Huntington County, Indiana - Chapter 12: Finance and Industry, 1914

Public Finances - Bonded Debt of the County - Gravel Road Bonds - Receipts and Expenditures - Banking Institutions - Agricul¬ ture - Crop Statistics - Live Stock - Manufacturing - Early Fac¬ tories - Factory Fund Association - Factories at Roanoke and Andrews - The Lime Industry - Natural Gas and Oil.

It should be a source of congratulation to the people of Huntington County that, from the earlist history of the county to the present day, the public business has been conducted in such a way that at no time has the indebtedness been burdensome to the taxpayers. Bonds have been issued from time to time for specific purposes, but with each issue provisions were made for the redemption of the bonds as they fell due. At the close of the year 1913 the outstanding bonds amounted to $266,170, of which $260,000 represented bonds issued for building the new court¬ house, and the remaining $6,170 represented school loans.

On June 1, 1914, the gravel road bonds outstanding amounted to a little over three hundred thousand dollars. These bonds are proportioned among the townships, according to the amount expended in each for the construction of improved highways. Strictly speaking, they constitute a debt against the townships, though the bonds are issued by the county commissioners upon petition of the freeholders of the township for a new road. These bonds were distributed among the several townships as follows :

Although these figures may seem large, when the reader pauses for a moment to reflect that Huntington County has nearly four hundred miles of improved roads, and that the mileage is being constantly in¬ creased, it will be seen that every dollar of these bonds represents a permanent investment, the profits of which can hardly be estimated. Likewise, the courthouse bonds represent an investment in one of the handsomest, most substantial and best appointed public buildings of its kind in the State of Indiana. According to the tax duplicate for the year 1913, the assessed value of taxable property in the county was over twenty-one million dollars, so that the total bonded indebtedness, not including the gravel road bonds, is less than one and one-third per cent of the property valuation.

In the report of the county auditor for 1913 the total receipts for the year, from all sources, were $103,288.74, and at the close of the year there was a balance of $27,634.20 remaining in the treasury. The heaviest expenditures during the year were $52,398 for new bridges and $33,256 for bridge repairs, made necessary by the great flood in March, 1913. About $7,500 were appropriated by the county council for repairs on the county asylum. Had it not been for these extraordin¬ ary and unusual demands upon the county revenues the balance would have been much larger, but even with the abnormal demand it may be seen from the above figures that the financial condition of the county is about all that could be desired.

The first banking house in Huntington county was the Huntington County Bank, which was organized under the state banking laws of Indiana in 1854 with a capital stock of $50,000, most of which was held by James R. Weldon, of Mansfield, Ohio. The resident stockholders were Samuel H. Purviance, John Roche, Samuel Moore and Benjamin Orton. It was a bank of issue and at one time had about forty-five thousand dollars of its notes in circulation. John Roche was president during the entire period of the bank's existence; James R. Weldon was cashier, and Thomas Roche, assistant cashier. The bank was well pat¬ ronized and carried on a general banking business until the financial panic of 1857, when the stockholders decided to wind up its affairs. It therefore went into liquidation, but its outstanding circulation was fully redeemed at 100 cents on the dollar and all depositors were paid in full.

out a bank until the passage of the National Banking Law by Congress, soon after the breaking out of the Civil war. The First National Bank of Huntington was organized in the fall of 1863 and received its charter on December 12, 1863. The incorporators were Samuel H. Purviance, John.R. Coffroth, William McGrew, Charles B. Culver, Thomas S. Stan¬ field and John Roche. The capital stock was $50,000. Samuel H. Pur¬ viance was the first president and William McGrew the first cashier. The bank began business in a one story cottage on Jefferson Street, opposite the courthouse. Later it was removed to a one story brick build¬ ing on the corner of Franklin and Jefferson streets, and still later to West Market Street, near Jefferson. Joseph W. Purviance became presi¬ dent in 1873 and held the office until 1878, when he was succeeded by William McGrew.

On February 2, 1881, the bank was reorganized under a new charter, with William McGrew as president; Bals Eisenhauer, vice president, and Sarah F. Dick, cashier. In the meantime the capital stock had been increased to $100,000. In 1886 the bank removed to its present location at the southwest corner of Market and Jefferson streets.

A second reorganization of the institution occurred on October 1, 1902, when Israel H. Heaston was chosen president ; Charles McGrew, vice president and John R. Emley, cashier. Mr. Heaston retired from the presidency early in the year 1914 and was succeeded by Charles McGrew, who now holds that position. John R. Emley is now vice presi¬ dent and cashier, and E. A. Barnhisel and H. W. Gill, assistant cashiers. The capital stock of the bank still remains at $100,000, its surplus and undivided profits amount to about eighty thousand dollars, and its deposits to nearly one million dollars. The First National is one of the substantial banks of the upper Wabash Valley. Its business has always been conducted along safe and conservative lines and it commands the confidence of its patrons and other bankers throughout the country.

The Citizens State Bank of Huntington was first organized on Septem¬ ber 1, 1871, with a capital stock of $50,000 and the following officers: Frederick Dick, president; Enos T. Taylor, vice president; and John Morgan cashier. Other stockholders were U. D. Cole, Charles H. Nix, A. W. DeLong, Matthias Ludwig and James B. Cole. In 1877 all the stock passed into the hands of Frederick Dick and Enos T. Taylor. The capital was subsequently increased to $100,000. At the beginning of the year 1914 the surplus and undivided profits amounted to nearly as much as the capital stock, and the bank carried deposits of about six hundred thousand dollars. The officers at that time were : Jacob Dick, president ; Thomas Burns and Paul M. Taylor, vice presidents; E. M. Martin, cash¬ ier. The Citizens Bank occupies handsome and commodious quarters at the southwest corner of Jefferson and Franklin streets and is universally recognized as one of the reliable banking institutions of the state.

