Porter County, Indiana - By Rev. Koeebt Beek, 1882 (part 1 of 3)

By Rev. Koeebt Beek

Military Histoby of the County - Soldieks or the Earlier Wars- War OF THE Rebellion - Political Situation in 1860 - Calls fob Troops- Fall of Sumter - War Meetings - Newspaper Comments- Volunteers - The Boys in the Field - Drafts - Facts and Figures - -Muster Eoll - Public Feeling after the Close.

THE territory comprised in this county has been, within historic times at least, the scene of no invasions, sieges or battles. Its settlement having been begun nearly fifty years after the close of the war of the Revolution, not many of the survivors of that war could be expected to find homes or end their days here. So far as known to the writer, the only soldiers of the war of Independence who have ever resided in the county were Henry Battan and Joseph Jones. Of the personal history of these but little is now known. The name of the former is found on the poll books of an election held at City West not long after the organization of the county, from which it is inferred that he was a resident of Westchester Township at the time. From the records of the Presbyterian Church of Valparaiso, it appears that he was received as a member of that church at its organization, on the 3d of July, 1840, and upon evidence of his good standing in the Presbyterian Church in the State of Virginia. Several of the old citizens of Valparaiso remember him as a Revolutionary pensioner residing here with a daughter, but have no recollection of what he may have said as to his services. From the records of the same church, it appears that he died on the 1st of February, 1845. His pastor. Rev. Dr. Brown, in an anniversary sermon preached in November, 1859, speaks of him as " Old Father Battan, at once a soldier of the country and of the cross. At ninety-four he gained the victory and the crown."

Of Joseph Jones only these things are known, viz., that before coming to this county he had resided for some time in Holmes County, Ohio ; that he was married to the grandmother of the present Mayor of Valparaiso, the Hon. Thomas G. Lytic ; that in the spring of the year 1841, he removed to this county and settled at Boone Grove ; that after a few years he died at a very advanced age and was buried in the Cornell Graveyard, where his place of repose is unmarked by any monument.

Isaac Cornell and Robert Folsom, soldiers of the war of 1812, were buriedln.the Cornell Graveyard. John Curtis, who went from the State of New Yor-k.as a farrier in the same war, came to this county in 1836, settled near Wheeler, and died there in 1865. Eliphalet D. Curtis, another soldier of that war, enlisted in New York, came to this county in , 1838, settled near Porter Cross Roads, and died in the spring of 1865. . Myron Powell enlisted in Vermont, moved subsequently to the Western Reserve in Ohio, came to Porter County, Ind., and died here in 1865. The only soldiers of the Black Hawk war who ever resided in this county, as far as learned, were Ruel Starr and James M. Buel, the former now deceased, the latter is a resident of Chicago.

No company was organized in this county to serve in the Mexican war, but Joseph P. Smith, of Lake County, at the time holding a county ofBce, resigned and enlisted a company to serve in 1846. After the expiration of their term of service, they re-enlisted to serve from 1847 to 1848. About thirty persons from Porter County enlisted in that company, among whom were William Unruh, Ezra Wilcox, Peter Musselman, two men named Aley, two named Patterson, Mr. Brown, Mr. Risden, Mr. Preston, Mr. Hopkins and Mr. Wells. It is believed that the only survivors of that company, now in the county, are William Unruh, of Tassinong, and Jacob Aley, of Hebron. It was the duty of this company, while in Mexico, to guard wagon trains, and the climate proved to be very deadly in its influence upon them, as out of 119 men who went out, only thirty-six returned. In addition to these, Samuel Meekam, now of Valparaiso, Clinton Frazier, a man named Briggs, another named Hesser, and still others from this county, were soldiers in that war, but in what organization they went out is not known.

The War of the Rebellion. - The political campaign of 1860 waxed warm in this county. The great majority of the Democrats voted for Mr. Douglas, though there were some votes cast for Breckenridge. On the one hand it was charged upon the Republicans that they were responsible for all the dangers that threatened the country, and on the other that the Democrats were in sympathy with Southern secessionists. In reality, until the Southern States began to pass their ordinances of secession, none really believed that the issues between the two sections > of the country were to be tried upon the field of battle, much less that four years of blood and horror were soon to follow. After the election of Lincoln, when the alarm had become general at the threatened insurrection in the South, when conservative men of the North and South were endeavoring to avert the calamities of war by timely compromise, the general opinion of the Republicans in this part of the country, as evinced by the press, was decidedly against any compromise which might bind more closely the fetters of the slave or recognize the institution of slavery as National in its character. The Republic of that day, then published in Valparaiso, was very decided in opposition to the Crittenden and all other compromises, the tendency of which would be to surrender any vantageground that had hitherto been gained in rescuing territory from the domination of the peculiar institution. All who are old enough can remember the peculiar feelings which prevailed at that time. There was a class of politicians at the South called fire-eaters. They had always been given to bluster and hifalutin. The people of the North had become accustomed to threats of the dissolution of the Union, and they had listened to that kind of talk until they supposed it might go on 'ad infinitum, and nothing ever come of it. Yet things were certainly looking more serious than ever before. South Carolina had seceded. Mississippi had seceded. It looked as though all the cotton States would go out. They did go out, one after another, in rapid succession. Men who had been elected to the legislatures of their several States as Union men were either persuaded or terrified into voting for secession. Twiggs proved a traitor and turned over his forces so far as he could to the cause of disunion. Pensacola and Mobile, with their fortifications, fell into rebel hands. But still the feeling was strong in many minds that all this had been done by a sort of collusion with thei administration for the purpose of terrifying the North into compromises whicb would forever perpetuate the slave power in the Union, and set it, in unassailable control. It wa,8 believed there were too many friends of the Union in the South ever to suffer the fire-eaters to sunder the bonds of the States. The old Whigs, who had no sympathy with that sort of thing, would assert themselves, and the sober second thought of the people would be for bearing their present ills rather than to fiy to others which they knew not of. And then, suppose they did rebel ? What of it ? The North is stronger than the South, and whatever may come we will not submit to have slavery enthroned over the whole land. We will not sufi'er men to bring their slaves into the free States and there hold them. So the RepuUic, voicing the feelings of one party, said emphatically, "No compromise." The opposition paper, on the other hand, was saying in effect : " See how mad you have made the Southern people by your abolitionism. We always told you this was what you would bring the country to. The only way now to escape dissolution and the horrors of war is to submit to what the slaveholders demand for their security, and let us take charge of affairs. It is no wonder that the South should rebel at the election of an Abolitionist for President." But when the memorable day came, after all the uncertainty and suspense about the Star of the West, and about what would come of it all, that the flag was fired upon and that the South had invoked the arbitrament of war, all the talk of compromise ceased. The great majority of all parties said, The Union must be preserved. Over the wires came the proclamation of the President for 75,000 men to serve three months. In the South it was received with derision. There it was known far better than here that 75,000 raw volunteers would not be able to put an end to a conspiracy so vast. With the Mississippi River, Galveston, New Orleans, Mobile, Pensacola, Savannah, Charleston, Wilmington and Richmond in their possession, and with sympathizers in Kentucky and Maryland and Missouri, it was childish to suppose it could all be ended in ninety days and by soldiers the majority of whom had never smelled gunpowder in their lives. But who can describe the thrill of patriotism with which that message was received in the North ? Seventy-five thousand men ! They would overawe all opposition. When the South saw that the North would fight rather than surrender all, that would end the matter. Each volunteer then felt strong, and with the almost unanimous current of feeling it was thought by many that they would have a kind of holiday, would play at war for awhile, and then return home when the Union had been restored to receive the plaudits that would await them. It was an era of hallucinations. None foresaw the future, none in the North and none in the South. The Southern fireeaters had utterly miscalculated the spirit of the North, and the terrible earnestness of the Southern fire-eaters was not understood in the North. On Sunday, April 14, the telegraph carried the news of the firing on Fort Sumter. On Monday afternoon, the 15th, the following call was issued for a meeting at the court house.

Americani ! Union Men 1 Rally. The war has begun. Fort Sumter has fallen ! Our flag has been insulted, fired upon and struck to traitors ! A Pelican and Rattlesnake banner floats in its stead ! Let it be torn down and the stars and stripes float in its place, or let us perish in the attempt. Davis, the traitor, says that next the Secession flag shall wave over the Capitol at Washington! Shall it be so ? A thousand times No ! Then tonight let us rally at the court house, burying all party names, and come to the rescue of the Republic against its mortal enemies. We are beaten at Sumter, but not conquered, and must rally to preserve the inheritance left us by our fathers. Come one, come all who love their country 1 To-night let us pledge our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor to the defense of the proudest flag that ever waved over a free people 1

War Meetings and Enlistments. - The court house was crowded early. The following are the official proceedings of the meeting. " On motion of R. A. Cameron, M. D., editor of the Republic, Dr. E. Jones was called to the chair, Messrs. B. R. Chapin and Alanson Finney chosen as Vice Presidents, and J. F. McCarthy, Esq., and J. A. Berry, editor of the Starhe County Press, chosen as Secretaries. The object of the meeting having been fully stated, on motion of Dr. Cameron, a committee of five (Messrs. Cameron, S. S. Skinner, J. N. Skinner, Jacob Brewer and M. L. De Motte) were appointed to draft resolutions expressive of the sense of the meeting. The Committee retired, and after a short absence returned and reported the following preamble and resolutions, which were received amid deafening applause. (Here follow preamble and resolutions of the most patriotic character.)

