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The following has been abstracted primarily from the source: Counties
of Warren, Benton, Jasper and Newton, Indiana, Historical and
Biographical. Chicago : F. A. Battery & Co., Publishers,
1883. ORIGIN of NEWTON COUNTY'S NAME The name of the county was a revival of the name which originated in 1835. It seems that "The Story of Marion's Men" had just then bee published, or that the members of the Legislature especially influential in forming the new purchase into counties greatly admired the heroes of that American Revolutionary War narrative: Sergeant Newton and Sergeant Jasper. It appears that Sergeant Newton was a compatriot of Sergeant Jasper, and the two were often united in deeds of daring. One of these occasions is related as follows: "Like many families of that time, Jasper's was divided on the great question. His elder brother took the side of the English, and served in their army. Out of affection to his brother, and a wish to examine into the strength and condition of the enemy, he resolved, with another patriot soldier, Sergeant Newton, to pay the British a visit. His brother's position enabled him to receive his two friends without any suspicion of their being spies, and they were entertained for two or three days with great hospitality. "While they were thus engaged, a small party of Americans were brought in prisoners, and, as they had deserted from the British, and enlisted in the American ranks, their doom would have been death. This the brother of Jasper assured him was to be their fate. With them were the wife and child of one of the prisoners. Her distress at her husband's approaching fate touched the heart of Jasper. Confiding his purpose to his friend Newton, they bade adieu to Jasper's brother, and took their leave. They had no sooner got out of sight of the camp than they made a detour, and stretched across the country, so as to elude all suspicion should they meet with any British soldiers. "It was the custom of the English then to send all the prisoners taken in that quarter to Savannah for trial. At a little spring, two miles from Savannah, Jasper and Newton secreted themselves, awaiting the arrival of the British escort with their prisoners. It had occurred to Jasper that, as they must pass this spot, it was very probable they might rest here for a short time to refresh themselves, and the woody nature of the spot would favor a rescue. "After some hours' anxious suspense, they saw the escort, with their prisoners, approach; the guard was ten in number, and armed. The Corporal with four men conducted their captives to the water, and told them to rest themselves for an hour, at the same time giving them provisions. The guard then stacked their arms, and seated themselves. The prisoners threw themselves upon the earth in hopeless despair. Near to the wretched man sat his wife and child. Two of the guards alone kept their arms as sentries. As the rest of the men were filling their canteens with water, Jasper and Newton came stealthily from their ambush, seized two of the muskets that were stacked, shot the two sentries, and rushing upon the others, stunned them with the butts of their weapons. Deprived of their weapons, the others abandoned the conflict and fled." It was deeds such as this that made
each
man in Marion's band a hero. Appropriately, the adjoining
counties
of Jasper and Newton, so similar in size and shape, and so closely
related in their early history, were reportedly named for these two,
apparently fictional,
Revolutionary heroes, giving them a place in history. The early reputation of Newton County (or rather the western part of Jasper in yesteryear), in regard to its social as well as physical characteristics, was not one to invite great numbers of settlers. There were no railroads, no newspapers, and very few people until about 1860. As long as those characteristics remained prominent, the unsettled portions of other parts of the State secured the larger part of the westward emigration. About 1853, however, the tide began to change, and the prospects for the county began to improve. With the coming of the railroad, in 1860, however, the county's growth progressed at a decidely faster pace. The pioneers of Newton County came principally from Southeastern Indiana, but natives of Virginia, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Ohio also came to settle in the area. Succeeding years also brought settlers from other locations, such as: New York, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Illinois. Many of the early families had been pioneers in older settlements from which they came, or had grown up in frontier colonies which had been founded by their fathers. These had been trained, in the stern school of experience, to meet and conquer the difficulties inherent in settling a new country. Even so, there were certainly some unique experiences in this new place. When they arrived, the Iroquois River, with its fringe of timber, divided the vast open plain of grass and flowers into two divisions. North of the river the meadow stretched out to the marshes of the Kankakee and Beaver Lake; while to the south, the broad expanse of the "Grand