Grant County, Indiana - The whole text, 1914 (part 6 of 32)

John W. Cox belongs to an old Quaker family of that name, orig¬ inally from North Carolina. In the generation including his own grand¬ father were some four or five of the name, who, after their marriage in North Carolina, came north and found homes in Indiana, most of them in Grant county. His grandfather was Joshua Cox, and besides Joshua several grand-uncles and grand-aunts came to Indiana, named as fol¬ lows: Mincher, Samuel, William and Julia. These different members of the Cox family became prominent in their respective communities, and all were of the Friends church. Joshua Cox and his wife, Rachael Cox, came to Indiana in 1830 and spent the remainder of their lives in Morgan county, where they reared their children. These children are named as follows: Uriah, who married and moved out to Richland, Iowa, where he died, leaving children, Joshua, John, Hannah, Enoch and Rachael ; Edith and her husband also died in Iowa, apd left a family of children; the next in order of birth was William Cox, father of John W. ; Nathan married Malinda Overman, and had children, Syl¬ vester, Seth, Isaiah and Rachael; J. Zimri Cox married, had a family of five children, and he and his wife died in the same year. Hannah, the widow of Amps Hiatt, lives at her home in Iowa, and has a family of children.

William Cox, father of John W., was born in North Carolina in 1824, and was six years of age when the family moved to Morgan county. When he was about twenty years of age he visited his uncle's family in Grant county, and while there met Miss Betsey Wilson, who was born in North Carolina in 1826, a daughter of John Wilson, who settled in Fairmount township of Grant county in 1836. Miss Wilson was the acknowledged belle of the countryside, and among those attracted by her beauty and character was William Cox, who in the brief time of his visit laid successful siege to her heart and soon afterwards married her. They began life in a log cabin in Liberty township, situated ten miles from any other settlement, and had a lonely time of it for several years. They prospered, and finally moved to another farm in Liberty township, where William Cox became the owner of one hundred acres of first-class land, and in 1873 built the old family homestead, a fine brick house, at that time considered one of the best in the county. William Cox died there January 25, 1901, and his beloved wife followed him a few months later on June 12. William Cox married outside of the Quaker church in which he had been reared and was put of the church, because of his refusal to express sorrow for his act, and he and his wife afterwards became charter members of the Wesleyan Metho¬ dist church, in which faith they both died.

The children of William Cox and wife were: Nathan R., Abigail, John W., Mary, Eli J., Milton T., Zimri E., Eliza Ann, now deceased; Sarah Ellen, Elizabeth Clementine, William Yalentine and Micajah T. and Emma, twins, the latter being deceased. All these children were married and had families, and all became substantial and self-support¬ ing men and women. Every son has always been free from any bad habits and all married good wives, while the daughters found good ' husbands.

John W. Cox, who was bom in Liberty township of Grant county, August 4, 1849, was reared in a good home, and well educated. For some years he taught school, and finally turned his attention to agri- culture, and for many years has enjoyed a place of prosperity and esteem in his community. He owns a fine farm, not extensive in acreage, but highly improved and cultivated in such a manner that it is more productive than many larger places. It comprises forty-four acres, and lies just outside the limits of Fairmount city. There is not a foot of the land which is not drained, and put to profitable production, and it is this elimination of waste that has been a large factor of Mr. Cox as a farmer. His largest and best prop for a number of years has been tomatoes, some years having had as many as seventeen acres in that crop, while his yearly average has been about twelve acres. By long experience he has learned how to grow and care for this large produc¬ tion, and gets big revenues from all he raises. In the midst of the fruit and shade trees which surround his grounds sets a fine white house, sur¬ rounded with new bams and a forty-five ton silo. This place has been his home since 1878, and in location and value it is one of the best in Fairmount township.

In Washington township, of Grant county, in 1874, Mr. Cox married Miss Josephine Culberson, who was born in Guernsey county, Ohio, February 23, 1853. When she was a child her parents moved to Wash¬ ington township in Grant county. She is a daughter of Joseph and Margaret (Stiles) Culberson, both natives of Ohio, who located in Grant county before the war. Her father died on his farm a few years later, leaving a widow and five children. Mrs. Culberson did more than a mother's part by her children, remained at home on the farm, managed its operation and at the same time kept her little flock about her until they were grown and had started lives on their own account. She then came to live with her daughter Mrs. Cox, and died in their home in 1910, when ninety-two years of age. She was a good mother, and her influence and devotion were such that they will always be remembered by her children and descendants.

The children of Mr. and Mrs. John W. Cox are mentioned as follows: 1. Martin E., who was educated at Fairmount, was for some years a music dealer in that city and is now in the west. 2. Burl W., went to Cuba during the Spanish-American war with the One Hundred and Sixtieth Indiana Regiment, serving until his honorable discharge. He is now in business at Alexandria, in Madison county. He married Gladys Edwards. 3. Eli W., is an agent for the Singer Sewing Machine Company, lives in Fairmount, and by his marriage to Gertrude Riblin has two children, Paul and Emmett. 4. Ollie W., is a farmer and also operates a hay press at Fairmount. He married Lora Clifford, and their one daughter is Bernice. 5. Myrtle L. is the wife of George P. Atkinson, living with Mr. Cox on the home farm. Mr. and Mrs. Cox are members of the Back Creek Wesleyan Methodist church. Formerly a Republican voter, Mr. Cox now gives his allegiance to the Prohibition cause.

William Sheron. Of that goodly company of Grant county octogenarians whose names are noted in this history, one who is now nearing the close of his eighth decade is named at the opening of this paragraph. William Sheron 's has been a life that is significant in its very duration. Like the oak silently growing the forest, it has been strong and useful without the conspicuous eventfulness of many less serviceable careers. In the quiet performance of the homely simple duties that come within the scope of every one he has won the respect of a community, the veneration of children and grandchildren, and has walked upright in the fear of God.

His parents were John and Matilda (Havener) Sheron. The father was born March 10, 1804, and the mother September 16, 1808, her birthplace having been near Harpers Ferry in Virginia. The father was by occupation a farmer and a cooper. When his son was a baby he moved to Perry county, Ohio, where he was a farmer, and where he made money enough to enter forty acres of government land. Later he sold that and immigrated to Indiana, locating on a farm, which he bought near Fox Station in Grant county. He continued to live there many years, finally selling out and moving into the city of Marion, where he became owner of several valuable properties. His death occurred in Marion, about twenty years ago, and the mother has been dead about thirty-five years. In religion, the father was a member of the United Brethren church. He and Matilda Havener were married in 1824, and they have ten children.

The family record of children and births are as follows : William, born April 3, 1826; Mary Ann, now deceased, born November 19, 1827 ; James, deceased, born October 10, 1829 ; Sidney, deceased, born October 2, 1831 ; Rachael, born September 17, 1833, and the wife of George Poff of Marion; Barney, born in November, 1835, and living in Marion; Sarah, deceased, born July 22, 1837 ; Nancy, born January 1, 1841, the widow of Alexander Moorehead; John, deceased, born July 23, 1847; and Matilda, deceased, bom February 8, 1850.

The Sheron family is of English origin, on the paternal side, and German on the maternal. The grandfather on the mother's side was Dominick, and the paternal grandfather was Andrew Sheron. Grand¬ mother Havener's maiden name was Martha Upton, and Grandmother Sheron was Nancy Stephens.

William Sheron went out into the world when eighteen years old. In Ohio he learned the shoemaker's trade, and with the man under whom he had worked he went out to Illinois, locating in the old town of Xauvoo, a place later famous for its Mormon settlement. While working at his trade in that town, he married on July 2, 1848, Miss Prudence A. Giffords, who was bom December 22, 1827. Mr. Sheron lived in Nauvoo for about two years, then moved to Wapello, Louisa county, Iowa, where he continued his trade and remained for ten or twelve years. From there he came back east locating in Grant county, near Fox Station. A little later, during the period of the Civil war, and about the close he enlisted as a substitute in Company K of the Fortieth Indiana Infantry, and was in service in time to participate in the Battle of Nashville, Tennessee. After the war, he returned to Grant county, and resumed his regular trade. From his father, whose coming to Grant county has already been noted, he bought a small piece of land, and was both a shoemaker and farmer for some time. Later by trading and by good management, he acquired one hundred and twenty acres in Monroe township, and finally sold and invested the proceeds in Marion real estate, since which time his home has been in the county seat. Mr. Sharon is the owner of several fine pieces of property in Marion, and is in comfortable circumstances.

