The family of John Harter 1830-1902

One of the reasons I write these blog posts is to see what connections there might be among some of the different families I profile.  Another reason is to double check the information I have gathered, hoping to find new information or reasons to change my mind about one person or another.  I've accomplished all three goals in this blog post.  

John Harter was born in 1830, almost certainly in Licking County, Ohio, the son of George and Elizabeth Geiger Harter.  His parents moved to Whitley County, Indiana when John was just a boy.  John married Mary Bennett in 1851 in Whitley County, and they had a least six children together.  All of the children stayed in the general area from South Whitley eastward to Allen County, Indiana.  

I found serious confusion on various family trees about Harvey, their first born son.  He has been confused with a Harvey who stayed in Ohio and married Janette Harvey.  That is not our Harvey.  Ours was twice married.  His first wife, whom he married in 1873, was Sarah Gordon, the daughter of James and Catherine Harter Gordon.  (Yes, Catherine was a distant cousin, descended from the same George Harter that Harvey was from, several generations back.)  Sarah died in 1875, apparently without children.  In 1877, he married Laura Harshbarger, the daughter of John and Julia Snyder Harshbarger.  (Yes, Laura is a relative, the niece of Lewis and Catherine Mentzer Harshbarger, so there are at least two Harter-Harshbarger marriages that we know of as of now.)  Harvey and Laura had three daughters, Mamie, Naoma or Naomi, and Klessa, known as Dessie.  Harvey died in 1939.

Next was Sarah, born in 1854.  She married Anderson Gordon, who was the son of James and Catherine Harter Gordon mentioned above.  Their known children are Sanford, Alice, Amanda, Perry, Sarah, Mary, Bessie and Edward.  Sarah died in 1934.

Elizabeth was next, born in 1856.  She married Richard Claxton, the son of Isaac and Sarah Crow Claxton.  Their children are Harvey, Ira, Oren, Ella and Frances.  Elizabeth died in 1902.

Clara was the next daughter.  She married Emmanuel Harshbarger, the son of Lewis and Catherine Mentzer Harshbarger.  Their known children are Lewis, Maude, Olive, Edward, Bertha, Grover, Luke, and Logan.  I've written about this family previously.

Laura was born next, in 1858.  She is not shown in the 1860 census, nor the 1870 census, so she possibly died young.

Some trees show a Mary E born in 1859.  I believe this is incorrect.  She belongs to another Harter family, possibly the one in Ohio that I mentioned earlier.  If someone has information that shows otherwise, please contact me, as I don't want to overlook a family member if I can help it.

Finally, there is Henry Harter, born in 1859.  He was the "rebel" in the family, moving to Wabash County for at least some of his life.  He married Edith Jackson, the daughter of Myron and Elizabeth Gilbert Jackson.  Their children are Bessie, May, Olive, and Alice.  

The Harter family started out in Germany, came through Rockingham County, Virginia, Licking County, Ohio, and mostly settled in or near Whitley County, Indiana.  It would be fascinating to actually hear their stories, instead of just knowing the facts.