LaPorte County, Indiana - Chapter 36: Religion, 1904 (part 2 of 23)

EZRA T. SCOTT is an enterprising mer¬ chant of Westville, conducting a good store in which he carries a large and well selected line of staple and fancy groceries, drugs, oils, paints and kindred commodities. He has been connected with commercial interests in this county almost continuously since 1874, and in business circles he has sustained a very enviable reputation, win¬ ning the trust of his fellow men through honor¬ able methods and earnest desire to please his patrons.

Mr. Scott is a native of Cass county, Indiana, bom on the 13th of November, 1849, and is of Scotch lineage. His paternal great-grandfather, Alexander Scott, was one of the Revolutionary heroes and afterward received a pension from the government in recognition of the aid which he rendered the cause of independence. He died in 1844 at the advanced age of eighty-four years, and his remains were interred in Spring Creek cemetery in Cass county, Indiana, about six miles northeast of Logansport.

The parents of Ezra T. Scott were Joshua and Mary A. (Hill) Scott. The father was bom in Ohio October 27, 1820, and died June 3, 1001, having passed the eightieth milestone on life's journey. He was largely reared in Cass county, Indiana, the family having been established there in early pioneer times. In his youth he was sur¬ rounded by the hardships and trials as well as the pleasures of frontier life, and he assisted largely in the development of the home farm. He afterward engaged in the manufacture of woolen goods near Logansport, and at a later T8^WTut0 Minnesota, removing to that state in i»7<x There he turned his attention to agricult¬ ural pursuits and became a successful farmer. His name is enrolled among the pioneers of Cass county, Indiana, and he was educated there when the schools were of a most primitive character, the building being erected with logs and supplied with slab seats. He did his writing with a goosequill pen, and his text books were .very few, for little more than reading, writing and arithmetic were taught in those days. However, he read quite extensively in private life and became a well informed man. In his early manhood Michigan City formed the nearest market for the products raised in and around Logansport, and he fre¬ quently drove an ox team there, taking a load of wheat and bringing back a load of salt. Joshua Scott was a man of high moral principles and a faithful adherent of the Christian church, as was his good wife. In politics he was a Whig until the organization of the new Republican party, when he joined its ranks and became one of its stalwart advocates. Both he and his wife died in Minnesota and were laid to rest there. In their family were five children, of whom Ezra was the fourth in order of birth. There were three sons and two daughters, and four are yet living, namely: Ann E., the widow of John Conrad and a resident of Logansport, Indiana; Sarah Ett, of Howard, Minnesota, the widow of Alex¬ ander Thompson, who was a soldier of the Civil war ; Ezra T. ; and B. Franklin, who has for a number of years been in the employ of the city railway company of Minneapolis, Minnesota.

county, Indiana, until eighteen years of age, and was reared in the usual manner of farmer lads. He assisted in the work of the fields and was also employed in his father's woolen mill, becoming familiar with that line of industrial activity. In the common schools he obtained his preliminary education, and in the fall of 1867 came to Westville, Indiana, in order to enter the high school of this place, which had gained prestige as one of the best schools of this part of the state. Mr. Scott continued his studies there six terms, and then ceasing to be a pupil entered educational ranks as a teacher, following that profession in LaPorte and Cass counties for about four years. He did good and satisfactory work in the school room, imparting clearly and readily to others the knowledge that he had acquired. In the spring of 1874 he entered a general store owned by.E. S. Smith of Westville, with whom he remained for six years as a salesman, but in the spring of 1879 he went to Howard, Minnesota, where he began business on his own account as proprietor of a drug store, which he conducted for seven years. In that undertaking he prospered, secur¬ ing a large and profitable patronage, but finally he disposed of his store in Minnesota and in 1887 returned to Westville, where he purchased the store of his former employer Mr. Smith. Here he has since carried on business. His stock now consists of a good line of drugs, wall paper, pat¬ ent medicine, paints and oils, groceries and queens ware, school books and stationery, and he has a good trade and it is constantly growing. He enjoys the entire confidence of his patrons because of his fair dealing and honesty of pur¬ pose, and he certainly merits the confidence which is given him as well as the success which has crowned his efforts.

Mr. Scott has been twice married. In the spring of 1872 he wedded Miss Fannie Harris and to them was born a daughter, Etta, but she is now deceased. Mrs. Scott died in January, 1881, and on the 27th of April, 1882, Mr. Scott was married to Miss R. Ella Evans, by whom he has one son, Fravel C., who is now a senior in the high school of Westville. Mrs. Scott was born in LaPorte county April 16, 1857, pursued her edu¬ cation in the schools here, completing a high school course in Westville, and afterward was a teacher in Kosciusko county, Indiana, for a num¬ ber of years. Both Mr. and Mrs. Scott are mem¬ bers of the Christian church, and their faith per¬ meates their lives and is manifested in their daily relations with their fellow men and women. Mr. Scott is a Republican in his political views, hav¬ ing supported the party since he cast his first presidential ballot for General U. S. Grant. Fra¬ ternally he is connected with Westville Lodge No. 136, I. O. O. F., and also with the Knights of the Maccabees.

His business record has been commendable and will bear the closest investigation and scru¬ tiny, and while he has won creditable success he has also found time to devote to public interests and to the advancement of his church. Perhaps the trend of his mind can best be indicated by an extract from one of his writings: "If a man could go into open market and for a certain sum in dollars and cents purchase the life-long devo¬ tion of a friend, how long would it be until we would have bargain hunters in friendship ? Some friends cost a mint of money, it is true ; but the real friend, the one on whom you can depend, the one who remains steadfast when all others have forsaken, the one which sticketh closer than a brother as it were, is not bought with money. Such a friend is priceless, and is valued far above rubies." "Sympathy, fidelity and need are some of the bonds of such friendship." "A word fitly spoken, an act kindly done, a friendly greeting real and not assumed, are some of the prices paid for such a treasure. If you can boast of having such a friend, it is because you are in some way accounted worthy."

The ideas which he advances in the above quotations have been exemplified in his life and have made him a man whom to know is to re¬ spect and honor, while the circle of his friends is very extensive in LaPorte county. The cosy home of Mr. and Mrs. Scott is equipped with a select library of books, choice literature of stand¬ ard character as well as cyclopedias and commen¬ taries and good books of reference. This is an acquisition which graces any home, from the hum¬ ble cottage to the mansion.

HARRY BEAKES TUTHILL (Written by C. W. Hendry x, Esq., of Dowagiac, Michigan). Whether the subject of this sketch is a descendant of OTuathail, the chieftain of Hy Muireadhaigh, whose ancestor was Tuathal, one of the greatest of the? early Irish Kings, or on the other hand from Richard de Toothill, whose son Matthew had received lands in Hipperholm, Yorkshire, England, in 1314, and whose descend¬ ants maintained their rank and had their large possessions down to the Elizabethan and Crom¬ wellian wars, is of little importance to him as a citizen of the Great Republic.

! la nmm winch he advances in lit mmoit - «iiS leave bet n exemplified in hm 1*' have n.ad<- him a man whom to kn< o\ L awe: and honor, whim the circle of hi n

Genealogy is traced with certainty from Rich¬ ard de Toothill above mentioned, to Henry of Kingsham, Norfolk county, whose son the pil¬ grim John settled in 1638 at New Haven, Connecticut, and moved in 1640 to Southold, Long Island. The line of descent is thence as follows: Henry (I), John (II), John (III), Fregift (IV), Nathaniel (V), Benjamin (VI), Gideon (VII), Cyrus (VIII), Harry (IX).

Nathaniel, fifth in descent, was a sergeant in Captain Thomas Terry's company of Colonel Delancey's regiment in the French and Indian war. He was also a soldier of the colonial army in the Revolutionary war and was with his command at Fort Montgomery when it was taken by the British, but escaped. His home was in Goshen, Orange county, New York, where he died Septem¬ ber 16, 1803.

On his mother's side Judge Tuthill is de¬ scended from William Beakes, a quaker of Somersetshire, England, who must have been a man of strong religious convictions, as the rec¬ ords of the North monthly meetings (of Friends) of that shire, and extracts from Bessie's Sufferings of the People called Quakers, show that in 1657, 1662, 1665, 1667, 1670 and again in 1681, he was imprisoned for allowing congregations of that faith to meet and sit in silence at his house. He arrived at the mouth of the Delaware, in Decem¬ ber, 1682.

William (II), son of the pilgrim, married Ruth, daughter of Mahlon Stacy, who erected the. first grist mill on the Delaware at Trenton, New Jersey, and there ground the grain for the early settlers for miles about. The records show that William (II) and his sons were prominent and useful members of the community, their names being constantly on committees. The sons and their sons, being Quakers, did not take up arms in the war of the Revolution, but Stacy Beakes, the maternal great-grandfather of Harry, cheer¬ fully paid the rapidly increasing tax, which in 1780 was one hundred and sixty pounds.

The home farm in the town of Wallkill, Orange county (then a part of Ulster county), New York, had been purchased in I771* R ^es partially within the corporate limits of the present city of Middletown, and is still held in the family, the present owner being Henry L. Beakes.

In early manhood Cyrus Tuthill was united in marriage with Frances Beakes, daughter of Joseph and Annie (Witter), who resided upon the old home farm in Orange county. To them were born five children, Julia, who died in in¬ fancy ; Annie J., now the wife of John Canright, of Portland, Oregon ; Harry Beakes ; Willie, who died in infancy ; and Victor Maxwell, of the firm of Baldwin, Tuthill and Bolton, large manu¬ facturers at Grand Rapids, Michigan.