In 1887 the present Huntington County Bank was organized as a priv¬ ate banking house, with twelve stockholders, to wit: John Gibler, Cyrus E. Briant, Jacob Boos, Henry and Isaac Arnold, William K. Wjndle, David Hawley, Thomas G. Smith, Edwin B. Ayres, Wesley W. Hawley, Jacob W. Ford and William T. Whitelock. It was reorganized as a state bank in July, 1901, when the capital stock was fixed at $100,000. The bank in May, 1914, had a surplus and undivided profit fund of $80,000 and carried deposits of $900,000. At that time the officers of the bank were : Edwin B. Ayres, president ; Henry L. Emley, vice president and cashier ; E. P. Ayres, assistant cashier. The bank owns a handsome stone front building on North Jefferson Street, where it carries on a general banking business according to the most approved methods.

The Huntington Trust Company was organized in July, 1907, with I. F. Beard as president ; M. B. Stults, vice president, and G. B. Whitestine, secretary. The first board of directors consisted of I. F. Beard, Frank S. Bash, W. A. Bucher, C. F. Boyd, A. C. Fast, W. E. Lawver, John Minton, W. E. Mossman, J. F. Harvey, R. C. McGuffey, M. B. Stults, A. H. Shaffer, W. J. Vesey, A. A. Weber, C. L. Wright, Alexander John, J. M. Hicks and I. B. Heaston. Mr. Beard was succeeded in the presidency by C. A. Edwards, who resigned to become a member of the Indiana Public Service Commission, and M. B. Stults was elected presi¬ dent, leaving a vacancy in the office of vice president, which had not been filled on June 1, 1914. Mr. Whitestine has been secretary of the organization from the beginning. The capital stock of the company is $50,000, all paid up, and among the stockholders are some of the representative citizens of the city and county. The surplus and undi¬ vided profits are over ten thousand dollars and the deposits over five hundred thousand dollars. The company 's place of business is the north¬ east corner of Jefferson and Market streets.

The Farmers Trust Company, the youngest banking concern in the City of Huntington, was organized in the spring of 1911. Originally the capital stock was $25,000, but this was increased to $50,000 before the doors were opened for the transaction of business on July 22, 1911. At the time of the organization Arthur C. Fast was elected president; J. W. Howenstine, vice president, and L. E. Stephan, secretary. Mr. Fast and Mr. Howenstine still continue in their respective positions, but an addi¬ tional vice president has been added in the person of Lewis E. Summers. William R. Pressnall is the present secretary. In the three years of its existence the company has accumulated a surplus of about two thousand five hundred dollars and it carries deposits of about two hundred thou-

Outside of the City of Huntington the oldest bank in the county is the Exchange Bank of Warren, which was established in 1883 as a private bank by S. L. Good and G. H. Thompson. The building now occupied by the bank was erected in 1887. From a statement issued by the bank at the close of business on March 4, 1914, it is learned that the capital stock is $50,000, the surplus and undivided profits $25,731.45, and the deposits $565,327. The officers at that time were : George S. Good, president; Loyd S. Jones, vice president; John L. Priddy, cashier; Grant M. Fleming, assistant cashier.

In May, 1905, J. W. Cunningham came from Kentucky and began the work of organizing the First National Bank of Warren, which opened its doors for business on January 1, 1906, with a capital stock of $25,000,

D. H. Griffith, president, and J. W. Cunningham, cashier. A little later the bank joined with the Odd Fellows' Lodge in the erection of a build¬ ing, in which the First National has about as well equipped quarters as are to be found in towns of Warren's class. The building cost about twenty thousand dollars. In May, 1914, the president of the bank was Dr. H. E. Laymon and the cashier was J. W. Cunningham. These two officers and the following named gentlemen then constituted the board of directors : Levi Huffman, Samuel J. Huffman, L. F. Huffman, J. W. Beavans, Wilson Hudson, E. P. Miller, Dr. W. D. Bonifield, Dr. L. B. McCollum, H. G. King and H. C. Creviston. The capital stock is $25,000, the surplus and undivided profits, $10,000, and the deposits over two hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars.

About the beginning of the present century a man named J. M. Key came to Andrews and started a bank. Early in the summer of 1901 the bank closed its doors and it was claimed that Mr. Key had worked forged collateral upon the Chicago bankers. On August 4, 1901, he was arrested and confined in the jail at Huntington. H. C. Andrews, of the Capital National Bank of Indianapolis, was placed in charge and wound up the affairs of the bank at Andrews.

The State Bank of Andrews was first organized by E. M. Wasmuth as a private bank in 1902. In June, 1908, it was duly incorporated under the laws of Indiana with a capital stock of $25,000, E. M. Wasmuth as president, and C. E. Endicott, cashier. The officers in May, 1914, were

E. M. Wasmuth, president ; R. O. Bixby, cashier. The bank occupies a neat building on the principal street, a short distance south of the Wabash Railroad, and is well patronized by the business men of the town and the farmers in the vicinity. It has a surplus of nearly two thousand dollars and deposits of about one hundred and fifty thousand dollars.

