From Goodspeed's "History of Knox and Daviess Counties":
DECKER TOWNSHIP
This township occupies the point between the Wabash and White Rivers. It
is bounded on the north by the river Du Chien and by Johnson Township. It
embraces between forty and fifty square miles of land. It contains many
swamps, bayous and ponds. Two of the largest ponds are Cypress and
Claypole, situated near the White River, into which they empty their
surplus waters. Cypress lies mostly on sections 11 and 14, and is named
from the growth around it. The latter lies in Section 6, and was named
from one of the old settlers, who formerly owned the land around it.
These ponds are a great resort for fishing parties. Less than half of the
land of the township is under cultivation, owing to the marshes and
swamps. In 1884, according to the assessor's report, there were 4,330
acres of wheat, 4,665 acres of corn, and about 2,000 acres in clover and
meadow in the township. The lands that are sufficiently dry are extremely
fertile, and yield rich harvests of wheat and corn. These articles find a
ready market on either the Wabash or White Rivers, or other convenient
points.
SETTLEMENT
The Decker family was one of the most prominent of the early settlers,
and it was from this family that the township was named. Whether the name
was given for Luke, one of the first territorial grand jurymen, or for
John Decker, one of the first sheriffs, or for the family, is
questionable. Luke Decker, the first of the family to come to this
county, came from Virginia previous to the year 1783, while this was a
part of the territorial limits of Virginia. He brought with him his
slaves, and among them was Dinah, a slave woman, who was the mother of
Bob and Anthony. These were held as slaves by Luke Decker, son of Luke
Decker, after the passage of the ordinance of 1787 and after Indiana
becamea state. In 1817 Bob and Anthony sued Luke Decker in the Orange
County Court for their freedom, and after a period of five years in
different courts they at last gained their freedom. John Decker, before
mentioned, lived near White River, below Deckertown. He owned a body of
land on which he lived. Isaac Decker, son-in-law of Kirkendall, was a
relative of John and Luke Decker. He sometimes ran flat-boats to New
Orleans, and, as was the custom of the time, he would have to walk home.
Henry Crow was born in Gibson County in 1812, but has lived almost in
sight of the township all the time. He has lived in Section 18 for the
last forty years. John came to the township from Virginia, not far from
1800, where he remained until his death. Jacob Anthis was another old
settler who opened a farm on White River. Robert Worth, or Warth, settled
about three miles below Deckertown, on the edge of the hills, where he
opened a small farm. He lived by cultivating his small tract of land and
by hunting. He left two sons, who remained on or near the same spot until
their deaths. Jacob Jacobus came from New England and settled on a
donation. He opened up a good farm, and was a man of worth. He was the
father of Robert Jacobus, township trustee of Decker Township. David
Jennings was another pioneer settler on White River. He also was from New
England. Thomas Dick was another early settler. He was the owner of
Donations 6 and 7. It was for him that the town of Dicksburg was named.
David Crack, who settled about one mile and a half from Henry Crow's
residence, was from Virginia. He left two sons and three daughters, who
remained in the neighborhood until death. Other pioneers were Conrad
Crum, John Ramsey, Marshal Browning, Jeremiah McNeeley and Thomas
Washburn.
MILLS, STILL-HOUSES AND FERRIES
The first mill ever built in the township was built by one of the
Deckers; it was a water-mill. Afterward, Thomas Dick built a small
horse-mill and still-house on his farm, which supplied the old settlers
with food and drink for a time. In 1824 B.V. Decker was allowed the right
to run a ferry across White River. The following were the rates charged:
six-horse team and wagon, $1; four-horse, 75 cents; two-horse, 50 cents;
one-horse, 37 1/2 cents; man and horse, 12 1/2 cents; footman, 6 1/4
cents; neat cattle, 4 cents per head; hogs, 2 cents each.
___________________________________________________________________
Get the Internet just the way you want it.
Free software, free e-mail, and free Internet access for a month!
Try Juno Web:
http://dl.www.juno.com/dynoget/tagj.