Mr. and Mrs. William Sheron were the parents of a large family of thirteen children, whose names and other pertinent facts of birth are mentioned as follows: Albert l\, born November 19, 1849, and died the same day; Joseph A., bom September 30, 1851, and a resident of Illinois ; George, bora October 14, 1843, died March 26, 1854 ; Edward and Edwin, twins, born March 4, 1855, the former dying October 2, 1856, and the latter October 23, 1855 ; Elizabeth, bora February 6, 1857, now living with her father; John, born May 5, 1859, a resident of Marion; Matilda, born February 3, 1861, also in Marion ; Lydia, bora November

William Sheron is a member of the Methodist church in Marion. He was the first janitor in the first Methodist church, assuming the posi¬ tion just after the church was built, and continuing therein for ten years. He also served many years as superintendent of the Sunday school and for several years was class leader. He has always been a great worker in the Methodist church. His only fraternal connection is with the Grand Army of the Republic. On his eighty-fourth birthday, a particularly pleasing tribute was paid to him in a shower of post cards, on which occasion he received more than two hundred and thirty-five cards. On his attaining his eightieth year, his children presented him with a fine easy chair. Mr. Sheron is a man who thinks a great deal of his children, of whom he has eight still living, and all of them are in good homes and substantially placed in life. On Christmas day, 1912, Mr. Sheron gave to each of these eight children a beautiful bible, each one inscribed with the following original poem:

Mark Needler. Born in Jefferson township seventy-eight years ago, Mark Needier has the distinction of being the oldest native son of that township. For nearly fourscore years his home has been in this one locality, and he has both witnessed and participated as a factor in the development of the country and in the long fight against the wilderness. Much of the land contained within his present country homestead on section twenty-six of Jefferson township was first turned over to the sunlight with his own hands guiding the plow. He represents an hon¬ ored family of pioneers, and is himself one of the most esteemed of the older Grant county citizens.

His grandfather George Needier was born in Virginia and of old Virginia stock. He married Sarah Luck of the same state. Some years later, from Virginia they migrated to Guersnev county, Ohio, and from there came to Indiana. On the journey from Ohio out to Indiana, Grandmother Needier died and was buried in Ohio. George Needier with other members of the family came on to Grant county and entered land from the government. For some reason or other this land was not taxed for the first ten years, and when the first tax was laid on these four hundred acres, which had been located by the family in 1834, it amounted to three dollars or two coon skins. George Needier and his sons started actively upon the work of improvement and he died on the old homestead where he settled in 1834, when at a good old age. The question has often been asked as to how long the old-fashion of male customs, the knee breeches and high stockings, continued into the last century, and the query is partly answered in the case of grand¬ father George Needier, who was one of the early settlers who persisted in wearing that style of clothing, and in many other ways was distin¬ guished as an old Virginia gentleman. He knew nearly everybody in the country for miles around, and was equally wejl known and esteemed by his neighbors and friends. He had a large family of children, including James, father of Mark Needier. James was the second of six sons, all of whom came to Indiana, and he himself was born in Virginia, but was married in Ohio, and from that state came to Grant county in 1834. In Ohio he married Rebecca Ward, who was the mother of his children. Four of these children, Sarah, Eliza J., George and John were born in Ohio. James Needier on coming to Indiana, entered four hundred acres on his own account, and lived there and developed a splendid farm. The first home and probably the one in which Mark Needier was bom was a log cabin built in the crude fashion, with round logs, a mud and stick chimney, the roof being of clapboards, held down with small logs or poles. James Needier and wife worked hard, and though they lived in the wilderness for many years they gradually prospered and did well by their descendants. All their chil¬ dren were reared to maturity except one. James Needier died in his eighty-fourth year, about 1894, and his wife passed away twenty-five years before his death. She was a Methodist and he a Presbyterian. Of their children bom after they came to Grant county, Mark was the first, and the others were: Mary Ann; James; Sarah E. (II), Joseph, Melissa, Rebecca, and William F. All these children married and had families except Mary A. and Sarah E., the former of whom died at the age of eight years and the latter at the age of eighteen. There are four sons and two daughters still living.

Mark Needier was bom in Jefferson township of Grant county, No¬ vember 17. 1835. Grant county had been organized with a separate government only four years at the time of his birth, and within his life¬ time have occurred practically every improvement and every important advance towards the civilized conveniences which Grant county people now enjoy in such profusion. Mr. Needier grew up on a farm, had an education in one of the old-fashioned school houses, and has always followed the vocation to which he was trained, and his thrifty nature and commendable industry have enabled him tp lay up an ample com¬ petence for his declining years. At the present time he owns one hundred and thirty acres, all of which he has improved with the excep¬ tion of a few acres, and he was the first to strike a plow into the soil. All the buildings are a result of his planning and management, and for forty years this place has been his home. A Democrat in politics he follows the Democratic faith, «but has never sought any office or any honors from his party. Mr. Needier was married at Jefferson township, to Mary E. Secrest, who was bom May 31, 1845, and has always lived in this township. She has been one of the best of wives and mothers, and is a fine type of Grant county womanhood. Her parents were Abraham and Mary (Fischel) Secrest, both natives of Virginia. They were married in Guernsey county, Ohio, and came to Grant county in the decade of the thirties, where Abraham Secrest got one hundred and sixty acres of land from the government and also bought one hundred and sixty acres which had been previously settled. He did a large portion of the clearing and improving of both quarter sections, and was a man who left many evidences of his industry and fine manage¬ ment as a farmer and business man. He and his wife lived in Jeffer¬ son township until their death. Their first home was built of round logs, which in a short time was replaced by a house of hewed logs, and that finally by a substantial frame house, where they lived for many years. In that old home he died in 1890 at the age of sixty-five, while his wife passed away at the age of sixty-nine. They were prominent members of the Methodist Episcopal church, in this part of Indiana, and the first society in the neighborhood held its meetings for some time in the Secrest residence, and also in the neighboring school houses. Abraham Secrest voted the Democratic ticket for a number of years, but finally turned Republican. Of their three children still living, besides Mrs. Needier, there are William Kyle, whose home is in Jefferson township, and who has three sons and two daughters; and Sarah A., the widow of Joseph Reasoner, who lives with her daughter Mary in California. Mr. and Mrs. Needier have had no children of their own, but have opened the doors of their home and have bestowed a wealth of affection on three adopted children. The first of these was Carrie Smiley, whom they educated and who is now the wife of Oliver Reasoner, living in Oklahoma City, and they have one son Philip. The second child was Philota Kirkpatrick, who died at the age of twelve years. The third was Charley Nickerson, whose home is in Princeton, Indiana, and who has three children, Amanda, Violet, and Mark. Mr. and Mrs. Needier are both members of the Methodist faith.

Augustin Kem. Among the native sons of Indiana who make their home in Marion, is Augustin Kem. Mr. Kem belongs to that class of men who have made the central states the great stronghold of power and stability which they have become. This generation of men, most of whom came with their parents across the mountains and settled in this region when it was backwoods country, have clung to the sturdy virtues and firm principles of their New England and Virginian ancestors. Living in an agricultural section they retained the qualities which made it possible for a handful of Colonial soldiers to conquer Great Britain's armies, longer perhaps than the people of any other section, and Mr. Kem is a typical example of this type.

Augustin Kem was born in Wayne county, Indiana in the country between Centerville and Richmond, on the 20th o'f March, 1842. His father was John Kem and his mother was Ann (Russell) Kem. The Kem family is of English origin, and although the Russells were probably English also,, it is not definitely known just where they originated in the mother country. The ancestors of both families, however, came to this country during the days when the New England colonies were being settled. The Kerns settled in Virginia where they lived until 1829 when they emigrated to Indiana.

It was on the 3rd of October, 1853, that Augustin Kem came with his parents into Grant county. He was*one of seven children and the whole family occupied a log cabin of one room, the only other building on the place being a smoke house. Two acres were cleared land and the rest of the farm was virgin forest, alive with coon, opossum, grey squirrel, wild turkey, a few deer and an occasional wolf It was a hard struggle with the forces of the wilderness and every foot won from the forest was a glorious victory for civilization. Loneliness and hard work was the portion of every frontier family but at least they were in no danger of starvation with the woods full of game. In the winter of 1854 after a snowfall of thirty inches John Kem and a neighbor while out bunting came across a track in the snow which looked like a bear track. Even at this date bears were extremely scarce in this section and they set forth in great excitement to capture this specimen. They followed the tracks for some time and finally the object of their hunt took refuge in a hollow tree of considerable height. The only thing to do was to chop the tree down but this was no great feat for the two sturdy backwoodsmen and soon the tree came crashing down. With guns ready to fire the two men approached the place where a scuffling told them their quarry was and to their chagrin they discovered the supposed bear to be only a porcupine. Mr. Kem, our subject, who saw it aftefc they brought it home, says this is the nearest he ever came to seeing a wild bear in Grant county.

