Grant County, Indiana - The whole text, 1914 (part 12 of 32)

James B. Strange was born on the old home place near the present farm, on June 24, 1857. He now owns this farm and his son, George Strange, Jr., lives there. His father wTas the late George Strange, who was born in 1820, and died October 28, 1910. The mother was Lydia Duckwall. Both parents were born in Ohio, and came to Grant county in 1842. The father entered eighty acres of land from the government, having farmed his place in the wilderness, and having spent many indus¬ trious years in clearing off the trees and underbrush. At the time of his death, his vigorous ability had accumulated what amounted to a fortune, and in one place he owTned an entire section of land. At one time he was the owner of more than one thousand acres in Monroe township. While he. was still living, he divided his estate among his children, and provided liberally for his family, and did well his part as a factor in the local community. For fourteen successive years, wTith the exception of one year, he served as trustee of Monroe township. He was a Democrat, and was elected while the towmship wms Republican, having carried it each time except once. He was affiliated with the Masonic order. The mother died in February, 1911, at the age of ninety years. Their nine children, of whom five are living, wrere as follows: Absalom, who was killed by a horse at the age of twenty years ; Rose Anne, who died at the age of four¬ teen ; Anna, wrho died at the age of six months ; one who died in infancy ; Mrs. Margaret Roberts, of South Marion; Mrs. Kate Wall, of West Marion; Joshua, of Marion; John T., of Marion; James B.

James B. Strange as a boy attended the district school No. 2, and on finishing the common schools studied several terms at Marion College. Before he reached his majority, he qualified and taught school, and then his father gave him a cleared tract of land of eighty acres, where he located and began his regular career as a farmer. As a result of his efforts, he has been investing his surplus in additional land, until at the present time he has one of the largest and best improved farms in this towmship. In 1911 Mr. Strange erected on the old home farm now occupied by his son George, Jr., a large barn 50x90 feet, and 24 feet high, the highest in the township. Mr. Strange is a Democrat in politics, and served as township trustee of Monroe township from 1884 to 1889, having been reelected in 1886. He and his family worship in the Marion Chris¬ tian church, and fraternally he is affiliated with Arcana Blue Lodge of Masonry, of Upland.

In 1878 he married Miss Elizabeth Nelson, a daughter of Martin Nelson, one of the pioneers of Monroe township. They had five children, three of whom are still living, namely : George, Jr., who resides on the old home farm, which his grandfather entered, is married and has two children named Evaline and Genevieve; Minnie, wife of LeRoy Tudor, of Monroe township, and the mother of one son, Ray F. ; Commodore, in the Texas oil fields ; Otto, deceased, and one that died in infancy.

John Sanders. The quality of leadership and business enterprise has been distinctive of the career of John Sanders through many years % in Grant county. Very recently Mr. Sanders left the farm enterprise to which he had devoted so many years and retired to a comfortable home in the little city of Matthews, where he and his good wife are en¬ joying the comfort and peace so well won by their past life. Mr. Sanders in everything he has undertaken has shown himself vigorous, efficient, and public spirited. He is well remembered as one of the former sheriffs of Grant county, and has been prominent both in township and county affairs.

John Sanders was born in Grant county, March 13, 1845, and this is one of the oldest of Grant county's pioneer names. His birthplace was in the township of Jefferson on his father's old homestead at New Cumberland. His father, William Sanders, was born in Ohio, Septem¬ ber 19, 1809, and was a son of Robert Sanders, whose birth occurred in Culpeper county, Virginia, about 1768. Robert Sanders was a soldier and one of the devoted followers of General Anthony Wayne, and par¬ ticipated in the campaigns on the northwest side of the Ohio River against the Indians, following the Revolutionary war, fighting at Fort Wayne and also at Fort Recovery, and was on the St. Mary's River. Robert Sanders, who came of English ancestry, married Sarah Mc¬ Cormick, a Virginia girl, and to their union were born the following children: John, Catherine, Mary, William, Amelia, Lavina, Colman, Abner, James, Joseph and Nancy - eleven in all. All of these grew up and were married and had children of their own and most of them lived to be threescore years or more in age. One attained the venerable age of ninety-three. The entire family of children came to the state of Indiana during the decade of the twenties, and lived and died in this state. Robert Sanders moved from Virginia to Ohio about 1800, estab¬ lished a home and developed a portion of the wilderness at that state and some of his children were born there. About 1820 he moved to Fayette county, Indiana, living near Connersville until 1826, and in that year became one of the first who ventured into the wilderness of Dela¬ ware county, entering land in what is now Washington township. Just two years later, in 1828, Robert Sanders moved across into Grant county, and here again was a pioneer. His name is thus to be found among the list of pioneers in three Indiana counties. In Grant county, he entered government land along the Mississinewa river in Jefferson township. The entire township was then a wilderness, most of it covered with dense timbers, and his was one of the first cabins and first establishments in that section. A distinction which will always attach to the name of Robert Sanders is that in 1833 he platted and laid out on his land a town to which he gave the name New Cumberland, and selling a number of lots, started a village which has had a long history, and which tinder modern conditions has become somewhat submerged under the new vil¬ lage of Matthews, and is now designated as Old Town. In that vicinity Robert Sanders lived and labored, reared a family of children, and used his influence toward building up a community in which he was the lead¬ ing spirit. He died at his son William's home in 1861, at the age of ninety-three years. He was an old-line Whig, and later joined the Republican party which was organized only a few years before his death. His wife passed away about twenty years before his death, and was about seventy years old. They were both members of the Methodist Episcopal church.

William Sanders was only a boy when his parents came to Indiana, and was seventeen years old at the time the home was established in Jefferson township of Grant county. There the time passed until he became of age, and in 1834 he made his first important venture inde¬ pendently by entering one hundred and thirty-two acres of government land in section two of Jefferson township. During his younger and more active career, William Sanders was known as a hard worker and an expert in handling the ax and cradle, and could follow the plow up and down the fields all day long. He cleared away much of the timber from his land, and was always known as a man of substantial pros¬ perity and influence. He lived and died on his farm in Jefferson town¬ ship, passing away February 17, 1879. In April, 1837, he was married to Rachel Wharton, who was born either in Ohio or Pennsylvania, April 2, 1812, a daughter of Thomas and Sarah (Gray) Wharton, the former a native of Maryland and the latter of New Jersey. The Wharton family is likewise an old name in Grant county, and Thomas Wharton entered land in Jefferson township when the greater part of its area was a wilderness. The Whartons were Methodists in religion. Mrs. William Sanders died at her home in Jefferson township in January, 1893. She and her husband belonged to the Methodist church, and in politics he was a strong Republican. Their children are: Nancy J., the widow of David Collins, and living at New Cumberland, at the age of seventy-seven; Sarah, who is the wife of James H. Wills, a farmer in Delaware county, and they have three children, and John Sanders of this review.

Mr. John Sanders grew up in the pioneer times of Jefferson town¬ ship, had a common school education, and was about sixteen years old when the war broke out between the north and south. A year later, when seventeen /ears old, he enlisted in Company B of the Eighty- Fourth Indiana Volunteers, and made a record as an efficient and faith¬ ful soldier in the various campaigns until the close of the war. The date of his enlistment was August 11, 1862, and his honorable dis¬ charge came on May 29, 1865. He was in the army under General Rosecrans and other noted Union leaders, and most of his active service was in the campaigns of the middle west, including the battle of Chickamauga and others in Tennessee and Georgia.

At Rocky Face Ridge he w4as wounded by a minie ball through the left foot. He was in the company commanded by Captain John H. Ellis, who was killed at Chickamauga and his son Franklin Ellis was promoted to captain, and he is now judge of the circuit court in Dela¬ ware county. The colonel of the regiment was Nelson Trusler. Mr. Sanders on returning home took up his work as a farmer, and has since become one of the most successful in that business in Jefferson town¬ ship. His home place comprises eighty acres of land in section thirtytwo and its improvements and buildings, fences and cultivation mark it as one of the best estates in this vicinity. Recently Mr. Sanders and wife retired from their farm and are now residing in a comfortable seven-room dwelling in Matthews. Mr. Sanders also owns a fine farm near Old Town in section two, that being one hundred and twenty-six acres of his father's old homestead. As a farmer Mr. Sanders showed himself both practical and scientific, he always did mixed farming, raising both grain and live stock, did much to maintain the fertility of his soil, and in business as in civic affairs has always been a hustler, and a leader.

In 1890 Mr. Sanders was elected on the Republican ticket as sheriff and served one term until 1892. Two terms have been given to the office of township trustee, and wherever placed by his fellow citizens, his work has been commendable and beneficial. Fraternally he has been an active member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows since 1871, in both the subordinate Lodge No. 383, and in the Encampment No. 125, and also the Rebekah Lodge No. 447. He is a past noble grand in the lodge, and is past commander of the B. R. Dunn Post, No. 440, of the Grand Army of the Republic, formerly located at New Cumberland, that village being now merged into the village of Matthews.

