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People — North Liberty
A town of sixteen hundred people keeps its dead in two books. Chapman (1880) closes his Liberty Township chapter with thirty-four headed biographies; Howard (1907) scatters thirty more Liberty lives through his biographical volume. this section registers every one of them, at the strength its source carries — profile, register entry, line, or pointer — and it begins where the record begins: with the founders on both sides of the ground, in one frame, including the side the record refuses to name.
The founders on both sides, in one frame
1833–1837
On the Indigenous side, no founder is named for the townsite itself — and that negative is the finding. Chapman records one unnamed Indian trail through the township and Pottawatomie parties passing through it in the 1830s, and…
Daniel Antrim
The founding record, as reached
dates/places: no birth, death, or origin facts in any record read or in NL-1/NL-2 (no Chapman biography; no Howard Vol. 2 biography located). Facts at the strength reached: co-organiser of Liberty Township, May 1837 (Chapman p.…
James P. Antrim
The founding record, as reached
dates/places: none reached (as Daniel). Facts: co-organiser, May 1837 (Chapman p. 718); co-layer-out, 1837 telling (Chapman p. 719; Howard township chapter also names both Antrims — C1); his house was the place of the township’s first election, spring 1837, and he was elected Justice of the Peace at it (Chapman p. 718) — the register’s first officeholder fact, at pointer here. Howard’s dedication text omits him as a signer (C1). [PROFILE — short, as the record is short] Carrying fact: the election-house founder and first-named township justice, present in the narrative and absent from the dedication.
James Downey
The founding record, as reached
dates/places: none reached. Fact, whole: “soon after its location James Downey built a house” — the first house in North Liberty, 1837; four other houses were built the same year, unnamed (Chapman p. 719; Howard/Nomination agree at NL-1 strength). No store, office, family, land, or biography fact in any record read. [PROFILE — one-fact profile, printed at that size on purpose] Carrying fact: first house, 1837. Anything larger would be invention.
Hiram Bean and Alonzo Hill
The founding record, as reached
dates/places: none reached for either man. Fact, whole: “In 1839 Hiram Bean and Alonzo Hill built a saw-mill not far from where the present grist-mill stands” (Chapman p. 719), on Potato Creek in the NL-1 spine settlement (the creek’s gristmill course, McKenzie 1852 / Bowen 1874 / steam / closure, belongs to the mills/business legs). No other fact for either man in Chapman, in the Howard parts opened, or in the Nomination passages read. [PROFILE pair — one-fact] Carrying fact: the 1839 sawmill builders, jointly. Gap: §9, G-P-2.
Tyra W. Bray
The founding record, as reached
Chapman prints him as “T. W. Bray”: the town “was surveyed by T. W. Bray” (Chapman p. 719). Howard’s dedication text gives the fuller form Tyra W. Bray as surveyor, with the plat geometry (SW¼ Sec. 28 + SE¼ Sec. 29, T36N R1E; streets 66 ft, Main 82½ ft) (Howard Vol. 1, via NL-2 settlement). No dates, residence, or other survey work for Bray in any record read. [LINE at profile assignment — the record carries him at line size] Carrying fact: the plat surveyor; the initial-vs-full-name difference is printed, not a conflict (Howard supplies what Chapman abbreviates).
The store succession men
Chapman (1880), p. 719
- E. S. Reynolds — bought Daniel Antrim’s stock after Antrim’s one year (so c. 1838); sold to Richardson in 1840. First name not given in Chapman and not reached elsewhere . [LINE] - A. P. Richardson — bought from Reynolds in…
Gaylord Saltzgaber
The founding record, as reached
the town’s historian. Facts at the strength reached, whole: author of Genesis of North Liberty (self-published, North Liberty, 1978) , attested only by the Commercial nomination’s bibliography (NL-2 Sources settlement…
The narrative-only founders, at narrative strength
Chapman (1880), Liberty narrative, pp. 718–720
John Kane (1833 settler) — one of the four 1833 first settlers near North Liberty (Chapman p. 718; Howard agreeing). No headed biography in Chapman; no headed biography located in the Howard parts opened. Not the same record as…
The Chapman register — and who is not in it
Chapman (1880), pp. 723–732
The thirty-four headed biographies that follow are the whole of Chapman's Liberty register, in his printed order. What is not there is as important: there is no headed Chapman biography for Daniel Antrim, James P. Antrim, John or Jacob Earhart, John Kane, Isaac Townsend, James Downey, Hiram Bean, Alonzo Hill, Tyra W. Bray, E. S. Reynolds, A. P. Richardson, or James Harvey. The founders — the Rupels excepted — are narrative subjects only in the bedrock history, and they are registered above at narrative strength. Conflating the two lists would invent biographies that do not exist.
