Vandalia Railroad - Culver, Indiana  

Zina and Emma Duddleson

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The grandfather of Zina was a Civil War veteran and a farmer. His later years were lived in the Argos vicinity.
The great-grandfather originally owned the Thomas Houghton farm to the Maxinkuckee Lake on the west side of Burr Oak Road. The land now occupied by the Vandalia Park, was part of this farm and was given to Dr. Durr in payment for medical services. The consideration was $50., as great-grandfather Duddleson considered it of little farming value. .....

History of Marshall County Indiana Sesquicentenial 1836 - 1986 -, Taylor Publishing Co., 1986, Publication # 357 of 1422, Marshall County Historical Society pg. 153 - Marcella White.

John Houghton on his ancestors - James and John Houghton, who were pioneers in southern Indiana, then came up here with the first wave of settlement in Marshall County in the 1830s. John's son-in-law, Bayless Dixon (he was married to Emma Houghton) founded Union Town in the south-west part of his farm in 1844, then sold it to John's son, Thomas K. Houghton, which is when the name was changed to Marmont. Then Thomas K. Houghton sold the north part of the farm-the part that wasn't in the village of Marmont-to my own great-great-grandfather, James's son, Thomas Houghton. That chunk adjoined grandfather Thomas's main farm, on the northwest corner of 17th Road and Highway 17, across from the old Three Sisters. Over the years slices of what grandfather Thomas bought from his cousin have been gradually added back on to the north edge of town, most recently my great-aunt Ethel's land across from the high school.

ROCHESTER SENTINEL, Saturday, July 19, 1873
The ATLANTIC & CHICAGO RAILROAD ... The building of this line of road has become a fixed fact line located, and active work being done on it between Huntington, Ind., and Marion, Ohio. The only portion of the line not yet located, and on which there is a spirit of rivalry, is between Huntington and a point on the banks of Maxinkuckee lake, called Marmount. It is generally understood by our readers that the rival lines between these points are known as the Laketon, Akron and Rochester, and the Liberty Mills, Silver Lake, Sevastopol and Bloomingsburg lines.

A corps of engineers have been engaged for several days past surveying a line for a RAILROAD from Logansport to the north side of Maxinkuckee, where it intersects with the N.Y.C. & St.L. railway. This proposed new road runs through Wayne and Union townships, Kewanna, in Union, being the chief point between Logansport and the terminus. . . Rochester Sentinel - Saturday, August 19, 1882

Important Enterprise
All the preliminaries for the extension of the Logansport branch of the Vandalia railway to Lake Michigan have been satisfactorily adjusted, and upon compliiance with a few easy conditions the contact will be closed, and the work will be commenced and pushed to completion.

Readers of the Journal are familiar with the route of this line to Marmont (Maxinkuckee), and will have no difficulty in fllowing it to South Bend and the lake.

Its importance to Logansport is manifest. It opens a comparatively new field for our merchants and manufactures, and gives our citizens superior advantages in the freightage of lumber, salt and other products of Michigan and the Northwest. It opens a harbor on the great lakes, which may in the near future be a competitor with Toledo for our grain.

It places Logansport as a near neighbor to one of the finest summer resorts in the west.

A specical advantage to this city, also is suggested in its location at a point about half way between the terminal of the proposed line, which fact, inconnection with the general relation of the city to Pennsylvania leased lines interests, is full of promise of new shops, or garage accessions to those already in operation.

With these advantages before them, our citizens are asked to consider one of the conditions above named, which condition is that the right of way shall be furnished free to the new line thorugh our county. The estimated cost of this right of way is from $7,000 to $10,000 and it is proposed to raise the amount by subscription. A consideraable portion of this subscription has already been secured, and a committee appointed for that purpose will make an effort to raise the remainder during the present week.

The Journal trusts that there will be no failure in this matter. The amount names is trifling in comparison with the benefits promised in the success of this enterprise, and every citizen who is called upon should promptly give all the aid in his power.

The Plymouth people are very much interested in the Vandalia extension also much so that one of their citizens was sent up here, last Saturday, to confer with those officials of the road whi might be here to press their claims for the passing of the road through their city.

Mr. S. L. McKelvey, one of Plymouth's representative men, interested in the real estate buiness there was the one sent. He arrived here Saturday morning and went back to Plymouth the evening of the same day, as none of the high officials of the Vandalia were in the city on that day, it is not known how successful his visit was.

In the route laid out for the extension, by the surveyors, the road leaves this city and from here extends to Marmont, near Maxinkuckee. From there taking a direct line to South Bend, the route goes within about five miles of Plymouth.

