Grant County, Indiana - The whole text, 1914 (part 18 of 32)

Clayton S. Wright. Success consists in a steady betterment of one's material conditions, and an increase of one's ability to render service to others. Measured by this standard, one of the exceptionally successful men of Liberty township is Clayton S. Wright, proprietor of the attractive and beautiful Beech Grove farm on section thirty-five. Atxrnt thirty years ago, when he took the step which precipitates most young men into the serious work of life, and causes them to measure, their ability with awkward circumstances - got married - he had a small capital of about five hundred dollars. From that point his career has been one of steady growth to independence, until he is now justly con¬ sidered one of the most substantial men in his township. At the same time he has accepted the many opportunities to show his good citizen¬ ship, and his work and influence has helped to make Liberty township a better place to live in.

Mr. And Mrs. Clayton S. Wright

The birthplace of Mr. Wright was just three-quarters of a mile from where he now lives. He was bom there, February 13, 1860, Moses and Elizabeth (Hollingsworth) Wright, his parents, both spent the latter years of their life on the old homestead in Liberty township. Moses Wright was a native of Tennessee, and was brought, when a boy, to Henry county, Indiana, where he grew up, was married, and after a short time, about 1850, moved to Grant county, locating in Liberty township, on the estate where the son Clayton S. was bom. They held membership in the Wesleyan church, but after the father's death the mother found a home in the Friends church. They were the parents of six children, only two of whom are now living, the brother of Clayton being Thomas C. Wright, a farmer in Wabash county, Indiana. Catherine died at the age of fourteen ; Lydia, also deceased, became the wife of Clinton Moon ; Jacob, died when about thirty-five years of age, and Alpheus died at the age of twenty-two.

Clayton S. Wright was reared on a farm, had a district school educa¬ tion, and lived the existence of the average farmer boy of Grant county, alternating between school in winter and farm work in summer. That was his bringing up until he was about nineteen years old, and he then gave his attention to the home place and worked for his mother, until he was married.

On March 4, 1882, Mr. Wright married Mary Harvey, who was bom just across the road from where they now reside. She was educated in the common schools. Mr. and Mrs. Wright are the parents of nine chil¬ dren: Harvey A., is a graduate of Fairmount Academy, of the Pacific College at Newberg, Oregon, and from Earlham College at Richmond, Indiana, and is now superintendent of the Grade and High School of Fountain City, Indiana. Adda E., who graduated from Fairmount Academy and Earlham college, with the degree of A. B. has been a very successful teacher, and since 1910 has been a member of the faculty of the Fairmount Academy. Ora E., also a graduate of Earlham College, is superintendent of Friendsville Academy, at Friendsville, Tennessee. Yida, graduated from Fairmount Academy, and is a student of music. Mahlon M. graduated from the Academy at Fairmount. Lester B. is a student in the Fairmount Academy and Frank completed his course in the common schools in 1913, is now a student at the Fairmount Acad¬ emy. Ralph H., was born June 10, 1903, and Ruth E., the youngest, was born June 9, 1909. Great credit is due to Mr. and Mrs. Wright for their liberality and care in providing exceptional educational advan¬ tages for their children. The older ones are all college graduates, and are proving themselves worthy and useful and worthy members of the community.

The Wright family have membership in the Friends church at Little Ridge in Liberty township. Mr. Wright is one of the trustees of the Fairmount Monthly Meeting, and is at the head of the local church. In politics he supports the Prohibition cause. His fine farm lies one mile south and three miles west of Fairmount, on the rural free delivery route No. 21. It comprises one hundred and forty acres of land, and has been brought to a high state of cultivation, and improvement.

Albert R. Lazure. The United States Glass Company, which was organized as a corporation in 1891 with main offices at Pittsburg, Penn¬ sylvania, established and began the operation of its plant at Gas City in 1893, and this has ever since been one of the important industries of Grant county, and a very large contributing factor to the prosperity of the immediate locality. The president of the corporation is Marion G. Bryce, Ernest Nickel is secretary and treasurer, general factory man- ager is William M. Anderson, all these gentlemen being at Pittsburg. The Gas City plant is known as 'Factory U. The output consists of table glass ware, packers' goods, lamps and lantern globes, and special novelties and custom work. The plant at Gas City employs about three hundred and thirty people on the average, and its output in terms of weight amounts to about a million pounds each month. Besides other staple lines, they turn out a large amount of bar goods. The products are shipped all over the United States and for export to most civilized countries.

The factory comprises a sixteen-pot furnace, and a continuous tenring tank, and some automatic machinery is employed. The local man¬ agers and officials are Albert R. Lazure, superintendent; D. J. McGrail, factory manager; Harry M. Kelly, sales manager; H. Taudte, manager of the mould department; J. C. Adams, manager of the shipping de¬ partment; H. P. Lazure, manager of selecting; A. F. Wiegel, night manager of the factory; James D. Denning, assistant factory manager.

The Gas City plant was constructed during the winter of 1892-93, and began operations in May, 1893. The original reasons for establish¬ ing the plant here was of course the plentiful supply of natural gas. That was the fuel used until 1903, at which time the factory was equipped with gas producers, which have since been relied upon for the greater part of the fuel. However, in the finishing department, fuel oil and natural gas are combined. The power plant consists of four one hun¬ dred and fifty horse-power boilers. This power is used in many ways, for driving the electric generators, for producing compressed and volumn air, and in other ways. Volumn air is used not only for cooling the moulds, but is necessary to supply ample quantities of fresh and cool air in the work-rooms and about the furnaces. The factory has all facilities for sanitary conditions, and is regarded as a model in this respect by factory inspectors.

The fundamental materials used for the production of glass are sand, soda ash, lime, and potash. To these are added in various combi¬ nations such chemicals as manganese, arsenic, and powder blue, special machinery being employed to mix these various ingredients. Two grades of glass are manufactured, and different mixing is required for each. The pot furnace glass is the more expensive, and of the higher quality, being a glass of greater brilliancy and quality. In the pot furnace there are sixteen clay pots, each with a capacity of one and a half tons, 'and when each pot is filled with the ingredients, it is hermetically sealed, and is kept closed until the melting process is finished, at which time the seal is removed and the actual work of converting the molten mass into glassware is begun. This process requires about twenty-four hours for each pot. In the continuous tank are mixed and melted the materials for the cheaper grades of ware. This furnace receives the raw material from the rear, the fire coming in direct contact with the material, and the molten composition is drawn off from the front of the tank. The company also manufacture on its own grounds all the packing barrels and cases used for shipping the ware, and this in itself is a considerable industry, since many thousands of barrels are manufactured each year.

Mr. Lazure has been associated with the Gas City Plant since April, 1893, before it began operations, and took charge as superintendent in October of the same year. Next oldest among the local officials is Mr. Denning, assistant factory manager, who has been connected with the business since 1894, and has held his present position since November, 1913. Albert R. Lazure was born at Bellaire, Ohio, a noted center of glass industry, on December 13, 1869. After graduating from high school in 1886, he at once accepted employment with W. A. Gorby of the Bellaire Goblet Company. In 1889 he went to Findlay, Ohio, did general office work there, and in 1892 took charge of the glass factory at Findlay, and continued until it was dismantled in January, 1893. During the following months he traveled in Canada and the United States, until locating permanently in Gas City.

In 1901 Mr. Lazure was married in Jonesboro to Miss Daisy B. Bates, who was born and reared and educated at Jonesboro, and was for some time a student of music in the conservatory at Fort Wayne. They have one child, Marjorie, three and a half years old. Mr. Lazure and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which he is a trustee, and he served four years in the city council, and on Novem¬ ber 4, 1913, was reelected for another period of four years, being chair¬ man of the board. He affiliates with Jonesboro Lodge of Masons, with the Knight Templar Commandery at Marion and of the Marion Lodge. B. P. 0. E. He is regarded as one of the leading men of Gas City, and having been identified with one of its most important industries since the beginning has filled a very useful place in the community.

Albert Frank Seiberung. Probably one of the leading enterprises in its line in the world, the Indiana Rubber and Insulated Wire Com¬ pany has been developed to its present large proportions by a group of progressive, energetic and enterprising business men, whose fortunes are connected with this industry, and who have prospered with its re¬ markable prosperity. Ever since its organization, during a period of more than twenty years, Albert Frank Seiberling has held a responsible position with this concern, and has contributed much to its growth and steady advancement. A man of foresight, judgment and modern ideas, in the capacities of assistant treasurer, member of the board of directors and general superintendent, he is assisting his associates to still further forward the company 's interests, but at the same time has found leisure in which to help other public-spirited men in their activities for the public welfare, and in social life has become widely known in Jonesboro.

