Gilbert Gordon Kincaid is one of the best known farmers of Fugit Township, and he is also one of the most extensive farmers, owning three hundred and seventy-five acres of good land which is in an excellent state of cultivation. He has a splendid country home, beautifully set in elaborate and well-kept grounds; the large white barn appearing in the background is the most striking evidence of Mr. Kincaid’s thrift and prosperity.
Born on November 6, 1857, on the farm where he now lives, Gilbert Gordon Kincaid is the son of John and Nancy Helen (Alexander) Kincaid, the former of whom was born in Kentucky in November 1813, and who died in May 1894. He was the son of John W. Kincaid, a native of Tennessee, who emigrated to Kentucky and who brought his family to Decatur County in 1831, shortly after the settlement of this county began. He was preceded to Indiana by two of his sons, Joseph and Andrew, to Decatur County where he entered government land and eventually came to own a large tract of land in Fugit Township. John W. Kincaid had married a Miss English.
Gilbert Gordon Kincaid is the son of his father by the third marriage. The father was first married to Martha McCracken, no children having been born to this marriage. Later he married Miss Alexander, a sister of his third wife. By this marriage there were two daughters, Mrs. Martha Helen McCracken and Mrs. Mary A. Martin. He then married Nancy Helen Alexander, to which third union there were six children, three of whom are deceased. The names of the children in order of their birth, are as follow: Priscilla, who married Sutherland McCoy; Rhoda M., deceased; John, who died at the age of twenty; William, of Decatur County; Gilbert Gordon, of this sketch, and Cyrus, deceased.
It was the good fortune of John Kincaid, whose home was northwest of his son’s place and who also owned a house north of his son’s farm, that he prospered as a farmer and became the owner of several farms and extremely wealthy. A Democrat in politics, he always took an active interest in the councils of his party and was regarded as one of its leaders in Decatur County. The family were always active in the Springhill Presbyterian church.
Educated in the Clarksburg schools and the New Neighborhood school, Gilbert Gordon Kincaid farmed at home with his father for many years, residing with him and caring for him until his death. At different times his father gave him land, and he also purchased at various times tracts of land in the neighborhood where he lived, until now he owns, as heretofore state, three hundred and seventy-five acres of land in Fugit Township. Mr. Kincaid has come to be an extensive breeder of mules, and ordinarily has from forty-five to fifty head on the farm where he also raises a great number of horses and cattle, and keeps only the very best grade of stock.
On November 9, 1898, some years after the death of his father, Gilbert Gordon Kincaid married Grace McWilliams, daughter of Ephraim McWilliams. The marriage ceremony was solemnized at Mrs. Kincaid’s grandmother’s home, near Greensburg, the grandmother being Mrs. Sarah Meek. Four children have been born to this marriage, one of whom, the eldest, Mary Helen, died at the age of ten years. Of the others, Helen Mildred, who was born February 9, 1904, is now eleven years old; John Alexander was born on May 20, 1909; William Gordon, Jr. was born on May 18, 1914.
As a Democrat, Mr. Kincaid has always been interested in politics to some extent, but has never been a candidate for any office. Mr. and Mrs. Kincaid and family are members of the Springhill Presbyterian church. From any standpoint it must be admitted that he is a worthy son of one of the pioneer farmers of Decatur County, a worthy son of his noble mother, Nancy Helen (Alexander) Kincaid. As a farmer and citizen, he is living up to the worth example set by his grandfather, John W. Kincaid, and his grandfather, John Alexander, who came from other states to found pioneer homes in the Hoosier wilderness. Any man who is industrious, economical and thrifty, good to his family and interested in public enterprises, deserves to be considered a good citizen. Gilbert Kincaid is such a man.
