Monroe, Indiana

The town of Monroe is situated at the center of the county, seven miles west of the Ohio state line. At various times it has fanned itself with the hope of being the county seat of Adams county. With this idea it was platted, witii eighty lots, on the line between Monroe and Washington townships by John Everhart. and the plat recorded on the nth day of December, 1847. Its four streets were Washington, Jackson, VanBuren and Polk streets. In the general election of 1850 the county seat location was a prominent issue. A feature of this election shows that it was an issue between the north and south ends of the county, and that the southern candidates for county offices were about all elected over their northern rivals, while in the county seat issue Decatur was the winner. In that election the highest number of votes was cast for coroner. Thomas W. Andrews, of the northern part of the county, received 586 votes, and was elected; that for state senator Samuel S. Mickle received 447 votes and was elected. All the other county officers were chosen from the south half of the county. Charles Nelson, of Wabash township, received 505 votes for county commissioner; John Mc- Connell, of southeast Monroe township, received 485 votes and was elected county auditor; Samuel Eley, of southeastern Monroe township, received 497 votes for enumerator and county assessor and was elected. David McDonald was elected sheriff by a vote of 461, while his opponent, the Whig candidate, Jacob Conkle, received 381 votes. Both of these candidates for sheriff !:vc(! in Wabash township. The vote on county seat location stood: For Decatur, 474 votes ; for Monroe, 343 votes ; for Monmotrth, 14 votes, and for Pleasant Mills, 2 votes. After the county seat subject was abandoned, a part of the recorded plat was vacated by order of the county commissioners. One of the principal streets of the town al this time is Jackson street. This is an east and west street, and on this the greater number of the business houses of the town are located. When the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad was completed in 1871 Monroe had but two or three houses. The first frame house in this town was built in 1871 by Dr. Charles F. Rainier, who subsequently practiced medicine in Monroe and vicinity for more than twenty years. The first house built in the town was a two-room round log cabin, located on the south side of Jackson street near the present location of Joseph Hocker's drug store. It was built, it is said, along about 1853, by William Stockham, an ex-soldier of the war of 1812, and also an associate judge. Mr. Stockham was not only the first resident of Monroe, but was the first storekeeper. The wants of the neighborhood then were few, but he kept them on hand as far as possible. An old settler relates that the road to Stockham's store from Decatur ran in the direction of a snake track in the dust; that it nowhere ran straight; that the stock of goods usually kept by Mr. Stockham chiefly consisted of whisky, blind robins, dog-leg tobacco, ox yokes and ax handles; that he took in trade coon skins, beeswax, ginseng and maple sui':ir. Monroe has made much improvement since the fifties. One can get his tobacco and blind robinc, but must cross the corporation line to get his whisky, as the saloon is just outside the corporation. For a number of years Monroe was a great timber point. Lumber of various kinds was hauled here for shipment. Especially is this true of railroad ties, heading and staves. In 1872-73 Gilig & Hower started the first sawmill. Christ W. Hocker later put in a portable mill and later hoop machinery and a burr for chopping grain. As the country was developed the town grew in business interests, and a grain elevator was built to handle the grain marketed there. In 1847 Monroe was laid out as a town, but it was not until 1877 that it had a church building. Not that it had no church-going people, for it had, but that these were accommodated by attending the "twelve-cornered" log church that was a mile and a half south of Monroe. This church was built on the farm of Robert E. Smith, in section 9, in 1866, by the Methodist and United Brethren congregations and used by several other denominations. Some of the most active members in securing the construction of the church at Monroe were Bazil Hendricks, William and Philip Hendricks, David Reefy and James Davey. These were assisted by contributions of labor, lumber and cash from the prominent business men of the town and community. This structure was repaired and remodeled in 1904 and made much more convenient and greatly improved in its outward appearance. One of the principal advocates and managers of this improvement was Rev. Sprague, the local preacher. In 1887 the present brick graded school building was erected. This was the first school building in Monroe, and the second brick school house in the township. In 1902 another room was added and the building otherwise changed. This building was erected by Township Trustee Christ \Y. Hocker, an active merchant and timber man in Monroe in the eighties. It is now a graded school building and is located on Section Line street in the east part of town. The town of Monroe has never experienced any very extensive fires. Its most destructive occurred in the spring of 1905. Then Keller Brother's general store, Shelby Ray's drug store and residence and postoffice room and A. B. Bailey's general store building, with most of the contents, were destroyed by fire. A short time later, in the same year, Peter Kesler's blacksmith shop, J- W. Hendrick's residence and Mrs. Waggoner's house were destroyed. As to the causes of these fires, there has been more or less speculation. But one common agreement is that Monroe has been ben- by some new buildings that add a much more prosperous appearance to the village. The first fire of much consequence in this town was perhaps in 1887, when the -general store building belonging to Christ W. Hocker was burned. This was rebuilt, but was burglarized a number of times. In one case the burglars were caught and held by their captors with empty guns till the burglars drew loaded revolvers, backed out and escaped in the darkness. On the 17th day of April, 1905, the town of Monroe was incorporated. The result of the election was the selection of John Hendricks, Jonathan Burkhead and Hazel J. Andrews for town trustees; for town clerk and treasurer cornmined, John F. Hocker; for town marshal,

Passage source: Snow's History of Adams County, Indiana, published 1907.

