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CHAPTER XX.
BY CHARLES L. GOODSPEED.
HIGHLAND TOWNSHIP-THE SURFACE AND SOIL-FIRST ELECTIONS AND
OFFICERS-LIST OF PIONEERS-FIRST ORCHARD AND FIRST CHILD BORN-OTHER EVENTS OF
INTEREST-THE FIRST SCHOOL-OTHER TERMS TAUGHT-MILLING ENTERPRISES-PREACHERS,
CHURCHES, ETC.-PETITION OF MRS. SMITH-PIONEER CUSTOMS-A MILITIA
COMPANY-FIRST MARRIAGE-CHURCHES-AN APPALLING ACCIDENT.
PREVIOUS to the year 1817, there had been no settlement made by the whites
within the present boundaries of what constitutes High land Township. It had
not yet felt the civilizing influence of the plowshare of progress, but
instead was peopled by strolling bands of savages in search of wild game,
which at that time existed in abundance and was to be had with but little
trouble.
At the time of the organization of the county in 1821, Highland Township was
formed and comprised what is now Highland, Jefferson, Smith (with the
exception of the part that extends over six miles south of the northern
boundary) and Wright Townships. Another change was made in May, 1828, and
this left Highland Township as it now is lying wholly in Township 8, Ranges
4 and 5.
The land along the river is exceedingly fertile and is well adapted for
farming purposes, but the country grows more broken as it extends toward the
interior, and from its many hills and high bluffs the township derived its
name.
ELECTION AND OFFICERS.
Tho first election for old Highland Township was held in May, 1821, at the
house of Alexander Craig, and was so ordered by the County Commissioners,
with John Sanders as Inspector. For some reason unknown, only three Justices
of the Peace were elected, while the remainder of the ticket was appointed
by the Commissioners, as fo!lows: For Overseers of the Poor, Thomas Smith
and Evan Owen; Superintendent of the Six teenth Section, 3. L. Buskirk;
Fence Viewers, Caleb Jessup, Jonathan Lindley and A. Mounts; Constable, John
Jessup. John Sanders, as Inspector, held another election in 1822, for
Highland Township and although it is not statede-anything concerning the
wire pulling, political log-rolling and hard-cider drinking, the election
was peaceable and resulted as follows: Jonathan Lindley, Superintendent of
Roads east of the river; Ephraim Owen, Assessor; Hugh Prebble, Constable;
Thomas Kelshaw, Superintendent of Section 16; Evan Owen, Thomas Stalcup and
Alexander Watson, Fence Viewers. After Highland Township had assumed its
present boundaries, elections for various years were held at the house of
Jonathan Lindley.
CATALOGUE OF PIONEERS.
Prominent among the early pioneers of the township were Isaac Stalcup, John
H. Owen, Evan Owen, Ephraim Owen. John L. Buskirk, Col. Jack Stokely, James
Jackson, Timothy Jessup, Robert Baber, John Kelley, William J., Jacob and
Moore McIntosh, Samuel Kelshaw, Thomas Osborn, Edward and Richard Buckner,
David Deem, Rev. Samuel Meddley, Dr. Simon Snyder, Jonathan Quackenbush,
William Bland, Bailey McCutcheon, John Hunter, John Cloud, Jesse Martin,
Charles Beasley and old Mr. Baber. Perhaps no family became so well known as
were the Stalcups, not only because they were among the first settlers, but
because they became interested in the township's development, and five
generations of the family have resided within its borders.
