Mr. Hamilton's grandfather on the paternal side came from Kentucky to clear and enter the land which became the homestead of this noted family. This man, James F. Hamilton, was of the stalwart nature of which pioneers are made, and was an ancestor of whom any descendant might be proud. He was born in 1803, and passed away at the age of seventy years. It was in the early thirties when he and his bride, formerly Judah Owens, came to Decatur county, and began planning for the home that was destined to remain in the family for the next thirty-five years. This land was situated one and one-half miles northwest of Westport. The brave wife of this sturdy pioneer, who was a native of Virginia, was born on December 14, 1799, and died on June 20, 1898. One of their children was George W., who later became the father of the subject of this brief biography. George was born on May 10, 1837, and died on July 29, 1899. His wife, Mary Jane Conwell, who was born on February 3, 1847, belonged to one of the most prominent families in the state. Her Western progenitors formed part of that brave band of pioneers whose courage and heroism in opening up a new and rugged country has made it possible for us to live in peace and plenty. George, of course, was born on the farm of his parents, and after the meager school course then provided, he managed a store in Gaynorsville for four years beginning in 1869. He then became a salesman for the Singer Sewing Machine Company, engaging in this occupation until 1883, when his health became broken and he retired. There were seven children, the eldest of whom was only a lad in short trousers. The children thus early deprived of a father's care were: James Francis, our subject; Clara Maude, who died in September, 1895; Clem E., a farmer of Marion township; John C., of Greensburg; Charles L., who later became a railroad man with headquarters in Indianapolis; George C., employed in a furniture store, and Mary V., who lives in Westport with her mother.

After May 20, 1882, James had to assume duties heavy for the shoulders of thirteen summers, and there followed days of toil and nights of dull weariness that tested the courage of the manly little fellow. He attended school until his thirteenth year, and then was obliged to put his books on the shelf and to go on errands for a storekeeper, moving to Westport that he might he near his work. The qualities that afterward made him a prosperous merchant and bank official early began to assert themselves, and his weekly earnings were soon a very substantial increase to the family budget which was to shelter, feed and clothe six little brothers and sisters. James remained an employee of the storekeeper until he went into business for himself, which happened when he was twenty-three years of age. Then he became a merchant in the flour and feed business, continuing this for five years. On January 20, 1897, he had an opportunity to buy out an undertaking establishment, which he did, adding to this, two months later, a furniture store. So rapidly did his business grow that new quarters became necessary, and on May 13, 1914, ground was broken for a handsome two-story brick structure, forty-two by seventy feet. While the whole building, including two floors and basement, is used for store purposes, it is so conveniently arranged that there are two separate departments for the furniture and undertaking business, respectively. The cost of the house was over twelve thousand dollars. Thorough in everything that he does, Mr. Hamilton has spared no pains in the construction and equipment of this handsome business block, which is one of the finest in southern Indiana. A private office, a casket display and dressing room comprise the undertaking department, which maintains two funeral wagons and an ambulance besides a splendid team which is owned and kept by Mr. Hamilton. The basement is appropriately built and arranged for the display of rugs and draperies, while the third floor is taken up with furniture. The building has a modern elevator, and its own electric light and water plant. The owner tarries stock valued at ten thousand dollars.

The wife of Mr. Hamilton was formerly Mary M. Link, a daughter of John Link, of Milhousen. The marriage occurred on November 22, 1893. Their only daughter, Leona J., who is nineteen years of age, having been born on May 6, 1896, is a graduate of the Westport high school, being a member of the class of 1914.

Mr. Hamilton is one of the "live wires" of Decatur county. He first plans out carefully a course of action, and, having determined upon what ought to be done, he does it. In business he is alert and progressive, as is evidenced by the fact that he believes in advertising, and spends large sums of money for this purpose. As an illustration of his energy and will-power may be cited the fact that when he was ready to build, a dwelling which stood in the way was unceremoniously removed, although it had stood firmly on one spot since 1838.

No higher honor can be paid to a business man by any community than to make him president of its chamber of commerce. This mark of esteem has been bestowed upon Mr. Hamilton because of his merit. Besides being the head official of the Westport Chamber of Commerce, he is vice-president of the First National Bank of that town, and in this capacity has added influence to the community.

As it seems impossible to classify a man before we know what he believes as to politics and religion, it may be of interest to note that Mr. Hamilton is an ardent Democrat, and a member of St. Denis's Catholic church. He is also active in the Knights of Columbus, Council 1042. Here, as in business circles, his business acumen, as well as the qualities which go to make up the sort of man we respect, make him a leader. He becomes a power in whatever organization or movement to which he gives his name.