Mr. Seiberling was bom at Doylestown, Ohio, May 16, 1866, the third of the six children bom to James H. Seiberling, president of the com¬ pany, a sketch of the family being found in the father's sketch on an¬ other page of this work. Mr. Seiberling was given good educational advantages, first attending the public and high schools of Doylestown and later attending Eastman's Business College, at Poughkeepsie, New York, where he received his diploma with the class of 1886. He received his introduction to business life with the Diamond Plate Glass Com¬ pany, of Kokomo, Indiana, of which his father was a director, and with which the son continued to be associated during a period of two years, between the time of leaving Eastman and going to Kokomo. Later he joined his father in the manufacture of farming machinery at Doyles¬ town, and continued there until 1891, when he helped to organize the Indiana Rubber and Insulated Wire Company. At that time he was made secretary of the concern, but in 1892 became superintendent, and in that same year joined the board of directors. The superintendency of this large business carries with it a great load of responsibilities. There are 400 people employed in the plant, manufacturing approxi¬ mately $1,250,000 worth of goods annually, the product being automo¬ bile tires and inner tubes, a full line of rubber goods of all kinds, bi¬ cycle tires (about 1,000 per day fall and winter and 1,800 per day spring and summer) and insulated wire. The business was organized for the manufacture of the last-named product, but after three years began making rubber goods, and this has since become one of the most im¬ portant features of the trade. The company has the reputation of making goods that are unexcelled in quality, a reputation that is being steadfastly maintained. Every market of any size the world over car¬ ries a line of these Indiana goods, and the company has done much to spread the name and fame of Jonesboro as a manufacturing center. Mr. Seiberling is a man of energy and one able to achieve results. His associates rely upon him absolutely and he has never given them reason to regret their confidence.

In 1892, not long after coming to Jonesboro, Mr. Seiberling was united in marriage with Miss Angie B. Cline, who was born at Elwood, Indiana, July 30, 1870, but who was reared and educated in Jonesboro. She is a daughter of Adam H. Cline, a business man of Jonesboro, and a stalwart citizen and supporter of the Republican party. Mrs. Cline, whose maiden name was Mary Thamburg, died in middle life, Mrs. Sei¬ berling at that time being twelve years of age. She was a devoted mem¬ ber of the Methodist Episcopal church and a capable, Christian woman. Pour children have been bom to Mr. and Mrs. Seiberling, namely : Paul A., a graduate of the class of 1913, Marion High School, and now a student in Purdue University, where he is taking a course in chemical engineering; Mary Katherine, aged twelve years, who is attending the Jonesboro graded schools; the oldest and youngest died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Seiberling are consistent membera of the Methodist Episcopal church, and have been active in its various movements and charities. Mr. Seiberling is a Republican in his political views, and, while he has not been an office seeker, has fulfilled the duties of citizenship as a mem¬ ber of the town board for thirteen years, and has been able to do much for his adopted locality. Fraternally he is popular as a member of the Masons, in which he belongs to the Blue Lodge and Chapter at Jonesboro and the Commandery at Marion, and also holds membership in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the local lodge of the Knights of Pythias.

John H. Waldron has taken no inconsiderable part in the public affairs of Gas City, where for more than twenty-five years he has been identified with business affairs as a carpenter and contractor. It was his distinction to have been the first city treasurer elected after the incorporation of Gas City, and he served as a clerk of the old town board, and has twice been a member of the city council as alderman. In business he is one of the successful men, and is well known in the com¬ munity.

Born in Adams county, Ohio, October 16, 1856, John H. Waldron came to Grant county when six years old. His mother, then a widow, located at Jalapa in Pleasant township, where he grew up and learned the trade of carpenter under Stephen Sherman. With the exception of four years he has been in business on his own account, since he acquired the principals and details of the trade.

Mr. Waldron is a son of Elijah and Lydia (Ross) Waldron. His father was a native of Ohio, as was his wife, and they were married in Adams county, locating on a farm on Brush Creek. He followed a com¬ bination of arming and coopering. A skilled mechanic, he did consid¬ erable business as a maker of tubs, and buckets and other woodenware. These wares were manufactured out of cedar. The father died in Adams county in 1861, when about thirty-six years of age, and left his widow with two sons, the other being Elijah A., who died in Mill township of Grant county in 1909, when fifty-three years old, and un¬ married. The mother brought her children to Jalapa in Grant county in 1861. Later she married, but had no children by her second union. Her death occurred in Japala in 1873, when forty-nine years old. She was a member and a regular attendant of the Methodist Protestant church.

Mr. And Mrs. Israel S. Benbow

Mr. J. H. Waldron was married in Pleasant township to Miss Lydia Grindle, who was bom in Pleasant township in 1865, and was reared and educated there. She separated from her husband after the birth of two children, one of whom died in infancy, and the other is Lena Ethel, wife of William Scott, of Marion. Mr. and Mrs. Scott have no children.

Mr. Waldron for his second wife was married in Union City, Indi¬ ana, to Mrs. Della Hoff. She was bora in this state in April, 1859, was reared and educated here, and by her marriage to John Hoff has three living children: Earl, who is an electrical engineer at Fort Wayne, is married and has two children; Charles D., a photographer of Fort Wayne, is unmarried; and Bessie lives at home with her mother and is a thoroughly educated young woman. Mrs. Waldron is a member of the Christian church, and Mr. Waldron has membership in two fra¬ ternal societies, with Jonesboro Lodge No. 109 of the Masons, and with Jonesboro Lodge No. 82 of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. In politics he is a Democrat, and his various promotions to public posi¬ tions have come through the medium of that party, although his indi¬ vidual popularity in lie city would be sufficient to elect him without party affiliation. In 1908 Mr. Waldron built a fine home at the corner of Short and North A Streets, and he and his family enjoy the best comforts of life in that attractive residence.

Israel S. Benbow. This well known citizen of Grant county lives eight miles south of Marion, on the Liberty and Green township pike, near Oak Ridge, where he is the owner of a well-cultivated tract of land. Mr. Benbow has long been identified with the agricultural interests of this section, and has also been active in public life, serving as a member of the board of county commissioners of Grant county for three years. He was born on a farm in Monroe township, Grant county, Indiana, July 8, 1868, and is a son of Thomas and Hannah E. (Jenkins) Benbow.

Thomas Benbow was also born in Grant county, Indiana, June llr 1836, and was a son of Evan Benbow, the latter being a son of John Benbow* who came to Grant county, Indiana, as early as 1833 from Guilford county, North Carolina, and settled on a farm in Mill town¬ ship, among the pioneers. Thomas Benbow adopted the vocation of farming in his youth, and was so engaged in Monroe township at the time of the outbreak of the Civil War. With other young men of his. commuuity he enlisted for service in the Union army, becoming a private in the Fifty-eighth Regiment, Indiana Volunteer Infantry, with which he served until the close of hostilities. When peace was declared between the North and the South, Mr. Benbow resumed his farming operations, and for a long period continued to be engaged therein in Monroe township, but is now living retired from active life, having a comfortable home at Gas City. He was married in 1858 to Hannah E. Jenkins who survives him. She was born in Monroe township, Grant county, Indiana, a daughter of Israel Jenkins, a pioneer of Grant county , Indiana. Israel S. is the eldest of their children.

Israel S. Benbow received his education in the district schools of Monroe township, which he attended during three months each winter, - the rest of the year being spent in assisting his father and brothers in the work of the homestead. It was but natural that he should adopt farming as a vocation, and at the time of his marriage he located on his present farm, a handsome property which he has developed to a high state of cultivation. Mr. Benbow is the owner of eighty-two acres in Liberty township and eighty acres in section 13, Center town- ship, all of this property having been acquired through the medium of his own efforts. He carries on general farming and has also been successful in the raising of stock, and is recognized as one of the progressive, intelligent men of this part of the county.

On February 28, 1893, Mr. Benbow was united in marriage with Miss Belle Nelson, the daughter of James R. Nelson, and a member of an old and honored Grant county family. Mr. and Mrs. Benbow have had no children. They are consistent members of the New Light Christian church, and have been liberal in their support of its move¬ ments. For many years Mr. Benbow has been stalwart in his support of the principles and candidates of the Republican party, and has served his fellow-townsmen as county commissioner of Grant county, a position to which he was elected in 1907 and held for three years, and as justice of the peace in Monroe township, before he was married, a capacity in which he acted two years. In both of these offices he displayed ability and a conscientious regard for the duties of public service, winning the confidence of his townsmen, a confidence that he has been able to retain to the present time.

Francis H. Wimpy. The late Francis H. Wimpy was a man of many excellent and admirable qualities, and his untimely passing at the early age of thirty-seven years was a decided loss to that community in which he made his home, and where he was highly esteemed and regarded of all who knew him. He came of an old Southern family, and he was born on his father's farm, to eighty acres of which he succeeded on the death of his father, the date of his birth being August 4, 1870. He died at his home in Mill township on February 25, 1907, leaving a widow and one daughter to mourn his loss.

Francis Wimpy was the son of Robert and Sarah (Hocket) Wimpy. The father was a native son of Georgia, and his parents were of an old Georgia family, still well known in that state. They passed their entire lives there, their son Robert being the first of that immediate branch of the Wimpy family to migrate to the north. Robert Wimpy was a young man when he first came to Indiana, and soon after he settled in Grant county he met and married Sarah Hocket, the marriage taking place in Mill township. She was a native of Ohio, born in Clinton county, and was the daughter of John and Mary (Noradack) Hocket, both of Ohio. They came to Indiana before the Civil war broke out, and here in the wilds of Grant county they purchased land that was destined to be changed into a fruitful farm under their tireless efforts. They improved a tract of one hundred and sixty acres, bringing it to a fine state of subjection, and there they passed their remaining days. They were full of years when they died, he being at the age of eighty-four and she having passed her eighty-second milestone. They were life long members of the Friends church, and were fine and sturdy specimens of American citizenship all their days. They had two sons and two daugh¬ ters. One son, Barkley Hocket, still lives, and is a resident of Gypsum, Colorado.