Rev. Orlando R. Beebe
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 25 Sept. 1843 near Salem, Porter Co., Ind., son of Samuel C. and Currence B. Beebe (p. 723). Father died when he was three; common-school education, then Valparaiso Collegiate Institute (p. 723). Enlisted Aug. 1862 in the…
V. S. Bulla
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 14 Feb. 1847 in St. Joseph County, son of W. F. and Mary Bulla, natives of Indiana; father “one of the first settlers” of the county, his biography “in another place” (p. 724). Reared on a farm in Clay Township north of South Bend; educated in the Notre Dame schools; m. 8 Jan. 1874 Elizabeth, daughter of Daniel and Adaline McKenzie; two children, Mary A. and Lore (as transcribed) (p. 724). Owns 240 acres in Secs. 31 and 32 (p. 724). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: a second-generation Liberty landholder at 240 acres in 1880. Howard Vol. 2 carries him again as Vincent S. Bulla — §4.
Alex. S. Campbell, M.D.
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 3 May 1828, Baltimore Co., Md., son of James H. and Elizabeth (Hattan) Campbell (p. 724). Moved with parents to Zanesville, Ohio (1831), McConnelsville (1834), Mt. Vernon (1845), Chesterville (1846), Johnsville (1852), Iberia…
Isaac R. Cole
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 13 June 1833, Darke Co., Ohio, son of James and Sarah Cole (father of New Jersey, mother of Pennsylvania) (p. 724). Came with parents to this county in 1836; they settled 2½ miles south of North Liberty; “among the first…
Ort Cook
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 8 Aug. 1847 in this county, son of Rev. Elias and Sophia (Eberhart) Cook (p. 725). Reared on a farm; educated at South Bend College; father came to the county in early 1847 and was an M. E. minister (p. 725). M. 5 Oct. 1874 Arvilla Rupel, daughter of John Wesley and Elzada Rupel; two children born, one living (names as transcribed, Adolphus and Tutt) (p. 725). Grandfather Cook a soldier in the Revolution (p. 725). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: a Rupel marriage tying the Cook family into the first-settler Rupels; the entry’s only military fact is the Revolutionary grandfather, at that strength.
Isaac Early
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 7 Mar. 1838, Rockingham Co., Va., son of Jacob and Mary (Summons — as transcribed; Howard: Simmons) Early, natives of Virginia (p. 725). Went at age two to Allen Co., Ohio; common-school education in a log house; taught school…
Martin Finch
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 19 June 1836 in Michigan, son of Zimri and Hannah (Wright) Finch (p. 725). Came to this county in 1844 with his parents, settling near Mishawaka; father a forgeman in the Mishawaka iron works (p. 725). M. 12 Dec. 1869 Elizabeth Rupel; five children named (p. 725). Owns 91 acres in Secs. 31 and 36 (p. 725). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: another Rupel marriage; the Finch name later on the town’s commercial block (Finch Block, c. 1900 — Nomination, §6) is NOT connected to Martin Finch by any record read — no link asserted.
Geo. R. Flood
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
harness-maker, North Liberty; b. 8 Oct. 1851 at Fairfield, Ind., son of James and Rachel E. Flood (p. 725). Learned harness-making at 14 at Westville, where his father was a merchant; went to Iowa in 1872, returned 1874; worked at Lafayette 1875; came to North Liberty in 1876 (p. 725). M. 4 Dec. 1876 Mary E. McKenzie, daughter of D. R. and E. A. McKenzie; two children, Daniel R. and Mabel M. (p. 725). Paternal grandfather fled the Irish insurrection for America; maternal grandfather Best “the first white child born in Cincinnati, O.” — both as printed claims, unverified beyond Chapman (p. 725). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: the town’s harness trade in person, arrived 1876; Howard’s Bulla entry marries his wife’s sister into the same McKenzie family (§4).
Jacob Geiger
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 27 Jan. 1840, Seneca Co., Ohio, son of Henry and Christina (Zenderfan — as transcribed) Geiger, natives of Baden, Germany, who came to America in 1825; third child/second son of eight (pp. 725–726). Left Ohio in 1863 for Jasper Co., Ind.; came to this county in 1865, farming and lumbering; in 1877 purchased an interest in a saw-mill he has since kept in operation (p. 726). M. 28 Oct. 1862 Maria Shaffner, daughter of Martin and Susanna Shaffner; nine children, seven living, named (p. 726). Owns 195 acres in Sec. 36 and 200 acres in Marshall County (p. 726). Named in the narrative among Liberty farmers (p. 719). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: German-immigrant sawmill/farm operator at 395 acres in two counties.
Henry Geyer
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 14 Feb. 1849, Dearborn Co., Ind., son of John G. and Anna H. Geyer, natives of Germany, who emigrated in 1840 and settled in Dearborn County until 1850, when they came to this county (p. 726). M. (1) 11 Sept. 1874 Margaret A. Morrow, daughter of Andrew and Sarah Morrow; she d. 7 July 1877, leaving one child. M. (2) 11 Dec. (1877) Sophia Stumble, daughter of Abram S. and Lydia Stumble; one child, Chas. A. (p. 726). Owns 230 acres in Secs. 26 and 35 at $50 per acre (p. 726). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: second-generation German settler at 230 acres. Howard Vol. 2’s Geyer entry (Edmund G., son of Peter Geyer) is a different branch/generation — §4; the two are not merged.
