"History of Fayette Counties, Indiana"
published by B. F. Bowen & Co. Indianapolis, IN 1917

The late Melancthon Russell Little, for many years one of the best known farmers of Orange township, was born in that township and lived there all his life, becoming there the owner of an excellent farm on which his family still resides. He was born on a pioneer farm in the northern part of the township on December 17, 1845, a son of John and Frances (Russell) Little, the former a native of the state of South Carolina and the latter, of Ohio, whose last days were spent in Orange township.

John Little was about eighteen years of age when he came from South Carolina to Indiana with his parents, Thomas Little and wife, the family locating in Fayette county. Thomas Little entered a tract of "Congress land," the southeast quarter of section 2 of Orange township, and there established his home, developing an excellent farm in the then wilderness. There John Little farmed all his life. His wife, Frances Russell, was born in Ohio, probably in Preble county, and was but a child when her parents, Alexander Russell and wife, came over into Indiana and entered a tract of land from the government in the southern part of Fairview township, this county, establishing there their home at a time when wolves and other "varmints" still were numerous in the forests hereabouts. When the project for building the White Water canal was being developed, Alexander Russell took the contract for digging that portion of the canal from Connersville to Brookville and during the work of construction had from five hundred to six hundred men in his employ. Some time after the completion of that contract he moved to Illinois and there spent the remainder of his life.

Melancthon R. Little grew up on the home farm in Orange township and received his schooling in the neighborhood schools. He early learned the trade of carpenter and for: a while in the days of his young manhood followed that trade in Illinois, but the most of his life was spent in farming in Orange township, where he became the owner of a snug farm of eighty acres in the northeast part of that township, the place on which he spent his last days and where his family is still living. Mr. Little gave special attention to fruit growing, had an excellent orchard and also raised an abundance of strawberries and other small fruit. Mr. Little was an earnest member of the United Presbyterian church, as are his widow and children, and at the time of his death was a member of the session of the local church, having served as an elder for seven or eight years. His death occurred at his home on February 11, 1915, he then being in the seventieth year of his age.

In December, 1878, Melancthon R. Little was united in marriage to Mary J. Miller, who survives him and who is still making her home on the home farm in Orange township. Mrs. Little also is a native of the Hoosier state, born in the neighboring county of Rush, a daughter of James and Maria (Louden) Miller, the former a native of the state of Kentucky and the latter, of Ireland. James Miller was born in Shelby county, Kentucky, and was about eight years of age when his parents, John and Mary (Boyd) Miller, came to Indiana and settled in the Richland neighborhood, John Miller spending the remainder of his life in Rush county. In that county James Miller grew to manhood and there he married Maria Louden, who was but a child when she came to this country from Ireland with her parents, James and Jane Louden, who for a time after their arrival in the United States made their home in Pennsylvania and then came to Indiana, settling in Orange township, this county, and later moving to Fairview township, where they spent their last days, both living to ripe old age. James Miller was a buggy-maker in the days when the wood work on buggies was all turned out by hand and for some time was employed in the Applegate factory over in Rush county. Later he took up farming and spent the rest of his life as a farmer, his death occurring in 1913. His wife had long preceded him to the grave, her death having occurred in 1879. They were members of the United Presbyterian church and were active in local good works.

To Melancthon R. and Mary J. (Miller) Little were born four children, namely: Ida May, Ralph M. and Leslie L., who are living on the home farm with their mother, and Maggie B., who married Monroe Brooks, of Glenwood, and has two children, James Doran and Viola Imogene. The Littles have a pleasant home in Orange township and have ever given their earnest attention to the general social activities of the community in which they live.

"History of Fayette Counties, Indiana"
published by B. F. Bowen & Co. Indianapolis, IN 1917

Amon Young, trustee of Orange township and one of the most substantial farmers of that township, proprietor of an excellent farm about a mile southeast of the village of Orange, was born in that township and has lived there all his life. He was horn on a farm about one and one-half miles northeast of his present home on May 23, 1865, son of Alfred and Margaret (Serns) Young, the former of whom also was born in this county and the latter in the state of Ohio, both of whom spent their last days in this county.

Alfred Young was born on a pioneer farm south of Everton, in Jackson township, and there grew to manhood. He married Margaret Serns, who was born in Oxford, Ohio, daughter of John Serns and wife, who spent their last days in Oxford, and for a short time after his marriage was engaged in farming in Franklin county, this state. He then prospected a bit in Rush county until a view to buying a farm there, but decided that he wanted none of that land, holding that in the main it was too low and swampy and therefore came back into Fayette county and established his home on high ground in Orange township in order to avoid the ague that then was a scourge throughout this part of the country. It was before the days of the Civil War that Alfred Young settled on his Orange township farm and there he spent the remainder of his life, his death occurring on February 6, 1878. His widow survived him for about fourteen years, her death occurring in 1892. They were members of the Christian church and active in church work. To them seven children were born, of whom but three are living at present, the subject of this sketch being the youngest of these.

Amon Young was but thirteen years of age when his father died and he remained on the home farm with his mother, assisting in the labors of the same, and farmed there until the death of his mother; having rented the farm and begun farming for himself after his marriage in 1885. After the death of his mother he bought the home place and continued to make his home there until 1906, when he sold that farm and bought the farm on which he since has made his home, one mile southeast of Orange. Mr. Young has an excellent farm of one hundred and sixty acres and in addition to his general farming gives considerable attention to the raising of a good grade of live stock. In the fall of 1913 Mr. Young was elected trustee of Orange township, entering upon the duties of that office on January I, 1915, and is now serving as trustee of the township, giving his earnest attention to his official duties.

On August 31, 1885, Amon Young was united in marriage to Josephine Morris, who was born near La Clede, Illinois, a daughter of White B. and Mary Jane (Payne) Morris, both of whom were born in Indiana, a short distance west of Rushville, and who had moved to Illinois, a short time after their marriage. The object of White B. Morris's removal to Illinois was to get land cheap, but his venture proved to be a financial disappointment and about 1875 he returned to Indiana with his family and located in Union township, Rush county, where he and his wife spent the remainder of their lives.

For a time during his residence in Illinois, Mr. Morris was engaged in the mercantile business, but after locating in Rush county resumed farming and was thus engaged the rest of his life. Mrs. Young was about eight years of age when her parents returned to Indiana from Illinois and she grew up on the home farm in Rush county, where she was living at the time of her marriage to Mr. Young. To that union three children have been born, sons all, namely: Morris, who married Grace Huff, of Liberty, this state, and is now living in Orange; Russell, who was graduated from the agricultural department of Purdue University and is engaged in farming in Orange township, and Corey, who is engaged in farming in association with his father.

Russell Young married Josie Creek and has one child, a son, Ralph Eugene. Corey Young married Italy Creek and has one child, La Verne. Amon Young is a member of the Christian church and his wife is a member of the Baptist church. They have a pleasant home in the Orange neighborhood and have ever given their earnest attention to the general good works of the community.

"History of Fayette Counties, Indiana"
published by B. F. Bowen & Co. Indianapolis, IN 1917

In the year 1836, William Brown started his tannery in Connersville. Upon moving there from Brownsville, over in Union county, he put up a log house as a place of residence at what is now the south side of the west end of Second street, just east of where the Brown house now stands, at the foot of Western avenue. For years after William Brown settled there, present Western avenue was called Tanner street and it ended at Third street, the Brown property extending out to Third street. Ten years after settling there William Brown supplanted his log house by a substantial and commodious brick house, just west of the log house, and that second house is still serving as a residence for the Browns in the fourth generation. In that old house there are preserved numerous relics of pioneer days, household articles used in the days of William Brown, such as an old grease lamp, with double burners, candle moulds, candle snuffers, a spinning wheel and linen spreads and other articles of domestic use woven by Mrs. Brown.

