Salem Center, Indiana

John Slick (deceased), long known as the oldest inhabitant of Salem Township, was born in Prussia, Dec. 18, 1785, and lived in that country with his parents until he arrived at his twentieth year. He was then pressed into the military service of Napoleon Bonaparte, in which he remained under the immediate command of Marshal Ney about four years, during Napoleon's war with Spain. He finally deserted and went to Lisbon, where, finding an English ship bound tor Liverpool, he took passage for England . Soon after arriving in the British realm, he was again pressed into the naval service, at the beginning of the war of 1812. He remained with the British army three and a half years, during vvhicli time he was in the principal engagements between the British and the United States. But English service suited him no better than French, and being one night placed on picket near the American forces, he quietly left his post and crossed the river; finding our sentinel asleep on his post he waked him and expressed a desire to go into camp. This ended his service as a soldier. He soon after settled in the village of Rush, near Rochester, N. Y., where, in the year 1815 he married Mary Hempstead, who remained a faithful companion to him during the remainder of his long life. Early in the history of Steuben County he left Cattaraugus County, N. Y., and settled in Salem Township, this county, where he resided for forty years, half a mile south of Salem Center. During his latter years Mr. Slick's advanced age and eventful life made him an interesting conversationalist. It was really entertaininoto hear him narrate his narrow escapes from prison and death, and he took great delight in relating them and exhibiting his scars to verify the truth of his statements. He died at his home in Salem Township, Thursday, July 31, 1879, aged ninety-three years and seven months. He left a wife, aged seventy-eight, two sons, three daughters, thirty -six grandchildren and twenty-three great-grandchildren. The wife has since died, at the age of eighty-five years.

Passage source: History of Steuben County, Indiana, Together with... Biographies of Representative Citizens, published 1885.

Salem Township now contains many highly cultivated farms, which indicate the tirelpss energy of the early settlers, who cleared away the mighty forests, and they and their descendants have made the waste places "bud and blossom as the rose." There are three postoffices in the township - Hudson, Salem Center and Turkey Creek. The first named is in the southeast corner, on the line between Salem and Steuben townships. Salem Center is a mile north of the center of the township, while Turkey Creek is situated on the creek of the same name in the southwestern part of the township.

Passage source: History of Steuben County, Indiana, Together with... Biographies of Representative Citizens, published 1885.

Salem Center was never platted as a village, but has for many years supported two mercantile establishments doing a very respectable business, beside considerable other trade. The history of the village began in 1843, when W. H. Austin and Edward Wright opened the first store, a block structure erected by Mr. Austin on the present site of Hammond, Dole & Co.'s store. Two years later Wright bought the interest of his partner, and after a time was succeeded by Adolphus Gale, who, in turn, sold to W. W. Braden. Dr. Joseph C. Kimsey bought this building and converted the timbers into fuel, the lot having been purchased by James Richards, who erected thereon a frame building, the first story of which he used for a time as a work shop, and the upper story was used as a lodge-room by the Masonic fraternity. About 1862 E. T, Hammond and Casper Conger bought this building a- d fitted it up for a store, into which they put a stock of goods in 1864. The following year Mr. Hammond became sole proprietor, and after a time he sold to John Carey, who carried on the business for several years, and was burned out in the autumn of 1871. He soon after rebuilt on the same lot, and sold to T. J. Warner.

Passage source: History of Steuben County, Indiana, Together with... Biographies of Representative Citizens, published 1885.

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 Salem Township - it names this place 7 more 7 times.