In all of the activities of her husband Mrs. Hamilton has been perhaps a silent, but a potent partner. In the conflicts and problems of a strenuous life, it has been her pleasure to co-operate, and in making their home a real home to lighten the burdens and cares of the outside world into which every man is forced to go.

It is impossible to close this summary of a man's life without paying to him a tribute not only for his character as an individual, but for his public service. It means much to a community to have within itself men who are stanch and true to their convictions as to right and wrong; men who, while building up their own fortunes, are not unmindful of the needs and misfortunes of others, and, most of all, men whose lives are guided by high moral principles and purposes. Such is the man we have endeavored to describe.

"History of Decatur County, Indiana"
Lewis A. Harding
B. F. Bowen & Co.
Indianapolis, Indiana
published in 1915.

Smith B. Bussell was born on November 29, 1849, in Hamilton county, Ohio, the son of Moses and Eliza (Garrison) Bussell, natives of Florence, Kentucky, and Hamilton county, Ohio, respectively, the former of whom was born in 1800 and died in March, 1857, and the latter of whom was born in 1820 and died in 1864. Moses Bussell was the son of a native born English gentleman, who settled in Virginia, the Bussell family having been related on the paternal side to the mother of General Washington. From Virginia the family moved to Kentucky, and here the parents of Smith B. Bussell lived and died. Eliza Garrison was the daughter of Jonas and Priscilla Garrison, early settlers in Hamilton county, Ohio. The great-grandfather of Mr. Bussell, Joseph Garrison, entered land where the court house now stands. Finding this land very wet and flat, he later moved to higher land. Moses and Eliza Bussell had a family of seven sons, three of whom, Joseph, the eldest; John, the third, and Thomas, the sixth, are deceased. The others are Erastus, of Wichita, Kansas; Smith B., the subject of this sketch; George, who lives in Greensburg, and Ezra, who lives in Cleves, Hamilton county, Ohio.

Being only eight years old at the time of his mother's death, Smith B. Bussell grew up among strangers and was compelled to shift for himself. Coming to Decatur county in 1870, having learned the mechanic's trade in Cincinnati, he worked as a builder until 1880, a period of ten years, and then engaged in general contract building until 1900, a period of twenty years, specializing during this period in the construction of foundations.

For six years he was superintendent of the Greensburg Limestone Company. Since 1900 Mr. Bussell has been engaged in farming. In the meantime, he has invested his savings in farm real estate, and now owns two hundred and sixty acres near the Liberty church in Clay township, where general farming and stock raising are carried on.

Mr. Bussell has been twice married, the first time in 1872, two years after coming to this county, to Mary Foster, of Greensburg, who was born in Gallipolis, Ohio, and who died in February, 1911. She was the mother of three children, two of whom died in infancy. William, the first-born, died in April, 1912, about one year after his mother's death, at the age of thirty-nine, he having been born in 1873. At the time of his death he was a member of the Decatur county board of commissioners and a large farmer. He left a widow, who before her marriage was Margaret Emmert, and one daughter, Helen Catherine. Harry and Louis, the other two children born to Smith B. and Mary Bussell, died at the age of four months and six weeks, respectively. In September, 1912, Mr. Bussell was married again to Gertrude Kerr, a native of Greensburg and the daughter of David R. Kerr.

Mr. Bussell has always been actively attached to the principles of the Democratic party and its candidates. For sixteen years he served as a member of the Greensburg city council. He is a member of the Baptist church, while fraternally he is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Mr. Bussell is well known in this county and he commands the confidence and respect of his fellow townsmen and is universally liked not only in private, but in public life. His success in business was founded upon sterling integrity, a scrupulous code of right dealings with his associates.

"History of Decatur County, Indiana"
Lewis A. Harding
B. F. Bowen & Co.
Indianapolis, Indiana
published in 1915.

As a successful farmer, a county commissioner and township trustee, Mr. Updike has filled an unusually prominent place in the community. He is the son of Elijah and Matilda (Gilbreath) Updike, the former having been born on August 4, 1818, and died on May 10, 1893. Peter Updike, father of Elijah and grandfather of William G., was a native of Pennsylvania, and early in the country's history, packed his household goods in wagons, and brought his family to the rough timber lands of Indiana, looking into the uncertain and dangerous future with faith in himself and in the God of his fathers. Nor was that faith disappointed, as the after years have proven. It was in Franklin county that Elijah began his life on earth, and when he had reached manhood, he married, and made his home on a farm two miles north of Westport. His wife, whose maiden name was Matilda Gilbreath, was twice married, and was, at the time of her marriage to Elijah Updike, the widow of a Mr. Luse. She had a daughter, Nancy J. Luse, now deceased. Matilda Updike was the daughter of James Gilbreath, whose enterprising spirit and ambition brought him from bonnie Scotland to this country when he was still a young man. He had a reputation in all the country round for his honesty and integrity, and his good business ability. His daughter, Matilda, was born in 1834, and passed away on July 1, 1889.

