Elkhart County, Indiana - Pioneer Liee and Customs, 1905

Pioneer Liee and Customs

T(i describe a people's haliits, custnnis and manner of living i.s to tell some of the most interesting things that can lie told concerning' that people. For the successfnl performance of this task the writer ought to know whatever can lie known concerning that people's life and all its details. He ought himself to li\e th.c life he is trying to picture, to loe an eye witness of the scenes he is trying to describe, to- be on intimate terms with the indi\-iduals whose characters he attempts to portray. Well may one shrink from attempting :\ work like this if he have not that intimate personal acquaintance with the jieojile of whom he writes. In its absence lie must depend upon making ])roper use of whatever data are accessible to him in their various lorms. Something may be had from written records, something from the i:)ersonal observations and experience of individuals who have lived during or near the period which the writer is describing and something even from tradition. By making a judicious use of whatever is obtainable from these several sources.

carefvilly examining all of the data that are to he found a rehahle history may he compiled. These are the methods that have been employed in the preparation of this article. The aim has been to use only material that is of known reliability and to eliminate everything concerning which there is any doubt. Much has been gathered from the recorded experience of those individuals who are thoughtful enough to commit to writing for the l;enefit of future generations an account of those events in their own lix'cs which they deemed of sufficient importance to be remembered, as well as the conditions which surrounded them in earlier da\'s. What the written records do not contain has lieen obtained from those pioneers' sons and daughters who are still \vith us, whose memories go back to the days of the earliest settlers and who would not venture a statement that they did not know to be accurate.

The first settlers of any section of country, those who go beyond the borders of the colonies or communities which already exist and plant new settlements in the wilderness, must necessaril}- be strong, sturdv people. The hardships and pri\'ations which the\- must untlergo and the arduous labors which the}- must perform demand great physical strength, almost unlimited powers of endurance and courage that never shrinks at danger. To leave liehind even the meager privileges of a frontier colonv and go far out into what is nothing less than a wilderness to establish a communit}' in a land of which saxages and w ild l)easts ha\e lieen the sole occupants, is b\- no means an easy thing to do. Much more different and far more to lie dreaded is an enterprise of this character for those indi\iduals who leave an older state, who go out from homes which have been long established and in which the\- have enjoyed comforts as well as the associations of neighbors and friends, to whom they are bound by ties which are painful to se\'er. Those of us who ha\e not passed through these experiences have no conception of what it means. E\'en when we read of them or hear them related by the pioneers themselves, we can form only a \-er\- inadequate notion of what they were. To the people of the present dav the story of the piiineer's life sounds like a romance. To those who lived that life it was a stubborn realit\-.

From the time when they left their homes in the older portions of the countiy, the east or the south, their hardships and privations began. The means of transportation three-quarters of a century ago were ver}- different from those of to-day. There were no railways upon which the traveler could be Ixirne with the speed of the wind from the home which he was leaving to that which he was planning to build in the new country. , The slow, plodding ox team and the great lumber wagon furnished almost the only facilities for travel that were enjoyed in that period. Into those massive wagons, which were several times as heavy as those which are now in use, all of the articles of household furniture were loaded, together with the few rude farming implements and whatever else they might possess. Then began the long, wearisome journey toward the new countr}\ The roads over which the travelers passed were far worse than even the poorest and most neglected public highways of the present day. After they left the older portion of the country and began to approach the frontier they found only mud roads, and these became worse a.s they came farther from home. \A''hen they reached Indiana there was nothing but a trail through the woods, and often this was so soft that the wagons would stick fast so that they would have to be pried out of the mud. Sometimes it would become impassable and a new way -would have to be cut out thn.iugh the woods, which made the ]3rogress e.Kceedingly slow. When there were several families mo\ing at tlie same time the teams would be "doubled up" when passing the bad places, and this was done quite frequently. There were no bridges, and all of the streams had to be forded. Oftentimes the rivers and creeks were so swollen by spring rains and thaws as to necessitate Avaiting a week or more before they could be crossed. Consequently many weeks and sometimes even months were consumed in traveling from the far eastern states. It has been said that occasionally after a whole day's travel the distance co\- ered was so short that one of the party of travelers would go back to the last night's camping place and bring coals with which to start a fire. Sickness frequently impeded the progress, and sometimes it would prove fatal, so that one or more of the party would have to be buried along the roadside, while the survi\-ors would proceed snrrowfullv on their way.