In early life the father was a merchant at Howells, Orange county, New York. He moved to Dowagiac, Michigan, in 1854, where he also engaged in merchandising in 1861. He opened a store at Hartford, Van Buren county, and from 1862 to 1865 conducted a farm in the same county. In 1865 he purchased a farm near Dowagiac, upon which he continued to reside until 1879, when he again took up his residence in the city of Dowagiac. He was secretary of the Farmer s* Mutual Fire Insurance Company from 1875 to 1895, when advancing years caused him to de¬ cline further service. Both Mr. and Mrs. Tuthill were members of the Congregational church of Dowagiac for over forty years, of which Mr. Tuthill was church clerk for fifteen years, and af¬ terwards a deacon for over twenty years.

Judge Tuthill spent his boyhood days upon the farm near Dowagiac, working in summer and going to school in the winter. Prior to his gradu¬ ation in 1878 he taught two terms of district .school and boarded around.

On Saturday, the 13th day of July, 1878, he began the study of law with Freeman J. Atwell, but in October entered the office of Spafford Tryon of the same city. Mr. Tryon was an ex¬ pert chancery pleader with a large practice on the equity side of the court. For weeks the young man's time was wholly occupied in copying volum¬ inous bills and answers, and while he secretly re¬ belled no amount of unassisted study would have so greatly aided him as did this toilsome work, and to it he ascribes in large measure whatever success he has since attained.

In talking, to the writer, of those student days he sometimes amusingly mentions how drowsy he became on that first Saturday, and how look¬ ing about and seeing no reclining place he went to sleep in a straight backed chair, lulled into sweet repose by the silent music of the first pages of Blackstone. He was admitted to practice after examination in open court on December 2, 1879. The quizzing occupied over three hours and the committee jocularly hesitated to admit him be¬ cause he failed to answer two questions im¬ portant for embryo lawyers to know, the meaning of ''benefit of clergy" under the common law, and the first duty of a lawyer when admitted, but always quick to act upon a suggestion he paid for the oysters, although he himself was obliged to live on short rations for some time afterward.

The writer cannot close this term of delightful student intercourse in the old office without men¬ tion of the long pleasant walks we used to take down the Michigan Central Railroad track toward Pokagon, airing our knowledge of the law. Space prohibits the mention of more than an incident, however. The writer had studied some principle long and laboriously, and being fully "primed," stated the proposition to the future judge, who after a few moments thought, turned, and inquired:

Judge Tuthill located in Michigan City, De¬ cember 15, 1879. There he has since resided and there he practiced until elevated to the bench, January 1, 1897.

While the writer has met him often, and knows his worth as a man and as a lawyer, an expression of one of his brothers in the profession sums up in a sentence, all that might be said in many pages. "He is one of the strong lawyers of Indi¬ ana. He does not stoop to defend a legal propo¬ sition that he is not convinced has merit. His word as a lawyer and as a man can be taken and relied upon under all circumstances, and on all occasions."

Knowing his mother as the writer did, having been honored for twenty-five years by the con¬ fidence of his father, as the writer was, he can say these qualities of mind and heart came to him naturally and without being acquired.

In 1896 Mr. Tuthill was elected judge of the superior court of the counties of Lake, Porter and LaPorte by a majority of 1369. He was re¬ elected in 1900 by a majority of 2020. But the proudest hour of his life was March 26; 1904, when he was unanimously and by acclamation called by his party to become its candidate yet a third time.

This view would not be complete without men¬ tion of a happy marriage consummated November 28, 1878, when the two contracting parties, barely more than children, Harry B. Tuthill and Alice M. Wells, on that day plighted troth. She was the daughter of Hon. Henry B. and Phoebe E. (Carr) Wells. To this marriage four children have been born : Fannie, Lotta G., Ralph W. and Clarence A. The first and last died in infancy. Lotta is a graduate of the Old Buckingham Sem¬ inary of Ohio, and Ralph is now in college.

gan City, of which he has been a trustee for four¬ teen years, and now president of the board, and his efforts have been effective and far-reaching in furthering its interests and upbuilding. A prominent and honored member of the Masonic fraternity, he is affiliated with Acme Lodge No. 83, A. F. & A. M. ; Michigan City Chapter No. 25, R. A. M. ; Michigan City Council, R. & S. M. ; Michigan City Commandery No. 30, K. T. ; Indi¬ ana Consistory, S. P. R. S., of the valley of Indianapolis; and the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. Politically he has always been a Republican, and was an al¬ ternate delegate to the Republican national con¬ vention at Minneapolis in 1892. He has fre¬ quently been a delegate to the state conventions of his party, and his opinions carry weight in its councils.

He owns and occupies a beautiful home at 718 Wabash avenue, and he owns other valuable city property. It is seldom that an individual makes a success in more than one field of labor, but JudgeT'uthill has manifested excellent ability as well as skill in his profession, and has won prosperity through well placed investments. His nature is kindly, his temperament genial, and his manner courteous. He is a most companiable gentleman, but when on the bench his attitude at once indicates the studious, earnest and scholarly judge, whose course fully upholds the majesty of the law. Fearless in conduct, faultless in honor, stainless in reputation, he stands to-day as one of the prominent members of the Indiana bar.

AZARIAH WILLIAMS. For more than half a century this sterling citizen of LaPorte county has been a resident of northwestern In¬ diana and has contributed to the substantial im¬ provement of the county and takes an active and helpful part in its development. Sixty-eight years of his life have been passed here, and he certainly deserves mention in this volume. He was born in Wayne county, Indiana, on the 19th of June, 1828, and is the second in a family of eight children, five sons and three daughters, who were born to Jonathan and Jane (Lenington) Williams. Seven of this number are yet living. Tradition shows that the family can trace their ancestry back to Roger Williams, the founder of the colony of Rhode Island.

Jonathan Williams was a native of Tennessee, born in 1803. He was there reared until sixteen years of age, when he removed to Dayton, Ohio, where he spent one year. He afterward located in Wayne county, Indiana, and in 1835 came to LaPorte county, traveling across the country with a team of oxen. Here he purchased eighty acres of land in the fall of 1835 at land sa^e- Not a furrow had been turned or an improvement made upon the place, but with characteristic energy he began the development of a farm, his family liv¬ ing in a little log cabin home. Finally he sold the property and purchased two hundred and forty acres in a Quaker settlement in Porter county, Indiana, where he remained until his death. However, some time prior to his demise he disposed of part of his land and one hundred and sixty acres was left for the family.

In politics in early life he was an old-line Whig, and at the organization of the Republican party joined its ranks and remained one of its staunch advocates until his death, which occurred on the 6th of December, 1858, when he was in the fifty-sixth year of his age. The Republican party was then a new political organization, but he believed in the justice and correctness of its principles and accordingly gave to it his allegi¬ ance. He was a strong opponent of slavery, and he long labored in opposition to the custom of holding negroes in bondage. A great admirer of Henry Clay, he at one time made a trip to Rich¬ mond, Indiana, in order to hear the great Ken¬ tucky orator deliver an address.

The maternal grandmother of Mr. Williams lived in a region in which hostilities were carried on at the time of the Revolutionary war* in fact, at one time the shots of the contending armies fell all around her home, but fortunately she escaped injury. Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan Williams were identified with the Society of Friends and with the. anti-slavery element of that sect. She was a native of Pennsylvania, born in the year 1808 in Titusville, and her death occurred in Porter county, Indiana, in 1856. The eldest of their family is Abraham L. Williams, who is married and for some years followed poultry farming, but is now living retired in Denver, Colorado. Deborah A., deceased, was the wife of Shepherd Crumpacker and became the mother of state sen¬ ator Crumpacker, a prominent farmer and citizen of Clinton township, LaPorte county, Indiana; another of her sons is Judge Jonathan W. Crum¬ packer, who is now living in LaPorte. Mary, the third member of the Williams family, is the wife of O. W. Barnard, a farmer and insurance agent of Manteno, Illinois. David C. resides in Detroit, Michigan, with his son Eugene, who is actively connected with the business of the Pere Marquette Railroad Company. Emma is the wife of Uriah W. Barnard, of Oklahoma City, and a mechanic. Samuel is married and follows farming at Altamont, Kansas. Jonathan L., the youngest member of the family, is married and resides in Kansas City, Kansas, having the care of the University grounds there at the present time.

Azariah Williams was a little lad of only seven years when he became a resident of La¬ Porte county, and almost continuously since he has resided within its borders. However, he spent one year in Iowa and a brief period in Starke county, Indiana. He pursued his education in one of the old log schoolhouses common in his boyhood, and conned his lessons while sitting upon a slab bench. The little room was fur¬ nished with a fireplace built at one end of the building, and the smoke made its egress through a mud and stick chimney. The teacher gave in¬ struction in the "three R's" and also in geogra¬ phy. Mr. Williams obtained his education in such a school and through the aid of his father, who was a man of more , than ordinary learning for those days.

For many years Mr. Williams has engaged in merchandising, beginning operations in that way in 1854. During about three-fourths of his business career he has been connected with com¬ mercial pursuits. At the age of twenty-one years, however, he began teaching, following that pro¬ fession in Porter and in LaPorte counties. As the years have advanced he has prospered in his undertakings and as proprietor of a store has gained a comfortable competence, making him one of the substantial citizens of the community. In all of his business methods he is enterprising and progressive, and his prosperity has resulted from his earnestly directed labors.