The farm on which Mr. and Mrs. Updike, Sr., settled in 1861, became their life-long home. Their children, four in number, were William G., the subject of this sketch; Mary Ann, wife of Isaac Shera, of Westport; Frank M., of Butler county, Ohio, and John Reiley, who died, when two years of age, in Franklin county.

The father of this notable family believed that children should be brought up with industrious habits, and practical training, and with the help of his faithful wife, taught them the principles of good farming, as well as their application. Thus it was that the first-born, William, came to love the farm, and made it his home for fifty years. After the death of the senior Updike, the homestead was divided, and one hundred acres became the share of William. These lands he continued to improve until his became one of the most prized farms in the county. As a country home, also, it was most attractive.

On the 20th of December, 1883, Mr. Updike was united in marriage to Louisa Armstrong, daughter of Robert Armstrong, and a sister of F. D. Armstrong. Her birth date was on June 17, 1862, and the place, Sand Creek township. To these parents two children were born, Charles C., the eldest, is now a resident of St. Paul, Indiana, where he teaches in the high school. After graduating from the Letts Corner high school, he studied at the Terre Haute State Normal, showing in all of his work a high grade of scholarship, and a special adaptability to the teaching profession. Charles Updike was born on February 23, 1885, and will graduate at Danville, Indiana, in the class of 1915, and will teach at Milroy, Indiana, and Mabel, who is attending the Westport high school, was born on August 5, 1900.

Farm work is rather strenuous for one in good health, and when there is any impairment of the physical organism, it may become a burden. Finding that his health was not equal to the duties of farm life, Mr. Updike left the country in 1912, and, with his devoted wife and family, took up their residence in a beautiful, modern home in Westport, later selling their farm. Since his removal, Mr. Updike has enjoyed comparative freedom from activity, and has given part, at least, of his time to those pursuits to which his tastes attracted him.

Always interested in whatever would advance the well-being of his home town, Mr. Updike creditably filled the position of township trustee, serving for a term of five years. He then was elected to the office of county commissioner, his term expiring on January 1, 1909. When his official duties were completed, there was general regret, for it was recognized that the affairs of the township and county had been handled in an admirable way, and that his duties had been discharged with honor and efficiency. Mr. Updike is a Republican. Both Mr. and Mrs. Updike are members of the Baptist church, and here as elsewhere, both have been not only nominal members of the organization, but adherents to the faith in reality, for they have contributed in many practical ways to the welfare of the church. Mrs. Updike, by her devotion to her home and family, has been a real inspiration to the efforts of husband and children, and has had a share in their success. Mr. Updike is a prominent member of the Free and Accepted Masons, and of the Knights of Pythias.

"History of Decatur County, Indiana"
Lewis A. Harding
B. F. Bowen & Co.
Indianapolis, Indiana
published in 1915.

Captain Stott's wife, who was before her marriage Caroline Bennett, was his helpmeet and inspiration in all matters of interest to him, and while he was active in the outward world of affairs, she looked after the home and the happiness of her family with devotion and true womanly unselfishness. She was born in 1845 and died in February, 1877. Her birthplace was in Decatur county. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Stott, Sr., were four in number, Charles A. became a farmer and lives in Sand Creek township, one mile south of Westport; the second son was William Taylor, born on May 20, 1870, to whom we shall again refer; Elizabeth is the wife of Jacob Binninger, of Greensburg; James Clarence, November 26, 1875, and was reared in Westport. He, like his father, is a Republican, a member of the Christian church and of the lodge of Free and Accepted Masons. He was married on July 17, 1895, to Mary Elizabeth Brown of Decatur county, and to them were born seven children, namely: Paul T., Christopher, Benjamin H., Gertrude and Gladys, twins, born in 1904, Dorothy and Verd.

Since going into business with their father in 1902, both W. T. and J. C. Stott have put into practice those principles which cannot fail to bring success. Their large department store carries an immense stock of general merchandise to meet the demands of the trade, which has become especially heavy since the store has occupied the two-story brick block into which the goods were placed in 1910.