Sarah (Hocket) Wimpy died on August 13, 1875, when her infant son, Francis H. Wimpy of this review, was nine days old. She was bom in 1832, and when she married Mr. Wimpy in Mill township, they began life on the old Hocket farm. They had just built a new home on the place when she died, and the house is now occupied by the widow of her son, Francis.

she is past seventy years of age. When Mr. Wimpy died on May 15, 1899, they were residing at Winchester, Indiana, and after his death she went to South Carolina, as has been stated. Mr. Wimpy and both his wives were members of the Jonesboro Friends church, and he was a Republican in his politics. He was a soldier of the Confederacy in the Civil war, but so strong were his convictions in favor of the north that he deserted at Gettysburg and came north, thereafter giving his undivided sympathy and support to the Union cause.

By his second marriage Mr. Wimpy became the father of three chil¬ dren, - Mida, Clayton and William. The two first named are still liv¬ ing, and both are single. Two sons were born of his first marriage. Asa N., the first bom, is now connected with the Marion National Bank, and is married to Millie, a daughter of Noah Small.

Francis H. Wimpy, the second bom son, was reared to farm life on the old home place, and in young manhood he came into possession of eighty acres of the homestead upon the passing of his father. Here his widow now resides, with their daughter. Mr. Wimpy was married in Mill township on December 4, 1889, to Miss Corintha B. Clark, who was bom in Jefferson township, Grant county, Indiana, on March 26, 1870. She was reared and educated in Mill township and since the death of her late husband she has operated the farm most successfully. She is what is generally known as a "hustler," and her farm is second to none in condition and improvements. Mrs. Wimpy is the daughter of Simon B. and Julia (Nottingham) Clark. The father was bora in Pennsylvania, on June 22, 1832, and he was five years old when his family came to Indiana and settled in Fairmount township, Grant county. Here the father of Simon Clark, James Clark, died on May 14, 1878, at a fine old age. His wife was Sarah Simons, who died some fourteen years after her husband, when she was ninety-three years of age. They were stanch old Methodist people and reared a large family, among which Simon B., father of Mrs. Wimpy, was the youngest but one. His wife, Julia Nottingham, was bom at Muncie, Indiana, on July 3, 1835, and died in Grant county on May 30, 1888. She, too, was a Methodist. They had ten children, two of which died in infancy, and the remaining eight are still living, all but one being married and having children. One of Mrs. Wimpy's brothers, John E. Clark, is assistant postmaster at Marion.

To Francis H. Wimpy and his wife one daughter was bom, - Ursula Wimpy, whose natal day is November 11, 1896. She was educated at the Deer Creek School, and is now living at home with her mother. Mrs. Wimpy is a member of the Methodist church, but her daughter is affiliated with the church of the Friends as a member. They are among the most highly esteemed people of the township, and are much admired for the sturdy and independent qualities that have marked their careers, especially since the death of the husband and father.

Lora A. Prickett. The business enterprise of Gas City has no stronger nor better managed institution than the Custer Lumber Com¬ pany, of which Lora A. Prickett is the active head. He is one of the progressive younger business men of that community.

Mr. Prickett, who represents one of the old families of Grant county, was bom in Pleasant township, near Japala, September 5, 1874. His boyhood was spent on his father's homstead, and his education was sup¬ plied by the public schools and the Marion Business College of Marion. In 1896 he was taken in as a clerk and general all-around man with The Humphreys Lumber Company of Marion. He readily adapted himself to the business, and in 1900 was sent to Gas City to manage the branch office of the company. The business has a long record, having been established in Marion thirty-five years ago by D. Humphreys and Com¬ pany. The original firm was at 14th and Washington streets, Marion, Indiana, and at the junction of Main Street and the Pennsylvania Rail¬ way tracks, Gas City, a site peculiarly appropriate for shipping facil¬ ities and the general convenience of the trade.

In 1900 Mr. Prickett joined Joseph L. Custer, a member of the Hum¬ phreys Lumber Company, and together they took over the Gas City end of the business as a separate concern, and carried on a partnership ar¬ rangement under the name of the Custer Lumber Company. In 1905 the company was incorporated with a capital stock of twelve thousand dollars and with the following officers: Joseph L. Custer, president; R. J. Custer, vice president ; and L. A. Prickett, secretary-treasurer and manager. In 1907 Joseph L. Custer died and the subsequent changes in the personnel of the company brought about its following officers and directors : Mrs. L. A. Prickett, president ; T. A. Prickett, vice presi¬ dent; and Lora A. Prickett, secretary-treasurer and general manager. The company is a close corporation, owned and managed by the Prickett family, and Mr. Prickett is the largest holder of stock and practically proprietor and active head of the flourishing concern. They do a big business as dealers in all kinds of building material, and in their mills manufacture an extensive line of interior finishings. From four to five skilled workmen are constantly employed in the milling department, besides those who look out for the office details and the general work of the lumber yard. The advertising motto of this concern is: 4 4 Good wood goods," and it has been the ambition of the proprietors and it can be said of them, that they have succeeded in fulfilling to the very letter the standard kept up in this motto. Although their business is of a local character, they send out frequently carload lots to outside points.

Concerning the Prickett family the genealbgical record places it in Grant county at the very early times, and they were certainly here before the Indians had left the country. Mr. Prickett is the grandson of William Prickett, whose residence when first known wras in the state of Ohio. He was married in Pennsylvania to Catherine Rice. While William Prickett and wife were living in Ohio on a farm, their son, who became later the Rev. Thomas Prickett, and the father of the Gas City business man, was born November 1st, 1826. A few years later, when Thomas was still a child, the Prieketts left Ohio, and settled in Grant county, in the wilderness of Pleasant township. William Prickett was thus one of the hardy pioneers, and was assisted in his strenuous efforts to make a home by his loyal wife and his youthful son, Thomas. They cleared up the land, and in time had improved a good farm near Jalapa. There William Prickett and his wife died when old people, and held in the highest respect by all the community. They were among the leading members of the First Methodist religious organiza¬ tion in Pleasant township.

Rev. Thomas Prickett was reared on a farm, followed farming as his regular vocation and the means of support for his family, and with that combined his work as a local preacher in the Methodist church. He was a useful citizen in every walk, is still well remembered in his sec¬ tion of the county. Late in life he returned to Sweetser, where his death occurred in 1897. He was for many years a Democrat, but some¬ time before his death became a staunch Prohibitionist, and was a man who voted his principles. He was twice married, and his first wife was Miss Susanah Alexander. She died in the prime of life leaving three children. She w*as one of the active workers in the Methodist church, and assisted her husband in religious affairs. Rev. Thomas Prickett married for his second wife Miss Nancy White. Mrs. Prickett, who is now seventy-nine years of age, still in possession of all her faculties and a highly respected woman, lives on west Third Street in Marion, and all her active career has been as a worker and prominent member of the Methodist Episcopal church. She is a native of Randolph county, Indiana, having been born at an early time in that county's history. She came to womanhood in Grant county, and has lived here long enough to have witnessed nearly all the improvements which have been made by white men. She became the mother of five sons and five daugh¬ ters, and Lora A. Prickett was next to the youngest in her family.

Mr. L. A. Prickett was married in Grant county to Miss Anna Sharon, who was bom in Franklin township in the suburbs of Marion, in 1877. With a public school education, she entered upon life's duties well pre¬ pared and has proved not only a good home maker, but a good business woman. Her parents were James and Nancy (Lytle) Sharon. Her parents were natives of Grant county, and spent most of their time in Franklin township, though some years ago they took up their residence in Sweetser, where Mr. Sharon died in 1902. Mrs. Sharon makes her home in that village, and is now seventy -nine years of age. Both were old-time Methodists, and honest upright people, a certain definite moral influence in their community, where they were always esteemed for their sterling worth. Mr. Prickett and wife are the parents of three children : Martha Helen Gwendoline, aged eleven years and now attend¬ ing the public schools of Gas City; Richard Carlton, aged five years; and Mary Adelaide, eighteen months old at this writing. Mr. Prickett has just completed a fine new bungalow home in the best residential section of East Main Street, and there he and his family are prepared to enjoy the best comforts of domestic existence. They are active mem¬ bers of the First Methodist Church, Mr. Prickett being an official in the society, and he is well known in fraternal affairs, having passed the different chairs of the Masonic Lodge, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias, having represented the last two in the Grand Lodge, and is also affiliated with the Improved Order of Red Men. In politics he is a Democrat.