William Brown was born at Lexington, Kentucky, April 15, 1810, and was but a child when his parents cams up into Indiana Territory and settled in the section then known as the walnut levels in what later came to be organized as Wayne county. Not long after settling there both his parents died from the effects of that strange malady so bitterly remembered by the pioneers as "milk sickness," which claimed many victims throughout this region in the early days of the settlement of the state. Thus orphaned in his early youth, young Brown was reared by Mr. Wiggins, of Richmond, a Quaker and a tanner, who later established a tannery in the near vicinity of Brownsville, in Union county, and put his son and William Brown in charge of the same. Young Wiggins did not like the work and presently returned to Richmond, leaving Brown in sole charge of the place.

In 1832 William Brown married at Brownsville and continued operating the tannery there until 1836, when he moved his tannery to Connersville, which place even then was giving promise of becoming the industrial center for this part of the state. He established his tannery in a frame building he erected on what is now known as Grand avenue, just above First street, and some time later supplanted that structure by a brick building, which is still standing there, facing toward the canal and now used for storage purposes. William Brown built up a good business as a tanner and continued in business there the rest of his life, his death occurring on May 21, 1856. He was one of the most active business men in the rapidly developing town and did much to promote the general interests of the same. When the volunteer fire department was organized, he took an active part in the movement and was one of the most energetic members of the department. Fire calls then were answered by organized volunteers and the fire-fighting apparatus was a hand engine affectionately called "Pluto," whose infrequent outings invariably were accompanied by scenes of much local excitement.

In 1832, at Brownsville, William Brown was united in marriage to Eliza Bolton, who was born at Abingdon, Washington county, Virginia, April 16, 1811, a daughter of James and Jane (Carr) Bolton, the former of whom was of English birth and the latter of whom had a German mother. While Eliza Bolton was still a little girl James Bolton and his family came to Indiana, driving across country in a big wagon and settled on land in the neighborhood of Brownsville, in Union county. There James Bolton entered a tract of four hundred acres of land and established his home, becoming one of the most influential and substantial pioneers of that section. On that pioneer farm Eliza Bolton grew to womanhood and there she lived until her marriage to William Brown. She survived her husband for more than forty years, her death occurring at her home in Connersville on January 26, 1899, she then being in the eighty-eighth year of her age. To William and Eliza (Bolton) Brown were born eleven children, Harriet, Jane, Eunice, Eliza, Evin Linville, Ezra William, Horace Milton, Mary Elizabeth, Caroline, Frank and one, the seventh in order of birth, who died in infancy. Jane, Eliza and Frank Brown died in their youth. Eunice died in 1870 and Mary Elizabeth died in 1872. Harriet Brown married Eber Bateman and died leaving three sons and three daughters. Evin Linville Brown moved to Missouri, where he married and where he spent the remainfer of his life, dying without issue. Horace Milton Brown died unmarried. Caroline Brown married Edward A. Secrist, who moved from Seneca Falls, New York, to Connersville and established a shoe shop opposite the court house, on the north side of Court street. He died in 1904, leaving no children. His widow now lives in the old Brown home in which she was born.

James Bolton, previously referred to, experienced some difficulty in getting seed for the first few years. One year seed wheat was so scarce, he was offered sixty dollars for one bushel. The first year he laid up one cucumber for seed, an old hen came along and ate the seed, she was immediately killed and the seed recovered. James P. Bolton, Jr., went to Detroit with a Mr. McCarty, of Connersville, to help the making of a treaty with the Indians. Edward H. Secrist served in the Civil War with a New York cavalry regiment. He was confined in Andersonville prison for nine months.

Ezra William Brown, who is now living in Oregon, was born in the old Brown home in Connersville on July 5, 1843, and there grew to manhood. On August 30, 1871, he married Paulina S. Callison, who was born at Laporte, this state, a daughter of William J. Callison and wife. Both she and Ezra W. Brown had lost their hearing in youth, as the result of scarlet fever, and their acquaintance was formed while they were students in the state school for the deaf at Indianapolis. After their marriage they lived in Connersville for a short time and then moved to Wichita, Kansas, where Mrs. Brown died early in 1876, leaving two small children, William Callison and Ezra B. The bereaved husband and father brought his motherless children to Connersville, where they were cared for by his mother. He returned West and in Kansas married again, later moving to Utah, thence to Montana and thence to Oregon, where he is now living, a resident of the town of Ten Mile.

Ezra B. Brown was born at Wichita, Kansas, July 23. 1875, and was but an infant when he was taken in charge by his paternal grandmother at Connersville. There he grew to manhood, early turning his attention to mechanics and became an expert mechanic. He worked at that trade about seven years and then recognizing that the automobile had come to stay, left a position that was paying him twenty-five dollars a week to enter upon an apprenticeship in an automobile factory at four dollars a week. He readily mastered the details of automobile mechanism, rapidly worked his way up in the ranks of the workmen in that line and for the past three years or more has been superintendent of the extensive plant of the Lexington-Howard Company, manufacturers of the Lexington automobile, at Connersville. Mr. Brown is still living in the old Brown home, built by his grandfather in 1846, and his children are of the fourth generation of the Browns who have continuously occupied that house since the time it was built. Mr. Brown married Edith Nave, who was born at Andersonville, in the neighboring county of Franklin, a daughter of Isaac R. and Myrtle (Shriner) Nave, the latter of ehom also was born and reared at Andersonville, daughter of Renatus Shriner, who was the proprietor of the first tavern or inn at that place. Isaac R. Nave was born in England and is now engaged in the grocery business in Connersville, his store being situated on Fourth street, opposite the court house. Mr. and Mrs. Brown have four children, Caroline, Robert, Azalea and Pauline.

"History of Fayette Counties, Indiana"
published by B. F. Bowen & Co. Indianapolis, IN 1917

William Henry DeVaney, president of the Hoosier Castings company, one of the new and most progressive industrial concerns in Connersville, is a native of the great Empire state, born in the city of Brooklyn on November 11, 1880, a son of Martin J. and Catherine (Hayes) DeVaney, both of whom were born in that same city. Along in the middle eighties Martin J. DeVaney and family moved from Brooklyn to Bridgeport, Connecticut, and in the latter city William H. DeVaney grew to manhood, receiving there a thorough course of instruction along the lines upon which have been based his present substantial success in the industrial and manufacturing world.

As a boy he was taught by his mother to reject and spurn the whining phrase, "It can't be done"; and to substitute for the same the nobler motto, "Where there's a will, there's a way." From his early youth he was conscious of an investigating and analytical frame of mind and early learned that "Necessity is the mother of invention," an axiom which has been of much value in shaping his whole course of life.

Upon completing the course in the public schools of Bridgeport William H. DeVaney turned his attention to a business training and in the I. S. Brown Business College and in the Enos & Cunningham Business College in that city became thoroughly grounded in business forms, in the meantime studying at home, and by the latter course acquired a comprehensive knowledge of the technical side of mechanical engineering, mechanical drawing, pattern-making and the like. Upon leaving business college he secured employment in a Bridgeport foundry, with a view to adding to his store of technical knowledge a thorough practical knowledge of the processes of molding, core-making and kindred lines as applied to foundry work, beginning work there at a wage of one dollar and fifty cents a week. After a comprehensive apprenticeship along those lines Mr. DeVaney took up pattern-making and after acquiring a practical knowledge of that department of foundry work was given charge of the pattern room of the Abraham Skaats Pattern and Model Company, with which concern he remained about eighteen months, at the end of which time he transferred his services to the Lake Torpedo-boat Company at Bridgeport, being given charge of the experimental pattern and model department of that company, supervising the making of patterns and models of parts used in the construction of torpedo-boats up to the point of launching, his duties requiring him to follow the models from the inception to the end of their construction. While thus engaged Mr. DeVaney made the models of the boat the Lake people had on exhibition at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition at St. Louis and was with the company up to and including the time it launched "The Protector," which was submitted to the United States government in 1901, when the Lake people were in strong competition with the Holland people. Upon concluding his service with the Lake Torpedo-boat Company, Mr. DeVaney went over to the employ of the American and British Manufacturing Company at Bridgeport, manufacturers of all kinds of battleship accessories, including gull mountings, high-powered marine motors and the like, and was given charge of the "lay-out" work in the pattern department of that company, supervising the consummation of plans in that department.

