Hendricks County, Indiana - Biographical sketches, 1914 (part 4 of 19)

The Pages of Hendricks county trace their ancestry directly to Peter Page, an Englishman who came to Virginia early in the sixteenth century. Peter Page lived and died in Virginia, and to him and his wife was bom Williamson Page.

Williamson Page grew to manhood in Lee county, Virginia, and there married Elizabeth McCloud, who also was a native of the same county, and the daughter of John McCloud and wife, natives of Iowa. In 1830 Williamson Page and wife came to Indiana and settled first in the southern part of Hendricks county, where Jeremiah Jasper, whose history is herein recorded, was born. He entered land in Eel River township, one mile south of where

Jeremiah J. Page now lives, entering two tracts of fifty-six and one-half acres each. He moved onto his land in the fall of 1834, built his rude log cabin of notched log and started in to carve his fortune out of the wilderness. At this time there were no roads except blazed trails from one settler's cabin to another; dense underbrush filled the lowlands and covered the highlands of the county; deer, wolves, turkey and small games of all kinds were very numerous, and the county was merely a hunter's paradise. Williamson Page had been a blacksmith in Virginia and his profession was one which was a very necessary accomplishment in a pioneer community. Gradually the farm was cleared and as the sons grew up and he had increasing assistance, the farm was eventually brought under cultivation. Williamson Page and wife were the paj'ents of a large family of children : Nellie, Nancy, Elizabeth, Stephen, Andrew J., Jeremiah J., Chesley, Robert, Williamson and Demerius. It is interesting to note that at this time there were only three families in this locality, the Pages, Fleece and Zimmerman families. The Fleece and Zimmerman families had fifteen children each, making a total of forty children in the three families, and of those forty children there are only two living today, Jeremiah Jasper Page and Mrs. Rosena (Zimmerman) Waters.

Jeremiah Jasper Page was reared under the pioneer conditions which have just been described and at the age of twenty, June 15, 1854, he was married to Ann Elizabeth Hypes, who was born August 18, 1838, in Botetourt county, Virginia, the daughter of Jacob and Mary (Pfeffly) Hypes. When she was three weeks old her family came to this county from Virginia in wagons, taking the trip of hundreds of miles through unl^roken forests and enduring hunger and hardships of all kinds. The Hypes family settled in the northwestern part of Eel River township, where they entered government land, and here Jacob Hypes died in 1849. Ann Elizabeth was only fifteen years of age and her useful husband was only five years older when they were married and it is interesting to note the prenuptial agreement of these youthful lovers, a plan which they agreed upon before their wedding day. This plan, which is guaranteed to promote domestic felicity, they have followed for more than sixty years of wedded life and have never had a quarrel. This wonderful agreement, which has never been broken throughout sixty years of wedded life, is simply this: When either one becomes cross or out of humor in any way, the other is to keep still until the irritability passes away and not enter into any discussions when angry.

The useful couple bought forty acres of new timber land entirely on credit and in a rude log cabin this fifteen-year-old bride started up house- keeping. That they worked faithfully need not be told here. Within a few j^ears they had their first forty acres paid for and were able to buy another forty adjoining it. This happened within a few years after their marriage, and it is to be remembered that when they were married they had only the following possessions : two beds, a horse, a cow, a few chairs, a few cooking utensils and no money, and yet this happy couple enjoyed life just as much as we do today with all of our modern conveniences. The table he made out of a plank and the meat and bread which she cooked in the fireplace tasted just as good to them as our porter-house steak cooked on the gas stove of today.

Another chapter in the history of this interesting couple begins in 1866 when they sold their eighty acres of .land and went to Iowa at the earnest solicitation of the mother of Mrs. Page. After reaching Iowa, Mr. Page carefully examined several prospective farms and came to the conclusion that the safest thing for him to do was to return to Indiana. Accordingly they came back to this county and purchased one hundred and forty-four acres of land in Eel River township. His success as a farmer in this county shows that he did not make a mistake when he left the broad plains of Iowa for the rolling" fields of Indiana. He has prospered to a degree which he little dreamed, when, as a twenty-year-old youth, he started in married life with practically nothing. He has added to his land holdings from time to time until he and his children now own two thousand acres of land.

Mr. and Mrs. Page are the parents of eleven children: John H., of North Salem, who married Clarinda Davis and has four children; Mary Elizabeth, who married W. H. Robbins, of North Salem, whose sketch is delineated elsewhere in this volume; Samuel R., a farmer of this township, who married Rebecca Murphy and has five children ; Jacob, a farmer in this township, who married Ida Thompson and has nine children; Frank, a farmer of this township, who married Ora Carpenter and has two children living; Ellen, deceased, was the wife of Daniel Robbins and died in February, 1912, her husband dying just a week before; they left one son; Joseph, who died at the age of seventeen; Belle, the wife of Amos Thompson, a farmer of this township, they have two children living; Cora, the wife of Ed Davenport, a farmer of this township, has one child living; Sarah Francis, and one other child, who died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Page have twenty-seven grandchildren living and twenty great-grandchildren.

honesty as the tirst essential to success and during his long career in the county he has so conducted himself that he has never been the cause of censure on the part of his neighbors. He has such a reputation for peace, that he is frequently called in to settle differences between his neighbors. Enough has been said to show the character of Mr. Page and to indicate the influence which he has had upon the growth of his township. His life has been a busy one and yet he has always found time to take his full share in the various public questions which concern his immediate- community. His career has been honorable in every way and such as to justly warrant the biographer in using that famous old saying, "This was a man."

E. B., J. A. And L. D. Owen

Among the men of sterling worth and strength of character who have made an impress on the life of the locality in which they live none have received a larger meed of popular respect and regard than the gentlemen whose family name is well known throughout this section of Hendricks county, Indiana, E. B. and J. A. Owen, successful merchants of Amo, Indiana. Lifelong residence in one locality has given the people an opportunity to know them in every phase of their character and that they have been true to life in its every aspect is manifest in the degree of confidence and regard in which they are held by those who know them. In their mercantile business they have shown unusual ability and have achieved a splendid success among the followers of their profession.

Eleazar B. Owen, the son of Jonathan and Asenath (Bales) Owen, was born near Plainfield, Hendricks county, Indiana, September 7, 1837. The Owens were of Scotch descent and upon coming to America settled first in Georgia, where the grandfather, Samuel Owen, was born and grew to manhood. Samuel Owen moved from Georgia to Ohio in an early day, coming from that state to Indiana in 1828, settling in Hendricks county. The maternal grandfather was prominent in the early days as a Quaker preacher and traveled extensively in that capacity. He settled in Plainfield, where followed the dual occupation of farming and preaching, being probably the first minister of the Friends church to locate in this county. He continued preaching and farming all of his life and in his preaching made extended trips throughout this and adjoining states, making one trip to North Carolina on horseback. He lived to the advanced age of ninety-four. Jonattian Owen came to Indiana from Ohio early in life and settled in Hendricks county, where he lived until 1865, when he moved to Illinois, where he was later joined by other members of the Owen family. Before going to Illinois he conducted a flouring mill for a few years in Mooresville, Indiana. After going to Illinois, he engaged in farming and became a successful man in that state, his death occurring there at the age of seventy-two years. To Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan Owen were born several children : Eleazar B. ; Anna, the widow of John T. Thompson, of Amo; Samuel, who died in infancy; Rachel C. died single; J. A.; Jemima V. (deceased), who married John Nugent; Benjamin B., a fruit grower, living near Tampa, Florida; Isaac J., an undertaker, living in Uma, Colorado; Ida, who married Wesley Thompson, of Farnam, Nebraska; Mary E., married Dr. William H. White, of Amo, Indiana.

E. B. Owen was reared in Hendricks. Morgan and Marion counties, Indiana, and also lived for a time in Illinois. His father was in business in Indianapolis for about three years at one time. In 1864 he started in business on his own account by buying a saw mill in Amo in conjunction with Benjamin L. and John T. Thompson. They conducted this mill for two years and then sold it, after which Mr. Owen and William F. Henley purchased a store of J. G. Ralston, in Amo, and this they managed for two years, when they again sold out, although a short time afterward Mr. Owen and John V. Parker bought the same store back and continued to manage it for the next six years. At the end of six months Mr. Owen bought his partner out and continued to operate the store alone until he took his brother, J. A. Owen, into partnership in 1896, since which time the firm has been known as E. B. Owen & Company. In 1886 Mr. Owen built his present two-story brick building, which, with improvements and additions, he has continued to occupy until the present time. He carries a large and well selected assortment of goods and by his genial manner and strict integrity has built up a large and lucrative business in the community. He is interested in the First National Bank of Amo, and is now president of that institution.

Mr. Owen was married to Elizabeth Hunt, of Hendricks county, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Amiel Hunt, and to this marriage there have been born four children: Florence, the wife of William Hopkins, of Indianapolis; Ora Lela, who resides at home and is a teacher of music by profession; Myrtle, who is also a music teacher, and Nettie E., a teacher in the high school at Plainfield. Mr. Owen's mother is still living, at the advanced age of ninety-six years, and is remarkably active and well preserved for a woman of her years. Mr. Owen himself has always led a clean and active life and. at the age of seventy-six, he enjoys good health and is as active physically and mentally as men of fifty.

