The Shelbyville Republican
Tuesday, October 11, 1898
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The Moral township Sunday
schools held their convention at Moral on Sunday. It was an all day
program and was listened to by a large and attentive audience. Much
interest was manifested in the cause, which shows that Mr. H. O.
Tucker the efficient president, is the right man in the right place
and is alive to his duty. Aside from the music and devotional exercises
which were full of zeal for the cause, speeches were made by the following
persons: Miss Ethel Means, township secretary; Mr. Frank
Means, of London, county president; R. F. Boger, of your
city, Mr. John Graham, of Marion county, and Mr. Tucker,
of Moral township. Some of the speeches were followed by discussions and
were all very entertaining and instructive. Moral is all right.
Contributed by Phyllis Miller Fleming
Moral Township is in the extreme northeastern corner
of the county, and is bounded on the north by Hancock County, on the east by Van Buren and Brandywine Townships,
on the south by Brandywine and Sugar Creek, and on the west by Johnson and Marion Counties. It covers an are of
six miles square. Among the first settlers were the following:
Francis Amos
William A. Doble
James Smith
Michael Murnan
John and Alexander Means
Archibald and Peter Mann
John and Maston House
James Murnan
Benjamin Breedlove
Jordan Wright
John Dake
Heman Keeler
George W. Holmes
Hiram Johnson
James Holmes
Jackson Andrews
John K. Paulen
John Stanley
Henry D. Andrews
John Hoop
Ichabod Jackson
Peter Crum
John Waldroff
Nimrod Jackson
Frederick House
Robert Means
William Harper
John Gregg
Samuel Cross
Enoch Ruggles
George Martin
Dr. Culbertson
George Waldroff
Lewis J. Reeves
Caleb Reeves
Green and John Vernon
Peter and William Fousler
K. Parrish
Jackson Plummer
Duncan McDougal
Henry Youtsey
William, Oley and Webster Milkins
Nathaniel Vice
N.B. Snodgrass
George W. Wood
George Nulliner
James, Stephen and Daniel Nichols
Samuel Bawlins
Jackson Campbell
James H. Smith and
Philip Ensminger
This township has five towns: Dobletown, Vinton, Pleasant View, Brookfield and London.
Dobletown was laid off by William A. Doble, October 3, 1837; and Vinton, March 20, 1838 by
James Templeton. These places are on the old Michigan State road and in the days of staging
were of considerable interest and importance. Pleasant View was organized by Frederick
Thacher, an uncle of the Hon. G.C. Thacher, July 6, 1836. It has a high and beautiful location
on the Michigan State road. Here is the graded school of the township, a substantial two-story brick building,
a church, a store, a hotel, a blacksmith shop, a post office, and several physicians. Brookfield dates from November
26, 1853, and was begun by John Joice, upon lands purchased from Fountain Means. It has a railroad
station, post office, store, steam grist-mill, blacksmith-shop, a good school building, and a substantial church
edifice. The town of London was laid out by Aaron House, when the Indianapolis, Cincinnati & Lafayette
Railroad was surveyed. It was organized July 21, 1852. It has two stores, considerable grain trade, several blacksmith-shops,
a railroad station, post office, a good school building and a Methodist Episcopal Church. There are ten schools
in this township, and seven churches---three Baptist, two Methodist Episcopal, one Methodist Protestant and one
Christian. The soil in Moral Township is good, especially in the river bottoms. During the past ten years, a great
many improvements have been made, and good houses and barns have been built. Those of
Joseph Crum
John Drake
Jacob Fritz
John Mohr
N.B. Snodgrass
William Sloan
John Howe
Michael Crum
George W. Crum
Henry Smith
Tinsley Smith
John Schumaker
William Amos
Mrs. Margaret House
Nehemiah Means and Joel Crum
deserve special mention. Quite a number of the citizens of this township have occupied high official positions
in Shelby County: William A. Doble and Francis Amos were Commissioners; Henry Doble and John Hoop, Sheriffs; Alonzo
Blair, Clerk; Cyrenius Bishop, Recorder, and James C. Parrish, Treasurer. ~ ~
From the Atlas of Shelby Co., Indiana, Chicago: J.H. Beers & Co, 1880, page 14.
Contributed by Phyllis Miller Fleming
Shelby Union Banner>
April 14,
1864
Page 3, col 2
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Township Elections -- Official.
____
MORAL.
Trustee.
Abel House..........64 John H. Jeffries..148
Constable.
W. T. Edwards.......26 M. H. Means.......149
...................... R. M. J. Duval....105
Contributed by Phyllis Miller Fleming
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