Grant County, Indiana - The whole text, 1914 (part 19 of 32)

The Russells proved themselves to be pioneers of an approved and worthy type, for the passing years witnessed the full blooming of the wilderness spot they had chosen for their home, and their 160 acre tract took on a look of prosperity and cultivation that made it one of the desirable farms of the township in later years. They first built a log house, in common with the other pioneers, to which they later added a frame addition, but still later, in about 1855, they reared a handsome brick house. This house still stands and is in a good state of preserva¬ tion. The barn they built about the same time is still in good condi¬ tion and bears silent witness to the excellent workmanship that entered into the simple structures of that period. The weatherboards and roof of the barn have been replaced in recent years, but aside from those improvements, the bam stands as it did when built by the Russells almost sixty years ago. Here John Russell died in *1870, having sur¬ vived his wife by a good many years, her death coming in the late for¬ ties. Mrs. Russell, it may be said here, was the daughter of Judge Caleb Smith, a man of North Carolina birth, who after spending some years in Pennsylvania, came to Grant county, Indiana, and settled upon a new farm which he improved in accordance with the spirit of the time. The place was in close proximity to the Winslow farm, and there Judge Smith died, when in advanced years. He was one of the talented and prominent men of the county, and one of its earliest judges.

Mrs. Russell, the mother of Mrs. Winslow, was a member of the Methodist church, though her husband held to no religious creed. He was married a second time, but of his later marriage there was no issue.

Mrs. Winslow is the youngest of her mother's children, of whom there were eight, and she is the only one living at this writing. Prior to her marriage with Mr. Winslow, Mrs. Winslow was the wife of Capt. William Shugert, who died in the south in the prime of life. He was a soldier in the Union Army in the Civil war, and after the return to peaceful pursuits he engaged in the cotton business, dying in Arkan¬ sas. His only child, William R., died as a young man. Of her second marriage, Mrs. Winslow has one son, Glen B. Winslow, who runs the old home farm. He was born on August 3, 1870, and lives on the home place with his mother, being unmarried.

On March 25, 1896, Mrs. Winslow contracted a third marriage when she became the wife of Levi Winslow, a relative of John Winslow, her second husband. He was born in Fairmount township on July 20, 1836, and his principal occupation in life has been that of a carpenter. He has enjoyed an excellent reputation as a master hand at his trade, and has assisted in the building of some of the best residences and other buildings in the township and county. He is a son of Henry and Annie (Binford) Winslow, natives of North Carolina and Virginia, respect¬ ively. They met and married in Fairmount township and here they passed their lives. Mrs. Winslow died there in 1863, and Henry Win¬ slow married a second time. By his first marriage he had ten children, of whom Levi Winslow, the husband of Mrs. Winslow, was onp, and by his second marriage he had three children. Of the ten of his first marriage, Levi Winslow is the second of four who are yet living.

Mr. and Mrs. Winslow live at the old home and their declining years are being passed in peace and contentment after busy and fruitful .lives. He is a birthright Quaker of the Fairmount Society, and Mrs. Winslow has membership in the Presbyterian church in Jonesboro. She first became a member of the church when attending school in Marion, under the tutelage of Professor Sawyer, one of the test known instruct¬ ors of his day in Grant county.

Mr. Winslow, by a former marriage, had eight daughters. Two of them died very young, and of the six who reached maturity five were married. Those living are: Sarah, the wife of John Flanagan, a sketch of whom will be found elsewhere in this work; Aletha, the wife of Homer Stephens, and living in St. Louis; Elizabeth, the wife of Jesse Thorp, living at Geneva, Indiana, and they have two children, Paul and Aletha ; and Bessie, the wife of H. Asthorp, a banker of Cairo, Illinois, they have two children, Mary and Ada. The four deceased daughters of Mr. Winslow were: Elmina, who was kicked by a horse and died twenty-four hours later, aged four years; Anna, who died, aged two weeks; Alice, who died in 1891; and Gertrude, died in 1903.

William J. Richards. Like thousands of his fellow countrymen who in their native land saw naught for the future except long years of hard work, with 'but little chance of the attainment of a competency, William J. Richards decided to try his fortunes in the United States and accordingly, when still a young man, migrated to these shores. He has had no reason to regret his action, for from the time of his arrival here his advance has been steady and his labor well remunerated, and at this time, as assistant treasurer, director and paymaster of the In¬ diana Rubber and Insulated Wire Company, of Jonesboro, he occupies a recognized position among the foremost business men of his adopted place. Mr. Richards was born at Glanmorganshire, near Swansea, Wales, December 11, 1864, comes of an old and honored Welsh family, and is a son of William and Jane (Jenkins) Richards, natives of the same place, where they spent tlieir entire lives, the mother passing away in 1880, at the age of fifty-two years and the father in 1892, when he was seventy-six. Mr. Richards was a tin-plate manufacturer and for many years carried on a profitable business in his native land. Both he and his wife were devout ihembers of the Presbyterian church and made many friends by reason of their many sterling qualities of mind and heart. -

After receiving an ordinary education in the public schools of Wales, William J. Richards learned the trade of tin plate manufacturer in the business of his father, with whom he continued until reaching the age of twenty-six years. In 1890 he decided to try his fortunes in the United States, and on first coming here was employed in a steel plant at Pittsburgh. In 1891 he came to Elwood, Indiana, where he was con¬ nected with the establishment of the tin plate plant of that place, and there, under the superintendency of his brother, he rolled the first sheet ' of tin plate made in that establishment. When conditions for the tin plate people began to become unsatisfactory at Elwood, Mr. Richards went to the East, and upon his return was sent as superintendent of the plant at Gas City for the Morewood Tin Plate Company, who later sold out to the United States Steel Corporation. He took part in the building of that plant and was at its head for nine years, going from that point to the plant of the same company at Atlanta, Indiana.

When the gas at that place gave out Mr. Richards was sent to Mid¬ dletown, Indiana, where he remained until 1905, and then came to Jonesboro to accept his present office. In his long and active business career Mr. Richards has sustained a reputation for the highest integrity and business ability, and by his associates he is held in the highest esteem and confidence.

Mr. Richards was married at Jonesboro, Indiana, to Miss Martha J. Seiberling, who was born in Doylestown, Ohio, in February, 1864, educated in the Ohio and Pennsylvania schools, and is a daughter of James H. Seiberling, president of the Indiana Rubber and Insulated Wire Company, a sketch of whose career will be found on another page of this work. Mrs. Richards died at her home in Jonesboro, July 6, 1912. She was the mother of no children, but Mr. Richards now has an adopted daughter, a niece, Victoria May, who is twelve years of age and is now attending the city schools. Mrs. Richards was a mem¬ ber of the Presbyterian church and Mr. Richards still adheres to that faith. He has been well known in fraternal circles for some years, being a member of the Masonic Blue Lodge, of Jonesboro, the Chapter and Knights Templar, of Marion, and the Consistory of Fort Wayne, and recently took his thirty-second degree. He is a Republican in his political views, although he has never been a seeker after public office.

Elmer E. Massey, who has been holding one of the leading cleri¬ cal positions in the offices of the Indiana Rubber and Insulated Wire Company, at Jonesboro, since March, 1904, is well known to the people of this city. He was born at Malta, Morgan county, Ohio, June 18, 1862, was educated at Muskingum College, of New Concord, Ohio, and at the Normal College of Valparaiso, Indiana, and then took up the vocation of teacher, which he followed in Morgan county for a period of four years. He first came to Indiana during the winter of 1883-4, and here taught as the principal of the Harrisburg (now Gas City) school for three years, following which he spent two years in the cleri¬ cal department of the Deering Manufacturing Company, Chicago. On his return to Indiana, Mr. Massey again adopted the vocation of educa¬ tor, and this he followed until accepting his present position in March, 1904. He was a successful teacher, was popular alike with pupils and parents, and had an excellent record, and in the line of his present vocation he is also showing marked ability. He has profited by his long and thorough training, may be said to be an expert in his calling, and has the confidence and respect of the business men among whom he has labored for so long.

Mr. Massey is a son of John Massey, also a native of Morgan county, Ohio, and a son of William Massey. The grandfather was born in Chester county, Pennsylvania, and there grew to manhood, in an old Quaker family descended from William Penn stock. At an early day, with four brothers, he left his home in the Keystone state and jour¬ neyed to Ohio, where he remained, although his brothers pushed on and finally located in Western Indiana. He was married in Muskingum county, Ohio, to Mary Gay, and they became pioneers of Morgan county, settling in the depth of the woods and living in a little rude log cabin. They hewed themselves a home from the wilderness, lived to see the wolves and deer desert their native hiding-places, driven forth by the relentless march of civilization, and became prosperous and highly respected citizens. The grandfather passed away at the age of ninety-one years, while the grandmother was sixty-seven years of age at the time of her demise.

