Huntington County, Indiana - Chapter 6: Township History, 1914

Formation' of Huntington Township in May. 1834 - Its Subsequent Division Into Twelve Civil Townships - List of Present Day Townships - The Pioneer's Place in History - Clear Creek - Dallas - Huntington - Jackson - Jefferson - Lancaster - Early Settlements in Each - First Births, ^Larrlvges and Deaths - Early Industries - First Churches and Schools - Present School System - Towns and Villages - Transportation - Population and Wealth - Miscellaneous Events.

At the first meeting of the county commissioners, in May, 1834, all the present County of Huntington was erected into a township <;to be known and designated as Huntington township/' As the popula¬ tion increased, the inconveniences arising from one township sixteen miles wide and twenty-four miles long became manifest and from time to time new townships were created until there are now twelve in the county, to wit: Clear Creek. Dallas, Huntington. Jackson. Jefferson, Lancaster, Polk, Rock Creek, Salamonie, Union, Warren and Wayne.

More than three-quarters of a centum* have passed since the County of Huntington was organized and the first civil townships were erected. In this chapter and the one following, the object is to present the names of many of the men who came here at an early day and aided in redeeming this portion of the Wabash Valley from the wilderness and the savage: to chronicle some of the principal events that have occurred in different parts of the county, and to show the progress of settle¬ ment. the development of industry and the increase in population that have led to the formation of twelve political subdivisions called town¬ ships. In these chapters the reader will no doubt notice and recognize the names of many pioneers whose descendants still reside in Hunt¬ ington County.

But the men who organized the county and started it upon its career have passed from the stage of action, and few are left who assisted in shaping the county's destiny during the early years of its history. Many interesting incidents have been forgotten, because they have been allowed to pass unrecorded. If this chapter and its successor shall con-

It has been said, and probably with some truth, that the lives of the early settlers were aimless and void of ambition, their chief purpose having been to provide sustenance for themselves and the families dependent upon them. Yet they builded wiser than they knew when they braved the dangers and hardships of the frontier, worked out their self-appointed tasks with patient energy, resolution and self-sacrifice, and paved the way for the manifold blessings and comforts the present generation enjoys.

History is always ready to record the glorious deeds of the military commander who leads his army to victory, the scientist who gives to the world a great discovery, or the statesman who thrills a public audience or a legislative body with his logic and oratory. But the humble pioneer, wTho, with his ax and his rifle, pushed boldly into the unexplored and unconquered regions and established his modest log cabin as the outpost of civilization, is entitled to honorable mention in the records of the nation's progress. True, they achieved no great mili¬ tary victories, made no great discoveries, nor inventions, but by their patient toil they made possible the great development of later years. Without them the general, the scientist and the statesman might not have won their laurels; the introduction of the railroad might never have come, nor the great manufacturing concerns and the cities with which the land is dotted over at the beginning of this Twentieth century.

It is to be hoped that some day their labors, their customs and the importance that attaches to their simple mode of living will be better understood and more appreciated. If this chapter and the next shall assist, in the slightest degree, in bringing about that better understand¬ ing and appreciation, they will not have been written in vain.

This township was set apart as a separate political subdivision of the county by order of the board of county commissioners on February 14, 1838. When first established it embraced all that part of the county north of the line separating Congressional townships 28 and 29, but has since been reduced to its present dimensions by the formation of J ackson and Warren townships. It is bounded on the north by the County of Whitley; on the east by Jackson Township; on the south by Huntington, and on the west by the Township of Warren. Its area is thirtysix' square miles, corresponding to Congressional Township 29, Range

Clear Creek Township derives its name from its principal stream, which is composed of two branches. The east fork enters the township from Whitley County in Section 2 and the west fork crosses the northern boundary about two miles farther west. They form a junction in Sec¬ tion 16, from which point the main stream flows a southwesterly direc¬ tion and crosses the southern boundary about a mile from the southwest corner. In early days Clear Creek furnished power for a number of saw and grist mills, but with the introduction of steam as a motive power, the old water mills gave way to the march of progress, and the principal function of the creek now is to furnish an outlet for the natural drainage of a large portion of the township.

are a few hills in places, but in no part is the land too broken for cultiva¬ tion. The soil is fertile, well adapted to all the fruits and field crops that are grown in this latitude, and as an agricultural district Clear Creek Township ranks among the best in the county. When the first settlers came they found the land covered by a heavy forest growth, much of which was cleared off in the work of opening farms and fields, while in later years large quantities of valuable timber found their way to the saw-mill to supply the constantly increasing demand for lumber. Consequently there is at present very little timbered land -in the township.

In 1834, about the time the county was organized, Michael Doyle, a contractor on the Wabash & Brie Canal, and, as his name would indi¬ cate, a native of the Emerald Isle, came into Clear Creek and located on Section 33, near the southern border, where he built a cabin and lived until the following spring. He then removed to Carroll County, following the course of the construction of the canal, and afterward sold his land in Huntington County. He is credited with having been the first actual settler in what is now Clear Creek Township.

