of the eleven children born to John W. Jamison and his wife Prudence all but one are living, their names being, in order of birth, as follows : Albert R., of this review: James W .; George A .: Oliver P .; Charles B .; Anna, widow of John N. Jackson; Nancy M., wife of Sylvester Jackson ; Belle Zora; Clarence F. and Frank B. Four of the brothers are associated in the mercantile business, under the firm name of Jamison Brothers, viz .: Al- bert R., George A .. Charles B. and Clarence F., the house of which they are the head being the largest of the kind in Lafayette and one of the most successful in the state.
The mercantile business conducted by this well known and popular firm was established November 5, 1879, by Albert R. Jamison, who, with about four hundred dollars capital, began in a modest way to deal in hardware, harness, etc., and it was not long until his trade was such as to render necessary the enlargement of the facilities, his patronage from the first far surpassing his expectations. Increasing the stock to meet the demand of
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his patrons and from time to time adding to the number of his salesmen, he kept pace with the city's advancement in mercantile interests, until within a few years his store became one of the most successful of its kind in the city and gave him prestige in business circles, here and elsewhere. Without following in detail the rise and subsequent development of this large and far-reaching enterprise, suffice it to say that during the first twelve years the business grew so rapidly in volume and importance that at the expiration of the period indicated it was deemed prudent to increase the capital and perfect a more thorough organization. Accordingly, on December 1, 1891, the company was incorporated, with a capital of twenty-six thousand dollars and given the name of Jamison Brothers, by which it has since been desig- nated, the subject's three younger brothers having become partners in the meantime. Since the latter date the progress of the firm has been un- impeded and its success most gratifying, as the present flourishing condi- tion abundantly attests, the invoiced stock on January 1, 1909, amounting to fifty-eight thousand, nine hundred and seventy dollars and the standing of the firm all that the proprietors or their friends could reasonably desire.
The Jamison Brothers carry full and heavy lines of general hardware, harness, carriages, buggies and other vehicles, agricultural implements and machinery and various other articles, the building in which the business is conducted being admirably arranged and equipped and, to keep pace with the demands of the trade, a force of fourteen men in the various depart- ments is required. The building up of such a large and satisfactory busi- ness bespeaks sound judgment and ability of a high order, both of which, with other admirable characteristics, are possessed by the senior member, to whom is due much of the success which the firm has attained and which it now enjoys. He is a man of large executive capacity, thoroughly versed in the multifarious principles of the lines of business to which the greater part of his life has been devoted and, as already indicated, he occupies a position of prominence and influence among the leading merchants of La- fayette, as well as a place in the front rank of the county's representative citizens. He has all the distinctive American interest in public affairs, is in full sympathy with the spirit of the times and for many years has been active in promoting the material progress of the city and the local and moral advancement of his fellowmen. Like his honored father, he gives consid- erable attention to political matters and votes the Republican ticket. but his business has been of such a character as to prevent him from becoming a politician or aspiring to the honors and emoluments of office.
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The married life of Mr.' Jamison dates from September 30, 1869, at which time he was united in the bonds of wedlock with Zelina M. Pierce, of Tippecanoe county, Indiana, the union being blessed with five children, viz: Fred W., a travelling salesman, living in Lafayette; Alpha P., a professor in the engineering department of Purdue University; Charles R., manager of a department of the Berger Manufacturing Company of Can- ton, Ohio; Olive M., wife of Richard Williams, of Indianapolis, and Mabel P., now Mrs. Dean K. Chadbourne, of West Lafayette. Mr. Jamison has always been a friend of higher education and it is a matter of no little grati- fication and pride for him to know that all of his children received their training in Purdue and earned honorable records in their respective classes. In his religious belief he is a Baptist, as are all the members of his family, and for a number of years himself and wife have been esteemed members of the First church of that faith in the city of his residence.
DANIEL P. FLANAGAN.
