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HISTORY
OF PARKE COUNTY, INDIANA
(Source: History of Vigo & Parke County, Indiana - Chicago:
H. H. Hill & N. Iddings, 1880, 1310 pgs.
(Transcribed by Sharon Wick)
Note: If you want a biography transcribed,
email me
BIOGRAPHIES OF RACCOON TOWNSHIP
NOTE: Biographies will be transcribed upon request
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ADAMS, James W. |
267 |
|
ALLEN, Rusfus C. |
264 |
|
BEAUCHAM, Eri |
234 |
|
BELL, Addison W. |
266 |
|
BELL, Daniel |
255 |
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BELT, George C. |
267 |
|
BRUNOT, Charles |
259 |
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CAMPBELL, Richard H. |
257 |
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CLARK, Margaret B. |
262 |
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CLARK, Thomas C. |
270 |
|
COLE, Joseph W. |
260 |
|
COX, Reuben |
262 |
|
CROOKS, Gideon |
235 |
|
CROOKS, James, Dr. |
241 |
|
CROOKS, John L. |
268 |
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DAVIS, James |
256 |
|
DeMOTTE, John B., Rev. |
249 |
|
DUNEE, Daniel |
247 |
|
ELSON, W. H. |
272 |
|
ELSON, William H. |
273 |
|
GILKESON, John Calvin, Sq. |
233 |
|
GORE, Mary C. |
255 |
|
GUINN, William |
266 |
|
HANSEL, George H. |
248 |
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HUMPHREY, Joseph S. |
269 |
|
JACKS, Anderson M. |
260 |
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KALLEY, Daniel |
245 |
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KALLEY, Isaac N. |
252 |
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KERR, James H. |
258 |
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KNIGHT, James |
271 |
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MARKS, George |
246 |
|
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MARTIN, Lucius |
237 |
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MATER, Jacob MD |
263 |
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MILLER, Francis M. |
263 |
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MILLER, Jacob B. |
239 |
|
MILLER, James M. |
259 |
|
MILLER, John B. |
239 |
|
MILLER, John R. |
238 |
|
MILLER, Tobias |
235 |
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MILNER, Martin B. |
271 |
|
MITCHELL, Abel |
256 |
|
MITCHELL, Robert |
253 |
|
ROSS, George W. |
254 |
|
RUKES, Harrison J. |
257 |
|
SAPP, George |
271 |
|
SELLER, James W. P. |
261 |
|
SEYBOLD |
250 |
|
SEYBOLD, Dempsey |
239 |
|
SEYBOLD, Dempsey C. |
251 |
|
SEYBOLD, James H. |
252 |
|
SEYBOLD, John N. |
251 |
|
SMOCK, Nathaniel B. |
240 |
|
SMOCK, Randolph |
264 |
|
SPRAGUE, Ralph |
265 |
|
TENNANT, Henry E. |
269 |
|
TENNANT, Richard S. |
269 |
|
TINSLEY, Benjamin A. |
258 |
|
WIMMER, Henery C. |
261 |
|
WOODS, Robert |
266 |
|
| ADAMS, James W. |
| ALLEN, Rufus C. |
| ERI
BEAUCHAM, farmer, Bridgeton, was born Oct. 9, 1818,
in Wayne county, Indiana. His father, Charles
Beaucham, was born in Maryland, and at the age of
eighteen years went to North Carolina, where, at the age of
twenty-four, he married Susana Thomas. In 1811
they immigrated to Indiana Territory, arriving a few days
before Hull surrendered his army to the British.
In 1820 he moved to Orange county, Indiana, and in 1822 to
Clark county, Illinois, then to Parke county, Indiana, in
1823, and settled in Raccoon township. In his early
life he was a sailor along the American coast. His
father, grandfather to Eri, was born in France.
The great-grandmother of Mrs. Eri Beaucham, on her
mother's side, was born in Germany. Eri was
about five years old when his parents came to Parke county.
He remained at home till fourteen years of age, when he
hired out, carrying his wages to his father till he arrived
at his majority. At the age of twenty-two he bought
forty acres of land, which he afterward sold. HE now
owns 145½ acres. He was
married, Mar. 14, 1842, to Martha Niveins, daughter
of George and Katharine (Rice) Niveins. Their
children are Sarah K., born May 28, 1845; Susan E.,
Sept. 10, 1846; Mary J., Apr. 1, 1848; Martha A.,
Feb. 25, 1856; Jasper Mar. 26, 1862. Mrs.
Beaucham's father was killed by lightning. Mr.
and Mrs. Beaucham's father was killed by lightning.
Mr. and Mrs. Beaucham are members of the Missionary
Baptist church. Prior to the civil war Mr. Beaucham
was working for Gen. Steele, at the Mansfield mill,
when he met with a serious accident, having his scapula
broken into three pieces and all the ribs on the left side
fractured. This disabled him for war duty. He
has always voted the republican ticket. He is one of
Parke county's early settlers, and is now blossoming with
age. |
| DANIEL
BELL, farmer, Bridgeton, was born Sept. 3, 1834, in
Raccoon township. His father, Abel Bell, was
born in Butler county, Ohio, Aug. 4, 1805 and was one of the
pioneer settlers in Raccoon township, in which he is still
living. His mother died Mar. 20, 1850. Mr.