Augustin Kem grew up on his father's farm, helping to cultivate the cleared land and each year aiding in driving the forest farther back. He obtained what little education' he could from the backwoods school, during the long winters when it was too cold to work. This was his life until 1861 when the news of the firing upon Port Sumter set the country afire with patriotism and the determination to keep the Union undivided if it took every man north of Mason and Dixon's line. Grant county went wild and when the call for the three months' volunteers was issued almost every able bodied man in the county hastened to offer his services. There was not room for so many, however, and the ranks were quickly filled, leaving many disappointed would-be soldiers. Then came an idle spell when the only thought in the minds of every man was what was transpiring at the front and news was the best selling comlnodity of the day. Patriotism remained at fever heat and when the call was issued for three hundred thousand volunteers there was a rush to enlist, every man being afraid that all the places would be filled before he reached the recruiting station. It was at this time that Augustin Kem enlisted. He went into the service on the 5th of September, 1861, in Company "F" of the Thirty-fourth Regiment of Indiana Infantry, in a three years' term of enlistment. He only served two years and three months, however, being discharged on account of failing health at New Iberia, Louisiana. He returned home sadly incapacitated by ill health but after a few months' rest he was able to return to active life again. For a few months he attended school, being ambitious to complete the education which the war had interrupted. He then became a school master for a time and then an event occurred which changed his whole life. As Mr. Kem himself phrases it, "there came a little, bewitching, black-eyed Holman girl," - Lauretta Holmah the daughter of Nicholas D. Holman and Minerva (Massey) Holman. Air. Kem and Lauretta Holman were married on the 26th of September, 1868. Mrs. Kem is of Puritan ancestry but her parents came to Indiana from North Carolina and Kentucky. She was born in Grant county, Indiana, on June 21, 1850. Mr. and Mrs. Kem have had a long and happy married life and their union has been blessed with two children, Oren E. and Anna M. They have seven grandchildren, as follows: Edith I. and Carter 0. Kem, and Lowell K., Kenneth G., Lawrence A., Oren Robert, and Augustin Donald Morrow.

Until within the past ten years Augustin Kem and his wife have lived on their farm, but ten years ago he retired from the active life of the farm and came into Marion to live, making his home here since that time. In religious matters all of the family have been Methodists and in politics Mr. Kem gives his allegiance to the Republican party.

Mr. Kem served from 1905 to 1907 as a member of the city council and for the past three years has been a member of the Marion Board of Park Commissioners. He is a member of Gen. Shunck Post, No. 23, G. A. R., of which he is Past Commander. He is also a Mason, and both he and his wife are members of the Eastern Star.

Whisler Family. Since the year 1838 the Whisler Family has been identified with Marion and Grant county. In this time five generations of the family have lived in Marion, and during all this time the name has been associated with industry and integrity in business relations and with the worthiest qualities of citizenship and personal character.

For many years Jacob Whisler, the founder of the family in Marion, was the village inn keeper at Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. His inn was called the Whisler House. It was a well known place and a landmark at that time. One of the features which made it attractive to travelers was its immense stone bam.

Jacob Whisler in 1838 sold out this business and came overland to Marion with his family, arriving in the springtime when the roads were very bad, and horses had to be hitched tandem to pull the wagons through miring ways. After a long and laborious journey they reached their destination and settled two miles east of Marion. Jacob Whisler was born in 1776, the year of American Independence, and died in 1863, aged 87. The maiden name of his wife was Mary Mundobaugh. In the family were five sons and three daughters.

Jacob Whisler, son of Jacob Whisler, and representing the second generation in Marion, was bom 1817, learned the cabinetmaker's trade, carrying it on many years. He was the first Democrat elected to any office in Grant county, being elected County Treasurer in 1854. Leaving the office at .the end of his term, he ran a general store until 1864 when he retired. His wife was a Marion girl, Weltha A. Horton, born 1818. They lived many years on Adams street just north of Fifth, and later at the old homestead in North Marion. Jacob Whisler died in 1875, and his wife in 1901. They were the parents of one son and two daughters; Mary married John Fitzgerald, and Martha married Ed Weaver.

Leroy M. Whisler, the son of the family last named, was bom October 23, 1844, in Marion. He married Matilda M. McKinney, daughter of Fielding S. McKinney, who was one of the early settlers in the county. Roy Whisler, as he always was called, followed the tin and hardware business, succeeding his father, but since 1900 has lived a retired life. For the last 15 years Mr. and Mrs. Whisler have spent the winters in Florida.

The fourth generation of the Whisler family in Marion includes the three sons of Leroy M. Whisler and wife. The oldest Jasper L. Whisler, born August 30, 1871, is a watchmaker and jeweler by trade, and has a jewelry store on the north side of the square for 20 years. There are probably very few persons who have a larger personal acquaintance in Marion and the surrounding country than he has. His wife was Viola M. Cramer; they have one daughter, Margaret, born December 1, 1896.

Ralph P. Whisler, the second son, is a contractor, and located at Richmond, Ind. He married Mirriam Hiatt; they have one son, Leroy Whisler. Jacob Whisler, the youngest son of Leroy M. Whisler and wife, is a traveling man. He has been with the National Cash Register Company for many years, generally traveling in the west. Leroy, the son of Ralph and Margaret Whisler, daughter of Jasper Whisler represent the fifth generation of the Whislers.

clock, nine, feet high, and in perfect preservation. It is still ticking in the home of Jasper L. (Jap) Whisler. The clock was brought overland from Chambersburg, Pa., in 1838 by Jacob Whisler. Several old pewter plates are among the family relics, and are tenderly handled for precious associations.

Rsv. Hibam Habvey. No history of old Grant county families would be complete without some space devoted to the Harvey family. It has lived in this county sixty-five years. A beautiful farmstead on section thirty-four of Liberty township is occupied by Rev. Hiram Harvey, and the same land was cleared and cultivated by his grandfather and father successively. Rev. Harvey 's farm comprises ninety acres and in every attribute and improvement, is a farm of the highest class, and one that might well serve as a model of progressive Grant county agricul¬ ture. Some of the conspicuous features about this place are a com¬ modious and comfortable white house, with a correspondingly white barn, and flanking the farm buildings is a large silo with eighty tons capacity. In section thirty-five of the same township, Mr. Harvey owns another tract of sixty acres. All this land is cultivated up to the very highest efficiency, the fertility of the soil is as great now as it was seventy years ago, and the annual product represents a neat sum in the regular income of the owner. Mr. Harvey is a man of large and wholesome character, with strong spiritual tendencies. He is trustee of the endowment fund of the Fairmount Academy, a fund now amount¬ ing to more than twenty-two thousand dollars. He is also Evangelist superintendent of the Quaker Quarterly Meeting, and his wife is Sunday school superintendent of that meeting.

The history of the Harvey family begins with five brothers who came from North Carolina to Clinton county, Ohio, about one hundred and twenty years ago. One of these brothers was Eli Harvey, great¬ grandfather of Rev. Hiram Harvey. When a young married man he brought his family to Ohio, and at that time his son William, the grandfather, was a child. William Harvey was born about 1789, grew up on the family home in Clinton county, Ohio, and in that locality Eli and wife died. They were staunch members of the Quaker church, and industrious and quiet living farmers. William Harvey grew up in Clinton county, took up farming as his vocation, and married Ruth Hadley. Later they moved to Indiana, and became early settlers in Morgan county, near Moorsville. In Morgan county were some of their children bora, including Jehu Harvey, born in 1833. In 1848 William Harvey and wife and family came to Grant county, and secured land which was almost new and largely unbroken in section thirty-four of Liberty township. The industry of William Harvey was largely responsible for the improvement and clearing of this land, and though the family first lived in one of the typical log cabins that habitation was later replaced by a good house and many other improvements testified to the sturdy and ambitious character of the Harvey race. William Harvey died when ninety-four year of age, and was preceded by his wife many years before, her death occurring sometime between 1850 and 1852. Both were birthright Quakers, and belonged to the Little Ridge church. The family of nine sons and three daughters of William Harvey and wife are mentioned as follows: David, Jonathan, William, Eli, Mahlon, Jehu, Sidney, Alvin, Hiram, Sallie, Rebecca, and Mary. Of the sons Alvin and Hiram died, the former at the age of seventeen and the latter at the age of seven. All the others grew up and were married and had families. The daughters, with the exception of one, had children.

Jehu Harvey, the father, was as already stated, bom in 1833, and was fifteen yearfr of age when the family moved to Grant county. His early life was spent on the farm, and after reaching manhood he married Rebecca Reader, a daughter of Spencer and Julia (Cox) Reader. The Readers are a family of prominent old settlers of Liberty township, and are mentioned in other parts of this volume. Jehu Harvey and wife located on a farm in Liberty township, and owned and operated k successfully for some years, gradually acquiring other lands and improving them. His death occurred in 1875 on the farm now owned by his son Hiram in section thirty-four. For some years he had been in poor health. His widow still lives, is hale and hearty at the age of seventy-eight. Both parents were birthright Quakers, and worshipped at the Little Ridge church. Mrs. Harvey has for years been an elder in the Friends church. The politics of Jehu Harvey was Republican.

Nine children were the fruit of the union of Jehu Harvey and wife, and are mentioned as follows: 1. Hiram. 2. Edwin is a farmer, was twice married, lives in Liberty township, and there is one living child by each wife. 3. William R. lives on a farm in section thirty-four of Liberty township. 4. Cynthia, died when a young woman of seventeen years. 5. Ellen married Amiziah Beason, a merchant, now in business in the Province of Saskatchewan, Canada, and has four children. 6. Julia, died at the age of fourteen. 7. Mary, married Hiram Jarrett, a farmer in Hancock county, Indiana, and has two living children. 8. Mina, was the eighth child. 9. Alice, died at the age of twenty-eight unmarried.