For ten years a member of the Tippecanoe county bar, Daniel P. Flanagan not only ranks among the leading lawyers of the city in which he resides, but has also won an honorable place among the distinguished lawyers of his native state. In no profession is there a career more open to talent than in that of the law and in no field of endeavor is there demanded a more careful preparation, a more thorough appreciation of the ethics of life or of the underlying principles which form the basis of all human rights and privileges. Unflagging application, intuitive wisdom and a de- termination fully to utilize the means at hand are the concomitants which in- sure success and prestige in this great profession which stands as the stern conservator of justice, and it is a calling into which none should enter without a recognition of the obstacles to be overcome and the battles to be won, for success and distinction come only as the legitimate reult of capacity and unmistaken ability. Such elements have entered into the successful career of Mr. Flanagan, who, though not so long in the practice as some of his contemporaries, has attained a high standing at the local bar and else- where and is accounted one of the most successful practitioners in the city of his residence.
A native of Tippecanoe county, Indiana, Mr. Flanagan was born in Lafayette on the 4th of March, 1876, and is the sixth of the nine living chil-
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TIPPECANOE COUNTY, IND.
dren of Patrick and Mary (Ryan) Flanagan, natives of Ireland. These parents were born, reared and married in county Limerick and shortly after the birth of their eldest son, immigrated to the United States, coming almost direct to Tippecanoe county, where Michael Flanagan, a brother of Patrick, was then living and where four of the latter's children still reside. The family of Patrick and Mary Flanagan at this time consists of the follow- ing sons and daughters: David, the only one born in the old country ; Margaret, who married Charles Steffen; Kate, wife of Timothy Sullivan; Bridget, now Mrs. James T. Martin ; John, Daniel P., Patrick, Jr., Michael, and Mary, who is the wife of John Dolman, the subject being the only mem- ber of the family to enter professional life.
Daniel P. Flanagan was educated in St. Ann parochial school and the Union Business College of Lafayette and studied law under the direction of Will R. Wood, in whose office he continued until his admission to the bar in 1899. In that year he engaged in the practice at Lafayette and in due time gained recognition as an able, energetic and honorable attorney, with the result that his business continued to grow until he found himself on the high road to professional and financial success. During the first three years he built up a large and lucrative practice, and in November, 1902, he was nominated and elected prosecuting attorney of the twenty-third judi- cial circuit, making the race as a Republican and defeating his Democratic competitor by a handsome maojrity. His own ward, which was nominally Democratic by a majority of two hundred and fifty, cast two hundred and seventeen votes more for him than for his rival, and in 1904, when he stood for re-election, he received in the same ward a majority of two hundred and twelve, the largest vote given a Republican candidate in that part of the city in fifty years.
Mr. Flanagan's growing success in the general practice enabled him to enter upon his official duties with assurance of success, and it is freely admit- ted that the district has never had an abler or more energetic and faithful prosecutor. Unremitting in his efforts to enforce the law and mete out justice to offenders, he brought many to trial and secured their conviction and during his incumbency of four years his name became a terror to the criminal classes, and infractions of the law were less frequent, until reduced to the lowest minimum in the history of the circuit.
Since his retirement from the office of prosecutor, Mr. Flanagan has devoted himself closely to his constantly increasing general practice and now commands a very extensive business which is as successful financially as pro- fessionally. From the beginning his patronage steadily grew as he demon-
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strated his ability to handle with masterful skill the intricate problems of jurisprudence and he now has a large and representative clientele which connects him with some of the most important litigation in the courts of his own and other counties. In addition to his activity and advancement in his profession, he has also been an influential factor in politics, being recog- mized as an able exponent of the principles of the Republican party. With the exception of the office of prosecuting attorney, he has held no public positions, but in campaign years he labors as earnestly for his party's candi- clate as he would for himself.
Mr. Flanagan is a married man, his wife having formerly been Mary J. Straitman, a native of Lafayette, and a daughter of William and Frances Straitman, the father a mechanic and well known resident of this city, dying several years ago. In his religious belief Mr. Flanagan is a Catholic ; he was born and reared in the mother church and has never faltered in his loyalty to its teaching, being at this time a member of St. Ann's parish, under the pastorate of Rev. M. J. Byrne, and an earnest worker in its various lines of activity. Mrs. Flanagan is also identified with the same church. Fraternally, the subject holds membership with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the Independent Order of Red Men, the Ancient Order of Hibernians, the Catholic Order of Foresters, and the Lafayette Club, a social organization made up of the leading young men of the city. Mr. Flanagan is public-spirited in all the term implies, has ever been interested in enter- prises tending to promote the general welfare and withholds his support from 110 movement for the good of the city, county or state. His personal rela- tions with his fellowmen have ever been mutually pleasant and agreeable, and he is highly regarded socially, being easily approachable and a good mixer.