Prairie," marked here and there by a stray clump of stunted trees, stretched, unbounded. The pioneers, with their little retinue of wagons, would have been lost in this luxurious wilderness much like canoes in mid-ocean. The first sight of this great prairie, in the height of its native beauty, might well have been described as "awesome" and "unforgettable." Each immigrant supplied his/her own means of travel to this new area. The pioneer from Pennsylvania or the Southern States, likely betrayed their nativity by arriving in the schooner-shaped wagon box, with the stiff tongue, back wheels double the size of the front ones and closely coupled together, and the whole drawn by a team of four or six horses which were guided by a single line in the hands of a teamster riding the "nigh wheeler." These would have harness of gigantic proportions, with massive leather breeching, heavy hames and collar, immense housing of bear-skin upon the hames, and heavy iron trace chains. Such an outfit might be described as sturdy, dependable and ready-for-the-worst. The Northeastern immigrant, from New York, may have indicated his origins with a long-coupled, low-boxed, two-orse wagon, provided with a seat from which, with double lines, the driver guided the lightly harnessed pair of horses. The latter outfits have been described as showing evidences of "the close calculation of means to an end, and an air of utility which left no room to doubt the purpose of the maker in every part of it." In this new community, where "the
richest
were poor and the poor lived in abundance," there was little chance for
growth of caste, and families for miles around were linked together as
one neighborhood, by the social customs of the time, and, in the spirit
of true democracy, valued
character and virtue over material wealth. The amusements of the
early
settlers included well-rewarded hunting and fishing, log cabin
raisings,
court opening with its jury duty, Saturday afternoon holidays with
scrub
horse races, wrestling matches, and so forth. It was a common
remark,
however, that a new country furnished an easy berth for men and oxen,
but
a hard one for women and horses. It was said that outside of
visiting
and camp meetings, the diversions in which women participated at that
early
date were very few. Husking and spinning bees, and "large"
weddings,
where the larger part of the night was spent in dancing, did not have
the
frequent occurrence here which was characteristic of the Eastern
States,
and little here seemed to offer any substitute. The fact that Newton and Jasper Counties were one during the early years of the former county's history, had an important bearing upon its development. That portion of the consolidated area which is now included in the limits of Jasper County took the leading place in public matters. It afforded the site of the county seat, it was more thickly settled, and had less marsh land and low, wet prairie than the territory of Newton County. This made a settlement in the eastern part of the old county in many respects more desirable, and had the effect of advancing the interests of that section, while proportionately slowing this. It is natural, therefore, to find all the early interests tending toward the common county seat at Rensselaer. The associations of the Indians had also been in the same direction. Their earlier trails led eastward along the river to Blue Grass, and then on to La Porte. The first lines of travel followed by the settlers were along these trails, until they became sure enough of their surroundings to locate lines independent of them. An early, if not the first, road through Newton County was from Buncombe, Illinois, to Rensselaer. Another was from Morocco to Rensselaer; a third led to Momence, Illinois, and then on to Chicago, while another led direct to Lafayette. Lafayette was the point at which early merchants got their goods, and these were brought on wagons over the thirty odd miles of tedious road that intervened. An early mail route ran between Logansport (Indiana), Rensselaer (Indiana) and Buncombe (Illinois), with an office at White Post, the residence of Zachariah SPITLER. This was maintained between the two latter places until 1864. In the fall of 1854, a post office was established at the town of Morocco, and a mail route allowed from there to Rensselaer on condition that it was to be sustained entirely by the citizens along the route. At the same time, or shortly after, a post office was established at Pilot Grove. The first Postmaster at Morocco was John ADE, who remained in office about three or four years. The first Postmaster at Pilot Grove was Stephen ELLETT, who was shortly afterward superseded by Mr. BRENNER. This state of things existed until about 1859, when the Government adopted the route and placed it under the same rules and provisions governing other mail routes. These lines of communication served the demands of the early community until the thicker settlements and the conflicting claims of various farm owners demanded a more complete system of roads. Then, the numerous local trails, from one neighbor to another, were made to give way to regularly established highways. The marshy character of the streams