Rev. Hiram Harvey, who was the oldest son and the first child in order of birth, was born in Liberty township, April 1, 1863. His home has been here all his life, and he now owns and occupies a farm cultivated by both his father and grandfather. His early education was better than ordinary, since he had the advantages of the common schools, and later three years in the county normal and one year in the state normal. When a little passed twenty years of age he began teaching, his first school being the Marks school district number four in Sims township. After three winters of teaching he took up his regular vocation as a farmer. In 1899 his comfortable dwelling was destroyed by fire and was at once replaced with the present modern residence, one. of the most attractive in Liberty township. Mr. Harvey believes in the rotary principal of growing crops, and his land is divided into convenient fields and successively cropped with oats, com, wheat, alfalfa, and other staple crops of Grant county. His stock consists principally of the Red Durock swine, and practically all the grain and forage products of the farm are fed to the stock.

Mr. Harvey was married in Fairmount township to Miss Sara E., usually called Sadie, Bell, a daughter of William Bell, of a prominent family mentioned elsewhere in this volume. Mrs. Harvey was bora in Randolph county, North Carolina, March 17, 1864. She was reared and educated in Indiana, and is the mother of two children, Alva, who died at the age of four and a half years; and Russell T., now twenty-one years of age, the husband of May Woodruff, and they live on the farm with Mr. Harvey. Mr. Harvey was for many years an elder in the Friends Society, and for the past six years has been a minister of the Friends Church. Mrs. Harvey is an elder in that society. Practically ever since he cast his first vote, Mr. Harvey has supported the Prohibi¬ tion cause.

Mr. And Mrs. A. L. Horner And Son

fourteen of that township, with Upland as his post office. During a residence there of more than twenty years, Mr. Horner has given an illustration of what can be done in making a farm a business enterprise, and his estate, known as Greenview Farm, is one of the best in agricul¬ tural community.

In Virginia, he married Nacy Walker, bom in that old commonwealth, and after their marriage they lived in Pennsylvania for several years. Andrew Homer was a miller by trade, and operated flour mills in Pennsylvania and elsewhere. After two children were born to them in Pennsylvania, they moved to Ohio, during the twenties, and in Miami county of that state was bora on April 20, 1834, David Homer, father of Alva L. In 1852 the family moved to Grant county, Indiana, locating on a partly improved farm in section twenty-three of Jefferson township. That was the home of Andrew Homer until his death. He passed away when he was sixty years of age, and a few years after the Civil war. His wife died some twenty years later, when eighty-six years old. They were members of the Presbyterian church, and David and Andrew were Republicans in politics.

David Homer was eighteen years old when the family moved to Grant county, and not long afterwards he went further west to Bureau county, Illinois, where he worked at farming, for an uncle James Walker. At the age of twenty-eight and still unmarried he returned to Grant county, and in section twenty-three of Jefferson township, made his first purchase of land, comprising forty acres. He was a man of enterprise, was a hard worker, and used good business judgment in increasing his property, and to the first purchase added forty acres, then eighty acres, followed by seventy acres, and at the time of his death owned in the aggregate two hundred and eighty-five acres of fine Grant county real estate. Nearly all that land was well improved, and had two sets of faTm buildings. David Homer died at Upland July 1, 1908, having lived in the village the last six years of his life. He was a Republican in politics, but never affiliated with any church.

David Homer was married in Jefferson township to Miss Mary MePherren, who was bom in Grant county, in Jefferson township, June 6, 1839, and now lives at Upland, a well preserved old lady, seventyfour years of age. Her father, James MePherren, came from Ohio to Grant county, and entered land from the government, but later sold * out and went to Illinois, where he lived until his wife's death, and then came back to Grant county, and died here when about four score years of age. For a number of years he followed his trade of black¬ smith, and kept a shop on his farm, and attended to the wants of his community in that line. James MePherren was of Scotch ancestry, and a Presbyterian in faith. He and five of his sons, named John, Calvin, Martin, Jesse, and George, were all soldiers in Illinois regiments during the war, and George was lulled in the first battle in which his regiment was engaged. All the others lived and returned safely with the excep¬ tion of slight wounds and are still living. Alva L. Homer, the oldest of his father's family, has the following brothers and sisters living:

I. Elzora, who is a farmer on the old homestead, and has one son and one daughter; Anna, who married James A. Wilson, a farmer in Jeffer¬ son township, and is the mother of a son and a daughter ; Harry L. was educated in Taylor University at UplaYid, and the State University at Bloomington, taking other special courses in Normal School, and is new instructor in mathematics in the Chicago public schools, and is married and has one son and one daughter living. The deceased chil- dren are: Arzie, who died at the age of seven years; James, who died after his marriage; Lydia Roberta, who died after her marriage to Charles Pugh, and left one daughter.

Alva L. Homer was bom on his father's farm in Jefferson town¬ ship, March 21, 1862, was reared on a farm, and lived at home and assisted his father in managing the estate and contributing his labor to the support of the younger members of the family until he was twentyeight years of age. In the meantime he had been preparing for an independent career, and had bought sixty acres of land on section fourteen. Since taking possession of that place he has developed it into a profitable and beautiful homestead. In addition to his farm of sixty acres he also owns forty acres of the old homestead. His residence is a comfortable building, standing in the midst of trees, and painted white, and his bam is on a foundation thirty by forty-four feet, and built on modern principles of bam architecture. He keeps good grade of stock, and his farm is getting better every year.

Mr. Homer was married in Mercer county, Illinois, to Nellie Sharer. She was born in Mercer county, Illinois, February 20, 1875, and lived there until her marriage. Her parents were George Adam and Sarah Jane (Morgan) Sharer. Her father was bora in Herkimer county, New York, April 17, 1828, and died September 6, 1892. Her mother was bora in Bedford county, Pennsylvania, December 20, 1842, and died June 27, 1900. They were married near Alexis, Illinois, and lived as farmers and stock raisers in Mercer county, until their death. They were members of the Presbyterian faith, and Mr. Sharer was a Repub¬ lican. Of their ten children, five are still living, and Mr. Sharer had three children by his previous marriage to Sarah Whitten, who died in the prime of life.

Mr. and Mrs. Homer became the parents of two children, one of whom died unnamed. The survivor is Willard Sharer Homer, bora July 17, 1902, and now in the Matthews grade school. Mr. and Mrs. Horner attend the Shiloh Methodist Episcopal church, 'and his vote is usually cast in the Republican interest.

Horace N. Trueblood. One of the definite and undeniably success¬ ful enterprises of Marion is the Marion Steam Laundry, established here in April, 1895, by him whose name introduces this brief sketch. Mr. Trueblood 's rise in the laundry business has been steady, and has come from a beginning, modest in the extreme, but well conducted and prosperous since its inception. The force of workers in the laundry has grown from six to thirty-nine, and every phase of the work has advanced in accordance. The record of the place is all sufficient to firmly establish Mr. Trueblood among the successful and capable business men of the city, and his position is one that he amply deserves.

Horace N. Trueblood was born on December 21, 1861, near New London, Howard county, Indiana, on the farm home of his parents, who were William and Ruth E. (Dixon) Trueblood, both natives of North Carolina. The mother was a granddaughter of Jonathan Lindley, who was chairman of the committee that established the site for the Indiana State University at Bloomington, receiving his appoint¬ ment to that commission by President Madison. He was in his day a wealthy man and one of exceeding great prominence in his part of the state.

Horace N. Trueblood comes of fine old Quaker stock, both on the paternal and maternal sides, apd the instincts and training of the faith have in a measure guided his life in its devious paths and have had much to do with the shaping of his career. The public schools of

Kokomo, whither the family removed when he was but a small boy, provided him with his education chiefly, and after finishing his schooling he was for some years identified with the shoe business in the city. In April, 1895, when he was thirty-four years old, he came to Marion, and here, casting about for a suitable business opening for an ambitious and hardworking man, he chanced upon a small and then unsuccessful laundry business, the same having been established in the city by Ira Gage some six months previous. The place was known as the Marion Steam Laundry, and when Mr. Trueblood came into ownership of the plant, he continued its operation under the name by which the public had already come to be more or less familiar with it. The successive growth and development of the laundry to its present flourishing state would require more space than is available at this point, but it will suffice to say that the laundry today is one of the best equipped, best managed and best operated establishments of its kind in the city and county. The plant is thoroughly modern, with the most approved and intricate machinery for the minimizing of labor and the producing of high class work, and every facility known to the laundry business is here employed. The phenomenal growth of the business has been in accordance with the spirit of the manager and owner, and the laundry has a reputation for fine work and quick service that is one of its most valuable assets.

Mr. Trueblopd was married on October 1, 1889, to Miss Anna M. Willette, the daughter of Peter Willette, who pioneered to California in 1849 in quest of gold and fortune. To them were born four children, namely: Fred W., now twenty-three years old, and a graduate from the Indiana State University at Bloomington ; Ruth A., now nineteen years old, is a student at Purdue University, in Lafayette, Indiana, where she is in pursuit of a higher knowledge of domestic science; Mark Sherwin, aged thirteen, and Horace Dixon, now seven years old, complete the family roster, and are spending their days in school, preparatory to useful existences in the world in future days.