Isaac Stalcup was, perhaps, the first settler in the township, his location
being on Section 26, near where his grandson, William B. H., now resides. He
was a North Carolinian by birth, was married to Catharine Osborn, shortly
after which he moved to Tennessee, and from there removed to what is now
Highland Township, Greene County, Ind., in 1817. He was a man of powerful
physique, and was well adapted to endure the hardships and inconveniences of
pioneer life. He and wife evidently believed in following the teachings of
the Bible so far as multiplying and replenishing the earth were concerned,
for they both lived to ripe old. ages and became the parents of twenty-one
children, many of the descendants of whom yet reside in the county. The same
year of Mr. Statcup's settlement, John H. Owen and Evan Owen located in the
township, the former on what is known as the old Armstead Owen place, and
the latter not a great ways distant. Both were natives of North Carolina,
but emigrated to Lost River in Indiana Territory in 1814, and three years
later removed to Highland Township. Evan Owen brought with him from his
native State apple and peach seeds, and, planting these, grew the first
orchard in the township, some of the trees outliving their propagator many
years. He and wife—formerly Priscilla Sanders—were parents of twelve
children, Mrs. Charlotte Jessup, who lives near Worthington; being one of
the survivors. John H. Owen and wife (Susanna Elrod) were the parents of
four sons and one daughter, the second son being John G. Owen, born August
8, 1818, the first white child in Greene County. John G. became a prominent
wan in the public affairs of the township, and at one time served as County
Commissioner. He died April 19, 1876, leaving a widow and family. His oldest
son, Thomas C., lives near the birthplace of his father, and owns one of the
best river bottom farms in the township. James Stalcup, son of Isaac, the
first settler, located first in Greene County within the present site of
Worthington in 1818, but three years later moved across the river and
located where Henry Booze now lives. He erected a cabin, and being on the
main traveled road from Terre Haute, his home was the stopping place for
travelers;and his undoubtedly was the first tavern in the neighborhood. He
was a blacksmith by trade, and used to make axes, plows, grubbing hoes,
etc,, for the surrounding community.
OTHER INTERESTING EVENTS.
Alex Plummer burned brick for Mr. Stalcup on this place in 1830, and the
same year erected the first brick house in the township. Years ago, the old
house was torn down, and a few of the bricks of which it was composed were
used in the fine brick dwelling of Henry Booze. Mr. Stalcup built another
brick house near his father's old place, and after some time John H. Dixson
erected his, which is
yet standing. As we look around us now and see the many advantages we have
in the way of schools, churches, dwellings, mills, etc., we can scarcely
imagine how it was that our forefathers lived and progressed.
THE FIRST SCHOOL.
Samuel Dority held school in the first schoolhouse built in Highland
Township. This was on the old John Cloud place, near where Peter Resner now
lives, and the wages paid was on the old subscription plan, amounting to $13
per month, while the teacher boarded around with the scholars. The building
was made of round logs, without floor, clapboard roof, stick-and-mud chimney
for the old-fashioned fire-place, and lighted by one window, with a greased
paper for a window pane. The seats were made of split logs very roughly
hewn, having enough splinters to stick those who were unruly enough to slide
along the bench to gossip with their neighbors; and their desks were of
puncheon, placed on two pegs in the wall for their support. Among the pupils
of this institution were Bice and Anderson Cloud, John and Andy Hunter, Wash
and Jack Baber, Riley and Bluford Graves, Darrel Long, Edmond and Celia
Martin, Lucinda and Mary Hunter, and Mourning and Kissie Bland. Other early
pedagogues in the township were John S. Owen, George R. H. Moore (who
afterward became prominent in the political affairs of the county), and S.
R. Tincher. The second named taught on the farm now owned by Simon Bland, in
the old Bethlehem Log Church, and Samuel Tincher kept school in a log house
on Israel Wilkie's farm.
MILLING ENTERPRISES.
Among the early mills, or " corn-crackers," were those of Dr. Snyder and
Samuel Jewell. The one owned by the former was an old-fashioned tub mill,
located on Musquito Branch. It had a capacity of about three bushels per
day, one-eighth being taken for toll, and from Dr. Snyder's hands it passed
into the possession of George Walker, and finally into decay. Mr. Jewell's
mill was operated by horse-power, and those coming to mill had to hitch a
horse to the sweep and grind their own grist.
Charles Beasley had the first and second distilleries, and it was almost (us
universal at an early day for a settler to go there for whisky as to mill
for meal. For the cures and ailments of the physical body, Dr. Simon Snyder
was perhaps the first physician, but it might also be said that the
ministrations of a few old women of the neighborhood were far more
beneficial than the labors of Dr. Snyder, who, it is said, was a " faith
doctor," and believed that he could cure at a distance as well as in the
sick room—which, perhaps, was true—or, like the Australian boomerang, could
accomplish its object as well where it wasn't as well as where it was.
EARLY MINISTERS, CHURCHES, ETC.
