USA > Indiana > Fountain County > Portrait and biographical record of Montgomery, Parke and Fountain counties, Indiana : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens : together with biographies and portraits of all the presidents of the United States > Part 36
USA > Indiana > Montgomery County > Portrait and biographical record of Montgomery, Parke and Fountain counties, Indiana : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens : together with biographies and portraits of all the presidents of the United States > Part 36
USA > Indiana > Parke County > Portrait and biographical record of Montgomery, Parke and Fountain counties, Indiana : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens : together with biographies and portraits of all the presidents of the United States > Part 36
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The educational advantages of our subject were those of the district school, and when he was only seventeen years old he was united in marriage with Sarah J., daughter of Jesse and Lydia (New- land) Hobson. Mrs. Newlin is a native of Parke County and is one of ten children. Iler parents were born in North Carolina. Nine children came to brighten the home of Mr. and Mrs. New- lin. Alpheus died when nineteen years old; Mary L. died at the age of seventeen years; Elma is the wife of Harvey Kennedy; Jesse, deceased, mar- ried Laura Nickle; Lydia is the widow of Miller F. Peek; Cyrus died in childhood; Artie is de- ceased; Charles O. died when ten years old; and Lillie completes the family.
After our subject's marriage he began renting land, after which for three years he worked at his father's mill. He was economical and indus- trious, thus managing to lay up a snug little sum of money. His next move was to buy seventy acres of his father, for which he paid $700. After improving them, he removed to Howard County. where he bought a farm and lived for one year, and then returned to this county. After that lie changed his location twice, permanently settling in 1879 on the farm he now operates.
Yours truly Мо.У.Барем.
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PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
OHN T. CAMPBELL, Surveyor of Parke County, resides at Rockville. He was born on a farm near Montezuma, this county, May 21, 1833, and is the son of Joseph and . Rachel (Ten Brook) Campbell. His father was born in Venice, Butler County, Ohio, May 11, 1808, and was the son of John Campbell, a native of Lancaster, Mass. The mother was a native of Pennsylvania and was born near Williamsport, Lycoming County, June 19, 1814. Her father, Conrad Ten Brook, was born near Trenton, N. J., and traced his ancestry to Holland. During the War of the Revolution, John Ten Brook, father of Conrad, was Major of a battalion which he com- manded at the battle of Trenton. It was the cus- tom to assign Dutch prisoners to the residences of Hollanders in order that the soldiers in the service of Great Britain might be converted to sympathize with the Colonials, and after the battle of Saratoga Maj. Ten Brook entertained at his house the Hes- sian prisoner and General, Baron Riedesel.
After the Revolutionary War, Maj. Ten Brook sold his farm at Trenton, N. J., taking his pay in Continental money, which was practically worth- less. Having made settlement in Lycoming County, Pa., he again began the battle against adverse circumstances in an effort to maintain his family. From there Conrad removed to Butler County, Ohio, and after a residence of three years, came to Parke County, Ind., about 1826. Here Rachel Ten Brook grew to womanhood, and was married at the age of seventeen to Joseph Campbell.
The paternal grandfather of our subject, John Campbell, removed when young from Massachu- setts to Lake George, and later proceeded further west into the Empire State. While there he had a terrible encounter with a bear, in which he dis- played that coolness and courage in the presence of danger so characteristic of our pioneer fore- fathers. The bear came running down the slope of & hill, and dashing at its intended victim, threatened to destroy his life in an instant. Seiz- ing the opportune moment, Campbell thrust the muzzle of his gun down the throat of Bruin, and the tables were at once turned. In other affairs he showed himself the possessor of courage, valor and energy. From New York be removed to But- 16
ler County, Ohio, where he purchased fifty acres of unimproved land from John Cleve Sims. Later he sold that tract and bought one hundred and sixty acres on Paddles Run, where he resided for several years. After the death of his wife he moved to Sullivan County, Ind., where one of his sons was stolen by the Indians and never heard of again. Thence he moved south to Terre Haute, and purchased three hundred acres, where for a time he made his home. His last days were passed among his children, and his death occurred three miles north of Montezuma about 1850.
