Mark and Vivian Hadley lived at the apex of the hill on South Milton. Before we visit their stately brick home, let me reminisce on my feet touching the stars.
The first time I ever saw a skateboard Morris Stringer brought it to our hill on Milton. I watched him ride it with ease. He asked if I wanted to try it and I said "Yes!" of course. Most of my family have always been open to trying things. This time it was a stupid thing! Not that riding skateboards is stupid, but riding in a stupid manner is stupid. I've always thought "If he can do it, I can too!" Thinking thoughts as those are a mark of those who are successful, but is a flaw to those whose motis operandi is to fail! Morris rode quite well. "Then why cannot I?" was my logic.
Mistakes overly confident novices make are five: 1) Failure to ask for instructions, 2) failure to listen to instructions, 3) failure to practice bunny slopes, 4) failure to recognize one's own lack of ability and 5) the propensity to ignore the safety check called "fear"! Rather than doing these five precautionary measures, I did one stupid thing! I set the skateboard down on the hot bubbling asphalt, walked about ten paces back, and ran with all my speed as I jumped onto the skateboard. The skateboard traveled as a jet down South Milton while my feet shot up to the tree limbs. I landed on my back with head covered with tar. There are just some things that people will never be able to achieve and skateboards were never something I cared to try again!
My feet truly touched the stars because that's what I was seeing!
I mentioned hot bubbling tar on the street. Coatesville summers were always of hot bubbling tar. Asphalt for the most part, was not asphalt. It was chip and tar. Aggregate was spread and then coated with layers of tar. Eventually with traffic it became pavement. However, with long ninety degree days the roads became springs of bubbling tar. Most people from this era stepped on bubbling tar. It's painful to say the least. Most roads in and around Coatesville in the 1950's and 1960's were chip and tar! Bubbling tar was Coatesville. That's what summer meant. It crackled loudly as heavy loads exploded the many bubbles!
Guess what comes with hot tar? Tarred cars! Anyone who traveled the roads of Hendricks County had a band of tar on their rockers and splattered on the bumpers, wheels, grills and even he hoods of their cars. Tarred cars were the normative for Coatesville. It was a battle fought hard; a battle between those who required perfection and those forces of our times which favored tar! There was one perfectionist who fought a lofty war between the tar and his car. He drive a 1959 black Fairlane, it seems and this perfectionist was Hugh Johnson who lived near the end (at that time) of Walnut Street.
God turned temperature up a notch as Hugh cleaned that black car. In those days white sidewalls were in vogue and for those who were stuck with black rubber, fake sidewalls were made. They were called "Porter Walls" and adhered to the base tire with pressure.
Hugh was always cleaning his car. Hugh had time for little other than his clean car. Hugh had money apparently because he tired of the battle of the tar and his car! He would pay Colby, Paul and me to do the slave work of removing the tar from his car. Hugh always whistled as he buffed, perhaps to keep from laughing at us whose job was the scrub and scrub.
Anything written about 1950s Coatesville would be incomplete if the boiling tar of town was not mentioned. It was a terror now defeated because of technology and hopefully, tarred cars, as thick as underbody coating, is gone for good. For me it's a memory because of all the hours scrubbing tar from everywhere only to be re-tarred with the next short drive!
I nearly neglected Mark and Vivian, but both were pillars in the community. Mark Hadley was Coatesville Post Master, quite an honorable and respectable position. Indeed, Mark and Vivian were well respected! Anyone, adult or child, upon entering the post office was greeted by Mark. He knew all our names and everyone knew his. Even children never called him "Mr. Hadley"; it was always "Mark". I've said these two words hundreds of times "Hi, Mark!" and Mark has left good memories. Mailing a letter meant "Mark". Mark and the post office became one.
I had the privilege of these fine folks as full-frontal neighbors. From their vantage point the nakedness of all the innocence of seven kids were seen with our many visitors! Imagine if you will a refined post master and his school teacher wife having to look at primitive beings in the form of rambunctious kids each and every time they opened their doors! (Vivian taught in Danville).
With the hundreds of footsteps of seven Herrin kids, compounded by many friends, our yard (lawn to those with nice grass) was little more than packed loam with unkempt tufts of crab grass and whatever grass seeds the winds decided to blow our way. The Hadley's had a golf course as theirs. No, it was not a cultured lawn with greens and holes on which to play; Mark and Vivian had a lush carpet of the finest green as their entire yard. Mark mowed his lawn at least three times a week with a riding reel mower and with automatic bagging. His lawn was the green; ours was the rough and maybe the trap! Regardless, ours was the bizarro of what theirs was!
In spite of the Herrins being the antithesis of what the Hadleys were, they were good neighbors. They tolerated, even loved us, it seems. Mark and Vivian would always wave and smile (perhaps laugh) whenever they would see us kids out playing in the yard. Perhaps they were yearning for their own!
I never knew it, but recently Annie Johnson told me of the Hadley son who was gone before we came.
"Also Mark and Vivian Hadley had a son named David Hadley, a very accomplished artist who studied at John Herrin (Herron) Art School in Indianapolis and who won a scholarship to the Sorbonne to study art in Paris, France. when he got back, he spent time with Ida Masten across the street from our house, and I used to watch TV with Ida, before Dad got a TV, and David Hadley was there one evening and he was quite a bit older than I was, but he asked my folks if he could date me and they told him NO, that he was too old for me, then he said, "I would like to paint your daughter in the nude, and my Dad practically threw the great Paris artist out of our house." (Annie Johnson message Jan 2016).David was an accomplished artist. He actually taught at the Herron Museum of Art. Figure #3 below is a sample of his work:
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| Figure #3 - Will-O-Wisp II by David Hadley |
Hadley's make good neighbors and the Hadley family were of those who helped found Hendricks County, Indiana. Obviously, the nearby town of Hadley was of the same origin, those folks being Quakers who immigrated from North Carolina as the county was being settled.
