Biography of Elihu Fortner, page 685.  History of De Kalb County, Indiana.  
Inter-State Publishing Company, Chicago, 1885.

Elihu Fortner, farmer, section 7, Keyser Township, was born in Franklin 
County, Mass., in 1814, a son of Elihu and Sarah (Burnington) Fortner, of 
Scotch and English descent.  His father died about a month before his birth, 
and his mother when he was seven years of age.  He lived with his grandfather 
Burnington till fourteen years of age and then came West to Lenawee County, 
Mich., and worked as a farm hand a number of years.  He then worked at the 
lime kilns four years, and in the lumber business the same length of time. 
After his marriage he moved to De Kalb County, Ind., and bought 160 acres of 
unimproved land in Keyser Township.  He lived on this land two years and then 
returned to Michigan and remained four years.  He then came again to his farm 
in De Kalb County where he has since resided.  He has brought his farm from 
the wild state of nature to a high state of cultivation and has one of the 
pleasantest homes in the township.  He was married in 1853 in Michigan, to 
Urania Hoppema, a native of Wayne County, N. Y.  They have three children---
Sarah, Ernest and Clyde. Politically, Mr. Fortner is a Republican.

Submitted by:
Arlene Goodwin
Auburn, Indiana
Agoodwin@ctlnet.com