Much of the success of this firm is due to the energy and ability of its senior member, William T. Stott, who is considered one of the representative business men of Westport. He, like his father, is a man of sterling honesty, fair and just in his business relations, and equally fair and just as a friend. He has identified his interests with those of his native town, and has been one of the leading public-spirited men of the community. He is a Republican, a member of the Christian church and a prominent member of the Free and Accepted Masons.

The ability of the members of the firm of W. T. Stott & Company has given them a distinctive place in the commercial life of the town in which they were born and reared, and the sons, who are now the owners, by their strict adherence to principle, and by their honorable, upright dealing, have been a decided impetus to the community to which their family has contributed in no small degree.

"History of Decatur County, Indiana"
Lewis A. Harding
B. F. Bowen & Co.
Indianapolis, Indiana
published in 1915.

Francis M. Allison was born at old St. Omar, this county, on November 16, 1847, the son of John and Elizabeth (Zeigler) Allison, the former of whom was born in March, 1913, and died in August, 1882, and the latter of whom was born in 1816 and died in December, 1881. John Allison was born in Washington county, Virginia, the son of Matthew Allison, who was born and reared in Bucks county, Pennsylvania, where he married, emigrating thence to Virginia, later going to Knoxville, Tennessee; emigrating from that point in 1822 to Indiana, locating in Orange township, Rush county, on the banks of Big Flatrock. He also owned land over the county line, in Adams township, this county, which he sold in 1834. His wife, who was a Mrs. Cline, died in 1822. Elizabeth Zeigler was born in Butler county, Ohio, the daughter of Peter Zeigler, who came to Decatur county in 1819 or 1820. He first entered land on Michigan road in Washington township. On this tract he built a log cabin and proceeded to clear the timber away. Upon improving this tract he sold the same and then entered another tract just west of St. Omar, on which he spent the remainder of his life, his death occurring in 1874. His grandson, James W. Allison, now owns the farm originally entered by Mr. Zeigler in this county in 1821.

John Allison was reared on the paternal farm in Rush county and, upon finishing his schooling, taught school for three years. He bought a farm two miles west of St. Paul, which, in 1861, he sold, moving to the state of Iowa, where he remained until 1866, in which year he returned to Decatur county, locating in the village of St. Paul, where he spent the rest of his life. To his union with Elizabeth Zeigler there were born the following children: Charles, who was killed by an accident at the age of eleven years; Mrs. Salina Courtleyou, who was born on February 24, 1836, lives in Des Moines, Iowa; Francis M., the immediate subject of this sketch; Mrs. Alice McCain, of St. Paul, this county; James W., who lives at Essex, Illinois; Mrs. Jessie Wilson, of St. Paul, this county, and Mrs. May Kurr, also of St. Paul.

Francis M. Allison received his education in the district schools and was reared to the life of the farm. In 1871 he bought a farm of sixty-eight acres in Adams township and in 1874 bought a small farm on Flatrock creek. From 1876 to 1882 he lived on a farm of eighty acres in Orange township, Rush county. In 1881 he bought the old William A. Pearce farm of two hundred and seventeen acres in Adams township, which was entered from the government in 1821, and in 1912 sold this farm to his brother, James W. Allison. For one year he then owned the old Jonathan Paul farm at the edge of the village of St. Paul, which he sold and in September, 1914, bought a farm of two hundred and two and one-half acres on Little Flatrock, which he still owns and which he is operating very successfully, though not occupying, he having made his home in St. Paul since the year 1911.

On October 5, 1870, Francis M. Allison was united in marriage to Mary A. Garrett, who was born in Orange township, Rush county, Indiana, on August 1, 1848, the daughter of Wesley Garrett, who died on December 5, 1908. To this union there were born thirteen children, as follow: Dr. Charles D., a physician of South Bloomington, Illinois, on August 10, 1871, was graduated from Indiana Medical College in 1896, married Mary Mina Apple, of Adams township, this county, and has four children, Nina, Mary, Charles and Caroline; Elizabeth, January 17, 1873, married Albert A. Green, of Colorado Springs, Colorado, and has two children, Earl and Helen; Mary, April 4. 1874, married Daniel Apple, a farmer living east of St. Omar, in this county, and has six children, Ethel (who married Livy Adams), George, Gladys, Charles, Forrest and Caroline; Katy, November 2, 1876, married Otto Owen, of Reddick, Illinois, and has four children, Scott, Russell, Helen and Mary; Myrtle, September 2, 1878, married Otis Doggett, of Adams township; Dr. Francis M., July 13, 1880, a graduate of Indiana Medical College, practicing medicine at Gardner, Illinois, married Mayme Allison and has one child, Francis; Anna, April 27, 1852, married Ernest Tevis, of Adams township and has one child, Francis; Fannie, September 25, 1883, married George Burtscher, of Chicago; Ernest W., who operates the home farm in Adams township, May 23, 1886, married Nellie Shelhorn and has two children, Mabel and Caryl; Dorthy, April 23, 1858, married Cleve Archie, of Mt. Victory, Ohio, and has two children, James Francis and Robert Allison; Ethel, December 2, 1890, married Orba Land, of Adams township, and has one child, Carlos Allison; Bessie, February 17, 1892, married Walter Tonyes, of Richland township, Rush county, and has one child, Mary Elizabeth, and Marguerite, February 8, 1893, who is her father's housekeeper in their pleasant home in St. Paul.

