It is now a little more than half a century since the Gardiner family became established in White County. What the presence of this family has meant to the general agricultural and business progress and civic upbuilding is well illustrated in the home of William Gardiner, situated 2 1/2 miles east of Idaville. The farm is known as "Oak Crest," and comprises 120 acres, with improvements of the highest class. It is an attractive homestead and shows some of the highest standards of rural life. The Gardiner family has always stood for religion and morality, better schools, better roads, and has made itself a factor in general advancement.
Archibald Gardiner, father of William Gardiner, was a son of William Gardiner, who was a native of Scotland. Archibald married Margaret Morrison, a native of Scotland. These two families lived in Canada for a number of years after coming to America. Archibald married in Canada and lived in Lincoln County, Ontario, at that time called Canada West. He arrived in Jackson Township of White County with his family on November 13, 1864, and was thereafter a substantial farmer until his death. He was a republican in politics, and a member of the Reformed Presbyterian Church. The ten children of Archibald and Margaret Gardiner were: Elizabeth, who married James H. Caughell; Anna S., now deceased, who married Frank Davis; Richard M., who lives with his sister Janet; Thomas M., who came to White County in 1863, one year before the rest of the family, and is now deceased; Christina, deceased; Janet, wife of John Rogers; Archibald, who married Marietta Longbrake; Lydia, unmarried; William; and David G. When Archibald Gardiner came to White County he invested in 120 acres of land, getting it cheap, and at the time of his death owned about 300 acres. He was a quiet, unassuming man, never sought to interfere with anybody else's business, and had a reputation for uprightness and sterling honesty. He was born about 1804, and died September 4, 1877. Mrs. Gardiner was born in 1811, and died September 14, 1878. Both are interred in Cedarville Cemetery in Carroll County.
William Gardiner, next to the youngest son of the family, was born in Lincoln County, Canada West, January 9, 1853, and was about eleven years old when the family came to White County. He completed his education in White County, and for about three terms was a teacher, since which time he has followed farming continuously and successfully. Mr. William Gardiner married Miss Clara Wickersham, June 10, 1891, a daughter of LeRoy and Amanda (Bailey) Wickersham, who also located in Jackson Township of White County in May, 1864. To their marriage have been born two children: Fleeta A., who married Fred Tam, son of George B. and Ida Tam, the former the postmaster at Idaville, and has one child, Galen E.; Galen R., who lives in Jackson Township, married Hulda Million, a daughter of Felix and Grace Million.
William Gardiner is one of the strongest advocates and workers in the prohibition party in White County. He was formerly a republican, but for the past twenty-five years has aligned himself stanchly with the prohibition interests. Such an allegiance as Mr. Gardiner has given to the cause of temperance and prohibition has not been altogether an agreeable one, but he is a man of convictions, and stands firmly by the right as he sees it. He was formerly an active member of the Reform Presbyterian Church, but about two years ago went into the United Presbyterian Church. In the former church he was a member of session for some time, and has always been active in church matters. Besides his fine farm of Oak Crest near Idaville, Mr. Gardiner owns 160 acres near Highmore, South Dakota.
David G. Gardiner, the youngest son of Archibald Gardiner, and a brother
of William, was born near St. Davids in Ontario, Canada, December 27,
1855. He grew to manhood in White County, acquiring a common school
education. He married Miss Leona Million on November 13, 1879. Mrs.
Gardiner is a daughter of Marion and Kate E. (Hoagland) Million, of English
descent, the Millions being among the
early settlers of White County, coming from Ohio. The children of Mr.
and Mrs. David G. Gardiner are: Roy M., who married Miss Hazel Mochell;
Hazel Dell, attending Cedarville College at Cedarville, Ohio; and J.
Russell, who lives at home and attends school. David G. Gardiner is a
republican in politics, is a member of the Reformed Presbyterian Church,
while his wife is of the United Presbyterians. Mr. Gardiner served as
township assessor from 1895 to 1900.
The career of Edward R. Gardner of Monticello, who has spent practically all his life in that community, is a competent illustration of the fact that enterprise and ability are much more desirable qualities than capital in a business career. Mr. Gardner learned a trade and when he started independently in business had only a handful of dollars, but has now for many years been head of one of the most prosperous hardware houses in White County.
Edward R. Gardner was born November 11, 1856, and in 1860 removed with his parents, John P. and Martha Ellen (Higgins) Gardner to White County. There were nine children in the family. The parents were from Virginia, and John P. Gardner was a miller by occupation and for a time operated the old mill on the Tippecanoe River at Monticello. Edward R. Gardner was four years old when brought to Monticello, and has never lived anywhere else since that time. His boyhood days for the most part were spent in working at odd jobs and also as an employe [sic] of the old woolen mill. His father dying when he was yet a boy, it was necessary for him to get into the serious work of life in order to make a living. In a limited way he attended the city schools. When about seventeen he began learning the tinsmith's trade from John Bennett, and after about a year transferred his services to Charles Weber. After that he was employed by Frank Large in making tin buckets, and when the demand for those utensils reached almost the height of a craze the price for three buckets was $1. Subsequently he worked for Josiah Purcell and his father who had succeeded Mr. Large in business.
With John Biederwolf as a partner Mr. Gardner then bought out the Purcells and later Mr. Weber, and thus established the firm of Gardner & Biederwolf. They continued for about two years in the stove and tinware business, at the end of which time Mr. Gardner became sole proprietor and has since continued along the same line, but with expansion to include a general line of hardware. The firm of Gardner & Biederwolf began on practically nothing, since their combined resources did not exceed $50. When Mr. Gardner bought out his partner he paid him only $500 for his interest.
Mr. Gardner is a democrat, and is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, No. 107, of Monticello, Indiana, and the Knights of Pythias, Castle Hall Lodge, No. 73. He was a member of the first city council of Monticello. His wife is a Methodist. On May 13, 1880, Mr. Gardner married Miss Maggie Cullen. Their four sons are: Joseph Russell, Everett Linn, Herbert Allen and Edward Randolph. One daughter, Mildred Agatha, died when three years old.
For many years a resident of White County, whither he was brought as an infant from Virginia, his native state, by his parents, John Parsons and Martha Ellen Gardner. He was married January 27, 1876, to Mary Charlotte, daughter of William Beaver and Sarah Anne Keefer.
At the time of his marriage Mr. Gardner was employed as miller in the flour mill owned by William B. Keefer and Robert Roberts, and he has followed that occupation the greater part of his life. At one time he and Walter Spencer owned the mill formerly owned by Loughry Bros., and later they built a mill in Monon. In 1904 Mr. Gardner moved his family to Camden, Indiana, where he still lives. Mr. and Mrs. Gardner are active members of the English Lutheran Church at Camden. They live quiet, unassuming lives, are happy in their children and grandchildren, their books and friends.
Their children are: Nora Gwendolen, living in Monticello; Bessie Lyndall, who
married Lee Basil Martin, of Attica, Indiana, and now live [sic] in Springfield,
Illinois, and have [sic] one son, James Lucius; Nelle Margaret, living in
Springfield, Illinois; Harry Keefer, who married Carolyne Bennett, lives near
Camden, and they have two children, Harry Bennett and Mary Elizabeth; Frank Dale,
who now lives in El Paso, Texas, married Ethel Snowburger, of Delphi; James
Carson, who now lives in Decatur, Illinois, married Winefried Cole, of that city,
and William Englebright, living with his parents in Camden.
____________
*By Miss Gardner, librarian of the Monticello Library.
Among the early settlers of White County was John Parsons Gardner of Virginia, descendant of Sir Thomas Gardner, Captain of Horse to Charles I of England. John P. Gardner married Martha Ellen Higgins of Maryland, a descendant of Ebenezer Higgins (1757-1842) of New York. They lived in Romney, Virginia.