Joseph Campbell was six years old when he ac- companied his father to Sullivan County. After his marriage, which occurred when he was about twenty-three years of age, he settled on the "Wil- son " land, now owned by Perry Brown and lo- cated near Montezuma. In partnership with his brother-in-law he purchased the Rockport Mills, which he conducted until his death at the age of thirty-four. His wife passed away about ten days previous to his demise. A man of magnificent proportions, he was six feet and four inches in height and was a well-known wrestler, an unerring shot and a swift runner. In disposition, he was amiable and kind, rarely losing his temper, although when he did he became very angry. He was elected Colonel of the militia and was familiarly known as Col. Campbell. For some time he engaged in running a boat down to New Orleans, and during one of the trips was in the storm at Natchez when that city was destroyed by a whirlwind. His boat, however, escaped unin- jured. In politics he was a strong adherent to the principles of the Whig party. He was a Universalist in religious belief.
John T. Campbell was one of seven children. His boyhood days were mostly spent in his father's mills on Sugar creek at the head of the gorge known as the Devil's Den (now called Rockport Mills). When about four years old, he fell over a precipice, a distance of sixty feet, and landed, without an injury, in a mud hole. At the age of fifteen heleft home and secured employment on a farm in Vermillion County, where he remained until he was seventeen. After leaving the farm in Vermillion County, he went to Montezuma and
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for seven months worked at the trade of a car- penter with Aaron Wade. He also spent a short time in Annapolis, Parke County, and in 1852 studied for one term at the Western Manual Labor School, now known as Bloomingdale Academy. For ten ensning years he worked at his trade of a carpenter during the summer, and followed the profession of a teacher in the winter season, mean- time spending another term at Bloomingdale Academy.
From association Mr. Campbell became ac- quainted with the Friends, and on reading their literature became enamored with their views and their anti-war principles, which made such an im- pression upon his mind that he contemplated join- ing the society, but just about that time the Rebels fired on Fort Sumter. His patriotism triumphed and he offered himself to Capt. Foote for service, but was rejected on account of deficiency of teeth. He then raised a company of his own in Parke County, and on July 6, 1861, marched to Indian- apolis, where he was commissioned Captain of the company known as Company H, Twenty-first In- diana Infantry.
The regiment was ordered to Baltimore, where the soldiers remained nntil February 19, 1862, and thence removed to Newport News, where they stayed until two days before the celebrated en- counter between the " Monitor " and the " Merri- mac." They were then ordered to Ship Island to join the Gulf Squadron in its attack on Forts Jack- son and Phillips. Capt. Campbell's was one of three companies that went up the bayou in the rear of the forts within range of the enemy's guns to cut off the retreat of the Rebels. They arrived at New Orleans about April 27, 1862, and twenty days later they proceeded to Baton Rouge. At the battle of that place, which occurred August 5, 1862, Capt. Campbell was wounded by a shot be- low the knee from which he has not fully recov- ered. He remained in the hospital at New Orleans from August 8th until October 29, 1862, when he had recovered sufficiently to return home.
On June 20, 1863, Capt. Campbell was appointed Assistant Provost Marshal of the Seventh Con- gressional District, the duties of which called him to Rockville, where he has since resided. In Oc-
tober, 1863, he was elected Treasurer of Parke County, and served two terms, a period of four years altogether. From December, 1869, until July, 1870, he held the office of Assistant Assessor of Internal Revenue. Later he opened a hotel, but failing to make a success of the enterprise went out of business. He has been granted letters patent upon several inventions, the principal of which is a surveyor's transit. In literary circles he has gained some prominence, and is the author of a pamphlet on National Finance, which in 1870 had a wide circulation. He is a clear and graphic writer and has contributed valuable articles to local papers, as well as to the leading journals of Terre Haute, Indianapolis, New York and Wash- ington.
