USA > Indiana > Tippecanoe County > Past and present of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, Volume II > Part 7
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73
Mrs. Flack's parents were Robert and Margaret (Ray) Laugheed, the former a son of Adam Laugheed, a native of Scotland, who migrated to Ireland in early manhood and settled in county Cavan, where his death sub- sequently occurred at the remarkable age of one hundred and three years.
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Laugheed reared their family and spent their lives in the above county, their daughter, Sarah, having been born on November 2, 1846. Cast upon her own resources after the death of her parents, she finally decided to seek her fortune in the great country across the sea. Ac- cordingly, in 1867, she set sail and, landing in due time, made her way to Tippecanoe county, Indiana, arriving at Shawnee Mound on February 14th of that year and found employment and a good home with Mr. Meharry, as already stated.
During the eight years that Mr. and Mrs. Flack occupied the Meharry farm they labored untiringly and saved their earnings so that at the expira- tion of that time they were enabled to purchase one hundred and twenty acres of their own near Shawnee Mound, where, in due season, they began reaping the results of their sowing in the condition of independence, which they have ever since maintained. After a residence of nearly eight years on the above farm, during which time the place was not only paid for but greatly enhanced in value, Mr. Flack sold it and purchased one hundred seven and one-half acres of fine land near Battle Ground on which he lived and prospered until the spring of 1908, when he retired from active life to enjoy the fruits of his many years of labor and good management. In all of his efforts to rise in the world, Mr. Flack found an able and willing assistant in the person of his faithful and devoted wife and helpmeet.
582
PAST AND PRESENT
In March, 1908, Mr. Flack turned his farm over to other hands and, accompanied by his wife, revisited the home of his childhood in the beautiful Emerald Isle, renewing many acquaintances with those whom he knew in boyhood. After spending two months in the land of their birth, Mr. and Mrs. Flack returned to the United States and since that time have been living retired lives in the city of Lafayette, where they have a comfortable home and numerous friends. Both are respected members of the Methodist Epis- copal church and in his fraternal relations Mr. Flack belongs to the Masonic lodge at Battle Ground, in which, from time to time, he has been honored with important official positions.
Mr. and Mrs. Flack are the parents of four children, the oldest of whom, a daughter by the name of Maggie Meharry, married C. B. Downes, who, in 1909, sold his farm in Tippecanoe county and moved to the Pan Handle of Texas, where they now reside ; they have two sons, Russell and Glenn, and are well situated as far as material means are concerned. Mary Elizabeth, whose birth occurred November 3, 1876, died on the 15th of the same month and year. William, the third of the family, married Mary Norris, of Delphi, and is the father of one child, a daughter named Marguerite. He is a farmer by occupation and for some time past has been living on his father's home place near Battle Ground. Luella, the fourth in order of birth, is the wife of William Greenup, a member of the wealthy and widely known Greenup family of Delphi, where she has lived since her marriage, being at this time the mother of two interesting children, Nellie and Joe, aged nine and seven years, respectively.
MATT SCHNAIBLE.
The advent of the Schnaible family in the New World was most dis- couraging and apparently the future held nothing for them, when, after a disastrous voyage in the summer of 1853, members of this family landed in New York, having come from their native Germany to seek a better home in free America. They had eked out a bare living in Wurttemberg, Germany, for many years, and the father, Michael Schnaible, desiring to give his sons a better opportunity than he had ever enjoyed, concluded that the wisest thing for him to do was to establish a new home; but this was an unfortu- nate decision, for during the voyage to this country cholera invaded the sail- ing vessel and forty-seven of the passengers succumbed to the dread dis-
583
TIPPECANOE COUNTY, IND.
ease, including Michael Schnaible and his son Jacob, his brother and his uncle, all of whom were buried at sea. John Schnaible, who contracted the disease, recovered, and the mother, Dorothea Schnaible, finished the voyage, which required forty days, with her remaining children, Margaret, Michael, John, George and Matt. Three of her children had died in the Fatherland. The means of the family were nearly exhausted when they reached New York. After spending a few months there, they started for the West in February, 1854, finally reaching Lafayette, Indiana, where the boys who were old enough to work found employment of whatever nature they could to make a living. Michael secured work in a small soap factory near the water works and continued in the same until 1858. Being an observing boy, he learned the business, as did also his brother John, who secured employment in the same plant. Believing that they could make a success manufacturing soap on their own account, they began business under the firm name of M. & J. Schnaible Company, which eventually developed into a large business and the family became well established, enjoying a good home and the comforts of life.