John Hawblitzel
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 1833, Stark Co., Ohio, son of John G. and Ann C. Hawblitzel, natives of Germany (p. 726). Came to this county in 1863; m. 1858 Anna C. Geiger; four children, three living, named (p. 726). Father a soldier in the War of 1812; paternal grandfather in the Revolutionary War (p. 726). Owns a farm of 144 acres (p. 726). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: the entry carries the township’s War-of-1812/Revolution ancestry claim at family-tradition strength, as printed.
Russel Hoag
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 17 Feb. 1836 in New York State, son of Russel and Mary Hoag (father of New York, mother of Rhode Island) (p. 726). Reared at Coalsville, N. Y. (as transcribed); went to Michigan in 1857; came to this county in 1868; m. 2 Apr. 1868 Emma Carpenter, daughter of William and Nancy Carpenter; three children named (p. 726). “One of the founders of the Seventh-Day Advent Church at North Liberty” (p. 726); the narrative lists Russel Hoag among that church’s 1868 donors, “since deceased” in the narrative’s donor list wording vs. a living biography — printed as reached, not harmonised (pp. 720, 726). Owns 35 acres near North Liberty at $100 per acre and a house and lot in town (p. 726). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: an Advent-church founder in person; Religion section carries the congregation whole.
C. D. Houser
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
of Houser Bros., general merchandise, North Liberty; b. 18 Feb. 1850, son of George and Lucy (Long) Houser, natives of Pennsylvania (p. 726). Reared on a farm; educated in the Roanoke schools; farmed until 1873, “when he and his brother opened the store” (p. 726). M. 22 Sept. 1878 Alice Campbell, daughter of Dr. A. S. and Elizabeth Campbell; one child, Grace (p. 726). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: half of Houser Bros. (1875 in the narrative; 1873 in this biography — conflict P-C5).
Daniel W. Houser
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
of Houser Bros., dry goods, and of the North Liberty Manufacturing Company; brother of the preceding; b. 7 Dec. 1842, Coshocton Co., Ohio (p. 727). Left Ohio in 1858 for this county; farmed until of age, then bought an interest in a saw-mill; followed milling until 1868; “in 1872 he with his brother opened a manufacturing establishment” (p. 727). M. 1 Mar. 1877 Ella Briggs, daughter of William and Charlotte Briggs; two children, Gail E. and Eva M. (p. 727). [REGISTER, with C. D. Houser at PROFILE pair] Carrying fact: the Houser brothers are the post-Civil-War store/manufacturing succession in person — the narrative’s Houser & Knepp purchase of the Cole interest (1875) is their firm’s course (p. 720). Business leg cross-carries the firms; People keeps the brothers at this size.
William Inman
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 7 Feb. 1832, Clarke Co., Ohio, son of John and Hannah Inman, natives of England, who came to America c. 1815 (p. 727). Came with his parents to this county in 1838; father purchased 235 acres at the government price, $1.25 per acre (p. 727). M. 3 Jan. 727). Owns 158 acres at $45 per acre; a Republican (p. 727). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: an 1838 child-arrival whose father’s $1.25-an-acre government purchase is the register’s cleanest land-price datum.
Levi J. Knepp
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 7 Jan. 1835 in Ohio, son of John and Mary (Price) Knepp (p. 727). Came to this county in 1857; carpentered at La Porte c. two years; returned 1859; in 1865 bought a saw-mill that burned in about two months, rebuilt and ran it c. four years until it burned again, replaced it, and has since followed milling with farming (p. 727). M. 2 Oct. 1859 Sarah Houser, daughter of George and Lucy Houser; four children, three living, named (p. 727). Narrative: farmer/mill-sawyer; partner in Cole, Ragon & Co. / Houser & Knepp (pp. 719–720). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: the twice-burned sawmill man who ends as a manufacturing partner — fire is a business fact here, printed at Chapman strength.
Elijah T. Lee
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
blacksmith and wagon-maker, North Liberty; b. 5 Dec. 1829, Wythe Co., Va., son of Martin and Mary Lee, natives of Virginia (p. 727). Farmed until 17, then learned blacksmithing; Noble Co. in 1842, at his trade until 1854; La…
John A. Long (deceased)
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 14 Nov. 1813 in Tennessee; reared on a farm; came to this county in Nov. 1841, settling in Liberty Township (p. 728). M. 3 Jan. 1839 Elizabeth Troxell, daughter of Jacob and Catharine Troxell; nine living children named (p. 728). A farmer to his death, 27 June 1874; a member of the German Baptist Church for fifteen years (p. 728). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: the only Chapman Liberty biography headed “deceased” — the register’s one Chapman-supplied death date in this set. Howard’s Kane/Sheneman entries marry into Longs (Sarah (Kane) Long; Jonathan Long) — no identity with John A. Long is asserted by the texts read.