On the 27th of January, 1850, Mr. Williams was united ill marriage to Miss Eliza J. Williams, and to them were born four sons and a daughter, of whom four are yet living, namely: David P., a barber by trade now living in Astoria, Oregon, wedded Miss Josephine Daggy, who is now de¬ ceased. Julian H. is married and is conducting a shoe store in Brooklyn, New York. John M., a graduate of the Indiana Normal School at Val¬ paraiso, became a teacher at the age of sixteen years and followed that profession until twentyfive years of age, during which time he was prin¬ cipal of the Eugene, Oregon, high school ; he is now a successful attorney and is married and has three sons. William M. R., the youngest of the family, resides in Westville, Indiana, where he is engaged in the livery business ; he married

Mrs. Addie (Carpenter) Sales, and they have one child, Azariah, named for his grandfather. Wil¬ liam M. R. Williams is a barber by occupation. Mrs. Williams died on the 16th of January, 1887, and Mr. Williams was afterward married to Mrs. Rebecca Vinnedge, who has also passed away.

In public affairs Mr. Williams has been quite prominent. He served for twenty years as justice of the peace and for twenty-four years as notary public. He has gained considerable knowledge of law, and while presiding over the justice court his decisions were characterized by the most strict impartiality. He owns a good home in the vil¬ lage of Westville, and has property not only in Indiana, but also in other states. In politics he was first a Whig, and cast his presidential vote for General Scott on attaining his majority. He then supported the Whig candidates until the Republican party sprung into existence, since which time he has been one of its stalwart advo¬ cates. He has frequently been a delegate to the county conventions, and is deeply interested in the success of the principles in which he firmly believes. In addition to the other positions he has held, he has served as township trustee for one term and as township assessor for two terms. Fraternally he has been a Mason for fifty years, belonging to the lodge at Westville, Indiana, and for twenty-five years was connected with the Odd Fellows' society in Westville. In 1864 he was a delegate to the grand lodge of Odd Fellows at Indianapolis, and was named as one of the ad¬ ministrators of the estate of Daniel West, who left by his will funds to erect the Odd Fellows hall at Westville, Indiana, and also the Methodist church there. On other occasions Mr. Williams has been called upon to act as administrator of estates, and this shows that the people repose in him the utmost confidence and that he is well worthy of their trust. His life has been honor¬ able and upright, and he certainly deserves men¬ tion in this volume, for few residents of LaPorte county have so long resided within its borders and none have been more active and influential in public affairs.

HON. EMMET H. SCOTT. Through the greater part of his active and honor¬ able business career Emmet H. Scott has been connected with the lumber trade and kindred industries growing out of the utilization of the great forests of the country for the purposes of mankind. He has been a promoter of a number of business concerns of prominence and farreaching effect leading to the expansion of trade interests and advancing general as well as indi¬ vidual prosperity. Realizing that failure or suc¬ cess depends not upon environment, but upon the Inherent powers of the individual, Emmet H. Scott has so directed his labors that he seems to have realized at every point of his progress the possibilities for accomplishment at that point and he is to-day a man of means.

Mr. Scott was born in Broome county. New York, in 1842, a son of Wiley H. and Aseneth (Locke) Scott. His father was born in Otsego county, New York, and became one of the early settlers in the town of Nineveh on the Susque¬ hanna, where he carried on agricultural pursuits, becoming a prosperous farmer. His death oc¬ curred in the year 1872. His wife was bom in the Empire state and came of a family claiming an interesting Revolutionary ancestry. Several members of the Locke family had already joined the patriotic army as soldiers under Washington when, the colonists being sorely oppressed and in great need of others to enlist, a younger member of the Locke family was singled out for im¬ mediate urgent duty, and in order to get him ready in time the women of the household sheared a sheep, carded and spun the wool and made a pair of trousers for him all within twenty-four hours.

Emmet H. Scott was reared upon his father's farm. He acquired his preliminary education in the schools of his native town and continued his studies in Blakeslee's Academy, a select school at Harpersville, New York. He then taught school for one winter, and in February, 1863, came to the west, where he obtained a position in the joint express office of the Adams & American Express companies at Centralia, Illinois. He continued in that situation until October of the same year, when on account of his health he returned to New York and there secured employment in the construction department of the Albany and Sus¬ quehanna Railroad, in which he remained until February, 1867, when he came to LaPorte, Indi¬ ana, to accept the position of superintendent of both the construction and operating departments of the Chicago, Cincinnati & Louisville Railroad Company, building a line from LaPorte to Peru, Indiana. At the time of his arrival the road was in operation from LaPorte to Plymouth in Mar¬ shall county. Mr. Scott displayed considerable skill as a railroad builder, and under his manage¬ ment the road in question, which had been im¬ perfectly constructed and much worn, was re¬ built between LaPorte and Plymouth, and he also bad charge of the construction of the ex¬ tension of the road from Plymouth to Peru. In

At that place Mr. Scott entered upon what has been the most important work of his life, the lum¬ ber manufacturing business. The development of the lumber industry was becoming a most im¬ portant work in Michigan, and it was here that Mr. Scott laid the foundation for the prosperity which has since attended his efforts. In Novem¬ ber, 1876, he returned with his family to La Porte and acquired an interest in the wheel factory then being controlled by William Niles. The style of the firm was changed to Niles & Scott, and in 1881 the Niles & Scott Company was in¬ corporated to manufacture wheels for implements and vehicles, Mr. Scott becoming the vice presi¬ dent and general manager. He and Mr. Niles remained in active control of the industry until June, 1902, when they sold their interests entirely to another corporation, but the excellent reputa¬ tion which had been won by them through long years of honorable manufacturing was considered such a valuable asset that the new company re¬ tained the old name, and the business is still con¬ ducted under the style of the Niles & Scott Com¬ pany. This is one of the best known of the im¬ portant industries of LaPorte and has been an important element in gaining to the city its promi¬ nent position as a manufacturing center.

Mr. Scott's connection with the lumber busi¬ ness continued until 1887, for he retained large interests in Michigan even after he returned to LaPorte. In 1894 he was the promoter and began the development of the town of Munising, on Lake Superior, in Alger county, in the northern peninsula of Michigan. He bought the site of the town and organized a railroad company which built a line from Munising to Little Lake, now part of the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad. This was known as the Munising Railway Com¬ pany, and Mr. Scott had charge of the construc¬ tion and operation of the road. It was through his superior enterprise, laudable ambition, capable management and influence that important indus¬ tries were established at Munising, including a large tannery, three lumber mills, shingle mills and other industrial and commercial enterprises. His operations in the town have resulted in great and rapid development there, on account of which Alger county in the decade between 1890 and 1900 had the largest growth in population in its history^, and the per cent of increase was greater than in any other county in that state. Mr. Scott's connection with the Chicago, Cincinnati & Louis¬ ville Railroad Company was resumed for a time after his return to LaPorte in 1876, he being called upon the road in connection with the re¬ ceivership, foreclosure and sale of that road, which is now a part of the Lake Erie & Western system. His operations at Munising did not make any change in his residence, for he has maintained his home continuously in LaPorte since 1876.

A man capable of instituting and controlling gigantic enterprise ha.$ a breadth of nature and a scope of resources that permits him to become an active factor not only in business circles, but in other lines affecting the general interests of the state. Mr. Scott is a most public-spirited and progressive citizen, and aside from his business interests has done much for the development, improvement and progress of LaPorte. For five years he served as mayor of the city, entering upon the duties of the office in May, 1889, and retiring from the position in September, 1894. He was one of the most efficient executives the city has ever had, for he managed its affairs as he does his business interests, with system, dispatch and untiring devotion to the general good. His alle¬ giance is given to the Democracy. He is a man of broad and liberal views, and to his own efforts may be attributed the splendid success which has crowned his life work.

Mr. Scott was united in marriage to Miss Mary R. Niles, the wedding being celebrated in LaPorte in 1870. She was born on the same block of ground on which the Scott residence now stands. The history of the Niles family is a distinguished one, and is given in connection with the sketch of William Niles, a brother of Mrs. Scott, on another page of this volume. To Mr, and Mrs. Scott were bom two children who are now living, a son and daughter, Emmet and Fannie. They had the misfortune to lose four daughters by death in early life, named Mary, Margaret, Sarah and Katharina.

OTIS KING, an honored veteran of the Civil war and one of the leading farmers of Clinton township, his home being on section 19, is a na¬ tive of LaPorte county, his birth having occurred in Michigan City on the 17th of January, 1848. His father, Otis King, Sr., who was a tanner by occupation, was born in Enfield, Connecticut. Jan¬ uary 14, 1811, and was married in New York city on the 5th of June, 1833, to Miss Catharine R. Clements, who was born in Springfield, Massa¬ chusetts, June to, 1810. They became the par¬ ents of four children, namely : Emeline, who was born August 25, 1834, and died February 15, 1845 i Belinda, who was born November 3, 1838, and died December 17, 1872; Wilhelmina, bom March 27, 1843 J Otis, who is the youngest of the family.

Mr. King passed his boyhood and youth in the county, attending school here. He has made farming his principal occupation throughout life, and since 1878 has owned and operated his pres¬ ent farm on section 19, Clinton township. The well tilled fields and neat and thrifty appearance of the place indicate his careful supervision and show that he thoroughly understands the vocation which he follows. During the dark days of the rebellion he enlisted, May 10, 1864, when only sixteen years of age, in the one hundred days' service, becoming a member of the One Hundred and Thirty-eighth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, with which he served until his term of enlistment expired in September, 1864.

