Wabash County, Indiana - The whole text, 1914 (part 3 of 16)

The incidents and experiences of his early career cannot be followed in detail. At the age of eighteen he took charge of a country school, and was a teacher for three winters. Six months were spent as a can¬ vasser in the book trade, after which he engaged in the grain elevator business with William Steele, and followed that line for thirteen years. He was distinctly a man of affairs, one who could successfully manage more than one enterprise at a time. He founded the Treaty Creek Stone and Lime Company, and to that ten years later added lumber under the firm name of Hildebrand & Latchem, which under the able man¬ agement of Mr. Latchem was a prosperous business for a number of years. He was a director of the first building and loan association founded at Wabash in 1880, and was later identified with the Wabash Building & Loan Association, and when the Wabash Valley Loan & Savings Association was organized in 1894, he was made its first presi¬ dent, a position which he held four years, and then became its secre¬ tary and manager. In October, 1907, the Wabash County Loan & Trust Company was organized, and Mr. Latchem was elected Secretary and Treasurer. This office he capably filled until his death.

During many years much of his attention and capital were devoted to the upbuilding of the industrial interests of Wabash. While he had himself started without capital, he was able to assist in realizing the ambitions of a number of younger business associates. Early in his career he was connected with the Underwood Manufacturing Company, which is now the Wabash Cabinet Company, an enterprise started when his capital was limited to five thousand dollars, but which was subse¬ quently developed and has had a course of uninterrupted prosperity. When the Wabash Bridge and Iron Works Company was established, in 1895, Mr. Latchem was made president, and was also for a time a mem¬ ber of the board of directors of the Anderson Malleable Iron Company at Anderson. For sixty -five years a resident of Wabash county, Mr. Latchem gained a wide acquaintance over the county and the northern

From the time he arrived at manhood he voted the democratic ticket and was an active worker 'in the ranks of his party, being chairman of the democratic county central committee and acting as delegate to numerous state and county conventions. For ten years succeeding 1883, he served as a member of 'the city council, and proved himself a valu¬ able official. Fraternally he was both a York and Scottish Rite Mason, having served as Master of his lodge, as High Priest in the Royal Arch Chapter, belonged to Wabash Commandery No. 37, and reached the thirty-second degree in the consistory of the Valley of Indianapolis. He was a member of the Grand Lodge of Odd Fellows and affiliated with the tribe of Ben Hur. At his death the Wabash Commandery of Knights Templar acted as escort to his funeral, and the St. Anastasia Mesnil Lodge of Odd Fellows also attended in a body. Mr. Latchem was for many years an active member of the Presbyterian church of Wabash, having served as deacon.

While his outside interests were perhaps as varied and important as those of any other citizen in Wabash, it was in his home that his character had its finest illustration. He was devoted to his family, and it was the proud boast of his mother that he had never said an unkind word to her in his entire life. This was a fact, a keynote to his char¬ acter in all its relations with his fellowmen that was properly em¬ phasized by Dr. Little in the funeral service. But at home and on the street and in his office he was noteworthy for his remarkable control of temper, and seldom if ever was he heard to make an unkind remark to anyone. On October 20, 1869, Mr. Latchem was united in marriage to Miss Amelia Alber, daughter of Philip Alber, at Wabash. Mrs. Latchem, who survives her husband, and enjoys a large circle of friends at Wa¬ bash, is the mother of three children : Charles, Paul and Lucy. Charles is identified with the Wabash Canning Company. Paul is City Civil Engineer at Huntington, Indiana. Another member of the household was Miss Bessie Latchem, a niece of Mr. Latchem 's.

Wabash Canning Company. Charles Latchem. One of the im¬ portant local institutions of the county seat, the Wabash Canning Com¬ pany, for the past seven years has occupied an important position not only to a large number of people in the city, but to an even greater number of raisers of vegetables in the vicinity. The Wabash Canning Company was organized in 1906, and was incorporated under the laws of Indiana with a capital stock of thirty thousand dollars. The first officers were Charles Latchem, president and general manager, and Louis L. Hyman, secretary and treasurer. The object stated in the charter of incorporation proposed the canning of vegetables, and it has been along that line that the industry has been conducted with such thriving success. The first quarters obtained by the company in starting busi¬ ness were in the old Bruner Building, at the corner of Miami and Water Streets. So rapidly did the business increase within a short occurred February 28, 1908, caused widespread sorrow, not alone among the members of his immediate family, but in business, financial and social circles, where men had had the chance to know him and were proud to be called his friends.

Mr. Walter was married in 1874 to Miss Esther E. Williams, of North Manchester, Indiana, and to this union there were born three children : Myrtle B., Josephine V. and Fred B. The last-named is secretary and treasurer of the firm of B. Walter & Company, and one of the progressive business men of the younger generation in Wabash.

Fred B. Walter. Among the younger generation of Wabash business men whose names are deserving of special mention for what they stand in the line of achievement in their chosen vocations in life stands that of Fred B. Walter, secretary and treasurer of the firm of B. Walter & Com¬ pany, manufacturers. His career has been an exemplification of typical ambitious American manhood, and he is already accorded a place among the men whose activities are serving to advance the importance of Wabash as an industrial and commercial center. Mr. Walter is a native of Wabash county, born at North Manchester on the 15th of January, 1882, a son of Bossier and Esther E. (Williams) Walter. A complete review of the life of his father, who was one of the leading business citizens of Wabash at the time of his death, in 1908, will be found on preceding pages of this volume.

Fred B. Walter attended the public and high schools of Wabash, and supplemented this with a course at Purdue University, graduating from the mechanical department of that institution in 1903. For a time there¬ after he was associated with the General Electric Company of Schenec¬ tady, New York, and then returned to Wabash to become associated with the firm of B. Walter & Company, manufacturers of table slides, an enter¬ prise which had been founded by his father, and at the time of the elder man's death the concern was incorporated, with Mrs. B. Walter, as presi¬ dent; Chas. Rish V. P. ; and Fred B. Walter as secretary and treasurer, and has thus continued to the present time. Mr. Walter, the son, is also the president of the Service Motor Truck Company, of Wabash, manu¬ facturers of motor trucks. This is one of the important industries of Wabash, and is capitalized at $250,000. The other officers are: Jean Marks, V. P. ; Edward Bridges, treasurer and manager, and Moi Cook, secretary. Mr. Walter is also the president of the American Coating Mills, of Elkhart, Indiana, an extensive manufacturing concern which is practically owned by Wabash capital. The capital stock of this industry is $100,000. Moi Cook is its secretary and Joseph C. Teague is the vice president, while C. C. Colbert, a former resident of Wabash, is treasurer and manager. The industry was established in Elkhart in 1910, and they erected the plant at that time. He is also a director and the second vice president of the Citizens Savings & Trust Company. Mr. Walter is a young man to whom large opportunities have been given to demonstrate what manner of man he is, and he has proved himself to be thoroughly capable, having managed the affairs of the large industries wisely and well. When war was declared between the United States and Spain he gave evidence of having inherited the patriotism that called his father to the support of the Union during the Civil war, and enlisted in Company D, One Hundred and Sixtieth Regiment, Indiana Volunteer Infantry, but never saw active service, as he was incapacitated by contracting typhoid fever while his regiment was in camp at Newport News. He is well known in fraternal circles of the city, being a member of the Masons and the Elks, and is popular with a wide circle of friends.

On the 28th of June, 1911, occurred the marriage of Mr. Walter and Miss Jean Graden, daughter of John Graden, and the granddaughter of the late Albert Pauling. One son has been born of this union, John Frederick.

William Wallace and Charles N. Wallace. Of the pioneer families of Wabash county one of the most notable is that of Wallace, which has been identified with this community for nearly seventy years. The Wallace name was one of the first in the state, and the earlier genera¬ tion was planted in Wayne county before Indiana attained statehood. In Wabash county the Wallaces have been successful farmers, business men, especially as dealers in horses, and their record for good citizenship is above question.

William Wallace, who came to Wabash county in 1845, and began working as a farm hand for Mahlon Corey, west of the present city of Wabash, was born near Milton in Wayne county, Indiana, October 20, 1824. His father, John Wallace, and wife had established a home in the wilderness of Indiana while it was still a territory, and when prac¬ tically all the population was located south of an east and west line extending through the present site of Indianapolis. Naturally, they had to contend with the hard conditions of the wilderness, they were here at a time when Indians were almost as numerous as the whites, and when the daily provision of the table was supplied by the wild game abounding on the prairies and in the wroods. It was in such an environment that William Walace grew up. He was. twenty-one years of age when he came to Wabash county, and two years later he bought one hundred and sixty acres, a tract of land which has ever since been in the Wallace name and possession. This farm is situated about three miles west of the city of Wabash, on what is known as the Parr Pike, and is now owned by Charles N. Wallace, a son of this first buyer. When William Wallace secured ownership of that land it was practically in a state of nature, and it was by his hard work, clearing and grubbing and planting, that he made of it one of the fine farmsteads in that locality. Soon after locating in Wabash county, William Wal¬ lace returned to Wayne county and married Viana Ferguson. To their marriage were born five children. The mother of these children died and her husband again married. During his later years, he moved to the city of Wabash and lived a retired life until his death in 1903.

