 
Married to Spicey Ann Kesterson
James W. Montgomery, whose name introduces this review, was
small boy when he accompanied his parents to Jasper county, Indiana, and
it was not until he had attained his majority that he returned to Tippecanoe
county, where, however, he has since made his home. He obtained his
education in the usual manner of pioneer times, pursuing his studies in a log
school-house built with a puncheon floor and stick chimney, while greased
paper took the place of window glass, being inserted in an aperture made by
the removal of a log. School was conducted on the subscription plan and
Mr. Montgomery attended for two or three months during the winter season,
learning to read and write, and also making some progress in arithmetic.
He early began to work in the fields, for he was one of the older children
and his services were needed in the development and cultivation of the homestead.
Having arrived at years of maturity Mr. Montgomery was married
November 1, 1860, to Ann Kesterson, of Jackson township, Tippecanoe
county. She was born in Hamilton county, Indiana, February 6, 1843, a
daughter of Thomas and Susan (Norwood) Kesterson. Her father was a native
of Clinton county, Tennessee, a son of Sylvester and Elizabeth Kesterson.
Her maternal ancester, George Norwood, of Irish descent, was one of the
heroes of the Revolution and served throughout the war. Her paternal
grandfather, Sylvester Kesterson, was a farmer of Clinton county, Tennessee,
and there he spent his entire life, passing away at the advanced age of
one hundred and five years, and his wife was one hundred and ten years of
age when called to her final rest. Their children were James, Peter, William,
John, Nancy and Eliza.
Thomas Kesterson, the father of Mrs. Montgomery, received no educational advantages and was entirely a self-made man. He came to Indiana when eighteen years of age and devoted his energies to farming. He was married in Hamilton county to Susan Norwood, daughter of George and Mary Norwood, who were -owners of a good farm in that county, Mr. Norwood
having been one of the pioneers in the vicinity of Noblesville, Indiana.
He was a centenarian at the time of his death and his wife was almost one
hundred years of age at the time of her demise, so that the four grandparents
of Mrs. Montgomery had a remarkable record, all reaching the
century mark. The children of the Norwood family were Spicie Ann,
Nathaniel, William, Susan and Catherine. After their marriage Thomas
Kesterson and his wife located in Hamilton county, Indiana, where they lived
for many years. Mr. Kesterson also resided in Jackson township, Tippe-
canoe county, for a few years, and then went to Lucas county, Iowa, where
he purchased one hundred and twenty acres of government land, upon
which he made his home for three years. On the expiration of that period
he came to Tippecanoe county and purchased one hundred and sixty acres
in Jackson township, where he remained for fifteen years, going thence to
Champaign county, Illinois, where he became the owner of a farm of one
hundred and sixty acres, on which he spent his remaining days. He was a
faithful member of the Methodist church, in which he served as class-
leader. He and his first wife were of the old revivalist order of Methodists
and took part in many of the old-time revivals and camp-meetings, in which
they were earnest exhorters. In politics he was a Republican and a stanch
Union man during the civil war. His life was honorable, upright and useful,
and at the age of sixty-eight years he was called to the reward prepared for
the righteous. By his first wife, the mother of Mrs. Montgomery, he had
six children: Mary E. , George S., Ann, William, Lucina and Delphina.
After the death of the mother he was married to Nancy Richards, and the
children of the second union were John W., Samuel I. and Sarah. Two of
the sons, George and William, were valiant soldiers in the northern army,
serving for three years as members of Company E, Seventy-second Indiana
Infantry. They participated in many battles and George had his health undermined
by the hardships and rigors of war.
Mr. and Mrs. Montgomery began their domestic life near their present
home, upon a sixty-acre tract of land, which he has since sold. There they
lived for sixteen years, when in 1875 Mr. Montgomery purchased his present
farm, to which he has added from time to time until he now has a very
valuable property of two hundred and thirty acres. This is well improved
with well tilled fields, good buildings and the accessories and conveniences of
the model farm, and the Montgomery homestead is now one of the best in
the neighborhood. The home has also been blessed by the presence of five children; but Sarah J., the first born, died at the age of one year and eight months. The others are Mary E., Frank T. , Luella and John S. The last
named is a graduate of the Purdue University, having completed a four-years
course in mechanical engineering with the class of 1898, when twenty-three
of age. He is now in Schenectady, New York, occupying a responsible
position as draughtsman in extensive locomotive works.
In their labors Mr. and Mrs. Montgomery have prospered. The lady inherited
a most vigorous constitution and in her earlier years she worked side by
side with her husband in the fields. As time has passed, however, and prosperity
has come to them, they have been enabled to leave the harder work
to others and enjoy more of the quiet and rest of life. They are both earnest
Christian people, Mrs. Montgomery having joined the Methodist church in
Iowa when sixteen years of age, while Mr. Montgomery became a member
at the age of thirty-five. They have contributed liberally to the support of
the church and labored earnestly in its behalf, and their upright lives
exemplify their Christian faith.
Biographical History of Tippecanoe, White, Jasper, Newton, Benton, Warren Indiana
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