John A. Dunlap. Among the men who are now maintaining the dignity and reputation of the Rensselaer bar, John A. Dunlap is easily one of the first both in sound knowledge of the law, in breadth of experience and in his high standing as a man and citizen. Mr. Dunlap started out in life with a determined purpose to make himself useful in a profession, and though his means were severely limited he accepted every opportunity for advancement and by teaching, by working on farms, and at other occupations paid his way while digging through the wall of learning that 'encloses this field of human knowledge. He has the distinction of being a native of one of the counties included in this historical survey. John A. Dunlap was born in Newton County August 1,1878, a son of John and Henrietta (Crisler) Dunlap. Of the six children of these parents four are still living. The parents were also natives of Indiana, and John Dunlap was a farmer and to some extent was identified with merchandising during his brief career. When a young man, he located to Newton County, and died at Julian at the early age of thirty-five in 1885. His widow survived until 1899. Seven years of age when his father died, John A. Dunlap owes much to the love and diligence of his good mother, who kept her little family together until she married James Dunlap, a brother of her first husband. By her second marriage she became the mother of two children, one of them still living. These facts suggest that John A. Dunlap did not grow up in a home of luxury, and he early realized that he must make his own opportunities in life. At the age of sixteen he is said to have started his practical career, working as a farm hand during the summer months and attending school in winter. In this way he was able to complete what is now considered the equivalent of a high school course, attending the schools at Morocco, and later took a course in the Northern Indiana Normal School at Valparaiso. Securing a teacher's license, he taught intermittently and also pursued his studies of law in the office of Davis & Graves at Morocco, and was later a student in the office of Graves & Sutcliff at Warsaw. In 1900, Mr. Dunlap was admitted to the bar and at once started private practice at Syracuse, Indiana. He later went West, was located at Independence, Kansas, for a time, and for two and a half years had considerable experience as a lawyer in Los Angeles, California. Returning to his native state in 1910, he located at Rensselaer, and in the past five years has built up an excellent practice in the law. Mr. Dunlap is a Republican, and has affiliations with the Masonic Order, Lodge No.125, and the Knights of Pythias, Castle Hall No. 82. On September 20, 1905, he married Miss Helen Johnson of Chicago. To their marriage has been born one daughter, Dorothy Anna. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- USGENWEB NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Submitted By Beth Bassett beth@ffni.com