^^ PUBLIC LIBRARY
977 . 201 FORT WAYNE & ALLEN CO.. IWa
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1420258
GENEALOGY COLLECTION
LLEN COUNTY PUBLIC UBRARY
3 1833 01786 7497
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HISTORY
MAUMEE RIVER BASIN-
ALLEN COUNTY
INDIANA
OOL. ROBERT S. ROBERTSON
ASSISTED BY A CORPS OF ABLE EDITORS AND CONTRIBUTORS
ILLUSTRJITEI]
VOL. Ill
BOWEN & SLOCUM
14^0258
INDEX
Ashley, George L 427
Atchison, Mrs. Lewis E 341
B
Baade, Christian 566
Baird. David W 472
Baird Family 469
Baird, Robert D 470
Baird, William H 473
Baker, Kilian 481
Barnett, Charles E 106
Bamett, James 176
Barnett, Walter W 407
Bass, John H 112
Bates, Alfred H. 490
Beard, Milo 448
Becker, Henry W 348
Beerman, Henry 299
Bell, E. Edwin 367
Berning, H. F. William 185
Bower, George B. M 307
Bowers, Adam M 319
Bowser, Sylvanus F 304
Bradbury, Sheriod 546
Branning, Ernst F. W 205
Breen, William P 23
Buchman, Alpheus P 439
Carey, Willis W 530
Carroll, Charles E 516
Casselman, John 487
Chambers, John D 395
Cheney, James 48
Clark, Wilson 249
Colerick, Walpole G 169
Cooper, Henry 259
Cooper, William P 317
Corbat, Alphonse 478
Corbat, Frank 478
Cosgrove, Franklin N 582
Covington, Thomas 474
Cressler, Alfred D 416
Cunnison, James 462
D
Daugherty, Alfred 540
Deming, Nelson L 65
DeWald, George 272
DeWald, Robert W. T 101
Diamond, Adolph 137
Dickerson, William 323
DifEenderfer, William A 280
Downing, Jeremiah B 252
Dunkelberg, Charles A 405
INDEX.
Bckart, Fred 511
Edwards, John W 493
Eick, Frank J 189
Eme, Louis J 498
Bnslen, William 286
Etzold, William C 411
P
Fahlsing, Frederick W 295
Fair, Gabriel 509
Fairfield, Charles W 573
Felger, Henry G 422
Fleming, William 208
Fortmeyer, Frank 442
French, Rufus M 315
G
Gandy, Clyde M 382
Geake, Martin T 62
Getz, Henry 569
Gieseking, Frederick W 284
Gilbert, Newton W 125
Gillie, John L 430
Gorsline, Homer A 522
Graham, Jacob 451
Graham, James A 140
Grice, Jesse 390
Gruber, Joseph L 436
Guldlin, Olaf N 67
H
Haley, Joseph M 380
Hamilton, Andrew H 334
Hamilton, William A 192
Hanna, Joseph T 37
Hanna, Samuel 80
Harris, Emmett V 216
Harrod, Morse 172
Hart, Jonathan 198
Hartman, Lemuel R 277
Hartzell, John R 350
Hayden, Frederick J 157
Heaton, Benjamin F 154
Hettler, Christopher F 133
Higgins, Cecilius R 235
Hilgemann, Henry F 373
Hilgemann, Harry H 123
Hofer, Theobald 446
Hoffman, William H 118
Hughes, Rev. Joseph 537
Hunting, Fred Stanley 467
J
Johnson, William A 425
Jordan, George 293
K
Kalbacher, Anton 370
Kane, Alfred 393
Kelsey, Elva C 552
Klaehn, Frederick C. W 182
Krill, David 543
Kruse, Ernest W 302
L
Lasselle, Francis D 221
Lomont, Herman L 187
Long, Mason 336
Louttit, George W. 212
Lowry, Robert 238
Mc
McCaskey, George W 218
McHugh, James B 332
McKee, Warren 560
INDEX
McKeeman, Robert B 327
McMaken, Henry C 288
McMaken, William B 309
M
Marquardt, Jacob 484
Meeks, John W 329
Melcbing, Albert E 385
Meyer, John C 555
Miller, John A 455
Morris, Elmor E 127
Morris, John 56
Munson, Charles A 534
Murray, Kerr 418
N
Niesehang, Charles C. F 420
Niezer. Charles M 34
O
Ogden, Benjamin F 531
Olds, Charles L 526
O'Rourke, Patrick S 29
O'Rourke, William S 365
P
Page, William D 26
Peltier, J. C 121
Peltier, Louis 41
Pfeiffer, Charles F 263
Pfeiffer, Charles G 103
Pfeiffer, Christian F 432
Pfeiffer, John C 270
Pfeiffer, Joseph C 35
Phelps, Charles A 513
Pickard, Thomas R 528
Poinsett, John S 563
- Porter, Miles F 368
Prange, Christian 444
Purcell, Frank E 159
Randall, Franklin P 518
Rastetter, Louis 240
Reiling, August W 413
Reynolds, William E., Jr 243
Robertson, Robert S 17
Robinson, James M 53
Rose, Morris F 201
Rousseau, Reuben 503
Ruch, Joshua 174
Rush, Fred 129
Schick, Martin F 108
Schneider, Adam L 409
Schnelker, Henry F 359
Schnitker, August R 355
Scott, William 195
Shaffer, John 579
Shoaff, Frederick B 99
Shoaff, William W 465
Smith, Willard 210
Sprankle, John D 458
Stellhom, Charles 558
Stellhorn, Frederick W 397
Stellhom, John H 402
Stout, George W 387
Strawbridge, Charles T 282
Sweetser, Madison 224
Tapp, Herman W 46
Taylor, Robert S 32
INDEX.
Thieme, Theodore P 161
Thomas, Charles M ,228
Turflinger, Thomas 363
U
Ungumach, John H 267
V
Vesey, William J 142
Vonderau, Christ G 345
W
Waltemath, Charles H 377
Waltemath, William H 375
Wayne Knitting Mills 162
Weaver, Isaiah 549
Whery, Mary A 39
White, James B 144
Wheelock, Kent K 233
Wiebke, Henry A 496
Wiese, Christian 246
Wilbur, George W 255
Williams, Jesse L 165
Williams, Samuel M 73
Wolf, Samuel 214
Woodworth, Mrs. Charles B 44
Word en, James L 88
Work, Wesley 1 78
Wybourn, William T 500
Y
Yant, Cornelius 576
Yaple, Carl 110
Z
ZoUars, Allen 150
£:'ia *«. yjr: ^ a^Mams d-Sn! /-n^
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 17
PERSONAL MENTION
COL. ROBERT S. ROBERTSON.
Indiana has been especially honored in the character and career
of her public and professional men. In every county are to be found
individuals born to leadership in the various avocations and profes-
sions, men who dominate because of their superior intelligence, nat-
ural endowment and force of character. It is always profitable to
study such lives, weigh their motives and hold up their achievements
as incentives to greater activity and higher excellence on the part of
others. These reflections are suggested by the career of one who has
forged his way to the front ranks of the favored few, and who, by a
strong inherent force and superior professional ability, directed by
intelligence and judgment of a high order, stands today among the
representative men of Allen county and northern Indiana. It is
doubtful if any citizen of this part of the state has achieved more
honorable mention or occupied a more conspicuous place in the pro-
fession which he represents than Robert S. Robertson, the well-known
attorney of Fort Wayne, to a brief epitome of whose life the reader's
attention is herewith invited.
Robert Stoddart Robertson was born on the i6th of April, 1839,
at North Argyle, Washington county. New York, and is the son of
Nicholas and Martha Hume (Stoddart) Robertson. The paternal
grandfather, Robert Robertson, was born in October, 1755, in Kin-
ross-shire, Scotland, on the farm of "Touchie Miln," which had been
inherited by the several generations of the family from their an-
cestor, Robert Robertson, of 1470. The grandfather, as a younger
2
1 8 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
son, emigrated to the United States in 1793, settling in Washington
county, New York, where he carved a home out of the wilderness,
and there resided during the remainder of his life, his death occurring
on the 6th of November, 1840. This farm is now owned b)^ two of
his grandchildren. Nicholas Robertson, father of the Colonel, was
born at North Argyle, Washington county, New York, on May 12,
1803, and his death occurred there in 1896. He possessed great
strength of character and marked abilit)^, and stood high among his
fellowmen, having served as postmaster of North Argyle and for
many years as a justice of the peace. His, vocation in early life was
cabinet-making, but later he became a mill owner and operator. On
May 27, 183 1, Nicholas Robertson was united in marriage to Miss
Martha Hume Stoddart, who was born in New York city on March
20, 1812, the daughter of Robert and Anne (Hume) Stoddart. Her
lineage traces, on both the paternal and maternal sides, to prominent
Scottish families — the Humes and the Stoddarts. The Stoddart
family is "one of illustrious record, its name being derived from the
term 'standard,' inasmuch as the first of the name went to England
with William the Conqueror, as standard bearer for the Vicompte de
Pulesden." The late Lyon King-at-Arms of Scotland came from this
family. The Humes were also prominent in Scottish annals, and the
Colonel's maternal great-grandfather was a captain in the British
army during the American war of the Revolution, but subsequently
married a Long Island girl and became a citizen of New York. The
death of the subject's mother occurred on the 20th of January, 1867.
Robert S. Robertson received his elementary education in the
common schools, supplementing this by attendance at Argyle Acad-
emv, his vacation periods being devoted to work in his father's mills.
His boyhood experiences were much the same as those of most other
boys reared in country villages, though he was considered more studi-
ous than others of his associates, being an omnivorous reader of the
best literature within his reach. He early decided upon the law as
his life profession, and to this end he, in 1859, became a student in
the law office of Hon. James Gibson, in Salem, New York. In i860
he went to New York city and continued his studies under the pre-
ceptorship of Hon. Charles Crary, author of that standard work,
"Special Pleadings." In November, i860, he was admitted to the
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 19
bar, and in 1861 he went to Whitehall, New York, and entered upon
the active practice of his profession, as successor to Hon. John H.
Boyd, member of congress from that district, who was retiring from
the practice. His plans were soon interrupted, however, for upon
the outbreak of the great Southern rebellion his love of country over-
rode all other interests, and he at once devoted himself to raising a
company of volunteers. During the autumn and early winter of
1 86 1 this company remained at Albany, but upon the order to con-
solidate parts of companies and regiments, his company became a part
of Company I, Ninety-third Regiment New York Volunteer In-
fantry, in which Mr. Robertson was mustered in as a private. Be-
fore leaving the state, however, he was appointed orderlv sergeant.
He participated in all the campaigns, battles and skirmishes in which
his command was engaged, and gained for himself a splendid repu-
tation as a faithful and courageous soldier. He was promoted to a
second lieutenancy in April, 1862, to first lieutenant in May, 1863,
and subsequently, for "gallant and meritorious services in the field,"
he received two brevet commissions — one from the President, con-
ferring the rank of captain of United States volunteers, and another
from the governor of New York, brevetting him colonel of New
York volunteers. He served as personal aide to General Nelson A.
Miles while the latter was in command of the famous fighting First
Brigade, First Division, Second Army Corps, and while so serving
was twice wounded, the first time at Spottsylvania Courthouse on
May 12, 1864, where he was struck on the knee by a musket ball,
and again on the 31st of the same month at Totopotomoy Creek,
where he was shot from his horse in a charge, a minie ball passing
through his abdomen from the front of the right hip to the back of
the left. His wound was considered fatal, but he possessed a vigorous
constitution, and recovered in a measure, and again entered the active
service. However, during the siege of Petersburg, his wounds broke
out afresh, and on September 3, 1864, he was discharged "for dis-
ability from wounds received in action." Subsequently Colonel
Robertson received the "congressional medal of honor" for services
rendered at Corbin's Bridge, Virginia. May 8, 1864.
Upon his return from the South, Colonel Robertson located in
Washington. D. C, and became a member of the law firm of Crocker,
20 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Robertson & Bramhall. In 1866, acting partly on the advice of Vice-
President Colfax, he came to Fort Wayne, where he has since re-
sided, having been continuously engaged in the active practice of his
profession. His abilities were soon recognized here, and during
1867-8-9 he served as city attorney. In 1868 he was the Republican
candidate for state senator, but could not overcome the normally
heavy Democratic majority. From 187 1 to 1876 he served as United
States commissioner and register in bankruptcy. In the latter year he
was nominated for lieutenant-governor of the state, with Godlove S.
Ortli as gubernatorial candidate, who, it will be remembered, was
compelled to resign from the ticket, and was replaced by General
Benjamin Harrison. The ticket was defeated. In 1886
General M. D. Manson resigned the lieutenant-governorship,
and in the ensuing election Colonel Robertson was chosen
as his successor, and later, in the presence of the general
assembly, took the oath of office. "Then followed what
eventually proved to be one of the most critical and exciting periods
in the political history of the state. The Democrats had decided to
regard the election as unauthorized by law. and, having a majority
in the senate, forbade him to assume the duties of presiding officer
in that body, a position prescribed as the function of the office to
which he had been elected. Attempts were made by the opposition
to secure a judicial decision, by means of two injunction suits, but
the outcome was a ruling by the supreme court to the effect that the
legislature had exclusive jurisdiction in the premises. Upon making
a second formal demand for his rights as lieutenant-governor, Colonel
Robertson was forcibly excluded from the senate chamber. This
action caused the wildest excitement, but the subject's calm, dignified
and courageous bearing had great injfluence in averting a calamitous
and disgraceful outcome of this deplorable affair. He counseled that
no attempts by force be made in his behalf, but that the question be
submitted to peaceful arbitration by the people. His attitude and wise
conduct undoubtedly prevented a serious outbreak, which might have
proven disastrous to the welfare and dignity of the state. In all other
functions of the office to which he had been elected the lieutenant-
q-overnor performed his duties Without hindrance, and the people at
large recognized his loyalty to the best interests of the state. While
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 21
in that ofifice he was for two successive years elected president of the
state board of equalization, a position which had hitherto been in-
variably filled by the governor." Colonel Robertson was appointed
by President Harrison, in 1889, a member of the Utah commission,
and served efficiently in this connection until his removal by Presi-
dent Cleveland in 1894.
Soon after his arrival in Fort Wayne, Colonel Robertson formed
a professional partnership with Lindley M. Ninde and Robert S.
Taylor, under the name of Ninde, Taylor & Robertson, which associa-
tion was terminated in 1868, after which the subject was associated
with David P. Whedon. under the firm name of Whedon & Robert-
son, this relationship ceasing in 1871, when the senior partner re-
moved to Utah. Soon afterward the firm of Lx)wry, Robertson &
O'Rourke was formed, and so continued until 1876, when INlr. Lowry
was elevated to the bench, Mr. O'Rourke receiving similar prefer-
ment the following year. Thereafter for a number of years Colonel
Robertson was associated with Judge James B. Harper, and in 1894
formed a partnership with William S. O'Rourke, a firm which from
the beginning occupied a leading place at the bar of the state. As a
lawyer Colonel Robertson evinces a familiarity with legal principles
and a ready perception of facts, together with the ability to apply the
one to the other, which has won him the reputation of a sound and
safe practitioner. Years of conscientious work have brought with
them not only increase of practice and reputation, but also that growth
in legal knowledge and that wide and accurate judgment, the pos-
session of which constitutes marked excellence in the profession. In
the trial of cases he is uniformly courteous to court and opposing
counsel, caring little for display, and in discussions of the principles
of law he is noted for clearness of statement and candor. His zeal
for a client never leads him to urge an argument which in his judg-
ment is not in harmony with the law, and in all the important litiga-
tion with which he has been connected no one has ever charged him
with anything calculated to bring discredit upon himself or cast a
reflection upon his profession. By a straightforward and honorable
course he has built up a large and lucrative legal business and has
been successful beyond the average of his calling.
On July 19. 1865, at Whitehall, New York, Colonel Robertson
22 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth H. Miller, whose grand-
father, Alexander Robertson, came to New York in 1804. To this
union were born the following children : Nicholas Alexander, now
city attorney of Eureka, Utah; Louise, who is the wife of William
H. Shambaugh, city attorney of Fort Wayne ; Robert Strowan, of the
Ferguson Palmer Lumber Company, of Paducah, Kentucky ; Mabel is
the wife of Ernest F. Lloyd, who is engaged in the gas construction
business in Detroit, Michigan; Annie M. is the wife of William N.
Whitely, assistant manager of the Farmers' Co-operative Manu-
facturing Company, of Springfield, Ohio. Mrs. Elizabeth Robertson
died in May, 1896, and subsequently, August 31, 1898, the Colonel
wedded Mrs. Frances M. Haberly (nee Stinson), a lady known inter-
nationally as an authority on art and a lecturer in many states upon
that subject. Politically, as has been before indicated. Colonel Rob-
ertson gives an earnest support to the Republican party. His fra-
ternal relations are as follows : In 1862 he became a Free and Ac-
cepted Mason, and in this order has taken all the degrees of the Scot-
tish Rite up to and including the thirty-second ; he joined the Grand
Army of the Republic in 1866, and has ever maintained an active
interest in this association of his old comrades in arms ; in 1882 he
joined the Ohio commander)^ of the Militar}^ Order of the Loyal Le-
gion, and subsequently, in 1888, became a charter member of the
Indiana commandery ; he also belongs to the Medal of Honor Legion,
Socially, he is a member of the Fortnightly Club, of Fort Wayne.
He was long a member of the American Association for the Advance-
ment of Science, the Indiana State Historical Society and of the
Congress International des Americanistes, of Europe. He is the
possessor of an interesting and valuable collection of minerals, fossils
and prehistoric curios of great value, and has devoted much attention
to historical and scientific studies, having written many able and
valuable articles pertaining to the results of his research, these having
appeared in the reports of the Smithsonian Institution, in the North
American Review, the Magazine of American History and other
leading publications.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 23
WILLIAM P. BREEN.
Among those who have conferred honor and distinction on the
bar of Allen county and that of the state of Indiana, whose jurists
and legists have commanded the admiration and respect of men from
the early pioneer epoch to the present, stands the subject of this
brief sketch, — a representative member of his profession in the city
of Fort Wayne, where he has been engaged in active practice for a
quarter of a century.
William P. Breen claims the Hoosier state as the place of his
nativity, having been born in the city of Terre Haute, on the 13th
of February, 1859, and being a scion of stanch Irish stock. His
father, James Breen, was born in the fair Emerald Isle, in the
year 1820, where he was reared to maturity and where he received
fair educational advantages, of which he made good use. In the year
1840, when a youth of twenty years, he severed the home ties and
came to America, thoroughly imbued with the ambition and de-
termination to make for himself a place in the world. He remained
in the east for five years, at the expiration of which he came to In-
diana and located in Terre Haute, where he continued to reside until
1863, which year marked his advent in the city of Fort Wayne.
Here he engaged in the mercantile trade, with which he continued to
be identified for many years, having built up a prosperous business,
while as a man of inflexible honor, marked intellectual acumen and
force of character, he attained to a position of prominence and in-
fluence in the community. He served for many years as a member
of the city council, and at the time of his death was a valued member
of the board of water-works trustees, while he was ever found at the
front in supporting measures having as their object the welfare and
advancement of the city of his home and of his loyal pride. He was
24 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
summoned to the life eternal in the year 1883, having been a con-
sistent communicant of the Catholic church, in whose faith he was
reared, his wife likewise being a devoted member of the great mother
church. The latter' s maiden name was Margaret Dunne and she
was likewise born in Ireland, the date of her nativity having been
1 8 18, while she survived her honored husband by five years. The
subject of this sketch is the only child born of this union.
William P. Breen acquired his preliminary education in the school
maintained in Fort Wayne by the Brothers of Holy Cross of the
Catholic church and supplemented this training by entering that
great and noble institution, the University of Notre Dame, near
South Bend, this state, where he was graduated as a member of the
class of 1877, with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. Endowed with
alert mentality, ambition and initiative power, it is scarcely necessary
to say that the young man had ere this formulated definite plans for
his future career, deciding to adopt the profession of the law. In
order to properly prepare himself for this important and exacting
vocation Mr. Breen entered, in the same autumn of his graduation,
the law oiftces of Coombs, Morris & Bell, at that time one of the
leading law firms of Fort Wayne. Under most effective preceptor-
ship he thus continued his technical studies with so much discernment,
discrimination and assiduity that in May, 1879, he was duly admitted
to the bar of his native state, and in the following September he began
his practical novitiate in the work of his chosen profession, being
only twenty years of age at the time. From the start he was asso-
ciated with Warren H. Withers, and this loyal professional alliance
remained unbroken and inviolate until the death of Judge Withers,
on the 15th of November, 1882. Thus identified in their practice, the
two were mutually helpful, utmost harmony characterized their re-
lations and they retained a clientage which was of singularly repre-
sentative order. After the death of his able and honored confrere
and friend. Judge Withers, Mr. Breen continued an individual
practice of constantly increasing scope and importance until 1893,
in the spring of which year was formed the copartnership between
himself and John Morris, Jr., an able young attorney and the son
of Judge John Morris, who passed to his reward in 1905, having
been one of the most venerable and distinguished members of the
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 2$
bar of Fort Wayne, where all of honor and reverence crowns his
memory.
The writer of this article has previously had the pleasure of en-
tering a published estimate concerning the life and services of Mr.
Breen, and feels that there can be no inconsistency in here quoting
briefly from his earlier sketch : "In active practice our subject is
eminently a man of resources. Always a stlident, careful in the
preparation of cases and always quick to see and to anticipate dif-
ficulties which are or may be encountered, he has been
enabled to so shape his various causes as to avoid these dif- .
Acuities and obstacles. Strong and forceful in the presentation of his
cases, he has gained the good will and commendation of both his
professional confreres and the general public, retaining his reputation
among men for integrity and high character and never losing that
true dignity which is the birthright of a gentleman."
In his political allegiance Mr. Breen is known as one of Indiana's
stalwart and aggressive Democrats, and in his characteristic, vigorous
way he has done much to further the party cause, though never a
seeker of political preferment. In religion he holds tenaciously and
consistently to the revered faith of his fathers, and is one of the
valued members and devoted communicants of the Cathedral church,
Roman Catholic, in his home city, Mrs. Breen likewise being a devoted
churchwoman.
On the 27th of May, 1884, was solemnized the marriage of Mr.
Breen to Miss Odelia Phillips, of Fort Wayne, where she was born
on the 13th of March, 1859, being a daughter of the late Bernard
Phillips, who was long a prominent business man and honored citizen
of Fort Wayne, where both he and his wife died.
26 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
WILLIAM DAVID PAGE.
The march of improvement and progress is accelerated day by
day, and each successive moment seems to demand of men a broader
intelligence and a greater discernment than did the preceding. Suc-
cessful 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. There can be no impropriety in justly scanning
the acts of any man as they affect his public, social and business rela-
tions. Among the able and representative men of Allen county, In-
diana, is William D. Page, who has had to do with matters of public
interest and importance and whose executive capacity has been such
as to enable him to achieve a noteworthy success, while the methods
employed have been such as to gain and retain to him the confidence
and high regard of his fellow men. It is both gratifying and profit-
able to enter record concerning the career of such a man, and in the
following brief outline sufficient will be said to indicate the forceful
individuality, initiative power and sterling character of a well-known
citizen of Fort Wayne.
William D. Page is a native of the Wolverine state, having been
born at Monroe, Monroe county, Michigan, on the i6th day of
August, 1844. His parents were Rev. William and Frances
(Durand) Page, the fonner a native of Middlebury, Vermont, and
the latter of Bethlehem, Connecticut. In William Page's veins flowed
English blood, while his wife was descended from sturdy French
Huguenot ancestors. The subject of this sketch received his
elementary education in the public schools, supplementing this by
graduation at the West Rockford (Illinois) high school. He also
pursued a course of study at Dr. Holbrook's Academy, at Clinton,
New York, and later entered Hamilton College, located at the same
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 27
place. At the early age of ten years, the subject commenced to
learn the printer's trade in the office of the Expositor, at Adrian,
Michigan, and thus gained that practical knowledge and experience
which has so well served him in his later enterprises. He made
good progress in both mechanical and financial way and in 1866 be-
came publisher of the Expositor. In 187 1 he came to Fort Wayne,
Indiana, and in 1874 founded the Fort Wayne News, which he suc-
cessfully conducted until its sale in 1892 and which has been for
many years one of the leading and influential newspapers in north-
eastern Indiana. In the dual capacities of publisher and editor, Mr.
Page evinced qualities of the highest order, having both the executive
ability and the clearness of vision to enable him to successfully guide
his business affairs, while he has at all times wielded a forceful and
trenchant pen.
When the dark clouds of civil strife hovered over our land, and
the President found it necessary to call for volunteers to assist in
maintaining the national union, Mr. Page was one of the first to offer
his services, enlisting in April, 186 1, in the Fifth Regiment Wis-
consin Volunteer Infantry ; but because of his youth he was not per-
mitted to go to the front, being discharged by order of Brigadier
General Rufus King. He afterward, however, served in the quarter-
master's department through the last Shenandoah campaign, and,
though not at the battle's front, he nonetheless contributed his quota
toward the successful prosecution of the war. Mr. Page was at
Harper's Ferry on the night of President Lincoln's assassination and
was present at the grand review of the victorious armies at Wash-
ington, probably in many respects the most impressive military spec-
tacle the world has ever witnessed.
On the 24th of September, 1866, William D. Page was united
in marriage with Miss Chloe Elizabeth Warner, who was born at
Adrian, Michigan, April 7, 1849, the daughter of T. C. and Elmina
Warner. To Mr. and Mrs. Page have been born two children,
Frances Elizabeth Page-Willey and Josephine Page-Wright. In
religion Mr. Page and family are connected with the Presbyterian
church, and take an active interest in all movements looking to the
moral, educational and social advancement of the community. In
politics, Mr. Page has, ever since attaining his majority, given a
28 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
stanch support to the Republican party, and has served the public
as postmaster of Fort Wayne for eight years, proving one of the
most capable, as well as most accommodating and popular, in-
cumbents of this office. He also served for six years as president
of the board of trustees of the Eastern Indiana Hospital for the
Insane. His interest in all that concerns the progress and prosperity
of Allen county is unabating, and those who have known him since
his first advent here are numbered among his cherished and devoted
friends, while he commands unequivocal esteem in the community at
large.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 29
HON. PATRICK S. O'ROURKE.
Not dead, — nor yet can all be told,
Casket and bell and carven line on stone, —
They only claim their puny, meager own;
A precious dross, whUe time shall jealous hold,
The priceless treasure of a life which lie
Lived as a manly man, lived true and earnestly.
From "In Memorium," by S. B. MoManus.
Hon Patrick S. O'Rourke was a unique and pronounced character
in the history of northern Indiana and his strong imprint may be
found on the business, poHtical and social events of his day. Sum-
ming up mere years briefly, he was born September 30, 1830, and
died February 12, 1898, — not a long lifetime as years are counted,
but as deeds are reckoned, a fair and goodly portion of time. His
birthplace was Newark, New Jersey, and he was the son of Chris-
topher and Ellen (Flannagan) O'Rourke. The father was a man of
pronounced business ability and was prominent as a railroad con-
tractor, having been identified with the building of the Pittsburg,
Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad. It was not at all strange that
the son should drift into work similar to his father's and in 1856
he took a position as conductor on a construction train, soon after
being promoted to freight conductor, and in three years from the
beginning he was made conductor on a passenger train. In 1866 he
became master of transportation of the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne &
Chicago Railroad and in 1871 was appointed assistant superintendent
of the Michigan Lake Shore road, but, before the expiration of the
year, was made superintendent of the Grand Rapids & Indiana Rail-
road, in which capacity he remained until the time of his death.
These rapid promotive changes involved no shifting of employers,
and thus for nearly half a century he was identified with one system
30 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
of railways. Be it said Mr. O'Rourke was a faithful employee as
well as a capable employer. One of the secrets of his successful life
was that he believed in conscientious work and that a thing that was
worth doing was worth doing in the very best manner possible. No
make-shift or compromise answered the purpose ; he had no patience
with half-hearted service and, as an employer, he would have none
of it. The man who shirked was the man who very soon found
himself out of his employ and it was equally sure that the man who
did his duty and his best was certain of continued favor. He loved
justice and exercised it in all of his dealings and no man could say
that he had been dealt unfairly with knowingly. His record as a
railroad man stands unblemished and his long career in the capacity
of superintendent is one of which the most critical might be proud.
His best energies found expression in practical work and his services
were valued accordingly.
Mr. O'Rourke was twice married, the two children of the first
union being Mrs. John H. Cody and Mrs. George Waltke. Mr.
O'Rourke's second wife bore the maiden name of Eliza Boulger
and the children bom to them were as follows : Mrs. J. W. Hunter ;
William S. O'Rourke, the well-known attorney of Fort Wayne; Ed-
ward O'Rourke, of Grand Rapids, Michigan ; Mrs. Charles Keasey,
of Kendallville, Indiana; Mrs. William Wagoner and Miss Grace,
both of Fort Wayne.
In religion Mr. O'Rourke was a Catholic; not half-hearted,
neither narrow nor bigoted, but a Catholic in the truest and most
dignified sense of the word. He was devoted to his religion and had
abundant and abiding faith in it, and his activity in connection with
various organizations attached to his church brought him into much
prominence. He organized the St. Joseph Benevolent Society of
the Cathedral of Fort Wayne, which has been a power for good from
the day of its inception; in 1893 he organized the American Sons of
Columbus and promoted the sister society, the Daughters of Isabella.
He also organized the first branch of the Catholic Knights of America
in Fort Wayne and was supreme trustee one term.
In politics Mr. O'Rourke was a Democrat of the most pronounced
and virile kind. He had faith in the party and some of his best and
most brilliant efforts were directed in its behalf. The politics of
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 31
his home city always claimed a lively interest for him and his en-
deavor was constantly for the betterment of them. In 1896 Mr.
O'Rourke disagreed with his party on the currency question and
allied himself with the National Democrats, giving his support to
Palmer and Buckner. As a writer and speaker upon political topics
he had but few equals in Indiana or the west. He was a ready de-
bater, a man of wide and comprehensive information and possessed a
strong grasp on public affairs and was combative to perhaps more
than an ordinary degree. His mind was well disciplined and Igocial
and his command of language was notable, possessing a power of
expression far beyond the ordinary. As a writer he was equally
forcible and commanding and his literature is characterized by a
splendid strength and virility. He was the author of a number of
books and pamphlets, some of which had a wide reading. As the
reverse side of the medal, — the complement of the practical, uncom-
promising business man, in which character he was perhaps best
known, — ^his literary work along the line of romance presents an
almost antagonism. His stories were full of fancy that suggests a
Rider Haggard and no one can read them without experiencing a
lively and devoted interest.
To write the history of Mr. O'Rourke would be to write a book
and the limits of a brief sketch have already been reached. To sum
up : He was a good man, — a man that the world was better for his
having lived in it. He was a good husband and father, faithful and
loving; a good citizen and friend, constant and reliable; a man in the
fullest sense of the word, wide, comprehensive and far-reaching in
life and personality, — a man to be missed and lamented; but his good
deeds shall live after him.
32 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
ROBERT S. TAYLOR.
One of the distinguished citizens and leading members of the bar
of Allen county is Judge Taylor, who has made his home in the
city of Fort Wayne for the past forty-five years. He has ever com-
manded imiform confidence and esteem as a lawyer and a citizen,
has been a prominent and influential figure in political and general
civic affairs. He was bom near the city of Chillicothe, Ross county,
Ohio, on the 22d of May, 1838, being a son of Rev. Isaac N. and
Margaretta (Stewart) Taylor. His father was one of the pioneer
clergymen of the Presbyterian church in Ohio, having been located
in turn at Chillicothe, Celina and St. Mary's, that state, while in
1844 he removed with his family to Jay county, Indiana. A few
years after coming to Indiana, inspired by devotion to the cause of
education, he founded Liber College, near Portland, and in this well
conducted institution many of the youth of that section laid the
foundation for future honor and usefulness.
Robert S. Taylor secured his early educational discipline in the
common schools of Indiana and in due time entered the college which
had been founded by his honored father. In this institution he
was graduated on the 30th of June, 1858, and within a few months
after receiving his diploma he was united in marriage to his classmate,
Miss Fanny W. Wright. His attention was turned in the direction
of the law, and he initiated his technical reading and study under the
preceptorship of Judge Jacob M. Haynes, of Portland. In No-
vember, 1859, he took up his residence in the city of Fort Wayne,
where he completed his work of preparation for the bar, to which
he was duly admitted in this county, in the following year. During
a portion of his first year of residence in Fort Wayne he was en-
gaged in teaching school, and in November, i860, he became a
clerk in the office of L. M. Ninde, one of the representative members
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 33
of the bar of the county at that time. Two years later he was ad-
vanced to a partnership, the firm of Ninde & Taylor being then
formed. In 1866 Colonel Robert S. Robertson became a member of
the firm, which became one of the most prominent and influential in
northern Indiana.
Upon the establishment of the criminal court in Fort Wayne, in
1868, Judge Taylor was appointed its prosecuting attorney. Within
the same year the finn of Ninde, Taylor & Robertson was dissolved,
and the subject of this review was appointed judge of the court of
common pleas. This position he held until the next election, when
he was chosen to represent Allen county in the lower house of the
state legislature. In 1874 he was the Republican candidate for con-
gress from this district, his opponent being Hon. Holman H. Hamil-
ton; and in 1880 he was again the nominee of his party for this high
office, against Walpole G. Colerick. On each occasion he met defeat,
as had been anticipated from the normal political status of the district,
but in the latter instance particularly the great reduction of the ad-
verse majority clearly demonstrated the high esteem in which Judge
Taylor was held by the people of the district. He still takes an
active part in political discussions and work, and is a popular speaker
in all important campaigns. In March, 1881, Judge Taylor was ap-
pointed, by President Garfield, a member of the Mississippi river
commission, to succeed General Benjamin Harrison, who had been
elected to the United States senate. This position has occupied a
large portion of Judge Taylor's time and attention to the present time.
He still retains his residence in Fort Wayne and is engaged in the
work of his profession, confining his efforts largely to cases of the
more important order and being held in veneration and high esteem
as one of the pioneer members of the bar of the city and state.
One child only has come to the home of Judge Taylor, a son,
Frank B. Taylor, bom November 23, i860. He is a geologist, and
has achieved high rank in that profession as a student of and writer
upon the post-glacial geology of the great lake system of the United
States.
34 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
CHARLES M. NIEZER.
For the high rank of her bench and bar Indiana has ever been
distinguished, and it is gratifying to note that in no section of the
commonwealth has the standard been lowered at any epoch in its his-
tory. To the subject of this review we may refer with propriety and
satisfaction as being one of the able and representative members of
the legal profession in Allen county; and that he is a native son of
Indiana lends somewhat to the significance of the prestige which he
has here attained.
Charles Mahlon Niezer was born in Monroeville, Allen county,
Indiana, on the 31st day of March, 1877, ^^^ is the son of John
Bumard and Sarah T. Niezer, natives of Indiana and Pennsylvania,
respectively. The subject secured his preliminary education in the
common schools of Allen county, and supplemented this by attendance
at Notre Dame University, at South Bend, Indiana, Indiana State
University, at Bloomington, Indiana, and Columbia University, New
York city, receiving, successively, the degrees of Bachelor of Arts,
Master of Arts and Bachelor of Laws. He had given close and con-
scientious study to the principles of law and jurisprudence, and im-
mediately upon his admission to the bar, he, on September 19, 1901,
commenced the active practice of his profession at Fort Wayne, His
abilities were promptly recognized, and he has rapidly acquired a
reputation as a shrewd, able and sagacious attorney, having a large
and representative clientage. A man of courteous manners, genial
disposition and genuine worth, he has won and retains a host of warm,
personal friends. In 1905 the well-known legal firm of Olds &
Doughman, of Fort Wayne, was dissolved, Mr. Doughman going
to Cleveland as general attorney for the Lake Shore Railroad Com-
pany, and Judge Olds took as junior partner the subject of this sketch,
the firm being known as Olds & Niezer.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 35
JOSEPH C. PFEIFFER.
Mr. Pfeiffer is a native of Allen county, and one of the repre-
sentative young men of Washington township, of which he is serv-
ing as trustee at the time of this writing.
Mr. Pfeiffer was bom in Washington township, this county, on
the 29th of August, 1871, and is a son of Christian F. and Charlotte
E. (Edwards) Pfeiffer, prominent and honored residents of the
county, to whom more definite recognition is accorded in the personal
sketch of the father, appearing on other pages of this work. The
subject was reared on the farm and secured excellent business train-
ing, since his father dealt extensively in live stock for many years.
After completing the curriculum of the public schools, he took a
course in a business college in Buffalo, New York, where he was
graduated. For a time after leaving school he was engaged in clerical
work in Buffalo, and he thereafter began to assume greater business
responsibilities, advancing gradually to a position of prominence. He
is now the local representative of his father as to the latter's large real
estates interests in Allen and Huntington counties and the North
Wayne addition to Fort Wayne. The latter, which originally com-
prised about one hundred and sixty acres, has been platted, and on
it have been built a large number of attractive houses, the subject
having entire control of the platting, improvement and sale of the
addition.
In politics Mr. Pfeiffer accords an uncompromising allegiance to
the Republican party, and he has been an active and effective worker
in its local ranks. Recognition of his eligibility and personal popu-
larity was given in a significant way in his recent election to the re-
sponsible office of trustee of Washington township, where he secured
a large and flattering majority, though the normal political complex-
36 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
ion of the township is strongly Democratic, and he was, as a matter
of course, the candidate on the RepubHcan ticket. In a fraternal
way Mr. Pfeiffer is affiliated with the Royal Arcanum and Benevo-
lent and Protective Order of Elks in the city of Fort Wayne, and his
religious faith is that of the English Lutheran church, in which he
was reared.
On October 7, 1896, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Pfeiffer
to Miss Anna B. Redman, a daughter of David Porter Redman, a
well-known stock dealer of Omaha, Nebraska. Mr. and Mrs.
Pfeiffer have two children — Helen R. and Alice R.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 37
JOSEPH T. HANNA.
This popular and representative citizen and prominent business
man of Fort Wayne is a scion of one of the oldest and most honored
families of Allen county, while he is a native of Fort Wayne, which
city has ever been his home. He was born in the family homestead
on East Washington boulevard. Fort Wayne, on the 1 7th of February,
1857, and is a son of Henry C. and Elizabeth C. (Carson) Hanna,
the former of whom was bom in Fort Wayne, and the latter in
Cobourg, Canada. The father of the subject was one of Fort Wayne's
prominent and influential business men and public-spirited citizens,
and his name is indelibly inscribed on the annals of the beautiful Sum-
mit City.
Joseph T. Hanna secured his preliminary educational discipline
in the public schools of Fort Wayne, and at the age of fourteen years
he became a pupil in the excellent private school for toys conducted
by F. W. Barron, near Cobourg, province of Ontario, Canada, while
later he continued his studies at Dundas, that province. Mr. Hanna
passed his young manhood as a traveling salesman, and later engaged
in business for himself im his native city, where he is now at the head
of the well-known firm of J. T. Hanna & Company, dealers in bot-
importers, agents, and handling goods of the highest grade. In a
fraternal way he is affiliated with Wayne Lodge, No. 25, Free and
tied goods, where an extensive enterprise is carried on, the firm being
Accepted Masons.
On the 26th of April, 1893, Mr. Hanna was united in marriage
to Susannah Vesta Alvaretta (called Sue Vesta), second daughter of
Luke and Susannah T. Tousley and born and reared in Whitley
county, this state. Mrs. Hanna traces her genealogy back to the fif-
teenth century, and among her American ancestors were men of dis-
38 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
tinction in the colonial history of our nation and in the war of the
Revolution. She is a lady of gracious presence and marked accom-
plishments, having been a contributor of both prose and verse of high
order to various periodicals, and utilizing a nom de plume in the con-
nection. She has thus devoted attention to literary work for a num-
ber of years past, while she is well known locally as an artist, and is
held in high esteem in the social circles of the city.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 39
MARY A. WHERY, M. D.
The great value of woman's interposition in the practical work of
medicine and surgery is now conceded on every side, though not
many years have passed since the woman physician met with opposi-
tion and even ridicule on the part of the rank and file of the noble
profession into which she has succeeded in making her way. She
has proven herself strong, helpful, resourceful; has shown that true
sympathy which transcends mere emotion to become an actuating
motive in the relieving of suffering; and she has not failed in up-
holding the prestige of the profession from which she was formerly
barred. The subject of this sketch is, without consideration of sex,
one of the representative physicians and surgeons of Fort Wayne, and
is thus well entitled to consideration in a publication which accords
review of the careers of the leading members of the profession in
Allen county.
Mary A. Whery was born in Whitley county, Indiana, and was
educated in the public schools of her native county, at the Jefferson
high school, of Fort Wayne, and at the Methodist College, of the
same city. For a few years she engaged in teaching school in Whit-
ley county. She was married to Dr. W. P. Whery in 188 1, and un-
der his preceptorship began the study of medicine and assisted in his
office operations. Later she entered the Fort Wayne College of Medi-
cine and completed the full course with honors, graduating in March,
1888. This college is a coeducational institution and requires women
students to take all the same studies and to attend the same clinics
as the male students. After graduating she practiced medicine and
surgery with gratifying success, having adopted obstetrics and gyne-
cology as her specialty, and has performed most of the usual opera-
tions connected with it, some them of peculiar difficulty. She acted
40 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
as assistant to the chair of diseases of women in the Fort Wayne
College of Medicine. She is a member of the Fort Wayne Medical
Society, the Indiana State Medical Society and the American Medical
Association, as well as the Medical Association of the Upper Maumee
Valley and the Tri-State Medical Association, and has read papers
before them. She has served as delegate to the American Medical
Association and to the Women's Medical Congress at the World's
Fair, and in the latter was representative of the state of Indiana and
read a paper there. She has served in several offices, including that
of president, in the alumnae association of her college, and she has
been elected a trustee of Hope Hospital, Fort Wayne, where she has
been for years chairman of the training school for nurses, and has
lectured on gynecology in that institution.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 41
LOUIS PELTIER.
Few men of Allen county, Indiana, were as widely and favorably
known as the late Louis Peltier, of Fort Wayne. He was one of the
strong and influential citizens whose lives have become an essential
part of the history of this section of the state, and for years his name
was synonymous for all that constituted honorable and upright man-
hood. Tireless energy, keen perception and honesty of purpose, com-
bined with everyday common sense, were among his chief character-
istics, and while advancing individual success he also largely
promoted the moral and material welfare of his community. At
the time of his death Mr. Peltier enjoyed the noteworthy dis-
tinction of being the oldest native of Ft. Wayne, his birth having
antedated by sixteen years the incorporation of Fort Wayne as a
town, and during all the subsequent years of his life he kept in close
touch with the growth and development of the city and county.
Peltier is a name prominently associated with the early history of
Fort Wayne, and indeed of the entire northwest. The subject's
grandfather, who was a Frenchman by nativity, came to America in
an early day in company with Cadillac, Chapeteau and other of the
courageous pioneers who settled about Detroit. The subject's father,
James Peltier, a French Canadian, came to Fort Wayne about 1790
and engaged as a trader with the Indians. He was a surveyor, also,
and was for some time engaged in carrying dispatches between De-
troit and Fort Dearborn (now Chicago), traveling through the wil-
derness on horseback by way of Fort Wayne. James Peltier married
Emeline Chapeteau, the granddaughter of Baptiste Maloch, a fur
trader, and on March 15, 1813, their son Louis was bora. The
family were at that time living within the stockade walls of old Fort
Wayne, and the child's earliest years were passed amid stirring
42 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
scenes. The Indians were in an ugly mood, owing to their recent
defeats, and made life precarious for the early settlers. It naturally
followed that educational opportunities here were very meager, and
such education as Mr. Peltier had was obtained from private instruc-
tion. His playmates were for the most part the young Indian boys
and girls, and he learned their language perfectly, becoming from
the first their friend, and receiving in return their utmost confidence.
Through his earlier years Mr. Peltier found employment as an inter-
preter, traveling over the territory with the traders and acting as an
intermediary in their transactions with the Indians. While yet in his
teens, Mr. Peltier engaged to learn the carpenter and cabinet-making
trade with James Wilcox, who had a shop on what is now Calhoun
street. Here were made most of the coffins used for the burial of
the dead, and this was the first undertaking establishment in Fort
Wayne. Upon the death of Mr. Wilcox, four years later, in 1840,
Mr. Peltier succeeded to the business. Shortly afterward Mr. Pel-
tier went to Cincinnati, and then to New Orleans, remaining about a
year, and then returned to Fort Wayne, where the remaining years
of his life were spent. At this time he established undertaking as a
definite department of the business, the latter line having been con-
tinued uninterruptedly ever since, first by the father and later by the
son, James C. Peltier, who now conducts it, the former having re-
tired from active participation in business in 1882. In his death there
passed away the last representative of the earlier residents of the city,
and whose life formed a connecting link between the present and the
past. The venerable man had been in declining health for several
years, though suffering from no definite disease, and at the last mo-
ment the Aveakened body sank so peacefully into the last sleep that
those about his bedside were scarcely aware when the end came.
Death occurred on the 22d of October, 1904, the subject thus being
in his ninety-second year.
Though ever occupying a prominent place in the life of Fort
Wayne, Mr. Peltier never held public office. His earliest political
affilition was with the Whigs, and in 1852 he cast his ballot for Gen-
eral Winfield Scott. In 1856 he became a Democrat, and throughout
the remainder of his life he continued faithful in his allegiance to that
party. Mr. Peltier was a devoted member of the Catholic church.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 43
having been one of the first members of the Catholic congregation
founded in Fort Wayne by the early missionaries, and when Father
Benoit began; the erection of the cathedral here in i860 Mr. Peltier
was one of his strongest supporters and leading assistants.
Louis Peltier was twice married, his first wife having been Miss
Laura Gushing, to whom he was wedded in 1833. To this union
were bom three children, of whom two survive, namely : Mrs. Ellen
Meegan, of New York, and James C. Peltier, of this city, a sketch
of whom appears elsewhere in this volume. Mrs. Laura Peltier died
in 1844, and six years later the subject married Miss Mary Nettle-
horst, a native of Germany, who survives him. Mrs. L. G. Laughlin,
of Tipton, Indiana, is the only surviving child of this union.
Louis Peltier was universally recognized as a splendid citizen, of
lofty character, sturdy integrity and unswerving honesty. During
the pioneer period he shared fully the trials and difficulties of those
days. He was one of the sturdy figures upon which the burdens of
the new community fell, and he struggled devotedly with others in
bringing about the resultant evolution of development. Hand and
heart and purse were always open to the necessities of his neighbors,
and the record of those years is one of tireless and unselfish devotion.
44
THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
MRS. CHARLES B. WOODWORTH.
The lady whose name appears above has long- occupied a leading
position in the best circles of Fort Wayne, and has taken an active
part in movements tending to the advancement of the best interests
of her sex. Early recognizing the value and importance of the wom-
an's club movement, she at once gave to it her encouragement and
active support, and few women of this city have done more than she
in securing for the women of Fort Wayne the advantages and bene-
fits derived from organizations whose aim and object have been up-
lifting and helpful, both socially and educationally. The possessor
of charming personal qualities and recognized ability, she is properly
considered a leader in the circles in which she moves, and exerts a
definite and healthful influence upon all with whom she is brought
into contact.
Mrs. Woodworth is a native of the Lone Star state, having been
born in Victoria, Texas, on the 28th day of December, 1852, the
only child of Joel T. and Loly Arvilla (Cook) Case. Her ancestors
for several generations have been American, while her parents were
natives of Connecticut. The latter were, in their youth, brought to
Ohio by their respective parents, this having been in the closing years
of the eighteenth century, when the tide of emigration flowed toward
the western states from the colonies of the east. Joel T. Case re-
ceived a good education and took a degree in theology at Yale C0I-.
lege, with the intention of entering the ministry of the Presbyterian
church, but before becoming ordained he pursued other callings for
a time, having, some time in the early '40s, established the Mobile
Advertiser. In 1845 he joined the celebrated Santa Fe expedition,
during the course of which he had a narrow escape from death. He
with a number of his companions were captured by the Mexicans,
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 45
and were drawn up in line to be shot, but his Hfe was saved by his
drawing a black bean, seventeen of which had been placed in a jar,
in which one hundred and fifty-three white beans had also been placed,
to correspond to the number of prisoners. Mr. Case subsequently
followed his original intentions and entered the ministry at Victoria,
Texas. In a young ladies' seminary at this place the subject of this
sketch secured a good education. On the 30th of January, 1873, she
was united in marriage to Mr. Charles B. Woodworth, of Fort
Wayne, Indiana, who was born in the latter city on December 3, 1848,
the son of Dr. Benjamin S. Woodworth. This union has been a most
congenial and happy one, and has been blessed in the birth of two
children, Benjamin S. and Carl B.
46 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
HERMAN W. TAPR-
As a contractor for stone and concrete masonry, Mr. Tapp occu-
pies a prominenit position in Fort Wayne, being a representative busi-
ness man of the "Summit City," and one who is upholding the high
reputation gained by his honored father in the same important field
of industrial enterprise. He controls a large business, has executed
contracts of great magnitude and his reliabilty and his fidelity to
contracts are recognized wherever he is known.
Herman W. Tapp was born in the beautiful old capital city of
Berlin, Germany, on the 14th of December, 1856, and is a son of
Ferdinand and Wilhelmina (Siedschlag) Tapp, who immigrated
thence to America in i860, making the city of Chicago their destina-
tion and there remaining until 1865, when they located in Fort
Wayne, where the father attained to a position of prominence as a
bridge contractor, especially in the construction of high-grade rail-
road bridges, and other stone and concrete work. During the latter
portion of his active business career he was associated with his son,
Herman W., subject of this review, the operations being carried for-
ward under the firm name of F. Tapp & Son, while of this firm Her-
man W. is the direct successor. Ferdinand Tapp died on the 29th
of April, 1903, honored as one of Fort Wayne's representative citizens
and business men, and his devoted wife was summoned into eternal
rest on the 24th of January, 1905, both having been lifelong members
of the Lutheran church.
Herman W. Tapp secured his early educational training in the
parochial schools of the Lutheran church, and in the Fort Wayne
public schools, while later he took a course in the Fort Wayne Com-
mercial College. In the meanwhile, at the age of fifteen years, he be-
gan his practical apprenticeship at the trade of stonemason, under the
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 47
direction of his father, who was a skilled artisan in the line. He
followed the work of his trade about six years, and then engaged in
contracting, as a coadjutor and partner of his father. He has ever
since continued to give his attention to contracting for stone and con-
crete masonry, and his success has been practically unqualified from
the start, while he has control of a large and important enterprise in
his line, making a specialty of railroad work. His executed contracts
in 1904 represented one hundred thousand dollars, at a conservative
estimate.
In his political allegiance Mr. Tapp is a stanch adherent of the
Republican party, and while he takes a lively interest in the suprem-
acy of the party cause he has never permitted his name to be con-
sidered in connection with public office. He has contributed liberally
to the party work and his friends in the Republican ranks have urged
him to accept nomination for the office of mayor of Fort Wayne, but
he has felt no inclination to enter the political arena in this way, and
has considered his business affairs worthy of his undivided time and
attention. Mr. Tapp is an appreciative affiliate of the time-honored
order of Freemasonry, being identified with the following named
bodies : Wayne Lodge, No. 25, Free and Accepted Masons, of which
he is past master; Fort Wayne Chapter, No. 19, Royal Arch Masons;
Fort Wayne Commandery, No. 4, Knights Templar, and Fort
Wayne Grand Lodge of Perfection, Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite,
in which body of the fratemit>' he had attained to the fourteenth de-
gree. He is also a member of Harmony Lodge, No. 19, Independent
Order of Odd Fellows, and Fort Wayne Lodge, No. 116, Knights of
Pythias. Both Mr. and Mrs. Tapp are active members of the Luth-
eran church.
On the i6th of February, 1878, Mr. Tapp was united in mar-
riage to Miss Elizabeth M. Winter, a daughter of Philip Winter, of
Allen county, and they have had six children : Ruth died August 25,
1894; Frederick, Bessie, Elsie, Emma H. and Roscoe H. Bessie is
the wife of Harry A. Ross, of Fort Wayne, and the family is one of
prominence in the social life of the city, their magnificent home being
one of the most attractive in Fort Wayne, which is recognized as a
city of beautiful homes.
THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JAMES CHENEY.
James Cheney was the son of Roswell and Abigail (Williard)
Cheney. His father, Roswell Cheney, was a native of Keene, New
Hampshire, and his mother, Abigail Williard, was bom in Vermont.
Abigail Williard's father, James Williard, was born in England
and came to America during the latter part of the eighteenth cen-
tury. During the war of 1812 he remained a stanch Tory and
after the termination of tlie war he went to Canada for a number
of years. Roswell Cheney left his Vermont farm and came over-
land with his family to Toledo (or Port Lawrence, as it was then
called) in 1834. Here he took up large tracts of land and also
established himself in a general merchandise business. And here
he died in 1846, at the early age of fifty-six years. His wife sur-
vived him, dying at Logansport, Indiana, in June, 1861. They were
the parents of three children, Roswell Williard, who died in Toledo
in 1844, at the age of twenty-six years; James, the subject of this
sketch, and Cornelia M., the wife of George Knickerbocker, of Hills-
dale, Michigan.
On the 15th of December, 18 17, James Cheney was bom at
Sutton, Caledonia county, Vermont. At that early day the educa-
tional opportunities of a Vermont farmer's son were meagre. But
here, as everywhere and at all times, the mettle of the scholar meant
more than his educational system, and when James Cheney, at eleven
years of age, left school and began clerking in a general store in
Center Harbor, New Hampshire, he had made the most of his
opportunities and, leaving school, had but begun his real education,
which continued through life. After three years he went into busi-
ness for himself in Genesee county, New York, and later came with
his parents to the village of Toledo. Here he was soon employed
by S. & M. Collins at their Indian trading post, three miles from
itfS S i^A/liams SBm A^J^
(^l^^^^l-t-cje^
^^cjS^^(^_
^^^_
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 49
town. Soon he was sent to establish a branch store at Adrian,
Michigan, and in a year was taken in as half owner. Upon the
bankruptcy, soon afterward, of Mr. Collins, the firm became Cheney
& Wilson and so continued until 1839, when Mr. Cheney bought out
his junior partner and the firm became R. & J. Cheney, so continu-
ing for three years. During this partnership the firm took a con-
tract for the construction of three miles of the Wabash and Erie
canal.
In 1842 Mr. Cheney went to Defiance, Ohio, where he held
the state appointment as collector of tolls until 1845. At this time
he built the Pavilion, a large hotel for the day, but sold it in
1847 ^^^ removed to a farm on the Maumee river, two miles from
Defiance. In 1853 he sold this farm and in the following year
established a banking house in Defiance, and later came to Fort
Wayne, where he at once became identified with banking operations
and other important business interests. In 1855 he removed to New
York city, where he continued operations on Wall street with much
success, also forming the acquaintanceship of many of the leading
financiers of the day. In the spring of 1857 ^^- Cheney located in
Logansport, Indiana, being one of the twenty distinguished gentle-
men who organized the Bank of the State of Indiana. Of that
score of brilliant men, headed by Hugh McCulloch, he was the last
survivor. When the institution was finally merged into a national
bank he became a member of its directorate, while he also served for
a time as cashier, remaining in control of the most of the stock
until his death. He also became a heavy stockholder in the National
City Bank of New York. His activities were so far-reaching and
varied in the great domain of financial and industrial operations
that it is impossible to enter into details concerning them in an article
of this nature. We may offer a brief resume, however. He was
interested in the construction of the Atlantic cable, being associated
with other leading financiers, and for many years he was an active
operator in the great stock market of the national metropolis. In
1858, in partnership with J. Uhl, he erected a flouring mill in
Logansport, Indiana, and a few years later he sold his interest to his
partner's sons. He maintained his home and business headquarters
in New York from 1872 until 1878, when he returned to Fort
4
50 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Wayne. Here he remained as president of the Fort Wayne Gas
Light Company from 1878 until 1894, when the gas company sold
its stock to the Dietrich syndicate. Mr. Qieney was associated with
Jay Gould in the reorganization of the Wabash Railroad Company,
of which he was a stockholder until its final sale, in 1885, while he
was appointed a trustee on the mortgage in connection with the
Central Trust Company at the time of this sale. He was actively
identified with the Masonic fraternity for many years, taking his
dimit only when the infirmities of advanced age rendered it im-
possible for him to attend the lodge meetings.
We find it apropos to quote from the appreciative estimate pub-
lished in a Fort Wayne paper at the time of Judge Cheney's death,
which occurred at his beautiful home on Spy Run avenue, where
his declining years w^re passed in practical retirement, though he
continued to exercise a general supervision of his financial interests
until his summons came, his death occurring on the 13th of Decem-
ber, 1903. "Judge Cheney's career was a remarkable one in many
ways. He fought his way by his inherent ability to a place among
the foremost financiers of America. Quiet and unobtrusive always,
he was better known in the financial circles of Wall street than in
the affairs of his own city. Though a leading factor in some of
the greatest movements of modern times, his was an unassuming
nature. A man of few words, he acted rather than talked, and even
his most intimate friends hardly appreciated the tremendous part
played by this modest gentleman in the financial world. Mr.
Cheney w^as a man of keen business insight and was a bom financier,
yet he never departed from the path of absolute rectitude and honesty.
In all his long and useful life two qualities — integrity and love of
justice — were especially noticeable." His success in life was such
as would command respect and admiration anywhere. His results
were not accidents, as all his operations were managed with far-
seeing shrewdness. He had the genius of hard work and the in-
stinctive knowledge of men which guided him so safely in his choice
of business associates. Most orderly, exact and just in all his busi-
ness dealings, he required the same methods in others. He managed
to make money as dry goods merchant, contractor, miller, banker
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 51
and as stockholder in many industrial enterprises. Absolutely in-
dependent in thought and action, he would charge no usurious rate
of interest, yet neither would he give except to a cause which com-
mended itself to his best judgment. Firm and unbending in his
duty, his strict integrity made him always just and honorable in all
his dealings. His own diligence and his fidelity in the many posi-
tions of trust he held made him quick to appreciate these qualities
in others. In private life he was the most companionable of men.
Whatever the subject of conversation, his comments were never shal-
low, but always thoughtful and keen. His long, busy life gave him
many opportunities of observing state and national affairs. His
pleasant narration of these experiences made him a most entertaining
talker, while he was noted for the dignity and polish of his man-
ners. Although he had been reared a Congregationalist, he leaned
to the Quaker belief, especially admiring the absence of display in
their manner of life and their simplicity of thought. Mrs. Cheney
was a Presbyterian and Mr. Cheney was one of the chief benefactors
of the First Presbyterian church of Fort Wayne.
That a man of so broad a nature should feel a deep interest in
matters of public polity was a foregone conclusion, and in his earlier
years Mr. Cheney took an active part in political affairs in Ohio,
while he never wavered in his allegiance and fealty to the Democratic
party.
On the 2d of May, 1842, Judge Cheney was united in marriage
to Miss Nancy B. Evans, who was born in Defiance, Ohio, on the
2 1 St of February, 1824, and whose death occurred on the 27th of
June, 1895, at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Knight, of Fort
Wayne. She was a daughter of Pierce Evans, one of the representa-
tive citizens of Defiance county, where she was reared and educated.
She was a woman of gentle and gracious personality and for many
years was prominent in the social life of Fort Wayne, while her
earnest Christian character was a source of inspiration to those who
came within the sphere of her influence. In Mount Hope cemetery,
at Logansport, Indiana, are laid to rest the remains of Judge Cheney
and his devoted wife. They became the parents of four children,
Helen, who is the wife of John A. Kimberly, of Neenah, Wisconsin;
52 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Roswell W., who is engaged in business in California, and who
served during the Civil war as a member of the Ninth Regiment of
Indiana Volunteer Infantry; Mary Cornelia, who is the wife of
Hon. John C. Nelson, of Logansport, Indiana; and Alice, who is
the wife of Charles S. Knight, of Fort Wayne.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 53
JAMES M. ROBINSON.
The history of a county or state, as well as that of a nation, is
chiefly a chronicle of the lives and deeds of those who have con-
ferred honor and dignity upon society. The world judges the char-
acter of a community by those of its representative citizens and yields
its tributes of admiration and respect to those whose works and ac-
tions constitute the record of a state's prosperity and pride. Among
the prominent citizens of Fort Wayne, Allen county, Indiana, who
are well and favorably known because of the part they have taken in
public affairs is James M. Robinson.
Mr. Robinson was born in 1861, the place of his nativity having
been on a farm in Pleasant township, this county. His parents were
David A. and Isabella (Bowen) Robinson, both of whom were na-
tives of the state of Ohio, the former having been born in 1834 and
the latter in 1833. In the year 1855 they came to Allen county, In-
diana, and took up their abode on a frontier farm. On this pioneer
homestead they reared their three children, of whom James M., the
immediate subject of this sketch, was the youngest. The subject is
of Scotch-Irish descent, his ancestors having come to this country in
its early history and settled in Virginia and New Jersey. They were
of sturdy, patriotic stock, and at least one of these ancestors served
in the defense of the colonies during the Revolutionary war. The
subject's father served in the Union army during the Civil war as
a member of the Thirtieth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and in the
battle of Chickamauga he was wounded and captured and sent to
Libby prison, returning to Indiana at the close of the war. However,
because of the lack of proper care, his wound eventually resulted in
total disability.
The subject's boyhood days were passed on the parental farmstead,
54 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
where he acquired that vigor of body, clearness of mind and firmness
of character which contributed in so large a degree to his subsequent
success. His educational advantages were limited to the common
schools of Allen county and the city of Fort Wayne. The family
were poor, and before completing his common school course he found
it necessary to employ his leisure hours in earning money with which
to pay for his books and clothing. He was employed as a newspaper
carrier for the Daily News, and at the age of fourteen years was pro-
moted to the position of collector for this paper. At the age of fifteen
years he secured employment as a machine hand in the wheelworks of
N. G. Olds, at a wage of seventy-five cents per day, and which en-
abled him to contribute to the support of his mother, of whose com-
fort and welfare he has ever been tenderly solicitous. Early deciding
to make the legal profession his life work, young Robinson employed
all his leisure moments to the earnest study of such legal authorities
as he could gain possession of, and in 1881 he entered the law office
of Colerick Brothers, distinguished members of their profession, mak-
ing such advancement in his studies that in 1882 he was admitted to
practice in the United States and state courts. Thereafter his rise in
the profession and success in securing a representative clientage was
pronounced and certain. His qualifications as a lawyer were soon
recognized, and in 1886 he was unanimously nominated for the office
of prosecuting attorney of Allen county and overwhelmingly elected,
being again nominated and elected in 1888. In 1892 he made the
race for the Democratic nomination for congress, but was defeated
in the convention by five delegate votes by Hon. W. F. McNagny,
who was elected. However, in 1896, Mr. Robinson was the recipient
of a unanimous nomination for congress, the first time this high com-
pliment was ever paid a candidate in the twelfth district. Mr. Rob-
inson was triumphant at the ensuing election, running about eight
hundred votes ahead of the presidential ticket. In 1898 he was again
unanimously nominated for congress and elected, leading the state
ticket in his district eleven hundred votes. In 1900 the same story
was repeated, he again leading his ticket by several hundred votes,
and in 1902, for the fourth consecutive time, he was elected to repre-
sent the twelfth district in the national congress, thus breaking the
two-term rule that had for so many years prevailed in this district.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 55
In 1904 he was still again the candidate of his party for this high
position, but in the landslide of that year he went down to defeat
with the rest of his party ticket, being defeated by Hon. Newton W.
Gilbert. Early in his mature life Mr. Robinson displayed rare ability
as a public speaker, and to this, as well as his personal popularity, may
be attributed his success as a politician. He is a stanch Democrat in
a partisan sense, and also a democrat in the broader sense of the word,
his interests and sympathies being ever with those from whom he
sprung — the laboring man and the masses ; and herein lies his strength
with the people. Such pronounced success as he attained with a mini-
mum of time certainly bears emphatic evidence of the honest worth
and unmistakable capacity of the man, and that it has been richly
merited none can doubt who have watched his efforts and advance-
ment.
In 1900 Mr. Robinson was united in marriage with Miss Lily M.
Deihl. Fraternally, he is affiliated with the Free and Accepted Ma-
sons, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias,
the Ancient Order of United Workmen, the Modern Woodmen of
America and the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. Mr.
Robinson is now engaged in the active practice of his profession in
his home city and at Washington, D. C, and has a large and repre-
sentative clientele.
56 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JOHN MORRIS.
The strong-, true men of a people are always public benefactors.
Their usefulness in the immediate and specific labors they perform
can be defined by metes and bounds, but the good they do through
the forces they put in motion and through the inspiration of their pres-
ence and example is immeasurable by any finite gauge or standard of
value. The late Judge John Morris, of Fort Wayne, was such a
man. The nestor of the bar of Allen county at the time of his death,
he was also one of the best known and most distinguished citizens of
northeastern Indiana, while his life and services have entered into and
become an integral part of the history of this commonwealth. To
epitomize his life and character within the limits of a publication such
as this is impossible, but less than most men intellectually his equal
does he need the voice of eulogy. The stalwart proportions of his
living presence were realized in the void made in his death, and "his
works do follow him."
John Morris was born near New Lisbon, Columbiana county,
Ohio, on the 6th of December, 1816, being the fourth in a family
of twelve children. His paternal great-grandfather, Jenkins Morris,
was a naval engineer who immigrated from Wales to America in
the latter part of the eighteenth century, settling in Loudoun county,
Virginia. His son John, grandfather of our subject, removed from
the Old Dominion to Ohio in 1801, taking up his abode in the wilds
of Columbiana county, where he purchased a tract of land and
began the development of a farm. On this place his children were
born, as were also those of his son Jonathan, father of him whose
name initiates this sketch, while the old homestead is still owned and
occupied by direct descendants of the Morris line. Jonathan Morris
married Sarah Snider, who was of German descent, her family having
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 57
immigrated from the city of Worms and settled in Columbiana
county, Ohio, in 1799.
The earlier years of Judge Morris' life were passed upon the old
homestead farm of which mention has been made, and until he was
fifteen years of age his life was not different from that of the aver-
age farmer lad of the locality and period. During the winter months
he attended the Quaker schools in the neighborhood, the same being
exceptionally good for those primitive days. At the age of fifteen,
with the idea of gaining a more advanced education, young Morris
went to Richmond, Indiana, where he entered the well equipped acad-
emy there, maintained under the auspices of the Society of Friends.
In this institution he devoted three years to the study of history, nat-
ural philosophy and mathematics, and after thus completing his course
he returned to New Lisbon, Ohio, where he devoted the ensuing three
years to work at the trade of millwright. During this time his studies
were not neglected, literature and mathematics claiming his enthusi-
astic attention.
Judge Morris had attained to his legal majority before he turned
his attention to the profession which was to be so signally honored
and dignified by his identification therewith. He initiated his read-
ing of the law in New Lisbon, having as his preceptor William D.
Ewing, who at that time one of the leading members of the Ohio
bar. Four years later, in 1841, Judge Morris was duly admitted to
practice, at New Lisbon, while it may be stated that at that time
examination for admission to the bar was a considerably more for-
midable proceeding than has obtained in more recent times. Among
those associated in the examination of the ambitious young attorney
were Judges McClain and Hitchcock, of the Ohio supreme court;
Edwin M. Stanton, who later became secretary of war in the cabinet
of President Lincoln, and David Tod, who later served as governor
of Ohio and as United States minister to Mexico. Immediately after
being thus granted admission to the bar of his native state. Judge
Morris formed a professional partnership with Hiram Griswold, with
whom he was associated in practice for three years. He grew restless
under the conditions encompassing him and determined to locate in
some growing town further to the west, believing that he could thus
secure better opportunities for growth and success in his chosen pro-
58 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
fession. In 1844 he came to Indiana and located in Auburn, DeKalb
county, which was then a distinctively new section of the state, with
primitive life in evidence in the straggling little village in which
Judge Morris established himself in practice. He met ^vith no insig-
nificant success, his practice being extended not only into the courts of
DeKalb county, but also into those of the surrounding counties, while
his reputation and professional prestige grew apace. Of this portion
of the life of our honored subject another has pertinently written as
follows : "Many were the legal battles which he waged for clients in
those pioneer days, not alone in the county courts, but also before the
pioneer justices of the peace, whose conception of the law was often
limited, but whose sense of common justice between man and man
was not often at fault. It was one of the delights of Judge Morris'
later life, when retrospective thought or some incident carried his
memory back, to recount anecdotes of the courts and cases, the clients
and the colleagues of pioneer days in northern Indiana."
In 1852 Judge Morris was the Whig candidate for judge of the
common pleas court of the district comprising DeKalb and Steuben
counties, and though the circuit was strongly Democratic he was
elected. He had achieved front rank as a practicing attorney, and it
is recorded that his career on the bench was equally creditable. In
the year 1857 Judge Morris removed from Auburn to Fort Wayne,
where he achieved the highest eminence in his profession, and where
the remaining years of his long, useful and noble life were passed.
He located here upon the invitation of Charles Case, forthwith be-
coming a member of the law firm of Case. Morris & Withers. Mr.
Case was later elected to congress, and under these conditions, in
1864, Judge Morris entered into professional partnership with his
lifelong friend. Judge James L. Worden, under the title of Worden
& Morris. Judge Worden was elected to the supreme bench of the
state in 1870, and Judge Morris continued to be associated with Mr.
Withers until 1873, when he became a member of the law firm of
Coombs, Morris & Bell. Touching pertinent points in his career, we
are able to quote somewhat freely from a previously published sketch
of the life of Judge Morris: "In 1881 the Indiana legislature pro-
vided for a commission as an auxiliary to the supreme court, designed
to relieve that body of the press of business which was accumulating
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 59
more rapidly than it could be disposed of by the regular court. The
act provided that the members of the supreme court should appoint
five commissieaecs ±0 serve in such capacity, and it was arranged by
the judges that each should select one Tnembcr of ihe -ocMmmssiQn.
from his own judicial district, and these selections were then con-
firmed by the court. Judge Worden, though a Democrat, promptly
chose his friend, Judge Morris, who was a Republican, as a member
of this commission, and in this capacity Judge Morris served from
April 2y, 1881, to September i, 1883, when he voluntarily resigned,
to resume the practice of law in Fort Wayne. While on this com-
mission Judge Morris decided a total of one hundred and seventy-five
cases, which are reported in volumes 73 to 91 of the reports of the
supreme court. His decisions are characterized by lucid style, sound
logic and a strong sense of justice and equity. Resigning his place
upon the supreme court commission. Judge Morris resumed practice
in Fort Wayne, with Charles H. Aldrich and James M. Barrett, un-
der the firm name of Morris, Aldrich & Barrett. He remained at the
head of this firm until Mr. Aldrich removed to Chicago, in 1886,
after which Judge Morris and Mr. Barrett continued the business,
as Morris & Barrett, until 1891. In the latter year the firm of Morris
& Barrett and the firm of Bell & Morris united under the firm name
of Morris, Bell, Barrett & Morris, the individual members being
Judge Morris, Hon. Robert C. Bell, Hon. James M. Barrett and
Samuel L. Morris. This was widely recognized as one of the very
strongest law firms of the Indiana bar. It was continued for a period
of seven years, until January i, 1898, when Mr. Bell retired from
the firm, and the firm became Morris, Barrett & Morris.
"When the federal bankruptcy law went into effect, in 1898, pro-
viding, among other things, for a referee in bankruptcy for the dis-
trict of Fort Wayne, Judge John H. Baker, then upon the bench of
the United States court for the district of Indiana, appointed Judge
Morris as the first referee in bankruptcy for this district, and he
withdrew from his legal partnership. Within a short time Judge
^•.lorris discovered that the burdensome clerical duties of the position
were not to his liking, and he resigned the ofiice, resuming the prac-
tice of law, in partnership with his grandson, Edward J. Woodworth.
Here, at an age long past that at which most men have been compelled
6o THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
to relinquish even an attempt at business or professional life, Judge
Morris retained a close touch with legal affairs, and exercised by
close attention a directing hand in the legal practice of the firm. At
more than four score years of age Judge Morris yet appeared in court
in active practice, and it has only been within the past two years that
his extreme age and enfeebled condition prevented an active partici-
pation in the work of the profession he adorned for so many years."
One who was long and intimately associated with Judge Morris
has offered the following estimate : "His success as a lawyer was
due to the careful preparation of every cause in its minutest details,
to his strong sense of right, to his absolute integrity as a counselor,
and to his high regard for the truth, as well as the law. No breath
of calumny ever assailed his professional or private life. No sus-
picion of wrongdoing ever compromised his personal honor. He al-
ways enjoyed the confidence of courts and juries, and the respect,
esteem and love of his professional associates. By hard labor, close
attention to business, an indomitable will, unimpeachable integrity and
unswerving fidelity to clients, he soon reached the front rank of his
profession, and for more than fifty years he enjoyed the distinction
of being the recognized leader of the bar of northern Indiana. The
members looked to him for guidance and his influence among them
has been unmeasured. He possessed the highest qualifications for a
judge — independence, clear perception, patience in argument, thor-
oughness in investigation, sound judgment and absolute integrity,
both moral and intellectual."
In politics Judge Morris was originally affiliated with the Whig
party, but he cast his lot with the Republican party at the time of its
organization, and ever afterward accorded to the same his unequivo-
cal allegiance. He was frequently importuned by party leaders to
accept nomination for important ofiice, but declined all such overtures,
loving his home and his profession too deeply to enter the tumultuous
arena of practical politics. He was a man of the highest intellectu-
ality and of pure and lofty ideals, while to him came the affection
and regard of all who came within the sphere of his gracious influ-
ence. We are pleased to quote farther from the tribute paid him
in a Fort Wayne newspaper at the time of his death : "Judge Morris
was of charming personality, and he has been in the completest sense
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 6i
a type of the grand old man. Somewhat frail of figure, yet singu-
larly erect of form and active in movement, with pleasing, regular
features, hair and beard white as purest snow, he was a striking fig-
ure. Unfailingl}'^ affable, polite and genial, his manner was quiet
and dignified, yet in no degree wanting in cordiality. Thoughtful
of the rights and feelings of others, tender-hearted as a woman, gen-
erous to a fault, Judge Morris quickly won and steadfastly retained
the unbounded respect and friendship of all with whom he was thrown
in contact. His life has been an exemplification of the sturdy yet
unobtrusive virtues and the polished graces of a dignified, courteous,
kindly gentleman. In professional and personal life alike Judge Mor-
ris' position has always been one of exceptionally high degree, and
in his career, private and public, was exemplified the noblest type of
American citizenship."
At New Lisbon, Ohio, on the 27th of April, 1841, was solem-
nized the marriage of Judge Morris to Miss Theresa Jane Farr, who
proved to him a devoted wife and coadjutrix, their felicitous married
life extending over a period of more than half a century, and the
gracious ties of companionship being broken by the death of Mrs.
Morris, in September, 1902. Three sons and three daughters survive
the honored parents. Samuel L. and John, Jr., are representative
members of the Fort Wayne bar; Stephen is an attache of the Old
National Bank, of this city; Martha is the wife of James C. Wood-
worth, of Fort Collins, Colorado; Julia M. is the wife of E. A.
Barnes, of Detroit, Michigan, and Miss Mary remains in the beauti-
ful old homestead on Maple avenue, where the death of the loved and
devoted father occurred on Saturday morning, February 4, 1905. In
his death the city lost one of its most distinguished citizens, the bar
of the state one of its worthiest members, and the world a man of
signal purity of character, one whose life counted for good in all
its relations. Judge Morris was a firm believer in the Christian faith,
and his Ife was in harmony therewith. He was for many years a
regular attendant of the Wayne Street Methodist Episcopal church,
of which his wife also was a devoted member.
62 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
MARTIN T. GEAKE.
Chosen, in the general election of November, 1904, to represent
Allen county in the state legislature, Mr. Geake was accorded a grat-
ifying mark of popular confidence and esteem in the section where
practically his entire life has been passed, and, as representative from
the twelfth district, he is one of the youngest members of the sixty-
fourth general assembly of the Indiana legislature, even as he is one
of the prominent and popular young business men of Fort Wayne and
a member of one of our honored families.
Martin Thomas Geake, more familiarly known by his second
name, was born in the city of Toledo, Ohio, on the 29th of April,
1 88 1, and is a son of William and Alice (Clayton) Geake, who have
maintained their home in Fort Wayne for nearly a quarter of a cen-
tury. The father of our subject is one of the representative business
men and honored citizens of Fort Wayne, where he is an extensive
contractor in cut-stone work, in which line his operations are of very
wide scope, being excelled by those of few if any contractors in the
state. William Geake was born in the city of Bristol, England, in
1849, ^nd was a lad of five years when his parents, in 1854, came
to America, locating in the Dominion of Canada, where they re-
mained four years, at the expiration of which they returned with their
children to England, where they passed the remainder of their lives.
In 1868, shortly before his twentieth birthday anniversary, William
Geake again came to America, and he first located in Oswego, New
York, whence he removed to Toledo, Ohio, a few months later. In
the city last mentioned he engaged in contracting for cut stone, in
partnership with his cousin, John J. Geake, and they built up a pros-
perous enterprise. He remained there a number of years, and then
removed to Emmet county, Michigan, locating near the city of Pe-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 63
toskey, where he took up a quarter section of wild land and became
one of the pioneers of that locality, where he maintained his home
about six years. He then came to Fort Wayne, with whose industrial
and civic affairs he has ever since been identified, being one of the
most substantial and prominent stone contractors in the state, and
having done a large amount of important work in connection with
the erection of public buildings in divers parts of northern Indiana.
He is specially well known in Masonic circles, being an appreciative
a prominent member of the time-honored fraternity, in which he
has attained to the maximum degree possible to be gained in America,
being raised to the thirty-third degree in the Ancient Accepted Scot-
tish Rite, northern Masonic jurisdiction, while he is past grand mas-
ter of the Masonic grand lodge of Indiana. He is also identified with
the Royal Arcanum and the Sons of St. George, and in politics is a
stanch Republican. In 1873 was solemnized the marriage of William
Geake to Miss Alice E. Clayton, of Toledo, Ohio, and of their nine
children we enter brief record as follows : Hon. William C. is dep-
uty attorney general of the state of Indiana ; Charles H. is superin-
tendent of the Geake stone business, in Fort Wayne, the enterprise
having been established by his father in 1884; Sarah A. is the wife
of Delmer Franklin, of Chicago ; Charlotte E. is at the parental home ;
Martin Thomas is the immediate subject of this review; Edith B.
and Ella G. remain at home and are students in the Fort Wayne high
school at the time of this writing ; George Pixley is a student in Howe
Military Academy, at Lima, Indiana, and Samuel Sweet is attending
the city schools of Fort Wayne.
Martin Thomas Geake was an infant at the time of his parents'
removal to Fort Wayne, and here he was reared to maturity, duly
availing himself of the excellent advantages afforded in the city
schools and being graduated in the high school as a member of the
class of 1899. After leaving school he became actively associated
with his father's business operations, with which he is still identified,
and he has shown himself to be an able and progressive young busi-
ness man and one of marked initiative and executive aptitude. Ever
since attaining years of maturity he has been an ardent advocate of
the principles of the Republican party and has been one of its promi-
nent and popular young devotees in Fort Wayne. Exceptional dis-
64 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
tinction and honor were conferred upon him in his election, in No-
vember, 1904, to represent the twelfth district in the lower house
of the state legislature, in which he has taken his seat at the age of
twenty-three years. Like his honored father, Mr. Geake is a loyal
and appreciative affiliate of the Masonic fraternity, in which he has
advanced to the thirty-second degree of the Ancient Accepted Scot-
tish Rite, being identified with the Consistory of the Valley of Indi-
ana, at the state capital, in which he has been duly crowned as a Sub-
lime Prince of the Royal Secret. He has held various official posi-
tions in the different Masonic bodies in Fort Wayne, and is enthusias-
tic in the work of the grand order with which he is thus identified.
Mr. Geake is a communicant of the Protestant Episcopal church, being
a member of Trinity parish, in his home city, and also being a mem-
ber of the fine vested choir for three years. The subject is a young
man of sterling character and one whose career is one of promise,
both in a business and civic way, for in the matter of political pres-
tige he has gained a noteworthy precedence for one of his years, and
bases the same on personal popularity and eligibility, the fealty and
loyalty of influential friends and the high standing of his family, so
that his ambition for a political career may readily be indulged and
fostered in case he sees fit to remain in the public service. He still
remains a member of the home circle, where he is held in affectionate
regard, not as the member of a dignified legislative body, but as
"Tom," the cherished son and brother.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 65
NELSON L. DEMING, M. D.
As a physician and surgeon of high attainments and distinctive
precedence, and as one of the popular representatives of his profes-
sion in the city of Fort Wayne, Dr. Deming is entitled to considera-
tion in his work.
Nelson Lloyd Deming was bom in Danbury, Connecticut, on the
2 1 St of November, 1868, and is a son of Charles J. and Annie Maria
(White) Deming, both of whom were born and reared in that state,
being representatives of old and prominent New England families.
The father has been engaged in mercantile and railroad work during
the major portion of his active career, and died August 30, 1905.
He was a member of the Connecticut legislature and served three
years as a Connecticut volunteer during the Civil war, being adjutant
of the Second Connecticut Heavy Artillery. Dr. Deming secured
his early educational discipline in the public schools and in a private
school in New York city, where he was prepared for matriculation in
the scientific department of the Sheffield Scientific School, from
which he graduated in 1890 with the degree of Bachelor of Philoso-
phy. He soon afterward (1890) entered the College of Physicians
and Surgeons in New York city, now known as the medical branch
of Columbia College, where he completed the prescribed course and
was graduated as a member of the class of 1893. From May of that
year until October, 1894, he served as interne in the city hospital of
the national metropolis, while later he held other hospital appoint-
ments which gave him exceptional advantages for clinical work and
study, while he continued in practice in New York until 1896, when
he came to Fort Wayne, where he has built up an excellent general
practice and is regarded as one of the leading medical practitioners
of the younger generation in the city. In politics the Doctor is an
advocate of the principles and policies of the Republican party. His
5
66 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
religious connection is with the Protestant Episcopal church, while
professionally he is allied with the American Medical Association,
the Tri-State Medical Society and the Allen County Medical Society,
and also belongs to the Berzelins Society of Yale College.
On the 1 6th of November, 1898, Dr. Deming was united in mar-
riage to Miss Louise Camahan, who is a native of Indiana, being a
daughter of William L. and Clara (Hanna) Camahan, the former
of whom is deceased, while the latter maintains her home in Fort
Wayne. Dr. and Mrs. Deming have two children. Nelson L., Jr.,
and Mary Louise.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 67
OLAF N. GULDLIN.
Great achievements always excite admiration. Men of deeds are
the men whom the world delights to honor. Ours is an age repre-
senting the most electrical progress in all lines of material activity,
and the man of initiative is one who forges to the front in the indus-
trial world. Among the distinctive "captains of industry" in the
city of Fort Wayne a place of priority must be accorded to him whose
name heads this article, for to him is due the upbuilding of an in-
dustry which is not only one of the most important in this city, but
also the most extensive of the kind in the world, while the compara-
tively brief time within which these great results have been obtained
further testified to his exceptional administrative power and executive
ability. Though a native of a foreign land, where he was reared and
educated, Mr. Guldlin is a typical American citizen, thoroughly in
harmony with the spirit of the republic, while here he has made the
most of his opportunities and worked his way upward to a noble and
worthy success. He is president and general manager of the West-
ern Gas Construction Company, of Fort Wayne, of which due de-
scription will be entered in later paragraphs of this article.
Mr. Guldlin was born in the picturesque old capital city of Chris-
tiania, Norway, on the 6th of December, 1858. being a son of Lars
O. and Maren (Sander) Guldlin, both of whom were natives of the
same fair Norseland, where the former was born in 1828 and the lat-
ter in 1836. They immigrated to the United States in 1883, and set-
tled in Barnes county, North Dakota, where the father became a pros-
perous farmer, and where he died in 1898, while his widow still re-
sides in Valley City, that county. Their children are seven in num-
ber, and the subject of this review is the only son. Olaf N. Guldlin
was reared to manhood in his native land, and his father's financial
68 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
position was such that he was able to secure good educational advan-
tages. After his preliminary discipline in the common schools, he
entered a technical college in Bergen, Norway, where he completed
a course in mechanical engineering, being graduated when nineteen
years of age, while later he was a student in a prominent polytech-
nical institution in the city of Munich, Germany, where he further
fortified himself for the practical work of his chosen profession, as
did he also by experience in machine shops in both Norway and Ger-
many. In May, 1880, Mr. Guldlin came to America and soon after-
ward he secured a position as draftsman in the engineering depart-
ment of the great Baldwin Locomotive Works in the city of Phila-
delphia, Pennsylvania, and where he soon reached the position of ex-
aminer of drawings, continuing to be identified with this industrial
concern about two and a half years. In 1882 he made a visit to his
old home in Norway, and there remained a few months, after which
he came again to the United States. In 1884 he met, in the city of
Washington, D. C., on the occasion of a convention of the American
Gas Light Association, A. D. Cressler, one of Fort Wayne's repre-
sentative business men, and it was largely through the influence of
the latter that the subject was induced to take up his residence in this
city, his attention in the meanwhile having been directed to gas en-
gineering. He came to Fort Wayne in 1885, and forthwith identified
himself with its business interests, while of the rise of the great in-
dustry of which he is virtually the head an interesting description is
given in Volume II of this history, reference being made there to an
attractive brochure recently issued by this company, from which we
quote as follows : "The history of this company's development has
always proved an interesting one to the gas fraternity. In 1888 con-
ditions appeared very favorable for a gas engineering firm in the
west, and a partnership was formed by O. N. Guldlin, as manager
and engineer; F. D. Moses, as superintendent, and W. A. Croxton,
as secretary. A modest one-room office was by them opened in Fort
Wayne, Indiana. Considerable work was secured, but Mr. Moses,
and subsequently Mr. Croxton, in 1890, apparently seeing more
profitable opportunities in other lines, soon withdrew, although by that
time the business had justified more commodious business offices. A
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 69
company was then incorporated, with Mr. GuldHn as the principal
owner and president, which position he has since retained.
"A vigorous poHcy of introducing originahty in the design of
gas apparatus resulted in a steadily growing business, and on the
expiration of the Lowe patent on water-gas apparatus, in 1892, the
company, which had previously given considerable attention to this
process, entered the market with its design, and several contracts were
secured. This branch of the business was then vigorously pushed,
and has ever since been given special attention. A number of patents
have been applied for and allowed, covering the development of the
apparatus, and this dvelopment has been continued, with additional
patents still pending, as represented in the perfect type of water-gas
apparatus now built by the company and in operation in some of the
largest gas concerns in the country. The special design of double-
gate valves for gas works was designed and patented during the ear-
lier years, and by their popularity these devices have materially in-
creased the company's business. In 1893 it was clearly demonstrated
that the business volume was in excess of what could be systematically
handled, the company being entirely dependent upon outside shops
for the execution of the work, and as a result about twenty-eight lots
were bought alongside of the Pennsylvania railroad and the original
machine shop built, the same being about sixty-five by one hundred
feet in dimensions, and adjoining this was erected what was at the
time considered a very commodious building. These provisions, how-
ever, gave only partial and temporary relief, and two years later, in
1895, the machine shop was extended one hundred and fifty feet,
which improvement was then considered to be such as to afiford ample
accommodations and facilities for years to come, a complete installa-
tion of modern and special tools for the work in hand being made
simultaneously. The business, however, kept growing, notwith-
standing the panic, and as more and more difficulty was experienced
in securing satisfactory foundry work, as well as shell work, the
company decided to establish both foundry and boiler shop of its own,
the result being that in 1900 about one-third of each of the present
shops was built, each having from one to three times the capacity of
the company's purchases up to that time, so that the company felt
justified in assuming that its needs had been taken care of for several
years to come.
70 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
"That the growth of the business was much underestimated was
quickly demonstrated as to the boiler shop and foundry, by the en-
ergetic adaptation and introduction of new designs of gas apparatus —
such as having taken up vigorously the introduction of an improved
Pelouze and Audouin tar extractor, with the earlier introduction of
which Mr. Guldlin had been identified in 1882, when employed as
engineer v/ith James R. Smedburg. The popularity and resultant
large orders of 'Western Gas' designs of valves; the introduction of
the 'duplex' purifier system ; improved forms of washers, both for coal
gas and water gas, since further developed and patented; and further
improvement in its water-gas apparatus, as well as the introduction
of the company's system of coal-gas condensation with intermediate
tar extraction, on which patent was granted; as well as the intro-
duction in this country of the Holmes Patent Rotary Scrubber, which
had already established such an unprecedented record abroad — re-
sulted in such a volume of business that in 1902 it was clearly demon-
strated that unless radical measures were taken for works of ample
capacity it would be a question, and a very serious one, of not being
able to fill orders as offered. It was then decided to act accordingly,
disregarding all previous consideration, and plans were immediately
prepared for such radical extension and rebuilding of the works as is
represented by the same as they stand today."
It may be stated that there was from this time on an amplification
of all the facilities of the great factory which grew up on the site
of the first little buildings, until Fort Wayne found itself here pos-
sessed of what is unmistakably the largest plant in the country ex-
clusively devoted to the manufacture of gas apparatus, while the
guiding hand throughout has been that of the able president and chief
engineer, Mr. Guldlin, whose technical knowledge is on a parity with
his administrative powers. The nature of this article is such as to
preclude more detailed description of the great industry, but in the
following paragraphs further incidental reference will be made, in
touching the personal career of the subject. It may be said that his
interests and ambitions center in the Western Gas Construction Com-
pany, whose great works now cover twelve and a half acres, while in
the same employment is given to an average corps of four hundred
operatives. Mr. Guldlin is interested in a financial way in other en-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 71
terprises, notably oil in California, coal in Illinois, and mining in
Colorado, but to the direction of the great industry described he gives
his time, thought and attention, while he has attained high prestige
in the line of his profession, both at home and abroad.
The Western Gas Construction Company made a significent and
most interesting exhibit at the world's fair at St. Louis, and in this
connection Mr. Guldlin, as well as his cultured wife, gained marked
recognition. Apropos of this we quote as follows from an article ap-
pearing in the American Gas-Light Journal, under date of Novem-
ber 28, 1904: "Mrs. O. N. Guldlin was hostess at the Indiana state
building during this month. Mr. Guldlin is an honorary member of
the Indiana state commission. The recognition extended to both Mr.
and Mrs. Guldlin is worthy of special notice at this time. The honors
to Mrs.- Guldlin are the sequel to those heretofore extended to Mr.
Guldlin. The board of commissioners of Indiana, realizing that the
magnificent exhibit of the Western Gas Construction Company
merited some unusual distinction, by unanimous vote made Mr.
Guldlin an honorary member of its body and presented him with
the official badge worn by themselves. The only other person in
the state to enjoy this honor was Governor Durbin." At the fair Mr.
Guldlin was also appointed one of the international jurors, also a
member of official committees, on which he officiated actively. He
received for his plant and its products three grand prizes, four gold
medals, and six silver medals, besides the first official recognition
of the gas-works industry at an international exposition. It may
further be stated that the first grand prize was awarded his com-
pany for complete exhibit of apparatus and methods for the manu-
facture of coal gas and water gas and recovery of byproducts; the
second grand prize for superior values and fittings for gas works;
while the third grand prize was awarded to Mr. Guldlin personally,
on the basis of the entire exhibit, embracing development of ap-
paratus, patents issued to him on his own inventions which have
merited adoption by all leading gas companies in the United States
and also in foreign countries. He was the only citizen of Indiana to
receive this distinguished personal honor at the fair.
Mr. Guldlin has always been a Republican on national issues. He
is a member of the Fort Wayne Manufacturers' Club, the Fort
72 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Wayne Commercial Club, the Lotus Club of New York city, the
Missouri Athletic Qub, of St. Louis, Missouri, and the Cosmos Club,
of San Francisco, California.
On the 28th of August, 1899, Mr. Guldlin was united in mar-
riage to Miss Addie L. Bleekman, who was born in the state of
New York, being a daughter of Jerome and Henrietta (Sixbey)
Bleekman, who are now living near Fort Wayne. Mr. Bleekman
was prominently identified with Fort Wayne business enterprises till
his retirement from active business a few years ago. Mrs. Guldlin
received her education in the schools of Fort Wayne ; after finishing
her course at the high school, she completed her education as Bachelor
of Philosophy in Buchtel College, at Akron, Ohio. She is a woman
of gracious presence and distinction, being prominent in the best
social life of the city of Fort Wayne, where she enjoys unequivocal
popularity, being identified actively with literary, club and church
work, while the beautiful home is a center of generous hospitality.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 73
SAMUEL M. WILLIAMS.
The subject of this review is one of the well known and highly-
honored citizens of Allen county, maintaining his residence in Mon-
roeville, where he devotes the greater portion of his attention to
the raising of fine poultry, being known as one of the leading chicken
fanciers of the Union, and by reason of his long residence in the
county and his high standing as a citizen it is most consonant that a
resume of his career be incorporated in this publication. He gave
evidence of his sterling patriotism during the crucial period of the
Civil war, bearing arms in defense of the Union and aiding in main-
taining its supremacy in many a hard fought battle.
Samuel M. Williams is a native of the old Buckeye state and a
representative of one of its honored pioneer families. He was born
in Harrison county, Ohio, on the ist of August, 1841, being a son
of John T. and Belinda (Selby) Williams, both of whom came to
Adams county, Indiana, and died there. The father of our subject
was born in Fauquier county, -Virginia, on the 8th of February, 1808,
and about the year 181 8 he accompanied his parents on their removal
to Harrison county, Ohio, where he was reared to manhood. The
genealogical line is traced back to stanch Welsh origin, and the
original American ancestors came to this county in the colonial era
of our national history. When the subject of this sketch was a child
his parents removed to Meigs county, Ohio, where he \vas reared to
maturity on the homestead farm, in the meanwhile availing himself
of the educational advantages afforded in the common schools of the
locality and period. At the age of eighteen years he secured employ-
ment in the oil fields of West Virginia, being thus engaged at the
time of the outbreak of the war of the Rebellion. His northern
sympathies and his outspoken loyalty to the Union caused him to
74 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
become persona non grata in West Virginia, and he, in company
with other northern men, was compelled to beat a hasty retreat, forth-
with abandoning their work. In company with seven others he
secured a boat and rowed the same down the little Kanawha river by
night and then crossed over the Ohio river into the state of Ohio. As
Mr. Williams has expressed the animus of those who were thus sum-
marily driven forth from the south, "The next thing in order was to
get ready and go back and see them about it." On the 8th of July,
1 86 1, he tendered his services in defense of the Union, but as the
regiment in which he enlisted did not secure its necessary quota as
soon as expected he was not mustered into service until the 8th of
the following September. The regiment was mustered in at Marietta,
Ohio, becoming the Thirty-sixth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, while our
subject was a member of Company C. Colonel George Crook, who
afterward became major general, was assigned to the command of
the regiment, which was forthwith sent to Parkersburg, Virginia,
to prepare for service. Of his commander Mr. Williams has spoken
as follows : "Right well did Colonel Crook perform his part, while
he also gave us to understand that we must perform ours at the same
time and along the lines which he mapped out." Continuing his
description of his army career, Mr. Williams says : "Camp life had
its pleasures and also its drawbacks and disillusions, but reality came
when we met General Heath and his five regiments at Lewisburg,
Virginia, on the 22nd of May, 1862. Here, in less than thirty
minutes, with the assistance of the Forty-fourth Ohio, we obliterated
Heath and his forces from the map of Virginia." Within the limits
of an article of so circumscribed character as the one at hand it is
impossible to enter into minute details as to the military record of
Mr. Williams, but it may justly be said that his record is coincident
with the history of his regiment. With his command he next took
part in the second battle of Bull Run, after which he participated in
the battles of South Mountain and Antietam. The regiment then
moved back to western Virginia, and at Charleston embarked on
transports and proceeded by way of the Cumberland and Ohio rivers
to Nashville, Tennessee. From the latter city they proceeded to
Carthage, where they had a night battle with a cavalry force, in
the midst of a blinding thunder storm. They captured the enemy's
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 75
camp equipage and took a large number of prisoners. Moving thence
to Murfreesboro, the regiment thereafter took part in the engage-
ments at Hoover's Gap, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge and Ring-
gold, after which the command went back to West Virginia and was
in action at Cloyd Mountain and Staunton, after which they took
part in General Hunter's raid on Lynchburg, where they fought
almost continuously for a period of thirty days and met with most
serious losses, owing largely to the stubbornness and indiscrimination
of the commanding officer. Failing to take Lynchburg, the forces
under Hunter made a retreat across the mountains to meet the supply
train, in the meanwhile fighting and marching under cover of night
until Meadow Bluffs w^as reached. Our subject describes this trip
and further movements in the following words : "Many of our men
never reached that point. At Meadow Bluffs we met a provision
train, and after a brief rest we took up our line of march for
Charleston, where we took boats for Parkersburg, whence we pro-
ceeded overland to the Shenandoah valley. At Winchester we met
General Jubal A. Earley with a large force, and here we were routed
for the first time in all our experience, being flanked so successfully
that the only recourse left us was to proceed to the north, and we
'set the pace,' reaching Bunker Hill at nightfall, somewhat discom-
fited but not dismayed. To prevent any further flank movements
on the part of the enemy we continued north to Williamsport, Penn-
sylvania, in order to there get ourselves in shape to meet them again.
We next met the enemy at Charleston, in a light engagement, after
which the Confederate forces retired southward, making a stand at
Berryville. But they still thought the better fighting to be at Cedar
Creek, and had it not been for the timely arrival of General Sheridan
our second repulse would have been even worse than our first. Next
came the decisive battle for our arms in the Shenandoah valley, —
Opequon Creek, or sometimes called tlie second battle of Winchester.
This ended my services as a soldier in the ranks."
Mr. Williams made an admirable record as a valiant and faith-
ful soldier, serving three years and four months in the ranks and
taking part in thirteen of the most noteworthy battles of the great
yd THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
conflict, besides twenty-three skinnishes. He was slightly wounded
on two different occasions, — at Antietam and Lexington, Virginia.
He was mustered out at Columbus, Ohio, and duly received his hon-
orable discharge, while he reached his home on the 9th of October,
1864.
On the 31st of Marcli, 1864, Mr. WilHams was united in mar-
riage to Miss Margaret J. Hanlin, and they continued their resi-
dence in Meigs county, Ohio, until October, 1867, when they re-
moved to Adams couty, Indiana, making the trip overland with
wagons. They settled on a farm, but did not find the life enjoyable,
and our subject therefore disposed of the property and located in the
village of Pleasant Mills, that county, in 1869, when he came to
Allen county and took up his residence in Monroeville, where he has
ever since maintained his home. Here Mr. Williams engaged in the
hotel business, in which he met with fair success, retiring shortly
after the death of his wife, who succumbed to consumption in De-
cember, 1874, their only son being summoned into the life eternal
only two years later. On the 20th of February, 1875, Mr. Williams
consummated a second marriage, being then united to Miss Emma
L. Lutz. They have no children, Mr. and Mrs. Williams have
continued their residence in Monroeville during the long intervening
years, and have witnessed the various stages of development and
progress, while our subject has at all times been recognized as a
liberal, loyal and public-spirited citizen. He devotes his attention
principally to the breeding and improving of fancy poultry, having
originated the now famous and popular White Plymouth Rock,
w^hich he has been breeding for a score of years, while the attractive
type has been disseminated throughout the various sections of the
Union. He is now engaged in building and equipping a steam
laundry, for the benefit of the rapidly increasing population of this
thriving community. What more pertinent as touching the position
of Mr. and Mrs. Williams could be asked than his own words : "We
are contented with out lot; we live comfortably, enjoy life, and hope
the world is not worse for our living in it."
In politics Mr. Williams accords a stanch allegiance to the Re-
publican party, though he has never been afflicted with office-seeking
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 77
propensities. He is a member of Lodge No. 293, Free and Accepted
Masons, at Monroeville, and was a charter member and quarter-
master of a former Grand Army post at this place, though not now
affiHated with the order. Mr. Williams is one of the most prominent
and enthusiastic members of the Fort Wayne Poultry, Pigeon and
Pet Stock Association, of which he is secretary at the time of this
writing.
78 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
WESLEY I. WORK.
The responsible duties devolving upon him as truant officer for
Allen county are being most ably and acceptably discharged by the
present incumbent, who figures as the subject of this brief sketch and
who is one of the well known and highly esteemed citizens of Fort
Wayne.
Mr. Work was born in Dekalb county, Indiana, on the 31st of
October, 1842, and is a son of Robert and Sarah (Emesy) Work,
the former of whom was bom in Lancaster county, Ohio, in the year
1812, while the latter was bom in Culpeper county, Virginia, on the
19th of September, 1818. They were numbered among the pioneers
of Allen county, Indiana, where their marriage was solemnized in
1834, but a year later they removed to Dekalb county and located
on a tract of wild land near the present station of New Era, where
the father developed a good farm. On this old homestead the devoted
wife and mother died, in 1852, and her husband thereafter remained
on the place until 1865, when he removed to the city of Fort Wayne,
where he passed the remainder of his long and useful life, his death
occurring in 1886. He was a member of the constitutional convention
of Indiana in 1852, as a delegate from Dekalb county, and in that
county he also served with distinction as probate judge. He was a
man of exalted character and much intellectual ability, while to him
was ever accorded the unreserved confidence and esteem of his fellow
men. He was thrice married, and from the first union were born
one son and six daughters, while one son was born of the third mar-
riage. Four of the sisters are living, namely : Mrs. W. W. Shoaflf,
of Fort Wayne ; Mrs. Peter Shoaff, residing near the old homestead
farm, in Dekalb county; Mrs. L. T. Sturgis, of Fort Wayne, and
Mrs. Hezekiah Hillegass, near Hunterstown, Allen county. R.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 79
C. Work, the only child of the third marriage, is a representative
farmer near Fort Wayne.