" The meeting was addressed by Messrs. De Motte, Cameron, Lytle, Jones, Rock, Pierce, Putnam and others. Democrats and Republicans,, who, heretofore differing widely politically, were a unit on sustaining the Government, protecting the honor of our flag, and rebuking the thieves, murderers and traitors of the South. At the opening of the meeting, two American flags, emblems of our nation's glory, were brought in and suspended over the stand occupied by the President and Vice Presidents, which were hailed with long, loud and enthusiastic raptures of delight by the large audience present, to which additional excitement was added by the presence of the Union Band, that discoursed a number of national airs, such as ' Hail Columbia,' ' Marseilles Hymn,' etc. At the close of the meeting, an opportunity was given those who desired to register their names as volunteers, when a number of gentlemen came promptly forward, enrolled their names, expressing the sentiment that it was not for glory, hut to jight."

The same number of the Republic contains general orders numbered one to twelve from Lewis Wallace, Adjutant General in regard to the organization of military companies, a proclamation of Gov. Morton calling for the organization of troops, the account of the bombardment of Sumter, and also a proclamation from Gov. Morton convening the Legislature in special session on the 24th of April.

The following number of the Republic (April 25) was issued with the name of E. R. Beebe as associate editor, R. A. Cameron having gone to Indianapolis with his company, and the first editorial correspondence, dated at that place, appears. Henceforth, correspondence from the scene of active operations made up a large part of each issue. Letters poured in, not only from the editor, but from Gil Pierce, who even then wielded the pen of a ready writer, De Witt C. Hodsden, J. F. McCarthy and numerous others. On Thursday, April 18, a meeting had been called at the court house (in the afternoon), to which the citizens came en masse, without distinction of party. Joseph Peirce was Chairman, G. Bloch, Secretary. Speeches were made by Messrs. Morrison, Hodsden, W. Bartholomew, J. N. Skinner, Rev. Gurney, M. L. De Motte, I. C. B. Suman, Charles Gurney and G. Bloch. Among the resolutions adopted, we will not encourage violence and bloodshed at home, hut we will withdraw from them our social relations, and if business men, we will not favor them with our patronage." After the adjournment of the regular meeting, those who had signified their willingness to volunteer for the defense of the stars and stripes, whenever and wherever called, remained to organize and elect officers. The following were elected ofHcers : R. A. Cameron, Captain ; Lieutenants - First, I. C. B. Suman ; Second, G. A. Pierce ; Third, 0. H. Ray ; Ensign, J. F. McCarthy, etc.

On Friday, the excitement was still unabated. Numbers enlisted, and the ofBce of the Republic, where the lists were opened, was crowded most of the day. In the evening another meeting was called at the court house, presided over by T. Gr. Lytle. Some 200 blankets were donated by the citizens for the use of the soldiers, and $40 were raised for the purchase of a flag for the company. On Saturday afternoon, the Union Band presented, through M. L. De Motte, their beautiful flag, which had a short time before been presented to them by the ladies. Speeches were made in behalf of the company, by Cameron, McCarthy and Rev. S. C. Logan. On the Sabbath, a sermon was preached to the company by Rev. A. Gurney, and on that evening the company took the train for Indianapolis, many of the citizens accompanying them as far as Wanatah.

In the Meld. - Arrived at Indianapolis, the company, which numbered 130, was divided and the overplus joined with the overplus of another company from Ft. Wayne, formed a new company under the command of Capt. Comparet. In this company, J. F. McCarthy and 0. II. Ray were Lieutenants. On the 29th of May, the Ninth Regiment, Col. Milroy, in which the Valparaiso boys constituted Company H, left Camp Morton for Virginia. The first trial the boys had of actual conflict with the rebels was at Philippi, on the 3d of June, where all the Indiana regiments were engaged. The rebels were taken by surprise, and a large amount of arms, horses, etc., was captured.

On Saturday, June 22, a meeting of the citizens of the county was held for the purpose of obtaining recruits. Speeches were made by James M. Lytle, F. Church, S. L. Bartholomew and Mr. Bartlet. On Monday, June 24, the volunteers met to effect their organization. The meeting was presided over by E. J. Jones, D. L. Skinner, Secretary. The officers of the company were chosen as follows : Captain, James M. Lytle; Lieutenants, Galbreath and Carr. Capt. Lytle gave his life on the field of battle. A mass meeting was held on the Fourth of July, to bid farewell to the company, as they were to leave on the evening of that day for Camp Tippecanoe.

That flag we'll replace though the ramparts be gory. And the ' Bloody Ninth's ' name, and the ' Bloody Ninth's' fame Shall shine in our history in letters of flame. And the Star Spangled Banner, once more it shall wave O'er our country united, the home of the brave. " Shall we shrink from the contest, brave comrades ? Oh, no !

To the traitors who fight for their country's enslaving ; Contented to die, if that flag waves on high, But never before the base rebels to fly ; For we've sworn that the Star Spangled Banner shall wave O'er the Union again, or the ' Bloody Ninth's' grave.

" Let them come with their Beauregard, Davis and Wise, The ' Ninth' will be there with their Colonel to lead 'em, And while that proud banner is floating the skies.

With him they will fight for their Union and freedom. The foe we'll destroy, and the name of Milroy Shall sound through our country in p^ans of joy. While the Star Spangled Banner in triumph shall wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave."

On July 24, the " Bloody Ninth " reached Indianapolis from the seat of war to be re-organized for the three years' service. The Twentieth Regiment, Col. W. L. Brown, with Capt. James M. Lytle's company, from Porter County, left Indianapolis for Washington on the Slst of July, just ten days after the Bull Run disaster.

October 24, 1861, this delicate compliment is paid in the Republic to Secretary Cameron: " A number of horses, numbering 250, were sent this regiment (First Regiment Northwestern Cavalry in which was Capt. Buell's Company) from Pennsylvania, Secretary Cameron's State, and twenty-five of that number and only twenty-five were found fit for service, 227 being rejected as unsound and deficient in almost every conceivable manner. This is a fair specimen of Pennsylvania swindling, connived at by officials high in power. Let the West furnish her men with their equipments and horses, and Pennsylvania retain her old brokendown hacks for her own use, if the Secretary insists upon using all the ring-boned, spavined, windgalled, blind, stump-tailed, lamed, knockkneed, worn-out broken-winded scrubs first." In Company Gr, of that Cavalry Regiment, were forty-seven Porter County men, of whom the Adjutant General's report of Indiana takes no notice.

The capture of Fort Donelson, on Sunday, February ] 6, 1862, vras one of the bright spots in the history of the war, and gave rise to great rejoicing in Valparaiso as well as in other parts of the land. On Monday evening the court house was packed with the " chivalry and beauty " of Valparaiso. The ladies were out in full force, although it drizzled rain. Dr. Newland was called to the chair, and speeches were made (after prayer) by Gurney, Mattingly, Church, Bartholomew, President Sims and A. L. Jones. Of course a resolution was adopted. What would a meeting in the United States of America be without at least one resolution ? This was one of " unbounded confidence in the wisdom and patriotism of our military leaders," etc. Of course, with 15,000 rebel prisoners just taken, they could afibrd to have a little confidence in the men who took them.

In the Republic of March 20, 1862, is a detafled account of the devastation wrought to the frigates Cumberland and Congress, by the rebel ram Merrimac, in Hampton Roads, on March 9, written by Capt. Lytle, whose regiment, the Twentieth, was engaged during the fight, together with the repulse of the Merrimac by the iron-clad Monitor. On the 15th of April, seventeen or eighteen men of the Ninth Regiment, who had been wounded in the engagement at Pittsburg Landing, were received at Valparaiso, and were kindly cared for by the citizens. In that engagement, David Thatcher, James Mitchell and David Armitage, belonging to Company H, were killed, and twenty-nine others were wounded. It began indeed to be the "Bloody Ninth." Sixty-two ofiEcers and men went into the action and thirty passed through it unscathed.

May 1, 1862, a meeting was held at the residence of Rev. S. C. Logan, to devise means of sending relief to the sick and wounded of the Indiana regiments.

A sanitary commission was appointed at a meeting held at the court house which issued an address to the people of Northwestern Indiana. The commission consisted of S. W. Smith, A. J. Buel, Elias Axe, Joseph Peirce, M. A. Salisbury, B. J. Jones and R. Bell, Jr. On the 28th of April, the following patriotic appeal was made to the Germans of Porter County :

An die Deutschert von Porter County. Der Unterzeichnete ist bereit Beitrage ziim Ankaufe eiues Landgutes faer Major General Fbanz Siqel anzunehmen. Komme yeder uud gebe aeiu echerflein zu einem so noblen Unternehmen. Dr. Met. Max Hoffman.

On the 29th of May, 1862, was issued a call for a non-partisan convention to send delegates to the Union State Convention, which was to meet in Indianapolis on the 8th of June, and to appoint a Union County Central Committee to act for the year.

Mt Dear Mrs. Larned : This morning, for the first time, I am able to write you a short note. I was shot in the left side and the left thigh, and the right wrist (slightly the latter). Three shots pierced my coat, so you see I was very fortunate to get off at all. There are no bones broken, and I am improving rapidly. My folks at B. come over to see me, and I will go home with them as soon as I am able to ride. I think it will be from four to six weeks before I could think of venturing West, but will go as soon as possible. Of my own brave boys, fifteen are gone and five are here wounded. They did their duty to a man. God bless them; but we all did so. Lttle.

July 17, 1862, this item appears, " We regret to learn that the Rev. Dr. Brown, Chaplain of the Forty-eighth Regiment, is lying critically ill at Padueah. His wife was telegraphed for on Saturday evening last, requiring her to repair to his bedside as speedily as possible. She started for that place on the first train. The Presbyterian Church of this place, of which he was formerly pastor, appointed A. J. Buel, Esq., on its behalf on Sabbath to visit him. Mr. Buel left with his lady that evening." The Republic of the following week published the obituary of Dr. Brown, who died July 14, and the gallant Lytle passed away after long suffering, on the 20th of August following. Thus were the people tasting of the horrors of the war, and learning at what a price the Union was to be restored.

