MICHAEL DAUSMAN (deceased). In order to perpetuate for coming generations the record of one who was very prominently connected with the growth and development of Elkhart county, but who has now passed to his final reward, a brief account of the life of Michael Dausman is placed on the pages of this volume. He was one of the pioneer settlers of the county, a most worthy and exemplary citizen, and one always liberal in his contributions to aid the social, material and religious advancement of the same. Mr. Dausman was born in Germany, August 26, 1826, and was the youngest child of David and Magdalene Dausman, both of whom were natives of the Fatherland. Six children were born to this worthy couple, all natives of the old country. David Dausman, his wife and six: children-four boys and two girls comprised the family which left the old home March 5, 1828. They started from Alsace, France, with team and wagon and journeyed 240 miles to Paris, France, thence to the coast where they took the sailing vessel, "Great Britain," for New York. After a stormy voyage of sixty-eight days on the Atlantic, they reached New York in safety. They went immediately to Buffalo, but concluded to go thence to Canada, where they determined finally to settle, and there they lived ten years. They then moved to the United States and located on a farm near New Paris, Elkhart county, where the parents passed the remainder of their lives. Their children are Jacob Dausman, who lives in Dausmantown, and is eighty-one years of age; David Dausman, who lives on the old homestead near New Paris, and Henry Dausman, who lives in Oregon. Their three sisters are dead. Michael Dausman was but two years of age when his parents sailed for the United States, and as a consequence all his recollections were of this country. His youthful days were passed in Canada and New York State, and in the latter he received his education. He there also learned the carpenter and millwright's trade and followed that the most of his life. He assisted in building mills at Buffalo and worked at his trade until the family came to Indiana. Like many others he was taken with the gold fever in 1849 and started for the Pacific coast. He went with six others by way of the Isthmus and was in the mines of California for six years, meeting with fair success. He experienced many hardships in that country, camped out for some time and took his tools and provisions to the camp on the backs of mules. He returned to the East with some money, and made the return trip by way of the Isthmus. For several years afterward he worked at his trade, and in about 1858 was married to Miss Mary Stouder, a daughter of Christian Stouder and a native of Elkhart county. She was one of a large family. After his marriage Mr. Dausman settled on a farm in Dausmantown, and he worked at his trade until 1863, when they went on a farm of eighty acres, which had been given Mrs. Dausman by her parents. This was covered with wood, and they immediately erected a house and began clearing. With the help of his boys, Mr. Dausman cleared this place and bought another eighty joining the original tract, and this has also been cleared. In all there are 105 acres cleared and the rest is good timber. Michael Dausman made his home on this farm until his death, which occurred November 14, 1891. His record as a private citizen and neighbor were alike untarnished, and in all the affairs of life he bore himself in an upright manner, and was recognized as a man of true worth. He was a Republican all his life, and a man deeply interested in the welfare of his county. He was a great help to religion, education, etc., and no man in the county was more highly honored. His wife is still living, is residing on the old homestead in Union township, and part of the children remain with her. She has been in poor health for many years. Six children were born to this worthy couple: Juliann, born December 12, 1859, married Christian Weaver, a farmer of this township, and they have two children, Sylvia and Michael; Edward W., born September 27, 1861, is farming the home place, and is a Republican in his political views (he is deeply interested in the affairs of the county and is a well-informed young man, receiving a good practical education in the district schools; he is at present engaged in stockraising and general farming and is wide awake and enterprising); Michael M., born September 20, 1863, in com¬pany with his brother Edward, is engaged in the management of the home place (he is also a strong supporter of the principles of the Republican party, the district schools afforded him a fair education and he has assisted on the home place from early boyhood; he, too, is single); Lydia, born December 7, 1865, is the wife of Richard Pickering, and they have one child, Perly (they reside in Jackson township); Lucy, born September 20, 1867, married Henry W. Miller, and they live on a farm in Jackson township (they have four children - Leroy, Laura, Rolley and a baby yet unnamed); William, born in 1869, died when but three months old; and Alice, born May 4, 1871, is at home keeping house for her brothers. They are thoroughgoing, progressive young men, and their farm of 106 acres is well managed.