After about a year of service with that company Mr. DeVaney was given charge of the construction of the Charles F. Herschoff Companv's highspeed racing boats, taking the boats through their course of construction, and while thus engaged supervised the construction of the "Den I." and the "Den II.", which later, competing in the international races at Sheepshead Bay, became world famous. From that concern Mr. DeVaney transferred his services to the Locomobile Company of America at Bridgeport and while with that company made patterns and models for the car that competed for the Vanderbilt cup in 1905. His services then were secured by the American Locomotive Company at Providence, Rhode Island, which placed him in charge of the pattern and experimental department of its works and he was thus engaged when that company began building the Berliet automobile, securing the American rights for the manufacture of the French car, which was later named the Alco car. In 1909 Mr. DeVaney was called to Indiana, his services being secured by the Warner Gear Company at Muncie, which placed him in charge as superintendent of pattern and foundry work, his duties being to oversee the equipment and production in the foundry and pattern line. From that concern Mr. DeVaney presently went over to the employ of the Muncie Foundry and Machine Company, which installed him as mechanical engineer of the plant, and after a sometime service there he was called back East, the Inter-state Foundry Company of Cleveland securing his services as production engineer of its plant.

On May 21, 1915, Mr. DeVaney returned to Indiana and located at Connersville, which he recognized as an ideal point for the establishment of a manufacturing plant which he long had had in mind and there he organized the Hoosier Castings Company and erected and equipped a plant for the manufacture of automobile castings of gray iron and semi-steel. The history of the Hoosier Castings Company, which is set out at some length in the chapter relating to the industries of Connersville, presented in the historical section of this work, shows that from the very beginning the company has been a success, now employing more than two hundred men and including among its customers some of the greatest automobile concerns in the country. Mr. DeVaney is president of the company and takes an active part in the direction of the practical and technical part of the work of the plant, a position for which his past experience has so thoroughly qualified him. Though a comparative newcomer in Connersville, William H. DeVaney is recognized as one of the leaders in the industrial life of that city and his energetic and purposeful methods have done much to stimulate the spirit of industrialism which of late years has meant so much for the development of the old capital of Fayette county. Mr. DeVaney has made his way to the front by hard work, close application and diligent study, having from the very beginning of his industrial career worked with the determination of making himself worthy of advancement in his chosen calling, and that he has succeeded is evidenced by his present position as head of one of Connersville's most important industrial concerns.

In 1904, at Bridgeport, Connecticut, William H. DeVaney was united in marriage to Margaret Meehan, of that city, and to this union four children have been born, Martin Raymond, William Emmet, Laurence Francis and Mary Margaret. Mr. and Mrs. DeVaney are members of the Catholic church and take a proper interest in parish affairs. Mr. DeVaney is a member of the local council of the Knights of Columbus and of the local lodge of the Benevolent and Fraternal Order of Elks and in the affairs of these two organizations takes a warm interest.

"History of Fayette Counties, Indiana"
published by B. F. Bowen & Co. Indianapolis, IN 1917

Elmer Earl Stevens is a well-known merchant of Orange, this county, member of the firm of Stevens & Son, dealers in general merchandise, which was established by the late Amos W. Stevens, whose interest in the store continues to be represented by his widow. He was born on a farm in the southern part of Orange township, this county, July 6, 1887, son of Amos Wells and Mary Elizabeth (Fortner) Stevens, the latter of whom is still living, continuing her interest in the store established by her late husband at Orange some years before the latter's death. The farm on which Elmer E. Stevens was born was entered from the government by his great-great-grandfather, who was one of the early settlers of this part of the state, the Stevens family having been represented hereabout since territorial days.

Amos Wells Stevens was born over in Union county, a son of John H. and Mary E. (Neptune) Stevens, the former of whom was born in Orange township, this county, a grandson of the original settler of the Stevens land in section 26 of that township. The second log house erected there, which was situated on a rise well back in the middle of the tract, near a spring, was still standing when Elmer E. Stevens was a boy. John H. Stevens was born on that pioneer farm in 1838, son of Wells and Agnes (Carwile) Stevens, the former of whom had come to this part of the country from North Carolina with his father, Robert Stevens, who came here in 1809 or 1810 and some time later entered the southwest quarter of section 26 of Orange township, the government deed, bearing the signature of President Monroe, carrying date of June 2, 1823. Robert Stevens, the pioneer, spent the remainder of his life on that farm. His son, Wells Stevens, moved to Jay county in 1838, but moved back here two or three years later and spent his last days on the home farm. His wife, Agnes Carwile, was a native of South Carolina. John H. Stevens grew up there and farmed all his life in Orange township. He married Mary Jane Neptune, who was born near Blooming Grove, in the neighboring county of Franklin, a daughter of Amos and Hetty Neptune, who had come here from Maryland. John H. Stevens died on February 23, 1896. His wife had predeceased him just nine years, her death having occurred on February 23, 1887. They were the parents of eight children, of whom five grew to maturity and lived to be more than fifty years of age, and all of whom are still living save Amos Wells Stevens, who died in September, 1914, the others being James G. Stevens, who is living near Anderson, this state; Eliza Jane, wife of Abijah Hunt Stephen, of Orange township; Hannah Elizabeth, wife of F. M. Johnson, also of Orange township, and Lena L., wife of Harlan E. Stephen, also of Orange township.

In 1886 Amos W. Stevens was united in marriage to Mary Elizabeth Fortner, who was born in Brown county, Kansas, a daughter of James Wesley and Eunice (Barnard) Fortner, both of whom were born and reared in Franklin county, this state, where they were married, later going to Kansas to take up a homestead. When Mary E. Fortner was about five years of age her parents returned to this state from Kansas to take care of Mr. Fortner's mother in Franklin county and remained here until after their daughter's marriage to Mr. Stevens, she then being nineteen years of age, after which they returned to Kansas. Some years later two of their children homesteaded tracts in Oklahoma and Mr. and Mrs. Fortner joined them in that state, where they are now living, residents of Stillwater, Mr. Fortner now being past eighty-five years of age. For some time after his marriage Amos W. Stevens made his home on a farm near the old Stevens home and then bought a farm one and one-half miles south of Orange, where he lived until about 1903, when he moved to Orange. He continued farming, however, until about 1909, when he and John Dawson bought the Hamilton store in Orange and in 1911 he and his son bought the interest of Mr. Dawson and continued to operate the store under the name of Stevens & Son, which firm style has been continued since the death of the elder Stevens in 1914, his widow maintaining her interest in the store in association with her son. Amos W. Stevens died on September 3, 1914. He was an active member of the local lodge of the Knights of Pythias and took an earnest interest in the affairs of the same. To him and his wife three children were born, of whom the subject of this sketch is the eldest, the others being Olive Ruth, who married Earl Heeb, of Orange, and has one child, a daughter, Ruth, and Nellie May, who is still in high school.

Both the Stevenses and the Fortners are representatives of two of the oldest families in this part of the state. As noted above, it was about the year 1810 that Robert Stevens and his wife, Sarah Bean, came to the then Territory of Indiana from North Carolina. At first they settled in Franklin county, later for a time living in Union county and then, as noted above, coming over into Fayette county and settling in Orange township in 1823. Robert Stevens and wife were the parents of twelve children, Allie, King, John, Jane, Nathan, Henry, James, Mary A., Jemima, Isaac, Isom and Wells. The latter, who was the second in order of birth, married Agnes Carwile in Franklin county and later settled on Garrison's creek, in Columbia township, this county, where he remained until 1838, when he moved to Jay county; but in 1845 he returned to this county and here he spent the rest of his life, his death occurring in 1884. He and his wife were the parents of five children, Levi, Elizabeth, John H., Keziah and Henry. The children born to John H. and Mary Jane (Neptune) Stevens have been mentioned in a preceding paragraph. James Wesley Fortner, father of Mrs. Stevens, was born in Franklin county, a son of Sion and Elizabeth (Pasley) Fortner, the former of whom was born in 1806 and the latter in 1802. Sion Fortner was a son of Levi and Keziah (McClure) Fortner and Elizabeth Pasley was a daughter of Hugh and Mary (Yost) Pasley, who moved from Virginia to Kentucky and after a sometime residence in the neighborhood of Lexington, in that state, moved up into Ohio and settled about twelve miles west of Cincinnati, which at that time was but a straggling village, later, about 1812, coming on up the White Water valley into the Territory of Indiana and settling in Franklin county, where Sion Fortner grew to manhood and established his home.