In 1903 the Farmers and Traders Bank of Markle was organized under the laws of the State of Indiana, with a capital stock of $25,000. It had been established some years prior to that date as a branch of the Studebaker Bank of Bluffton. The bank occupies one of the best appoint¬ ed rooms in the town and transacts a large volume of business for a country bank. It has a surplus of over ten thousand dollars and deposits of about two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. In June, 1914, R. C. McGuffey was president and D. B. Garber, cashier.

The State Bank of Roanoke was chartered in 1908, though it had been doing business for years as a private bank organized by the firm of Windle & Wasmuth. The capital stock is $25,000, and in May, 1914, the surplus and undivided profits amounted to $5,000. Over two hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars are carried in deposits. The officers at the present time are : A. Wasmuth, president; E. E. Richards, vice president;

On July 22, 1911, the Bippus State Bank opened its doors for busi¬ ness, with M. N. Knight president; Dr. Ira E. Perry, vice president; J. F. Stephenson, cashier. Mr. Knight and Mr. Stephenson still continue to hold their offices, but Doctor Perry removed from Bippus and S. E. Stults was elected vice president in his stead. Soon after the bank was established it purchased a building on the southeast corner of two of the principal streets and remodeled it for banking purposes. Here it has a home equal to many of the banks found in the larger towns. The capital stock is $25,000 and the deposits amount to about fifty thousand dollars.

With the banks and trust companies in the City of Huntington and the banks in other towns, Huntington County is well supplied with bank¬ ing facilities. Practically all the stock in these various concerns is owned by residents of the county, the men in charge are all Huntington County men, whose personal interests are identical with those of other citizens, hence each bank official and director is interested in the maintenance of a policy that, by promoting the general financial welfare of the commun¬ ity, will enhance the profits of his bank. Satisfied with reasonable re¬ turns from a banking business conducted along well established legitimate lines, the general policy of the local banks is to be conservative without being nonprogressive. Most of the men in charge of these banks are men of experience, whose judgment in financial matters can be safely trusted, so that the institutions with which they are connected command local con¬ fidence and credit abroad.

almost the sole occupation of the people. With the coming of the rail¬ roads some manufacturing establishments were founded, but agriculture is still the principal industry and greatest source of wealth. "Corn is King, ' ' applies to Huntington County today as well as in the years gone by. Concerning the agricultural conditions in the county, the biennial report of the State Bureau of Statistics published in 1912 (the latest available) says:

"Because of the fertility of the glacial and sedimentary soils, farming, stock raising and fruit growing are the chief occupations of the people. It is an especially fine corn-producing area. Wheat and oats are also staple farm products; but the raising of wheat is becoming less and less extensive, because the timber area is too small to offer much protection to this cereal during the winter, and many times the crop is entirely destroyed by the cold winters. Much of the corn is used for fattening hogs for the market. To a much less extent is it fed to cattle for the same purpose. The apple is the chief fruit grown, although an abundance of peaches, cherries, grapes, pears, plums and berries of all kinds is grown. With but few exceptions the farms have in them from forty to one hundred and sixty acres."

The following table shows the acreage and quantity of some of the leading crops for the year 1911, the last year included in the statistical report above quoted:

Evidently the Huntington County farmer believes in the rotation of crops, as may be seen in the statistics regarding the clover hay. In 1910 the acreage of this crop was 23,139 acres and the product was 22,819 tons of hay. This indicates that more than sixteen thousand acres of clover was turned under by the plow in 1911 to make other crops. In 1910 the county produced 3,196 bushels of clover seed, while a year later the crop was but 1,662 bushels. In the former year the county stood sixth in the state in the production of clover seed, but in 1911 it fell to the thirtyfifth place.

that of the preceding year, though the quantity of corn raised was greater by over one hundred thousand bushels. There was also a marked increase in the wheat and oats crops. In the total production of corn, the county stood fortieth of the ninety -two counties of the state, but in the average yield per acre it was exceeded by only twenty-one counties. It was the thirty-second county in th$ total production of wheat, but occupied the tenth place in the average yield per acre. Only nine counties raised more oats, and in the average yield per acre Huntington stood fifth. It was also the fifth county in the state in the production of rye.

Although a number of the early settlers planted orchards, it is only in comparatively recent years that the farmers have begun to realize the possibilities of fruit raising on a commercial scale. In 1910 the county produced for the market 3,552 bushels of apples, peaches, pears and plums. This was increased to 27,811 bushels in 1911. Part of this increase was no doubt due to the fact that 1911 was a better fruit year than its predecessor, but much of it was due to new orchards coming of bearing age. More trees are being planted every year, and it is only a question of time until Huntington will occupy a leading place among the fruit growing counties of the state.

As a stock raising county, Huntington is above the average. Follow¬ ing is a table showing the number of animals sold during the year 1911, with the amount received for each class :

Only in the number of mules sold did Huntington County fall below the average. In the sale of horses it stood twenty-third ; sixteenth in the sale of cattle ; thirteenth in the sale of hogs, and twenty-fourth in the sale of sheep. The number and estimated value of animals on hand at the beginning of the year 1912 was as follows :

From these figures it would appear that the Huntington County farmer does not sell off his animals closely every year, but keeps enough on hand to insure an increase in his flocks and herds. In the number of animals on hand, the county stood seventh in hogs, eleventh in cattle and sheep, and thirteenth in the number of horses and colts.