J. A. Owen, a brother of E. B. Owen and a member of the firm of E. B. Owen & Company, was born in Plainfield, Hendricks county, Indiana, January 2, 1850. His boyhood days were spent in Hendricks and Morgan counties, Indiana, and in Illinois. He completed his education in Grand Prairie Seminary in Iroquois county, Illinois. In 1875 he came from Illinois to Amo, Indiana, and entered his brother's store as a clerk, where he continued until he became a partner in 1896. For several years his brother, E. B. Owen, was in poor health and not able to be in attendance at the store, and during his absence J. A. managed the business.

J. A. Owen was married October 13, 1881, to Laura A.. Swaim, of Hendricks county, the daughter of Thomas and Elmira Swaim. Mrs. Owen's parents came from North Carolina to Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. J. A. Owen are the parents of six children: Mrs. John Stark, of Clinton, Indiana; Mrs. Don Garrison, of Amo, Indiana; Wilbur B., of Indianapolis, and two who are still at home, Edith and Dorothy.

Fraternally, Mr. Owen is a member of the time-honored order of Free and Accepted Masons, and is, as are all the members of the family, a loyal adherent of the Friends church.

Leslie Dayton Owen, the son of J. A. Owen, was born September 30, 1890, in Amo, Indiana, and received his education in the z\mo schools, graduating from the local high school. After leaving school he entered the employ of the Terre Haute & Eastern Traction Company, where he remained for one year. He then became a clerk in the store of his father and uncle, where he is still employed. Fie was married on June 2, 19 13. to Ruth Stanley, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Oscar Stanley, of Coatesville, this county. His wife's father is a merchant in Coatesville. Leslie Owen is a member of the Masonic order and a young man of more than ordinary ability, with the promise of a bright future before him. Wilbur Owen also graduated from the Amo high school and since that time has held some position with the Terre Haute & Eastern Traction Company, at the present time being employed at the Terminal ticket office in Indianapolis. He is a member of the Knights of Pythias, Uniform Rank, also of the Masonic order.

Professional success comes from merit. Frequently in commercial life one may come into possession of a lucrative business through inheritance or gift, but in what are known as the learned professions advancement is gained only through painstaking and long-continued effort. Prestige in the healing art is the outcome of a strong mentality, close application, thorough mastery of its great underlying principles and the ability to apply theory to practice in the treatment of diseases. Good intellectual training, thorough professional knowledge and the possession and utilization of the qualities and attributes essential to success have made the subject of this review emment in his chosen calling and he stands today among the scholarly and enterprising physicians in a county noted for the high order of its medical talent.

Dr. Louis W. Armstrong, a man of exceptionally high intellectual and professional attainments, was born in New York city September 21, 1875. His parents were Robert W. and Eudocia E. (Muller) Armstrong, both of whom were natives of Baltimore, Maryland. His father was a dentist, but retired from this profession early in life and devoted his energies to literary work. He came west in 1849, but always retained his home at Baltimore, where his death occurred in 1902, his wife having died in 1898. Dr. Robert Armstrong and wife were the parents of seven children, six of whom are still living: William R. and Harry J. live near Baltimore, where they have a country home; Gelston H. is an electrical engineer with the Carnegie Company, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Mrs. George F. Ludington lives at Baltimore, where her husband is in the packing business ; Adelaide R. lives in Baltimore, but at present is traveling in Europe ; Mrs. Wade H. Free, of Anderson, Indiana, whose husband is a prominent lawyer of that city, and was secretary of the Indiana Senate in 1913.

Doctor Armstrong was given an excellent education, all of his elementary and college training being received in the Baltimore schools. He received his degree of Doctor of Medicine from the University of Maryland, graduating in the class of 1900. He was a resident interne at the university hospital before his graduation, after which he became the first assistant resident interne and later resident physician of Bay View Hospital at Baltimore, after which, for a period of ten years, he was on the surgeons' staff at the Franciscan Hospital at Breckenridge, Minnesota, and part of this time was chief surgeon. During all this time he was division surgeon of the Great Northern Railway Company. He left the state of JMinnesota and came to Danville, Indiana, in June, 19 12, and bought out the office and practice of Doctor O'Brien. Since then he has built substantial additions and improved his hospital until he now has one of the finest private hospitals in the state. He specializes in surgery and has been remarkably successful along this line. Though comparatively a newcomer in Danville, he has rapidly forged to the front, and now occupies a distinct position both as a public-spirited citizen and as a physician of more than local repute.

Doctor Armstrong was married June 8, 1904, to Louise E. Hyser, daughter of Edward R. and Susan Hyser, of Breckenridge, Minnesota. Her father was a native of Boston, Massachusetts, and her mother of Germany. To this happy marriage there have been born two children, Robert W. and Margaret S., aged eight and seven respectively. Doctor Armstrong is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, the Order of the Eastern Star, Knights of Pythias, Ancient Order of United Workmen and Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He is also a member of the county, state and American medical associations and takes a deep interest in the affairs of all associations which concern his chosen field of endeavor. As a surgeon he is a member of the Clinical Congress of Surgeons of America, the greatest organization of its kind in the world. He and his wife are loyal and consistent members of the Methodist Episcopal church and contribute liberally of their substance to its support.

Archibald A. Figg

The gentleman to a review of whose life the reader's attention is here respectfully directed is recognized as one of the energetic, well known business men of Hendricks county, Indiana, who, by his enterprise and progressive methods, has contributed in a material way to the commercial advancement of the locality where he lives. In the course of an honorable career he has been successful in the manifold lines to which his efforts have been directed and, enjoying distinctive prestige among the representative men of his community, it is eminently proper that attention be called to his achievements and due credit be accorded to his worth as an enterprising citizen.

Archibald A. Figg, one of the widest known and most popular business men of Hendricks county, Indiana, was born February 12, 1866. in Floyd township, Putnam county, Indiana, the son of William H. and Louisa (19)

(Miller) Figg, his father being a native of Shelby county, Iventucky, and his mother of Putnam county, Indiana. William H. Figg came to Putnam county with his father, Asbury Figg, when he was a lad of fourteen years and the family settled in Floyd township, that county. Asbury Figg lived in that county until his death, at the age of eighty years. Mr. and Mrs. W. H. Figg still live in Clay township, Hendricks county, and are among the oldest and most highly respected citizens of the community in which they have lived for so many years. William H. Figg lived in Putnam county until about twenty-five years ago, when he removed to Hendricks county, where he has continued to follow the occupation of a farmer. W. H. Figg was an ardent member of the Methodist Episcopal church all his life and in his political affiliations he adhered to the Prohibition party. Mr. and Mrs. W. H. Figg were the parents of six children: Laura, the wife of John H. Summers, of this county; Archibald A., the immediate subject of this sketch; John S., of Indianapolis; James W., of Danville; Ida B., wife of Ote Hunt, of Coatesville, Indiana; Ella died in infancy.

Archibald A. Figg was born, reared and grew to manhood on his father's farm, and received his education in the district schools of his home township, while early in life he was initiated into all the mysteries of farming. At the age of twenty-five years he began to farm for himself, and for a number of years he farmed in the immediate neighborhood of the old homestead. In 1898 he was elected sheriff of Hendricks county upon the Republican ticket and so efficient and popular was his administration that he secured the nomination in 1900 and a re-election. He was the first man for twenty-two years in Hendricks county to serve two terms, as there had been no man in the county for that length of time previous to his re-election who had been elected for more than one term. Before he served his county as sheriff and most of the time since then he has been more or less engaged in the auctioneering profession. He is a member, of the Indiana Auctioneers' Association and was president of the association for two terms. Since leaving the sheriff's office he has been engaged in the livery business and within the last three years he has been in the automobile business as well. He is now agent for the Studebaker and Ford cars and has been a very successful agent for the companies manufacturing those cars. His twelve years of experience as an auctioneer and four years as sheriff has enabled him to call more people by their names than any other man in the county. He is a man of magnificent physique and one who attracts attention whereever he goes. His genial personality makes itself felt in all his auctioneer-

Mr. Figg was married November 23, 1913, to Mrs. Ada B. (Smith) Thompson, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. McKindry Smith. Mr. Figg is a prominent member of the Knights of Pythias and has had the honor of holding every chair in the subordinate lodge of that fraternal order. He is familiarly known throughout the county as "Colonel," and his optimistic disposition and genial manner with his friends have made him one of the best known and best liked men in the county. His sterling uprightness in all of his business transactions through the many years in which he has been engaged in business has won for him the unlimited confidence and regard of all those with whom he has had business relations. The world has too few men who shed sunshine around them, and were there more such men as Colonel Figg the world would be brighter and happier.