Matt Schnaible was only a baby when the family brought him from Germany, where he was born in 1853. He grew to manhood in Lafayette, attended the Lutheran schools and also a business college, receiving a good education. He first secured work as engineer in the Wabash elevator, which establishment was built by the Wabash Railroad Company in 1857 and was first operated by James Spears, who was succeeded by Morcy & Ball, and in 1875 by I. E. Haviland. In 1876 Matt Schnaible, having mastered the details of this business and having shown himself a capable employe in every respect, was made manager, and in 1882 he became a partner in the concern for which he had faithfully worked for a period of sixteen years, and the firm name was I. E. Haviland Company. The business continued to prosper, largely due to Mr. Schnaible's able management, and in about 1897 he bought Mr. Haviland's interest, becoming sole owner. In 1904 he added a retail coal business to his already extensive business, all of which is now incor- porated under the name of Matt Schnaible Grain Company, which has become widely known and is doing a large business. Besides the elevator at Lafay- ette, Mr. Schnaible operates one at Shadeland, where he handles a large quan- tity of grain from year to year, his combined business often running up to. very large figures, showing that he is by nature and training a business man second to none in the thriving city of Lafayette.
Matt Schnaible was united in marriage with Katherine E. Sattler in 1880. She is the daughter of John Sattler, a prominent and influential busi-
584
PAST AND PRESENT
ness man of Lafayette, a son of George Sattler. Both father and son were born in Germany, John first seeing the light of day in Hessen-Darmstadt. They came to America and located in Tippecanoe county, Indiana, about 1855. John Sattler was for many years a leading tailor in Lafayette, became influen- tial in business circles and was a trustee of the board of the Lafayette water works, and for many years he was an officer in the Lutheran church.
To Mr. and Mrs. Matt Schnaible eight children have been born, of whom one died in infancy. A daughter, Mrs. Adolph J. Lottes, lives in Chicago; Walter W. married Caroline Schurman, of Lafayette, and has one daughter named Katherine. The other children are Albert F., vice-president of the Shadeland Grain Company; Walter W., secretary and treasurer of the same company ; Oswald M. is a clerk in the Merchants' National Bank; Arthur T., Elmer A. and Raymond. These children all received careful training and are well started in the successful battle of life.
Mr. Schnaible has long taken an active interest in the affairs of Lafay- ette and Tippecanoe county, lending his aid wherever practicable in promot- ing home interests. As a result of his public spirit he was in 1896 elected a member of the city council. He and his family are members of the Luth- eran church. Personally, Mr. Schnaible is frank, straightforward, courteous and generous, a pleasant man to know.
ROBERT FOSTER HIGHT, A. B.
Prof. Robert F. Hight, superintendent of the Lafayette city schools, be- longs to that class of middle-aged men who by thorough training and close application to professional duties have come to be known as capable and front- rank educators in this section of Indiana. He was born September 14, 1868, at Bloomington, Indiana, a son of Milton and Sarah (McCalla) Hight. The father graduated in law at the Indiana University in 1847, but never followed his profession to any great extent, being induced to engage in business of another character.
Professor Hight is descended from Revolutionary stock on both the paternal and maternal sides. The Hight family originally came from Germany, having emigrated to England, from which country they came to America. The great-grandfather, Thomas Hight, enlisted in the Continental army from North Carolina and was present at the surrender of Lord Cornwallis. The family removed from Carolina to Virginia in 1780 and subsequently moved to Boyle county, Kentucky, and about 1820 to Indiana.
RF. Hight
585
TIPPECANOE COUNTY, IND.