Elmer E. Stevens was about sixteen years of age when his parents moved from the farm into the village of Orange, in order to secure the better educational advantages offered there, and he was graduated from the high school there in 1905. He then took a course in a commercial college at Indianapolis and for about two years thereafter worked in that city; later, for about eight months being engaged as a traveling representative of the American Tobacco Company. He then spent a year on his father's farm and then began working in the general store of L. 0. Hamilton at Orange, and was thus engaged when his father and John Dawson bought that store in 1909. In 1911 he and his father bought the Dawson interest and the father and son conducted the business, under the firm name of Stevens & Son, until the former's death in 1914, since which time Mr. Stevens and his mother have been owners of the store, the old firm name being maintained. Mr. Stevens is an energetic business man and takes an active interest in the general affairs of his home town. For the past two years he has been the secretary of the Orange Mutual Telephone Company and is secretary-treasurer of the Orange Cemetery Association. Stevens & Son have a well-stocked and up-to-date store, occupying a large two-story building and also occupy another two-story building as a warehouse. They deal in groceries, dry goods, shelf hardware and general merchandise and also keep a huckster wagon on the road. Mr. Stevens is a member of the Christian church and his wife is a member of the Methodist church. He is a member of the local lodge of the Improved Order of Red Men and takes a warm interest in the affairs of that organization.

In January, 1914, Elmer E. Stevens was united in marriage to Helen Link, who was born at Glenwood, daughter of John H. and Efie (Foote) Link, proprietors of the Glenwood Inn at that place, and to this union one child has been born, a daughter, Janice Marie. John H. Link was born at White's Mill, in Union township, in the neighboring county of Rush, January 27, 1863, son of Emanuel H. and Sophronia (Holdeman) Link, the former a native of Georgia and the latter, of Ohio, whose last days were spent on a farm in Fairview township, this county. Emanuel H. Link was born in 1829 in the state of Georgia, son of John and Barbara (Hansbarger) Link, the former a native of Pennsylvania, born in 1777, and the latter, of Virginia, born in 1780, who were married in Virginia and after a sometime residence in Georgia moved to Washington county, Tennessee, and later to Greene county, same state, where John Link died in 1852. His widow, who survived him for more than twenty years, spent her last days in this county, where she died in 1875. As a young man Emanuel H. Link began clerking in a store at Rushville, this state. In 1857 he took a trip to Nebraska, but returned to Rushville a year later and in 1859 married Sophronia Holdeman, who was born in Preble county, Ohio, July 5, 1835, a daughter of John and Amima (Shideler) Holdeman, who had moved from Pennsylvania to Preble county, where John Holdeman built the first grist-mill put up in that county.

In 1860 Emanuel H. Link started a general store at White's Mills and in 1864 he moved from there to Falmouth, where he was engaged in the mercantile business until 1873, when he left the store and bought a farm in Fairview township, where he spent the rest of his life, his death occurring in November, 1887. His widow survived him many years, her death occurring on October 17, 1914. John H. Link was variously employed until after the death of his father, after which he took up the barber trade and in 1890 started a barber shop at Glenwood, where he has been located ever since. For the past six years or more he and his wife have been conducting the Glenwood Inn. It was in February, 1894, that John H. Link was united in marriage to Effie Foote, who was born and reared at Marysville, in Union county, Ohio. She was born in May, 1873, daughter of Edmund B. and Rebecca Ann (Hoff) Foote, the former of whom was a soldier in Company H, One Hundred and Thirty-sixth Regiment, Ohio National Guard, during the Civil War and received the thanks of President Lincoln for services rendered during that period. He died at Marysville, where he had been for many years engaged as a blacksmith, in September, 1902. His wife, whose parents were Virginians, died in July, 1906. She was a member of the Woman's Relief Corps and was identified with the activities of the Congregational church. Her daughter, Mrs. Link, also was a member of that church until her marriage, but now, together with her husband and children, is a member of the Methodist church. Mr. Link is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and of the Red Men. To Mr. and Mrs. Link four children have been born, namely: Helen and Hazel, twins, the former of whom married Mr. Stevens and the latter of whom married Clyde Matney and has one child, a son, John Lewis; Myrtle Elizabeth, who died in infancy, and Leslie John.

"History of Fayette Counties, Indiana"
published by B. F. Bowen & Co. Indianapolis, IN 1917

Among the well-known, successful and substantial farmers and stockmen of Fairview township, Fayette county, Indiana, is William A. Carson, trustee of the township, who was born in Hamilton county, Indiana, on August 20, 1870, and is the son of Scott and Nancy J. (Cruzan) Carson.

Scott Carson was born in Hamilton county, Indiana, and Nancy J. Carson was born in Rush county. They received their education in their respective districts, and after their marriage they established their home in Hamilton county, where Mr. Carson engaged in the butcher business and where he died in 1872. He was a man of pleasing personalities and had many friends throughout the county, and his untimely death was the cause of much sorrow in the community, where he had lived and where he had been held in high regard by all. He was a hard-working man, and was devoted to his family and the interests of his home. He and Mrs. Carson were the parents of three children, William A. being the only one now living. Mr. Carson was a member of the Masonic order and was ever active in the interests of that organization. Mrs. Carson was for many years a member of the Seventh-Day Adventist church and devoted to its principles. She was a woman universally beloved for her kindly disposition and many traits of womanhood. Some time after the death of her husband, Mrs. Carson with her son, William A., left her home in Hamilton county and came to Fayette county, and located at Glenwood, where she died in 1901, and is buried in the cemetery of that place.

William A. Carson having been left an orphan at the age of two years, received but a limited education in the public schools, and when but a lad he was compelled to help himself in the work of life. When a young man he worked on a farm and has since devoted his life to that work. In 1890 he was united in marriage to Bertha Hinchman, the daughter of J. H. and Amanda (Moffett) Hinchman, of Rush county. Mr. Hinchman was a successful farmer and died at home some years ago, since which time his widow has made her home with her children.

To William A. and Bertha Carson have been born two children, Guy W. and Hazel. Guy W. is one of the well-known young farmers of the county. He is married to Vida Avers and to them three children have been born: John, Era and Lowell. Hazel Carson is single and at home with her parents. Mr. and Mrs. Carson have long been prominent in the social life of their home township, where they have many friends, who hold them in high regard. They are interested in those things that have a tendency to the betterment of the conditions of their home community and the county generally. Their influence on the moral, educational and social life of the district has been marked. They have been devoted to the interests of their children, to whom they have given the best possible advantages. They were educated in the public schools of Glenwood, where they received their high school training. They have a pleasant country home, where they take much pleasure in the entertainment of their neighbors and their friends.

The year after their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Carson purchased their present farm of sixty-three acres in Fairview township, and here they have made their home and have reared their children. By hard work they have obtained the home through their own efforts. They have made many substantial and valuable improvements on the place, which is today one of the ideal country homes in the county. Mr. Carson carrys on general farming, and raises a good many Poland China hogs and Jersey cattle, in which he has been successful. He has always taken much interest in the political life of the township and the county, and has served his township for ten years as assessor and for two years as trustee, which latter position he is now filling. He has made a most capable and obliging public official and has received the commendation of all.

"History of Fayette Counties, Indiana"
published by B. F. Bowen & Co. Indianapolis, IN 1917

Robert J. Greenwood, well-known civil engineer, of Connersville, who is now occupying the dual position of city engineer and county engineer, is a native Hoosier and has lived in this state all his life. He was born on a farm in the neighboring county of Rush, August 4, 1874, a son of William Greenwood, who is still living there, one of the oldest residents in his section of the county. William Greenwood also was born in Rush county and he has lived there all his life, a substantia1 farmer. His father located in that county about 1818 and presently bought a farm there and established his home, becoming one of the most influential residents of his neighborhood in pioneer days.

