History of Lawrence, Orange,
and Washington Counties, Indiana

by Goodspeed Bros. & Company Publishers, 1884

Return to Carolyn's Genealogy Page

The background on this page is
a picture of the White River in Lawrence County.

This page is dedicated to my great-grandfather, Simpson Reynolds,
and his parents Robert and Leaner (Hoopingarner) Reynolds
who were all born in Lawrence County, Indiana.

This page presents information from a book titled History of Lawrence, Orange, and Washington Counties, Indiana. This book, approximately three inches thick and containing 937 pages, was published in 1884 without an index. Because this book was so vital to my own genealogy project, I want to share as much as I can with other genealogists and historians.

You will find below three sections devoted to the three counties described in this book. Each section contains a brief history of the county and a list of biographies, including surnames within each biography.

These biographies have all been transacribed and can be found online at

The book can be purchased online at Higginson Books.

Please note that all information contained below is directly
quoted from the book with no interpretation by the transcriber.

History of Lawrence County, Indiana

Chapter III - Settlement of Lawrence County, Page 34

The County of Lawrence was originally a part of Knox and Harrison Counties, all west of the meridian line being a part of the former, and all east of the line of the latter. In 1814 it became part of Washington County, and in 1816 a part of Orange County. The county was created in 1818, and named in honor of Capt. James Lawrence, of the United States Navy, commander of the frigate Chesapeake, who was killed in the battle with the frigate Shannon.

During the first few years of the present century, while the Indians that then inhabited the territory northwest of the Ohio River continued their hostilities to the whites, but few settlers had the daring and hardihood to push as far into the western wilds as the present confines of Lawrence County. Most of the southern portion of Indiana was settled gradually from the Ohio River northward, as that was the great commercial thoroughfare between the East and the West. The settlement only advanced when the population became dense enough to repel the invasions of hostile Indians. Until after the year 1811, when Tecumseh and the powerful confederacy of which he as the head, were defeated and overthrown, there were scarcely a dozen white families located in the county.

Settlement of Lawrence County Townships

This section lists early land entries in each township.
  • Flinn Township
    • Allen, J. - 1820
    • Carr, T. - 1820
    • Drake, Benjamin - 1818
    • Ellison, James - 1820
    • Flinn, D. - 1820
    • Flinn, Martin - 1820
    • Flinn, Robert - 1819
    • Flinn, Thomas - 1820
    • Flinn, William - 1820
    • Guthrie, Hugh - 1820
    • Guthrie, John - 1820
    • Hind, Israel - 1819
    • Hodges, Thomas - 1817
    • Hunton, R. - 1820
    • Newkirk, Benjamin - 1820
    • Nichols, H. - 1820
    • Parr, Arthur - 1819
    • Parr, Enoch - 1817
    • Parr, John - 1819
    • Taggert, James - 1820
    • Welch, Patrick - 1817
    • Wooley, M. - 1820
    • White, William - 1820
    • Wright, Noah - 1819
    • Wright, Noah - 1820

    Residents listed with no date:

    • Alexander, Alfred
    • Curry, Elijah
    • Flinn, Moses
    • Lux, Ephraim D.
    • Millgar, Gamaliel
    • Poole, Macajah
    • Smith, William
    • Speer, John
    • Stell, George
    • Sutherland, Abraham
    • Trespey, John
    • Weaver, Jacob
    • White, David

