Ben Blanchard

Wabash Valley profiles : a series of tributes to hometown heroes who have made a difference

Description:	One typed page including photograph; biograph of Benjamin Blanchard, discoverer of the largest pure salt vein in the western hemisphere. WABASHP R OFIA hometown h heroes who h difference. A seriies of ttributes tto h f ib t t h have made a diff dVALLEYL E SBen Blanchardolorful Terre Haute realtor Benjamin Blanchard unearthed the largest pure salt vein in the western hemisphere, stimulating the creation of the new Underground Salt Museum in Reno County, Kan. The son of John and Vesta (Noyes) Blanchard, Ben was born in Ridge Farm, Ill., in October 1857 but the family soon moved to Newport, Ind. His father died March 12, 1860, so older brother James--accountant and attorney-- became a significant influence. Educated at Vermillion County Seminary, Ben was an instructor there for a year. Though he studied law and was admitted to the bar, Ben chose to sell real estate, opening a Newport office before locating in Terre Haute in June 1882. Meanwhile, on Jan. 3, 1881, he wed Martha Mattie Carpenter of McLean County, Ill. The couple acquired a home at 622 Swan St. and had two children, Nelle and Ralph. Both were 1901 graduates of Terre Haute High School. Class valedictorian Ralph earned a degree from Rose Poly in 1905. Maintaining offices on Wabash Ave., Blanchard advertised profusely, offering land in Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Kansas and Texas. Newspaper ads claimed his 1883 Sales and Exchanges totaled $3,561,230. On July 12, 1884, Mattie succumbed to tuberculosis en route to a sanitarium in North Dakota. Bens mother and sister Alma moved to Swan St. to take care of the children. Ben focused on promoting land in Kansas near Garden City and Hutchinson. To aid that effort, he enlisted the Pullman Car Co. to build a Palace On Wheels, which he named Le Paradis. Its first rail junket to Kansas via Yellowstone National Park departed Terre Haute on Aug. 13, 1885. When warrants were issued for Bens arrest in October 1885 and he was named defendant in several civil cases for fraud (including one for breach of promise to marry), he disappeared, allegedly wearing crinolines. On Dec. 24, Bold Ben returned, effectively defending the lawsuits and winning friends with his radiant smile. On May 24, 1886, he formed Inter-State Investment Co. with $100,000 capital to buy 280 acres across the Arkansas River from Hutchinson and platted South Hutchinson, soon the fastest growing town in the West. Avis Insley, daughter of a Terre Haute physician, became Bens wife on Feb. 8, 1887. In August of that year Blanchard began drilling for oil near South Hutchinson and, on Sept. 27, struck a huge rock salt strata 99.77 per cent pure, initiating Reno Countys Salt Boom of 1888. At least 17 salt companies, including Barton Salt Co. and Crystal Salt Co. with Terre Haute principals, began operations there. In recent years, Morton Salt and Cargill have acquired the mines. Construction of the Kansas Underground Salt Museum began in 2002. It is scheduled to open later this year. Blanchards promotions continued. An 1889 excursion from New York on The Dalmatia, Bens 70-foot Pullman with 12 bedrooms, was featured in A Trip to the Rockies, a book by Major B.R. Corwin. Ben, Avis and children Clyde and Beryl soon moved elsewhere. While working for American Copper Co. in 1901, Ben founded Blanchard, Ariz., a mining settlement at Iron King Mountain. In 1906 he platted Monarch, Nev. Today, both are ghost towns. From 1910 to 1920, the Blanchards resided at Buckingham Gate in London where Ben managed British International Bank. Avis died in January 1926 after returning to the U.S. Losing his wealth in the stock market crash of 1929, Ben became a recluse residing in the Chesapeake Valley. Brought to Terre Haute in 1941 by son Clyde Insley Blanchard, professor of commerce at the University of Tulsa, Ben died March 24, 1942, at 829 1/2 North 14th St. and is interred in Woodlawn Cemetery.CAlways Close to Homewww.first-online.com MEMBER FDICYoull find First Financial Bank in these and other cities and towns near you: Terre Haute 238-6000 Brazil 443-4481 Rockville 765-569-3171 Clinton 832-3504 Sullivan 268-3331 Marshall, Illinois 217-826-6311 Robinson, Illinois 618-544-8666
Origin:	2006-07-26
Created By:	McCormick, Mike
Publisher:	Terre Haute Tribune-Star
Source:	http://indianamemory.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/vchs/id/1463
Collection:	Vigo County Historical Society
Rights:	http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/UND/1.0/
Copyright:	Copyright Undetermined
Subjects:	Blanchard, Ben, 1857-1942 Salt mining Salt industry Land speculation Railroads Railroad cars Business & Industry Famous Hoosiers People

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