Samuel B. Ensahnger

The men most influential in promoting the advancement of society and in giving character to the times in which they live are two classes, to-wit, the men of study and the men of action. Whether we are more indebted for the improvement of the age to the one class or the other is a question of honest difference of opinion. Neither class can be spared and both should be encouraged to occupy their several spheres of labor and influence, zealously and without mutual distrust. In the following paragraphs are briefly outlined the leading facts and characteristics in the career of a gentleman who combines in his makeup the elements of the scholar and the energy of the public-spirited man of affairs. Devoted to the noble and humane work of teaching, he has made his influence felt in the school life of Hendricks county, Indiana, and is not unknown to the wider educational circles of the state, occupying as he does a prominent place in his profession and standing high in the esteem of educators in other than his own particular field of endeavor.

Samuel B. Ensminger, one of the oldest teachers of Hendricks county, Indiana, was born August 3, 1849, on a farm in Center township, this county, one mile northeast of Danville. His parents were Samuel J. and Mary Ann (Megee) Ensminger, his father being a native of INIaryland and his mother of Kentucky. Samuel J. Ensminger came to Hendricks county, Indiana, when a young man and taught .school in Crawfordsville, Montgomery county, Indiana, for a short time, and then came to Danville, where he followed the same profession. Upon the discovery of gold, in California, in 1849, he was seized with the same fever which actuated thousands of other men and went to' that state, where he remained for the next twenty-two years. While in California he followed the occupation of a miner most of the time and made his headquarters at Placerville. In 1871 he came back to Indiana and later went to Tennessee, where he died at Murfreesboro, at the age of sixty-three years. His wife died December 29, 1871. Mr. and Mrs. .Samuel J. Ensminger were the parents of five children : Melville C, deceased; one who died in infancy; Henry B., deceased, who was a soldier in the One Hundred Seventeenth Indiana Regiment and later in the One Hundred Forty-Eighth Regiment; Marshall L., deceased, and Samuel B., the immediate subject of this sketch, who is the youngest of this family and the only one now living.

Samuel B. Ensminger was born on August 3, 1849, and, as his father left in May of that year for California, and did not return until 1871, he was past twenty-one years of age before he ever saw his father. He received a good education in the public schools of his county and later took a course in the academy at Danville. Being of a studious turn of mind, he was inclined toward the teaching profession and for nineteen years taught school in Center township, this county. During all of these years he farmed in the summer months and was equally successful in both occupations. His joint income from his farming operations and his teaching enabled him to increase his land holdings until he has become one of the most substantiai farmers of his township. He eventually retired from the teaching profession and devoted all of his time to his agricultural interests, and continued to operate his farm until 1910, when 'he sold his farm and removed to Danville to spend the remainder of his days.

Mr. Ensminger was married October 26, 1876, to Amanda Worrell, daughter of William and Martha (Wilson) Worrell. She was born in Washington township, this county. Her father was a farmer who came from Virginia. He was a great man for church and upright living; was often administrator and guardian. He had a family of thirteen children, of whom Mrs. Ensminger was the youngest. Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Ensminger: Charlotte E., wife of Vernon Rudd, who works in the First National Bank of Danville, and Frederick DeWitt, an attorney

Mr. Ensminger is allied with the Republican party and has served his party on more than one occasion in conventions. He has been the assessor of Center township and for five years and three months was trustee of the same township. He has also been ditch commissioner for Hendricks county. In all of his official work he proved to be an efficient and faithful administrator of the duties which he was called upon to perform. The Ensminger family are all members of the Presbyterian church of Danville and take an active interest in the various organizations of that denomination. Fraternally, Mr. Ensminger is a member of the Knights of Pythias of his home town. He is a joA'ial gentleman whom it is a pleasure to meet, and one who makes friends with all classes of people. In his capacity as a public official he was one of the most popular men who ever held office in Hendricks county. He is very widely known throughout the county, and has a large circle of warm friends, who esteem him for his record as a teacher and as a public official. It is probable there is no one, not even the minister, who comes as close in touch with the life of the community as does the school teacher, and in the nineteen years in which he taught in his home township he was brought closely in touch with life in all its phases. He has always been a practical and methodical man, as all members of the teaching profession usually are, has never known such a thing as idleness, and it can truly be said that he has been one of the most potent factors for good in the community in which he has spent so many of his years.

Thomas C. Rose

The race of life is like a horse race; if one is properly started with suitable grooming, such as a good education and proper home training, he will lead in the race in after years and enjoy every moment of existence. Such home influences were thrown around Thomas C. Rose in his early years. Both father and mother were people of intelligence, religious instincts and high ideals, and their son has endeavored to uphold the honor of the family during his entire career, and Marion township has no more highly respected citizen or industrious farmer. As a gallant veteran of the Civil War he well merits an honored place in the history of this county.

Thomas C. Rose, a retired veteran of the Civil War, now hving in North Salem, was born in Marion township, this count}^ in 1840, and has spent nearly seventy-five years within the limits of this county. He is the son of Lewis A. and Flora (Vannice) Rose. Lewis A. Rose was born in Mercer county, Kentucky, in 1801, the son of Charles and Mary (Reese) Rose. Charles Rose was born October 6, 1778, and his wife, Mary Reese, was born February 4, 1779. Lewis A. Rose married Flora Vannice August 11, 1825, and to this union were born ten children. About the year 1827 Lewis A. Rose and family came to Indiana and settled in Marion township, this county, where they spent the remainder of their lives. Lewis and his wife were members of the Presbyterian church, and at his death he owned two hundred and forty acres of land in Marion township. Mr. and Mrs. Lewis A. Rose were the parents of nine children. Two of the boys, Lewis and James, died in the Civil War, and another, Charles, died in his boyhood days* Thomas C, whose history is herein portrayed, is the only one of the six sons who is living.

Thomas C. Rose stayed on the home farm until the opening of the Civil War and in 1861 enlisted in Company A, Fifty-first Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and participated in various battles in Kentucky, Tennessee and Alabama. He was mustered out in 1863, because of ill health, being almost totally disabled at the time of his discharge. After regaining his health, he married Mary C. Clay in 1866. She was born in Putnam county, Indiana, and was the daughter of James Henry and Susan (Fleece) Clay.

After his marriage, Mr. Rose farmed for one year on his father's place and then came to Eel River township where he began operations on his own farm of one hundred and seventy acres, and continued to reside there until about 1900, when he moved into North Salem and retired from active work. He now rents his farm, but gives it his careful oversight.

Mr. and Mrs. Rose have one son, Webster C, who was born in 1877. He is married and is engaged in the poultry business in the state of Oregon. Mr. Rose has always been a very careful business man and has accumulated his competence through his own individual- efforts. He has carried forward to careful completion whatever he undertook and his business methods have always been in strict concomitance with the standard ethics of business life. His career presents a notable example of those qualities of mind and character which overcome obstacles and win success, and his example is eminently worthy of imitation by the coming generation.

The art of healing has been practiced from the beginning of time and today there is no profession which offers more chance and better opportunities for alleviation of human suffering than does the medical profession. It is literally true that the physicians of this country hold its life in their hands, and the conscientious physician is he who does his duty the most scientifically and with the greatest sympathy. It is now an acknowledged fact that there is a therapeutic value in the hand clasp and in the smile of the physician and the most successful physician is he who successfully combines a magnetic smile with his healing drugs.

Frederick Newton Wright was born on June 22, 1878, in Indianapolis, Indiana, and is a son of Levi and Louisa (Martin) Wright. Levi Wright was a native of Salem, Washington county, Indiana, where he was born in 1834. His boyhood days were spent in that county at Salem, and on reaching manhood he entered the ministry of the Methodist Episcopal church and followed this noble profession until his death on July 4, 1891. For many years he preached at Ben Davis, and helped to build the church in that place. His wife was also a native of Washington county, Indiana, and is now living in Hazelwood, Hendricks county, Indiana, having remarried after her husband's death. Mr. and Mrs. Levi Wright were the parents of five children: Dr. Francis Marion Wright, of Indianapolis; William L., of Indianapolis; Edwin Miles, who lives at Kokomo, Indiana; Arthur L., of Indianapolis. and Dr. Frederick N., of Hazelwood.

Frederick N. Wright spent his boyhood days in the city of Indianapolis and finished the common school course and later graduated from Shortridge high school in that city. He then entered the medical department of Indiana University, graduating in the spring of 1905, and immediately located at Hazelwood, Hendricks county, Indiana, for practice, and in the nine years which he has spent here in the active practice of his profession, he has built up a large and lucrative patronage. Doctor Wright has the necessary optimistic disposition which should be a part of every successful physician's equipment and this, coupled with his undoubted technical training, makes him one of the best physicians of the county.

Politically, Doctor Wright is a Progressive, but on account of his large practice he has not had time to take any prominent part in the game of politics. He and E. V. Milhon helped to install the Improved Order of Red

Dr. Frederick Wright was married on May 28, 1905, to Mamie May, the daughter of William and Elizabeth (Watts) Adams, who were natives of Washington county, Indiana.

Doctor Wright is a genial man and makes friends easily because of his frank, open-hearted manner. He has a high standing in his community and is regarded as one of the coming physicians of this section of the state.