Mr. Allison is a friend of all churches and does his part toward the promotion of the best interests of his community. He is a stanch Democrat, as was his father before him, and is regarded as a leader in the ranks of that party in Jackson township. He was elected township trustee in 1886 and was re-elected in 1888, his service in that connection having been of large benefit to the township. He is active in lodge work, being a member of the Masonic lodge at Waldron; of the Knights of Pythias lodge at St. Paul and of the lodge of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks at Greensburg, in all of which lodges he is very popular, his genial disposition making him friends wherever he goes.

"History of Decatur County, Indiana"
Lewis A. Harding
B. F. Bowen & Co.
Indianapolis, Indiana
published in 1915.

Jacob Emmert was born seventy-six years ago, on April 19, 1839, in Bavaria, Germany, the son of Christopher and Elizabeth Emmert, who seven years after the birth of Jacob came to America and located on a farm in the state of Maryland. From Maryland they removed to Wilmington, Delaware, where Christopher worked in a mill. Eight years after coming to America they removed to Lawrenceburg, Indiana, and the father, who worked in a flour-mill, died in that city. Although this part of Jacob Emmert's career may appear uneventful to the superficial observer, nevertheless it probably was the most eventful period of his life, since about this time he was learning the business in which he was to become so prominent in later life. One of a family of eight children, it is quite natural that Jacob had to begin to shift for himself at an early age. Three of his brothers, Peter, John and Fred, and his two sisters, Elizabeth and Catherine, are deceased. He has one living brother, Philip, who has been a merchant in Lawrenceburg, Indiana, for sixty years.

Leaving home at the age of sixteen years, in 1855, Mr. Emmert first operated a mill at Harrison, Ohio, for two years, and during the succeeding two years was engaged in operating another mill two miles north of Elizabethtown, Ohio. This was a water-mill. During the first two months .of 1859 he was engaged in operating a steam-mill at Guilford, and for a short time later was at Greensburg. From Greensburg he removed to Dearborn county, and there operated a water-mill for John Emmert at Dillsboro for two years. In 1862 Mr. Emmert went to Fairland in Shelby county, Indiana, and was engaged in the milling business there for two years, when he returned to Greensburg, where he remained until the fall of 1869, at that time purchasing a mill which had been owned by a company of men who had failed. Purchasing the plant at an assignee's sale, for nearly fifty years he has been engaged in manufacturing flour, grinding grain and sawing lumber. The mill, which is operated for custom and local trade, is now run by Mr. Emmert's son, Clinton Buell Emmert. It is equipped with all the latest machinery and operated by a gas engine at a cost of five cents an hour. The roller processes are employed, and two well-known local brands of flour, the "White Loaf" and "Blue Ribbon," are manufactured.

When Jacob Emmert came to Clarksburg he first purchased sixty-five acres of land for which he went into debt. Later he purchased one hundred and forty acres for credit and subsequently eighty acres additional. He now has one of the most fertile farms in Decatur county, and by crop rotation and intelligent farming he has developed the land to a very high state of productivity. Practically all of the land was very much run down at the time he purchased it. The previous owners had grown great quantities of corn year after year and had robbed the land of its fertility. By farming the land systematically and rotating his crops, Mr. Emmert has had a splendid success. He followed a three-year rotation plan until the wheat grew so tall that it was necessary to raise corn two years in succession. Land which had grown thirty-five to forty bushels of corn to the acre, and yielded fifteen bushels of wheat to the acre, under Mr. Emmert's care and management now produces from sixty to eighty bushels of corn to the acre and from twenty to thirty bushels of wheat. At the present time he has two hundred and sixty-four acres of land which is operated for the most part by his son, John Leslie. The farm is equipped and well supplied with all necessary out buildings. In 1913 he fed sixty-nine head of cattle and two hundred head of hogs. He also sold fifty-four head of mules in the home market and sold his cattle in Buffalo, New York. At the present time he has forty-four head of cattle, sixteen head of young mules and one hundred and fifty head of hogs. Mr. Emmert's neighbors, who have followed his methods in farming, have all prospered, and many owe much of their success to the example he has set in this community.