Ashton Horner. Among the large class of substantial, progressive farmers and stockraisers who make their home in Grant county, none are more deserving of mention because of their contributions to the development of their community than Ashton Horner, the owner of a well developed tract of land in Mill township. Mr. Horner has the added distinction of belonging to an old and honored family of Grant county. His grandfather, John Horner, was a native of the Keystone state, and after his marriage to a Pennsylvania girl moved to Preble county, Ohio, and in 1840 made removal to Grant county, Indiana. Mr. Horner was a farmer by vocation and for many years carried on opera¬ tions on his Mill township property, the farm upon which stood the old pottery at Gas City. But he also devoted his attention to preaching the Gospel as a Primitive Baptist minister. He experienced the various hardships and privations of the pioneer preacher, being forced to cover great spaces of country on horse-back, and gave his services freely where needed without thinking of remuneration. Of the children of this sturdy and God-fearing pioneer, John, Jr., the father of Ashton Horner, was born in Preble county, Ohio, in 1826. He was still a lad when he accom¬ panied his parents to Grant county, and here he grew to manhood as a pioneer youth, dividing his time between the hard, unremitting wrork of clearing the home farm from the heavy timber, and securing such educational advantages as were offered during the short winter terms in the primitive subscription schools, held for the most part in log cabins. When he was ready to establish a home of his own, he was married to Miss Clarissa McCormick, of Fairmount township, a daugh¬ ter of Robert McCormick, a pioneer of that township and at one time one of the largest landholders in this part of the county, having two and one-half sections in his several farms, the greater part of this land being located adjacent to the Muncie turnpike in Mill township.

After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. John Horner settled in Mill township, and there both became the owners of eighty-acre farms. Mr. Homer met an accidental death, being killed October 8, 1870, by the fall of a tree, and the mother subsequently contracted a second marriage, being united with George Horner. They spent the remainder of their lives in Mill township, and there the mother passed away in 1903, at the age of seventy-two years, the husband having passed away some time before.

Ashton Homer was born March 16, 1860, in Fairmount township, was here reared and educated, and learned the various things essential for the successful farmer to know. In 1908 he purchased his present farm, a tract of seventy acres lying in section 10, Mill township. Here he has made many improvements which have increased not alone the homestead's beauty, but its value as well. He has two drilled wells, two red barns, of substantial character and modern design, and a large white residence, fitted with the latest comforts and conveniences. His other buildings, for the shelter of his grain, implements and stock, are commodious, sanitary and well-lighted, and, taken all in all, this set of farm buildings compares favorably with any in the township. While general farming has occupied the greater part of his time and attention, he has also met with a full measure of success in raising stock, and at this time is making a specialty of Short Horn and Jersey cattle, and Duroc and Poland-China hogs. Among his associates, Mr. Horner is known as a man of the utmost integrity, whose word is synonymous with honorable dealing.

Mr. Homer was married at Upland, Indiana, to Miss Maggie Burns, who was bora September 22, 1858, in the city of Toledo, Ohio, and came to Grant county as a baby, following which she ved at Matthews, Indiana, continuously until the time of her marriage. She is a daugh¬ ter of John and Mary (McConnell) Burns, natives of Ireland, who came to the United States as young people and were married in New York. They were residents of Toledo, Ohio, for some time after their marriage, but ultimately came to Grant county, and spent the remainder of their lives at Matthews, the father dying there in 1893, at the age of sixty years, and the mother dying in 1911, when eighty years old. Mr. and Mrs. Homer are the parents of the following children : Maude V., who was educated in the public and high schools and now resides with her parents; Nellie May, a member of the graduating class of the Jones¬ boro High school, 1915, also living with her parents; and Eva, who died as a child of eighteen months, the result of an accident. Mr. and Mrs. Horner are members of the Presbyterian church and have been active in supporting its various movements. In political matters Mr. Homer is a Republican, but he has not cared for the activities of public life.

Benjamin F. Dickey. One of the big farmers of Grant county, a far-sighted business man, the accumulator of a generous prosperity, Benjamin F. Dickey about forty years ago, after his marriage, began his career as a renter. He has lived the quiet, plain life of a farmer, and in his character the love of land, of peace and industry, have been cardinal virtues. His success, which has been of a large and worthy nature has been won as the result of his own well direcled efforts, and he has proved himself an efficient farmer, and a valuable citizen. Mr. Dickey is owner and proprietor of what is known as The Maples Farm, in section thirtythree of Liberty township, situated one mile south and four miles west of Fairmount, on the rural delivery route No. 21.

Benjamin F. Dickey was born in Fayette county, Indiana, March 14, 1841, a son of William and Jane (Miller) Dickey. William Dickey was a son of Hugh and Margaret (Spence) Dickey. The father of Hugh Dickey was reared and married in the north of Ireland, from which country he set out on a sailing vessel about the time of the Revolutionary war for America. During the voyage the ship was foundered, and all the women and children were taken off by the crew in the life boats. As the boat in which his family were placed was pulling away from the vessel, the father in his anxiety and despair leaped into the water,, and seized the edge of the boat, and hung on until the captain struck off his hands with a sabre, cutting him loose, so that he was lost. The family were saved and came on to the United States, locating first in Pennsyl¬ vania, and afterwards moving to Kentucky, locating in Scott county near Georgetown. From there Hugh Dickey moved to Batavia, Ohio, and finally to Fayette county, Indiana, where he was one of the pioneer set¬ tlers and lived until his death. William Dickey, father of Benjamin F., was bom in 1797 in Kentucky, moved from there to Ohio, and accom¬ panied the family to Fayette county, Indiana, where he grew to manhood Mid was married. His wife, Jane Miller, was a daughter of John Miller, who was bom near Marion courthouse, on the little Pedee river in South Carolina. From that state he immigrated with his family to Tennessee, where he lived a year, then moved to Georgetown, in Scott county, Kentucky, where he was a farmer for about twelve years, and about 1816 located in Fayette county, Indiana, which was his home until his death. William Dickey and wife moved to Grant county, Indiana, in 1870, and there spent the rest of their ives. In their family were eight children, four sons and four daughters, and two are now living. The brother of Benjamin F. is John M., a retired farmer in Fairmount. William S. Dickey, another of the sons was killed while serving in the navy near Charleston, S. C., during the Civil war. All the others grew up and had families of their own.

Mr. Benjamin F. Dickey was reared on a farm in Fayette county, Indiana, and lived at home until he was twenty-nine years of age. As a boy he had the advantage of the district schools during the winter, and was trained to the vigorous pursuits of the farm in the summer seasons. His school days were finished when he was about eighteen, and at the age of twenty-one he rented his father's farm and it was conducted under his successful management until he was twenty-nine years of age. He accompanied his parents to Grant county in 1870, but soon returned to Fayette county.

In the latter county on October 11, 1871, occurred his marriage to Miss Cecelia Tingley, who was bom and reared in Fayette county, received her education in the local schools. Her father, Dr. U. B. Tingley was for many years a practicing physician in Harrisburg of Fayette county. After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Dickey located on the farm, which is now a portion of their fine country establishment. Buying forty acres of land, Mr. Dickey with the aid of his wife set himself energetically to its cultivation and improvement, gradually extended his buildings, fences and area of cultivated land, and at the same time added to his acreage from time to time, until his home place now com- prises three hundred and sixty acres in one body. Besides that he is the owner of one hundred and sixty acres elsewhere in Liberty township, and altogether has five hundred and twenty acres in that township, besides one hundred and sixty acres in Green township. Besides these generous landed possessions he is the owner of property in Marion and Fairmount.

To the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Dickey was bom one son, Oscar Dickey, on December 26, 1874. He grew up on the home farm, received a good education, and has taken up the vocation of his father for whom he is the practical manager of the large estate under the family ownership. Mr. Dickey spends most of his time supervising his large property interests, and does little of the practical work of the farm. He and his wife are active members of the church of Christ at Rigdon. In politics his vote was cast in the Republican interests for a number of years, but during the past twenty-eight years he has always cast his ballot for the Prohibition ticket. Mr. and Mrs. Dickey have preferred to spend their declining years on their beautiful and attractive home place in the coun¬ try, and have surrounded themselves with many comforts and advan¬ tages, at the same time enjoying the increasing respect and esteem of all who know them.

Jesse Jay. It was in the year 1849 that Denny Jay settled in Grant county, and from then until now there have been found men of the name living worthily in and about the county, carrying on the name, which is one of the old southern origin, and generally conducting them¬ selves in a manner becoming and praiseworthy. They have filled useful places in the civic life of their various communities, and have builded homes that have reflected credit upon themselves and their progeny. They have come to be property holders, all generations having tilled the soil to excellent advantage, and best of all, they have been citizens of a high type from first to last.

Jesse Jay, representing the second generation of the family in Grant county, has been no exception to the general rule of the family. He is the grandson of Jesse Jay, born in South Carolina and the scion of a stanch old southern family of Quakers. More than a hundred years ago he was wedded in the Quaker church of his native community and with his bride set out for the north in search of a new home in a new land. They settled in Miami county, Ohio, at a time when the country was in a wholly unimproved and almost uncivilized state, located on a wilder¬ ness farm, and there passed their remaining days. He died at a fine old age, in 1840.