The order for the first draft for 300,000 men to serve for nine months was issued August 4, 1862. There was also a call for 300,000 volunteers. Both these calls were met with thanks on the part of the people. On Monday, August 10, a mass-meeting was held at the court house, which was addressed by Hon. C. W. Cathcart, of La Porte County. Dr. L. A. Cass was chosen as President of the meeting, and Thomas Jewell, Secretary. The purpose of the meeting was to raise $25 bounty for each man enlisting from the county. By the 14th of August, two full companies had gone into camp at South Bend. Not less than three hundred and fifty men had enlisted under the call for 600,000 men. The subscriptions were liberal and numerous, ranging from $1 to f 100. But it would be impossible to follow up that eventful' history to its close, and necessity compels us to summarize the work done by Porter County in suppressing the rebellion.

Military Statistics. - It is impossible to ascertain just how many men from Porter County were engaged in the war. The reports of the Adjutant General are very imperfect, omitting the names of some persons who served in Indiana Regiments, even those of some commissioned officers, and of those who enlisted in the regiments of other States he has given no account. We have seen how many there were in a single regiment of cavalry which went from Illinois, and there were many who enlisted in the gunboat or naval service, or in Tennessee and Kentucky regiments. Many also were wounded or killed of whom these records preserve no account. The names of Porter County soldiers are found upon the rolls of twenty-nine regiments of infantry, four regiments of cavalry and two batteries of artillery which went from this State. But these names are chiefly to be found in the Ninth, Twentieth, Seventy-third, Ninety-ninth, One Hundred and Twenty-eighth, One Hundred and Thirty-eighth and One Hundred and Fifty-first Regiments of Infantry, and in the Fifth, Seventh and Twelfth Cavalry and the Fourth Battery. Of those whose names are found in the Adjutant General's report, 156 were honorably discharged on account of disabilities from wounds or sickness, or for other reasons not given. Five hundred and thirty-nine were mustered out at the expiration of their term of service, or at the close of the war ; twenty-five were promoted from the ranks to be commissioned officers ; sixty were wounded in battle, of whom fourteen died ; twenty-seven were killed in battle ; fifty-eight deserted ; in some cases the same person deserted twice ; even one who had served three years and had re-enlisted as a veteran deserted before the close of the war ; 106 died of sickness. The mere reading of this shows how imperfectly the report of the Adjutant General was made out, when we remember what befell Company H, of the Ninth, at Pittsburg Landing, and Capt. Lytle's company in the battles before Richmond. It must strike all readers as strange that there should have been fifty-eight desertions and only twenty-seven killed in battle. The terms of service of the several Indiana regiments containing Porter County men were as follows : The Ninth, three months; for three years. Ninth, Eleventh, Twelfth, Thirteenth, Seventeenth, Eighteenth, Nineteenth, Twentieth, Twenty-second, Twenty-fifth, Twenty-ninth, Thirty-fifth, Thirty-eighth, Fifty-ninth, Sixty-third, Seventy-third, Ninety-ninth, One Hundred and Twentyeighth ; for one year, the One Hundred and Forty-second and One Hundred and Fifty-first ; for 100 days, the One Hundred and Thirty-eighth.

relief, that is for sanitary and Christian commissions, and for the families of soldiers, $54,606.33. For the draft of October 6, 1862, T. G. Lytle was Draft Commissioner, W. S. Dunning Marshal, and J. H. Newland, Surgeon. Only nineteen men were drafted at that time. The second draft was on the 17th of October, 1863. The total credits by enrollment and draft to July 18, 1864, were 686. Total to be furnished by second draft, sixty-nine. Under the draft ordered for December 19, 1864, there were 145 recruits ; drafted men, seventy ; total, 215. The revised enrollment, according to the Adjutant General's report, showed a total enrollment of 1,136 from Porter County.

It would be impossible, in the limits assigned, to give a history of the encampments, marches, battles, sieges, imprisonments, etc., of all the regiments having soldiers from this county. They made a gallant record, endured great hardships, and are deserving of the gratitude of their countrymen. As they returned home they were welcomed at Indianapolis and at Valparaiso, and since that time many of them have enjoyed public honors, and many have been entered upon the pension rolls of the nation. These things are worthy of mention : That ninety- nine re-enlisted as veterans after serving full three years. Nine are reported to have died in prison ; two were dishonorably discharged. Of those who are reported as deserters, the writer, after a residence of seventeen years in the county, can say that he does not know one of them. The names are not familiar, and they have evidently sought other scenes.

Ninth Infantry. - Robert A. Cameron, Captain of Company H, three months, commissioned April 22, 1861; mustered out at expiration of term ; re-entered service and commissioned Lieutenant Colonel of the Nineteenth Regiment, July 29, 1861 ; transferred to Thirtyfourth Regiment February 3, 1862 ; promoted Colonel, June 15, 1862 ; appointed Brigadier General United States Volunteers, August 11, 1863 ; appointed Major General by brevet, March 13, 1865 ; resigned July 22, 1865. I. C. B. Suman, First Lieutenant Company H, April 22, 1861, three months ; re-entered as Captain Company H, August 29, 1861 ; promoted Lieutenant Colonel, August 20, 1862 ; promoted Colonel April 17, 1863 ; appointed Brigadier General by brevet March 13, 1865. G. A. Pierce, Second Lieutenant Company H, April 22, 1861, three months; appointed Assistant Quartermaster August 3, 1861. W. H. Benny, Second Lieutenant Company H, August 29, 1861 ; Adjutant May 30, 1862 ; resigned November 24, 1862. Stephen P. Hodsden, Second Lieutenant Company E, September 1, 1861 ; promoted Adjutant March 3, 1863 ; promoted

Captain, June 1, 1865. Anson Goodwin, Second Lieutenant Company I, September 10, 1861 ; resigned January 11, 1862 ; Captain Company B, One Hundred and Fiftieth, February 20, 1865 ; mustered out with regiment.

Forty-eight Infantry. - J a,mea C. Brown, Chaplain, 1862; died in hospital at Paducah, Ky., of sickness contracted in the service. Theophilus Matott, Second Lieutenant Company D, November 1, 1862 ; First Lieutenant, January 23, 1863 ; resigned September 18, 1863.

One Hundred and Twenty-eighth Infantry. - William H. Calkins, Quartermaster, December 8, 1863 ; promoted Major Twelfth Cavalry, March 4, 1864 ; mustered out with regiment. John E. Cass, First Lieutenant Company E, December 19, 1863 ; resigned March 25, 1865. John Fitzwilliams, Second Lieutenant Company E, June 1, 1865 ; discharged as First Sergeant. Benjamin Sheffield, Captain Company E, December 19, 1863"; honorably discharged December 10, 1864.

One Hundred and Thirty-eighth Infantry. - Thomas G. Lytle, Captain Company D (100 days), May 13, 1864; mustered out. Homer A. Goodwin, First Lieutenant Company D, May 13, 1864; mustered out.

Seventh Cavalry. - John C. Febles, Captain Company A, August 15, 1863; Major, October 27, 1863; resigned February 28, 1865. Aaron L. Jones, Quartermaster, June 24, 1864 ; transferred to Residuary Battalion as Quartermaster. John R. Parmelee, First Lieutenant Company A, August 15, 1863 ; Captain, October 27, 1863 ; mustered out as supernumerary. Henry S. Stoddard, Second Lieutenant Company A, September 1, 1863 ; First Lieutenant, October 27, 1863 ; resigned November 25, 1863, as Second Lieutenant. John Douch, Second Lieutenant Company A, October 27, 1863 ; First Lieutenant, November 26, 1863 ; transferred to Residuary Battalion, Company C. John C. Harmon, Second Lieutenant Company A, November 26, 1863 ; resigned August 13, 1864. Charles H. Gleason, Second Lieutenant Company A, August 14, 1864 ; transferred to Company C, Residuary Battalion.

Ninth Infantry. - David Arvin, died near Marietta, Ga., January, 1864; John Ablet, died at Paducah, Ky., April, 1862, of wounds received at Shiloh ; David Armitage, killed at Shiloh April 7, 1862 ; Elias J. Axe, died September 24, 1863, of wounds received at Missionary Ridge ; William D. Brown, killed at Chickamauga, September 19, 1863. James Bullis, killed at Chickamauga ; George Beebe, died July 19, 1865 ; Ham Gibbs, died January 24, 1863 ; Charles Gould, died July 5, 1864 ; W. H. H. Howard, died July 25, 1864, of wounds received at Kenesaw Mountain ; Benjamin F. Huntingdon, killed at Buffalo Mountain, December 31, 1861 ; Lewis Keller, died of wounds received at Shiloh ; Thomas R. Mackey, killed at Buffalo Mountain December 31, 1861 ; Henry Pratt, died February 2, 1862 ; Abner Sanders, died at Cheat Mountain January 3, 1861 ; Levi 0. Spafford, died at Bvansville, Ind., April 28, 1862 ; Manford Thatcher, killed at Resaca May 14, 1864 ; David Thatcher, killed at Shiloh April 7, 1862 ; Joseph Turner, killed at Chickamauga September 20, 1863.

Twentieth Infantry. - John H. Cook, killed at Gettysburg, Penn. ; Duane Ellis, died at Andersonville Prison September 5, 1864 ; Anton Fuller, killed at Chickahominy ; John Torpy, killed at Gettysburg ; John Shaffer, died at Washington December 2, 1862 ; Thomas Vanness, died at Washington June 6, 1864.

Twenty-ninth Infantry. - Wavren Babbitt, died at Andersonville Prison September 15, 1864 ; Fred Kocher, died at Andersonville Prison August 10, 1864; John Oliver, killed at Corinth May 9, 1862 ; Charles F. Skinner, died at Nashville.

Thirty-fifth Infantry. - GharleB C. Gaylord, died at Bull's Gap ; Henry Granger, died at Nashville ; George Miller, killed at Stone River January 2, 1863 ; Moses Spangle, died at Indianapolis.