Peter Kesler. The highest vote received in this election was forty-two votes for marshal. In the general election of 1905 the following named officers were elected : John Hendricks, W. S. Smith, and L. F.. Lobenstine, for town trustees; for clerk and treasurer combined, M. L. Oliver and J. F. Hocker each received thirty-one votes; the tie vote was broken by tossing coppers, and on the basis of "Heads I win and tails you lose" Marion L. Oliver was selected ; for town marshal, J. W. Fverhart (the present marshal is is Joseph Dentner). Since the town was incorporated it is taking on some new life. The Ray block on the north side of Jefferson street is a substantial structure with ample hall room on the second floor for any meetings that may be held in the town. The new bank buildinfr is under construction, and the town has a number of tasty tile block residences. It has g-otten well started in placing cement sidewalks over the village. Its business men have started the movement towards getting more and new business enterprises to start up in the town. Stock is now selling to place a newspaper plant on its feet in Monroe, and a grist mill is already assured and' will soon lie built in the town. Among some of the other items of interest that may be named are : Church, 1 ; hotels, 2 ; restaurants, 1 ; drug store, 1 ; general stores, 3 ; hardware and implement store, 1 ; blacksmith shop, 1 ; tile and brick works, 1 ; lumber yard, 1 ; harness shop, 1 ; junk shop, 1 ; barber shop, 1 ; creamery, 1 ; coal yard, 1 ; dotcors, 2; grain elevator, 1.

Passage source: Snow's History of Adams County, Indiana, published 1907.

The question is frequently asked, when did this stone road building begin and who was the instigator of it in Adams county. It may have had several instigators, but he who is most 'entitled to be known as the "father of the stone road" system in Adams county is Samuel Doak, an ex-county commissioner. Long before he was chosen to h'l that very responsible office he was an advocate of better roads and more drainage. 'J lie roads and the drainage make this country what it now is as compared with what it was forty years ago. The chief hindrance to the road improvements at an early date Was the mistaken idea that there was no road-making material in the county and that !'» ship it in would be too expensive for the advantages derived. Perhaps the first att<-mpt toward pike-making was along about l,'7^. when the town trustees of Decatur contracted to have Monroe street graded and graveled. The gravel proved to be sand of too fine a texture to be of much value. It was hauled from the Daily farm in section 26, in Root township, about a mile from Decatur. This for a time checked the gravel road building in the north part of the county. The first gravel pikes of much value or extent were made in the southern part of the county. They extended west and northwest from Geneva and were begun about 1890. These were made of coarse gravel and were pretty good dry weather roads, but cut to pieces badly in the wet spring time. The old Piqua road was graveled about this time; it was perhaps the first good gravel road in the north part of the county. Later the township trustees would buy the gravel and the land tax of the citizens was worked out by hauling gravel on certain pieces of road as directed. In 18S8 the Rice & Bowers stone quarry north of Decatur began crushing stone for road purposes. There was a switch from the Grand Rapids & Indiana: tracks laid that the product might be shipped to other localities where stone roads were under construction. Several attempts to locate stone streets and roads were made, but they always resulted in failure until there was a joint petition gotten up including the townships of Washington and Kirkland with the adjoining township on the Wells county side. Daily Sr Mock as attorneys were employed to assist in getting the petitions in shape and having the proper elections advertised and held that when the decision at such elections was determined the will of the majority could be enforced. In Kirkland township David Steele took an active part in favor of the stone road project. as it ran past his farm. In Decatur John S. Bowers worked hard to secure its location, as he had stone to sell and wanted the road built. Joint petitions were filed and acted upon by the county boards ; the route as petitioned for and started at the west corporation line of Decatur, went a mile and threequarters, then south a half mile, then west two miles, then south four miles, then west to the county line at Couryviile and met the Bluffton division. In several attempts to vote a subsidy or tax for a stone road the majority was against the tax because there was no other issue before the election. The friends of the road waited to have the subsidy election held to a time near the holding of the general election, then this issue was made a part of the entire election and its advocates carried their issue by a fair majority. However, Kirkland township voted against the tax by about fifty majority.

Passage source: Snow's History of Adams County, Indiana, published 1907.

Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.

Read the whole chapter on Monroe Township.