Mr. Gardner was both a farmer and a miller. On account of the threatening dangers of war, he brought his family north, arriving in Monticello October 1, 1860. They stopped at the Iden Hotel then on the lot north of the present Forbis hotel, until they found a place to live. Mr. Gardner took charge of the running of the flour mill for the Underwoods, later for I. & J. C. Reynolds. He died in 1865 after a short illness caused by an accident. Mr. Gardner was a member of the Old School Presbyterian Church. His wife was a member of the Presbyterian Church at Monticello.
The children of their marriage were: Joseph Jackson, living in Chicago; Mary Elizabeth, who married Louis Fisher, of Chalmers, and is now living in Steele, North Dakota; Nancy Jane, living in Cleveland, North Dakota; Hester Mariah, who married Abner Foye, now deceased; James Michael, living in Camden, Indiana; Florence Virginia, who married Edwin Foye, living in Cleveland, North Dakota; William Higgins, living in Delphi, Indiana, and Charles David, living in Monticello, and the only one of the children born after the family came north.
____________In that picturesque and fertile section of White County that lies in Prairie Township, one of the valuable and attractive farm homes is that of George Gay. His land is not far from the Valley of the Tippecanoe, and his home is about seven miles southeast of Brookston and seven miles west of Delphi. Mr. Gay has the honor of representing one of White County's very earliest families. His grandfather located here more than eighty years ago when all the region north and west of the Wabash was a veritable wilderness, and only some twenty years after General Harrison's army had broken the strength of the Indians in the battle at Tippecanoe.
His ancestry contains several interesting characters. His great-grandfather Gay was born in England, and probably came to the American colonies at the time of the French and Indian war since he served as a teamster in General Braddock's ill-fated army which was defeated in 1754 during its campaign against the French and Indians in Western Pennsylvania. This ancestor himself escaped the calamity which befell so many of the English and Colonial troops and lived to be a hundred three years of age, dying in Pickaway County, Ohio. William Gay, the grandfather of George Gay, was born in Ohio and came to Tippecanoe County, Indiana, in 1831. His first home was in the locality known as Shawnee Mound, but in 1833 he moved to a tract of raw land in Prairie Township of White County, having entered that land in 1832. In that vicinity he acquired about 800 acres and his sons entered 240 acres more, a small part of their possessions extending over into Carroll County. William Gay was one of the influential men of his time, though he lived only a few years after coming to White County. He was not a man of rugged physical health like so many of the pioneers, and had a greater courage than strength. He died October 12, 1840, and was buried in the Pretty Prairie Cemetery in Tippecanoe County, Indiana. He married Mary Ann Hayes, who was born in Pennsylvania. All their eight children, now deceased, were named: James, Elizabeth Fewell, William, Nancy Page, Mary Ann Shigley, John, Isabella Yerger and Joseph.
James Gay was born in Pickaway County, Ohio, in 1806, and had already arrived at man's estate and was able to bear his share of responsibilities connected with the establishment of the family home in White County during the early '30s. He died October 3, 1876, and is buried in the Pretty Prairie Cemetery. All his life was spent as a farmer, and in politics he was first identified with the whig party and after 1856 was a stanch [sic] republican. For several years he served as an associate judge in White County under the old system of judiciary. He was great lover of home and his family and friends, and while he belonged to no church he believed that a man could be a Christian out of church as well as in, and was straightforward and upright in all his dealings and would never permit profanity. At the time of his death he owned 320 acres of land. He was married in 1851 to Keziah Martin, a daughter of Alexander and Margaret Martin of Prairie Township. Alexander Martin was a son of Simon Martin, who came to America as one of the mercenary Hessian troops hired by Great Britain to fight the colonists in the war for independence. As he was bound by no special ties of loyalty to the British, he became so impressed with the spirit of the American colonists and liked the country so well that he left the flag under which he was fighting and became a loyal American, spending the rest of his career in Virginia. Both Alexander Martin and his wife were natives of the latter state. The three children of James Gay and wife were: Elda, who died in infancy; John, Jr., who died in 1888, married Eva Shigley, but had no children; and George.
Mr. George Gay, whose interesting ancestry has thus been briefly outlined, was born January 20, 1857, in section 32, range 3 of Prairie Township, and has spent all his life in that one community. He grew up and acquired a common school education and adopted farming as his vocation.
Mr. Gay married Docia Sterrett, a daughter of Joseph and Orlena Sterrett, who were early settlers in Tippecanoe County. Mr. and Mrs. Gay have two children, both living at home, named George, Jr., and Flossie. Though an active republican in his political belief, Mr. Gay has never been a politician in any sense and has no regular church membership. He takes much part in the Masonic order and is affiliated with Brookston Lodge No. 66, F. & A. M., and with the Royal Arch Chapter and the Knights Templar Commandery at Delphi. He also belongs to Anchor Lodge of the Knights of Pythias at Brookston.
George M. Gay was born in Miami County, Ohio, March 4, 1835, and when twelve years old came with his parents to Indiana and enlisted in the army in 1861, in which he served until the close of the war. He died at his home east of Monon, April 29, 1912, leaving surviving a sister, a nephew and a large circle of friends to mourn his departure. He was buried in the Chapel Cemetery.
Many business men of the cities might well envy Mr. Geier his country home on Section 27 of Honey Creek Township. Mr. Geier is one of the most substantial agriculturists of White County, and has largely created his prosperity out of his own efforts and judgment. From early life his career has been characterized by earnest purpose, and he has usually gone directly toward the object or objects which he has desired most in life. This quality of determination and prompt action have been largely responsible for his success. He has a high-grade farm comprising 132 acres, and has likewise surrounded himself and family with facilities needed for comfortable living in a rural community.
Frank R. Geier was born in Newton County, Indiana, November 12, 1866, a son of William and Wilhelmina (Hayes) Geier. Both his parents were born in Prussia, Germany, and came many years ago to the United States. For two years they lived in White County, then spent seven years in Goodland in Newton County, and seven more years on a farm in the same county, after which they returned to White County and lived here until their death. William Geier was a mason by trade, and followed that occupation in addition to farming. By hard work and thrift he managed to accumulate an estate of 132 acres before his death. As a farmer he raised general crops and kept graded stock, was a splendid neighbor, and liked in every community that he made his home. He and his wife belonged to the German Lutheran Church at Reynolds. Of their ten children, eight are now living, named as follows: Augusta, Otilla, William, Frank R., August, Dora, Albert and Louise. The parents are buried in the Lutheran Cemetery near Reynolds. While a democrat in politics, the interest he took in public affairs never led William Geier to seek an office.
Frank R. Geier has spent most of his life in White County. His education came from the schools of this county and Newton County, and he was carefully trained in industrious habits and as a young man sowed the seeds which have since ripened into substantial success. At the age of twenty-eight he left home, and at thirty was an independent farmer. He then located on his present place, and has owned it ever since, although he has not been constant in his residence there. In politics he is a republican, and has never held any official position in the community. He does not claim to be a specialist in farming, but has relied upon the time-honored methods of general farming and stock raising, and his prosperity is beyond question. His farm is improved and this is practically all due to his individual efforts since taking possession there. He and his family are members of the German Lutheran Church at Reynolds.
On April 29, 1896, Mr. Geier married Miss Wilhelmina Wiese, daughter of Gottlieb and Carolina (Rosentreter) Wiese. The Wiese family settled in White County many years ago. Mr. and Mrs. Geier have a happy family, three of their four children still living and being carefully educated in the local schools. Their oldest child, Homer, was born November 11, 1898; Luella was born August 3, 1901; Ruth was born December 12, 1903, and died at the age of six months; and Gerald was born May 15, 1907.