Seventy-third Infantry. - Andrew Black, died at Gallatin, Tex., February 9, 1863 ; George J. Bradley, died at Nashville, Tenn., December 5, 1862 ; N. B. Blachley, died at Silver Springs November 16, 1863 ; Samuel Conner, died at Summersville, Ky., March 11, 1863 ; William Crisman, died at Nashville, Tenn., December 9, 1863 ; Curtis Dorsey, died at Nashville, Tenn., November 28, 1862 ; Nelse A. Erickson, died at Scottsville, Ky., November 11, 1862; Josiah B. Fox, died at Bowling Green, Ky., February 27, 1863 ; Robert Fluellan, killed at Decatur, Ala., October 27, 1864; Asa Glazor, died at Louisville, Ky., December 8, 1862; George N. Gunter, died at Nashville, Tenn., March 28, 1864; Lester Hitchcock, died at Danville, Ky., December 8, 1862 ; John Hineline, died at Scottsville, Ky., November 17, 1862 ; Theodore R. Hall, died at Camp Chase, Ohio, June 8, 1863 ; John Hawkins, died at Camp Lebanon, Ky., October 29, 1862 ; William H. Hendee, killed at Stone River December 31, 1862; Robert Jackson, killed at Day's Gap, Ala., April 30, 1863 ; Andrew Johnson, died at Indianapolis, Ind., October 23, 1863 ; Daniel Kouts, died of wounds January 18, 1863 ; Charles Munson, died at Silver Springs, Tenn., November 18, 1862 ; David G. Maine, died at Nashville, Tenn., November 30, 1862 ; Harlow Marsh, died at Danville, Ky., May 15, 1865 ; James McNally, killed at Stone River; James E. Piper, died at Louisville, Ky., March 17, 1863; Charles S. Spear, died at Stevenson, Ala., December 7, 1864; Thomas ShoU, killed at Stone River; Alexander Smith, died at Murfreesboro July 23, 1863 ; Charles Stinchcomb, killed at Stone River ; Edward S. Squires, died at Danville, Ky., October 20, 1862 ; John A.'Tidball, died at Louisville, Ky., November 9, 1862 ; Stephen Thornton, died in hospital January 24, 1865 ; William H. Underwood, died at Nashville, February 19, 1863 ; Elias Wheeler, died at Gallatin January 28, 1863 ; Wesley Watson, died at Danville, Ky., October 19, 1862 ; Hiram W. Walton, died at Nashville, Tenn., February 19, 1863.

Ninety-ninth Infantry. - Justice Bartholomew, died at Andersonville, Ga., August 22, 1864 ; George W. Biggs, died at La Grange, Tenn., January 19, 1863; Benjamin Biggs, died at La Grange, Tenn., March 16, 1863 ; George W. Birch, died at Scottsboro, Ala., April 21, 1864 ; Hiram A. Case, died at La Grange, Tenn., March 10, 1863 ; Wallace L. Depance, died at Black River, Miss., August 27, 1863 ; Ira Doolittle, died at Snyder's Bluflf, Miss., July 9, 1863 ; James Foster, killed at Atlanta, Ga. ; John L. Kesler, died' at La Grange, Tenn., Feb- ruary 25, 1863 ; George W. Livingood, died at La Grange, Tenn., February 25, 1863 ; Charles Sleeper, died at La Grange, Tenn., March 7, 1863 ; John W. Taylor, died in Kentucky, November 17, 1862 ; Harvey White, died at La Grange, Tenn., March 11, 1863 ; William Wooster, died at Camp Towler, Tenn., February 4, 1863.

One Hundred and Twenty-eighth Infantry. - A.xq.os Coleman, died at Knoxville, Tenn., April 1, 1864 ; William Coleman, died near Marietta, Ga., August, 1864; Giles E. Cole, died at JefiFerson Barracks, Mo., December 12, 1864; Thomas Dolan, died at Michigan City, Ind., March 22, 1864 ; Samuel Furgeson, died at New Berne, N. C, March 14, 1865 ; George W. Hunt, wounded, supposed to be dead ; Frederick Keene, died at Nashville, Tenn., April, 1864 ; John B. Millard, died at Nashville, Tenn., January 5, 1865 ; William Marshall, died of wounds at Calumet, Ind., January, 1864 ; Oliver P. Quinn, died at Alexandria, Va., June 12, 1865; Myron S. Robinson, died at Cleveland, Tenn., August 1, 1864 ; Chris. S. Sholer, died near Kenesaw, Ga., June 23, 1864.

One Hundred and Thirty-eighth Infantry. - Edward J. Garwood, died at Tullahoma, Tenn., September 16, 1864 ; Frank Johnson, died at Tullahoma, Tenn., September 15, 1864.

One Hundred and Fifty-first Infantry. - Elb ridge Clark, died at Louisville, Ky., August 11, 1865 ; Reuben Clark, died at home March 5, 1865 ; Edgar Field, died at Tullahoma, Tenn., May 18, 1865 ; John P. Jones, died at Nashville, Tenn., June 30, 1866 ; George Lansing, died at Jeffersonville, Ind., April 7, 1865 ; Luther Smith, died at Deep River, Ind.; Ambrose S. White, died at Nashville, Tenn, July 19, 1865.

Fifth Qavalry. - John R. Alyea, died at Florence, S. C; John Billings, died at Indianapolis ; Daniel C. Bagley, died at Cleveland, Ohio, May 22, 1864 ; Homer 0. Cadwell, died in rebel prison, Florence, S. C, in January, 1865 ; Isaac L. Downes, died in Andersonville Prison September 29, 1864 ; Leander Lightfoot, killed at Marrowbone May 26, 1863 ; Edwin W. Shumaker, died in Andersonville Prison August

12, 1864 ; James Southward, died at Knoxville, Tenn., October 13, 1863, of wounds ; William Terrica, died at Knoxville" September 23, 1862 ; Philip Walters, died at Kingston, Tenn.; Jacob Walters, died at Andersonville Prison October 28, 1864; Lewis Walters, killed at Resaca Ga., May 15, 1864.

13, 1864 ; John L. Babcock, died May 24, 1864 ; Edward Carpenter, drowned in the Mississippi River ; Samuel P. Dunn, accidentally shot January 3, 1864 ; John Johnson, died at Andersonville Prison January 28, 1864 ; Henry Miller, died at Memphis, Tenn., May 4, 1864 ; Isaac

Margeston, died at Andersonville Prison August 14, 1864 ; John Marsh, killed at Guntown, Miss., June 10, 1864 ; Cornelius O'Neil, died at Cahawba, Ala., March 16, 1864 ; Clark S. Williams, died at Indianapolis, December 31, 1863 ; Alvin Welsh, died on hospital steamer August 15, 1864.

Twelfth Cavalry. - Isaac Beam, died at Huntsville, Ala., July 3, 1864 ; John H. N. Beck, died at Edgefield June 13, 1865 ; W. B. Dorrance, died at New York Harbor April 19, 1865 ; Charles Friend, died at Nashville, Tenn., February 13, 1865; Ira Green, died at Huntsville, Ala., July 24, 1864 ; James Garrison, died at home ; John S. Gillman, died at Huntsville, Ala., July 22, 1864; William H. Huntly, died at Indianapolis August 5, 1864; Erasmus J. Jones, died at Vicksburg March 22, 1865 ; Benjamin 0. Jones, died at New Orleans ; Seth P. Sherman, died at Valparaiso, Ind., July 9, 1864 ; Arza B. Spencer, died at JefFersonville, Ind., August 27, 1864 ; Thomas Welch, died at Stark'a Landing, Ala., April lO, 1865.

Popular Feeling. - During the progress of the war, there were in Porter County as in every other part of the country, those who either were from the first, or who afterward became disaflfected. There were those who were always discouraged and engaged in discouraging others, continually predicting disasters and the ultimate ruin of the country. There were those who were always criticizing the conduct of the war, not making allowances for the fact that as a people, we were unaccustomed to warfare, greatly destitute of experienced leaders, and that the work to be done was gigantic. There were those who were deeply grieved at the proclamation of emancipation, and many who thought, in 1863 and 1864, that the war should be ended and peace procured at any price. But it is to be said to the credit of Porter County, that her citizens never thought of making resistance to the power of the Federal Government ; that within her borders there were no treasonable organizations. Nine-tenths of her citizens would at any time have joined in hearty efi"orts to put down any treasonable practices or attempts in their own midst. Men, indeed, became bitter in their feelings, because of reckless charges made against them of sympathy with secession, charges that often emanated from malice or from selfish or designing purposes. When the news came of disaster, deep was the feeling of sorrow on the part of all. If there were any who rejoiced, and it has been charged that a few did rejoice at the tidings of disaster, it was in secret. The power of party prejudice is often strong, and whatever may have been seen on such occasions to indicate a want of sympathy in the common feeling of horror at the defeats of which sometimes there was news, it should have been attributed rather to gratification felt that their own predictions and forebodings had been verified, rather than to any sentiments of disloyalty to their country, or sympathy with those who were attempting its destruction. It was the feeling that so often prompts the " I told you so," when we hear of calamities of any kind which we have predicted.

