Biography of Reuben Grant Daniels, pages 822/823/824/825. History of DeKalb County, Indiana; B. F. Bowen & Company, Inc., Indianapolis, 1914. Reuben Grant Daniels Change is constant and general, generations rise and pass unmarked away, and it is the duty of posterity, as well as a present gratification, to place upon the printed page a true record of the lives of this who have preceded us on the stage of action and left to their descendants the memory of their struggles and achievements. The years of the honored subject of this memoir were a part of the dissoluble chain, which links the annals of the past to those of the latter-day progress and prosperity, and the history of DeKalb county would not be complete without due reference to the long life of Mr. Daniels lived and the success which he achieved as an earnest, courageous laborer in one of the most important fields of human endeavor. Mr. Daniels was a man of more than ordinary distinction, from the following facts: He lived to a remarkable age, being past ninety-five years of age at the time of his death; he was the second permanent settler in Smithfield township, Isaac B. Smith, after whom the township was named, being the first; and in the early life of the community he was one of the leaders in the work of improvement and progress. Reuben Grant Daniels was a Yankee by nativity, having been born in Vermont on April 10, 1813, and was the son of James and Mary Daniels. At the age of eight years he was taken by his parents to Orleans, near Niagara, New York, where he remained until twenty years of age, when he moved to Lenawee county, Michigan. There, two years later, he married Betsy Randolph Camburn, of Tecumseh, Michigan. In 1837 Mr. Daniels came to DeKalb county, Indiana, with the intention of entering a tract of government land. For the purpose he made several trips to Ft. Wayne, in each instance finding that the site selected by him had already been entered. After many trying experiences, he finally entered one hundred and sixty acres of land in Smithfield township. He was accompanied here by his brother-in-law, Ira Camburn, who also entered land, and together they built a primitive log cabin, “doorless, without upper floor and without daubing.” They were not denied plenty of fresh air, for the wind had free circulation in all directions through the cabin. To this frontier home Mr. Daniels brought his family on January 28, 1838. They brought with them two cows and two calves, and Mr. Daniels carried the calves, turn about, most of the way from Michigan. He was a strong, robust man, well fitted by nature for the rugged life in the wilderness to which he now devoted himself. Conditions were far from pleasant and discomfort was the rule. It is related that at one time Mrs. Daniels found a deadly massanga snake in her bed. The second child born in Smithfield township was their daughter Lucinda, who subsequently became a successful teacher in the public schools of the county. In 1839, the year following the settlement of the family here, Mr. Daniels and Isaac Smith built the first school house here, a log structure which stood on a corner of Mr. Daniels land. Mr. Daniels sowed the first wheat in the township, and at the first election in the township, in 1839, when only five votes were cast, Mr. Daniels was elected justice of the peace, over a large territory. His first official act was to marry a couple at Story Lake, in Fairfield township, whither he went on foot. He was to receive as his fee a wild hog, but, as he was unable to catch the hog, he returned home without his fee. Mr. Daniels was the first postmaster of Uniontown, which in now the first ward of the town of Waterloo, the office being at first located at his farm home. At one time the office was robbed of twenty-five cents and Mr. Daniels promptly gave chase to the culprit and compelled him to refund the money. He was also the leader of the band of Regulators, who were organized to oppose the lawless gang of horse thieves, counterfeiters and other criminals who at that time infested this locality and made life anything but comfortable for the better element. Many secret meetings were held by the Regulators, many midnight rides taken in pursuit of the thieves, and at one time they found a wash boiler full of counterfeit money which had had been buried in a swamp. On October 10, 1865, Mr. Daniels was elected county commissioner and it was during his membership on that board that the county treasury was burglarized. He held the office during three years, at a period when there was much important work before the commissioners. After his removal to Waterloo, Union township having been divided, he was elected the first justice of the peace of Grant township and held the office a number of years with credit to himself and the satisfaction of his fellow citizens. To Mr. Daniels also belonged the distinction of performing the first marriage ceremony in Smithfield township, the contracting parties being Norton Blake and Hulda Holmes, who were united in 1839. To Rueben and Betsy Daniels were born seven children, as follows: George, who was killed in the battle of Chickamauga; James lived in Michigan until reaching maturity, then went to Minnesota, where he engaged in business as a carpenter and contractor, and at his death, in 1913, he was the owner of eight hundred acres of land; Mrs. Lucinda Daniels, of Minneapolis, who was a teacher for many years in DeKalb county; Sabina died in young womanhood; Julia, the widow of Abram McEntarfer, lives in Waterloo with her daughter, Mrs. Ed Musser; Ancie is the wife of Orlando Smith, of Fairmount, Minnesota; Sylvia is the wife of Albert McDonald, of Goshen, Indiana. The mother of these children died on May 25, 1850, and on March 20, 1851, Mr. Daniels was married to Mrs. Susan (Holobaugh) Sayner. She was born in Stark county, Ohio, where she was reared and where she married George Sayner, with whom she came to DeKalb county. He bought a farm in what is now Grand township and lived there until his death. They became the parents of three children, of whom two died in childhood, and one is living, Mrs. Frances Beard, of Ashley. To Reuben and Susan Daniels four children were born, namely: Harrison M., who lives on the farm originally entered by Isaac B. Smith, in section 23, Smithfield township; Arthur G., who resides on the Daniels homestead; Jessie is the wife of John J. Baxter, of Waterloo; Nellie, deceased, was three times married, first to Ira Shook, later to Willliam McHench, and lastly to Mr. Cressy, who survived her. Mrs. Susan Daniels died on October 15, 1876, and Mr. Daniels remained on the old farm in Smithfield township until 1883, when he moved to Waterloo, where his death occurred on June 6, 1908, in the ninety-sixth year of his age. Religiously, Mr. Daniels was an active worker in the United Brethren church for many years, but late in life he became a believer in spiritualism. He was of a peculiarly even temperament, always kindly and considerate in his relations with others, and the relations between himself and the members of family were very affectionate. He was a man of marked domestic tastes, his most enjoyable hours being spent about his own fireside in the companionship of his family. His life was a long and useful one to the highest degree, and no man ever lived in his locality who to a greater degree enjoyed the absolute confidence and regard of the people generally. In all that constituted true manhood and good citizenship he was a worthy example, his career being characterized by duty well performed, by faithfulness to every trust reposed in him, and by industry, thrift and wisely directed efforts. Submitted by: Arlene Goodwin Auburn, Indiana Agoodwin@cltnet.com