One of the last surviving members of that little group of native sons of White County who date their birth back to the '30s is Nathan C. Gibson, now living in quiet retirement at Idaville. He was born in a log cabin in Jackson Township more than three-quarters of a century ago. All his life has been spent in the confines of the county, except while he was away performing the duties of a soldier during the Civil war. His long residence has given him a host of associations and memories that make this locality for him the fairest spot in the world. For many years Mr. Gibson was one of the capable farmers of Jackson Township and has an important record as a builder of modern highways, and a number of miles of the best thoroughfares now in White County was constructed by him as contractor. His has been a useful and honorable career. Within the lines of normal but concentrated business activity he has won the prosperity that is most men's ambition, and with admiration for his commercial abilities his fellow citizens also commend his fine integrity and his valuable citizenship. It was more than eight decades ago that the Gibson family established its home in the midst of the wilderness of White County. The grandfather of Nathan was William Gibson, a native of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, but taken when a child by his father to Tennessee. On reaching man's estate he went to Ohio, and was married there to Mary Chambers. He soon afterwards returned to Tennessee, and in 1813 the couple took up a home in Shelby County, Ohio. It was in the fall of 1834 that they came to White County as part of a considerable colony. This colony was made up of about thirty-five families, all members of that branch of the old Presbyterian Church known as Seceders. This was a fine body of people, strict in their religious beliefs, high-minded and moral, and possessing all the best qualifications for influencing the development of the new country. The character of the first settlers in any county is often reflected through all the subsequent generations, and White County owes much to the class of people who first settled within its boundaries, and to none more than to this colony, of which the Gibson family was a member. William Gibson pre-empted land from the Government on section 27 of Jackson Township. His title was given by the Government during the presidential administration of Andrew Jackson. William Gibson and wife had eight children. The son Thomas died when young, and the others, who reached maturity, were John, Elizabeth, Robert P., Isabel, William, Margaret and Adam. William Gibson was a democrat in his political belief and in every way was a conscientious, clean-minded, upright man, and an influential factor in the early times of White County.
Robert Parks Gibson, father of Nathan C., was born in Blount County, Tennessee, December 19, 1812, about the beginning of the second war with Great Britain. His death occurred at Burnettsville in White County in March, 1904, at the venerable age of ninety-two years. He grew up and received his education in Ohio. Though the schools he attended were of a primitive nature, by private reading and study he became a man of unusual intelligence and with a range of information covering a great variety of subjects. He became particularly well versed in the Scriptures, and for many years was an active preacher of the gospel, carrying the messages of Christianity to many frontier communities and isolated settlements. His business was that of farming, and during his time was regarded as one of the most progressive agriculturists of Jackson Township. In his religious belief and activities he was first a member of the New Light denomination, but subsequently joined the Church of God, known as the New Dunkard. He was a strong democrat, but neither in politics nor in his other relations was he a contentious man, and always lived peaceably and was never a party to a lawsuit. He served as a trustee of Jackson Township at a time when the administration of the township was entrusted to three trustees. In 1838 Robert P. Gibson married Sarah Tam, who came to Indiana from Delaware with her brother, Joshua D. Tam. The Tam family is one of recognized prominence in White County and is referred to on other pages. Robert P. Gibson and wife had a very large family of children. Eight of them died in early life, while two daughters died after their marriage, Mrs. Rebecca Sands, who died March 20, 1879, and Mrs. Ida Jane Gates. The surviving children all live within a radius of a few miles around Idaville. They are: Nathan C.; Mary R., wife of Cyrus Gibson; William J.; Sarah Ann, wife of Morris Boehme; Belle, a widow, who married Warren Jump; and Emeline, wife of John Gorman.
Nathan C. Gibson, who was born in Jackson Township of White County, April 27, 1839, has the distinction of being the oldest native son of that community. For more than three score and five years he has made his home in this immediate region. As his memory travels back to the early scenes of his boyhood he recalls many interesting things about the people of White County and local conditions sixty and seventy years ago. He describes some of the early schools which were typical of the times and country. They were usually held in log buildings, and the furniture was home made and fashioned largely by the axe of the pioneer. The seats on which the scholars sat were split logs, with pegs to support them from the floor. The school he attended had a great dearth of every facility for instruction, and there were not even books at first, except such as each child would bring from its own home. The public funds were sufficient to support the school only about four or six weeks, and the remainder of the three-month term was carried on by private subscription. After leaving the common schools Mr. Gibson attended the Burnettsville Academy a time, and also attended the normal school at Kokomo when it was under the supervision of Professor Curtis. Both the high school at Burnettsville and the normal school at Kokomo were well-nigh broken up at the beginning of the war.
Mr. Gibson has a military record, having enlisted at Indianapolis in October, 1864, in Company B of the One Hundred and Forty-second Indiana Volunteer Infantry. He continued with that command until the close of hostilities and his honorable discharge. Mr. Gibson has followed various kinds of business, has done a great deal of farming, but the accomplishment of which he has best reason to be proud is as a road contractor. He built the W. A. Bryant road of three miles in Jackson Township, the three-mile John Kentwick road in Monon Township, the Moore road of six miles in Big Creek Township, and the W. E. Fox road, a distance of ten miles, out of Wolcott. He also constructed about thirty-seven miles of stone and gravel road in Cass County. The Moore road cost about $25,000 to build, the Fox road about $26,500, while approximately $15,000 was expended on the Kentwick and the Bryant roads. As a business man Mr. Gibson has had his share of material fortune, and now owns 120 acres of land in Jackson Township and considerable property in Idaville. He and his wife have lived in Idaville since November, 1898.
On March 8, 1867, Mr. Gibson married Miss Elizabeth Wilburn, who was born in Madison County, Indiana, April 8, 1849. Their marriage has been blessed by four sons and seven daughters, constituting a fine household of worthy men and women, and there is also a large group of grandchildren. Amanda, the oldest, is Mrs. Richard Bird. Orion, the second, is now deceased. Sarah B. is the wife of Samuel Timmons. Minnie is Mrs. Albert Shidler. John R. married Nancy Shafer. Elizabeth is the wife of Bruce Farley. Ruth married Robert Gates. Milton married Anna Fisher. Pearl is the wife of Albert Heiny. Fred married Theo Hunt. Dilla, now deceased, was the wife of Harry Hardy.
Mr. and Mrs. Gibson are both active members of the Church of God, and he has been an elder in that denomination for a number of years. In politics he has always espoused the cause of the democratic party in national affairs and began casting his vote in 1860. In local polities he has usually supported the man whom he deems the best qualified for the office.
One of the earliest settlers in White County, Robert P. Gibson, died at his home in Burnettsville, March 27, 1905, at the age of ninety-three years. He located in Jackson Township while yet a boy and was probably the oldest citizen of the county at the time of his death, having seen it grow from a wilderness inhabited by Indians to its present advanced state. He was a man of more than ordinary attainments, was held in the highest esteem and retained his mental vigor to the last. His life having been so closely identified with the county's history from the beginning, he was full of reminiscences of early days, and an hour spent with him was indeed a treat. It is to be regretted that a more complete account of his life can not be given here. He left two sons, Nathan C. and William, and five daughters, Mrs. Marian Gates, of Zion City, Illinois, Mrs. John Gorman, of near Burnettsville, Mrs. Maurice Boehnie [sic] and Mrs. R. Hill, of Lake Cicott, and Mrs. Belle Jump, of Burnettsville.
Robert Ginn, one of the early settlers of Jackson Township, was born in Kentucky in February, 1811, and when three years old his parents removed to the vicinity of Xenia, Ohio. Here on March 6, 1834, he married Elizabeth H. McClellan to whom were born twelve children. In 1848 he brought his family to White County and settled on a farm two miles northeast of Idaville, where he lived until a short time prior to his death, when, having lost his wife, he went to Idaville, where he resided with his son, John, until his death on September 12, 1894. He was a charter member of the United Presbyterian Church at Idaville, in which church he held the office of elder for many years. His name and that of the Ginn family is one of the most honored in the history of White County.
