Elkhart County, Indiana
Biographies
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Dr.
Havilah Beardsley In the early
days of the county Dr. Beardsley was the most prominent citizen of its
northwestern section. He bought a considerable tract of land on
the south side of the St. Joseph river, opposite what was then the
little village of Pulaski and in 1832 laid out the town which he named
Elkhart. Although a capable physician, he did not follow his
profession long, on account of his real estate interests. The
land which he purchased was originally the property of Pierre Moran, or
Pearish, as he was also called, but had been sold to Godfrey some time
before. The title was disputed and led to litigation for some
time, but Dr. Beardsley finally succeeded in getting matters cleared
up. He built one of the earliest mills in the county, on
Christiana creek. This mill was welcomed by the settlers who had
been compelled to go long distances to have their milling done.
He also built a sawmill and established other industries in his
village. The Beardsley family has been one of the most prominent
families in Elkhart throughout all the years of its history and the
name of its founder, Dr. Havilah Beardsley is still honored by its
citizens.
Zacharias
Butler came from Loudon
county, VA., in 1829 and settled in Benton township a short distance of
Benton along what afterward became the Fort Wayne road. He and
his wife had almost nothing when they came. They took up some
land, built a cabin and went to work. Mr. Butler was a blacksmith
by trade and as soon as he could he obtained a few tools and began to
work at this trade along with his farming. He would work hard all
day on the farm and then work at his blacksmithing at night. In
those days the blacksmiths made their own horseshoes and horseshoe
nails and he did all of that work at night. Living on the Fort
Wayne road where all of the travelers passed his shop, he soon had all
the work that he could do. They saved their money and it was not
many years until they had accumulated quite a little fortune for those
days. They bought more land from time to time until they had six
hundred acres, and were able to give each of their children eighty
acres when they were married and ready to settle down for
themselves. Mr. Butler became one of the substantial men of his
community.
Michael
Cook came from Preble county,
Ohio, in 1840 and located in Clinton township, just west of where
Millersburg was afterward laid out and cleared up a farm which was
known for many years as one of the best in that section. He
was an honest man and a splendid type of citizenship and was highly
esteemed in his community. For many years he and his wife were
pillars in St. Paul’s Lutheran church at Benton. They had but one
child, Mary, who became the wife of George Bartholomew. Mr. Cook
died in 1892 at the age of seventy-six years. His funeral was one
of the largest ever held in that community. Friends were present
from all sections of the county.
Benjamin
Cornell settled in Jefferson
township in 1831. He located on what was known for many years as
the McVitty farm, four miles northeast of Goshen on the old Goshen and
Middlebury road. The farm was owned for several years by George
Gilbert who is remembered by the picnics which were held in his
grove. The present occupant of the farm in William Guffey
(1928). Mr. Cornell was one of the thirteen voters at the first
township election in 1837. His sons, Dr. Jacob Cornell, mentioned
in the chapter on Early Day Doctors, and Benjamin Franklin Cornell, for
a number of years a justice of the peace, were well known in their day,
particularly in Jefferson and Middlebury townships. His numerous
grandsons were also known in the same locality and in Goshen, the
greater number of them as local politicians.
John
D Elsea Coming several years
after Col. Jackson, John D Elsea settled in Benton township and was to
that township what Col. Jackson was to Jackson township. He, too,
was chosen by his fellow citizens to serve them in public office, for
many years as justice of the peace, hence his title of Squire Elsea,
and as county commissioner. He it was who brought the first
blooded cattle into Elkhart county and by that act alone earned the
lasting gratitude of the people of his community. This was the
beginning of improved live stock in this county and the blood of his
fine Shorthorns was transmitted to many herds and transformed them from
scrubs to splendid grades of the noble Shorthorn breed. In
speaking of him, one who knew him from boyhood and who was his life
long political foe said that nobody could every truthfully say a word
against him. That is a tribute which any individual might well
desire to receive.