Judge Thomas' J. Cofer

The life history of him whose name heads this sketch has been for many years closely identified with the history of Hendricks county, Indiana. Throughout the years his life has been one of untiring activity and it has been crowned with a degree of professional success attained by comparatively few who aspire to eminence in their chosen calling. Years of conscientious work as a lawyer have brought with them not only increase of practice and reputation, but also that growth in legal knowledge and that wide and accurate judgment the possession of which constitutes marked excellence in the profession. By a straightforward, honorable course Mr. Cofer built up a large and lucrative legal business and, financially, has been proportionately successful. His life afifords a splendid example of what an American youth, plentifully endowed with good common sense, energy and determination, can accomplish when accompanied by good moral principles. He achieved a splendid record at the bar at an age when most men are merely starting out on their life work, for, from the beginning, he was intensely methodical and unswervingly persistent in search of the true light and of the essentials of the legal foundation and sources "of legal conception and thought, holding devoutly to the highly embellished record of equity and the sure, certain, invincible methods of practice. Therefore, success could not help crowning his efforts and attracting to him public recognition and appreciation.

Judge Thomas J. Cofer, lawyer, old soldier, public-spirited citizen and a friend of every one in Hendricks county, was born September 2, 1836, three and one-half miles north of Danville, this county. His parents, Stephen and Milanda (Ashbrook) Cofer, were both natives of Kentucky, his father coming to this county about 1831, and lived here the remainder of his life. Stephen Cofer was a plain and unostentatious farmer, who died at the age of sixty, his widow surviving him many years, her cleat4i occurring at the advanced age of ninety-four years. Stephen Cofer and wife were the parents of eight children, only three of whom are now living: Mrs. Nellie Woods, of Oregon, Mrs. Nancy Riddle, of Kansas, and Judge T. J. Cofer.

Judge Thomas J. Cofer was born, reared and practically educated on the farm. The district schools of his day were very rudimentary, but his thirst for knowledge was such that he insisted on continuing his education. He therefore entered the Danville Academy and continued his education at Asbury University, and would have graduated from that institution had not the Civil War interrupted his career. With the first call for troops in the spring of 1861, Judge Cofer enlisted in the Sixteenth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry for one year, and immediately upon the expiration of his term of enlistment he joined the Seventh Regiment of Indiana Volunteers. He was in the battle of Port Republic, where he was wounded in the shoulder, captured and thrown into prison, where he remained until he was paroled six months later. He then came home to recuperate, but as soon as he was able to go to the front again he enlisted in 1863 in the Ninth Regiment Indiana Cavalry, with which command he served until he was mustered out in September, 1865. He participated in the battles of Pulaski, Franklin, Nashville, Spring Hill, Rennell's Hill, Sugar Creek and many others. Immediately after the close of the war Mr. Cofer returned to Hendricks county, and was engaged for a short time in the mercantile business, studying law in the meantime. In 1872 he was admitted to the bar and has practiced in the courts of this county continuously since that time. He first entered into partnership with Judge J. G. Adams and later with Judge Newton M. Taylor. Some time afterwards he entered into partnership with Judge C. C. Hadley. which partnership was terminated in a few years and, until he was appointed judge of the circuit court in 1889, he practiced alone." Governor Mount appointed Judge Cofer as judge of the circuit court in 1889 to succeed Judge John V. Hadley, who was elected to the supreme court at that time. He served two years as an appointee, and was then elected for six years on the Republican ticket, serving in all eight years. After leaving the bench he formed a partnership with Z.' E. Dougan, his son-in-law, and the firm of Dougan & Cofer is still practicing in Danville.

Judge Cofer was married November 9, 1865, to Mary S. Scearce, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. W. J. Scearce, of this county. Of the six children who were born to this marriage, four died in infancy, the two living

Judge Cofer is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, the Grand Army of the Republic and the Loyal Legion. His career has indeed been a long and useful one in this county and has been marked with success in every particular. He is a man who is popular with every one, because of his cheerful disposition and charming personality. He can be truly called one of nature's noblemen.

Roscoe R. Leak

Among the younger generations of Hendricks county farmers is Roscoe Leak, whose grandfather was one of the early settlers of the county. He is a fine type of the modern farmer who takes advantage of all the latest ideas in scientific agriculture and has the education to properly apply them. By a course which has been characterized by industry and perseverance he has established a reputation for good business methods and sound judgment in all his transactions.

.Roscoe R. Leak, the son of James Hilary and Margaret (Leach) Leak, was born September 18, 1884, in Union township, this county. James Hilary Leak was also a native of this county and is the son of James L. and Amanda (Buzzard) Leak. James L. Leak was born in Kentucky in 1816, and came here about 1834 with his parents, James and Elizabeth (Vermillion) Leak. James Leak, the father, was the son of Robert Leak. James was born in Culpeper county in 1787 and came to Bracken county, Kentucky, in 1795. Elizabeth Vermillion was born in 1786 on the present site of Washington, D. C. Robert Leak and his wife, Susan, were born in England at about the close of the Revolutionary War. James H. Leak was born in this township in 1852 and spent his life up until 1909 on the farm where he was born. Margaret Leach, the wife of James Leak, was also a native of Hendricks county and was born in this township in 1865, the daughter of James M. and Elizabeth (Hamilton) Leach. She was married to James H. Leak on October 18, 1883. Mr. and Mrs. James H. Leak are the parents of two children, Roscoe, and Denie, who married George H. Dungan, of Urbana, Illinois. James H. Leak and his wife are now living in Lizton.

school. After his graduation from the high school he entered the Central Normal College at Danville, graduating from the scientific course of that institution in 1906. At the age of twentj'-five he married and began farming on the old homestead farm of one hundred and fifty-five acres, where he is still residing. He was married on September 15, 1909, to Minnie Noe. the daughter of John C. and Elizabeth (Selmire) Noe. John C. Noe was born in Clark county, Indiana, near Charleston, and his wife was a native of the same county. Mr. and Mrs. Noe are the parents of four children: Minnie, the wife of Mr. Leak, Henry, Nellie and May. To 'Sir. and Mrs. Leak has been born one daughter, Margaret.

Mr. Leak is a member of the Knights of Pythias at Lizton and he and his wife are both adherents of the Christian church, in which denomination ]\Ir. Leak is an elder at the present time. He is a Republican in politics and takes an intelligent interest in the political questions of the day. Mr. Leak is a progressive farmer in every sense of the word and uses his brains as well as his brawn in his farming. He is a quiet and unassuming man in demeanor, yet decisive and firm in standing for what he believes to be the right thing. He is eminently utilitarian, and force of character, firmness of purpose and unswerving integrity are among his chief characteristics. Through his persistent efforts he has made for himself a place in connection with the productive energies and activities of his locality.

This is an age in which the farmer stands pre-eminently above any other class as a producer of wealth. He simply takes advantage of the winds, the warm air, the bright sunshine and the refreshing rains and, applying his own hands and skill to nature's gifts, he creates grain, hay, live stock, etc., all of which are absolute necessaries to the inhabitants of the world. Nature does much for the husbandman, so much, indeed, that it is often a question whether he fully appreciates what is thus done for him. Of course he must make proper use of his brain and his muscle, must not quail at obstacles and sit down and repine if things go wrong; on the contrary, he must ever be up and doing, with a heart for any fate. Such a man is William Robert Davidson, of Eel River township, one of the leading farmers in this locality and a man who has refused to permit obstacles to down him.

William Robert Davidson, the son of Daniel N. and Elizabeth (Davidson) Davidson, was born in North Salem, Hendricks county, Indiana, May 14, i860. His father, Daniel N., was a son of Silas and Elizabeth (Stamper) Davidson, and was born September 6, 1832, in Breathitt county, Kentucky. Shortly after his birth, his parents moved to this state and settled about two and one-half miles northwest of North Salem, but a year later moved across in Montgomery county and entered land 'in the southeastern part of Clark township. Silas Davidson and wife lived there until 1855, then moved to Iowa and spent the remainder of their lives there. Daniel N. Davidson grew to manhood in this county and married Elizabeth Davidson, a native of this county and the daughter of Samuel and Susan (Dent) Davidson. Her parents were natives of Kentucky who had come here early in the history of the county. After Daniel N. Davidson was married, he and his wife went to Iowa with his parents, but three years later returned and located in North Salem, where he spent the most of his career in farming, although he has of late years been engaged in the mercantile business in North Salem. Early in life he started to study medicine, but eventually gave this up and devoted his attention to farming. He died in May, 1893, ^^d his wife on December 31, 1891. Mr. and Mrs. Daniel N. Davidson were the parents of seven children: Oliver F., who died at the age of nine; Ida, who was the wife of William H. Vannice and died September 7, 189^; Melissa, who was the wife of A. G. Hypes and died in May, 1903; Lillie V., of North Salem; Mary N., the wife of James Oscar Emmons, of North Salem; William Robert, whose career is herein presented, and one child who died in infancy.

William Robert Davidson remained on the home farm until his marriage, after which he farmed his father's place for eight years and then, after three years' residence in North Salem, he bought ninety-two and a half acres east of his present farm, where he lived for thirteen years. He then sold this farm and moved four miles northeast of North Salem, after which he lived three years in North Salem, then bought his present farm of sixty-seven and a half acres, two miles northeast of North Salem. He has improved his farm in many ways and has brought it up to a high state of cultivation.