Robert N. Ginn was born in Union County, Ohio, December 19, 1844, and died at his home near Sitka, on his birthday, December 19, 1893, aged forty-nine years. At the age of four years he came with his parents to White County and located on a farm in Jackson Township, two miles northeast of Idaville, where he lived the greater part of his life. On December 16, 1875, he married Miss Clara V. Warden. In November, 1886, he became a member of the Church of God at Sitka in which belief he died. He died as he lived, a quiet, honest, Christian man.
On the roll of pioneer settlers, Union soldiers and industrious farmers and good citizens the Ginn family has a specially high rank. Thomas B. Ginn has lived in White County almost as long as any other resident, and after his record as a soldier took up the vocation of agriculture, which he followed until retiring to Idaville, where he now lives.
His father, Robert Ginn, a son of Thomas and Anna (Neel) Ginn, was born in the State of Kentucky, February 3, 1811, of Scotch-Irish stock. Thomas Ginn had come across the Alleghany Mountains early in the nineteenth century to Ohio, married there, moved to Kentucky, and thence back to Ohio, and died at Xenia in the latter state in 1863. Robert Ginn was married in Ohio to Elizabeth McClelland, daughter of Captain McClelland, who was an officer in the War of 1812. Some years after his marriage Robert Ginn removed to White County, Indiana, in 1849, and for many years was one of the successful farmers. Though his residence began in 1849, his first relations with White County were as a land prospector in 1832, when he came to this section and entered 200 acres of land from the Government. Thus the name of the Ginn family appears in the list of first entrants of property. At that time the Indians had hardly relinquished their enjoyment of the forests and prairies of White County, and even when he permanently settled here seventeen years later he found the country new and did his share towards its development. He first located in Jackson Township about two miles northeast of the present Town of Idaville. He died at Idaville, September 13, 1894, when eighty-three years of age. He was a man of strong and vigorous physique, and though he lived to a great age was seldom sick. During the Civil war, too old for service himself, he gave a valuable service in securing volunteers, and in arousing enthusiasm among younger men. His career was one of good reputation and characterized by many deeds that contributed to the welfare of the locality. For many years he had regularly voted with the whig party, and in 1856 became allied with the republicans and steadfastly supported that organization until his death. He was an active member of the United Presbyterian Church, and for many years was an elder in that denomination. He and his wife had eight children, and four of them are still living.
Thomas B. Ginn, the first of the family, was born in Greene County, Ohio, April 18, 1837, and was about twelve years of age when he accompanied his parents to White County. The first school he attended in White County was kept in a hewed loghonse on Aaron Price's place. The first teacher in that primitive temple of learning was Silas Jack. The teacher could carry the scholars only as far as the "simple rule of three," which was the high mark of his own arithmetical attainments. Nevertheless Mr. Ginn acquired the rudiments of a fair education, and has always been a close observer of men and has kept in close touch with events and affairs.
He remained on the home farm with his father until a few months after the outbreak of the Civil war. He then enlisted in Company A of the Forty-sixth Indiana Infantry at Logansport, under Capt. John H. Gould, and was mustered into service October 5, 1861. The regiment first went to Louisville and then to Ludlow Hill, then to Bardstown, thence proceeded to the Ohio River, and at Carroll, Illinois, embarked on boats that took them into the center of the fighting districts along the Mississippi. He participated in all the battles and skirmishes and marches that this famous regiment experienced, and was constant and faithful in his duties as a soldier until mustered out at Indianapolis, December 5, 1864, after more than three years of military experience.
Mr. Ginn went back to the farm after leaving the army, and remained at home four years. He was then married, on March 12, 1868, to Martha Stewart, who died within about a year, and her only child also passed away. On December 12, 1872, Mr. Ginn married Mary Smith, of Carroll County. James Smith, her father, was one of the pioneers of Carroll County. The two children of Mr. and Mrs. Ginn are Charles Gilbert and William Howard, both now living in Carroll County.
Mr. Ginn is affiliated with the Grand Army post at Monticello, and has steadily supported the republican party since casting his first presidential vote for Abraham Lincoln in 1860. For four years he served as justice of the peace. His active work as a farmer continued until 1901, in which year he retired and moved to Idaville, where he owns a comfortable home and other property.
The business and social community at Idaville have had a valuable and influential citizen in the person of Charles B. Girard. His home is an excellent farm located three miles southwest of Burnettsville, and his postoffice is Burnetts Creek. He is identified in a business way or by church and social connections with all of these villages, and is one of the best thought of men in that locality, and in every way has deserved the esteem and confidence of his fellow citizens.
His family has lived in this part of Indiana for a great many years. His grandfather, Nathaniel Girard, was born near Troy, Ohio, in March, 1806. His first wife was Ann McDermott, and he afterwards married Margaret McDermott in Pennsylvania. By the first wife there were nine children and two by the second union. Nathaniel Girard died at Quincy, Ohio, in 1864.
William M. Girard, father of Charles B., was born January 30, 1832, near Germantown, not far from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was married in Miami County, Ohio, and moved to Warren County, Indiana, lived for two years in Carroll County and then settled in White County. He came to White County about 1871 and died at Burnettsville, March 30, 1906. He was a miller by trade and for three years after locating at Burnettsville sold milling machinery. He then moved to Carroll County and operated a farm and sawmill and continued as a saw-miller almost to the close of his life. He was a republican in politics, and for one year during 1876 served as assessor of Jackson Township, though he was never known to express any desire for office, and merely accepted such responsibilities from a sense of duty. He was always willing to help others and such was his liberality that he never accumulated a fortune, although he was a good money maker. At the time of his death he owned his home of seven acres at Burnettsville and also some town lots at Monticello. He and his wife were members of the Baptist Church, and his entire career was that of an upright citizen. William Girard married Amanda Statler, a daughter of Stephen and Nancy (Stewart) Statler, whose home was a mile south of Piqua, Ohio. By this union there were eight children: Ida married John Strasser, they live at Mexico, Indiana, and have seven living children and two deceased; Frank S., who lives in Adams Township of Carroll County, married Elizabeth Love, and has five living children and one deceased; Harry died in infancy; Charles E. is the fourth in the family; William C., whose home is in Arkansas, married Anna Young, and they have four children; Lawrence Elmer, who lives in Salina, Colorado, married Effie Curtner, and of their five children two are deceased; Thomas W., whose home is at Barlow, Kentucky, has four living and one deceased child by his first marriage to Blanche Henderson, and three children by his second wife, Olive Paisley; Mary, who lives with her mother at Burnettsville, has two children by her marriage to John Longbreak.
The birth of Charles E. Girard occurred May 28, 1864, while his parents were living in Warren County, Indiana. On November 19, 1889, at Burnettsville, he married Margaret Shafer, a daughter of George A. and Mary A. (Stephen) Shafer. The Shafers were early settlers in White County, having come in 1859, and purchasing the land now included in the farm of Mr. Girard. That land and homestead was the birthplace of George Mitchell, who is said to have been the first white child born in Jackson Township and who died in the fall of 1914. Mr. and Mrs. Girard are the parents of four children. Roy D., who was graduated from Purdue University with the class of 1914 and is a scientific agriculturist, now farm manager for Reverend Doctor Scoville at Butler, Indiana, married Eva Scroggs, a daughter of David A. Scroggs, a well known citizen of Jackson Township. Minnie is living at home. John A. is a student in Purdue University, and Elsie lnez is still at home.
Since his marriage Mr. Girard has occupied his present home farm. Prior
to that time he had attended the public schools, also was in high school
for a time, and had considerable experience in the sawmill industry. He
has always been a reader and a student of men and affairs, and in that
way has gained the equivalent of a liberal education. As a farmer he has
been most successful in the stock business. It has been his aim to feed
everything he grows in his fields, and not infrequently he has made
purchases of as high as 1,000 bushels of corn for feeding of his horses
and cattle. His farm comprises about ninety acres, well improved, with
good house and substantial barns, and he is also a stock holder in the
State Bank of Burnettsville. Both he and his wife are interested and
active members of the Church of God, incorporated at Idaville. For the past
seven years he has been superintendent of the
Sunday School, having succeeded Perry Godlove in that office. Something
should also be said of his work and influence as a citizen. He is a
republican in political views and in 1902 was appointed to fill out an
unexpired term on the township advisory board, and was elected for a
regular term from 1903 to 1907. In the fall of 1914 he was on the
progressive ticket as a candidate for township trustee.
