Portage Township

Portage Township

SAMUEL ALYEA, native of Butler County, Ohio, was born September 21, 1825, the fourth of the twelve children of Isaac and Keziah (Smith) Alyea. The father was born in Essex County, N. J., and the mother in Tennessee, and both were of German descent. The paternal grandfather and great-grandfather of Mr. Alyea were both soldiers in the war of the Revolution. Mr. Alyea was reared by his grandparents, and, in 1835, came with them to La Porte County ; a year later they moved to Boone Township, this county, and the year following were joined by Isaac Alyea, who afterward moved to La Porte County, and there died. March 15, 1845, Mr. Alyea married Deborah Alyea, of Franklin County, this State. In 1851, he returned to La Porte County, where he resided, with the exception of one year passed in Tazewell County, 111., until 1869, when he came back to this township, where he has resided ever since. He has a fine farm of 640 acres, and gives much aetention to dairying and stock-raising. Of the ten children born to him there are six living, viz., Orlando E., Theodore, Washington, Marion, Mrs. Melissa J. Gundy, of Union Township, and Samuel E. Mr. Alyea is a member of the I. 0. 0. F., is a Republican, and is one of the earliest settlers in the township now living, and one of its most substantial citizens.

B. G. CRISMAN was born in Huntingdon County, Penn., June 14, 1814. He is one of the eight children of Benjamin and Mary (Yingling) Crisman, and the youngest. Both parents were natives of Maryland. When B. G. Crisman was four years old his parents settled in Carroll County, Ohio, where he was reared, and where he lived until 1849, at which time he removed to De Kalb County, Ind., and in 1850 settled in Union Township, Porter County, after which he moved on his farm in Portage Township. On March 2, 1836, he was married to Elizabeth Baughman, of Carroll County, Ohio, a union which was blessed with twelve children, ten of whom are living - Addison, Isaac, Oliver (of Valparaiso), Nancy, Henry, Milton, Solomon F. (of Moore County, Minn.), Mrs. Eliza J. Cole (of Brainerd, Minn.), Mrs. Clara Bender and Washington W. Mr. Crisman owns a splendid farm, comprising 260 acres, with good improvements. In politics, he is a Republican.

ADDISON CRISMAN was born in Carroll County, Ohio, October 27, 1837, and is a son of B. G. and Elizabeth Crisman. He came with his parents to this county in 1850, and worked at home until he attained his majority, when he began working for farmers in the neighborhood. In August, 1862, he enlisted in Company E, Seventy-third Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and served until the war was closed. After his return from the field, he settled in Portage Township, where he has since farmed, excepting a little more than a year, which he spent in the mercantile business at Lake Station. On June 17, 1863, he was married to Jane E. Holmes, a native of this county, and daughter of William and Jane A. Rugar, who settled in Porter County about 1838. Four children were the fruit of this union - Addison M., William C, Thomas W. and Benjamin F. In 1873, Mr. Crisman made his home on his present farm of 253 acres. He was elected Justice of the Peace in 1866, and served six years. He is a Republican.

ISAAC CRISMAN, farmer, was born in Carroll County, Ohio, June 3, 1839, and is a son of B. G. and Elizabeth (Baughman) Crisman. He was brought to this county by his parents in 1850, where he has remained excepting the time spent in the army. When he had reached his majority, he began to work among the farmers of his neighborhood. In August, 1862, he enlisted in Company E, Seventy-third Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and was discharged for disability in March, 1863 ; he re-enlisted however, in November, 1864, in Company D, Twenty-third Indiana Volunteers, and served until the end of the war. After returning, he farmed on the homestead until his marriage, December 12, 1870, to Jane White, a native of Will County, 111. Four children were the result of this union - Wilbur F. (deceased). Myrta M. (deceased), B. Allen and Fannie E. (deceased). After his marriage, he located at Crisman, where he engaged in mercantile business and served three years as Postmaster. In 1875, he moved to his farm in Portage Township, where he now lives on seventy acres ; he is a Republican, and is serving his second term as Township Trustee.

MILTON CHISMAN was born in Carroll County, Ohio, March 12, 1847, one of the twelve children of Benjamin and Elizabeth (Baughman) Crisman ; was brought to this towship by his parents in 1850, and was reared to manhood on a farm. In 1872 and 1873, he engaged as a contractor on the Michigan Central and the Baltimore & Ohio Railroads, and in the latter year, June 5, married Miss Sarah E. Fifield, of this county ; he is now the father of three children - Raymond, Ross M. and Leonard. In 1874, he rented a farm in this township, and a year later bought the one on which he now resides. This consists of 145 acres of rich land, improved, with a good brick residence and other buildings. In politics, Mr. Crisman is a Republican, and for two years he filled the office of Township Assessor ; he received a good common-school education in his youth, and is an intelligent, enterprising and prosperous farmer and one of the substantial citizens of the township.

D. S. CURTIS is a native of Macomb County, Mich., and was born March 1, 1836, the youngest of nine children born to John and Abigail (Huggins) Curtis. The former was of English descent, and a native of Cayuga County, N. Y.; he was reared a farmer, and served as a soldier in the war of 1812. The latter was a native of the same county and State and of Scotch extraction. In 1838, the family came to Portage Township and settled on the farm where the subject of this sketch was reared, and where he now lives ; here his father died November 12, 1865 ; he was a member of the M. E. Church; in politics' was a Democrat, and filled many offices of public trust. July 3, 1860, Mr. Curtis married Miss Ann Libby, a native of Canada, and five children have blessed their union, viz., Permelia A., George A., Charles E., Minerva A. and Wealthy A. Mrs. Curtis is a member of the M. E. Church ; Mr. 0. is a Royal Arch Mason, and is now filling the office of Superintendent of Roads; in politics, he is a Democrat. He has a well-improved farm of 108 acres, and is highly esteemed by his neighbors.