Mr. Davidson was married on January 13, 1884, to Rosella Crose, the daughter of James Ross and Ann Eliza (Riggin) Crose. James R. Crose was born in Marion township, this county, in 1834, the son of An- drew Jackson and Nancy (Rogers) Crose. Both his parents were born, reared and married in Nicholas county, Kentucky, and came to this county in 1 83 1 and entered land. When James R. was about thirteen years old, his parents moved to Boone county, where Andrew J. Crose died about six months later, leaving his widow and seven children.

James Ross Crose remained in Boonte county until his marriage, in 1852, to Lurancy Riley, the daughter of Allen and Levina Riley, of Boone county. His wife died in i860, leaving one son, James Madison; two other children had died in infancy. James Madison Crose married Alice Ellington and was killed by a falling tree in Eel River township at the age of forty-two. Mr. Crose was married a second time on March 12, 1862, to Ann Eliza Riggin, who was born in 1842 in Montgomery county, Kentucky, daughter of Wesley and Ann (Wren) Riggin. She came with her parents from Kentucky to this county when she was nine years of age. They came in wagons, and consumed eight days in making the overland trip to this county. Mr. and Mrs. Riggin located about two miles north of North Salem and later moved three miles southwest of Lizton, where they made their home and spent the remainder of their lives. There were three children by the second marriage : Rosella, the wife of William Davidson : Lillie Dale, the wife of Dr. William Wiseheart, of Colfax, Indiana, and Mary Etta, the wife of Douglas S. Grimes, a merchant of North Salem. Dr. and Mrs. Wiseheart have one daughter, Nina ; Mr. and Mrs. Grimes have two children, Edna and Herman C ; Mr. and Mrs. Davidson, of North Salem, have four daughters, Blanche Naomi, Murle Agnes, Nellie May and Hilda Marie. Blanche is the wife of James H. Fiscus, of North Salem; Murle Agnes is a teacher in the city schools of Muncie, having previously taught at North Salem and Connersville ; the other two daughters are still at home. All four daughters graduated from the North Salem high school and three attended the Central Normal College at Danville. Murle has been a student at the State University at Bloomington.

Mr. Davidson is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He has never sought or desired office of any kind, though by nature and experience he is well qualified to fill important trusts. He has chosen the quiet way rather than the turmoil and unrest, and in the quietude of home has found the content which would have been denied him in public places. A successful farmer, a kind and obliging neighbor and a worthy citizen, he has lived to honorable ends.

William A. Hollingsworth

The gentleman whose name heads this article is so well and favorably known throughout Hendricks county that an elaborate introduction to our readers would be superfluous; but some of the facts of his life's history cannot fail to be of interest to many.

Mr. Hollingsworth was born January i, 1852, in Washington township, Hendricks county, the son of Samuel V. and Lydia (Mullin) Hollingsworth. His father, Samuel V., was one of the early settlers of the county, having been brought from Ohio by his own parents when a child, and livmg thereafter for many years in the vicinity of Plainfield. He received his schooling in the little country school, and lived the free, untrammeled life of the farm; but, though revelling in the pure air and sunshine of his surroundings, he was ambitious and sought eagerly for new avenues of employment. Never failing to grasp the opportunities for improvement which came to him, he learned the various trades of the silversmith, gunsmith and blacksmith, and became especially skilled as a wood worker, for which there was much demand in the early days, before the advent of the r/iodern, machine-equipped furniture factory. His versatility found him ample employment aside from that of farming, and, though he spent his life in the country, it was in the various trades that he excelled. His wife, the mother of William Hollingsworth, was a native of North Carolina, coming first to Jackson county, and then to Hendricks county at the age of ten years with her parents, who settled near Plainfield. To this union were born four children, William A., Delia Catherine (Smith), Sarah Adaline and Charles Dayton.

Mr. Hollingsworth was not active in church, fraternal, or political affairs, though a consistent Republican voter; but was an excellent neighbor and interested in all movements for the public welfare at home and abroad.

The boyhood and youth of William A. Hollingsworth were spent upon his father's farm, and his education was afforded by the district school. Rural life with its labors and its pleasures became "second nature" to him, and the pursuit of agriculture in its various phases became, early in life, his chosen calling. He was married on November 13, 1873, to Ellen Hadley, who was born near Avon, the daughter of Enos and Susan (Smith) Hadlev, and to them have been born five children, as follows : Florence Efiie, Bertha

Beatrice, Susan Belle, Samuel A'estal and \\'ilda Azalee. The eldest daughter, Florence Effie, was twice married, first to William Logston, one daughter being born of that marriage, Edna Logston; the second husband is Lewis Darnell, a prosperous farmer of Middle township. The second child of Mr. and Mrs. Hollingsworth is now Mrs. Earl C. Weaver, who lives in Texas and is the mother of two children, Gladys and Earl Cassius, Jr. Mr. Weaver was formerly a printer at Pittsboro and at Jamestown. Susan Belle, now Mrs. Carl Clark, resides on a farm southwest of ^Nlaplewood, in this county, and is the mother of one son, John William. The two younger children still enjoy the protection of the parental roof, being on the old homestead, which has been the abiding place of the family since March, 1874, though a new and modern residence was erected in 1912. Here Mr. Hollingsworth brought his bride the year following their marriage, and around the old house clustered all the memories of many happy years. The fifty-acre tract of land which surrounds the home is in a high state of cultivation and shows the care of an intelligent, careful, industrious man.

In the past Mr. Hollingsworth has dealt largely in live stock, having raised many choice animals for the market, and so discriminating in his judgment in this branch of his work that he found it profitable for eight years to give his time entirely to the purchase of live stock for John \'. Hadley, depending upon hired help to carry forward the general work on his farm.

In the year 1904 Mr. Hollingsworth was elected trustee of Middle township and four years he served in this capacity, devoting his time and energy zealously to the service of the people.

Mrs. Hollingsworth is also a member of one of the most prominent families of Hendricks county, being the daughter of Enos Hadley, a native of this county and one of the pioneer settlers. He was born in 1825 and spent his days in his home locality. One of the very successful farmers in the vicinity, he yet found time and energy for the exercise of his talents in a still broader capacity, serving for many years as commissioner of Hendricks county, and also acting as ditch commissioner. He was actively engaged in this work until the day of his death, which occurred November II, 1893, at the home of his son, Cassius Hadley, in Danville. His wife was a native of Henry county, Kentucky, born there January 28, 1834. Nine children were born to them: Ellen E. (Hollingsworth), James A., Horace E., Cassius C, deceased, Clara B. (Vickery), Robert S., Wilber E. and

Lester B., deceased. The children have inherited the abihty of the parents, and many have won for themselves enviable places in the community.

Reverting to the subject of this article, William H. Hollingsworth, we find him a man of few words, but with a kindly manner which inspires confidence not only in the home circle, but throughout the county, where he is known by a host of friends. He is a member of the Masonic order at Danville; an adherent of the Republican party, and both he and Mrs. Hollingsworth are prominent members of the Methodist church, at Bartlett's Chapel.

The living exemplification of virtuous lives, well spent for their family and the community at large, they are enjoying the fruits of their labor among a host of friends.

John W. Tinder

Among the men of a past generation who left the impress of their individuality upon Hendricks county, Indiana, there is no one who can gamsay the fact that John W. Tinder was one of nature's noblemen. To know hmi intimately was to be impressed with his earnestness of purpose, his purity of life and the nobility of his character. To be associated with him in daily work was to be impressed with the truth that here was a man honest, liberty loving and God fearing. He was retiring in his nature, yet he had that tenacity of purpose and that industry that pushed to successful completion whatever he undertook. He was ever an industrious man and his wonderful executive ability brought him much to do. He was justly proud of his military record, yet he rarely referred to it, and when he did it was with that modesty which revealed the unassuming man. He was an intense partisan and always took an active interest in his party's welfare, and it is doubtful if any man in Hendricks county knew more men in the county than did he at the time of his death. To a wonderful degree he held the confidence of the people and their confidence was never betrayed in the slightest degree. He was successful in the business world and his life throughout is a worthy example which the coming youth of this county would do well to emulate. In him was peace and his memory will be long cherished by those who knew him.

The late John W. Tinder, of Hendricks county, Indiana, was born January 22, 183=;, in the county where he spent his whole life, and died in Danville July 8. 1Q03. He received such education as the common schools of his day afforded and spent all of his boyhood days on the farm where he was born. He remained at home until he was twenty-two years of age and then, on February 5, 1857, married Laura Hamrick, daughter of William F. and Jane Hamrick. The Hamrick family is one of the best known and oldest families of Putnam county, Indiana, and many of its descendants have occupied responsible positions in the affairs of the county.