The family are members of the Congregational church. Mr. True¬ blood is fraternally identified with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and the Knights of Pythias, and his political tendencies are those of a Republican, although he is in no sense a politician, and has never held public office in all the years of his career thus far. His civic record for usefulness and loyalty is a fine one, and his citizenship is one of the highest order, and of which the community may well be proud.

Fraxk MuLtEN. Among the young business men of Grant county who have made prominent places for themselves in their various com¬ munities as enterprising and progressive operators, one may be especially mentioned in this connection, - Frank Mullen, one time teacher and farmer, but since 1911 prominently identified with the real estate business in Marion. During the years when he was occupied with farming activities, he held a most prominent place in Washington township, and was recognized as one of the more influential and successful men of his community. His record in his later business venture is none the less creditable, and he rightly enjoys the esteem and high regard of all who share in his acquaintance.

Bom on June 22, 1872, on the farm home of the family in Grant county, Frank Mullen is the son of John and Cassie (Miller) Mullen. The father claims the state of Ohio as his native place and the mother is an Indianian. They are farming people who yet make their home in Franklin township, where they have long enjoyed the comforts of quiet country life. Three children were bom to them. One died at the

Frank Mullen was born on the home farm, as has been stated previously, and his early education was found in the public schools. His parents were people who recognized the worth of an education, and gave to their son every possible advantage along lines of training. His two years at Fairmount Academy were followed by two yearfc in the Marion Normal College, where he received an excellent preparation for the work of teaching, in which he was for four years engaged after he finished his college work. His educational work was carried on in Grant county, in Washington township for the most part, but he began to feel the call of the soil after a few years of his pedagogic life, and consequently returned to the farm and thereafter gave his mind and muscle to the work of that enterprise, continuing successfully until November, 1911, when he engaged in the real estate business in Marion, under the firm name of Westfall & Mullen. They have since carried on a thriving business in real estate, and are reckoned with the most successful of that class of business men in Marion.

During the years when Mr. Mullen was occupied with his farm in Huntington county, he was serving much of the time as trustee of Wayne township, and he bore the distinction in those days of being the youngest trustee in service in the entire state. He is a man who has ever displayed a generous minded interest iD the civic and political affairs of his community, and his support has always been given to worthy enterprises and movements that might be promulgated in his town and county.

Progressive and energetic, his influence is one that will ever make itself felt wherever he may be found. He is a supporter of the Prohibition party and upholds its principles and doctrines on all' occasions. With his wife, he has membership in the Baptist church, and he is fraternally identified with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.

On November 7, 1896, Mr. Mullen was married to Miss Emma Smith,, the daughter of George Smith, long a resident of Washington township, where Mrs. Mullen was reared, and to them have been born two sons, Everett and Arthur.

George L. Clupper. One of the most gratifying phases in the history of Grant county is that afforded in the fact that so appreciable a percentage of its honored and representative citizens and leading men of affairs can claim the fine old Hoosier state as the place of their nativity, and this distinction applies to him whose name introduces this paragraph, and who is well and favorably known as one of the prom¬ inent figures in the business activities of the city of Marion, where he holds the responsible post of manager of the Marion Loan Company.

Mr. Clupper was born on a farm near the village of Treaty, Wabash county, Indiana, on the 24th of September, 1882, and his prestige as one of the representative business men of the younger generation in Grant county has been essentially the result of his own ability and well ordered endeavors. He is a son of Lewis and Maria (Putnam) Clupper, the former of whom was bom in Pennsylvania and the latter in Wabash county, Indiana, where her parents were sterling pioneer settlers. Lewis Clupper has given his active life almost exclusively to the great industry of agriculture, in connection with which he has won success worthy of the name. He and his wife still reside in Wabash county, on an attractive homestead near the city of Wabash, and after years of earnest and fruitful effort he is now virtually retired. Of the three children George L., of this review, was the first in order of birth ; Harley G. has active supervision of the old homestead farm, in Wabash county ; and Hugh E. is a resident of Brown county, this state.

George L. Clupper gained his early experience in connection with the environment, influences and labors of the home farm and his educational advantages were those afforded in the public schools of the neighboring village of Treaty. After leaving school he entered upon an apprenticeship to the carpenter's trade, in which he became a skilled artisan. After working at his trade in the employ of others for three years he devoted two years to independent work as a con¬ tractor and builder, with headquarters at Treaty. He then engaged in the general merchandise business in that city and after continuing this enterprise for three years he came to Marion, the judicial center and metropolis of Grant county, where he was employed about six months in the Marion Grey Iron Foundry. For eighteen months there¬ after he was a salesman in Creviston's market, and on the 31st of July, 1910, he assumed the office of treasurer of the Marion Loan Company, with which substantial and well conducted business he has since been identified in this capacity. He is a capable, reliable and progressive business man and is a citizen of utmost loyalty and of the highest ideals and principles, so that he merits and commands the unequivocal con¬ fidence and esteem of his fellow men.

In politics Mr. Clupper is found arrayed as a staunch supporter of the cause of the Republican party, and he Jhas been and continues specially active and zealous in connection with religious affairs, as an influential and valued member of the Central Christian church in his home city. Both he and his wife are devoted workers in this church, in which he holds the office of elder, as well as that of trustee. He has been specially prominent in connection with Sunday school work and in the furtherance of the same has been called upon to deliver addresses in many cities and villages of his native state, besides which he is at the present time president of the Grant County Sunday School Associa¬ tion. He is affiliated with the Marion Lodge of Knights of Pythias, and both he and his wife are most popular factors in the social activities of the community.

On the 1st of August, 1905, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Clupper to Miss Ethel Whitlock, daughter of Ira and Rebecca Whitlock, who are well known and highly esteemed citizens of this county, where the father owns and resides upon a fine farm of two hundred acres, in Richland township. Mr. and Mrs. Clupper have two fine little sons, Forrest L. and Ira L.

In a retrospective way it may be noted that the father of Mr. Clupper was a valiant soldier of the Union of the Civil war, as were also three of his brothers, and aU of the number are still living, honored veterans of the great conflict through which the integrity of the nation was perpetuated. Joseph Putnam, maternal grandfather of him to whom this sketch is dedicated, likewise tendered his services in defense of the Union, as a member of an Indiana regiment, and he sacrificed his life on the field of battle.

Louis L. Needler. Bearing one of the old and substantial family names of Grant county, Louis L. Needier has well upheld the tradi¬ tions of the family, is applying in the manner of his generation advanced principles to his main business as a farmer, is a man of broad outlook and both practical and theoretical education, and while successful in his private affairs does not neglect the public interests, and at the present time is in his fifth year as township trustee of Jefferson town- ship. Mr. Needier was elected trustee for the regular term of four years but while he was serving that term the state legislature passed a law extending the term of office of all trustees then in office, to six years, simply adding two additional years to the terms of those who were in office at that time, but still continuing the term as four years. That explains how Mr. Needier happens to be on his sixth year in office now, although he was only elected for a four-year term. Jefferson citi¬ zens are to be congratulated on the excellent administration which he has given to the important matters entrusted by Indiana laws to a township trustee, especially the local schools. Mr. Needier is just the man who by training, by native breadth of mind, and by education realizes the needs of a twentieth century school, and has done much to improve educational facilities and also methods of instructions in this township, which will compare favorably with any other section of its size and wealth in eastern Indiana. Mr. Needier has fifteen teachers under his control, and eleven first-class brick schools in the township. At the present writing, a large two-room modern brick schoolhouse is being constructed to accommodate districts. Besides these schools just enumerated there is the separate school system of the village of Upland. Mr. Needier is the better able to appreciate the needs of the local schools, from the fact that he taught for two years before his election to the office of trustee. He graduated from the Upland high school in the class of 1904.

Louis L. Needier was born in Jefferson township, April 19, 1884, and was reared in that township. When he was a baby his mother died and Mrs. Mary A. Hineline, a sister of his mother, took him at the age of ten days and he was raised by Obed T. and Mary A. Hineline as their own child, on the farm on wrhich he and family now live. He received his primary education in the district school, later attending the Upland High School. During 1906-07, he spent some time in Purdue University as a student of scientific farming, and is still a student and observer in the practical laboratory of his farm. He manages and controls two hundred and forty acres, a part of which he owns, and he and his wife also own a farm of eighty acres in Blackford county.

Mr. Needier comes of an old family, his grandfather having been James Needier, and his father Joseph Needier, both of whom present honored names in the history of Grant county, and more will be found about them elsewhere in this work. Grandfather Needier died in Grant county, and Joseph Needier is still living one of the successful farmers of Jefferson township, where he has spent all his life. Joseph Needier married Nancy J. Owings, who was bom in Delaware county, Indiana, October 14, 1844, and died at her home on April 29, 1884, when her son Louis L. was ten days old. She left four children, Augustus, the oldest, died at the age of twenty-one years; Orlando C., the second child, is a farmer in Jefferson township ; Lacy is the wife of Carl Osborn, a farmer of Blackford county, Indiana.