BENJAMIN FIFIELD is the second of the seven children of Thomas H. and Elsie (Carter) Fifield, and was born in Grafton County N. H., November 27, 1827; his parents are natives of the same State, and his paternal grandfather was a soldier in the Revolutionary war. The family moved to Canada when Benjamin was about five years of age, and thence, in 1841, came to Union Township, this county; here our subject assisted on the home farm and attended school until 1853, when he settled on the farm in this township, on which he still resides. March 9, 1854, he married Lany Sphuler, a native of Germany, who has borne him seven children, viz.: Walker, of Liberty Township; Mrs. Sarah A. Crisman, of this township; Thomas H., deceased; Mrs. Myra Holmes, of La Porte County, Ind. ; Jaccheus H., Jessie A. and Clarence E. Mr. Fifield's farm comprises 250 acres of fertile land, well furnished with excellent buildings; he gives considerable attention to stock-raising and dairying. In 1856, his father removed to Valparaiso, and a few years since retired to South Bend, to enjoy in peace the fruits of his early industry. Mr. Fifield is a Republican, and is one of the substantial men of Portage Township.

ANDREW J. HARRISON was born in Porter County, Ind., June 9, 1843, and is one of the ten children of Robert and Esther (Garrett) Harrison, both natives of the Isle of Man. Robert Harrison was a blacksmith, and about 1826 came to America and settled in Lake County, Ohio, where he followed his trade until 1836, when he came to Porter County, and the following year located in Portage Township, residing here until his death, in 1861 ; he was a licentiate of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and preached frequently ; he was also Township Trustee. Andrew Harrison has always lived on the homestead, and now has a good farm of 160 acres. On October 21, 1869, he was married to Martha Quatermass, a native of Ontario. Seven children followed the union - Laura M., Ettie, George R., Sarah M ., Alvie G., Thomas A. and Martha. Mr. and Mrs. Harrison are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Harrison is a member of the Valparaiso Commandery, No. 28. In politics, he is a Republican ; he has held several offices of public trust, among which are Township Assessor, in 1870; Township Trustee, and for four years, 1876-80, County Commissioner.

G. M. HAXTON, born in Livingston County, N. Y., June 25, 1820, is a son of Marsena and Eliza (Parmer) Haxton, and the second of seven children. Marsena Haxton was a clothier, a soldier of the war of 1812, and both he and his wife were natives of New York. When G. M. Haxton was a child, his parents moved to Monroe County, N. Y., where he lived until the age of twenty, when he began working in a planing-mill factory, g,nd two years later went to Lorain County, Ohio. Here he remained twenty-five years, with the exception of four years passed in Medina County, and, in 1867, settled in Portage Township on his present place; this farm covers 320 acres ; he gives his main attention to dairy and stock business. On May 1, 1842, he was married to Lodema Vosburgh, of Monroe County, N. Y., who died in 1852, leaving two children - Mrs. Eliza M. Waite, of Lorain County, Ohio, and Marsena (deceased). His second marriage, to Wealthy A. Vosburgh, on November 25, 1852, was blessed with four children - Lodema, Mrs. Caroline M. Small, Florence and George E. Mr. and Mrs. Haxton are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. He is Independent in politics.

WEBSTER MILLER was born in Berrien County, Mich., January 22, 1851, the eldest of the seven children of Nicholas and Mary J. (Platts) Miller. His father was a native of Lake County, Ind., and by trade a plasterer. Webster Miller was reared on a farm in Berrien County until twenty-three years of age, with the exception of six years of his youth passed in La Porte County, this State. In 1876, he came to Porter County, where he was married November 22, 1877, to Ina A. Gaylord, a native of this county, and the third of four children born to Charles H. and Theodocia (Sayles) Gaylord, both natives of Onondaga

County, N. Y. They settled in this county in 1852, and the father, who was of French descent, was killed in the late war ; the mother died May 6, 1875. Mr. and Mrs. Miller are the parents of one child - Sylvia T. In politics, Mr. Miller is Republican ; he is progressive in his views and is a prosperous farmer, owning 120 acres of good land, improved with excellent buildings.

JOSEPH WHITE was born in Clark County, Ohio, June 18, 1818, and is the eldest of seven children of Benjamin and Sarah (Foreman) White ; the former a native of Pennsylvania, the latter of Kentucky. Joseph White worked at home until the age of twenty-two, when he went to Champaign County, 111., and farmed for eight years. In May, 1845, he enlisted in the Twelfth Illinois Regiment, and started for the halls of the Montezumas, serving in the war with Mexico fourteen months. In 1851, he went to Will County, 111., where he farmed until 1871, having been Deputy Sheriff and Justice of the Peace six years, when he came to Portage Township and settled on a farm near Crisman. In January, 1879, he moved to town and entered mercantile life. He is now Postmaster, and has been Justice of the Peace since 1878. Besides his property at Crisman, he owns forty acres in this township. On November 25, 1841, he was married to Fannie Spencer, a native of Clark County, Ohio, by whom he had six children - Mrs. Jane Crisman, John A., Mrs. Abigail Rose, Benjamin F., Isaac P. and Joseph, deceased. Mrs. White died in 1857. His second marriage, to Sarah Chamberlin, of Will County, 111., took place on July 25, 1857. To this second union there followed five children - Martha, Edmond, Henry C, George W. and Albert. Mr. White is a Republican.