Within the last twenty -five years several Huntington County men have given considerable attention to and won distinction in the improve¬ ment of live stock, not only locally, but also in the surrounding counties and even in other states. Probably foremost among these is the firm of George W. Souers & Sons, importers of Percheron and Belgian horses. Mr. Souers began dealing in high grade horses about twenty years ago, buying from other importers. In 1906 he made a trip to Europe and found out that he could do better by purchasing direct from the breeders in Belgium and France. Since that time some member of the firm makes two or three trips across the Atlantic annually, and being expert judges they select only the best horses. Some of the horses were brought over by this firm have sold as high as four thousand five hundred dollars. At first, Mr. Souers held a few auction sales, which brought horsemen from a distance to Huntington, but in later years the firm depends chiefly upon advertising and in mailing circular letters to more than forty thousand horsemen in all parts of the United States and Canada.

Henry King, of Warren, is one of the best known horse breeders of the Middle West. He is a graduate of the Kansas City Breeding School, an excellent judge of horses, has a large and well equipped barn and breeds according to the most modern scientific methods. Others who are interested in improving the quality of horses in general use are Henry Miller, of Clear Creek Township, who recently paid $1,200 for one imported brood mare; L. E. Wren, whose farm is near Goblesville, and R. F. Bricker, all of whom are recognized as among the best horse breeders in Indiana. Through the efforts of these men the farmers of Huntington County have been taught that it costs no more to have good horses than poor ones, and it is quite likely that the county can show more standard bred horses than any other county in the state of similar population.

In cattle breeding, Orlando W. Whitelock, ex-judge of the Circuit Court, of Huntington, J. L. Priddy, of Warren, and Henry C. Clapp are among the leaders and have won honorable mention in some of the leading live stock journals as being scientific and up-to-date cattlemen.

There is probably a greater number of persons interested in hogs than in any other species of live stock, as Huntington is pre-eminently a hog county. John Stephen's Poland-China hogs have done more, as one Huntington County man expresses it, "to put the town of Andrews on the map ' ' than any other one business connected with that town. Other prominent hog breeders and raisers are F. M. Smith, of Rock Creek Township ; Mahoney Brothers, of Wayne Township ; Johnson & Hodgden, of Huntington Township ; D. R. Rupert, of Roanoke ; Guy L. Brookover, of Bippus ; J. M. Eads and Simon Summers, each of whom have shipped hogs to various parts of the country for breeding purposes.

In addition to these horse, cattle and hog importers and breeders, M. R. Purviance and G. W. Kapp have won considerable distinction as raisers of fine sheep, so that as a whole Huntington County ranks high as a community that believes "the best is none too good," especially in the character of the live stock raised by the farmers of the county.

Besides the general farming and live stock interests of the county, there are other sources of income to the farmer that are by no means insignificant. Considerable attention is given to dairying and poultry raising, both of which have proved to be very remunerative. To quote again from the last report of the Bureau of Statistics, the amount and value of products in these lines of business sold during the year 1911 were as follows:

These figures show that the "Great American Hen" was very much in evidence in Huntington County during the year, as the county stood seventh in the state in the production of eggs. It was ninth in the pro¬ duction of milk, fourteenth in the production of butter and twentyfourth in the quantity of poultry sold. In the quantity and value of the wool clip for the same year it stood eighteenth.

pressed by the general evidences of prosperity seen on every hand. Good dwelling houses, large barns, bountiful crops, an abundance of high grade live stock, all bear out the statement that the farmer is still the industrial potentate. Banks may fail, manufactories be consumed by fire or hurt by industrial depressions, merchants may suffer for similar reasons, but the sunshine, rain and fertility of the soil still exercise their beneficent influences to fill the coffers of the skillful and energetic agriculturist.

The earliest manufacturing concerns of Huntington County were of the most primitive character, intended to produce only such commodities as were demanded by the frugal settlers of a new country. They included saw and grist mills, an occasional tanyard, wagon and blacksmith shops, with here and there a carding machine or woolen mill. In the chapters on Township History will be found mention of a number of early saw and grist mills, of more or less note, hence it is not necessary to repeat their history in this chapter, in which the object is to give some account of those industries whose business extended to a larger territory than a mere local neighborhood.

The City of Huntington is naturally the manufacturing center of the county, being centrally located, the county seat and greatest railroad center. Here the principal manufacturing industries of the county are located, and from here the products of these factories are shipped to all parts of the country.

One of the first factories to be established was the foundry of William G. Johnson. Mr. Johnson began by starting a blacksmith shop in 1835 on the bank of Flint Creek, not far from the old county jail. A little later he added a small foundry consisting of a charcoal fire and a blast supplied by two ordinary blacksmiths' bellows, so arranged that as one inflated the other exhausted, thus keeping up a constant draft. By this primitive system from two hundred to three hundred pounds of ore could be melted at a heat. The castings made were of the simplest character, such as would be most needed in a frontier settlement.

The Drummond Brothers, Morris and Avery, established a foundry in 1858, but after running it a short time sold out to P. W. Moffitt, who con¬ ducted the business until 1869, when he formed a partnership with James McCurdy and M. V. B. Gottschall and enlarged the plant, erected new brick buildings, etc. Not long after this Thomas Roche acquired the interests of McCurdy and Gottschall and the firm of Moffitt & Roche en¬ gaged extensively in the manufacture of stoves and machine castings. In 1883 this establishment was sold to E. K. Clayton, who carried on a successful business for some time, after which he turned his attention to other lines of activity and the foundry was allowed to lapse into inactivity.

The Drummonds, after selling their foundry to Moffitt, established a new one at the junction of Warren Street and the canal, where they built up a good patronage, but in 1872 they were succeeded by the firm of Cook & Speaker, who gave their attention principally to the manufacture of plows. In 1881 the plant was sold to Dorn & Gemmer, who operated it for some time, but it finally wound up its business and closed perma¬ nently.