Wesley I. Work, the immediate subject of this review, passed
his youth on the old homestead farm in Dekalb county and in the
common schools of the locality he secured his early educational dis-
cipline. He continued his allegiance to the great basic industry of
agriculture after attaining to years of maturity, and was engaged
in farming in his native county until 1889, when he removed to Fort
Wayne, where he became identified with the agricultural implement
business, in which he was interested about seven years, after which he
engaged in the school-supply business, keeping in stock a general
line of textbooks, maps, blackboards and general supplies, including
seats, furnaces, etc. He has met with success in this enterprise,
which he continues at the present time. In May, 1904, the trustees
of the several townships of Allen county, constituting, ex-officio, the
county board of education, selected Mr. Work for the position of
county truant officer, this being a salaried office and one provided for
by an act of the state legislature in 1903. Mr. Work's official duties
require him to see that all children between the ages of seven and
fourteen years are kept in school during the full school terms,
and his jurisdiction includes the entire county outside of the city of
Fort Wayne, while his reports afford a complete record of his official
labors and are made to the state board of truancy, created by the same
act which has been mentioned in this connection. In his political ad-
herency Mr. Work is found stanchly aligned as a supporter of the
principles and policies of the Democratic party, and he has taken an
active part in local party work.
In Allen county, in the year 1869, was solemnized the marriage
of Mr. Work to Miss Jennie Warcup, a daughter of John and Sarah
Warcup, representatives of honored pioneer families of this county,
where they lived until venerable age and until the time of death, the
father having been a prosperous farmer and honored citizen. Mr.
and Mrs. Work have one daughter, who is now the wife of W. B.
Mayer, a traveling salesman, and she remains at the parental home.
8o THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
SAMUEL HANNA.
The spirit of a pure, noble and earnest life burned in the mortal
tenement of the late Judge Samuel Hanna, than whom no pioneer of
the city of Fort Wayne attained to higher distinction in connection
with the material and civic development of this favored section of the
state, while none wielded a wider or more beneficent influence in
connection with the promotion of the great public utilities which
conserved such development and progress. His life was one of ful-
ness and completeness, one of vigor and inflexible integrity. He
accomplished great things for the general good and was not denied a
due individual reward in the matter of temporal affluence. A man of
rugged strength of character, of finest moral fiber, and one who real-
ized a magnificent measure of useful accomplishment, his name is
deeply graven on the pages of Indiana history, particularly as apply-
ing to Allen county and the city of Fort Wayne, so that such a pub-
lication as the one at hand must needs enter a tribute of honor and
appreciation to his memory if any measure of consistency and sym-
metry is to be claimed for the same.
In reviewing the life and character of Judge Hanna we shall have
recourse to liberal quotation from a previously published memoir,
written by G. W. Wood, whose was personal knowledge of the man
and his accomplishment.
Samuel Hanna was torn in Scott county, Kentucky, on the i8th
of October, 1797, being a son of James Hanna, who removed with his
family to Dayton, Ohio, in 1804, settling on a farm lying contiguous
to the southern boundary of the town. Samuel was one of a numerous
family of children, all of whom attained respectable and most of them
distinguished positions in life. His early days were passed like those
of the average boy in a new country. He assisted his father in the
1
-agraved>y J C I'u*"^^'-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 8i
reclaiming of the wild land which constituted the home farm, and
his educational advantages were such as were afforded in the some-
what primitive schools of the locality and period. As a youth
the subject of this sketch found employment as a post-rider,
delivering newspapers to the widely scattered subscribers, as
postoffices were at that time almost entirely limited to the
county seats. In this humble calling the young man passed con-
siderable time, traversing, week after week, the then wilderness
of western Ohio. While still a mere youth, there came a pro-
nounced exemplification of the inviolable integrity which ever indi-
cated the man. In taking up a business enterprise in company with
another young man, he assumed an indebtedness and was swindled
out of the goods purchased, and while his partner secured immunity
from payment by plea of infancy, Judge Hanna refused to resort to
this method of evasion, holding the debt as one of honor, and ulti-
mately paying in full — at what sacrifice we may dimly imagine, tak-
ing into account the fact that he was but nineteen years of age at the
time, and dependent entirely upon his own resources. In the connec-
tion the following words have been written : "Integrity and upright-
ness thus early evinced, amidst strong inducements to a contrary
course, characterized his long and useful career and gave him im-
mense influence over his fellowmen." That the subject made good
use of such educational privileges as were his is manifest when we
find record of the fact that he was for some time successfully engaged
in teaching school. In 1818, with his brother Thomas, he attended
the Indian treaty at St. Mary's, in the capacity of sutler or purveyor,
furnishing both food for men and provender for horses, all being
transported with ox teams from Troy, Ohio, while with his own
hands he hewed out the feed troughs for the stock. The small amount
of money realized in this connection was his first substantial acquisi-
tion — the corner-stone on which his subsequent colossal fortune was
reared. Here, too, his purpose was formed of emigrating to Fort
Wayne, "where he was destined to act so conspicuous and important
a part in developing the resources of the country and building up a
city."
Judge Hanna arrived in Fort Wayne in 18 19, being then in his
twenty-second year. "He found the place a mere Indian trading
6
82 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
post, with very few white inhabitants, and those merely remnants
of the old military establishment. Outside of the 'post' and its im-
mediate vicinity there were no white settlers, and the country in
every direction, for hundreds of miles, was an unbroken wilderness,
swarming with the red men of the forest. He immediately entered
upon mercantile pursuits in a small way, at what is now the north-
west comer of Columbia and Barr streets. The town was not then
laid out. His first storehouse was a rude log cabin, erected mainly
with his own hands. This primitive structure was soon superseded
by a frame building, which in later years gave place to a substantial
brick block of business houses.
"From his first settlement at Fort Wayne Mr. Hanna, at all times
and on all occasions, evinced a strong desire to build up the town, to
advance its material interests in every way, and to improve and de-
velop the resources of the country; and though not inattentive to his
own individual interests, this cardinal purpose was kept steadily in
view during his whole life. In all meetings of the people for the
promotion of public improvements or public welfare he was always
a conspicuous and leading actor. He early perceived the indispen-
sable necessity of opening and improving roads and other facilities
for travel and intercommunication ; but to fully appreciate his designs
in this respect it may be necessary to revert to the condition of things
at that time. As has already been remarked, Fort Wayne, as he
found it, was situated in the wilderness, far removed from all im-
provements. The country around afforded no supplies, except the
inconsiderable amount yielded by the chase and a very small quantity
of com grown on the bottoms in the immediate vicinity by the occu-
pants of the post or fort. Practically all provisions and supplies had
to be brought from a distance — mostly from Miami county, Ohio,
by way of St. Mary's, being transported by wagons to the latter place
and thence on flatboats down the St. Mary's river to Fort Wayne.
The facilities for obtaining goods were little or no better. They
were mostly purchased in New York or Boston and brought up the
Maumee in pirogues or packed through the wilderness from Detroit
on horses.
"Samuel Hanna was emphatically a general in civil life. His
name is intimately associated and blended with every period in the
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 83
history of Fort Wayne. No public enterprise of importance was ever
undertaken without his concurrence and aid. His vast and controll-
ing influence is visible everywhere, and was potential for good wher-
ever it extended. Soon after commencing operations in Fort Wayne
he was appointed agent of the American Fur Company, which re-
sponsible position he filled for a number of years, to the entire satis-
faction of the company. He was also associate judge of the circuit
court, and was repeatedly elected, at that early period and in subse-
quent years, a member of the state legislature. As his means accu-
mulated he extended his mercantile operations to other places, partic-
ularly to Lafayette, Wabash and South Bend, and from all these he
realized large returns. He became an extensive landowner in the
Wabash valley and elsewhere."
To Judge Hanna must be ascribed the credit and honor of matur-
ing the first practical conception of the magnificent project of con-
structing a canal to connect Lake Erie with the Wabash river, and
his services in the connection were herculean and unflagging, result-
ing in the congressional grant of each alternate section of land for six
miles on each side of the proposed line, through its whole length, to
aid in the construction of the canal. Strange as it may seem at the
present time, much opposition was raised to the acceptance of the
grant by the state, and as champion of the measure in the legislature,
Judge Hanna made an ardent and protracted contest, which resulted
in the acceptance of the grant and the appropriation of one thousand
dollars to purchase the necessary engineering instruments and procure
the survey and location of the summit level. Judge Hanna, David
Burr and a Mr. Jones were appointed canal commissioners. "Judge
Hanna went to New York, purchased the instruments, and brought
them on horseback from Detroit to Fort Wayne. Civil engineers
were scarce in the west at that day, but the commissioners secured
one and immediately entered upon the sun^ey. commencing on the
St. Joseph's river, six miles above Fort Wayne, where the feeder-dam
was afterward built. Mr. Burr operated as rodman and Judge Hanna
as axman, both at ten dollars a month. The second day the engineer
was taken sick and was compelled to abandon the work. Judge Han-
na and Mr. Burr, alone, continuing and completing the survey of the
summit feeder. They made their report to the succeeding session of
84 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
the legislature, and Judge Hanna, being again a member, secured its
adoption, and the passage of an act authorizing the construction of
the Wabash & Erie canal. Thus originated and was inaugurated,
almost, if not entirely, through the untiring energy, the indomitable
perseverance of these two noble pioneers, Hanna and Burr, this stu-
pendous work of internal improvement — the longest continuous line
of artificial water communication on the American continent, if not
in the world, and one of incalculable value to Fort Wayne and all
northern Indiana. Judge Hanna was fund commissioner for several
years, and negotiated for most of the money with which the work
was carried on, and probably no one contributed more to the success
of the canal policy during the first and trying years of its progress
than did he."
Judge Hanna displayed distinctive wisdom and ability in his as-
sociation with the organization of the State Bank of Indiana. As
chairman of the committee on state banks, he drafted a charter, which
passed both houses of the legislature, being approved Januaiy 28,
1834. "Thus was created the State Bank of Indiana, by common
consent one of the best banking institutions that has ever existed in
this country, and one that continued in operation twenty years, af-
fording the people a safe and sound currency and yielding to the state
a large accumulated fund at its close; an institution that exerted a
marked influence on the subsequent bank legislation of many other
states. A branch was at once established in Fort Wayne, and Judge
Hanna was its president much of the time, while it was managed with
pre-eminent skill and ability."
Judge Hanna platted an extensive addition to the city of Fort
Wayne as early as 1836, and eventually he reaped large profits from
the same, though through it his affairs were much involved for a
time. With the thronging cares of his public and private interests,
he was every ready to lend his aid and co-operation in the furthering
of other enterprises for the general good. He was a prominent fac-
tor in securing the pioneer plank road of northern Indiana — from
Fort Wayne to Ontario. The construction of the first ten miles of
this road, leading from Fort Wayne, he personally superintended,
and, with ax in hand, helped to build. At the opening of the railroad
era Judge Hanna again proved himself a leader. When that grand
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 85
national line of railroad which is now the pride and strength of Fort
Wayne, and with which his name is forever identified — the Pitts-
burgh, Fort Wayne & Chicago — was projected, Judge Hanna was
among the first to appreciate and take hold of the enterprise. The
Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad was organized in 1852, and Judge
Hanna was elected its president, thus serving until the consolidation
which gave birth to the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railway
Company, in August, 1856, when he became vice-president of the
latter. He retained this incumbency until his death. No man con-
nected with the management of this railway ever had a greater share
of the confidence of all interested in it than did Judge Hanna. About
three months before his death he was elected president of the Grand
Rapids & Indiana Railroad Company, though he had hesitated to
assume the responsibilities, seeming to feel a premonition of the com-
ing of the hour when he should "rest from his labors." Always hav-
ing in mind the welfare of Fort Wayne, he worked unceasingly for
the establishment of the immense railroad shops and other manu-
facturing industries here. He was associated in the establishing of
the woolen factory, the great Bass foundry and machine shops, the
Olds factories and other industrial undertakings whose inception and
maintenance depended largely upon his capital.
Judge Hanna literally remained in the harness until called upon
to obey the inexorable summons of death, his final illness having been
of comparatively brief duration. He passed to his reward on the
nth of June, 1866, in the fulness of years and well-earned honors.
The city of his home and his affections returned then its tribute of
grief, appreciation and deprivation. The city council passed resolu-
tions of sorrow, the bells of all churches tolled, and, amid somber
draperies on every side, a procession fully two miles in length fol-
lowed his mortal remains to their last resting place, in Lindenwood
cemetery. Thus ended the pure and noble life of one whose memory
must ever be cherished by the citizens of Fort Wayne, which owes so
much to him. In his religious faith Judge Hanna was in sympathy
with the Presbyterian church, in which he was a ruling elder at the
time of his death. In a fraternal way he was a member of the time-
honored order of Free and Accepted Masons.
On the 7th of March, 1822, at Fort Wayne, Judge Hanna mar-
86 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
ried Miss Eliza Taylor, who was born at Buffalo, New York, in 1803,
the daughter of Israel and Mary (Blar) Taylor, natives of Massa-
chusetts. She came to Fort Wayne in 1820, from Dayton, Ohio, on
a visit to her sister, Mrs. Suttenfield. She made the trip out in a
sleigh, but, the snow disappearing, she was compelled to delay her
return. About the same time, her father purchased the land east of
Fort Wayne now known as White's addition, where he built and oc-
cupied the house now known as the Golf Club house. Mrs. Hanna
was in many respects a remarkable woman, possessing nobility of
character, great personal courage, and the ability to handle the affairs
of home and society with ease. In her heart and home there was al-
ways *'room for one more." Though she already had the care and
responsibility of rearing her own eight sons, she also took into her
home Samuel Chute, the son of the first pastor of the First Presby-
terian church here, an act which the beneficiary has always remem-
bered with affection and gratitude. Mrs. Hanna's long life was spent
in well-doing and she was beloved by a large circle of relatives and
friends. Although delicate in appearance, she possessed a strong con-
stitution and was very active all her life. Her death occurred on
February 12, 1888, at Fort Wayne, in the house which she had oc-
cupied for so many years. It is worthy of note that Mrs. Hanna's
paternal grandfather Blar was an officer in the American army during
the war of the Revolution, and that at the time of his death he was
only a year short of one hundred years old.
Of the children of Judge and Mrs. Hanna we make the following
mention : Jesse Bayless, the eldest son, was a member of the firm of
S. Hanna & Sons, engaged in the general merchandise business at
the comer of Columbia and Barr streets. Fort Wayne, the old build-
ing being still in existence; Amos Thomas was also connected with
this firm ; Henry Qay was at one time in the grocer}^ business in Fort
Wayne and was also a partner in the firm of N. G. & H. G. Olds &
Company; Charles was a partner in the firm of French, Hanna &
Company, engaged in the manufacture of woolen goods; Samuel
Teford was associated with his father in the railroad business, being
the latter's private secretary while he was president of the Grand
Rapids & Indiana Railroad Company; Samuel D. was a public-spir-
ited man and at one tinje was an alderman in this city ; Horace Hovey
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 87
was the partner with J. H. Bass in the firm known as Bass & Hanna;
Wilham WilHs was a partner in the firm of French, Hanna & Com-
pany, woolen manufacturers; Hugh Taylor, the only surviving son,
is at present a resident of Fort Wayne ; the only daughter, Eliza, is
the wife of Fred J. Hayden, of Fort Wayne, whose sketch appears
elsewhere in this volume.
88 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JAMES L. WORDEN.
One of the conspicuous figures in the history of Indiana is the
distinguished jurist and lawyer to whom this memoir is dedicated.
He \^^as honored as a citizen and his career conferred credit and
dignity upon the commonwealth of whose supreme court he was
an associate justice, while his abilities significantly heightened the
fame of the bench and bar of the state. He held distinctive precedence
as an eminent lawyer, statesman and jurist and as a man of high
intellectual attainments, his reading and investigations having been
carried into almost every realm of thought which has engaged the
attention of the brightest minds of the world. A strong mentality,
an invincible courage and a most determined individuality so entered
into his make-up as to render him a natural leader of men and a
director of opinion. No name is more honored in the annals of Fort
Wayne than his, and it is essential to the consistency of this publi-
cation that a tribute to this strong and noble citizen be entered within
its pages.
James Lorenzo Worden was born in Sandisfield, Berkshire
county, Massachusetts, on the loth of May, 1819, being a son of
John and Jane Worden and a scion of sturdy New England stock,
the respective families having been founded in America in the early
rolonial era of our national history. When Judge Worden was
about eight years of age his father died, and a year or two later he
accompanied his widowed mother on her removol to Portage county,
Ohio, where he passed his youth on a farm and received such ad-
vantages as were afforded in the common schools of the locality and
period, while he early manifested a marked predilection for literary-
pursuits. At the age of nineteen years he began the study of law,
and in 1839, for the purpose of further prosecuting his technical
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 89
reading and discipline, he entered the office of Thomas T. Straight,
a representative member of the bar in Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1841
he was admitted to the bar of the supreme court of Ohio, at Lan-
caster, and for two or three years thereafter was engaged in the
practice of his profession in Tiffin, that state. In the spring of 1844
the future jurist removed to Columbia City, Whitley county, Indiana,
where he opened a law office, while he took an active part in the
presidential campaign of that year, working in the interests of the
Democratic party, to which he gave an unequivocal allegiance
throughout life. In the autumn of 1845 Judge Worden, who had
married in the meanwhile, removed to Albion, Noble county, where
he soon gained distinctive recognition in his profession, building up
a representative practice. In 1848, while still resident of Albion,
he made quite a reputation and made friends in Fort Wayne by the
brilliant manner in v/hich he conducted the prosecution of a man who
had been indicted for murder in Noble county, the case having been
transferred to Allen county on change of venue. In harmony with
the solicitations of these new friends he removed to Fort Wayne
in 1849, ^^^ here he continued to make his home until the close
of his long and useful life. In 1850 he was elected prosecuting
attorney for the twelfth judicial circuit, embracing the counties of
Allen, Adams, Wells, Huntington, Whitley, Noble, Steuben, La-
Grange and Dekalb, and he remained an incumbent of this office
three years. Two years after his election the state was redistricted
for judicial purposes, and Allen county became a part of the tenth
circuit, which also included the counties of Adams, Wells, Hunt-
ington, Wabash, Whitley, Noble, Dekalb, LaGrange, Steuben, Elk-
hart and Kosciusko. A year later the counties of Huntington and
Wabash were taken from the circuit. Of this tenth circuit Mr.
Worden was appointed judge in 1855, by Governor Joseph A.
Wright, to fill a vacancy. At a general election, in the autumn of
that year. Judge Worden was elected to the bench of the circuit for
a full term of six years, without opposition. Judge Worden was a
la-wyer and not a practical politician, and had no desire for an office
which would deflect him from the line of his profession. In 1857,
however, while he was still on the bench, his popularity was such
that, contrary to his known inclination, his party associates made
90 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
him their candidate for congress. The district being largely Repub-
lican, he met defeat with the remainder of the party ticket. In 1858
he resigned his position on the bench to accept the appointment, ten-
dered by GriDvemor Williard, as associate justice of the supreme court
of the state, to fill a vacancy caused by the resignation of Judge
Stuart, of Logansport, and he delivered his first opinion in the case
of Mills et al. versus the state of Indiana, ex rel., Barbour et al.
reported in 10 Indiana, 1 14, said opinion being delivered in open court
on the first day of the May term of that year. In 1859 he was
elected a judge of the supreme court for a full term of six years,
ending in January, 1865. In 1864 he was renominated for another
term, but suflfered, the defeat which attended the party ticket in
general.
In January, 1865, at the close of his service on the supreme bench,
Judge Worden returned to Fort Wayne and engaged in the general
practice of his profession. In the following May he was elected
mayor of the city, but after remaining incumbent of the office about
a year he resigned the same, in order to give his undivided attention
to his practice, which had become large and important. From that
time until January, 1871, he was associated in practice with Hon.
John Morris, who was his lifelong and most intimate and confidential
friend and of whom a memoir appears on other pages of this work.
In 1870 Judge Worden was again elected a judge of the supreme
court of the state, serving the full term of six years, at the expiration
of which, in 1876, he was renominated by his party. After the state
convention a person, whose name need not be mentioned here, being
disaippointed and dissatisfied with some appointments which had been
made by the supreme court, raised an unreasonable and unfounded
clamor about the expenses of that tribunal. Some of the judges who
had been renominated by the same convention concluded, unwisely
and unnecessarily, to decline the nomination and to leave the matter
to be adjusted by the Democrats of each of the supreme-court judicial
districts. Judge Worden was thus called upon, as are all men long
in public life, to meet the complaints and charges of the jealous,
envious and disappointed. The state was then, as now, divided into
five supreme-court judicial districts, corresponding with the number
of judges on the supreme bench. The constitution of the state re-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 91
quired, and still requires, that a judge of the supreme court shall
reside in each of those districts, although they are elected by the
people of the entire state. Judge Worden's district comprised the
counties of Allen, Whitley, Huntington, Wells, Adams, Grant, Black-
ford, Jay, Delaware, Randolph, Howard, Madison, Hancock, Henry,
Wayne, Fayette, Union and Franklin. In compliance with the order
of the Democratic state central committee, a convention was called
and assembled in that district and was attended by the most influential
and substantial men of the party. Judge Worden's private and
official life was not only approved and commended but it was also
unanimously resolved that he should stand as the candidate for the
position of supreme judge. That decision was approved by the
people, and he was re-elected by a handsome majority. By virtue of
this election Judge Worden entered upon his third term as judge of
the supreme court in January, 1877, so that his term would expire
in Januar}^ 1883. In 1882 his friends throughout the state insisted
that he should become a candidate for re-election, but he felt that
after having served on the supreme bench and performed the arduous
and exacting labors involved during a period of almost nineteen years,
he should not further prolong the service, and he declined re-
nomination. Upon this declination becoming known, his friends at
home determined to place him upon the bench of the superior court
of Allen county, and he was nominated and elected to that position
without opposition, at the general election in November, 1882. This
rendered it necessary for him to resign his position upon the supreme
bench, which he did soon after the election. He at once entered
upon the discharge of his duties as judge of the superior court, and
he remained in tenure of the office until his death, which occurred
at half past nine o'clock on the evening of the 2d day of June, 1884.
H'is death caused a wave of sorrow to sweep over the entire state
which he had honored and by which he had been honored. Upon the
4th of June a meeting of the Allen county bar was held, and ad-
dresses of highest commendation of the deceased were delivered by
Judge Morris, Hon. J. K. Edgerton and other representative members
of the local bar, while similar words of eulogy and sorrow came from
the judges of the supreme court, the governor of the state and other
distinguished men of Indiana. At the funeral those who had been
92 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Judg-e Worden's associates on the supreme bench, and also his suc-
cessor, and Judge Morris, his longtime associate in practice and
also associated with him as a commissioner of the supreme court, acted
as pall bearers. At the opening- of the November term of the supreme
court in 1884, a meeting of the bar was held and Judge Morris, in
behalf of that bar, presented an address upon the life, character and
work of Judge Worden, and the court ordered the same to be spread
upon its records and published in one of the reports of the decisions of
the court.
Judge Worden made no pretense to florid oratory, but in his
addresses to the court and jury he was logical, practical and con-
vincing. In the trial of causes his thorough knowledge of the law
and the rules of practice, his fine analytical powers and logical and
methodical manner of thought, enabled him readily to discern and
grasp the salient points and to handle them with consummate skill.
As a nisi prius judge he had but few if any equals in the state. Of
him it may truthfully be said that in no office to which he was called
did he fail to come up to the full measure of its requirements. Judge
Worden's work upon the supreme bench is what has most certainly
secured him an honorable and enduring place in the history of the
state. He went upon that bench when a young man, thirty-nine
years of age. His mind was clear, logical and discriminating, and
his sense of right and justice was broad and exact. He was not a
man of circumlocution, either in thought or word. There is clear-
ness, conciseness and directness of expression in his opinions, which
may well serve as models for judges and lawyers. He was by nature
a lawyer and judge, having the faculty, in an unusual degree, of
brushing aside all that might tend to becloud and confuse, and dis-
cerning readily the real question for decision, and determining what
the decision should be to conform to the rules of the law and work
substantial justice to the parties interested. His opinions not only
show his ability and his learning in the law but they give evidence
also of careful and laborious preparation. He had no toleration
for the weak and abused idea that the reputation of a judge upon
the bench of a court of final decision is to be established, or the value
of his labors measured, by the amount that he may write, and he was
governed by the one and only sensible idea that the reputation of
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 93
the judge upon such a bench will rest finally upon the character
and not the number of his written opinions. He acted in conformity
with the idea that care in the decision of causes and in the writing
of opinions lessens the business in the supreme court by lessening
litigation below, while haste and the consequent looseness in ex-
pression, in an attempt to multiply opinions, necessarily results in
misunderstanding on the part of the profession, in the multiplication
of suits below and the increase in the number of appeals. He knew,
as every lawyer of experience and observation knows, that suits are
very frequently instituted on no other foundation than a dictum
which has been found in some previous case and which ought not to
be there, standing only as the evidence of undue haste on the part
of the judge who wrote the opinion. Such cases invariably go to
the supreme court, and thus haste in such a court increases rather
than curtails its business.
Judge Worden wrote, perhaps, as few opinions in the same length
of time as any judge who has ever been on the supreme bench of
Indiana, but in the way of reputation he was in the front rank, if
not the first man in the rank. By the lawyers of the state and by
the courts, including the supreme court, his opinions are read and
cited with a feeling of security. There is assurance that he was not
only capable of deciding and stating the law correctly, but also that
he had bestowed the labor and taken the time necessary to enable him
to thus state it correctly. It is for this reason that his opinions are
the more frequently cited and relied upon, not only in Indiana but
elsewhere. By his work on the bench of the supreme court, as em-
bodied in his written opinions extending over so many years, Judge
Worden erected his own monument and wrote his own inscription.
He needs naught else.
While Judge Worden was a firm and conscientious advocate of
the principles and doctrines of the Democratic party, he was in no
sense an aggressive or active partisan. The result was that he
was singularly free from the assaults of party opponents, which,
almost invariably, every public man has to meet. Indeed, Judge
Worden always received a considerable support at the polls from those
of the opposing political party who knew him well. On one occasion
only was he assailed with anything like violence, and that assault
94 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
was absolutely unfounded, while he never took the trouble to defend
his position, deeming such action incompatible with the dignity of his
position on the supreme bench. At the present time, however, in
justice to his memory, it is well that the facts become known. In
1869 a law was passed which dispensed with the annual general
elections and provided that, commencing with the year 1870, a
general election should be held biennally on the second Tuesday in
October, and that at such elections all offices whose terms would
expire before the next general election thereafter should be filled. So
long as the elections were held in October the terms of county officers
began and ended in that month, subsequently to the general election,
and they were so commissioned. In April, 1880, some constitutional
amendments were submitted to the people of the state for adoption or
rejection by popular vote. One of these amendments provided for
a change of the date of the general elections from October to the
first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. Almost imme-
diately after the vote had been taken the question was made and
insisted upon that the amendments had not been adopted by the
requisite vote. The controversy soon assumed the form of a legal
contest in court and went upon appeal to the supreme court. It will
readily be seen that if that court should hold that the amendments
had been adopted, the next election, in the fall of 1880, would be in
November instead of October, and that the four years' terms of
many county officers would expire in October before the November
election in 1882. In that event, in order to comply with the law of
1869, above mentioned, it would be necessary to elect successors to
such officers in 1880.
Acting upon the assumption that the amendments had been
adopted, there were in Allen county, where Judge Worden lived, a
number of candidates for nomination for the four-year county offices
by the Democratic convention, soon to assemble. If the amendments
were not adopted there would be no expiration of terms in such
offices before the election of 1882 and hence no vacancies to be filled
by election in 1880. By reason of the position of the candidates
above mentioned, Judge Worden's friends in Allen county thought
it would be best to know, if possible, before the assembling of the
county convention whether or not the amendments had been adopted.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 95
The convention was called to meet on Saturday of the week in
which the case was argued in the supreme court. If the amendments
should be held to have been adopted it would be necessary to nominate
candidates for the four-year offices, otherwise not. While the argu-
ment was in progress a prominent citizen of Fort Wayne was in
Indianapolis, and in a conversation with Judge Worden, in the
presence of a close friend of each, spoke of the condition of things
in Allen county. Then, without an intimation as to whether he
wished a decision one way or the other, or that he held the matter
as one of any consequence whatever, he requested that if a decision
should be reached before the coming Saturday the judge should tele-
graph him at home the result. The case was decided before the
coming Saturday and it was held, Judge Biddle writing the opinion,
that the amendments had not been adopted by the requisite vote.
After the opinion had been read and approved by the court and had
thus become open for inspecton by all, Judge Worden met the friend
who had been present at the conversation with the Fort Wayne gentle-
man and said to him that the decision was that the amendments had
not been adopted, and requested him to telegraph the fact to the boys
at Fort Wayne. That conversation was overheard by a newspaper
reporter and he has contended that the judge requested the friend
to "telegraph it to the boys," not mentioning Fort Wayne. Whether
he may have been wrong or not in that contention is a matter of no
consequence and can not affect the real truth in the matter, because
Judge Worden had and could have no thought except to have the
fact communicated to his friends at home, in compliance with the
request before mentioned, which friends he called "boys." He was a
man of too much dignity and too high a sense of propriety to speak
of any save his intimate friends at home as "the boys." But for
the peculiar condition of affairs in Indiana at the time doubtless no
notice would have been taken of Judge Worden' s innocent remark.
Indiana was just entering upon one of its most exciting political
campaigns. Up to that time the general elections had been held in
October. The state was one of the few known in the political world
as an October state, and having been regarded as a close and pivotal
state the presidential campaigns here had always been exciting and
closely contested, calling to the field a large number of the best
96 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
speakers of both parties. A president of the United States was to
be elected in 1880. The friends of Governor Hendricks in Indiana
were making a vigorous effort for his nomination by the Demo-
cratic national convention. The convention was about to assemble
in Cincinnati, and many of the delegates were already there when
the aforementioned decision of the Indiana supreme court was ren-
dered. Although the opinion in the case was written by Judge
Biddle, who had not been elected as a Democrat and never had been
a Democrat, yet owing to the fact that the majority of the members
of the court had been elected as Democrats, for the purpose of turn-
ing every possible thing to political advantage in the close and fierce
contest that was just opening. Judge Worden's innocent statement
was tortured and twisted from its true and only reasonable meaning,
with the contention that his purpose was to have the news of the
decision telegraphed to the delegates in Cincinnati, and that there-
fore the decision had been rendered for the purpose of assisting in
the nomination of Governor Hendricks for the presidency.
The real facts in the case, as above stated, fully meet and over-
throw such an unreasonable contention and such an unjust and un-
reasonable torture of Judge Worden's statement, as above recited.
In refutation of these malign charges nothing farther could be de-
manded than a reference to Judge Worden's high character, dignity
and sense of propriety; his well known and uniform personal, official
and judicial integrity ; and to the estimate placed upon him by all who
knew him well. In determining a man's character there is no criterion
so reliable as the judgment passed upon him by the people among
whom he has lived for a lifetime and who have thus had the oppor-
tunity of knowing him well in all relations of life. Judge Worden
was a resident of Indiana a few months more than forty years. As
prosecuting attorney, judge of the circuit court, mayor, judge of the
supreme court and judge of the superior court of Allen county, he
was in public service for more than twenty-seven years of that time.
His life was thus, in a large measure, an open book, inviting the
closest scrutiny and challenging it. When not in the public service
he was in the practice of law at home and in a large number of sur-
rounding counties, and he was thus still, in a sense, in public life. At
no time did the people who knew him best have more confidence in
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 97
his integrity and lofty character than in the later years of his life.
The final manifestation of enlightened popular confidence shown in
his election to the bench of the superior court of Allen county after
his long service on the supreme bench, is of itself more than suf-
ficient to meet and overthrow the unreasonable and unjust imputation
above mentioned.
It is a matter in which his widow, children and friends have a
just pride that after having spent the greater part of his active career
in the public service he went to his grave respected and honored by
the people who knew him and by the bar and courts of the state, —
an honest and honorable man, an honest and faithful public servant.
So long as Indiana shall be a commonwealth, so long as its people
shall have laws and courts, his name will be known and honored.
How much good he accomplished for the people of the state may never
be fully appreciated by the people in general, but it will be, in a
measure at least, by the profession and by the more observing citizens
in other walks of life.
In the spring of 1845 Judge Worden was united in marriage to
Miss Anna Grable, daughter of Benjamin Grable, at that time county
treasurer of Whitley county and one of the honored and influential
citizens of that section of the state. Mrs. Worden proved a devoted
wife and coadjutrix to her honored husband, sharing in his ambitions
and honors and making the home one worthy the name. She survives
him and still maintains her residence in Fort Wayne, where her
circle of friends is circumscribed only by that of her acquaintances.
Three sons survive their distinguished father, James Willis Worden,
Charles H. Worden and Harry Lawrence Worden.
Charles H. Worden is well upholding the professional prestige
of the honored name which he bears. He was born in Fort Wayne,
on the 14th of September, 1859, and after completing the curriculum
of the public schools of his native city he was for two years a
student in the University of Michigan, at Ann Arbor. He was
admitted to the bar of the courts in Allen county in 1882 and later
to practice in the federal courts in the state. From 1886 until 1894
he was associated in practice with John Morris, Jr., son of his
father's old-time partner and friend, Judge John Morris, above
mentioned, the firm name being Worden & Morris. In 1895 Mr.
7
98 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Worden formed a partnership with Hon. Allen Zollars, under the
name of Zollars & Worden, and this professional alliance continued
until 1902, in June of which year Mr. Worden was elected vice-
president and managing officer of the First National Bank of Fort
Wayne, of which dual office he is incumbent at the time of this
writing. He is a Democrat in politics and is known as an able
lawyer and public-spirited and progressive citizen. On the loth of
June, 1884, Charles H. Worden was united in marriage to Miss Eliza-
beth M. Hoffman, of Fort Wayne, and they have three children,
Alice, Marshall Wines and Charles James.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 99
FREDERICK B. SHOAFF.
Of admirable professional attainments and recognized as one of
the representative young members of the bar of Allen county, Mr.
Shoaff further merits consideration in this work by reason of the
fact that be is a native of the county and a scion of stanch pioneer
stock both in the paternal and maternal lines. On other pages of
this work will be found due record concerning the respective families,
whose names are honored and prominent ones in this section of the
state.
Frederick B. Shoaff was born in the city of Fort Wayne, on the
7th of October, 1877, and is a son of John A. and Susan R. (Barnett)
Shoaff. His fundamental educational training was secured in the
public schools of his native city, in whose high school he was gradu-
ated as a member of the class of 1895. During the succeeding three
years he was a student in old Williams College, at Williamstown,
Massachusetts. He was then matriculated in the University of
Michigan, at Ann Arbor, where he completed the literary course
and was graduated as a member of the class of 1900, receiving the
degree of Bachelor of Philosophy. Shortly after his graduatit)n Mr.
Shoaff was favored in being able to make a trip abroad and to avail
himself of the privileges afforded in the historic old University of
Heidelberg, Germany, where he completed a course in Roman law,
remaining a student in this institution during the year 1901. He
then returned to America and entered the law department of Co-
lumbia College, in the city of New York, where he completed the
prescribed technical course and was graduated as a member of the
class of 1903, with the degree of Bachelor of Laws. Shortly after
his graduation Mr. Shoaff went to St. Louis, Missouri, where he
secured admission to the bar and where he was engaged in the prac-
tice of his profession until June, 1904, when he returned to Fort
loo THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Wayne, where he is now engaged in the work of his profession. His
technical equipment is exceptionally complete and he is thoroughly
en rapport with his profession, in which his advancement is certain
to continue along the higher lines, while he is distinctively popular in
the business, professional and social circles of his native city of Fort
Wayne. In politics Mr. Shoaff is a stanch advocate of the principles
and policies of the Democratic party, and he is a member
of the Presbyterian church, while his wife attends the Episcopalian
church.
On the 2 1 St of June, 1904, was solemnized the marriage of Mr.
Shoaff to Miss Alice J. Dryer, who was born and reared in Fort
Wayne, being a daughter of Dr. Charles R. and Alice P. (Peacock)
Dryer, who removed from this city to Terre Haute, this state, about
eight years ago.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. . , loi
ROBERT W. T. DeWALD.
As one of the representative business men of Fort Wayne and as
the president of the George DeWald Company, one of the largest
wholesale dry-goods houses in the state, Mr. DeWald merits con-
sideration in this publication, while farther interest attaches to his
career from the fact that he is a native of Fort Wayne and a son
of the late George DeWald, one of the most distinguished and hon-
ored of the pioneer merchants and citizens of the "Summit City." As
a memoir to George DeWald is incorporated on other pages of this
work, together with data concerning the business at whose head he
stood until the time of his death, it is unnecessary to re-enter the data
in the present connection.
Robert W. T. DeWald was bom in the old family homestead,
which stood on the site of the present magnificent federal building
in Fort Wayne, on the 7th of March, 1862. His early educational
training was secured in the parochial and public schools of his
native city and supplemented by a course in the Catholic cathedral
school. At the age of sixteen years he gave inception to his business
career by entering the dry-goods store of his father in the capacity
of salesman. He learned the business thoroughly in all its details and
has manifested the same pragmatic ability and discrimination which
so characterized his father. In January, 1900, he, with his brother
George L. and William P. Beak, was instrumental in the organization
and incorporation of the George DeWald Company, of which he
has since been president, while he has directed the executive afifairs
of this extensive wholesale house with marked ability, expanding its
trade and functions and making it one of the leading commercial in-
dustries of the city. Mr. DeWald is also vice-president of the
People's Trust Company, of Fort Wayne, and is a member of the
I02 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
directorate of the German-American National Bank, while he is
interested in a capitalistic and executive way in other important en-
terprises in his native city. In politics he accords allegiance to the
Democratic party, but he has never been active in political affairs.
Both he and his wife are communicants of the Catholic church, in
whose faith they were reared.
On the 25th of January, 1889, Mr. DeWald was united in mar-
riage to Miss Mary P. Henebery, daughter of Matthew and Mary
Henebery, of Peoria, Illinois, where her father was a prominent
banker, capitalist and influential citizen at the time of his death, No-
vember 4, 1903.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 103
CHARLES G. PFEIFFER.
We are pleased to incorporate in this work a resume of the career
of this venerable and honored pioneer of Allen county, where he has
passed the major portion of his life, which has been principally de-
voted to agricultural pursuits. He is the owner of a valuable landed
estate in Washington township, and is now living practically retired,
after years of earnest and indefatigable effort, through which he has
attained to marked prosperity.
Mr. Pfeiffer is a native of Wittenberg, Germany, where he was
bom on the ist of May, 1827, being a son of Christopher and Kath-
erirte (Hertsler) Pfeiffer, who emigrated from the fatherland to
America when our subject was a child of about five years. They first
located in Buffalo, New York, and in that state the father was identi-
fied with farming until early in the '40s, when they came to Allen
county, Indiana, and located in Washington township, near the city
of Fort Wayne, where they passed the remainder of their lives, hon-
ored by all who knew them, while the father became the owner of
a good farm of eighty acres. His death occurred in 1850, and his
wife also passed away, both having been consistent members of the
German Lutheran church. They became the parents of seven chil-
dren, all of whom are deceased except the subject and his brother,
Christian F., the latter being a resident of Buffalo, New York. The
names of the children are here entered in the order of their birth:
Rosina, Catherine, Regina, Barbara, John C, Christian F. and
Charles G.
Charles G. Pfeiffer, the immediate subject of this sketch, was
reared to the discipline of the farm, passing his youth in Buffalo, New
York, and being about thirteen years of age at the time of the family
removal to Indiana. That he has succeeded in his chosen field of
I04 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
endeavor is best indicated in the fact that he is the owner of a fine
landed estate of three hundred and eighty acres in Washington town-
ship, the property having the best of improvements and all being under
effective cultivation except about ninety acres, which are devoted to
pasturage. This farm has been devoted to general agriculture and
stock raising, and is one of the valuable places of the county, thrift
and good management being evidenced on every hand. Mr. Pfeiffer
retired from active labor several years ago, and now rents his farm,
the greater portion being in charge of his son Ivory. In 1900 our
subject removed to the city of Fort Wayne, where he has a pleasant
home and where he is enjoying a well earned rest and the rewards
of his former years of earnest toil and endeavor. He has gained a
competency through hard work and good management, having been
dependent upon his own resources from his early youth, while his
entire life has been characterized by inflexible integrity and honor in
all its relations, so that he has ever held the unqualified confidence and
esteem of his fellow men. He personally eff'ected the clearing of
more than three hundred acres of land, and the vicissitudes and hard-
siiips of the pioneer era represent more than mere names to him, since
he had close personal experience in the connection. His educational
advantages as a youth were limited to a very irregular attendance in
the primitive log school houses of the pioneer days, but through ex-
perience and active association with men and affairs he has gained a
large fund of practical knowledge and has been an able business man.
In politics he has supported the Republican party from practically the
time of its organization, and while he has never aspired to office he
has been called upon to serve in various township offices. He and his
worthy wife are valued members of the Lutheran church, and have
exemplified faith in the daily walk of life.
In the year 1850 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Pfeiffer to
Miss Abigail Williams, who was bom in Wayne county, Ohio, being
a daughter of John and Perthina ( Sutton) Williams, who came from
Pennsylvania to Allen county, Indiana, in 1837, being numbered
among the early settlers of this section. The father was a shoemaker
by trade, but after coming to Indiana he gave his attention principally
to farming, taking up wild land and reclaiming the same to cultiva-
tion, while he also assisted in the cutting through of the early roads.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 105
Indians were still much in evidence, and Mr. Williams gained their
good will and esteem, while, as a shoemaker, he frequently mended
their moccasins. The family endured many privations in the pioneer
days, and for several days at a time their only food would be parched
corn. In the family were ten children, of whom only two are living,
Charles, who is a resident of Fort Wayne, and Abigail, who is the
wife of the subject of this sketch.
Mr. and Mrs. Pfeiffer have seven children, namely : George, who
married Miss Altha Cartright, and who is a prosperous farmer of
Allen county; Albert, who married Miss Regina Fitzsimmons, and
who likewise is a representative farmer of this county; William, who
remains at the parental home; Clara A., who is likewise beneath the
home roof; Frank, who married Miss Edith Monn, and is engaged
in farming in his native county ; Ivory, who is engaged in farming on
the old homestead, and Arthur, who resides at the parental home,
being a carpenter by vocation.
io6 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
CHARLES E. BARNETT, M. D.
One of the able, successful and representative members of the
medical profession in the city of Fort Wayne is Dr. Barnett, who is
here engaged in general practice as a physician and surgeon. He
was bom in Wapakoneta, Ohio, on the 30th of September, 1866, being
a son of Rev. William C. and Frances M. (Sullivan) Barnett, the
former of whom was bom in Pennsylvania and the latter in Virginia.
The father of the subject was a clergyman of the Lutheran church,
and continued in active service until the time of his death, which oc-
curred in Tennessee, in 1898, while his devoted wife was summoned
into etemal rest in 1880. Of their six children three are living.
When the subject was a child of two years his parents removed
from Butler, Indiana, to Boone county, Kentucky, in whose common
schools Charles E. received his early educational training, while he
was later graduated in the high school at Antwerp, Ohio, after which
he was matriculated in Edgewood College, at Edgewood, Tennessee,
in which institution he completed the scientific course, and was gradu-
ated as a member of the class of 1888. Shortly afterward he entered
the Fort Wayne College of Medicine, from which he received his
well-earned degree of Doctor of Medicine in 1890. In 1893. to fur-
ther fortify himself for the responsibilities of his chosen profession,
he took a post-graduate course in the Chicago Polyclinic, while two
years later he did most effective post-graduate work in bacteriology,
in the medical department of Suwanee University, of the South. The
Doctor has devoted his attention largely to surgery during the years
of his active practice, and has been most successful in this important
department of professional work, in which he is looked upon as an
authority, both in theoretical and operative lines. Since 1896 he has
been a member of the faculty of his alma mater, the Fort Wayne Col-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 107
lege of Medicine, in which he holds at the present time the chair of
surgical anatomy and genito-urinary surgeiy.
Dr. Barnett initiated the practice of his profession by locating in
Archer, Nebraska, where he built up an excellent professional busi-
ness, and continued to make his home until 1896, in which year he
came to Fort Wayne, where he has since been actively engaged in
practice, and where he holds high prestige as a physician and surgeon
and as a loyal and public-spirited citizen. The Doctor is a member of
the Fort Wayne Medical Society, the Indiana State Medical Society,
the Mississippi Valley Medical Society and the American Medical
Association, while he has served as president and also as secretary of
the Alumni Association of the Fort Wayne College of Medicine. In
1898 Dr. Barnett was assistant surgeon, with the rank of captain,
of the One Hundred and Fifty-seventh Regiment of Indiana Volun-
teer Infantry, with which he was in active service during the Span-
ish-American war. In politics he is a stalwart adherent of the Demo-
cratic party, and in the Masonic fraternity he has advanced through
the chivalric grades, being affiliated with Fort Wayne Commandery,
No. 4, Knights Templar. He is distinctively popular in profes-
sional, business and social circles, and is one of Fort Wayne's repre-
sentative physicians and surgeons. It is the Doctor's intention to
leave in the fall of the present year (1905) for Vienna and BerHn,
where he will take post-graduate courses along the lines of his pro-
fession.
io8 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
MARTIN F. SCHICK, M. D.
In the present connection we accord representation to one of the
distinguished members of the medical profession in the city of Fort
Wayne, and one who is a member of one of the most honored famihes
of the "Summit City," where his father has been for nearly a half cen-
tury a member of- the faculty of Concordia College, one of the old
and noble educational institutions maintained under the auspices of
the German Lutheran church.
Martin Frederick Schick was born in the city of Chicago, Illinois,
on the 25th of Ma)^ 1861, and is a son of Professor George and Wil-
helmina (Zimmerman) Schick, who are still residents of Fort Wayne,
to which city they removed in 1861, at which time Concordia College
was established here, having been removed from Missouri, where it
was founded in 1839. In the college Professor Schick now holds
the chair of Latin and Greek, while he is one of Fort Wayne's best
known and most highly honored citizens, and one who has wielded
much influence in the educational world. Dr. Schick was but a few
months of age at the time of his parents' removal to Fort Wayne, and
in this city his boyhood and youth were passed. His early educational
discipline was secured in St. Paul's German Lutheran school,
and when twelve years of age he was matriculated in Con-
cordia College, in which he completed the course and was
graduated as a member of the class of 1879, receiving
the degree of Master of Arts. In the year 1880 he
entered the medical department of the University of the City of New
York, in which he was graduated on the 7th of March, 1882, with the
degree of Doctor of Medicine, while in the same year he took a post-
graduate course in Bellevue Hospital, while he served during the same
year as surgeon to the Bushwick Hospital, in the city of Brooklyn.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 109
He was thereafter engaged in the practice of his profession in New
York city until December, 1883, when he located in Saginaw, Michi-
gan, where he built up a large and representative practice, and where
he continued to reside until 1896. He then made a trip abroad for the
purpose of availing himself of the advantages of the great hospitals
and medical colleges of the old world. He was absent about eighteen
months, and within this period took special post-graduate work in the
medical department of the Frederich Wilhelm University, in the city
of Berlin, as well as in leading institutions in Munich and London.
He returned to the United States in the spring of 1898, and on the
loth of April located in Fort Wayne, where he has since been estab-
lished in the practice of his profession, and where his precedence is
such as his fine professional attainments justify.
On the 1 6th of April, 1884, was solemnized the marriage of Dr.
Schick to Miss Anna C. Bruns, of Fort Wayne, and they have three
children, Myrtle, Charlotte and Hildegard.
no THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
CARL YAPLE.
As one of the representative young members of the bar of Allen
county, Mr. Yaple is consistently accorded recognition in this work.
He is successfully engaged in the practice of his profession in the city
of Fort Wayne, where he is junior member of the well-known firm of
Heaton & Yaple.
Mr. Yaple was born in the beautiful little city of Coldwater,
Branch county, Michigan, on the i ith of March, 1877, and is a son of
Hon. George L. Yaple, who is at the present time presiding on the
circuit bench of the fifteenth judicial circuit of Michigan, and who is
one of the prominent and distinguished members of the bar of the
Wolverine state. He is a representative of one of the old and hon-
ored families of Michigan, and was born and reared in Mendon, St.
Joseph county, that state, where he now maintains his home. He is a
man of high scholastic attainments and professional ability, and has
been a prominent figure in the political and public affairs of his native
state, which has honored him with various offices of distinctive trust,
aside from that of which he is in tenure. He early attained a high
reputation for effective oratory, and has long been a valued exponent
of the principles and policies of the Democratic party. He served
two terms as a member of congress, and was at one time honored by
his party with the nomination for governor of his state, his defeat
being compassed by normal political conditions, as Michigan has long
turned up a large Republican majority, save in a few isolated
instances. As a young man. Judge Yaple was united in marriage to
Miss Mary Hankinson, who was bom in Rockford, Illinois, and of
the children of this union we enter brief record, as follows : Edward
Lewis is engaged in the practice of the law in the city of Kalamazoo,
Michigan; Frederick H., who is attaining noteworthy prestige as a
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. iii
poet and author, resides in Mendon, Michigan; Carl is the immediate
subject of this sketch; Harry is a practicing dentist; Marie died at
the age of sixteen years ; George L., Jr., is a student in the Chicago
University, and AHce is a student in the Presbyterian seminary in
Kalamazoo, Michigan.
Carl Yaple, the immediate subject of this review, secured his early
educational training in the public schools of his native state, and there-
after made good use of the excellent advantages afforded him in the
attaining of a liberal education in an academic sense, before taking
up his professional studies. He prosecuted his study in Kalamazoo
College for a time; was later a student in Albion College, Michigan,
and thereafter attended the celebrated University of Michigan, in Ann
Arbor, while in 1899 he was matriculated in the law department of the
University of Indiana, at Bloomington; he also secured admission
to the bar of the Hoosier state. In June, 1900, Mr. Yaple located
in the city of Fort Wayne and began his practical novitiate in the pro-
fession for which he had so carefully prepared himself, and here he
entered into a partnership with Benjamin F. Heaton, in 1902, an
association which has since obtained, and which has proved one of
mutual helpfulness and one of utmost harmony. The firm has built
up a representative practice, giving special attention to corporation,
real estate and commercial practice, and the clientage retained is of
an important order, insuring a cumulative prestige to the firm. The
offices of Heaton & Yaple are located in the Citizens' Trust Company
building, corner of Berry and Clinton streets, and are attractive in
their appointments, including a fine law library. Mr. Yaple is a close
student of his profession, and considers it worthy of his undivided
time and attention, so that he subordinates all other interests to the
same, though he finds opportunity for the carrying forward of other
intellectual application and for the enjoyment of the higher social
privileges, while he is known as an ardent advocate of the principles of
the Democratic party, in whose cause he has been an active and valued
worker, being one of the leaders among the younger party adherents
in Fort Wayne.
On the 2d of August, 1899, in the city of Fort Wayne, was solem-
nized the marriage of Mr. Yaple to Miss Fannie L. Russell, who was
born and reared in Coldwater, Michigan, being a daughter of the late
Benton R. Russell, who was a prominent contractor of that place.
THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JOHN H. BASS.
What of the man and what of his work? This is the dual query
which represents the interrogation at least nominally entertained
whenever that discriminating factor, the public, would pronoimce
on the true worth of the individual. The career of John H. Bass
indicates the clear-cut, sane and distinct character, and in reviewing
the same from an unbiased and unprejudiced standpoint, interpreta-
tion follows fact in a straight line of derivation. In this publication
it is consistent that such a review be entered, and that without the
adulation which is so intrinsically repugnant to the man as he stands
among his fellows. The city of Fort Wayne naturally takes pride
in the work performed by Mr. Bass, who has stamped the mark of
definite accomplishment on the highest plane of industrial activity,
and consistency demands that he be given due relative precedence in
a work which has to do with those who have lived and labored to
good purpose within the confines of Allen county, and thence per-
meated the great industrial and civic life of the nation, in which he
stands well to the forefront as one of our honored "captains of in-
dustry." In the present connection the writer feels justified in draw-
ing largely upon a sketch previously written by him as an apprecia-
tive estimate of the life and labors of Mr. Bass, and in view of such
former authorship takes the liberty of eliminating the customary
marks of quotation.
A native of Salem, Livingston county, Kentucky, John H. Bass
was born on the 9th of November, 1835, and is descended from hon-
ored pioneer ancestry identified with the history of the Virginias and
the Carolinas from the early colonial era of our national annals. His
grandfather in the agnatic line was Jordan Bass, who was bom in
the Old Dominion state, in 1764, and who removed to Christian
'^A//,^r^ &^ra
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 113
county, Kentucky, in 1805, becoming one of the sterling pioneers of
that section, where he passed the remainder of his Hfe, having been
eighty-nine years of age at the time of his death, which occurred in
1853. Sion Bass, the father of the subject of this review, was born
in North CaroHna, on the 7th of November, 1802, and was thus a
child of but three years at the time of his parents' removal to Ken-
tucky, where he was reared to manhood under the environments of the
pioneer epoch. He became prominently identified with the business
and civic interests of Livingston county, Kentucky, where he carried
on both mercantile and agricultural pursuits, and became the possessor
of much valuable property, while his intrinsic worth as a citizen was
recognized in a most unequivocal way. He married Miss Jane Dodd,
who was bom in Charleston, South Carolina, on the 19th of June,
1802, being a daughter of John Dodd, who likewise became an early
settler in Kentucky. In 1866 Sion Bass removed to Fort Wayne,
and here his cherished and devoted wife died on the 26th of August,
1874, while he survived her by more than a decade, having been sum-
moned to the eternal life on the 7th of August, 1888. They became
the parents of six children, of whom four attained maturity, while
of the number one son and one daughter are living at the time of the
present writing. The parents were zealous members of the Presby-
terian church.
It will not be malapropos in this connection to offer a brief tribute
to the memory of the eldest son, Sion S. Bass, who was born in Janu-
ary, 1827, and who was the first representative of the family in In-
diana, having taken up his residence in Fort Wayne in 1848, and
having been one of the prominent business men of the place in the
pioneer days of its industrial development. He became a member
of the firm of Jones, Bass & Company, which was succeeded by the
Fort Wayne Machine Works, and was identified with the* same until
his death. When the cloud of civil war cast its pall over the national
firmament, Sion S. Bass cast his business interests and cares aside and
responded to the first call for volunteers to aid in the suppression of
the rebellion. He assisted in the organization of the famous Thir-
tieth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, in 1861, and he was made colonel
of the command, with which he proceeded to the front, the regiment
taking active part in the maneuvers leading up to and culminating in
8
114 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
the battle of Shiloh. Reaching that field early on the second day o^
the battle, the Thirtieth Indiana had but little time to rest before
the order to advance was given. The command valiantly obeyed this
order, though a veritable torrent of lead and iron poured over and
through its columns. The sacrifice of men seemed necessary, and it
was made. The Thirtieth Indiana moved sternly forward, led by its
gallant colonel, but it was a dash to death, and the brave soldier and
patriot who led the regiment fell, mortally wounded, and thus the
honored pioneer of the Bass family in Indiana died among his fallen
comrades.
John H, Bass passed the days of boyhood and youth in the state
of his nativity, and there acquired a good academic and commercial
education. In 1852, at the age of seventeen years, he came to Fort
Wayne and joined his eldest brother, of whom mention has just been
made. He entered the employ of Jones, Bass & Company, for which
he served as bookkeeper from 1854 until 1857, when the firm dis-
solved partnership. He had applied himself diligently to the work in
hand and to the mastering of the details of the business, and in 1859
he initiated his independent business career by forming a partnership
with Edward L. Force, under the firm name of Bass & Force. They
established the Fort Wayne Machine Works, and the output of the
concern for the succeeding year reached an aggregate valuation of
twenty thousand dollars. The indirect value of this industry to the
little community at that time was incalculable, for out of it grew those
influences which have built up a great manufacturing city in northern
Indiana. From i860 until 1863 the business was owned and con-
ducted by Judge Samuel Hanna and Mr. Bass, and in the latter year
Judge Hanna transferred his interest to Horace H. Hanna, who re-
mained a member of the firm until his death, in 1869, when Mr. Bass
purchased the stock and became the sole owner and manager of this
establishment, which, under his able supervision, has had a marvelous
growth and has furnished employment to thousands of men, while
through its influence much has been done to promote the upbuilding
of the city of Fort Wayne. Indeed, the great enterprise may consist-
ently be referred to as being the nucleus of the great industrial city
of the present day, drawing to it various classes of workmen to be-
come good citizens, devoted to the welfare of their adopted home.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA, 115
After establishing this enterprise on a solid basis, financially and in-
dustrially, Mr. Bass felt justified in turning his attention to other
lines of enterprise which invited his marked initiative and adminis-
trative talents. In 1869 he extended his operations by founding the
St. Louis Car Wheel Company, of St. Louis, Missouri, in which he
has since owned a controlling interest and served as president. Dur-
ing the financial panic of 1873, when men of more conservative meth-
ods were deterred from making new ventures, Mr. Bass boldly
launched out in another enterprise, establishing an extensive foun-
dry in the city of Chicago. He is never unduly daring in business,
but seems to possess wonderful foresight and sagacity, as well as
sound judgment and discrimination, and he thus had the prescience to
discern in a degree what the future had in store for Chicago, believing
it a desirable field for investment. Time has shown conclusively that
he did not mistake in his estimate, and the extensive foundries both
in St. Louis and Chicago, where are manufactured car wheels and
general railroad supplies, now represent most profitable investments,
and have netted their founder a handsome fortune. Since 1880 Mr.
Bass has owned a plant for the manufacture of pig iron, the same
being located in northeastern Alabama, whence the output is shipped to
his establishments in Fort Wayne, Chicago and St. Louis, as well as
to the large foundry in the ownership of which he is associated at
Lenoir, Tennessee. Several states of the Union have thus been ma-
terially benefited by the efforts of this one man.
Aside from his manufacturing interests, Mr. Bass has been prom-
inently connected with various other lines of business which have
greatly enhanced the welfare of Fort Wayne. In association with
Stephen Bond, he was largely instrumental in building the street
railway system of Fort Wayne, and in the same, with its now modem
equipment and wide ramifications, these gentlemen for some time
owned a controlling interest, though Mr. Bass is not now identified
with it. For many years Mr. Bass has been one of the principal
stockholders of the First National Bank of Fort Wayne, of which
he has been president, while he has also been a member of the direc-
torate of the Old National Bank for a number of years past. Brook-
side farm, comprising three hundred acres of fine land, adjoining the
city of Fort Wayne, has attained to a national reputation, and repre-
ii6 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
sents another field which has benefited by the almost limitless enter-
prise of our subject, the place being devoted principally to the breeding
of Clydesdale horses and Galloway cattle, for the maintenance of which
large direct importations have been made by Mr. Bass, while upon
this farm is to be found some of the finest live stock in the world.
From the place a fine exhibit was made at the Columbian exposition
in Chicago, in 1893, and a still more noteworthy one in the recent
Louisiana Purchase exposition, in St. Louis, in 1904, while many
first prizes were secured in each instance. Mr. Bass owns fully fif-
teen thousand acres of land elsewhere in Allen county and in other
sections of this and adjoining states, while in Alabama he owns not
less than eighteen thousand acres of valuable mineral land. His capi-
talistic interests are most varied and important, being too numerous
to be consistently noted in detail in this connection, as his financial
valuation is variously estimated between five and six millions of " '
dollars.
In his political proclivities Mr. Bass has ever been a stalwart
Democrat, and he has been specially active in advocating a reform in
the tariff policy of the nation. In 1888 he was a delegate-at-large
to the Democratic national convention, and was nominated as presi-
dential elector on the party ticket the same year. While a man of
broad and intimate knowledge concerning matters of public polity,
and while taking deep interest in public affairs, his extensive business
interests have naturally compelled him to hold political matters in a
subordinate position, though he never neglects the duties devolving
upon him as a citizen. He is identified with various bodies of the
Masonic fraternity, in which he has attained to the thirty-third and
supreme degree of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite. His re-
ligious affiliation is with the Presbyterian church.
In the midst of the thronging cares of an exceptionally active and
successful career in the industrial and business world, Mr. Bass has
never been else than the genial, true-hearted friend and sincere and
straightforward man, appreciative of the good in his fellowmen, no
matter of what station in life, and ever placing true valuations in all
the relations of life. He has had much to do with men in an executive
capacity, and has had a most subtle and yet readily understood power
of begetting loyalty on the part of those in his employ or working
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 117
under his direction. In this connection it is significant that none of
his great industrial enterprises have been menaced or impeded by-
strikes or other labor dissensions — a fact that shows his trust in his
men and theirs in him. His friends are in number equal to his ac-
quaintances, and yet this does not imply a weak or vacillating nature,
for he is stern in his ideas of justice and right and never compro-
mises with conscience for the sake of personal interests. No man in
Fort Wa5nie is held in higher regard as a business man and citizen,
and none has done more for the welfare of the city. His home rela-
tions are ideal in character, and in his beautiful home are centered
his affections, hopes and ambitions. In the year 1865 was solem-
nized his marriage to Miss Laura H. Lightfoot, who was born and
-reared in Falmouth, Kentucky, being a daughter of the late and dis-
tinguished Judge George C. Lightfoot, of that place. They have had
two children — Laura Grace, the wife of G. M. Leslie, M. D., of Fort
Wayne, and John H., who died August 7. 1891.
ii8 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
WILLIAM H. HOFFMAN.
For more than thirty-five years was this sterling citizen promi-
nently identified with the business interests of Fort Wayne, where he
made for himself a place of honor in social and commercial circles,
his life being one of signal positiveness and integrity and thus wield-
ing an influence for good in all the relations of life. It is most con-
sistent that in this work be incorporated a tribute to his memory as a
representative citizen and business man.
Mr. Hoffman came of stanch Dutch ancestry and was a native
of the old Empire state of the Union, having been born in Orange
county. New York, on the 17th of February, 1840, and having been
a son of Nathaniel Hoffman. When he was a lad of ten years, his
parents removed to Rockville, Maryland, and there he completed his
academic education, while he also had the further discipline of learn-
ing the printer's trade in a local establishment, the advantages thus
afforded being practically equivalent to a further educational training
of liberal sort. After leaving Maryland he found employment in the
newspaper offices of Washington, D. C, where he was thus engaged
during the progress of the war of the Rebellion. After the close of
the great struggle which determined the integrity of the Union, he
came to Indiana and located in Kosciusko county, where he engaged
in the lumber business, in partnership with his brothers, Jacob R. and
Andrew E. Hoffman. In 1868 they removed to Fort Wayne and es-
tablished themselves in the same important line of enterprise, build-
ing up a business of very great proportions and for many years hold-
ing precedence as one of the principal concerns of the sort in this
country. The enterprise was conducted under the title of Hoffman
Brothers until a few months since, when it was incorporated as the
Hoffman Brothers Company, William H. becoming vice-president
I
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 119
and so continuing until his death. The business is still continued
under the title designated.
Mr. Hoffman identified himself most closely with the business and
civic affairs of Fort Wayne, and his standing was unimpeachable
during the long years of his residence here. He was a member of
the directorate of the First National Bank at the time of his demise,
and was otherwise concerned in local financial and industrial enter-
prises, while he was the owner of some valuable realty.
Concerning the death of Mr. Hoffman we quote from the col-
umns of a local newspaper of Tuesday, December 6, 1904 : "William
H. Hoffman, one of the old and prominent business men of the city,
is dead, due to a stroke of apoplexy. He had been in poor health for
a year past. Last April he suffered a stroke of apoplexy, and since
that time he has not been about on the streets, except to ride out oc-
casionally. He has not attended to business for a year. Yesterday
he was about the house, seemingly no worse than he had been for a
few weeks, although he was feeble. He was downstairs with his
family last evening, and about 1 1 o'clock retired to his room. Mr.
Hoffman has for many years been a member of the First Presbyterian
church of this city, and was for a long time an elder in the same. He
was a man of pure and lofty character and unimpeachable business
integrity; a devoted husband, a kind father, and a citizen who held
the esteem of his wide circle of acquaintances." It may further be
said that Mr. Hoffman was sincerely public-spirited in his attitude and
ever ready to do his part in the upholding of undertakings advanced
for the general good of his city and its people. Though never active in
political matters and never seeking official preferment, he was a stanch
supporter of the principles and policies of the Democratic party. Mr.
Hoffman was married on February 5, 1874, to Miss Mazie Evans, of
Fort Wayne, who died on the 21st of April, 1904, at Jacksonville,
Florida, whither she had gone for the benefit of her husband's health.
Mrs. Hoffman was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Nathan Evans,
who were well known in the early days of Fort Wayne, as Mr. Evans
had been interested in considerable railroad and iron operations in
Paulding county, Ohio, as well as in Pennsylvania. The
three children bom to Mr. and Mrs. Hoffman survive
them — Frederick E. and Misses Katharine and Emily R.,
I20 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
all of whom remain residents of Fort Wayne, where they
were bom and reared. Of the brothers and sisters of the subject
of this memoir the following named survive him : Anne E., who is
the wife of John W. Sale, of Fort Wayne; Andrew E., who is presi-
dent of the Hoffman Brothers Company, in this city, of which
our subject's only son is the treasurer ; Jacob R. Hoffman, of Charles-
ton, West Virginia, and Joseph C. Hoffman, a representative farmer
of Wayne township, Allen county.
To those who knew William H. Hoffman no word of eulogy is
needed, for his life was an open scroll, inviting the closest scrutiny and
giving no sign of blot on any portion of its surface, which was thus
unblemished by suspicion of wrong in any of its relations. He was a
man of honest worth and unostentatious depth of character, and his
name merits an enduring place on the roll of the leading business men
and representative citizens of Fort Wayne, where he so long lived and
labored to goodly ends.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 121
J. C PELTIER.
Among the native sons of Allen county, Indiana, who have gained
for themselves honorable recognition in business circles is he whose
name appears above. J. C. Peltier, who carries on a successful under-
taking and embalming business at No. 117 West Wayne street, was
bom in this city on the 21st of September, 1843, ^^^ is the son of
Louis and Laura (Gushing) Peltier, a sketch of whom appears else-
where in this volume. The subject received his early education in
the public and parochial schools of this city, and later pursued the
higher branches at Notre Dame. While he was yet in his teens, the
great southern rebellion became a fact, and he evinced his patriotism
by promptly offering his services in his country's behalf, enlisting in
Company K, Twelfth Indiana Volunteer Infantry. He was sent at
once to the front, and at the battle of Richmond, Kentucky, he was
severely wounded. Receiving his discharge at the close of three
months' service, Mr. Peltier returned to Fort Wayne, and during the
following three years was engaged with his father in the undertaking
business. During the following twelve years he worked at pattern-
making, in the employ of Storey & Bowser, and still later took up
photography with J. A. Shoaff, following that line for six years as an
assistant, and for a further period alone. He then took up the practice
of telegraphy, and upon attaining proficiency was made operator for
the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad Gompany at Kendall ville, In-
diana, filling this position in a satisfactory manner for several years.
In 1873 the subject, in association with George S. Garr, purchased an
undertaking business in Fort Wayne, conducting the same under the
name of Louis Peltier, and in 1876 he purchased his partner's interest
and again became associated with his father. They carried on this
business together until 1882, when the subject purchased his father's
122 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
interest and has since carried on the business alone, under the name
of J. C. Peltier. In 1874 Mr. Peltier invented an embalming fluid,
having the necessary instruments made in Fort Wayne, and enjoys
the distinction of having been the pioneer in this line, as up to that
time no embalming fluid had been manufactured. He has been always
up-to-date and progressive in his methods, and has enjoyed at all times
the fullest confidence of all with whom he has had dealings.
On the 25th of December, 1865, Mr. Peltier was united in mar-
riage to Miss Selena F. Wadge, a native of Ashburton, England, who
came to Fort Wayne with her parents in 1862. This union was
blessed with the birth of two children, namely : William H. W. is a
successful dealer in automobiles in the city of Fort Wayne, and Laura
A., who still remains under the parental roof. Mrs. Selena Peltier died
on the 30th of September, 1893, and in November, 1894, he married
Miss Fannie J. Jones, who was bom in Lockport, New York, but who
accompanied her parents to Fort Wayne in i860.
In politics Mr. Peltier is a Democrat and takes a keep interest in
the success of his party and in the general trend of national political
events, though he takes no very active part in public affairs, beyond
the exercise of his right of franchise. Mr. Peltier is affiliated with
General Lawton Post, Grand Army of the Republic, and takes a deep
interest in the welfare of his old comrades in arms. In all the rela-
tions of life he has well sustained his part, and few men are the re-
cipients of so large a degree of general esteem among those who know
him best.
I
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 123
HARRY H. HILGEMANN.
This able and popular young member of the bar of Fort Wayne
is a representative of the third generation of the Hilgemann family in
Allen county, which stands in evidence of his being a scion of
pioneer stock, while the prestige which he is securing in his exacting
profession is the more pleasing to contemplate in view of the circum-
stance that he is thus winning for himself success and honor on his
"native heath." On another page of this work appears a memorial
tribute to the honored father of our subject, so that it will not be nec-
essary to re-enter the genealogical data in the present connection.
Harry H. Hilgemann was born in the family homestead, in the
city of Fort Wayne, on the 19th of August, 1881, and is a son of
Henry F. and Lisette (Bueker) Hilgemann, both representing stanch
German lineage. Our subject had due recourse to the advantages of-
fered by the excellent public schools of his native city, as well as the
West German school, while he was graduated in the city high school
as a member of the class of 1900. Shortly afterward he was matricu-
lated in the law department of the famous University of Michigan, in
Ann Arbor, where he completed the very thorough course provided,
and was graduated as a member of the class of 1903, receiving the
degree of Bachelor of Laws. He had previously carried on his technical
studies in the office of Judge Allen Zollars, of Fort Wayne, while
he also had as preceptor for a time Judge Robert Lowry, so that he
was signally favored in the tutelage which he secured. He was asso-
ciated with Judge Lowry in practice at the time of his admission to
the bar of his native county and state, in the summer of 1903. In the
following year he engaged in practice on his own responsibility, con-
tinuing his work individually until January, 1905, when he entered
into partnership with Clyde M. Gandy, under the firm name of Gandy
124 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
& Hilgemann, and this progressive firm of young attorneys and coun-
selors is meeting with merited success, the members proving able and
discriminating coadjutors. In his political allegiance Mr. Hilgemann
is stanchly arrayed as a supporter of the principles and policies of the
Democratic party. In addition to his professional duties, he is also
incumbent of the office of notary public. The firm has well equipped
offices at 134 East Berry street.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 125
NEWTON W. GILBERT.
Among- the citizens of this community who have won honor and
pubHc recognition for themselves, and at the same time have honored
the locality to which they belong, mention should be made
of him whose name forms the caption to this brief article.
For a number of years he sustained a very enviable repu-
tation in legal circles, and is now the popular represent-
ative of the twelfth district in the national house of repre-
sentatives. Newton W. Gilbert is a native son of the old Buckeye
state, having been born at Worthington, Ohio, on the 24th day of
May, 1862, and is the son of Theodore R. and Ellen L. Gilbert, also
natives of Ohio. When the subject of this sketch was but a youth
he was brought by his parents to Indiana, and in the schools of this
state he received his education, supplementing this by attendance in
the Ohio State University, not attending this institution the full
course. He then took up the study of the law, and upon his admission
to the bar at once entered upon the active practice of his profession.
Prior to this he had had good experience as a school teacher and in
surveying, at which he was engaged about four years. In his pro-
fessional career he early established a reputation as a safe and sound
counselor, a successful pleader and an indefatigable worker, standing
high in the esteem of his professional confreres and the general pub-
lic, commanding a large clientage almost from the beginning.
In politics Mr. Gilbert has always rendered an ardent and con-
sistent support to the Republican party, and from 1896 to 1900 he
represented the district composed of Steuben and Lagrange counties
in the state senate. From 1901 to 1905 he served his state as lieuten-
ant-governor, and in the fall of 1905 he was elected to represent the
twelfth district in the national congress, defeating Hon. James M.
126 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Robinson, who had represented the district for several terms. Frater-
nally, Mr. Gilbert is affiliated with the Masons, Odd Fellows, Knights
of Pythias, the Elks and various other orders, while he is also a mem-
ber of the Anthony Wayne Club, of Fort Wayne, and the Columbia
Club, of Indianapolis. His religious connection is with the Protestant
Episcopal church.
On February 12, 1888, Mr. Gilbert was united in marriage with
Miss Delia R. Gale, who was bom at Angola, Indiana, December i,
1862, the daughter of Jesse M. and Elizabeth Gale. To them were
bom two children, Whiting and Lois, both of whom are now deceased,
and on January 2, 1901, Mrs. Gilbert also passed away.
Upon the outbreak of the war with Spain, Mr. Gilbert enlisted at
the first call for troops, being commissioned as captain of Company
H, One Hundred and Fifty-seventh Regiment, Indiana Volunteer
Infantry. The regiment spent the summer at Tampa and Femandina,
Florida, and were mustered out of the service in November, 1898.
Possessing many fine qualities of character and strong social propensi-
ties, Mr. Gilbert always makes friends easily and is most highly re-
garded by all who know him.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 127
ELMOR E. MORRIS.
It is with marked satisfaction that the biographer adverts to the
life of one who has attained success in any vocation requiring definite-
ness of purpose and determined action. Such a life, whether it be one
of calm, consecutive endeavor or of suddenJ meteoric accomplishments,
must abound in both lesson and incentive and prove a guide to young
men whose fortunes and destinies are still matters for the future to
determine. The subject of this sketch is distinctively one of the repre-
sentative professional men of Hoagland, Allen county, Indiana, a
position he has attained by dint of patient and persistent effort alone,
it being a well established fact that in what are termed the learned pro-
fessions success can be attained only by merit. Dr. Morris is a native
son of the Buckeye state, having been bom at Alliance, Stark county,
Ohio, on the 23d day of March, 1868. He is the son of J. L. and
Hannah A. Morris, the father a native of Pennsylvania and the mother
of Ohio, though of English and Welsh descent, respectively. On
the paternal side the subject is directly descended from Robert Mor-
ris, the noted financier and statesman of the early days of our nation's
history. Elmor Morris secured his elementary education in the pub-
lic schools, after which he attended the Tri-State Normal College, at
Angola, Indiana, and Mt. Union College, at Alliance, Ohio, receiving
from the last named institution the degree of Bachelor of Science. He
then entered the dental department of the University of Cincinnati,
in which he graduated in 1898 with the degree of Doctor of Dental
Surgery. He then entered the Eclectic Medical Institute, at Cincin-
nati, and in 1902 graduated, receiving the degree of Doctor of Medi-
cine. Immediately after graduation he entered upon the practice of
dentistry in Cincinnati, and was so engaged until removing to his
present location at Hoagland. Here he entered upon the general prac-
128 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
tice of medicine and dentistry combined, and has attained a distinctive
success. A thorough prehminary preparation and natural talent
have enabled him to handle successfully cases coming under his care,
and he was not long in securing the confidence of the people among
whom he was located. Of sterling personal qualities and possessing
a strong social nature, he has not been slow in making friends, which
he easily retains.
On June 20, 1901, Dr. Morris was united in marriage with Miss
Addie E. Smith, who was bom at Hoagland, Indiana, on August 29,
1876, the daughter of Dr. J. L. and Allie Smith, and their union has
been blessed in the birth of one child, Joseph E. Politically, the sub-
ject is a stanch Republican, and it would be strange were he not, for,
bom and reared as he was in the old McKinley district, he early im-
bibed those principles for which the grand old party has always stood
and of which the late lamented President was so able an exponent. In
religion Dr. Morris belongs to the Christian church at Fort Wayne,
while his fraternal relations are with that noble beneficent order, the
Knights of Pythias. He takes a deep interest in the general welfare
of the community, giving his aid and support to every movement for
the material, moral or educational advancement of his fellow citizens.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 129
FRED RUSH, D. O.
The system of osteopathy may be said to represent both modifica-
tion and amplification in the treatment of disease, and of how great
value has been this system, how far reaching and insistent its benefi-
cence, the laity have not even measurably appreciated. Osteopathy is
proving a leaven which is gradually but surely affecting the whole
lump and permeating the dispensations of the various established
schools of medicine. It stands as the ally of nature in her operations,
and not as a disrupter, and though at times the object of suspicion,
prejudice and enmity, the devotees of the new system have had the
fortitude to hold their position and defend their faith by demonstrat-
ing the efficiency of the so-called innovation.
Notwithstanding our vaunted progress in all lines of thought,
action and material accomplishment, human nature remains the same,
and men are reluctant to accept new ideas which seem to clash with
those long maintained. As a sponsor of osteopathy in Indiana, Dr.
Rush occupies a high position, and it can not but be a matter of satis-
faction to him to realize how high has become the status of his chosen
school and how great its influence in bringing about more humane and
scientific methods of practice. He stands at the head and front of the
Dr. Rush Infirmary of Osteopathy, in the city of Fort Wayne, and
may properly be said to be the leading representative of his school of
practice in the northern part of the state. He is clearly entitled to
definite recognition in a publication of the province assigned to the
one at hand.
Dr. Rush claims Illinois as the state of his nativity, having been
born in Rushaway, Menard county, and being a son of John T, and
Julia E. ( Simpson) Rush, the former of whom was born in Ohio and
the latter in Illinois, soon after her parents emigrated there from Ken-
I30 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
tucky. The father, who was a merchant by vocation during the major
portion of his independent career, died in 1879, in the prime of Hfe.
His wife is still living, and now maintains her home in California.
Dr. Rush secured his preliminary educational training in the public
schools of his native county, having been graduated in the high school
at Tallula, when sixteen years of age. For two years thereafter he
traveled in a commercial way, selling a line of notions to the retail
trade, and he then taught in the schools of his home county for two
years, proving successful in his pedagogic efforts. Upon attaining his
legal majority he opened a general store in Tallula, instituting opera-
tions on a modest scale and basing the same on borrowed capital, in
the sum of five hundred dollars. No better voucher as to his ability,
integrity, industry and good business management can be offered than
that afforded by the statement that within five and one-half years he
cleared ten thousand dollars, having built up a large and representative
trade. At the expiration of the period noted the Doctor disposed of
his interest in Tallula and removed to Wichita, Kansas, in which city
he opened a retail grocery, which he conducted for five years, then
disposing of the enterprise, in 1893. For the ensuing three years he
was a traveling salesman for a wholesale grocery house, and in the
meanwhile he had determined to prepare himself for the practice of
osteopathy, whose system he had been carefully investigating in a pre-
liminary way. He accordingly entered the Osteopathic Institute at
Quincy, Illinois, in which he was graduated as a member of the class
of 1897, while later he took special post-graduate courses in 1898
and 1899. He received his degree of Doctor of Osteopathy and came
forth admirably equipped for the work of his chosen profession, while
his success in the same has been pronounced and gratifying, both in
a subjective and objective sense. On the 15th of September, 1898,
Dr. Rush located in the city of Fort Wayne, where he established the
Fort Wayne Institute of Osteopathy, under which title the enterprise
was conducted until 1901, when the present form was adopted — the
Dr. Rush Infirmary of Osteopathy. His headquarters are in suites
49, 50 and 51, Pixley-Long building, where he has the best of acces-
sories and equipments for the work of his profession, his offices being
specially attractive in their appointments. As a licensed practitioner
of osteopathy he makes a specialty of all spinal, nervous and chronic
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 131
diseases, in the treatment of which his success has been so marked that
his reputation has grown apace. He has been at all times tolerant,
but has not sacrified his beliefs nor lacked the courage to defend his
position. He stands as an exemplar of true professional courtesy,
while as a citizen he commands unqualified esteem. He is a member
of the Indiana Osteopathic Association and takes a deep interest in
the for^varding of the work and prestige of his system of practice.
In politics the Doctor accords an unswerving allegiance to the Repub-
lican party, and fraternally he is identified with the Pathfinders. It
may be said without fear of contradiction that Dr. Rush was the pio-
neer osteopathic practitioner in northern Indiana, while he was the
first of his school in the city of Fort Wayne.
On the 7th of May, 1890, was solemnized the marriage of Dr.
Rush to Miss Mary D. Judy, of Ouincy, Illinois, and they have two
children — Ida May and Ralph Judy.
It can not prove malapropos in this connection to offer the fol-
lowing extract from the Chicago Journal of Health, since the article
has specially to do with the subject of this brief review : "If the older
schools of medicine were inclined to oppose osteopathy at its inception,
certainly the record it has made, the great number of remarkable cures
it has achieved, would forever silence unfavorable criticism and force
from its most bigoted opponents a tribute of praise as heartfelt and
emphatic as is deserved. When Dr. Still first promulgated his theo-
ries, only to have them combated by ultra-conservative members of the
medical profession, this publication preferred to await results before
judging hastily as to the merits of this new school, and results have
shown the wisdom of withholding judgment, for osteopathy has
proved to be all and more than was fondly hoped for it by its most
enthusiastic supporters. Today it has a place of its own in the fore-
front, a position honestly won and honorably held by right of almost
marvelous cures accomplished in some of the most obstinate cases,
where e^ery other source of healing and curative aid had been ap-
pealed to in vain.
"In following the wonderful progress of osteopathy the Chicago
Journal of Health has instituted a method of treating the subject
which by individualizing it confers a distinct benefit upon its readers.
We have reference to the custom of selecting the leading exponent of
132
THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
osteopathy in each of the larger cities throughout the United States
and giving a brief sketch of this representative of the science of oste-
opathy in his own community. In revievi^ing the remarkably success-
ful record of osteopathy in the city of Fort Wayne, Indiana, no diffi-
culty presents itself when we would make a selection of the repre-
sentative practitioner of this section, as by common consent and in-
trinsic merit Dr. Fred Rush assumes the position of leadership. That
this physician is justly entitled to consideration as the representative
of osteopathy in Fort Wayne will scarcely be disputed by any one —
certainly not by one who takes the pains to follow the course of the
editorial correspondent of the Journal of Health and makes a thor-
ough inquiry among the highest authorities in Fort Wayne — those
who lead commercially, financially and socially — also makes a search-
ing examination of the record of cures effected by Dr. Rush, espe-
cially some most obstinate cases that had stubbornly refused to yield
to the skill of the foremost physicians of other schools. And this in-
vestigation was conducted without the knowledge of any physician in
Fort Wayne, osteopathic or otherwise, and no one was consulted that
was directly or indirectly interested in promoting the interests of any
physician or school of medicine, while no opinions were sought ex-
cept from those who were not only competent to express an intelli-
gent opinion, but were also in a position to give an opinion utterly
free from prejudice. As a result of tliis unbiased examination, we
speak with authority in saying that in no community of the United
States has the science of osteopathy made more headway among the
intelligent classes, and that no practitioner in Fort Wayne can boast
a clientele as great in numbers and influence, or can point to a more
significant record of cures in cases of long standing that have baffled
the efforts of other physicians, than can Dr. Rush, who is justly re-
garded as the foremost representative and exponent of osteopathy in
the city of Fort Wayne. In Fort Wayne this school of medicine is
firmly entrenched in the confidence and esteem of the elements repre-
senting the social, financial and commercial interests, and in the very
forefront of examples and exponents ranks Dr. Rush, who is a dis-
tinguished member of the school of practice in which he has met with
so eminent success."
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 133
CHRISTOPHER F. HETTLER.
To epitomize the life and character of the late Captain Hettler
within the limits which this work allows is impossible. The stalwart
proportions of his living presence were realized in the void made by
his death. But less than most men intellectually his equal does he need
the v^oice of eulogy, for his works do follow him. He was an honored
and influential citizen of Fort Wayne, doing much to promote and
conserve the interests of the city through his labors as an official and
through private effort ; he M^as for a number of years incumbent of the
responsible position of purchasing agent for the Pennsylvania lines
west of Pittsburg; his integrity in all the relations of life indicated
his fine moral fiber, and though of foreign birth, no man could be
more intrinsically American in attitude or more deeply loyal to the
land of his adoption, the most significant evidence of this being vouch-
safed in the faithful and valiant service which he rendered as a Union
soldier and officer in the war of the Rebellion. In his death, which
occurred on Monday, November 6, 1899, as the result of an attack of
pneumonia, Fort Wayne lost one of its most valued and popular citi-
zens, and it is fitting that in this publication be incorporated a tribute
to his memory.
Christopher F. Hettler was bom in Hohenhaslach, county of Vai-
hingen, kingdom of Wurtemberg, Germany, on the ist of April,
1834, and he was tlius sixty-five years of age at the time of his death.
In the excellent national schools of the fatherland he received a liberal
education, and after attaining his majorit}^ he determined to avail
himself of the superior advantages and opportunities afforded in
America, whither he immigrated in 1857, arriving in New York city
on the 8th of August. Soon afterward we found him located in
Preble county, Ohio, where he remained four years, at the expiration
134 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
of which, in the autumn of 1861, he came to Allen county, Indiana,
where he ever afterward maintained his home. For a year he resided
in New Haven, this county, and he then came to Fort Wayne, where
he secured a position in the shops of the Pennsylvania Railroad Com-
pany. As touching the salient points in his career, we are pleased to
quote freely from an appreciative tribute published in the Fort Wayne
News at the time of his demise :
"Although he had been but a few years in this country, his patriot-
ism for his adopted land was so well known and so generally recog-
nized that in 1864 he received a commission from Governor Oliver P.
Morton, appointing him recruiting officer at this point. He was suc-
cessful in securing a large number of recruits, and in September of
the same year selected a company of his own from those whom he had
enlisted, and he received at the time a captain's commission. His
company was organized as Company C of the One Hundred and For-
ty-second Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and the regiment was assigned
to a place in the Army of the Cumberland. Captain Hettler served
his country at the head of his company until July 14, 1865, when the
command was mustered out. He then resumed his position in the
employ of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company. In 187 1 the com-
pany, in recognition of his marked ability and his fidelity, appointed
him assistant purchasing agent, and from that time forward until his
death he remained a valued member of that department of the railroad
service.
"Ever since he came to this city Captain Hettler has made his
strong personality felt in public affairs and has taken a leading part
in municipal matters wherever there was a public benefit to be gained.
He represented the second ward in the common council from 1873 to
1882, and his presence there at that critical time in the history of the
city resulted in a cutting down of expenses and the hastening of mu-
nicipal improvements demanded. Captain Hettler stood for the ad-
vancement of the fire department's interests, and he was one of those
responsible for the installation of the first fire alarm telegraph system.
In 1876 Captain Hettler made the memorable speech in the council
which brought the municipal ownership of water-works first into pub-
lic notice. The story of his fight, against great odds, which resulted in
the present splendid system of water-works owned and controlled by
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 135
the city, is fresh in the minds of the older citizens. In 1879 the ques-
tion came up for popular vote, and Captain Hettler's position was
sustained by the people with an overwhelming majority.
"In his social and business life Captain Hettler has been easily
one of the foremost of Fort Wayne's German-American citizens. He
held the position of treasurer of the most profitable and most promi-
nent building and loan associations, and at the time of his death was
the largest stockholder and one of the controlling spirits of the Home
Telephone Company. He had long been a valued member of Har-
mony Lodge, No. 19, Independent Order of Odd Fellows ; of Sion S.
Bass Post, No. 40, Grand Army of the Republic, and of the Fort
Wayne Saengerbund. While not formally identified with any re-
ligious body, he gave largely to church organizations and charities.
He was a firm believer in the spiritual verities as represented in the
Christian religion, and was an attendant at the Bethel church of the
Evangelical Association. When the new church edifice was erected
Captain and Mrs. Hettler were the largest contributors."
The subject of this memoir was a man of sterling character, broad
mental ken and mature judgment, placing true valuations on men
and things, and ordering his life upon the highest plane of honor. He
possessed to a marked degree the self-reliant spirit and pragmatic
ability so characteristic of the German type, and thus he was success-
ful in his various business connections, accumulating a competency
and thus making ample provision for his family. He was liberal in
his views, and kindly and tolerant in his judgment of his fellow men,
while to those affiicted in mind, body or estate he was ever ready to
extend a helping hand, though his benefactions were invariably of
the most unostentatious order. In political affairs he was a stalwart
advocate of the principles of the Republican party, and as such was
elected to the city council, in which he served so long and faithfully.
In the resolutions passed by the council at the time of his death we
find the following words : "He was a thoroughly upright official and
public-spirited citizen, ever zealous to advance the interests of Fort
Wayne. He was a generous man, a genial companion and a patriotic
American citizen, and his demise we sincerely deplore."
On the 26th of March, 1861, was solemnized the marriage of Cap-
tain Hettler to Miss Catherine Furthmiller, who was at that time resi-
136 ■ THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
dent of New Haven, this county. She was born in Stark county,
Ohio, and is a daughter of Jacob and Mary Agnes Furthmiller, who
were numbered among the early settlers of Allen county, where they
continued to reside until death, the father having been a farmer by
vocation. Captain and Mrs. Hettler became the parents of one son,
Herman Henry, who is now engaged in the lumber business in the
city of Chicago, where he has extensive interests. Mrs. Hettler sur-
vives her honored husband, and maintains her home in the beautiful
residence on East Dewald street, the same having long been a center
of gracious hospitality. She has long been a devoted member of the
Evangelical Association, and is one of the leading workers in the
Bethel church of the same, while she has also been specially active and
prominent in connection with various charitable and benevolent as-
sociations, being well known in the social life of the city, and having
the inviolable friendship of a wide circle of acquaintances. She proved
a true helpmeet and coadjutrix to her husband, and during their long
association on the journey of life each was solaced and sustained by
the abiding sympathy and love of the other, the gracious cords being
loosened only when death gave its inexorable summons to him to
whom this brief memoir is dedicated.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 137
ADOLPH DIAMOND.
The most elaborate history is, perforce, a merciless abridgement,
the historian being compelled to select his facts and materials from
manifold details and to marshal them in concise narrative. This ap-
plies to specific as well as generic history, and in the former category
is placed. In every life of honor and usefulness there is no dearth of
incident, and yet in summing up the career of any man the writer
must needs touch only the more salient points, giving the keynote of
the character, but eliminating all that is superfluous to the continuity
of narrative. The subject of this memoir left his impress upon the
civic, industrial and social life of Fort Wayne, where he was identi-
fied with important business enterprises, and where his intrinsic no-
bility of character gained to him the confidence and high regard of
all with whom he came into contact.
Adolph Diamond was born in Margelin, Prussia, on the 17th of
September, 1848, and in the excellent schools of his native place he
secured such educational discipline as was possible during his boy-
hood days, but he was soon called upon to face the responsibilities of
life and to depend upon his own resources, while his further education
was secured under the direction of that wisest of all headmasters,
experience. At the age of fourteen years he severed the ties which
bound him to home and native land and proceeded to England, thus
early starting forth as a free lance to fight life's battles. His father
was a man of industry and integrity, but the family was a large one,
there having been eight children, and the financial circumstances were
such that Adolph was thus early led to go forth to seek his fortunes
in a strange land. He arrived in England with but three dollars in
his pocket, but before the expiration of three years, by honest and
earnest effort, he accumulated a sufficient sum to pay his passage to
138 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
America, while his fiHal soHcitude also prompted him to send six
pounds of his hard-earned savings to his parents, who needed such
assistance. Arriving in America, Mr. Diamond took up his residence
in the city of New York, where he found employment in a wholesale
jewelry establishment, in which he familiarized himself with the de-
tails of the business, and incidentally gained a knowledge on which
was founded his success in independent operations. At the age of
twenty-one years he engaged in the wholesale jewelry trade on his
own account, and he brought to bear such discrimination, energy and
integrity of purpose that the enterprise was prosperous from the
start. In the interests of his trade he made trips to Cuba, Mexico
and Central and South America, and while sojourning in these coun-
tries he became conversant with the Spanish language, which he
learned to speak with much fluency, while he also mas-
tered the English. French, Hebrew, Latin and Italian languages,
in addition to his vernacular, the German tongue, becoming
an excellent linguist, principally through his varied associations
during his extensive travels. He continued to be actively
identified with the jewelry business for fourteen years, with head-
quarters in the city of New York, and within this time he accumu-
lated a considerable fortune. He made judicious investments in oil
fields, and in the connection added materially to his wealth. He was
finally called to the west by the Pottlitzer Brothers Fruit Company,
becoming a silent partner in the same and the principal financial
backer. At that time the company had headquarters only in Lafayette,
Indiana, while the business was conducted on a small scale. Mr. Dia-
mond surveyed the situation and quickly recognized the advantages
offered by Fort Wayne as a wholesale and distributing center, the
result being that he decided toi open a house in this city in connection
with the Lafayette concern. By shrewdness, integrity, honor and
wide knowledge of business he made the enterprise one of the most
extensive in this section of the Union, gaining control of the principal
trade throughout northern Indiana, southern Michigan and western
Ohio. The business grew to such proportions that he found it ex-
pedient and even imperative to open a branch house in Huntington,
this state, and he continued to be identified with this large and pros-
perous industrial enterprise until the time of his death, in the mean-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 139
while making Fort Wayne his home. He was also a large stockholder
in the Lafayette Cracker and Confectionery Company, of Lafayette,
and had other capitalistic interests of importance. He was essentially
loyal and public-spirited as a citizen, and in his political adherency
was a stanch Republican. In a fraternal way he was affiliated with
Wayne Lodge, No. 25, Free and Accepted Masons, the Independent
Orde of B'nai B'rith and the Royal Arcanum, while he was a promi-
nent and faithful member of the Jewish congregation of Fort Wayne.
He was summoned to his reward in the very prime of useful man-
hood, his death resulting from disease of the heart, and occurring very
suddenly, on the 6th of June, 1903. He was devoted to his home and
family, and within the precincts of his home his generous and noble
attributes of character displayed themselves most brightly, while his
death was mourned by a wide circle of appreciative friends, in busi-
ness and social circles. His funeral was conducted under Masonic
auspices.
In the year 1882 Mr. Diamond was united in marriage to Miss
Henrietta Pottlitzer, only daughter of the late Selig Pottlitzer, at
that time resident of New York city, but later a prominent citizen of
Fort Wayne. The nine children survive their honored father, and
remain with their widowed mother in the attractive family home in
Fort Wayne, their names, in order of birth, being as follows : Arthur,
Leon, Doris, Lester, Jacques, Helen, Alice, Ramona and George L.
I40 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JAMES A. GRAHAM.
The biographies of successful men are instructive as guides and
incentives to others. The examples they furnish of patient purpose
and steadfast integrity strongly illustrate what is in the power of each
to accomplish. The gentleman whose life history is herewith out-
lined is a man who has lived to good purpose and achieved a definite
degree of success, and is eminently worthy of a place in this volume.
James Armstrong Graham is a native son of the old Keystone state
of the Union, having been born in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, on the
25th day of December, 1856. He is the son of John and Martha
(McAleer) Graham, both of whom were natives of the north of Ire-
land. The father was born in 1825, emigrated to the United States
in 1847, ^^d settled in Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, where his
death occurred on Januar}^ 3, 1889. He was a stationary engineer by
vocation and for a number of years was employed in that capacity
in the shops of the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad in
Allegheny. Plis wife, who was torn in 1827, came to America in
1847, and still makes her home in Allegheny.
The subject of this sketch was reared under the parental roof and
secured his education in the public schools of Allegheny. Upon attain-
ing the proper age he entered the car shops of the Pittsburg, Fort
Wayne & Chicago Railroad at Allegheny as an apprentice. He was
industrious and ambitious, and his disposition and ability were in due
time rewarded, he being promoted in 1884 to the position of superin-
tendent of passenger car work. In September, 1886, he was trans-
ferred to Fort Wayne and made general foreman of the car depart-
ment of the Pennsylvania Company, which position he still retains.
He has given at all times a faithful and conscientious attention to the
details of the work over which he has charge, which undoubtedly ac-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 141
counts for the pronounced success which has characterized his ad-
ministration of the department assigned to him. He is considered
one of the trusted and vakied employes of the company, and has the
full confidence of his superiors, as well as the regard and respect of
those under him.
In November, 1875, Mr. Graham was united in marriage to Miss
Ella McNurtney, who was bom in Washington, Pennsylvania, on
June 26, 1856, being the daughter of Patrick and Ellen McNurtney.
Their union has been a most felicitous one, and has been blessed in
the birth of two children, Martha B., now Mrs. Adam LaMar, and
Minnie A. Politically, Mr. Graham is a Republican, and takes a deep
and commendable interest in the trend of passing events. His reli-
gious affiliation is with the Methodist Episcopal church, while fra-
ternally he is identified with the Free and Accepted Masons and the
Royal Arcanum. In the first named order he belongs to Blue Lodge
No. 125, and has also taken all of the Scottish Rite degrees up to and
including the thirty-second. By a life consistent in motive and ac-
tion, and because of his many fine personal qualities, Mr. Graham
has earned the sincere regard of all who know him and in his home,
which is the center of a large social circle, there is always in evidence
a spirit of generous hospitality, old and young alike being at all times
welcome.
142 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
WILLIAM J. VESEY.
It is not an easy task to adequatel)'' describe the character of a
man who has led an eminently active and useful life in connection
with the great profession of law and has stamped his individuality on
the plane of definite accomplishment in one of the most exacting fields
of human endeavor ; and yet there is always a full measure of satis-
faction in adverting, in even a casual way, to the career of an able
and conscientious lawyer. One of the successful and highly esteemed
members of the bar of Allen county is he whose name appears at the
head of this article.
WilHam J. Vesey was born April 19, 1857, at Lima, Lagrange
county, Indiana, and is the son of Benjamin W. and Sarah W.
(Waterhouse) Vesey, the father a native of Rutland county, Ver-
mont, and the mother of Portland, Maine. The subject's grand-
father, William Vesey, who was born in Vermont in 1801,
removed with his family to Ohio in 1837, and in 1839
to Goshen, Indiana, where he died in 1870. The subject of this
sketch was early inured to the labors incident to fann life and also
there learned the lessons of industry and independence which have
proved such a potential element in his subsequent success. His early
education was obtained in the common schools of his home neighbor-
hood and he early decided to make law his life study and profession.
To this end he removed to Fort Wayne in 1878 and entered the
office of Ninde & Ellison, where for two years he faithfully gave
his attention to Blackstone, Kent and other legal authorities. Ad-
mitted to the bar of Allen county the year of his removal to this
city, he has ever since been actively identified with the legal fraternity
here and has occupied a conspicuous place among his colleagues.
From t88o until 1890 Mr. Vesey was associated in the practice
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 143
with P. A. Rundall, and in the latter year formed a partnership
with Judge O. N. Heaton, under the name of Vesey & Heaton, which
association continued until, in 1899, Mr. Vesey was appointed judge
of the superior court of Allen county to fill an unexpired term. At
the conclusion of this official service Mr. Vesey associated himself in
the practice of law with O. N. Heaton, A. J. Vesey and B. F.
Heaton, under the firm name of Vesey & Heaton, which arrangement
continued until the election of Judge Heaton to the Ijench of the
superior court of this county, at which time the present firm of
Vesey & Vesey was formed, the partners being A. J. Vesey and the
subject. The firm has commanded a large and lucrative practice
and is considered one of the strongest legal firms in this city. Mr.
Vesey is a director in and general attorney for the First National
Bank of Fort Wayne, the Fort Wayne Trust Company and the Tri-
State Loan and Trust Company, and during his career at the bar he
has been connected with a number of the most celebrated cases that
have been tried in these courts.
Fraternally Mr. Vesey is a thirty-second-degree Mason, having
taken all the degrees of both the York and Scottish rites, and is also
a member of the Mystic Shrine and the Knights of P}^hias. In
politics he is an ardent Republican and takes a keen interest in
the success of that party, while his religious affiliation is with the
Wayne street Methodist Episcopal church of Fort Wayne.
On the 25th of July, 1882, Mr. Vesey was united in marriage
with Miss Maggie S. Studabaker, the daughter of Judge David
and Harriet (Evans) Studabaker, of Decatur, Indiana, her birth
having occurred on January 14, 1863. To this union have been
bom the following children: Margaret S., September 10. 1883;
Sallie W., July 5, 1885; Dick M., June i, 1887; William J., Jr.,
January 14, 1889; David S., January 31, 1891, and Catherine S.,
bom October 26, 1894. Faultless in honor, fearless in conduct and
stainless in reputation, William J. Vesey commands uniform regard
and from his friends he has won love and esteem.
144 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
CAPTAIN JAMES B. WHITE.
A few years since it was the privilege of the writer to prepare a
review of the career of Captain White, who was then Hving and in
the midst of the cares and exactions of his signally active business
life. Since that time the Captain has been summoned to the life eter-
nal, and it is now possible to sum up his career as one completed,
gaining the true perspective of his deeds and worthy services. It is
felt, however, that the previous resume, based upon data given by
the subject himself, covered the ground in so consistent a style that
liberal quotation may justly be made from the same, without further
credit marking than that involved in this statement, while metaphrase
will be made as need may be.
Captain White's life was not one of subjective exaltation or pre-
tentiousness, but was one signally true to high ideals and one filled
with definite and worthy accomplishment. He did much, and did it
well, and his name is honored in the civic and industrial history of
Fort Wayne and Allen county, within whose confines he lived and
labored for fully a half century, being one of the essentially repre-
sentative citizens and business men of the fair "Summit City." Cap-
tain White was born in the town of Denny, Stirlingshire, Scotland,
twenty miles east of the city of Glasgow, on the 26th of June, 1835.
His father, John White, was manager of an extensive calico-printing
establishment, was a man of high intelligence and utmost integrity,
while his wife was a true helpmeet, possessed of strong individuality,
mentality and earnest religious convictions. Under such environ-
ment it was but natural that the home discipline of our subject should
have been such as to engender self-reliance, thorough appreciation of
the higher ethics of life and a determination to be useful in the world.
He was the fourth in order of birth of the five sons and two daugh-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 145
ters bom to his honored parents, and of this number three now sur-
vive. His educational advantages were somewhat limited, but he
was enabled to secure a good English training, which he later supple-
mented most admirably by reading, study and contact with the world.
At the early age of twelve years he began an apprenticeship at the
tailor's trade, which he followed two years, after which he was em-
ployed in connection with the calico-printing industry until he had
attained to the age of nineteen years. This was a period of emigra-
tion, and, like many other young men. Captain White became imbued
with a desire to try his fortunes in America. Accordingly, in the
summer of 1854, he embarked on a sailing vessel at Glasgow, and
thirty-four days later arrived in the port of New York city. In the
national metropolis he obtained work at his trade until November,
when, somewhat disheartened at the outlook, he determined to seek
his uncle, who had some years previously settled in the vicinity of
Fort Wayne, Indiana. He proceeded by rail to Buffalo, thence by
steamer to Toledo, from which point he came by packetboat on the
Wabash & Erie canal to Fort Wayne, reaching his destination in the
latter part of November. His funds had by this time been completely
exhausted, and he was compelled to deposit his trunk at the packet
office, at the old Comparet basin, in the east end of town, until he
could make good the balance of three dollars due on his packet fare.