and
the unfortunate character of the general conformation of the land made
roads and bridges an important and difficult subject. The streams
had changed from a rather slow current and fairly constant stage of
water, to a rapid rise and fall of water. The current, combined
with the unfavorable character
of the banks, tended to make bridging an expensive endeavor. By
1882,
there were reportedly 3 iron bridges, which had been constructed at a
cost
of over $20,000, and 4 wooden bridges, for a total of 7 bridges
spanning
the water-ways of Newton County. (The wooden bridges were swept
away
by the high water of the winter of 1882-83, but later replaced with
more
substantial structures.) Hopes of securing railroad facilities were entertained as early as 1852, but it was not until two years later that any definite plan was urged. About 1858, a line was projected from New London, Ohio, to Chicago. This passed through the usual changes incident to railroad organizations until 1857, when the lack of funds apparently ended that project. However, early in 1857, the people in Jasper and Newton counties were interested in the course the line should take from Fort Wayne, Indiana. Kankakee and Rensselaer were competitors, and the projectors of the road shrewdly kept the two laces straining their resources to outbid each other in the amount of contributions. In this contest, the people in the present area of Newton shared a common interest with those in Rensselaer, Rochester and Winamac, which made the struggle not altogether uneven. It was held in the first named town, as a self-evident truth, that if the road diverged to Kankakee, "Rensselaer would be killed dead as a mackerel," and the conviction was just as strong that Newton county would share the same general fate that would follow. |
| Lake Township | Lincoln Township |
| McClellan Township | Colfax Township |
| Beaver Township | Jackson Township |
| Washington Township | Iroquois Township |
| Jefferson Township | Grant Township |
Note from Kyle D. Conrad, Clerk Newton Circuit Court, dated
23 Feb 2000:
"Newton County is probably one of the only counties in Indiana NOT
to
experience a fire! Since we are Indiana's youngest county, formed
in
1860, we have our entire set of marriage, probate, and civil records
from
1860 to present. Prior to 1860, we were a part of Jasper County
and
their courthouse did burn sometime in the late 1800's, so many of those
records
were destroyed."
-Kyle D. Conrad, former Clerk
Former Newton Circuit Court
Also use the query form, at USGS, to map features including cemeteries, churches, populated places, and more. Please note that the map town listed with a feature may be used as a map reference for the site, and may not be the town where the feature is actually located...Select a map to see the location of the actual feature. This database may not be complete, and, as with any database, there may be errors.
Amish Cemetery: Located in Jackson Township, on CR 325 South between 200 E. and 300 E.
Beaver City Cemetery: Latitude:
405509N; Longitude:
0872443W.
Located in northeastern Washington Township, Newton County,
Indiana,
southeast of Morocco, in Beaver City.
Buswell Cemetery (AKA Mount Zion Cemetery): Latitude: 405016N; Longitude: 0872908W. Located in southern Washington Township, Newton County, Indiana, northwest from Kentland, on the north side of the Iroquois River, off CR 575 W, north of CR 1125 S and south of CR 1000 S.
Dorne Cemetery: Latitude:
404910N; Longitude:
0872930W
Located in southern Washington Township, Newton County, Indiana, northwest from Kentland, on the
north side of the Iroquois River, and south of CR 1200 S.
Fairlawn Cemetery: Latitude:
404508N; Longitude:
0872637W
Located in southern Jefferson
Township, Newton County, Indiana, just south from Kentland, on CR
1700 S, between Hwy. 41/52 and CR 400 W.
Goodland Cemetery:
Latitude: 404633N; Longitude:
0871715W
Located in southeastern Grant
Township,
Newton County, Indiana, in northeastern Goodland.
Kennedy Cemetery: Latitude: 405706N;
Longitude:
0872216W
Located in central Jackson
Township,
Newton County, Indiana, between Morocco and Mt. Ayr, on CR 100 E
between
Hwy. 114 and CR 300 S.
Lake Village Cemetery:
Latitude: 410838N; Longitude:
0872807W
Located in central Lake
Township, Newton County, Indiana, northwest of Lake Village, and
west of Hwy. 41.
Mount Calvary Cemetery: Latitude:
404624N; Longitude:
0871710W
Located in southeastern Grant
Township,
Newton County, Indiana, in northeastern Goodland.
Buswell Cemetery (AKA Mount Zion Cemetery): Latitude: 405016N; Longitude: 0872908W. Located in southern Washington Township, Newton County, Indiana, northwest from Kentland, on the north side of the Iroquois River, off CR 575 W, north of CR 1125 S and south of CR 1000 S.
Murphy Cemetery:
Latitude: 405633N ; Longitude:
0872731W
Located in central Beaver Township, Newton County,
Indiana, in
southwestern Morocco.
North Star Cemetery:
Latitude: 405903N; Longitude:
0871944W
Located in central Jackson
Township,
Newton County, Indiana, northwest from Mt. Ayr, on CR 100 S, west of
Hwy.
55.
Oakland Cemetery:
Latitude: 405741N; Longitude:
0872706W
Located in central Beaver
Township, Newton County, Indiana, just north of Morocco.