.\lthough the obstacles encountered greath' retarded travel, thev were not sufficient to prevent those courageous men and women from jnishing forward to their destination. Nor were their trials and tribulations ended when they had arrived at their new home. This was really only the beginning of hardships which were to continue for years, and in the case of many of the first settlers throughout the remainder of their li\'es. The first requisite was that slielter should be provided for the family, which was done bv the erection of a cabin. This was of rude construction and, if possible, still ruder appearance. And before even this much could be done, unless an open spot was found in the woods, a place had to be cleared large enough so that the cabin would be out of danger from falling timber when the clearing should be continued. An excuse of a stable was also built, which one of the pioneers described as being a little colder than outdoors, but sufficient to keep the horses .from running away. The cattle had to content themselves with whatever shelter the woods or bushes afforded them. The same was true of the other animals, if there were any. The place selected for the house in many instances was near a spring or a stream, if one could be found upon the land which was to be the future farm. Of course there were no wells, so the buildings had to be located near a source of water supply or else the water for household purposes had to be carried from some distance, while the stock usually had to be driven to the water. This accounts for the location of many homes in the interior oi the farm and some distance away from the puVilic highway. Oftentimes the spot selected for the home, even when it was near the road, was not a place whicli would be selected by the home builder of the present da}-. Conditions were frequently such as to prevent the settler from considering beauty and attractiveness in locating his home. Everythmg was sacrificed to utility, real or apparent. There were exceptions to this rule, however, some among even the earliest settlers giving attention to beauty as well as utility. And on those farms upon which the place for the home was selected with an eye to beautiful surroundings there are still to be found some of Elkliart county's most attractive farm homes.

The land having been selected ant! the house built, it liecame necessary to prepare the ground for ])lanting. This was not easy work, especially for those who settled in the timber. The ground first had to be cleared, which was no easy task. The brush and small timber were all that were cut away at first, leaving the larger trees to be cut later. These were "deadened" by cho])]iing through the bark all around the tree. The time selected for this work was on two certain davs in August, "when the sign w as right" and when the work was supposed to be more effective. At that time everything else was neglected, and during the two days when the trees were being girdled the sound of the ax was heard on every farm from earh- in the morning until late at night.

T2 History Of Elkhart County

settlers generally counted themselves t\)rtunate if they could get the smaller trees and hushes removed in time for planting. As the ground was full of roots, plowing was no easy task. Several yoke of oxen were usually hitched to the plow and the roots were torn up as well as could he done. .\ small patch of corn and one of ])otatoes were planted, and these were culti\'ated entirely with the hoe. This was laljorious work, and all of the members of the family usually assisted in doing it. If crops had t(j Ije produced h_\- tliis process now. even in sufficient quantities fdi' home consumption, it is not probable that the pro\-ision for our li\ing would lie \-ery bountiful. The crops gathered ivum the first season's planting had to furnish sustenance for man and Ijeast through the year following. In the meantime more land had to be cleared so that the acreage for planting could be enlarged. It was a long time before many of the settlers could grow enough to have any surplus for market, and when that time did come the markets were so far awa\- that it was almost impossible to reach them.

The prairie settlers had an advantage in not ha\ing" an\ land to clear. .\11 the_\- had to do was to plow the prairie sod and their land was ready for planting. Large teams consisting of se\'eral yoke of oxen were used f(jr "breaking,'" as the work was called. The prairie farms could he brought under cultivation a great deal rpiicker than the timljered farms, so those who settled on the prairies had several vears' start of the others. And there was an ine(puilit\- in another respect even among those who had the same kind of land ;nid the same conditions as to labor. Some were in well-to-tlo circumstances l>efore coming here, and consequently had enough to pay for their lands and some surplus besides. Others had to pa)- out every dollar they had for their land and then were compelled to go in debt for whatexer else the\- needed. These Avere greatly handicapped b\- their lack of funds, and it often took them _\ears to get a start.