The Hadley's lived across the street from us, and their home was beautiful light and dark brown brick. They had a carport alongside the house of the same construction. Leading to the carport and beyond was a perfectly smooth paved drive of actual composite, rare for it's time. Everything about this home was Hadley perfect. not only in architecture and landscaping, but in neighborliness. Just good people! Jack Poff who lived next door illuminated this family with much more comprehension. The following is an abridgement of Jack's story:
"... I immediately recognized the picture of David Hadley's painting (Figure #3), Will of the Wisp II. David was a very accomplished artist who ... studied at The John Herron Art Institute in Indianapolis and The Sorbonne in Paris, France. I recognized the picture because it used to hang on the middle landing of the stairway to their upstairs. Vivian and Mark were very proud of Davids talents which anyone who visited their house knew because they exhibited his work on almost every wall of the house. Most all of them had a very dark and somber mood to them. I remember one oil painting of a clown that was a lot more colorful but it somehow gave the impression of a clown from a scary fun house. Another was a modern piece that was, I think, a skyline of Paris. It was a very modern piece that was done for the most part using a palette knife with the oil paint applied in very thick globs like you might ice a cake. The technique was really unusual and it amazed me how he was able to convey the impression of a skyline with such crude tools. David also loved to take photographs as well. After he finished his studies, he work for several years in Detroit for Chrysler in their advertising department as a professional photographer. I'm certainly not an art critic but there is no doubt that David was a very talented artist and that Mark and Vivian were very proud of him.
Mark and Vivian were both talented in their own right. In his later years Mark loved to take photographs of his grandchildren Greg and Cristy. He had a very nice Rolleiflex twin lens reflex camera, and a good eye. The camera used 120 film and unlike the Brownie box cameras of the time, the pictures were extremely sharp because you could control not only control the focus, but the aperture and shutter speed as well. I think that David may have had a darkroom for developing pictures in his house, because whenever Mark and Vivian would return from visiting the grandchildren, Mark would always have the finished photographs usually in 5x7 or 8x10 format and they were usually stored in an empty yellow and black Kodak photographic paper box. Some of them were probably taken by David but I know it was a passion that they both shared and I used to surmise that it was something that they enjoyed doing together. I eventually got interested in photography and set up a darkroom in our house. I'm certain that I would never have been interested in photography if not for Mark and David. I eventually donated the darkroom equipment to the Art Department at Cascade High School and hopefully other young minds found an interest as well.
Vivian made enameled jewelry that she painted on a metal back and then baked in a kiln until the paint became very hard and shiny. She enjoyed doing this as well as "throwing" pottery on a wheel. She had acquired both of these skills as a part of her continuing education requirements as a teacher. I laugh at the "throwing" part because she did not have a pottery wheel at home, so at point I decided I was going to make her a wheel. The first effort involved trying to remake a phonograph player into one but of course it had sides that came up too high to be able to place your hands where they needed to be to effectively shape the clay. When I removed it from the box things didn't go much better because of the arm for the needle and the other arm that held the 33 records in place. After taking these part off, (with a hacksaw I think) We discovered that the motor and the belt drive just wasn't powerful enough to turn the amount of clay needed to make anything. The second try involved using a fan motor but we just couldn't get the speed slowed down enough to get the job done. It would always "throw" the clay half way across the room bringing a whole new meaning to the phrase "throwing pottery."
While on the subject of pottery, I'll relate what is probably a very little known fact about Coatesville and the Arts. In the front room of Mark and Vivian's house on the south end was a large fireplace which was flanked with bookcases on both sides that had glass doors on them. Of course they contained books but they also had various collectibles and art artifacts in them. One of the items was a small blue and white vase that was an original by Pablo Picasso (1881-1968). It was a gift from David that he had acquired on his travels through Europe from Picasso's studio. Who knew that little ole' Coatesville, Indiana would have an original piece of art, in a private collection, from one of the most renowned artists of the 20th century?
We Poff's lived beside Mark and Vivian Hadley 15 years through the 50's and 60's. I was only 3 when we moved in and quickly became their "adopted" son. Their son David had grown up and left home to pursue his art studies and they were in need of a "replacement" between his visits home. They made me feel pretty special because I knew that they hadn't "adopted" every boy who lived in our house. Doc Ellett had previously owned our house before selling it to Dad in 1955. Doc's son JD, had apparently become 'persona non grata' due to his habit of spear fishing in Vivian's goldfish pond located behind the Hadley house. Apparently he couldn't abide by their catch and release policy. As a result of this and numerous other infractions, there was a very thick privet hedge between our two properties that was absolutely impassable when we first moved in. From the start I enjoyed visiting with them both but since I was only 3, I wasn't allowed to go to the end of our drive and around the masonry post at the end of the hedge that separated our two driveways. Apparently they enjoyed visiting with me too, because shortly after we arrived, a '3 year old boy' sized hole appeared in the hedge. It continued to grow as I got older.
Long before it became a political slogan, our neighbors seemed to believe that it "takes a village to raise a child." I spent countless hours over at Mark and Vivian's house doing the simplest things that would probably have bored most kids my age to death, but I thoroughly enjoyed the time spent with them. If my grade cards showed that I wasn't doing too well in spelling we would play Scrabble. We also played a lot of Yahtzee and the card game Authors, all probably remedial if Vivian thought I wasn't doing as well in a subject as I should. I never thought she was teaching me anything but I always learned something.
