USA > Indiana > Tippecanoe County > Past and present of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, Volume II > Part 36
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In 1896 Mr. Smith was again elected to the general assembly, and made chairman of the committee of ways and means. He here inaugurated a new method of business. (I) He invited the finance committee of the sen- ate to meet luis committee at every session and discuss and vote with them. (2) He summoned the head of cach public institution to which the legisla- ture appropriated money to meet the committee, when his institution's wants were under consideration. The appropriations were so carefully considered that the appropriation bill as it left the house and went to the senate, car- ried within one thousand dollars of the amount as it became a law. In the caucuses of his party he advocated bi-partisan boards of control, even to the prison boards. But his great work of that session was the general appropria- tion bill. It provided for seventy-six thousand dollars of deficiencies of the previous legislature, cut down the previous general appropriation more than three hundred and ninety-six thousand dollars, and left a deficiency for the
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incoming legislature of only fifteen thousand dollars. All of this in the face of an increase of over seven hundred persons in the number of inmates of the penal and reformatory institutions.
In 1898 Mr. Smith left Tippecanoe county to live in Indianapolis. But his business relations have continued very close to this county. Under the reform law of 1899 he made a complete set of books and blanks for town- ship trustees, undoubtedly the best ever produced. When the depository law was enacted, he set about to master its details and give to townships, cities and towns, books and blanks that would fully represent the details of the law. and this he did in six different sets of books and blanks that stand as his final monument of business reform. It is perhaps safe to say that in the making of books and blanks for the official carrying out of laws, he has no rival in the state. The official life of Mr. Smith has been a clean one-no trust ever betrayed. His business life, mostly with public offices, has been honest and free from "graft"-his private life one of integrity and Chris- tian character-his love for Tippecanoe county and its citizens very marked and earnest, and it is heartily reciprocated by her citizens.
Mr. Smith is a Knight Templar in the Masonic fraternity and a member of the encampment in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He is an honorary member of the Order of Cincinnatus, a member of the Society of Sons of Colonial Wars, of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity, of the Tippecanoe County Historical Society, of the State Historical Society, of the State His- torical Association, and of the Indianapolis Art Association. He is a minis- ter of the Methodist Episcopal church, Armenian in creed, and a firm believer in the Bible as a divine revelation. He accepts religion as a supernatural growth in the heart. All these were taught him in his youth, while the most careful study and conscientious thought have only confirmed this early teaching.
November 27. 1855. Mr. Smith married Ruth Anna Rankin, of Green- castle, Indiana. Miss Rankin was of distinguished Puritan, Quaker and Southern colonial ancestry, among them being Governor Welles, one of the earliest governors of Connecticut, who framed the constitution of that colony, which is said to be the model for the constitution of the United States. She was highly educated and of unusual native and acquired musical ability. Of this union is a large family of children of intelligence and refinement. The eld- est son, Orville Rankin, died in infancy in Valparaiso. Bernard Gilbert and Paul Queale died in Lafayette, the former a young man in his twentieth year, of exceptional brilliancy and promise ; the latter a beautiful child of four and one-half years. The remaining children are: Lilian Gray, Eva Wilson, Ida
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Virginia, Nelly Colfax, Benaldine (wife of Hon. William T. Noble) and Guy McIlvaine, and one grandson, Frederick Merrill Smith. Three daughters graduated at Purdue University. All of the children have specialized in one or more lines, having attained more than ordinary proficiency in vocal, piano and violin music and literary pursuits. Mr. and Mrs. Smith celebrated their silver wedding anniversary while living in Lafayette. Since removing to Indianapolis, they have celebrated their golden wedding, in 1905. The oc- casion was marked by felicity and good cheer, many friends coming from a distance to extend congratulations, and many messages were received fron Europe, Asia, South America, Africa, Australia, Mexico and all parts of the United States. Mr. Smith is perhaps above the average in size, has fair complexion and blue eyes, and brown hair until advanced in years. His head is massive and as a result of reading by firelight in his youth is stooped. He is fluent of speech, and has a memory of most remarkable tenacity, quick perception and rapid analytical powers. Skilled in polemics, he grasps the salient points of a question at once, and either in conversation or debate his copious memory pours its unceasing stream of facts and figures out before him. In college he was known among the students as the Historical Cyclo- pedia. He does not stop to enter into technicalities, but not infrequently astonishes by his citation of the volume and page of works with which he could hardly be supposed to be familiar. With politicians he is at home, for all the contests in the country are familiar to him. He can quote the major- ities in the various counties and districts for a score of campaigns back. With ministers he discusses all of the subtleties of the polemics of the church men, and among the educators is authority on all questions to be met in their varied calling. His long experience as teacher led him into all the depart- ments of a college curriculum.