On the mother's side, Professor Highit is descended from the great- grandfather, Thomas McCalla, who came from county Antrim, Ireland, when an orphan boy. He enlisted in the Revolutionary army from Lancaster county, Pennsylvania. In 1778 he moved to South Carolina and served under Sumpter. He was captured and imprisoned, but later, through the efforts of his wife, was released on parole. His wife (Sarah Wayne Gardiner) was a cousin of Gen. Anthony Wayne. In 1835 the subject's grandfather removed from South Carolina to Indiana, where the two Revolutionary families be- came intermarried.
Prof. Robert F. Hight was educated in the public schools of Bloomington, Indiana, and in 1888 took the degree of Bachelor of Arts at Indiana Univer- sity, where he specialized in natural science, under D. S. Jordan, J. C. Branner, Theophilus Wylie and Daniel Kirkwood. Having fully equipped himself for the work of an educator, in the modern sense of the term, from 1888 to 1891 he was instructor in biology in the high school at Huntington, Indiana. From 1891 to 1902 he held the same position in the high school of the city of La- fayette and from 1902 to 1904 he was principal of the high school at the last named city. He had so conducted himself as an instructor in these city school positions that in 1904 he was chosen the superintendent of the city schools here, and is still serving in that capacity, to the entire satisfaction of all interested.
Socially, Professor Hight is connected with various societies and clubs, including Beta Theta Pi college fraternity ; Lafayette Club; Parlor Club and Lafayette Dramatic Club, of which he was the president in 1903. He has worked as a dramatic writer, having been in charge of this department for the Lafayette Morning Journal from 1896 to 1898.
Professor Hight was united in marriage June 3. 1897, to Elizabeth Puett Comingore. Under Mr. Hight's charge the public schools of Lafayette, which are second to none in North Indiana, have maintained their position. The subject is the author of the chapter in this work on "Literary Characters of Tippecanoe County."
WILLIAM O. CROUSE.
The well-known family of which William O. Crouse is an honorable representative is traceable in this country to a remote period in the time of the colonies, and many years prior to coming to the New World the ante- cedents of the American branch were quite well known in various parts of
586
PAST AND PRESENT
Germany, where the name appears to have originated. Simeon Crouse, the first of the family of whom there is definite record, was doubtless a native of Wittenberg, as he figured conspicuously in the musical circles of that city and for some years was choir master of the church to which Martin Luther, the Great Reformer, ministered. He was a musician of much more than local repute; taught in Wittenberg for many years and after losing his family by the red plague, which sad event occurred when he was in mid-life, he came about the year 1745 to America and located at Philadelphia, Pennsyl- vania, where he subsequently re-married and reared a large family. He was a strong supporter of the colonies in their struggle for independence, con- tributing by every means in his power to their ultimate success. He gave freely of his means, and sent four sons to the army, two of whom lost their lives in the battle of Germantown. Simeon Crouse was a man of note and influence in his adopted city and lived to a remarkable age, dying two days prior to the hundredth anniversary of his birth. His youngest son, Henry, whose birth occurred in Philadelphia, married Rachael Hebison, who bore him ten children, three of whom in after years came to Tippecanoe county, Indiana, namely : Simeon, John and David Hebison Crouse.
David Crouse, about the year 1845, located at Dayton, Indiana, where he engaged in the practice of medicine and in due time became one of the most successful and best known physicians and surgeons of that community. He was thrice married and left children by two wives, one of his sons, Dr. Jerome Crouse, serving with distinction in the Tenth Indiana Battery during the late Civil war and subsequently achieving an enviable reputation in his profession. He departed this life in the fall of 1908, honored and esteemed by all who knew him.
Another son of Dr. David Crouse was Meigs V. Crouse, who entered the ministry in early life, but later, by reason of the failure of his voice, he was obliged to give up that calling and turn his attention to another line of duty. For nearly thirty years he has been the efficient and popular super- intendent of the Children's Home at Cincinnati, and has made the institution a model of its kind. Two daughters of Doctor Crouse are still living, Mrs. Earl, who resides in Attica, Indiana, and Mrs. Victoria Burton, who occupies the old family home in Dayton, Indiana.
John and Simeon Crouse came west much earlier than Doctor David, both having settled in Tippecanoe county as long ago as 1827, the former in Tippecanoe county and the latter on the edge of Shawnee Prairie, in what is now the township of Jackson, where he took up a half section of land. John also entered a like amount and in the course of time both became well-
587
TIPPECANOE COUNTY, IND.
to-do families and prominent citizens, doing much to promote the material progress and social advancement of their respective communities.