Norman S. Miller
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
merchant, North Liberty; b. 25 Feb. 1832, Darke Co., Ohio, son of Josiah and Martha Miller, natives of Somerset Co., Pa. (p. 728). Came to this county in spring 1855 with $75; taught school three months the following winter for…
Gottlieb Prell
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 10 Oct. 1827 in Germany, son of Godfrey and Maria Prell (p. 728, entry continuing to p. 729). Came to America in 1855 and settled in this county, farming since (p. 728). “Received an excellent education in the classics in the Universities of Germany, before he emigrated” (p. 728). No family, land, or death facts in the portion printed. [REGISTER — short as printed] Carrying fact: the register’s only university/classics education claim, for a German immigrant farmer of 1855. The entry’s brevity is Chapman’s, not an omission.
A. H. Price
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 2 Sept. 1831, Tuscarawas Co., Ohio, son of Jonathan and Margaret (Deetz) Price, natives of Pennsylvania (pp. 728–729). Came to this county in 1864, farming and stock-raising; also taught school for a term of years (p. 729). M. 30 Sept. 1852 Lydia A. Cordray, daughter of Nathan and Mary A. Cordray; ten children named (p. 729). Owns 144 acres at $45 per acre; a Democrat (p. 729). Named in the narrative among leading farmers (p. 719). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: a leading-farmer entry at full Chapman size. The later North Liberty firm Price & Gushwa (Howard, §4) and Price & Houser Hardware (Nomination) are NOT connected to A. H. Price by any record read — no link asserted.
D. W. Reece
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 22 Dec. 1811, Grainger Co., Tenn. (as transcribed “Granger”), son of Charles and Mary (Glascow) Reece (p. 729). Log-school education described; went to Fayette Co., Ind., in 1832, lived there until 1842; c. 1835 came to this…
Jacob D. Row
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 18 Oct. 1835, Tuscarawas Co., Ohio, son of David and Sarah (Allehouse — as transcribed) Row, natives of Pennsylvania (p. 729). Grew up in Coshocton Co., Ohio; common schools; came to this county in May 1861, settling in Sec. 36, Liberty Township, on a farm with c. four acres cleared (p. 729). Drafted Sept. 1864; taken sick; c. four months in the Cumberland hospital; served about one year; honourably discharged (p. 729). M. 30 June 1860 Hannah Knepp, daughter of John and Mary (Price) Knepp; six children, five living, named (p. 729). A veterinary surgeon and horse doctor (p. 729). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: the military set’s drafted man, and the father of Howard’s two Row biographies (Albert O. and William C. — §4), where Howard gives his arrival as 1859/1861 in different entries — conflict P-C6.
David Rupel
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
“second permanent settler in Liberty tp.” as printed (p. 729); b. 31 July 1811, Somerset Co., Pa., son of Jacob and Ann Rupel, natives of Germany (p. 729). Came to Elkhart County in 1830, wintered there; spring 1831 to near South…
John N. Rupel
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 17 Mar. 1837 in this county, son of John and Anna Rupel (father a native of Ohio, mother of Kentucky) (p. 730). Reared on a farm; common schools; dealt in live stock c. 20 years and farmed (p. 730). Owns 144 acres in Sec. 36 at $50 per acre (p. 730). M. 28 Feb. 1865 Isadore Waxham, daughter of Zachariah and Elizabeth Waxham; one child, John F. (p. 730). “Mr. R.’s father was the first settler in Liberty tp.” — as printed (p. 730). See C9/C47 above. [REGISTER] Carrying fact: the first-settler claim lives in his entry, not in his father’s — John Rupel himself has no headed Chapman biography.
Charles Schroeder
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 1833 in Germany, son of Henry and Henrietta Schroeder, natives of Germany (p. 730). Came to America in 1857 and settled in St. Joseph County, farming and stock-raising (p. 730). M. Apr. 1857 Mary Stieme (as transcribed), a native of Germany; nine children, eight living, named (p. 730). Owns 160 acres at $60 per acre (p. 730). Narrative lists “C. Schroeder” among leading farmers (p. 719). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: a same-year (1857) emigration-and-marriage German farmer at the register’s highest per-acre value in this set ($60).
John W. Shuppert
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 14 Apr. 1845, Elkhart Co., Ind., son of Joseph and Susanna Shuppert, natives of Ohio (p. 730). Reared on a farm; educated at Otterbein University, Westerville, Ohio; followed school-teaching for ten years (p. 730). M. 29 Nov. 1871 Mary E. Weatherington, daughter of John and Elizabeth Weatherington; five children named (p. 730). No land figure printed. [REGISTER] Carrying fact: the register’s teacher-at-length — ten years teaching, university-educated, in a farmers’ register.
