Howard C. and Adele M. Skinkle, BiographyPorter County biographical sketches . . . .
Transcribed biography of Howard C. and Adele M. Skinkle
HOWARD C. AND ADELE M. SKINKLE FAMILIES
Howard Challen Skinkle is the son of Albert and Nancy Alice (Miller) Skinkle. His grandparents on his father's side were Peter and Sarah (Peters) Skinkle. Peter was born Feb. 14, 1824 and died March 2, 1884. Sarah, his wife, was born Oct. 14, 1822 and died June 28, 1914. Both are buried at Hebron cemetery.
Howard's mother's parents were James and Elizabeth (Hague) Miller. James was born Sept. 14, 1832 and died May 23, 1911; and his wife born Dec. 1, 1834 and died Oct. 26, 1885; both buried at the Boone Grove cemetery. They were married March 13, 1856, and to this union were born 7 children. Nancy Alice, (Howard's mother) born July 31, 1857 who married Albert Skinkle Jan. 1, 1877 and died June 10, 1940. Elmer H., her brother, was born Sept. 19, 1859, married Alice Rollin June 2, 1894 and died Dec. 27, 1936 at Chadbourn, North Carolina. Isiah Miller, born August 1, 1862, married Josie Ann Buchanan Sept. 30, 1886 and died April 29, 1916. William C., born Feb. 18, 1865 and died June 14, 1892; Rachel Estella, born Nov. 11, 1868 and died Sept. 2, 1922; Ida M. Miller, born Jan. 5, 1870, married James C. Douglas Feb. 12, 1890, and died April 29, 1910; and Jennie Elizabeth, born June 6, 1874, married George Douglas Feb. 15, 1894 and died Oct. 18, 1956.
Howard C. Skinkle's parents were Albert and Nancy Alice (Miller) Skinkle. Albert was born at Buffalo, New York on March 7, 1851 and died at their home in Hebron Oct. 18, 1943; and Nancy Alice, born July 31, 1857, at Holmes County, Ohio and died at their Hebron home June 10, 1940. They were married January 1, 1877 at the home of her parents. And purchased the farm where Howard C. now lives, 4 1/2 miles north of Hebron along state road #2, in the spring of 1885. Seven children were born to this union. The oldest child, Archie William, was born at the home of his mother's parents Nov. 21, 1877, and died April 7, 1919, buried at Salem cemetery. Elizabeth, born also at her mother's parents Jan. 2, 1880, married Simon McGinley June 20, 1897 and died August 7, 1902, also buried at Salem cemetery. Sarah Ida M. Skinkle was born on the family farm August 11, 1886, married Roy E. Rigg Sept. 14, 1905, having 1 daughter, Auretta, and 2 sons, Neil and Newell. Ida died in Valparaiso July 30, 1974. James A. was born on the family farm March 30, 1890, and married Frances Ludington Feb. 22, 1912, with 3 children, Harold, Velma and Max. Ross A., born on the family farm Oct. 3, 1895, and married Blanche Ludington June 7, 1916, and have 3 children, Maxine, Millicent and Mary. And Ella was born on the farm August 12, 1898, who married Harley G. Thompson May 10, 1916 and have 1 son, Alden B.
Howard C. Skinkle was born on the family farm Oct. 9, 1892 and on Nov. 14, 1917, married Adele Margaurete Humeau. They have lived and managed the family farm together since March 1918. Adele passed away February 16, 1969 at Valparaiso hospital. They are parents of 3 children born on this farm. Louise Humeau (Skinkle) Reynolds, born Oct. 6, 1918, married John H. Reynolds from Muncie, Ind., in June 1938; a graduate of Porter Cross Roads grade school and Boone Grove High School. Also a graduate of Ball State Teacher's College, Muncie, Ind., a B.S. in Elementary Education and who lives at Route 1, Ridgeville, Ind. Alice Jane (Skinkle) Fitch was born on the family farm Oct. 28, 1922; also a graduate of Porter Cross Roads, Boone Grove High School and Ball State Teacher's College, majoring in Physical Education and Home Economics. She married Franklin G. Fitch from Crown Point. Ind., at the Salem Church July 18, 1943, and have 2 children. David G., who was born August 30, 1952, graduate of Murray, Ky., High School and now attending Dental School at the University of Louisville, Kentucky. Nancy Jane was born April 9, 1957, at Bloomington, Ind., was a 1975 graduate of Murray, Ky., High School and will attend nurses training at Murray State College.
Adele Margaurete (Humeau) Skinkle was born June 26, 1893 at Mansfield, Illinois, whose parents were Louis C. A. and Olive (Clouser) Humeau. Adele was a graduate of Hebron High School, in the spring of 1912, and also a graduate of Valparaiso University in 1914 in Elementary Education, having taught one year at South Dakota; Coulter's school, Union Twp., Porter County, Porter Cross Roads, Boone Grove and LeRoy schools. Her father, Louis C. A. Humeau, was born in Angers, France, July 25, 1861 and came to the United States when he was 18. Mr. Humeau first worked as a gardener for Mr. Paul Bonvallet at St. Anne and Kankakee, Illinois; and then moved to Mansfield, Illinois, where he was employed as manager for Mr. David A. Root, Sr., at the lumber yard there. He and his family moved from Mansfield to Hebron, Ind., in May 1910 where Humeau was assigned to manage the Hebron Lumber Company; the Root's having purchased the Crown Point and Hebron yards the year before. Mr. Humeau managed the Hebron firm till 1941 and passed away at their Hebron home Feb. 9, 1942. Mrs. Humeau passed away in Valparaiso hospital Oct. 15, 1962.
Adele had 3 sisters and 1 brother. The oldest was George, born April 23, 1891 and died August 1957; Florence was born Feb. 27, 1898, married Don Turner in 1915, 1 son, Louis James; she died March 10, 1923. Frances L. was born May 22, 1901 and married Emert H. Graper in 1921; and Josephine I. was born July 1, 1903 and in 1923 married Harry C. Rathburn.
Howard C. Skinkle is still engaged in farming with his son, Paul, who was born also on the family farm, on June 26, 1928. A graduate of Boone Grove High School. The Skinkle family are members of the Salem United Methodist Church. Both father and son are members of the Hebron Masonic Lodge #502 F. & A. M. Paul served as Worshipful Master of this lodge in 1970. Mr. Howard Skinkle has belonged to this lodge for 58 years. Mrs. Skinkle (Adele) was Worthy Matron of the Hebron chapter of the Order of Eastern Star in 1926 and 1927.
Source: American Revolution Bicentennial Committee of Porter County. 1976. A Biographical History of Porter County, Indiana. Valparaiso, Indiana: American Revolution Bicentennial Committee of Porter County, Inc. 180 p.
Page(s) in Source: 161-162
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