USA > Indiana > Tippecanoe County > Past and present of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, Volume II > Part 65
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Two sons have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Charles H. Cleaver, namely : Floyd L., born May 15, 1900; Clyde L., born March 17, 1905. After his marriage, Mr. Cleaver located in Clinton county, Indiana, where he remain- ed for four years. He had seventy-six acres of land which he sold and then came to Perry township, where he got eighty acres in section 3, known as the Seyers farm. In 1908 he built his fine modern eight-room, two-story house, with a slate roof and everything quite up-to-date. He built an ex- cellent barn in 1900, renewed his fences and made many other changes which have greatly enhanced the value and appearance of the place. All his place. with the exception of five acres in woods, is under a high state of cultiva- tion. He is a breeder of thoroughbred Duroc Jersey swine; he also raises Shetland ponies, horses and mules. His annual sales are always profitable
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and made with no trouble owing to the fine quality of his stock. He has exhibited his fine stock in both this and Clinton counties where his stock is always greatly admired. In politics he is strongly Republican. His wife is a member of the Missionary church. Although Mr. Cleaver started in life poor, he has been very successful and is now one of the leading young farm- ers of his township, his fine place being widely known as Clover Leaf Stock Farm.
JOHN C. F. REDINBO.
The Redinbos were originally Pennsylvanians who migrated to Ohio when that state was still young, engaged in farming and finally ended their days in the Buckeye commonwealth. Adam and Sarah (Shankland) Red- inbo, who were the pioneers and founders of the family in the west, had six children, whose descendants are found in various portions of the West. James was the eldest. Elizabeth, the second child, died many years ago. Lucy is a resident of Delphos, Ohio. Sarah lives in Newport, Kentucky. Charlotte, who married M. E. Meyers, is dead, and John, the youngest, is a citizen of Delphos, Ohio. James grew up in Ohio, learned the carpenter's trade and worked at it for thirty years. When twenty-three years old lie married Julia Ann Prichard, of Butler county, Ohio, came to Tippecanoe county, Indiana, in 1837, and bought one hundred and sixty acres of land in Perry township in 1856. It was wild, heavily timbered and practically unimproved, the only buildings being a decayed log cabin and broken-down stable. His first wife died in 1856 and on August 22d of the following year he married Mary, daughter of Richard and Sarah (Russell) Collins, of Butler county, Ohio. The two children by the first union were Robert and Martha. The former served in the cavalry three years, and after the war lived in Tippecanoe county, where he died in 1893. The daughter married Daniel Beens, of Webster county, Missouri. James Redinbo's children by his second marriage were five in number. Sarah, the eldest, married John Smith, of Lafayette, and has five children, Edgar, Albert, Clarence, Harry and Elden. The second of James Redinbo's last children was John C. F .; the third was Lincoln, who married Minnie Birn, now deceased, and died in 1899. Laura, the fourth child, married John Davis, of Tippecanoe county. Manson, the youngest, married Jessie Birm, and is a farmer in Web- ster county, Missouri. In 1870 James Redinbo engaged in the milling busi-
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ness at Monitor, Indiana, with Fritz Brothers, and continued in this line for seven years. After he obtained his farm he built the house and barn him- self, being an expert carpenter, and made many other improvements on the place. He was active in politics, first as a Whig, and then Republican, but later as a Democrat, beginning with the support of Greeley, but the only office he held was that of justice of the peace, in which he served eight years. He was a member of the Masonic lodge at Dayton, Indiana, and took much interest in fraternity affairs. He and his second wife, who died in 1892, were members of the Universalist church, and at one time he was quite prominent and influential in the county. Being born January 22, 1813, and dying in October, 1896, it will be seen that he had reached the venerable age of eighty-three.
John C. F. Redinbo, the second child by the second marriage, was born on his father's farm in Perry township, and got his education in the local schools and business college at Lafayette. September 29, 1892, he married Catherine, daughter of Anselm and Barbara (Killian) Behringer, of Perry township. The parents were Germans, who came to this country more than half a century ago, and settled in Tippecanoe county on a farm where both of them died. Mr. Redinbo has five children; Leonard C., Ansie, George, Barbara and Lawrence. He owns eighty acres of the old homestead farm and has earned a wide reputation as a breeder of Shorthorn cattle, though he also carries on general farming. He served as trustee of Perry township from 1900 to 1905, and helped build the Monitor high school. He is a mem- ber of the Masonic lodge at Dayton, Indiana, and of the Modern Woodmen Camp, No. 4107, at Monitor. His wife is a member of St. Lawrence Cath- olic church at Lafayette, and Mr. Redinbo is esteemed in the county as one of its best informed farmers.
