Carroll County IN Archives Biographies.....Beard, Eli 1835 - ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/in/infiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com March 21, 2006, 3:44 am Author: John C. Odell (1916) ELI BEARD. Representing one of the oldest and best-known families of Clay township, and a man of enterprising spirit and sterling worth, the venerable Eli Beard is well entitled to notice among the substantial farmers of Carroll county. He has lived a long and useful life in this county, having been brought here when an infant by his parents. Eli Beard is a native of Darke county, Ohio, born on June 7, 1835. His parents were John and Sophia (Moore) Beard, who moved to Carroll county in 1835 and settled south of Pyrmont, in Clay township. They lived here for a short time, purchasing eighty acres of land from Mr. Murphy and eighty acres from Mr. Wagoner. A part of this land has been in the possession of the Beard family ever since. John and Sophia (Moore) Beard had nine children, namely: John M. is deceased; Permilla married John Welder, and both are deceased; Sarah was the wife of William Nice, but both are deceased; Mary Jane, who married Mr. Mooney, is deceased, as is her husband; Rachel and her husband, who was Mr. St John, are deceased; Jermina and her husband, who was Mr. Bates, are also deceased; William is deceased; Alexander lives in Oklahoma, and Eli is the subject of this sketch. John Beard, the father of these children, was a farmer and passed away in the prime of life. His wife, however, lived to a ripe old age and died in Texas. Eli Beard received only a common-school education in the public schools of Clay township. He lived at home with his parents until October 4, 1857, when he was married to Mary Jane Hughes, a daughter of John and Elizabeth Hughes, the former of whom was born in Adams county, Ohio, and the latter in Carroll county, Indiana. John Hughes was the son of William Hughes, a native of Ohio, who served in the War of 1812. The family came to Carroll county at a very early date, when the county was still wild, the journey from Ohio to Indiana being made on horseback. William Hughes lived to become a very old man, dying at the age of past ninety years, near Delphi. John Hughes was a stanch Democrat. By his marriage to Elizabeth Rowabaugh there were born three children, namely: Mrs. Eli Beard; John Wesley Hughes, who died in infancy, and William H., who lives in Clay township. Eli died in August, 1914. The mother of these children died in 1843, and after ner death, John Hughes married Eliza Bngher, who bore him several children as follow: Newton, George, Martin, Isabelle, Levina (deceased), Snyethance, Ida, Tabitha and John J. (deceased). Mrs. Mary Jane (Hughes) Beard was born on April 25, 1837, at Delphi, Indiana. To Mr. and Mrs. Eli Beard have been born seven children, four of whom are living: Sophia is the wife of Joseph Bohm, of Flora, Indiana; John L. lives in Ockley; Minerva died at the age of three years; Edward T. is a farmer of Tippecanoe county and served as county recorder in Carroll county for eight years, being at the time a resident of Clay township, but later removing to Tippecanoe county; Russell died at the age of twenty-five years, being a school teacher by profession; David O. is a resident of Indianapolis; Florence married Jacob McManus and died on March 20, 1905. Eli Beard owns two hundred acres of well-improved land, which includes the farm upon which he was reared. He has lived in Clay township continuously since he was brought to the county in 1835, at which time he was only six months old. The house in which Mr. Beard and his family lived was erected in 1861 by himself. Since 1901 Mr. Beard has lived retired. Fraternally, Eli Beard is a member of Mount Olive Lodge No. 48, Free and Accepted Masons at Delphi. He is a stanch Democrat and has been more or less active in politics all his life, although he has never filled office. Mr. and Mrs. Beard spent two winters in California and the last three winters in Florida. Additional Comments: Extracted from: Biographical Section of HISTORY OF CARROLL COUNTY INDIANA ITS PEOPLE, INDUSTRIES AND INSTITUTIONS BY JOHN C ODELL With Biographical Sketches of Representative Citizens and Genealogical Records of Many of the Old Families ILLUSTRATED 1916 B. F. BOWEN & COMPANY, Inc. Indianapolis, Indiana File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/in/carroll/bios/beard169nbs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.net/infiles/ File size: 4.7 Kb