Before becoming the Coatesville Postmaster, Mark owned the restaurant that was eventually run by Ruth Dean. He also had a lawn mower repair shop that he ran out of the back of the same building. These businesses were located on the south side of Main Street roughly between the Post Office and Ward and Jim Rollings Electric Repair Shop.
...Mark would come home from the Post Office for lunch every day and after he finished lunch, he would haul a big Charmin Bath Tissue box out of his garage. It had a rope threaded around the top of it with a loop on one end that he used to pull it around the yard. He would spray the yard with 2,4-D periodically but since nothing kills all the weeds, he would sit down in the yard and use a small trowel to dig out the offending invaders and throw them in the Charmin box. He scooted himself and the Charmin box all over that yard and once he was done, he would start over again. I have no idea how many times he did that in one year but he was always busy all summer long planting flowering plants and bulbs, trimming hedges and rose bushes, weeding his lawn and flower beds and any other yard work that needed done and he LOVED it. He also "adopted" our dog whose name was Ambrose. Back in the day, everyone in Coatesville at one time or another has seen Mark in his old Buick accompanied by Ambrose sitting proudly in the passenger side seat with her head out the window. The trunk of the Buick was always propped open with one or two of those Charmin boxes headed to the town dump to dispose of his yard waste. I'm not so sure how much help I was, but I would follow him around the yard talking and probably asking the most annoying questions imaginable but I never knew him to ever loose his patients with me. Mark was a real gentleman in the most traditional sense and I loved him like a father."Next to us on the south side of Herrin House was the home of Oral and Clara McCammack. Before I describe their house, let me describe them. Of Oral there was little to say. He was a large framed serious person with a business-like demeanor. I believe he was Town Marshal years before. As Coolidge before him, he was a man of few words. He stayed to himself and because of respect we didn't bother him. He was likely a real nice guy because we infringed on the McCammacks as a daily routine! Standard operation for both Dale (Herrin) and I was too do something which would have incurred the wrath of most people!
Clara Broadstreet McCammack was a tiny red-haired lady probably about 4'-10" tall. She was freckled and of fair skin. He voice was peanut butter smooth and wreaked of kindness. She was so kind that kindness took on new meaning. Imagine if you will multiple "Dennis the Menaces" living next door, and the opportunity for early onset hypertension. This was her existence. She lived to tolerate Dale and I. We didn't do mean things; we only menaced!
Clara was so cautious that I've actually followed her driving 20 mph down 75. She turned on her signal at least a mile before she turned! Now, that's caution!
Of special interest were two things. We crossed their fence and wore it down because theirs was the avenue to excitement. Behind their property was fun, but to get there the short way was through Clara! There was a small pond good for ice-skating and duck hunting right behind them. We used that pond to play hockey and made a "Fox and Geese Track" for tag on ice. Many of us would lay abreast and daring ones would on skates glide over many bodies to provide bragging rights.
Behind the pond was a small wooded area. It was full of hickory trees and their fall nuts were a treat! At this time in life in Coatesville, trespassing was never an issue! Everybody went wherever they wanted to go! Trespassing only became an issue after bad neighbors found that there was money in accidents where others had no rights to be! People began to sue other people just because they could!
The following information was provided by James Lyons:
"...My brother and I started delivering the Star in 76 when we moved to the end of Walnut and played many days in the woods and on the pond you seek of. Then, Herman House owned the woods, pasture and pond. We delivered the paper up through the Blizzard of 78 and quit two weeks after it hit. Some folks still expected it to arrive on time and called us to complain when it did not...!"In Coatesville it was "Mi casa es su casa!" What was there was also mine because people liked people! Hate is a learned behavior and when people depend on each other, hate is petty! What was Clara's was mine, at least in my eyes, and Clara complied!
We hunted mushrooms back there in the woods. We smoked there! Yes, many of us young guys smoked so that we emulated adults. Smoking was a youngster's attempt to be recognized for juvenile habits, and many of us smoked. I smoked the cheap Marvels, but those really cool smoked Camels! When we didn't have "smokes" we smoked grapevines. They were many in the woods behind the McCammacks! Not only did we smoke them, but we swung on them and dropped into the shallow stream along the hillside. It was mostly Herrins, Billie Jamison, Colby and Paul Johnson, Gary McCloud and a few others I remember who made themselves at home behind the McCammacks!
If Herrin kids weren't enough, it was Herrin dogs! Our dogs gave chase to McCammock sheep and Prince downed one. That's why Prince became Coatesville's most wanted canine! Prince can be seen below in Figure #4. He's the criminal dog who's hid behind Charles.
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| Figure #4: Larry-Charles-Duke-Prince-Carroll` |
Their nice home had four lightening rods all with white globes. These are now extremely valuable, especially if they have their globes. Why do they not? Was it because of lightening bolts, severe weather, hale or earthquakes? No! It was because of Herrin BB Guns!
From my upstairs bedroom window was a view too good to be true. The object of my affection were the four globes. Somehow, someplace, I bought a used BB gun. Where was I to find a target? It was McCammacks lightening rod globes! Now, someplace in Coatesville, on a nice brick home, there stands four pyres searching the heavens for lightening to arrest. Those pyres once were clothed, but now they stand naked because McCammack's globes lie shattered on the ground, long ago becoming mere terrain. That's why there are no globes in Coatesville. It was Herrin kids and kids just like us!
The McCammocks had several apple trees behind their garage. It swarmed with bees all summer, busy creatures making their honey for others to steal. The best apples were the transparent variety which came in June They are tart when green, but sweet when ripened. We could hardly wait until OUR apples were ripe enough to eat for "their apples were our apples"! and what was theirs was ours!