WILLIAM A. WISE was born in Knox County, Ohio, July 27, 1844, and is the eldest of the two children of Jonathan and Caroline (Price) Wise, who came to Centre Township, this county, about 1856, and still resides there. William assisted on the farm until April 18, 1861, when he enlisted in Company A, Seventh Indiana Cavalry. At the expiration of his three months' term, he re-enlisted in the same company, and received his final discharge September 19, 1865. He took part in most of the battles of the Western Department, and during the whole of his service acted as Company Quartermaster Sergeant. On his return, he worked on the old farm until November 17, 1870, when he married Miss Mary E. James, who has borne him four children - Allen B., Delbert J., Roxiana M. and Dudley. In politics Mr. Wise is a Republican, and he is one of the most enterprising men in the township. He is owner of 132 acres of fine land in Portage and forty in Westchester Township, and is a thorough agriculturist.

JOSEPHUS WOLF was the youngest of the seven children of Jaeob and Lydia (Dorr) Wolf, and was born in Athens County, Ohio, June 22, 1822. His father and mother were natives respectively of Pennsylvania and New York, and in 1834 settled on Twenty-Mile Prairie, this township. Josephus Wolf was here reared on the farm, and here he has always lived, with the exception of the years 1851 and 1852, which were spent in the mines of California. By industry and good management, Mr. Wolf has become the owner of 4,500 acres - the largest farm in the county, aad well improved with a fine residence, erected in 1876, and all other requisite buildings. He has devoted his attention mainly to stockraising and dairying, and now has a herd of about three hundred and fifty cattle, including some extra fine specimens of blooded Holstein and Hereford Stock. September 29, 1852, he married Miss Susan M. Youngs, of Erie County, Ohio, who has borne him eight children, of whom three only are living - Francis M., Elmer and Martin. In politics, he is a Republican, but ia no oflSce-seeker. He was among the first to settle on the Prairie, and much of its growth and improvement is due to his enterprise.

Source changes here: from History of Porter County, Indiana : a Narrative Account of Its Historical Progress, Its People and Its Principal Interests, by Lewis Publishing Company. Cn, published 1912; 5,925 words in this source stream.

Portage Township

This to^raship was created by the general order of the l)oard -of county commissioners, April 12, 1836, which divided the county into ten civil toT^niships, but the present boundaries are materially dilferent from the ones originally defined by that order. It is sitiuilcd in Ibe northwest corner of the county, and is said to have been named aflc^r Portage county, Ohio. It is hounded on the north by Lake Michigan; on the east by the to^^Tiships of Westchester and Libei'ty; on the south by Union township, and-on the west by Lake county. It is four miles wide from east to west on the northern boundary, and five miles in width on the southern. It greatest length from north to south is a little over eight miles and its area is about thirty-six square miles. In the northern * pai't are th(j sandhills common to the shore of Lake Michigan in that region. South of the sandhills lies.the valley of the Little Calumet river, which contains some swamp lands, and still farther south is a level prairie, with a rich soil, well adapted to agriculture. This prairie is watered by Salt creek and its numerous small tributaries. Salt creek crosses the southern boundary near the southeast corner, flows nortlnvard until it enters Liberty to^^^lship near the northwest corner of section 33, township 35, range 6, and reenters Portage township neai- (he iMnlbrasl corner of section 20 of the same township and range. Large (luanlitics of sand have been shipped from this township to Chicago, and ncai- Crisman there is a fine-grained clay that has been used quite extensiwly for

In the .spring of 1834 Jacob "Wolf, IJein ; i Dorr and Reuben Hurlburt brouglit their families and located clinn.s in I'uriage tOMTiship. They were llic fir.st settlers. Jacob Woir iiad thrre LMown .sons; Mr. Dorr had two sous of age, and Mr. Ilui-lburl \,:f[ live sons, three of whom were then in their "teens." Later in Uir yc:iv Geoi'ge and James Spurlock and Wilford Parrott joined the si'lllciiiriit. During the next two years a number of immigrants settled in llir vicinily, among whom may be mentioned Benjamin James and his sou AII<m), S. P. Robbins, Walker' McCool, Thomas J. Field, Henry Ilerold, Orilliiii and William Ilolb.ert, Daniel AVhitaker, Francis Spencer, J. G. Herring, (ieorge Hume, William Frame, John Hageman, Jacob Blake, Henry Batlan, John Lyons and James Connet. An old tally sheet of the election held in April, 1836, shows that most of the above voted at lliat time, and at the election in August following twenty-nine voles were cast. Henry Battan was an old revolutionary^, soldier. The life and customs of these early settlers did not differ much from those of other pioneers. The first dwellings were log cabins, erected without nails, with greased paper windows or no windows at all, the huge clay fireplace and the same rude furniture. There were the same dreary trips throujjl! the forests and across the bleak prairies to Michigan City for supplies, the same plain food and homespun clothing.

The first bii'th is not known. The first marriage^ jn believed to have been that of Henry Ilerold to a Jliss Dorr, and the first death was that of ^a man named Ashton in 1837. In that year a man nan 'd Carley opened a taverii nt AVillow creek, on flie old .stat'i line ruii iiii; from Chicago to Detroit. Two women, whose names seem to have been forgotten, later opened a house of entertainment for traveieis at tli - .^ame place. The first school bouse was built in 1840 on .seelion 20, aboui a mile and a half southeast of the present village of McC'ool, and not long afterward a second school house was erected in the sovitli-.\est jiai d' the tONNTiship. Among the early teachers were N. H. Yos!, ^l. L. I'eiiis, W. E. Haw- tlioi-ne, Lottie Hewitt, Minnie Speneer, Rose Mitchell. Cyrus Sales, Clirislina Pry, Emily Gei-hart, Cliancey (iaylord and a Baptist minister named I'.avtlett. In the school year of 1911 there was a certified high scliool at Cri.siiiaa and four district sclioo]«. The teachci'S in the high school were W. A. Briggs, Minnie 1. ll>(le. Glen Kinne, Mary Rice and Camilla Babcoek. In the district schools the teachers were: No. 1 (Peak), Goldic Johnson; No. 6 (Dombey), L. Clyde Bay; No. 8 (Mc- Cool), Bertha Sweet; No. 9 (Wolfe), Rudolph Mahus. The absence of numbers 2, 3, 4, 5 and 7 is owing to the consolidation of districts or tlie absoij'lion of some of them by the Crisman high school.

