DeWitt Carter
Courageous grasping of opportunities, steadfast effort and hard, honest toil -these have been the means through which DeWitt Carter, of Jonesboro, ha brought himself to a position among the leading men of Grant County. Not only this, but he has gained among them the reputation of being a clear headed man whose advice is always sound, and now occupies a position in the office of the Indiana Rubber and Insulated Wire Company, Jonesboro, Indiana. Mr. Carter was born on his fathers farm in Mill Township, Grant County, Indiana, April 29, 1873, and is a son of William and Elizabeth (Knight) Carter.
George and Mary (Buller) Carter, the grandparents of DeWitt Carter, were natives of North Carolina and at a very early date left the Old North State and came overland to Grant County, here entering from the Government what became known as the William Carter Farm, and which still bears that name. They erected a farm in the woods, living in the meanwhile in a little log cabin sharing in the hardships and privations always incident to life in a pioneer community. They became well and favorably known throughout their locality, and were regarded as substantial, Christian people and as devout members of the United Brethren Church, in the faith of which they died. William Carter was born in 1847 on the old homestead farm in Mill Township, and there grew up to agricultural pursuits, in the meantime securing his education in the early district schools. At the time of his father's death he became the owner of the home land, which he subsequently converted into one of the finest farms in the county, fitted with every modern improvement known to country life. He erected a handsome white house, and two large and well-equipped barns, with every improvement, one for stock and one for grain, each with cement floors, while the latter had accommodation for sixty-five tons of hay and one thousand bushels of grain. The water was secured from a drilled well and drawn by a gasoline engine and modern machinery did all of the heavy work. Fine live stock of all kinds were bred here. Mr. Carter taking a particular interest in this branch of agricultural work. On this fine property he died in 1911, aged sixty-four years, while the mother still survives at the age of sixty-one years and is making her home in the vicinity of Marion. She belongs to the Friends Church at Marion, with which the father was also connected. A man of great industry and strict integrity, Mr. Carter occupied a prominent place in his community, and as a citizen always demonstrated his willingness to support measures which promised to be of benefit to the community in which he lived and labored.
The only child of his parents, DeWitt Carter received his early education in the public schools, following which he took a course in Fairmount Academy, being graduated in 1892. At that time he received his introduction to business life as assistant cashier of the First National Bank and later, in 1909, was made cashier of the Citizens Bank of Jonesboro. He was also for one year connected with the First State Bank of Gas City, and in 1912 became a stockholder and employee of the Indiana Rubber and Insulated Wire Company.
Mr. Carter was married to Miss Grace Lawson, who was born in 1878 in Grant County, Indiana, educated in Marion High School. Her mother makes her home with Mr. and Mrs. Carter. They have one daughter, Colene, born April 8, 1895, and now a student in Jonesville High School, class of 1914. Mr. and Mrs. Carter are Methodists. He is a member of Masonic Blue Lodge and the Knights of Pythias and Tribe of Ben Hur. In politics a strong Republican, he has been a real worker in the cause of progress and advancement in his city, was a former member of the city board, and is now a member of the board of school directors.
Centennial History of Grant County Indiana 1812-1912. The Lewis Publishing Co., 1914.