Soon after Doyle established himself, John R. and Fletcher Emley, two brothers, came from New Jersey on a prospecting tour, with a view of purchasing land in the new county. The former selected and bought a tract of land in Section 29, a short distance northwest of Doyle's claim, and returned to New Jersey for his family. Leaving his home in Salem County, New Jersey, after a wearisome journey he ar¬ rived at Huntington on January 8, 1835. There he left his wife and the younger members of the family, and accompanied by his two sons, Anthony and Wesley, set out for his land on Clear Creek. For three weeks these three lived in a tent, in the dead of winter, while they built a typical log cabin, into which the family removed in February. Then a small patch of ground was cleared and in the spring of 1835 Mr. Emley planted the first crops that were ever planted in Clear Creek Township - a little field of corn and a few potatoes.

Some idea of the hardships that beset the pioneers may be gained from the experiences of Mr. Emley. When the farmer of Clear Creek today needs supplies for his farm or his household, all he has to do is to jump into his buggy or automobile and make a short trip over a modern highway to the City of Huntington, where he will find a num¬ ber of well-stocked mercantile establishments ready to provide for all his wants. But it was not so in 1835. Provisions were scarce in the new settlements and several trips were made to Goshen, then quite a trading point, for the necessaries of life. After a time, thinking he could do better at Greenville, Ohio, Mr. Emley sent his two sons to that place, a distance of eighty miles, to purchase the needed supplies for the coming season. They reached Greenville, bought the provisions and after a short rest started on the homeward journey. Heavy rains had made the roads impassable and when about half-way they were com¬ pelled to abandon the wagon and carry their goods the remainder of the way home on horseback. After the first crop was harvested, the family managed to subsist without the inconvenience of frequent long journeys to distant trading posts.

ary, 1835, and Joel C. and Samuel came later in that year. John R. Emley was born in Monmouth County, New Jersey, in April, 1787. After coming to Huntington County he took an active part in public affairs, was influential in having Clear Creek Township established, and served two terms as county commissioner. His sons, Samuel and Sex¬ ton, also served as county commissioner at different times, and the family was one of the best known among the pioneer settlers.

In March, 1835, Thomas Delvin came from Perry County, Ohio, and settled on Section 32, directly south of Emley, and about a month later Henry Miller located on the eastern part of the same section. During the year 1836 the additions to the population were Joseph and John Buchanan, who settled in the eastern part; Felix Binkley, who was the first justice of the peace after the township was organized; James Belton and Samuel Smith. John Buchanan was elected sheriff of the county in 1844.

The year 1837 witnessed a marked increase of immigration to Clear Creek. Among those who came in this year were John Moon, Davis Dougherty, Christopher Daily and John Byers.

Early in the winter of 1837-38 a petition was prepared and at the next session was presented to the board of county commissioners, ask¬ ing for the erection of a new township. The order for the erection of Clear Creek was issued by the commissioners on February 14, 1838, and it was at the same time ordered that an election for township officers should be held at the house of John R. Emley on the first Monday in April. At that election John R. Emley was inspector ; Janies Belton and Christopher Daily, judges, and Thomas Delvin, clerk. Besides the five members of the election board there were but three voters exercised the right of suffrage, viz : Anthony Emley, Henry Miller and Felix Binkley. The last named was elected justice of the peace, though he was the only man who voted the whig ticket, the other seven all voting as democrats. John R. Emley, Christopher and James Belton were elected trustees; Andrew Ream, constable, and Henry Miller, supervisor.

Other pioneers who came into the township about the time it was organized, or in the years immediately following, were: Isaac Kitt, David Shoemaker, James McKinney, Oliver Dwight, Thomas Dial, John Crull, James Brown, Samuel Groves, Daniel and Darius Boylen, Robert Morrow, Thomas Epps, John and Abraham Irich, Levi Reynolds, Peter Goble, Jacob Mishler, James Best, Samuel Kruegar, Philip Zahm, Daniel Helser, John Oliver, Abraham Mishler, Robert Nipple, the Web¬ ster and Lininger families and a number of others, many of whose descendants still live in the township.

Early Events - The first log-rolling was on the farm of Thomas Delvin, in 1835. The first white child born in the township was Eliza¬ beth, daughter of Henry Miller, who was born in May, 1836. The first mill, a rude "corn cracker," was built by John R. Emley in 1836 or 1837. David Shoemaker made the first brick in 1842. John Moon was the first carpenter and John Householder the first blacksmith. The United Brethren Church, erected on Section 32, in 1840, was the first church. Robert Nipple was the first cabinet maker, and the first school was taught by Abraham Binkley in a cabin built for the purpose on the farm of John R. Emley. The first death was that of AYesley Emley, in November, 1841. About the same time the first marriage in the township was solemnized, the contracting parties being Samuel Ream and Louisa Dial. John and Samuel Emley built the first frame houses, and the first brick houses were built by David Beghtel and Abraham Mishler. The first religious meeting in the township was held at the house of John R. Emley in 1839, a Methodist minister named Reed conducting the services. The first church building was erected by the United Brethren, near the center of the township, about 1857.

In 1850 and 1851 the Huntington & Liberty Mills plank road was constructed through the township, which gave the people living along the line better facilities for going to the county seat. At that time it was thought that nothing better could ever be devised, but compared with the excellent gravel and stone roads that traverse the township in all directions at the present time, the old plank road was but a crude thoroughfare.