Adam Smick
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 17 Apr. 1828, Stark Co., Ohio, son of Solomon and Mary A. Smick, natives of Pennsylvania (p. 730). Came to this county in spring 1854, settling in Liberty Township (p. 730). M. (1) 1853 Elizabeth A. Blake — five children, three living, named; m. (2) 1856 Rebecca Steel, daughter of Jacob and Elizabeth Steel (p. 730). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: a Steel-family marriage that ties him to the Steel/Steele mill family (next entries; spelling conflict P-C4).
Jeremiah Steel
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 6 Sept. 1834, Holmes Co., Ohio, son of Elias and Elizabeth Steel, natives of Pennsylvania (pp. 730–731). Educated at the Ohio Berlin Academy (as transcribed); came to this county in 1864, farming until 1872, when he bought an interest in his father’s saw-mill; continued until his father’s death in 1877, when by division the mill fell into his possession and he still operates it (p. 731). M. 1867 Catharine A. Gearhart, daughter of Henry and Kasia Gearhart; seven children, four living, named (p. 731). Owns a farm of 380 acres (p. 731). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: the sawmill inheritance in person — father’s mill, 1872 purchase, sole possession 1877, 380 acres. Howard spells the family Steele and carries Jeremiah as a brother in the P. D. Steele entry (§4) — P-C4.
J. A. Varier, M.D.
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
physician and surgeon, North Liberty (spelling as transcribed throughout; page images are the settler for the name) (p. 731). B. 2 Nov. 1852 in this county, son of Joseph and Mary (Dougherty) Varier (father of Ohio, mother of…
George Waldsmith
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 11 June 1838 in this county, son of Peter and Susan Waldsmith, natives of Ohio (p. 731). Reared on a farm; deprived of common schools, staying home to work for his mother while his father was away labouring (p. 731). M. 28…
Geo. W. Williams
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 1 Nov. 1837 in Illinois, son of James and Mary Williams (father of Indiana, mother of Virginia) (p. 731). Taken in early childhood to La Porte County and reared there (p. 731). Enlisted 15 Aug. 1862 in the 21st Indiana Battery; battles Chickamauga, Hoover’s Gap, and other skirmishes; served to the close of the war; honourably discharged (p. 731). M. 19 Feb. 1869 Ann E. Auten (as transcribed “Anten” in one line), daughter of William and Sarah Auten; two children named (p. 731). Owns 80 acres in Sec. 36 (p. 731). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: the military set’s battery man — Chickamauga named in his own entry.
Samuel Williams
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
“a prominent farmer in Liberty tp.”; b. 18 Dec. 1802, Cumberland Co., Me., son of George and Mable (Lichfield) Williams (father of Maine, mother of Massachusetts) (pp. 731–732). Came west with his family in 1838 by lake from…
Jonathan Witwer
Chapman (1880), Liberty Township biographies
b. 10 Feb. 1822, Lancaster Co., Pa., son of Abraham and Elizabeth Witwer, natives of Pennsylvania (p. 732). Farmed; common schools; moved to Summit Co., Ohio in 1843 and to this county in 1861; to Elkhart County in 1864; returned to this county in 1868, farming since (p. 732). M. 21 May 1844 Christina Henney, daughter of David and Margaret Henney; fifteen children, nine living, named (p. 732). Owns 100 acres in Sec. 9 worth $5,000; he and his wife are members of the Christian Church (p. 732). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: the set’s largest family as printed (15 children) and its only Christian Church membership stated in a biography.
The Howard register — a family-web coverage
Howard (1907), Vol. 2
Howard's biographical volume has no Liberty Township section; its Liberty lives are scattered, with a concentrated cluster at printed pp. 1003–1032 and further entries at Parts 33, 44, and 68. The cluster is heavily a Sheneman /…
Test result, stated plainly:** Howard Vol. 2 has **no Liberty Township section and no alphabetical township grouping
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
its biographies are scattered through the volume. A concentrated Liberty cluster stands at printed pp. 1003–1032+ (Parts 73–77), and at least four more Liberty entries stand scattered (Parts 33, 44, 68). The cluster is heavily…
Vincent S. Bulla
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
the Chapman V. S. Bulla (§2) at Howard length; the heading/birth portion stands before the portion opened, and the entry is registered from the portion read whole: wife Elizabeth (McKenzie) Bulla, b. 9 Sept. 1854, La Porte Co.…
Lewis S. Aukerman
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 24 June 1850, Darke Co., Ohio, son of George (b. 28 Oct. 1804, Eaton, Preble Co., Ohio; d. 11 Apr. 1854) and Mary (Brubacker) Aukerman (b. 15 Jan. 1809, as transcribed “Podiker county, Virginia”; d. 11 Aug. 1893, Wabash Co.…
Joseph Leggett
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
“one of the oldest inhabitants of St. Joseph county… of Liberty township, where he has dwelt for over seventy years” (Part 73, pp. 1007–1009 ff.). B. 9 Aug. 1835, Greenville, Darke Co., Ohio, son of Joseph (Irish, Scotch-Irish…
Edmund G. Geyer
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 16 Dec. 1866, Dearborn Co., Ind., fourth child of Peter (b. 12 Dec. 1836 near Munich, Bavaria; d. 15 Nov. 1901, St. Joseph County) and Margaret (Ewald) Geyer (b. 18 Nov. 1837, Dearborn Co.) (Part 73, pp. 1009–1010). The Geyer…
John Adam Sheneman
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 6 Sept. 1864, third of seven children of Henry and Elizabeth (Mullet) Sheneman (Part 73, pp. 1010–1011). Farmed his whole career; worked nine years by the month at one place, the DeCoudres farm southwest of North Liberty, then bought 40 acres of his present homestead from his saved wages (Part 73). M. 25 Dec. 1895 Ella Newcomer (b. 16 May 1875, Starke Co., Ind.; graduated in the common schools 1890; daughter of John A. Newcomer, b. 14 June 1844, Columbiana Co., Ohio, a Liberty Township 160-acre purchaser); three children named (Part 73). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: the Sheneman second generation buying in from wage labour — see Henry and Zachariah Sheneman below for the family’s trunk.