Portage township has three postofficcs, located at Crisman, Dune Park and McCool. The first two are money order offices. Crisman was laid out by B. G. Crisman, after which it was named. It is located on the Michigan Central railroad in the eastein part. The postoflice was established there in 1871 and the first pusliiiaster was Isaac Crisman, who was also the proprietor of the first stoi-c in the place. After a short time he sold out to Charles Seydel, who in turji was succeeded by Joseph Bender and Joseph White. For many years this was the only store in the township. The town has never grown to any considerable proportions and in 1910 had a population of about 75. McCool, named after the pioneer family, is located in the triangle between the Baltimore & Ohio, the El^in, Joliet & Eastern, and the Wabash railways, and apparently, like Topsy in Uncle Tom's Cabin, it "just growed." The railroad junction attracted a few small business enterprises, whose proprietors built dwellings in the immediate neighboi'hood, others followed, and in Ijy^O iMcCopl and Crisman were about the same size. Dune Park is a small station on, the Lake Shore & Michigan Soutlicfii rairoad, about a mile and a half south of Lake Michigan. It takes its name fi-om the saiid dunes in the vicinity. In October, 1891, Frank A. Turner, of Valparaiso, filed in the recorder's office a plat of a town named Fairview, located on section 34, township 37, range 7, in the extieme northwest corner of the county. The plat is rather pretentious in character, sliowing some six

Ahout thirty-five years ago a few Swedes settled in the northi>rn ])arl. They were soon followed hy others of their countryinen until a large nnnilier of them eaine. 'J'hese people are inihistrial and generally make good citizcios. One. of their first acts was to cstahlish a church, which is still in existence. Preshyterian and Methodist churches had been founded in the township many years before.

Portage township is a network of railroads. In the northern part ai-e the Lake Shore & ]\Iichigan Southern, and the Chicago, Lake Shore & Soutlr Bend, the latter au electric line. Through the central part, radiating in various directions, are the Michigan Central, the Wabash, llu! Elgin, Jolict & Eastern, and the Baltimore & Ohio, and the Pittsburgh, Fovt Waj'ne & Chicago cresses the extreme southwest corner. The great manufacturing enterprises of Chicago have worked their way gradnallj' southward and eastward around the head of Lake Michigan, building up successively the cities of Hammond, South Chicago, East Chicago, Gary and Ilobart, and the excellent tran.sportation facilities offered in Portage township lead many to believe that this portion of Porter county will in the near future become a great manufacturing district.

Probably no township in the county, unless it be Center, can show a better system of public highways than Portage. More than thirty miles of fine macadamized roads traverse all portions of the township, and good bridges span the streams. Jjike some of the other townships of PtJrter county, the population of Portage has been rather variable during the last twenty years. In 1890 it was 954. Ten years later it had increased to 1,014, but in 1910 it was but 959.

Lying southwest of Valparaiso is the township of Porter, which is the second largest in the county, containing fort.y-five square miles. It is

Owing to the fact that most of Porter townsliip is prairie land, the early settlers were not annoyed as much by Indians as tliose who settled in the timbered parts of the county. Occasionally an linli;in hunting party would pass through the settlement, but the iiieiiil)ei's of it were nearly always friendly, and there were always a few would maintain peace and order among their fellows. Game was |)leiitirul and llie pioneer who was a good marksman was never in feai' of a meal famiiie until the encroachment of civilization drove off the deer and oilier ^aine animals, and by that time the farms were so well d(\elii|ie(l ihal tlie settler could depend upon domestic animals for his t,u|i|)ly. h"'or several years after the first settlement was made, Michigan Cily \va.s the nearest point Avhere supplies could be obtaiiicii, mid ociMsional trips were made to that port for salt, sugar and otln r 1liinf;s ili:i( could not be grown or manufactured at home. Matches wdc srairc and commanded a price much liighei' than at the present time, liriice the i'wv was never allowed to go out, a little Ixdng kept at all timi's srcd." Wolves roamed over the prairie and carried off lambs and iii;:s orcMsionally, but aside from this the losses and bardshijis of the earl\ sctlkrs were not great.

Children belonging to the families Ilia) settled in the western part of the to\^'Tiship attended a school on Eagle creek, just across the line in Lake county. The first school in the tow iislii|) is believed to be the one taught by Mrs. Humphrey at her home about ISoT or 1838. This school was patronized by the Sbeffields, the Slaimtons, and a few other families. One by one school liouses were erected as the population increased until there were ton districts in the township. Two of these - Numbers 3 and 6 - have been consolidated with other schools, and in the school year 1911-12 there were eight district schools and a three years' high school at Boone Grove. The teach.e.rs in the high school were J. E. AVorthington, C. Marguerite De Marchus and Lillie Dorsey. In the district schools the teachers were as follows: No. 1 (the Cobb school), ]\Iiss Myra B. Jones; No. 2 (Gates Cornel's), Grace Mains; No. 4 (Kenworthy), Maud Williams; No. 5 (Merriman), Bessie Love; No. 7 (Porter Crossroads), Marie Benedict; No. 8 (the Beach school), Neva Doyle; No. 9 (Ilurlburt), Rhoda Bates; No. 10 (the Skinner school), Gertrude Albertsou. The schools of Porter township ha\e rdways maintained a high reputation for their efficiency.