When, just in the midst of the intense joy that was felt over the capture of Richmond and the surrender of Gen. Lee, there came the news of the assassination of President Lincoln, there was an almost universal expression of horror. An incident somewhat remarkable took place in Valparaiso at that time. F. W. Hunt had a clerk in his employ who had been in the habit of voting the Democratic ticket, and who was sometimes accused of not being in sympathy with the prosecution of the war. In the midst of the excitement caused by the assassination, and when the people were ripe for thoughtless revenge, the assertion was made by some one, that he had heard this clerk expressing joy at the death of Lincoln. Immediately, without any inquiry into the truth of the charge, the report spread from mouth to mouth, and for a time the life of the young man was in danger. He was deeply hurt, soon after left the place, and, it was said, never recovered from the effect produced upon his mind by the affair. Within a year of the time, perhaps, he sank disheartened into an early grave, having returned to his home in the Bast. In the mean time, his accuser removed to the far West, and the matter had almost passed from the minds of men, when he, being upon his deathbed, confessed, with deep repentance, that the charge which had cast a blight upon the reputation of another, and had caused his life to wither, had been an invention of his own, not planned in express malice, perhaps, but in recklessness, and in the desire to add to the excitement, and to bring himself into some prominence and notoriety. At that time, public meetings were held, the usual resolutions were adopted, appropriate sermons were preached in the various churches, and the appointed fast observed with due solemnity. At length the cruel war was over, and Johnny came marching home, and nearly every Johnny had friends to give him a glad welcome. The men who had been over Dixie from the Island No. 10 to Galveston, following Sherman on his march to the sea, or fighting "mit Sigel " on the Rappahannock, made the grateful change from the wild trade of warfare to the tamer pursuits of peace in agriculture or trade, and by industry and thrift, have helped to build up the nation's wealth with their own. The record of Porter County during the war, whether as to the number and the valor of her troops in the field, or the loyalty and liberality of her citizens who remained at home, is an honorable one. To the women of Porter County not less than to the men, praise is due for the loval spirit that prevailed and the earnest efforts that were made to succor the wounded, and minister to the wants of the suffering heroes of the county. Since the close of the war, there have been occasional re-unions at Valparaiso which have called forth the battle-scarred veterans to recount their adventures in camp and prison and conflict, and to laugh over their ancient jests retold. On these occasions, the citizens have taken pleasure in furnishing the needed refreshments, not only for the soldiers, but for their families. For Johnny is now not so much of a son and lover as he is husband and father. The boys, many of them, are turning gray-beards, and after the saving of the nation, are now helping to develop and control it. They are the Road Supervisors, School Directors and Township Trustees. Some of them have held county offices. Some are in the employ of the General Government in various departments. At least two of them write M. C. after their names, and more of them would be willing to. Nor has the national custom of honoring the heroic dead by annual visits to the local cemetery been forgotten. Large numbers of the people assemble for these rites, and leave upon the graves of deceased soldiers coronals and bouquets of evergreens and such flowers as this northern latitude produces on the 30th of May. No effort, however, has been made to perpetuate or develop the warlike spirit in this community by military organizations. There has not been, since the war, a military company or battalion or squad in the county, and hence neither drill nor encampment, nor parades. But the spirit of patriotism that abides in the hearts of the people is strengthened by the remembrance of the treasure and blood which our country and her institutions have cost. May God grant us perpetual and honorable peace, and bring in the day when swords shall be beaten into plow shares and spears into pruning hooks, and the nations learn war no more. Amen.

-Porter County Seat-Thb Public Square - First and Subsequent Houses - Merchandising and Manufacturing - Professional and Business Men - General Growth of Valparaiso - Secret Organizations - Incorporation - The Woman's Temperance Crusade - Public AND Private Educational Enterprises- The Noemal~Religious Recoed - Concluding Anecdotes.

rr^HE Main Branch of the stream known as Crooked Creek, -L which empties into the Kankakee, and is one of the few considerable streams in the county, has its origin at the southeastern part of Flint Lake, running in a southeast direction to the Washington Township line. Another stream rises near the southwest corner of Section 3, runs in a northwest direction through Section 4 to the extreme northwest corner of the township, and presently empties into Salt Creek, in Portage Township. Upon this creek Henry's Mill is located. The northern branch of Salt Creek also rises in this township, having its origin near to Round Lake in the southeast corner of Section 13, runs in a southeastern direction through Sections 24, 19 and 30, when it barely cuts the line of Washington Township, on the Starr fa.rm, whence it runs in a southwesterly and westerly direction, through Section 30 to Section 25, whence, after leaving Sager's Pond, it runs in a northwesterly direction to its junction with the main branch, thus making at least two- thirds the circuit of Valparaiso. On this branch is Sager's Mill, having one of the best water-powers in the county. The other branch, which rises in the southwestern corner of Washington Township, and makes a circuit of about three miles through Morgan Township, enters Centre Township at the southwest corner of Section 36, runs in a northwesterly direction through Sections 35 and 26 to the junction near the southwestern corner of Valparaiso, whence the united stream runs in a northwesterly direction to the line of Union Township. On this main stream, at a distance of three miles northwest from Valparaiso, is McConkey's Mill.

Round Lake, with a reef of pond lilies surrounding its deeper parts, is a small but deep and clear body of water, as nearly circular as possible, from which feature its name is derived. It is one of those lakes whose depth, according to the belief of all the small boys and of some men, has never been measured. It is nearly two and a half miles northwest of Valparaiso, on the west side of the Chesterton road. Flint Lake, the most considerable body of water in the township, is a little more than three miles in a northeasterly direction from Valparaiso ; is nearly circular in shape ; is about forty feet in depth, and is depended upon as the future source of water supply for Valparaiso, its water being very pure and free from all mineral substances. It covers an area of nearly 200 acres, abounds in black bass of the large-mouthed variety, and in fine speckled bass and perch, and is a great resort for boating and fishing. Long Lake, so named from its shape, extending from north to south, is north and west of Flint Lake, into which ^t empties its waters by a connecting ditch. It covers nearly the same area as Flint Lake, but is of less depth. About one-third of it lies in Liberty Township.

In the neighborhood of Salt Creek are peat bogs of considerable extent. In general, the water which percolates through these bogs is strongly impregnated with iron, and underlying them in many places are considerable layers of bog ore. There are also occasional deposits of pyrites of iron, and various kinds of iron ore in the hills about Valparaiso, and it is no uncommon thing to find clays highly colored with oxide of iron. These are the only minerals of importance in the township so far as known.

An unsuccessful attempt was made at boring for petroleum in the neighborhood of Valparaiso about the year 1864. The signs of iron ore are so abundant as to lead to the conjecture that at some not very distant day that substance may be found in such quantities as to warrant the establishment of smelting works at Valparaiso. No use has been found for the peat, as it is not of such quality as to render its use for fuel economical. There are also deposits of marl in the Salt Creek Valley, and it is said that it was once used in the township for the production of lime. In the neighborhood of Flint Lake are cranberry marshes, but not of great extent. From Valparaiso to the northeast, Morgan Prairie, a sandy loam, lies south of the La Porte road, with the " thick timber " to the north of it, and from Valparaiso to the southwest, Horse Prairie, a rich mold with subsoil of blue clay, extends along the south side of the Hebron road, while on the north of it are clay knobs with oak timber. Originally, about three-fourths of the township was covered with timber. Around Valparaiso, to the south and southwest, and to the northwest, are hills and ravines. From the high grounds to the north of the city, the valley of the Salt Creek presents a prospect of rare beauty, while from a point on the farm of James Fulton, about four and one-half miles northwest from Valparaiso, may be seen, on a clear day, the sand hills which skirt Lake Michigan. Going west from Valparaiso on the Joliet road, the soil is of alternate sand and clay, while to the north of Valparaiso, the soil is largely a stiff clay. The original forests were chiefly of the different varieties of oak, white predominating, though there were also considerable quantities of hard and soft maple, beech, black walnut, butternut, hickory, basswood, white ash and several varieties of the elm. Wild flowers are found in abundance from early spring till after the heavy frosts of autumn. In the lakes, there is an abundance of the white pond lily, and it would take a botanist to name all the flowers of wood and marsh and field, from the modest violet of the springtime, to the glorious golden rod of September. The prairie soils of the township are well adapted both to grains and grass, while the clay soils, with proper drainage and culture, will well repay the husbandman, either for dairy purposes or crops. The larger fruits have proved ve^y uncertain, failing more frequently than they succeed. Grapes have not ripened well for several years past. Blackberries are liable to suffer from severe winters, while raspberries more frequently succeed. The strawberry is here on its native heath, and is not only productive but of excellent quality. Several attempts have been made to cultivate the cranberry on our marshes, but without success, while the native marshes yielding that fruit have been more profitable than any equal quantity of farming lands. The cultivation of the potato and other esculent roots has generally been profitable. All the ordinary domestic animals and poultry of the Northern States do well here. The black and fox and red squirrels, which were once abundant, have almost disappeared. Gophers are found in considerable, but not in annoying numbers. Ground hogs are still sufficiently numerous to foretell the speedy coming or delay of spring, for such as care to or can observe. From the earliest settlement of the township until within two or three years, wild turkeys have annually been killed in its northern parts. From the sand hills of Lake Michigan to the " islands" of the Kankakee was the original paradise of the wild deer, nor had they entirely disappeared from the northern part of the township until within the last twenty years. Centre Township is six miles north and south by five miles east and west, being four miles in width on the east side of Town 35j Range 6, and one mile in width from the west side of Town 35, Range 5. It was organized by the first Board of County Commissioners at their first session, which was held April 12 and 13, 1836, and was so named from its geographical position, the round house of the P. Ft. W. & C. R. R., at Valparaiso, which is about a half mile south of the center of the township, being as near as may be the center of the county. The first white settlers in this region found, on the west side of the southeast quarter of Section 19, Range 5, a little north of the La Porte road, a small Indian village of perhaps a dozen lodges, which was called Chiqua's town, from an Indian who had been a chief of a remnant of the Pottawatomies, the former owners of the soil, but who had been degraded from his chieftainship after a big drunk in which he had participated, and during which his cabin had taken fire and his wife had been burned to death. He was, however, still regarded as a man of some importance in his band. These Indians were not permanent residents of the village, but often absented themselves to spend a considerable time in their favorite hunting and fishing grounds on the Kankakee. For a few years after the first settlement of the township, they would occasionally return to that spot and spend the time in feasting and dancing, dog meat being their favorite dish. G. W. Bartholomew once told the writer of an invitation he had to one of these feasts on fat dog at some place not far from the Kankakee. An Indian named Wap-muk had aimed and fired ofi' bis gun in such a way as to take off the top of the head of another brave. Of course, according to the Indian law, the life of the slayer was forfeited, but the matter was compromised by his paying to the widow the estimated value of the dead Indian. This was the more feasible, from the fact that the deceased had been a drunken and worthless fellow, and hence, judged to be worth little either to his family or the band. This happy ending of a deplorable affair was celebrated by killing the fatted dog and an invitation to young Bartholomew to participate.

