Biography of Aaron W. Camp, pages 954/955/956.  History of DeKalb 
County, Indiana; B. F. Bowen & Company, Inc., Indianapolis, 1914.



Aaron W. Camp



	To indulge in prolix encomium of a life, which was one of 
distinctive modesty and unpretentiousness would be most incongruous and 
yet in reviewing the career of the late Aaron W. Camp. Who was long one 
of the best known agriculturists of Smithfield township, and who held a 
position of unequivocal confidence and esteem in the community where he 
labors to so goodly ends, feelings of admiration are prompted, for he 
always looked to the general good of his fellow men while advancing the 
interests of his own household, ever discharging his duties, whether 
private or public, in a most conscientious manner, thereby winning the 
admiration and confidence of all who knew him.  Though a man of 
unpretentious demeanor, he possessed the silent but powerful force that 
attracted men, and his memory will long be cherished by a wide circle 
of friends and acquaintances throughout this community.

	Aaron W. Camp was born in 1849 in Stark county, Ohio, and was a 
son of John and Susanna (Smith) Camp.  In 1855, when he was six years 
old, his parents moved to DeKalb county, Indiana, locating in 
Smithfield township, near Ashley, a part of that town now standing on 
the old farm. There John and Susanna Camp made their permanent home and 
spent the balance of their lives, the father dying there about 1893 and 
the mother, who spent the last seven years of her life  with her son, 
the subject of this sketch, passed away in December, 1908.  They had 
been pioneer settlers in this section of the county and had 
courageously performed their share of the gigantic task of clearing the 
land and opening up the country to settlement. When they came here 
their land was all in timber, the only mark of human work being the 
small clearing in which John Camp erected his small pioneer cabin, in 
which a quilt was used instead of a door and other primitive 
arrangements characterized the new home during the early months of 
their residence there.  In 1878 a large, convenient and attractive 
residence was erected, being at that time one of the finest in the 
township. Amid the surroundings of typical pioneer life Aaron Camp was 
reared to manhood, having secured his education in the district schools 
of that neighborhood and the Angola Normal School, after which he 
successfully taught school for several years.  After his marriage, in 
1876, they remained about four years on the home farm, then for nine 
years he lived on and operated a farm he and his mother had bought, 
about three miles southwest of Ashley.  During the following seven and 
a half years they lived on what was known as the McCoy farm, which is, 
now owned by their daughter, Mrs. Mabel Judson.  They then moved to the 
James Clark farm three miles south of Ashley, though still owning the 
two other farms.  Eventually, twenty years after leaving the old home 
farm, they returned to it and there made their permanent home.  Mr. 
Camp was an energetic and progressive man in his farming operations and 
achieved a noteworthy success. In addition to his cultivation of the 
soil, he owned two threshing outfits, and, because of his extensive 
operations and high character as a man, as well as because of his 
material success, he was widely and favorably known.

	In local public affairs Mr. Camp took an intelligent interest and 
was at the time of his death a valued member of the county council. 
Politically, he was an earnest supporter of the Democratic party, 
while, fraternally, he was for twenty years a member of the Knights of 
Pythias. Mr. Camp’s death occurred in 1906, his removal being generally 
considered a distinct loss to the community, which had been honored by 
his citizenship.

	In 1876 Aaron Camp was married to Amanda E. Husselman, who was 
born in Fairfield township, DeKalb county, in 1855, the daughter of 
John Trapp Husselman and Elvina (Hartman) Husselman and on the paternal 
side, the granddaughter of Samuel and Susan (Trapp) Husselman, who, in 
1844, came from Wayne county, Ohio to DeKalb county.  In 1855 John 
Trapp Husselman bought a farm east of Fairfield Center, where he lived 
until his death, which occurred in November, 1888. His widow is still 
living in Ashley, at the age of eighty-one years. Their daughter, 
Amanda E., lived on the farm near Fairfield Center until her marriage 
to Mr. Camp.  She is still living on the old Camp homestead, near 
Ashley, with her daughter Ethel and son Jesse. She is a woman of many 
kindly qualities and is beloved by all who know her.

	To Mr. and Mrs. Camp were born the following children: Maude B., 
who is the wife of Frank Duncan, of Olivet, Michigan, has a daughter, 
Mildred C.; Eva H., the wife of Forest Miller, lives on the farm where 
her parents had formerly live, three miles south of Ashley, and they 
have one son, Lloyd, and an adopted daughter, Hope; Mabel C. is the 
wife of Harvey T. Judson, of Auburn; Ethel V. resides at home with her 
mother; Jesse W., who was born on May 10, 1877, married Mrs. Edna 
(Hartman) Bensing.  Jesse and Ethel are the joint owners of a farm, 
which the former operates, and he also cultivates the home farm at 
Ashley and a farm owned by his sister, Mrs. Mabel Judson.  He is a 
wide-awake, energetic and progressive farmer and is achieving a 
pronounced success in his vocation.  He takes an active interest in 
public affairs and is a Democrat in his political relations, while, 
fraternally, he is a member of the Knights of Pythias.

	Aaron Camp was entitled to rank among the leading men of his 
community, for in him were embodied those qualities which prompt a man 
to do only those things which he feels are right. The qualities of keen 
discrimination, sound judgment an executive ability entered very 
largely into his makeup and were contributing elements to the material 
success which came to him.  A public-spirited citizen, he was ready at 
all times to use his means and influence for the promotion of the 
public good, and there was probably not another man in his community 
who was held in higher esteem by his fellow citizens.



Submitted by:

Arlene Goodwin

Auburn, Indiana

Agoodwin@ctlnet.com