Woolery Stone Company

Township 8 north, Range 1 west, was one of two in the State of Indiana, devoted by Legislative enactment to special school purposes. The Indiana State University was then unknown, and its future place in the social system of humanity was unthought of. In the year 1820, the General Assembly of Indiana, in pursuance of an act of Congress, selected two full Congressional townships - one in Gibson County, and the other in Monroe County - to be used in founding and maintaining two State Seminaries. The selection was made through the medium of commissions appointed by the State Legislature, such officers being required to locate the townships, and carry into effect other provisions specified. This was done, Perry Township, or as it was only known then, Township 8 north, Range 1 west, being the one selected in Monroe County. 'Trustees were appointed to superintend the erection of the necessary seminary buildings - two, one for the school, and the other for the Principal to occupy. This work was done in 1822, four sections of land on the north side of the township being reserved for the grounds, etc., of the seminary. The sections thus reserved were all of No. 4, No. 5, the west half of No. 3, the east half of No. 6, the west half of No. 9, and the east half of No. 8, making in all four full sections. These sections were reserved from sale, and squatters were not permitted to make improvements, such as clearing the land, erecting buildings, planting crops, etc. It was different, however, on the remainder of the township. The citizens were, of course, aware that at some future day the lands of the townsbip, except perhaps the reserved sections, would be thrown into market and sold in parcels to suit purchasers for the highest price that could be obtained. None of the land was remote from the county seat, and much of it was near, and, in addition, the rapid growth of Bloomington, the location of a State Seminary there and the appearance of educators and citizens of unusual culture, caused the soil of Perry Township to be greatly coveted, and early in the twenties its bounds were invaded by an army of eager squatters, who, regardless of the fact that they had no right there, went to work erecting buildings in which to live, cutting down the forests to get fields for agriculture, constructing mills, etc., etc., as if the land were already their legal property. The years passed, but still the lands remained unsold, though quite numerously occupied. The squatters continuously clamored for the sale to be made, and at last, in 1827, the Legislature provided for the appraisement of the land and for its appearance in market. This caused the squatters to become anxious. Several of them had made quite extensive improvements in clearing and building, and the sale meant that their claims should be subjected to the competitive bids of speculators, prospective residents and themselves. The speculators, for instance, could bid on a squatter's claim, and, if willing to buy the improvements which the law of pre-emption required of him, could run the farm above the price which the squatter himself was willing or able to give, and could secure the home of the settler in spite of all that he could do. Nothing serious, however, was done, though there was some sharp competition for tracts of land of superior quality, or of favor-

Passage source: 1884 History of Monroe County Indiana, published 1884.

The poorest land, class 3, could not be sold for less than the Government price of $1.25 per acre, and might be sold for any amount above that figure. A minimum price was also fixed for the first and second classes. The sale began in October (the sections and parts of sections marked reserved in the plat not being subject to sale), and during the remainder of that year (1827) the following men became purchasers : Alexander Kelley, Joseph Piercy, John Armstrong, and John Griffith on Section 1; James G. Fleener, Granville Ward, Milton McPhetridge, Isaac Rogers, Aquilla Rogers and Samuel Dunn on Section 2; Thomas Smith on Section 3; George Henry, James Borland, Ellis Stone and Hiram Paugh on Section 6; Emsley Wilson, Andrew Dodds, Abraham Pauley, Richard Hunter and Alexander Murphy on Section 7; Samuel Dodds, Richard Shipp and John Hight on Section 8; William Bilbo on Section 9; Benjamin Rogers, David Batterton and Zachariah Williams on Section 10; Jobn Griffith and Jacob Isominger on Section 11; Garrett Moore, John A. Wilson and Moses Williams on Section 12; Benjamin Rogers on Section 14; Josiah Baker and Abed Nego Walden on Section 15; William Dunning, Levi Thatcher and Williams Knatts on Section 16; Isaac Pauley, Daniel Davis, Thomas Carter and Absalom Kennedy on Section 17; Isaac Pauley, Edward Borland and Samuel Moore on Section 18; Simon Adamson on Section 19; Jacob Depue, Evan Dallarhide, David Sears and John Mathers on Section 20; Robert D. Alexander, William Davis, John W. Nicholson, William Taylor, Michael Keith and David Findley on Section 21; John Boltinghouse, William Patrick and William Taylor on Section 22; Solomon Butcher, Banner Brummet and James Berryman on Section 27; William 'Taylor, James Alexander, William Alverson, John Musser, Robert Sanderson, James Brummet and Thomas Abbott on Section 28; William Alverson, Carey James, David Sears, William Henry, James Parsons and Charles Brookshire on Section 29; Samuel Rhorer, Solomon Green, John Smith and Absalom Cooper on Section 30; John Smith on Section 31; William Ross and Alexander Miller on Section 32; George Short and Moses Grantham on Section 33; William Chandler on Section 34. These were the only purchasers in 1827, and, of course. include all the squatters who were very anxious to get a title to the land upon which they had been living and had been for years saving money for that purpose. Several residents of Bloomington and other portions of the county were among the buyers. During the following year, 1828, the entries, though quite numerous, were not half so many as in 1827. After the first rush, the sale languished and fell back to its place with the remainder of the county. The land was not subject to entry in the usual way at the land offices. It was under the control of a special Commissioner who was em-

Passage source: 1884 History of Monroe County Indiana, published 1884.

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 Perry Township - 8,019 words on its settlement, mills, schools and churches.