John C. Comer

    John C. Comer was born December 8, 1842, in Wayne County, Indiana. His parents, Joseph and Esther (Compton) Comer, were natives of South Carolina and Ohio respectively. The former came to Indiana in 1808, when seven years of age; married in Ohio in 1826 and locating in Hendricks and Morgan Counties for ten years, when he again went to Wayne County, returning to Morgan County in 1862 and locating in Mooresville. He died in February, 1876. The mother died in January, 1868.

    John C. Comer is the eighth son and eleventh child, and was reared in Wayne and Randolph Counties until eight years of age, when he went with his parents to Iowa. In June, 1861, he enlisted in Company I, Fourteenth Iowa Volunteers, under Capt. Warren C. Jones. He served for there and a half years, and took part in the battles of Fort Henry, Fort Donelson, Shiloh, Corinth, Jackson, Tennessee; Holly Springs, Vicksburg, Canton, Mississippi. He was in the Red River campaign, and at Pilot Knob. In December, 1864, he was mustered out, and came to Morgan County, Indiana; purchased a flouring mill at Mooresville, ran it for two years, an then purchased a saw mill, which he ran until 1870. He next farmed for two years, and then embarked in the limber business, following it for eight years. He was elected Sheriff of the county in 1878, and two years later was re-elected. After faithfully fulfilling the duties of this office for four years, he bought a farm of 253 acres in Brown Township, and is at present farming.

    In April, 1869, he was married to Miss Annie Gilbert, of Morgan County. They have had six children, four of whom are living -Ella, Robert, Mattie and Dolly. Mr. Comer is a member of the I. O. O. F., K.of  H., the K. of P., and of the G. A. R. He is a Republican, and with his wife is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church.

Source: Counties of Morgan, Monroe and Brown, Indiana. Historical and Biographical. Charles Blanchard, Editor. F. A. Battey & Co., Publishers, 1884.