James
Frier Born in Ireland, of
Scotch-Irish descent, Mr. Frier first located in one of the New England
states where he resided until after his marriage. Coming west he
located on Elkhart prairie. He purchased at first a half section
of land and to this he afterward
added two more farms, becoming the
largest land owner on the prairie. He was for a number of years
one of the most successful and prosperous farmers in the county.
When the county was organized he was appointed as the first county
treasurer, but upon learning that he had not been fully naturalized was
later removed from that office. The third session of the Elkhart
circuit court was held at his home on the prairie, its location being
on the site of the McConaughy farm, now owned and occupied by his
grandson, Leonard McConaughy. Mr. Frier has been described as a
man of medium height, broad shoulders, brawny arms, full chest, rather
slim face, thin nose that stood well out from his face, reddish
sanguine physiognomy, but not in the least addicted to the use of
stimulants. His position and opinions were never uncertain but
clear and positive and his conclusions were usually correct. He
uniformly wore a red flannel shirt and when at work the collar of his
shirt was open and his sleeves rolled up half the distance of his
forearms. He was a man of work and do rather than of words.
He was the right kind of character to do the rough wild work of
changing a primitive country to the cultivated farm. He had warm
friendships and in the main was a good man at heart. When the
fold fever came as a result of the discovery of gold in California, he
joined the throng of adventurers and left for that state in 1850.
He died there several years later.
Solomon L. Hixon came to Middlebury
township from Ohio in 1834. He engaged in farming several miles
south of Middlebury for a number of years and became quite
wealthy. For many years before his death he was a resident of
Middlebury and was one of the familiar figures in that village.
He was known to most of the people in that section of the county.
He served one term as county commissioner.
Ira
G. Hubbard, father of Mrs. John
W. Fieldhouse of Elkhart, and for a great many years a prominent
citizen of Concord township, was a native of Pittsfield, Mass., but
lived at Fulton, N. Y. at the time that he decided to come west.
In 1837 he made a prospecting trip to northern Indiana. He came
by stage to Buffalo, from Buffalo to Detroit by boat and from
Detroit he made the remainder of his trip by way of the Chicago road on
foot. He came through White Pigeon and stopped over night at a
hotel in Mottville. He stopped again at Adamsville and then
walked as far as South Ben. There were two other young men with
him but Mrs. Fieldhouse does not remember their names. He came
back and entered a piece of land about a mile and a half north of
Wakarusa, expecting to make that his future home. After staying
there a while he returned to his New York home and was married.
In 1842 he and his young wife started out with a mule team and covered
wagon, traveling that way to Buffalo. They drove their team and
wagon on a boat and came to Detroit where they took the Chicago road
westward. Instead of locating on the land which he had taken up,
they took up a homestead in Concord township between Elkhart and
Jimtown. He built his cabin on a hill a short distance back form
the road and in 1848 built a new house which is still standing and
belongs to Mrs. Fieldhouse. At first two families lived in the
cabin. They drew a chalk line through the middle and each one had
half the room. Near the cabin was a grove of maple trees, from
which the Indians had made sugar and Mr. Hubbard made sugar from these
same trees for thirty years thereafter. Originally an Indian
trail ran past the cabin. A great many Indian arrow heads and
other relics were picked up in the grove and along the trail.
Alexander
Irwin While Mr. Irwin was
a resident of Elkhart county only three years, settling on Elkhart
prairie in 1832 and dying in 1835, he had come to be regarded as one of
the leading citizens of the new county. He, too, was always ready
to lend his aid to every worthy movement. He was instrumental in
bringing about the building of one of the early day school houses – one
that was an improvement over the first of those building – being built
of hewed logs, having a board floor instead of a puncheon floor and a
stove instead of a fireplace. His home was always open to
travelers or others who were compelled to seek shelter for a
night. It was also used as a place of worship whenever a minister
of faith – the Presbyterian – came that way. When disputes arose
among his neighbors his services were sought to act as a
pacificator. His sense of justice and his uprightness were
generally acknowledged and his decisions were always accepted by both
sides to the controversy. His death, which his son attributed to
the ignorance of his attending physician, was lamented by all who had
come to know him during his three years’ residence on the prairie.
