This is basically a 65th anniversary article (Billy & Semira Lindley
Ephlin) ; however, you'll read about Harveysburg and when it was a super
thriving town; Billy Ephlin's CIvil War life and his officers (from
Fountain Co) -- their births; parents; friendship with Joe Cannon;
marriage at her parents' home and they were married by his father; the
home they lived in which had been his parents - built with poplar in
1860 (so hard to find time frames of homes so this was exciting and
they're not even my relatives) and the love of fife music plus a whole
lot more :) It's soooo cool but then again, I'm a history buff along
with the genealogy :) ENJOY
*Source:**Unknown newspaper - found in an old scrapbook There should be
only one ground for divorce, he claims and that should be adultery. That
is one thing that would wreck his home but not his life, for "Billy"
declares that if he ever found that his wife loved someone else, he
would tell her to go. The model marriage, he says, depends as much on
the wife as the husband and he points out that in his 65 years of
married life, his wife has never scolded him once or found fault with
him, and he admits that there have been many times in their married life
when he has been late at night or has done things his wife might not
have approved of. "It is the nagging wife, the one who is always finding
fault and picking flaws, that wrecks the average marriage of today," he
declares. In all those viewpoints on successful and happy marriages,
Mrs. Ephlin agrees with her husband. She is a quiet, motherly sort of
woman but under the surface there is visible the force of character and
mind that has evenly divided the load of matrimoney with her husband
through the years that have passed since the momentous day, Sept 22,
1858, when they took each other "for better or worse." Mr. and Mrs.
Ephlin are native born Illiandianians. "Billy" was born Dec 2, 1838, six
miles south of Harveysburg, in Parke County. Harveysburg is a little
hamlet, once flourishing one and one-half miles north of Kingman (sic).
The marriage ceremony was performed by Rev. John P. Ephlin, father of
the groom, who was one who was also a shoemaker, who worked diligently
at his trade through the week and on Sunday preached the gospel to the
pioneers in the little United Brethren Church. Mrs. Ephlin whose maiden
name was Miss Semira Lindley, was born Dec 31, 1841, one mile south of
her present home, her parents being Mr. and Mrs. Reuben Lindley, also
Indiana pioneers, and in whose home the marriage was solemnized. The
Lindleys were devout Quakers, but Mrs. Ephlin is now with her husband, a
faithful member of the UB Church in Kingman. *
*Mr. Ephlin's early life was a boyhood friend of Uncle Joe Cannon, and
the Harveysburg man recalls with interest the fact that when Uncle Joe,
at age 17, was clerking for Samuel T. Ensey in Annapolis' general store,
the embryo statesman often declared: "I never expect to stop outside the
halls of congress in Washington." Billy says Uncle Joe was a serious
minded youth, who constantly dreamed of a brilliant future, a boyish
dream that came true when the ex-grocer clerk completed 50 years in
congress something over a year ago and, who had been speaker of the
house for years and the director of Republican policies in national
affairs. The Ephlins after being married seven months, moved to
Harveysburg wher ehis father worked at his trade of shoemaker and
preached on Sundays, the Ephlin family having removed from Annapolis' to
Harveysburg, while Billy was still a boy. Mr. and Mrs. Ephlin have lived
in their present home for 38 years, the house being the old home of his
father and mother. It was built by the father in 1860, yellow poplar
lumber hauled by wagon from Annapolis having been used in its
construction. *
*Billy served as a fifer in Company H, 63rd Indiana Volunteers, during
the last 3 years of the Civil War. He enlisted at Harveysburg, signing
up in the old meeting house on the corner under ington (sic - assume
Covington?). The famous 63rd regiment was part of the Third Brigade of
the Third Division of the 23rd Army Corps commanded by General
Litchfield (Johnfield - can't read) and "billy" was stationed at
Raleigh, NC when the war ended. He was with Sherman's army at Atlanta,
when that famous general was about to start on his march to the sea but
Billy and the other Fountain County boys were shifted to the force which
started north for Alexandria, VA from where they traveled down the
Potomac to Ft. Fisher. Capt. William Conover, Covington, was the first
commanding officer of Co. H. He was succeeded by Capt. Schuyler
LaTourrette, who now lives four miles south of Covington, who in turn
was succeeded by Capt. Prior Cates, who lives in retirement now in the
village of Cates, which he founded. Capt. Cates is a brother-in-law of
Mr. Ephlin and was in command of the company when the war ended.
Harveysburg is one of Fountain County's oldest settlements, named after
Harlan Harvey who built the first saw mill in that section. It was was a
flourishing trading post in the days before the Civil War, and Billy's
father was postmaster there for 18 years. The railroad passing through
Kingman killed the chances of Harveysburg becoming any larger and the
old trading hamlet settled down to a quiet "four corners settlement." *
*Mr. Ephlin's father was a fifer in the army of the early part of the
19th Century and came from a family that furnished plenty of fighting
material for the Revolutionary Army. The father came to Indiana from
Maury County, Tenn and played the fife in Nashville, Tenn when Marquis
LaFayette paid a visit to that city on his return to the US from France.
The other Ephlin was a personal friend of President Andrew Jackson and
during the Lafayette reception in Nashville walked arm in arm with
Jackson down the street. He, however, was politically opposed to Jackson
and did not vote for him. He was also a person friend of President Polk,
who also came from Tennessee. *
*Mr. and Mrs. Ephlin have five children living, two having died in
infancy. The two who died were Edson Ephlin and Maude Ephlin. The five
children living are: Mrs. Ella Ratcliff of Matthews, Mo; Willard Ephlin
of Sullivan, Ind; Horace Ephlin Kingman; Mrs. Myrtle Ratcliff of
Lafayette, Ind and Mrs. Mary Sanders who resides about a half mile south
of the family home. There are 14 grandchildren and 8 great
grandchildren. Both Mr. and Mrs. Ephlin enjoy good health. They are
great readers and thoroughly conversant with the affairs of today. They
are happy and contented in their little home and although on the
downhill side of life's journey look forward to many more anniversaries
of that happy marriage of 65 years ago. -- /kbz /*