On the 2 1st of April, 1875, Mr. King married Miss Effie J. Hansford, who was bom in Porter county, Indiana, October 15, 1852, and is a daughter of John and Hannah (Dillingham) Hansford, a farmer living near Valparaiso in that county, and the wedding ceremony was per¬ formed upon his fatm. Twelve children blessed this union, their names and dates of birth being as follows: Loubelle W., February 11, 1876; Harriet B., February 27, 1878; Effie J., May 21, 1879; Abigail H., August 30, 1880; Frank, June

24, 1882; Ralph W., February 4, 1884; Loren O., July 5, 1885 ; Marjory A., February 9, 1887 ; Elsie W., March 9, 18 88; John N., October 27, 1890; Hardy J., November 2, 1891; and CathT arine R., June 10, 1894. Loubelle W. is now the wife of Bert Cites, a farmer of Clinton township ; Effie J., is the wife of Harry Robe, a machinist of Indiana Harbor; Abigail H. died January 7, 1883, and Frank died January 6, 1883, and they are buried in the same grave ; and the others are still at home with their parents.

Mr. King is independent in politics, voting for the men whom he thinks best qualified for office, regardless of party ties, and he gives his support to all measures which he believes calcu¬ lated to advance the interests of his community along social, moral and material lines.

THEODORE HUPP. Among the early set¬ tlers and representative farmers of LaPorte county is numbered Theodore Hupp, who is now living on section 35, Union township. He was born in Pleasant township, this county, October

Isaac Hupp, was a native of Virginia and was reared and married there, the lady of his choice being Eliza Snyder, who was also born in the Old Dominion. On leaving that state they came di¬ rect to LaPorte county, Indiana, arriving some¬ time in the thirties. Their first home was near Westville, and afterward Mr. Isaac Hupp owned land near Valparaiso. Subsequently he located in Pleasant township and then in Union town¬ ship, where he died at the age of about sixtythree years. Mrs. Eliza Hupp passed away in Arkansas City, Kansas, while living with her daughter, being then eighty-six years of age. -They were both consistent members of the Meth¬ odist Episcopal church, and Mr. Isaac Hupp was a Democrat in his political affiliations. He was ever honest and upright, was fair and just in his relations with his fellow men and left to his fam¬ ily an example well worthy of emulation. To him and his wife were born five sons and three daughters, and with the exception of the eldest, who died when but three years old, all are still living.

Theodore Hupp is the third child and second son of this family. He was reared in LaPorte county in the usual manner of farmer lads, work¬ ing in the fields during the summer months and attending the district schools in the winter season. He assisted in the labors of the home farm until the time of his marriage, which occurred in 1873, the lady of his choice being Miss Mary Belle Galbreth, a daughter of John and Lydia (Love) Galbreth, who were early settlers of LaPorte. Mrs. Hupp was born in Galena township, LaPorte county, and is the second daughter in a family of two brothers and three sisters. Her education was acquired in the district schools in her home town and the city schools of LaPorte, and for several years she was a successful teacher of this county. A cultured lady of natural refinement, she has many friends in the community and ex¬ erts a strong influence in social life. At the time of their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Hupp lo¬ cated on their present home, and as the years passed four sons were added to the household: Fred, who married Minnie Melson, by whom he has one daughter, Morene; Earl, who is a clerk in the A. P. Andrews Bank of LaPorte; Burr, who is the shipping clerk at Swift's Soap Fac¬ tory, Chicago; Ora, who died at the age of two months. Fred was a graduate of the LaPorte high school in the class of 1893, and was a teacher for three years in the county. Earl is a student of the LaPorte high school. Burr graduated in the class of 1897. Mr. and Mrs. Hupp and chil-

Mr. Hupp gives his time and energies to gen¬ eral farming and stock-raising, and is one of the substantial citizens of the county. He owns six hundred acres of well improved land which he is now operating with the aid of his son Fred. In his farming methods he is progressive and enter¬ prising, quick to adopt all new methods which he believes will prove of practical benefit in the fann work. He votes with the Democracy, and is one of the active members of the party. An early citizen of the county, he is well known, and there has been in his life record many elements to commend him to the confidence, good will and respect of all with whom he has been associated.

JON NELSON KELLY is one of the younger representatives of the medical fraternity in LaPorte county and has qualified himself so carefully for his chosen life work that he occupies to-day a very enviable position among his profes¬ sional brethren in the northwestern part of In¬ diana. He is a close, earnest and discriminating student, and his labors have been attended with a degree of success that might well be envied by an older practitioner.

A native son of Indiana, he was bom on the 19th of April, 1876, and is the third in a family of ten children, seven sons and three daughters, whose parents were John H. and Lucy J. (Clark) Kelly. Six of the children are yet living. The father was a native of Glasgow, Scotland, born on the 4th of March, 1848, and was but an infant when brought by his parents to America. The family home was established in Pennsylvania, but after a year they removed to North Judson, Indiana, where the grandfather was employed by the Great Western Railroad Company. John Kelly was apprenticed when but thirteen years of age to learn the trade of a tinner. He afterward purchased his employer's interest and has been in the hardware and implement business since that time, a prosperous and enterprising merchant of Winamac, Indiana. Politically he is an ardent Democrat, and his fellow townsmen, recognizing his worth and ability, called him to public office in 1884 by electing him county clerk of Pulaski county, in which capacity he served until 1892. He has also served as president of the town board on various occasions, has represented his party as a delegate to county and state conventions, and has taken a very active and helpful part in advancing its interests. Fraternally he is conconnected with the Royal Arcanum. His wife is a native of Connecticut, born June 14, 1852, and is a daughter of Nelson and Mary Ann Clark. She was educated in the common schools and was reared in the Presbyterian faith, of which she has always been an adherent. Mr. and Mrs. John H. Kelly make their home in the city of Wina¬ mac, Indiana, and are leading and influential residents of that place. Of their children six are yet living. The eldest son, William H., is a graduate of the Indiana University of the class of 1895 and at one time was principal of the Bluffton high school, while at the present time he is superintendent of the city schools at Winamac. All of their children are residents of Indiana, and C. A. Kelly is now a senior in the mechanical engineering department of Purdue University.

Dr. Kelly was reared in Winamac, his native town, and his primary education was obtained in the public schools, in which he continued as a student until he had completed the high school course. When but eight years of age he began to learn the typesetter's trade, and at the age of ten years was earning a salary in connection with one of the county newspapers, the Winamac Re¬ publican. He was thus connected with the news¬ paper business at Winamac and at Logansport, Indiana, for about ten years. However, during that time he attended school to some extent, and when eighteen years of age determined to make the practice of medicine his life work. To this end he entered the Medical College of Ohio at Cincinnati in the fall of 1895, spending one year in that institution, after which he became a stu¬ dent in the Central College of Physicians and Surgeons at Indianapolis. There he was grad¬ uated in the class of 1898. About this time the country became engaged in war with Spain, and Dr. Kelly enlisted as a private in the hospital corps in July, 1898. He reported for duty at Camp Alger, was thence sent to Fort Meyer, where he remained for six months as acting hos¬ pital steward, and about three weeks prior to the expiration of his term of enlistment was sent on board the transport Grant and was there for about a month, when he was honorably discharged, on the 6th of January, 1899.

Dr. Kelly at once returned to his home and entered upon his professional career as a physi¬ cian and surgeon at Westville, Indiana, opening his office on the 13th of February, 1899. Here he has since been located, and his large practice is indicative of his skill and thorough under¬ standing of the principles of the medical science.

ter of Edward and Anna M. (Hosmer) Hixon. She was educated in the high school of Westville, Indiana. The Doctor and his wife now occupy a comfortable home at the corner of Short and Ridge streets. Fraternally he is connected with Westville Tent No. 31, K. O. T. M., of which he is examining physician, and he belongs to West¬ ville Lodge No. 286, K. P. He is also a member of Westville Lodge No. 192, F.& A. M. ; LaPorte Chapter No. 40, R. A. M. ; LaPorte Council No. 36, R. & S. M., and he and his wife are members of the Eastern Star No. 133, at Westville. He is likewise connected with Rathbone Sisters, No. 274. While he is prominent in social circles, he gives his attention largely to his practice, letting nothing interfere with his duties as a member of the medical fraternity. He belongs to the Porter County Medical Society and to the State Medical Society of Indiana. In the sick-room his cheery manner makes him very welcome, and his profes¬ sional aid has been of marked value in restoring health to his many patients.

ROMAN GRUSE is the present proprietor and owner of the Hotel Wanatah, the indispen¬ sable and high-class hostelry of the town of Wan¬ atah, and which under his management has be¬ come popular and returned good profits, at the same time furnishing to the critical public com¬ forts and accommodations which cause strangers to entertain the most cordial feelings for the town. As the hotels are the standards by which a city is judged it is the happy fortune of Wanatah that it possesses such an up-to-date and genial landlord for its public house as Mr. Gruse.

