One Township's Yesterdays Chapter XXIX  

SICKMAN

The section of the township known as the Sickman neighborhood was not far from the HOUGHTON and MEDBOURN settlement; in truth, the two sort of rubbed elbows. The Sickman community got its name from its important center, the Sickman school, and the school got its name from the SICKMAN family, living nearby. And, of course, the first family to be considered of those residing in the Sickman neighborhood should be the SICKMAN family.

HENRY SICKMAN came up from Lawton, Pulaski County, in 1870, and settled on land northwest of Lake Maxinkuckee. This land is now owned by J. D. HEISER of Young Road.

It was in March that the SICKMAN family moved to this locality. HENRY SICKMAN traded lands with ISAAC DREESE. In exchange for his land in Pulaski County he got the land that had been owned by DREESE, the place where the HEISER family now lives. It is said that HENRY SICKMAN also bought some land of THOMAS HOUGHTON.

The wife of HENRY SICKMAN was CHRISTINA TAWNEY. She came from Ohio. Henry was not very old when he died. His wife lived quite a long time after he passed away. Both were buried in the McElrath Cemetery near Burr Oak.

HENRY SICKMAN'S son:

Philip, is living at the age of eighty. He was born February 25, 1855, and came up to Union Township with the family when he was fourteen years old. He now lives with his son-in-law, PETE DOLL, on the old home place. Philip married Amanda Burkett, daughter of LEVI BURKETT. She died in 1929, and was buried in the McElrath Cemetery. Her four girls survived her. All four are living:
Mrs. FORREST GEISELMAN of Culver
Mrs. ALICE DOLL of northwest of Culver
Bess, who is now Mrs. GROVER CASTLEMAN of Westville, Indiana
Mrs. MAUD SUSDORF of Wheeler, Indiana.

In early times the Sickman lands were mostly in the northwestern part of the township, where H. SICKMAN had plots aggregating about 100 acres between Houghton's and Moore's ponds, and E. SICKMAN had 160 acres southeast of the Sickman school. At some distance were the forty acres owned by H. SICKMAN, southwest of the Albright Church.