The following incident shows how early in childhood the subject began the responsibilities of life. When a little past five years of age his father sent him to Clarksburgh, the county seat, four miles away, with a note to George Heugle, a saddler, saying: "You will please send my old saddle by Ben." Mr. Heugle read the note and said: "What is your name?" Hc answered. "Ben." Said he, "Were you not named for your grandfather Ben- jamin Wilson? Then is not your name Benjamin?" "Yes, sir, but they call me 'Ben' for short." "Well," said he, "you tell your father, that I say, a boy only five years old who can come alone on horseback more than four miles, deserves to be called by his full name."
The power of adaptability to every circumstance is a happy faculty. In him it is remarkable. Having traveled extensively by all modern methods, taking the fare of the cabin as well as that of the palace hotel, everywhere he
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is alike at home. His service to the negro in the day of his bondage was full of sympathy and hope. During the darkest hours of the Rebellion he never lost hope but said, "The cause is just, and since God rules, justice will be done though the heavens fall." The sound judgment and magnanimous nature which have been distinguishing characteristics of Mr. Smith throughi life show no diminution although he has rounded so goodly a number of years. He has recently been termed by a person of prominence, who was formerly a well-known educator of the state, "The Grand Old Man of Indiana." In his college days and later, before the pressure of many cares denied him adequate leisure, Mr. Smith was a writer of many verses. It may be fitting to close this sketch with the following lines which he wrote in 1880 in an autograph album "On the Banks of the Wabash," as he then expressed it :
'Tis night brings out the stars. Sad tears the eyes of beauty brighten, So life itself without some jars Could not our natures greatly heighten ; Then welcome, toil, and welcome, strife, If these shall bring a nobler life.
FREDERICK AUGUST GOBAT.
The little republic of Switzerland has, according to its size, sent more honorable and industrious citizens to the United States than any foreign nation. They are always loyal to our institutions, ready to defend our flag on the field of battle and they become property owners and in every respect desirable residents of whatever community we find them. One of the best examples of this worthy class to be found in Tippecanoe county is Fred- erick A. Gobat, a prosperous farmer of Washington township, who was born in Switzerland on February 6, 1831. He grew to manhood in his native country where he attended school and learned farming on the home place, and chose this as his life work. Having heard so much of the oppor- tunities that existed in the great republic across the sea. he early in life de- cided to come here and make his fortune; thus, after a long and tedious voy- age, he landed in New York harbor, June 7, 1851, and ten days later he ar- rived in Lafayette, Indiana. He had some money after defraying the ex- penses of the trip. Upon looking about for something to do he found an
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opening in the cabinetmaker's trade, and he worked at this for a time, then found employment in a brick-yard, and still later made ties for the Wabash railroad, also worked at the carpenter's trade in Lafayette. He showed his patriotism to his adopted country upon the breaking out of the great war between the states by being the first man from Tippecanoe county to enlist in the three-months service, having made a gallant record as a soldier in the Tenth Indiana Volunteer Infantry. When the term of his first enlist- ment had expired he again enlisted, casting his lot the last time with the One Hundredth Regiment Indiana. Volunteer Infantry, in which he re- mained until the close of the war, having taken part in some of the most hotly contested battles of the conflict, among which was that of Missionary Ridge, where he was wounded in the leg and in several other places. His left limb is still in a bad condition as a result of these wounds. He is re- membered by his government with a monthly pension of twenty dollars.