“Pictorial and Biographical Memoirs of Elkhart and St. Joseph Counties, Indiana
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1893
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MICHAEL F. MYERS. No theme has greater interest to the biographer than that of pioneer times, and the life history of those who have passed through that trying period and have made their way to comfort and prosperity through hardships and privations, is appreciated by every reader. Such a history do we have in the life of the one whose name is given above. Mr. Myers is of German descent, and his ancestors were early settlers of Maryland. His grandfather, Michael Myers, was born in that State, but as early as 1803 he emigrated to Montgomery county, Ohio, and settled six miles southwest of Dayton, on Bear Creek. He was one of the earliest settlers of that region, cleared up a good farm and was active in all worthy enterprises. Eight children were born to his marriage as follows: Moses, Michael, Martin, Manuel and Manassa. The others are not remembered. Mr. Myers became one of the most prosperous farmers and wealthy citizens of his community. He entered land in Wayne county, Ind., gave all his children homes, and was much esteemed by all. His son, Michael, the father of our subject, was born on his father's farm, in Maryland, May 5, 1798, and was five years of age when brought to Ohio. His youthful days were spent in duties upon the farm and a fair education was received in the common schools. He was married in Montgomery county, Ohio, to Miss Elizabeth Frantz, also of German descent, and to them were given six children: Eli, Lydia, Mary, Michael F., Henry and Sarah E., all born in Montgomery county, Ohio, where Mr. Myers lived until sixty-one years of age. Then, in 1859, he moved to Elkhart county, Ind., and settled in Jackson township where he had 160 acres of land partially cleared. Mr. Myers improved this and here passed the remainder of his days, dying at the unusual age of eighty-seven years. In politics he was first on old line Whig, but later he affiliated with the Republican party. He was a man highly esteemed in the community, was liberal and open-hearted and assisted his children to a start in life. Michael F. Myers, the subject of this sketch, and son of the above, owes his nativity to the Buckeye State, born in Montgomery county, November 16, 1839, and received a good practical education in the common schools. He assisted his father on the farm and came with his father to this county in 1859. He was then about twenty years of age and was married in this county to Miss Cynthia A. Blake, daughter of Charles and Martha (Berry) Blake. Four children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Myers: Lillie M., Matilda A., Clyde E. and Charles. Immediately after his marriage Mr. Myers settled on his present farm, then consisting of 120 acres given him by his father, and to this he has since added until he now owns 240 acres. He is one of the substantial and prominent farmers of the county, is active in all good work, and especially active in educational matters. All his children have had good educational advantages and his daughter Matilda attended school in Goshen . In his religious views he is a German Baptist, and in politics he is a Republican. He is a man who stands deservedly high as a practical farmer and honorable citizen, and is well and favorably known for his integrity and uprightness.

“Pictorial and Biographical Memoirs of Elkhart and St. Joseph Counties, Indiana
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1893
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MILTON MILLER LATTA, M. D. Among those who from early manhood have devoted their lives to the cause of suffering humanity, Milton M. Latta may be regarded as among the foremost, and in pursuing the noble calling of medicine he has made fame and fortune for himself. He owes his nativity to Champaign county, Ohio, where he was born July 9, 1822, being a grandson of Robert Latta, who was born in Pennsylvania, of which State his wife, Elizabeth Johnstone, was also a native. The father and mother of Robert Latta were North of Ireland peop1e, who took "French leave" of their parents to come to America to be married. The former served with General Morgan in the Revolutionary war. He reared a large family of children, and always made his home in the State in which he first located on coming to America - Pennsylvania. Robert, his son, was a strict adherent of the Calvinistic doctrine in religion for many years, but in middle life connected himself with the Methodist Episcopal Church, and did much in early times to promote the growth of this church in Indiana. He was one of the first settlers of the Haw Patch in Indiana, and was well and favorably known to all the early settlers. Of a large family of children born to himself and wife, James, the father of the subject of this sketch, was the eldest. He was born in Pennsylvania, removed to Ohio with his parents, and was there married to Elizabeth Seegar, whose parents were among the first settlers of Logan county, Ohio. About 1823 James removed to Illinois, and until 1833 was an itinerant minister of the Methodist Episcopal Church in the central portion of that State. Upon his settlement in Indiana in 1833, in connection with his ministerial duties he was engaged in farming. He became well known in church circles in both Illinois and Indiana, and became noted as a faithful and zealous worker in the vineyard of his Master. He and his wife died at the old home at the Haw Patch, where they had lived so many years, and were so well known and universally respected. Their family consisted of eight sons, of whom the subject of this sketch was the eldest. The early days of Dr. Milton M. Latta were characterized by hard work, his common school advantages amounting to about two months out of each winter term until he was about fifteen years of age, when failing health compelled him to leave the farm, and in January, 1837 he was taken to Hamilton, Ohio, and placed in a combined drug and book store, and here it was that his real education began. He continued in this establishment the greater part of two years, during which time he read everything that took his fancy, and commenced the study of medicine, which he continued in a desultory way for several years after his return home. In 1840, at the age of eighteen years, he came to Goshen, Ind., and entered the office of his uncle, the late Dr. Johnstone Latta, one of the earliest and best known of the pioneer physicians of northern Indiana. In October, 1841, he went to Cincinnati, Ohio, and entered the Ohio Medical College, where he remained one term, then returned to Goshen, and since that time has been constantly engaged in the practice of medicine. He is now the oldest and best known physician in northern Indiana. It has been his ambition to not only stand well with his profession, but to be regarded as a useful citizen and a public-spirited man. He has long stood at the head of his profession in this and adjoining counties, and this is especially true in the branch of surgery, of which he for many years made a specialty, not so much from choice as from force of circumstances. His reputation in this line was acquired by performing some difficult operations at a time when good surgeons were a rarity, and he soon had almost a monopoly in that branch of his profession, although of late, on account of his age, he is gradually sharing his honors with younger practitioners. He has no superior as a general practitioner, for his long experience has gained him a knowledge of symptoms and of remedies that can