On November 27, 1861, Jacob Emmert was married in Greensburg to Catherine Hauk, the daughter of William and Margaret Hauk. Born on October 3, 1841, Mrs. Emmert passed away in 1901, leaving a family of six children, five of whom are living. Of these children, Carrie is the wife of Luther D. Hamilton and was born on October 12, 1862; Clinton Buell, who is now engaged in operating the Emmert mill, was born on July 14, 1864, and on May 17, 1893, he was married to Allie Patterson; they have one child, James Allen, who is a student at the Sweetwater military school; Mrs. Sylvia Senior, April 12, 1867, has one child, Merlin; Ellison, March 8, 1869, died on December 17, 1888; John Leslie, April 30, 1871, was married on November 27, 1895, to Ada Thornton Dobyns, and they have one child, Mabel, and Ruby Leona, September 18, 1886, lives at home and is keeping house for her father.

Jacob Emmert has been a life-long Republican. Four years, from 1888 to 1892, he served as trustee of Fugit township, member of the Presbyterian church, he has filled all the offices in the local congregation. Fraternally he is a member of Clarksburg Lodge No. 124, Free and Accepted Masons. He became a Mason at Fairland in Shelby county, fifty-three years ago, transferring his membership from Fairland to Greensburg and from thence to Clarksburg. For ten years he served as treasurer of the Clarksburg lodge.

Decatur county has few citizens who have been more industrious and more enterprising than the venerable Jacob Emmert. His acquaintance extends not only throughout Decatur county, but he is well known in all of the adjoining counties, and occupies an enviable place in the hearts of his neighbors and fellow townsmen. While he has lived an industrious and honest man, he has in many ways contributed to the happiness and comfort of the people with whom he has come in contact and is honored by them today as a kind and generous friend.

"History of Decatur County, Indiana"
Lewis A. Harding
B. F. Bowen & Co.
Indianapolis, Indiana
published in 1915.

The venerable William M. Angle, retired farmer of Fugit township, Decatur county, Indiana, is a native of Laurel, Kentucky, having been born seventy-five years ago in February, 1840. His parents, William and Eby (Sutherlin) Angle, were both natives of southern states, the former of Tennessee and the latter of Kentucky. Believing that they would find greater opportunities in the newer land north of them, they emigrated in 1856 to Indiana and settled east of Clarksburg, where they lived until their deaths. Several of their fourteen children died in infancy, leaving only eight who accompanied them to Indiana. Of these eight children, William, the subject of this sketch, and his sister, Priscilla, of Fairmount, Indiana, are now the only ones living.

In the first three years of the last half of the nineteenth century, agricultural conditions did not compare with conditions today, especially from the standpoint of getting quick returns for one's labor. Nevertheless, William Angle, who began life on his own account when twenty years of age, rented land in Decatur county, and saved most of the money left after the expenses of farming were paid. During this period of his life he found it a pleasant task to care for his aged father and in giving his father fifteen hundred dollars which he earned before he was twenty-one years old.

In 1870, when he was thirty years old, Mr. Angle purchased his first tract of land, paying one thousand dollars in cash and agreeing to pay twenty-eight hundred dollars additional as fast as he was able to make and save the money. In eight years he was able completely to relinquish the debt, so that by 1878 he was well started on the road to fortune. In February, 1909, he purchased a ninety-five-acre farm in Rush county, paying nine thousand dollars in cash for this land. His home farm in Fugit township consists of fifty-three acres, so that he owns altogether one hundred and forty-nine acres in Decatur and Rush counties. Aside from this land, which is conservatively estimated to be worth fifteen thousand dollars, Mr. Angle owns five thousand dollars' worth of stocks and bonds, which are gilt-edge in every respect, and which pay him handsome dividends and interest. It is fair to say that he is today worth not less than twenty thousand dollars, every cent of which he has made himself, and saved out of his own personal earnings. This is a splendid record and one of which he has every reason to be proud. In fact, his neighbors in Fugit township and the people with whom he has come in contact during life are likewise proud of him and his achievements.

On March 17, 1875, when he was thirty-five years old, William Angle was married to Mary Ann Evans, who was born on December 9, 1845, and who is five years his junior. Mrs. Angle is a native of Franklin county and the daughter of James Evans, who married Lydia Weston. They also were natives of Franklin county, and the son and daughter of old families of this section of the state. Mr. and Mrs. Angle have no children.