He discovered the whereabouts of his uncle, from whom he secured
sufficient money to redeem his trunk, after which he was temporarily
employed at his trade, in the service of Wade C. Shoaff, after which
he worked for a short time in a machine shop. In February, 1855,
he entered the employ of John Brown, who operated a stone yard,
receiving for his services three dollars a week and his board, and
being thus engaged for three months. He was subsequently again
employed by Mr. Shoaff, and also by the firm of Nirdlinger & Oppen-
heimer, and in the summer of 1856 he opened a tailor shop of his
own. Not meeting with the success which he anticipated, he became
dissatisfied, and in the autumn went to Cincinnati, and thence to St.
Louis, but a few months later found him again in Fort Wayne, where
he opened a tailor shop over the dry goods store of S. C Evans.
In 1857 Captain White was united in marriage to Miss Maria
Brown, a half-sister of John Brown, previously mentioned, and she
10
146 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
remained as his loved and devoted companion until the time of his
death, more than two score of years later. She was born in Glasgow,
Scotland, in 1836, and came to America with her brother in 1853.
She is a daughter of John and Jennie (Blair) Brown, the former
of whom was an extensive contractor and builder in Scotland, where
he died about 1840. His widow came to Fort Wayne in 1858, and
here continued to reside until her death, in 1878. Both were lifelong
members of the Presbyterian church, in whose faith they reared their
children, while Mrs. White has long been numbered among the val-
ued members of this church in Fort Wayne. Captain and Airs. White
became the parents of seven children, six of whom are now living,
namely: John W., who is the president of the White National Bank
of Fort Wayne ; Jessie ; Edward, president of the White Fruit House,
of this cit}^; Grace, wife of W. S. Morris, of Fort Wayne; James B.,
Jr., secretary of the White Fruit House, and Alexander B., who is
manager for the Higgins Artificial Ice Company of Fort Wayne.
After his marriage Captain White was for two years in the em-
ploy of Becker & Frank, who conducted a tailoring establishment at
Warsaw, and after this he was enabled to open a shop of his own
and purchase a home, his prospects for success being excellent. But a
higher duty came to him with the thundering of rebel guns against
Fort Sumter, for his loyalty to his adopted land was roused to re-
sponsive protest. His courage was that of his convictions, and in
August, 1861, he disposed of his little stock and business at a con-
siderable loss and assisted in recruiting a company, of which he was
elected captain and with which he proceeded to Camp Allen, Fort
Wayne, where it was made Company I of the Thirtieth Indiana
Volunteer Infantry. Securing the essential equipment at Indianapo-
lis, the regiment was sent to Camp Nevin, Kentucky, to join the com-
mand of General Wood. The Thirtieth Indiana was among the first
regiments to reach Nashville after the battle of Fort Donelson and
arrived at Pittsburg Landing in time to participate in the second
day's engagement. In the battle of Shiloh, during the attack in
which Colonel Bass, of Fort Wayne, was killed, Captain White was
wounded in the right side, by a spent minie ball, but soon recovered,
participating in the siege of Corinth and the skirmishes incident to.
that campaign. His regiment then joined in the pursuit of Bragg,
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 147
proceeding to Louisville and thence back to Nashville, and not long
afterward Captain White resigned his commission and, in the spring
of 1863, in company with Joseph A. Stell wagon, became a sutler for
the Eighty-eighth Regiment, in which capacity he remained engaged
until the close of the war. Within this time he was twice captured
by the enemy, and on one occasion, in the Wheeler raid near Chat-
tanooga, his wagons and entire stock of supplies were entirely de-
stroyed.
After the close of his faithful and prolonged military career
Captain White returned to Fort Wayne, where he established himself
in the grocery and fruit business. He was meeting with excellent
success when, in January, 1872, his store was destroyed by fire,
entailing a considerable loss. On the following day, however, he
resumed business in a building on the opposite side of the street. A
general financial depression followed hard upon this misfortune by
fire, but the Captain's methods were careful and conservative and
his discrimination so potent that he passed successfully through the
ordeal which overthrew so many business concerns, being con-
secutively successful in his operations. He continued to be identified
with the enterprise thus founded until the time of his death, and the
White Fruit House, as the establishment is known, still controls a
most extensive trade throughout northern Indiana and northeastern
Ohio, being recognized as representing one of the important com-
mercial industries of the state. This immense concern exercises
both wholesale and retail functions and is located in a fine modem
building at the comer of Calhoun and Wayne streets and the annual
business had attained to the notable average of fully a half million
dollars. The lines handled include groceries, fruits and general mer-
chandise, and the stock is large and comprehensive. The executive
corps of the concern, which is incorporated, is as follows : Edward
White, president; James B. White, Jr., secretary; and Alexander
B. White, the stock of the company being held entirely
in the family of the founder of the great enterprise. As his financial
resources increased Captain White made judicious investments in real
estate, and he not only added materially to his own fortune but also
did much for the improvement and advancement of the city through
148 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
his operations in this hne. He laid out four different additions to
Fort Wayne, and embelHshed and substantially improved the same.
Captain White started out in life dependent entirely upon his own
resources, and he won success through earnest and well directed en-
deavor along legitimate lines of enterprise. In partnership with his
eldest son, John W., he established and controlled a wheel factory,
in which about two hundred workmen were employed, the concern
being one of the largest of the sort in the Union and being suc-
cessfully carried forward under the active management of John W.
until 1892, when the plant and business were sold to the American
Wheel Company. In the same year Captain White became asso-
ciated with the same son, John W., in the organization of the White
National Bank, with a capital stock of two hundred thousand dol-
lars, and this institution stands today as one of the solid and popular
monetary concerns of Fort Wayne, John W. White being president
of the bank, while the subject remained a member of its directorate
until his danise. He was essentially public-spirited and held the in-
terests of Fort Wayne close to his heart, while to him was accorded
the unqualified regard of its citizens of all classes. He was one of the
commissioners from Indiana to the World's Columbian Exposition
in Chicago, in 1893, receiving the appointment from Governor
Hovey. He was one of the most popular and honored members of Sion
S. Bass Post, No. 40, Grand Army of the Republic, the same having
been named in honor of the colonel of the regiment of which he was
a member, the Thirtieth Indiana. In 1894 Captain White was a
member of the staff of Hon. Thomas G. Lawler, commander in chief
of the national organization of this noble order.
At one time Captain White ov.ned an interest in the Fort Wayne
Gazette, and he always manifested a lively interest in political affairs,
though his active work in the arena of politics was done only in the
later years of his life. He was a stalwart Republican and was well
fortified in his convictions as to matters of public polity. He was
twice elected to the city council from the second ward, a Democratic
stronghold, and in 1874 he nearly overcame the three thousand
Democratic majority as the Republican candidate for clerk of the cir-
cuit court. In 1886 Captain White was prevailed upon to accept
the Republican nomination for congress, as representative of the
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 149
twefth district, which had previously shown a normal Democratic
majority of about three thousand. At the ensuing- election he ran
ahead of his ticket by about twenty-five hundred votes, — a fact which
attested his unbounded popularity and the unqualified confidence
reposed in him. That he was worthy of this distinguished prefer-
ment is shown by his record in the connection. During his term in
congress he was noted as a zealous worker, not only for the good of
the people of his own district and state but also for that of the gen-
eral public, and he introduced several measures for the benefit of the
working classes. These were not at the time adopted, but in the
future will be recognized as the proper foundation for legislation
for the amelioration of the condition of wag-e-earners throughout the
world. His minimum-wages bill was particularly calculated to help
the laboring class. In the fiftieth congress his voice was often heard
in the discussion of various measures, and particularly in the debates
on the tariff question. In this field his information was that of a
practical business man, and his arguments in the connection were
widely quoted and carried much weight.
After his retirement from congress Captain White resumed
management of his business affairs with undiminished energy, and
he continued in the harness until practically the time of his death,
which occurred on the 9th of October, 1897, at his home in Fort
Wayne. He was a man of intrinsic nobility, and this fact made his
life count for good in all its relations, while the record of his accom-
plishment, which so closely touched the city of Fort Wayne, must
remain an integral part of the history of this municipality and this
county. Captain White was broad and liberal in his views, and
was a firm believer in the spiritual verities as exemplified in the Chris-
tian faith, having for many years been a member and liberal sup-
porter of the First Presbyterian church. Honorable and straightfor-
ward in all the relations of life, he was justly numbered among the
most honored and valued citizens of Fort Wayne.
I50 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
ALLEN ZOLLARS.
Allen Zollars was born in Licking county, Ohio. The ances-
tors of Mr. Zollars were of German extraction and emigrated from
Prussia to this country at an early period. They belong to that
robust and intelligent class of early emigrants who, to secure their
political and religious freedom, were ready to encounter the priva-
tions and hardships of an unknown and unbroken wilderness, and
the dangers arising from the frequent hostilities of native savages
whO' claimed the whole country as their rightful and undoubted her-
itage. It was fortunate for the succeeding generations of America
that the circumstances attending the first settlement of the country
were somewhat forbidding, and such as to invite to its shores only
the liberty-loving people of Europe. The sturdy ancestors of Mr.
Zollars contributed their share in the stritggle for independence
and helped to secure for themselves and those to come after them
that complete national freedom and personal liberty which all en-
joy today. His paternal grandfather was an officer in the war of
the Revolution and served his country with distinction for more
than five years. Mr. Zollars' father was born in Washington
county, Pennsylvania, and at twelve years of age removed with
his parents tO' Jefferson county, Ohio. At that time Ohio had been
a state in the Federal Union but thirteen years, and was in a large
measure an unbroken forest. Until his manhtx)d and marriage the
father of Mr. Zollars lived in that county, when he moved to Lick-
ing county, of the same state. There in the course of time he be-
came the owner of flouring", lumber and woolen mills, which he
operated with success. Subsequently he disposed of those prop-
erties and engaged in farming and the raising of fine stock.
In 1868, in good health mentally and physically, he retired from
business, and until his death in March, 1889, at the age of eighty-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 151
seven years and three months, he Hved in happy retirement, manag-
ing his property and enjoying the most devoted love and affection
of an unusually large number of direct descendants. But a short
time before his death he had assembled under his own roof five gen-
erations of his family — himself and wife, with whom he had lived
for more than sixty-five years, and who survives him, some of his
children, some of his grandchildren, some of his great-grandchil-
dren, and one great-great-grandchild. He was a man not only of
remarkable health and strength physically, but also, as self edu-
cated, a man of strong mental power and extended reading. Upon
many subjects his thoughts were in advance of those among whom
he lived. It was a source of very great comfort to his family that
during his long and active life they never knew him to give the
least sanction by word or act, to anything that was immoral, dis-
honest or dishonorable, but on the contrary he uniformly con-
demned all such things in the strongest terms.
In early boyhood the subject of this sketch, after completing the
common-school course of study in his neighl^orhood. was placed
in a private academy, and there thoroughly prepared to enter col-
lege. He entered Denison University, at Granville. Ohio, pursued
a classical course and graduated in 1864, receiving the degree of
Bachelor of Arts. Three years later the university conferred upon
him the honoran^ degree of Master of Arts, and in 1888 the degree
of Doctor of Laws. Having finished his college course and at-
tained his manhood, the time had come for Mr. Zollars to decide
for himself what should be his life pursuit. Choosing the law, he
entered the law office of Judge Buckingham, of Newark. Ohio,
where he studied for awhile, and he then entered the law depart-
ment of the University of Michigan, and graduated in 1866, re-
ceiving the degree of Bachelor of Laws. Being thus prepared for
the practice of his chosen profession, Mr. Zollars located at Fort
Wayne, Indiana. He at once made a favorable impression upon
the bench, the bar and the people. All regarded him as a young
man of fine attainments, high moral character, and great profes-
sional promise.
In November. 1867, he was married to Miss Minnie Ewing. of
Lancaster, Ohio, a lady of ailture. who has contributed much to
the subsequent success of her husband.
152 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Mr. Zollars is a Democrat. In 1868 he was elected to the
legislature, in which body he took a prominent part in the debates
of the house, and was much esteemed for his statesmanship. In
May, 1869, he was chosen city attorney of Fort Wayne, and con-
tinued to serve in that capacity for six years. Upon the establish-
ment of the superior court of Allen county, he was appointed by
Governor Williams, judge of that court. He held the office for a
short time and then resigned in order to resume the practice of his
profession. In 1882 Judge Zollars was nominated by the Demo-
cratic party of the state as a candidate for supreme judge. He was
elected, receiving in the northern part of the state, where he was
best known, much more than the party vote. He was nominated
by his party for the same office in 1888, but was, with the rest of
the Democratic ticket, defeated. In addition to his general prac-
tice he is solicitor of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, operat-
ing the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad through Indi-
ana.
As judge of the supreme court Judge Zollars more than met
the high expectations of his friends, and so discharged the duties
of his office as to receive the hearty approval and warm commenda-
tion of the bar of the state without regard to party. As a judge he
was industrious, careful and singularly painstaking. In his high
office he was independent, fearless and honest. It is but just to say
and it is infinitely creditable to Judge Zollars that it may be truth-
fully said that no political bias, prejudice or zeal could deflect his
mind from its honest and intelligent convictions. There is not a
judge nor lawyer in the state of Indiana that does not know and
who would not assert this. The written opinions of Judge Zollars
found in more than the last thirty volumes of our reports attest
his fitness for judicial position. His style is lucid, unstrained and
vigorous, his statements full and comprehensive, his analysis per-
spicuous and complete. His opinions show great research, indus-
try and care. They challenge approval, and must commend them-
selves to bench and bar. The writer is somewhat acquainted with
the bar of the state and he has yet to hear an unfavorable criticism
of any opinion prepared by Judge Zollars. As a lawyer Judge
Zollars has always stood high. He has a large practice and has
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 153
been unusually successful. He has argued many cases in the su-
preme court and has lost but few. No one knows better than
Judge Zollars the necessity for thorough preparation in the trial
of cases, and no one more industriously prepares his cases than
he. Though of a warm and ardent temperament, Judge Zollars is
in the trial of a cause always master of himself; he is rarely not at
his best. He is always courteous and deferential toward the court
and kind and forbearing toward its adversaries. He examines a
witness carefully and thoroughly, but treats the witness with re-
spect, and as a general rule, so as to secure his good opinion and
make him feel that he has been treated kindly and forbearingly.
While subjecting the witness to the most severe tests he so ques-
tions him that the witness never seems to realize the fact. As a
speaker Judge Zollars is always direct, logical and forcible. His
treatment of his case is always full, comprehensive and accurate;
his analysis of the facts is clear and exhaustive. He sees without
effort the relation and dependence of the facts and so groups them
as to enable him to throw their combined force upon the point they
tend to prove. Judge Zollars is in the prime of life, rather below
the medium size, his head and chest are large, his frame compact
and vigorous ; he is graceful in action, in manner, courteous, for-
bearing and genial ; he is popular and his future is full of promise.
In domestic life Judge Zollars is most fortunate ; surrounded b\
a most estimable family, every member of which is thoroughly de-
voted to him and striving to add something to his comfort and
happiness, — a family that has deserved all the affections of his
heart, stimulated his pride, increased his hope and contributed to his
success in life and augmented his happiness.
Judge Zollars is a chapter, Knight Templar and Scottish-Rite
Mason of the thirty-second degree. — [Hon. John Morris.]
154 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
BENJAMIN F. HEATON.
The Heaton family has been conspicuously identified with the
civic and industrial development of Allen county, within whose con-
fines representatives of the name took up their abode in the very early
pioneer epoch, securing government land and reclaiming the same
from the native forest, while in each generation have been found ster-
ling citizens of marked public spirit and unqualified loyalty to the
county. In the present connection we have to do with a worthy scion
of this pioneer stock, and one who has attained to no slight prestige
and precedence in the profession of law, in whose practice he is suc-
cessfully engaged in the city of Fort Wayne, as a member of the firm
of Heaton & Yaple. His able coadjutor is Carl Yaple, concerning
whom individual mention is made on other pages of this work.
On the old homestead farm, in Marion township, this county,
Benjamin F. Heaton was born, the date of his nativity standing re-
corded as June i8, 1878, while the homestead, which is still in the
possession of the family, is a portion of the landed property secured
from the government by his ancestors, many decades ago. He is a
son of Jesse and Samantha C. (Larkin) Heaton, the former of whom
was bom in the southern part of Indiana, in the year 1829, while the
latter was born in New York state, in 1834. The father of our sub-
ject was a child at the time of his parents' removal to Allen county,
where he was reared to manhood, assisting in the developing of a farm
in the midst of the forest wilds of Marion township, where he con-
tinued to be actively identified with agricultural pursuits until his
death, which occurred in 1888. He was a man of exalted integrity
of character and one of high mentality, so that he naturally wielded
beneficent influence in the community in which he so long made his
home, while he gave an unqualified support to the Republican party
from the time of its inception until he was summoned from the scene
i
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 155
of life's endeavors, at the age of fifty-nine years. He was a sincere
and earnest member of the Methodist church, as is also his widow,
who now resides in the city of Fort Wayne. They became the parents
of eleven children, of whom seven are living: Dessie is the wife of
Dr. Calvin H. English, a representative physician of Fort Wayne;
Hon. Owen N, is the present judge of the superior court in Allen
county; Mary is the wife of Homer B. Smitley, a successful contrac-
tor in Fort Wayne; Luella and Ellis J. reside with their mother; Jes-
sie Pearl is the wife of George H. Allen, chief of the distributing
department in the Fort Wayne postoffice; Benjamin F. is the immedi-
ate subject of this review, and is the youngest of the children.
Benjamin F. Heaton secured his rudimentary education in the dis-
trict schools and thereafter continued his studies in the city schools
of Fort Wayne, after which he entered the Tri-State Normal Col-
lege, at Angola, Indiana. After leaving school Mr. Heaton became
associated with his brothers, Owen N. and Ellis J., in the breeding
and handling of high-grade live stock, in which connection they util-
ized the old homestead farm. They made a specialty of the raising
of sheep and swine, having fine herds of registered stock and through
the same doing much to improve the grade of stock in Allen county,
while their surplus stock was disposed of at public sales at various
points in northern Indiana and western Ohio. Our subject continued
to be actively identified with this important branch of industrial ac-
tivity for several years, and upon his retirement turned his attention
to the retail drug business, becoming one of the proprietors of the
Postoffice drug store, in Fort Wayne, and successfully conducting the
same about two years, when he disposed of the business. In 1898 he
took up the study of law, to the reading of which he continued to de-
vote his attention while conducting his drug store, and he passed
about two years as a student in the office of the well-known firm of
Vesey & Heaton, of Fort Wayne, his eldest brother. Judge Owen N.
Heaton, having been the junior member of the firm. Under this
effective preceptorship Mr. Heaton continued his technical discipline
until he became eligible for admission to the bar of his native state,
his admission being granted in June, 1900. Therefore he remained
in the office of his preceptors about one year and was made a member
of the firm. This relationship continued until the autumn of 1902,
156 THE MAUMEE .RIVER BASIN.
when he entered into his present professional alHance with Mr. Yaple,
and they are meeting- with distinctive success in their practice, which
is largely devoted to the commercial, corporation and real-estate de-
partments of law. In politics Mr. Heaton holds to the faith of his
father, and gives a stalwart alleg^iance to the Republican party, while
he is identified with Fort Wayne Lodge, No. 25, Free and Accepted
Masons; Fort Wayne Lodge, No. 155, Benevolent and Protective
Order of Elks; Fort Wayne Lodge, No. 116, Knights of Pythias; the
Fraternal Assurance Society and the Tippecanoe Club, while he is a
member of the Methodist Episcopal church and his wife of the Pres-
byterian church.
On the 1 8th of October, 1904, Mr. Heaton was united in mar-
riage to Miss Helen M. Reitze, who was born and reared in Fort
Wayne, being a daughter of William F. Reitze, who is paying teller
in the Old National Bank of this city.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 157
FREDERICK J. HAYDEN.
Among the leading and representative men of Fort Wayne is
the gentleman whose name appears above. Fred J. Hayden, who
was bom in Cobourg, Canada, is of English parentage. His father
was Rev. William Hayden, who, with his noble wife, served well
their day and generation, their memory being still revered by the
children and children's children of the early settlers of Cobourg
and the surrounding country. Mr. Hayden secured his early edu-
cation at Cobourg, and in 1866 received the degree of Master of
Arts from Victoria College. He then became secretary of the C,
P. & M. Railway and Mining Company of Canada, but in 1875 he
resigned this position and took up his residence in Fort Wayne,
where he has since resided. In 1884 Mr. Hayden was elected a
member of the lower house of the Indiana legislature, serving two
sessions, and in 1888 he was elected joint senator from the counties
of Allen and Whitley, serving two sessions in the upper house also.
In 1892 he was appointed by Governor Hovey a member of the
Indiana world's fair commission and at the organization of the
board he was unanimously elected its treasurer, which office he filled
until the close of the fair in 1893. How well he discharged the duties
of this position will be found in the report of the auditing committee
of the Indiana commission, consisting of the late Judge Garvin and
Edward Hawkins, from which report we quote as follows: "We
have examined with great care the final report of the treasurer,
which is a well digested and complete summary of all previous re-
ports. We have examined the vouchers and compared them \\'ith
the statement of expenditures as set forth in the final report and
find that the same correspond exactly, both in amount and dates,
with the original allowance. * * In making this report, your com-
mittee feels that it should call your attention to the manner in which
158 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
the duties of treasurer have been discharged by the Hon. Fred J.
Hayden. Its work has brought this committee into close contact with
his office and his methods in the management of its affairs. We
notice the extreme care and completeness with which the duties of
the position have been discharged."
Since his residence in Fort Wayne Mr. Hayden has evinced a
deep interest in all matters pertaining to agriculture and has been
a successful exhibitor of horses, cattle and grains at every fair in
Allen county, with one exception, receiving many first premiums on
his exhibits. He has taken a strong and influential part in support
of the present Allen County Fair Association and is now vice-presi-
dent of the association. For a number of years he has been a director
of the First National Bank, which he has also served as vice-presi-
dent. Like most Englishmen, Mr. Hayden is a lover of outdoor
sports and recreation.
In 1873 Fred J. Hayden married Miss Eliza Hanna, daughter of
the late Judge Samuel Hanna, of Fort Wayne.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 159
FRANK E. PURCELL.
The subject of this sketch has long occupied a prominent place
in business circles in Fort Wayne, where he has successfully con-
ducted a large and popular livery establishment, also hotels. Mr.
Purcell is a native son of the Wolverine state, having been born at
Hudson, Michigan, on the 12th of February, 1866. His parents
were natives of Pennsylvania and were of Irish, French and Scotch
lineage. The subject's mother, who married James D. Brown, is
still connected with the proprietorship of the Hotel Randall, in
this city, having been interested in the hotel business for the past
thirty-five years and acquiring the reputation of being one of the
best landladies in the state of Indiana. She now resides in Pasadena,
CaHfornia.
Frank E. Purcell received his elementary school education in the
schools of South Bend, this state, and upon leaving school became
a messenger boy, one of the first in South Bend. He also became
the first operator of a Bell telephone in Indiana, and has thus
been a witness of the wonderful strides which have been made in
this medium of communication during the subsequent years. He
then commenced clerking in a grocery store, but two years later
came to Fort Wayne and entered the employ of Pottlitzer Brothers in
the capacity of traveling salesman, remaining with this firm seven
years. He then established the Western Fruit Company, of which
he became president, the firm having branches in Huntington and
Montpelier, this state, and an office in Chicago. He subsequently
disposed of this business and entered the hotel and restaurant busi-
ness, having charge of the Rich Hotel and the Wellington Cafe. He
subsequently became one of the proprietors of the Randall Hotel,
which has long enjoyed a high reputation as one of the leading and
most popular caravansaries in this part of Indiana. He is also a
i6o ■ THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
large stockholder and president of the Frank Purcell Livery and Cab
Line Company, the leading enterprise of the kind in this city, and is
interested in a number of other business enterprises.
On September 19, 1888, Mr. Purcell was united in marriage with
Miss Evelyn Ross, who was born in Detroit, Michigan, on the i8th
of October, 1867, the daughter of R. C. and Zella E. Ross. To
this union have been bom two children, Marion, aged thirteen, and
Clayton, now deceased. In matters political Mr. Purcell gives his
support to the Democratic party and has taken a somewhat prominent
part in local public affairs. From 1896 to 1898 he served as council-
man-at-large and is now a member of the council, representing the
third ward. Fraternally he is a member of the Benevolent and Pro-
tective Order of. Elks, the Knights of Pythias, Ancient Order of
United Workmen, and the Fraternal Order of Eagles, being presi-
dent of the aerie of the last-named organization in this city, which
has now a membership of over six hundred. Socially he is a member
of the Commercial Club, while his religious affiliation is with the
Baptist church. Mr. Purcell has ever taken a keen interest in the
welfare of the city of his residence and supports every worthy move-
ment which promises to advance the material, educational or moral
standard of the community. He is widely known and is well liked
by all who know him.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. i6i
THEODORE F. THIEME.
In the roster of Fort Wayne's solid and influential business men,
the name of Theodore F. Thieme stands out prominently. As founder
and secretary and manager of the Wayne Knitting- Mills, Mr. Thieme
commands the respect of all progressive and public-spirited citizens,
and holds the esteem of the eleven hundred workers whose employ-
ment is the result of his untiring and successful endeavors.
Mr. Thieme was bom in Fort Wayne on the 7th of February,
1857, and is a son of Frederick J. and Clara Weitzman Thieme,
neither of whom are living. Both were honored pioneers of this city,
where the father was for many years a prominent clothing merchant
and influential citizen. The subject of this sketch secured his early
educational discipline in the public schools of Fort Wayne and in
Concordia College of this city. In 1876 he was graduated in the
New York College of Pharmacy, and he was for a time engaged
in the drug business in the national metropolis, whence he eventually
returned to Fort Wayne and established himself in the same line of
business, owning one of the principal drug stores in the city. Con-
cerning the conditions and personal action which led him to establish
the enterprise at whose head he now stands, we find the following
pertinent information in an article published in the Textile Record of
July, 1902 :
"In 1889 Mr. Thieme sold out his drug business and went abroad
to investigate some of the industries benefited by the McKinley tariff
law. While abroad he became interested in the hosiery industry in
Chemnitz, Germany, and spent a winter there studying and in-
vestigating this branch of business. In the spring of 1890 he
organized a company in Fort Wayne under the name of the Wayne
Knitting Mills, with a capital of thirty thousand dollars. Returning
II
i62 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
to Germany, he bought machinery there and brought over twenty-five
skilled knitters."
Starting in this modest way, and meeting the usual and many
unusual trials and difficulties incident to a new undertaking, Mr.
Thieme has piloted the enterprise safely into the harbor of assured
success. The success of the Wayne Knitting Mills, and Mr. Thieme's
personal success, are due entirely to his integrity, his energy, his
courage and to his initiative and executive ability.
In January, 1894, Mr. Thieme was married to Miss Bessie Lor-
ing, of Boston, to whom one child, a boy, has been bom — Wayne
Thieme. Mr. Thieme is a stanch Republican, always taking a
lively interest in local and national political campaigns. He is a
member of the order of Masons, a loyal and energetic member of the
Commercial Club and of the Anthony Wayne Club.
THE WAYNE KNITTING MILLS
Reviewing the advantages of industrial Fort Wayne, and enumer-
ating its many progressive manufacturing concerns, it is signally
fitting that specific mention be made of the Wayne Knitting Mills.
Of the founder of the enterprise. Theodore F. Thieme. individual
mention is made in preceding paragraphs, and the two articles are
to be considered in a sense complimentary, so that they should be
read in connection. No better idea of the extent and character of the
industry can be given than by quoting in full from an article entitled
"A Western Knitting Mill" and appearing in the Textile World of
February, 1904:
"The Wayne Kntting Mills, of Fort Wayne, Indiana, was estab-
lished by Theodore F. Thieme in 189 1, soon after the passage of the
McKinley bill, starting in a small way in narrow rented quarters in
a store room, and against the strongest opposition of foreign manu-
facturers and local prejudices in favor of imported hosiery. Dealers
were soon convinced of the merits of Wayne Knit Matchless Hosiery,
and in 1892 the company built and equipped a plant of their own,
installing imported machinery such as was used in the most pro-
gressive European factories, and employing skilled knitters, many of
whom had been trained in the best foreign mills. This plant has
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 163
been enlarged from time to time until today it consists of brick build-
ings covering- one hundred and sixteen thousand square feet, having
three floors and giving employment to fully eleven hundred persons
making nothing but hosiery. In 1901 they issued their children's
stockings under a new trademark, calling' them Pony stockings, and
by unique and well directed advertising made them so well known
that today Wayne Knitting Mills are believed to have a larger output
than any other hosiery factory in the United States, their product
being sold in every state in the Union. On May i, 1902, the
United Knitting Mills, a factory organized by Fred J. Thieme, a
brother of the founder of the industry, was merged into the Wayne
Knitting Mills, making a combined capital of four hundred and
twenty-five thousand dollars. This factory was situated on an ad-
joining site and had been selling its output through the older com-
pany.
"The intelligent and progressive class of labor found there makes
Fort Wayne a very desirable place for the industry. Laboring men
in this city are very thrifty. The Wayne Knitting Mills has fostered
this progressive spirit in its employees, impressing all with the fact
rtiat intelligent co-operation between employer and employee is
essential to industrial success. To this end it has established a
profit-sharing plan in which all heads of departments participate; it
has furnished a club room and dining hall, combined with a fully
equipped stage, etc. ; it has encouraged the operatives of the factory
to organize a dramatic club, a singing society, etc., which give numer-
ous entertainments. The managers are always interested in the
material and moral welfare of their employees.
"The equipment of the Wayne Knitting Mills is of the best, the
machinery being of the latest and most improved patterns. Ex-
perienced foremen are retained in each department, and the ventila-
tion, lighting and heating are matters of special attention. The build-
ings are of standard make and fireproof as it is possible to make
them. The company have their own lighting plant, and although the
water of Fort Wayne is excellent, they have installed a water-
purifying system of their own, while in addition to the fire pro-
tection afforded by the city they have their own fire-fighting
company and apparatus. The company have always been
i64 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
progressive and endeavor to keep their business in the
first rank. They are continually on the lookout for any-
thing new in their line, adding to their equipment from time
to time, as the styles on the market require. Every pair of hose goes
through thirteen departments and is handled by eighteen different
persons. The full fashioned knitting machines are very large and
intricate and seem almost alive as the yam carriers fly back and
forth knitting the web, sometimes using two threads and again three,
sometimes one color and again three or four colors, according to
the pattern desired. The dye house of the Wayne Knitting Mills
constitutes a model institution in itself, dyeing being one of the most
important features of good hosiery."
At the last meeting of the stockholders in May, 1905, it was
voted to increase the capital stock of the knitting mills to seven
hundred thousand dollars. This increase was imperative on account
of the constantly increasing demand for Wayne knit hose, which it
was practically impossible to supply without a material addition to
the factory equipment. The steady healthy growth of the Wayne
Knitting Mills is its best assurance of continual prosperity.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 165
JESSE L. WILLIAMS.
The subject of this sketch was one of the strong and notable men
of his day and generation, having been for many years closely
identified with a number of the principal public works in Indiana and
Ohio and was in a large measure instrumental in advancing to com-
pletion several of the largest railroads in the country. Mr. Wil-
liams was bom in Stokes county, North Carolina, on May 6, 1807,
and was the son of Jesse and Sarah T. Williams, who were members
of the society of Friends. About the year 18 14 he accompanied his
parents on their removal to Cincinnati, Ohio, where he obtained such
an education as was possible. Financial losses sustained by the father
prevented the son from obtaining such an education as he had desired.
However, he was able to attend the Lancasterian Seminary in Cin-
cinnati and afterwards attended school as he could at other places of
residence. He early decided to take up the profession of civil en-
gineering and every effort was bent to the end that he might become
proficient in this profession, he studiously investigating every branch
of knowledge which seemed to have a relation to that line. He
was thus largely self-educated, but his mastery of his subjects was
complete and at the age of seventeen years he became a member of
a corps of engineers who were detailed to make the first survey of the
Miami and Erie Canal from Cincinnati to the Maumee bay. Mr.
Williams continued to serve in the final location and construction of
this canal and had charge, as assistant, of the heavy and difficult
division near Cincinnati. On account of the sickness of the prin-
cipal engineer during the latter half of 1827, Mr. Williams was
compelled to temporarily take charge of the whole work between
Cincinnati and Dayton. In 1828 he was appointed to take charge of
the final location of the canal from Licking Summit to Chillicothe,
including the Columbus side-cut, and afterward supervised the con-
i66 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
struction of the division between Circleville and a point south of
ChilHcothe, this work including the dam and aqueduct across the
Scioto river. When twenty-three years old Mr. Williams was ap-
pointed on the board of engineers to decide upon the method of sup-
plying with water the summit level of the canal, their decision being
in favor of reservoirs. Early in 1832 Mr. Williams took charge,
as chief engineer, of the location and construction of the Wabash
and Erie Canal, and in 1834 he was appointed to survey the White
Water valley for the purpose of determining the practicability of
constructing a canal through that valley to Lawrenceburg, on the
Ohio. The several surveys of new canals in Indiana, ordered by the
legislature in 1835, were placed under his general supervision, and
throughout that year his duties were exceedingly laborious. In 1836,
on the passage of the law authorizing a general . system of internal
improvement, Mr. Williams was appointed chief engineer of all the
canals in the state, including the Wabash and Erie Canal, and thus
at this period he had under his personal charge canal routes amount-
ing to about eight hundred miles, and in 1837 he was also given
charge of railroads and turnpikes. Afterwards, when the appointing
power was changed, he was elected by the legislature to the same
positions, continuing therein until 1841, when the prosecution of
public works, except the Wabash and Erie Canal, was entirely
suspended. After March, 1840, Mr. Williams, in addition to his
duties as state engineer, became, by appointment of the legislature,
ex officio a member of the board of internal improvement and acting
commissioner of the Indiana division of the Wabash and Erie
Canal, in which capacities he served about two years, having charge
also of the selections, management and sales of the canal lands. The
financial revulsion of 1840 prostrated the state credit and checked the
progress of public works, and from 1842 to 1847 Mr. Williams was
occupied in mercantile and manufacturing pursuits in Fort Wajme,
the place of his residence. He was offered the presidency of the Madi-
son & Indianapolis Railroad, then about to be completed, the offices
of president and chief engineer being united in one. In 1847 the
Wabash and Erie Canal, with its lands, passed into the hands of a
board of trustees, the law creating this trust also providing for the
appointment of "a chief engineer of known and established char-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 167
acter for experience and integrity," to which responsible position
the subject was appointed in June of that year, holding the position
for many years and performing the duties with signal ability and
sound judgment. In February, 1854, Mr. Williams was appointed
chief engineer of the Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad, which position
he held up to the time of the consolidation with the Ohio & Penn-
sylvania Railroad and the Ohio & Indiana Railroad in 1856, and
from that time forward he was a director of the Pittsburg, Fort
Wayne & Chicago Railroad. In July, 1864, Mr. Williams was ap-
pointed by President Lincoln a director of the Union Pacific Rail-
road on the part of the government, and was reappointed each suc-
ceeding year until the work was completed in 1869, receiving com-
missions from three successive Presidents. As a member of the
standing committee on location and construction, the important en-
gineering questions connected with this work came within his sphere
of duty and called into exercise the professional experience which
forty years of public service enabled him to wield. On the 13th of
June, 1868, Mr. Williams was instructed by the secretary of the in-
terior "to examine and report specifically as to the condition of the
Union Pacific Railroad, where it has been constructed or surveyed."
From his report to the secretary, August 15, 1868, it will be seen
that this duty was performed, and it is worthy of note that the secre-
tary of the interior, in his annual report to the President of the
United States, of November 30, 1868, referring to this specific ex-
amination, said : "Mr. Williams is an experienced civil engineer and
performed the duty committed to him in a very satisfactory manner.
His report presented such statements that I deem it my imperative
duty to invite your attention to the leading facts he communicated."
Subsequently, as a result of this report the President appointed a sec-
ond commission, consisting of three experienced engineers, one of
which was Mr. Williams. The latter fully appreciated the high honor
of this appointment, but was nevertheless constrained by other duties
to decline. The remaining two engineers, however, confirmed in every
respect his former report. On the 19th of January, 1869, Mr. Wil-
liams was appointed receiver of the Grand Rapids & Indiana Rail-
road by the United States court, which ordered him to borrow money
by pledge of the railroad land and to build the road as required by
i68 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
law. In addition to the duties belonging to a financial trust like
this, he had also professional charge as directing engineer of the
work. These several duties were found to be so exacting that, in
October, 1869, he resigned his position as government director of
the Union Pacific Railroad. During the remaining years of his life,
Mr. Williams maintained his active interest in everything that tended
to the development and progress of his country, especially the section
in which he lived. His absolute integrity, under all circumstances,
was never questioned, while his natural and acquired ability was
recognized by every one competent to judge. A thorough gentleman
of the old school, courteous to every one who addressed him, and an
excellent conversationalist, he enjoyed a very extensive acquaintance,
and made friends of all who came into contact with him.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 169
WALPOLE G. COLERICK.
An enumeration of those men of the present generation in Allen
county who have won honor and public recognition for themselves
and at the same time have honored the state to which they belong,
must needs include Hon. Walpole G. Colerick, of Fort Wayne,
eminent as a lawyer and citizen, and one who ably represented his
district in the halls of the national congress. He has been and is
distinctively a man of affairs and one who has wielded marked in-
fluence in his profession and in the broad domain of public life, while
his technical and academic scholarship is of high order and his
dignity of purpose and his personal integrity such as to have ever
commended him to the esteem and good will of his fellow men.
It seems to the writer that consistent recourse may be made at
this point to an appreciative estimate of the life history and ante-
cedents of Mr. Colerick written by Judge Allen Zollars, of Fort
Wayne, one of his distinguished professional confreres at the present
time, since this estimate comes with the full force of intimate personal
acquaintanceship and significant and analytic appreciation. In mak-
ing excerpt from this previously published sketch we shall take the
liberty of making slight changes in phraseology, in order that the
subject-matter may be brought up to the date of present writing :
"Hon. Walpole G. Colerick was born in the city of Fort Wayne,
on the 1st of August, 1845, ^"^^ belongs to honorable and distin-
guished families in the lines of both his father and mother. He is a
son of the late Hon. David H. Colerick, and the maiden name of his
mother was Elizabeth Gillespie Walpole. He also belongs to families
of lawyers. John G. Walpole was a practitioner in Fort Wayne,
where he died many years ago, and Robert L. and Thomas D. Wal-
pole were distinguished lawyers at Indianapolis. His five brothers
all adopted the legal profession, and became successful practitioners.
lyo THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
and of the number two are engaged in practice at the present time.
His older brother, the Hon. John Colerick, one of the most promising
and brilliant of the younger men of the state, died in March, 1872,
which year also witnessed the death of another older brother, David
Colerick, a lawyer of ability and promise. Each of these brothers
had, in early life, been trusted and honored by the people, not only in
their controlling a large professional business, but also in the be-
stowal upon them of public office. Still later Thomas W. Colerick,
a younger brother of the subject, died when a young man and just
when he was entering upon what promised to be a successful and
brilliant career as a lawyer. He was not only a young man of fine
ability and character, but he also had the industry and methods of
study which always bring their reward by way of success in the
learned professions. Messrs. Henry and Philemon B. Colerick,
younger brothers, are both practicing and successful lawyers in Fort
Wayne, while the former served for many years as city attorney, and
the latter as prosecuting attorney of the county.
"The subject of this sketch received his early educational disci-
pline in the city schools of Fort Wayne, the course of study in which
is equal to that of many colleges. He, however, did not depend, nor
has at any time, upon what may be learned in pursuing the ordinary
courses of study provided by institutions of learning, but he has car-
ried forward with great discrimination and exactitude such reading
and study as are best fitted to fit one for the learned profession which
he has so signally honored with his labors and services. He had many
advantages which not many may enjoy in preparing for and entering
upon the duties of a profession. He not only had the benefit of his
honored and distinguished father's learning, experience, example, ad-
vice and encouragement, but also the help, advice and encouragement
of a mother of fine ability and culture. He had gone through a course
of study in the law, been admitted to the bar, and become a partner
of his father before he was twenty-one years of age. From that time
until the present he has been one of the leading and most successful
practitioners of the Allen county bar. He is able and patient in the
preparation of his cases for trial, and in the trial of them he is skillful
and successful. In the preparation of a case and presenting the same
to the court and jury he has few equals in discovering in advance the
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 171
controlling points and in so marshaling the testimony and handling it
in the argument as to produce the conviction that the cause of his
client is just and ought to prevail. He is a good judge of human
nature, and is remarkably conversant with the modes of thought on
the part of jurors. With these qualifications and his natural facilities
as a public speaker he is forceful and successful as an advocate in
jury cases. Added to his other elements of success is that of sincerity,
which has no little weight with both the court and jury."
Farther it may be said that Mr. Colerick has maintained a strong
hold on the confidence and esteem of the people of his native county,
and that significant evidence of his popularity was that given in 1878,
when, as candidate on the Democratic ticket, he was elected to repre-
sent the twelfth district of Indiana in congress, making an excellent
record and being chosen as his own successor in 1880. Fidelity and
diligence characterized his congressional career, and he labored earn-
estly and effectively in advancing the interests of the people of his
district and those of the entire nation. After the expiration of his
second term in congress, Mr. Colerick resumed his professional work
in Fort Wayne, and continued actively engaged therein until 1883,
when he was tendered, without personal solicitation, the office of su-
preme court commissioner, accepting the office and entering upon the
discharge of his duties in November of the year mentioned. At the
expiration of his term, in 1885, he again resumed his professional
practice in Fort Wayne, and the ever-increasing demands of the same
now engross his time and attention. In politics Mr. Colerick is a
stanch advocate of the principles of the Democratic party.
172 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
MORSE HARROD, M. D.
The meciical profession has an able and worthy representative in
the city of Fort W^ayne in the person of Dr. Morse Harrod, whose
office and residence are located at 634 East Washington street. As
a physician and surgeon he has won prestige through his devotion to
the great profession for which he has so fully qualified himself, and
as a citizen he commands the same high degree of confidence and
esteem as denotes his professional status.
Dr. Morse Harrod is a native son of Allen county, and a member
of one of its representative families. He was bom on the homestead
farm, in Marion township, on the 6th of April, 1866, and is a son
of Morgan and Belinda (Bean) Harrod, both of whom were born in
Ohio, while they now both reside in Fort Wayne. The Doctor was
reared to the study and invigorating discipline of the home farm, while
his educational privileges in his youth were those afforded in the pub-
lic schools of his native township. He made good use of the oppor-
tunities thus afforded and in the meanwhile continued to assist in the
work of the homestead farm, in the management of which he was
associated with his father until he had attained his legal majority.
In the meanwhile he had formulated definite plans for his future ca-
reer, having determined to adopt the profession of medicine as his
vocation in life. With this desideratum in view, he began his tech-
nical reading under the preceptorship of Dr. Joseph L. Smith, of
Hoagland, this county, continuing his studies under these conditions
for one year, at the expiration of which he was matriculated in the
Eclectic Medical Institute in the city of Cincinnati, Ohio, where he
completed the prescribed course, one of notable thoroughness, and was
graduated as a member of the class of 1891, while he simultaneously
received his coveted degree of Doctor of Medicine. He was gradu-
ated in January, and in the following June he established himself in
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 173
practice in Fort Wayne, where he has labored zealously and effectively
and gained success and precedence as a physician and surgeon. He is
a member of the Indiana Eclectic Medical Society, is also president
of Indiana Eclectic Medical Association, and is a member of Summit
City Lodge, No. 32, Free and Accepted Masons, and Phoenix Lodge,
No. loi. Knights of Pythias. In politics the Doctor is a stanch ad-
herent of the Democratic party, and he has served two terms as coro-
ner of Allen county, having been first elected to this office in Novem-
ber, 1892, and having been chosen as his own successor two years
later, so that he served four consecutive years. Both he and his wife
are members of the First Baptist church.
On the 31st of May, 1888, was solemnized the marriage of Dr.
Morse Harrod to Miss Jennie L. Lipes, who was likewise bom and
reared in Allen county, being a daughter of David D. and Mary J.
Lipes, of Marion township. Dr. and Mrs. Harrod have three chil-
dren, Camilla, Wayne A. and Velma J.
174 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JOSHUA RUCH.
Another of the native sons of Allen county who has here been
reared to the great fundamental art of agriculture and who has con-
tinued his allegiance to the same in his independent career, is Mr.
Ruch, who is one of the progressive farmers and popular citizens of
Jackson township, and who has resided in this county from the time of
his birth.
Mr. Ruch was born in Aboit township, this county, on the 17th
of May, 186 1, and is a son of George and Mary (Lopshire) Ruch, the
former of whom was bom in Germany, in 1826, while the latter was
born in Pennsylvania, in 1829, both representing fine German ances-
try. The father was a child of six years at the time of his parents'
immigration to America, and the family settled in Mercer county,
Ohio, whence they came to Allen county a few years later. Here
he was reared to manhood and here he received a good common-school
education. He grew up on the farm and continued to be concerned
in the operation of farming in Wayne township until he initiated his
independent career in the same line of industry. He was married in
1848, and both he and his wife now reside on a well improved farm
in Jackson township, being numbered among the honored pioneers of
the county. They have had fourteen children, of whom six are liv-
ing, the subject of this sketch having been the seventh in order of
birth. In politics the father was a stanch Republican, having origi-
nally been affiliated with the Whig party.
Joshua Ruch, the immediate subject of this sketch, was afforded
the advantages of the public schools of Allen county, and from his
boyhood up contributed his quota to the work of the homestead farm,
in whose operation and management he was associated until he had
attained the age of twenty-six years. He has been consecutively en-
gaged in farming in his native county, and purchased his present farm
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 175
in 1897, the same comprising eighty acres. The place was entirely
unimproved at the time he acquired the same, and he has already
reclaimed fifty acres to cultivation, while he has erected a good resi-
dence and barn, besides other buildings demanded for the accommo-
dation of stock, machinery, produce, etc. He has personally attended
to the clearing of his land, and his energy and good management are
indicated in the marked air of thrift which pervades his fine little
farm. In his political proclivities Mr. Ruch is a stalwart adherent
of the Republican party, and both he and his wife hold membership
in the Methodist Episcopal church.
On the 1 2th of July, 1888, Mr. Ruch was united in marriage to
Miss Delia E. Culver, who was born in Portage county, Ohio, on the
23d of March, 1866, being a daughter of Henry and Elizabeth
(Meads) Culver, of English descent, who came to Allen county in
1867, settling in Jackson township, where she was reared to ma-
turity. Her father has been dead some years, and her mother now
lives in Fort Wayne. Concerning the children of Mr. and Mrs. Ruch,
we enter the following brief record, in conclusion of this sketch:
Hazel M. was born September 8, 1889; Bruce K. was born August
21, 1891 ; Glenn J. was bom October 9, 1893, and died on the i8th of
July, 1900.
176 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JAMES BARNETT.
In the study of so eminently a practical and useful life as that
of the honored pioneer to whom this memoir is dedicated, we find
an opulence of incentive and are irresistibly moved to the according
of respect, admiration and veneration. The history of the life of Mr.
Bamett was closely interwoven with the early annals of Fort Wayne,
and his name is writ high on the roll of the sterling pioneers of this
section of the state.
James Barnett was born in the state of Pennsylvania, on the 15th
of March, 1785, and he died in the city of Fort Wayne, Indiana,
on the 7th of June, 185 1. He was a son of John and Elizabeth
(Fl}Tin) Barnett, who removed from the old Keystone state to Ken-
tucky shortly after the close of the war of the Revolution. John
Bamett had rendered valiant service as a private in the Continental
line during the great struggle for independence, and upon his dis-
charge had received land warrants purporting to entitle him to certain
property in Kentucky. It was with the intention of taking up this
land that he removed thither, but upon his arrival he found it im-
possible to locate the claim, owing to the defective description in
the land warrants, and after several years passed in the fruitless at-
tempt he removed to Montgomery county, Ohio, securing land near
the present city of Dayton and there reclaiming a farm in the midst
of the sylvan wilds. Of his children four daughters and two sons
lived to attain maturity. The daughters all married, and their names
after marriage were as follows : Elizabeth Harris, Mary Houston,
Susan Bruen and Rachel Watton. The elder son, Abraham, became
a pioneer member of the bar of Dayton, Ohio. John Bamett died in
1797, leaving his widow and her six young children in somewhat
straitened circumstances.
^^^^^lOLcS dOa/uuZ^
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 177
At the time of his father's death James Barnett was twelve years
of age, and as his elder brother was his senior by only a few years
the burden of caring for the family rested in a larg'e part upon the
shoulders of the two boys, whose solicitude for their widowed mother
was unabating during the remaining years of her life. For a num-
ber of years the two brothers worked on the homestead farm, man-
aging to provide for their mother and sisters only by the most
strenuous exertion and careful management. During this crucial
period, however, they succeeded in giving to their sisters such edu-
cational advantages as were afforded in the schools of the locality
and period, and at a later period James assumed the entire charge
and care of the faiTn and family, in order to allow his brother the
opportunity of studying law. James thus acquired his own edu-
cational discipline principally through the aid of his brother and
sisters, who imparted to him each evening the knowledge which they
had acquired during the day at school.
As James grew to manhood and the cares of the farm and family
became somewhat less exacting, he engaged in fur trading with the
Indians, making long journeys into the west and south, by way of
the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. Several times he journeyed as far
as the city of New Orleans, then the principal market for the entire
district of the middle states, and while thus engaged in business he
became well acquainted with the location and latent advantages of
Fort Wayne, which was at that time little more than is indicated in
the name itself. His first visit to the fort had been made much
earlier, as he had accompanied his father on a trip to this point in
1797. ^^^ 1S12 he again visited the fort, as the captain of a com-
pany of volunteers from the vicinity of Dayton, his company being
a portion of the command which advanced to the relief of the fort
under General William Henry Harrison. It was during this visit
that Mr. Barnett canvassed the situation and determined to make
Fort Wayne his home. This design, however, he did not carry out
until a number of years later, and though it is impossible to determine
with absolute certainty the date of his making a permanent location
here, all evidence indicates that it must have been in the year 1818.
In the interval he had made several trips in transporting goods from
the east to the traders in Fort Wayne. These trips were made in
12
178 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
boats, by way of the Littte river and St. Mary's river, the goods
being carried across the portage some miles above Fort Wayne.
Upon making permanent location in Fort Wayne Mr. Barnett
opened a general store. In 1819 he was joined by Samuel Hanna,
another of the honored pioneers of the county and one of whom in-
dividual mention is made on other pages of this work, and they
formed a partnership under the firm name of Barnett & Hanna.
The business of this firm was that of selling at wholesale to the
traders throughout the country hereabouts, and the headquarters of
the firm was a log structure situated at the northwest comer of what
are now Barr and Columbia streets. Goods were brought from the
east by way of Toledo and thence up the Maumee river in pirogues
or dug-outs, and from Fort Wayne the distribution was made to the
various traders. About 1830 Mr. Barnett retired from active partici-
pation in this flourishing business enterprise, though he still con-
tinued to retain his interest in the same. " About the same time Allen
Hamilton was admitted as an active member of the firm, which con-
tinued the business under the title of Samuel Hanna & Company.
Among the other enterprises which gained the support and co-
operation of Mr. Barnett at this time was that of milling. In 1824
he associated himself with Anthony Davis in the erection of a mill
on the St. Mary's river, near the site of the present Orphans' Home
of Allen county, this mill being later known as Beaver's mill and
having been one of the first in this section of the state. Like many
others of the early settlers, Mr. Barnett made large investments in
r'eal-estate, and among other properties he owned a farm which em-
braced the block included l^etween Calhoun and Harrison and Berry
and Wayne streets, in the center of the city of Fort Wayne today.
In 1824 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Barnett to Miss
Nancy Welch Hanna, of Troy, Ohio, a sister of Samuel Hanna, who
came to Fort Wayne a few years later and become a partner with
Mr. Barnett in business. For their first home Mr. Barnett erected
what was then considered a very palatial residence, on East Columbia
street, this being the first brick structure built in the town. It is
interesting to note that this old landmark is still standing, being
now utilized as a bakery, by John H. Schweiter. After residing in
this house for a numlDcr of vears Mr. and Mrs. Barnett built for
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 179
themselves another residence, on West Berry street, on the site now
occupied by the estabhshment of the Wolf & Dessauer Dry Goods
Company, and in this home he continued to reside until his death,
June 7, 185 1, while his wife survived him by a number of years,
being summoned into eternal rest on August 10, 1857. Both were
devoted members of the Presbyterian church, and Mr. Barnett was
one of the founders and most influential members of the First Pres-
byterian church of Fort Wayne, and he was the second man buried
in Fort Wayne under Masonic auspices.
James and Nancy W. (Hanna) Barnett became the parents of
eight children, of whom only four lived to adult age. Concerning them
we incorporate brief record. John Houston Barnett died in 1872,
a bachelor. Mary was married, in 1849, to Watson Wall, of Fort
Wayne, and she now resides in St. Louis, Missouri, as do also her
four children, — Charles W., James, Mrs. Maitland Dyer and Mrs.
Susan Beard. Abraham G. Barnett was married, in 1859, to Miss
Elizabeth Angell, and of their children four are living, Byron H.,
Mrs. Katherine Beamer, James and Susan. Susan R. Barnett, the
next in order of birth of the four children who attained maturity,
was married, in 1870, to John A. Shoaff, and they became the par-
ents of three children, of whom two are living : Mary, who is the
wife of Albert J. Mitchell of St. Louis, Missouri; and Fred B., who
is individually mentioned on other pages of this work. Mrs. Shoaff
still resides in Fort Wayne, where she was born and reared and
where she has ever made her home. To her kindly offices we are
indebted for the data from which this memoir of her honored father
is prepared.
All who remember James Barnett seem to unite in appraising him
as a man of many sterling qualities. He is described as exceedingly
simple and frugal in his personal habits, yet generous to an unusual
degree toward others ; as fiery-tempered, yet of strong self-control ;
honest and just, and of great physical strength and courage. It is
said that he was known far and wide among the Indians for his
great strength and his swiftness as a runner. Owing to the hard-
ships and exposures of his early life, which were too great for even
his naturally robust constitution to withstand, he lost his health at
a comparatively early age, and, after a lingering illness of about
twelve years' duration, he passed to his reward.
i8o THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
As to the estimation in which James Barnett was held by his
contemporaries, the following editorial, which appeared in the Fort
Wayne Weekly Times of June 19, 1851, speaks for itself:
"We last week performed the melancholy duty of announcing
the decease of this venerable and highly respected citizen, and we had
reason to believe that some of his numerous friends who are ac-
quainted with his early history and subsequent career would, in time
for today's paper, prepare a suitable obituary. In this expectation
we have been disappointed, but we can not let the occasion pass
without testifying, however briefly and imperfectly, our respect for
his memory. Strange as it may seem, we have been unable to ascer-
tain with certainty his precise age or the place of his nativity, but
from the imperfect items we have been able to gather we believe his
age to have been about sixty-five years, and that he was born in Ken-
tucky. He was a hardy, efficient frontiersman of remarkable prowess
and brave as Caesar. At a very early age he was employed with his
father in packing provisions from the 'settlements,' as Cincinnati and
Dayton were then called, to the army in this region, and we have
been informed that when a very small boy, as early as Wayne's cam-
paign, he was at this place with his father. His peculiar personal
qualifications, his great sagacity and his experience rendered him a
most valuable assistant as messenger and bearer of dispatches be-
tween difficult and almost inaccessible posts and places during the
war of 18 1 2. Wherever there were difficulties to overcome or
dangers to be encountered in that line, on all this western frontier,
there was James Barnett.
"He settled permanently at this place, as nearly as we can learn,
about 18 18, since which time he has constantly resided here and
been intimately identified with the interests of the place, in its progress
from a mere trading post, when the country for hundreds of miles
in every direction was an unbroken wilderness, to its present pros-
perous and flourishing condition. He erected the first brick building
that went up in this town, — the two-story house yet standing on the
north side of Columbia street and first door east of the Times building.
He served for many years as justice of the peace. We have been
told, and that no doubt, that he brought more money here than any
other of the old class of settlers, and it is believed that but few of
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. i8i
the new ones brought as much, and with his abundant means at that
day, if he had been avaricious and grasping, he might have amassed
an immense fortune. But he was nothing of the kind, — his hand was
ahvays 'open as the day' to the needy and suffering. His capital was
always employed, but more frequently for the benefit of others than
himself. It was a 'placer' from which the foundation of several
splendid fortunes were dug. He was emphatically the poor man's
friend, and we doubt if ever a person approached him needing assist-
ance and was turned away empty. Honest and confiding to an
eminent degree himself, he was wont to confide too much in others,
and frequently suffered by becoming involved in their liabilities.
Still, it is supposed he has left a handsome competency for those near
and dear to him whom he has left behind."
Such was James Bamett, — a noble, honorable, generous, open-
hearted man, and, as was said at his funeral, "the noblest work of
God, an honest man." Owing to early hardships and exposures his
constitution had been shattered, and for the last three or four years
of his life he was quite feeble, being finally called from his earthly
habitation to dwell in the home "not made with hands, eternal in the
heavens." His funeral was attended by a large concourse of citizens
and by the Masonic fraternity in full regalia. His loss was felt as a
personal bereavement by the citizens in general, and in these later
years, seeing his life in strong perspective, we can well understand the
high regard in which he was held in the community which was so
long his home and the scene of his earnest and effective labors.
i82 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
FREDERICK C. W. KLAEHN.
At this point we enter brief record concerning one of the leading
farmers and most progressive and public-spirited citizens of Aboit
township, where he has resided from his boyhood days, while the
esteem in which he is held in the community is indicated in the fact
that he is at the present time incumbent of the responsible office of
township trustee.
Mr. Klaehn was bom in Prussia, Germany, on the 22d of May,
i860, and is a son of Frederick and Maria Klaehn, who emigrated
thence to the United States in 1869, coming to Fort Wayne soon after
their arrival in the new world. The father first secured employment
here in picking apples for Charles McCullough, but this work was in-
terrupted by an extraordinary snowfall in October, the trees being
broken down by the combined weight of fruit and snow. During the
first winter he was employed in connection with the grading of the line
of the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad northward from Fort Wayne,
arid in the spring of 1870 he located on the old Bash farm, in Aboit
township. Nine years later he effected the purchase of the present
homestead farm, which is located in the same township, on the Illi-
nois road, and five and one-half miles west of the city of Fort Wayne.
He originally purchased eighty acres, for a consideration of three
thousand dollars, the place having been comparatively well improved.
Later he added an adjoining tract of one hundred and twenty acres,
and here he developed one of the fine farms of the county, being
a man of industry, integrity and good business ability, so that he was
very successful in his efforts and also held as his own the confidence
and esteem of those who knew him. He died on the 3d of Januar}^
1898, at the age of sixty-two years. His widow still resides on the
old homestead, in which she takes a lively interest, being still alert
and ambitious and keeping house for herself in a portion of the com-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 183
modious residence, while she also finds much satisfaction in keeping
her own cows, chickens, etc. Her friends are in number as her ac-
quaintances, and she is finding the evening of her life one of gracious
and pleasing order. The subject is the only child.
Frederick C. W. Klaehn was about nine years of age at the time of
his parents' immigration to America, and he had received his ele-
mentary education in the excellent schools of his native land, while he
later duly availed himself of the advantages of the public schools of
Allen county, and for two winters attended a good business college.
He early began to render effective aid in the work and management
of the home farm, of which he has had entire charge since the death
of his father, being the only heir of his parents. He had previously
purchased a good farm in the vicinity of the old homestead, and he
has since added until his landed estate comprises three hundred and
forty acres of as fine land as can be found in this favored section of
the state. He has made excellent improvements on the farm, hav-
ing rebuilt the house, which is modern and attractive in design and
equipment, while he has also erected a fine bank bam and kept all
other buildings in the best of repair, so that thrift and prosperity are
to be noted by innumerable evidences. He is progressive in his ideas
and utilized the means and methods which will bring the maximum
returns, but he is not a follower of fads or one who wastes his time
and energy in fruitless experimentation. He is a type of the sturdy
and broad-minded yeomanry who constitute the bulwarks of our gov-
ernment and our prosperity.
In his political allegiance Mr. Klaehn is arrayed with the Re-
publican party, and he takes a lively interest in public affairs of a
local nature, while this interest is manifested in tangible aid and co-
operation when worthy objects are to be promoted. In November,
1904, he was elected trustee of Aboit township, assuming the duties
of his office in January following. He is specially concerned in the
educational matters in his jurisdiction. Aboit township has eight
school houses and an equal number of teachers, while the enrollment
of pupils at the time of this writing is three hundred and sixteen.
The township has no high school, but sends each year a due quota to
the Fort Wayne high school. It is the wish of Mr. Klaehn that all
teachers employed be residents of the township in case qualifications
i84 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
are the same, as he feels that this preference is but due, and that local
interest will be the greater. He is making an earnest effort to compass
the desired result. The school buildings are all substantial brick
structures, comparing more than favorably with the best in the county,
and the accessories and equipments are of modern standard. The
employment of duly qualified home teachers is the one desideratum
which most challenges the efforts of our subject. Mr. Klaehn is one
of the leaders of his party in Aboit township, and has frequently
served as delegate to county and congressional conventions, while he
has also been township assessor. Religiously, he belongs to the Evan-
gelical Lutheran church.
On the 30th of December, 1886, Mr. Klaehn was united in mar-
riage to Miss Elizabeth E. Kauder, who was born in Germany, and
who was five years of age at the time of her parents' immigration to
America. She is a daughter of Valentine and Elizabeth Kauder, well
known pioneers of Lake township. Mr. and Mrs. Klaehn have six
children, namely: Elizabeth E. M., WilHam F., Carl L. W., Elma
M. D., Bertha S. C. and Flora A. E.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 185
H. F. WILLIAM BERNING.
The subject of this sketch is the present able and popular incum-
bent of the office of trustee of Madison township, Allen county, and
he has the further distinction in the connection of having been the
first Republican to be elected to this position in the township within
a period of forty years. He has been a resident of Allen county since
1901, and is one of the progressive farmers and representative citizens
of the township mentioned. He is the owner of a weU improved lot
of a half acre, in section 19, and he has gained a strong hold upon
the confidence and regard of the community, as is evident from the
official preferment which has come to him.
Mr, Berning is a native of the old Hoosier commonwealth, and a
representative of one of its honored pioneer families. He was bom on
a farm in Adams county, Indiana, on the 7th of November, 1865, and
is a son of Henry and Louisa (Ahrens) Berning, of whose eight chil-
dren all are living. Both parents were born in Germany, but came
to America with their respective families when young, and the father
of our subject settled in Adams county, Indiana, in an early day, and
became one of the prosperous farmers and substantial and honored
citizens of that section. Both he and his wife are now living in Ad-
ams county. The subject of this review was reared to the sturdy dis^
cipline of the farm, and his early educational advantages were those
aflForded in the excellent public schools of his native county. He con-
tinued to be associated in the work and management of the home farm
until 1885, when he initiated his independent career by engaging in
farming and tilemaking in said county, where he continued operations
up to the time of his removal to Allen county, in 190 1. He is one of
the stalwart Republicans of Madison township, and takes an active
part in the party work here, while in 1904 he was made the candidate
i86 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
of his party for the office of trustee, to which he was elected by a
gratifying majority, for a term of four years. He is proving the right
man in the right place, and his services can not fail to redound to the
good of the township which he thus represents. Both he and his wife
are valued members of the German Lutheran church.
On the 7th of November, 1889, Mr. Beming was imited in mar-
riage to Miss Caroline Wistfeldt, who was bom and reared in Adams
county, this state, being a daughter of Frederick and Louisa (Netcher)
Wistfeldt, who were born in Germany, the father becoming one of
the substantial farmers of Adams county. Mrs. Berning was sum-
moned into eternal rest on the 9th of December, 1897, ^"^ is survived
by one child, Caroline. On the 13th of May, 1894, Mr. Berning
wedded Miss Louisa Witte, who was bom in Adams county, being a
daughter of William and Dora T. Witte, natives of Germany. Four
children have been born of this union, Rudolph, Edwin, Oscar and
Albert.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 187
HERMAN L. LOMONT.
The subject of this review is a native of Allen county and has here
maintained his home from the time of his birth to the present, while he
is one of the popular young business men of Monroeville, where he is
senior member of the firm of Lomont & Reynolds, dealers in fine
wines, liquors and cigars. He has been identified with business
affairs in this part of the country for several years past, and by his
reliability and honorable methods has gained popular confidence.
Herman L. Lomont was born on the homestead farm, in Jeffer-
son township, Allen county, Indiana, on the 15th of February, 1872,
and is a son of Francis and Cecilia (Peters) Lomont. both of whom
were born and reared in France, while both came to America in 1850,
While their marriage was solemnized in the following year. Soon
afterward they located on a farm in Allen county, and here the father
became a prosperous and highly respected citizen, continuing to be
identified with agricultural pursuits until his death, which occurred
in September, 1891, while his devoted wife survived him by several
years, being summoned to tlie life eternal in December, 1902. They
became the parents of ten children, of whom five are living, and the
subject of this sketch was the ninth in order of birth. Herman L.
Lomont passd his boyhood days on the home farm, and he early be-
came familiar with the duties involved in its cultivation, while his
educational discipline was secured in the public schools of his native
township. After leaving school he continued to assist in the work and
management of the home farm until he had attained to the age of nine-
teen years, when he entered upon an apprenticeship at the carpenter's
trade, becoming a skilled artisan in the line and continuing to devote
his attention to the trade for a period of thirteen years. He then pur-
chased a half interest in the business in which he is now engaged,
i88 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
and he and his partner conduct a well regulated establishment and
secure the best class of trade in their line of enterprise. Mr. Lomont
takes a loyal interest in local affairs of a public nature, and while he
has never been an aspirant for official preferment, he has accorded a
stanch allegiance to the Democratic party, in whose cause he has been
an active worker.
On the 3d of February, 1891, Mr. Lomont was united in marriage
to Miss Sarah A. Rose, who was bom in Jefferson township, this
county, on the 4th of March, 1872, being a daughter of Morris and
Elizabeth (Snyder) Rose, well known and honored residents of this
part of the county, where her father has long been engaged in farm-
ing. Mr. and Mrs. Lomont have three children, Lottie Pearl, Harry
M. and Morris L.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 189
FRANK J. KICK.
America is essentially a cosmopolitan nation, having drawn from
the four comers of the earth in making up her social fabric, while to
her hospitable shores have come men of sterling character and deter-
mined spirit, who have worked their own way to positions of inde-
pendence, becoming valuable citizens and standing loyal to the insti-
tutions of the great republic. Such an one is the subject of this re-
view, who is one of the prosperous farmers and honored citizens of
Jackson township.
Frank Joseph Kick was born in the picturesque old city of Utrecht,
Holland, on the i6th of November, 1828, and is a son of Frederick
and Wilhelmina (Kohne) Eick, both of whom were bom and reared in
Reklinhausen, Westphalia, Germany, said province at that time hav-
ing been an integral portion of Prussia. After their marriage tliey
removed to Utrecht, Holland, in which city the father of our subject
was employed as foreman in a cabinet shop, having been a skilled ar-
tisan in his line. Shortly after locating there, however, war broke
out between Holland and Belgium, and the Holland government gave
orders to foreigners to either take up arms in defense of the country
or else leave said country. The mother of our subject urged thit
the family return to Germany, and this course was followed, Frank
J. being at the time but two years old. The little family had hardly
crossed the line between Holland and Germany before peace was de-
clared, and it was a source of frequent regret to Frederick Eick that
he did not remain in Holland and cast in his lot there. He returned
to his old home in Westphalia, where seven sons and two daughters
were added to the family circle, our subject having been the eldest
of the children and the only one bom in Holland. Three of the chil-
dren died in Germany. Frank J. came to America in 185 1, and the
parents, in company with their four other sons and one daughter,
I90 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
joined him here in 1855. The parents passed the remainder of their
lives in the state of Ohio, and of the children three, two boys and one
girl, are living at the present time.
The subject of this review secured his early educational training in
the excellent schools of his native land, and at the age of fifteen years
he began an apprenticeship at the cabinet maker's trade in his father's
shop. After completing his apprenticeship he traveled about as a
journeyman at his trade, and at the age of nineteen years he became
a member of the Seventh Pioneer Corps, a well known military or-
ganization. In 185 1, at the age of twenty-three years, Mr. Eick came
to the United States, believing that better opportunities were here
afforded for the attaining of independence through personal effort.
He settled in the city of Cincinnati, Ohio, where he secured employ-
ment in the line! of his trade. In 1855 he was there married to Mrs.
(Huntelmus) Kuhne, and they became the parents of four children,
of whom Frederick, the eldest, died at the age of two years and five
months; Frank is a resident of Fort Wayne and has served for the
past eight years as head deputy sheriff of his county. The two other
children were girls, who died in early childhood, while the wife and
mother passed to the life eternal in 1864. In January, 1865, Mr.
Eick married Mrs. , whose maiden name was Winkler, and
of this union have been born nine children, two sons and seven daugh-
ters. Only two of the children are living, Sophia, who is the wife
of Barney Papenbrock, and Alvina, who is the wife of Peter Ross-
wurm.
Mr. Eick removed from Cincinnati to Allen county, Indiana, in
April, 1881, and purchased his present fine farm, in Jackson township,
the same comprising forty acres. The land was practically unreclaimed
from the forest when he purchased the same, and he has developed it
into one of the fertile and profitable farms of the township, while he
has made good improvements in the way of buildings. He and his
devoted wife have a pleasant home and are enjoying the due rewards,
of their former labors. Both are communicants of the Catholic
church, and in politics Mr. Eick is a stalwart Democrat of the Jack-
sonian type. He came to this country at the time when the Know-
nothing party was in power to a considerable degree, and at that
time he was led to espouse the cause of the Democracy, of whose prin-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 191
ciples and policies he has ever since remained an advocate, while his
loyalty to the country of his adoption is of the most appreciative and
insistent type. His political affiliation was determined when, on April
4, 1854, at Louisville, Kentucky, he viewed the riots, in which a large
three-story tenement house was destroyed, he being stationed at a fine
vantage point in the cathedral. He is a man of fine mental gifts, and
his life has been one of rectitude and honor, so that he has held the
esteem of his fellow men in all places and under all conditions. He is
one of the valued citizens of Jackson township, and is well entitled to
representation in the pages of this work.
192 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
WILLIAM A. HAMILTON.
More than seventy years have elapsed since the parents of the sub-
ject of this review took up their abode in the midst of the virgin
forests of Aboit township, where he has passed his entire hfe, and
where he now has a finely improved farm, in section 17. He is to be
thus considered as one of the pioneer citizens of the county and a rep-
resentative of one of its old and honored families, so that the pro-
priety of according him a place of due distinction in this compilation
is manifest.
Mr. Hamilton was born on the pioneer farmstead in Aboit town-
ship, this county, on the ist of December, 1835, and there is no doubt
that in the diminutive but cheerful little log cabin home his advent
caused rejoicing that chill winter day. He is a son of William and
Joannah ( VanHoozen) Hamilton, both of whom were bom and reared
in the vicinity of the city of Syracuse, New York, while both repre-
sented families long identified with the annals of American history,
the ancestry in the paternal line being traced to the Scotch deriva-
tion, and that in the maternal line to the sturdy Holland Dutch stock.
The parents of our subject set out for what M^as then considered the
far west, the state of Indiana, in the year 1834, making the trip by
way of the Erie canal and Lake Erie to Toledo and coming up the
Maumee river in a pirogue, or dugout canoe, propelled by poles. Mr.
Hamilton had previously filed entry on a tract of government land in
section 17, Aboit township, adjoining the present farm of his son
William, subject of this sketch, and he came to his destination by
driving through the woods to his new farm, which was covered
with a heavy growth of timber, while no roads had as yet been con-
structed. He erected a log cabin of the type common to the locality
and period, the same having a clapboard and pole roof and puncheon
floor, all the fittings of the home being made by hand. Indians and
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 193
wild animals still roamed through the dim forest aisles and in the
vicinity of the new home of the sturdy pioneers were to be found but
two neighbors, each residing a number of miles distant. Mr. Ham-
ilton set to himself the task of reclaiming his land, burning fine tim-
ber that would have been of great market value today, and looking
upon the same as an incubus rather than a benefit. He effected the
clearing of one hundred acres and developed a good farm, while he
added to his holdings in the township until he had four hundred acres.
He continued to occupy a log cabin for twenty years, and then, about
1852, erected a frame house. The building is still standing, and is on
the farm now owned by George Brinsley, of Fort Wayne. William
Hamilton continued to reside on his homestead during the remainder
6i his life, doing his part in forwarding the development and progress
of the country and having the unalloyed respect and confidence of
those who knew him. He was summoned to his reward in 1875, at
the age of sixty-three years, while his loved and devoted wife, who
had been his companion and helpmeet for forty-two years, preceded
him into eternal rest by only one week, so that "in death they were
not divided." He was a Whig in politics until the organization of
the Republican party, when he identified himself with the latter, whose
cause he ever afterward supported. He served as township trustee
several years, and was also called upon to serve in other local offices.
Of the six children three attained to maturity, namely : Mary, who
is the wife of A. M. Darolins, of Morocco, Newton county, this state ;
Jane Agnes, who is the wife of A. M. Daro, of Montpelier, this state,
and William A., who is the immediate subject of this sketch.
William A. Hamilton was reared on the old homestead farm and
early became inured to the work connected with its development and
cultivation. At the age of twenty-one years he was married, and
thereafter continued to be associated with his father for seven years.
His father then gave him eighty acres of land, nearly all of which
was unreclaimed, and he still retains this place, while he has added
to his estate until it now comprises two hundred acres of as fine land
as is to be found in this part of the county. He cleared eighty acres
of his own land and also assisted in the reclamation of much of his
father's land. His original residence was a log house, the logs being
hewed, and his present commodious frame residence was erected
13
194 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
about twenty-two years ago, while eight years since he built a fine
barn, forty by one hundred feet in dimensions. The bam which had
previously stood on the same site was destroyed by fire, entailing a
loss of fifteen hundred dollars, aside from insurance, as the building
was well filled with grain, machinery, implements, etc. Mr. Ham-
ilton is recognized as one of the substantial farmers and loyal citizens
of his native county, where it is his just desert *ind good fortune to
command the uniform esteem of the community. Though never ac-
tive in political affairs, he is a stanch supporter of the principles of
the Democratic party.
In the year 1856 Mr. Hamilton was united in marriage to Miss
Barbara Scott, daughter of John and Nancy (Kite) Scott, early set-
tlers of Aboit township. Detailed mention is made of these sterling
pioneers in the sketch of the life of their son William, appearing on
other pages of this work, so that it is not necessary to re-enter the
data at this point. We enter the following brief record concerning
the ten children born to Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton : John Archibald,
of Fort Wayne; Anna is the wife of Charles Crawford, of Hutchin-
son, Kansas ; George is engaged in farming near Pratt, Kansas ; Alice
is the wife of John Kelsey, a farmer of Oklahoma; Frank and Wilson
remain at the parental home ; Lillian is the wife of Lewis Shannon,
,of Hutchinson, Kansas; Henry maintains his home in Fort Wayne,
and is a locomotive engineer in the employ of the Pittsburg, Fort
Wayne & Chicago Railroad; Hugh died December 7, 1900, at the
age of twenty-three years, having met his death as the result of an
accident, shooting himself while participating in a rifle contest ; James
died at the age of twenty-three years, on the 31st of December, 1903,
of consumption. He served two years in the Philippines, having been
a member of one of the early regiments sent there ; Hugh also enlisted
for service at the time of the Spanish- American war, and was in
camp with his command, but was never called into active service.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 195
WILLIAM SCOTT.
The honored father of this representative farmer of Aboit town-
ship was one of the early settlers of said township, where he lived up
to the full tension of pioneer life and contributed his quota to the
founding and upbuilding of the substantial civic and industrial pros-
perity which now indicates this favored section of the old Hoosier
state. The subject of this review resides on a portion of the old home-
stead farm, and this has been his home from the time of his birth to
the present, while he is one of the successful and influential farmers
and citizens of his township.
Mr. Scott was bom on the farm on a portion of which he now
lives, on the 31st of July, 1846, the old homestead lying seven miles
west of the court house, in the city of Fort Wayne. He is a son of
John and Nancy (Kite) Scott, the former of whom was born in Penn-
sylvania, and the latter in Virgina, while their marriage was solem-
nized near Newark, Ohio, whither the respective families removed
when Mr. and Mrs. Scott were children. The mother of John Scott
died when he was a child, and he and his sister were thereafter reared
in the home of a relative, on whose farm he continued to be em-
ployed until he had attained to the age of thirty-one years — this being
three years after his marriage. In 1839 he came with his wife from
O'hio to Allen county, Indiana, driving through to Logansport with
team and wagon and remaining there for a time before coming to
Allen county, in the same year. ^Here he continued his residence
nearly five years before buying land. He was accompanied to the
county by his brother-in-law. Archibald Kite, who was then a bache-
lor, and the last twenty-five years of Mr. Kite's life were passed in the
home of Mr. Scott, with whom he had been so closely associated in
the pioneer days. Mr. Kite lived to attain the patriarchal
age of ninety-three years, and was undoubtedly the oldest
196 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
man in Allen county at the time of his death, in May,
1903. Upon coming to this county Messrs. Scott and Kite
rented a little log cabin near the old canal, said struc-
ture having been erected as a horse stable, and having no floor, while
the door was screened only by a quilt, which was slight protection
against prowling Indians or wolves or other wild animals. Mr. Scott
secured employment cutting wood, while he also worked for the Rock-
hill brothers, on their farm, while he found a source of revenue in
hunting wild game, including deer, bear, turkeys, etc., Avhile he often
exchanged saddles of venison for needed groceries. Five years after
his arrival in the county Mr. Scott purchased eight}^ acres of canal
land, in Aboit township, the entire tract being covered with a heavy-
growth of native timber. He paid one dollar and a quarter an acre
for the land, and his was the first clearing made in the neighborhood,
save for that previously made by James M. Cartright, a bachelor,
who had made a small clearing and erected a little cabin on an adjoin-
ing piece of land. In 1844 Mr. Scott began the work of reclaiming
his farm to cultivation, and on the place he erected a substantial cabin
of hewed logs, the domicile having only one room and being twenty
by twenty-four feet in dimensions. The building was equipped with
a clapboard roof, a sawed ash floor and a brick chimney, and was
thus one of the best houses in the locality, its superiority being due to
the fact that Mr. Scott had no little facility in the use of tools and
could thus supplement the attractions of his necessarily primitive
home. Within the period of the Civil war he made an addition to the
house, and in 1871 another addition was made, making the residence
one of spacious order. In this old homestead he continued to reside
during the remainder of his life, and in the same his two maiden
daughters, Amelia and Nancy, now have their home. Mr. Scott was
prospered in his efforts and soon added an adjoining eighty acres to
his farm, while later he purchased the eighty acres now owned and
occupied by his son William, subject of this sketch, the consideration
being thirty-five hundred dollars. He continued to add to his landed
estate until he had four hundred and twent}'" acres, all in one body,
save for one tract of eighty acres. He cleared about eighty-five acres
and made a valuable farm, making improvements of substantial or-
der, including the erection of the present barns, about 1858. Mr.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 197
Kite, in the meanwhile, returned to Ohio, where he remained until
well advanced in years, when he came again to Allen county, where
he passed the remainder of his life, as has already been intimated.
Mr. Scott was successful in his farming- operations, and also devoted
no little attention to the raising of live stock. His integrity was a
dominating characteristic of his nature, and his word was as good as
any bond that was ever executed. He held the high esteem of all
who knew him, and was a prominent figure in local affairs, having
held various offices of trust, including that of township trustee. He
was a Democrat in his political proclivities. He died in September,
1894, in his eighty-fifth year, and his wife was of the same age at the
time of her death, two years previously, having been his senior by
two years. Of the nine children, eight attained years of maturity
and survived the parents, while since that time one son, George A.,
a bachelor, has passed away, being fifty-seven years of age at the time
of his death. Of the seven surviving children we record that Bar-
bara is the wife of William A. Hamilton, of Aboit township, who is
individually mentioned in this work ; Susanna is the wife of David
Grove, a farmer of the same township ; Sarah is the wife of Hamilton
MoflFatt, of the same township; Matilda is the wife of Harry Snyder,
of this township; William is the immediate subject of this sketch,
and Amelia and Nancy reside in the old homestead. The father con-
tinued to hold his property in his own name until death, when he
made a proper division by will.
William Scott was reared on the old home farm and received a
gX)od common-school education, while he continued to reside in the
parental home until the time of his marriage, on the 14th of Novem-
ber, 1872, to Miss Sarah E. Stouder, who was born in Fairfield
county, Ohio, in 1850, being a daughter of Simeon W. and Ann (Gil-
more) Stouder, who came to Allen county in 1854 and settled in
Aboit township, where Mr. Stouder secured one hundred and twenty
acres of canal land, which he reclaimed and otherwise improved. He
died in his seventy-first year, and his first wife died at the age of
forty-seven. He later married Matilda Todd, who survived him
by several years. Mr. Scott is a Democrat in politics.
198 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JONATHAN HART.
When it is stated in a preliminary way that the subject of this re-
view has been a resident of Allen county for more than half a century
amd that he came here with his parents when a lad of twelve years,
it becomes evident that we have to treat incidentally with a repre-
sentative of one of the pioneer families of this favored section of the
Hoosier state, while in an individual sense we may refer to Mr. Hart
as being one of the prominent farmers and influential citizens of Mon-
roe township, where he is the owner of one of the finest rural estates
in this section of the county.
Mr. Hart claims the old Buckeye state as the place of his nativity.
having been bom in Ashland county, Ohio, on the 17th of April, 1837.
and being a son of George and Sarah Hart, both of whom were na-
tives of the state of Pennsylvania and of German lineage.
the respective families having been founded in the Key-
stone commonwealth in the colonial epoch of our national
history. The parents became pioneers of Ashland county, Ohio,
where they remained until 1849, i^ April of which year they arrived
in Allen county, Indiana, where they passed the remainder of their
lives. The father secured a considerable tract of heavily timbered land
in Monroe township, reclaiming much of the same to cultivation and
becoming one of the well known and highly honored citizens of this
part of the county, where he lived and labored to goodly ends until he
was summoned from the scene of life's endeavors. He was a stanch
Democrat in his political proclivities, and both he and his wife were
zealous and consistent members of the Lutheran church. They be-
came the parents of ten children, of whom five are living at the time
of this writing, in 1905.
Jonathan Hart, to whom this sketch is dedicated, retains a vivid
recollection of the conditions which were in evidence here in the pio-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 199
neer days, and he early began to contribute his quota to the reclaim-
ing and cultivating of the homestead farm, waxing strong in mind
and body under the sturdy discipline involved, while he attended the
common schools of the locality as opportunity afforded, his rudimen-
tary education having been secured in Ohio, where he was reared to
the age of twelve years, as previously intimated in this context. He
has never wavered in his allegiance to the noble art of husbandry, and
has been one of those whose efforts have demonstrated that agricul-
tural operations constitute a most desirable field of endeavor when
directed with energy and the same care and discrimination demanded
in other lines of business. He has been successful and has developed
one of the finest farm properties in Monroe township, having re-
claimed much of the land from the forest and having made the best
of permanent improvements. His fine estate is located in section 16
and comprises eighty acres, the greater portion being maintained
under a high state of cultivation, while the owner also devotes no
little attention to the raising of high grade live stock. In all the
relations of life he has ever been sincere, straightforward and hon-
orable, and the result in a concomitant way has been his retention
of the unequivocal confidence and esteem of his fellow men, while
he has not hedged himself in with his individual affairs, but has
been progressive and public spirited in his attitude as a citizen, talc-
ing deep interest in all that pertains to the progress and material
and civic prosperity of his home township and county, and being
one of the highly esteemed pioneer citizens of this section. In poli-
tics Mr. Hart has ever rendered a stalwart allegiance to the Demo-
cratic party, in whose cause he has been an active worker in a loyai
way, though never a seeker of official preferment. He was reared in
the faith of the Lutheran church, with whose doctrines his views are
in harmony, while in a fraternal way we find him identified with
the Junior Order of United American Mechanics.
On the 2ist of February, 1861, Mr. Hart was united in mar-
riage to Miss Sarah W. Hines, whose parents, D. H. and
Sarah Hines, were born in Loudoun county, Virginia, while they
were numbered among the sterling pioneers of Adams county, Indi-
ana, where the closing years of their lives were passed. Concern-
ing the children of Jonathan and Sarah W. Hart, we record that
200 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Oliver T. was born January 20, 1862; Wayne M., March 28, 1864;
Jennety, November 15, 1866, and William C, May 15, 1870. All
are living except the last mentioned, who died on the 5th of Decem-
ber, 1870, aged about seven months. The devoted wife and mother
was summoned into eternal rest on the 8th of December, 1897, at
the age of sixty years, ten months and seven days. On the 7th of
March, 1901, the subject consummated a second marriage, being
then united to Mrs. Virginia E. Yerian, who was bom in Adams
county, Indiana, on the loth of August, 1844, being a sister of Mr.
Hart's first wife. The attractive family home is a center of gracious
hospitality, and the members of the family are prominent in the
social life of the community.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 201
MORRIS F. ROSE.
Allen country contributed to the federal armies many a brave
and valiant soldier during the war of the Rebellion, and among the
surviving veterans of that great conflict which determined the integ-
rity of the Union, stands the subject of this review, who was loyal
to his country in her hour of peril and extremity, and who has ever
since been her stanch supporter in the "piping times of peace." The
ranks of that noble organization are fast being decimated by the one
invincible foe, death, and it is fitting that in every publication of this
nature special tribute be paid to those men who served with all of
fidelity in defense of the Union during the greatest civil war known
in the annals of history. Mr. Rose was born in a far distant land,
but has resided in the United States from his childhood days, while
the family was established in Allen county more than a half cen-
tury ago, so that he may well be mentioned as a representative of
pioneer stock in this favored section of the old Hoosier state. He
was long numbered among the progressive farmers and influential
citizens of Jefferson township, where he has passed the major por-
tion of his life, and he is now living practically retired in the vil-
lage of Monroeville, where he has an attractive residence, and
where he is held in the highest confidence and esteem by all who
know him.
Morris F. Rose was born in one of the French-speaking prov-
inces of the fair little republic of Switzerland, on the 22d of March,
1842, and is a son of Morris and Anna (Lynn) Rose, both native
of the same section of Switzerland, and both of whom spoke the
French language as their vernacular. The father was engaged in
farming in his native land until 1850, when he sold his holdings
there and emigrated with his family to America. In that year he
made location in Stark county, Ohio, where many of French birth
202 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
or extraction had colonized, and there he purchased land and
engaged in farming, but in 1852 he sold his property and came to
Allen county, Indiana, where he passed the remainder of his long
and useful life. He became the owner of a good farm in Jefferson
township, reclaiming much of the land from the virgin forest, and
being one of the honored and substantial pioneers of this section at
the time of his death, which occurred on the 25th of August, 1888,
while his cherished and devoted wife soon joined him in the "land
of the leal," her death having occurred on the 25th of the follow-
ing November. They became the parents of five children, of whom
two are living at the time of this writing. The parents were zealous
and consistent members of the Catholic church, and in his political
proclivities the father was a stanch Republican, having identified him-
self with the "grand old party" at the time of its organization. He
was a man of broad mental ken and marked individuality, was loyal
and public spirited as a citizen and commanded unqualified confi-
dence and regard in the community which was so long his home and
the scene of his well directed endeavors.
Morris F. Rose, the immediate subject of this sketch, was a lad
.of about ten years at the time of the family's removal from Ohio to
Allen county, and in the years immediately following his portion
was one of much work and close application, in connection with the
development and cultivation of the home farm, while his educational
advantages were of limited order, owing to the exigencies of time
and place. He stated to the writer that he secured his early educa-
tional training in the Sunday school which he attended after coming
to Allen county, learning to read under the discipline there secured,
while he never attended the common schools to any appreciable
extent. He learned to write after entering the army, receiving
instructions from kind-hearted comrades, who thus aided him in
communicating with his home folk. His alert mentality has enabled
him to make good the handicap of his youth, and he has profited
fully by the valuable lessons gained in the school of experience, being
a man of wide information and one who has kept in touch with the
questions and issues of the day, while he soon developed that marked
business acumen which has conserved his success in connection with
the practical affairs of life.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 203
On the loth of August, 1862, at New Haven, this county, Mr.
Rose enlisted as a private in Company D, Eighty-eighth Indiana
Volunteer Infantry, with which he proceeded to the front, his com-
mand being assigned to the First Brigade, First Division of the
Fourteenth Army Corps. He participated in a number of the
important engagements of the great internecine conflict, and was
ever found at the post of duty as a faithful and loyal soldier of the
republic whose unity he thus aided in preserving. Among the more
notable battles in which he took part may be mentioned the follow-
ing: Perryville, Kentucky; Stone River, Chickamauga, Lookout
Mountain, Missionary Ridge, Tennessee; Buzzard Roost, Georgia,
and the ever memorable Atlanta campaign, under General Sher-
man, and the battle of Bentonville, North Carolina, following hard
upon the celebrated "march to the sea." At Tullahoma, Tennessee,
Mr. Rose was promoted to the office of sergeant of his company,
and he served as such until the close of the war. In December, 1863,
after the battle of Chickamauga, he received a furlough of ninety
days, which he passed at home, and he rejoined his command at
Chickamauga, on the 30th of January, 1864, and thereafter remained
in active service until victory had crowned the Union arms. He was
with Sherman's forces on the march through the Carolinas to Rich-
mond, and thence to the national capital, where he took part in the
Grand Review, and he received his honorable discharge in June,
1865, being twenty-three years of age at the time.
After the close of his military career Mr. Rose returned to Allen
county, where he has resided ever since, and where he has been
actively identified with agricultural pursuits during the major por-
tion of the intervening period. He became the owner of a fine
farm of eighty acres, in section 27, Jefferson township, making the
best of improvements on the place and conducting his operations with
distinctive energy and discrimination, so that he gained a position
among the substantial members of the farming community, and
wielded no little influence in public affairs of a local nature, while
to him has ever been accorded the implicit confidence and regard of
the people of the county in which he has made his home for more
than half a century. On the 25th of January, 1904, Mr. Rose pur-
chased a nice residence property in the attractive village of Monroe-
•204 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
ville, where he now resides essentially retired, though he still main-
tains a general supervision of his farming interests. In politics our
subject is found arrayed as an uncompromising advocate of the prin-
ciples and policies of the Republican party, having cast his first presi-
dential vote for the martyred Lincoln, and in a fraternal way he is
identified with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and with Wil-
liam H. Link Post, No. 301, Grand Army of the Republic, in Mon-
roeville, being one of the popular comrades of his post, of which he
is commander at the time of this writing. His religious affiliation
is with the Methodist church.
Mr. Rose has been twice married. On the loth of August, 1865,
he wedded Miss Elizabeth Snyder, who was bom in Stark county,
Ohio, on the 15th of July, 1845, being a daughter of James and
Susan (Lynn) Snyder, who were of Pennsylvania German stock
and who were early settlers in Allen county, where they passed the
closing years of their lives. Mr. and Mrs. Rose became the parents
of ten children, namely : Lucy, Ada, James, Sarah A., Susan M.,
William M., Maud A., Amy, Grace B. and Maggie. Mrs. Rose was
summoned into eternal rest on the 17th of November, 1900, at the
age of fifty-six years, four months and two days. She was a
devoted wife and mother, and her gracious womanhood gained to her
the affectionate regard of all with whom she came in contact. On
the i6th of June, 1902, Mr. Rose was united in marriage to Miss
Elizabeth Chapman, who was bom in Tippecanoe county, Indiana,
on the 27th of November, 1852, being a daughter of William and
Margaret (Broyles) Chapman, both of whom are now deceased.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 205
ERNST F. W. BRANNING.
The subject of this memoir was a worthy representative of that
valued type of men whom the German fatherland has given to Amer-
ica, and through whose efforts the march of progress has been dis-
tinctively accelerated. He was one of the pioneers of Wayne town-
ship, where he settled more than half a century ago, on the farm
now owned and occupied by his son Henry E. Industry and good
management were the outward exemplification of his energies, and
truth, honor, integrity and loyalty represented the intrinsic elements
of his character, so that he naturally filled a place of usefulness and
commanded unbounded esteem in the community in which he so long
made his home, and in which he accomplished so much in a temporal
way.
The fine farmstead which remains as a monument to the labors
of our subject was a tract of wild and heavily timbered land at the
time he came into possession of the property, whose purchase he
effected in April, 1850, for what seems now the almost impossible
consideration of five hundred dollars. Fertile fields, modern build-
ings, and all the marks of an advanced civilization now are found
patent on the land where he settled in the virgin forest in the years
long past, while to him has been due the greater portion of tlie
work of transformation.
Ernst Frederick William Branning was born in Buchholz
Kreis Minden, Prussia, on the 25th of June, 1820, and he was reared
and educated in his native land, whence he immigrated to America
in 1844, in company with several other families and individuals
from the same locality, all coming to Adams county, and virtually
founding a sturdy little colony. Our subject remained for a time in
that county, and then came to Allen county to aid in the support of
his widowed sister, Mrs. Minnie Kammeier, whose husband had
2o6 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN,
recently died, and who was at the time residing in Wayne township.
Mr. Branning was a carpenter by trade, and in the pioneer commu-
nity he found ample demand for his services in this line, having erected
many of the first houses and barns in this locality. In 1850 he pur-
chased his farm, as has been noted, and here he took up his residence
in a log cabin of the primitive type, and set himself vigorously to
the task of reclaiming his land to cultivation. This old cabin long
withstood the ravages of time, continuing in use until 1904, though
numerous improvements had been made on the same. It was then
razed to make way for the present attractive modern residence,
which was erected by the present owner of the farm. On this home-
stead Mr. Branning continued to be actively engaged in general
farming and stock growing during the remainder of his active career,
and he made the forty-acre farm one of the best in the township. He
was summoned into eternal rest on the 2d of May, 1901, in the
eighty-first year of his life, while his name is held in lasting honor
in the community where he lived and labored to such goodly ends.
He was a stanch Democrat in his political proclivities, and both he
and his wife were prominent and valued members of the Lutheran
church, having been members of the parish of old St. Paul's church,
in Fort Wayne, while he assisted materially in the building of all
three of the Lutheran edifices, while his funeral was the first to be
held from the beautiful Emmanuel church, on Broadway, interment
being made in Concordia cemetery.
In St. Paul's Lutheran church. Fort Wayne, on the 24th of De-
cember, 1850, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Branning to Miss
Fredericka Wilhelmina Buchmann, who was born in Prussia, on the
8th of November, 1830, and who accompanied her parents to Amer-
ica when a girl, the family locating in Allen county. Her death
occurred about two years before that of her husband. Concerning
the three children of this union we record that Wilhelmina, the wife
of William Dammeyer, died on the 21st of February, 1883, at the
age of thirty-one years; Sophia became the wife of Henry Miller,
and after his death wedded Richard Franke, and they reside in
Wayne township, and Henry E. remains on the old home place.
Henry E. Branning was bom in the old homestead, on his pres-
ent farm, on the 2d of September, 1863, and though the residence
i
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 207
had been rebuilt and modernized, the house in which he was born
still remains an integral portion of the same, so that this has prac-
tically been his home throughout his life thus far. He duly availed
himself of the advantages of the public schools of the county, and
in his youth learned the carpenter's trade, which he has followed to
a greater or less extent, in the city of Fort Wayne. Since his
father's death he has given his attention almost entirely to the home
farm, which adjoins the city limits on the south, and he has made
the enterprise a most successful one, since he has had ample experi-
ence, having been identified witli the operation of the farm from his
youth up, while he is known and honored as one of the representa-
tive citizens of his township. In politics he holds to the faith in
which he was reared, and gives a stanch allegiance to the Democracy.
In the fall of 1904 he was the candidate of his party for the office
of township trustee, but met defeat with the party ticket in general,
this being the great landslide in which President Roosevelt was victo-
rious by such phenomenal majorities. He and his wife are members
of the Lutheran church.
On the 20th of December, 1888, Henry E. Branning was united
in marriage to Miss Emma Bahde, daughter of Ernst and Augusta
Bahde, who were early settlers in Allen county, the father having
been a carpenter by trade, and having been employed in the rail-
road shops in Fort Wayne until 1870, when he removed with his
family to Fayette county, Illinois. Her mother died June 9, 1895,
and her father died January 31, 1901. Mr. and Mrs. Branning have
ten children : Henry, Anna, Ernest, Clara, Martha, William, Alma.
]\Iartin, Emma and Luella.
2o8 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
HON. WILLIAM FLEMING.
Few men of Allen county were as widely and favorably known
as the late William Fleming. He was one of the strong- and in-
fluential citizens whose lives have become an essential part of the
history of this section of the state and for years his name was
synonymous for all that constituted honorable and upright manhood.
William Fleming was a native of county Wicklow, Ireland,
having been born not far south of the capital city of Dublin, on the
17th of June, 1828, and he was the son of Luke and Sarah (Holt)
Fleming. Until the age of fourteen years he attended the national
school in his native county, and was then sent to Dublin to continue
his studies. In 1846 the family set sail for America, arriving safely
at Quebec, Canada, but while lying in quarantine in that harbor, the
father and four of the children died. The bereaved mother, with
the three surviving children, all boys, then came to Fort Wayne, In-
diana, where she passed her remaining days.
The subject of this sketch, after his arrival in Fort Wayne, first
engaged in teaching school, being also employed at other lines of
work, including stonecutting. He possessed a warm, genial nature
and soon made friends of all his acquaintances. His first official
position was that of deputy sheriff under Sheriff' McMullen, and, at
the death of that officer, he succeeded to the office, and was later, as a
Democrat, twice elected to fill this responsible position. For eight
years following the expiration of his last term as sheriff he served
as city clerk, and in 1878 was elected state treasurer. In 1880 he
was again a candidate for this office, but, with the balance of the
ticket, was defeated. He was a prominent factor in the councils of
his party and during his active political life M^as invariably a delegate
to the Democratic national conventions.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 209
As a business man Mr. Fleming had few equals in Fort Wayne
and nd superiors, being industrious, enterprising, and successful in all
he undertook. He was one of the originators of the New York,
Chicago & St. Louis Railroad and was a director of that road until
it was sold to the Vanderbilt interests. He was for a long time
editor and proprietor of the Fort Wayne Sentinel, was treasurer of
the Indiana School Book Company, president of the Salimonie Min-
ing and Gas Company, vice-president and acting president of the
First National Bank of Fort Wayne, president of the Hartford City
Paper Company, and a stockholder and director in many other busi-
ness enterprises, being actively engaged in these matters until death,
on January 13, 1890, at which time he was one of the wealthy men
of the state. Mr. Fleming was twice married. In January, 1850, he
married Miss Ann McLaughlin, who passed away August 18, 1854,
leaving two children, Luke M. and Mary E., the latter becoming the
wife of Dr. L. J. Willien, of Terre Haute, Indiana. The second
marriage of Mr. Fleming took place on July 7, 1859, when he
wedded Miss Helen F. Mayer, a daughter of George and Catherine
(Hiller) Mayer, of Germany. To the latter union were born the
following children: Catherine S., wife of Dr. Dinnen; Helen G.,
wife of A. B. Trentman; Georgie F., wife of William McKinnie; M.
Celeste ; Stephen B. ; Sister Mary Helen, of St. Mary's of the
Woods ; William ; Sadie Marie. Mr. Fleming was a true and faithful
member of the Roman Catholic church and rendered that church not
only faithful service, but substantial financial support. He possessed
many estimable qualities of character and left his impress on the city
and county of his adoption.
14
THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
WILLARD O. SMITH, M. D.
Among the younger members of the medical profession in Allen
county Dr. Smith holds a representative position, being a practitioner
of the eclectic school and being amply fortified for the responsible
and exacting work of his chosen vocation. He is engaged in prac-
tice in the village of Hoagland, where he is senior member of the
firm of Smith & Morris, his coadjutor, Dr. Elmer E. Morris, being
both a physician and a dental surgeon.
Dr. Smith is a scion of one of the well known and representative
families of this county, and he was born in Hoagland on the 20th
of December, 1878, being a son of Dr. J. L. and Allie Smith, the for-
mer being now auditor of Allen county, and having devoted the
major portion of his active and independent career to the practice
of medicine. Of the family of ten children, six are living, the Doc-
tor having been the second in order of birth. Dr. Smith secured his
preliminary educational discipline in the public schools of his native
town, where he completed a high-school course, being graduated as
a member of the class of 1892. He then entered the normal school
at Marion, this state, where he remained as a student until 1897,
having in the meanwhile been successfully engaged in teaching
school for several terms and having also made a choice of vocation,
deciding to prepare himself for the medical profession and taking
up a preliminary course of reading in a private way. In 1897 he was
matriculated in the Eclectic Medical College in the city of Cincin-
nati, where he completed the prescribed technical course, and was
graduated as a member of the class of 1901 with the degree of Doc-
tor of Medicine. During intervals while attending the college he
was engaged in teaching in the schools of his native county. Imme-
diately after his graduation Dr. Smith opened an office in his native
town, where he has met with gratifying success in his work, prov-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 211
ing the inapplicability of the aphorism that a "prophet is not without
honor save in his own country." He is a close student, and is
known as a physician and surgeon of high attainments and distinc-
tive practical ability. He has been associated with Dr. Morris since
1902, and they control a representative practice in Hoagland and its
vicinage.
In politics Dr. Smith gives his allegiance to the Democratic
party, and professionally he is a member of the Indiana Eclectic
Medical Association and the Alumnal Association of the Eclectic
Medical Institute.