Col
John Jackson When we speak of
pioneers the name of Col. John Jackson is one of the first to present
itself to our minds. While not one of the first settlers here, he
was the first of them to set his foot on Elkhart county soil, long
before he came to make it his home. He took a leading part in
every movement which had for its purpose the bettering the condition of
the people among whom he had come to live. The account of his
activities is given in other chapters of this volume. For fully
forty years he was one of the county’s foremost citizens. He was
an honorable, upright Christian gentleman, his religious affiliation
being with the Methodist church.
See Matthew Rippey bio for
description of first home built in Jackson Twp by Col. Jackson whose
death occurred in 1873.
Richard
Lake, Sr. located in
Jefferson township in the spring of 1837 on the farm which is still
owned by his youngest son, Richard, Lake, Jr. He was here in time
to vote at the first election and was a voter in that township for
sixty years thereafter. He came from one of the hilly sections of
Virginia and selected his farm in the hills, because he thought that
was the only kind of land worth having. There was plenty of good
level land still unoccupied just a short distance south of him, but he
wouldn’t have it. He was a farmer all of his life and was known
as one of the substantial farmers of Jefferson township. He died
in the summer of 1898.
Squire
Lee came to Elkhart county in
1839, when he was thirty-two years old and was a resident of the county
sixty-five years. He was a native of Essex county, N. Y. He
located two miles southeast of Middlebury in Middlebury township
and engaged in carpenter work, assisting in building many of the first
frame houses in that part of the county. In later years he was a
farmer. At the time of his death, at the age of
ninety-seven years, he was the oldest man in the county. He was a
lifelong member of the Methodist church.
Anthony
Manning came to Goshen in
1831, but later bought a farm three miles east of Elkhart, where he
lived until 1860, when he was elected sheriff. After he retired
from the sheriff’s office he moved to Elkhart where he resided until
his death.
David
B. Mather One of the early
settlers of Middlebury township, locating there in 1837. For a
number of years he was a leading merchant in Middlebury and later
engaged in the practice of law. For a while, also, he was an
auctioneer. In 1841 he was elected sheriff of the county, serving
one term. He also acted as collector for eastern firms. He
accumulated considerable property, the greater portion of it being
acquired during the last twenty years of his life. He died in 1862
Milton
Mercer came with his parents
to Goshen in 1832, only a years after the village was laid out.
He was a native of Green county, Ohio, and was only twelve years old
when he came here. His father, Moses Mercer, died in 1833, after
one year’s residence in Goshen. Mr. Mercer was one of four sons
and soon after his father’s death he secured employment in a store at
three dollars a month. In 1844 he opened a store at Wyland’s
Mills (Baintertown). Two years later, he removed the store to
Goshen, where he conducted it until 1851. In 1848 he was elected
county commissioner. In 1850 and again in 1856 he was elected to
the legislature. He was active in securing the location and
construction of the Air Line branch of the Lake Shore railroad (now New
York Central). In 1858 he engaged in banking, continuing for ten
years or more, being at the head of the First National Bank when it was
organized. He died in 1897.
John
Middleton, Sr. settled on Two
Mile Plain in 1829. He followed farming all his life and
experienced all of the hardships of pioneer farming. He had
twelve children and before he died he had accumulated enough land to
give each of his children a farm. In the summer of 1929 his
descendants erected a marker in the little cemetery just east of
Middleton Run on the Goshen and Bristol road. This marker was
dedicated August 4, 1929, on the day of the twenty-first Middleton
family reunion.
John
Moore came from Salem, N. Y., in
1835 and located in Olive township. His father Samuel Moore, was
an English soldier and fought under the Duke of Wellington,
participating in the battle of Waterloo. Mr. Moore was during the
greater part of his life one of the prominent farmers of Olive
township. He served twelve years as justice of the peace and in
1880 was the Democratic candidate for state representative. His
opponent was John E. Thompson another pioneer. He died in Elkhart
in 1902, at the age of eighty-two years and after a residence in this
county of sixty-seven years.
