Biography of Philip W. Silver, pages 930 / 931.  History of De Kalb County, 
Indiana.  Inter-State Publishing Company, Chicago, 1885.  

Philip W. Silver, dealer in lumber, lath, shingles and building material, 
Auburn, Ind., was born near Dayton, Ohio, May 13, 1834, a son of Joseph C. 
and Margaret (Mills) Silver, natives of New Jersey.  When he was six months 
old his parents moved to Fort Wayne, Ind., and in 1839 to a farm in Allen 
County, where he lived till nearly twenty years of age. His first attendance 
at school was in a rude log house, erected by a few neighbors; but his 
school days were rare, as he was permitted to go only when his services were 
not required on the farm.  He was an expert hunter and enjoyed the sport, 
and as their only meat was game, his rifle was often put to use.  His father 
was a large landowner, but money was scarce and he often helped his mother 
spin and weave flax and wool into cloth for the large family. Before 
leaving home he had helped his father clear 200 acres of land.  He worked 
by the month three months, saving his wages that he might see something of 
the world.  His first stopping place was Cincinnati.  From there, in the 
fall of 1853, he started down the Ohio River for New Orleans, but it being 
a sickly season, when he reached Memphis returned to Cincinnati, where he 
worked the next winter chopping wood, and the next spring started across 
the country for the South.  At a small town in Kentucky he got a job of 
bridgebuilding on the Licking River Valley Railroad, receiving $1.50 per 
day.  He worked till the following October, and while in Covington, Ky., 
where he went to draw his wages, learned of a colony forming to go to 
Kansas which he joined, but his parents wishing him to visit them before 
going West, he returned to Indiana and, while visiting a brother in Lima, 
was persuaded by him to remain and engage with him in blacksmithing.  In 
the spring of 1857 they closed out their business and went to Manhattan, 
Kan., near where he preempted 160 acres of land, which he partially 
improved.  In 1860 he and his brother went to the plains on a buffalo 
hunt, and in about a month had 4,000 pounds of dried buffalo meat, 700 
pounds of tallow and a large number of tongues.  They returned to 
Leavenworth, Kas., expecting to dispose of their stock, but found no 
market and so peddled from house to house till they reached the C.B. & Q. 
Railroad in Iowa, where they left their team and shipped their meat to 
Chicago where they sold part of it at a good price.  The rest they shipped 
to Fort Wayne.  April 7, 1861, on the first call for troops, he enlisted 
in Company G, Twelfth Indiana Infantry, and was assigned guard duty.  
After being out two months the regiment became restless and wanted to be 
sent to the front, but the President refused to allow them to do so unless 
they re-enlisted for a longer period, and the 15th of June they enlisted 
for one year.  They were then ordered to Baltimore and from there to 
Harper’s Ferry, and were on guard duty on the Potomac River till February, 
1862, when they were assigned to General Shields fourth Brigade, under 
General Abercrombie, and went to Winchester and from there to Bull Run, 
and had charge of building the railroad from Washington to Richmond,  May 
21, 1862, he was discharged and after his return to Indiana assisted in 
raising Company C, Eighty-eighth Indiana Infantry and enlisted as private, 
but on its organization was commissioned First Lieutenant and subsequently 
promoted to Captain.  In December, 1863, he resigned on account of poor 
health and returned home.  He participated in the battles of Perryville, 
Stone River, and all the skirmishes from there to Chattanooga, Chickamauga 
and Mission Ridge.  After his return home he engaged in the lumber 
business in Sedan, Ind., till April, 1867.  Then moved to Bluffton, Ind., 
where he bought a saw-mill, and in 1876 sold it and moved to Auburn.  He 
was married June 24, 1862, to Angeline, daughter of William Park, of Allen 
County, Ind.  They have four children---Alice, wife of Jefferson Boyles; 
Maggie B., Desdemona and Ray Charles.  Mr. and Mrs. Silver are members of 
the Methodist Episcopal church.  He is a member of the De Kalb Lodge, No. 
214, F. & A.M., and DeLong Post, No. 67, G.A.R.

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