Clinton Township

Clinton Township - including Elizaville

Clinton Township is situated in the northern tier of townships bounded on the north by Clinton County, on the west by Washington Township, on the south by Center and on the east by Hamilton County. It contains thirty-three sections of land. Half sections 13 to 18 inclusive, and sections 19 to 36 inclusive, in township 20 north, range 1 east, and sections 1 to 12 inclusive, in township 19 north, range 1 east. Its surface is generally level, sloping gently towards the northwest. Section 12 in the southwest corner is the highest and most level in the township, and the northwest corner is the lowest and most broken. Sugar Creek cuts off a small portion of the northwest corner. Mud Creek, Terrapin Creek and Brown's Wonder all flow toward to northwest and drain the entire township into Sugar Creek. There is a story about the origin of the name of this latter creek. It is stated that when the surveyors were surveying this part of Boone County and came across the head waters of this stream in Center Township and it twisted and flowed in so many directions that much controversy arose among them as to where the creek would empty. It was no easy work to survey this wild land. To cut a way through the brush and wade through the bogs and lazy crooked streams was a tedious task. Added to this was the difficulty of telling a stream that was lost in the woods from a regular bog or swamp. This sluggish, twisting stream was a wonder to all three of the men and especially to a young man of the company by the name of Brown. So when the riddle was solved and the perplexed stream was landed in Sugar Creek, near Mechanicsburg, it was christened Brown's Wonder. The streams previously referred to drained the township naturally and made it easy to complete the work by ditching so that the rich soil was easily drained. The township is comparatively level except the northwest corner, and yet there were only forty acres of swamp land in the entire township, the southwest one-fourth of southwest quarter of section 2.

Settlements were made as early as 1834. Among the first may be named James H. SAMPLE , George FALL , Henry I. BENNETT , Robert STEPHENSON , A. B. CLARK , Hoza ALBRIDGE , Resin GARRETT , Thomas ABERNATHY , William WEST , David EVANS , John TUCKER , Jesse SCOTT , Hiram ROBERTS , Jesse PERKINS , John CALDWELL, William I. BENNETT , Newton CASSADY , Jim M. BURNS , Hiram BRENTON , Alexander CALDWELL , George MOGNETT , James DOWNING , Hugh WILEY , Abner KNOTTS , J. A. MCDANIEL , W. H. EVANS , John EVANS , Obed HARDESTY , Robert PERKINS , F. C. PHILLIPS , Hugh SAMPLE , John M. WILEY , Frank DOWNING , Hiram POWELL , Joseph STEPHENSON , Hugh MCDONALD , Ozias ROBINSON , Samuel DOWNEY , John R. MCDONALD, E. SWOPE , Matthew McLEAR , Marion EVANS , Andrew BURNS .

Churches

The first religious meeting was held at the house of A. B. CLARK in 1835. A year or two later the Old School Presbyterians held meetings in private houses and formed a society. Among the early ministers were John REYNOLDS (Presbyterian), John BONNER , William TURNER , William HALL , Carson BUCKHALTER (Christian), and Henry I. BENNETT . The early churches were as follows: Hopewell (Presbyterian), in section 31, on the Thorntown and Strawtown Road. Mud Creek or Salem, in section 27, organized with twenty members in 1836 as the Social Reform Presbyterian Church. In 1858 it joined with the United Presbyterian and henceforth known by that name. In the year 1836 the Old School Presbyterians in the west part of the township on the Thorntown road. The Baptists, Presbyterians, and Disciples each organized and erected churches at Elizaville, making in all five churches for the township. A report made in 1911 by the survey of the Department of Church and Country Life in Indiana by the Board of Home Missions of the Presbyterian church is as follows, viz: The three churches of Elizaville, Baptists, membership 137, standing still. The Presbyterian, membership 12, losing ground. Disciples, membership 152, growing. The United Presbyterian, Salem or Mud Creek, membership 102, standing still. The Presbyterians west part of the township, membership 53, losing ground. At Salem and Hopewell are cemeteries where many pioneers are sweetly resting until the resurrection morning.

Schools

Early in the settlement a stranger built a cabin, became tired of pioneer life and deserted the country. This log cabin was converted into the first school house and the first school was taught by James H. SAMPLE in 1835. This school teacher has the honor of being the father of the first white child born in the township. He was christened Hugh in 1837 and still lives to wear the crown of distinction. The schools increased with the growth of the township until under the public system there were nine. Under the centralized system of our day the number has been reduced.

In the fall of 1835 the voters met at the house of Mr. CASSADY on Terrapin Creek to elect their officers. The Democratic candidate, Mr. MAXWELL , was chosen justice of the peace, but his election was successfully contested by his opponent, James H. SAMPLE , who became the first justice of the peace in the township.

The first marriage was that of John STEVENSON to Miss ADAMS in 1837. The next to join the nuptial train were Eris STEVENSON to Miss Margaret WILEY and John M. BURNS to Miss S. WILEY .

The following persons have served as township trustees, viz: John CALDWELL , William WYLIE , John M. BURNS , Ephraim DAVIS, Reuben EATON , William BRENTON , A. C. KERN and J. C. TOMLINSON .

In the winter of 1835, George, son of Robert STEVENSON , was engaged in felling a large tree, which fell upon and killed him. This was the first death in the township. In the following spring Samuel DOWNEY'S son was killed by a falling tree, which was uprooted by a storm, and struck him as he ran across the clearing. In 1837 occurred the first natural death; Mrs. Mary SAMPLE died at the home of her son-in-law, A. B. CLARK . All were buried in the Mud Creek Cemetery.

Elizaville

Elizaville is the only town or trading point in the township. It is located on the Strawtown Road in the east part of the township. It was laid out on the farm of Hiram BRINTON in 1852 but was never incorporated. Silas M. CORY was the first merchant and was followed by A. B. CLARK in the same enterprise. The village now contains one general merchandise store, one blacksmith shop, one steam grist and sawmill, one wagon shop and one resident physician.

Submitted by: Amy Davis

Source Citation:  Boone County Township Histories [database online] Boone County INGenWeb. 2006. <http://www.rootsweb.com/~inboone> Original data: Hon. Leander M. Crist. "The History of Boone County, Indiana," Indianapolis : A. W. Bowen, 1914.