Thomas H. Patrick, BiographyPorter County biographical sketches . . . .
Transcribed biography of Thomas H. Patrick
THOMAS H. PATRICK.
Porter County, Indiana, has within her borders many men toward whom she may justly point the finger of pride, and whose names are synonymous with her advancement in every particular. Prominent among them stands the name of Thomas H. Patrick, the popular and efficient Recorder of the County. The ancestral history of the Patrick family in America dates from Colonial times, when three brothers of that name left the North of Ireland, crossed the ocean, and settled in this country, one in Pennsylvania, another in New Jersey and the other in the Empire State. From these three brothers have descended all the Patricks in America, so far as known. Thomas Patrick, the grandfather of our subject, was a descendant of the Pennsylvania branch, and was born in York County, that State. At an early date he moved from that county to Wayne County, Ohio, where he was among the very first settlers, there being but three white families in the county at that time. Indians were numerous and wild game abundant. Mr. Patrick cleared a farm and -
"He cut, he logged, he cleared his lot
And into many a dismal spot he let the light of day."
He was a typical pioneer hunter and an enterprising, thorough-going citizen who, before he passed to that bourne whence no traveler returns, saw waving fields of grain where once had been heavy timber, and knew this to have been brought about by his own efforts. His death occurred on the farm when sixty-six years of age. He was the father of four children: James, Ruth, Robert and Thomas, by his first marriage, and one, Isaac, by his second union. His second wife was a widow with two sons, Alexander and John. Mr. Patrick was an old school Presbyterian in his religious belief. His son, James Patrick, father of our subject, was borne in Wayne County, Ohio, in 1805, and was reared to sturdy manhood amid the rude surroundings of pioneer life. In the common schools he received his education, and after reaching mature years was married to Miss Nancy Culbertson who bore him ten children, as follows: Alexander 0., William, Jane, Lydia S., Thomas H., Ann E., James H., Robert E., Edith M. and Albert. The latter died when a child. Mr. Patrick moved from Wayne County to Hancock County, Ohio, at an early day, and cleared the land on which a part of the town of Findley now stands. He partially entered the land but about 1838 or '39 moved from Hancock to Holmes County, Ohio, where he made his home until 1854. After that he settled at Auburn, DeKalb County, Indiana, and there died in 1856 when about fifty-one years of age. All his life he had been a mill owner and farmer, and ran a water sawmill and grist mill at Benton, Holmes County, for many years. He was a man possessed of an unlimited amount of energy and perseverance and one who was highly esteemed wherever he made his home. Like his father he was an old school Presbyterian.
Thomas H. Patrick, our subject, was born on his father's farm in Holmes County, Ohio, July 30, 1840, and there received a fair common school education. He was about fifteen years of age when his father died and from that time up he has been the architect of his own fortune. He went with the family to Cold Water, Michigan, but after residing there one year they moved to Bristol, Elkhart County, Indiana. There our subject worked on a farm in the summer and attended school during the winter. In the spring of 1859 he came to LaPorte County, Indiana, worked on a farm until fall and then went to Burr Oak where he served two years as apprentice to the harness business. Afterward he served one year apprentice as a carriage trimmer at Cold Water, Michigan, after which he went to Sturges, that State, and worked at his trade until the spring of 1861. On the 1st of March, 1861, he enlisted in the First Michigan Regiment, but was rejected on account of a lame limb, an accident in his childhood. His employer refused to hire him on account of his enlistment and he went to Cold Water, Michigan, where he worked for John Beadle until the middle of July, 1861. From there he went to Cincinnati, Ohio, and engaged in the service of the U. S. Government as harness maker in the government shops and in camps in Kentucky and Tennessee. He remained in this business until the summer of 1864, when he returned to Bristol, Indiana, and was ill all summer. In December, 1864, he came to Valparaiso, and worked for W. F. Mann for four years, after which he started a shop. This he carried on until 1883 when he was disabled by pneumonia and sold out. He spent the summer and fall in Spokane, Washington, (then a territory) for his health, and in 1887 he returned to Valparaiso and embarked in the harness and carriage trimming business. In 1890 he was elected by the Republican party Recorder of Porter County and this position he still holds to the general satisfaction of the people. Socially he is a Mason, a K. T., and has filled all the chairs, except Eminent Commander, which he failed to reach on account of sickness. On the 28th of November, 1868, he married Miss Melinda E. Paramore, daughter of Dr. and Eliza S. (Ellis) Paramore. Her father was a leading physician for many years and was well known in all the cities of Porter County. Dr. William C. Paramore was born in Leicestershire, England, in 1809, and was there educated. When a young man he was a soldier in King George's Army, stationed at Ft. George, Scotland, and there he married Miss Margaret Tovey who bore him three children: Edward F., John W. and Charles H. H. In the year 1830 Dr. Paramore came to America and settled in Ohio. He studied medicine at Cincinnati and Chicago, practiced in Ohio for some time, and in July, 1855, came to Valparaiso, Porter County, Indiana, where he passed the remainder of his days. His first wife died in the Buckeye State and he subsequently married Miss Eliza S. Ellis of New York State. This union resulted in the birth of seven children: Ellis M., died in infancy; Melinda E.; William C., died when young; George W., killed by an accident; Mary A., died in infancy; William C., a prominent merchant of Zanesville, Ohio, and Hattie B., the youngest of the Doctor's children, married Joseph L. Doyle, one of the prominent business men of Valparaiso. Dr. Paramore had two sons in the Rebellion, Edward F., in a Wisconsin regiment and Charles H. H., in an Ohio regiment. For many years the Doctor was the leading physician in Valparaiso. He was a man of sterling character, charitable and kind to the poor, and respected by all who knew him. To Mr. and Mrs. Patrick were born three children: William C. who is one of the youngest fireman on the Chicago & Grand Trunk R. R., and Edith S. who was made her father's deputy and has well filled the place during the term of his office. The youngest, Edward C., died in infancy.
Source: Goodspeed Brothers. 1894. Pictorial and Biographical Record of La Porte, Porter, Lake and Starke Counties, Indiana. Chicago, Illinois: Goodspeed Brothers. 569 p.
Page(s) in Source: 168-171
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