Clara knew that her apples were our apples and she just let things stay that way! She never ever scolded us for eating of them. Previously, I said that I learned my lesson about stealing. One must understand that in those days when people were good neighbors sharing wasn't stealing. If Clara had ever said even one thing about her apples, I would never have eaten another. It was just "good neighbor" policy of sharing. Mom shared with them good things from the garden so it all worked out! Most of her apples ended up in mere cider for aunts anyhow. Clara and Oral were good neighbors and had two sons: Myron and Merrill Thomas.
Annie Johnson added the following about the McCammacks:
Annie Johnson added the following about the McCammacks:
"...Clara McCammack went to the Coatesville Methodist church. She was quite a character. She came in late every Sunday and always sat up front. She tiptoed to the front of the church trying not to make any noise, but her shoes both squeaked and she made the squeaking noise all the way to the front of the church. She came to church in a house dress, and wore a straw "farmer's hat" to church like she just came in from a flower garden or from picking green beans in her garden. She used to come to our back door and hale my Mom like this - "Yoohoo, Mable! Mable are you home? Yoohoo!" Now, Clara had a very distinguished voice and she talked through tight little pursed lips without opening her mouth very much to speak. I could imitate Clara's voice to a T. Mother would be standing at the kitchen sink doing some kind of work and I would go out the front door to the back door and give a "Clara knock" and say, "Yoohoo, Mable! Mable are you home? Yoohoo!" Then I would run back around the house and in the front door again after my Mother would say, "Just a minute, Clara. I'm coming." She would go to the back door and of course, Clara McCammack was nowhere to be seen. Then she would come back in the kitchen and look at me and ask, "Did you hear Clara at the back door and I would say, "No! I didn't hear anyone!" Stop by sometime and I will do the Clara voice for you."
Tom McCammack played basketball for Amo High School. I believe he was a senior in or about 1956 or so. Tom and wife Peggy moved to a farm south of Coatesville in Franklin Township (See Figure #5). Coatesville of course, as is Amo and Reno, is in Clay Township.
Their children were Merrilla, Carola, Vaughn and Brent. Vaughn died young with pancreatic cancer. Tom was an air traffic controller for Weir Cook Airport until his retirement and he also farmed. My sister Judy was a constant employee of Peggy, doing baby-sitting and domestic work. I helped out on their farm until my freshman year in college. Truly this family assisted in the development of the two of us and fond memories still linger of the time spent chopping stalks and putting up hay on the McCammack farm!
Perhaps we should linger a bit on farming changes since Indiana is a farming state. Things have changed! Rather than many independent family farms as in the 50s, the norm now is commercial farming. One of the most prominent in the area is Merlin Martin of Franklin Township. He owns and leases thousands of acres in and around Franklin Township including Clay and Liberty. He changed things! He was an early friend of mine back when he was a "poor young man".
When we grew up in Coatesville farm work and city mowing were the work to be had. Billie Jamison delivered the Indianapolis Star (maybe it was the News) all over Coatesville, initially with his bicycle and later his scooter. In my young years I mowed yards for about twenty different city families and Woody Darnell allowed the Herrin boys to clean up loose corn from his elevators and feed our hogs which we had on the far back of our lot. Also we were allowed to cart out corn cobs for sale. These were sold to many old folks who used them to start fires in their coal and wood-burning "heatin' stoves". In elementary school I also sold greeting cards for all occasions door-to-door as did my Mom before me. Many things were brought right to the door in those days.
Jewel Tea sold variety items, the milk-man commeth to the door, Fashion Frocks sold a line of women's clothing, the bread man came to the door and even salve salesmen. Many of these things were brought to country towns because of the distance to Indy. The closest clothing store was in Greencastle's Five and Dime, and there was almost no fast food short of Ronk's drive-in at the edge of Belleville and the DQ and Double-Decker in Greencastle. Of course a diner existed periodically by Brown's Drugstore.
With all that said, farming was the place to be. I even started my high school curriculum in farming until I realized that it took a farm to farm, and all we had was nothing! Not even a home which was ours! I did work regularly for Effie Buis in Clay Township putting up hay as well as many locals. My first paying job was on the Cassity farm of the South Amo Road. My first time was at 12 years old and the bales that day weighed from 90-120 pounds because they were too large, too wet and I was too small! I worked eight hours in the barn in 90 degree weather. That's Indiana in the summer then. That was when bales were square and kids were equally so!
I like to think back to my first job. Don Thompson of Hazelwood paid me, who he called Herman and Dale, George, fifty cents to stay out of his way! Since then I saw the that capitalism was the "ism" for me. My family, to supplement our income, picked tomatoes for various people. I would have to hang out all day in the tomato fields because this was pre-day care times. I asked Mom "If I pick tomatoes, will they pay me?" She said "Yes." and on the first day I picked 50 hampers at 10 cents each. At the end of the summer Mom and Dad took me to Greencastle Five and Dime where I bought all my own school clothes for the first time as I did thereafter. It's a great feeling to have a degree of independence and work is rewarding. I never even looked at toys because only rich kids had toys!
Jamison's weren't rich, but they were affluent, but frugal, for the times. Billie's toys were my toys! He shared them out of generosity and I spent much time there playing Monopoly, basketball and even riding his go-cart. I have good memories of his stuff! Billie's grandparents were the Arthur Biehls who at that time lived in a luxury new home on 75 after living by Colyer Lumber on Milton. I spent much time there with Billie and I came home one day and said to Mom "The Biehls are rich!" Mom said "Why do you say that?" I replied "They have a whole case of cokes in their garage!" That meant "rich" to me because we never ever had cokes in the house.At that time in the late 50s Coatesville Elevator still sold nickle cokes although stores sold pop for a dime.