WILLIAM McCORMICK.
Owen McCormick and Margaret Culligan were young Irish people, who were reared near Dublin. Like most of the population of Ireland, they were poor and their chief ambition was to emigrate to America, of which they had heard so much and which was regarded as an earthly paradise. Their wishes were gratified as they eventually found themselves in the land of promise, though they came over at different times. During the temporary sojourn in New York, Owen and Margaret again met, renewed their acquaintance, fell
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in love with each other and married. There was not much in the East for poor Irish immigrants at that time, the western fever was at its height, and soon we find our friends making their way to the vast regions beyond the Alleghanies. Indiana in those days was much-sought territory. Owen Mc- Cormick thought favorably of it and decided to seek a home in one of its rich agricultural sections. Lauramie township, in Tippecanoe county, was picked out for a location, but after residing there several years he bought forty acres of land in section 16, of Perry township. It was cheap, but very wild, and Mr. McCormick had to put in many a hard blow getting rid of the heavy timber. By great industry and good management he prospered fairly well and from time to time was enabled to buy more land until his holdings eventually amounted to two hundred and seventy acres. Much of this he cleared, while also making many expensive improvements, and be- fore his death, in December, 1905, had become to be regarded as one of the prosperous farmers of the county. His Irish wife proved a faithful assistant during all these years and did her full share in helping on the general pros- perity, up to the time of her death, in January, 1893. They were members of St. Mary's Catholic church, of correct life in every way and highly es- teemed by a large circle of friends. This worthy couple had seven children. Mary, the eldest, married William Burns, of Ft. Wayne, Indiana. Thomas, the oldest son, is a retired farmer at Lafayette. John is a farmer in Perry township. Owen, now dead, carried on farming during his lifetime both in Perry township and Illinois. Margaret married Joseph Kirchoff, of Perry township; and Lizzie is the wife of Christian Benner, of Benton county, In- diana.
William McCormick, the sixth child, was born in Lauramie township, Tippecanoe county, Indiana, September 5, 1866. He remained at home until twenty-five years of age and then began to think of the most important step in a young man's life. October 15, 1890, he married Lena, daughter of Anselm and Barbara (Killian) Behringer, all of Perry township. The par- ents, both of whom are now dead, were natives of Germany, but came over many years ago and settled in Tippecanoe county and became prosperous by farming in Perry township. Mr. McCormick has four children, Clara, Pau- lina, Thomas and Frank. In 1887 he began business on his own account by renting a piece of land which he farmed for a while, and in 1907 bought eighty-five acres of the old homestead, most of which is in a good state of cultivation. He is a member of the St. Lawrence Catholic church at La- fayette, and one of the leaders among the younger generation of farmers.
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OWEN McCORMICK.
No man who has lived in Perry township, Tippecanoe county, of recent years stamped his individuality more indelibly upon the citizens with whom he mingled than did the late Owen McCormick. This was due to a number of direct reasons and not because of any imaginative characteristics, because he was a man who could be trusted in all the relations of life, honest, sincere and always thoughtful of the welfare of others, kind and generous to his family and ever ready to lend his support to any cause looking to the upbuilding of his community whether materially or morally. Mr. McCor- mick, like many another thrifty citizen of this country, was foreign born, hav- ing first seen the light of day near the far-famed city of Dublin, Ireland, in the year 1830. There he grew to manhood and received some early school- ing. On November 15, 1850, he was united in marriage with Margaret Cul- ligan, a native of the same place. Believing that the great republic across the sea held greater advantages for them than could be found at home, they accordingly, after a tedious voyage in an old-fashioned sailing vessel, landed in the harbor of New York city, and spent the two subsequent years in New Jersey where they farmed. Then, in 1854, they migrated to the great middle West, locating at New Richmond, Indiana, later locating in Lauramie town- ship, Tippecanoe county, finally coming to Perry township, where Mr. Mc- Cormick bought a small fruit farm. Being a man of excellent judgment and a hard worker he added to this until he had a most excellent farm of three hundred acres. He cleared a great deal of this and made many ex- tensive and substantial improvements and soon had a good income from year to year by reason of his able management of the farm. He became well known in this vicinity and all who knew him liked him for his many amiable qualities. His death occurred on December 7, 1905, having been preceded to the "silent halls of death" by his wife on January 3,, 1902. In politics the former was a Democrat, and he belonged to St. Mary's Catholic church. They were the parents of seven children, namely: Mary, who married Wil- liam Barnes, of Ft. Wayne, Indiana; Thomas lives in Lafayette; John is a farmer in Perry township; Margaret is the wife of Joseph Kirckhoff, of Perry township; William is a farmer in Perry township; Elizabeth, who married Christian Benner, lives at Earl Park, Indiana ; Charles is deceased, as is also Owen, the eighth child. These children were all educated in the common schools of their home district and are fairly well situated in reference to this world's affairs, all reflecting in their daily lives the wholesome home atmosphere in which they were reared.
