Genealogy


Stormont's History -- Township Formation

Gibson County,

Indiana

 

To add additional sources relating to Gibson County, E-Mail the County Coordinator.

Barton Township

Center Township

Columbia Township

Johnson Township

Montgomery Township

Patoka Township

Union Township

Wabash Township

Washington Township

White River.

 

Barton Township    

Barton township is located in the southeast corner of Gibson county. It 
is bounded on the north by Center and Columbia townships, east by Pike and 
Warrick counties, south by Warrick county, west by Johnson and Patoka 
townships. This township was organized in August, 1843, but afterward 
the boundary lines then fixed were changed. The township was formed by 
request of many of its later citizens who drew up a petition. 
 
The land surface of this township is typical of the county, undulating 
and hilly in places and in others, low and rich. Smith's fork, Pigeon creek 
and their tributaries drain and water the soil. McCullough's pond is also 
located in the southwestern part.
 
EARLY SETTLEMENT. 
 
John Miller is accredited with being the first settler in Barton township. 
He came in the autumn of 1814 and located on section 8, township 3, range 9, 
builded himself a rude cabin of logs and housed his family there during the 
following winter. He was a native of Kentucky, and traveled here on foot 
and with a pack horse. Elisha Strickland came in the summer of 181 5, and 
also Jacob Skelton. In 1818 came William McCleary. The first settler in 
the southeastern part of the township was John Kilpatrick, who came in 
1821. William Barrett, Andrew McGregor, James Breedlove and Eli J. 
Oliver were other early residents. 
 
Perhaps the first marriage of the township was that of John Skelton, Sr. 
They rode to the minister's home on horseback, the bride mounted on the 
pillion. Stephen Strickland, Jacob Bouty and John Kell were the earliest 
ministers here. Providence church, a log house, was the first house of wor- 
ship. The first water-mill for grinding corn was erected by Jacob Bouty, on 
Smith's fork of Pigeon creek. Dr. George Austin was the first physician of 
the township. 
 
Coal digging began in this township about 1833, on section 5, township
3, range 8. 1880 was the year that a destructive cyclone passed over the 
township, demolishing homes and killing animals 
 
After the organization of this territory into Barton township the first 
election was held at the house of Blueford H. Griswell, September 30, 1843. 
Jacob Skelton was appointed first overseer of the poor. 
 
The history of the early-day schools will be found in the chapter on 
Education. The churches are also mentioned in the Church chapter. 
 
The first child born in this township was John Miller in 1815, he being 
the son of the first settler. It is believed that the first death was that of 
Seth Adkinson in 1817. 
From the History of Gibson County by  Gil R. Stormont (1914) B.F. Bowen & Co., pp. 356-7.

 

 

  

Center Township

Center township is bounded on the north by Washington township, east 
by Pike county and Columbia township, south by Barton and Patoka town- 
ships and west by Patoka township. The Patoka river and its tributaries, 
Lost, Keg and Mud creeks, drain the land. The heavy timber which orig- 
inally covered the ground and furnished such excellent hunting grounds, is 
all cleared, and farms dot the country in places. 
 
Perhaps the earliest settler of the township was one William Reavis, a 
North Carolinian by birth and of Scotch-Irish ancestry. Isam and Daniel 
Reavis came in 1818; David Johnson, Thomas Birchfield, Samuel Beasley and 
Thomas H. McKedy were other early settlers. The early history of this 
township coincides with the other and more important townships, in which 
its earlier history is included. 
 
EARLY SETTLERS. 
 
In 1817 William Reavis married Catherine Hensley and soon after this 
event they made the long and tedious trip to this county on pack-horses, ar- 
riving in the summer of the same year. They settled near the present town 
of Francisco, about a mile southwest, in the timber, where they cleared a 
tract, erected the usual log cabin, and by industry made them a fine farm 
home. One of their children was Alexander, who became a soldier in the 
Union army in the Civil war, and died in Andersonville prison. Mr. Reavis 
died at the old homestead in 1855. His widow survived him about two 
years. They were both of the Regular Baptist faith. 
 
Isam and Daniel Reavis, brothers of William, with their families, came 
in 1818 and made a settlement not far from their brother's place. They had 
both formerly resided in Kentucky. About 1827 Isam was killed while as- 
sisting in raising a log house, one of the logs falling upon him. The Reavis 
brothers, for a few years after coming here, occasionally had their milling 
done at the then distant Post Vincennes. Charles Reavis later removed to 
Illinois. They were expert hunters and killed many deer, wolves and other 
animals. They all had large families and had numerous descendants, many 
of whom are still in this section. 
 
David Johnson was among the early pioneers of this county, having 
settled in the southern part in November, 1810, and in the spring of 1817 
he located on a tract in the timber, about two miles north of Francisco. He 
was from Tennessee and had lived in Kentucky before coming here. 
 
Thomas Birchfield was among the old settlers of the county, a native of 
Kentucky. He came here with his family in 1811. He was a brother of 
Larkin Birchfield, who was an old-timer in the county. When Thomas Birch- 
field came in Indians were very numerous. He, however, got along with 
them in a peaceful manner. His first abode was in a small squatter's cabin. 
Meats for his table the first winter consisted of the deer, wild turkey and 
other games of the forest. He later bought out the improvements of Col.
James W. Cockrum, where Francisco is now situated. 
 
