Frank Carl Mosbaugh (1931) - Frank Carl Mosbaugh, of Cambridge Ciy, is one of the surviving veterans of the Civil war. He was with an Indiana regiment and for fifty years after the war pursued a very active career. He is a former postmaster of Cambridge City and for many years was in the publishing business there. He was born at Cambridge City, October 21, 1844, and his people were among the first settlers of that Wayne County community. He is a son of Francis and Louisa (Von Bauer) Mosbaugh.
His father was born at Offtsein, Hesse, Darmstadt, Germany, May 9, 1809, and his wife was born August 26, 1812. Her father, George Christian Von Bauer, was born February 24, 1792, and was one of Napoleon's body guards and was an eye witness to the burning of Moscow. He brought his family to the United States, lived for a few years at Philadelphia, was naturalized as an American citizen in 1856 and died February 15, 1878. Francis and Louisa Mosbaugh were married July 18, 1837, in New York City and in 1838 moved to Cleveland, Ohio, and three months later, in November, 1838, arrived at Cambridge City. Francis Mosbaugh had come from Germany to New York September 26, 1836. On coming to Indiana he bought three lots and put up a house in 1839. He was the first shoemaker at Cambridge City and he made boots and shoes for people living all over that part of Indiana. He followed his trade until his death on June 7, 1854. His widow survived him until October, 1896.
Frank Carl Mosbaugh was educated in public schools. He was not yet seventeen years of age when he enlisted in Company A of the Eighth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, on April 12, 1861, as a musician. He was present at the battle of Rich Mountain, West Virginia, one of the first battles of the war. Later he veteranized and in 1862 he reenlisted in Company I of the Fifty-fourth Indiana Infantry, as orderly sergeant. He was on guard duty in Kentucky for four months and after being discharged he served in the Home Guard during the Morgan raid. For four years Mr. Mosbaugh was engaged in flour milling, the greater portion of the time with the Great Mills, Minneapolis, Minnesota. After returning to Wayne County, he became a clerk in the post office at Cambridge City, in 1876, and later was appointed postmaster and gave altogether ten years of service in that capacity. He became a stockholder at the time of the organization of the Cambridge City Tribune, and was an important factor in the financial and business management of that paper until April 1, 1925. Mr. Mosbaugh was elected and served seven years as trustee of Jackson Township and in 1905 was elected recorder of Wayne County for a term of four years. He is a Republican.
Mr. Mosbaugh married, August 1, 1882, Miss Alice Lackey, who was born at Cambridge City, daughter of Sanford and Jane (Murphy) Lackey, her mother a native of Fayette County, Indiana, and her father of Chillicothe, Ohio. Her father, with other members of the family, came to Indiana and platted the first section of East Cambridge City, in 1833. He owned a large tract of land and he gave the name of Cambridge to the town, this later being changed to Cambridge City. He was the first postmaster there. As a farmer he specialized in the breeding of horses. Mr. and Mrs. Mosbaugh had three children: John Lackey, with the Sinclair Oil Company at Springfield, Massachusetts; Robert P., a dentist practicing at Oxford, Ohio, and Karl C., who was born in 1890 and died in 1896. Mr. Mosbaugh and family are members of the Episcopal Church. He is a Mason and is the only living charter member of Cambridge Lodge No. 9, Knights of Pythias. He is a former commander of the Grand Army Post.
His brother George enlisted in the spring of 1865 in Company H of the One Hundred and Forty-sixth Indiana Infantry. His sister, Henrietta M., married Lewis G. Kiees, the Civil war soldier who for many years was a mail carrier at Cincinnati and he served as post-mistress and deputy postmistress at Cambridge City for fourteen years. Mr. Mosbaugh's sister Margaret W., born December 25, 1853,, when thirteen years of age went to live with her sister, Mrs. Kiees, in Cincinnati, attended school there, graduating from high school in 1872 and she gave the greater part of her life to educational work. She taught at Cambridge City, at Mishawake, Newport, Kentucky, and was teacher of mathematics for twenty-eight years in Woodward High School. She dies October 31, 1909. A son of Mrs. Kiees, George F. Kiees, is a prominent architect in New York City and a daughhter, Grace Margaret Kiees, born July 6, 1871, has for many years been a teacher of music and art, formerly teaching in Boise, Idaho, Minneapolis and Indianapolis, and is now art teacher in the public schools of Cincinnati.