In Blackford county on October 13, 1866, Mr. Sanders married Mary J. Reasoner, of an old and prominent family in Delaware county. She was born in Delaware county, in Washington township, October 27, 1848, and at the age of twelve years was taken by her parents to Blackford county. She is a daughter of Jacob and Elizabeth (Dunn) Reasoner, who were born in Pennsylvania, but were married in Dela¬ ware county, and were farmers and good citizens. Mr. Reasoner was more than eighty years of age when he died and his wife lived to be about seventy. They were Presbyterians, and he was a Republican in politics. Jacob Reasoner was a son of Benjamin and Mary (Hill) Reasoner, of Pennsylvania, birth and of Scotch ancestry. The Reasoners came to Delaware county in time to enter land from the govern¬ ment, and later moved into Blackford county, where they died old people and highly respected members of their community. The faith of the Presbyterian church they zealously maintained themselves, and were leaders in the extension of that religion in their various communi¬ ties.

Mr. and Mrs. Sanders are the parents of three living children: Geneva S. is the wife of Walter L. Gay, of Fairmount, and they have two children, Mary L. and Morris L. ; William Frederick is now active manager of his father's farm, and married Gertrude Landis; Bernice R. is the wife of Leo Clyde Gossett, living in Van Buren, Grant county, and their children are Frederick C. and Martha. Mr. and Mrs. Sanders are members of the Presbyterian church.

Charles H. Snyder. One of the largest and best farming estates in Jefferson township is that of Mr. and Mrs. Charles H. Snyder whose home is in section five. Mr. Snyder is one of the progressive young agriculturists, a man of great energy, a hard-worker, and is giving excellent account of himself in his chosen vocation. Their home place consists of one hundred and sixty acres, improved with a commodious white house of ten rooms, and a large red barn standing on a founda¬ tion one hundred by forty-two feet. Mr. and Mrs. Snyder own other lands and the aggregate of their possessions amounts to five hundred and eighty acres. It is divided into four different farms, and each has excellent improvements, including two full sets of farm buildings. The crops are corn, wheat and oats, and practically every pound of grain produced on the land is fed to livestock, and in that way the fertility of the soil is kept up to the highest point.

Mr. Charles H. Snyder was born in Hocking county, Ohio, January 26, 1878, was reared and educated there, and his parents were Jacob and Catherine (Eckstein) Snyder. They were also natives of Ohio, and of German stock. They were married in Hocking county, and began life on a farm in Laurel township of that county, where they spent the rest of their years. His father died in 1897 when sixty-five years old, and his mother was about fifty-two when her death occurred. They were good Christian people, substantial farmers, good neighbors, and his father was a Democrat in politics. Their six children are men¬ tioned as follows: Mary, is the wife of Jacob Lyghtle, a farmer in Monroe township of Grant county, and of their four children the only son died, leaving three daughters still living; Eliza is the wife of David Llama of Hocking county, Ohio, where he is a farmer, and they have six children; Flora is the wife of John D. Llama, a farmer in Marion county, Ohio, and they have a family ; Kirk G. is a farmer in Michigan and has a wrife and children. The next is Charles H. ; Ira lives with his sister, Mrs. Lyghtle, in Grant county.

Mr. Snyder came to Grant county because his sister lived here, and he had his home with her for several years. In 1898 he married Miss Bertha Johnson, who was born and reared and educated in Jefferson township, and belongs to the Johnson family which has been identified with Grant county as early settlers and among the largest land owners since pioneer times. She is a great-granddaughter of John Johnson, who spent most of his life ih Guernsey county, Ohio, but in 1835 came to Indiana on horseback and entered and bought a tract of land in section eight of Jefferson township, and also land in Delaware county. His son James Johnson some years later came out to Grant county and took possession of the quarter section in Jefferson township, settled down to farming on a large scale, was a business man of exceptional energy and foresight, and eventually was regarded as the largest land owner in Grant county, possessing twenty-seven hundred acres, lying chiefly within the limits of this county. He died only a few years ago on the old home¬ stead. Noah Johnson, a son of James and father of Mrs. Snyder, was born on the Jefferson township farm, and died in Upland in 1893 when in middle life. He was cashier of the Upland Bank at the time of his death. His wife was Bell Conley, who was born at Upland and died May 16, 1890, on the old farm. They were the parents of three chil¬ dren: Elva and Alva, twins, the former being the wife of Charles F. Marley, and more details concerning the Johnson family will be found in a sketch under his name elsewhere in this publication, while Alva is a well known real estate man in Marion. Bertha Johnson, the oldest of these children, was born on the old family estate in 1883, was reared and educated here and at her grandfather's death inherited a large amount of his land. Mr. and Mrs. Snyder have two children : Clarence Alva, fourteen years of age, and now in the second year of the Upland high school; and Harry Clyde, aged twelve and in the graded schools. Mr. and Mrs. Snyder attend the New Light Christian church in Jeffer¬ son township, and in politics Mr. Snyder votes the Democratic ticket.

Francis Marion Wyckoff. The attractive homestead of Francis M. Wyckoff is in section eleven of Jefferson township. Mr. Wyckoff came in young manhood to Grant county, possessed the qualities and training which make the successful farmer, and by concentrating his efforts along one line through a succession of years has accumulated more than the average prosperity, and at the same time has won a high place of esteem in his neighborhood.

Wyckoff was of German parentage, and was probably bora in Kentucky, in which state he was married. All the children by his first marriage were born in Kentucky, including Henry, Abraham, Margaret, Susan, and William. Somewhat later the family moved to Indiana, and located west of the west fork of White River in Union township of Bartholomew county. There Nicholas Wyckoff bought two hundred acres of partly improved land, and before his death had the satisfaction of owning a fine property. He was past sixty when he died, and after the death of his first wife he married a Mrs. Tucker, who by that marriage had three daughters, and by her union to Michael Tucker had one daughter.

Henry Wyckoff, father of Francis M., was bora in Kentucky in 1823, and died in Bartholomew county, Indiana, in 1868. His vocation was that of farming, his politics was Democratic, and he was a member and supported the church. In Johnson county, Indiana, he married Mar¬ garet Boucher, who was born in Indiana about 1832 and was of a pioneer family in Johnson county. Her death occurred in April, 1883. Her parents were natives of Germany. The children of Henry Wyckoff and wife were John W., who is unmarried and lives in Michigan ; Susan, who died unmarried; Thomas H., who was born in Union township, Bartholo¬ mew county, where he is now a successful farmer, and has six sons and one daughter; James N., who died in young manhood; Francis M. ; Sarah, wife of Simon Stucker, who lives in Louisville, Kentucky ; George, who died young; Martha, wife of Fred Mitler, of Louisville, Kentucky, and they have one son; and Edward, a farmer in Monroe township of Grant county, and the father of four children.

Francis Marion Wyckoff was born in Union township, Bartholomew county, Indiana, April 12, 1850, was educated there, grew up on a farm, had a practical training in its management, and on coming to Grant county bought some land in Fairmount township. That township was his home for fourteen years, and on leaving there be bought ninety-two acres in section eleven of Jefferson township. His place is considered one of the very best tracts of country real estate in that vicinity, and he has managed it in a manner worthy of its real value. His permanent improvements include a big red barn, a comfortable eight-room white house, his crops are fed to his stock on the place, and he is a man who believes in keeping only the better grades of live stock, runs a little dairy, and makes a good deal of butter, which is one of the sources of his annual revenue.

Mr. Wyckoff was married in Grant county to Mary E. Monroe, who was bom in this county forty-five years ago, being reared and educated in her native vicinity. Her parents were Jesse and Catherine (Hineline) Monroe. Her father, who died in Jefferson township in middle life, was a son of Joseph Monroe, a pioneer settler who entered land from the government and gave many years of his life to its improvement. Part of the land he entered is now occupied in the farm of Francis M. Wyckoff. Mrs. Jesse Monroe is still living, being past seventy years of age, and her home is with her daughter Ada Marine at the old Monroe farm in Jefferson township. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Wyckoff are: Arthur J., who is employed at Marion, and by his marriage to Marie Draper, has one son, Richard H. ; Bertha A. was educated in the high school and Fairmount Academy and lives at home; and Gertrude May was also educated in the high school and is the wife of Roscoe San¬ born of Upland.

Frank H. Kirkwood. The year 1832 is the first date at which the Kirkwood family became identified with Grant county. For fully eighty years, covering practically the entire period of the history of civilization in this section of the state, the name has been identified with the pioneer and modern activities in farming, business and public and social and religious affairs in this county and in Delaware county, as well as in other adjacent counties of Indiana. The immediate family of Frank H. Kirkwood was introduced to Grant county a short time before the Civil war and Mr. Frank H. Kirkwood has spent practically all his life in the county, and for many years has been one of the prosperous farmer citizens of Fairmount township, his home being on section 27 of that township. The family record is one of such importance in different sec¬ tions of the state, that it is appropriate that extended mention be made of its earlier generations. The following paragraphs are the substance of a family sketch prepared by Mr.. L. A. Kirkwood of Muncie, for Frank H. Kirkwood, and written under date of September 20, 1909. This sketch covers the different generations quite fully, up to that in which Mr. Frank H. Kirkwood belongs.

The name Kirkwood is Scotch and signifies a 4 ' church in the woods," or a 4 4 wooden church." The late Samuel J. Kirkwood, who was governor of Iowa during the Civil war, and later secretary of the interior in the cabinet of President Garfield, once wrote in reply to some inquiries from Mr. L. A. Kirkwood, that his ancestors were natives of the north of Ireland, and were commonly called ' ' Scotch-Irish or Presbyterian Irish, Presbyterianism being as natural to them as water to a duck." Daniel Kirkwood, for many years professor of mathematics in the Indiana State University at Bloomington, and an astronomer of note in both Europe and America, was a cousin to the Iowa statesman. He, too, was of Scotch- Irish origin with the usual pronounced Presbyterian religious faith so peculiar to the earlier generations of the family. In a letter written by him in 1871, he expressed the belief that his ancestors and those of the Indiana family were of the same family in the north of Ireland.