Samuel Beasley, a native of North Carolina, .settled with his family a 
mile and a half south of Francisco in 1830. He had a large family. John S. 
Meade, though not an old resident here, is a son of one of the earliest settlers. 
His father was a native of New York and, when a single man, came to 
Gibson county in 1815. Here he married Mary Pritchett, a daughter of 
John Pritchett, an old Revolutionary soldier. The Pritchetts moved from 
Tennessee to Gibson county very early. They settled in Montgomery town- 
ship a short distance from Owensville. Stephen Meade married, in 1820, 
and located in Johnson township. This couple had fourteen children, twelve 
sons and two daughters. 
 
Dr. J. C. Patten, of Francisco, is a descendant of one of the early 
descendants of this county. His grandfather, James Patten, was a captain 
in the Revolutionary war. After the war ended he moved to Tennessee, and 
in 1804 settled on Green island, Kentucky, and later came to Gibson county, 
Indiana. He settled near Fort Branch, lived there until 1816 and died there. 
He raised a large family, among whom was Hugh Patten, who was for many 
years a leading physician in Princeton. Dr. Hugh Patten died, aged eighty 
years, in 1876. He was the father of Dr. James C. Patten, who was a resi- 
dent of Francisco during the later years of his life. 

 

From the History of Gibson County by  Gil R. Stormont (1914) B.F. Bowen & Co., pp. 361-3

 

Columbia Township

At the September term, 1823. the Gibson county board of justices 
created Columbia township, and the first election was held on the October 
following. 
 
This township is bounded on the north by the Patoka river, on the east 
by Pike county, south by Barton township and west by Center. Coal and stone 
are found in various quantities throughout this township. The land is rich and 
productive and is drained by the Patoka river and its tributaries, including 
Keg and Bear creeks, Bucks, Hurricane, South fork of the Patoka and 
Turkey creeks. 
 
EARLY .SETTLEMENTS. 
 
The early settlers of Columbia township subsisted largely on the game 
which was then plentiful in the surrounding forest. Bears were very numer- 
ous and many of them were killed. 
 
John Farmer, a native of the Old Dominion, was one of the earliest 
settlers of the township. He was a farmer and had the distinction of intro- 
ducing the first Durham cattle and Berkshire hogs into this locality. Phile- 
mon Dill, a Scotch-Irishman from Tennessee, came to this township in 1814, 
and his family is still prominent in Oakland City and vicinity. William 
Hopkins and family, John Wallace, James M. Steel, William J. Summers, 
William Nossett, James W. Cockrum, Samuel Baldwin, Jacob Skelton were 
others among the pioneers of this section. 

      

 

From the History of Gibson County by  Gil R. Stormont (1914) B.F. Bowen & Co., p. 358

  

Johnson Township

 

This is one of the southern sub-divisions of Gibson county. Originally 
it took in much more territory than at present, for in 1899 the county com- 
missioners created a new township from the southern part of Patoka and the 
northern portion of Johnson township, known as Union. As now con- 
stituted, Johnson township is four by twelve miles in extent, running the 
longest way from east to west. The southwestern portion of this township 
is drained by Big creek. McGarry's Flat is a strip of rich black land, superior 
for its agricultural value. The early forests are nearly all gone and where 
the great trees stood a century ago now may be seen well-tilled farms. At 
an early day its forests were known for their wild, yet charming scenes, that 
changed with the passing of the four seasons. Here was found the oak, 
poplar, maple, beech, ash, gum, walnut, sycamore, cottonwood, elm, honey 
locust, Cyprus, catalpa and other trees. The pioneer well remembers the 
pawpaw bushes, some of which were almost a foot in diameter. In the 
springtime the knolls and hill-tops are plumed with bouquets, brilliant with 
red, white and purple promises of fruitage. In the autumn the valleys are 
odorous with the fragrance of ripening fruits. The only rocky outputs in 
Johnson township are those at or near Haubstadt where the rash coals and 
their companion strata lay. These are of no economic importance, as the 
great depth at which anything valuable can he found precludes mining. 
 
EARLY SETTLEMENT. 
 
The first history of Johnson township dates back to 1804, nine years 
before the county of Gibson was organized. John Hamer and his family 
were indisputably the first pioneers of the township. They came from the 
mountains of Tennessee, and cleared a plot of land in the timber of section 
30. Jesse Douglas and family, John Sides, of South Carolina, Samuel Spill- 
man, William Mangrum, Gary Wilkinson, George Holbrook, Allen Ingram, 
Berry Jones, Andrew Douglas, Elisha Prettyman, Andrew Robinson were 
other first settlers.  
 
In the spring of 1811 the people of the township became alarmed at the 
frequent outbreaks among the Indians, and accordingly a stockade of split 
logs was erected at the site of the present town of Fort Branch. The old 
fort has long since passed from view. 
 