John Massey was reared to agricultural pursuits and was given the usual education obtainable in the public schools of his day and locality. On attaining manhood he was married in Morgan county, Ohio, to Mary C. Crawford, who was also bom in that county. Together, they cleared and improved a good and valuable farm, added to their holdings as the years passed, and accumulated a valuable property, which they left to their children along with the priceless heritage of an honored name. Mr. and Mrs. Massey were faithful members of the Methodist Episcopal church. He was a stalwart Republican, although not an office seeker, but took a keen and sincere interest in all that affected the wel¬ fare of his community or its people and endeavored to assist movements which had for their object the progress of his locality in any way. At the time of the Civil war he showed his patriotism by enlisting in an Ohio regiment in the Federal army, and after serving for one year received his honorable discharge and returned to the duties of a civilian. Of the children, two died in infancy: W. J. is a successful attorney at law of Zanesville, Ohio; a sister, Mary E., was a teacher for some years and died while thus engaged; Charles L. is in the tire department of the Indiana Rubber and Insulated Wire Company, is married and has a family ; and Elmer E. is the other child. The father died at the age of seventy-seven years, while the mother reached the age of eightytwo years.

While a resident of Richland township, Grant county, Indiana, Elmer E. Massey was married to Miss Maggie U. Walker, a native of this township, who was reared on a farm and educated in the public schools. Two children have been born to this union, namely: Emil L., born October 9, 1896, a graduate of the Jonesboro High school, class of 1914; and Pauline Retta, bom July 14, 1907. Mr. and Mrs. Massey are active members of the Methodist Protestant church, in which he is serving as a member of the board of trustees, and in the work of which both are very active. He is popular in fraternal circles as a member of Amana Lodge, No. 82, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Jones¬ boro; Junior Order United American Mechanics; Grant Lodge, No. 7; the Knights of Pythias, at Converse, Indiana; and the Tribe of Ben Hur, at Jonesboro.

James A. Curless. One of Grant county's citizens who has done his share of public service, particularly in educational lines, James A. Curless is now best known as cashier of the First National Bank of Swayzee, and one of the leading business men of that city. The First National Bank of Swayzee is a very strong institution, having a capital stock of thirty-five thousand dollars with surplus and undivided profits of ten thousand dollars. Mr. Curless has been with this institution from its beginning. It was organized in August, 1907, and he stood behind the wicket and accepted the first moneys paid on deposits. The other officers of this well known bank are: Darius Nesbitt, president; George W. Smith, and W. J. Nesbitt, vice presidents; James A. Curless, cashier; Isaac Spiker, assistant cashier; Tessie C. Plackard, assistant cashier. The directors are Darius Nesbitt, George W. Smith, W. J. Nesbitt, Marion Curless, J. M. Leer, John H. Miller, John A. Peterson, H. T. Munea and Jarret Echelbarger.

James A. Curless was bom in Green township, of Grant county, September 20, 1875, and belongs to one of the old and substantial families of this section of Indiana. His parents were Marion and Mary A. (Covalt) Curless, both of whom are now residents of Swayzee. They were the parents of ten children, nine of whom are living.

James A. Curless spent his boyhood on a farm in Howard county, during which time he attended the district schools of his township, and also had one term in the Greentown high school, and one year in the Fairmount Academy, completing his education by two years' course in the Valparaiso University, and the Terre Haute Normal School. He prepared himself thoroughly for his work as teacher, and taught his first term of school in 1895. He was very successful as a schoolmaster and continued the work consecutively until 1907, in the public schools of Howard and Grant counties. In August of the latter year he gave up teaching to become one of the bankers of the county.

Mr. Curless was married on Christmas Day of 1897, to Miss Anna M. Matchett, who was born and reared in Grant county, was educated in the common schools, in the Marion Normal College and in the State Normal School at Terre Haute and taught in the public schools for six years. The two children bom to Mr. and Mrs. Curless are both now deceased. The family are members of the Methodist church, and fra- temally he is affiliated with Grant Lodge, A. F. & A. M, the Lodge and encampment of Odd Fellowship, the Knights of Pythias Lodge, and the Daughters of Rebekah. He is past noble grand in his fraternity. A Republican in politics, he is now serving as a member of the Swayzee town council. Besides his other interests Mr. Curless owns sixty-six acres of land situated a mile southwest of Swayzee on the Kokomo and Gas City Pike. Though no longer a teacher Mr. Curless maintains the same interests in educational affairs which he had when in the work of the school room. At the present time, in order to promote scholarship and the wholesome rivalry among the scholars, he has a standing offer of an International Webster's Dictionary to the student making the best grade in the Sims and Green townships schools. His wife takes an equal interest with him in educational affairs, and both are energetic and progressive members of the social community in which they live.

Henby Clapper. The career of Henry Clapper, now one of the honored retired citizens of Jonesboro, has been crowded with experi¬ ences of an interesting nature, and with activities that have brought him financial independence and public position. He is a member of a pioneer family of Indiana, and has seen the state grow and develop from a sparsely settled wilderness of timber into one of the leading agricultural, commercial and industrial commonwealths of the Union. He has borne no small part in this great development, and as soldier, # citizen and public official has ever merited the esteem in which he is * universally held.

Henry Clapper, the great-grandfather of Henry of this review, was probably bom in Holland, and came early to America, settling in Bed¬ ford county, Pennsylvania, where he spent the greater part of his life as a farmer. It is thought that he died after the close of the Revolu¬ tionary war, but he was not a soldier in that struggle. His son, Henry . Clapper II, was bom in Bedford county, Pennsylvania, and there spent his entire life, being married twice and both of his wives dying in that county. By his first union he had a son, Henry Clapper III, the father of our subject, who was born in Bedford county, Pennsylvania, in 1791. His mother died when he was a child, and when his father married again the youth could not live peaceably with his stepmother and ac¬ cordingly, when seventeen or eighteen years of age, left home and journeyed to Ohio, where he settled in the vicinity of Zanesville. At the outbreak of the War of 1812, Mr. Clapper enlisted in Captain Shane's company, and throughout the struggle that followed served valiantly as a soldier. When peace had been declared, he drew his pay of ninety-six dollars, and this he placed in his saddlebag and started out for Stark county, Ohio. While crossing Sugar Creek on horseback, his horse, although a good swimmer, lost its footing and rolled over, losing the saddlebag and the silver therein, which was never recovered. Mr. Clapper was near his destination, however, the home of Christopher Smith, with whom he secured employment, and not long thereafter, about 1817 or 1818 he married the daughter, Mary Smith, who had been bom about 1798. Her grandfather, Christopher Smith's father, had come from either Holland or Germany prior to the outbreak of the American War for Independence, through which he served as a. soldier in General Wayne's Command. He subsequently located in Westmore¬ land county, Pennsylvania, where Christopher Smith was born. The latter was there married to a Pennsylvania girl and at a very early day they journeyed across the mountains to Stark county, Ohio, secur¬ ing government land near Sugar Creek, where they founded a home and spent the remainder of their lives. Mr. Smith attained the ad- vanced age of ninety-six years, while the mother passed away some three years later, being past ninety. Their daughter, Mary, the mother of Henry Clapper, was born in Pennsylvania, but was reared and educated in Stark county, Ohio. After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Clapper located on a small farm, in addition to cultivating which, Mr. Clapper followed the trade of cooper, a vocation which he had learned in his youth. They resided in Stark county for many years, but just prior to the outbreak of the Civil war came to Blackford county, Indiana and located one mile southwest of Hartford City, where they spent the remainder of their lives, Mr. Clapper dying at the age of eightyfour years and the mother when past seventy-four. They were not professed members of any religious denomination, but were kindly Christian people who won esteem and respect for their many sterling qualities. Mr. Clapper was a whig in his political views and later joined the ranks of the Republican party, although he never sought public pre¬ ferment as an office holder. Of the children of Henry and Mary Clap¬ per, but two are living: Henry, and Mrs. Rachel Diskey, of Hartford City. Two brothers of Henry Clapper of Jonesboro were soldiers during the Civil war: John and Christopher. The former returned safely to his home and lived for a number of years after the close of the struggle between the states, but the latter died while in the Atlanta campaign with General Sherman, at Huntsville, Alabama, of pneumonia. They had both enlisted from Blackford county, Indiana.

Henry Clapper was bora in Stark county, Ohio, January 6, 1827, and was twenty-two years of age when he removed to Blackford county, Indiana. Three years later, with a company of twenty adventurous spirits, he started for the gold diggings of California by way of the Isthmus, but the vessel, an old and unseaworthy ship, was driven by the trade winds far out of its course, and before a landing was effected in the Hawaiian Islands the crew and passengers were nearly starved. The trip to the Golden state consumed almost six months, and there Mr. Clapper spent some two and one-half years, with but indifferent success. Returning to Indiana at the end of this period, he soon equipped himself for a trapping and hunting trip in Michigan, and there spent a year, ' killing sixty-eight elk and many deer, and securing on an average of twenty-five pelts of smaller animals a day. At the outbreak of the Civil war, Mr. Clapper answered his country's first call for troops, enlisting in the Twelfth Regiment, Indiana Volunteer Infan¬ try, under Capt. Thomas Doan, Col. Lew Wallace commanding. While he enlisted for three years, the regiment was assigned to the one year's service. Mr. Clapper saw much active service and received his honorable discharge, following which he returned to Blackford county and during the next thirty years was identified with the movements and activities which built up that section in various ways. He was a dry goods merchant at Hartford City for twelve years, and served in the capacities of justice of the peace and drainage commissioner for a long period. In 1893 he came to Jonesboro, retired from active pur¬ suits and still makes this his home.