Mr. Gruse was born in Germany, June 14, 1854, and remained in the old country for the first eighteen years of his life. He attended the Ger¬ man school until he was sixteen years old, and for about three years was in the grocery business in Czarnikan, Province of Posen. He came to America and Michigan City, Indiana, in 1873, and for the first five months worked in a lumber yard in the latter place. He came to Wanatah in the fall of the same year, and worked on the farm of William Coulter for a time and then for Mrs. Richmond. For a few years he clerked in the gen¬ eral store of Peter Fudenski in Wanatah, and dur¬ ing the year 1879 worked for the Monon Rail¬ road Company as gateman. From 1882 until 1891 he was engaged in the grocery business in Wanatah on his own account. In the latter year he bought the Hotel Wanatah, and fitted it up with modern conveniences and gave it excellent service, and for the past twelve years has con¬

February 1, 1880, Mr. Gruse was married to Miss Josephine Price, a native of LaPorte county and the daughter of George and Mary Price, early settlers of LaPorte county, where Josephine was reared and educated in the public schools of Cass township. Mr. and Mrs. Gruse were the parents of four daughters, Anna, Rosa, Frances and Lucy. His first wife died in 1898, and Mr. Gruse married for his present wife Mrs. Pauline Gross, the widow of Gottlieb Gross. She is a native of Germany, and was married before coming to this country. She has two sons and a daughter by her first marriage : Frank, Bertha and L. J. Gross, the last named a grocer in Wanatah. Mr. Gruse, as a resident of Wanatah and vicinity for thirty years, has taken his place among the leading men of the town, and takes an active part in public affairs. He affiliates with the Democratic party, and is a member of the Catholic church, being highly esteemed in all the relations of a busy and useful life.

ANDREW C. JOHNSON has been an hon¬ ored and worthy citizen of LaPorte county for thirty-four years. He was born in Jorrkoping, Sweden, and is the eldest of eight children, four sons and four daughters, whose parents were Johannas and Johanna (Nelson) Johnson. All the children are yet living, and five are residents of America. One is in Oakland, California, and four reside in New Durham township, LaPorte county.

Mr. Johnson was educated in his native land, and learned the trade of carpenter and joiner, but also followed the occupation of farming. In the spring of 1869 he took passage on a westwardbound steamer that weighed anchor at Gothen¬ burg for New York. Severe weather was en¬ countered on the voyage between Sweden and England, but at the end of sixteen days Mr. Johnson reached the American port, and on the 3d of June arrived in LaPorte county. When he landed in the United States he did not possess a ten-dollar bill. He started for Chicago, but by accident stopped in LaPorte county, where he found himself among a strange people, whose language and customs were unfamiliar to him. He at once .began work in New Durham town¬ ship, and thus earned his first money in America. It was necessary for him to master the English tongue, which he readily did, and as the years have advanced he has improved his business op-

Mr. Johnson became acquainted with Miss Jane B. Cathcart, a representative of a prominent and influential family of LaPorte county, and they were married January 4, 1883. She was bom April 23, 1838, on the old homestead where she now resides. Her father, Charles William Cath¬ cart, secured part of this land from the govern¬ ment, and the parchment deed to the same bears the signature of Martin Van Buren, then presi¬ dent of the United States. He went all the way to Washington for the purpose of interviewing the president, Andrew Jackson, in regard to the sale of lands. Speculators were attempting to take the improved lands by locating Indian floats upon them. Although Mr. Cathcart was in¬ formed that the president was in bed he demanded of the servant that he be admitted because of the pressing nature of the business. When the word was brought to the president he replied that the caller should be admitted, and when the matter was stated President Jackson, with characteristic brevity, said, "Cathcart, put this matter in tangible form, and I will settle it in twenty minutes." Thus the errand was successfully accomplished.

Mr. Cathcart was born at Funchal, on the island of Madeira, on the 24th of July, 1809, and died on the 22d of August, 1888. He spent the years of his early life on his native island, his father, James Leander Cathcart, being United States consul there at the time. He was of Scotch lineage, and his people were of the Pres¬ byterian faith. He was six years of age when he first saw the stars and stripes floating over Amer¬ ica. The father was taken as a prisoner to the Barbary states, and was incarcerated in Algiers for eleven years, but because of useful service which he rendered the dey of Algiers he was finally released, and, it is said, was the only prisoner of that country who ever earned his freedom. His indomitable spirit of patriotism enabled him to rise from abject slavery to become Christian clerk of the dey, being the medium to approach the dey when the ambassadors could not gain an audience. He was sent by the dey to the United States with dispatches, but had to pay his own expenses.

Mr. Cathcart, the father of Mrs. Johnson, was near Old Point Comfort, Virginia, on board a steamer, when he first saw the American flag, and it was in this vicinity that Francis S. Key wrote the national anthem, "The Star Spangled Banner." Because of his father's serving as United States consul at different places Mr. Cath¬ cart received his education in various schools and under varying circumstances. He was a man of remarkable penetration of thought, however, of keen discrimination, and, although he never at¬ tended school one day after he was twelve years old, gained a broad knowledge through experi¬ ence, reading and observation. He sailed on the high seas before the mast between the ages of eighteen and twenty-one, and was also a ship carpenter, for which double duty he received four¬ teen dollars a month. In 1831 he started westward, and was engaged in filing bonds for the commis¬ sioners of the government land office. John Moore of this office persuaded him to come to northwest¬ ern Indiana, and inthe spring of 1831 he arrived in LaPorte county, largely covering the distance between here and Washington on foot. He also carried a pack weighing forty pounds, consist¬ ing mostly of books. He settled upon land nine miles southwest of the city of LaPorte, then be¬ longing to the government, and did surveying for the government for some time. In 1835, when speculators were about to rob settlers of their claims by locating floats upon their improvements, he went to Washington and had the matter set¬ tled, as above, through his interview with Andrew Jackson. He took a very active part in befriend¬ ing the early settlers here and in securing the establishment of homes. From the Indians he pur¬ chased a tract of land, and had also bought property from the government, and Mrs. John¬ son now has in her possession some of the parch¬ ment deeds bearing the president's signature. One is dated September 2, 1839, and was signed by Martin Van Buren, while another, of the date of April 20, 1849, was signed by Zachary Taylor.

Mr. Cathcart was elected to almost every office within the gift of the people of his county and district, and refused the nomination for governor. He served as representative in the state legisla¬ ture and also in Congress, and was senator from Indiana at one time, following the death of Sena¬ tor James Whitcomb. He was for two terms a representative at Washington, and he exerted strong influence in our national as well as in state legislation. He foresaw the trouble from slavery, and used to tell Davis (and others), when they boasted of their superiority, that the northern men were not cowards, but slow to anger, but when roused would fight, and "fight like hell, too." In ante-bellum days he was a free-trade Demo¬ crat, very ardent in his support of its principles, but when Fort Sumter was fired upon he upheld the country's honor, regardless of partisan lines.

and used his influence to support thei Union cause. He canvassed the district thoroughly in the interest of his country, and four soldiers went from the Cathcart home to the scene of battle, while Mrs. Johnson herself labored in connection with the sanitary commission, and did much good service for the boys in blue.

Mr. Cathcart also served as one of the presi¬ dential electors from the state of Indiana. In the pioneer epoch of the county he had much to do with the Indians, to whom he was always friendly. During the Black Hawk war he went to old Fort Dearborn with supplies, such as arms, ammuni¬ tion and food, and as he proceeded on his way he found signs that indicated that the children had been brained to death on the door-posts of the houses. This was in 1832, when there was little of Chicago save the old Fort Dearborn. Mr. Cathcart's ideas concerning religious belief were in accord with those of Thomas Payne and Robert Ingersoll. In 1856 he began the investi¬ gation of spiritualism, and though at first he called it a humbug he ultimately became one of its strong advocates, and died in that faith.

His wife, who bore the maiden name of Jose¬ phine Lemon, and was born in Charleston, Indi¬ ana, August 2, 1819, and died in Wheeling, Missouri, November 5, 1879, was a lady of strong personality, amiable disposition and kindly na¬ ture. Her father, Major John M. Lemon, was receiver in the United States land office at La- Porte in an early day. He was a soldier in the Black Hawk war of 1832, and also saw the famous Indian chief Tecumseh shot at if not killed by R. M. Johnson. He and his wife were reared in Kentucky, of Scotch lineage, whence they came to Indiana ere the admission of the state into the Union. Among the ancestors were those who fought for independence in the Revolu¬ tionary war, so that Mrs. Johnson is entitled to membership in the Daughters of the American Revolution. The parents of Mrs. Cathcart were interred in Pine Lake cemetery in LaPorte, in that portion known as Poet's Hill. Mrs. Cath¬ cart was also a believer in spiritualism.

Mrs. Johnson has been an extensive reader and deep thinker, and in her home has one of the best private libraries of the county, containing many choice and standard works of literature as well as scientific volumes. Her father was also a student, and left many of his books to his heirs. She is a member of the Emerson Class at La¬ Porte, also a life member of the Ladies Home Library Association of Westville. She is an ad¬ vocate of spiritualism and a student of evolution, and a strong believer in the Darwinian theory. In her father's family were six children, of whom she is the only daughter, and the eldest child. She has one brother now living, Henry M., who is living retired in LaPorte.

Mr. and Mrs. Johnson have traveled quite ex¬ tensively, and thus h^ve gained valuable knowl¬ edge concerning America and . her people. In 1898-9 they took a long trip through old Mexico, and on the Pacific slope visited California and Oregon. They covered ten thousand miles, and brought back many interesting souvenirs of the journey. They have also visited the Bahama Islands and Florida, and have a very large col¬ lection of shells, specimens of the fauna of the different countries visited, together with a valu¬ able collection of axes, arrow points and other Indians relics. Many beautiful paintings and en¬ gravings adorn the walls of their home and add to its attractiveness. Among the souvenirs is an old timepiece which was carried by General Washington's aide de camp, a Mr. Woodside, who was an ancestor of Mrs. Johnson in the paternal line.

