Blackford County Biography Ref. Page

WILLIAM R. YOUNG. The business enterprise of the firm of Young Brothers at Marion has manifested itself in the business of artistic interior decoration, and in that field they occupy an enviable position. As interior decorators and contractors for painting and paperhanging, both William R. and B. F. Young are specialists. They came to Marion on Labor Day, 1899, and "labor" has been the program since that time. W. R. Young bought an interest conducted by the late G. D. Elliott, and at his death the firm became Young & Michaels, and subsequently Young Brothers, when B. F. Young acquired an interest.

While the Young Brothers came direct from Elwood to Marion, they are natives of Carthage, Indiana, where their father and grandfather before them had been contractors along the same line—painting, paperhanging and interior decoration. They have always lived in Indiana, and have had their share of patronage since catering to the Marion public as decorators and painters.

They carry a full line of paints in stock, and while not making special efforts to supply the retail trade, they furnish material for all the contracts taken by them. Both W. R. and B. F. Young understand all the details of the business, and furnish estimates on prospective jobs. A specialty with them is interior church decoration, and they have handled a number of contracts in other towns. A considerable part of their patronage comes from farmers, and they recognize the fact that country homes have all the ornamentation which is placed in town houses, and all real estate dealers as well as property owners know the value of paint when offering property on the market. The firm gives employment to a large force of men, and the man who holds a place under Young Brothers must understand the art of painting and decorating in order to hold his position.

Though citizens of Grant county only fifteen years, Young Brothers are permanently located in Marion, and are interested in all that pertains to the community welfare. W. R. Young married Miss Anna Thatcher of Windfall, and twin daughters, Hazel and Helen, constitute his family. B. F. Young married Miss Eva Rabbitt of Warsaw, and has three sons, Leroy, Robert and Nicholas. As young men the brothers were members of the Friends church at Carthage, and the old saying, "once a Quaker always a Quaker," seems to hold with them although W. R. Young accompanies his family to the Methodist church, while B. F. Young goes with his household to the United Brethren meeting. They never asked for letters from the Friends church at Carthage, and never united with any other denomination. They are classed as Republicans in politics, though independent in local elections, choosing to vote for the man rather than the party. Both brothers stand for good citizenship.

"BLACKFORD AND GRANT COUNTIES INDIANA, A CHRONICLE OF THEIR PEOPLE PAST AND PRESENT WITH FAMILY LINEAGE AND PERSONAL MEMOIRS"; Complied Under the Editorial Supervision of BENJAMIN G. SHINN; vol. II ; THE LEWIS PUBLISHING COMPANY; CHICAGO AND NEW YORK; 1914
Submitted by:Peggy Karol and Karen Overholt

A. JONES. Probably no educational institution in Marion has a more practical relation to the business community and to the individual welfare of many young men and women, than the Marion Normal College, which has now completed more than twenty years of successful work and is recognized as one of the leading educational institutions in this part of Indiana. The founder and president, Mr. A. Jones, has gained a local reputation as an educator and within a few years of its founding the Normal School has gained a more substantial footing than many of the older educational institutions.

The Marion Normal College was organized in 1891 by Professor Jones with a corps of four instructors. The first quarters were in the building at the corner of Thirty-eighth and Washington Streets. The curriculum during the first year comprised a business course, music and some academic work. Being a practical educator and a superintendent of public schools, Professor Jones was quick to see the need of high grade work for the thorough preparation of teachers. With this purpose in view the business course was discontinued and a four year course adopted, embracing both theoretical and academic work.

Both the scope and quality of the instruction was raised to as high a plane as that in the average state Normal schools. The Normal College maintains a four year course for general students, courses in science, mathematics and literature taking the place of the studies in professional course. In 1894 the college was moved from its first location to an attractive building between Washington and Harmon Streets, this building having been erected expressly for the use of the college by Dr. T. W. Johnson and Professor A. Jones the proprietors. The college building is of brick, occupying a ground space of ninety by eighty feet, three stories high with basement, its chapel having a capacity of five hundred seats. It possesses all the modern improvements of school architecture and includes laboratories for scientific work.