only be acquired in that manner. A close student of human nature, of the mental as well as the physical conditions and peculiarities of patients, he seeks to understand them so thoroughly that his treatment may be exactly suitable to each particular case. Add to this a fatherly care and a tender sympathy for the suffering greatly above the average physician, and his popularity is not to be wondered at. He has always taken an active interest in medical societies and everything calculated to improve and elevate his profession. He assisted in organizing the first society in Elkhart county in 1845, and supported it and its successors ever since. He was the first delegate from the State of Indiana to the National Medical Association at Baltimore, in 1848, the journey thither and home again occupying six weeks. At the opening of the Civil war he was offered a surgeon's commission by Governor Morton, but on account of the death of his wife, and being left with a family of small children to provide for, he declined it. He, however, did much service for the Union cause as a draft surgeon, and in various other ways, and was a poorer man at the close of the war than at its commencement, owing to the fact that he made many enemies of those who were averse to being pressed into the service. He was a member of the Agricultural Society from the first, and did all he could to promote its success. In company with five other men he secured the first railroad connection for Goshen, and was one of the first directors and builders of the Hydraulic Canal. For one year he acted as village trustee, and it was during that year that the Madison Street School building was erected. That he has been a public-spirited citizen, no one who has ever known him will question. He took a great interest in years past in the improvements of the country roads and the building of bridges, spending a great deal of time and money in promoting the latter enterprise. He subscribed heavily to the building of several of the beautiful church edifices of the city, donated more money for church purposes than any other man in the county; in fact, all good causes have received his hearty approval and substantial support. While by no means an "offensive partisan," he has always been a consistent Republican, being one of the first to join the party, having prior to that time been a Whig. He was for about forty years surgeon of the Lake Shore Railroad, but lately resigned the position because, while the labor was increasing, the compensation was not. In 1845 he was married to Miss Julia A. McDevitt, a native of Maryland, who died in 1861, having become the mother of eight children: Mary E., Julia A., James McD., Charles C., Oliver L., William J., Henry P., and one that died in infancy. In 1871 the Doctor took for his second wife Miss Julia L. Redfield, a native of Cass county, Mich. To this union two children were given: Annie R., and a daughter that died in infancy. Dr. Latta's life has been one of usefulness, honor and profit, and without doubt the world is better for his having lived in it.
“Pictorial and Biographical Memoirs of Elkhart and St. Joseph Counties, Indiana
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1893
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WILLIAM A. WHIPPY, M. D. This gentleman was born in Lockport, Niagara Co., N. Y., September 2, 1826, and the old Whippy residence in which he was born remained standing until quite recently, and was one of the old landmarks in that picturesque old town of canal locks. Both his paternal and maternal ancestors were colonial settlers of New England and sea faring people. The father, George S., was born in Nantucket, Conn., in 1795, and his wife, who was a Miss Sarah C. West, in New Bedford, the same State, in 1799. Here they were married, and during the earliest settlement of western New York moved there and assisted in founding the town of Lockport. They made this their home until about 1836, when they removed to Tompkins county, and from there, after about three years, to what is now Schuyler county, where they ever afterward resided. Mr. Whippy was a prominent Mason, and member of the same lodge as William Morgan, who wrote a so-called exposition of the order, and who so mysteriously disappeared after having done so. Excitement over the event ran high at that time, and Mr. Whippy was under arrest for a year, as being accessory to the disappearance and death of Morgan, but in the end was discharged and fully exonerated. He remained a consistent and honored Mason until his death, and lived to see almost the last vestige of prejudice against the ancient order give place to justly merited honor and respect. To him and wife were born four sons and four daughters, all but two married and reared families. They all, except our subject and a sister (Mrs. S. E. Sloan), who was a pioneer settler of Winona, Minn., have been residents of the Empire State. Of the number of grandchildren, the sons of the subject of this sketch are the only males that bear the name of Whippy. Dr. Whippy was a stanch Democrat, and a personal friend of Van Buren and other stalwart New York Democrats of that time. He was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church and his wife of the Quaker Church. He died November 8, 1853, and his wife a year later. Dr. William A. Whippy received an academic education, and at the age of eighteen began the study of medicine with Dr. E. A. Tompkins, a prominent physician of the alopathic school, who afterward removed to the Pacific coast, and became mayor of San Francisco. After about three years' study and attendance at a medical col1ege he began practicing at Bath, Steuben Co., N. Y. After about three years of fairly successful practice he, through the intervention of an old friend, began investigating the Hahnemann system of medical practice, and it resulted in his becoming a convert to it, and his attending lectures at a college of that school. He then returned to his native State, but after a few years he moved to Winona, Minn., where he followed his profession until his removal to Goshen, Ind., in 1868. Since coming to this place he has built up a large and steadily increasing practice, and has been singularly and uniformly successful in the treatment of cases coming under his care. Dr. Whippy has been twice married. His first wife, to whom he was married in 1853, was Miss Mary Beardsley, a native of New York. This lady died in 1862, having borne him six children, one only living, Lestina Estelle, now the wife of E. E. Bates, of Hornellsville, N. Y. In 1868 at Winona, Minn., he was united in marriage with Miss Mary T. Harth, a native of Arkansas, her father, Makish Harth, being a native of Denmark, and a man of very superior education and intelligence. He left his native country to escape military service, and was teaching school in Arkansas at the outbreak of the war, and for his loyal sentiments and expressions he was killed by rebel bushwhackers. After the death of the head of the family her people left the South and took up their residence in Winona, Minn. To the Doctor's second marriage three children have been born: George A. (a graduate of Hahnemann Medical College and a rising young practitioner of Goshen), Lyman B. and Winnie M. Dr. Whippy has been a life-long Democrat, but has never aspired to political preferment. As a member of the city school board he did much to improve the schools of Goshen. He is a member of the Masonic order, and a charter member of Calanthe Lodge, No. 41, Knights of Pythias, and a member of Division No. 11, U. R., and is in all ways a most worthy, progressive and public-spirited citizen.

