Processed by
Barbara Quigley
30 July 2004
Manuscript and Visual Collections Department
William Henry Smith Memorial Library
Indiana Historical Society
450 West Ohio Street
Indianapolis, IN 46202-3269
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VOLUME OF |
1 folder |
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COLLECTION |
Ca. 1910–ca. 1930 |
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PROVENANCE: |
Purchased from Joan Hostetler, Heritage Photo Services, Indianapolis, Ind., in March 1998 |
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RESTRICTIONS: |
None |
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COPYRIGHT: |
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REPRODUCTION |
Permission to reproduce or publish material in this collection must be obtained from the Indiana Historical Society. |
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ALTERNATE |
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RELATED |
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ACCESSION |
1998.0366 |
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NOTES: |
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Hugh Mervin Widney (born 24 March 1866, DeKalb County, Indiana) was a widely known authority on fruit growing and horticulture, and owner of the Spring Brook Fruit Farm in the Concord township of DeKalb County. He was the son of farmer and Civil War soldier Oliver H. Widney (born 2 November 1841, DeKalb County) and Emily F. Maxwell Widney (born ca. 1841 in Ohio), who married on 3 November 1864 in DeKalb County.
Raised on a farm, Hugh Widney worked in the lumber business for a while before returning to farming. On 4 January 1886, he married Hattie A. Davis (born ca. 1869). She was the daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth Jones Davis, natives of Ohio and early settlers of DeKalb County. Hattie had been a teacher of music. Hugh and Hattie had two children: a son, Blanchard Von Dale Widney (born 1 June 1887, DeKalb County; died September 1974 in Columbia City, Indiana), and a daughter, Dorris Davis Widney (born 16 August 1903, DeKalb County; died 29 January 1919 in the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland).
Due to his horticultural expertise, Hugh Widney served as a lecturer at Purdue University, and for its county and township institutes all over Indiana. His Spring Brook Fruit Farm, which grew 135 acres of berries, melons, and other fruit, was well-known in DeKalb County. In 1913 he bought sixty-six acres known as the David Pope farm (which also may have been known as the Rivera farm) in the Spencer township of DeKalb County. He was affiliated with Concord Lodge No. 556 of the Free and Accepted Masons, and with St. Joe Lodge No. 400 of the Knights of Pythias. His family belonged to the Methodist church.
Hugh Widney apparently died sometime during the 1920s. The 1930 census lists Hattie as being widowed, still farming, and sharing her home with a servant and three lodgers who were farm laborers.
Blanchard V. Widney was a graduate of the Tri-State College at Angola, Indiana, and also spent some time at Purdue University. He worked as county agricultural agent for Noble County, Indiana. On 19 August 1913 he married Flossie Copp (born 19 August 1891; died September 1982 in Columbia City, Indiana), daughter of Abner and Alice Copp of St. Joe, Indiana.
Sources:
“Biography of Hugh M. Widney.” History of Northeast Indiana: LaGrange, Steuben, Noble, and DeKalb Counties, Vol. II, under the editorial supervision of Ira Ford, Orville Stevens, William H. McEwen, and William H. McInosh (sic). Chicago and New York: The Lewis Publishing Co., 1920: 350. (http://www.rootsweb.com/~indekalb/dcibp/dcbio/1920/widney-hugh.m.txt). Accessed 12 July 2004.
“Biography of Hugh Mervin Widney.” History of DeKalb County, Indiana. Indianapolis: B.F. Bowen & Company, Inc., 1914: 987–89. (http://www.rootsweb.com/~indekalb/dcibp/dcbio/1914/widney-hugh.m.txt). Accessed 12 July 2004.
Indiana Births, 1880–1920 (http://www.gale.ancestry.com). Accessed 12 July 2004.
Indiana Marriages, 1845–1920 (http://www.gale.ancestry.com). Accessed 12 July 2004.
Social Security Death Index (http://www.gale.ancestry.com). Accessed 12 July 2004.
U.S. Census, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1920, 1930 (http://www.gale.ancestry.com). Accessed 12 July 2004.
World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917–1918 (http://www.gale.ancestry.com). Accessed 12 July 2004.
This collection consists of six photographs pertaining to the Hugh M. Widney family and the Widney farm, known as Spring Brook Fruit Farm, in the Concord township of DeKalb County, Indiana. The photographs range in date from ca. 1910 to ca. 1930. Included are a portrait presumably of Widney with his wife and children, scenes on the farm, and a photo of Widney’s cider booth on the Indiana state fairgrounds.
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CONTENTS |
CONTAINER |
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Family portrait: people are unidentified, but presumably are Hattie A. Davis Widney, Blanchard V. Widney, Dorris D. Widney, and Hugh M. Widney, ca. 1910. |
Photographs, Folder 1 |
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Mounted photograph of a man (probably Hugh Widney) standing by a dog with a barn in the background. |
Photographs, Folder 1 |
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Photograph of a different barn with “H.M. Widney’s Spring Brook Fruit Farm” painted on it. A dog and four people are standing in the foreground. The four people are probably Hugh, Dorris, an unidentified woman, and Hattie, ca. 1917. Written on the back of the photo is: “Barn on Father Widney’s farm built by ‘my father (Flossie W)’ Very large – 80 ft addition running on back of main entrance.” There is also an enlarged, cropped copy photo of this image. |
Photographs, Folder 1 |
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Photograph of the large barn mentioned immediately above. This appears to have been taken at a later date, with grass and bushes growing beside it. |
Photographs, Folder 1 |
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Photograph showing a booth for “Widney’s Refined Cider Made from Selected Fruit” on the Indiana state fairgrounds, with the Agriculture & Horticulture building in the background. There is a man with his back facing the camera in the booth, and standing outside the booth are a man, boy, and woman, ca. 1920s–1930. |
Photographs, Folder 1 |
For additional information on this collection, including a list of subject headings that may lead you to related materials:
1. Go to the Indiana Historical Society's online catalog: http://opac.indianahistory.org/
2. Click on the "Basic Search" icon.
3. Select "Call Number" from the "Search In:" box.
4. Search for the collection by its basic call number (in this case, P 0439).
5. When you find the collection, go to the "Full Record" screen for a list of headings that can be searched for related materials.