Probably the first schools were taught in this township in 1810 by Will- 
iam Woods. The teacher boarded around, of course, and his pay consisted 
of a small sum from each family represented by a child in the school. James 
Johnson and James Curry were later teachers. Stephen Strickland, the 
"Whiskey Baptist," was probably the first man to preach in the township. 
Other early settlers were Samuel Adams, James Blythe, Lewis Duncan, 
Prettyman Montgomery, Andrew D. Ralston and Joel Yeager, and many 
later were Germans, who came here to escape the monarchial oppression of 
the fatherland. 
 
Among the early settlers of this township, as it was known before the 
formation of Union township, as above indicated, were the following : Jesse 
Douglas and family of section 20, township 3, in the autumn of 1806. He 
left many descendants, who still reside in the county, mostly in Montgomery 
township. During early days this was a prominent family in the south part 
of Gibson county. 
 
John .Sides and family, who came from South Carolina, came with the 
Douglas family, and their cabins were built only a few hundred yards apart. 
Sides was a noted hunter and trapper and very fond of the sports of the 
chase. He was an industrious, energetic man, and after years of toil ac- 
cumulated a handsome fortune. 
 
Hiram Sides was born in Gibson county in 1821, and became a well-to- 
do farmer and stock raiser. 
 
Another settler of 1806 was Samuel Spillman from the mountains of 
Tennessee. He was by trade a tanner, and there had to earn his living under 
the ban of Southern aristocracy, which looked upon labor by white man as a 
disgrace. He sought out the wilds of this county and built him a rude cabin 
home near where Haubstadt now stands. Here he toiled many years and 
reared a family of seventeen children, all sons but four. After being here a 
few years he established a tannery, the first in this portion of the county. 
He built the first brick house in Johnson township. 
 
Other early families were those of Mangrums, Wilkinsons, etc. Cary 
Wilkinson, wife and family of seven children came in from Kentucky in 
the autumn of 1808, settling about three miles southwest of Fort Branch. 
According to the best memory of Pioneer Wilkinson, sheep were first in- 
troduced by some of the settlers in the spring of 1815, but great care had to 
be taken that they were not killed by wolves. It was several years before 
they could be successfully raised. Cotton was also raised by many of the 
farmers in this part of the county between 1815 and 1830. Flax was in- 
troduced with the coming of the first settlers, and the fibers of this product 
made valuable tow which was woven by the good housewife and her grown 
daughters into a rough kind of cloth and found its way into the clothing of 
the family. Any boy or girl was counted fortunate if they had two suits of 
tow garments in a single year. These garments were made a good deal like a 
bag, open at each end, and a drawing string about the neck. This was for 
their summer outfit. Thus clad, barefooted and with a cheap hat, the boy or 
girl of the pioneer day was ready for school or to go to "meeting," as church 
was then always called. One pair of shoes for each member of the house- 
hold a year was considered a plenty to have. These generally came about 
Christmas time. After sheep became more plentiful, cloth was made of 
wool and cotton into what was styled linsey-woolsey (cotton chain and 
woolen filling). This was universally woven for many years and formed 
the chief clothing material for the settler and his family. 
 
James Blythe came in 1812 from Giles county, Tennessee, locating on 
section 11, township 4, range 11, and after coming here married Olivia J. 
Mangrum. 
 
Another pioneer character whose name must ever be handed down by 
each historian of Gibson county, for its true interest and unique qualities, 
was Stephen Mead, who came from York state to Gibson county in 1815, 
and married Mary, daughter of John Pritchett, a Revolutionary soldier, a 
native of Tennessee, and an early settler of Montgomery township, this coun- 
ty. This young couple located in what is now Gibson county, in Johnson town- 
ship, where they reared a family of twelve sons and two daughters. By 
industry and frugality they managed to get on well in the affairs of this 
world, and later years made up for the trials and hardships of those early 
times. Then, it is related, they had no plates upon which to eat, so they 
made a long table of puncheon and on the top surface of these puncheon 
they dug out sixteen holes the shape of a bowl, and thus each member of the 
family had their own dish out of which to eat — a stationary wooden plate! 
At one of the Gibson county fairs this entire family was present and all were 
robust, well-cared-for persons and each rode a fine gray horse. John S., one 
of these twelve sons, was later county commissioner and had to do with the 
building of the present court house, a monument to him so long as it stands. 
 
As has already been observed, Tennessee furnished many of the early 
settlers in Johnson township. Among others from that state was Joshua 
Duncan in 1821. He had, however, when a boy, moved with his parents to 
Kentucky and thence to Indiana. At Evansville he became acquainted with 
Sarah L. Logan and they were married in 1821 at old Stringtown, which 
hamlet is now embraced within the limits of the city of Evansville. Soon 
after their marriage Mr. Duncan and his young bride moved to Gibson 
county and settled in the dense forest about three miles southwest of Fort 
Branch and by toil and industry cleared a small patch of ground and by the 
aid of his neighbors raised a log cabin. It was made of round logs and with 
a mud-and-stick chimney. Mrs. Duncan says that during the first two years 
they lived on hominy, corn meal and game. That locality was then infested 
with wolves and bears and a few of the small animals of prey. Deer and 
wild turkey also abounded in great numbers, which furnished the tables of 
pioneers with good meat. The wife of Mr. Duncan was a native of North 
Carolina. They had born to them ten children. Mr. Duncan became a pros- 
perous, rich farmer and for many years was a justice of the peace. A few 
years after coming here he built a two-story house which was the best in his 
section of the county. It had a shingled roof and was weather boarded with 
poplar siding. The floors were of white ash. He also had a large barn and 
Esquire Duncan's place was regarded as among the finest in Johnson town- 
ship. He died in 1861. His widow survived him and later resided at Prince- 
ton with a daughter. 
 