The Sheneman at Part 74, opening (heading before the portion opened)
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
a Sheneman farmer/businessman of Liberty Township whose entry continues into Part 74: began on a 16-by-24-ft home on the present farm; original purchase 40 acres plus 50 acres northeast; Polled Durham cattle, Clyde/Percheron horses, Chester White/Poland China hogs; barn erected 1901, 40 by 70 ft; a Democrat, often representing his district in county conventions, higher office offered and declined; wife a member of the German Lutheran church (Part 74, opening). [LINE — unheaded in the portion opened; NOT named here, because the heading was not in the text read. Settler: the heading page (printed p. 1011/1012 area) in the page images.]
William E. Gushwa
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 9 Sept. 1856, DeKalb Co., Ind., eldest child of John (b. 27 Jan. 1831, Holmes Co., Ohio; d. 8 Feb. 1903) and Catherine (Reinoehl) Gushwa (Part 74, pp. 1011–1013). Father emigrated to Indiana in 1844 with ox teams; served in…
Larmon Foote
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 16 Apr. 1872 in St. Joseph County, only child of Linus (b. 1848, New York; came 1854 with his parents to Centre Township; trustee/assessor/supervisor of Greene Township) and Malissa (Rupe) Foote (b. 24 Dec. 1848 in St. Joseph County, daughter of Daniel and Martha (Stull) Rupe) (Part 74, p. 1013). M. 27 Nov. 1891 (Thanksgiving Day) Barbara Cullar (b. 8 Oct. 1873, daughter of Samuel Cullar — see William O. Cullar below); three daughters named (Part 74). Owns 160 acres in Liberty Township; a Republican, first presidential vote for McKinley; wife a German Baptist church member (Part 74). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: a Liberty farmer whose mother’s Rupe spelling is the Foote entry’s own — the register’s Rupe/Rupel caution (§3.2) rests partly on this entry.
Levi Mangus
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 3 July 1831, Columbiana Co., Ohio, eldest of the living children of Jacob (b. 1809, York Co., Pa.; d. c. 1855, before completing the hewed-log cabin on his 160 acres in Union Township) and Mary (Stull) Mangus (b. 1803, Pa.; d.…
Levi A. Smith
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 30 Aug. 1865 in St. Joseph County, son of Theodore A. and Katie (Holser) Smith (Part 74, p. 1015). Lifelong farming/stock; owns 120 acres in Liberty Township (Part 74). M. Mary E., daughter of Allen McEnderfer (next entry); two children, Leo L. and Elva Loretta (Part 74). A Republican, first presidential vote for Blaine (Part 74). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: the McEnderfer son-in-law entry — his weight is the kin tie plus 120 acres, at that size.
Allen McEnderfer
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 15 Dec. 1844, Stark Co., Ohio, son of John McEnderfer (Parts 74–75, pp. 1014–1017). John McEnderfer was born/reared in Ohio, removed to Indiana in 1844, wintered in Union Township, then purchased 379 acres in Liberty Township…
William Newcomer
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 27 Feb. 1844, Columbiana Co., Ohio, twelfth of thirteen children of Abraham and Catherine (Wolf) Newcomer (Part 75, pp. 1017–1018). Reared in Hancock Co., Ohio (family removed c. 1847, 53-acre farm); lifelong farming; m. 20…
W. F. Newcomer
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 8 Apr. 1877, Hancock Co., Ohio, son of William and Sarah Newcomer (preceding entry) (Part 75, p. 1018). Came with his parents to St. Joseph County 27 Sept. 1887, aged ten; lifelong farming/stock; in 1904 purchased 80 acres 1½ miles from North Liberty (Part 75). Twice married; m. (2) 27 Oct. 1898 Frances Gearhart (b. 15 May 1878 in St. Joseph County; removed at eleven from the farm to North Liberty; graduated there in 1894; teacher’s certificate, substitute teacher); three children, two living, named (Part 75). A Democrat; temperance; both Wesleyan Methodist church members in Liberty Township (Part 75). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: the second-generation Newcomer — and his wife’s 1894 North Liberty graduation is one of the few dated town-school facts in either biography register.