Any consideration of early families in White County must give mention to the Gladdens, whose home has been in this locality upwards of seventy years. The Gladden homestead out in Union Township is a place which represents the diligent and enterprising efforts of its owners for more than half a century, and besides this contribution to the material development of the county their name has also been associated with worthy efforts and influence as citizens and neighbors. The family was founded in White County by the late Joseph Gladden, who was born in Preble County, Ohio, November 3, 1821, and died at the Gladden homestead in White County June 16, 1863. He was married November 13, 1845, to Mary Catherine Glise in Tippecanoe County. Of the ten children born to them all died in infancy except three, Albert Perry, Mary Jane, and Horace, and the last two are also deceased. The family first moved to White County in 1846, settling on the old Milt Reynolds farm, their first home being a log cabin. After the death of the wife's mother they went back to Tippecanoe County for one year, and then returned to White County and located the Gladden homestead, which is still in the family name. Joseph Gladden was a republican in politics after the formation of that party, and though never holding office was much interested in local affairs. He was successful as a farmer and stock raiser, and left the heritage of a good name to his descendants. His wife was a member of the Methodist Church. She died May 23, 1906, and both parents now rest with their children in the Monticello cemetery. Albert Perry Gladden, who now carries the responsibilities of the family name in White County, was born September 10, 1849. He grew up on the Gladden homestead, with an education from the local schools. At the age of fourteen the death of his father threw upon him as the only son the chief responsibilities of the farm management. With this early introduction into practical life, he proved himself capable and self-reliant, and was a substantial farmer and stock raiser by the time he reached his majority. Mr. Gladden now owns a fine and well improved farm of 190 acres, 160 acres of which were in the old Gladden farm. He has it all under cultivation and has erected all the buildings except a portion of the residence.
On February 14, 1873, Mr. Gladden married Miss Elizabeth Barnes, daughter of John T. and Sarah C. (Shaver) Barnes, both now deceased. Her father was brought to White County as a boy about 1833, and the family was one of the first to invade the wilderness and establish homes here. Mrs. Gladden died November 20, 1873, at the birth of her only child, Elizabeth, who survived her mother until June 29, 1889. Both mother and daughter are at rest in Monticello. Mr. Gladden is a progressive in politics, and has positive ideas as to governmental affairs. He is affiliated with the chapter of the Masonic order in Monticello.
Joseph Steele Glasgow was born in Adams County, Ohio, March 6, 1832, and when but two years old his parents moved to Shelby County, Ohio, where he lived until 1865, when he located on a farm near Idaville, where he lived for forty-two years, after which he made his home with his children, dying at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Tam, at Haviland, Kansas, September 18, 1915, aged eighty-three years, six months and twelve days.
In 1860 he was married to Sarah E. Sollenberger, who died in 1903. They had six children, all of whom survived him. At the age of seventeen he lost his father by death, leaving Joseph to care for the family, which responsibility he cheerfully assumed. During the last twenty-five years of his life his sight was impaired to such an extent that he was never able to recognize the countenance of his nearest friends. Yet through all this affliction he never murmured, but faced death with the same patience that he had shown throughout his life. His remains were interred in the Idaville cemetery. Of his own family he was survived by a sister, Mrs. John W. Neel, of Idaville, and a brother, Samuel P. Glasgow, who survived him but a few days.
Samuel Preston Glasgow, a former honored resident of Jackson Township, died at Idaville, October 8, 1915, in his seventy-third year. He was born in Shelby County, Ohio, December 18, 1842, being the third son of a family of nine children born to Arthur and Eliza McCullaugh Glasgow. When he was but seven years old his father died while returning from California and was buried at sea. On May 6, 1864, he enlisted in the One Hundred Thirty-fourth Ohio Volunteer Infantry and was honorably discharged on August 31st of the same year.
On October 15, 1867, he married Elizabeth J. Stipp of near Sidney, Ohio, by whom he had four children, three of whom survived him, Mrs. Thomas Melvin and Mrs. Albert Carson, of Idaville, and James S. Glasgow, of Jay County, Indiana. In 1870 Mr. Glasgow located near Idaville, which, excepting about four years, was his home until his death. He was a consistent member of the United Presbyterian Church and was highly esteemed by all who knew him.
The work of Doctor Gochenour in the practice of dentistry at Monticello covers a period of twenty-one years. He is the leading dental surgeon of the city, and along with his successful professional relations has acquired the esteem and respect of a host of friends in White County.
Jeremiah Gochenour was born in Clinton County, Indiana, April 5, 1868, and is one of a family of seven children, five of them still living. His parents were David and Mary (Reavis) Gochenour. His father died in September, 1909, and his mother in February, 1874. Doctor Gochenour as a boy attended the public schools of Clinton County, and his early experiences were largely associated with the farming community. His determination to take up the practice of dentistry was formed when he was still a boy, and on March 22, 1892, he was graduated D. D. S. from the Chicago College of Dental Surgery. For about two years he practiced in Hammond, Indiana, but in April, 1894, opened his office in Monticello, and here for more than twenty-one years he has been continuous in attending the demands of a growing practice.
Politically Doctor Gochenour espouses the doctrines of the prohibition party and has served as chairman of the county committee of that party. He is a member of the Church of the Brethren. On March 22, 1893, be married Miss Kansas Mears, daughter of John and Sarah (Dill) Mears, of Carroll County. To their union have been born two children, a daughter, Della, and a son, Truman M., who died at the age of four years.
The oldest son of the late Perry Godlove, whose career as a pioneer and whose family relationship have been described in previous paragraphs, is Albert Godlove, one of the leading farmers of Jackson Township, and well known all over White County through his former service as county assessor.
Albert Godlove was born in Jackson township, White County, September 17, 1864, only a few months after the family established a home in that section. He grew up on the old homestead, and benefited by attendance at the public schools as a youth, while his practical training came from actual experience in the work of the home farm. He has been a farmer all his career, but was called from the duties of active supervision over his farming interests in 1900 to the office of county assessor. Mr. Godlove and family lived at Monticello for five years, while he was in office, but since then he has returned to the farm and in 1912 moved to Idaville, and now has one of the comfortable homes in that village. Besides his holdings in White county, his prosperity is measured by the ownership of individual tracts of seventy, one hundred and sixty, forty and one hundred and sixty acres situated in Cass and Carroll counties, Indiana, and in Livingston County, Illinois, a total of four hundred and thirty acres. As a practical agriculturist Mr. Godlove's record deserves no comment. He has had a long experience in operating farm lands and is an excellent judge of real estate values, and this experience has made him successful as a real estate dealer, a business to which he now gives his principal attention.
As to politics he is a republican, and is a member of the Church of God
at Idaville. On March 30, 1887, he married Miss Mary E. Timmons, a
native of White county, Indiana, born March 11, 1866, the fourth in a
family of eight children, three sons and five daughters, born to John
Green and Ruth (Price) Timmons. Seven of the number are yet living,
namely: Josephine, the wife of Perry Patton and a resident of Idaville;
Nancy E., wife of Hamilton Sidenbender, of Monticello, Indiana; Southy,
a resident of Idaville, a dealer in poultry and who married Minnie Jones;
Mrs. Godlove; Harvey E., a resident of Chicago, where he is engaged in
the real estate business and as a newspaper reporter, and who is also
married; Cora B., wife of James Million, a farmer of White County; and
Rosella, wife of Homer Bowman, of Carroll County, Indiana. Mr. Timmons,
the father, was born in Green County, Ohio, was an agriculturist and
grain buyer, and became very successful in his business. He was but a
young boy wben he came to White County, and in time he became the owner
of as much as 2,200 acres of land here. He also served as a member of
the Indiana legislature for two terms, first as a representative of the
counties of White and Pulaski, and the second term represented Benton,
White and Newton counties. He affiliated with the democratic party, and
both he and his wife were members of the Church of God. He is yet living,
but Mrs. Timmons, who was a native of White County, died when her daughter,
Mrs. Godlove, was but ten years of age. To the marriage of Mr. and Mrs.