"In 1844 a postoffice was establislied at Poi-ler Cross-roads, and was known by that name. It was probably tlu' fiisl jiostoffiee in the toMiiship. The next year a postoffice was established at Hickory Point, jixst across the line in Lake county, and the inhabitants of the western part of the township received their mail at that oftice. Jei-emy Iliekson, the postmaster, carried the mail from Crown Point. He was succeeded by Henry Nichols and his father, William A. Nichols, wlio between them kept the office for about six years, when it was moved aci-oss the line into Porter to\\Tasliii) ;iiul-a man iiauicd Porter became postnui^lci-. Al his deatli a few years later the office was discontinued. Tlie Pcrlcr ('r(ls^; rniids office continued in existence until about the close of the Civil war. Tin' posloffices in the township at the present time (lUl'i) ;ire Hoone C,riive and Hurlburt. Boone Grove is an old settlement, and tin |HiNl'ii'ii,-.- (Iirre was established a few years befoi-c the war. About lw.'>7 Iom'jiIi .Inm s opcneil a store at ]{oone Grove, with a small stock of goods, ;iiid roiiliiiiicd in business for several years, when he closed out liis stock. Willi the Imilding of the Chicago & Erie railroad, which passes through P.oone (Jnive, the village began to grow, and in 1910 had a population of iibout liiO, Tliere is a local tclei)hone exchange, ;iiid in 1912 the principid busimis.'-- nitcrp rises were the general stores of Dye Brothers, F. Wittenlierg, .'lud J. P. Woods, the last named being the postmaster. For a tijur Poone (ilrove was known as Baltimore. Hurlburt is a compai'atively n^-v: plic', having been made a postoffitte after the completion of the Chicago & Erie railroad, on which it is a station about two and a h<Mlf miJes northwest of Boone Grove. It was named for one of the pioneer se1 tiers who located in that part of the township, and in 1910 had a population of over 100. It has two general stores, kept by S. II. Adams and W. P. French, and is a shipping point for a rich agricultural district. The Hickory Point above mentioned was on the line between Lake and Porter counties, and ,was once a trading point and social center «f some importance. Shortly' after the postoffice was started there in 1844 Alfred Nichols opened a store on the Porter county side, but some years later removed to Cro\vn Point. A man nanied Wallace then conducted a store there for several years, and when he went out of business a I\li'. C;ii'soii, who had recently come fi-om Ohio, engaged in the mercantile busim-.ss Ihcrc. The discontinuance of the postoffice, and the competition of Boojlc Grove, influenced Mr. Carson to close out liis stock, and \\Tth llu building of the railroad Hickory Point sunk into insignificance. It i.s now liltle more more than a memory.

Before the church was built the ineinljcrs of the congregation lnh] tin ii meetings in the liomes of the settlers. Just about a mile iioiUi dl' this church the Old School Presbyterians, or Scoleh Covenantcis. Imilt a church. Christian and ilethodist ehnrches were later estaMislied at Boone Grove. A more complete account of these pioneer religious ov ganizations will be found in the chapter relating to Religious llislor.w Owing to a lack of vital statistics, it is impossible to leaj-n at Ibis late date of the first birth, the first marriage or the first death in the township. One of the early deaths was that of a young man named R(ibiiis<iii, a son of John Robinson, his death resulting from a cut in the 11n,i;li w ilb an axe.

Porter township has been from the first an agricultural coniiiiiinily. No manufacturing establishmcnls of consequence have ever been Id cated within its borders. About the time the Civil war coiuiiicneril a Mr. Sheflield starti'd a sawmill in the northern part of the '.oNviisbiii, runs northwest tiirought Boone (Inur .1;. i lliirlliurt, and crosses the western boundary of the county not l:ii- '. -n Salem church. Al)out foiumile^ north of this road and almost para''!-! In it runs the Chesapeake & Ohio (formerly the Chicago, Cinciniiali iN ijoiiisviUe) railroad. Beatrice, in liie extreme northwest corm-r of U' iwnsliip, is tin; only "station on this road within the limits of rorlr;. i.' at rice is a small place and has grown up since the railroad wa;> luiill.

The population of the tovrnship in ;";*" was 1,121 ; in 1900 it was 1,075, and in 191U it had dccr(>ased 1- l.OdO. Notwithstanding this slight decrease in i)opulation, the tov.iish'!; iias increased in wealth, and in 1911 the property of the townsliip w.is assessed for tax purposes at $1,439,590.

This township, one of the westci-n ih : ^vas created by order of the board of county commissioners on April ^2, 1836. In extent it is five miles from east to west and six miles fiuin north to south, and contains thirty square miles. It was named Union iu connncmora.te the federation of states in the American Republic, ai;fl ' been called the "Peaceful To\\iiship," on account of its natural ' 1 -'ity. Being located chiefly in the morainic belt of the county. 1l;> - ' i'ace is rolling, and, next to Jaokson township, presents a greater divi ;->-iy of jihysical features than any other township in Porter county. Ti ( i utire area, however, can be cultivated, and agriculture is the princi])al 1 n upalion of th(! inhabitants. Salt creek crosses the nortlu^ast corjiei', .-in- 'ii-aiuli of that stream flows northward through the eastern tier of si, lions, uniting with the main stream about half a niilc souUi of llif iiortlh ; n IjomiiLMy. Taylor creek rises in Hollister's lake, in llie soutlimi |i,iri, ;iiu! Ildws iiorthwestcirly course into Lake county. Hollister's lal<e is .ilicul six oi' seven acres in extent and is the only hike in the to\\nslii|i xK.iihy of IIh' name. Originally there was some marsh land, l)u( tlic jrr.Tii poi'lioii of this has been drained and brouglit luider cultivalion. T\\riii_\ -mile pi^nrie extends into the northern part. Charles S. llulr lays: "'I'liis Avas so named because, as an old settler facetiously said, il was 'Iwcnly miles from anywhere'- - meaning of course, that it was twcnly miles (or some multiple of twenty) from the nearest trading i>osl, being (\verily miles from Michigan City and Laporte, and forty miles rroni Chicago."