Lewis Duncan and family were also early settlers. He was a brother 
of the above and was a member of the Baptist church and occasionally 
preached at the settlers' houses. Mrs. Lyda Duncan, a widow, and her 
family moved here and located on a timber land tract about five miles west 
of Haubstadt in 1818. She was a noted midwife of that section and was 
frequently called to minister to the afflicted for miles around. She was an 
excellent horsewoman and on her trips generally rode a fleet and powerful 
stable horse and while on her missions of mercy to the sick, whether it be 
night or day, always carried with her a loaded pistol. Among the old resi- 
dents of the township was Stephen Harris, who came with his parents from 
South Carolina in 1810, and settled in what is now Posey county, where 
Stephen married Polly Emerson and in 1824, with his young wife, settled on 
section 8, township 4, range 11, where Mrs. Harris died in 1869. They 
reared a large family of children. 
 
Prettyman Montgomery, a descendant of one of the old and historic 
families of this county, was born in this county in 1815. He became a well- 
to-do farmer and stockman. John N. Mangrum was born in 1827 and was in 
after years a county commissioner. Another of the respected families of 
this township were the Yeagers, whose ancestor, Joel Yeager, a native of 
Virginia, emigrated to Kentucky and there married and in 1826 came to In- 
diana, locating in Posey county, near Cynthiana, and died there. His son, 
Absalom, came to Gibson county in 1841 and located in the timber in John- 
son township. He was the father of seven children and aniong them was 
Henry A. Yeager, an attorney in Princeton. 
 
From 1838 to 1841 there was a large influx of emmigration from Ger- 
many, on account of the tyranny of the ruler of that country, and this town- 
ship received her full share of this German element, among whom may be 
recalled such noble characters as Dr. V. H. Marchland; John Sipp, who 
became county treasurer; Larentz Ziliak and Dr. Peter Ottmann. Many of 
them were Roman Catholic in religious faith. Later, they established schools 
and churches at Haubstadt and St. James. 
 
Since the creation of Union township, which took much of the original 
territory from Johnson, it leaves Johnson with only one town, Haubstadt. 

 

From the History of Gibson County by  Gil R. Stormont (1914) B.F. Bowen & Co.  pp. 346-351

  

Montgomery Township

 

This township was named for the Montgomery family, who were 
pioneers of the locality and one of the most prominent families of the early 
days. The real history of the township begins before the organization of 
the county, when the settlers were just beginning to lead their wagon trains 
through the trackless wilderness and to find homes. Montgomery town- 
ship was settled early by these heroic travelers. This township is the largest 
in the county and one of the largest and best in the state of Indiana. It lies 
in the southwestern part of the county, bounded on the north l)y White river 
township and the Wabash river, east by Patoka township, south by Johnson 
and Posey counties, and west by Posey county and Wabash township. 
 
The soil of Montgomery township is about two-thirds up-land and one- 
third low-land, the richer soil being made of calcaro-alluvial loam, of high 
productive power. There are four or five small lakes located in the north- 
western part of the township, emptying into the Wabash river. The prin- 
cipal streams besides the Wabash, are Indian creek, Black river, Martin's 
branch, Obion creek and Maumee creek. 
 
EARLY SETTLEMENT. 
 
The identity of the first white settler in this township is not known for 
certain. Thomas Montgomery, however, was one of the earliest arrivals 
here, coming from Kentucky, building a cabin near Black river, and lodging 
his family therein. In the same year, 1805, Jesse Kimball also came up 
from Kentucky in search of new fields for his merchandising trade. He 
later owned a water mill in this township. In 1806 Thomas Sharp, William 
and Luke Wiley came to within a short distance of Owensville. Mathias 
and Smith Mounts came about this time, then Jacob Warrick, John Benson, 
Thomas Waters. George and Thomas Sharp, Robert McGary, John Roberts, 
John Armstrong of North Carolina, Jesse Emerson, Andrew Cudgel, James 
Knowles, Elisha Marvel, Samuel Barr. Thomas Sharp, Joshua Nichols, Will- 
iam Leach and Thomas Stone. 
 
These pioneers cultivated Indian corn in small patches, relying at first 
mostly on the game of the surrounding forest. The red man was hostile and 
they were compelled to be ever on guard. Old Red Banks, of Henderson, 
Kentucky, was the nearest location of a grist-mill where they could get their 
corn ground, and their supply of salt came from the saline wells in southern 
Illinois, to which place a trip was usually made once each year, and they paid 
two dollars and five cents per bushel for the salt. In 1811, when the Indian 
trouble appeared at its worst, a stockade was built on Thomas Montgomery's 
place south of Owensville, and here the families gathered for protection. 
After the battle of Tippecanoe the soldiers returned and took up their various 
pursuits. About 1812 other settlers began to pour into the township, among 
them being Charles Jones, Sr., James Fitzgerald, Roland B. Richards, Alfred 
Richards, Samuel Blythe, Absalom Boren, William Rutledge and the Simp- 
sons. The first family of Maucks came in 1821, and Samuel Kirkpatrick 
in 1821 also. 
 