Moses G. Houser
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 10 June 1840, Coshocton Co., Ohio, third of eleven children of George (b. 11 Mar. 1813, Pa.; d. 14 Oct. 1884) and Lucy (Long) Houser (b. 11 Dec. 1817, Ohio; d. 1898) (Part 75, pp. 1018–1020). George Houser removed to Plymouth…
Frederick W. Lammedee
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 6 June 1848 in South Bend, youngest of six children of Barnhardt (native of France; name originally “Lamady”; tailor; d. leaving 142 acres in Liberty Township) and Elizabeth (Schaeffer) Lammedee (native of Alsace) (Part 75…
Elmer Kane
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 3 Dec. 1852, Elkhart Co., Ind., one of three living children of Joseph and Lydia (Hively) Kane (Part 75/76, pp. 1021–1023). Father Joseph Kane, b. c. 1830, Columbiana Co., Ohio, of Irish lineage; a mason/plasterer; in 1853…
Zachariah Sheneman
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 17 July 1849, Holmes Co., Ohio, eleventh of twelve children of Frederick and Elizabeth (Friedland) Sheneman (Part 76, pp. 1023–1024). Grandfather Frederick Farugott Ferdinand Sheneman, b. 17 Oct. 1755 at Eisleben, Saxony; came…
Henry Sheneman
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 25 June 1836, Holmes Co., Ohio, eldest living child of Frederick (b. c. 1803, Somerset Co., Pa.; d. 28 Mar. 1876) and Elizabeth (Friedland) Sheneman (b. c. 1807, Pa.; d. c. 1885) (Part 76, pp. 1024–1025). Father a…
Washington A. Sheneman
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 28 Mar. 1867 in Liberty Township, fourth of seven children of Henry and Elizabeth (Mullet) Sheneman (Part 74, pp. 1015–1016). Lifelong agriculturist, beginning as a wage earner; m. 23 Dec. 1893 Eliza Ellen Stroup (b. 22 Oct. 1873, Warren Township; d. 5 Sept. 1899, buried in the North Liberty cemetery); two children named (Part 74). Began on 25 acres, grown to 88 acres; in 1906 erected a 66-by-40-ft basement barn (Part 74). A Republican, often a county-convention delegate; Gleaners of North Liberty and Republic Arbor, A.O.O.G. (membership 75 in North Liberty; he served as inner guard) (Part 74). [REGISTER] Carrying fact: the third Sheneman generation, with the register’s only Howard-supplied North Liberty cemetery burial (his wife, 1899).
William Orlando Cullar
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 10 June 1868 in Liberty Township, seventh of eight children of Samuel (b. 9 July 1834, Stark Co., Ohio; d. 13 Aug. 1874 in Kansas; carpenter/joiner) and Louisa (Metsker — as printed here; Chapman’s ministry list spells…
Leonard Amm
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 27 Mar. 1855, Dearborn Co., Ind., son of Andrew (b. in “the province of Byron, Germany” as transcribed — Bavaria in sense, printed as reached; d. 27 May 1907 aged 84-4-17 at his son George’s home in Dearborn County) and…
Israel Irvin
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 9 Apr. 1830, Lancaster Co., Pa., youngest of ten children and the only one living, son of George Irvin (Irish, Scotch-Irish descent; d. when Israel was fourteen) (Part 77, pp. 1028–1029). Orphaned young; learned…
Del M. Woodward
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 8 Mar. 1872 in St. Joseph County , fourth of five children of Horace P. (b. 1842, Hornellsville, Steuben Co., N. Y.; Civil War soldier from La Porte County; landowner at Walkerton) and Sarah C. (Roberts) Woodward (Part 77, pp.…
George Kime
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 23 Mar. 1835, Holmes Co., Ohio, eldest child of Joseph (b. 1813, Somerset Co., Pa.; d. 4 Mar. 1857) and Catherine (Schoenneman — as transcribed) Kime (b. c. 1814, Ohio; d. 1885) (Part 77, pp. 1030–1032). Remained in Holmes…
P. D. Steele
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 28 Sept. 1844, Coshocton Co., Ohio, sixth of eight children of Elias and Elizabeth (Bickel) Steele (Part 77, p. 1032, entry continuing beyond the portion opened). Father Elias: native of Somerset Co., Pa.; in 1865 came via…
Albert O. Row
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 20 Feb. 1873 in Liberty Township , son of Jacob D. and Hannah (Knepp) Row (Part 33, pp. 802–803). The entry gives the father’s arrival as 1859 (against Chapman’s May 1861 and the William C. Row entry’s May 1861 — P-C6), the…
William C. Row
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 25 Apr. 1869 in Liberty Township, son of Jacob D. and Hannah (Knepp) Row (Part 44, pp. 858–859). Father’s arrival given here as May 1861 (matching Chapman; against Albert O. Row’s 1859 — P-C6) (Part 44). William: Liberty homestead schooling; taught six years (five in St. Joseph County); deputy surveyor of St. Joseph County during 1893 and 1894, at pointer here; since 1895 a United States letter carrier in South Bend (twelve years at writing) (Part 44). M. 1895 Sadie C. Bair of Elkhart County (Part 44). [REGISTER — born-here tie stated exactly, as Albert O. Row. The deputy-surveyor years are the closest either Row comes to a county office; no county/state elective office is carried for any Row.]