Jacob
Pfeiffer, Sr. the maternal
grandfather of the author, emigrated from Germany in 1833 and first
settled in Wayne county, Ohio where he resided for twelve years.
In 1845 he sold his farm there and moved to Elkhart county, driving
through in a covered wagon, coming by way of Detroit, and White
Pigeon. His intention was to go farther west, but at White Pigeon
he met a man who persuaded him to drive to Middlebury. With his
family he settled three miles southwest of that village and immediately
began to clear up land for a farm. During his residence of twenty
years in Middlebury township he cleared up two farms and became well to
do. In 1851 a sad calamity befell him, his cabin burning down
early one morning and three of his children losing their lives in the
fire. This tragedy, as might well be supposed, saddened the
remainder of his life. For several years before his death he
lived on a small farm in Jefferson township on the line between that
and Middlebury township, having divided a portion of his property among
his five children. He was a man of great energy, of strong
character and thoroughly honorable in all of his dealings with his
fellow men. During all his life he was a loyal member of the
Lutheran church. He died in 1874.
Matthew
Rippey Mr. Rippey came to
Elkhart county from Wayne county in 1831 and settled in Jackson
township about a mile south of Col. Jackson’s place. The two were
neighbors and close friends until Col. Jackson’s death in 1873, a
period of more than forty years. He engaged in farming as soon as
he came to the county and that was his occupation all his life.
When a young man he taught several winter terms of school, but as the
school term then never exceeded three months this did not
interfere with his farming operations. Among his pupils was John
W. Irwin, who always held him in high esteem. He build the second
frame house in that section of the county, Col. Jackson having build
the first. Both were of the same style of architecture. In
each there was a two-story main part with a kitchen attached in the
form of an L. This was the only style of farm house when the
first frame houses were built. Those of Major Violett and Azel
Sparklin, built soon afterward were on the same plan. Mr. Rippey
and his wife occupied their house for almost fifty years, she dying in
April 1881. During their last years when they were aged and
infirm, they were alone, their children having married and settled
elsewhere, some of them in distant states. Mr. Rippey served many
years as justice of the peace, that office then having more importance
than it has now. He also represented Elkhart county in the lower
house of the state legislature three terms and was state senator for
Whitley, Kosciusko and Elkhart counties one term. He was
frequently chosen as administrator and guardian and discharged those
duties faithfully and conscientiously. Throughout his half
century’s residence in this county he was one of its most useful
citizens. He met a tragic death in 1883, being thrown from a
carriage in a runaway. His son, Joseph Rippey, was for many years
a prominent citizen of Benton township and was widely known as a
breeder of Shorthorn cattle.
Lucas
Sanger settled in York township
in 1836 and entered his farm in 1837, his deed bearing the signature of
Martin Van Buren. He resided on this farm for sixty years.
It was located a mile or so southeast of Bonneyville mill and just
south of the Bonneyville cemetery.
Azel
Sparklin Mr. Sparklin was a
local preacher of the Methodist church and served in that capacity in
his community in the absence of a regularly ordained minister. He
lived on the west side of the prairie, between Waterford and
Goshen. While he did not become as prominent in the community as
did some of the other early settlers, he was an excellent man and a
good citizen. He was the father of Dr. C. C. Sparklin who, for
many years was well known throughout the county, but who failed to
follow in his footsteps.
Abel
E. Work came to this county from
Fairfield county, Ohio in 1841 and settled in the south part of
Middlebury township, moving into a log cabin. His
brothers-in-law, James and John Larimer had come to this county several
years before and settled in the same neighborhood. Mr. Work later
located east of the Forest Grove school house where he lived for a
great many years, following the trade of blacksmithing. He
was one of the prominent citizens of Middlebury township and was highly
respected by all who knew him.
Source: Pioneer History of
Elkhart County, Indiana With Sketches and Stories, 1930 by Henry S. K.
Bartholomew
(Contributed by Marji Turner
Wilmington, N.C.)