Mr. and Mrs. Johnson reside in the old Cath¬ cart homestead, the house having been erected by Mr. Cathcart before he thought of marriage. It is situated about two miles east of Westville, and is known as Cathcart's Grove. They have two hundred and seventy-six acres of highly im-. proved land, and other property* makes their possessions aggregate four hundred and sixty-six acres. Mr. Johnson is a farmer who is very methodical and tasty, as the beautiful farm testi¬ fies. He is a landscape gardener, as it were, and the large spacious lawns, and neatly kept premises are objects of admiration to the passer-by. In the county they are very widely known, being held in the highest esteem by all, and the circle of their is almost co-extensive with the circle of their ac¬ quaintances, while the hospitality of the house¬ hold renders it one of the most attractive homes of LaPorte county.

BROOK TRAVIS, a prominent horse dealer and one of the old settlers of Pleasant township, was bom in Union township, LaPorte county, on the 9th day of April, 1843. His father, Allen Travis, was a native of Schoharie county, New York, and was reared, educated and married there. He was a son of John Travis, who fol¬ lowed Allen Travis to LaPorte county and here spent his remaining days, dying in Union town¬ ship. It was in 1842 that Allen Travis left the Empire state and came to Indiana, establishing his home in Union township, LaPorte county, where he improved a farm, upon which he re¬ mained throughout the rest of his days. He was a pioneer settler and aided in reclaiming the re¬ gion for the purposes of civilization. In his farm work he prospered, becoming the owner of richly cultivated fields as the result of his own labors. He wedded Miss Keziah Waxham, a native of England, who came with her parents to America in her girlhood days. She was reared in New York, and to her husband she proved a faithful companion and helpmate on life's journey, al¬ though she died at a comparatively early age, passing away in Union township, LaPorte county, in her thirty-seventh year, while Mr. John Travis died on the old homestead in 1863. They were consistent members of the Methodist Episcopal church. In the family were three sons that grew to manhood, all born in Union township, namely: E. M., who now resides in this township ; Jerome, a resident of Kansas ; and Brook, who is the second in order of birth.

Upon the old family homestead Brook Travis was reared and early became familiar with farm work, while in the public schools he obtained his education. He gave his father the benefit of his assistance up to the time he attained his majority. In March, 1863, he sought a companion and help¬ mate for life's journey, and was married to Miss Frances Vandewalker, a native of Indiana, born in Madison, and a daughter of John Vande¬ walker, who came to LaPorte county with his family during her infancy. Mrs. Travis was therefore reared on the old family homestead in Pleasant township.

Immediately after his marriage Mr. Travis took his bride to a farm in Pleasant township, where he now resides and engages in general agricultural pursuits and also in raising horses and other stock. He has made a specialty of the breeding of horses, and his place is now called the Stillwell Stock Farm. It is one of the best in the county, and Mr. Travis has won an en¬ viable reputation as the owner of fine horses, having been extensively engaged in the business since 1885. He not only breeds, but also trains and breaks horses, and has placed upon the mar¬ ket many fine animals. He has upon his farm a half-mile track used for training purposes, while he breaks his horses to trotting or pacing, as the desire may be. He has now about twenty-five head of well bred trotters sired by Count Louis No. 8781. The farm comprises, two hundred and forty acres of rich land, but this he largely rents. In his business dealings he has prospered,

To Mr. and Mrs. Travis have been born four sons and a daughter: C. A., who is a resident of Pleasant township; William, who follows farming in Union township ; James E., a railroad employe; Gerald, who is engaged in the raising of fine horses ; and Anna Grace, who is at home.

Mr. Travis is a staunch Republican and has been honored with several local positions, having served as trustee, assessor and supervi¬ sor. He is well known throughout the county where he has always made his home, and now en¬ joys the high esteem of all who know him.

CARL ZIPPEL. Among the sturdy, per¬ severing and honorable sons of Germany who have become identified with the interests of the United States is to be mentioned' Carl Zippel, who is numbered among the pioneer settlers and successful agriculturists of LaPorte county, his homestead being located in section 24, Cass township He was born in Germany on the 2d of March, 1841, and to its public schools he is in¬ debted for his educational training, attending school there until his fourteenth year. Prior to his removal to this country he learned the brickmaker's trade, continuing in that occupation until he bade adieu to his home in the fatherland to seek broader opportunities in the United States, this eventful period in his life occurring in the year 1872.

After arriving in New York he made his way to Boston, and finally took up his abode in LaPorte county, Indiana, in the town of Wanatah, and during a period of seven years was also a res¬ ident of Michigan City. In 1875 he purchased the farm where he now lives, on which was located an old log house. His first purchase consisted of but forty acres, but as the years have passed by and as time has rewarded his efforts he has been enabled to add thereto, and is now the owner of two hundred and sixteen acres, all of which he has placed under an excellent state of cultivation, and is there engaged in general farming and stock-raising.

In the year 1868, prior to his crossing the Atlantic to the new world, Mr. Zippel was united in marriage to Wilhelmina Kreger, a native daughter of Germany, and their union has been blessed with nine children, five of whom are now living: Augusta, the wife of Henry Bresecke, John, Herman, Charles and Otto. Of the four who are deceased, two passed away ere the re¬ moval of the family from Germany, and two died in Cass township, LaPorte county. Throughout the period of his residence in this locality Mr. Zippel has taken an active interest in public affairs, and politically he votes with the Republicans, be¬ ing an active worker in the ranks of the party. The family are members of the Evangelical church, and in this community they have won many warm friends.

WILLIAM B. BIDDLE, A. M. The pro¬ fession of the law, when clothed with its true dignity, purity and strength, must rank first among the callings of men, for law rules the universe. The work of the legal profession is to formulate, to harmonize, to regulate, to adjust, to administer those rules and principles that underlie and per¬ meate all government and society and control the varied relations of men. As thus viewed there attaches to the legal profession a nobleness that cannot but be reflected in the life of the true law¬ yer, who, rising to the responsibilities of the pro¬ fession, and honest in the pursuit of his purpose, embraces the richness of learning, the firmness of integrity and the purity of morals, together with the graces and general amenities of life. Of such a type Judge William B. Biddle is a representa¬ tive. For forty-six years he has practiced con¬ tinuously in LaPorte, where he is also known as one of the prominent and representative citizens.

William B. Biddle was born on a farm in Bourbon county, Kentucky, in 1830, the son of Richard and Catherine Elizabeth (Jones) Bid¬ dle, who were both natives of the same county, and representatives of old families there. In 1831 these parents moved to Putnam county, Indiana, where Richard Bid¬ dle bought government land. To subdue the forest and drain the wet land involved the labor of many years, but the work was accomplished, and the reward of his patience, fortitude and toil was a good farm, which became profitable when a market was found for its products. There for fifty years he and his wife made their home. She died in 1881, and he died at the age of eighty-five, in 1888. They reared a family of thirteen chil¬ dren/ of whom the subject of this sketch was the second. Six of their sons were volunteers in the Civil war, and another in tile war with Spain.

Judge Biddle obtained his preparatory educa¬ tion at home, under the instruction of his parents, with the aid of an occasional term in the district school until at the age of eighteen he entered the preparatory department of Asbury, now De Pauw, University, at Greencastle, Indiana, where he was graduated with the class of 1855 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts, and in 1858 received the de-, gree of Master of Arts in the same institution. At the completion of his college course he came to LaPorte, which has been his home for the sub¬ sequent forty-eight years. His first connection with professional circles here was as superin¬ tendent of public schools, and a little later he was for two or three years deputy county treasurer. All this time, however, he was industriously studying law, and in 1857 was admitted to the bar of LaPorte county. He was not long in winning public confidence and patronage, and for a long time he has maintained a prominent posi¬ tion in the ranks of the legal fraternity here. His preparation of cases is thorough and exhaustive, he grasps the strong points of law and fact, and his presentation of authorities and his deductions are cogent, forceful and convincing. In 1858 he was elected prosecuting attorney for the ninth judicial circuit, then comprising eight counties, upon the Republican ticket, serving for a term of two years. In 1888 he was a candidate of the same party for judge of the circuit composed of St. Joseph and LaPorte counties. He received more than the full strength of his party, but was defeated. In 1897 Governor Mount appointed him judge of the circuit court of this county, and he remained on the bench for about two years, during which time he made an excellent record and won the commendation of the bar and the general public. He has also served as city at¬ torney, and is now one of the oldest practicing lawyers and most honored representatives of the legal profession in northern Indiana.

In 1862 Judge Biddle enlisted at LaPorte for service in the Civil war. He recruited Com¬ pany I, Eighty-seventh Indiana Volunteers, and was made first lieutenant. As the captain never served with the company, Judge Biddle was its commander from its organization until May, 1864. His regiment became attached to the Fourteenth Army Corps and took part in the campaign that followed the retreat of General Bragg through Kentucky, Tennessee and on to Chickamauga, where it participated in that hotly contested batSe, and where Captain Biddle was severely wounded. Pie was incapacitated for field service for ninety days, but as soon as possible he rejoined his command, was promoted to the captaincy and de¬ tailed for duty on the staff of Major General Absalom Baird, then commanding the Third Division, Fourteenth Army Corps. In this capacity he took part in the Atlanta campaign, Sherman's march to the sea, and the expedition through the Carolinas. He was present when

Johnston's army surrendered to General Sherman near Raleigh, and after the conclusion of peace he went with his command to Washington, where he took part in the grand review of the army. In June, 1865, he was mustered out with his regi¬ ment, having been brevetted major of United States Volunteers for meritorious services. Judge Eiddle became a charter member of Patton Post, G. A. R., upon its organization in LaPorte, and is also a member of the Loyal Legion.