And speaking of rich people, there is an asparagus story to tell: Brother Dale and I spied asparagus alongside the railroad track on the outskirts of town. I told Mom and she said "Rich people eat asparagus. It's worth a lot of money!" Our family had a steel wheeled push cart (Chuck's and Carroll's). Dale and I spent hours pushing the cart there, picking a load of asparagus and back home. Mom said "What's that?" I said "Asparagus!" being so proud of our work. It seems that the laugh was on us. This was mature asparagus; the bush which is no good except for burning. We had dreamed all day of candy and such, only to come home with a cart of weeds!
As for farming then; farmers then tilled the soil. For the most part now it's chemicals which do the tilling. Before plowing, we chopped stalks so they could be turned under, then plowed and disked with either a drag or harrow on the back. Then the crop was fertilized as it was seeded with dry fertilizer. After that the crop grew for awhile, then it was cultivated. Finally it was either picked with a corn picker or combined if grain or soybeans. It was an expensive process. The rows were 32 inches apart. During harvest in the late summer and fall, lines of trucks with grain would line main street from Marvin Robinson's barber shop and longer waiting for the mill to weigh and unload them. At sometime during the harvest the Vandalia Railroad would carry off the grain in cars for that purpose. This experience is what inspired my poem:
Farming today is much different. Plowing is rare, The land is treated for weeds and nourishment with chemicals. Oversize equipment is used to inject multiple rows of seed directly into the untilled ground. Fertilizer is applied at the same time using GPS to apply amounts whose quantity was stored from the previous crops yield, according to the coordinates, needing more or less. Data is accumulated as the grain is harvested, weighed and plotted as to the GPS coordinates. Rows are planted just a few inches apart instead of the 1950s standard of 32". Crop yields for corn, for instance, has went from as little as 40 bushels an acre now into the high 180 bushels per acre. Coatesville now feeds the world!
In my discussion with my brother Carroll, he mentioned a memorial retrieved from under our house. He forgot the first name, but the memorial was for a "Colored" soldier named Coates. Davidson (1966) points out that the town was founded in 1848 by Henry Coates. Perhaps this man was one of his former slaves buried right there under our house on South Milton. I will look to find more on Mr. Coates. However, here is a description of Coatesville from 1914:
He was a Quaker (Society of Friends) Minister. (See Figure #6 above) , although it's unclear if he had a church at least in Coatesville (Fairfield Monthly Meeting; Hendricks County, Indiana; U.S., Quaker Meeting Records, 1681-1935 for Henry Coates; 19 Apr 1838).
Here is family information on the founder:
As you can see Henry was born circa 1808 in Ohio and his wife Sarah circa 1804 in North Carolina. Their children were Harvey 15, Rachel 8, Sarah 7, Mary 6 and Margaret A Coat 4. They had others living with them, I would venture to say step-children from a previous marriage of Sarah since they too were born in North Carolina. His neighbors were Jabez Hobson and John Bishop. Others neighbors were: the Mendenhalls, Henry Feltz, Matthias Masten, David Masten, William Holtzclaw, Jr. and Sr.
Here is a place to mention the Masten family. "Hezzy" Masten was the town dog-catcher. Prince, our dog, didn't like Hezzy. He was afraid of that wire cage. Hezzy never caught our dogs. He was just too nice! I knew him quite well because he always came to Coatesville Auction. Hezzy scared me some. The poor guy, long before modern medicine, had a neck cyst on the back. It was huge! Years later I learned empathy. I got a neck cyst as well. Mine had a small knot, but mine was huge inside. Modern medicine took mine away. Hezzy wasn't as fortunate as we are today. We are truly a product of our times. We must a;ways feel the misfortunes of other people! That's the right thing to do.
In 1880 Henry and "Sally" Coates were living in Franklin Township, Montgomery County, Indiana, he 71 and she 76. He was very fittingly a miller by trade as shown there. (1880 Census Franklin Township, Montgomery County, Indiana). Per "Friends" records Henry had moved to Montgomery County by 1857. I'll write more on Henry later. Mr. Davidson gave him the credit for founding the town, but there was a Rev. John Coates as well who was in Coatesville per Ancestry records.
By coincidence Joseph Herren was the eumerater of the 1950 Census for Henry Coates. His family lived in Liberty Township and they were from Harrison County, Kentucky. Many of that family are buried in the Irons Cemetery on U.S. Hwy 40 outside Cartersburg. (Just a coincidence I guess).
The following is from a Query in Ancestry:
Across from our home was the Clyde Poff family who owned (co-owned) "Poff and Tony" on Hwy. 75 north of Coatesville. My former wife worked for Jim Poff there as secretary in the late 1960s.
Clyde and Ursula had children, Jim, Judy and Jack Poff. Ursula was the daughter of Mildred McAninch and Robert Orr. She died in Florida in 1999 and it seems that Clyde died thereafter.
According to Annie Johnson "The Poff house was owned by Doc. Ellett before the Poffs owned it. I used to babysit J. D. and his little brother." and added:
The Poff's were a great set of neighbors. Not only was Clyde and Jim great businessmen, but they truly helped my family. When Dad was laid off Clyde had procured the inventory of ceramics molds. He allowed Dad to use them and his rear building to manufacture plasters of all types. This really helped out our family in perilous times. Dad, Mom and the older ones did the pouring, but we all did the hand sanding and even us younger ones hand painted many of them. Dad sold most of them at Coatesville and Cloverdale Auction houses.
This family of mine owes much to the Poff family and so do many others in town. Ursula was one of Mom's best friends caring little that Mom spoke eastern Kentucky hillbilly, the language she never ceased to use!