Bell has always lived on the farm. He attended the
common school in winters, and working on the farm in summer.
He raises grain and stock, and has a good farm of nearly 300
acres, with a nice dwelling-house upon it. He has
traveled some in the west, and visited Niagara Falls and the
Centennial in 1876. Mr. Bell is a democrat, a
successful farmer, and an honest, industrious, substantial
citizen. |
CHARLES BRUNOT
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| SQUIRE
JOHN CALVIN GILKESON. No man in Parke county is
better and more favorably known that Squire John Calvin
Gilkeson. Throughout his manhood's yeas he has
been active in the affairs of his township and vicinity.
He has been continually called on for counsel for more than
forty years. He was born in Mercer county, Kentucky,
May 27, 1809, and is the son of Thomas and Nancy
(Buchanan) Gilkeson, both born in Virginia. In the
fall of 1821, when John was a boy his parents came to
Parke county, settling on the W 1/2 of S. W. 1/4 of Sec. 5,
Raccoon township, on which they built a log cabin. All
seemed thrifty in the Gilkeson domain, but unluckily
the father of the family had affixed his name to the bond of
an unscrupulous treasurer and collector, and the little home
was sold by the sheriff. But the sheriff did not sell
their courage. As the family moved onward John
came into possession of a pair of steers, which he trained
into a yoke of oxen, which he drove in repairing the broken
dam of the old mill they had built years before. He
soon obtained another yoke and made some money in hauling
his lumber to Rockville, where lumber was then in demand.
He also rebuilt the mill in 1837, doing all the framing,
millwrighting and blacksmithing himself. From 1839 to
1846 he built several flat-boats, which he ran down to the
abash river, during the spring freshets, and sold. On
September 29, 1838, his mother died and was borne to her
rest, leaving her husband and family. August 24, 1842,
John C. was married to Mary Rea, daughter of
William Rea, and sister to the first clerk of the
Parke county court. They have no children. In
1846, August 7, his father, Thomas Gilkeson, died.
On August 5, 1874, Mary wife of J. C. Gilkeson,
also died, aged about seventy-one years. In 1844
Mr. Gilkeson was elected justice of the peace in
Raccoon township, which office he has filled ever since,
with the exception of two and a half years. He has
been engaged in probate court about fifty years. In
1853 he was elected as elder in the Rockville Presbyterian
church, of which he and his wife and parents were members.
His ancestry runs back to the old Scotch Presbyterian sect.
Squire Gilkeson has voted whig and republican straight
along, never having scratched his ticket or missed an
election. In his old age he is still useful to his
community, giving advice on points of law, and drawing up
writings which no lawyer can criticize. |
| JACOB
B. MILLER, farmer, Bridgeton, was born Jan. 9, 1821,
and is the son of Jacob and Elizabeth (Bell) Miller.
Mr. Miller has always lived on the farm, and only
attended school three months. He began farming for
himself when twenty-five years old. He now has 300
acres of land just east of Bridgeton, where he has lived
about thirty years. He was married the first time Feb.
16, 1845, to Elizabeth Kerr, daughter of James and
Elizabeth Kerr. She is dead. By this
marriage they had seven children: Mary E., born Oct.
19, 1852; Rosella, Feb. 10, 1855; Thomas Oscar,
Feb. 7, 1857; Cora E., June 12, 1860; Robert O.,
Nov. 21, 1862. Mr. Miller was married the
second time Mar. 18, 1869, to Mary J. Brown, daughter
of John E. and Sarah (Packer) Brown. By this
last marriage they have had one child, Jacob B., born
Dec. 18, 1869. Mr. Miller is a member of the
Baptist church. Mr. Miller has always been a
hard-working, industrious man. In politics he is a
democrat, and is a good citizen. |
|
JOHN
B. MILLER, farmer, Bridgeton, was born in
Raccoon township, Aug. 25, 1819, and is the son of Jacob
and Elizabeth Miller. His father settled in
Raccoon township in 1817, and died in 1823. When he
settled here the country was all new. An Indian trail
passed over his farm. He was the first potter in this
part of the country; was a hard-working man, and a citizen
much esteemed. The subject of this sketch has always
lived on the farm, and had the common-school advantages of
his day. He began farming for himself when twenty-two
years old, and was married Dec. 10, 1840, to Nancy Crabb,
daughter of James and Peggy Crabb. Mr. Miller
was born in Pickaway county, Ohio, July 2, 1819. Their
children are: James C., born Oct. 30, 1841; James
T. H., Sept. 5, 1843; James R. M., Feb. 9, 1849.
One of his sons is in the boot and shoe business in Terre
Haute; the other in the firm of Miller & Cox, Terre
Haute. Mr. Miller has considerable stock, and
502 acres of land. He is a man who reads a good deal,
and takes interest in all kinds of enterprises that are in
the interest of improvement and progress, and is one of the
old and reliable citizens of Raccoon township. |
|
JOHN
R. MILLER, farmer, Bridgeton, was born Feb. 10, 1825,
in Raccoon township, and is the son of Tobias and
Margaret (Robenson) Miller. Mr. Miller was raised
on the far, and attended the common school part of the time.