15, 1854, at the old farm west of Wabash. His young days were spent for the greater part, after he had acquired sufficient strength, in assist¬ ing his father with the extension of the cultivated area of the land, and in the varied works of planting and harvesting, and during the intervals of this labor and at a time when his services could well be spared he attended the district school, but his advantages in this direction were limited. On reaching manhood he began farming for himself, and has always classified himself as a farmer, although for the past twenty years his business has kept him largely in the city of Wabash. He moved to Wabash in 1893, and here continued and developed on a larger scale the business of buying horses, which had been begun in connection with his farm work. In Wabash he built a large barn especially equipped for a sales stable, and has probably bought and sold as many horses as any other individual dealer in Wabash county.

Aside from his business, to which he gives his active attention, Mr. Wallace is a lover of all outdoor sports, and is one of the most skillful hunters and fishermen in the county. Among the many spoils of his hunting trips are the heads of two moose, which he brought down in the wilds of New Brunswick. The second specimen belonged to an espe¬ cially magnificent animal, as is shown by the fact that there are twenty prongs on his antlers. In politics, Mr. Wallace is a democrat, and has served as a member of the Wabash city council. On December 28, 1876, he married Miss Lillie Stone. They are the parents of three children, namely: Grace, Lawrence and William. Mr. and Mrs. Wallace belong to the Christian church.

William Kirby Davis. One of the pioneer tinners and residents of Wabash was William Kirby Davis, who had more than thirty years of identity with the county in his capacity of tinner. He was a native of New York state, born in Buffalo on January 31, 1829, and a son of William and Deborah White (Dutcher) Davis, who spent their lives in New York state. f

When William Kirby Davis finished his very meager common school training in the schools of his native community, he apprenticed himself to learn the trade of a tinner. He was without means, and he realized that he would do better to learn a trade of some sort than to depend upon doing common labor all his days, for his education did not prepare him for higher positions in the world's work. When he had finished his trade he came west and settled at Fort Wayne, Indiana, in about 1850 moving to Wabash county. For a few months Mr. Davis conducted a business of his own in partnership with his brother, Lewis B. Davis, but neither of the young men had any capital, and they were unable to make a success of the enterprise at that time. It was perhaps five years thereafter that Mr. Davis hired his services, but as soon as he had saved enough to make a fair start in business with his own capital, he did so. He was successful, for he was ambitious and energetic and his business methods, while nothing in advance of the times, were yet good, and he was able in a reasonable time to add a hardware department to the shop, where he carried a fairly comprehensive line of small hard¬ ware. He continued with the business, enlarging it perceptibly from time to time, until death claimed him on February 25, 1887, after thirty-seven years of continued identity with the city and county.

Mr. Davis was always known for a conservative and careful busi¬ ness man. He was a good friend and the sort of neighbor that one feels fortunate in claiming, and through all the years of his residence here he enjoyed the respect and esteem of all who knew him, his loss being keenly felt throughout the community. He was a republican in politics, and though reasonably active, was never an office seeker, pre¬ ferring to give his time to other interests. He was a member of the Presbyterian church, for years serving as a trustee of the church to which he belonged, and his social activities were confined to the Ma¬ sonic fraternity, of which he was long a member.

One son, Charles Davis, was born of his marriage with Barbara Ann Notestine, solemnized on August 12, 1855. His widow yet survives him, and maintains her residence in Wabash where she and her husband lived so long and happily together.

Charles White Davis, son of William Kirby Davis, whose sketch immediately precedes this brief personal review, was bora in the city of Wabash, Indiana, on October 9, 1859. He had the upbringing of the average youth, attending the grade and high schools of Wabash, and when about seventeen gave up his attendance at the high school to join his father in the business. Young Davis gave close attention to his work, and under the careful guidance of his father, he learned well the details connected with the successful operation of a hardware and tinning business. In due time he was admitted to partnership with the elder Davis.

When William Kirby Davis died in 1887 his son, Charles White Davis, succeeded to the business, and he continued therein until his death, which came in 1900 as the result of injuries sustained in a rail¬ way accident, while on a trip to the south. He died on January 30, 1900, and like his father before him, he was widely mourned in the city, for he had led an upright and blameless life, proving himself a friend to those who looked to him for friendship, as well as to others who had no claims to press. It has been such men as Charles White Davis and his worthy father that Wabash is indebted for the high standard of her business enterprises as a whole, and the excellent standing of the county among the counties of the commonwealth.

On December 18, 1883, Mr. Davis was married to Miss Ida Alice Smith, a daughter of Thomas G. Smith, of Huntington, Indiana, and to them were bora two children, - Marie and Thomas Kirby. The daughter married Charles Huff of Wabash, and is the mother of two daughters, - Alice Elizabeth and Rosanna. The son is a graduate of Wabash College and of Johns Hopkins Medical School in Baltimore, is now interne at the New York Hospital, New York City.

and he was long a member of the Presbyterian church and an usher there for years. Like his father, he was active in church duties in his de¬ nomination. He was a republican, reasonably active and having a healthy interest in local politics, though never a politician.

Hipskind Family. Since the early days of Wabash, no one family has exerted more steadily an influence for the substantial development and sound citizenship and morality than the Hipskinds. Peter and Adam Hipskind, brothers, natives of the Rhine Province of Bavaria, emigrated to the United States in 1852. They were both young men when they came to America, were unmarried, and in the old country Peter had learned the trade of shoemaker, and Adam the trade of weaver, but on coming to Wabash they found employment in various channels and chiefly as laborers. Their first work was in helping to build a grade of the Wab¬ ash Railroad, then in course of construction. In 1854, another brother, John Hipskind, with his wife and four children, came to America and also located in Wabash. He was a stone mason by trade, and followed that occupation all his life. Philip Hipskind with his wife and eight children, next added his presence to the group of Hipskind brothers in Wabash, arriving from his native land on December 24, 1864. All the Hipskinds in and around Wabash - and they are numerous and respec¬ tively influential and prominent, - are descended from these four broth¬ ers. Peter and Adam each subsequently married and reared a family, the former having six and the latter seven children. Philip Hipskind died but a comparatively short time after his arrival in the county, in February, 1865. The other three brothers lived here for many years, until death took them away one by one. All belonged to the German Reformed Evangelical Church. They were sober, industrious people, possessed the fine trait of common honesty, characteristic of the best German element, and in every way were a credit to the land of their adoption.

John Hipskind, the third of the brothers to come to the United States was born July 18, 1821. In his native land he received a common school education, and while there learned the trade of stone mason. To his marriage with Elizabeth Miedreich was born, while still in the old coun¬ try five children, namely: Elizabeth; Philip; Jdnn ; and Frederika; the first born died as an infant. The family came to America, where several otherA children were born/namely : Margaret, Adam, Mary, FrariWs, Henry, Joseph and Theodore. Of these children, all are living, except Elizabeth.

Mr. John Hipskind never accumulated any large means. He reared a large family, had to work industriously to support them, was strictly honest in all his transactions, and the best memorials to him are the many buildings which remain as evidences of his substantial craftsmanship in their stone work. He was a thorough workman, and took a personal pride and satisfaction in every piece of work that was entrusted to him.

Mr. And Mrs. Philip Hipskind And Family Mrs. John Hipskind And Family

Philip Hipskind. Sharing in the family prosperity, with a repu¬ tation for solid character and substantial citizenship, and materially contributing to his own career and character to the prestige of the family name, Philip Hipskind is the oldest of the living children of John Hipskind, one of the four brothers of that name who came from Ger¬ many, some sixty years ago, and whose establishment and subsequent career in Wabash have been briefly referred to in preceding paragraphs.

Philip Hipskind was born in Bavaria, Germany, October 8, 1848, and was six years old when brought to America. His education was necessarily limited, due to the fact that the family required some years before getting firmly established in economic prosperity in this county. His schooling was confined to about nine months in the English schools and some three months in the German school conducted by the Reformed Evangelican preacher. When still a boy he went to Evansville, Indiana, and under the supervision of two maternal uncles learned the brick¬ layers y trade, and also the stone mason's trade under his father. As the oldest in the family of children he had to go to work when ten years of age, and for eight successive summers was steadily employed in brick yards. Then for one year he worked in the flouring mill of King and McCrea. Having become an expert in the bricklayer's trade, he worked at that and stonemasonry for a time, and then joined his brother John in the contracting and building business. Their successful associa¬ tion resulted in the construction of many of the most important public and private buildings in Wabash. In later years the enterprise of Philip Hipskind diverted into more special channels, and he has made a name all over the state in contracting for and the building of street work, sewers, and highway construction. Most of the macadam street work in Wabash was done by him, and he built many miles of the fine pike road in Sullivan county of this state. He has constructed brick pavements at Portland, Geneva, Marion, Wabash, and Huntington, and a large amount of sewer construction in Richmond. Associated with him for a number of years have been his sons.

On September 10, 1871, Philip Hipskind married Miss Anna Mary Fleck. To their marriage were born the following children: George C., Mary A., John E., Margaret, Alois F., William C., Thomas A., Her¬ man N., James F., Samuel S., Ruth A., and Bernard P.