  • Marion Township
    • Baldwin, William - 1817
    • Baldwin, Theophilus - 1819
    • Blackwell, Ezekiel - 1818
    • Blair, William - 1817
    • Brown, Samuel - 1820
    • Bullitt, Cuthbert - 1820
    • Bullitt, Thomas - 1820
    • Byram, Lewis - 1817
    • Carlton, Ambrose - 1816
    • Carmichael, William - 1818
    • Conley, Joel - 1817
    • Connelly, William - 1817
    • Connelly, William - 1818
    • Connerly, William - 1817
    • Culbertson, Joseph - 1818
    • Davis, Aaron - 1819
    • Denney, William - 1818
    • Drake, Benjamin - 1818
    • Dunihue, Michael - 1817
    • Edwards, John - 1820
    • Eli, G. - 1817
    • Erwin, William - 1818
    • Fields, Robert - 1816
    • Fields, Robert - 1817
    • Finger, John - 1817
    • Fulton, James - 1816
    • Geiger - 1820
    • Gray, Moses - 1816
    • Hall, R. - 1820
    • Hardin, Martin - 1817
    • Harris, David - 1817
    • Hartman, Abraham - 1818
    • Hays, John - 1818
    • Henrie, ARthur - 1818
    • Hill, Jesse - 1817
    • Hinton, George Jr. - 1818
    • Hollowell, Robert - 1816
    • Hughes - 1820
    • Jackson, Samuel - 1816
    • Lewis, Robert - 1816 & 1817
    • Lindley, Jonathan - 1816
    • Lowrey, John - 1817
    • McLean, John - 1817
    • McLean, Robert - 1817
    • McLean, William - 1816
    • Maden, Alfred - 1818
    • Maden, Isom - 1816
    • Maxwell, John - 1819
    • Maxwell, William - 1819
    • Phillips, Lewis - 1817
    • Piles, Jacob - 1815
    • Sparling, Zachariah - 1818
    • Speed, Henry - 1816
    • Sutton, John - 1817
    • Taylor, Joshua - 1817
    • Terrill, William - 1816
    • Tetlow - 1820
    • Tolliver, Charles - 1817
    • Tolliver, William - 1818
    • Trueblood, Josiah - 1818
    • Trueblood, William - 1816
    • Williams, Jonathan - 1815
    • Wood, Zebedee - 1820
    • Workman, John - 1817
  • Bono Township
    • Anderson, Richard C. - 1820
    • Blank, Thomas - 1819
    • Brown, John - 1820
    • Brown, Samuel - 1816
    • Brown, Thomas - 1819
    • Bullitt, Cuthbert - 1820
    • Bullitt, Thomas - 1820
    • Clark - 1818
    • Edwards, John - 1820
    • Fitzpatrick, Solomon - 1819
    • Fulton, Henry - 1817
    • Grass, Conrad - 1818
    • Green, David - 1818
    • Hammersly, John - 1818
    • Hikes, J. - 1820
    • Hoggatt, William - 1818
    • Hummell, David - 1818
    • Johnson, Edward - 1820
    • Jolly, Thomas - 1820
    • Kitchell - 1818
    • Simpson, Elisha - 1817
    • Wilson, Asher - 1820
    • Wright, William - 1813

Pictures from Lawrence County, Indiana

  • GUTHRIE, A. (opposite page 90)
  • NEWLAND, Ben (opposite page 138)
  • RAWLINS, Joseph (opposite page 42)
  • SHEEKS, D. L. (opposite page 186)
  • WRIGHT, A. (opposite page 234)

Biographical Sketches from Lawrence County, Indiana

The format of the index below is (1) full name of the subject of the biography, (2) township within Lawrence County under which the biography was listed, and (3) list of all surnames in the order they are mentioned within the biography.

History of Orange County, Indiana

Excerpt from Chapter I

The County of Orange is bounded north by Lawrence, east by Crawford and Washington, south by Crawford and west by Martin and Dubois.

Excerpt from Chapter IV

During the territorial period of Indiana the population was so sparse that the few counties which had been organized comprised large tracts of wild country. Then, as time passed and settlements became denser, new counties were striken off and organized. The present county of Orange originally comprised portions of Knox and Clarke -- Know west of the meridian line and Clarke east. March 9, 1813, all of Orange County west of the meridian line and south of the line dividing Sections 20 and 29, Township 1 north, became part of Gibson County. December 21, 1813, all of Orange County east of the meridian line except the southern half of Township 1 south, and the small tract north or Orleans and north of the junction of the Indian boundary lines of 1803 and 1805 became part of Washington Cunty, and September 1, 1814, the last mentioned small tract was added to the last named county. The southern half of Township 1 south, east of the meridian, remained part of Harrison County. This was the situation of the tract of country now comprising Orange County at the time of its creation.

Pictures from Orange County, Indiana

  • HUFFSTUTTER, David S. (opposite page 426)
  • HUFFSTUTTER, Polly A. (opposite page 488)

Biographical Sketches from Orange County, Indiana

The format of the index below is (1) full name of the subject of the biography, (2) township within Orange County under which the biography was listed, and (3) list of all surnames in the order they are mentioned within the biography. If the biography has been transcribed, the full name will appear as a link.

History of Washington County, Indiana

Excerpt from Chapter I

The County of Washington is bounded on the north by the Muscatatuck River, east by Scott and Clarke Counties, south by Harrison and Crawford, west by Orange and Lawrence, embracing aboutn 510 square miles.

Excerpt from Chapter IV

Prior to the 17th of January, 1814, that portion of Indiana now known as Washington County was comprised within the old territorial counties of Clark and Harrison. At that early date, when Indiana was yet a Territory and while the war of 1812-15 was yet in progress, Washington County came into existence.

No Pictures in this section.

Biographical Sketches from Washington County, Indiana

The format of the index below is (1) full name of the subject of the biography, (2) township within Washington County under which the biography was listed, and (3) list of all surnames in the order they are mentioned within the biography. If the biography has been transcribed, the full name will appear as a link.
  • This portion of the index will be completed shortly.

  • HENDERSON, H. D. - Washington Twp.
    Surnames: Dinwiddie, Young, Lumley, Malott