Mr. Clapper has been married five times, and his first two wives bore him two children each, all dying young. By his third union he had no children, and by his fourth marriage he had two children : Max¬ well, a resident of Hartford City, Indiana; and Mrs. Edna S. Kirk¬ patrick of the same city. Mr. Clapper married for his fifth wife, Mrs. Mary J. Snyder, nee Colgan, who was bom October 28, 1856, in Miami county, Ohio, of Irish parentage. She came to Wells county, Indiana, with her parents, John H. and Eunice (Patterson) Colgan, and when sixteen years of age was brought to Hartford City. Mr. Colgan served as a soldier during the Civil war in an Ohio volunteer regiment, and died at the Soldiers' Home, Lafayette, Indiana, November 18, 1910. The mother, who was seventy-five years of age September 20, 1913, still survives and makes her home at Jonesboro. She is a member of the Friends Church. Four children have been bom to Mr. and Mrs. Clap¬ per: H. Clyde, a glass blower of Jonesboro, who is married and has a daughter, Beulah; Fred H., connected with the stove factory at Jones¬ boro, who is married and has a son, Wayne; Paris, a stove mbunter and inventive genius, who lives at home with his parents; and Herbert, who is in his second year in the Jonesboro High school. Mr. and Mrs. Clapper are consistent members of the Seventh Day Adventist church. He is a Republican, takes a keen interest in the success of his party, and is ever ready to support movements which his judgment tells him will make for better conditions in his adopted community.

Leander Carey. Now living retired at Jonesboro, Leander Carey has spent the greater part of his life in Grant county, represents some fine old Quaker stock in this region, and in his own career has ex¬ emplified the quiet industry, effective virtues and the religious devotion, which have been noteworthy in the various members of the Carey house¬ hold.

Leander Carey was bom in Fairmount township, May 10, 1855, and lived and grew up in the county, was educated in its country schools, and followed farming here until 1880. The following fourteen years were spent in the states of Kansas and Nebraska, and since then he has once more resumed residence in the county of his birth.

Grandfather John Carey, Sr., was born in Pennsylvania, lived most of his life in Ohio, where he died, and his death occurred following a visit to Pennsylvania, where he had some duties to perform. He was born in 1783, 'and died about 1850. John Carey, Sr., married Margaret Green, who was born in Pennsylvania in 1782, and died in Ohio when quite an old lady. They were both Quakers, and of old Pennsylvania stock, being very devout in their religion and simple and unworldly, but successful people.

John Carey, Jr., son of John Carey, Sr., and father of Leander Carey, was bom in Ohio, March 17, 1818. For his first wife he mar¬ ried Eliza Moon, who was bom in Ohio, about 1820, and was married in that state. She died in 1847, and was the mother of eight children, two of whom died young and the others are mentioned as follows : Elias, Pleasant, Charles, Panina, Margaret, and Susanna, all of whom are deceased, except the last, who is now Mrs. Scott of Fairmount town¬ ship. John Carey after the death of his first wife brought his family to Wayne county, Indiana, and there married Mrs. Lydia Hollings¬ worth, who was bom a Jones, daughter of Richard and Hannah (Thomas) Jones. Some years after thqir marriage John Carey and wife moved to Grant county, settling in Fairmount township, and acquired ownership of considerable land both in that township and in Mill township. Their home was many years in Fairmount township, but late in life he moved to Jonesboro, and died here in July, 1895, his wife surviving him and passing away in Fairmount in 1909. She was then very old, having been born in 1822. Both were birthright Quakers, and for forty-five years John Carey was a hardworking and faithful preacher of the Friends church. He lived up to his creed, and was a man of deep spiritual nature, and one of the best evangelists of his locality. While he succeeded in business he was ever ready to neglect his own affairs in order to carry on his religious work. In politics he remained true to the Republican party until 1884, but after that was a Prohibitionist. By his second wife John Carey had eight children, and Leander was fourth among them. These children are mentioned as follows: Richard; John T., in whose sketch found elsewhere in this work are given a number of other details concerning this interesting family stock ; Isaac ; Leander ; Lindlay M. ; Hannah J. ; Eliza, deceased ; and Anna. All are living and married except Eliza, who died after her marriage to Thomas J. Pierce and she left three children.

Leander Carey was first married in Fairmount on September 3, 1875, to Minerva, a daughter of Jesse and Sarah Reece. Her parents were early settlers of Grant county, and died in their county. Mrs. Minerva Carey died in Kansas July 3, 1882. She was the mother of three children: Lillie H., who died at the age of eighteen; Jesse R., and Eliza J., both of whom died in the same year as their mother. Rev. Jesse Reece, father of Mrs. Carey was a well known Quaker preacher, and his daughter was reared and held to that faith all her life.

While living in Nebraska, Mr. Carey married for his second wife, Miss Mary Julia Munns, who was bom in Decatur county, Indiana, May 18, 1855, was reared in her native county, and was a daughter of Archibald and Sallie (Miller) Munns, both now deceased. Her father died in Rush county, Indiana, January 1, 1910, and her mother passed away in Grant county in 1908. The Munns family were Methodists in religion. Mr. and Mrs. Carey have no children. They are members of the Methodist Protestant church. For many years Mr. Carey sup¬ ported the Republican party, but is now a Prohibitionist, both in prin¬ ciple and in action.

Mr. Carey is the acknowledged leader of the Carey family in this part of Indiana, and was for two years president of the Carey Annual Reunion, and had done a great deal to keep the various branches of the name in touch with each other, and to stimulate pride and interest in the family lineage.

John C. Knight, M. D. After graduating with the class of 1881 from the Kentucky School of Medicine, Dr. Knight first offered his professional services to the community of Jonesboro, where he was already known as a hard-working student and later as a teacher. Pat¬ ronage was not long in coming, and for thirty years he has been well established, not only as a first-class doctor, but as a man of influential citizenship. Of the physicians in practice at Jonesboro, when he opened office, all are now gone, and he is therefore dean of the local fraternity. Dr. Knight has membership and is a former president of the County Medical Society, and also belongs to the State Society and the American Medical Association, while he is a member of the United States district examining board for marine and military service.

John C. Knight was born in Madison county, Indiana, October 24, 1856. His education was acquired in the Grant County schools, and owing to the early loss of his parents he was reared largely in the homes of friends and began doing for himself when a boy. His father, Sebbom G. Knight, was born in the County of Essex at Colchester. Eng¬ land, about 1820, and was the only one of his family to leave England and establish a home in America. He grew up and . was educated in his native locality, and when a young man of about eighteen years started for the United States, making the voyage in a sailing vessel, and from the Atlantic Coast came on to Grant county and finally established himself in Madison county, where he married Mary E. Parsons. She was born about 1825, in Madison county, of one of the very earliest fam¬ ilies there, and after their marriage they located on a farm in Grant county but eventually returned to Madison county where the mother died in 1858 while in middle life. The father died there in 1860. They were good Christian people, and their family of children are stated as fol¬ lows: William, who died in Iowa, in 1909 at the age of fifty-six was a farmer, and left three children as follows: John E., Birnet D., wife of William Dove ; and Glenn, all of whom live in Iowa, and are married with the exception of Glenn. Mary E., the second child, married Sylvanis C. Thompson, who died November 25, 1913, and she now lives in Marion. The next in order of birth was Dr. Knight. Charles E., a Grant county farmer in Jefferson township, had by his first marriage a daughter, Josephine, who is now the wife of Charles Lloyd of Fairmount. One daughter was bom to the doctor's father by a second wife, and is now Mrs. Elizabeth Davidson of Fairmount.

Dr. Knight was fostered through his childhood and youth largely by Thomas Harvey and wife of Grant county, who are now deceased. He came to Jonesboro, and by his own efforts attained an education in the high school, and subsequently earned money as a teacher to put him through medical college. He was married in Jonesboro to Miss Josephine Wilson, who was bom in 1860 in Grant county, received her education in this vicinity, and her parents were William G. and Keziah (Spence) Wilson, both now deceased. Her father was born in Virginia, and her mother in Ohio, and they were married in Grant county, and died at Jonesboro. William Wilson was one of the early cabinet makers and undertakers at Jonesboro, and his vocation recalls an older custom. In earlier days, at a death, an order was placed with a coffin maker for a coffin according to the proper measurements, since the undertakers car¬ ried no stock of such merchandise, and all the coffins were made by hand and to order. William Wilson filled that very important service in the community of Jonesboro for a number of years. The Wilsons were Presbyterians in religion. Mrs. Knight died at Jonesboro, Novem¬ ber 16, 1908. She was for many years an active worker in the Methodist church, a member of the Ladies Aid and the Missionary Society, and was greatly missed both in church circles and in her home. Dr. Knight and wife had no children. He has membership in the Jonesboro Lodge, No. 109, A. F. & A. M., and the Knight Templar Commandery, belongs to the subordinate lodge, No. 82, of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at Jonesboro, and has filled all the chairs in lodge, No. 102 of the Knights of Pythias. A Republican in politics, he has for the past twenty years at different times served as a member of the board of education, and is now secretary of the board.

William Embree. One of the oldest families of Grant county, and one which has furnished prominent and useful citizens in every walk of life, is that bearing the name of Embree, which for eighty years has been represented in this part of Indiana. In business, in agriculture, in the professions and in public and private life, those bearing this name have proved themselves capable and worthy of every trust and the name has become known as synonymous with integrity and upright living. A worthy representative of this old and honored family is found in the person of William Embree, a farmer of the younger generation, who is carrying on successful operations in section 12, Center township. He , was born on the farm on which he now resides, March 27, 1883, and is a son of Silas and Sarah A. (Lugar) Embree.