Howe\er, all had their hardships t(.) ciintend with, e\'en those whom outward circumstances had most favored not being able to escape them. To perform the laliorious tasks necessary for the estaljlishment of homes and to pro\ide for the living of the famil_\- re(piired unceasing lalxir from earl) nmrning until late at night during all the working season. The "eight-liour day" of that period consi.sted of eight hours in the forenoon and eight hours of the afternoon, and if this was not sufficient for the performance of the day's labor the da)- was stretched out a little longer. As a matter of course there was little or no leisure.

Incessant toil was the lut of the piimeer, as \\cll as of all the mcniliers of his faniil} \\h'< were old enough and strong" enough to work.

As the prairies of the county are of limited area those who had the ex]ierience of heginning in the woods and of transforming" those ^\"oods into the farms that were to he seen throughout a great portion of the county a score of _\ ears later were largely in tlie majority. This meant that each year for the first few years a certain acreage had to l)e cleared until half or .three-fourths of the farm was under culti\ation. Clearing the land liecame one of the ])rincipal features of the first settlers' occupation during their earliest years here in this new countr\'.

L'nHke the conditions of the present da\" when it has become necessary to husliand carefulh" the meager tin"il)er supplies that are left, it was necessary to get ritl of all the tin"iher oi"i the land which w"as wanted for culti\'ation except that which was needed for huildings and fence.s.- .\nd in making fences, too. as much tin"ilier was used as possible. The fence ])roblen"i of that day was not bow to get along with a \"er}- little w"ood in fence building", or to find substitutes for wood, as is necessary at the preseiit da\'. but to put in all of the tin"iljer that could be used, for that sa\ed burning" it. The rails were made about as large and heavy as they could be handled. A log was laid at the Ijottom of each jianel in la\"ing" the " worm " and the big" heavA' rails on top of thai. The fences were nine or ten rails high, staked and double ridered. and one of the hea\iest rails was picked out to be ]ilaced on to]) t<i hold the fence firml}" in position. A forked stick was used in lifting this heavy top rail to its place. While this method of building" fences helped to get rid of consideralile timlier. that was b_\- no means the only reason why they were built as hea^'y and strijug as they were. Another, and doubtless the ]irinci|ial reason, was thev had to be hea\'v and strong in order to prex'ent the stock from breaking through tbeni. It must be remembered that the stock kept in those days was of a far different character fron"i the improved breeds of live stock at the present day, and it required something of a fortification to keep it enclosed.

The first houses were cabins, built of unhew-ed logs. It was necessary to 1>uild them as quickly as possible and with the least labor. In the course of a year or two tbeniost progressive settlers built new cabins of hewed logs. These hewed log bouses were regarded as something of a luxury and became the aristocratic homes of that da\-. Many of the cabins at first had onl\" dirt floors, \vhile others bad puncheon floors. These puncheons were split from the straightest logs that could be found and were made as near a uniform thickness as possible so as to have the floor as nearly level as it could be made. Under the floor was dug what was called a potato-hole, in which one siored not only the potatoes, but all other vegetables. Some of the first cabins had no doors, and a cjuilt, blanket or deerskin was hung up at the entrance to keep out the cold. The roof was made of clapboards or " shakes," as they are often styled. The chimneys were -built of sticks, the spaces between them being " chin.ked " with mud, as were also the spaces between the logs of the cabin itself. The first windows were of greased paper and were several feet long and as wide as one log, which had been cut out or left out for this purpose when the building was beingerected. As the settlers became more prosperous and importations l^egau to be m.ade from the older states, they made improvements in their homes. The door was the first addition to be made, and that was added in a short time, as it could be made by the head of the household. But there were some families who spent a winter or two in their cabins before they made their doors. These doors were split out of the native timljer, the sex'eral pieces lieing fastened together with wooden pins, because nails could seldom lie had at first. They were hung (jn wooden hinges and had a wooden latch inside. In order to open the door from the outside a string was fastened to the latch, then passed through a hole in the door, and the other end hung on the outside. At night this string was pulled inside and the latch then served the purpose of a lock. In the day time it was kept hanging on the outside. Hence the saying that the latchstring was out, meaning that visitors were welcome, an expression which is frecpiently used at the present day to ci^nvey the idea of hospitality.