The pioneers, in selecting their claims previous to the Government survey and the land sale, took their course from Door Prairie westward along the line which divided the thick timber from the prairie, so as to have the advantages offered by each, and the last comer built his cabin just a little beyond that of the previous one. In the fall of 1833, this border land of wood and prairie, had been claimed to the very eastern edge of Centre Township. Adam S. Campbell, with his family, having come from the State of New York, it was their hap to light upon the last piece of unoccupied land in Washington Township, lying upon that highlyfavored line of wood and prairie. This was in May, 1833. His son, Samuel A. Campbell, now resides at the same place. There were, at that time, no settlers in Centre Township.

Shortly after Mr. Campbell had set his stakes, there came a man named Seth Hull, who passed over the invisible boundary into Centre Township, made his claim on the site of Chiqua's Town, where is now the residence of the venerable Judge Jesse Johnson, and built himself a cabijji there. He did not remain long, however, but it is said went farther West into Illinois, having sold his claim, to Selah Wallace, who became the purchaser of the tract at the land sale in 1885. He was, however, the first white settler of the township. In the fall and winter of 1833, Thomas A. E. Campbell, a young man, and the nephew of Adam S. Campbell, made a claim and built a house between Wallace's and A. S. Campbell s. He never perfected this claim, but went back soon after making it to County, N. Y., and did not return to this county till 1835. From that time, however, until his death, a few years since, he resided continually in the township and was the recipient of numerous honors at the hands of the citizens of the county. After his return, he soon purchased of Philander A. Paine the northeast quarter of Section 23, where he made his home during the remainder of his life, and where his widow now resides. Selah Wallace's father made a claim on what is now the S. S. Skinner farm and about one mile east of Valparaiso, and came there in the spring of 1834 to live. He was the fourth resident of the township. In 1834, a man named Nise settled on the northwest quarter of Section 24, and about three-quarters of a mile northeast from the public square in Valparaiso, but either sold his claim or abandoned it. Theodore Jones made a claim, and occupied it, on the southwest quarter of ' Section 19, just west of the elder Wallace's place. This was in 1834. His brother Levi kept bachelor's hall with him. They stayed about a year. Isaac Morgan made the first improvement on that land. A man named Paine, the father of Philander A. Paine, in 1834 or 1835, located on the east side of the Joliet bridge over Salt Creek, built a log cabin and commenced building a saw-mill, which was never completed, though logs had been hauled from a considerable distance to be sawed. He also sold to T. A. E. Campbell. Charles Minnick located on the northeast quarter of Section 24, after its abandonment by Nise. He obtained the east half of that quarter on easy terms. At the sale of lands in 1835, he had not the money to purchase his claim, but a man named Walker, who was interested in the location of the county seat, in consideration of the surrender of the west half of his claim, gave him the money to buy the east half. This Minnick was a Dutchman, and was subsequently Sheriff of the county. During his term, the Hon. Gustavus A. Everts, of La Porte, frequently had business as an attorney in the Porter County Courts. The name was more than a mouthful for the Sheriff, who always, at the court house door, called for him as Grustavivus A. Everts! Samuel Shigley, in 1835 or 1836, built a saw-mill on the site now occupied by William Sager as a flouring mill ; that is to say, on Salt Creek, one mile south of Valparaiso. When Adam S. Campbell was on his way to the West, he was met in Elkhart County by a wandering and eccentric character, known as " Bee hunter Clark," who advised him to locate where he did. This Bee-hunter Clark did himself locate in 1834, in the extreme northwest part of the township, at the present site of Henry's Mills. Benjamin McCarty located on the southwest quarter of Section 22, on the Joliet road, in 1834.

Mr. C. A. Ballard built a house on the northwest quarter of Section 25, near a spring and stream, on grounds now belonging to W. C. Talcott. This was not earlier than 1834 or 1835. The place was just south of the land afterward laid out as Portersville. Ruel Starr settled on the eastern side of the township in 1834, and resided in or near the township till his death in 1875, received honors from the people, and acquired a considerable estate. Alanson Finney settled west of Starr's place in 1835. Henry Stoner, Abraham Stoner and a man named Billups came in 1835, and settled in the southeast part of the township.

The first election held in the township was in February, 1886, for county oflScers. The next election was held at the residence of C. A. Ballard, April 3, 1836, for one Justice of the Peace. At this election, thirteen votes were cast, and Ruel Starr, G. Z. Salyer and John McConnell being candidates, the first-named received nine votes and was elected. May 28 of the same year and at the same place, G. Z. Salyer received eight votes for Justice of the Peace out of a total of fifteen. In August, 1836, at C. A. Ballard's, thirty-three votes were cast for State Senator. On the 7th of November, 1836, at the Presidential election, out of 105 votes polled, Harrison received fifty-nine and Van Buren forty-five. That was held at the house of William Walker in Portersville. August 7, 1837, at the State election which was held in the court house, David Wallace received 101 votes for Governor out of a total of 126. April 2, 1838, the following township officers were elected : Constables - J. W. Wright, I. Allen, H. G. Hollister ; Inspector, G. W. Salisbury ; Supervisor of Roads, William Eaton; Overseers of Poor, Charles G. Minnick, Robert Wallace; Fence Viewers, Thomas Butler, William Bingham. At the State election, August 3, 1839, Tighlman A. Howard received ninety-two votes out of a total of 166 for member of Congress. August 3, 1840, Samuel Bigger received 102 for Governor against 100 for Tighlman A. Howard. Henry S. Lane received 103 for Member of Congress, while for State Secretary, Sylvanus Everts received 100 against 101 for Charles W. Cathcart. August 22 of the same year, at an election for Associate Judge, there were 158 votes cast, and the result was a tie between John Herr and Peter D. Cline. November 2, 1840, out of 287 votes for President, Harrison received 149 ; Van Buren, 137. November, 1844, for President, Polk and Dallas, fifty-seven ; Clay and Frelinghuysen, sixty- two; Birney and Morris none, though a few votes were cast in the county for the Abolition candidates. August 4, 1845, for Member of Congress, Samuel C. Sample, sixty-four; Charles W. Cathcart, seventy-one. For Representative, Aaron Lytle received sixtysix, Alexander McDonald, seventy. August, 1846, for Governor, James Whitcomb, seventy-seven; Joseph G. Marshall, eighty-three. State

From the first, the people of the township devoted themselves to agricultural pursuits, lived in a very plain way, as they still do, and were fairly prosperous in temporal affairs. The monotony of farm life was varied by an occasional visit to the county seat, especially on show or election days, and frequently the question was decided as to which of two was the better man by seeing which could stand the most punishment without crying "Enough." The wheat, as it was threshed, was hauled to Michigan City, and the farmers had to be satisfied to receive no more than 50 cents for it there. Corn was generally fed, as it did not pay to bring it to market. As late as 1860-61, corn sold in Valparaiso for 15 cents a bushel, the pay being in currency, worth on an average about 85 cents on the dollar. Pork sometimes brought no more than $1.50 per hundred.

At an early period, wild game was abundant, such as deer, wild turkeys, grouse, quail, squirrels, and the salt pork of the settler was relieved by frequent feasts procured by the rifle or shot-gun from the forest or prairie. At a certain dancing party held in a country cabin, an immense dish of squirrels was the chief attraction at supper. Frequent reference to a bottle of corn-juice had rendered host and guests less squeamish than usual, so that an accident by which the dish was upset on the puncheon floor proved to be only a momentary interruption, but a subsequent deposit in it of guano by the poultry roosting overhead proved to be more than they could stand, and supper was forthwith ended in disgust. Disorders, however, were rare, for the population was for the most part moral and industrious and not given to spreeing or riotous proceedings of any kind. The inhabitants were at the first generally natives of the United States, being from more southerly portions of Indiana, from Athens and Wayne Counties in Ohio, from New York, Pennsylvania, and from Virginia. Until mills were erected in the township or county, the people resorted to Union Mills, La Porte County, for flour, and for some time received their groceries, iron and merchandise generally from Michigan City.

The first birth in the township is uncertain. The first marriage was that of Richard Henthorne and Jane Spurlock, May 5, 1836, by Cyrus Spurlock, who was a Methodist minister and also Recorder of the county. The marriage of William Eaton to Susannah Ault, by Elijah Casteel, on June 4, 1836, was probably in Portersville, this township, and the marriage of Rev. W. K. Talbott to Sinai Ann McConnell, on July 13, 1836, was doubtless in Centre Township. Of the first death and burial within the limits of the township, no authentic public records have been kept, and the recollection of the early settlers is indistinct. It is thought that a number of infants or very young children had passed away before the death of any adult. The first woman of whose death we have any certain account was the mother of John N. and S. S. Skinner, well known in the political and business history of the county. Her death occurred in April, 1839. She was buried on the slope just above the Valparaiso Paper Mill, whence her remains were removed some years since to the cemetery. Solomon Cheney, who came to Portersville in the winter of 1836-37, died in November, 1839. His funeral sermon was preached by Elder Comer, and his remains were interred on the west side of the hill in the old cemetery, the original ground of which was donated by the Cheney family for a burial place. His sister, the wife of John Herr, died a few weeks afterward in January, 1840. Her funeral sermon was preached by Rev. James C. Brown, and she was buried near her brother.

