Porter County and the War of 1812Veterans of the War of 1812 in Porter County . . . .
Background Information
The War of 1812, between the United States and the British Empire, was fought
from 1812 to 1815. There were several immediate causes for the U.S.
declaration of war. First, Great Britain had put into place a series of trade
restrictions to impede American trade with France, a country with which Britain
was at war. Second, Britain had implemented forced recruitment of U.S. citizens
into the Royal Navy. Third, the British military was providing substantial
support to North American Indians who were offering armed resistance to the
expansion of the American frontier to the Northwest. American expansion into the
Northwest (Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, and Wisconsin) was impeded by
Indian raids. Although the British made some concessions before the war on
neutral trade, they saw themselves as having the right to reclaim their
deserting sailors, and also as the protectors of the native Indians from
encroaching settlers. The British also had the long-standing goal of creating a
large "neutral" Indian state that would cover much of Ohio, Indiana, and
Michigan.
Porter County War of 1812 Veterans
Isaac Cornell
Private, 135th Regiment (Christy's) Pennsylvania Militia
Born: April 17, 1792
Death: January 22, 1874
Burial: Cornell Cemetery in Boone Township
Biographical Sketch: Isaac Cornell was born on April 17, 1792, in Allegheny
County, Pennsylvania, the son of Joseph and Mary (Van Kirk) Cornell. He married
Priscilla Morgan and they were the parents of the following eleven children:
Alvin, Morgan, Ira, Harriet, Milan, Rebecca, Lucretia, Phebe, Van Kirk, Craig,
and Maria. At some point in time after his service in the War of 1812, Isaac
Cornell migrated to Crawford County, Ohio. From Crawford County the Cornell
family emigrated to Boone Township in Porter County during the spring of 1835,
being the first permanent white settlers in that township. A newspaper item
published on July 17, 1878, in the Porter County Vidette (p. 3, col. 7)
states that "we remember he was a man that was loved and respected by all who
knew him. He might truly be called the poor man's friend. It is said that
several times he has been known to refuse to sell wheat and other produce in
times of scarcity to men who had the money to pay for it, and let poor men have
it who had not the money to pay for it. He said to the men who had money, 'You
can buy elsewhere as you have the money to pay for it, and the poor man that is
without it can't do that.' He will live in the hearts of the people for years to
come." Cornell passed away on January 22, 1874, and was buried in the Cornell
Cemetery in Boone Township.
Eliphalet David Curtis
Private, 1st Regiment (Bloom's), New York Militia
Born: August 2, 1781
Death: April 5, 1865
Burial: Sedley Cemetery in Union Township
Biographical Sketch: Eliphalet David Curtis was born on August 2, 1781, in
Brookfield, Fairfield County, Connecticut, the son of Ephraim and Rachel
(Bishop) Curtiss. Eliphalet served as a private in the 1st Regiment of the New
York Militia during the War of 1812. Curtis emigrated to Porter County in 1838
and settled near Porter Cross-Roads, where he died on April 5, 1865. He was
interred in the Sedley Cemetery in Union Township. The Sedley Cemetery is very
small; only three burials are recorded in the Northwest Indiana Genealogical
Society's (NWIGS) index for this cemetery. Eliphalet's burial record in the NWIGS
index incorrectly lists his given name as Elizabeth. According to county
records, Eliphalet's son, Seth Curtis, deeded a half-acre plot located in the
northeast corner of the southeast corner of Section 18 to Union Township for use
as a cemetery. The cemetery is located behind a farm between Sedley Road and
County Road 375 West and is difficult to find. Only one tombstone was found to
remain in the cemetery during its last reading on November 10, 1993.
John Curtis
Born: May 14, 1788
Death: November 12, 1865; age 77y, 5m, 29d
Burial: Blake Cemetery in Portage Township
Biographical Sketch: John Curtis was born on May 14, 1788, and enlisted for
service in the War of 1812 at New York. Curtis emigrated to Porter County in
1836, settling near Wheeler. He died on November 12, 1865, and was interred in
the Blake Cemetery in Portage Township.
Robert Peasley Folsom
Born: 1797
Death: July 30, 1882
Burial: Cornell Cemetery in Boone Township
Biographical Sketch: Robert Folsom was born in 1797. He served for five years in
the regular army and fought in the War of 1812. Sometime around 1842 Folsom
emigrated to Porter County where he settled in Yankeetown, located four miles
northeast of Hebron. At the time of his death at his residence on July 30, 1882,
he was the oldest man (84 years) living in Porter County. Folsom's remains were
interred in the Cornell Cemetery in Boone Township.
Myron Powell
Corporal, 4th Regiment (Williams') Vermont Militia
Born: Circa 1793
Death: November 1, 1865; age 72
Burial: Union Street (Old City) Cemetery in Valparaiso
Biographical Sketch: Myron Powell was born circa 1793 and enlisted for service
in the War of 1812 at Vermont. Shortly after the war Powell moved to Western
Reserve Ohio, and then to Porter County. Powell died in Porter County on
November 1, 1865, and was interred in the Union Street (Old City) Cemetery in
Valparaiso.
Information abstracted by Steven R. Shook