In politics Capt. Campbell was first a Republican, but in 1870 adopted the principles of the Green- back party and served as delegate to the conven- tion at Columbus in 1872. He acted with the third party, known a different times under various names, as Labor Reform, Independent, National, Fusionists, Farmers' Alliance, Grangers, and now Populists, until 1884, when he returneed to the Republican party. In 1870-71 he matured a road system in statutory form for creating, con- structing, repairing and maintaining the public highways, on which he took out a copyright in 1871. He offered it to the Indiana Legislature five times free of charge, if they would adopt it, but the members from the hilly counties all voted against it as being too radical. During the winter of 1879 Capt. Campbell secured a clerkship in the Senate in order that he might have every oppor- tunity to urge the Committee on Roads to adopt the system, still offering it free to Indiana. He employed the late Charles H. Test to write an opinion as to the validity of his copyright as against the state. The Judge held that while he could not enjoin the state from using and appro- priating his right, he could enjoin any of the state's officers individually from working under any law that should infringe his copyright; that the state could not authorize any of its officers to do an illegal act. Capt. Campbell has been a very act- ive factor in working up Parke County until it now has the finest gravel roads of any section of
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the country. For ten years he studied road-mak- ing and the road resources of his county, and talked, urged, planned and wrote in the local pa- pers on the subject of improving the roads. It seemed to him that he was making no impression on the people, but at length there broke out an ep- idemic of gravel road building, and there was such a rush between rival routes to get their roads or- dered first that it resulted in several law-suits and " killed off " several important roads.
In 1884 while serving, as engineer for the con- struction of the ditch and levee along the Wabash river in Parke County, Capt. Campbell observed that a woman had emptied her straw mattress on the very sandy road in front of her house. He noticed that along the thirty feet of roadway where the straw had been tramped into and mixed with the sand, the road, which had before been miry sand, in two days became as firm and solid as dry clay. A few days later on the same sandy road he observed that several sheaves of oats had been dropped from a wagon, and that one had become unbound and tramped into the sand. It too had made the road firm in that place. He unbound the other sheaves and scattered them along the road so that the straw would be about four inches deep when loose. In a few days that part became as firm as could be desired. He watched it from day to day until the falling snow hid it from view, much gratified to see that it had remained a good road for five months. During the following winter (1884-85) be read a paper on the subject before the Society of Indiana Surveyors and Civil Engi- neers, and recommended it to the people of his county wherever he went, both personally and by publication in the papers. This method of improvement is now being extensively used on sandy roads.
By the same process of applying observations, Capt. Campbell discovered that when mud roads are frozen dry, if they are then covered six inches deep with loose straw, they will remain solid through the remainder of the winter and spring. The straw will hold the surface thaw (which is ruinous to roads) back until the thaw from beneath causes the congealed moisture above to sink, the earth absorbing the water as fast as the thaw pro-
duces it. Thus the roads are dry at the close of the winter. Mr. Campbell is a member of the Indiana Highway Improvement Association, and read a paper before the Indiana Road Congress held at Indianapolis, in December, 1892, giving a history of the gravel road movement in Parke County.
In July, 1879, Mr. Campbell was appointed First Assistant of the Indiana Bureau of Statistics and Geology, a department then newly created. He was the main factor in shaping the affairs of that bureau in the statistical work, the Chief, Dr. John Collett, Ph. D., devoting himself mainly to the geological department. He so overworked himself that in four years he became thoroughly nauseated with statistics, which he had formerly enjoyed as a maiden does a novel.
Through the enthusiasm of his Chief on the sub- ject of geology, Mr. Campbell became interested in that science and is now an expert in glacial geology. He is a member of the American Asso- ciation for the Advancement of Science, and read two papers before that society at the Indianapolis meeting in 1890. At the Washington meeting one of his papers was read which related to the accu- mulation of debris that works its way to the surface of a stream of water bearing a glacier in its cur- rent. Other articles written by him treated of the topographical evidence of the immense water flow of the Wabash river, and the fact that the flow was suddenly cut off.
Capt. Campbell was probably the first to dis- cover, and certainly the first to publish the discov- ery, that in the regions covered by the glacial drift all the streams which run east and west have a steep hill on their south side (facing north- ward) and gently sloping hills on their north side (facing southward). He published this in the American Naturalist (Philadelphia) in 1884 and gave his theory to account for the fact. He also pub- lished various other articles in the same journal on kindred subjects, the last in September, 1890, giv- ing his theory of the origin of the fire-clay cover- ing the glacial drift, and citing various facts in support of his theory. He has found thirteen localities in Parke County, and near the line in adjoining counties, where the glacier left its mark
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and striations on the rock in places. These mark- ings are very numerous in the Wabash country, but they are covered with the glacial drift, and are exposed in but few places, so that it requires an expert to find them.