Simeon Crouse was born in 1802, and when a young man married Anna Christman, daughter of Peter and Sarah Christman, who moved to Indiana in the early twenties from Raleigh, North Carolina, and settled in Warren county, with the subsequent history of which Mr. Christman's life was closely identified. Sarah Christman was the daughter of John Stout, who served during the war of the Revolution as an officer of a New Jersey regiment and achieved an honorable record as a brave and gallant soldier. The marriage of Simeon Crouse and Anna Christman was solemnized in Union county, In- diana, about the year 1825, some time before he became a resident of the county of Tippecanoe. Their children, three in number, were Francis M., born in 1828; Lavina, in 1836; and William O., the subject of this review, whose birth occurred in the year 1842.
Simeon Crouse followed agricultural pursuits all his life and, as already indicated, became one of the leading farmers of his township as well as one of its representative citizens. He departed this life in 1874 and left to his descendants the memory of an honorable name which they regard as a price- less heritage. His children grew up in the country, attended the subscription schools of their day and later rose to honorable positions in their respective places of abode. Francis M. was in the book business at Lafayette for a time, but disposing of his interests there went to Indianapolis, where he established a large book store and became one of the leading dealers of the city in that line of trade. He was a man of wide intelligence, profoundly versed in the literature of all countries and all ages, and possessed remarkable judgment as to the merits and value of old and rare books, of which he had long been a collector. Quiet in demeanor and of kindly nature, he had many warm friends, and his death, which occurred in Indianapolis in 1890, was greatly deplored by the best people of the city.
Lavina Crouse married John Shelby and died in 1859.
William O. Crouse, the youngest of the children of Simeon and Anna Crouse, spent the youthful years of his life in the township where he first saw the light of day and was early taught the lessons of industry and frugality which make for consecutive effort and permanent success in mater- ial things, in addition to which he was also instructed in the principles of truth and honor which in due time develop well-rounded character and fit their possessor for the sterner realities of life. After finishing the common- school course, he was planning to enter Wabash College, but the breaking out of the great Civil war caused a radical change in his calculations, for instead
588
PAST AND PRESENT
of prosecuting his studies further he resolved to tender his services to his country in its time of need. Enlisting in the Eighteenth Indiana Battery Light Artillery, he was soon at the front where during the ensuing three years he bore well his part in the great conflict which tested the perpetuity of the government and earned a record for bravery of which any soldier might well feel proud. Under the command of Capt. Eli Lilly, of Wilder's Brigade of Mounted Infantry, the Eighteenth Battery passed through many unusually trying and dangerous experiences. Supported by well-mounted and well- armed men, under the command of officers of superior ability, it saw much active service and was more frequently engaged than other batteries, the brigade having been fifty-four times under fire, which included some of the most noted battles of the war. Among the various engagements in which Mr. Crouse participated were Hoover's Gap, Chattanooga, Alexander's Bridge, Chickamauga, Ringgold, Resaca, Hopkinsville, Atlanta, Nashville, Selma. West Point and many others. The battery started out with one hundred and fifty men, and during its experience at the front three hundred more were recruited from time to time, and on being mustered out at the close of the war but twenty-six of the original force were left to tell the story of the many deeds of daring which the gallant Eighteenth accomplished in defense of the national union.
Returning home at the close of the war, Mr. Crouse entered into busi- ness with his brother in the book business, which connection lasted several years. During this period he contracted a matrimonial alliance with Sue N. Barr, daughter of Abram and Catherine (Rush) Barr, who moved from Lan- caster, Pennsylvania, in an early day, and were among the pioneer settlers of Tippecanoe county. Mrs. Barr was a niece of the celebrated Dr. Benjamin Rush, one of the most distinguished physicians of Philadelphia, in Revolu- tionary times, and to him also belongs the honor of being one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. Mrs. Crouse comes from a distinguished ancestry. Her father's people trace their line direct to Maurice Grauf, one of the heroic defenders of the city of Leyden in Holland in 1574. Her mother's people are lineal descendants from Capt. John Rush, an officer of horse in Cromwell's army, who emigrated to this country from England with William Penn in 1683, and settled near what is now Philadelphia. Mr. and Mrs. Crouse have one child, a daughter, who answers to the name of Bertha Barr Crouse, and who, with her parents, constitute an interesting and mutually agreeable and happy domestic circle.