Immediately after his marriage Mr. and Mrs. Tinder bought a farm in Marion township, where they lived most happily until July 2, 1862, and on that date Mr. Tinder enlisted in Company A, Fourth Indiana Cavalry,' and commenced his service of three years in that memorable struggle which goes down in history as the greatest civil war the world has ever known. Upon the organization of the troops he was promoted to sergeant and was mustered out as lieutenant. He was in continuous service from the date of his enlistment until he was honorably discharged at Nashville, Tennessee, in September, 1865. He participated in the battles of Chickamauga, Dalton, Resaca, in all the battles of the Atlanta campaign, Kenesaw Mountain, Peach Tree Creek, Jonesboro and Wilson's raid. He saw severe fighting in Kentucky at Lebanon and Perryville, and while on the Bardstown pike was wounded in the left leg below the knee. He received a furlough for two months on account of this disability, spending the time at home, rejoining his command at Gallatin, Tennessee. On the Atlanta campaign his regiment was under fire for almost four months, and after the surrender of Atlanta he returned to Nashville and was in the memorable battle of Franklin. He was always an active soldier and, possessing a hardy constitution, endured all the vicissitudes and hardships of army life with fortitude, but was never in a hospital nor captured during his period of service.

Shortly after the close of the war Mr. and Airs. Tinder moved to Danville, where they resided until the time of his death, and his widow is still a resident of that place. Two children were born to them, both of whom died in infancy. They reared three children and gave them all the advantages of a tender mother's and father's care, namely : John O'Donnell, wliom they took at the age of eight years, and who made his home with them until he died at the age of twenty-five; Linnie Wallen, who went to live with them at the age of ten, and who died in 1894, and Thomas Bence, who came into their lives when he was a child of fourteen, and who is now in the newspaper business in Danville.

one of the pronounced characteristics of his nature. He served during several campaigns as chairman of the count)' organization of the RepubHcan partv, and was elected commissioner of Hendricks county for four terms, and no county ever had a better or more faithful officer. He also served on the town board and at the time of his death was a trustee-elect from his ward. He was a member of Silcox Lodge, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and had been treasurer of this lodge for years. Among the monuments to his memory in his public official career is the Danville water plant, which was put in under his immediate supervision.

Such, in brief, is the life history of a man who truly lived for the service he could render to his home, to his country and to his God. His life was a blessing to the community in which he lived and, as has been said, the lives of such men do not go out, they go on.

Alfred R. Glover

This honored veteran of the Civil War is to be designated as one of the progressive and influential citizens of Hendricks county, where for many years he has maintained his home, figuring as one of the builders of the community and especially worthy of consideration in this work. He has, by his industry and sound judgment, not only improved a fine farm and gained a large competency for his old age, but he has materially assisted in the general welfare of the community, in many ways lending his valuable time and influence in the promulgation of various uplifting movements.

Alfred R. Glover, one of the leading farmers of Hendricks county, Indiana, and justice of the peace at Clayton, was born on December 19, 1841, near Belleville, this county, the son of James and Mary P. (Reagan) Glover, the former of whom was born in the northern edge of Tennessee on the Barron river in 181 3. His parents both died when he was a small child and when a boy in his teens he came to Indiana, having relatives in Lawrence county, near Bedford, and also near Belleville, this county. He worked as a farm hand and saved his money, so that shortly after his marriage he was able to purchase eighty acres of land, something over two miles southwest of Clayton, and there the family took up their residence after the birth of the immediate subject of this sketch. It was on that farm James Glover passed the remainder of his life, his death occurring about 1888. Mary P. Reagan, mother of the subject, was a native of Virginia, born about 1815,- and was early left an orphan. At the age of four years she was brought westward into Indiana and was reared in the family of Major Red. They took up their residence near Belleville at an early day and in this locality she passed the remainder of her life. She remained on the home farm after the death of her husband until about two years prior to her death, when the subject built for her a home in Clayton and had nurses to care for her the remainder of her life. She passed away in 1892, surrounded by every care and comfort the subject was able to procure for her.

Alfred R. Glover grew to maturity on his father's farm south of Clayton, assisting with the work of the home place until the beginning of the Civil War. In August, 1862, he enlisted in Company C, Seventieth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, under Gen. Benjamin Harrison, that regiment being part of the Twentieth Army Corps. As a private in the Army of the Cumberland he was with Sherman through the Atlanta campaign and was engaged in almost continual lighting after leaving Teni!essee until the fall of Atlanta. At Resaca he was wounded, but made a quick recovery. It was at this battle he was in the hottest fight of his service. His regiment led the charge against the enemy and got into the fort through a rain of lead,, fighting the enemy hand to hand. They captured four pieces of artillevy, the only artillery captured on that campaign. In that fierce conflict of fifteen minutes, which well might have dismayed the bravest, they lost one hundred and sixty-nine men killed and wounded. After the close of the Atlanta campaign, Mr. Glover came down with typhoid fever. Up to that time he had never been oiif duty and now to his dismay he was ordered sent back to the hospital at Chattanooga. There he remained for some time, having the disease in so severe a form that at times his case seemed hopeless. However, he finally recovered sufficiently to be returned home, but so anxious was he to be again at the front that after a thirty-day furlough he rejoined his regiment at Alexandria, Virginia, going by rail to New York City and from thence by ship down the coast. This was in April, 1865, and when his regiment arrived at the place above mentioned he was so overjoyed that he rushed eagerly past the guards to greet his comrades in arms. He was still incapacitated on account of his illness and was not able to participate in the grand review of troops which passed before President Johnson (Lincoln having been assassinated a short time before) in Washington during May, 1865, but was able to witness that impressive sight and in June of the same year was mustered out of service and sent home. He returned to his father's farm and took up the reins of duty where he had lain them down at the call of his country.

On October 4, 1866, a little more than a year after his return from the army, Mr. Glover was united in marriage to Isabinda Estes, who was born on Mill Creek near Pecksburg, a daughter of Edward B. and Mary (Smith) Estes, both natives of Randolph county, North Carolina, and among the early pioneers of this section. Edward B. Estes, when a boy of eight years, was brought to Washington county, this state, by his parents and later came to Morgan county, where he was married. Later on he brought his family to near Pecksburg, where he bought one hundred and sixty acres of land which another man had entered from the government, and there passed the remainder of his life. After his marriage, the subject purchased a farm of forty and three-quarters acres of land in section 29, in Liberty township, this county, near Hazelwood: the three-quarters of an acre was intended as a building site, the balance of the land being very wet. He carried out his plans, building a home and living there for many years until he moved to Clayton. Sonfe time after his original purchase, he bought the eighty acres adjoining and in all has put in twenty-six hundred rods of ditching and drain tile. Li this way he has disposed of the surplus moisture and has .made an excellent farm of it which produces banner crops. In September, 1892, he moved into Clayton, where he bought a home, which he later sold for twenty-four hundred and seventy-five dollars, and in 1906 purchased the residence where he now resides. This is located in the northern part of Clayton, being one of the finest homes in the town, strictly modern, with private lighting plant and in the basement a fine flowing well that never runs less than an inch stream of water. Mr. Glover manages his farm and also is engaged in the coal business. In addition to his business, he has served as notary public for four years and for the past seventeen years has been justice of the peace. He was first appointed to fill out another's unexpired term and since that time has been four times elected, each time for a term of four years. He is considered remarkably wise and fair in his decisions, his long experience enabling him to see a case from all sides and also to judge correctly of the veracity of his witnesses. He is said never to have had a case reversed on appeal and in all the years he has had only four cases where a jury was called for and many cases have been venued to him from other townships. He has made for himself an enviable reputation in this line of work and by his wisdom and justice has promoted kindlier feelings among those who have been brought before him.

Mr. Glover has been twice married, his first wife having passed away on May 16, 1890. To their union had been born two children, the eldest be- ing a son who died at birth in September, 1867. On July ^4, 1875, their daughter Samantha was born. She is now Mrs. OHver Edward Frazier and lives near Ellettsville, Owen county, this state. She is the mother of five children, Earl G., Annie, Effie. Mabel and Ruth.

On November 28, 1901, Mr. Glover was again married, his bride being Mary Frances Jones, who was born three miles south of Clayton, the daughter of John and Rose (Williams) Jones. John Jones was born in Owen county, this state, and when a small child of three years was brought to this county by his parents. John Jones, senior, entered land from the government south of Clayton and also purchased other land, making in all a farm of one hundred and twenty acres, where he lived the remainder of his life. He was an excellent man and for many years prior to his death was a minister in the Baptist church. He was a man of strong influence for good in the early days of this locality and reared his family strictly in accordance with the tenets of his chosen church society. His son John, father of Mrs. Glover, was also active in Baptist church circles, saving served his society as deacon for forty years prior to his death. The vocation of farming was his life's work and his efforts in this direction were entirely confined within Liberty township, this county. Rose Williams, mother of Mrs. Glover, was a native of North Carolina and at the tender age of two years was brought by her parents, Enoch Williams and wife, to Hendricks county, locating just east of the Jones farm, where Mr. Williams purchased land and passed the remainder of his life. Rose (Williams) Jones departed this life November 17, 1899, her husband, John Jones, junior, following her into the great beyond on May 15, 1907. It was the desire of Mr. and Mrs. Jones that their children should all be well educated, and after attending the schools near home where she received her elementary education, Mrs. Glover attended the Central Normal College at Danville, Indiana, and later studied at Franklin College, Franklin, this state. After teaching school for one year, she took further training at the State Normal School at Terre Haute. Then for one year she taught school in Johnson county, this state, two years in this county and three years in Page county, Iowa. She then returned to Clayton, where she has since resided. A sister, Mrs. Minnie Swindler, and a brother, J. Ulysses, are both also graduates of Franklin College. For ten years J. Ulysses Jones was connected with the United States revenue service, but is at present engaged in farming on the old homestead. Two others of the family, Wayland and Mrs. Alice Gully, attended Franklin College. Jewett, another brother, died in 1912.