For five terms of two years each, Capt. Camp- bell has served as County Surveyor. He was first elected as an independent candidate, next being voluntarily nominated by Republicans, Democrats, Greenbackers and Prohibitionists; next, by all but the Prohibitionists; next, same; next, Republicans only; last, by Republicans only, with all others combined against him on the Prohibition candi- date, when he was elected by a majority of five. This required that he should run ahead of his ticket.
While serving in the army Capt. Campbell in- vented a device for ascertaining the distance of the enemy, by forming a small angle, the tangent base of which was read on a graduated rod, so that the result was obtained instantly. The war closing before he could get an instrument made, his old preceptor, B. C. Hobbs, suggested that he apply his idea to surveyor's and engineer's instru- ments, remarking that he could do the world more good than by employing it as a rapid means of killing men. The suggestion struck him with great force and he at once began the study of surveying and engineering, and applied his inven- tion as suggested.
Capt. Campbell is so constituted mentally that he cannot learn anything until he becomes inter- ested in it; then only with great difficulty can be be prevented from learning it. He rummages libraries, seeks every source of information, and masters the subject in a very short time. When the inventive fever is on, his most important busi- ness must stand aside until he solves the problem, whateverit may be, that has presented itself to his mind. He fully realizes what a great hin- drance this peculiarity is to his material prosperity, but the inclination is his master, and he cannot shake it off until the fever runs its course. About four years ago a passion of this sort seized him when he commenced to learn the Volapnk language. Immediately he bought a grammar, carrying on the study of it at night, on the cars, or wherever he
happened to be, until he could read Volapuk fluently and translate it at sight. The fever sub- sided and to-day he cannot even read the language. It was the same with stenography.
While Mr. Campbell is not educated in mechan- ics or mathematics, he has naturally a mechanical and mathematical mind. Intuitively he sees what a mechanical result would be. This has led him to spend time and money inventing and in pat- enting his inventions. Like most other invent- ors, he has no faculty for getting any money out of his contrivances. He has devised three methods of measuring the height of the clouds. The first was by noting the time elapsing between sundown and the last ray of light on the cloud. Just as a leading journal on meteorology was about to pub- lish his method, he discovered that a German had conceived the same idea one hundred and fifty years before. The method was correct in prin- ciple, but often difficult of application, and had been dropped and forgotten. His next method was based on the time and direction of the travel of cloud shadows. The third is based on the rate of travel of the observer on a railroad train, the observer then noting the travel of the cloud when his train stops at a station. This is often applicable and is important to meteorologists.
A NDREW COOK, a representative citizen and extensive farmer of Parke County, re- sides on Section 31, Wabash Township. He has served his friends and fellow- citizens as Constable, and in the spring of 1890 was elected trustee for a four-year term. He is a strong supporter of the Republican party, active and interested in the work of the same.
Mr. Cook was born in the northern part of Wabash Township, Parke County, Ind., January 7, 1833, and is a son of Thomas and Jane (Ens- worth) Cook. The former was born in Maryland, in which state his father's death occurred. With his mother and her family he came to Circleville, Ohio, and later to Indiana. He was one of several boys: Jesse and Henry died in Ohio; the others were William, Mark and Eleven, who was so
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named on account of being the eleventh child in the family.
With his brother Mark, our subject's father served in the War of 1812 and was present at Hnll's surrender. He was a farmer by occupa- tion, and in 1821 came to Vigo County, Ind., with a team and wagon. Leaving his family, he made a trip to St. Louis on horseback to collect a debt, and on his return raised a crop on Harrison Prairie. The following year he entered eighty acres of land and purchased a like amount on Sec- tion 6, Wabash Township, where he resided until he was called to his final rest in 1841, aged fifty- eight years. His widow survived him twelve years, dying in August, 1853. Politically he was a Whig, and was liberal in his support of the Pres- byterian Church, of which his wife was a member.
The mother of Andrew Cook was born in Circle- ville, Ohio, being the daughter of Andrew and Margaret Ainsworth, who were of German origin. The latter's people were killed by the Indians. Mr. Cook is one of a family of six children, the others being: Matilda, wife of John Phillips of Edgar County, Ill .; Margaret, deceased; Mary, wife of Lazeras Shirk of this county; Sarah J., de- ceased, and Charles. Mr. Cook's educational ad- vantages were limited, being those of the primi- tive log school-house. In 1852, with four others, he left home in April, driving a team, his destina- tion being California.