Lewis L. Needier was married September 4, 1908, to Emma E. Jones, who was born April 13, 1884, and was educated in the schools of Fairmount township. She is a daughter of the late Hiram A. Jones, whose career is sketched on other pages of this work. Mr. and Mrs. Needier have two children : Joseph Hiram, bom September 10, 1909 ; and Harvey Burton, born April 21, 1912. Mr. Needier is a Democrat and a member of the Masonic Blue Lodge at Matthews.

John A. Frazier. Among the public officials of Center township, in Grant county, Indiana, is John A. Frazier, one of the most popular and able men who have ever served the township. As trustee he has faithfully discharged his duties, carrying out the work of his office with the same careful attention to details which made him a successful farmer. He has lived in this vicinity all of his life and is widely known throughout the country, having always taken an active part in public affairs.

John A. Frazier is the fifth child of Alexander and Jane (Frazier) Frazier. Alexander Frazier was born in Clinton county, Ohio, and his wife was a native of Highland county, in the same state. Alexander Frazier came to Grant county in 1835, locating on sections No. 2 and No. 11, in Center township. Here he proceeded to clear a farm and here he lived all of his life, dying on April 10, 1888. His wife died in 1893. They had ten children, five of whom are now living. Pharaba, the eldest daughter, is the widow of John M. Smith, of Marion; Aaron, the eldest son. died in Kansas about fifteen years ago ; Mary died sixteen years ago; Alice is the wife of Edward Phillips, of Marion; John A. is the next ; Elisha died in infancy ; Elizabeth died in her young woman¬ hood, a victim of diphtheria; Mary lives in Oklahoma; Eli is also a resident of Oklahoma, and Albert died five years ago.

John A. Frazier was born on the home farm, three miles east of Marion, on the 17th of August, 1849, and he lived on that same farm until ten years ago, or during a period of fifty-five years. Over half a century in one place is a record worthy of our cousins across the water in England. John A. Frazier received his education in the public schools of the county and for ten weeks attended a private school, in Marion. After completing his education he taught school for a time in Grant county, in Monroe and Center townships. He then went to farming and after his father's death, when the latter's farms were divided, a part of the old home place fell to his share. He operated this farm of fifty-three acres until 1909 when he removed to Marion, where he has lived since that time.

It was in the Fall of 1908 that Mr. Frazier was elected township trustee of Center township and he went into office on January 1, 1909. He was a constable of Van Buren township for a few years during a six year residence in the latter township, and for fifteen years he was deputy assessor of Center township. He is a member of the Republican party and has served as precinct committeeman. In religious matters he is a member of the Friends church.

Mr. Frazier was married in June, 1875, to Miss Margaret Lugar, who was born in Monroe township, Grant county, and a daughter of John W. and Elizabeth Lugar. They became the parents of eight children, of whom five are living. Two of these children died in infancy and Willie was only a child when he died. The others are John, who now lives in section 11, Center township ; Gertrude, who is the wife of Wendell Phillips, of Washington township; Pharaba, who married George Blinn and lives eight miles northeast of Marion ; Silas, who is a student in high school, and Helen, who is also a pupil in the high school of Marion.

Lewis S. Makes. Holding secure poise as one of the vigorous, re¬ sourceful and representative business men of Grant county, and exempli¬ fying distinctive civic loyalty and progressiveness, Mr. Marks is a man who commands unequivocal confidence and esteem in the community and is associated with one of the most important and substantial of the retail business concerns of the thriving city of Marion, metropolis and judicial center of the county. He is senior member of the firm of Blumenthal & Company, the large and admirably equipped mercantile establishment which controls a trade that is far reaching and of representative order.

The progressive policies of the firm are in harmony with the best and most modern methods, and fair and honorable dealings have given to Blumenthal a reputation that constitutes its best commercial asset.

Mr. Marks claims, the old Empire state of the Union as the place of his nativity and though he is most loyal thereto and most appreciative of its manifold attractions, he finds satisfaction in having given fealty to Indiana, in which commonwealth he has found ample scope for the attain¬ ing of large and worthy success. Mr. Marks was born in the city of Rochester, New York, on the 12th of February, 1859, and is a son of Simon and Hannah (Cockenthal) Marks, both natives of Germany. Mr. Marks gained his early educational discipline in the public schools of his native city, where he availed himself of the advantages of the high school, and he admirably fortified himself for active life by completing the com¬ mercial course in the Bryant & Stratton* Business College in Rochester.

On the 4th of April, 1877, when but eighteen years of age, Mr. Marks came to Marion, Indiana, and here he forthwith assumed a clerical posi¬ tion in the mercantile establishment of Blumenthal & Company. Energy, ability, discrimination and courtesy gained to him the confidence and esteem of his employers and the good will of patrons, so that he won steady and substantial advancement. This is significantly shown in the fact that on the first of January, 1880, about three years after coming to Marion, he was admitted to the firm of which he is now the senior partner and with the affairs of which he has been closely and worthily identified during the entire period of his residence in the fair capital city of Grant county. He has proved specially versatile and resource¬ ful in the executive control and general management of the extensive enterprise and its pronounced success has been signally furthered through his well directed endeavors. He has insistently followed high business ideals as well as progressive methods, and of these the local public has been duly appreciative. In a personal way his success is most gratifying to contemplate, and he well merits the high esteem in which he is held in the city which has been the stage of his fruitful activities from the initiation of his business career.

In the midst of the cares and exactions of a signally alert and suc¬ cessful business career Mr. Marks has not become self-centered or selfish, but he has been, on the contrary, significantly liberal and public-spirited in his civic attitude, ever ready to do all in his power to encourage and support measures and enterprises projected for the general good of the community. He is specially interested in the work and affairs of the public schools of his adopted city and that he is a valued factor in the directing of the same is shown by the fact that he is at the present time president of the board of education of Marion. His nature and view¬ point are such that he has no desire to enter the turmoil of practical politics, though he accords a stanch allegiance to the Republican party, and in his home city he is a popular member of the lodges of the Knights of Pythias and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.

The home life of Mr. Marks is one of ideal relations and Mrs. Marks is popular in connection with the social affairs of the community. On the 22d of October, 1890, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Marks to Miss Mattie Straus, of Lyons, Wayne county, New York, and the three children of this union are Seymour, Miriam and ^Walter.

Captain John W. Miles, the quartermaster of the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers at Marion, Indiana, is a man highly respected throughout the community. Captain Miles is a native of the city of Marion, and was in business in this community for many years. His record during the Civil war is an enviable one, and that in his work he should now be associated with his old comrades in arms seems peculiarly appropriate. Captain Miles as a business man was widely known for his honesty and integrity and, as quartermaster of the large institution above mentioned, he has won the approbation of the soldiers and the authorities alike.

Captain John W. Miles was born in Marion, Indiana, on the 6th of December, 1842, the son of William C. and Mary J. (Moore) Miles. William C. Miles was a native of the state of Virginia and his wife was from Ohio. He came to Marion in 1836, being a blacksmith by trade. He was elected treasurer of Grant county in 1858 for a term of two years and in 1862 was again elected to that office for two years. After this public service Mr. Miles went into the boot and shoe business in Marion, in which he was engaged for a number of years. He was a member of the old Christian church, and in the fraternal world was an active member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He died in 1887, his wife having died many years before in March, 1849, when John W. Miles was only five years of age. Of the five children born to William C. Miles and his wife, only two are now living, the captain and his sister, Mrs. Sue Miller, of Marion. After the death of his first wife William C. Miles married again, his wife being Miss Rebecca Pierce, They became the parents of two children, Ada Miles and Joseph M. Miles, both of whom reside in Marion.

Captain Miles received his education in the old Marion Academy which became defunct soon after the Civil war began. In December, 1864, he enlisted in the One Hundred and Fifty-third Indiana Infantry, serving as second lieutenant until September, 1865. After the war Captain Miles became associated with his father in the boot and shoe bus¬ iness in Marion and it was while he was thus engaged that he was elected to serve as deputy county auditor. He held this office from 1867 to 1870, and then he removed to Logansport, Indiana, where he lived for a year, being district cashier for a sewing machine company. He then returned to Marion and entered the bank of Jason Willson and Company. For fifteen years he was employed in this financial institution and then his election as county auditor on the Republican ticket caused him to leave the bank. He took office in 1887 and served until 1891.

After leaving the auditor's office Captain Miles engaged in the man¬ ufacture of bicycles and later in the manufacture of brick. It was in 1901 that he came to the National Home for Volunteer Disabled Sol¬ diers as chief clerk in the quartermaster's office and in J.906 he himself was made quartermaster of this large institution.

Captain Miles has been a member of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons since January 1, 1865, and he has filled all the chairs in the Masonic bodies of the Blue Lodge, the Chapter and the Commandery. He was High Priest of Marion Chapter, No. 55, for seven years. In religious matters, Captain Miles is an active member of the Congrega¬ tional church, being a deacon in that body.