Dr. Smith married, in November, 1902, Miss Leah K. Shuler,
of Fort Wayne.
212 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
GEORGE W. LOUTTIT.
The true western spirit of progress and enterprise is strikingly
exemplified in the lives of such men as Mr. Louttit, men whose ener-
getic nature and laudable ambition have enabled them to conquer
many adverse circumstances and advance steadily to leading positions
in professional and business life. The subject is a worthy repre-
sentative of this class, and is now a prominent figure in the legal
circles of Allen county, having been successfully engaged in the
practice of his profession in the city of Fort Wayne since 1890.
George W. Louttit is a native of the old Buckeye state, having
first seen the light of this world at Dayton, Ohio, on the 30th day
of June, 1868. He is the son of James J. and Katharine Louttit,
the former a native of South Ronaldshay, Orkney islands, and the
mother of Germany. Early in life the subject accompanied his par-
ents on their removal to Fort Wayne, and here was given the benefit
of attendance in the public schools. This training was supplemented
by attendance at the University of Michigan, where he took a course
in the law department. He was admitted to practice in the courts
of Allen county, and in 1890 commenced the active practice of his
profession in Fort Wayne, where he has since continued, having
from the first enjoyed a liberal share of the business in his line. His
abilities were soon recognized by his fellow citizens, who honored
him by election as judge of the municipal court of the city of Fort
Wayne, he being the first incumbent of this position, and filling the
position to the entire satisfaction of the citizens of this city. In 1889
and 1901 he represented this coiinty in the lower house of the state
legislature, and there performed much efficient and valuable service
in the interest of his constituents, gaining a well earned reputation
as a hard-working and conscientious legislator. Li matters political
he has always been found aligned with the Democratic party, and
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 213
has at all times taken a deep interest in the welfare of the party in
his home county. Every movement looking to the moral, social,
educational or material advancement of Fort Wayne and Allen
county receives his hearty endorsement and earnest support.
Although a busy man in his professional lines, Mr. Louttit has
found time to devote to literary pursuits, and has won a well founded
reputation as a writer. Among the productions of his pen in the
line of fiction may be mentioned "A Maid of the Wildwood," "The
Gentleman from Jay," "A Prince of the Church," and several other
volumes which have met with a pleasing reception on the part of
the public and favorable criticism from those best qualified to judge
in such matters.
On the 26th of December, 1888, George W. Louttit was united
in marriage with Miss Gertrude Leila Britton, who was born at
Marion, Ohio, on February 16, 1870, the daughter of Nealand B.
and Anna (Severance) Britton. This union has been a most happy
and felicitous one, and has been blessed in the birth of the following
children: James Evans, Beatrice L., Marian G. and Katharine.
Clearness of vision to see, alertness of action to seize and tenacity of
purpose to hold onto and make the most of opportunity, have been
the elements which have largely contributed to his success, and
among his professional colleagues the subject is held in high esteem
because of his many estimable personal qualities.
214 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
SAMUEL WOLF.
It is not an easy task to describe adequately a man who has led
an eminently active and busy life, and who has attained a position
of relative distinction in the community with which his interests are
allied. But biography finds its most perfect justification, neverthe-
less, in the tracing and recording of such a life history. It is, then,
with a feeling of satisfaction that the writer essays the task of
touching briefly upon such a record as has been that of the honored
subject whose life now comes under this review, Mr. Samuel Wolf,
of Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Samuel Wolf is a native of Allen county, Indiana, having been
bom in the city of Fort Wayne on the 25th day of January, 1868,
and is the son of A. and Helena Wolf, natives of Germany. The
subject was educated in the public schools of this city, and remained
under the parental roof tree until attaining his majority. Thereafter
he was variously employed, serving efficiently as deputy city clerk for
two years, stamp clerk at the postoffice one and a half years and with
the Louis Wolf & Company dry goods store ten and a half years.
In 1896 Mr. Wolf formed a business association with Myron E. Des-
sauer, and they opened a dry goods and notions store at Nos. 70-72
Calhoun street, an enterprise which speedily met with public favor
and approved the judgment of the projectors. The firm has from
the beginning occupied a splendid position among the commercial
enterprises of the city, and is considered one of the leading stores
of its kind in the community. Both partners in the enterprise are
men of sound judgment and wise discrimination in business mat-
ters, and being also possessors of those personal qualities which win
and retain friends, they have received a large share of the public
patronage, being successful to a very satisfactory degree.
On the 1 2th day of February, 1902, Mr. Wolf was united in
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 215
marriage with Miss Mayme Wertheimer, of Ligonier, Indiana, and
the daughter of N. Wertheimer. This union has been a most felici-
loiis one, and their home has been brightened by the advent of one
child, Dorothy. In rehgion Mr. and Mrs. Wolf are of the Jewish
faith, and they give their support to every moral and benevolent
movement which looks to the betterment of their community. In
his fraternal relations Mr. Wolf is affiliated with the Benevolent
and Protective Order of Elks and the Fraternal Order of Eagles.
Because of his courteous manners, genial disposition and genuine
worth, Mr. Wolf has won, and retains, the friendship and regard
of all who are acquainted with him.
2i6 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
EMMETT V. HARRIS.
The conscientious and painstaking lawyer is a blessing- to society
at large, artificially constituted as it now is. What plain men would
do when it becomes necessary for them to resort to litigation for the
adjustment of their different views as to their rights and wrongs
in personal matters, or where property tenures are concerned, when
the quips and quibbles of the pettifogger are introduced to hood-
wink judge, witness and jury, and to mystify legal proceedings, it
would be difficult to say were it not for the truly honest attorney who
steps in to care for the said plain man's legitimate rights. Of this
latter class of the legal profession the subject of this sketch is one
of the foremost at the Allen county bar.
Emmett V. Harris was born in Seneca county, Ohio, in i860,
May 8th having been his natal day. His parents were William L,
and Amanda Harris, the father a native of Ulster county. New
York, while the mother was born in Lehigh county, Pennsylvania.
The subject received his preliminary education in the public schools,
supplementing this by attendance at the Ohio Normal University, at
Ada. He then engaged in teaching school, in which he was suc-
cessfully engaged for several years, holding the principalship of the
schools of Mooresville, Indiana, from 1887 to 1890. In the mean-
time he had occupied his leisure hours in earnest study of the law,
with the intention of eventually making that his life work. He was
formally admitted to the bar in 1889, and in 1891 he commenced
the active practice of his profession. His preparation for this work
had been conscientious and complete, so that he was at once able
to successfully handle all cases that came to him, and he has from
the beginning enjoyed a representative clientage, being connected
with some of the most important cases that have been tried in the
local courts. His years of conscientious work have brought with
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 217
them not only increase of practice and reputation, but also that
growth of legal knowledge and that wide and accurate judgment
the possession of which constitutes marked excellence in the pro-
fession. In discussions of the principles of law he is noted for clear-
ness of statement and candor; he seeks faithfully for firm ground,
and having found it, nothing can drive him from his position. Be-
cause of his ability and many fine personal qualities he has gained a
large circle of warm and admiring friends.
In August, 1887, Mr. Harris was united in marriage with Miss
Laura B. Chalfant, a native of Perry county, Ohio, and the daughter
of Samuel and Mary Chalfant. To them have been born the follow-
ing children : William L., Zama V., Howard E., Edith C, Stephen
D., Robert B., Wendell O. and Emmett V., Jr., all of whom are liv-
ing excepting Edith C, whose death occurred in 1897. Mr. Har-
ris is not a member of any religious denomination, though he usually
attends the Methodist Episcopal church, but his support and influ-
ence are always found on the right side of every movement looking
to the moral, social or educational advancement of the community.
In politics he is a stanch Republican in national affairs, but in matters
local he believes that politics should yield to the more important con-
sideration of the public welfare. In 1896 Mr. Harris received the
Republican nomination for prosecuting attorney of Allen county, but,
together with the rest of the ticket, was defeated. In 1902 he was
appointed a referee in bankruptcy, for a term of two years, during
which time he had charge of the administration of several large pri-
vate banking institutions and business concerns. Upon the expira-
tion of his term he resumed the active practice of his profession,
which he prefers to the life of a public official.
2i8 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
GEORGE WASHINGTON McCASKEY, M. D.
Dr. McCaskey, professor of clinical medicine in the Fort Wayne
College of Medicine, is the son of John S. and Catherine Davis Mc-
Caskey, and was born November 9, 1853, in Delta, Ohio. He is
descended from Scotch-Irish ancestors, and has inherited to a
marked degree many of the sterling virtues and sturdy character-
istics for which his antecedents have long been distinguished. The
Doctor obtained his preliminary education in the public schools of
Wausean, Ohio, and in 1875 entered the Jefferson Medical College
of Philadelphia, from which institution he was graduated two years
later, with the degree of Doctor of Medicine. Subsequently he
took a non-resident course at De Pauw University, Greencastle, In-
diana, from which he received, in 1881, the degree of Bachelor of
Science, and during the three years next ensuing practiced his pro-
fession at Cecil, Ohio, where in due time he built up a lucrative
business and took high rank among the leading medical men of the
place. Closing his office at the expiration of the period noted, the
Doctor went abroad and devoted one year to professional study in
the city of London, after which he returned to the United States and
settled in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where for fifteen years he was
engaged in the general practice of his profession. At the end of
that time he became a consultant rather than a general practitioner,
and such has since continued, his reputation in the meanwhile becom-
ing widely extended throughout Indiana and other states.
Dr. McCaskey holds the professorship of clinical medicine in
the Fort Wayne College of Medicine, and is also connected with the
hospitals of the state and city. He belongs to the Upper Maumee
Valley Medical Association, the Northern Tri-State Association, the
Indiana State Medical Society and the Fort Wayne Medical Society,
having served each of these organizations in the capacity of presi-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 219
dent, besides being a leading and influential participant in their de-
liberations. In addition to the above he holds membership with the
American Medical Association, the American Gastro-Enterological
Society, and the American Academy of Medicine and fraternally
belongs to the order of Free and Accepted Masons.
To Dr. McCaskey belongs the credit of giving to Fort Wayne
its first medical journal, which was founded in July, 188 1, under
the name of the Fort Wayne Journal of the Medical Sciences. In
the publication of this paper he was associated with Dr. W. H.
Gobrecht, an eminent anatomist and editor of Sir E. Rasmus Wil-
son's "Anatomy." The paper established by Dr. McCaskey is now
called the Fort Wayne Medical Journal, and has an extensive cir-
culation in Indiana and other states. Dr. McCaskey has been a
voluminous writer on medical subjects, and among his contribu-
tions to professional literature, the following are deserving of espe-
cial mention: Geographical Pathology of Consumption; Disinfec-
tion During and After the Acute Infectious Diseases; Bio-Chem-
istry in its Relation to Nervous Diseases ; The Diagnosis and Treat-
ment of Cerebral Meningeal Hemorrhage; Case of Brain Trauma-
tism with Focal Symptoms; Trephining and Death; Clinical Exam-
inations of Blood; The Diagnosis of Stomach Diseases; Physical
Therapeutics; Electricity; Hydrotherapeutics ; Massage; Schott
Treatment of Heart Disease ; Neurasthenia : Some Points in Its
Pathology and Treatment; A New Method for the Clinical Deter-
mination of the Cardiac; The Neurasthenic S5niiptoms of Gastro-
intestinal Disease ; Simple and Ethereal Sulphates : A Simple and
Rapid Method for Their Separate Determination; Thirty Minutes'
Report of a Case of Tumor of the Cerebellum with Drainage of
Fluid Through the Nose; Hysterical Dissociation of Temperature
Senses With Reversal of Sensibility to Cold; Physiology the Basis
of Clinical Medicine, a Plea for Scientific Methods ; A Case of Com-
bined Gastric and Aural Vertigo, with a Discussion of the Pathology
of Such Cases; The Clinical Laboratory as an Aid to Diagnosis;
A Case of Leukemia Preceded by Mucosanguinolent Colitis and
Physiological Leucocytes; Anemias Secondary to Gastro-intestinal
Disease, with Report of Two Cases ; Electrical Reactions of the Gas-
tro-intestinal Musculature and Their Therapeutic Value ; The Clinical
220 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Association of Cancer and Tuberculosis, with Report of a Case;
Alexia from Cyst Caused by Bullet Wound, Operation, Death ; Brain
Abscess and Tumor; Localization in Heart Disease; Tuberculosis of
Bronchial Glands; Heart Weakness; Toxaemic Factor in Diabetes
Mellitus; Toxic Origin of Certain Neuroses and Psychoses; Hys-
teric Lethargy, with Report of a Case; Six Hundred Cases of
Chronic Gastritis.
Dr. McCaskey married Louise, daughter of Dr. Charles E.
Sturgis, one of the pioneer physicians of Indiana, and they have one
son, George Edward. Dr. McCaskey's home is at 407 West Main
street. Fort Wayne.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 221
FRANCIS D. LASSELLE.
In the death of the honored subject of this memoir, February 4,
1864, at his home in Fort Wayne, there passed away another member
of that group of early pioneers and representative citizens who laid
the foundations upon which has been builded the industrial and
commercial prosperity of the present day so characteristic of Allen
county, Indiana. His name is familiar, not alone to the residents
of the city to whose development he contributed so conspicuously,
but to all who have been informed in regard to the history of this
section of Indiana. He was identified with the growth of Allen
county for several decades. He early had the sagacity and pre-
science to discern the eminence which the future had in store for this
great and growing section of the commonwealth, and, acting in
accordance with the dictates of faith and judgment, he reaped, in the
fulness of time, the generous benefits wihch are the just recom-
pense of indomitable industry, spotless integrity and persevering en-
terprise.
Francis D. Lasselle was the son of Francis and Agelique Las-
selle, who were French by either nativity or descent. The subject
was bom in Monroe, Michigan, on the loth of July, 1807, and when
about eighteen years of age came to Fort Wayne, Allen county, Indi-
ana, w^hich at that time gave little indication or promise of the future
wonderful growth and prosperity to which it has attained. His first
employment was as a clerk for Ewing Brothers, who extensively en-
gaged in trading with the Indians. Young Lasselle readily acquired
the Indian language, which, together with his knowledge of the
French and English languages, gave him many advantages and made
him of great value to his employers. He was energetic in business
and very shrewd in dealings, and his employers soon placed unlimited
confidence in him, so that he rose to the position of cashier and trav-
222 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
eling paymaster among the red men of the forest. There is but
sHght knowledge of many events of Mr. Lasselle's early career, but,
from old memorandum books, it is learned that about 1836 he went
into business for himself, engaging in the grocery and provision
trade, in which venture his fortune seems to have varied. For some
years he was in business in the far west, but returned to Fort Wayne
and settled on a farm adjoining the city. He acquired considerable
real estate, and so wise was he in the selection of these tracts that
the investments have subsequently proved exceedingly valuable to
his heirs.
In politics Mr. Lasselle was a firm and uncompromising Democrat
and took much interest in public events. The only local office he ever
held was that of township trustee, in which he is said to have exhib-
ited rare qualities of good management and sound principle. In 1849
he was selected, along with James T. Miller, George Washington
Ewing and Rev. J. Benoit, to accompany the Miami Indians to their
new reservation in Kansas, the tribe numbering about eight hun-
dred and being under the leadership of Chief La Fontain. The trip
was made overland, and was a long and very tedious one, but was
successfully accomplished. In 1853 Mr. Lasselle was elected a mem-
ber of the Indiana legislature, and also held other public offices of
trust and responsibility, in all of which he acquitted himself with
great credit and to the eminent satisfaction of his constituents. He
was a man of very pronounced views, dauntless in his personal cour-
age, of a very firm and decided character and shrewd and far-sighted
in his business dealings, his features being very expressive of his
character. In his dress he was neat and tasty, and in his manner
he was true to the French code of a respectful and graceful attitude
toward others. Mr. Lasselle was known as a charitable man to the
poor and needy, for whom he always had a kind and substantial sym-
pathy. He was, in the fullest and broadest sense of the word, a self-
made man, and, his opportunities considered, was a very well
informed man on general topics. His death occurred, as before
stated, on the 4th of February, 1864, in Fort Wayne, at the age of
fifty-six years and six months.
In 1833, at the age of twenty-six years, Francis D. Lasselle was
united in marriage to Miss Hannah Hubbard Henderson, aged eight-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 223
een years, who was an accomplished young lady, of great personal
beauty, and who, throughout her life, exhibited an amiable disposi-
tion and great firmness of character. She was a native of Ohio, while
her parents were born in Massachusetts. Two children were born
to this union, of whom but one survives, Mrs. George DeWald, now
a resident of Fort Wayne, and who is the mother of the following
children: Mrs. John Mohr, Jr., Robert, Mary E., Caroline, Las-
selle, Elizabeth and George. Her husband, George DeWald, and
two sons, Robert and George, are proprietors of a large dry goods
store in Fort Wayne, controlling an extensive wholesale trade
throughout northern Indiana. Mrs. Lasselle died on January 5,
1845, and Mr. Lasselle subsequently married again, a daughter of
this later union now residing near LaPorte, this state.
224 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
MADISON SWEETSER.
In the death of Madison Sweetser, which took place at his home
in Fort Wayne, on February 22, 1875, the community lost one of its
Honorable and conspicuous citizens. He had held a prominent
place in both public and private life for many years, and probably
the community has never been called upon to mourn a more respected
or highly esteemed citizen. A devoted husband, a loving father, a
patriotic citizen and keen and sagacious business man, he is emi-
nently entitled to particular mention in a volume of this character.
In his death there vi^as removed from life a man who had in a large
measure honored his race. Strong, true men are always benefactors.
Their usefulness in the immediate and specific labors they perform
can be in a certain degree defined. The good they do through the
forces they put in motion, and through the inspiration of their pres-
ence and example, is immeasurable by any finite gauge or standard
of value. The death of such a man is a public calamity, because
by it the country loses not only his active energy, but the stimulus
of his personal presence and influence. There is, however, some
compensation for this loss in the memory of his service, the effect of
his example and the continued fruitfulness of the activities he quick-
ened into life. The late Madison Sweetser was such a man. To
epitomize his life and character within the limits which this work
allows is impossible. The force and power of his living presence
are realized by the void his death has made. Great as he was in all
things else, he was also great in generosity. If every one for whom
he did a kindness were to throw a blossom on his grave he would
sleep beneath a pyramid of flowers.
Briefly, Mr. Sweetser's life history is as follows : He was born
in Windham county, Vermont, on the 2d day of November, 1809,
and in 18 15, at the age of six years, he accompanied his father and
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 225
brothers to Delaware, Ohio. The journey, which was made in wag-
ons, was a long and tedious one and was filled with striking and
novel incidents and adventures, the memory of which was indelibly
impressed upon his memory. He received his education in the public
schools of Delaware and remained there until 1831, when he located
in a small village near Anderson, Indiana, where for several years
he was engaged successfully in mercantile pursuits. From there he
went to the northern part of Indiana, where for some time he was
engaged as a contractor in the construction of the Wabash and Erie
canal. In 1838 he located permanently in Fort Wayne and went
into the mercantile business on Columbia street, where he was so
engaged for several years, establishing a reputation for honesty, in-
tegrity and business ability of a high order. Soon after making this
location he was united in marriage with Miss Caroline Bearss, and
immediately erected a brick residence, the first brick building on
Main street. Mr. Sweetser early evinced a deep interest in the wel-
fare of his adopted city and took a prominent part m all measures
looking to its advancement. In 1840 he served efficiently as a mem-
ber of the first common council that ever sat in this city. Retiring
from active mercantile pursuits in this city, he was for a number of
years extensively engaged in real-estate operations in the western
states, during which time he was at home very little. During the
California gold excitement of 1849 ^^^- Sweetser, in company with
a number of other Fort Wayne gentlemen, went to that state, but re-
mained there but a short time, and, returning to Fort Wayne, made
this city his subsequent home. Having been prospf^red in his busi-
ness ventures, he was enabled during the years immediately preceding
his death to live at ease, enjoying that rest which he had so richly
earned.
Mr. Sweetser's death was quite sudden, being due to a stroke
of apoplexy, and was a distinct shock to the community, as he had
been apparently in his usual health the evening previous. The fu-
neral services were held at the family residence, No. 88 West Main
street, at ten o'clock on the morning of February 25, 1875, and were
conducted by Rev. Colin C. Tate, rector of Trinity Episcopal
church, of which the deceased had long been an honored and consist-
ent member. The pall bearers were Hon. I. D. G. Nelson, W. S. Ed-
15
226 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
sail, Hon. O. Bird, Hon. A. P. Edgerton, Judge John Morris,
George L. Little and S. B. Bond.
As showing the regard in which Mr. Sweetser was held in the
community, we here quote in part the resolutions adopted by the
Square Table Club, of which he vras the president at the time of
his death :
''Mr. Sweetser ^^'as a man in many respects without a peer in
our city. One of the small and rapidly diminishing band of pio-J
neers still among us, who came here when the counti-y was still anj
unbroken wilderness, during his long and active career in our midst
he had made hosts of friends and few, if any, enemies. Of a splen-
did physique and robust constitution, he retained to the end all the
fire and vigor of early manhood, and goes to the grave with all hisj
faculties unimpaired, his intellect clear and vigorous and his mem-
ory alert and active; and even now his erect, manly figure, his broad,
intellectual forehead, his undimmed eye, his cheerful voice, seem toj
be with us, as so often in times that are past. * * * *
"Mr. Sweetser was a man of far more than ordinary abiUty,]
and, considering the many disadvantages under which he labored,!
of a remarkable degree of culture. Although his life was largely]
passed on the frontier, far removed from the refining influences of]
civilization and wealth, he had acquired and by the aid of a wonder-
fully retentive memory had retained a fund of valuable informatior
on a wide range of topics possessed by few. Especially was hej
strong in the political history of the country, for the study of which]
he exhibited a rare taste. Notwithstanding his active business life, f
he acquired a fair knowledge of general literature. * * *
"During his long and varied career he had enjoyed the acquaint-
ance of many celebrated men, had traveled extensively, passing
through numerous adventures, and gaining thereby a knowledge ofl
and insight into human nature, which, coupled with his remarkablej
memory and exceptionally brilliant conversational powers, made him]
the most agreeable and delightful of companions and the life ofj
every social circle. His fund of anecdote seemed inexhaustible andj
his supply of wit and humor never failing. In manners, he was aj
model of courtly dignity, polish and good breeding; in short, a fine]
representative of a gentleman of the olden school.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 227
"But although the quahties mentioned were generally recognized
and admired, it was his uniform kindness and generosity of heart,
and his strict adherence and fidelity to his friends, which so en-
deared him to his associates that all now feel a deep sense of per-
sonal bereavement, such as the death of few men occasions beyond
the limits of their immediate families.
"We recommend the adoption of the following resolutions :
''Resolved, that in the death of our late pre<^ident, Madison
Sweetser, the Square Table Club has lost a most kind and genial
presiding officer, and each member a warm and true friend whose
place can not be filled.
"Resolved, that words can but feebly express that deep sorrow
which has filled our hearts, for his kindness to all, and his frank,
magnanimous disposition we can never forget.
"Resolved, that we tender our profound sympathies to the family
of the deceased, for while we have lost a noble and sincere friend,
they have lost an affectionate husband and loving father, whose de-
votion to his family was one of the most beautiful traits of his char-
acter.
"Resolved, that we will ever cherish his memory, and often
dwell upon the numerous pleasant qualities of mind and heart which
he possessed, and that as a last tribute of respect we will attend his
funeral."
The death of Mrs. Caroline Sweetser occurred on November 17,
1877, and on November 21st her remains were laid beside those of
her lamented husband, in the family burial lot in beautiful Linden-
wood cemetery. She was a woman of most estimable qualities, who
through all the years of her residence here had maintained a warm
place in the hearts and affections of all who knew her and the sin-
cere respect and esteem of the entire community. All along the
pathway of her life she had scattered the smiles and sunshine that
go so far to brighten the lives of others and in her death all felt
they had suffered a personal loss. To Mr. and Mrs. Sweetser four
daughters were bom, of whom two are living, Mrs. Mary C. Ew-
ing, widow of the late George W. Ewing, of Fort Wayne, and
Fannie C, who resides in Fort Wayne.
228 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
CHARLES M. THOMAS.
There is much of interest attaching to the career of this well
known and honored citizen of Wayne township, where he is a suc-
cessful and progressive farmer, A native of the world's greatest
metropolis, Mr. Thomas came to America as a youth of seventeen
years, dependent entirely upon his own resources, and not only has
he attained to a position of independence and definite prosperity and
become a valued citizen of his adopted state, but he has also proved
his loyalty to the republic by serving in its defense when the integ-
rity of the Union was menaced by armed rebellion. His life record
is a straightforward and worthy one, and well merits a place in
this compilation.
Charles M. Thomas was born in the city of London, England,
on the I2th of February, 1840, and is a son of James and Sophia M.
(Morris) Thomas, the former a native of Wales and the latter of
England. The father of the subject came of sturdy Welsh stock,
and while he was a mere infant his parents removed from their
native land to London, where he was reared to manhood, and where
his marriage was solemnized. He was a tailor by trade and voca-
tion and controlled a prosperoi-.s business, traveling about in
London and its environs and securing orders from many members
of the aristocracy. He passed practically his entire life in London,
where he died in 1856, in the prime of life. He was a man of ster-
ling character, and both he and his wife were communicants of the
Church of England. Of the two children born to them the subject
of this review is the younger, while his sister, Louisa, died January
29, 1905, at Hobert, Tasmania. After the death of her first hus-
band, Mrs. Thomas became the wife of William J. Gallaways, of
Glasgow, Scotland, and of this union were bom two children:
Agnes Sophia and Sophia Marian, both of whom reside in Scotland,
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 229
where their parents died, the mother having been summoned into
eternal rest in the year 1876.
The subject of this review received Hmited educational advan-
tages in his youth, his parents having paid the expenses of his tuition
in a private school in London during the few years in which he pros-
ecuted his studies. It was his to early assume the practical respon-
sibilities of life, and while developing marked independence and
self-reliance he did not fail to also gain the valuable lessons which
are to be gained only under the direction of that wisest of headmas-
ters, experience. He continued to reside at home until he had
attained the age of seventeen years, when, in 1857, he valiantly set
forth in search of fortune's favors, coming to America, unaccom-
panied by any relative or friend, and making the voyage on a sail-
ing vessel, the "Devonshire," which dropped anchor in the port of
New York city after having been on the waters of the Atlantic for
a period of forty-three days, while our subject recalls that en route
the boat encountered a number of whales and porpoises, as well as
several icebergs. After remaining for a short time in the national
metropolis Mr. Thomas proceeded to the city of Detroit, Michigan,
remaining in that city and vicinity for a period of two years, during
which he was employed at farm work, manufacturing brooms and
also upholstering. In i860 he came to Dekalb county, Indiana,
and in October of the following year, in response to President Lin-
coln's first call for volunteers to aid in suppressing the rebellion, Mr.
Thomas enlisted as a private in Company K, Forty-fourth Indiana
Volunteer Infantry, commanded by Colonel Hugh B. Reid. Enlisting
at Auburn, Indiana, the subject proceeded with his command to the
front, and with the same took part in the memorable battle of Shi-
loh, on April 6 and 7, 1862. In the second day's battle Mr. Thomas
received a gunshot wound in the breast, the ball penetrating near the
center of the body, and having never been extracted. Mr. Thomas
was left on the battlefield for two days, the supposition being that
he was numbered among the dead, while five days elapsed ere he
received the much needed treatment for his severe injury. He was
thrown into an ambulance after being wounded, and was taken to the
"dead row," where he was left among the corpses of unfortunate
companions, being unconscious at the time and considered eligible
230 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
only for the companionship of those who lay dead about him. In
the night rain began to fall, and through its gentle ministration Mr.
Thomas was revived, and the guard on duty at the time chanced to
notice his eyes as he lay in his gruesome surroundings, and thus
discovered that he was alive. He was taken up and placed in a tent,
where he remained practically unattended for the ensuing five days,
at the expiration of which he was taken by boat up the Mississippi
river to Cairo, Illinois, where he finally received the long needed med-
ical attention. He remained in the City Hospital for two months,
and was then granted a furlough, which he decided to spend in the
city of Fort Wayne, whither he came broken and enfeebled from
his injuries and the hardships he had endured. He was the first
soldier to return to the city from the front, and upon him were lav-
ished the most kindly and considerate attentions and ministrations by
the Ladies' Aid Society of Fort Wayne, who cared for him until
he had regained his health in a large measure. He received his hon-
orable discharge in August, 1862, his injuries having been such as
to incapacitate him for further service in the field.
After recuperating his energies Mr. Thomas engaged in the up-
holstery business on Columbia street. Fort Wayne, continued in this
line of entenprise for four years, within which his place was twice
burned out, entailing considerable financial loss. At the expiration
of the period noted, in 1866, he purchased ten acres of timbered land,
where he now resides, vrhile from this nucleus he has evolved his
present valuable and well improved farm of seventy-two acres. In
all his work and aspirations he has had the loving and helpful co-op-
eration of his devoted wi'fe, and though they have encountered many
vicissitudes, and had their full quota of discouragements, they have
not been denied a goodly reward in temporal affairs, and have been
blessed with prosperity, peace and happiness. They have one of the
finest rural homes in this localit}^ the attractive modern residence
having been erected in 1887, and being finished in hard wood
throughout, Mr. Thomas himself having personally done this finish-
ing work, which testifies to his taste and mechanical ability. The
family is prominent in the social life of the community, and the
circle of friends is coincident with that of acquaintances, while Mr.
Thomas is recognized as a loyal and public spirited citizen, well
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 231
worthy of the high esteem in which he is held in the community. In
politics Mr. Thomas accords a stalwart support to the Republican
party, and both he and his wife are zealous members of the Metho-
dist Episcopal church. In a fraternal way he is identified with Sion
Bass Post, No. 40, Grand Army of the Republic, in Fort Wayne,
thus manifesting his abiding interest in his old comrades in arms.
On the 27th of November, 1864, in Vermilion, Ohio, was sol-
emnized the marriage of Mr. Thomas to Miss Caroline L. Hyde,
of that place, where she was born and reared, being a daughter of
Garry and Caroline (Wooster) Hyde, both of whom were bom in
Oxford, New Haven county, Connecticut, being descended from
stanch Puritan ancestry. Mr. Hyde was engaged in the mercantile
business in Connecticut until 1833, when he came to the west, being
numbered among the pioneers of Erie county, Ohio. He had the dis-
tinction of setting out the first vineyard in northern Ohio, now one
of the greatest grape-producing sections of the country, and the
celebrated Kelly island grapes represent the direct outcome of the
efforts of this honorable pioneer, who settled in the wilderness
of Erie county, and there literally hewed out a home, becoming one
of the prominent and influential citizens of that section. In 1876
Mr. Hyde Avent to Alabama, where he purchased more than one thou-
sand acres of land, and there he died in 1879. H^s widow passed
the remainder of her life with her children, having been for some
time in Arizona and later in Waco, Texas, where she died on the
14th of August, igo2, at an advanced age. Of the eight children
of this union we enter the following brief record : Henry W., who
was a successful teacher for a number of years, and who later
l^ecame prominently identified with the milling industry, died in
Chester, Nassau county, Florida, in 1893 ; Daniel, who was a teacher
and a cultivated musician, finally became a salesman in one of the
leading mercantile houses in Chicago, Illinois, where he died in 1892.
Henrietta first married Cornelius Harding, and after his death
became the wife of William McFall, ex-treasurer of Erie county,
Ohio, and they still reside in the beautiful city of Cleveland, that
state; Caroline L. is the wife of the subject of this sketch; Isabella
E. is the wife of Peter Laidlaw, a prominent architect of Houston,
Texas; Maiy Imogene first married Hazard Rogers, and after his
232 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
demise became the wife of Silas St. John, and they reside in Phoenix,
Arizona. Mr. and Mrs. Thomas have three children, Charles Nel-
lis, who remains at home, and assists in the management of the farm ;
Viola Belle is the wife of Ovis V. Murray, of Wayne township, and
they have three children, Winnie Aurelia, Viola Henrietta and
Lavilla Belle, and Arthur I. remains on the home farm, where he
conducts a prosperous dairy business, selling his products in the city
of Fort Wayne, from which the homestead is three miles distant,
being located in section 5, Wayne township.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 233
KENT K. WHEELOCK, M. D.
Professional success results from merit. Frequently in commer-
cial life one may come into possession of a lucrative business through
inheritance or gift, but in what are known as the learned profes-
sions advancement is gained only through painstaking and long-
continued ejffort. Good intellectual training, thorough professional
knowledge and the possession and utilization of the qualities and
attributes essential to success have made the subject of this review
eminent in his chosen calling, and he now stands today among the
scholarly and enterprising physicians in a city noted for the high
order of its medical talent.
Kent K. Wheelock is a native son of the Hoosier state, having
been bom at Huntertown, Allen county, on the loth of June, 1857,
and is the son of Eldridge Gerry and Hannah (Moody) Wheelock.
He received his preliminary education in the public schools, and
then, determining to make the practice of medicine his life work, he
matriculated in the Bellevue Hospital Medical College, New York
city, in 1880. In 1883 he entered the New York Eye and Ear
Infirmary, gaining through these several courses a thorough and
practical knowledge of diseases and their treatment. He began the
practice in Huntertown, Allen county, Indiana, but in October, 1884,
he came to Fort Wayne, and has since continued in the active practice
here with a gratifying degree of success. He keeps thoroughly in
touch with the latest advances in the science of medicine, and in 1904
he went to Europe and took a course of study in the eye, ear, nose
and throat departments of the General Hospital of Vienna. He
keeps in touch with his brethren of the profession through his mem-
bership in the American Medical Association, the Ophthalmological
and Otological Society of Chicago, Academy American Ophthal-
moli-Laryngological Society, Northern Tri-State Medical Society,
234 . THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Indiana State Medical Society, of which he has served as secretary,
the Allen County Medical Society, of which he has served as president.
From 1884 to 1900 Dr. Wheelock held the professorship of ophthal-
mology and otology in the Fort Wayne College of Medicine, and
since the latter date he has been clinical professor of opthalmology
and otology in the same institution. He was the first coroner of
Allen county, having been appointed to this position in 1881, and
being elected the following year, holding the office four years.
Dr. Wheelock was united in marriage with Miss Matilda Hen-
derson, a native of Cedarville, Indiana, and the daughter of G. W.
and Magdalena (Tamey) Henderson. Her parents removed to
Cedar Creek township, this county, from Dekalb county, this
state, in 1852, having come originally from Stark county, Ohio.
Mrs. Wheelock is a highly cultured lady, being a graduate of the
Fort Wayne high school, and by her many admirable personal
qualities has won and retains many warm friends. To Dr. and
Mrs. Wheelock have been born the following children : George H.,
bom November 10, 1881 ; Gera Catherine, bom April 10, 1884, mar-
ried Thomas G. Dilworth, of Waco, Texas; Ruth, bom June 29,
189 1. Long- since Dr. Wheelock left the ranks of the many to
stand among the successful few, his abilit}^ and devotion to his pro-
fession gaining him this relative precedence. He has studied and
read broadly, carrying his investigation into eveiy field of thought
bearing upon his profession and having readily adopted those meth-
ods and improvements which wide experience and sound judgment
indicated to him a definite valuation in connection with his work,
his ability being attested by the representative support he receives
in the community where he has so long lived and labored, and where
his popularity is of the most unequivooil order.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 235
CECILIUS R. HIGGINS.
Probably no man who ever lived in the city of Fort Wayne had
a warmer place in the hearts and affections of the citizens, or whose
memory is held in deeper regard than the late Cecilius R. Higgins,
who was summoned into eternal rest on the 17th of July, 1904. The
spirit of a noble and earnest life breathed in his mortal tenement, and
his gracious influence was felt in both social and business circles,
for he was one of those symmetrical characters who stand "four
square to every wind that blov/s." In noting the position this hon-
ored citizen held in the community we can not do better than to
republish an appreciative estimate which appeared in the Fort
Wayne News at the time of his death, excerpts from the article
being as follows :
"There were few better known men in the city than Mr. Hig-
gins — 'Ceil' Higgins, as he was generally called by his friends- —
and everybody who knew him was his friend. He had the elements
of sociability that attracted. He was warm-hearted, generous, noble
and ti"ue. He spread sunshine in every circle in which he mingled.
He was companionable. With these elements, which tended to make
him popular with all, he combined a business energy and integrity
that made him a splendid type of manhood. Everybody loved
'Ceil' Higgins. When death comes to such men there is univer-
sal sorrow. Such was the case when the death of Mr. Higgins be-
came generally known. He had been a sufferer from Bright's dis-
ease for several years, and about two years ago had an attack of
apoplexy from which he did not entirely recover. He was in an
enfeebled condition, and gradually sank to the portals of the grave,
his death being immediately superinduced by uraemic poison, while
he was, as a last resort, taken to St. Joseph's Hospital, where he
breathed his last.
236 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
"Mr. Higgins was born in Kalida, Putnam county, Ohio, on
January 21, 1847, but early in life removed with his parents to Del-
phos, Allen county, that state, where he received his educational
discipline in the public schools and where he initiated his career in
connection with railroading, by securing a position as messenger boy,
while eventually he became a telegraph operator. In 1867 he was
appointed ticket and freight agent for the Pennsylvania Railroad
Company at Delphos and Ada, Ohio, and on January ist
of the following year he came to Fort Wayne as chief train dis-
patcher, and in 1879 he Avas appointed chief clerk to Superintendent
C. D. Law. This position he retained until June 18, 1889, when he
was appointed postmaster of Fort Wayne, by President Harrison.
He served as such for eight years, and on his retirement became
proprietor of the Fort Wayne Artificial Ice Company's plant and
business, the title of the concern being later changed to the Higgins
Artificial Ice Company. With this important enterprise he continued
to be identified until his death."
The foregoing quotations give, indeed, but the merest outline of
a career of signal activity and usefulness, but "between the lines"
may be read the lesson and incentive which this noble life had to
give. Fairness, loyalty, self-reliance and helpfulness — they are strong
words, but they denoted most truly this man, this honored citizen
and good friend, while it is not for this writer to attempt to lift the
curtain which veils the sacred precincts of the home life, where his
character stood forth in most gracious relief, and where mutual love
and S5nmpathy found apotheosis. The life of our subject had naught
of pretentiousness, but it was one which counted for good in its
every relation, — and such lives and such characters need no eulogistic
words, for they are their own surety and memorial.
In his political allegiance Mr. Higgins was a stalwart Re-
publican, and he was ever a zealous and loyal worker in the party
ranks, taking a lively and appreciative interest in the questions and
issues of the hour. In 1886 he received the party nomination for
the office of auditor of Allen county, making a most vigorous cam-
paign and running twenty-seven hundred votes ahead of his ticket, —
a fact which indicates the hold he had upon popular confidence and
regard. Mr. Higgins was a most studious and loyal member of the
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 237
time-honored fraternity of Freemasonry, in which he attained to
the thirty-second degree of the Scottish Rite, while in each of the
bodies of the order he was found appreciative and enthusiastic. His
Masonic affiliations were as follows : Sol. D. Bayless Lodge, No.
359, Free and Accepted Masons ; Fort Wayne Commandery,
Knights Templar; Fort Wayne Lodge of Perfection, Ancient Ac-
cepted Scottish Rite; and Indiana Consistory, Sublime Princes of
the Royal Secret, representing his ultimate affiliation as a thirty-
second-degree Mason. He was for four years secretary of the Fort
Wayne Lodge of Perfection, and Avas at one time recorder of his
commandery. His funeral was held under the auspices of the
various Masonic bodies. That such a man should be one to place
a proper estimate on the deeper spiritual verities and to make them
count in his daily life was a foregone conclusion, and Mr. Higgins
exemplified his religious faith in his membership in the First Presby-
terian church, of which Mrs. Higgins likewise is a devoted member.
On the 6th of May, 1874, was solemnized the marriage of Mr.
Higgins to Miss Ella S. Hale, of West Virginia, and she survives
her husband, as do also two of their children, Mrs. A. B. White, of
Fort Wayne, and Miss Adah, who remains with her mother in the
attractive home.
238 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
HON. ROBERT LOWRY.
Judge Lowry left a definite and worthy impress upon the legal,
judicial, political and civic life of Allen county and the city of Fort
Wayne, while his services were such as to cause his influence to far
transcend these purely local limitations.
Judge Lowry was born in county Down, Ireland, and was a
scion of stanch Scotch-Irish stock. His boyhood days were passed
in Rochester, New York, where he secured his elementary education
in private schools, while he took also a practical academic course,
but his education was mainly self-acquired. As a youth he became
librarian of the Rochester Athenaeum and Young Men's Association,
in which capacity he found many advantages for study, while he event-
ually began the reading of law in that city. In 1843, while still
in his minority, he carrie to Fort Wayne, and was soon afterward
elected city recorder, declining a re-election at the expiration of his
first term. He was soon afterward admitted to the bar of the state,
and initiated the active practice of his profession by locating in
Goshen, in 1846. Within the ensuing six years he had advanced to
a foremost position among the lawyers of northern Indiana, and at
the expiration of that time, in 1852, the governor of Indiana ap-
jxjinted him circuit judge, to fill a vacancy for an unexpired term.
In 1856, having previously resumed the active duties of his pro-
fession, he was unexpectedly nominated for congress on the Demo-
cratic ticket, in a district where the opposition was distinctly in the
ascendancy. So great was his personal strength and popularity that
his defeat was compassed by only a very small majority. In i860
Judge Lowry was president of the Democratic state convention of
Indiana, and was one of the four delegates at large to the national
convention of the party. In 186 1-2, while still retaining
residence and practice in Indiana, he had a law office in the city of
Chicago. In 1864 he was nominated and e/ected to the bench of the
circuit court composed of the counties of Elkhart, Lagrange, Steu-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 239
ben, Dekalb, Noble, Kosciusko, Whitley, Allen, Adams and Wells.
In 1866, and again in 1868 he was nominated for congress in dis-
tricts heavily Republican, so that his defeat was compassed by gen-
eral political exigencies, but by greatly reduced majorities. In 1867
Judge Lowry resumed his residence in Fort Wayne, and the circuit
in which he had been residing being shortly thereafter divided by
legislative enactment, he was, in 1870, on the expiration of his for-
mer term, re-elected circuit judge, without opposition, in the circuit
composed of the counties in the southern half of his former circuit.
In 1872 he was one of the four delegates at large from Indiana to
the Democratic national convention, held in Baltimore, and was
active and influential in the councils of that body. In January, 1875,
Judge Lowry resigned his position on the circuit bench, and organ-
ized the law firm of Lowry, Robertson & O'Rourke, but he was not
long permitted to remain in private life. In 1877, on the unanimous
recommendation of the bar, he was appointed by the governor as
judge of the recently established superior court of Allen county, and
he was afterward elected to the office for a full term, without oppo-
sition. In July, 1879, upon the organization of the Indiana State
Bar Association, Judge Lowry was elected its first president. In 1882
he was elected to congress, from the twelfth district, and was chosen
as his own successor in 1884, as a Democrat. While zealously inter-
esting himself in the proceedings of the house at all times, he was
ever watchful of the best interests of his immediate constituents, and
it was almost entirely due to his earnest efforts that the increased
appropriations were secured which rendered possible the erection of
the present fine federal court house and postoffice building in Fort
Wayne, the same being one of the finest to be found in any city of
comparative population in the entire Union.
Upon the close of his second term in congress Judge Lowry re-
sumed the active practice of law in Fort Wayne, extending his prac-
tice throughout the district and being an exemplar of the activity
and industry which ought to characterize the earnest and conscien-
tious lawyer, and holding rank as one of the most distinguished mem-
bers and veterans of the Indiana bar. He continued in active serv-
ice as a practitioner until he was summoned from the field of his
mortal endeavors, secure in the high esteem of all who knew him
personally or by reputation.
240 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
LOUIS RASTETTER.
In the death of the honored subject of this memoir, on the 9th
of February, 1898, there passed away another member of that group
of distinctively representative business men who were the leaders
in inaugurating and building up the industrial and commercial in-
terests of Fort Wayne and Allen county. Greater fortunes have been
accumulated here by others, but few lives furnish so striking an ex-
ample of sound business principles and safe conservatism as does his.
The story of his success is not long nor does it contain many excit-
ing chapters, but in it lies one of the most valuable secrets of the
prosperity which it records ; his business and private life are replete
with interest and incentive, no matter how lacking in dramatic action.
It is the record of a noble life, consistent with itself and its possibilities
in every direction.
Louis Rastetter was bom in Baden, Germany, on the 31st of
May, 1834, and was the son of Andrew and Anna Mary (Sutter)
Rastetter. He was educated for a teacher by his parents, but his
inclinations led him to learn the machinist's trade. At the age of
twenty years he came to America and landed in New York, unac-
companied by any relatives and without so much as even a friend in
the new land. He was fortified against hunger and want only be-
cause of his energy and pluck, as he had but fifty cents in his pocket
when he landed in New York. However, he had wdl learned the
machinist's trade in his native land and could command a good posi-
tion if opportunity but favored him. After marly trials and tribula-
tions such as a raw country lad, unable to speak the native tongue,
is bound to have in a strange country, with neither relatives nor
friends to guide him, he finally arrived at Rochester, New York,
having worked his way as a coal shoveler on an Erie Canal barge.
His ability as a machinist was promptly recognized at Rochester,
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 241
where he remained two years, going from there to Buffalo, where
he worked one year, from whence he came to Fort Wayne. Here
he found employment at the old Wabash shops and, by working
diligently and practicing rigid economy, accumulated sufficient means
to enable him to take a trip to Germany in November, 1859, to visit
his parents. Returning to this country in June, i860, he resumed
his position in the Wabash shops. However, being of a self-reliant
nature and possessed of an honest faith in his own ability to succeed,
he started in business for himself and set up a small machine shop
on West Jefferson street, near the corner of Harrison street. It was
in this shop that he constructed the clock which graced the toAver
of the court house which was demolished in 1900. For forty odd
years that clock ticked the seconds into minutes and tolled the hours
into days. His son, W. C. Rastetter, who purchased the clock at
the time the court house was demolished, says the clock is in good
condition and will run for forty odd years more. Many of the older
inhabitants of Fort Wayne will remember when, many years ago, the
first steam fire engine was added to the volunteer fire department.
The first man to operate this engine was Mr. Rastetter, who was
chosen because of his thorough mechanical ability, and his services
afterwards proved very valuable to the communit)^
Mr. Rastetter conducted his small machine shop on Jefferson
street until 1870, at which time he accepted the position of master
mechanic in the wheel works then conducted by N. G. Olds. Here
he remained until the fall of 1876, when, with two associates, he went
to Lima, Ohio, and established the Lima Wheel Works, engaging in
the manufacture of hubs, spokes and buggy bows. At the end of
four years and a half Mr. Rastetter sold his interests to his partners
and returned to Fort Wayne, establishing himself in business in 1881
at the corner of Jefferson and Calhoun streets. The business grew
rapidly and, to secure more room, the factory was, in 1886, removed
to a larger building at the corner of Broadway and the Pittsburg,
Fort Wayne & Chicago Railway. Nine years later these quarters
also had been outgrown and the business was removed to its present
location in the two-story brick buildings on grounds covering about
two acres located on AVall, Nelson and Garden streets. Here a full
line of buggy bows and bent carriage wood work, also bicycle wood
16
242 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
rims, steering wheels for automobiles and other special bent wood
work is being manufactured. This is one of the most important
manufactories in Fort Wayne and the product is sold not only in
this country, but throughout the civilized world.
On the 4th of August, i860, Mr. Rastetter was united in mar-
riage to Miss Elizabeth Hauenstein, who was bom in Fort Wayne
March 2y, 1841, the daughter of John and Mary Hauenstein, natives
of Switzerland. To Mr. and Mrs. Rastetter were bom seven chil-
dren, of whom four are living, namely: William C, Helen, Charles
and Mary. Fraternally, Mr. Rastetter was a member of the In-
dependent Order of Odd Fellows, and took a deep interest in the
success of that beneficent order. The career of this honored citizen
affords an impressive example of what energy, directed and con-
trolled by correct moral principles, can accomphsh in overcoming un-
favorable environment and lifting its possessor from a comparatively
humble origin to a position of usefulness and affluence. Eminently a
self-made man, having carved his own way in the world, he ranked
with the most enterprising and successful of his compeers and won a
name and reputation which placed him among the representative
citizens of his city.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 243
WILLIAM E. REYNOLDS, Jr.
It can not be other than gratifying, in view of the nomadic
spirit which is growing to animate all classes of American citizens,
to find a locality in which are to be found citizens of worth and
prominence who have passed their entire lives in the communities
in which they were born and who command the confidence and
respect of those who have been familiar with their entire careers.
In the older settled sections of the east we find instances where
property has been held from generation to generation by one family
and where the old homesteads signify something more than mere
names, but in the middle and western states this condition has not
been so pronounced. In Allen county, Indiana, however, as the
pages of this publication clearly prove, are found many representa-
tives of families who here initiated the work of reclaiming the
virgin wilderness and who here made for themselves homes which
their descendants are glad to retain in their possession. One of the
scions of pioneer stock in Monroe township is the subject of this
review, who is one of the substantial citizens and representative
farmers of that section of the county and who has ever commanded
the unqualified regard of the people of the community in which he
has lived from the time of his birth to the present.
William E. Reynolds was born on the old homestead farm in
Adams township, Allen county, Indiana, on the 31st of October,
.1849, ^rid is a son of William and Jane (Driver) Reynolds, both
of whom were bom in the state of Ohio. Jane Driver, whose father,
an Indian trader, was killed in the war of 1812, was bom in a
cave near Defiance, Ohio, and was brought to Fort Wayne when
but a few days old, being the youngest occupant of the fort at the
time of the historic fight between General Wayne's forces and the
Indians. William Reynolds came to Allen county, Indiana, in an
244 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
early day and here developed a g-ood farm in the midst of the forest,
becoming the owner of a valuable place in Adams township, where
he continued to be identified with agricultural pursuits until his
death, while to him was accorded the confidence and popular esteem
which are the diametrical result of subjective worth of character.
His devoted wife continued to reside on the old homestead until she
too was summoned to the land of the leal. Both were devoted mem-
bers of the Dunkard church, and in politics the father was originally
an old-line Whig and later a Republican. In the family were seven
children, of whom six are hving at the time of this writing, in
1905. It may be said that the Reynolds family has been identified
with the annals of American history for several generations, the
original ancestors having com.e from Scotland to this country in
the colonial epoch of our national histoiy.
The subject of this review was reared to the sturdy discipline
of the home farm, in whose work he early began to assist in a
material way, while he duly availed himself of the advantages af-
forded in the common schools of the locality and period, thus laying
the foundation for that adequate and practical knowledge which,
enhanced by personal application and experience, has served him so
well throughout the course of his busy and successful career as one
of the progressive and energetic farmers and stock growers of his
native county. He continued to be associated in the work and
management of the home farm until he had attained the age of
thirty-five years, and he has been possessed of his present fine home-
stead since 1890. His farm is located in Monroe township, about
three miles distant from the thriving town of Monroeville, and it
comprises one hundred and twenty acres of most arable land, while
the improvements of tlie place are of superior order, including a
commodious and attractive residence. Mr. Reynolds has never
failed to show a loyal interest v.' the welfare of his native county
and has been ready to lend his aid and co-operation in the supporting
of measures for the general good of the same. While never
ambitious for public office he has been found stanchly arrayed as an
advocate of the principles and policies of the Republican party, while
he keeps well infonned as to the questions and issues of the hour.
He is one of the sterling citizens and substantial farmers of the
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 245
county and is well entitled to the recognition accorded him in this
publication. Both he and his wife are valued members of the
Lutheran church, and in a fraternal way he is affiliated with the
Junior Order of United American Mechanics.
In the month of February, 1879, was solemnized the marriage
of Mr. Reynolds to Miss Mary Fry, who was born and reared in
Madison township, being a daughter of Conrad and Mary Fry, who
were numbered among the honored pioneers of this section of the
county, whither they came from Germany, their native land. They
continued to reside on their homestead until called upon to answer
the inexorable summons of death, and their names merit a place of
honor upon the roll of the worthy pioneers of Allen county. Mr.
and Mrs. Reynolds have two children, Frank A. and Lulu M., the
former being a prominent and popular farmer of Monroe township,
where he has lived from the time of his birth, while the latter re-
mains with her parents on the homestead farm. On the 17th of
April, 1900, Frank A. Reynolds was united in marriage to Miss
Amy Rose, and they have two children, Harry C. and Carl. Frank
A. follows in the footsteps of his father in the matter of politics and
is a stanch supporter of the cause of the Republican party, while his
religious faith is that of the Lutheran church, under whose tenets
he was reared.
246 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
CHRISTIAN WIESE.
Allen county has a due quota of the sterling German-American
citizens, whose value in any community is never problematical, and
prominent among the representatives of this class in Adams town-
ship is numbered Mr. Wiese, who is a successful and influential
farmer of this attractive section of the country. Mr. Wiese was
born in Wiedersheim Reojioungbezirk, Minden, Prussia, on the 9th
of March, 1829, and was there reared and educated, having been a
youth of fifteen years at the time of the family immigration to
America, The father of the subject likewise bore the name of Chris-
tian and he was a farmer in Prussia, while he served seven years
during the bitter warfare between Prussia and Austria. He died
when his son and namesake was a lad of about eight years of age.
In 1844 his widow, in company with her children, came to America
to join her son Charles, who had come here four years previously
and located in Allen county, Indiana, where he had secured em-
ployment in connection with the construction of the old Wabash &
Erie canal, while he had also secured a tract of wild land, in com-
pany with his maternal uncle, Henry Moeller, who had accompanied
him to the United States. This eighty acres of land was in Adams
township, and on the same the Martin Evangelical Lutheran church
was later erected. Charles continued to reside on this farm until
his death, when about fifty years of age, while his mother here passed
the remainder of her life, while the subject of this sketch continued
to be associated with his brother Charles in the work of the farm
until he married and established a home for himself. At the age
of sixteen years, a few months after his arrival in this county, Mr.
Wiese secured work in driving horses in connection with the oper-
ation of the canal, receiving five dollars a month and board in recom-
pense for his services during the first year, while his wages were
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 247
raised by two dollars the second year. So faithful had been his
service, however, that after three months of the second year had
elapsed, his employer, Captain Jacob Steger, paid him nine dollars
a month, with credit for three months at the same rate, while he
also paid his physician's bill during an interval of illness, without
deducting from his Avages during the time of enforced idleness, while
the Captain later raised his salary to ten dollars a month, appreciat-
ing his careful attention to duty in all details. After being thus em-
ployed as driver on the canal for a period of four years Mr. Wiese
became associated with Captain Lempke and two other men in the
purchase of a boat and horses, and thereafter they utilized the boat
for two years in transporting freight to Toledo, the subject acting
as steersman on the boat, the receipts from the operation of the boat
being barely sufficient to enable the interested principles to meet
payments on their investment. In the winter seasons Mr. Wiese
devoted his attention to cutting and hauling wood, while a portion
of this time he received only his board in payment for his arduous
labor. After the first two years each of the owners of the boat
cleared fifty dollars a month from its operation during the open sea-
son. Upon the completion of the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne & Chicago
Railroad the canal service fell into practical disuse, and after nine
years of identification therewith Mr. Wiese disposed of his interest
in the boat, the amount received, with his savings, aggregating about
seven hundred dollars. He had purchased eighty acres of land, in
Adams township, for a consideration of twelve hundred dollars,
and on the place had put up a log house, the year before retiring from
the canal enterprise.
On the i6th of December, 1853, Mr. Wiese was united in mar-
riage to Miss Anna Elizabeth Weisheit, who was born in Erksdorf,
Kurhessen, Prussia, on the i8th of December, 1832, and he and
his wife located on the farm, which has ever since been their home
and which has been developed into one of the valuable places of the
county, its area having been augmented by the purchase of an adjoin-
ing tract of thirty acres, Avhile the best of improvements have been
made, including the erection of the present residence, in 1870, the
same being commodious and substantial, while the other farm build-
ings are in harmony therewith. In addition to carrying on a general
248 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
farming enterprise Mr. Wiese has given no little attention to horti-
culture, and he usually disposes of his products in the line in the
Fort Wayne market. He has a fine orchard of twelve acres, and he
secures large yields of fruit of excellent varieties. He early began
the institution- of an effective drainage system on his farm, utilizing
tile, and in this one branch of improvement he has expended more
than two thousand dollars, while he has shown an equally progressive
spirit in the management and regulation of all departments of his
farm work.
In politics Mr. Wiese is a stanch advocate of the principles of
the Democratic party, and he and his wife are prominent and valued
members of the Evangelical Lutheran church, as was also his first
wife, both having been early identified with the church in Fort
Wayne and having later been numbered among the organizers and
original members of the Martin church, in Adams township, while
he is at the present time the only survivor of these original members.
The first church was erected in 1854 and was constructed of logs.
He assisted in the building of this little edifice, which stood on the
Martin Bohne farm, and a few years later this was abandoned and
a new log church was erected on land donated by Charles Wiese
and Henry Moeller. This building was utilized by the congregation
until the erection of the present attractive edifice, in 1870. Mrs.
Wiese was summoned to the life eternal in June, 1880, and of the
ten children the three eldest all died within a few weeks of each
other. Those living are Carl H. G., who resides on his farm in
Jefferson township, Allen county, is associated in the management
of the home farm ; Martha Anna Louisa, who is the wife of William
Prange; Sophia Louise, who is the wife of Frederich Bradtmueler;
Anna Katherine Elizabeth, who remains at the paternal home, being
a trained nurse; Maria Eleanora, who is the wife of Paul Zink;
Heinrich Frederich Ferdinand, who remains on the home farm and
who married Miss Amelia Roemer, and Sophia Maria, who is the
wife of William Wissmann, of Saint Paul, Fayette county, Illinois,
all the other children remaining residents of Indiana.
In 1 89 1 Mr. Wiese married a second time, being then united to
Mrs. Elnora (Moeller) Boester, widow of Henry Boester. She
was bom in Prussia and came to Indiana with her parents when a
child. No children have been bom of this union.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 249
WILSON CLARK.
Animated by the strictest principles of honesty and integrity, a
man of strong intellectual force and one who has ^Yorked his way
to independence, is this well known citizen and substantial farmer,
of Aboit township, where he has resided for many years, while still
further interest attaches to his career by reason of the fact that he
is a native of Allen county, and representative of one of its honored
pioneer families.
Mr. Clark was born on a farm in Wayne township, near the
Rudisill mill, on the St. Joseph river, on the 24th of April, 1839,
and when we note the fact that the old mill is still standing it may
well be understood that the same is one of the landmarks of the
county. Of John and Mary (McLean) Clark, parents of our sub-
ject, we record that the former was born in Kentucky and the latter
in Dayton, Ohio, in which latter place their marriage was solemnized.
The father was a tanner by trade and followed this vocation in early
life. About the year 1837 he came to Allen county, Indiana, having
previously been engaged in farming near Dayton, Ohio. Prior
to coming to Fort Wa3nie he engaged in contracting on the Miami
canal, but the result was such a financial loss to him as to place him
in somewhat straitened circumstances for a time. He died in 1855,
in the sixty-third year of his life. In 1841 he removed from Wayne
township to Aboit township, but he eventually returned to the for-
mer, where he passed the closing years of his life. While residing
in Aboit township he was engaged in agricultural pursuits, having
rented a farm of Allen Hamilton. He was twice married, and the
mother of our subject was the second wife. She survived her hon-
ored husband by a number of years, being called to the life eternal
in 1877 ^^d having passed her declining years in the home of her
son Benjamin, in Aboit township. Of the children four lived to
250 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
attain maturity, namely: Wilson, to whom this sketch is dedi-
cated; Mary, who has never married and who has been for the past
thirteen years matron of the Home for Emergencies in the city
of Fort Wayne; John, who was identified with the sawmilling in-
dustry in this county for a number of years, died in 1877, and
Benjamin, who was a successful farmer in Aboit township, died
at the age of thirty-one years.
Wilson Clark secured his early educational training in the com-
mon schools of Allen county, and that he made good use of his
opportunities^ in the line is evident when we advert to the fact that
in his youth he taught successfully for several terms, in Wayne and
Aboit townships. His first pedagogic endeavors were made
in what is now known as No. 6 school in Aboit town-
ship, the same having been originally designated as the
Bullard school. As a boy he had attended school here, in a little
log cabin of the primitive sort, but on the same site had been erected
the first frame school house in the township at the time he was
called upon there to serve as instructor. Our subject was not yet
sixteen years of age at the time of his father's death, and he con-
tinued to reside with his mother until his marriage, in the meanwhile
providing for the maintenance of the family. He was married at
the age of twenty-eight years, and for several years thereafter he
was engaged in farming on rented land, in Wayne township, having
leased the same farm on which his father had resided and there re-
mained for several years. In 1881 Mr. Clark purchased his present
farm, in section 14, Aboit township, paying sixteen hundred dollars
for eighty acres. There were no buildings on the place and all the
marketable timber had been cut off, leaving the land covered with
underbrush and second-growth timber. The task which confronted
Mr. Clark was a rather formidable one, and while engaged in pre-
paring his own land for cultivation he was compelled to rent other
land to utilize for farming purposes. He finally reclaimed his land,
which he has made one of the attractive and valuable farms of the
to\vnship, while he has shown much discrimination in effecting per-
manent improvements of good order. He erected a house on the
farm soon after coming into possession of the property, and this
building is still standing, being a part of the present residence, which
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 251
is a comfortable and commodious dwelling, remodeled and enlarged
from the old structure. Mr. Clark devotes his attention to general
farming and to the growing of live stock of good grade and in suf-
ficient numbers to make proper use of the products of the farm. He
is known as a progressive and public spirited citizen, but has never
sought or held office or been called upon to serve as juryman. In
his political proclivities he is a supporter of the Democratic party
in so far as national issues are involved, while in a local way he
maintains an independent attitude.
In the year 1867 Mr. Clark was united in marriage to Miss
Jane Partner, who was born in the state of Pennsylvania, being a
daughter of Henry Partner, who came to Allen county, Indiana, when
she was a child of eight years. Of the nine children of this union
all are living except Henry, who died at the age of ten years. Con-
cerning the others we record that William E. is a representative
farmer of Lafayette township; John A. is a successful farmer of
Aboit township, and for a period of about sixteen years he was a
popular teacher in the public schools of Allen county; H. Walton
was also a successful teacher and is now identified with the govern-
ment fish and fisheries commission in the city of Washington; Ger-
trude is the wife of A. W. Hanson, assistant secretary of the In-
diana Young Men's Christian Association, with headquarters in the
city of Indianapolis; Wilson, Jr., married Miss Elma Jackson and
still resides at the parental home, being associated with his father in
the work and management of the farm ; Anna was engaged in teach-
ing in the public schools for four years and is now with her parents,
as are also Elizabeth and Florence. The family enjoys marked pop-
ularity in the community, and a gracious hospitality is ever in ev-
dence in the home.
252 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JEREMIAH B. DOWNING.
This well known citizen of Allen county, where he has resided
for two score of years, initiated his independent career when a mere
toy, and his position today indicates what is possible of accomplish-
ment upon the part of the man who will apply his energies and abili-
ties in a legitimate avenue of enterprise, for he has attained to a
success of no indefinite order and has accumulated a competency.
He has a pleasant home at 525 Wildwood avenue, in the city of
Fort Wayne, and was formerly engaged in farming in Wayne town-
ship, where he improved and owned a valuable place, while he now
devotes considerable attention to contracting as a mason and builder,
utilizing the practical knowledge gained during his earlier years of
work at the trade implied.
Mr. Downing was born in Batavia, New York, on the 31st of
May, 1837, ^"d is a son of David and Emily (Hotchkiss) Downing,
both of whom were natives of the state of Connecticut and repre-
sentative of stanch old families of New England. They resided in
the state of New York until 1845, when they removed to Ohio and
located in Oxford township, Erie county, where the father con-
tinued to be engaged in agricultural pursuits until his death, which
occurred in 1857. His widow long survived him, her death occur-
ring in 1882, at a venerable age. The subject of this sketch se-
cured his rudimentary educational training in the common schools of
his native state, and was about eighty years of age at the time of
the family removal to Ohio. At the age of ten years he ran away
from home and returned to the state of New York, taking up his
residence in the city of Rochester, where he apprenticed himself to
learn the trade of brick and stone mason, his apprenticeship covering
a period of six years, during which period he remained continuously
in the employ of one man, Samuel Bullard, a general contractor.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 253
For his first year of service he received one hundred dollars and his
board; the second year his stipend was seventy-five cents a day,
and the third year one dollar, while he paid his own board. Within
the time of his apprenticeship Mr. Downing Avas employed on con-
tracts in Rochester, Buffalo, and other points in the state, and he
became a thoroughly skilled artisan in his line. Within the six
years he had saved from his earnings the sum of five hundred dollars,
and at the expiration of his apprenticeship he returned to Erie county,
Ohio, and engaged in contracting on his own responsibility, thus
continuing to be engaged until he had attained the age of twenty-
two years, while he met with good success in his work. In 1865
Mr. Downing came to Fort Wayne, where he entered the employ
of James Wilding, with whom he was engaged as a journeyman
mason for five years, receiving a salary of twenty-one dollars a
week. Within the first year of his residence here he purchased
eighty acres of land, in Wayne township, two miles south of Fort
Wayne, on the Piqua road, paying thirty-five dollars an acre for
the property. He operated the farm by the employing of hired
hands until about 1870, when he took up his residence on the place
and turned his personal attention to its improvement and cultiva-
tion, while he purchased an adjoining eighty acres, making a good
farm of one hundred and sixty acres. While on the farm he did
more or less contract work at his trade, principally for his neighbors.
He cleared forty-five acres of his land from the native timber, and
he made the place one of the best in the vicinity of the city of Fort
Wayne. Prior to leaving the farm he sold forty acres, now the
home of his brother-in-law, Benjamin F. Ogden, while in 1903 he
disposed of the remainder of the place at a good figure, the land hav-
ing greatly appreciated in value during the intervening years, as
may readily be understood.
In 1893 Mr. Downing removed to the city of Fort Wayne,
and here built up a profitable enterprise as a dealer in horses, in which
business he continued about three years. In 1899 he purchased ten
acres of land on Fairfield avenue, platting the same into city lots and
laying out the property as an addition to Fort Wayne. Later on
he disposed of the property at a good profit, while it is now being
made into one of the attractive residence sections of the city. He
254 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
has made other judicious investments in local real estate, and his own
residence property is a most attractive and desirable one, the house
being modern in design and appointments and most eligibly located.
He now gives considerable attention to mason contracting, in which
he is meeting with the success which is the natural concomitant of
ability and honorable methods. In politics Mr. Downing is a stanch
adherent to the Republican party, and both he and his wife are valued
members of the Congregational church.
On the 4th of March, 1858, Mr. Downing was united in mar-
riage to Miss Cynthia L. Sexton, of Erie county, Ohio, and she died
in 1873, leaving one son, Myron Sexton Downing, who is now man-
ager of the Fort Wayne branch of the National Biscuit Company.
On the 25th of October, 1891, the subject consummated a second
marriage, being then united to Miss Annie Martin, who was bom
and reared in Portland, Maine, and who was formerly a successful
teacher of music, being a woman of marked talent and gracious re-
finement. They have one daughter, Rose, who is a pupil in the city
schools at the time of this writing.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 255
GEORGE W. WILBUR.
A progressive and influential fanner of Milan township is George
W. Wilbur, while further interest attaches to the consideration of
his career as a loyal citizen by reason of the fact that he served
right valiantly as a Union soldier during the Civil war. Mr. Wilbur
is a native of the Hoosier state, having been bom in Dekalb county,
Indiana, on the 23d of August, 1840, and being a son of Charles
and Catherine (Waters) Wilbur. The genealogy in the paternal
line traces back to stanch old New England stock of the colonial
era, and the father of our subject was bom in the state of Vermont,
while his marriage was solemnized in the state of New York, where
he and his wife continued to reside until 1835, when they came as
pioneers to Indiana and settled in Concord township, on the St.
Joseph river. They were among the first to locate in that section
and the father took up a tract of wild land, whose reclamation from
the forest he forthwith instituted. The family continued to reside
on this pioneer farm until 1851, when they came to Allen county
and located on the farm now owned and occupied by George W.
Here Charles Wilbur secured one hundred and seventy acres of
land, the major portion of which he reclaimed to cultivation. The
original residence was a small frame structure, on what is known as
the Ridge road, now known as the Fort Wayne & Hicksville pike,
and traversing the ridge between the St. Joseph and Maumee rivers.
This was the first state road to be surveyed through this section.
Charles Wilbur developed a good farm, placing the major portion
of his land under effective cultivation and making substantial im-
provements, and here he continued to reside until he was summoned
to that "undiscovered country from whose bourne no traveler re-
turns," his death occurring in the year 1878, at which time he was
eighty-six years of age. He was a Democrat in his political ad-
256 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
herency up to the time of the war of the Rebellion, when he espoused
the cause of the Republican party, of whose principles he ever after-
ward remained a stanch advocate. His first wife, the mother of
our subject, died in 1858, and he later married Miss Arvilla Har-
wood, who survived him by a number of years. Of the children of
the first union five attained to maturity, namely : Elizabeth, who
became the wife of Henry Saylor, son of one of the pioneers of
Allen county, died at the age of seventy-six years ; Mary became the
wife of John Reaser, and died in California at the age of seventy-
three years; Aaron, who served as a member of the Twenty-third
Indiana Battery of Light Artillery during the Civil war, located
thereafter in Iowa and later in Kansas, in which latter state he died,
at the age of sixty-three years; Charles, Jr., was a member of the
Thirtieth Indiana Volunteer Infanti-y and sacrificed his life in the
memorable battle of Chickamauga, being twenty-five years of age
at the time of his death, and George W. is the immediate subject
of this review.
•George W. Wilbur was reared to the sturdy discipline of the
pioneer farm and was about eleven years of age at the time of the
family removal to Allen county, while his educational advantages
were such as were afforded in the common and subscription schools
of the locality and period. He continued to be associated in the
work and management of the homestead farm until the time of
the war of the Rebellion, when he signalized his patriotism by
tendering his service in defense of the Union. In 1861 he enlisted
as a private in Company D, Thirtieth Indiana Volunteer Infantry,
his brother Charles enlisting at the same time. The regiment was
originally commanded by Colonel S. S. Bass and later by Colonel
J. B. Dodge. Mr. Wilbur continued in active service for somewhat
more than three years, during which the history of his regiment
stands as the record of his military career, for he took part in prac-
tically all of the engagements in which his regiment participated,
and these included some of the most notable battles of the war.
He was never captured or wounded, and was ever found at the
post of duty. He continued in the service until October, 1864,
when he received his honorable discharge, having been mustered
out at Indianapolis, Indiana.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 257
After the close of his faithful service as a loyal son of the Re-
public Mr. Wilbur returned home and soon afterward assumed
charge of the old homestead farm, where he has ever since main-
tained his residence, while he has been the owner of the property
for the past forty years, the area of the farm being practically the
same as the original claim secured by his father. He has also pur-
chased and sold other farm properties in the county. He devotes
his attention to general farming and stock growing and has one of
the valuable and attractive places of the county. The buildings are
of substantial order and were all erected by him, while the other
permanent improvements are of the best type.
In his political allegiance Mr. Wilbur is a stalwart Republican,
taking a deep interest in the cause of the party and being prominent
in its local ranks. He has frequently served as delegate to the county,
congressional and state conventions of his party, and while he has
shown a lively interest in local affairs of a public nature he has
never been ambitious for office. He is a notary public, having
served in this capacity for a number of years past and having been
called upon to serve as guardian and administrator of a number of
estates — facts which indicate the high confidence and esteem in
which he is held in the community which has figured as his home since
his boyhood days. His religious faith is that of the English Evangel-
ical Lutheran church, and he has been a member of the board of
trustees of the Barnett chapel, located near his home, practically ever
since its establishment, while he is also an elder in the church. Mr.
Wilbur is a member of Harlan Lodge, No. 296, Free and Ac-
cepted Masons, at Harlan, Indiana, and of the Grand Army of the
Republic. At the present time he is serving as jury commissioner
of Allen county. For a number of years he has served as a director
and the treasurer of the Fanners' Mutual Fire Insurance Associa-
tion of Allen county and for some time has been the heaviest indi-
vidual tax-payer in the township.
On March 25, 1869, Mr. Wilbur wedded Miss Mary, the
daughter of James and Rebecca Vandolah, who was born in Perry
township, Allen county, Indiana, in 1840. To this union was born
one child, Catharine R., who died in infancy. Mrs. Mary Wilbur
died in 1880, and in 1882 Mr. Wilbur married Miss Ella Richards,
17
258 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
who was bom in Wayne county, Ohio, in 1852, the daughter of
Solomon and Matilda Richards, of Milan township, this county,
whither they came from Wayne county, Ohio, in 1863. To Mr. and
Mrs. Wilbur have been born three children, Mary M. and Goldie M.,
both deceased, and Georgia Winnie, who was bom October 15, 1890.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 259
HON. HENRY COOPER.
But few men in the United States had less claim to recent Euro-
pean blood than Mr. Cooper. His maternal ancestors were Irish
Protestants, and were among the first followers of Lord Baltimore
to Maryland, where they settled near Cambry. His paternal pro-
genitors, who were English Protestants, arrived in Maryland at
a later period. He had a maternal uncle who served under the un-
fortunate Admiral Byng at Minorca, and in the English West India
fleet during the French war. His maternal grandfather was an en-
sign in the Maryland Volunteers during the Revolutionary war.
One of his paternal uncles was taken prisoner by the Hessians in
New Jersey, and was detained a long time on board of one of the
prison ships at New York.
Henry Cooper, son of James and Leah Cooper, was bom at
Havre de Grace, Maryland, June 8, 1793, and was left fatherless
in his tenth year ; but at that early age he had learned from his father
the rules of morals and mathematics, both of which were of great
service to him in his subsequent journey through life. Influenced by
the slender state of his resources, he commenced a seafaring life
in 18 10, but finding there was no chance of preferment without a
knowledge of navigation, he entered himself as a student of that
science under the tuition of Mr. Ackworth in Baltimore. While
attending this course, mathematics, in theory and practice, engrossed
his entire attention, and while engaged in taking the altitude of
church steeples and other elevated objects within the city, the bear-
ings and distance of Fort McHenry and places of similar notoriety
without, he became such an enthusiastic disciple of Euclid that he
has been heard to say that he thought that was the most interesting
portion of his education.
Determining to follow the sea, he did so until 18 18, and by per-
26o THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
severance and good conduct rose to the command of a vessel. About
this time his natural sagacity led him to perceive that the treaty
made in that year with the European powers would have a tendency
to materially lessen the American carrying trade and give a consid-
erable portion of it to foreign vessels. Under this conviction, he
abandoned the sea and came to the west. When he visited Balti-
more in 1822, 1835 and 1836, the number of foreign flags floating
to the breeze in the harbor where formerly the stars and stripes alone
were seen convinced him that his previous opinion on the subject was
correct. After coming to the west, the small amount he had saved
of his hard earnings on the ocean was sunk in the Mississippi river
during a storm. Finding his designs again thwarted, he made a
fresh effort in a new profession, and in 1822 commenced the study
of law under the late Mr. Wing, of Cincinnati, Ohio. The commen-
taries of Chancellor Kent and many other eminent writers on Amer-
ican law had not been published when Mr. Cooper commenced the
study of law; but, knowing that he would have to compete with
learning and talent, backed with wealth and influence, he deter-
mined to read diligently and methodically the most useful books on
legal science procurable. After a diligent study of Blackstone's
Commentaries, he devoted much attention to the feudal law. For
this purpose he read Sullivan's "Lectures on Feudal Law," Hume's
"History of England," Robertson's "Charles V,"and Montesquieu's
"Spirit of the Law," rightly judging that the fullest understanding
of modern authors was based on the intimate acquaintance of those
authors who had preceded them. Blackstone's Commentaries was
his chief favorite and so often a-id so thoroughly had he analyzed
them that it might be said he had their contents indelibly impressed
on his memory.
After three years of unremitting study Mr. Cooper removed to
Fort Wayne and in June, 1825, at the second term of the circuit
court, held at the residence of Alexander Ewing, he was admitted
to the practice of law, he being the second lawyer of Fort Wayne
to receive that distinction, William G. Ewing having been admitted
at the first term. In May, 1829, he was admitted to practice at the
supreme court of the state, and in January, 1833, was licensed in the
supreme court of the United States.
. ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 261
In his time no lawyer in the state had a more extensive practice
in the circuit and supreme courts of Indiana and Ohio and the su-
preme court of the United States. He strenuously opposed all tink-
ering with the constitution and fundamental laws of the land, and
zealously advocated the independence of juries. A few of the many
interesting cases in which he was engaged have been reported by
Judges McLean, Blackford and Smith. In one of his cases before
the supreme court of the United States, the Lessees of Grantly et
dl vs. Ewing, certified from the circuit court for this district, a case
in which the judges of the United States court were divided in opin-
ion on a motion for a new trial, several points were made in argu-
ments, both in the circuit and supreme courts, on one of which the
supreme court of the United States decided in favor of Mr. Cooper,
but gave no opinion on the other. This case is reported in Howard's
S. C. Reports, Vol. iii, page 707.
In the important case of Harris vs. Doe (4th Blackford, page
396), Mr. Cooper prosecuted and obtained a verdict and judgment
in the Allen circuit court. On an appeal the supreme court con-
curred with him, "that an Indian treaty is a contract to be con-
strued like other contracts and that the admission of possession in
the consent rule stopped the defendant from denying possession in
him at the time of the commencement of the suit." In the case of
Rubottom vs. McClure, the question for the first time came before
the supreme court: "Does the law as then constituted authorize
the taking of private property for public benefit, and leave the as-
sessment of damages to commissioners without a jury having first
valued the same?" Mr. Cooper appeared for the plaintiff in error
and the supreme court sustained his construction of the law.
As a speaker Mr. Cooper made no effort at flowery declamation,
but in a methodical and logical argument brought his case before
the court, and in his address to the jury analyzed the testimony and
concentrated it on the point at issue. He was an untiring student
and never came into court without the most careful preparation.
His memory was wonderful, a decision once read became indelibly
impressed on his mind, and he could repeat not only the substance,
but give page and volume with astonishing accuracy. He was inter-
ested in the young lawyer, and always took the greatest pains to ex-
262 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
plain or apply a point of law for their assistance. He was literary
in his tastes and a great lover of the classics, and was gentle, digni-
fied and courtly in his manners, a fine example of the "gentleman
of the old school," and was noted for his brilliancy in repartee
and profound learning.
Mr. Cooper was never a candidate for any political office. In
1824 and 1828 he supported Mr. Adams for the Presidency; in 1832
and 1844 Henry Clay and in 1836 and 1840 his old personal friend,
General Harrison. During the latter campaign he was chairman of
the committee which organized such a successful campaign in Allen
county.
In February, 1833, Mr. Cooper married Miss Mary Silvers, of
Cleves, Ohio, who bore him seven children, five of whom died in
infancy, Edward B. and James Henry surviving him. In 1845 't
was his misfortune to lose his wife, a charming woman of many so-
cial graces. In July, 1850, he married Mrs. Eleanor Munson, of
Fort Wayne, widow of James P. Munson, and a woman of keen
intellect, who bore him one son, William P. Cooper, the well-known
insurance man. Mr. Cooper died very suddenly, on Friday, March
25, 1853. He was seized with a congestive chill, and on the follow-
ing morning passed quietly away. On Sunday, March 27th, the fu-
neral services were held at the First Presbyterian church, where an
eloquent and impressive sermon was preached by the Rev. Reihel-
daffer. His remains were followed to the grave by a great num-
ber of citizens, preceded by the members of the bar. Thus passed
away a good citizen, a profound lawyer and an honest man.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 263
CHARLES F. PFEIFFER.
The present age is essentially utilitarian and the energetic busi-
ness man is everywhere in evidence. In placing the subject of this
review before the reader as one standing in the front rank of Fort
Wayne's enterprising men of affairs, whose influence has ever tended
to the upbuilding of the city and the advancement of its various in-
terests, simple justice is done a biographical fact recognized through-
out the community by those at all familiar with his history and
cognizant of the important part he has acted in tlie business circles
with which he is identified.
Charles F. Pfeiffer, son of John C. and Margaret Pfeiffer, of
Germany, was born in Allen county, Indiana, June 22, 1852. He
first saw the light of day on his father's farm and spent his child-
hood and youth pretty much after the manner of the majority of
country lads, entering as soon as old enough the district schools, the
training thus received being afterwards supplemented by a course
of higher study in the Methodist College of Fort Wayne. Mean-
time he became familiar with more practical affairs on the farm,
where, amid the free outdoor exercise in close touch with nature,
he acquired those habits of industry and concentration of purpose
which had such a marked influence in forming his character and
shaping his career. After remaining on the home place and assist-
ing in its cultivation until his nineteenth year, he began life for
himself as a partner in the Bloomingdale Flouring Mill of Fort
Wayne, which line of business he continued for a period of ten years,
the meanwhile acquiring not only efliciency as a manufacturer of
flour but high standing in the industrial and commercial circles of
the community.
After the destruction of the mill by fire at the expiration of the
time noted Mr. Pfeiffer entered into partnership with Charles Pape
264 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
and William Fleming in the Fleming Manufacturing Company, man-
ufacturers of road-making machinery, and in due time rose to the
pQsition of manager of the concern, which relation he sustained for
ten years. At the end of that time he severed his connection with
the firm and turned his attention to the real-estate and loan business,
which he has since conducted and in which his success has been
signally encouraging, as is attested by the large and lucrative pat-
ronage which he now commands, not only in the city but through-
out Allen county. In addition to the handling of real estate, he
subsequently added stocks and bonds, in which he also does an ex-
tensive business, besides being identified with various public enter-
prises which have exercised a potent influence on the financial ad-
vancement and general prosperity of Fort Wayne. For several years
past he has been a director of the Citizens' Trust Company, the inter-
ests of which he has done much to promote, and also holds the posi-
tion of vice-president and director of the German-American National
Bank of Fort Wayne, the continued growth and popularity of which
institution is largely attributable to his business tact and executive
ability. Mr. Pfeiffer was one of the original promoters and leading
spirits in the organization of the South Bend Home Telephone Com-
pany, from the inception of which enterprise to the present time he
has been a member of its board of directors, besides contributing to
its success in other than official capacities.
In his political affiliation Mr. Pfeiffer is a firm and uncompro-
mising Republican, and as such has done much to promote the
strength and success of the party in Fort Wayne and Allen county
in a number of local and general campaigns. While earnest and
unyielding in defense of his principles, he is nevertheless popular
with the people irrespective of party ties and numbers many of his
warmest personal friends among those who hold opinions directly
the opposite of his own. While not a partisan in the sense the term
is usually understood, he has ever been ready to work for the party
and subordinate many of his interests to its welfare, being a judi-
cious adviser in its councils and, when necessary, an active worker
in the rank and file. In recognition of his services, as well as by
reason of his peculiar fitness for the place, the people of his ward in
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 265
1873 elected him to represent tliem in the city council and to him
belongs the unique distinction of being the youngest man ever
chosen a member of that body. During his incumbency of two years
he took an active and influential part in the deliberations of the coun-
cil, introduced a number of ordinances and succeeded in bringing
about much important municipal legislation. Always untiring in
his efforts to promote the interests of his constituency and of the
people of the city in general, he won the esteem of the public and
when he retired from tlie council it was with the reputation of an
able, discreet and exceedingly popular public servant.
Religiously, Mr. Pfeiffer subscribes to the English Lutheran
creed and with his family belongs to Trinity church in the city of
Fort Wayne. He manifests an abiding interest in the welfare of
this church, contributes liberally to its material support, and for a
period of eight years has been treasurer of the organization and for
two years a member of its board of trustees.
On November 19, 1902, Mr. Pfeiffer was united in the bonds of
wedlock with Miss Henrietta Eckert, of Fort Wayne, daughter of
Fred and Elizabeth Eckert, the union being blessed with one child,
a daughter by the name of Marguerite Elizabeth.
The career of Mr. Pfeiffer presents a notable example of the
exercise of those qualities of mind and heart which overcome ob-
stacles and win success and his example is eminently worthy of
imitation by those dissatisfied with present attainments and who
would aspire to higher positions of honor and trust. A business man
in all the term implies, his integrity has ever been above reproach,
while his methods will bear the test of the severest criticism and
among his fellow citizens his name has ever been synonomous with
fair and honorable dealing. While subordinating every other con-
sideration to his business affairs, he has not been unmindful of his
obligations as a citizen, as is attested by the interest he manifests
in the public welfare, nor is he negligent of those social ties which
every well ordered community requires of those who constitute its
mainstay and support. Among his marked characteristics are his
energy, optimism and self-reliance and, with an abiding faith in his
own abilities, he addresses himself manfully to every undertaking
266 THE MAVMEE RIVER BASIN.
which engages his attention and seldom if ever fails to achieve
the end he seeks. In private life, as already indicated, he is an ac-
complished and genial gentleman, popular with all classes and condi-
tions of his fellow citizens, and few men in the city of Fort Wayne
are held in higher esteem by the people as a whole.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 267
PROF. JOHN HENRY UNGUMACH.
The subject of this review not only takes high rank among the
leading educators of Fort Wayne, but has achieved much more than
local distinction in the particular line of work to which his energies
and talents have been so long and so faithfully devoted. He has
also made his presence felt as a citizen and in every walk of life
his influence has made for the advancement of the community and
the good of his fellow men. His name with eminent fitness occupies
a conspicuous place in the profession which he adorns, and his career
presents a series of successes such as few school men attain.
Prof. John Henry Ungumach is a native of Zanesville, Ohio, and
dates his birth from February 26, 1843, being the son of John and
Magdalen Ungumach, both parents born in Germany, the father At
Rosenthal, near Cassel, the mother not far from the town of Gieben.
Mr. and Mrs. Ungumach resided at Zanesville, Ohio, until their son
John Henry had attained to the age of ten years, during five of
which he attended the parochial schools of that city, taught by the
minister of the Lutheran church, of which communion the parents
were earnest and consistent memibers. At the expiration of the period
noted the family moved to a farm near Zanesville, where, during the
five ensuing years, young Ungumach became familiar with the rug-
ged duties of country life, laboring in the fields of summers and in
the winter seasons attending the district schools of the neighborhood,
in which he made commendable progress. Actuated by a laudible
deSire to add to his scholastic attainments, the subject, in December,
1857, entered the Lutheran Seminary at Fort Wayne, Indiana,
where he pursued his studies for some time under the direction of
Profs. Creamer and Fleischman, the meanwhile laying broad and
deep a substantial foundation for his future career of usefulness.
While prosecuting his studies in the seminary, his father earnestly
268 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
besought him to enter the ministry and devote his Hfe to the church,
but this Hne of work not appeaHng very strongly to the young man,
he decided to fit himself for a calling more in harmony with his
taste and desires; accordingly, he yielded to an inclination of long
standing by preparing himself for the profession of teaching.
Prof. Ungximach's first work in his chosen vocation was in the
parochial schools of Boston, Massachusetts, where he went in 1861
as assistant teacher, which position he filled with credit to himself
and to the satisfaction of all concerned for a period of fourteen
months, returning to Fort Wayne in September of the following
year, for the purpose of further prosecuting his studies to the end
that he might the more thoroughly be prepared for his life's work.
After spending a couple of months in Fort Wayne, Prof.
Ungumach, in December, 1862, was recalled to Boston to take
charge of a recently established parochial school, and remained in
that city until 1873, achieving the meanwhile an enviable reputation
an an able teacher, successful disciplinarian and accomplished mu-
sician, having in connection with his regular scholastic duties filled
the position of organist in the church which he attended. In the
year 1873 Prof. Ungumach severed his connection with the school
of Boston and, returning to Fort Wayne, took charge of the school
of the St. Paul's Lutheran congregation, which place he has since
filled, being in point of continuous service one of the oldest as well
as one of the most successful educators, not only in the city, but in
church circles throughout the northern part of the state. The mar-
riage of Prof. Ungumach was solemnized on June 6, 1870.
In closing this brief review of the long and eminently useful
career of Prof. Ungumach, it is needless to state that he has fully
met the high expectations of his friends and the public, and that he
enjoys the esteem and confidence of all with whom he comes in con-
tact. That his professional labors have been signally successful is
attested by the continued growth and prosperity of the institution
under his charge as well as by the honorable positions to which many
of his erstwhile students have been called. Ever mindful of moral
growth as well as intellectual advancement, he has been untiring in
his efforts to produce symmetrically developed manhood to the end
that those whom he leads into the field of knowledge may under-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 269
stand and appreciate the duties and responsibilities of citizenship, a
work which only the consecrated teacher of noble aims and high
ideals knows fully how to prosecute with the assurance of abundant
results. Prof. Ungumach is still in the prime of his physical and
mental power and professionally bids fair to continue for many years
in the noble work so auspiciously begun and so successfully car-
ried on.
270 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JOHN C. PFEIFFER.
This retired farmer, and for many years one of the substantial
and representative citizens of Allen county, is a native of Witten-
berg, Germany, where his birth occurred on July 27, 182 1. His
childhood was spent in the fatherland until 1832, when, at the age
of eleven years, he accompanied his parents, Christofer and Catherine
Pfeiffer, to the United States, locating at Buffalo, New York, where
he remained during the eight years following. In 1840 he came
with the family to Fort Wayne, by way of Lake Erie and the Mau-
mee river, the portion of the trip from Maumee, Ohio, to his desti-
nation requiring nine days' time, the boat being propelled by poles.
Shortly after his arrival in Fort Wayne, Mr. Pfeiffer purchased
a farm north of what is now the city limits, near the Orphans' Home,
where he lived until January 18, 1849. In the latter year he mar-
ried Margaret Bosler, and immediately thereafter bought another
farm three miles north of the city, on what was then known as the
Huntington road, building a small log house and several other
structures of the same material whidi answered well the purposes
for which it was intended until replaced by more substantial im-
provements a few years later. After residing on this farm and bring-
ing it to a successful state of cultivation, he sold out and moved to
a farm on the Leo road which he also purchased and which, under
his industry and able management, soon became one of the best im-
proved as well as one of the most valuable places of its area in the
vicinity of Fort Wayne.
It was while living on this farm that the death of his wife
occurred, on January 7, 1876. She was born in Germany, was a
lady of beautiful character and sterling worth and her memory is
fondly cherished, not only by her husband and children, but by all
who enjoyed the privilege of her acquaintance. She presented her
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 271
husband with five offspring-, whose names are as follows: Charles
F., of Fort Wayne ; Carrie M., wife of Dr. Edward F. Sites, of the
same city; Sophia S. ; Edward L., who operates the home farm, and
Abbie E. Mr. Pfeiffer devoted his attention to agricultural pursuits
and stock raising until 1890, at which time, having accumulated an
ample competence, he turned his farm over to other hands and re-
moved to Fort Wayne, where he has since lived in honorable retire-
ment, enjoying the fruits of his many years of toil and successful
management. He has always been a public spirited citizen and in
addition to his private interests was for a number of years engaged
in the building of plank roads and other highways throughout the
county. All laudable public enterprises received his countenance and
support and to him more perhaps than to any other man is due the
progress of the community in which he so long resided. Politically
he is a Republican, but has never aspired to official positions, having
always been content with the life of a business man and satisfied
with the simple title of citizen. For a number of years he was a
director in the First National Bank of Fort Wayne, a position he
resigned some time since, although he is still identified with that
institution as a stockholder. He was also a partner for some years
in the Bloomingdale Flouring Mills, but since retiring from active
life has severed his connection with that and other enterprises so
as to spend the evening of his day in the quiet and content which
one of his activity knows so well how to appreciate and enjoy.
272 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
GEORGE DeWALD.
The days of the honored subject of this memoir were part and
portion of that indissoluble chain which linked the annals of the
pioneer epoch in Allen counts^ with those of latter-day progress and
prosperity, and the history of the city of Fort Wayne can not be told
without intimate reference to this prominent and influential business
man and loyal and progressiA^e citizen, who did much to promote
civic and material groMi:h and development. He stood "four square
to every wind that blows" and his strength was as the number of his
days. H'e Avas a distinct man and made his life count for good in all
its relations, while he was in a significant sense the architect of
his own fortunes. He rose to prominence and affluence as one of the
leading merchants of Fort Wayne, and it is most fitting that his name
is retained in connection with the extensive concern of which he was
virtually the founder, the George DeWald Company being at the
present time one of the representative business houses of the city.
An outline of Mr. DeWald's career is succinctly given in the fol-
lowing paragraphs, which were published in one of the Fort Wayne
newspapers at the time of his death : "He was bom in Darmstadt,
Germany, on the 14th of May, 183 1. When but a lad he often ex-
pressed a wish to come to the new world, and when but eighteen
years of age he immigrated to America, severing the home ties and
giving exemplification of his courage and self-reliant spirit. Later
he came to Fort Wayne, and after being here but a short time he went
into the employ of a small dry-goods firm that was stationed at the
same location now occupied by the large establishment of the
George DeWald Company. Mr. DeWald worked hard in his youth.
He was apt at learning and possessed a good business head, ready to
grasp the examples of business set by his superiors. Starting in at the
lowliest position in the little store, he gradually worked his way up the
-'i^^ ^^c^a^T^^^^^
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 273
ladder. His own diligence and aptitude, combined with honesty and
integrity in all his dealings, placed him in the confidence of his em-
ployers. As the business of the little stoUe increased Mr. DeWald
was promoted until he was finally taken into the firm, which then
became known as Townley, DeWald & Bond. Within a few years
Mr. DeWald was practically at the head of the firm, and it was
largely due to his efforts and business ability that the house thrived
and became one of the leading dry-goods firms in northern Indiana.
In a few years R. W. Townley, the senior member of the firm, de-
cided to retire, and he was succeeded by Mr. DeWald. It was not
long thereafter when Mr. DeWald became the sole manager and
proprietor of the business. The company was merely nominal.
"Mr. DeWald had an extensive acquaintance not only in this city
but also throughout Allen county and northeastern Indiana. In his
business and also in his private life he was a man of but few words,
but always congenial. About the store he was friendly with the
employees, and he always had a cheering word for a beginner in the
business. He was benevolent, and gave freely in a quiet way to
charity. He shunned notoriety in all of his charitable acts, but it was
well known that a person in need would never be refused help by Mr.
DeWald."
From the Fort Wayne Journal of Thursday, June 28, 1899, ^^'^
make extract of the following appreciative estimate: "Few events
of recent years have caused deeper or more widespread regret than
the death of George DeWald. He had been so long identified with
the city's commercial growth, so long regarded as a pillar of strength
in the business world, and so honorable and upright in his life that
his unawaited demise was felt almost as a public calamity.
"Mr. DeWald's life story is one of those, numerous in our western
history, that serve as object lessons to those who would mount the
ladder of success. His beginning was humble, and he owed his rise
to tio train of fortunate incidents or fortuitous circumstances. It
was the reward of application of mental qualifications of a high order
to the affairs of business; the combining of keen perceptions with
mental activity that enabled him to grasp the opportunities that pre-
sented themselves. This he did with success and, what is more
important, with honor. His integrity was unassailable, his honor
18
274 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
unimpeachable. The shrewd business man will be missed in business
circles, but it is as the gentle-mannered, kindly gentleman that his
friends will love most to remember him. Fort Wayne has lost a
sterling citizen whose place will be hard to fill. Innumerable poor
who have known his beneficence will call his memory blessed." Still
another paper spoke of the subject of this memoir in the following
words : "George DeWald was loved and respected not only in Fort
Wayne but in all the country round. His friends were legion, and
none knew him who did not thoroughly trust and esteem him. He
made honor the comer-stone and cap-stone of his success. He will
be greatly missed frim business circles of Fort Wayne, and thou-
sands of his acquaintances will feel a sense of personal loss."
It was in the year 1871 that Mr. DeWald became head of the busi-
ness which he built up to so great proportions under the firm name of
George DeWald & Company, which was retained until the time of
his death. Six months to the day after his demise the establishment of
the firm was destroyed by fire, on the 27th of December, 1899, and in
the following month was effected the organization of the George
DeWald Company, under which title the business has since been
continued in its wholesale and jobbing lines, the retail department
having been abandoned. Apropos of the fire the Fort Wayne Journal-
Gazette spoke as follows : "A pile of blackened, smoldering ruins is
all that remains of the great dry-goods house of George DeWald &
Company. This pioneer mercantile estabhshment, one of the oldest
in the northwest, was wiped out by fire before dawn yesterday morn-
ing (Wednesday, December 27, 1899). With the DeWald build-
ing went the old crockery store of M. F. Kaag, adjoining on the
east. Both are a total loss, with all their contents, and the losses
are variously estimated, but will not fall below two hundred thou-
sand dollars. The house of George DeWald & Company was estab-
lished in the early pioneer days, and the original building, three
stories in height, was erected in 1846. It was owned by Hartman
& Jones, general merchants. In 1849 Hartman & Jones sold out
to the Townley Brothers, who continued the business until 1854,
when the firm became Townley. DeWald & Company. In 1870 the
firm of George DeWald & Company succeeded to the business. The
death of Mr. DeWald, last spring, caused a change, and in January
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 275
the firm name was to have been changed to the George DeWald Com-
pany. The firm was one of the most progressive and most widely
known in the northwest. Since 188 1 a general wholesale business
had been carried on, in addition to the original retail trade. The
firm owned the building on the comer of Calhoun street and the
building on the east, which was connected with the store and occupied
as salesrooms, was owned by the Hugh McCulloch estate until about
five months ago, when Mrs. DeWald purchased the property, for a
consideration of fourteen thousand dollars."
It may be noted that the business was continued without in-
terruption by this disaster, but the concern dropped the retail trade
and has since conducted an exclusive wholesale business, its volume
of trade being veiy large and its territory being wide. The prestige
of the concern is admirable and the name remains as a memorial to
him whose energ}^ and ability made possible the building up of the
great enterprise, while its indirect benefit to the city of Fort Wayne
can not be estimated in mfetes or bounds. A fine new building has
been erected on the same site, and is one of the many modem business
structures which give Fort Wayne so metropolitan an appearance.
The company was organized in January, 1900, and the official corps
is as follows : Robert W. T. DeWald, president ; George L. DeWald,
vice-president; and William P. Beck, secretary and treasurer.
The honored subject of this memoir was summoned to the life
eternal on the 27th of June. 1899. For two years prior to his demise
his vitality had been somewhat impaired, but he had continued to
give his attention to business and been active up to the day of his
death, which came without warning, being the result of pulmonary
hemorrhage. His life was one of completeness and of worthy accom-
plishment, and while his death caused a wave of sorrow to sweep
over the city in which he had so long made his home and in which
he was so highly honored, none could fail to realize that in the
measure of his accomplishments and in the fulness of his good works
his days found fitting end and bore to those left behind the grateful
compensation which is that of tme nobility and worthiness.
In his political adherency Mr. DeWald was a stanch Democrat,
and while he took a loyal and public-spirited interest in local affairs he
never sought official preferment, being intrinsically and essentially
276 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
a business man. He was a communicant and zealous and earnest
member of St. Patrick's Catholic church, to whose direct support he
contributed Jiberally, as did he also to the collateral benevolences and
charities of the parish and the diocese. In this church his funeral
was held, and the edifice was filled with citizens of all classes, who
assembled to pay a last tribute of respect. Solemn high mass was
celebrated by Rev. Father Delaney and his assistants, and the
celebrant in his words of appreciation pointed to Mr. DeWald as one
whose life had been passed in obedience to the divine mandate. His
earthly existence had not been fruitless, for he had lived in anticipation
of the end and had shaped his life accordingly. The highest tribute
that could be paid him as a man, said Father Delaney, was that those
who knew him best loved him best.
On the nth of February, 1861, was solemnized the marriage
of Mr. DeWald to Mrs. Sophia A. (Lasselle) Nettlehorst, widow of
Charles W. Nettlehorst, to whom she bore one child, Hannah, who
is now the wife of John Mohr, cashier of the Hamilton National
Bank, Fort Wayne. Mrs. DeWald was born and reared in Fort
Wayne, being a daughter of Francis D. and Hannah H. (Hender-
son) Lasselle, both members of sterling pioneer families of this city.
Of the five living children who, with Mrs. DeWald, survive the
lionored subject of this memoir we enter brief record as follows:
Robert W. T. is president of the George DeWald Company and is
individually mentioned elsewhere in this volume; Mary E. is the
wife of James T. McDonald, of Chicago, Illinois ; Caroline is the wife
of Henry J. Beuret, of Fort Wayne; Elizabeth M. remains with her
mother in the old homestead; and George L. is vice-president of the
George DeWald Company.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 277
LEMUEL ROBERTS HARTMAN.
The g-entleman whose name introduces this review was born
December 9, 1838, at Wooster, Ohio, and when six years of age
came with his parents to Fort Wayne, making the journey by canal
packet. The family first settled in a little house on Lafayette street,
near the comer of Washington, but later moved to a home of their own
building on West Main street, now the brick structure occupied by H.
J. Bowerfind. In those early days Fort Wayne was still in its
period of village shabbiness and rough struggles with the frontier.
There were no public schools at that time and the lad Lemuel was
accordingly sent to a private institution of learning taught by a Mr.
Mcjunkin. His father, a tailor by trade, opened a shop on Calhoun
street near Columbia, and speedily built up a thriving business,
employing a number of journeymen to meet the growing demand
of his customers, besides taking several apprentices who in due
time became efficient workmen.
At the age of fourteen, Lemuel R. Hartman began his business
career as a telegraph messenger boy, which modest employment
was followed by a term of clerking, first in Jacobs' shoe store and
later in the Fort Wayne postoffice. Owing to temporar}^ suspension
of business which threw him out of employment, he subsequently
entered Fort Wayne College, where he pursued his studies for
several years and earned the reputation of an industrious and pains-
taking student. About 1852 his father, D. P. Hartman, who for
some years had been a class leader and local preacher in the Methodist
Episcopal church, entered the regular ministry, a work which he
pursued faithfully and with distinction until his death, twenty-five
years later.