Since the year 1866, Mr. Crouse has been engaged in various lines of business in Lafayette, but during the past fifteen years has devoted his atten-
589
TIPPECANOE COUNTY, IND.
tion principally to real estate, loans and insurance, in which he has been con- tinuously successful and in every respect gratifying. For over forty years he has been an active and influential member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, during which time he has held important offices in both the subordi- nate lodge and encampment, besides being chosen at intervals a representa- tive to the grand lodge. Religiously he subscribes to the Presbyterian faith, and with his wife and daughter is a regular attendant of the church in Lafay- ette and a generous contributor to its support and to the various lines of activity under the auspices of the denomination in his own city and else- where.
Mr. Crouse has always manifested a lively interest in everything pertain- ing to the welfare of the community, its progress and upbuilding, and bears the reputation of an enterprising, public-spirited citizen, with the good of his fellowmen at heart. In both civil and military life he has demonstrated his loyalty and love for his country, and his career throughout has been above reproach and greatly to his credit as a true American who makes every other consideration subordinate to his interest in the government and the free institutions for the maintenance of which he devoted some of the best years of his life and under which he has achieved marked success. In manner, Mr. Crouse is free from all ostentatious display, but his intrinsic worth is recognized and his friendship most prized by those who know him best, showing that his character will bear the scrutiny of close acquaintance, and that his life has been fraught with great good to those among whom his lot has been cast and to the world at large.
MICHAEL SCHNAIBLE.
Dark and dismal was the tragedy that marked the coming to America of the well-known family of this name. They had long contemplated to move. had discussed it over by the fireside and looked with longing to the land of promise beyond the sea. Finally the momentous day arrived, and during the summer of 1853 a sailing vessel departing from a German port contained quite a party of relatives bound for the New World. Michael Schnaible. the recognized head of these emigrants, had long been a farmer in Wurttemberg, Germany, during the first quarter of the last century. He and his wife Dorothea had had nine children, of whom three had died, leaving Margaret, Jacob, Michael, John, George and Matt, and this family, besides a number of
590
PAST AND PRESENT
relatives, constituted the party that took the ship for what was destined to be a tragic voyage. In those days the passages were long and tedious, often con- suming from a month to six weeks, and it took the vessel bearing these natives of Wurttemberg full forty days to traverse the Atlantic. The horrors of the passage were greatly aggravated by the breaking out of cholera in its most virulent form, and forty-seven of the passengers died of the disease. Included in this number were the elder Michael Schnaible and his son Jacob, his brother and his uncle, all of whom were buried at sea under the gruesome conditions surrounding such fatalities. John Schnaible contracted the disease, but was fortunate enough to recover, and the mother finished the sad voy- age with her remaining five children. They reached New York much de- pressed in spirit and inclined to take a gloomy view of the outlook, as their means were nearly exhausted and the future seemed to hold little for them. After a month or two in the great metropolis. they started West in February, 1854, and after a tedious journey eventually reached Lafayette. The boys who were old enough went to work at whatever they could find to do, but in time an event occurred which proved fortuitous and was destined to in- fluence the whole subsequent career of the Schnaible family. Michael found a job in a little soap factory near the water-works, and, though the wages were small, he was delighted with his good luck. He held on until 1858, when he was joined by his brother John, and the two continued for some years as faithful employes. This little factory had been started by Peirce and Cherry, but in 1855 the former sold his interest to E. T. Jenks, and the latter two years later bought the whole business. Meantime, the Schnaible brothers had worked hard, learned all they could about the business and saved their money. In 1868 they were able to buy the soap factory and engaged in busi- ness for themselves as M. & J. Schnaible. Their affairs prospered and in due time they built a commodious brick building to accommodate the factory. Later. they found it necessary to erect an addition and business grew apace until the soap factory became one of the important industries of Lafayette.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.