It could hardly be expected that William Angle, in view of his large success as a farmer and financier, and in view of his busy life, has ever been able to devote very much time to political affairs. However, he is a Republican in politics, but contents himself with voting the ticket of his party and leaving such matters as organization and the management of campaigns to others. Mr. and Mrs. Angle have long been members of the Presbyterian church, and are devout in this faith.

"History of Decatur County, Indiana"
Lewis A. Harding
B. F. Bowen & Co.
Indianapolis, Indiana
published in 1915.

Mr. Shaw's father, whose name also was Thomas, was brought up by his grandfather, for his own father died when the younger Thomas was an infant. The latter, who was Thomas N. Shaw's paternal grandfather, was born on December 3, 1789, and his wife, Sarah Shaw, was born on October 5, 1792. Their children were as follow: Elizabeth C., born on July 15, 1814; John, February 23, 1816; Sarah, December 1, 1817, and others, including Thomas, the father of Thomas N. The birth of the latter occurred on July 3, 1821, and he passed away in 1905. He was a native of Franklin county, going to Decatur county when only a young boy. In early manhood, he married Margaret Ann Wilson, who was a native of Indiana, and died in November, 1904. Thomas Shaw, Sr., was the owner of a splendid farm in Jackson township, consisting of three hundred and eighty acres, and of one hundred and eighty acres in Sand Creek township, and was one of the large landowners of the entire county. Thomas N. Shaw had two brothers and two sisters, as follow: John S., who lives in Greensburg; Martha E. Swope, of Fowler, Indiana; Samuel S., deceased, was a farmer, and Mary E. McInwain, also dead. Thomas N. Shaw, Jr., was the youngest of his family.

His boyhood home was at the northeast corner of the home section of Jackson township, while his own farm is in the southwest corner of the same section. In July, 1875, he was united in marriage to Louisa, daughter of Eli and Catherine Risley Bake, a wealthy landowner of Decatur county. Besides Mrs. Shaw, their other children are, Lewis S., Amanda J., Clarissa, Cordelia, Olive P., Lorinda, Martha A., William H., Pearl, wife of Dr. Will E. Thomas, of Clarksburg, who became the parents of two children, Richard Shaw and Mary Louise.

Upon their marriage, the father of Mr. Shaw presented him with one thousand dollars, and his wife received a similar amount from her parents, and with this they purchased the land upon which they lived until 1912. The original tract consisted of ninety acres to which they later added seventy acres, which farm is so well equipped in every way that it easily attracts the attention of travelers, and is considered one of the finest in the county. It now contains a splendid house, which they built in 1854, although when the young people first moved in, they occupied a one-room log cabin. It was necessary to go in debt, but that encumbrance has long ago been paid off. A large, two-story brick house replaces the primitive log cabin, and a spacious barn is modern in every respect. In 1912, the owner added to its attractiveness as well as to its intrinsic value by enclosing the grounds, within four hundred rods, with wire fencing, braced by substantial stone posts. In this year, also, the family removed to Westport, desiring this progressive little town as a place of residence.

Mr. Shaw has always been interested in the affairs of the Republican party of which he has been a life-long member. He and his wife and daughter have a great many friends, and theirs is considered one of the important and hospitable home of the community.

Relieved from active participation in the arduous labors of farm work, Mr. and Mrs. Shaw can enjoy a leisure deserved by reason of their years of service to their family, and it is hoped by their many friends that many more years will be spared to them, years that may be fruitful in both pleasure and achievement.

"History of Decatur County, Indiana"
Lewis A. Harding
B. F. Bowen & Co.
Indianapolis, Indiana
published in 1915.

Daniel Jefferson Ballard, M. D., was born on a farm in Orange township, Rush county, Indiana, not far over the line from Decatur county, on October 8, 1841, the son of Madison and Sarah Ann (Tevis) Ballard, the former of whom was born on March 13, 1814, and died on March 15, 1888, and the latter of whom was born on February 25, 1822, and died on January 18, 1883.

Madison Ballard was born in Virginia, the son of Elijah Ballard, born in 1777, who came to Indiana in 1825, settling in Rush county, where he spent the remainder of his life. Madison Ballard became a well-known and influential farmer in Rush county, where he made his home until 1877, in which year he moved to St. Paul, this county, where his last days were spent. By his marriage to Sarah Ann Tevis six children were born, Daniel J., the subject of this sketch; Mrs. Catherine Raynes, who lives in Illinois; John Durbin, who lives in Shelbyville, this state, and Mary Elizabeth, Sarah Helen and Mellender, the last three named of whom are deceased.