Philip Hipskind and sons, in connection with their contracting business some years ago, to be exact, in the spring of 1907, engaged in the retail handling of coal, lime, cement, sewer pipe and other mate¬ rials of that kind, and have since conducted a large establishment at Wabash, supplying material not only in the immediate locality, but over a large territory surrounding this county. Mr. Hipskind is a republi¬ can in politics, and worships in the German Reformed Evangelical church, though his wife and children are members of the Roman Catholic Church.

named for his father, one of the four Hipskind brothers who located in Wabash in the early days, and whose careers are briefly sketched in preceding paragraphs. John Hipskind, Jr., has been for many years one of the ablest business men of Wabash, has been prominent in affairs of citizenship, and his name is related with many of the public and semi¬ public movements and organizations which have given vitality to local business and community affairs.

John Hipskind was born in Germany, November 17, 1850, and was four years of age when brought to this country. As a boy he attended a private school for a time, and later was a student in the public schools. His education was abridged on account of the economic necessity of the household, and when less than ten years of age, he left school and began earning his living by work in the old woolen mill at Wabash. That was his regular line of employment until he was twenty years of age, and he then began an apprenticeship of three years in the carpenter's trade. After the death of the man from whom he had learned his trade, he con¬ tinued until he had completed the unfinished contract, and by the suc¬ cessful manner in which he prosecuted the tasks left to his care, he estab¬ lished a reputation for reliable performance and careful workmanship which for many years has never suffered any diminishment.

Having completed the contract of his former employer, Mr. Hipskind began contracting and building on his own responsibility. That was his almost sole line of business in Wabash and vicinity for a period of thirtytwo years. In 1899, associated with a son, he engaged in the plumbing and heating business, although for a time thereafter he continued working at his trade. Since 1907, his entire attention has been devoted to the plumbing and heating line. His record as a builder has been a very suc¬ cessful one, and among the larger contracts undertaken and carried out by him might be mentioned the present high school building, at Wabash, the Carnegie Library Building, two of the Ward schools, and many of the best residence and business blocks in the city.

The above by no means includes all of the commercial enterprise and relations of Mr. Hipskind with his community. He assisted in organizing the Wabash Building and Loan Association, the first association of that kind ever organized in Wabash, and of which he was a director for eight years. The Enterprise Building & Loan Association, and the Rock City Building & Loan Association, also received assistance from him at their beginning, and all those associations were operated practically, about the same time. He also gave a hand to the organization of the Wabash Loan Fund and Building Association, of which he was treasurer during its entire existence. The Home Telephone Company, likewise had his sup¬ port and assistance at its beginning and he has been a director and also treasurer of the company since its organization.

A democrat in politics, Mr. Hipskind has served as a member of the city counsel from 1887 to 1889, and from 1910 to the present time. He is affiliated with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and he and his family worship in the Roman Catholic faith. On May 28, 1873, he married Barbara S. Fleck, of Wabash county, Indiana, a daughter of

Christian and Margaret Fleck, deceased. Eight children have been bom to this union, namely : Charles C., Sarah E., Thomas A., who died in infancy; Thomas F., Mary M., J. Lawrence, Josephine B., and James Henry. Thomas F., J. Lawrence and James Henry are partners with their father in the plumbing and heating business.

James H. Stiggleman. The late James H. Stiggleman, whose death took place at Wabash on July 21, 1911, occupied a more than usually important place in the growth and development of the community. Born in Henry county, Indiana, on April 16, 1858, he was one of three children bom to Williamson and Sarah (Dean) Stiggleman, both of whom were also natives of Indiana. Of their children but one daughter is now living.

The Stiggleman family originally came from Germany, and later members of the family came to Indiana during its early history and settled in or about Richmond, in Wayne county. James H. Stiggleman was brought by his parents to Wabash county when he was a small boy, and he was reared on a farm in Liberty township. As a boy he helped in the work of the home farm, and the death of his father in his early boyhood left the burden of the responsibility of the place upon him while he was still very young in years. His education was a fairly good one, and his district schooling was followed by a period of attendance in the graded schools of Wabash, and that with a normal school course in Richmond. Following this he successfully passed the examinations for a teacher, was granted a certificate, and for six years taught in the schools of Wabash county, during one year being super¬ intendent of the graded schools at Lincolnsville.

A natural inclination for mathematics prompted him to pursue a private course of study along those lines during the years when he was engaged in teaching. In 1891 he moved to Wabash, and there became superintendent of the Wabash Church and School Furniture Company, where he was thus employed until the corporation met with financial reverses and finally went into the hands of a receiver. During his serv¬ ice there Mr. Stiggleman invented a device for cutting circular pews, but he never patented it, and in similar manner he invented many improvements now in general use, which he contributed gratis to the factory of which he was the superintendent. Among his other inven¬ tions was a school desk hinge for the iron standard desk. This he pat¬ ented, and he later produced another hinge, an improvement on the first, which is now being used at North Manchester and probably in other places. Mr. Stiggleman was a heavy stockholder and the vice president and manager of the Peabody-Stiggleman Company, manufac¬ turers of school desks at North Manchester for several years, he having organized the company. He also invented a folding chair, which was in vogue for some years, and is still being produced in certain quarters. A sectional bookcase, bearing his name, was also added to the list of his inventions, and the same is now owned by a large manufacturing con¬ cern at Peru. He also invented two kitchen cabinets with sliding table tops, which are being widely manufactured. He organized the Cardinal Kitchen Cabinet Company of Wabash about a year before his death, becoming a director of the company, as well as the secretary and general manager. Prior to this time he had sold his interest in the North Man¬ chester factory. While these are some of the principal inventions of Mr. Stiggleman, there were others of equal or greater importance which he was never able to produce owing to his untimely death.

Mr. Stiggleman was a republican in politics, and while keenly alive to the public issues of the day, he was always too deeply interested in his business affairs to enter into politics as an office-seeker or in any capacity. However, he served as a member of the Wabash school board for twelve years or thereabouts, and later served as a member of the first Carnegie library board. He was a Methodist in his relig¬ ious tendencies, and in this as in other activities of life he was zealous and earnest. He was a man of social and genial habits, approachable in his manner, and he loved to mingle and exchange views with his fellow men. His fraternal association was with the Masonic order, in which he reached the Knight Templar degree.

On the 14th of April, 1885, Mr. Stiggleman married Miss Elsie M. White, the only daughter of Steele A. and Eliza J. (Waggoner) White, who were among the early settlers of Wabash county. The four children born to Mr. and Mrs. Stiggleman are Pearl L., Georgia G., James Walker and John Roger. Pearl Lenore Stiggleman, the eldest, was married on the 4th of October, 1911, to Leo Louis Baushke, of Benton Harbor, Michigan, and they now reside on a farm in Liberty township, Wabash county, Indiana, on the old White homestead of two hundred acres which is the property of Mrs. Stiggleman and her mother, Mrs. Steele White.

Mr. Stiggleman was such a man as may be regarded as a credit to his community. He was a representative of the highest type of Amer¬ ican citizenship, and as one who was honest, earnest and thoroughly consistent in all his acts, he commanded the universal and unfailing re¬ spect of his fellows. He loved his home, and found his greatest pleasure in the family circle to the end of his days.

Edward Kinerk. The Kinerk family have been identified with Wabash county since the early days when the Wabash and Erie canal was put through Indiana, at which time the brothers, Edward, Timothy and Patrick Kinerk came from the east and assisted in the construction work on the canal. Since that time they have been established here¬ about, and they have added their full quota to the labors of development in the county, as none will gainsay.

Edward Kinerk, the immediate subject of this review, is a native of Lagro township, Wabash county, born here on August 11, 1843. His father, Timothy Kinerk, was born in county Limerick, Ireland, and when a boy of about sixteen years came with his widowed mother to America. Two brothers and a sister also accompanied them, and they first located in New York State, where Timothy and his brothers found work in the construction of the Erie canal. Later, when the Wabash and

Erie canal was proposed and plans laid for its building, the brothers came here and were employed throughout the time of its construction. Edward Kinerk, the older brother of Timothy, performed a part of the work as a contractor on the waterway. He married and settled in Allen county, where some of his descendants are now living, and Timothy and Patrick Kinerk married and settled in Wabash county.

Timothy married Ellen Maher at Anderson, and after the canal was finished he bought a quarter section of land in Lagro township. This he cleared and improved, and here he spent practically all the remainder of his life. He died on August 31, 1884, his wife having preceded him on May 3, 1863. They were the parents of two children who grew to maturity, one of them being Edward Kinerk of this review. They were stanch members of the Roman Catholic church and reared their children in the same faith.

Edward Kinerk the only son of his parents, grew up on the home farm in Lagro township, and his boyhood was passed in helping to clear, grub, plant and harvest, after the manner of the boys of that period. His opportunities for educational advancement were exceedingly lim¬ ited, the school term of the year in those days being limited to three months in the winter season. However, he managed to secure a suffi¬ cient training to enable him to pass a teacher's examination success¬ fully, his careful and well directed home study having added much to his primitive schooling. He taught school two terms and then retired to his farm in Lagro, where he carried on farming activities in Lagro and Noble townships until April, 1901. In that year he moved to Wabash, where he has since resided.

