Madison County, Indiana - Chapter 68, 1897

Chapter 68

This township was tlie last organized in the county (1852). It is situated in the north-west corner of the county and is bounded on the north by Grant county, on the east by Boone and Pipe Creek townships, on the south by Pipe Creek township, and on the west by Tipton county. Two-thirds of the township originally belonged to the Miami Indian reservation, and up to the time of its organization was a part of Pipe Creek township. It has an area of twenty-four square miles and derives its name from the small creek that flows through the south-eastern part of its territorj-.

Henry Cochran was the first settler in the township. He came from Butler county, Ohio, in the fall of 1888, and selected a tract of land on Section 38, where he erected a small log cabin. He afterwards returned to Ohio, where he remained a year, when he returned with his father and took possession of his cabin. These two men were the only settlers until the latter part of 1839, when Thomas Casteel and Elijah Berryman located in the township. The next decade did not bring many immigrants to the township, but from 1849 settlers began coming in and the population increased rapidly. It is worthy of note here that A. C. Ritter, of Ohio, made the first entry of land on the Miami reserve in this township in 1848. Among those who came to the township about this time and a few years later on were Anthony Minnick, James French, Azel Stanberry, Stephen Williamson, Mahlon Hosier, David and Elliott Waymire, Aniasa Clymer, Samuel Purtee, Fielding Sampson, Isaac Daughertv, Isaac Wann and D. B. Xewkirk. Thomas W. Harmon, John Adair and others settled in the township in the early '50s.

First Election

The first election in the township was held during August,. 1852, in a little log church belonging to the United Brethren society and situated on the bank of the creek near the present site of what has since been known as the Waymire graveyard.

This church continued to be the voting place until 1856, when a school house was built on Anthony Minnick's land and thereafter used as a polling place. The first Trustees elected were Thomas W. Harmon, John T. Adair and John Hosier, the first Assessor, Anthony Minnick ; the first Justices of the Peace, Elliott Waymire and Amasa Clymer. The latter served for a period of sixteen years.

Other Early Events

James Casteel was the first white child born in the township. This event occured on the 9th of November, 1842. Henry Cochran and Miss Rebecca Casteel were marrieil on the 26th of December, 1844, - the first marriage in the township. Of this event a historian says: " No invitations were issued and the ceremony was not marked by the presence of liveried servants or gorgeous costumes. The well-wishers of the happy couple cro\vded around them in homespun suits, accompanying their congratulations with a pressure of hands seared and calloused by honest toil." Mr. Cochran is now residing in Elwood at an advanced age but without the comj)anion of his life's journey, Mrs. Cochran having died in 1895.

First Orchards

The first orchards planted in the to^vnship were those of Thomas Casteel and Henry and Samuel Cochran. The trees were purchased of John Mills, in Pipe Creek township, and they were planted in the spring of 1843.

First Mills

Jacob E. Waymire erected a steam sawmill near the former residence of Henry Cochran, about the year 1850, which operated until 1866, when he sold to Mr. Cociiran, who added some improvements in the way of new machinery and continued to operate the mill until 1873, when he admitted his son Samuel to a partnership in the business and removed the machinery to Elwood.

S. and V. Worley also built a steam sawmill near the present site of schoolhouse No. 6, in 1875. This mill was afterwards purchased by William and J. B. Hollingsworth and removed to the farm of the latter.

The first schoolhouse in the township was erected in 1841, on the Knott farm. It was an unhewn log structure and was subsequently removed to the present site of schoolhouse No. 2. The second schoolhouse was constructed of hewed logs and was erected on tlie farm of Isaac Wann, in 1858. There were 205 school children in 1858, while the enumeration for the present year shows that there are 422 persons eligible to the privileges of the public schools. There are seven school houses in the township, and seven teachers are employed.

The pioneer Christian denomination in this township was the United Brethren. This denomination built the first church in the township, a little before or soon after it was organized, in 1852. Some time during that year Elder Samuel Purtee organized a society of eight members, who held their meetings regularly at the homes of the membership until their house of worship was completed. The building was a rude structure, and the New Light Christians afterwards co-operated witii the United Brethren in erecting a place of worship on the farm of VV. F. Hollingsworth. At the present time there are five religious congregations or churches in the township, namely : The United Brethren, the Maple Grove Methodist Episcopal church, the Concordia Christian church, the Harmony Christian church and the Heavenly Recruits' church. The New Lights, who had a congregation of about twenty members in 1876, have no society at the present time.

Statistical Matters Prominent Citizens

Duck Creek has been represented but twice in the administration of the county government, Charlton Reed having served one term as County Surveyor (from 1874 - 6) and Moses D. Harmon elected Recorder in 1894. Mr. Harmon is the only Republican ever elected to this office in the county. He is both courteous and efficient and is popular with all classes.