Being the eldest of the family and it being necessary for him to aid in the work of the farm during the days of his youth, Daniel J. Ballard received little schooling in his boyhood, his attendance being limited to about three months in a year during the winter seasons. He was not twenty years of age when the Civil War broke out, but on September 18, 1861, he enlisted in Company E, Thirty-seventh Regiment, Indiana Volunteer Infantry, for service in that great struggle between the states. In 1862 he was transferred to the First Battalion, Pioneer Brigade of Engineers, in which service he was engaged for two years, and was discharged with his regiment on October 26, 1864. Though engaged in some of the fiercest battles of the war, Doctor Ballard never was wounded, though on numerous occasions bullets passed through his clothing. Among the notable battles in which he participated may be mentioned Stone's River, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, Peachtree Creek, Atlanta and Jonesboro. Doctor Ballard was discharged with the rank of corporal.

At the close of the war Doctor Ballard determined to pursue the studies which he had been compelled to neglect in his boyhood, and he attended school at St. Paul and at Shelbyville, after which for a few years he taught school in St. Paul, beginning as primary teacher and ending as principal. Thus fortified, he took up the study of medicine and, after a period of preparatory reading, entered the Cincinnati College of Medicine and Surgery, from which institution he was graduated in February, 1876. He immediately entered upon the practice of his profession in the village of St. Paul and for forty years has been thus engaged, during the past twenty-one years of which time he also operated a drug store in the village.

On September 18, 1867, Doctor Ballard was united in marriage to Anna E. French, who was born in Liberty township, Shelby county, this state, on February 15, 1846, daughter of Joseph R. French, a native of that county, who was born in 1825, the son of Daniel French, who settled in Shelby county in 1820. Joseph R. French enjoys the distinction of being the oldest citizen of Adams township, this county. Since 1856 he has resided in the village of St. Paul, having always lived in the neighborhood, with the exception of four years spent at Moores Hill, when his son was attending the college at that point. Mr. French was a saddler during his active year, and in his old age turned his attention to the cultivation of raspberry slips and other hothouse plants, but is now retired. Mr. French's wife was Catherine Zeigler, a member of a pioneer family of this part of the state, who was born in 1824 and died in November, 1902. To their union five children were born, namely: Anna E., who married Doctor Ballard; Mrs. Sarah Elizabeth Plymate, who lives at Acton, this state; Mrs. Amy Celeste Derbyshire, of St. Petersburg, Florida; Harriet Jane, who died in girlhood, and William Henry Harrison.

Anna E. French began teaching school when she was thirteen years of age and taught until she was twenty years of age, at which time, following her marriage to Doctor Ballard, she took up the study of chemistry, with particular reference to pharmacy, and for twenty years has been a registered pharmacist, being an invaluable aid to her husband in the operation of the drug store at St. Paul.

To Dr. Daniel J. and Anna E. (French) Ballard three children have been born, only one of whom is living, namely: Harry W., an artist, who resides in St. Paul, married Fannie Floyd and they have one child, a son, Jack Floyd; Daniel Arthur, who died on April 10, 1879, at the age of two years and five months, and Joseph Clarence, who died in a St. Louis hospital on March 2, 1902, at the age of twenty-three years, three months and twenty-seven days. Joseph C. Ballard was graduated from Purdue University and at the time of his death was engaged as a chemist in a steel plant at St. Louis.

Doctor and Mrs. Ballard are members of the Methodist church and are active in the good works of the community in which they so long have labored. Doctor Ballard was a Republican until the year 1912, in which year he transferred his political allegiance to the Progressive party. He is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias lodges at St. Paul and a leader in the local post of the Grand Army of the Republic. Formerly he took an active part in the affairs of the medical associations to which he was attached, but of late years is gradually relaxing some of his aforetime activities. He was a member of the Decatur County Medical Association and the Indiana State Medical Association, in the affairs of both of which societies he took an earnest interest. Mrs. Ballard also formerly was active in the work of the Pythian Sisters and of the Daughters of Rebekah, having filled all the chairs in the local lodges of those orders and served as delegate to the grand lodges of the same. Doctor and Mrs. Ballard, by reason of their useful lives in and about St. Paul, are held in the highest esteem thereabouts, being regarded with the greatest respect by the entire community.

"History of Decatur County, Indiana"
Lewis A. Harding
B. F. Bowen & Co.
Indianapolis, Indiana
published in 1915.