The founder of the family in Grant county was Jesse Embree, who came to this locality from Ohio, and passed the remaining years of his life in developing a farm from the timber. His son, John Embree, was a child of two years when brought here, and he continued his father's work in cultivating land and in maintaining the family reputation for honesty and industry. John Embree married Sophia Yont, and they became the parents of several children, of whom two grew to maturity: Silas; and Mary, who became the wife of A. J. Lugar, and is now deceased, having been the mother of three children. Silas Embree, the father of William Embree, was born on the old family homestead place in section 12, Center township, and on reaching manhood adopted the vocation of his fathers, becoming a tiller of the soil, an occupation which occupied his attention during the entire period of his active life. He was successful in his operations, accumulating a nice property, and became known as one of his community's practical and substantial men. Mr. Embree married Sarah A. Lugar, and they became the parents of two children : Orville A. of Center township, who married Estella J. Love and has four children ; and William.

William Embree received his education in district school No. 1, in Center township, and in the meantime was thoroughly trained in agri¬ cultural work, having decided upon farming as his chosen field of endeavor. He was industrious and ambitious, and when about sixteen years of age left school to devote his entire time to farming, and at the time of his father's retirement he took over the management of the home place, of which he is now the owner. Mr. Embree has 160 acres under a high state of cultivation, this land being located five miles east of Marion, on the Monroe pike, a handsome property which he is steadily improving. His buildings are commodious, his land well ditched and drained, his machinery of the latest manufacture, and his stock sleek and well fed, and the able manner in which he is handling his affairs gives him the right to be named among the progressive young farmers of the county.

On June 30, 1908, Mr. Embree was married to Miss Debbie Wright, who was born July 5, 1890, in Fairmount township, Grant county, Indiana, and a graduate of the public schools of that locality. Two chil¬ dren have blessed the union of Mr. and Mrs. Embree: Dorothy E., born February 26, 1910 ; and Charles W., born November 3, 1911. In political matters Mr. Embree was a Republican until the campaign of 1912, at which time he transferred his allegiance to the new Progressive party, the policies of which he believed at the time to best protect the interests of the people. His activities in the political field, however, have been confined to supporting his party. He is a good and energetic citizen, and has made manifest a commendable public spirit on a number of occasions, while personally he is possessed of qualities which have won him a wide circle of sincere friends.

William Valentine Cox. Beautiful Greenwood Place in section thirty-one of Fairmount township and twenty acres across the range line in section thirty-six of Liberty township is the home of William Valentine Cox. This is one of the small, but in many ways, most attrac¬ tive and valuable places in the farming area of Grant county. A farmer all his life, Mr. Cox has devoted his energies rather to the inten¬ sive cultivation of his land than to the wholesale and somewhat waste¬ ful methods of old-fashioned agriculture. His specialty is the pro¬ duction of fruits, and the results he obtains from his small place are certainly gratifying. Practically every foot of the forty acres in Green¬ wood Place is employed for profitable use. The crops are apples, pears, plums, cherries and other varieties of fruits and his long experience as a fruit grower gives his judgment an authority which is safe to fol¬ low. Every acre of his land has been brought to a point of fertility where it produces at full capacity. Eighty or ninety bushels of corn to the acre are not an unusual yield on the Cox place, while in his special crop of tomatoes he grows from twelve to fifteen tons of that fruit to the acre. His oats will average more than fifty-five bushels to the acre, and a part of his farm is also down in alfalfa. The pre¬ vailing color of all the buildings on the place is white, and the white farm house and barns with silo^ in the midst of the green of the sur¬ rounding trees, makes a very effective rural picture. His silo has a capacity of fifty-five tons, and indicates another progressive feature of his farming methods, since he allows nothing to go to waste, and employs the best methods for keeping up the fertility of his land.

William Valentine Cox was born in Liberty township, of Grant county, forty-six years ago. His parents were William and Elizabeth (Wilson) Cox, an old and prominent family whose members and con¬ nections have long been identified with Grant county, and detailed information concerning the genealogy and careers of the family since it was established in this county will be found on other pages of this volume, particularly in the sketch of Nathan D. Cox.

William V. Cox grew up and received his education in the district schools. Farming has been his activity since boyhood and he has owned and occupied his present place since 1891, a period of twenty-two years. Mr. Cox was married in Fairmount City to Miss Idella Rush, who was born in Fairmount two months later in the same year in which her husband's birth occurred. Her early training was received in the Fairmount City schools. She was a daughter of Joseph and Ursulla (Tharp) Rush. Her father was born in Randolph county, North Carolina, and her grandfather, Azel Rush, came north to Grant county, Indiana, when Joseph was a boy. Here he grew up and during early manhood he mar¬ ried Mrs. Ursulla McFarland, whose maiden name was Tharp. Her first husband was Uriah McFarland, a soldier of the Union, who in one engagement was unhorsed, and from the effects of the wound received at that time never recovered. Joseph Rush died about 1871, and his widow subsequently married James Tuttle, who is also deceased, while she lives a hale and hearty old lady at her home in Fairmount. She and her three husbands were active members of the Wesleyan Methodist faith. Mrs. Cox was the only child of her father, and was still young when his death occurred. No children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Cox, but they reared a foster-daughter, Muriel, who was carefully trained in their home and had her education in the local schools. She was graduated from the Fairmount high school in 1910, and has given special attention to the study of music, in which she is unusually tal¬ ented. Mrs. Cox died October 6th, 1913. She was long a member of Black Creek Wesleyan church, and her husband still retains his mem¬ bership in that church. Formerly a Republican in politics, Mr. Cox in later years has given his allegiance to the Prohibition party, voting the ticket straight and doing what he can for the cause.

Jesse David Wright. About this name can be associated many interesting facts of Grant county family and local history. In the group of people related and in successive generations are a number of personalities who through practical business and influence have helped to mould the Grant county in its present form. Jesse David Wright has attained the distinction of threescore years and ten nearly all spent in this county, and while successful in a business way has also won esteem and the dignity attaching to an honorable gentleman.

Jesse David Wright was bom October 10, 1843, in Henry county, but in January of the next year his parents removed to Grant county, and his life has been spent in this locality. Caroline Sears was bora Octo¬ ber 21, 1842, and October 30, 1866, they were married and lived together until her death on September 2, 1906. The children bom to them are : Mrs. Lelia J. Jones, wife of Paul Jones; Arthur C. Wright, who mar¬ ried Miss Eva Johnson; Mrs. Mary Aber, wife of Max Aber; and Orville C. Wright, who married Miss Jessie Springer.

Mr. and Mrs. Paul Jones live in Zanesville, Ohio, where he is 'super¬ intendent of a division of the Pennsylvania Railroad. Mr. and Mrs. 0. C. Wright live in Fort Wayne, where he is employed as an electrical engineer, and Mr. and Mrs. Aber live in Kansas City, where he is engaged in the practice of law. Arthur C. Wright is the only one of Mr. Wright's children living in Marion, where he deals in builder's supplies. There are four children and four grandchildren. Mrs. Lelia Jones has a daughter, Miss Hilda Jones; Mrs. Mary Aber has two daughters, Misses Caroline and Mary Aber; and A. C. Wright has a son bearing the full name of his grandfather, Jesse David Wright.

When Mr. Wright's family was about him, the education of his children was uppermost in importance. Miss Lelia Wright, graduated from Earlham College, Miss Mary from DePauw University, and the two sons from Purdue - Arthur in scientific and Orville in the electrical course. All are doing well for themselves since assuming the responsi¬ bilities of life away from the childhood home. The Wright family home¬ stead is on Lincoln Boulevard - the Jonesboro road when the children lived there. Beside this family homestead Mr. Wright owns the farm where his father reared a family, just across the McFeely bridge along the Monroe pike, and it has always been profitable both as farm land and for the gravel-pit operated there. It is the first bottom along the Mississinewa and there are hills as high as the Grant county court house, a variety in landscape being a feature of this old farmstead of the Wright family. While the Wright family home remains furnished, Mr. Wright has divided his time among his children, also staying much at the hotel.

Jesse David Wright is a son of Joab and Melinda (Elliott) Wright. There were four sons and four daughters in the family, and the two brothers living are Milton Wright of Michigan, and Walter Wright of Oregon. Mrs. Belle Overman, wife of Clarkson Overman of Fairmount, is a sister. Mrs. Wright was a daughter of Christopher and Jeannette Sears, a prominent early-day Washington township family. Her sisters, Mrs. Maria Campbell, Mrs. Mary Kem and Mrs. Alice Brown are all that remain of the family.

While the Wrights were Quakers the Sears were Wesleyan Meth¬ odists at Fairview. Joab Wright had been a Friends' minister for many years - the old-fashioned type of honest Quaker, but in his early and active business life he combined farming and stock buying, and the son J. D. Wright has had the same occupation for twenty-five years being associated with Henry Wise in buying and shipping live¬ stock, and while subject to market fluctuations they seldom lost money on shipments.