Godlove have been born three children, Harry T., Clayton G. and Dulcie F. Harry T.
Godlove, a resident of Flora, Indiana, operates a garage. He received a
good, practical education in the Idaville and Monticello schools, is a
republican in his political views, affiliates with the Independent
Order of Odd Fellows and the Modern Woodmen of America, and his wife is
a member of the Church of God. He married Miss Lilly M. Foster, and they
have three children, Albert H., Arlene and Tyrus Wendell. Clayton G.
Godlove, also a resident of Flora, is engaged in the real estate
business and the overseeing of his father's farms. He also received
his educational training in the Monticello and Idaville schools. He
married Miss Mary Baker, and they have one daughter, Katharine. Dulcie
F. Godlove resides with her parents in Idaville. She has been well
educated, a graduate of the Idaville schools and also of the Woman's
College at Jacksonville, Illinois, in the domestic science department
of the class of 1915.
The presence of a family in one community for half a century is of itself a distinetion which deserves mention in any historical account, but when such a family through its various members has contributed to the substantial development of productive resources, has increased the moral forces of social life, and has always stood for those things that are honest and of good report, the chronicles of such a family become a vital part of local history. Such was the part taken by the Godlove family in White County, which has been its home for over half a century and as farmers, upholders of religion and morality, and all around good citizens they have many useful and honorable associations with this locality.
It was the late Perry Godlove who established the name and the family fortunes in this county. He was born in Green County, Ohio, June 4, 1832, being one of the nine children whose parents were Abraham and Hannah (Bumgardner) Godlove. These parents were both natives of Virginia, and during the infancy of Perry they moved on from Ohio to Delaware County, Indiana, which was then a wilderness infested with Indians and wild beasts, and they were among the pioneers who developed that rich and beautiful country into a landscape of smiling farms and villages. Abraham Godlove died there in 1859, his wife having passed away in 1855.
Much after the manner of other boys in pioneer communities Perry Godlove grew to manhood in Delaware County, attended common schools and perfected his training for the actualities of life. This training was more practical than bookish, and he spent day after day in grubbing, cleaning and assisting in the general work of the home farm. On May 26, 1855, he married Margaret H. Shafer, who was born at East Germantown in Wayne County, Indiana, April 8, 1838 and died January 22, 1905. She was a daughter of John and Elizabeth Shafer, both of them natives of Pennsylvania. Perry Godlove and wife became the parents of four sons and four daughters, enumerated as follows: Flora E., Mrs. Hiram Beshoar of Burnettsville; Emma J., Mrs. M. K. Reiff of Burnettsville; Albert, a resident of Idaville; Ida L., living at Monticello; Henry M., of Idaville; John Emery and Frank, both of whom live a mile and a half southwest of Idaville; and Eva L., Mrs. W. A. Bryan of Monticello.
Having previously purchased a large tract of land near Idaville, Perry Godlove brought his family to Jackson Township in the spring of 1864, and was a resident in that section until his death forty-five years later on August 6, 1909. He was a farmer most of his life, spending the last fifteen years in retirement at Idaville. He was a man of more than ordinary force of charactor and because of his many sterling qualities was highly regarded as a neighbor. He was honest and industrious, temperate in all his actions, rearing his children in the fashion of sobriety and industry, and his entire career was a living exemplification of the golden rule. After coming to White County, in October, 1864, he enlisted in Company B of the One Hundred and Forty-Second Indiana Infantry, and served until his honorable discharge in July, 1865. Both he and his wife were active members of the Church of God at Idaville, and he was one of its most faithful attendants, served as an elder several years, and almost continuously acted as superintendent of the Sunday School. When the congregation erected its new church in 1908, he was the largest contributor. His business operations as a farmer had met with deserved success, and at the time of his death he owned five hundred and sixty acres, two hundred and forty acres lying in Jefferson Township, Carroll County, and three hundred and twenty in Jefferson township, White County.
As a worthy tribute to this fine old pioneer a few words are quoted from the Idaville Observer of August 13, 1909. "Uncle Perry, as he was called, was one of the most substantial and highly respected men this community. His quiet, unassuming manner added dignity to honest and upright character; while prudent and careful in business he was always generous in his support of any deserving enterprises as well as ready to lend a helping hand to the young man just getting a start or to an older man overtaken by misfortune. His death is indeed a loss to the community in general."
John E. Godlove, one of the several sons of the late Perry Godlove, has not only shared in the general prosperity of this family in general, but through his own efforts has contributed to the substantial acquisitions which are represented in the country about Idaville. He was born January 22, 1872, at the old homestead, was reared and educated in White county, and has since been a substantial farmer. Both he and his wife are members of the Church of God at Idaville. He was married February 26, 1895, to Miss Grace Johnsonbaugh, a daughter of Ira and Angeline Johnsonbaugh of Idaville. To this union have been born three children: Gladys, Dale and Velma.
Another one of the sons, who lives near John and is likewise an enterprising and prospering farmer of Jackson Township, is Frank Godlove, who was born August 22, 1873. He was married in Jackson Township November 27, 1899, to Miss Lola M. Shull, a daughter of John and Margaret Shull, a family of early settlers in White County. He is a republican, and his wife is a member of the Church of God at Idaville.
The modern merchant is a man who knows what the people want and supplies the best facilities for meeting those wants. Such a business man performs a real service to the community, and if he is successful it is only because he gives the people a superior class of merchandise and acts on the solid commercial principle that real success is only a return for an adequate service. Representing this class of merchants, and the leading business man in his line in White County is Max Goodman. When it is considered that Mr. Goodman is of foreign nativity, and on coming to this country in 1869 was unacquainted with the manners and customs of America, he deserves commendation for the success he has made under such adverse conditions. Along with success in his private business venture he has combined a splendid public spirit which has made him a factor in much of the civic improvement and municipal betterment in his home city, where he is looked upon as a man of the finest character and most useful influence. His citizenship is of that robust type that has led him liberally to contribute from his means to the support of worthy public benefactions. In this regard he deserves greater consideration than a few who, although native born, think more of the dollar than the land which is called home.
Max Goodman was born in Russia October 14, 1849, and came to America when twenty
years of age. While at Detroit in 1871 he married Sarah Marks, and from Garrett,
Indiana, came to Monticello in 1878. Here in a small way, he invested such capital
as he had at the time in a modest stock of goods and started to build up a trade
on the basis of the square deal. His store was located in the northern part of
the main business section of the town. Several years later, in 1881, Mr. Goodman
removed to Chariton, Iowa, but in 1884 returned to Monticello, and for more than
thirty consecutive years this city has been his home and in that time he has
witnessed the growth of a business which is second to none in White County and
one of the largest of its kind
in this part of Indiana. The history of his store is one of steady progress and
with the reputation for reliability that has won for him the respect of his fellow
citizens. Mr. Goodman conducts the largest department store in Monticello, and
associated with him in its success is his son Bernard. Mr. and Mrs. Goodman are
the parents of one son and three daughters.
Lewis A. Goodrich came to Wolcott soon after the close of the Civil war, having served therein from his native county of Montgomery, New York. In partnership with his brother he started a wagon shop, having learned the trade of wagon-making in boyhood. His death occurred at Wolcott in July, 1912, in his seventieth year. He married Sarah E. Johnson in January, 1868, who survived him, with eight children.