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JOHN H. EHRESMAN.
The family of this name in Perry township is of German origin. Jacob and Catherine Ehresman came to the United States in 1839 from Hesse- Darmstadt, taking eighty days to make the voyage in a sailing vessel. After a very rough passage they landed at Boston, shortly afterward coming to Butler county, Ohio, and later removing to Clinton county, Indiana, where they eventually died. Jacob was a weaver by trade, but lived on and worked a farm. He had five children. Jacobena (deceased), Christian, Catherine (deceased), Mary (deceased) and Fannie, of Adams county, Indiana. Chris- tian Ehresman, the second child, was born in Germany, October 15, 1832, educated in the German and English schools and remained at home until his marriage. This event occurred December 10, 1857, and his wife was Mary Saltzman, born in Butler county, Ohio, her parents being Christian and Mary (Imhoff) Saltzmen, the former of Alsace-Lorraine and the latter of Hesse- Darmstadt. The former's parents were pioneers of Butler county and died there many years ago. Mary (Imhoff) Saltzman came with a
brother and sister to America and settled in Butler county. In 1850 the Saltzmans came to Clinton county, and four years later settled in Perry township, Tippecanoe county. Entering a lot of im- proved land, a home was built. improvements made and farming conducted after the manner of those times. After his wife's death Christian lived with his children two years and then went to Kansas where he died. His children were Magdaline, who resides in Perry township: Mary, wife of Christian Ehresman; Catherine, ,of Pawnee county, Kansas; Elizabeth, de- ceased; Annie, a resident of Gibson City, Illinois, and John, deceased. Chris- tian Ehresman and wife had ten children, as follows: Jacob, a farmer in Clinton county, married Jacobena Imhoff, and died in 1904, leaving four children, Elmer, Essie, Elson and Ernest; Christian H., a farmer in Clinton county, married Alice Widener and has six children, Rose, Charlie, Dorotha, Laura, Virlie and Inez; Daniel died unmarried at the age of twenty-seven ; Henry, a farmer and ex-trustee of Perry township, married Catherine Ehres- man and has five children, Olivia, Laura, Willie, Ralph and Floyd: John H., subject of this sketch; Elizabeth, wife of Charles Beeker, of Allen coun- ty. Indiana, has six children, Laura, Emanuel, Alvin, Amelia, Alma and Irwin: Gideon, a farmer in Allen county, Indiana, married Emma Steinman and has one son, Russell V; Mary, wife of Henry Becker, of Allen county, has three children, Esther, Elma and Elsa; William died young; Emanuel,
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a carpenter in business at Sand Point, Idaho, married Elsie Rapp and has one child, Mary.
John H. Ehresman, fifth in the list of this family, was born in Perry township, Tippecanoe county, Indiana, June 19, 1868. Besides attendance in the district schools he was at Purdue University from 1893 to 1896, study- ing mechanical engineering. After leaving college he engaged in farming, spent the year 1908 in California as a rancher and later took to southern Texas and Colorado. Since his father's death, February 1, 1907, he and his mother have lived together in Perry township. His parents had bought sixty acres of land in section 22, on which an old log cabin and stable were the only buildings. The father made some brick and put up a fine home, at the same time erecting a barn and making other improvements. In 1894 he bought the small place where John H. and his mother live, and there spent the rest of his days. He was a member of the Mennonite church, well known throughout the county and much esteemed. John H. Ehresman owns forty acres and has for several years devoted his time to farming and ranks as a leader among the progressive farmers of Perry township.
ALLEN A. YOST.