He crossed the Missouri river May 22, and landed in California August 19. He spent six years in the Golden State, the first year engaging in ditching and working in a sawmill, after which he turned his attention to mining. He made some money during this time, and when he arrived home, having returned by way of the Isthmus of Panama, he found he had some $2,200.
In the spring of 1859 Mr. Cook purchased a tract of one hundred and sixty acres in Edgar County, Ill., where he resided until December, 1863, when he sold out and returned to Parke County, Ind. Here he rented land for about three years, in 1866 purchasing one hundred acres on Section 31, where he has resided up to the present time. Year by year, as his financial resources permitted, he added to his farm until he
is now the owner of four hundred and eighteen acres.
On December, 1858, Andrew Cook and Martha Hayth were united in the bonds of matrimony. The lady was born in Wabash Township, Ind., September, 1841, being a daughter of Thomas and Salnda A. (Camper) Hayth, who came from Vir- ginia about the year 1830, the former being a farmer by profession. Eleven children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Cook: Thomas, who died at the age of two months; Charles T. ; Eva, wife of John Funkhauser: Rosa, wife of Samuel Miles; Florence, wife of James Dailey; Fred, who died at the age of eighteen months; Jennie; Andrew, who died in infancy ; Clarence; Bertie, and an infant who died unnamed. Our subject and wife are active in the work of the Methodist Episcopal Church, honored and respected by all who know them.
C HARLES COOKE is a native son of Wabash Township, Parke County, where his birth occurred September 7, 1830. Commencing his active career in life under what would be considered very unfavorable circumstances, he has surmounted all obstacles and overcome all dis- couragements along his pathway with a fortitude and strength of purpose worthy of commendation. He is now considered, and justly, one of the ex- tensive and progressive farmers of the county.
Grandfather Cooke was a pioneer in the vicinity of Circleville, Ohio, uear which village Thomas, our subject's father, was born in 1786, nearly twenty years before the Buckeye State was admit- ted to the sisterhood of the Union. He was a sol- dier in the War of 1812, being present when Hull surrendered. He followed the occupation of a farmer, and came to Indiana at an early day, set- tling near Terre Haute, at what was known as Fort Harrison. When land came into the market he came to this township, where he entered a farm of one hundred and sixty acres, which he improved. His death occurred May 1, 1842, and after seven years had elapsed his wife was also called to her final rest, on May 29, 1850. She was born Aug- ust 17, 1793, and was the mother of six children:
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Matilda, wife of John Phillips; Margaret, deceased; Mary, Mrs. Lazeras Shirk, who died in Fountain County; Sarah, deceased; our subject, and Andrew. The mother was a devoted member of the Cumber- land Presbyterian Church, and for the benefit of his family and the community Mr. Cooke erected on his own farm and with his own means a sub- stantial church. Mrs. Cooke was a daughter of Andrew and Margaret Ainsworth, of German descent, who passed their entire lives in Ohio.
Mr. Cooke, of this sketch, was reared to farm life, receiving a district school education. When only eleven years of age he had to go to work to support the family, and on reaching his majority rented the homestead. In 1857 he purchased his first farm of one hundred and sixty acres on See- tion 20, Wabash Township, for which he paid $35 an acre. Three years later he traded this for a farın of one hundred and ninety-five acres, the place where he still resides, on Section 24. He gave $300 "boot" money, and has steadily in- creased the boundaries of his farm, until it now contains four hundred and fifty-five acres in a body, the homestead farm. He is the owner of another farm of one hundred and ninety-five acres, and has cleared altogether about three hundred acres of land. He does not owe a dollar, and whatever he has is due entirely to the energy and perseverance which are marked characteristics of the man.
It was on August 7, 1853, that Miss Virginia Hayth became the wife of Charles Cooke. The lady was born in Florida Township, Parke County, July 20, 1833, and is the daughter of Thomas and Saluda (Camper) Hayth, natives of Virginia, born near Roanoke and Lynchburg, respectively. Mr. Hayth was a teacher and hotel man. In 1823 he came to Indiana by wagon, entering eighty acres on Section 21, Wabash Township, which he par- tially cleared and improved. About the year 1847 he located on Section 7, there becoming the owner of a place of one hundred and sixty acres.
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