The first school in the township was the one taught by Abraham Binkley, previously mentioned, in 1839. Mr. Binkley was a good teacher for that day and old settlers, who were among the eighteen or twenty pupils that attended his school, speak in flattering terms of his work. The second schoolhouse was probably the one built on Section 31, in the southwest corner of the township, where the first teacher was James Delvin. Other early teachers were Lewellen Boles and a man named Anderson. About 1855, after the free school system was fully inaug¬ urated under the new constitution of the state, the township was divided into districts and the work of building better schoolhouses began. In 1914 Clear Creek had a central high school building and eight district buildings, valued at $22,500. In these nine buildings twelve teachers were employed during the school year of 1912-13, receiving in salaries the sum of $5,228.

Clear Creek Township is without a railroad and is primarily an agricultural community. The value of taxable property in 1913 was $1,414,940. Goblesville is the only village in the township. It is situ-

At the March term in 1847 the county commissioners issued the order for the establishment of a new township in the western part of the county to be called " Dallas," in honor of George M. Dallas, vice president of the United States. It is bounded on the north by Warren Township ; on the east by Huntington ; on the south by Polk, and on the west by the County of Wabash. In extent it is four miles from east to west and six miles from north to south, and has an area of twenty-four square miles, or 15,360 acres. The Wabash River enters from the east, near the center, and flows a southwesterly direction across the township. Its principal tributaries within the limits of Dallas are Silver Creek from the north and Loon Creek from the south. Along the streams the surface is slightly broken, but farther back it is gently undulating and well adapted to cultivation. The soil is productive, and resting upon a clay subsoil, is as fertile as any along the Wabash Valley. Originally the township was heavily timbered, but the native timber has about all disappeared through the clearing of farms and the opera¬ tions of the commercial saw-mill. During the years immediately fol¬ lowing the completion of the Wabash Railroad large quantities of lum¬ ber were shipped.

To Dallas Township belongs the distinction of being the first in the county to be settled. About the middle of August, 1828, Artemus D. Woodworth, with his family of five persons, came from Marion, Grant County, and located on the northwest quarter of Section 14, about a mile and a half north of the present Town of Andrews. His cabin stood near what was known as the Cheesebro lock, on the Wabash & Erie Canal. He has been described as "a very intelligent and dignified gentleman, whose principal fault was a somewhat irascible temper." After a residence there of a few years he returned to Marion, where he died.

In the latter part of 1829, or early in the year 1830, Elias Murray came into the township and settled not far from the Woodworth cabin. On October 12, 1830, he entered the northwest quarter of Section 13 and there established his home. Captain Murray was a man of considerable local prominence. He laid out the City of Huntington and the Town of Markle, took an active part in political affairs, and served a term in the state senate. He afterward removed to Wabash County and laid

Others who entered land and settled in the township in 1830 were: Isaac Bedsall, on Section 13, adjoining Murray's place on the south; Samuel Hanna, William Huston and Newton Silsby, Section 22. Fol¬ lowing these pioneers came George and Charles Scott, who located in the northern part; Christian Young, who entered land about two miles north of Andrews; Samuel Davis, W. L. Spencer, Benjamin Mason, Alfred and Samuel Moore, Job Willetts, Adam and Jacob Schenckel, Peter Smallsreid, Samuel Foulke, Benjamin Cole and a few others, all of whom located north of the Wabash River. South of the river Solomon Holman entered land in Section 28, in the year 1833, and Martin Harvey settled where the Town of Andrews is now located. A short distance southwest of Harvey the Beauchamp family - the father and four sons - settled upon the land afterward known as the Jonathan Dille farm. The four Beauchamp boys, John, Daniel, Isaac and Henry, were well known in the settlement of the township. Still others who located south of the river in an early day were Samuel Bressler, William Harrison, Sebastian Racy, William Bross and the Moon and Tedrick families.

Joseph Cheesebro came to the township for the purpose of build¬ ing a lock on the Wabash & Erie Canal, then under construction. This lock, which was generally known to canal navigators by the name of the builder, was located almost directly north of Andrews. Liking the appearance of the country, Mr. Cheesebro entered a tract of land in Section 14, adjoining that of Artemus D. Woodworth, and became a permanent resident of the township. He was a native of the State of New York, a man of considerable ability, and at one time represented Huntington County in the state legislature. His death occurred in August, 1863.

In 1837 John Moore, a native of North Carolina, came from Wayne County, Indiana, where he had settled about 1825. Some years later he founded the "Friends' Meeting," in the northern part of the township. Through his influence other members of that society became citizens of Dallas. He died in 1872, aged nearly eighty-four years. Some of his descendants still live in Huntington County.