While the Wright pioneer ancestry came from Tennessee, and the Elliotts from North Carolina, they were all actuated by the same impulse - the Northwest territory offered them a home free from the institution of slavery. The Sears' ancestry came into Indiana from Ohio, all coming early to Grant county, and all obtaining land while it was cheap and holding it for the advance in value. John and Jesse Wright, who were well known pioneer Friends, were brothers of Joab Wright. While J. D. Wright is not a native of Grant county, he has been here since only a few months old, and does not remember any¬ thing about any other home. While now very much alone in family relations, he is surrounded with every comfort for his material well¬ being

Nelson Donelson. The firm of Donelson & Broderick, formerly Donelson & Otto, butchers and meat dealers, began business at Upland in July, 1900. Mr. Donelson is an old and thoroughly experienced man, in this particular line of work, and has given to the people of Upland and vicinity the most sanitary and best stock market in the history of the village. Five years after Donelson & Otto began busi¬ ness, Mr. Broderick bought the interests of Mr. Otto, and since then the present firm has existed and flourished for eight years. They kill largely from their own stock, which they purchase in this locality, and they manufacture some table meat, such as sausage and other products. The business is well located in the center of the village, and they main¬ tain a well equipped shop, with a rendering room, a large cold storage plant, besides a slaughter house near the village limits. Mr. Donelson who is a practical butcher, looks after the business end very largely, while Mr. Broderick, his partner, is an expert meat cutter, and has given his attention to the actual work of the market. Nelson Donelson was born in LaSalle county, Illinois, near Seneca, on March 6, 1854. He was reared and educated there, and when a young man learned his trade, and in August, 1892, came to Marion, and with his brother, Oscar, bought a meat shop. Two years later they sold their first busi¬ ness and bought another establishment in South Marion, and after some years the brothers dissolved partnership. Nelson then invested in a shop in North Marion, and sixteen months later sold out and came to Upland. Here he has since concentrated his business energies with the exception of about two years, when he had a shop at Anderson, and also one at Converse. He returned to Upland and has been permanently identified with that village since 1905, when Mr. Broderick joined him.

Mr. Donelson is a son of Charles Donelson, who was born in Norway, grew up there, and learned the trade of blacksmith, and when still unmarried took passage on a sailing vessel which after a long and tedious -voyage landed him in New York City. He went westward and found a home in Illinois, and after a few years of work at his trade established a shop of his own in Ottawa, and besides the regular work of blacksmith manufactured plows and wagons, and developed a large enterprise. In 1853 he purchased a tract of land two and a quarter miles northeast of Seneca in LaSalle county, and in time became one of the largest and most prosperous land holders in that county. His death occurred on the old homestead there in 1897, and at his death he left an estate of six hundred and sixty acres. His wife had preceded him in death several years. Her maiden name was Susan Nelson, but she was a widow of a Mr. Thorson at the time of her marriage. She was bom at Kendall Corners, New York, a daughter of Norwegian parents who had come to America about 1800 on a sailing vessel which brought some three hundred Norwegians to this country. Her parents lived for a number of years in the East and about 1848 went to Illinois, and died at a good old age in LaSalle county, where they were known as farmers, and devout members of the Lutheran church. Mr. Nelson Donelsbn is one of a number of children as follows: Charles,' Nelson, Isabelle, who died at the age of two years; Cornelia, George, Oscar, now deceased; Mary and Bertha. All those still living are married except Mary, but the only one in Indiana is the Upland business man. Nelson Donelson was married in Grant county to Miss Lillie B. Mulkin, who was born in this state. They have no children. Mrs. Donelson is a working member in the Methodist Episcopal church.

and useful citizens, three generations have lived wholesome, normal lives, and have left the impress of their activity and influence in better communities, better farms, better roads and better social conditions. Finley H. Stephens of the third generation is proprietor of the Maple Grove Farm in Richland township, and while now a substantial farmer, was for a number of years among the successful teachers of the county.

Finley H. Stephens was born in Pleasant township,. Grant county, September 9, 1860, a son of Allen N. and Nancy (Elliott) Stephens. The father was born in either Wayne or Randolph county, Indiana, and came to Grant county when six years of age. He lived in Center, Pleas¬ ant and Richland townships, all his life, and died April 20, 1904, in Sweetser. He served one term as a commissioner of Grant county, and in politics was a Republican, and very active in his own party and a man of recognized ability and integrity of character. He belonged to the Methodist church, and was for many years active in both church and Sunday school, serving as a local preacher. He and his wife had eleven children, seven of whom are living in 1913 as follows: Sidney A., of Marion; F. H. Stephens; Helena, wife of John W. Stricter of Missouri; Alfred F., of Marion; Oliver B., of North Marion; Cruea L., wife of John H. Plummer of Wisconsin; Elbert R., of Marion, who is employed in the post office at the county seat.

Finley H. Stephens was reared on the home farm, and received his education first in the district schools and later in the Marion Normal College, then called just Marion Normal, and also the Angola school. For sixteen years he devoted the greater part of his time to teaching in Richland township, and during that time had no superior in the town¬ ship public school system as an instructor.

Mr. Stephens first married Anna B. Bash, a daughter of Michael Bash, a pioneer resident of Richland township, who entered land direct from the government, and its ownership has never been changed in name since his settlement. Mr. and Mrs. Stephens were married March 2, 1890, and the one son is Guy D., a graduate of the - common schools, also a graduate in the scientific course from Marion Normal, and now connected with the National Cash Register Company at Dayton, Ohio. The mother of this son and the first wife of Mr. Stephens died in 1893. For his second wife he married Theodosia Grose on August 3, 1895. She was bom in Howard county, Indiana. They are the parents of two living children: Agnes L., who graduated from the common schools in 1913; and Gladys. The family are members of the Methodist church, and Mr. Stephens has for many years been a Sunday school teacher. He is affiliated with Somerset Lodge No. 383, F. & A. M., and in politics is an active Republican. He served one year as township assessor, and has long been active in local affairs. His farm comprises eighty-nine acres, and he keeps it highly improved arid stocked with the best grade of animals, including thoroughbred Duroc and Poland China hogs. He raises all the general crops and feeds most of his grain to stock on his place.

Ellis Trent Stout, M. D. A successful physician of Uplatid since 1907, Dr. Stout in that year graduated from the medical department of Purdue University, and has since enjoyed a growing and prosperous general practice as a physician and surgeon. His work covers an exten¬ sive territory about Upland, and he also does most of the professional services for the various insurance companies at Upland. He is a mem¬ ber of the County and State Medical Societies, and the American Medi¬ cal Association.

medical profession continued his preparatory work in the Indiana State University for a while. He was also reading medicine under his father, and thus entered the final stages of his work at Purdue University well equipped, and began practice well fortified by practical experience and training.

Dr. Stout is of the second generation in his family identified with the medical profession in Grant county. His father, Dr. 0. L. Stout, who for upwards of thirty years was engaged in practice at Uplands is now living retired at Dodson, Montana. He was bom in 1854, studied medicine under Dr. Corey at Van Buren, Indiana, and sub¬ sequently graduated from the Kentucky school of medicine at Louis¬ ville, in the class of 1881. The first year was spent at Markel and in 1882 he located in Upland. When he left two or three years ago for the West, he had the distinction of being the oldest practicing physician in this section of Grant county. Dr. Stout is a son of John Stout, who was bom in Ohio, and a grandson of George Stout, who was bom in North Carolina, and wras of the old Quaker stock. , George Stout became an early farmer in Ohio, and in 1848 moved to Grant county from Darke county, and was one of the early settlers. He located on a farm in Monroe township and there he and his wife spent their last years, dying when at a good old age. They worshipped in the United Brethren Church. John Stout son of George was a boy in his teens when the family came from Darke county, Ohio, and grew to manhood in Grant county. John Stout and wife spent their last years at Upland, where they died, he being seventy-four and she sixty-nine years of age. Of their six sons, all are living but one, and all are now past fifty years of age. Dr. O. L. Stout and wife are active members of the Methodist '

Dr. Ellis T. Stout was married in Upland in 1903 to Miss Martha Brogneaux, who was bom in Belgium, and at the age of nine was brought to the United States by her parents, Pierre and Marie Brog- ' neaux, wTho located at Muncie, Indiana, where she completed her educa¬ tion. Dr. Stout and wife had two daughters : Frances M., nine years of age, and in the grade school, and Emily G., aged six. Dr. Stout is affiliated with the Masonic order and Knights of Pythias, and belongs to the College fraternity of Phi Beta Chi at Purdue. He is also a mem¬ ber of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks at Hartford city.

Robert Corder. A life of the highest respectability, worth as a busi¬ ness man and citizen, was that of the late Robert Corder, who for vnearly half a century lived at Jonesboro. While not conspicuous in public affairs, he was prosperous, was a kindly neighbor, did all that could be expected by his community, was devoted to his home and left the priceless legacy of an honored name.

Robert Corder was an Englishman, bora at Widford Hall, at Ipswich, in Essex county, England, August 22, 1823, and died at his home in Jonesboro, August 4, 1898, when nearly seventy-six years of age. He was of good old English stock and his parents, Thomas and Mary Corder, were both birthright Quakers, and spent all their lives in Es¬ sex County. The father died in middle life, and was followed in a few years by the mother. -

Robert Corder grew up and was trained to a mercantile career, be¬ ing employed in drygoods establishments in England. When twentysix years of age, and still unmarried, he emigrated to the United States, and from New York came on west to Grant county. His first occupa¬ tion in this county was as teacher, but subsequently he got into the general mercantile business at Jonesboro, and thereafter for nearly forty years his store was one of the centers of trade, and eventually became a landmark in the business district and always represented the strict integrity and square dealing of its proprietor. A few years be¬ fore his death he retired from business. Mr. Corder was a Democrat in politics, was always active and public-spirited when Jonesboro as a community was concerned, and was a man who outside his business was closely devoted to his home and family.