The itinerary of the father made necessary various changes for
the family, and in 1858 the son Lemuel, then twenty years of age,
278 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
was a student of Asbury College (now DePauw University), which
at that time was one of the foremost institutions of learning in the
West. Mr. Hartman remained at college until the breaking out of
the Civil war, when he went to Indianapolis to become a reporter
in the state senate. During his father's pastorate at Lagrange he
took up the study of law in the office of the well known firm of
Parrott & Kennedy, of that town, and in due time was admitted to
the bar and began the practice of his profession. He tried and won
his first case, but soon becoming tired of the law, he abandoned the
profession and for some time thereafter held a position in the
auditor's office of Allen county. With this return Mr. Hartman's
permanent residence in Fort Wayne began, and two years later he
entered the First National Bank, with which he retained continuous
connection until his death. His first service in the bank was in the
capacity of bookkeeper, which position he held for eight years, act-
ing as assistant cashier for a few months and later being pro-
moted cashier, a relation he sustained for a period of thirty
years. In connection with his duties as cashier he also became prac-
tically president of the institution, and as such made his influence
felt as a keen, far-sighted and eminently successful financier. Dur-
ing Mr. Hartman's thirty-nine years of banking experience he easily
became one of the leading citizens of Fort Wayne and was recog-
nized in the city and throughout the northern part of the state as
a banker with few equals and no superior.
In 1867 Mr. Hartman was united in marriage with Miss Eliza
Harper, a teacher in the Fort Wayne public schools, the union re-
sulting in the birth of four sons, Frank Harker, Fred Stewart, Fos-
ter and Harris Vincent.
Aside from his business relations Mr. Hartman's greatest ac-
tivity was in the Methodist Episcopal church, of which he was a
loyal member from childhood, and to the end of his life a faithful
attendant upon its services and a director of its affairs. He was
the prime mover in remodeling the edifice of the Wayne Street
Methodist church, a work which he not only successfully financed
but personally directed through all the building operations. In his
funeral eulogy at the church it was beautifully and truthfully said,
"If you would see his monument, look about you.'" Mr. Hartman
.^j^
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 279
died, after a brief illness, May 2";, 1902. His memory as a man of
strict integrity, sterling worth and high honor in business affairs
is widely remembered by his fellow citizens, while the purity of his
private life, which affords an example worthy of imitation, is cher-
ished by his friends as a priceless heritage. "To live in hearts we
leave behind, is not to die."
28o THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
WILLIAM A. DIFFENDERFER.
Numbered among the representative business men of Fort Wayne
is the subject of this sketch, who is secretary and treasurer of the
Fort Wayne Spoke and Bending Company, and who has long held
the responsible position of bookkeeper for the well known firm of
Mossman, Yamelle & Company.
Mr. Diffenderfer is a native of the Hawkeye state, having been
bom in Mt. Sterling, Van Buren county, Iowa, on the 25th of Octo-
ber, 1857, and being a son of Benjamin O. and Isabella (Alcorn)
Diffenderfer, the former of whom died in December, 1889, at the
age of sixty-nine years, while the latter is living in the city of Fort
Wayne. The father came to Allen county from Iowa when the
subject was a child, having been formerly a resident of this state,
in which both he and his wife were born and reared. William A.
Diffenderfer secured his early educational discipline in the public
schools, whose curriculum he completed in due course of time, hav-
ing been graduated in the Fort Wayne high school as a member of
the class of 1876, and having soon afterward initiated his independ-
ent career, securing a position as bookkeeper for the firm of Coombs
& Company, prominent wholesale hardware dealers of Fort Wayne,
with whom he remained several years and then accepted a similar
incumbency with the important wholesale and manufacturing con-
cern of Mossman, Yarnelle & Company, with whose affairs he has
ever since been identified in the capacity of bookkeeper and general
office man. In 1904, Mr. Diffenderfer became associated with others
in the organization of the Fort Wayne Spoke and Bending Company,
which was duly incorporated with the following official and execu-
tive corps: W. S. Sponhouer, president; William A. Diffenderfer,
secretary and treasurer, and E. A. Yarnelle, vice-president. The
concern has provided a well equipped plant and is engaging success-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 281
fully in the manufacture of vehicle spokes, bows, felloes, etc., the
active management of the enterprise being- placed in the hands of
the president of the company, while the business is being pushed
forward with marked energy and discrimination and is gaining a
place among the representative industrial enterprises of Fort Wayne.
Mr, Diffenderfer is known as a loyal and public spirited citizen
and takes a deep interest in all that makes for the prestige and mate-
rial advancement of the fair city in which he has made his home
from his childhood. In politics he accords a stanch allegiance to
the Democratic party, but has never sought the honors or emolu-
ments of public office. Both he and his wife are members of the
Presbyterian church, and in a fraternal way he is identified with the
Royal Arcanum and the National Union. In a genealogical way
we may note that the subject is descended from stanch Holland
Dutch stock on the paternal side, his grandfather, William Diffen-
derfer, having been born in Holland. In the maternal line the gene-
alogy is traced back to Scotch-Irish derivation.
On the 9th of October, 1895, was solemnized the marriage of
Mr. Diffenderfer to Miss Blanche A. Davis, who was born in the
city of Dayton, Ohio, in the year 1866, being a daughter of Leroy
and Cordelia Davis, who are now residents of Fort Wayne. Mrs.
Diffenderfer was educated in the public schools, having been gradu-
ated in the high school at Gabon, Ohio, as a member of the class
of 1880. The only child of this imion is Davis A. Diffenderfer,
who was born on the loth of November, 1897.
282 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
CHARLES T. STRAWBRIDGE.
It is not an easy task adequately to describe the character of a
man who has led an eminently active and busy life and stamped his
individuality on the plane of definite accomplishment. Successful
men must be live men in this ag"e, bristling with activity, and there
can be no impropriety in justly scanning the acts of any man as
they affect his public, social and business relations. Among the able
and representative business men of the city of Fort Wayne is num-
bered Mr. Strawbridge, who is identified with important industrial
enterprises and whose executive capacity has been such as to enable
him to achieve a noteworthy success, while the methods employed
have been such as to retain to him the confidence and good will of
his fellow men. He is vice-president and secretar}^ of the Bass
Foundry and Machine Company, one of the greatest of the manu-
facturing concerns of Indiana's "Summit City," while he is also
secretary of the Fort Wayne Foundry and Machine Company, duly
mentioned in the sketch of the career of John H. Bass, on other pages
of this publication, so that a recapitulation of the data is not de-
manded in the present connection.
Mr. Strawbridge was bom in the village of Blooming Grove,
Morrow county, Ohio, on the 7th of January, 1857, and is a son of
John and Jane Strawbridge, natives of Ohio, while the genealogy
in the agnatic line traces back to stanch English derivation, the orig-
inal American representatives of the family having come to the new
world in the colonial era of our national history. The father of the
subject followed the vocation of engineer during the major portion
of his active career, and both he and his wife continued residents of
Ohio until their death. Charles T. Strawbridge was a lad of about
four years at the time of his parents' removal to Bucyrus, Crawford
county, Ohio, and in the public schools of this attractive little city
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 283
he secured his early educational discipline, completing a course in
the local high school. He then learned the art of telegraphy in the
Bucyrus office of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, becoming a
skilled operator and holding a position in the employ of the above
mentioned company when seventeen years of age, while he was sta-
tioned at various points on the lines of the company prior to 1877,
when he came to Fort Wayne and took a position as operator in the
general offices of the company at this point. He retained this in-
cumbency two years, and in the meanwhile had learned the art of
stenography, fitting himself for effective clerical and office work in
general lines. In 1879 ^^ became a stenographer in the offices of
the Bass Foundry and Machine Company, with which he has ever
since been identified, while he has risen step by step through well
earned grades of promotion until he is now vice-president and secre-
tary of the company, having held this dual office since 1900, while
he is also a member of the executive corps of the two allied con-
cerns previously mentioned in this context. It is scarcely necessary
to say that he is a man of sterling business qualifications and marked
administrative ability, for such advancement could come through no
other means than the exemplification of such powers, and he is today
numbered among the influential business men of Fort Wayne and
is honored as a progressive and public spirited citizen.
284 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
FREDERICK W. GIESEKING.
Just north of the coqjoration limits of the city of Fort Wayne
is situated the beautiful suburban home of this well known citizen,
who is one of the four stockholders in the Fort Wayne Wind Mill
Company, manufactures of windmills, and who is one of the sub-
stantial men of his native county, where he was for many years prom-
inently identified with agricultural pursuits.
Mr. Gieseking was bom in Lake township, Allen county, In-
diana, on the 9th of November, 1845, ^^d is one of three sons bom
to Deitrich W. and Mary (Gokey) Gieseking, the names of the
other sons being William F. and John W. The father of the sub-
ject was born in Prussia, where he was reared and educated and
whence he immigrated to America when a young man. In the year
1843 he took up his residence in Allen county, becoming one of the
pioneers of Lake township, where he engaged in farming, reclaim-
ing much land from its wild state and becoming the owner of a very
large landed estate in the county, where his holdings at one time com-
prised ten hundred and fifty acres. He was a man of sterling char-
acter and commanded unqualified esteem in the county, with whose
civic and industrial affairs he was so long and honorably identified.
He continued to reside on his farm until four years prior to his
death, when he removed to the city of Fort Wayne and took up his
abode in a pleasant home, where he died at the venerable age of
eighty-three years. His devoted wife preceded him into eternal rest,
having been seventy-five years of age at the time of her death. They
became the parents of three sons, as before noted, and all are living.
The parents were consistent members of the English Lutheran church,
and in politics the father gave his support to the Democratic party.
The subject of this sketch was reared on the homestead farm
and assisted in its work from his boyhood days, while his educa-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 285
tional advantages were those afforded in the common log cabin school
of the locality and period. He initiated his independent career by
engaging in the same line of enterprise to which he had been reared,
and for a number of years he was numbered among the representative
farmers of Washington township, where he was the owner of a finely
improved farm of two hundred and twelve acres. In 1898 he pur-
chased his present attractive little suburban place, comprising seven
and one-half acres, and this he has improved with a fine brick resi-
dence of ten rooms and of modern architectural design and equip-
ment, the place being on the outskirts of the city to the north and
thus offering all the attractions of both urban and country life. Mr.
Gieseking became one of the stockholders and incorporators of the
F. P. Wilt Company, wholesale grocers, in 1902, and later was iden-
tified with the hardware business in Fort Wayne, while in August,
1904, he became one of the four interested principals in the organi-
zation and incorporation of the Fort Wayne Wind Mill Company,
-to whose interest he now gives the major part of his time and atten-
tion. The company has a well equipped plant and manufactures
windmills of superior type, while an average corps of twenty-five
men is employed in the factory the year round, and the number of
traveling representatives at the time of this writing is about one
hundred and twenty-five. Mr. Gieseking is also a stockholder in the
German-American National Bank and is a man of marked business
acumen and has gained success through his own well directed ef-
forts, while every step in his career has been regulated by inflexible
integrity of purpose, so that he has not been denied the fullest meas-
ure of confidence and esteem as emanating from those with whom he
has come in contact in the various relations of life. In politics he
maintains an independent attitude, exercising his franchise in sup-
port of the men and measures which meet the approval of his judg-
ment. He and his wife are members of the English Lutheran church.
On the 1 2th of May, t88i, was solemnized the marriage of Mr.
Gieseking to Miss Louise Rose, who was bom and reared in this
county, being a daughter of Christian Rose, who was a well known
and substantial farmer of St. Joseph township. Mr. and Mrs.
Gieseking have three children, Marie L., Carl F. and Mabel L.
Carl is a graduate of the Fort Wayne Business College, all of the
children being afforded good educational advantages.
286 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
WILLIAM ENSLEN, M. D.
One of the representative medical practitioners of the city of
Fort Wayne is Dr. Enslen, who has his office at 1608 Calhoun street,
while his residence is located at 2216 Fairfield avenue. The confi-
dence reposed in him as a physician and surgeon is best indicated
in the significantly successful practice which he has built up, while
he has the unqualified esteem of his professional confreres in his
chosen field of endeavor.
Dr. Enslen is a native of the Buckeye state, having been born in
Allen county, Ohio, on the i6th of October, 1863, and being a son
of John and Mary (Shutts) Enslen, both of whom were bom in the
state of Pennsylvania, whence they went to Ohio when young. The
mother died in 1896 and the father is still living, maintaining his
home in Allen county, Ohio, where he has long been identified with
agricultural pursuits. The subject of this review passed his youth
in his native county, in whose public schools he secured his early
educational training, which was later supplemented by courses of
study in the National Normal University, at Ada, Ohio, and the
Northern Indiana Normal School and Business College, in Valpa-
raiso, Indiana, in which latter he was graduated as a member of the
class of 1884. After leaving college he devoted two years to teach-
ing in the public schools of Ohio, and in the meanwhile formulated
definite plans for his future career, deciding to prepare himself for
the medical profession. With this end in view he began his tech-
nical reading under the able preceptorship of Dr. R. E. Jones, of
Corner, Allen county, Ohio, under whose direction he continued
his studies for two years, after which he had a second preceptor, in
the person of Dr. C. B. Stemen, of Fort Wayne, to which city he
came in 1888. In order to fully fortify himself for the work of his
exacting profession he then entered the Fort Wayne College of
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 287
Medicine, in which he was graduated as a member of the class of
1890, receiving his well earned degree of Doctor of Medicine.
Shortly after his graduation the Doctor opened his present office
and he has been most successful in his practice during the decade
and a half which has since elapsed, while his supporting patronage
is of a representative character. He is a member of the American
Medical Association, the Indiana State Medical Society, and the
Fort Wayne Medical Society. In politics he is a stanch advocate
of the principles and policies for which the Democratic party stands
sponsor, but he has not sought or held public office of any descrip-
tion. He has attained to the thirty-second degree in the Ancient Ac-
cepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, being identified with the va-
rious local bodies of the great fraternity and with the Indiana con-
sistory, whose headquarters are in Indianapolis. The Doctor and
his wife are active members of Simpson Methodist Episcopal church,
of whose board of trustees he served as a member for a number of
years.
On the 15th of October, 189 1, was solemnized the marriage of
Dr. Enslen to Miss Eva Leist, who likewise was born and reared
in Allen county, Ohio, and they have two children, Helen Esther and
William Myron.
288 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
HENRY C. McMAKEN.
A native son of Allen county, a representative of one of its old
and honored pioneer families, a veteran of the Civil war and a citi-
zen well known and highly esteemed in the community is Henry
C. McMaken, who is a prominent and influential farmer, stock-
grower and dairyman of the county, his fine homestead estate being
situated in section 8, Wayne township.
Mr. McMaken was born in Adams township, this county, on the
15th of January, 1844, and his lineage traces back to sterling Scottish
origin, the original American ancestors having come from Scotland
to the new world in the sixteenth century. The first representative
of the family in Indiana was Joseph Hamilton McMaken, grand-
father of the subject. This honored pioneer was bom in Monmouth,
Kentucky, in 1787, and from that state he removed to Hamilton,
Butler county, Ohio. He was a valiant soldier in the war of 18 12,
and during the progress of the same was for a time stationed at Fort
Wayne, which was then a mere frontier post. In the spring of
1832 he came from Ohio to Allen county, becoming one of the
prominent and honored citizens of Fort Wayne, where he was en-
gaged in the hotel business for a number of years, while he was one
of the first supervisors of Wayne township and one of the early
judges of the local courts, while he wielded much influence in pub-
lic affairs, being a man of much force of character and one whose
name was a synonym of integrity and honor in all the relations of
life. He went to Burlington, Iowa, in 1857, and there passed the
remainder of his life. In politics he was an old-line Whig up to
the time of the organization of the Republican party, when he iden-
tified himself with the latter, whose principles he thereafter upheld
until he was summoned from the scene of life's endeavors. The
maiden name of his wife, whose death occurred in Hamilton, Ohio,
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 289
was Moore, and she was a representative of one of the twenty-two
famiHes which founded the city of Cincinnati, Ohio, whither the
original ancestors removed from Pennsylvania.
Joseph Gettys McMaken, father of the subject of this review,
was bom in Hamilton, Butler county, Ohio, in 181 5, and there
passed his boyhood days, while he accompanied his parents on their
removal to Fort Wayne, in 1832. Owing to the exigencies of
time and place his educational advantages, in a formal sense, were
limited, but, like many another product of the pioneer epoch, he
made his own opportunities and became a man of broad menta!
scope and much pragmatic ability. He was one of the first general
contractors in Fort Wayne, while he also controlled a large business
in teaming, in which connection he gave special attention to hauling
government supplies for the Indians. He accumulated farm prop-
erty in the county and was one of the highly esteemed citizens of
the community, while as a man it may consistently be said that he
stood "four square to every wind that blows." In his political pro-
clivities he was originally a Whig, but espoused the cause of the
Republican party at the time of its inception and ever afterward was
a stalwart advocate of its principles and policies, while he was called
upon to serve in various minor offices of pubhc trust.
As a young man Joseph G. McMaken was united in marriage
to Miss Dorothy Ruch, who was born in the province of Alsace-
Lorraine, France, which is now a portion of Germany, and who was
eleven years of age at the time of the family immigration to America.
Mr. McMaken died on the 13th of December, 1864, and his loved
and devoted wife survived him by many years, being summoned into
eternal rest on the 8th of August, 1899, at the venerable age of
eighty-one years. They became the parents of twelve children, of
whom the eldest died in infancy, while of the others we enter brief
record, as follows : Henry C. is the immediate subject of this sketch;
William B. is a representative farmer of Wayne township; Joseph
H. is residing on the old homestead farm, in Adams township;
Sarah J. is the wife of Sylvester Coleman, of Wayne township ; Anna
M. is a successful and popular teacher in the public schools of Fort
Wayne; Adelia A. died at the age of about thirty-seven years, and
Lewis C. died in early childhood ; John C. F. is a farmer of Wash-
19
290 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
mgton township; Franklin A. is engaged in plumbing in Fort
Wayne; Elizabeth, of Fort Wayne, and Lottie M., wife of E. E.
Banks, of Fort Wayne.
Henry C. McMaken, to \yhom this sketch is dedicated, secured
his early educational discipline in the common schools of Adams
township and made good use of the opportunities thus afforded him,
while in the connection it may be noted that four of his sisters be-
came successful teachers.
When "grim-visaged war had reared its horrid front" and the
integrity of the Union was imperiled Mr. McMaken gave signal
manifestation of his patriotism, since, on the 9th of January, 1862,
he enlisted as a private in Company E, Fifty-fifth Indiana Volun-
teer Infantry, which was recruited in Fort Wayne and vicinity.
The command was in service principally in the state of Kentucky,
and at Richmond, that state, on the 30th of August, 1862, after
having taken part in the spirited engagement at that point, Mr. Mc-
Maken was captured by the enemy, while he was unprovided with
food for a period of four days while thus held prisoner. He then
rejoined his command, with which he remained on active duty until
September 9, 1862, when he received his honorable discharge, while
he came forth as a youthful veteran who had rendered yeoman serv-
ice in defense of the nation's honor. The subject has ever retained
a most insistent and lively interest in his old comrades in arms, and
is one of the popular and valued members of General Lawton Post,
No. 590, Grand Army of the Republic, in Fort Wayne, being past
commander of the Sion S. Bass Post and having served in other
post offices, including tliat of chairman of the visitors' committee.
He has unbounded enthusiasm in his allegiance to this noble organi-
zation and has attended the various state and national encampments
of the Grand Army of the Republic. In his political adherency Mr.
McMaken has ever been found aligned as a stalwart supporter of
the cause of the Republican party, while he has been a prominent
figure in public affairs of a local nature.
After the close of his military career Mr. McMaken returned
to his home in Allen county, and in 1868 he was married. He then
located on a farm in Adams township, where he remained six years,
and in 1876 he purchased his present farm property, in section 8,
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 291
Wayne township, the homestead comprising sixty-two acres of most
arable land, while to its original area he added by subsequent pur-
chase until he now has a finely improved landed estate of one hun-
dred and forty-one acres. When he made his original purchase the
land was entirely unreclaimed, being covered with a dense growth
of native timber, so that a herculean task was that which confronted
him. He put up a small frame house on his embryonic farm and he
and his devoted wife there established their home and made ready
to work side by side toward the goal of prosperity and independence.
The farmstead today bears slight resemblance to its condition at the
time when Mr. McMaken came into possession of the property.
The land has been cleared and placed under a most effective cultiva-
tion; substantial and attractive modern buildings have replaced the
primitive ones of the early day, and thrift and prosperity are in
evidence on every side. In the work and management of the farm
our subject's only son is associated with him. In addition to rais-
ing the various agricultural products common to the locality, Mr.
McMaken has conducted a successful dairying business since 1890,
while he also devotes no little attention to the raising of high-grade
horses, cattle and swine. He has farther manifested his initiative
and his enterprising spirit by making a specialty of supplying and
setting out forest trees, principally in the city of Fort Wayne, where
he has placed thousands of fine trees which stands as monuments to
his careful and successful labors in the connection, while it may be
said without fear of contradiction that he has planted more forest
trees in this way than has any other man in the county, having given
his attention to the enterprise for the past quarter of a century. He
and his family are prominent and popular in the social life of the
community, and their pleasant home is a center of gracious and
generous hospitality.
On the 9th of April, 1868, was solemnized the marriage of Mr.
McMaken to Miss Frances J. Link, who was bom in Newark, Ohio,
and who was a child at the time of her parents' removal to Allen
county, Indiana, in 1854, her father, Adam Link, having become
one of the successful and honored farmers of Wayne township. Mr.
and Mrs. McMaken became the parents of six children, concerning
whom we record that Lottie M. died at the age of four months ; Lucy
292 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
M. is the wife of William Kyburz, a representative farmer of Mau-
mee township; Dora G. resides in Aboit township; Henry W. is
associated with his father in the management of the home farm;
Adam died in childhood; Helen A. is the wife of H. B. Jackson,
Pellscon, Michigan; Elizabeth C. is the wife of M. B. Gouty, head
engineer at the power station at Huntington, Indiana.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 293
GEORGE JORDAN.
The subject of this memoir was one of the honored pioneers of
Allen county, having settled in Wayne township in an early day and
having become one of the prosperous farmers of this section of the
county, here continuing to reside until he was summoned to his re-
ward, closing a long, noble and useful life. Mr. Jordan was bom
in the province of Alsace, France, on the 21st of November, 1821,
the place of his birth being now a German province. As a young
man he served seven years in the French army, having been reared
and educated in Alsace, where the family had been established for
many generations. In 185 1 Mr. Jordan immigrated to America
and not long after landing in the new world he came to Allen county,
Indiana, where he took up his permanent location. On the 31st of
May, 185 1, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Jordan to Miss
Mary A. Burgel, who was likewise born and reared in the beautiful
province of Alsace, being a daughter of Benedict and Catherine
(Seller) Burgel, who came to Allen county, from their native land,
in the same year, 185 1, settling in Wayne township, where the
father secured a tract of wild and heavily timbered land, upon which
he erected a log cabin, which was the original family home. In clear-
ing his land he utilized ox teams and in course of time he developed
a good farm, while he also operated a distillery for the manufacture
of whiskey, an industry which was common throughout the state
in those days. He was industrious, provident and honest, and not
only attained prosperity but also gained the unqualified confidence
and esteem of the people of the community, being well known in the
county, while both he and his wife continued to reside on the farm
until their death. Of their five children two are living.
After his marriage, which was solemnized soon after his arrival
in Allen county, Mr. Jordan located on a portion of the homestead
294 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN. *
farm of his father-in-law, in Wayne township, and eventually he
and his wife became the owner of eighty acres of the tract. Here
he reclaimed and developed one of the best farms in the township,
erecting good buildings and making improvements as demanded,
while he continued to reside on this homestead, which is located in
section 5, until he was summoned from the scene of life's endeavors,
his death occurring on the 30th of March, 1894. Mr. Jordan was
a man of inflexible integrity and made his life count for good in all
its relations, while to him was accorded the unreserved esteem of
the people of the community in which he lived for so many years.
He was a stanch supporter of the Democratic party and was called
upon to serve in various township offices, while his religious faith
was that of the Catholic church, in which he was reared and of which
he, as well as the members of his family, was a communicant. His
widow still resides on the old homestead, which is endeared to her
through the hallowed memories and associations of the past, while
in the community her circle of friends is limited only by that of her
acquaintances. In conclusion of this brief tribute to the memory of
one of the honored pioneers of the county we enter a brief record
concerning his children : George is a resident of Bloomingdale, In-
diana ; Edward is a successful farmer of Washington township, Allen
county; Joseph is a resident of the city of Fort Wayne, as is also
Alois; Mary is the wife of John Nieble, of Fort Wayne; John and
Frank remain on the old homestead and are associated in its work
and management; Anthony, Henry, William and Elizabeth all re-
side in Fort Wayne.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 295
FREDERICK W. FAHLSING.
We now have the privilege of entering a brief record concerning
the Hfe history of one of the honored pioneers and representatve citi-
zens of Wayne township, where he is a prominent and influential
farmer and dairyman, being the owner of the Homestead Dairy,
one of the most popular in this section and one of the oldest estab-
lished, the same having afforded service in the city of Fort Wayne
for nearly thirty-five years.
Mr. Fahlsing was born in Minden, Prussia, on the 4th of Au-
gust, 1830, and is a son of Frederick and Louisa (Remke) Fahl-
sing, his father having been a successful farmer in Prussia, where
he remained until 1844, when he immigrated with his family to
America and soon came to Indiana, locating as a pioneer in Preble
township, Adams county, where he took up a tract of wild land,
which he reclaimed from the native timber, developing a good farm.
The original family domicile was a log cabin of the primitive type
and the conditions were such as marked the pioneer era in that now
populous and favored section of the state. On the old homestead
farm the father of our subject died in the year 1863, while the loved
and devoted wife and mother passed the closing years of her life
in the home of the subject, in Allen county, whence she was sum-
moned to the ''land of the leal" in 1870, at a venerable age. She
was a lifelong member of the German Lutheran church, as was also
her husband, and in politics he espoused the cause of the Democratic
party after coming to the United States. Concerning the ten chil-
dren in the family we enter the following brief record : Frederick
W. is the immediate subject of this sketch; Minnie, Conrad, Louisa
and William are deceased; Sophia maintains her home in Allen
county; Augustus is a resident of the city of Fort Wayne; Amelia
is a resident of Indianapolis, Indiana ; Mary makes her home in Fort
Wayne, and Charles is deceased.
296 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
In the excellent national schools of his native land the subject
of this review received his early educational training, and he was
about fourteen years of age at the time of the family immigration
to America. As his services were demanded in connection with
the work of the pioneer farm and there were practically no advan-
tages to be had in an educational way in the new country in which
the family located, he received no further discipline in a technical
sense, but during the years of an active and successful career he
has effectually overcome the handicap of his youth and is known as
a man of broad information and marked ability in a practical way.
Mr. Fahlsing continued to be associated in the work of the home-
stead farm, in Adams county, until 1855, on February 8th of which
year was solemnized his marriage to Miss Mary Hetzman, who
likewise was born in Minden, Prussia, Germany, on the 23d of Sep-
tember, 1833, being a daughter of Christian and Sophia Hetzman,
who immigrated to America in 1837, Mr. Hetzman having been
for a time employed on the old Erie canal, in the state of New York,
while in 1842 he located in Washington township, Allen county, In-
diana, where he improved a good farm, upon which he passed the
remainder of his life, his death occurring in 1874, while his cher-
ished wife was summoned into eternal rest about a decade later, her
demise occurring in 1885. Mr. Hetzman's wife and children did
not join him in x\merica until 1845, ^J which time he had prepared
a good home for them. Mr. and Mrs. Hetzman became the parents
of six children, namely: Sophia, who is the widow of Frederick
Myers, resides in the city of Fort Wayne; Mary is the wife of our
subject; Frederick resides on the old homestead, in Washington town-
ship; Christ resides in the city of Fort Wayne; William is deceased;
and Henry is associated in the work and management of the old
home farm, in Washington township. Mr. and Mrs. Fahlsing have
had seven children, of whom two, each of whom was named William,
died in infancy. Of the others we make brief mention as follows:
Sophia is the wife of Henry Barham, a prosperous farmer of Wash-
ington township; Maria is the wife of Conrad Brauar, of Fort
Wajrne; Christopher, who married Miss Mary Hormann, is asso-
ciated with his father in the management of the home place and the
dairy business; Minnie is the wife of William Lankemann, of Fort
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 297
Wayne, and Frederick C. is a successful farmer near Woodbum,
Maumee township.
One year after his marriage Mr. Fahlsing removed from Adams
county, this state, to Allen county, locating in Wayne township,
where he has ever since maintained his home and where he has ever
been held in the most unequivocal confidence and esteem. He took
up his abode on the farm which still remains his home, the same
being located in section 4, about three miles distant from the city of
Fort Wayne. At the time when he came into possession of the
property the land was covered with the native timber and was prac-
tically without improvements of any description, while no roads had
been cut through in this section, so that he found himself surrounded
with the environments of the typical pioneer days. Wild game was
most plentiful, and Mr. Fahlsing stated to the writer that in one
winter alone he supplied the family larder with fourteen wild tur-
keys. On his land he erected a frame dwelling of primitive type,
the same being only sixteen by eighteen feet in dimensions, while later
he made additions to the same, the building continuing to be the
family home until 1873, when he erected his present commodious
and substantial brick residence, which is one of the attractive farm
homes of the county. In 1864 Mr. Fahlsing erected the original
portion of his present large fann, which, with the additions made
at later dates, is now in the form of an L, and is one hundred and
twenty-four by thirty feet in dimensions. It is a bank bam and is
thoroughly modern in its equipment and facilities. In the building
is a machine which is utilized for the grinding of all feed for stock,
while stable room is afforded for thirty-six head of cattle and about
eight horses, and accommodation is afforded for one hundred tons
of hay. The fine farm comprises about two hundred acres, and the
major portion of the place is maintained under a high state of culti-
vation and devoted to diversified agriculture. In 1869 Mr. Fahl-
sing established his dairy business, which has since been conducted
under the name of the Homestead Dairy, while he has the best of
facilities for the supplying of milk of the best quality and free from
all impurities, the greatest care being given to every detail of the
work, so that effective sanitation is insured. He controls a large
business in supplying the city of Fort Wayne in this department of
298 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
his farming enterprise. He keeps an average herd of about forty
head of milch cows, while he also raises high-grade swine and a
sufficient number of horses to meet the demands of his farming and
dairying business. Our subject is known as a progressive and public
spirited citizen, while to him is accorded the high regard of the
people of the county in which he has maintained his home for so
many years. In politics he gives his allegiance to the Democracy,
and both he and his wife are valued members of Emanuel church
(German Lutheran) on West Jefferson street, in the city of Fort
Wayne. Mr. Fahlsing started out in life with no resources save his
strong heart, willing hands and determination to make the best of
opportunities afforded, and the position he todaiy holds indicates
how admirably he has succeeded in connection with temporal affairs,
while to him has come the greater benefice of the objective confi-
dence and regard which only sterling worth can beget.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 299
HENRY BEERMAN.
The great empire of Germany has contributed a most valuable
element to our national social fabric, and among the worthy sons
of the Teutonic fatherland who stand as reputable and honored citi-
zens of Allen county is the subject of this sketch, who is one of
the successful farmers of Wayne township, his well improved home-
stead being situated in section 6, three and a half miles distant from
the city of Fort Wayne.
Mr. Beerman was born in the city of Glesse, in Darmstadt, Ger-
many, on the 28th of February, 1853, and is a son of Frederick and
Christina (Folke) Beerman, both of whom were bom in that same
section of the German empire, where the father devoted his atten-
tion to agricultural pursuits until 1855, when he immigrated with
his family to America, coming forthwith to Indiana, where a few-
years afterward his cherished wife died. He later came to Fort
Wayne, and here passed the closing years of his life retired from
active business, his death occurring in 1875. He was a Democrat
in politics and both he and his wife were devoted members of the
Lutheran church. Concerning their children, we incorporate a brief
record, as follows: Wilhelmina became the wife of Charles Pape
and her death occurred in Fort Wayne; Justina, who likewise is de-
ceased, was the wife of Gottlieb Cramer; Caroline is a widow and
resides in Fort Wayne; Johanna, who was the wife of William
Heine, of the same city, is deceased; Frederika is the wife of Henry
Shafer, of Fort Wayne; Frederick is identified with the lumber busi-
ness in this city, and Henry is the immediate subject of this sketch.
Henry Beerman was a child of about one year at the time of
the family immigration to the United States, and as he was deprived
of a mother's care while a child he was reared principally in the
home of his eldest sister, Mrs. Pape, while he attended both German
300 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
and English schools in a somewhat limited way during his boy-
hood years, while he early began to work out at such employment
as he could secure, thus providing for his own maintenance, while
he kept a definite aim in view, — that of gaining a position of inde-
pendence and one in which he might personally secure the maximum
returns from his efforts. In 1874, shortly after attaining to his legal
majority, Mr. Beerman took unto himself a wife and established a
home of his own, while from the beginning of his married career
to the present time he has had the loving aid and co-operation of his
devoted wife, to whose influence he ascribes no small part of the
marked success which has crowned his efforts. For eleven years
after his marriage Mr. Beerman was an employe of the Globe res-
taurant, one of the leading places of the sort in Fort Wayne, and
within this period he carefully conserved his resources and thus be-
came justified in purchasing a farm property for a home, buying
forty acres of his present place, and later purchasing an adjoining
forty acres. The land was only partially reclaimed and was rough
and stony, but its appearance today indicates the model farm and
gives assurance of the expenditure of well directed labor. Mr. Beer-
man has erected excellent buildings, including a commodious and
attractive residence, and has put all parts of the farm into good
order and thus maintained them, while he has consequently become
known as a progressive and energetic business man and one of ex-
cellent judgment. He has made the various departments of his farm
enterprise profitable and is well satisfied to number himself among
the sturdy husbandmen of the nation. He devotes no little atten-
tion to the raising of small fruits and also to market gardening,
v/hile he also has built up a successful dairy business, selling milk in
Fort Wayne, while he raises sufficient live stock to properly com-
plement the other phases of his farming industry. In the past years
he has done a very considerable amount of teaming, and for three
years gave most effective service as superintendent of county roads
in his section, while for several years he was a valued member of
the board of school directors of his township, taking a lively inter-
est in all that makes for the material, moral and civic well-being
of the community. In politics he gives his allegiance to the Repub-
lican party, and on March i, 1905, he was appointed deputy assessor
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 301
of Wayne township. Both he and his wife are zealous members of
the Lutheran church, while to them is accorded the unqualified es-
teem of the community in which they have so long made their
home.
In the year 1874 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Beerman
to Miss Johanna Ruehl, who was born at Frankfort-on-the-Main,
Germany, being a daughter of Christian P. and Rosanna Helena
(Gallar) Ruehl, the former of whom died in the fatherland, while
the latter now resides in Frankfort, being well preserved in mind
and body, though of venerable age. In conclusion of this brief
sketch we enter a record concerning the children of Mr. and Mrs.
Beerman: John Edward, who married Miss Ellen Connor, resides
in Fort Wayne, from which city he is carrier on one of the principal
rural mail delivery routes; Rosina Helen is the wife of Robert C.
Work, of Wayne township, where he is a successful farmer ; William
F. H. is unmarried and is associated with his father in the manage-
ment of the home farm, while his twin sister, Caroline L., is em-
ployed as stenographer in the office of the Western Hay and Grain
Company, in Fort Wayne; Charles G. is a prosperous blacksmith
in Fort Wayne; Harry A., who remains at home, is a member of
the class of 1905 in the Fort Wayne high school, and Walter is
a member of the class of 1909 in the same school.
302 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
ERNEST W. KRUSE.
The subject of this memoir was one of the substantial and highly-
honored farmers of Washington township and stood representative
of the best type of citizenship, while during the long years of his
residence in Allen county he proved himself well worthy of the
unqualified esteem in which he was so uniformly held.
Mr. Kruse was a native of Germany, where he was born in the
year 1850, being the only child of Ernest H. and Sophia (Henschen)
Kruse, who came to America when he was a child and located in
Allen county as pioneers, here passing the remainder of their lives.
The subject of this memoir was reared to the sturdy discipline of
the farm and his entire life was filled with ceaseless toil and endeavor.
The farm which he owned at the time of his death and which is now
the residence of his widow, was largely reclaimed from the native
forest by him, and he developed the place into one of the model farms
of the county, the homestead being most eligibly located in Wash-
ington township and being readily accessible to the city of Fort
Wayne. He enlisted in the United States regular arniy and served
five years. Upon his return he was for seven years successfully en-
gaged in contracting and building. He then returned to his farm,
where he passed the remainder of his life in agricultural pursuits, his
death occurring on the 24th of May, 1902. His homestead farm
comprises eighty acres and all is under effective cultivation. The
improvements are of the best order and all were made by him, in-
cluding the erection of the attractive residence. He was a stanch
Republican in his political proclivities and took much interest in
public affairs of a local nature, though he never sought or desired
official preferment. He was a zealous and valued member of the
Reformed church, as is also his widow. He was a man who stood
"four square to every wind that blows," and his name merits a place
on the roll of the sterling citizens of Allen county.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 303
In the year 1875 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Kruse to
Miss Ehzabeth Huebner, daughter of John and Minnie (Otto)
Huebner, who came to Allen county when Mrs. Kruse was a child.
Mr. and Mrs. Kruse became the parents of twelve children, seven
of whom are living, namely : William, who is a clergyman of the
Reformed church, residing in Ada, Ohio; Emma, who resides in
the city of Flint, Michigan; Anna, who resides in Fort Wayne, and
Walter, Martha, Clara and Harold, who remain with their mother
on the old homestead.
304 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
SYLVANUS F. BOWSER.
In the city of Fort Wayne are found many industrial concerns of
wide scope and importance, representing enterprises which have
brought to the city high repute in the commercial world, and which
have been the conservators of municipal progress and prosperity.
Among the far-sighted, reliable and progressive men whose initiative
power and definite courage in carrying forward to successful issue
new ideas in practical industry stands forth in no inconspicuous way
Sylvanus F. Bowser, who figures as the subject of this brief sketch,
and who stands at the head of the well-known and important manu-
facturing firm of S. F. Bowser & Company, patentees and manufact-
urers of various devices utilized in storing and handling oils of all
kinds and classes, both for the retail trade and for use in manufactur-
ing plants. Mr. Bowser is insistently utilitarian in his business pol-
icy, and has ever retained the virile idea that faith without works is
dead. It is through his efforts that the great business of his concern
has been built up from a modest nucleus, and his career has been
marked by aggressiveness and that determinate effort whose natural
sequel is success. He has the courage of his convictions, and the pat-
ent evidence of this fact is given in the enterprise at whose head he
stands, while he is honored as one of Fort Wayne's representative
business men.
Mr. Bowser is a scion of one of the honored pioneer families of
Allen county, and here he has ever made his home, though for a period
of fourteen years he was employed as a traveling salesman. He was
the first man who had the courage to engage exclusively in the selling
of oil tanks "on the road," instead of making this a "side line," as the
commercial phraseology has it. He made a success in placing the
Bowser products on the market, and established a factory in Fort
Wayne for the manufacture of oil tanks of his patent, which tanks
-^^^/2-t>-7^<^^2j^^/y^
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 305
have become famous throughout the Union. As to the inception of
the business we can not do better than to quote from a descriptive
article recently published in a local paper: "S. F. Bowser, the
inventor, was for a time the only salesman, bookkeeper, helper in the
shop and erector of the goods sold, while the present vice-president,
Allen A. Bowser, did all the machine work with a foot lathe. Under
these conditions the Bowser self-measuring oil tank was launched."
Operations were thus inaugurated in the year 1885, and from this
nucleus has been evolved the present magnificent industry. The firm
is incorporated under the laws of the state, and bases its operations
upon ample capital and experience, while the average annual business
now shows an aggregate of fully five hundred thousand dollars, and
the plant of the concern covers a block in the northeast section of the
city. Employment is afforded to a corps of two hundred operatives,
while the contingent of agents and traveling salesmen is a very large
one. Branch houses are maintained in Toronto, Canada, and Boston,
Massachusetts, for the purpose of facilitating the business in the ter-
ritory tributary to those cities. In addition to the large domestic busi-
ness controlled the firm also has a large export trade, while the rami-
fications of the business are constantly extending in scope and impor-
tance. Mr. Bowser is the inventor of a most effective self-measuring
oil pump and of other improved devices for the handling of oils, and
all of these were manufactured by his firm in advance of all others.
The personnel of the executive corps of the concern is as follows :
S. F. Bowser, president; A. A. Bowser, vice-president; A. Z. Pol-
hamus, general manager; C. A. Dunkelberg, secretary and treasurer.
Sylvanus F. Bowser was bom in Perry township, Allen county,
Indiana, on the 8th of August, 1854, and is a son of John H. and
Eliza (Krieger) Bowser, both of whom were bom and reared in Penn-
sylvania, where their marriage was solemnized. The father was bom
on the 15th of April, 18 12, and his death occurred on the loth of
March, 1879. while his wife, who was bom on the i8th of Sep-
tember, 18 18, was summoned to the life eternal on the 9th of Sep-
tember, 1875. O^ their thirteen children eight are living. The par-
ents came to Allen county in 1833 and became numbered among the
early settlers of Perry township, where the father developed a good
farm in the midst of the virgin forest, becoming one of the sub-
20
3o6 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
stantial and influential citizens of his section and commanding the
high regard of all who knew him.
The subject of this review was reared to the sturdy discipline
of the farm and his educational advantages were those afforded in
the common schools of Allen county, while he early manifested that
ambitious spirit and self-reliance which have so clearly denoted the
man in his business career and which have been the conservators of
his success, in conjunction with his unbending integrity in all things.
In 1882 Mr. Bowser became a traveling salesman for the wholesale
paper house of W. H. Wells & Brother, of Chicago, remaining with
this concern until 1885, in which year he patented the Perfect self-
measuring oil tank and siphon, which represent the products of the
great concern at whose head he now stands and in whose upbuilding
he has been the prime factor. His business career since the year noted
has been adequately outlined or intimated in preceding paragraphs.
In politics Mr. Bowser gives his allegiance to the Republican party,
and both he and his wife are valued members of the First Baptist
church.
On the nth of October, 1876, Mr. Bowser was united in mar-
riage to Miss Sarah F. Russell, who was likewise born and reared
in Allen county, being a daughter of William and Sarah Russell, of
Fort Wayne.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 307
GEORGE B. M. BOWER, M. D.
Prominent in the ranks of the able and successful members of
the medical profession in Allen county is found Dr. Bower, who
is established in a large and representative practice in the city of
Fort Wayne, with office headquarters at 326 East Berry street.
The old Keystone state of the Union figtires as the place of
Dr. Bower's nativity, since he was bom near the town of Jersey
Shore, Lycoming county, Pennsylvania, on the 24th of March,
1862, while he is a son of Jesse and Leah (Bixler) Bower, both of
whom were likewise born in Pennsylvania, and both of whom are
now deceased, the father having devoted the major portion of his
active career to mercantile pursuits. Dr. Bower passed his youth
in his native town, in whose public schools he secured his early
educational training, having been graduated in the West Branch
high school as a member of the class of 1878. He then entered
Lafayette College, at Easton, Pennsylvania, where he completed the
classical course, and in 1884 he was matriculated in the medical
department of the University of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland,
in which institution he was graduated as a member of the class of
1887, receiving his well earned degree of Doctor of Medicine. In
the following year, after special post-graduate work, he passed a
most creditable examination in the Medico-Chirurgical College, in
the city of Philadelphia, being granted a certificate by this institution.
Dr. Bower initiated the active work of his profession by locating
in the village of Elimsport, Lycoming county, Pennsylvania, where
he remained but a short time and then serving one year as resident
physician in St. Joseph's Hospital, in Reading, Pennsylvania. In
the meanwhile he took a special post-graduate course in gynecology
in the medical department of the University of Maryland. In 1889
the Doctor located in Fort Wayne, where he has since been
3o8 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
established in active practice as a physician and surgeon and where
he has risen to prominence as an able representative of his exacting
profession. He is held in high regard by his professional con-
temporaries and is a member of the Allen County Medical Society,
of which he was president in 1900, and he is also identified with
the Fort Wayne Medical Society, the Indiana State Medi-
cal Society and the American Medical Association. At the
time of this writing the Doctor is a member of the board of
censors of the Fort Wayne Medical Society, while he also holds
the preferment of president of the United States board of pension-
examining surgeons for Allen county, and is medical examiner
for a number of the leading life-insurance companies doing business
in Indiana, notably the following named : Union Central, of Cin-
cinnati, Ohio; Metropolitan Life, of New York; Travelers', of
Hartford, Connecticut; Michigan Mutual, of Detroit, Michigan;
Illinois Life, of Chicago; Franklin Life, of Springfield, Illinois;
Equitable Insurance Company, of Des Moines, Iowa ; the New York
Casualty and United States Casualty Companies, of New York,
and the Great Eastern Casualty and Indemnity Company, of New
York.
In politics Dr. Bower gives an unqualified allegiance to the
Republican party, while both he and his wife hold membership in
the Presbyterian church. He is a ICnight Templar and a Scottish
Rite Mason and is also affiliated with the Knights of Pythias and
the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
On the 7th of November, 1889, was solemnized the marriage of
Dr. Bower to Miss Florence Kelly, of Reading, Pennsylvania, who
died on the 19th of September. 1901, leaving one child, Clara.
On the 26th of December, 1904, the Doctor wedded Miss Lillian
L. Weld, of Guthrie Center, Iowa, and she presides most graciously
over their pleasant home in Fort Wayne.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 309
WILLIAM B. McMAKEN.
The lineage of this well known and substantial farmer of
Wayne township, Allen county, traces back to Scottish derivation,
and he bears a name which has been identified with American history
since the seventeenth century, while he is also a representative of
one of the honored pioneer families of Allen county, where he has
passed practically his entire life.
The founder of the family in Indiana was Joseph Hamilton Mc-
Maken, grandfather of the subject. He was bom in Monmouth,
Kentucky, in 1787, and from his native state removed to Hamilton,
Butler county, Ohio. He served with distinction as a soldier in the
war of 18 1 2, during the progress of which he was for a time stationed
at Fort Wayne, which was then but a frontier post. In the spring
of 1832 he removed from Ohio to Allen county, Indiana, and
settled in Fort Wayne, where he was engaged in the hotel business
for a number of years, while as a citizen he wielded much influence
and was held in high regard in the community, having been a man
of forceful individuality and leaving a distinct impress upon the
public activities of the town and county. He was one of the first
supervisors of Wayne township and one of the early judges of the
local courts. This honored pioneer removed to Burlington, Iowa,
in 1857, and the Hawkeye state thereafter continued to be his place
of residence until he was called to his final reward. In politics he
was originally an old-line Whig, but he espoused the cause of the
Republican party at the time of its organization and thereafter was
a firm advocate of its principles. The maiden name of his wife,
who died in Fort Wayne, was Moore, and she was a repr'esentative
of one of the twenty-two families which founded the city of Cin-
cinnati, Ohio, whither the original ancestors removed from the state
of Pennsylvania.
3IO THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Concerning Joseph Gettys McMaken, father of the subject, we
record that he was born in Hamihon, Butler county, Ohio, and
there passed his boyhood days, while he accompanied his parents on
their removal to Fort Wayne, in 1832. Though his educational
advantages were somewhat limited, in the academic sense, he was
possessed of such alert mentality and such appreciative determination
that he was enabled to overcome the handicap, becoming a man of
advanced ideas and much business acumen. He was one of the first
general contractors in Fort Wayne, while he did a large business
in the way of contract teaming, especially in the handling of govern-
ment supplies for the Indians. He became the owner of a large
tract of farming land in the county and was a substantial and honored
citizen. He joined the Republican party at the time of its or-
ganization and ever afterward gave a zealous support to its prin-
ciples, while he was called to serve in various local offices of public
trust and responsibility. He continued to reside in Allen county
until his death, which occurred on the 13th of December, 1864. His
wife, whose maiden name was Dorothy Ruch, was bom in Alsace,
Germany, and was eleven years of age at the time of her parents'
immigration to America. She survived her husband by many years,
having passed away on the 8th of August, 1899, at a venerable age.
Of the twelve children of this union two died in infancy, and of
the others we enter brief record as follows : Henry C. is a prominent
farmer of Wayne township and is individually mentioned on other
pages of this work; William B. is the immediate subject of this
sketch; Joseph H. resides on the old homestead farm, in Washing-
ton township; Sarah J. is the wife of Sylvester Coleman, of Wayne
township; Anna M. is a valued teacher in the Fort Wa)me public
schools; Adelia A. is deceased; Lewis C. died in childhood; John
C. F. is a farmer of Washington township; and Franklin A. is a
resident of Fort Wayne.
William B. McMaken, to whom this review is dedicated, was
born in Adams township, Allen county, Indiana, on the 22d of
May, 1846, the place of his birth having been the homestead farm,
four miles east of Fort Wayne. He was afforded a good common-
school education and remained on the home farm until there came
to him the call of higher duty, when the integrity of the Union was
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 311
imperiled through armed rebelHon. On the ist of January, 1864,
he enHsted as a private in Company B, One Hundred and Twenty-
ninth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, commanded by Colonel Zollinger,
while General Hovey was the brigade commander during the entire
time the regiment was at the front. Among the principal engage-
ments in which Mr. McMaken took part may be mentioned the
following; Resaca; Kenesaw Mountain; the work in the right
of the city of Atlanta during the siege ; Lovejoy Station ; Columbia,
Franklin and Nashville, Tennessee; and Kingston, North Carolina.
In the battle of Kenesaw Mountain Mr. McMaken received a severe
flesh wound from a rifle ball, but he bravely bound up the wound
and continued on his way, not leaving the ranks and continuing
at the post of duty without interruption. The woimd was sufficiently
deep to leave a scar for all time. After the battle of Nashville the
command marched to the Tennessee river and thence proceeded up
the Ohio river to Cincinnati, from which point the regiment was sent
to the city of Washington and on to Beaufort, North Carolina, while
it reached Fort Anderson, that state, two hours after the engagement.
The command joined Sherman's forces at Raleigh and the lines were
drawn up in expectation of a battle, but the engagement did not
come, as Johnston surrendered. The brigade then marched to
Charlotte, North Carolina, to hold the territory, and there remained
until August 29, 1865, when its members were mustered out, and
our subject returned home by way of Petersburg, City Point and
Baltimore, reaching Fort Wayne on the 1 5th of September and hav-
ing been at the post of duty and in active service for a period of
twenty-two months, save for a furlough of thirty days, which he
passed at home. He received his honorable discharge as corporal
of his company, having been chosen to this office after the battle
of Resaca and having served in the same until the close of the
war. On one occasion he was assigned to detail duty in guard-
ing division rations, and the little detail was surrounded by Con-
federate guerillas, who were finally repulsed, though word had
gone to regimental headquarters that all men in the detail had been
killed. One of the members was captured by the enemy and was
hanged. A great loss and bereavement was suffered by our sub-
ject during his absence at the front, as his honored father passed
312 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
away, though WilHam was favored in having been able to visit his
home on short furlough only a short time previously.
After the close of the war Mr. McMaken turned his attention
to work at the carpenter's trade and thereafter was employed by
the Wabash Railroad Company about four years — up to the time
of his marriage, which was celebrated in 1874. Since that time he
has given his attention almost entirely to agricultural pursuits, hav-
ing taken up his residence on his present farm about the year 1878,
the same being a portion of the old homestead of his father-in-law,
while for eight years he had operative control of the entire home-
stead. His present farm embraces one hundred acres of fine land
and is recognized as one of the best farms in the county, being situ-
ated in section 29, Wayne township, four and three-fourth miles
southwest of the city of Fort Wayne, on No. 8 rural mail route.
In 1890 Mr. McMaken erected his present commodious and
attractive modem residence, while all other buildings on the place
are of the best order. Hfe gives his attention to diversified farming
and makes a specialty of market gardening, placing his horticul-
tural products with the wholesale groceries and doihg a large busi-
ness in this line. Mr. McMaken is a man of progressive ideas and
brings to bear in the management of his farm the most approved
and scientific methods and accessories, so that he secures the maxi-
mum returns from the labors and funds expended. His horticul-
tural products are of specially high standard and find a ready market
at top prices. About eighteen acres of land which had been pro-
nounced worthless he has reclaimed by effective drainage, utilizing
the same for the raising of com, potatoes, etc., and finding it one
of the most productive sections of his farm. The expense incurred
in the installation of the drainage system has been paid several times
over from the products of the land thus reclaimed.
Mr. McMaken has never found it expedient to take an active
part in political matters and has never been an aspirant for public
"office, though he is a stalwart supporter of the principles of the Re-
publican party. He is affiliated with General Lawton Post, No.
590, Grand Army of the Republic, in Fort Wayne, and for nearly
forty years he has been identified with the Independent Order of
Odd Fellows, holding membership in Harmony Lodge, No. 19,
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 313
while both he and his wife are members of the alHed organization,
the Daughters of Rebekah. Mrs. McMaken is a prominent and
valued member of Sion Bass Woman's Relief Corps, No. 7, of which
she is past president. Their church relations are with the Methodist
Episcopal church.
On the 1 2th of February, 1874, Mr. McMaken was united in
rrtarriage to Miss Deborah Robertson, daughter of John and Susan
(Banks) Robertson, the former of whom was bom in Botetourt
county, Virginia, and the latter in Montgomery county, same state,
while their marriage was solemnized in Darke county, Ohio, to which
state their respective parents had removed when Mr. and Mrs.
Robertson were children. Thomas Robertson, the paternal grand-
father of Mrs. McMaken, was one of the honored pioneers of Darke
county, Ohio. In 1850 Jbhn Robertson came with his family to
Allen county and settled on Indian reserve land, in Lafayette town-
ship, the tract being entirely unreclaimed from the forest. In the
primitive cabin home on this place were bom three of his children.
After remaining there for somewhat more than two years he re-
moved to Wayne township and passed four years on the farm now
occupied by the home for feeble-minded. He then purchased two
hundred and forty acres of canal land and instituted its develop-
ment and improvement, and of this tract the fine farm now owned
by his son-in-law, the subject of this sketch, is an integral part. The
hewed-log house which he erected on the place is still standing and
is incorporated in the modern residence of his daughter, Mrs. Ruth
Gunnison. Mr. Robertson accumulated other farm land in the
county, and his home at the time of his death was the old McNear
homestead, on the Huntington road, Wayne township, where he
died on the 20th of August, 1886, at the age of sixty-seven years,
three months and eighteen days. His wife died on Christmas day,
1 90 1, at the age of seventy-eight years, eleven months and twenty-
one days. The latter was a devoted member of the Wayne street
Methodist Episcopal church, in Fort Wa)aie. Mr. Robertson was
a man of prominence and influence in his community, was a stanch
Republican in politics but never sought official preferment. Of the
twelve children of Mr. and Mrs. Robertson four are living, namely :
Martha, who is the widow of Dr. Samuel Humphreys and who re-
314 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
sides in Riverside, California; Deborah, who is the wife of the
subject of this review; Lydia R., who is the wife of Charles Bennett,
of Chapman, Kansas; and Ruth A., who is the wife of George
Cunnison, of Santa Cruz, CaHfomia. Mr. and Mrs. McMaken
have two children, William G., who is cashier in the offices of the
International Harvester Company at Buffalo, New York; and
Clinton R., who is associated with his father in the work and man-
agement of the home farm. Both sons received good educational
advantages, Qinton having completed a course in business college
but finding ample scope for his efforts in connection with the great
basic industries with which he continued to be identified.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 315
RUFUS MORGAN FRENCH.
Rufus Morgan French was born on the ist day of April, 1822,
in the town of Norwich, Connecticut, and was the son of Captain
Charles and Betsey (Giddings) French, both natives of that place
and of American ancestry for many generations. Mr. French's
elementary education was received in the public schools of his native
town and at Brockport, New York, whither the family had removed.
Coming to Fort Wayne, he and his brother, Charles G. French, formed
a partnership as carpenter-contractors, being also, as was the custom
of the time, the architects of most of the buildings they erected.
In 1849 M^- French went by sailing vessel around Cape Horn to
California, where he remained a year or two, and upon his return
was for some time employed as a salesman in the Oakley hardware
store. Entering then upon the manufacture of woolen goods in a
modest way, he met with gratifying success and the greater part
of his subsequent life was devoted to this line of industry. He built
up a large and flourishing business through absolute honesty and the
sincerity that he carried into every part of his daily life. Whatever
he did was well done, whatever he said was truly said, and he was
held in the highest esteem by friends and acquaintances. Yet only
his immediate family and closest friends really knew him, for he
was one of the most thoughtful and considerate of men, modest,
reserved and unassuming. More than one struggling youth was
helped and cheered by the kindness and wise counsel of Rufus
Morgan French. When the late Gen. Henry W. Lawton enlisted in
the volunteer service at the beginning of the Civil war, Mr. French
was instrumental in securing his warrant as sergeant, and in help-
ing to fit out the young soldier.
At seven o'clock A. M., on March 7, 1854, at Fort Wayne,
Mr. French was united in marriage to Miss Maria Catherine Rudisill,
3i6 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
who was bom at Fort Wayne on February 12, 1833, the daughter
of Henry and Elizabeth (Johns) Rudisill. In her were united the
refinement, courtesy and good sense which seems the birthright of
the well known Rudisill family. Their union was a most congenial
one and was blessed in the birth of four children, Julia, Francis
Henry, Susan and Martha W. In politics Mr. French was an earnest
Republican, though never a seeker after public honors. His religious
belief was that of the Presbyterian church, of which he was for
many years a faithful and consistent member. The subject and his
wife are both now deceased, Mr. French dying in Fort Wayne in
June, 1 89 1, and Mrs. French at Sewickley, Pennsylvania, in Febru-
ary, 1897. Their remains were laid to rest in beautiful Lindenwood
cemetery. Of an equable temperament and seeing the best side of
every individual, Mr. French had a kind word for every one and few
men ever numbered among their acquaintances more earnest and
loyal friends than did he. A man of distinctive personality, he left
his impress in a quiet but certain way upon all who knew him and
his influence still remains as a blessed benediction.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 317
WILLIAM PINKNEY COOPER.
Mr. W. P. Cooper was bom in Fort Wayne on the 27th day
of August, 1852, and has spent almost his entire hfe here. His
parents were Henry and Eleanor (Brown) Cooper. The former
was bom in Havre de Grace, Maryland, in 1795, and was descended
from English ancestors, Protestant followers of Lord Baltimore,
some of whom served in the French and Revolutionary wars of this
country. Henry Cooper came to Fort Wayne in 1825, being thus
one of the pioneers of this section, and here he entered upon the
practice of law, in which he gained marked eminence, being dis-
tinguished for his profound learning, brilliant repartee and dignity
of character. Eleanor Brown Cooper was born in 18 13 in county
Tyrone, Ireland, and was descended from Scotch and English ances-
tors, prominent among whom was Sir Hans Sloan, the eminent
physician and distinguished founder of the British Museum.
Eleanor Brown came to America in her youth and was subsequently
thrice married, she being at the time of her marriage to Henry
Cooper, the widow of James P. Munson, the father of the late
Charles A. Munson. She was a woman of fine intellect, well read
and a loving and devoted mother.
Mr. Cooper secured his elementary education in the public
schools of Fort Wayne, graduating from the high school in 1868.
He for a short time served as city editor of the Fort Wayne Gazette
and then entered Dartmouth College, where he was graduated in
1873. His taste for literature and his fine critical acumen were
recognized at college and, with other honors, he was made class
poet. After his graduation he studied law in the Columbia Law
School, New York city, and also in the office of Cook & Nassau, of
that city, and with Hon. Robert Lowry, of Fort Wayne. However,
the field of journalism held for him more attractions, and he re-
3i8 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
linquished his legal studies and began his professional life as city
editor of the Fort Wayne News, being also at different times city
editor of the Sentinel, the Gazette and the Journal, besides serving
efficiently as Fort Wayne correspondent for the metropolitan papers.
With a literary style of marked simplicity and directness, his was
the rare charm of a "wit that without wounding could hit." But
while his humor would lend grace alike to the most prosaic ^'locals"
or to an important article, his perfect taste was his marked character-
istic. It was a serious loss to Fort Wayne when, in 1888, the
late Joseph McCullagh. managing editor of the St. Louis Globe-
Democrat, induced Mr. Cooper to go to that city on special work
covering assignments of importance in and out of St. Louis. How-
ever he returned to Fort Wayne to become managing editor of the
Journal, for a few years, when he quit journalism and entered into
the insurance business. In this were also exhibited those sterling
qualities which insured his former success and in 1895 he was ap-
pointed general agent of the New York Life Insurance Company,
which responsible position he still holds.
August 30, 1887, Mr. Cooper was united in marriage with Miss
Nellie Brown, the talented artist of Lafayette, Indiana, and to them
has been bom one son. Brown. This union has been most felicitous
and their home and home life ideal. Socially Mr. Cooper belongs
to the Greek letter society. Kappa Kappa Kappa, of Dartmouth
College, is a member of the Anthony Wayne Club, and is a member
and vice-president of the Northern Indiana Life Underwriters' As-
sociation. Politically Mr. Cooper is a Democrat, but declined to
support the free-silver doctrines of Mr. Bryan and twice voted for
McKinley. In June, 1896, he was elected a member of the board
of school trustees, serving three years, the last two years as president
of the board. In 1901 Governor Winfield T. Durbin appointed Mr.
Cooper a member of the state board of charities and at the end of
his first term he was reappointed, being at the present time a member
of that board. He represents the best type of citizen and dignified
self-respecting manhood.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 319
ADAM M. BOWERS.
The first half of the nineteenth century was characterized by the
immigration of that pioneer element which made the great state of
Indiana what it is. These immigrants were sturdy, heroic, upright,
sincere folk, such as constitute the intrinsic strength of a common-
wealth. It scarcely seems possible that in the future history of the
world another such period can occur, or, indeed any period in which
such a solid phalanx of strong-minded men and self-sacrificing
women will take possession of a new country. Too careful or too
frequent reference can not be made in the pages of history concern-
ing those who have thus figured as founders and builders of a com-
monwealth, and in connection with this brief review of the personal
career of Mr. Bowers it is our privilege to touch incidentally and
specifically upon interesting data in regard to the sterling pioneer
family of which he is a member and one whose name has been
linked with tlie annals of Allen county for more than half a century.
The subject is known as one of the influential and worthy citizens
and successful agriculturists of Madison township, where he has
resided from his youthful days, and it has been his portion to assist
in the reclamation of much wild land in Allen county and to aid in
starting forward the wheels of industrial and civic progress, while
through his well directed efforts he has gained a success worthy the
name.
Among the many brave and loyal men whom Indiana contributed
to the Union ranks during the climateric epoch of the Civil war there
were few whose service was more prolonged or more notable for
fidelity and patriotism than that of him whose name initiates this
sketch, and thus another element of interest is added to the con-
sideration of his life history in this compilation.
Mr. Bowers is a native of the old Buckeye state, while in tracing
320 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
the g'enealog3' of the family we must turn back to the Old Dominion,
where was cradled so much of our national history. He was bom
in Champaign county, Ohio, on the 15th of April, 1836, and is a
son of John Y. and Mary A. (Warham) Bowers, both of whom
were born in the state of Virginia, where the respective families were
founded in an early day, the paternal ancestry tracing back to Ger-
man origin and the maternal to French and Scotch. The father
of the subject was engaged in farming in Ohio imtil the autumn of
1852, when he came with his family to Indiana, arriving in Allen
county on the 2d of October and soon afterward locating on a tract
of wild land, in Jefiferson township, where he cleared and improved
a good farm, with the assistance of his sons. Here both he and his
wife passed the remainder of their lives, honored by all who knew
them.
Adam M. Bowers was reared to the sturdy discipline of the
great fundamental art of agriculture, and he has never severed his
allegiance to the same, while through its beneficence he has pushed
forward to a position of independence and marked prosperity, the
rewards of his efforts having been grateful and unstinted. He se-
cured his rudimentary educational training in the common schools
of his native county, and was ajbout sixteen years of age at the time
of the family removal to Allen county, Indiana, where he continued
to attend school during the winter terms for a few years, making
the best use of the advantages afforded and being appreciative of the
value of education, though his facilities for attaining the same were
those of the pioneer era. He was unabating in his labors on the home
farm, which he assisted in reclaiming, while in the spring of i860
he purchased his present farm, erecting on the same a small house,
in October of that year, and forthwith settling himself vigorously to
the work of clearing the land and making it available for cultivation.
His prior experience amply fitted him for the labors thus essayed,
and soon the results of his efforts became patent, while his prosperity
increased from year to year, with the broadening of his scope of
operations in the cultivation of the willing soil. On this farm-
stead he has continued to reside continuously save for the interval
passed as a soldier in the Union army. He has cleared one hundred
and three acres of land from the primeval forests of Allen county.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 321
and his finely improved farm of fifty-one acres, in section 2, Madison
township, stands as a permanent voucher for the labors by him
performed and for the discriminating methods which he has brought
to bear.
On the 22d of July, 1862, Mr. Bowers gave distinctive evidence
of his patriotism by enlisting as a member of Company D, Eighty-
eighth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, while he was mustered into
service, in the city of Indianapolis, on the 29th of the following
month. His regiment was assigned to the Army of the Cumberland,
and at once set forth for the front, while it was given its baptism
of fire in the battle of Perrj^ville, Kentucky, on the 8th of October,
that year. From this point his regiment was in pursuit of the enemy
to Crab Orchard, Kentucky, where an engagement occurred, and
thence it proceeded to Tennessee and took part in the battle of Stone
River, waged from the 31st of December to the 3d of January,
inclusive. Thereafter the regiment participated in the following
engagements : Duck River, Tennessee, June 28-9, 1863 '■> Tullahoma,
Tennessee; Elk River, that state, July 3d; Dug Gap, Georgia, Sep-
tember nth; thence to the ever memorable battle of Chickamauga,
September 19-21 ; the battle on the southern slope of LxDokout
Mountain, November 24th; the grand charge at Missionary Ridge,
November 25th; then in the expedition to Ringgold, Georgia, in
pursuit of the enemy, on the 26th of November, while on the fol-
lowing day was made the attack at White Oak Ridge; while the
command next participated in the fight at Tunnel Hill, Georgia,
February 22-27, 1864. They then fell back to Chattanooga and
thence started forward on the great Atlanta campaign, taking part
in the battle of Resaca, May 13-15, and being thereafter engaged
in almost continuous fighting until the 2d of September, within
which interval the more important engagements were the battles of
Kenesaw Mountain, Peach Tree Creek, Utoy Creek and Jonesboro.
The regiment then took part in the pursuing of General Hood to
Galesville, Alabama, and thence proceeded with Sherman on the
great and historic "march to the sea," — November 14th to Decem-
ber nth, — while the capture of Savannah was effected on the 22d
of December. The forces then proceeded on the march through the
Carolinas. — January 20 to March 23, 1865, — having a spirited
21
322 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
skirmish at Averysboro, North Carohna, on the i6th of March, and
one, at Bentonville, on the 19th of that month,' while on the 13th
of April the city of Raleigh capitulated. The victorious army then
moved onward to Richmond, the capital of the Confederacy, and
thence to the federal capital, the city of Washington, where the
subject took part in the grand review, on the 24th of May, while
he was mustered out of the service on the 7th of June, 1865, the
regiment disbanding at Indianapolis, Indiana, on the 20th of the
month. There Mr. Bowers received his honorable discharge. He
assumed command of his company at the battle of Bentonville, North
Carolina, on the 19th of March, 1865, and remained at the head
thereafter until his discharge, with the rank of first lieutenant. He
retains a lively interest in his old comrades and manifests the same
by his affiliation with Link Post, No. 301, Grand Army of the
Republic, at Monroeville. After the close of his long and valiant
service as a soldier of the republic Mr. Bowers returned to his farm
in Allen county, where he has ever since lived and where he com-
mands the unqualified esteem of all who know him. In politics he
is a stanch adherent of the Democratic party, and he has held various
local offices in his township, while his religious faith is that of the
Lutheran church, of which his wife likewise is a devoted member.
On the 7th of September, 1865, Mr. Bowers was united in mar-
riage to Miss Mary C. Shannon, who was born in Clark county,
Ohio, on the 29th of November, 1846, being a daughter of Isaac
and Margaret (Hullinger) Shannon. Concerning the children of
this union we enter brief data, giving the respective dates of birth:
Edson L., February 4, 1867, "ow deceased; Margaret E., August
29, 1868, is also dead; John W., April 2, 1870; Alvenia D., July
27, 1872; Mary J., April 14, 1874, now deceased; Charles T.,
October 22, 1876; Albert C, March 14, 1878, and Cora, December
23, 1880. On the 29th of May, 1900, Mr. Bowers consummated
a second marriage, being then united to Mrs. Matilda H. Wheatcraft,
widow of Henry Wheatcraft. She was born in Ashland county,
Ohio, and is a daughter of Jacob and Matilda (Dick) Kinney, who
were of the sturdy Pennsylvania German stock.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 323
WILLIAM DICKERSON.
This venerable and honored pioneer citizen of Allen county well
merits definite recognition in a work of the province assigned to the
one at hand. He resides in the attractive village of Monroeville,
and his friends in the community are equal in number to his ac-
quaintances, for to him is accorded unqualified confidence and regard
in the locality which has so long figured as his home.
William Dickerson claims the old Keystone state of the Union
as the place of his nativity and he is a scion of pioneer stock in that
fine old commonwealth. He was bom in Washington county,
Pennsylvania, on the 27th of November, 1825, being a son of Gideon
Dickerson, who was likewise bom and reared in Washington county.
The paternal grandfather of the subject was a native of England
and his wife was bom in Scotland. Gideon Dickerson was a farmer
by vocation during the greater portion of his active career, and in
early life he removed with his family to Ohio, becoming one of the
pioneers of Richland county, where both he and his wife passed the
remainder of their lives, honored by all who knew them. They
became the parents of eight children, of whom two are living at the
time of this writing. The subject of this sketch secured his early
educational discipline in the common schools of Richland county,
Ohio, where he was reared to manhood, while he early began to lend
his aid in the clearing and cultivating of the homestead farm, which
comprised one hundred and sixty acres. He continued his residence
in Ohio until the time of the war of the Rebellion, when his patriotic
ardor was roused to responsive action, and he enlisted as a private
in the Twenty-third Battery, Indiana Volunteer Artillery, being
mustered in at Indianapolis and continuing in service for a period
of nine months, at the expiration of which he received his honorable
discharge. He receives a pension of twelve dollars a month in
324 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
recognition of his services and the disabilities resulting therefrom,
while he manifests his abiding interest in his old comrades in arms
by retaining membership in that noble organization, the Grand Army
of die Republic. In politics he has ever accorded a stanch allegiance
to the Democratic party, taking a lively interest in the questions and
issues of the hour, and both he and his wife are valued and con-
sistent members of the Christian church. For the past twenty-eight
years Mr. Dickerson has been identified with the Masonic fraternity,
being affiliated with the lodge in Monroeville. He has been a resident
of Allen county since the year 1861 and has been closely identified
with the industrial and civic interests of his section, while at the
present time he is devoting his attention to the real-estate business,
with which line of enterprise he has been identified for the past eight
years.
On the 20th of May, 1846, Mr. Dickerson was united in mar-
riage to Miss Susanna Nail, daughter of James Nail, at that time
a resident of Ohio. Six children were bom of this union, namely:
Amanda, David G., Addison, Josephine, Ada B. and John F. All
the children except Addison and Amanda are living and are well
established in life.
In this sketch we find it our privilege to incorporate reminiscent
paragraphs of most interesting order, the same having been con-
tributed by Mr. Dickerson and having to do more particularly with
events of the early days in Pennsylvania, where he was bom :
"About the time the war of 18 12 was in its height many exciting
scenes and events were to be noted in Washington county, Pennsyl-
vania, where my parents were living at the time, as the section was
then practically the frontier settlement of the white people of Penn-
sylvania, the Ohio river constituting the practical dividing line be-
tween the white settlement on the east and the Indians on the west.
The red men held essential dominion in all the great district to the
west of the Ohio river. It was a frequent occurrence for the
hostile Indians to cross the river by night, at Wheeling, and for their
bands to ferociously invade the settlements on the frontier, murder-
ing the unprotected families and taking the scalps of their helpless
victims. At that time, owing to the conflict of the war of 18 12,
the Indian chief of the locality had given orders to his followers to
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 325
take no prisoners, and this implied the murdering- of all who came
within their pathway, while these frequent raids and massacres were
the result of this order. In fear of being thus murdered by night,
many of the white families would desert their homes at nightfall
and penetrate into the deep recesses of the unbroken forest, often
going- miles from their homes, and remaining thus secluded during
the night in order to secure protection from attack on the part of
the marauding Indians. The tales of these trying days have often
been related to me by my father in my youthful days, while the
family circle was gathered around the old-fashioned fireplace.
"I feel that it is my duty to make a perpetual record concerning
an exciting event and the almost miraculous escape of my grand-
father Dickerson, in Washington county, Pennsylvania, during the
progress of the war of 18 12. This was at the time when the
conflict was raging most furiously, when no prisoners were taken
and when the scalps of white men were at a premium. My father
stated that the event narrated occurred when he was an infant in
his mother's arms. His father had served two years as a soldier
in the war and had been discharged from the service after proving
a loyal and faithful soldier. While the war was still raging he had
occasion to make a business trip through the forest to a point about
four miles distant from his home, while he was accompanied by
another settler, who was his intimate friend. They made the trip on
horseback, one following the trail directly back of the other. Their
object in going forth was to make a business and friendly call at
the little home of a poor, lone widow who had a large family of
children and who had been engaged in making clothing for the
Dickerson family. The two sojourners arrived safely at the cabin
of the widow, where they were cordially received and entertained.
In the course of their conversation the widow asked them if they
were not fearful of attack on the part of the Indians that day,
and they replied in the negative. She then said that she had been
much alarmed all day, fearing that the Indians were prowling about
in the vicinity, and she warned her guests to exercise much caution,
giving the words of admonition that 'There never was a pitcher that
went to the well so often but that it might yet be broken.' After
finishing their business and thanking the widow for her hospitality,
326 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
the two men gave her a small present and after a hearty grasp of the
hands and the tendering of words of consolation and encouragement,
the two companions started forth on their return trip. In the depths
of the forest they were suddenly confronted by a band of ten war-
like savages, who sprung into the road from their place of con-
cealment, being only ten paces distant from the two white men when
they thus came into view. In an instant the two riders decided that
their only chance of escape was to apply spurs and whips and dash
through the line of the red men who thus menaced them. This
recourse they took, the Indians stepping aside to avoid danger, but
as soon as the two men passed the savages again leaped back into
the road and began firing at the fleeing riders. They raised the
Indian war cry and started in hot pursuit of their prey. The in-
trepid riders bent as low as possible over their horses, in order to
avoid the bullets of the red skins, but after running about one hun-
dred yards the horse upon which Grandfather Dickerson was rid-
ing fell to the ground, mortally wounded. His companion dashed
onward and escaped in safety. When Grandfather Dickerson ex-
tricated himself from his fallen steed he looked back and found
himself almost face to face with a big Indian, while the remainder
of the band were not more than fifteen paces in the rear. He felt
for his side arms, but found they were missing, his intention having
been to kill the foremost Indian, but he now saw that his only chance
for escape lay in flight. He stood not on the order of his going, but
took nimbly to his heels, and being fleet of foot and actuated by an
undeniable fright, he scurried onward through the dim forest aisles
and finally succeeded in reaching his home in safety, the Indians
abandoning the pursuit as they approached the settlement."
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA, 327
ROBERT B. McKEEMAN, M. D.
Among the native sons of Allen county who have here attained
gratifying recognition and success in the medical profession is the
subject of this review, who is one of the representative physicians
and surgeons of the younger generation in the city of Fort Wayne,
where he has his office at 1608 Calhoun street, and his residence at
2020 Broadway.
Dr. McKeeman was born in the village of Hoagland, Madison
township, this county, on the 27th of February, 1874, and is a son
of David C. and Margaret A. (McConnaha) McKeeman, both of
whom were born in Ireland, whence they came to America with
their respective parents when children. The father followed the
vocation of farmer until the time of his death, in 1876. His widow
survived him by many years, her death occurring in 1894. They
became the parents of twelve children, of whom eight are living.
Dr. McKeeman secured his preliminary educational discipline in
the public schools of Madison township, after which he availed him-
self of the advantages afforded in Taylor University, in Fort Wayne,
and the Indiana State Normal School at Marion, after leaving which
latter institution he devoted his attention to teaching in the schools
of his native county for a period of two years, meeting with marked
success in his pedagogic labors but utilizing this profession simply
as a means to an end, as he had decided to adopt the calling to which
he is now devoted. In 1894 he was matriculated in the Fort Wayne
College of Medicine, in which well equipped institution he completed
the prescribed courses in medicine and surgery, being graduated as
a member of the class of 1897 and receiving his degree of Doctor
of Medicine. In view of his standing in his profession it is pleas-
328 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
ing to revert to the fact that he is not only a native of Allen county
but also that he received his technical training in a local institution.
Immediately after his graduation the Doctor opened an office in
Monroe, Adams county, and while he was necessarily called upon to
serve the customary novitiate in his profession it was not unduly
prolonged, and his success and prestige have been ciimulative in
character, so that he stands well to the front among the able, popular
and successful young physicians of his native county, giving his
attention to general practice. He remained in practice in Monroe
until 1900, when he located in Fort Wayne, where he has since
followed the work of his profession. He is a close and appreciative
student, being duly conservative in his attitude but ever standing
ready to avail himself of those agencies and advanced methods which
meet the approval of his judgment. He is an affiliate of the American
Medical Association, the Indiana State Medical Society, the Fort
Wayne Medical Society and the Fort Wayne Academy of Medicine,
and he finds time and opportunity to avail himself of the advantages
of each. Though never active in the realm of practical politics,
the Doctor is a stalwart supporter of the cause of the Republican
party and he is essentially progressive and public-spirited as a
citizen.
On the 5th of October, 1897, Dr. McKeeman was united in
marriage to Miss Susie May Hocker, of Monroeville, and they
have three children, Leland Stanford, Lillian Theodosia and Donald
Harry Cook.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 329
JOHN W. MEEKS.
There is no positive rule for achieving success, and yet in the
life of the successful man there are always lessons which might well
be followed. The essential conditions of human life are ever the
same, the surroundings of individuals differing but slightly; and
when one man passes another on the highway of life it is because he
has the power to use advantages which probably encompassed also
his less successful contestant. Today among the successful and
enterprising farmers and business men of Monroe township, Allen
county, Indiana, stands John W. Meeks. The qualities of keen
discrimination, sound judgment and consecutive and persistent in-
dustry enter very largely into his make-up and have been contribut-
ing elements to the success which has come to him.
John W. Meeks enjoys the distinction of having been the first
white child torn in Monroe township, Allen county, Indiana, his
birth having occurred on the 13th day of January, 1843. ^'s par-
ents, Thomas and Nancy Meeks, were natives of West Virginia
and were of Scotch-Irish and German ancestry respectively. They
were of sturdy mould, such as peculiarly fitted them for their early
pioneer experiences, and were among the earliest settlers of Monroe
township, coming here in 1840. At that time the locality was in its
original wild condition and the family were compelled to endure
many hardships and privations during their early years here. Farm-
ing implements were crude and not plentiful, and the land had to
be cleared of the timber before seeding and planting could be under-
taken, entailing a vast amount of labor of the most strenuous kind.
The clothes worn by the family were entirely home-made, even the
flax from which they were made being raised on the farm, after
which it was worked through the several processes necessary before
it could be spun and woven into the coarse cloth from which the
330 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
clothing was made. It was probably not a very stylish piece of
goods, but it was warm and serviceable and was popular in those
days in the frontier homes. The subject's parents had ten children,
five of whom, Malinda, William R., Samuel B., Thomas and James
F., were born before the family located in this county, while five
others, John W., Rebecca A., Elijah W., Elizabeth V. and Mary
M., were born here. To these children their parents gave every
advantage possible, especially in the way of sound advice and godly
counsel, though unable to give them liberal educations or endow
them with much property.
The subject of this sketch enjoyed but meagre educational ad-
vantages in his youth, three months being the longest period at
any one time in which he attended school. He eagerly took ad-
vantage of such opportunities as were possible, and supplementary
to this was a three-years service in the army as quartermaster
sergeant, which, Mr. Meeks says, was the best education he received
at any time, as in that position he was compelled to do things just
right. Upon attaining the proper age he was put to work assisting
to cultivate the farm, and under the able guidance of his father soon
learned the secrets of successful agriculture. He later took up the
stock business, buying and shipping stock to other markets.
Eventually he took up the butchering business and for some time
was engaged in conducting a meat market. At present he is con-
ducting one of the best farms in Monroe township, being considered
one of the progressive and successful farmers of this portion of the
county.
When the dark clouds of civil war hung over our land, Mr.
Meeks evinced his patriotism by enlisting, on September 24, 1861, in
Company D, Thirtieth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, serv-
ing with that command three years, and receiving an honorable
discharge on September 29, 1864, at Indianapolis, Indiana. He
served in the commissary department and, though he did not partici-
pate in any of the great battles of the war, nonetheless he faithfully
contributed his share to the general success of the cause.
On May 5, 1864, Mr. Meeks was united in marriage to Miss
Mary C. Dobbs, who was born in Allen county, Kentucky, the
daughter of John Mason and Silvia Dobbs. To them was born one
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 331
child, Mary Idella, who was born February 25, 1871, and who
died on April i, 188 1. Politically Mr. Meeks has been a life-long
Republican, having cast his first vote for Abraham Lincoln. He
expresses great pride in the record of his party, especially during the
darkest days of the country's histoiy, but, being a stanch prohibition-
ist in principle, he does not approve the present indifference of his
party on that great and vital question. Fraternally he is a member
of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Junior Order of
United American Mechanics and the Grand Army of tlie Re-
public. In religion the subject follows in the footsteps of his
ancestors as far back as there is record, all having been firm ad-
herents of the Methodist Episcopal church.
332 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JAMES E. McHUGH, M. D.
Within the pages of this work will consistently be found repre-
sented many of the leading members of the medical profession in
Allen county, and among the number is Dr. McHugh, who is
established in an excellent practice in the city of Fort Wayne.
Dr. McHugh is a native of the Badger state, having been bom
in Reedsburg, Sauk county, Wisconsin, on the 19th of April, 1867,
and being a son of James and Margaret E. (McDonald) McHugh,
the former of whom was born in the north of Ireland, of Scotch-
Irish ancestry, while the latter was born in the state of New
Jersey. The father of the subject came to the United States in
1830 and he was numbered among the sterling pioneers of Wis-
consin, where he continued to reside until the time of his death,
which occurred in 1890. The major portion of his active career was
in connection with agriculture. His wife passed away in 1886, and
of their six children all are living.
Dr. McHugh received his preliminary educational training in
the public schools of his native state and supplemented this by a
course of study in the Wisconsin State Normal School at White-
water. As a young man he became identified with the work of rail-
road contracting, with which he continued to be actively identified
for a period of years, in the northwest. In 1889 ^e came to Fort
Wayne and here he was matriculated in the Fort Wayne Medical
College, in which excellent institution he completed the prescribed
technical course and was graduated as a member of the class of
1893, receiving his well earned degree of Doctor of Medicine and
being well equipped for the practical work of his chosen profession.
He forthwith opened an office in Fort Wayne, where he has ever
since remained in active practice and where he has gained a high
reputation as an able and conscientious physician and surgeon. He
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 333
is an appreciative member of the American Medical Association,
the Indiana State Medical Society and the Fort Wayne Medical
Society, while his close observance of the unwritten code of medical
ethics, as well as his personal attributes, has gained to him the
esteem of his professional confreres in the city in which he has
labored with so much of enthusiasm and success. On the loth of
September, 1897, Dr. McHugh was united in marriage to Mrs.
Mary E. Clark, widow of Marvin J. Clark. By her first marriage
Mrs. McHugh had six children, Raymond, Sarah, Marie, Marvin
J., Earl and Merl, the last named being deceased.
334 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
ANDREW HOLMAN HAMILTON.
Few citizens of Fort Wayne were as widely and favorably
known as was the late Andrew Holman Hamilton, who, though
removed from the scene of life's activities more than a decade ago, is
still deeply enshrined in the memory of those who knew him. He
was one of the strong and virile characters of the community — a man
whose life became in many respects closely linked with the history
of this section of the state. Flonesty of purpose, a keen perception
of conditions and possibilities, and tireless energy in the prosecution
of every enterprise with which he was connected, were among his
chief characteristics and he in a great measure contributed to the
material and moral welfare of the city of his residence.
Andrew H. Hamilton was a native of the city in which so many
active years of his life were spent, having been born in Fort Wayne
on June ii, 1834. His parents were Allen and Emerine (Holman)
Hamilton, the father born in Ireland and the mother in Indiana.
The subject of this sketch was reared under the parental roof and
was given excellent educational advantages. After receiving his
elementary education in private schools, he studied at Wabash Col-
lege, at Crawfordsville, Indiana, and the Harvard Law School,
going also to Europe, where he took a course in the famous
University of Gottingen. Returning to Fort Wayne, he entered at
once actively upon a career which was marked by continued and
brilliant successes in various lines of endeavor. As a lawyer he
evinced a broad and comprehensive knowledge of legal principles
which enabled him to readily grasp the essential points of a case.
He practiced only a year or two, when he took charge of his father's
estate.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 335
In addition to his professional interests, Mr. Hamilton was a
large owner of real estate in this and other neighboring counties. He
was a far-sighted and sagacious man in business affairs and was able
at all times to handle even difficult matters to the best avantage.
In politics Mr. Hamilton was identified with the Democratic
party and took an active part in advancing its interests. He stood
high in the councils of the party and in 1874 was elected to represent
this district in the national congress, being re-elected in 1876. Here,
as in all other lines of activity in which he engaged, he, by the sheer
force of his ability and personality, took high rank as a legislator,
being placed on some of the most important committees and per-
forming much efficient and appreciated service on behalf of his con-
stituents. Fraternally he was a member of the Free and Accepted
Masons, having passed all the degrees of the York rite of that order,
being thus a Knight Templar. In this body he achieved distinctive
honor, having been elected eminent grand commander of the state
of Indiana in 1872.
In i860 Andrew H. Hamilton was united in marriage with
Miss Phoebe Taber, of Logansport, Cass county, Indiana, who is
the daughter of Cyrus and Deborah (Coles) Taber. To this imion
were born the following children : Katherine, Jessie, Agnes, Allen
and Taber. Mr. Hamilton's death occurred on the 9th day of May,
1895, and in his removal the community felt that it had lost one
of -its strong, rugged characters, a man who had been a leader in
thought and action and who in a large degree had contributed to
the city and county's growth and development, and a man whose
life had honored the city of his residence.
336 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
MASON LONG.
The faith that makes faithful was significantly exemplified in
the life history of the subject of this review, who justified himself
through self-effort and self-resolve and who left a most definite and
permanent influence for good through his well directed endeavors.
He was known and honored over much of our national domain, and
in Fort Wayne, the city of his home, his memory is held in high
regard and affection, for here his circle of friends was circumscribed
only by that of his acquaintances. He was a man of distinct in-
dividuality and the inherent strength of his character made him a
power after he determined his ways on the loftier planes of action.
As a permanent memoir to Mason Long we can not do better in this
connection than to republish, with slight metaphrase, the appreciative
tribute paid at the time of his death by the Fort Wayne Evening
Sentinel of Saturday, November 5, 1904:
"Mason Long, for nearly forty years a resident of Fort Wayne,
and very widely known for his crusade against the evils of intemper-
ance and gambling, conducted with great vigor over a large section
of the United States some years ago, died at 8 103 o'clock this morn-
ing, at his home, 920 Columbia avenue. Mr. Long was sixty-two
years of age, and in his death there passed a strdngly original char-
acter, a man gifted of intellect, with business ability of a high order,
and a man of genial and kindly personality, whose friends were
legion. An intense sufferer through many of the later years of his
life, Mr. Long maintained a strong courage, was cheerful in his
physical affliction, lived in the present, under the solace of a calm
philosophy and faced the future with a stout heart that was in
marked contrast to his steadily diminishing vitality. For some days
it had been apparent that the end could not be long delayed, and,
surrounded by members of his family and a few close friends, the
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 337
last spark of life died away this morning and the patient sank
peacefully into the last long sleep.
"Mr. Long had been an invalid for many years, though through
his impaired health he retained a close grasp upon business affairs
until within but a few days prior to his death. It is about twelve
years ago since symptoms of locomotor ataxia became manifest in
his condition, and it was this fact that compelled him to abandon
the lecturing crusade which had made him famous. The immediate
cause of his demise was incompetency of the heart.
"The career of Mason Long was an extraordinary one in many
ways. He was orphaned at a tender age, worked upon a farm,
served as a soldier, embarked in business, fell into devious ways,
became a gambler and addicted to liquor, became an apostle of
temperance under the Murphy movement, was converted, united
with the church and conducted throughout the west and south an
unique crusade against gambling and intemperance that wrought
incalculable good.
"Mr. Long was bom in Luray, Licking county, Ohio, on the
loth of September, 1842. His father, Jacob Long, died when the
son was but six years of age, and after this bereavement the son
and his mother went to West Salem, Ashland county, Ohio, where,
a few years later, the mother died. The son was at this time ten
years of age and entirely alone. He was bound out to a wealthy
farmer in Medina county, Ohio, and for seven years was, as he
declared in after years, an abject slave. Leaving at the expiration
of his term of service, the young man, then eighteen years of age,
went to Geneseo, Illinois, where he worked for his board and at-
tended school. In the spring of 1862, in company with a number
of his companions, Mr. Long enlisted as a private in the One Hun-
dred and Twelfth Regiment of Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and
served with credit until the close of the war. He participated in
the defense of Knoxville, the bloody battle of Franklin and the de-
fense of Nashville under General Thomas. It was in the army,
said Mr. Long, that he fell into the habit of gaming which charac-
terized some later years of his life. It was in August, 1865, that
the young man came to Fort Wayne and, in company with a cousin,
Samuel Lehman, embarked in the grocery business on Calhoun
22
338 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
street, the store being on the present site of the Lehman clothing
house. It is said to have been this firm that introduced the free-
dehvery system in Fort Wayne. This firm continued in business
two or three years, but Fort Wayne was then a hotbed of gambhng,
and within a short time Mr. Long had fallen back into the habits
contracted in army life. His career as a gambler is graphically told
by himself in a volume which he subsequently prepared and pub-
lished, and which attained a wide sale. He was for a short time
manager of a minstrel company and proprietor of a theater at La-
fayette, conducting at different times also gambling rooms in Fort
Wayne. Then came the turning point in his career. In the sum-
mer of 1877, while the Francis Murphy temperance movement
was at its height, the work in Fort Wayne was in charge
of Messrs. Rusk and Reddick, two energetic young men from Pitts-
burg. They had made many converts to the cause in a series of
meetings held in the old rink, and one night Mr. Long was attracted
to the meetings. After a protracted struggle with his own inclina-
tions, he signed the pledge, and a few weeks later followed his con-
version to Christ. On January 4, 1878, Mr. Long became affiliated
with the First Baptist church, where he retained his membership
until death. It was about this time that Mr. Long opened a
restaurant at Wayne and Calhoun streets, which he called the Model
Coffee House, occupying the recent site of the Bruder jewelry
establishment. While engaged here he conceived the idea of writ-
ing a sketch of his life, including his reformation from gambling and
drinking, in the hope that it might be of aid to others who were
addicted to the habits which had blighted a portion of his life. The
result was the volume, The Life of Mason Long, the Converted
Gambler,' and in the preparation of the manuscript for the press
Mr. Long was aided by the late Hon. Samuel E. Morss. With the
idea of saving others, Mr. Long now began his famous 'Pilgrim
Crusade.' He procured a wagon, drawn by four handsome horses,
equipped the vehicle with a musical instniment, employed singers,
and for nearly ten years drove about the country lecturing on
temperance and gaming, and selling his biography. He was im-
mensely successful, both from a financial point of view and from
the fact that he reached thousands with a forceful plea for temper-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 339
ance and ag^ainst gambling. Entering a town or village, and mount-
ing his wagon, drawn up in the street, Mr. Long provided a musical
concert and then delivered a ringing temperance lecture. He was
not an orator, but spoke with a feeling and an intensity that appealed
strongly to the masses. His wagon campaigns were conducted not
only entirely over the central west, but his tours also extended to
the Pacific coast and through the entire south, the work being con-
tinued for several years. Upon many of these tours his family
accompanied him. The sales of his biography, as well as of a later
volume, entitled 'Save the Girls,' and his 'Songs of the Pilgrims,'
reached many thousands, and are yet in considerable demand.
"With the revenue accruing from the sale of his books. Mr.
Long joined with G. W. Pixley in the erection of the handsome
Pixley-Long block, on East Berry street. Failing health compelled
the abandonment of the work upon the road, and he devoted his
attention for some time to the publishing business, under the firm
name of Mason Long Publishing Company, aiding in bringing out
at this time Rev. S. A. Northrop's 'Cloud of Witnesses' and other
works.
"He was one of the moving spirits in the development of Lake-
side, and was a prominent stockholder in the Fort Wayne Land
Improvement Company, and in the Pixley Land Improvement Com-
pany, which now has extensive holdings of real estate at Buffalo.
For a few years, also, he conducted a brokerage office in this city.
He was a lover of outdoor sports and was a frequent attendant at
baseball games in this city.
"Mr. Long was united in marriage, about twenty-five years ago,
to Miss Kittie Henderson, of this city. She survives, together with
two daughters, Mrs. Chester Schiefer and Miss Margaret Zoe Long,
and one son. Baron H. Long, who is connected with the Diamond
Match Company. There is one brother, James Long, of this city.
"Politically Mr. Long had always been a Republican, but he
never aspired to public office. He united with the Masonic fra-
ternity many years ago, and was also a member of Sion S. Bass
Post, Grand Army of the Republic."
This brief sketch will at least shadow forth the noble character-
istics which so thoroughly indicated its subject, while the influence
340 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
which he threw out can not be measured by metes and bounds, since
it entered into the Hves of countless thousands who have heard or
read his works and been drawn into the ways of rectitude, thus
becoming useful members of society. Such men are the truest of
benefactors, and the record of the life of Mason Long will ever
remain as his most grateful and enduring monument, for his
memory is enshrined in countless hearts and lives.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 341
MRS. LEWIS E. ATCHISON.
It is signally fitting that in this compilation be incorporated a
record concerning this gracious and popular representative of one of
the old and honored families of Allen county and one who is residing
on the fine old homestead farm, in Aboit township, which was se-
cured by her father many years ago.
William Tennant Todd, father of Mrs. Atchison, was born in
the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, being reared partly in that
city and partly on a farm, and was a son of Colonel Andrew Todd,
who was an officer in the Continental army during the war of the
Revolution and who also lived to serve as colonel of a regiment in
the war of 18 12. Both the Todd and the Tennant families were
early founded in America, with whose history the names have been
linked from the formative colonial era to the present, while in the
succeeding generations have been found men of prominence and in-
fluence and women of gentle refinement. William Tennant, a direct
ancestor of Mrs. Atchison, was one of the founders of Princeton
College, New Jersey. Thomas Todd, a brother of Andrew, was a
prominent citizen of the state of Kentucky and was a member of
the United States supreme court from 1807 to 1826; Hon. David
Todd, governor of Ohio and at one time minister to Brazil, was
likewise a member of the same family, though he utilized another
spelling of the name ; while Robert Todd, another brother of Andrew,
was the father of Mary Todd, who became the wife of the lamented
President Lincoln. It may further be stated that Todd county,
Kentucky, was named in honor of this family, three of the brothers
having located in that section in an early day.
William Tennant Todd was married, in Philadelphia, to Miss
Hannah Getty, who was likewise born and reared in the old Key-
stone state, coming of German, Scotch and English ancestry. Mr.
342 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Todd had been educated for the ministry of the Presbyterian church,
the dearest wish of his mother having been that he should thus
become a clergyman, but owing to the failure of his voice he was
unable to continue in ministerial work, for which he was admirably
fitted by both natural and acquired talents, being a man of specially
fine mental gifts and one whose life was directed on a lofty plane
of integrity and honor. He was given a portion of the old home-
stead, in Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia, and
he disposed of this property shortly before coming to Indiana. He
had four sons who wanted to secure farms, and in company with
three of them he came to Allen county, Indiana, in 1849 o^ ^^S^-
Here he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of canal land, in
Aboit township, and here the three sons also took up their abode,
as pioneer farmers. William went forth as a valiant defender of
the Union in the war of the Rebellion and died as the result of
wounds received in action; Robert became a representative manu-
facturer in the city of Fort Wayne, where he died at the age of
forty-five years; James remained on the old homestead farm with
his father and lived to attain the age of nearly seventy years, and
having never married. The mother died about one year after the
arrival of the family in Allen county, having been in ill health and
having come here in the hope that she would receive benefit from
the change. The loss of his cherished and devoted companion was
a severe blow to Mr. Todd and he never afterward resumed his
ambitious and active efforts, living practically retired until his death,
which occurred during the progress of the Civil war. He was a
man of distinguished attainments and ever commanded the high re-
gard of all with whom he came in contact. Four of his daughters
came to Allen county, and of these Isabella, the wife of Stephen
Streeper, had preceded the family here by about three years, her
husband having been one of the pioneer settlers of Lake township.
They moved to Iowa, where she lived for many years and where
her husband died. She is now living in Iowa, and she and Mrs.
Atchison are now the only surviving members of the original family.
Matilda married Squire Studer, of Aboit township, and she passed
the closing years of her life on the old farm homestead, with Mrs.
Atchison, having been widowed for a number of years prior to her
Mi
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 343
death, which occurred in 1902. Hannah, the next of the daughters,
was born in Pennsylvania, in 1833, and is the immediate subject
of this sketch. Jennie died in middle life, never having married and
having remained with her brother James until her death.
Mrs. Atchison was reared partly in Philadelphia and partly at
the county seat of Montgomery county. She secured her early
educational discipline in the city of Philadelphia and later continued
her studies in the old Methodist college in Fort Wayne, where she
was duly graduated. She soon put her acquirements to practical
use by engaging in teaching, her first school having been in the old
log building which stood on the site of the present No. 4 school
house in Wayne township. She proved very successful and popular
in her pedagogic work, having taught for a time in Bluffton, Wells
county, and having then gone to assume charge of a seminary at
Keithsburg, Illinois, the town being located on the Mississippi river
below Rock Island, while the institution with which she thus became
identified was a Presbyterian school. She was accompanied by her
sister Matilda, who also became a teacher in the seminary. One
year later was solemnized the marriage of Miss Hannah Todd to
Professor Lewis Edward Atchison, who was graduated in DePauw
University, at Greencastle, Indiana, and who was a professor in the
seminary at the time of their marriage. Shortly afterward the
young couple went to California, where both engaged in teaching,
Mr. Atchison having become principal of the Vallejo high school
and Mrs. Atchison assistant principal. Two years later the former
assumed the position of superintendent of prominent mines, while
Mrs. Atchison taught in the schools of San Francisco for one year.
Mr. x\tchison became a part owner of the mining properties in
which he was superintendent until they returned to Indiana for a
visit. After a visit with the home folk in Allen county Mr. and
Mrs. Atchison started for Philadelphia and had proceeded as far
as Richmond, Indiana, when he was taken ill, suffering a severe
attack of pneumonia, which resulted in his death, while his mortal
remains were brought back to Fort Wayne and interred in the
beautiful Lindenwood cemetery. He was forty-nine years of age
at the time of his death. Mr. and Mrs. Atchison had no children.
After the death of her husband Mrs. Atchison returned to
344 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
California, where she remained three years, settHng up her business
affairs. She was then sent for to care for her brother James and
sister Jennie, who were residing on the old homestead. James was
an invalid for ten years prior to his demise, while the sister was
also in delicate health, so that it was the portion of Mrs. Atchison
to care for them with all of solicitude and self-abnegation until both
were summoned into eternal rest. Mrs. Atchison has since re-
mained on the old Todd homestead, in Aboit township, five miles
west of Fort Wayne, and she now owns the entire property, having
purchased the interests of the other heirs, while she also owns
property in California. She has the farm operated by a capable
tenant, and finds much of solace and pleasure in the home so en-
deared to her by the memories and associations of the past. She
is a devoted member of the Presbyterian church, and has long been
active in church work, while her kindliness and graciousness have
endeared her to a wide circle of friends in the community in which
the family name has been so well known ever since the early pioneer
days.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 345
CHRIST G. VONDERAU.
Incumbent of the office of trustee of St. Joseph township, this
well known citizen is well entitled to representation in this publica-
tion. He is not only one of the substantial and wide-awake farmers
of his township but is also a native of the county, which has ever
been his place of residence, while he has been identified with the
agricultural industry from his youth to the present.
Mr. Vonderau was born in Milan township, Allen county, Indi-
ana, on the 1 6th of May, 1866, and is a son of Jacob and Margaret
(Kern) Vanderau, the former of whom was bom in Hessen, Ger-
many, in 182 1, while the latter was bom in Bavaria, in 1826. The
father of the subject was reared and educated in his native land
and there learned the tailor's trade, to which he there gave his at-
tention up to the time of his immigration to America, when a young
man. He landed in the city of New York, a stranger in a strange
land and with his financial resources reduced to the sum of fifty
cents. He was not lacking in courage, self-reliance and determi-
nation, however, and he soon found employment and began his labors
in the great republic in which he was destined to attain to no in-
significant success and to win for himself a position of independence.
He first located in the state of Pennsylvania, whence he later re-
moved to Ohio, where he remained until the year 1855, when he
came to Allen county, Indiana, where he passed the remainder of
his long, honorable and useful life, having been eighty-four years
of age at the time of his death, while his devoted wife and help-
meet is still living on the homestead with her son Herman. Jacob
Vonderau was one of the honored pioneers of Allen county, and
here he accumulated a large landed estate and became one of the
solid capitalists and representative farmers of this section of the
state, having been the owner of four hundred and forty-eight acres
346 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
of land in the county and having also owned valuable property in
Cleveland and Van Wert, Ohio. He was a stanch adherent of the
Democratic party, but never aspired to the honors or emoluments of
public office, while both he and his wife were zealous and consistent
members of the German Lutheran church. They commanded the
respect of all who knew them and their lives were prolific in worthy
effort and kindly deeds. Of their eleven children ten are living,
the subject of this sketch having been the tenth in order of birth.
