Building a Family in Cicero, Indiana
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Train networks began to expand northward and westward in the US in the 1850s. The first train of cars on the Peru & Indianapolis railway reached what was then called Cicerotown on March 1, 1853.
By the time we see first documentation of William in the United States in the Federal Census of 1860, he had been in the United States about 6 years. William was 23 years old and living in Cicerotown. The entire County of Hamilton at that time had a total population of just 17,310 and William's arrival contributed to a 35% increase in population between 1850 and 1860.
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In 1860, William was residing in the home of Benjamin and Anna Miller (age 32 and 29) of Pennsylvania and Hannover respectively. William is listed as a tinner, while Benjamin was a cooper. A cooper is someone who makes wooden, staved vessels, held together with wooden or metal hoops and possessing flat ends or heads. Examples of a cooper's work include casks, barrels, buckets, tubs, butter churns, and other items.
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Here we see William’s birthplace (Bavaria) listed for the first time and his occupation is tinner, a trade he will practice nearly his whole life. A tinner or tinsmith, sometimes known as a whitesmith, tinker, tinman, or tinplate worker is a person who makes and repairs things made of tin or other light metals. By extension it can also refer to the person who deals in tinware, or tin plate. Tinsmithing was a common occupation in pre-industrial times.
Randolf Elsey from Switzerland was another male of working age (36), who lived in the household. No occupation is listed. There is no suggestion in the Census of any relation between William and the others in the household.
The United States Census of 1860 was the eighth Census conducted in the United States starting June 1, 1860, and lasting five months. It determined the population of the United States to be 31,443,321, an increase of 35.4% over the 23,191,875 persons enumerated during the 1850 Census. The total population included 3,953,761 slaves. Indiana ranked 5th among US states in population at 1,350,428 after New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Illinois. Indianapolis had a population of 18,611 followed by New Albany and Evansville.
It is in 1860 in Cicero, a town with a population of just 278 people, where William and Mary met and fell in love. On November 4 of that year, William and Mary were married. Two days later on November 6, Abraham Lincoln was elected the 16th President of the United States.
Figure 8: U.S. Federal Census of 1860
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Figure 9: Marriage Certificate of William Q and Mary E. Smith
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Cicero
Indianapolis
Cicero made a milestone in 2009 by celebrating its 175th anniversary. Located at the North end of Morse Lake, Cicero’s heritage began when its first settlers platted the town in 1834. The town took its name from Cicero Creek.
Cicero was the home to the first bridge built (1838) in Hamilton County over a major stream, Cicero Creek. The coming of the railroad in 1853 accounted for a growth in industry such as flour mills, a steam saw mill and, with the abundance of natural gas, two glass factories.
In 1870, the first bridge was converted into a covered bridge and painted red. The "Red Bridge" became one of the town's most memorable landmarks and the red bridge image is still used today as the town's trademark.
The bridge was torn down in the early 1950s to make way for construction of Morse Reservoir, another major milestone in the town's history. The opening of Morse Reservoir in 1956 brought a wave of steady growth and development. Today, Cicero offers its residents the qualities of a small town with the recreational amenities of the lake and the convenience of being close to larger communities of Indianapolis, Kokomo, and Anderson. (www.ciceroin.org)