In i860 Judge Biddle was married in La¬ Porte to Miss Caroline V. Fravel, a daughter of Abraham Fravel, one of the prominent early set¬ tlers, having come to LaPorte county in 1835. This happy union lasted for thirty years, but in 1890 was broken by the death of Mrs. Biddle. Judge Biddle is prominent in the Masonic fratern¬ ity. He is regarded as one of the most distin¬ guished and honored citizens of LaPorte, and his upright character and sterling worth entitle him to this high position in the public esteem, and make him worthy of the warm friendship so uniformly accorded him throughout the county of his adop¬ tion.

T. B. WILSON, the well known and popular auctioneer, residing in Wanatah, and who has been connected with the business and farming in¬ terests of LaPorte county for many years, is a member of one of the oldest families which the county can claim. His grandfather, Jeremiah Wilson, was born in the highlands of Scotland, and came to Pennsylvania in the early days. He located at the famous town of Old Vincennes, Indiana, in 1813, when it was still the center of pioneer history in the great Northwest country. During this period of the war of 1812 Indiana was the battle ground between the British and In¬ dians and the Americans, and this old pioneer was one of those who shared the dangers of life on the very outskirts of civilization. He died in Vigo county, Indiana. His wife, Johanna (Moore) Wilson, came from England when seventeen years old.

Jeremiah Wilson, the son of this Indiana set¬ tler, was born in Pennsylvania in 1811. In 1829 he was one of the first men to make LaPorte county their permanent home and open it up for civilization. He was one of the founders of the county, was a captain in the militia, and a sol¬ dier under the great General Harrison of Tippe¬ canoe fame. He established a tanyard on the shores of Hudson lake, and was thus prominent in the industrial as well as civil and public life of the county. Some time in the early thirties he moved to Union Mills, and later took up his res¬ idence on the farm in Clinton township where T. B. Wilson was born. His last move was to Cass township, where he died in the seventy-sixth year of his life. His political belief was that of the Democratic party, and he was at one time deputy sheriff of the county and served as trustee of his township for many years. He was an active mem¬ ber of the Christian church, and was on the side of honor and right whether in religious matters or affairs of a secular nature.

Jeremiah Wilson married Abigail Wills, who was likewise an early settler of LaPorte county and a daughter of one of the best known of the county's early residents. She was born near Dayton, Ohio, and in 1829 came to this county with her father, John E. Wills, who settled in what is known as Boot Jack, in Wills township, which was named in his honor. Mr! Wills was a native of New York state. He was the owner of a large amount of LaPorte county land, and was con¬ cerned in the making of much of the county's early history. Mr. and Mrs. Jeremiah Wilson were the parents of fourteen children, of whom two sons are living.

Mr. T. B. Wilson was the eleventh child, and was born in what is now Clinton township, LaPorte county, July 12, 1844. His birthplace was a Tog cabin, which had no floor except the hard ground, contained a large fireplace, two win¬ dows and two doors, and was a typical pioneer residence of that time. All the school houses which he attended with the exception of one were also of logs. He remained at home until he was married, in 1864, and in that year located on a farm in Cass township, and was engaged in agri¬ cultural pursuits for many years. In 1890 he moved to Wanatah, and for three years rented his farm, after which he sold it. He has been in the auctioneer business for more than twenty years, and within late years has also engaged in insurance and real estate. Both in his private farming enterprises and in his semi-public career he has shown himself to be a man of much ability, thoroughly business-like and energetic in all his actions, and has prospered and won the esteem of his fellow citizens.

On December 4, 1864, Mr. Wilson married Miss Priscilla Brick, who was born in St. Joseph county, Indiana, July 14, 1842, and reared near South Bend. Her father, W. W. Brick, was one of the pioneers of St. Joseph county, one of the most prominent citizens in his day, and was the first justice of the peace in that county. Four children were bom to Mr. and Mrs. Wilson, as follows: Abigail J. is thfc wife of William Marks, a farmer of Cass township ; William J., unmarried and at home, graduated in the class of 1894, of the Wanatah high school, is a painter and decora¬ tor; Agnes P., wife of L. J. Gross, a grocer of Wanatah, graduated from the Wanatah high school, being only seventeen years of age at the time, was student and graduated at South Bend high school and she taught five years in LaPorte county; and Frank E., who married Ethel. E. Dolman, the daughter of Edward Dolman, the miller of Wanatah, graduated in the common school at the age of thirteen and graduated from the Wanatah high school at the age of sixteen, being one of the bright students in higher mathe¬ matics.

Mr. Wilson has cast his votes for Democratic candidates since coming of age, and has taken an active part in politics. He was at one time chair¬ man of the Democratic township committee, and has been elected to local offices. He is a member of the Knights of the Maccabees, and for many years was connected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He and his wife are members of the Christian church, and are highly esteemed in the township and home community.

KILLIAN A. BRANT. For almost forty years Mr. Brant has been a resident of LaPorte county, and is now one of the well known agri¬ culturists of New Durham township, where he owns and operates one hundred and twenty-five acres of land. He was bom in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, October 28, 1837, is the fifth in a family of eight children, three sons and five daughters, both to Henry and Margaret (Shannon) Brant, but only three are now living. He has twin sisters, Susannah C. and Martha Jane. The former is the widow of J. S. Buell, of Greensburg, Pennsylvania, and the latter is the wife of James Thompson, of Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania. The father was married twice, his first union being with Mrs. Katie Criley, and to that marriage eight children were bom, of whom two still survive and are residents of Penn¬ sylvania. Henry Brant, a native of the Keystone state, was born about 1796 and was of German parentage. His entire life was spent in Pennsyl¬ vania, and in his business career he was fairly successful. He and his wife were members of the New School Presbyterian church.

were limited to three months' attendance in the winter season, and the school-house was built of logs. The seats were benches, and consisted of nothing save a bench, there being nothing to rest the back against. The writing desk was made by laying a board upon some wooden pins driven into the wall, and goosequill pens were then in use. The master was rather severe in his measures of discipline, seeming to believe in the old axiom "spare the rod and spoil the child."

Mr. Brant started out to earn his own living when but thirteen years of age. In the summer months he had assisted his father in the work of caring for the fields and the stock, and his youth was thus largely a period of toil. For fifteen years after leaving home he worked as a laborer in the woods, receiving only eight dollars per month for his services. As a companion and and help¬ mate for life's journey he chose Miss Malinda Logan, and they were married August 23, i860. She was bom in Somerset county, Pennsylvania, June 1, 1835, a daughter of William and Cath¬ erine (Putnam) Logan, in whose family were eight children, six yet living. Of these, two are residents of Pennsylvania, and one sister is in Lincoln, Nebraska, while the others are in In¬ diana. Their father was reared in Philadelphia and became a mechanic. He lived to the advanced age of one hundred and two years, and died in the faith of the Methodist Episcopal church, of which he and his wife were long members.

Mrs. Brant was educated in the common schools, and has been an able assistant to her hus¬ band since they started out on life's journey to¬ gether, more than forty-three years ago. They first rented land in LaPorte county, and seven years had passed before they were able to pur¬ chase a farm. At length, however, with the money they had acquired through their industry and economy, Mr. Brant purchased the one hun¬ dred acres of land on which he now resides, and has since made excellent improvements on the property. About one hundred acres is under cul¬ tivation, while the remaining twenty-five acres is devoted to pasturage purposes, for he is engaged in the raising of stock as well as of grain.

To Mr. and Mrs. Brant have been bom four children, two sons and two daughters, but two have passed away. The living are Frank A. and Stella. The former attended the common schools and was graduated from the high school of Westville, completing the course at the age of fifteen - the youngest pupil to be graduated in Westville. He is now a resident of California. Stella is the wife of William C. Anderson, who is a motorman

Mr. Brant is a strong advocate of the prin¬ ciples of Jacksonian Democracy, and has been a delegate to the county conventions at various times, but has never consented to become a can¬ didate for office, preferring to devote his time and energies to his business affairs, in which he has met with creditable success. Fraternally he is connected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, at Westville, and his wife is a member of the Methodist church.

Mr. and Mrs. Brant have an old parchment deed signed by President Van Buren and exe¬ cuted March 20, 1837, and is a valuable souvenir in their home.

DE ALTON H. BOWELL, a well known and popular druggist of Rolling Prairie, Indiana, has been a life-long resident of LaPorte county, his birth having occurred in Kankakee township, August 13, 1856. His father, Absalom Carr Bowell, was born in Clark county, this state, De¬ cember 1, 1821, and in the spring of 1834 came to LaPorte county with his parents, John and Eliza¬ beth (Carr) Bowell, who located in Wills town¬ ship, where the Bowell family cemetery is now situated. John Bowell and Elisha Carr took up land from the government, a part of which was in Fulton county, the remainder being in Wills and Galena townships, this county. John Bowell lo¬ cated in Wills township, and to the improvement and cultivation of his farm devoted his attention until called to his final rest.