The earliest known ancestors of the Kirkwood branch as related to the well known McCormick family, of Eastern Indiana, vrere from Knocknarney, County Down, Ireland, namely : James Reed Kirkwood and his wife, whose maiden name was Margaret Stewart. James Reed Kirkwood was born May 10, 1763, and Margaret Stewart on March 15, 1765. The exact date of their marriage is not known, but probably occurred about the year 1784, their first child being born October 11, 1785. In their old bible, printed in Belfast, Ireland, in 1764, on a blank page, plainly written and in a fine state of preservation, is found this inscription, penned there more than one hundred years ago :

James Reed Kirkwood and wife reared a family of several children of record as follows: Martha Kirkwood, born October 11, 1785, in Ireland; Mary Kirkwood, born June 9, 1786, on the Atlantic ocean; Annie Kirk¬ wood, born July 26, 1791 ; William Nesbit Kirkwood, born January 19, 1794; Thomas Kirkwood, born November 18, 1796; James Stewart, born September 23, 1801 ; Margaret Kirkwood, born October 4, 1803 - all the last five having Mifflin county, Pennsylvania, as their birthplace. There is nothing of record to show when these parents first left the shores of Ireland or of their landing on American soil; save that it was in the summer of the year 1778. It would seem that they located in Mifflin county, Pennsylvania, where they continued to reside until some time subsequent to October, 1803. Of the children just mentioned, Martha married William Starkey ; Mary married John Gilland ; Annie married James Gilland; William Nesbit married Matilda Randall; Thomas married Jane McCormick and James Stewart married Catherine McCormick.

James Reed Kirkwood passed away May 10, 1836, his wife having preceded him September 25, 1835. At the time of their death they made their home with their youngest son, James S. Kirkwood in Posey town¬ ship, Fayette county, Indiana. Their earthly remains are in a neglected pioneer graveyard about one-fourth of a mile north of Bentonville, Fayette county. It has long since been utterly abandoned as a burial place and is part of an open field used for farming. There are now no signs whatever of a cemetery there, save the two base-stones, from which the marble 'slabs have been broken off and removed to the fence which encloses the field. These were the only graves with stone markers in this early pioneer burial place, and not a sign of other graves therein is visible.

The Kirkwood relationship with the McCormick family began with the marriage of Thomas Kirkwood and Jane McCormick, which event took place March 4, 1824, at the old McCormick homestead near Connersville, Payette county. They settled on land in Posey township in that county, living the life of the settlers of that early time in Indiana. They remained in Fayette county, until 1832, when they moved to Grant county, and located on a farm, near where the town of Mathews now stands. In about the year 1850 they removed to a farm near Eaton, in Union township of Delaware county, on the west bank of the Mississinewa River, remaining there the rest of their days. They had fourteen children, the first five born in Fayette county and the other nine in Grant county, their names with dates of birth being as follows : William Nesbit, December 9, 1824; Joseph Stewart, October 12, 1826; James Lewis, January 17, 1828; John Reed, July 20, 1829; Elizabeth Margaret, March 18, 1831; Samuel Drennan, October 2, 1832; Sarah Catherine, April 26, 1834; Thomas Cousins, April 27, 1836; Amos Washington, May 15, 1838; David McCormick, May 20, 1840; a son stillborn, October 10, 1841; Robert Lewis, May 25, 1843; Mary Jane, March 4, 1846; and Martha Ann, November 24, 1848. Thomas Kirk¬ wood, father of these children, died October 2, 1851, aged fifty-four years, ten months and fourteen days. His widow, Jane Kirkwood, sur¬ vived him forty-five years, passing away April 30, 1896, aged ninetythree years, eleven months and four days. Their remains rest in Mount Zion cemetery, Union township, Delaware county.

The further relationship of the Kirkwoods and the McCormicks took place June 24, 1825, when James Stewart Kirkwood, a brother to Thomas, was united in marriage with Catherine McCormick, a sister to Jane. This event, like the other, was celebrated at the old McCormick home¬ stead near Connersville, in Payette county. They also settled on land in Posey township, adjoining that of Thomas Kirkwood and John Gil¬ land. They also had born to them a family of fourteen children, of rec¬ ord as follows: John Drennen, born October 9, 1826; James Reed, October 24, 1828; William Morrison, June 24, 1830; Thomas Boston, August 18, 1832; Mary Jane, July 21, 1834; David McCormick, Novem¬ ber 12, 1836 ; Joseph Lewis, December 22, 1838 ; Jefferson Stewart, May 23, 1841; Elizabeth Ann, March 3. 1843; Margaret, May 10, 1845; Levingston Alexander, February 11, 1847 ; Savannah Caroline, Decem¬ ber 25, 1849 ; Amanda Samira, March 1, 1851 ; Almyra Frances Helen, January 30, 1854.

James Stewart Kirkwood, father of the last mentioned children, continued on the same farm until the time of his death, October 9, 1860, aged fifty-nine years and sixteen days. His widow, Catherine (McCor¬ mick) Kirkwood, survived him forty years, passing away July 11, 1900, aged ninety-one years, six months and twenty-five days. In 1874, Cathe¬ rine Kirkwood moved from Fayette county to Muncie, Indiana, where she spent the remaining twenty-six years of her life. Their remains rest in the cemetery one-half mile south of Bentonville in Fayette county. Of the fourteen children above named, the following had passed away at the time Mr. L. A. Kirkwood wrote in September, 1909: Mary Jane, wife of Lexemuel Beeson, June 8, 1853; Almira Frances Helen Kirk¬ wood, August 26, I860; James Reed Kirkwood, November 16, 1903; and John Drennen Kirkwood, May 6, 1905.

Coming to the immediate family of Frank II. Kirkwood, some addi¬ tional facts may be stated concerning his father, John Drennen Kirk¬ wood, mentioned in the family last named, and who died in 1905 near Matthews, in Grant county. Reared in Fayette county, he became a skilled workman as a carpenter and builder, a trade he followed for a number of years. In 1859, he settled in Grant county, where he bought some land near Matthews. He had married a widow with two daughters, and on the removal to Grant county he bought eighty acres for each of these daughters. Then by his active management and ability he secured two hundred and forty acres for himself in Jefferson township. Thus practically all his attention after he came to Grant county was given to agriculture, ahd in his time he was known as one of the most successful men in Jefferson township. In politics, like the majority of the Kirkwoods, he was a Democrat. Though he and his wife held to no church, he was in every sense a Christian. John D. Kirkwood was married in Fayette county to Mrs. Ruth Burgess whose maiden name was Crawford. She was born in Fayette county in 1824, and died in Jefferson township of Grant county, December 16, 1902. By her first marriage to Israel Burgess there were two daughters, Margaret and Sarah (Sallie). Mar¬ garet is the widow of William Millspaugh, of Delaware county, Indiana, and has a family ; Sarah married Leander Millspaugh, a farmer in Jef¬ ferson township, and they have a family of children. To the marriage of John Drennen Kirkwood and Mrs. Burgess were born two children: Brooks, born in 1868, and died Setember 23, 1906, married Bell Corn, wrho now lives at Muncie and has a son Marcus.

Mr. Frank H. Kirlrwood, the older of the two sons of John Drennen Kirkwood, was born July 2, 1858, in Fayette county, Indiana, and since 1859 his home has been in Grant county. His early education was unusually good for the time, and all his active career has been devoted to farming. His is one of the fine rural estates in Jefferson township, comprising one hundred and twrenty-five acres of first-class land, writh about one hundred acres in cultivation, and in a high state of improve¬ ment. He is the owner also of another tract, consisting of eighty acres. That is in section thirty-six of Fairmount township. His home is on section thirty-seven, and the improvements about the place indicate his progressive character as a leading Grant county farmer. A well fur¬ nished and attractive residence, nicely painted white and of one and a half story, is the prominent feature, wrhile a large basement barn, forty by one hundred feet, is another valuable improvement. Mr. Kirkwood believes in the rotation of crops, and has had much success in growing the staple cereals, corn, wheat, oats and clover. In order to preserve the fertility of liis soil and keep all his grain crops at home, he raises hogs, and cattle, and feeds practically all his grain on his owm%land.

John U. Kirkwood

a daughter of L. G. Richards. She was born and reared in Jefferson township, and at her death left a daughter Florence. Florence is the wife of Lewis Johnson of Matthews, in Grant county, and their children are Arthur B., Twila, and Ruby E. The second wife of Mr. Kirk¬ wood was Nettie M. Jones, who died while giving birth to twins, who did not survive their mother. The present Mrs. Kirkwood was before her marriage, Lydia D. Oliver, a daughter of Edward and Elizabeth (Lugar) Oliver. Mrs. Kirkwood was born in Mills township, where she was reared and educated. Her father Edward Oliver, still lives on the old homestead at the age of seventy-two. He was born in Ohio. His wife Elizabeth, died in Mill township January 24, 1904, and was a native of Mils township, where she spent all her life, her parents having been among the pioneers in Grant county. Mr. Oliver is a Democrat, and he and his wife had no church affiliations.