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| Figure #5: Hendricks County Twps. |
Their children were Merrilla, Carola, Vaughn and Brent. Vaughn died young with pancreatic cancer. Tom was an air traffic controller for Weir Cook Airport until his retirement and he also farmed. My sister Judy was a constant employee of Peggy, doing baby-sitting and domestic work. I helped out on their farm until my freshman year in college. Truly this family assisted in the development of the two of us and fond memories still linger of the time spent chopping stalks and putting up hay on the McCammack farm!
Perhaps we should linger a bit on farming changes since Indiana is a farming state. Things have changed! Rather than many independent family farms as in the 50s, the norm now is commercial farming. One of the most prominent in the area is Merlin Martin of Franklin Township. He owns and leases thousands of acres in and around Franklin Township including Clay and Liberty. He changed things! He was an early friend of mine back when he was a "poor young man".
When we grew up in Coatesville farm work and city mowing were the work to be had. Billie Jamison delivered the Indianapolis Star (maybe it was the News) all over Coatesville, initially with his bicycle and later his scooter. In my young years I mowed yards for about twenty different city families and Woody Darnell allowed the Herrin boys to clean up loose corn from his elevators and feed our hogs which we had on the far back of our lot. Also we were allowed to cart out corn cobs for sale. These were sold to many old folks who used them to start fires in their coal and wood-burning "heatin' stoves". In elementary school I also sold greeting cards for all occasions door-to-door as did my Mom before me. Many things were brought right to the door in those days.
Jewel Tea sold variety items, the milk-man commeth to the door, Fashion Frocks sold a line of women's clothing, the bread man came to the door and even salve salesmen. Many of these things were brought to country towns because of the distance to Indy. The closest clothing store was in Greencastle's Five and Dime, and there was almost no fast food short of Ronk's drive-in at the edge of Belleville and the DQ and Double-Decker in Greencastle. Of course a diner existed periodically by Brown's Drugstore.
With all that said, farming was the place to be. I even started my high school curriculum in farming until I realized that it took a farm to farm, and all we had was nothing! Not even a home which was ours! I did work regularly for Effie Buis in Clay Township putting up hay as well as many locals. My first paying job was on the Cassity farm of the South Amo Road. My first time was at 12 years old and the bales that day weighed from 90-120 pounds because they were too large, too wet and I was too small! I worked eight hours in the barn in 90 degree weather. That's Indiana in the summer then. That was when bales were square and kids were equally so!
I like to think back to my first job. Don Thompson of Hazelwood paid me, who he called Herman and Dale, George, fifty cents to stay out of his way! Since then I saw the that capitalism was the "ism" for me. My family, to supplement our income, picked tomatoes for various people. I would have to hang out all day in the tomato fields because this was pre-day care times. I asked Mom "If I pick tomatoes, will they pay me?" She said "Yes." and on the first day I picked 50 hampers at 10 cents each. At the end of the summer Mom and Dad took me to Greencastle Five and Dime where I bought all my own school clothes for the first time as I did thereafter. It's a great feeling to have a degree of independence and work is rewarding. I never even looked at toys because only rich kids had toys!
Jamison's weren't rich, but they were affluent, but frugal, for the times. Billie's toys were my toys! He shared them out of generosity and I spent much time there playing Monopoly, basketball and even riding his go-cart. I have good memories of his stuff! Billie's grandparents were the Arthur Biehls who at that time lived in a luxury new home on 75 after living by Colyer Lumber on Milton. I spent much time there with Billie and I came home one day and said to Mom "The Biehls are rich!" Mom said "Why do you say that?" I replied "They have a whole case of cokes in their garage!" That meant "rich" to me because we never ever had cokes in the house.At that time in the late 50s Coatesville Elevator still sold nickle cokes although stores sold pop for a dime.
And speaking of rich people, there is an asparagus story to tell: Brother Dale and I spied asparagus alongside the railroad track on the outskirts of town. I told Mom and she said "Rich people eat asparagus. It's worth a lot of money!" Our family had a steel wheeled push cart (Chuck's and Carroll's). Dale and I spent hours pushing the cart there, picking a load of asparagus and back home. Mom said "What's that?" I said "Asparagus!" being so proud of our work. It seems that the laugh was on us. This was mature asparagus; the bush which is no good except for burning. We had dreamed all day of candy and such, only to come home with a cart of weeds!
As for farming then; farmers then tilled the soil. For the most part now it's chemicals which do the tilling. Before plowing, we chopped stalks so they could be turned under, then plowed and disked with either a drag or harrow on the back. Then the crop was fertilized as it was seeded with dry fertilizer. After that the crop grew for awhile, then it was cultivated. Finally it was either picked with a corn picker or combined if grain or soybeans. It was an expensive process. The rows were 32 inches apart. During harvest in the late summer and fall, lines of trucks with grain would line main street from Marvin Robinson's barber shop and longer waiting for the mill to weigh and unload them. At sometime during the harvest the Vandalia Railroad would carry off the grain in cars for that purpose. This experience is what inspired my poem:
Coatesville
Memories of a grain town linger in our minds.That's my memory of Coatesville Town. It was mostly about farming and farmers and those who served farmers from Dr. John Ellett to Woody Darnell and everybody in between. Harmon Hathaway even wrote about us all in The Coatesville Herald. Grain is what Coatesville was built upon!
Memories of us few are the tie which binds!
Traveling up Milton in Coatesville town,
remembered most is that familiar sound!
In the distance is heard the Vandalia train.
Hearing first that deafening "clang clang clang".
The clang that warned us not to cross those tracks,
until no more is heard the "clackety clack clack"!
Going through town the engine took seconds.