Mr. Kinerk is a democrat, and in 1910 he was elected to the office of Justice of the Peace, a post he has since filled most acceptably and creditably.

On June 11, 1868, Mr. Kinerk was married to Catherine Sheahan, of Redford, near Detroit, Michigan. Twelve children have been born to them, nine of whom reached years of maturity, and are here named as follows: Jeremiah F.; Timothy L. ; Thomas A., who dropped dead July 13, 1913 ; Eugene E. ; Thaddeus E. ; Anna E. ; Mary E. and Bernard S., twins, and Lucy, the youngest of the family.

Charles H. Lawton. The residence of the late Charles H. Lawton in Wabash county covered a period of more than thirty years, during which time he rose from obscurity and humble circumstances to a posi¬ tion of independence and prominence in the business world. He main¬ tained throughout his whole career a character that was above reproach, and as a practical and public-spirited citizen had the esteem of all with whom he was brought into contact. Mr. Lawton was a native of Massa¬ chusetts, his birth occurring September 12, 1848, at Lancaster, and was a son of Thomas and Nancy (Dorrison) Lawton.

New England farmers 9 sons, his education being secured in the public schools when his services were not needed in the work of the homestead place. On completing his studies, he for a time worked for others, but in 1873 decided to try his fortunes in the West and accordingly came to Wabash county. Here he first secured employment in a local planing mill, but by the end of eight years felt fully equipped to enter the busi¬ ness field on his own account, and in 1881 the firm of Green & Lawton was established. This association continued for three years, when Mr. Lawton bought the interest of his partner, and from that time until his death conducted the foundry business alone. This enterprise steadily grew in size and importance until it became one of the leading business concerns of its kind in Wabash county, but in spite of the large demand it made upon his attention Mr. Lawton found leisure to devote to other concerns, among them being the Wabash Valley Building and Loan Asso¬ ciation, of which he was one of the organizers and a member of the first board of directors. His name was a synonym for upright manhood and good citizenship. He gave his influence and of his means to the better¬ ment of society, to schools and church, to the support of government and order and to industries which he believed were calculated to promote the interests of this section of the state. A stalwart republican in politics, he supported the Grand Old Party from the time of his first vote, was ever interested in public matters, and served for two terms as a member of the city council of Wabash, where he rendered his fellow-citizens con¬ scientious, efficient and helpful service. For a number of years he was identified with the Masonic fraternity, and was one of the popular mem¬ bers of the Commandery at Wabash. When he died, December 12, 1904, the business world of Wabash county lost a man who had been true to every obligation, the city and county a citizen who ever had the com¬ munity's welfare at heart, and his hosts of acquaintances a friend who had proved his loyalty on numerous occasions.

On March 4, 1874, occurred the marriage of Mr. Lawton with Miss Fannie Robbins, a native of Massachusetts. She survives him and resides in Wabash, where she has a large circle of friends and acquaintances, who esteem her highly for her sterling worth and many excellencies of character.

One of the old and prominent families of Wabash county is repre¬ sented by the above names. The Hubbards have lived in Indiana, since the early twenties, and in 1856 their home was established in Wabash county. They were here early enough to assume some of the labors and responsibilities of pioneer existence, and for more than half a century their activities and influence have been among the forces molding and developing the community.

Samuel Hubbard was the founder of the family in Wabash county in April, 1856, coming from Fayette county in this state. Like many other of the early settlers in this section, he was born in North Carolina in Guilford county, in 1798, and he was ten years old when his parents moved to Warren county, Ohio, and eighteen months later to Fayette county, Indiana, whence after about two years they went to other coun¬ ties, and Samuel Hubbard in 1821 at Brookville, Montgomery County, Ohio, married Nancy Gladwell. Two years later, in 1823, Mr. Hubbard located near Evanston (then West Union) in Fayette county, Indiana. Fayette county was then just being filled up by pioneer settlers, and Samuel Hubbard had ample opportunity to select land about as he chose, and having found a suitable tract he built for his family a double log house, and began improving and farming. He and his wife experienced all the sufferings and privations incident to pioneer days. Nancy Hub¬ bard died on that homestead in September, 1848. To their union were born eleven children. Only three are now living, the two sons being William T. and Charles J. both of Wabash county, while the daughter, Nancy J., the wife of Henry Brolyer, lives at Axtell, Marshall county, Kansas. In May, 1850, Samuel Hubbard married Elizabeth Ann Green, and in April, 1856, moved to Wabash county, locating on land in section thirty, town twenty-eight (Noble township), range six. In that locality he spent the remainder of his days engaged in general farming and stock raising. To his second marriage nine children were born, four of whom are now living, namely: Benjamin F. of Noble township; Melvin and Alvin, twins, the former living in Kokomo, Alvin died in January, 1914 ; Marcellus C., a farmer of Paw Paw township; and Amanda, who lives in Noble township, the wife of William Y. Martindale.

Samuel Hubbard was a man of but limited scholastic training. That deficiency he overcame in a measure, in later years by reading and observation. For a man brought up to manual labor he was an unusu¬ ally good penman. As a member of the Bachelor Street Christian Church he was active in its support and maintenance, as long as he lived. Per¬ haps his chief characteristic was his rugged honesty and his unselfish generosity. No traveler ever came to his door hungry or in need of a bed, but his wants were speedily satisfied. As a neighbor his aid was ever ready for those in need of assistance, and his was a character that unfortunately is of a past generation. He died June 30, 1876, and his wife in September, 1875.

Benjamin F. Hubbard the oldest son of the second marriage of Samuel Hubbard was born in Fayette county, Indiana, May 6, 1851. When five years old he was brought to Wabash county by his parents, was reared on a farm, had his education like other boys of the time in the district schools, and had only passed his twenty-first birthday a few months, when on August 8, 1872, he married Naoma F. Ford. Under the necessity of providing a home for two, and coming children, he started farming on his own responsibility, and that was the occupation which absorbed his energy and time until 1904. In that year occurred his withdrawal . from the more active cares of life, though he is still a vigorous man, and when occasion requires can work as hard as in younger years. In 1908 his services were drawn into recognition for the benefit of the public welfare, wrhen he wTas elected trustee of Noble township, a position which he has occupied to the present time. Ben- jamin F. Hubbard is a democrat and is affiliated with the Knights of Pythias. He and his wife are the parents of four children: John G., who died when nearing his thirty-eighth birthday; Guy L., who mar¬ ried Leonora Critchelow, and is a farmer in Wabash county; Zella, wife of Leroy C. Lynn of Wabash; and Samuel F., who died when about twenty-three years of age.

Best known in the city of Wabash of the children of Samuel Hubbard is Mr. Charles J. Hubbard, who has had a long and active career as a manufacturer, merchant, and is now in the real estate and insurance busi¬ ness. Next to the oldest of the living children of Samuel Hubbard's first marriage, Charles J. Hubbard was born in Fayette county, Indiana, July 14, 1839. Most of his schooling was received in his native county, and he was seventeen years old when he came to Wabash county, which has been his home ever since. He was reared on a farm, but a few years after reaching his majority chose a business career. On November 6, 1860, Be married Carolina C. Palmer. In 1864 he moved to the City of Wabash, and was for four years engaged in brick manufacture there and after that up to 1890 employed his energies in various occupations though most of the time in the agricultural implement business. Since 1890, Mr. Hub¬ bard has had an office for the handling of real estate, loans, and insurance. In politics he is a democrat, and since eighteen years of age has been a member of the Christian church. On February 21, 1897, his first wife died, and on November 21, 1910, he married Mrs. Menora Smallwood.

Thompson R. Brady, M. D. Both in the broad field of citizenship and in devotion to the interests of his profession, Dr. Brady has had a notable career during the seventy years of his residence in Wabash county. Dr. Brady is now one of the oldest native citizens of this county. There are many distinguishing points in his life, beginning with nearly three years of active service in the uniform of a Union sol¬ dier, followed by upwards of forty years of active practice of his pro¬ fession, and by service at different times in county and state offices. In all the responsibilities thrust upon him, he has acquited himself with credit and with benefit to his community, and is a man whose achieve¬ ments and attainments well deserve this record in a history of the county.

The Brady family is not only of pioneer settlement in Wabash county, but is one of the older stocks in the United States. The founder of this branch came from Scotland to America in 1708, and was named Hugh Brady. He settled in eastern Pennsylvania. John Brady, one of his sons, held the rank of Colonel in the Revolutionary war, and was killed by the Indians, in 1778. Col. Sam Brady, a son of Col. John, was a celebrated Indian fighter, and made a name for himself in the annals of early Indian warfare. Other members of the family served the colonies in their struggle for independence. Beginning with the emigrant ancestor Hugh Brady, the line of descent down to Dr. Brady is traced through Ebeneazer Brady, William Brady, James Brady, Cleason Brady, and William Brady, the last being the father of the doctor, and was born in Muskingum county, Ohio, in 1817. Grandfather

Cleason Brady settled in or about Marietta, Ohio, in the early days, later moved to Muskingum county, and from there in 1844 followed his son William to Wabash county, and died at his home six miles southeast of Wabash in 1859. He was one of the ardent abolitionists before the war, and at one time operated a switch of the underground railway.

