Ligonier

Daniel L. Replogle

• Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
• Year: 2016
• Print ISBN: 9781467116923
• eBook ISBN: 9781439658475
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: North American History
• Index: History

Isaac Cavin, of Ligonier, Pennsylvania, traveled to Indiana in 1830. He returned home and married Elizabeth Marker in 1834, and they traveled together to northern Indiana. In May 1835, he planned a new town and named it Ligonier. He built his home a few miles north of town and lived there for 52 years. The next big players were two German Jewish peddlers, Solomon Mier and Frederick William Straus, who traveled to the United States and settled in Indiana. After training with their uncle, they moved to Ligonier around 1854 because they were told the railroad would be coming to Ligonier and that it might be a good place to start up a business. The suggestion led to some wonderful times for Ligonier. Straus developed one of his businesses into the largest farm brokerage firm in the United States, and Mier developed one of his businesses into one of the largest farmland dealers in the Midwest. Images of America: Ligonier explores one of the most unusual small towns in the United States.

One

THE MOST IMPORTANT
THING TO A COMMUNITY
IS ITS PEOPLE

The start of this book is just like the start of any community. Without the people, there is nothing on which to build a community. The people come first.

This chapter introduces readers to four groups of people who are amazing in the stories they have to share.

Isaac Cavin founded Ligonier, Indiana, which he named after his hometown of Ligonier, Pennsylvania. The author feels the hardship of just getting to Indiana should have qualified him and Elizabeth, his wife, with an honor for perseverance.

Although his wife, Mabel, is not often mentioned, she may have been the influence that Dwight Green needed to make him a success. Dwight was born and grew up in Ligonier. He had a life of wealth and ease. His parents and family were wealthy. He turned left at the fork in the road. He was very involved in putting Al Capone in jail.

The Wilkinson sisters, Rosalie and Ona, did things that were almost unheard of in their time. They founded a company that is famous with quilters, the Wilkinson Quilt Company. Women could not start up a factory and did not usually meddle in business. Women born around 1870 were mostly channeled into raising children and making men comfortable. Women did not even need a high school diploma. They could not even vote until 1920.

Perhaps compared to the stars listed above, Paul and Hannah Beverforden really did not do much. But they focused their lives on helping their fellow man. Paul was a trooper with the Indiana State Police. Hannah was a teacher in the Ligonier school system. When they died, they passed on their story to the Ligonier Historical Museum. Thus their story lives on. Others might consider their treasures just old junk.

Isaac Cavin (1807–1884) founded Ligonier, Indiana, in 1835. He married Elizabeth Marker (1814–1884) in 1834 and rode with her on horseback from Ligonier, Pennsylvania, to the future site of Ligonier, Indiana. Elizabeth helped raise their six children and grieved for the 50 percent mortality rate of her children.

The tombstone of Isaac and Elizabeth Cavin at Salem Cemetery is about one mile north of Ligonier on State Road 5. Elizabeth died first in January 1884. Isaac followed her in May 1884.

The memorial clock for Isaac Cavin was donated to the City of Ligonier by John L. Cavin in 1924. The clock was manufactured by the Seth Thomas Clock Company in 1923. Pictured nearest the clock in 1945 are Ben Glaser (left) and Rev. Dr. David E. Culley. The clock was moved in 1968, when the bank was razed for a new building.

The memorial clock was moved to the Ligonier Telephone building in 1968. A semi hit the clock in 1981 and completely destroyed it. The company responsible did not have enough money to repair the clock, nor did the City of Ligonier, but a citizen donated $50,000 to have the clock repaired. In 1984, the restored and repainted memorial clock was moved to Wood Triangle Park at the south end of Cavin Street.

This is the home of Dwight H. Green (1897–1958), son of Harry and Minnie Gerber Green, at 402 South Main Street, almost directly west of the Ligonier Historical Museum. An application has been submitted to include the house in the National Register of Historic Places. Dwight was educated at Ligonier High School.

These are Dwight’s uncles, Fred H. Green (1862–1924) and John H. Green (1864–1953). Fred was the president of the Merchants Bank. Dwight could have had a position in this bank if it had interested him. Instead, he attended Wabash College.

A cover of a catalog from Green Brothers & Oldfather offers farmland for sale around Ligonier. Dwight’s father, Harry, worked at this business with his brothers, Fred and John.

The Farmers and Merchant Trust Company bank stood at 203 South Cavin Street in Ligonier. Dwight entered World War I in the infantry. He was transferred to the Army Air Service. After four and a half hours of training, he soloed. Later, he was a trainer for other would-be pilots. Dwight graduated from Wabash College and moved to Chicago to work in the law office of Roy Keehn (also from Ligonier).

Dwight H. Green is sketched here. He attended the University of Chicago Law School and worked as a reporter for the Chicago Examiner before moving to Washington and joining the Bureau of Internal Revenue (later the Internal Revenue Service). He married Mabel Victoria Kingston in Washington. He returned to Chicago as an attorney for the Bureau of Internal Revenue.

This is Dwight H. Green’s Ligonier High School graduation picture. The young man shown here would grow up to become a principal player in convicting Al Capone in Chicago. Green was elected governor of Illinois in 1940 and reelected in 1944—ser...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• Acknowledgements
• Introduction
• 1. The Most Important Thing to a Community Is Its People
• 2. Money Makes the World Go Round
• 3. The Government Helps Organize
• 4. People in Ligonier Love Their Homes
• 5. The End Approaches
• Bibliography