"Whoo whoo whoo", as the engineer beckons!
But the train took an hour to pass on through,
in the distance now a faint "whoo whoo whoo"!
We walk some more and turn down Main...
we leave behind that noisy noisy train!
The bank is on the corner and soon we see
a little ol' laundry named “The Wishy-Washy”.
We see country skyscrapers gleaming bright.
Nothing within miles reaches that height!
Farm trucks all lined up and down Main,
each of them waiting to unload their grain.
This is Coatesville town, the home we claim!
(Published in Flight of Angels)
Farming today is much different. Plowing is rare, The land is treated for weeds and nourishment with chemicals. Oversize equipment is used to inject multiple rows of seed directly into the untilled ground. Fertilizer is applied at the same time using GPS to apply amounts whose quantity was stored from the previous crops yield, according to the coordinates, needing more or less. Data is accumulated as the grain is harvested, weighed and plotted as to the GPS coordinates. Rows are planted just a few inches apart instead of the 1950s standard of 32". Crop yields for corn, for instance, has went from as little as 40 bushels an acre now into the high 180 bushels per acre. Coatesville now feeds the world!
In my discussion with my brother Carroll, he mentioned a memorial retrieved from under our house. He forgot the first name, but the memorial was for a "Colored" soldier named Coates. Davidson (1966) points out that the town was founded in 1848 by Henry Coates. Perhaps this man was one of his former slaves buried right there under our house on South Milton. I will look to find more on Mr. Coates. However, here is a description of Coatesville from 1914:
COATESVILLE.Here is a little on Henry Coat or Coate or Coates.
It is unfortunate that more of the early history of the town of Coatesville is not obtainable. Even the official plat of the town has been lost. The town, however, was orginated sometime in the late sixties and quickly became a prosperous community. The town, by the census of 1910, had a population of four hundred and seventy two people, but this is conceded to have grown to nearly six hundred in 1914.
The town was incorporated in the year 1909 and the present officers are: Trustees, Marvin Hunt, R. C. Knight and James Davidson; clerk, Clarence Shortridge; marshal, O. E. McCammick. The town is supplied with electricity from the Terre Haute, Indianapolis & Eastern Traction Company.
The business houses and residences of the town of Coatesville are attractive and orderly, in fact, to the visitor the town presents an aspect of civic pride and a progressive community. Everything is modern, the streets are well cared for and trade is excellent. The citizens claim that there is not a poor merchant in the town. A new high school was constructed in 1911 and is a model of its kind.
The Coatesville Bank was organized in May, 1902, by Messrs. Beck, Moffet and Reeds. It was reorganized in 1906 as the First National Bank, commencing business on January 1, 1907. The first officers were: W. T. Beck, president; F. P. Moffett, vice president and James M. Reeds, cashier. The first capital stock was $6,000, the present capital is $25,000, with $125,000 in deposits and $8,500 surplus. W. T. Beck is the president in 1914; Jesse Masten, vice president, and C. D. Knight. cashier. The bank was chartered in 1906.
Coatesville Lodge No. 357, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, was organized November 27, 1870, with the following first members: Joel T. Tinder, Wallace Snowden, William Lakin, William Newkirk, Alva W. Sanders. There are now one hundred and twenty five members.
Coatesville Lodge No. 391, Knights of Pythias, has one hundred and twenty members.
Coatesville Lodge No. 695, Free and Accepted Masons, has fifty three members. (History of Clay Township, Hendricks County, Indiana; from: History of Hendricks County, Indiana; Hon. John V. Hadley, Editor in Chief; B. F. Bowen & Co., Inc.; Indianapolis, Indiana 1914).
 |
| Figure #6 Minister Henry Coates-Soc. of Friends |
Here is family information on the founder:
 |
| Figure #7 Henry Coates Family 1850 Census |
Here is a place to mention the Masten family. "Hezzy" Masten was the town dog-catcher. Prince, our dog, didn't like Hezzy. He was afraid of that wire cage. Hezzy never caught our dogs. He was just too nice! I knew him quite well because he always came to Coatesville Auction. Hezzy scared me some. The poor guy, long before modern medicine, had a neck cyst on the back. It was huge! Years later I learned empathy. I got a neck cyst as well. Mine had a small knot, but mine was huge inside. Modern medicine took mine away. Hezzy wasn't as fortunate as we are today. We are truly a product of our times. We must a;ways feel the misfortunes of other people! That's the right thing to do.
In 1880 Henry and "Sally" Coates were living in Franklin Township, Montgomery County, Indiana, he 71 and she 76. He was very fittingly a miller by trade as shown there. (1880 Census Franklin Township, Montgomery County, Indiana). Per "Friends" records Henry had moved to Montgomery County by 1857. I'll write more on Henry later. Mr. Davidson gave him the credit for founding the town, but there was a Rev. John Coates as well who was in Coatesville per Ancestry records.
By coincidence Joseph Herren was the eumerater of the 1950 Census for Henry Coates. His family lived in Liberty Township and they were from Harrison County, Kentucky. Many of that family are buried in the Irons Cemetery on U.S. Hwy 40 outside Cartersburg. (Just a coincidence I guess).
The following is from a Query in Ancestry:
From: Edward Sinker <sinker@globalnet.co.uk>It is likely that Henry Coate(s) was born in Cincinnati because his father, Samuel Coat, entered land there in 1804 (Early Ohioans' residences from the land grant records Cincinnati Land Office)
Subject: Re: John Sharp Genealogy
Date: Fri, 28 Mar 1997
...There is one line that I have a particular interest, not because
I am descended from him but because I had a burning desire to
discover who Coatsville, Indiana was named after so I hope you
will understand that I am in a position to correct this portion of
John's terrific piece of data which he has so generously shared
with us all.