There is of course great similarity in all the pioneer history of the West during the same period. There were the same log-rollings, houseraisings and amusements that prevailed in the other new settlements, and diversified with occasional indulgence in distilled spirits and personal rencounters, resulting in disfigured features, though the residents of Centre Township have borne a reputation for peacefulness even in those days. No serious alarms were experienced from the presence of the Indians, though they were not very agreeable neighbors. No such encounters with bears and wolves as one reads of in the lives of Boone and Crockett took place here, though the old hunters of that day could entertain you by the hour with their tales of the pursuit of deer. The barking of the prairie wolf was a familiar sound, but carried with it no alarm, save for the safety of the pigs and calves.

The new-comers had followed from La Porte County the Indian trail to the southwest, which skirted the border land before spoken of. Where Door Village is in that county, there is an opening between forests on the north and groves of timber to the south, giving it some resemblance to a door or gate between that portion of the prairie on the east and that on the west of it. Whatever may have been the Indian name of it, the gap received the French appellation of La Porte, which was given also to the prairie, and afterward to the county. The names of village and prairie have been anglicized, and are now called Door. Through that gap poured the stream of emigration following the path before marked out by the red men to where Valparaiso now is. At this point, the trail continued to the west across Salt Creek in the direction of Joliet, while another diverged to the northwest, running in the direction of Fort Dearborn. Along the high lands between Crooked Creek and Sandy Hook, there had doubtless been from immemorial times a trail from Lake Mich- igan and the head-waters of the Calumet to the Kankakee. This ran either through or just east of the site of Valparaiso. It is said that the intrepid La Salle 200 years ago passed northward over this trail when returning weary and disheartened from his expedition down the Kankakee. These oboriginal engineers were wise in marking out the paths by which their white successors were to go, but the wagon roads overlying these paths have not done much honor to the present possessors of the soil, since both for want of material for improving the highways and the desultory and reckless employment of means for that purpose, their condition has been such as to reflect no credit upon the people of the township. The building of a plank road from Valparaiso to Michigan City by a company organized for that purpose (1850-53), and a present attempt to improve the streets of Valparaiso by overlaying them with gravel, being the only efforts at bettering the public highways worthy of mention, since the organization of the township. There being no rivers or large streams in the township, the building of bridges has been an insignificant item in the construction of roadways, and this leads to the remark that the great water-shed between the Mississippi system and that -of the great lakes, passing, as it does, through this township southward to the west of Long Lake, and thence southeasterly, making a circuit through Washington and Morgan around the course of Salt Creek, and re-entering Centre Township at its southwest corner, is a very sure protection of this region against any serious devastations by floods. We read of farms and cities and whole valleys being inundated, and of bridges and houses and crops being swept away by swelling floods, but here the people can sit in quiet security while torrents descend from the skies, assured that the floods cannot overflow them.

The writer has never heard of any country taverns kept at an early day along the lines of travel for the shelter and refreshment of wayfarers. Doubtless, the latch-string of the settler was " out " for the hungry, weary or belated, and the rude cabin, or more comfortable home, afforded the accommodation which there was no wayside inn to give. The only public houses of the township have been in Valparaiso, and will be spoken of further on.

The first attempt at the erection of a saw-mill has been spoken of. A little later, a mill was put up and run for several years for carding wool by a man named Kinsey, about one and a half miles south of Valparaiso, just below the hill that skirts the valley of Salt Creek. The water flowed from a large spring, and was carried through a hollow beech log to an overshot wheel of great diameter. Attached to this power, was also a pair of buhrs, said to have been about the size of a half bushel measure, which were used for grinding both wheat and corn. On Salt Creek, half a mile above Sager's mill, Jacob Axe a little later erected a cardlng-mill, which was used for several years. In 1841, William Cheney built the flouring-mill now owned by William Sager. This subsequently came into the possession of M. B. Crosby. Since coming into Mr. Sager's possession, it was, in 1864, greatly enlarged and improved. Subsequently, there was built the flouring-mill owned since 1866 by William McConkey, formerly Eglin's mill. In 1852, William Cheney and Truman Freeman built a small flouring-mill just south of the corporate limits of Valparaiso. The power is furnished for the most part by springs flowing from beneath the bench of land that skirts the southeastern and southern sides of the city. This mill passed into the hands of the present owner in 1861. In 1855, Samuel Haas and M. B. Crosby built a steam floui-ing and saw mill within the limits of Valparaiso, on the present site of Kellogg Brothers' machine shops. Its cost was $15,000. On the 7th of June, 1861, S. P. Robbins and a Mr. Cronin, of Chicago, having become interested in it, it was burned with all its contents, involving the owners in heavy loss. The timber of the county being nearly all north of Valparaiso, we must look in that direction for its manufacture. There being no waterpower north of Valparaiso, a steam saw-mill was put up at Flint Lake, at a date now uncertain, by a man named Allen. It was subsequently owned by Capt. Hixon, and was sold by him to Aaron Lytle, and afterward owned by the latter and his son Richard W. It was bought by T. A. Hogan about 1861. It had two twenty-eight-foot boilers, forty-four inches in diameter. In 1863, the end of one of these boilers blew out, and the boiler was lifted up bodily and carried a distance of twenty-five rods into the marsh at the lower end of Flint Lake. In 1867, the mill was sold to Richard W. Lytle, and afterward the boiler was removed to the paper mill then being erected in Valparaiso. The date of the erection of Mr. Henry's mills, in the extreme northwest corner of the township, is unknown to the writer. About 1878, John McQuiston built a saw-mill at Flintville, which was burned in 1881. In connection with the steam saw-mill at Flint Lake, Daniel Depew, agent for certain parties living at Sycamore, 111., carried on for a number of years quite an extensive stave factory. All the timber available for such uses having been consumed, the work was abandoned about 1867. J. G. XJpdyke, after the completion of the Peninsular Railroad, built a saw-mill near the depot of that road, which, after being operated for a few years, was removed to Section 8, in Washington Township. The first tannery in the township was built by a Mr. Hatch in 1843, south of the corporate limits of Valparaiso at the time. Afterward, a small tannery was carried by John Marks south of the present line of the Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad, and just east of Franklin street. About 1860, a Mr. Gerber built a

Steam tannery on grounds south of the Fort Wayne Railroad, and on the east side of Washington street. In 1865, it passed into the hands of George Powell and John Wark, and, in 1868, into the hands of William Powell and John Wark. In 1871, Wark sold to Powell. In 1874, it was burned to the ground, and the tanning business ceased in Centre Township and Valparaiso to this day.

The population of the township, including Valparaiso, was, in 1850, 1,012 ; in 1860, it was 2,745 ; in 1870, it was 4,159 ; in 1880, it was 5,957. The population of the township, outside of Valparaiso, was, at these several decades, 492, 1,055, 1,394, 1,497. The foreign born population in the whole township, in 1870, was 872. Of these, 272 resided outside of Valparaiso. They are chiefly from Germany (more especially from Schleswig-Holstein), Ireland and Canada. Among the latter, are quite a number of Canadian French. The census reports for 1880 not being published as yet, the number of foreign birth cannot be given here.

Valparaiso. - It is seldom that a county having its resources and population, has within its borders so few villages of any pretensions as Porter County, Ind. And Centre Township has from the first been virtually without any village or city except Valparaiso. Flintville, laid out in 1875 by Wheeler Goodman et ah, near Flint Lake, on the west half of the southeast quarter of Section 6, Town 35, Range 5 west, is a little hamlet having a few residences, a blacksmith and wagon shop and a small saw mill ; while Emmettsburg, laid out by S. I. Anthony and T. A. B. Campbell, December 8, 1868, is merely a suburb of Valparaiso.

Some towns have grown up where they are, from the very nature of things. A water power or a crossing of roads gives rise to a factory or a little store, and by gradual accretion there comes to be an assemblage of houses and an increase of business which, at length, necessitates the laying out and incorporation of a village. Other towns have their origin in the speculative minds of men. Thus it was with the town of Portersville. In the early settlement of this State, and its organization into counties, there were wide-awake men who found it to their interest to be on hand at these organizations, and to have a hand in the location of the county seats. This was of course perfectly legitimate, if pursued without corruption. A man named Benjamin McOarty, who had settled on what is now known as the Hicks place, west of Valparaiso on the Joliet road, became the legal owner of the southwest quarter of Section 24, in Town 35, Range 6. It was on the road from La Porte to Fort Dearborn and Joliet, and at the point where that road forks, in order to reach the two places named, the new county having been formed with tte territory of Lake attached, but with the understanding that that was soon to be or- ganized as a separate county, that particular quarter section belonging to Mr. McCarty was also at the geographical center of the county, as it was to be. It appears that before the meeting of the Commissioners of the new county in June, 1836, there was in existence the Portersville Land Company. The plat of the town of Portersville bears date July 7, 183fi, and was recorded October 31, 1836. It consisted of forty-two blocks, with the intervening streets and intersecting alleys, bounded on the south by Water street, on the east by Morgan street, on the west by Outlets, 15 to 20, inclusive, while the northern limits consist of Blocks 1 to 5, inclusive, being a strip of four rods in width lying north of Erie street. How the Land Company had its origin is now a matter of conjecture. Its members were J. F. D. Lanier (then a resident of Madison in this State, but afterward a distinguished banker and financier of New York City, and recently deceased), Benjamin McCarty, Enoch McCarty, John Walker, William Walker, James Laughlin, John Saylor and Abram A. Hall. Whether the other members of the company bought their shares from Benjamim McCarty, or whether they were a gift to them in order to secure their influence, is not known. There were three other sites pressing upon the Commissioners their several advantages. One of these was at Prattville ; another was at Flint Lake, in which the Fletchers, of Indianapolis, were interested, and the other was a mile and a half northwest of Valparaiso, on the Chicago road. The last was owned by W. K. Talbott, with others, perhaps, interested. Mr. Talbott was a Presbyterian preacher, a school teacher, a Freemason, a politician and something of a speculator. There was not a house in the town of Portersville, and there was, therefore, nothing to hinder its being seen. From the records of the Commissioners, it appears that their dealings were with the Portersville Land Company and not with the legal owner of the land, and that company was able to show a fairly handsome site, to prove that their town was in the very center of the county, and, therefore, most convenient to the population that would come in ; and, furthermore, they proposed to give to the county Block 23, and ninety-six lots in blocks numbered 11 to 35, inclusive ; that is, half the lots in twenty-four blocks. In addition to this, they proposed to donate to the county $1,200 for the erection of public buildings. There is no evidence that they paid, or offered to pay, anything to the Commissioners, personally, or even that they treated them to brandy or cigars. There is no sign of corruption in what was done, but everything to show that the Commissioners had a single eye to the good of the county. It is evident now that Portersville was the right place for the county seat. Only this, the Land Company was fortunate in owning the right piece of property. This munificent offer having been accepted by the Commissioners, they instructed the county agent, Mr. Samuel Olinger, to receive the gift in behalf of the county. The whole of Block 23 (now the public square), was given to the seat of justice of the county. As it is expected that the Commissioners will soon erect a new court house, it has been freely suggested that it would be well to build it on some lot facing the public square, and that that should be reserved as a public park. In view of this, it may be well to refer here to the conditions of the original gift, which are fouod recorded on page 101 in Deed Record A, in the Recorder's office of Porter County, and are in the words following, viz. :