Among the pioneer preachers were Jerry Doty, Samuel NIeddley, Abraham
Kearns, James Burch, Thomas Oliphant, Abraham May and Richard Wright. They
first held services in the houses of different settlers, but later in
schoolhouses and log churches. Jacob Smith had a ferry across White River, a
short distance below the mouth of Eel River, as early as 1829, and for many
years this served the settlers on the east side of the river as a means of
communication with Point Commerce, which was quite a widely-known trading
point during the early history of the county. After the death of Mr. Smith,
his widow presented a petition to the Board of Commissioners to continue the
ferry, but owing to her sex the petition was strongly contested. After a
short struggle, Mrs. Smith's petition was granted, and thus was the first
victory gained by women in Greene County toward equality of woman with man.
There have been two and perhaps three post offices in Highland Township, one
where Henry Booze now resides, kept by John White, and one on Section 24, by
Evan Owen. It was a common occurrence for a family at that time to work hard
the entire year, and the money derived from their labors only be sufficient
to pay their taxes, defray postage, and purchase a very few of the
necessaries of life. This was not because their taxes were high, or that
they carried on a large correspondence, kit it was because money was scarce'
and very hard to get. Produce of all kinds brought a very low price, and
usually had to be exchanged for goods. The postage on a letter then was 25
cents, and if the recipient did not have the necessary amount to liquidate
this claim, he could not have the letter. Of course the young unmarried men,
under such aggravating circumstances, did not write as often to their
sweethearts as do those of to-day, neither did the young ladies write so
many effusions to their " fellows" as they do now
PIONEER CUSTOMS.
While the men. worked hard early and late in the fields, clearing, planting
and harvesting, the women, when not aiding their fathers, husbands and
brothers, worked equally as hard at the house,weaving, mending, cooking and
cleaning. They made their own wearing apparel, raised their own food, and in
this way they found no particular need for money. To visit they would walk
to their nearest neighbor, perhaps four or five miles distant, and return
the same way, thinking no more concerning the distance they had to travel
than the women of to-day who walk only a mile or less. Where is there a
young man or young woman in the township now who would go barefoot to church
as did their parents fifty years ago? Hunting was a favorite pastime for the
early settleis, and it was no trouble whatever for a man to start out, and
after being gone an hour or so return with a fine deer, six or eight
turkeys, or some other equally as palatable game. Although bear and lynx
were occasionally seen, the writer of this chapter has been unable to learn
that any were killed in Highland Township.
COMPANY OF TOWNSHIP MILITIA.
In 1825, Josiah Buskirk, as a Captain in the Forty-seventh Indiana Militia,
made the following report of the condition of his company from this
locality, and it will be noticed by the reader that the amount of firearms
and munitions of war in possession of this company would, on sight, have
stricken terror to an enemy's heart: 8 rifles, 6 pouches, 22 cartridges, 20
flints, and 1 pounds of powder. The members composing this company were:
Josiah Buskirk, Captain; Peyton Owen, Ensign; Sandford Gowan, Allan Kelley,
Bailey McCutcheon and John Stalcup, First, Second, Third and Fourth
Sergeants respectively, and David Deem, John H. Owen, Evan Owen, Joseph
McIntosh, William Bryant, Benjamin Stalcup, Francis Bland, William Bland,
William Wilkie, Hiram Martin, Reuben Martin, George Martin, Eli Martin,
Richard Pope, Joshua Hunter, Alexander Hunter, Richard Buckner, John Dodd,
Robert Dodd and Amos Owen, privates. It is not recorded how many battles
were fought, or how much blood was shed, but it is related by old settlers
that on muster day a fisticuff was no uncommon occurence. Blood, on such
occasions, would flow freely from sundry noses, and eyes that in the morning
had been a heavenly blue, a sparkling brown or a determined gray, assumed
the hue of the raven's wing before the day had passed.
EARLY MARRIAGES,
Courtships and weddings have, at all ages of the world, received
considerable attention, and from the early marriages recorded from Highland
Township one would infer that the fair sex was not by any means deficient in
the art of captivating the hearts of the opposite sex. Among the first to
undertake the responsibility of wedded felicity were Bailey McCutcheon and
Anna Baber, Aaron Bland and. Lavina Bryant, Isaac Stalcup and Mourning
Martin, and Reuben Martin and Jennie Beasley. George Baber, aged forty, and
Margaret Hunter, aged fifteen, was another couple that took upon themselves
the matrimonial yoke, and notwithstanding the disparity in their ages, they
lived happily together many years, and reared a large family. The citizens
of Highland Township, as a rule, are comfortably fixed, although it is to be
regretted that they have not taken a more active interest in the development
of its resources and its general improvement.