In the central portion the soil is gejn rally sandy. Ihough there is some loam. The bard clay found in all ]iarls nf the township makes it unprofitable to try corn growing, but \vlie;it, eiils and rye are raised in large quantities, and the to\\Tiship is well adapted to grazing. The hills, ravines and forests combined to rendo' this paiM of the county an ideal haunt for game animals, when the first :\liili' men located there they found plenty of deer, a iev/ bear, the lynx, the liiid-vr, the otter and other fur-bearing animals, and a horde of prairie and graj' wolves, the latter species being by far the most numerous.

There is some question as to who was the first settler. William B. Blaehly, Benjgmin McCarty, James Walton, dohn (i. F'orbes, Sylvester Forbes, Andrew and Joseph Wilson, Josejih Willey, ffentge W. Turner, E. W. and Noah Fowts, Lewis Walton aiid a few others had settled in the township by the spring of 1836. At the election for justice of the peace on April 30, of that year, James ^\'alt(ln was ins|>eet()r; George W. Turner and B. Bunnell, judges; E. W. Fowls and doseph Willey, clerks. Fifteen votes were cast, Joseph Willey receiving the unaJiimoTis vote for the office of justice of the peace. The election ^\-as held at the residence of George W. Turner. "Squire" Willey was evidently not a highly educated individual, as maj^ be seen by the gfannnar and orthographj^ in the following entry from his docket in Deeemlier al'tei- his election:

Porter county, i "Joliu Burge, James Burge and Orson Strong wa.s lirouglU before me, Joseph Willey, a Justice of tlie Peace, for li'ial fi)r Lilk'n sum hogs, on or about the first day of December, 1836, and 1 pn^ ,ded on the 8th day aforesaid to hear the proofs and allegations, and the defendants was acquitted for the above olfeuse. Nicholas Blount, tj ied for profane swearing, comnutted, and pnid his fine.

In the pioneer days Union township was farUicj- IVm;,! I he institutions of civilization than the settlements farther uorlh and i ;i ,1. It was thirty miles to the nearest grist mill, and it was a custom foj unr of the settlers to make up a wagon load of grain among tlu: neigh l.cj.^ and make the three day trip with an ox-team, distributing the flour or -orn meal among the owners of the grain upon his return. ^Vlien this supply I'an out an- man would take his turn in going to the mill. TIk miller's toll was hea^'J', and some of the settlers overcame the difiieulty hy liurning a hollow in the top of a large stump for a mortar, and pounding theii- corn therein with a hard-wood pestle. The meal produced ]<y this method was coarse, ^)ut it was wholesome, and frequently the only supper served was a bowl of mush made of this meal and a generous porlion of fresh milk. The implements used by the pioneer farmers wei-e of Mw most primitive character. The first plow used in the township was oT the old "bulltongue" pattern, and harrows were made by scU'ctiiii; a \"-sliaiH'd fork of a tree, boring holes at regular distances through each 1 : ^ineli of the fork and driving into them hard wood pegs for teelb. Wiicfii \\as cut with the cradle and bound by hand. In some cases the siekir, oi' "reap-hook," was used, especially if the grain was rank and tangled h> the wind. The grain was threshed with the flail, tramped out 1)>- drivii;;.' horses or cattleover it on a piece of ground smoothed off foj' the inposi', or in some instances the "ground-hog" threshing machiiu' was i,., J. This would looseu the grain from the chaff, but did not separate tlieiii. The farmer must accomplish that by winnowing the grain - that is by tossing it into the ail' - tlie wind blowing the chaff awaj' and the grain falling upon a sheet. Occasionally there was a farmer who was the proud possessor of a "fanning mill," in which the wheat and chaff were poured into a hopper at the top, and by turjiing a crank were shaken down through the mill, a revolving fan blowing the chaff out at the rear end while the wheat poured out of a spout at the bottom of the machine. ]\Iany a boy has blistered his hands ^vhile turning one of these fans, no doubt nnittering meanwhile mental maledictions upon the inventor. Now, the farmer frequently rides as lie plows, his grain is harvested with the twine binder, the lium of the steam thresher is heard instead of the "thud, thud" of the old-fashioned flail, and the fanning mill has gone, never to return. Not far from the western boundary, on the old Sauk trail, James or Thomas Snow (authorities differ as to the name), in 1833, erected the first frame house in the townsliii;). The lumber was hauled from Laporte, and when the building wa.s completed I\lr. Snow put in a small stock of goods, thus becoming Union township's first merchant. Two years later he sold out to Oliver Shepard, a Yankee, who put up a sign bearing the legend "The Hoosier's Nest," and in a short time the place became known far and wide. The fame of this place has been perpetuated in verse by John Finley, and as his poem is really a part of Porter county's history, it is here reproduced.

A stranger found a Hoosier's Nest; In other words, a Buckeye cabin Just big enough to hold Queen Mab in, Its situation low, but airy, --.i.-- .