Early Events - The first birth in the township, which was also the first within the present limits of Huntington County of civilized white parents, was that of Marcia Murray, daughter of Elias and Henrietta Murray, in the year 1830. The first marriage was that of Joseph -Cheesebro and Susan C. Woodworth, which was solemnized on November 18, 1836. The first saw-mill was built in 1833 by Artemus Woodworth and William G. Campbell. It stood on the west branch of Silver Creek, about a mile and a half from the Wabash River, and was operated suc¬ cessfully for several years. The first flour mill was built by Elijah Snowden in 1862 in the Town of Antioch (now Andrews). The first log¬ rolling was on the farm of Artemus D. Woodworth, and the first school was taught by Elizabeth H. Edwards in the winter of 1844-45, in the Friends' meeting house, which was the first church erected in the township.

With the completion of the Wabash Railroad, in the early '50s, Dallas Township was provided with shipping facilities and its indus¬ tries went forward by leaps and bounds. The Town of Andrews was laid out in 1853 and soon became an important trading center and ship¬ ping point. A history of the town will be found in Chapter IX. The Wabash Railroad runs almost parallel to the Wabash River through the southern part of the township, and north of the river is the Fort Wayne & Northern Indiana traction line, which is an important addition to the transportation facilities. A .splendid system of gravel roads ramifies all parts of the township, so the farmers have excellent means of marketing their products. The population of Dallas in 1910 was 1,575, an increase of 120 during the preceding decade.

Dallas, being one of the smaller townships of the western tier, has not as many schools as the larger townships. The schools in the Town of Andrews are under the control of the town school board and are not included in the county superintendent's report for the township. Aside from the Andrews schools, Dallas employed three teachers during the school year of 1912-13, and paid in teachers' salaries the sum of $1,071. The school property of the township is valued at $9,000.

At the first meeting of the county commissioners on May 5, 1834, the board issued an order that all that part of the County of Huntington lying in Ranges 9 and 10, and four miles in the eastern part of Range 8, should constitute the Township of Huntington. The town¬ ship as thus established embraced all the present County of Huntington. On February 24, 1835, a strip six miles wide (Congressional Township 26) was cut off from the south end and erected into the Township of Salamonie. Lancaster Township was cut off on March 15, 1837, and included a strip six miles wide across the entire county, embracing the present townships of Polk and Rock Creek. On February 24, 1838, a strip six miles wide was cut off the north end and named Clear Creek Township. Union Township was cut off in 1842 and Dallas in 1847,

The township is therefore six miles square, having an area of thirtysix square miles, or 23,040 acres. It is bounded on the north by Clear Creek Township; on the east by Union; on the south by Lancaster, and on the west by Dallas. The Wabash River enters near the southeast corner and Hows a general northwesterly direction until it crosses the western boundary a little north of the center. About two miles west of the City of Huntington it is joined by the Little River, or Little AVabash, which crosses the eastern boundary about two miles south of the northeast corner and Hows a little south of west, through the City of Huntington. Clear Creek Hows southward through the northwestern part and Loon Creek crosses the southwest corner. Flint Creek Hows into the Little River within the Huntington city limits. The township is one of the best drained and watered in the county.

Huntington Township has three lines of steam railway and one electric line. The Wabash, the oldest railroad in the county, crosses the western boundary near the center and follows the course of the AVabash and Little Rivers toward Fort AA'ayne. The Chicago & Erie enters near the northwest corner and follows a southeasterly course, through the City of Huntington. The Cincinnati, Bluffton & Chicago runs almost parallel to the Chicago & Erie and has its western terminus at Huntington. The Fort Wayne & Northern Indiana Electric Railway parallels the AVabash. These lines afford ample transportation and ship¬ ping facilities for the people of the township.

In 1913 the taxable property of the township, exclusive of the City of Huntington, was assessed at $1,809,040, and the population in 1910 was 12,483, or more than forty per cent of the population of the entire county. The estimated value of the school property of the township is $31,000. During the school year of 1912-13 eleven teachers were em¬ ployed in the public schools, and the amount paid in teachers' salaries was $5,013.80.

The first settlements in this township were made in the Town of Huntington and the early history will be found in the chapter on the City of Huntington.

Jackson Township occupies the northeast corner of the county and embraces Congressional Township 29, Range 10. It is bounded on the north by the County of AVhitley; on the east by Allen County; on the south by Union Township, and on the west by the Township of Clear

Creek. Its area is thirty-six square miles. The Little Wabash River enters the county near the northeast corner and flows a southwesterly direction until it crosses the southern boundary near the center. Calf, Cow and Bull creeks flow eastwardly or southeastwardly through the township and unite their waters with the Little River. Along the streams the surface is somewhat broken and there were originally some marshy lands along the Little River, but by far the larger part of the township is capable of being cultivated and some of the finest farms in the county are in "Old Jackson."

Jared Darrow is credited with being the first permanent settler. Dur¬ ing the early '30s, while the Wabash & Erie Canal was under construc¬ tion, a number of workmen employed on that great waterway established temporary homes within the limits of the township, but as the canal pushed its way westward they followed. Mr. Darrow came from Rochester, New York, in 1837 and settled a short distance south of the present Town of Roanoke, where he cleared land and raised the first crop in this part of the county. One of his sons, Dr. D. C. Darrow, afterward became a prominent physician and business man of Peru, Miami County. In 1838 Frank Dupuy settled west of Roanoke and dur¬ ing that year the population was increased by the arrival of Nathaniel Decker and his father, Kennel L. Eskridge, James Thompson, a Mr. Southwick and a few others, all of whom settled near Darrow and Dupuy.