Of Jesse Jay's children, Denny Jay was the youngest, and he became the father of Jesse Jay of this review7. He was born in Miami county, Ohio, in 1808, soon after the arrival of the parents in the north, at a time prior to the incorporation of the state as such, and it should be mentioned here that his parents were among the leaders in the organi¬ zation of the Friends church in Ohio. Denny Jay was reared in Miami county, farm life being his portion, and there in young manhood he married Mary, the daughter of Elisha Jones. Of the latter it should be said that he was born and reared in South Carolina, and there wras mar¬ ried ; that he came early in life to Miami county, Ohio, where his daugh¬ ter, Mary, was born in 1807, and that they passed the remainder of their lives in Miami county, well known as farming people and as fine old Quakers.

It was in 1849 that Denny Jay, accompanied by his wife and their five children, came to Indiana and settled on a 200 acre farm along the Mississinewa River in Mill township. They paid for their land $17.00 per acre in gold, and it is a notable fact that they carried the golden coins in a bag that had its resting place under the seat of the buggy in which they made the long and tedious trip. The farm today is one of the ideally located ones in the district, and part is owned and occupied by Jesse Jay. In that early day Mr. Jay found a ready market for his every product, and they prospered there as long as they lived. The father died in 1870 and his widow survived him for three years. She was one year older than her husband, having been born in 1807. Mr. and Mrs. Jay were early members of the Back Creek Quarterly Meet¬ ing Association, and he was for some years an Elder in the church. Politically, Mr. Jay was in early life a Whig, but later he became a Republican with the birth of the new party, and he voted for John C. Fremont.

Of their five sons and five daughters, nine grew to years of matu¬ rity. All married but three of the nine. Three of the nine are yet living, - Jesse Jay of this review; a brother, Lambert B., for the past thirty-two years a resident of Kansas and now about sixty-one years of age ; and Mrs. Cynthia Anne Winslow, aged eighty-two years. One brother, David, a graduate of the law department at Ann Arbor, Mich¬ igan, died at the untimely age of twenty-five years, though most of the others reached middle age before they passed on.

Jesse Jay was born on February 17, 1840, in Miami county, Ohio, and he was nine years old when the family came to Grant county. Bar¬ ring three years, he has spent the entire time here since the family migration thither in 1849. He was reared on the home farm which is now his property, or at least eighty-five acres of it is his, his place being one of the fine ones of the township, lying along the Marion and Jones¬ boro pike, and being admirably located for convenience and a pleasant outlook. Fine and commodious buildings grace the place, and his is one of the best kept and most productive farms in the township, according to common repute.

Mr. Jay was married in Fairraount on February 16, 1865, to Miss Susan Winslow, born near Fairmount village on August 2, 1846, and a daughter of Jesse Winslow, a representative of the old and honored Winslow family, already mentioned more or less fully in the history of the Winslow family appearing elsewhere in this work.

Lawrence, the eldest, is employed by the United States Glass Com¬ pany at Gas City; he married Miss Louise Richardson and they have two children, Erasta and Jessie, who live at home.

Adelpha, the wife of L. R. Gift, a druggist of Converse, Indiana, is the mother of six children; Wendel, Weldon, Juanita, Mary A., Robert and Elizabeth. The older children have received college educations, and the younger ones will doubtless share in the same privileges as they reach the proper age.

Mary became the wife of Albert Kiser, who is employed in the tire department of the Indiana Rubber Plant; they make their home with Mr. and Mrs. Jay and have one daughter, Fay Sue.

Watson D. is now assistant cashier of the Jonesboro State Bank, and he is one of the most progressive young business men of the town. He, like his brothers and sister, was given a splendid education, and is proving himself a capable man in matters of finance, having in charge the entire business of the Jonesboro institution with which he is con¬ nected, including loans, etc. He is making excellent progress in his work, and will doubtless be heard from in fields higher up in the future. He is unmarried and makes his home with his parents.

The parents and their sons and daughters are members of the Quaker church, and Mr. Jay and his sons are stanch Republicans and citizens of the most approved type. Their place in popular confidence and esteem is no uncertain one, and they enjoy the friendship of a large circle of genuine friends in and about Jonesboro.

Watson D. Jay. In estimating the financial strength of Grant county the banks and bankers of its smaller municipalities are deserv¬ ing of very prominent mention, for they are the tributaries of larger financial institutions and have an important part in swelling the stream of the county's prosperity. To the town bank comes the farmer from the surrounding countryside and deposits the golden fruits of his toil. From the proprietor of that bank his customers may ask and receive sound financial advice. He is their friend and adviser as well as their banker. The farm loan, that solid rock of financial investment, is placed with him or is negotiated through some larger banking institution through his agency. Upon the stability and security of these smaller banks as well as upon the honor and integrity of those in control of them, rests the whole superstructure of the confidence and trust reposed in them.

In this connection may be given a short review of one of Grant county's substantial citizens. Watson D. Jay, assistant cashier of the Citizens Bank of Jonesboro, an institution which has long occupied an es¬ tablished place in public confidence. Mr. Jay is a native of the county, having been born on a farm in Ftfirmount township, May 2, 1872, a son of Jesse Jay, a sketch of whose career will be found on another page of this work. Mr. Jay's education was secured in the public schools of Marion, the Normal school of that city, from which he secured his diploma, and the Stenographic Institute of Indianapolis. For five years he was employed in a business office in Gas City, and then became identified with banking in the First National Bank of Marion, where he arose to the position of teller and remained for ten years. He then came to his present position as assistant cashier of the Citizens Bank of Jones¬ boro, and during the past three years has been in practical charge of its affairs. The institution was founded in 1905 under the present offi¬ cials and is a branch of the Gas City Bank, being practically under the same management, although operated as a private bank under state supervision. The shareholders have a combined net worth of over $1,- 500,000, which is a pledge for the security of its depositors, and the stock of the bank is largely held by local business men. Mr. Jay has shown himself an able and conservative banker, who may be absolutely depended upon to protect the best interests of the bank and its patrons. He is courteous and obliging, and during his period in Jonesboro has made and retained numerous friends. He has been active in local mat¬ ters, although not a politician, and still makes his home with his father on the old Jay farm.

While a resident of Marion, November 16, 1913, Mr. Jay was mar¬ ried to Miss Marian F. Stover, who was born in Grant county and edu¬ cated in the high school, daughter of William J. and Rose (Housley) Stover, natives of this state, who were married in Grant county and now are residents of Marion, where the father is connected with a large business house. Mrs. Stover is a member of the Baptist church, and both she and her husband are well known in their community. Their two younger daughters, Elizabeth and Margaret, reside at home and are still pursuing their studies. Mr. and Mrs. Jay are attendants of the Friends church. He is well known in fraternal circles having passed through the chairs of Masonic Blue' Lodge No. 109, and Lodge No. 102,

DeWitt Carter. Courageous grasping of opportunities, steadfast effort and hard, honest toil - these have been the means through which DeWitt Carter, of Jonesboro, has brought himself to a position among the leading men of Grant county. Not only this, but he has gained among them the reputation of being a clear headed man whose advice is always sound, and now occupies a position in the office of the Indiana Rubber and Insulated Wire Company, Jonesboro, Indiana. Mr. Carter was bom on his father's farm in Mill township, Grant county, Indiana, April 29, 1873, and is a son of William and Elizabeth (Knight) Carter.

George and Mary (Buller) Carter, the grandparents of DeWitt Car¬ ter, were natives of North Carolina and at a very early date left the Old North state and came overland to Grant county, here entering from the Government what became known as the William Carter farm, and which still bears that name. They erected a farm in the woods, living in the meanwhile in a little log cabin and sharing in the hardships and priva¬ tions always incident to life in a pioneer community. They became well and favorably known throughout their locality, and were regarded as substantial, Christian people and as devout members of the United Brethren church, in the faith of which they died. William Carter was born in 1847 on the old homestead farm in Mill township, and there grew up to agricultural pursuits, in the meantime securing his educa¬ tion in the early district schools. At the time of his father's death he became the owner of the home land, which he subsequently converted into one of the finest farms in the county, fitted with every modern im¬ provement known to country life. He erected a handsome white house, and two large and well-equipped barns, with every improvement, one for stock and one for grain, each with cement floors, while the latter had accommodation for sixty-five tons of hay and one thousand bushels of grain. The water was secured from a drilled well and drawn by a gaso¬ line engine and modem machinery did all of the heavy work. Fine live stock of all kinds were bred here, Mr. Carter taking a particular inter¬ est in this branch of agricultural work. On this fine property he died in 1911, aged sixty-four years, while the mother still survives at the age of sixty-one years and is making her home in the vicinity of Marion. She belongs to the Friends church at Marion, with which the father was also connected. A man of great industry and strict integrity, Mr. Car¬ ter occupied a prominent place in his community, and as a citizen al¬ ways demonstrated his willingness to support measures which promised to be of benefit to the community in which he lived and labored.