Montgomery township milling was mostly done by horse mills. Jesse 
Kimball, James Montgomery, Thomas Johnson and Jacob Mowry were own- 
ers of some of these early mills. Distilling whiskey was another favorite 
occupation of the farmer. John Hunter was the first blacksmith ; the earliest 
resident physician was Charles Fullerton, and soon after came Willis Smith. 
The first school was taught by Joseph Dunlap in 1808. John Wasson, Rob- 
ert Frazier, Major James Smith, William McCollum and John Simpson were 
others of the first pedagogues

 

From the History of Gibson County by  Gil R. Stormont (1914) B.F. Bowen & Co, pp. 341-


  

Patoka Township

 

Patoka township was organized at the first session of the common pleas 
court, held at the house of Judge William Harrington, on May l0, 1813, the 
house being located in the southwest quarter of section 11, township 2, range 
11, a mile and a half southwest of the present court house. Since that time, 
however, the boundaries of the township have been repeatedly changed. It 
is now bounded on the north by White river and Washington townships, east 
by Center and Barton, south by Union, and west by Montgomery. The land 
is drained by the Patoka river and its tributaries in the north. Snake run and 
Pigeon creek in the southeast, and Central and Muddy creek in the south. 
Originally the surface of Patoka township was thickly covered with timber, 
but this has been nearly all cleared off and the land made into rich and pro- 
ductive farms. The surface is for the most part undulating. but in the north 
and east portions, and approaching the stream, the ground becomes very 
rugged and knobby. 
 
Two miles north of Princeton is Bald hill, which rises to an elevation 
of one hundred and thirty feet above the town and two hundred and twenty 
feet above the Wabash river. Mound Builders are probably responsible for 
the rounded top, as there are other evidences of this prehistoric race in this 
part of the state. Considerable bottom land ranges through the western part 
of the township, and Sand ridge passes through the southwestern part. This 
land is very valuable for agriculture. 
 
EARLY SETTLEMENTS. 
 
With the opening of the nineteenth century settlements began to be made 
in Gibson county. John Severns had settled near the south bank of the 
Patoka river, at Severns' bridge even before the opening of the century. 
He was undoubtedly the first man to live in Gibson county. In 1798 John 
Johnson, a native of Virginia, came to this county in 1802, by way of Ken- 
tucky, accompanied by his family. The old soldier, Capt. William Hargrove, 
was the next settler of any note. He was a native of North Carolina and 
emigrated to this section in the year 1803. He was afterward an officer in 
the battle of Tippecanoe, In 1805 James McClure and his brother-in-law, 
Isaac Montgomery, came 'to this county. The person of Gen. Robert M. 
Evans is one of the most prominent of early Gibson history. He was born 
in Virginia. He came to the county in 1811, and immediately afterward 
joined Harrison's army and participated in the campaign against the Indians, 
including the battles of Tippecanoe and the Thames. He afterward lilled 
many important official positions in this county. His brothers, James, Alex- 
ander Lyle and Thomas Jefferson, moved here in 1810. James Wheeler, 
William Latham, William Harrington, Robert Archer, Capt. Henry Hop- 
kins, Joseph Woods, Daniel Putnam, Rev. Alexander Devin, a Baptist min- 
ister, John Braselton, Stephen Strickland, John Clements, Eli Strain, 
Chauncey Pierce, John C. Fisher, William Barker were others among the 
early settlers, and many of them lived to distinction in the growing com- 
munity. 
 
Tecumseh's conspiracy created a great amount of excitement in the 
county during the time of his depredations. In the summer of 1810 the 
Indian forces were being organized at the Prophet's town, and the settlers 
were on edge, prepared to fight the hostiles at a moment's notice. Rude forts 
or stockades were constructed, three of them in Patoka township. Fort 
Branch, Fort Hopkins, and one at William Harrington's, on the old Mc- 
Curdy place. 
 
In November, 1811, Joshua Embree came from Kentucky. The Stor- 
monts and other prominent families arrived in 1812. Mrs. Nancy Stormont, 
widow of David Stormont, who emigrated from Ireland, and settled in South 
Carolina before the Revolution, came to this county with her mother, Mrs. 
Mary Boyd, and a large family. They located about two and one-half miles 
northwest of Princeton. James Kirkman came in 1813. Other leading 
families afterward came, and the township has seen a steady growth ever 
since. 
 
The first schools were taught about 1810 in small log cabins. Adley 
Donald, David Buck, Maj. James Smith, Ira Bostwick and John Kell were 
a few of the earliest teachers. 
 

 

From the History of Gibson County by  Gil R. Stormont (1914) B.F. Bowen & Co., pp. 339-41

 

  

Union Township

 

Union is the last civil township to he formed in Gihson county. Until 
1890 it was a part of Johnson and Patoka townships, but at the commis- 
sioners' meeting in May, 1890, the separation took place, and since then it has 
been a separate sub-division of the county. For a detailed description ofi the 
act forming this township, with its boundaries, the reader is referred in to the 
chapter on County Government, in this volume. 
 
