HISTORY OF CLAY COUNTY  515

from whence they later came to Clay county and farmed in Posey town-
ship. Her father, Franklin Lewis Hirt, was one of the early pioneers of
the county. Mr. and Mrs. Howald became the parents of twelve children,
namely: William, Franklin, Alfred, Charles (deceased), Jacob, John,
Flora, Elizabeth and May (twins), Peter, George and Sally. Mr.
Howald, the father, gave his political support to the Democratic party,
and was a member of the German Reformed church.. Farming was his
life occupation, and he died at the age of seventy-four years.
    In the district schools of Posey township Alfred Howald gained his
educational training, and on the 31st of December, 1893, he was mar-
ried to Mary S. Deardorf, the daughter of Gustav Deardorf, a deceased
pioneer farmer of Jackson township. He was born in Tuscarawas county,
Ohio, April 12, 1845, and coming to Clay county when a young man he
farmed on eighty acres of land with his father, Peter Deardorf, the latter
having cleared and improved his land, and later added to the boundaries
of his farm. Gustav was the fifth of his eight children, and he was mar-
ried in Jackson township to Margaret Sieglin, who was brought from
her native land of Germany to America when but six years of age. Mr.
and Mrs. Deardorf cast their lot with the early pioneers of Jackson town-
ship, Clay county, Indiana, clearing forty acres and later buying forty
acres more. In their family were five children, all born in Jackson town-
ship, John Michael (deceased), Mary S., Emma J., George W. and Carry
Ellen. Mr. Deardorf gave his political support to the Democratic party,
and was a member of the German Reformed church.
    Mr. and Mrs. Howald took up their abode on their present home-
stead January 15, 1894, where they own one hundred and forty acres, all
under an excellent state of cultivation. They have four children, namely:
Gustave Franklin, Lydia Pearl, Margaret Ellen and Mary Emma, all of
whom were horn in the present family home. Mr. Howald supports the
principles of the Democratic party, and is a member of the German
Reformed church.

    MATTHEW WILSON NANCE.—Numbered among the native-born resi-
dents of Clay county is Matthew Wilson Nance, who is one of the most
thrifty and prosperous farmers of Dick Johnson township, and possesses
in a marked degree those principles which constitute him an honest man
and a good citizen. A son of Joseph Nance, he was born, July 20, 1849,
on the homestead where he now resides, of pioneer ancestry.
    William Nance, Mr. Nance’s grandfather, was born in Iredell county,
North Carolina, of French ancestry. In 1826 he moved from his native
place to Ohio, but not pleased with his future prospects in that part of
the county soon continued his journey westward to Greencastle, Putnam
county, Indiana. Taking up land, he cleared a farm in true pioneer style,
and lived there until 1843. Coming in that year to Clay county, he
secured a tract of land that was still in its original wildness, and com-
menced to clear it. He did not finish its clearing, however, having received
injuries from which he never recovered, but continued his residence here
until his death. He married Elizabeth Culver, who was born in North
Carolina, and died, in 1859, on the Indiana homestead, in Clay county.
Nine children were born of their union, as follows: Joseph and James,
twins: Adam; Henry; Webster; Amelia; Jane; Lydia; and Ruth.
    Born in Iredell county, North Carolina, November 30, 1819, Joseph
Nance was a little boy when he left his birthplace, and with his parents