About 1847 or 1848 John Lewis began exporting lumber via the Wabash & Erie Canal to eastern markets. Some four or five years later John Kenower engaged in the same line of business, giving especial attention to black walnut lumber, which was just then coming into general popularity in the manufacture of furniture. He continued in this line until 1875, his exports sometimes exceeding one million feet of lumber in the course of a year. In 1865 Mr. Kenower formed a partnership with George S. Brinkerhoff and erected a sawmill, to which a planing mill was added three years later. In 1880 the mill was thoroughly overhauled and the firm became John Kenower & Sons, which is still doing business in Huntington, though the sawmill has long since ceased operations and no lumber has been exported for years. -

In 1870 Col. C. E. Briant established a stave and heading factory in the eastern part of the city. About forty thousand dollars were invested in the plant, which employed from seventy-five to one hundred men, with an annual output of some six million staves and heading for one million barrels. In 1882 a sawunill was erected in connection with the stave fac¬ tory. From fifteen to twenty men were employed in this part of the business and about two million five hundred thousand feet of lumber were turned out each year. Two years later a bending factory was added for the manufacture of felloes for wagons and buggies and about twenty-five men were employed in this department.

Another large wood-working establishment was the plow handle fac¬ tory of G. V. Griffith & Son, which was established about 1869. Some five years later it was removed to the eastern part of town, immediately south of the Wabash Railroad, where better buildings were erected and a band sawmill was added to the equipment. This concern for several years turned out about one million five hundred thousand barrel hoops and from two hundred and fifty thousand to three hundred thousand plow handles. With the exception of the band sawmill all the machinery used in the factory was the invention of G. V. Griffith.

Going backward a little, it is appropriate to mention the furniture factory established by John Kenower in 1846. It was a modest affair at first, the intention being to manufacture for local trade only, but in 1863 Mr. Kenower took his brother, A. Q. Kenower, into partnership and a larger plant was built. The product of the factory was then shipped to other parts of the country. In 1869 A. Q. Kenower became the sole proprietor and some new and improved machinery was added to the factory.

It can readily be seen that such large wood-working establishments as those mentined, in connection with the sawmills scattered through the county, were destined to exhaust the timber supply. As the valuable timber was used up the factories gradually lessened the extent of their product, and finally ceased operations altogether.

Other wood-working establishments during the early years of the city's history were the pump factory of Jacob Binkley, Robert Black's cooper shop and the spoke and bentwood works on the south side of the Little River. Mr. Binkley made pumps for the local trade chiefly, Robert Black's cooper shop was located in the western part of town and gave employment to several men, pork barrels being the principal product. The spoke and bentwood works were first operated by Henry Drover, who sold to John J. Young. About forty thousand dollars' worth of spokes, felloes, etc., were turned out by this concern annually.

William G. Johnson, who has already been spoken of as the first black¬ smith and proprietor of the first foundry, was also the founder of the first grist mill in Huntington. It was a small run of corn buhrs and was located in the rear of his blacksmith shop on Flint Creek, which was dammed for the purpose of obtaining power to run the mill. The loca¬ tion of Johnson's shop and mill was not far from where the First National Bank now stands, at the corner of Jefferson and Market streets. After a short time the mill was equipped with machinery for grinding wheat. In 1849 the old mill was torn away and Mr. Johnson erected a good flour mill on the site. It was fitted up with three runs of buhrs, modern bolting machinery, etc., and was one of the best mills in the county at that time. It was operated by different parties until 1861, when it was destroyed by fire.

In that year the Huntington Mills were built by James Taylor, at a cost of some fifteen thousand dollars. After passing through several hands these mills were acquired by Arnold, Thomas & Company in 1870,. and the new proprietors converted the mills into a roller mill for the manufacture of the "New Process" flour. These mills, located on South Jefferson Street, are still running.

Uriah Fink erected the City Mills on West Washington Street in 1869, for custom work. After several years they passed into the hands; of John Minnich, who put in the new process machinery and carried on a large business for several years, when the machinery was sold and re¬ moved. The old building is now used as a cement block factory.

The flax and jute bagging factory was started in the summer of 1876 by John Niblock, who built and equipped a plant at a cost of some fifteen thousand dollars. At first flax straw was used extensively, about one thou¬ sand tons being purchased annually from the Huntington County farm¬ ers. Four years later the factory became the property of William Mc- Grew and William H. Hessin. In 1886 the plant was destroyed by fire, but was rebuilt and machinery installed for the manufacture of jute bagging, then extensively used by the cotton growers of the South as a covering for their cotton bales. The capacity of the new mill was about two thousand five hundred yards of bagging per day and about fifty peo¬ ple were constantly employed. Mr. McGrew disposed of his interest in the factory, and on December 12, 1889, the Huntington Bagging Com¬ pany was incorporated by William Hessin, John E. Hessin and Effie C. Hessin, with a capital stock of $50,000. On October 23, 1890, the plant was again seriously damaged by fire. Jute bagging was one of the articles affected by the tariff bill passed by Congress a short time before the fire, and this fact, together with the introduction of the cotton com¬ press, rendered the business unprofitable and the mills in Huntington closed their career, much to the regret of the employees and the citizens generally.