Its history from the pioneer settlement to the year 1890 has been treated 
and fully covered in the township history of Johnson township, hence will 
not here be gone over, at any length. Suffice to say that it contains about 
fifty-one sections, with the town of Fort Branch about in its geographical 
center. It is surrounded liy the townships of Johnson. Montgomery, Patoka, 
Center and Barton. 
 
In 1900 Union township had a population of two thousand one hundred 
and forty-nine and in the census taken in 1910 it showed a population of two 
thousand five hundred and seven. 
 
Its surface is somewhat broken, but contains the average number of 
excellent farms and prosperous agriculturists. The valleys are rich and very 
productive and the native timber is still found sufficient for all present needs. 
 
The schools and churches in this portion of Gibson county have already 
been noted under separate chapter heads. The only town within the terri- 
tory is Fort Branch, a place of more than ordinary early historic interest. 
This shows that the first settlement in this part of Gibson county was ef- 
fected in what is now Union township, and its details have been narrated 
somewhat in the history of that township which contained a portion of 
Union. 

 

From the History of Gibson County by  Gil R. Stormont (1914) B.F. Bowen & Co., pp.  352

 

 

Wabash Township

In the extreme southwestern portion of Gibson county is found Wabash 
township, named from the famous, historic river whose waters wash its 
entire north and western borders. There are two series of elevations, com- 
monly known as the "Upper Hills" and "Lower Hills": there are also in 
different parts of this township Indian mounds. The scenery in this town- 
ship in many places is indeed charming. In the early days, in the mid- 
summer months, when the waters were low, numerous herds of deer and 
other animals were attracted hither to feed and the Indians also sought this 
locality as among the excellent hunting grounds of the Wabash valley. Dur- 
ing the years between 1800 and 1815 a few of the half-breed trappers from 
the post at Vincennes resorted to the streams and bayous of this section to 
set their beaver traps, which animals then abounded in large numbers. 
Wabash was originally covered with a dense forest, consisting of the several 
kinds of elm, maple, oak, poplar, linden, walnut, hickory, pecan, wild cherry 
and other varieties of forest growth. The farms and clearings made hard 
toil on the part of the early pioneer. 
 
There is a large bayou extending diagonally across the township from 
northeast to southwest. This forms a basin for the surplus waters of the 
Wabash river and has its source in that river. There are also several small 
lakes or rather ponds here, among which are Goose. Fish, Foot's, Grassy, 
Brushy, Grindle and Otter Pond. The larger bayou passing through the 
township is known as the "Big Bayou." 
 
ORGANIZATION. 
 
Wabash township was formed by the wishes of the inhabitants as set 
forth in a petition and presented to the county commissioners at their Novem- 
ber term, 1838. Prior to that date it formed a part of Montgomery town- 
ship. The first election of the new township was held at the house of Joshua 
Jordon, on the first Monday of April, 1839. The election was for the pur- 
pose of electing two justices of the peace. The first settler here was Daniel 
Williams and family, consisting of wife and nine children. He located here 
in the summer of 1813 on a portion of the farm which afterwards was 
owned by Moses Lamar. Williams was from North Carolina originally, but 
moved to Tennessee, and from there to Gibson county. After arriving here 
he cleared a small tract of land and built him a small pole shanty. The 
locality being infested with Buffalo gnats, which were troublesome, as well 
as dangerous to what little live stock he owned, he therefore, after remaining 
here a few months, decided to pull up and leave for unknown parts. 
 
The second settlers to arrive were James Barnett and family, who came 
in the autumn of 1815. They were Kentuckians. He built the second log 
house. It was an improvement over the first cabin, as it possessed a clap- 
board door and clay-and-stick chimney. The next settlers were John Thomp- 
son and A. J. Cooper and their families. John Thompson was possessed of 
more than ordinary enterprise and of some intelligence. He was a justice 
of the peace while Wabash formed a part of Montgomery township, and was 
the first justice in the territory now embraced in what is Wabash township. 
Among other early pioneers were Jacob Carabaugh, R. Jordon, James 
Crowley, J. Tweedle and Thomas Barnett. The first farm to be really well 
improved was made by Jordon. Young Lamar was one of the prominent 
early settlers and near his residence was erected a very small log school house, 
generally styled as the Lamar school house. It was there William Cash 
taught the first school in Wabash township to about twenty of the children of 
the settlement. The first preacher to visit this section was Rev. Peter Sals- 
man, who preached at the house of Mr. Lamar in 1820, and occasionally after 
that in the school house. 
 
The early physician who resided here was Dr. Jesse Fuget. A murder 
was committed at a dance, or a "frolic," as then called, at the home of Pres- 
ley Garret, where William Lance, a guest, killed one Watson. The murderer 
was convicted and sent to the penitentiary for nine years. 
 
One of the best improvements in the township years ago was the build- 
ing of a bridge across the Big Bayou, near the dividing line between the farm 
of John W. Robb and William J. Jordon. This bridge was long known in 
the western part of the county as the "Red Bridge," so called for its coat of 
red paint. This was well built and was covered its entire length. 
 