In May, 1839, Paul H. Salts located near the Dickey lock, where he lived for about two years, working most of the time upon the canal. He then moved about two miles farther north and entered a tract of land in the Calf Creek Valley, which he developed into a farm. After residing there for several years he sold out and removed to Whitley County.

Samuel and Edward Gettis, Eli Blount, Andrew Boggs, David Hol¬ lowed, Nicholas Friend and his son Harvey, Horace Rockwell and a few more settled in the township. Samuel Gettis lived there until his death about 1852, and Edward was drowned in the canal. David Hollowell was a man of considerable local prominence and was one of the early justices of the peace. He went to Iowa in 1852. Andrew Boggs came from Delaware and died about 1851. Old settlers remember him as an influential and public spirited citizen.

Among the early settlers were the four brothers, Archibald, Samuel, William and Monroe Mahon, who settled south of Roanoke, where Archibald laid out the Town of Mahon in 1853. Samuel followed canal boating and was also a lawyer of some ability, but never practiced that profession. Archibald was also master of a packet on the canal for some time ; Monroe was engaged in operating a distillery at Mahon, and William acquired quite a reputation, both as a lawyer and a skillful hunter. In the latter he had a rival in Nicholas Friend, who was a true Nimrod and an expert in the use of the rifle.

Others who located within the limits of the township in the early '40s were J ohn J ester, one mile east of Roanoke ; David Voorhees, who settled two miles northwest of Roanoke; Peter Erick, near the Whit¬ ley County line in Section 3, and S. C. Putnam, Ellsworth Morrison, Daniel Welker, James Wire, Peter and Abraham Simons, Frederick and Emanuel Yahne, father and son, who came from Union Township, James Purviance, John H. McTaggart, Andrew and James Branstrator, Artis Campbell, George Shank, Benjamin and Leonard Bowers, Conrad Yiberg, John and Thomas Hackett, Benjamin Hoover and several other families.

Much of the land in Jackson Township was entered by speculators, who had no intention of becoming residents, and they afterward sold it to settlers at a price that netted them a handsome profit. Foremost among these speculators were Levi Beardsley, Jesse Mendenhall, Charles Ewing and Oliver Benton, each of whom made several entries in differ¬ ent parts of the county, John and Vincent Gilpin, William H. Bell, Charles and Charlotte Walker, J. 0. Moore, Munson Beech, Valentine Armitage, Peter Odlin and Latimer- Shaw. The fact that a great por¬ tion of the land was in the hands of speculators had a tendency to retard the settlement of the township, many immigrants going to other locali¬ ties where land could be bought directly from the Government, but in time this state of affairs was overcome, and today Jackson is one of the wealthy and populous townships of the county. In 1910 the popula¬ tion was 1,973, a gain of 127 during the preceding ten years, and the taxable property was assessed in 1913 for $1,437,530, being exceeded in both respects only by the townships of Huntington, Rock Creek and Salamonie.

By the summer of 1841 the settlement had progressed sufficiently for the people to think of asking for a separate township organization. A petition was accordingly circulated and presented to the board of county commissioners at the September term of that year, when it was ordered by commissioners "That all that part of Clear Creek town¬ ship being and lying east of the line dividing Ranges 9 and 10 east, shall be erected into a new township, to be known and designated by the name of 'Jackson.' "

The first election in the township was held at the house of Samuel Gettis in April, 1842, with Andrew Boggs as election inspector. For several weeks before the time for voting came, a spirited campaign was were cast, and as that exceeded the number of qualified voters in the township, it was generally believed that illegal means had been employed to carry the election."

The returns showed that John Johnson had been elected justice of the peace; Eli Blount, William Mahon and Samuel Mahon, trustees, and Monroe Mahon, clerk - a decided victory for the Mahon Party.

Early Events - The first wedding in the township was that of Joseph Satel and Sarah Darrow, in 1838. Lemuel J., son of Paul H. Salts, who was born in 1839, was the first white child born in the town¬ ship. The first death was that of Frank Dupuy, in 1841, soon after his marriage to Sarah Chading. The first public highway was the road leading from Huntington to Fort Wayne, known as the Fort Wayne Road, which was surveyed and improved in 1838. The first religious services were held at the cabin of Nicholas Friend, about 1840. The first church was built by the Methodists, on the farm of Peter Erick, about 1850. The first school was taught in the Mahon settlement in 1843, but the name of the teacher seems to have been forgotten. The first saw-mill was built in 1845 or 1846, near Dickey's lock, by Lemuel G. Jones, who also erected the first grist mill a year or two later. At the presidential election in 1844 - the first after the township was organized - Jackson cast twenty-seven votes for Clay and Frelinghuysen and fifteen for Polk and Dallas.

Naturally the settlements and industries followed the line of the Wabash & Erie Canal, which was completed through the township in 1834. Not long after Mr. Jones built his saw-mill the second saw-mill was established by John Newman in the southern part of the township. It did a successful business for several years. In 1850 Thomas IJackett built a saw-mill on Cow Creek, a little west of Roanoke, and operated it until a flood in 1864 carried away the dam, after which the building was allowed to fall into decay.