The furniture of manv of these cabins was very rude in its construction, and there was not verv much of it. .\ large slab with legs set in it ser\-ed for a taljle. Smaller slabs were made into benches, which were used for chairs. Some of the pioneers brought a few chairs with them, 1)ut others had to be content with nothing but these rough benches at first. Stoves there were none, but instead there was in each cabin an old-fashioned fire-place under the stick chimney. The cooking had to be done over these fire-places, those who could aft'ord them having Dutch ovens. These ovens were round and larger in diameter but not so deep as the common iron kettles used on our stoves. Tliev had legs so thev could be set oxev the coals, and there were also heavv cast- iron lids upon which coals were piled to heat at the same time from the top. In these ovens the bread was baked. Corn bread was baked on a " Johnny-cake board," which was simply a board about two feet long and seven or eight inches wide.

Some of the settlers brought beds with them, while others had to make their own beds. These were made by boring holes in one of the loo-s in the \vall, fitting one end of a pole into each auger hole and placing under the other end posts cut from poles. Small poles were laid across for slats. Some of those who had brought one or two beds and needed more made them in this way also. A trough, hollowed out oi a large log, was used for storing the family's supply of pork. A few dishes and other household utensils usually completed the list of furniture to be found in the cabins of the earliest settlers.

The families of the pioneers suffered a great deal from sickness, chietly ague and bilious fever. There were many swamps and marshes in this section of the state, and these were breeders of malaria. Cnnsequenthold and young alike suffered more or less from those diseases. They were spring and summer diseases, and did not trouble the people in the winter time. There were few physicians here, and they were kept very busy during those portions of the year when sickness prevailed. Tlie first settlers knew something of the remedies employed in those days, and administered medicines to their own families. Although the neighbors lived several miles apart, everybody was quick to respond to a call for assistance in cases of sickness. Usually the members of each family took turn about in caring for one another. It was seldom that assistance became necessary, except when all or nearly all the members of the family were sick at the same time. .\s the period of illness usually came diu'ing the busiest season of the year it was necessary to care for the sick and do the work on the farm at the same time, and this made it considerable of a hardship. The work alone was hard enough, but when to this was added the care of the sick it made a heavy burden to bear. The year 1838 has been referred to frequently by the oldest residents as the sickly season. That year nearly everybody was sick and there was scarcely any one to take care of the suffering ones. Those who were the least ill had to take care of the others. There were occasionally some who escaped entirely, and these would go from place to place taking care of the sick people and helping them to do their work. The late Dr. M. M. Latta was a young man at that time, and he frequently spoke of that season as being particularly memorable.

It wciuld l)e supp^ised that under the unfavnrahle coiKhtiniis attendiii,<;- tlie settlement of a new CDtintry there wnuld he neitlier time nnr (il)liiirtunnv for social c(jmmingling. But the early settlers did have their social diversions, and while the pleasures might not he enjoyed In- the ])eop]e of the present day thc_\- must ha\-e heen eiijoyahle to tliose wlio participated in them. Some of those pleasures accompanied the tasks that had to he performed, in fact were a part of them. The work to lie done was of such a .n.'tture that neighh<jrs had to assist one another. Without particularly intending it each neighhorhood was a co-operative societw The cle;iring of the land,, getting rid of large timher necessitated what were kno\\n as log rollings. Xo one individual could dispose of the great trees of those primeval forests. If he h;id undertaken it his progress would have heen so slow and the worls so difhcult, if not Avholl}' inipossilile for him to perform, that he would ha\"e gi\"en up in despair long hefore his task was completed. Xecessit\- compelled co-o]jeration in this work, and that jirinciple was carried into much of the other lalxir that had to he performed. The man who was so selfish or so mean as to refuse his assistance to a neighhor who needed help was regarded with disfaxor 1)\- the other settlers. In fact he hecrune almost an outcast. In more ways than one he was a greater loser than the one whom he refused to assist.