Independence

A portion of this village is in the north-east corner of the township. The village is situated in four townships - Boone and Duck Creek in Madison county and Liberty and Greene townships in Grant county. It has a population at this time of about two hundred, but as it has no railway facilities but little business is done here.

Killing Of George Adams

One of the most exciting homicides that ever took place in Madison county occurred near Elwood on the 17th daj' of May, 1888, in which George Adams, a farmer of Duck Creek township, was killed by Charles Conway, of Henry county. George Adams, the victim, and George Melrose and Charles Conway, the perpetrator of the deed, came to Elwood on Saturday morning and met at that place. While there they visited several saloons and became very boisterous before evening. They started toward home, George Adams in a wagon, and when near the residence of William Rybolt Adams stopped to deliver some packages which he had pur- for Rybolt while at Elwood. Melrose and Conway were in a buckboard and overtook Adams while he was at Rybolt's house. The parties got into a conversation which resulted in a quarrel, ending in blows. Conway jumped out of the buckboard w^ith a revolver in his hand and flourished it at Adams, when a comrade took it away from him. He then jerked out his knife and made a lunge at Adams, cutting him in the arm between the shoulder and the elbow. After this, the fighting ceased and in a few minutes Adams fainted from the loss of blood. He was carried to Rybolt's door j'ard and laid on the ground ; his coat was removed and it was discovered that he had been seriously injured. Further examination showed that an artery had been severed. Efforts were made to stop the flow- of blood, which proved unsuccessful. The wounded man was taken into Rybolt's house and a messenger was dispatched for Doctor M. J. McTurnan, at Rigdon, and Doctor Daniel Sigler, of Elwood. McTurnan was the first to arrive, but Adams had suffered so much from the loss of blood that he was beyond medical aid. When Doctor .Sigler arrived an effort was made to tie the artery, but it was too late to be of any benefit. Adams died about 5 o'clock the next morning. In the meantime Conway had become alarmed at the serious turn that affairs had taken and started for his home in Henry county. Melrose, however, lingered at the house, and when he learned that Adams was perliaps fatally injured he went to him and asked him to testify in the presence of those assembled that the wound was not received from his hands, which Adams readily agreed to.

Melrose immediately went to Elwood and gave himself up to the officers, and was taken before 'Squire Ward L. Roach for a preliminary hearing and was bound over to the court as an accessory to the crime. He \vas taken to Anderson, placed in jail and held to await the action of the Grand Jury. Conway, in the meantime, had driven to Windfall and taken the train there for his home, not knowing of the fatal consecjuences of the stab he had inflicted on Adams until the following Sunday evening, when he was arrested by the Sheriff of Henrv countv on a warrant issued from Madison county. He was brought to Anderson on the following Monday and taken before the Mayor of the city, but waived an examination. He was placed in jail and made no effort to give bond. Conway was accompanied by his father, who was a highly respected citizen of Henry county, and also by James Brown, an attornej' of New Castle. Conway justified himself in the act by stating that Melrose and Adams had become engaged in a quarrel, and that Adams struck Melrose with a club, lie stated that all the parties, including himself, had been drinking, and that while Adams was fighting Melrose with a club, he from his seat in the buckboard ordered Adams to stop when Adams turned to him and started to assault him. He grabbed him by the collar and jerked him over the seat and while handling him had struck him, and that he, Conway, during the melee, had drawn a revolver from his pocket and attempted to defend himself, but was frustrated by a companion, who knocked it from his hands. Conway strenuously denied having cut Adams, and stated that the only knife that he saw in the crowd was one in the hands of Melrose.

Adams was a tenant living on the farm of Gustave Kramer, about six miles from Elwood. He was an industrious man, and always bore a good reputation. He had removed from Franklin county about two years prior to the occurrence.

Young Conway was about twenty-four years of age and lived near Moreland, in Henry county, and had been visiting his uncle, who resided near the scene of the tragedy. He had been subjected from early life to epilepsy and had been petted by his parents on account of the infirmity, and was a badly spoiled boy. He was verj' peevish and of an irritable disposition. On former occasions he had made demonstrations of viciousness several times, and had used his knife, but with no fatal result. George Melrose was acquitted of any criminal action in this matter. Conway was brought into the Circuit Court in Anderson for trial after an indictment had been found against him by the Grand Jury, but took a change of venue to Delaware county. On the 9th day of August, 1888, he was there found guilty of manslaughter and was sentenced to ten years' imprisonment in the penitentiary. Goodykoontz & Ballard defended Melrose, and were credited with handling the case judiciously, and thereby gaining for him his freedom.