Both Mr. and Mrs. Glover are members of the Baptist church at Clayton, the former having served as deacon for considerably over forty years, being ordained to that service on the same day as Mrs. Glover's father. This was in the Friendship Baptist church and Mr. Glover has continued without interruption ever since. Mrs. Glover also is active in church work, being the financial secretary of the_ Woman's Foreign Missionary- Society of the White Lick association. Mr. Glover is secretary of the Crawford Industrial Home, located at Zionsville, this state, being a home for friendless children supported by the White. Lick association of Baptist churches. In politics, ]\Ir. Glover is a Progressive, having readily endorsed the principles of the new party as laid down by the leaders of same at its birth in Chicago. Prior to that time he had been a stanch Republican. Mr. Glover is a man whose influence has ever been extended for the advancement of the best interests of his community, and is held in the very highest esteem by the friends and neighbors who have known him for years. This is the highest tribute a man can win. To live in the same community year in and year out, to be engaged in the public administration of affairs, and to rise steadily in the regard and esteem of those with whom he comes in contact is the great privilege only of those whose lives are ordered by the highest principles and who give themselves unselfishly to the best interests of others. Mrs. Glover is known as a woman possessing many admirable traits of character, of keen intelligence and broad sympathies, whose helpful hand is ever outstretched to assist in the moral and educational welfare of those about her.

Tohn Enos Leach

Among the men of sterling worth and character who have made an impress upon the life of the locality in which they live there is no one who has received a larger meed of popular respect and regard than John E. Leach, whose family name is well known throughout this county. A lifelong residence in one county has given the people an opportunity to know him in every phase of his character and that he has been true to life in its every phase is manifested in the degree of confidence and regard in which he is held by all those who know him.

John E. Leach, one of the most prosperous farmers of Union township, was born July 30, 1861, in the township where he has lived all his life

His parents were James M. and Elizabeth (Hamilton) Leach, both of whom were born in Hendricks county. James M. Leach was born February 9, 1834, and was the son of Enos and Elizabeth Leach, who were natives of Kentucky. They settled in Union township, Hendricks county, in the fall of 183 1, where Enos Leach entered two hundred acres. They were the parents of seven children, of whom James M. was the fifth. James M. grew to manhood in Hendricks county and was married on March 17, 1859, to Elizabeth Hamilton, the daughter of Abraham Hamilton, of Hendricks county. James M. Leach became one of the leading farmers of the county and had two hundred and seventy-one acres of fine farming land and one of the finest residences in the county. Lie and his wife were members of the Christian church, of which he was an elder for several years.

John E. Leach was given a good common school education and remained at home until he was twenty-five. He then began farming on land which his grandfather had entered and to this he has added seventy-eight acres, which now gives him a fine farm of three hundred and eighteen acres in this township. He has a beautiful home, excellent barn and outbuildings and keeps all these details about his place in a manner which speaks well for the taste of the owner. He has raised all of the crops which are peculiar to this latitude and in addition has supplemented his annual income by breeding a large amount of stock each year.

Air. Leach was married September i, 1886, to Malissa ]\Ioney, the daughter of John T. and Malinda Money. John T. Money was a native of Kentucky and came to this county with his parents when he was a small boy. His wife was a native of Boone county, Indiana, and died on the Money homestead farm in this county in 1903. Mr. Money died December 11, 1906, on his son's farm south of Danville, as a result of a severe fall. Mr. and Mrs. Money were the parents of seven children: William; John, deceased; Pressley; Oliver; Malissa, the wife of Mr. Leach, and two who died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Leach have reared a family of five children : Granville, Paul, Fannie E., deceased. Ralph and Emma. Paul married Mamie Kendle and lives on a farm across from the old homestead place ; he has three children, Pauline, John Edward and Barbara Ellen.

Mr. Leach is a member of the Knights of Pythias at Lizton. Politically, he has always identified himself with the Republican party and takes an interest in the various political questions of the day, although he has never been a seeker for any office. He and his wife are members of the Christian church and take a deep and abiding interest in all church work,

Mr. Leach being a elder in the church at the present time. Personally, he is one of the best known farmers in the township and is well liked b}' everyone because of his square dealings and upright manner in all things. He can now look back over his life without regret for any misspent days, for it has been such as to bring only good to himself and to others.

Jacob J. Page

It is not possible in the brief history which is here presented of Jacob J. Page to enter into the interesting details of his career in an exhaustive manner. He has filled a large and important place in the ranks of successcessful citizens in Eel River township and has done his part well. His record as a farmer and as a public-spirited citizen has been such as to gain for him the compensation and approval of his fellow citizens. His career has been a long, busy and useful one and he has contributed much to the material, civic and moral advancement of the community.

Jacob J. Page, the son of Jeremiah J. Page and wife, was born March 15, 1863, two and one-half miles west of North Salem, in Putnam county, Indiana. A complete history of the Page family is given in the biography of Jeremiah J. Page, which is found elsewhere in this work.

Jacob J. Page received a good common school education and remained under the parental roof until his marriage, when his father gave him twenty acres and, with this as a beginner, he has become one of the most prosperous and substantial farmers of the county. He has been a farmer and stock raiser all of his life, making a specialty of cattle and hogs. He has also bought and sold land at different times, and by the use of good judgment has usually been able to realize on each transaction. As he was able, he added to his possessions until he now owns nine hundred and sixty-six acres of land, all of which is improved. On his different farms he has good houses, barns and outbuildings and he takes a great deal of pride in keeping everything in an attractive manner, believing that an attractive appearance enhances the value of his property.

Mr. Page was married in 1891 to Ida Thompson, the daughter of Nelson C. and Margaret (McCreary) Thompson. Nelson Thompson was born April 30, 1843, in Boyle county, Kentucky, the son of John R. and Martha Thompson. In the summer of 1843 John R. Thompson and his family came to this county and bought a farm in Eel River township. In addition to farming, John Thompson bought and sold a large amount of live stock, especially mules and horses. Nelson Thompson grew to manhood in this county and married Margaret McCreary, the daughter of Huston and Lucinda (Jordan) McCreary. Margaret McCreary was born in Clark township, Montgomery county, her parents having come from Virginia in pioneer times and entered a homestead near New Ross, Montgomery county. After his marriage Nelson Thompson came to Hendricks county and ' farmed in Eel River township until his death, in April, 1906. His wife died in JuW. 1898.

Mr. and Mrs. Page are loyal members of the Christian church of North Salem. They are the parents of nine children, all of whom are still living at home: Asa, Cecil, Bessie, Birdie, Roxie, Mamie, Lena, Oscar and Stella. Mr. Page is a public-spirited and progressive man and has always been interested in the various movements and measures which were calculated to improve the welfare of his community. Quiet and unassuming in demeanor, he has always attended strictly to his own business and for this reason is numbered among the representative men of his communitv.

Benjamin Grayson Edmondson

The occupation of farming, to which the major part of the business life of Benjamin G. Edmondson, one of the well known and popular citizens of, Hendricks county, has been devoted, is the oldest pursuit for a livelihood of mankind and the one in which he will ever be the most independent. The subject's name has been inseparably connected with the general growth of Hendricks county, of which he has long been a resident. While primarily attending to his own varied interests, his life has been largely devoted to his fellow men, having been untiring in his efforts to inspire a proper respect for law and order and ready at all times to uplift humanity along civic and social lines.

Benjamin G. Edmondson, retired farmer of Hendricks coimty, who is now living in comfortable retirement in Clayton, was born in Morgan county, this state, on September 11, 1831, the son of Francis and Jane (Grayson) Edmondson. Francis Edmondson was born in Knox county, Tennessee, in 1802, where he grew to manhood and was there united in marriage with Jane Grayson. About the year 1828 they came into Indiana and settled in Morgan county, where they entered government land and remained there until the subject was about two years old, when the}' came to Hendricks county and entered government land south of the Walker farm, located south of the national road in Liberty township. He at first entered eighty arces, but purchased more later and was possessed of two hundred and sixty acres at the time of his death. Both he and his wife were devout members of the Baptist church and in this faith they reared their family.