The only child of his parents, DeWitt Carter received his early education in the public schools, following wrhich he took a course in Fairmount Academy, being graduated in 1892. At that time he received his introduction to business life as assistant cashier of the First National Bank and later, in 1909, was made cashier of the Citizens Bank of Jones¬ boro. He was also for one year connected with the First State Bank of Gas City, and in 1912 became a stockholder and employee of the Indiana Rubber and Insulated Wire Company.

Mr. Carter was married to Miss Grace Lawson, wdio was born in 1878 in Grant county, Indiana, educated in Marion High school. Her mother makes her home with Mr. and Mrs. Carter. They have one daughter: Colene, bom April 8, 1895, and now a student in Jonesvi)le High school, class of 1914. Mr. and Mrs. Carter are Methodists. He is a member of Masonic Blue Lodge and the Knights of Pythias and Tribe of Ben Hur. In politics a strong Republican, he has been a real worker in the cause of progress and advancement in his city, was a former mem¬ ber of the city board, and is now a member of the board of school di¬ rectors.

Samuel Small. Owning and occupying a farm of one hundred and sixty acres, in the southeast quarter of section thirty-one of Franklin township, Samuel Small is one of the men whose careers have been effect¬ ive and valuable contribution to the progression and history of Grant county. He is now past his eightieth birthday and has spent the greater portion of his career in Grant county.

Samuel Small is a native of Henry county, Indiana, where he was born November 25, 1831, a son of Nathan and Polly (Small) Small, the parents being distantly related. The father was born in Highland county, Ohio, and the grandfather came from Virginia. Nathan Small's wife came from Guilford county, North Carolina. . Nathan Small was a boy when he moved to Indiana, living near Richmond for some years, and worked until he got a little property, after which he was married, and then in 1838 brought his family to Grant county, locating in Center township. After three or four years of residence there they returned to Henry county, but a few months later moved back to Grant county, and finally located in Franklin township. The father in 1882 moved to Howard county, Indiana, living in Kokomo, until the time of his death. Farming was his regular occupation, and his residence in Kokomo was in the declining years of his life, after he had won sufficient competence to enable him to spend his latter years in comfort. He was the father of five children, three of whom are living in 1913, namely : Samuel ; Sarah, widow of Boes Petty, and Louisa, who lives with her brother Samuel.

Samuel Small attended the common schools when a boy, and was on the home farm until he was twenty-five years of age. On January 8, 1857, he married Ruth Marshall, who was born in Hamilton county, Indiana, May 3, 1838, a daughter of Joshua and Tamer (Osborn) Mar¬ shall. Mrs. Small was educated in the schools of Indiana, and has proved a most valued helpmate to her husband. Their children are named as follows: Ellen, wife of Charles Lloyd; Lydia, wife of James T. Kelly; Abraham L. Small, who married Adeline Capron; Emma, widow of Caleb T. Jacques; Oliver, who married Martha E. Poe; Levi, deceased ; Anna, deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Small have twenty-eight grand¬ children and sixteen great-grandchildren. Mrs. Small worships with the Friends church. In politics Mr. Small is a Republican and has always taken an active part in local party affairs, having been a delegate to county and other conventions. He is one of the oldest men in Franklin township.

J. William Furnish. The progressive farmer of today is far from content to make merely a living from his land. It must pay him a full measure of gain for the labor he expends upon it, and he is constantly seeking new means and methods of increasing his production. It is through the efforts of such men that progress and advancement are accomplished, and because of such men in Grant county this has become one of the most prosperous farming communities of the Hoosier state. Not every man has the ability to aid in this progress, even though he possesses the inclination, but one who is possessed of both characteristics, and has gained the local title of "a hustler," is J. William Furnish, of section 4, Mill township, the owner of a nice property and a citizen who has fairly earned the esteem in which he is generally held.

1832, entering land in Fairmount township. There he improved a good farm, became prosperous and was known as an influential citizen but was cut down in the prime of life when about forty years old. By rea¬ son of his good judgment, strict integrity and well-known impartiality he was chosen to serve his fellow-citizens in the office of circuit judge, and at all times upheld the honor and the dignity of the bench. Judge Furnish married Miss Rachael Leach, who outlived her husband for a long period of years and died in advanced age. Both were devout mem¬ bers of the Primitive Baptist church, led honest and God-fearing lives, and were numbered among their community's most highly respected people.

John Furnish, son of Judge Benjamin, and father of J. William Furnish, was born October 17, 1837, in Franklin county, Indiana, while his parents were spending a short time in that locality. As a lad he came to Grant county, here grew up and was educated, and was mar¬ ried in Jefferson township to Miss Martha J. Garrison, a native of Ohio, born October 13, 1837. Mr. and Mrs. Furnish still survive and are making their home on their fifty-five-acre farm, located in Mill town¬ ship, and in spite of advanced years are still alert in body and active in mind. Mr. Furnish has been essentially a farmer, yet he has found time also to engage prominently in Republican politics, and at one time was a candidate for the office of county recorder. At this time his views on the temperance question lead him to support the Prohibition party. With his wife he belongs to the Methodist Episcopal church, and both have taken an active part in its various movements and charities.

J. William Furnish was born on his father's farm in Jefferson town¬ ship, Grant county, Indiana, October 8, 1860, and was there reared to agricultural pursuits and given an ordinary educational training in the public schools. He early showed himself possessed of industry and thrift, and at the age of seventeen years, seeking to better himself, went to Sedgwick county, Kansas, and there learned the trade of plasterer. This he followed in Wichita, Kansas, for a period of ten years, and then returned to Grant county, Indiana, and resumed farming, in which he has met with marked success. At this time he is the owner of a hand¬ some tract of ninety-four acres, all under a high state of cultivation, located in section 4, Mill township, just outside of the limits of Jones¬ boro, of which he has been the owner for four years. He has devoted his attention to general farming, and the prosperity which he has gained has come through the medium of hard labor, intelligently ap¬ plied. During the time he has lived in this locality, Mr. Furnish has built up a reputation for honesty and integrity that makes his name a synonym for reliability and straightforward dealing. His methods are progressive, although practical, and his property shows the bene* ficial effects of good management.

While a resident of Wichita, Kansas, Mr. Furnish was married (first) in 1881 to Ida L. Allphine, who was born in Schuyler county, Illinois, December 28, 1860, but was reared and educated in Kansas, where she went as a child with her parents. She died in Jonesboro, Indiana, having been the mother of four children : Maybelle, who died soon after her marriage to Warren Knowles; Mary J., who is the wife of Thomas Owens and the mother of four children, Yerda, Elizabeth E., Della and Aidrie; Nellie, who died at the age of twenty-three years, unmarried; and Myrtle, who died aged six years.

Mr. Furnish 's second marriage, which took place in Madison county r Indiana, was to Miss Pansy May Mason, who was born August 29, 1884, in Madison county, Indiana, and was educated in that county, where she grew up and resided until her marriage. She has been the mother of Minnie, Thelma Irene and Nancy L., who are all attending school; and Edmund, Elizabeth and Owen, the babies. One child, Martha J., died January 1, 1904, aged one year and four days. For many years Mr. Furnish voted with the Republican party, but becoming convinced of the necessity for following a principle rather than party ties, he became a pioneer worker in the Prohibition party, which he now gives his aid and voting influence. He and his wife are consistent members of the Jonesboro Friends ' church, and have aided it in many ways. Mr. Furnish is prominent in fraternal circles as a member of the Inde¬ pendent Order of Odd Fellows, his allegiance being given to Romania Lodge No. 82, in which he has passed through all the chairs and the degrees up to the Grand Lodge. He belongs to the class of men who are able to make their minds work with their hands, and who make their community's interests their own. Such men form the backbone of any locality.

John Y. Shugart. One of the pioneer families of this county has its representative in John V. Shugart, himself a leading citizen of Mill township and one of the wealthy men of the county. Mr. Shugart has devoted himself to agricultural activities all his days and his success has been the reward of constant application to duty. The Shugart family is an old North Carolina one, long residents of Randolph county, that state, and Quakers of the old type. Like all their fellow religion¬ ists, they were stanch abolitionists, and in Civil war times the Shugarts were among the leading agents of the well known underground rail¬ road that aided in the escape of so many negroes. Their Grant county home was for years a station, the grandfather of the subject having aided the Negro on every possible occasion. His farm, upon which he now lives and on which he was born, was a station for the Underground Railroad.

Considering briefly the line of descent from the time of the first of the name to the present time, the facts are as follows : George Shugart, the first of whom there is authentic record, was bom in North Carolina about the close of the Revolutionary war. He was a farmer and a Quaker, the family from first to last having adhered to its industrial and religious tendency and belief with but slight variation. This old patriarch, lived to come north with his son, John Shugart, the grand¬ father of the subject. The family made the journey from North Caro¬ lina to Indiana after the manner affected by travelers of that early period, the year being 1835, and their first location was on section 30, Mill township, Grant county, on Deer creek. The land they chose was a dense forest wild, and they reared a rude log cabin in a spot that promised to be a convenient one, there setting up their household goods after the manner of pioneers of all periods and places. It is perhaps, quite unnecessary' to say that this family suffered all the privation and hardships that might be expected to attend primitive conditions such as they were subject to, and though it is an undeniable fact that they did live a life attended by many discomforts, it is also true that they wrere happy and prosperous, according to the prosperity standards of the day. There was often a shortage of money. In fact, there were long seasons when the family never once gazed upon actual specie of the day, but their wants were few, and forest and field and stream pro¬ vided their simple needs. Wild game abounded at all seasons, and game laws, the plague of the woods dweller of today, were then unthought of. So it was that they lived simply, but content with their lot, and it is more than probable that the present generation, blessed with a goodly share in this world's goods, are not more happy than wfere their an¬ cestors in the wilderness homes they builded themselves.