“Pictorial and Biographical Memoirs of Elkhart and St. Joseph Counties, Indiana
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1893
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JOHN D. RAHRER. No better citizens have come to Elkhart county, Ind., than those from the Buckeye State, and none have contributed more to the growth and development of this county than the native Ohioans. Mr. Rahrer has been a resident of Elkhart county for thirty years, and daring that time his career has been not only that of an upright, honorable citizen, but of an intelligent and pro¬gressive man. He was born in Holmes county, Ohio, April 27, 1842, and was one of seven children, two of whom are deceased, born to Daniel and Lydia (Kindleburger) Rahrer. The grandparents, Jacob and Magdaline (Rahrer) Rahrer, were natives of Pennsylvania, and early settlers of Ohio. The name Rahrer is supposed to be of German origin. When but a lad, Daniel Rahrer came with his parents from Maryland, and settled in the woods of Berlin township, Holmes Co., Ohio. There the father died, and the mother subsequently came to Indiana, and received her final summons in Elkhart county. The seven children born to this couple were named as follows: Martin, David, Daniel, John, Jacob, Susan, and another daughter who became the wife of David Weaver. Susan married Peter Weaver. Daniel Rahrer was born in Maryland in 1812, and after reaching Holmes county, Ohio, attended the district schools of the same, and assisted his father in clearing the home farm. After reaching mature years he started out for himself, and was married to Miss Lydia Kindleburger. Immediately following this union, they settled on a farm in Holmes county, and there the father died in 1851, when thirty-nine years of age. Just prior to his death he bought 160 acres of land in De Kalb county, Ind., and was making arrangements to move to this when his death occurred. After his death his widow did not move, but remained on the farm in Ohio until her death two years later, or in 1853. She was a tender and loving mother, but had suffered with poor health and died with consumption. Her parents were early pioneers of Holmes county. She was a member of the German Reform Church, and her husband also held membership in the same. The latter was an old line Whig in politics. During his short career he made a good start, but as his children were all young, at the time of his death they were taken and reared by friends. These children were named as follows: Jacob resides in Elkhart county, and is a man of a family; Mary resides in Holmes county, and is the wife of John Swartz; Catherine resides in the same county, and is the wife of Aaron Yoder; John D. resides in Union township; Elizabeth married John Marty, and resides in Holmes county, Ohio; Sovila resides in Coshocton county, Ohio, and is the wife of Dr. Christian Swartz, and Samuel is a farmer of Clinton township, Elkhart county. The youthful days of John D. Rahrer were passed in his native State, and he secured a good business education in the district school. When twelve years of age he was left an orphan, and from that time until grown he was actively engaged in farm work. In 1863 he came to Elkhart county, Ind., and began the struggle for a livelihood. He began at the bottom of the ladder, and has only himself to thank for the success which has crowned his efforts. He is a self-made man in every sense of that term, and although he met with many discouragements and drawbacks, he persevered, and to-day may be classed among the successful and substantial men of his section. Prior to coming to Indiana, or in 1862, he enlisted in the army, and served faithfully for ten months, participating in the bloody battle of Murfreesboro. He was a good soldier, was never sick more than two or three days while in service, and was discharged at McMinnville, Tenn. In 1863 he returned to Holmes county, Ohio, and now draws a pension for services. The same year, as before mentioned, he came to Elkhart county, and worked at the carpenter's trade for three or four years. In 1866 he married Miss Mary Dausman, daughter of Jacob Dausman, who was one of the early pioneers of this county. Mary was born on her father's farm in Elkhart county, in 1842, and died after two years of married life, at the age of twenty-six. She had but one child, William, who was born July 27, 1867. This son was married to Miss Belle Bucher, who bore him one child, Elma V., and they now reside in Dausmantown. In 1872 Mr. Rahrer was married to Miss Elizabeth Stricker, whose parents, John and Catherine (Bucker) Stricker, came from Canada to Elkhart county about 1850. These parents reared seven children, as follows: Jacob, Elizabeth, Lavina, Henry and three who died young. Mr. and Mrs. Stricker were among the early pioneers, and their daughter Elizabeth was born on the old farm where she now lives, the old home of her parents, which her husband bought, April 27, 1853. Her father died in 1862, but his wife is still living, and finds a comfortable home with her son-in-law, John Rahrer. She is now over seventy years of age. To Mr. and Mrs. Rahrer have been born seven children: Lavina, born March 12, 1873, married John Bare, and resides in Union township; Ola, born December 23, 1875, is at home; Matrona, born July 13, 1878; Helen, born February 27, 1880; Alvin, born August 24, 1881; Jacob, born July 6, 1885, and Evaline, born November 26, 1887. Mr. Rahrer is giving his children good educational advantages, and is interested in school work. In politics he is a Democrat, is much interested in the affairs of the Government, and is one of the most prominent citizens of the township. He has been remarkably successful as an agriculturist, and his boys are getting so they can assist him in the management of the same. He is interested in all worthy movements, and no laudable enterprise is allowed to fail for want of support on his part.