Mr. Frank H. Kirkwood and his present wife are the parents of four children: Walter E., born July 22, 1891, educated in Fowlerton and now manager of one of his father's farms, married Vedah P. Thom, and they have one son, Hubert Drennen, aged twro years; Chester J., born January 12, 1895, educated in the Fowlerton public schools and the Fairmount high school and lives at home; Orin B., born April 6, 1897, is attending school ; Russell A., born July 28, 1899, is also in school.

William Paul Stover. On section twenty-five of Jefferson town¬ ship is the Stover homestead, a farm under the management of that family for upwards of forty years, the present proprietor being William Paul Stover, a young and progressive agriculturist, who succeeded his father in the management of the estate, and has the reputation in the neighborhood of being a "live wire" and in every way a most pro¬ gressive citizen. He has a beautiful home, farm buildings much above the average of even Grant county and has a large acreage of regular farm crops and raises a number of high grade cattle and hogs and other live stock.

His grandfather, William David Stover, was born in Virginia, and of Virginia parentage, though of Germah ancestry. He married a Miss Bushyoung, born in Virginia, and of the same lineage as her husband. Before they came west, all of their five children were born. They are as follows: John and Catherine, both of whom married and had chil¬ dren, and both now deceased; Mary, who died in the spring of 1912, and left children; Samuel G. ; David, the youngest of the family, who is now a farmer in Blackford county, and has a family of five daughters.

Samuel G. Stover, father of W. P. Stover, was born in Roanoke county, Virginia, on Christmas Day of 1843. When he was seventeen years old his parents came to Indiana, and in 1861 settled in Henry county. Both his parents died in Henry county, his father when past eighty years of age and his mother some twenty years before. They were substantial farming people, and devout members of the United Brethren church. Samuel G. Stover after he became of age took up his independent career in Delaware county, where he met and married Miss M. Emma Shirey, who was born in this state. After four or five years on a Delaware county farm, they came in 1876 to Grant county and bought one hundred and sixty acres in section twenty-five of Jeffer¬ son township. Later their enterprise and careful management enabled them to increase their acreage by the purchase of eighty acres more, and there Samuel Stover labored and lived out the useful years of his existence until his death on March 1, 1912. He had his farm well improved, and in every direction on the old homestead can still be seen the evidence of his thrift and diligence. His wife died on the same farm, July 28, 1909. She was bom in Virginia in 1845, and when twelve years of age accompanied her parents to Delaware county.

Mr. and Mrs. Samuel G. Stover were active in the Methodist Epis¬ copal church, and he was a Republican in politics. Their children were : Cora, who died at the age of * six months; one that died in infancy; Marion, who also died in infancy ; Florence, wife of William J. Williams, a farmer in Blackford county, and they had two children, Samuel M. and Robert Paul; Pearl, who died February 3, 1910, at the age of twenty-four, was unmarried, and was a graduate of the University of Indiana at Bloomington ; William Paul Stover, the youngest of the chil¬ dren, was born on the home farm in Jefferson township, February 9, 1890. Though only a few years past his majority he has already made a record of accomplishment such as many older men would envy. With the class of 1908 he graduated from the Upland high school, and has since been attending strictly to business as a farmer. Since coming into possession of the estate he has erected one of the finest barns in Jefferson township, a large and commodious structure of modem style as to sanitation and convenience, and built on ground dimensions of seventy by thirty-six feet, with a cow bam sixteen by fifty feet. A comfortable old farm residence was erected by his father twenty-seven years ago, and still affords the comforts of a good home.

Mr. Stover was married in Grant county in 1912 to Miss Nettie Roberds, who was bom in Blackford county, May 1, 1886, and was educated in the public schools. Her parents were Joseph A. and Anna Eliza (Wilson) Roberds. Anna Eliza Wilson was a daughter of Moses Wilson. The Roberds family live on a farm in Licking township of Blackford county, and are prosperous and well to do people. Mr. and Mrs. Stover have no children, and are popular among the younger members of Jefferson township in social circles. They attend the Pleasant Grove Methodist church.

Alvin Dickerson. No other merchant or business man now operat¬ ing in* Upland was in business there when Alvin Dickerson started, and he is not only the oldest established merchant, but foremost in everything that concerns the advancement and prosperity of that flourishing little community. With good natural endowments, he has had a thorough training, and his success in business is based upon the solid foundation of accomplishment and experience.

Alvin Dickerson was bom in Delaware county, Indiana, on a farm, January 17, 1865, and belongs to one of the old families of eastern Indiana. His grandfather, Richard Dickerson, came from Ohio to Indiana in the year 1836 and entered land direct from the government in Washington township of Delaware county. In order to pay his fees and take out his patent, he had to go to the Fort Wayne land office. On the land thus acquired he lived and labored until he had made an excel¬ lent home, his estate comprising eighty acres, and he was one of the interesting early settlers of that community. When not following his regular vocation as a farmer, during the early years he did a great deal of teaming for Cincinnati merchants, hauling merchandise from the Ohio city to different points in eastern Indiana. That was of course years before the first railroad was built into this section, and the Over¬ land trail from Cincinnati northwest was the most frequented highway of transportation and nearly every merchant got his goods by that route, and the farmers sent their produce to market largely the same way. Richard Dickerson died before the Civil war and was fifty-six years of age at the time. During his residence in Ohio he married a Miss Hart and she died in Delaware county about the same time as her hus¬ band and about the same age. They became the parents of three sons and six daughters. The only one now living is R. Huston, living in Fowlerton, Grant county. Another son was Joshua. John Dickerson, father of the Upland merchant, was born in Guernsey county, Ohio, June 26, 1831, and died August 28, 1913, when past eighty-two years of age. His death occurred at Upland. On the old homestead in Dela¬ ware county he spent his youth and when ready to make his first independent venture bought forty acres of wild land in the same vicinity. That continued to be his home until the fall of 1865, when he moved over into Grant county, and bought one hundred acres in section six of Jefferson township. After many years of prosperous farming activity, he moved in 1900 to Upland, which village remained his home until his death. His widow still lives in the village. Her maiden name was Mary Hollis, and she was born in Jefferson township in 1838, a daughter of William Hollis, who came from his native Ohio to Grant county and entered land in Jefferson township, getting his patent with the signature of Martin Van Buren, then president of the United States. There he lived amid the changing scenes which marked the progress of the country from pioneer stage into the modern times, and died on the land which his labors had converted into a productive farm, at the age of seventy-eight years. He was three times married, and Mrs. John Dickerson was the child of his first wife. John Dickerson voted the Democratic ticket, and he and his wife had no church affilia¬ tions. Of their five children, four were daughters, and three of them are married and living in Grant county with families of their own. One daughter, Luna, is very successful as a teacher, and has for several years filled a responsible position in the government educational system in the Philippine Islands.

Alvin Dickerson grew up in Grant county, attended the district schools of his neighborhood, and later was sent to the State Normal where he studied and qualified himself for the work of teaching which was his regular occupation for eight years. His first school he taught at the age of nineteen. In January, 1892, Mr. Dickerson came to Upland and contributed his resources of capital and enterprise to the little community then existing there. From the start on a modest scale he has been increasingly successful and his large general store is now located in the center of the village on Main Street and supplies every¬ thing needed by the people of this locality. Mr. Dickerson also owns a comfortable home in the village and a farm of thirty-two acres in Jefferson township.

Mr. Dickerson is a Prohibition voter in political affairs. He was married in his home township to Miss Jennie Walker, who was born and reared and educated in Jefferson township, a daughter of William C. and Sarah Walker, concerning whom further information will be found elsewhere in this volume. Mrs. Dickerson was for several years pre¬ ceding her marriage a 'successful and popular teacher in Grant County. To their marriage have been born two children : Cloyd, now twenty years of age, in his freshman year at Purdue University; Geneva, aged nineteen, graduated in the same class with her brother from the high school in 1912, and now lives at home and is a student of music. Mr. and Mrs. Dickerson have membership in the Presbyterian church.

Ezekiel Jones. The first carload of ice and the first carload of coal that came to Upland for distribution and use in the community were shipped to Ezekiel Jones. The shipment of ice was made on August

1, 1900, and the first car of coal came to him in January, 1903. Mr. Jones records those facts as important points in his commercial history, and from a beginning when a car of coal meant a very large transaction to him and also to the community he has developed both lines of business ' for summer and winter, until at the present time he handles annually about forty carloads of coal and some twelve carloads of ice. The business has been built up on a basis of fair dealing, and courteous and reliable treatment of his customers.

Ezekiel Jones was born in Wells county, Indiana, September 15, 1847, but has lived in Grant county since early boyhood. His parents were Oliver and Catherine (Miller) Jones. The father was born in Ohio and the mother in Virginia, and both went to Wells county early in life, where they met and were married. Grandfather Daniel Jones was the founder of the family in Indiana, entering land on Salmonia River in Wells county during the thirties and with the aid of his older sons he went vigorously to work and cleared up a wilderness and con¬ verted it into a productive farmstead. Mr. Jones spent all the rest of his life on the land for which he had secured a patent direct from the government and his death occurred when eighty-one years of age. His wife also died when quite old. In all that section of Wells county his was renowned as the first brick home and it is interesting to note that the clay was dug from pits on the farm and was burned in kilns as a local and native industry. Oliver Jones was a Baptist in religious faith, and in politics he followed the policies of the Whig party. Oliver Joiles and wife finally moved from Wells county to Grant county, and spent many years in the active pursuit of farming in Jackson town¬ ship. Later they returned to Wells county where Oliver Jones died in August, 1899, at the age of seventy-four years, survived by his widow, who passed away September 13, 1912, when eighty-four years old. She was a Methodist Protestant in faith, had for sixty-four years lived and worked in that church, and was one of the first of the denomi¬ nation in her part of the state. Oliver Jones later in life joined the same denomination. He was in politics a Democrat. Oliver Jones and wife had three sons and five daughters, and three of the daughters are still living and all are married.