After he returned from the army he took up the peaceful pursuits of life and has made a good living ever since, now owning a small place in Washington township where he has a very comfortable home.
Mr. Gobat was married in August, 1862, to Mrs. Mary Newman, and by this union one son was born, namely : Frederick A., Jr., who is a farmer in Perry township. The subject's second marriage was to Mrs. Sarah Arm- strong, and by this union one daughter was born, whom they named Theresa, who married Harry Smith. They live in Delphi, Indiana; her mother died when Mrs. Smith was only fourteen months old. Mr. Gobat was married a third time, his last wife being Margaret Underhill, who died April 9, 1908. No children were born to this union. In politics he is a Republican. He is a man of upright character and a man of whom no harm could be said in any way.
STEPHEN J. HANNAGAN.
Lafayette received a desirable acquisition to her citizenship when the Hannagan family became residents of the community. Wealthy Irish never emigrate and it is only the poor of that race that take up their abode in foreign countries. Wealth, however, does not consist entirely of money and the United States has been greatly enriched by the brawn and muscle, sharp wits and jovial natures that have come to her from the famous isle beyond the eastern ocean. Patrick Hannagan, only one of many, but a fine type of the industrious and cheerful laborer, became identified with Lafayette before
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the Civil war. He married Johanna Kelley, an Irish girl who had come over about the same time as himself, and they reared a fine family of boys and girls Before death called the father away in 1868 and the mother in 1879. W. J. Hannagan, the eldest of the children, is a resident of Lafayette; Mrs. John Gleason lives in Chicago; Charles P. and Stephen J. are residents of Lafayette; Edward T. is dead; Katherine, wife of Mark Miller, resides at Logansport, and Patrick G. is a citizen of Chicago.
Stephen J. Hannagan, who is the best known member of this popular family, was born at Lafayette, Indiana, May 25, 1863, and all his life has been lived within the limits of his native place. He obtained a fair educa- tion in the parochial schols of St. Ann's and St. Mary's and his first boyish work was in a stave factory at fifty cents per day. From this he went into the grocery business, followed it for six years and then took a position at the car works as weighmaster. Subsequently he worked for a time as time- keeper and shipping clerk at the Barbee Works. It was in 1889 that an event occurred which proved to be a turning point, destined to influence the whole course of his subsequent life. At a time when the city was strongly Repub- lican, the Democratic party nominated Mr. Hannagan as their candidate for city clerk and though he had to face great odds, he pulled through by a majority of one hundred and forty-nine, and, being re-elected in 1891, he served in the office altogether for a period of five years. In August, 1894. he bought the saloon at No. 417 Columbia street and has since been the owner and proprietor of that establishment. In 1896 he was elected council- man from the second ward and by repeated re-elections, sometimes for terms of four years, sometimes for only two, according to the caprice of the legis- lature, he has continued to be a member up to date and will not end this phenomenal local legislative career until January 1, 1910. During this long tenure Mr. Hannagan has proved a useful and popular member, attentive to his duties and watchful of the city's interests. . That he was entirely satis- factory to his constituents and popular in the community generally, is amply proven by the long time he has been held in the public service. During most . of his time he has served as chairman of the committee on streets and alleys and this influential position enabled him to put through many valuable meas- ures for the improvement of the city. The visitor who enjoys a ride over the many miles of improved streets in Lafayette will be told in answer to questions that the people owe more for this great luxury and beautifier to Stephen J. Hannagan than to any other man in the city. All will learn that his efforts and energy have redounded to his success in a financial way and that he has something substantial to show as the result of years of labor.
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Among his holdings is the residence he occupies at No. 122 South Fourth street where he dispenses the genuine article of Irish hospitality. When prosperity smiled upon him, Mr. Hannagan's thought naturally reverted to his native land and he longed to revisit the spot so dear to the heart of every Irishman. This wish he was enabled to gratify in 1907, when he traveled with his family not only in Ireland but in England and France.