“Pictorial and Biographical Memoirs of Elkhart and St. Joseph Counties, Indiana
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1893
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DANIEL ZOOK. Among the best known and prominent men of Elkhart county, Ind., is the subject of this sketch, who is a member of the firm of Coppes Bros., & Zook, who are among the leading business firms of northern Indiana. Mr. Zook was born in Elkhart county, Ind., January 22, 1851, the youngest son born to John M. and Rebecca (Shellenberger) Zook, the former of whom was born in Huntington county, Penn., March 4, 1818, a son of David and Mary (Mack) Zook, David being a native of Germany, and his wife a daughter of Alexander Mack, who helped to found the German Baptist Church in this country. The latter was a native of Germany also, but came to this country at an early day. David Zook and family made their home in Pennsylvania until 1840, then came as far west as Richland county, Ohio, and there, for a few years, followed the life of a pioneer tiller of the soil. Elkhart county, Ind., became their home in 1842, and here they resided on a woodland farm until the discovery of gold in California in 1849, when he made the overland trip to the gold fields, where he remained until his death, two years later. He was a prominent citizen, and for a number of years held the office of justice of the peace. Politically he was an old line Whig, and took an active part in questions of the day, and was once the nominee of his party for the State Legislature. He and his wife reared a family as follows: John M., the father of the immediate subject of this sketch; Joseph; Jacob, who died in California; Alexander; David M.; Lydia, who married a Mr. Eisenbiss; Sarah, who married John Scott; Catherine, who married Daniel Leedy, a prominent citizen of Elkhart. The mother of these children, after the death of the father, emigrated with some of her children to Iowa, and there died in 1858. John M., the father of the subject of this sketch, and of Aaron S. Zook, a lawyer, of Goshen, Ind., spent his early life as a teamster over the mountains of Pennsylvania. He was a young man when the family moved to Ohio, and there and in his native State he obtained a practical and useful education and eventually became a school teacher. He came to Elkhart county, Ind., and settled on a school section in the woods, which he farmed until 1862, when he traded his farm and located in Clinton township, where he reared his family and tilled the soil until his death, June 6, 1872. He succeeded in accumulating a fair amount of worldly goods and as a public-spirited and enterprising citizen, he had not his superior in his section of the country. He was first a Whig in politics, later a Republican, and in the neighborhood in which he lived, he held a prominent position and a number of official places. He was extremely active in educational work and managed to give his children good educational advantages. His wife was born in Huntington county, Penn., a daughter of Michael Shellenberger, who were of Pennsylvania stock, but of Swiss descent. They were among the early residents of Richland county and there reared a family of children who are named as follows: Rebecca, born November, 1823; John; David; Baltzer; Sarah and Elizabeth. The father died in Ohio and the mother returned to Pennsylvania, where she was called from life. Mrs. Zook was the eldest of their family, and is now making her home in Goshen with her son Aaron. She is well preserved and is in the enjoyment of good health. She has long been a member of the Lutheran Church and in that faith reared her children: David L. was born March 1, 1846, was reared on a farm and followed the calling of a teacher for many years; he took a college course in Michigan University, also studied law and graduated from the Chicago Law School, and is now a member of the law firm of Wilson & Zook, at No. 79 Metropolitan Block, Chicago, Ill.; Aaron is the next in order of birth, and is a lawyer of Goshen, Daniel, the subject of this sketch; and Sarah, who is the wife of Dr. I. J. Becknell; of Milford, Ind. The early life of Daniel Zook was spent on a farm where he learned the art of practical farming. He not only pursued the paths of learning in the district schools in the vicinity of his rural home, but also the public schools of Goshen, and after assisting his father for some time in the saw-mill, he became a school teacher and followed that occupation for five years, during which time he won an excellent reputation as an educator and disciplinarian. He took up the study of law at an early day with his brother in Goshen, and for some time he practiced law in Goshen. In 1882 he became a resident of Nappanee, and four years later was elected to the office of county clerk, which he filled with ability for four years, but refused to stand for nomination a second term, claiming that one term of four years was enough. At the expiration of his term of office he became a member of the firm of Coppes Bros. & Zook, by purchasing the interest of S. D. Coppes, in which he has since remained interested. He is an active citizen of Nappanee and is deeply interested in the current topics of the day, and politically is a Republican. He was married to Miss Della Reifenberg, of Bristol, Ind., who died in 1882, at the age of twenty-five years, leaving a son, Harold, who was born September 4, 1878, and is now attending school. For his second wife Mr. Zook married Miss Lizzie Yarian, daughter of Benjamin Yarian, of Nappanee. She was born in Nappanee in 1867, and she and her husband move in the best social circles and have numerous warm friends, whom it is their pleasure to entertain at their hospitable home.