The farming community of Monon Township recognizes a worthy representative in Henry Graham, who is carrying on farming and stock raising operations on a highly cultivated tract of 180 acres. He exercises considerable influence in the community and is looked upon as one of its most reliable men, his industrious, temperate and frugal habits having gained for him a competence which will enable him to pass his declining years in peace and comfort.
Mr. Graham is in every respect a self-made man. He is a native of Ohio, born on a farm in Paulding County, October 13, 1853, a son of Reuben and Emma (Hazen) Graham. When he was an infant his mother died and he was taken to rear by his grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Hazen. When the Civil war came on his father enlisted as a private in an Ohio Volunteer Infantry regiment, and died in the service of the flag for which he fought, passing away in an army hospital. Thus Henry Graham was orphaned when still a lad. He was brought to Indiana in 1858 by his grandparents, who settled in Starke County when it was still a new country, and after some five or six years there went to Pulaski County, where the youth found employment as a farm hand. He followed the same vocation later in Benton County, Indiana, and LaSalle County, Illinois, and about the year 1876 came to White County, Indiana, where he still continued to engage in the same vocation. During all this time he had been carefully saving his means with the end in view of one day becoming the proprietor of a farm of his own, and this ambition was realized in 1902 when he bought his present property, a tract of 180 acres in Monon Township. This he has brought to a high state of cultivation and is devoting it to diversified farming, in which he has met with well-deserved success. He has erected commodious and substantial buildings for the shelter of his stock, grain and implements, and also has a large and comfortable home, with all modern conveniences. Mr. Graham is a republican in politics, but not a politician, having been too busily engaged in his own affairs to seek public preferment. He has, however, always performed fully and well the duties of citizenship.
On March 27, 1884, Mr. Graham was married to Miss Jennie Davisson, daughter of Josiah and Ann Maria (Hoffman) Davisson, the former a farmer near Chalmers, White County, Indiana. Mrs. Graham is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. To this union there have been born three children: William LeRoy, an agriculturist, who was educated in the common schools and is a Knight of Pythias; Anna Mabel, who became the wife of Roy D. Fisher and died August 26, 1909, was graduated from the high school and was a teacher in the county; and Robert Ira, an agriculturist, who was educated in the common schools; he wedded Miss Edna Elizabeth Sandberg, October 20, 1915. Mrs. Robert I. Graham is a native of White County, where she was born December 29, 1858, and is the second in a family of seven children, two sons and five daughters, of whom five are living, residents of Indiana. Both of her parents were natives of Ohio. She was educated in the common schools and before her marriage was a teacher in Big Creek Township. The pretty estate of Mr. and Mrs. Graham is known as "The Clover Leaf Farm."
A life-long resident of White County, John Graves comes from substantial pioneer stock, his father, James Graves, having been an early settler of Monon Township, and for many years intimately associated with the promotion of the agricultural interests of his neighborhood. He was born, April 18, 1847, on the old Sheets farm, in Monon Township, being the oldest child of the parental household now living.
James Graves was born and reared in Coshocton County, Ohio, where he grew to man's estate. In 1838 he came with his wife to Monon Township, White County, moving here from Tippecanoe County, where he had spent the previous year, making the journey from Ohio to this state with teams. Taking up a tract of wild land, he improved a farm of eighty acres, and continued his residence in Monon Township unti his death, January 6, 1873. He married, in Ohio, Christina Potter, a native of Pennsylvania, and of the eight children that brightened their union but three are now, in 1915, living, as follows: John; James; and Mrs. Catherine Culp, of White County. The mother lived to a good old age, dying January 26, 1894, and being buried beside her husband, in Monon Chapel.
Receiving a substantial common school education, John Graves, who was a wide-awake, industrious youth, started in life for himself when but eighteen years of age, embarking in business as a cattle dealer. Subsequently investing in land, he carried on farming and stock-growing until about 1905, when he moved to Monon, where he has since lived, retired, practically, from agricultural pursuits, although he farms some with his son, and performs such odd tasks as come his way. He, following in the footsteps of his father, is identified with the democratic party, but has never sought political favors.
Mr. Graves married, October 17, 1869, Susan Webb, daughter of John and Martha (Long) Webb, who came from Wabash County to White County in the early '50s, settling in Monon Township. Eight children have been born into the household of Mr. and Mrs. Graves, namely: Lilly, wife of Louis Cooley; Jesse, of Pulaski County; Martha, wife of Tom Newbold; Rosie, who married Edward Rogers, died in early womanhood; Mary, deceased; Samuel, engaged in farming; Asa, a traveling salesman; and Clyde, deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Graves are members of the Presbyterian Church at Monon.
Lewis Graves, born in Coshocton County, Ohio, May 24, 1837, son of James and Christena (Potter) Graves, came to Indiana in 1838, located in Tippecanoe County, remained one year and then removed to White County, where he resided the rest of his life. He grew up and received his schooling in Monon Township, was a Presbyterian in religion, a democrat in politics; was married to Martha C. Downey on October 23, 1860, moved to the homestead farm just north of Monon, where he resided till his death on March 18, 1915, at the age of seventy-seven years, nine months and twenty-four days. He was strong, athletic and rugged, weighing about 225 pounds, and was six feet one inch in height. He retained the best of health till the close of life, and was sick but two days with a stroke of apoplexy.
Martha C. Graves was also born in Ohio, Perry County, January 5, 1835, came to Indiana with her parents in 1836, received her schooling in Monon Township, was a Presbyterian, a member of the Bedford and Monon churches, till her death, which was on April 23, 1910, aged seventy-five years, three months and eighteen days. The other members of the family, brothers and sister of Lewis Graves, are John Graves, of Monon, Indiana; James M. Graves, of Nebraska; Catharine Culp, the widow of George Culp.
There was born to Lewis and Martha C. Graves: James T. Graves, an attorney of Monticello, Indiana; Samuel Graves, a contractor of Alexandria, Ohio; Catbarine M. Graves, a dressmaker, now near Monon, Indiana; Effie Grace Leavell, married to Edward E. Leavell, of Fulton, Indiana; Fannie Belle Troxel, wife of Daniel J. Troxel, of Mulberry, Indiana; and William C. Graves, who died at the age of twenty-one, leaving no descendants.
This family has had its part in the making of White County, in its development from a wild waste of swamp and brush, inhabited by deer, prairie wolves and Indians, to the splendid improvements now to be seen, fine schools, churches, a highly civilized and Christian people, fit citizens for any government.
The life of the late William Henry Gray, which came to a close at his home in Honey Creek Township, February 9, 1913, was of more than ordinary length in point of years, and in point of achievements was broad and beneficent measured by any standard used in estimating the worth of the individual in human affairs.
William Henry Gray was born in Marshall County, Illinois, in February, 1836, and had reached the age of seventy-seven. He was one of seven children born to John and Mary (Deever) Gray, all of whom are now deceased. His father, after the death of his first wife, was married at Bedford, and this second wife and three children are buried in that community.
William H. Gray had his early education in Marshall County, where he grew up to manhood. When he was twelve years of age he lost his father, and from that time forward was largely dependent upon himself. He was self-educated and self-made, but the endowment of a good intellect and an energetic disposition enabled him to accomplish more than most of his contemporaries. He was a farmer, and was peculiarly successful as a stock raiser, and in his lifetime handled many thousands of hogs and cattle. At his death his estate was represented by about 900 acres located partly in Illinois and partly in Indiana. In 1906 he had removed to White County, Indiana, and bought half a section of land in Honey Creek Township, where Mrs. Gray, his widow, now lives.
The late Mr. Gray outside of business was noted for one enthusiasm, his religion and church work. At his death he left property for the benefit of several different churches. He was a teacher in the Sunday School and his own life was an exemplar of practical Christianity. He belonged to no secret orders, and in polities was a stanch republican of the old school.