In August, 1885, Mr. Hannagan married Sallie Foley, a native of Lafay- ette, of Irish extraction. Their only child is Harry E. Hannagan, who was born in 1886 and is now a student. Mr. Hannagan is a member of St. Ann's Catholic church and was one of the committee that assisted in its building. He is a member of the Ancient Order of Hibernians and served four years as state secretary. He has for twenty-eight years been a meniber of the local order of Hibernians, his tastes being friendly and social and his chief delight communion with his family.
GEORGE B. SHELBY.
The family of this name in Tippecanoe county originated in Ohio, where its earlier members were identified with the state during its formative period. In 1828, Isaac Shelby migrated to the vicinity of Terre Haute, Indiana. and soon afterward located at Covington, Fountain county, and spent eight years in that section of the state as a farmer. He then removed to Tippecanoe county, secured land in Jackson township and became quite prominent in politics as a Whig. He was for some time a member of the lower house of the legislature, and in 1856 was a candidate for state senator. His son, John B. Shelby, who was born in Pickaway county, Ohio, was only a year old when the family came to this state. He married Margaret A. Beaver, a native of Pennsylvania, but later a resident of Pickaway county, Ohio, and with her settled on a farm in Jackson township, Tippecanoe county. Their son, George B. Shelby, was born on this farm May 3, 1864, grew up like mil- lions of other farm boys, working during the summer and attending the district schools during the winters. When qualified for higher studies. he entered Purdue University and spent two years in that institution. after which he resumed his work on the farm. Mr. Shelby has a turn for politics and has long been active as one of the local leaders of the Republican party. He was trustee of Jackson township from 1900 to 1904, and administered the affairs of this important office in such a way as to gain the commenda- tion of his constituents. In November, 1908, he was elected to the im-
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portant office of county commissioner for the term beginning January I, 1909, and is now serving a three-years term with entire acceptability to the taxpayers of the county. He is prominent in Masonry, in which order he has taken the various degrees up to that of Knight Templar. He is a member also of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and attends services at the Methodist church. Mr. Shelby has not let politics divert him from the main business of his life, which is farming, and in this line he has kept abreast with the progress that has marked Indiana agriculture dur- ing the last two decades. He owns one hundred and sixty acres of land in the northeast corner of Jackson township, which is well cultivated and well cared for.
In September, 18co, Mr. Shelby married Mattie L., daughter of E. F. Haywood, and has two sons, George E. and Francis H. The family is highly respected and Mr. Shelby is one of the popular men of the county, both in business and politics.
SEPTIMIUS VATER.
Whether the elements of success in life are innate attributes of the in- dividual, or whether they are quickened by a process of circumstantial devel- opment, it is impossible to clearly determine; yet the study of a successful life, like that of Septimius Vater, one of the most progressive and representa- tive citizens of Tippecanoe county, is none the less interesting and profitable by reason of the co-existence of this same uncertainty. So much in excess of success is the record of failures that one is constrained to attempt an analysis in either case and to determine the method of causation in an approximate way. The march of improvement and progress is accelerated day by day, and each moment seems to demand a man of broader intelligence and greater discernment than did the preceding one. Successful men must be live men in this age. bristling with activity, and the lessons of biography may be far- reaching to an extent not superficially evident, especially if they embody such lessons as are contained in the life-record in the following paragraphs.
Septimius Vater was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, August 20, 1845, son of Thomas and Eleanor ( Palmer) Vater. The father was born near Liver- pool, England, May 12, 1805. the family having, for several generations, resided in that vicinity. When quite a young man he removed to London and there met and, on April 3, 1826, married his wife. Thomas Vater was a sturdy Republican in his ideas, a great admirer of the free political in-
foraler
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stitutions of this country and in his youthful enthusiasm connected himself with an organization having for its object the establishment of a republic instead of a monarchy in England. When the eliter of its newspaper was arrested for treason, in 1829, Mr. Vater assisted in publishing the paper, the editor still writing from his prison cell. This brought him under the notice of the royal police ; and learning that he, too, was to be arrested, he boarded a ship bound for America, which sailed away just as the arresting officers. with the warrant, came in sight; this was before a cable telegraph or any kind of telegraphic communication was dreamed of. His brave young wife, with two little ones, dared the hardships and perils which then, before the days of steamships, were incident to a journey to far-off America, and, re- joining her husband, shared with him the privations of pioneer backwoods ' life in Illinois, where, near Peoria, they had, after many adventures and ex- periences, finally settled. After some years they made their way by "prairie schooner," then the only means available for the purpose, to Cincinnati, and here Septimius Vater was born.