Robert Corder first married Elizabeth Winslow, a daughter of Seth Winslow, a family which has an extended history, going back a num¬ ber of generations in this country. She died in the prime of life and left four children: Mollie, who lives in Marion; Thomas, Sallie and Harry, all of whom married and had families, but are now deceased. For his second wife Mr. Corder married Sarah Van Horn, who died leaving two children, both of whom are deceased. Mr. Corder 's widow, who now lives at Jonesboro, was before her marriage Louisa Beals. She was born October 20, 1839, in Greene county, Tennessee, eight miles from the home of President Andrew Johnson. Her parents were Abner and Cerena (Peirce) Beals, who were natives of Tennessee, and Quakers in religion. Iler father, who died during the Civil war, was a farmer, but also was successful as a shoe maker and a manufacturer of linseed oil. After his death, the widow and her children moved north to Grant county, and she died at Jonesboro when sixty-four years of age. Mrs. Corder is a member of the Presbyterian church as was her husband. She occupies the comfortable home which her hus¬ band provided, and is living in comfort and plenty, and in the enjoy¬ ment of a large circle of friends.

George W. Hanmore. The people of Mill township during the past years have felt that the affairs of the town and especially of the schools were never entrusted to better hands than the man¬ agement of the present trustee, George W. Hanmore. Mr. Han¬ more is a well known young business man and represents a family which has been identified with Grant county since about the middle of the last century. His ancestry on the paternal line is Irish. His grand¬ father Martin Hanmore, Sr., was born in Roscommon county, Ireland, and was of old stock and Catholic in religion. Martin, Sr., was a tiller of the soil, and in his home country married Mary Roan. Several of their children were bom in Ireland, and they then started for America in 1856, landing in New Orleans, and from that city coming up the Mississippi River to the Middle States. Martin Hanmore, like a great many of his compatriots, found his first employment on a railroad. In a year or so he arrived in Grant county and settled on land in the Mississinewa Valley in Mill township. There Martin Hanmore, Sr., and wife, lived and died. His death occurred when he was about fifty years of age, while his wife survived a long time and was past eighty years of age at her death. They were faithful Catholics in religion, and wor¬ shiped in that faith until the close of their lives.

Of their children was Martin Hanmore, Jr., who was born in Ire¬ land, October 16, 1845, and who was about ten years old when he crossed the ocean with his parents. He had two brothers: Thomas, now de¬ ceased, married and left two daughters, both of whom are married ; and Dr. John J. %Hanmore, who is now serving as coroner in Champaign county, Ohio, is married and has a son, who is also married. There were also two sisters : Mary, wife of Robert Brush wilier, of Detroit, and with a son and daughter living, and Jane E., wife of J. E. Parker, of Chicago, and Mrs. Parker by a former marriage has one daughter. Martin Hanmore, Jr., grew up in Grant county, and since reaching his majority has been steadily engaged as a farmer. Recently lie re¬ tired and now lives comfortably in Jonesboro. The people of this county have long esteemed him as one of the substantial representa¬ tive citizens, and a man whose substantial qualities have made him a valued factor in local life. In Mill township, Martin Hanmore, Jr., married Sarah A. Entsminger, of one of the old families in this section. She was bom in Mill township, November 3, 1846, and her entire life has been spent here. She and her husband for many years have been active members of the Presbysterian church, Martin Hanmore, Jr., hav¬ ing left the faith of his father. In politics Martin Hanmore is a Demo¬ crat, and has voted and worked for the good of his party. Mrs. Han¬ more comes of a family which was for many years prominent in Vir¬ ginia, and has lived in Grant county since 1830. She is a granddaugh¬ ter of John and a daughter of David Entsminger, both of whom were natives of Virginia, and came more than eighty years ago to Mill town¬ ship in Grant county. As tillers of the soil and owners of considerable amounts of land, the Entsmingers identified themselves substantially with the pioneer Grant county, and the name has been esteemed and honored in this vicinity ever since. Grandfather John Entsminger was quite old when he died, and David was near middle life. John Ents¬ minger married Sarah Knick, of Virginia, who died in Grant county when quite old. David Entsminger married Melvina Adamson, of Grant county, Indiana. The Entsmingers had been Presbyterians in religion for a number of generations. John Entsminger was a charter member of the First Presbyterian church in Mill township. David Entsminger and wife had the following children: Levi, John, Matilda, bavid, and Mrs. Martin Hanmore.

George W. Hanmore is one of the three living children. His brother, David E. Hanmore, died after his marriage and had one child, also de¬ ceased. Rosetta Hanmore is the wife of Albert L. Parks, a farmer in Mill township ; their children are Ora 0. and Delight, both of whom are married. John M. Hanmore is a resident in Mill township, follows farm¬ ing, and by his marriage to lone Scrambling has one son, Keith.

George W. Hanmore grew up in Mill township, where he was bom February 25, 1880. His education was given by the local schools, be¬ ing a graduate of the Gas City high school in the class of 1900; and later taking a course in the Marion Business College. He studied embalming, of which he is a graduate, and for several years practiced in Mill town¬ ship but is now retired from that profession, and handles a general line of insurance. He has done a prosperous business in all the under¬ takings to which he has devoted his attention.

In November, 1908, Mr. Hanmore was elected township trustee, and is the first Democrat elected to that office in the history of Mill town¬ ship. His proficiency and careful administration have well justified his choice. Mr. Hanmore was married in this county to Miss Ethel Fern Friedline, who was bora in Geneva, Indiana, in 1888, was edu¬ cated in this county. They are the parents of one child, George W. Jr., bom September 30, 1911. Mr. and Mrs. Hanmore are interested in religious matters, his church being the Presbyterian and hers the Meth¬ odist. He has for a number of years been one of the local leaders in the Democratic party.

Jerome Shaffer. A firm in Upland that since its establishment in 1910 has acquired a prosperous place in the large business in its special lines is that of Miles & Shaffer, contractors and builders. They have successfully undertaken and carried out many contracts in both public and private construction work, and are both men of the highest stand¬ ing, well entitled to the confidence shown them by the community. They became associated as a firm in March 1910. Mr. Shaffer has been best known through the years of his active life as a manufacturer of tile and brick, a business which he has followed at Upland and in

Jerome Shaffer was born in Highland county, Ohio, May 24, 1864. His home was in that locality and his education acquired through attendance at the local schools until' he was nineteen, and since then he has lived in Monroe township of Grant county, up to 1901 when he moved to Upland. His parents were Henry and Lydia (Sprinkle) Shaffer, both of whom were born in Highland county, Ohio, and came of Pennsylvania German stock. Grandfather Adam Shaffer was born in Germany, came to America and settled on a farm in Pennsylvania, and in that state married a Miss Roush. At a very early day they left Pennsylvania, and settled on a tract of government land, in High¬ land county, Ohio. Their settlement there occurred in the decade of the twenties, and so early were they on the scene that it was necessary to blaze a trail four miles through the woods in order to reach their destination. They had all the experiences of pioneers, lived in a log cabin for several years, and by the thrift and industry which are char¬ acteristic of the better class of Germans got ahead in the world, and lived as substantial units of the community.

Adam Shaffer died in Highland county at the age of eighty-nine. Both he and his wife were among the early Lutheran people in that vicinity and helped organize the church. Henry Shaffer and wife in 1880 left Highland, county, and moved out to Kansas, but conditions in that state Vere so unfavorable that they soon returned to their old home, and lived out their lives in Highland county, where he died at the age of eighty-nine and she when eighty-three years of age. Long years seem to be a characteristic of the Shaffer stock. Both parents were faithful members of the German Lutheran church, and the politi¬ cal faith of the household has been generally Democratic.

Jerome Shaffer was the seventh in a family of ten sons and two daughters, all of whom grew up and ten of them married and had children of their own. Nine of these are still living. A daughter, Mrs. Gilbert Rhodes lives in Van Buren township, and a son Samuel in Monroe township, while all the others are in Highland county, Ohio.

Jerome Shaffer is a man of a great deal of business push and enter¬ prise, and as a farmer, manufacturer, and contractor has made more than an ordinary success in life. He owns considerable property, and has an attractive residence on east Washington street in Upland.

In this village he was married in 1897 to Miss Cora L. Horner. She was born in Upland, and is a graduate of the local schools. Her par¬ ents were Calvin, and Phoebe (Wright) Horner, the former a native of Ohio, and the latter of Monroe township in Grant county. They were married in the latter township, and still live on their old farm there, which has been their home since they became man and wife. Mrs. Horner is a member of the Quaker faith. The two children of Mr. and Mrs. Shaffer are : Ralph, born July 9, 1901, and now in the seventh grade of the public school, and Earl, born July 1, 1909. Mr. Shaffer was reared in the faith of the Lutheran church, while his wife is a member of the Methodist denomination. He is a Democrat in politics, and fraternally is affiliated with Lodge No. 352 and Endampment No. 13 of the Odd Fellows at Upland.

Benjamin F. McManaman. The McManaman homestead on section fifteen of Green township is a pleasant, comfortable place, a grateful retreat for the declining years of life, and there among the trees and meadows, and fertile fields, B. F. McManaman and his good wife are enjoying the quiet and contentment which are the best fruits of long and worthily spent years.