Mr. Gray was twice married. His first wife was Augusta Kircher. On May 16, 1900, he married Julia R. Rogers, who survived him and has her home in White County. Her parents were Samuel and Sarah (Miller) Rogers, Ohio people. By his first marriage Mr. Gray had one son, John, who died at Bloomington, Illinois, leaving a son Allen Gray.
Benjamin Greenfield, born in Hawkin County, Ohio, May 2, 1834, died at his home in Monticello, April 29, 1903, from pneumonia. Mr. Greenfield was brought by his mother to Indiana in 1835 and was reared as a member of the family of John Burns, in Big Creek Township. He was married February 2, 1859, to Martha Hornbeck and located on a farm near the mouth of Big Creek, where they resided until they moved to Monticello, a short time before his death. The widow has since died, but they are survived by two children, Dr. Charles Greenfield, of Chicago, and Mrs. Allie Ward.
About the first year of the American Civil war the Grugel family emigrated from Germany to the United States. Whereas in the older European countries families go on living generation after generation in about the same economic scale, rising gradually if at all in material prosperity, it required less than a generation for the Grugel family to attain independence and substantial position in Indiana. The family have been identified with White County for many years, and William F. Grugel, who was born after his parents came to this state, has himself illustrated what can be accomplished by a young man of enterprise and industry in acquiring a home and independence. He is now one of the prosperous farmers in Honey Creek Township, with home on section 9 and with access to rural route No. 10 out of Reynolds.
At Westville, Indiana, August 1, 1862, William F. Grugel was born in the household of John and Minnie (Schroeder) Grugel. Both his parents were born in Mecklinburg, Germany, and they emigrated to the United States in 1861, coming west from New York City to Michigan City, Indiana. His father was employed for a time as a farm hand at eleven dollars a month. Later he worked as a section hand on the railroad at Westville, and for about six years was boss of a section gang. In the spring of 1872 he brought his family to Reynolds in White County, and a year later made purchase of forty acres of land lying in the northern part of Honey Creek Township. His beginnings as a farmer were likewise on a humble scale, and the first habitation occupied by the family was a shanty home. A year before his death John Crugel [sic] moved into the village of Reynolds, and died there October 4, 1905. His widow is still living, a woman who has reached the venerable years of eighty, and makes her home at Reynolds. The father is at rest in the Lutheran cemetery near that village. In politics he was a democrat, and many years ago served as township supervisor. He was a member of the German Lutheran Church, and by his activities as a general farmer and stock raiser accumulated an abundance for his declining years.
William F. Grugel was about ten years old when the family came to White County. He continued to attend the public schools, but also had plenty of opportunity to learn the work of farming and on leaving the parental home worked out for other farmers at monthly wages. Industrious and economical, he saved all that he could, and finally invested his modest capital in forty acres which cost him ten dollars per acre. That was the foundation or at least the cornerstone of a prosperity which has been steadily growing to the present time, and he now owns one of the well kept and profitably managed farms in Honey Creek Township.
On April 10, 1890, Mr. Grugel married Miss Josie Han, and they have worked together and in a spirit of co-operation have solved the many problems of life during the past twenty-five years. She was a daughter of Richard and Henrietta (Haskin) Han, who came from Ohio to White County about the close of the Civil war. They located near the farm now occuped by Mr. and Mrs. Grugel, having lived a short time near Wolcott. Mrs. Grugel's father died March 17, 1914, and is laid to rest in the Swisher Cemetery, while her mother is living at the home of Mrs. Grugel. Without children of their own, out of the goodness of their heart Mr. and Mrs. Grugel adopted a daughter, Marie Groh, who is now the wife of Ottie Heimes, by whom she has one son, Arthur C. Mr. Grugel is a democrat, and like his father has served as township supervisor. He usually casts his ballot for the best man in local elections. In religion he is identified with the Adventist Church.
During the last thirty or forty years probably no citizen of Monon has been more diligent at his business and has worked with better results to all concerned than James P. Gwin. Mr. Gwin is a former sheriff of White County, has filled practically all the important offices in his home community of Monon, and when his official duties have not interfered has had an almost continuous service as railway station agent for the Monon Railway Company for more than thirty-five years.
James P. Gwin was born at Lanesville, Harrison County, Indiana, January 6, 1854. He was one of a family of twelve children, and there were also four half brothers and sisters, but of the children of his parents only two are now living. His parents, James J. and America (Ellis) Owin, were both natives of Harrison County, Indiana. James J. Gwin was a son of Thomas Gwin, a native of Virginia. Thomas Gwin was a grandson of the founder of the family in America. This founder was a Scotch Highlander and a man of considerable means and business enterprise, as is indicated by the fact that he was the owner of a ship. During the latter half of the eighteenth century he loaded this vessel with merchandise, and on it crossed the Atlantic to one of the American colonies with the intention of making his future home on this side of the ocean. About that time or a little later the colonies proclaimed their independence from England, and in order to secure means to carry on the war the new government requisitioned both the ship and its goods. This was a hardship undoubtedly on the new colonist, but he acquiesced in the imperative nature of the situation, and thus received his baptism as a loyal subject of the new republic.
James J. Gwin, father of James P., was a blacksmith and farmer, and a man of no little distinction. For two years he was in the American army in the war against Mexico. In April, 1854, he removed from Harrison County to White County and improved the Governor Willard farm, four miles west and two miles north of Brookston. He later bought a tract of land five miles east of Brookston on the Tippecanoe River, improved that, and lived there about seven years. This property was then traded for half a section of land six miles west and two miles north of Brookston, and his home was there twelve years. The remainder of his days were spent in quiet retirement from the active cares of life at Battleground [sic], and he died there in January, 1883. His widow died at Fair Oaks, Indiana, in 1899. James J. Gwin during his residence in Harrison County served as a justice of the peace. A man of but limited scholastic training, he had a fine mind, and was a mathematician of more than ordinary ability. It was his nature to make up his mind slowly, but when once convinced of the right he was almost insuperable in maintaining his position. He was kind in his family, neighborly in his intercourse with his fellow men, just in all his relations with life and commanded universal respect. There were few men of his generation who read more and with better judgment, and he was regarded as one of the best informed citizens of White County.
James P. Gwin has spent sixty-one years of his life as a resident of White County. He was three months old when his father came to this locality, grew to manhood here, acquiring his early education in the country schools and finishing in the high school at Battleground [sic]. His life up to the age of twenty-two was spent on a farm. As a means of introducing him to a field of larger opportunity he then learned telegraphy, and entered upon his career as a railway man. In June, 1877, Mr. Gwin was made railroad agent and telegraph operator at Monon, and Monon has practically ever since been his home.
In 1882 he was elected trustee of Monon Township, but resigned that office about a year later. The people of White County in the fall of 1888 elected him to the office of sheriff, and after one term of two years, he was re-elected, and gave four years to the duties of one of the most important offices in county government. While sheriff he was of course a resident of Monticello. On the expiration of his official term he resumed his railway work at Monon, and has continued faithfully and efficiently to act as a medium of service between the railway company and the general public.
In politics Mr. Gwin is an active democrat. He is a Knight Templar Mason, belongs to the encampment degree of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and is also affiliated with the Knights of Pythias. On October 17, 1878, he married Miss Jennie McManus, who died June 17, 1881, and both his children died in infancy. On September 21, 1882, Mr. Gwin married Miss Martha Alice Funderburg. To this union have been born three children: Myrtie Alvene, wife of Claude C. Wright; Carrie Ethel, wife of Nelson B. Reed; and David Monroe, who is an accomplished musician, now in his twenty-third year.
For fifteen years Mr. Gwin was a member of the Monon School Board, and during that time the present school building, which cost $18,000, was erected. In 1907 he was elected a member of the hoard of trustees of the Methodist Episcopal Church at Monon, and has served as such to the present time, a term marked by the erection of the handsome Methodist Church now used by the congregation in Monon. In 1912 he was appointed a member of the Monon Library Board, and during his term the present Carnegie Library Building was arranged for and completed. Thus in every way his life has been identified with constructive service.