Although the early settlers of Jackson Township were, as a rule, peaceable and law-abiding people, a cruel and unprovoked murder was committed there in an early day. A man named Sterman, who has been described as of a quarrelsome disposition, got into a dispute with a canal boatman near Mahon, in which the boatman was shot and killed. Sterman was tried, convicted and sentenced to the penitentiary, but was released before the expiration of his term to enter the army. At the close of the Civil war he went to Kansas, where he and two others were lynched on the charge of having killed a peaceable and harmless citizen.

Early in the history of the township the people became interested in the subject of education. In 1845 a schoolhouse was erected about two miles north of Roanoke, where William Allen taught the first school. A school had been taught in the Mahon neighborhood two years prior to this time, but it appears that the house in which Mr. Allen taught was the first building erected for school purposes. It was located near the site of the Wesley Chapel, built by the Methodists a few years later. The next schoolhouse was built at Roanoke, where the "Classical Sem¬ inary" was established some years later and became recognized as one of the best educational institutions in Northeastern Indiana. In 1914 the value of the school property, not including the handsome building at Roanoke, was estimated at $20,000. During the school year of 1912-13 there were employed in the township schools eight teachers, who re¬ ceived $2,892.85 in salaries.

Immediately after the passage of the free gravel road law in 1877, the people of Jackson Township turned their attention to the con¬ struction of better roads, with the result that the township now has an excellent system of public highways, with but few of the bonds issued for the building of gravel roads outstanding.

Roanoke is the only town in the township. Near the northeast corner was once the old Raccoon Village, a town for which the State of Indiana donated the site soon after the completion of the Wabash & Erie Canal, and about two miles south of Roanoke was the Town of Mahon, which, like Raccoon Village, perished with the traffic on the canal and is now remembered by only a few of the oldest inhabitants.

When the first white men came to this part of Huntington County, they found a chain of individual Indian reservations along the left bank of the Little River, extending clear across what is now Jackson Town¬ ship. Old White Loon, whose "lodge" was not far from Roanoke, was a frequent visitor at the early stores. He was rather morose and silent, of forbidding appearance, and it is said the children used to flee in terror when they saw him coming. "Pete" Schap, a young Miami, was a giant physically and of daring disposition. One of his favorite feats was to ride his pony across the canal at the lock, on a narrow piece of timber, with the water fifteen or more feet below him when the lock was empty after the passage of a boat. With the departure of the Indians for Kansas in 1846, most of the reservations passed into the hands of the white men and were soon developed into fine farms. The few remaining reservations were vacated later, until old Kil-so-quah, who is over one hundred years of age, is the last of her race to claim a habitation in Jackson Township.

Jefferson Township is one of the southern tier and embraces Con¬ gressional Township 26, of Range 9 east. It is therefore six miles square and contains an area of 23,040 acres. On the north it is bounded by Lancaster Township ; on the east by Salamonie ; on the south by Grant County, and on the west by the Township of Wayne. The Salamonie River flows by a winding course across the northeast corner and crosses the northern boundary near the center. Along this stream, which is the only water course of importance in the township, the surface is some¬ what broken, with outcrops of limestone in several places. Back from the river the land is more level, the southern part being so flat that is was originally wet and unproductive. This region has been reclaimed by artificial drainage, and some of the finest farms in the county are located upon what was once a marsh, considered unfit for human habi¬ tation. When the first settlers came they found the central and northern portions covered with a heavy growth of timber, the principal varieties of which were walnut, oak, hickory, maple, beech, ash, elm and linden. A great deal of this valuable timber was piled in heaps and burned in the early days to make way for the tilling of the soil. If it could be replaced today it would be more valuable than the land from which it was so ruthlessly removed by the pioneers.

Prior to 1834 the territory comprising Jefferson Township was inhabited only by Indians. In February of that year George W. Helms, a native of Tennessee, located upon a tract of land in Section 12, where he improved a farm and continued to reside until his death about 1877. It is generally conceded that he was the first white settler in the town¬ ship. In October following, Peter Wire came from Ohio with his family and built his cabin in Section 12, about two miles down the Salamonie River from Mr. Helms'. He soon became prominently iden¬ tified with local political affairs and in 1836 was elected to the office of county commissioner. His death occurred in 1882.

John A. E. Nordyke came from Henry County, Indiana, in the spring of 1836, and settled in Section 6, near the northwest corner of the township, where he lived until his death in 1883. Some of his descendants are still living in the county. In the fall of the same year William L. Taylor entered a tract of land and built his cabin in Section 24, about two miles west of the present town of Warren.

The year 1837 witnessed several additions to the population. Oliver W. Sanger, a native of Connecticut, located in Section 17, a short dis¬ tance east of where the little hamlet of Pleasant Plain now stands. Upon coming to this county he first located in what is now Wayne Town- ship, but in September, 1837, settled in Jefferson. He was active in politics, took a prominent part in the organization of the township, was one of the early justices of the peace, and in 1860 was elected county treasurer. At the time of his death he was the oldest resident of the township.