“Pictorial and Biographical Memoirs of Elkhart and St. Joseph Counties, Indiana
Together with Biographies of Many Prominent Men of Northern Indiana and the Whole State, Both Living and Dead”
Goodspeed Brothers Publishers, Chicago
1893
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Benton, at Elkhart River. The prospect for a settlement appeared very flattering, as the land was rich and fertile, and there was a plentiful supply of water and much valuable timber. Messrs. Crawford and Meacham soon joined them on their way south in quest of stock hogs, and Matthew Boyd arrived in their camp about the same time and afterward became a permanent settler at Benton. They started for home October 14, and on the evening of that day met Elias Riggs and his son-in-law, with their families moving to Elkhart Prairie, where they built a house on the land owned later by Col. John Jackson and were the first permanent settlers on the plain. The succeeding winter was passed by Major Violett in making preparations to move to Elkhart Prairie, and March 3, 1829, he set out with an ox team, carrying farming utensils, heavy furniture and provisions, his family remaining for a time with friends. William Chance and James Bishop, two young men whom he had employed to help open up his farm went with him, and the party was accompanied by two other men with ox teams, whose names have not been handed down to us. The journey consumed twelve days. Making a squatter's claim on a timbered portion of a prairie near the river, Major Violett erected a cabin and began splitting out fence rails. In the following spring he fenced fifty acres of his land and planted thirty-two acres of it to corn, which was the first crop of its kind raised in the vicinity and was in great demand during the following winter and spring for the use of families and stock, quite a number of people having moved into the country without a sufficient grain supply. In July Major Violett brought his family out to his Indiana home. A brief resume of the characteristics and principal events in the life of this distinguished pioneer demonstrates that he was a man of unusual ability, as can not be doubted when his career from first to last is taken into consideration. Intellectually superior, he was naturally influential among his fellow men. He was a ready and convincing speaker and, as his diary shows, a most pungent writer. While entertaining the highest respect for the religious convictions and opinions of others, he was not of orthodox belief in religious matters, and was unable, honestly, to accept many of the creeds and practices of the churches. Though not an active politician, be was unswerving in his political convictions and gave his influence without stint to the support of his party, its men and its measures. When Elkhart county was organized in 1830, he was elected its first recorder and held the office for seven years. In 1830 he was appointed major of the Eighty-second Regiment of Indiana Militia; in 1840 he was candidate for associate judge, but his party being largely in the minority he was defeated, and in 1842 he was appointed commissioner for the Erie & Michigan Canal, and subscribed $1,000 toward its construction. He was a candidate of the Whigs for State senator in 1844, but was defeated, although securing more than his regular party vote. In 1854-5 he built the Violett House in Goshen, which stands to-day as a monument to his public spirit. He was a model and enterprising fanner, and, as the pioneer nurseryman, supplied the country with its first fruit and ornamental trees. In private life he was charmingly genial and cordial and his home was the center of a generous hospitality. His character was above reproach and endeared him to all who knew him; and his death, which occurred October 24, 1871, after he had passed his seventy-fifth year, was lamented by a large circle of relatives and friends.

“Pictorial and Biographical Memoirs of Elkhart and St. Joseph Counties, Indiana
Together with Biographies of Many Prominent Men of Northern Indiana and the Whole State, Both Living and Dead”
Goodspeed Brothers Publishers, Chicago
1893
John Morris Co. Printers and Binders


John H. Violett, the immediate subject of this memoir, who deserves a place in history as the first white child born in this county, inherited many of the sterling qualities of his father. His boyhood days were passed in the old log cabin which his father built in the spring of 1829, preceding the fall of his birth, which was afterward sold to Daniel Hess. The only door in that historic building; which was of course its outside door, was the first door hung on hinges in the county and it is still preserved by the family as a relic of the pioneer days. Mr. Violett's educational advantages were extremely limited, being only such as were afforded by the "pay schools" of that time. His first experience in school was in the log cabin which was built on Section 27, near the site of Waterford, an odd building which was constructed minus one log on the side, with wooden strips nailed across the opening over which oiled paper was stretched to serve as a window. His school life closed when he was fifteen years old, and thereafter for six years, or until he obtained his majority, he labored on the farm. The country had now begun to feel the influence of the gold excitement in California, and one of Mr. Violett's enterprising disposition was not at all likely to escape it. In the spring of 1850, he went with others to California by the overland route. and there engaged in mining with some little success, until March, 1851, when he left for home from San Francisco, via Panama and New Orleans. Unfavorable winds drove the vessel far south of the equatorial line, in the early part of the voyage, and, passing near the Marquesas Islands, it arrived in port after a voyage of about two months and a half. Soon afterward Mr. Violett bought a farm from his father, not more than a hundred rods from his birthplace and built upon it a large substantial brick building, and, purchasing a saw-mill on the Elkhart River, he engaged in lumbering and farming