The Vidette-Messenger Centennial EditionThe 1936 special edition celebrating Porter County's centennial year . . . .
The following article has been transcribed from the August 18, 1936, issue of The Vidette-Messenger, published in Valparaiso, Indiana. This particular special edition focuses on Porter County's centennial celebration and contains a 94-page compendium of Porter County history up to that time.
Return to the index of articles from The Vidette-Messenger's Porter County Centennial special edition.
Source: The Vidette-Messenger, Valparaiso,
Porter County, Indiana; August 18, 1936; Volume 10, Section 4, Page 24.
Reminiscenses of W. W. Huntington
My Grandfather
Benjamin and his family came from Monticello, New York state, to Valparaiso in
1852. They took the boat at Buffalo, destined in time to reach Michigan City,
with all their earthly goods. When they reached the above named port all their
possessions other than the clothes on their backs had disappeared. Their first
stop in Porter county was the Malone Settlement. From there my father, Benjamin
Franklin Huntington, returned to New York and married my mother, Lucinda Kyle.
My recollections of my father are few. At the outbreak of the civil war, he
enlisted at LaPorte under Col. I. C. B. Suman in the Bloody 9th Indiana Infantry
and was killed at the Battle of Buffalo Mountains, West Virginia, during the
first three months of service. I remember admiring the brass buttons on his
uniform when he returned from the enlistment.
My father built a shack in the heart of the woods near Talbot's Corners and set
up a shingle machine near a pond there. Blocks of wood, the depth of shingles,
sawed from the logs of trees felled there, were soaked in the pond; then the
singles were shaved off by the machine. Ed Green of Porter Cross Roads traded
eighty acres of land for enough shingles to cover every building on his place.
Many of these shingles were black walnut. This Ed Green was quite a character.
In front of his place he erected a huge bronze serpent. Like Moses in the
wilderness he wished to warn passers by to repent for their sins.
A few years after my father's death my mother married Abel Isham, who had a book
store on the site where the Vail Jewelry store now stands. Mr. Vail put his
first stock of jewelry in one of Mr. Isham's window. Mr. Isham was a devout
Presbyterian. He and Mr. Morgan Crosby saw that the walks and steps of the
Presbyterian church just back of the store were shoveled off for Sunday Service
in Winter and looked after the weeds in summer. My stepfather was fond of music
and told me of an old organ he had enjoyed at Hartford, Conn.
It was due to a business deal that my desire to be a musician was gratified. A
man who owned Mr. Isham a large sum of money left town between two day with such
of his possessions as he could move. He wrote later to his creditors that he had
left a Prince Melodeon in the house where he had lived to which my stepfather
was welcome; he could offer nothing more. This melodeon, now in the historical
collection at the public library, was brought to our home. Afterward Miss
Virginia Hammel, who lived where the Woman's Club House was later erected,
offered to give me lessons in exchange for the rent of the melodeon. The family
were invited over to hear me play my first hymn, "I want to be an angel and with
the angels stand, a crown upon my forehead, a harp within my hand." My parents
were sufficiently impressed to continue my music lessons. Successfully I played
for the Presbyterian congregation the melodeon, now in the possession of Miss
Mabel Benney, the small reed organ still in the church, the big reed organ, and
the fine pipe organ now in use. I played at the dedication of the church in
1885. For twelve years I played the pipe organ in the Christian church.
During the pastorate of Rev. S. N. Wilson, we had a splendid choir. Dr. Evans,
Mrs. M. E. Bogarte, Mrs. Jennie Thatcher Beach, Mrs. Hartie Herr, Miss Maud
Benney, Miss Carrie Letherman, W. F. Wilson and W. W. Hinshaw were among the
members. Once a month we gave a Sunday evening concert, which people from all
over the countryside attended. We also gave several operettas. I have a picture
of myself as skipper in the "Wreck of the Hesperus."
It might be of interest to mention that the Prince Melodeon was traded to a Mrs.
Mitchell for a family Bible. This was after we had acquired a square piano. Mrs.
Mitchell's daughter, Mrs. Sydney Rigg, gave the melodeon to the historical
society when she moved to Chicago.
In 1879, I married Miss Lilian Parks and we built a house just east of the old
homestead. Here we lived with the three daughters and two sons born to us. Here
in 1929 we celebrated our golden wedding. Since Mrs. Huntington's death I have
lived on alone, but still interested in music and every good project in my home
town.
Article transcribed by Steven R. Shook