The shoe factory of Barker, Brown & Company is one of the sub¬ stantial manufacturing concerns of Huntington. In February, 1890, J. S. Davis and E. K. Alpaugh, two Huntington men, were appointed a com¬ mittee by the board of trade to go to Chicago and investigate the shoe business, and if possible make arrangements for marketing the output of a factory at Huntington. They found a jobbing firm in Chicago ready and willing to handle all that could be manufactured and upon making their report to the board of trade a movement was immediately started for the establishment of the factory, which was removed from Lafayette to Huntington and began operations a few years later. The factory is located in the extreme southern part of the city, employs a large number of people and makes a specialty of misses', boys' and children's shoes, which are now shipped to all parts of the country. A new addition to the factory was made recently for the purpose of enabling the firm to meet the constantly increasing demand for the Barker Brown shoe. One feature of this factory is the pure water provided for the use of the employees, as well as the excellent sanitary conditions that prevail.

After G. Y. Griffith & Sons removed to Albany, Indiana, in order to get nearer a timber supply, the buildings occupied by them stood idle for a time. They are now occupied by Adams Brothers, manufacturers of staves and heading, spokes, rims, etc. The firm employs about twentyfive men and also operates a plant at Bluff ton, Wells County.

The Schaff Brothers Company started in the manufacture of pianos in Chicago in 1868. In 1900 the factory was removed to Huntington, the people of that city agreeing to donate a site and a fund of $12,000 to erect suitable factory buildings. Ground adjoining the fair grounds on the west was selected for the location, the buildings were pushed forward as rapidly as possible, and late in the year the factory began business. The company is incorporated and the officers in 1914 were: Jacob Dick, presi¬ dent; J. F. Bippus, vice president; Julius Dick, treasurer; F. C. Adsit, secretary and manager. About seventy-five skilled workmen are em¬ ployed in this factory, a salesroom is maintained on Jefferson Street, and the company also has an office in Chicago.

One of the early manufacturing concerns that deserves mention be¬ cause such establishments are exceedingly rare now was the potash fac¬ tory started by Frederick Lushing in 1873 and run successfully for sev¬ eral years. He obtained his raw material from wood ashes and turned out about one hundred barrels of high grade potash every year.

Within recent years a number of new factories have been brought to Huntington through the efforts of the Factory Fund Association, which was organized in 1907. The first meeting to organize an association of this nature was held at the Knights of Pythias home on February 22, 1907, when a committee of five was appointed to consider "ways and means." That committee, which was composed of J. F. Bippus, Julius Dick, H. E. Rosebrough, John Kenower, Jr., and J. C. Altman, was afterward increased to twelve by the addition of E. T. Taylor, J. W. Ford, Jacob Boos, J. M. Barker, I. H. Heaston, H. W. Hoch and W. A. Jones.

The plan adopted was that of raising a fund of $50,000, with which to secure the location of new factories. Work along that line immediately commenced and on April 24, 1907, the fund amounted to $50,180. Peter Scheiber, S. M. Sayler and O. W. Whitelock, were then added to the committee of twelve and the fifteen men were made managers of the factory fund. The association was incorporated on the last day of April with the fifteen as directors; Peter Scheiber was chosen president; S. M. Sayler, secretary; J. F. Bippus, assistant secretary; O. W. Whitelock, treasurer, and Julius Dick, trustee of the fund.

The first factory secured by the association was the Caswell-Runyan Company, located in the eastern part of the city. The only bonus given this company amounted to $368.50, which was used in the construction of a sewer necessary for the factory. This company makes cedar chests, matting covered boxes for clothing, bolster rolls for beds, burlap and decorated screens for interiors, hall trees and some other novelties in furniture and decorative articles. The association was criticized by some for locating such a concern and the company also came in for a share of this criticism in erecting such large buildings "for so foolish a line of business." Work on the buildings was commenced in May, 1907, and in 1912 over four hundred carloads of red cedar lumber from East Tennessee were used by the company. The buildings have been enlarged until they now have more than one hundred thousand square feet of floor space, and the original capital stock of $75,000 has been increased to $200,000. Winfred Runyan is president of the company; John A. Snyder, vice president, and James W. Caswell, secretary and treasurer.

In September, 1907, negotiations were begun with the Chappel Fur¬ nace Company, of Morenci, Michigan, and ended the removal of the com¬ pany's works to Huntington in October, receiving a bonus of $5,000 from the factory fund. Upon removing the concern was reorganized as the Majestic Furnace and Foundry Company. It is now known simply as the Majestic Company, which manufactures furnaces for heating houses, coal chutes, and a number of other products of similar character. J. M. Triggs, who is probably the leading man of the concern, is an inventor of more than ordinary ability and through his ingenuity the Majestic Company has exclusive control of several of the articles it turns out.

In October, 1910, the association, by selling $40,000 worth of the preferred stock of the company, secured the location of the plant of the Orton & Steinbrenner Company, manufacturers of steam shovels, grab buckets, coal crushing machinery, locomotive cranes, and machinery used by steam and traction roads and power companies. This concern was formerly located in Chicago and sub-contracted its work, but on May 1, 1911, the Huntington shops opened with a force of sixty men, a large majority of them skilled mechanics. Since then cranes have been built for the Illinois Central, the Lehigh Valley and other companies and the shops have been running to their full capacity. H. G. Steinbrenner, the general manager, visits Huntington frequently, and the shops here are under the management of C. W. Higgins.