In 1866, Captain Miles was married to Miss Hallie Wolf, a daughter of Conrad Wolf of Grant county, and they have become the parents of two children, Wilbur R. Miles and Mrs. B. C. Brimacombe, the wife of Dr. Brimbacombe, of Marion.

John Duling. The name Duling has been identified with Grant county for more than seventy years. The pioneer was a farmer and minister, and belonged to that hardy type of settlers, whose spiritual zeal was equal to his fortitude in enduring the hardships of the frontier. The Mr. John Duling named above is now living retired on a beautiful country estate in section nineteen of Jefferson township, and after many years of toil and successful management is able to enjoy the fruits of prosperity, and the regard of his community. John Duling 's grand¬ father was Edmund Duling, bom in Virginia, and of an old Virginia line of ancestry. He was married in his home state, and later moved to Ohio, settling in Coshocton county. There his years were spent as a farmer, and his death came when about eighty years of age. His wife, it is believed, died some years previously. They were active mem¬ bers of the Methodist Protestant church, and had a large family. Of their children, Rev. Solomon Duling, father of John, was one of the oldest, and was bom in Coshocton county, Ohio, in 1813. Growing up on a farm, he was trained in the school of pioneer hardships, and early manifested inclinations for the hard manual labor of the frontier, and also for the spiritual activities of the church. He became an early convert to the Methodist Protestant faith, and after he was married, and moved to Indiana, he began the active work of the itinerant preacher. In Coshocton county, Solomon Duling married Jane Hubert, who was born in Ohio, about 1815. Two children were born to their marriage in Ohio, Daniel and Edmund. Then about 1841-42, Solomon Duling brought his little household to Grant county, and on Barren Creek in Jefferson township, acquired eighty acres of land in the midst of the woods, and he erected his log cabin home, started the work of clearing, grubbing, fencing, cultivating the constantly expanding tract of free ground, and by close economy, by living on the wild game which was then so plentiful, he prospered steadily, and his name is one which deserves lasting remembrance, in his section of Grant county. The most noteworthy feature of his life, was his church work. He was early ordained a minister of the Methodist Protestant faith, and from that time forward led in the work of organization and all church activi¬ ties. He organized many churches throughout this section of Indiana, and labored in behalf of religion all the years. Many sacrifices of his private interests were made in behalf of his church, and there was no obstacle which would prevent his attending to his church duties, if it was humanly possible. He went over the worst of roads, swam the rivers, and he and his big bay horse were seen going and coming in all seasons of the year, and in many remote districts. Often in crossing the streams, his feet would be frozen fast in the stirrups. Thus he labored for the spiritual upbuilding of his community, and at the same time his thrift and industrious management of home, enabled him to accumulate a generous prosperity. He had come to Indiana with only one hundred dollars and most of that was paid at the Fort Wayne Land office for the purchase of his eighty acres of land. From that start his success grew-, until at one time his possessions aggregated nearly one thousand acres of land. After a long and useful life, in the esteem of a wide circle of friends, Rev. Solomon Duling died in 1871. During the Civil war he was president of the Indiana State Conference of the Methodist Protestant church, and his labors were earnestly directed towards preventing a division of the church on the issue which split so many other church denominations of America. However, the division occurred, in spite of all his efforts and those of many others of like persuasion. Solomon Duling for a number of years served as trustee of his township. During the war he was strongly for the Union, was a Republican in politics, and sent three of his sons, Edmund, Elijah, and Joel, to the defense of the Stars and Stripes. All these sons gave excellent account of themselves as efficient and faithful soldiers, and served in Indiana regiments. Edmund was seriously wounded in the knee by a rebel bullet at Vicksburg, and died of lockjaw while being transferred to the hospital. The other sons, although also actively engaged on many fields of battle and in many campaigns returned home and Elijah was killed in 1880 in a railroad wreck in Ohio. Joel died on the old homestead at Jefferson township in 1910.

Of the eleven children in the family John Duling and his sister Sina M., the wife of Bertney R. Jones, of Marion, are the only ones still living. John Duling was bom on the old homestead in Jefferson township, December 8, 1846. His boyhood was spent in the decade pre¬ vious to the Civil war, and his recollections cover a great variety of changes and developments in Grant county. As a boy he attended the # district schools, was trained to work, grew up in the atmosphere of culture and religion which pervaded the Duling home, and since attain¬ ing manhood has steadily prospered as a farmer and stock raiser. His possessions, most of which represent his individual capability and busi¬ ness judgment, are measured by four hundred acres of land, excellently improved, and rated at a high value on the assessment rolls, all located in section nineteen of Jefferson township.

In his home township in 1873, John Duling married Miss Lydia Ann Stout. She was born in Bellefontaine, Ohio, January 10, 1854, was five years of age when the family moved to Peru, Indiana, and in 1869 came to Grant county, where she was married four years later. Her parents, William and Elizabeth B. Hinks Stout were bom, the father in Guernsey county, Ohio, September 6, 1828, and the mother in Fulton county, Ohio, September 10, 1833. They were married in Ohio, and after settling in Grant county Mrs. Stout died April 19, 1875, at the birth of her last son, John. Mr. Stout was again married, moved into Jay county, Indiana, where he died in November, 1908, being then seventy-nine years of age. His widow still lives. There were no chil¬ dren by the second marriage, while Mrs. Duling was one of a family of twelve, children, eight of whom are still living, all married and have families of their own. William Stout was a practical mechanic, fol¬ lowed his trade for a number of years, was also a railroad man, and after locating in Jay county became a farmer. He and his wife were Methodist, and in politics he was a Democrat.

The children of Mr. and Mrs. Duling are mentioned as follows : 1. Minnie B. is the wife of T. Burr Wilson, and they reside on Mr. Duling 's farm. Their two children are Alfred Garr and Robert. 2. Capitola May is the wife of William Reasoner, and their home is on a farm in Blackford county. Their children are: Clifford, Paul, Opal, Lloyd, Howard, Arthur, and Ruth. 3. Solomon Arthur is a graduate of the State University, was a teacher for four years, then studied law, and is now engaged in practice in the state of Oklahoma. He is unmarried.

Mr. and Mrs. Duling are active members of the Fowlerton Methodist Protestant church. Mr. Duling has served as trustee of that church and is at the present time a member of the township advisory board, and in politics is a stanch Republican. -

James O. Hinds: In Green township seven miles north of Elwood is the home of James O. Hinds. Mr. Hinds and family have lived in this county nearly thirty years. When he and his wife were married and took up the task of winning a home for themselves, their start was on a rented farm. Much can be accomplished by youth and energy, when griided by worthy ambition, and now the Hinds family have a comfortable home, an improved estate, which measures up to the high values set on

Grant county land, and among other good things which they enjoy they drive to town in a late model Buick automobile. When they made their start they were satisfied with a farm wagon as their vehicle of travel.

James 0. Hinds was born in Fayette county, Indiana, June 22, 1850, a son of E. A. and Emily (Hopkins) Hinds, both of whom were born in Ohio, came to Indiana, and located in Fayette county. Later the parents moved to Rush county, Indiana, and still later in life to Tipton county, which continued to be the home of the father until his death at the advanced age of eighty-four years. There were five children in the family and two are now living. The brother of Mr. Hinds, William E. * Hinds, a retired farmer of Elwood. Two of the others lived to have families of their own, and one sister died at the age of nineteen years.

James 0. Hinds lived in Fayette county for a few years, and in Rush county grew up on a farm and received a common school education. He remained at home with his father until he was twenty-one years old, and when he started out for himself, as a growing boy, it was in the humblest capacity of farm laborer at eight dollars a month. Then in 1871 he married Miss Annetta Barger, of Johnson county, Indiana. She was reared in Rush county, and was educated in the public schools. Mrs. Hinds is a daughter of George W. Barger and Sarah F. Helms, the former a native of Blacksburg, Virginia, and the latter was born near Muscatine, Iowa.

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Hinds lived in Rush county a short time, later Johnson county, where he was a renter then returned to Rush county, and again spent some time in Johnson county. In the meantime the father of Mrs. Hinds died, and they sold their interest in the estate for one thousand dollars, a capital which gave them a good start, and about which they have accumulated their present generous prosperity. In 1884 Mr. and Mrs. Hinds moved to Grant county, locating in Green township on the estate where they still have their home.

To their marriage were born eight children, seven of whom are now living, namely : Lee Hinds, who is married, is a preacher in the Wesleyan Methodist church, and also a farmer of Huntington county; William Franklin, married, lives in Green township, is a preacher in Holiness Christian Church ; Charles E. is married and lives in Madison county ; James A., has a family of his own and is a resident of Green township; Thomas D., has his home in Madison county; Nola B., is the wife of Samuel Noble of Madison county ; Locia F., is the wife of Joel Butner of Tipton county.