Benjamin F. McManaman is a native of Indiana, born in Harrison township of Dearborn county, September 4, 1841, a son of William and Isabelle (Lynn) McManaman. The father was born in Pennsylvania, in 1808, and was of Scotch descent. His wife was a native of Franklin county, Indiana. William McManaman moved from Pennsylvania to Franklin county, Indiana, where he was married and he and his wife later went to Dearborn county, which was their home until death. They were the parents of eight children, five of whom are living in 1913, namely: James, of Dearborn county; George W.* a farmer of Green township of Grant county; Benjamin F., John F., of Dearborn county; Martha J., wife of William J. Waltz, of Harrison, Ohio.

On a farm in Dearborn county, Benjamin F. McManaman passed his boyhood and youth, and when not employed in the work of the home attended the local schools until he was eighteen years old. He then took up farming as a regular occupation, and continued to live at home until he was past twenty-nine years of age. On December 1, 1870, he mar¬ ried Miss Frances A. Scofield, who was born in Franklin county, Indiana, January 16, 1848, a daughter of William and Mary Ann (Marshall) Scofield. Her father was bom in England, and came to the United States when eight years old. The mother was born near Fairfax Court¬ house in Virginia. There were eight children, six girls and two boys, in the Scofield family, and Mrs. McManaman is now the only one living. They were named Juliette, William, Margaret, Henriette, Edward (who was a soldier during the Rebellion and was killed in the last battle Sher¬ man 's men fought), Nancy, Frances A., and Mary J. Mrs. McManaman was reared in Franklin county Indiana, and attended the public schools, and was well equipped for a useful part in life. After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. McManaman lived in Dearborn county, later in Franklin county, for one year, and in 1881 moved to Grant county, locating in Green township on the farm which is still their home. Their first shelter and residence in that township was a little log cabin that stood on the land which has long since been replaced by a comfortable and modern residence. Their farm is four and a half miles south of Swayzee, on the Grindle extension pike. Mr. and Mrs. McManaman have one son, Eddie, born September 13, 1871. He attended the common schools and for his first wife married Mettie Nicholson, of Liberty township. After her death he married Lizzie Smart, of Adams county, Ohio. There is one son by this second marriage, Marshall, aged thirteen, he having recently completed his course in the common schools of Green township. Mr. and Mrs. McManaman also raised a girl, Nellie Helms, who resided with them from the time she was five years of age until her marriage. She is now the wife of Roscoe Bryant and they have three daughters, Zelma, Wilma and Olive. Mr. Thrailkill, a neighboring farmer, lived with Mr. and Mrs. McManaman for twenty years, and Clinton Barfin, a nephew of Mrs. McManaman, has lived wTith them for the last eight years. Many young men have lived a year or two with them and been married from their home.

Mr. McManaman is a Democrat in politics, but has never been active in party affairs. At his homestead he and his wife own three hundred and twenty-two and a half acres of fine land, and have all the comforts and facilities of a modem Indiana farmer. He has now retired from the heavy work of agriculture and lives at ease, allowing others to bear the burden which he carried for so many years.

Samuel A. Connelly. On February 1, 1907, Samuel A. Connelly was confirmed in his previous appointment as postmaster at Upland, and has served continuously at this writing nearly seven years, being now in his second term. His reappointment to the office came on

February 6, 1911, and his present term expires in February, 1915. The Upland postoffice is a high-class office, and besides the postmaster the business is conducted by an assistant, who is Mrs. Connelly, one clerk, and two rural carriers. The rural routes cover fifty-four miles of country highways surrounding* Upland. The annual volume of business at the Upland office, amounts to about thirty-eight hundred dollars. Mr. Connelly's service has been highly satisfactory to all patrons of the office. He has used his energy and influence to extend the service in every .possible manner and has been the incumbent dur¬ ing a period when more important changes have been inaugurated in the postal service than in any similar period of history. Owing to the cosmopolitan population at Upland, Mr. Connelly writes foreign mouey orders to nearly every European nation. Previous to his appointment as postmaster Mr. Connelly was for five years and a half a rural carrier, over route number twenty-six from the Upland Station, and thus his record in the government mail service has been continuous for twelve years. Samuel A. Connelly was born in Jefferson township, of Grant county, January 26, 1862. He is one of the older of the family of chil¬ dren born to John W. and Rebecca J. (Clevenger) Connelly. John W. Connelly was born at Williamsburg, Virginia, in 1825, and died in Grant county in 1893. Grandfather Rev. John Connelly was a minister of the Methodist faith, from 1808 to the early twenties was elder pre¬ siding over a large district including portions of Virginia, West Vir¬ ginia, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. Soon after leaving that work, he emigrated west and settled in Wayne county, Indiana, among the pio¬ neers, where he lived to the venerable age of fourscore. John W. Con¬ nelly was a small child when the family settled in Wayne county, grew up there, was well educated for his time, and spent about thirty years of his life in the work of the school room. He came to Grant county in 1857, and is well remembered by many of the older residents who were his pupils. Along with teaching he combined the vocation of farming, and in 1871 bought in Monroe township, a tract of land, which has since been known as the Connelly homestead.. John W. Connelly married Rebecca Clevinger, of an old and prominent family of Virginia, and Wayne county, and she was born in 1834 and died in 1909. More detailed information concerning the earlier generations of this family will be found in the article concerning Harry T. Con¬ nelly on other pages of the history. John W. Connelly and wife had eight children, namely: John, who lives on the old farm in Grant county; Bell, who married Noah Johnson, and died in 1890, leaving three children, Alva, Elva and Bertha; Samuel, now postmaster of Upland; Mary, who died in infancy; Joseph who is an oil man in Oklahoma, and is married but has no children; Dora, wife of J. P. Richard, a resident of Tulsa, Oklahoma, and their children are Hugo and Homer ; Flora, who died at the age of twenty-two years, and Harry T., who is cashier of the Upland State Bank.

Samuel A. Connelly was reared and educated in Grant county, which has been his home through practically his entire life. After a few early experiences in different lines of work he engaged in the livery business, and finally was employed as one of the early rural mail car¬ riers in Grant county, and has thus followed practically one line of public service for a dozen years. Mr. Connelly is a man of progressive spirit, and contributes liberally of his time and means to the advance¬ ment of everything that will improve local conditions. He is an active Republican.

and Anna (Pugh) Horner, both now deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Con¬ nelly have two children, Dorie H., who graduated from the Upland high school in 1908, and is now serving as clerk under her father in the post office, and Harry Legler, aged twenty-two, who was educated in the grammer and high schools of Upland and is now in the life insurance business in that village. Mr. and Mrs. Connelly are both Methodists, and take an active part in fraternal affairs. Mr. Connelly belongs to the Arcana Lodge, No. 427, of the Masonic Order, while Mrs. Connelly belongs to the. Eastern Star at Hartford City, and is a past official in the Rebecca Lodge, No. 342, at Upland. Mr. Con¬ nelly belongs to the Encampment degree of Odd Fellowship in Upland, and is past chancellor commander of the Knights of Pythias Lodge, his wife being past chief of the Pythian Sisters, No. 311. Both of his sons are members of the Masons.

John Kearns. Mill township has some splendid farms, but for its acreage, probably none is better in quality and more skillfully man¬ aged, than that of John Kearns in section one of the township. Its one hundred and thirty-two acres are all highly cultivated, and Mr. Kearns is one of those progressive farmers, who understand the profit to be derived from so-called mixed farming, so that he feeds practically all his grain and forage crops to stock on the place. His livestock are also of a more than average grade, and he has found it profitable and good business to keep the best of cattle and hogs and horses and his perma¬ nent improvement are likewise of a high order. He has a large and comfortable white frame house, and a good barn.

John Kearns was born at Jonesboro in Mill township May 13, 1863. He represents an Irish family, whose founder arrived in this country an emigrant entirely dependent on the work of his hands, and who eventually acquired a place of influence as a citizen of Grant county, and was the owner of the estate now cultivated by his son. John Kearns has spent all his life in Mill township, and lived with the family for thirty-five years before he became owner of his present place. His parents were Thomas and Anna (Murphy) Kearns, both of whom wrere born in County Mayo, Ireland. His parents on both sides lived and died in their native land, and were tillers of the soil. The Kearns family stock is noted for its long lives. The father of Thomas attained to the wonderful age of one hundred and eight years. The religion of the family in all the various generations has been Catholic. Thomas Kearns, one of a family of children, was born in 1809, and in 1848 came to America. The sailing vessel on which he was a passenger encountered rough seas and variable winds, and was three months and thirteen days in crossing the Atlantic. When it landed its pas¬ sengers at New Orleans, the boat itself had several times narrowly escaped shipwreck, and its passengers and crew were suffering from ship-fever, and all of them nearly starved. Thomas Kearns was so weak when the vessel arrived at dock, that he had to crawl ashore on his hands and knees. He recovered and came north up the Mississippi and Ohio rivers, and soon found work in railway construction labor in Ohio. For that hard manual toil he got fifteen dollars a month, and from those wages accumulated the little fund which gave him his real start in the world. Subsequently he came to Grant county, and here was employed in building ditches and digging wells. He was not only an industrious, but an economical man, and with his earnings finally went back to New Orleans to marry the girl whom he had known in Ireland, Miss Anna Murphy. After their marriage they came to Grant county and located at Jonesboro, where Thomas Kearns con- tinued his work and built up a prosperous business as a contractor for ditch and well digging. The accumulations from that business were finally invested in the one hundred and thirty-two acres of land now owned and occupied by his son. Thomas Kearns died near Gas City, in February, 1886, and his wife had passed away on the site of what is now Gas City in July, 1871. Her death occurred about the time Gas City was laid out and started as a village. Thomas Kearns owned sixty-two acres of land included within the present limits of Gas City, and he sold that to the company which started one of the best known little cities in the gas belt. Thomas Kearns and wife lived and died in the faith of the Catholic church. Their children were : Kate or Katherine, who is unmarried and lives on a farm in Mill township with her brother Joseph; Grace, who also lives with Joseph; William, who is unmarried and is in Illinois ; Sadie, who is employed in Marion, but has her home with her brother Joseph in Gas City; Thomas, was acci¬ dentally killed near his home on the Pennsylvania Railroad, and was unmarried.