Among the men of Perry township, Tippecanoe county, who have ap- preciated present-day opportunities right here at home and have profited by their ingenuity and persistency in their own environment is Allen A. Yost, who was born August 13, 1857, in Perry township, the son of William H. Yost, who was born in 1826 in Preble county, Ohio, and whose death occurred in 1893. He married, in 1855, Mary Mikesell, a native of Perry township, this county. Jacob Yost, grandfather of Allen A., was a native of Preble county, Ohio. He came to Tippecanoe county, Indiana, in 1840, locating in Perry township when this locality was all in woods and settlements were scattering. By profession he was a distiller, and he lived here until his death. Allen A. Yost's grandfather, Andrew Mikesell, married Catherine Weaver; they were both natives of Ohio, but came to Tippecanoe county, Indiana, in a very early day, locating in Perry township, where they both died, having cleared land and made a good home. They became the parents of the following children: Elizabeth lives in Carroll county, Indiana; Susanna, of Purimont, Indiana; Abbie, of Mt. Vernon, Ohio; Kate, of La- fayette, Indiana ; Mary, mother of Allen A. Yost, of this review ; David died
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during the war between the states while on duty in Missouri; John, who was also a Union soldier, died in Tennessee. The following children were born to Jacob Yost and wife: William H., Isaac P., James and Jacob, all de- ceased; George W. is living in Perry township; John is deceased; David is living at Monitor, Indiana; Mary died in Cass county, Indiana.
William H. Yost, father of Allen A., had only a limited schooling. He engaged in the manufacture of linseed oil at Monitor, Indiana, and he was also a skilled sawyer and worked in various saw-mills, and also operated several saw-mills himself after his marriage. He bought forty acres of land in Perry township which was partly cleared. In 1863 he purchased eighty acres in section 24, where his widow and Allen A. now reside. There was a small clearing on the place and he lived here, improving his farm until his death, leaving a fine place to his widow and their children. In politics he was a Democrat and a member of the Dunkard church. To Mr. and Mrs. William H. Yost eight children were born, namely: Allen A., subject of this review; Caroline E., wife of J. C. Jester, of Lafayette; Andrew J., a barber, is single and lives with Allen A .; Rachael A. married Charles C. Seabaun, a druggist of Cincinnati, Ohio; Mary C. married Samuel Utley, and she died in November, 1908; William H. is deceased, as is also Fara Estelle, the youngest born.
Allen A. Yost attended the home schools and worked on the home place for five years. On September 2, 1907, he married Ida May Clenden- ning, a native of Clinton county, Indiana, and the daughter of Robert and Temperance R. (Goble) Clendenning, the former a native of Butler county, Ohio, and the latter of Clinton county, Indiana. Mr. Clendenning came to Indiana when a boy, and he is still living on a farm in Clinton county. His wife died forty-one years ago. Mr. Clendenning is an extensive stock dealer and raiser.
To Mr. and Mrs. Allen A. Yost five children have been born, named as follows : Frances M., Mary Ann Margaret, Allen A., Jr., Luella June and Susie Belle. They are all interesting children and are receiving every at- tention at the hands of their fond parents.
Mr. Yost has been a stock dealer and breeder of Shorthorn cattle and Poland-China hogs. also draft horses, having achieved quite a reputation with his excellent breeds of stock. He is also in the dairy business and finds a ready market for his products. He conducts a model little dairy and all his stock is first-class and finds a ready sale when he cares to dispose of any. He is regarded as one of the best judges of livestock in the township. In his political relations he votes with the Democrats, and he and his estimable
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wife are members of the Reformed church at Mulberry, Indiana. Mr. Yost keeps well posted on current events and especially on all things relating to farming and dairying, at which he is succeeding in a way that stamps him as one of the leading farmers of this locality.
WILLIAM G. MASTERS.
James and Mary (Johnson) Masters were Ohioans, and after the form- er's death his widow and children came to Indiana in 1834 and settled in Perry township, Tippecanoe county. She bought forty acres in section 14, put up a log cabin and long before her death, January 4, 1874, had the pleas- ure of knowing that early trials had resulted in a comfortable home. As she was born April 1, 1797, she was about seventy-seven years of age when called to her final rest. Her children were as follows: Mary, born in 1818, died in infancy; Ann, wife of William Burgeon, was born September 25, 1819, and died in 1889. Sarah, wife of William Y. Sense, was born April 22. 1822, and died in 1859. James, the fourth child, died in 1824. Samuel was born in Butler county, Ohio, August 13, 1826. William, born October 30, 1828, died in 1846. John, who married Mary Johnson, was born Sep- tember 9, 1830, and died in Livingston county, Illinois, January 15, 1906. Samuel Masters came to Tippecanoe county with his mother in 1834; May 13, 1860, he married Eliza Jane, daughter of George and Catherine Young Sense, who were Virginians, the former born April 23, 1789, and the latter September 17, 1787. They were married March 17, 1811. Their children were Mary, deceased, born September 17, 1813; David, born March 24. 1817, and died in Perry township; Inlyam, born February 7, 1819; William, born December 13, 1821, died at Milford, Illinois; Eleanor, born Septem- ber 22, 1824, died in Tippecanoe county; Eliza Jane, who became Mrs. Mas- ters, was born March 16. 1831, died November 1I, 1907. Her husband died October, 1898. After his marriage Samuel Masters located on the place that has been known as the Masters homestead. He owned one hundred and forty acres of land, much of which he cleared and improved. He became prosperous as a farmer and raiser of various kinds of livestock. He had two children, a son and a daughter. Martha V., who was born March 29, 1870, married William Clark Murphy, a farmer of Perry township.
