Arthur Harness is believed to have been born between 1790-94 in Hampshire County, Virginia. He and all of his brothers came to the Fayette County, Ohio area with their father Peter, sometime following the death of their mother, the former Susan Vause, in 1805. Arthur is listed in the 1820 Fayette County,Ohio census as having two sons and three daughters living in his household at that time, along with his wife. He is listed in the 1830 Indiana census as being in the30-40 yr. old age range. The couple had 8 children, 4 girls and 4 boys.
NOTE: Most of the research on this site involving Arthur Harness and his wife, Elizabeth (Betty) Hurless, and their descendants was gathered by David and Dianne Bachmann. (Dianne is a Harmess descendent through Michael Ernst Harness, Peter, Arthur, Levi and Minnie Harness). The Bachmann's have made numerous visits to the Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana and have also collected material from the Wisconsin State Historical Society in Madison, Wisconsin. Their real treasure trove of information on Arthur and Elizabeth and their descendants, however, came from the Clinton County, Indiana courthouse archives. There they found an extensive estate packet containing many documents and notes from the "Inquest on the body of Arthur Harness", dated December 4, 1831. The inquest concliuded that Arthur "died by a fall by himself and that no violence has has [sic] been used towards him." Inquest records indicate that Arthur's body had been found near Frankfort, in Clinton County, Indiana. Family tradition says that Arthur had been out hunting deer and apparently died in a fall. So the story goes, there was some suspicion about his death because his body was found beside the deer that he had killed and dressed.
Additional information, particularly on Arthur and Elizabeth's children, came from "the Harness Heritage" by Helen Harness, published in July, 1983 and from "The LaPorte County, Indiana Scrapbook" compiled by Ernest Bracken. |