Ezekiel Jones was reared to manhood on his father's farm in Grant county. After his marriage he moved to Marion and was for three years employed in the glass factory there, after which he returned to Upland, and has since been one of the active business men in this community.

Mr. Jones was married in Huntington county, Indiana, to Miss Emma Layman, a daughter of Joseph and Mary (Peggy) Layman. Her parents lived and died on a farm in Huntington county, her father hav¬ ing entered the land from the government. Both were quite old when death came to them, about eighty years of age. They had moved from Ohio in the early days to Huntington county, and lived honbrable and upright lives, and were strict members of the Baptist faith. Mr. and Mrs. Jones are the parents of the following children: Nora A. is the wife of Theodore Trout, of Mill township, and they have five living children; Sarah Leola is the wife of Thomas Hewitt of Mill township and they have a son and two daughters ; Joseph Lloyd is employed in the Upland Flint Glass works, and is married and has one daughter; Oliver Floyd is assisting his father in the coal and ice trade, and is married and has a son and daughter. Three of the sons, born to Mr. and Mrs. Jones died young. Mr. Jones and wife both worship in the United Brethren church, of which he is a trustee. He and his sons vote the Democratic ticket.

Apraham M. Lucas. One of Grant county's pioneer families, mem¬ bers of which have for many years been identified with the agricultural interests of this section, is that bearing the name of Lucas, and a worthy sentative thereof is found in the person of Abraham M. Lucas, who is is now carrying on successful operations on his farm in Center township. Mr. Lucas has resided in Center township all of his life, having been born on his father's farm, five miles southeast of Marion, September 23, 1865, and is a son of Israel and Mary (Williams) Lucas.

The parents of Mr. Lucas were born in Mercer county, Ohio, and there reared and educated, and shortly after their marriage came to Grant county, Indiana, locating on a farm five miles southeast of Marion, on the Soldiers' Home pike. Mr. Lucas was a well educated man, and in order to add to his resources during his early years engaged in teaching school in Center township. As the years passed, however, he turned his entire attention to agricultural work, and eventually becajne one of the prosperous men of his community, owning two well-developed farms in Center township. His death occurred about 1873. Five children were born to Israel and Mary Lucas, of whom three still survive : I. W., a carpenter and contractor living on East Tenth street, Indianapolis; Orpha L., who is the wife of James Thomason, of Marion, Indiana ; and Abraham M.

Abraham M. Lucas received only limited educational advantages, as his father died when he was but eight years old and the services of the youth were needed in the operation of the home property. He made the most of his opportunities, however, and subsequent reading and obser¬ vation have made him a well-informed man. Reared to agricultural pur¬ suits, he has made farming his life work, and through well-directed effort has become one of the substantial men of Center township, owning a handsome property, consisting of 138 acres, 93 acres in the farm upon which he lives and 45 acres about one-quarter mile east of the farm, and possessing in the highest degree the esteem and respect of those who have had dealings with him. Mr. Lucas has made enormous improve¬ ments on his property, and by the use of modern methods and machin¬ ery has gained a reputation as a progressive and enterprising agricul¬ turist. General farming has received the greater part of his attention, but his activities in stock raising have also been rewarded with success.

On May 23, 1889, Mr. Lucas was united in marriage with Miss Mary Swartz, who was born and reared in Center township, and to this union there have been born two children: Gladys M., a graduate of the com¬ mon schools, who died at the age of seventeen years ; and Lucetta, born November 1, 1893, who has been given good educational advantages and now lives at home with her parents. Mr. and Mrs. Lucas are consistent members and liberal supporters of Griffin Chapel of the Methodist church. Politically he is a Democrat, but has taken no active part in public matters, although he has ever been ready to assist in movements making for the public welfare.

George W. Jones. One of the men whose enterprise has contributed to the trade and general activities of the village of Upland is George W. Jones, whose earlier life was spent in Jefferson township in farming pursuits and who for a number of years hrfs been in the feed and grain business at Upland. Mr. Jones is a man of recognized integrity and fair dealing, has a host of friends in the vicinity and has never failed to hold up his end of responsibilities, whether in private or in business life.

The family to which George W. Jones belongs was established in Grant county many years ago by Joshua Jones, father of George W. Jones. Joshua was the son of Lewis Jones, who lived and died in Ohio, was twice married and had children by both wives. Joshua Jones, of the first marriage, was bom in Greene county, Ohio, March 7, 1819, and grew up on his father's farm. When about twenty years of age he crossed the state line to Indiana and the young man without capital found employment among the farmers of Blackford county for several years. Then moving into Jefferson town¬ ship, Grant county, he bought some land, most of which was located in the wilderness, and by hard work cleared up and made a good farm. That was his home for nearly sixty years, and at his death in August, 1909, he was able to look back upon a lifetime of industry and gratify¬ ing accomplishments. He was a Democrat and a member of the Meth¬ odist Episcopal church. Joshua Jones was married in Jefferson town¬ ship to Miss Malinda A. Owings, who was born in Ohio and came with her father, Nicholas Owings, when a young child to Jefferson township. Mrs. Joshua Jones died on the old homestead in Jefferson township in 1905. She was an active member of the Methodist church.

The family record of George W. Jones in his immediate generation is noteworthy in several respects. He was the fifth in a family of nine children, eight of whom reached adult age, and of those only one is deceased, seven living, Mary J. having died when twenty-one. All the four sons and three daughters are still living and are married or have been married, and the youngest is more than fifty years of age and the oldest is now seventy. The record of the children is briefly as fol¬ lows : Harriet, widow of Michael Houck, living in Upland ; Lydia, who is the widow of Edwin Fergus and lives in California, having a son and daughter; Lewis M., a farmer of Jefferson township, and his four daughters are all married; John W., one of the foremost farmers in Jefferson township ; George W. ; Thomas Eli, who lives in Jonesboro, and has a son who is married; Sarah E., the wife of William Ginn, a farmer in Jefferson township, and they are the parents of two sons.

Like the other children George W. Jones was born on the old home¬ stead in Jefferson township, in section twenty-two, on February 14, 1853. His youth was spent in the same vicinity, and while growing up on the farm he had the cultured advantages afforded by the local school. He continued ' to attend school as opportunity offered until about twenty years. To farming he gave his first serious efforts, and in that industry laid the foundation for his subsequent prosperity. In 1891 Mr. Jones gave up active supervision of farming, and for a short time ran a restaurant, but has since been in the feed and grain business at Upland. He built his present yards and buildings, especially adapted for the convenience of the trade, in 1905. His home is located close to his place of business, and he has lived here continuously for twenty-two years. Mr. Jones has always taken much interest in local affairs, has served one term as town treasurer, has been liberal whenever a com¬ munity undertaking was proposed, but has been reticent as to the honors of political life. In politics he votes the Democratic ticket.

Mr. Jones was married in his native township to Miss Mary E. Ginn, who was bora in Henry county, Indiana, and was fifty-eight years of age on October 1, 1913. When she was a young woman she came with her parents to Jefferson township, and the Ginn family to which she belongs has suitable representation on other pages of this volume. Mr. and Mrs. Jones are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and very active in the affairs of their local society. Their two daughters are : Clara, the wife of A. J. Kuhn, who is associated with Mr. Jones in business at Upland, and they have a daughter, Hildred; Ginevra is the wife of Thomas L. Secrist, and they have one daughter, Martha E., and their home is in Santa Barbara, California.

Elge W. Leach. One of the most competent and trusted young business men of Grant county is Elge W. Leach, cashier of the Farmers State Bank at Matthews. Mr. Leach has the entire executive manage¬ ment of this well known and substantial institution, and it is largely owing to his genial personality as cashier and his careful and sys¬ tematic conduct of the bank's affairs that the resources and business of the bank have been steadily mounting in importance since he first became connected with the business. As a man who has gained success and has gone considerable distance on the way to prosperity, Mr. Leach attributes his good fortune largely to the influence and counsel of his good wife, who for some time assisted him in the bank, and is not only an excellent housewife, but is thoroughly competent as an ac¬ countant and business woman.

Mr. Leach was appointed assistant cashier of the Farmers State Bank in March, 1909, and the following year was promoted to his present position, since which time he has had all Jthe executive duties to perform. The Farmers State Bank of Matthews was established in 1907, with a capital stock of twenty-five thousand dollars. In March, 1909, an entire new management took charge, and since that date its prosperity has been steadily increasing, but along natural and healthy lines. The personnel of the executive management is as follows: A. D. Mittank, president; George Fred Slater, vice president; E. W. Leach, cashier; and C. J. Jones, assistant cashier. The Farmers State Bank is a county, township and town depository ; its total resources in February, 1913, were reported as about ane hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars, and its relation to the prosperity of this thriving farming com¬ munity is well indicated by the fact that in its vaults and on its books are accounts with depositors aggregating in the total nearly one hundred thousand dollars.