William Brady in Muskingum county, September, 1841, married Frances J. Imlay. With his wife's family he immediately came by wagon to Wabash county. In Liberty township he preempted a quarter section of land, and entered upon its improvement. Practically every acre was covered with a heavy growth of walnut, oak, hard maple, and other native wood. The soil for cultivation in those times was much more valuable to the settler than timber, and it is not difficult to under¬ stand the motive which caused those settlers to cut down such magnifi¬ cent specimens of the forest, and such trees as were not worked up into rails or into fuel was usually piled in heaps and burned. The first home of the Brady family in Wabash county was a round-log cabin, fourteen feet square, with a stick and mud chimney at one end, rising from an old-fashioned fireplace. There were no windows, and the floor was in just one degree advance above the beaten ground which might have been found in many pioneer cabins, the Brady home having an old puncheon floor. A few years later that cabin was replaced by a hewed log cabin, which was regarded as very pretentious dwelling and above the average to be found in that community.

Mr. and Mrs. William Brady became the parents of ten children, and of those seven are now living. William Brady never aspired to political office, and as a consequence his name does not appear in the official rec¬ ords of the county. However, he was devoted to the cause of religion, and was for many years an elder in the Presbyterian church. In politics he was first a whig casting his first presidential ballot for William Henry Harrison in 1840, and sixteen years later voted for John C. Fre¬ mont and was ever afterwards a loyal republican. His death occurred September 10, 1869, and his widow survived until August 7, 1895.

Dr. Thompson R. Brady was born in Liberty township in the old logcabin home previously mentioned, January 1, 1843, and has already passed the psalmist's allotted time of human life, threescore years and ten. His was the experience of many pioneer boys, and as soon as his strength permitted he found plenty to do in grubbing, clearing, planting and harvesting. Most of his preliminary education was given him by his mother, who was a woman of unusual culture, and who though bur¬ dened with the usual responsibilities of a pioneer woman, still found time to instruct her children. For a few winters he attended a district school, and was also a student at the Huntington Academy. In the meantime the Civil war had come on, and in the vacation following his first year in the academy, he enlisted on August 16, 1862, in Company F, of the One Hundred and First Indiana Infantry. He was sent to the front in time to participate in the battle of Perryville, Kentucky, in the Tullahoma Campaign, in the critical battle of Chickamauga, and at Missionary Ridge received a gunshot wound in the left shoulder.

His wound did not keep him long from active service, and he was a participant in the weeks of constant fighting which led up to the capture of Atlanta, where his regiment took part, and after the fall of Atlanta, he was with the troops under Sherman in their march to the «^a, went up to the Carolinas, and as a culmination of his military experience marched down Pennsylvania Avenue in the grand review of the victorious Union army in Washington. His honorable discharge was dated June 24, 1865, though he was not mustered out until the first of July following.

On returning home Mr. Brady resumed his school studies, and for a time was engaged in teaching. In the fall of 1866 he entered upon the study of medicine, with Dr. William G. Armstrong of LaFontaine, and the fall of 1867 saw him entering the medical department of the Uni¬ versity of Michigan at Ann Arbor. After one year in the Michigan Uni¬ versity he entered Rush Medical College of Chicago, and was graduated M. D., from that splendid old institution in March, 1869. On beginning practice Dr. Brady first located at Lincoln ville in Wabash county, and for seventeen years actively served the community as a physician and surgeon. His residence at Lincolnville terminated in 1886 when he was elected clerk of the circuit court of Wabash county, an office to which he gave four years. On leaving that office he resumed his prac¬ tice in the city of Wabash, and continued it actively until recent years, and is now practically retired, from professional work.

In 1908 Dr. Brady was elected joint senator to the state legislature from Wabash and Fulton counties, and served in the sessions of 1909 and 1911. For nine years, beginning in 1897, he was secretary of the pension board. Dr. Brady is a Presbyterian in religion and a repub¬ lican in politics. He has attained the Knight Templar degrees in Masonry, and is also affiliated with the Grand Army of the Republic, and the Royal Arcanum.

His first marriage occurred April 2, 1868, when Elizabeth J. Dough¬ erty became his wife. At her death on February 14, 1869, she left one son, Thomas D., who died at the age of eighteen years. On June 2, 1870, Dr. Brady married Emma L. Brown, and their union was blessed with eight children as follows: William Selden; John C. ; George F.; Oliver, deceased; Margaret M., Mrs. Dr. L. E. Jewett; Fanny, who died when twenty-four years old in 1904; Lucretia G., Mrs. Leonard Stauffer; and Jennie A., a teacher in the Wabash public schools.

Alvah Taylor. Aside from the fact that Alvah Taylor is one of the oldest members of the Wabash county bar, having practiced law in the city of Wabash continuously for forty-five years, no small distinctions are attached because of the saintly character and long-continued benev¬ olent activity of his father, who was one of the old-time ministers of the gospel in Indiana, and whose life of service for his Master continued without interruption until the close of his life when ninety-five years of age.

Alvah Taylor was about seventeen years old when the family estab¬ lished its home in Wabash county, and practically all his youthful train¬ ing was on a farm. From the district schools he later came to Wabash and prepared for college by three years of study in the Wabash high school. In September, 1861, he entered Wabash College at Crawfordsville, and was graduated Master of Arts from the old Indiana College in June, 1865. In the meantime his collegiate career had been interrupted by the call to military service. On May 4, 1864, he enlisted in Company G of the One Hundred and Thirty-eighth Indiana Infantry, and his mili¬ tary service for the most part was in and around Tullahoma, Tennessee, in doing garrison and guard duty. He received his honorable discharge on October 10, 1864, and then came home and resumed his studies.

Mr. Taylor read law under the direction of the late John U. Pettit at Wabash, and was admitted to the bar in April, 1868. While carrying on his studies he was also deputy circuit court clerk by appointment. It is an interesting fact that Mr. Taylor read law in the same office that he now occupies, at 131 South Miami Street. In July, 1868, he accepted a partnership with his former preceptor under the firm name of Pettit, Taylor and Brenton. When Mr. Brenton retired from the firm in 1871 the business was continued under the name of Pettit & Taylor, until 1873. In the latter year, Mr. Pettit was elevated to the office of Judge of the Wabash Circuit court, and since then, for forty years, Mr. Taylor has conducted a large individual practice.

Since casting his first vote in 1860, for Abraham Lincoln, Mr. Taylor has been a consistent republican. It is noteworthy that he has never been drawn aside from his profession as a lawyer into the adjacent field of politics, and has never held an elective office. Fraternally he affiliates with the Grand Army of the Republic, and with the Tribe of Ben Hur. Religiously he was reared in the faith of the old-school Baptist church, and has been a member of that denomination at Pleasant View, a church which his father organized, since 1861. However, his wife belongs to the First Methodist Episcopal church of Wabash, and Mr. Taylor is one of the trustees in that church.

On May 21, 1864, was celebrated the marriage of Alvah Taylor with Anastasia L. Stratton, a daughter of Mark Stratton. Mark Stratton was an early settler, and many years ago held the office of county com¬ missioner in Wabash county. To their marriage have been born two children; Horace B., who died when nineteen years old, and Grace, wife of Will H. Clothier, of Marion, Indiana. They have one child, Anastasia. Mrs. Alvah Taylor died April 28, 1883. Mr. Taylor on May 8, 1884, married Mrs. Mary L. McClure, daughter of Luther Waite, and the widow of Camillus McClure.

Alvah A. Garber, although still a young man, is one of the promi¬ nent, influential and valued residents of Wabash, his position in public regard being indicated by the fact that he has been recorder of the county since November, 1912, and to him may be attributed the excellent system that has made his one of the best managed offices in the county.

He has been, moreover, prominent in educational circles, and for some years was one of the most popular teachers in Wabash county, where he became widely and favorably known. Mr. Garber was born on a farm about one-half mile east of Laketon, Wabash county, Indiana, September 23, 1881, and is a son of Joseph and Clara F. (Kitterman) Garber, both of whom are now living near North Manchester, Indiana.

Alvah A. Garber received his early training on his father's farm and his education, primarily, in the district schools. Subsequently he attended the Servia graded and high school, spent one year at North Manchester College, and completed his high school work by being graduated at* North Manchester with the class of 1902. During the fall of that year he began teaching school, and in this he continued ten and one-half terms, three terms being in district schools of Chester township, one year in the graded school at Servia, three years in the Chester township high school and the balance of the time served in the capacity of superintendent of the Noble township schools outside of the city of Wabash. During this long period Mr. Garber made himself known all over this section of the county, and such a fav¬ orable impression did he create that he was urged by his many friends to make the race for public office. Finally, in 1912, he acquiesced and was made the nominee of his party for the office of county recorder, and in the elections that followed in November of the same year received a handsome majority. He may well feel a just pride in the record that he has made in office, for he has instituted many movements for the improvement of the department and has always been a stalwart champion of the interests of the city and county of Wabash and has done much for their furtherance. He supports democratic poli¬ cies and principles and is regarded as one of the strong and influential men of his party here. In his fraternal relations, Mr. Garber is asso¬ ciated with the Masons and the Knights of Pythias lodges, where his pleasing and genial personality has endeared him to a wide circle of friends.