Pleasant Grove Cemetery:
Latitude: 404916N; Longitude:
0872611W
Located in northern Beaver Township, Newton County, Indiana, north of Kentland, and south of
the Iroquois River.
Porter Cemetery:
Latitude: 405244N; Longitude:
0872947W.
Located in central Washington Township, Newton County, Indiana, west of Ada, and north of CR 900
S,
and south of CR 800 S.
Prairie Vine Cemetery:
Latitude: 405342N; Longitude:
0872803W.
Located in central Washington Township,
Newton County, Indiana, northwest of Ada, on CR 700 S, west of the
intersection
of CR 700 S and CR 400 W.
Riverside Cemetery: .
Located in Iroquois Township,
Newton
County, Indiana, just east of Brook, Indiana.
Roselawn Cemetery: Latitude:
410842N; Longitude:
0871808W.
Located in Roselawn, in east central Lincoln Township, Newton County,
Indiana.
Russell Chapel Cemetery: Latitude:
405401N; Longitude:
0872929W.
Located in north central Washington_Township, Newton County, Indiana, northwest of Ada.
Saint Josephs Cemetery: Latitude:
404508N; Longitude:
0872648W
Located in southern Jefferson_Township, Newton County, Indiana, just south of Kentland.
Sell Cemetery: Located in Washington Township, southwest of Brook, Indiana.
Shelter Cemetery: "Cemeteries of Newton County, Indiana", (1994) reports that the 1916 Standard Atlas of Newton County identified a cemetery which was located about 1 1/2 miles west of Ade, on the south side of CR 900 S. This cemetery has been abandoned (no gravestones appear to exist).
Counties of Warren, Benton, Jasper and Newton, Indiana, Historical and Biographical. Chicago, Illinois : F. A. Battey & Co., 1883. Reprint through the sponsorship of Warren County Historical Society, P. O. Box 176, Williamsport, Indiana 47993, 1994.
This is Newton County, Indiana : an Up-to-Date Historical
Narrative with County and Township
Maps and Many Unique Aerial Photographs of Cities, Towns, Villages
and
Farmsteads. John
Drury. (Author). Chicago : Lorre Co., 1955. (Gc
977.201
N48D).
One Hundred Years of Newton County, Indiana History, 1860-1960. John M. Connell. (Author). [Brook, Ind., Brook Reporter], 1960. (Gc 977.201 N48C).
History of Newton County, Indiana, 1985. Jasper-Newton Counties Genealogical Society. (Author). [Rensselaer? Ind.] : Jasper-Newton Counties Genealogical Society, 1985. (Gc 977.201 N48H).
Newton County, Indiana Index of Names of Persons and Firms. Staff of the Genealogy Dept., Fort Wayne Public Library. (Compiler). Fort Wayne, Indiana. Public Library. Reynolds Historical Genealogy Dept. Fort Wayne, Indiana : Fort Wayne Public Library, 1979.
Farm Plat Book, Newton County, Indiana. Rockford, Illinois : Rockford Map Publishers, 1958. (Gc 977.201 N48R).
Index to Birth Records, Newton County, Indiana, 1882-1937,
Inclusive, compiled from records in
County Health Office, Kentland ... Indiana Works
Progress
Administration. (Compiler). Indiana Works Progress
Administration.
(Compiler). Kentland, Indiana : Indiana Works Progress
Administration,
1938.
Index to Marriage Records, Newton County, Indiana, 1860-1920,
Inclusive, compiled from original
record in County Clerk's Office, Kentland ...
Indiana Works
Progress Administration. (Compiler). Kentland, Indiana
:
Indiana Works Progress Administration, 1939.
Index to Death Records : Newton County, Indiana, 1882-1937 Inclusive, volume I, letters A-Z inclusive. Indiana Works Progress Administration. (Compiler). [Indianapolis?], Indiana : The Administration, 1938.
Cemeteries of Newton County, Indiana. Gerald M. Born,
et. al. (Compilers). [Indiana] : Newton County Historical
Society, Family History Division, 1996. (Gc 977.201 N48CE).
"Cemeteries of Newton County, Indiana",
Volume 1, includes Lake, McClellan, Beaver and
Washington townships. This volume may be purchased from the
Newton County Historical Society.
Volume 2, includes Jefferson and Grant townships, will be
available in the future.
Volume 3, which includes Iroquois township and others, will be
available
in the future.
Copyright 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002-2007, by Ann Mensch. All
Rights
Reserved.