PREFACE. ACCORDING to promise, we pen the following sketch of the past and present history of Henry county. Although the facts and items of information that we have collected are limited and hurriedly compiled, yet we hope that they will give satisfaction to our patrons, and help to preserve the memory of the old pioneer settlers, who withstood the privations and hardships of a pioneer life in the first settling of this county, whose memory should be retained in the minds and hearts of this people. The majority of the first settlers have long since passed off this stage of action, and now there are but few left as monuments of the past; some of whom it has been our privilege to question in regard to the first settlement of this county, and to whom we return our thanks for the information that we have received from them. We also feel ourselves under many obligations to the present clever county officials, through whose kindness and assistance we were permitted to make an examination of the records, from which we have obtained many of the facts which are to be found in the following pages. We also feel ourselves indebted to Elwood Please, the author of a History of Henry county, for information received from said history; and, by the way, said history is from the pen of an able and worthy writer, finished in good style, devoted en tirely to the history of the county, and should be in the hands of every citizen. And to the citizens of the county in general we return our thanks for the social manner in which they received our canvassers, and for their liberal patronage for this book, hoping that it may give them satisfaction and prove worthy of their patronage. HISTORICAL SKETCH OF HENRY COUNTY. In the year 1821 the Legislature of the State of Indiana described the boundaries, named the county, and declared it to be from and after the 21st day of June, 1821, a separate and independent county, subject only to the State of Indiana. They gave it the name of Henry, in honor of one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence-a patriot and statesman— PATRICK HENRY. Henry county is near the east line of the State, not far from the center from north to south, and is bounded as follows: On the east by Randolph and Wayne counties; on the south by Fayette and Rush; on the west by Hancock and Madison, and on the north by Delaware; and contains about three hundred and ninety square miles, or two hundred and forty-nine thousand six hundred acres of land (249,600), and is watered by Blue River, Duck Creek, Flatrock Creek, Sugar Creek, Stony Creek, Fall Creek, and many other small streams and spring branches. This county being so well supplied with stock water, in connection with its great amount of fine rolling farming lands, has made this a great resort for the stock raiser and model farmer. The surface of most parts of this county is rolling, with a few small breaks along the streams; yet there is but very little waste land in the county but what can be cultivated or made profitable for grazing. The soil of this county, with very little exception, is |