Professor A. Jones was born in Shelby county, Indiana, in 1855, and was the only child of Elijah and Sarah (Wagner) Jones, both parents being also natives of Indiana. The paternal ancestors came from Scotland, and were among the early settlers of Pennsylvania, while the Wagner family came from Germany and traced a kinship with the same family to which the noted composer Richard Wagner belonged. Both families came to Indiana among the early settlers and were prominent in the counties of Shelby and Rush. Grandfather Jones and great-grandfather Wagner were both well known ministers in the Methodist church.

Professor Jones was reared in Shelby county, and attained much of his early education at Danville, where he completed a teacher's and scientific course and also graduated from the department of Civil Engineering. His first experience as a teacher was in the grade schools at Glenwood, Indiana, where he spent two years, and then for four years had charge of the public schools at Bronsville, Indiana. His last experience in public school work was as superintendent of the schools of Danville, and from there in 1891 he came to Marion, and laid the foundation for the present splendid Normal College. As a student his inclination for many years has been along scientific lines, and he has done much investigation with the microscope, with results that have been both pleasing and profitable to him. He takes an active interest in all lines of educational work, and has served as editor of the teachers' journal.

In 1884 Professor Jones married Jessie M. Davis, who was born in Fayette county, Indiana, a daughter of William and Emily (Williams) Davis, her family having been residents of Glenwood, Indiana. Professor Jones and family worship in the First Methodist church at Marion.

JOSEPH HULLEY. The Hulley Foundry and Machine Works at Adams and Eighth streets in Marion is the pioneer industry of its kind in this part of Indiana. In an early day the Hulley family drew patronage from many surrounding counties. It was founded by Samuel Hulley, an uncle of Joseph Hulley, who was for many years its sole proprietor and whose family still owns the plant. Associated with Samuel Hulley in the operation of the foundry was John Cochran for a number of years.

The Hulley family came from England, and after a few years in Pennsylvania moved on to Switzerland county in Indiana, lived at Mooresfleld, and some of them finally located in Marion. The first Hulley in Grant county was Samuel Hulley, and the name has long been a part of the history of this community. Samuel Hulley had no children, and was survived many years by his wife. There is mention of him in the history of the Marion water system, and it was Joseph Hulley who brought the alligator from Florida which was kept for twenty-eight years at the water works and at Matter Park in the summer time. Samuel Hulley was the uncle of both Joseph and Elkanah Hulley, who were cousins.

When Joseph Hulley came to Marion in 1857 he recognized the possibilities of the Hulley family, and in order to utilize his opportunities to the best advantage he went to Philadelphia and spent three years in the Baldwin Locomotive Works as a machinist's apprentice, obtaining a thorough knowledge of the business, and on joining his uncle at the Marion plant was equipped for any kind of work brought to the foundry. Soon afterwards he acquired the interest of Mr. Cochran, and the firm name was S. & J. Hulley for about a quarter of a century, when Samuel Hulley retired and Joseph became sole owner of the foundry. He continued at its head until his death on April 26, 1909. By the terms of his will his wife has continued the business without division of the property. L. P. Hess, a son-in-law, and who has been identified with the business a number of years, was installed as manager after the death of Mr. Hulley, so that his demise made no changes whatever in the management of the plant.

Joseph Hulley married September 12, 1871, Miss Harriet Mowrer, a daughter of Daniel and Catherine (Beam) Mowrer. To them were born two daughters, Ida and Katharine. Both the young ladies graduated from the Marion high school, and Miss Ida Hulley from the Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware, in both the classical and musical departments, and Miss Katharine Hulley from Mrs. Noble's School of Expression and Languages in Detroit. Ida Hulley is the wife of Luther P. Hess, and is actively associated with the musical life of the community (see chapter on Music). Katharine Hulley became the wife of W. O. Washburn, who lives in St. Paul, Minnesota, and their three sons are: Joseph Hulley, Albert Owens and Will Owens Washburn.