Absalom C. Bowell grew to manhood upon the old home place in Wills township and later removed to Kankakee township, locating a mile and a half southwest of Rolling Prairie, where he bought a farm and improved it. He also pur¬ chased property in Galena township, and had one hundred and thirty acres of land in Kankakee on the north line of the township and one hundred acres where he first settled. On the 2d of March, 1851, he married Miss Sarah Ann Ireland, a na¬ tive of Preble county, Ohio, born November 30, 1825. About 1831 she removed with her parents to Michigan, settling on the banks of Diamond lake, but about a year later removed to Pleasant Valley in the northern part of St. Joseph county, Indiana. She died August 27, 1893, leaving three sons, namely: James Edwin, who was born in Kankakee township, December 15, 1851, and is now a retired farmer living in the city of La¬ Porte; Francis Marion, who was born August 4,

1853, and is a prominent farmer occupying the old homestead in Kankakee township ; and De Alton. After his marriage the father located on his farm in Kankakee township, where he made his home until 1893, when he removed to Galena township, dying there on the 29th of August, 1895. He was a faithful and consistent member of the Christian church, in which he served as deacon for a number of years, and al¬ ways took an active part in its work. Politically he was a life-long Democrat. As one of the pio¬ neers and honored citizens of the county his death was deeply mourned, and he is deserving of prom¬ inent mention in the history of this section of the state.

During his boyhood De Alton H. Bowell at¬ tended the district schools of Kankakee township, and remained with his parents until reaching man's estate. On leaving home in 1877, he began clerking in a drug store in Rolling Prairie, and has since devoted his attention principally to that business, though for three years he carried* on a farm of eighty acres which he owns in Kankakee township. On the 27th of January* 1896, he pur¬ chased the drug store of P. D. Sharpless in Roll¬ ing Prairie, and still carries on the business with marked success, having built up an excellent trade. He has a number of patent medicines of his own manufacture besides those usually found in the drug stores of this country.

Mr. Bowell was married February 3, 1892, to Miss Sarah Viola Melson, a daughter of Joseph and Margaret (McCabe) Melson. She was born near Moores Hill in Dearborn county, Indiana, January 10, 1861, but was principally reared in Jennings county, this state. Mr. and Mrs. Bowell have two sons : Roy Melson, who was born on the farm in Kankakee township, July 28, 1893; and Clarence De Alton, bom in Rolling Prairie, March 17, 1896.

Since attaining his majority Mr. Bowell has affiliated with the Democracy and has taken quite an active interest in political affairs. In 1890 he was the candidate of his party for county re¬ corder, but was defeated in the convention, George F. Swan receiving the nomination. So¬ cially he is a member of Rolling Prairie Lodge, No. 679, I. O. O. F., in which he has filled all the chairs, and is a member of the grand lodge of the same order. In 1883 he joined the Christian church, and has since taken an active part in its work, serving as clerk for several years. His life has ever been in harmony with his pro¬ fessions, and he merits and receives the confi¬ dence and esteem of his fellow citizens. Those who have known him from boyhood are numbered among his warmest friends, and no man in his community is held in higher regard than De Alton H. Bowell.

MINER NESBITT. Although a number of years have passed since Miner Nesbitt was called to his final rest, he is yet remembered . by many who enjoyed his friendship and who still cherish pleasant recollections of his personality and worth. He was bom at Plymouth, Luzerne county, Pennsylvania, on the 28th of December, 1810. His father, Abram Nesbitt, was of Scotch- Irish descent and it is supposed that his birth oc¬ curred in Connecticut. His mother bore the maiden name of Bethiah Wheeler, and Miner Nesbitt was the youngest of their ten children.

His youth was spent in his parents' home, and his early education was supplemented by a course of study in the academy at Plymouth, Pennsyl¬ vania. When he had put aside his text books he turned his attention to farming, and after he came to man's estate, desiring to establish a home of his own, he sought a companion and helpmate for life's journey, and on the 31st of October, 1844, was united in marriage to Missl Mary Shupp, who was born in Plymouth, Pennsylvania, on the 16th of November, 1820. Her father, Philip Shupp, was also a native of that place and was there reared and married, being joined in wedlock to Miss Susan Croup, whose birth oc¬ curred in Plymouth, Pennsylvania. To Mr. and Mrs. Shupp were bom four sons and two daugh¬ ters, Mjs. Nesbitt being the second child and eldest daughter. Her father was a farmer, and followed that occupation m order to provide for the needs of his wife and children. Mrs. Nes¬ bitt pursued ' her education in the Plymouth Academy.

At the time of their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Nesbitt established their home in Plymouth, where they remained until 1852. That year wit¬ nessed their arrival in LaPorte county, Indiana, and they settled at Rolling Prairie, where Mr. Nesbitt purchased a tract of land and carried on farming and stock-raising. He was an active and energetic man, and his labors resulted in the ac¬ quirement of a very comfortable and desirable competence.

To Mr. and Mrs. Nesbitt were born eight chil¬ dren : Elizabeth, who became the wife of Egbert Biirhams, but both are now deceased; James, who married Alvina Whitehead and resides in Grand Junction, Colorado; George, who has de¬ parted this life; Mary F., the wife of John A.

Noble, a merchant of Rolling Prairie ; Emma J., the wife of A. B. Ament, of San Bernardino, California ; Charles, deceased ; Kate A., at home with her mother ; and Stella J., the wife of Edgar Austin, a resident farmer of Galena township, LaPorte county.

In his political views Mr. Nesbitt was a Re¬ publican, having firm faith in the principles of the party, and he was a prominent member of the Christian church at Plymouth, Pennsylvania, and after his removal to the west became a char¬ ter member of the church at Rolling Prairie. He served as one of its leaders, took an active part in its organization, contributed generously of his means to its support, and in other ways assisted materially in its work and upbuilding. His life was honorable, his actions manly and sincere, and because of his sterling worth he endeared himself \o all with whom he came in contact.

He died August 12, 1884, leaving to his fam¬ ily not only a comfortable competence, but also the priceless heritage of a good name. His re¬ mains were interred in the Rolling Prairie ceme¬ tery. Mrs. Nesbitt, his widow, is now past eighty years of age, and for fifty-one years she has been a resident of Rolling Prairie. She owns a farm of three hundred and twenty acres of rich land and another of one hundred acres, and the rental from these places supplies her with all the com¬ forts of life. When a young girl she became a member of the Chrfetian church at Plymouth, Pennsylvania, and has been a consistent advocate of the cause of religion since that time. She is a well preserved woman, of good education and natural intelligence, of kindly manner and social disposition, and she has won the love and esteem of young and old, rich and poor.

FRANK J. PITNER. Throughout his en¬ tire business career Frank J. Pitner has been en¬ gaged in the banking business, and as cashier of the First National Bank of LaPorte has contrib¬ uted in a large degree to the success and growth of the institution, for he is a popular officer and one whose knowledge of banking is comprehensive, while his energy, close application and progres¬ sive methods have also been salient features in the prosperous history of the First National.

Bom in LaPorte, June 26, 1865, Frank J. Pitner is a son of William C. and Belinda (Forbes) Pitner. The family is an old, honorable and influential one in the county. His father re¬ moved from Ohio to Indiana in the fifties, and be¬ came a wagon and carriage manufacturer of some prominence, carrying on a successful business.

which after his death, in the year 1889, was con¬ tinued by his sons. His widow is still living. She was born in the state of New York and came to LaPorte county in 1839, being then only three years old. She has since been a resident of this city, and few have longer been witnesses of the growth and development of LaPorte. Fred M. Pitner, a brother of Frank, was trained in his father's business, and is now a prominent manu¬ facturer of Elkhart, Indiana, and a stockholder in the First National Bank of LaPorte.

At the usual age Frank J. Pitner entered the public schools of his native city, and therein con¬ tinued his studies until the time came to face the difficulties and solve the problems of a business career. After his graduation he became con¬ nected with the First National Bank and served as book-keeper, teller and assistant cashier; he was elected to his present position in 1898, and since then has had the management of the bank, having been continuously connected with that in¬ stitution since the beginning of his business ca¬ reer with the exception of the year 1887, which he spent in Chicago, with the Commercial Na¬ tional Bank of that city.

The First National Bank of LaPorte is among the oldest national banks of the country, having been established in 1864, its charter being num¬ bered three hundred and seventy-seven, and there are now over five thousand national banks in the . United States. The first president was Aurora Case and its first cashier was Hiram P. Holbrook. The original directors were Sidney S. Sabin, John B. Niles, James Ridgway, Aurora Case, Ezekiel Morrison, H. P. Holbrook and Henry Lusk. Shortly^ aftqr the organization Riflbert S. Morri¬ son succeeded Mr. Holbrook as cashier. Mr. Case died in 1872, and Mr. Ezekiel Morrison be¬ came the president. He was followed by Sidney Sabin, in 1884, who in turn was succeeded in 1887 by William Niles, the present president. The cashier, Robert S. Morrison, died in 1884, and the assistant, L. G. Erb, was then elected to fill the vacancy. He died in 1889, and the posi¬ tion was then filled by Robert E. Morrison, a son of the former cashier and a grandson of the former president, Ezekiel Morrison. In 1898 R. E. Morrison resigned, and Mr. Pitner was elected to take his place. The present officers are as fol¬ lows: William Niles, president; F. H. Morrison, vice president; Frank J. Pitner, cashier; and A. H. Peglow, teller.