The Huntington Machine and Foundry Company is another recent addition to the city 's large manufacturing establishments that was located through the influence of the Factory Fund Association. This concern, located in the east end of the city, makes large castings and heavy machinery of all kinds. June 2, 1914, was "Booster Day" in Huntington, a celebration gotten up under the auspices of the Commercial Asso¬ ciation for the purpose of advertising the products and possibilities of Huntington to the rest of the country. In the industrial parade on that occasion the various factories of the city participated with "floats" bearing specimens of the goods and wares turned out by them. The Huntington Machine and Foundry Company exhibited a large punch and shear machine, weighing several tons, which had just been com¬ pleted for the United States Government, for use on the battleship "Prometheus." The machine was a revelation to many, both on account of its character and the fact that the Government would go so far inland for appurtenances to be used in the navy.

The Schact Rubber Company, of which William F. Schact is the active executive head, is located at the corner of Polk and Canal streets, in the western part of the city. It manufactures mechanical rubber goods, shoe-heels, corks for bottles, insulators, etc., and employs a num¬ ber of people. It is one of the recent additions to the manufacturing interests.

In 1866 George Pfaler and Jacob Boos started the first brewery in Huntington. The first beer was made on December 15, 1866. Three years later Mr. Pfaler disposed of his interest to his partner, who con¬ tinued to operate the plant for several years. The Huntington Brewing Company was established about 1902. Its buildings cover three acres of ground and the brewery has a capacity of 10,000 barrels of beer annually. About twenty people are employed in the brewery and the adjoining bottling department.

Among the smaller manufacturing concerns of the city are two candy factories, three cigar factories, the Waring Glove Company, two ice cream factories, a carpet weaving establishment, a carriage shop, two concrete block factories, three harness shops and a silo sales office oper¬ ated by the National Fire Proofing Company.

Before the timber of the county was used up, there were a number of wood working establishments in other towns. Roanoke had a large saw-mill and spoke factory, established by Slusser and Richart, and after it was destroyed by fire, a saw-mill and wagon gearing factory was erected on the site by Richart & Bryson. It also was destroyed by fire in 1883. Colton & Jones had a stair factory at Roanoke, to which they added a shingle mill, and carried on a successful business until the buildings were burned in 1872.

Early in the '60s Theo. Y. Horton erected a large woolen mill at Roanoke. It was a large three story building, that stood near the old Wabash & Erie Canal, and for several years was one of the leading in¬ dustries of the county. Along the side of the building was the sign "T. V. Horton's Woolen Mill," in large letters, and passengers on the canal boats looked upon it with wonder and admiration as one of the biggest things of the kind on the old, historic waterway. Nearly every canal boat that went east carried flannels and blankets of Horton manu- facture, but with the discontinuance of the canal traffic the woolen mill ceased operations and later was removed to Warsaw. A number of people who had been employed in the mill were thereby forced to seek other occupations.

The principal manufacturing concerns of Roanoke at the present time are the tile factory, the Wayne knitting mills, a branch of a Fort Wayne establishment, and a cement block factory.

Besides the Wabash railway shops at Andrews, mentioned in another chapter, that town once had several prosperous wood working shops, including the basket factory of Gardner & Blish, which was later con¬ verted into a stave factory by Morgan & Davenport ; the Antioch Manu¬ facturing Company, which was established about 1867, for making furniture trimmings, plow handles, etc. ; the saw-mill and stave factory of Morris & .Bell, and the carriage and wagon shop of Lessel Long. The town once had a cob pipe factory that did a successful business for several years.

The Andrews Cabinet Company was established at a later date and built up a large trade in kitchen cabinets, which were the principal article of manufacture. Industrial conditions finally forced the com¬ pany into the hands of a receiver and in 1911 the plant was purchased by the Wasmuth-Endicott Company, which installed new machinery, added to the buildings and continued in the same line of business. In the spring of 1914 the company had under contemplation still further extension of the buildings in order to increase the capacity. About eighty people are constantly employed. The company now makes kitchen cabinets exclusively and its product goes to all parts of the country.

Huntington rejoices in the sobriquet of "The Lime City." About 1843 or 1844 Michael Houseman built a small lime kiln, upon the site later occupied by the Hawley Brothers, and burned a small quantity of lime for local use. So far as known this was the first attempt to burn lime in the county. In 1847 Houseman sold his outfit to John Lewis and Thomas Dillon. Two or three years later some new kilns were constructed west of town, near the canal, and stone was quarried and shipped to Fort Wayne to be burned into lime.

In 1858 Henry Drover opened a quarry and constructed a kiln on his farm, and a little later James Fulton bought a small tract of land from a man named Thompson, east of Huntington, and opened a quarry there. In 1860 he built two kilns and later in the same year shipped some of his lime down the canal. This was really the beginning of the Huntington lime business, which in recent years has grown to large proportions.

When Professor Cox made his geological survey of the county in 1875, he found thirty-one kilns in operation, with a total annual capac¬ ity of 617,000 bushels. As to the quality of the output, he says : ' 1 This lime is held in high estimation and meets with a ready market, not only in Indiana, but in Ohio and Illinois, as well." Perhaps the favor¬ able comment of the state geologist had something to do with widening the field of demand for Huntington lime, which now goes to all parts of the United States.

In December, 1879, the Huntington White Lime Association was formed with Adam Beck, president, and W. W. Hawley, general agent. Within two years the association controlled twenty-one kilns, with a capacity of forty-five carloads per week. There were also outside oper¬ ators who controlled about a dozen kilns. In 1880 over three hundred and twenty-five thousand bushels of lime were shipped from Huntington.