Mrs. Joseph Hulley has always lived in Marion. Her father, Daniel Mowrer, operated the woolen mill that was later owned by D. R. McKinney and converted into a flouring mill, located near where Boots Creek empties into the Mississinewa at Spencer avenue, but in the earlier times its location was at Mowrer's mill pond, elsewhere mentioned in this Centennial History. "The Mowrer carding mill was a big thing in its day," said a man who remembered all about it. "When people made their own ‘wear' they brought their wool to the carding mill to have it made ready for them. Mr. Mowrer was a good man in the community."

Daniel Mowrer was an active member in the Presbyterian church, and his daughter Mrs. Hulley is a member there. Samuel and Joseph Hulley both retained their membership in the Church of England, and were both active Democrats in politics and stood for good citizenship in the community. When the Lyric Club, the first musical organization in the county, was organized, Mrs. Hulley drafted its constitution, and after twenty-five years, when the club reorganized, few changes were necessary in it. She has always been a patroness of all events musical, and continues the custom of travel which she and Mr. Hulley had so frequently enjoyed together. She has seen picturesque America, and believes in knowing more about America, and then the rest of the world. Since giving up the family homestead Mrs. Hulley has apartments in the Cecilian.

PIERCE H. DAVIS. A resident of Grant county since 1881, Mr. Davis has been a substantial farmer in Jefferson township, his home being in section nine and he has a reputation for successful management of his farm, and by his own personal character and his family relations, stands as one of the leading citizens of Grant county.

The original ancestry of Mr. Davis is Welsh, but the family located in Virginia, previous to the Revolutionary war, and the line from the first ancestor to the present runs as follows, according to the best information obtainable: Thomas Davis, great-grandfather of Pierce H., was born in Wales, but spent the greater part of his life in Virginia. The family in Wales was very wealthy, and Thomas, as one of two sons, had a large inheritance. However, when he left for the new world, he left his credits and funds in banks in his native country, and through some loss of records, or for some other cause not now known, he practically lost all his heritage. Thomas Davis was a Quaker when he came to America, married a Virginia Quaker girl, and all the subsequent generation have been of the same faith. The children of Thomas and wife were: Harmon, Joseph, Isaac, Jehu, Rachel, Sarah, Ann, Hannah, and Eunice. All these children were married, all had families of their own, and all except Eunice lived to he quite full of years. Some of them lived and died in Virginia, while others went west to Ohio, and died in that state. Farming was their regular vocation, and all were of the Quaker faith.

Harmon Davis, grandfather of Pierce H., was born in Grayson county, Virginia, about 1775, grew up on a farm, and married Hannah Middleton, a native of Grayson county, and of Quaker stock. Her father enlisted as a soldier in the Revolutionary war, and owing to his Quaker principles refused to fight, and was consequently transferred to the rear and served as a cook, finally being discharged on account of illness. After some of his children had been born in Virginia. Harmon Davis moved in the early part of the last century to Ohio, settling on a piece of unbroken land, and in the pioneer home thus established the rest of his children were born, and all were reared to years of maturity. Then the family came to Wayne county, entering land where the little city of Dublin now stands. Some years later Harmon Davis sold out that property and bought land elsewhere in the same county, where he lived until his death. His widow outlived him some years, and died in Fenton county, Indiana, about 1857, when past eighty years of age. Their children were: Joseph, Isaac, Thomas, Jehu, Rachael, Sarah, Ann, Hannah and Eunice. It is a curious fact that all these children were named for some of their uncles and aunts. They all grew up and were married and had children, and most of them spent their final years in Indiana.

Thomas Davis, third in the above family, was born in Grayson county, Virginia, in 1805, and was a small child when his parents moved to Ohio, and was grown when they reached Wayne county, Indiana. Though reared on a farm he acquired the trade of carpenter, and followed that profession for a number of years. In Wayne county, he married Hannah, a daughter of Abraham and Mary (Pierce) Moore, natives of Pennsylvania, where Hannah Moore was born about 1810. All the family located in Wayne county, and Abraham Moore and wife died there when old people. They were farmers, and among the hardy early settlers, and brought with them their religious faith as Friends. Thomas Davis and wife settled on a farm in Wayne county, and later moved to Greens Fork, where both died, Thomas in 1894, and Hannah in 1888. The names of their children were as follows: Susan, who died after her marriage, leaving a daughter; Abraham, who died in infancy: Pierce H.; Tacy, who died after his marriage, but left no children; Rachael, widow of Luther Frazier, now lives in Richmond, Indiana, and has a son and daughter; Naomi, the wife of George J. Nicholson, of Greens Fork, Wayne county, has one daughter; William and Wilson, twins, the latter dying in infancy, and William, now a resident of Uplands, and the father of five children.