Christ G. Vonderau, to whom this sketch is dedicated, was reared
to the discipline of the farm and was afforded the advantages of the
German Lutheran parochial school and of the excellent public schools
of his native county. He remained on the homestead farm until he
had reached the age of twenty-four years, and for the past fifteen
years he has resided on his present fine farm, in sections 23 and 24,
St. Joseph township, where he has one hundred and eighty-seven
acres of most arable and productive land, which was a part of his
father's estate. One hundred and fifty acres are under cultivaton
and devoted to diversified agriculture, while he also devotes no little
attention to the raising of an excellent grade of live stock, including
the Jersey and Durham types of cattle and an effective cross of the
Chester White and Poland China swine. He has made the best of
improvements on his place, including the erection of a fine brick
residence of eleven rooms and of modern design and accessories, the
same constituting one of the most attractive rural homes in the
county, while the other buildings on the place are substantial and
well adapted to the various demands placed upon them. It may con-
sistently be said that Mr. Vonderau's is one of the model farms
of the county, and the evidences of thrift and good management
are to be seen on every side.
In his political allegiance Mr. Vonderau is found stanchly ar-
rayed as a supporter of the principles and policies of the Democratic
party, while he is one of the leaders in its local ranks. He has
naturally been called upon to render service in offices of public trust
in his township, having long been a member of the school board of
his district, while he was incumbent of the office of township assessor
for a period of five years. In 1905 he was elected to his present
responsible office, that of township trustee, and he has proved him-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 347
self a most capable and loyal official, fully justifying the confidence
placed in him by his fellow citizens. He is a member of the German
Lutheran church.
In the year 1889 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Vonderau
to Miss Mary Griebel, who likewise was born and reared in this
county, being a daughter of George and Fredericka (Wolf) Grie-
bel, the former being a representative farmer of Marion township.
They have become the parents of five children, Frida, Annie, Her-
man, William and Johanna.
348 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
HENRY W. BECKER.
The subject of this sketch, who is clerk of the board of pubhc
works of Fort Wayne, has proved himself well entitled to the trust
reposed and is one of the popular citizens of his native county. He
was bom in the city of Fort Wayne, on the 21st of February, 1859,
and is a son of Frederick and Margaret (Jennedein) Becker, both
of whom were born in the Rhenish district of the German and French
border, near the province of Alsace, which is now a portion of
German territory. They were reared and educated in their native
land and there their marriage was solemnized. In 1848 they im-
migrated to America, making Indiana their destination. They made
the trip by way of the Great Lakes to Toledo, Ohio, and from that
port they came by canal to Fort Wayne, where they established their
home, the father having been one of the pioneer blacksmiths and
wagonmakers of this city, while it may be noted that in 1850, at
the time of the great hegira of gold-seekers to California, he found
great demand for the wagons which he manufactured for use in
making the long and perilous trips across the plains to the new
eldorado. He was one of the sterling citizens and well known and
highly honored business men of Fort Wayne, and here he continued
to reside until his death, which occurred in 1882, at which time he
was nearly sixty-three years of age, while his widow was somewhat
past the age of seventy-two at the time of her death, in 189 1. Of
their children five are living, namely: Frederick, Minnie, Charles,
Mary and Henry W. Frederick and Charles are successfully con-
tinuing the blacksmithing and wagon-making business established
by their father so many years ago, and their sisters preside over
the domestic economies of the home, none of the children having
married except the subject of this review.
Henry W. Becker was reared to maturity in his native city and
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 349
here he has ever continued to make his home. He received a good
pubHc-school education and in his youth learned the stone-cutter's
trade, becoming a skilled workman and continuing to be identified
with the work of his trade until 1893, when his health became so
seriously impaired that he was compelled to retire from the business,
having been at the time a member of the firm of Griebel, WyckofT
& Becker, engaged in the manufacturing of monuments and other
cemetery work. After disposing of his interests in the business
noted Mr. Becker became deputy assessor of Wayne township, serv-
ing in this capacity for a period of five years, at the expiration of
which, in 1900, he was elected assessor, remaining incumbent of this
office, by successive re-elections until his appointment as clerk of
the board of public works, which position he is now efficiently filling.
In politics he is a stalwart Democrat, and has ever taken a deep
interest in the forwarding of the party cause and been active as a
worker in its local ranks. He commands unqualified esteem in the
community and well merits the recognition accorded him in this
historical compilation.
In the year 1883 Mr. Becker was united in marriage to Miss
Lavina Englert, who was bom and reared in Fort Wayne, being a
daughter of Frank and Louisa Englert, who were early settlers here
and both of whom are now deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Becker have
six children, namely : Magdalene, Margaret, Flora, Henry, Roy and
Frederick, all of whom remain beneath the home roof, the pleasant
family residence being located on East Jefferson street.
350 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JOHN R. HARTZELL.
One of the fine landed estates of Allen county is that owned by
Mr. Hartzell, who is one of the leading farmers and stock-growers
of Adams township and one of its honored and influential citizens,
while he is also a representative of one of the sterling pioneer
families of the county, with whose development the name has been
prominently identified.
Levi and Mary (Souders) Hartzell, the parents of the subject,
were both bom and reared in Miami county, Ohio, the former
having been born on the 20th of March, 1812, while the latter was
born on the 31st of December, 1820, near Covington. Ohio. The
father died on the 31st of January, 1871, at the age of fifty-eight
years, nine months and eleven days, and his venerable widow still
resides on the old homestead, in Adams township, the place having
been endeared and hallowed to her through the memories and asso-
ciations of the past. Her marriage to Mr. Hartzell was solem-
nized on the 25th of February, 1841, and she and her husband came
to Allen county, Indiana, in June following, arriving at their desti-
nation on the 1 6th of that month. John Souders, the maternal
grandfather of the subject of this review, was bom in Pennsyl-
vania, and the paternal grandfather, Philip Hartzell, was bom in
Virginia, both families having been founded in America in the
colonial era of our national history, while both became represented
among the pioneers of the state of Ohio, where members settled in
the early portion of the nineteenth century.
Levi Hartzell first came to Indiana with his matemal grand-
mother, Mrs. Anna Kritz, who lived near New Haven,
Adams township, and who had come to Allen county with
her three sons, David, Jacob and Abraham Miller. Her maiden
name was Studabaker and after the death of her first husband, whose
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 351
name was Miller, she became the wife of a Mr. Kritz, one child,
Polly, having been bom of the second union and having been a
member of the family at the time of the removal to Indiana, alx)ut
1832, the family being numbered among the first settlers in the
practically untrammeled wilds of Allen county. When Levi Hart-
zell came here he received much encouragement and no little tangible
aid from his grandmother and uncles. He purchased a tract of
land adjoining the farm of his grandmother, paying one hundred
dollars and assuming an indebtedness of the remainder of the pur-
chase price. He returned to Ohio and was there married, after
which he came with his bride to the embryonic farm in the midst
of the forests of Allen county. On his eighty-acre tract he had made
a clearing and erected a log cabin, and this figured as the destina-
tion of the young couple, who made their bridal tour by driving
through from Covington, Ohio, with horse and wagon, the horse
having been borrowed for the momentous occasion. Mrs. Hartzell
had been somewhat reluctant to make this change in the new coun-
try, but her father advised her to try the experiment and if she
were dissatisfied at the expiration of one year he stated that he
would assist them to return to Ohio. Before the expiration of the
year she had become so well pleased with the outlook and conditions
that she had no wish to leave the little home in Adams township.
Mr. Hartzell began operations on his farm with most primitive equip-
ments, and his widow recalls the fact that one horse and one cow
constituted the live stock on the pioneer farm at that time. Wheat
and corn had to be taken to Defiance to be ground, as the nearest
mill was at that point, while the trip was usually made by boat.
The first mill in the vicinity of the family home was erected and
equipped some years later, being one of the first in Allen county
and having been put up by a man named Townsend.
Levi Hartzell continued to give his undivided attention to the
improvement and cultivation of his farm until the construction of
the Wabash & Erie canal through this section was instituted. He
then secured employment in connection with the construction work,
assisting in getting out timber, building docks, etc. He had made
no little development on his farm, of which he had secured posses-
sion eight years prior to his marriage, and having thus come to
352 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Allen county as a pioneer of 1833. His widow still lives on the
old homestead, and the log cabin continued as the family residence
until 1868, when he erected the present substantial and commodious
brick house. In company with L. M. Rogers Mr. Hartzell was
engaged in the general merchandise business in New Haven for about
a score of years, while he was also associated with Mr. Rogers and
John Bigue in the erection of the grist mill which is still operated
in that thriving town, the building having been erected about 1863,
while Mr. Hartzell was the part owner and operator at the time of
his death. He was a man of distinctive energy and business acu-
men, and the influence of his enterprise and his sterling character
was exerted in a most helpful way in the community to whose up-
building he contributed in so significant a measure. He erected a
saw mill on his farm and continued the operation of the same until
within a short time prior to his demise. He accumulated a valuable
landed estate, having had about four hundred and forty acres, divided
into three farms, while he cleared about two hundred and thirty
acres and placed the same under effective cultivation, being one of
the most extensive agriculturists and stock growers of Adams town-
ship. Mr. Hartzell naturally took a prominent position in connec-
tion with public affairs of a local nature, and his counsel was held in
high regard by his neighbors and other friends. During the Civil
war he was an enrolling officer and rendered valuable service in re-
cruiting the Union ranks. He held various local offices, and received
the nomination for that of county commissioner, but was defeated
by normal political exigencies, though he ran far ahead of his ticket.
He was the nominee of the Republican party, and the Democratic
majority in the county was at that time about four thousand. Two
of his sons, Elias and Joshua, served with fidelity and valor as Union
soldiers during the Rebellion. Levi Hartzell was one of the lead-
ing business men of Allen county for many years, and his name was
ever a synonym of integrity and inflexible honesty of purpose. His
death resulted from exposure during a hunting trip, and the com-
munity felt a deep sense of personal loss when he was thus called
from the scene of his earnest and well directed endeavors. He was
broad, charitable and tolerant in his views, guiding his course ac-
cording to the golden rule and avoiding contentions and bicker-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 353
ings of all sorts, though he never lacked the courage of his con-
victions. He espoused the cause of the Republican party at the time
of its organization and ever afterward remained a stalwart advocate
of its principles and policies, while his sons followed in the same
political faith, much to his gratification. He was a lover of good
horses, and the best of drivers and draft horses were to be found
on his place, while he found much pleasure in riding horseback,
having made at one time the trip to Covington, Ohio, by this means,
covering one hundred miles in one day. He was progressive and
public-spirited and ever ready to assist in the carrying forward
of enterprises for the general good. He was an advocate of good
roads, good schools, etc., and was one of the stockholders in the
first gravel road constructed in the county. In 1858 he started a
brick yard on his farm, and here were manufactured the bricks for
his own residence as well as many other buildings in this part of
the county. He made a specialty of raising fine varieties of
fruit, and his generosity was such that he gave away many bushels
each year, never refusing those who applied. Mrs. Hartzell, though
venerable in years, is well preserved in mind and body, and in the
old homestead which has been her place of abode for the past sixty-
four years she is surrounded by a host of warm friends and finds
pleasure in being useful and busy, while the golden evening of her
life is brightened by the gracious memories of the days long past.
Levi and Mary (Souders) Hartzell became the parents of nine
children, of whom seven attained maturity. Joshua, who remains
a bachelor, is with his mother on the old homestead, while it may
again be noted that he was a valiant soldier in the Civil war; Elias
is a successful farmer of Madison township; Susan is the wife of
Dr. Lycurgus S. Null, of New Haven, this county; Jennie is the
wife of Townsend C. Shilling, of Troy, Ohio; John R. is individually
mentioned in appending paragraphs; Allen is associated in the oper-
ation of the homestead farm; Warker remained with his mother
until his death, at the age of forty-three years.
John R. Hartzell, the immediate subject of this review, was bom
on the old homestead farm, on the 4th of November, 185 1, and he
early began to lend his aid in the work of the farm, while he re-
ceived his educational training in the common schools of the county.
23
354 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Two years after the cieatli of his father he assumed charge of the
home farm, to which he gave his attention imtil the time of his
marriage, in 1876. He then removed to his present farm, which
hes opposite the old homestead, his estate being divided into three
farms, with an aggregate area of about three hundred acres, white
two of the places have houses and other buildings of substantial
order. He maintains a genera] supervision of all his farm propertv.
which is devoted to general agriculture, dairying and the raising
of high-grade live stock, a specialty being made of the breeding of
short-horn cattle, of which he maintains a herd of upward of fiftv
head; Shropshire sheep and Poland China swine: standard-bred
horses, as well as the Percheron and Belgian draft horses, his place
being known as Maple Grove farm. He finds a local market for his
surplus live stock, and at the time of this writing has about one
hundred and twenty-five head of horses and cattle. For the past
twenty-three years he has carried on a most successful dairying
business, selling about one hundred gallons of milk daily at the
present time and keeping an average of about fifty head of milch
cows. During all the years through which he has conducted this
enterprise his wagons have never failed to make regular deliveries in
the city of Fort Wayne. The home farm is improved with modem
buildings, is well tilled and is one of the model places of the county.
In politics Mr. Hartzell is a stalwart Republican, though never a
seeker of office. In a fraternal way he is identified with New Ha-
ven Lodge, No. 253, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, which he
has represented in the grand lodge of the state, while both he and
his wife are affiliated with the adjunct order, the Daughters of
Rebekah, in which Mrs. Hartzell has passed the various official
chairs and also been a delegate to the grand lodge: and he is also
a member of the Knights of Pythias and the Pathfinders.
On the 15th of November, 1876, was solemnized the marriage
of Mr. Hartzell to Miss Minnie Brittingham, who was bom in
Farmington, Pennsylvania, being a daughter of Dr. William B.
and Mary W. Brittingham. who removed to Fort Wayne when she
was a child of three years. Mr. and Mrs. Hartzell have two daugh-
ters, Naomi Olive and lola Ethel.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA,
AUGUST R. SCHNITKER.
The subject of this sketch occupies a prominent place among the
substantial and enterprising business men and progressive and pub-
lic-spirited citizens of Allen county, which has represented his home
from his boyhood days to the present time, while he has attained
to success and prestige through his own well directed efforts along
normal and legitimate lines of industrial enterprise. He is the
senior member of the firm of A. R. Schnitker & Son, who are
engaged in the manufacturing of handles for agricultural imple-
ments, the well equipped plant of the concern being located in the
thriving village of New Haven. The subject was for nearly six
years an able, faithful and valued member of the board of county
commissioners, and to him is accorded the unqualified regard of all
with whom he has come in contact in business, official or social
relations.
August R. Schnitker was bom in Prussia, Germany, on the 8th
of March, 1847, being a son of Christian and Charlotte Schnitker,
who immigrated to America in 1854, at which time the subject was
about eight years of age. The family came at once to Allen county,
Indiana, and settled in Jeff'erson township, where the devoted wife
and mother died about eighteen months later, while the father passed
away in 1865 at the age of fifty-two years. Of the three children
August R. was the eldest; Charles died at the age of forty years,
and Caroline married Godlid Slagel, dying when still a young
woman. Concerning the career of our subject we are pleased in
being able to make quotation from an appreciative sketch which was
published in a New Haven paper :
"It has been more than half a century since our genial 'Gus,' as
he is familiarly known about New Haven, landed upon American
soil. It was in 1854 he left Prussia, Germany, with his parents and
356 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
set sail for the new world. They crossed the ocean in a sailing
vessel, and the voyage was of eleven weeks' duration, and owing
to the severe storms encountered the three-masted vessel arrived in
New York harbor with but one mast standing. From New York
they went to Cincinnati to visit his father's brother, then came to
Fort Wayne by packet, as railroad accommodations to these parts
at that time were very limited. They stopped at the American house
over night and then proceeded by canal packet to the Gronauer
lock, east of town, and thence to their log cabin, one mile from that
point. They resided there about one year^ until the death of his
mother, and in 1856 Gus came to New Haven. From that time
until 1863 he received his schooling, studying both English and
German. In 1863 he commenced to learn the harness trade, tinder
John French, who shortly afterward enlisted in the One Hundred
and Twenty-ninth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, with which he went
to the front, his shop being closed. Mr. Schnitker then went to work
in the stave factory of Schnelka, Beugnot & Company, where he
was employed until 1865, when he again went to work at the har-
ness trade, this time for Louis Traub, in Fort Wayne.
"On the 13th of June, 1866, he engaged in the harness business
for himself, in New Haven. He had little or no means, but his
honesty and integrity had won for him the confidence of all and
made his credit good, so that, with plenty of pluck and energy, he
made the venture a success. He made his first set of harness for
J. L. Richard, from whom he received the first money in his shop.
He gave his personal attention to the business until 1881, and finally
disposed of the shop in 1888. In 1881 Mr. Schnitker engaged in
the manufacture of all kinds of handles, having as his partner F. E.
Bueter. Two years later Jobst Fischer bought an interest in the
business, and the handle factory was conducted under the firm
name of Schnitker, Bueter & Company. A year later Mr. Bueter
retired, and the firm of Schnitker & Fischer thereafter continued
the enterprise until 1903, when Mr. Fischer retired from the firm
and removed to Kansas, Mr. Schnitker then becoming sole owner,
but soon afterward admitting his son Charles to partnership, under
the present firm title of A. R. Schnitker & Son. The firm is today
successfully conducting the handle factory, which is located in the
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 357
west end of the town, and an extensive business is controlled, having
important bearing upon the general prosperity of the town and sur-
rounding country."
The output of this well known plant now represents an average
annual valuation of fifteen thousand dollars, employment being given
to a corps of about twenty capable operatives, the annual pay roll
representing thirty-six hundred dollars, while from nine to ten
thousand dollars are annually expended in the home market for tim-
ber and other needed supplies. Eight thousand dollars were ex-
pended in the erection and equipment of the plant, which has the
latest improved machinery and all other facilities for the turning out
of high-grade products.
Mr. Schnitker is a stalwart advocate of the principles and policies
of the Democratic party, in whose local ranks he has been an active
and valued worker. He has served in various minor offices, and
has twice been the candidate of his party for the office of county
treasurer, his defeat on each occasion having been compassed through
normal political exigencies, the vote being such as to indicate the
confidence reposed in him by the people of the county. In April,
1899, he was appointed a member of the board of county commis-
sioners, his coadjutors being Matthew Ferguson and Edward Orr.
Under this appointment he served nineteen months and was then
elected for the short term of one year, and later the long term of
three years to fill the vacancy occasioned by the death of Sylvanus
Baker, who had served but five months on his second term, Mr.
Ferguson also retiring and Martin Mondy becoming a member of
the board, while later Mr. Orr was succeeded by Charles Greable.
Mr. Schnitker's term expired on the ist of January, 1905, and he
had thus remained in tenure of the office of commissioner for six
consecutive years, lacking only five months. His record was one
of careful, faithful and efficient service, and he spared no pains or
efforts to protect and conserve the best interests of the county and
its people. Within his incumbency the magnificent new court house
was completed and furnished, while large expenditures were required
for the repairing and building of bridges, especially in 1904, when
so many were swept away or otherwise damaged by high waters,
thirty-five having been built in the county within that year.
358 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
In the year 1871 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Schnit-
ker to Miss Hannah Linnemann, who was bom in Germany and
reared in Allen county, and the five children of this union are as
follows: William, who is employed with the Western Gas Con-
struction Company of Fort Wayne; Charles, a member of the firm
of A. R. Schnitker & Son; Frederick, Emma and Amelia, the
three younger children being still at the parental home.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 359
HENRY F. SCHNELKER.
Without fear of legitimate contradiction we may designate Mr.
Schnelker as one of the representative business men of Allen county,
while his acumen and progressive ideas are indicated by his identi-
fication with the enterprises of notable character. He is concerned
with the great basic art of agriculture, in Adams township, is
manager of a cooperage and lumber business in the attractive little
city of New Haven and is also the exploiter, president and manager
of the Blue Cast Magnetic Springs Company, which has head-
quarters in the city of Fort Wayne, while the fine springs from
which the valuable medicinal water is secured are located one mile
north of Woodburn, this county, and fifteen miles east of Fort
Wayne, in the heart of Blue Cast park, which clothes the banks of
the Maumee river with its beautiful scenery.
The cooperage plant in which Mr. Schnelker is an interested
principal, in New Haven, has a capacity for the output of fifty
thousand staves daily and three thousand sets of heading in the
same time. Employment is given to sixty-five men in the mill,
while the entire corps demanded in carrying on the enterprise is
about eighty. This business was founded before the war of the
Rebellion by the firm of McKendry & Schnelker, while the enter-
prise was later conducted in turn under the firm names of Hall,
Schnelker & Company; J. Begue & Company; Indiana Stave Com-
pany, for five years; H. Schnelker Company, eight years, while in
1872 the present title of H. F. Schnelker Company was adopted,
the enterprise having been successfully carried forward under this
name during the intervening years. The company formerly con-
trolled three large plants and gave employment to two hundred and
fifty men, but the present finely equipped plant handles a large vol-
ume of business and is managed in a conservative way. The com-
36o THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
pany also has a plant of about the same capacity as that in New
Haven at Payne, Ohio, on the line of the Nickle Plate Railroad,
the same having been established in 1881. The aggregate output of
the two plants represents about one hundred and fifty thousand
dollars annually, the products being sold principally in carload
lots. The investment now stands at about eighty-five thousand
dollars, and all this stands as the legitimate outgrowth of the enter-
prise. For the past thirty years Mr. Schnelker has owned and
operated a fine farm of three hundred acres, in Maumee township,
while forty-five acres of the tract are devoted to the growing of a
variety of fruits. On the place special attention is given to the
breeding of Hereford cattle, an average herd of thirty breeding cows
being maintained and all being registered stock, while exhibits are
made in the various state and county fairs, expositions, etc. The
cattle are sold principally in Texas and Nebraska, for breeding
purposes, and Mr. Schnelker recently sold to one man in the latter
state fifty-nine head of his fine Hereford stock, the purchase being
made with the purpose of improving the grade of the western herds
of cattle. For many years the subject has sold bulls to the famous
Farwell ranch, in Texas. Considerable attention is also paid to the
raising of standard-bred horses, and the fine estate is operated under
the title of the Schnelker Farm Company, the same being incor-
porated under the laws of the state, with Mr. Schnelker as manager
and chief stockholder. The farm is one of the finest in the county,
having fine improvements, including a very extended system of tile
drainage, installed at a cost of more than three thousand dollars,
while the fine stock barn has a capacity for the accommodation of
one hundred head of cattle. Mr. Schnelker has been identified with
stock breeding for fully a quarter of a century, and his farm has a
high reputation in this line.
Concerning the Blue Cast Magnetic Springs Company, of which
Mr. Schnelker is president and manager, we may consistently quote
from the attractive little brochure issued by the company: "The
great tonic and curative effects of the Blue Cast Magnetic Mineral
Springs have been known for many years, and multitudes of people
have at one time or another repaired thither to enjoy a draught of
the refreshing and exhilarating waters. The popular endorsement
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 361
of the waters is amply justified by the searching technical analysis
of their properties which has been made by well known and eminent
chemists. The official analysis establishes beyond a shadow of doubt
that the Blue Cast magnetic mineral water not only possesses re-
freshing and tonic qualities which peculiarly fit it for general table
use, but that it is also nature's own remedy for many of the common
ailments. The recommendations of distinguished physicians bear
out the chemical analysis and conclusively prove the beneficial effect
of these waters in kidney, liver and bladder troubles; acidity of the
stomach, jaundice, indigestion, dyspepsia, nervousness, biliousness,
water brash, chronic constipation, dizziness, vertigo, cystitis, neph-
ritis, Bright's disease, gout, gravel, rheumatism, uric-acid diathesis,
diseases of the skin, urethritis, diabetes, etc."
In connection with his careful analysis of the Blue Cast water
Dr. Albert H. Macbeth, city chemist of Fort Wayne, has given the
following flattering endorsement: "This is a very fine water for
internal medication and is adapted to a wide range of medical uses;
the magnesium carbonate is especially good in all stomach disorders,
and its sulphate acts mildly on the bowels, while the potassium salts
aid all the eliminating organs and act as alternatives. The mineral
constituents are evenly balanced, holding both acid and alkalies at
the neutral point. The temperature is at fifty degrees as it flows
from the springs, and the water is clear and sparkling, and is readily
absorbed into and passed from the system."
The waters of the springs have been used for forty years, and Dr.
Adams, one of the pioneer physicians of the county, had recourse to
the water in his practice for many years. No analysis was ever
made of the water imtil 1902. Mr. Schnelker had used the same for
erysipelas in both his feet, securing so gratifying results that he
had an analysis made by Dr. Macbeth, city chemist of Fort Wayne.
He then made improvements at Blue Cast park and opened bottling
works at the springs, while the waters are meeting with great favor
for table use and also for medicinal purposes. Blue Cast park con-
sists of one hundred acres, of which sixty acres remain in the natural
forest, while the situation is most attractive, the land lying along
the shores of the Maumee river, so that the place can not fail to
become most popular as a resort for health and pleasure seekers. The
362 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
company was incorporated in 1903, and the bottling works now have
a daily capacity for the output o£ two thousand bottles. The com-
pany have in contemplation the erection of a modern sanitarium at
the springs, and in addition to the beneficial effects of the waters
themselves the magnetic mud through which the water percolates
at various points is specially adapted to the treatment of various
diseases.
Henry F. Schnelker is a native of Allen county and a repre-
sentative of one of its sterling pioneer families. He was bom in
the village of New Haven, Adams township, on the 7th of July,
1854, and is a son of the late Bernard and Mary G. Schnelker.
His father was a prominent and influential citizen of New Haven,
where he founded the cooperage plant of which mention is made in
this context, while he continued to be identified with the enterprise
involved until the time of his death. Henry F. succeeded to his
father's interest in the business in 1872, and has since been manager
of the undertaking. He was reared in New Haven, where he se-
cured his early educational discipline, which he effectively supple-
mented by a commercial course in Notre Dame University, at
South Bend, Indiana. In politics he is a stanch advocate of the
principles of the Democratic party, and both he and his wife are
communicants of St. John's Catholic church, in New Haven. He
is a member of the Knights of St. John, and has passed the various
official chairs in the society, while he has also been a delegate to its
conventions.
On the 25th of June, 1878, was solemnized the marriage of Mr.
Schnelker to Miss Alice J. Allen, who was born in New Haven,
this county, on the 2d of February, i860, being a daughter of John
Allen, who died while in service as a Union soldier during the war
of the Rebellion. Mr. and Mrs. Schnelker have four children,
namely : Mary Bernedette, the wife of Clement P. Becker, of New
Haven, and Anna Erine, Nobert Bernard and Benion Julian.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 363
THOMAS TURFLINGER.
The able and popular superintendent of the Allen county poor
farm merits consideration in this publication, in order that a record
of his official service may be perpetuated and recognition be had of
his sterling worth as a citizen. In March, 1901, Mr. Turflinger
assumed the superintendency of the farm, to fill the unexpired term
of Herman Felts, who resigned six months prior to the close of his
term. In June of the same year Mr. Turflinger was appointed to
the office for a full term of two years, beginning in September fol-
lowing, and so capable and discriminating was his administration
that he was chosen as his own successor in 1903, while there is no
reason to doubt that he will again be appointed to the office when
his present term expires in September, 1905. There are one hundred
and twenty-five inmates in the infirmary as an average, and at the
time of this writing, in the spring of 1905, the number is one hundred
and forty. The finely equipped county farm comprises two hundred
and seven acres of excellent land, in section 15, Wayne township,
and the average cost to the county for the maintenance of its indigent
poor on the farm is twenty-two cents to each inmate each year, the
farm paying the remainder of the expense. On the place are grown
all the vegetables, fruits, grain and live stock utilized for the inmates,
while the residuum is placed upon the market, the present superin-
tendent having sold as high as one thousand dollars' worth of prod-
uce from the farm in one year, while the wards of the county aid
materially in the cultivation and general work of the farm. In one
year Mr. Turflinger raised five thousand bushels of potatoes on the
farm, about three thousand bushels being demanded for the use of
the institution itself during the year. In the season of 1904 he set
out two acres of cabbage, tomatoes, etc., and on the premises were
put up five thousand quarts of canned goods. Two acres are devoted
364 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
to the propagation of raspberries, most of which are used on the
place. The live stock on the county farm is maintained at a high
standard, and the cattle are bred from registered short horn stock,
so that the grade is kept at a high point. Mr. Turflinger gives his
constant and active supervision to the farm and infirmary, commands
the respect of the unfortunate v^^ards under his charge and the confi-
dence and esteem of the general public, w^ho recognize the value and
fidelity of his services in his exacting office. Mrs. Turflinger is
matron of the infirmary, in v^hich there are about fifty w^omen
wards as an average, and she proves an effective coadjutor to her
husband, having been specially successful in handling the domestic
affairs of the institution. On the farm eleven persons are employed,
principally in connection with the infirmary building, and including
two engineers, night watchmen, a baker, cook, etc.
Thomas Turflinger is a native of the Old Dominion state,
having been born in Rockingham county, Virginia, on the 6th of
September, 1852. He received a common-school education and as
a youth came to Allen county, Indiana, where he worked at the car-
penter's trade for two years. He then took charge of the Oscar
Symonds stock farm, located south of the city of Fort Wayne, in
Wayne township, said farm being devoted to the breeding of Jersey
cattle and trotting horses. Of this fine farm he remained superin-
tendent for fourteen years — up to the time of his appointment to his
present office. He holds a high reputation as a judge of live stock,
especially Jersey cattle, and during his years of management of the
Symonds farm he was prominent in stock circles as an authority
on matters of care and breeding. In politics the subject is a stal-
wart advocate of the principles and policies of the Democratic party,
in whose ranks he has been an active worker in a local way, while
he has frequently served as delegate to state and county conven-
tions.
In Allen county, on the 31st of January, 1874, Mr. Turflinger
was united in marriage to Miss Lena Ream, who was born in
Mercer county, Ohio, and they have five children, all of whom remain
at home: Oscar and Orin, twins, are employed as engineers at the
county infirmary; Thomas, Jr., assists in the work and manage-
ment of the county farm, and the two youngest children are Elsie
and Bums.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 365
WILLIAM S. O'ROURKE.
In no profession is there a career more open to talent than is
that of the law, and in no field of endeavor is there demanded a more
careful preparation, a more thorough appreciation of the absolute
ethics of life or of the underlying principles which form the basis of
all human rights and privileges. Unflagging application and deter-
mination fully to utilize the means at hand are the concomitants
which insure personal success and prestige in this great profession,
which stands as the stern conservator of justice, accomplishment
coming only as the result of capability. Possessing all the requisite
qualities of the able lawyer, William S. O'Rourke stands today
among the leading practitioners of the Allen county bar.
Mr. O'Rourke is a native son of Allen county, Indiana, having
been bom in Fort Wayne on the 6th day of January, 1858. He is
the son of Patrick S. and Eliza (Boulger) O'Rourke, the former of
whom was bom in New Jersey of Irish ancestry and the latter born
in Ireland. (A more detailed personal mention of P. S. O'Rourke
may be found elsewhere in this volume.) The subject of this
sketch received his elementary education in the public schools of
Fort Wayne, after which he attended St. Vincent's College, in West-
moreland county, Pennsylvania, graduating therefrom in 1877. In
the fall of that year he began the study of law in the office of Judge
Allen Zollars and in 1879 he was admitted to the bar of Allen
county. In the same year he entered the law department of the
University of Michigan, at Ann Arbor, from which he graduated
in April, 1880. In June, 1880, he received the Democratic nomina-
ton for the office of prosecuting attorney of Allen county, and was
successful at the polls, serving efficiently for one term. He was
then appointed attorney for the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad
Company for Indiana, in which capacity he was engaged for seven
366 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
and a half years. Because of failing health he then went to the
southern states, where he remained for three years, returning to
Fort Wayne in 1892. He then formed a law partnership with Col.
Robert S. Robertson and has since been continuously engaged in
the active practice of his profession. As a lawyer Mr. O'Rourke
evinces a familiarity with legal principles and a ready perception of
facts, together with the ability to apply the one to the other, which
has won him the reputation of a safe and reliable practitioner. In
discussions of the principles of law he is noted for clearness of
statement and candor; he seeks faithfully for firm ground and hav-
ing once found it nothing can drive him from his position. His
zeal for a client never leads him to urge an argument which in his
judgment is not in harmony with the law, and in all the important
litigation with which he has been connected no one has ever charged
him with anything calculated to bring discredit upon himself or cast
a reflection upon his profession.
In 1893 Mr. O'Rourke was elected supreme secretary of the
Catholic Knights of America, filling the office two terms. His other
fraternal and social relations are with the American Sons of Colum-
bus and the St. Joseph Benevolent Society. In religion he is a con-
sistent member of the Catholic church and lends his support to all
movements of a benevolent or charitable nature. In politics he is a
stanch Democrat and has for a number of years taken a prominent
part in local public aflfairs, taking a keen interest in campaigns and
working earnestly for the success of the party tickets.
On the nth day of June, 1883, Mr. O'Rourke was united in
marriage with Miss Margaret G. Garvey, a native of Springfield,
Massachusetts, and the daughter of P. H. and Mary (Coughlin)
Garvey, natives of Ireland. To Mr. and Mrs. O'Rourke the follow-
ing children have been born: Genevieve, Alan G., Donald, William
S., Jr., and John Carroll Leo.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 367
E. EDWIN BELL, M. D.
One of the representative young members of the medical profes-
sion in the city of Fort Wayne is he whose name initiates this para-
graph and who has met with excellent success in the establishing of
a practice in the Summit City. His office is located at the north-
west corner of Gay street and East Creighton avenue.
The Doctor is a native of the old Keystone state, having been
bom in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on the nth of Sep-
temlDer, 1878, and being a son of Alonzo and Mary C. (Otenweller)
Bell, both of whom were likewise bom and reared in the state of
Pennsylvania, the father having for a number of years been engaged
in the manufacturing of springs in the city of Philadelphia, where
he still resides. His wife also is living. Dr. Bell secured his early
educational discipline in the public schools of his native city, having
been graduated in the Central high school as a member of the class
of 1897. He then took charge of his father's business, continuing in
this position about one year, at the expiration of which, in the
autumn of 1898, he was matriculated in Jefferson Medical College,
in Philadelphia, in which celebrated and finely conducted old institu-
tion he completed the prescribed courses in medicine and surgery
and was graduated in 1902, receiving his degree of Doctor of Medi-
cine. He was thereafter associated for a short time in practice with
his uncle. Dr. Edward H. Bell, of Philadelphia, and in the fall of
1902 he came to Fort Wayne, where he established himself in practice
a short time later and where he has built up a representative business
in his chosen profession. He is a member of the Fort Wayne
Medical Society.
\
368 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
MILES F. PORTER, M. D.
There is no class to whom greater gratitude is due from the
world at large than to those self-sacrificing, sympathetic, noble-
minded men whose life-work has been the alleviation of suffering
that rests upon humanity, thus lengthening the span of human exist-
ence. There is no known standard by which their beneficent influence
can be measured; their helpfulness is as broad as the universe and
their power goes hand in hand with the wonderful laws of nature
that come from the very source of life itself. Some one has aptly
said, "He serves God best who serves humanity most." Among the
physicians and surgeons of Allen county, Indiana, who have risen to
eminence within the field of their actual labors is the subject of this
brief article, whose career has been that of a true and conscientious
worker in the sphere to which he has devoted his life and energy
and who possesses a profound knowledge of medicine and surgery.
Miles Fluller Porter is a native son of the old Hoosier state, hav-
ing been bom at Decatur, Adams county, Indiana, on the 27th day
of September, 1856. His parents, John Pomeroy and Elizabeth
Porter, were both natives of the state of Ohio, being descended from
Irish and English ancestors respectively. The subject's early educa-
tion was received in the public schools of Decatur and also for a few
months under the direction of a private tutor. On approaching the
years of manhood he determined to devote his life to the practice of
medicine and surgery and to this end he matriculated in the Medical
College of Ohio, at Cincinnati, at which he was graduated in 1878.
Immediately afterwards he entered upon the active general practice
in Fort Wayne, and has been numbered from the beginning of his
active career among the leading and successful practitioners of this
section of the state. For some years he gave attention to the general
practice of his profession, but eventually decided to confine his at-
MILES F. PORTER, M. D.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 369
tention to the field of surgery, in which he has achieved a most pro-
nounced and distinctive success. In order to get in closest touch
with late advances in his profession, the Doctor, in 1888, went' to
England and for three months devoted himeslf to study in some of
the best hospitals in the country. In 1882 Franklin College conferred
upon him the honorary degree of Bachelor of Arts. In Dr. Porter are
combined two facts which have been the main contributing elements
to his success — ^thorough preparation and a deep interest in the pro-
fession, qualities which are absolutely essential to success. His
knowledge of the kindred sciences of medicine and surgery is broad
and comprehensive, and in his professional labors he has shown that
he is well qualified to cope with the intricate problems which con-
tinually confront the practitioner in his efforts to prolong life and
restore health.
In 1879 occurred the marriage of Dr. Miles F. Porter with Miss
Lillie A. Wilding, who was bom at Utica, New York, on Sep-
tember 9, 1854, and is the daughter of James and Ann Wilding. This
union has been a most felicitous one and has been blessed in the birth
of the following children: Lucile Ann, Charles Darwin, Clara
Phelps, Miles Fuller, Jr., James Pomeroy and Elizabeth Lane. The
Doctor takes a keen interest in public affairs, though his professional
duties prevent an active participation in political matters. He is not a
partisan, always maintaining an independent attitude, voting for those
men and measures which meet with his approval, regardless of political
party lines. His fraternal relations are with the time-honored order of
Free and Accepted Masons. Dr. Porter stands admittedly in the
front rank of Allen county's distinguished professional men, and
has ever maintained his high standing, never descending beneath the
dignity of his profession nor compromising his usefulness by coun-
tenancing any but noble and legitimate practice. Possessing a genial
and friendly temperament, he has won a host of warm and 10)^1
friends and the sincere regard and esteem of all who know of him
and his work.
24
370 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
ANTON KALBACHER.
Among" the earnest men whose depth of character and strict
adherence to principle gained to him the respect and confidence of
his contemporaries in the business and civic circles of the city of
Fort Wayne, stood the honored subject of this memoir, whose death
here occurred on the 7th of April, 1904. He was in the fullest
sense the architect of his own fortunes, and in his independent busi-
ness career he showed the tenacity of purpose, the indomitable energy
and the self-reliant courage whose natural concomitant is success.
He was distinctively one of the loyal and public spirited citizens
and representative business men of Fort Wayne, and in this his-
torical work it is proper that a tribute be paid to his memory and
the record of his career be perpetuated.
Mr. Kalbacher came of stanch German lineage and possessed in
a notable degree those sterling attributes which have made the
German-American so valuable an element of our national life. He
was bom in Hohenzollern, Germany, on the 24th of August, 1841,
being the fifth in order of birth of the ten children of Marx and
Ursula (Dieringer) Kalbacher, who, in the year 1852, severed the
ties which bound them to the dear fatherland and immigrated to
America. They located in Delphos, Allen county, Ohio, where the
devoted mother died in 1854. In the following year the widowed
father came with his children to Fort Wayne, in which city he
passed the remainder of his long and useful life, having been sev-
enty-eight years of age at the time of his death, which occurred
in 1886. Both parents were devoted communicants of the Catholic
church, in whose faith they reared their children, of whom two
are hving at the time of this writing.
In the excellent schools of his native land the subject of this
memoir secured his early educational training, having been a lad
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 371
of about eleven years at the time of the family immigration to the
United States. Thereafter he did not have much regular schooling,
but this handicap was not of great significance to one of so alert
mentality and determined spirit as Mr. Kalbacher, who made the
most of the lessons learned under the direction of that wisest of all
headmasters, experience. Within the few years of the family resi-
dence in Delphos, Ohio, he had initiated his business career, though
a mere boy at the time, having found employment in a local gro-
cery, and after coming to Fort Wayne he continued to be
employed as clerk in local establishments of the same kind for a
period of about seven years. He then entered the employ of the
firm of Beaver & Dunham, flour and feed merchants, with whom
he remained four years, after which he was for two years engaged
in the wine and liquor business. At the expiration of this period
he embarked in the flour, feed and grain business for himself, his
previous experience well fortifying him for the successful manage-
ment of an enterprise of this nature. With the passing of the years
he built up a large and important business in this line, and he con-
tinued operations, with headquarters at 296 Calhoun street, until
his death, while he incidentally gained a high reputation as a reliable,
enterprising and progressive business man. Through this and other
enterprises with which he identified himself he accumulated a for-
tune, and was one of Fort Wayne's solid capitalists when he was
summoned from the scene of life's endeavors. In 1878 he erected
a fine two-story brick and stone business block at 13-15 Grand
street, and in the same was thereafter engaged in the dry-goods and
grocery business, in partnership with John Sheffer for a number
of years, when he sold his interest in the enterprise and gave his
attention to his flour, feed and grain business. In 1882 he pur-
chased the Sedgwick flouring mills, which he operated until 1887,
when he sold the property and business to H. W. Bond, the present
owner. In 1882 he also became associated with William Potthoff
in the flour and feed business, under the title of A. Kalbacher &
Company, and this alliance continued for four years.
One of the dominating elements in the makeup of Mr. Kal-
bacher was his intense loyalty in all the relations of life, and this
quality was exemplified in his attitude as a citizen of Fort Wayne,
ZT^
THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
for he was ever ready to lend his aid and influence in support of
measures projected for the material and civic advancement of his
home city, in which he ever took a deep pride. He was tolerant
and kindly in his judgment of his fellow men, and his genial nature
won to him inviolate friendships in all circles, while he was ever
appreciative of the dignity of honest toil and to extend the hand
of fellowship to every honest man, whatever his station in life. In
politics Mr. Kalbacher gave an uncompromising allegiance to the
Democracy, and he ever took a lively interest in the party cause, as
did he also in local affairs of a public nature, though he never sought
office of any description. He was a consistent communicant of St.
Mary's church (German Catholic), and was one of the trustees of
the same for a number of years, his wife likewise being a devoted
communicant of the parish. A strong, true, noble, unassuming man
was Mr. Kalbacher, and in his death Fort Wayne lost one of its
honored and valued citizens, while to the immediate family the loss
is one whose only mitigation is found in the hallowed memories
and the hope which breathes through from the life eternal. Our
subject's ambitions and affections centered in his home, and in its
sacred precincts his noble character shone forth most graciously.
On the 19th of October, 1865, was solemnized the marriage of
Mr. Kalbacher to Miss Jane Schobe, who survives him and who
remains in the beautiful home, on East Wayne street. Mrs. Kal-
bacher was born in Fort Wayne, on the 17th of June, 1845, ^"^
is a daughter of Eberhart and Maria Angela (Daman) Schobe, both
of whom died in this city. Mr. and Mrs. Kalbacher became the
parents of seven children, of whom four are living, namely : Sister
Aquineta, of the order of Notre Dame in the Catholic church at
Michigan City, Indiana, being sister superior; Katherine M.,
the wife of Thomas McKiernan, of Fort Wayne, and Theresa U.
and Leonora, who remain with their widowed mother.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 373
HENRY F. HILGEMANN.
A compilation of this nature exercises one of its most consistent
and worthy functions when it enters memoir concerning such steriing
citizens as was the late Henry F. Hilgemann, who was a prom-
inent business man of Fort Wayne for many years and who was
also a member of one of the pioneer families of Allen county.
Mr. Hilgemann was bom in the city of Fort Wayne, on the
31st of January, 1851, and was a son of Henry and Fredericka
Hilgemann, both of whom were bom and reared in Germany, while
they settled in Fort Wayne in the pioneer days and passed the re-
mainder of their lives in Allen county. The subject of this memoir
received a good common-school education and was reared to man-
hood in the city of his birth, while he inaugurated his independent
career when sixteen years of age, securing employment in the Sum-
mit City woolen mills, where he remained engaged for five and
one-half years, during which he familiarized himself with the vari-
ous details of the industry involved. For the ensuing three years he
held the position of shipping clerk for A. S. Evans & Company, and
from 1875 until 1878 he maintained his home in the city of Hunt-
ington, Indiana, where he owned a half interest in a well equipped
woolen mill. He disposed of his interests in this property in 1878
and returned to Fort Wayne, where he accepted the position of
shipping clerk for the firm of Hanna, Wiler & Company, retain-
ing this incumbency until 1881, while for the following three years
he was general agent for the Chicago Installment Book Company,
with headquarters in Fort Wayne. In the autumn of 1884 he opened
a retail grocery at 121 West Jefferson street, and about eight years
later he erected on the site a fine brick and stone business block, in
which he continued in the same line of enterprise until the time of
his death, since which time the business has been successfully con-
374 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
tinued by his eldest son, Franklin H. Hilgemann. When Mr. Hilge-
mann opened his modest little establishment the total receipts from
his first day's sales were only four dollars, and within four years
he had built up a business whose average annual aggregate was
fully thirteen thousand dollars. He was a man of marked business
acumen and of unswerving integrity of character, while his genial
personality gained to him a host of friends. He commanded uniform
confidence and esteem, and his faith and his friendship were alike
inviolable. For a number of years before his death Mr. Hilgemann
was in very delicate health, having suffered from locomotor ataxia,
which resulted in his death, on the 5th of December, 1904. He was
a stalwart Democrat in his political proclivities and took a public-
spirited interest in local affairs as well as in the general cause of
his party, while he served for a time as a member of the city coun-
cil of Fort Wayne, representing the fourth ward. In the Masonic
fraternity he had risen to the sixteenth degree, belonging to the
Lodge of Perfection. His widow still resides in the pleasant family
home, on 403 West Jefferson street.
On the 4th of September, 1873, was solemnized the marriage
of Mr. Hilgemann to Miss Lisette F. Bueker, who was born in Ger-
many, being a daughter of Frederick and Sophia Bueker, and she
came to America in 1870, about three years prior to her marriage.
Mr. and Mrs. Hilgemann became the parents of six children, of
whom three survive : Franklin H. has charge of the grocery busi-
ness so long conducted by his honored father; Charles H. is de-
ceased; Oliver H. and Walter H. are deceased; Harry H. is a ris-
ing young lawyer of Fort Wayne and is individually mentioned
elsewhere in this work; and Victor H. is a dental student at the
time of this writing.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 375
WILLIAM H. WALTEMATH.
A signally useful and honorable life was that of the subject of
this memoir, who was a representative of one of the sterling pio-
neer families of Allen county and who was a successful business
man and loyal citizen of Fort Wayne, where his death occurred on
the 1 2th of December, 1904, at which time he was in the very
prime of useful manhood.
William H. Waltemath was bom in Fort Wayne, on the 28th
of November, 1862, being a son of Charles H. Waltemath, who
was for many years engaged in the general merchandise business
in this city, where his death occurred in 1904. He was the head
of the firm of C. H. Waltemath & Sons, the other interested prin-
cipals being his sons William H. and Louis R, who continued the
enterprise after his death, while the firm name has remained un-
changed to the time of this writing.
Our subject was reared to manhood in his native city, where
in the Lutheran schools he secured much of his early educational
training, while he was also graduated in one of the excellent schools
here maintained under the auspices of the German Lutheran church.
When but fourteen years of age he began to assist in his father's
store, being thus reared to the business and early becoming familiar
with all practical details. He was eventually admitted to partner-
ship, under the title designated in the foregoing paragraph, and he
continued to be actively identified with this flourishing general mer-
chandise concern until his death, the well equipped establishment of
the firm being located at 321-25 Lafayette street. As he was the
elder of the sons the responsibilities of the business fell upon his
shoulders to a very large extent, and his health finally gave way
under the tension, his death resulting from nervous prostration. In
both social and business circles his death caused a distinctive loss
376 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
and deprivation, for he was a man of noble character and earnest
devotion to duty, commanding the high regard of all with whom he
came in contact. He was a zealous and faithful member of Zion
church. German Lutheran, taking part in the various departments
of church work and being especially helpful through his interest in
young men, both in and out of the church. His home was a
sanctuary to him, and within its precincts his character shone forth
with its most gentle and gracious light, so that the bereavement
is there felt most poignantly now that he has been called forward to
life eternal, though his memory must ever rest as a benediction on
those who were nearest and dearest to him. In politics he was a
Democrat.
On the 24th of January, 1891, was solemnized the marriage
of Mr. Waltemath to Miss Katherine M. Klingmann, who like-
wise was bom and reared in Fort Wayne, being a daughter of
John and Katherine Klingmann, well known citizens of Allen
county. Mr. and Mrs. Waltemath became the parents of two chil-
ren, and both survive their honored father and remain to offer
consolation to their mother. Their names are Karl Oscar and Hes-
ter Sophia.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. Z77
CHARLES H. WALTEMATH.
To have come from a foreign land to America as a poor boy
and to have so applied his energies and abilities as to have built up
the most extensive retail grocery in the city of Fort Wayne as it
stands today, represents no slight or insignificant accomplishment,
and the statement involves much more than is superficially evident.
Such was the career of the honored subject of this memoir, whose
death occurred on the 25th of May, 1904, in his beautiful home in
the city of Fort Wayne, with whose business interests he was
so long and prominently identified, while he was a citizen of worth
and influence, commanding the unqualified esteem of all who knew
him and being one of the sterling pioneers of Allen county.
Charles H. Waltemath was born in Westphalen, Germany, on
the 1st of June, 1839, and in one of the excellent schools of the
Lutheran church in his fatherland he secured his early educational
training, which proved adequate as a basis for his active and suc-
cessful career as a business man, his mental equipment being of
that solid order which places true estimates upon all things. Mr.
Waltemath came to America as a lad of fifteen years, in company
with other members of the family, and he located in Allen county,
which ever afterward continued his home. For a time he was
employed at farm work and later turned his energies to more profit-
able fields of endeavor, ever looking to advancement in temporal
affairs and directing his energies with that sagacity which proved
the main factor in insuring his rise to a position of so unmistakable
independence. He finally became associated with his brother in the
purchase of a canal boat, which they operated between Fort Wayne
and Logansport, with an occasional trip to Toledo, Ohio. He was
identified with this line of enterprise, which was an important one
in the early days, for a number of years, and later he operated a
378 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
wood-sawing outfit for some time, after which he served a number
of years as a member of the police force of the city of Fort Wayne.
In 1874 he associated himself with his brother Henry in the retail
grocery business, beginning operations on a modest scale and con-
tinuing the partnership for a period of five years, after which he
conducted the enterprise individually until the formation of the
firm of C. H. Waltemath & Sons, in which his associates were
his sons William H, and Louis F. The former died only a few
months after the demise of his father, and is individually mentioned
in a memorial tribute on other pages of this work. The business is
still continued under the old and well known firm name, Louis F.
being at the head of the concern, in which the interests of his father
arid brother are still retained. Mr. Waltemath followed a business
policy which insured consecutive growth in his enterprise, and he
erected the fine business block in which the business is conducted
at the present time, at the corner of Lafayette and Wallace streets,
as well as the substantial and commodious modem residence at 325
Lafayette street. As before intimated, the enterprise which re-
mains as a monument to the ability and energy of our subject rep-
resents the largest retail grocery business in the city of Fort Wayne,
and he was regarded as one of our most substantial and loyal citi-
zens during the long years of his residence here. In politics he was
a stanch supporter of the cause of the Democratic party, and he
ever showed a deep interest in public affairs of a local nature.
He was elected councilman at large of Fort Wayne and served as
a member of the council until the present municipal charter was
secured. He was a consistent and active member of Zion Lutheran
church, contributing liberally to its support and taking part in the
church work.
On the i8th of December, 1861, Mr. Waltemath was united in
marriage to Miss Sophia Ropa, who was born and reared in Ger-
many, whence she came to America when seventeen years of age.
She survives her honored husband and maintains her home in
the city where she has lived so many years and with whose upbuild-
ing and progress Mr. Waltemath was so intimately identified. They
became the parents of three sons and one daughter, and of these
the daughter and one son died in early childhood. William H.,
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA, 379
who died in December, 1904, is the subject of an individual memoir
in this history; and Louis H. has charge of the business estabHshed
by his father more than a quarter of a century ago. Mrs. Walte-
math is a devoted member of Zion church, and she proved a worthy
helpmeet and coadjutor to her husband, with whom she remained
in mutual devotion until he was summoned into eternal rest.
38o THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JOSEPH M. HALEY.
It is the province of the biographical and memorial depart-
ment of this compilation to enter record concerning those who have
been or who are at the present time representative in their respective
fields of endeavor, and within these pages will be found mention,
therefore, of a due quota of those who have attained to prestige and
success in the legal profession as practitioners within the confines
of Allen county. Among the representative lawyers of the younger
generation in the city of Fort Wayne stands the subject of this
sketch, whose offices are located in the Old National Bank building,
comer of Calhoun and Berry streets, and who is building up an
excellent practice and proving his strength worthily in the various
departments of his professional work.
Mr. Haley is a native of the old Keystone state, having been
bom in the city of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, on the 6th of September,
1876, and being a son of Joseph A. and Anna C. (Shea) Haley,
both of whom were likewise bom in Pennsylvania. In 1882 the
family removed from Pittsburg to Fort Wayne, and thus the sub-
ject of this review has passed practically his entire life thus far in
the latter named city. His parents still reside in Fort Wayne, where
his father has lived retired for a number of years. Joseph M. Haley
secured his early educational discipline in the public and parochial
schools of Fort Wayne, having completed a course in the local high
school, and having then made ready to take up the exacting study
and work which should fit him for the profession which he had
determined to adopt as his vocation in life. He was matriculated
in the law department of the famous Notre Dame University, in
South Bend, this state, where he completed the prescribed course and
was graduated as a member of the class of 1899. He was gradu-
ated in the month of June and soon after his return to his home in
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 381
Fort Wayne he was duly admitted to the bar of the county. For
one year he was associated with the law firm of Bell & Daughman,
and he then opened an office of his own and has since conducted an
individual practice of general order, while his novitiate was of brief
duration, as is evidenced in the representative character of his clien-
tele and in the rapid growth of his business. In politics he gives
an unqualified allegiance to the Democracy and takes an active in-
terest in the party work, while his religious faith is that of the
Catholic church, in which he was reared and of which he is a com-
municant.
382 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
CLYDE M. GANDY.
One of the representative law firms of the city of Fort Wayne
is that of Gandy & Hilgemann, of which the subject of this sketch
is the senior member, both principals being young men of energy
and distinctive professional ability, so that they are building up a
practice of high grade and one which insures to them cumulative
precedence in their chosen profession.
Mr. Gandy was bom in Churubusco, Whitley county, this state,
on the 6th of November, 1878. He is a son of Rev. Winfield S.
and Ellen J. (Matthews) Gandy, the former of whom is a native
of West Virginia, the latter having been bom in the city of Fort
Wayne. Mr. Gandy's grandfather, Fredrick Matthews, now living
at Churubusco, was one of this city's pioneers. The father was
engaged in the practice of law at Churubusco until a few years
ago, when he retired from the legal profession and has since been
an active and successful minister of the gospel of the United Breth-
ren church in northeastern Indiana. The mother died in 1888,
leaving the father and two sons, of which this subject is the elder.
The other is Harry L. Gandy, now editor and owner of the La-
grange County Democrat of Lagrange, Indiana.
Mr. Gandy secured his early education in the public schools
of his native town, graduating from the high school there in 1896.
He then taught one year in the schools of Allen county, and con-
tinued his studies at the high school at Delta, Ohio, where he gradu-
ated in 1898. Before the school year was ended, however, the
Spanish-American war was on and Mr. Gandy enlisted as a private
in Company G, Sixth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. With his regiment
he proceeed to Cuba, where he remained in active service until the
command was mustered out in May, 1899. Retuming from the
army, he again took up his student labors and in 1901 completed
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 383
the classical course at the Tri-State Normal College at Angola, In-
diana. He was immediately appointed a teacher in the native schools
of the Philippine islands, passing two years in America's new east-
em possessions, where he made an excellent record in his pedagogic
work. After traveling extensively through China and Japan he
returned to this country in the summer of 1903.
Mr. Gandy secured a practical legal training in his father's law
office and supplemented this by tireless study of the text books
throughout his college and school-room days, completing, in addi-
tion to his regular work, a full course of legal technique. Upon
his return from the Orient, he passed a short time in review at the
Indianapolis College of Law and then came to Fort Wayne, enter-
ing the law office of E. V. Emrick, then prosecuting attorney. In
October, 1903, he was admitted to the bar of Allen county, and
in December of the same year opened an office in the Bass block
and began his individual practice. In September, 1904, he entered
into his present professional partnership with Harry H. Hilgemann.
In politics Mr. Gandy is a conservative Democrat, being a stanch
supporter of the principles which represented the party policy in
the times of Jefferson and Jackson. In a fraternal way he is identi-
fied with the United Spanish War Veterans, and with the Masonic
order, in which he has advanced through all the York rite degrees,
at this time occupying the position of junior warden in Fort Wayne
Commandery, No. 4, Knights Templar. In addition to his other
attainments and education, he is a fluent Spanish scholar.
On the 29th of May, 190 1, Mr. Gandy was united in marriage
to Miss Amy Gertrude Criswell, who was born in Philadelphia,
February 9, 1879, her parents being both natives of Indiana, to
which state they returned when she was a child. She is a daugh-
ter of Dr. John F. and Ellen (Potter) Criswell, of Churubusco,
Indiana, where she was reared. Like Mr. Gandy, she received her
early education in the public schools of that place, graduating from
the high school there, and from the Tri-State Normal College, of
Angola, Indiana. Before her marriage Mrs. Gandy was a teacher
in the schools of her home town, and was later principal of a town-
ship high school in West Virginia. Both Mr. and Mrs. Gandy are
384 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
of Scotch descent and number among their ancestors several who
were active and prominent in the stirring colonial and Revolutionary
days. Mrs. Gandy was with her husband during the entire time
of his absence in the Orient, previously spoken of. They have one
child, Marcela Ellen, bom August 2, 1903.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 385
ALBERT E. MELCHING.
A representative business man of Fort Wayne is Albert E.
Melching, junior member of the firm of Klaehn & Melching, under-
takers and embalmers, 205 West Main street. Mr. Melching is
a native of the old Buckeye state, having been bom on a farm
near Youngstown, Mahoning county, Ohio, on the 17th of March,
1855, and being a son of Dr. William and Charlotte Melching, both
of whom were bom and reared in Germany, whence they came to
America in 1854, locating in Ohio, where they remained until 1856,
when they came to Allen county, Indiana, and located in the village
of Williamsport, where the father of the subject established himself
in the practice of his profession, attaining prestige as one of the
able physicians and surgeons of this section of the state. The family
removed to the city of Fort Wayne in 1861, where the father died
in 1889, the mother being now aged eighty-two years. Both par-
ents were consistent members of the German Lutheran church, and
in his political adherency Dr. Melching was a stanch Democrat.
Albert E. Melching, to whom this sketch is dedicated, was an
infant at the time of the family removal to Allen coimty, and here
he has passed practically his entire life thus fan He secured his
early educational discipline in the parochial school of St. Paul's
Lutheran church, in Fort Wayne, and later he continued his studies
in the public schools of the city. At the age of sixteen years he en-
tered upon an apprenticeship at the trade of harness making, and in
due time became a skilled artisan in the line. At the age of twenty-
three years he opened a shop and engaged in business on his own
responsibility, building up a profitable enterprise and continuing the
same until 1885, when he sold out and went to California, where
he remained one year. At the expiration of this period he returned
with his family to Fort Wayne, and shortly afterward he opened
25
k
386 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
a hotel and fanners" feed barn on North Harrison street, where he
was successful in his efforts and where he formed the acquaintance-
ship of the representative farmers of the county, his place gaining
distinctive popularity. In 1892 Mr. Melching was the Democratic
candidate for sheriff of the county, but was defeated for the office,
whereupon he received the appointment of deputy sheriff, remaining
incumbent of this position four years, and then again becoming can-
didate for the shrievalty, in 1896. He secured the most flattering
support in the nominating convention, and this presaged the note-
worthy victory which came to him in the ensuing election, in which
he received a gratifying majority, leading the party ticket. He
served as sheriff for four years and his administration was one which
stands to his credit as an able and faithful executive, while his rec-
ord is one unexcelled in the history of this important county office.
In 1 90 1 Mr. Melching purchased a half interest in the undertak-
ing business with which he is now identified, and the finn of Klaehn
& Melching occupies a leading position in this field of enterprise,
having a finely equipped establishment, with the best of accessories
in the way of funeral cars, private ambulance, etc. The subject
is one of the city's well known and popular citizens, his circle of
friends throughout the county being an exceptionally wide one. He
is a stanch advocate of the principles and policies for which the
Democratic party stands sponsor, and has for a number of years
past been an active and enthusiastic worker in the party ranks, being
one of the Democratic leaders in Allen county. He served as an
alternate delegate-at-large to the Democratic national convention at
St. Louis, in 1904, and at the time of this writing he is chairman
of the city Democratic central committee of Fort Wayne. His re-
ligious connection is with St. Paul's Lutheran church.
On November 17, 1878, Mr. Melching married Miss Carrie
Engleking, of Fort Wayne, and to them have been born seven chil-
dren, William, Minnie, August, Anna, Clara, Loretta and Edward.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 3S7
GEORGE W. STOUT.
Among those who have made unassailable records for fidelity
and effective work in the important office of sheriff of Allen county
stands the subject of this sketch, who is one of the county's honored
and popular citizens.
Sheriff Stout is a native of the old Buckeye state, having been
born in Carroll county, Ohio, on the 19th of April, 1846, and being
a son of David and Nancy N. (Newman) Stout, both of whom
were likewise born in that county, being representatives of honored
pioneer families there, whither the original ancestors in the state re-
moved from Washington county, Pennsylvania, while it may be
said that Daniel Stout, paternal grandfather of the subject, was the
founder of the family in Ohio. His brother John was a valiant
soldier in the war of 18 12. in which he was wounded while par-
ticipating in an engagement, and while convalescing from this serious
wound in the shoulder he ran away from the hospital in which he
was confined and took part in a battle which was raging in the
vicinity, — certainly a mark of insistent patriotism, while by reason
of his action he suffered a relapse which nearly caused his death.
George W. Stout was reared to maturity on the homestead farm
and early began to assist in its work, while his educational advan-
tages were such as were afforded in the common schools of the lo-
cality. Like many another youth of the day, he was roused to
patriotic ardor when the war of the Rebellion was precipitated upon
a divided country, and he manifested his loyalty by tendering his
services in defense of the Union, enlisting when but sixteen years
of age, in 1862, when he became a member of Company _F, Thirty-
second Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and proceeding with his com-
mand to the front. In the battle of Champion Hills, Mississippi.
in 1863, ^is regiment was instrumental in capturing a six-gfun bat-
388 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
tery from the enemy, and Company F operated this battery against
the Confederate forces during the siege of Vicksburg, while the
command eventually became known as the Twenty-sixth Ohio Bat-
tery and served thereafter as a battery until the close of the war.
The officers of Company F of the Thirty-second Ohio Infantry were
as follows : T. D. Yost, captain ; first lieutenant, Cox, and Homer
S. Lee, second lieutenant. After the reorganization as an artillery
company Captain Yost was retained as head of the company, Lieu-
tenant Cox as senior first lieutenant; Homer S. Lee as junior sec-
ond lieutenant; Abel T. Lee became senior second lieutenant; and
Abe Kitzmiller, junior first lieutenant. These latter officers re-
mained in command of the company until victory had croAvned the
Union arms, and the organization thus brought into existence almost
by accident rendered valiant and faithful service in an arm of the
federal forces with which the members originally had no thought of
identifying themselves. Mr. Stout received his honorable discharge,
in Columbus, Ohio, on the 5th of September, 1865, and then re-
turned to the old homestead farm, with whose management and
work he continued thereafter to be concerned until November 28,
1867, when he came to Allen county, Indiana, and located in Mon-
roeville, where he remained in the home of his uncle, George Stout,
until the following autumn, when he assumed connubial responsi-
bilities, being united in marriage to Miss Isabel Murchland, who
was summoned to the eternal life six years later, leaving three chil-
dren, David A., Mary Margaret and Nancy N. David A. is en-
gaged in the wholesale dental-supply business in Fort Wayne, and
is one of the city's able young business men ; Mary Margaret is the
wife of George E. Carvill, a pros]ycrous farmer of this county; and
Nancy N. is the wife of William 3iggs, of Decatur, Adams county,
this state. In 1876 Mr. Stout consummated a second marriage, be-
ing then united to his present wife, whose maiden name was Cath-
erine Foster and who is a daughter of Jesse and Elizabeth (Bow-
ers) Foster, who passed the closing years of their lives in Allen
county, where both were born and reared, having been members of
representative pioneer families of this favored section of the Hoosier
state. Concerning the seven children born to Mr. and Mrs. Stout
we record that Pearl May died in infancy; and that the other six
are still living, namely: Lida M., wife of Ernest Close, of Hunt-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 389
ington, Indiana; Leah Viola; Coza Delilah. Clyde W., Kittie Maude
and George Foster.
After his first marriage Mr. Stout located on a farm in the
immediate vicinity of Monroeville, Monroe township, securing a
tract of wild land and reclaiming about forty acres from the native
forest and developing a good farm. Here he continued to reside
until 1880, when he disposed of the property and removed to Hoag-
land, Madison township, where he engaged in lumbering, while he
also operated threshing machines during the successive seasons and
also devoted much attention to the buying of poultry, which he
shipped to New York city in large quantities, meeting with success
in his energetic and well directed efforts. In 1892 he accepted the
position of deputy sheriff under Sheriff Edward Qauseneger, his
initial service being rendered in the capacity of turnkey at the county
jail. He was later promoted to an active deputyship and served
nearly four years in this position. In 1896 his associate deputy,
Albert E. Melching, was elected sheriff, and Mr. Stout was by him
continued as deputy, while in March, 1899, a fitting recognition of
his faithful service and his executive ability in his being accorded
the nomination on the first ballot, in a field of five candidates, for
the office of sheriff, as nominee on the Democratic ticket, the dis-
tinction being the more pronounced in view of the fact that each
of the other four candidates in the nominating convention had
previously made a vigorous fight for the goal. x\t the general elec-
tion in November following he led the national, state, congressional
and county tickets in majorities, a fact which testifies to his per-
sonal popularity in his county and a record of which he may justly
feel proud. Mr. Stout has ever taken a deep interest in the cause of
his party and wields marked influence in its local councils. On
March i, 1905, Mr. Stout formed a partnership with C. M. Gillett
and engaged in the sale of agricultural implements, their place of
business being at No. 229 East Columbia street, this city. In a
fraternal way he is identified with General Lawton Post, Grand
Army of the Republic; Fort Wayne Lodge, No. 155, Benevolent
and Protective Order of Elks; Court No. 15, Tribe of Ben Hur;
and the local organization of the Modem American Fraternal Order.
Mr. Stout and his family hold membership in the Evangelical
Lutheran church.
390 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JESSE GRICE.
At the opening of the year 1905 the subject of this review
entered upon the discharge of his duties as sheriff of Allen county,
and his choice as incumbent of this important office indicates the
estimate placed upon the man by the people of the county, where
he has long maintained his home, while in the connection it should
be noted also that he has the distinction of being the second Re-
publican candidate ever elected to the shrievalty of the county. His
eligibility for the office is unmistakable and this fact has been clearly
exemplified in the discrimination and energy which he has brought
to bear in initiating his service in the connection.
Mr. Grice was bom in Homeworth, Columbiana county, Ohio,
on the 26th of November, 1852, and is a son of Anthony and
Susanna (Yeager) Grice, the former having been bom in Columbi-
ana county and the latter in Henry county, Ohio, in which common-
wealth the respective families were represented as pioneers. The
father died when our subject was an infant, and the mother later
became the wife of Emanuel Detrich, who is now deceased, while
she still resides in Homeworth, Columbiana county, Ohio, being
one of the well known and highly esteemed pioneer women of that
section of the Buckeye state. The future sheriff was the only child
of the first marriage, while of the second marriage of his mother
were bom two daughters, one of whom is living, she being the
wife of Albertus McLaughlin, of New Lisbon, Ohio.
The subject of this review is to be considered as essentially and
distinctively a self-made man, since he has been dependent almost
entirely upon his own resources since he was a child of nine years,
when he began to work for his own support. He secured his early
educational training in the public schools of the village of Mays-
ville, Allen county, Indiana, and, in cognizance of the statements
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 391
previously entered, it is scarcely necessary to say that his educa-
tional advantages were limited in scope and in time compass, though
he was able to lay a firm foundation for that practical working
knowledge which he has gained in the great school of experience
and through personal application. He worked at various occupa-
tions in his youth, having early identified himself with the butcher-
ing and live-stock business, with which he was concerned in an
active and successful way for many years. He learned the butcher-
ing trade in Maysville, where he remained for a number of years,
after which he engaged in that line of trade in Hicksville, Ohio,
in connection with the handling of live stock, remaining there four
years and then coming to Allen county, Indiana, where he followed
the same lines of enterprise for the long period of forty-four years,
— up to the time of his election to his present office. He has main-
tained his residence in Fort Wayne since 1892, and his business
operations have been marked by energy, good management and
utmost reliability, so that he has ever held as his own the un-
qualified esteem and confidence of those with whom he has been
thrown in contact. Mr. Grice has taken a lively and intelligent
interest in the questions and issues of the hour and has been an
active and zealous worker in the ranks of the Republican party, of
whose principles and policies he is an ardent advocate, while in a
local way he has been prominent in connection with the manoeu-
vering of the party forces in the various campaigns. A fitting recog-
nition of his eligibility and faithful service was that given in his
being made the candidate of his party for the office of sheriff, to
which he was elected by a gratifying majority, in the general elec-
tion of November, 1904, while he assumed his official duties on the
1st of the following January. In a fraternal way Sheriff Grice
is identified with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He is
well known throughout the county and is a man who merits the high
regard in which he is uniformly held in the community which has
represented his home for so long a term of years.
On September 22, 187 1, Mr. Grice was united in marriage to
Miss Angelia Stopher, whose death occurred less than a year later,
and she left one child, John, who is now engaged in the meat-
market business in Antwerp, Ohio, being successful as a business
I
392
THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
man and popular as a citizen. On the 25th of November, 1874, Mr.
Grice consummated a second marriage, being then united to his pres-
ent wife, whose maiden name was Miss Dora Hall, and who was
born and reared in the state of Indiana. Of the two children of
this union we record that Wallace died at the age of eighteen
months, and Vernon is a resident of Fort Wayne, being engaged
as a clerk with the Rurode Dry Goods Company.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 393
ALFRED KANE, M. D.
Fortified by most careful and extended technical training and
by a natural predilection, the subject of this sketch holds prestige
as one of the able and popular members of the medical fraternity
in his native city, where he is engaged in general practice as a
physician and surgeon, with office headquarters at 828 Calhoun
street.
Dr. Kane was born in the city of Fort Wayne on the 23d of
June, 1878, and is a son of James M. and Amelia L. (Brooks)
Kane, who are still resident of this city, the father being engaged
in the mercantile business on Calhoun street. In the public and
parochial schools of Fort Wayne Dr. Kane secured his early edu-
cational discipline, completing the curriculum of the high school
and thereafter continuing his studies under private tutors about
one year, within which time he began reading medicine. In 1898
he was matriculated in the Fort Wayne College of Medicine, in
which well equipped institution he completed the prescribed course,
being graduated as a member of the class of 1902 and receiving his
degree of Doctor of Medicine. He thereafter did special post-
graduate work in the polyclinic hospitals of the cities of Chicago
and Philadelphia, while he still further amplified his technical and
practical knowledge by a special course in obstetrics in the medical
department of Harvard College. In September, 1903, Dr. Kane
opened an office in Fort Wayne, where he has since been engaged
in general practice and where his ability has so clearly been demon-
strated that his professional novitiate was of very brief duration,
his practice building up rapidly and satisfactorily and being of a
representative character. The Doctor is a member of the American
Medical Association, the Indiana Medical Society, the Fort Wayne
394 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Medical Society, and the Academy of Medicine, of which last he
is president. In politics he is ai Democrat and his religious faith is
that of the Catholic church, of which he is a communicant, while
in a fraternal way he is identified with the Knights of Columbus.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 395
JOHN D. CHAMBERS, M. D.
Established in the practice of his profession in the city of Fort
Wayne for the past thirty years, Dr. Chambers has gained a posi-
tion of no uncertain precedence as an able physician and surgeon,
while as a citizen he is held in unquahfied esteem. As a repre-
sentative member of the medical fraternity in Allen county he is
entitled to specific recognition in this work.
Dr. Chambers claims the old Empire state of the Union as the
place of his nativity, having been born in Alabama, Genesee county,
New York, on the 19th of July, 1844, and being a son of James
Boyd and Mahala (Mandeville) Chambers. His paternal grand-
parents were of stanch Irish stock and from county Monaghan,
in the Emerald Isle, they immigrated to America in 1798, settling
in the town of Salem, Washington county. New York, where James
B. Chambers, father of the subject, was born in the year 1804. IVla-
hala (Mandeville) Chambers was born in Ovid, Seneca county,
New York, in 1806, her parents being of English and Welsh ex-
traction, while her paternal grandfather served with distinction as
a Continental soldier during the war of the Revolution, in which
he was a captain. About 1848 the parents of Dr. Chambers removed
from New York to Michigan and settled in Lenawee county, where
they passed the remainder of their lives, the father having followed
the vocation of farming during the major portion of his active career.
The Doctor passed his boyhood days in Macon, Lenawee county,
Michigan, in whose common scliools he secured his preliminary edu-
cational training, while he later fitted himself for college by attend-
ing an excellent preparatory school in Tecumseh, that county. He
was ambitious in the matter of securing a liberal education, and
through his own efforts largely defrayed the expenses of his uni-
396 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
versity course. He was matriculated in the literary department of
the celebrated University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor, and was
graduated as a member of the class of 1871, receiving the degree of
Bachelor of Science, and having completed the full four years'
course. He then passed two years in the medical department of
his alma mater, being graduated in 1874 and receiving his well
earned degree of Doctor of Medicine.
In 1875 Dr. Chambers came to Fort Wayne, where he initiated
the practice of his profession and where he has built up a large and
representative business during the long intervening years, being
recognized as one of the leading physicians and surgeons of the
beautiful "Summit City" and being held in the highest esteem by
his professional contemporaries and by the general public. He has
held membership in the Allen County Medical Society, the State
Medical Society and the American Medical Association. In politics
he has given support to the Democratic and Prohibition parties. Dur-
ing his college courses Dr. Chambers provided for his own sup-
port and for the other expenses involved by teaching in the public
schools of Michigan, and for one year he was principal of the high
school at Marine City, that state. He keeps in the front rank in
the matter of following out the advances made in the sciences of
medicine and surgery, and is known as a man of exceptionally high
professional attainments. During one year he was lecturer on chem-
istry in the Fort Wayne Medical College. Dr. Chambers is a zeal-
ous member of the Third Presbyterian church of Fort Wayne, in
which he has served as ruling elder for the past score of years.
In the year 1877 was solemnized the marriage of Dr. Chambers
to Miss Jennie C. Sinks, of Sidney, Ohio.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 397
FREDERICK W. STELLHORN.
It is most fitting that in this pubHcation be incorporated a me-
morial tribute to Frederick William Stellhorn. who was one of
Allen county's leal and loyal citizens, having come here when a youth,
and having won success and honor through his earnest efforts and
unbending integrity of character. He was a native of Germany
and came to America to win a position of independence through his
own industry, and that he succeeded is best shown in his record as
one of the representative business men and sterling citizens of the
county in which he lived and labored for so long a term of years
and in which his name merits a place on the roll of the worthy pio-
neers of this section of the state.
Frederick William Stellhorn was born in Brueninghorsted, king-
dom of Hanover, Germany, on the 13th of September, 1818, and his
death occurred at his home in Allen county, on the 14th of August,
1897, so that he lacked by a few weeks of being seventy-nine years
of age when he was thus summoned from the scene of life's en-
deavors. Mr. Stellhorn was reared in his native land, in whose
schools he secured his early educational training. He found em-
ployment principally at farm work during his youth, receiving from
twelve to sixteen dollars a year for his services, and finally he was
tendered the position of coachman to a clergyman, at a stipend of
twenty-five dollars a year, with board and clothing. He held this
position about one year and saved his earnings, which he utilized in
making his long and perilous voyage to America. In 1844, when
twenty-six years of age, Mr. Stellhorn severed the ties which bound
him to home and fatherland and set forth to seek his fortunes in the
United States. He made the trip by way of Bremen to New York,
the voyage extending over a period of nine weeks and being a tem-
pestuous one, so that the passengers on the little sailing vessel had
their full quota of anxiety and discomfort. When the young immi-
398. THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
grant arrived in the port of New York he was soon made the victim
of typical American enterprise, since a sharper sold him a ticket
to Toledo, Ohio, for a goodly price. The transportation proved ac-
ceptable only as far as the city of Albany, New York, beyond which
point it was not honored. His finances had by this time reached so
low an ebb that Mr. Stellhorn was compelled to borrow the sum of
ten dollars from a friend and companion in order to continue his
journey. He was thus in debt to this amount at the time of his
arrival in the city of Fort Wayne, which he made his destination.
Among others who came over on the same vessel and who became
honored citizens of Allen county were Charles Meusing, Frederick
Kanne and a man named Erase. While in the connection it is im-
perative that special mention be made of another and fairer passenger
on the same boat, for it was hers to become the devoted and cherished
wife of the honored subject of this memoir. This young lady, Miss
Fredericka Moellering, in company with her aunt, came to Fort
Wayne, being but nineteen years of age at the time. Her aunt con-
tinued her journey and located in Lafayette, this state, but Fredericka
remained in Fort Wayne, where she secured employment in a do-
mestic way and found her surroundings pleasing. She was from
the Prussian village of Heimsen, not far removed from the birth-
place of her future husband, but they had not become acquainted
until making the trip on the canal boat to Fort Wayne. This ac-
quaintanceship ripened into mutual confidence and affection and
eventuated in their marriage about a year after they took up their
residence in Fort Wayne, their union having been solemnized on
the 19th of June, 1845. The ceremony was performed by Rev. Mr.
Winniken, who was then a missionary of the Lutheran church, and
the event took place in the First Lutheran church, on Barr street,
where the present imposing and commodious church edifice of the
same denomination stands. In the first few years of his residence in
Fort Wayne Mr. Stellhorn worked at whatever occupation he could
secure, and he soon took the advice of a good friend, who ad-
monished him to buy a building lot and thus establish a firm foot-
hold in the city. He accordingly purchased a lot on Madison street.
In 1847 he was employed as a mason's tender by the father of John
C. Peters, a well known citizen of the county at the present time.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 399
About this time Professor Walter brought twelve students from
Germany, these being the first students of the Missouri synod of
the Lutheran church, in which synod Indiana was included, and also
the first students of Concordia College, Mrs. Stellhorn was given
the initial charge of the domestic economies for these students,
being employed as housekeeper in the Peters residence, in which the
first college work was done. She did the cooking at this location
and later accompanied the students and teachers to the present site
of the college, where she remained in the same capacity until the
death of Professor Walter, who was one of the victims of the
memorable cholera scourge at the time of its first visitation to Fort
Wayne, in 1850. Soon after this unfortunate event she left the col-
lege, where her husband had also been employed, and he then built
a small but comfortable residence on his lot, on Madison street.
Later he became associated with seven other German-American
citizens in the purchasing of a limestone quarry at Huntington.
There they devoted the winter months to getting out the product,
which they transported by canal to Fort Wayne in the summer, burn-
ing the lime in their kilns, which they erected on Pearl street,
about the location of the present feed yards. These were the first
and only kilns in Fort Wayne utilizing the old pot system, and after
operations had been continued about three years kilns were erected
at the quarry, in Huntington, while the finished product was thence
transported on the canal. Mr. Stellhorn remained in active charge
of the lime house until 186 1, when his lungs became so seriously
affected from the lime dust that he found it necessary to retire from
his executive and active labors in the connection. At this time he
purchased one hundred acres of land in Wayne township, four
miles south of the city, on the St. Mary's river and on the road
of which Fail-field avenue is now a part. For this property he paid
four thousand dollars. On the place was a sawmill, operated by
water power. Before moving to the farm he had the mill rebuilt
and brought up to the highest standard of the time, and he then
placed the mill in active operation, hiring men for the purpose and
taking up his abode on the farm. When his son John H. attained
to the age of fourteen years he was placed in charge of the mill,
whose operation he successfully continued until 187 1, while in the
400 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
meantime the father maintained a general supervision of the miUing
enterprise as well as of the operation of the farm. In 1872 the
father and son became associated in the purchasing of a steam saw-
milling plant, which they installed forthwith in a new mill, which
is still standing and in active service a portion of the time. Six
months later the subject of this memoir retired from all active as-
sociation with the mill business and turned his entire attention to the
management of his fine farm. In 1861 his landed estate comprised
one hundred acres, as has been noted, and in 1869 he purchased an
adjoining thirty acres, and shortly afterward added another tract,
of forty acres, while still later he effected the purchase of the old
Daniel Lawton farm, of fifty-two acres, lying nearer the city of Fort
Wayne, thus making the aggregate area of his estate two hundred
and twenty-two acres. This fine property he divided among his
children, six of whom survive him. During the last seven years
of his life he lived retired from active labor and business, enjoying
the well earned rewards of his former toils. He made the best of
improvements on his farm property, the original one hundred acres
having had thirteen log cabins as its building accessories at the time
when he came into possession. He erected large and substantial
grain and stock barns and the requisite residence buildings, includ-
ing the attractive old homestead place, which is still standing. It
was originally located near the St. Mary's river, but the prevalence
of high water at certain seasons of the year compelled the removal
of the house to higher ground, this change being made in 1887. The
family continue to occupy the house during the period of removal
and it is now one of the commodious and attractive farm residences
of the county. The loved and devoted wife of our subject is still
living in the old homestead a portion of the time, while she passes
the remainder of her time with others of her children, all of whom
accord her the deepest filial devotion and solicitude. Mr. and Mrs.
Stellhorn were numbered among the original or charter members
of the first Lutheran church organized in Fort Wayne, while later
they became members of Trinity church, in the vicinity of their
home, while in the cemetery of the same the remains of Mr. Stell-
horn were laid to rest. He was an uncompromising Democrat in
his political adherency, and for a number of years he held the office
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 401
of road supervisor, while he was frequently urged to become the
candidate of his party for the office of county commissioner, but
refused to permit his name to be considered in the connection, since
he felt that his inability to read and write the English language
might militate against his usefulness in the position. He was well
versed in his native language, and had no difficulty in properly
using the English in conversation, but had never learned the written
or printed intricacies of the latter. He took much interest in public
affairs of a local nature and was a pillar of his church, in which
he long held official position.
Mr. Stellhorn was a man whose integrity of character was
manifest in all the relations of life, and he made for himself a
place in the confidence and regard of his fellow men and in the
ranks of the noble army of the world's workers. Not a pretentious
or exalted life was his but one which bears its lesson and incentive
and which challenges respect and admiration. Such citizens as-
suredly merit a tribute of honor in the pages of such historical
compilations as the one at hand.
26
402 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JOHN H. STELLHORN.
On other pages of this work appears a comprehensive memorial
tribute to Frederick W. Stellhom, the honored father of him whose
name appears above, and by reason of this fact it will not be neces-
sary to advert to the genealogical record or personal characteristics
of that late and highly esteemed pioneer citizen.
John Henry Stellhorn was born in the old family homestead,
on Madison street, in the city of Fort Wayne, on the 28th of June,
1851, and, as noted in the memoir of his father, he early began his
independent career by assisting in the management and practical op-
eration of the sawmill on the home farm, a few miles south of the
city. His educational advantages were those of the parochial schools,
and he was also favored in being well trained in the German lan-
guage, the vernacular of his parents. He continued to be identified
with the sawmilling enterprise on the old home farm for many
years, and eventually became the virtual owner of the finely equipped
steam mill, which was built to replace the original one, operated by
water power and somewhat primitive in equipment. In 1902 Mr.
Stellhom left the farm and remoVed to the city of Fort Wayne,
where he has since maintained his home, and where he is known
as a progressive business man and public spirited citizen.
The subject has been a prominent factor in public affairs of
a local order, and has long been one of the wheelhorses of the
Democracy in Allen county. He served several terms as supervisor
of Wayne township, and was township road superintendent for sev-
eral years prior to the abolishment of the office. In 1890 he was
elected to the responsible office of county commissioner on the Demo-
cratic ticket, the county at the time having a normal Democratic
majority of four thousand. He entered upon the duties of his
office in December, 1891, and at the expiration of his three years'
term was chosen as his own successor, a fact attesting to the esti-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 403
mate placed upon him and his services by the voters of the county.
In 1893 Jasper Jones, one of his associates on the board of com-
missioners, brought forward the imperative demands and needs of
the county for a new court house, and the matter was pressed so
vigorously that the contracts for the erection of the present mag-
nificent county building were awarded while Mr. Stellhorn was still
a member of the board, the second story of the structure having
been completed before his retirement. At the practical inaugura-
tion of the project his associates on the board were Jasper Jones
and Henry F. Bullerman, while it may be stated in the connection
that this board had the distinction of being the youngest in the
state in matter of the age of its members, none of whom were more
than forty-one years of age, while all were farmers. Before con-
tracts for the erection of the new court house were awarded the
board of commissioners visited Buffalo, New York, and other cities
where modern buildings had been erected for the accommodation
of both county and city, as demanded in the building to be erected
in Fort Wayne. Mr. Stellhorn and Matthew Ferguson, who suc-
ceeded Mr. Bullerman on the board, spared no effort in making
such investigation as would enable them to avoid mistakes made
in the erection of previous structures for like purposes, and fifteen
architects entered into competition in making plans and specifica-
tions for the new building. Our subject was made superintendent
of the buildings of the court house, which is located in his district.
The responsibilities and exacting duties which thus devolved upon
him were of gigantic order and implied a great tension and her-
culeaii labor, but he and his co-workers have every reason to be
proud of their achievement, for the fine court house will long stand
as a testimonial to their earnest devotion and honorable and able
efforts in behalf of the county and city. Not even the slightest
suspicion of jobber}^ or unfairness has ever been entertained, and
the taxpayers of the county realized that every cent appropriated
for the building was utilized for that purpose and in an economical
way, while not a single act of litigation ensued in connection with
the rearing of the fine structure. The commissioners shirked not
even the least of the duties which came to them, even selecting
the stone by personal visitation to the quarries at Bedford and Cleve-
404 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
land. They made this selection from the ledge and the stone was
shipped in the rough and all work on the same was done in Fort
Wayne, under the direct supervision of the commissioners and
contractors.
Mr. Stellhorn became associated with J. L. Gruber, under the
firm name of J. H. Stellhorn & Company, and is engaged in the
hardw^are business and in contracting, with headquarters at 2010
Fairfield avenue. They control a good business and make a specialty
of contracting for tin roofing, cornice work, ornamental and archi-
tectural iron work, etc. In politics Mr. Stellhorn has never wav-
ered in his allegiance to the Democratic party, and he has served as
delegate to county, congressional and state conventions and taken
an active interest in the promotion of the party cause. His religious
connection is with St. John's Lutheran church.
In the year 1876 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Stell-
horn to Miss Elizabeth Klein, who was born and reared in Adams
county, and who died of consumption, only eighteen months after
her marriage, while her only child died three months previously.
In 1879 Mr. Stellhorn was united in marriage to Miss Sophia Poh-
ler, who died twelve years later, of locomotor ataxia. Two children
were born of this union and both died in infancy. In 1892 the
subject married Mrs. Minnie (Hobrock) Anweiler, widow of Louis
A. Anweiler, of Fort Wayne. No children have been bom of this
marriage. By her former marriage Mrs. Stellhorn has one daugh-
ter, Emma K., who is now the wife of Henry K. Starke, a ma-
chinist employed in the Fort Wayne shops of the Pennsylvania
Railroad. Mrs. Stellhom's sister, Mary C, the eldest of the Ho-
brock family and the widow of Charles Becker, resides in the home
of the subject. She has been afiiicted with blindness for the past
five years, and is accorded the utmost care and solicitude by Mr.
and Mrs. Stellhorn. It may be said that the Hobrock family was
one of the first Gennan families to settle in Fort Wayne, their
location here dating back to 1843.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 405
CHARLES A. DUNKELBERG.
On other pages of this compilation appears a review of the ca-
reer of S. F, Bowser, the founder and head of the well known
manufacturing concern of S. F. Bowser & Company, of Fort Wayne,
and in view of the details there entered it is not demanded that fur-
ther description of the business be incorporated, but the reference is
made in the present connection by reason of the fact that Mr. Dun-
kelberg is the secretary and treasurer of the company mentioned,
while he is regarded as one of the able business men and popular
citizens of the "Summit City."
Mr. Dtinkelberg was born in Chemung, New York, on the 4th
of April, 1865, ^"d is a son of Charles A. and Eliza (Lassen)
Dunkelberg, the former of whom followed the vocation of mer-
chant during the major portion of his active career, while both he
and his wife passed the closing years of their lives in Seelyville,
Pennsylvania. They became the parents of five children, of whom
four are living. When the subject was about one year of age his
parents removed from the state of New York to Seelyville, Penn-
sylvania, and there his toyhood days were passed, while he was
afforded the advantages of the public schools of the locality. Later
he attended the celebrated Eastman Business College, at Pough-
keepsie. New York, in which he was graduated as a member of the
class of 1888. He has ever been ambitious and self-reliant, and
has spared no effort in applying himself to those works which would
insure success and advancement. Thus he learned the art of ste-
nography by attending night school, being otherwise employed dur-
ing the day. In 1886 he left Pennsylvania and went to New York
city, where he secured employment in the office of E. C. Benedict
& Company, prominent bankers and brokers. About two years later
he removed to the city of Chicago, where he became a clerical assist-
4o6 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
ant in the offices of the Joseph T. Ryerson & Son, iron merchants,
retaining- this incumbency until 1890, when he received the ap-
pointment of steward at the Northern Indiana Hospital for the In-
sane at Long Cliff, near the city of Logansport, Indiana. He gave
most effective service in this office for a period of five years, and
then associated himself with John R. Fox, ex-treasurer of Cass
county^, in the wholesale and retail queensware and crockery busi-
ness in Logansport, the enterprise being conducted under the firm
name of Fox & Dunkelberg. At the expiration of three years the
firm disposed of the business, and shortly afterward Mr. Dunkel-
berg located in Fort Wayne, in the year 1899. Here he became
head bookkeeper in the office of S. F. Bowser & Company, was later
promoted to the position of superintendent of salesmen, while in 1904
he became secretar}^ and treasurer of the company, of which im-
portant dual office he has since remained incumbent. In politics he
renders a stanch support to the Democratic party.
On May i, 1895, Mr. Dunkelberg was united in marriage to
Miss Anna Cordelia Crockett, of Lafayette, Indiana, and they have
two children living, Charles A. and Ralph C.
ALLEN COUNTY. INDL4NA. 407
WALTER W. BARNETT, A. M., M. D.
One of the excellent and highly reputed educational institutions
of Indiana is the Fort Wayne College of Medicine, of which Dr.
Bamett is secretary, while in a personal way he holds prestige as
one of the able and advanced physicians of the state.
Walter Wynn Barnett is a native of the old Buckeye state, hav-
ing been born in Euphemia, Preble county, Ohio, on the i8th of
July, 1857, and being a son of William C. and Frances M. (Sul-
livan) Barnett, both of whom are now dead, the father's active
career having been devoted principally to the ministry. When the
Doctor was a child his parents removed to Florence, Boone county,
Kentucky, in whose public schools he secured his early educational
training, being graduated in the high school in Constantine, Michi-
gan, as a member of the class of 1875. He soon afterward entered
Wittenberg College, in Springfield, Ohio, where he completed the
classical course, and was graduated in 1880, with the degree of
Bachelor of Arts, while later the degree of Master of Arts was
conferred upon him by his alma mater. In 1883 the Doctor was
matriculated in the Fort Wa)me College of Medicine, in which he
was graduated in March, 1886, thus receiving his degree of Doctor
of Medicine from the institution with which he is now so promi-
nentty identified, being both its secretary and also a member of its
technical faculty. He engaged in general practice in Fort Wayne
immediately after his graduation, while he was also honored by
the Fort Wayne College of Medicine by being called to the chair
of anatomy, of which he remained incumbent until 1902, also act-
ing as chief demonstrator. He is now serving the college in the
chair of surgery, and is one of the most valued and popular mem-
bers of the faculty of this excellent institution, of which he has been
secretary since 1889. He is a member of the American Medical As-
4o8 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
sociation, the Tri-State Medical Society, the Maumee Valley Med-
ical Society, the Indiana State Medical Society, and the Fort Wayne
Medical Society, while he is known as one of the leading repre-
sentatives of his profession in the state. In politics Dr. Barnett
gives his allegiance to the Democracy, and fraternally he is affili-
ated with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the Knights
of Pythias and the Fraternal Order of Eagles.
On the 19th of July, 1892, Dr. Barnett was united in marriage
to Miss Letty A. Van Alstine, of Fort Wayne, and they have four
children, Walter C, Otto B., Van A. and Rachel G.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 409
ADAM L. SCHNEIDER, M. D.
Allen county has its due quota of well trained and distinctively-
able physicians and surgeons, and among the representative prac-
titioners in the city of Fort Wayne is Dr. Schneider. He is a na-
tive of the old Buckeye state, having been born in the city of Van
Wert, Ohio, in the county of the same name, on the 20th of Jan-
uary, 1872, and being a son of John J. and Mary I. (Moore)
Schneider, the former of whom was born in Germany and the lat-
ter in Pennsylvania, their marriage having been solemnized in Ohio,
where the father passed the remainder of his long, honorable and
useful life, his active business career having been principally identi-
fied with tinning. He died in 1898, and his widow now resides in
Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Dr. Schneider duly completed the curriculum of the public schools
of his native city, where he was graduated in the high school, after
which he was employed for some time in a local furniture manu-
factory. In 1893 he took a course of study in the International
Business College, in Fort Wayne, and in the autumn of the follow-
ing year he began reading medicine in the office and under the
direction of Dr. Charles B. Reid, one of the leading physicians and
surgeons of Van Wert, continuing his studies under these favor-
able auspices for one year. He later was matriculated in the Fort
Wayne College of Medicine, in which excellent institution he was
graduated as a member of the class of 1898, receiving his well
earned degree of Doctor of Medicine. Shortly afterward he estab-
lished himself in practice in the village of Maples, this county,
where he served his professional novitiate and where he met with
excellent success, continuing his residence there until January, 1899,
when he came to Fort Wayne, where he has since continued in
general practice as a physician and surgeon, and where his labors
4IO THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
have been fruitful in good results, giving him a distinctive prestige
and causing his practice to expand in scope and importance each suc-
cessive year. The Doctor is thoroughly en rapport wth his pro-
fession, being a close and appreciative student and keeping in touch
with the advancement made in the sciences of medicine and surgery.
He is affiliated with the American Medical Association, the Indiana
State Medical Society, the Fort Wayne Medical Society and the
Fort Wayne Academy of Medicine. In his political allegiance the
Doctor is found stanchly arrayed as a loyal supporter of the prin-
ciples and policies of the Republican party, and he is identified with
Summit City Lodge, No. 170, Free and Accepted Masons, in which
he has been raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason.
On the 27th of November, 1897, was solemnized the marriage of
Dr. Schneider to Miss Cora A. Bassett, of Delphos, Ohio, where
she was born and reared, and they have one child, Lawrence B.,
who was bom on the i8th of December, 1898.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 411
WILLIAM C. ETZOLD.
Incumbent of the office of assessor of Wayne township, the most
important and populous district of Allen county, since it contains
the major portion of the city of Fort Wayne, the subject of this
sketch is well known and highly esteemed in the county, which has
been his home from the time of his birth, while he is a scion of
one of the honored German-American pioneer families of this fa-
vored section of the Hoosier commonwealth.
Mr, Etzold was born in the city of Fort Wayne, on the 24th
of January, 1866, and is a son of Henry J. and Marguerite (Wise)
Etzold, both of whom were born in the kingdom of Saxony, Ger-
many, whence they came to America in early life, having taken up
their residence in Fort Wayne about sixty years ago, when the
"Summit City" was but a small town of no metropolitan pretensions.
Here Henry J. Etzold passed the remainder of his long and useful
life, and here his entire business career, which was one of signal
success and honor, was- identified with the manufacturing of boots
and shoes, in which line of enterprise he conducted an extensive
business for many years. He was summoned to his reward in
January, 1903, in the fullness of years and well earned honors, and
his cherished and devoted wife preceded him into eternal rest by
only a few months, her death having occurred in 1902. Both were
consistent members of the German Lutheran church, and in poli-
tics the father affiliated himself with the Republican party at the
time of its organization, and ever afterward remained an ardent
advocate of its principles and policies, while he was a man of fine
mental gifts and much pragmatic ability, taking a lively interest in
the questions and issues of the hour and being known as a loyal
and public-spirited citizen. Of his family of twelve children six
are living, and the subject of this review was the seventh in order
of birth.
k
412 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
William C. Etzold, to whom this sketch is dedicated, was reared
to maturity in his native city, and his preliminary educational dis-
cipline was here secured in the excellent parochial schools of the
Lutheran church and supplemented by study in the public schools
and in the Fort Wayne Commercial College. At the age of fifteen
years he entered upon an apprenticeship at the plumbing trade, with
which he was thus identified for a period of four years, after which
he passed four years in a clerical incumbency in the local offices of
the Lake Shore Railroad. Thereafter he held for the long inter-
val of fifteen years a responsible position with the Horton Manu-
facturing Company, extensive manufacturers of washing machines,
in Fort Wayne, having been superintendent, bookkeeper and gen-
eral office man. After retiring from this incumbency Mr. Etzold
was for two years engaged in the manufacturing of washing ma-
chines on his own responsibility, and he continued to be concerned
with local business interests until the general election in November,
1904, when he was elected to his present position as assessor of
Wayne township, being the only Republican ever elected to that
office in Fort Wayne, a circumstance which shows that he not only
profited by the general Republican landslide, but also that his per-
sonal popularity in his home city and county is of no uncertain order,
and that his eligibility was recognized in the premises. He has
entire charge of the assessment work of his important jurisdiction,
and during the busy season in the office work employment is afforded
to a corps of about twenty assistants. Our subject speaks both the
German and English languages with equal facility, having received
thorough educational training in both, while it may be said that
the former is his ancestral tongue and the latter his native. He
has ever given his unequivocal allegiance to the Republican party
and has been an active worker in its cause in a local sense, and his
religious faith is that of the Lutheran church, in which he was
reared, both he and his wife being prominent members of Emanuel
church, on Jefferson street, Fort Wayne.
On the 31st of October, 1894, was solemnized the marriage of
Mr. Etzold to Miss Flora Frances Berlin, who was bom and reared
in Fort Wayne, being a daughter of Henry J. Berlin. Of the four
children of this union only one is living, Howard Henry, who was
bom on March 5, 1897.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 413
AUGUST W. REILING.
For more than six years the subject of this sketch has been in-
cumbent of the important office of chief engineer of the Allen county
public institutions, including the magnificent court house, the jail,
power house, orphans' home and infirmary, while he is most amph
qualified for the technical and executive duties which devolve upon
him, as he is a thoroughly schooled and practical mechanician and
has had a wide experience in connection with business affairs of im-
portance nature.
Mr. Reiling is a native son of Fort Wayne, in which city, which
was then scarcely more than a village, he was born on the 15th of
August, 1855. While he has traveled extensively and has had tem-
porary abiding place in many different sections of the Union, he
has never faltered in his loyalty to his native city, which he has
ever called his home. He is a son of August and Lena Reiling,
both of whom were born and reared in Germany, whence they came
to America after marriage, settling in Fort Wayne in an early
day. They made the voyage across the Atlantic in a sailing vessel
and from New York made their way westward by way of the Great
Lakes to Toledo, and thence by the old canal to Fort Wayne. Au-
gust Reiling was a skilled mechanic, having a certificate from the
German government attesting to his efficiency. After locating in
Fort Wayne he followed the blacksmithing business, in connection
with the making and repairing of fine machinery, while he gained
a reputation as being one of the best mechanics in the city, where
he gained a wide circle of friends in both a business and social way,
continuing to reside here until his death, which was the result of
an accident, as he was killed in December, 1892, by a severe fall,
having been about sixty-two years of age at the time of his demise.
His loved and devoted wife preceded him into eternal rest by many
414 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
years, having passed away in 1861, when the subject of this sketch
was but six years of age. In the family were five sons and one
daughter, and the only sunnvor is he whose name introduces this
article.
August W. Reiling was reared to maturity in Fort Wayne, and
here secured his early educational discipline in the parochial schools
of the German Lutheran church, of which his parents were devoted
members, while later he attended the public schools. He early be-
gan an apprenticeship under the effective and careful direction of his
honored father, with whom he remained associated until he had at-
tained his legal majority, while his training in the connection was
such that he has been able to well uphold the prestige of the name
in connection with higher mechanics. At the age of twenty-one
years Mr. Reiling entered the employ of the Kerr-Murray Manu-
facturing Company, of Fort Wayne, and in the shops of this con-
cern manufactured three hundred and eighty-seven prison locks for
use in the state penitentiary at Michigan City, where he was em-
ployed for two months in instilling the new equipment. His eyes
finally became seriously affected from the effect of the grinding brass
on emery wheels, the minute particles causing great inflammation
and impairing the sight. He was thus compelled to change occu-
pation for a time at least, and thus entered the employ of the Penn-
sylvania Railroad Company, with which he remained two years,
after which he returned to the shops of the Kerr-Murray Manu-
facturing Company, for which concern he subsequently went out
as erecting engineer, having charge of the installing of gas plants
and apparatus arid being employed in this capacity for three and
one-half years. He then engaged with the Jenney Electric Light
Company, of Fort Wayne, in whose interests he traveled extensively,
visiting the principal cities of the Union. Thereafter he was for
nine years employed in the city of Utica, New York, and for two
years had charge of the municipal electric plant in New Orleans,
Louisiana. In 1897 he retired from his official position in connec-
tion with the electric plant in Utica, New York, being given the
highest testimonials for efficiency and fidelity, and he then repre-
sented the Fort Wayne Electric Company as road salesman for about
nine months. In 1898 the board of commissioners of Allen county
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 415
appointed him to his present responsible position as chief engineer
of the court house, power house, jail, oiphans' home and infirmary,
and he has ever since remained incumbent, by successive reappoint-
ments, a fact testifying fully to the appreciative estimate placed upon
his services, both technically and in an administrative capacity.