William G. Masters, the only living son and eldest child, was born in Perry township. Tippecanoe county, Indiana, November 3. 1867. From the
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time he could handle a hoe he has been a farmer and, all his neighbors say, a good farmer. He has always remained on the old family homestead, has lived a quiet and industrious life and has prospered in his business. He has long been recognized as one of the progressive farmers and prominent citizens of the county, none being more highly esteemed. In 1907 he built his beau- tiful eleven-room, two-story house, with all the modern improvements. A fine barn, in keeping with the surroundings, was erected in 1905, and num- erous other improvements have been made, making this farm up-to-date in every respect. Mr. Masters bought the old homestead in 1899, has in all one hundred and thirty-five acres and one hundred and fifteen of these are under cultivation. He carries on diversified farming, raising all the crops suitable to this climate and keeping the proper amount of livestock for such a farm as he owns.
November 3, 1891, Mr. Masters married Emma G., daughter of Daniel and Sarah (Ely). Buck, of Perry township. The father, who died June 5, 1905, was a native of Perry township, and his wife, who now resides near Buck Creek, was born in Franklin township. Mrs. Masters is a model citizen in every respect, a member of the United Brethren church, highly respected throughout the county and esteemed by all who know her.
JAMES D. LEWIS.
The genial and neighborly owner of Walnut Hill Stock Farm, James D. Lewis, is one of Perry township's best known and substantial citizens, a man who, while advancing his own interests, does not lose sight of his obligation to the community at large. He was born in Butler county, Ohio, October 18, 1853, the son of Robert and Elizabeth (Brochius) Lewis, both natives of the same county in which the subject was born. The Lewis fam- ily is of Welsh extraction, an uncle of Robert Lewis having come to this country from Wales in a very early day and located in Kentucky. Robert Lewis's father, Joseph Lewis, located in Butler county, Ohio, during the pioneer days, and his son Andrew remained on the old home place on Indian creek. The Brochius family were of German stock. The maternal grand- father of James D. Lewis was Daniel Brochius who lived in Butler county, Ohio, a cabinetmaker by trade, who also followed farming, and he died in that county.
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Robert Lewis, father of James D., of this review, was educated in the common schools and lived at home until his marriage. He was not a robust man and while somewhat handicapped on account of ill health, he made a suc- cess of his life work. In 1862 he went to California, where he received much benefit physically, but feeling that his country needed his assistance when the great rebellion broke out, he returned to Ohio and enlisted in Company K, of an Ohio regiment of volunteers. Very much to his regret, he did not get to see much active service, having contracted rheumatism, consequently he was discharged for disability. He then came to Clinton county, Indiana, lo- cating near Rossville. He operated a saw-mill there for a time, also one in Carroll county, near Lexington, Indiana, on Wild Cat Creek; later he managed a grist-mill with equal success. In 1875 he came to Colburn, Indiana, and purchased the Emete steam mill and was there two years; he sold this and moved to Monitor. Tippecanoe county, locating on the Payne farm. After remaining one year on the place he went into the grocery business at Buck Creek, later sold his stock of goods and resumed farming in Washington township. He later purchased the Perimont mill, then bought a farm in Perry township, this county. He was a good manager and a man who stood high in the estimation of all who knew him. His political affiliation was with the Republican party. His death occurred in 1893, having been survived by his widow until January 2, 1905. They were the parents of six children, named as follows : Daniel is an engineer living at Deadwood, South Dakota; James D., of this review ; Martha married Henry Munea and died in 1882; Margaret married Frank Retterath, of Newton county. this state; Isabelle married John Lyons; Rebecca married Albert Ulery, of White Water, Wis- consin.
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