Reared on the paternal farm, Robert J. Greenwood received his elementary schooling in the district schools of his home neighborhood and supplemented the same by a course in high school, after which he entered Purdue Universitv, in the year 1901 , taking the course in civil engineering, and was graduated from that institution in 1905.

Thus equipped for the practical side of his calling, Mr. Greenwood located at Connersville and opened an office for general contracting in civil engineering. In 1905 he was appointed city civil engineer by the Connersville city council and held that office until 1908. After a lapse of time he again was appointed to that important position and in the spring of 1916 was appointed to the office of county engineer, now holding the office of engineer for both county and city. In 1908 Robert J. Greenwood was united in marriage to Emma L. Brown, daughter of John P. Brown and wife, and to this union one child has been born, a daughter, Marjorie. Mr. and Mrs. Greenwood are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and Mr. Greenwood is a Mason and a member of the local commandery of the Knights Templar. In his political faith he is a Democrat and takes an active interest in local civic affairs.

"History of Fayette Counties, Indiana"
published by B. F. Bowen & Co. Indianapolis, IN 1917

William C. Basse, superintendent of the important manufacturing plant of the P. H. & F. M. Roots Company at Connersville, a former member of the Connersville city council and for years one of the best-known and most substantial figures in the industrial life of that city, was born in the city of St. Louis, Missouri, November 2, 1870, son of Philip and Elizabeth (Uhl) Basse, natives of Germany, whose last days were spent in St. Louis.

Philip Basse was the only son of his parents and he had a sister, Sophia. His parents came to this country when quite young, locating at Cincinnati and later in St. Louis, in which latter city they spent their last days, both living to ripe old age. Philip Basse was trained as a machinist in the Fatherland and became an expert mechanic. He married at Cincinnati Elizabeth Uhl, who was one of the five children born to her parents, also natives of Germany, the others being John, Catherine, Peter and Wilhelmina. Her parents spent all their lives in their native land. Following his marriage Philip Basse set up a machine shop at St. Louis, which he operated with success for more than twenty-five years. When the Civil War broke out he enlisted as a private in the Second Regiment, Missouri Volunteer Infantry, and served with that command for a period of three years. He died at his home in St. Louis in 1909, he then being sixty-seven years of age, and his widow survived him three years, her death occurring in 1913, she being seventy years of age at the time of her death. They were members of the Lutheran church and their children were reared in that faith. There were nine of these children, of whom the subject of this sketch was the fourth in order of birth, the others being as follow: Philip, of St. Louis; Sophia, wife of John Grob, of St. Louis; Frances, wife of John Stanley, of Louisville, Kentucky; Elizabeth, wife of L. H. Burt, of Connersville; Katherine, wife of Henry Hoffman, of St. Louis; George, of Connersville; Emma, wife of William Spehr, of St. Louis, and John, who died in infancy.

Upon completing his schooling in the public schools of St. Louis, William C. Basse entered his father's machine shop in that city and under that careful preceptorship became a thorough mechanic, remaining there, thus engaged, until in September, 1892, when he came to Indiana and entered the employ of the P. H. & F. M. Roots Company, manufacturers, and has ever since been connected with the plant of that thriving concern. In 1902 Mr. Basse was made superintendent of the Roots plant and still occupies that position, having about two hundred and forty-five men under his direction. The Roots Company manufactures blowers, pumps and the like and the products of the concern are sold in all parts of the world, the concern being one of the largest establishments of its kind in the country. Mr. Basse is a Republican and has ever given a good citizen's attention to local political affairs. He served one term as a member of the Connersville city council from his ward and in other ways has given of his time and his energies to the public service. He has a fine farm of one hundred and sixty acres on the very edge of the city, on which he has erected a beautiful residence and there he and his family are pleasantly and comfortably situated.

On April 29, 1897, William C. Basse was united in marriage to Dorothea M. Weisel, who was born in Connersville, daughter of Henry and Wilhelmina (Uhl) Weisel, natives of Germany, who located at Cincinnati shortly after coming to this country and later moved to Connersville and there spent the rest of their lives. Henry Weisel was a cooper. Of the children born to him and his wife four are still living, those besides Mrs. Basse being Katherine, Louise and Elizabeth. Mr. and Mrs. Basse have two children, William and Henrietta. The Basses are members of the Presbyterian church, in the various beneficences of which they take a warm interest, as well as in the general social activities of the community, helpful in promoting all agencies having to do with the advancement of the common welfare hereabout. Mr. Basse is a Roya1 Arch Mason and a Knight Templar, affiliated with Warren Lodge No. 15, Free and Accepted Masons; with Maxwell Chapter No. 18, Royal Arch Masons, and with Connersville Commandery No. 6, Knights Templar, at Connersville, and is a noble of the Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, affiliated with Murat Temple at Indianapolis. He also is a member of the local lodge of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and a member of Guttenberg Lodge, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, at Connersville, and in the affairs of these several organizations takes an active interest.

"History of Fayette Counties, Indiana"
published by B. F. Bowen & Co. Indianapolis, IN 1917

Henry Lewis Ludlow, a native of Fayette county, Indiana, and a prominent and well-known retired farmer of Glenwood, Indiana, was born in Harrison township on February 17, 1538, and is the son of John and Louisa (Philpox) Ludlow.

John and Louisa Ludlow were natives of Clermont county, Ohio, and South Carolina, respectively. John Ludlow was the son of Henry Ludlow, who was born in the state of New Jersey, and later settled in the state of Ohio. As a young man he married Sarah Bale and they established their home in Ohio and there they continued to live, until the death of Mr. Ludlow, in 1836, when his widow came to Indiana, where she located in Harrison township, Fayette county, where she died some years later. It was here that the son, John, grew to manhood and received his education. He learned the trade of a blacksmith, at which he worked for many years, being one of the first smiths in the county. He first had four acres of land, and on this he erected his shop. He later increased his farm to sixty acres, and here he did much farming. In 1832 he was united in marriage to Louisa Philpox, who died in 1868. Both he and his wife were active members of the Christian church and took much interest in all the activities of the township. After the death of his wife, Mr. Ludlow was married to Mrs. Lucinda Martin. By his first wife he was the father of three children as follow: Cyrus B., a successful farmer of Tipton county, Indiana; Henry Lewis, and Louie Ann, the wife of Bethel McConnel1, of Stoddard county, Missouri. The father died at his home on his farm in Harrison township in the year 1881.

Henry Lewis Ludlow received his education in the primitive schools of his home township, and was reared on the home farm, where he assisted his father with the work on the farm and in the shop. He remained at home until he was twenty-one years old; a few years later he was married in February, 1864, to Isabelle (Smiley) Clemens, who was born in Fairview township, Fayette county, in 1833, and is a daughter of Ross and Mary (Abernathy) Smiley. Her father was a native of Pennsylvania, where he grew to manhood and where he was educated. In 1807 he left his native state and emigrated to Ohio, where he was a resident of Hamilton county for some time, and where he engaged in the mercantile business. In 1830 he came to Indiana and located in Fairview township, Fayette county, where he had a store and a farm, and there he died in 1878; his wife died in 1885.

Mr. Smiley was for many years one of the leading members of the Democratic party in the district. He served as sheriff of Union county, and was for a time a member of the state Legislature. As a young man he taught school and met with much success in that calling. He received the greater part of his education through his own efforts, and was a great reader and student during his life. He was a man of pronounced convictions, broad views and sterling worth, aid was recognized as one of the foremost men of the time, in his county and district. As sheriff of his county, he gave universal satisfaction, and as a member of the Legislature, he won the confidence and respect of all. He and his wife were the parents of three children as follow: Robert, Thomas and Isabelle. Robert, now deceased, was never married and spent his life on the home farm, and Thomas, who is now deceased, was a successful farmer in Fairview township and was married to Elizabeth Smith.