Elge W. Leach was born in Fairmount township, August 3, 1879. He was reared and educated in the public schools, graduated from the Fairmount Academy in the Class of 1901, and the following three years were spent as a teacher. At the same time his services were employed in an office, and he also did farm work. With this varied experience and equipment, he was well prepared for his present vocation. Mr. Leach 's grandfather was Esom Leach, bom in Virginia, reared in Frank¬ lin county, Indiana, and after his marriage there to Lucinda Cora, came to Grant county and acquired a large tract of land, comprising more than five hundred acres, partly by purchase and partly by entry from the government. The rest of his years were spent in residence at this estate in Grant county, and his career was one of special prosperity. He died when past seventy years of age, and his widow survived him ten or twelve years, and was a very old woman when taken away. They were both communicants of the Primitive Baptist Church. Their family comprised thirteen children in all, and eight sons and two daughters are still living. Of these children, John B. Leach, father of the Matthews banker, was bora in Fairmount township, March 4, 1854, and has lived in this vicinity ever since, making his home on a farm there at the present time. He was married in Jefferson township to Miss Hester Richards, a daughter of Jacob and Susan (Gillespie) Richards. The Richards family has been identified with Grant county for all the years since early settlement, and both Mrs. Leach's parents died here when old people. Jacob Richards was an early minister of the Primitive Baptist Church at Matthews, the church usually being known as the Harmony church, and he lived and labored for many years in the cause of religion, spending much of his time in traveling and riding about the country horseback, covering the large territory and carrying the gospel to many isolated communities during the early days. Mrs. Hester Leach was bora in Jefferson township in 1857, and still is smart and active and has been a good mother to her children. These children of John B. Leach and wife were : Elge W. ; Jacob E., a farmer in Fairmount township, who married Blanch Duling, and has three children, Lloyd, Carl, and Helen ; Minnie is the wife of Ernest 0. Crecraft, living in Fowlerton, and their children are John A. and Dora Lee; Fern is the wife of Nacy Wood, living in Fowlerton, and they have no children ; Mr. Elge W. Leach was married in Jefferson township to Miss Sarah Anderson. Mrs. Leach, who was born in Jefferson township July 22, 1882, also graduated from the Fairmount Academy with the class of 1901, the same class with her husband, and is an intelligent and cul¬ tured woman whose presence in Matthews society is one of secure ad¬ vantage and esteem. Her parents were Augustus and Elizabeth (Dean) Anderson, who for many years were farmer residents of Jefferson town¬ ship. Her father died there in May, 1910, and the widow lives on the old farmstead, being about fifty-five years of age. Mr. and Mrs. Ander¬ son were active members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, with which Mrs. Leach is also associated. Mr. Leach is a Democrat in politics.

Thomas F. Scott. People who lead busy and useful lives are not often portrayed in public prints, for it is only the abnormal that is observed by the current press. That work of homemaking, of efficient performance of daily duties and responsibilities is at the same time the most vital and important as well as the least likely to attract general attention. Among Grant county people who excel in this matter of running a business with quiet efficiency and making a fine home, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas F. Scott are well worthy of a record in the Centennial history. Their attractive rural home is in section twenty-eight of Jefferson township.

Mr. Thomas F. Scott is the third bearer of that Christian name in as many successive generations. His grandfather, Thomas Scott, was born in Ireland in 1775, was of what is known as Scotch-Irish stock, and after his marriage to an Irish girl came to America about 1800. The only means of crossing the Atlantic at that time was by sailing vessels, and a number of years elapsed before the introduction of steam navigation. From the Atlantic coast Thomas and his young wife came on to Ohio, lived for a few years at Steubenville, on the Ohio river, where his son Thomas Jr. was born about 1804 or 1805. Later the family moved to Noble county in the same state where Grandfather Thomas died when probably quite an old man. His sons and his widow later went to Guernsey county, Ohio, where she died when very old. She was the mother of five sons and three daughters who grew up and married.

Thomas Scott, second of the name, was married during his resi¬ dence in Noble county, where he became of age, and the maiden name of his wife was Nancy McCoy, who was probably born in Ohio and of similar ancestry to her husband. After their marriage, Thomas and wife located in Guernsey county, where they were pioneers and undertook the tasks allotted usually to the pioneers in the middle west of clearing the dense forests and making a landscape of cultivated fields where had formerly been only the haunts of wild beasts and Indians. By his labor he improved one hundred and sixty acres of land. During the early years of their residence there the nearest town or village was five miles away and the mill and post office was three miles from their house. Thomas Scott II, was remarkably well fitted for the hard labor of pioneering. He was regarded as one of the most skillful wielders of an ax in his entire community, and it was his greatest pleasure to swing that implement hour after hour in the woods, that kind of work as hard as any that man does, being with him a part of athletic pleasure. His first home was a little cabin built of round logs, which was replaced somewhat later by a hewed log house, of a story and a half, and what was known as a double building, being divided by a partition, and with a stone fireplace and chimney. It was a somewhat pretentious home for that community, and had £he same place as a brown-stone front mansion would in later years. In 1842, having sold his Ohio home, Thomas Scott came out to Grant county, and again became a pioneer, securing one hundred and sixty acres of wild land in section thirty-four of Jefferson township. There he made a large clearing and by his own efforts or under his supervision nearly all the land was cleared up. His death occurred in Jefferson township in 1870. A hard-working, thrifty and honorable gentleman, he lived long years and ever enjoyed the confidence and esteem of the community. His wife followed him in death in 1874. They were both Methodists, and from his affiliation with the Whig party he came naturally into the ranks of the Republicans. There were nine children born to them, three were married, and two are still living. Hugh married and left a wife and four children, in order to enlist in the Civil war, as a member of the Eighty-Fourth Indiana Regiment, going out in 1862, and after participation in a number of campaigns contracted smallpox at Nashville, and died from that disease in Nashville. The living sons are John A., who is now married and lives in Kansas with his family, and Thomas F.

Thomas F. Scott III, was bom in Guernsey county, Ohio, February 24, 1842. He was nine years old when his parents moved to Grant county. He has spent practically all his life in this county, and until his father's death was an active assistant on the home farm.

A great mutual confidence and esteem existed between father and son. Mr. Scott has spent nearly all his life on the farm he now occu¬ pies, which was the homestead cleared by the sturdy hands and skillful ax of his father. It is regarded as one of the best homes in the vicinity, all the land is highly improved and cultivated through the maximum of production, and of its building improvements a big red barn was erected some twenty-five years ago, and the commodious nine-room house has long been the shelter of the Scott family. Mr. Scott is an extensive raiser of good cattle, hogs and horses, and keeps the only herd of Angora goats in his township, and perhaps the only one in the county.

On August 12, 1862, Mr. Scott enlisted in Company C of the Eighty- Fourth Indiana Regiment of Infantry, the same regiment in which his brother saw service. His service continued with that regiment until June 14, 1865, and his record of military performance was notable for its regularity and faithful performance. He was in every engagement in which his regiment participated excepting one, and twelve of these were quite severe fights. He had one narrow escape from death when a bullet cut a hole through his hat above his right ear, but otherwise he went through without injury. He came out as corporal of his company.

Mr. Scott was married in Jefferson township to Miss Uree A. Slater, who was bora, reared and educated in Jefferson township, had spent all her life here, and belongs to a family long prominent among the leading farmer citizens of the vicinity. Her parents were William and Mary (Tacy) Slater, both of whom came to Grant county from Noble county, Ohio, and made settlement on land that was new, although it had known one or two owners since being acquired from the government. Their location was on section twenty-seven of Jefferson township where they developed a good home and farmstead and lived until death took them away when about sixty years of age. There were four children in the Slater family, and all are living and married.

Mr. and Mrs. Scott have the following children : 1. Charles married Florida James, lives on a farm in Scott county, Indiana, and their chil¬ dren are Hugh and Dorothy. 2. Carrie is the wife of Clarence Needier, farmers of Jefferson township and their children are Carl, Ray, Cecil, Ernest, Harmon, Thomas and Anna Emeline. 3. Minnie R. is one of the most popular teachers in Jefferson township, has taught in the Matthews schools for the past twelve years, and lives at home. 4. Harry, who is a farmer in Scott county, married Ella Lizenbeck, and their children are Frances, Florence J. and Ruth. 5. Norah, is unmarried, and is a clerical worker at Muncie. 6. Bertha, is also employed at Muncie. 7. Ella lives at home. 8. Clarence W. is now his father's assistant in the management of the homestead. 9. Thomas W. also lives at home and works on the farm. 10. Anna M. was edu¬ cated in the local public schools like the other children, and lives at home. 11. Ada Z. is a sophomore in the Matthews high school.

Mr. and Mrs. Scott and family are members of the Methodist Epis¬ copal church, and Mr. Scott and sons are regular voters of the Repub¬ lican ticket. Mrs. Scott is one of the vigorous minded and capable women of Grant county, possessing an alert intelligence, is broadly informed on the issues of the day, and has many progressive ideas in home management and in affairs of social improvement. She deserves much credit for her success in rearing and educating her large family of children, and all of them are exceedingly proud of their mother. Mrs. Scott owns in her own right a fine tract of improved land, com¬ prising one hundred and seventeen acres, in section thirty-two and thirty-three of Jefferson township.