On August 1, 1905, Mr. Garber was married to Miss Ruby Willis, who died Christmas evening of that same year. On June 2, 1909, Mr. Garber was married to Miss Nora A. Peden, who was born in Chester township, Wabash county, a daughter of James S. and Charlotte Peden, farming people of this county.

Michael and John Schlemmer. Among the families of foreign birth and ancestry that have added in a very material way to the growth and development of Wabash county may be mentioned the Schlemmer family, of which Michael Schlemmer was the founder. He came from the land of his birth, Bavaria, Germany, in the year 1852, settling in Wabash, Indiana, at the outset. His first employment was as a farm "hand" for a Mr. Bruner, whose farm lay just south of Wabash, and he worked for that gentleman for a time at a daily wage of fifty cents. Mr. Schlemmer, it should be understood, had left his family in Bavaria, and it was his ardent hope and ambition to be soon able to bring them to America, where they might be together again. In the course of time his native thrift and frugality made it possible for him to send back for the family, and they came out in the year 1854, about a year and a half after the head of the house had gone to prepare a place for them in the new world. They moved directly to the farm where Michael Schlemmer was still employed and they continued there for about two years. He then moved to Wabash and began to be employed with the old time hardware firm of Bruner & Eikenberry, and after a season of connection with that concern he was employed as a day laborer in the employ of the city, so continuing up to the time of his death.

Among the children of Michael Schlemmer was John, borh in Bavaria in about 1841, and who died on October 26, 1906. He was a lad of twelve years when the family followed the father to the United States, and he was one of six children. Of that family only one now lives, - Adam Schlemmer.

John Schlemmer had only a limited education, for opportunities were not plenty in his boyhood for schooling. As soon as he was old enough to be of any use in the world, he was put to work and he early began to earn his own living. He worked in the woolen mills at Wabash until the Civil war broke out, and he lost no time in affiliating himself with American citizens by enlisting for service in the Union army. He enlisted on August 19, 1862, in Company A, Seventy-fifth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, which was organized at Wabash in 1862, and in the same month, with his command, went to Louisville, Kentucky, and there became attached to the Fortieth Brigade, Twelfth Division of the Army of Ohio. The Seventy-fifth Regiment was afterwards identified with other brigades and divisions. Mr. Schlemmer 's first active service was with his company in pursuit of General Bragg through Kentucky, thence to Bowling Green, Scottsville, Gallatin, followed by the pursuit of General Morgan through Cave City, Nashville and Murfreesboro. The battle of Tullahoma was followed by his first great battle, at Chickamauga and soon thereafter came his participation in the engagements at Dalton, Rocky Face Ridge, Buzzards Roost, Resaca, Adairsville, Etowah River, Pumpkinvine Creek, Allatona Hills, Burnt Hickory, Kenesaw Mountain, Pine Mountain, Lost Mountain, Pine Knob, Smyrna, Campground, Peach Tree Creek, Jonesboro, and Lovejoy Station. Then followed their pursuit of General Hood into Alabama, with the March to the Sea with Sherman soon after, they passed thence through the Carolinas and the final and culminating event of the war, the Grand Review at the Nation's Capitol. The military career of Mr. Schlemmer was arduous and extremely praiseworthy, and may justly be a source of pride to his descendants.

Mr. Schlemmer was mustered out on June 8, 1865, and returning home, he resumed work in the woolen mills at Wabash. He was mar¬ ried in 1865 to Elizabeth Geible, who was also an employe of the woolen mills at that time, and in 1870, owing to the ill state of his health result¬ ing from his severe military experiences, he was compelled to give up his work in the mills. He entered the employ of H. 0. Markley & educated in the public schools and reared to agricultural pursuits, in which he was engaged throughout the remainder of his life. In 1843, he moved to Liberty township, Wabash county, at a time when Indians still roamed the woods and wild game was to be found in abundance, here entering land from the Government. However, he never lived on this land, but became superintendent for the heirs of the Wood estate, who owned extensive tracts here at that time. While thus engaged, Mr. Bloomer began buying and selling land, but for the greater part resided on the Wood property until 1872, when he made removal to his own land, which he later traded for a gristmill at Somerset, the operation of which held his attention until the close of his life. He died October 27, 1890, while his wife passed away in 1904, both in the faith of the Methodist Episcopal church, of which they had been lifelong members. Mr. Bloomer was a man who attended strictly to his own affairs. Methodical in his habits, he accumulated a satisfactory share of the world's goods; possessed of the strictest integrity, his reputation in his community was high and he commanded universal respect.

Ellis Bloomer was the seventh in order of birth of his parents' nine children, of whom three sons and two daughters are still living. Reared on his father's farm, he attended the district schools in his youth, sub¬ sequently took a course in the Wabash Academy under the presidency of Professor Wilbur, and completed his education in the normal school at Lebanon, Ohio. He taught his first term of school when twenty years of age, and continued as an educator until after his marriage, when he began farming on the land on which his father resided for so many years. He continued as an agriculturist in Liberty township until September, 1911, and through industry, good judgment and well-applied effort made a decided success of his operations. He had long been interested in political affairs, and had served as assessor of Liberty town¬ ship, and in 1910 became the nominee of the republican party for the office of clerk of the courts, to which position he was sent at the ensuing election, taking office in January, 1912. His subsequent able handling of the affairs of the county has shown the citizens of this section that they made no mistake in their choice. Socially Mr. Bloomer is connected with the Masonic fraternity. With his family, he belongs to the Chris¬ tian church.

Mr. Bloomer was married December 15, 1878, to Miss Julia A. Stewart, daughter of Robert Stewart, a farmer of Liberty township, and to this union there have been born eight children, as follows: Guy S., who died when fourteen years of age; Joseph R., a practicing phy¬ sician with a large professional business at Rockville, Indiana; Fred¬ erick H., engaged in agricultural pursuits in Huntington county Indiana; Marie, who died at the age of seven years ; Kenneth E., who passed away when twenty years old ; John W., engaged in farming in Grant county, Indiana; Bessie, who is serving capably in the capacity of deputy clerk in her father's office ; and Ellen E., residing at home with her parents.

Jesse Parmenter. Twenty-nine years of continued residence in the city of Wabash have established Jesse Parmenter most securely in the common confidence and esteem of the best people of the community, and he takes his place here today, as he has for years past, among the leading citizens of the town. His business activities have always been along the line of fire insurance, and since he established himself in Wabash he has conducted a thriving insurance agency that has grown with the years and witnessed the beginning and end of many another similar con¬ cern. Mr. Parmenter, by reason of his long residence here, feels him¬ self a native of the Hoosier state, though he is properly a Michigan product, born in Shiawasse county, Michigan, on September 10, 1840. The Parmenter family is an interesting one and in so far as the sparse¬ ness of facts relative to it will permit, mention will here be made of the parentage and ancestry of the subject.

Jesse Parmenter is the fourth born child in a family of eight born to his parents, Joseph and Sally (Irons) Parmenter, natives of Vermont and New York state, respectively.

In the year 1834 Joseph Parmenter was a pioneer to the state of Michigan, and in Shiawasse county he preempted fifty-five acres of land. Here the young man met with all the trials that were the inevit¬ able lot of a newcomer in a new land, and he had the not unusual ex¬ perience of having to clear a spot of virgin trees before he could find space to put up a log cabin. The cabin, when completed, was primitive enough in its type, the logs unhewn, and elm bark used for roofing, with roughly split logs for the floor. Mr. Parmenter was the ninth white man to settle in the county, and it will be conceded that he had a gen¬ erous amount of courage else he would not have ventured as far as he did, for after spending a few months in his new location and building a sort of shelter for himself, he returned to the east, married in the following winter, in the year 1835, and moved back to the wilds of Michigan with his bride. Something might be appropriately said for the courage and fortitude that the young wife displayed, too, for the life of the pioneer in the thirties was not an enviable one. They were of stern stuff, however, and the experiences they were subjected to in their new home did not quench their spirits, for they continued there, building up a real home, and spending the balance of their lives in the community that eventually was formed.

Thus it was that Jesse Parmenter was reared amid pioneer scenes and activities in his native community. Such education as he acquired comprised something like fifteen months, spent intermittently, in the district schools, which in that day were scarcely worthy of the name. This lack of education Mr. Parmenter has in some measure overcome, for he has been a wide reader, a careful observer and a faithful student in the great school of experience all his days.