.\flcr tlie settlers had heen here for a numher of years and were raising large crops rif corn, husking hees hegan to take the ])lace of the log rollings of the earliest days. This does not mean that the log rollings ceased when the corn huskings hegan. for hoth were keiit up at the same time throughout a numher of years. But after each farmer liad a com]i:!rati\elv large acreage cleared the log r(.)llings hecame less fre(|uent and the corn-huskings more fref|uent. The women, too, had their methods of co-operation as well as the men. and they also made op]K)rtunities hy this means for social gatherings. Wool pickings and quiltings were among their frolics, and those occasions were not less enjoyable to them than the log rollings, raisings and corn-huskings were to the men. AIan\- of the women knew as much about outdoor workas the men. and some of them e\en more. Often the}' assisted their husbands in the fields in order that the farm work might be done at the projier time and the necessaries of life pro\-ided for the family. And their household duties were m(Tre arduous than are those of the farmers" wives of the ])resent day. Besides, on account of living so far a]iart, their isolation was more conijilete. The occasions on which the women of the neighborlunMl wnukl get together td help nne aimther with a ])(irtii)n of their work afforded a pleasant relief from the toilsome lahor at home, whether it was the lahor of the field or of the honsehold. I'.esides the diversions already mentioned there were apple parings, ill which hotli men and women took part, and taffy pullings for the vonnger people in the season of maple-sngar making.

There was hut little S(jcial di\ersion for that purpose alone, hut it was associated with the lahor in one form or another. This was not because the pen|ile of those da_\s would not ha\-e enjoyed pleasure for ])leasure"s sake as well as can the people of the present day, hut r.ather because stern necessity decreed otherwise. Thus the social life of the ]iioneers became a ]iart of their industrial life, and it is impossible to describe either one without associating the two. .V few }ears later, when the peo])le were not com|)elled to de\ote to labor e\-er\' hour that was not spent in sleeii. the\' found other methody for employing the time when the\' could come together. Singing schools, spelling schools. debating clubs and literary societies !)egan to take the places of the Corn liuskings. a])ple-parings and triffV pullings. But e\en these, like the other gatherings which preceded them, had their double pur])ose. The I ippdrtnnity the_\ aft'oi-ded for mingling sociall}- \\as not the oiihreason why the}' came into existence. 1lie culti\ation of the musical talent, the mastery of the art of spelling or training for talking in public was the paramount object.

The clothing worn by the pioneers and their families was homemade. Some of the farmers had sliee]!. ,nid from the wool shorn from those sheep were made the flannels and all other woolen goods that were needed. Others raised flax, and this. b\- means of a process of which the present generation knows nothing, was transformed into linen. There were some who were fortunate enough to ha\-e both flax ;iiid wool, and whn consequenth' could produce a greater \-arietv in their wearing apparel than those who had onl_\ one. Most of the homes were equipped with the tools necessary for the manufacture of the goods to lie used for clothing, and there were few housewi\-es wdio did not thoroughly understand the process by which the transformation was wrought. P^ach home was a miniature manufacturing institution. Rut few articles of home consumption were procured elsewhere at first. Those things which were not made at home had to he brought from a long distance and transported in wagons, so it was onlv at long intervals that any foreign merchandise could lie obtained. For these rea- sons about all uf the wearing apparel botli of young and old was of homespun, and there was not much of a \ariety in the articles worn. All were content f(ir the time being to be comfortably clad, without so much regard to outward appearance. According to the evidence of some of those who were boys at that time the girls looked just as attractive in the homely garb of that period as do those of the present day in all of tiieir expensive finery.