Henry Lewis and Isabelle (Smiley) Ludlow were the parents of the following children: Alice, Eifie, Ross, Ida, Louise, Louis L. and Laura Estelle. Alice is the widow of C. E. Jeffery, and to them were born five children: Ethel Belle, the wife of J. E. Clifford; Arthur C. who married Mary Nelson; Albert E. married Fernie Hunt; Nellie E. the wife of Harry Culbertson, and Jessie, who is single. Effie is the widow of J. T. Davidson and they were the parents of the following children: Roy, Guy, Leah, Ralph, Bryan and Ruth. Leah is the wife of Glenn Swift, and Ralph married Nettie Richardson. Ross Ludlow married Maggie Pulse and to them have been born the following children: Irene Isabelle, Elonore Grace and Ross Smiley. Ida Louise is the wife of J. B. Young, of Connersville. Louis L. is a newspaper correspondent at Washington. D. C. He is married to Catherine Huber and they are the parents of four children as follows: Marjorie, Blanche, Virginia and Louis. Laura Estelle was the wife of Jamie Ochiltree and her death occurred on October 11, 1914.

Soon after their marriage, Henry Lewis and Isabelle Ludlow established their home on a farm in section 11, Fairview township, Fayette county. Here they had a very poor log house and a run-down farm. They improved the place and in time became prosperous farmers and stock raisers, and are now the owners of two hundred and sixty acres of excellent land, all of which is well developed and nicely improved. They are prominent in their home community, and during the past attended Universalist church at Glenwood, where they have lived since retiring from the farm in 1910. Mr. Ludlow is a past master of the Masonic lodge, of which he has been a member since 1865. In 1912 he was elected a county councilman-at-large for Fayette county, and served in that capacity with distinction. Few men in the county are better informed than is Mr. Ludlow, and he and his wife are held in the highest esteem by all.

"History of Fayette Counties, Indiana"
published by B. F. Bowen & Co. Indianapolis, IN 1917

Few men of Fayette county, Indiana, stand higher in the estimation of their fellow citizens, than does Walter S. Saxon of Glenwood, who was born in Fairview township, this county, on February 22, 1864, and is the son of McHenry and Elizabeth (Parish) Saxon. The parents were also natives of Fairview township, and there they were educated and grew to maturity and married. They established their home on a farm in the township of their nativity, and there Mr. Saxon engaged in general farming and stock raising with success. He became prominent in the affairs of the county and served as a member of the board of county commissioners. He was a man of strong personality and was held in the highest regard. He and his wife were active members of the Christian church, and took the deepest interest in all the activities of their home district. They were parents of two children, John Thomas, who is a well-known farmer and is living on the old home place, and Walter S.

Walter S. Saxon was educated in the local schools and at the Fairview Academy, and grew to manhood on the home farm. On October 30, 1889, he was united in marriage to Cora Long, a native of Fairview township, who grew to womanhood in Daviess county. She is the daughter of Hosea and Lucinda (DeMoss) Long, prominent people of Daviess county and much interested in education. After the daughter, Cora, had completed her work in the common schools of Daviess and Fayette counties, she entered the Danville Normal school, where she completed her education, and where she prepared herself for the work of a teacher, and for nine years she was one of the efficient teachers of the county. She is recognized as one of the brilliant and refined women of the county. For twenty years she has been a teacher in the Sunday school of the Christian church of which she and her husband are active and prominent members. She has for fifteen terms served as the president of the Fairview Ladies Aid, which she helped to organize. She is also secretary of the Fairview Christian Women's Missionary Society, and district chairman of the parent teachers work of the sixth district, and has written many articles that have been read at farmers' meetings, teachers' associations, women's clubs and have been published in some of the church and religious papers. As president of the Glenwood Sorosis Club she has demonstrated her ability as a leader and as an executive. She has served as a member of the library extension committee and has served on important committees of the Indiana federation of clubs. Her work has received much favorable comment, and she is mentioned with honor in "Women's Who's Who of America." She is an extensive reader and student at all times, she is a great social favorite, and her life has been a most active one, both in the home and in her social engagements. One of her chief pleasures is that of painting and drawing. She is most devoted to her family and the interests of the community in which she lives and where she is held in high regard and esteem by all who know her.

Soon after their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Saxon established their home on the farm in Fairview township, where Mr. Saxon carried on general farming and stock raising with the greatest of success, until in October, 1916, when he and his wife retired from the more active duties of the life and moved to Glenwood. They are the parents of three children as follow: Ira Chase, Chester W. and Doris A. The family life is an ideal one, and few parents have taken greater interest in the pleasures and the education of their children than have Mr. and Mrs. Saxon. They attended the high school at Fairview, and the boys later attended the schools of Connersville. Chester W. is now one of the efficient and popular teachers of schools at Fairview, and is the leader of the Fairview orchestra. He is an artist with the violin, and his sister, Doris, is an accomplished piano player; she finished her education at Muncie Normal institute, and Ira plays the clarinet. It is needless to say that the Saxon home enjoys the very best of music, which is the delight of the parents, as well as of their many friends.

Hosea Long, the father of Mrs. Walter S. Saxon, was born in the state of Ohio on April 14, 1824, and died on September 16, 1901. Lucinda (DeMoss) Long, his wife, was born in the Buckeye state on January 26, 1836, and died on February 21, 1879. At the time of their marriage they established their home in Ohio, where they lived but a short time, when they came to Indiana and settled in Fairview township. They later moved to Daviess county, Indiana, where they lived for many years and where they died. Mrs. Long was for several years a successful teacher and was a woman of much ability. Mr. Long was all his life a successful farmer and a man in whom all had the greatest confidence. They were members of the Christian church and prominent in their home district. They were the parents of four children as follow: Cora, Frederick, Alfred and Edwin, Frederick and Alfred being twins.

Walter S. Saxon has devoted the greater part of his life to his interests on the farm and in the care and attention of his stock. He has always taken much interest in the affairs of the township and the county, and is today known as one of the sterling and substantial men of the community. Mrs. Saxon, in addition to her many other accomplishments, is a finished artist in oil and watercolors, and the son, Chester, has charge of the drawing in the local school.

"History of Fayette Counties, Indiana"
published by B. F. Bowen & Co. Indianapolis, IN 1917

All honor is due the sterling men and women who have had to do with the early pioneer history of our country: to them is the present generation indebted for the present-day advanced conditions. Among the well-known and prominent men of Glenwood, Fayette county, Indiana, who has done his share in this great development, is William H. McConnell, who was born in this county on April 29, 1843, and is the son of Ellis D. and Nancy (Hodgkins) McConnell.

Ellis D. and Nancy (Hodgkins) McConnell were natives of the state of Ohio, where they were educated in the local schools and grew to maturity. They continued to reside in their native state until about the year 1823, when they came to Indiana, and located in Fayette county. The parents of Ellis D. McConnell were Thomas and Mary (Downing) McConnell, natives of Kentucky and Pennsylvania respectively, and the grandfather of Ellis D. was Arthur McConnell, a native of Ireland, who came to the United States in an early day.

Ellis D. McConnell on coming to Fayette county, obtained a farm of the government in Fairview township in section 23. The tract at that time was covered with heavy timber and underbrush. A log house and barn were at once erected, and here the little family was at home. A clearing was made and the first year but few crops were planted, for the greater part of the task was the getting the trees felled and the land cleared. This was in time accomplished and here Mr. McConnell continued to live, engaged in the cultivation of the soil, until the time of his death on February 19, 1888, at the age of eighty-six years. The wife and mother died on May 30, 1882, at the age of seventy years. Mr. and Mrs. McConnell were well known throughout the territory and were held in high regard by all. They were devoted members of the Christian church, and took a deep interest in the moral, educational and social development, as well as in the physical improvements of the district. Mr. McConnell was a strong advocate of the principles of the Whig party, and later of the Republican party. He had much to do with the early civic life of the township and the county, and held many of the local offices.

Ellis D. and Nancy (Hodgkins) McConnell were the parents of eleven children as follow: two, who died in infancy; James W., Jesse, Thomas, Mary, who died young; John P., William H., Julia Ann, Indiana and Susanna. James W., now deceased for many years, was one of the well-known and successful farmers and carpenters of the county; Jesse and Thomas were twins. The former is one of the prominent farmers of near Elwood, Indiana, and the latter was engaged in general farming in Daviess county until the time of his death some years ago; Nathaniel was also a farmer of Daviess county, where he resided at the time of his death; John P. was a successful carpenter at Indianapolis, where he died in February, 1916; Julia Ann, Indiana and Susanna are all deceased. William H. McConnell received his limited education in the schools of his home township, and grew to manhood on the home farm, where he learned the principles of good farming and the care of stock, and in this work he continued until March, 1906, when he retired from the work of the farm and moved to Glenwood, where he now has a beautiful home.