Politically Mr. Hinds gives his support to the Prohibitionist cause, and is always ready to support any movement for the improvement and welfare of his community. His home farm is under splendid cultivation, and he and his family not only have a delightful homestead but all the facilities for business like farming, can be ipund about their estate, and they conduct the farm as a profitable enterprise in the same way that a manufacturer would run his factory. c

Luther S. Harrison. Now enjoying prosperity and the esteem of friends and neighbors, at a comfortable country estate on section two of Fairmount township, Luther S. Harrison is one of the older native sons of Grant county, was born here during the later pioneer epoch, and is a graduate of one of the old-time log school houses, 'which some fifty years ago were so common throughout this part of the state. His life has been led along lines of industry, thrift and honesty, and practically every one in Fairmount townships knows, and has a word of kindly regard for Luther S. Harrison.

prime of life as the result of an accident. In endeavoring to rescue his son, John, Jr., from underneath a falling tree, he was stricken down and killed. This branch of the Harrison family is thought to be related more or less closely with the family which produced William Henry Harrison, president of the United States during the forties. John Harrison had three children: John, Jr., Sarah, who married William Leach, and lived and died in Grant county, both of them passing away in advanced age, and after acquiring a large estate in Fairmount township.

Louis Harrison, father of Luther S. was bora in Ohio between the years 1808 and 1810. During the Mexican War he served in Captain Ramsey's Company from Indiana, then reenlisted to drive pack horses in the same war, and on his return from the war settled and lived for a time in Franklin county, whither he had first settled with some kinsmen from Ohio a number of years before. When he was still young he moved to Grant county, and his first home in this vicinity was built of split rails, and was little more than a shed, covered with bark. That house stood on land now occupied by his son Luther. After a little while the rail hut was replaced with a good log house. Louis Harrison owned one hundred and sixty acres of land attained directly from the govern¬ ment, and spent the rest of his life in its clearing and cultivation. He died in October, 1860. His church was the Methodist, and in politics he was a Democrat. About 1841, he was married in Fairmount township of Grant county to Elizabeth Searls, who was born in Kentucky in 1814 or 1815, coming of Kentucky parents and family. She was a young woman when she came to Grant county, and a few years later her parents left Indiana, and lived the rest of their lives in Illinois. Mrs. Louis Harrison survived her husband many years and received a pension for her husband's services in the Mexican war. Her death occurred in February, 1897, and she was likewise a member of the .Methodist church. Of their five children three grew up. John Harrison died in 1901, and his son Lawrence is now living in Henry county. The daughter Rachael is the wife of Henry DeShaun of Fairmount town¬ ship.

Luther S. Harrison, second in age of the three children, just mentioned, was born in Fairmount township of Grant county, January 13, 1845. His early years were spent on his father's farm, and his schooling was obtained by attendance at a log cabin school. The light was admitted to the rooms through greased paper windows, and all the facilities of that primitive temple of learning were exceedingly crude, while the instruction itself was confined largely to the three R's. After reaching manhood he bought some land from his father, gradually acquiring more until his place amounted to one hundred and thirty acres. This is now one of the fine country estates of Fairmount township, nearly all of it under cultivation, and its buildings are of the very best comprising a large red barn and a comfortable white house. He is a general farmer, growing large crops of grain and forage, and feeds all the farm products to his hogs, horses and cattle. In cattle his specialty is the short-horn breed-.

Mr. Harrison was first married in Fairmount township to Miss Sarah Richards, who was bora in Jefferson township in 1863. She died in the prime of life from lung trouble, and left two children : Louis, born August 12, 1890, lives at home ; Bessie, is the wife of Urshel Kimes, a farmer in Jefferson township, and they have one son, Thomas. In 1897, Mr. Harrison married for his second wife, Mrs. Emma Leach, whose maiden name was Ailes. She was born in Franklin county, Indiana, and is the widow of George Leach, who was killed in a saw-mill boiler explosion. Her children by Mr. Leach were: Rev. Perry B. Leach, a minister of the Methodist church, living south of Indianapolis, and having one son and one daughter ; Lulu is the wife of Carl Mittank, employed in the post office at Marion, and they have three children; Arthur, aged twenty-five lives at home with Mr. and Mrs. Harrison. Mr. and Mrs. Harrison are members of no church, and in politics he is an Independent Democrat.

Riley Cranford. With the happiness which comes from the posses¬ sion of a good home and with a retrospect over a long and varied suc¬ cession of years, Mr. Cranford resides on section fourteen of Fairmount township, on the rural mail route number sixteen out of Jones¬ boro. His residence in Grant county goes back about thirty years and he is especially loyal to this county, because here he has won his real prosperity and enjoyed many of the pleasantest associations of his life.

Riley Cranford was bom in Randolph county, North Carolina, De¬ cember 13, 1836, a son of Leonard and Naomi (Riley) Cranford. Leonard Cranford was a son of Kidd Cranford, who married a Miss Hull, both of whom were natives of North Carolina, where they lived and died, farmers by occupation, and Methodists in religion. So far as known no members of the family ever held a slave, and there was a disposition on the part of the early members to oppose the institution of slavery. Leonard Cranford and wife followed farming all their lives and the former died in his native county about 1870 at the age of seventy-one. His wife had died there when thirty-five years of age. After her death Leonard Cranford married Lucy Nelson, a native of the same county. She survived her husband some years and died aged seventy-four. By the second marriage there was one daughter, who is now married and has a large family. Riley Cranford was the fourth in a family of six chil¬ dren, four sons and two daughters. The sons, besides Riley were: Harris, Elsevan, and Nixon, while the daughters were Adaline, and Mary. The sons Elsevan and Nixon were forced into the Confederate army, and the latter was killed in battle, while the former was in one engagement so severely wounded that he died soon afterwards. Both were unmarried.

Riley Cranford grew up in his native county, and in 1860 was mar¬ ried there. In 1863 he was threatened with the same enforced enlist¬ ment which had taken his two brothers away to the front, and as he was strongly opposed to the war in principles, left the country with William Moffitt, and by careful management they succeeded in getting across the lines into the north, crossing the Potomac River and finding refuge in Pennsylvania, among a Quaker settlement. There they were made to feel at home, and were given work. In Pennsylvania, Riley Cranford worked for one year, and then came west to Wayne county, Indiana, and later moved to Henry county in the same state. In 1882 he moved to Grant county, and made a beginning of his prosperity by the pur¬ chase of forty acres of land. This was increased subsequently by twentytwo acres more, and by his thrift and energy the entire farm is highly developed and very profitable. His principal crops are corn, wheat, timothy, clover, and practically all his grain is fed on the place so that he maintains the fertility of the soil year after year. His homestead is comfortable both to the outward view and as to its interior furnish¬ ings. There is a good white house and a red barn completes the picture.

Mr. Cranford was married in his native county, in 1860 to Miss Laura A. Bingham. She was born in Randolph county, August 22. 1836. After her husband was forced to leave the country and go north, she remained at the old home until the fall of 1865, when he returned and they then moved out to Indiana. Her parents were William and Mary (Lafferty) Bingham, who were born and spent all their lives in Ran¬ dolph county. Th/ey were farmers by occupation, and members of the Methodist church. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Cranford are as fol¬ lows. 1. Mary is the wife of James Griffin, their home is in Marion, and they lost their only child, Burr, at the age of seventeen. 2. Julia is the wife of William Smith, living in Marion, and their children are Goldy, Delight, and Minnie. 3. William is now employed in a factory at Gas City, Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. Cranford are Methodists, and in politics he is a Republican.

John E. Kibbey. One of the historical farms of Grant county is the Kibbey homestead in section thirty-three of Jefferson township. In the early days the Muncie Pike, which passes in front of the door, was a much traveled thoroughfare, and throughout all the months of the year was thronged from morning until night with wagons and vehicles of all descriptions. The place was then occupied by a man named Crawford, who conducted the old house as a tavern or inn, and the name assigned to it was one taken from revolutionary and colonial annals, and was "Black Horse Tavern." For the past forty years or more the old place has been in the possession of the Kibbey family, and it was successively the farm enterprise of Jonah Kibbey and then of his son, the late John E. Kibbey. Mrs. John E. Kibbey and her children now reside there in comfort and plenty, and are among the popular people of Jefferson township.

The late John E. Kibbey was bom in Clinton county, Ohio, May 25, 1850, and was fifty-four years of age when death took him from his activities in Jefferson township,* on August 24, 1904. His parents were Jonah and Rebecca (Garrison) Kibbey, both natives of Ohio, where they were married. Jonah Kibbey was a son of Ephraim Kibbey, one of the early settlers and prosperous farmers and prominent citizens of Clinton county, Ohio. He died there in old age, and owned a large amount of land. His son, Jonah Kibbey, was also a well-to-do farmer in Clinton county, and about 1870 sold out his possessions there and moved to Indiana. In Jefferson township he bought one hundred and sixty acres lying in sections thirty-two and thirty-three, and there con¬ tinued his prosperous career until his death in 1892. At that time he was an old man, and his years had been fruitful in both material circumstances and the finer things of character and influence. He was a Republican in politics, and in religion was not an active churchman, though a man who believed in the best features of religious life. His wife, Rebecca, preceded him in death several years. There were four sons and two daughters in the family, and all of them married and had children. Paul, of Liberty township; Mrs. Florence Hinckley, of Fairmount City; and Mrs. Ellen Wright, of North Dakota, are the children still living.