Pierce H. Davis was born in Greens Fork, Wayne county, May 29, 1834. His boyhood was spent in his native locality, and he is one of the few men still living whose attendance at school was in a log cabin. He well remembers that old school house with its greased paper windows, its puncheon floors, its rough slab benches and desks, the old quill pens, and other primitive facilities and methods of instruction. Mr. Davis is also one of the men who in early years swung the cradle in reaping grain, has also handled a flail and thresher, and has used a plow with the old-fashioned wooden moldboard.

After he became of age he was married in Hamilton county, at Noblesville, to Mahala A. Cook. She was born in Morgan county, Indiana, May 19, 1834, and is the daughter of Abraham M. and Mary L. (Carson) Cook. The Cooks were likewise natives of Grayson county, Virginia, were of substantial Quaker stock, and on migrating westward, Mrs. Cook rode a horse all the way to Morgan county, Indiana. They were young people then and quite equal to enduring the hardships of pioneer existence. From Morgan county, Mr. and Mrs. Cook moved to Hamilton county, where he entered three tracts each of eighty acres, four and a half miles west of Cicero. There he worked steadily for many years in the improvement of his land, built up a good home, and farm, and died there about 1873. He was born about 1807. His wife died five years later when seventy years of age. They were both birthright Quakers, and charter members of the Friends church in Hamilton and Morgan counties. Mrs. Davis is the only one of the five Cook children still living, the others having been: Caleb, Jessie, Caroline, and Malinda. All were married, but Caleb and Caroline had no children.

The children of Mr. and Mrs. Davis are: Viola Ellen, born October, 1857, has been twice married and is now living in Marion, and she has the following children by her first marriage—Oscar, Estella, Burr, all of whom are married; Mary H., born in June, 1860, is the widow of Harmon Ballenger, and the wife of Monroe Pence, and they live near Converse, where they are farmers, her children are—Volney, Viola, Bertha, Claude, Ithamar, and all are married except the youngest; Charles V., born in August, 1863, is a master carpenter at Marion, and by his marriage to Elizabeth Roberts has children, Clyde, Glenn, Nina, Thelma, and Leo, Clyde and Glenn being married; Pella May, is the widow of John Deeren, and lives in Crawford county, Kansas, and her children are—Dolly, Minnie, John, Anna; Rosa Bell is the wife of James McConway, a Missouri farmer, and their children are Norma, Beather, and Morris; Dora is the wife of Elmer McCrait, of Upland, and their children are Mary A., Resa, and Eva, the last two being twins, and Bernice; William P. W. lives at home and assists in the management of the homestead, his strong affection for his parents never having allowed him to stray into the field of matrimony; Sylvester S A. is a farmer in Jefferson township, owning eighty acres of improved land, and by his marriage to Hattie Curtis has one daughter Lula.

Mr. and Mrs. Davis have lived in Jefferson township of Grant county since 1881, and in 1883 bought their present well improved farm. Among the interesting relics of the past to be found about the Davis homestead, is an old flint-lock rifle, still in good repair, and showing unusually thorough and careful construction in both stock and barrel. This heirloom has come down through the Davis' family, and belonged to the great-grandfather before the Revolutionary war. It is an interesting old weapon, and in its time no doubt killed a great number of deer, bear, and other wild game, and has never been outside of the family ownership, being passed down from one generation to another.

L. H. CONLEY, M. D. On November 4, 1913, the people of Gas City elected to the office of mayor, Dr. L. H. Conley, who for more than twenty years has practiced medicine in that community, and in both his professional and private life has always enjoyed a special esteem and prominence.

