ELBA L.
BRANIGIN. It is a well attested
maxim that the greatness of a community or state lies not in the machinery of
government, nor even in its institutions, but rather in the sterling qualities
of the individual citizen, in his capacity for high and unselfish effort and
his devotion to the public welfare. In these particulars he whose name appears
at the head of this paragraph has conferred honor and dignity on his county,
and as an elemental part of history it is consonant that there should be recorded
here a resume of his career, with the object in view of noting his connection
with the advancement of one of the most flourishing and progressive sections of
the commonwealth, as well as his career as a member of one of the most exacting
professions to which man can devote his talents and energies. Elba L. Branigin was born in Nineveh
township, Johnson county, Indiana, on the 12th day of November 1870 and is the
son of William D. and Nancy Jane
(Lash) Branigin, both of whom also were born and reared in that vicinity.
William D. Branigin is now an honored resident of Edinburg, this county, where
he is successfully engaged in the implement business. The subject's mother is deceased. To these parents were born
seven children, of whom five are living, namely: Nora L., the wife of William
O. Springer, of Greenwood,
Indiana; Ollie A., wife of Samuel Gibbs, of Indianapolis; Daisy A., wife of
Watson VanNuys, of Hopewell, Indiana; Verne, an attorney at Mt. Vernon,
Washington, and Elba L., the immediate subject of this sketch. The latter was
reared on the home farm and secured his elementary education in district school
No. 6, of Blue River township. In 1887 the family removed to Franklin. In 1886
Elba Branigin had entered the preparatory department of Franklin College, in
which institution he remained six years, graduating with the class of 1892 and
receiving the degree of Bachelor of Arts. He made a splendid record while in
college and in his freshman year won the declamation contest, being a speaker
of unusual grace and eloquence. In 1891 he was president of the State
Oratorical Association and in 1892 he represented Franklin College in the state
oratorical contest. After his
graduation, in 1892-3, Mr. Branigin taught a term of district school, and then
served three terms as principal of the Trafalgar schools, having in the
meantime married and removed to that town. During this period he had been
applying himself closely to the reading and studying of law, and on April 27,
1896, he was admitted to the bar of Johnson county. On March 7,
1896, he
had formed a law partnership with Thomas W. Woollen, who had formerly been
attorney-general of the state of Indiana, this association continuing until the
death of Mr. Woollen, on February 12, 1898. About a year later Mr. Branigin
formed a partnership with Thomas Williams, which relation still continues. This
is a strong and popular law firm, which has been connected, on one side or the
other, as counsel in much of the most important litigation which has been tried
in the local court, and Mr. Branigin's reputation
as a lawyer has
steadily increased until now he is numbered among the leaders of the bar in his
county. Well informed in his profession, faithful to his clients and the law,
and possessing a rare equinimity [sic] of temper and kindness of heart, Mr.
Branigin has not only gained high prestige in his profession, but he has also
gained to a notable degree the confidence and good will of the people
generally, He is an honest and fair practitioner, taking
no part in the
tricks of the pettifogger, which sometimes cast odium upon the profession. .
Mr. Branigin is a man of
high intellectual attainments, gained by much reading and study and close
observation of men and things. He possesses a splendid library and some of his
most enjoyable hours are spent among his books. In local history Mr. Branigin
is especially interested and he has for a number of years given much attention
to the collection of a vast fund of valuable information and data relative to
the early history of Johnson county, the fruits of his work being presented in
the historical portion of this volume.
On September 19,
1894, Mr. Branigin was married to Zula Francis, the daughter of Milton and Mary
(McCaslin) Francis, of Franklin, and they have four children, namely: Gerald
F., Edgar M., Roger D. and Elba L., Jr.
Politically, Mr.
Branigin has, since attaining his majority, been actively interested in the
success of the Democratic party, having served several years as secretary of
the county committee and one term as chairman of that body. In 1896, while
teaching at Trafalgar, he was elected county surveyor. From 1906 to 1910 he
served as attorney of the city of Franklin and from 1910 to 1913 he served as
county attorney, discharging his duties in these positions to the entire
satisfaction of all concerned. He has rendered efficient and appreciated
service as secretary of the Franklin Public Library ever since its
organization, is president of the Franklin Commercial Club, and has been a trustee
of and attorney for Franklin College since 1912. Socially, he is a member of
the Phi Delta Theta college fraternity. His religious membership is with the
First Baptist church of Franklin, of which he is a trustee and in the
prosperity of which he is earnestly interested, being also teacher of the Bible
class in the Sunday school
Fraternally, Mr.
Branigin has for a score of years been deeply interested in the work of the
Masonic order, in which he has received distinctive preferment. In Franklin
Lodge No. 107, he was received as an entered apprentice
on October 6,
1893, passed to the degree of fellowcraft [sic] on October 31, 1893, and raised
to the degree of a Master Mason on November 8, 1893; he was made a Royal Arch
Mason on October 3, 1901, and received the orders of Knight Templar on December
12, 1901. He took the degrees of the Scottish Rite with the fall class of 1906,
and on November 29, 1907, he became a noble of the Ancient Arabic Order of
Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, being a member of Indianapolis Consistory of the
former order and of Murat Temple, Indianapolis, of the latter. Mr. Branigin
served as worshipful master of Franklin Lodge No. 107 in 1903, as eminent
commander of Franklin Commandery No. 42. Knights Templar, in 1907 and in 1911
was excellent prelate of the latter body. He is now junior grand deacon of the
grand lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of the state of Indiana. While laboring
for his individual advancement, Mr. Branigin has never forgotten his
obligations to the public and his support of such measures and movements as
make for the general good can always be depended upon. A man of vigorous
mentality and strong moral fibre, he has achieved signal success in an exacting
calling and is eminently deserving of the large prestige which he enjoys in the
community with which his entire life has been identified.
Branigin, Elba
L.. History of Johnson County, Indiana. Indianapolis, IN: B. F. Bowen &
Co., Inc., 1913. pp 567-570.
Transcribed by Lois Johnson