About eight assistants are employed under his direction, and he has
the general supervision of the entire heating, lighting and water
plants in each of the public institutions mentioned. Mr. Reiling
has a wide circle of friends in his native city and county, and en-
joys unqualified esteem wherever he is known. He is a vigorous
supporter of the principles of the Democratic party, but has never
sought political office. In a fraternal way we find him identified
with the Royal Arcanum, while his religious views are in harmony
with the tenets of the Lutheran church, in whose faith he was reared.
In the year 1879 Mr. Reiling was united in marriage to Miss
Catherine Futerknect, who was born and reared in Fort Wayne, and
of this union have been born six children, all of whom are living
except one : Ferdinand is engineer in the power house of the court
house, under the direction of his father; William is a machinist and
is employed in the great oil-tank works of S. F. Bowser & Com-
pany, in Fort Wayne; Herbert is employed in a machine shop in
the city of Chicago ; Edward died from an attack of diphtheria when
twelve years of age, and his twin sister, Loretta, remains at the pa-
rental home, as does also Dora, the youngest of the children.
4i6 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
ALFRED D. CRESSLER.
One of the leading and most widely known industries of Fort
AVayne is the Kerr Murray Manufacturing Company, manufactur-
ers of gas works machinery and gas holders, and the success of the
enterprise is in a great measure due to the untiring efforts and busi-
ness sagacity of Mr. A. D. Cressler. Mr. Cressler was born at
Lucas, Ohio, in 185 1, and is the son of George Holloway and
Nancy (Miller) Cressler. His father, who was a prominent and
successful railroad contractor, was born in Cumberland county,
Pennsylvania, where the family has lived since 1731. Alfred D.
Cressler secured his elementary education in the public schools, and
subsequently attended Eastman Academy, at Poughkeepsie, New
York, where he graduated in 1870. The same year he came to
Fort Wayne and entered not long after the employ of the Kerr
Murray Foundry and Machine Works. Because of his energy,
ability and integrity he gained the confidence and good will of his
employer, taking an active part in the affairs of the concern, and
becoming eventually general manager. In 1880, upon the death
of Mr. Kerr Murray, Mr. Cressler was made administrator of the
estate, and when in 188 1 the firm was incorporated under the name
of the Kerr Murray Manufacturing Company, Mr. Cressler was
chosen its president and has sei*ved in this capacity since that time,
acting both as executive and chief engineer. Under his direction
the business of the firm has steadily increased, and its record has
been one of unbroken prosperity. Mr. Cressler has made an especial
study of apparatus for the manufacture and storage of illuminating
gas and has been granted a number of patents for improvements
and new inventions in the field of gas engineering. An installation
of local interest is the seven hundred and fifty thousand cubic feet
capacity gas holder, designed and erected by his company during
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 417
the year 1905 at the plant of the Ft. Wayne Gas Company. He is a
stockholder in several gas companies, but in general confines his in-
terests and attention to the Kerr Murray Manufacturing Company.
He is a member of the American Gas Light Association and the
Western Gas Association.
In 1874 Mr. Cressler was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth
Esther Murray, the daughter of Kerr and Jane (Scott) Murray, of
Fort Wayne, and to them have been bom three sons, Alfred Miller,
George Holloway and Kerr Murray, all of whom have graduated at
Yale and are now associated with their father in business. In poli-
tics Mr. Cressler is a Republican and in religion a Presbyterian, be-
longing to the First Church of that denomination at Fort Wayne.
His sterling integrity and splendid personal qualities have gained
for Mr. Cressler the trust and liking of all who know him.
\
27
4i8 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
KERR MURRAY.
Few men of Allen county were as widely and favorably known
as the late Kerr Murray. He was one of the strong and influential
citizens of Fort Wayne who, while advancing his own individual
success, also largely promoted the material welfare of the com-
munity. A man of keen perception and tireless energy, he was en-
abled to successfully plan and carry out large enterprises and to him
is Fort Wayne today indebted in no slight degree for its remark-
able prosperity and for its reputation at home and abroad as an in-
dustrial center.
Mr. Murray was born in 1822 at Lanton, near Kelso, Scotland,
and was the son of William and Esther (Scott) Murray. Mr. Mur-
ray received his technical educati'on and training in his native land,
and in the early '50s he came to America, living for a time in Buf-
falo, New York. In 1854 he came to Fort Wayne and, in partner-
ship with Hugh Bennigan, started the Kerr Murray Foundry and
Machine Works. Particular attention was given to the manufac-
ture of apparatus for making and storing illuminating gas, Mr. Mur-
ray having gained recognition as an authority on this subject. The
business grew steadily and rapidly and the company handled suc-
cessfully many large contracts, installing, under Mr. Murray's di-
rection, gas plants in a large number of cities, including the exten-
sions to the Fort Wayne Gas Company's equipment made in 1868
and in 1876. The early success of the enterprise was due mainly to
Mr. Murray's foresight and sound business judgment, as well as to
his intimate knowledge of every detail of the mechanical features
of the business. He was an early member of the Amer-
ican Gas Light Association, and was a director of the
St. Thomas Gas Company, St. Thomas, Ontario, of the Ottawa
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 419
Gas Light Company, Ottawa, Illinois, and of the Columbia Gas
Company, Columbia, Missouri.
Mr. Murray was married to Miss Jane Scott, of Dalkeith, Scot-
land, and to them was born one daughter, Elizabeth Esther, who in
1874 became the wife of A. D. Cressler, of Fort Wayne, now the
head of the Kerr Murray Manufacturing Company. In politics Mr.
Murray was a Republican, and his religious affiliation was with the
First Presbyterian church of Fort Wayne. Mr. Murray died in
Fort Wayne on the 6th of May, 1880.
I
\
420 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
CHARLES C. F. NIESCHANG, M. D.
Of high professional and academic attainments and known as
one of the representative physicians and surgeons of the city of Fort
Wayne, where he has been actively engaged in practice for the past
score of years, it is incumbent that consideration be accorded Dr.
Nieschang in a publication of the province assigned to the one at
hand, since here is it aimed to make proper mention of those who
stand prominent in the various fields of human activity as per-
taining to Allen county and as complementing the generic history
touching the civic, political and industrial fabric of this portion of
our national commonwealth.
Charles C. Fremont Nieschang was born in the fair city of De-
troit, Michigan, on the 24th of September, i860, and is a son of Dr.
Frederick and Charlotte (Pedro) Nieschang, the former of whom
was born in Switzerland and the latter in France. The father of
the subject was educated for the medical profession in his native
land, and there his marriage was solemnized, while about the year
1850 he came with his wife and children to America and located
in the city of Detroit, where he engaged in the active practice of his
profession, in which he continued to labor with much success until
his death, which occurred in 186 1. He was a man of high intel-
lectuality and of marked ability in his profession, while his integrity
of character commended him to the confidence and good will of all
with whom he came in contact in the various relations of life. His
devoted wife was summoned into eternal rest in 1875, so that the
subject of this sketch was but fifteen years of age when he became
doubly orphaned. Of the four children bom to Dr. Frederick and
Charlotte (Pedro) Nieschang we record that Louis Napoleon was
for many years a member of the United States army, from which
he recently retired ; Arnold Hugo was a master mechanic and was
killed in a railroad accident in France in early manhood; Emil Her-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 421
man is a successful mining engineer in the west; and Charles C.
F., subject of this review, is the youngest of the four children.
After the death of his father Dr. Nieschang's mother returned
to Switzerland, where he was reared from infancy to the age of
twelve years, when he came again to the United States, where his
mother died about three years later. He completed his more purely
literary education in the schools of -Cleveland, Ohio, and Pittsburg,
Pennsylvania, and thereafter began his prolonged course of dis-
criminating technical study in pharmacy, medicine and surgery,
along which lines he carefully prosecuted his studies in the cities of
Pittsburg, Chicago, New York and Fort Wayne, being graduated
in the Fort Wayne College of Medicine as a member of the class
of 1882, and receiving from this well known institution his degree
of Doctor of Medicine. He forthwith engaged in the practice of his
profession in Fort Wayne, and here has ever since maintained his
residence, while he has met with success in his chosen field of en-
deavor and gained prestige as one of the able and representative
physicians and surgeons of the county. He is a member of the
Allen County Medical Society and the American iiMedical Associa-
tion, while he is a close student of the sciences of medicine and
surgery and keeps in touch with the advances made in all depart-
ments of his profession. The Doctor is a man of genial person-
ality, and during his many years' residence in Fort Wayne he has
gathered about him a wide circle of loyal friends, in business, pro-
fessional and social circles, so that his lines are "cast in pleasant
places." He has a comprehensive and lucrative practice, princi-
pally of the office nature, and his finely equipped professional head-
quarters are located at No. 108 West Jefferson street.
In politics the Doctor is a stanch and uncompromising advocate
of the principles of the Republican party, and there is an element of
peculiar consistency in his political attitude, for he is named in honor
of the "grand old party's" first standard-bearer, General John C.
Fremont, who was a personal friend of his honored father. In a
fraternal way Dr. Nieschang is affiliated with the Royal Arcanum
and the Fraternal Order of Eagles, being medical examiner for the
local bodies of each. Though he takes a lively interest in public
affairs of a local nature and in the cause of his political party, he
has never sought official preferment of any description.
4.
422 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
HENRY G. FELGER.
An exemplification of the potentialities of comparative youth
is given in the honorable and successful career of this well known
native son of Allen county, where he is at the time of this writing
serving in the important office of county superintendent of public
schools and the while occupying a prominent position in the edu-
cational field in northern Indiana.
Mr, Felger was bom in Lake township, this county, on the 17th
of October, 1873, and is a son of David G. and Anna Felger, both
of whom were bom in the kingdom of Wurtemberg, Germany.
The father of the subject was a child of four years at the time of
his parents' immigration from the fatherland to America, and the
family came forthwith to Allen county and located on a farm in
Lake township, where he was reared to manhood and where he has
ever since maintained his home, being one of the prosperous farm-
ers and influential and honored citizens of that section of the county.
His marriage to Miss Anna was solemnized in the city
of Fort Wayne, she having come with other members of her family
to America in 1870, at the close of the Franco-Prussian war, in
which the family was represented. Mr. and Mrs. Felger became
the parents of nine children, of whom eight are living, while the
subject of this review is the eldest. Sophia is the wife of a Mr.
Ohneck, of Fort Wayne; Adolph, who is married and lives on one
of his father's farms in Lake township; David G., who is engaged
in teaching school in New Mexico; Otto is a resident of California;
Anna died at the age of twenty-one years; and Daniel, Rosa and
Lena remain at the parental home, the estate comprising two hun-
dred and thirty acres of fine land, while the improvements are of
excellent order, making the place one of the valuable and attractive
farms of the county.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 423
Henry G. Felger was reared to the sturdy discipline of the
home farm, while his early educational training was secured in the
public schools, after completing whose curriculum he entered the
normal department of the Northern Indiana Normal School and
Business College, at Valparaiso, after which he passed two years
in the Indiana State Normal School in the city of Terre Haute.
For eight years he followed the pedagogic profession as a vocation,
being employed principally in the schools of Lake and Adams town-
ships and proving peculiarly successful in his work, in which he
developed a mastering of expedients and showed that facility for
detail work, for initiative and organizing and systematizing that
have so signally contributed to his prestige and success in his pres-
ent responsible office. In June, 1903, from several most eligible
and popular candidates for the office, he was chosen to the office
of county superintendent of schools, receiving the appointment at
the hands of the board of school trustees of the county, to whom
is relegated the selection of the superintendent by the school laws of
the state. Mr. Felger entered upon the discharge of his official du-
ties on the loth of June, 1903, having been appointed for a term
of four years, and his course has been such as to gain to him un-
qualified indorsement both official and popular, while his enthusiasm
and unfailing energy are doing much to further the cause of edu-
cation in his jurisdiction. He has the power of infusing his en-
thusiasm in others, and thus secures the hearty co-operation of
the teachers, while as an executive and administrative officer he is
specially well placed, so that his official regime is one which will
pass to record as one of distinct accomplishment and effective work
in all departments of the public-school system of his native county.
In addition to the handling of the general office details devolving
upon him Mr. Felger has the supervision of the various teachers'
examinations in the county and has one himdred and ninety schools
in his jurisdiction. He has charge of the selection of all school
text books and acts as adviser to the school officers and teachers,
and it is thus superficially evident that the demands upon his time
and attention are exacting. Concerning the subject of this review
one who has watched his progress in the past few years has given
the following appreciative estimate of his character and services:
k
424 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
"Mr. Felger is a young man who has already laid a stanch founda-
tion for a life of much usefulness, while his prospects for advance-
ment along the lines of his chosen profession are exceptionally
bright. As a public official he is prompt and obliging, while he is
well versed in the principles of the law as pertaining to the diversified
interests of the public schools, and is firm and courageous in the
denial of special privileges, yet just and considerate in official dis-
crimination." In politics Mr. Felger gives a stalwart allegiance
to the Democratic party, and he takes a lively interest in the ques-
tions and issues of the hour, while he is known as a young man of
scholarly attainments and as one whose life is distinctly loyal, up-
right and purposeful. He is a member of the Evangelical Lutheran
church, in whose faith he was reared.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 425
WILLIAM A. JOHNSON.
At this juncture we enter brief record concerning the able and
popular clerk of the circuit court of Allen county, and one who
stands as a scion of one of the honored families of this section of
the state, where he has passed his entire life.
Mr. Johnson was born on the homestead farm, in Eel River town-
ship, Allen county, Indiana, on the 12th of February, 1869, and is
a son of Nathan and Mary E. (Gump) Johnson, both of whom were
born in Knox county, Ohio, while their marriage was solemnized in
Eel River township, where the respective families located in an
early day. The father of our subject is one of the substantial and
influential members of the farming community of the township
mentioned, and has long been influential in public affairs of a local
nature, commanding unqualified confidence and esteem. He has
served as township trustee and assessor and been accorded other
marks of popular regard. He purchased his present farm in 1870,
and, with the aid of his sons, has improved the place and made
it one of the attractive and valuable rural domains of the county.
Of the four children in the family we enter brief record, as follows :
Lucretia is the wife of Lorain W. Dugday, of Churubucso, Whit-
ley county; George C. is engaged in farming in Eel River town-
ship; William A. is the immediate subject of this sketch; and Simon
H. is employed by the Wabash Railroad Company, in Fort Wayne,
all of the children being married and well established in life.
William A. Johnson was reared under the grateful influences of
the old homestead farm, in Eel River township, and in the public
schools of the locality he secured his preliminary educational dis-
cipline, which he supplemented by a course of study in the high
school at Churubusco, in the adjoining county of Whitley, where
he was graduated as a member of the class of 189 1. Thereafter
Mr. Johnson gave evidence that he had made proper use of the ad-
426 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
vantages offered him, since he became a most successful and pop-
ular teacher in the schools of his native township, where he taught
for eleven terms, seven of which found him retained as instructor
in his home district. In 1894 he was elected trustee of Eel River
township, remaining incumbent of this office until igoo and gain-
ing unqualified commendation for his able and effective services in
the connection. The result of the election was a tie vote on the
office of trustee, the canvassing board being compelled to decide
the matter by lot and the result being that our subject won the
office. In 1902 Mr. Johnson was candidate on the Democratic
ticket for the office of clerk of the Allen circuit court, and in the
election of November of that year he was accorded a gratifying
majority at the polls, while he entered upon the duties of his office
on the I St of January, 1903. He has fully demonstrated the wis-
dom of the choice made in calling him to this important and exact-
ing office, and is handling the manifold details with consummate
discrimination, while in the various departments of the work he
finds it necessary to retain a total of five deputies. He was elected
for a term of four years. Mr. Johnson is one of the leaders of the
"young Democracy" in Allen county, and his enthusiasm and ef-
fective work in the party cause have made him an influential fac-
tor in the local councils of his party. He served for a number of
years as a member of the Democratic committee of Eel River town-
ship, and did active service during the various campaigns. In a
fraternal way he is identified with the Masonic order, the Knights
of Pythias and the Pathfinders, the last mentioned being an insur-
ance order. It may be said that the Johnson family traces its line-
age back to stanch Scotch-Irish stock and that the name has been
identified with the annals of American history ever since the co-
lonial era. In the maternal line the genealogy of our subject is
of stanch German origin.
In the year 1892 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Johnson
to Miss Eva Parks, who was born and reared in Eel River town-
ship, this county, being a daughter of Joseph and Mary (Brown)
Parks, honored residents of the county, Mr, Parks being a promi-
nent farmer of the township mentioned. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson
have eight children, namely: Edith M., Blanche, Herman, Gladys,
Arthur, Mary, Ronald and an infant.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 427
GEORGE L. ASHLEY.
The life and career of the present efficient and popular recorder
of Allen county constitute a practical illustration of the truth of the
statement made by Shakespeare, when he said : "The purest treas
ure mortal times afford is spotless reputation; that away, men are
but gilded loam or painted clay." Through self-discipline and right
living Mr. Ashley has gained and retained the confidence and good
will of the people of this, his native, county, and a distinctive
evidence of this popular esteem was given in his election to his
present important office, in November, 1904.
George L. Ashley was born in Maumee township, this county,
on the 2d of February, 1854, and is a son of George H. and Esther
A. (Lenzey) Ashley, both of whom were born in the state of New
York. The former was born in Genesee county, that state, on the
ist of June, 18 14, and the latter was born in the city of New York,
on the 28th of January, 1815, while their marriage was solemnized
in Greene county, New York, on the i8th of Januaiy, 1837. A
few months later the young couple came to Indiana and numbered
themselves among the pioneer settlers in Allen county, where they
made their advent on the ist of June of the year mentioned. They
first located in Washington township, when they later removed to
Maumee township, where they continued to abide until 1865, when
they removed to St. Joseph township, where the father died on the
7th of August, 1868, having been the owner of a good farm prop-
erty at the time of his demise and having devoted his attention al-
most entirely to agricultural pursuits after coming to Indiana, while
he reclaimed a large amount of wild land to cultivation during the
early years of his residence in Allen county, on the roll of whose
worthy and honored pioneers his name merits a place of distinc-
tion. On the same homestead which was his place of abode at the
428 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
time of death his devoted wife continued to reside until she too
was summoned to the ''undiscovered country from whose bourne no
traveler returns," her death occurring on the i8th of February,
1879. They became the parents of seven children, of whom three
died in infancy or early childhood, while of the four still living
we record that Elizabeth M. is the widow of Rev. James Green,
who was a member of the clergy of the Methodist Episcopal church,
and she now resides in the city of Muncie, Indiana; Sarah is the
wife of Nathan Doctor and they reside on the old homestead of hef
parents in Maumee township; George L. is the immediate subject
of this review; and Theodore H. is a representative farmer of St.
Joseph township. In politics the father was originally a Whig,
supporting the principles of this party until the organization of
the Republican party, when he transferred his allegiance to the same
and gave it his adherency during the remaining years of his life.
Both he and his wife Avere devoted and valued members of the
Methodist Episcopal church.
George L. Ashley, the popular county recorder, was reared un-
der the invigorating discipline of the home farm and secured his
early educational training in the district schools of his native county,
after which he completed a three-years course in the Methodist
College. After leaving school Mr. Ashley continued *to be actively
concerned in agricultural pursuits, in St. Joseph township, until
1889, when he located in the city of Fort Wayne and secured a
position as mail carrier in connection with the local postoffice serv-
ice, whije for a period of twelve years he also conducted a success-
ful dairy business, having a well equipped dairy farm in St. Jo-
seph township. Mr. Ashley has ever been an active and zealous
worker in the ranks of the Republican party, and has richly mer-
ited the recognition which came to him in the genei'al election in
November, 1904, when he was elected to the office of county re-
corder, by a gratifying majority, while his personal popularity in the
community is well attested in the fact that he has the distinction of
being the first Republican ever elected recorder of Allen county. In
the handling of the manifold details of his office he has four com-
petent assistants, all of whom assumed their new duties simul-
taneously with his induction into office with the exception of one.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 429
Mr. Ashley was reared in the faith of the Methodist Episcopal
church, and has never wavered in his hold to the same, being a
valued member of the Wayne Street church of this denomination.
In a fraternal way he is affiliated witli Wayne Lodge, No. 25, Free
and Accepted Masons ; Fort Wayne Chapter, No. 19, Royal Arch Ma-
sons; Maumee Lodge, No. 50, Ancient Order of United Workmen,
of which he is past master workman at the time of this writing;
and with the Tribe of Ben Hur, of which he is past chief,
the Court of Honor, and the Modern Woodmen of America, Ed-
wards Camp, of Fort Wayne.
Concerning the five children of Mr. Ashley we enter the follow-
ing brief data : Charles is deputy county recorder and is thus an
able assistant to his father; Olive is the wife of Arthur J. Smith,
of Fort Wayne; and Oscar J., George S. and Marguerite remain
at the paternal home.
430 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JOHN L. GILLIE.
The subject of this review may well take pride in tracing- his
lineage back through many generations of sturdy Scotch forbears,
while he is personally a native of the land of hills and heather and
manifests the sterling characteristics of the true Scotchman. He is
a successful dairy farmer of Washington township, where he has
been engaged in this line of enterprise since 1891, finding a ready
demand for his products in the city of Fort Wayne and being known
as a reliable and progressive business man.
Mr. Gillie was bom and reared in Berwickshire, Scotland, the
date of his nativity having been May 12, 1852, while he is a son
of George and Lillian J. (Lillie) Gillie, both of whom passed their
entire lives in Scotland, the father having been a farmer by voca-
tion. The subject was reared on the home farm and secured a
good common-school education in the schools of his native land,
where he remained until 1874. when he immigrated to America
and located in the province of Ontario, Canada, taking up govern-
ment land, and there continuing to make his home for the ensuing
seven years, at the expiration of which, in 1891, he came to Allen
county, Indiana, and located on his present farm, which is owned
by his uncle, James Lille, from whom he rents the property, which
comprises one hundred and fifty-five acres of most productive land
and which is well improved. Since taking up his residence on the
place Mr. Gillie has erected a fine modern barn, forty by sixty feet
in dimensions, while he keeps the place up to the highest standard
in all particulars, so that there is abundant evidence of thrift and
prosperity.
Mr. Gillie devotes a portion of his land to general farming, but
makes a specialty of the dairying business, in which connection he
keeps about thirty milch cows, while he has the best of facilities for
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 431
carrying on the enterprise successfully and for insuring sanitation
and absolute cleanliness in all details. He runs a milk wagon and
has built up a representative business in Fort Wayne, from which his
farm is two miles distant. In politics Mr. Gillie is a stanch Re-
publican, and his religious faith is that of the Presbyterian church.
In the year 1876 Mr. Gillie was united in marriage to Miss
Jennie Douglas, who was born and reared in Scotland, being a
daughter of Andrew and Janet (Hunter) Douglas. Mr. and Mrs.
Gillie have had fifteen children, of whom thirteen are living, namely :
George, Jessie, James, Jane, Andrew, John, Lizzie, Maggie, Alex-
ander, Belle, William, David, Ralph.
432 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
CHRISTIAN F. PFEIFFER.
Among those whose lives and labors have conferred honor and
distinction to the history of the city of Fort Wayne and to Allen
county is the venerable pioneer whose name appears above. He came
to Fort Wayne in 1838, and was most conspicuously identified with
the commercial and industrial, as well as civic, advancement of this
section, where he continued to make his home for many years, finally
removing to the city of Buffalo, New York, where he has since
resided. Fort Wayne, however, has not lost her claim upon this
honored citizen, who has many and important interests here, and
it is with a feeling of marked satisfaction that we present in this
compilation a review of his career.
Christian Frederick Pfeiffer was bom in the famed old city of
Stuttgart, Wurtemberg, Germany, where he made his debut in the
drama of life on the 17th of April, 1824. In his native city he was
reared to the age of eight years, and then, in 1832, he accompanied
his parents on their immigration to America, the family settling
on a farm within the present city limits of Buffalo, New York, the
old homestead having been on what is now Hertel avenue, near
Delaware avenue. In the public schools of Buffalo our subject
secured his further educational training, and in old St. John's
Lutheran church, in Hickory street, that city, he was confirmed in
1836, at the age of twelve years, while it may be said with all
of consistency that he has exemplified in all the relations of his
signally active and useful life his tenacious hold to and practical
observance of the tenets of the faith which he thus early took to him-
self, while it has in an exceptional measure guided and dominated
his life. At the age of fourteen years Mr. Pfeiffer severed the
grateful ties which bound him to his home and set forth for the
west, with Fort Wayne as his destination. He came hither for the
Qj> '
^? yj£..jf^
I
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 433
purpose of learning the shoemaker's trade under the direction of his
brother-in-law, Mr. Nill, and thus he was not placed entirely among
strangers on his arrival in what was then but a small village. He
came by way of sailing vessels on the Great Lakes to Toledo, from
which point he found it necessary to make his way on foot to his
destination in Fort Wayne, a distance of about one hundred miles, —
through the beautiful Maumee basin, to whose history this work is
devoted. At the time of his making this memorable trip so many
of the settlers along the route were afflicted with malarial fever, the
bane of the early days, that he found much difficulty in securing
needed food and shelter. In 1840 Mr. Pfeiffer's parents came to Fort
Wayne, and with them he settled on a pioneer farm just north of
the embryonic city, where the honored parents passed the remainder
of their lives, being held in the highest esteem by all who knew them.
It is interesting to record in the connection that Mr. Pfeiffer still re-
tains this old homestead in his possession, his son Joseph C. ha\4ng
the management and general supervision of the same, said son being
one of Fort Wayne's representative business men. While actively
identified with the operation of this farm Mr. Pfeiffer also mani-
fested in a significant way his initiative power and sound business
judgment, by turning his attention to other lines of enterprise. Thus,
we find him engaged successfully in the dairy and stock business,
while during the period of the Civil war he made large profits through
his operations in handling government army mules, as well as horses
and cattle, in this way practically laying the foundation for his ample
fortune, which has largely been accumulated through the live-stock
business. Aside from ventures along the lines noted Mr. Pfeiffer
also built the first plank roads in Allen county, the same being
known as the Goshen and Lima roads, and recalls most vividly his
first trip to Fort Wayne, when the Lima road extended only to Spy
Run, while the Indians were wont to come in on horseback from the
southwest, from a small village called Raccoon, thirteen miles distant
from Fort Wayne, while the aborigines on these trips brought with
them game of all descriptions, including venison, bear, wild turkeys,
etc., together with furs and pelts, for which they found a market in
Fort Wajme, which was the principal trading post of this section.
The court house at that time was a log structure of primitive type and
28
434 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
stood on Clinton street, the postoffice being located in the same
building, while the county jail was another log building, on the site
of the present court house. Our subject incidentally recalls the fact
that the site of the present fine Hamilton Bank building, in the very
heart of the city's business district, at that time served as a prolific
potato patch.
It may be said that Mr. Pfeiffer's rise in connection with the in-
dustrial progress of this section kept pace with, and undoubtedly
accelerated, the material and civic upbuilding of the present fair city
of Fort Wayne, in whose fortune he has ever maintained a lively in-
terest. He was one of the original promoters of the stock yards in
this place, and was, in fact, the first shipper of live stock over the
line of the Pittsburg & Fort Wayne Railroad from this point, early
becoming prominent in connection with this important line of en-
terprise, which has engrossed so much of his time and attention.
About 1868 he formed a partnership in the live-stock commission
business with William Holmes, under the firm name of Pfeiffer &
Holmes, and they established a branch house in the city of Pittsburg,
Pennsylvania. In 1873 he removed with his family to Buffalo, New
York, where he has since maintained his home and where he engaged
in the live-stock commission trade under his own name, in the mean-
while retaining his large interests in Fort Wayne. SomewhRt later
he became associated in the business in Buffalo with Joseph C. and
Millard F. Windsor, under the title of Pfeiffer & Windsor Brothers,
and under this name operations were actively carried on until April
6, 190 1, the business in the meanwhile growing to one of great mag-
nitude and importance. This firm was one of the foremost doing
business at the East Buffalo stock yards, there having been only four
other concerns there engaged in the same line of business at the time
when the firm entered the field, while at the present time about
twenty-five commission houses are there represented. At the time
of the dissolution of the firm, on the date above mentioned, Mr.
Pfeiffer entered into partnership with two of sons, Harry and
Stephen, under the title of C. F. Pfeiffer & Sons, and this firm has
since actively continued the business established so many years ago
by the able and honored head of the concern, who has been identified
with the commission business for more than half a century and whose
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 435
name is well known in connection with the live-stock trade through-
out the Union, while he is known as one of the most prominent and
successful stock men of Buffalo and Fort Wayne.
On the 2d of April, 1859, was solemnized the marriage of Mr.
Pfeiffer to Miss Charlotte Rudisill Edwards, daughter of Joseph G.
Edwards, a member of one of the oldest and most influential families
of Fort Wayne, and to them have been bom the following children :
Henry W., of Buffalo, New York, a partner with his father; Amelia
R., at home with her parents; Charlotte E., at home; Stephen F., a
partner with his father; Anna E., wife of Charles Rogers, of Buffalo,
New York: Joseph C, of Fort Wayne; Eliza C, at home; Frederick
L. died in 1893, at the age of sixteen years; Florence E., at home.
Mr. Pfeiffer has always been a Republican, but has never taken a
very active part in public affairs. Since residing in Buffalo he has
given substantial support to a number of meritorious public enter-
prises. His religious affiliation is with the English Lutheran church,
and while a resident of Fort Wayne he was a liberal giver to the
church of that denomination here.
Our honored subject has been in a significant sense the architect
of his own fortunes, and while he has been an aggressive and success-
ful business man he has been in no way unmindful of the higher
duties of citizenship, has been true in his stewardship as prosperity
has crowned his efforts and has shown a loyal interest in all that
makes for the well-being of the communities in which he has lived
and labored, while he has so directed his course as to command at
all times the unequivocal confidence and regard of his fellow men.
His name merits an enduring place on the roll of Fort Wayne's
honored pioneers and influential citizens and business men.
436 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JOSEPH L. GRUBER.
A member of one of the pioneer families of Allen county is this
well known business man of Fort Wayne, while it was his to render
valiant service as a member of an Indiana regiment during the war
of the Rebellion, after which he was for many years identified with
the railroading business, with headquarters in Fort Wayne, where
his friends are in number as his acquaintances. He is at the present
time a member of the firm of J. H. Stellman & Company, dealers
in hardware and tinware, at No. 2060 Fairfield avenue.
Mr. Gruber was born on the old homestead farm, near Mays-
ville, Springfield township, this county, on the 27th of October,
1843, 3.nd is a son of Henry and Leah (Metzger) Gruber, both of
whom were born and reared in Pennsylvania, being members of
families early settled in the old Keystone state, while the lineage
of each traced back to stanch German stock. They came to Indiana
in 1 83 1, and became numbered among the first settlers of Spring-
field township, Allen county, where the father secured a tract of
wild and heavily timbered land, from which he developed a good
farm, while he was a citizen of worth and prominence in his com-
munity, commanding the respect of all who knew him. His death
occurred on the 17th of July, 18S6, and his vvidow was summoned
into eternal rest on the 2 2d of February, 1899, both having been
consistent members of the English Lutheran church. They became
the parents of eight children, of whom five are living.
Joseph L. Gruber passed his boyhood days on the home farm,
and in the common schools of the locality was secured his early
educational training. He later entered the Capital University in
Columbus, Ohio, where he continued his studies until the outbreak
of the Civil war. His intrinsic patriotism was quickened to re-
sponsive protest, and in 1862, at the age of eighteen years, he gave
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 437
distinctive evidence of this by enlisting as a private in the Twenty-
third Indiana Light Artillery, with which he proceeded to the front,
and with which he continued in active service until the close of the
war. His battery served principally in the commands of Generals
Thomas and Schofield, and he participated in many of the notable
battles incidental to the great internecine conflict, the history of his
regiment offering the essential record of his military career. He
received his honorable discharge on the 4th of July, 1865, having
been mustered out at Indianapolis.
After the close of the war Mr. Gruber returned to Allen county,
and for the ensuing three years he devoted his attention to teaching
in the public schools. On the 17th of July, 1868, he entered the
employ of the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad, in the
capacity of brakeman, and one year later he received merited pro-
motion, being made freight conductor, while in January, 1869, he
was made a passenger conductor. In this capacity he rendered
most efficient service for the long period of twenty years and three
months, ever proving faithful to the responsibilities devolving upon
him and making an enviable record in the connection, while he
gained the high regard of his superior officers, of the various em-
ployees with whom he was associated, and of the general traveling
public with whom he came in contact in his official sphere. He re-
tired from the railroading business in 1890, and on the 5th of April
of that year he engaged in the hardware business in Fort Wayne,
opening a store on Calhoun street, where he successfully continued
operations for a period of seventeen years. He then sold out and
engaged in the same line of enterprise at his present location, 2010
Fairfield avenue, where he continued the business individually until
1903, when he entered into partnership with John H. Stellhom,
under the firm name of J. H. Stellhom & Company, which title has
since obtained, while the business controlled is one of representative
order, and the establishment one that is well equipped and well
stocked in all departments.
Mr. Gruber is essentially public-spirited in his attitude, and he
has taken an active interest in local affairs and been a zealous
worker in the ranks of the Republican party, of whose principles
and policies he is a stanch advocate. Mr. Gruber is an appreciative
I
438 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
affiliate of the time-honored order of Freemasonry, in which he has
attained the thirty-second degree of the Ancient Accepted Scottish
Rite. He is identified with Home Lodge, No. 342, Free and Ac-
cepted Masons; Fort Wayne Chapter, No. 19, Royal Arch Masons;
Fort Wayne Council, No. 4, Royal and Select Masters; Fort Wayne
Commandery, No. 4, Knights Templar; and with the various Scot-
tish Rite bodies, including the Indiana Consistory, Sublime Princes
of the Royal Secret. He and his wife are active and valued mem-
bers of the First Presbyterian church.
On the 27th of May, 187 1, Mr. Gruber was united in marriage
to Miss Emma J. Lowe, who was bom in Pennsylvania, being a
daughter of George and Mary Lowe, who came to Allen county in
an early day. Mr. and Mrs. Gruber have but one child. Bertha
May, who remains at the parental home.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 439
ALPHEUS P. BUCHMAN, M. D.
At this point we accord consideration to one of the most ad-
vanced and progressive representatives of the medical profession in
the city of Fort Wayne, where he has been actively engaged in the
practice of medicine and surgery for the past thirty years, being
known as a physician of high technical erudition and standing high
in the esteem of his professional confreres and in the confidence and
good will of the community in which he has so earnestly and ef-
fectively labored, while further we may state that his is the distinc-
tion of being a veteran of the war of the Rebellion.
Dr. Buchman is a representative of a family whose name has
been identified with the annals of American history ever since the
early colonial epoch, and his agnatic ancestry is traced back to
worthy pioneers who settled in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania,
in the year 1734, while the name has ever since been linked with the
civic and industrial activities of that section of the old Keystone
commonwealth, while members of the family in later generations
have gone forth from that locality to found homes in divers other
states of the Union. The Doctor was born in this ancestral county
of Westmoreland, Pennsylvania, on the 17th of November, 1844,
being a son of Henry and Mary (Whitehead) Buchman, both of
whom were born and reared in that county, where they continued
to reside until 1848, when they removed to Stark county, Ohio, the
subject of this review being four years of age at the time. In Ohio
the father turned his attention to farming, milling, lumber and iron
production, and both he and his devoted wife passed the remainder
of their lives in Stark county, honored by all who knew them. Of
their seven children five are living at the time of this writing. In
Stark county Dr. Buchman was reared to maturity, and in its com-
mon schools he secured his early educational discipline, after which
440 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
he entered Mount Union College, at Mount Union, Ohio, where he
was a student at the time when the dark cloud of civil war spread
its gruesome pall over the national firmament. The student body-
was roused to marked patriotic ardor as the great conflict pro-
gressed, with vai-ying fortunes, and in August, 1862, Dr. Buch-
man, who was then seventeen years of age, left the classroom to
tender his services in defense of the Union, enlisting as a private
in Company D, One Hundred and Seventh Ohio Volunteer Infan-
try, with which he proceeded to the front, the regiment being as-
signed to the Army of the Potomac, and with this command the
Doctor continued in service until victory crowned the Union arms
and the war ended. He received his honorable discharge at Cleve-
land, Ohio, in August, 1865. He participated in the battles of the
Wilderness and at Gettysburg, subsequently joining the Army of
the South, where there were constantly small engagements on the
islands adjacent to Charleston, South Carolina. From here they
went to Jacksonville, Florida, where almost daily raids were made
up the St. John's river, a sort of guerilla warfare being carried on
with wandering bands of the enemy.
After the close of his faithful and valorous military career Dr.
Buchman returned to his home in Ohio and soon afterward resumed
his studies in Mount Union College, where he finished the sophomore
year as a member of the class of 1867. Having determined to
adopt the medical profession he then initiated his technical training,
being finally matriculated in the Cincinnati College of Medicine and
Surgery, in 1868, graduating in 1870. He practiced for three years
at Trenton, Ohio, then came to Fort Wayne and entered upon the
general practice. He has been a member of the faculty of the
Medical College of Fort Wayne ever since its organization.
In politics Dr. Buchman has ever accorded a stanch allegiance
to the Republican party, having cast his first presidential vote for
Lincoln and having ever taken a loyal interest in the party cause.
He is affiliated with tlie following named Masonic bodies : Sol D.
Bayless Lodge, Scottish Rite and Knights Templar, and is one of
the valued comrades of the Grand Army of the Republic. His
practice is one of wide scope and distinctively representative char-
acter, and he holds the inviolate friendship and esteem of the many
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 441
families to whom he has ministered in the community, while he
keeps fully abreast of the advances made in all branches of his pro-
fession and is thus numbered among the leading physicians of the
northern part of the state.
On the 29th of December, 1870, was solemnized the marriage of
Dr. Buchman to Miss Dora Painter, who was reared and educated
in Stark county, Ohio, where her birth occurred. She is a daugh-
ter of Joseph and Sarah Ann Painter, both of whom are deceased.
They have one daughter, who has achieved some distinction in art.
442 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
FRANK FORTMEYER.
Among the leading dairymen supplying the people of the city
of Fort Wayne with the best of milk and cream the subject of this
sketch is numbered, and his well equipped dairy farm is located in
Washington township, the property being held by him under lease.
He has attained success of no indefinite order and is one of the
popular and progressive citizens and business men of the county.
Mr. Fortmeyer is a native of Hanover, Germany, where he was
born on the 17th of March, 1872, being a son of Frank and Clara
(Piper) Fortmeyer. The father was identified with agricultural
pursuits in his native province and was also engaged in the drug
business for a number of years, being a man of influence in his com-
munity. He continued to reside in the fatherland until his death,
which occurred in 1888, while his widow survives him still and is
now a resident of Allen county. The subject secured his early
educational training in the excellent national schools of his native
land, where he was reared to the age of sixteen years, when, in
1888, he came with his widowed mother and his brothers to Amer-
ica and settled in the city of Fort Wayne. Here he soon afterward
secured employment in railroad shops, following this Hne of work
for two years, at the expiration of which he went to the city of
Chicago, where he remained about nine years, including the period
of the Columbian exposition, in 1893. In the "Garden City" he se-
cured a clerical position in a leading dry-goods establishment and
eventually rose to the position of assistant manager in the Boston
store, one of the leading department concerns of the great western
metropolis. After holding this important and responsible position
about four years, Mr. Fortmeyer found his health so impaired by
the close confinement that he was compelled to resign and seek a
change of vocation. He accordingly returned to Allen county and
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 443
here he soon effected the lease of his present fine farm, for a term
of five years, this being in 190 1. The farm comprises one hundred
and sixty acres, of which about eighty acres are available for culti-
vation, the remainder being timber and pasture land. The agri-
cultural products of the place he largely utilizes for feeding his
stock, for he gives his attention principally to the dairy business, in
which he has met with most gratifying success, controlling a large
and representative trade on his milk routes in the city, from which
his farm is three and a half miles distant. His milch cows are of
the best type, being a cross of the Durham and Jersey breeds, and
his herd averages about forty head. The most punctilious care is
utilized in maintaining cleanliness and perfect sanitation, and this
fact, in connection with the fine quality of the products, has gained
to the dairy a high reputation and the subject has not been able to
supply the demands placed upon him in the connection. His thor-
ough business experience in a great metropolitan establishment makes
him fully appreciative of the value of system and close application,
and thus he utilizes this knowledge eff'ectively and by his pro-
gressive methods has made his enterprise a noteworthy success in
every particular.
In politics Mr. Fortmeyer is a stanch supporter of the principles
and policies of the Republican party, and he takes a lively interest in
public affairs of a local nature, though he has never sought the
honors or emoluments of political office of any description. Both
he and his wife are members of the German Lutheran church.
In the year 1891 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Fortmeyer
to Miss Anna Kuehnert, daughter of August and Augustina
Kuehnert, of Fort Wayne, and of this union have been born two
fine sons, August and Otto.
444 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
CHRISTIAN PRANGE.
Numbered among the successful, progressive and honored farm-
ers of Washington township is Mr. Prange, who resides on the old
homestead which was purchased by his father more than half a
century ago. The subject is a native son of Allen county and here
his entire life thus far has been passed, while it is largely due to his
own efforts that he has attained independence and unequivocal pros-
perity, while those who have known him from his childhood days
accord to him a full measure of confidence and esteem, — the best
evidence that his life has been one of integrity and usefulness.
Mr. Prange was bom on his present farmstead, on the 14th of
June, 1869, and is the youngest of the six children of Qiarles and
Sophia (Brinkman) Prange, both of whom were born in Germany,
whence they came to America when young. The father of the sub-
ject was sixteen years of age at the time of his arrival in the United
States, and he soon came to Allen county, where he was for a time
employed in running a canal boat and then turned his attention to
agricultural pursuits, eventually purchasing the farm now owned
by the subject, and here continuing to reside until his death, which
occurred in 1897, while his cherished and devoted wife was sum-
moned into eternal rest in 1904. Both were consistent members of
the German Lutheran church, and in politics Mr. Prange was a
stanch Democrat. He was a man of inflexible integrity of char-
acter, was sincere, earnest and honest in all the relations of life;
was a hard worker from his youth up and ever merited the high
esteem in which he was held in the community which represented his
home during so many years.
Christian Prange, to whom this sketch is dedicated, passed his
boyhood days on the old homestead, in whose work he early began to
assist in a material way, while he duly availed himself of the ad-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 445
vantages afforded in the public schools of the locality. After
leaving school he continued to be associated in the work and man-
agement of the home farm, and eventually became the owner of the
same, purchasing the interests of the other heirs. He has eighty
acres of most arable land, and about forty-five acres are maintained
under a high state of cultivation, yielding excellent returns for the
labors expended. Mr. Prange gives his attention to diversified agri-
culture, and for several years he was engaged in the dairy business,
keeping an average herd of about twenty milch cows and building
up an excellent trade in supplying milk to the citizens of Fort Wayne.
He was most successful in this department of his enterprise, but
found it finally expedient to abandon the same, and he has since de-
voted his attention to general fanning and to the raising of stock
of excellent grade. He has made many excellent improvements on
his fann, and the same gives unmistakable evidence of the ability
and enterprise of its owner. In politics Mr, Prange gives his al-
legiance to the Democratic party, but he has never sought or de-
sired official preferment. His religious views are those of the Ger-
man Lutheran church, in whose faith he was reared.
In the year 1898 Mr, Prange was united in marriage to Miss
Elizabeth Prange, who likewise was bom and reared in Allen county,
being a daughter of Hervey Prange.
446 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
THEOBALD HOFER.
In the subject of this sketch we have one of the sturdy and
loyal citizens whom the great empire of Germany has contributed
to the county of Allen, and here he has attained no small measure
of success in connection with industrial enterprises, having been
identified with farming operations and being at the present the man-
ager of the Bank Block in the city of Fort Wayne.
Mr. Hofer was bom in the most picturesque section of the Ger-
man empire, the place of his nativity being the Rheinpfalz, where
he was ushered into the world on the loth of August, 1856, being a
son of George and Mary E. Hofer, representatives of sterling Ger-
man ancestry. The subject of this sketch received his early educa-
tion in his native land, where he remained until he had attained the
age of twenty-seven years, when he came to America with his par-
ents, who located in Fort Wayne, where he was reared to maturity. In
1882 Mr. Hofer came to Allen county, where he has since main-
tained his home and where he has gained independence and pros-
perity through his own well directed efforts, in the meanwhile prov-
ing himself worthy of the confidence and esteem which are so
uniformly reposed in him. During the first four years of his resi-
dence in this county he had charge of a stock farm in Aboit town-
ship, the same being the property of S. Bash & Company, of Fort
Wayne, and upon retiring from this position he assumed his present
duties in charge of the Bank Block, one of the large and important
business buildings of the city, the same being located at the corner
of Main and Court streets in the city of Fort Wayne. His residence
property, comprising six acres, with a nice dwelling, is located in
Washington township, one and one-half miles distant from the
court house.
In politics Mr. Hofer maintains an independent attitude, sup-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 447
porting the men and measures which meet his approval, and his
rehgious views are indicated in the fact that both he and his wife
are members of the Reformed church.
The subject has been twice married. In 1884 he was united
in marriage to Miss Catherine Schug, daughter of Frederick Schug,
who was at the time a resident of Fort Wayne. Mrs. Hofer was
summoned into eternal rest in 1903 and the subject later wedded his
present wife, whose maiden name was Rosa Haupert. Five chil-
dren were born of the first marriage and all are living, their names
being here entered in the order of their birth : Hulda, William,
Adolph, Amelia and Esther.
448 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
MILO BEARD.
It is with distinctive gratification that we enter in this work a
tribute to the venerable and honored citizen whose name appears
above and who has been a resident of Allen county for two score of
years, while he is one of the representative farmers and influential
citizens of Wayne township.
Mr. Beard claims the old Buckeye state as the place of his
nativity, having been born in Youngstown, Mahoning county, Ohio,
on the 14th of October, 1825, and being a son of John and Rachel
(Duncan) Beard, the former of whom was born in Chambersburg,
Pennsylvania, and the latter in Washington county, that state, while
their marriage was solemnized in Mahoning county, Ohio, in which
section of the state Mr. Beard was one of the earliest settlers, having
there taken up his residence about 1790, many years before Ohio
was admitted to the Union, while he thus found himself one of the
first of the valiant couriers of civilization to settle west of the Al-
leghany mountains. He took up wild land and developed a farm
in the midst of the wilderness, residing on this place several years
and then removing to a point about twenty miles farther west,
where he continued to be engaged in agricultural pursuits until his
death, which occurred about 1833, his devoted wife surviving him
by a number of years. His father, who likewise bore the name of
John, also became one of the pioneers in the same section of Ohio,
and he erected the first mill in that locality, the same having been
situated on Mill creek falls and having been known as Beard's
mill, while it drew its patronage from a wide radius of country, the
widely scattered settlers having recourse to the mill in having their
necessary grinding done. The father and son operated this mill
for several years, and it long stood as a landmark in Mahoning
county, but was swept away by a cloudburst, in 1843, while at a j.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 449
later date a new mill was erected on its site. Both father and son
were stalwart Democrats in their political proclivities and both com-
manded respect and confidence by reason of their sterling attributes
of character and their usefulness as members of the army of the
world's workers.
Mile Beard, the immediate subject of this sketch, was an only
child, and was reared under the scenes and labors of the pioneer epoch
in Ohio, where he grew to manhood, strong in mind and body,
though his educational advantages were perforce limited, as schools
were few and of primitive type, while he was early compelled to
depend largely upon his own resources, as he was but a lad at the
time of his father's death. He has been identified with the noble
industry of husbandry from his youth to the present, and through
the same has gained independence and definite success, while he con-
tinued to reside in Mahoning county, Ohio, until 1865, when he
came to Allen county, Indiana, and purchased one hundred and
forty acres of land, lying in Wayne and Aboit townships, the farm
having been partially reclaimed at the time when he purchased the
property. This homestead has ever since been his place of abode
and the farm is now conceded to be one of the best in this locality,
being under a high state of cultivation and having excellent buildings
and other permanent improvements, all of which were made under the
direction and through the efforts of our subject, whose energy and
progressive methods have thus been given a permanent memorial.
The farm is devoted to diversified agriculture and to the raising of
an excellent grade of live stock, and everything about the place indi-
cates thrift and prosperity. In politics Mr. Beard has insistently
clung to the faith of his father and grandfather, and is a stanch
advocate of the principles of the Democratic party as represented in
the teachings of Jefferson and Jackson, He has never been a seeker
of office but has never failed to do his part in supporting public enter-
prises and undertakings tending to enhance the general welfare. He
has long been affiliated with Summit City Lodge, No. 170, Free
and Accepted Masons.
Mr. Beard has been thrice married. In 1847 he wedded Miss
Mary Osborne, who was born and reared in Trumbull county, Ohio,
having been a daughter of William and Sarah (Jordon) Osborne,
29
i
450 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
worthy pioneers of that locaHty. Mrs. Beard died in October, 185 1,
leaving- one son, John M., who is now a prominent druggist of
Spencerville, Ohio. In 1853 Mr. Beard was united in marriage to
Miss Rachel Osborne Lynn, daughter of Conrad and Mary
(Osborne) Lynn, of Mahoning county, Ohio, whither they removed
from Virginia. The subject's second wife was summoned into eternal
rest on the 3d of July, 1861, and is survived by her only child,
Andrew Wallace, who has always remained with his father and been
associated with him in his farming enterprise. In 1865 was solem-
nized the marriage of Mr. Beard to Miss Julia Ann Grouse, of
Mahoning county, Ohio, and she remained his devoted companion
for a quarter of a century, having passed away on the i6th of June,
1890, no children having been born of this union.
Andrew Wallace Beard, the younger son of the subject, was
born in Mahoning county, Ohio, on the 8th of January, 1856, and
has been intimately associated with his father in his business affairs,
while at the present time he has the management of the fine home-
stead farm. He is a Democrat in politics and as a citizen is held in
high regard in the community in which he has so long made his
home. In May, 1880, he was united in marriage to Miss Minnie
Aiken, who was born and reared in this county, being a daughter of
John and Martha Aiken, who came to this section from Jefferson
county, Ohio, in 1863, settling in Lafayette township, where they
passed the remainder of their lives. Mr. and Mrs. Andrew W.
Beard have two children, John C, who is in the employ of the
Pennsylvania Railroad Company, in Fort Wayne, and Mary R.,
who remains at the parental home.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 451
JACOB GRAHAM.
As a member of one of the honored pioneer famihes of Wayne
county and as one who was long one of the representative farmers
of Wayne township, where he is now living retired, it is incumbent
that special mention be made of Mr. Graham. He is a native of
this county, where he was bora on the 26th of February, 1835, and
here he has continued to make his home during the long intervening
years. He is a son of David Graham, who was born in Greenville,
Greene county, Tennessee, which place was likewise the spot in
which was born his devoted wife, whose maiden name was Racliel
Sands, and in their native county was solemnized their marriage.
There the father of the subject continued to be identified with farm-
ing until 1820, when he came to Wayne county, Indiana, making the
journey with a team and being accompanied by his wife, who bravely
stood ready to face the fortunes which might be theirs in the pioneer
district. Mr. Graham took up eighty acres of wild land, the same
being covered with a dense growth of timber, and on this place he
erected a log cabin and therein established his Lares and Penates.
He then set to himself the task of reclaiming the land to cultivation,
laboring early and late and continuing to reside here for several
years, after which he removed to Preble county, Ohio, where he
continued to reside until his death, at the venerable age of eighty-
two years, while his cherished wife was eighty years old at the time
of her demise. Mr. Graham was a great hunter in the early days,
and with his trusty gun largely supplied the family larder, as game
of all kinds was then plentiful. He was a man of strong personality
and inflexible integrity, commanding the confidence and regard of all
who knew him, and while he never sought office he served for a
time as supervisor of Wayne township, having been a stanch
Democrat in his political proclivities. He was a son of Charles
452
THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Graham, who was a soldier in the war of 1812, in which he par-
ticipated in the battle of New Orleans, and the latter's father likewise
bore the name of Charles and was a brother of the Graham who was
the vice-presidential candidate at the time General Scott was the
Democratic nominee for President of the United States. The Gra-
hams are of stanch Scottish ancestry, and there were three families
of the name who came to America as founders of the various
branches, one of the families settling in North Carolina, another in
New York state and the third in Pennsylvania, the subject of this
review being descended from the branch first mentioned. The
original orthography of the name was Grimas, later the form Graeme
appeared and finally the present spelling was adopted. The father
of the subject was a lifelong member of the United Brethren church,
and the mother held membership in the Methodist Episcopal church.
In their family were eight children, of whom several are still living ;
Amanda, who became the wife of William P. Curlin, is deceased;
Jacob, subject of this sketch, was the next in order of birth; Ann
is the widow of George Hodge and resides in Richmond, Indiana;
James F. is likewise a resident of Richmond, being a retired farmer,
while it may be noted that he served three years as a member of the
Fifth Ohio Cavalry during the Civil war; Hannah is the wife of
Fuller Edsal, of Richmond, this state; Joseph is a prominent in-
surance agent in the same city ; Ellen is the wife of George Jones, of
that city, where her husband was long engaged in contracting and
building, being now retired; and William was a resident of Rich-
mond at the time of his death.
The subject grew up under the sturdy discipline of the home
farm, early becoming inured to hard work, while his educational
advantages were such as were afforded in the primitive log school
houses, said schools being principally maintained on the subscription
plan. He was able to attend even such schools only six months in
toto, and his farther training was secured under the direction of
that wisest of headmasters, experience. Mr. Graham accompanied
his parents on their removal to Ohio, and remained associated with
the work of the home farm until he had attained his legal majority,
while at the age of twenty-seven years he was united in marriage to
Miss Elizabeth Ford, who was born and reared in Preble county.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 453
Ohio, where their wedding occurred. At this juncture we may con-
sistently incorporate a brief record concerning their children: Mar-
garet is the wife of Emery S. Druley, of Wayne township; Annie,
who was the wife of John Lloyd, of Richmond, Indiana, is de-
ceased ; Grant is engaged as an electrician in the city of Fort Wayne ;
Charles remains at the parental home and is associated in the man-
agement of the farm; James is a successful farmer of Wayne town-
ship; Maude is the wife of Elgin Smith, of the same township;
William is a prosperous market gardener of this township; and
Vera, the wife of John Beard, of Fort Wayne. All of the children
have received excellent educational advantages, and all of the
daughters have been successful and popular teachers in the public
schools of their home county. The great loss and bereavement of
Mr. Graham's life came on the 3d of July, 1904, when his cherished
and devoted wife was summoned into eternal rest, after a married
life of forty-seven years' duration, while she was sixty-two years of
age at the time of her demise.
Shortly after his marriage Mr. Graham left his wife in West-
ville, Ohio, and started on the long and perilous overland trip to
Colorado, in the year 1859. In March of that year, in company with
another man, he went from St. Louis up the Missouri river to St.
Joseph, from which point he secured passage to Denver, Colorado,
on one of the wagon trains starting forth from that well known out-
fitting point. More than six weeks was consumed in making the
trip, a distance of more than seven hundred miles, and along the
route were found only a few widely separated settlers, in Kansas
and Nebraska, while no settlers were found after leaving Marysville,
Kansas, while the conditions of the untrammeled western wilds were
such as have so often been described in historic publications and
reminiscent articles touching the pioneer era in that section of our
great national domain. Wild game of all sorts was in evidence, and
on the journey Mr. Graham had the privilege of seeing a gigantic
herd of buffaloes. The great beasts were seen approaching and covered
a distance of about fifteen miles each hour, while so great was the
number that three hours elapsed before the herd had passed. Mr.
Graham visited various sections of Colorado, where he devoted his
attention to prospecting and hunting wild game. At the time of his
k
454 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
arrival the present city of Denver contained only seven cabins. He
was engaged in prospecting and mining in the state for four years,
returning to his home in December, 1863. He forthwith showed
his patriotism by tendering his services in defense of the Union, en-
listing as a private in Company G, Thirty-eighth Indiana Volunteer
Infantry, and he went to the front with his regiment, which was
assigned to the western department, Fourteenth Army Corps, taking
part in numerous battles, including those of Franklin and Nash-
ville and the last battle of the great conflict, while he was never
wounded or taken prisoner. He received his honorable discharge in
1865, and then returned to Indiana and located in Wayne county,
near the city of Richmond, where for the ensuing twenty years he
operated a large farm. In 1887 Mr. Graham, came to Allen county
and settled in Wayne township, purchasing ten acres of land and
erecting on the same his present comfortable and attractive residence,
while he is also the owner of another tract of twenty acres. He
raises small fruits on his land, and as a grower of strawberries has
attained a high reputation, and aside from the supervision of his fruit
business he is now living retired, having accumulated a competency
since coming to the coimty, as is evident when we revert to the fact
that at the time of his arrival here his cash capital was summed up
in the amount of twenty-five cents. In a fraternal way he is
identified with Sion S. Bass Post, Grand Army of the Republic,
in the city of Fort Wayne, while he is a valued member of the
United Brethren church at Prairie Grove, Wayne township, his wife
likewise having been a devoted member of the same religious body.
In his political proclivities Mr. Graham is a stanch Democrat. He
has won prosperity through well directed effort, and his course has
been such as to retain to him the loyal esteem of his fellow men.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 455
JOHN A. MILLER.
An able and popular representative of the great basic art of agri-
culture in Allen county is Mr. Miller, who is one of the prominent
farmers of Wayne township, his fine homestead being located in
section 20. He is a native of the Hoosier state, having been bom
in Dekalb county, on the i8th of December, 1847, ^"<^ being a son
of John F. and Julia A. (Coffman) Miller, both coming of stanch
German ancestry. The father was born on a sailing vessel on the
Atlantic ocean, on the 28th of August, 1805, his parents being at
the time en route for America. His father, Michael Miller, settled
with his family in the city of Philadelphia, whence he later re-
moved to Ohio and finally came to Indiana, becoming a pioneer of
Noble county, where both he and his wife passed the closing years of
their lives. John F. Miller was reared to young manhood in Marion
county, Ohio, where his marriage was solemnized. In 1836 he came
to Dekalb county, Indiana, where he secured a tract of wild and
heavily timbered land, being one of the pioneers of that section and
there reclaiming a good farm, while to him was accorded the un-
qualified confidence and esteem of his fellow citizens there, as well
as in all other communities in which he was known. He disposed
of his property in Dekalb county in 1850, in which year he came
to Allen county, where he repeated his pioneer experiences, becoming
the owner of a tract of three hundred and ten acres, in Wayne town-
ship, and reclaiming a large portion of the same to cultivation. No
roads had been constructed in the locality at the time when he here
took up his abode, and on his land only slight improvements had
been made, including a small frame house which was the family
home for a number of years. Mr. Miller became one of the suc-
cessful, influential and highly esteemed farmers and citizens of the
county and continued to reside on his homestead during the few
remaining years of his life, his death occurring on the i8th of
456 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Februaiy, 1859. His devoted wife survived him by many years, being
summoned to the life eternal on the 7th of January, 1893, at the
venerable age of eighty- three years. Both were zealous and valued
members of the United Brethren church, and in politics the father
was originally a Whig, though he lived to witness the birth of the
Republican party and to espouse its cause. Concerning their nine
children we enter the following brief record : Nancy became the wife
of Frank Mason, and both are deceased; Mary is the wife of Peter
Gundy, a successful fanner of Huntington county, Indiana; Eliza-
beth, a maiden lady, resides in the home of the subject of this review ;
Israel, an engineer by vocation, resides in Los Angeles, California;
Sarah, who married Henry Flutter, is deceased ; Lucretia is the wife
of Philip Rapp, a farmer of Wayne township; John A. is the sub-
ject of this sketch ; Cornelius is a resident of Fort Wayne, where he
is engaged as an engineer; and William H., a locomotive engineer,
resides in Milan, Sullivan county, Missouri.
John A. Miller was a child of three years at the time of the
family removal to Allen county, and he was reared to manhood on
the old homestead fann, in whose work he early began to assist
to the extent of his powers, while his educational advantages were
those afforded in the local schools of the intermediate pioneer days.
It is interesting to record that he has never left the old farm, of
which he and his maiden sister are now the owners, while both have
here resided ever since the year 1850, witnessing the great trans-
formation which has been wrought in this section and being num-
bered among the honored pioneer citizens of Wayne township, while
their circle of friends is limited only by that of their acquaintances.
They own seventy-eight acres of the parental homestead, and the
place is under a high state of cultivation and improved with good
buildings. The farm is devoted to diversified agriculture and to the
raising of high-grade live stock, while on the farm is to be found
an excellent variety of fruits. In politics Mr. Miller is a stanch
advocate of the principles of the Republican party, but he has never
sought or desired office, though taking a deep interest in local affairs
and always standing ready to aid in the forwarding of measures
and enterprises for the general good. He is a member of the
Methodist Episcopal church, and his sister retains the faith in which
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 457
she was reared, being identified with the United Brethren church.
The old home was destroyed by fire in 1893, and within the same
year Mr. Miller completed his present fine brick residence, whose
dimensions in tlie main are thirty by fifty-two feet, with a wing,
while in equipment and appointments it is thoroughly modern, being
supplied with hot and cold water by means of a private plant and
being heated by furnace. The fine barn, of the bank sort, is forty
by eighty feet in dimensions and in addition to affording ample stor-
age capacity for produce, machinery, etc., it also has the best of
accommodations for live stock. Mr. Miller remains a bachelor, and
his sister presides most graciously over the domestic economies of
the pleasant home, which is one of the most attractive in the locality
and which is a center of generous hospitality.
I
458 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JOHN D. SPRANKLE.
There is no element which has entered into the composite makeup
of America's social fabric which has been of greater strength and
value than that derived from the German empire, which has furnished
a contingent of sterling worth within the years of our national ex-
istence. The ancestors of the subject of this sketch came from Ger-
many to America in the early colonial epoch and settled in Pennsyl-
vania, with whose history the name has ever since been linked, while
of John D. Sprankle it should be said that he is one of the venerable
and honored pioneers of Allen county, where he has maintained his
home for more than half a century, while he is one of those worthy
citizens who have aided materially in the industrial and civic up-
building of this favored section of the state.
John D. Sprankle is a native of Huntingdon county, Pennsyl-
vania, where he was born on the 19th of February, 1825, being a
son of Peter and Frances (Bredenbaugh) Sprankle, the former hav-
ing been bom in York county and the latter in Lancaster county;
while the father became one of the successful and influential farmers
of Huntingdon county, where both he and his devoted wife passed
the closing years of their lives. George Sprankle, grandfather of
the subject, was numbered among the early settlers in the old Key-
stone state, while it was his to render valiant services as a soldier in
the Continental line during the war of the Revolution. In politics
George Sprankle was originally an old-line Whig, but he lived to
witness the birth of the Republican party and to espouse its cause,
while both he and his wife were zealous and consistent members of
the German Reformed church. They became the parents of six
children, of whom only two are living, John D., who was the third
in order of birth, and Peter, the youngest, who resided at Alexander,
Huntingdon county, Pennsylvania. The names of those deceased are
as follows : Susan, Mary A., George and Michael.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 459
John D. Sprankle was reared to the sturdy disciphne of the
home farm and early became inured to hard work, while his educa-
tional advantages in his youth were necessarily limited, owing- to the
exigencies of time and place, the only schools in the vicinity of his
home having been those maintained on the subscription plan. He
remained at the parental home until he had attained to the age of
twenty-three years, and in the meanwhile he had been employed for
a time in the rolling mills of his native county, the steel industry at
the time having been practically in its infancy there. In 1840 he
accompanied his father to Indiana and other western states, as the
middle states were then designated, their object in making the trip
being to search for a new location for the family. The father, how-
ever, continued to reside in Pennsylvania until his death, as before
noted.
In 1850 Mr. Sprankle came to Allen county and took up his
permanent location, securing a tract of heavily timbered land, in
Aboit township, and erecting in a small clearing in the forest the
little log cabin which Avas his original home here. He became the
owner of a landed estate of two hundred and forty acres and de-
veloped one of the valuable farms of the county. While none can
fail to appreciate the attractions and the capitalistic valuation of this
fine homestead at the present day, it is difficult for the younger gener-
ation to realize the herculean labors performed in transforming the
untrammeled wilderness into fertile fields and blossoming meadows.
Our subject labored with all of energ>^ and well directed ambition,
and the natural result was his attaining a position as one of the sub-
stantial men and influential citizens of the county. He retained pos-
session of his old homestead until 1901, when he sold the property
to his only son. with whom he now resides in Wayne township and
in the immediate vicinage of the city of Fort Wayne. In appending
paragraphs further mention is made of the son. who is one of the
county's prominent citizens. Mr. Sprankle has ever taken a loyal
interest in public affairs of a local nature and has wielded much
influence in the community in which he made his home for so many
years. He cast his first presidential vote for Zachary Taylor, candi-
date of the Whig party, but ever since the organization of the Re-
publican party he has given a stanch allegiance to the same, while he
46o THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
takes a lively interest in questions of public import at the present time,
though he has reached the age of four score years. These years rest
lightly on the head of this honored pioneer and he is well preserved
in both mental and physical vigor. During the war of the Re-
bellion Mr, Sprankle was a member of the Loyal League and did
all in his power to further the advancement of the Union cause, while
it may be said also that he was uncompromisingly an abolitionist in
sentiment, having the courage of his convictions in this regard, as
has he also in all other exigencies and relations in life. His memory
remains unimpaired and his reminiscences of the early days are
graphic and most interesting, while he has the affectionate regard of
young and old and finds his lines cast in pleasant places as the
shadows of life begin to lengthen from the golden west. His cherished
and devoted wife, his companion for nearly a half century, remains
by his side, and both have been zealous members of the Reformed
church from their youth up.
In the year 1847 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Sprankle
to Miss Susan Soures, who was bom in Summit county, Ohio, on
the 1st of May, 1831, being a daughter of Jacob and Mary (Hart-
man) Soures, who removed to Adams county, Ohio, while she was
a child, while she there maintained her home up to the time of her
marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Sprankle have three children. Mary is
the wife of Henry Smaltz, a prominent farmer of Aboit township;
Josephine is the widow of Daniel Rousseau, and resides in the city
of Chicago, Illinois. John C. F., the only son, was bom on the
old homestead farm, in Aboit township, this county, on the loth of
December, 1856, and was reared and educated in his native county,
where he duly availed himself of the advantages of the public
schools. He is one of the successful and extensive contractors of
the county and also has the general supervision of the old home-
stead farm, which he purchased in 1901, as has previously been
stated, while he owns other property in the county and is one of the
prominent, reliable and highly honored business men and loyal
citizens of this section of the state, his pleasant home being located
in section 8, Wayne township. He is a stalwart Republican in his
political proclivities, is a prominent and appreciative member of the
Masonic fraternity, in which he has attained the thirty-second degree
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 461
of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite, and both he and his wife are
members of the Christian church.
On the 5th of February, 1879, John C. F. Sprankle was united in
marriage to Miss Sarah E. Rousseau, a daughter of Francis M. and
Martha J. (Correy) Rousseau, who are well known residents of
Wayne township, the former having been bom in Richmond, Wayne
county, Indiana, and the latter in the state of Ohio. Mr. and Mrs.
Sprankle have four children, Frank J., Cloyd, Blanche and Howard.
462 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JAMES GUNNISON.
Of sterling Scottish lineage is Mr. Gunnison, who is a native
son of Allen county and a representative of one of its honored pioneer
families, while he stands as one of the prominent farmers of Wayne
township. In said township his birth occurred on the 17th of De-
cember, 1840. He is a son of Robert and Margaret (Ramsey)
Gunnison, both of whom were bom and reared in Scotland, the
father having been born in Kirkmighel Perthshire, Scotland, Janu-
ary 15, 1800, while he immigrated to America when still a young
man, having settled in x\llen county, Indiana, as a pioneer of 1833.
Fort Wayne was at that time scarcely more than an Indian village
and trading post, while civilization had as yet gained but a pre-
carious foothold in this section, which was practically a virgin forest.
He settled in Wayne township and there l^egan the reclaiming of a
farm, but his life ended a decade after his arrival in the county, as
he passed to his reward November 2, 1843. His wife, who was bom
in Perthshire, Scotland, on the 22d of January, 1799, eventually
contracted a second marriage, becoming the wife of John Whetton,
Sr., who was born in Lullington, England, and who likewise was
one of the worthy pioneers of Allen county, where he died January
31, 1861, the family having removed to Pleasant township in 1843.
In that township the devoted mother also passed the remainder of
her life. Of her first marriage were bom three children, the eldest,
Isabelle, having been bom on shipboard while her parents were en
route to America, and she died in Fort Wayne, when three years of
age; Robert, who was born in 1835, met an accidental death, having
been killed by the damps of a well, on the 8th of July, 1880, he was
a successful farmer of this county and was held in high regard by
all who knew him. He married Miss Matilda Beck, while of their
six children five are living; and James, subject of this sketch, was
the youngest in the family.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 463
James Cunnison was reared to the invigorating discipline of the
farm and in the pioneer days had his full quota of hard work to
perform, while his educational opportunities were limited to a some-
what desultory attendance in the common schools of the locality
and period. He has never faltered in his allegiance to the great
basic industry of agriculture and through his connection therewith
has gained a competency, being tlie owner of several farms, in
Pleasant and Wayne townships, while the same are operated by his
sons and son-in-law. Though he has practically lived retired for
several years past he maintains a general supervision over his farms
and other capitalistic interests, and is far from being idle or inactive.
For two and one-half years Mr. Cunnison resided in the city of
Fort Wayne, and at the expiration of this period he purchased his
present homestead place, known as the John Bishop farm, in section
28, Wayne township, where he has maintained his home since
1901. The attractive residence property is located in the environs
of Fort Wayne and is one of the valuable places of the county. His
landed estate in the aggregate Comprises three hundred and thirteen
acres in Pleasant and Wayne townships, and all the property is well
improved and under effective cultivation. On the 23d of May,
1883, Mr. Gunnison's homestead residence in Pleasant township was
destroyed by fire, but he soon afterward erected a new and tetter
dwelling on the place, which he still owns. He is a stalwart Re-
publican in his political allegiance, and while he has never teen
ambitious for public office he has shown at all times a most loyal
and helpful interest in his home county, with whose civic and in-
dustrial development he has been intimately identified. He is a most
appreciative member of the time-honored Masonic fraternity, teing
affiliated with Summit City Lodge, No. 170, Free and Accepted
Masons, and other York Rite bodies of Fort Wayne, while in the
Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite he has attained the sixteenth degree,
being affiliated with the consistory in Fort Wayne. He is not for-
mally identified with any religious organization, but his wife is a
devoted memter of the United Brethren church.
On the 2ist of January, 1866, Mr. Cunnison was united in mar-
riage to Miss Mary Dalman, who was bom and reared in Allen
county, being a daughter of William and Rebecca (Osborne) Dal-
464 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
man, who settled in this county in 1833, having been pioneers of
Pleasant township, where they continued to reside until summoned
to the life eternal. The father was born in Derbyshire, England,
and the mother was a native of Ohio. In conclusion we incorpor-
ate a brief record concerning the children of Mr. and Mrs. Cunnison:
Alexander was born on the 25th of June, 1867, ^^^ is one of the
successful and influential farmers of Pleasant township. He is a
thirty-second-degree Mason and is also identified with the Independ-
ent Order of Odd Fellows. He married Miss Delia Shipler. Mar-
garet I. is the wife of Levi E. Koons, another enterprising farmer
of Pleasant township, and they have three children, Arthur, Mollie
and James R. William, who was born August 5, 187 1, married
Miss Lillie Glass and they are residents of Arlington, California,
having two children, Gladys and Wayne. He is an Odd Fellow.
Frank, who was born September 18, 1875, is a successful farmer
of Wayne township, while in a fraternal way he is identified with
the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He married Miss Florence
Mason and they have two children, Edna Irene and Glenn. James,
the youngest of the subject's children, was born on the 30th of
November, 1882, and is now employed in the offices of the Wells
Fargo Express Company in the city of San Bernardino, California.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 465
WILLIAM W. SHOAFF.
One of the old and well-known retired citizens of Allen county,
Indiana, is William W. Shoaff, who is now living in Fort Wayne in
the quiet enjoyment of the fruits of his former toil. Mr. Shoafif
was born on November 15, 1829, in Miami coiinty, Ohio, and is
the son of John P. and Priscilla (Freeman) Shoaff, the former bom
in Maryland, October 12, 1804, and the latter a native of Ohio.
John P. Shoaff, at the age of one year, was brought by his parents
to Ohio, locating near Dayton. In February, 1885, they removed
to Allen county, Indiana, and on February 4, 1885, Mr. Shoaff
located in Churubusco, Indiana, where he spent the rest of his days,
dying there on February i, 1887. On February 5, 1828, he was
married to Miss Priscilla Freeman, who was born in Greene county,
Ohio, on January 4, 1810, and who died at the old home in Allen
county on May 22, 1880. To this union were bom eleven children,
of whom William W., John F., Anna, James B., Jennie, Allen P. and
Wade Scott are now living.
The subject of this sketch received but scant educational ad-
vantages in his early youth, as at the age of seven years he found
himself on a frontier homestead, where the father needed all the help
he could obtain from his sons in order that the land might be cleared
and rendered fit for cultivation. As it was, the subject was able to
attend the three-months term of school each winter until he was
twenty years of age. He then entered Mcjunkin's private school
in Fort Wayne, where he attended two years and also attended the
Methodist College here two years, receiving a good practical
knowledge of the main branches. In 1853 Mr. Shoaff took up civil
engineering as transit man in the employ of the Fort Wayne &
Chicago Railroad, in which capacity he performed much arduous and
valuable work in the construction of this important line. He located
30
466 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
the road from Fort Wayne to Chicago, and had full charge of the
construction of two sections of forty miles between Plymouth and
Valparaiso, Indiana, also drilling the wells, putting up the grain
elevators, etc., for the company. The company was at that time in
poor financial condition and Mr. Shoaff relates that at one time he
was compelled to wait six months for his salary. He remained with
this company for over seven years, which is certainly tangible
evidence of the satisfactory character of the service rendered by him.
He then engaged in farming and so continued successfully up to
the time when he felt justified in laying aside the active duties of
life and is now, in his comfortable home at No. 311 Douglas avenue.
Fort Wayne, enjoying the closing years of his life in an ideal man-
ner, free from the worries and cares of an active life.
On March 10, 1859, Mr. Shoaff was married to Miss Eliza
J. Work, who was bom in Dekalb county, Indiana, the daughter
of Robert and Sarah Work, and to them have been born two sons,
John R., of White Plains, New York, with offices at No. 935 Broad-
way, New York city, and Joseph Y., of Denver, Colorado, both
being engaged in the carpet and rug business. Politically Mr. Shoaff
has been a lifelong Democrat, and he says he expects to die one.
Fraternally he is a Freemason, while his religious affiliation is with
the Methodist Episcopal church, of which he has been a faithful
member for thirty years. A man of fine personal qualities, he has
won friends all along the pathway of life and now enjoys the sincere
regard and esteem of all who know him.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. ^67
FRED STANLEY HUNTING.
The gentleman to a brief review of whose hfe the reader's at-
tention is herewith directed is numbered among the energetic and
well-known business men of Fort Wayne and has by his enterprise
and progressive methods contributed in a material way to the in-
dustrial and commercial advancement of the city and county. He
has in the course of an honorable career been most successful in all
lines in which he has directed his efforts and is well deserving of
mention in this \A'ork. Mr. Hunting, who is the present capable and
popular treasurer and sales manager of the Fort Wayne Electric
Works, and who is closely connected with several of the substantial
monetary institutions of the city, is a native of the state of Mas-
sachusetts, having been born at East Templeton on the 30th of
September, 1867. His parents, William and Mary D. Hunting,
were also natives of the old Bay state and were descended from
English ancestry. The subject was reared under the parental roof
and enjoyed excellent educational advantages. After taking the
full courses of study in the common and high schools of his native
town, he entered the Worcester Polytechnic Institute, at Worcester,
Massachusetts, from which he received in 1888 the degree of
Bachelor of Science and graduated with honors, entitling him to
participation in the Graduates' Aid Fund. On October 8, 1888. Mr.
Hunting came to Fort Wayne and has since that time been closely
identified with the business and commercial interests of this section.
He has evinced marked business and executive ability in every avenue
of effort to which he has directed himself and stands high in the
estimation of those who have come into contact with him, especially
those most closely associated with him. He is perhaps best known
through his connection with the Fort Wayne Electric Works, one
of the largest manufacturing concerns of this city. In the responsible
468 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
positions of treasurer and sales manager he directs the entire com-
mercial policy of the company, and it is no more than just to say
that to a very large degree the success of tliis enterprise can be
attributed to the indefatigable and persistent efforts of Mr. Hunting.
The electric machinery and supplies manufactured and sold by the
Fort Wayne Electric Works have attained a high reputation
throughout this and foreign countries because of their high standard
and the growth of the concern has more than kept pace with the
remarkable progress of the city along other lines. Besides the
interest already mentioned, Mr. Hunting is also a stockholder and
director in the First National Bank, the Tri-State Trust Company
and the Tri-State Building and Loan Association, all of this city,
his counsel and advice being valued by his colleagues in these institu-
tions.
Politically Mr. Hunting is a stanch advocate of the principles
and policies of the Republican party, though not in any sense a
seeker after the honors and emoluments of public office, preferring
to give his undivided attention to his varied business interests.
Fraternally he is connected with the Free and Accepted Masons,
and socially he belongs to the leading clubs of the city. His re-
ligious affiliation is with the Plymouth Congregational church, of
this city.
A few months after coming to Fort Wayne Mr. Hunting re-
turned to his native town and was united in marriage, on May i,
1889, to Miss Harriett Alzina Sawyer, a native of Phillipston,
Massachusetts. This most happy and congenial union, which was
unfortunately broken by the death of Mrs. Hunting on June 26,
1904, was blessed in the birth of three children, Ralph W., Lawrence
S. and Harold Stanley. Because of his genuine worth and pleas-
ing address, Mr. Hunting has won and retains a host of warm per-
sonal friends.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 469
THE BAIRD FAMILY.
At this juncture we are permitted to enter a review concerning"
one of the old and honored families of Allen county, and the present
representatives, none of whom is married, are William H., David
W., Mary O. and Robert E., all of whom reside on the old home-
stead farm, in section 36, Eel River township. Their parents were
Robert D. and Mary (Hatfield) Baird, the former of whom was
born in Akron, Summit county, Ohio, in 181 8, being a son of Robert
and Mary (Beard) Baird, the former of whom was bom in West-
moreland county, Pennsylvania, and the latter in Franklin county,
that state. He removed to Ohio in the early pioneer days and was
a member of an Ohio regiment during the war of 18 12, serving along
Lake Erie and being stationed with his regiment at Ashtabula during
the greater portion of the time. On the last day of May, 1836, he
came with his family to Allen county, Indiana, and located on the
farm now owned and occupied by his grandchildren. He then had
a family of nine children, of whom seven came with him to this
county, including two sons, Robert D. and John, the former being
in his eighteenth year and the latter about twenty-three. Robert
Baird, Sr., entered claim to a considerable tract of land in Eel River
and Washington townships, securing about four hundred and eighty
acres, practically all of which was in its wild state and covered with
heavy timber. He erected his house on the present home of his
grandchildren, in the southeast comer of Eel River township. No
road had been opened to the land, and he was compelled to cut his
way through the forest. He first built a pole shanty, and this con-
stituted the family residence about two years, after which he erected
a more commodious house of round logs, the building being one and
one-half stories in height, and being one of the largest in the locality
at the time of its erection. This was the family home until about
470 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
1840, when the present homestead was erected, the same being one
of the fine old places of the township. A huge chimney was con-
structed in the center of the building, with fireplace opening in each
room, while each was equipped with andirons and cooking apparatus
of the type common to the pioneer epoch. The poplar logs utilized
in the building of the house were hauled seven miles to be sawed,
and the interior is finished in black walnut, all of which was planed
out by hand. The grandparents here continued to make their home
until death, Robert Baird passing away in October, 1854, at the
age of seventy-three years, while his wife died in April, 1868, lacking
only ten days of being eighty-five years of age. Of their seven
children who came to Allen county all are deceased except one, a
brief record concerning them being as follows : Honora died in 1849,
at the age of forty-five years, never having married; Matilda mar-
ried Christian Jourdan and after his death became the wife of Patrick
Horn, and she died at the age of sixty-six years"; John is individually
mentioned further on; Elizabeth became the wife of Payne Osbom
and resided in Lagrange county at the time of her death, when about
sixty years of age: Robert D. was the father of the subjects of this
sketch; Salome married William Wallace and she died at the age of
forty-eight years; Agnes, the only survivor, is the widow of Wil-
liam Mason and now lives with her nephew, John Karriger, in Wash-
ington township, being seventy-seven years of age at the time of
this writing, in 1905. John Baird married Miss Margaret Mc-
Nagny, and they had two children, Louise, who married William
Carter, now resident of Jonesboro, Grant county; and Julius, who
died at the age of fifty, his wife also being deceased, while their
son, Clarendon, a railroad man, is now the only one of the Baird
name aside from the children of Robert D.
On the 30th of May, 1848, Robert D. Baird was united in mar-
riage to Miss Mary Hatfield, daughter of Joseph and Phoebe
(Peppard) Hatfield, of Wells county, this state, whither they re-
moved from Wayne county when she was fourteen years of age,
the latter county having been her birthplace. The removal to Wells
county occurred in 1839, and there she continued to reside until her
marriage to Robert D. Baird, who had remained at home until this
time, being thirty-one years of age at the time of his marriage.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 471
He erected a log house on the site of his father's first residence, and
about 1859 he came to the old home place, where he passed the re-
mainder of his life and where his children still reside. He came into
possession of the home place through gift from his father, and he
supported and cared for his parents during their declining years.
He devoted his entire attention to the improvement and cultivation
of this fine farm and was one of the highly esteemed and substantial
citizens of his township, of which he served as trustee in the early
days. He was originally a Democrat in politics, but gave his support
to Gen. William H. Harrison for the Presidency and later became
a Whig, but his strong abolition principles did not coincide with the
policy of the party and he refused to vote for President until
1856 on this account. At the outbreak of the war of the Rebellion
he offered to enlist, but was rejected by reason of his teeth being
unsound. He was one of the most enthusiastic members of the
Republican party from the time of its organization until his death,
taking a deep and intelligent interest in public affairs and always
being ready to defend his position and opinions and discuss affairs
of public polity. He was summoned to his reward on the 31st of
March, 1899, in the eighty-first year of his age. The family has
long been identified with the Presbyterian church, and he and his
wife were numbered among the founders of the Cedar Creek Pres-
byterian church, in Huntington county, and his father was an elder
in said church for many years, while in its cemetery his remains
lie at rest, as do also those of his wife and his parents. His wife
died on the 2d of April, 1883, her life having been one of signal
devotion to home and family, while her memory remains as a bene-
diction upon her children and all others Avho come within the sphere
of her gentle and kindly influence. She and her husband were in
close touch with church doctrines and their lives were constant ex-
emplification of the faith which they professed. The nearest Presby-
terian church was six miles distant, and in view of this fact services
were frequently held in their home by the Presbyterian families of
the neighborhood, while on such occasions Revs. Wolf, Forbes,
Martin, Maxwell and others officiated. Mr. and Mrs. Robert D.
Baird became the parents of three sons and one daughter, all of
whom reside in the old homestead except one daughter, who died
472 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
in early childhood. * The three sons and one daughter have passed
their entire lives on the old farm, to which they have added by the
purchase of an adjoining tract of forty acres, so that the area of
the estate is now two hundred acres. The farm is devoted to di-
versified agriculture and to the raising of high-grade live stock,
especially the thoroughbred Shorthorn cattle, of which they keep a
herd of from twenty to forty head, of the Cruikshank line, having
many fine specimens and making exhibits at the state and county
fairs. On their farm they also hold annual sales of stock, the sales
being largely to local buyers, and the brothers have done much to
improve the grade of cattle raised in the county and vicinity.
David W. Baird secured good educational advantages in his
youth, having completed the curriculum of the high school, after
which he attended the old Methodist Episcopal College in Fort
Wayne, and Hillsdale College, Michigan. He thereafter made
teaching his profession for a number of years, after which he took
up the study of law with the well-known firm of Robertson &
O'Rourke, of Fort Wayne. He then completed the course of the
law department of the Indiana State University, at Bloomington,
and he was duly admitted to the bar and began the practice of his
profession in Fort Wayne. In 1884 he went to Oskaloosa, Kansas,
where he remained three years, at the expiration of which he re-
turned to his native county and resumed teaching, in which work
he was thereafter engaged during each school year until 1903. He
taught for six years in Wayne township, and one year in Hunting-
ton county. He has been a most popular and effective worker in
connection with teachers' institutes, and for three years was chair-
man of the Eel River township institute. He has taken a lively
interest in local affairs of a public nature and is a stalwart adherent
of the Republican party. In 1878 he was the nominee of his party
for prosecuting attorney of his county, but was defeated. In No-
vember, 1904, he was elected trustee of Eel River township, and
his election to the office stands in evidence of his popularity, since
only one other Republican (John Holmes) has been elected to this
position in the township since the war of the Rebellion. The town-
ship has twenty-five miles of gravel road, has nine school houses and
nine teachers, with an enrollment list of one hundred and eighty
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 473
pupils, while all but two of the teachers are residents of the to\vn-
ship. The school houses are all of brick and compare favorably
with those in other townships of the county, while the standard of
the schools is high, enabling the students to prepare for teaching.
Mr. Baird is a member of the Masonic fraternity.
William H. Baird was also a successful and popular teacher,
devoting his attention to the pedagogic profession for six years.
As a Republican he has been a candidate for representative in the
state legislature and also for township trustee, while in 1894 he
received the nomination of his party for county commissioner. All
the members of the family are identified with the Presbyterian
church.
474 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
THOMAS COVINGTON.
In section 13, Aboit township, is located the fine homestead farm
of this well known and highly honored pioneer of Allen county, and
it is interesting to record that his farm was secured by his father
more than half a century ago and has ever since remained in the pos-
session of the family, while the name has been intimately and loy-
ally identified with the civic and industrial history of this section of
the state during the long intervening years.
In tracing the genealogy of the subject we must needs revert to
that cradle of so much of our national history, New England, for
the family was established on American soil in the early colonial era.
Mr. Covington was born in Plymouth county, Massachusetts, on
the 1 8th of December, 1836, and is a son of Thomas and Mahala
(Holmes) Covington. The grandfather was a sea captain and sail-
ing master from historic old Plymouth, and he made numerous voy-
ages to the principal ports of the old world. His father likewise bore
the name of Thomas, and the ancestry is traced back to stanch Eng-
lish extraction, while the family was one of the earliest to be founded
in the Massachusetts colony, in whose annals the name is frequently
mentioned, especially in the Plymouth records, while the name was
long linked with the seafaring life of the New England coast. The
Holmes family is also one of the oldest of New England, and there
many representatives in a direct and collateral way are yet to be
found. Jonathan King, maternal uncle of Mrs. Mahala (Holmes)
Covington, was a valiant soldier in the Continental line during the
war of the Revolution, and he lived to attain the patriarchal age of
ninety-two years.
The father of the subject was for a time engaged in mercantile
pursuits in South Carolina, whence he returned to Massachusetts.
From Middleboro. that state, the family came to Indiana in 1850,
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 475
settling on the fine old homestead farm now occupied by him whose
name initiates this sketch. The father here purchased one hundred
and twenty acres of land, whose reclamation from the virgin forest
he forthwith instituted, though during the earlier years of his resi-
dence here he was engaged in the shoe business in Fort Wayne,
which was then scarcely more than a trading post, with a few hun-
dreds of people constituting its population. He finally took up his
permanent abode on his farm, where he continued to reside until
he was summoned from the scene of life's endeavors, having been
seventy-nine years of age at the time of his demise, while his cher-
ished and devoted wife lived to attain the age of eighty-four years.
In politics the father was originally a Whig and later a Republican.
He was a man of marked force of character, unbending in his in-
tegrity, broad-minded and liberal in his views, and he commanded
a high place in the esteem of the community, where he wielded un-
mistakable influence in public affairs. Of the six children the sub-
ject of this sketch was the only son, and of the daughters we enter
the following brief data : Elizabeth is the wife of Joshua W. Davis
and resides in Newton, Massachusetts; Mary is the widow of Rev.
Samuel A. Collins, a clergyman of the Baptist church, and resides
near the city of Cincinnati, Ohio ; Louise is the widow of Rev. John
D. Messon and resides in Newton Center, Massachusetts; Mahala
is the widow of Dr. Justin P. Garvin, late of Elkhart, Indiana, and
she now makes her home with her only brother, the subject of this
review; and Prudence died in Boston, Massachusetts, at the age of
sixty-five years; she was a talented artist and made many fine pro-
ductions in oils and water colors, as well as in china painting; she
maintained a studio in Fort Wayne for a number of years and many
of her paintings are to be found in the best homes of the city, while
she attained a specially high reputation as a landscape artist.
Thomas Covington was fourteen years of age at the time of
the family removal from the old Bay state to Indiana, and he had
previously received good educational advantages, thus laying an ex-
cellent foundation for that broad and practical knowledge Avhich so
denotes the man of the later years of earnest endeavor. He assisted
in the reclaiming of the home farm, and has here resided during the
major portion of his long and useful life. The farm comprises one
476 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
hundred and twenty acres, and of the same fifty-five acres are main-
tained under effective cultivation. The original family residence was
a log cabin, sixteen feet square. This gave place to a two-story
dwelling of hewed logs, and the latter building continued to be the
family domicile until the erection of the present substantial and com-
modious brick residence, about thirty years ago. In addition to
general agriculture Mr. Covington has given special attention to
horticulture and the raising of small fruits, and his vegetables and
fruits are sold in the city market of Fort Wayne, where he has
displayed and sold his products for many years. On the walls of
the pleasant residence may be found a most pleasing water-color
painting depicting the old homestead of hewed logs and also a
picture of the first school house on the site of the present No. 4,
in Wayne township, the one depicted having been erected in 1851, of
round logs, and having been fourteen feet square. The primitive
structure was equipped with a shake roof, floors and slab benches,
while the windows were made by cutting through logs on each of
three sides of the building and inserting a sash of glass in each
opening, said sash being moved back and forth transversely to afford
ventilation or insure required warmth from the huge stove. Mrs.
Garvin taught in this building the second term of school, in 1852,
her honored father having taught in the preceding year. She re-
calls that her pupils numbered about twenty-five and that the ac-
cessories of the "institution of learning" were meager in the ex-
treme. Mr. Covington is a stanch advocate of the principles and
policies of the Republican party, and he served two terms as town-
ship trustee, receiving a majority of twenty-six votes at a time
when the two parties as represented in the township constituted a tie
in ballots. He has taken an active interest in the party work and
has been a frequent delegate to the county conventions.
In 1859 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Covington to Miss
Adeline Burk, who died ten years later, leaving four children,
namely: Elizabeth D., and Katherine May, both of whom have re-
mained at the parental home, joint housekeepers for their father,
and also engaged in the cultivation of flowers, and for outside work
the Sunday school, Elizabeth having been, for ten years, superin-
tendent of the West Wayne Sunday school, situated near her home;
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 4,77
Thomas E., who is a Baptist minister, but now engaged in business
in Lagrange, Indiana; and Mary Louise, who is the wife of
Bertrand Early, of Fort Colhns, Colorado.
Mrs. Garvin has presided over the domestic economies of her
brother's home since 1875, and is most popular in the social life
of the community, being a woman of fine intellectuality and gracious
presence. She has three children, two of whom are missionaries in
foreign lands, — Ann Eliza, who was formerly a teacher in Allen
county, is now a missionary teacher in Osaka, Japan; and Rev,
James F. Garvin is a missionary clergyman of the Presbyterian
church in Valparaiso, Chili ; Emma, the youngest, died at the age
of eight years.
478 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
ALPHONSE AND FRANK CORBAT.
The Corbat brothers are numbered among' the representative
farmers of Allen county, their landed estate being a large and
well-improved one, ranking among the best in this favored section
of the state, while the homestead place has been in the possession
of the family for nearly two score of years, having been secured
by the honored father of the brothers whose names initiate this para-
graph. This attractive farmstead is located in section 3, Aboit
township and is looked upon as a model in all respects, while the
evidences of intelligent and progressive ideas are manifest on every
side.
Alphonse Corbat was born in canton Berne, Switzerland, on the
13th of February, 1854, and Frank was bom in Huntington county,
Indiana, on the 20th of October, 1859. They are sons of Vandelin
and Rose Corbat, who immigrated to America in the year 1857,
making Indiana their destination. The family located near Hunt-
ington, Huntington county, where the father secured employment in
operating a boat on the old Wabash and Erie canal, the boat being
owned by two Fort Wayne men and being run between Fort Wayne
and Wabash. In 1868 the family removed to the present home-
stead farm, the original purchase being a tract of one hundred and
twenty acres, while the major portion of the place had been re-
claimed to cultivation and otherwise improved. This has ever since
been the family home and here the venerable father still lives,
honored by all who know him and revered in true filial devotion by
his sons. He is seventy-seven years of age at the time of this writ-
ing, in 1905, and for the past fifteen years he has lived essentially
retired from active labor, his sons ably carrying forward the work
which he inaugurated so many years ago as one of the energetic
and trustworthy fanners of the county. His cherished wife died in
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 479
1868, only one month after the family came to the present home-
stead. She was a devoted member of the Catholic church, with
which he also has long been identified. They became the parents of
eight children, five of whom attained to years of maturity and four
of whom are still living, namely : Joseph, who is engaged in the
mercantile business in Mishawaka, this state; Alphonse and Frank,
who are the immediate subjects of this sketch; and Louisa, who
is the wife of Ernest Stutts, of South Bend, Indiana. Ellen, who
became the wife of Henry Braenf, died at the age of thirty-two
years.
Alphonse and Frank Corbat have been associated as partners for
the past quarter of a century, both having been reared to manhood
on the home farm and both having received good educational ad-
vantages in the common and parochial schools of Allen county.
When they initiated their, partnership they rented land, continuing
operations in this way for three years, at the expiration of which
they purchased a tract of fifty acres, to which they have added from
time to time until they now have in joint ownership a fine estate
of two hundred and thirty-three acres, while they have had charge
of the old homestead for nearly twenty-five years, and now own
the property, which was deeded to them by their father in 1903,
so that the aggregate area of their farm in Aboit township is three
hundred and fifty acres, all in one body. They also own sixty acres
in Lake township, and this farm also is improved with excellent
buildings. The present family residence was erected by their father
in 1885, while the fine bank barn, forty by seventy feet in dimen-
sions, was builded in 1882. The farm is devoted to diversified agri-
culture, wheat and corn being the principal products, while the
brothers also raise a considerable amount of high-grade live stock.
Frank remains a bachelor and resides with his brother and partner,
Alphonse. The latter was married, in 1876, to Miss Elizabeth
Manier, who died in October, 1901, being survived by nine of her
ten children, namely: Celia (wife of Frank Conners, of Erie, Penn-
sylvania), Frank, Joseph, Rose (deceased at the age of two years),
Julian, Florence, Albert, James, Mary and Robert. On the 12th of
January, 1904, Alphonse Corbat consummated a second marriage,
being then united to Mrs. Catherine Golden, widow of Samuel
I
48o THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Golden, of Fort Wayne. She was born and reared in Aboit town-
ship, being a daughter of Peter and Catherine (Shadle) Stahl, who
were honored pioneers of this part of the county, where her father
was a representative farmer. Mrs. Corbat had three children by her
first marriage, and two are living, Bertha and Amanda, the latter
being the wife of William Wolf.
In politics the Corbat brothers are stanch adherents of the
Democratic party, as is also their venerable father, and they take
a livel}^ interest in public affairs of a local nature, while both brothers
have served as delegates to the state and congressional conventions
of their party. They are communicants of the Catholic church, being
identified with the parish of St. Patrick's church, at Areola.
The brothers have shown marked capacity and acumen as business
men and have demonstrated the expediency of utilizing scientific
methods in carrying on their farming operations. They have per-
sonally reclaimed to cultivation fully one hundred acres of brush
land, besides much marsh land. They have their farm equipped
with a most perfect system of tile drainage, having installed the tile
by degrees and having secured the best of results through the ter-
ritory covered, one field alone having one hundred and sixty rods
of the tiling. The buildings are of high type and rank among the
best in the county, while in the matter of insurance indemnity they
stand second in amount on the books of the Allen County Mutual
Fire Insurance Company.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 481
KILIAN BAKER.
Among the old and influential citizens of Fort Wayne, and for
many years one of the city's leading manufacturers, is Kilian
Baker, a native of Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany, where his birth oc-
curred on December 15, 1830, being one of eight children whose
parents were George and Catherine (Baschinger) Baker. Five years
after the above date Mr. and Mrs. Baker, with their family, emi-
grated to the United States, going at once to Pittsburg, Pennsylvania,
where they remained until 1836, when the elder Baker came to Allen
county, Indiana, and entered a tract of government land in Cedar
Creek township. After entering the land he returned to Pittsburg
and remained until 1838, when he left Pittsburg with his family
and started westward, consuming two weeks in the journey that
brought them to Fort Wayne, then a small backwoods hamlet of
about three hundred and fifty or four hundred inhabitants. Here
he started a wagon-making shop, which, under his judicious manage-
ment, soon became one of the leading manufacturing establishments
of the place. After working at his trade for a period of ten years,
he discontinued wagonmaking and in 1848 erected a saw-mill and
began the manufacture of lumber on quite an extensive scale, in
which enterprise he was associated with his sons John, Jacob, Henry
and Kilian, the firm as thus constituted becoming prominent in the
industrial affairs of the new town, the demand for the output soon
taxing the mill to its utmost capacity. Two years after commencing
operations the father and John disposed of their interests to the other
brothers and retired from the business. Henry sold out in 1867
and Jacob in 1878, leaving Kilian sole proprietor, and as such
he continued with the most encouraging success until 1903, when,
by reason of an ample competency acquired the meantime, as well
as by the need of rest from such a busy and exacting life, he closed
31
482 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
out his lumbering interests and turned his attention to less onerous
pursuits,
Kilian Baker was a lad of eight years when he came to Allen
county and his childhood and youth were spent in Fort Wayne,
where he received a fair education in the parochial schools under the
supervision of the Catholic church. He grew up with the city, con-
tributed largely to its development along industrial lines and in due
time became an influential factor in promoting its varied interests.
Energetic and public spirited, he soon took an active part in all
enterprises for the common good, gave countenance and support to
e\er}^ laudable undertaking for the advancement of both city and
county, and in many matters his judgment was consulted and his
opinions ever carried weight in the councils of his fellow citizens.
Air. Baker is essentially a business man and as such achieved a
high and enviable standing in the community for the best interests
of which the greater part of his life has been devoted. Unflagging
industry, discriminating judgment and wise foresight have been
among his chief characteristics and during the years of his prime
his strength and vitality, as well as those clearer mental qualities
which enabled their possessor to take advantage of opportunities,
stood him well, in pushing to the largest success the important
undertaking in which he was engaged. Coming to the state in the
pioneer period and witnessing the phenomenal growth of the city
with which his life has been so closely interwoven, he has ever been
a close and critical observer of events, and today there are in Fort
Wayne few if any whose minds are so fully stored with valuable
historical reminiscences or who are more frequently consulted on
matters concerning the past. Until recently he retained to a marked
degree the possession of his splendid physical powers, but of late
the infirmities incident to advancing age have to a certain extent
undermined his vitality, although his memory is clear and his mental
powers keen and alert as in the days of his prime.
The father of Mr. Baker, from whom he inherited much of his
physical energy, died February 29, 1870, at the good old age of
eighty years, the mother departing this life some time in the '50s,
while in the prime of her womanhood. The marriage of Kilian
Baker was solemnized in 1859 with Miss Anna Dougherty, whose
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 483
birth occurred in 1840, her parents, John and Marcella (Lyons)
Dougherty, being among the pioneers of Fort Wayne, where they
settled as early as the year 1838. Mr. and Mrs. Dougherty were
natives of county West Meath, Ireland, but came to the United
States in 1835 and spent the remainder of their days in Allen county,
having long been residents of Areola, where they are still gratefully
remembered for their many acts of kindness, as well as for those
qualities of mind and heart that win and retain confidence.
The union of Kilian and Anna Baker has been blessed with the
following children: John G., of Missouri; Frank J., of Fort Wayne;
Mary, wife of Latham F. Blee, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania;
Agnes, now Mrs. Henry J. Taylor, of Fort Wayne: Margaret A.,
who married William D. Gordon, their home being now in Peoria,
Illinois; Charles H., who died in early childhood; Catherine A., now
known as Sister St. Euphrasie, of the Sisters of Providence; Rosella
M., Alfred K., Grace A., who reside with their parents, and Herbert
W., the last named dying when quite young.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Baker were reared in the Catholic faith and
have ever been loyal members of the holy mother church, belonging
to the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, in Fort Wayne. Be-
lieving every other consideration subordinate to the claims of re-
ligion, they have been untiring in their devotion to its duties and, like
all true Catholics, have spared no pains in the rearing of their chil-
dren according to the principles and precepts of the church, which
they consider life's greatest and best safeguard.
484 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
JACOB MARQUARDT.
We now take under review the career of one of the sterling
pioneer citizens of Allen county, where he has passed his entire life
and where he has ever commanded the unequivocal confidence and
esteem of his fellow men. The name which he bears has been
prominently identified with the annals of the county since the early
days when the work of reclaiming the sylvan wilds of this section
was inaugurated, and here he is now known as one of the large land-
holders and successful farmers of the county, his finely improved es-
tate being located in Madison township, section 11. He rendered
valiant service to the Union during the war of the Rebellion, and
during his entire life he has manifested the same loyalty of spirit
that led him to follow the old flag on the battle fields of the south.
His character, services and long residence render him peculiarly
worthy of representation in the Allen count}^ division of this history
of the Maumee basin.