Rev. Isaac Early
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
the Chapman Isaac Early (§2) at Howard length (Part 68, pp. 983–985). B. 7 Mar. 1838, Rockingham Co., Va., son of Jacob (b. c. 1818, Rockingham Co.; d. 1905 in Ohio) and Mary (Simmons) Early (b. c. 1815, Va.; d. 1882) (Part 68).…
Dr. Erastus S. Darling, A.M., LL.B., M.D.
Howard (1907), Vol. 2 biographies
b. 10 Feb. 1872, Ontario, Canada, son of John (b. Apr. 1840, Ontario; retired in Toronto) and Catherine E. (Copper) Darling (b. 5 July 1845, Napanee, Canada; d. 8 July 1884) (Part 68, pp. 982–983). B.A., Victoria College, Toronto…
Indigenous names for this ground — none named
Tested November 2026
For the townsite: none. No Indigenous person is named anywhere in the Chapman Liberty chapter, Howard's township and town sections, Howard's Vol. 2 Liberty cluster, or either National Register nomination, for this ground. What…
Officeholders
1837–1912, as reached
The government file carries the town's officeholding whole; this register cross-points and does not duplicate successions. From the records read: James P. Antrim, Justice of the Peace, elected at the first election, spring 1837.…
The military set, assembled from the biographies
The Civil War generation, as the registers carry it
Eleven named Civil War men with Liberty ties stand in the two registers — ten in service, one killed in action — and no officer above company grade. Rev. Orlando R. Beebe: Marine Artillery (August 1862), then the 3rd New York…
Notable People: Not Found in the Record
Tested November 2026; search strength stated
The Chapman Liberty chapter was read whole; Howard Vol. 2 was read for its Liberty cluster and the scattered Liberty entries the searches surfaced — not page-by-page through the whole volume, and no negative below pretends…
The register's conflicts, printed whole
C52–C61 in the build's register; C1, C5, C9/C47, C11 carried
The register's own conflicts append to the build's register unrenumbered in their facts and numbered here in its sequence. C52 — Woodward's News founding date. Howard Vol. 2's Woodward biography, as transcribed: "In 1895 Mr.…
The register's edge — what a fuller register requires
Named gaps G-P-1 to G-P-7
This register is complete against the two bedrock histories as opened, and its edges are named, not smoothed. The Antrims' vital and land facts stand unreached (G-P-1; settler: the GLO tract books for T36N R1E, probate and deed…
J. N. Reece
The reached record, as cited
principal of the North Liberty graded school (Chapman p. 723, Schools settlement NL-2). Named in his father D. W. Reece’s biography among the four living children (Chapman p. 730); no dates or further facts given for him in Chapman, and no separate Howard biography for him was located in the parts opened. [LINE] Carrying fact: the town’s graded-school principal in 1880, named in two passages of the same chapter and nowhere else reached.
George Sands
The reached record, as cited
teacher in the lower department of the North Liberty graded school (Chapman p. 723). Nothing further reached in any record read. [LINE — one fact, printed at that size]
Dr. Sylvester Laning; Bishop Talbot
The reached record, as cited
[POINTER → religion file]: St. Philip’s Episcopal Mission, c. 1873, founded under Bishop Talbot’s administration through Dr. Sylvester Laning (NL-2 Religion settlement; frame church 1873; consecrated July 1885; defunct). No further life facts in the records read, and none dug — People points and the religion file carries them.
The Nomination’s named townspeople
Commercial Historic District nomination (Garner, 2012)
Henry B. Worster — “was eight when his family moved to Liberty Township in 1854” (so b. c. 1846); contractor/builder of North Liberty homes and businesses in the 1870s–1880s; built the Worster Building, 100 N. Main St., in 1892…
The 1960 News items in the Nomination bibliography
The reached record, as cited
“Masons Observe Centennial” (26 May 1960), “New Home for Community State Bank” (21 Apr. 1960), “New Building to House Laundry” (6 Oct. 1960): the Nomination passages read name no individual townspeople in connection with these three items (the Masons item aligns with North Liberty Lodge No. 266’s 30 May 1860 charter and 1960 centennial (NL-2), an institution, not a person). No author bylines are given for the items in the bibliography. That is the assignment’s “if the nomination items name townspeople” test answered: as reached, they do not.