Isaiah Miller, BiographyPorter County biographical sketches . . . .
Transcribed biography of Isaiah Miller
ISAIAH MILLER. It is always pleasing to the biographer or student of human nature to enter into an analysis of the character and career of a successful tiller of the soil. Of the many citizens gaining their own livelihood, he alone stands pre-eminent as a totally independent factor, in short "monarch of all he surveys." His rugged honesty and sterling worth are the outcome of a close association with nature and in all the relations of life he manifests that generous hospitality and kindly human sympathy which beget comradeship and which cement to him the friendship of all with whom he comes in contact. Successfully engaged in diversified agriculture on his fine estate of two hundred and forty acres in Porter township, Porter county, Indiana, Isaiah Miller is decidedly a prominent and popular citizen of this section of the state, where he has resided during the entire period of his lifetime thus far.
In Porter county, Indiana, August 1, 1852, occurred the birth of Isaiah Miller, who was third in order of nativ.ity in a family of seven children born to James and Elizabeth (Hague) Miller. He was reared under the God-like influence of Christian parents and in his boyhood days he attended the district schools of Porter township. He remained at the parental home until he had reached his legal majority and when he was ready to begin life on his own account he had in his possession a sum of two hundred dollars, two horses and a calf. After his marriage, in 1886, he rented a farm belonging to his father for two years and at the end of that period he purchased a tract of one hundred and sixty acres, which formed the nucleus of his present fine estate. This land is located five miles from Hebron, Indiana. Mr. Miller went in debt to the extent of four thousand, five hundred dollars for this farm and two years later he purchased another tract of eighty acres. None of this land was improved at the time of purchase, but as the result of hard labor and persistent effort all of it is now under cultivation and in the midst of extensive fields are beautiful and substantial buildings. All the debts have been cleared away and Mr. and Mrs. Miller are the proud possessors of one of the attractive farms in this section of the county. They also have the satisfaction of having reared to maturity a family of fine, industrious, God-fearing children, who are a source .of comfort to them in their declining years.
On September 30, 1886, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Miller to Miss Anna J. Buchanan, who was born in Porter county, Indiana, November 15, 1864, and who is a daughter of Samuel and Hannah (Wood) Buchanan, both of whom are deceased. Mrs. Miller was the sixth in order of birth in a family of eight children, four boys and four girls, one of whom, Mary, is deceased. Concerning the other Buchanan children the following data are here incorporated: Robert is a prominent agriculturist in the vicinity of Walker, Missouri; Allen is a resident of Hebron, Indiana, a retired farmer; Laura is the wife of George Baker, of Boone Grove, Indiana; Nelson is a resident of Albion, Michigan, where he is in the employ of the Michigan Southern Railroad; Anna J. is Mrs. Miller; Bertha was formerly a teacher in Porter township and Boone Grove and she now lives at Hebron; and Murray maintains his home on a dairy farm near Long Mount, Colorado. Father Buchanan was a native of Logan, Ohio, and was born April 19, 1828. He died December 8, 1879, in Porter county, Indiana. Mr. Buchanan was reared and educated in his native state, where was solemnized his marriage and whence he came to Indiana about the year 1844. He located in Boone township, Porter county, and there rented a farm until about 1879, when he purchased land and made a permanent home for his family. He was of Scotch lineage. In politics he was originally an old-line Whig and later became a Republican. He and his wife, who was born in Ohio, April 26, 1835, were devout members of the Presbyterian church. She died July 30, and both are interred in the Hebron cemetery, where a beautiful monument has been erected to their memory.
Mr. and Mrs. Miller became the parents of seven children, three sons and four daughters, five of whom are living, in 1912. Hazel P., who is the wife of Charles Ginder, a prosperous agriculturist in Porter township, was educated in the public schools of Porter township and for two years was a student in the Boone Grove high school. Mr. and Mrs. Ginder have a daughter, Anna Belle. They are members of the Salem Methodist Episcopal church and Mr. Ginder is affiliated with the Modern Woodmen of America at Hebron, Indiana. Murray W., after completing the public schools of Porter township, engaged in farming enterprises in the vicinity of Hebron. He is a Republican in politics and in a fraternal way is connected with the Knights of Pythias at Hebron and with the Modern Woodmen of America at Boone Grove. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. Alma H. was graduated from the eighth grade in 1908 and for one year attended high school at Hebron. She is a devout Methodist. Anna May is a sophomore in high school at Hebron. She is also a member of the Methodist church. Henry J., the baby of the family, is in the seventh grade in school and, like his brothers and sisters, is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church.
In his political allegiance Isaiah Miller is a stalwart in the ranks of the Republican party, and in the time-honored Masonic order he is a member of Hebron Lodge, No. 502, Free & Accepted Masons, at Hebron. Mr. and Mrs. Miller are zealous workers in the Methodist Episcopal church, of which they are devout members. They assisted in the erection of the church and are strong supporters of the Sunday school. They are always ready and willing to contribute to measures tending to improve the general welfare and their home is renowned as a center of refinement and generous hospitality.
Source: Lewis Publishing Company. 1912. History of Porter County, Indiana: A Narrative Account of its Historical Progress, its People and its Principal Interests. Chicago, Illinois: Lewis Publishing Company. 881 p.
Page(s) in Source: 640-644
This biography has been transcribed exactly as it was originally published in the source. Please note that we do not provide photocopies or digital scans of biographies appearing on this website.
Biography transcribed by Steven R. Shook