Portions of the township are underlaid with rich coal and ore deposits, and
especially is this noticeable of the former mineral, by its outcroppings on
the farm of Reuben Smith and others. An excellent quality of sandstone also
abounds, and is to be had in almost any portion of the township.
Stock-raising seems to be the most profitable business in which the citizens
are engaged, and among those who make it a success, as they also do farming,
are John J. Ballard, Simon Bland, Henry Booze, Jacob Bucher and John H.
Dixson. Under many years' service as Township Trustee, Simon Bland has
advanced the educational interests of his township until it ranks among the
best in the county.
SCHOOLS AND CHURCHES
Up to 1840, only five small log and badly used schoolhouses were within its
borders, but at present they have nine frame houses which, in 1882, averaged
about five months' teaching to each district, and these nine districts paid
their teachers, in 1882, about $1,400. There are, at present, three churches
in the township, two Baptist and one Methodist Episcopal. The latter is
located on Section 30, and the two former on Sections 16 and 19. James H.
Oliphant, grandson of the old pioneer preacher, is pastor for the one on
Section 16, Martin Faulk for the one on Section 10, and Rev. Mr. Rogers for
the Methodist Episcopal Church.
THE BIG TREE
One of the noted features of Greene County is the giant sycamore tree on the
farm of Uncle John Dixson. This moiister of the forest is perhaps a thousand
years old, nearly a hundred feet high, and measures about sixteen feet in
diameter. We repeat from Baber's brief history, with a postscript of our
own, that the tall sycamore of the White River Valley rather beats the tall
sycamore of the Wabash Valley by at least ninety-four feet in height, twelve
feet in circumference, and nine hundred and forty years in experience.
AN APPALLING ACCIDENT.
In March, 1876, an appalling accident occurred on Section 21, which. from
its number of deaths, is unparalleled in the history of Greene County. This
was the explosion of the boiler of the steam saw mill owned by Hunter
Brothers. The boiler had run dry and was red hot when cold water was pumped
into it. No sooner had this occurred, than with a report that was heard
miles away, the boiler burst, causing death and destruction on every hand.
Nineteen persons were present at the time of the explosion, and of these
twelve were killed outright, one was mortally wounded, and six were more or
less seriously injured. The following is a list of the killed: James Hunter,
John Hunter, John Spelts, Absalom Vandeventer, John Wilkie, two little sons
of David Hunter, a son of John Hamilton, son of George Rea, son of Henry
Sarver, son of George Bender and a son of Jacob Brubaker. James Hunter, the
first named, had a son present who received injuries that resulted in his
death shortly thereafter. It was not long until hundreds of people were on
the scene, drawn thither by the report that the boiler of Hunter's saw mill
had burst. Mothers, daughters and sisters were there, bewailing the loss of
loved ones with tears and lamentations, while the horrified glances and pale
faces of men who were busily at work in search of the remains of the dead
added to the sorrow of the scene. May Highland Township never be visited
with another such disaster, but, on the contrary, may it thrive and
flourish, its citizens prosper, its abundant resources be developed, and
then Highland Township will be second to none in Greene County.
This information is the research of many people across the United States and may contain errors. It is presented as the best information to date. Like all of those whose work I have incorporated herein, my research is a work in progress and subject to change without notice. A special thanks to Marlene Ricci of CA, Dwayne Meyer of CA, Jacqueline Bean of TX, Debbie Dick of IN, Milus Miller of IL, Carol Hendricks Miller of IN, Clarence Miller of IN, and Harold Glen Miller of IN. There are numerous others too; many of which are unknown, but their findings and stories are still much appreciated. Much of this would not have been possible with out their information. Also this website includes historical facts gathered from Washington County History, Indiana History, Rowan County and Salisbury North Carolina Historical sources and other US Historical sources.
James A. Miller- Great -Great -Great -Great Grandson of Adam Miller and Hannah Sheets.
©2007 The Millers of Washington County
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Last Updated 07/04/07 08:28:29 AM -0700