At the age of twenty he began life on his own responsibility, hiring out as a farm hand at $12.00 a month and he was thus employed when the Civil war broke out. He enlisted on August 24, 1861, and September 4th following was mustered in as a private in Company H, Stockton's

Independent Regiment which was later converted into the Sixteenth Michigan Volunteer Infantry. With his command he went direct to Washington, D. C., and first encamped there on Meridian Hill, where they remained about four weeks. They then crossed the Potomac, en¬ camping for the winter on Hall's Hill. On March 12, 1862, they left their winter quarters and started for Richmond as a part of the Fifth Army Corps under General George B. McClellan, but later they were transferred to boats for a different route, and were landed at Hampton Roads on the Peninsula. Mr. Parmenter was in the various manoeuverings of the army until the battle of Gaines' Mill and following this he was in the skirmish at Savage Station. He was also in the activities at Malvern Hill, Second Bull Run, Antietam (as a reserve at the latter battle), Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville and Gettysburg, in the latter engagement being on Little Round Top at a time when he had a full view of Pickett's charge. The winter of 1863-4 found Mr. Parmenter returned to his home on a veteran furlough, and in February, 1864, he rejoined his command at Rapahannock Station, Virginia, and from there went into the battle of the Wilderness. Here, on May 7, 1864, he was wounded through his left shoulder by a minie ball, and he was cap¬ tured at the hospital on' the night of the 7th by the enemy but after five days was paroled and came home to recuperate. On February 19, 1865, after four years of continuous service, he was honorably dis¬ charged at Detroit, Michigan.

When Mr. Parmenter had recovered from his military experience he resumed farming in his native county, and he continued to be so occupied until about the close of 1868, when he was appointed to an office in the State prison at Jackson, and he was there in service for four and a half years. That experience weaned him away from the farm, so that when he retired from his duties there, instead of returning to farm life, he took a position as a traveling salesman for a wholesale house in Jackson. In 1882 he went to Logansport and there he became identified with the fire insurance business, on a salary basis, but in July, 1885, he withdrew from his Logansport connections and established him¬ self independently in the fire insurance business in Wabash. He has continued in that enterprise without a break, and his success has been one well worthy of the name. In connection with his insurance busi¬ ness he has also for 25 years been the correspondent for the loan depart¬ ment of the Equitable Insurance Company, and in that time has loaned for them, over one million dollars. He is the only man in the county loaning money, who has direct relations with the east.

Mr. Parmenter has been a lifelong republican, and he has held a number of offices under republican government as the appointee of the party. From January 18, 1906, to a corresponding date in 1910 he served as postmaster of Wabash, by appointment of President Roosevelt. He is a Mason, of the Royal Arch body, and has membership in the Grand Army of the Republic. Although a Baptist in religious senti¬ ment, he has membership in the Presbyterian church of Wabash, and is reasonably active in the work of the church.

Isaac New. Forty-one years of life in Wabash gave to Isaac New a prominence and security of position that were well worthy of one of his estimable character and of his accomplishments in the community, and when he died here on May 3, 1907, he was in the seventy-fourth year of his life. He was bom in Odernheim, Bavaria, Germany, and was a son of Alexander New. His parents died when he was quite a small boy, and he soon after emigrated to the United States, being but four¬ teen years old at that time. He crossed the ocean in a sailing vessel, and settled in New York City, there finding employment in a clothing store, and he continued as a resident of that city until 1860. He had in 1858 married Henrietta Gallinger, and two years later they moved from New York to Atlanta, Georgia, and in 1861 they moved thence to Lagro, Wabash county, Indiana. A few months of residence in that community resulted in his removal to Wabash, which city was ever afterwards their home.

Here, in partnership with his uncle, Charles Herff, under the firm name of Herff and New, he embarked in the dry goods business, continu¬ ing thus until about 1870, when the firm dissolved partnership, Mr. New engaging in the dry goods business alone and under his own name. Since that time the name of New has been conspicuous in the mercantile annals of the city.

It was while thus associated that Mr. New became actively interested in the civic growth and development of Wabash and of the county, and he was always an influence for good along lines of upward and outward growth. He never aspired to political office, preferring to devote his entire time and attention to his private and business enterprises. He was a Democrat in his politics, and in his race and religion a Jew. But he was especially stanch in his American citizenship, and always a lover of its greatness and its wonderful institutions.

Mr. New was one of those old fashioned men who had a firm belief in honesty, not because of the benefits to be derived from fair and honor¬ able dealings, but because he loved righteousness for its own sake. A deep thinking man, he arrived at a conclusion deliberately and then rigorously lived up to the spirit of his convictions. His was a clean, courageous and upright life, and it was one reflecting credit upon his native land as well as that of his adoption.

Nine children were born to Isaac New and his wife, and of that num¬ ber eight are now living. Mrs. New died on April 5, 1913, when she was more than seventy-six years of age. She had been a faithful wife to her husband and was ever a devoted mother, rearing her children to habits of industry and thrift, and inculcating within in their consciousness principles that have stood them in excellent stead in the activities of life. Their children were named as follows: Hannah, who married S. Barth and died in 1887 ; Alexander, a lawyer of Kansas City ; Joseph, a mer- chant of New York City; Henry New, who succeeded to the mercantile business founded by the father in Wabash; Nellie, the wife of Felix Livingston ; Charles, a manufacturer at Louisville, Kentucky ; Theodore, a merchant in New York City; Jeannette, the wife of D. H. Blumenthal, of Marion, Indiana ; and Rosetta, who married I. Myers, of Kokomo, Indiana.

Henry New, the only son of the family who resides in Wabash was born here on March 26, 1865, and this city has ever been his home. He had his education in the city schools, and early began to assist his father in the business. Here he learned all the details of the enterprise under the able leadership of his father, who was a born merchant, and his son has inherited those qualities that have made for success in his life as well as in that of his honored father.

Mr. New is an independent in politics, and is not especially active in those matters, though he has ever been a good citizen, and has per¬ formed well his part in the city, much in the manner of his father before him. He has always taken an active part in the growth of the city and in getting new industries to locate within its coniines, and is classed as one of Wabash's most public-spirited men.

Norva P. Lavengood. The life record which has been made by Norva P. Lavengood, county treasurer of Wabash county, indicates a strong force, of character, laudable ambition and earnest purpose, for, starting out in life empty-handed at the early age of seventeen years, he has depended entirely upon his own resources and is today accorded a place of prominence in public regard in Wabash by reason of the position he has filled in business and political circles. Mr. Lavengood was born on a farm in Noble township, Wabash county, Indiana, December 2, 1872, and is the eldest of the three children (but one now living), born to the marriage of Samuel M. and Mary Jane (Hubbard) Lavengood. The former still survives and is living at Roann, where he operates a harness shop, while the mother is deceased.

Norva P. Lavengood lived on the farm until he was about ten years of age, during which time, after becoming old enough, he attended the neigh¬ boring district schools. From that time until attaining manhood, he lived in Roann, where he completed his scholastic training in the public insti¬ tutions. He began life's battles on his own responsibility when seventeen years of age, becoming a farm hand, and continued thus some two years, the ensuing four years being passed as an employe of the carpentering and building department of the Baltimore and Ohio Rail¬ road Company, at Garrett, Indiana. Subsequently, he returned to Roann, and there aided his father in the latter's harness-making shop, but later resumed carpentering, at which he continued to be engaged in 1905, when he embarked in the general automobile sales, garage and repairing business. He followed this line with marked success for seven years, but at the time of his election to the office of county treasurer.

disposed of his interests at Roann and moved to Wabash, which city has since been his home. Mr. Lavengood began to take a deep interest in political affairs when still a young man, and has ever been a stanch supporter of the policies of the democratic party. His loyalty and hard work, as well as his general worth and fitness, were recognized in Novem¬ ber, 1912, when he became the nominee of his party for the office of county treasurer. He was elected and served four years, from 1909 to Jan¬ uary 1, 1913, as assessor of Paw Paw township, resigning to take the office of county treasurer. For four years prior to 1909, he was deputy assessor of Paw Paw township. Wabash county has been singularly fortunate in the character of the men who have filled its important public offices and among those who stand as representatives of its interests at this time none have gained more widespread public approval than has Mr. Lavengood. He has evinced, in marked degree, that faculty possessed by men of large and successful affairs of bringing around him able co-workers and inspiring them with his enthusiasm and determination to get the greatest and best results from the matters in hand. He has shown some interest in fraternal work and is a member of the Knights of Pythias.

On June 1, 1898, Mr. Lavengood married Miss Lulu Ritter, of Steuben county, Indiana, and three children have been bom to the union : Leona, Ritter and Bessie. Mrs. Lavengood is a consistent mem¬ ber and liberal supporter of the Christian church.

Ernst H. Holdermann. As a business builder few Wabash county merchants have a record that compares favorably with that of Ernst H. Holdermann, whose mercantile enterprise in the city of Wabash is known all over the county, and has a splendid patronage. Mr. Holder¬ mann has lived in Wabash most of his life, and his business record has been such as to entitle him to the esteem of his fellow citizens, and render his position secure in the mercantile annals of his native city.