If it were not for the floods of the Wabash, this township would be the 
garden spot of the whole county, for its soil is like that of the Nile itself. 
But from early days there have been from two to six floods annually, and this 
kept the actual improvement back many decades. But in later years differ- 
ent methods have come to obtain and much of the swampy land has been 
tile drained and, with proper care and a fair season (not too many rains), 
the township produces a hundred bushels of grain per acre. 
 
In 1910 the township had a population of nine hundred and fifty-one, 
somewhat of a decrease from the census of 1900. The schools and churches 
are mentioned in the chapters on such subjects. There are no towns and 
villages within Wabash township. Much of the trading is done at Owensville. 

 

From the History of Gibson County by  Gil R. Stormont (1914) B.F. Bowen & Co., pp. 381-4

 

 

  

Washington Township

 

Tills township was named after the first president of the United States 
and is located in the northeastern part of the county. Originally covered 
with dense timber, the land today is very rough and broken. However, the 
soil is productive, especially in the bottom lands. White and Patoka rivers, 
Yellow, Engine, Pond, Goose, Sand branch and other tributaries afford ex- 
cellent drainage. The township is bounded on the north by Pike county and 
White river, east by Pike county, south by Center and Patoka, and west by 
White river and township. Another descriptive location is by portions of 
township 1south, range 9, township 1 south. range 10, and township 1 north, 
range 10. 
 
The Decker brothers, Joseph, Jacob and Luke, first came to this town- 
ship in 1800 and built a ferry across White river at a point where Buena 
Vista stood. In the May term, 1813, the Gibson county commissioners' court 
ordered a road opened from Decker's ferry to Severns' ferry on the Patoka 
river, this being the first one opened by this court. 
 
One of the next settlers was Nathaniel West, also in 1800. Then came 
Abraham Decker from Kentucky, Robert Falls, W. G. Collins, Mrs. Betsey 
Milburn, Thomas Gardner of South Carolina, Thomas Sullivan of Ireland, 
John Stookey and John I. Neely. The first sermons in the township were 
preached by Joseph Milburn, a Baptist minister, and the first church was 
built on military donation No. 77, the building made of logs and without any 
floor. The first resident physician of Washington township was Dr. Joseph 
Davidson; Richard Garner was the first blacksmith, and the first justices, in 
order, were William Phillips. Jonathan Gulick, Robert Kirk and John Gulick. 
The first death was of a man named McCoy, who died on a keel-boat. The 
first postoffice in the township was established at Buena Vista and was called 
"West Buena Vista." John Cunningham was postmaster. Other offices 
were located at Kirksville, later Wheeling, and one between Hazleton and 
Petersburg in Pike countv, but all have been abandoned. John Claypool 
opened a store at Decker's ferry in 1816. and this was the first in the town- 
ship. 
 
Until 1824 the territory of what is now Washington township formed a 
part of White River township. In August of the latter year the board of 
county commissioners laid off the boundaries of Washington township and 
organized the same.   Again, in 1837, the boundaries were enlarged by add- 
ing a part of White River township to it. 
 
The manufacturing in this township has been very light. Lucian Dunn- 
ing had a wagon factory in 1870, and there were several small mills, quarries 
and various trades. 
 
The population of this township in 1910 was one thousand five hundred 
and forty-six, it having lost, as it is found that in 1900 it had a population of 
one thousand nine hundred and four. There are no towns or villages in this 
township. 
 
An amusing incident of early days here will be found in the following 
lines: "William Phillips was the township's first justice of the peace. Jack 
Chambers, a local preacher, had rendered service to the people of the town- 
ship, as spiritual adviser, for which he was to have been paid in coon skins 
and other peltry, each subscriber agreeing to pay in so many skins. His 
parishioners, as he thought, were slow to pay him, and he brought suit before 
Esquire Phillips on his subscription list against all, and had service on each 
and every delinquent to appear and answer to the demands of the plaintiff, 
Jack Chambers. Pursuant to notice, court had convened, the parties, plain- 
tiff and defendants were present, the plaintiff claiming satisfaction by means 
of judgment on his subscription paper, when one Mulholland, who was acting 
as agent or attorney for the defendants, walked into court loaded down with 
the stipulated furs' and skins, and, to the surprise of the holy man, made 
tender of them in full satisfaction of the plaintiff's claims. The case ended 
in a general laugh, and pleasantness prevailed, all being satisfied with the prac- 
tical joke." 
 
There was a stone quarry near the Patoka river, where stone had been 
taken out and sent by flat-boat down the river from Kirksville, now knpwn 
as Wheeling. This place at one time was quite a business center, having a 
large flouring-mill, stores, blacksmith shops, post office, etc. It is situated 
on section 19, on the northeast branch of the Patoka river. It was located 
too far from the Evansville & Terre Haute railroad to help it much, and so 
close as to materially injure its chances for success. Its flouring-mill was 
burned in time, and from its loss and railroad influences the town has gone 
to ruin and decay, nothing of note remaining to mark the spot where once 
much business was transacted. 
 