Here .the great-grandfather of John Y. Shugart died, as did also his devoted wife, and they are buried in the old Deer Creek cemetery of the Friends.

John Shugart was born in Randolph county, North Carolina, in about 1800, and there he married Miss Sarah Ratcliffe. They came to Grant county in the year 1835, and their first location was in section 30, Mill township, the place now being known as the Love Stock Farm. He first came north in the twenties, however, and located in Wayne county, Indiana, there carrying on farming operations for some years, and it was there that John, Jr., father of the subject was bom, on Septem¬ ber 5, 1827. They had made the long journey to Wayne county in a one horse cart, and the experience was one they remembered to the end of their lives. John Shugart died at the age of fifty-four on the farm he had settled and partly improved in Grant county, death resulting from blood-poisoning, and his widow survived him for many years. They were of the Quaker faith, and helped to organize the church in their community, having deeded three acres to the Deer Creek church N for a cemetery and school site. The first church erected was a humble log affair, the secopd a frame building and the third a fine appearing brick edifice.

John Shugart, Jr., father of the subject, was eight years of age when his parents moved to Grant county, and he was educated in a somewhat meagre fashion in the log schools of the period. Dirt or puncheon floors, rude slab benches and oiled paper for window lights was the equipment of the schools of that day, and if the attending chil¬ dren learned even the rudiments of the much talked of Three R's, they did well indeed, and should be congratulated upon their wit and enterprise.

Reared to the farm, John Shugart knew no other enterprise in which he might find a living, and he cared for no other, for the men of this family have for generations been successful and well equipped farmers, their inherent qualities insuring a measure of prosperity in their chosen work. Mr. Shugart in time acquired a tract of five hun¬ dred acres of land in Grant county, and this he placed largely under cultivation during his lifetime. In 1871 he erected a fine brick dwelling, and prior to that time had built two enormous barns, which were burned, whereupon he straightway erected two more, even larger and more mod¬ em in their appointments. Mr. Shugart had by this time interested himself largely in cattle breeding, and he was known as a pioneer in the breeding of fine Holstein-Friesian cattle. He was a leader in that enterprise, and to him must be given the credit for having inspired the farming men of the community to the breeding of more and better stock on their places. His son has carried on the work most admirably, and is recognized as a leader in all matters pertaining thereto.

On April. 1st, 1910, John Shugart died, and his son has carried on his work since then, with all success. Mr. Shugart was a Quaker and a Republican but during the last twenty-five years of his life was a strong Prohibitionist. During all his days he was prominent in the com¬ munity that represented his home, and in which he had wielded a most excellent influence all his days. He exemplified many sterling traits in his every day life, and was a man whose word was quite as good as his bond. He always interested himself creditably in the civic affairs of the community, and might be ever relied upon to further the inter¬ ests of any enterprise calculated to result in a moral or spiritual uplift in the town and county.

1825, and who died at the family home on April 22, 1886. She was a daughter of Samuel and Rachel (Small) Guyer, who came to Miami county, Indiana, from Darke county, Ohio, there spending their remain¬ ing days in farming activities. They were members of the Christian church and were prominent in their community all their days.

Mrs. Shugart, like her husband, was a member of the Deer Creek Monthly Meeting of the Friends, and they were among the most ardent and dependable workers in the society. Mrs. Shugart especially was a devoted temperance worker and crusader, and it would be difficult and well nigh impossible to form any adequate estimate of the good she did in her life in this community. Mr. and Mrs. Shugart gave homes to eight orphaned children whom they helped to suitable educations, and did much missionary work among the poor and needy, for they were always mindful of the scriptural injunction, " The poor ye have always with you," and let no opportunity escape them to further the material and spiritual welfare of those with whom they came in contact, who might need their kindly aid. They were true Christian people, and their beautiful charity was one of the finest traits they possessed among many that were praiseworthy, indeed. When they died the community mourned their passing as only kindly and simple people of their stamp are ever mourned, and their influence is yet felt in Mill township.

John Y. Shugart, their son, was born on the old home place on Sep¬ tember 29, 1866. He attended the common schools of his community, which were well advanced over the efficiency they boasted in the days of his father's boyhood, and was carefully reared by his wise and gentle parents. He early learned lessons of honor and uprightness, which coupled with the habits of thrift and perseverance which he formed in boyhood, have been the basis of a splendid character and a praiseworthy material prosperity. Mr. Shugart admits that his schooling was not as complete as he could wish, but gives much credit to his actual busi¬ ness experience as having broadened and in a great measure educated him. He is now engaged in the automobile business, with automobile salesroom at the corner of 4th and Booth streets, Marion. He handles the Cadillac and the Chevrolet automobiles. He is a director of the Farmers' Trust & Savings Company of Marion, Indiana.

Mr. Shugart 's farm today is admitted to be one of the finest in the county, and it is kept up to a high standard of efficiency and complete¬ ness in its equipment that will scarce be equaled anywhere.

Like his father, Mr. Shugart has especially devoted himself to the breeding of blooded Holstein-Friesian cattle, and he has been a leader in the enterprise in this part of the state. Many blue ribbon winners have gone forth from his stables. Some time ago he sold his herd and withdrew from the breeding business definitely, but his reputation as a breeder and as expert authority on these subjects still continues with him. He has made a substantial fortune in his agricultural and breed¬ ing activities, and his farm is one of the fine show places of the county. Mr. Shugart has been known as a shrewd man of business, and com¬ bined with his extraordinary business acumen are the wide-mindedness and gentleness that were so prominent as traits in the characters of his worthy parents.

Mr. Shugart was first married in Miami county in 1888 to' Miss Mil¬ dred L. Canaday, who was bom on September 2, 1867 and died on June 22, 1889, without issue. She was a birthright member of the Friends church. On December 1, 1891, Mr. Shugart married Miss Carrie Hatha¬ way, bora in Fairmount, Indiana, on March 2r 1871. Her father died when she was a child of four years, after which she was reared in the home of Elias and Hannah Baldwin, in Marshalltown and later in Des

To Mr. and Mrs. Shugart have been bom two children. Frank, the eldest, is now attending a business college in Marion, having completed a high school course in his home town, and Nellie is attending common schools. The family is among the most prominent hereabout, and they enjoy the sincere regard of a host of good people in and about the county. Mr. Shugart is a Republican, and has always taken a more or less active interest in the politics of his county and state, while he is known to be a citizen of the highest type.

Peter Roberts. The Roberts family has given to Grant county, in Mrs. Margaret Spangler, a citizen of splendid worth, and one who has done a man's part in the way of keeping up a home and carrying on the work of a farm. She is the daughter of Peter Roberts, who was of Southern birth and ancestry, the Roberts family of Virginia having long been located in Scott county, in this particular branch of the name. He was bom in Scott county, Virginia, and died there in 1863, when in the prime of his young life. His people were long identified with agriculture in Scott county as owners and operators of a magnificent plantation in the ante-bellum days, and he was a soldier in tile Con¬ federate army for a time. He fell ill after a period of service extend¬ ing over several months, and was furloughed home on sick leave, soon after which he died.

Mr. Roberts had married in Scott county Miss Elizabeth Derting, bom of Scott county parents on July 22, 1841, and in that county was reared. When Mr. Roberts died he left her with two daughters, one of them Margaret, the wife of John J. Spangler, and Susan, who died some years after her marriage to Melvin Wood, of Arkansas. She left a large family. Following the death of her husband Mrs. Roberts married J. S. Hilton, also of Scott county, Virginia, and they later came to Grant county, Indiana, their advent into the state being in the year 1891. They now live on the farm they acquired in Liberty township. To, them were bom four children, Pearl, Darthula, Kellar and Elbert, all of whom are married and have families of their own.