WILLIAM KING ROCHESTER.
William King Rochester, to whom Lafayette was largely indebted for its growth and enterprise before the Civil war, was born May 3. 1822, int Columbus, Ohio. His ancestry traces back to 1558, when the family was allowed or confirmed the coat of arms described in the Heralds visitations of the counties of Kent and Essex, England, as "Or a fesse between three cresents sa." Nicholas Rochester, born in 1640, in the county of Kent, England, emigrated in 1689 to the colony of Virginia, bringing his wife and son William. He bought a plantation bordering Westmoreland and Rich-
THE ROCHESTER PLACE
W. K. Rocher to
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mond counties; his descendants lived there into the nineteenth century, the last being Jeremiah Rochester, grandfather of William King Rochester. His father. Nimrod Rochester, was born on the old homestead, still stand- ing in excellent condition with the initials "W. R. 1746" cut in a broad brick in the chimney corner. the home of William Rochester, father of Jere- miah and grandson of Nicholas. In 1817. Nimrod Rochester, in company with Thomas Howe, came north to Chillicothe, Ohio, and on December 20th was united in marriage to Jane King, whose family in the beginning of the century had moved there from Burlington county, New Jersey. They went to Columbus, Ohio, to live and there their seven children were born, namely. William, Mary, Sarah, Jeremiah, Hannah Jane, Nimrod and George. Mr. Rochester returned but once to Virginia, at the time of his father's death. in 1827. He and his son Jeremiah died of cholera, during the epidemic in August, 1833. Three years later George King, Esq .. of Chillic. the, brought his sister and her children to Lafayette where relatives had preceded them. In 1836 Mrs. Rochester bought the home on Fourth street, opposite the little church where Henry Ward Beecher preached. William King Rochester later had his own residence built on the site of his mother's cottage. At an early age he was able to undertake the support of his mother's family. He continued his education with private instructors and in a few years sent his younger sisters to Wesleyan College at Cincinnati, Ohio, where Sarah Ro- chester and Lucy Webb. afterwards wife of President Rutherford Hayes, were room-mates. Mr. Rochester's talents as a business man were employed chiefly in buying and selling real estate. He was a director of the first bank organized in Lafayette, the Branch of the State Bank of Indiana. In politics, Mr. Rochester was an active member of the Whig party, and in 1851. while chairman of the county central committee, was put forward by them as can- didate for congress, but he afterwards withdrew from the race. In 1858. being desirous to have certain beneficiary legislation enacted. he became a candidate for state senator. The election resulting in a tie, a special election was held in which his Democratic opponent won.
On April 5. 1854. Mr. Rochester married Madeline DuTiel. a descend- ant of Charles Francis DuTiel, a royalist, who in 1790 was compelled to flee from France to escape the revolutionists, and together with a number of compatriots came to America and were deeded by this government a large tract of land in Scioto county, Ohio, called the French Grant. They founded the city of Gallipolis. Ohio.
William King Rochester died May 23. 1862. The following, copied from an editorial in the Lafayette Courier at the time of his death, shows the esteem in which he was held by his contemporaries :
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"W. K. Rochester, Esq., whose serious illness we announced yesterday, expired fifteen minutes to twelve today. The deceased was just forty years old, in the prime of his life, and we speak the universal sentiment at large in recording his untimely end as a great calamity to Lafayette. That in- domitable energy which was his distinguished characteristic, united to a vigor of mind and a practical business capacity, made success in all his un- dertakings a foregone conclusion and as the result of active application ex- tending through a period of twenty-five years, he had acquired a large amount of property and was on the high road to wealth and independence. Contrary to a general rule and in vindication of his nobility of soul, his heart ex- panded with his prosperity, and many a poor family in Lafayette today mourns the loss of a friend and benefactor; cheap homes for the homeless, was the philanthropic idea which inspired his enterprise. The neat, com- fortable homesteads which, counted by the hundreds, grace his several addi- tions to the city, as well as the public movements with which he was identi- fied, are enduring monuments and will keep green his memory for many years to come."
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