John H. Scott. On section twenty-six of Jefferson township is located one of the substantial country homes of Grant county. It is not a pretentious homestead, its owner is a quiet, efficient worker, and man¬ ager of his resources, and his farm indicates his individual character. It comprises seventy-five acres of as good land as can be found in the vicinity, and one of the evidences of his thrift and prosperity is a com¬ fortable white house, standing in the midst of a grove of trees, erected by him in 1898. A good bam and all other facilities for up-to-date farming are on the place. Mr. Scott is one of the very excellent farmers, and he and his wife, who has worked alongside of him throughout their married career, have succeeded in building up a modest little fortune and in rearing a family of good children. More than that could hardly be said in praise of anyone, and it is an accomplishment to be proud of.

Mr. Scott is a great-grandson of Thomas Scott, who was born in Ireland in 1775, and was of what is known as Scotch-Irish stock, and after his marriage to an Irish girl, came to America about 1800. A full account of the family history will be found in the sketch of Thomas F. Scott which precedes this.

Of the family of Thomas Scott II, Hugh Scott was born in Guernsey county, Ohio, in 1829. He married a native girl of the same county, Elizabeth Deeren, who was born May 26, 1834. After his marriage and the birth of one child, Adeline, Hugh Scott and wife moved to Indiana, and in 1851 bought some new land with a log cabin standing upon it in Grant county. They were in very moderate circumstances, and their first place comprised only forty acres. However, by the combined industry and thrift of husband and wife they were beginning to see light ahead, and in fair way to prosperity when the war broke out. With the many responsibilities of a family, Hugh Scott remained at home dur¬ ing the first year, but when the heavy calls for volunteers came, in the summer of 1862, he enlisted on August 9 of that year in the Eighty- fourth Regiment of Indiana Infantry. Much hard fighting and many campaigns did he participate in, but it was not the bullets of an enemy which brought his death. The fatal disease of smallpox again and again attacked the armies on both sides, and after one scourge he was vacci¬ nated and returned home for a furlough, and finally got well. He then returned to the army, though unfit for service, and at Nashville con¬ tracted the most virulent form of the disease, and died while in the hos¬ pital, March 10, 1865, just as the war was entering its final stage. He left a widow with five small children, and four of these by her frugality and care she reared to manhood and womanhood. She kept the little home, kept her children about her, inculcated good morals and habits of thrift and industry, and there she died, honored and respected by her descendants, February 5, 1909. She, as well as her husband, was a mem¬ ber of the Methodist church. Of their little family the following are still living: Sallie, wife of H. H. Walker, a farmer in Jefferson township, and the father of a large family. Fletcher, a resident of Hartford City, Indiana, and who by his marriage to Melissa Hudson has six children ; and John H.

John H. Scott was bom on the old Scott farm, in Jefferson township, November 23, 1861, and was reared and educated in that vicinity. As soon as his youthful strength permitted he did all he could to assist his widowed mother, and lived at home until his marriage to Lucinda Leach, in 1890. She was bora in Fairmount township, May 7, 1868, a daughter of William J. and Ellen J. (Havens) Leach, of the prominent family of that name in southern Grant county. Her father still lives on the Leach farm at Fowlerton. He was bom February 2, 1840, and has lived as a farmer all his life. His wife, who was born April 23, 1843, died April 17, 1888. They were members of the Primitive Baptist church. The other children in the Leach family were as follows : Charles E. of Fowlerton, who has five children; Anna, the wife of Chalmer Kerr of Fairmount township, and the mother of five children; Martha C., wife of Shirley Hancock, of Jefferson township, and they have four children. The little family of Mr. and Mrs. Scott are as follows : Effie, who died in infancy ; Ira Pearl, who was educated in the grade schools and lives at home ; Sarah Ellen, aged eighteen and living at home, hav¬ ing completed the common school course; William Harvey, who assists his father on the home farm; Ancil Everett, who is attending school; and Arlie W., also a school boy. Mr. and Mrs. Scott are members of the Methodist church, and his political affiliation is with the Republican party.

Martin Y. Montgomery. A half a century ago hundreds of thou¬ sands of men and boys marched away from comfortable homes and dear ones, to offer up their lives on the altar of patriotism. Some dyed that altar with their life blood and never returned; others came back but have borne through the succeeding years the indelible imprint left by the hardships and privations of war. Those who were spared to return found difficulties awaiting them ; after years of strenuous endeavor, when each minute might be their last - when a nation's life hung upon their bravery and endurance, it was no easy matter to resume the ordinary occupations of work-a-day life. Yet thousands did this very thing, and even today a larger proportion of the best citizenship of this country is composed of veterans of the great struggle between the North and the South - men of sound principle, possessed of high moral and physical courage who have rounded out lives that will set an enduring example for generations to come. Grant county furnished its full quota of volunteers during the dark days of the Civil war, and among these was Martin V.

Martin V. Montgomery was born March 26, 1841, in Guernsey county, Ohio, and is a son of James and Jane (Smith) Montgomery, also natives of that state. Some time after their marriage, Mr. Montgomery's par¬ ents removed to Vinton county, Ohio, and in 1854 came to Grant county, Indiana, locating in Center township, where they passed the remainder of their lives. They were honest, sturdy people, industrious and thrifty, and Mr. Montgomery was well known in public affairs in his community, serving in a number of offices. They had a family of ten children, of whom two are living at this time : Martin V. ; and Thomas M., now a resi¬ dent of Pekin, Illinois, who during the Civil war served for three years as a member of Company C, Eighty-ninth Regiment, Indiana Volunteer Infantry.

Martin V. Montgomery received his education in the district schools of Vinton county, Ohio, and Grant county, Indiana, and was still little than a lad when he enlisted for service in Company H, Sixtieth Regiment, Indiana Volunteer Infantry, after the outbreak of hostilities between the States. This company was later attached to Company D, of the same regiment, and of the 104 men who originally composed the organization, but four returned to Grant county at the close of the war, Mr. Montgomery being one of the four. Mr. Montgomery .participated in some of the most sanguinary engagements that marked the great struggle, and at all times deported himself as a gallant and faithful soldier, ever ready and eager to perform the duties which fell to his lot. At the battle of Mumfordsville he was taken prisoner, and confined for seventeen days, and after Vicksburg took part in the operations on the Mississippi, being again captured by the Confederates at New Iberia, Louisiana, when he was held for three months before receiving his exchange. Later, under Gen. U. S. Grant, he served in Arkansas.

At the close of the war Mr. Montgomery returned to Grant county, and in the same year was married to Miss Martha J. Taylor, now de¬ ceased. He moved to Michigan in 1873, and was there married to Mary E. Camper. Mr. and Mrs. Montgomery never had children of their own, but they raised three boys and one girl. Mrs. Montgomery died October 24, 1913. While a resident of Big Rapids, Michigan, Mr. Mont¬ gomery met with an accident which cost him an arm, and following this misfortune he returned to Grant county, Indiana, and again engaged in agricultural pursuits, in which he has continued to the present time. He makes a specialty of raising Poland-China hogs. His farm is in excellent condition and is located on the Soldiers' Home pike, about five miles southeast of Marion. He is a Republican in his political views, but has taken only a good citizen 's interest in public matters. He receives a pension from the government in recognition of his services in behalf of his country's flag at a time when secession reared its gory head.

Jesse Stanley. In the pioneer days of Grant county, when the heavy timber covered the greater part of this section of Indiana, and naught but blazed trails through the forest marked the way for the sturdy set¬ tlers, the Stanley family became identified with the county's history, and from that time to the present its representatives have continued to reside here and to be prominent in various lines of endeavor. Industry, energy, honesty and fidelity - these are some of the most marked charac¬ teristics of the Stanleys, and the elemental strength of character in Jesse Stanley, of Jefferson township, shows that these qualities . are predomi¬ nant in his nature. Mr. Stanley's career has been spent in agricultural pursuits, and his history is an open book, capable of bearing the closest scrutiny with honor.

Evan Stanley, the father of Jesse Stanley, was born in North Carolina in 1817, and was still a boy when he left the parental roof to seek his fortune in the growing West. He first located in Fayette county, Indi¬ ana, where he secured employment as a farm hand, but in 1838, still single, made his way to Grant county and entered a tract of forty acres of land, on which he erected a small log cabin. There he began life alone in the woods, surrounded by the heavy timber, through which he would have to search his way to the homes of his few neighbors, miles distant, but as the time went on he managed to clear, grub and improve his original purchase, and in 1840 he added to his holdings by the pur¬ chase of eighty acres more of land. This was also covered with virgin forests, but this enterprising and energetic pioneer, who is remembered as a short, stout and very rugged man, worked faithfully and constantly, put his land under a good state of cultivation, and when he died, in 1879, was in very comfortable financial circumstances. He was a Democrat in politics, and a good and public-spirited citizen, although never a poli¬ tician. His friends were legion, and although he was not a member of any religious denomination, he bore a spotless reputation for upright dealing and integrity. Mr. Stanley found his wife in Grant county. She was Mary J. Vincent, born in Madison county, Indiana, about 1822, and died in 1867, a good wife and loving mother, and a faithful member of the New Light Christian church. She was a daughter of Elisha and Elizabeth Smith Vincent, of Virginia, who were married there and at an early day came to Delaware county; Indiana, locating on eighty acres of land. Mr. Vincent died in middle life, while the mother survived# until eighty-five years of age, both passing away in the faith of the* Christian church. Mr. and Mrs. Stanley were the parents of two chil¬ dren: Margaretta, who is the widow of William Russel, a former farmer of Blackford county, Indiana, and the mother of two children, Melville and John; and Jesse.