He also went to Asbury University four terms, and has taught
school five terms. He was very successful as a
teacher. He was married the first time Nov. 2, 1848,
to Mary Wolverton, the eldest daughter of Thomas
and Rebecca Wolverton, of Union township. They had
eight children. He was married the second time Jan.
23, 1866, to Mrs. Mary E. Tennant, daughter of
John W. and Sarah (Beattie) Chenoweth, who was born in
Virginia, Apr. 10, 1834. Mr. and Mrs. Miller
are both members of the Dunkard church. Mr. Miller
has been treasurer of Parke county four years, from 1855 to
1859. In 1874 he was elected to represent Parke and
Montgomery counties in the state legislature. In
politics he is an ardent national, and cast his vote for
Peter Cooper in 1876. He firmly believes in the
ultimate triumph of the principles of his party.
Mr. Miller had about $1,000 to begin life with, and by
hard work and good management he acquired about principles
of his party. Mr. Miller had about $1,000 to
begin life with, and by hard work and good management he
acquired about thirteen hundred acres of land, and other
property, but has been a heavy loser by lending his credit
to others. |
| TOBIAS
MILLER, father of James N. Miller, farmer,
Bridgetown, the subject of this sketch, was born Nov. 30,
1796, in Franklin county, Virginia, and his parents were of
the same nativity. The Millers are of German
descent. Tobias was six years old when his
parents, John and Phebe (McClure) Miller, moved to
Ohio. Several years afterward (1805) they went to
Union county, Indiana, and staid for some time. In
1820 he was married to Jane Wolverton, and in the
following month came to Parke county; staid long enough to
raise a crop, when he returned to Union county, but shortly
afterward settled permanently in Raccoon township. In
1823 his first wife died, and he took as his second wife
Margaret Robinson, Jan. 8, 1824. Mr. Tobias
Miller was quite active during life, having filled the
office of justice of the peace fifteen years, commissioner
eight years, and township trustee several years. He
was a member of the Methodist church, and contributed
largely to the support of the Methodist church, and
contributed largely to the support of the ministry. He
was a life long democrat. His second wife, Margaret,
was born near Lebanon, Ohio, Jan. 15, 1804, and came to Fort
Harrison in 185 with her parents, and in 1818 settled the
John R. Miller place. She died Apr. 27, 1876.
MR. and Mrs. Miller were pioneers, experiencing all
the trials, privations and hardships common to those who go
before and clear paths in new countries for later
civilization and government. Their son, James N.
Miller, was born Oct. 11, 1827, within a half mile of
where he now lives. He was raised on the farm, and
educated in the common school. He taught two terms.
For some time engaged with his brother, Daniel, in
the mill business, owning a saw-mill on the Big Raccoon
creek east of Bridgeton. In 1848 he cast his first
vote for Lewis Cass, and remained for many years a
democrat. He now advocates the principles of the
national party. He was married Mar. 8, 1849, to
Sarah A. Snow, daughter of Cushing and Hannah (Handy)
Snow. She was born Mar. 18, 1826. Her father
was born in 1791, and died in 1849, and her mother was born
in 1795, and died in 1866. Mr. and Mrs. Miller
have been members of the Methodist church for over
thirty-two years. Their children are: Alice,
born Aug. 29, 1850; Joseph A., Sept. 8, 1857;
Martha J., Jan. 31, 1853; Rose E., May 2, 1854;
Margaret A., Feb. 10, 1856; John R., May 10,
1857; Hannah S., Jan. 14, 1859, died Sept. 23, 1859;
Minerva A., Nov. 17, 1860, died Aug. 20, 1866;
Sarah D., Jan. 24, 1862, died May 20, 1862; Daniel V.,
Feb. 28, 1863; Louella, Jan. 19, 1864, died Mar. 12,
1864; Elizabeth E., Aug. 10, 1865, died Jul 31, 1866;
George, Jul. 1, 1868; and Dick, Jan.
12, 1871. When Mr. Miller started in life his
father gave him $1,000 in land. During his career he
has accumulated much property, but has met with reverses
which threatened his financial destruction. HE bids
fair to rise above the depression and again be at the top.
He has a fine residence and barn, and a farm of 400 acres,
well stocked. His son Joseph A. was married
Oct. 31, 1875, to Emily E. Bell, daughter of Isaac
N. and Elizabeth (Mitchell) Bell. She was born
Aug. 1, 1854, in Raccoon township. They have had two
children: Florence B., born Mar. 5, 1877, died Jan.
21, 1878; and Earl D., Nov. 17, 1878. Both
Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Miller are members of the Methodist
church. He votes the national ticket, but was formerly
a democrat. |
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