30. HENRY8 COATE (SAMUEL7 COATE(S), MARMADUKE6 COATE, HENRY5, SAMUEL4
COATE(S), JOHN3 COATE, HENRY2, MARMADUKE1) was born February 09, 1809, and
died September 27, 1838 (Wrong). He married (1) SALLY FELLOWS. He married (2)
MARY KELLY December 19, 1832 in Union, Miami Co., Ohio, daughter of Moses
KELLY and Mary TEAGUE.
Children of Henry Coate and Sally FELLOWS are:
i.RACHEL9 COATE, b. February 03, 1842.
ii.SARAH COATE, b. March 30, 1843.
Children of Henry Coate and Mary KELLY are:
iii.ALFRED9 COATE, b. February 04, 1835; d. April 16, 1836.
iv.HARVEY COATE, b. September 09, 1836.
It looks like a simple error in inputting the date for Henry's death. He
could not have died on Sep 27, 1838 (this Mary's DOD) or else he couldn't have had any
kids.
Am I thinking clearly here, or what! My info is that he died on 25 July 1896
according to:
"Cemeteries in Montgomery County, Indiana, Vol. 2, compiled by Dorothy Q
Chapter, DAR, Crawfordville, Indiana and the "Republican Newspaper", Danville,
Indiana, July 30, 1896 which said:
"Henry Coates, founder of Coatesville, died at his home at Darlington, Saturday.
He was born in Ohio, Feb. 9th 1809. He married May Kelley(sic) in 1832 and to
them were born two sons. She died in 1838. He was married again in 1840 to
Sally Fellow who still survives. To them were born four daughters. He moved
to Hendricks county in 1844 and laid out the town of Coatesville. In 1856 he
moved to Darlington where he has since lived with a daughter. Mr. Coates was
a Friend. One of his last requests was that his body be taken to the cemetery
in a common wagon."
So you can also see that the wives are reversed and that he married Mary
Kell(e)y first and Sally (Peele) Fellows second.
Some other bits are (there are some more children):
Indiana, Mill Creek-
Coate, Henry b 2- 9-1809, OH, s Samuel & Margaret (Coppock)
Sally (Fellow) b 3-19-1804, dt Robert & Rachel (Peele) of
Newport MH (New Garden MM).
Ch: Harvey b 9- 9-1836
Rachel b 2- 3-1842
Sarah b 3-30-1843
Mary b 7-30-1844
Margaret Ann 10-17-1846 ( d 8-21-1861, ae 14y 10m 7d-
"Cemeteries in Mongomery - source)
Henry was buried in Green Lawn Cemetery(Quaker), Montgomery County,
Indiana along with his wife Sally who died on 9-27-1901 and his daughter
Margaret Ann source: Cemeteries in Montgomery County, Indiana....
Edward Coates Sinker - email: sinker@globalnet.co.uk
Church Lea
Bosbury
Herefordshire HR8 1PX
U. K.
Across from our home was the Clyde Poff family who owned (co-owned) "Poff and Tony" on Hwy. 75 north of Coatesville. My former wife worked for Jim Poff there as secretary in the late 1960s.
Clyde and Ursula had children, Jim, Judy and Jack Poff. Ursula was the daughter of Mildred McAninch and Robert Orr. She died in Florida in 1999 and it seems that Clyde died thereafter.
According to Annie Johnson "The Poff house was owned by Doc. Ellett before the Poffs owned it. I used to babysit J. D. and his little brother." and added:
"While I was babysitting J. D. Ellett one day when he was 5 years old, he came running into the kitchen from the back door. I was changing the baby's diaper at the time and saw him grab their biggest butcher knife and run out again. I put the baby in his play pen and ran out to get the knife out of his hands, but I was too late. There was a dog fight of about 5 dogs snarling and growling and tearing at each other in the middle of Milton street and he ran into the midst of the melee slashing and stabbing with his butcher knife and I was going to run in the middle and pull him out when my Uncle Clyde Ruark (who lived in your house before you) called out to me from his front porch to stay back and said, "He'll soon scare the dogs away; he's meaner than any one of 'em!" I watched as the dogs took off with their tails between their legs and J. D. strutted back into his yard like a conquering warrior. I never worried about that boy again after that."The Poff house was the big white one with several outbuildings. Backed up to his home on 75 was Arthur Biehl's. Jim Poff built a new home on our old sled slope behind on the 75 connector off Broadway Street. This spur was added about that time. He was married then to Shirley White. Shirley was of the Amo White's and went to Amo High School. She was noted at that time as being about 4'-10" of beauty, having been a cheerleader for Amo High.
The Poff's were a great set of neighbors. Not only was Clyde and Jim great businessmen, but they truly helped my family. When Dad was laid off Clyde had procured the inventory of ceramics molds. He allowed Dad to use them and his rear building to manufacture plasters of all types. This really helped out our family in perilous times. Dad, Mom and the older ones did the pouring, but we all did the hand sanding and even us younger ones hand painted many of them. Dad sold most of them at Coatesville and Cloverdale Auction houses.
This family of mine owes much to the Poff family and so do many others in town. Ursula was one of Mom's best friends caring little that Mom spoke eastern Kentucky hillbilly, the language she never ceased to use!
Absolutely enjoyed reading through your writings again today! What memories they stirred up! I'm speaking to a small group today about Francis Clark Brown, the Hoosier artist, who was taught by Paul Hadley of Mooresville. One thing led to another then Mark, Vivian, and David Hadley entered the picture! Wow! What a journey! Have a blessed day! James A. Lyon "Jamie"
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