Benjamin Grayson Edmondson grew from babyhood to manhood in this county, receiving his elementary education in the early schools of this district and later attending Franklin College. On October 20, 1853, he was united in marriage with Mary A. Little, who was born near Plainfield, a daughter of Samuel and Rebecca (Greene) Little, her father being a farmer who had come to this county from Washington county, this state. After the subject was married, he took his bride to a little cabin which he had erected and prepared for her with his own hands on a tract of land where only twenty acres were at that time cleared. He had considerable more work to do in this line and in preparing his land for cultivation he endured the hardships and privations of the early pioneers. On this first tract he lived for about three years, when he purchased the tract of forty acres adjoining, where he resided until 1867. He then moved a short distance south of Clayton, where he purchased a farm of eighty acres, to which he later added eighty acres more and then again a tract of one hundred and eight acres. He now owns about six hundred and forty acres of excellent land, in this township, all attesting to the business ability and indomitable energy of their owner. On January 14, 1888, Mrs. Edmondson passed away, being the mother of eight children who lived beyond infancy, one of whom, Rebecca, died when seventeen years of age. The seven living are Columbus, Robert A., Mrs. Lizzie Worrell, Thomas B., Joseph L., Samuel Eugene and Charles Arthur. Mr. Edmondson has the pleasure of seeing all his children in good circumstances and an excellent way of life, and has the additional enjoyment of having them all near him, as all reside in or near Clayton. All but Charles are engaged in farming, he being in the implement business. He is a skilled marksman and a trap shooter of national reputation. Robert is president of the People's Bank and Trust Company. Joe is a prosperous and successful farmer, who, in addition to the regular business of his farm, pays particular attention to a fine strain of horses and mules.

On February 29, 1888, Mr. Edmondson was again united in marriage, his bride being Mrs. Mary E. (Springer) Ader, who was born in Darke county, Ohio, the daughter of Benjamin O. and Eliza Springer. In 1856.

when she was fifteen years old, her folks moved to Decatur county, where her father entered land for himself and all his sons. In i860 she was united in marriage to Jacob H. Ader, who was born in Putnam county, this state. His father and Mrs. Edmondson's father moved to the state of Iowa at the same time. In 1861 Mr. and Mrs. Ader came back to Indiana and located Putnam county, near Groveland, and remained there as long as her first husband lived. His death occurred about 1872. She remained there on the farm until the time of her marriage to Mr. Edmondson. She had two sons by her first husband, John W., of Danville, and Solomon O., who still lives on the farm in Putnam county. In 1902 Mr. Edmondson purchased a residence in Clayton, where he has lived most of the time since, but he passes considerable of his time on the farm. He has made farming and stock raising his life's vocation and still continues to manage the farm. Mr. Edmondson has raised himself to an enviable position among the agriculturists of his county, entirely by his own efforts. He possesses an unfailing energy, excellent judgment and his ambition has ever been set on a goal far ahead. While seeking primarily the interests of himself and family, he has ever borne in mind his duty to his fellow man. and has proven himself a neighbor of unusual helpfulness and consideration. Through this manner of living, he has endeared himself to a large circle of friends and acquaintances. Mr. Edmondson is independent in politics, voting for the man instead of the party every time. Both he and his wife are members of the Presbyterian church and give liberally toward its support. He is one of the trustees of the church and has been an honored and active member for a number of years. United in his composition are so many elements of a provident, practical nature, which during a series of years have brought him into prominence and earned for him a first place among the enterprising men of his county, that it is but just recognition of his worthiness that he receive specific mention in this work.

Marshall Underwood

The biographies of the representative men of a country bring to light many hidden treasures of mind, character and courage, well calculated to arouse the pride of their family and of the community, and it is a source of regret that the people are not more familiar with the personal history of such men, in the ranks of whom may be found tillers of the soil, mechan- ics, teachers, as well as lawyers, physicians, bankers and members of other vocations and professions. The subject of this sketch is distinctively one of the leading citizens of the township in which he lives, and as such has made his influence felt among his fellow men and earned a name for enterprise, integrity and honor that entitles him to worthy notice in a work of the nature of this volume.

Marshall Underwood, the son of Franklin and Ella (Christie) Underwood, was born in Marion township, Hendricks county, September 2'j, 1863. His father was born March i, 1826, in Shelby county, Kentucky. He came to this county with his parents when he was eight years of age. His father, John Underwood, entered land in Marion township, this county, and lived on the farm which he entered, until his death in 1861.

Franklin Underwood was twice married, his first wife being Catherine. Martin, to whom he was married January 24, 1850. To the first marriage were born three children: Clara, who died September 21, 1867; Mrs. Rebecca Beckley and Mrs. Sarah L. Christie. His first wife died August 13, 1859, and in i860 Mr. Underwood married Ella Christie, who was a native of Kentucky and has been a resident of this county since she was four years of age. Her parents came to this county from Kentucky and lived near New Winchester in Marion township. To this second marriage was born one child, Marshall, whose history is herein presented. The second wife of Franklin Underwood was born in 1832 and died in 1914, at the age of eighty-one.

Franklin Underwood was a remarkaljle man in many ways. He was a very careful man in his business affairs, and in everything he did was honest and upright. While he was laying aside a comfortable competence for his old age, he did not neglect the affairs of a higher life to come. In 1852 he, with his wife and three of his sisters, united with the New Winchester Baptist church. In 1857 he was chosen and ordained a deacon in that denomination. In 1862 he changed his church membership to Danville and united there with the Regular Baptist church, and still later, as a matter of convenience, he placed his membership in the Palestine church, in Putnam county, Indiana, where he continued as a member until his death, May 2, 1892. Franklin Underwood was one of a family of seven and of his five sisters and one brother, all are deceased now except his sister, Mrs. Lottie McMurry, who lives at Spokane, Washington. At his death he had a farm of two hundred and eighty acres, one hundred and eighty of whicli was in Putnam county and the remainder in Marion township, this county.

Marshall Underwood has lived all his life in jNIarion township and in that township received his early training on the farm and in the district schools. He has two hundred and eighteen acres of land south of New- Winchester, and has it well improved in every way. He raises live stock and also feeds much stock for the market, in addition to his general farming.

Mr. Underwood was married the first time on October 28. 18S5, to Clara Johnson, a native of Morgan county, Indiana, and to this union were born two children, Mable, born July i, 1890, and Clarence, born April 13, 1896. Mable married Glenn Brown, a farmer in Putnam county, November TO, 1912. Clarence is still with his father on the home farm. Mr. Underwood was married a second time on October i, 1902, to Cora Thompson, a native of Hendricks county, and the daughter of Charles and Sarah Jane (Moon) Thompson. To this union was born one child, May 18, 1913. now deceased. Mrs. Underwood's father was a native of Illinois, and her mother of this county, both of whom are still living. Mr. and Mrs. Charles Thompson have a family of six children : Cora, the wife of Mr. Underwood, Mavia, Maggie, James E., Effie and Charles Walter.

Mr. Underwood is a Democrat in politics, but takes no further interest in politics than to cast his vote for the candidate of his party at election time. He and his wife are members of the Missionary Baptist church and he has been a trustee in that denomination for the past six years. He is a jovial man, with a happy disposition and easily wins friends. He is a man with keen judgment and business qualities which would have made him a success jn any line of business to which he might have turned. His conduct during his whole career has been exemplary and no action of his has ever brought upon him the condemnation of his fellow citizens, and thus he justly deserves the esteem and good will which his neighbors have for him.

Charles W. Kocher

Agriculture has always been an honorable occupation and at the present time the agricultural output is more than equivalent to the total output of all the factories of the United States. There is one thing in the life of a farmer which distinguishes him from men in other occupations, and that is his ability to exist independent of every other occupation. The merchant, the banker, the manufacturer and the professional man depend absolutely on the farmer's crops. A famine throughout this county would wreck the strongest bank, close the factories and bankrupt the merchants. The business man can see his business collapse within a week, but nothing short of an earthquake can ruin the farmer. Land is and it alwaj's has been, the most stable investment; panics may sweep the manufacturer out of business over night, but the farmer can survive them when every other industry falls. Therefore the farmer is the backbone of the nation and he who makes two blades of grass grow where but one formerly grew is performing the most important mission of man. Hendricks county's farmers are as good as can be found anywhere in the world and their history is the history of the material advancement of the county, and no farmer in the county is more deserving of recognition in this series of sketches than is the gentleman whose name heads this sketch.

Charles W. Kocher was born September 19, i860, in Marion county, Indiana, seven miles west of Indianapolis, on the Hanch free gravel road. His father, Edwin Kocher, was born in Allen county, Pennsylvania, and when a child moved with his parents to a place near Columbus, Ohio. When he was eight years of age, his parents moved to Indianapolis, where Edwin F. was reared to manhood and married. Edwin F. and his father operated a blacksmith shop on West Washington street, Indianapolis, for several years. They then moved seven miles west of Indianapolis^ where they lived until the death of Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Kocher, he dying in 1892 and his wife in 1894.

Charles W. Kocher received his education in Marion county, Indiana, completing his common school education in the city schools of Indianapolis. In 1894 he moved to his present farm, which he has been operating for the past twenty years. As a farmer he has been uniformly successful in his crops and raising live stock, which is peculiar to this' section of the state, Duroc Red hogs receiving his chief attention.