Ernst H. Holdermann was born in the city of Wabash, July 21, 1873. He was one of six children, five of whom are still living, born to Louie and Elizabeth (Seifert) Holdermann. His father was a native of Baden Baden, and the mother of Hesse Darmstadt, Germany. Louie Holdermann, while still unmarried came to the United States in 1866, and Miss Seifert came about the same time. In his native land he had learned the locksmith's trade, but worked at it very little after coming to America. In Wabash county, he soon found employment in the quarrying industry, at first under the direction of Fred Kanne, and subsequently was with several successive owners of the Quarries. In 1883, he bought out the previous proprietor, and his ownership was fol¬ lowed by an energetic exploitation of the industry. He shipped stone in bulk over the old canal to Fort Wayne, and other places up and down the Wabash Valley. Quarrying wTas his regular business from that time until his retirement from active affairs about ten or twelve years ago. Louie Holdermann wTas born in 1840 and with his wife now

Ernst H. Holdermann, when a boy, attended the Wabash public schools, and was trained in industrious habits by his father. Among his early duties, which he recalls, were the carrying of mail between the post office and the quarry, and also he served as water boy, carrying buckets of water around to the workmen, and also had a number of other minor responsibilities in the quarries. One year of his youth was spent in the study of telegraphy, but he never followed that profession. His business career, may be said to have been inaugurated in September, 1889, when he became clerk in the store of J. W. Busick & Son. His work with that firm continued until 1897, in which year he went out to Omaha, Nebraska, to take charge of the dress-goods department in the establishment of Hayden Brothers. Six months later he enlarged his mercantile outlook and experience, in the city of Chicago, where he was employed with the well known dry goods house of Charles A. Stevens and Brother. For one year after that he was manager in charge of the Schroeder Dry Goods Company at Racine, Wisconsin.

While at Racine, on June 14, 1899, Mr. Holdermann married Miss Henrietta Catherine Peters, a native of Wooster, Ohio. In that year he entered upon a partnership with George B. Pawley, and engaged in merchandising at Elkhart, Indiana, where he remained two years. In 1901, returning to Wabash, Mr. Holdermann and Mr. Pawley opened a dry goods store, that being the foundation for his present splendid success as a merchant. In 1909, the partnership was dissolved, and in the meantime the partners had established and for three years had operated a branch store at Winamac. In 1910, Mr. Holdermann began business as sole proprietor of an establishment which in extent and variety of stock and in its facilities for prompt and excellent service ranked as one of the leading emporiums of the time.

Mr. Holdermann is a German Evangelical Protestant in religion, in politics he is a progressive and though affiliated with some local fra¬ ternal organization he is essentially a business man, and divides all his time between his home and his store. He and his wife are the parents of two daughters, Mary Elizabeth and Katherine Louise.

Joiin C. Hegel. The old and homely aphorism "Let the shoemaker stick to his last ' ' is applicable to other lines of industry as well, and when a farmer is found who has the good judgment to stick to his farm, credit should be duly accorded to him as justly his due. Many an unsuccessful professional or business man has been the outcome of the spoiling of a good farmer and the fact is a deplorable one, indeed. John C. Hegel has been one who appreciated farm life and has applied himself all his days to the business of successful farming. That he has succeeded in his work will not be denied, for his farm is said to be one of the finest in the township, and he is regarded among successful farming men as being one of the most prosperous and progressive. Mr. Hegel's farm of one hundred acres lies on the west side of the Rock Spring Road,

John C. Hegel is the son of Jacob and Mary (Bitzer) Hegel, the father a native son of Germany, who came to America when he was twenty -one years of age. He first settled in Ohio, but spent only a few months there, when he came to Indiana and located on the farm now occupied by his son, the subject of this review. The farm has been entered from the government by another early settler, but had never been improved to any extent, and presented a primitive aspect even then, when farms were beginning to make a fairly good showing in this vicinity. Mr. Hegel paid $800 for the eighty-acre tract, and felt himself fortunate in securing ownership of such a place at the price. He felled trees on a suitable spot for the erection of a log cabin, and it is not¬ able that the little cabin he built then is still in use and does duty as a part of the comfortable home now occupied by John C. Hegel.

Mr. Hegel in time added a twenty, acre adjoining tract to his orig¬ inal holdings, and later added 61 acres, so that he owned 161 acres, and this was sufficient to occupy his entire attention. In the spring of 1902 he felt himself able to retire from active farm life, and he moved to Wabash, where he bought a home and settled down with his wTife to enjoy quietly his remaining years. He lived there until July, 1910, when he died at the age of eighty-four years. His widow still survives him and is an honored resident of Wabash.

Jacob Hegel was twice married. His first wife was a Miss Bender, who died after the birth of her second child. Her two children were as fol¬ lows: Mary, who became the wife of Andrew Weist, and Miss Chris¬ tine, who never married. Mr. Hegel's second wife was Mary Bitzer, a native daughter of Indiana, and she became the mother of seven chil¬ dren, here briefly mentioned as follows: Charles, who is elsewhere men¬ tioned at length in this biographical work; Reuben; Harry; Lauretta; John C., of this review; William; Lydia, the widow of S. J. Bechtold, also mentioned on other pages of this work.

John C. Hegel had his early schooling in the district schools of his vicinity, and was reared to farm work under the supervision of his father, who was a capable and intelligent farmer. In early manhood he and his brother William bought seventy-seven acres and together they carried on farming activities for six years, after wThich he sold his interest to his brother and returned to the home place, where he farmed with his father on shares for eight years. In October, 1909, he bought 100 acres of the old home place from his father, who a few years pre¬ vious had retired from active life and settled in Wabash, and John C. Hegel has since devoted himself to intensive and extensive farming. Be¬ tween the years of 1889 and 1907 he owned and operated a threshing machine in the township, and in that enterprise he was able to realize a nice profit in the annual threshing season, and he still gives some at¬ tention to the work along that line. His own place of one hundred acres claims a good share of his attention, and he also takes care of a forty near by that is his mother's property, so that all considered, he is one of the busiest men in the township. Success has attended his efforts, and as an aggressive and progressive farmer he is widely known here¬ abouts.

Mr. Hegel has not confined his activities to farming alone, but he is known here as one of the organizers and a stockholder and director in the Citizens' State Bank of Lagro, of which his father, Charles F., is president. He is a member of the Evangelical Association at Bethel and is treasurer of the church, of which his wife is also a member.

Mr. Hegel was married in 1900 to Miss Myrtle Stair, the daughter of Adam Stair and his wife, both now deceased. They long maintained a residence in the vicinity of North Manchester, and were among the most highly esteemed people of their community. The father was a veteran of the Civil war.

The Hegel family have an excellent standing in all circles of the township, and take a foremost part in the leading social activities of the community. They are highly regarded for their many excellent traits, and have a wide circle of friends in Lagro township.

Thomas Wellman King, who was for many years a resident of Wabash, Indiana, and among its most prominent citizens in busi¬ ness, financial and public affairs, was a native of Ohio, his birth occur¬ ring in Summit county, October 16, 1836. He was the third in. order of birth of the children born to Peter and Elizabeth (Moyer) King, the former born in York county, Pennsylvania and the latter in Westmoreland county, that state. His father, a miller by trade, came with his family to Wabash county in 1842 and purchased farm land three miles from the village of Wabash, but later disposed of that tract and established a home in the village. For years he was engaged in a general line of business and by hard and conscientious work accumu¬ lated a competency, at the same time winning the esteem and respect of all with whom he came in contact through his many sterling traits of character. In 1894, Mr. King passed away, having been preceded one year by the mother, and both are now at rest in the cemetery in Wabash. They were among the first to settle here and it is to such earnest, industrious and God-fearing people that the county owes its present standing among the leaders in the great state of Indiana. In 1842, they came to Wabash county, Indiana, Thomas W. King being then sixty-seven years old.

When but fifteen years of age, Thomas Wellman King embarked upon a career of his own, having received a more or less educational training in the public schools. He was content to start at the bottom, accepting an humble position as a clerk in a dry goods store, but he was not destined to remain among the ranks of the mediocre, for, after thoroughly assimilating the details of the business, he formed a part¬ nership with his father and upon the latter's retirement assumed full charge of the business, which assumed large proportions under his bril- liant and well-directed management. Subsequently, Mr. King became interested in a string of grain elevators, and was also the head of a large hardware house, the latter being continued with much success for a period of fifteen years. For years Mr. King was vice-president and a director of the Wabash National Bank, and his standing in the financial world was evidenced by the confidence placed in him by his associates, who in all matters of importance trusted him implicitly for guidance and leadership. When he passed away, December 14, 1912, his county lost a man whose place in the business world it was extremely hard to fill; his family a kind husband and indulgent father, and his hosts of friends a loyal and lovable companion whom they had always found ready to aid them in times of trouble or distress.

On October 22, 1857, Mr. King was married to Miss Jane D. Stitt, daughter of Archibald and Katherine (Simpson) Stitt, the former born in County Down, Ireland, in 1802, and the latter in Pennsylvania in 1811, and married in the mother's birthplace in 1827. In 1833 Mr. Stitt came to Wabash county, Indiana, and secured the contract for building the Wabash & Erie Canal from Lagro to Lafayette, and com¬ pleted that immense work in 1840. In 1835 he returned to Pennsyl¬ vania for his family and brought them to Wabash county, establishing a home at Lagro, but on completing his work on the canal returned to Pennsylvania. He later acquired government land in Rich Valley, and this he cleared and improved, developing a handsome and valuable farm, but in August, 1850, when elected treasurer of Wabash county, came here with his family, and continued to make this his home until his death in 1867. He was followed to his grave by the mother in 1892, and both were buried in the Wabash Cemetery.