Jacob Marquardt was born on the farm which is now his home,
in Madison township, Allen county, Indiana, on the 31st of May,
1844, and was the eighth in order of birth of the twelve children
of Jacob and Anna E. ( Hoffenberger) Marquardt, both of whom
were born in Germany, near the French border, while the paternal
lineage traces back to French derivation. Of the children six are
living, and of this number all still reside in Allen county. The
parents of the subject came to America when young, and the father
settled in Allen county in the early '30s, taking up a tract of govern-
ment land in Madison township and being one of the early settlers
in this part of the county. He reclaimed a considerable portion of
his land from the virgin wilds and became one of the well-to-do and
honored farmers of the county. The farm now owned by our
subject is a portion of the original estate, and other valuable farms
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 485
in the township are hkevvise owned by representatives of the family.
The father died in 1852, and his devoted wife passed away in 1888,
while the names of both merit a place on the roll of the honored
pioneers of this now favored section of the state.
The subject was reared on the old homestead, early beginning to
assist in its work, while his educational advantages were those af-
forded in the common schools of the locality and period. He con-
tinued to be associated with his father in the operation of the
home farm until he had attained to the age of eighteen years, when
he initiated his independent career, securing a portion of the home-
stead and settling himself vigorously to the task of reclaiming the
same from the forest, the major portion of his land having been a
veritable wilderness at the time when he assumed the work of hew-
ing out a farm. He now has a well improved estate of three hun-
dred and twenty acres, nearly all of which he has cleared and placed
under the highest state of cultivation, while the passing years have
brought to him a generous prosperity and made him one of the
substantial farmers of the county, while he is one of the popular and
influential citizens of his native township. He has ever been a
stanch advocate of the principles of the Democratic party and is
loyal in his support of its cause, while he has been called upon to
serve in various offices of local trust. In a fraternal way he is
identified with William Link Post, No. 301, Grand Army of the
Republic, in Monroeville, while both he and his wife are zealous
members of the Lutheran church, in \yhose faith they have reared
their children, all of whom were baptized in the same.
In February, 1865, at Kendallville, this state, Mr. Marquardt
enlisted in Company F, One Hundred and Fifty-second Indiana
Volunteer Infantry, joining his regiment in the city of Indianapolis
and thence proceeding with his command to Harper's Ferry, West
Virginia, and from that point to Charleston and into the Shenan-
doah valley, where he was taken severely ill, being sent to the Cum-
berland hospital, where he remained incapacitated until the close of
the war, having received his honorable discharge in August, 1865,
while still in the hospital. After the close of the war he returned to
his farm and here has ever since given his attention to diversified
agriculture and stock growing.
486 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
On the nth of October, 1868, was solemnized the marriage of
Mr. Marquardt to Miss Susan Pyle, who was born in Brown county,
Ohio, on the 3d of December, 1848, being a daughter of Isaac N.
and Hannah A. (Lake) Pyle, of English and Scotch lineage, re-
spectively, and she was a child at the time of her parents' removal
to Allen county, where she was reared and educated. Mr. and Mrs.
Marquardt have thirteen children, all of whom were born on the
old homestead farm which was the birthplace of their father, and
their names are here entered in order of birth : Rosanna, who is
single and resides at home; Daniel A. is a train inspector for the
Pennsylvania Railroad Company and resides at Hamlet, Indiana;
Susan S. V. and Martha E. are deceased; Mary E. is the wife of
August Miller, of Monroeville, Indiana; Samuel J. is a veterinary
surgeon at Monroeville, Indiana, being a graduate of the Ohio State
University; Daisy E. is the wife of Conrad Brouwer, of Monroe-
ville, Indiana; Jasper E. resides on his father's farm and cultivates
part of the homestead in Madison township; Dora E. is the wife of
Frank Gable, farmer and school teacher, who resides on part of his
father-in-law's farm in Madison township; Washington, Robert R.
and Rufus R. are deceased; Huldah F. is still single and resides at
home.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 48;
JOHN CASSELMAN.
Mr. Casselman's first knowledge of Allen county was gained
more than fifty years ago, when he came here as a boy, his parents
residing in the county a few years and then returning to Ohio,
where he grew to manhood. However, it was his good fortune to
return to the county about thirty years ago, and here he has ever
since maintained his home, while he is one of the representative
business men of Monroeville. where he conducts a finely equipped
meat market, having previously been identified with farming and
stock growing in the county and being a citizen who commands the
respect of all.
Mr. Casselman was born in Carroll county, Ohio, on the 28th
of December, 1838. and is a son of David and Elizabeth (Brande-
berry) Casselman, both of whom were born and reared in the old
Buckeye state, where the respective families were founded in the
pioneer era, the paternal lineage being traced back to stanch Holland
stock and the maternal to Scotch derivation. In 1852 the family
came to Allen county, Indiana, where they remained four years, at
the expiration of which they returned to the old home in Carroll
county, Ohio, where the parents passed the remainder of their lives,
the father having teen a successful farmer and substantial citizen.
The subject of this review secured his educational training in the
common schools of Ohio and Indiana, and from his youth up was
familiar with the details involved in the operation of a farm, having
been associated in the work of his fathers farmstead until he had
attained to his legal majority, when he initiated his independent
career, continuing to be concerned in the field of enterprise in which
he had been reared. In May, 1864, he became a member of the
local militia or home guard of Carroll county, Ohio, and he was
called into the service of his country for a period of one hundred
488 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
days. He took part in no active engagements but was assigned to
guard duty, keeping ward over prisoners. He received his honor-
able discharge in September, 1864, his command having been a part
of the One Hundred and Fifty-seventh Regiment of Ohio Volunteer
Infantry. His patriotism was insistent and he did all in his power
to aid the Union cause during the turbulent and critical era of the
Civil war.
After the war Mr. Casselman continued to be engaged in farm-
ing in Carroll county, Ohio, until 1870, in November of which
year he came to Indiana and took up his residence in Allen county.
Here he purchased a farm, in Madison township, the land being
only partially reclaimed, and on this place he continued to reside
for the ensuing twelve years. He then disposed of the property
and purchased a farm in Monroe township, where he lived for six
years and then sold the place, in order to turn his attention to
another line of enterprise. At this time he located in Monroeville
and engaged in the butchering business, in which he has ever since
continued, being now one of the oldest merchants of the town in
point of consecutive business association, while he has so ordered his
course as to gain the high regard of the community and has long
controlled a large and representative trade, while his establishment is
modem in its equipment and service. Mr. Casselman is a stalwart
advocate of the principles and policies of the Republican party, and
both he and his wife are valued members of the Christian church.
On the 14th of October, 1862, Mr. Casselman was united in
marriage to Miss Mary E. Reed, who was bom in Carroll county,
Ohio, on the 9th of January, 1834, being a daughter of Robert and
Mary (Baughman) Reed, both of whom died in that county. Mr.
and Mrs. Casselman have four children, Marvilla J., Lewis H.,
William B. and Emmett F.
Lewis Homer Casselman, the eldest of the three sons of John
and Mary E. (Reed) Casselman, was bom in Rochester, Columbiana
county, Ohio, on the 9th of January, 1867, and he was thus about
four years of age at the time of the family removal to Allen county,
where he was reared and educated, having been afforded the ad-
vantages of the public schools, while he early began to lend his aid
in the work of the home farm. At the age of seventeen years he gave
i
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 489
inception to his independent business career, which has been one
marked by energy, abihty and worthy success. He began buying and
selhng live stock, and has ever since continued in this important
branch of industry, in which he is an acknowledged authority, while
he has built up a large and profitable enterprise, making extensive
shipments of live stock each year and having his business head-
quarters in Monroeville. Like his honored father he is found
stanchly arrayed as a supporter of the cause of the Republican party,
and both he and his wife are members of the Lutheran church, in
whose work they take an active part.
On the loth of November, 1901, Lewis H. Casselman was
united in marriage to Miss Minnie Geyer, who was born and reared
in this county, being a daughter of Ferdinand and Augusta (Wol-
lenholp) Geyer, well known residents of Monroeville, Indiana. Mr.
and MrS; Casselman have two children, Miriam and William
Maurice.
I
490 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
ALFRED H. BATES.
The subject of this memoir was one of the representative farm-
ers of Aboit township and was a citizen of , worth and influence, com-
manding the unqualified confidence and regard of all who knew him.
Mr. Bates was bom in Oswego county, New York, on the 23d
of October, 1836, being the second in order of birth of the six sons
of Jeremiah and Lucy ( Norton) Bates. The paternal grandparents,
Ephraim and Melvina (Hopkins) Bates, were native of Massachu-
setts and representatives of families early founded in New England,
that cradle of so much of our national histor}^ In the maternal line
of the Bates family the genealogy is traced to the de Norville family,
of patrician French stock, the records extant showing that one of
the name was a signer of the death warrant of King Charles I of
France. Jeremiah Bates died in 1869, and his widow passed away
in 1884, at the venerable age of eighty-one years, both having con-
tinued resident of the old Empire state, where the father followed
agricultural pursuits.
Alfred H. Bates passed his youthful days in his native county,
completing the curriculum of the common schools and supplementing
this discipline by a course in an academy at Mexico, New York.
He remained at the parental home until he had attained to the
age of eighteen years, when he set forth for the west, arriving in
South Bend, Indiana, in October, 1854, while later he visited various
parts of Illinois, Iowa and Missouri. He finally took up his resi-
dence in Allen county, Indiana, where he was engaged in teaching
school for a time, and he identified himself permanently with the
civic and industrial affairs of the county by purchasing the present
Bates homestead farm, in sections 4 and 5, Aboit township, the
place comprising one hundred and six acres of fine land. At the
time when he took up his residence on the farm it was practically
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 491
without improvements, being largely covered with the heavy growth
of native timber, while the original residence of the family was a log
cabin of the type so common to the pioneer era. He reclaimed about
ninety acres of the land to cultivation and added to the area of his
estate until it comprised one hundred and fifty acres. The present
substantial and commodious frame residence was erected in the early
'70s, while the other buildings on the place are of excellent order.
Mr. Bates not only carried on his general farming operations with
vigor and discrimination, but also gave special attention to the
raising of high-grade live stock and was at one time one of the
leading poultry fanciers and breeders of the county, raising principally
the Barred Plymouth Rocks, Buff Cochins and Light Brahmas,
while he made numerous exhibitions at the various poultry shows,
securing many prizes in the connection, while the eggs from his
farm commanded fancy prices for breeding purposes. Mr. Bates
was a natural enthusiast, and as such was not satisfied with less
than the ultimate attainment in any work or enterprise to which
he directed his energies, so that he was very successful in the several
departments of his business undertakings. He conducted a high-
class butter daily, keeping an average herd of twenty-five milch
cows and manufacturing from one hundred and fifty to two hun-
dred pounds of butter a week, while the entire product was sold to
appreciative private customers. This enterprise he continued until
the death of his wife. Mr, Bates introduced the first DeLaval cream
separator in the county, and at the time the same attracted much
attention, persons coming from long distances to witness its operation.
Mr, Bates was one of the honored and influential citizens of
Aboit township, and though he took a lively interest in public
affairs he never sought official preferment. He was a stalwart Re-
publican in his political proclivities, and both he and his wife held
membership in the Christian church at Dunfee, Whitley county,
about two miles distant from their home. Mrs. Bates died on the
14th of June, 1902, and he was summoned to the life eternal on the
6th of July, 1904, so that in death they were not long divided. The
remains of both rest in the beautiful Lindenwood cemetery, in Fort
Wayne, in which city Mr. Bates resided during the last two years
of his life, though continuing to supervise his business interests until
practically the time of his death.
492 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Mr. Bates was twice married. On the 29th of September, 1859,
he wedded Miss Ann J. Turner, daughter of Enoch Turner, and
she passed away on the 15th of June, 1865, leaving three daughters,
Lucy A., wife of Henry Gunder; Rose E., wife of RolHn ElHson;
and Ann J., wife of Edward P. Scheuler. On the 21st of October,
1865, Mr. Bates was united in marriage to Miss Sarah J. Stirk,
daughter of William and Jane Stirk, the former of whom died in
1884 and the latter in 1887. Three children were born of the second
marriage, namely: Frank M. is the wife of Louis J. Eme and they
reside on a part of the old homestead, Mr. Eme being personally
mentioned elsewhere in this volume; Eudora, who is the wife of
John F. Traster, of Whitley county; and Arthur M., who has charge
of the home farm and who is administrator of the estate. He was
born on the old homestead, on the 23d of January, 1878, and was
here reared to maturity, receiving his educational training in the
public schools. At the age of twenty-one years he became a fire-
man on the Pennsylvania Railroad, retaining this position eight
months and then returning to the home farm, to which he has ever
since given his attention. On the 29th of April. 1902, he was united
in marriage to Miss Delia E. Schinbeckler, of Whitley county, and
they have one child, Herbert Russell. Mr. Bates is a Republican in
politics and is one of the progressive young farmers of the county.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 493
JOHN W. EDWARDS.
One of the prominent and influential business men of Monroe-
ville, Allen county, is he whose name initiates this sketch and who
is senior member of the firm of Edwards Brothers, who here con-
duct a large department store, which represents the leading enter-
prise of the kind in this part of the county.
John W. Edwards was born in a hewed-log house on the
Edwards homestead, in Madison township, Allen county, Indiana,
on the 1 6th of August, 1850, being the eldest son of Samuel and
Lucinda (Eagy) Edwards. Samuel Edwards was born in West-
moreland county, Pennsylvania, in 1826, of Welsh parentage, and
his wife was a native of Carroll county, Ohio, where she was born
in 1832, her lineage tracing back to stanch German and Irish
derivation. Samuel and Lucinda (Eagy) Edwards came with their
respective parents to Madison township, Allen county, Indiana, in
the year 1836, and here they were reared to maturity under the in-
fluences of the pioneer era, while their marriage was here solem-
nized in April, 1849. I" this township they continued to reside
after their marriage, the father devoting his attention to agricultural
pursuits until his death, which occurred in November, 1864. The
devoted wife and mother is still living, maintaining her home in
Monroeville, Monroe township, and being hale and hearty, while
she is held in affectionate regard by all who know her, being one
of the honored pioneer women of the county. She has the distinction
of having lived in Madison and Monroe townships for a longer
period than any other person who is now living or any who has ever
lived in said townships.
John W. Edwards grew to manhood on the homestead farm,
in Madison township, while his early educational discipline was se-
cured in the common schools of the locality and period, the same
494 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
being in session from three to four months in the year. As a youth
he supplemented this training by a course of study in the old
Methodist Episcopal college in the city of Fort Wayne, and he
later entered the Miami Commercial College, in Dayton, Ohio, where
he was graduated as a member of the class of 1872, so that his edu-
cation was of a liberal and practical order. For a number of years
Mr. Edwards was a successful and popular teacher in the public
schools of Madison and Monroe townships.
In Huntertown, this county, on the i6th of September, 1875,
Mr. Edwards was united in marriage to Miss Annetta L. Barnhart,
daughter of Rev. A. C. Barnhart. Mrs. Edwards was born in
Sigourney, Iowa, in 1858. At the close of the term of school he
was teaching Mr. Edwards removed with his young wife to Edwards
county, Kansas, where he entered government land and engaged in
farming and teaching school. He also served as postmaster at
Offerle, Kansas, for four years, and within this time he was elected
county commissioner, in which office he serv^ed two years, being
president of the board during the last year. In 1882 Mr. Edwards
removed from Kansas to Florida, where he resided until the death
of his wife, in May, 1887. Left with four small children, he was
compelled to return to Indiana, coming to Monroeville. where he has
ever since maintained his home. On the i6th of August, 1888, he was
united in marriage to Mrs. Fannie Reed Philley, at Monroeville, she
being the eldest daughter of Sanford and Mary Philley and a rep-
resentative of one of the old and prominent families of Fort Wayne.
Of the children of Mr. Edwards, two daughters and one
son are married and reside in the city of Fort Wayne, namely :
Artie L., the wife of W. Carey Ewing; Verne P., the wife of George
Pantazin; and Almond A. Edwards. Another daughter of the first
marriage, Miss Annetta L., resides in Kansas; and the two daughters
of the second marriage, Cleo and Eva, remain at the parental home.
As before stated, Mr. Edwards is now the senior member of
the firm of Edwards Brothers, who are conducting a large depart-
ment store and are the leading firm in their line in Monroeville.
They are enjoying a large and representative trade and are noted
for their business enterprise, and honorable dealings, having the
unqualified confidence and esteem of the people of this section.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 495
Mr. and Mrs. Edwards are active and devoted members of the
Methodist Episcopal church, of ^^'hich he has been a member since
he was a youth of eighteen years. He has served as superintendent
of the Sunday school and also as steward, class-leader and trustee,
while at the present time he is the teacher of the largest class of
young ladies to be found in the Sunday schools of the town, having
thus served for the past five years. He is not only active in all
departments of church work, but is one of the most liberal supporters
of the church in a financial way. He has represented the Monroe-
ville church on three occasions as lay delegate to the annual con-
ference.
In politics Mr. Edwards has given an unqualified allegiance to
the Republican party ever since attaining his majority, and while
he is not taking an active part in politics he keeps in close and in-
telligent touch with the questions and issues of the hour and is well
fortified in his political faith. He is not insistently partisan, how-
ever, to the extent of supporting unworthy candidates or measures,
preferring honest and upright men in office, regardless of party
affiliation, and acting in accordance with such preference. He is
essentially public spirited and progressive, and is ever found ready
to lend his aid and influence in supporting worthy measures for the
general good of the community.
496 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
HENRY A. WIEBKE.
Among the successful and popular business men of Fort Wayne
is the gentleman whose name appears at the head of this sketch and
who conducts one of the leading sample rooms of the city, the same
being located at No. 625 Calhoun street. Mr. Wiebke was born in
this city on September i, 1867, and is the son of Henry and Wil-
hemina (Hoffmeyer) Wiebke. The former was born on February
26, 1839, ^t Lahde, near Minden, Prussia, and lived in his native
country until twenty years of age. He then emigrated to America
and first located at Indianapolis, Indiana, where for a short time
he engaged at the carpenter's trade. He then removed to Fort
Wayne and on March 15, 1862, he embarked in the grocery business
at the comer of Calhoun and Columbia streets. He was successful in
business, figuring as one of the enterprising and progressive business
men of the city. He continued actively engaged in business until
the time of his retirement, in 1886. His wife, whose maiden name
was Wilhemina Hoffmeyer, was bom December 7, 1845, at Mass-
lingen, near Minden, Prussia, and in childhood was brought to this
country. She made her home at Indianapolis until March 18, 1886,
at which time occurred her marriage to Henry Wiebke and her con-
sequent removal to Fort Wayne. To this couple were born five chil-
dren, three sons and two daughters, namely: Henry A., Florence,
William, August and Bertha,
The subject of this sketch was reared under the parental roof
and received his education in St. Paul's Lutheran parochial school,
after which he attended the business college conducted by Colonel
Powers, where he took a complete course in bookkeeping. On the
1 8th of December, 1888, he entered into partnership with W. T.
Mannix and opened a sample room on Calhoun street, this city, but
two years later he purchased his partner's interest and has since con-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 497
ducted it alone. The place has the reputation of being one of the
most orderly and best conducted in the city and the proprietor has
long enjoyed a well merited popularity among those who know him.
On the 13th of January, 1896, Mr. Wiebke was united in mar-
riage with Mrs. Louise Mosshammer (nee Ritter), the widow of
August Mosshammer. She was bom in this city and is the daughter
of Anthony and Barbara (Straus) Ritter, and by her union with her
former husband she became the mother of two children, Franklin
M. and Arthur S. No children have been bom to the present union.
Politically Mr, Wiebke is a Democrat and in May, 1903, he was
elected a member of the city council, his ward being the only one to
go Democratic that year, this being the first time in over thirty years
that the Democrats have failed to carry the city by a large majority.
Fraternally he is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of
Elks, Lodge No. 155, the Fraternal Order of Eagles, Aerie No. 248,
the Commercial Club, a social member of the Corner Rod and Gun
Club, and also belongs to the Concordia Singing Society and the
Kreuz Stolzenau. In religion, he was baptized and confirmed in St.
Paul's Lutheran church. Mr. Wiebke possesses a social disposition
and courteous manner, and because of his many fine personal qualities
he has won a host of warm friends.
32
498 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
LOUIS J. EME.
A well-known and popular citizen of Aboit township and a
representative of one of the honored pioneer families of Allen county
is Louis J. Erne, who is a skilled carpenter and identified with the
work of railroad bridge building.
Mr. Erne was born in Lake township, this county, on the 24th
of August, 1865, and is a son of Ferdinand and Josephine (Parnin)
Erne, both of whom were born in France, whence they came to
America with their respective families as children, the two families
being members of the French colony which came to Allen county
and settled in Washington township. Ferdinand Eme and his wife
reside in Lake township, where he is a prosperous farmer. His father,
Humbert Eme, was likewise a farmer of the county and here con-
tinued to reside until death. The subject of this review was reared
in Lake township, and his educational advantages were those afforded
by the public schools in the village of Areola. When about twenty
years of age he entered upon an apprenticeship at the carpenter's
trade, with his brother Julian. For the past five years Louis Eme
has devoted his attention almost exclusively to work as a carpenter,
in which line he has done a large amount of constructing and re-
pairing. For a time he retained his residence in the city of Fort
Wayne, after which he passed about eight years on the well-equipped
dairy farm of his father-in-law. Since that time he has been con-
cerned in the work of his trade as a carpenter. He is held in high
regard in Aboit township, as is evident when we revert to the fact
that he was chosen to serve as township assessor and for one term
was incumbent of the office of township supervisor, in which con-
nection he made an excellent record and gained unqualified approval
from his constituency. In politics he is a stalwart adherent of the
Republican party, of whose principles and policies he is a stanch
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 499
supporter, being the only voter in his family to have thus espoused
the cause of the "grand old party."
On the 27th of September, 1888, Mr. Erne was united in mar-
riage to Miss Frank M. Bates, who was bom in the family home-
stead, in Aboit township, being a daughter of Alfred H. Bates,
concerning whom individual mention is made on other pages of this
work. Mr. and Mrs. Eme have two sons, Hubert Bates and Glenn
Louis.
500 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
WILLIAM T. WYBOURN.
One of the fine farm properties of Madison township, Allen
county, Indiana, is that owned by Mr. Wyboum, who has here main-
tained his home since his boyhood days and who has gained recog-
nition as one of the progressive and successful husbandmen of the
county and as a citizen whose life has been dominated by high
principles and a determination to achieve a success worthy of the
name, so that he has not been denied the fullest measure of popular
confidence and esteem in the county in which he has lived and labored
for a half century. Such are the men who are particularly worthy
of consideration in a publication of this nature, for though they have
not stood forth in the "great white light" of publicity, they have
been numbered among the rank and file of the world's workers and
have played V well their assigned parts on the stage of action to
which they have been summoned. Mr. Wyboum is one of the in-
telligent and enterprising men who have successfully directed their
attention and labors to the noble and fundamental industry of agri-
culture and is one whose success has been due entirely to his own
efforts. On his attractive landed estate, comprising one hundred
and twenty acres, he is abiding in peace, contentment and plenty,
honored by those among whom so many years of his life have been
passed and ever doing all in his power to conserve the best interests
of the community.
William T. Wybourn was born in the city of Albany, New
York, on the i8th of September, 1848, and is a son of John O.
and Matilda (Bush) Wyboum, both of whom were bom in county
Kent, England, whence they came to America, locating in Albany,
New York. Here they were married and remained until the sub-
ject was five years of age, when they came to Allen county, Indiana,
where both died the following year, on the same day of August,
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 501
1854, leaving William doubly orphaned when but a lad of six
years. For a few weeks after his parents' demise he was cared for
in the home of a family friend and he then found a home with the
family of William Hammond, a well-known pioneer farmer of
Madison township, this county. He was reared to maturity under
the discipline of the farm and his educational opportunities in his
youth were those afforded in the common schools of the locality,
which he was enabled to attend during only six weeks of the year,
walking two miles back and forth to the school each day and mak-
ing the best use of the somewhat meager advantages thus gained,
while he has effectively supplemented this early discipline by that
gained under the direction of that wisest of all headmasters, ex-
perience. He continued to reside in the home of his foster-father
until he had attained to the age of twenty years, and upon reaching
his legal majority he initiated his independent career, which has been
one of consecutive endeavor along those well defined lines which lead
to success. He gave himself zealously to the work in hand, prin-
cipally that of farming, and within three years had saved from his
earnings a sufficient amount of money to justify him in the purchas-
ing of a farm of fifty-six acres, partially improved. He continued
his labors with much energy and discrimination and prosperity was
not denied him as the years passed by, while his present finely im-
proved homestead, which comprises one hundred and twenty acres
of most productive land, in Madison township, stands in permanent
evidence of his industry and good management, his farm being one
of the model places of this section of the county. Mr. Wyboum is
one of the influential citizens of his township and has always shown
a loyal interest in public affairs of a local nature, while in politics
he is an uncompromising advocate of the principles of the Prohibition
party, with which he has been identified from practically the time of
its organization. His exalted principles are indicated by this al-
legiance, and they have dominated his course in all the relations of
life, so that he has held the esteem of his fellow men on the simple
score that he has deserved it. Both he and his wife are worthy and
active members of the Methodist Episcopal church.
On the ist of July, 1875, was solemnized the marriage of Mr.
Wybourn to Miss Maria C. McKeeman, who was bom near the
502 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
city of Albany, New York, on the 20th of July, 1853, being a
daughter of David and Margaret (McConaha) McKeeman, who
were born in Ireland, and who came from the state of New York to
Allen county, Indiana, when she was a child, here passing the re-
mainder of their lives, the father having been a prosperous farmer
of Madison township. Mr. and Mrs. Wybourn have two sons,
John A. and David C, who are well known and popular young men
of their native county. Miss Mary Peters, daughter of Ephraim
and Mary (Barnes) Peters, has had her home with Mr. and Mrs.
Wybourn since 1890, her mother having died about two years before.
John A. Wybourn, the elder of the two sons, was bom in
Madison township, this county, on the loth of May, 1876, and was
educated in the public schools, having been a student for one year
in the high school at Monroeville. In 1897 he became salesman
for the Singer Sewing Machine Company, by which he was em-
ployed four years, being successful in his efforts. He then es-
tablished himself in the buggy and harness business in Monroeville,
where he now has a well equipped repository, handling an excellent
line of carriages, buggies and wagons, and being one of the repre-
sentative young business men of the town. On the 30th of March,
1902, John A. Wybourn wedded Miss Rose E. Barkley, who was
bom and reared in Adams county, this state.
David C. Wybourn was bom on the homestead farm, on the
4th of November, 1878, and after completing the curriculum of the
district schools he continued his studies in the public schools of
Monroeville, being there graduated in the high school in the class
of 1896, after which he was successfully engaged in teaching for
two years. He then entered the Fort Wayne Medical College,
where he completed the prescribed four-years course and was gradu-
ated with the degree of Doctor of Medicine, as a member of the
class of 1902. After graduation he received the appointment of as-
sistant physician and surgeon at the Indiana School for Feeble
Minded Youths at Fort Wayne, which he continued to fill for some
time. He is now successfully established in the practice of his
profession in Sheldon, this county. On the 4th of August, 1903, he
was united in marriage to Miss Katie Sheehan, of Monroeville,
Indiana.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 503
REUBEN ROUSSEAU.
A scion of one of the sterling pioneer families of the Hoosier
state is Reuben Rousseau, who has been a resident of Allen county
for more than half a century, being one of the honored pioneer citizens
of Aboit township, where he has long been engaged in farming and
gardening, being one of the substantial men of the township and
commanding high esteem in the community in which he has so
long lived and labored. His memory forms a link between the
pioneer epoch in Allen county and the latter days of opulent ad-
vancement and prosperity, while his reminiscences are thus interest-
ing in the extreme and should be perpetuated for future generations,
since but a few years more may pass before there will be none left
to tell the stirring tales of the early days.
Mr. Rousseau comes of French lineage on the paternal side, as
the name indicates, but the name which he bears has long been
identified with the history of America, since his grandfather, David
R. Rousseau, having been a native of France and having been the
original representative of the immediate family in the new world.
Reuben Rousseau was born in Henry county, Indiana, on the 6th
of June, 1834, and is a son of William and Ruth (McBride) Rous-
seau, both of whom were born and bred in North Carolina, the
former in Wilks county, on December 27, 1807. They were the
parents of twelve children, six of whom are living. The subject
of this sketch is the eldest son. Frank M., the second bom, and
James H., the youngest. The latter was born in Wells county, Indi-
ana, in 1854, and bought the home farm in Aboit township, Allen
county, where he resided until 1885. He then moved to Dakota,
where he lived until 1887, and there homesteaded one hundred and
sixty acres of land. During this period he was visited by the sub-
ject of this sketch, who was engaged on a hunting expedition. They
504 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
visited Fort Yates and La Grace and at the latter place saw the
great Indian chief, Sitting Bull, and his band, who were engaged in
a war dance. Mr. Rousseau hunted and fished along the Missouri
river, killing black and gray wolves, a mountain lion, several deer
and much smaller game. James M. Rousseau moved back to
Allen county and, selling the old homestead, bought three hun-
dred and twenty acres in the same township, of which he has
since sold all but sixty acres. He bought the Lillie homestead
addition to the city of Fort Wayne, where he now resides,
being engaged in the real-estate business. F. M. Rousseau, who
was bom at New Castle, Indiana, August 20, 1836, has re-
sided in Allen county for fifty years, being occupied as a
farmer, gardener and dairyman. He has been a lifelong Re-
publican, and is an elder in the Christian church at Fort Wayne. The
maternal grandfather of the subject was of Irish nativity, while the
grandmother was of German lineage, having been born in the city
of Bonn, Germany. David R. Rousseau was a successful farmer in
North Carolina, where he operated a plantation and owned a con-
siderable number of slaves. He came to Indiana in the early pioneer
days, and lived in turn in Henry, Wayne, Blackford, Wells and
Allen counties, while he passed the closing years of his life in Whit-
ley county, both he and his wife having been laid to rest in a little
private cemetery plot between Blue River lake and Round lake. The
grandfather was a typical pioneer, being a man of energy and sturdy
integrity and taking great delight in hunting and fishing, a pred-
ilection which seems to have been inherited by not a few of his
descendants. The parents of the subject came to Indiana in the early
'30s, and they encountered their full share of the experiences and
vicissitudes of pioneer life, while the father devoted his attention
principally to farming, having settled on wild land and reclaimed
much of the same to cultivation. He continued his residence in
Allen county for many years and both he and his wife died in Aboit
township, where their mortal remains lie at rest in the old Bullard
cemetery. They were folk of sterling worth and it is fitting that in
this compilation be accorded a brief tribute to their memories, for
they were numbered among those who aided in the founding of the
industrial and civic structure of Allen county.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 505
Reuben Rousseau, the immediate subject of this review, ac-
companied his parents on their various removals to different counties
in Indiana, and his early educational advantages were limited, owing
to the conditions which prevailed. He attended the old log school
house in Hartford City, Blackford county, and well recalls the
primitive facilities afforded, both in the equipment of the build-
ing and in the scope of the curriculum. He was able, however, to
lay the foundation on which to upbuild the excellent practical edu-
cation which he has gained in the great school of experience. Mr.
Rousseau was about sixteen years of age at the time of the family
removal to Allen county, in 1850, and he was reared to the her-
culean work of the pioneer farm, waxing strong in mind and body
and finding due recreation in his hunting and fishing and in the other
sports common to the period and locality. At the age of eighteen
years he practically initiated his independent career, since at that
time he took charge of the homestead farm and virtually became the
head of the family in the matter of managing all business affairs.
He was thus engaged at the time of the outbreak of the war of
the Rebellion, and he served for a short time in the Union ranks
during the closing days of the great conflict. In February, 1865,
he enlisted as a member of Company G, One Hundred and Fifty-
second Indiana Volunteer Infantry, with which he proceeded to the
front, remaining in service until the close of the war and having
received his honorable discharge in Charleston, West Virginia, on
the 30th of August, 1865.
Upon his return from the army, in 1865, Mr. Rousseau, with his
wife and son, started westward, eventually arriving at Humansville,
Missouri, in 1870, where he took up some land. The following fall
he sold out and went to Sumner county, Kansas, where he entered
one hundred and sixty acres of government land, paying the regu-
lation price of one dollar and a quarter per acre. He also assisted
in laying out the town of Belleplaine. The first winter was spent
in a dug-out and during this time he was very successful as a hunter,
killing much game, large and small. However, in the spring of
1 87 1 they got short of fresh meat and Mr. Rosseau proposed that
he go out to the buffalo grounds. Others joined him on the expedi-
tion and, taking their teams and a boy as driver, they crossed the
5o6 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Marquard river, crossing also the Charles river, ten miles beyond.
Five miles further brought them to the Panhandle Texas trail, which
was occupied by herds of cattle on their way to Wichita for ship-
ment. The animals had cut the trail up so badly the hunters could
hardly get their wagons across, and besides they were pretty badly
scared by the cowboys, who were armed to the teeth. However, they
continued on their way and the subject, who was in the lead, saw
ahead of them on the trail two men, with a small wagon drawn by
a span o mules. Mr. Rousseau overtook them and asked, "Which
way, boys?" "Well, we thought we would go out and take a little
buffalo hunt. Which way are you heading for?" "Buffalo hunt
too." "Well, did you ever kill one?" "No, never saw a wild one.
Just going out to see one." "Well, you will not do much." Mr.
Rousseau replied that he had killed much other game and was a
fairly good shot. They soon reached the buffalo grounds and camped
in a ravine, the new acquaintances remaining with them. After
supper the stranger, who had given his name as John Degolia, from
Wichita, produced an old Spencer carbine, with which he intended
to do his buffalo hunting. During conversation he stated there was
not much danger from Indians and that he had lived with the Osages
and Cheyennes. After these statements, Mr. Rousseau asked him to
remain with the party, to which arrangements he consented. Mr.
Rousseau then showed his armament, which consisted of a double-
barrel shotgun, a big Colt's revolver, Spencer rifle and target rifle,
the Spencer having a range of a mile. In the morning some of the
party made boast of their ability to kill buffaloes, to which the new-
comer replied that if one was good enough shot to kill deer he could
also kill buffaloes. They soon discovered their game ahead of tliem.
The strangers asked Mr. Rousseau to remain a little to the rear while
they shot first. They fired several rounds, the result being one
animal down about a half mile away. Mr. Rousseau then went to the
front and, with the remark, "Why don't you shoot that big bull?"
he fired, his first shot bringing down the animal to which he referred.
His second and third shots likewise brought down others that had
started to run. He afterwards counted the empty shells and found
that the strangers had expended twenty shots apiece in their efforts
to pull down the one animal, a poor showing for men who had
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 507
previously boasted of their skill. In 1872 Mr. Rousseau again went
on several hunting- expeditions, taking with him his hunting dogs.
On one of these trips he went to the Salt Fork and Red river dis-
tricts in the Oklahoma region, and there unexpectedly ran into a
band of Osage Indians, who were on a big hunt. Mr. Rousseau
camped with them over night, and in the morning saw them kill
twenty buffaloes' with no other weapons than bows and arrows.
Mr. Rousseau w^as also busy in the same line and upon the con-
clusion of the hunt he and the Indians assisted each other in cutting
up the carcasses, loading them on ponies and carrying them back
to camp. Mr. Rousseau returned home without mishap, and later
went on another trip up the river, where the Cheyenne Indians were
engaged in a big hunt. He went out about seventy-five miles on
the Wichita trail, meeting on the way many hunting parties, one
of them from as far away as New York. The latter party, with
their blooded horses and army guns, were met with just at the
edge of the buffalo grounds. About sundown a herd of buffaloes
were seen crossing the trail and the easterners were at once wild to
get at them, saying they would give a hundred dollars for the chance.
Mr. Rousseau volunteered to stop the animals and, going back to his
wagon, he loosened and brought to the front his big Newfoundland
dog Dash, whom he asked if he could see the buffaloes. He nodded
his head, and Mr. Rousseau instructed him to go and stop the animals,
warning the men to be careful and avoid shooting the dog. The
dog, well trained as he was, rounded the buffaloes like so many
sheep and twenty of them were killed by the hunters, one of whom
offered Mr. Rousseau a one hundred dollar bill for the dog, which
offer, it is needless to say, was refused. In 1874 Mr. Rousseau en-
gaged in' several successful hunts. He then returned to the old
Allen county farm, after proving up on his western land, and here
engaged in fine stock raising, but later sold out and went to Toledo,
Ohio, where he remained for two years, being engaged in the book-
canvassing business. He then returned to Fort Wayne, from there
moved to Monroeville, back again to Fort Wayne, and thence to
Indianapolis. A year later he returned to Monroeville, where he
settled down to gardening and the raising of fine chickens, pigeons,
Belgian hares, rabbits, Italian bees, in which he has been successful
5o8 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
to a very gratifying degree. He has put forth his best energies
and has thus gained a competency, having been the owner of a well
improved farm of one hundred and sixty acres, in Aboit township,
and being one of the popular and influential citizens of this section
of the county. He has ever been a stanch advocate of the principles
and policies of the Republican party, and has held various offices of
local trust and responsibility. For fully fifty years he has been a
consistent and active member of the Christian church, of which his
wife also is a member, and he is a man of clean and upright char-
acter, charitable in his judgment and kindly in his association with
his fellow men. He has never used tobacco in any form and is
also an uncompromising temperance advocate. In a fraternal way he
keeps alive the more grateful memories of his military service by
retaining membership in William Link Post, No. 301, Grand Army
of the Republic, at Monroeville.
Mr. Rousseau was married to Miss Caroline E. Houseman, who
was born in Huntington county, Indiana, in 1840, being a daughter
of John Houseman. The children of this union are as follows : James
A., Ruth E., Charlotte A., Queenie B., Mary H. and Dora M.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 509
GABRIEL FAIR.
More than sixty-five years have elapsed since the Fair family was
founded in Allen county, and thus the subject of this sketch is a
representative of sterling pioneer stock, w^hile he is to be considered
as one of the substantial farmers and progressive citizens of Eel
River township, while he has made his home in the county during
practically his entire life.
Mr. Fair was born in Champaign county, Ohio, on the nth
of September, 1838, being a son of Henry and Elizabeth (Norman)
Fair, the former of whom was born in Maryland and the latter in
Ohio. At the age of sixteen years Henry Fair accompanied his
parents on their removal to Champaign county, Ohio.. The Nor-
man family was early founded in Rockingham county, Virginia,
whence the immigration to Ohio was made in the year 1804.
In 1839 the parents of the subject came from Ohio to Allen
county and located in Perry township, on the farm now owned by
Matthias Fitch. Henry Fair erected on his farm a saw-mill and
carding mill, also installing a turning lathe, while power was secured
from the creek which traversed the farm. This was the first mill
of this description in this part of the county, and a large amount of
work was done in the same, especially in the fulling of cloth and
coloring the same, the weaving in those days being done in the
pioneer homes. He had served an apprenticeship in this line of
enterprise while in Ohio, but the mill mentioned was the first to be
individually operated by him. He continued the operation of the
mill until 1852, having in the meanwhile reclaimed a considerable
portion of his farm, and on the 30th of March, 1852, he started
overland to California with a party of five men, each paying him
one hundred and twenty-five dollars for transportation. He got as
far as the junction of the North and South Platte rivers, in Nebraska,
5IO THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
where he was taken with cholera and died in a few hours, his re-
mains being interred at the place of his death. Peter Fair, a half-
brother, took charge of the outfit and continued their trip to Cali-
fornia. Henry Fair's widow purchased a farm of one hundred and
sixty acres in Eel River township in 1856. She then moved there
with her three sons and two daughters. Gabriel Fair now resides
on this farm, he having purchased it in 1884, after his mother's
death.
On the 5th of November, 1872, Mr. Fair was united in mar-
riage to Miss Mary A. Fleming, of Perry township, a daughter of
the late Rev. James W. Fleming, who was a member of the clergy
of the Evangelical Lutheran church, while he also owned and
operated a farm in the township mentioned, being one of the county's
well known and honored citizens. Mrs. Fair was born in Perry
township, on the 15th of June, 1841, and was reared and educated
in this county. Mr. and Mrs. Fair have four children, Frank V.,
who is associated with his father in the operation of the home
farm; two daughters, Mrs. Lyman Griffis and Mrs. C. E. Hadsell,
are residents of Fort Wayne, while Gladys M. remains in the
parental home.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA.
FRED ECKART.
The oldest concern of the kind in Fort Wayne is the Fred
Eckart Packing Company, whose packing house is located at the
west end of Main street, and which has had a prosperous and
honorable career of nearly half a century. The industry was started
here by the subject's father, Fred Eckart, and the business has
always been in the hands of the Eckart family, it being now con-
sidered one of the leading packing houses of the state. The plant,
in which an average of eighty men are employed, is eligibly lo-
cated and covers about two and a half acres of land. The business
is at this time owned and managed by two brothers and the mother,
namely: Fred Eckart, who is president of the concern, Elizabeth
Eckart, who is vice-president, and Henry Eckart. who holds the
dual office of secretary and treasurer.
Fred Eckart is a native of Fort Wayne and was bom on the
7th of December, 1859, being a son of Fred and Elizabeth Eckart,
the former a native of Germany and the latter of Fort Wayne.
The subject was reared under the parental roof and received his
eletnentary education in the German school of this city. Upon at-
taining his majority, in 1880, he at once became identified with
the concern of which he is now the executive head and has since
given to it his best efforts, the result being the constant and steady
growth of the business until it is now among the leading enter-
prises of the Summit city.
On June 28, 1878, Mr. Eckart was united in marriage to Miss
Carrie Leonora Hostman, who was born in Fort Wayne in 1854, a
daughter of Christopher Hostman. To this union was bom one
child, Elva, who died three days after birth. In matters political
Mr. Eckart assumes an independent attitude, preferring to vote only
for those men and measures which meet with his approval, regard-
512 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
less of party lines. Fraternally he is a member of Wayne Lodge,
No. 25, Free and Accepted Masons, Fort Wayne Lodge, No. 116,
Knights of Pythias, and Lodge No. 155, Benevolent and Protective
Order of Elks. A man of sterling character and possessing business
qualifications of a high order, Mr. Eckart commands at once the
respect and confidence of his business associates. He takes a com-
mendable interest in every movement having for its object the ad-
vancement of the best interests of the community, and personally is
well liked by all who know him.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 513
CHARLES A. PHELPS.
In the daily laborious struggle for an honorable competence on
the part of the ordinary man there is little to attract the casual
reader in search of a sensational chapter; but to a mind thoroughly
awake to the reality and meaning of human existence there are noble
and imperishable lessons in the career of an individual who with-
out other means than a clear head, strong arm and true heart,
directed and controlled by correct principles and unerring judgment,
conquers adversity and, toiling on, finally wins, not only financial
success, but, what is far greater and higher, the deserved respect and
confidence of those who have been daily witnesses of the struggles
and efforts that he has put forth. It affords peculiar pleasure to the
biographer to refer to the gentleman whose name heads this sketch,
and though confined to brevity by the limits of his work, yet to
one who can read between the lines there will be found much of
incentive and encouragement.
Charles Andrew Phelps is a native of Fort Wayne, Indiana,
where he was bom on the 9th day of May, 1882, and is the son
of Whitcomb and Mary (Bramblee) Phelps. The father, who was
a physician by profession, was. born at Burlington, Bradford county,
Pennsylvania, on April 26, 1830, and in 1849 he removed to Ohio.
He received a fair common-school education and then took up the
study of medicine, graduating from the Ohio Medical College. In
1875 he removed to Indiana, locating at Fort Wayne, where he has
resided for thirty years, having now retired from the active practice
of his profession. On January 2, 1874, he was united in marriage
with Miss Mary Bramblee, who was born in Buffalo, New York,
April 7, 1845, the daughter of Morgan and Mary Bramblee, of
Meadville, Pennsylvania, but later of Pine Grove, Michigan.
Charles A. Phelps received a fair education in the public schools
33
514 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
of Fort Wayne and also took a course in the International Business
College of this city. His active business career commenced at a
tender age, as at the age of five years he became a newsboy in this
city and has ever since that time been associated with newspapers
in one capacity or another, though mainly as a circulator. He has
been energetic and pushing in his methods and has won a reputa-
tion for his success along his lines of effort. He rose step by step
from the very beginning and at the age of twelve years he opened a
small news stand, which soon became so popular that he took in a
partner, Alfred L. Haddon, and they opened and have since con-
ducted one of the best news and book stands in this section of the
state. They are located in the Arcade building and their sales
average more than three thousand daily papers and ten thousand
Sunday papers, besides large sales of books, magazines and stationeiy,
of which they carry a large and comprehensive stock. Mr. Phelps
is also representative in the state of Indiana for the Chicago Amer-
ican.
One of Mr. Phelps' achievements worthy of special mention was
the organization of the first newsboys' union in the world, known as
the Union Newsboys' Association, which is composed of about one
hundred and fifty newsboys, ranging in age from five to eighteen
years, and with many well-known newspaper and other prominent
men as honorary members. The organization was effected on the
15th of February, 1896, through the efforts of Mr. Phelps and has
had a most beneficial effect on the general morale of the profession
in this city. The original organization comprised sixteen members
and has gradually grown to be a factor in Fort Wayne newspaper
circles. Mr. Phelps has been the president since it was first organized.
It has a full set of officers and holds regular monthly meetings,
having also a dancing school and drum corps. Organized for the
purpose of making all newsboys of the city first-class, clean and
honest newspaper hustlers, its most rigid rule is that any newsboy
found smoking or chewing tobacco or using bad language is sus-
pended and cut off from selling papers. A second offense is ex-
pulsion from the association. The results have been that Fort
Wayne has become the best newsboy community and has the
largest sale of newspapers — daily and Sunday — of any city of its
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 515
size in the United States. The newsboys have two excursions every
year, of one of which Mr. Phelps stands the entire expense, as he
does also of their New Year's dinner.
Fraternally Mr. Phelps is a member of the Knights of Pythias
and the Ancient Order of United Workmen, while socially, he is
well known in musical circles. In religion he is a Baptist and in
national political matters supports the Republican party, though tak-
ing an independent attitude in local elections. Because of his
courteous manners, genial disposition and genuine worth he has won
and retains a host of warm personal friends.
5i6 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
CHARLES EMORY CARROLL.
For a young man to overcome an unfavorable environment and
within a comparatively brief period rise from humble circumstances
to become the head of one of the state's most important educational
institutions, and that too without the advantages of scholastic train-
ing, the prestige of family or the assistance of influential friends,
bespeak not only a strong and forceful personality, but also the
possession of those elements of character which inspire confidence
and command respect. Such in brief is the record of the gentleman
whose name introduces this article and to a review of whose career
the following lines are devoted.
Albert Emory Carroll, superintendent of the State School for
Feeble Minded Youth, was bom at North Vernon, Indiana, Novem-
ber 9, 1869, being the son of George and Louisa Carroll, natives of
Indiana and Kentucky, respectively. Such education as he received
was obtained from the public schools of Somerset, Kentucky, and
Indianapolis, Indiana, and on laying aside his books he devoted his
attention to various lines of work until 1890, when he became ac-
countant for the Railway Officials and Employees' Association of the
latter city, the duties of which position he discharged during the
greater part of the ensuing three }-ears, severing his connection with
the concern in 1893. In July of the latter year he accepted the posi-
tion of bookkeeper for the Indiana School for Feeble Minded Youth
at Fort Wayne and after holding the same until 1897 was made
steward of the institution, a post of great responsibility, requiring
sound judgment and wise discretion; both of which, with other
equally admirable qualities, he displayed in the discharge of his
varied and arduous duties.
From the time of becoming identified with the school Mr. Car-
roll sought to familiarize himself with the principles upon which the
ALLEN .COUNTY. INDL4NA. SU
institution was conducted and to become acquainted with the working
of its every department, this practical knowledge being greatly to
his advantage when, in 1897, he was appointed acting superintendent,
to take the place of President Johnson, whose resignation went into
effect on August 31st of that year. Subsequently, May 25, 1904, he
was promoted to the superintendency of the institution, which im-
portant and responsible position he has since held with credit to
himself and to the entire satisfaction of the management, discharging
his duties in an able and business-like manner and doing much to
advance the school and increase its efficiency.
Mr. Carroll possesses executive ability of a high order, is
eminently practical in his methods and since advanced to the post he
now so ably fills, has so administered the affairs of the school as to
gain for it an honorable reputation among like institutions of the
country and made it a model of its kind. He has also maintained
a lively interest in all that pertains to the legitimate advancement and
prosperity of the city of Fort Wayne, not permitting himself to be
hedged in by the limitations which frequently confine the efforts
of those who gain success by means of such lines of endeavor as he
has followed. On the contrary he is a wide-awake, public-spirited
man, keenly alive to whatever tends to promote the general wel-
fare, but under all circtunstances making every other consideration
subordinate to duty.
Fraternally Mr. Carroll has been advanced to high degrees in
the Masonic order, belonging to Sol D. Bay less Lodge, No. 169,
Free and Accepted Masons, Fort Wayne Chapter, No. 19, Royal
Arch Masons, and Fort Wayne Lodge of Perfection, Ancient and
Accepted Scottish Rite, in addition to which he also holds member-
ship with Harmony Lodge, No. 191, Independent Order of Odd
Fellows, of this city. In politics he is a Democrat and while earnest
in the support of the principles of his part}'-, is not a partisan, much
less an aspirant for official honors. His religious creed is repre-
sented by the Baptist church, with which body his wife is also
identified.
Mr. Carroll was married September 6, 1893, ^o Miss Mary Erin
Fleming, whose birth occurred in the city of Fort Wayne on Sep-
tember 6, 1870. Mr. and Mrs. Carroll have an interesting family
of three children, whose names are Katherine, Mary Erin and Agnes.
5i8 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
FRANKLIN P. RANDALL.
Franklin P. Randall was born in Madison county, New York,
on the 2d day of June, 1812. His ancestors emigrated from Eng-
land about the year 1638 and he was thus the seventh generation in
descent of his family born on American soil. His grandfather was
an officer in the Revolutionai'}^ war and commanded a regiment at
the battle of Saratoga, witnessing the surrender of General Bur-
goyne. His father also served as an officer in the American army
during the war of 18 12. After the close of the war, he resumed his
occupation as a farmer in Madison county, New York, where the
subject of this sketch was born. Mr. Randall's early life was
passed on the farm, working in the summer and attending the
district school in the winter. After leaving the country schools, he
attended the academies of Cortland and Hamilton in pursuit of
the higher branches of knowledge obtainable at those institutions.
He became a proficient scholar in mathematics, history and other
studies. He always had a predilection for botanical studies and even
in early life evinced a desire for the study of plants and flowers.
After finishing his course in these academies, it was necessary for
him to earn his own living and he taught a select school in Oneida
county. The school consisted of about sixty pupils, mostly farmers'
boys. He taught this school for about two years and saved money
enough to make him dream of the west and its possibilities.
In October, 1835, Mr. Randall went to Williamsport, Pennsyl-
vania, where he entered the law office of Judge Ellis Lewis, who was
for about fourteen years chief justice of the supreme court of that
state, and under his guidance and tutorship read law. In February,
1838, he was admitted to practice in the courts of Pennsylvania and
in April of the same year removed to Fort Wayne, Indiana, and
commenced the practice of law. At the time of his arrival in Fort
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 519
Wayne the town was then a mere village, there being but few white
people and many Indians. As in all early communities, the most
important subject was the schools and as Mr. Randall was con-
sidered "a smart Eastern chap" he was soon thereafter elected school
commissioner of Allen county and for four years had the control of
the school funds of that county. In 1847 he was elected state senator
for the district composed of the counties of Allen, Adams, Hunt-
ington and Wells. At that time one of the most difficult tasks the
members of the legislature had, after he had been elected a member,
was to find means for transit to Indianapolis. It was necessary for
them to go on horseback and the trip occupied about a week. Soon
after this he received from Governor Wright the appointment of
colonel of the state militia for Allen county and in 1855 was pro-
moted by Governor Hammond to the position of brigadier-general of
the Tenth Division of Indiana State Infantry. In 1856 he was
appointed director of the state prison by Governor Willard and es-
tablished many refonns in that institution. The same year he was
also elected presidential elector and voted for James Buchanan for
President, it being the only instance in which a citizen of Fort
Wayne ever voted directly for a President of the United States. For
many years Mr. Randall was actively identified with all the public
affairs of Fort Wayne and prepared the first city charter, which be-
came a law in 1840. Since that time he was commissioned by the
city council to revise the city ordinances at tliree different periods.
He was city recorder in 1840 and 1841, alderman in 1843, and again
in 1855. In 1840 he was also elected city attorney for two years
and was re-elected in 1853 and 1865. In 1859 he was elected mayor
and was elected to the same office in 1861 and 1863 and again in
1869 and 1871, serving five terms of two years each. Mr. Randall
was the "War Mayor" of Fort Wayne and contributed largely to the
cause of the Union. His family still have in their possession many
remembrances of the ^var times, among them being numerous old
battle-scarred flags of regiments entering the service from Fort
Wayne while he was mayor of the city.
Not only will Mr. Randall be held in grateful remembrance on
account of his long official career, but by his devotion to the interests
of his city and county in all projects for their advancement. For
520 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
many years he was president of the Allen County Agricultural
Society and an unremitting worker in its management. He also
took great pleasure in horticulture and was considered an authority
on this and kindred subjects. The evening of his life was almost
entirely given to his flowers and plants, of which he had many choice
varieties, and it was always his pleasure to invite his friends to view
his collection at his beautiful and attractive residence. His interest
in the collection and preservation of the relics of the past has saved
to the student many instructing marks of treasure, of anecdote, and
reminiscences of the early history of Indiana and Fort Wayne and
his antiquarian treasures, his Indian curiosities, old and rare books
and papers are among the most valuable in existence.
Mr. Randall was twice married, the first time about 1842, to
Miss Mary E. Ried, of Richmond, Indiana, who departed this life
after a brief but happy wedded experience of five years' duration,
the only surviving issue of the union being Mrs. George B. Dougan,
whose home is in the city of Richmond. While serving in the state
legislature, Mr. Randall met and became well acquainted with Judge
Reid, a fellow member from the Jejfifersonville district; the Judge
had with him at the capitol his three young and accomplished daugh-
ters, between one of whom. Miss Mary J. Reid, and the subject a
warm friendship soon sprang up which, ripening into love, finally
culminated in marriage, the ceremony being solemnized on Novem-
ber 22, 1849. Mr. Randall at once took his bride to what he called
his northern home in Fort Wayne, where in due time children were
bom to them, of whom the following survive, namely: Frank M.,
present city engineer of Fort Wayne; Mrs. Clark Fairbank, Irwin
and Alfred L., who also reside in this city; Mrs. J. C. Downs, of
Danbury, Connecticut; David J. and George E., the last two being
residents of the city of New York.
In religion Mr. Randall was an earnest and devout Episcopalian
and for over forty years held the positions of vestryman and warden
in the local church to which he belonged. Politically, he was a repre-
sentative Democrat of the old school and as such wielded a strong
influence for his party in Fort Wayne and Allen county, contributing
greatly to its success by his able counsel and judicious leadership.
He acted upon the theory, "Once a Democrat, always a Democrat,"
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 521
and such was his abiding faith in the principles of his party and his
respect for its traditions that he was ever ready to fight its battles
and make sacrifices for its success. Indeed so strong was his
political fealty that he held the name of Democracy in high vener-
ation and if perchance a fault was found in any of his party as-
sociates he was wont to remark, "that there must of necessity be
some good in the man, else he would not be a Democrat." His
Democracy was of the sterling character of which the term is a true
exponent and while he believed in disciplining the party he thought
such needed punishment should be applied by its friends and not its
enemies.
Mr. Randall died at his home in Fort Wayne on the morning of
May 23, 1892. He had lived nearly eighty years, which long period
was filled to repletion with hard work and good deeds and in benevo-
lence to his fellow men. As a father, husband and friend, he was
indulgent to a remarkable degree. No expressed wish was ever re-
fused if it were within his power to grant it; no ill-will was har-
bored against any one. When young men arose to take his place in
the arena of public aflfairs, although he loved the excitement of
politics, he resignedly remarked that "he thought he was probably be-
coming too old and that it was time for him gracefully to retire."
To Mr. Randall the future was bright, the past serehe. "Sufficient
unto the day is the evil thereof," was one of his favorite maxims
and when a troubled soul sought him he was always ready to
volunteer some consoling remark. Through his long and useful life
of nearly eighty years no enemy ever arose, and against his character
no breath of suspicion was ever known to have been uttered. His
passing away was a transition, not a death, for he seemed truly "Like
one who wraps the drapery of his couch about him and lies down
to pleasant dreams."
522 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN
HOMER A. GORSLINE.
It is not always an easy task to describe adequately a man who
has led what is popularly termed the strenuous life and by the force
of a strong and distinctly marked individuality attained to a position
of importance in a service which requires not only sound judgment
and keen discrimination, but a fearless physical courage that hesitates
at no difficulty and flinches not in the presence of dangers, or even
death itself. It is with a full appreciation of all that is demanded
that the writer essays the task of touching briefly upon the career
of an individual who has long been prominent in the public affairs
of Fort Wayne and who, as head of one of the most important
branches of the municipal government, has rendered valuable service
to the city as a conservator of the peace and brought the department
over which he has control to a state of efficiency greater than that
of any other period in its history. This gentleman is Homer A.
Gorsline, the courteous and eminently capable superintendent of the
Fort Wayne police, whose efforts at reorganizing and disciplining
his subordinates and make the department fully meet every require-
ment, has been appreciated by the public, as is attested by his long
continuance in the position which he so ably and honorably fills.
Mr. Gorsline is a native of Indiana, born in Adams county on
the 22d of June, 1857, being the son of Sylvester L. and Maria B.
(Bobo) Gorsline, both parents of Ohio birth and descendants of the
early French Huguenot settlers of the United States. By occupa-
tion the elder Gorsline was formerly a farmer. After following his
vocation in Adams county a number of years, he moved to Marion
township, Allen county, where he continued agricultural pursuits
until 1869, when he engaged in railroading, to which line of work
he devoted his attention during the ensuing twenty-six years. Retir-
ing from the road in 1895, he again resumed his former vocation.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 523
moving in that year to a farm near Danville, Illinois, upon which
he and his wife still reside. They are the parents of five children,
three of whom are living, namely: Mrs. John Rissing, of Fort
Wayne; Frederick T., engaged in railway service at Wilkes-Barre,
Pennsylvania, and Homer A., the subject of this review, who is the
oldest of the family.
The early life of Homer A. Gorsline was spent on the home farm
in Marion township and at the proper age he became familiar with
the duties required of the majority of country lads, making himself
.useful to his parents in various ways and receiving from the free
outdoor life a stock of health and vitality which enabled him in sub-
sequent years to grow up a rugged, well-developed man, capable of
enduring the many rough usages that have fallen to his lot. At the
age of twelve he removed with his parents to Fort Wayne, where
he attended the public and parochial schools until his fifteenth year,
when he began working as newsboy, delivering papers morning and
evening and devoting the rest of the day to other pursuits. Later,
in 1872, he accepted a clerkship in the clothing house of Isaac
Lauferty, Fort Wayne, where he remained one year, and during
the several succeeding years was similarly employed by different firms
of this city, spending in all something like four years behind the
counter, during which time he received a pretty thorough discipline
in business and learned the value of good habits in the formation of
character.
Leaving Fort Wayne in 1876, Mr. Gorsline accepted the posi-
tion of deputy auditor of Adams county, which position he held
until 1879, when he resigned and entered the United States army,
enlisting at Columbus, Ohio, in the capacity of a band musician and
joining his regiment at the city of New Orleans. His military ex-
perience, which covered a period of ten years, was confined prin-
cipally to the Southwestern states and territories, and during the
time thus spent he passed several promotions, receiving his discharge
as sergeant major, the highest non-commissioned office in the regi-
ment, at Fort Supply, Indian territory, in 1889.
At the expiration of his term of service, Mr. Gorsline returned
to Fort Wayne and entered the employ of A. S. Lauferty, with
whom he continued for some time, subsequently becoming salesman
524 . THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
in the Globe clothing house, where he remained about eight years,
during which period he organized the first Retail Clerks' Union in
the city and was made its president, holding the position until 1896
and doing much the meanwhile to promote the efficiency of the
organization and make it answer the purpose for which designed.
During three years of the time indicated he served as secretary of
the Trades and Labor Council of Fort Wayne, besides contributing
to its success in divers other ways. In 1896 he was appointed super-
intendent of the police department of the city, which position he has
since held, with credit to himself and to the entire satisfaction of the
public, as is attested by his long continuance as the head of this im-
portant branch of service. Mr. Gorsline came to his present post
amply qualified to discharge its many and arduous duties, his thor-
ough military training eminently fitting him to reorganize and thor-
oughly reform a department which had long been neglected and which
he found in any but a condition of efficiency. On taking charge of
the office he at once began introducing a number of much-needed re-
forms, among which were the weeding out of incompetents and the
bringing about of harmonious relations among the members of the
force, which condition had hitherto been sadly lacking; also the in-
sistence upon a rigorous discipline, which in due time rendered the
force more amenable to instruction and much more easily and ef-
fectively handled. By degrees other innovations were made, the
value of which has been demonstrated in a more thoroughly or-
ganized department and a steady diminution in the amount of disorder
and crime, which, under vigorous and tireless sur^'Cillance, have been
reduced to the lowest possible minimum. Since becoming the head of
the department Mr. Gorsline has introduced, among other methods of
promoting its efficiency, the Bertillon system of measurements, for the
adoption of which he labored strenuously for two years and by
means of which a number of noted criminals and crooks have been
detected and brought to justice, thus saving the city in the matter
of dollars and cents much more than the expense of its maintenance,
besides effectually ridding the community of the presence of these
bankrupts in character and wholly undesirable gentry. He has also
induced the council to purchase an additional horse and wagon for
the use of the chief and night captain, and a handsome new patrol
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 525
wagon, besides adding to the equipment in various other ways, in-
cluding a complete grappling outfit, consisting of hooks, poles and
lines, etc., for the rescue of drowning persons, the apparatus being
constructed on scientific principles and of the latest and most ap-
proved type of manufacture. In addition to the above, there have
been added to the arsenal four riot guns and two extra Savage rifles,
to be used in case of riot or emergency; also a regular system of
recording the business of the office, together with a personal record
of criminals, including prison record, a full photographic outfit and
various other improvements and devices, the worth of which has
been fully tested and cheerfully admitted. A strict disciplinarian, a
watchful and vigilant official, possessing mature judgment, sound dis-
cretion and executive ability of a high order, Mr. Gorsline, although
exacting in the matter of duty, possesses the confidence and esteem
of his subordinates, between whom and himself the most cordial
relations obtain, and by the public is held in the highest regard, as
he has made his name a terror to evil doers and earned for Fort
Wayne the reputation of one of the most quiet and orderly cities of
its size in the country. Politically Mr. Gorsline is a Democrat of
the orthodox type, though not a bitter partisan, and socially possesses
the amiable qualities of head and heart that win and retain warm
personal friendships. His fraternal relationships are represented by
the Pythian order. Phoenix Lodge, No. 10 1 ; Fort Wayne Lodge,
No. 155, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks; Tribe 96, Order
of Ben Hur; Kekionga Council, No. 93, National Union; Fort
Wayne Aerie, Fraternal Order of Eagles; the Ancient Order of
United Workmen; Sons of Veterans, and the Retail Clerks' Union,
which he organized and with which he has since been identified.
On October 28, 1890, Mr. Gorsline was united in marriage to
Miss Mary VanZant, of Cleveland, Ohio, the union being blessed
with three children, whose names are as follows : Owen Van, de-
ceased, Marguerite, born March 31, 1893, ^^^ Mildred, whose birth
occurred on May i, 1896.
526 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
CHARLES L. OLDS.
This well known citizen has passed practically his entire life in
Fort Wayne, and has been prominently identified with its industrial
affairs and commercial advancement. At the present time he is
president of the C. L. Olds Construction Company, engaged in
contracting for and financing water works, electric railroads and
electric light plants. Mr. Olds was born in the city of Sandusky,
Ohio, on the 17th of x\pril, 1855, and is a son of Noble G. and
Elizabeth (Woolsey) Olds, the former of whom was born in Penn-
sylvania and the latter in New York. The family removed from
Ohio to Fort Wayne in 1861, and in Indiana's beautiful "Summit
City" continued to reside until their death, the father passing away
in the year 1876 and his devoted wife in 1872. Noble G. Olds was
a man of high ability and integrity of character, and of prominence
in public esteem and confidence in Fort Wayne. He was the head
of a large manufacturing business during the greater portion of his
residence here. In the family were five children, of whom two are
living at the present time.
Charles L. Olds was a lad six years of age at the time of his
parents' removal to Fort Wayne. He was educated in the public
schools, and, after leaving the high school, continued his studies
under private tutorship. He initiated his independent business career
at the age of twenty-one, at which time he puchased a controlling
interest in what is now known as the Fort Wayne Iron Works. He
also organized the Western Bridge Company, and eventually became
the sole owner of the enterprise, which grew to be one of wide scope
and importance, having contracts for both railroad and highway
bridges throughout the middle and western states. In 1885 Mr. Olds
disposed of his interests in the property and business. Meanwhile, in
188 1, he had given further evidence of his progressive spirit and
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 527
initiative force by becoming one of the organizers and incorporators
of the Fort Wayne Jenney Electric Light Company, of which he
was the first secretary, retaining the incumbency about two years,
at the end of which time he sold his interest in the concern. In
1887 he again associated himself with the electric light company, in
the capacity of general salesman and representative, and he re-
mained in the tenure of this office until 1897. He then organized
the C. L. Olds Construction Company, of which he is president and
chief stockholder. This company has handled many large contracts
in different portions of the county, and its business has no little
bearing in the introduction of commercial Fort Wayne to the out-
side territory.
In politics Mr. Olds is a stanch Republican, although he has
never been active in political work nor sought preferment from his
party. Both he and his wife are members of the First Presbyterian
church, also of the Fortnightly Literary Society, of which he was at
one time president.
On the 17th of May, 1876, was solemnized the marriage of Mr.
Olds to Miss Eliza McLachlan, who. was born in Fort Wayne
and is a daughter of Neil and Jane McLachlan. Concerning the
children of Mr. and Mrs. Olds we enter the following brief record,
in conclusion of this sketch : Charles L., Jr., was graduated in
Harvard University, class of '05, and now occupies a position as
instructor in St. Paul's Academy, Concord, New Hampshire; Percy
G. is superintendent of the Olds Construction Company; Norman E.
was graduated from Harvard, class of '05, and is now civil engineer
for the Toledo & Ann Arbor Electric Railway; Marjorie remains
at the parental home; Alexander M. is in the surveyors' corps
of the Patrick Hirsh Company, of New York city; and Edward C.
is a member of the class of 1909 at Princeton University, New Jersey.
528 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
THOMAS R. PICKARD.
The record of Mr. Pickard is that of a man who has worked his
way from a modest beginning to a position of responsibiHty and trust.
His Hfe has been of unceasing industry and perseverance and the
faithful and honorable career which has been his has won for him
the unbounded confidence of those with whom he has for so long
been associated in a business way, as well as the respect of his
fellow citizens.
Thomas Reed Pickard is a native of England, having been born
in Cornwall on the 20th day of December, 1829, and is the son of
Thomas and Margery Pickard, who were also bom in England and
whose ancestors for many generations were of the same nativity.
The subject of this sketch came to the United States in his youth,
locating at Mount Vernon, Ohio, so that his educational training
was received both in the land of his nativity and at the place last
named. Before attaining his majority, in 1848, at Mount Vernon,
he initiated his independent career and became identified with the iron
foundry business by apprenticing himself to learn the moulding trade
in the Charles Cooper Foundry. He was apt, industrious and am-
bitious and was soon recognized as one of the best moulders in the
shop. His employer, Mr. Cooper, held an interest in the Cooper,
Bass & Jones Foundry, at Fort Wayne, Indiana, the predecessors
of the present Bass Foundry and Machine Company, and a high-
grade moulder being needed in the plant here Mr. Pickard was sent
to fill the position, arriving here in May, 1854. His ability was
soon recognized by his employers and in January, 1863, he was
made superintendent of the foundry department of this plant, and
has retained the position to the present time, embracing the long
period of over four decades, certainly a marked tribute to his faith-
fulness and ability. An intimate knowledge of every detail of the
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 529
work and an ability to direct and control the large force of men con-
stantly employed under him, have rendered his services extremely
valuable to the important interests with which he has for so long
a time been identified. He holds the entire confidence of the mem-
bers of the firm, the respect of the men under him and the esteem of
all who have in any way come in contact with him. .
On November 15, 1854, Mr. Pickard was united in marriage
with Miss Catharine Anna Stryker, who is a native of Bound Brook,
New Jersey, and the daughter of Jacob P. and Susan Stryker. To
Mr. and Mrs. Pickard have been bom four children, Thomas,
Peter, Harry and Artemas, all of whom are living. The subject is
a member of the First Presbyterian church in Fort Wayne, and
takes an active interest in the welfare of the society, giving his sup-
port to every benevolent or charitable movement connected with the
church. In politics he has been a life-long Republican and, though
not in any sense a seeker after office, yet he has ever taken a healthy
interest in public affairs and has valued his right of franchise at its
true worth. In all the characteristics that go to make up the suc-
cessful life the subject has been well equipped and his life career
but goes to show what may be accomplished by the man of energy
and determination. He has led an eminently honorable life in his
community and his influence has ever been exerted on the side of
right and morality.
34
530 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
WILLIS W. CAREY.
Willis W. Carey, son of William and Ellen O. (Fletcher) Carey,
was bom in Boston, Massachusetts, March 3, 1869. Before he was
a year old his father died and his mother moved to Spencerville,
Indiana. There he was educated in the public schools, later at-
tending the Normal School at Valparaiso. In 1890 he entered the
medical department of the Western Reserve University, graduating
in 1894. During his last two years he was clerk of the John Hunt-
ington Dispensary. He located in Auburn, Indiana, and then
moved to his old home at Spencerville, Indiana, where he resided
until 1904, when he located in Fort Wayne. On the 22d of June,
1898, he was married to Gertrude Shutt and to this union one son,
George Fletcher, was born.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. . 531
BENJAMIN F. OGDEN.
A life marked by earnest and indefatigable application has been
that of this honored citizen and substantial farmer of Wayne town-
ship, Allen county, Indiana, where he has maintained his home for
the past quarter of a century. He was a valiant soldier in the Civil
war, where his fidelity was of that type which has characterized his
life in all its relations and which has gained and retained to him
the confidence and esteem of his fellow men.
Benjamin Franklin Ogden is a native of the old Empire state
of the Union, having been bom in the town of Greece, Monroe
county, New York, on the 2d of June, 1835, and being a son of
parents who were likewise born in the state of New York, whence
they removed to Michigan in an early day, becoming pioneers of that
commonwealth, where they passed the remainder of their lives, the
father having been a farmer by vocation. The subject of this com-
pend was a lad of twelve years at the time of his parents' removal
to Michigan, and his educational training had been inaugurated in
the common schools of his native place, while he also attended school
in an irregular way for some time after the removal to the Wolver-
ine state. The family settled in Lenawee county, Michigan, where
the father secured a farm, only a small part of which had been re-
claimed from the virgin forest, and our subject assisted in the clear-
ing of the farm and in the other work pertaining to its improvement
and cultivation, remaining on the home place until the death of his
honored father, after which he found employment at farm work and
other occupations for a number of years, in Michigan and Ohio. In
i860 he purchased a farm in Hillsdale county, Michigan, and there
he continued to reside until his removal to Allen county, Indiana.
In 1864 Mr. Ogden tendered his services in defense of the
Union, enlisting as a private in Company A, Fourth Michigan
532 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Volunteer Infantry, which was organized to complement the original
regiment of that number, with which it was duly consolidated, be-
coming a part of the Army of the Cumberland. Mr. Ogden con-
tinued in active sei'vice until the close of the war, having received
his honorable discharge, in Nashville, Tennessee, on the 23d of May,
1865. His regiment was stationed at Murfreesboro, Tennessee, dur-
ing the major portion of the time after his enlistment, being assigned
to duty in holding the territory there, and it took part in a num-
ber of skinnishes, including a spirited one with General Forrest.
During the latter part of his term Mr. Ogden was in the hospital
service at Nashville, having been section master in said hospital for
a time.
After the close of his honorable and faithful military career Mr.
Ogden returned to his farm in Hillsdale county, Michigan, where
he continued to make his home until 1880, when he disposed of his
property there and came to Allen county, Indiana, where he has
since continued to reside. For a time he operated the McKinney
farm, in Wayne township, and in 1885 he purchased his present
farm, in the same township, the place being eligibly located on the
Piqua road, two miles distant from the city limits of Fort Wayne.
Here he has forty acres of fine land, which is maintained under ef-
fective cultivation, while he has improved the place with good mod-
ern buildings, making it one of the attractive rural homesteads of
the county. He has given his attention to diversified agriculture and
has so regulated his enterprise as to attain to the maximum of suc-
cess, being one of the reliable and substantial farmers of his town-
ship. For several years past he has been agent for the Page woven-
wire fence. In politics Mr. Ogden gives an uncompromising al-
legiance to the Republican party, in whose cause he takes a lively
interest, though he has never been imbued with aught of ambition for
public office.
On the 3d of November, 1861, Mr. Ogden was united in mar-
riage to Miss Emily L. Downing, who was at the time residing near
Bloomingdale, Ohio, and she died in Hillsdale county, Michigan,
leaving three children, — Agnes, who is the wife of M. U. Philley;
Alice, who is the wife of Freeman Force Miller; and Mary Jane,
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 533
who is the wife of Jesse Stahler. Mr. Ogden subsequently married
Miss Harriet Stahler, who was born in Ohio, and they have one
child, Mabel Grace, who remains at the parental home. Alice and
Mary were successful teachers in the public schools of Allen county
prior to their marriage.
534 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
CHARLES A. MUNSON.
Few men made a stronger impress on the community of a life
well spent in active, honest endeavor than the subject of this sketch
and few men gave so good an accounting of their opportunities. He
died at the time of his greatest usefulness, leaving undone much that
lay near a heart that was brimful of good will to those about him.
Charles A. Munson was a splendid representative of the business
man, who brought to the task before him great courage, keen per-
ception and unwavering loyalty. He was a man of action whose life
work was measured by opportunity and which ended only when
called to his last account. He was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana,
March 2y, 1843, ^^^ although his office was for many years in
Chicago, he always maintained a voting residence here and knew no
other home. He was the son of James P. Munson, of Connecticut,
who was a pioneer business man of Fort Wayne. His mother was
bom in county Tyrone, Ireland, of Scotch-Irish parentage, and when
six years of age came to America with her parents. In 1840 she
was married to Mr. Munson, who died nine years later. In 185 1
she married Hon. Henry Cooper, a distinguished la^\'y^er who died
in 1853.
Mr. Munson became fatherless at an early age and in after life
was fond of crediting to the teachings of a good mother whatever of
success in life he achieved. When the war of the Rebellion stirred
the hearts of men to action he sought service under the flag when
a mere stripling and participated in the Vicksburg campaign on one
of Admiral David D. Porter's gun-boats, receiving a promotion to
the rank of acting master's mate on his twenty-first birthday. He
left the service in broken health.
When the war closed Mr. Munson began traveling for the whole-
sale grocery house of Huestis & Hamilton, of this city, and for six-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 535
teen years visited retail dealers throughout northern Indiana and
northwestern Ohio, achieving unusual success and wide popularity.
He later became a partner in the house he represented and retained
his business connection therewith until he received the Democratic
nomination for sheriff.
He had long before taken an active interest in politics and had
represented the fourth ward in the common council, serving as chair-
man of the finance committee. In June, 1876, he was nominated
at the Democratic convention for sheriff of Allen county in an
exciting contest of nine ballots over eight opponents, and was elected.
Two years later he was re-nominated and was elected by a majority
of four thousand three hundred and seventy over the highest com-
petitor, that being five hundred and ninety-three votes over the state
ticket and the largest majority ever given to any Indiana sheriff up
to that time.
While in office he distinguished himself by his personal courage
and activity in criminal matters and by the correct management of
his civil duties. As a political organizer he was probably unequaled
in his day. He had a wonderful memory, which he trained to hold
the names and faces of thousands. His personal popularity gave
strength to every ticket that contained his name. He was true to
his friends, whom he met with an unaffected, affable manner. At the
close of his second term as sheriff he embarked for a short time in
the lime and stone business. Mr. Munson had displayed such political
strength that he was urged to seek a place on the Democratic state
ticket and was twice nominated, in 1886 and 1888, at the state
convention at Indianapolis for auditor of state. He made a won-
derful race, leading his ticket, but the time was not opportune and
twice he was defeated. It was said of him that while he had been
a good winner he was also a good loser and bore his defeats with
much cheerfulness, being ready for fresh conflicts.
Business of much importance now engrossed his attention. The
Fort Wayne Electric Company was under the management of R. T.
McDonald. These two had been life-long friends and between them
there had existed the most cordial relations. Mr. McDonald selected
Mr. Munson for manager of the Chicago office of the company and
installed him there as soon as his technical education was sufficiently
53^^ THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
far advanced. His success at his new post was marked, as was
evidenced by the strength of his business acquaintances and the
volume of his sales. It was said of him that his business deals were
always profitable to the company that employed him. He had no
bad accounts. His success was due not so much to his technical
knowledge of electrical machinery as to his knowledge of men and
his ability to strongly impress others with the excellence of the goods
he offered. For years he had personal charge of the company's busi-
ness not only in Chicago but in the great west, and effected im-
portant sales of Fort Wayne machinery at principal points as far
west as the Rocky mountains. In manner he was direct and simple,
clearly seeing and elucidating the point at issue. He was noted as
an entertainer and drew from a fund of information gleaned by
study and travel that seemed to be inexhaustible.
He was taken sick on March 21, 1901, with an intestinal disorder
which shortly assumed alarming proportions. He was removed from
his apartment at the Lexington Hotel to Mercy Hospital and an
operation was performed on April 3d, from which he rallied but
temporarily, dying on the succeeding day.
Mr. Munson stood high in Masonry, having advanced to the
thirty-second degree. He was a member of Summit City Lodge,
No. 170, Free and Accepted Masons; of Fort Wayne Commandery,
No. 4, Knights Templar; of Fort Wayne Lodge of Perfection and
of Indiana Consistory, Scottish Rite, of Indianapolis. The funeral
services were held at his home. No. 122 West Wayne street, and
were conducted by the Knights Templar. The impressive ring
service was used at his request at Lindenwood cemetery, where his
nephew. Brown Cooper, received his Masonic insignia.
Mr. Munson never married. Of immediate relations there sur-
vive him his sister, Mrs. Detrich Meyers, a half-sister, Mrs. Sarah
I. Hurtt, of New York city, and a half-brother, William P. Cooper.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 537
REV. JOSEPH HUGHES.
The subject of this sketch was long a prominent minister of the
Presbyterian church, and exercised an influence in the reHgious cir-
cles where he labored second to that of none of his contemporaries.
Joseph Hughes was born November lo, 1847, '^^ the town of Dyserth,
FHntshire, North Wales. He received his early training in a Chris-
tian home by reverent and devout parents, and after the usual at-
tendance at the parish school became a student in the well-known
college of Bala, in his native country. Like many of the inteUigent
young men of Wales, he left college to come to the United States,
arriving at New York on May i, 1870, and directing his course
to Cincinnati, Ohio, he sought out his warm friend and fonner in-
structor at the college of Bala, Rev. Dr. Evans. Attracted and
aided by his friend's counsel, he decided to enter the ministry of the
Presbyterian church, and for this purpose became a student the same
autumn of the Lane Theological Seminary, the prescribed course of
which he completed with faithful zeal, sharing the honor of his
class and delivering one of the commencement addresses. Im-
mediately after finishing his theological studies he visited the Second
Presbyterian church of Fort Wayne, Indiana, and as the result of
that invitation became settled as the minister during the three years
following. Coming as he did among his people when the con-
ditions were sorely perplexing to a young and inexperienced pastor,
it is gratifying to remember how by the quiet dignity and energy
both of his character and labor, he was enabled to do a good work,
the effects of which are still felt not only in the church, but through-
out the community as well. At the expiration of the period noted,
he determined, in pursuance of a long and ardent desire, to go
abroad in order to add to his scholastic training by taking a year
of special study in the elective course of one of the foreign
538 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
universities. Going to Edinburg, Scotland, he entered the Divinity
Hall of the university of that city where he spent a year in arduous
but happy and profitable work. Immediately after his return, the
church of Fostoria, Ohio, being vacant, invited him to visit them,
and in due time the congregation extended him a call which was
soon followed by his settlement as their regular pastor. The out-
look in this field at first, owing to unhappy differences among certain
parties, was not auspicious, but by his unwearied toil, tact, practical
wisdom, and the blessed presence of the Christ whom he served, the
congregation not only healed their differences but became united and
a strong and prosperous body. Mr. Hughes' entire ministry among
them was increasingly happy as in the very sunshine of human and
divine favor, and when he resigned the pastorate the action was
greatly regretted by all of his parishioners.
From time to time Mr. Hughes had been annoyed by a bronchial
trouble, affecting his voice somewhat, but at length the attacks be-
came more frequent and serious, so much so indeed that the most
skillful specialists warned him that he must resist from public speak-
ing or accept the dreaded alternative, the entire loss of speech and
permanent loss of health ; of both there had already been grave warn-
ings by actual experience. How painful this dark adversity was,
not only to him but to his young and enthusiastic wife, who could
know ? Painful as was the resolve, bitter the regret at parting with
the dear church and people of Fostoria, the step was inevitable and
in due time he, with his young family, returned to Fort Wayne
where he engaged in business and, as the sequel shows, dwelt in their
own home and near to the most loving and kindly of friends, un-
wearying in their helpfulness in the longer and sadder days of sub-
sequent adversities.
About the year 1890 Mr. Hughes fell a victim to a tedious, pain-
ful and exhausting disorder, which obstinately refused to yield
either to the best remedial treatment or to three surgical operations,
two of which were performed by distinguished specialists of London
and Chicago, respectively. He also tried the virtue of a change of
climate in the hope of obtaining relief, but this, too, proved futile.
The winter of 1892-3, spent in California, ended in temporary
paralysis, only to be followed by embolism, but finally on the Sab-
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 539
bath, August 26th, his last on earth, he had another paralytic attack
from which, owing to his weakened condition and long enfeeblement,
he failed to recover. On August 28, 1894, at the age of forty-six
years, nine months and eighteen days, this devoted Christian, faith-
ful minister and exemplary citizen closed his earthly career, deeply
lamented by a large circle of friends in Fort Wayne and surround-
ing country.
On June 26, 1877, was solemnized the marriage of Rev. Mr.
Hughes and Miss Elnora J. Bash, only daughter of Solomon and
Rebecca Bash, of Fort Wayne, a most fortunate and happy union
which resulted in the birth of five children, Carrie E., Charles B.,
Edith R., Herbert and Gladys.
540 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
ALFRED DAUGHERTY.
An honored veteran of the war of the RebeUion and a well-
known pioneer and business man of the city of Fort Wayne, Mr.
Daugherty richly merits a place of distinction in this compilation,
while he is at the time of this writing serving as trustee of Wash-
ington township, while to him have been accorded other marks of
high popular confidence and esteem in the coinmunity which has
been his home for so many years.
Mr. Daugherty is a native of the old Buckeye state, having been
born in Stark county, Ohio, on the 9th of May, 1840, and being a
son of James and Rebecca Daugherty, the latter of whom is living,
at the venerable age of ninety years. The father of the subject died
when the latter was an infant, and the circumstances of the widowed
mother were such that x\lfred was necessarily placed in the care of
others. He was reared in the home of a blacksmith in Ashland
county, Ohio, and under the direction of this foster parent he learned
the blacksmith trade, to which he continued to devote his attention
as a journeyman until there came the call of higher duty when the
Confederate states inaugurated armed rebellion against the Union.
In response to President Lincoln's first call, Mr. Daugherty enlisted
as a private in Company D, Forty-fourth Indiana Volunteer In-
fantry, having been a resident of Allen county, Indiana, at the time.
He proceeded to the front with his regiment and was an active
participant in the battles of Shiloh and Fort Donelson, though his
command was principally assigned to scouting service. In the bat-
tle of Shiloh the subject received a severe wound in the left leg,
the injury being so severe as to necessitate the amputation of the
member below the knee. He was confined in the hospital for a period
of three months before the amputation was made, and thereafter
was for one year a member of the invalid corps, after which he
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 541
received his honorable discharg-e, having made a great sacrifice in
his country's cause but having gained the honors which will ever
redound to his credit as a true patriot.
After the close of his military service Mr. Daugherty returned
to Indiana, and in 1864 he was united in marriage to Miss Martha
E. Johnston, daughter of David Johnston, who was at that time
engaged in the grocery business in Logansport, this state, both he
and his wife having died forty years ago. Of the three children
of Mr. and Mrs. Daugherty we record that Ulysses E, is identified
with a large wholesale business in the city of Portland, Oregon,
where he was formerly secretary of the Commercial Club; Walter
W., who is a contracting plasterer of Fort Wayne, remains at the
parental home; and Nellie M. is the wife of John Vought, a con-
tractor and builder of this city. In 1864 Mr. Daugherty took up
his residence in Fort Wayne, which was then a town of about eight
thousand population, and here he has ever since maintained his
home, having resided for thirty years in his present attractive home-
stead, at 1 82 1 Wells street, where he has also conducted a shoe
shop for many years, though now practically retired from active
business, aside from that involved in his official duties as township
trustee. For nine years he was a mail carrier in connection with
the local postoffice, and he thus formed a wide acquaintance in the
city, where he has a host of loyal and prized friends. In 1880 he
was first elected to the office of trustee of Washington township,
and he has served in this capacity for somewhat more than eight
years in all, having been re-elected at varying inten^als and his
present term extending to January, 1905.
In politics Mr. Daugherty has ever been a stalwart advocate of
the principles of the Republican party, and he is an influential fac-
tor in its local ranks. At the time of this writing, in 1905, he is
president of the "Teddy" Republican Club, the largest organization
of the sort in the city, while at one time he served as chairman of
the Republican central committee of the county, ever taking an
active interest in the party cause. In a fraternal way he is one of
the valued and popular comrades of Sion S. Bass Post, No. 40,
Grand Army of the Republic, of which he is past commander, while
his is also the distinction of being a charter member of Camp No.
542 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
6i, Union Veteran Legion. Mrs. Daugherty is a devoted member
of the Free Methodist church. Mr. Daugherty is a man of genial
nature and sterling attributes of character, and during the long years
of his residence in Fort Wayne he has held the unqualified esteem
and good will of our people and stands as a worthy and loyal citizen.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 543
DAVID KRILL.
Amid the stress and turmoil of the "madding crowd's ignoble
strife," he may consider himself fortunate who is removed there-
from and is identified safely and independently with the great funda-
mental industry of agriculture, whose rewards are generous and
whose influences beneficent in all ways. Among the representative
agriculturists of Allen county is numbered Mr. Krill, whose well
improved and attractive homestead is located in section 34, Wayne
township.
Mr. Krill is a member of one of the fine old pioneer families of
Indiana, of which he is a native son. He was born on a farm near
Murray, Wells county, Indiana, on the 7th of November, 1856, and
is a son of John and Sophia (Henline) Krill, the former of whom
was born in Berks county, Pennsylvania, of stanch German an-
cestry, while the latter was born in Stark county, Ohio, their mar-
riage being solemnized in Wells county, Indiana, about 1850, so
that it is shown that the name borne by the subject has been identified
with the annals of our great commonwealth for more than half a
century. The Henline family came to the state in 1848, and the
father of the subject took up his abode here about the same time.
He was a miller by trade and followed this vocation prior to com-
ing to Indiana, where he turned his attention to farming. In 1866
he came to Allen county and purchased a tract of partially im-
proved land in Wayne township, paying six thousand five hundred
dollars for one hundred and forty acres. This was known as the
old Fairfield farm, and was later traded to the county for use by
the county infirmary as a poor farm. Three years later the county
purchased its present poor farm, two and one-half miles nearer the
city of Fort Wayne, and Mr. Krill again secured possession of his
original place, to which he later added forty-two acres. He assumed
544 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
a burden of debt to about one-half the value of the farm at the time
of purchase, but by good management soon cleared this indebtedness,
while he eventually became one of the substantial farmers of the
county, his landed estate being one of the valuable ones of Wayne
township at the time of his death. He passed away on the 23d
of January, 1889, at the age of sixty-seven years, and his widow
still resides on the old homestead, being eighty years of age at the
time of this writing, in 1905, and being in somewhat delicate health.
In politics Mr. Krill was originally a Whig and later a Republican,
but he never sought office and was not active in public affairs. He
and his wife became the parents of four children: William H.,
who owns and operates sixty-three and one-half acres of the old
homestead; David, the subject of this sketch, who owns a similar
portion of the old farm ; James, who died at the age of twenty years ;
and Samuel, who is a successful farmer near Decatur, Adams
county, this state.
David Krill was associated with his father in the work and
management of the home farm until the death of the latter, when
he received sixty-three and one-half acres of the land, and here he
has ever since continued to reside, while he has made his farm one
of the best in this section of the county. The farm is equipped with
one thousand rods of tile drain, and the improvements throughout
are of the best, including good buildings. The farm lies five and
one-half miles south of Fort Wayne, is well supplied with water
and as reclaimed represents as fertile farming land as can be found
in Allen county. Mr. Krill brings to bear progressive methods in
his farm work, devoting his attention to diversified agriculture and
to the raising of live stock of excellent grade, while he stands high
in popular esteem in the community which has long been his home
and in which he has won a success of no indefinite order. In politics
he accords allegiance to the Republican party, but he has never al-
lowed his name to be considered in connection with public office.
Both he and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church,
being identified with the Union chapel, located about one-half mile
distant from their home.
On the 20th of December, 1888, Mr. Krill was united in mar-
riage to Miss Hettie Greider, who was born and reared in Allen
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 545
county, being a daughter of David Greider, a prominent farmer
of Pleasant township. She was bom in Pleasant township, on the
24th of June, 1863, and while she was a child her parents removed
to the vicinity of the Krill homestead, in Wayne township. Mr.
and Mrs. Krill have three sons, all of whom remain at home, Charles,
Frank and Albert. David Greider came from Pennsylvania to Al-
len county, Indiana, in 1822, his wife coming some time later. They
resided in Pleasant tow^nship up to the time of their death, the father
dying on the 26th of June, 1905, and the mother on July 24, 1896.
They were the parents of twelve children, ten of whom grew to
maturity, and nine are still living. Mrs. Krill was the ninth in
order of birth.
35
546 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
SHERIOD BRADBURY.
This honored citizen and progressive farmer of Wayne town-
ship is a representative of one of the well-known pioneer families of
Allen county, where he has lived from the time of his birth. His
personal standing in the cohimunity entitles him to consideration in
this compilation, as does also his worthy genealogical history, which
bespeaks intimate identification with the industrial and civic up-
building of this favored section of the old Hoosier state.
Thomas Bradbury, father of the subject, was born in England,
and came to America about the year 1831, when about twenty years
of age. He made Indiana his destination and located in Allen county
soon after his arrival in the United States. Here he was united in
marriage to Miss Elizabeth Cooper, who was born in Ohio and who
came with her parents to Allen county when a child. Her father,
Cornelius Cooper, was one of the early settlers in Pleasant town-
ship, and in that same section Mr. Bradbury took up his residence
after his marriage, locating in the midst of the virgin forest and
erecting a log cabin as his place of abode. During the construction
of the Wabash & Erie canal he worked on the same, and in the
meanwhile he instituted the development of his farm, which lies along
the line of the Lake Erie & Western Railroad, in Pleasant township,
seven miles distant from the city of Fort Wayne. This original
homestead comprised one hundred and sixty acres, and he eventually
accumulated two other quarter sections of good land in the county,
so that he was enabled to give a good eighty-acre farm to each of
his eight children, besides devising to each a considerable sum of
money. He was a man of energy and ability and was thus able
to attain marked success in temporal affairs, while his life was so
ordered in all its relations that he commanded the uniform confidence
and respect of his fellow men. He was one of the most extensive
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 547
farmers of the county and also gave much attention to the raising
of high-grade live stock. He died in 1870, and his widow survived
until 1899, when she passed away at the age of sixty-seven years,
having been a revered member of the family circle of the subject of
this sketch during the closing years of her life. Of the eight chil-
dren only two remain resident of Allen county — Sheriod and his
sister Maiy, the latter being the wife of William Dalman, a well-
known farmer of Pleasant township. The father of the subject
was a great student of the Bible, reading the sacred pages time and
again and being familiar with all portions of the book. In politics
he was a stanch adherent of the Democratic party, ever taking a
loyal interest in public affairs, especially those of a local nature.
Sheriod Bradbury, the immediate subject of this review, was
bom on the old homestead farm in Pleasant township, this county,
on the 1 2th of Februaiy, 1852, and his educational advantages were
those afforded in the public schools of the locality and period. He
remained associated in the management of the home farm until the
death of his honored father, and upon attaining his legal majority
had been presented with a farm of eighty acres, partially improved.
After the death of his father he remained with his mother on the old
homestead, to whose operation he gave his attention, as well as to
that of his own farm. In 1899 he disposed of his holdings in
Pleasant township and purchased his present fine farm, in section 12,
Wayne township, where he has ninety acres of excellent land,
eligibly located and maintained under a high state of cultivation.
On the place he has made the best of improvements, including, the
erection of substantial buildings. His attractive and commodious
farm residence, of nine rooms, was builded in 1903, and is modem
in design and appointments. He devotes his attention to diversified
agriculture and also raises a good grade of live stock, in the feeding
of which he utilizes much of the produce of the farm. Though
never aspiring to the honors or emoluments of public office, Mr.
Bradbury has ever been mindful of the duties of citizenship, exercis-
ing his franchise in support of the principles of the Democratic party
and being essentially progressive and public-spirited in his attitude.
His wife is a zealous member of the Methodist Episcopal church.
On the 3d of March, 1878, Mr. Bradbury was united in mar-
■548 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
riage to Miss Elizabeth Koons, who was born and reared in Pleasant
township, this county, being a daughter of George and Harriet
(Richard) Koons, who were married in that township, where the
respective families settled in an early day, in the same neighborhood
as did the Bradburys. Both Mr. and Mrs. Koons were born in
Pennsylvania, and they were young folk at the time of the immigra-
tion to Allen county. Mr. Koons settled in the woods and there
reclaimed a good farm, upon which both he and his wife continued
to reside. Mrs. Koons died nearly thirty years ago, and her hus-
band survived her by many years, his death occurring in 1898, in
Fort Wayne, where he passed the last decade of his life, retired from
active labors and enjoying the well-earned rewards of his former
years of toil and endeavor. Mr. and Mrs. Bradbury have two chil-
dren, Cora, who is the wife of Samuel Smith, a commercial traveler,
residing in the southern section of the city of Fort Wayne, and
Herschel, who remains at the parental home, assisting his father in
his farming operations.
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 549
ISAIAH WEAVER.
This honored pioneer citizen of Wayne township has been closely
identified with the material and civic development of this section
of Allen county and is one of that sturdy type of men to whom
Allen county owes much, since in his career is represented earnest
and well-directed endeavor, though there have been no spectacular
features nor thrilling incidents. Such lives are the ones which have
most to do with maintaining the prosperity and general well-being
of every community, and a record concerning them is properly per-
petuated in such publications as the one at hand.
Isaiah Weaver claims the old Buckeye state as the place of his
nativity, having been born in Tuscarawas county, Ohio, on the 7th
of October, 1837, and having been there reared to maturity, receiv-
ing a good common-school education, while in his youth he served
an apprenticeship at the blacksmith's trade, becoming a skilled artisan
in the line. He is a son of Oliver and Azubah (Lord) Weaver, the
former of whom was bom in Vermont, of English lineage, while
the latter was likewise a representative of one of the old families of
New England, whither the original American ancestors came from
Scotland. Oliver W^eaver was a pioneer of the state of Ohio, where
he reclaimed a considerable tract of wild forest land, continuing to
be identified with agricultural pursuits until the time of his death.
He served for a number of years as captain in the Ohio militia and
was a man of inflexible integrity and strong and virile personality.
Of the twelve children in the family the subject of this sketch was
the youngest and he is the only one of the number living. One of
his brothers was captain on canal boats when the same furnished the
principal means of transportation through the interior of Ohio and
Indiana ; another brother was a practicing physician at Clyde, Ohio,
and the third brother was a wagonmaker by trade and vocation.
550 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
Isaiah Weaver served a three-years apprenticeship at the black-
smith's trade, in Navarre, Stark county, Ohio, completing said train-
ing at the age of nineteen years. During the first years of his
apprenticeship he received in compensation for his services his board
and the sum of thirty-five dollars, while his financial stipend the
second year was fifty dollars and the third year sixty dollars. He
worked as a journeyman for some time, having come to Indiana
about 1858 and having worked at his trade in the towns of Wabash
and Roanoke. After about one year he located in the village of
Zanesville, on the line between Wells and Allen counties, and there
opened a shop, the town at the time having been a thriving little
place. In the autumn of i860 Mr. Weaver removed his shop to
the Allen county side of the town, and there continued work at his
trade for the ensuing six years, at the expiration of which, in
January, 1866, he located upon his present farm, in Wayne town-
ship. Here he purchased thirty-one acres, partially reclaimed to
cultivation and otherwise improved, the original residence on the
place having been a log house of the type common to the pioneer era
in this section. The place had been the home of Henry Robertson,
one of the honored pioneers of the county. On the farm Mr. Robert-
son had set out an orchard, the same being for many years one of
the best in the county, while two of the original trees are still stand-
ing, "bringing "forth in due time their kindly fruits." On this place
Mr. Weaver has ever since maintained his residence and he has made
the farmstead one of the most attractive in the township. The pres-
ent dwelling was erected in 1873 and the commodious and sub-
stantial barn was builded in 1887. Mr. Weaver gives almost his
entire attention to horticulture, though he devotes a portion of the
place to general farm crops and also raises more or less live stock
of good grade. He formerly sold his products in the general city
market in Fort Wayne, but he gradually built up a trade of private
character and of such proportions as to demand the entire products
of his finely kept truck farm. He raises all kinds of vegetables,
for which his place is finely adapted, while he has a good orchard
and also raises the smaller fruits, for which he finds a ready local
market and the highest prices.
Mr. Weaver is one of the highly esteemed and substantial citizens
ALLEN COUNTY, INDL4NA. 551
of Wayne township, and during the long years of his residence
in the county he has exerted a helpful influence in connection with
the material and social development and upbuilding of the community,
taking an active interest in local affairs, though never aspiring to
political office of any description. He has never been a party in any
lawsuit and has never been called upon for jury service. In politics
he gives his support to the Republican party, of whose principles he
is a stanch advocate. Mrs. Weaver is a zealous member of the
Wayne Street Methodist Episcopal church, in the city of Fort
Wayne, the family home being two and one-half miles distant from
the city limits.
On the 17th of October, 1861, Mr. Weaver was united in mar-
riage to Miss Sarah Harter, the ceremony being performed in the
home of the bride, in Fort Wayne. She was born in Stark county,
Ohio, being a daughter of George and Sarah (Reed) Harter, who
passed the closing years of their lives in Fort Wayne. Mrs. Weaver
came to Fort Wayne when a girl and here resided for some time in
the home of her brother Philip, whose name is well remembered here.
Her uncle, Jacob Harter, was a soldier in the war of 181 2 and was
a survivor of the memorable massacre at river Raisin, where he
was severely wounded, six months elapsing before he was able to
rejoin his comrades in the ranks. The Harter family was early
established in Stark county, Ohio, in whose histojy the name is a
most prominent and honored one. Philip Harter, brother of Mrs.
Weaver, was for many years identified with the diy-goods business
in Fort Wayne, in which city his death occurred. Concerning the
six children of Mr. and Mrs. Weaver we enter the following brief
record, in conclusion of this sketch : Nellie H. is the wife of Jud-
son B. Emrick, a representative farmer of Pleasant township, where
he is also incumbent of the office of justice of the peace; Lida re-
mains at the parental home; Sarah is the wife of Cornelius A. Mil-
ler, a locomotive engineer, and they reside in the city of Fort Wayne ;
Gertrude is the wife of Arthur E. Jacoby, chief clerk in the train-
master's office of the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad
in the city of Chicago; and Florence and Clyde still remain beneath
the home rooftree.
552 THE MAUMEE RIVER BASIN.
ELVA C. KELSEY.
One of the native sons of Allen count}^ who is here successfully
engaged in farming and stock growing, is Mr. Kelsey, whose well-
improved and attractive farm property is eligibly located in section
3, Wayne township, five and one-half miles southwest of the city
of Fort Wayne. He is a representative of one of the old and hon-
ored families of the county, where his parents took up their residence
in the early pioneer days, and thus there is double consistency in
according him recognition in this compilation.
Elva C. Kelsey was bom on the old homestead farm, in La-
fayette township, Allen county, Indiana, on the 17th of July, 1856,
and is a son of James H. and Sarah E. (Beach) Kelsey, the former
of whom was bom in Montgomery county, Ohio, and the latter in
Rush county, Indiana. The paternal grandfather of our subject
was John Kelsey, who was a pioneer of Montgomery county, Ohio,
where he was a prominent hotel keeper, while he also operated a
stage line in the early days, being a man of influence in his com-
munity. About 1845 he removed to Rush county, Indiana, where
he became the owner of a large landed estate and where he continued
to be identified with agricultural pursuits until his retirement from
active business. He passed the closing years of his life in
Zanesville, Wells county, this state, where he died at the patri-
archal age of ninety-three years. James H. Kelsey accompanied
his parents on their removal to Rush county, this state, and there his
marriage was solemnized. Later he came to Allen county and
secured eighty acres of government land, in Lafayette township,
while later he added to his homestead an adjoining tract of forty
acres. The land was heavily timbered when he located on the same
and he reclaimed the farm and made good improvements on the
same, while he so ordered his life as to command the unqualified
ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA. 553
esteem of all who knew him. He was successful in his endeavors
during the long intervening years and was one of the substantial
farmers of Lafayette township at the time of his death, which oc-
curred in 1882. His wife survived him by more than a decade,
her death occurrin