until 1853, when, selling the mill, he devoted his attention entirely to other interests. When war became imminent between the North and South, he began to make arrangements to participate therein, and September 2, 1861, enlisted as a private in Company E, Ninth Indiana Regiment, and served in that capacity faithfully for three years, several times refusing promotion. He participated in the two days' fight at Pittsburg Landing April 6 and 7, 1862; the battle of Stone River, on the last day of 1862 and the first day of 1863; the battle of Chickamauga, August 19 and 20, 1863; the battle of Lookout Mountain (the "fight above the clouds"), November 24 and 25, 1863, and in numerous other sanguinary engagements. Captured in Tennessee, he was taken to Libby Prison, but was at once exchanged, thus escaping long incarceration in that mundane hell. After the expiration of his term of service, he was mustered out with his regiment, at Indianapolis, September 6, 1864, and returned to agricultural pursuit until, after the death of his wife, in the spring of 1878, he rented his farm and practically retired from active business for a time. His farm, consisting of 170 acres of fine prairie and timber land, was always, under his management, one of the finest in the township, and he prided himself on keeping it in a high state of cultivation. Before returning from the war, in the fall of 1864, he was nominated and elected sheriff of Elkhart county by a most gratifying majority and held the office for two years. Referring to his nomination, the Goshen Times said: " John H. Violett was nominated for sheriff without his knowledge or consent, while he was manfully doing his duty as a private soldier, 'way down in Dixie', and that, too, over other worthy men, who were present in the convention working for the place." Until the Whig party was merged with the Republican party in 1855, Mr. Violett was in politics an uncompromising Whig; since that date he has been an equally uncompromising Republican. He is a most earnest man and a very liberal contributor to the support of his political convictions. An extensive reader, he is not only well versed in all events of the present time, but is thoroughly well read in historical, classical, poetical, romantic and scientific literature. A clear thinker and a sound reasoner, he is accurate in his judgment and prompt to act upon it. A pleasing conversationalist, he is at the same time a writer of ability, his contributions to the public press being clear, forcible and comprehensive, strong in sarcasm and overflowing with pungent humor. Reared in a strong moral atmosphere, but not under church discipline, he is like his father, entirely unorthodox in religious belief, having become doubtful, concerning theological dogmas upon mature reflection in early youth, and having since been what is properly termed a "radical. " April 28, 1852, he married Miss Catherine Rodibaugh, daughter of David Rodibaugh, of Elkhart township, a woman of marked ability, of many lovable qualities, who died July 16, 1877. They had four children, one of whom is living: Mariet J., born October 11, 1853, died June 2, 1860; Horace E., born November 2, 1855, died April 23, ]859; Chloe, born August 11, 1857, married Charles A. Irwin, son of E. D. Irwin, of Elkhart Prairie, October 14, 1873; Florett, born April 21, 1860, died October 16, 1863. Mr. Violett was married November 28, 1878, to Melissa Leedy, of Elkhart township, a lady of pleasing presence, of good parentage, cultivated and refined in appearance, and highly respected. They have by this marriage an interesting family of children, who add sunshine to their already happy home and are the pride and delight of their parents and friends. It may be said of Mr. Violett that he has been, during all his life, deservedly esteemed in every relation; as a citizen, a public official, as soldier, a husband, and a father, his every act has been such as to reflect credit upon him and increase the high esteem in which all have held him from his youth to the present time. It is not probable that there is in all Elkhart county another man whose declining years are crowned with greater respect and honor than those which are but the just acknowledgment of Mr. Violett's manly worth and dignity of character.

“Pictorial and Biographical Memoirs of Elkhart and St. Joseph Counties, Indiana
Together with Biographies of Many Prominent Men of Northern Indiana and the Whole State, Both Living and Dead”
Goodspeed Brothers Publishers, Chicago
1893
John Morris Co. Printers and Binders


GEN. MILO S. HASCALL was born in Le Roy, Genesee Co., N. Y., August 5, 1829, a son of Amasa and Phoebe (Smith) Hascall, natives of Massachusetts. His father occupied various official positions. Emigrating to New York he located at Canandaigua, and subsequently at Le Roy, Genesee county. The boyhood of Gen. Hascall was passed on the farm and in the common schools. At the age of sixteen he attended an academy, and at seventeen, in 1847, came west to Goshen, Ind., where three of his brothers then resided. Chauncey S. Hascall was then engaged in trade in Goshen and the General entered his store as clerk. This engagement lasted but three months, when he taught school for one term. He went to West Point in June, 1848, and remained there four years, graduating June 16, 1852, fourteenth in a class that entered ninety-six and graduated forty-three, a record of which any West Point student might well be proud. His class embraced Gen. Sheridan, Gen. Henry W. Slocum, of Brooklyn; Gen. D. S. Stanley. Jerome N. Bonaparte (the Baltimore member of the illustrious family), George L. Hartsuff, Gen. Charles R. Woods, Marshall T. Polk, Alex D. McCook, Gen. William Myers, Gen. A. V. Kautz, Gen. George Crook. After his graduation Gen. Hascall was promoted to the Third Artillery as brevet second lieutenant, and stationed at Fort Adams, R. I., where he remained about one year. He was then promoted to a second lieutenancy in the Second Artillery, and was stationed at Old Point Comfort, Va., where he remained until 1853, when he resigned. He came to Goshen after leaving the army and