Almost from the beginning of his residence here he has had about all the practice he could attend to, and in addition has given important service in the office of city physician. Dr. Conley has lived in Gas City, since 1892. He is a graduate from the medical department of Wooster University at Cleveland, Ohio, with the class of 1883, so that for thirty years he has been in active practice. He began his professional career at Middlebury, Indiana, later practiced at Mount Vernon, Ohio, his old home, and then came to Gas City. Dr. Conley is a member of the Grant County Medical Society, which he has served in the office of chairman, of the State Medical Association, and the Mississippi Valley Medical Association.

Dr. L. H. Conley was born at Mount Vernon, Ohio, April 27, 1857. His early education was supplied by the public and normal schools, and he then entered medical college. He is of Irish ancestry. His grandfather, Hugh Conley, was born in Ireland, and married there Rose McDonald. Both came of good stock and of old families. Their children were Mary Flora, Hugh, Jr., Nancy, Daniel, Malinda, and Rose. The first four children were born in Ireland and the rest in the United States. Grandfather Conley with his wife and four children emigrated in a sailing vessel, and after a voyage lasting several weeks and not without hardships, landed in the United States in the year 1825. They settled in Perry county, Ohio, where the parents lived until their deaths. They were devout and active members of the Catholic Church, and reared their family in that faith, which has been the religion of the subsequent generations. All their children married, and all had families. The only two still living are Flora, widow of Bartholomew Crosby of Perry county, Ohio; and Rose, now Mrs. Murphy of Nebraska.

Hugh Conley, Jr., father of Dr. Conley, was born in Ireland in 1821, and was about four years old when the family came to America. He grew up in that locality and learned the trade of marble cutter, an occupation which he followed throughout his active years. He was married at Mount Vernon, Ohio, February 27, 1854, to Miss Matilda Colopy, who was born in Knox county, Ohio. In 1859 Hugh Conley and wife located at Columbus, Ohio, and in 1861 moved to Davenport, Iowa, where he died April 15, 1863. He was a Democrat, and a member of the Catholic church. His widow later lived with her son Dr. Conley and died in Gas City, September 5, 1896. She was born December 17, 1817, a daughter of Timothy and Sarah Adrian Colopy. Her father was a native of Ireland, came when a young man to America, and settled in the state of Maryland, and some years later moved to a farm in the vicinity of Mt. Vernon, Ohio, spending his last years in the city of Mt. Vernon, where he died when past sixty years of age. He was an active Catholic, and his body now rests in the Catholic cemetery at Danviile, Ohio, beside that of his wife. His wife, who was born in Maryland was a convert to the Catholic church. Their home in Mt. Vernon was the first meeting place for the Catholic church in that vicinity, and the altar used by the priest in the pioneer service was a bureau, a piece of furniture which is now carefully cherished by Dr. Conley and has a place in his home at Gas City. The children of Timothy Colopy and wife were named as follows: Jacob, Mary, Sarah, Benjamin, Mrs. Conley, and William. All of these married except William and Benjamin and all are now deceased. The son William was a California forty-niner, and died in that state. Dr. Conley was the second in a family of three children: Mark, died February 14, 1866, in infancy; and Anna, is the widow of Dr. A. E. Walker, and lives in Cincinnati, her children being—Clary, who is married and lives in Dayton, and Hugh and Florence, who live at home.

Dr. Conley was married in Middlebury, Indiana, to Miss Elizabeth A. Hixon, of a very prominent family in that section of the state. She was born in Middlebury in 1867, was reared and educated there, and by her marriage to Dr. Conley has become the mother of the following children: Hugh H. Lamar, who received his education at Gas City, and is now an electrician at Niagara Falls, Ontario, and is unmarried; Edna E., who was educated in the Gas City high schools, and lives at home; F. Jenett, who had a high school education, is the wife of Chauncey Faust, living in Chicago; Warren H., died when thirteen years old; Robert E., is in school: Kathleen and Geneva, the youngest are both in school.

Dr. Conley and family all worship in the Catholic church at Gas City, and are well known and popular members of social circles in that community.

Deb Murray