Part of the Indiana Biographies Project
Samuel H. Morris
Samuel Heffley Morris, of Harrison township, Wayne county, is numbered among the veterans of the civil war and is a worthy representative of one of the pioneer families of this region. He is a grandson of Jonathan Morris, whose birth occurred in 1789, in Pasquotank, North Carolina. He married Abigail Charles, and in 1816 they came to Wayne county. Settling in this township, they passed the rest of their lives here, esteemed and honored by all who knew them. He died in 1844, and two years later his widow passed to her reward, when fifty years of age.
The father of our subject, Elias Morris, was the eldest son born to his parents, his birth taking place in this township, November 6, 1817. Here, amid the wild scenes of frontier life, he grew to manhood, reared in the noble ethics of the Society of Friends, to which his parents belonged. He was independent enough, however, to marry the woman he loved, notwithstanding that she was not a member of the sect, and for this reason he was excluded from the church, as was the rule at that time. Mrs. Morris, who is still living, was formerly Miss Margaret Heffley, and fifty-five years have rolled away since she became the wife of the sturdy pioneer. Her parents, Samuel and Mary (Myers) Heffley, natives of Pennsylvania, resided in this county for a number of years, dying here, the father in 1840, at the age of forty-seven years, and the mother in 1857, when in her fifty-seventh year. Quiet and somewhat retiring in disposition, fond of his home and family, Elias Morris spent his life in a manner beyond reproach. Friends he had by the score, and as far as known he had no enemies. Ever glad to aid those who were unfortunate, he followed the teachings of the golden rule, and all loved him. For some time previous to his death, which event occurred December 23, 1889, he was an invalid, but he was remarkably patient and uncomplaining. His widow, who was born in 1824, is living on the old homestead where she has dwelt for so many years. Samuel H. Morris, the eldest child of Elias Morris and wife, was born October 11, 1845, on this homestead, which property was purchased by his grandfather in the early days of this county. The other children of Elias Morris are Henry F., Jonathan P., Mrs. Sarah Miller, Mrs. Melinda J. Mills and Martha, who died at the age of twenty years, and Mary E., who died at twenty-six years of age.
On the 18th of December, 1863, S. H. Morris enlisted in the defense of his country, becoming a member of Company K, One Hundred and Twenty-fourth Regiment of Indiana Volunteer Infantry. From Camp Wayne he went to Nashville, Tennessee, where the regiment was attached to the Twenty-third Army Corps, and proceeded to take part in the memorable Atlanta campaign under the leadership of General Sherman. From the important battle of Buzzards' Roost to the evacuation of Atlanta by the Confederate forces under General Hood, the gallant One Hundred and Twenty-fourth was actively engaged in the numerous battles with the rebels, suffering severe loss. When Sherman started on his march to the sea, it was transferred to the command of General Thomas and aided in the Nashville campaign, which resulted in marked victory for the Union forces. Subsequently our subject's regiment was sent to the Atlantic coast, by way of Washington, and in North Carolina took part in the battle of Kingston, after which it proceeded to Goldsboro, North Carolina, where it joined General Sherman's army. From that time until the 31st of August, 1865, when they were mustered out of the service at Greensboro, North Carolina, the regiment was on garrison duty, and finally the boys who had made such a splendid record were honorably discharged at Indianapolis, in September. Mr. Morris was always thoroughly trustworthy and true to his duty. Though only eighteen years old at the time of his enlistment, he performed his arduous tasks with the steadiness and discretion of a man of twice his age, and it was a matter of pride to him that he was never forced to go to the hospital. On the 21st of July, 1864, under the blazing southern sun, during the siege of Atlanta, a day made memorable by the death of the gallant General McPherson, Mr. Morris received a sunstroke, which rendered him unconscious for several hours. In consequence he was granted a permit to "march at will," and thus managed to stay with his regiment. Many a summer since, he has suffered more or less severely from the effects of that stroke, and his health has been less robust since the hardships and privations of the war were endured by him. He is an honored member of the Grand Army of the Republic, belonging to M. D. Leeson Post, No. 453, of Jacksonburg, Indiana. Since his return home he has devoted himself to the cultivation of the old homestead, where his entire life, with the exception of the years given to his country, has been passed. Strictly upright and above reproach in all his dealings with others, he merits the high esteem in which he is held by all who have the pleasure of his acquaintance.
Source:
Biographical and Genealogical History of Wayne, Fayette, Union and Franklin Counties, Indiana, Volume 1, The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago, 1899