traveled for some time thereafter. For one year he was a contractor on the Northern Indiana & Michigan Southern Railroad, after which he studied and eventually began the practice of law. During his law practice he was elected prosecuting attorney for the court of common pleas. In the fall of 1859 he was elected clerk of Elkhart Circuit Court, which office he retained till the spring of 1861, when the war of the Rebellion broke out and called him to his country's defense. Gen. Hascall was one of the first volunteers to respond to the call for troops, and was elected captain of the first company raised in Goshen. This company arrived at Indianapolis too late, however, to be mustered into either of the six regiments required by the State, and was obliged to disband; but having learned that Capt. Hascall was a "West Pointer," Governor Morton appointed him captain and aid-de-camp on the staff of Gen. Thomas A. Morris, in which capacity he organized and drilled six regiments in Camp Morton, preparatory to their taking the field. In June, 1861, he accompanied Gen. Morris to West Virginia, upon the first active movement of the war, and was in the fight at Philippi, the first engagement of the war after that at Fort Sumter. The next day after that. event he was appointed colonel of the Seventeenth Indiana Regiment. Returning to Indianapolis he bore, on the way, Gen. Morris's report to Gen. McClellan, and bore also the flag captured at Philippi. His regiment, mustered for three years, arrived at Parkersburg, W. Va., about the time of the first battle of Bull Run. After some service in western Maryland, the regiment was ordered to Grafton, W. Va., and thence via Philippi and Beverly to Elkwater and Cheat Mountain, where it remained until the winter of 1861, participating in all the engagements about Elkwater, Huttonville and Cheat Mountain. When the body of John A. Washington, of Mount Vernon fame, who was killed by Col. Hascall's regiment at Elkwater, was borne back to the enemy, Col. Hascall received the first flag of truce sent during the war by Gen. Robert E. Lee. In December, 1861, at Louisville, Ky., he was placed in command of a brigade consisting of the Seventeenth and Fifteenth Indiana Regiments and the Sixth and Forty-third Ohio Regiments, and assigned to Nelson's division. Three months later he was transferred to a brigade in Gen. Wood's division and commanded it at Nashville and Shiloh. In April, 1862, he participated in the battle of Shiloh or Pittsburg Landing, and at the close of the engagement, when Gen. Beauregard requested permission to bury the Confederate dead on the field, received the first flag of truce sent during the war by that general. April 20, 1862, he was without solicitation promoted to brigadier general of volunteers, and thereafter, until the fall of 1864, was actively engaged in all the operations of the armies of the West, most of the time in command of a division, and at times temporarily in command of an army corps. At the battle of Stone River he commanded the forces on the left after 10 o'clock of the first day, and was more instrumental than any other officer present in preventing the defeat on the right from becoming an utter rout of the Union army. After this battle he was sent to Indianapolis to superintend the work of returning deserters from the army in the States of Indiana, Illinois and Ohio. While so engaged he was transferred from the Army of the Cumberland to the Army of the Ohio, and placed in command of the district of Indiana, and during his command there Vallandigham was arrested, the Chicago Times, and numerous "Copperhead" papers in Indiana were suppressed, and the great meeting of rebel sympathizers in Indianapolis, to seize the State arms and turn the State over to John Morgan, was foiled in its design. Later, in command of a division of the Twenty-third Army Corps, Gen. Hascall went with the army into east Tennessee and took an active part in the capture of Knoxville, and afterward in the siege of that city when Longstreet was attempting its capture. When Sherman moved upon Atlanta, after Longstreet's repulse, Gen. Hascall marched at the head of his division, conspicuous in all the engagements that resulted in the capture of that city, his division planting the first batteries around the doomed town and delivering the first shot and shell into the city of Atlanta. At the close of the war Gen. Hascall, in connection with John W. Irwin, Esq., engaged in the banking business at Goshen, under the Dame of the "Salem Bank," and became one of the most active and successful men in that city. In 1879 Messrs. Hascall & Irwin began the manufacture of hardwood lumber on a large scale with John H. Lesh, under the firm name of John H. Lesh & Co. Since 1889 the business has been conducted under the firm name of Irwin & Hascall. It comprehends the manufacture of large amounts of black walnut and other hardwood lumber, which is sold extensively in Germany, Great Britain, France, Australia and other foreign countries. In 1890 Gen. Hascall withdrew his interest in the bank at Goshen and took up his residence in Chicago. Besides attending to the lumber industries at East Chicago, already referred to, he has, since locating in the World's Fair City, been actively interested in real estate matters, having been one of the projectors of the new Lexington Hotel and other important real estate interests. In politics Gen. Hascall is an ardent Republican, and during some campaigns has made numerous telling speeches in behalf of his party. In 1884 he was one of the electors-at-large for Mr. Blaine. He is a member of the Illinois Commandery of the Loyal Legion, and takes an active interest in its meetings and the conduct of its affairs. In 1886 he was married to Mrs. Rose S. Miller, of Canton, Ohio, who was formerly Miss Rose Schwarz, of that city.

“Pictorial and Biographical Memoirs of Elkhart and St. Joseph Counties, Indiana
Together with Biographies of Many Prominent Men of Northern Indiana and the Whole State, Both Living and Dead”
Goodspeed Brothers Publishers, Chicago
1893
John Morris Co. Printers and Binders


Deb Murray