On November 8, 1874, William H. McConnell was united in marriage to Caroline Heizer, who was born on November 5, 1852, and was the daughter of Samuel and Rosanna (DeMoss) Heizer. Her parents were natives of Brown county, Ohio, and later came to Fayette county, Indiana. Here the parents established their home on a farm in the woods of Fairview township. This farm they developed and improved, and during their early days in the township lived the lives of the typical pioneer. They suffered the hardships and endured many of the difficulties of those times, and had their part in the great transition of the forest to the well-cultivated fields and beautiful homes. They made their home on the farm until the time of their deaths, the father having died in 1874, and the mother in 1856. They were the parents of the following children, Marion, Elizabeth, Amanda, Almeda, Eveline, George and Caroline. Marion died in 1876; Elizabeth is the wife of Alex Kinder, a resident of Fairview township; Amanda is the wife of Alex Brown, of Fairview township; Almeda married Albert Ficklin and lives at Glenwood, Indiana; Eveline is the widow of James Reed and is also a resident of Glenwood, and George is a retired fanner of Orange township. Mr. and Mrs. Heizer took much interest in the general development of the community in which they had established their home and where they reared their children. They assisted in the moral, educational and social growth of the township and were among the worthy people of the county.

William H. McConnell enlisted on October 4, 1864, in Company F, Sixteenth Regiment, Indiana Mounted Volunteer Infantry, under Captain Macklin. The command was sent to Louisiana, where they joined the Sixteenth Infantry, and saw much active service. He remained in the service until October 22, 1865, when he was discharged and he returned to his home. He has always been a stanch Republican and has taken the deepest interest in all local matters. He has had much to do with the civic life of the township, and he and his wife are now enjoying their well-earned retirement in their beautiful home.

Arthur McConne11, our subject's great-grandfather, married Elizabeth Wilson in Ireland and later came to the United States. They were the parents of the following children: Susan, Sarah, Margaret, Mary, George, Arthur, James, John and Thomas. Thomas was born on November 4, 1772, and when a young man left the paternal home in Pennsylvania and located in Mason county, Kentucky. There he married Mary Downing, who was born in Pennsylvania on October 7, 1779, and was one of a family of fourteen children. When but a girl her parents moved to Kentucky, where she grew to womanhood and was married. Soon after their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. McConnell left their home in Kentucky and moved to Brown county, Ohio, where they entered land which they later developed and improved. Thev were among the early settlers of that section, and their home was at that time located in an undeveloped and unimproved district. They were typical pioneers, who were destined to accept the hardships as they found them. They were ambitious to secure a home, and it was with a firm determination that assumed the task of making a cultivated farm from the wilderness.

They made this farm their home until the time of their deaths. The wife and mother died in 1832, after which the father married Elizabeth Downing, a sister of his first wife. Thomas McConnell was a captain in the War of 1812, and a man of strong personality and of much ability. His influence was keenly felt in the life of his home community, for he was a man of excellent judgment. He was the father of the following children: John, Susanna, Ellis D., Joseph W., Martha B., Thomas E., Rachel, Mary, Amos, Milford, Nancy and one that died in infancy. His life was a worthy one and he accomplished much in his pioneer home. Ellis D. McConnell, the father of William W., cast his first vote for Henry Clay for President.

"History of Fayette Counties, Indiana"
published by B. F. Bowen & Co. Indianapolis, IN 1917

James Franklin Cook, one of Jennings township's best-known and most substantial farmers and the proprietor of a fine farm three miles east of Connersville, is a native son of Fayette county and has lived here all his life. He was born on a pioneer farm in the southern part of Waterloo township, February 21, 1857, son of Wilson T. and Caroline (Bobmeyer) Cook, the former a native Hoosier and the latter a native of the neighboring state of Ohio, who lived there all her life, except the last four years, which were spent in California, where she died, but was buried here.

Wilson T. Cook was born on a farm in Marion county, this state, in 1828, a son of William and Mary (Baldwin) Cook, who came to Indiana from Pennsylvania about the year 1826 and settled on land now covered by the citv of Indianapolis, where they remained until 1830, when they moved over into Fayette county and located on a farm in Waterloo township; where they spent the rest of their lives, honored and influential pioneer residents of that part of the county. Their son, Wilson T. Cook, who was about two years of age when his parents moved from Marion county to this county, grew to manhood on that pioneer farm and after his marriage continued to make his home there until about 1896, when he moved to another farm in Jennings township and there spent his last days, his death occurring in November, 1904. His widow survived him a little more than four years, her death occurring on December 2 , 1908. She was born in Pennsylvania and was married in Butler county, Ohio, when she was nineteen years of age. Wilson T. Cook and wife were the parents of nine children, two of whom died infancy and all the rest of whom are still living, those besides the subject of this sketch being William D., Oscar Perry, Mrs. Ella Leona Green, Mrs. Lizzie Clara Reeder, Mrs. Hannah Soloma Rehart and Charles Ellsworth Cook.

James F. Cook grew to manhood on the parental farm in Waterloo township, the place settled by his grandfather in 1830, and remained there, a valued assistant to his father and brothers in the labors of developing and improving the home place, until after his marriage in 1880, he then being twenty-three years of age. After his marriage he and his wife spent a year on a farm in Harrison township and then moved to Mrs. Cook's father's farm, about a half mile east of their present home, in Jennings township and there remained about six years, at the end of which time they moved to their present place of one hundred and thirty acres in that same township and have ever since resided there. When Mr. Cook took possession of his present place there was a small house on the place and a little old barn, the farm presenting quite a different appearance to its present well-kept state, and he at once began the series of improvements which now gives the place the appearance of being one of the best-improved farms in that neighborhood. In 1913 Mr. Cook erected a handsome new and modern dwelling and he and his wife are very comfortably situated. Mr. Cook is a progressive Republican in his political views and in 1914, over his protest, was made the nominee of the Progressive party for treasurer of Fayette county.

On October 1, 1880, James F. Cook was united in marriage to Frances C. Walker, who was born in Jennings township, this county, on a farm one-half mile east of her present home, daughter of John and Mary (Berry) Walker, both natives of this state, the former born in this county and the latter in the neighboring county of Union. John Walker was born on a pioneer farm just east of Mr. Cook's farm, in Jennings township, in 1828, son of William and Fannie Walker, prominent among the early settlers of Jennings township. William Walker, who was born in Virginia, came to Indiana in the early days of the settlement of this part of the state and settled in this county, establishing his home in Jennings township at a point not far from the present home of Mr. Cook. He was an energetic and enterprising pioneer and became the owner of two thousand three hundred acres of land in this county. John Walker, his son, farmed all his life in Jennings township, where he was the owner of about two hundred and twenty acres of land. He married Mary Berry, who was born near Dunlapsville, over in Union county, a daughter of David and Elizabeth Berry, pioneers of that section. John Walker died at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Cook, in Jennings township, on February 18, 1913, and his widow is now making her home in Brownsville, over in Union county.

To Mr. and Mrs. Cook one child has been born, a son, Clyde Adrian, who died when twenty-one months of age. Mrs. Cook is a member of the Baptist church and Mr. Cook is a member of the Christian church. He is a member of the local lodge of the Improved order of Red Men and in the affairs of that organization takes a warm interest.

"History of Fayette Counties, Indiana"
published by B. F. Bowen & Co. Indianapolis, IN 1917

William Henry Loudenback, a well-known and substantial farmer of the Alquina neighborhood, was born in that vicinity and has lived there all his life. He was born on October 11, 1844, son of Isaac and Charlotte (Hail) Loudenback, both natives of this same section and members of pioneer families.