The Western Lime Company was incorporated in May, 1898, with Peter Martin as president, treasurer and general manager; A. L. Beck, vice president; and W. W. Hawley, secretary. These three officers, with Jacob Martin, Michael Baltes, D. M. Llawley, Adam Beck, Enos T. Taylor, H. M. Purviance and C. E. Hawley, constituted the board of directors. By the organization of this company, which included all the principal lime men of the city, the business was consolidated and the manner of production greatly improved.

of Huntington, remains in the office of president, treasurer and general manager; George D. Copeland, of Marion, Ohio, is vice president, and F. S. Whitcomb, of Cleveland, Ohio, is secretary. The company oper¬ ates five plants in Ohio, one at Huntington and one at Bedford, Indiana. About one hundred men are employed at the Huntington works. In addition to the large lime business carried on, the company ships about ten thousand carloads of stone from the various plants annually. This stone is used in the construction of highways and for ballast on railroads.

Natural gas was first struck in Indiana early in 1886. On May 29, 1886, the Huntington Oil and Gas Company was incorporated with a capital stock of $50,000 and the following board of directors: Samuel F. Day, D. Yingling, J. G. Price, P. W. Zent and Thomas L. Lucas. Very little interest was aroused until after a large gas well "blew in" at Marion on January 15, 1887. The Huntington company was then reorganized with Dr. D. S. Leyman, president and E. T. Taylor, treas¬ urer. By the 3d of February enough stock had been subscribed to insure the drilling of a well, and the Taylor farm, immediately south of the city, was selected as the place where the well should be sunk. Drilling commenced about the 1st of March and Trenton rock was struck on the 18th. After penetrating the Trenton formation about thirty-five feet and finding no signs of gas, the well was abandoned.

A second well was commenced soon afterward, but the drill struck a bed of quicksand and again the effort to secure natural gas ended in failure. No further attempts were made at Huntington.

In the meantime a company had been organized at Warren with a capital stock of $45,000; Jonas Good, president; Adam Foust, vice president; L. L. Simons, secretary, and Ploward Thompson, treasurer. A well was sunk by this company and at a depth of sixty-seven feet a strong vein of water was struck and in a little while the water flowed over the top of the pipe. No gas was found, but some oil of good quality appeared soon after the drill pierced the Trenton rock. The well was then shot with fifty quarts of nitro glycerine, the explosion causing the artesian water to rise to the top of the derrick, but no gas could be brought forth. The flow of oil increased after the well was abandoned, but what the company wanted was gas, hence no attention was paid to saving the oil. Another well was commenced on April 7, 1887, on the south side of the Salamonie River, but no better results were obtained than in the former experiment.

On October 17, 1890, the Huntington Electric Light, Gas, Fuel and Power Company was incorporated by Frederick Dick, Julius Dick, Jacob Dick, and others, and on November 3, 1890, the Warren Natural Gas Company was incorporated by George J. Bippus, of Huntington, and

James B. Townsend and John K. Brice, of Ohio, "to drill gas and oil wells and lease lands in Huntington, Grant, Wells and Blackford coun¬ ties." The latter company made a success of its undertaking and in time acquired the franchise of the other company, under which natural gas was piped to the City of Huntington. Most of the gas supplying the city came from wells in Grant County, though the company drilled several wells in Jefferson and Wayne townships of Huntington County, some of them fair producers.

After it was ascertained that Huntington County would not furnish gas in paying quantities, it was recalled that the first well drilled at Warren showed oil of fine quality and the work of prospecting for oil was commenced. The Ohio Oil Company entered the field and leased several tracts of land in the three southern townships. State Geologist W. S. Blatchley, in several of his reports, touches on the Huntington County oil field. In his report for 1903 (p. 112) he sums up the situa¬ tion as follows: "The area of Huntington county producing oil in com¬ mercial quantities is practically limited to the southern halves of Salainonie, Jefferson and Wayne townships, along the southern border of the county. Some of the sections in this area rank high as producers, the average initial production and length of life of the wells equalling any similar area in the petroleum field of the state. It is not probable that the area of productive territory in the county will ever be found to extend any distance north of the townships mentioned, though it may, in time, cover the greater portion of their northern halves."

In Salamonie Township the best paying wells were found in Sec¬ tions 12 and 13, along the eastern border of the county directly north of Buckeye; Sections 19 and 20, near the Town of Warren, and Sections 25 and 36, in the extreme southeast corner of the county. A field was opened up west and southwest of Warren in 1900 and in Sections 30, 31, 32 and 33 a number of paying wells were drilled.

In Jefferson Township, which proved to be the best in the county, good wells were found in practically all the southern part. One of these wells, located in the northeast quarter of Section 28, about a mile and a half north of Milo, produced 200 barrels per day. In this township the Pike Oil Company and the Troy Oil Company were the principal operators. Blatchley states that Section 33 was probably the best in the township, having forty-eight wells producing on December 1, 1903, seven barrels each. The wells in Jefferson ranged from 1,000 to 1,065 feet in depth. In nearly every instance gas was usually struck before the oil appeared and the gas thus obtained was used as fuel in operating the field.

ities, could not be operated profitably for more than seven months in the year. Most of the townships proved to be fair gas territory and some strong flowing wells were drilled. On the Biliter farm, near Mount Etna, a well was drilled that showed at first a heavy flow of gas and afterward made a good showing of oil. It was the most northern well in the Huntington County field. In August, 1903, it was pumping fifteen barrels of oil daily. Some of the wells in this township were more than one thousand one hundred feet in depth. There is still some oil produced in the county and many people believe that the industry will again become a profitable one.