The food presented Httle variety in comparison wdth that which we have at this day. Corn at first entered largely into the diet, probably because it could be grown more easily and more quickly than other grains. This was beaten into a coarse meal in a hominy mortar, another article which long ago passed into disuse and of which perhaps there is not one in existence in the county. As soon as the first wheat crop was har\-ested it became possible to procure t^our from the home-grown crop. But for some years there was such a rapid incoming of settlers that it was impossible to grow enough to feed all of them. Besides the wheat had to be ground into flour before it was ready for use. and this necessitated the long, tedious trip to mill. The nearest mill was at White Pigeon. Michigan, which would be considered quite a distance by the present generation. It took a great deal longer to make the trip then than it \\ould now. because there were no roatls except the mud roads. Besides there were streams to be forded and other difficulties to be encountered which made the trip a disagreeable one and .sometimes even a dangerous one. So the pioneer farmers did not go to mill \ery often, and when the supply of dour was exhausted the family had to be content with corn bread until more flour could be procured. Corn meal and liacon were the standbys, and to those two articles may be credited the chief support of our ancestors during the earliest period of Elkhart county's history.

One of the articles that had to ])e transported from a long distance was salt. It had to be hauled from Michigan City for several years. Sometimes the farmers would drive there after it and sometimes men who made a business of teaming would haul it. As soon as the farmers began to have some surplus crops to sell a load of gTain could be taken to market at the same time. By hauling loads both going and returning the cost of transportation was materially reduced. Sometimes trips were made to Pipua and other points in Ohio for a similar purpose. Those long drives to market and for the purpose of purchasing supplies added to the hardships of those days, and helped to make pioneer life more of a burden than it would otherwise have been. The trip always consumed several days, and it required weeks to make those to the most distant points. The driver had to be prepared to camp out should night overtake him when there were no places to find shelter. But in quite an early day taverns were built along the principal roads for tlie accommodation of the traveling public. These were found to be not only a great convenience but came to be regarded for a time as a necessity. A little later towns grew up, which became the stopping places and the old country roadside taverns were eventually abandoned. But while they flourished they played an important part in the de\eIopment of the newly settled countr}-. Many of the old-time tavern keepers were noted characters in their day and were long remembered by those who sojourned at their places.

There were no carriages then. The only vehicles were the big, heavy lumber wagons which had C()n\eyed the settler and his family from the home in one of the older states to the new country. That was used in the long trips in market and to mill and for any other heavy hauling that had to be done. Travel about the neighborhood and to nearby places was either afoot or on horseback. The young man of that day could not take his best girl out buggy riding because he didn't have any buggy. Occasionally the young people of that period would go horseback riding together. Sometimes each (ine had a horse to ride and sometimes two would ride the same horse, the young lady riding behind the young man. Carriages would have been ill adapted to the conditions of that day had there been any in use, for they could not have stood being driven over the rough roads and trails which had been cut through the woods. So the lack of them was not the only cause of the inconvenience or discomfort incident to travel.

Notwithstanding the unremitting labor that was required to furnish the bare necessities of life, the pioneer settlers did not neglect the education of their children. Usually the first winter after they had become located they managed to open a school. Some of these first schools were conducted in abandoned cabins. But as soon as possible after building the house and barn and beginning their simple farming operations attention was turned toward the erection of a schoolhouse somewhere in the neighborhood. In these rude schoolhouses the children of the pioneers spent their school days. Some of them had to go several miles, but as a rule they improved the meager opportunities which they had and became proficient in the several branches that were taught at tliat time. There were many people who firmly believetl in the prineiple laid ilnwn hy I'ete Junes in the Hoosier Schoolmaster. " Xo lickin'. nn larmn'. "' The rnd was considered a necessary article of the schoul's equipment, and ui tho.se schools which had a number of large boys muscle was thought to be as necessary to the teacher as brains.