William Purviance came from Preble County, Ohio, about the time Mr. Sanger settled near Pleasant Plain, and selected land in Section 9, and soon after this Garrett Heffner built his cabin in Section 21.

Others who settled within the present limits of the township prior to 1840 were: Lewis Purviance, Enoch Preble, Nathan Anderson, Jona¬ than Arnold, William D. Williams, John Shull, Stogdall Sharp, John and David Richardson, Christopher Morris, John and Nathan Cook, John Ewart, Alexander Morgan, Thomas Webb, Jacob Hedrick, Benja¬ min Satterthwaite and his son-in-law, Isaiah Garwood, Noah McGrew, Branson Cox, Aaron Bond, David C. Little, Alfred Hardy, Samuel Marshall, and perhaps fifteen or twenty others.

During all this time the territory was a part of Salamonie Township. Late in the year 1842 a movement was started for the organization of a new township. A petition, headed by Peter Wire and 0. W. Sanger, was circulated and received a number of signatures. It was presented in due time to the county commissioners, who, at the March term in 1843, ordered "That all that part of Salamonie lying west of the line dividing Ranges 9 and 10 east be, and is hereby, formed into a new township by the name of Jefferson." The township was so named in honor of Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States, and as originally created included all the present Township of Wayne. It was reduced to its present dimensions by the organization of Wayne as a separate township in June, 1844.

. The first election for township officers was held at the house of William Purviance in April, 1844. No returns of that election can be found, but it is known that Branson Cox, who was elected a justice of the peace in that territory while it was a part of Salamonie Township, in 1835, was continued in that office. Among the early trustees of the township were Nathan Anderson, Frederick Kautz and Andrew Wiley, though the names of the first board have disappeared.

Early Events - The first house was built by George W. Helms in Sec¬ tion 12, in the spring of 1834. The first log-rolling was on the farm of Peter Wire. The first white child born in the township was Lavina, daughter of Peter and Nancy Wire, whose birth occurred on March 4, 1836. The first marriage was that of Frederick Heffner and Nancy Cook, some time in the year 1839. The first death was that of a Mr. Stewart, which occurred in August, 1838. The first school was taught in 1838 by

David C. Little, in a house erected for the purpose in Section 3, "on the south bank of the Salamonie River." The first religious services were held at the house of Peter Wire in 1837, by Rev. John Pugsley, a United Brethren missionary sent out by the Sandusky conference. The first house of worship was erected in 1870 by the Christians, in Section 9, and is known as Purviance Chapel. The first sawmill was built by Aaron Bond and John Heffner about 1839 or 1840, on Richland Creek, in the northwest corner of the township. The first grist mill was erected soon after near the sawmill by the same men.

The Bond & Heffner mill was fitted up with machinery of the most primitive pattern, but it proved a great convenience to the early settlers, who before its erection were compelled to go several miles to other mills with a "turn of corn," in order to procure bread for their families. It was liberally patronized for several years, until the estab¬ lishment of better mills finally caused it to cease operations. Some time in the '40s James Taylor built a frame flour mill on the Salamonie River, in Section 12, where the little hamlet of Bellville grew up, and for fully half a century it was one of the leading mills in the southern part of the county. Other persons who operated sawmills in the town¬ ship while the timber was plentiful were Daniel Nipper, who built the first steam sawmill, William Patterson, George Fisher, George Morris, Emsley Andrews, John Long and a man named Baker.

Pleasant Plain, or Nixville, was laid out in June, 1875, and was the only regularly surveyed village in the township until after the com¬ pletion of the Clover Leaf Railroad across the southeast corner in 1878, when the little Town of Milo sprang up on the railroad and is now the principal trading and shipping point. During the oil boom, about the close of the last century, considerable business was done there, as a number of producing wells were drilled in Jefferson Township.

About the close of the Civil war a mysterious tragedy occurred in Jefferson. The body of William Lowry, a veteran of Company E, Thirty-fourth Indiana Infantry, was found in a field near his dwelling, where he had been plowing. An ugly wound in the neck showed plainly the manner of his death and the community was thrown into a state of intense excitement. Several arrests were made, but in every instance the evidence was insufficient to convict and the murderer has never been discovered.

Mention has already been made of the first school taught in the township. The second schoolhouse was built on the farm of William Purviance in 1840, where the first term was taught by David C. Little. In 1854 the free public school system was inaugurated in Jefferson and the township was divided into school districts, in each of which a school- house was erected. In 1914 the value of school property was estimated at $16,500. Twelve teachers were employed during the school year of 1912-13 and received in salaries the sum of $3,390. Two of the teachers were employed in the certified high school. To Jefferson belongs the honor of having the first class graduate in the common schools. In 1887 four girls passed the examination prescribed by the state board of educa¬ tion and received diplomas. In 1914 the graduating class numbered twenty-one.

In 1910 the population of the township was 1,433. Although these figures show a decrease of sixty-seven since the census of 1900, the value of the taxable property has slightly increased, being assessed in 1913 at $1,160,920.