Jesse Stanley was bom on his present homestead place, located on section 11, Jefferson township, Grant county, Indiana, September 20, 1852, and received his education in the common schools of this locality. He was brought up to habits of industry and honesty and thoroughly trained in agricultural pursuits, so that when he reached manhood he adopted farming as his life work. At the time of his father's death he secured the home place, upon which, in 1884, he erected a substantial red barn, and in 1885 a large modem white dwelling, and these were followed in 1900 by another large bam. These structures are located on the old homestead which formerly belonged to his father. From time to time Mr. Stanley has added to his holdings by purchase, and on a tract of 120 acres has an excellent set of buildings, in addition to which he has a third farm with good structures and improvements, his total holdings comprising 418 acres, all located in sections 2 and 11 in Jefferson town¬ ship. He has been very successful in his stockraising and general farming operations, and is justly accounted one of the most substantial men of his community.

In 1882 Mr. Stanley was married in Jefferson township to Miss Mary J. Wise, who was bom on the old Wise homestead in this town¬ ship, October 13, 1859, and reared and educated there, a daughter of Jacob Wise, a sketch of whose career will be found on another page of this work. To Mr. and Mrs. Stanley there have been bora the following children: Clinton E., born July 28, 1883, engaged in opera¬ tions on one of his father's properties, married Julia Atkins, of Black¬ ford county, Indiana, and has one son, Virgil H. ; Retta M., bom July 28, 1885, who is single and resides at home with her parents ; Clarence, bom August 25, 1887, conducting agricultural pursuits on one of his father's farms, married Blanche Keever; John Clifton; Fred 0., bom February 8, 1901, who is now attending the graded schools; and Earl S., bom August 13, 1892, who died in 1894. The children have been given excellent educational advantages, the parents being firm believers in the benefits to be gained through thorough schooling. Both father and sons are Prohibitionists, and although they have not mixed extensively in politics, being essentially agriculturists, have done much to further the interests of their community in various ways. All are widely known and highly esteemed and are filling honorable positions in the world, ably maintaining the honor of the name they bear.

John Clifton Stanley, son of Jesse and Mary J. (Wise) Stanley, was bom October 8, 1889, in Jefferson township. After attending the com¬ mon schools, he became a student in the Upland high school, from which he was graduated in 1909. He is single, lives with his parents, and is assisting his father in the work of the homestead place. A young man of self-reliance, with a strong, alert and intelligent mind, he has intro¬ duced a number of innovations into his work, and is known as one of the progressive and energetic young agriculturists of his township.

Edmund F. Ballinger. For nearly half a century the late Edmund F. Ballinger was one of the well known agriculturists of Jefferson town¬ ship, Grant county, and during this time through his careful manage¬ ment, sound judgment and unflagging industry he overcame many obstacles and steadily worked his way upward until -prosperity crowned his labors with a fitting reward. It was not alone in the material things of life, however, that Mr. Ballinger attained success, for his thorough integrity and honorable dealing won him the unqualified respect of his fellow-men, and his memory is still kept green in the hearts of a wide circle of friends who recognized and appreciated his many sterling qualities.

Mr. Ballinger was descended from an old southern family, his grandparents, James and Rebecca Ballinger, being natives of Tennessee. There their children, Josiah, Daniel, James and a daughter, were born, and during the latter 'twenties, or early 'thirties, the family migrated to Indialia and entered land in Miami county. Later removal was made to Grant county, where the grandfather carried on agricultural pursuits until his death, which occurred at Upland, in advanced years. He had married a second time, to Nancy McCoy, and they became the parents of a large family of children. The second Mrs. Ballinger died when eighty years of age, and both she and her husband were laid to rest in Jefferson church cemetery. She was a charter member of this church of the Christian faith, to which Mr. Ballinger had originally belonged, although he later joined the Society of Friends.

Josiah Ballinger was born in Tennessee about the year 1815, and was still a youth when he accompanied his parents to Indiana. He was married in Miami county, in 1842, to Miss Tama R. Cook, and at that time entered land, on which he resided until 1860, then coming to Grant county and settling on a property on section 5, in Jefferson township. This tract contained something over 100 acres, partly improved, and here the father built a hewed-log house, weatherboarded and plastered, which was his home until his death. Like his father, he belonged to the Quaker faith, and was a man of sturdy qualities. After his death, Mrs. Ballinger contracted a second marriage, being united with Richard Deeren, a Civil War veteran, who died at the Soldiers' Home, in Febru¬ ary, 1913. Mrs. Deeren passed away at Upland, at the age of seventytwo years, in the faith of the Methodist church, of which her husband was also a member.

Edmund P. Ballinger was bora in Miami county, Indiana, July 21, 1851, and was nine years of age when he accompanied his parents to Grant county. Here he grew to manhood in Jefferson township, attend¬ ing the district school and assisting his father in the work of the home farm, and after the death of the elder man he bought the Ballinger property, to which he subsequently added forty acres. He continued to cultivate this land and to make improvements here until his death, which occurred September 15, 1908. Mr. Ballinger was a skilled farmer, developed his property to a high state of cultivation, and it contains a good set of buildings, including a large white house and two commodious red barns. While he met with success in his general farming operations, he was probably better known as a breeder of thoroughbred Shropshire sheep, and his animals carried off numerous prizes at the various county and state fairs. In political matters a Republican, he worked tirelessly for the betterment of his community, but did not seek office, preferring to devote his entire time and attention to his agricultural operations. His religious connection was with the United Brethren church, to the teachings of which he was a faithful adherent.

Mr. Ballinger was married to Miss Huldah Reasoner, of Jefferson township, in 1877. She was born in Blackford county, Indiana, October 27, 1856, and was reared and educated in Jefferson township, where she had been brought at the age of three years by her parents, Richard and Lydia (Capper) Reasoner. Her father was a native of Ohio and her mother of Virginia, and they' were married in Grant county and later moved to Blackford county, but eventually returned to Jefferson town¬ ship and located on a tract of 120 acres, located on section 5. Here they spent the remaining active years of their hfe, and upon their retirement went to Upland, where the father died in June, 1909, and the mother June 18, 1898. He had been bom September 11, 1828, and Mrs. Reasoner November 15, 1832. They were consistent members of the New Light Christian church.

Mr. and Mrs. Ballinger were the parents of the following children: Perry, bom June 20, 1878, a resident of Antrim county, Michigan, where he owns a farm, married Cora Mulkins, and has two children, Ivory N. and Marvel P. ; Elva A., born February 28, 1887, attended the Upland high school, is now the wife of William C. Horburg, and has one daughter, Melva B. ; and Carrie, bom October 16, 1889, educated in the graded schools and Upland high school, and now in the second year as a student of music in Taylor University, is single and residing at home. Mrs. Ballinger, who survives her husband, is a consistent member of the United Brethren church, and has many warm and appreciative friends in its congregation.

John D. Bell. In the business community of Upland, Mr. Bell has been a leading factor for nearly twenty years. His entrance into busi¬ ness was on October 15, 1894. Mr. Bell is the fourth successive hardware merchant at Upland, and has succeeded in producing a large, prosperous concern where others have failed. He has had both the persistence and the good judgment and industry required of a man who makes a success in retail merchandising, and is now to be ranked among the successful men of Grant county. His first attempt at conducting a hardware store in Upland occurred about nineteen years ago. The Bell store carries a splendid stock of varied goods comprised under the general name of hardware. This includes both shelf and heavy hardware, stoves, tinware, plumbing goods, a complete line of harness, buggies, wagons and farm implements, sporting goods, a general stock of household supplies and paints, oils, and decorative material. When Mr. Bell began business about twenty years ago his stock was invoiced at a valuation of $280.00. His progress is well indicated by the fact that his stock would now. in¬ voice at $8,000 or $10,000, and so energetically does he manage his establishment that he turns over the capital several times a year. He occupies all of a two-story brick building which has a frontage of fortytwo feet on Main street, and runs back one hundred and twenty-seven feet deep. For three years Mr. Bell was on the road selling goods, but with that exception had no business experience when he started at Up¬ land, and since then has worked out his own salvation.

Mr. J. D. Bell was born at Clarksburg, in Decatur county, Indiana, July 6, 1856. His early life was spent in that vicinity, where he got a common schooling, and was educated in a normal school, and with the training and qualifications obtained there spent six years as a teacher. After that he did plain farming for a few years, and then went on the road to sell goods and from that got into the mercantile venture at Upland, and thus found prosperity.

Mr. Bell's grandfather was Daniel Bell, a native of Virginia, and of English and Irish extraction. In early life he moved to Lexington. Kentucky, where in 1803 he married Nancy Smith. Some years later, in 1822, he took his family to Decatur county, Indiana, where he pur¬ chased a squatter 's claim of almost new land, and the items of the family history is that his first crops were destroyed by wild game eating the grain and roots, and otherwise deva&tating^the fields. His first purchase was one hundred and sixty acres, and he also entered eighty acres in Fuget township of Decatur county. He was one of the pioneers of that section, and in time his labors brought about a splendid farm which represented his pioneer activities. He was remarkable for the length of his life notwithstanding the many hardships which he had gone through in his early years. When he died about 1876 he was ninety-five years of age, and his wife who passed away in 1883 was ninety -six years old. They were Methodists in religion, and took an important part in establishing the activities of that church in Decatur county. In political faith he was a Whig during his early manhood. The original land, 240 acres, in Fuget township, Decatur county, Indiana, originally owned by Daniel Bell, is still in the Bell family, with the exception of forty acres.