from The History of Hendricks County (Indianapolis: B.F. Bowen & Co., 1914)--pages 464-466
The history of many Indiana families takes us back into colonial times, and it is a source of satisfaction to trace the history of a family from the seventeenth century up to the present time. The Christies of Hendricks County trace their ancestry back to colonial times, where they have found that the original founder of the family was educated for a Catholic priest. However, his relatives objected so vigorously to his espousal of the Catholic faith that he left England and came to this country, where he could worship as he pleased. He settled in Virginia and in the course of time married a woman of refinement and culture who lived in the city of Philadelphia. To this marriage there was born one son, James, who, in turn, married and became the father of William, the founder of the Hendricks County branch of the Christies. James Christie enlisted in the Revolutionary War when a very young man and served for seven years. James married Sarah Lemond and settled in Franklin County, Virginia, on the James River, where he lived until 1803. He then moved to Lincoln County, Kentucky, and a year later he moved with all his family to Shelby County, in the same state, where he taught school until his death. William was the third of the ten children born to James Christie and wife.
William Christie was born in Virginia, August 25, 1786, and was sixteen years of age when his parents moved to Kentucky. Therefore, he had but little chance for schooling, although his father taught all of his children to read and write at home. He acquired a fair knowledge of law and, being a wide reader, he was well versed in the topics of the day. On August 15, 1805, when only nineteen, he was married to Sarah Miles, who died a year later, leaving an infant daughter, Mary. On February 20, 1810, William married Elizabeth Miles, a cousin of his first wife. At the opening of the War of 1812 he enlisted and served throughout as the captain of a pack-horse company. After his return from the war he lived on a farm in Kentucky and held some minor offices in his county. In the fall of 1836 he moved to Hendricks County, Indiana, where he lived until his death, May 30, 1878. He died in the faith of the Regular Baptist Church, to which he had belonged for nearly seventy-five years.
Robert Opie Christie, the great-grandson of William Christie, was born December 4, 1872, in Marion Township, Hendricks County, Indiana. His parents were James P. and Amantha Ann (Yowell) Christie, his father being born in this county on November 19, 1844. James P. was married in 1871 to Amanthis Ann, the daughter of Walker and Eliza (Duvall) Yowell. Walker Yowell was a native of Virginia and came west to Kentucky with his parents when he was a small boy. He grew to manhood and married in that state. In 1854 he came to Hendricks County and located on the farm in Marion Township where James Christie now lives. He lived on this farm of eighty acres until his death, in 1902, at the age of eighty-four, having been born in 1817. His wife was born in Kentucky and died in Marion Township, this county, in 1885, at the age of fifty-six.
James P. Christie was the second son of eight children born to John and Lucinda (Bush) Christie. John was a native of Kentucky, being born in that state January 15, 1816, and dying in this county October 8, 1888. He was farmer and carpenter all his life, and took quite an interest in public affairs. He was a Democrat and was elected supervisor several times in his township. His wife was a native of Kentucky, but came to this county when a small girl with her parents and was reared in the county. She died in 1891. Mr. and Mrs. John Christie were the parents of eight children: William P., James, Thomas J., Sarah Elizabeth (deceased), Lemon M., John Wesley (deceased), Frank Douglass and George Washington.
James P. Christie spent his boyhood days on his father's farm, receiving his schooling in the district schools of the neighborhood. He worked on his father's farm until he was twenty-eight and then moved to his present farm of one hundred and eighteen acres. He has been a road supervisor for the past thirty years. His wife, Amanthis Ann Yowell, was born in Kentucky in 1851 and has lived in this county since she was four years of age. To James P. Christie and wife have been born three children: Robert O., the subject of this sketch; Mrs. Beatrice Hadley and Herbert D.
Robert O. Christie was educated in the schools of his home township and then spent three terms in the Central Norman College of Danville. He started farming on his present farm, which is a part of the old homestead farm. In addition to a general system of farming, he specializes in cattle breeding, raising Shorthorn and Durham cattle for the market. He has a fine herd on hand at all times and is an expert judge of cattle. He is regarded as one of the best stock raisers in central Indiana, and is rapidly coming to the front as one of the leading cattle experts of the state.
Mr. Christie was married on October 9, 1895, to Clara Rogers, the daughter of Chilin and Sallie (Clay) Rogers. Her parents are natives of this county and are now living retired at Amo, Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. Christie have had two children, but both died in early childhood, Gladys R. at the age of six and Ruth at the age of two and a half.
In his political relations, Mr. Christie has always voted the Democratic ticket, believing in the principles advocated by that party. He is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and has been a member of the Friends Church since he was seventeen years of age. He is now an overseer in the church. His wife is a member of the Christian Church at New Winchester. Mr. Christie is a genial man and has always been a hard worker. He is a man who has favored all civic enterprises which might help the community and because of his public spiritedness he is justly regarded as one of the representative men of the county.