When this township was erected by order of the county commis¬ sioners on May 15, 1837, it consisted of a strip six miles wide extending entirely across the county, including all the range of townships No. 27. It was reduced by the formation of Rock Creek Township in September, 1842, and again by the organization of Polk Township in March, 1847, when its present boundaries were fixed. It is now six miles square and embraces Congressional Township 27, Range 9 east. On the north it is bounded by Huntington Township ; on the east by Rock Creek ; on the south by Jefferson, and on the west by Polk. The Salamonie River flows across the southwest corner and Loon Creek across the northeast corner. Along the former the surface is somewhat hilly, but by far the larger part of the township is level or gently undulating, with a soil that is not surpassed by any other part of the county for depth and fertility.

Joseph Sprowl is credited with being the first actual white settler within the present limits of the township. In May, 1834, about the time Huntington County was organized, he came with his family from Ohio and built his cabin in Section 34, near the southern boundary and not far from the Salamonie River. He was then past the meridian of life, but lived long enough to see quite a settlement grow up in the vicinity of his cabin in the wilderness. His family numbered ten per¬ sons and some of their descendants still reside in the southern part of the county.

In February, 1835, Abraham Nordyke and Joseph P. Anthony settled in the township, not far from Mr. Sprowl. Mr. Anthony was a car¬ penter by trade. About two years after coming to the county he laid out the Town of Charleston, but it did not come unto the expectations

Moses Wiles located a short distance north of the present town of Mount Etna, and in the fall of 1835 Solomon Shideler entered land in Section 33, where he laid out the Town of Lancaster the next spring. Other pioneers who came about this time, or perhaps a little later, were John Heiney, in Section 32; Mollison Fisher and his sons, Simon and Caleb, north of Mount Etna; John Pilcher, a son-inJaw of Fisher, who settled in the same locality, and Joshua Powell, in Section 30.

Between 1836 and 1840 a number of immigrants sought homes in Lancaster. Prominent among them was Joel Burkett, who located a farm a short distance east of Lancaster; John Fulton, north of that village ; Daniel Sayres, in Section 22, near the center of the township ; Rev. Joseph Hardman, a minister of the German Baptist Church, who entered land near Sayres; John Hardman, in the same neighborhood; George and Henry Kimmel, in the northwestern part; Christian and Jacob Heaston, near the Salamonie River in the southern part; Jacob Funderburg, about a mile north of Mount Etna ; Charles Shaffer and his sons, John and Charles, near the Huntington Township line ; Enos Boyd, near Lancaster Village; George Brown, west of that village, and some eight or ten other families, in different parts of the township.

Nathan Jenks, Robert Randall, Robert J. Demmett, Thomas Morris, William Mackey, Isaac Bedsall, Henry W. Moore, William McClurg, Levi Wallisten, John Haller, Abram Allen, Moses Robinson, James Denand, John Steeler, Fletcher Emley, E. W. Madison, Samuel Batson and a few others all entered land in an early day, but several of these gentlemen were speculators and did not become permanent residents.

Early Events - Joseph Sprowl built the first house, and the first log¬ rolling was on his farm. The first marriage was that of Charles Morgan and Elizabeth Fisher in November, 1837, in that part of the township which was afterward cut off to form Polk Township. The first death was that of a Mrs. Wolgarmoth, in April, 1837. Abraham Nordyke was the first road supervisor. The first religious services were held in a log cabin on the site of the Village of Lancaster, in 1837, by a missionary of the United Brethren denomination. The first church was built at Mount Etna, in 1840, by the Methodist Episcopal Society. The first school was taught by Nancy Hildebrand in 1838, in a log cabin situated near the Salamonie River, in the eastern part of Section 31. The first regular schoolhouse was built at Mount Etna in 1840.

A sawmill was built by William Marks in 1843, on Richland Creek, near the southwest corner of the township. Before that time Henry Hildebrand, Sr., and Henry Hildebrand, Jr., had erected a flour mill on the Salamonie River, not far from Mount Etna. It was a small mill, with only one run of buhrs, and after the erection of better mills within reach of the settlers, it was abandoned. Philip Shutt established a saw¬ mill at an early date on the Salamonie River, in Section 33, and subse¬ quently added machinery for carding and spinning wool. It continued in operation for over thirty years.

The schools of the township, in common with those in other parts of the county, were supported by private means until after the adop¬ tion of the state constitution of 1852 and the inauguration of the free public school system. The township was then divided into districts and before the close of the decade several schoolhouses had been erected. As the school fund increased better buildings were erected, and as the growth of population demanded, new districts were formed. In 1914 the school property of Lancaster was valued at $32,500. During the school year preceding twelve teachers were employed, two of whom were in the certified high school, and the amount paid in salaries to teachers was $4,591.85. Twenty-one pupils completed the course and graduated in the spring of 1914.

Mount Etna, in the extreme southwest corner ; Lancaster, about three miles east, and Kelso, near the eastern border, on the gravel road be¬ tween Huntington and Warren, are the villages in the township. A history of each of these places may be found in Chapter IX.

Lancaster is without a railroad and is essentially an agricultural community. The first settlers were both industrious and intelligent and their descendants followed the example of their sires, hence some of the best improved farms in Huntington County are in this township. In 1913 the value of the taxable property was $1,220,300. The popula¬ tion in 1910 was 1,468, a slight decrease below the census of 1900.