Isaac Loudenback was born on a pioneer farm just south of the present village of Alquina on March 12, 1817, son of Philip Loudenback and wife, who came here from Virginia and entered land from the government, establishing their home there and spending the remainder of their lives in the Alquina neighborhood, useful and influential pioneers of that section. On that pioneer farm Isaac Loudenback spent all his life, a life-long farmer. He was an active Democrat and took an earnest part in the political affairs of that part of the county. Isaac Loudenback was thrice married. His first wife, Charlotte Han, was a daughter of Isaac and Abigail (Martin) Han, the latter a native of New Jersey, who came here in an early day. Isaac Han was a driver on the tow-path of the old canal and died of cholera during one of the epidemics of that dread disease which visited this section in the forties. To Isaac and Charlotte (Han) Loudenback were born nine children, of whom the subject of this sketch, the only son, was the second in order of birth, the others being as follow: Mrs. Sarah Ferguson, Mrs. Eliza Melotte, Mary, who died when eight years of age; Maria, who also died in childhood; Martha, who likewise died in her youth; Mrs. Laura Hanna; Alice, wife of Reeder Riggs, and Ada, wife of Edward Newland. The mother of these children died in October, 1864, and Isaac Loudenback later married her sister, Mrs. Martha Hope, which union was without issue. After the death of Mrs. Martha Loudenback, Mr. Loudenback married Elizabeth Brown, who survived him some years and which union also was without issue.

William H. Loudenback grew to manhood on the old home farm where he was born and there remained until his marriage in 1871, when he established his home on land he had previously bought from his father at the south edge of Alquina and has ever since resided there. He now owns one hundred and fourteen acres of well-improved land and is accounted one of the substantial farmers of that community.

On February 16, 1871, William H. Loudenback was united in marriage to Catherine Cerene McClure, who was born near Eaton, over in Preble county, Ohio, daughter of John and Catherine (Slonaker) McClure, natives of Maryland, who later became residents of this county, locating at Alquina about 1866. To Mr. and Mrs. Loudenback have been born five children, two of whom died in infancy, the others being Alfred Smith Loudenback, who died when twenty-five years of age; Catherine Cerene, who married Perry Lester Lambert, to which union a child was born, who was killed by the accidental discharge of a gun on December 26, 1914, and Charlotte Frances, who married Charles Crist and has one child, a son, William Alva. Mr. and Mrs. Loudenback are members of the Methodist church. He is a member of the Knights of Pythias and of the Improved Order of Red Men and his wife belongs to the Women's auxiliaries of these orders, the Pythian Sisters and the Pocahontas degree.

"History of Fayette Counties, Indiana"
published by B. F. Bowen & Co. Indianapolis, IN 1917

Franklin Pierce Montgomery, one of Fayette county's well-known and substantial farmers, proprietor of a fine farm in Jennings township, former trustee of that township and present superintendent of highways for Fayette county, is a native son of Indiana and has lived in this state all his life. He was born in the town of Bourbon, in Marshall county, this state, January 5, 1859, son of William Armstrong and Hulda J. (Monger) Montgomery, both natives of Fayette county, the former of whom died while serving as a soldier of the Union during the Civil War and the latter of whom spent her last days in Waterloo township, this county.

William Armstrong Montgomery was born just three miles east of Connersville, son of William and Rebecca (Sutton) Montgomery, the former of whom was born in Butler county, Ohio, a son of James Montgomery, who came to this country from Ireland. William Montgomery early settled on the farm now known as the Isaac Jobe place, northeast of Connersville, and there lived until old age. His wife, Rebecca Sutton, was of Pennsylvania-Dutch parentage. William A. Montgomery grew to manhood in this county and married Hulda J. Monger, who was born in Waterloo township, this county, a daughter of Lewis and Mary A. (Reeder) Monger, the former of whom was a native of Pennsylvania and the latter of whom, of Scotch-Irish descent, came from a Quaker settlement in Ohio. After his marriage William A. Montgomery moved to Bourbon, in Marshall county, Indiana, and was living there when the Civil War broke out. In August, 1861, he enlisted in the One Hundred and Twenty-ninth Regiment, Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and in January, 1862, in the twenty-ninth year of his age, died in camp, of typhoid fever, he then having the rank of a corporal. He left a widow and three small children, another child had died previous to his death. The widow Montgomery returned to this county with her children and located at Springersville and there made her home until her children were grown. She later married Jesse S. Henry and her last days were spent in Waterloo township, her death occurring on March 9, 1911. She was a member of the Christian church and her children were reared in that faith.

Franklin P. Montgomery was but a child when his widowed mother returned from Bourbon to this county and be grew up at Springersville, early beginning to work on his own account. For about ten years he was successfully engaged as a traveling salesman and the money thus earned was presently, in 1881, the year after his marriage, applied to the purchase of a farm of about seventy acres in the immediate vicinity of Springersville. A year later, however, he sold that place to advantage and bought a farm of eighty-two acres, the place where he now lives, south of Springersville, and ever since has made his home there, with the exception of a year or two spent at Lyonsville. Mr. Montgomery has done well in his farming operations and has gradually enlarged his land holdings until now he is the owner of a fine farm of two hundred and ninety acres, which is well improved and well equipped for the carrying on of modern farming. Mr. Montgomery is an ardent Democrat and has for years given his close attention to local political affairs. For five years he served as supervisor of roads in his road district, for five years served the people of Jennings township as township trustee, and since January 1, 1916, has been serving as county highway superintendent.

On February 26, 1580, Franklin P. Montgomery was united in marriage to Rosella Fiant, who was born in Waterloo township, this county, daughter of John and Hannah (Fiddler) Fiant and a sister of Daniel Fiant, further reference to whom is made elsewhere in this volume in a biographical sketch relating to Oliver T. Fiant, a nephew of Mrs. Montgomery, and to this union three children have been born. William Ray, who is farming oil his father's farm and who married Edith Maze, a daughter of Charles Maze, of Union county, and has one child, a son, Gail Maze Montgomery; Inez, who is at home with her parents, and J. Glenn, who died when twenty-one months of age. Mr. and Mrs. Montgomery are members of the Christian church and take a warm interest in the affairs of the same, as well as in all local good works.

"History of Fayette Counties, Indiana"
published by B. F. Bowen & Co. Indianapolis, IN 1917

Hon. Raymond Smiley Springer, judge of the thirty-seventh Indiana judicial circuit and a member of the bar of Fayette county since his graduation from the Indiana Law School in 1904, was born on a farm near Dunreith,in the neighboring county of Henry, April 26, 1882, son of Lorenzo D. and Josephine (Smiley) Springer, both natives of Fayette county and representatives of pioneer families in this county.

Reared on a farm, Raymond S. Springer completed his elementary schooling in the schools of the village of Fairview and was graduated from the high school at that place. He then entered Earlham College and after a course there entered Butler College and from that institution went to the Indiana Law School at Indianapolis, from which he was graduated, with the degree of Bachelor of Laws, in 1904. Upon receiving his degree he was at once admitted to the bar and on November 15th of that same year engaged in the practice of his profession, in partnership with Allen Wiles, at Connersville, and that mutually agreeable connection continued until his retirement from practice upon assuming the bench on October 27, 1916.

Judge Springer is the youngest judge in the state of Indiana. Previous to his election to the office of judge of this circuit he had had valuable experience in the prosecutor's o6ce and as a trial lawyer in a number of the most important cases tried in this and adjoining circuits during the period of his practice. During two years, 1907-09, he served as deputy prosecutor for the thirty-seventh judicial circuit and served as county attorney during the period 1908-15. In the fall of 1914, as the nominee of the Republican party, he was elected judge of this judicial circuit, defeating Judge George L. Gray for re-election, and, as noted above, mounted the bench on October 27, 1916. Judge Springer is a member of the Indiana Bar Association, a member of the Connersville Commercial Club and is past master of the Masonic lodge at Connersville, one of the oldest lodges of that ancient order in Indiana. On September 18, 1904 , he was united in marriage to Nancy M. Emmons, of Rush county, and both he and his wife are members of the Methodist church.

"History of Fayette Counties, Indiana"
published by B. F. Bowen & Co. Indianapolis, IN 1917