Margaret Louisa Frances Roberts, the child of the first marriage of her mother, grew up in Scott county and was educated mainly in the public schools of that district. There she met and married John J. Spangler, and in 1890 came with him to Indiana. They lived in Mill township for a time and then in Liberty township, and in the latter place Mr. Spangler died on January 31, 1905. He had been bora in Scott county, Virginia, on February 27, 1857, and came of Virginia people who had long been devoted to the soil in their industry, and while he was in many ways a successful farmer, he met with misfortunes in his career that in a measure shadowed his life. When he died Mrs. Spang¬ ler found herself with a family to support, and nothing beyond the pos¬ session of the farm to aid her in the maintenance of that family. She was a woman who had been reared to do earnest work all her life, and she was nothing daunted at the situation that presented itself with the death of Mr. Spangler. The result has been that she has succeeded in providing an excellent living for herself and her children on their farm in Mill township. In 1910 she purchased eighty acres in Mill township, having for eleven years previously lived in Liberty township, and tins place, in charge of Charles G. Case, is proving a profitable investment for Mrs. Spangler.

in the class of 1907 and is now a teacher in the graded schools of Mt. Ayer, Indiana. Clarence L. was bom on October 27, 1890. He was educated in the public schools and the Marion Normal, and is now engaged as a bookkeeper in the Warner Glass Company at Summittville, Indiana. He is unmarried. Mary K., born in 1895, is a graduate of the Marion Normal and is now a teacher in the public schools. Fannie B., born October 12, 1900, is now attending the grade schools, and William

H. , born April 4, 1896, died on August 7, 1899. Mrs. Spangler has one daughter by adoption, Susan L., who was born August 9, 1899, and is now in the Jonesboro high school. Mrs. Spangler has a host of good friends in and about the township, who have watched with much and not a little approbation her career as a farmer, and the support of her little family.

Eli B. Marshall. A custom which in recent years has made much progress in the rural communities of the middle west, and which in itself is indicative of higher standards of comfort and independence in life, is the giving of names to the individual farms, a custom that probably adds no material value to the place, but is nonetheless attractive for that reason. The first country home in Grant county to be, formally designated with a title was the Catalpa Stock Farm, of which Eli B. Marshall has been proprietor for over forty years, coming here March

I, 1871. The Catalpa farm is the home of Poland-China hogs, and some of the finest stock of this kind raised in eastern Indiana is to be found on the place of Mr. Marshall. He makes a specialty of breeding Poland- China hogs, and his public sales conducted every season have put his stock into nearly every state of the Union.

Mr. Marshall who is one of the larger and most prosperous farmers of Grant county was bom in Boone county, Indiana, May 6, 1846, and belongs to one of the old families of the state. His parents were Joshua and Tamar (Osborn) Marshall. The father was a son of Thomas Mar¬ shall and the latter a son of Joseph Marshall, who was bom in Virginia. Thomas Marshall, the grandfather, came over the Blue Ridge Mountains to Henry county, Indiana, thence moving to Boone county, where he died. Joshua Marshall was married in Boone county, and took up his residence in Grant county in 1847. In the latter county he spent the rest of his life. He was a man whose interest was identified with public affairs, and in the early days he was one of the leaders in the improve¬ ment of the roads of the county. In politics his vote and interest were at first in support of the Whig organization, and later was Republican. A story that is told of this old resident as a part of family tradition is that he voted in that county at a time when a hollow stump served as the ballot box of his precinct, and each voter marched up and deposited his ticket in the recess of this old stump. Joshua Marshall was a birth¬ right Quaker, and throughout his life continued an influential and inter¬ ested worker in his church. He was the father of ten children, of whom the three living in 1913 are: Ruth, wife of Samuel Small; Eli B. and William R., who is a minister of the Baptist church in Arkansas.

Eli B. Marshall has spent practically all his career in Grant county. He was reared during the days of primitive schools and school facilities, and had only such education as was given by the local institutions, and had the training of the farm and the wholesome rural environment of more than half a century ago. Farming has been his regular career, and he is one of the men who have prospered to an exceptional degree. In 1870 he bought the Sidney Harvey farm, and still owns that place. Since locating with his family there in March, 1871, he has lived and prospered for more than forty years, and from that place his foster chil- dren have gone out into independent work and existence. He married' Sarah A. Charles, a daughter of Dr. Henry Charles. This wife died with¬ out issue, having been killed on June 27, 1901, when she was thrown from her buggy in front of her home. Though they had no children of their own, they adopted in their home and reared or partly reared nineteen boys and girls. Such practical benevolence is seldom met with. Mr. and Mrs. Marshall dressed, fed and provided home and educational facili¬ ties to these children, who in turn have honored their adopted parents. For his second wife Mr. Marshall married Myra (Yickey) Webster. Mrs. Marshall has been for many years a minister of the Friends church. At the present time they have in their home a boy who is being reared under their care, and that completes the total of twenty children, who have been assisted and have found homes and shelter and protection under the Marshall roof-tree. Mr. and Mrs. Marshall are members of the Quaker church, and he is an elder in the church and has held that distinction since he was twenty-two years of age. He assisted in build¬ ing the church in Franklin township, having contributed liberally to that organization in the erection of both the buildings, which have fur¬ nished its religious home during the last forty or fifty years. Mr. Mar¬ shall was formerly a prominent member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and is a Republican, without special party activities. The Catalpa farm contains one hundred and thirty-three acres, and is situated on section twenty-seven in Franklin township. In 1886 Mr. Marshall erected a comfortable brick house, and the other buildings include good barns, granaries and places for the shelter of stock and machinery. The improvements are excellent and the farm well upholds the dignity conferred by its name Catalpa Stock Farm.

Mrs. Marshall, as already stated, preaches in the Friends church, and has a regular charge at Maple Run church. She has been promi¬ nently identified with organization work in the church in Grant, Wabash, Huntington, Wells, and Henry counties. She was born in Rush county, Indiana, being a native Hoosier. Mr. Marshall when little more than a boy answered the call of patriotism, and enlisted in April, 1864, in Company C of the One Hundred and Thirty-ninth Indiana Infantry. His regiment was attached to the Army of the Cumberland, but he was never in any engagements or fighting. His duty and that of the regi¬ ment was the transportation of captured Confederates to Chicago and other Federal places of imprisonment. He was mustered out at the end of his term of enlistment in November, 1864, having been away from home about seven months. He now has membership in the Swayzee Post of the Grand Army of the Republic. His brother Levi Marshall was a member of the One Hundred and First Indiana Regiment, and served from the beginning of the war until his death a few days after the battle of Chickamauga, although he was not wounded therein. Joseph Mar¬ shall, another brother, was a member of the Thirty-fourth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and was with Sherman on his march to the sea and then on until the close of the war.

Thomas Winslow. The late Thomas Winslow was bom in Randolph county, North Carolina, more than one hundred and twenty years ago, and he came of one of the oldest families of that state, descended directly from Mayflower stock of the New England states. The blood of the Pilgrim Fathers flowed in his veins, and he was a worthy specimen of the old stock. His career was one well worthy of perpetuation in these records, and though the facts at hand are meagre, there is sufficient to establish him as one of the true pioneers of Grant county, and as such he is presented in these columns. Though the sketch is rather a review of the family from his time to the present day, it is deemed fitting and proper to enter the facts under the heading of him who, properly speak¬ ing, established the Winslow family in Grant county.

It was in the early thirties that the Winslow family came from its native habitat, North Carolina, into the newer and less tried state of Indiana. They located in Fairmount township, or what has since come to be so designated, taking up government land and there hewing out of the wilderness country a farm that afforded them a real home. The head of this family was Ancil Winslow, a brief sketch of whom may be found elsewhere in this work. He died in the home he established here and left his family to carry on the name and the work he had begun.

This family began even in those early days to leave its indelible imprint upon the community in which it settled, and in the early days of its residence in Fairmount township aided in the organization of the Society of Friends known as the Mississinewa Monthly Meeting. Thomas Winslow, it should be said, was the first clerk of the meeting, and he was known in the town as a young man of the finest qualities, and of a type that added much to the moral and spiritual advancement of the community.

Thomas Winslow married Martha L. Bogue in North Carolina, and before they migrated to Indiana in the early thirties, a number of chil¬ dren were born to them. John Winslow, one of their sons, was born in North Carolina in 1833, and he was reared in the new home of the family in Fairmount township. No great advantages in a worldly or material way were his, but he was blessed in the possession of a home where the principles of honesty and Christian charity were daily and hourly demonstrated, and he grew up in an atmosphere of truth and purity that many another youth of his day was denied. A simple farmer boy was he, and when he reached young manhood he took a wife and settled down on one of his father's farms. Later he took up his abode with his wife 's people, who had a well cared for farm in section 8 of Mill town¬ ship, and he died there on July 3, 1888. He was what was termed a birthright Friend, and was a stanch Republican in his political faith. In his community he enjoyed a generous measure of the esteem and regard of his fellow beings, and was known for a sincere, honest and gentle soul, a host of friends being his. He served in numerous town¬ ship offices, and was a trustee for several consecutive years. He was married on December 16, 1869, to Miss Mary L. Russell, who was born on the farm she now owns and occupies, her birth date being May 7, 1842. With the exception of a brief period of three years, her entire life has been spent on this farm, and she is one of the best known and loved women of the community, and a leader among the Friends of the township. She is a daughter of John and Mary P. (Smith) Russell, the father having been a native of the Keystone state, bom there in 1800. His father, Samuel Smith, was bom there during the Revolu¬ tionary war period, and came of Irish stock, with a . possible Scotch mixture. He married a native Pennsylvanian and they both ended their lives in the state of their birth. John Russell grew up to farm life in Pennsylvania, and it was not long after the birth of his second child that the family left the state and came west, making the long and tedious journey across the country with ox teams, in the year 1828 or 1829. They settled in Indiana, locating on new and wild land in section 8, Mill town¬ ship, that spot representing the home today of Mrs. Winslow, their daughter.