Alanv. perhaps a niaj(.)rity. of those who settled here were religious people and as soon a>; possible made whatever provisions they could for holding religious services. Sometimes these services were held in the cabins of the .settlers and .sometimes in a schoolhouse. The fact that there were no church buildings of any kind did not pre\-ent the holding of church services. .\s the Methodist church was about as numerously represented as an\- that church was one of the first to gain a foothold here. Azel Sparklin. who settled on the west side of the prairie in 1S31 or i83_'. was one of the first local preachers of that denomination. In the absence of regular ministers it often fell to his lot to perform the duties l;elonging to that oftice. The house of Christopher which stood l)etween the present McConaughy homestead and Coshen. was one of the ])laces at which the Methodists held their ser\ices. Colonel John Jackson liecame a prominent member of the Metliodist church in later years, as were Matthew Rippey and John I). k'Isea. .\mong the lirst settlers were also I'resbyterians, and they, too. began holding services almost as soon as they came here. The leading man among them, until he died in iJ^33, was Alexander Irwin, father of lohn Robert and l^lisba Irwin. .\ Rev. Mr. Cory, who lived on Mongoipianon prairie now in l,a(ir;mgf county, used to come over to I'.lkhart pr.airie to hold ser\ ices for the Presliyterians. .\ Mr. Miller, of Baldwin's ]ir.airie, Michigan, and a Row .Mr. Hall wmild come to the same neighkorliood and jjre.ach for tlie liaiitists. The services of those <la\s sometimes contiuneil se\era] liours. Xot many ])e(.)i)le of tlie present (1a\- would be content to sit as many hours in church as was the custom then. .\n old pioneer who as a bo}- attended those ser\-ices said that the \oung peojile often thought thc\- had come to the time and place referred to in the good old hymn: menial regulations. But little time elapsed before the coming of the first white men until steps were taken for the organization of a county and the establishment of a local government. As early as 1830, which was not more than two or three years after the first permanent settlement ^\'as made, a stable government was founded and officers were elected who were charged with the execution of the laws. And tliis same county organization has continued without interruption since that time and with only such -modifications as the laws of the state have prescribed iir the development of the county has demanded.

As would naturally be inferred the labors necessary for the founding of a community and the hardships that had to be endured through many long years developed a people who were noted for strength, industry and habits of economy. The first settlers were people of this stamp and the same characteristics appeared in their sons and daughters. They had neither the time nor the opportunity they would have liked for cultivating all of the finer graces, neither were their envircjnments conducive to this culture. Yet it was not neglected, as is e\idenced by the refinement and the pleasing personality of those few individuals who still sur\'ive at the age of four score years or more and who form the connecting link lietween the present and the past. Besides, both those who' came here and their immediate descendants cultivated the homely virtues of honesty, sobriet}-, loyalty tn count}- and home, and others of like character which enter into the development of a noble manhood and womanhood. It is true there were here and there individuals who possessed none of these characteristics. There were some who were mere hangers on, adventurers, l>ut these were the exceptions and many of them soon moved on to other places, so that those who were left constituted only a small portion of the population.

Such is a brief recital of the experiences, habits, customs and manner r>f living of Elkhart county's pioneers, as gathered from every source that is available to the writer. In an article of this character it is impossible to give the reader more than a glimpse at the work which the pioneers did in preparing the way for the building up of one of the best counties in the state of Indiana, if not in the central west. Cut a histor^- of the county which failed to record the experiences of those who laid the foundation would be incomplete. There are some people who fail to appreciate the work which they did and who think a review of their experiences is a waste of time and eft'ort. Such indi- viduals have an inadequate cunception of what constitutes real history. They wilh'ngly pore over the achievements of those who came from the old world to found a new nation, and it is all right that they do so. The names of those who founded the first colonies on this side of the Atlantic ocean deser\-e to be cherished in -the memory of every true American. Yet to the citizens of Elkhart county the names of these strong, courageous men who came here three-quarters of a century ago and began the wondrous transformation which has been wrought in those years should be not less precious. While the children in our schools are iDcing taught to remember and to reverence the names of Carver and Bradford and Endicott and Roger Williams and John Smith, as well as many others that could be mentioned, there should also be impressed upon their memories the names of Colonel John Jackson, Major John W. Violett, James Frier, Elias Carpenter, Alexander Irwin, Chester Sage, James Middleton, Thomas Thomas, .\zel Sparklin, William Bissell, Thomas Miller, Michael Cook and many more which are scarcely less worthy of remembrance. These are the men who cleared away the forests that stood upon the lands now occupied by the magnificent farms of our own Elkhart county. They are the men who founded our cities and towns. They are the men who came here when our fair lands were occupied by wild beasts and only a little less wild men. They have builded for themselves monuments which are to be seen wherever \\-e go, yet the names of many of them have already faded from memory and are to be found only b}- searching among the old records of the almost forgotten past.