Prairie Creek township is one of 12 townships in Vigo County Indiana located in the southwest corner of the county. It is bounded on the west by the Wabash River, on the north by Prairieton township, on the east by Linton township and on the south by Sullivan County.
Indiana, one of the Middle Western States of the United States was the 19th state to join the Union, having been admitted on December 11, 1816.
The first wagon road opened in or through the township was that known as the old army road, and opened and used for communication between Fort Knox and Fort Harrison during the war of 1812. The course of this road through the township cannot be more definitely described than to say it passed nearly north and south, on the east side of Battlerow Prairie, and on much the same ground as that of the present county road in that locality. This was the only public highway in this part of the state up to the year 1823, at which date the present Road 63 was laid out and opened.
Early Vigo County history tells us that the county was created by an act of legislature of the State of Indiana at a session convened at Corydon, in Harrison County on the first Monday of December 1817. It was approved January 21, 1818, by Jonathan Jennings, first governor of the State. There were twelve townships, formerly. The Indiana legislature, in organizing the county conferred upon it the name of the Vigo (Vego), in honor of Col. Francis Vigo, then a resident of Vincennes, the oldest town in the State. Col. Vigo was a native of the Kingdom of Sardinia; was born in 1740 and died at Vincennes in 1834 in his 96th year.
In 1816, the town of Terre Haute was laid out. The board of Commissioners of Vigo County, at their first meeting held March 11, 1818, divided the county into four townships; Honey Creek, Harrison, Wabash and Independence. In February of 1812 two families settled at Walnut Springs. Indians were lurking all around, but they came asking for peace in 1815. Some of the most interesting Indian and early stories are know as the "Indian Legend of Old Indian Orchard" and "Old Bally Horse."
The first house in the township was a log cabin near the place occupied by Mrs. Irving Thomas' residence. It was raised and covered by Joseph Liston, but he left and it was finished and first lived in by the Thomas Pound Family late in the year of 1816. They were the first family to pass a night in the township. Next a settlement was formed by the Lykins family near the Lykins Cemetery on the old army road.
The first organized association was the First Prairie Creek Baptist Church which was constituted in May 1818, by Elder Isaac McCoy. A political organization was formed by Armstrong McCabe and Nicholas Yeager who were called magistrates. Conrad Frakes was the first constable. Mr. Yeager was Justice of Peace for 15 years. The first post office was at Lykins in 1817 and the first postmaster was David Lykins in 1831.
The first schoolhouse was erected in the fall of 1818, and near the place where the present Baptist Church stands. In 1821 another school was built at the foot of the hill, east of James D. Piety's residence to better accommodate the people. Nicholas Yeager was the first teacher.
Isaiah Wilson was the first blacksmith and Samuel Keen owned the first smith shop. Mr. Wilson also built a cotton gin and cotton was grown on about 30 acres up to the year 1840.
In 1817 the first grist mill was erected and farmers rode in and ground their own grain for a small fee. It was a horse mill and a large horizontal cog wheel, the cogs of which worked into a trundle head that mvoed the upper mill stone. The wheel was some thirty or more feet in diameter and was elevated some six or eight feet from the ground. It was propelled by two or more horses hitched to a beam which passed through the main shaft. Each customer was required to furnish motive power--a span of horses. One hour was needed for each bushel of grain. In the meantime the farmer and the miller would amuse themselves playing fox and geese on the bottom of the toll box. At an early day the bran and flour were separated at home by means of a sieve. Later hand bolts were found on which the farmer was allowed to bolt his flour for a small fee. By 1840 there were three such mills; the one mentioned and one by James W. Shattuck and the third in Middletown.
The first tanyard was established by William Foster and in 1825 another was built by William Perry. Eliphalet Shattuck was the first resident physician.
In 1820 Angel built the "Watts Mill" and in 1842 Robert Lambert built another. These mills were both grist and saw mills. In 1825 the principal business center was on Battlerow and a number of people settled along the road and many lived in the Lykins and Ithat Shattck settlements. There were gristmills, cotton gins, postoffices, doctor, store, attorney, blacksmith, and wagonmaker.
In 1830 considerable business began in the Daniel Johnson settlement. Here Warren Harper made and repaired wagons, plows, farming implements and became the cabinet maker of the township. The best schoolhouse, hotel and several other buildings were clustered together at this place. Just south of this town which was called Middletown because it was the place where the stagecoach between Merom Ferry and Terre Haute changed horses, a residence was built, but was used for a hotel.
In August of 1831, the north half of the town of Middletown was laid out, containing thirty-two lots and extending from the Baptist Church to the street south of the old hotel building. Elijah Thomas and James D. Piety were the proprietors--Warren Harper was the engineer. A grapevine was used as a surveyors chain. Two or three years later the south part of town was plotted with thirty-two more lots, making a total of sixty-four lots. This was the first and only plotted town ever formed in the township. The first house was of logs and was just south of Rynerson's drug store. Daniel McDonald opened it up for a hotel. Jonas Lykins built the second house and made it into a store. The first mill in or near the town was west.
Jonas P. Lykins was the first postmaster and the name was Lykins' Postoffice. Warren Harper was the first resident justice of peace, and William Reed was the first physician. The first frame house was built by James Copeland and was on the site A.K. Hunt's farm. He used it as a hotel. The first frame school house was built in 1842 just east of the Baptist Church. Vincent Yeager was the contractor and builder. In 1847, Hiram Hight built the first steam-mill and it was erected just west of Mr. Gobin's brick residence. The first brick house built in the town or township was by Jacob Ernest in 1849. The Christian Church was built by Vincent Yeager in 1854. James Piety, Valentine Morgan and John Pogue were the first Trustees.
In 1840 there were the following: One church building (First Prairie Creek Baptist), three schools, three grist mills, three distilleries, two tanyards, three dry-goods stores, two smith shops, one saddle and harness shop, two wagon shops, two potteries, three hotels, one cabinet shop, one boot and shoe shop, two tailor shops, four physicians, three groceries, on daily mail.
Happy 180th Birthday, 1816-1996, First Prairie Creek Baptist Church, 1966, 1996
By Norah M. Johnson, with revisions by Rev. Ray Dyer, Amy Watson and Nell Moore.
Pp. 1-3; Used with permission.
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