History Op Poijtkk' Coiimty 179

It is claimed by some that this poem JirsI called attention to the use of the word "Hoosier" to designate an inliahilant of the state of Indiana. Tlie first school house in Union townshiji was a log structure, 18 by 20 i'eet, located near the " Hoosier 's Nest," but the date of its erection is uncertain, and the name of the lirst teachci' cannot be learned. In October, 1883, when the corner-stone of the court house was laid, Isaiah B. McGinley, at that time trustee of the township, prepared a historical sketch, in which he stated that there were 447 children of school age and ten school districts in the township. Since then a commissioned high school has been established at Wheeler, and the number of districts has been reduced to seven. Jhe teachers in Ww Wliecler high school for the year 1911-12 were: Thurraan 15. Rice, Hehn Whillock, Ruth R. Matthews, Vera S. Bradley, Flora Cobb, Kthel 0. b'nih and Irene Paddock. The teachers in the district schools were as follows : No. 2 (the Blaehly school), Frank Pei'egrine; No. 4 (the Pe(4; school), Mary Conrick; No. 5 (Graves), Martha Marquart; No. 6 (Foster), Mary Cronacan; No. 7 (Gordon), Elsie Ditlow; No. S (Cherry (]len), Lura Conrick; No. 10 (Spafford), Anna Ehlers.

A Sunday school was starlid in Portiij^' town.ship, just across the ^iue, in 1838, Benson and Ira G. Harris, two residents of Union, being active participants in its organisation, an<l a majoi-ity of the attendants came from Union township. Al|ilieus Fniuli, a Baptist minister, held services in a grove at Blaehly "s ( 'orners in I lie spi-ing of 1836, and this was probably the first sermon j)i'cached in the township. Rev. Jacob Coleliisiei', a M(4hodist missioning', also luld s<'rviccs in the township at an early date, and conducted the first i|ii:Mierly meeting in January, b'i40. (See the chapter on Reli<.i-ious Hisii.ry.)

l,he luostprogi isive in the county, having nearly tliirty mlk:; oL' 1 i macadamized I'-ad. Several lines of railroad cross Xh- to\\m:\Ap i \arions directions. The Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne & Cliicago c "> northeast coi-ner, passing through 'Wliicler; the Grand Trunk i l, si and west through the central portion, and the Chesapeake & Olii-i u. , i I'.s the southwest corner. Wheeler is the only village of import:ini'^ i;' township. It was laid out in 1858, when the railroad went thiod:!', by Thomas A. E. Campbell, who owned tiie land upon which tlie vill. , is situated. The first business building uas that afterward oeeiiiiitd Siglar Bros, with a stock of goods, the second was the hotel called the V\ feeler House, and the third was used as a saloon by Carroll and 'L^iier. George Longishore was tlie first postmaster. At the proseni tit'c ' iieeler has a population of about 200, three general stores, a t<'ii-p''i'( exchange, a Methodist church, lodges of Odd Fellows and Foresteiv, ;: : d mill, and a money order postoffice, tlu; only postofftce in thi^ lonn: ip. On the Grand Trunk is a small station called Sedley, which was IJHiiierly a postoffice, l)ut which was discontinued upon the introduction of i:e free I'ural delivery system. Some of the maps show a place called Sjiriggsboro on the line between Union and Center townships, but the ri,',\iie does not appear on the railroad tinie-tal)les nor in the United St les postoffice guide, and no official plat of the town was ever recorded.

The population of Union has had its "iips and down;; .-ihiiost from the organization of the to\vi!ship. In 1860 it was 867 : in , t) it Jiad increased to 1,057; ten years later it was 1,054; in 18!)0 ii -.1 decreased to 985; a further decrease followed during the next u' ^ ilie population in 1900 being only 938; then came a substantial ; nd in 1910 it was 1,069, the iiighest in it.-, Jiistory.

have 1" -n made in the western iKaiii '^I'v, Ijuf Hk tow-nslip ol' Uie present day ]u.-, the original houud;ny 'iiis i^s csi.ibiiNlied wheri it was first erected. It is bounded on the lioiili i.v .f;icl<scin lo^vnship; on the east by L.ipoi'te county; on the south t . It. of Move:.;i,, ;nid on the west l)y Center. Its area is thiviy i-Urs, being five )iiili>s in extent from east to west and six mik'S ficui nofili to sinith. The sui-face of the township is affected by the great .L'l;ici:i1 mui'iiine which pa ses tlirongh the central portion of the connly, and is f;'(Mierally iindulaluig in character. Crooked creek, which is ilir, niiljri of Flint lake, enters near the noi'thwest corner and flows sontheasi hi section 23, lownship 35, range 5, where it turns almost due soutli, orossing the soutliern border about two miles west of the Lapm-ir foiu.lv' line. This slieam has two small tributaries in the northeast', rn p.ni. so that the touu.ship is well watered and well adapted to gniziin,' and slorlc I'aising. The soil is similar to that of the surrounding t()wns!;ii>s, lieing composed principally of clay and loam sandy in places, and imm'sIiv in a few localities. Some of the finest farms in^.the county ai-c iipLui tlie Morgan laairie, where the first settlements in the county -wen' uiadc.

William ]\Iorgan is credited witli licin.u tlie first settler. He came from Wajme countj', Ohio in tlie spring .if 1833, and located upon the northern part of the prairie that still hoars Ins family name. Before the close of the year, Adam S. Campbell, Isaac, Morgan, Rulus Van Pool and Reason Bell also settled upon the prairie. Samuel Flint took up a claim where the village of Pra11 ville wa.,- lafer located, and .T.tcob Coleman settled aliout two miles south of Flic) s |ilacc. In 1834 -Tames Blair, Isaac "Werninger, James Baura and a *'f'\\ ntlicvs, among v.lioin was Ruel Stflrr, who afterward became ]iromiiir"tl,\' identified with the county's political affairs. Other settlers were David S. Holland, B'en.iamin Saylor, Levi Chainberton, Seth "Winslow, "W It Smith, Miclia;! and Andrew Ault, George B. Cline, Joseph Todd. Ilciir\' Rinker, Antlionj^ Boggs, Robert Fleming, John Shinaharj-'er, rrlci Clinc, Joseph Brewer and Clark Babcoek. All these men ;iiid a :- \ otlio's voted at tlie fii-st township election on April 30, 183G. wlien i^ y Rinker was elected justice of the peace, receiving twenty -three voles. W. ]i. Smith received twenty votes and Peter Cline, seventeen, making a total ol' sixty votes cast.