This township is a triangular shaped, though rough edged, territory, 
the northeastern point of one of the most irregular counties in all Indiana. 

 From the History of Gibson County by  Gil R. Stormont (1914) B.F. Bowen & Co., pp.  377-81

 

 

White River Township

This township is in the northern portion of the county, and when first 
organized contained all that part of the county north of the Patoka river. 
The present boundaries of the township are ; on the north by White river, 
on the east by Washington township, on the south by Patoka and Montgom- 
ery townships and on the west by the Wabash and White rivers. The land, 
although broken in places, is very suitable for agriculture, all varieties of 
grain being raised in full quantities. The Wabash, White and Patoka rivers 
both drain and water the land throughout. Heavy timber originally covered 
the township, but agriculture has compelled the clearing of nearly all of it. 
 
The advantage of river operation caused several grist-mills and saw- 
mills to be built here in early times. The logs were floated to these mills 
from other parts of the township and county, and the lumber afterward 
loaded on flat boats and shipped down to Southern ports. Other mills were 
in the interior of the township The water in these rivers was at times very 
sluggish, and consequently frequent malarial trouble occurred among the 
settlers. In 1813 and 1814 there was a pestilence known as the "black 
plague," which resulted disastrously for the people of this portion of the 
county. It was equal to the cholera in its fatality. Wild game was plentiful 
in this portion and bears, panthers, wolves, wild cats, elk, deer and wild 
turkey were all hunted by the frontiersmen. Fish in the streams was a source 
of much of the meat supply. Potter's clay was found and was a source of 
great profit in early times. 
 
The first grist-mill constructed in White River township was of round 
logs and was built by Keen Fields. It was run by horse power and was pro- 
vided with one set of burrs. Each customer furnished his own power 
during those days and provided his own bolt. The first style of bolt was a 
box-shaped invention, with straight handle and wire bottom, and was termed 
a "sarch." The ground grist was placed in this sarch and was pushed by hand 
back and forth across the top of an open trough, a hollowed log. which held 
the flour after being sifted out. 
 
The town of Smithfield, now Patoka, probably had the first church and 
cemetery. The "Forty-Gallon Baptists" held meetings here in log houses. 
John Severns, Sr., was one of the first settlers in this township, and was fol- 
lowed by such men as Gervas Hazelton, Keen Fields, Major David Robb, 
James Robb, Abraham Spain, B. K. Ashcraft, Joseph Milburn, John Mil- 
burn, David Milburn, Robert and William Milburn, Robert Mosely, Abra- 
ham Bruner, Patrick Payne, Charles Routt, the Gordons, John Adams, Joseph 
Adams, Samuel Adams, James Crow, Sr. and Jr., Andrew Cunningham, 
William Price, Eli Hawkins, Jonathan Gulick, John W. Grisam, Simon and 
Thomas Key, Thomas H. Martin, Armstead Bennett, William Hardy, Fred- 
erick Bruner, John Hyndman, William French, James Sproule, Robert and 
William Philips, Robert and Stephen Falls, C. and Joseph Hudspeth, John 
Robinson, James Favis, James Skidmore, Andrew Harvey, William Maxi- 
dent, Stephen Lewis, Edmund Hogan. 
 
Severns' ferry on the Patoka river was the first in the township. The 
second was on White river, where Hazelton is now located, and was called 
the Hazelton ferry. The first bridge in White River township was built in 
1813 by Edward Hogan and Thomas Neely. It was a toll bridge, built of 
logs. 
 
Azariah Ayres was the first blacksmith; John and Joseph Adams were 
the first merchants. Distilleries were scattered around on most of the farms. 
It was an universal custom among the settlers to manufacture apple and peach brandy. 
 
"The portion of the land near Patoka was divided by the general gov- 
ernment into Militia Donations, locations and surveys. These surveys were 
made between the years 1794 and 1802. Buckingham, a surveyor in 1804, 
in his field notes running certain boundaries, states that the blazes and marls 
on the trees indicated that the last locations were made about two years pre- 
viously. These donations were originally made to a company of one hundred 
and twenty-eight militiamen, of a hundred acres each to a man and were laid 
off in lots of a hundred acres. These lands were given for services rendered 
in the Indian wars. The persons who received the warrants were allowed to 
either locate or dispose of the same. 
 
"Patoka being the oldest town in the county, was, as a matter of course, 
first in everything pertaining to the needs and requirements of an advancing 
civilization, such as schools, churches, mills, etc. The first grist-mill was 
erected near Patoka by Keen Fields. The first school house in Gibson county 
was built in Patoka in 1815 and for several years was used as a house of 
worship. The first minister to preach there was Rev. Thomas Martin, of the 
Baptist faith, and it is claimed by one writer that he was the first in the 
county. The first two-story log house in this county was built in Patoka by 
James Robb. The first merchant was John Smith, in whose honor the tow n 
was first known as Smithville. Patoka was incorporated in the early nineties. 
 
"It was David Robb, of Patoka. who organized a company of soldiers 
and participated in the famous battle of Tippecanoe. His volunteers com- 
prised a number of Patoka merchants." 

 From the History of Gibson County by  Gil R. Stormont (1914) B.F. Bowen & Co., pp.  371-5