Howard County IN Archives Biographies.....Lindley, Joseph M. 1857 - ************************************************ 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 April 5, 2006, 10:24 pm Author: Jackson Morrow JOSEPH M. LINDLEY. Among the enterprising, progressive and public-spirited men whose activity in business and private circles as well as public affairs has made Howard county one of the thriving counties of Indiana and the city in which he resides an important center of commerce and industry is the subject of this brief review, who is at present holding the responsible office of sheriff of his county and who is regarded as one of the most influential men of Kokomo. Joseph M. Lindley was born in Liberty township, November 9, 1857, the son of James and Rebecca (Hobson) Lindley, both natives of Henry county, this state, who settled in Howard county about 1850 on a farm where Joseph, our subject, was born, and where they successfully farmed until they removed to another farm in Liberty township, known as the Collins Willits farm. Later he moved to a farm half a mile west of Greentown, where he spent the remainder of his life, dying when our subject was four years old and leaving a widow with seven children, Joseph being the youngest and Jesse O. the oldest. The children were able to care for the farm for a time until the widow moved successively to Solomon, Parsons and Fairmount, Indiana, but later returned to the farm and moved the family to Fremont county, Iowa, when the subject was twelve years old. She later removed to Red Cloud, Nebraska, where she was called from her earthly labors. The parents of the subject were people of sterling qualities and made every effort to rear their children in the paths of rectitude. After the death of the subject's mother Joseph and his youngest sister, Nancy Elizabeth, returned to Howard county. She is now the wife of William Johnson, of Kokomo. Joseph was then eighteen years old, and he has since spent his life in his native county, following farming as a life work. He worked for Collins Willets on his father's old farm until he was married at the age of twenty years to Frances Fry, daughter of Noah Fry, of Liberty township. She was born in Henry county and. came to Howard county about the time Joseph Lindley went to Iowa. Mr. Lindley worked one year for his father-in-law. Then he rented land in Union township for five or six years, then bought a farm near Vermont, not far from the old Willits farm, buying the house which his father had built, removing it from the Willits farm to his own. His farm was small and he did considerable work for others in the neighborhood, finally selling the place to Mr. Fry and worked for the Clever Leaf Railroad Company as section boss of the Kokomo section that ran to Vermont. Mr. Lindley then removed to Kokomo after remaining with the road for one year. Then he went to contracting and digging open ditches. He secured some good jobs and made money at this undertaking, as indeed he did of whatever he turned his attention to. He continued contracting for eight or nine years, then worked for W. H. Higgins, superintendent of the gas company. The head office was in Chicago and Mr. Lindley had charge of a gang of men in Kokomo and was with the former when the first gas well was struck in that vicinity, and worked for that company for a period of ten years, until the gas grew weak, helping lay all the pipes around Kokomo, and while engaged in this work he made a wide acquaintance. The company opened a plumbing shop, with which the subject was connected for one year, when he went back to the gas fields, but returned to his shop in February, 1904, and became a candidate for sheriff. He was triumphantly elected, having become generally popular in that vicinity, and held the office for two years, giving entire satisfaction to all his constituents, consequently he was re-elected, his term expiring January 1, 1909. Mr. Lindley has been a Republican all his life and has been active in all campaigns for many years, being willing to give his time to the furtherance of his county's interests regardless of his personal ambitions, and has shown that he is a most capable public servant, being of a turn to win and hold friends, at the same time devoting his undivided attention to his work in a manner that elicits no unfavorable criticism, even from his political rivals. Mr. Lindley composed songs and sang his way into public office. He has a splendid bass voice. Mr. Lindley lives at the jail and everything about the place is kept scrupulously clean under his supervision. Mr. and Mrs. Lindley have the following children: Jesse O., a plumber; Charles, a plumber: Worley, also a plumber, all three living at Kokomo; Blanche, wife of William DeLon, of Logansport, Indiana. The subject is identified with the Red Men and takes an active interest in lodge work. He is well and favorably known in Howard county, for his life has been singularly free from all suspicion of evil doing or wrong of any kind and he has faithfully discharged his duties at all times. Additional Comments: From: HISTORY OF HOWARD COUNTY INDIANA BY JACKSON MORROW, B. A. ILLUSTRATED VOL. II B. F. BOWEN & COMPANY INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA (circa 1909) File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/in/howard/bios/lindley138bs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.poppet.org/infiles/ File size: 5.6 Kb