There were still a few Indians in Washington township wlicu flie first settlers came. iNear the place where Prattville was ai'terward laid out there was a Pottawatomie village of 100 or more inhabitants, witli a burying-gj'onnd near it. While these Indians were of some annoyance to the whites, they did not conmiit any serious depredations, and in 1836 they removed to another location near the Kankakee river, in the southern part of the county, where they remained until 1842, when they were removed west of tJie Alississippi.

The first white child born in the township was Rea.son Bell, Jr., a son of Reason and Sarah Bell, M'ho had come from Wayne county, Ohio, in 1833. The date of birth of their son, who was also the first white child born in Porter county, was January 11, 1834. No record can be found to show the first death or the first marriage. The first "big" houseraising was in 1834, when some thirty settlers gathered to assist Isaac Morgan in raising a double log house on section 16, a little north of the Laporte road. The first tavern was opened in this year* by David Oaks not far from Prattville. A year or so later John Shinabarger started the second tavern ahout a mile north of Oak's place. The first store was opened in the double log house of Isaac Morgan above referred to, lat^ in 1834 or early in 1835. In May, 1836, Andrew Ault opened a general store about three-fourths of a mile west of Prattville. He also took out license to retail liquor, his license costing him ten dollars per annum. The first shoe shop was established in 1835 by Adam S. Campbell, who brought his leather and other materials from the state of New- York. The same year Russell opened the first blacksmith shop near Prattville. The first school was taught bj' ]\Iary Hammond in the winter of 1835-36. Tiie first school house was built the following year, and not long afterward the Luther school house was erected. Among the early teachers were Thomas Campbell, George Partial, Nancy Trim, Dr. Pagin and Lowry Hall. In 1911-12 Washington had a township high school and five district schools, in which the teachers were as follows:

No stirring events have ever oceui'red in Washington townsliii>, hiiii-(; its history differs vei-y little from Ihat of any agricultural conniiuiiily. The men who redeemed the soil from its wild state and brought it vimlcr cultivation cared little for the more exciting phases of life, and were content to pursue "the even tenor of their way." Their life was one of toil, sometimes privation, hut it had its recompense. They saw the Indian and the wild lieast distippear before the march of civiliziitiou ; many of them lived to see the raih'oads come and place Porter county in comnmnication with other portions of the country; their social inlrrcourse was usually without envy or jealousy and their friendships were sincere, and they have handed down to their posterity an inheritance in which their children and their children's children may feel a just pride. As in other portions of the county, the early settlers were compelled to go to Michigan City for tlieir supplies or to market their surplus products. The nearest grist mill was at Kingsbury, a little village about six miles southeast of Laporte, and for several years grain had to be taken tliere to be ground. In a few instances the pioneer farmers went nearly a hundred miles to obtain good seed for planting, yet with all these difficulties to contend with the coui-agoous frontiersman persevered, and to him Porter countj' owes a debt that can never be repaid.

Washington township is crossed by four miles of railroad, all running Jn an easterly and westerly direelion. Near the center of the to\vnship is the Grand Trunk, but there is no station on this line in Washington. The Baltimore & Ohio ci'osses the northeast corner. Coburg, near the northern boundary is a station on tlus line and a trading center for the northern part of Washington and the southern part of Jackson townships. The Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne & Chicago enters at the southeast corner and runs a little north of west through Valparaiso, and the New Y<uk,

Chicago & 8t. Louis (Nickel Plate) crosses llic ;-ioiitb\vest couicr. Tlie time-tables of the last named road show a small .staticm called ^Nickel two miles east of Valparaiso and near the l)oundai\' line between the townships of 'Wasliiugton and ilorgan. There arc aboiil filtcr'H miles of macadamized road in AVashington, and as the distan.'c (o \'alpai-aiso is not }nore than eight miles from any portion of the lounshij), the people depend chiefly upon that city for their supplies. There i^^ tjo postoffice in the township, Imt mail is disti-ibuted daily thi'OU'r.'i Ihc nicdiiim of the rural free delivery routes that traverse all pari'' of the ccjuuI.s'. The population in 1890 was G70: in 1900 it had fallct; !«. iifKi, hut during the next decade there was a substantial gain, the popnialion in 1910 being 610.

The old to-vvn of Prattville, mentioned several times in the above sketch of Washington township, was laid out by Tlioiuas Pratt, Wilson Malone and Lyman Beach. It occupied the east half of the iiortliwest quarter of section 21, township 35, range 5, on the Ijapoile road, about two miles east of tlie city of Valparaiso. The j)lat was recorded on November 11, 1856, and a few lots were sold, but the town never became a substantial reality and the name is about all that remains.

Wilson Malone, son of Lester Malone, was born in Ross county, Ohio, June 1^, 1805, and in that county came to manhood. The death of his parents in his jouth left him to his own resources, and in 1826, when he was twenty-one years old, he came west, stopping in Fountain and Montgomery counties, Indiana. On February 22, lS.'i2, he mairied Sarah Swank, born in Springfield, Ohio, October 15, ISl], tlie daughter of Jacob Swank, an early settler in Montgomery counly. In the same j'car of his marriage he removed to La Porte county ami laler eanic to Porter county, where he continued to reside until his deatli. Deei mlier 22, 1876. His first earnings were invested in Porter county land; he v>as one of the prosperous men of his day and was the owner cif nmre tlian 1,000 acres of land at the time of his death.