The citizens of the place are ancious that the road should take in their place, giving them the benefit of a connection with South Bend, something which the two named cities have been planning for the last several years. The only means of communication between the two cities now is carried on by means of the stage, which plies the of Michigan road three times a week. A traveler now to reach South Bend from Plymouth is compelled to go to Laporte and chage cars there for South Bend. So the benefit of this road to that place is made clear.

The Vandalia Trouble Ended
In conversation with a Vandalia contractor last evening, it was learned that the expected trouble of the Vandalia road with the Chicago and Atlantic road with regard to the former crossing the latter's track, has been settled.

An understanding was effected Friday evening, which resulted in a prefect agreement between all parties. The trouble arose with regard to the caring for the crossing.

The Chicago and Atlantic people insisted that the Vandalia people should put it the crossing and pay all the expenseses of keeping the same in order, paying the man whose duty it would be to tend to the crossing.

The Vandalia folks thought the C. & A. people were asking to much and kicked, whereupon the other road put in side tracks and dug ditches to prevent putting in of the crossing.

This expected trouble has now all been cleared away, and to day the tracks of the C. & A. will be cut and the crossing frogs put in. The T.H.&L. have all the material on the ground.

Friday evening the track layers were within seven-eights of a mile of the crossing, and the expected to reach the C. & A. road at sundown last evening.

The distance from the C. & A. road to Marmont, the head of Maxinkuckee Lake is six and one-half miles. The grading is completed and ready for the ties and rails. It is proposed to have this six and one-half miles laid and in shape by sundown of the 30th of this month, next Saturday evening.

The Vandalia people promised to have an excurions to Lake Maxinkuckee on the Fourth of July, and it now looks as though there were going to keep their word.

The Vandalia Company have purchased a nice piece of ground from Mr. Toner and will convert it into a park and picnic ground for the benefit of excursionists and others visiting the lake.

The Toner property which became the Vandalia park was sold in March 1922.

The Vandaila Railroad company have made a flag station at Long Point for the benefit of those wishing to stop on the west side.

The Vandalia pier is completed and in much better shape than last year.

The Restaurant at the station is being remodled and greatly improved.

John H. Koontz has erected a lemonade and fruit stand on the water at the Vandalia pier.

Railroad Conductors' Excursion "All aboard", conductor at 9 o'clok a.m., and away bounded fourteen coaches loaded with excurionsists, about three hundred strong, at the rate of about thrity-five miles an hour for Lake Maxinkuckee. Every on seemed as merry as a bug sunflower - even the babies cried for joy, while great, great grandmothers looked back over a life of 86 years and failed to remember any more jolly crowd.

Superintendent Watts and his gallant band of conductors enlivened the occasion with a friendly greeting to all. Occasionally the Big Six band would strike up some national air to cheery us on our way.

At 10:30 our party landed at Maxinkuckee, a beautiful sheet of transparent water, some two miles in width and three miles in lenght, on which is launched an abudant supply of boats, steam and sail, together with an endless variety of roaw boats. On landing, some too to the lake, some o the grove, some to the rink, where they danced to the merry tune, pronounced by Mr. Hasey the "Arkansaw Traveler", and others adjoining field to have a shootin match at glass balls, with the following score

Sample	1	0	1	1	1	1	0	0	1	1
Railsback	1	0	1	0	0	1	0	0	1	1
Laible	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1
Smyser	1	0	0	1	0	0	1	0	1	0

At 13 o'clock a royal dinner was served at the Rink Hotel, which proved to the center of attraction of at least two hours. Dinner over, another ride on the lake, s swing in the grove, a waltz in the rink, throwing rings for capes - but gots none - and the merriest day of the season was over.

"All aboard for Logansport". andwere were homeward bound. At 7:30 the Vandalia platform received the happiest excursion part it was ever our good fortune to be with. AS a day of pleasure it was a grand success, and an occasion to be remembered byh the lucky paticipants.

But we can not pass the opportunity without saug that the railroad conductors deserved better patronage, especially ath the hands of the business men of our city. Business men could have thrown aside their cares of traffice for one day at least, and paid their respects to the railroad conductors who have patronized them these many years - this being the first excursion thendered the publiv by the railroad conductors of Logansport.

True a few business men were there, but few indeed; other bought a ticket and stated at home. It was not so much their dollars that the railroad conductors wanted as their presence. But it never to late to do good and it is safe to assure the railraod condouctors that ample amends will be made in the future. Our business men are libertal when the are once aroused. Long live the railroad conductor. - Lynn C. Doyl