Mordecai Ruddick
submitted by John W. Cox
He made occasional visits to his sister's home in Tennessee, and began courting Catherine Cox. The two were married at Lost Creek TN. Soon after this, they were joined by other members of the family on a trek north through Kentucky to Indiana Territory. Settlement was made that Spring or Summer in that portion of Harrison County which became Jackson County, northeast of present day Brownstown. In the Spring of 1812, Mordecai appeared on a tax list and paid on three horses. During this period, the settlers were in great danger of Indian attack and some of the family returned to Tennessee. But, Mordecai and Catherine chose to stay and he was commissioned a Captain with the 17th Regiment of Indiana Militia.
In the Summer of 1814, the couple moved to Jackson Township with their young son. On January 17, 1815, they purchased the 160 acre farm which would remain in the family for some time. Mordecai was a staunch Whig and soon became a prominent figure in that area and actively pursued local political offices. On December 7, 1816, Mordecai was appointed Clerk of Jackson Township. From August 9, 1819 to August 12, 1822, he served on the Jackson County Board of Commissioners. He also became a succesful farmer, accumulating some 600 acres.
Catherine died about the Fall of 1826, and Mordecai then remarried the following Spring to Elizabeth Marshall, whom he had met many years before in Tennessee. Mordecai was appointed Justice of the Peace in 1828, and served two years. He sat on the County Board again from August 1831 to August 1835, and was involved in the erection of the first permanent courthouse.