The senior Mr. Vater was of a restless, energetic, enterprising tem- perament, and the discovery of gold in California in 1849 attracted him thither. He made three trips by the isthmus route, passed through all the experiences of a mining camp, and died in 1852, on the isthmus, while en- gaged in the project of establishing a hotel on the Nicaragua route, near the head of the San Juan river, midway across, in which enterprise he had em- barked his entire means. His death left the mother. destitute and with three little children to support. The struggles and triumphs of that brave woman are more worthy of the laurel wreath of fame than many a lauded hero and will never be forgotten by her grateful children.
Circumstanced thus, the subject of this sketch was early trained to pro- ductive industry. In fact he became a wage earner in a small way at the early age of seven years, and after twelve years never attended school con- tinuously or for any great length of time, and he was entirely self-support- ing after his eighteenth year. In 1853 his widowed mother and the little family removed to Indiana, locating in Indianapolis, then not nearly so large as Lafayette now, and here Mr. Vater received his education in the public common and high schools, which was brought to a sudden terminus by the temporary collapse of the public school system, consequent upon Judge Perkins' decision in 1856 in the Jenners case. Then the young lad, bidding farewell to school and books, started out on active business life at twelve years of age; clerking first in Perrine's book store, which then occupied the
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corner ground-floor room in the Odd Fellows building, Washington and Pennsylvania streets. Shortly after he started as an apprentice in the job department of the Daily Sentinel. On acquiring his trade, which he followed but a short time after completing his four-years apprenticeship, he took a place as bookkeeper in the Western Union Telegraph office, and while there incidentally acquired the operator's art. In 1863 he removed to Cincinnati to take a place as estimator for the Daily Times job department, and during the latter part of his connection with that paper he did the work of the de- partment of amusements on the paper. In the closing days of October. 1864, he accepted the position tendered him by W. S. Lingle of bookkeeper and business manager of the Courier of this city, and removed to Lafayette -his last move, for he has ever since been a resident citizen of Lafayette. On January 1, 1869, in association with Ben B. Barron, a most suc- cessful traveling agent, also employed on the Courier, he took Hon. Jolin Purdue's "elephant," the Daily Journal, off his hands, the firm being Bar- ron & Vater, and without a cent of money they began the work of restoring its former prestige, and with great success. In the meantime, while still with the Courier, Mr. Vater was married, October 16, 1866, to Aramantha C. Vawter, daughter of Williamson D. Vawter, an old resident of Vernon, Jennings county, Indiana. Mr. Barron's health failed in about a year, and a year and a half after the formation of the partnership he succumbed to consumption. Mr. Vater then shouldered the whole load, and continued the paper, at first alone, and then, for a few years, in partnership with Albert B. White, under the firm name of S. Vater & Company until about the middle of December, 1882, when they sold the establishment to Harry L. Wilson.
Mr. White was a son of Hon. Emerson E. White (now deceased), who was president of Purdue University at the time of the purchase of a one- third interest in the Journal; and after his removal to Parkersburg, West Virginia, a short time before the sale, rose to distinction in that state and served it with honor for one full term as its Governor.
After a rest of about a year (during which he was recalled, in July. 1883. from California to Chicago, by Mrs. Wilbur F. Storey, to enter into the management of the then great and prosperous Chicago Times, as her personal representative, Mr. Storey having been stricken with softening of the brain, but owing to the legal complication which arose, never actually assumed control) Mr. Vater bought the Morning Call of the Cox brothers, converted it into an evening paper on March 4. 1885, added press dispatches and put it "on its feet" financially and in equipment. On June 16, 1896, he
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