Therefore, in consideration of the seat of justice as aforesaid being and remaining permanently fixed as located by said Commissioners at or near the southwest quarter of Section 24, Township 35, north Range 6 west, in the La Porte Land District, the said Benjamin McCarty being the legal owner of said southwest quarter of said Section, have by virtue of said location and in consideration of the county seat remaining permanently fixed upon the public square, as laid off at or near the center of said quarter section and the public buildings erected thereon, have granted, donated and confirmed unto the said Samuel Olinger, agent appointed agreeably by law for said county, and to his successors in ofiBice, block or square No. 23, in the town of Portersville, county and State aforesaid, as the public square and seat of justice for said county of Porter, it being the ground chosen by the said Commissioners for the county seat of said Porter County, * * * and each alternate of 192 lots laid off around the public square, and numbered, etc.

Who was the Brst to obstruct the vision of the beautiful town of Portersville by the erection of a house ? In the " History of Valparaiso, by a Citizen," published in 1876, it is stated that as soon as the struggle between the rivals for the county seat had " fairly begun, building enterprises began in the east town, as it seemed to win confidence from the the start." " In the spring " - evidently meaning the spring of 1836 - " a rough board structure was erected by Cyrus Spurlock, the first Recorder of the county, on the site of the Academy of Music." But the testimony of the old settlers seems to be about unanimous that at the time the county seat was located there was not a building of any kind within the limits of the town as laid off. What's the odds who was the very first to set a stake or drive a nail when quite a number began to build nearly about the same time? that is, when the lots had been offered for sale after the location of the county seat. In the latter part of the summer of 1836, as seems most probable, the work of building began, and went forward, not as it now does in an oil or mining town, but with considerable energy. From one who came here in December, 1836, and has resided here ever since, the writer learns that he saw on his first arrival these buildings : 1. A one-story frame building on Lot 7, Block 28, in two rooms, built by William Eaton, who, with his family, occupied one room, while the other was taken and occupied in January, 1837, by two families, aggregating eleven persons. It was only boarded up oq the outside. 2. There was also a log cabin on the north side of Rlain street, on Lot 7, Block 20. 3. On Lot 3, Block 27, south side of Mechanic street, was a log house occupied by Cyrus Spurlock, and there, doubtless, the Recorder's office was kept. 4. There was also a frame building on the site of the Academy of Music, where two sons of " Beehunter " Clark sold notions and liquor. 5. Dr. Miller Blachley lived on Main street, opposite the public square, on the west side of Lot No. 6, Block 18, where the shoe store of A. J. Pierce & Bro. now is. 6. On (corner) Lot 5, same block, was a"^ chair-maker, a single man, who kept a shop, and who afterward sold to a man named Stotts. 7. William Walker had a house on the south side of Monroe street. Block 31 (Talcott. property), in which Hatch, the tanner, afterward lived . 8. John Saylor had a house where Dillingham Brothers' store now is, that is, on Lot 7, Block 18, opposite the court house. There the first court was held in October, 1836, Judge Samuel C. Sample administering, with the other officers and the aid of a grand and petit jury, such justice as the times called for. In December of that same year, the courtly Jeremiah Hamell was found keeping a store in the front part of John Saylor's house aforesaid. Mr. Saylor lived in the back part of the house, and sometimes entertained travelers there, for at that time there was not a tavern in the place. Mr. Hamell had not a very large stock of goods on hand, but he could not have been more affable if he had been in charge of Marshall Field & Co.'s establishment. A lady from the southern part of the county, then young and fond of a joke, having called in and made a purchase, was addresised by the proprietor with, " Madam, is there anything more I can show you?" "Mr. Hamell, I think I'll just take the rest of your stock home in my saddle-bags, select what I want and send the balance back." No man was a more important figure in the early history of the county than Jeremiah Hamell. Energetic in business, pleasing in manners, intelligent in public affairs, a Whig in politics and with the prospect of many honors before nim, respected, honored, beloved, he passed away from earth in early manhood. His death occurred March 14, 1846. It is generally believed that Mr. Hamell had the first stock of goods in the place, then John Bishop, and then Dr. Seneca Ball, another prominent character in our early history. He came from La Porte, put up the frame building in which Mr. Porter now lives (southwest corner Franklin and Jefferson), on the northwest corner of Main and Franklin streets. In the front part of that he kept store and lived in the back part of it. The goods kept by these merchants and those that followed them for a good many years were varied in character - hats and caps for men and boys, ladies' bonnets and ribbons, calico, broadcloth, linsey-woolsey, iron, nails, rakes, hoes, grain cradles and sickles, tin pans and iron kettles, blue vitriol, indigo, madder, saffron, annotto, logwood, sulphur, red precipitate, spices, sugar, coffee, tea, harness, buckles and black strap. When their goods came on from the Bast, as they did twice a year, they had a "heap of nice things." to exhibit to their customers and tempt them to extravagance. The list of storekeepers since their day is too long for repetition. Some came and put out their flaring show-bills and trumpeted their own praises for a little while as the Mw York Store or the Philadelphia or Boston House, sold their goods and their customers, and after a brief season of notoriety quietly packed up their goods and stole away. Others came to stay, and held on their prosperous way. Abel Isham was one of the first to engage in harness and saddlery trade. He afterward turned his attention to books, stationery, etc., and met with repeated misfortunes, his stock and building burning up, without insurance, in 1866-67. He subsequently built the brick storeroom now occupied by Peirce's shoe store, and in his old age is shut out from the sight of day. He has been well known and honored.. After him, many others engaged in the harness trade, among them were William Mann, the Vanattas, father and son, and those at present in the trade.

About 1853, John Dunning and his son Warren sold stoves and tinware. Nearly about the same time, Joseph Whit more engaged in the same business, and, being a practical tinner, from time to time set up in the trade until, after the death of his wife, his family became scattered, and he departed to other fields. Joe was rather a peculiar character ; goodhearted and industrious, but of peculiar notions, and somehow failing, like many a worthy man, to get on in the world. Henry Bickford was engaged in the hardware business about 1857 ; was succeeded by Carpenter & Parke, in 1859 ; they by Carpenter & Febles, in 1861 ; they by Hawkins & Freeman, in 1862 ; they by Hawkins & Cornell, in 1870 ; Hawkins & Haste, 1871 ; Hawkins, Haste & Co., 1874 ; James B. Hawkins, 1877. Whitmore & Brewer, in the same business, were succeeded by Hubbard Hunt in November, 1859 ; sold to Wilson & Felton in 1863 ; afterward William Wilson. Gr. A. Sayles came from Ohio and bought into a small stock of hardware in 1855. Being a practical tinner, has had as partners at various times I. D. Marshall, William Wilson, Horace Foot, 1858 ; J. C. Pierce, 1866 ; Eobest Jones, 1877 ; James McFetrich, 1879.

Of dealers in drugs, there were Joseph Lomax, about 1845-46 ; Lomax & Treat, 1848 ; Lomax sold to Treat in 1849 ; he to Porter, Porter to William Harrison ; Bryant & Harrison, spring of 1851 ; S. R. Bryant drew out in the fall of 1851, and established the Old Line Drug Store, and continued the business for many years. Other druggists have been Aaron & T. G. Lytle, about 1853 or 1854 ; Hiram Loomis, about 1855 or 1856, burned out a second time January, 1866, and retired from tbe business. Also R. A. Cameron, both before and for a short time after the war. Others have been Frank Commerford, Commerford & Marshall, W. P. Wilcox, McCarthy & Dunham, Rowley & Son and Rowley &^ Letherman.

Who can tell who was the first shoemaker? Let him rise and speak. The first shoe store was kept by William Wilson ; then Wilson & Hawkins. There have been many others since, among whom were C. Bloch, E. T. Isbell, Isbell & Kennedy, Kennedy & Peirce, George Flake, etc.

The manufacturers and dealers in fmrniture have been N. R. Strong, in 1848 or 1849 ; A. Kellogg & Sons engaged in the manufacture of cabinet work in connection with their foundry and machine shops about 1857, and others have been the Le Pells, father and sons, starting about the same time as the Kelloggs, and continuing the business in the family to this day. Samuel Le Baron, furniture and agricultural implements, 1865 to 1867 ; succeeded by J. M. McGill, and be by George Babcock, agricultural implements only ; C. W. Zorn, furniture and repairing and carriage building and trimming.