Mr. John Kearns was married in Gas City to Miss Maggie Riley, who was borih in County Mayo, Ireland, about 1870, and when a young woman, seventeen years of age, she came alone to the United States and located in Grant county, where she has lived ever since. She is the mother of five children, namely: Thomas, Joseph, William, John, Michael. All but the youngest are of public school age. Mr. and Mrs. Kearns worship in the Catholic church, and in politics he is Inde¬ pendent.

Alfred M. Curry-*. An industry which more than any other has brought a large prosperity to Upland both in the way of population and increased means of supplying their wants, is the Upland Flint Glass Bottle Company. This company established its plant in Upland in the fall of 1911. Its superintendent and general manager is Alfred M. Curry, one of the best men in his business who has a practical knowl¬ edge of bottle making^ in all its details, having become a glass blower ?s apprentice in boyhood, and having proved not only a skill in the trade but also an ability as a director of men. This corporation has its prin¬ cipal offices in Chicago, and the chief officers are Chicago men, as fol¬ lows: A. M. Foster, president; E. G. Foster, vice president; W. C. Forbes, secretary; E. N. Peterson, treasurer. The Upland plant has been working steadily since it was established, and has a large product, aggregating about six: hundred gross of bottles every day. The bottles are of many sizes and sorts, and much of the output is of the finer grade required by apothecaries. The plant never stops operations either night or day, and about two hundred men qnd boys find their means of livelihood at this industry.

Alfred M. Curry has been with the company for a number of years. For six years he* was one of the local officials in the company's plant at Mill Grove, Indiana. His practical experience in the glass and bot¬ tle making business covers about eighteen years. Mr. Curry wTas born in Hartford City, about fifty years ago, was reared and educated there, and since 1895 his activities have been chiefly centered at Mill Grove, at Mt. Vernon, Ohio, and at Upland. He was assistant superintendent at Mill Grove for the Foster Company.

Mr. Curry is a son of Aaron S. and Eliza (Ewing) Curry. His father, who was born at Columbus, Ohio, in 1823, was married at Old Steubenville, in Randolph county, Indiana, to Miss Ewing, who was bom near Red Key, Indiana, in 1832. In Randolph county, Aaron Curry followed his trade as a tanner, and a short time before the war located in Hartford City. A few years after the war he gave up the tanning business and moved to his farm at Mill Grove, where he lived until the death of his wife ifi 1890. After that he spqpt a number of years at his old home in .Columbus, Ohio, and then returned to Indiana, and died at the home of his son in 1905. Alfred Curry is one of quite a large family, five sons and one daughter being still living, and all are married, and all are farmers except him.

Mr. Alfred M. Curry was married in Blackford county, Indiana, nearly thirty years ago to Miss Susan Edwards, who was born in Blackford county, Indiana. They are the parents of four children, as follows: Clyde E., a clerk in the office of the Upland Bottle Company, is a graduate of the Marion Normal College and the business college in the same city, and by his marriage to Mazie Bullock has one child, Rod¬ ney Earl. Murle who was educated in the Normal College at Marion, spent four terms in teaching, and is now the wife of D. D. Zimmerman of Muncie. Maybelle, educated in the Mill Grove High school and at the Normal college is a teacher of music in Upland. Mr. Curry's par¬ ents were active members of the Methodist church and he and his own family worship in the same denomination. In politics he is a Repub¬ lican and fraternally is affiliated with Wabasset Tribe of the Improved Order of Red Men at Mill Grove.

Lewis C. Pence. Now nearing the age of threescore and ten, Lewis C. Pence has spent all but about three years of his lifetime in Grant county, and is one of the beet known of Sims township citizens. He has given his energies with successful results to farming, and is one of the men who had practically nothing to begin with and yet have established an enviable prosperity, and are now accounted among the most substan¬ tial men of their community. Mr. Pence has a fine farm located in sec¬ tions twenty-seven, twenty-eight, thirty-three and thirty-four of Sims township, this place being known all over the western half of the county as Victor Farm, located a mile south and a mile west of Swayzee, on the Curless extension gravel road. Although the farm lies in three sections the land adjoins.

Lewis C. Pence was bom in Champaign county, Ohio, April 18, 1844. His parents were David and Anna (Smith) Pence. The father was bom in the State of Virginia, April 3, 1813, and came to Ohio when a young man, where he met and married his wife, who was a native of Champaign county. In the fall of 1847, they moved from Ohio to Grant county, locating in Sims township, where the father entered eighty acres of wild land from the government. He was a man of great industry, and added to his first holdings, until at one time he possessed six hun¬ dred acres of land. Throughout this part of Grant county he enjoyed a large acquaintance and the respect of the entire community. He was one of the liberal supporters of the primitive Baptist church, and in politics a Democrat. He and his wife had thirteen children, six of whom are living in 1913. To each of his children he gave a start in life and helped them to acquire homes of their own. The living children are Andrew J. ; Lewis C. ; John S., of Sims township; C. G. of Swayzee; David S., of Sims township; and Mary E., wife of Josephus Go win, whose home is near Wichita, Kansas.

Lewis C. Pence was reared on the old homestead in Grant county, attended a private school as a boy, and as a boy began working and giving all his attention to the farm. He continued at home until he was twentyone, and in September, 1865, married Miss Mary J. Mauller, who was bora in Grant county, and educated in the schools of this locality. In 1865 they moved to the farm in section thirty-four which has been the home of Mr. Pence to the present time. He started with eighty acres, and is now owner of two hundred and nineteen acres. It is well improved land, is ditched and drained, and has first-class buildings, and is culti¬ vated to the most profitable degree. Of the two children bom to Mr. Pence by his first wife, one only is living, Anna U., wife of L. E. Hummell, of Sims township, and Vieva, wife of David Knull, of Sims town¬ ship, is now deceased. After the death of the first Mrs. Pence, Mr. Pence, on April 24, 1874, married Christina Gowin, who was bom in Ripley county, Indiana, was educated in the public schools and is a capable home-maker and very popular in social circles in Sims township. To this union have been b6m six children : Daisy May, wife of C. I. Goble of Sims township; Ernest, who married Pearl Outland of Sims town¬ ship; Winnie E., deceased; Emma P., wife of Joe Malston of Howard county; Raymond V., a student in the University of Indiana; and an infant that died unnamed. Mr. Pence is a deacon in the primitive Bap¬ tist church, and in politics is a Democrat. For eight years he held the office of justice of the peace. He is one of the stockholders in the First National Bank of Swayzee, and enjoys the thorough respect of the busi¬ ness community.

J. E. Smith. Few men have been able to devote themselves to two lines as widely diverging as those that have held the attention of J. E. Smith, of Gas City, Indiana, and accomplish real success in either or both of them. This, however, has been the unusual fortune of Mr. Smith, who as general agent for the Pennsylvania lines, with head¬ quarters at this point, is no less successful as a writer of feature arti¬ cles and short stories. Numerous magazines and journals have brought forth special articles from his pen, and the Railroad Man's Magazine especially has shown itself interested in his work. For seventy con¬ secutive months this publication has featured a four thousand word article of Mr. Smith's, and in addition to liberal remuneiation for his work, the journal has given unstinted praise for the originality and general literary merit of his productions, which have made them so desirable in their columns. The Black Cat and other fiction magazines, equally well known have published his short stories, and he is recog¬ nized as one of the successful journalists of the times. It should he stated here that Mr. Smith devotes only his spare hours to this work, which has been a pastime with him rather than a business, and his duties with the Pennsylvania lines have had their full share in his attention.

Mr. Smith is a native son of Indiana, born near Greentown, in Howard county, Indiana, and he is a son of Reuben W. and Matilda E. (Franklin) Smith. The Smith family is one of the oldest of American families, and the line of descent from the first of this particular branch of the widespread Smith tribe is much as follows: John Smith, of English ancestry, about one hundred years ago settled in Richmond, Indiana, and he was there known as the first general merchant and blacksmith in the place, as well as being almost the first settler. He was one who had much to do with settling the community, and history has accorded to him his proper place in the annals of his time. His son Robert was followed by another, John, who became the father of Dr. Reuben Smith, father of J. E. Smith of this review. Thus is established, without going deeply into biography and history, the line of descent from the first John Smith of Richmond, Indiana, to J. E. Smith whose name initiates this review, and who has, like his ancestors, been identified through all his life with the state of Indiana.